Chapter 1055

Once Or Twice

Cammy hurried past Ally and headed for Sheila's room. She reached the door and rushed in. She saw Hanna gently touching Sheila's face as she spoke softly to her. She hurried to Sheila. She nearly shoved Hanna out of the way.

Hanna didn't care for Cammy's pushy attitude. There was no need for it.

"Take it easy." Hanna said. "We all care too."

Cammy glared at Hanna and Ally. She was sure they were responsible. She didn't know how or why but she figured somehow they must be.

"You did this to her." Cammy said.

Ally didn't mention it was actually Sheila that almost incapacitated them. She knew that there was a video file that both John Henry and CamNet had that would prove otherwise. Maybe it wasn't such a bad idea at this point that Sheila put everything on her body cam when she clandestinely filmed them without their knowledge. It would show that they weren't responsible.

"We didn't do anything." Ally said. "There's proof of that too."

Cammy remembered her troubles earlier and was sure Ally and Hanna did something to Sheila. She didn't think they were being truthful.

"I want some truthful answers from both of you." Cammy said forcefully. "Tell me exactly what happened in here, NOW."

Hanna wanted Cammy to calm down before she started to have a problem, another problem. The last thing she wanted to deal with would be to have both Sheila and Cammy incapacitated with Ally and her involved.

"Relax." Hanna said. "You'll end up the same way, again."

Ally was very upset by the entire episode.

"We love her as well." Ally said. "I love her too."

Cammy looked at Ally and knew she did love Sheila. She could see the tears in Ally's eyes.

"I'm sorry." Cammy said. "Please tell me. I need to know what happened. I need to figure out how to fix her."

Cammy looked at both of them and listened to the story. She knew this all started last night with her by the time they were done telling the story. It was clear to her that Sheila was going to send both of them down the same path that she'd been sent. She wasn't sure what was wrong with Sheila and why she would do that. She looked at Hanna and Ally for a moment but didn't say anything. It was clear what Sheila was going to do to them. She actually wondered why Sheila hadn't done it to her. She told Sheila to do what she wanted. She'd planned to leave her pain receptors on. She wanted to feel alive. Pain seemed to be the best indicator of that. It could be sustained and intensified.

Savannah finished up with her personal project.

It took her several hours to get everything right. She was satisfied and very pleased at the results.

She wondered if Cammy and Gail 'finished' up yet. She thought about calling but decided against that. It might interrupt them. She knew what it was like to almost 'finish' and be interrupted. It left her very dissatisfied to come close to a 'finish' but not be able to. When that happened, it required her to 'finish' on her own as soon as the opportunity presented itself. It actually usually called for several times to make up for it.

Savannah went out.

She headed for Jesse's room. She listened outside the door. It was quiet in there. She listened a little longer to make sure. She cracked the door open after a soft knock, it was dark inside.

Maybe they were in the nursery.

She approached Riley's room and listened. It was quiet in there. She moved one door down and listened. She could hear Jesse in there. That meant someone was in there with her. It should be Cammy and Gail. Savannah decided to join them. It would be exciting to be with Jesse and Gail with Cammy there.

Savannah hesitated.

She wondered why they were still in that room.

Maybe it was Jesse and Riley or Samantha.

Savannah was aware that the one person she could NEVER be with was Riley. She knew she could never do that and not hurt Cameron. Riley seemed to know it too and they never even came close to a sexual encounter. She was aware that Vanna and Allison never did either.

The girls all felt bad that they'd needed to treat Riley differently and keep her at a distance. They all did it for Cameron. It was an unwritten rule they all understood, even if none of them liked it. It was something that no one spoke about but just did it or in this case, didn't do it.

Savannah decided to move on. If Riley was in there she didn't want to cause tension.

Wait.

Cammy wouldn't be in there if Riley was.

Maybe Cammy and Gail went elsewhere.

Savannah decided to head to the Command Center and see what was happening. She would check to see where everyone was at. She already knew what they were doing.

Savannah could see John was surprised to see her when she walked in.

John and John Henry exchanged pleasantries with her.

"I was busy in my room for a few hours." Savannah said. "Did I miss anything?"

She noticed John and John Henry looked at each other when she made that statement. She figured they probably thought she'd been with somebody or even several people. They didn't know that she'd actually been alone and working on something that was important to her. Then again they could have thought that she'd pleasured herself.

