Tunnels of the Real Matrix Corps HvCFT Nabonidus 10:34AM Matrix Time
Hours later, things were running on the normal routine on the Nabondius. The ship was located in a sector of the tunnels where Matrix Corps Intelligence suspected that the Resistance had been using as a tunnel access hub that led in various different directions, one of which they were sure led to their new base of operations, rumored to be an abandoned city-like structure located far off in the uncharted regions, deep underground. At this point in their search, it was a matter of choosing which way to go and hoping they struck gold at the end of the rainbow.
In the cockpit, Niobe sat alongside Morpheus, and the two pondered which way a ship the size of the Nosferatu would go to manuever into tunnels so narrow and sporadic in their form. Figuring this out was also proving to be a problem.
"He could slip through any one of these entrances if he wanted to, they're big enough to where he could either just barely fit or have enough room to pull a 180 turn. Limited mapping scans based off of Defender sweeps show that these tunnels are all networked at specific points. There's so many routes he could take, it'd be a real pain in the *CENSORED* to try and trace him," Niobe said as she thought out loud.
"There's also traps to consider," Morpheus said. "I doubt that Blood wouldn't anticipate either us or the Machines following him down here and then not be prepared for it. Although if the Defenders can sweep through without trouble, it could mean that they're too small to get caught, or that there are none."
"There's one more possibility. If he did manage to rig any kind of defense mechanisms in place that were controlled by either his ships or his base, he could have just ignored the Defenders to trick us into thinking it was safe for us to explore. Why waste the surprise on a one man fighter when you can capture an entire ship?"
"Hmm, good point." Morpheus agreed, thinking it over in his head. "I would suggest setting up surveillance probes that would notify us of any ship movements in the area that didn't match our IFF signature and then having an ambush party staked out on standby, ready to act as necessary."
"Your call, Morpheus, you're the General around here. Personally I wish weren't trying to find a needle in a haystack in the dark, while also making sure we aren't stretched too thin from the others and left open for a sentinel ambush."
They exchanged glances, knowing exactly what she was talking about. While the barges and the attack hovercraft and the Defenders all were able to clearly see what they were fighting against on frontline combat against the Machines, the Matrix Corps functioned as Recon when they weren't involved in Matrix-related matters, since their mission statement was to hunt down and eliminate the Resistance splinter group by any means necessary, both inside the Matrix and out. Following Blood into the uncharted regions that the Resistance had by now charted and knew like the back of their hands felt like almost waiting for an attack to happen, if not just for the certainty of knowing what was happening instead of wondering what was going to happen.
Then, as Morpheus stared blankly out the windshield as he thought over his predicament, the radio crackled for a second. It snapped him out of his trance, and both he and Niobe turned their attention to it just as Sparks' voice came up over the speaker.
"Captain Morpheus, there's a message for you we just received."
"Who's it from?" Morpheus asked. His forehead wrinkled as he thought of who it could have been. Was it from Zion? Another Captain? Someone inside the Matrix?
"It's from Seraph," Sparks answered, in a tone that made it clear that he understood the weight carried by that response. "Judo-chop says The Oracle wants to see you at your neareast convenience, along with Janus. I guess it must be important if she wants him there."
"Save your commentary," Niobe ordered. "We ain't got time for that. Start getting the entry protocols ready while we bring the ship to broadcast depth."
"Yes, Ma'am!" Sparks answered in haste in reaction to Niobe's sudden snap of authority.
Morpheus cut in before the comms line was closed. "Sparks," he called out.
"Yes, Sir?"
"Thanks, keep up the good work."
"Aye sir, thank you," Sparks replied, before closing his end of the transmission.
Niobe looked at him with a slighty preturbed expression on her face, and he could tell it was because he'd just capped off her pulling rank with a display of kindness. Unphased, he arched a brow at her.
"What?" she asked.
"You wanted something to do that you were more in control of instead of aimlessly searching the tunnels, and now you have it. Broadcast depth -- get on it," he said, matching her rank pulling attitude she'd played just a moment ago. To anyone else it would seem like they were competing or even fighting, but this smart-assed sarcasm was their way of staying amused and kidding around. She snorted a puff of air out her nose as he got up and left his seat, to make his way to the main deck.
"I'll send Link up to take my place," he said as he left the cockpit.
"You're so kind," she called after him in a tone of mock enthusiasm.
"I know," he replied, although from a distance. She listened as he began to climb down the ladder, and then focused on getting the ship to where it had to be.
----
The Matrix
Gracy Heights
April 2005, 11:50AM
With Seraph at the wheel and Morpheus in the passenger seat, the black 1981 Lincoln Town Car pulled up along the sidewalk in front of a decrepit and decayed looking brick building that had once served as an apartment complex, but was now, like many buildings in the Barrens district, abandoned. In silence they waited, and only a few seconds later, as if on cue, door number 614 opened and Janus walked out from it. As Morpheus watched him approach the car, Seraph kept his eyes forward.
A breeze picked up and the length Janus coat swayed. His attire had changed: his new coat was black and made of wool, and he wore it closed down to his abs. It contoured to the shape of his upper body while the rest of its length hung freely around his legs down to the hem at his ankles. At hip level there were two pockets with button-flap closure. The only button visible was at the very top, fastened at his folded over collar, while the rest were concealed. When he reached the car, Morpheus rolled down the window.
"Good to see you, Janus. It's been a while," the veteran redpill greeted.
"You as well, General."
Morpheus leaned forward in his seat slightly, as though he were trying to get a better view of something outside the car. With some concern in his voice, he spoke once more. "How's the scar healing?"
"The pain's gone," The One said indifferently. "Although now I look like I might have been a stuntman or a serial killer in my past life."
Morpheus managed a smile, something rare these days, even after defeating a challenging adversary. "I've seen worse. Get in."
Janus entered from the side closest to him. Once he shut his door, the car slowly moved from the curb, and the group was on its way. As they drove through the backstreets, Janus studied the buildings as they passed by. Here and there, despite the Machines' endless efforts to recode all affected areas of the Matrix, battle damage was still apparent throughout the city.
It wasn't as if the Matrix was in a post-apocalyptic state, but it was still hard to miss. Increased Exile activity all over the system had given rise to numerous attacks on redpill crews belonging to both Zion and the Resistance, often while the two sides were busy fighting each other. The sad part was that they weren't even fighting for territory inside the Matrix itself, but were rather using it as a battleground, putting at risk the lives of the very people both sides were trying to save. However, this was Westview, more popularly known as the Slums, and it had a reputation for looking like *CENSORED* to begin with.
The Slums, Janus realized. Why had he been asked to enter the Matrix here instead of somewhere in the Richland area, closer to where The Oracle's apartment was located?
"This doesn't look like the usual route we take to get to The Oracle. How come you chose an RV point on the other side of the city?" Janus asked, keeping his eyes fixated on the world outside the car as it passed by.
"The Oracle has been relocated," Seraph answered.
"Relocated?"
"Yes. She needed to be brought to a place where she would be safe and protected from the fighting that has broken out all over the city," Seraph answered.
"Isn't that why there's always usually a team of Zion's redpills present to aid you in protecting her from whatever harm may come her way?"
"With increasing attacks made by both the Resistance and the Merovingian, the security measures were proving to be inadequate."
"Hmm. Well where is she now?" Janus asked.
"Someplace close to home," Morpheus said in a mysterious way, like he had some sort of surprise in store for him. Janus merely arched a brow behind his sunglasses and forgot about it, figuring he'd find out what he meant soon enough.
"It's getting worse isn't it?"
"What do you mean?" Morpheus asked.
"All of it. This place. In my past life, the worst problems I had to deal with were common kinds of criminals like gangs and drug dealers. Now we chase down monsters and demons. I hardly recognize any of it."
In the reflection of his sunglasses, Janus could see part of the scar that ran over his right eye.
"I hardly recognize myself, for that matter."
Seraph nodded slightly as he drove the car, knowing the inner struggle to which Janus was referring. "It was inevitable. The warrior can only survive battle by sacrificing a part of himself and leaving it behind to progress."
This struck a chord in the minds of both redpills. While Janus thought this over and applied it to what things may lay in wait on the path before him, Morpheus reflected on all he had been through in his life. The war against the machines, search for and finally finding The One, all of the adventures endured and time spent teaching and fighting alongside Neo, the loss of the Nebuchadnezzar and almost its entire crew... At that moment, Morpheus felt as though truer words had never been spoken.
Then of course, this was the Matrix, where the only truth was that everything is false. Still, Morpheus conceded to the point.
As they drove on, Janus' thoughts drifted as he thought more about what Seraph had just said earlier about Exile and Resistance activity, and then he remembered the ambush that had taken place a year prior after a visit to The Oracle.
"You did make sure we had back up on hand this time, right?" he asked.
"I have Captain Jade and the Interceptor on standby. Besides them, there are security and rapid response teams posted along the route we're on right now, ready to provide backup at a moment's notice."
Blinking into code vision, Janus looked out at the buildings lining the street they were traveling on and sure enough, in at least every two to three buildings on either side of the road, he could see and identify groups of people whos RSI codes read as Zionite redpills. All of them were armed and on standby, cell phones ready to receive the distress call that would be their signal to spring into action. Blinking back into normal sight, Janus smirked to himself and shook his head. They'd all be fighting to protect us from Agents and who knows what else right now if I wasn't shielding our presence from the system.
Morpheus nodded, figuring Janus would validate the claim himself and, with no further questions on the matter, most likely agreed. "Don't worry, I'm sure this time," he assured him anyway. "There hasn't been any major Resistance activity for weeks now, outside their usual patrols."
Janus' thoughts shifted back to the ambush that turned into the battle that led to his awakening. He remembered how well coordinated the Resistance's surprise attack was once he'd gotten caught up with Balthasar. Balthasar... It had been some time since he met the man purported to be his rival in combat. For a moment, he wondered where he was or what he could be doing at that particular moment, when he remembered it had been Morpheus' job to find out before the Oracle had summoned them.
"Speaking of the Resistance, have you had any luck tracking them down?"
Morpheus grumbled impatiently. "No, I haven't. They're like a needle in a stack of hay stacks, in the real world anyway. In the Matrix it's not as bad, but it isn't any easier either. During the past year it seems as if they've only been primarily running reconaissance, but I don't know what for. Aside from that, the usual ambushes and surprise attacks. They act like pirates."
"What do you think he's planning?"
"I don't know, but I'm not gonna get myself worked up imagining it. What we do know is that he's out there, and finding him's been keeping me busy enough. I'll leave it to Corps Intelligence to figure that out."
"Maybe she'll have some useful advice for us today."
"I hope so," Morpheus concurred. The car slowed down in front of a delapidated looking bar.
"We're here," Seraph said, shifting the car into park and turning off the ignition. As they three stepped out of the car, Janus got a good look at the place.
"I knew she had a smoking habit but I didn't think she'd get so addicted she'd resort to staying in a place like this for booze."
Morpheus laughed to himself in a condescending way, and Seraph smirked as if he'd just read Morpheus' mind and was in agreement with his thoughts. Janus frowned behind his sunglasses.
"What's so funny?" he asked in the "I mean business" tone of voice he used so many times as a bluepill. Morpheus turned slightly to face him.
"After all you've seen and been through, you still let your eyes deceive you," he said in an ever-so-cryptic manner. He watched long enough for Janus to arch a brow and *CENSORED* his head slightly, before turning to follow Seraph into the bar. After a second or two, Janus followed after them.
----
Inside was a lightless, low-class bar. With a casual and laid back attitude to the place, it seemed as if no one entered who wasn't expected. Suddenly, the front doors opened with what seemed to be a brilliant burst of sunlight, yet none of the patrons seemed to notice or care to look. Seraph entered, followed Morpheus and Janus, neither of whom removed their sunglasses to adjust their eyesight to the dark interior.
Waiting for them at the bar was a heavy set black man, who looked to be in his late 40s with gray roots to his hair visible on the sides of his head and in his beard. As he watched the trio enter, he spit a piece of chewing tobacco from the wad in his cheek into a soda can. When they came close enough and he could more easily see who it was that had entered the bar, a familar smile came across his face.
"Been too long, Morpheus," the man said in a husky, raspy, yet friendly tone.
"You're looking well, Mojo," Morpheus answered, returning the smile with one of his own. As Janus observed, clearly these two had some sort of history, and this Mojo was another hidden entity in the city that served a purpose other than that of the bar patron identity he'd assumed.
Mojo coughed a cantankerous laugh, sputtering tobacco juice and speckling his shirt and chin.
"You're late," he said.
"My apologies," Morpheus replied. "We had to make sure there wouldn't be any problems."
