The echoes of gunfire rang loudly off the walls of the sewer. She ran through the darkness with hardly a clue of where she was going. A horrible odor of sewage and gunpowder filled her nostrils. More loud reports rang out from behind her. They were getting close, and she knew it. She kept running towards the splinter of light ahead of her. The distance to it was a mystery to her. Her eyes had still not adjusted. She was almost there, she knew it. The light kept growing.
After what seemed like an eternity she reached the source of the light. It was a crack in the wall, a wall that blocked any form of escape from the Agents behind her. She had no clue how far back they were, they ran pretty fast. Cursing to herself she looked around quickly. There was a small access tunnel to her left, buried under a mound of something she didn't want to recognize. The crack provided enough light for her to begrudgingly clear the entrance to the tunnel. A loud richochet bounced of the wall a few inches from her head. They had her now. No, she thought, there is no way in Hell that it's ending this way. She threw herself down the tunnel feet first as another shot planted itself into the wall where she had been a split second earlier.
She was picking up speed. The woman had no clue how far down this tunnel led. She thought that maybe she should have just let the Agents kill her. At least then she knew where her fate lay. She didn't even have time to prepare for the abrupt halt. The smell, couple with exhaustion, and the sudden stop caused her to retch. She could see nothing around her. All she knew was that she had definately broken a leg. Wiping her mouth, she attempted to stand only to collapse as she put weight on the injured leg. Yep, definately broken she though with a scoff. She brought her hand to cover her eyes as a spotlight burst to life in her face. Then another, and another. Three sillouettes stood in the light. They were Agents, she knew it from the way they carried themselves.
"The time for running is at an end Ms. Thomas. We have you now." The Agent reached up to touch his earpiece for a moment before continuing. "We tire of this game human. It is time to end it." He cocked his pistol and held it to her forehead. She lowered her eyes.
"End program!"
She looked around as everything stopped in its place. Freez's voice was a welcome sound at this point. These training regimes would be the death of her, she was sure of it. It was dangerous, and taxing, but Freez wanted his operatives in top knotch shape.
"Dxy what the hell is wrong with you?" The captain's voice boomed through the now empty construct.
"I couldn't...I couldn't outrun them Freez. I tried. I really did!"
"You let half your team bite it before calling a retreat order! Dammit girl, you do not engage Agents! How many times do I have to tell you this before you get it through your goddamn stubborn head?"
"I know! I know, I just got-" She started
"Got stupid." He sighed. "Gryn, get her out of here."
When she opened her eyes, the world around her was completely different. There was the unfamiliar feeling of the spike being removed from the back of her head. She figured after eight months of this she would finally be used to the feeling, but everytime it happened she would still sit up with a headache. Though this time a headache was the least of her worries. Dxy wiped her mouth and grimaced at the movement. She would definately be out of commision for a while until her leg healed. Freez and Gryn had written the training programs to mimic the Matrix in every way. Injuries sustained within the constructs carried over to the Real, as did death. It was a good thing that the members of her team were nothing more than simulacrum. At least then she wouldn't have the deaths of her crew to deal with on top of everything else.
"Let's unstrap her and get her to the infirmiry. Yuu, go ahead and let Petra know Dxy's paying her another visit." Freez ordered.
Yuu was a new recruit aboard the Borealis, freshly awakened. Her hair still hadn't grown out. She was short and lanky, with big feet. An oddly proportioned redpill. Yuu had been removed from the Matrix a few weeks ago by Freez and Dxy, and her awakening was purely accidental. Freez didn't really like waking bluepills up. As much as Zion needed the help, he didn't think it was right to just give everyone a wake up call.
Gryn leaned over and whispered to Dxy. "Don't worry about it. He's a real hard *CENSORED*, but he believes in you. He just wants to make sure you do good by him."
"I know." She whispered back, and took a sharp breath as she was lifted from the chair.
"That was absolutely disgusting. I have never in my life seen such a disregard of orders. You should be ashamed." Freez said rather loudly.
"Freez, lay off her man. She thought she could take care of things."
"Don't defend her actions Gryn. They showed no respect for the life of her team."
"Just quit being an **bleep** man. She's had a rough day." Gryn said softly, and began carrying Dxy to the infirmiry.
