"Damn the stupid thing," she cursed, trying to blow the thin smoke that had been produced out of the way.
Footsteps raced down the stairs behind her. "You okay?" panted Tank, arriving behind her.
"Yeah fine," she mumbled, sucking her thumb where a spark had landed. "Bloody thing shorted didn't it."
Tank picked up the manual from the floor beside her, "Tried using this?" he asked helpfully.
"Course I have dummy," she replied, taking it off him and hitting him lightly on the head with it. "Of course it would help if it was for the right model of ship, and it those idiots at Zion hadn't messed around with the thing."
"You okay down there?" a voice called from the steps.
"Yeah, it's under control," replied Tank, turning round. Turning back to face Spark again, "I better leave you to it. I'm useless with that kind of stuff. Oh, hear take this," he said, handing her a torch. "It might come in useful."
Spark broke into a smile, "Thanks!" She turned back to the blackened circuit, and started to inspect it.
"Please Neo," Spark pleaded. "Just one try. Just in a program, not the actual thing."
Neo frowned. "You can go through some combat training first, then we'll see."
"Yes!" Spark said under her breath. She turned and smiled sweetly at Tank. "Tank..."she began.
Tank sighed. "You want to start now?"
"Please?" she pleaded. "I've been here over 2 months now and I haven't even been plugged in yet!
"Okay then, but only a bit at a time." He turned round. "Neo, can you plug her in for me?"
"Sure," Neo replied, leaving the computer he was busy programming. He stood up and guided Spark over to the unit. He knelt down and manoeuvred the spike so it was at the level with the back of her head. "Enjoy!" he said, guiding her head back.
Two hours later, Spark emerged. Axle was waiting. "So," he asked, "How was your first time?" he asked.
Spark smiled. "Fantastic. Thank you for asking."
Morpheus entered from the deck above. "Glad to hear it Spark. We'll keep going with that for a couple of hours every day, then we might let you into a simulation next week sometime." Axle squeezed her hand. "But now I think Trinity could do with some help with the food machine."
"Sure," replied Spark, wheeling off towards the ramp that lead up to the kitchen...not that you could call it that. More like a room with a table and food disposer in. As she rolled up the ramp, Spark caught sight of Trinity and couldn't help bursting out laughing. She was knelt on the floor, her hand over the nozzle. Around her, the floor was covered in the vile stuff that they called food. Trinity's oily clothes were covered in it, and she had some in her hair too. She looked very different from the smooth, slick Trinity that Spark had first encountered.
"Why thanks for the sympathy!" grumbled Trinity upon seeing Spark's amusement at her predicament.
"Sorry," apologised Spark, trying to keep a straight face as she wheeled up to Trinity. As she collapsed into giggles again, Trinity began to see the humour of the whole situation.
"I guess I must look really, really stupid," she began, "the stupid thing just went berserk on me!"
Spark reached into her bag that hung from the side of her chair, and pulled out a spanner and screwdriver. She picked up a screw from amongst the slop, and wiped it clean on her rugged jumper. She held it out for Trinity to see. "I think you'll find this is the problem!" she giggled. Trinity started laughing, momentarily losing her grip on the nozzle. Slop sprayed all over her and Spark before she was able to cover the end again. Spark licked the slop from around her mouth. "Well," she said dryly, "at least now you can imagine how silly you look!" She quickly screwed the screw back into place, and Trinity cautiously removed her hand from the end. The both sighed with relief as no more slop poured out of the end. Axle clambered up the stairs leading into the kitchen. He took one look at Spark and Trinity and just burst into hysterics. Trinity looked at Spark wickedly and winked. Spark looked on in interest as Trinity stood up and approached the hysterical Axle. Like lightening she grabbed his shoulder and pushed him over, into the pile of slop on the floor. He recovered quickly and grabbed Trinity by the ankle, causing her to once again go sliding into the slop. As they rolled around on the floor, giggling and shrieking, Spark just watched, laughing uncontrollably...until Axle reached up and gently pulled her down onto the floor with them. Within seconds, all of her body that had escaped from the first spraying of slop, was covered in a thick sticky layer. She giggled as she stuffed a handful of it down Axle's back, causing him to let out a loud yell. Morpheus raced up the steps, thinking there was a serious problem. His serious face softened as he surveyed the scene that greeted him. The three of them lay in a heap on the floor, with slop all over their clothes faces and hair.
"Um...I think you lot should take a shower," Morpheus said, trying to keep a straight face, "But Trinity, can I have a word now please."
"Yeah, uh, sure," Trinity said, trying to entangle herself from the other two. Once disentangled, she left the room to speak to Morpheus and Neo.
Spark lay back on the floor, exhausted form the wrestling match. Axle sat up. "Hold on a sec," he said, turning towards her with a very serious expression on his face. "I think you have something on your face." With that he bent over and licked some of the slop of the end of her nose. Spark erupted into another fit of giggles. Axle stood up, reached down and lifted the giggling Spark back into her chair. "Showers, here we come," he called out, as he wheeled Spark down the ramp.
