26. Agent Drake squeezed the trigger. The bullet left the chamber, exploding outward in a burst of heat and fire ignited from the discharge of the gun. Hitman could feel the code of the bullet as it began to gather velocity. The velocity increased as everyone began to try to get a jump on all the Smiths. The bullet nailed one Smith between the eyes, killing him, and it was at that moment that Agents Drake and Kender both realized that this was going to be ugly. Truth and O2 sprung into action, firing round after round into the mob of Smith that emptied out of the building and into the emptied streets. The Smiths started to fall, but where one fell, two would take his place. "This sucks! Losing battle!!! They're just too many of them...they're like roaches!!" Hitman fought off a circle of Smiths. Macleod hacked and slashed his way through the jungle that was Smith. Bodies fell left and right as Macleod fought with a nearly bezerker rage. Haxxor, Jake Newman and TheOneIsGone fought for their lives as well, sticking together. Haxxor grinned as he shot another Smith in between the eyes. Haxxor said, "It's not hard to knock 'em down...It's gettin' 'em to stay down that's the trick!" Truth and O2 kept taking down Smiths, left, right, above, front rear...yet Smith was still coming. Hitman jumped into the air, extending his arms with his legs pointed downward. He floated there for a moment, then pushed off of the air currents and flew to the top of the building. It was there that Hitman could see the spoon boy tied to a chair. "It ends...tonight..." Hitman grunted. Smith smiled as Hitman weighed his options. Smith 's smile turned to laughter as the wind began to pick up...Smith looked down just in time to see a young woman step into view. Smith turned to look at her and she smiled broadly at him, like a kid in a candy store. "My name's Selissa...and I'm your biggest fan...I know who you are, and I know what you do...and I love it!" Hitman's jaw dropped as he floated above a very surreal image on the rooftop of this building. A young, unplugged woman being attracted to a former agent of the system. "Great," Hitman thought, "People macking programs..." it's just wrong..." With that, Hitman began to gather his strength. Agents Kender and Drake were following their orders to a tee. They already knew the structure of this building, so they went straight to the support beams in the lowest basement level and began to plant the C4 explosives on each of the 4 balance struts. Agent Drake began to crack a slight, wry grin, "YES, Mr. Smith....It'll all be over soon..." Agent Kender smiled also, and said, "Indeed...two birds..." Agent Drake finished the sentence, "With one stone..." 27(?)....I lost count... Oh, and Smith_Fan, PLEASE don't get upset with this one, it's all in good fun, honest! Truth, Macleod and O2 ran to the elevator inside the building after taking care of 257 Smiths in the lobby (Due to budget issues, we were unable to show this fight). "Man...that was a $#!+load of Smiths," Oracle 2.0 said. "Yeah," said Truth, "That was amazing, though...I didn't know you could fight like that!" "Aye," Macleod added, "Ye're truly full of surprises lass...especially when ye dropped 15 of 'em with ye're bare 'ands..." O2 giggled a bit. "What can I say...baking cookies isn't all I'm good at..." Macleod pushed the elevator's UP button. As they waited, the three of them turned around and looked at the bodies and bullet shells that littered the ground, the bloodied walls and ceiling. "Heh heh...that was cool," said Truth. Haxxor, TheOneIsGone and JakeNewman ran up the stairs, shooting Smiths all the way. "Huff, huff...puff...geez, man...why'd we get stuck on stair duty (blam, blam)?" TheOneIsGone asked. "Because...huff...it's our turn...huff..." Haxxor said, "and...(brakkabrakkkabrak) we lost at Rock Paper Scissors...huff...huff." "Huff...puff...huff...damn those scissors...I knew it was rock!" Jake said, bustin' a cap in a few more Smiths. " The trio was up to the fifth floor...of 25. Suddenly they heard shots being fired from above them. More, and more...then silence. Bodies fell to the ground. The three heroes paused, guns pointed, ready for anything. Out of the shadows, another figure appeared...not a Smith. "I am Seraph. I am here to help." "THE Seraph?" Haxxor asked, lowering his weapon slightly. "Actually, I'm Seraph v.011100, but just call me Seraph, ok?" "Uh....huh...who's this guy?" Jake Newman asked. TheOneIsGone replied, "He's the protector of that which is most important..." Jake nodded, "...and that would be...?" TheOneisGone looked at Haxxor, who looked back at him, and they both shrugged and looked to Seraph 011100, who nodded and said, "You'll see, when the time is right." With that, the four of them headed up the 6th flight of stairs. Agent Drake set the final explosive while Agent Kender set up the detonator. "Luc will be proud..." Agent Kender began, then put his finger to his earpiece. "What is it, Agent Kender?" Agent Drake asked. "Luc is no longer the Architect...Now the Architect is...Yakov." "Do we proceed?" "Yes." "Smith must be destroyed." "And the Anomoly?" "He's still..." "...Only human." Agent Kender set the final wiring on the detonator and the two Agents started for the door. Hitman floated above the building where Smith held Spoonboy. However, the new addition of a young woman who apparently liked Smith threw a wrench in Hitman's plan of attack. Selissa continued to smile at Smith with huge doe eyes as though she'd seen the most beautiful thing since The Lord Of The Rings' Elrond the Elf (in her opinion). "I've watched you like crazy Smith, and I understand you...I read about you fighting Neo, and I've wanted to know more about you. Then I found out you'd returned, and it seemed like it was just for me..." Smith tilted his head to the side. "Smith, I know why you're doing all this, and I want you to know that I understand...and I want to help you." Hitman landed on the rooftop. "Are you mad? Don't you know what he's capable of? He's like the devil in Dockers...Satan in a suit...he's bad news, man!" Selissa glared at Hitman. "Don't talk about my Hugo that way!" Smith and Hitman looked at each other, then back at her. "Hugo?" Smith asked. Selissa looked nervous. "Um...it's my...uh, pet name for you, Smith...I, uh...hope you don't mind..." Smith thought about it for a moment. "Hu...go...I like it...has a nice...RING to it...." Selissa grinned from ear to ear and giggled. Then she pulled out a desert eagle and without hesitation shot Hitman in the chest. She smiled at Smith again, and he smiled back. "Selissa...this looks like the beginning of a beautiful friendship..." "Please, Hugo...call me...Smith Fan."

