The swirling white emptiness swallowed the teaming crowds, each new person appearing from apparently thin air, bewilderment crossing their face, then an expression of impenetrable calm invading their features. Morpheus took time to take in the sight before him, the rebels gathered behind speechless in their awe-struck state. After an eternity of gazing so blindly around, their leader turned to them.
"I must thank you for your trust in me." He nodded courteously at them, an look of total gratitude escaping his eyes. "Now, I believe our task is to-"
"Morpheus!" He was cut short by the only other voice slicing through the deadly silence. He spun to see Trinity striding towards him. A flurry of relieved mutterings from the rebels ensued, filling the air with sound at last.
"Trinity," he said avidly, though leaving no time for pleasantries, he took his usual stance of directing the conversation straight to the business at hand. "What do you know? What is wrong with these people?"
"I've been watching them," she replied hastily, "I think they're being drugged. It's the only way to explain the state that they're in. I got a small amount of conversation from a couple of them, though they find it difficult to stay alert for long. All have sated that they feel weary, but that it is a good feeling. A feeling if complete...ecstasy." She's paused before choosing her final word, and looking up at Morpheus, she cam to realise that they had both drawn the same conclusion.
Neo glared at the shining blade for a moment, bluffing, allowing the Merovingian to think that he was worried. Behind his shaded glasses, he scanned the rooftop, and swiftly lifting his hand, noting the Merovingian's surprise, Neo brought a sheet of rusty corrugated iron, flying towards his adversary's head. The Merovingian ducked, his reflexes being better than Neo had imagined, though it still clipped the side of his face, leaving a grave. Blood flowed. A scowl protruded from his thin lips.
This is it. It begins and ends here. One of us shall die, and I am not about to stand still as he slaughters me with his mind.
Neo leapt, cutting through the cold air, feeling the blissful satisfaction as it lashed at his face. Though he was not about to fly away. This was not a time to run. It was a time to kill, and he propelled himself forwards, towards his enemy, who had also, he noticed performed a gravity-defying motion. They connected in the air, Neo being slightly higher as he brought a heavy kick down upon the Merovingian's left shoulder, seconds before he felt a firm grip around his ankle. It was strength of mind that mattered now. Both men knew that they could manipulate their own strength by believing they were stronger, faster and more agile. Every move that Neo made was closely monitored by his eyes, his power flowing through them, an escape route for his emotions, which, he'd found, were prominent in his ability to do as he wished. He could bend this world backwards if he wanted.
He attempted to shake the Merovingian's grip off of his leg, though it was tighter than he'd first anticipated. He swung his free leg backwards, feeling it connect beautifully with the back of Merv's head. Still however, the grip did not lessen. He found himself being swung around. Feeling helpless to resist, the grip suddenly disintegrated, and he was flung forcefully across the rooftop, the Merovingian's eyes guiding him so that he crashed into a metal air vent. Neo was winded, and looking up, he saw she silver blade slicing towards him. With lightening speed, he deflected the blade of the knife, moments before it was due to etch itself into his chest, catching hold of the diamond encrusted handle.
He had the weapon. He was back in control.
Gulping enormous breathes as he did so, Neo flipped into the air, spinning around, gathering speed as he did so, the knife held firmly in a vice-like grip, throwing all of his weight on top of the Merovingian, who didn't move fast enough. Pinning him to the floor, Neo struggled to push the tip of the knife against his throat, though the Merovingian's mind power was so strong that he was able to hold Neo's strength back. For a few moments, neo simply struggled against an immaterial force, as if wrestling with an invisible hand. The effect was amazing; Now had no idea the Merovingian was so strong.
And it left him wondering- what sort or Program was he?
It was not long before the Merovingian gathered enough strength to throw Neo off of him, thrusting heavily, though Neo collected himself well, landing swiftly on his feet, demonstrating his impeccable reflexes. He ducked swiftly behind the same air vent he had crashed into just moments before. He still had the knife, clutched tightly on his hand. The bare rooftop left little other weapon for him to use, but there was something about this knife. Neo hastily analysed it's code, noting that it read in gold code, rather than the standard green, and not wishing to hand it over willingly, he sheathed it inside a sealed pocket in the lining of his coat.
He edged around the corner. Little more than a few seconds had passed, just enough time for the Merovingian to gather himself, but as Neo's head peeked out around the corner, he found his face inches away from his adversary's, a smug smirk creeping out of his thin lips.
