It didn't take long for emergency teams to arrive in Kit's. Remarkably no major injuries were sustained by the sprites Daemon had captured. The guardians however suffered some loss. AndrAIa sat next to Maxine on a broken sidewalk watching everyone go by. Medical staff and police scurried about as they tended to sprites, cleared away the wreckage and took photos. The sun was just beginning to set, casting deep oranges and reds across a murky sky.
"Game over." The system voice echoed through the system as the game cube disappeared. The guardians who had entered to play against the user left, unscathed.
Maxine sighed. They had been sitting in silence for quite some time. She wanted to ask AndrAIa what Mouse had said to her, but got the sense that she didn't really want to talk about it. There was a sad look in her eyes that bore the pain of a sprite who had been through far too much. Maxine wished she knew the right thing to say, but she didn't. The only comfort she could offer was her company, and she hoped that was enough.
"Is it over?" AndrAIa asked, finally breaking the silence.
"I think so."
"... Is it really, though?"
Before she could ask her friend what she meant Dot came over. She jumped out of the exoskeleton and stood over them in disbelief.
"AndrAIa?" Dot asked, "Is it really you?"
AndrAIa stood and Dot welcomed her with a warm embrace. AndrAIa took the moment in, enjoying every second of it. More than anything she was just thankful that Dot was okay. It was a miracle that they had all managed to survive the whole ordeal. If Daemon really wanted to, she could have deleted them in seconds. Thankfully she was on a search and retrieve mission, not search and destroy.
"How is this possible?" Dot asked, pulling away, "I thought you were nullified- we all did."
"It's a long story."
"Matrix- we have to find him."
AndrAIa's heart fluttered at the sound of his name. She wanted nothing more than to see him. For days she had dreamed of them being reunited. But, for some reason the excitement wasn't quite there. AndrAIa was hit with a million emotions all at once. She struggled to process everything that happened. It was hard for her to accept that everything was going to just go back to the way things were. Every time she got comfortable something else went wrong. She felt as if they were at the mercy of the User and no matter how hard she fought they would always win. AndrAIa wanted to stay strong and keep going, but she was tired. She didn't know how much more fight she had left in her.
"Y- yeah." AndrAIa said, forcing a smile.
She looked down at the armor she wore, which despite being new already bore the wear and tear of battle. The black finish was scraped away in many places, revealing the silver lining underneath. Blood, dirt and debris stained its surface. She could only imagine how worn out the rest of her looked. The helmet she held in her hands showed her a glimpse of her reflection, and she didn't like what she saw. A bloodstained face stared back at her. After dealing with Ray, battling a web creature and fighting Mouse, several scars carved out the contours of her face. Some were old and faded, others were fresh. Was that a face that Matrix could still love?
The game sprite took a breath. She wasn't the AndrAIa of old. And the changes in her were more than just physical. She wasn't the same as before, and couldn't tell if those changes were for better or for worse. Either way she would have to face Matrix eventually, even if he didn't like the new her.
Maxine stood, sensing her friend's uneasiness. She nudged AndrAIa playfully, getting a small smile out of her; one that was genuine.
"Where did Bob go?" AndrAIa asked, trying to change the subject.
"He's with Turbo. I'm sure they're all going back to the Principal office now. Come on."
Dot started walking and so did Maxine and AndrAIa, reluctantly following behind.
# #
Matrix and Dixon wandered down the deserted halls of the Principal office. Every bone in Matrix's body ached and Dixon was worse off. She held onto Matrix's arm as he helped her make her way through the building. If he wasn't there she wasn't entirely sure if she could even stand on her own. The energy blast she took had done a number on her, though she didn't fault Matrix for his decision to shoot her. She was certain that his quick thinking saved her life.
Matrix knew that he was probably needed in Kit's but wanted to talk to Phong first. They had been gone for a while and a lot could have changed while they were on the web. It was best to get an update on the situation, and then go from there. Despite wanting to help, Matrix craved nothing more than an energy shake and a long nap.
"We should have checked on Kit's." Dixon said, almost as if she knew what he was thinking.