Spark sat nervously, waiting for Morpheus who was deep in conversation with Tank. As Axle walked past, he tapped her on the shoulder and mouthed "Good Luck!" to her. She smiled, her stomach a bundle of knots. This was the moment of truth. They were letting her into a proper training program. It was too dangerous to go inside the Matrix- that was for the experts. This was her chance to see if it was possible. To see if it was possible for her to walk inside the program. Morpheus had told her it was only a slim chance, that it was a previously un-encountered situation which couldn't be predicted. All she could do was hope. She'd been taught all she needed to know about how to bend and break the rules inside a computer system, but no-one except Neo had been able to control their own body and anything that happened to it. Morpheus came over and took her head in his hands. "I'll be a few minutes," he said as he placed the cold spike into the plug in the back of her head. A blinding moment of pain, then nothing. Spark opened her eyes. She was in a white expanse- just whiteness all around her. Nothing else. It was hard to believe that it was all a computer program, and this particular one wasn't even that advanced. She tried to step forwards, but to her disappointment, she saw that she was still in her wheelchair. However, it was different to the one she had on the ship. It was shiny and new, with shaped wheels for speed. She noticed she was no longer wearing her scruffy clothes, but was instead wearing black trousers, and the black PVC top with the grey stripe- her RSI causing her a brief moment of amusement.
"Spark," someone called from behind her. She swung round in the chair, noticing the ease with which it move and glided across the ground. Morpheus stood behind her, dressed in the black outfit and sunglasses he'd been wearing the first time they'd met.
"I'm still paralysed," Spark said quietly, trying not to sound as upset as she was inside. She hadn't been expecting a miracle cure, but it would have been nice.
"Remember," Morpheus replied, "it's just a computer system. Some rules can be bent, some broken, others can't even been touched. It's just a case of working round it to try to find a way. It may take some time."
Spark closed her eyes and concentrated hard. "I don't need a chair, there is no chair, there is no chair......" she thought to herself. Nothing happened. Disappointment rose inside Spark She knew that being able to walk inside a computer program would be unlikely. Her hopes of one day going back into the Matrix slipped away. There was no way Morpheus would ever allow her to enter while she couldn't walk. It was just too dangerous. Neo appeared behind Morpheus.
"I'll stay for a bit," Neo said quietly to Morpheus.
Morpheus nodded. "Tank, can you exit me please," he called out into the emptiness. A moment later, he vanished, leaving Neo and Spark in the brightness.
Neo drew a spoon out of his coat. Holding it in front of him, he walked over to Spark, stopping just in front of her. The spoon wobbled slightly, before bending to one side, straightening, then bending to the other side. "A young boy showed me this," he told her. "Here, try," he continued, handing her the spoon. Spark took the spoon and held it out. Concentrating hard, she pictured it bending in her mind. The spoon didn't move. Her lips tightened in frustration. "It's hard to describe," Neo added, "don't think of it as bending a spoon because the spoon isn't there. Instead, think about changing the spoon's makeup, it's code if you like."
Spark held the spoon out again. Scrunching up her eyes, she followed Neo's instructions. Slowly, the spoon started to wobble, just a little, but it still changed. "Good," Neo encouraged, placing his hand on her shoulder. "I think that's enough for today. You can try again later."
"Thanks," Spark said, relieved that at least one thing had gone right.
"Tank," Neo called out, "Get us out of here please."
Axle watched Spark closely on the monitor. She was sat in the middle of a busy street, clutching a couple of objects. She first picked out a spoon. It danced in front of her, bending first one way then the other. Next came a pair of scissors and a length of string. She repeatedly cut the string, placed it in her hand, then after concentrating for a second, removed a whole piece of string again. It was like watching an excellent magician at work. Discarding the objects, using her arms she physically lifted one of her legs and placed it out in front of her.
"What's she doing?" Axle asked Tank.
"I have no idea...but she's been in there several times in between her combat fighting training." Tank replied.
"Do you reckon she'll ever be able to walk in the Matrix?"
"I don't know. If it's down to determination and perseverance- she'll get there. It's an unusual situation, as no-one's ever been allowed to ever consider trying to return to the Matrix if they're in a medical state such as she is."
Axle returned his concentration to Spark on the monitor. She was still sat there, concentrating on her foot. Tank was sure he saw a slight movement. Immediately, her concentration broke.
"Tank!" she cried out into the computer world, "Tank!"
"Operator," he replied.
"I felt something move, only a bit but I'm sure it moved."
Tank smiled. "That's fantastic Spark. Great news. I'm sorry to have to break you off while you're on a roll, but I think Neo wants you to make some alterations to the EMP system."
"Sure," she replied, grinning from ear to ear. Tank typed something quickly into the keyboard. Spark woke up, a huge smile on her face. She wheeled her chair over to the console where Tank was sitting.
