Elise remembered nothing more than being a real human being, born in the
center of the Earth, in Zion. She was nothing different than any other
person she had grown up around her whole entire life, and she would never
be any different than most anyone she would ever meet. The first person she
had grown attached to who had been faced with different circumstances than
her own, was Apoc. He had been faced with the challenge of living a life of
freedom. Changing what he once knew as his own life, to something totally
completely different. She was amazed anyone could do that, let alone how
Apoc and the rest of the members who fought in the Matrix could.
When Tank had joined the Matrix team, when he was only twelve, she had watched him grow from a small, defenseless child, into a strong, tactful man. She loved him for that, and she believed that she always would. Her mother had encouraged her ever since she first met him to marry him when she was old enough. He seemed perfect for her, and she too believed that, most of the time.
But then there was now.
"Tank!", she grumbled, picking up the pieces of her Mothers now broken computer monitor, " How many times do I have to tell you.... Get your own things to meddle with. For heavens sake!"
He looked up to her, grinning, picking up the glass screen pieces that had shattered on impact when it had hit the ground. "Awww, come on now, Elise. You know she wasn't going to use that for anything special. Besides, I know what I'm doing".
"You say that after you break the screen..", she muttered, helping him tend to the broken glass. She looked up to him every once and a while as he worked, shaking her head from side to side slowly, muttering quietly to herself, "What are we going to do with you, Tank... What are we going to do with you...?". "Morpheus is going to be here any minute, Elise. Can't we save this for later?..", Tank looked up to her, taken aback that she had been staring directly at him. She shook her head, looking away from him briefly, before nodding, slowly. "Sure, Tank. Sure". She stood up, holding her hand out to help her friend to his feet. He took it gingerly, stepping up, towering over her a couple inches or so.
Suddenly, as they had both stood up, Morpheus and Neo stepped outside of the house, dragging along with them a sopping wet, unconscious body. Neo knocked, twice, like he always did to warn Tank that it was him. Tank looked to Elise, cocking a brow, as he slowly crept toward the door. He opened it halfway, stopping and staring, in dismay as he looked to the body on the ground.
"You unplugged another one...?", Tank gasped, throwing open the door, letting the pair inside with the dripping body. Lucky for Tank, his house was furnished with top-notch, sturdy hardwood floors, which took no damage to the liquid that spilled from the body. Morpheus nodded in response as he drug the body into the large control booth, where Tank kept his acupuncture chamber and his heavy machinery.
Tank looked to Elise, trying to figure out what to say to her as she continued to stare in shock as the two drug the body over to the acupuncture table in the adjoining room. "..T.. t.. Tank...?", she stammered, watching as they sat the dripping body down to rest, "Why did they bring a body..". Tank interrupted her, abruptly, shoving her towards the kitchen, in the opposite direction, "How about you go fix yourself something nice and cold to drink, and I'll explain everything later? Okay, Elise?...". She didn't budge, staring at him, her dark brown eyes in a deep state of confusion and frustration. "Tank! I demand you explain to me what's going on right this second!". Morpheus stepped back into the room with the two, looking to Tank, briefly. "Tank, why don't you just let her watch? What harm will it do her, anyhow? She has to learn eventually...". Tank started to reply, but Morpheus shook his head quick enough for him to realize - now wasn't the time - and he looked back to Elise, motioning for her to follow him.
He made his way into the room, standing next to Neo, who was at the table, looking down at their newest member. "Alright. I'm assuming you want me to hook everything up..." Morpheus nodded, placing a comforting hand to Elise's shoulder, smiling his unusual half-smile, that took much effort to show. Elise just stared down at the boy on the table, who looked not much older than her, if not the same age as her. Soggy, wet dark brown hair, clung to the sides of his distinctive facial features. His dark brown eyes were slightly visible, although he was defiantly unconscious. She forced a half-hearted smile back to Morpheus, as she watched Tank begin typing furiously away at computer consoles directly behind the boy on the table.
After a couple minutes of Tank typing, several robotic arms began moving slowly over the unconscious body, with long, almost weapon-like needles that began puncturing the boy in different parts of his skin. Elise let out a low whimper, and turned, hiding her face in Morpheus's chest, beginning to sob. Morpheus, unsure of how to handle a situation such as this, patted her back lightly, reassuring her that everything was okay, and this was normal procedure. After clicking a couple more buttons on the computers, Tank flopped into a comfortable computer chair, leaning back, and grinning from ear to ear. "Couple of hours, and we'll have us another well-muscled Matrix phenomenon".
