Chapter 11
Challenge Accepted
The changelings watched Morpheus warily.
"Well, then how many people agree to Faith?" Ra asked the room.
Everyone held up there hands in a unanimous vote. Faith was a bit star struck, as she turned to see Neo swallow nervously.
"What type of fight is involved?" Oz asked watching Faith and Neo.
Morpheus looked as though he thought of that. "What do you mean type?"
"Well, are they just going to fight to the death?" Frost asked.
"Certainly not!" Mystic objected.
A tall brunette man stepped forward, "as a member of the council, I know you have not consoled them on this matter."
"I wanted to talk to you all first." Morpheus defended. "You know how the council is they refuse to let any challenges take place in Zion. With the One involved and the changelings I thought we would have a better chance at this."
"Any programs?" A teenaged girl asked.
"From whomever the council chooses." Morpheus stated.
A few murmurs drifted through the room. Mystic watched Faith. "Faith?" Faith looked up at her. "Do you accept the challenge?"
"Only when I know the terms," Faith said strongly.
"Smart girl, the council has a meeting today. You, Oz, Morpheus, Neo, and I will attend. Strike will present our case."
Faith nodded her head, as mystic stepped back onto the platform. "Well, Morpheus, we let you speak, your business here is done. You and Trinity can let yourselves out, and Neo, you are welcome to stay."
Neo joined the circle as Morpheus and Trinity left. Mystic continued on with the meeting.
El, Bones, and Lex watched with interest as Morpheus entered the large cavern with only Trinity at his side. He looked pissed, while Trinity was completely unreadable.
"Wonder what that was all about?" Lex said.
"Morpheus discovered that Mystic thinks he's a joke?" Bone suggested.
"Wouldn't be surprised," El added.
"So what's it like being a ship with changelings?" Lex asked.
"Dude, you should totally sign up for one!" Bones exclaimed. "Lava is hot and I don't mean sexually. She's demon that is completely made of molten rock."
"El, comment," Lex asked.
"Well, Oz is always cool, especially when he transforms into a wolf in the matrix. But I don't remember Oz having as many spaz attacks as Frost. The guy is mentally damaged."
"And you like him." Bones stated.
"Do not."
"You so do." Lex said watching her blush.
"Yeah, well you're totally sparking for Faith." El said defending herself.
"Sparking?" Lex asked.
"Yeah, ya know when you look at someone like you have sparks in your eyes." Bones explained.
"You're trippin; I don't have a thing for her."
"Course not." El said with a smile.
"So what's up with the crosses her cheeks?" Lex asked.
"Not sure, she went to bed fine and woke up with them."
"Scary dream?" Bones asked.
"Possibly."
Faith and oz were able to get some lunch before the council meeting. Ra and Trans promised to keep their eyes on frost in the mean time.
"Should I be nervous?" Faith asked Oz as they entered the auditorium-shaped room.
"No, Morpheus on the other hand should be terrified." Oz said as he led her down to the first row behind the table where Strike sat. "Challenges are not a common practice in Zion. Challenging shipmates is one thing, but we believe that all fight should be geared toward the machines."
"Good point," she watched people enter. "So what does the council think of changelings?"
"They're accepted as much as everyone else." Oz put a supportive hand on her shoulder.
Faith felt a buzz as Morpheus and Neo walked in. Neo glanced up at her nervously.
"What am I worrying about? He's more scared than I am." Faith whispered to Oz.
"You're used to the pressures of a slayer, he new to it all."
Faith watched as the council walked in. They stood for a moment, before taking their seats. The man in the very middle spoke. "Strike, I believe you have some business that needs addressing."
Strike stood and nodded at Faith and Oz and then at Neo and Morpheus. "Council, please note Captains Oz and Morpheus."
"Captain Oz?" A woman on the council asked.
As they spoke Oz Faith down to the floor as Morpheus and Neo did the same. "I am Eyecon's replacement on the Apollo's Chariot." Oz explained.
She smiled.
"Morpheus, I believe you should explain." Strike said.