John Henry ran down all the operations that were in progress. Derek and Kyle would be back in a short while. Their recon didn't produce anything.

Savannah was aware that they were only assigned the lowest risk assignments. They didn't like that but every lead still needed to be checked. Someone needed to do it. They knew it was better than nothing. They also knew any recon could go hot in an instant. They had before and most likely they would again at some point.

She found out everyone was on their way back from the beach.

John Henry directed her to another monitor. She looked at it and nodded. She took out her phone and looked at it. It showed Cammy was with Sheila, Hanna and Ally in Sheila's room. Cam, Holly and Claire were in Vanna's room. She knew they were going to need a 'heads up' before Allison got back, for a couple of reasons. The main reason was that Allison's mother was with her Metal girlfriend. She didn't like to see what her mother did.

Savannah wanted to stop by there to be with Claire and Holly again. She'd really enjoyed sharing with them in Cameron's future. Cammy and Cam normally switched off at least one day a week with Vanna and her.

She thought she might stop by there but decided the time was too short before Vanna and Allison returned. She wouldn't have time for everyone. She didn't like to 'eat and run'. She would look Holly and Claire up later.

Savannah thanked them both and headed out of the Command Center.

She found Anna instructing Summer in what would become Summer's room if she stayed at the Resistance base. The door was open.

Summer saw Savannah and asked Anna if Savannah could watch her be tested.

Anna didn't think it would be a problem.

"Do you have a few minutes?" Anna asked.

Savannah always liked to spend time with Summer. It was clear that she was highly gifted in multiple fields. She was sure there was a lot more going on there than any of them knew.

"I always do for my little angel." Savannah said.

Summer smiled and gave Savannah a hug.

Savannah watched as Anna tested Summer. She scored a hundred percent.

Anna received a call. It was Sarah asking if Jan could watch a movie with Summer for a few hours.

Summer smiled at Savannah and Anna.

"Kyle's back…." Summer said. "They're going to be 'busy' in Sarah's room."

Savannah and Anna looked at each other but said nothing. It was clear Summer knew what was happening around her, even here.

Jan arrived a few minutes later.

Summer wanted Anna to instruct Jan some before the movie.

Savannah excused herself.

Earlier:

Holly and Claire arrived at Vanna's room. Cam laid out some of the swim suits and beach attire.

They decided to try them on to see what fit Holly. Claire wanted to see how she looked. She hadn't been in a two piece bathing suit since Summer was born. She looked in the mirror at her belly and at her breasts. She thought that she was still presentable. She liked the way she looked and apparently everyone else did as well.

At one point all three of them were in the process of switching when Claire stopped both of the Metal girls from trying on the next one, they were all naked. She moved the clothes off the bed and opened it up.

Claire sat on the bed and said they could do the beach some other time.

Cam and Holly looked at each other and headed for Claire on the bed.

Claire looked at them and smiled. She knew she was in for a good time.

Later:

Savannah checked the time and saw Cameron and the girls would be back soon. It was time to send a message to Cam so she could make the others aware.

Cam responded with a 'thank you' and said Holly and Claire were almost 'finished'. She indicated she was watching them together and about to 'finish' herself.

Savannah smiled and headed back to her room.

She changed her direction and headed to the infirmary for a quick stop. She wanted to obtain some additional supplies. She quickly found everything that she wanted.

She headed for her room again with a box she needed items from. She decided to prepare everything in advance so there would be no 'mix ups'.

Earlier:

Cameron wanted the girls to have some fun but keep it toned down. She didn't want to attract any more attention to their group.

"We can go to the nude beach." Young Allison said. "I don't have anything to hide."

Vanna and Allison looked at each other.

Allison figured Vanna would really enjoy that. She could see Young Allison and her both nude at the same time. That wasn't something that Vanna normally got to do. It only ever happened if they were all at the pool at the same time. She figured at some point later on, once Young Allison became active, that Vanna would look Young Allison up. She knew it was something she couldn't complain about because that's exactly what she'd done with Savannah. She thought about it a little bit more and figured it would actually probably be the other way around. Young Allison would probably seek out Vanna at some point in the future first. She was aware Young Allison stated on multiple occasions that she was going to do everything that Savannah had done. Nobody doubted her but they all hoped it wouldn't be anytime soon. They all hoped that she wouldn't be pregnant right away either.

She wanted to get a little dig in on Young Allison and remind her of her place. The big girls were here now.

