I own nothing.
Thanks to all who reviewed, faved and followed- it means the world and always helps make me want to write more- and thank you to my lovely beta, Trineo.
xoxo
.
The door to their quarters shook as the operator knocked from the other side.
Neo groaned, glaring at the door, as he was pulled from sleep.
Trinity forced herself to sit up, pulling the covers with her. "Yeah?"
"Emergency. Ajax needs backup now."
Trinity crawled over Neo, dressing quickly before slipping on her boots and running to the Core before Neo even had his shirt on. He increased his speed and followed just as Link plugged her in. Morpheus was already inside.
"Load me up." Neo said moving over to his chair.
"Can't, man. I'm sorry." Link said running over to his chair, slipping his headset on. "Morpheus's orders. Doesn't want you in until you get your thinking thing under control."
"He said it was an emergency!"
"It is. Icarus crew went in for a routine mission. Got ambushed, locked in the basement of the school they were at, trying to pull out a girl. Morpheus and Trinity needs to distract the Agents long enough to get the girl and the crew out."
Neo could see the school on the screen, the coding turning into pictures in his head. Trinity was armed to the teeth, carrying a heavy power machine gun in one hand and setting off a flash grenade with the other before running to get cover.
"Link, you need to send me in there."
"I told you. Morpheus said no."
Trinity had rounded a corner but didn't stop moving. She was right not to- both of the Agents were in pursuit of her.
It was a diversionary tactic, he knew. The Agents wanted Trinity more than anyone else and she and Morpheus were using it to their advantage. The Agents concentrated on Trinity while Morpheus helped the crew of the Icarus to escape, along with their coppertop recruit.
It was just a diversionary tactic. But that didn't stop his hands from clenching into fists at his side.
She hit a staircase and leapt upwards, taking them three at a time. She glanced down the hall quickly before deciding that it was too narrow a path and far too long for her to escape unscathed.
Still, the Agents hadn't even removed their guns from their belts.
They didn't want Trinity dead. What good would she be then?
She reached the roof and found the access door locked. One kick near the lock broke it open and she ran across before jumping off the ledge.
She landed gracefully in a tight roll, swinging to her feet. Trinity took off in a run, bounding across the concrete, turning to run back towards the school.
One of the Agents, Jones, was starting to gain ground on her.
"Link, I'm begging you…"
"Wait, man."
Just as Trinity reached the end of the building, Morpheus stepped out and fired a single shot at Jones' head. There wasn't enough time for him to morph and the bullet killed the host.
That just left Brown.
He fired a shot at Morpheus who jumped out of the way as two men came from behind Morpheus with machine guns, firing a spread of bullets at Brown. The Agent dodged them all.
Moving forward at an incredible speed, Brown sent powerful punches first to Morpheus and the first man, kicking the third man squarely in the chest and sending him flying backwards.
As soon as each man lay on the ground, Brown continued to run after Trinity. Never fucking wavering.
"I'm going in." Neo said, turning and walking towards a chair, "And don't you dare try and pull me out."
"Neo, Morpheus said-"
"Link, that is the woman that I love who the Agents are after. Mine. Don't try and fucking stop me."
.
"He's not stopping!" Shroud screamed at Morpheus. She was right. They had emptied their weapons and Brown hadn't paid them the slightest attention. He hadn't so much as glanced in their direction.
"Fuck." Ajax swore.
Morpheus looked in the direction he indicated. "Oh hell."
Jones had found another host. He was back- coming up from behind Trinity.
She emptied a clip at the Brown, not noticing Jones, before chucking the gun away from her as the Agent advanced. She blocked the first punch that Brown sent at her but missed his lower hand coming for her stomach.
The punch had knocked the wind out of Trinity, giving the Agent the advantage to throwing another at her jaw.
Jones grabbed her from behind, wrapping his arms around her shoulder to keep her in place while giving Brown the opportunity to inflict pain.
Morpheus took off at a run but slowed to a halt as the very essence of the Matrix changed around him.
And suddenly Neo was there, coming up behind Brown and snapping his neck before the Agent could register Neo's appearance.
Jones pulled out a gun and held it to Trinity's head. "I would think about your options very carefully, Mister Anderson." Jones directed. "I would hate to have to kill her for your insolence."
.
"Who the hell is that guy?" Sim asked, looking between the two captains.
