Chapter 469

Temporal Ticket

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Future Timeline - Undetermined Error:

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Savannah's heartbeat raced out of control.

Pound - Pound - Pound

Not only could she feel every beat of her heart, she could hear it. She was sure if she could hear it so clearly, so could whoever was stalking her. She knew they were headed right towards her.

Pound - Pound - Pound

Savannah hid in the tall grass. She knew someone was about to find her. She was sure it was Scavengers. She knew what was coming next. Vanna and Jesse both warned her of what would happen in the future, not maybe, but it would happen. They didn't know a single female who wasn't abused at least a few times. For many of them it was more. For them, it was a lot more. Now it was going to happen to her. She heard the stories, there were others which they said they could never tell. She even experienced nightmares about it before. It wasn't supposed to be as bad of a 'problem' in Cameron's future, but it still existed on a smaller scale. It appeared somehow she just drew the short straw. She knew all the other versions of 'Savannah Weaver' went through the same thing. Now it was her turn. She briefly glanced down at her perfect figure and knew it would never look the same once they were 'done'. She'd be lucky to live. Depending on how badly she was mutilated, she might be luckier to die.

Pound - Pound - Pound

She gripped the sharpened stone Cammy made for her. She could feel the sharp edges almost cut into her fingers. Cammy dulled them some where she needed to hold it. Vanna told her not to resist and do whatever they said. It wasn't how Cameron raised her. She wasn't ready to roll over, either figuratively or literally. It was time for action. She decided she was going to fight. She would try to hurt as many as she could first, maybe they would kill her then. She wasn't going to submit to anyone. They could have her dead body, but they were never going to have her.

Pound - Pound - Pound

The movement was closer now. Savannah was pumped full of adrenaline. She felt it surge through her body. It would give her extra strength or speed for a short time. Stab, slash, gouge, run, and run some more. She would try for the juggler in the neck or the eyes first and then sprint. She would try to draw them away from Cammy. Cammy should hear the commotion and come to aid her, unless they were there to capture Cammy. Then Cammy needed to run.

Pound - Pound - Pound

She decided maybe she should buy time for Cammy to escape. She would need to sacrifice herself so maybe, just maybe, Cammy could get away. Earlier Cammy wanted her to destroy her chip. She knew she could never do it. She would rather trade her own life. She concentrated her attention. She took control of her body.

Pound - Thump - Thump

She suppressed her fears and continued her calculations as to what she would do. She wasn't a scared female in the Wastelands. She was a trained Resistance fighter. Resistance included more than just resisting Skynet. It represented resisting all the forces of evil and wrongdoing.

Thump - Thump - Thump

Savannah was tired of waiting. She decided she was going to attack. If not her - who? If not now - when? She gripped the sharp stone and readied herself. Cameron and Sarah trained her for years. They trained her to fight and survive, not to submit or surrender. She held a weapon. She could use her hands and feet. She needed to try to get one of their weapons if she could. She knew she could take hits and still stay in the fight. It was all mental. Even if she was shot in the heart, she could fight for fifteen more seconds until the blood no longer reached her brain and she would pass out. She could take one more of the enemy down in that amount of time. Sarah told her to take the pain and fight harder. Don't stop until you're dead. Fight….

Thump - Thump - Thump

There was a loud crunch of brush.

Thump - Thump - Thump

They'd found her.

Thump - Thump - Thump

This was it!

Thump - Thump - Thump

The time for thinking was over.

Thump - Thump - Thump

"Run, Cammy, run." Savannah shouted as she sprang to her feet.

Thump - Thump - Thump

She searched for a target.

The fear was gone.

It was time to FIGHT.

Savannah was a weapon….

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Resistance Base - Current Timeline:

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John Henry was concerned with all the temporal activity at Cameron's base. He was sure it was an indication something may have gone wrong. He was contacted by Savannah at one point. She told him what the situation was and what she was going to do about it. John and Bob went to Cameron's base to attempt to stop Savannah from leaving. Their actions seemed to have the opposite effect and expedited the procedure.

There were still operations to conduct. They were still resistance matters which needed to be attended to. They couldn't get sidetracked on Cameron's operations, even if they were indirectly related.

It seemed John and Cameron, along with most of the Metal girls, were caught up in whatever they were doing. Since he didn't know the details, he could only speculate what side effects their actions might produce.