"That was great Spark," he said, patting her on the back.
She turned round so she was facing Axle. "Did you see that?" she asked, buzzing with excitement. "I felt my leg move slightly."
Axle smiled weakly. "That's good, but it doesn't necessarily mean you're gonna be able to walk you know. What if you just thought it moved- perhaps the ship moved slightly."
Spark's face dropped. "You don't believe me do you?" she challenged. "You believe I've gone psycho and it was all just a figment of my imagination. You think that my leg didn't actually move, I just thought it did. Well, you know what, you can just stuff what you think. At least I know who my friends are." With that, she stormed off, up the ramp towards the lift.
Tank turned to face Axle, "I think you deserved that mate," he said quietly, before turning back and busying himself with some programming on the computer.
Axle sighed deeply, "I guess I did."
Axle sat next to Trinity in the kitchen. "I honestly didn't mean to hurt her, I just didn't want her getting her hopes up over something that may have been a mere jolt in the ship. Now she won't even let me get close enough to apologise," he moaned.
Trinity smiled. "We kinda noticed. It's putting stress on the rest of the crew with you two not speaking. We're having to work twice as hard just to keep everyone informed about what's happening."
"What am I gonna do is the question," Axle said, fishing about in the bowl of slop with his spoon.
"Spark's a very high spirited girl. You know how important it is to her to be able to walk again. It's her one barrier to overcome before she can go back into the Matrix. You wouldn't know what that'd feel like, neither do I. Day in day out, she watches us go in and out of the Matrix, fighting to free others; fighting and destroying agents in Neo's case. You know what it feels like to defy gravity, to bend the rules. It gives you a buzz. Imagine watching others get that joy but not be able to experience it yourself. You're her friend, probably her closest one on this ship because you knew her before. She thought she could rely on you for support, but in trying to be her friend, you doubted her. Now she feels she can't trust you, and that's a hard bond to repair. Give her time and persevere, and I'm not promising you anything, but I think she might just come round. Personally, I think she has a bit of a soft spot for you."
Axle looked across at Trinity. "I think you're right about me needing to persevere. I'll go and find her now- I think she's practising in the program. Oh, and you never know, maybe I have a soft spot for her too."
Axle stood up, dumping the remains of his dinner into a bin. Trinity smiled, watching Axle leave the room. Neo sat down next to her, a bowl of slop in each hand. Looking confused he asked, "What was all that about?"
Giggling softly, Trinity replied, "Nothing much....young love."
Axle walked up slowly behind Spark. She was sitting in her chair in the middle of a large room with a table and chair in.
"Spark," he called gently. "I think we need to talk."
Spark spun round. "What are you doing here?" she snapped, scowling. "I thought I made it clear I didn't want to talk to you."
"Well, I want to talk to you."
"Tank," she called, "Tank, can you get me out of here." No reply. "Tank, stop pissing about and get me out of here now," she continued. Frowning, she called out again, "Tank, you are so dead when I get out of here. This is not funny." She looked up at Axle, "Well, looks like you got your wish. I'm listening...not that I have any option."
Axle sat on the chair opposite Sparks chair. He placed his elbows on his knees and sighed.
"Look Spark, I never meant to doubt you or hurt you..."
"Yeah, well you certainly acted like it..." she cut in. Axle looked up at her, and she shut up.
"I just wanted to be realistic. I believe your leg moved, and I believe that one day you'll walk. I want that day to be very soon, and who knows, it might be; but it might also be months from now. I never wanted you to get angry at me, I just didn't want you to get to excited, you couldn't fail to be disappointed." Axle stared at his feet awkwardly. "I care about you a great deal, more than you know and the last thing I want is for you to be mad at me."
Spark looked up. The frown and anger had vanished from her face. "I know you were only trying to help...it's just I was so excited about what had happened, that when you said what you said, I just got really mad. I guess it's just my foul temper. I'm sorry I got so mad, but it just all blew up out of proportion and I didn't want to apologies for yelling at you, so it just became easier to avoid you."
Axle breathed a deep sigh of relief. "Well, in the future I'll try to be more considerate of your feelings, and hopefully it won't happen again." Spark smiled at him. "Well, I guess I'd better leave you to your leg exercises then," he added, standing up to leave.
"Wait," Spark said abruptly, grabbing his hand and forcing him to sit down again. She shyly looked at her feet for a second before looking him straight in the eye. "Did...did...did you mean what you said about really caring about me?" she asked, quietly.
Axle stroked her chin gently. "Of course I did," he replied, whispering.
Spark smiled shyly before adding in a whisper, "Cos I care about you too." Axle looked into her eyes for a moment, then reached across and kissed her gently on the lips.
"Um..." he said, pulling away, "Do you think we should go back to reality and finish this kiss somewhere a little more private," he suggested, reminding her that Tank was at the console, and could probably see everything through the monitor. Spark laughed gently.
"That'd probably be advisable" she agreed.