PART 2
Chapter 4
...
The Genesis.
From Latin, the beginning. In this case, a new beginning for both her people and Synthients. The genesis of a new era.
The genesis, the process or mode of origin… the early stage of existence… and of a new life.
Yeah, sometimes Fate has sense of humor. Not that Trinity believes in Fate actually, she doesn't like the idea that she's not in control of her life. Exactly like Neo.
Trinity looks at her crew, everyone busy in their tasks. Some of them she had chosen, some of them had chosen her.
Well, Ghost actually had been both her first choice exactly like he had been the first one volunteering for being in her crew. Exactly like Link. They both felt like they own it to her, and to Neo. Exactly like she owns it to them, for having been the ones succeeding in coming back to Zion, fighting with all they had to hold the dock.
Her eyes move on Kid and she has to bite on her lower lip both in annoy and to prevent a smile forming on it as the boy almost trips, once more. He keeps tripping in a pair of shoes that are too big for him.
"Kid, for God's sake, just tie your boot!" She says in the exasperated tone of someone who already told it to him at least a thousand times.
"Sorry, ma'am. Yes, ma'am"
She shakes her head and can't help the little smile which plays on her lips this time. Sometimes it's like having an adolescent child to look after.
And yet, he's a very smart guy, and one of the very few people to have freed themselves from the Matrix through self-substantiation, that is without taking the red pill. She remembers the exact moment in which Neo called him, in the middle of class, to advise him about the Agents after him. He'd freed himself, alone, climbing up to the school roof, and deliberately falling to his death, only to self-substantiate and release himself from the Matrix. He saved himself actually, but he kept (and keeps) insisting that Neo saved him from the Matrix.
She well remembers Kid's worship of Neo. He was there, greeting him (and her) every time the Nebuchadnezzar docked at and departed from Zion, every time telling them that he wanted to join the Nebuchadnezzar, as it was the ship with Neo, as soon as he would have been old enough.
This eventually used to get on Neo's nerves, but, she doesn't know why, that skinny teenager racing across one of the bridges to their bay always made her smile (something not that easy actually)
.
… 'Neo! Neo!'
… 'Oh no.'
… Trinity smiles... 'How does he always know?'
… 'Doesn't he have anything better to do?'
… 'You know what they say about the life you save'
… 'I didn't save his life.'
.
… 'Next year I'm old enough to join a crew… I want to join the Nebuchadnezzar… It's fate. I mean you're the reason I'm here, Neo.'
… 'I told you, kid, you found me, I didn't find you.'
… 'I know but, you got me out. You saved me.'
… 'You saved yourself.'
.
That's why she couldn't refuse Kid's request of joining her ship, even just as apprentice, since he's still not old enough to join a ship as a soldier. Since the war is over, and after what he bravely did there, Morpheus had allowed him an exception.
The others members of the crew, well, she choose them between the many ones who asked to join her ship, much more that she would have guessed actually, since she's not really what can be counted like an easy person to deal with. Her reputation of harsh officer precedes her, even if who knows her better knows she's not just harshness and discipline.
She chose Oak, a Zion-native, as second operator. He's a genuine man, friendly but never intrusive, and polite and reliable. Sometimes he reminds her of Dozer.
Viking (just Vik generally) instead she's a Matrix-born, a good hacker and a mechanical expert. She's an acute mind and she's skilled to maneuver intricate situations. She's a tall blonde woman in her thirties but she looks older, probably because of her strong constitution (not fat, just very muscular) and of the many Celtic tattoos covering most part of her very white skin. She'd said Trinity that being on her crew was fate since she has a 'Trinity knot' tattooed on her chest. She's the only one of her crew having kids (well, for now at least), a seven-year-old daughter, Hervor.
Despite how it looks like, there are still less women than men on duty on ships, and, well, sometimes a woman's point of view can be useful.
"Trinity?" She turns to Vik's voice, watching as she hurries toward her "Sorry, Esc sent me to look for you. He said he needs you in the med bay"
Trinity just sighs, well knowing what Esc can need from her, exactly like she knows she can't escape him forever.