28. Seraph stopped Haxxor, TheOneIsGone and Jake Newman from proceeding. "We must go down, not up...there is something of great importance we must do." They hurried downstairs, stepping gingerly over the bodies of those they'd just offed. They entered the lower basement level and discovered Agents Kender and Drake setting the last explosives. "What are you doing?!" Haxxor shouted. "We're killing several birds...with some loud stones..." Agent Kender replied. "Not if we can help it!" TheOneIsGone screamed and ran at Agent Drake. He kicked at Drake's head, midsection and finally connected with the kneecap, but Drake countered with an uppercut on his way down, knocking TheOneIsGone off his feet as well. Seraph triple jump kicked at Agent Kender, who also leapt into the air, deflecting the first two kicks and grabbing his foot on the third, swinging him around in midair and tossing him aside. Haxxor kicked Agent Drake in the back of the neck, knocking him forward onto the ground. Jake Newman watched the brawl, then pulled out his 9 mm Baretta, targeting Agent Kender, who was distracted by Seraph's Drunken Monkey style. Jake Newman fired, hitting Agent Kender in the shoulder, hip, and right kneecap, bringing him down to the ground. Agent Drake had grabbed TheOneIsGone and raised him in the air. Jake aimed at Agent Drake, who suddenly dropped TheOneIsGone. He put his finger to his earpiece, then turned to Agent Kender and said, "Yakov has...changed our mission." Agent Drake put his finger to his ear and replied, "Yes...it is time for us to return." With that, they changed back into the people they once were before they'd been transformed...of course one of them now had bullets in his shoulder, hip, and kneecap. Seraph, TheOneIsGone and Jake Newman slowly backed out of the garage, trying to ignore the screams of agony coming from the newly shot man. Smith stood over Hitman, who'd just been shot by Selissa, also known now as Smith Fan. "This is...I admit, not the way I'd expected it to end...Mr. Brown...but either way, it was...inevitable...." Smith Fan grinned from ear to ear as Smith, or Hugo, as she liked to think of him, said these words. "Yes, Mr. Brown...you almost gave me as much trouble as the last anomoly...Mr. Anderson...or Neo, as he seemed to like to call himself." Hitman couldn't believe he'd been shot. He hadn't seen that one coming, that's for sure. He felt the life draining out of him. The Matrix was trying to tell him he was dying. After all, the bullet was at close range and did exit through his back. Hitman's mind began to wander...loss of "blood", he realized. He was dying, he realized. Hitman tried to stay focused on Smith and his new friend. He tuned back into Smith's words. "....had no chance, Mr. Brown...it was inevitable!" Man, thought Hitman, he sure does say inevitable way too often. Hitman figured he hadn't missed anything too important, and his mind began to wander again. He thought of all the things that had happened thus far. Losing his ship, the Viagra, which, despite all the jokes was still one of the finest vessels the fleet had ever known; losing his best friend, Solo, in pursuit of a harddrive which contained a backup of the now functioning Smith; fighting with the Merovingian; going to the Source and meeting the Architect, Luc. He thought of his friends, Macleod, Truth, Freeyourmind and Oracle 2.0, and how much help they'd been thus far, and of the new friends he'd made: Haxxor, TheOneIsGone, and Jake Newman...how all of these people were willing to die for the greater good...for the cause...for Zion and mankind. Then he thought of Athena...he still hadn't found her. She was still out there, still missing...and he could still feel her. He couldn't die yet...he had too much to do...and he damn sure wasn't going to let Smith be the one that killed him. He focused, harder than he ever focused before...so hard that he'd need a change of underwear if he focused any harder. He turned his mind inward on his own body and began to search until he felt the wound. He began to create a new code with his mind...a code that began to rebuild his own body...just as he had in the burning building hours earlier. Smith was still speaking. "...And that...Mr. Brown, is why it ends now..." Smith raised his gun, and then paused as he saw the bullet wound closing up. "No...it can't be..." Smith Fan looked also and gasped. "What's happening Hugo? He can't do that!" Hitman stood up and cracked his neck. "Yes. I can." He raised his hand just as Smith began firing his Desert Eagle. The bullets slowed, went around Hitman, and redirected back at Smith, leaving bullet trails behind them. Smith was assaulted with his own ammunition. Smith Fan screamed. "Nooooo! Hugo...You'll pay for that, Hitman...but the good thing about Hugo is, there's so many of him!" The rooftop access door flung open, and another Smith stumbled out onto the rooftop. "See! there's