Author's Note: Hi Cyberspace fans! This is my first ever fic, so thanks for reading! I'd love constructive criticism. A couple more chapters are just about finished and I'll add them pretty soon. After that, updates may be sporadic but I'll try my best! This will mostly center around Matt and Inez, but I hope to explore Jackie as a character as well. Lots of drama and angst. Hope you enjoy!

Chapter One

Matt, Jackie, and Inez sat in a secluded corner of control central, looking out at the stars in exhaustion. How many years had they been holding the forces of evil off of Motherboard? They were practically adults by now. Their once fun and silly adventures had detoriated into endless battles to keep Motherboard just barely clinging to life.

Cybersites were losing control of themselves and being subordinated to Hacker. Months ago, Castleblanca citizens had simply given up and moved to the Northern Frontier to begin Hacker's army. Other sites had been soon to follow. Chaos reigned, and the three humans' history had deemed them Cyberspace's heros. They had been forced to split up, taking Motherboard's weak, uncertain portals all over the galaxy to rally citizens in defense against Hacker's oppression.

Matt looked out at the twinkling stars and felt none of the excitement that he normally did while viewing Cyberspace. Shuddering at the vast nothingness, he turned to his two friends. Jackie was tight-lipped and motionless, a far cry from her usual pacing in stressful situations. Her bun that was usually on the top of her head was now at a more sensible position at the nape of her neck. She was completely silent, another uncharacteristic act.

His gaze shifted to Inez, who was sitting cross-legged with a laptop and typing furiously. She was surrounded by papers documenting fresh censuses, cybersites that were taken over, and all kinds of data pertaining to the war. Despite being the youngest of the three, Inez was the only one to retain her fiery determination to defeat the cyborg. Jackie and Matt, on the other hand, had lost most hope.

Matt observed the dark circles underneath Inez's eyes and her generally unkempt appearance. She never stopped moving, erratically piling papers and entering data. There was something frantic about the way she searched for answers, starkly contrasting with Matt and Jackie's attitudes. He found himself wanting to stop her urgency and borderline desperation and hold her thin frame close to his, assuring her with gentleness and certainty that it would be okay... But he stopped those forbidden thoughts in their tracks.

"Inez, when was the last time you ate something?" Matt's voice cracked from lack of use.

""R-Fair-City. Status: stalemate. Supplies: adequate. Dead: none. Injured: eight, two almost recovered, three in critical condition," Inez muttered, shoving her glasses up the bridge of her nose and staring intently at the screen. Matt and Jackie exchanged a meaningful look. Communication with their friend gradually had been growing more difficult.

"Ask her again," Jackie murmured, leaning closer to him.

Matt breathed loudly through his nose in frustration. "Look, why don't you give it a try? She listens to you more than she does to me," he whispered.

She sighed. "Fine. Here's hoping she doesn't blow up." Twisting the bracelet on her arm, she tentatively called out. "Inez? Have you eaten yet today?" There was no response save for the clicking of the keyboard. Matt decided that this was the last straw. "All right, that's it," he announced, getting to his feet and moving to squat beside her. "Inez."

She stopped what she was doing and looked up at him. "What." Her expression was emotionless, her tone flat and terse. "What is so important that it requires interruption of my work?"

Matt tried his best to soften his voice and to wrap his head around her irrationality. "Listen, me and Jacks are really worried about you. We just want to know if you need something to eat, or anything else."

"I'm fine, thank you," she replied, turning back to the computer screen.

"Inez, we really need to know if you've eaten yet today," Jackie implored, shifting closer and making a brave attempt at being positive and upbeat. "You don't even have to stop working, I'm sure Digit wouldn't mind throwing something together for you." Inez made no reply, turning to shuffle through some papers instead.

Overwhelmed by anger, Matt found himself slamming the laptop shut with such ferocity that even Inez jumped. "You haven't touched food in days, have you?" he accused, his voice raised and his eyes focused on hers. "You leave no time to take care of yourself. When you're not out there on the battlefield in the thick of the most dangerous war Cyberspace has ever seen, you're on this computer typing in numbers that aren't even helping the cause."

"What the hell do you mean?" Inez raised her voice to his level and stood up. "This collective information could be the necessary organization that gets Cyberspace back on its feet and ready to fight back!"

He got to his feet as well, towering over her by at least a head. He was uncomfortably aware of this fact as he relentlessly continued his tirade directed at her small form. "The data isn't helping anything because it's a hopeless case! Motherboard is practically dead, in case you haven't noticed, and without her, Cyberspace can barely defend itself against Hacker."

"Don't you DARE call this a hopeless case!" Inez shouted, backing away from him. "That is not something the Matt I used to know would ever say about this world."

Matt found himself extraordinarily stung by the words "the Matt I used know". He wanted to plead with her, to make Nezzie believe that he was the same Matt, to have her trust him fully and completely.

"Inez, we just want you to take care of yourself," Jackie persisted, breaking the silence as she joined her friends in standing. "Take a break from the data entry, take a nap, get a proper meal."

"Better yet, let's go home," Matt said tensely, shaking himself out of the daydream where he could truthfully promise Inez that everything would be all right. "We haven't been in a week and we all need to rest. There's been a pretty long break in the fighting anyway. I'll go see if Mother B can get us a portal." He left the room, passing Digit flying in on his way out.

"If he really believes that I'm going home during this, he's kidding himself," Inez said with a tone of finality, settling back into position at the computer.

"Inez, I, uh, overheard the conversation you all were having, and, well, I don't know how much you like peanut butter, but I made you this sandwich." Digit brought the plate over to her.

She gave a smile without warmth or humor, taking the plate and setting it beside her. "Thanks Didge."

A pink ellipse appeared in the air a few moments before Matt reentered the room. Motherboard's virus had worn down the sparkles and soaring feeling of traveling through a portal; it now was highly uncomfortable and an unpleasant sensation.

"Didge, we're going back to our world to rest up. We'll be back ASAP," Jackie assured the cybird. Digit gave Jackie and Matt a thumbs up as they began walking towards the portal. "Come on, Inez," Jackie called. "Time to go."

"You guys are being ridiculous. This isn't the the oh-let's-make-big-bad-Hacker-look-silly game of our childhood anymore. Cyberspace NEEDS us for survival, and I'm not leaving," Inez declared.

"Inez, think of yourself for once! You need this time to rest!" Matt expostulated, unable to take it. "I'm not letting you waste away for these people in an alternate universe that aren't instrumental to your life!"

"Look, Mattie, I'll make sure she eats while you're gone-" Digit started.

"The Matt and Jackie I once knew would have never given up on this alternate universe," Inez said coldly, turning back to her laptop and retreating to an unresponsive state.

There it was again. Inez treating Matt and Jackie like they had evolved into horrible new people, simply because they cared about their friend. Matt found himself becoming completely irate as a small flame began in his heart and spread to the rest of his body.

"FINE!" he roared. "Don't come home! Stay here and die like Motherboard and every other schmuck unfortunate enough to cross Hacker's path!" He stalked to the portal with a tentative Jackie close behind him.

As the two adolescents were pulled into the portal for the first time ever without their friend, Matt turned and caught a glimpse of a devastated face before everything became swirling, cloying pink.