"You don't have anything to hide because you don't have anything." Allison said.

Young Allison didn't want to get into an argument with Allison but she wanted to point out what was inevitable.

"Keep telling yourself that. You might even believe it one day yourself." Young Allison said. "I'm the one that's going to look like Future Allison a lot sooner than you all know. I want to hear you say that to me then."

Vanna didn't want there to be any trouble. She wanted to change the subject back to what they had been previously discussing. She liked the idea of the nude beach with some qualifications.

"If the nude beach was all female, I'd like to go." Vanna said and quickly added. "If Allison wanted to go there I mean."

Young Allison was still a little defiant and upset at Allison. She wanted to give Vanna something to think about. She specifically looked at Allison for the last part of her comment. It was a direct challenge.

"I already said I'm willing to go." Young Allison said. "If it's all female, I'm really in. "I'll draw more looks than anyone there except maybe Cameron. Now what do you have to say about yourself?"

Allison was offended by what Young Allison just said.

"She was talking to me." Allison said.

Young Allison flashed her sly smile and shrugged her shoulders.

"So was I. It's the same thing." Young Allison said. "You are me. Face it, I'm sexier than you and I look better than you. Size doesn't mean a thing."

Allison made a face and shook her head slowly from side to side.

Young Allison wasn't done playing with them.

"If we all go, what would Bob do then?" Young Allison asked. "I think he would be a hit there, especially if it was all female. I doubt few of them have actually seen a real man."

Young Allison looked at Bob and giggled.

Bob was going to comment that he was neither real nor a man. He didn't want to challenge the one of 'Chosen Ones'. He was sure everything she said was in jest.

Cameron didn't like where the conversation was going. She'd remained silent so far. She wanted to see how Young Allison would interact with everyone else after the altercation. It was clear that Young Allison was totally unfazed by any of it and ready for more. She believed that she was sincere about the nude beach as well. Maybe that was something that she could do with Young Allison on her own without anyone else around to influence them. She would like to bring Savannah as well but didn't think things would go over smoothly if she did. Maybe it would just be her and Young Allison. It wasn't going to happen today.

"That's not going to happen." Cameron said. "We're not going there, at least not today."

Bob looked more than a little relieved. He thought that he'd been through enough challenges for a day. He wasn't sure how it would go over if he were nude and surrounded by nothing but nude females. He was pretty sure that he would be at 'full attention' rather quickly. He knew that that would be a turn off for some of the females but it would also be a turn on for some of them. He knew that he would be able to use his Terminator ability to be with all of them if the situation arose. He wouldn't need to have the refractory time of a human male. Somehow it just didn't seem like a good idea. He would rather go back to the base.

"Thank You." Bob said. "I would prefer to deal with Skynet."

Young Allison wanted to have some fun. They were still at the beach and hadn't done much of anything. Vanna and Allison seemed pretty keyed up from the encounter with the weightlifters. Cameron would be up to any challenge. Bob would be too depending on what it was.

"We can play beach volleyball." Young Allison said.

Vanna never played before. She'd seen the game played but never played it herself. It was usually two people on each side of the net. It seemed like there was a lot of running and jumping. The five of them as a team playing together would be more formidable.

"We haven't played beach volleyball before." Vanna said. "We would be at a disadvantage. Maybe we could play team volleyball."

Young Allison felt their team would have a distinct advantage.

"We can play as a five person team." Young Allison said. "All we need to do is let Bob and Cameron get the ball as often as possible."

Bob wasn't so sure about it.

"I've never played before either." Bob said.

Young Allison thought it would be easy for all of them.

"How hard can it be?" Young Allison asked. "You just hit the ball back over the net and stay within boundaries.

Cameron wanted to keep their interaction with other individuals to a minimum. They'd already experienced a challenge earlier. If they were out on the beach, there were bound to be more people that may have phones that could take pictures of them or record them.

"I've played before. It's not hard." Cameron said. "It's really all simple mathematics. I played pool before. It's the same thing. You simply calculate the trajectory and take the shot. We should just play by ourselves."

Young Allison smiled. It was back to her original suggestion. She was up to a personal challenge. She made a point to look at Allison as she laid out her plan.

"It can be Cameron and me against you three." Young Allison said. "I'm still a little shorter than the rest of you. It will be two against three."

