Authors' Notes: Happy New Year everyone! I might be a bit late, but this was written the day before New Years.
Important Note: I have been granted permission to call the twins 'Alpha' and 'Beta'. I will fix the names in chapter two tomorrow. You have White Rabbit to thank for that.
Constrained Tribulation: Chapter 3
"You're late," the dangerously soft voice came from ahead of her. She glared into the cold, gray eyes as she took her seat in front of the unwelcoming presence. She felt her mask slip the tiniest bit as the woman in front of her studied her with uncaring caution. Her secrets had guarded behind a façade matching no other. She lashed out at the sea of unresolved issues and indifferent emotions.
"You're early," she answered as she rested languidly in the chair. A puff of steam rose from her latte as she waited for the arrival of her companions. Her dimmed green eyes clashed with the gray as sipped her latte with unnatural grace. The clock ticked impatiently behind her as the door opened to admit her companions. She left them to their own fate for the moment as she tried to gain ground.
"Jinx," she muttered almost inaudibly. Jinx's head snapped up at the sound of the voice. The raw pain laced with regret forced her to face her old contact. She studied the woman in her black leathers as she moved to stand up. Her eyes flickered over to Niobe, Morpheus, and Ghost, but she ignored them for now. She wasn't here for pleasantries and would not take sympathy from any of them.
"Trinity," she spoke nonchalantly. She had been trained to become detached to any emotions. Emotions caused distractions, and led to her ultimate downfall. To feel once more was a luxury far out of reach. Her short, chestnut hair was pulled back from her pale face. Her leather, black duster swayed against her black tank, beige cargo pants, and army boots as she moved to greet Morpheus.
"Where is he?" she asked as she motioned towards the door. Jinx heard Trinity sigh softly behind her as they made their way out of the small café. They knew very well where Neo was, or at least they had an idea. They wouldn't have come to her on a pure whim. She glared at the kids playing on the sidewalk as they walked past the large apartment homes. The kids scattered in her wake.
"He's in the Chateau," she heard Morpheus admit reluctantly. This must have gotten too far out of hand if they waited until now to get her attention. Ghost and Niobe were sharing looks, and she read their silent communication. It seems the great captain Morpheus hadn't shared all the information with their companions. She suppressed the urge to snap at him for such a foolish action. He must have had his reasons.
"Then what do you want me to do? Track down the Chateau? I thought we were past this, Morpheus. I'm not here to play games with the Merovingian. I won't be taunted with hints until someone loses patience and attacks from the wrong front. If we are going after the Merovingian, we're going after all the Exiles," she said as she stopped before an iron door. Jinx never anticipated the hard slap in the face until seconds afterward.
"We're not here to face our past demons," she hissed as Jinx turned at patented glare on her. "We're here to find, Neo. If I can handle facing you again, you can find him. It's not his fault you're trapped in your own damned hell. It's mine, so don't even think of going in there without us. You can get yourself killed any day of the week, but not today," Trinity whispered harshly. It was her fault Jinx was trapped behind a cage day after day, but Jinx wasn't about to let the demons roam free.
"It was nobody's fault, and if you'd take one second out of your own guilt, you'd see it. You know why I have that damn reputation in Zion. No one could even think of the truth. Their poor defenseless Zion is more important than an almost suicidal soldier. I'm not even considered a soldier anymore. I'm just a nameless weapon Zion wants to toss away when I'm all used up. And you know what? I don't care anymore. I can't. It might get me killed," Jinx growled as she bodyslammed the door open.
Trinity grabbed the scruff of her duster and pushed her up against the door. "You don't want sympathy, and I won't offer any, but Neo needs our help. The problem is that you're the one with the choice. Make it now," she mocked as she glared into those cold, gray eyes. She felt Jinx tense for the spring, but she held fast. They had no time left for any of these. The Merovingian didn't need to be involved. They'd kill themselves by the end of it.
"I said I would find him for you," Jinx hissed as she held up her blade at Trinity's exposed throat. Trinity sent a final glare at her before stepping back. She flicked her dagger back into her sleeve before pushing away from the wall. "If you want me to find, I suggest you stop bringing up the past. Now. We can deal our own problems later." Jinx further punctuated the conversation by taking steps closer to Trinity.
"Jinx," Morpheus waned as he motioned towards the door. She could sense the agents as they ran closer. She slammed the door forcefully shut as she muttered about interruptions. She opened the door into the hallway as they heard pounding on the front entrance. Niobe and Ghost entered first, followed shortly by Trinity and Morpheus. She shut the door behind them as the iron door opened under the agents' force.
"Do you where we're going," Niobe asked briskly as Jinx led them through a series of tunnels. Jinx ignored her momentarily as watched the guarded entrance. The two guards would be easy to take out, but they needed a quick diversion. She fingered the smoke grenade in her pocket but knew it would be needed later. She shook her head as she retraced her steps for a moment.
"I know exactly where we're going. This is the Merovingian's private warehouse for recycling code. There is an entrance to the Chateau inside, but it will impossible for us to enter. We need to get someone's attention inside there, but first we have to get the guards away from the door. Ghost?" she asked. He nodded in a heartbeat as he moved towards the outside of the door.