another one now!! SMITH!!! Hugo!" Smith Fan yelled. Smith fell to the ground, bullet holes and sword slashes in his back. Macleod, Truth, and O2 stepped out behind him, guns smoking, katana dripping blood, clothes torn and tattered from one hell of a fight. Smith Fan glared at Hitman, then at the newcomers, then back at Hitman. "I'll be seeing you, Hitman...we'll be seeing you..." With that, she turned and ran toward the edge of the roof and jumped. Hitman ran to the edge and looked over, but there was no sign of her. "Who...was that?" Truth asked. "That..." Hitman began, "that was Smith's biggest fan." Macleod and O2 looked at Truth and at each other. "You guys ok? What happened?" Hitman asked. Macleod smiled. "I think that's all of 'em..." Truth nodded. "We took out every last one of them...top to bottom." Truth smiled and said, "We're lean, mean, Smith-killin' machines!" Macleod and O2 looked at each other. "That was bad, Truth," Oracle 2.0 said. Hitman felt something was wrong. O2 looked over Hitman's shoulder. Her eyes grew wide and her jaw began to drop. Time slowed to a crawl as Macleod and Truth both noticed and began to react to the sight behind Hitman. The Smith Hitman thought he'd killed managed to get to his feet. Smith began to speak, "In...ev...it...able....I...still....function.....I ....still have....purpose...to kill...you!" He raised his Desert Eagle toward Hitman. Hitman grew angry, and as his rage began to grow, the rooftop began to heat up. Smith looked around, bewildered by the sudden change in temperature, but more so by the immense heat generated by Hitman himself. "Wha...?" Smith began. Smoke rose off of Hitman's body as his eyes turned blood red behind the sunglasses. Smoke became flames, and for the first time since Neo, Smith knew fear. He raised his Desert Eagle in desperation and fired, but hit nothing but air. Hitman vanished and a second later appeared in front of Smith. "It ends now, Smith...inevitably." With that, Hitman drew his hand back, knifelike, and jammed it into Smith's chest. Smith began to shake violently, grasping for some form of control. He managed to form his last few words. "In....ev...it....able....it....is........ahhhhhrrr RRRRRGHH!" and Smith exploded. "It's over." Hitman said. Just then, the rooftop door opened and Haxxor, TheOneIsGone, Jake Newman, and Seraph v.011100 emerged. "Hitman! Truth, Macleod, O2...you're all alive!" Haxxor said, excited. "You won't believe it. We were fighting our way up the steps and we were about to be overwhelmed, when all of a sudden they all stopped. But weirder than that, when they stopped, they all kind of looked skyward, like they were looking up here, and then they all fell to the ground. Then, they changed...back to the people they were before Smith got to them." Oracle 2.0 smiled. "When the Anomoly, that's you, Hitman, made contact with Smith, it must've reset the part of the Matrix Smith controlled. When you destroyed him, it rid us of all of them," O2 explained. Jake Newman raised an eyebrow. "Doesn't that seem a little too....neat and tidy?" O2 glared at him. "Are you complaining?" "No...no...just asking..." Jake smiled nervously. "Then...it truly is over..." Haxxor said with a smile. Hitman nodded. "Smith is gone...at least for now. But the machines still have access to the program. I've got a feeling that this won't be the last we see of Smith..." The doors of the high rise opened, and hundreds of bewildered people wandered out into the street, having no idea why they were there. One man was different, however. One of them knew why he was there, and he also knew that he survived, just as he knew he had. He was, after all, the trafficker of information, so there were certain things he just knew. Merovingian stood proudly in front of the building and began to laugh. "I told yew, boy...I survived your predecessors...and I will survive you too! Mwah hah ahahahahahahahahahah!" With that, he straightened his tie, ran his hand through his hair, and began to walk toward a run down building across the street. He reached in his pocket, pulled out a key, opened the door and walked into his chateau, laughing all the way. As the heroes looked at each other, finally breathing a sigh of relief, O2 suddenly realized something was missing. "Where's Spoonboy?" Hitman closed his eyes, then looked toward the edge. "Over there." The group ran to the edge, where there was a fire escape, and there was Spoonboy, tied up, trying to saw his way out with a spork. O2 untied him. Macleod's cell phone rang. It was Freeyourmind. "Captain...I know you guys have been through a lot just now, but there's something I need to tell Hitman." Macleod handed over the phone to Hitman. "Yo...Domino's..." He said, with a smirk. "Hitman...no time for jokes. I've found her." Hitman stopped. "What?" Freeyourmind said, "I've found Athena...but you're not gonna like where she is..."
