Chapter 9 – A little less conversation

A/n: Are you not amazed at my super-speed update! Thank you very much to all you reviewers for your support, my week has been v stressful and it meant a lot to me. Four-leaved clovers to bluezenith, E. L. Lockhart and Gwen Luthael!

Trinity's feet barely touched the ground. The air was cool on her cheeks, almost as cool as the moonlight. She didn't wear a watch on her slim wrist, but she instinctively knew that it was nearing midnight. The witching hour, the time when Ana's life would change irrevocably, for good or bad. Quelling the strange feeling rising in her stomach, she realised with annoyance that it was anxiety. She was running faster than she ever had in her life, even when running from the Agents. Realising this, she slowed her pace.

For a few moments her mahogany-tinted eyes became distant and cloudy, losing their usual piercing gaze. The landscape around her was becoming dismal and uninviting as she entered the run-down area of the city. Bags of litter were slumped in shadowed doorways, some spilling lazily into the street. Scraps of paper and left-over food sprawled haphazardly, and faint scurrying sounds alerted her to the presence of other creatures than herself. Trinity had almost come to a halt.

She was remembering the first time she had seen a place like this. The dilapidated streets had been a bit of a shock to say the least.

…But, what about our old house? We can't live here, it's…horrible.

I'm sure it's not as bad as it looks. Come on inside, it will be fine once you get used to it

The quiet beeping of her phone interrupted her thoughts. Realising she had stopped running, she glanced around before sprinting forwards. Sliding the small black handset out of her pocket, she put it to her ear. Switch's voice held the hint of a smile.

"You always get yourself into these situations."

"And I always get myself out."

"You do know you're infuriatingly stubborn? And that's why I love you."

"Thanks…I think." Trinity's lips curled into an almost-smile as she continued to weave through the deserted streets.

"You're welcome…ma'am."

"Yeah, yeah. So what's the status of An…the Anomaly?"

"She's definitely seen Niobe. They're stuck in an alleyway down on Belgrave Avenue. Somehow I don't think that Niobe's seen her though. Niobe's got the senses of a cat on speed, so I…it doesn't make sense."

Trinity paused in front of a towering wooden fence, registering the faint flashing of a swaying neon sign through the corner of her sunglasses.

"Mmm."

Dropping down into a crouch, she suddenly swivelled and sprang upwards, swinging herself over the fence before stretching to pull herself up to a rooftop, with little obvious effort.

"Is that all you can come up with? You've never been one to be lost for words, Trin."

"Listen, I'm going to have to hang up, I'm getting close. If it gets hairy, try and get Niobe out of there first, OK? I can take care of myself."

"Don't think you're getting out of it that easy, I'm not going to abandon you. Good luck."

Trinity dropped the slim phone back into the pocket of her slim, dark trench coat, thinking about what Switch had said. This just gets weirder and weirder.

After the conversation had ended, Switch paused for a moment, staring blankly at the screen, deep in thought. A faint sound made her freeze, and then spin the chair around, ready for action.

Morpheus was standing right behind her, chestnut eyes twinkling with a rare and secretive mischief. Switch relaxed back into her seat, spinning it around in mock annoyance. Unconsciously she straightened her uneven sleeves.

"Jeez, Morpheus. Seriously. One of these days you're gonna find yourself Switchless. And I really don't want to be up in front of the council on murder charges. It ain't good for a girl's reputation."

"Switch, I've known you since you were…what? 6 years old?"

"I was NINE, as you well know", she said forcefully, before relaxing into a smile, powerful fingers typing once more.

Morpheus was silent behind her, but she could almost feel his smile. "So I was small for my age. I had a –"

"-very fast metabolism", he chorused. "I know, I know. But your size, or lack of it…" Switch raised an eyebrow. Morpheus continued, unabashed "…is not the reason why I'm here".

Suddenly, Switch remembered what she had just done. The word mutiny echoed unpleasantly in her mind. Trying to appear unconcerned, she was frantically thinking of a way to distract Morpheus. Unfortunately, the only thought ricocheting around her head was the punishment for mutiny. It wasn't death, but it might as well be. A life without the Nebuchadnezzar was unthinkable, and lifting heavy objects had never really been top on her list of priorities. But worse than that would be the disappointment of the crew, most of all Morpheus. She had never gone behind his back before. There was a sick feeling in her stomach.

Apart from that time when she and Trinity had switched all of Morpheus' clothes with Mouse's. She could still see the look on his face when he entered the breakfast room, half amused, half angry. All the newbies had heard the legend, and often thought that was why she was called Switch. But that was a completely different story.

And the time they had finished a scouting mission early, and were forced to fake that there had been complications, so that they had time for a motorbike race across the whole city. Well they had to come up with some story to explain away the multitude of cuts and bruises they had inflicted on themselves and each other. As the only girls on this ship, they had to stick together. Trinity might fake a tough exterior, but…

Of course, that had been when Niobe had been with them too, but now she had her own ship. Trinity was skilled enough to be a Captain by now, but she seemed to prefer her 'family'. She didn't always come across well to new people. And now Switch had Apoc, Trinity had been withdrawing further into herself again. She was spending more time 'with' the Anomaly than with the crew. Did she recognise something of herself in the girl? Trinity's past was a bit of a mystery and she preferred to keep it that way.

All of these thoughts ran through Switch's head in an instant, before she realised that she was still frozen like a rabbit in headlights. She opened her mouth to speak, having no idea what she was going to say. Morpheus didn't look angry. Yet.

"Don't worry, Switch. I'm not going to eat you."

Switch didn't relax her death-grip on the chair.

"I know where Trinity has gone, and I know why you did what you did." When the woman in front of him still looked unconvinced, Morpheus sighed.

"It's all part of the plan. I knew that Trinity wouldn't be able to resist. She never could resist a challenge." Here he gave a wry smile.

"But why?" Switch's pale fingers relaxed, and her relief was obvious.

"Because Ana must be unplugged before 2am. Trinity is the only one who can do what she needs to, and this was the only way to get her in there without protest. You know as well as I do how stubborn she can be. The Oracle told me that Trinity must be the one to do it, and Trinity alone."

Switch suddenly experienced a second sinking feeling. "She's not alone."

"She's not…what?"

She took a deep breath, raising her angular shoulders. "Niobe's in there too. She and Smith are right on top of Ana. "

Morpheus' eyes took on an indescribable look. "She shouldn't be there. She shouldn't be anywhere near there. It's not part of the plan." The tone of his voice was impossible to decipher.

Not for the first time, Switch wondered what exactly had happened between them. All she knew was that Niobe had left one day and never come back, but the rumours abounded.

Morpheus moved with surprising swiftness. Stepping towards her, he leant on the back of the chair, gripping it heavily as her fingers poised for instructions.

"Now do exactly as I say."