Protector of Men Ch 93
When she opened her eyes, she wasn't in the street anymore, but on the ground… somewhere else. She looked up to Neo who looked back at her with concern. He helped her up with a strong arm, and she got a look at where she was.
They were on the top of a building; it looked a bit like a neoclassical façade because of its intricate carvings. Around them were many other buildings – many of them too had marbled facades and intricate carvings. They sun was beginning to set, and their shadows were long.
"What happened?" she asked, looking around. It was strangely quiet here. She looked to Neo and saw that he had taken his glasses off.
"I took us away," he answered slowly, sighing deep before continuing. "They'll come again, though."
She nodded knowingly, and they walked over to the edge of the building.
Smith had endured enough. He had waited over thirty years for this opportunity, and he wasn't going to let it slip through his fingers… not this time. Mr. Anderson would not prevail.
He wasn't filled with hate; he was hate. And as he landed on the top of that building it took every ounce of restraint he had to wait just a few moments – until the perfect moment. Mr. Anderson was outnumbered, and it would only be a matter of time before it was all over. Soon he could rest in peace. But he hadn't counted on Neo being so perceptive.
"Get down!" he shouted to Zandra as he pulled her over to the edge. He felt Smith's hatred and knew that this time, escaping was key. He leapt off with agility, and before she followed, she saw Smith rise in anger at his dismissal. Then she too leapt off the building, formulating a plan as she fell. She grabbed onto an erect flagpole and swung, attempting to slow down her momentum. It bent with her weight, but held. After one round she dropped further down and grabbed onto a marbled ledge, stopping herself once again. She banged painfully into the rock surface, but held on. With twenty feet to go, she let go once again and dropped to the dusty street with a thud.
Neo held his hand out towards her, gesturing for her to follow. "Hurry," he said, "We have to run."
She didn't hesitate and followed Neo down the empty street, fleeing from their pursuer. But they hadn't run more than ten seconds before Smith dropped in front of them again. He sneered menacingly and went for the Exile.
"Get out of the way!" Neo shouted to her as he ran towards Smith, fists ready. She stumbled backwards and landed against a wall, her gun ready – though they were moving too fast for her weapon to be effective. She sat unmoving, watching them.
Neo punched him in the stomach and Smith flew backwards, landing on the ground in a heap of rubble. Leaving Zandra, he leapt to the air and took to the sky. Smith sneered at her hatefully and followed him. Another Smith emerged from the building across from her; he too went after Neo. Zandra would have followed, but at that moment Neo came to the ground again, rolling haphazardly to a stop and creating a flurry of dust that soon fell again. She ran to him, but he held out a hand to stop her.
"No," he told her firmly, "This is my battle."
The Smiths descended on him like a pack of hyenas, a frenzy of movement and rabid violence that left Zandra wishing she could run for a hardline. Neo fought bravely, but even Zandra could see that he was outnumbered. One of the Smiths kicked him and Neo sailed through the air, hitting a building at the second floor. He fell into the alleyway in a heap, and more Smiths came. Zandra followed frantically, ready to attack if needed. She wanted to shoot the Smiths, but dreaded to draw attention to herself. She may have considered it selfish, but it saved her life.
Neo was still lying on the ground, and blood came from his mouth – yet he stood up again with resolution and offered more to his assailants. Three more Smiths dropped from the roof above and joined the fight. She watched as he fell again, watched as the Smiths descended for the kill…
"Neo!" Zandra finally shouted, unable to help herself. She ran towards him, but suddenly found herself unable to move. She shuddered convulsively at the voice she then heard.
"Oh, Miss Zandra," the Smith cooed, "That's not fair, really. He said it himself – this is his battle. Let's be nice, shall we?" he paused, and moved closer to her face. "I presume it's short for Alexandra, Miss?"
She struggled violently at his words, but couldn't move; he laughed at her response.
"Ah, yes - well I don't want you to miss the show; it should be appearing very soon."
This was it. It was over; this would be the end. Neo understood this as the Smiths pummeled him; it was forty to one, and this time there was no way out. But there was also a sense of resignation in hope's refusal: it had been too long, and he needed to go. There was no sense prolonging what should have happened years ago, and he had already decided that this would have to be the way. Finally some of the Smiths realized his reluctance and stopped fighting. They stood menacingly only feet away, but did nothing.
"Mister Anderson," One of the Smiths shouted from behind, soon emerging from the crowd, "It looks like you're outnumbered."