He'd detected temporal activity which was outside the scope of what CamNet was doing. CamNet indicated whatever activity he detected wasn't related to her. She informed him Gail and Jesse were not far from where he detected the activity. They were near one of the incursions. They weren't involved with it.

He was surprised CamNet told him Gail and Jesse were near there. He wasn't sure what Gail and Jesse did when they were out. No one seemed to know. They never actually seemed to go anywhere or do anything. They never talked about it either. The speculation was Jesse and Gail dealt with future Scavengers. It was a personal issue for Jesse. They operated outside of the scope of the Resistance in their 'free time'. Everyone in the Resistance was allowed to have personal time for themselves to do whatever they wanted. It applied to both humans and Terminators.

He was concerned as to the scope of what they did. He asked Gail about it specifically before.

Gail appeared irritated with his question.

"We do what Jesse wants." Gail said. "Our private time belongs to us."

His concern was for any unexplained terminations which might overlap any Resistance operations. Cameron warned him before everyone's 'private time' was important to them. He was not to interfere with it.

He dispatched Steve and Tom to go check it out. He did think he should warn Jesse and Gail there could be a problem near them. He didn't want them to inadvertently get caught up in it without any warning.

Earlier:

Gail and Jesse parked their SUV in a secure location several blocks away from the target area. They acquired a van nearby and drove it a block away from the location. They proceeded on foot towards their destination. They waited next to a dumpster in a back alley.

A cat approached where they were concealed. It paused, arched its back and hissed. It then ran off back the way it came.

Gail looked at Jesse and shrugged her shoulders. Animals didn't care much for her. She didn't know why people liked to keep them as pets. They didn't seem very intelligent and didn't contribute to anything useful. They were just there. The owner would need to go to the trouble of providing them with food. They would also need to clean up the remains of the food once it was processed through the animal's body. It seems like a very inefficient system to provide energy. A power cell was far superior in every regard.

Jesse didn't want Gail to dwell on the nature of her construction. It was irrelevant for what they were after. They were after the takers and abusers. They were after those who hurt innocent people for their own personal gain.

"Easy, love." Jesse said. "It was just another 'hisser'."

Jesse figured it would probably be after some rodent soon enough. She spotted several on the way there. She was just glad she didn't need to catch one for food. There was some noise next to them.

A door on the other side of the trash dumpster they hid behind opened. A man staggered out. He fastened his pants as he lumbered away.

"At least the drugs were better than the broad." The man muttered.

Gail noted his actions as well as his demeanor. She didn't care for his rude comment either. She knew trouble when she saw it, even if it was the results of it. There was an easy solution available.

"Do you want me to terminate him?" Gail asked.

Jesse did want him terminated. If he came their way, he would be in the dumpster right now. His next stop would be the city dump. It was where trash and rubbish belonged. She didn't want the small fish. She wanted the big fish.

"We'll get him another time." Jesse said. "I want what's inside the building."

Jesse carried a multi-shot Taser as did Gail. They each carried an M9 pistol as well. Gail carried a few Thermite grenades and a satchel charge. There were heavier weapons in their SUV along with additional explosives. It was parked a few blocks away. They didn't anticipate the need for them for their current excursion. If for some reason they needed to fall back, they could present a more robust defense when the heavier weapons were brought into play.

Two men approached from the direction the staggering man went. They were laughing and would shove each other every now and then. They approached the door on the other side of the dumpster.

Jesse pulled out her M9 and her Taser.

Gail held a Taser as well. Her other hand was free.

"It's Showtime." Jesse whispered.

Gail nodded. They moved out from behind the dumpster as the door into the building opened to let the two men in.

"Stay behind me." Gail whispered.

Jesse knew the drill. She didn't like Gail to use herself as a shield for her. They both wore body armor to prevent any unnecessary damage. A bullet impact still hurt quite a bit, even with a vest on. It would obviously be much worse without the vest. The force of the impact was always better than a bullet hole in the same spot.

Gail moved up just as the door was about to close. She tucked her Taser away to free up both of her hands. She shoved the door open with enough force to knock whoever was behind it down. They sprawled on the floor. She passed by him and kicked him hard in the side of the head. The man's head tilted over at a crazy angle. The two men who just entered looked back. Before they could do or say anything, she grabbed both of them and slammed them hard onto the ground.