As James began to float back to consciousness, he heard voices drifting around in his head. "I think he's coming back...". "Any minute now and he should be up and at it!". "Morpheus... Who is he..?". He blinked a couple of times, and stared upward, in the long, rectangular, almost "coffin-like" contraption he was held in, noticing the billions of needles that were driven into his skin in every possible place imaginable. "...ahhh..", he muttered, shaking his head back and forth. Morpheus looked down at the boy, smiling the way no one was used to him smiling, looking to Neo, and then back to him. "Rest, my friend. Rest." The boy shook his head again, refusing to believe the man who he had seen just hours ago, who had made him choose between two destinies, was staring down at him now, telling him to relax when he had needles flowing into him. "..This is all a dream...This isn't real...This can't be..". Elise stepped forward, placing a hand on the glass. Brown eyes met brown eyes, and the boys heart stopped almost immediately. The face looked so familiar to him, and it calmed him in a sense to look up, and see a face such as hers looking down on him with such a sincerity. He sighed, heavily, closing his eyes and drifting back into sleep.
When he awoke, several hours later, he was in shock to find himself in a bed, in a cabin-like room, being stared down upon by the same familiar girl as before. He stood up, rather quickly, and he regretted this, as pain shot through his newly equipped muscular tissue. He ran his fingers to his neck, noting the gaping hole in the back of his neck, and suddenly panicked, looking to the girl, in shock. "Where.. am I?", he gasped. She sat down beside him, placing her hand on top of his. Her hand felt familiar, even, to the touch, and old memories rushed through his head, and his heart skipped beats again, before he looked to her, and stammered his same question, once again. "..Where am I..?", he asked, hand trembling underneath hers. She brushed her other hand lightly to his face. "You look so scared..", she whispered. "I'm not frightened. I just.. want to know where I am", he said, matter-of-factly. She smiled, "Your on Morpheus's ship, the Nebacanezza". He blinked, tilting his head to the side, arching a brow, slightly. "You mean, the ship that he told me about when he met me earlier..?" She nodded, and he shook his head in disbelief, "So this really isn't a dream".
She smiled, nodding. "Nope. It isn't a dream...and apparently from what Morpheus tells me, your going to be the next best thing, aside from Neo, himself. Which, is quite an honor, if I do say so myself". The boy looked puzzled, and she managed to squeak out a bit of a chuckle. "You'll understand soon enough", she patted him on the shoulder, standing up. "He's ready for you anyhow". He stood up beside her, nodding. She grinned, pushing open the latched door, looking back to him for a moment, "What's your name anyhow? Morpheus never mentioned your name to me". He thought, briefly, before responding. "Call me.. Bullseye", he answered, "Just Bullseye".
When Tank had joined the Matrix team, when he was only twelve, she had watched him grow from a small, defenseless child, into a strong, tactful man. She loved him for that, and she believed that she always would. Her mother had encouraged her ever since she first met him to marry him when she was old enough. He seemed perfect for her, and she too believed that, most of the time.
But then there was now.
"Tank!", she grumbled, picking up the pieces of her Mothers now broken computer monitor, " How many times do I have to tell you.... Get your own things to meddle with. For heavens sake!"
He looked up to her, grinning, picking up the glass screen pieces that had shattered on impact when it had hit the ground. "Awww, come on now, Elise. You know she wasn't going to use that for anything special. Besides, I know what I'm doing".
"You say that after you break the screen..", she muttered, helping him tend to the broken glass. She looked up to him every once and a while as he worked, shaking her head from side to side slowly, muttering quietly to herself, "What are we going to do with you, Tank... What are we going to do with you...?". "Morpheus is going to be here any minute, Elise. Can't we save this for later?..", Tank looked up to her, taken aback that she had been staring directly at him. She shook her head, looking away from him briefly, before nodding, slowly. "Sure, Tank. Sure". She stood up, holding her hand out to help her friend to his feet. He took it gingerly, stepping up, towering over her a couple inches or so.
Suddenly, as they had both stood up, Morpheus and Neo stepped outside of the house, dragging along with them a sopping wet, unconscious body. Neo knocked, twice, like he always did to warn Tank that it was him. Tank looked to Elise, cocking a brow, as he slowly crept toward the door. He opened it halfway, stopping and staring, in dismay as he looked to the body on the ground.
"You unplugged another one...?", Tank gasped, throwing open the door, letting the pair inside with the dripping body. Lucky for Tank, his house was furnished with top-notch, sturdy hardwood floors, which took no damage to the liquid that spilled from the body. Morpheus nodded in response as he drug the body into the large control booth, where Tank kept his acupuncture chamber and his heavy machinery.
