Matrix was no stranger to war. Destruction and suffering had consumed a huge part of his childhood. And after cycles of dealing with the emotional toll it had taken on him, he actually thought things had changed. He thought that he had somehow managed to find peace with AndrAIa, that all the fighting was over. But he was only kidding himself; Matrix was beginning to realize that happiness was temporary. Perhaps pain was the only thing that was truly eternal. There was even a part of him that believed that he deserved every horrible thing that happened. AndrAIa was the one good thing in his life, and she was gone. Every so often he found himself wondering what she would say or do if she was still there. And even worse, he wondered if the game sprite would still be alive if she hadn't met him.

Matrix shook his head, trying to thwart every thought of her. Each memory only brought with it pain. It was more than he could bear. Daemon's attack upon the system had proven to be quite the distraction. But still, his mind wandered every now and then. He had to stay focused; Mainframe was in a precarious situation. Matrix knew that he had to be alert at all times.

As he flew through the streets of Mainframe on his zip board he acknowledged how deserted every sector was. Every sprite hid in their homes in hopes that the threat would be neutralized. The quiet around him was almost eerie. Not too long ago the streets were alive and the community bustling. It was amazing how quickly things had changed. In an instant your life could be turned upside down, and there was nothing you could do about it. Matrix had learned to roll with the punches long ago. This was just one more thing on a list of unfortunate events that plagued his life.

He turned down an ally and jumped off of his board. A few nulls slithered away upon his sudden arrival. Dixon said she would meet him by Al's as soon as she could. Kit's was in a full panic, so getting away might not be so easy. As he waited he looked around. Next to a large dumpster was a silver trash can, bent out of shape from years of repeated use. He sized it up. It should do just fine for what he had planned.

Next to the trash was an old milk crate. Matrix turned it upside down and took a seat, thankful for a moment of rest. The Principal office was overrun with sprites. The air was filled with alarms, frantic typing and many simultaneous conversations. He appreciated the quiet, no matter how unnatural it was.

In a few minutes Dixon flew into the ally, landing beside him. Matrix stood. Instantly he could tell that she was exhausted. Her face seemed worn and her hair disheveled. The bags under her eyes were also a huge tell. She was tired, but so was everyone. Matrix hoped that she was still up for the task at hand. As long as Daemon was a threat to the system Bob would be busy, and he needed a guardian.

"Sorry I'm late," She said while catching her breath. Dixon wiped away a few beads of sweat that had collected on her brow.

"All right," Matrix picked up an old pipe that lay amongst the trash and began to draw in the dirt. He did a quick sketch from memory of Dameon's fortress. "I know there is a side entrance over here that we can enter through without being detected. On my last trip there were no guards and no security system in place."

"That seems… strange."

"You're telling me. Everything about Daemon is strange… She is a powerful virus, maybe she feels like she doesn't need it."

Dixon shook her head. If that was the case Daemon was too reliant on her reputation. She must have believed that no one would ever challenge her. In Dixon's opinion the virus was a fool; you could never be too careful.

"From what I remember there's a hallway here," He continued to sketch as he spoke, "if we follow it to the center there's a large chamber, I think it's her study. From there the hallway makes a turn and everything past that point I haven't seen… Judging from Megabyte's set up she'll need a fairly large space to have a functioning machine."

"Right," She nodded.

"So there's two ways we can play this; either we stick together and start from one end and work our way down or…"

"Or what?"

"We travel to her study and then split up, covering more ground faster." He looked at her, "best case scenario the place is deserted."

"That seems unlikely."

"I know. And then there's destroying the machine once we find it."

"Chip here should be able to help with that." Dixon held up the arm with her keytool.

"All right, so guardian, what do you think?"

"Daemon's going to be preoccupied for a while so time is on our side. Plus, she has no idea we're even going there. I say we both do a sweep through the whole fortress; leave no stone unturned. Once we find the machine then we'll figure out what to do with the thing."

"And once it's deleted we portal back to Mainframe."

