Morpheus was very welcoming. "Hello, Kobra, sit down."
"It's an honor to meet you, sir."
"No, the honor is all mine, Kobra."
"I've been looking for you."
"Likewise." Morpheus said.
"Why me?" Kobra asked him.
"Because you know something. Yet you are trying to put your finger on what IT is."
"The Matrix."
"Yes." Morpheus answered wistfully.
"Do you know what the Matrix is, Morpheus?" Kobra asked expectedly
"The Matrix is a prison, Kobra. A prison which you cannot touch or feel or taste. A prison (dramatic reverb) for your mind."
"Ok………..."
"It is impossible to tell you what the Matrix. I can only show you." He held out both his hands. "If you take the blue pill, you will wake in your bed, still wondering everything, and this will all be a dream. If you take the red pill, I will show you what the Matrix is."
Kobra looked at them. "My family?"
Morpheus looked at her sadly. "I don't know what will happen to your family."
She sighed.
"All I'm offering is the truth."
Kobra sighed again. "But just one thing."
"Yes?"
"Why do you call me Kobra instead of Rachel?"
Morpheus smiled. "Because. Kobra is the one who needs freedom."
Kobra narrowed her eyes. "Are you using me?"
"No."
She nodded warily as she picked up the red pill. She swallowed and reached for a glass of water to soothe her suddenly dry throat.
Morpheus nodded. "Come with me."
Morpheus got up and Kobra followed him into a room filled with various gadgets and a crude-looking chair. "Sit here."
Kobra watched him warily as she sat down. Her gazed changed to the broken mirror next to her. It a mirror, plain and simple. She reached out to touch it. It bounced and stuck to her fingers. As she pulled her hand away, the glass like stuff stuck to her hand and crawled down her arm an onto her body. "oh….crap……It's cold."
"Going to need a lock soon, Tank."
"It's cold. It's cold."
"Got it!"
Kobra said as the glassy liquid covered her legs and arms and crawled up to her head. "this cant be…….."
"Real? That's because it------"
And then she blacked out.
***
Air! No air! She reached up but her muscles refused to comply. Finally she pushed her head up to the top and punctured it. She still couldn't breathe. When she pulled out the thing in her nose and throat, she felt air. Wonderful! Breathing was painful, but it was life. Breath after painful breath. She finally got up and opened her eyes, but it hurt. They widened with what she saw.
Bodies. People. All of them in the same situation.
Something didn't feel right about her own body. She was something very strange, she said as she looked at her body and gasped. Not knowing where she was, she promised not to tell anyone about this terrifying secret. Not even the One. Then the pod opened and she blacked out again.
***
Her first conscious thought was 'where am I?' She tried to open her eyes but the pain was too great. "Morpheus?" she guessed randomly. She hoped they couldn't see her body.
"I'm here Kobra."
"where am I?"
"On my ship, the Nebuchenezzar."
"Why do my eyes hurt?"
"You've never used them before."
Couple hours later……………
Kobra woke up in a bed. She was wearing loose fitting sweatpants and a loose shirt. She shook her head a few times as she peered around. There was a needle in her arm. A…..plug? She pulled the needle out of the plug in her arm and rolled her sleeves up. There were plugs all over her arms. She reached out to feel her neck but……..
"you've awake." Morpheus said as she snapped her hand back.
"Yuh huh." She said.
Kobra thought inwardly about what they saw on her. Those plugs were inserted directly into her 'skin', and it was hurting.
"I'll introduce you to my crew." He motioned out and she followed.
***
"You already know Trinity and Neo. This is Tank, Sagittarius, Hyphen and Kajir."
They acknowledged her presence and went back to work.
"Come. We must begin your training."
"Training?"
He led the teen to the smaller chair thing. "Stay here."
"Yes. Training."
"But you promised me you'd show me what the Matrix is."
Morpheus nodded. "After."
Morpheus walked out and Tank walked in. "Hey. I'm Tank. I'll be your operator for……a while."
"Uhh……hi?"
"Hi is good. Now lets see here, we are supposed to start with this introductory crap…and this other shit……..let's go straight to…..endurance training." He put in the disk and the computer flashed names.
"What the hell? Hurdles?"
Tank gave her a wink and pressed a button.
Kobra felt like her brain was going to explode. The information packed itself into her brain.
"Want some more?"
Kobra nodded greedily.
9 hours later………
"How she's doing?"
"Machine. Sucking it up like Neo did."
Morpheus smiled. "Just as I had assumed."
Kobra walked up to Morpheus. "Now show me."
Morpheus sat down in a chair that was one of the lots surrounding a huge computer, with Tank on it. "Come. Sit in a chair."
