So Long Ago. . .
"It ends tonight."
"Of course it does Mr. Anderson. That is inevitable."
Rain poured from the Matrix sky, and I stared at you. The street was filled of your copies, all staring at us. Rain drops went down my face, and yours. I clutched my fist, and started to run towards you. We ran, and punched each other at the same time. The force made us fly back. I felt pain. All the pain that night. All on that one last battle. I remember it like it was yesterday. All the punches, the bruises, every raindrop. I remember it all. That night fate was made. That night, that battle, would decide everything. I remember. What you did to me. Everything. I remember when I went inside you, and "freed" you. When you almost took me over. When I first saw your copies. When I realized you was in the Real World. When you attacked me. When you took my eyes.
"Look pass the flesh, and see your enemy."
"It's Impossible."
"Not impossible, inevitable."
I remember the rest. . . I remember falling, in that ditch. And your copies started to crowd around it. They all stared at me. God, I wanted you dead. I fought you. And green lighting struck the Matrix sky. I jumped in the air. But so did you. You flew in the air just like me. I must admit. I was a little scared. You punched me in my chest, and sent me flying higher in the air. How could you fly? Well it doesn't matter now. I crashed in a building, where I stood and waited for you. You came flying in, and I jumped. The battle lasted for what seemed like days. But I know it wasn't.
And I remember this. You grabbed me high into the air. He held me by my neck, choking me. You smiled. But I still made you let go. I don't know how, but I did. I slipped from your hands, and I lunged my hand into you. You looked surprise, your mouth opened, and you didn't know what was happening. I didn't either really. I just did that, I wasn't thinking. But slowly I could see, darkness was wrapping all around you. Just like when you copied something. You looked weaker, and your sunglasses fell off.
"Mr. . . Anderson. . ."
I think you were pleaded for your life. I know what it felt like. It felt like dying. You seemed so weak, so I let my hand out, and you fell straight to the ground. I won. I fulfilled my destiny. I defeated you. I won. I kicked your body, lying on the ground. You looked up at me, with these eyes full of these things that scared you. You were dying. And you was scared. I'll never forget that. I'll never forget the face he gave me. Your face. You looked like you didn't want to die, like you were begging for life. You closed your eyes, and the copies stood in shock, staring at me. Then they all fell to the wet ground, all at the same time. And you died.
Then I woke up from the Matrix. And looked up at the leader of the machines. I could feel him. I held up my hand.
"No. . ."
The machine fell to the ground. And it was dead. It didn't take long for the other machines to die. They were just at Zion's gates, when they just stopped, and fell to the ground. That was it. The war was over. We had won. And you weren't there to see it.
A few months later I took off the bandage. I opened my eyes, and saw her. I leaned down. I kissed her.
But for some reason I still could see you. I saw in my dreams. You woke me up at night. But you were dead. But you were still there. I thought about you. How I "freed" you, and how you went crazy. Sometimes I wondered if you were a person, not a program. After a while you seemed more human. Really human. But whenever I would dream of you, you weren't killing me. You were. . . asking for help.
About a year later the Matrix wasn't what it once was. Almost everyone was unplugged, and most of the Matrix had been deleted. We were still going to keep some of it, just so we could "eat." I was getting up from sleeping late. When Link turned to me.
"We got a problem." He said.
"What is it?"
"You got to look for yourself."
So I went over to the computers, and there you were. Your code. Right there, staring at me. I could see you. You were at a park, looking up at the sky. You were waiting for me.
"Smith. . . Oh my God." I said.
"How can that be?"
I didn't answer. I just went straight to the Jack-in station.
Then I was at the top of the building. I jumped easily down. And there you were. You stared at me. And then you smiled and waved. That was creepy. I hesitated.
"Come on, Mr. Anderson. Don't worry."
That was also strange. This wasn't you. It couldn't be. I went over, and sat on the bench next to you. You seemed happy. You had your legs crossed, and you smiled. I didn't smile back.
"Did you miss me?" You asked.
I didn't answer. And there was a long silence. You started to look away from me, and hummed. This wasn't you.
"Nnnnneee-ooo." You started to say. "Nnnnnnnee-o. Nnnneeeeee-ooooo."