"Sounds like a solid plan to me… All things considered."

"Ready?"

Dixon nodded.

Matrix took out his gun, changing the setting to 'destabilize'. He pointed it at the innocent trash can and fired. Instantly the object was engulfed by white light, a staticky ball of energy replacing it. The tear floated around sporadically.

"The coordinates?" Dixon asked and Matrix wrote them in the dirt. She typed them into Chip and pointed her keytool at the tear. Chip shot a beam, instantly stabilizing it into a portal. Through the glaze of silver they could see the swirling wonders of the web. A large white structure also came into view; Daemon's fortress.

The pair looked at each other and gave a final nod in agreement. Matrix went first and then Dixon. They stepped through the portal into the unknown, disappearing from Mainframe. The portal quickly vanished behind them. As the wind picked up, blowing away Matrix's drawings, it was as if they had never even been there.

# #

One of the benefits of being a game sprite was that you were programmed to adapt. AndrAIa had ingrained in her a ferocious instinct that pushed her to survive. After their encounter with the web creature she had spent her time learning the controls of the ship. She was no captain by any means, but she had at least figured out how to set the autopilot. The ship was seamlessly floating through the web towards Mainframe… She hoped.

Every so often she would check the radar for any disturbances, thankfully nothing else had arisen. She was still calming herself down from the encounter with the web creature. Its spilt blood had dried onto her armor creating a thick, dry layer coating her arm. With each movement chunks flaked off.

She sat next to the ship's wheel cradling Maxine's head in her arms. She hadn't awoken since the ship had been attacked, but her breathing was steady which brought AndrAIa some comfort. Once they were in Mainframe she would take her to the hospital.

AndrAIa glanced over at the dead web creature, which still lay on the center of the deck. She had thought about pushing it overboard, but it was much too heavy to move on her own. That and she didn't want to leave behind any evidence. It was a small creature, much too small to be a fully grown adult. She hoped that its mother wouldn't come looking for it any time soon. Killing a baby was one thing, but getting rid of a fully grown web creature was far beyond the game sprite's ability.

Maxine let out a soft moan. AndrAIa looked down, hopeful.

"Maxine?" She whispered, giving her a gentle nudge.

Maxine opened her eyes.

"You're awake!" AndrAIa sighed, "Can you move at all?"

"What happened?" Maxine slowly sat up, placing a hand on her pounding head.

"How are you feeling?"

"I've been better." Maxine said, though in actuality she felt like she had just been hit by a bus- at full speed. There was a grogginess that hung over her mixed with a dull, throbbing pain.

AndrAIa looked over at the web creature and Maxine turned to follow her gaze.

She gasped, startled from the sight of it. Maxine watched it for a moment and began to relax once it was clear that it was no threat to them.

"Did you…" Maxine trailed off as she made it to her feet.

She was soar, but clearly in better shape then the creature that sat on her deck.

"I did." AndrAIa said, also standing.

"You…" Maxine closed her eyes for a moment, thinking back to the last thing she remembered. "You saved me."

"I guess now we're even."

They both smiled.

"Yeah, I guess we are… So what should we do with it?" She thought aloud.

"I was thinking we keep it as a souvenir."

Maxine chuckled.

"Well, Matrix will be impressed- that's for sure." Maxine said as she looked around, getting her bearings. Impressed wasn't even the right word. She had been certain that they were done for once the creature showed up. How AndrAIa managed to take out a web creature single handedly was beyond incredible.

She checked their current coordinates and smiled.

"I hope I wasn't leading us off course." AndrAIa said nervously.

"Not at all, we're practically there."

AndrAIa was beyond relieved. The sooner they were off the web, the better. She walked over to one of the few seats that were still intact and sat down. AndrAIa looked out into the starry sea around them and then back to her friend.

"So, how exactly are we going to enter the system?" She asked. If the ports were still down then they couldn't enter the traditional way.