Neo said nothing, and ignored Zandra's muffled shouts from his left.
"I'm surprised, Mister Anderson," the Smith continued, "That you've… given up. But it seems a natural thing for you to do, considering the circumstances…"
Smith came uncomfortable close to him then; Neo could feel his breath on his forehead and could sense his almost electric energy only inches away.
"Nothing to fight for, anymore, right – Mister Anderson? Lost everything you had, and now there's nothing left? I'd say I feel bad for you… but I find I somewhat lack those things you call 'emotions'!" He stopped, lowered his almost hysterical voice, and frowned.
"But I'd also hate to have you go freely, Mister Anderson. You see, I've been waiting for this for so long-" he punched Neo in the chest, who reeled backwards sputtering, "That I'd hate to work so hard to have you-" he punched again, and Neo fell over, "Just give up!"
"Get up, Mister Anderson!" Smith shouted. Neo agreed, and slowly he got to his feet again. He wiped his mouth off and glanced at his hand; it was smeared with blood. Zandra still could not move, but continued to struggle feverishly. "Neo," she shouted, pleaded, "Just run!"
"I'm not going to fight you," Neo finally said, his voice strangely clear. Smith jumped back as if surprised, but quickly recovered.
"This is it," Neo whispered to himself, preparing for the end. He had said the magic word, and all would be clear now – to all of them. Now was the time he was made for; this is what his purpose had evolved into. Everything else may have changed, but this stayed the same. This was the deadly constant.
"Are you ready to go?" Smith asked, the rage apparent in his visage. The Smiths were all restless, and many of them were smiling. They knew what was about to happen.
"Yes," Neo answered, and it was soon over.
Zandra was screaming as it happened, but no one there took notice. Neo accepted his baptism freely, finally smiling as his existence slowly diminished to nothing. Zandra was in hysterics, but the Smith still held her. Neo was gone; there was only Smith. Neo was gone. Everything seemed to be moving in leaps and bounds; one moment excruciatingly slow while the next was faster than she could perceive. Finally she was able to wrestle her way out of the Smith's grip and stumbled forwards into the empty street. She looked around her and it seemed like the Smiths were as confused as she was.
They were laughing for a moment, but all simultaneously stopped. Something wasn't right; there was something missing. Each of the Smiths looked around expectantly, looking for an agent, the Merovingian… but there was nothing. And that was it: nothing.
They all started fading at the same time. It was if they had copied onto themselves; the same thing that they had done to Zandra twice before was now happening to them. The Smiths looked around in confusion, but there was no one to help them. They began to fall simultaneously. Zandra shaded her eyes at the great flash, felt the surge of energy pass around her and looked at the scene. There were over fifty bodies on the ground, and they were all dead.
The agents soon appeared once they detected something wrong.
[Direct connection: Mainf.exe to Sent7.3.exe]: Exile 6.0N has been deleted.
[Direct connection: Mainf.exe to Sent7.3.exe]: Exile 6.00S have been deleted.
[Direct connection aborted]
The news created a frenzy among the agents; could it be true? Could there only be one target left? Certainly she would be vulnerable. They approached her without hesitation, but she knew the danger. She didn't want to end up like Neo…and like Kemp and Stephen. Dead.
Fly, she thought to herself, leaping into the air. It may not have worked for Neo, but it was her best chance.
The mission was a failure - an utter failure. The virus hadn't been deployed, and Neo was dead. Smith might have been gone, but that was only one insurmountable obstacle that had been deleted. There were still many more – and now their greatest ally had already been defeated. He was at peace, but he was still alone.
A/N – going faster… poignant? Or at least did it make you feel a *little* sad? Just curious…
Ves the maniac – another amazing review from a first-timer! As usual, I'm always really *really* happy to hear that people have read sooo much, and like it – but you've actually gone beyond that…
You're right about the second section. My plan for that part was a little fuzzy for a while, and that really reflected in the muddled plot, etc. I'm hoping to go over that a LOT when I do a huge revision when I'm done.
And yes, Zandra doesn't show a lot of One-qualities… but I think that a) I could have done that better, but also b) the anomaly has shown itself so early in the timeline of matrix v. 7.0 that she really doesn't have anyone to help her realize that potential… as the Oracle is a little occupied, as is Neo.
Oh, Emory means knowledge, I think… I picked it for some reason… Let's see – Veritas and Alias, you say? Hmmm… you'll have to see about those ones…