Chapter Three: Captive

Beta was dragged through the train station and loaded into a dark limousine. The Agent sat down beside him and introduced himself as Agent Matthews.

"You've caused the Motherboard a lot of trouble recently," he said. "She'll be happy to finish the job."
Beta remained silent, staring ahead. Matthews grinned and turned forward also, waiting out the ride in silence. Beta's mind drifted around to thoughts of his Twin, Alpha.

He tried to sense him in his mind. Nothing.

Brother? he called across their telepathic link. Nothing.

What could be happening to him?

They took him out of the car and into the Mainframe building. It loomed up, tall and dark, the tallest building in the city. IT cast a dark shadow on everything around. Beta shivered, feeling cold.

The guards watched them come in with disinterest, ignoring the Agents as they went through the metal detector, which went off for every single one.

They forced Beta down a long hallway and to a large elevator. Matthews summoned the lift, and they all piled on. Two ordinary humans waited behind them, but Matthews shook his head and they stepped back. He hit the door close button.

The elevator rose one floor and opened silently. The three Agents dragged Beta down the hall and to a room marked "101."

"Yes, we're back here," Matthews said, seeing Beta's look of surprise. They opened the door and took him inside, sitting him down in the one chair in the center of the empty room.

A man entered with a medical kit. He set it down on the floor and opened it, withdrawing a syringe and a vial of clear fluid. He filled the syringe and plunged it into Beta's arm, pressing downward.

Matthews appeared in Beta's view of vision.

"That will stop your powers from functioning," he said. "Now, tell us, where is your brother?"

"Fuck you."

"If you give up your Twin, you need not be deleted. I am authorized to offer you a position within our ranks, a rebel hunter of sorts. You will be allowed to keep your shell and programming, and we will simply update you with the qualities that make us Agents feared."

"No deal," said Beta.

Matthews sighed. "If you insist, then. I will return shortly."

And he left the room. Beta stared after him, driving an imaginary switchblade into the arrogant Agent's back. He mentally twisted the blade and smiled as the mental Matthews fell. He began to laugh. The two Agents in the room glanced at him in worry, and one jabbed another syringe into his arm.

Beta didn't know how long he had floated there, in between consciousness and unconsciousness. It could have been minutes, hours, days, even weeks. Eventually he looked up to see Matthews open the door and step back into the room.

"Well, your brother foolishly decided to try to rescue you. We have to move you. Come."

Two other Agents entered the room and grabbed Beta, pulling him to his feet. They marched him down the hall, Matthews following behind. As Beta was lead towards a door, he raised his head and looked forward.

"Bullshit," he said quietly. Matthews turned to look at him.

"What did you say?"

Beta shot a foot out and hit Matthews in the kneecap. He grabbed the two Agents by the throat and pushed them away. He took off down the hall. The Agents raised guns and began to fire.

The bullets whizzed past Beta as if in slow motion. He turned the corner and barreled into a human security guard who had come running at the sound of gunshots. He grabbed the gun from the man.

From around the corner he heard Matthews order a "coding lockdown," whatever that meant. And as he leaned around the corner to fire, he felt it happen.

The Matrix code began to slow, screeching to a halt. Beta, and everyone else inside the building, had become as harmless as a normal coppertop.

He opened fire. The bullets streaked forward and hit two of the Agents. Matthews returned the fire, running forward. His shot chewed through the corner and exploded from the wall an inch left of Beta's shoulder.

The Exile fired twice. The first bullet struck Matthews on the shoulder, spinning his body so his entire chest was facing front. The second bullet hit him in the chest. Matthews fell, his momentum carrying him past Beta .

Beta knelt down and took Matthew's gun, searching the Agent's pockets until he found his switchblade. Then he stood up and continued his escape.

He had reached the lobby. Security guards were no where in sight, but Beta could sense them. He stopped at the entrance and threw another item he had stolen into the center of the room.

A smoke grenade. The grenade popped open with a click and a hissing sound filled the air. The room quickly filled with the black, oily smoke. Beta heard soldiers yelling orders and asking questions. He quietly slipped towards one of the voices.

Beta reached a man dressed in SWAT clothing and quietly slit his throat. He grabbed the automatic weapon and walked towards the next man. He heard a large fan begin to blow the smoke away and knew he had little time. He opened fire.

Two men fell in the first volley, collapsing to the floor. Beta dragged the gun left, cutting into three more people. As he ran he scooped up a second gun and fired them both, cutting down SWAT on either side. He made it to the door and fired at the glass…

…only to see his bullets have no effect. He swore and dived under cover, firing as he slid backwards across the floor. He saw a glimpse of an Agent falling victim to his bullets and then disappeared behind the wall.

He heard a beeping behind him. Turning, he spotted an elevator. He threw his knife, hitting the call button. As SWAT rounded the corner, he leapt backwards, firing. He passed through the elevator doors as they closed, and he slammed the up button. He was gone.

The elevator opened on the top floor. Beta stepped out and surveyed the roof. Two Agents appeared from out of no where. Beta pointed one of his guns at each and opened fire.

They dodged every bullet. Beta swore as they walked forward. Matthews appeared from behind the two.

"Surprise, Exile. The code shutdown never affected us…that was a little lie we used to pin you down. And now we have you trapped."

Beta broke into a backwards run, opening fire on Matthews with both guns. The concentrated barrage of lead cut him down. Beta ran to the edge of the roof.

The two Agents closed in on him. He took another step backwards, still firing. One of them was hit in the leg, and he fell. The other one hit Beta in the leg. The Exile disappeared over the edge of the roof.

"Check him," Matthew's voice said in the Agent's ear. He walked to the edge of the roof, looking down.

A hand grabbed him around the ankle and pulled. The Agent fell forward, crashing into the sidewalk far below. Beta let himself drop back inside the building as Seraph helped Alpha off the street.

They were almost back together.