Matt swallowed nervously, wondering what Slider wanted to speak with him about. He came up with a million excuses for the way he had avoided returning, but all of them sounded flimsy and weak. Honestly, he knew there was no excuse for the way he had acted – forsaking Cyberspace for his own family.
"Check this out." Slider motioned him over to a wall away from the door. On the wall was an elaborate map of Cyberspace, and certain places on the wall were glowing. "Everywhere that's glowing on the map, we have allies. Each Cybersite that is marked holds Cyborgs who are willing to fight for their freedom. Most of us have disappeared into hiding, but we're all still actively waiting for the chance to help everything to revert to the way it was. We've been searching for you guys, the Cybersquad for eleven months now."
Matt cleared his throat. "Wow."
Slider's finger slid to a button that was pulsing. "If I press this button, I'll let everyone on this map know that I've found you, and to come to this location to begin the end of Hacker's reign."
Matt fell silent. He didn't know what to do. It had been so long since he had last taken control of a situation. He glanced around the room, a neat little basement with only a sturdy ping pong table at the center. A few chairs were pulled up to it, but it seemed kind of empty. Abandoned.
"You don't have to decide now. In fact, Jackie, Digit, and Inez should be included in the decision." Slider suggested. "I just thought you should know."
Matt nodded. "Listen, Slider, I'm sorry."
Slider shook his head. "No, don't apologize. I know what it's like, being totally terrified that you just want to give up all hope of everything going back to normal."
"The difference is that you always stayed strong." Matt grumbled.
"Can I ask you a question?" At Matt's nod, Slider continued. "Who convinced you to come here? I have a feeling it wasn't Jackie."
The use of Jackie's name shocked Matt just a little. It had been so long since he'd heard her name coming from someone else's mouth. "Yeah, it wasn't Jackie. Reen – I mean Inez was the one who decided. She became so depressed after Hacker won, and neither Jessie nor I could stand to see it. When the chance presented itself through you, I got spooked and shut the door, but Irene was always right. I see that now. I can't protect our little bubble forever, but I just might be able to nip the danger in the bud, if we can get rid of Hacker."
Slider smiled slightly, choosing to ignore the fact that Matt had reverted to saying "Jessie" and "Irene" again.
"Let's head upstairs, then. You can tell the girls and Digit what I've told you."
"Right." Matt nodded. "I can't pretend that I'm their protector anymore. They have the same amount of say in anything we do as I."
Slider nodded, and swept his hands toward the stairs in an "after you" fashion. "Welcome back, Matt."