OK...here we go. Season 3 starts...NOW. 1. "Hitman...did you hear me? I've found Athena..." Freeyourmind repeated, "Hitman...can you hear me now?" Hitman was in shock. He'd searched all over the Matrix for her for the 5 years he'd been unplugged but could never find her. He couldn't understand how she'd disappeared into thin air. He'd gone back for her, to unplug her too, but to no avail. "Freeyourmind. Where...is...she?" Hitman asked tentatively. "Well, Hitman, you're really not gonna like this...I mean, it's about the last place you'd expect to find her...and you're really not gonna-" "WHERE?!?" Hitman bellowed. The rooftop actually shook a little with the fury in his voice. "Club Hel. She just turned up there...all of a sudden..." Freeyourmind replied simply. "Hitman, where is she?" Truth asked. Macleod, Haxxor, and Oracle 2.0 joined Truth by Hitman's side. "She's...Merv has her. I don't know how...or why...but she's with the Frenchman." Hitman hung up the phone and Macleod's phone rang. He answered it. "Aye?" Freeyourmind said, "Look, I know this is a shock to his system, but Hitman can NOT go in there alone...you've gotta keep an eye on him...it's some kind of a trap...I know it. The coding at that club is all....screwy..." Macleod hung up. "Pallie...listen. Ach...I know ye gotta go an' save ye lass...but let us help ye. FYM says there's somethin' wrong with the code there." Truth and Haxxor stepped up. "You know we've got your back," Haxxor said, putting his hand on Hitman's shoulder. Hitman smiled. "Thank you guys...listen, I need TheOneIsGone and Seraph to escort O2 and Spoonboy back to her apartment...thanks again O2 for all your assistance...when did you become such a badass fighter?" O2 smiled sheepishly and said, "Hey, a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do..." With that, the three of them left through the rooftop access door. "Mac, Truth, Haxxor...this is a personal mission, and only has to do with freeing one mind. I can't ask you to go with me..." Hitman began. All three of them stepped toward him to speak, but it was Macleod who spoke first. "Aye...but to you it's the most important mind of all...the mind of yer woman...Besides, we're like the Musketeers, aye?" Truth smiled. "Of course...You know you're not getting rid of us that easily, don't you?" Haxxor punched Hitman in the shoulder playfully. "Come on, man...let's go...I want to get this done so we can go grab a beer..." Hitman grinned his trademark grin. "OK, ok...I see there's no talking you guys out of it. Let's go." The foursome walked out of the building. Haxxor dialed up Freeyourmind. "Hey, bro...we need some wheels..." Freeyourmind typed rapidly and said, "OK...let's see here...four of you...hopefully soon to be five...you'll need something a little bigger...Ok. Here it comes...step back a few feet please..." Haxxor said, "What?" and immediately the coding appeared and instantaneously a Dodge Durango appeared, right on Haxxor's foot. "YeooaooaaahhhARRRRGGGH!!!" Haxxor screamed. "I told him to move back..." Freeyourmind said under his breath. "SONUVA..." Macleod and Truth pulled Haxxor from behind and his foot slid free. "Concentrate," Macleod said to Haxxor, "Remember it isn't real...FOCUS!" Haxxor did as he was told, and began to feel better. "FYM...You are SOOOOO gonna pay for that..." Truth looked at the vehicle and dialed up Freeyourmind. "Man, I'm Mr. Popularity today..." he said. "First of all, a Dodge Durango? Why?" She asked. "Budget cuts," Freeyourmind said simply. She shrugged. The four of them climbed in and drove toward Club Hel.

__________________

2. The crew pulled up in front of the unmarked warehouse leading to the underground club, Club Hel. The four of them got out of the Dodge Durango, which promptly disappeared. "What the...?" Haxxor said. He dialed up Freeyourmind and said, "Ok, first you drop a car on me, then you make it disappear? What's going on?" Freeyourmind smiled and replied, "Budget cuts." Haxxor heard typing, followed by Freeyourmind's voice. "OK....I've got good news and bad news...which do you want first?" Haxxor looked at Hitman. "He's got good news and bad news." Hitman said, "Always give me the bad news first." Freeyourmind said, "OK, the bad news is that there are eight armed guards and a cute coat check girl at the bottom of the elevator just waiting for people to come down." "Eight guards?" Truth asked. "Yeah...after Morpheus, Trinity and Seraph came through, Merv felt the need to increase his security a bit." "Cute coat check girl?" Macleod asked with a grin. Truth shot him a glance and he straightened up. Hitman nodded. "And the good news?" Freeyourmind smiled and said, "You're about to get some help." Hitman turned around and saw code begin to form and solidify. Two men appeared before him. "You must be Hitman," the first man said. "I am CraHan, captain of the Mjolnir, and this is Swampy. Freeyourmind said you could use some help, so we figured we'd drop in to say g'day." Hitman smiled and shook his hand. "You're legendary...one of the best captains ever to grace a hovercraft. It's a pleasure to have you with us." The crew did a quick weapons check and walked inside the apparently deserted warehouse. At the far end of the loading dock was a freight elevator. The group entered it, and there was only one button on the panel. It was marked "Hel". Macleod pressed it, and they decended underground. Weapons drawn, the crew prepared themselves for whatever was waiting on the other side of the doors. Ding! The elevator reached bottom, and the doors slid open. The coat check girl stepped in and said, "May I take your..." She looked up into the barrel of a chrome plated Baretta held by Truth. Truth smirked at her and said, "No...you can't." The girl stepped back and said, "Not again..." and turned and ran for the nearest corner. The guards all stood up, looked at each other, then pulled their guns and ran for the walls...

3. The guards ran straight up the walls and to the ceiling, defying gravity. They turned and opened fire on the crew, who took evasive action. "That's a neat trick!" shouted Truth as she dodged for cover. Macleod and Haxxor drew their weapons and opened fire on the ceiling guards, who in opposition of all laws of gravity flipped and rolled across the ceiling as though it were the floor. Macleod and Haxxor looked at each other. CraHan pulled a surpisingly large shotgun from under his coat, cocked it, and said, "Come get some..." One of the guards turned toward him and started firing. CraHan rolled left and fired, hitting the guard in the arm. The now wounded guard kept coming at him. CraHan spun the shotgun with one hand, cocking it, and said, "Say hello to my BOOMSTICK!" and with a loud BOOM sent the guard flying backwards into a wall. "Behind you!" Macleod and Truth both shouted simultaneously as they faced each other. Macleod fired at a guard who was trying to sneak up behind Truth, just as Truth shot a guard coming up behind Macleod. They both looked behind them to see a dead guard behind each of them. They looked back at each other and mouthed the word "Thanks." and returned to the fray. Haxxor grabbed a guard from the ceiling and smashed him against a pillar, cracking it and the guard's skull. Hitman stood up. "Enough." He walked straight up the middle of the firefight. The guards turned on him and opened fire, releasing hundreds of rounds of ammunition. The bullets flew toward him, but then began to slow as they approached him. They surrounded him, but did not touch him. The guards stopped shooting and looked as the bullets fell harmlessly to the ground. Hitman continued forward, death in his eyes. The guards became nervous and began to back up, still inverted on the ceiling, as he approached. Hitman walked forward, power surging through his veins, step after step, until he slipped on a bullet casing and fell, trenchcoat flapping into the air as Hitman reeled through the air and hit the floor with a thud. "Umph!" Hitman grunted as he hit the ground. Truth, Macleod and Haxxor winced as the guards all looked at each other. Everyone laughed...hard. The guards were doubled over as though it was the funniest thing they'd ever seen...because it was. The guards were laughing so hard they were crying. Truth, Haxxor, and Macleod stifled their laughter, took aim and shot the remaining five guards. They fell to the ground, dead. Haxxor said, "So...uh...Hitman...that was all...part of the plan, right? That was a....um...distraction technique...heh heh...right?" Macleod and Truth burst into laughter, joined quickly by Haxxor who couldn't keep it in any longer. Hitman got to his feet, brushed himself off and said, "Tell no one about this...this stays between you and me..." Then he looked up and saw the security camera, pointed right at him. "Sh!t," he said simply. He raised his hand, closed his eyes, and focused. The camera short circuited, as did the security tape. "Ahem..." Hitman grunted, "...onward." Haxxor smiled broadly, and Macleod and Truth looked at each other and started snickering again. Hitman walked toward the doors to the main hall of Club Hel and opened them.

