Chapter 22 – Agent Truths
The Agents sedated the rebel so he still looked like he was just knocked unconscious. Agents Brown and Jones were curious as to why they bothered with him as it was obvious that the rebel was going to die soon anyway. He had suffered several broken bones and the bullet hole in his stomach had sealed his fate. They had wondered if Agent Smith was just displaying his cruel streak that seemed to have intensified in the last two months. The Agents set him up in a room and were waiting for Agent Smith. He sauntered in and told them to stop the bleeding and give the rebel something for the pain. When Agent Jones raised an eyebrow, Smith bellowed, "Do it!" The rebel was injected with a silvery substance. The rebel's eye snapped open and he looked around. He saw the Agents all standing in the room and closed his eyes. He had been shot. The rebel looked over at the Agent sitting at a monitoring device and recognized him as the one who shot him from the fire escape. He was still looking at the Agent when he heard the one standing before him say," So Mr. Martin, we meet again. Just for no other reason than to 'be nice' I'll tell you that the rest of your crew got away. Oh they were injured but they got away none the less. But I also have to tell you, your intended target didn't quite make it." The rebel looked at Agent Smith and growled," We will never stop fighting! Never quit fighting the system or freeing enslaved minds!" He then coughed and fell silent. He knew he was dying. He just hoped that the Agents wouldn't him torture until he did. Agent Smith watched the dying man and said, "Leave me." Agents Brown and Jones exchanged glances but said nothing as they both got up and left.
Agent Smith walked over to the table, picked up a syringe and came and sat across from the rebel. He reached up and removed his sun glasses. He then removed the ear piece, letting it fall over his collar. As Smith looked at the syringe he said, "Mr. Martin, you're dying and it's a wonder your crew mates don't simply pull the plug and end your pain. Tell me Mr. Martin, is there anyone aboard your ship that can do this for you?" The rebel blinked and answered, "I'll not tell you anything, torture me all you want." Smith sat watching the rebel and said, "Hmmm - torture you? I don't think so Mr. Martin. I have a deal to make with you." The rebel could feel his life blood ebbing away and tried not to focus on the pain. He so wished someone had stayed on the ship. If anyone did make it back and they were as injured as this Agent said, they might not be in any condition to unplug anyone. He blinked and said, "I'm dying! What kind of deal can we make? He then started laughing and said, "If it's for my soul, Rachael already has it." Smith was getting annoyed and leaned forward and said, "I want information on a certain individual. Her name is Mia. I need to know what happened to her." The rebel blinked and shook his head and said, "What would you want to know about Mia for?" Agent Smith leaned forward in the chair and said, "You know her?" The rebel shook his head and said, "Yes, I know her but I'll not tell you anything about her." He then winced and fell forward in his restraints in the chair. Smith pushed him back with the tip of his finger, careful not to touch the human too much. He then took the syringe and injected it into the man's neck. He heard the man sigh and his eyes flutter open. Smith again leaned forward and said,"Mr. Martin we don't have much time. I just gave you something that will numb the pain and make your passing painless. I want to know about Mia. I need to know what happened to her." The rebel blinked his eyes as he no longer felt anything and just stared at this Agent. He shook his head and said, "Why would you care about Mia?" Smith answered, "I want to know what happened to her after she came back when her ship's operator Lewis was attacked." The Rebels eyes widened as he made the connection and said," It was you who attacked Lewis!" Smith only nodded and said, "Continue." The rebel looked at Smith and said," It was rumoured that she took him into the Matrix and you – Agent Smith found them and attacked Lewis. It was her fault that he was in the Matrix in the first place as operators don't ever go into the Matrix. I don't think she's allowed in the Matrix any more because of it." Smith never took his eyes off the rebel and said," That's not true. Lewis came in of his own accord. If it weren't for Mia stopping me, I would have killed him." The rebel blinked his eyes and said," She stopped you? How?" Smith looked away before looking back and answered, "She and I were lovers. I needed to know what happened to her and why she stopped coming into the Matrix." The rebel started to laugh but the laughter died on his lips when he saw that Smith was deadly serious. He somehow knew his time was near and answered back, "That's why you stopped the pain! So you could find out about her? "Smith watched as the light was fading from the rebel's eyes and answered," Yes. I needed to know that I did not frighten her into not coming back." The rebel chuckled and said, "I can't believe that Mia made it with a machine..." His head dropped forward and Smith knew he was gone.