The Merovingian's knee made sudden impact with Neo's unprepared stomach, winded again, he stumbled momentarily backwards, offering the Merovingian to launch another attack. But this time, Neo was slightly more prepared, dodging the set of knuckles that cam within a hairbreadth of his face, and the fist left a large dent in the air vent instead. The Merovingian cried out, gritting his teeth, and Neo leapt onto the air, sweeping around in a forceful kick that met with The Merovingian's chest. He drew breath sharply, but remained undeterred from the fight at hand, effortlessly backflipping away from Neo, landing with his heels hanging over the edge of the rooftop. For what seemed like a lifetime, the Merovingian balanced unsteadily on the edge, threatening almost to fall backwards, a pained look swimming on his features. As if in slow motion, he lunged forward away from the edge, steadying himself at last, both feet securely resting on the cold concrete rooftop.
But to his surprise, his enemy did not throw himself into battle again, instead choosing to turn his back on Neo in the time it took him to pull himself together, and hurl himself across the 20 foot gap to the rooftop of the next building. Neo paused, not sure of whether it would be wise to jump across with the Merovingian waiting on the other side. Jumping made him vulnerable to attack as he landed.
He plunged his fist towards the floor, drawing kinetic energy from it, before launching himself into flight, deciding that hovering over the building was more sensible than simply diving into the unknown. He shot, like a well-aimed bullet across the gap, resting weightlessly in the air above the next rooftop. He scanned it quickly, finding no trace of the Merovingian.
Where is he?
Slowly, he lowered himself to the ground. There were no other rooftops of roughly the same level around- nowhere for him to go, and Neo had not seen him, or felt the force of him taking flight.
He's here.
His feet connected gracefully with the ground, soundlessly. Silence blessed the air around him, the growing darkness engulfing his body. He stood alone, silhouetted against the dusky red sky, his coat rippling in the light wind.
Alone. Or so it seemed. Perfectly alone.
Though Neo had trouble believing that the Merovingian would just leave, mid- fight. It was true, Neo had been strong against hi, but he had also felt that he had been pretty evenly matched. The train of thought engaging his mind, Neo mistook the sound that cut the air to be just the wind, lapping slightly more fiercely at the top of the skyscraper. And before he had the chance to turn or even react, the stout concrete block struck the back of his unprotected head.
His body fell to the floor, limp, lifeless, and a small stream of blood dyed the cold stone floor a deep shade of crimson.
"I must thank you for your trust in me." He nodded courteously at them, an look of total gratitude escaping his eyes. "Now, I believe our task is to-"
"Morpheus!" He was cut short by the only other voice slicing through the deadly silence. He spun to see Trinity striding towards him. A flurry of relieved mutterings from the rebels ensued, filling the air with sound at last.
"Trinity," he said avidly, though leaving no time for pleasantries, he took his usual stance of directing the conversation straight to the business at hand. "What do you know? What is wrong with these people?"
"I've been watching them," she replied hastily, "I think they're being drugged. It's the only way to explain the state that they're in. I got a small amount of conversation from a couple of them, though they find it difficult to stay alert for long. All have sated that they feel weary, but that it is a good feeling. A feeling if complete...ecstasy." She's paused before choosing her final word, and looking up at Morpheus, she cam to realise that they had both drawn the same conclusion.
Neo glared at the shining blade for a moment, bluffing, allowing the Merovingian to think that he was worried. Behind his shaded glasses, he scanned the rooftop, and swiftly lifting his hand, noting the Merovingian's surprise, Neo brought a sheet of rusty corrugated iron, flying towards his adversary's head. The Merovingian ducked, his reflexes being better than Neo had imagined, though it still clipped the side of his face, leaving a grave. Blood flowed. A scowl protruded from his thin lips.
This is it. It begins and ends here. One of us shall die, and I am not about to stand still as he slaughters me with his mind.
Neo leapt, cutting through the cold air, feeling the blissful satisfaction as it lashed at his face. Though he was not about to fly away. This was not a time to run. It was a time to kill, and he propelled himself forwards, towards his enemy, who had also, he noticed performed a gravity-defying motion. They connected in the air, Neo being slightly higher as he brought a heavy kick down upon the Merovingian's left shoulder, seconds before he felt a firm grip around his ankle. It was strength of mind that mattered now. Both men knew that they could manipulate their own strength by believing they were stronger, faster and more agile. Every move that Neo made was closely monitored by his eyes, his power flowing through them, an escape route for his emotions, which, he'd found, were prominent in his ability to do as he wished. He could bend this world backwards if he wanted.