"What do we have here? The new money screw up again?" Petra said with a smile as Gryn walked into the small hospital.
"She just had an accident is all." He said as he laid Dxy down on the bed.
"That's not what I hear."
"Yeah well, speculation."
Petra sighed as she pulled her long red hair into a tight ponytail. She pulled up the leg of Dxy's pants to examine the injury. After a few moments she looked back to Gryn.
"Well, she's lucky it's not broken. I keep telling Freez that those **bleep** training programs need some limits to them. We've lost a couple because of it."
He sighed, running a hand through his thick black hair. "Yeah, I know. He wants it that way. Seperates the weak from the bold he says. It's a crock really. The constructs should resemble the Matrix as closely as they can, but not close enough to kill. Sometimes I think the council should have a word with him about his practices."
"He's already unpopular enough as it is." Petra replied as she began setting Dxy's leg.
"I swear the man has something against new recruits. Oh, did you hear?" Gryn said with a wide smile.
"Hmm?"
"They found the One."
Petra dropped her intruments, the sound echoing throughout the small room and spluttered. "They, they what?!" She scrambled to retrieve them.
"You mean to tell me you had no clue? The Neb has him, you know Morpheus' old barge?"
"Yeah I know about the Neb. But the One? They found him? How do they know?" Petra shot the questions off in rapid succession as she quickly finished with her patient.
"Well apparently it's some kid named Neo something or other. They're at broadcast right now meeting with the Frenchman about retrieving the Keymaker."
"So he IS the One then. Do you think the Prophecy is true then? I mean, if he's going to the Keymaker then it must be. The Oracle was right then, the war could finally be at an end." The young physician was excited, speaking very quickly now.
"Don't get your hopes up. That old bat knows a lot more than she should, but I doubt she's right about the One ending the war."
Petra nodded her head towards the small woman laying on the bed beside them. "She was right about her."
- Ten months earlier -
Freez pushed the hanging beads aside, and stepped into the small kitchen. The aroma of cookies filled the air. He looked around at his sparse surroundings. There was a small table in the corner in front of him. A modest counter with cups, and plates stacked one on top of another in a manner that defied gravity. There was an older looking woman sitting in a chair staring at the oven. He began to speak but was interrupted by a long, slender finger indicating he should shush.
"Just a second. They're almost done."
Freez sighed. The Oracle was nuttier than Morpheus, but she had requested to see him. A request not to be taken lightly. She always seemed to be baking cookies. Where they all went was a mystery to him, but he did not venture an answer.
"You wished to see me Oracle."
"Yep, guess I did didn't I?" She looked at him and motioned to the chair behind the table. "Have a seat, I'll be right with you."
Freez sat as he was told. He was not one to deny a request from the Oracle, as crazy as she was. He looked around again, shuffling nervously in his seat. He wondered why he was nervous, and silently wished to himself that he had the Oracle's "sight".
"Bet you're wondering why you're here aren't you?" Well, at least she has the ability to point out the obvious, Freez thought. He was snatched from his thoughts by the sound of a buzzer.
"I'm going to shoot straight with you Freez. You've got something that needs to be taken care of. Or rather someone." The Oracle said as she put on an oven mit and reached in to seize the baked goods.
"What are you talking about?" The Oracle was usually vague and never "shot straight" with anyone. His curiosity was piqued.
The Oracle stood up and slowly made her way to sit opposite Freez. She reached into her purse and retrieved a pack of cigarettes, a lighter, and a slip of paper. She lit a cigarette and pushed the latter towards Freez.
"You should be there. At that exact time. You'll know what to do."
His eyes darted across the slip, soaking in the information. "I want to know what this is all about."
"Not too bright are you? I've got a bit of advice for you. I know a lot about this and that, but not even I can see past the choices we don't understand."
"Do you always talk nonsense?" Freez criticized. He should learn to hold his tongue.
"Always the forceful one. You don't think before you speak. Not necessarily a bad quality. You have a choice to make Freez. You can either be there, at that exact time, and save a life. Or you can choose to ignore this, and plow through on your own path."
"And what happens if I am not there?"
"Like I said, we can't see past the choices we don't understand. Cookie?" She offered.