Kobra nodded and sat down in the one next to him.
"This is going to feel weird."
***
White! Just….white and nothing else!!
"This is our….loading program."
"You mean that we are in a computer?"
"Technically. We can load anything. Weapons, ammo……."
"You mean if I wanted a GCN I could load it here?! AWESOME!!"
Morpheus shook his head. "Yes and no. It doesn't physically exist, however if you stayed here you could play it."
Kobra smirked. "Very cool."
"Yes. Now, come with me."
"Where?"
"There." Kobra looked over and there were two chairs and a TV. "Whoa…..you loaded that?"
"Yes."
"It is….real?"
"How do you define real? Does it physically exist in the real world? No. However your senses are saying it is a red chair. If real is what you can taste, touch, feel, or see, then real is simply electrical symbols interpreted by your brain."
"Oh. That's nice."
Morpheus nodded tolerantly. He sat down in one of the chairs .Kobra did the same. "about 2100 humans were united. They built a powerful weapon under their control. AI."
"As in artificial intelligence."
"Yes. Soon the weapon grew, produced, and became a species. Many wars were fought. We know little about who did what, but we do know who scorched the sky." He pointed up.
Kobra looked up. "oh…….shit."
"we thought we beat the machines by cutting off their power source. But they had found a much stronger one."
"Us."
"Yes, Kobra. Humans themselves. The Matrix keeps them in line, keeping them from what is really happening."
"So what year it is now?"
"Exactly, I don't know. I know it's around 2199."
"No……..no that cant be right……..no. No!"
"Kobra! You'll black out!!!!"
"Get me back to my family, you creeps!!"
"Kobra calm down!!"
"Get away from me!!" Then she hit the deck. Fainted.
"It was a mistake brining her out so early in life. She's only 15." Neo said.
"There is something very odd about her." Sag said.
"What do you mean?" Neo asked.
"She's……..too smart."
"She could be a prodigy, Sag."
"No. That's not it. You cannot hack into the matrix when you're 9."
"Sag……"
"No Neo, listen. She hacked into the Matrix when she was nine. Go back 15 years ago. Remember that one code?"
"The one with the 3 new signs?"
"yes. That was her. She's something new alright, but I cant put my finger on it."
"Sag, you're right. Ask Morpheus."
"No, don't tell Morpheus. He'll make this more complicated. Tell Hyphen."
"Why?"
"Neo, just please listen to me here."
"It's an honor to meet you, sir."
"No, the honor is all mine, Kobra."
"I've been looking for you."
"Likewise." Morpheus said.
"Why me?" Kobra asked him.
"Because you know something. Yet you are trying to put your finger on what IT is."
"The Matrix."
"Yes." Morpheus answered wistfully.
"Do you know what the Matrix is, Morpheus?" Kobra asked expectedly
"The Matrix is a prison, Kobra. A prison which you cannot touch or feel or taste. A prison (dramatic reverb) for your mind."
"Ok………..."
"It is impossible to tell you what the Matrix. I can only show you." He held out both his hands. "If you take the blue pill, you will wake in your bed, still wondering everything, and this will all be a dream. If you take the red pill, I will show you what the Matrix is."
Kobra looked at them. "My family?"
Morpheus looked at her sadly. "I don't know what will happen to your family."
She sighed.
"All I'm offering is the truth."
Kobra sighed again. "But just one thing."
"Yes?"
"Why do you call me Kobra instead of Rachel?"
Morpheus smiled. "Because. Kobra is the one who needs freedom."
Kobra narrowed her eyes. "Are you using me?"
"No."
She nodded warily as she picked up the red pill. She swallowed and reached for a glass of water to soothe her suddenly dry throat.
Morpheus nodded. "Come with me."
Morpheus got up and Kobra followed him into a room filled with various gadgets and a crude-looking chair. "Sit here."
Kobra watched him warily as she sat down. Her gazed changed to the broken mirror next to her. It a mirror, plain and simple. She reached out to touch it. It bounced and stuck to her fingers. As she pulled her hand away, the glass like stuff stuck to her hand and crawled down her arm an onto her body. "oh….crap……It's cold."
"Going to need a lock soon, Tank."
"It's cold. It's cold."
"Got it!"
Kobra said as the glassy liquid covered her legs and arms and crawled up to her head. "this cant be…….."
"Real? That's because it------"
And then she blacked out.
***
Air! No air! She reached up but her muscles refused to comply. Finally she pushed her head up to the top and punctured it. She still couldn't breathe. When she pulled out the thing in her nose and throat, she felt air. Wonderful! Breathing was painful, but it was life. Breath after painful breath. She finally got up and opened her eyes, but it hurt. They widened with what she saw.
