3بخش

Mm!

I love that smell.

I sure am going to miss it.

Oracle.

l know.

I know.

Sati, honey.

Take a few cookies and go with Seraph.

Can l come back?

I would like to come back.

l would like that too.

Then l’ll see you tomorrow.

I hope so, hon, l hope so.

I’m scared, Seraph.

Come.

He’s following us.

Well, well, it’s been a long time.

I remember chasing you was like chasing a ghost.

I have beaten you before.

Yes, true, but as you can see, things are a little different now.

And you must be the last exile.

The Oracle told me about you.

Really?

What did she say about me?

That you were a bad man.

Oh, l’m not so bad, once you get to know me.

The great and powerful Oracle, we meet at last.

I suppose you’ve been expecting me, right?

The all-knowing Oracle is never surprised.

How can she be?

She knows everything.

But if that’s true, then why is she here if she knew l was coming?

Why wouldn’t she leave?

Maybe you knew l would do that, maybe you didn’t.

If you did, that means you baked those cookies and set that plate there deliberately, purposefully which means that you’re sitting there also deliberately, purposefully.

What did you do with Sati?

“Cookies need love like everything does.”

You are a bastard.

You would know, Mom.

Do what you’re here to do.

Yes, ma’am.

I really wish I could help, but l just I don’t remember any of it.

What about the cuts on your arms?

Those cuts are more than one day old.

Yeah, definitely.

You’re right about that, sir.

They look like they might be self-inflicted.

But why would I do something like that to myself?

Unless, of course, I wasn’t myself.

But if l’m not me, then who am I?

Has this man been tested for VDTs?

Yes, sir.

lt was negative.

But he is showing a lot of unusual neural activity.

Some cross-synaptic firing, as well as signs of recent trauma with fresh fibrotic scarring throughout the cortex.

I want the truth.

l don’t care what it takes.

Make him remember.

Sir, we found her.

The Logos?

Yes, sir.

About time we had some goddamn good news.

Are the thermals picking up any signs of life?

No, sir.

Nothing yet.

What about the ship?

Holographic says the hull’s intact.

Drop down and keep a man in the turret.

Yes, sir.

Get a full diagnostic on that ship as fast as humanly possible.

Careful, sir.

The squids are sneaky bastards.

It could be a trap.

What was that?

You can put that shit away, boys.

All she needs is a jump.

Niobe.

Morpheus.

Are you all right?

Yes, I’m fine.

We didn’t know what happened after.

l’m sorry.

lt’s okay.

I’m happy to see you too.

Did you get Neo out?

Yes.

How did you know about that?

The Oracle.

You saw her?

Just before the sentinels found us.

What did she tell you?

The same thing she always does.

Exactly what l needed to hear.

In 12 hours, the machines will breach the dock walls.

Every simulation we’ve run, we’ve seen that once the machines are inside the odds of our survival decrease dramatically.

Thus, our primary objective must be to destroy or disable the diggers inside the dock.

If we can do that, perhaps we can prevent them from reaching the city.

If not, the only place we will be able to mount a defense will be at the entrance of the temple.

It is small and will force them into a bottleneck allowing us to concentrate the remainder of our defense.

We understand that you’ve requested additional volunteers.

That is correct.

Precisely what size force are you planning to commit to the primary dock objective?

Right now, the entire APU Corps and half the infantry.

Half the infantry?

lf it were up to me, councillor.

l’d take every man, woman and child, put a gun in their hand and march them into that dock.

Perhaps it is best that it is not up to you.

Time will tell, councillor.

Commander, just one more question.

Has there been word from the Nebuchadnezzar?

None, and at this point there’s no reason to expect there will be.

Perhaps.

But we can hope.

I’m afraid hope is an indulgence I don’t have time for.

Zee, what are you doing?

Making shells.

They’re evacuating our level.

We have to go.

l’m not going with you.

What?

They’ve called for volunteers to hold the dock.

Kids, you stay here.

I know how you feel, but you can’t do this.

l have to.

Why?

Because l love him.

I love him the same as he loves me.

And if l were out there and he were here, l know what he’d do.

But you’re gonna get yourself killed.

It’s crazy, Zee.

Maybe it is.

But ask yourself, if it were Dozer and you knew the only chance you had to see him was to hold the dock what would you do?

Make shells.

What the shit is going on over here?

An accident, sir.

l didn’t see–

l’m sorry.

Who the hell are you?

A unit volunteer, sir.

What’s a pod-born pencil-neck like you doing volunteering for my Corps?

I want to do my part, sir.

We gotta hold the dock.

How old are you, kid?

Eighteen.

Should have said 16, I might have believed that.

Okay, l’m 16.

Minimum age for the Corps is 18.

Sixteen’s too young.

The machines don’t care how old l am.

They’ll kill me just the same.

Ain’t that the goddamn truth.

Give me a chance, sir.

I won’t let you down.

You do and you’ll find me and the machines have got something in common.

Okay, charge the igniter.

She lives again.

Want us to patch an uplink to reload the operations software, Sparky?

That’d be swell.

Could you clean the windshield while you’re at it?

Uplinks in place.

I’m bringing her back online.

Looking good, except, uh.

Something’s wrong with the Matrix feed.

No, there’s not.

You’re looking at what we’re looking at.

What’s going on in there?

Whatever it is, it can’t be good.

The machines have taken Junction 21.

The way l see it, if we drop down from broadcast here intersect 153, we might surprise them.

We’ll go first, hammer as deep as we can, then blow our EMP.

Hopefully we can punch a hole big enough for you to get through.

It ain’t pretty, but the way l see it, it’s the only way back.

No, it’s not.

There’s another way.

A support line.

It drops down right here, 1000 meters short of 21.

If we’re lucky, we may be able to slip down without them ever knowing.

That’s a mechanical line.

It’s impossible.

No one can pilot mechanical.

l can.

Bullshit.

l’ve done it.

That was a long time ago, Niobe.

l said l can do it.

So what?

You’ll be the only one that can.

There’s no way we can follow you.

Hi.

I know time is always against us.

I’m sorry that l took so long.

But l wanted to be sure.

Sure of what?

l know what l have to do.

What?

There’s no easy way to say this, so l’ll just say it.

l have to take one of the ships.

What?

To go where?

To the machine city.

I know it’s difficult to understand.

No, it’s not.

You’re out of your goddamn mind.

I still have to go.

In 100 years, no ship has been within 100 kilometers of it.

You’ll never make it.

l have to try.

ls this what the Oracle has told you?

No.

This is asinine.

If you want to kill yourself, do it but do it without wasting our ships.

You have to believe me.

l have to go.

Bullshit!

I am the captain of this ship.

I say where it has to go!

And this ship will go to hell long before l let you take it anywhere.