Having a medical officer on board had been an aut-aut, an ultimatum, from Morpheus, because (even ignoring her pregnancy at first) he had tried to express his doubts about her so premature return to an operative role on a ship. Not that he'd been able to make her changing her mind.
Esc looks up from the papers in front of him as soon as he hears the door opening, meeting Trinity's serious eyes as she stands on the door.
"At last" he says as her look doesn't change, still unperturbed.
"I have a lot of work to do, Esc," she tries in her best authoritative tone well knowing the effect she has on him.
Not this time apparently, and he just stares back at her replying with a flat 'yeah, me too'. She replies with a long sigh, which again Esc seems to ignore.
"I was in the mess hall with you this morning and, with all done respect, Captain, there was more color on the slop in your bowl than on your face,"
She doesn't answer. After all she can't deny it.
"Morning sickness?" He asks, already foreseeing her answer actually as she glares at him, sighing again.
"Morning?" her tone is sarcastic "and afternoon, and evening, and night, Esc. But nothing I can't stand"
He ponders her answer and gives a little nod.
"Fine," he says at last, letting her win this match. She seems to relax but it's just a few seconds and he knows she's about asking something personal.
"I need to enter the Matrix to contact Neo, but, I need to know how safe is it, for me... now" She hesitates as, for the first time since he knows her, her voice betrays a hint of vulnerability.
"Safe enough... now" she'd bet to hear sarcasm on that 'now' but she ignores it "Unless you find a nostalgic Agent, Captain" He shrugs lifting both eyebrows (yeah, he's clearly composedly making fun of her) and she rolls her eyes at his attempt to break the tension.
Yeah. At least she doesn't need to worry about agents, she hopes at least. But after she entered the Matrix to meet Neo she had felt sick for a couple of days and she doesn't feel like experiencing it again. After all she's brave not reckless. She had been told it wasn't because of the connection but because of the high dose stress she went through, but a part of her still feels like that was a reminder of how she's going to have to choose which one of the two person she loves more she's willing to let die.
Esc gives her a knowing look at her hesitation, but decides not to push the subject and she just nods what's a silent 'thanks'.
Neo. Or better Thomas Anderson.
He's watching at his own image in the mirror, grasping the sink with both hands. He swallows a blue pill and puts back the orange bottle in the drug cabinet at the side of the mirror.
He buckles his belt and begins buttoning up his shirt.
Trinity is watching him from the many screens of the Genesis and for an instant her eyes get distracted by the way in which Neo's pants hang on his hips and by the curve of his spine before it's covered by the white cotton of his shirt.
Vik approaches Trinity from behind, then standing next to her and handing her a few papers. She glances in turn at the screen and bends down a little to speak in Trinity's ear.
"Wow, nice ass!" she whispers, not really lowly enough not to be heard by Oak either actually.
They both seem to ignore Vik's statement, but a minuscule smirk plays on Trinity's face, softening her tense features. She mentally thanks her for not making one of her smut comments too, but the reality is that she thanks her even for being the only one which acts around her like she's not a 'widow', always pondering if telling what they want or not.
... and yes, definitely a nice ass!
Trinity's mind indulges for a moment in the memory of the many times Neo had made fun of her too on that same subject.
.
... "You like watching me?"
... "uhm... your ass mostly"
... "Uh-hu, what about your renowned coldbloodedness, Lieutenant"
... "uhm... whatever but cold right now"
.
"Captain,"
Oak's voice reconnects Trinity to reality. She glances at the papers in her hands and just passes them to the operator. No changes... Neo's EEG pattern is still the one of someone totally connected to the net.
"Is there no chances to take him out since he doesn't quit those pills!"
Trinity just answers with a 'yeah' at Oak's statement, but her shoulders stiff and she straightens her back, crossing her arms in front of her chest. Another 'yeah' exits her lips as she stares at the screen in front of her eyes, when the glyphs fall and turn forming clear images in her mind.
"What's the plan, Captain?"
Oak turns watching Trinity's apparently unperturbed features.
"Locate a steady broadcast position. Then re-patch the main AC to the hard drives and prepare to broadcast our signal and hack into the Matrix," She says in her best authoritative tone "I want to going in"
She waits for Oak's 'yes, ma'am' and just turns, heading to the mess hall and pouring herself a cup of cold water.
