A/N: Yeah, I know, it's the 9th and I promised everyone I'd update by the seventh. But my family decided to extend the holiday and you know....what could I do? But I bought a notebook while I was away and handwrote the next three chapters-so now all I have to do is transfer them to the computer. Remember to read my little proposition at the end of the chapter, and I promise to continue to update as frequently as possible (which may not be that often since I have exams coming up).
13
"Ok." Stated a startled Tank, emerging from behind his consol, eyes wide with awe and complete confusion. "What the hell just happened over here?"
Neo said nothing, watching Trinity intently. She was still perched delicately on the edge of his jack-in chair, one arm resting on his chest and the other hanging limply by her side, her body weak and light against him. She was staring avidly into space, her head tilted downwards so that soft strands of hair slide over her pale cheeks-untouched by rays of sun yet tinged with a reddish hue. Her loose and tatty faded blue over-shirt had slid over the shoulder closest to him, as if her skin had proved too smooth for it to cling to, revealing the thin straps of her undershirt and the even thinner strap of her bra prodding out from underneath it against a velvety white shoulder. Her downcast eyes failed to reflect any emotions she may be feeling towards him, leaving Neo in a state of disbelief and puzzlement, although her was sure he saw the corners of her lips flicker upwards briefly when she lifted her hand from his chest and focused on his foot clasps instead.
Lips he had only just kissed....
Even now he found it hard to believe that she loved him. He could see, as he swiveled around in his chair, that Morpheus and Tank shared the same disbelief as they neared him.
Becoming conscious of the fact that she was still sitting on the edge of Neo's chair, Trinity felt her cheeks burn red and she scrambled to her feet in order to give Neo the room he needed to stand up. Judging by the expressions on the faces of the Nebuchadnezzar's remaining crew members, Trinity gathered that none had payed much attention (let alone heard) her confession of love and was silently thankful for it- not at all in the mood for facing a full confrontation yet.
Kissing Neo had been the most pleasurable things she'd ever experienced. It was a sensation of passion and joy only made stronger when they kissing the second time, when he had been physically able to kiss her back. Yet she was afraid that he would not feel the same way. Scared that her love would not be returned even now after all that had happened. Perhaps she had lied a little to him before when she said she was no longer afraid.
Neo pushed himself upwards in an attempt to sit up, only to cry out in pain when he felt an aching, throbbing sensation in his chest. He'd been far too enraptured in Trinity to take any notice of the bullet wounds in his chest and the bruises sure to be forming on his stomach beneath his shirt. He winced with pain, failing back into the chair as Trinity's eyes filled with concern.
"I better take him to the Med Bay." Trinity said urgently, taking Neo's arm and putting it around her shoulders, helping him stagger to his feet. She had used this method to assist other crew members to the Med Bay numerous times before and did so out of pure instinct. Yet things were (as they always were) very different when it came to Neo. Her entire body melted at the intensely close contact and she felt him tense beside her despite his injury, clinging to her tightly for support. She smiled inwardly to herself- this was the first time she'd been close enough to him long enough to register the way he reacted to her touch. This helped to ease away the cloud of doubt that he may not return her feelings.
"Tank, I'll need to stitch that wound." Morpheus gestured to the blood staining the side of his now only living operator's shirt. "You should be taken straight to the Med Bay as well."
Tank nodded, gritting his teeth in pain and yet managing to force a smile onto his face. "Yes, sir."
Trinity had already begun her walk to the Med Bay, guiding Neo and reacting to his support as he stumbled beside her, already half unconscious. She hardly heard Morpheus's and Tank's boots plodding down the corridor behind her, Neo's health being the only thing on her mind. Wrenching open the door to the Med Bay, she led Neo to the nearest table and lowered him onto it as gently as she could.
He emitted a soft groan of agony as his body came in contact with the frozen metal, snapping his eyes shut as if this would somehow block out the pain. Her eyes filling with sympathy and concern, Trinity kept her gaze on his chalk white face as her hand searched and found his own, clutching it tightly and spreading a sense of comfort throughout both. Trinity was surprised to find that his skin was cold after experiencing death.
His lips felt so warm..."Trinity?" Morpheus asked quietly, helping Tank to the table beside the one Neo was lying upon. "Do you feeling alright."