Mojo took a look over at Janus.
"So, you must be the Man, eh?" he asked rhetorically, before looking back over to Morpheus. "I guess we should start expecting some miracles soon if you brought him here." With that, he chuckled once more, and spit another shot of tobacco into the can.
"This meeting is urgent," Seraph said as though to remind Mojo of the situation's priority, something Morpheus and Janus has yet to be filled in on. Mojo's facial expression changed to one of all business, and he nodded to Morpheus.
"All right, go'head on back," he said.
Morpheus nodded in appreciation as if to bow. "Thank you, friend."
Mojo bowed his head, and Seraph lead the way. The sticky floor snapped at their feet as the trio walked to the back of the establishment, where Seraph opened a heavy iron door that led to a descending stairwell.
Down in the basement, a lone lightbulb hung from the ceiling over a single door. After walking through the door, Morpheus came to a laptop and a modem situated upon a stack of milk crates. Janus stepped in and Seraph closed the door behind them.
On the screen of the laptop, Janus saw text entry fields characteristic of a login screen, similar to the propmt on the console he used back during his days as a detective. Morpheus typed in several access codes, and then there was a confirming beep. The screen blinked, and a message reading "WELCOME, MORPHEUS" flashed on the screen. Nodding in satisfaction, he shut the laptop and turned to the others.
"Okay let's go."
Once again, Seraph led the way. Janus watched curiously as he opened the door, and as he and Morpheus walked through to follow, the sight that Janus beheld was one that made his jaw hang in awe.
---- Message edited by TheArk on 07/19/2007 20:13:05.
Instead of the staircase leading back up to the bar they'd entered through, the ceiling was high and the floors were wide. There were pillars of greek design and all surfaces were made of polished marble. A scene of heaven-like beauty held before them.
"Wh-what happened?" Janus asked.
"This is the temple. It's part of Zion's mainframe. It's hidden inside the Matrix so that we can access it," Morpheus explained.
Janus nodded his head. "Close to home," he remarked, understanding Morpheus' earlier explanation.
"Yes," Morpheus said with smug smile.
"Why?" Janus asked as they walked, his head on a constant swivel as he took in the detail and awe of the temple around him.
Seraph and Morpheus exchanged looks and nodded in a secretive fashion, as if they were silently agreeing on a correct response. Janus took note of this, but remained quiet as if he hadn't noticed.
"The Oracle would be in a constant state of danger, were she to remain in any location inside the city itself, so she was relocated here to ensure her safety," Seraph answered.
"Because it's the last place the Machines would think to look," Janus concluded.
"Exactly," Morpheus responded.
When they reached the antechamber, two Priestesses stood there in wait, adorned in flowing robes made of several layers of a lightweight, partially transparent pastel pink fabric, which constrasted against their skin, a light shade of brown. They weren't twins, as one could tell by their differently styled hair, one with a head full of thin braids falling down over her shoulders, and the other with a head full of similar braids only tied in a high ponytail.
"Welcome," they said with a smile. They looked upon Seraph and Morpheus with familiar eyes, as if recognizing old friends.
"It's good to see you again Morpheus," the Priestess on the right said. Morpheus nodded with a smile. "Likewise."
"And nice to finally meet you, Janus," the Priestess on the left said. The One raised an eyebrow behind his sunglasses at the mention of his name by a stranger, something he reminded himself he should probably get used to. "The pleasure's mine," he said frankly.
"We are here to see The Oracle," Seraph told them. They smiled, and then nodded.
"Of course. Go as you please," they said, and stepped aside to allow the trio to continue on to their destination. They entered an ornate shrine, and walked along a path of zodiac symbols that led to a marble staircase that rose to a dais and a three-legged throne.
The throne, Janus noticed, was empty. Yet the others seemed to not notice or care, as they continued walking. As they ascended the staircase, Janus caught wind of a familiar smell. It was warm, and sweet. Cookies?
At the top of the stairs, the empty throne sat between two pillars. Janus looked to Morpheus, waiting to see what the next step of this weird journey was, while staying focused on the smell.
"Temet Nosce," Morpheus said out loud as if to say a password. Suddenly, there was a slight rumble, and the throne descended slowly into the floor under it, as if a chamber had opened. As it lowered into the floor, Janus could see that behind it was a hidden door. Taking the initiative, he stepped forward.
"You can only show me the door, right?" he asked rhetorically as he stepped ahead of the other two. Morpheus smiled as Janus got a grip on the doorknob, twisted, and pushed-- only to be met by an intensely bright light. Janus turned his head away slightly and raised his free hand in front of his face.
----
Zion Mainframe
The Matrix
Time and Date Unapplicable
When his sight returned, Janus looked around to take in his surroundings and place himself. The warm sweet smell filled his nose again, and he recognized the tan colored rug, and the long pink couch. To his surprise, the three now stood within the Oracle's apartment.
"What the hell?" he said to himself.
"I figured you'd be a little surprised," The Oracle said, as she walked out from the kitchen, drying her hands with a dish towel.
"What about that temple?" Janus asked in confusion.
"It's not my style, I like my old place. Of course, this isn't the same old place, but it was built to look just like it, which works well enough for me."
"Hm." Janus looked over at Morpheus, who merely shrugged nonchalantly.
"Anyway Janus, we're a bit pressed for time. You're probably wondering why I've asked you here, so we'll get to brass tacks and cut to the chase," The Oracle said. Janus noted the change in tone of her voice from friendly to serious, and nodded. She motioned over to the living room.
"You two have a seat," she told them, and then turned to Seraph. "Thanks for retrieving them, Seraph."
The guardian bowed his head, and left to another area of the apartment. The Oracle returned to the living room and took a seat on the sofa, setting her gaze on Janus.
"Now, as I was saying. We need your help, Janus."
Morpheus and Janus exchanged looks before Janus looked back to The Oracle.
"What's the matter?" he asked.
"Everything," she said solemnly, lighting up a cigarette and taking a drag. "There are problems all over the place. Haven't you noticed?"
"The fighting? I've been in the thick of it for the past year, how could I not notice it?"
"No Janus, the fighting between Zion and the Resistance is only on the surface, what I'm talking about goes deeper than that."
Morpheus leaned forward in his armchair, having taken great interest in the subject.
"Our Operators have been noting some strange code fluctuations every so often, but other than that we haven't noticed anything that would cause any alarm. Is that what you mean?" he asked.
The Oracle nodded as she took another drag from her cigarette and moved to tap it in the ash tray. "The glitches are just the tip of the ice berg, and they've been occuring throughout the Matrix all over the place. Sati's even having trouble controlling the weather stability. But you might expect something like that to happen and be squared away with a simple patch."
"Things have been happening that shouldn't be. The system is growing unstable.Old, dangerous programs that were replaced and sent to the Source for deletion because of their unstable coding have been reappearing within the system, contributing to the instability at an increasing rate. On top of that, newer programs that have showed no signs of error have been going rogue, several of them important to the system even disappearing. We haven't seen infection this vast since the early stages of the Smith Virus..."
"Another virus in the system?" Morpheus asked.
"Perhaps."
"I've felt it," Janus told her.
"Yes, I know you have."
"How did it happen?" Janus asked, his eyebrows wrinkled in concern at this point. Now, he figured, an explanation of this disturbance he'd sensed was in order.
"That's the problem, we don't know. The Machines haven't been able to figure it out. The best system administration programs have been backed up for weeks trying to get a handle on it, to no avail. When it seems as if they have one problem figured out, it turns out to be something else entirely. That's why I've called you here for help."
"You just told me the programs that run this world can't figure out how to fix it, and you expect me to find a solution?" Janus asked. "Why me?"
"You know why, Janus, there's no need to ask yourself such an obvious question."
Janus rolled his eyes and nodded his head at once as he realized what she meant.
"Right. Because I'm The One."
"You sure are a bright one," The Oracle said with a smile that soon faded. "This is serious, gentlemen. I called you here to ask the two of you not to find a solution, but to put your resources together and find the source of the problem."
She turned her eyes to Morpheus. "You've proven how capable you are when it comes to figuring out riddles and finding all the pieces to a puzzle. That was a long time ago."
"Yes," Morpheus said in agreement, remembering the mission to find The Keymaker and deliver Neo to the Source, and the more recent adventures of saving innocent bluepills from danger. "Much has changed. We know more about what we're dealing with. We know... the truth. It makes our jobs that much easier. With the millions of lives hanging in balance, this will become a top priority for us."
The Oracle smiled once again, putting her cigarette out. "That's why I knew I could depend on you."
"Once we get back I'll contact Irvine and we'll put together a task force."
"Wait a second," Janus said. "We're gonna need some more information before we get on this, or else we won't know where to start."
"I see there's still some detective left in you, Janus." The Oracle said fondly. "Unfortunately, I'm afraid there's not much more you'll be able to learn from me on the matter. I just had to let you know. You'll have to go to the expert if you need anymore details."
"Who would that be?"
"The Architect."
Janus nodded. "Where can I find him?"
"He's been wanting to speak with you, so he won't be hard to locate. You'll probably find him in a park somewhere."
Janus turned to Morpheus. "We'd better get moving."
The Oracle raised a hand to halt them before they raised from their seats. "Wait just a moment, boys. There's something else. A second matter of equal importance."
"What is it?" Morpheus asked. Janus payed attention silently.
"A long time ago, there were some very clever people. They call themselves Shapers. As their name would imply, they helped shaped the framework of the Matrix and many different programs operating within it. They're still around but you can't really see them unless they want to be seen. That's their nature."
"What about them?" Janus asked.
The Oracle took a moment and swallowed. "Two of them have been captured. I don't know who did it or how they did it, but if the Shapers aren't recovered, terrible things could start to occur."
"Like what?
"You don't want to know. That way leads to a scary place... One that even I can't see beyond. Do you understand?"
A moment of silence passed as the two redpills registered what she'd just told them. A distinct sense of urgency hung in the air.
"Yes," Morpheus said. The vitality of the matter was clear to him. He'd need to prepare a detailed briefing the moment he returned to the Nabonidus.
This isn't a normal way for The Oracle to behave, Janus thought to himself. In all their handling of situations, she'd never seemed so concerned or uncertain of an outcome.
"Whatever it takes," he said assuredly, his voice bold with confidnce and resolve. "We'll track down the Shapers, and I'll find out the cause for all these malfunctions."
For a moment, The Oracle looked at Janus like a concerned mother, worried about the safety of her child.
"I know," she said.
For a moment there was a strange silence as both Janus and Morpheus looked upon The Oracle, each pondering her last remark. Before either man could question her, she spoke again.
"There's precious little time now, and no more left for questions. You two should be on your way. Seraph will see you out."
Morpheus nodded, and he rose from his seat as Janus did. "Keep in touch," Morpheus told her. One could never go to the Oracle at will-- she was always the one to decide when it was time to talk. This was a fact Morpheus had known since he was a young child in Zion.
"Good luck," she said from the sofa as she watched them stand.
Janus gave a final bow-like nod of his head, and the next thing he knew he was following Seraph and Morpheus out into the hallway. Seraph removed his keyring from his sleeve, selected a specific key that he then inserted into the door knob. With a twist of the key, he pushed the door open.
----
The Matrix
Gracy Heights
April 2005, 12:21PM
As they walked through the door, they'd entered a back alley, lined with empty brick walls from the surrounding buildings. Every few feet there was a back door and set of steps leading into each different building.
Janus looked around at their new location as he stepped out, acknowledging that it wasn't Debir Court, where The Oracle's apartment was actually located and led out into. He turned around in time to see Morpheus watching Seraph close the door, and realized it was the back door to the very same bar they'd entered earlier.
"You don't have to come with us," Morpheus told Seraph. "We can handle ourselves."
"Consider it a favor," Seraph said. He turned from the door to look over at Morpheus as a way of insisting he come along, walking over to him. When he looked over at Janus, suddenly his whole demeanor changed to one of hostility. It was then that Janus realized it wasn't himself that Seraph was looking at, but something behind him. Then he sensed the change himself. Something other was now present. Something hostile.
Instantly, he spun around into a defensive position, the long skirt of his coat twisting around his legs before settling. By this point, Morpheus and Seraph had assumed fighting stances also.
Three strange men stood before them in a row, blocking their way in the alley.
The three men stood at similar heights. They each wore long, black coats that came down to their ankles and resembled robes in their design, including a tall, wide, and stiff cylindrical collar. Gray colored trim lined the collar and front of the coat. There were two square shaped gun-metal colored buttons centered on the chest, and one more of each on the sleeve cuffs.