"He's the One." Morpheus answered simply.
.
Neo looked to Trinity whose face was schooled with the utmost calm. The world seemed to slow as they stared at each other.
.
"Morpheus…" Ajax said with a slight annoyance.
"He is." Morpheus insisted. "Council cleared him and everything. Killed an Agent a few weeks back."
"Is that why Smith is gone?" Shroud asked.
"Yes."
.
"Put down your weapons." The Agent ordered as if Neo couldn't just create one with a single thought.
Reluctantly, still, Neo did as he said. He unstrapped the holster at his thigh and pulled the guns in his shoulder holster out, tossing them at the ground.
"The knives, too."
He was about to bend down to take the knife out of his boot when Trinity, almost forgotten by the Agent, jumped off the ground.
Surprised by the sudden weight on his arm, Jones dropped her giving Neo the opportunity to fly across the space and tackled the Agent to the ground. He punched with everything he had, hearing the crack of Jones' jaw breaking before materializing a gun into his hand and firing at the Agent's head.
Once. Twice. Three, four, five, six, seven- a hand hit his shoulder and gently squeezed.
He looked up at Trinity, the anger that had driven him slipping away as he climbed to his feet. Wordlessly, he wrapped her in his arms and held her tightly.
"You're shaking." She whispered, drawing back slightly.
Neo shook his head, not caring, "You're okay? Injuries?"
She shook her head. "I'm fine."
"Your jaw is turning blue."
Trinity shrugged. "I've had worse. I'll be okay."
Neo placed a hand on the side of her face, touching her to make sure that everything really was okay. When he assured himself that she was, he pulled her against him.
"Should I even comment on the fact you weren't supposed to enter the Matrix?" Morpheus asked, walking up with the rest of the Icarus' crew that had not fled.
Neo looked up, a flash of fire behind his eyes that Morpheus had never seen. "The Agents are willing to do anything to get me. Perhaps using Trinity as bait wasn't the best idea." He replied coolly.
Morpheus sighed regretfully, "It's part of the job, Neo."
"Morpheus." Trinity interrupted with a shake of her head. "Not now."
And she was right. Neo was tense, shaking slightly and holding onto Trinity as if she were a lifeline."You got the girl out?" Trinity asked, turning in Neo's arms so that she could face the rest.
Ajax nodded. "Thanks to you. Duke should be taking her to the warehouse." The Captain looked at Neo and held out his hand. "I'm Ajax, Captain of the Icarus."
Neo hesitated before releasing one of the arms around Trinity and holding out his own hand. "Neo."
"I've never seen someone take out an Agent with their bare hands. Very impressive."
Neo nodded, not wanting to talk about, or even think about, the programs that had just attacked Trinity. That had singled her out for the sole purpose of effecting him.
He further tensed.
"Do you need any help getting your girl out?" Trinity asked Ajax, sensing Neo's discomfort and placing it above her own pain.
"No, thank you. We couldn't have made it this far without you."
She nodded, pulling her cell phone from her belt and dialing the number for Link. "Exit." She said, simply. "Right." She hung up. "Same place as we went in, the old gas station. We'll meet you back home?" She asked of Morpheus.
He nodded and she took Neo by the hand, ushering him in the direction of the exit.
Neo walked with her, eyes searching all around for any new bodies the Agent's might have taken over.
"They're gone." She told him.
"For how long?"
"Come on."
That was answer enough. Neo increased his speed, practically dragging Trinity with him.
"Neo, it's okay…"
"It's not." He said looking at her before looking away, never slowing, "I was on the other side of that computer. I watched as the Agents chased you through the school, as Morpheus and the others shot at them but they didn't pay them the slightest attention. Two fleet captains, two opportunities for the codes to Zion's mainframe and all they cared about was getting to you. And for Morpheus to put you in that position…"
"It's my job."
"I know. And I'm not going to try and stop you from doing it but using you as bait…"
"Wasn't the best idea but you know how it is. When you're given an order in the Matrix, you can't stop and think about it. You have to just do it if you want to save lives. And so I did."
The phone was just ahead and Neo could see it ringing.
"You first." He said, edging her towards the phone.
She didn't argue, taking the receiver off the hook and putting it to her ear before disappearing. He hung up the phone and waited before feeling that familiar sensation pull him back into the real world.