"I'm fine." She lied, focusing on Neo's limp form as he breathed softly. Soothingly. In....out....in....out....
Morpheus nodded, turning his attentions back to Tank and filled a syringe with clear liquid before ejecting it into the already seemingly unconscious young operator. At once, Tank's body fell limp the table and he relaxed into sleep.
Trinity, meanwhile, grasped the hem of Neo's shirt and tugged it over his head, causing him to cry out in agony. Trinity winced, hating herself for causing his pain, yet taking comfort in the knowledge that she was helping him as well. The open bullet wounds on his chest were still bleeding rapidly, some much deeper than others and sure to leave scars that would last a good few months. To top it off, he had attained multiple bruises to his stomach from being punched ferociously and even larger bruise on his back from colliding with hard surfaces during his fight with Smith. Not to mention the graze wounds on his sides.
Looks like I won't be getting any sleep tonight. Trinity smirked to herself. Neo was already slumped across the table, seeming unconscious if it weren't for his heavy breathing mixed with pain. Part of her wished he weren't so exhausted or injured. Kissing him had only made her realize that being without love or a close relationship throughout her life had only resulted in her own emptiness and depression. Now that he'd tasted what it was like to be in love, she only wanted to further explore the relationship that was sure to follow. However, her rational mind new that Neo was not physically ready for this, nor was she emotionally ready. Love would have to wait another night.
She began to cleanse Neo's bullet wounds, applying pressure to stop the bleeding. She was still in a state of disbelief: unable to believe that the man she was tending to was the One, and therefore the man she gave her love to in order to save him. And unable to believe all that had happened in just one day.
How could I loose almost everyone in one day? She asked herself, sponging away Neo's blood with a damp cloth. Why them? Why their lives? Cypher is such a bastard. What did the others ever do to him? Why the hell did they have to die?
"Morpheus," Trinity whispered. Feeling tears prickle the corners of her eyes as she struggled to form words, still keeping watch over the now unconscious Neo. "What the hell just happened?"
Morpheus sighed, putting the damp cloth he was using to cleanse Tank's wound aside and crossing the room to stand beside her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and squeezing them gently.
"Honestly, Trinity, I hardly know myself." He smiled kindly, sadness shinning in his eyes. "If you feel like you can't do this....that you're too tired....I'll understand. I can finish treating Neo."
Trinity firmly shook her head, not tearing her eyes away from Neo's pain-stricken face. Although she welcomed the idea of sleep, she knew she wouldn't be able to rest until she knew Neo was in decent health. "No, I want to do it."
It was then that Morpheus noticed that Trinity was clutching Neo's hand tightly, running her thumb gently across his knuckles. He had thought he'd seen them kissing before but didn't dare believe it was real. His mind must have been playing tricks on him....something that absurd couldn't have been real. But the fact that she was holding his hand only made him curious and even more confused then he already had been. Moving back to Tank and preparing to stitch his now fully cleansed wound, he decided to question her.
"What I would really like to know." Morpheus began carefully, knowing that he would provoke know answers from her by simply asking straight out. "Is what brought Neo back to life in the first place. I saw him monitors dir with my own eyes, and yet here he is, a little worse for wear I must admit, but completely alive. How is that possible?"
Trinity let go of Neo's hand in order to inject him with a syringe and almost at once wished she hadn't. Her body froze to Morpheus's question, and she felt as if she needed the comfort only Neo could give her now more than ever. She watched as his body fell limp, and his pain-filled breathing slowed and calmed. Her was face was rigid and her hands trembled as she inspected the now cleansed wounds, deciding which ones would require stitching. Yet her mind was traveling elsewhere.
I told Switch and Tank about my prophecy...why can't I tell Morpheus? Besides, he'd find out anyway now that Neo and I are...actually, I have no idea what to call the relationship we have now, if we have any at all.
"About eleven years ago." Trinity began, choosing her words carefully. "Six months after I was unplugged, you took me to see the Oracle. She told me.....she t-told me that I-I fall in love with the One. W-When Neo died I....I couldn't- no wouldn't believe it. I told him he couldn't be dead....that he had to be the One because I loved him. That's when he came back to life."