Under this was an additional robe like article made of lighter fabric, dark purple in color, with a tall wrinkled collar that rose slightly higher than the black stiff collar. This was as far as their uniform appearance went. Each of them wore their own individually styled hair and sunglasses.
The one standing in the middle wore his black hair pulled back into a ponytail and a goatee on his face along with narrow oval shaped frames. And on the left, brown combed back hair and octagonal frames. The last one on the right had dark brown spiked hair with rectangular frames.
Janus quickly looked them over from head to toe, studying their features and evaluating their threat level. In his code vision he could see that they were armed with Jericho 945 "Baby Eagle" pistols chambered for .45ACP.
"Seraph, you're helping humans now?" the man standing in the center said. He grinned, bearing a sinister smile. "The last time we saw you, you were working for The Merovingian after your fall from grace" he finished. The other two snickered at the remark.
"What the hell are these?" Janus asked, keeping his eyes fixed on them.
"Agent programs from an older version of the Matrix. But they were sent to Source for deletion and replaced a long time ago..." Seraph said.
Janus realized that the Ex-Agents standing before him must have somehow escaped and returned as The Oracle had said. She must have been trying to warn us... Janus figured. But why? And then after a tense moment, he understood.
"They're no longer part of the system or bound to its rules," Janus said out loud. "They could be more dangerous than regular Agents."
Having gone toe to toe with Agents in the past and comparing those experiences to the newly perceived threat of the Ex-Agents, Morpheus decided this was a fight he'd be best not to get into. "The door..." he said quietly.
Seraph nodded, and as the two turned to make for the bar's backdoor and Janus took a single step backwards, the three Ex-Agents took out their pistols and fired a hail of bullets at the their prey. However not a single bullet ending up hitting it's mark, or anything for that matter.
To their amazement, the Ex-Agents realized that all of their bullets hung frozen in the air between themselves and Janus, without the redpill having raised a finger. The lead Ex-Agent narrowed his eyes behind his glasses as he suddenly realized what he was dealing with, and with a distant sense of familiarity. One side of his mouth curled up into a twisted smile.
"So then, you must be the anomaly," he said to Janus. "Welcome back."
"Morpheus, get out of here. I'll handle them," Janus called out.
Without hesitation, Morpheus and Seraph turned towards he bar's back door, only to be greeted by the sound of disrupted coding, and two ghostly figures coming out through the brick wall to halt them in their tracks. They solidified into their human form, resuming the familiar appearance of The Merovingian's silver-clad hitmen and bodyguards.
----
Tunnels of the Real Resistance HvCFT Nemesis 12:28PM Matrix Time
Glitch's demeanor went from one of cautious curiosity to emergency. As he began typing entry preparations, he looked over at Anubis and Solitaire, who'd been watching the screens since Janus had gone in, to watch out for any trouble their help might be needed with.
"You two get your gear taken care of, I'll have a hardline ready for you in case Janus can't get them out of there."
"Got it," Anubis said. In seconds, the two of them were over by the chairs selecting their clothing and weapons.
----
The Matrix
Gracy Heights
April 2005, 12:30PM
"We heard there was a party," the first of the two Twins said.
"So we brought some friends to help us crash it," the other said.
As if on cue, two additional ghost programs rose out of the ground to flank the first two. When they unphased, they too assumed corporeal forms, and grinned mischievously in the same fashion. Interestingly enough though, these two were different. While they still had long coats, silver hair and clothes, and pale white skin, both had individual styles of clothing and physical appearances that were not the same as the others.
Morpheus' forehead creased as confusion came over him. Last he remembered, there were only two of these. Somehow, he rationalized, either more exiled ghost programs had found a way to return to the Matrix, or something worse... "Is it a virus?" he asked, considering what The Oracle had said earlier.
"Only one way to find out..." Seraph said as he positioned himself.
The fight was on. With two ghost programs each, both men had their hands full. Seraph dropped low into a sweeping kick on the first of his opponents while Morpheus executed a two-strike combo on the first of his and then blasted out a side kick to the second. When Seraph came up from knocking his first target off its feet, he overwhelmed the second with a cross body strike combo and delivered a high kick to its chest, sending it flying backwards into a brick wall. At the last moment it phased and went through the wall, disappearing from sight.
Janus, on the otherhand, had three enemies all to himself. Initially holding off their sudden attacks with a series of cross body blocks, he then blocked a punch coming from the center Ex-Agent and then slammed him to the ground with a full roundhouse kick aimed straight at his head, powerful enough for its body to break the concrete. With two Ex-Agents left on either side of him, he moved faster than they could, kick vaulting himself into the air off the now crushed chest of the Ex-Agent to his left, and then snapping a snake-like jab to the head of the remaining Ex-Agent while still in the air, striking like a bolt of lightning. By the time Janus' feet hit the ground, all three of his opponents were dead on the floor.
He turned around to check on his comrades, finding that they had also quickly disposed of their attackers. Was that it? This was too easy, he told himself. He felt a change happen around them, as this was where he hated being right.
As additional ghost programs came up through the ground, through walls, or teleported to the alley in their phased forms accompanied by the sound of disrupted coding, Janus noticed that about a score's worth of Ex-Agent's had arrived, lining the rooftops overlooking the alleyway, ready to pounce down upon their prey.
"Ah *poop*..." Janus muttered.
The Ex-Agents jumped down, and the ghost programs attacked.
----
By the time Anubis had arrived on the scene, the other three had their hands full, caught up in a sea of the black and purple-clad Ex-Agents and silver ghost programs. Janus was throwing out punches and kicks in every direction, delivering a series of flip based attacks and launching up into the air to attack from above. Anubis knew Janus could handle himself, and would want him to help the other two.
When he checked for them, he saw that while they weren't as skilled or able as Janus or fight off so many enemies at once, they had teamed up in a duo and fought as one to take on their attackers. However, they took hits every so often. Judging by their numbers, Anubis estimated that there had to be around 65 entities attacking the three of them.
He raised his wrist to his mouth. "Throw down some cover, I'll surprise them," he spoke into a microphone.
Interrupting the sound of hand to hand combat, a series out loud blasts sounded off, the report of Solitaire's SVD ringing through the air. Situated on a rooftop farther down the way from the others, she picked off random targets in the fight below, making sure not to fire too close to Morpheus or Seraph.
For a moment, their attention was divided as the two tried to figure out what was going on. First they heard gunshots, then various enemies would burst open with exit wounds as they fell to the ground. Seeing that the sniper was on their side, Morpheus only had to wonder who it was.
"The security teams?" Seraph asked as he fought, smashing an Ex-Agent's nose up into his head with a palm strike, then elbowing a ghost program in the chest with the same arm.
"No!" Janus shouted over to them. He grabbed a ghost program by the back of its head, and smashed its face into his knee. As he let it go, he ripped a handful of silver dreadlocks from its scalp, reformed them into a knife-like object in his hand, and then spun around, stabbing it straight into another ghost program's skull.
When the ghost program fell to the ground, its body phased, but instead of healing itself or teleport away, the phased body broke up into tiny silver characters of katakana coding, which faded and disappeared as they blew away like dust.
"Then who?" Morpheus asked. An Ex-Agent attacked him with a kick to his ribs and followed up with a punch combo aimed at his torso. Morpheus retaliated by straight headbutting the Ex-Agent in the face and then, while it was stunned, grabbed onto its head and twisted to break its neck.
As another Ex-Agent leveled his Jericho 945 with the barrel pointed at Morpheus, the ship captain's answer came. Light glinted off fast moving steel that came from above in an arc, and before the Ex-Agent could register, his hand fell off, and blood shot out from the open wound.
"Myarm!" it yelled out in surprise. No sooner than its severed hand and gun hit the floor, Anubis landed next to him and finished the job without hesitation, cutting through its neck with such speed that its head went flying up into the air, the surprised facial expression having never faded.
"This is how you crash a party," Anubis said as he sliced his blade up through the front of a ghost program and then spin kicked it with enough force to send it flying back into whatever enemy programs were behind it, creating a domino effect. Without wasting time for introductions, the redpill assassin got right to work, slashing away and cutting up any enemies close enough to him.
By this point, Seraph and the three redpills were fighting an enemy that were roughly ten times their number, and worse were now starting to strategize. In isolating Janus by surrounding him and forcing him to move farther away from the others as he defended himself, it made it easier for the others to be ganged up on, despite their skills.
Janus realized what the enemy was up to and did what he could to fight through it, but he was met with stiff resistance. Although he usually didn't worry about his comrades, as he knew Anubis and Morpheus were among the most skilled fighters in Zion and Seraph was the Oracle's bodyguard for a reason, it seemed like the more programs were killed the more came up in their place. He had to get them some relief, but he was being attacked from all sides and angles. The best he could do was find a way to fight through them and get back to his friends. The enemy wouldn't have it though, and he found himself being swarmed by ghosts.
Then, in the midst of the fighting, just after he dispatched an Ex-Agent with a kick to the face, Janus felt a sharp feeling come over him. It was similar to the feeling he'd felt a long time ago, at Tabor Park. Is it that old man? he thought, blinking to his code vision immediately. He searched around him to find the source of the pressure, but he didn't find anything out of the ordinary outside of the attacking exiles.
More of them came, grabbing onto him to keep him from escaping. All the while, one ghost program appeared before him and went into in its phased form. Outreaching toward Janus with its palm, the ghost program released what looked like a tiny sentinel, only organic, and in a phased form just like the ghost. With the sound of defected coding, it soared through the air straight toward Janus. It was then he realized that instead of trying to destroy him, they were attempting to assimilate him into one of their numbers. It's a virus, he confirmed in thought as he struggled.
The strange sensation pinged again, and despite the similarities to the entity he encountered in Tabor, this was different. Janus felt a radiance that greatly diversed itself from the rest of the Matrix, a form of being that seemed greatly out of place and somehow held dominion over everything in the system, yet there was no ominous aura this time. After a moment, Janus placed his sixth sense and realized what it was. The Architect.
He had to escape this fight, but the exiles had him where they wanted him. The phased creature made contact, sinking into Janus' RSI and causing it to phase. He grunted as he was slowly transformed, trying to get away.
After slaying another ghost, Anubis looked over toward his direction, and immediately realized his friend needed help. "Janus!" he called out, going into a dash. But before he could reach Janus, more exiles appeared between him and his destination, and he had no choice but to cut his way throug. No matter how many enemies he cut through, he couldn't get past them. All he could do was watch as he fought and slowly make his way toward Janus, but then it seemed as if The One had stopped struggling. Was it too late?
Inside of him, Janus could feel the viral code trying to change him, corrupting his RSI code into its own format. He struggled with himself, closing his eyes and trying to focus. I won't be done in like this! his mind roared. "Join the club," one ghost taunted, and Janus decided to try something different.
He let go of himself and allowed the virus to proceed, but with a twist; instead of fighting back against it, he used his own more powerful Source-given code to adapt the strain without losing his will or being, effectively reversing the process. As his body was almost fully phased, the ghost programs surrounding him seemed confused at how he had suddenly stopped resisting.
Once he was fully phased and unable to be held in place, he began to rising up into the air slowly. When he was about seven feet off the ground, he un-phased to reveal his normal self and that the assimilation attempt had failed, taking them by surprise.
He executed a split-kick that knocked out the two ghost programs that had been holding him down, and when he landed, the ghost program before him was unsure of what to do. Reacting on impulse, it quick drew its Taurus pistol and fired a volley of bullets, but not before Janus phased again, causing the bullets to fly through him and kill the unsuspecting ghost program that had been behind him.
When he saw this, Anubis could only laugh to himself as he fought, realizing that Janus hadn't been assimilated into a ghost program, but had instead stolen their phasing ability. "That son of a *CENSORED*," he said to himself, as he spun around to slice an Ex-Agent across the chest.
When he unphased, Janus merely nodded to the ghost program that had transfered its unique ability over to him. "Thanks for that," he said. Without a word, the ghost program turned to run and escape, not anticipating that Janus could also make use of their teleporting ability as well. Before it could blink, the ghost program's head snapped back as Janus appeared before it and punched it right in the face.
After flying backwards and slamming into the ground due to the impact, the ghost program's body began to disintegrate into the silver bits of coding as the broken neck it suffered from the whiplash delivered by Janus' strike had been the coup de grace. Just then, Janus sensed another new presence, but not one like before. This one was more familiar, more common, more human. It was time to go.
Taking a moment, he looked at the ghosts still surrounding him and took their positions into consideration, and then began a teleport attack on the group of exiles that made it seem as though he were in multiple places at once, appearing to an enemy, striking them, and teleporting again, disappearing as fast as he had came and then repeating the process. To Morpheus' amazement, Janus was like an angry wraith, haunting his many targets.