Opening his eyes, he yanked the cord out of his own head and moved to his feet. Trinity was still on her chair, Link unplugging her.
Neo examined her face, touching her on the cheek, just above the growing bruise. "How much pain are you in?"
"I've had worse."
"That's not what I asked." Neo reached for the hem of her shirt and brought it up to uncover her stomach, a purple welt just above her belly button. "Link, if Morpheus asks," He scooped Trinity up into his arms, "We'll be in the infirmary."
"Neo, I'm fine."
"Humor me." He said, voice void of emotion.
She rolled her eyes but wrapped an arm around his neck, helping him keep her balanced as he walked down the hall to the med bay. He pushed the door open with his foot and went inside, setting Trin down on the table.
He silently helped her take her sweater off so that she was left in her black undershirt. He lifted it up to just under her bra. The bruise was dark against her pale skin and he didn't know what the hell to do to make it better.
"Painkillers are on the first shelf of that cabinet."
He nodded, turning to find it. A box filled with small jars of clear liquid were on the shelf. "This?"
"Yeah. There are needles in the third drawer to the left."
He found one and opened the pack. "Now what?"
"Fill it up to the 10 ML mark." She rolled up her sleeve, "And put it in this plug."
Shakily, he opened the bottle of medicine, spilling a bit over the side and onto his hand.
"It's okay." Trinity said calmly. "10 milliliters."
Neo nodded and filled up the syringe. He walked over to where she lay and put a hand on her forearm while slipping the syringe into one of her plugs.
"Neo, you know I'm okay, right?" She asked quietly.
He looked away. "Your jaw-"
She pushed herself up onto her arms. "Hurts like hell, but it will heal. Talk to me, Neo."
"I don't…. I don't like seeing you hurt."
"Neo, you defied your orders and had a bit of a freak out in the Matrix. I saw your face when you were hitting the Agent. I saw you practically bash his skull in. Talk to me."
"You're all I have." Neo said quietly. "I don't have any real friends. No family. Aside from a few outfits, I don't own anything. Don't have a computer or books. No home without you. And I saw you in there. Agent's chasing you, knowing they could take you away from me so easily. I've seen your coding, I know just how fragile you really are. And if they took you away… I can't be without you. I can't lose you."
"I'm not going to disappear. No one is going to take me away. And you do have friends. People who care about you."
"They care about the One- not me."
"Neo, that's not true."
"Morpheus only cares about me because I'm the One. And do you really think Ghost and Sparks would hang out with me if it wasn't for you?"
"They would."
"Maybe. But I doubt it. The One's special but Neo… I'm just Neo."
"I happen to love just Neo. The One or not, I love you."
"And I love you. This is why I can't lose you. Even the thought makes me feel sick."
"You're not going to lose me." She promised, swinging her legs off the side of the table and slipping to the floor. "I'm never letting go of this; of you."
Trinity stood on tiptoe and gently kissed Neo. Her arms slid up and around his neck, pulling him to her as she slowly backed out of the infirmary. Down the short hall, diving in and out of kisses while his hands crept under her sweater. He kept his hands to her sides, afraid to hurt her by touching her bruise.
Fed up with his gentle, fearful touches, Trinity backed herself into their door, pulling Neo against her hard. His cock was straining against his pants, she could feel it against her stomach. Contentedly unable to move, she moved a hand to his lower back and started rocking him against her.
Neo reached around and fumbled with their door, pushing it open and letting the door swing wide, keeping Trinity pinned to it.
"Neo." She moaned, "Please."
"What?" He asked, his mouth trailing to her neck.
Trinity threw her head back, slamming it against the door, but truly not caring. "Neo!"
"Quiet." He ordered, wrapping his hands under her ass and lifting her up, "You'll wake the kids."
He kicked the door closed before pushing her against its inside, his mouth gravitating towards her neck yet again.
She whimpered as he bit down, enough to leave red marks but not enough to draw blood. He sucked along her throat, desperately trying to mark her.
Two Agents had touched her, had put their virtual hands on her with the intent of pain.
Never again. He vowed silently. Never again would an Agent touch her. He was going to destroy them both.
Trinity's hands slipped to his rope belt, fumbling with the not while he leaned over her, sucking at the hollow of her throat.
Yeah, he was going to destroy them.
Later.