Trinity paused, her face flushed as Morpheus stared at her in shocked disbelief. Folding her arms across her chest, she kept her eyes on Neo's still face, gesturing to him as she spoke in her familiar commanding tone. "When he comes to, he should be able to give you a much better explanation than I can."
Morpheus said nothing, turning back to Tank. Trinity....and Neo? He wouldn't have expected something like that to happen in a million years. Trinity's prophecy came as the biggest shock to him....if he had known what the Oracle had told her before, he would have done things much differently. He wouldn't have kept trying to convince her that Neo was the One, for starters. He knew how hard it must have been for her, unsure of who was the One and who wasn't, perhaps hoping Neo was but still not daring to believe it. Worried she would love him because he was the One, and not because of who he was. Worst of all, she didn't even believe in the prophecy herself.
It must have been hell for her, having to endure all the snide comments she overheard Tank make about her and Neo when part of her knew that what he was saying was right. Although Tank wasn't to blame- how could he have known? He supposed then that he really couldn't blame himself for the way he spoke about Neo being the One so openly around her. How could he have known that he was toying with Trinity's emotions? Besides, what happened, happened for a reason. Maybe things would have been different if he knew Trinity's prophecy in advance, perhaps for the worse. Although he really couldn't see how their current situation could get any worse.
Now that he thought about it, he did notice something pass between the two of them leading up to the current day. Things that passed between them such as words or actions, obvious displays of affection. He smirked to himself as he continued to stitch up Tank's wound. He may have been an experienced hacker, captain, solider and fighter who could deft the rules of the Matrix and was considered legendary by all humans, but he was hopeless when it came to love.
Trinity was thankful for Morpheus's silence as it gave her time to think. Yet she was also unnerved by it. What does Morpheus think about Neo and I? What if he doesn't like the idea of us being together and thinks it will disrupt the war? I don't think I could take it if Morpheus chose to separate us.
Time passed (neither Morpheus or Trinity were sure how long) before both Tank and Neo had both been stitched up. Once Morpheus finished treating Tank, he began to help Trinity with Neo by applying dressing to the bullet wounds that weren't deep enough to be stitched and using ice to numb the bruises on his stomach and back. They worked silently, both lost in their own thoughts as they rewound the day's events in their minds and tried to make sense of everything. Both had many questions they wished to ask the other, yet they both felt that now was not the time. When Neo's injuries had all finally been treated, Trinity and Morpheus stood back to rest, unsure of where to go from here. Finally, Morpheus spoke.
"What are we going to do with the bodies?" He asked, yet to discover why most of his crew (not including Mouse) were dead.
Trinity saw her own inner sadness mirrored in the eyes of her captain and shrugged. She felt weak and feeble with depression, unable to be described with words, yet still mixed with a joy of some kind. She loved Neo. He loved her. No one would ever be able to take that away from her. But this still didn't guarantee her everlasting happiness- the feelings she had hoped would accompany love. In fact, she felt empty and ashamed. Ashamed she could feel so happy when one of her two closest friends now lay dead only a few feet away from her, along with the rest of the crew.
"We can't leave them in the core." Morpheus continued sadly. "I think we should carry Neo and Tank back to their rooms and then carry the bodies in here. It's the best place I can think of putting them for now. But only if you think you can."
Trinity knew he was talking about her both being physically and mentally able to do this seemingly challenging task. Yet she pretended he only meant to ask if she was physically able to for her own benefit.
"I'm not tired." She murmured quietly. "I should be able to."
"Let's just see how we go." Morpheus smiled sadly, taking the used medical supplies to stow away. Trinity helped by taking the two damp and bloody cloths and washing them and ringing them dry.
Once this was done, Morpheus moved the table Neo lay unconscious upon and took his arms, preparing to lift the other man's upper body. Tucking an IV pouch under one arm, Trinity lifted Neo's legs and together with Morpheus, proceeded to fulfill the dangerous task of lifting him to the ladder that descended to the lower deck. They paused to exchange anxious glances, knowing that carrying Neo down the ladder would prove physically impossible, as it would be to awaken the unconscious Neo. Yet they needed the Med Bay empty to house the dead bodies of the rest of the crew. Eventually, Morpheus came up with the solution.
"Drop his legs and start down the ladder." Morpheus ordered. Trinity fixed him with a look of uncertainty, unsure of how this would improve the situation. Even so, she obeyed, hurrying down the first few rudders before dropping to the ground.