In the silence of the room, alone, her hand finds her stomach, lightly massaging it (or better caressing it) and taking a deep breath. This is going to be harder than she thought, most of all keeping her usual composure and apparent detachment when, inside herself, she feels like she's about crumbling. Maybe it's just her hormones going crazy, but she actually feels a mess.
She almost starts at the hand which touches her shoulder, resting there and giving her a caring squeeze.
Ghost.
"Go and lie down! Let me in charge!" It sounds like an order, but by the caring look in his eyes it's not her Second in Command talking, but the friend and brother "When is the last time you had a proper night of sleep?" He adds, frowning.
"During my coma," She ironically replies in a tone which sounds more annoyed then she meant. And he doesn't deserve such an attitude from her, not after the support he gave her in the last days. Her eyes soften a bit "Er, I'm fine, Bro, I really am. Please, stop worrying about me"
She puts a hand on Ghost's arm and his eyes soften in turn.
He just stares at her for a second, somehow uncertain if being accomplished or beginning the umpteenth argument with her, because it's clear that, despite all, she's not going to slow down from her usual activities, even less to try to rest a bit more.
"Then stops giving me reasons to worry about"
She stares at him, not replying this time and Ghost stares back at her. She's the one looking down first this time.
"I realized I haven't congratulate yet" he says making her looking up at him again "Tell me when you're ready to be happy about it" he says calmly as Trinity's eyes widen instead. She runs a hand in her hair, stopping to give a little massage to her nape.
...'Shit, Ghost, do I really look like someone who get pregnant by accident?' She doesn't say it out loud, but she sighs deeply and her hand finds her stomach again.
Because the truth is that it didn't just happen. They let it happen. They're always been careful...till the last night they were together... there, knowing it probably would have been the really last, they just didn't care about it... they just needed to be together, giving each other whatever they had.
.
... you sure?
... Neo, please.
.
She remembers the look in his eyes as he slid out of her, kissing her once again and then moving down to kiss the space between her breast... her stomach... and her lower abdomen, right over her pubic hair. His smile exactly there.
.
... now, you're really in trouble, babe!
... I am since I first met you.
.
She inhales deeply again and exhales slowly, not trying to hide the sorrow in her voice this time.
"I'm as much happy as I can be, by knowing that I'm the only one of the two of us you can congratulate with, Ghost"
He gives her a serious look, feeling her pain. Once more his esteem for her just grows for her ability to keep her composure after everything she went through.
"You know that whatever you need I-"
"I know" she replies before he can finish his sentence. She knows he's there for her if she needs him.
He nods an 'every time' at her whispered 'thank you' and they just keep looking in each other's eyes.
There's no other words to be said. They both know what's her greatest fear is, and none of them can't do anything to change things.
Once again this is a rescue mission. But no matter if the war is over, once again it has to be "his" choice. Neo's.
Trapped in the Matrix once again, unaware of the real world anymore, unaware of having been the One, unaware of whatever they went through. And of having been in love with her.
Trinity bits on her lower lip, looking away as she feels tears trying to escape her usual control. Fuck hormones!
She knows she can do it, crying, in front of him. He's one of the few people who saw her crying. She just doesn't want doing it, almost fearing if she let tears coming she won't be able to stop them anymore.
"We'll take him back, Trinity"
Ghost's voice is so steady and secure that for a second she feels like she can trust him... she wants to believe his words. But it's not so easy. Neo must want to be freed. He wouldn't survive otherwise. And even if they succeed in it, he won't remember anything. He won't remember her.
"Trust him" He says again a she just looks at him.
"It's not about trust, Brother. His mind's been reset. Even if we succeed in taking him back, he won't be the same man I met... the same man we both met…"
Ghost just stares back at her, her vulnerability still hid in her piercing look, but he can hear the little cracking of her voice on that 'we'.
Trinity just sighs, giving him another glance and excusing herself before turning to leave.
"They reset his memory, Trin," He says looking at her back as her muscles stiffen, her hand still on the metal door "not his being. He's still the man you first met in that night club"
She doesn't turn to him as she just bows her head and exits the room.