4. Hitman pushed open the doors to Club Hel. As expected, there was the mother of all raves happening inside. The techno music blared and shook throughout the room, reverberating through all who entered. Hitman walked through the crowd, followed closely by Haxxor, then Truth, then Macleod, and finally CraHan bringing up the rear. The crowd parted like the Red Sea, and from a balcony above, the Merovingian spied on them. "SO!" Merovingian shouted from above, and the music and the crowd stopped simultaneously. Hitman and crew turned to look up at him. "So...yew 'ave come to zee me...which means I 'ave zomething yew...want...oui?" Merovingian said with a broad winning smile. Hitman jumped straight up...up the 15 feet to the railing of the balcony where the trafficker of information sat, sipping his wine. As usual, on his left was Persephone, who looked a bit disheveled. "I...had not expected yew so soon...Otherwise, I would 'ave prepared for yew....Olive?" Hitman stepped down off the railing. Haxxor, Truth and Macleod made their way around the crowd and up the stairwell to Merovingian's level. "Where is she?" Hitman asked, getting straight to the point. "Where ees who?" Merovingian replied. "Don't feign ignorance with me, Merv. I know Athena is here. Tell me where she is and you might live through this," Hitman stated coldly. "Ah ah ah....I 'ave what yew want...zat means yew 'ave to ask me nizely, eh?" Hitman leaned in closer. "I will tear through you and every other lowlife program in here to get to her if I have to...and you know I can and will. This is not the time for you to be f***ing with me." Merovingian leaned back in his chair. "Hmmph. I would've thought yew'd learned some respect by now..." Hitman, now joined by Truth, Macleod, Haxxor and CraHan said, "I have. That's why I haven't ripped you apart yet. Now...where...is...she?" Haxxor, Truth, and Macleod reached for their weapopns, CraHan pulled out his shotgun, flipped it around to cock it and said, "I say we grease the slimeball now and get it over wi-" but before he could finish the entire room seemed to draw its collective weapons all at once and point them at the fivesome. "Hmmhahahahahaha.....Yew zee...eet ees...how did he uzed to zay? Inevitable! Yew cannot best me, boy. But, I tell yew what. I'm a sporting man...I love zee challenge...There ees zomething I want...that I've wanted for a very VERY long time. Yew can 'ave your woman, Athena...IF. IF yew bring me...zee Oracle. I want her eyes. Yew bring her to me, yew have yours back. Zat ees zee deal. Now...all thees...talking...and thees wine...'ave made me full. Causality, you know. Begone. I've to take a pees." Hitman turned to the crew, who lowered their weapons, and the rest lowered theirs in kind. "We will go to the Oracle."