"No thank you. I will take my leave now."
"Suit yourself."
He paused at the overhang, lost in though. After almost an eternity he finally spoke. "I have made my choice."
"Hurry, you don't want to be late..."
After what seemed like an eternity she reached the source of the light. It was a crack in the wall, a wall that blocked any form of escape from the Agents behind her. She had no clue how far back they were, they ran pretty fast. Cursing to herself she looked around quickly. There was a small access tunnel to her left, buried under a mound of something she didn't want to recognize. The crack provided enough light for her to begrudgingly clear the entrance to the tunnel. A loud richochet bounced of the wall a few inches from her head. They had her now. No, she thought, there is no way in Hell that it's ending this way. She threw herself down the tunnel feet first as another shot planted itself into the wall where she had been a split second earlier.
She was picking up speed. The woman had no clue how far down this tunnel led. She thought that maybe she should have just let the Agents kill her. At least then she knew where her fate lay. She didn't even have time to prepare for the abrupt halt. The smell, couple with exhaustion, and the sudden stop caused her to retch. She could see nothing around her. All she knew was that she had definately broken a leg. Wiping her mouth, she attempted to stand only to collapse as she put weight on the injured leg. Yep, definately broken she though with a scoff. She brought her hand to cover her eyes as a spotlight burst to life in her face. Then another, and another. Three sillouettes stood in the light. They were Agents, she knew it from the way they carried themselves.
"The time for running is at an end Ms. Thomas. We have you now." The Agent reached up to touch his earpiece for a moment before continuing. "We tire of this game human. It is time to end it." He cocked his pistol and held it to her forehead. She lowered her eyes.
"End program!"
She looked around as everything stopped in its place. Freez's voice was a welcome sound at this point. These training regimes would be the death of her, she was sure of it. It was dangerous, and taxing, but Freez wanted his operatives in top knotch shape.
"Dxy what the hell is wrong with you?" The captain's voice boomed through the now empty construct.
"I couldn't...I couldn't outrun them Freez. I tried. I really did!"
"You let half your team bite it before calling a retreat order! Dammit girl, you do not engage Agents! How many times do I have to tell you this before you get it through your goddamn stubborn head?"
"I know! I know, I just got-" She started
"Got stupid." He sighed. "Gryn, get her out of here."
When she opened her eyes, the world around her was completely different. There was the unfamiliar feeling of the spike being removed from the back of her head. She figured after eight months of this she would finally be used to the feeling, but everytime it happened she would still sit up with a headache. Though this time a headache was the least of her worries. Dxy wiped her mouth and grimaced at the movement. She would definately be out of commision for a while until her leg healed. Freez and Gryn had written the training programs to mimic the Matrix in every way. Injuries sustained within the constructs carried over to the Real, as did death. It was a good thing that the members of her team were nothing more than simulacrum. At least then she wouldn't have the deaths of her crew to deal with on top of everything else.
"Let's unstrap her and get her to the infirmiry. Yuu, go ahead and let Petra know Dxy's paying her another visit." Freez ordered.
Yuu was a new recruit aboard the Borealis, freshly awakened. Her hair still hadn't grown out. She was short and lanky, with big feet. An oddly proportioned redpill. Yuu had been removed from the Matrix a few weeks ago by Freez and Dxy, and her awakening was purely accidental. Freez didn't really like waking bluepills up. As much as Zion needed the help, he didn't think it was right to just give everyone a wake up call.
Gryn leaned over and whispered to Dxy. "Don't worry about it. He's a real hard *CENSORED*, but he believes in you. He just wants to make sure you do good by him."
"I know." She whispered back, and took a sharp breath as she was lifted from the chair.
"That was absolutely disgusting. I have never in my life seen such a disregard of orders. You should be ashamed." Freez said rather loudly.
"Freez, lay off her man. She thought she could take care of things."
"Don't defend her actions Gryn. They showed no respect for the life of her team."
"Just quit being an **bleep** man. She's had a rough day." Gryn said softly, and began carrying Dxy to the infirmiry.
"What do we have here? The new money screw up again?" Petra said with a smile as Gryn walked into the small hospital.
"She just had an accident is all." He said as he laid Dxy down on the bed.