"With this." Maxine held up a small device. It looked like a reworked organizer. On first appearances it didn't look like anything special. "Mouse made it for us to get to Daemon's. It works like a guardian's keytool. We should be able to open a portal as long as we are close enough to the system. It's how we got you home the first time."

"Really…" AndrAIa paused for a moment. Matrix had done his best to fill her in on everything that happened when she got abducted. He hadn't mentioned the device, though he had a lot on his mind. A few of the minor details must have slipped through the cracks.

She looked up at Maxine, who suddenly had a purple tinge to her metallic finish. She was reflecting the light from something ahead of them. As they approached Mainframe's web address AndrAIa stood.

A huge chunk of endless sky was surrounded by a large containment field, it let off a soft purple light. Just past the sheer haze of the barrier was a large silver orb. Through it AdnrAIa could see glimpses of the system. Her eyes could pick out familiar buildings, sectors; the Principal office.

"Is this Mainframe?" AndrAIa asked.

"Looks like it... Well AndrAIa, welcome home."

# #

Matrix and Dixon travelled up the narrow staircase to Daemon's fortress. As they approached the door, Matrix felt uneasy. A lot of emotions coursed through him as he fought back memories. The last time he had been there he had been so desperate to get AndrAIa back he would have done anything. He suddenly felt a bout of rage. Ray had done a lot of revolting things in his life, but to Matrix his biggest crime was stealing precious time away from him. Matrix wanted nothing more than to go back to the beginning, to when they first met, and cherish every second. For too long in their relationship they were kept apart by the scheming search engine. That was time he would never get back.

"Is everything okay?" Dixon asked.

Matrix had been standing at the door, just staring at it. He hadn't even motioned to open it.

"Y-yeah. Sorry."

Matrix entered and Dixon filed in behind him. Once inside he looked around. Everything was exactly as he remembered it; porcelain floors, brightly painted walls and stained glass windows. The space was airy but also had a cold, detached feel to it. There was nothing of importance in that passageway, so they moved on to the main hall. Matrix could tell from the way Dixon looked around that she was impressed. Every room was lavishly decorated.

"There are a lot of rooms to go through, this might take a while." Matrix noted.

"I had no idea it would be this big."

"You're not getting cold feet on me, are you?"

"Not a chance. Some guardians go their whole careers not seeing the level of excitement I have in the past week. I wouldn't pass this up for anything."

Matrix couldn't help but admire her desire for adventure. Although they needed to stay focused on their objective, there were a few questions burning in his mind. He couldn't think of another time they'd be alone together. A mischievous smile spread across his face.

"Bob's told me a lot about you."

"Good things I hope." She said, poking her head into another room. It looked like a storage closet. Rows of boxes lined the walls. Nothing out of the ordinary.

"Well the funny thing is, he only told me about you after you woke up from your coma."

"R- really?" Dixon started to get nervous. She could tell where the conversation was heading.

"Yeah, you know, when he was cheating on my sister with you."

Dixon stopped walking. Even though she sensed the tension building, she hadn't expected Matrix to be so abrupt about it. Matrix stared at her, waiting for a response. She kept walking and he followed suit.

"Is this why you asked me here, to interrogate me?"

"If you must know, Bob was my first choice." Matrix spoke plainly, "I needed a portal. But since I have you here alone, why not make conversation?"

"I see…" Dixon sighed, "I guess this is well deserved. I can't say I'm proud of how I've gone about things… I honestly can't really justify anything I've done. My life has been a mess."

"Really?"

"Yeah. One day I had everything I could have hoped for, and the next it was all gone." Dixon took a deep breath, "It felt like my life had been stolen from me. At least that's how I justified it. But things are over between me and Bobby. Completely over."

"That's all I needed to hear. I'll hold you to that."

Dixon looked over at him, surprised that he would just take her word on it. She stopped to open another door. Nothing promising was inside so they kept moving.

"Thank you." Dixon said.

"For?"

"For being so understanding."