With a final 360-degree sweep kick to incapacitate the ghosts that were immediately near him, Janus took one more quick glance around to see that the others were alright. They'll be fine, he said to himself. Without saying a word, he crouched down as if to hyper-jump and blasted up into the sky, flying away from the battle. Anubis saw this and after convincing himself he could afford to let his guard down, he looked over at Morpheus. The two exchanged looks, and then looked over at Seraph, as if to ask, "Where the hell did he go?"
And then, a new sound entered the fray of the battle. A repetitive booming sound that could only be made by a group of assault rifles, resulting in a rain of 5.56 x 45 mm NATO bullets that fell around both the Zion General and the guardian program and into the mass of enemies. Morpheus and Seraph turned around just in time to see reinforcements arriving in the form of Captain Jade of the Interceptor and her security force.
Their effect was devastating. Both the Ex-Agents and the Viruses were totally unprepared for human reinforcements, and by the time they began to dodge the bullets or phase, several of the exiles had been eliminated.
A few of the Ex-Agents began to shoot back at their attackers, but the firepower of their pistols didn't hold a candle to the Zion group's concentrated barrage, and they were unable to enitrely evade the rainstorm of bullets. The ghost viruses faired a little better as their phasing ability allowed the bullets to fly through them without harm, but several of them foolishly unphased so they could shoot back at the intruders along with the Ex-Agents; those that attempted this were easily dealt with. One by one the ghosts fell and vanished in a cloud of corrupted code lines.
And then what felt like a seconds, the exiles began to retreat, the ghosts all phasing and either teleporting away of flying off into different directions while the Ex-Agents began to back out while returning fire or avoiding bullets. The reinforcement fighters moved after them, still gunning them down.
Seeing that her team could handle the situation without her, Jade started to move over to Morpheus. She was a black haired, somewhat-taller-than-average woman with a stern-yet-unwavering glance, dressed in a black trench that covered a skin tight tactical suit and combat boots, as well as fingerless gloves covering her hands. Other than the M4 in her hands, the only other visible weapon on her was a Heckler & Koch USP Tactical holstered at her right thigh; any other weapons were hidden inside her coat. When she was only a few feet away from Morpheus, she stood at attention, past the M4 into her left hand and threw a sharp salute.
"Captain Jade of the Interceptor reporting, General. I apologize for my team's tardiness." she said, speaking in a rich British accent.
"On the contrary Captain, you couldn't have come at a better time." Morpheus replied more casually, despite the surprise attack's . "What was the hold up on your end?"
"Several ships whos redpills the team consists of had to change locations in the real because a sentinel patrol was detected. They didn't notice what was happening inside the Matrix due to the distraction, so we weren't informed until it had already started." Jade explained. "Any casualties?"
"Thankfully none, although if you hadn't shown up we'd probably be worse off." Morpheus said, looking over at the remaining Ex-Agent corpses. "Captain, I'll need your team to escort me to the nearest exit. From there, you and your men are also to jack out."
This seemed to pique something deep down in Jade. "But sir, my team and I are on rotation for the reinforcement shift. We can't just..."
Morpheus folded his arms behind his back, a form that he was most renowned for. "Do not worry; you won't be the only ones heading back. As soon as I return to the real, I will issue a recall order to all ships of the Corps to return to Zion as soon as humanly possible. There will be no need to have reinforcements on standby."
Jade's expression remained stern, but there were subtle hints of confusion still. A recall of the entire Corps? That would mean withdrawing all of Zion's presence from the Matrix, something that she couldn't see Morpheus ordering unless the circumstances were that dire. "May I inquire as to why, Sir?" she asked.
"Not at this time. But I assure you it is of the utmost importance."
At that point, Anubis had walked over to them from where he'd taken cover, all the while twirling his katana once, wiping the blood off on the scabbard and sheathing it as he closed the distance. "Whatever wasn't killed got away. For the moment we're clear."
Morpheus nodded. "Very good Anubis, you've done well today." He complimented him, although Anubis didn't seem to react to it. "Have you swept the area for any other potential intruders?"
"Captain Jade's men are doing that as we speak." Anubis said in monotone, looking over at Jade's direction and giving a small nod to her, a sign that he acknowledged her presence and rank superiority. Jade returned the nod in acceptance.
"Good, then our business here is concluded. Anubis, you and your own team are to return to the Nemesis immediately, and inform Captain Irvine to standby for orders. I will be heading back to the Nabonidus as well." Morpheus said.
"With all due respect, I prefer to remain until Janus has concluded his own 'business'. We can't move the Nemesis until everyone is out." Anubis said. He noticed, at the mention of the ship on which he served, Jade seemed to tense slightly. He decided for the moment that it wasn't important.
"Duly noted Anubis, but as you are well aware, Janus can take care of himself."
----
The Matrix
Center Park
April 2005, 12:55PM
By the time Janus touched down on the dirt path in the green field of Center Park, west of the U-shaped sculpture, the others he'd just left behind had already jacked out. And as if his presense wasn't obvious enough to detect, The Architect stood out in his signature faded white suit, standing roughly 100 feet away from where Janus landed, on the opposite end of the dirt path. His back was to Janus, and he was facing the sculpture itself, indifferent to The One's arrival that he had undoubtedly sensed, as if he were expectantly waiting.
Janus double-checked to verify the elderly man's identity in code vision for a moment. When he read the RSI code over and was convinced this was who he was looking for, he blinked back into his normal vision and quietly approached, walking up to him where he stood. When Janus was about twelve feet away from him, he spoke without turning around.
"Hello, Janus."
Janus stopped in his footsteps, and waited for him to continue. Finally, he turned around, and met Janus' gaze as if he could see right through his dark lenses.
"I am The Architect. I created the Matrix. I've been waiting for you. You are undoubtedly confounded by my decision to establish this communication. Do not let this perplexity divert you from following the instructions I am about to reveal."
Janus arched an eyebrow. Presumptuous are we? "What instructions?"
The Architect continued. "Since the aborted reinsertion of the prime program, there have been an objectionable quantity of anomalies, as you have been aware. Even after accounting for the fluctuations due to human rejection of the simulation, there remains an unaccounted for and increasingly high number of these anomalies. This is, of course, unacceptable - and great pains have been taken to rectify the condition."
"Upon supplementary analysis of the anomalies, the following error was returned, ad nauseam: Despite the historical efficacy of these procedures, the current anomalies do not correspond with our existing indexing methodologies and resist being quarantined. I have therefore made a rather abhorrent and altogether regrettable decision. Specifically, I am seeking your help."
In the middle of a war over an age-old conflict, the leader of the Machines' instance within the Matrix was asking for help from the champion of his enemy? This piqued Janus' interest, and at the same time reassured him of the seriousness of the matter, as The Oracle had just told him.
"The Oracle told me. Why do you want my help?"
Once again, The Architect continued, opting to ignore Janus' mention of The Oracle. "The anomalies in question seem to bear a more than superficial resemblance to the integral anomaly. To be more explicit, they share qualities with aspects of The One, specifically you in this case. You are identical to your six predecessors in that you are the end result and manifestation of the systemic anomaly inherint to the Matrix's programming. However there is an additional factor to the code you carry not recognized as a creation of my design. It is through this unidentified factor that you are connected to said anomalies, and why I have consequently enlisted your help."
Despite his expansive vocabulary, Janus was quick to catch on to what The Architect had just told him. "Wait a minute," he said. "I'm connected? As in I'm the cause for all the disruptions and glitches?"
The Architect paused for a split second, considering the question. "There is no suitable response to your inquiery at this time. The priority is that you assist in revealing the cause of said anomalies. Although it is with great disinclination that I reveal this information, I believe that it may assist your impulsive and disorderly thought processes. Of course, this cooperation is by no means and extension of truce between our parties."
Janus smirked. *CENSORED*-hole. "Sure. And I'm guessing you want me to report back to you if I figure any of this out?"
The Architect seemed to show slight contempt, as if what Janus had just suggested was off-color.
"It is improbable that we will speak again."
Janus rolled his eyes behind his glasses. Others might have considered this meeting some kind of honor of a rare occassion, but to Janus, this was getting annoying.
"Right.." he finished. The Architect merely looked back as if he had nothing more to say to him, like some snob in the upper class of society. Resisting his urge to shake his head, Janus turned around and began walking away. When he'd gotten about twenty feet away from where he was standing, he turned to look back. The Architect was gone, out of sight completely, and that's when Janus realized he could no longer sense his presense either, as if he had completely exited the Matrix.
For a moment, Janus compared The Architect to the more ominous elder program he'd met a year back, once more noting their similarities and differences. He wondered if they were connected in any form, before considering what The Architect had just told him in conjunction with what The Oracle said. Apparently, whatever the problem was, not only was it a serious threat to the system and all those connected to it, but it wasn't entirely of this world either. Strange. He'd have to report this at the briefing Morpheus would be organizing, which he then realized would be taking place shortly, and that the rest of the Nemesis crew was waiting for him to return before they could attend.
With the blast of a sonic boom, Janus shot off into the sky once more, headed for his designated exit.
Chapter 8: Visions Tunnels of the Real Matrix Corps HvCFT Nemesis 12:28PM Matrix Time
When Janus opened his eyes as the plug was being pulled from the port in his head, he could tell right away that the crew was busy preparing the ship to leave. People were moving all over the place on the main deck, making sure everything was ready for the trip home, and a sudden attack by Sentinels, should they be so unfortunate. It had been three months since they last left Zion.
Janus turned his head so he could see who was helping him out of his restraints, and was glad to find it was Camese. As she walked around the chair to face him and un-fasten the strap on his left arm, she smiled and leaned over to give him a kiss hello as she worked. He closed his eyes as she did this, allowing himself to relax for the brief moment. She pulled away, and when he opened the one good eye he could see with, he saw that she had moved down to his leg restraints. Without a word, he began un-tying his other arm from the chair, and once he was free, he stood up on the deck and stretched out, trying to recall exactly how long he'd been plugged in for.
"Are you alright?" Camese asked him, stepping close and placing a hand on his chest. He placed a hand over hers, and looked down to meet her gaze, standing a full foot taller than her, and nodded his head.
"It wasn't anything I couldn't handle, just unanticipated. I'm fine."
"Good. Irvine's in the cockpit, he wants to talk to you."
Janus nodded once more, looking up at the topside as if to look through the various decks and directly into the cockpit. "I bet he does, probably wants to know what the big deal is."
"You'd better go quick, he's a bit frustrated. A sentinel patrol was detected while you were still inside, and the last thing he wants is to move around while it's out there. Maybe a bit of insight would calm him down."
"Yeah I should, before he goes rogue again. I'll go do that now. What are you dealing with?"
"I'm on scanner watch with Glitch while Marley and Irvine are flying."
Janus nodded approvingly, although he knew she could handle herself in the more dangerous assignment of manning a turret just fine. "I'll find you later," he said as he started towards a ladder to the upper deck.
"I know," she said with a smirk, winking at him cofidently as he parted, before then heading over to Glitch's station. ----
On the turret deck, Blade moved down the hallway toward his station, followed by Anubis. The two had grown in comradery over the past year, and their initial spiteful rivalry had become more of a friendly competitive one as two soldiers with a similar taste for wielding a sword as their primary weapon. The ladder that lead to the lower decks and up to the cockpit level was situated right in the middle of said hall. As the two walked, there came Janus, climbing right up past the particular deck.
"Janus!" Anubis said, successfully gaining his friend's attention before he was gone. He stopped climbing and blew hair out of his face as he angled his head as to get a better view of who called him, though he could already tell who's voice it was.
"Yeah?"
"You alright? Why the haste?" Anubis asked, referring back to Janus' earlier hasty exit. He laughed to himself in his thoughts, realizing that Janus only seemed to be in a hurry, thus making it difficult to catch up with him.
"Irvine wants a report on what happened. The rest you'll hear at the briefing," Janus replied.
"Yeah, you heard him blondie, get your *CENSORED* on station!" Blade shouted from wherever he was around the corner, probably waiting for him to catch up.
Janus nodded to him. "I'll fill you in later,"
Anubis nodded in return. "Alright." He started down the hall getting back to where he was supposed to be. "Blade if you ever call me blondie again, the next time you pull out your sword it'll be from your *CENSORED*," he said as he went.
As he cleared the deck, Janus heard Blade shout back, "Try me, goldilocks!"
Once he reached the cockpit deck, he didn't waste any time moving through the narrow hall leading to it. When he reached the hatch, he twisted the handle and pushed in, and as he stepped inside, Marley and Irvine both turned their heads to see who the newcomer was.