Smith sat there for a few minutes before finally putting his sun glasses back on and connecting the ear piece. He sent a signal to Agent Brown and Jones to come and remove the body. He walked back to his office and went in, shutting the door. He knew that Jones and Brown had followed him with their eyes as he left the room but he didn't care about them or what they thought. He felt the feather light touch of the mainframe enter his subconscious and turned his mind to matters of the Matrix. He knew the machines were pleased with his work as he felt a gentle caress of his mind as the mainframe withdrew. Smith got up and walked to the window. He could see that it was going to rain again and thought with some irony, that he used to like it when it rained. His thoughts turned towards Mia. At least now he knew that it wasn't fear of him that was keeping her out of the Matrix. He was surprised at the strong desire he felt when he thought about wanting to see her again.
*****************************************************
Mia was half way through her shift when Captain Jackson came onto the main deck. He sat down in his chair and said, "Mia, I need to ask you a favour. I know that you've avoided going into the Matrix and that was your decision but I'm one person short going into the Matrix and I need you. You won't have to use any phone lines and we can pair you up with Hannah again. Let me know later tonight some time after dinner. And Mia, if you decide not to go back in, I'll just have to figure something else out." Mia was aware of several exchanged looks around the bridge. No one ever came right out and asked her why she never went back in but from the reaction of some of the crew, they didn't know it had been her decision not to go back in. She knew the crew never said anything about what really happened but she had heard the rumours. Captain Jackson thought it best if they just ignored them like the counsel said and they would eventually go away. Mia wasn't sure what her answer would be and would think about it later. She desperately wanted to see Smith again but not as a rebel.
Lewis sat in the mess hall eating his dinner when Hannah came in and sat down across from him. She folded her hands on the table and said in a low voice, "Lewis, what really happened that day? I mean, what were they doing when you opened the door – Mia and that Agent dude?" Lewis looked at her and thought his answer over and said, "They were just sitting there, talking." Hannah leaned forward and said," And then what? How did she stop him from, ya know..." Lewis knew people were curious and he was surprised someone waited this long to approach him about it. He shook his head and said, "I don't remember much. I only remember hearing her yelling for him to stop and to put me down." Hannah looked at him with wide eyes and said," She was yelling at Agent Smith?" Lewis nodded his head and went back to his dinner but Hannah wasn't done. She leaned forward again and said, "Don't you think it's strange we never see sentinels anymore – ever? It's like they see us and then disappear." Lewis pushed his dinner away and looked annoyed and answered, "Hannah, I don't know! Maybe this Agent man figured out what ship she's on and made them stop or better yet, maybe he got a guilty conscious about attacking me. I just know that I'm glad we've not run into any of them." Hannah sat back and said, "So do you think she'll go back in?" Lewis shrugged his shoulders and started eating his now cold dinner.
Mia sat in her favourite place in the storage area and had her eyes closed as she leaned against the cold metal wall. She found the coldness of metal helped her focus her thoughts. She so wanted to go back into the Matrix but was afraid. What if Smith found out she was in there and had not contacted him? She sighed as she tried to imagine what he thought about her – if he thought about her all. Mia could imagine that he now thought she was afraid of him and maybe that's was why she never went back in. She made up her mind, she would go back into the Matrix. Mia got up and went to see the Captain and let him know her decision. He was pleased and said they would go into the Matrix in the morning.
Mia was restless all night. She was excited but she also dreaded going back into the Matrix. She didn't know how she would react if she saw Smith but she was more worried at how he would react to seeing her. The crew got ready to enter the Matrix. Mia was given a phone but told only to use it in extreme emergency. She was again paired with Hannah. They would be the ones waiting at the exit to make sure everything went smoothly for everyone's return. Everyone came to in an old hotel room and everyone got ready. Mia looked down at her clothes inside the Matrix and grinned. She thought she looked rather good in black leather. Hannah looked over at her and shook her head and said, "I can't believe you still miss that scent even after all this time. I do have to admit, it does smell nice. Mia didn't bother with an answer as she looked out of the window over the city below. She didn't know much about their mission only that they had to pick up some message and pass it along to Zion. Mia found herself wondering about Smith and what he was doing right now. Did he know they were in the Matrix and what would he do if he knew she was in? She closed her eyes and hoped that he wouldn't know she was there. She fantasized about sneaking off to the apartment and what his reaction would be when he realized she was there. The sound of a ringing telephone brought her back to the present. She watched as Hannah answered the phone and said into the mouth- piece, "Everything's cool." Hannah hung up and said, "They're on their way back now. " The three hours waiting for the rest of the crew had seemed like it had taken forever. Mia couldn't wait to get out and silently crossed her fingers.