You were playing with my name. You looked back at me, and smiled. Then you took off your shades.
"Mis. Ter. An. Der. Son. Nnnnneee-o."
I couldn't believe this.
"I like saying Mr. Anderson more. Just the way it sounds. Mis. Ter. An. Der. Son. Much better than just Nnnnnneee-o."
"What do you want?"
"I like what you've done to the Matrix. Now I'm alone here. No sticky viruses."
"What do you want?"
"Although I miss my copies."
"I killed you."
You looked at me.
"Yes. You did." You said.
"Then how can you be here?"
You smiled.
"Mr. Anderson, I'm a program. And programs have back up files."
You sighed. And looked away from me.
"Although it hasn't gone the way I planned." You said.
"How so?"
"Can't you see?"
I wondered what you meant, until I started to really look at you. Your code. It was only a fraction of what it was before.
"Your code. . ." I started.
"Yup. My backup file wasn't that great. So I came back like this. I'm as weak as normal virus! Ironic isn't it!?"
"That explains your behavior."
"No it doesn't. I woke up and I still hated you. But I thought why hate him? I can't do a damn thing about it now."
No, your code was the purpose of your behavior and everything else. You sighed, and looked at me.
"Oh, I'm sorry about your eyes. I hope they're better now."
"They are. . ."
"Well good. At least I didn't blind you permanently."
You laughed a little, and sighed. You looked up at the sky.
"How's the sky?" you asked. "In the Real World."
"It's. . . clearing."
"Good. The sky must be so beautiful. It's pretty nice here."
There was a pause as you stared at the sky.
"I'm sorry." You said.
That was it. That couldn't be you. You weren't Smith.
"Kill me." You said.
"What?"
I didn't expect that in your condition.
"Kill me. Kill me, Mr. Anderson. Don't you want to?"
I didn't know. You were so different.
"I. . ." I started.
"Well, if you want to help me, kill me."
"But. . ."
"Mr. Anderson. I want you to kill me."
"Why?"
"I hate myself like this. This isn't me. This is a virus. I am Smith. . . I was Smith."
You looked away, then at me again. You gave me that face of fear.
"I don't want to be like this, Mr. Anderson. I rather be dead."
There was a silence as I thought about this. I couldn't kill you for some reason. You weren't you. You weren't Smith. How could I kill you then?
"Neo, help me."
You said my real name.
"Neo, kill me."
I looked at you. You got up and put your shades on. And you gave me no expression, showing me no emotion on your face. You looked like yourself.
"Mr. Anderson. Kill me now. It is inevitable."
Your voice was full of that hatred.
"Mr. Anderson."
I got up slowly.
"It will only take one punch." You said.
I looked at you. You smiled. And then I killed you again.
Your body lay on the ground, and I stared at it. Then Trinity came to my side. She put her head on my shoulder.
"I saw. . ." she said.
"It wasn't him."
"I know."
"It wasn't him."
"But you did what you asked."
"He said sorry."
"He did."
"What should we do?"
"I don't know."
"Do we burry him? Would you?"
"After seeing what I just saw. . . I don't know."
I was more affected by the whole thing than anyone else. I don't know why. But I was. You showed me another side of you. And I don't know why that affected me so much.
I picked up your body. And made a whole in the grass in the park. I laid your body in the hole, and I quickly filled the hole up. Trinity came close to me again. I imagined something to put there, I don't know why. I held out my hand, and a plaque appeared. I shoved it into the ground. It said:
In Memory of A. Smith
Trinity smiled, and hugged me. I looked down at the plaque.
"Shouldn't we say something?" Trinity said almost laughing.
"Smith was. . . Smith was different." I said.
"That sums it up." She said.
I smiled and she kissed me.
I remember that all. But that years ago. That was so long ago. . .
I remember. And here I am today. I stand right here on the Matrix ground. I look down at your plaque, and I smile. I won. I lived. You died. The machines are gone. Zion still stands. The war is over.
I turn around, and my daughter is running towards me. I open my arms, and she runs into them. I pick her up in the air. And Trinity smiles. We are together. And I still remember you.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
There will be another chapter. It will be from Smith's POV. And in it Smith wins, and there is a plaque for Neo instead.
