Honestly?

**TheEx** · 03/11/2007 23:52:13

## Broadcast Depth
## Incoming Transmission...
## Ex // HvCFT Argus

## RELAY Initialized - Zion Mainframe // Journal Entry ID: 64-1

Right...I got the message just today, I was rudely awakened this morning from a very pleasant dream I might ask, by a loud pounding on my front door. I wasn't expecting anyone so I was doubly suspicious as to who would be looking for me, I didn't even bother to think about the fact that I wasn't supposed to have visitors. The floor was a little more cold than normal as I walked over to the door and heaved it open squinting and leaning my head out of the door and trying to make out the look of the man standing there before me. He handed me a tablet, said he was just a courier, and then walked off.

"Good day to you to..." I said with more than a hint of hostility as I turned around and slammed my door shut again, not bothering to lock it up.

I threw the tablet onto my counter as I pulled another can of degreaser from the ice box and took a long drink...that stuff burns like hell, tastes like it too. Didn't matter to me that it was to early to be drinking, not like I was going anywhere, I sat down at the counter and picked up the frustrating tablet muttering about what could possibly be so important to come down here to this pit and wake me up, just as I took another long swig of that burning alcoholic mess my eyes sprang wide open, the fog of sleep still hovering over me vanished almost instantly.

"You've got to be kidding me..." There was disbelief in my voice as I peered down at the tablet reading the message the unpleasant courier had brought to me down in my hole. Time was up, my sentence had been concluded and I was to be reinstated as soon as the red tape went through all the proper political channels. Had it really been a whole year? I put the drink down and started mulling over the events of the past, which was never a good thing for me to do, seeing as how all it ever left me with was an aftertaste of hate. I felt that old anger swell up in me again, more so than I had ever since I'd finally settled in down here in the pits. They couldn't find a way to silence me physically...they didn't have anyone with the brass buttons for that kind of job, so they found a way to silence me politically. I never cared for the bureaucrats and their damned laws. All I remember of the arraignment was some counselor who'd never seen a day of battle spewing political jargon at me like fire and brimstone. Words like reckless behavior, Political Correctness, and Sensitive situation; someone had to be made an example of and the person taking the fall was going to be me. The whole time all I could think of was putting my fist through his pretentious face. There is no place for political correctness in war, which for the life of me I couldn't understand why no one else realized that’s what had been going on. This whole time, I was just a bargaining chip to my own people, they'd punish me for my misconduct and shine things up real nice with the robotic freak shows, everybody wins...everyone except for me.

Still, everyone knew it was a sham case anyways, so they couldn't exactly kill me, or even keep me caged for too long, they made an acceptable agreement with the machines, one year in solitary confinement down in the pits of Zion, they didn't bother to post a guard or even take any of my personal possessions away, they weren't worried about me acting up down here, wasn't anything I could do anyways but sit and wallow in my own frustrated anger. The message said that my Captain's status was to be reinstated under the condition that I cease to irritate our respected and valuable allegiant members: The Machines.

That last bit really got my goat bad, but I was able to restrain myself, I couldn't believe they were actually going to let me back into the Matrix. I haven't heard anything about what is going on up in Zion, or in the Matrix for that matter, the food delivery guys don't say a word, in fact I usually never even see them. Perhaps some of that trouble that was brewing a year ago has finally surfaced and a man of my particular talents is needed again. In any case, my time was up, another couple of weeks and I'll be jacked back in. The thought of it was frighteningly exciting to me; I had come to realize during my isolation that The Matrix provided me with an outlet for my natural violent tendencies. I never realized it because while I was in the Matrix there were always people and programs that needed...taking care of. Let me just say that there was never a lack of body counts on my data sheet at the end of the day. When I got down here, all by myself and really had time (for the first time in my real life) to look closely at my own personality I realized that I was by nature an extremely violent individual. You might almost label me a monster with the things that go on inside this skull of mine. Though I will admit, I've had plenty of time to come to terms with this, and learn to keep it under wraps for that matter. It'll just be my little secret...my murderous intent. In any case the idea of being put back to work, doing what I do best, fulfilling my purpose, was indeed a very pleasant one. I'll admit it, I loved the killing, enjoyed it and perhaps that is why I was so efficient at it, but I learned well from that mistake, the very talent that I was praised for in war-time was what landed me here during The Truce.

No, no I wouldn't make the same mistake twice, when I get back up to Zion I'm going to show them what an exemplary soldier I've become. Yes sir, I'll have those tablets on your desk by the end of the day sir. Can I get you something to drink sir? Perhaps a cushion for your seat sir? I'll be the model individual of the Zion military and as friendly as friendly can be to our chummy little allies the Machines.

I'll play their game for now, I decided as I put the tablet down and went over to my door pulling it open and stepping outside to look at the barren rock walls that surrounded my enclosure as I stared out into the murky depths of the chasm I was in that familiar cold began to grip me. The smooth and heartless steel that closed around my heart, steadying my whole body, creating a sense of nothingness all over me, and I began to smile deeply, clenching my fist. They said I was insane...maybe I was did it really matter? Even if I was, I still have my purpose and I can't deny it. I'm a killer, born and bred I thought.

"And I'll be one till I'm cold and dead!" I began to laugh, almost uncontrollably as I screamed into the chasm beneath me with a years worth of rotting apathy lifted from my shoulders.

"You hear me you damned machines!? Until I'm dead!"

They killed my crew, destroyed my ship, left me to rot down in the pits of this freezing cold hell, but now my time was up and I was coming back.

"That's right fella's I'm coming back...and I hope you're all ready to bleed because I'm coming to collect on the debt you owe me!" Another fit of laughter took me as I wandered almost mindlessly back to my room and shut the door, I waited there for the two week period to pass.

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