Matrix chuckled. He was the least of her worries, and he knew it. Matrix couldn't help but be suspicious of the guardian. She seemed to be spending a lot of time with Bob since coming to Mainframe. Whether or not her intentions were pure, it wasn't his problem to deal with. In all honesty he was just being nosey. It was Dot that she needed to be worried about. Although they didn't always get along, Matrix knew his sister, maybe even better than he knew himself. He couldn't see her being all right with Bob and Dixon gallivanting off together, even if it was for work. The fact that Dot hadn't made her displeasure clear could only mean one thing; she didn't know. And for Dixon's sake she better hope that she never found out.

"As far as priorities go," Matrix shrugged, "family drama isn't very high up on the list. It's none of my business anyway-"

Dixon raised her hand suddenly, signaling him to be quiet. She had heard something down the hall, at least she thought she did. They neared a corner and waited by the wall. Dixon carefully peered down the hall. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. It looked like everywhere else in the fortress. The only difference was that this hallway led to a set of large double doors. She wondered if the noise she heard had come from inside.

Matrix drew his gun and watched as Dixon slowly approached the doors. He followed behind. They both locked eyes before each pulling a door open. They immediately pointed their weapons inside.

The large room was nearly empty. A high ceiling hung above them, plated in gold. The walls were all bare except for the occasional window. Dixon and Matrix's attention were both drawn to the center of the room, where a metallic chamber stood. It was a much sleeker design then what Megabyte had built, but instantly they knew what it was. There was no mistaking it. They were face to face with Daemon's machine.

They both entered, allowing the doors to close behind them. Dixon's suspicious eyes scanned the room. They had run into no security since entering the fortress. She couldn't believe that Daemon would leave something so important unprotected.

Matrix held his gun at the ready, doing a complete circle around the room. Once he was sure they were alone he looked over at Dixon.

"Now let's get rid of this thing and get out of here." He said.

Suddenly the door to the machine opened. They both backed away, eyes glued to the figure that emerged. Hexadecimal slowly stepped out, a smile plastered against her tarnished mask.

"That was fast. I didn't expect Daemon to be bringing sprites back so soon," Hex yawned and stretched, as if she had just awoken from a nap. "Well, who's going first?"

"Neither." Matrix hissed, pointing his gun at the virus.

"Oh, I see. What a shame." She tilted her head to the side, "Well, you have two options; become a virus or be deleted."

"Tough choice." Matrix grumbled.

"In all honesty," Hex gave a coy smile. "I'm game either way."

# #

Mainframe's docks were quiet until the portal appeared. One second the port was empty and in the next a ship slipped through the air. Maxine's vessel landed in the water with a large splash. It rocked back and forth, eventually slowing to a halt. She sighed, relieved that they wound up where they were supposed to be. Portals could be unpredictable sometimes, and the last thing they needed was to appear halfway through a wall or on top of a skyscraper.

AndrAIa removed her helmet and smiled. She was finally home.

Their joy was short lived as the sound of gunfire caught their attention.

"Oh no…" AndrAIa turned to her friend.

AndrAIa opened a vidwindow channel, hoping to contact Matrix. The call wouldn't go through. She sighed.

"All right, come on." Maxine said.

As uncomfortable as the suit was, AndrAIa put the helmet back on. If Mainframe was under attack then she might need the extra protection.

Once off the ship the pair ran down the dock. They headed towards the noise. Before long it wasn't just gunfire that they could hear. Screaming, banging and the general commotion of chaos grew louder and louder as they approached. Maxine and AndrAIa moved through Kit's sector until Daemon and her destruction was in clear view. They ducked behind a building.

Before jumping into action they looked around, attempting to assess the situation as quickly as possible. The first thing they noticed was all the trapped sprites. AndrAIa looked over at Daemon, who stood with a smile as CPU's fired upon her with no mercy. Then, she saw Bob, who stood a ways off, fighting another virus. AndrAIa stared at them, it took her only a few seconds to recognize the virus as Mouse.

"No… No, no, no!" AndrAIa said in anger.

"What is it?"

"That's Mouse over there- and now she's a virus. I thought I destroyed the machine with that game. How is this possible?"

