v.05.02 - When the Tables Turn...
"How?" Bob blurted out as he landed in front of Matrix, whose complexion was dangerously pale.
"Bob, I'm sorry..." The renegade's head was reeling; he'd lost so much energy.
"Matrix, are you okay?" The answer was revealed when the green sprite swayed and fell to the ground, and Bob noticed for the first time the energy stains that tainted the ground. Matrix' back was torn up like nothing he'd ever seen before!
"Oh no..." Bob uttered under his breath, kneeling beside his friend. There wasn't really anything he could do besides get him somewhere where he'd be cared for. He could give him a temporary remedy thanks to Glitch, but if he didn't get medical attention soon, he wouldn't survive.
"Matrix, can you hear me?" A groggy groan was the only response. "Matrix, I'm going to send you to the SuperComputer - they'll care for you there."
"No...." The word took more effort to muster than Matrix even knew he had. "Bob..."
"Well you can't help anyone like this, and you'll do nobody any good deleted..." There was compassion in the guardian's voice as he spoke, trying to convince Matrix that this was the right path.
"No." The burly sprite forced himself to roll onto his side - to sit upright. "I have to help." Fueled on nothing but determination and the quick fix Glitch had offered, he worked himself to his feet. "I'm not going to run, Bob."
Bob simply shook his head. He couldn't let Matrix go off to his deletion, but how could he stop him? This sprite had a fire burning inside him that just could not be extinguished.
"Matrix, you can't-"
"I ran once already, and look at what happened..." He was, of course, referencing to Dot.
"Alright..." Bob sighed. "But you're not fighting like this. You at least need bandaging and an energy transfusion. "We'll portal to my apartment - I can patch you up there."
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Matrix sat shirtless, with his icon carelessly placed on the bandages wrapped around his torso. He slipped his arm out of a cuff and watched as Bob put the machine used for transfusions away.
"It's one of those things that the Collective gives you when you graduate, and you think to yourself 'When am I ever going to use this?' Then a situation like this comes up, and it seems so useful." The blue sprite commented in response to a remark Matrix had made. "How do you feel?"
"A lot better, thanks. Now, let's move."
"Take it easy, Matrix. We need a plan first."
Matrix gawked at him in disbelief.
"Bob, you never have a plan. We'll be fine."
"We weren't fine this time, Matrix!" He snapped, regretting it immediately after. "I'm sorry...this is just..."
"Terrible, I know, but we have to ignore that for now and clean things up. Come on." The renegade moved towards the door. "They won't be expecting us to come in through the front entrance, so let's do just that."
Slowly nodding, Bob followed Matrix' lead, and they were soon on their way to meet the one foe neither of them wanted to face again.
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"My dearest Dot, you know those lovely schemes you always used to defeat me?" Megabyte began, turning to stand too close for comfort.
"Yes?" Her response was uneasy; the shadow he cast over her felt almost as menacing as his harsh stare.
"Well, I need you to cook one up in case the guardian and your darling brother do something unexpected. Cover all possible bases, and have it prepared within the micro."
"Gladly, Lord Megabyte." She replied, going to her office to work.
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Dot was busy with the task at hand, when something on the desk caught her eye. It was a picture that...Phong had taken after the system crash. Phong...where was he? She smiled slightly, and then stopped everything she was doing. Something was wrong here. She knew who Phong was, and these people in the picture, she knew them too. She didn't know why, but she cared about them and didn't want to hurt them. But then again, Megabyte had said that they were renegade forces to be dealt with. Renegade...her thoughts were so jumbled. Renegade, Matrix...who was Matrix? Enzo, Enzo Matrix...her brother! She picked the frame up and looked at the photo closely. AndrAIa, Ray, Mouse, Hack, Slash, Hexadecimal....Bob. Memories that were fighting suppression flashed in her head. Daemon, Gigabyte, Megabyte. Megayte and all of the wretched things he's done. Her head was throbbing...then it registered - she was infected! She, Dot Matrix, of the city of Mainframe had inadvertently allied with a virus to destroy those whom she loved.