Agent Smith was bored and once again he was looking out of the window over the city. He felt a communication from the mainframe informing him that rebels were in the Matrix. He listened to the report and then contacted Agents Brown and Jones. He morphed into an old man's body in the hotel lobby and watched as Captain Jackson and three other crew members hurried by. He silently sent a signal to the other Agents, these rebels were to be captured alive – no exceptions. He watched as Captain Jackson raised a phone to his ear and said," So far, everything looks good. We'll be there in 5 minutes both of you be ready." He heard Agent Jones say, "We got a lock. They're on the 12th floor – two females in room 121. Shall we proceed?" Smith narrowed his eyes. There were two females. He thought perhaps one of them could be Mia." He waited until the rebels were in the elevator and morphed back into his Agent form. He closed his eyes and looked for someone on the 12th floor and jumped into their code.
Hannah's phone went off again and this time it was Lewis. Mia could hear him yelling, "Get out of there! There are three Agents heading your way!" Hannah snapped the phone shut as the sound of gun fire filled the hallway outside. Hannah yelled, "Stick with me!" She threw the doors open and ran into the hallway. They both started firing as they ran up against the opposite wall. She heard Hannah curse as she dropped her phone. Mia could see Captain Jackson a little further down the hallway firing into a plate glass window. She watched as it broke sending broken shards of glass over an Agent, crushing him to the floor. Mia barely had time to look around before Hannah grabbed her pushing her into a stairwell. She yelled, "Go! I'm right behind you!" They took off down the stairs and Mia handed her phone to Hannah to call for an exit. Mia was a flight of stairs ahead of Hannah when she saw the door open on the floor she just passed. She ducked as the sound of gunfire filled the stairwell. Mia turned and started running up the steps but could hear Hannah yelling, "RUN! AGENTS"
The Agents sedated the rebel so he still looked like he was just knocked unconscious. Agents Brown and Jones were curious as to why they bothered with him as it was obvious that the rebel was going to die soon anyway. He had suffered several broken bones and the bullet hole in his stomach had sealed his fate. They had wondered if Agent Smith was just displaying his cruel streak that seemed to have intensified in the last two months. The Agents set him up in a room and were waiting for Agent Smith. He sauntered in and told them to stop the bleeding and give the rebel something for the pain. When Agent Jones raised an eyebrow, Smith bellowed, "Do it!" The rebel was injected with a silvery substance. The rebel's eye snapped open and he looked around. He saw the Agents all standing in the room and closed his eyes. He had been shot. The rebel looked over at the Agent sitting at a monitoring device and recognized him as the one who shot him from the fire escape. He was still looking at the Agent when he heard the one standing before him say," So Mr. Martin, we meet again. Just for no other reason than to 'be nice' I'll tell you that the rest of your crew got away. Oh they were injured but they got away none the less. But I also have to tell you, your intended target didn't quite make it." The rebel looked at Agent Smith and growled," We will never stop fighting! Never quit fighting the system or freeing enslaved minds!" He then coughed and fell silent. He knew he was dying. He just hoped that the Agents wouldn't him torture until he did. Agent Smith watched the dying man and said, "Leave me." Agents Brown and Jones exchanged glances but said nothing as they both got up and left.