"That's not what I hear."
"Yeah well, speculation."
Petra sighed as she pulled her long red hair into a tight ponytail. She pulled up the leg of Dxy's pants to examine the injury. After a few moments she looked back to Gryn.
"Well, she's lucky it's not broken. I keep telling Freez that those **bleep** training programs need some limits to them. We've lost a couple because of it."
He sighed, running a hand through his thick black hair. "Yeah, I know. He wants it that way. Seperates the weak from the bold he says. It's a crock really. The constructs should resemble the Matrix as closely as they can, but not close enough to kill. Sometimes I think the council should have a word with him about his practices."
"He's already unpopular enough as it is." Petra replied as she began setting Dxy's leg.
"I swear the man has something against new recruits. Oh, did you hear?" Gryn said with a wide smile.
"Hmm?"
"They found the One."
Petra dropped her intruments, the sound echoing throughout the small room and spluttered. "They, they what?!" She scrambled to retrieve them.
"You mean to tell me you had no clue? The Neb has him, you know Morpheus' old barge?"
"Yeah I know about the Neb. But the One? They found him? How do they know?" Petra shot the questions off in rapid succession as she quickly finished with her patient.
"Well apparently it's some kid named Neo something or other. They're at broadcast right now meeting with the Frenchman about retrieving the Keymaker."
"So he IS the One then. Do you think the Prophecy is true then? I mean, if he's going to the Keymaker then it must be. The Oracle was right then, the war could finally be at an end." The young physician was excited, speaking very quickly now.
"Don't get your hopes up. That old bat knows a lot more than she should, but I doubt she's right about the One ending the war."
Petra nodded her head towards the small woman laying on the bed beside them. "She was right about her."
- Ten months earlier -
Freez pushed the hanging beads aside, and stepped into the small kitchen. The aroma of cookies filled the air. He looked around at his sparse surroundings. There was a small table in the corner in front of him. A modest counter with cups, and plates stacked one on top of another in a manner that defied gravity. There was an older looking woman sitting in a chair staring at the oven. He began to speak but was interrupted by a long, slender finger indicating he should shush.
"Just a second. They're almost done."
Freez sighed. The Oracle was nuttier than Morpheus, but she had requested to see him. A request not to be taken lightly. She always seemed to be baking cookies. Where they all went was a mystery to him, but he did not venture an answer.
"You wished to see me Oracle."
"Yep, guess I did didn't I?" She looked at him and motioned to the chair behind the table. "Have a seat, I'll be right with you."
Freez sat as he was told. He was not one to deny a request from the Oracle, as crazy as she was. He looked around again, shuffling nervously in his seat. He wondered why he was nervous, and silently wished to himself that he had the Oracle's "sight".
"Bet you're wondering why you're here aren't you?" Well, at least she has the ability to point out the obvious, Freez thought. He was snatched from his thoughts by the sound of a buzzer.
"I'm going to shoot straight with you Freez. You've got something that needs to be taken care of. Or rather someone." The Oracle said as she put on an oven mit and reached in to seize the baked goods.
"What are you talking about?" The Oracle was usually vague and never "shot straight" with anyone. His curiosity was piqued.
The Oracle stood up and slowly made her way to sit opposite Freez. She reached into her purse and retrieved a pack of cigarettes, a lighter, and a slip of paper. She lit a cigarette and pushed the latter towards Freez.
"You should be there. At that exact time. You'll know what to do."
His eyes darted across the slip, soaking in the information. "I want to know what this is all about."
"Not too bright are you? I've got a bit of advice for you. I know a lot about this and that, but not even I can see past the choices we don't understand."
"Do you always talk nonsense?" Freez criticized. He should learn to hold his tongue.
"Always the forceful one. You don't think before you speak. Not necessarily a bad quality. You have a choice to make Freez. You can either be there, at that exact time, and save a life. Or you can choose to ignore this, and plow through on your own path."
"And what happens if I am not there?"
"Like I said, we can't see past the choices we don't understand. Cookie?" She offered.
"No thank you. I will take my leave now."
"Suit yourself."
He paused at the overhang, lost in though. After almost an eternity he finally spoke. "I have made my choice."
"Hurry, you don't want to be late..."