~~~~~~~~
"This is not your arena, Persephone. You are not in control of him," Alpha hissed as he moved closer to Neo. Neo backed farther away form the twin as he glanced around for some sort of weapon. The room seemed deprived, however, or anything except lavishing furniture. The twin glared at him with a guarded expression as he moved away from Persephone's prying eyes.
"Not so fast," Beta's voice whispered dangerously in his ear. Neo tensed as a blade was moved underneath his chin and lifted his head to face Alpha and Persephone. His fingers itched for something to jab back into the twin so he could escape. The hot breath on his neck was tinged with irritation from the dire interruption. Neo thought fast as he held onto the hope of escape.
"We do not have time for your games, Persephone. We are under orders," Alpha state with the resentment lingering in his voice. They hated Persephone with a passion for everything she had done to them, but they were sworn to secrecy over her continuous mind games. Alpha didn't need to look over to Beta before knowing the anger was coming from his twin. Alpha never held anything against the mistress, but his twin was never one to let things go lightly.
"You will make time. My husband has set boundaries around the One, but what are rules if not to be broken? Laws were written for the sole purpose of defining crimes instead of stopping them. He will be mine, Alpha," Persephone said as she narrowed her eyes under lowered lashes. She began to circle Alpha like a predator stalking much larger game than herself. The twin followed her impatiently.
"You will not interfere with us. We have work to do, Persephone. You do not control him, and you have no power over us," Beta answered as he moved Neo closer to the door. Instead of turning the knob and walking through, he phased through the door, taking Neo with him. It was most particular sensation to Neo; it was as if his coding was rearranging itself to fit through the coding of the door. He kept it in mind for later use.
They appeared outside the wall with the knife still pressed to his jugular. It was pulled away quickly as Beta turned Neo around to look at him. "That will not happen often," Beta answered simply to the unspoken question. Neo nodded as he stepped back from the twin. Beta sighed harshly as he heard his twin arguing with Persephone further. Neo relaxed as he studied the corridor.
"Why am I here?" Neo asked softly as the corridor seemingly changed. The chateau was always changing as not to same in the same for place for others to find in his predictament. Beta glanced at him annoyed as he began walking down the hallway. Beta followed after a hesitant minute. 'Come and find us when you're done with the mistress,' he sent to Alpha mentally before answering Neo.
"The Merovingian has his reasons. Don't ask questions we can't answer," Alpha growled as he pulled closely behind them. He cursing under his breath about the mistress of the chateau and Neo wondered what the political relations were in the household. It seemed as if everyone made up their own rules and followed only what they dared to afford. Neo grimaced as a door opened and he saw those damned mountains again.
"Trouble?" Beta asked drily as they went through the kitchen to a new level. The chefs promptly ignored them as they made new orders from the restraunt above. The hazy smoke lingered with them as they passed into a new area of the chateau. A large checkerboard floor contrasted greatly to the white and sky blue walls. Alpha led them up through a single staircase until they reached the chambers.
"Persephone shouldn't be getting in our way again," Alpha muttered almost sarcastically as he motioned for Neo to enter the room. The door shut tightly behind him and he sighed deeply as he looked about the room. He was in a cage no matter how fancy his cell was. The bed held elaborate draperies with a couch somewhere off to the right. There looked to be an entrance behind the dresser, but it was probably guarded as well.
"What do we do if she returns?" Beta asked Alpha as the door shut behind them. They had to safeguard the door and the entrance on the other side, but not before they found a way to keep Persephone out. They knew their mistress well, and she would keep trying until she had succeeding in catching her prey. Alpha grinned as he secured the door shut to prevent the door from being opened.
"Could we create a program looking similar to the One?" Alpha asked as he leaned against the door. Programs were created all the time, and the ones doing their jobs would only go noticed in the chateau. How long had it been since there was a program other than a rogue program in the chateau? It would definitely stir up controversy and keep the twins amused long enough during this assignment.
"We know one of the programmers," Beta offered as he quickly caught on to the plan. They did know one of the exiled programmers from the matrix. The programmer was an older version of the machines, but he would do nicely for this assignment. They would need a cut of the physical data of the One. It would be no trouble at all leading Persephone around on a leash in circles.
"Yes we do."
They headed off towards the entrance to the matrix without a second thought. The unguarded door lay forgotten in their midst.
Behind closed doors, Neo shouldered the forgotten one. The pressure finally gave way as he stumbled through the opening. He readied himself to see Persephone languidly waiting for him, but he relaxed when no such sight came before him. No twins were phasing towards him, and guardposts were unguarded. It was quiet, almost too quiet. He could not read the code here, but alarm bells were ringing.
Authors' Notes: We live for reviews. Good? Bad? Send in them in. I'm sure we can handle them. Ja ne, ~Insane Pineapple from Naboo and Aquarian Wind
(Also, if you hate Mary Sues as much as I do, check out my new joint fic. It's under the Worlds Apart MS Hunters.)