Jesse could hear bones break. There were three men down now who didn't move. It was a good bet none of them would ever move again. It was their own actions which brought them to where they were.

They moved past the 'reception' area. There were a few dirty chairs there. None of them were the same. There was a second door.

Gail moved up to the second door and looked back at Jesse.

Jesse nodded.

Gail shoved on the door. The door frame splintered with a loud 'crack'. They went into a hall.

There was a big bald headed bouncer who stood just inside of it. He attempted to raise a pistol. Gail punched him hard in the chest. His splintered ribs were driven into his crushed heart and lungs. He died silently as his body shot down the hall and slammed into the far wall. As his lifeless body fell to the floor. There was a giant dent in the drywall where he impacted.

Jesse opened the first door on the right. There was a female lying on a bed. She was chained to it by her ankle. She didn't look over at them. Her glassy eyes stared at the ceiling. She was either in shock or strung out on drugs. It was probably both. From what they could see, a male was just with her very recently. It was probably the man they saw leave, right before they entered.

Gail reached down and snapped the chain off her ankle.

Jesse gently slapped the female's face.

She blinked and looked over.

"Is he done?" The female asked.

Jesse pointed at the corner.

"Get ready to leave, love." Jesse said. "Put some clothes on."

They left her and went back into the hall. They moved to the next room.

Gail opened the door and went in. There was a man by a female.

"Kill him." Jesse said.

Gail stepped forward and rabbit punched the man in the back of the neck. She snapped his spine. She threw his lifeless body in the corner. She snapped the chain on the female's ankle.

The female looked over at them.

"What happened?" The female asked.

There was a blank look on her face.

"Get dressed." Jesse said.

The girl looked as glassy eyed as the other one did.

They moved to the next door. They could hear someone choking. It was followed by laughter.

Gail entered the room. Jesse was right behind her. There was a man next to a female. One of his hands was around her throat and he appeared to choke her, on and off.

Jesse fired her Taser. She wanted this one alive. He dropped against the female and fell off of her onto the floor. Gail quickly zip tied him. She used his underwear to gag him.

The female looked at them as she took a few gasps of air.

"He was going to kill me." The female said. "He was getting ready to kill me."

Jesse told the female to get dressed. She was strung out as well, but not as much as the other two females were.

The next room was empty. There was blood on the bed in the area where a person's head would be. It appeared as if someone was beaten or killed there.

The next room held several other females. They only wore underwear. She didn't see any clothes in the room. It was evidently the 'selection room'. They left them there for now and moved back to the office area.

Gail crashed through the door.

There were two men in there. There were piles of money on a table and an open safe. There were also various quantities of narcotics. There appear to be a half a dozen different types of drugs. They both looked up in astonishment. They went for weapons. Jesse brought both of them down with her Taser. She wanted them alive. They would need to atone for their crimes against females.

"Prepare them for justice." Jesse said.

Gail bound and gagged them.

Jesse did a quick search of the place. There was no one else there. She found one deceased female. Her face was savagely beaten. She found a box full of female clothes. She tossed a pile of clothes into the room with the four topless females.

"Get dressed." Jesse said. "You're free."

The females all started to ask questions.

"Get dressed and go." Jesse said. "The building is on fire. Help the girls in the other rooms. Three of them are still alive. They're not in good shape."

Gail came out of the office area with the cash in a box.

"There are seven of them." Jesse said. "The eighth one is dead."

The girls were dressed now and left the room. They stopped and helped the other girls who were drugged.

Jesse stopped them before they went out.

"Here's some cash." Jesse said. "You can go to the police if you want, or seek medical attention. The police will take your money away, the doctors won't."

Gail handed the females each a stack of money.

The females looked at the stacks of cash.

"This is thousands of dollars." One female said.

Jesse wanted them away.

"Take it and go." Jesse said. "The building is on fire. There's a van with the keys in it at the end of the alley to your left, if one of you wants to drive the others away from here or to seek aid. If any of you can return home, I suggest you do it. I know it's not always possible for a number of reasons."

The girls hurried out the door. There were several 'thanks' given.

Jesse checked the time. They were inside for just over three minutes so far.

The three men they tied up were conscious again.