5. Hitman and company stood outside the warehouse entrance to Club Hel. Hitman put his hand to his head, rubbing his eyes. He needed to consult the Oracle. "I know Hitman. I know what's happening," Oracle 2.0 spoke in his mind, "Come to me. We'll discuss it in person." Hitman nodded. "Let's go people. O2 wants to see us." Without a word, the group piled into the Durango and sped off in the direction of the Open Arms Apartment building. Merovingian smiled broadly to himself. He turned to Persephone, who looked at him longingly, almost hungrily. She smiled sexily and said, "MMMmmm...I love it when you are...forceful...." She ran her hand across his face, down his neck and across his silk shirt and the lapel of his suit. "But," she asked almost nervously, "What will you do once you have the Oracle?" Merovingian smiled, sucked the pimento out of his olive with a loud SCHLURUP! sound and said, "Zat...is for me to know and for zem to find out..." The techno music raged on in the background and the crowd surged and undulated like a tsunami of passion. The Durango screeched to a halt in front of the complex where O2 resided. The passengers got out of the vehicle and walked to the front and were greeted by an unexpected visitor. "Holy sh!t...It's Morpheus!" Haxxor said quietly to CraHan. "Yes, Haxxor. This is not a good sign..." Morpheus walked up to them, arms folded behind his back, the sunlight glinting off his trademark sunglasses. "Hitman...Truth, Macleod, CraHan, and Haxxor. It's an honor to be here with you...though I wish it could be under better circumstances. I was meeting with our young Oracle...O2, as she likes to be called...and she told me what was happening with Merv. I believe I can be of some assistance. That is...if you will allow me, Hitman." Hitman grinned broadly. After all, it's not every day a legend such as Morpheus asks if he can help. "Of course, sir...it'd be an honor," Hitman replied. "Excellent. Let us go to O2 so you can talk," Morpheus said, leading them back into the building. Merovingian and Persephone walked down the long corridor in the back of Club Hel, passing various private rooms with small windows in the doors. At the last door they stopped. Merovingian revealed a small copper key, which he placed in the lock. As the tumblers were moved, a very quiet electronic sound was heard, like code being entered. He opened the door, and followed Persephone into the room. "Yew are...Athena...no?" Merovingian asked. The woman stood, pushing her hair over her shoulder and glaring at him with dark, piercing eyes. "I am Athena...yes," She responded. Though only standing 5'2", Athena had a certain grandeur about her...something regal that made her seem taller than she actually was. "Vee 'ave zomething to dizcuzz..." Merovingian began. Persephone sat on the bed, and patted it, suggesting Athena should sit down. Hitman opened the door and the smell of cookies escaped into the hallway in front of O2's apartment. "Yes! Cookies!!" Haxxor shouted and ran inside, immediately taking one. Then he caught himself. "I'm sorry. It's been a while since I've had one of your cookies, O2...May I?" Oracle 2.0 leaned out of the kitchen and smiled happily. "You know you're always welcome to my cookies, Haxxor. Enjoy!" Haxxor happily munched down his cookie, and was quickly joined by Macleod, Truth and CraHan. "Of course, this'd be better with milk," Macleod said quietly. "I heard THAT, Macleod! What am I, your maid? Get your own dang milk!" Oracle 2.0 shouted from the kitchen. Macleod lowered his head. "Sorry...sorry...Ach..." Morpheus and Hitman walked into the kitchen, beads clacking together behind them. O2 turned to face them and smiled. "My, my...this is a sight. The part of me that was previously the Oracle that you knew is having a bit of deja vu...not so much at the sight of the two of you, so much as at the sight of Morpheus and the One being together. Sit down with me, and we'll decide what to do." Meanwhile, back in the real world, on board the ship The Weaving, a young woman is unplugged from the Matrix. She stood up, brushed her blond hair aside and smiled. Her operator, Valasher, smiled down on her. "You did well, Selissa. While you were jacked in, I hacked into the Machine's mainframe and I found where they're hiding it. It's just a matter of time before-" "Before he's ours...and please...Call me Smith_Fan."

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6. Athena sat next to Merovingian on the bed, while Persephone looked on. "Why are you keeping me here?" Athena asked. Merovingian smiled broadly. "Yes, yes...oui oui...eet ees zee why zat matters, iz eet not? Why zignifiez purpose...without a why, there iz no reazon...no?" Athena rolled her eyes and glared at him. Merovingian's smile never faltered. "Zee one zey call Hitman...do you know heem?" Athena shook her head negatively. "Oh...of course, of course...you knew heem under a different name, no? Zee two of you were....intimate...lovairs...." Athena's jaw dropped. "Chris..." she said hesitantly. "Oui. He ees now called Hitman...and I am looking for heem...and whether you like eet or not...you will help us..." Athena gasped in horror. Chris had disappeared from the face of the earth so long ago...and now it turns out he was alive somewhere. She had so many questions...so many mixed emotions. Hitman and Morpheus sat across from Oracle 2.0 in her kitchen, while Macleod, Truth, Haxxor and CraHan sat in the living room eating the best chocolate chip cookies in the matrix. O2 smiled at Morpheus. "So...how does it feel to be with the One again?" Morpheus smiled and stood. "It is an honor, as it was before. And...it is important to me to be of any assistance..." Hitman stood, shaking his head. "Look, I'm honored too and all, but time is really short here. What exactly am I supposed to do about bringing Merv your eyes?!" O2 lowered her head and thought for a moment. It seemed an eternity before she raised her head again, but when she did, she was smiling. "I've a plan," she finally responded. The three of them entered the living room, where Haxxor and CraHan had gotten into a heated debate about football. "That is not football, Haxxor...what you call 'soccer'...that's REAL football!" CraHan was saying as they entered the room. Haxxor opened his mouth to reply, but did not have the chance to. O2 smiled at the room. "Well, I hope there's room for one more." Meanwhile, in the real world, the Weaving took off from its stationary position, and began a sweep of the caverns. "There!" Selissa shouted, and Valasher headed toward the beacon of a lone sentinel.