Megabyte is so strong; why is his infection so weak? She asked the question to herself over and over, but knew that she had to formulate a plan, and quickly. She had wasted so much time trying to get her thoughts clear that she had less than half a micro left to produce a series of defense tactics that would fool Megabyte into thinking he'd won.
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"Very good work, Dot." Megabyte commented as he looked through her work. "You've spread out all defenses, even up into the dome of the Principal Office. I never would have imagined that they would try and enter through the top of the building. I'm quite impressed."
"Thank you, Lord Megabyte." She replied solemnly, trying to keep herself from giving in to the infection that seemed to be growing stronger by the nano.
"Are you feeling unwell?" He asked, peering down at her.
"No, no...just a headache, my lord."
"I see..." His words seemed slow and precise, and the feared he would see through her act. "This will be all for now Dot. If I need you, I'll call on you again."
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"Bob, look out!" It was a sharp whisper and a strong arm that kept the guardian out of the sight of viral eyes as he and Matrix crept closer and closer to the Principal Office. This was not going to be easy. The pair managed to get to the staircase of the main entrance, but were spotted as soon as they set foot on the steps.
"Cursors...so much for an easy entry." Matrix grumbled, about to order Gun to run a multiple target lock. "Command Line -"
The words had scarcely passed the renegade's lips when portals opened all over the system and innumerable guardians stepped through. Turbo himself stepped into the system right in front of the pair of men that served as Mainframe's last defense.
"You two go on...we'll keep the viral forces under control out here. If you need help, just call." The Prime said, ignoring the growing group of virals approaching.
"But Turbo," Bob began. "You said-"
"I know what I said and I was wrong. When the tables turn against your favour, you've gotta' turn them back around. That's what I'm here to do. If this gets out of control, the entire Net could be in trouble. Now go!"
Bob and Matrix nodded and ran up the stairs and into the main hall of the Principal Office. It was time to take care of things once and for all.
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Dot strode into the prison of the Principal Office and found familiar sprites - all held captive.
"Mm...Mouse?" She sputtered the name out, uncertain as to whether or not she was actually right.
"Yeah Sugar, it's me." The hacker spoke in a resigned tone, merely watching as the continued around the room.
"AndrAIa?"
"Yes, it's me." AndrAIa sounded completely miserable.
Dot turned to the last cell with a prisoner.
"Oh, Enzo...." There was not doubt in her mind that she was right about this one; this was Enzo Matrix, the copy of her brother.
"Dot! It's you!" Despite his lacerations and bruises he was so excited to see her. "Dot, get us out of here!"
"Oh Enzo," She said softly. "Are you alright?"
"Yes, I'll be fine! Just get us out!"
Dot nodded and moved to a small control panel in the room where she began poking at the keys. Biting her lower lip as she punched in the last digit in the sequence, she watched Mouse's cell bars lift. Following a similar procedure, she opened Enzo's cell, but when she came to AndrAIa's, she was hesitant.
"If I get this wrong, then the alarm will sound and we're all in trouble." She put a hand to her throbbing head.
"You okay, Sugar?" Mouse asked, putting a hand on her shoulder.
"Oh yes, it's just the infection...it feels stronger than before." Dot rubbed her temples and turned her attention to the control panel. "Fighting it is going to get harder. Now, let's see what we've got here..." A few keys were tapped and the energy wall deactivated. "Come on, we have to get out of here."
She took the lead and opened doors and passages with complete ease.
"How're you doing that?" The hacker enquired, shocked that Dot could access things that she just couldn't crack.
"I just do - it's probably one of the little pearls of wisdom the infection had for me." She half-grinned as they approached the main hall. "I bet Megabyte isn't expecting this."
