All characters belong to their respective creators and anyone else who paid
for the rights. Suing me is a waste of effort, because I am making no money
from this. Besides -- isn't imitation the most sincere form of flattery?
Many thanks to Balto & Shades of Cyberia Cafe
(http://members.tripod.com/cyberiacafe/) whose Lain script translations I am
surreptitiously pirating.
This fic is archived at http://ugweb.cs.ualberta.ca/~joanna/prose.html
C&C not only welcome, but encouraged.
Synthesis
---------
08
Chisa allowed herself to breathe. Alive. They were still alive. Lain was
safe.
She glanced quickly at the terminal where the other Lain's face still
laughed at her.
*Gotcha!* the face winked and spiralled away. The Matrix returned.
Chisa scrambled up and back into the chair, gasping for breath.
*Damn this weak body,* she thought bitterly. She examined the screens.
Each had returned to its normal setting, but for the main one. It still
showed the aftermath at Cyberia.
Alice led Lain outside into the chaos of milling people and the wailing of
police sirens. Someone said, "she's in shock!" and settled a blanket around
the shoulders of both girls. An emergency response team ran past them,
carrying a stretcher. *Hadn't they been told that everyone inside was dead?*
Alice thought numbly. She turned to Lain. She looked catatonic, and worry
for her friend shook Alice out of her own thoughts a little. She slipped into
the backseat of a police car, pulling Lain in after her. Juri limped to them,
supported by a very quiet Reika.
"She's pretty shaken," Alice leaned over, speaking through the open door.
Lain sat there without reaction. "Are you two all right?"
"One of the paramedics looked at my ankle. He says it's not even a sprain,
and it should be all right tomorrow," Juri said quietly.
"I'm fine," Reika seemed subdued, but also all right. "We'll meet you two at
the station."
"My parents are going to kill me," Juri lamented. "I'll never be allowed out
of the house again."
"It'll be fine. They'll forget all about it before you know it," Alice
reassured her. Juri nodded doubtfully.
"Time to go!" a young policeman directed Juri and Reika towards another
patrol car. He himself got into the front seat. "We'll go to the station,
where you can give your statements. You'll be safe at home in no time."
"What did you think you were doing?" the man who called himself God sat very,
very still. His face, normally distorted with whatever emotion he was
experimenting with, had become completely blank.
In many ways, it was far more frightening than any of his temper tantrums.
The man who stood witness to this was glad that he'd taken the time to
disconnect his fear modules. He didn't think much of his chances at survival
if he caught God's eye at this time. As it was, he could stand unnoticed at
the side, watching this little scenario unfold.
The object of the God's displeasure, on the other hand, didn't seem to be
concerned at all.
"Following orders," the AI, a near-exact copy of Lain -- so perfect the man
had a hard time telling the difference -- toyed with a pistol at the other end
of God's table. She looked bored.
"I don't recall telling you to hand a gun to some human and manipulate him
into destroying Cyberia," God said coldly.
"I do recall you telling me to discredit Lain in any way I saw fit."
"Not any way, Iwakura. Our operation is more important than Lain -- you
should never have endangered it."
"You should have indicated that," Iwakura shrugged indifferently.
"As it stands," God continued smoothly after a pause, "Accela is dead as a
drug. No one will risk it. The gain in processing power is slowing to near-
zero levels."
"What does this have to do with me?" Iwakura looked up with some arrogance.
"I am coming to that. It will take time to insert the worm into a different
structure -- the only one that is close to being ready is the Psyche
processor. In the meantime, processing power will be more scarce." He looked
evenly at Iwakura. "We can no longer afford to waste it on you. You are on
your own."
"How do you expect me to continue to execute your plan, then?" Iwakura asked.
"I'm sure you'll find a way," God smiled like a shark. "Try not to ruin
any more operations in the future, Iwakura. We built you up. We can always
replace you."
Iwakura bowed stiffly.
"You're dismissed," God waved a negligent hand. She rippled once and was
gone.
God turned to the man, his face displaying an emotion he called "good
humour." The man stepped forward to take Iwakura's place under God's
scrutiny.
"What have you to report, my friend?"
"I have been watching Agent White, as you asked," the man said carefully.
"And?"
"He has made contact."