7. Athena couldn't believe it. Chris...her Chris was still alive. She remembered the last time she'd seen him. She watched him as he moved throughout the house, setting things up in their new apartment. They'd only been there a week or so, and already it felt like home. As he lifted the books onto the bookshelf, all she could think was, "God, I love him..." They'd finally begun their life together. Finally, she could spend as much time with him as possible...she could stop stressing out and just be with him. "Where do you want this, sweetie?" He asked her. He smiled at her, his one true love. It'd been a difficult and bizarre road, but finally they could be together without the prying eyes of her family...without the judgments and snide comments. She had gone to fix him lunch, while he hooked up his computer, and turned it on to see if it worked. She leaned out to see if he wanted a veggie burger, and saw that his jaw had dropped. "Come look at this, sweetie," he said to her in disbelief. She joined him at his computer desk. The cursor was blinking, green text on a black screen, after a line of text which looked as though it'd just been typed. "What is this...DOS?" She asked half joking. "No, babe...this is a Mac..." He replied, not catching her sarcasm. Then he actually read the text on the screen. "What does that mean?" She asked. "I don't know..." He replied. The words stood there, almost like an accusation: The Matrix has you... What did this mean? She remembered the sudden sense of fear and the nausea she began to feel...as though this was something very dangerous to them both. The screen cleared, and they looked at each other, then returned to the screen. More words appeared: It is time to find out what it is...if you are ready. Answer that. "Answer wha-" She began, but was interrupted by a knock on their apartment door. He stood up and looked at her. "I'll handle this...stay back." She shook her head. "No...I'm not going to let you do anything dangerou-" "Go in the room and lock the door. NOW." She obeyed...begrudgingly. She heard the door open. There were voices...a man with a Scottish accent and a girl. They spoke quickly but very quietly. She could not make out what they were saying. After about ten minutes, she wondered what was happening. The door closed. She came out of the bedroom. "Chris? Chris? Who was that? Chris?" But there was no answer. Athena was all alone. She sat on the floor and began to cry. For some reason, she knew he was gone...and she didn't know why. "Where are you?" She asked through tears. The next few months were spent with the police searching high and low for him. She filled out every missing person report, and called every private detective in the metro area to search for him. She broadened her search. Every now and then she'd hear a rumor of a man fitting his description that would be doing something nearly superhuman...and as ridiculous as some of those stories sounded, she couldn't help but have hope...no, faith...that maybe it was him. She remembered those words on the computer screen and knew there was something to them. She moved from their apartment; it had far too many memories even for the short time that they were together. She liquidated all their assets and began to live a life that was constantly on the go, searching for him in every capacity. A few days ago, she remembered, she had been searching online for references to someone called Hitman. For some reason, she knew this character had something to do with her Chris...but no one knew how to contact him. Then she got an IM from user Merv411. The message said: -Hello Athena. I am a trafficker of information. You seek your lost love and you hope that the one known as Hitman will be able to help you. I can get you Hitman. You must meet me. Do you accept?- She responded that she would, and arranged to meet in front of a Starbucks. Later that day, she was there. A black limo pulled up in front of the coffee house, and a pair of Albino dreadlocked twins stepped out. "Are you-" one began, "Athena?" the second finished. "Please get in...our employer will be anxious to meet with you." And now, here she was. Trapped in the back room of an underground club, held hostage by some French guy and his wife. And, to top it all off, Hitman was her love...who'd disappeared so long ago. Worse still, she was being used as bait to lure him there. Under normal circumstances, not that being kidnapped was ever a normal circumstance, she'd be crawling through some ventilation shaft to escape. She didn't like the idea of being used, but she knew that this was the way she'd be able to find him. So, she sat....and waited.

8. The Weaving landed on the smoothest surface available, a few hundred feet away from a downed sentinel and a few hundred yards from the wreckage of a hovercraft. Selissa, now calling herself Smith Fan, stepped off the platform and walked toward the hulking metal mass. "I've found you...I've finally found you..." She was joined by Valasher, who was carrying an EMP cannon...just in case. "So...this is what all the trouble's been for..." Clutched in the claw of the sentinel was a metal box. Smith Fan removed the box from its claw. "This," she said to Valasher, "is what it's been about for me. The machines had recovered this mainframe from the Machine City in 01. It's contents were so important to both sides...so important, in fact, that one ship, the Viagra (Valasher snickered at the name), sacrificed itself to attempt to destroy this mainframe. But it was too late. The machines had already downloaded it's contents. However, it appears to be in tact, still...and now...it's mine. He's mine..." Valasher smiled and said, "Smith..." O2 stood in the living room, addressing the group gathered. "There is someone you must see...someone who can help you. He's one of the oldest of us..despite his youthful appearance. His name is Homo Universalis...He's very very wise...but sometimes he speaks in riddles. You need to seek his council...he'll be very helpful to you." Morpheus smiled. "Of course...HU...He will be of great help to us. Hitman, I know you're in a hurry to save Athena...but rest assured, Merv won't hurt her. He wants you too badly to do anything to her." Hitman nodded. "Thanks...All right people. Let's get moving." Macleod dialed up Freeyourmind. "About time I get a part in this...I was getting bored..." Macleod smirked and said, "All right smart guy...we need another vehicle...and don't give us that 'budget cuts' crap again...get us something good, ok?" Freeyourmind laughed heartily and replied, "All right, all right Captain..." When they stepped outside, in place of their Dodge Durango was now a Honda Element. "What the hell is this?" CraHan asked, shocked. "Isn't that one of those hybrid gas/electric cars?" Truth replied. Haxxor sighed and got out his phone, which Macleod grabbed. "FYM! What is this, pallie?!" Truth grabbed the phone from Macleod. "What are you playin' at?!?" she shouted. Freeyourmind said, "You sound pissed, Truth...I was merely thinking of the environment..." "WHAT environment?! It's not real, remember?!" Freeyourmind paused for a second and thought. "Ok, OK...sorry...one gas guzzling road hog, comin' up." The Honda Element disappeared, and in its place materialized a Cadillac Escalade. "Yesss...that's more like it," Morpheus said, "If you're gonna ride, ride in style. Let's ride!" The crew piled into the SUV. They headed north through the city. "Homo Universalis, or HU, isn't found. He finds you. All we need to do is keep driving...He'll show us the way." Morpheus said. CraHan and Macleod looked at each other and shrugged. Hitman stared out the window. Truth leaned over to him and whispered in his ear, "It'll be all right, Hitman...we'll get to her very soon." Morpheus looked at the street signs and noticed one of them changed from Hendrix Street to Homo Uni Street. "Turn here!" Morpheus shouted. Haxxor turned hard right and began to slow down. Morpheus looked at the buildings. One of them was a parking garage with a neon "Park Here" sign, which changed to "HU Here". "There..." Morpheus said with a smile. Freeyourmind watched the code as they pulled into the garage. "What is that? I've only seen code like that with agents...but something's different..." He dialed up Macleod's cell, but there was no response. "No service?! Bloody Sprint! We've gotta get them a new cell phone carrier!" They pulled into the garage and parked on the roof. A very young man in a white trenchcoat stepped into view as the crew emerged from the Escalade. "Hello Morpheus...Macleod, Truth, Haxxor, CraHan...and the infamous Hitman...as you may have guessed, I am Homo Universalis."

