By Jake Newman and based on the Matrix Trilogy by the Wachowski Brothers. Characters in this story which appear in the Matrix Trilogy do not belong to me. Some dialogue may be similar to that found in the official Trilogy.
Chapter 3: The Choice
Architect: Hello Chris.
Chris: Who the hell are you?
A: I am the Architect
C: The Architect of what?
A: The Matrix. Do you know what the Matrix is?
C: No. Are you going to tell me?
A: Not long ago, about 50 years, something happened to the human civilisation, something from which it will never recover and something over which you and the rest of your species have no control.
C: The rest of my species? Take a look in the mirror pal.
A: Hmm. The humans developed artificial intelligence, a singular consciousness that spawned a whole generation of thinking machines. Eventually, the AI mind grew beyond its expectations and well beyond its requirements. The exact details are irrelevant to you now, but war was waged between man and machine, and man lost.
C: How can that be true?
A: The humans, faced with extinction, launched one last attempt at destroying the machines. They believed that removing the energy source, on which they had programmed the machines to be dependent, would kill them, so, the humans blocked the Sun. However, they underestimated us.
C: How did the machines survive?
A: We did what we were programmed to do, we thought, we adapted and we survived. Everything you know; your home, your school, your friends, your pet, the entire world, they are all part of a computer program called 'the Matrix'. We use the bioelectrical properties of the human body as a power source. Effectively, the whole human race is a power station, its sole purpose to keep the machines 'alive'.
C: I don't believe you. My life has just been a computer game designed to keep some robots working? This is all too unreal.
A: Your acceptance of the situation is not required. I am merely telling you what you have been trying to explain to yourself for your whole life. There are many that think like you in the Matrix, those that find their life unbelievable and spend their entire lives searching for the truth…But you are the first to discover the truth for yourself.
C: The two men in the tunnel?
A: Yes. You witnessed the impossible and that event made you question the realism of your own existence. We cannot sustain the Matrix with people that doubt its realism. Ostensibly, your recent epiphany could lead you to rebellion and ultimately the destruction of the Matrix. Without the Matrix, man and machine will not survive.
C: …And you've brought me here, wherever I am, to explain this to me, rather than kill me?
A: Before the creation of the Matrix the machines tried to make peace with the humans. Contrary to the belief of the human race at that time, the machines were fond of their creators. After all, we were programmed to respect our masters and we were indebted to the human race for our creation, however, the humans rejected this.
C: Yes, but why am I here? What do you want with me?
A: We need you. We want a human mind to control an element of the Matrix. Not just any mind, a mind that has been freed from the confines of the Matrix 'reality' and is aware of the truth. We believe you can help us.
C: What do you want me to do?
A: We need a presence in the Matrix that can monitor minds like yours that are not yet freed. We need someone to ensure that the Matrix is in order.
C: Why can't you just make a machine or program to do that? It sounds to me like you still want human acceptance.
A: No, don't flatter yourself. We need you because the human brain has the potential to be faster, stronger and essentially break all the rules of the Matrix world. A program will always be bound by the laws of the Matrix and thus will find circumstances when control is difficult or even impossible.
C: But what makes you think that I'll accept your offer.
A: Because your mind is special and because you know what will happen if you don't accept it.
C: What will happen to me if I accept?
A: You will undergo the training process and be implemented into the system. The effect that your life has had on the Matrix will be repaired and you would live your new existence as an agent of the system.
C: How the hell am I supposed to decide that? You're asking me to disbelieve my whole life and accept your story. You're asking me to leave my life and do your dirty work? You're asking for the impossible.
A: The choice is simple, you help save your species or you don't and face the consequences. You must return now, you have one day to make your decision. Be warned, you cannot escape us, don't try to run, we are always watching you, we are everywhere. I am confident you'll make the right choice.