Agent Smith walked over to the table, picked up a syringe and came and sat across from the rebel. He reached up and removed his sun glasses. He then removed the ear piece, letting it fall over his collar. As Smith looked at the syringe he said, "Mr. Martin, you're dying and it's a wonder your crew mates don't simply pull the plug and end your pain. Tell me Mr. Martin, is there anyone aboard your ship that can do this for you?" The rebel blinked and answered, "I'll not tell you anything, torture me all you want." Smith sat watching the rebel and said, "Hmmm - torture you? I don't think so Mr. Martin. I have a deal to make with you." The rebel could feel his life blood ebbing away and tried not to focus on the pain. He so wished someone had stayed on the ship. If anyone did make it back and they were as injured as this Agent said, they might not be in any condition to unplug anyone. He blinked and said, "I'm dying! What kind of deal can we make? He then started laughing and said, "If it's for my soul, Rachael already has it." Smith was getting annoyed and leaned forward and said, "I want information on a certain individual. Her name is Mia. I need to know what happened to her." The rebel blinked and shook his head and said, "What would you want to know about Mia for?" Agent Smith leaned forward in the chair and said, "You know her?" The rebel shook his head and said, "Yes, I know her but I'll not tell you anything about her." He then winced and fell forward in his restraints in the chair. Smith pushed him back with the tip of his finger, careful not to touch the human too much. He then took the syringe and injected it into the man's neck. He heard the man sigh and his eyes flutter open. Smith again leaned forward and said,"Mr. Martin we don't have much time. I just gave you something that will numb the pain and make your passing painless. I want to know about Mia. I need to know what happened to her." The rebel blinked his eyes as he no longer felt anything and just stared at this Agent. He shook his head and said, "Why would you care about Mia?" Smith answered, "I want to know what happened to her after she came back when her ship's operator Lewis was attacked." The Rebels eyes widened as he made the connection and said," It was you who attacked Lewis!" Smith only nodded and said, "Continue." The rebel looked at Smith and said," It was rumoured that she took him into the Matrix and you – Agent Smith found them and attacked Lewis. It was her fault that he was in the Matrix in the first place as operators don't ever go into the Matrix. I don't think she's allowed in the Matrix any more because of it." Smith never took his eyes off the rebel and said," That's not true. Lewis came in of his own accord. If it weren't for Mia stopping me, I would have killed him." The rebel blinked his eyes and said," She stopped you? How?" Smith looked away before looking back and answered, "She and I were lovers. I needed to know what happened to her and why she stopped coming into the Matrix." The rebel started to laugh but the laughter died on his lips when he saw that Smith was deadly serious. He somehow knew his time was near and answered back, "That's why you stopped the pain! So you could find out about her? "Smith watched as the light was fading from the rebel's eyes and answered," Yes. I needed to know that I did not frighten her into not coming back." The rebel chuckled and said, "I can't believe that Mia made it with a machine..." His head dropped forward and Smith knew he was gone.
Smith sat there for a few minutes before finally putting his sun glasses back on and connecting the ear piece. He sent a signal to Agent Brown and Jones to come and remove the body. He walked back to his office and went in, shutting the door. He knew that Jones and Brown had followed him with their eyes as he left the room but he didn't care about them or what they thought. He felt the feather light touch of the mainframe enter his subconscious and turned his mind to matters of the Matrix. He knew the machines were pleased with his work as he felt a gentle caress of his mind as the mainframe withdrew. Smith got up and walked to the window. He could see that it was going to rain again and thought with some irony, that he used to like it when it rained. His thoughts turned towards Mia. At least now he knew that it wasn't fear of him that was keeping her out of the Matrix. He was surprised at the strong desire he felt when he thought about wanting to see her again.
*****************************************************
Mia was half way through her shift when Captain Jackson came onto the main deck. He sat down in his chair and said, "Mia, I need to ask you a favour. I know that you've avoided going into the Matrix and that was your decision but I'm one person short going into the Matrix and I need you. You won't have to use any phone lines and we can pair you up with Hannah again. Let me know later tonight some time after dinner. And Mia, if you decide not to go back in, I'll just have to figure something else out." Mia was aware of several exchanged looks around the bridge. No one ever came right out and asked her why she never went back in but from the reaction of some of the crew, they didn't know it had been her decision not to go back in. She knew the crew never said anything about what really happened but she had heard the rumours. Captain Jackson thought it best if they just ignored them like the counsel said and they would eventually go away. Mia wasn't sure what her answer would be and would think about it later. She desperately wanted to see Smith again but not as a rebel.