"Ah, there you are," Irvine said as he and Marley ran the various system checks mandatory before takeoff. "What happened in there?"
"We got ambushed on the way back from The Oracle, and I had to leave the fight early to go talk The Architect."
"The what?"
"The program that created the Matrix," Janus said bluntly.
Irvine glanced over at Janus. "That's heavy. What for?"
"There's a few problems we gotta take care of. Morpheus is planning a briefing and every ship's being called in, so you're right, it is heavy."
"Huh, I'm not sure if that eases my nerves or makes me more tense. All he did was tell me to get back to Zion immediately without saying why, but at least you're throwing me a bone."
"Anything else you wanna know?"
"I wanna know what the grips on your turret controls feel like. Save your war stories for later big shot," Irvine said in smart *CENSORED* fashion.
"Go find out yourself, usually the one wearing the eye patch is Captain," Janus shot back dryly.
Marley chuckled at that. "He got you 'dere, Irvine."
Janus smiled and patted Irvine on the shoulder to reinforce his humorous intent, before exiting the cockpit and getting to his station.
Even as The One, Janus was, after all, a soldier with a superior officer to answer to. But, as was habit in the Matrix, he sometimes took to bending the rules outside of it as well. ----
Zion Briefing Chamber Auditorium April 2005
The briefing had been simple. As ordered, all military hovercraft short of Zion's six Hoverbarges, whom the briefing orders would be relayed to, had returned and docked within hours of Morpheus' return order. All Captains and crews were then summoned to the Council Audience Chamber, whereby Morpheus would inform the rest of the Matrix Corps only half of what he and Janus had been told by The Oracle; That being, the details regarding the two missing Shaper programs. All personell were ordered to be on the lookout for them, as well as to attempt to track them down if possible, by any means necessary and through whatever leads they had.
Essentially, the whole Corps was placed on a sort of manhunt that reminded Janus of the joint missing persons cases he'd worked on when originally tracking Irvine down. He found it ironic how similar work had been handed out on the other side. Along with these two, the rest of the Nemesis crew sat among the mustered Corps personell, as to give the illusion that The One was also a part of the investigation, without raising suspicion to any ulterior objectives. In truth, while Morpheus had appointed the majority of the Corps' redpills to the Shaper search, it would be the paired crews of the Nabonidus and the Nemesis that would focus on the second, more grave problem at hand.
Of course, only Morpheus, Irvine, their respective crews, and the Zion High Council were aware of this, as per Janus' report to them prior to the meeting. Although such secrecy was necessary for OpSec protocol, nobody from either of the two crews set aside thought the rest of Zion's redpill force would have minded all that much; Any assignment dealing with a matter inside the Matrix would be thought better than their previous orders to search out the Resistance in the real world. While the rogue faction was still at large and considered a priority, the lives of those Zion was trying to free took a higher level of importance.
Once all the details were covered and the crucial information was conveyed, the briefing was finished. All ship crews were allowed 24 hours to have their ships charged, repaired, or tuned up as necessary, as well as for R&R. While the majority of Zion's non-military populace felt that a rave dance would work better to put the city in a better mood or boost morale, the truth was Zion couldn't afford to put their guard down long enough to allow for said festivities, not at this point. The risk of attack on the city was greater now, and it had been through enough of that in the past few years when they were on their guard. Thus, this brief moment of respite was understandbly acceptable.
As the Matrix Corps soldiers dispersed to take care of their own business, the crews of the Nemesis and Nabonidus nonchalantly made their way over to each other to form a little group while the rest of the auditorium was clearing out. As they exchanged greets with one another, Morpheus casually made his was over to Irvine.
"A strong presence will be needed within the Matrix, in case anything should go wrong," he said to Irvine.
"Wrong?" Irvine asked, perplexed. "What could go wrong? You just sent the whole Corps out."
"The usual. Cops, Agents or Exiles turning up at the wrong time like they're good for. Hell, even Blood might come out of the woodwork again, who knows. I was thinking it over during the briefing and I think we could use another crew for the task force."
"Another ship? Alright. You have any suggestions?"
"The Interceptor comes to mind. Jade is a capable soldier and Captain who takes her work seriously and demonstrates care and responsibility for the lives placed in her hands. She just had my back on my last venture into the Matrix, with Janus."
Irvine moved his head slightly to the side so he could see past Morpheus', in order to get a clear line of sight of who he was talking about. When he saw her, Irvine felt a fond reminscient feeling wash over him, and he smirked triumphantly. Turning his head a bit so he could meet eyes with Morpheus, he nodded in agreement.
"I'll take care of this."
Morpheus returned the nod, and Irvine moved passed him. Walking in a pace that suggested he wasn't in any rush, yet rather in more of a laid back mood, he followed Jade and her crew as they made their way out of the auditorium, following the others. She wore the standard red top signifying she was a captain, along with black combat pants and service boots. Her black hair, which came just down to her shoulders, was slicked back and pushed behind her ears as a means of keeping it out of her face.
As the captain of a small-class hovercraft, so too was her crew, consisting of only two additional redpills, an operator, and a crew assist. Despite their small numbers, Jade's crew was known for its vitality and special forces quality skills range, earning them assignment on many reinforcement and escort missions. Without a larger group to worry about, Jade's was able to concentrate more into their training, most of which was derived from bluepill paramilitary units and improved upon. Thus, they were highly valued, and it was easy to see why Morpheus would want them along.
Irvine quickly closed the gap and came up behind her, so close he could smell her hair, a familiar scent that made his blood run a bit quicker. It had been a while; Now was as good a time as ever to patch things up.
"Jade," he called out, loud enough to get the attention of both her and her entire crew. They all stopped in their tracks and turned around to see Irvine there in his blue combat pants, black service boots, and a dark blue jacket over a long-sleeved white shirt made of home-spun materials. Once they saw that he was looking not for their attention but for hers, the rest of the Interceptor crew looked to their Captain for what they should do. As for Jade herself, upon laying eyes on Irvine and looking into his, her eyes conveyed the surprise she felt before they narrowed into a cold glare.
For Irvine, Jade's contempt was painfully obvious, but he showed no sign that he knew or cared. Instead, he smiled a slacker's smirk and ran a hand through his long hair to the back of his head and pretended to scratch an itch. "I've gotta ask you something."
For a moment, Jade said nothing. Then, she turned completely around, at first giving Irvine the impression that he was being given the cold shoulder before his gut instinct kicked in and reminded him never to assume and jump to conclusions.
"Go ahead and do whatever you like. Use your time wisely, because we've only been given twenty-four hours. I'll check with you later on," she told them. "If anything, Chase is in charge while I'm busy."
With that, the other three in the group looked at Chase. He exchanged looks with Jade, and then nodded to the rest of the crew. Now that they were all situated, they went on their way. Jade watched them leave to make sure they were out of ear shot, and when they were, she turned around fully to face Irvine, and walked a few steps over to him.
"Unless it's for mercy, you'd better not waste your time asking for my forgiveness-- or a spare key to my apartment. Who the hell do you think you are walking up to me all smug like that?"
"Hmm..." Irvine crossed one arm over his body and put the other hand on his chin, as if he was actually giving it some serious thought. The smirk on his face conveyed the exact opposite thought.
"The hell with this!" Jade said. Just as she turned to storm off, Irvine rolled his eyes and spoke up.
"If you gave me a minute, I was trying to decide which question to answer first. Now if you'll let me..."
Jade stopped, turned around once more and set herself in a posture with all her weight on one leg, with a hand on her outward pointed hip.
"First of all, I'm not here for mercy or forgiveness, so don't expect to me to act all apologetic. As for being 'smug,' as you put it, c'mon, you know me babe." Once more, the smart-*CENSORED* smirk.
"Then what do you want?"
Irvine looked around to check if anyone else was in ear shot, and beckoned her to come closer with an index finger. She strode over and crossed her arms, as if she had something better to do.
"My crew and I aren't going to be working on the Shaper investigation. We've got another assignment."
Jade arched a brow out of interest. "A special mission?"
Now Jade displayed a look of concern. "With the General? How's this involve me?"
"Yes, 'the General'," Irvine said as he rolled his eyes at the level of discipline with which she referred to Morpheus. He found it ridiculous and unnecessary, although admittedly that was very well because he'd been working close with Morpheus and his crew for the better part of the past year.
"We've got a task force set up for a seperate objective that we'll need Janus'... expertise for, and Morpheus doesn't think two ship crews are enough to round out a team big enough to make sure we've got our asses covered should anything go wrong inside the Matrix at any point. So I'm asking if you'd like to tag along."
Jade ran her tongue along the inside of her cheek and sucked at her teeth while she considered it. "Why me? Wouldn't it make more sense to enlist the help of a large-class hovercraft instead of a small-class?"
"Well, you might have a point, but..." Irvine began, as he began to circle her at his usual casual pace.
"But what?" she asked, with an inquisitive glare. Irvine wanted to roll his eyes, but kept his cool look about him. Everything with her was a glare now that he'd come back. He expected a lot more during their assignment.
"But I personally recommended you, with a few details of your ace performance. He was impressed and had me come to offer your the assignment."
"General Morpheus is well informed of my operational reputation. For all I know you're full of *poop* and kissing my *CENSORED* to get on my good side."
"Well not that it's on the subject, but you and I both know my 'kissing' your *CENSORED* always had me on your good side."
She went to retort, but he stopped pacing and cut her off before she could get a word out, and with a sudden up front and serious tone.
"The point is millions of lives are at stake, and we want you with us because you and your team are better managed and useful to us than any large-class crew. I mean that, and Morpheus knows I know the right type to look for. Are you with us or not?
Taken aback by his change in tone, she craned back her head reflexively to study this new side of Irvine that had revealed itself without warning. He was serious. She was convinced.
"Alright. I'm in."
Irvine nodded, retaining his seriousness. "Good. We leave as soon as our ships are charged and ready to go. Get your crew prepared. You'll be fully briefed once we deploy."
She nodded, and then turned to leave, off to find her crew and update them on their reassignment. Irivne crossed his arms over him as he watched her leave, not thinking twice about watching her *CENSORED* as he did. He smug grin returned, and he patted himself on the shoulder.
"The man still knows how to push her buttons," he said with a quiet chuckle. With that, he returned to the rest of the group to confirm Jade would be with them.
Twenty-four hours later, all three ships were deployed to broadcast point. ----
The Matrix Jurong, International District April 2005, 12:00PM
Now that all three ships were in place, each crew was divided up and assigned their tasks. It was decided that while Morpheus accompanied Janus to meet up with Seraph, Irvine would take command at the nearby Zion safe house, where the rest of the Nemesis crew would wait on standby, should Agents or an overwhelming amount of enemy Exiles show up.
In case things really got bad, Jade's crew was waiting back on their ship at broadcast point in the tunnels of the real. The tactical reasoning for this was that in the event that the Nemesis crew had to move in for support and was then also overpowered, by Agents in particular, then the Interceptor crew would pinpoint their comrades' location and jack-in there to assist in their escape and extraction. Though small in number, Jade and her crew made up for it in their viciousness. The size of their crew wasn't a cause for concern amongst the task force.
Meanwhile, the Nabonidus crew was tasked with reconnaissance and surveillance detail. While Sparks, Link, Glitch, and Hook were watching after the redpills inside the Matrix in concern of any threats to their operation, Gizmo and Hacksaw, the two redpills on the Nabonidus crew that specialized as In-Matrix Operators, were focusing on specific points within the city.
In-Matrix Operators were a new introduction into Zion's redpill forces as a means of obtaining intel and providing support. In consequence, there weren't many, and the pioneers in the field were still testing their boundaries. Gizmo and Hacksaw were two of the few. They sat inside a van full of high tech computer equipment that was custom "built" by Zion's coders, and uploaded into the system via the Construct, very much like the equipment used by redpills for bug removal and the unplugging of bluepills.
With this equipment, they could accomplish various tasks much similar to those of hovercraft Operators, though not to the full extent. From inside the Matrix, they couldn't do such tasks as uploading equipment or patching exits. They could however pinpoint friend and enemy locations, provide building schematics and directions on maps, and expedite a hovercraft operator's job by helping to pinpoint available exit locations in the area surrounding whatever redpills they were assisting, making less work and trouble the Operators would have in finding one themselves first.
In this instance, Gizmo and Hacksaw were tasked with a mission specific detail. To help in the overall objective of tracking down the cause of the glitches and disruptions that had been occurring in the Matrix, these two were locating and logging the grid coordinates of every reported instance of a glitch inside the system, what kind of glitches they were, and their levels of severity and danger to contact. They then relayed this information to the four ship Operators to save on each hovercraft's hard drives, for further examination and use in their investigation.