Bodies. People. All of them in the same situation.
Something didn't feel right about her own body. She was something very strange, she said as she looked at her body and gasped. Not knowing where she was, she promised not to tell anyone about this terrifying secret. Not even the One. Then the pod opened and she blacked out again.
***
Her first conscious thought was 'where am I?' She tried to open her eyes but the pain was too great. "Morpheus?" she guessed randomly. She hoped they couldn't see her body.
"I'm here Kobra."
"where am I?"
"On my ship, the Nebuchenezzar."
"Why do my eyes hurt?"
"You've never used them before."
Couple hours later……………
Kobra woke up in a bed. She was wearing loose fitting sweatpants and a loose shirt. She shook her head a few times as she peered around. There was a needle in her arm. A…..plug? She pulled the needle out of the plug in her arm and rolled her sleeves up. There were plugs all over her arms. She reached out to feel her neck but……..
"you've awake." Morpheus said as she snapped her hand back.
"Yuh huh." She said.
Kobra thought inwardly about what they saw on her. Those plugs were inserted directly into her 'skin', and it was hurting.
"I'll introduce you to my crew." He motioned out and she followed.
***
"You already know Trinity and Neo. This is Tank, Sagittarius, Hyphen and Kajir."
They acknowledged her presence and went back to work.
"Come. We must begin your training."
"Training?"
He led the teen to the smaller chair thing. "Stay here."
"Yes. Training."
"But you promised me you'd show me what the Matrix is."
Morpheus nodded. "After."
Morpheus walked out and Tank walked in. "Hey. I'm Tank. I'll be your operator for……a while."
"Uhh……hi?"
"Hi is good. Now lets see here, we are supposed to start with this introductory crap…and this other shit……..let's go straight to…..endurance training." He put in the disk and the computer flashed names.
"What the hell? Hurdles?"
Tank gave her a wink and pressed a button.
Kobra felt like her brain was going to explode. The information packed itself into her brain.
"Want some more?"
Kobra nodded greedily.
9 hours later………
"How she's doing?"
"Machine. Sucking it up like Neo did."
Morpheus smiled. "Just as I had assumed."
Kobra walked up to Morpheus. "Now show me."
Morpheus sat down in a chair that was one of the lots surrounding a huge computer, with Tank on it. "Come. Sit in a chair."
Kobra nodded and sat down in the one next to him.
"This is going to feel weird."
***
White! Just….white and nothing else!!
"This is our….loading program."
"You mean that we are in a computer?"
"Technically. We can load anything. Weapons, ammo……."
"You mean if I wanted a GCN I could load it here?! AWESOME!!"
Morpheus shook his head. "Yes and no. It doesn't physically exist, however if you stayed here you could play it."
Kobra smirked. "Very cool."
"Yes. Now, come with me."
"Where?"
"There." Kobra looked over and there were two chairs and a TV. "Whoa…..you loaded that?"
"Yes."
"It is….real?"
"How do you define real? Does it physically exist in the real world? No. However your senses are saying it is a red chair. If real is what you can taste, touch, feel, or see, then real is simply electrical symbols interpreted by your brain."
"Oh. That's nice."
Morpheus nodded tolerantly. He sat down in one of the chairs .Kobra did the same. "about 2100 humans were united. They built a powerful weapon under their control. AI."
"As in artificial intelligence."
"Yes. Soon the weapon grew, produced, and became a species. Many wars were fought. We know little about who did what, but we do know who scorched the sky." He pointed up.
Kobra looked up. "oh…….shit."
"we thought we beat the machines by cutting off their power source. But they had found a much stronger one."
"Us."
"Yes, Kobra. Humans themselves. The Matrix keeps them in line, keeping them from what is really happening."
"So what year it is now?"
"Exactly, I don't know. I know it's around 2199."
"No……..no that cant be right……..no. No!"
"Kobra! You'll black out!!!!"
"Get me back to my family, you creeps!!"
"Kobra calm down!!"
"Get away from me!!" Then she hit the deck. Fainted.
"It was a mistake brining her out so early in life. She's only 15." Neo said.
"There is something very odd about her." Sag said.
"What do you mean?" Neo asked.
"She's……..too smart."
"She could be a prodigy, Sag."
"No. That's not it. You cannot hack into the matrix when you're 9."
"Sag……"
"No Neo, listen. She hacked into the Matrix when she was nine. Go back 15 years ago. Remember that one code?"
"The one with the 3 new signs?"
"yes. That was her. She's something new alright, but I cant put my finger on it."
"Sag, you're right. Ask Morpheus."
"No, don't tell Morpheus. He'll make this more complicated. Tell Hyphen."
"Why?"
"Neo, just please listen to me here."