AndrAIa sank to her knees. She was tired, and frustrated. More than anything she just wanted a moment where everything was okay.

"Hey, calm down." Maxine crouched in front of her, "look at me."

AndrAIa looked up at the search engine with defeated eyes.

"This is nothing. You've faced far worse than this before; you killed a web creature just to get back here. We both knew it wouldn't be easy, and you don't have to do this alone."

"You're right."

"Of course I am."

Maxine extended a hand and AndrAIa allowed her to help her back to her feet. They both peered out from behind their hiding spot.

"It looks like there are hostages…" AndrAIa thought out loud, "Do you think you can get them out?"

"Should be easy enough."

AndrAIa looked over at Bob.

"Glitch, shield!" Bob commanded.

He held up his arm, angling the small barrier between him and the virus. Mouse threw several punches, each one pushing him further back. The CPU's fired on Daemon, and he was preoccupied with Mouse; leaving no one to rescue the trapped sprites. Every time he tried to get to them, Mouse intercepted his path. Admittedly he wasn't sure how much longer he could keep going. Sweat dripped from his brow as he struggled to hold his own against the virus. She was incredibly strong, and fatigue was starting to set in.

"Why are you doing this?" He asked through clenched teeth.

"Daemon will save the net; save us all."

"This isn't saving the net! What's your plan; to go from system to system forcing sprites to go viral?"

"This is only the beginning guardian," Mouse laughed, "Each system will get easier. Soon Daemon will have a loyal legion of viruses by her side to help purify the net."

"... No!"

"This is a great honour to be the first cleansed by the word."

Mouse threw another blow his way, putting her all into it. The shield shattered on impact. The force flung the guardian back, sending him to the ground. Bob looked up at his attacker.

"You will hear the word." Mouse said, raising her fist high preparing to strike.

Bob braced himself, turning away.

He waited for a pain that never came. Bob looked back up to see a sprite in black armor standing between him and the virus. They held in their hands a silver trident and swung at Mouse mercilessly. This gave Bob the time he needed to get back on his feet.

"Glitch, cable!" He called out.

A long string of rope shot from the key tool, instantly wrapping itself around the virus. Mouse stumbled, falling to the ground. She struggled as it wound around her.

Bob then brought his attention to the masked sprite. He was not in the position to deny any help, and hoped that they came in peace.

Before he had a chance to ask them who they were the CPU's ran out of ammunition. The thundering backdrop of gunfire ceased leaving behind a hollow silence. Daemon stood in a small crater carved out by their bullets. She floated out, eyes instantly falling on Mouse. Her once calm face turned to anger. Bob pointed his keytool at the virus.

"It is useless fighting this, guardian." Daemon said, "you will hear the word."

She waved her hand and the cable binding Mouse fell limp. Mouse rose to her feet. Bob looked at Daemon and then Mouse; he was running out of ideas. The sprite who had come to his aid stood by his side, gripping their trident tightly. Looking around he knew that the odds weren't in their favour.

At that moment the cage holding the captured sprites went down. Daemon turned, watching as all the sprite's they had gathered started to flee.

"No!" Daemon scowled.

The armored sprite moved between Daemon and where the cage had once been. Maxine tried her best to move them along quickly, but they all ran off in different directions in a panic.

"You will not stop me." Daemon warned.

"Yes, we will!" A familiar voice cried out.

Everyone turned to see where the voice had come from. The sun had just begun its decline, creating a glare behind the sprite. They all squinted to see who it was. Slow, mechanical footsteps brought them closer. Dot stood at the end of the street, strapped into a large exoskeleton suit. They looked back at her, surprised.

Dot had gone into the armory in hopes of finding something big enough to rival the virus. The exosuit was all Mainframe had to offer.

Daemon laughed.

"Oh, dear…" Daemon started walking towards Dot, "valiant effort, but you will need more than that to stop the word. It is inevitable. Who are you to come between me and unifying the net?"

Dot looked at her with rage filled eyes.