While they were busy with this, Niobe, Ghost, and Kid were all watching their backs, ready to provide support in case they messed up in covering their tracks and were traced and hunted down, though there was hopeful and heavy doubt such a slip up would occur. Nevertheless, the three redpill warriors stayed alert and on their guard, knowing that the Matrix was a place full of surprises. ----
Once again, Morpheus and Janus rendezvoused with Seraph for this operation. It had seemed to the rest of the task force that the guardian program had assigned itself a role of guidance and assistance in this mission, and didn't hesistate to help with the fighting either. Since it was The Oracle who was desperate in urging that the problem be solved, it wasn't hard to imagine that she'd given Seraph orders to help the redpills out in any and all means necessary.
While Morpheus saw her in a different light these days rather than the revered prophet that had been with the resistance since its "beginning," the fact that The Oracle was a product of his enemy and had a purpose to serve that was in their interest didn't distract him from noticing that she too had changed along with the giant change she had caused. In uncertain times as these that were never to have occured, nothing was absolute anymore. Although war had resumed, that domineering cycle had not.
Seraph had vaguely instructed the two to meet him in Jurong, in front of the Pearl Phoenix Dojo. The Pearl Phoenix was located at the edge of, just at the border of what would be considered Harajuku. Although the dojo appeared empty and deserted, it was meticulously maintained for the very "special" students who occasionally trained there. The outside décor made the building appear as though it belonged in the Chinatown district, what with the layered Asian roof, support pillars, and banners, on which were written encouraging fortune cookie-like phrases.
"So what's the deal, Seraph?" Janus asked as he and Morpheus closed in on him. "What's so special about this place that you wanted us to meet you here without explaining why?"
"I apologize for being bleak," Seraph answered. "The Pearl Phoenix is the province of an exile by the name of Master Zu -- a name you may not know yet."
Confirming Seraph's assertion of their uncertaintiy, Morpheus raised an eyebrow. "Master Zu?" he asked. Janus looked on, silently wondering the same.
"Master Zu is the exile who instructed me in the art of combat when I originally came to the Matrix," Seraph continued. Before Morpheus could question him with what little he knew of Seraph's past, he answered him.
"Of course, I did not work for the Merovingian at the time; that came later."
It was certainly one of the more...unusual stories Morpheus had heard, and although he was dubious of the more exotic details, there was no denying the prowess of an exile like Seraph.
"Obviously you believe he's of some importance to our task. Why did you bring us here?"
"Master Zu has a much greater detailed knowledge of the Matrix and its history than I do, having existed as an exile long before I did. His knowledge and wisdom may prove useful, as he is aware of the older versions of the system and the various problems it faced during the cycles. He may have some insight as to what's causing these."
Janus glanced at Morpheus to see if he bought the idea, and the veteran redpill nodded back to him.
"Alright then," Janus said approvingly. "We'll see what he has to say."
Seraph nodded and led the way as Janus and Morpheus followed him inside the dojo. Once inside, Janus studied the building's interior. He saw no traps, nothing out of the ordinary. When satisfied, he blinked back into regular vision. The inside of the place looked quite similar to the sparring programs used by redpills in the Construct. A wide, open center floor lined with matting, with weapon racks lining the walls. Some pictures were hung up here and there of various things, including Chinese and Japanese scroll symbols.
A class was in session when the trio entered. When the door shut, the lead instructor turned his head toward the distraction to see what intrusion there was to his lesson. Upon seeing Seraph, his face lit up with what could have been recognition. He turned back to his students, a mixture of boys and girls of various ethnicities, and told him, "Work on your katas. I will return shortly."
The students nodded in unison, and answered "Yes, Sensei."
As the instructor started his way over to them and the class began its routines, Janus couldn't help but laugh to himself. These kids are going over the basics of what I "learned" and mastered in what, a minute or two? They don't have a clue. He turned and saw Morpheus smiling to himself, and figured he was probably thinking the same thing.
Finally, the instructor came to them. He and Seraph bowed to each other in greeting.
"Seraph, it has been a long time. Are you well?"
"Yes, I'm doing fine. I have some friends with me. We must see Master Zu."
The instructor's eyebrows wrinkled as though he were confused. "Master Zu? May I ask what your business is?"
"The Matrix," Janus said boldy, cutting into his inquiry, in a tone that said they didn't have the time to be questioned. The instructor seemed to be startled by his sudden butting in, and not expecting his answer. He gave Janus the once-over as if he was studying him, and kept his eyes on him for a moment as he turned his head back in Seraph's direction. He then nodded firmly in understanding.
"Master Zu is in the zen garden with other students, behind the establishment."
Seraph bowed his head in appreciation. "Thank you," he said, and began the walk to the back door. As the two redpills followed, Morpheus nodded to the instructor as he walked.
"We appreciate it."
The instructor nodded once more without a word, and turned back to his students.
Outside, the three men found the zen garden they were directed to. It was wide and vast, with trees and shrubs and flowers all over, and Buddhist statues placed here and there. A stream cut horizontally across the garden, over which a tiny wooden bridge was built, in order to access the other side.
As they crossed over it, they saw that the other side was a large sand garden set up, neatly raked with grooves running in the sand all about. The grooves in the sand were wavy, and ran with the width of the area. A large boulder, and a smaller one were placed in the sand in a feng shui manner of design. On top of these two boulders stood a student, one each, which Janus figured were the ones the instructor had mentioned. Just beyond and in between them was a small bench like seat.
There sat Master Zu. Appearing to be Japanese, he looked much older than Seraph was physically, enough to be his grandfather. His face was cracked with creases, and his hair was long and white, pulled into a ponytail that ended at the middle of his back. He wore an outfit similar to Seraph's, only his jacket was black to match his pants, and had white cuffs and buttons and color lining to match the a-shirt he wore underneath. His eyes were closed, as he seemed to be mediating. Somehow, he had reached his bench without disturbing the sand raking all around him.
And then, Janus noticed the rest of the students that the instructor had mentioned earlier. In the cherry blossoms situated a few feet behind on either side of the bench that Zu was sitting upon, they all sat up in the branches. They were watching their approach, as if they were Zu's bodyguards, although Janus doubted he'd need any.
As they came over the bridge and were a few feet from the beginning of the sand garden, Zu's eyes opened. He saw Seraph and recognized him with an almost imperceivable smile. Then he looked up and saw Janus and Morpheus, and held up a hand.
"Huo." He called out.
Seraph stopped in his tracks, as did Morpheus. Janus followed suit, knowing full well Zu had just said "Wait." Wait for what?
Not a second later, the answer came. All six students sprung from the boulders and the cherry blossoms, jumping in an arc right for Seraph and company with "attack" written all over their faces.
Janus saw it coming a second before it happened, and was already on the move. He jumped up into the air on an arc that would have him intercept their jump paths and come right in the center of the students and they came down in the air.
With perfect timing, he met them mid air. Within a blink, Janus threw out a series of punches and kicks, a spin kick, and a throw, knocking all six students back however many so feet in the air until they landed back from where they came. Four of the six smashed into the branches of the cherry blossoms, and the other two slammed up against the surfaces of the boulders. When he was done, Janus remained hovering, as not to disturb the perfectly raked sand below. He was triumphant in the fact that neither of the bodies of each student did, either.
Zu let out a slowly paced, yet amused laugh. He rose from his bench and clapped as he nonchalantly walked across the sand towards Janus and his two friends. When he saw Zu didn't pay any mind to walking across the sand, Janus let himself down.
"Ha ha ha ha ha..." Zu began as he closed in on them. "Now, you see my pupils," he spoke out loud. "This here is an opponent you will never be able to match in skill. You will be thankful that it wasn't Seraph here that dealt with you. You may be in the worse for wear. He likes to make sure his opponents know they're being hit, don't you my old apprentice?"
Seraph and Zu bowed to each other. "It is good to see you again, Sifu."
"Yes it is. You brought friends I see..."
He studied Morpheus from head to toe, and met his eyes beyond the lenses of his glasses, and smiled with a nod, as if he had just measured up Morpheus' fighting ability and was satisfied. When he switched his gaze over to Janus, he seemed to have been hit by a familiar sensation. Then, his memory suddenly kicked in.
"Ah, you! Yes, I know something about you... You remind me of a vision that came to me as I meditated here in the garden one day."
Janus arched a brow. "A vision?"
Zu nodded and continued. "In my vision, I was walking through a garden, much similar to this one. I looked around at my surroundings: there were plants in pots, trees that were trimmed, neither the vines nor the bamboo overextended, and each flower and bud was given a proper alottment of space and sunlight. Everything was beautiful and organized...."
The three fighters continued to listen with interest.
"Then at the end of the garden, I came across two trees. One was neatly trimmed. The other though, began growing wildly. It's roots extended all over the garden and its branches almost covered the sun."
Zu closed his eyes for a second, as if reliving the vision. "At the end, the tree had grown to the point where the garden couldn't contain it any longer. Its roots had broken the pots and uprooted the flowers. The vines withered because the ground nutrients were all being consumed by the tree. And at the same time, the second tree died out. However, new flowers bloomed around the tree, and smaller trees soon grew from the soil. While the garden as now destroyed, the area returned to a natural state. Through its own destruction, the garden became far more beautiful than it had been before..."
Zu looked at Janus as if he had just heard the story and was just as confused as Janus must have been. "Can you tell me what the vision means?"
Janus' brow wrinkled in confusion. Since when was he a fortune teller? He was still trying to figure that out for himself, nevermind explaining it to someone else. He shook his head slowly.
"No, I'm sorry. Maybe Morpheus," he suggested, looking over to him. Morpheus glanced to Janus and then back to Master Zu.
"While dreams and their interpretations are a subject I specialize in, I'm afraid we don't have the time for it right now."
Master Zu nodded slowly. "Hm... A pity. And yet I feel that this vision is vital to your efforts nonetheless."
"What do you mean?" Janus asked.
"I'm afraid I cannot say, for I am no more a foreteller of dreams than you are, young prodigy."
"Perhaps you would no something about the increased system malfunctions then?" Morpheus asked.
Master Zu laughed slightly. "No, I am afraid not, Taisho. I am well aware of the outbreaks... several of my students have encountered them. However, I do not know how they come to be or why they are so numerous."
"I see..." Morpheus replied.
"I am sorry I cannot be of help to you," Zu said. "But I wish you luck on your quest all the same." With this, he bowed to them.
Once they completed the bow, Seraph spoke. "We still appreciate your time with us, Master."
"Likewise, my student. May you have good fortune in your journey."
Janus nodded his head as if to bow once more in thanks, and the three made their exit. Zu watched them as they departed, and once they were out of sight, he turned back to his garden.
"We should return to the safehouse to update the others," Morpheus said quietly to Janus as they walked out of the establishment.
"I agree," Janus replied. He turned to Seraph. "We appreciate your help. Thanks for taking us here, even if we didn't come up with anything. We'll be in touch."
Seraph merely nodded his head. He turned from the two and walked up to a random door. He then removed his king of keys from his sleeve, picked a specific key and then unlocked the door with it. He escaped into the backdoor hallways, and the door closed behind him, cutting off access to the hallway as it locked. ----
The Matrix Ueno, International District April 2005, 12:37PM
After two knocks to the front door of Zion's Ueno safehouse, the slit opened to reveal a pair of slanted eyes that obviously belonged to Solitaire. For a short moment she looked out the slit to see it was General Morpheus and Janus that were there and without anyone suspicious with them.
"Welcome back." Solitaire said, before closing the slit and opening the door to let the two in. After she closed it and locked it tightly, she turned around to face the two men. "Did you guys get anything from the Master?"
As Janus observed, that question echoed what everyone else was thinking. Irvine and Camese both looked up from the computer stalls that were installed in one end of the room, as did Blade, who was checking over SPAS 12 combat shotgun he had taken off one of the weapons racks. Only Anubis, being his usual self, didn't bother to look up; in fact, he looked like he was in a deep meditation of sorts, sitting on a crate in one of the corners of the room, his katana slung over his shoulder as if he were waiting to use it. But Janus knew his friend and partner well enough to know that he was listening intently.
"Unfortunately not. We're still at square one," Morpheus replied with a frown, walking so he wasn't in the middle of the room.
Janus wasn't sure if he'd say it like that; he was still wondering about Zu's vision and if it really was relevant to the current events. But he wasn't going to openly disagree with the veteran. After a moment he walked over to a nearby couch and sat down to relax a little. "What about you guys?"