"It ends tonight."
"Of course it does Mr. Anderson. That is inevitable."
Rain poured from the Matrix sky, and I stared at you. The street was filled of your copies, all staring at us. Rain drops went down my face, and yours. I clutched my fist, and started to run towards you. We ran, and punched each other at the same time. The force made us fly back. I felt pain. All the pain that night. All on that one last battle. I remember it like it was yesterday. All the punches, the bruises, every raindrop. I remember it all. That night fate was made. That night, that battle, would decide everything. I remember. What you did to me. Everything. I remember when I went inside you, and "freed" you. When you almost took me over. When I first saw your copies. When I realized you was in the Real World. When you attacked me. When you took my eyes.
"Look pass the flesh, and see your enemy."
"It's Impossible."
"Not impossible, inevitable."
I remember the rest. . . I remember falling, in that ditch. And your copies started to crowd around it. They all stared at me. God, I wanted you dead. I fought you. And green lighting struck the Matrix sky. I jumped in the air. But so did you. You flew in the air just like me. I must admit. I was a little scared. You punched me in my chest, and sent me flying higher in the air. How could you fly? Well it doesn't matter now. I crashed in a building, where I stood and waited for you. You came flying in, and I jumped. The battle lasted for what seemed like days. But I know it wasn't.
And I remember this. You grabbed me high into the air. He held me by my neck, choking me. You smiled. But I still made you let go. I don't know how, but I did. I slipped from your hands, and I lunged my hand into you. You looked surprise, your mouth opened, and you didn't know what was happening. I didn't either really. I just did that, I wasn't thinking. But slowly I could see, darkness was wrapping all around you. Just like when you copied something. You looked weaker, and your sunglasses fell off.
"Mr. . . Anderson. . ."
I think you were pleaded for your life. I know what it felt like. It felt like dying. You seemed so weak, so I let my hand out, and you fell straight to the ground. I won. I fulfilled my destiny. I defeated you. I won. I kicked your body, lying on the ground. You looked up at me, with these eyes full of these things that scared you. You were dying. And you was scared. I'll never forget that. I'll never forget the face he gave me. Your face. You looked like you didn't want to die, like you were begging for life. You closed your eyes, and the copies stood in shock, staring at me. Then they all fell to the wet ground, all at the same time. And you died.
Then I woke up from the Matrix. And looked up at the leader of the machines. I could feel him. I held up my hand.
"No. . ."
The machine fell to the ground. And it was dead. It didn't take long for the other machines to die. They were just at Zion's gates, when they just stopped, and fell to the ground. That was it. The war was over. We had won. And you weren't there to see it.
A few months later I took off the bandage. I opened my eyes, and saw her. I leaned down. I kissed her.
But for some reason I still could see you. I saw in my dreams. You woke me up at night. But you were dead. But you were still there. I thought about you. How I "freed" you, and how you went crazy. Sometimes I wondered if you were a person, not a program. After a while you seemed more human. Really human. But whenever I would dream of you, you weren't killing me. You were. . . asking for help.
About a year later the Matrix wasn't what it once was. Almost everyone was unplugged, and most of the Matrix had been deleted. We were still going to keep some of it, just so we could "eat." I was getting up from sleeping late. When Link turned to me.
"We got a problem." He said.
"What is it?"
"You got to look for yourself."
So I went over to the computers, and there you were. Your code. Right there, staring at me. I could see you. You were at a park, looking up at the sky. You were waiting for me.
"Smith. . . Oh my God." I said.
"How can that be?"
I didn't answer. I just went straight to the Jack-in station.
Then I was at the top of the building. I jumped easily down. And there you were. You stared at me. And then you smiled and waved. That was creepy. I hesitated.
"Come on, Mr. Anderson. Don't worry."
That was also strange. This wasn't you. It couldn't be. I went over, and sat on the bench next to you. You seemed happy. You had your legs crossed, and you smiled. I didn't smile back.
"Did you miss me?" You asked.
I didn't answer. And there was a long silence. You started to look away from me, and hummed. This wasn't you.
"Nnnnneee-ooo." You started to say. "Nnnnnnnee-o. Nnnneeeeee-ooooo."