"I am the command..com of this system! Any changes to Mainframe have to go through me first."

"I see."

"This is your final warning! Leave now, or face deletion."

# #

Hexadecimal looked back at the intruders.

"This is a pleasant surprise," She said, "The Matrix boy and a guardian, how fun."

Hex vanished.

"Where did she go?" Dixon asked, looking around frantically.

Hex reappeared behind her, grabbing onto Dixon's arm.

Matrix pointed his gun in their general direction, but couldn't get a clear shot. They were both moving too much.

"Hold her still!" He said.

"I'm trying." Dixon said as she struggled with the virus.

Hex dug her claws into Dixons shoulders. Her hands began to glow, releasing bright orange energy. Dixon cried out as the virus' energy fueled hands burned her flesh. Her skin sizzled as the virus slowly increased the heat of the attack. Hex laughed.

Without hesitating Matrix set his gun to stun and fired. The shot hit Dixon and she slumped over, falling from Hex's grasp. It wasn't an ideal move, but at least she was still processing. Hexadecimal looked over at Matrix, her mask bearing razor sharp teeth. Matrix fired again, this time aiming for the virus. The blast of energy hit her, but had little effect.

Hex vanished again, materializing right in front of Matrix. She swiped at him, knocking him to the ground. As he flew across the floor the gun slipped from his grasp. He was quick to get back on his feet, not taking his eyes off of her. The virus ran towards him and he swung. She quickly dodged his attack and slammed into him, flinging him against the far wall.

Matrix landed with a thud against the floor. Hex raised her hand, rapidly flinging balls of energy in his direction. He rolled out of the way, the blasts scorching the wall where he once sat. Matrix searched for anything that could be used as a weapon, but the room was painfully bare.

He got to his feet and ran, staying ahead of her energy blasts, but barely. She was too strong for him to fight on his own. He could only out run her for so long.

"Getting nervous, I see." Hex chuckled, "I have all day- and an infinite amount of energy at my disposal."

Matrix hid behind the machine. He hoped she would be less inclined to shoot at it. Thankfully he was right. She ceased fire, not wanting to damage the machine.

In the few seconds he had to himself he looked for his gun. It was laying next to Dixon, who was still out cold. He didn't want to admit it, but Hex was right. She could chase them around the fortress all day and not even break a sweat. Even if he had his gun he wasn't sure what difference it would make.

He stole a glance at Hex, who patiently waited for him to come out of hiding. It was then that he noticed the crack running down her mask. Despite the façade she held he knew she couldn't be at 100%. And no virus was invincible.

"Come now, I'm getting bored." Hex wined as she floated over to the machine. Matrix smiled, he had an idea. It wasn't a great one, but he wasn't in the position to be picky.

Matrix circled around, making sure the large cylinder was between them at all times. As long as the machine blocked her path she couldn't fire.

"Dixon!" He yelled.

No response.

"Calling for help already? You'll need a lot more than that puny guardian."

"Dixon!"

Dixon stirred, slowly opening her eyes. Everything looked blurry and out of focus to her. Slowly everything fell into place and she watched as Hex chased Matrix around the machine.

"Matrix!"

"Make a tear!" He yelled.

"With what?" She asked, still a little out of sorts.

"What do you think?"

She clumsily picked up the gun that lay next to her and pointed it at the virus. Matrix quickly dove out of the way as she pulled the trigger. A ball of energy flew through the air, hitting Hexadecimal, instantly being absorbed into her. She chuckled.

"That tickled." She taunted.

Hex turned to Matrix, preparing to strike, but didn't. There was a warmth building up inside of her stomach where the shot had landed. It was a strange sensation, one that she'd never felt before.

"What did you do to me?" Hex demanded.

Matrix went to Dixon's side, helping her to her feet. They watched as Hex gripped her stomach, her mask turning to anger. She screamed, her shrill voice echoing off the walls around them.

Hex balled her fist, attempting to throw another energy blast at the pair. Despite how many times she tried nothing happened. She could no longer control her powers.