Moments later, Morpheus descended the ladder with the unconscious Neo slumped across his back. If it weren't for her already disturbed emotions, she would have thought the scene was comical, especially the look on Morpheus's face. But she upheld a stony expression until Morpheus reached the last rudder. She took hold of Neo's upper body and Morpheus turned to take his legs.
"Just take him into the nearest room." Morpheus instructed, nodding over her shoulder. "Directly behind you, through that open door."
Trinity knew who that room belonged to.....or had belonged to, because it was the room just next door to her own. It had belonged to Apoc and Switch and was the only room on the entire ship with a double bed.
She backed into the room and lowered the unconscious Neo onto the bed with expert care. After he rested Neo's legs, Morpheus stood in the doorframe, leaning against the wall with his arms folded across his chest to watch the scene that followed. Trinity sat on the bed to carefully unbuckle Neo's boots and slide them off, dropping them to the floor. She moved him up against the wall so that she could hang the IV pouch (which had by some miracle remained securely tucked under her arm) on the wall and jab the needle into one of Neo's arm plugs, wincing as she did so, hating herself for hurting him. She knew from when she treated him previously that he hated IV pouches, but it couldn't be helped. And it would help him to heal much faster.
Morpheus watched on in amazement. He had never seen Trinity so careful with someone before, nor had he thought it was physically possible to put an IV pouch needle into another's arm plug so tenderly. He had seen the way Trinity winced when she knew she had to hurt him, noticed how careful she was to cause him as little pain as possible, and knew these were things Trinity didn't often do. He smiled to himself from the doorframe as Trinity tucked the blankets around Neo's waist, leaving his bare chest open to the cold so the blankets wouldn't scratch him and cause him any further discomfort, wondering how he had been able to miss seeing their love before.
They repeated the same procedure with Tank's unconscious body, taking him to the room opposite Neo's. Morpheus couldn't help noticing that although she was careful, Trinity was much more gentle with Neo than with Tank. Once this task was complete, the ascended the ladder and made their way to the core.
Silently, Morpheus reached the five bodied covered with ragged blankets and lying stiffly on the floor. Trinity stopped beside him, choking back tears and keeping her face as emotionless as possible. On the outside, she may have appeared cool, calm and collected while faced with a situation many people would crumble at. However, she was a mess of shattered emotions inside, completely destroyed by a sensation of experiencing too many entirely different feelings at once.
They took Cypher first. If she hadn't been able to control herself, she would have loved nothing better than to cause him great pain, so much that he would feel it in death. There was no feeling of pity, sadness or grief when she looked upon Cypher's covered face. Only purest loathing.
That son of a bitch. He killed them all, the slimy bastard. He nearly took the lives of Morpheus and Tank...and even Neo, and all so he could get back in the fucking Matrix! Hell, he didn't even make it! They were all killed for nothing! Goddamit, Morpheus should have known better than to trust him after what happened before...he injured Neo, probably just because he was pissed that I was attracted to him. Oh God, he was actually attracted to me! That's repulsive!
After taking Cypher's body to the Med Bay, Morpheus led the way back to the core with Trinity shuffling behind him, still stewing in her own rage with Cypher. She felt as if she would explode with rage if she didn't find a way to release her anger soon. But the moment she returned to the core, all feelings of anger seemed to evaporate when they collected Apoc's body.
He was always so strong both mentally and physically...so sure of who he was as a person, with his own essence of self pride. Perhaps he was a little too quiet and private...but than again, so am I. He didn't deserve to die, especially the way he did. If he loved Switch half as much as I love Neo, then leaving her behind like that must have been hell for him, especially when he didn't know what was going to happen to her...although she didn't really live that much longer...
Next, they returned for Dozer's body, and it seemed as if it kept getting worse. Trinity struggled to hold her tears at bay, building dams around her eyes to store all emotion behind them.
Dozer wasn't one to talk much, but because of that he saw so much more than anyone else. He even noticed something between Neo and I...there was no reason for him to die. He saw Tank die and never lived long enough to see that he really would be ok.