Allison was sure they were about to get played. She understood that Young Allison just personally challenged her. She was aware that Young Allison didn't play fair. She played to win. She was very ruthless at it as well.

"This sounds like a set up." Allison said. "I don't want to get played like a rube."

Vanna thought about the area that they'd just left a short while ago. It seemed like pretty much the same thing to her even if it was different.

"Now you know how the body builders felt." Vanna said.

Allison smiled and shrugged her shoulders. She thought the body builders deserved what they got. She still didn't like what was said to them.

Bob didn't think that Vanna and Allison would be able to match Young Allison. It didn't matter if there were two of them and they both had a size advantage. He'd gone on a lot of training missions with her. He knew that she wouldn't quit until the objective was reached. He wanted to let Vanna and Allison know what was in store for them.

He looked at Cameron and Young Allison.

"They will not lose." Bob said. "Cameron and Allison will defeat us."

Young Allison threw out another option.

"Look, there's a 'horseshoe' pit." Young Allison said. "I bet Cameron will get the high score."

Allison was sure it was another set up. She didn't think anything was hard for Young Allison. Both Summer and Young Allison excelled at everything that they did. She was also aware that Summer was going to be able to give Young Allison a run for her money in any of her challenges.

"That's a suckers bet." Allison said. "Have you played before?"

Young Allison tried to downplay her experience.

"I may have once or twice." Young Allison said. "It's hard for me."

Allison wasn't going to buy that answer for a second.

"Now I know we're being set up." Allison said.

Vanna wanted to play but not make it a competition. She just wanted to have some fun. She didn't get out much and certainly it wasn't to play any type of games. It seemed like it would be something nice to do. It would help relieve some of the stress from the earlier encounter with the weightlifters. That entire episode hadn't left her with a pleasant feeling at all. She realized that she wanted to kill the mouthy weightlifter just by the way he looked at Young Allison. There were men who looked at her like that in her future. They did things to her. She still didn't understand why they always needed to flip her over at some point.

"I think you're right." Vanna said. "We can do both things but not for a score. We'll play just to play then and have fun. I'd like to have a little fun and not worry about anything else other than just to have fun with the people I want to be with."

Young Allison didn't want to make Allison and Vanna feel bad. She felt she'd made her point without really trying to. She wanted Vanna to have a good time. She saw how upset she was earlier. She also saw that she was going to attack the mouthy weightlifter because of the way that he looked at her and spoke to her. She knew that any Savannah Weaver would protect her, as she would them.

"Sure." Young Allison said. "We're all on the same team anyway."

Bob was aware they would need to have some type of separation.

"We still need some kinds of teams." Bob said.

Young Allison was always up for a challenge.

"If we're just playing for fun, it's the girls against the machines." Young Allison said.

Vanna and Allison both hugged Young Allison. They appreciated her inclusiveness.

Bob wanted to make the game fair for the girls. He gave them an option.

"Are we going to be restricted to your ability level?" Bob asked.

Young Allison saw the advantage the machines would have over them just evaporate. She would have suggested it herself because that's what she normally did. She'd hoped someone else would bring it up without any prompting. It's pleased more that it was one of the Terminators.

"Now that you mentioned it, it would make it more fun for Allison and Vanna." Young Allison said. "I don't know if Cameron wants to do that."

Cameron didn't like restrictions. Maybe this was a test by Young Allison.

"You've never asked me to do that before." Cameron said.

Young Allison put the ball in Cameron's court. Cameron made her make some decisions earlier in the day, now it was her turn.

"I didn't ask now either." Young Allison said. "We're here with Vanna and Allison and they want to have some fun. Life is about choices. It's up to you."

Cameron tilted her head slightly as she looked at the three girls.

It was a test. It was a personal challenge.

Cameron and Young Allison looked at each other.

"I will play with the same ability as Allison." Cameron said.

That didn't give Allison any confidence. Even though she was the first one picked, she felt more like she was the last one picked for a team.

"Great, that must mean I'm the worst." Allison said.

Vanna caught the visual exchange between Cameron and Young Allison. She saw the challenge for what it really was. Young Allison wanted to pit herself against Cameron on a level playing field.

"I don't think she meant you, Allison." Vanna said.

Cameron and Young Allison still looked at each other. Cameron was willing to reduce her 'natural ability'. She wanted something in return.

"We play fair and clean." Cameron said. "We're here to have fun."

Young Allison nodded at Cameron. That statement meant that she was to play fair and not create some type of unfair advantage or find a way to cheat.