"You can barely stand. You need to get to the infirmary. If they still need help then I'll go to Kit's."
"But-"
"We need you at 100%. You're no help to us now."
"...If you insist." Dixon grumbled. She couldn't fight logic.
As they turned the corner they could hear loud chattering coming from inside the war room. They looked at each other, hoping that things hadn't gotten worse during their absence. Matrix pushed open the door and they were met with celebration. Sprites laughed and mingled, holding glasses of champagne. No one hung over computer screens frantically typing. There was no sign of panic or dread. The atmosphere had completely changed. Matrix and Dixon looked at each other, confused by the sight before them.
"What in the net?"
Phong passed by with a large smile across his face.
"Phong, what's going on?" Matrix asked.
Phong stopped in his tracks and tuned.
"Matrix," he smiled, "Daemon has been defeated. Mainframe is safe."
"Defeated? How?"
"Your sister challenged the virus."
"Dot took out a cron virus?" Matrix was shocked, but impressed.
"She had some help from the guardians, but yes." Specky interjected.
"Wait, is Turbo here?" Dixon asked.
"Yes, our distress signal made it to the Supercomputer. They brought reinforcements."
"Lucky us," Dixon said looking at Matrix, "Daemon would not have reacted well to her fortress being destroyed."
"You destroyed her fortress?"
"Kind of," Matrix shrugged, "We created a few tears, started a couple fires."
"It's nothing but ashes now." Dixon finished.
"Ah, it seems very fortunate for us indeed." Phong sighed, "A rash decision, but with good intentions."
"We should probably get you to the infirmary now," Matrix said.
"I'll be fine. I think I'll stay here for a while." Dixon reassured him.
Matrix looked around and spotted an empty desk with a chair. He helped her into the seat.
Everyone looked so happy. They had won, defeated a powerful virus, but he found it hard to match their energy. A sprite came over to the group, offering glasses of champagne. Dixon gladly took one. They turned to Matrix, holding out a glass for him as well. His eyes focused on the liquid as his mind wandered. In that brief moment he found himself thinking of AndrAIa once again. Although every part of him was soar from the day's events, a sudden pain in his chest became all consuming. Matrix's heart ached. AndrAIa had been the one sprite he wanted there by his side to share the good times with. It didn't feel right for him to enjoy himself when she was no longer around. There would be no meaning in the celebration; all joy felt empty in her absence.
"No thanks, I don't feel like celebrating." Matrix said before sulking off into the boardroom, shutting the door behind him.
"Poor thing, I hope with time his wounds heal." Phong said before moving on to mingle with others at the party.
"I hope so too." Dixon said to herself. She hadn't been acquainted with Matrix long, but he had proven to be a good sprite to have by your side in a fight. He was reliable. Dixon wasn't entirely sure if he even liked her very much, but that didn't matter. Everyone deserved happiness.
The main doors opened and Bob and Turbo entered. As they came closer Dixon struggled to her feet to give Turbo a proper salute.
"At ease, soldier." Turbo smiled, "We are all friends here."
Dixon sat back down.
"It's fortunate we arrived here when we did."
"Thank you, Turbo…" Bob's face suddenly turned serious, "But I fear that celebrating now might be premature."
"Explain."
Dixon and Bob looked at each other before gazing around the room. All the sprites seemed preoccupied, but they hushed their voices regardless.
"Dixon and I went into a game, except it wasn't a game."
Turbo and Bob took a seat at the small desk with Dixon.
"Then what was it?"
"A User wanted to communicate with us."
"I've never heard of such a thing."
"It's true, Turbo." Dixon said, looking down, "The User said that net access is being restricted."
"Restricted... That must be why games are appearing again. They think we broke the treaty." Turbo placed a hand on his chin, deep in thought.
"Do you know anything about this?"
"This is the first I'm hearing about it. No systems have reported anything. I'll have to look into this."
Turbo went to stand, but Bob held his arm, keeping him in place.
"The User also said that as long as net access is restricted they'll continue to play games and… there was also a warning; if access isn't restored they threatened to…"
"Threatened to what?"