"My powers. What have you done?" She yelled.

"... The tear." Dixon looked up at Matrix, impressed by his quick thinking.

"What about a tear?"

"Tears are made of energy," Dixon said, "and the more energy you give it…"

"The more unstable it becomes." Matrix finished her sentence. Had she been at full strength he wasn't sure if forming a tear would even work. Hex wasn't herself, and her mask gave that away. If she was weak enough for her mask to crack then she was just vulnerable enough to fall victim to a tear.

"No." Hex backed away, "make it stop."

A small swirl of light began to form from her stomach, slowly expanding outwards. She screamed, more in anger than anything else. Things hadn't worked out in her favour. For the first time she had carefully planned everything out, and still she managed to make a mess of things. She began to wonder if her downfall had simply been trying; trying to change who she was, change everyone's perception of her. Hex wandered around the room as the tear grew, a sudden weightlessness taking over.

"I just wanted to make a difference." She said, "to change the net."

How had things gone so wrong?

Her mask turned to an expression of pure anguish as she thought of her brother. Was his deletion on her hands as well? Had she set into motion a chain of events that led to Silicon Tor being destroyed; that led to her being destroyed. How much of this catastrophe was on her shoulders?

The light that shone from Hexadecimal became blinding as the tear slowly engulfed more of her, feeding off of her energy supply. Matrix and Dixon shielded their eyes. He quickly picked up Dixon, running out of the room. He had an idea of what was going to happen. Hex had too much power within her, too much for the tear to handle.

Hex raised a hand, silently beckoning for them to stay. She didn't want to be alone for what was next. The bright static of the tear consumed her, leeching away everything the virus had to offer. As the light from the tear got brighter and brighter Hex watched shadows dance around the room. For a split second she could have sworn that she saw the silhouette of someone. The dark shape resembled Megabyte, although she couldn't be sure. Her vision was starting to blur.

"Brother…" She pleaded, reaching outward.

Hexadecimal gave a sad smile as she watched the shadow disappear. Her eyes were playing tricks on her. Even if Megabyte was there, he wouldn't help her. He would have laughed and reveled in her misfortune. In her final moments Hex found herself longing to hear his cruel laugh once again.

"Brother, can you hear me?" She persisted. The heat within her was building to the point of being unbearable. "Did I make you proud?"

She screamed as the remaining energy within her was expelled. Her physical form fragmented away, filling the air with the sickening crunch of deletion. Hexadecimal left nothing behind but a blindingly pure light.

Dixon and Matrix were thrown to the ground as the blast of energy flew through the doors. Waves upon waves of bright light flooded out as all the energy that was once inside Hexadecimal escaped all at once.

Debris rained down around them.

After a moment they stood. One of the doors had been knocked loose, hanging crooked on its hinge. Smoke poured out through the opening.

Dixon and Matrix looked at each other, hesitant to go back inside. After a moment they cautiously crept back in. The machine that had once stood in the center of the room was completely gone. Any remnants of it lay scattered across the floor. Small fires burned throughout the room. They coughed as they ventured further. Hexadecimal was nowhere in sight.

"Mission accomplished?" Dixon said through a cough.

"I guess so."

Matrix allowed her to lean on him as they started out of the room. Dixon paused, causing him to come to a halt. Something had caught her eye. Stark white peaked out from under a piece of metal. Dixon bent down, moving the scrap away. Hexadecimal's mask lay on the floor, completely intact apart from a single crack. Dixon picked it up, feeling how smooth it was in her hands. It stared back at her with a blank expression. It was strange to look at. There was no light in its eyes; no joy or sorrow. It just looked so… empty.

"I should take it for the archives." Dixon said, though Matrix never asked why she wanted it, nor did he care. "Turbo might need it after reading my report."

She held up Chip and the keytool placed a virtual bubble around the mask before absorbing it. Dixon knew it would be safe within her keytool's storage.

"Sure thing, guardian." Matrix shrugged, "Now, let's get out of here."

End Log