They set Dozer's body on a table in the Med Bay, leaving only one table vacant which meant that there wouldn't be enough room and the only solution was that one body lie on the floor. In Trinity's frame of mind, the only person who deserved such treatment was Cypher. But Morpheus made no motion to move the body, most likely because he hadn't been told the story of Cypher's betrayal. Instead, he made his way back to the core, struggling to keep himself stable but not doing as good a job of it as Trinity was.
They took Mouse next, who's weight proved to be a lighter burden on Trinity's already exhausted arms but unfortunately not a lighter burden on her heart.
He may have been annoying and woman-crazed, but he was the little brother I never had, and far too young to die. If he hadn't been the talkative, dirty-minded character he was, then life on board the Neb would have been a lot denser and plainer then it was. At least he died fighting...died a hero's death fighting unlike everyone else, just like the Oracle said he would. How ironic, since he was the best person I expected to die like that.
Switch was taken last. No thoughts crossed Trinity's mind as she lifted the other woman by the legs and, with Morpheus, proceeded to carry her into the Med Bay. She knew that if she allowed herself to think about Switch and the many times they'd shared from the day Trinity helped the only newly unplugged Apoc to unplug her until the day she died, the barrier would falter and she would break down and cry.
I will not cry...I will not cry...Switch wouldn't want me to cry. She'd tell me I was being stupid, and that crying would only make me weak. She'd tell me to be emotionless, she'd tell me not to feel.
Trinity knew that these thoughts were wrong. If Switch was here, she would most likely say the exact opposite. Yet these thoughts were all that helped her to keep the emotions bubbling beneath her skin under control. However, they could do nothing to prevent her from crying out when the blanket covering Switch's face fell back to reveal a startling white face, cold and bitter having been left without life and eyelids snapped shut in death.
Morpheus said nothing, but fixed her with a look of concern that spoke for itself. Trinity shook her head, willing herself to see this through. But the battle she fought within her between her mind and her heart was coming to an abrupt end. The heart won. The damn in her eyes was beginning to break into an overload of tears.
Once Switch had been laid beside Apoc on a single table, Morpheus fixed Trinity with a stern look. "You're obviously exhausted, and you need to get some rest. I'll watch over the ship in case there's another sentinel attack. Although without any means of defense, I don't know what we could do. I suppose we'll just have to pray that our position is too remote and no sentinels will take notice of us. You should go to bed, and we'll start repairing the ship tomorrow."
He wasn't requesting that she sleep. He was ordering it. Unable to speak in her current state, Trinity merely nodded and hurried out of the Med Bay to the ladder. She jumped to the lower level, crossed the hall to her room, slammed the door shut behind her and collapsed onto her bed. All at once, tears began to spill from her eyes, staining her cheeks as she erupted in gasping sobs. She pounded the pillow in frustration and anger. Angry at Cypher for what he did, and frustrated with herself for being unable to stop it.
When she became too tired to take her anger out any longer, she fell onto the pillow with only sadness left in her heart as she grieved for all who had died, and especially for Switch. Pulling the blankets up to her chin to shield her from the cold and not even bothering to remove her boots (Let alone her other clothes), she lay a damp cheek against an equally damp pillow, sobbing silently to herself until her throat was too hoarse and her eyes to dry and swollen to cry any longer. She faced the wall with her back turned to the rest of the room, facing the metal wall.
Neo's on the other side of that wall...It seemed stupid to her that something as small and insignificant as a steel wall could separate herself from him. Subconsciously, she pressed her body against the frozen metal, frosty and bitter cold on her tear-stained cheek in an attempt to close the gap between him and herself. Despite the coldness of the wall, she could almost feeling a comforting warmth pressed up against the other side. Hours past, and she eventually drifted into a restless sleep.
A/N: Hope you all enjoyed the chapter. And now for my proposition. I have decided, although I have already plotted and planned this entire story out, I will take a single request from the person who is my 100th reviewer. My 100th reviewer (and ONLY my 100th reviewer) can suggest anything they want me to do for this story-it can be a piece of dialogue, an action or an entire scene, whatever-and I have to include it sometime before the end of the story even if I don't like the idea. I want to know what you thought, so reviews are appreciated, and I want to make this story better for YOU, so tell me what I can improve and the 100th reviewer gets to make a request.
AND NO MONIQUE- NEO IS NOT GOING TO AIR GUITAR SO DON'T EVEN TRY IT!
Yes....um.....REVIEW!!!