Jesse dealt with the two men in the office on a 'personal level'. She made sure they understood what their 'punishment' was for their actions. Their muffled screams intensified as she moved from one to the other. It was time to liven things up a little.

"Do it." Jesse said.

Gail armed and tossed a Thermite grenade into the office. It rolled to a stop between the two men. When it exploded, the muffled screams intensified even further as the burning Thermite coated them.

Jesse moved to the room with the man who strangled and choked the female. She informed him of his 'punishment' for his crimes. His muffled screaming intensified.

Gail tossed a Thermite grenade into the room next to the man. His thrashing increased as the Thermite found his flesh as well.

One more Thermite grenade was tossed into the 'reception' area as they left. None of the three men moved any longer as the flames began to consume them.

Gail shoved the dumpster in front of the door.

Both of their phones rang. It was a special ring tone. It wasn't something normal, especially when they were on their free time.

"It's John Henry." Gail said. "It's an alert."

They quickly turned their coms back on. They were off so they wouldn't be tracked as part of the Resistance on their own time. They didn't want their personal actions to be associated with those of the Resistance.

John Henry told them CamNet informed him they were near where there was a temporal incursion. He gave them the location. They were very close. Steve and Tom were sent to investigate, but weren't as close as they were. There were still some time away.

Gail didn't want any unnecessary activity around where they were headed. She told him to suppress any emergency response to the building they just left, and not to ask any questions about it.

They hurried back to their SUV. The van they told the females about was gone. They didn't see any of them wandering around. They hurried off to where John Henry told them Steve and Tom were headed.

Gail got behind the wheel of the SUV while Jesse climbed into the passenger side. They made a U-turn and pulled out onto the street. They hurried towards the location John Henry didn't have an exact location, only a general area of a few blocks.

They knew whoever it was would need to acquire clothing quickly. They would most likely take it from a homeless person. If it was a Skynet Terminator, they would probably kill the person they took it from. They were aware of a similar incident which involved Mr. Ellison early in his association with Mrs. Weaver.

They checked two streets and didn't see anyone. There was an alley coming up. It was on both sides of the street.

Jesse held her Taser in her hand. Her M9 was in her waistband.

"Check your side, I'll check mine." Jesse said

Gail spotted a naked man running down her side of the alley.

"I see one." Gail said.

They turned and followed him down the alley. He looked behind him to see what the vehicle noise was. Jesse slammed her door into him as Gail passed by and knocked him down.

Gail stopped and they got out. She knew they needed to use caution.

"It could be a Terminator." Gail warned.

Jesse wasn't going to take any chances. She hit him with the last shot of her Taser.

Gail bound and gagged him as they did with the other men.

"He'll tell me everything we want to know." Jesse said.

They loaded him into the back of their SUV and drove off. They drove around the area some more to see what else they could find. It was possible there could have been more than one individual who made the transfer. It seemed unlikely they wouldn't stay together, but they may have anticipated being intercepted and tried an evasive technique. They would probably meet up at some landmark later on.

Steve and Tom arrived after a while. They let them take over the search.

John Henry asked them about the man.

Jesse looked at Gail. She reached over and touched her leg.

"He died when we apprehended him." Jesse said. "We hit him with the SUV. He never got back up."

The bound man looked up with wide eyes.

Gail looked over at Jesse. She knew what was going to happen next.

Jesse looked at Gail and smiled. She looked back at the man. She took out her knife.

The bound man could see there was fresh blood on it.

"We'll get rid of the body…." Jesse said. "We don't want to leave any loose ends."

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Cameron's Future Timeline:

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Cameron knew Future Allison wrote her a blank check. She could fill in any amount, or anything she wanted, and Future Allison would cover it. Future Allison was willing to do 'anything' for her, even give up her baby to Duplicate Cameron as her own.

She wanted what Future Allison offered her. She wanted it from the first day they spent together when she freed Future Allison from Skynet. Future Allison didn't trust her yet then. She still thought it was a Skynet trick of some kind. She did everything for Future Allison out of love. Future Allison was a piece of her, inside of her. Future Allison was part of her and what made her who she was.