"On the contrary." An all too familiar voice echoed as it came to greet them. "I knew immediately when you showed me your 'plan' that my infection had not been as powerful as I had hoped. It was far too flawed for one such as yourself."
The three women and their boy companion stopped dead in their tracks. They were so close to getting out...so close...
"Hey Megabyte, eat this!" Matrix hollered as he fired a shot at the back-turned virus.
The bullet tore through the shoulder of the towering menace and he stumbled forward a step before turning on his heel and facing his attacker.
"You!" Megabyte shouted with conviction as he charged toward Matrix. "I have had enough of you, boy!"
"Well I'm just getting started." He snarled back, holstering Gun at his side and jumping just as Megabyte was within an arm's reach. His leap sent him bounding on the virus' shoulders and then behind him. Bob was ready to smash his enemy with an energy beam when he tumbled forward, but Megabyte's quick recovery brought the guardian clamouring to the floor and under the weight of his heavy foot. He wanted to crush this pesky little sprite, but he could hear the thumps of Matrix' feet as he made a second approach. Well, if nothing else, he had hurt the guardian temporarily. The others would be fleeing or fighting soon as well, no doubt. Where were his minions? No matter now.
He spun around with his claw-like hand extended and lashed the renegade across the chest. It had not been as severe a wound as he had hoped to inflict, but it would suffice. Mouse haddrawn that sad little sword of hers too. As she closed in on this predator before her, AndrAIa, Dot, and Enzo began their run for the exit. Well, none of them need think they would get away without a hassle. Taking a swipe at Mouse proved to be a terrible mistake, as he ended up with a gash across his chest.
"You little rat," Megabyte growled, taking a second swipe and sending her sword flying.
With a nervous expression on her face, the hacker looked beyond the virus, who was fool enough to glance in the direction of her gaze. Without a thought, she leapt on him and began bashing his chest. He was set to plunge his claws into her when she did the nearly unthinkable and punched her fist into his wound. As an agonized bellow escaped Megabyte, Mouse moved to run with the others but was caught by the ankle.
The giant predator released a roar and, as he got to his feet, he flicked her up over his head and threw her at the three sprites who were only footsteps away from the door. The entire group was knocked to the ground by his keen aim.
It was all child's play now. Just go over, and kill them one by one while the 'brave heroes' had to watch with nothing to do but wait for their turn. Ah, the youngest Matrix boy - this would be sweet.
Towering over his soon-to-be victim, he smiled something that exuded malevolence. Bending over just slightly to reach for the boy, when AndrAIa sat up in the group with her trident extended.
"Delete my friends? I don't think so!" In one fluid motion she plunged the weapon up into his abdomen and watched as he collapsed, every limb twitching.
"Well fought, my dear." He managed to say, expelling a final breath as the colour in his eyes faded like lights burning out.
Shakily, she dropped the trident and ran to Matrix.
"It's going to be okay, Lover. Just don't give up..."
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"How're you doing?" Turbo asked as Matrix' eyes flickered open.
"Not too...where's Bob? And Dot, and-"
"Cool it, Matrix. Everyone's okay. You got the worst of it. Bob's out in the other room - other than a minor break and a few scratches, he's alright as well." The Prime Guardian heaved a sigh. "Dot's still got slight fragments of the infection in her, but she's fighting with everything she's got. Mouse got a mild concussion; AndrAIa is bruised and sore, but nothing else came out of it. We found Phong as well; he'd been locked away in one of your isolation chambers. Everything is looking better."
"What about Enzo? What happened to him? Where is he?" Despite the pain he felt shooting through his bitmap, he forced himself to sit up.
"You know, you're putting a huge strain on your bitmap by sitting up. Those wounds are healing, but if you tear them open, you'll be in a lot of misery."
"Stop stalling, Turbo. What has happened to Enzo?"
"He's...hanging in there - Megabyte's soldiers did a real job on him though." Turbo replied quietly.
"I want to go see him. Now."