Shattered Soul - A Short Story Series relating to the events of Pluribus Neo's "Epiphany"
Part 1 - Epiphany
Screaming. The animalistic act of relating an intense emotion - be it pain, fear, or anger - to anything around you. Scream for glory, scream for hatred, scream for joy, scream in terror. It doesn't matter what emotion it is, the act remains the same. And out of the many things that Lady Return had become known for, this act was what she was renowned for.
"I'll say it once more, and I expect it to be followed. GET THE HELL OUT OF THE CLUB I PAID FOR BEFORE I MAKE SURE YOU'RE UNABLE TO HAVE CHILDREN!!!"
Return stood on the stage directly in front of Phrack, the leader of Pluribus Neo. She was so close that her straight white hair could have easily fallen into one of Phrack's eyes, if his glasses weren't on. But he didn't need the glasses to hide any sort of flinching motion, he controlled his responses enough to make sure he neglected to look intimidated by Return's face being directly in front of his own. He simply reached up, straightened his tie, wiped away any spit that may have landed on his face from Return's ranting, and calmly responded.
"Can't have everything you want."
The club was packed tightly with people wearing leather trenchcoats, fine ties and vests, beautiful dresses, and other luxurious fashions. If a bluepill had walked in right then and there, they might begin to wonder why everyone was so dressed up for this less than fancy club downtown. But everyone who stood within the confines of the illuminated darkness and thumping music knew the truth of the world that surrounded them. The redpills watched with their breath locked into their lungs, eyes darting to their left to look at the woman in the purple dress, waiting for the Lady's reaction.
Her right hand began to move upwards and then left, ready to make contact with Phrack's skin. But her hand never reached its target. Instead, another black glove caught the hand in mid-motion, and Return's purple eyes darted to the hand's owner. In the same quick motion, Return pulled her hand free of Kshana's grasp and let out one of her signature "hrmph" noises.
"No student of mine," she quickly announced in Kshana's direction. A quick backhand across Return's face soon followed. Kshana apparently didn't take that remark well. The redpills waited for a fight to ensue between the two women, but it never happened. Instead, Return grabbed Kshana's shirt and pulled her close, kissing her passionately on the lips.
Kshana pulled away and slapped Return again with renewed fervor. As the Lady in Mourning raised a hand to her cheek, Kshana began her announcement. "I don't need the Devil's Advocates. I don't need an outdated dinosaur of a faction. Pluribus Neo... the new controllers of the Matrix, have my back now. Know your status Return, I'm the new you. I do your job, only better. Now run along and play with your doll. This is a big girl's world."
Gliding backwards slowly, Kshana positioned herself into Phrack's arms, who smiled brightly at the gesture. "I'll be seeing you soon, Return."
A green light engulfed the two of them, and swept across the club, engulfing the rest of the Pluribus Neo members. When it died down, all of PN had vanished without a trace, leaving Return clutching her purple beret and an angry look on her face.
Above the dance floor, in the upper levels of the club, a deep humming resonated and footsteps scattered across the ceiling. Screams began as the sounds came down the steps and gunfire began. "Agents!" some people began to exclaim. But those who were familiar with the Matrix knew better. The exclamation of the word "agents" soon changed to "angels". Pluribus Neo had set off a Pandora's Box.
Return jumped off of the stage and grabbed the nearest Mega City Police Department member she could find. LinksLife choked a little as Return dragged him by his tie to her face. "Where the hell are PN."
"Disturbance.... main power line... access node... Guiness... Return... choking... assulting... officer..." LinksLife croaked out. She threw the officer to the floor, letting Links catch his breath as she put on her glasses and darted for the door, avoiding gunfire and grapple attempts as she fled the club, other redpills hot on her heels.
------------------------->>>>> At the Guiness Lake Power Access Node, 10 minutes later...
Alot of Pluribus Neo members laid on the ground, Collective shock troops, Mega City Police Officers, Devil's Advocates, Triluminary gunners, and many other factions all looking over their prey. The battle had been small and intense, and some operatives were suffering the effects of friendly fire, as late comers to the fight didn't know who to shoot and just fired across organization lines at will.
Soon enough though, the final damage was calculated. The Mega City Department of Energy reported to the group that a virus had been inserted into their mainframe, and power was fluxing across all of the Matrix. They were trying to lock it down, but were not being too successful.
Return grimaced in anger. She was mildly pleased that they had inflicted some pain onto Pluribus Neo, but was saddened that they couldn't retrieve Neo's body...
Wait... what was she thinking. She was saddened that Pluribus Neo didn't serve Morpheus better...
What the hell... She was saddened that they couldn't stop the virus from doing... more... damage... Why wasn't it working faster? Why didn't it have the whole mainframe in a lockdown?
Return grabbed her head in frusteration, blood beginning to spill from her nose and her vision going gray. People ran to her aid, but she couldn't even remember who they were as she fell to the floor. The last thing she remembered was commanding a white hat to be compiled onto her head...
