Run, damnit, run. I pelted past stunned people, darting through the crowd. C'mon, you can go faster than this. I pushed every last bit of speed I have, running to get away. From behind, I could hear the shouts. They were after me, and I didn't even know why. I'd been running for 5 minutes trying to get away, running all-out, and I could feel the strength draining as I ran. I might have had lots of stamina, but they could sure run.

I broke through the last of the crowd, careening for the alley at top speed. When they broke through after me, I could almost sense what they were doing.

Still, when I got hit, it was a horrible shock.

My legs nearly gave out beneath me, and I grasped my upper arm, breath coming harsh and fast between my clenched teeth. Shit. I could feel the torn flesh of the bullet hole, the burning fire of pain in my arm. Still, I ran, throwing myself into the other alley, exactly where they told me to go.

For some reason, those people chasing me, agents, I had been told, ran right past the alley. What a relief. I really couldn't run anymore. I just sank to my knees, head bowed forward. I cradled my injured arm, waiting for them to come.

Had it really only been a day since they contacted me? It felt like a lot longer. I still remembered the shock when I heard the voice of the person I had searched for since I was 7, wanting to know the full truth.

And then those nightmarish agents had shown up.

A voice from behind me startled me again. "I guess you proved you can hold your own, Falcon."

I stood on weak legs. "Yeah, well, if you had been here sooner I might not be shot, eh?"

There she was, just as she had been yesterday, pale and imposing. It was odd, how much she reminded me of myself.

"Hello, Trinity. Fancy seeing you here." I glared at her. Her cool eyes were blue, mine were blackish-blue, that was about the only difference between us. We both were pale, had black hair, though hers was shorter than mine.

"Your own fault you got shot. I warned you about the danger of wanting to know the truth." She strode down the alley toward me. "Can you walk?"

"I got shot in the arm, not the leg."

Trinity gave me a warning glare, then turned on her heel, striding off down the alley. I followed. It was hard to keep up, seeing as my legs hardly worked after running so long.

At the end of the alley was a car, black and nondescript. The door was open. Trinity slipped in, and I went in after her, sitting down heavily. The car started, driving off to god knows where.

"Took you long enough, Trin." I think the person who said this was the one they called Neo.

"Yeah, well, there was a snag, seeing as there were agents after her."

"Jeez." Neo gave me a long look. I didn't return it. I was in a lot of pain.

"Yeah, and Falcon here got herself shot."

"I think he can see that," I snapped, the pain making me go on the defensive. "Where are we going, anyways?"

"Somewhere." Jeez. Thanks, Mr. Helpful. "Why were they chasing you?"

"I dunno." Sarcasm was really dripping off my voice. "Hm… maybe because they knew I was meeting you and wanted to get rid of me and find you."

Neo gave me a long look, then turned to the others. "Something's not right in her coding."

What the shit?

"She's reading different. Like something between a human and a program."

This is making no sense.

Trinity gave me a long, strange look. "Regardless."

Did they even know I could still hear them?

In that instant, something changed. It was like a starburst of pain behind my eyes. It lasted a few seconds, blanking out everything, all my senses, and then it ended.

I didn't even know where I was anymore.

I nearly choked in the few seconds it took for me to push through the liquid, and then I was sucking cold air. The back of my neck felt strange, and when I reached back, my fingers touched cold metal.

What. The. Hell.

My arm still hurt, and when I looked down, I could see where I had been shot. Strangely enough.

Something grabbed me, and pulled something from my neck. It hurt, but only for a few seconds. What hurt more was when, with a loud hiss, tubes started pulling away from my arms and spine.

Then I was falling.

I think it was at this point that I fainted, because when I opened my eyes, I was sprawled on the floor, so weak I couldn't move. Just before I passed out again, I thought I heard someone say, "Welcome to the real world."

Authors Note: Okay, peeps, you know the drill. Read & review, and I'll update as soon as I can. Got it?