"I have found the one." Everyone shifted in their seats as a few muttered to each other. "And from the looks on all your faces I can tell you are as doubtful as my crew was. I request a challenge to prove that Neo here is the One."
"Who?" The woman asked.
Faith stepped forward; she could feel the council eyeing her. "I am Faith the slayer, and I have accepted the challenge."
More whispers filled the room.
"The slayer?" A councilman asked. "Of what?"
"Well, in the matrix I slayed vampires and demon, but here well I guess machines."
"Are you willing to fight Neo?" Another council member asked.
"I have been fighting all my life, doing this no jacked in person can do. If Morpheus believes he has found the one, then it is only right that the Chosen One fight him."
A man in the back stood, 'I have heard of the legend of the slayer, she is the right people to fight the one."
The councilman in the middle spoke, "we will take a five minute recess to decide."
As the council filed out, Faith watched Neo. The man seemed confident, but at the same time scared. She left Oz's side and stepped over to Neo.
"You okay with all this?" She asked him.
His eyes met hers, moved down to her cheeks, and then back up to her eyes. "Sort of, it's a lot to take in. You?"
"I'm used to all this crap. Although usually the only challenges I get are from blood hungry vamps or my pissed off sister." She said referring to Buffy, knowing that he wouldn't understand the idea of multiple slayers. "You?"
"I defeated an agent," he spoke in a hushed tone as though he did not want anyone to know.
"Wow, really, the only ones I've faced was when I was still in the matrix."
"How did you do?"
"Ok, but I ended up in cuffs."
He had been looking around the room as she spoke. "I understand why Morpheus believes that I am the one, but is all of this necessary?"
"Do you believe?"
"That I'm the one?" He tilted his head from side to side. "Yeah."
"Well, these people don't. Changelings think that I'm their one and everyone else has given up on the idea. By defeating me you'll prove that you're it, him, the one, the savior, or it will just make for some good entertainment." She smiled.
He caught the sparkle in her eyes and smiled, too. "Yeah, but how do you know you're not the one?"
"Cause I'm the slayer, I've already been chosen."
"What's the difference?" He asked as the council walked back in.
"I'll tell you when I figure it out." She left and rejoined Oz.
Once everyone was seated the councilman in the center stood. "We will allow the challenge. BUT it will take place in central ops; monitors will be set up in the main hall and the cafeteria so that everyone can watch. Captains, tell your operators and programmers that the council requests 3 programs formatted in matrix style environments: a jump program, a combat zone, and a combat zone with formatted agents. The challenge will take place in a week at 10 am Zion time. Neo, Faith, good luck. Morpheus, Oz, no pressure, this is a challenge, not war. No dirty fighting; you're dismissed." Oz, Faith, Neo, and Morpheus left, as the council continued their business.
"So, good luck." Faith told Neo as she hugged him. As their chests touched he saw a flash from her of the two embryos. She saw him dive head first into Agent Smith. To everyone else they gasped loudly as their eyes turned white. Morpheus reached out to touch them.
"No!" Oz pushed his hand away. "You do not want to get trapped inside her mind."
Faith pushed Neo away first. She blinked rapidly trying to clear her eyes. "You died." She said as the white faded from her eyes.
"You've killed." He added.
"Jekyll and Hyde?" Oz asked.
"More like Two-face, same coin," Faith replied.
Morpheus and Neo stared at them confused.
"So has El always been a spaz?" Frost asked.
"What?" Ra asked with a smile as he glanced at the gadgets inventors were displaying.
"She's been out for awhile, so I suspect one of you would know something about her."
"Well, Eyecon unplugged her when she was 12, she was a computer genius. She designs training programs, mostly for vehicles. She's actually lucky to even be on a ship. You have to be 18, but she and Twitch attached like brother and sister. So either he stayed or she went. And she's one of the toughest fighters I've ever seen; agents seem to love to pick fights with her." Trans said fondly.
"Yeah, that's how I met her. They chased her into my club." Frost said.
"She's had her close calls, but Twitch always comes through for her." Trans added.
Ra smirked. "Not that he makes it easy for her. He usually drops in at the last possible second. Mostly so he can scold her later."