"As you can see, we've had jack *poop*. And no calls from Jade either," Blade griped from his end of the room.
"So far we haven't tripped any wires with the Machines, but the boredom alone could kill us all," Solitaire explained as she walked by and moved to where Anubis was sitting, where she picked up a Chinese printed magazine that was on the ground and leaned against the wall while she read it.
"I suggest we enjoy it while it lasts; fate has a tendency to change on a whim," Morpheus replied to her, although the comment was meant for everyone in the room.
"But if we needed the tranquility, we wouldn't be out here in the first place." Irvine countered. Even he hated being in the Matrix like this; even if it was a safe house, he couldn't help but feel an Agent could barge in through the door at any moment. The more they waited, the more likely it would happen.
The sudden ringing of his cellular phone was enough to snap the Nemesis' captain back to the present. With a swift motion he reached into his pocket and popped it open. "If this isn't Rose McGowan in a tight red miniskirt, I'm hanging up."
The initial response was an uncomfortable silence on the other end of the phone. "...Is it really that difficult for you to act in a manner befitting your rank, Captain?"
Irvine suddenly leaned up, as he hadn't been expecting this particular person to call. "Oh you know me Jade, I just can't be taken anywhere. I'm assuming this isn't a social call?"
"I need to speak to Janus. Is he close by?" Jade said, surprisingly even more serious than she usually was.
This took Irvine back a little. "Sure he is, but why the *CENSORED* do you want to talk to him?"
"I remembered something that I think would help him. Now are you going to pass the phone to him or not?"
"Anything for you babe." Irvine smarmily replied as he walked to Janus, who looked up with an arched eyebrow, while everyone else watched with curiosity. "The wife wants to talk to you."
A little confused, Janus took the phone from Irvine and hit the speaker button, so that everyone could hear. "This is Janus."
"Janus, this is Captain Jade of the Interceptor. Before I begin, did your meeting with Master Zu turn up any results?" Jade inquired, her seriousness and English accent making her sound like a stereotype policewoman.
"Ah...no, actually it didn't." Janus replied, still not quite sure how he was supposed to talk to Jade. Sure he was The One, but the woman on the other end was a Captain that he had no prior dealings with, as well as a stern reputation, thus his hesitance. "Why? Did you come up with any leads on your end?"
"Quite possibly." Jade said. "There's a woman that lives in the Historic District named Naomi Tasarova, but she's better known as Madame T. She's a fortune teller of sorts; not quite at the Oracle's caliber, but her past predictions have been accurate enough. She just might have the answers you seek."
"Is she a bluepill or program?" Janus inquired.
"Neither. In actuality, she's the only redpill to take up permanent residence in the Matrix." Jade explained.
Now Janus was exceptionally curious. How the hell would a redpill be able to predict events in the Matrix like the Oracle can? This might actually be worth checking out. "Have you talked to her yourself?"
"Twice. Both times she's been very helpful." Jade said.
"Good enough. I'll check on her and see what she has to say." Janus replied. "Thanks for passing the word Captain."
"The pleasure's mine Janus, I only wish I could be more helpful. Interceptor out." Jade signed off, the click of the phone signifying the breaking off of communications.
Janus closed the phone and handed it back to Irvine, before looking toward Morpheus. "Want to tag along on this one?"
The Zion General shook his head. "I need to check back with my own crew and see how they are progressing."
"I'll go," came the ice cold voice of Anubis, who'd gotten up from his spot at the end of the room. Upon his utterance, everyone turned to look at him as if for the first time, but the assassin passed it off as nothing. "I've heard of Madame T's reputation back when I was still a syndicate dog, so I myself am curious about her."
That was enough of an explanation for Janus, who nodded. Despite his power, he preferred to operate with Anubis when possible, as he knew the assassin was always at his back and vice versa. "Sounds good. Ready to leave?"
"I am." Anubis said as he walked up to Janus.
When his partner was close enough, Janus reached out and grabbed him by the shoulder, and then closed his eyes to focus. A moment later, both faded away, teleporting to their destination in merely a second.
Irvine jokingly groaned, crossing his arms together to the front in a reverse of Morpheus' pose. "They didn't even say goodbye."
"They'll be back soon enough Captain. Now if everyone will excuse me, I must tend to my own crew. Keep me posted." Morpheus replied, turning around and moving to exit the safe house. Solitaire, a little put off like Irvine that Anubis hadn't told her goodbye either, got up and saw the Morpheus out.
Just after he left, Camese got up from her spot and moved over to Irvine, a peculiar look on her face. "Captain, I'm not sure if I should be asking this, but it's been bothering me for a while..."
Irvine turned to face her with his full attention, so she continued. "Why don't you ever go with Janus on things like this?"
From behind the counter, Blade looked up from his SPAS 12 and gave a similar look, as did Solitaire as she came back from the door. "Yeah Captain, we all know you're as much of a believer as Morpheus..."
The Nemesis Captain gave Blade a stern look.
"Alright, maybe not as much as Morpheus." Blade held his hands up. "But you definitely believe in Janus and whatever Prophecy he's supposed to fulfill."
"But isn't that how we all look at him?" Irvine inquired.
He looked straight at Camese on that, since besides Anubis she was the most devoted to Janus out of all of them; after all, Janus was the one responsible for her waking up from the Matrix and had literally turned her life around for the better. But the female fighter only looked at him with a determined glance, which told that she wasn't going to back down from the question. Blade and Solitaire both gave similar expressions.
Seeing this, Irvine decided to come clean. "Yeah, I believe in Janus as much as the next guy, but I'm not like Morpheus with his hard on for that Prophecy *poop*. Let him deal with the weirdos and mystery players. I'd rather be a soldier and captain, because I know my limits and the limits of my crew, and above all else I know what we're here for. And that's all I have to say about it, so let's get back to whatever the hell we were doing." ----
The Matrix Historic District, Downtown April 2005, 12:40PM
I wonder why they bother calling this place the Historic District when even the bluepills are starting to think it hasn't been around long... Janus thought to himself, as he walked through the streets of possibly the most ironic area in the Megacity. Anubis was right next to him, his katana wrapped in a black woven carrying sack and held behind him in order to avoid too much suspicion. Not that two people dressed in different black trenchcoats and shades, with one even bearing a scar over his right eye, wouldn't attract attention.
While not as bad in condition as say Westview, the Historic District was still not the most awe-inspiring part of the Mega City. As one walked around this area, they would be surrounded by buildings of early twentieth century to forties art deco and structuring, which housed things like apartments, hotels such as the infamous Laurel Diamond, restaurants and many smaller businesses, several of which were supposedly around the District when it was still considered "new". Many bluepills liked this area for its history and the higher class establishments that were unique here and only here. But of course like everything else in this reality, the Historic District and its "legacy" were all fabrications and were about as old as everything else in the Matrix. Needless to say, the irony was not lost to those who knew the truth.
After walking for sometime, both Janus and Anubis came into a small very rundown complex that looked to originally have been an apartment building, but had been converted into a business area. After ascending some stairs and walking around the building further, they came to a small shop that read "Madame T's Psychic Reading" on one of the windows.
"Looks like this is it." Janus looked at his partner, who nodded back. He then grasped the rusted handle of the front door and opened it, both fighters entering.
Inside, they found that the shop was just as exotic looking as it was from the outside. If anything it looked like a gypsy's fortune telling shop, with bright pink wallpaper that contrasted to the faded gray tones on the outside, various antiquated but otherwise "flashy" looking furniture, and somewhat strangely, several pictures and sculptures around the room all depicting religious icons such as a crucifix, a pentagram, a statue of Buddha, and other things. Much like the Oracle's apartment, several lines of beads covered the entryway to the backroom, adding onto the "mystic" setting.
"Hello? Anyone here?" Janus called out, as both he and Anubis scanned the room. Janus blinked into his code vision and analyzed the lines that molded the room together. If there was something special about this place, Janus couldn't find it in the coding; it appeared like any other setting in the Matrix. Janus scanned the backrooms and found the same thing, although there was still no sign of a person present.
"See anything?" Anubis asked, as he ventured over to the side of the room to check for any signs of surveillance or ambush; things like bugs or hidden explosives. Although the building was supposedly a safe zone from the "outside", Anubis had seen many such places infiltrated over his time as a free mind, so it was best to be safe. That and it was an old habit of his to check his surroundings, one that he didn't want to let go of.
"Not so much as a cockroach in the woodwork." Janus sighed, taking off his glasses to wipe the sweat off his brow. "Let's check around the back for..."
The sound of footsteps coming toward them stopped Janus in his line, and instinctively he drew his SVI from under his coat in preparation for a fight. At the same time, Anubis unwrapped the tie to the black sack and let it drop to the floor, revealing his katana underneath, also ready for anything.
However, instead of a Pit Viper, who were the only local gang in the Historic District, or an Agent, a woman walked through the beads to meet them. The woman was dressed in a black leather dress that divided down the middle to reveal leather pants and boots underneath, arm length black leather gloves, angular shades that were common place in the Matrix and a black choker around her neck. Her most notable feature was a tattoo over her left breast stylized heart outlined in gold with bright lines to make it appear as if it were shining.
The woman looked over between Janus and Anubis for a split second, before narrowing on Janus specifically. "Your name is Janus..."
Janus didn't lower his guard just yet. "You a fan too?"
"Or a stalker?" Anubis quipped.
"Heh heh, I suppose you could consider me one or the other." the woman, obviously Madame T spoke cryptically in a Russian-esque accent.
It took Janus a moment to remember why they were there before he responded. "You probably saw this coming, but we need your help. We know you're not a program, but that you're known to make accurate predictions of the future."
"This is true. How can I be of assistance?" Madame T inquired.
This time Anubis stepped in. "We're trying to figure out why there's been so many glitch occurrences in the Matrix, and we've been told you have an understanding of its inner-workings."
"Hah, probably not as intricate an understanding as your friend's." Madame T replied to Anubis, then looking over to Janus again.
"Whatever." Janus shook the suggestive compliment off. "Anyway, another exile described a vision he had, we were wondering if you could interpret it and tell us if it's of any significance."
This made Madame T more interested. "Please, let us sit then." She gestured toward a table that had been placed in the corner of the room, which had three chairs around it and a crystal ball at the center. When she moved to the table, both redpills followed her and took their seats. She then leaned forward and continued. "Now, what was the vision?"
Janus paused for a brief second before explaining. "He said he saw two trees in a garden. One of them outgrew the other, and eventually, the garden, to the point where it could no longer be contained. Afterwards, small flowers and new plant life grew around the tree."
"Ah yes. Hmmm...." Madame T murmured.
"What is it?" Anubis asked.
"Unfortunately, I do not see the underlying message of what you described. On the other hand, it did remind me of a vision that came to me recently." Madame T explained.
Inside, Janus could feel the beginnings of another long headache coming on. "What is it?" he asked reluctantly.
If Madame T heard that reluctance, she ignored it and just explained. "It was a beautiful day inside the Matrix. Not just a colorful sky and a sunset. Everything seemed to have a divine or heavenly aura about it. Then, suddenly, the clouds were dark. There was lightning and fire. A storm came with a cyclone and ruined the tranquility and serenity from only moments before. In the middle of this storm stood a man."
"Is this a prediction of the future?" Janus asked, taking this in. This would likely be important later on.
"Yes. However, I do not know how near or far into the future it is." Madame T answered.
Janus arched his scarred eye. "Who is this man?"
At that question, Madame T tilted up her head so that her eyes could meet Janus', as though she could see through the dark lenses of his glasses. Her face turned into a solemn expression. "He is you."
Now further perplexed, Janus looked at Anubis, who looked back at him. He had a cold expression as he always did, but Janus could tell he was just as bewildered over the revelation as himself. He then looked back at Madame T. "What does it mean?"
The fortune teller shook her head with an apologetic smile. "I only see visions. It's those I tell them to that must interpret them."
Although that wasn't the answer that Janus was looking for, it seemed to be enough. He looked over at Anubis and nodded at him that it was time to go, and so they both got up. "Thank you for your time." he said to Madame T.
"Always a pleasure." Madame T acknowledged. ----
With the solemn nature of an executioner, Janus closed the door to the shop with a sigh escaping from his lips. His thoughts raged unchecked as he did this, frustration beginning to enter his body at the events as of late. His partner saw this and remained silent, sympathizing with how much pressure Janus was going through now.
This is all going nowhere fast. Janus thought, as he looked down at his virtual hand. For once in his lifetime, he was tired of playing the detective and just wanted straight answers; no riddles, no visions, no metaphors, just somebody to tell him what was going on. It had been a year since he had awakened as The One, a year of endless fighting that only now was beginning to weigh on Janus' shoulders, and he still had no idea of what he was supposed to do as The One or what everything meant.