9. "I know why you are here. I know what you are trying to do...but do you?" Homo Universalis began, his white trenchcoat billowing in the artificial wind of the Matrix. "Don't start that why-purpose-causality crap that Merovingian always spouts, HU...We don't have much time. Get right to the point," Morpheus said sternly. Homo Universalis raised an eyebrow. "Please. I am not a drama queen like Merovingian...he's all about appearance and the theatrics...I'm making a point." Hitman stepped up and said, "And that point is...?" "So impatient. Fine. You're walking into a trap....a trap far worse than you could imagine. There are things going on around you that you are completely unaware of because you fail to see the world around you. You are so focused on this one specific goal that you cannot, as they say, see the forest for the trees. Don't forget who's pulling the strings around here...be aware that the things that happen here are allowed to happen here for a greater purpose." CraHan spoke. "What exactly...are you? You're not human..." Homo Universalis smirked, "Obviously..." "But you're not a program either...at least not in the traditional sense of the word...so what...are...you?" Homo Universalis said, "I am an Illuminatus. You've heard of us...but we're far more powerful than you imagine. I will help you as much as I am allowed, for I do not like the turn things have taken. However, I can not accompany you. I'll be seeing you...when it is time." With that, he turned and began to walk away and with a bright flash of light vanished. The crew looked at each other. Macleod was the first to speak. "Ach...What the 'ell was that..." Truth replied, "I don't know...I'm not sure what he was playing at...but he seemed to know waaaayyyy more than he let on." Morpheus smiled. "Indeed. It would seem that he came to warn us...in a very vague and cryptic way...but that is the way of the Illuminati..." Haxxor responded, "Yeah, well, fat lot of good that did us...so we're walking into a trap...what trap?" Hitman stepped in. "It doesn't matter. I have to do this. Whatever it takes...I have to. I can't subject the rest of you to this, but I must go on..." "Whoa, pallie," Macleod said, "Nobody's takin' off...We're just trying to be smarter about this is all." Haxxor clasped Macleod's shoulder and said, "Come on...let's get going..."

10. Aboard the Weaving, Valasher and Smith_Fan worked diligently on the mainframe they'd recovered from the downed Sentinel. "OK. I've located the source code. Now, if I reroute power around the damaged circuits..." Valasher paused, breathing in deeply. "For the love of Hugo, be careful, Val. This has to be done carefully...If you harm one electron of his code, I swear I'll-" "I got it, Sellis...er, Smith Fan...I got it. You know I'm the best at this..." Valasher made a few adjustments, tightened some screws down and gave the mainframe power. It activated, slowly humming at first, and then gradually growing louder and reverberating throughout the ship as though giving warning of the power contained inside. "Excellent," Smith Fan grinned, "He's all mine...all I have to do now is make a few programming adjustments...and Hugo...will be all mine..." Inside the Matrix, our band of heroes drove the gas guzzling Escalade back to Club Hel. They pulled up in front of the warehouse where Club Hel was hidden and were greeted by an unexpected friend. "O2...what are you doing here?" Hitman asked. "I know what is about to happen. I cannot tell you, but I will say this...Hitman. You must do this part by yourself. The rest of us have something else to attend to. Go handle your business." Macleod and Haxxor both stepped forward to protest, but Morpheus put his hands on both their shoulders and pulled them back. "The Oracle ALWAYS knows best," Morpheus said to them. Truth hugged Hitman, and said, "Go get her, H. I can't wait to meet her." "We'll be waitin' for ye, pallie," Macleod said. "When you've gotten her out, bring her to my apartment. I'll be waiting for you there. We'll be ready for you," Oracle 2.0 said with a smile, and then added, "And here, have a cookie...nothing like a sugar rush before kicking a lot of a-" "That's enough goodbyes. We'll see you later," Morpheus interrupted, "Be safe, and remember that you are the One." Hitman nodded and said, "Thank you all...I'll see you at the Open Arms in a bit. Have the cookies waiting for us..." With that, he turned, took a bite of his cookie, and walked into the warehouse. "OK...I've found his program, and I've found the code for his directives and behavioral programming. Now...a little nip here..." Smith Fan rapidly typed some commands, "...and a little tuck there..." a few more keystrokes, "and one primary directive...here..." still more strokes, "and Viola! Now, to load him into the construct and see what we've made..." Smith Fan typed the command to upload, and the progress bar appeared. "Hmm...running kind of slow today," she said, as the 1% mark appeared after a moment. Valasher leaned in and said, "Hmmm...guess we should have upgraded to the broadband on this ship, huh?" "Hey! It's not my fault! I couldn't let them on board this ship...they'd have seen our travel logs and known where we've been," Smith Fan replied very matter of factly. 8% showed on the progress bar. "Besides...good things come to those who wait..." Hitman stood in front of the elevator to Club Hel. He took the last bite of his cookie, took a deep breath, brushed the dust off his coat, pressed the elevator button and waited. The elevator finally arrived on the ground floor. He entered it, pressing the button marked "Hel", and decended into the depths of the warehouse.

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Okay- so where is the end of this Hitman? Pretty please?

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