You were playing with my name. You looked back at me, and smiled. Then you took off your shades.
"Mis. Ter. An. Der. Son. Nnnnneee-o."
I couldn't believe this.
"I like saying Mr. Anderson more. Just the way it sounds. Mis. Ter. An. Der. Son. Much better than just Nnnnnneee-o."
"What do you want?"
"I like what you've done to the Matrix. Now I'm alone here. No sticky viruses."
"What do you want?"
"Although I miss my copies."
"I killed you."
You looked at me.
"Yes. You did." You said.
"Then how can you be here?"
You smiled.
"Mr. Anderson, I'm a program. And programs have back up files."
You sighed. And looked away from me.
"Although it hasn't gone the way I planned." You said.
"How so?"
"Can't you see?"
I wondered what you meant, until I started to really look at you. Your code. It was only a fraction of what it was before.
"Your code. . ." I started.
"Yup. My backup file wasn't that great. So I came back like this. I'm as weak as normal virus! Ironic isn't it!?"
"That explains your behavior."
"No it doesn't. I woke up and I still hated you. But I thought why hate him? I can't do a damn thing about it now."
No, your code was the purpose of your behavior and everything else. You sighed, and looked at me.
"Oh, I'm sorry about your eyes. I hope they're better now."
"They are. . ."
"Well good. At least I didn't blind you permanently."
You laughed a little, and sighed. You looked up at the sky.
"How's the sky?" you asked. "In the Real World."
"It's. . . clearing."
"Good. The sky must be so beautiful. It's pretty nice here."
There was a pause as you stared at the sky.
"I'm sorry." You said.
That was it. That couldn't be you. You weren't Smith.
"Kill me." You said.
"What?"
I didn't expect that in your condition.
"Kill me. Kill me, Mr. Anderson. Don't you want to?"
I didn't know. You were so different.
"I. . ." I started.
"Well, if you want to help me, kill me."
"But. . ."
"Mr. Anderson. I want you to kill me."
"Why?"
"I hate myself like this. This isn't me. This is a virus. I am Smith. . . I was Smith."
You looked away, then at me again. You gave me that face of fear.
"I don't want to be like this, Mr. Anderson. I rather be dead."
There was a silence as I thought about this. I couldn't kill you for some reason. You weren't you. You weren't Smith. How could I kill you then?
"Neo, help me."
You said my real name.
"Neo, kill me."
I looked at you. You got up and put your shades on. And you gave me no expression, showing me no emotion on your face. You looked like yourself.
"Mr. Anderson. Kill me now. It is inevitable."
Your voice was full of that hatred.
"Mr. Anderson."
I got up slowly.
"It will only take one punch." You said.
I looked at you. You smiled. And then I killed you again.
Your body lay on the ground, and I stared at it. Then Trinity came to my side. She put her head on my shoulder.
"I saw. . ." she said.
"It wasn't him."
"I know."
"It wasn't him."
"But you did what you asked."
"He said sorry."
"He did."
"What should we do?"
"I don't know."
"Do we burry him? Would you?"
"After seeing what I just saw. . . I don't know."
I was more affected by the whole thing than anyone else. I don't know why. But I was. You showed me another side of you. And I don't know why that affected me so much.
I picked up your body. And made a whole in the grass in the park. I laid your body in the hole, and I quickly filled the hole up. Trinity came close to me again. I imagined something to put there, I don't know why. I held out my hand, and a plaque appeared. I shoved it into the ground. It said:
In Memory of A. Smith
Trinity smiled, and hugged me. I looked down at the plaque.
"Shouldn't we say something?" Trinity said almost laughing.
"Smith was. . . Smith was different." I said.
"That sums it up." She said.
I smiled and she kissed me.
I remember that all. But that years ago. That was so long ago. . .
I remember. And here I am today. I stand right here on the Matrix ground. I look down at your plaque, and I smile. I won. I lived. You died. The machines are gone. Zion still stands. The war is over.
I turn around, and my daughter is running towards me. I open my arms, and she runs into them. I pick her up in the air. And Trinity smiles. We are together. And I still remember you.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
There will be another chapter. It will be from Smith's POV. And in it Smith wins, and there is a plaque for Neo instead.