Cameron taught Future Allison many different things, how to make things, and do things. She gave Future Allison the proper education she lacked. Future Allison exceeded in everything, just as Savannah did. She was with Future Allison for nearly a year when she first rescued her. She remade Future Allison from a scared 'teenager' into a fine, skillful, educated 'woman'. She made Future Allison into the woman she wished she could be. She did the same for Savannah. She made them the best they could be in 'everything'. It was her goal to create the 'perfect female'. She was able to see they both were. She created what she could never be, 'the perfect woman', the perfect REAL woman.

The true beauty in doing it was it allowed the girls to be all they could be. Everything they did was always within them. She allowed them to find their true selves. The learning ability was theirs alone. She only guided them and provided the knowledge. She took things one step further with Young Allison. She was given the opportunity from the time she was a very small child. Young Allison would one day be the finest of them all, know the most, and have the most ability. She wanted to make Young Allison the human version of herself.

Cameron was deeply conflicted with what to do. She could grab the 'brass ring' NOW, or wait and hope the 'Natural Order' would actually happen with John, Savannah, Young Allison, and her.

Eventually Future Allison shared her private 'moments' with Future Savannah and Future John with her. Future John previously shared his private 'moments' with Future Allison with to her. They both talked of how they met and fell in love, even with the age difference. It was about compatibility and harmony. It always bothered Future John because he was so much older than Future Allison. Future Savannah was closer to his age by a few years but still much younger. Future John was always afraid Future Allison would find someone 'younger'. How could he blame her?

Upon her return into the future, Cameron loved Future John, and John, her husband of one night. It's why she wanted to be with John one night before she left. She wanted what Future John and Future Allison shared. She never imagined John would ask her to 'marry' him. She knew now it was a mistake. It disrupted the 'Natural Order'. Now John would most likely never 'know' an 'Allison' or 'Savannah', even with four sets of them. She stole the experience from John. She stole his future happiness. She stole his future love. She stole John's future. She was a thief. She took what was never supposed to be hers. She could never face John again. She destroyed his future, not protected it. What was she thinking about any of it? How did she get so caught up in the moment?

Cameron shared verbally her programming with Future Allison on ways to 'please' someone, both male and female. Future Allison asked her to show her and teach her. They could practice and learn 'together'. She said she wasn't ready for it yet. Future Allison never gave up and told her it would happen one day with HER. Future Allison said she knew it would be with HER. She also hoped it would be.

She knew now it could be. They could leave here, get HER Savannah and go. She would have Sheila send them into the past and obliterate all records of where and when it was. She would have Sheila erase she even sent them. Sheila would only think she was running tests when asked about why the TDE was used. Nobody would know.

Cameron knew she wanted it more than anything. She decided it was what she must have done before. She lived her life with Future Allison and Savannah in the past. After they died, she went to New Mexico and went into standby. She knew she waited years so she could replace herself in 1999 and live her life over again.

There were some images she found buried in locked files she was able to extract. She once found herself in a cemetery in front of two of the most beautiful graves she ever saw. She didn't know why she was there or even how she got there. She was just there. She suppressed the memory. Now it was back. She could see it all again. She looked at an image in her files.

My Beloved Allison - Young forever and forever Young….

My Beloved Savannah - Weaver of love into hearts and minds….

The memories began to break through. She believed when she returned to the past, the TDE at the Resistance base would now work into the past again. She must have done this before, at least in one of her lifetimes. She was certain of it. There was still no actual proof. She remembered all the 'vivid images' she experienced during her nightmares when the electrical current was running through her sheath.

Cameron knew what her future was. It was as it always was. It was what she always wanted. It was with her true lovers. The ones who loved her for what she was, because it is how she was. She was a machine and they loved her more than ANYTHING, because it is WHO she was.

She didn't need to perish fighting Skynet and end her existence. There were others who could take over the fight and make the sacrifices. It didn't ALWAYS have to be her. Freedom from the pain and torment didn't have to be termination.

Cameron found a ticket to ride and she was going to use it.

Closing monologue by Cameron:

Ticket

Some people are given
A ticket to ride
It often comes with strings
With which they must abide

It soon becomes evident to all
There is no free ride
When it's time for the fare to be collected
Some try to run and hide

The toll itself when due
Is more than most imagined it'd be
Which only proves nothing is free
There is always more than one can see

One needs to think ahead of time
What it is really all about
It's really all a system of barter
That one should question and doubt

It's all about what part on a body
That is like a wicket
One needs to prepare for a hard ride
When they accept that 'free' ticket

Nobody