Chapter 4
When Neo got to the bridge, he found Morpheus staring at a screen that had the very familiar green lines of code raining down it: the Matrix. Morpheus noticed him and said "Neo, take a look at this. I can't make anything out of it."
Neo took a closer look. Nothing really out of the ordinary, he thought. Just normal people going about their lives with the standard assortment of agents scattered among... wait. There. Area caught his attention. He had never seen it before on a screen, but he had seen it before.
"Hunter."
"What?" Morpheus said, clearly confused.
Neo hadn't realized that he had said the last word out loud.
"Hunter," Neo repeated. "He was my brother. Well, in the Matrix anyway. He went by the hacker alias Hunter."
"And that line of code is him?" Morpheus asked.
"Well, part of him, anyway. I think someone higher up in the machines higherarchy decided that Agents weren't cutting it anymore. They needed something better. Maybe something that could think like a human and have the resources of an Agent."
"Tha best o' both worlds," Splinter drawled out behind them. "Or tha worst, depend'n on how ya look at it."
"Yes," Neo replied, noting that Splinter and Trinity had somehow gotten on the main deck and been there for some time without being noticed by either Neo or Morpheus. They were both absorbed in what they were looking at.
"Is that what you were talking about Neo?" Trinity asked Neo.
"Yes."
"Are you planning to do what I think you're going to do?"
"Yes."
"Are we going to be able to stop you?"
"No."
"Neo, you're starting to speak in single syllables."
"Yes."
Splinter looked like he was about to make some wise-guy comment, but a quick glare from Trinity changed his mind. So instead he said, "You going in alone, or you want me to go find Tank and Laser."
"You can get Tank, because we need an operator, and if Laser's with him, bring her along for the ride. I want to go in alone, but I'm betting Trinity won't let me."
"Got that right," was the predicted reply.
"OK, this 'Hunter' is close enough to a hard line that we should be able to get to him and get out quickly enough."
"And if it's trap?" asked Trinity.
"Then I get to take my anger out on whatever programs they send at us instead of my former brother."
"Alright, what's the story?" said Tank as he climbed up the ladder to the main deck with Splinter at his heels. "What was so important that you had to pull me away from my wonderful meal of vitamin snot?"
"Neo is going in, and he wanted you for the operator, because he is taking Trinity and I with him." Morpheus answered him.
"What?" Neo asked. "You want to come too?"
"Yes."
"Ah, don't you start," Splinter groaned, earning a smack on the side of the head from Trinity and a confused look from Tank.
"He can explain once we're in the Matrix," Neo said. "We need to get going. We're wasting time."
So it was that a minute and a quick stop in the construct later, they were in the Matrix, looking for the program that had called itself Hunter.
When Neo got to the bridge, he found Morpheus staring at a screen that had the very familiar green lines of code raining down it: the Matrix. Morpheus noticed him and said "Neo, take a look at this. I can't make anything out of it."
Neo took a closer look. Nothing really out of the ordinary, he thought. Just normal people going about their lives with the standard assortment of agents scattered among... wait. There. Area caught his attention. He had never seen it before on a screen, but he had seen it before.
"Hunter."
"What?" Morpheus said, clearly confused.
Neo hadn't realized that he had said the last word out loud.
"Hunter," Neo repeated. "He was my brother. Well, in the Matrix anyway. He went by the hacker alias Hunter."
"And that line of code is him?" Morpheus asked.
"Well, part of him, anyway. I think someone higher up in the machines higherarchy decided that Agents weren't cutting it anymore. They needed something better. Maybe something that could think like a human and have the resources of an Agent."
"Tha best o' both worlds," Splinter drawled out behind them. "Or tha worst, depend'n on how ya look at it."
"Yes," Neo replied, noting that Splinter and Trinity had somehow gotten on the main deck and been there for some time without being noticed by either Neo or Morpheus. They were both absorbed in what they were looking at.
"Is that what you were talking about Neo?" Trinity asked Neo.
"Yes."
"Are you planning to do what I think you're going to do?"
"Yes."
"Are we going to be able to stop you?"
"No."
"Neo, you're starting to speak in single syllables."
"Yes."
Splinter looked like he was about to make some wise-guy comment, but a quick glare from Trinity changed his mind. So instead he said, "You going in alone, or you want me to go find Tank and Laser."
"You can get Tank, because we need an operator, and if Laser's with him, bring her along for the ride. I want to go in alone, but I'm betting Trinity won't let me."
"Got that right," was the predicted reply.
"OK, this 'Hunter' is close enough to a hard line that we should be able to get to him and get out quickly enough."
"And if it's trap?" asked Trinity.
"Then I get to take my anger out on whatever programs they send at us instead of my former brother."
"Alright, what's the story?" said Tank as he climbed up the ladder to the main deck with Splinter at his heels. "What was so important that you had to pull me away from my wonderful meal of vitamin snot?"
"Neo is going in, and he wanted you for the operator, because he is taking Trinity and I with him." Morpheus answered him.
"What?" Neo asked. "You want to come too?"
"Yes."
"Ah, don't you start," Splinter groaned, earning a smack on the side of the head from Trinity and a confused look from Tank.
"He can explain once we're in the Matrix," Neo said. "We need to get going. We're wasting time."
So it was that a minute and a quick stop in the construct later, they were in the Matrix, looking for the program that had called itself Hunter.