Lewis sat in the mess hall eating his dinner when Hannah came in and sat down across from him. She folded her hands on the table and said in a low voice, "Lewis, what really happened that day? I mean, what were they doing when you opened the door – Mia and that Agent dude?" Lewis looked at her and thought his answer over and said, "They were just sitting there, talking." Hannah leaned forward and said," And then what? How did she stop him from, ya know..." Lewis knew people were curious and he was surprised someone waited this long to approach him about it. He shook his head and said, "I don't remember much. I only remember hearing her yelling for him to stop and to put me down." Hannah looked at him with wide eyes and said," She was yelling at Agent Smith?" Lewis nodded his head and went back to his dinner but Hannah wasn't done. She leaned forward again and said, "Don't you think it's strange we never see sentinels anymore – ever? It's like they see us and then disappear." Lewis pushed his dinner away and looked annoyed and answered, "Hannah, I don't know! Maybe this Agent man figured out what ship she's on and made them stop or better yet, maybe he got a guilty conscious about attacking me. I just know that I'm glad we've not run into any of them." Hannah sat back and said, "So do you think she'll go back in?" Lewis shrugged his shoulders and started eating his now cold dinner.
Mia sat in her favourite place in the storage area and had her eyes closed as she leaned against the cold metal wall. She found the coldness of metal helped her focus her thoughts. She so wanted to go back into the Matrix but was afraid. What if Smith found out she was in there and had not contacted him? She sighed as she tried to imagine what he thought about her – if he thought about her all. Mia could imagine that he now thought she was afraid of him and maybe that's was why she never went back in. She made up her mind, she would go back into the Matrix. Mia got up and went to see the Captain and let him know her decision. He was pleased and said they would go into the Matrix in the morning.
Mia was restless all night. She was excited but she also dreaded going back into the Matrix. She didn't know how she would react if she saw Smith but she was more worried at how he would react to seeing her. The crew got ready to enter the Matrix. Mia was given a phone but told only to use it in extreme emergency. She was again paired with Hannah. They would be the ones waiting at the exit to make sure everything went smoothly for everyone's return. Everyone came to in an old hotel room and everyone got ready. Mia looked down at her clothes inside the Matrix and grinned. She thought she looked rather good in black leather. Hannah looked over at her and shook her head and said, "I can't believe you still miss that scent even after all this time. I do have to admit, it does smell nice. Mia didn't bother with an answer as she looked out of the window over the city below. She didn't know much about their mission only that they had to pick up some message and pass it along to Zion. Mia found herself wondering about Smith and what he was doing right now. Did he know they were in the Matrix and what would he do if he knew she was in? She closed her eyes and hoped that he wouldn't know she was there. She fantasized about sneaking off to the apartment and what his reaction would be when he realized she was there. The sound of a ringing telephone brought her back to the present. She watched as Hannah answered the phone and said into the mouth- piece, "Everything's cool." Hannah hung up and said, "They're on their way back now. " The three hours waiting for the rest of the crew had seemed like it had taken forever. Mia couldn't wait to get out and silently crossed her fingers.
Agent Smith was bored and once again he was looking out of the window over the city. He felt a communication from the mainframe informing him that rebels were in the Matrix. He listened to the report and then contacted Agents Brown and Jones. He morphed into an old man's body in the hotel lobby and watched as Captain Jackson and three other crew members hurried by. He silently sent a signal to the other Agents, these rebels were to be captured alive – no exceptions. He watched as Captain Jackson raised a phone to his ear and said," So far, everything looks good. We'll be there in 5 minutes both of you be ready." He heard Agent Jones say, "We got a lock. They're on the 12th floor – two females in room 121. Shall we proceed?" Smith narrowed his eyes. There were two females. He thought perhaps one of them could be Mia." He waited until the rebels were in the elevator and morphed back into his Agent form. He closed his eyes and looked for someone on the 12th floor and jumped into their code.
Hannah's phone went off again and this time it was Lewis. Mia could hear him yelling, "Get out of there! There are three Agents heading your way!" Hannah snapped the phone shut as the sound of gun fire filled the hallway outside. Hannah yelled, "Stick with me!" She threw the doors open and ran into the hallway. They both started firing as they ran up against the opposite wall. She heard Hannah curse as she dropped her phone. Mia could see Captain Jackson a little further down the hallway firing into a plate glass window. She watched as it broke sending broken shards of glass over an Agent, crushing him to the floor. Mia barely had time to look around before Hannah grabbed her pushing her into a stairwell. She yelled, "Go! I'm right behind you!" They took off down the stairs and Mia handed her phone to Hannah to call for an exit. Mia was a flight of stairs ahead of Hannah when she saw the door open on the floor she just passed. She ducked as the sound of gunfire filled the stairwell. Mia turned and started running up the steps but could hear Hannah yelling, "RUN! AGENTS"