Part 1 - Epiphany
Screaming. The animalistic act of relating an intense emotion - be it pain, fear, or anger - to anything around you. Scream for glory, scream for hatred, scream for joy, scream in terror. It doesn't matter what emotion it is, the act remains the same. And out of the many things that Lady Return had become known for, this act was what she was renowned for.
"I'll say it once more, and I expect it to be followed. GET THE HELL OUT OF THE CLUB I PAID FOR BEFORE I MAKE SURE YOU'RE UNABLE TO HAVE CHILDREN!!!"
Return stood on the stage directly in front of Phrack, the leader of Pluribus Neo. She was so close that her straight white hair could have easily fallen into one of Phrack's eyes, if his glasses weren't on. But he didn't need the glasses to hide any sort of flinching motion, he controlled his responses enough to make sure he neglected to look intimidated by Return's face being directly in front of his own. He simply reached up, straightened his tie, wiped away any spit that may have landed on his face from Return's ranting, and calmly responded.
"Can't have everything you want."
The club was packed tightly with people wearing leather trenchcoats, fine ties and vests, beautiful dresses, and other luxurious fashions. If a bluepill had walked in right then and there, they might begin to wonder why everyone was so dressed up for this less than fancy club downtown. But everyone who stood within the confines of the illuminated darkness and thumping music knew the truth of the world that surrounded them. The redpills watched with their breath locked into their lungs, eyes darting to their left to look at the woman in the purple dress, waiting for the Lady's reaction.
Her right hand began to move upwards and then left, ready to make contact with Phrack's skin. But her hand never reached its target. Instead, another black glove caught the hand in mid-motion, and Return's purple eyes darted to the hand's owner. In the same quick motion, Return pulled her hand free of Kshana's grasp and let out one of her signature "hrmph" noises.
"No student of mine," she quickly announced in Kshana's direction. A quick backhand across Return's face soon followed. Kshana apparently didn't take that remark well. The redpills waited for a fight to ensue between the two women, but it never happened. Instead, Return grabbed Kshana's shirt and pulled her close, kissing her passionately on the lips.
Kshana pulled away and slapped Return again with renewed fervor. As the Lady in Mourning raised a hand to her cheek, Kshana began her announcement. "I don't need the Devil's Advocates. I don't need an outdated dinosaur of a faction. Pluribus Neo... the new controllers of the Matrix, have my back now. Know your status Return, I'm the new you. I do your job, only better. Now run along and play with your doll. This is a big girl's world."
Gliding backwards slowly, Kshana positioned herself into Phrack's arms, who smiled brightly at the gesture. "I'll be seeing you soon, Return."
A green light engulfed the two of them, and swept across the club, engulfing the rest of the Pluribus Neo members. When it died down, all of PN had vanished without a trace, leaving Return clutching her purple beret and an angry look on her face.
Above the dance floor, in the upper levels of the club, a deep humming resonated and footsteps scattered across the ceiling. Screams began as the sounds came down the steps and gunfire began. "Agents!" some people began to exclaim. But those who were familiar with the Matrix knew better. The exclamation of the word "agents" soon changed to "angels". Pluribus Neo had set off a Pandora's Box.
Return jumped off of the stage and grabbed the nearest Mega City Police Department member she could find. LinksLife choked a little as Return dragged him by his tie to her face. "Where the hell are PN."
"Disturbance.... main power line... access node... Guiness... Return... choking... assulting... officer..." LinksLife croaked out. She threw the officer to the floor, letting Links catch his breath as she put on her glasses and darted for the door, avoiding gunfire and grapple attempts as she fled the club, other redpills hot on her heels.
------------------------->>>>> At the Guiness Lake Power Access Node, 10 minutes later...
Alot of Pluribus Neo members laid on the ground, Collective shock troops, Mega City Police Officers, Devil's Advocates, Triluminary gunners, and many other factions all looking over their prey. The battle had been small and intense, and some operatives were suffering the effects of friendly fire, as late comers to the fight didn't know who to shoot and just fired across organization lines at will.
Soon enough though, the final damage was calculated. The Mega City Department of Energy reported to the group that a virus had been inserted into their mainframe, and power was fluxing across all of the Matrix. They were trying to lock it down, but were not being too successful.
Return grimaced in anger. She was mildly pleased that they had inflicted some pain onto Pluribus Neo, but was saddened that they couldn't retrieve Neo's body...
Wait... what was she thinking. She was saddened that Pluribus Neo didn't serve Morpheus better...
What the hell... She was saddened that they couldn't stop the virus from doing... more... damage... Why wasn't it working faster? Why didn't it have the whole mainframe in a lockdown?
Return grabbed her head in frusteration, blood beginning to spill from her nose and her vision going gray. People ran to her aid, but she couldn't even remember who they were as she fell to the floor. The last thing she remembered was commanding a white hat to be compiled onto her head...