"You going to be alright?" Anubis asked dryly. The question was made out of sympathy, but the dry tone was to remind Janus that they were pressed for time.
"Yeah, give me a minute." Janus muttered, as he walked over to the balcony where Anubis was standing.
He looked out to the various skyscrapers and buildings that made the Historic District, frowning as he blinked into his code vision once more and looked over the buildings and everything that was inside of them, seeing the artificiality behind it all. It was his method for reminding himself of what they were fighting against; his true enemy. "Anubis... I'm going need you to go back without me. Tell Irvine and the others we hit another dead end."
Anubis quirked an eyebrow. "Why don't you tell them that yourself?"
"I need some alone time, just to clear my head. This whole thing is so *CENSORED* up, I don't think I can think straight right now." Janus replied.
Deep down, the assassin wasn't entirely sure about Janus moving around the Matrix while in that state, evident from his lack of an initial response. But after a moment, he reluctantly nodded understandingly at Janus. "Camese will probably come after you later."
"That's okay, by that point I'll be calmed down." Janus said, as he continued to watch over the city line.
Taking that in, Anubis took one last look at his friend and then turned to begin walking away. When he was several feet from Janus, he focused and went into a dash, blurring out of normal sight. ----
Tunnels of the Real Matrix Corps HvCFT Interceptor 1:15PM Matrix Time
"What the hell is he doing now?" Jazz, the Interceptor's brown haired, medium build crew assist, muttered out loud as he watched as Anubis moved off the monitor, leaving Janus standing alone in the middle of the Historic District. Jazz was currently standing over the Interceptor's main terminal along with Hook, the operator, and Pinch, the only other female crew member and fighter.
"Don't know, maybe he wants to take in the sights? Or a *CENSORED* break?" suggested Hook offhandedly, looking in wonder himself. He then gave a distinct smile. "I figure even The One has to ‘drain the weasel' from time to time. Heh heh."
Both Pinch and Jazz simultaneously rolled their eyes. Hook wasn't exactly the sanest redpill in Zion; in fact, there were more than enough people who wondered if there was some defect in his growth process when he was "born". He certainly wasn't very appealing, he looked like a stereotype computer geek only without the glasses and the pocket protector; the kind of guy who spends his days playing Japanese dating sims and his nights with a love pillow. But because he was so good at his job, Jade put up with his antics as long as he stuck to that said job.
"Of course I wonder, if you *CENSORED* in the Matrix, do you saturate your pants in real life?" Hook asked, as if it were a truly philosophical question.
"He's not taking a *CENSORED* break Hook. He probably wants some alone time." staunchly whispered Pinch, who wanted to get off that subject before it became a full blown debate. The short blonde haired woman who looked almost as much of a ball crusher as Captain Jade, kept her eyes on the screen with interest. It was a small kept secret that she had a crush on The One, even though she knew his chances of noticing her were slim to none. It was more of hero worship than anything else anyway. "God knows how frustrating it is to have Irvine as a Captain."
"Yeah, I'm surprised our beloved Captain hasn't taken a knife to Irvine's other jack-in plug just to shut him up." mused Jazz. As he said that, the coding suddenly shifted, signaling Janus had taken flight. "Oh look, there he goes."
"Can you follow him?" Pinch asked Hook.
"It will be difficult, but I'll see what I can do with my magic..." Hook replied as he cracked his knuckles, beginning to type away.
"What are you three doing?" came the voice of a newcomer who had just entered the main deck. The man in question, also speaking with a British accent much like the Captain, was dressed in a gray shirt and darker gray knit pants with combat boots, which was maintained almost at a uniform level. Other than that, he wore short cropped brown hair and a goatee, making him extraordinarily handsome by most standards. "You two are supposed to be on standby in the turret controls."
"We got bored Chase, give us a break." Jazz replied. "So we decided to watch whatever was going on in the Matrix. Nothing wrong with a little break."
Chase, the Interceptor's exec officer, shook his head. "I wouldn't mind having one myself Jazz, but we're supposed to be The One's on look out outside the Matrix; what would happen if a sentinel patrol dropped out of nowhere?"
"It's only a short distance to the turrets from here..." Pinch tried to justify.
"The key word is ‘distance' still. Please go back to your posts." Chase ordered with finality.
Giving off sighs of aggravation, both Jazz and Pinch got up and headed back to their turrets, and Chase himself returned to the bridge, leaving only Hook to watch over The One's progress. ----
The Matrix Tabor Park, Richland April 2005, 2:56PM
For what could have been minutes to an hour or two, Janus had simply walked around the Matrix, constantly moving between his normal vision and his code vision both to check for any glitches and simply for the sake of curiosity. For the most part there was nothing different about the Matrix as a whole, although he could still ‘feel' the glitches around and the sense that not everything was as it should be. Not that it bothered him, The One, of course; he had long gotten used to the feeling. The risk of being traced and revealing the Nemesis' location in the real wasn't a matter to him; He could easily cloak himself from Machine detection.
Having exited the Historic District via the Reeves Bridge, which then took him into Uriah, Janus' journey had now taken him to Tabor Park, a place that he could almost say everything began for him. Again. For the moment he was satisfied to stand there and watch over the area with his gaze, still moving between normal and code visions. Even after all this time, it still looked rundown and unkept like most of the Matrix, yet somehow being able to be one of the most scenic areas. From behind his shades, Janus scanned over the park, even going over the part where he had come across that mysterious old man. His eyes froze at that particular, looking it twice over, but he found nothing out of the ordinary; whatever abnormalities had occurred there were gone now.
Without saying anything, he began to walk again into the park, his eyes now shifting from the park itself to the people around it. There weren't many patrons; a female jogger, a middle aged man sitting at a bench eating a hotdog, two women sitting at another bench complaining to each other about their lives' problems, some kids running around playing a game of hide in seek, an undercover police officer, which Janus could have picked out from a mile away, on patrol for the gangs and drug dealers that liked to hang out in the area. It was generally as normal as it could get in the Matrix, which wasn't saying much.
But one patron caught Janus' attention more than the rest. In the middle of the park alone and unbothered, was an elderly man sitting at a chess table. There was nothing truly particular about the man, he looked like any other retiree, but the fact that the table was lined with all the chess pieces in their right places was enough to draw some attention. As well, with the way the old man had both his hands held together under the table, it looked as if he were waiting patiently for someone to join him for a game.
Curious, and not having anything to do at that moment, Janus made his way over to the table, slipping off his glasses and putting them in a pocket on the way. He didn't speak until he was right up to the table. "May I play?"
The old man looked up at him, his expression turning from taciturn to grandfatherly pleasant at the sight of a young man offering to join him for a game. He nodded and Janus sat down.
After a moment of thinking, Janus, who had the white pieces moved first, casually slipping one of his pawns two squares forward. The old man followed by moving one of his pawns two squares ahead as well, doing nothing too notable, at least to Janus. The proclaimed savior responded by putting out a second pawn to reinforce his first one, and it surprised him a little when he saw the old man move his left bishop right behind his own pawn. A little curious about what was going on inside the man's head, Janus then moved his left rook behind the second pawn.
The man then moved the pawn that was farthest left, so that it uncovered his own rook, and Janus moved his rook to the right four spaces. The old man's next move simply placed his first pawn one more square ahead, but Janus moved his rook anyway to keep his queen safe; he still hadn't been able to read the man properly. Instead of moving the rook though, the old man moved his knight forward where Janus had expected the rook to be. Janus, responding, moved his own knight forward, but he didn't realize until the very last second that he moved it right into the firing line of the old man's bishop. The old man didn't hold back, immediately taking it.
Janus was quick to respond, moving his closest pawn over to take the bishop.
"It's the simplicity of it I like the most." the old man, for the first time, had spoken up. At the same time he moved his knight once more, ever closer to Janus' line. "Of every game or competition created by humans, Chess still remains the most simplistic, and at the same time the most complex."
"Eh?" Janus looked up. Blinking into code vision, he saw that the man wasn't a bluepill, instead having the code make up of an exile. "Who are you?"
This earned a small but hearty laugh from the old man. "Indeed. I used to have a name, but that was a long time ago. Nowadays, people just call me the Chessman." he looked over Janus. "And I presume you are The One everyone is talking about."
"More or less." Janus said, moving a pawn to take the knight before it caused any damage.
"Hm, a very offensive mover I see." the Chessman observed, moving a pawn to uncover his rook. "You're a dangerous one alright. You like to move fast and make single, overwhelming attacks, and then move away just as quickly. Not quite a common trait among your kind."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Janus asked, moving a pawn one square ahead.
"Not my place to tell, but you'll find out soon enough." the Chessman reassured, taking that pawn with one of his own.
As Janus took that pawn with his bishop, he looked at the Chessman quizzically. "So, this is what you choose for your exile? Just sitting in the park playing chess?"
"It may not look like much, but I believe this is a fitting place for someone like me." The Chessman replied as he took Janus' pawn with his Queen by moving it diagonally three spaces, probably his boldest move yet as the Queen was his most powerful piece. "You see, I believe the Matrix as a whole can be reflected through this chessboard. I search for insights through the combinations of moves, much the same way you look through insights through sources like the Oracle."
"You saying that these chess pieces have the same power of premonition as the Oracle?" Janus wondered; anything was possible these days. Then in an equally bold move, he had his rook make a beeline for the uncovered black king. "Check by the way."
This made the Chessman arch an eyebrow; Janus could easily have taken his king and ended the game there, but instead he merely had the rook placed in front of the king. Perhaps there was more to the One that he thought, which was saying much. He immediately plucked the rook up with his queen. "No, there is nothing special about these chess pieces. I merely use them to predict things. For example, approximately thirty seconds ago, the Machines have developed a new data node, and before you ask the data stored is of no relevance to the events occurring in the Matrix."
"*CENSORED*." Janus said, moving another pawn into play.
The rest of the game was spent in silence for the most part, and much to Janus' surprise, he was actually winning. The Chessman was putting up a spirited defense, as despite being down to his king and a bishop, Janus still couldn't get him into checkmate. Even more so, he still couldn't read the Chessman's expressions, as they always appeared to be pleasant and he never showed any disappointment even in the face of his losing.
At long last however, Janus was getting ready to finally corner him. "So, do you know how your movements are able to predict things?"
"I'm afraid not, there are some mysteries even beings like me don't know." The Chessman said, moving his king out of another check.
"You also said that this chessboard could be used as a direct representation of the Matrix..." Janus contemplated before he made his next move. "Don't you think the Matrix and the war going on is too complex to be directed from a chessboard? Two equal sides, fighting on a level playing field, with no developments beyond what has already been given, no third faction to sweep in to fight the blacks and the whites..."
"But the simplicity is what makes it beautiful." the Chessman explained. "First, you say that there are multiple sides, but when it comes like Chess, there are only two sides: humans and machines. It is true that certain elements may not agree with their respective kings, but they still fight for or against the Matrix itself. Chess only shows this in its barest form.
"Two, your statement makes it sound like there is no such thing as a level playing field, but there is: the Matrix itself. Here, both man and machine can fight on equal terms as both sides are able to bend or break the rules of the Matrix to their whims. In fact, they are so capable, that it no longer comes down to who has the better weapon or fighting style, but rather who has the stronger will."
"What about advancement?" Janus asked.
"Advancement?" the Chessman asked, a little perplexed.
"You don't see a pawn becoming a queen on this board." Janus said.
The Chessman actually laughed at that one. "That's because if you look at it, there is no such thing as ‘advancement' in either world. Even if power or influence is gained, a pawn will always be a pawn, a rook will always be a rook, a knight will always be a knight and a king will always be a king. The latter is probably truest; even if the king is stripped of his land, he will always be a ruler and a leader, and only time will tell when he is able to return to power."
Janus thought about that; it sounded like the Chessman was referring to something in particular, but he couldn't tell. But he didn't think about it much. After another moment of silence, he made his final move.
The Chessman looked at the board and saw that his King was effectively cornered by the white Queen and three pawns; there was no other move that he could make.
"Checkmate. Hm..." he thought out loud, as his gaze fell locked on the chess board.. He almost seemed surprised, and though he didn't think it would have ever ended.
Seeing that there was nothing else to do here, Janus nodded at the Chessman. "Nice meeting you." He said, before getting up and continuing his walk. ----
I liked the story, but I liked what you pulled with The Chessman more. Do more stuff like that, throw in references we all know and love. *poop* that says "I play this game too!"
. I know some guys who wouldn't mind your input on some storyline vids ;P
