Chapter Eight
Are Most Prophets Chain-Smokers?
Leet had been in Zion for a week now. Ever since he had talked with Arwen, however, he slept more peacefully, and was starting to get into a better mood, finally leaving his old life behind. Until, one morning, Morpheus strode into the mess hall, where Leet was giving Arwen a lecture on chaos theory.
"Come," Morpheus said, towering over him. Leet jumped, and turned around. "The Oracle," Morpheus explained. "She's called for you."
Leet glanced at Arwen.
"Go," she said softly. "I'll be here when you get back."
Leet nodded nervously, and stood up, following Morpheus back to the Nebuchadnezzar.
Leet saw that he and the rest of the crew were surrounded by a large, white expanse of nothingness. Into that nothingness appeared a rack of guns. Trinity and Morpheus both selected a couple, while Neo chose to remain unarmed.
"Do I get a gun?" Leet asked, shifting uncomfortably in his black suit, tie, and shirt. Although he worse sunglasses, he noticed that they didn't seem to actually darken his view of anything.
"Do you want a gun?" was Morpheus's reply. Leet thought about it.
"No," he replied, shaking his head. "I can't stand them. Besides," he smiled slightly as he spoke, "Batman never used a gun."
Instantly, the blankness surrounding them was replaced by the first floor of an abandoned building, a ringing phone on a table in the center. Morpheus stepped forward, and picked up the phone.
"We're in."
Then he strode out the door, and stepped into the driver's seat of a black sedan waiting outside.
Trinity and Neo waited in the car, while Morpheus and Leet went into the Oracle's apartment. Morpheus was asked to stay in the waiting room, while Leet entered the kitchen alone.
The first thing he noticed once inside the kitchen was the pile of used cigarettes in the ashtray.
"Uh, are most prophets chain smokers?" he asked, instantly regretting it.
The Oracle laughed, as she sat at the kitchen table, and put out another cigarette. "Only when it doesn't affect you anyway." She gestured to another chair. "Sit down."
Leet shifted uncomfortably, and then decided to do what she said. He waited for her to say something else.
"You're an intelligent person," the Oracle said. "You don't really believe in all that crap about fate, do you?"
This completely took Leet by surprise. "Uh, no, not, um, really."
"Good. Because I'm not here to tell you your 'fate.' I'm here to tell you everything I know about you, that you don't know."
"How-"
"Because I'm the Oracle. And you want to know something even Morpheus doesn't know?"
"Okay . . ."
The Oracle smiled. "I'm a program. I'm a defective program, that wasn't deleted. And now I help humans figure out what to do with themselves."
"But, why?"
"Because that's the glitch in my programming, the defect. I've been programmed to want the humans to be freed, even if it means the extinction of my own species. But you didn't come here to learn about that. You have your own questions."
"What am I supposed to do? Why was I freed?"
"That question is dangerously close to sounding about fate, but I'll answer it anyway. You were freed, because of something programmed into your coding by agents. They will try to inject you with something, a command that will unlock another command in your mind."
"What command?"
"Kill the One."
"But I'm not capable of-"
"Yes you are. The machines have isolated what gives the One his abilities, and a little bit of that coding is in you. Just enough to make you deadly when activated."
"How do I stop it?"
"There is only one way. You have to confront that part of your mind, and master it."
"I can't."
"You'll have to. Here, have a cookie. It will make you feel better."
Leet accepted the cookie, and was about to walk out, when he brushed past a girl entering the room, one he recognized despite the black sunglasses masking her face.
"Arwen?"
She turned around, and smiled, taking off her sunglasses. "Hey, Leet."
"What are you doing here?"
"Oh, the Oracle contacted the captain who woke me up, said it was important, that she had to speak for me."
"Oh." Leet nodded, and paused, not quite knowing what else to say. "Well, see you back at Zion."
Leet had been in Zion for a week now. Ever since he had talked with Arwen, however, he slept more peacefully, and was starting to get into a better mood, finally leaving his old life behind. Until, one morning, Morpheus strode into the mess hall, where Leet was giving Arwen a lecture on chaos theory.
"Come," Morpheus said, towering over him. Leet jumped, and turned around. "The Oracle," Morpheus explained. "She's called for you."
Leet glanced at Arwen.
"Go," she said softly. "I'll be here when you get back."
Leet nodded nervously, and stood up, following Morpheus back to the Nebuchadnezzar.
Leet saw that he and the rest of the crew were surrounded by a large, white expanse of nothingness. Into that nothingness appeared a rack of guns. Trinity and Morpheus both selected a couple, while Neo chose to remain unarmed.
"Do I get a gun?" Leet asked, shifting uncomfortably in his black suit, tie, and shirt. Although he worse sunglasses, he noticed that they didn't seem to actually darken his view of anything.
"Do you want a gun?" was Morpheus's reply. Leet thought about it.
"No," he replied, shaking his head. "I can't stand them. Besides," he smiled slightly as he spoke, "Batman never used a gun."
Instantly, the blankness surrounding them was replaced by the first floor of an abandoned building, a ringing phone on a table in the center. Morpheus stepped forward, and picked up the phone.
"We're in."
Then he strode out the door, and stepped into the driver's seat of a black sedan waiting outside.
Trinity and Neo waited in the car, while Morpheus and Leet went into the Oracle's apartment. Morpheus was asked to stay in the waiting room, while Leet entered the kitchen alone.
The first thing he noticed once inside the kitchen was the pile of used cigarettes in the ashtray.
"Uh, are most prophets chain smokers?" he asked, instantly regretting it.
The Oracle laughed, as she sat at the kitchen table, and put out another cigarette. "Only when it doesn't affect you anyway." She gestured to another chair. "Sit down."
Leet shifted uncomfortably, and then decided to do what she said. He waited for her to say something else.
"You're an intelligent person," the Oracle said. "You don't really believe in all that crap about fate, do you?"
This completely took Leet by surprise. "Uh, no, not, um, really."
"Good. Because I'm not here to tell you your 'fate.' I'm here to tell you everything I know about you, that you don't know."
"How-"
"Because I'm the Oracle. And you want to know something even Morpheus doesn't know?"
"Okay . . ."
The Oracle smiled. "I'm a program. I'm a defective program, that wasn't deleted. And now I help humans figure out what to do with themselves."
"But, why?"
"Because that's the glitch in my programming, the defect. I've been programmed to want the humans to be freed, even if it means the extinction of my own species. But you didn't come here to learn about that. You have your own questions."
"What am I supposed to do? Why was I freed?"
"That question is dangerously close to sounding about fate, but I'll answer it anyway. You were freed, because of something programmed into your coding by agents. They will try to inject you with something, a command that will unlock another command in your mind."
"What command?"
"Kill the One."
"But I'm not capable of-"
"Yes you are. The machines have isolated what gives the One his abilities, and a little bit of that coding is in you. Just enough to make you deadly when activated."
"How do I stop it?"
"There is only one way. You have to confront that part of your mind, and master it."
"I can't."
"You'll have to. Here, have a cookie. It will make you feel better."
Leet accepted the cookie, and was about to walk out, when he brushed past a girl entering the room, one he recognized despite the black sunglasses masking her face.
"Arwen?"
She turned around, and smiled, taking off her sunglasses. "Hey, Leet."
"What are you doing here?"
"Oh, the Oracle contacted the captain who woke me up, said it was important, that she had to speak for me."
"Oh." Leet nodded, and paused, not quite knowing what else to say. "Well, see you back at Zion."