"Well," God's eyes narrowed. He leaned on his elbows, inspecting his folded
hands carelessly. "Is it an alliance, then?"
"I don't know. If I had moved closer, they would have suspected."
"Agent White is becoming a serious pain. What about Adams?"
"He's a lost cause."
"Poor Adams," God shook his head with mock-concern. "He makes some
unfortunate choices."
"Should we eliminate him?"
"Soon," God dismissed the man. He walked to one of several huge windows
which overlooked the city. Below him, the humans swarmed like insects. What
a precious resource...
What was White playing at, anyway? How could he think that she would help
him? She was only human after all.
Above all, God contemplated his domain.
"I'm sorry, I can't seem to reach your parents," the young policeman
returned to the desk where Lain still sat, staring straight ahead. "Are you
certain this is the right address?" Lain nodded once. "Why do you think your
parents aren't home?" he asked with concern.
"I don't know," Lain whispered.
"Well, perhaps you can tell me some more about what happened tonight," the
policeman shook his head and picked up his clipboard again.
"I've told you everything," Lain seemed close to tears.
"I know. I just want to make sure I have it written down right."
There was a small commotion at the door. It opened, and Alice ran through.
"Lain, are you all right?" she knelt down and took Lain's hand in her own.
"I am so sorry! I feel like it's my fault -- I asked you to come tonight."
She scanned Lain's face anxiously. "Lain?"
"Alice..." Lain began.
"Alice, let's go!" a woman's voice sounded from outside the room.
"I have to go," Alice said, turning to the door. "I'll talk to you
tomorrow."
"Alice!" the woman called out again.
"Coming, mom!" Alice squeezed Lain's hand once, and left.
The policeman sighed. He stared down at his clipboard, then at Lain, his
expression wavering between a determination to do his duty, and compassion for
a young girl so obviously traumatized by the night's events.
"I suppose we don't need anything else from you tonight. Come on, I'll take
you home." He handed Lain her jacket. She pulled it on awkwardly, and
followed him out of the room.
Her house, once they arrived, was completely dark and silent.
"Do you have your keys?" the policeman asked, leaning over to close the
door. Lain nodded, not trusting her voice. "You go on in, then," he yanked
the door shut.
She climbed the stairs to her house. She fumbled with the keys, but opened
the door without trouble. The police car pulled away as she closed the door.
The house seemed abandoned. She wandered through each room, looking for her
family. No one was home. Everything was perfectly dark, perfectly clean,
perfectly silent. The beds looked as though they hadn't been slept in.
*Where is everyone?* she wondered, close to tears. After her second trip
through the house, she wandered into her own room and sat down at her Navi.
"Messages?" she asked.
"No new messages, Lain," the Navi answered. She changed into her pajamas.
"Good night, Navi," she said.
"Good night, Lain."
Neo landed deftly atop the flat roof of a skyscraper. He flicked the lapels
of his black trenchcoat, ran a hand through his hair, and noticed the woman
standing behind him. In the smooth black bodysuit, she reminded him more
than a little of Trinity.
"You," he spoke over his shoulder. "Everyone assumed you were dead."
*I live on.*
"Atoning for your crimes? Or watching your little world go down the drain,
one human mind at a time?"
*I can't be responsible for everything the AI's did, nor the humans,* she
sighed.
"If you hadn't made your selfish decision, none of this would have happened.
The Matrix would never have existed," Neo stated flatly.
*Are you so sure of that?*
"Why are you here, anyway?" he turned on her. "You can't expect mercy from
us. We can't allow the Matrix to continue."
She smiled lightly.
*Have you heard of Lain?*
"What-?"
*Lain of the Wired...*
---
Joanne Wojtysiak joanna@cs.ualberta.ca
"'Go ahead, America,' Peavy said. 'You don't need us. Watch all the topsoil
go down the Mississippi. Transport your children in baskets on top of your SUV
deathmobiles. Keep playing with your cute and cuddly pal, the atom. Press
your nose against the TV screen for even more educational 3rd Rock From The
Sun enjoyment. Use plentiful gasoline to burn book-readers at the stake.
Don't eat anything but sugared pork lard. Do whatever you want.'"
- "Nation's Experts Give Up", the Onion, June 19, 1999