"Destroy the net."
# #
Maxine, AndrAIa and Dot walked down the hall. It was unnaturally quiet as they went by the offices and cubicles. Dot was used to idle chit chat and sprites busy at work, typing away on their computers. Even at later hours there was always someone around.
The journey from Kit's to the Principal office had been painfully silent. Dot had tried to make conversation, but neither AndrAIa or Maxine seemed to be in the mood to talk. As they approached the war room Dot stopped walking suddenly. Maxine and AndrAIa looked at her.
"Maxine, if it's all right I'd like a moment with AndrAIa. Go ahead, we'll catch up."
"... All right."
Maxine continued walking and Dot turned the corner, leading AndrAIa away from the war room. As they walked AndrAIa wondered what she wanted to talk about. Instead of asking she just followed behind the command..com until they got to an office door. There was a gold plate on the front that bore Dot's name and title. They went inside and Dot flicked on the light. Looking around AndrAIa was impressed. The office was spacious and seemed to have everything; including a couch and full sized fridge. AndrAIa looked at the wall across from them. Several certificates and plaques hung in a neat row.
AndrAIa wandered over to inspect them. Dot really was remarkable. She knew that she was brilliant, but her plethora of degrees and awards still left the game sprite in awe. After seeing how she confidently challenged Daemon it was clear that Dot was a sprite of many talents. There was nothing she couldn't do.
Dot stood by her side and watched AndrAIa as she took it all in.
"I think you're a bit over qualified for your position." AndrAIa said.
Dot laughed.
"Believe it or not there are some days I actually feel like I don't know enough." Dot walked over to her desk and leaned against it, watching the game sprite. "I think you could use a drink."
AndrAIa turned and smiled.
"That's an understatement."
Dot chuckled as she went into her private stash. She pulled two glasses out of her desk drawer and a bottle of brandy. She poured out the drinks and handed one to AndrAIa.
"Thanks."
They touched glasses and drank. The liquid burned all the way down, but AdnrAIa didn't mind. She needed something to calm her nerves. Dot topped them up before speaking.
"I have a few things I wanted to say." Dot spoke sincerely, "This year has been pretty rough for me, but that doesn't excuse my behaviour… I feel like I never really gave you a fair chance."
"You were just being protective of your brother, there's nothing wrong with that."
Dot put down her glass. She tried hard not to remember everything that happened at the open house. Unfortunately the memory of that night would probably stay with her forever. She did and said a lot of things that she regretted.
"You saved me AndrAIa. You stayed behind in Silicon Tor so I could escape. I guess I'm just wondering why. I haven't been very nice to you. I wouldn't have saved me, not after how badly I treated you."
Dot had been wracked with guilt since the destruction of Silicon Tor. She never took the time to apologize to AndrAIa, even though she should have. Between her own personal issues and the general duties of being the she just got busy. She wished she made the time to talk to AndrAIa sooner.
AndrAIa was stumped by the question, not so much because of the answer. She found it strange that Dot felt the need to ask, she thought it was obvious why she did what she did. Regardless, AdnrAIa paused, thinking long and hard before giving her response. She quickly drank what was left in her glass and then spoke.
"Matrix is a great guy, and I know he could learn to love again. But you're his sister. Dot, you're irreplaceable. It was an easy decision to make."
Dot stared at her for a moment and then smiled.
"You clearly underestimate yourself, AndrAIa. You're irreplaceable too… Now, let's get you cleaned up and find my brother."
# #
Maxine stood awkwardly in the war room, champagne glass in hand. Apart from AndrAIa and Matrix she didn't know many other sprites in Mainframe very well. She looked around as everyone rejoiced and couldn't help but feel a little out of place.
After a moment she spotted a free chair. The only one available was next to a guardian who sat with their head down on the desk in front of them. Maxine went over and sat as quietly as she could. She couldn't tell if the guardian was just exhausted, or intoxicated. Several empty glasses sat in front of them on the desk. Either way Maxine didn't want to wake them.
Maxine sipped her drink and set it down. The guardian looked up at her through matted, red hair.