He attempted to shake the Merovingian's grip off of his leg, though it was tighter than he'd first anticipated. He swung his free leg backwards, feeling it connect beautifully with the back of Merv's head. Still however, the grip did not lessen. He found himself being swung around. Feeling helpless to resist, the grip suddenly disintegrated, and he was flung forcefully across the rooftop, the Merovingian's eyes guiding him so that he crashed into a metal air vent. Neo was winded, and looking up, he saw she silver blade slicing towards him. With lightening speed, he deflected the blade of the knife, moments before it was due to etch itself into his chest, catching hold of the diamond encrusted handle.
He had the weapon. He was back in control.
Gulping enormous breathes as he did so, Neo flipped into the air, spinning around, gathering speed as he did so, the knife held firmly in a vice-like grip, throwing all of his weight on top of the Merovingian, who didn't move fast enough. Pinning him to the floor, Neo struggled to push the tip of the knife against his throat, though the Merovingian's mind power was so strong that he was able to hold Neo's strength back. For a few moments, neo simply struggled against an immaterial force, as if wrestling with an invisible hand. The effect was amazing; Now had no idea the Merovingian was so strong.
And it left him wondering- what sort or Program was he?
It was not long before the Merovingian gathered enough strength to throw Neo off of him, thrusting heavily, though Neo collected himself well, landing swiftly on his feet, demonstrating his impeccable reflexes. He ducked swiftly behind the same air vent he had crashed into just moments before. He still had the knife, clutched tightly on his hand. The bare rooftop left little other weapon for him to use, but there was something about this knife. Neo hastily analysed it's code, noting that it read in gold code, rather than the standard green, and not wishing to hand it over willingly, he sheathed it inside a sealed pocket in the lining of his coat.
He edged around the corner. Little more than a few seconds had passed, just enough time for the Merovingian to gather himself, but as Neo's head peeked out around the corner, he found his face inches away from his adversary's, a smug smirk creeping out of his thin lips.
The Merovingian's knee made sudden impact with Neo's unprepared stomach, winded again, he stumbled momentarily backwards, offering the Merovingian to launch another attack. But this time, Neo was slightly more prepared, dodging the set of knuckles that cam within a hairbreadth of his face, and the fist left a large dent in the air vent instead. The Merovingian cried out, gritting his teeth, and Neo leapt onto the air, sweeping around in a forceful kick that met with The Merovingian's chest. He drew breath sharply, but remained undeterred from the fight at hand, effortlessly backflipping away from Neo, landing with his heels hanging over the edge of the rooftop. For what seemed like a lifetime, the Merovingian balanced unsteadily on the edge, threatening almost to fall backwards, a pained look swimming on his features. As if in slow motion, he lunged forward away from the edge, steadying himself at last, both feet securely resting on the cold concrete rooftop.
But to his surprise, his enemy did not throw himself into battle again, instead choosing to turn his back on Neo in the time it took him to pull himself together, and hurl himself across the 20 foot gap to the rooftop of the next building. Neo paused, not sure of whether it would be wise to jump across with the Merovingian waiting on the other side. Jumping made him vulnerable to attack as he landed.
He plunged his fist towards the floor, drawing kinetic energy from it, before launching himself into flight, deciding that hovering over the building was more sensible than simply diving into the unknown. He shot, like a well-aimed bullet across the gap, resting weightlessly in the air above the next rooftop. He scanned it quickly, finding no trace of the Merovingian.
Where is he?
Slowly, he lowered himself to the ground. There were no other rooftops of roughly the same level around- nowhere for him to go, and Neo had not seen him, or felt the force of him taking flight.
He's here.
His feet connected gracefully with the ground, soundlessly. Silence blessed the air around him, the growing darkness engulfing his body. He stood alone, silhouetted against the dusky red sky, his coat rippling in the light wind.
Alone. Or so it seemed. Perfectly alone.
Though Neo had trouble believing that the Merovingian would just leave, mid- fight. It was true, Neo had been strong against hi, but he had also felt that he had been pretty evenly matched. The train of thought engaging his mind, Neo mistook the sound that cut the air to be just the wind, lapping slightly more fiercely at the top of the skyscraper. And before he had the chance to turn or even react, the stout concrete block struck the back of his unprotected head.
His body fell to the floor, limp, lifeless, and a small stream of blood dyed the cold stone floor a deep shade of crimson.