Bob thought he would need to wait a couple of rounds so that he could properly emulate Vanna and Allison.

"I will alternate between Vanna and Allison's ability." Bob said. "I want it to be an even match, even if we're one player short."

The group headed off and played 'horseshoes' first. They all shared a good time and a lot of laughs at the ones that missed the pit completely. Even though there was no score being kept, they were all aware that Young Allison and Cameron played neck in neck. Young Allison always made Cameron go first and matched her shot.

They eventually played some volleyball and it actually looked like Cameron was having fun. She was smiling and laughing. Other than Young Allison, none of them ever saw Cameron this playful and carefree before. It seemed to make all of them happy, even Bob.

Vanna wondered if it was because Cameron was with Young Allison and felt comfortable or that Allison and her were there too. Maybe it was fun for Cameron because they were just interacting and sharing a good time. There was no competition. There was no one that needed to win.

She remembered one time John told her about when Cameron thought she was Future Allison and was in a halfway house because she couldn't remember anything. When he went in to get her, she was playing Foosball. She was laughing and giggling and there was a giant smile on her face. He said he'd never seen her that happy before and never had since. She wondered if this is what Cameron looked like at that time. She also remembered that John regretted he'd spoiled that moment of happiness for Cameron.

Allison was sure it was because Young Allison was there with Cameron that made Cameron look so content and happy. Cameron looked that way around Savannah too. She didn't think Cameron looked that way around John. She really thought that was because of the different nature of the two relationships. One was based on appearance and sex while the other two were based upon love and everything that made that love possible. There was no sexual component involved, not yet anyway.

They played three games and decided to head back.

Vanna looked at her shoulders and arms.

"I think I got sunburnt." Vanna said.

Allison looked at Vanna and touched her face.

"I can see it a little bit." Allison said. "I think I did too."

Vanna had never seen any of the Terminators that appeared to have a sunburn before when she'd done repairs.

"Do you sunburn, Cameron?" Vanna asked.

Cameron was aware that her sheath was much more durable and resistant to various types of damage than human skin was.

"No, my sheath isn't damaged easily. It would take a lot of exposure." Cameron said. "That's why I never have tan lines."

Cameron looked at Young Allison and smiled.

Now Young Allison didn't know if Cameron was messing with her earlier about the nude beach and not having tan lines because she was naked or not being able to get a sunburn easily. She wasn't sure if she should ask her or not. Maybe it wasn't the best idea with the current company that was with them.

They finished up and headed for home.

Cameron offered to take them for a late lunch but Young Allison said she wanted to bring Savannah.

That thought pleased Cameron. She wanted that too. She liked when the girls looked out for each other as well as sought each other out when it was possible.

Cameron checked with John Henry about what Savannah was doing and he said she was alone in her room. She took a package with her and closed the door when she went in. He also said she sent Cammy away with Gail and Jesse.

She was a little surprised to hear those three things. It sounded like Savannah was involved with something personal.

"We can go back and get cleaned up and then go out." Cameron said.

Young Allison smiled at Cameron.

Cameron wondered if her smile produced the same effect on others as Young Allison's smile did on her. She wasn't sure if it was the smile itself or because it was Young Allison. She thought maybe it was actually a combination of both. A smile mattered but the person behind the smile was What mattered more. It also mattered if the smile was genuine or not.

Over the years Cameron always made it a point to be a mentor and friend to Young Allison rather than a 'mother' figure. She knew what their destiny was and fostered that concept from the beginning. They were to be equals to each other and Savannah. She made sure Young Allison and Savannah did as well. This was more than a 'job' to her. It was what she wanted. It was what she needed.

Cameron smiled back at Young Allison.

Vanna and Allison caught the exchange between Cameron and Young Allison. It was hard to say who had the prettiest smile. They were identical.

Once Or Twice

To find true love
One needs to roll the dice
They'd better be willing
To pay the price

They might find a heart
That's as cold as ice
Or they could walk down the aisle
Showered with flowers and rice

The path forward
May be filled with spice
Or from one's heart
Cut out a slice

Everyone needs to listen
To proven sound advice
Or they're going to end up
As a human sacrifice

It doesn't take long
To learn there is no paradise
Things should have been
Kept a little more concise

Sooner rather than later
Others began to entice
Don't think you're the only one
It may have happened once or twice

Nobody