"Why do you want to know?" Trans asked.
"No reason." Frost said.
"If you want to talk to Twitch, we can take you." Ra suggested.
"No, that's fine, I'm just asking."
Ra smirked and Trans smiled.
Faith watched Neo and Morpheus head toward their own destinations.
"Faith, how special is he?" Oz asked in a low tone.
"As a changeling, he's powerful, but all the changelings here aren't using all of their power." She turned to face him. "Neo is special; I think I'll know more after I fight him."
"So what's the question?"
"Changelings believe strongly in themselves, but does magic exist here?"
"The spell, the slayers spell?" Oz asked.
"Yeah, I caught the spoon, so how do we know or not that the spell worked out here."
"We could ask Newt."
"The soul reader?"
Oz took Faith's hand and led her in the opposite direction.
They found Newt in a large central cavern talking to Sickle. They both turned to see Faith and Oz walking toward them. Sickle's eyes softened slightly as he spoke to Newt and then left.
"Faith, Oz, hello," She greeted them.
Faith smiled feeling a buzz from her. "I have a question about a spell performed in the matrix."
Newt shivered. "Don't like the magic there, too unstable, too unpredictable, cold."
"Right, so say a spell was cast to affect a large group of people on a large scale. Could it affect the real world?"
"Possible, what spell?"
"It affected the slayer line."
"Sounds dangerous, the slayer line is a key figure, because she's real. She existed long before the matrix at the beginning of civilization. The few of us who had been unjacked since the beginning of Zion know that changelings and magic have evolved. Example, we know that we have created a new breed or generation of vampires."
Faith's brow creased. "You mean?"
"Mystic's lover is an unjacked vampire. Their son, who is currently on a ship, is by nature a vampire. He was born with pale skin, silvery-blue eyes, and fangs, but he doesn't need blood to survive. He's also agile and faster than most. So if you're asking are you still the slayer than: yes."
"Actually the spell was to expand the slayer line."
"Expand it?"
"Any girl, who could be the slayer, will be a slayer."
"No more potentials."
"Nope."
"Interesting, well to know if it worked we'll have to ask around. Because you are not truly part of the spell, we can't use you as a conductor."
"So how will we know who is a slayer?" Oz asked quietly, looking at Faith.
"Speed, agility, quick healing, strange dreams, when I was 16 I had dreams about other slayers: maids, princesses, a civil war soldier, a medieval knight, and a whore in China."
"So what should we ask people about?" Newt asked.
Faith paused; she closed her eyes, and tried to feel the people in the room like she could the changelings. She could feel Oz, Newt, and a few other random changelings, but that was about it. She kept her eyes closed as she answered. "Ask around if any girls between 16 and 21 have experienced sudden bursts of speed, agility, or power outside the matrix. Or if anyone is on a ship with a girl who wakes up screaming about monsters." She said slowly opening her eyes.
Oz and Newt were watching her. Oz nodded his head.
Neo sat on the other side of the large cavern watching her. Trinity looked at Neo and then glared coldly at the woman he was staring at. She knew what Morpheus thought of changelings, but she had never actually watched one fight. If Neo really was the one, then what was Faith and why were all the changeling treating her like she was the one? Faith was standing next to Oz and another woman with her eyes closed talking. Trinity looked over at Neo and watched him shiver slightly.
"Cold?" She asked.
"No, its Faith, I can feel her."
Trinity didn't like that response. "Feel her, how?"
"Her power is like a ghost passing through you."
"Is that good?"
"For me, no, but I think she can feel me too."
Trinity glanced back at Faith, who had opened her eyes and was staring at Neo. Faith's eyes traveled over the Trinity's and saw the coldness there. Faith turned and left the cavern with Oz in tow. Trinity felt Neo move next to her. She turned to see him about to follow Faith. "Where are you going?"
"I need to ask her something."
Trinity wanted to stop him, but she knew her jealousy was petty. He turned and kissed her.
"I love you, Tin. She just understands the burden I will have to bear."
Trinity nodded her head. Silly, she was being silly. But worry was still creeping its way into her mind.