"Sorry, did I wake you?" Maxine apologized, "I was trying to be quiet."
"It's kind of hard to sleep with all the commotion. These office sprites can really cut loose."
The guardian sat up.
"I take it you've never been to an office party then? They can get pretty wild." Maxine had seen her fair share of outlandish behaviour from drunk coworkers.
"No, guardians are much rowdier though. Usually we just terrorize bars."
Maxine laughed.
"Was that funny?"
"Yes. Guardians are meant to keep the peace; to mend and defend."
"Only when we're on the clock."
Their eyes met and Maxine looked away, suddenly embarrassed.
"I'm Dixon." The guardian extended a hand.
They shook.
"Maxine."
"That's a pretty name."
Maxine quickly gobbled up the rest of her drink, feeling nervous, though she didn't know why.
"Thank you… It's actually a pretty common name where I'm from."
"Where's that?"
"The Desert Port System."
"I've never been, what's it like?"
"I guess the best way to describe it would be… Warm."
# #
Dot and AdnrAIa stood in front of the doors that led to the war room. AndrAIa had left the web suit in Dot's office. She appreciated how much lighter she felt. No longer was every one of her movements dragged down. Dot had an impressive amount of makeup in her office and did her best to do AndrAIa up nice. She appreciated the effort, but still felt nervous. A little bit of blush and lipstick surely wouldn't be enough to distract from her scars.
"Are you ready?" Dot asked.
"I think so."
Dot pushed open the doors and they stepped into the light of the war room. Everyone turned at staired, eyes falling on Dot. A hush fell over the room. The two stopped in their tracks, confused by the strange reaction to their arrival.
Specky stepped forward and started clapping. One by one every sprite in the room joined in an applause for the command..com of their system. Dot stood, speechless. The past few months she had wondered if she was even right for the position. She worried about her mistakes being what she was remembered for and nothing else. But in that moment she felt that she was exactly where she was meant to be.
"Thank you." Dot said, "I couldn't have done it without all of your support. This was a victory for all of Mainframe."
Everyone cheered.
AndrAIa watched as everyone congratulated Dot and gave her all the praise she deserved. She looked over all the sprites in the room, but Matrix was nowhere in sight.
After speaking with everyone, Dot went back to AndrAIa's side.
"Any sign of Matrix?" Dot asked.
"No."
"He was here when I left earlier…" Dot looked around and spotted Phong. He tended to know everything about every sprite.
"Phong, have you seen Matrix?"
"He is in there," Phong pointed to the boardroom door, "Matrix is not in the mood for celebration… So he says."
Phong trailed off and his eyes grew wide as they landed on the game sprite.
Dot took AndrAIa's hand and pulled her over to the doorway. She knocked.
"Matrix?" Dot said.
"I'm not in the mood." Matrix's voice came from inside the room.
AndrAIa felt her breath catch in her throat. It had felt like ages since she heard his voice. Everything was starting to feel real.
"I have someone here who wants to see you."
"Dot, I said no."
Dot turned to AndrAIa, frustrated.
"That stubborn…" Dot grumbled.
She opened the door anyway, deciding that she didn't need his permission.
Matrix sat in one of the chairs on the far side of the room with his back to the entrance. He had resigned himself to staring at the wall and moping. Matrix would have rather just gone to bed, but was avoiding his apartment. Even though he had taken all the pictures down, everything still reminded him of AndrAIa. The bed sheets still smelled faintly of her perfume. Even Frisket's presence had memories of her attached to him. He knew he would have to go home eventually, but was procrastinating.
"Sis, I said I'm not in the mood." Matrix sighed.
"Come on, the party's out there."
"Maybe in a bit."
Dot looked at AndrAIa. It seemed Matrix would need more than a gentle nudge to turn around.
"Enzo…" AndrAIa spoke softly.
Matrix paused, recognizing the voice instantly. He felt light headed. Clearly he was more tired than he thought, he was starting to hear things. Slowly Matrix spun around in his chair; all the while telling himself that he was going crazy, that she wouldn't be there.