Tank looked to Elise, trying to figure out what to say to her as she continued to stare in shock as the two drug the body over to the acupuncture table in the adjoining room. "..T.. t.. Tank...?", she stammered, watching as they sat the dripping body down to rest, "Why did they bring a body..". Tank interrupted her, abruptly, shoving her towards the kitchen, in the opposite direction, "How about you go fix yourself something nice and cold to drink, and I'll explain everything later? Okay, Elise?...". She didn't budge, staring at him, her dark brown eyes in a deep state of confusion and frustration. "Tank! I demand you explain to me what's going on right this second!". Morpheus stepped back into the room with the two, looking to Tank, briefly. "Tank, why don't you just let her watch? What harm will it do her, anyhow? She has to learn eventually...". Tank started to reply, but Morpheus shook his head quick enough for him to realize - now wasn't the time - and he looked back to Elise, motioning for her to follow him.
He made his way into the room, standing next to Neo, who was at the table, looking down at their newest member. "Alright. I'm assuming you want me to hook everything up..." Morpheus nodded, placing a comforting hand to Elise's shoulder, smiling his unusual half-smile, that took much effort to show. Elise just stared down at the boy on the table, who looked not much older than her, if not the same age as her. Soggy, wet dark brown hair, clung to the sides of his distinctive facial features. His dark brown eyes were slightly visible, although he was defiantly unconscious. She forced a half-hearted smile back to Morpheus, as she watched Tank begin typing furiously away at computer consoles directly behind the boy on the table.
After a couple minutes of Tank typing, several robotic arms began moving slowly over the unconscious body, with long, almost weapon-like needles that began puncturing the boy in different parts of his skin. Elise let out a low whimper, and turned, hiding her face in Morpheus's chest, beginning to sob. Morpheus, unsure of how to handle a situation such as this, patted her back lightly, reassuring her that everything was okay, and this was normal procedure. After clicking a couple more buttons on the computers, Tank flopped into a comfortable computer chair, leaning back, and grinning from ear to ear. "Couple of hours, and we'll have us another well-muscled Matrix phenomenon".
As James began to float back to consciousness, he heard voices drifting around in his head. "I think he's coming back...". "Any minute now and he should be up and at it!". "Morpheus... Who is he..?". He blinked a couple of times, and stared upward, in the long, rectangular, almost "coffin-like" contraption he was held in, noticing the billions of needles that were driven into his skin in every possible place imaginable. "...ahhh..", he muttered, shaking his head back and forth. Morpheus looked down at the boy, smiling the way no one was used to him smiling, looking to Neo, and then back to him. "Rest, my friend. Rest." The boy shook his head again, refusing to believe the man who he had seen just hours ago, who had made him choose between two destinies, was staring down at him now, telling him to relax when he had needles flowing into him. "..This is all a dream...This isn't real...This can't be..". Elise stepped forward, placing a hand on the glass. Brown eyes met brown eyes, and the boys heart stopped almost immediately. The face looked so familiar to him, and it calmed him in a sense to look up, and see a face such as hers looking down on him with such a sincerity. He sighed, heavily, closing his eyes and drifting back into sleep.
When he awoke, several hours later, he was in shock to find himself in a bed, in a cabin-like room, being stared down upon by the same familiar girl as before. He stood up, rather quickly, and he regretted this, as pain shot through his newly equipped muscular tissue. He ran his fingers to his neck, noting the gaping hole in the back of his neck, and suddenly panicked, looking to the girl, in shock. "Where.. am I?", he gasped. She sat down beside him, placing her hand on top of his. Her hand felt familiar, even, to the touch, and old memories rushed through his head, and his heart skipped beats again, before he looked to her, and stammered his same question, once again. "..Where am I..?", he asked, hand trembling underneath hers. She brushed her other hand lightly to his face. "You look so scared..", she whispered. "I'm not frightened. I just.. want to know where I am", he said, matter-of-factly. She smiled, "Your on Morpheus's ship, the Nebacanezza". He blinked, tilting his head to the side, arching a brow, slightly. "You mean, the ship that he told me about when he met me earlier..?" She nodded, and he shook his head in disbelief, "So this really isn't a dream".
She smiled, nodding. "Nope. It isn't a dream...and apparently from what Morpheus tells me, your going to be the next best thing, aside from Neo, himself. Which, is quite an honor, if I do say so myself". The boy looked puzzled, and she managed to squeak out a bit of a chuckle. "You'll understand soon enough", she patted him on the shoulder, standing up. "He's ready for you anyhow". He stood up beside her, nodding. She grinned, pushing open the latched door, looking back to him for a moment, "What's your name anyhow? Morpheus never mentioned your name to me". He thought, briefly, before responding. "Call me.. Bullseye", he answered, "Just Bullseye".
