John crouched behind a Dumpster in an alley and tried to catch his breath. He was breathing hard, nearly hyperventilating, and sweat dripped off his brow. Why would those people want him? How did he know they wanted him? Somehow he just did. But why? He thought of his parents living in the suburbs just outside the city, he thought of his apartment and Claudia. Fond memories of her pretty smile and musical laugh helped calm him down.
He peeked over the Dumpster and dropped back down at the sight of the three in the black long coats standing at the entrance to the alley. They weren't looking down the alley, but one of the two men said in an even tone, "I've lost it. Whoever was waking up has fallen asleep again."
"Do you think it was him?" the woman asked.
"I'm not sure," the man answered.
"Let's check the other hospital," a deeper male voice said.
After a moment, John didn't hear their voices anymore and assumed they walked away. A quick check over the Dumpster confirmed this. With a sigh of relief, he stood up and ran to the other end of the alley. He couldn't wait to get to the safety of home.
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Agent Smith entered the lobby of a hospital and frowned at the stench of it. He hated these places where humanity smelled its worse. Still, he forced himself to inhale the air and avoid gagging at the unpleasant aromas. "The some one was here," he muttered to himself and headed deeper into the hospital.
Like a blood hound, Agent Smith strode down the halls until he found an office that interested him. He opened the door and slowly stepped inside. His eyes wandered over the small room and came to a rest on a spoon on the desk. He picked up the spoon and rubbed his fingers over its smooth surface noting that its code had been manipulated. Crunching the spoon into a small ball of twisted metal, Agent Smith opened his hand and let it fall to the floor without a second thought.
He read the name plate on the edge of the desk, John Smith, PhD. He snatched up a framed photo that depicted a woman with wavy dark brown hair and a wide grin resting her head against the shoulder of a scruffy haired man with soft brown eyes and a cheery smile. He slammed the picture onto the desk, cracking the glass.
Now he had a name and a face. A dark smile crept along Agent Smith's face as he turned on his heel and marched out of the hospital with a sense of unstoppable determination.
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John burst through the door of his apartment door and slammed it shut behind him. Leaning against the closed door, he sank to the floor in exhaustion. He needed to get a hold of himself and began breathing long controlled breathes. Drawing his knees up, he rested his elbows on his them and held his head in hands. He closed his eyes and he realized how so very tired he was, so he allowed his mind to drift away toward somewhere else.
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He felt at peace as he stared up at the stars and familiar constellations. His fingertips gently played across velvet soft grass. He turned his head and smiled at the sight of the beautiful red blades brushing against his skin. Sitting up, he stared out over the valley from his hilltop perch at the golden citadel off in the distance. He knew where he was and he smiled.
Wake up, a soft female voice whispered in his ear.
The voice didn't startle him for he knew she was an old dear friend that has been with him nearly his entire life. He turned his head and smiled lovingly at the blue police box standing just a few feet away. Her doors stood wide open, inviting him to come back home.
Wake up, Doctor, the sweet voice repeated with urgency.
Suddenly he was submerged in thick pink liquid, trapped inside a capsule just large for him to lie in. He panicked and wildly pounded on the walls of his prison with resounding thuds that grew louder and louder.
John's eyes flew open and he found himself lying on his side on the floor in front of his apartment door. Someone was on the other side, knocking with purpose. He jumped to his feet and rubbed his eyes before peaking through the peep hole. John stepped back, not liking what he saw on the other side; two twin men in white with white hair and black sunglasses. Something about them seemed menacing.
"What do you want?" John called out.
"A moment of your time," came the answer in a smooth voice.
"I'm, uh, busy right now," he said pulling out his cell phone and dialing 9-1-1, "Come back some other time."
Suddenly, a ghostly head appeared in the door followed by the rest of his body as the pale man stepped through the door. His twin followed close behind. The shocking surprise of such an impossible sight made John drop the phone and stagger back with his mouth agape.
"The anomaly," one twin said to the other as he stepped on the phone and crushed it under his foot. Slowly the twins advanced toward John, who found himself digging around the inside pocket of his jacket, but not knowing exactly what he thought was in there that could help.
"What do you want with me?" he pleaded as they each grabbed his arms.
"The Merovingian wishes to speak with you," the twins said in eerie unison.
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Agent Smith stopped in front of an apartment door and smiled a rather smug smile. "Here we are, apartment two twenty-one," he said closing his hand around the door handle and using his great strength to force the door open.
The wood of the doorframe shattered and Agent Smith shove the door aside as he entered the apartment. He looked over every item, noting the crushed phone on the floor. He entered the living room where he saw a set of photos on the wall depicting the same faces from the picture on that desk. He knew he was in the right place, but Mr. Smith, and the agent did enjoy the irony of the name, was not in.
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Neo stood with Trinity and Morpheus on the sidewalk outside a second hospital. They did not find what they were looking for, and their shared stoic expressions showed it. Neo closed his eyes and let his mind reach into the Matrix. He searched the code for something to stand out, and finally it did. He opened his eyes and turned toward a plain looking apartment tower not too far away.
He pointed to the building, "Meet me there." His lover and friend nodded once, then ran to a car and commandeered it, screeching its tires on the pavement as they sped away. Neo crouched down, bent the Matrix to his will and launched himself into the air. In a matter of seconds, he arrived at the apartment tower and quickly flew up the stairwell.
Neo noted the door to his destination appeared to be kicked open and cautiously entered the apartment. Looking through the Matrix code that made up all things, he saw a glowing pattern all too familiar standing in the living room.
"Mr. Anderson," Agent Smith smirked. The One frowned slightly and patiently waited for the agent to make a move. The cell phone in his coat pocket rang out and that was the moment Agent Smith chose to strike. Neo stepped to the side, grabbed the agent's arm and swung him into the back wall.
Through the hole that Agent Smith's body made as he crashed through it, Neo saw the agent slowly rise to his feet. Behind him, a man and woman who were sitting on a sofa watching television, warped and became two more Agent Smith's. The cell phone rang again, and the three Smith's dashed toward Neo assaulting him with a flurry of kicks and punches that he easily deflected.
The One grabbed an agent by the collar and sent him flying straight up crashing through the ceilings and floors of the apartments above. He sent another agent out the living room window with hard kick, and yanking the third agent by the arm, Neo flew out the window. The cell phone rang a third time. He swung the agent he held by the arm up and over, and then released him. The Smith flailed his arms and legs as he slammed helplessly into the other airborne agent. The two plummeted into a building and disappeared in a hole of dust, concrete and mangled metal.
Neo hovered in the air watching the agents below through the Matrix code. Satisfied they were no longer a threat, for the moment, he shifted his gaze to the street in time to see Trinity and Morpheus run from the apartment building. They jumped into their stolen car and screeched after a black SUV already several blocks away.
Flying through the air, Neo reached the black SUV and landed firmly in the middle of the street in front of the vehicle sending a ripple of distortion through the code around him. The SUV swerved around Neo as both albino twins ghosted through the vehicle with swords drawn.
One twin brought the sword down on Neo while the other rushed toward the oncoming car carrying Morpheus and Trinity. Bullets flew, swords were dodged and a twin ended up embedded in the brick facade of a building for a moment. But when the ghostly twins made a hasty retreat, Neo realized it was all a distraction for the SUV to make its escape.
Morpheus and Trinity climbed out of the car to join Neo at his side. "Do they have him?" Trinity asked.
"Yes," Neo replied evenly.
"What about Agent Smith?" Morpheus said and glanced over his shoulder toward the building where Neo threw the copies.
"He knows who he's looking for now," Neo said, "and so do I."