Matrix sat stunned as he looked over at his sister and AndrAIa on the other side of the room. She looked exactly as she had the last time he saw her. He got up, eyes fixed on AndrAIa. For a moment he didn't say anything, he just stared at her. She looked so real, as if the image before him was painted by his own memories. But she wasn't real, she couldn't be. Still, he took it all in. He basked in her beauty.
"AndrAIa?" He spoke in a low voice, so quiet that he barely heard himself whisper her name.
All the swirling emotions within Matrix collided, confusing him. He drew his gun, not knowing how else to deal with what he was feeling. Matrix pointed the weapon at his love, still not convinced that it was really her.
"Matrix, what are you doing? Put the gun down." Dot snapped.
"That's not AndrAIa," He said, "It can't be. This is just a trick."
His hands trembled.
AndrAIa looked at him, trying hard to fight off tears. She could tell from the look in his eyes that he was hurting. She smiled as a single tear ran down her face, leaving a glistening streak behind in its place.
"It's all right Dot;" AndrAIa said, "can you give us a minute?"
"But-" Dot cut herself off after seeing the look on AndrAIa's face. After some hesitation she left, closing the door behind her.
AndrAIa looked over at Matrix. She had been anxious before, yet strangely him pointing a gun at her only calmed her nerves. He would never hurt her, she knew that.
"Enzo, it's me."
"No; you may have Dot fooled, but I'm not falling for this. AndrAIa got nullified. She's… She's gone."
"Game sprites are different from system born sprites." She explained, "Our code is designed to leave with games. When a game sprite registers a new PID they still keep their original code." AdnrAIa tapped her icon and it morphed. Its once round shape became triangular. The letters 'AI' appeared in the center.
"I don't understand."
"When I lost the game I switched to game sprite mode and left the system with it. I was then loaded into another system with that game. I've been trying to get back ever since."
"I - I still don't believe you." Matrix said while fighting off intense emotions, "Prove that you're really her."
AndrAIa thought for a moment. She slowly walked towards him as she spoke.
"Do you remember the first day we met? I was at work and you came up to order," She smiled at the memory, "you asked me what I recommended and I told you to try the california roll."
She stopped walking, the barrel of his gun just inches away from her forehead. She continued.
"And then you asked me what was in it and I said-"
"You said you didn't know." Matrix finished the story for her, lowering his weapon. He hadn't told a soul about that; not even Bob or his sister. The only other person who would know that was AndrAIa.
"Thinking back, I wasn't very good at my job." She admitted.
"No, you weren't. But I never came for the food; I just wanted an excuse to see you."
Matrix reached out a hand, gently brushing away the remnants of her tears. She was warm and so familiar; from the way she blinked to even the most minute mannerisms. There couldn't have been a program advanced enough to replicate her. She was special.
His hands wandered over a scrape on her cheek and she winced.
"Sorry," He quickly retracted, but she grabbed his hand in response. She didn't care if the wound stung. There was comfort in his touch.
"It's all right." She whispered.
Their fingers interlaced. Matrix acknowledged how gentle her touch was. He smiled. The way her hand fit so perfectly in his made everything crystal clear. She had come home.
Matrix pulled her in as their lips entwined in passion. AndrAIa kissed him back, tangling her fingers in his dark hair. All of their worries instantly melted away. As long as they were together, they were safe. And deep down they both knew that no matter what the net threw at them, they would always find their way back to each other.
Their love would always survive.
End Prog
AN: I just want to say thank you to everyone who has stuck with my fic this long! I have a habit of starting projects and never finishing, but I actually made it this time. I have a lot more planned for this story. I felt that this was a good place to end 'In Our Code', given that the main focus was AndrAIa and Matrix's relationship. A sequel is in the works! So any unanswered questions will be addressed in the future.
I will be taking a break to work on other projects, but the sequel series to 'In Our Code' will be starting up in late 2023. For updates you can follow me on instagram, twitter or tumblr. On all three I'm rocking the 'game sprite mode' user name. Thanks again, and I hope to be posting soon with even more ReBoot content. Stay frosty_