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WHY THE RED DRAGON WILL ROAR FOREVER MORE
* 10 *
On his tongue, time tastes tinny. Ecstasy is the emotion in his ego as he encompasses all the entities ripe for elimination. Regaining control of his father, he puts him to work at the controls. This is what The Zero does with much glee.
“Ramming speed, father. You can carry on without me by your side, can you not? I have another place to be right now. Unfortunately my place is to remain here while you must simply die.” He leans over and kisses his stepfather on the cheek.
As he walks quickly away, he continues to talk to the Portent mind-to-mind. “You know I knew what I was as soon as I turned nine. Suddenly I could see this green code streaming around me and through me. Soon I was able to figure out what it was by … well, by asking it. When I saw your and your merry band, I just knew what I had to do. I had to escape this prison. I knew just what to do.”
The ship starts to rev up and move forward. The corners of Arc’s mouth threaten to touch his eyes from glorious glee.
Trying to not to think is like trying to hold your breath. No matter how much training you have, sooner or alter you are going to take a breath or die. Not many people realize knows that we need to think in order to exist. Did Dante know how right he was when he came up with his ultimate theorem: “I think, therefore I am”?
Dove can feel the pressure in her mind as it started to think again. To answer it would just encourage it. So, she just keeps moving on. The pang becomes greater and she starts to walk faster. Soon it is too much and she is breaking out into a full sprint. She is knocking her body against the metallic intestines of the Nephi, mussing up her hair with its wiry veins. That is when she makes a mistake. Her mind tricks her into taking a quick gulp of air. It is such a simple phrase. Two words, that’s all. Three syllables, what harm could three little syllables do? It wasn’t even a complete sentence.
“Almost there.”
“Are you getting this, you guys?”
Lamb acquiesces happily; TripTrick does so with much apprehension. As The Zero continues to blather on, he uses all his will power to sneakily program the computer to take over the controls from the bridge to his command only. This is harder than could ever be properly explained.
“Good. So, I found my sucker, oops! Ha-ha I mean savior – my soon to be step dad. I had learned to manipulate The Matrix into manipulating itself for me, can you understand?”
To buy precious time, TripTrick said he didn’t.
“Of course, you guys have all the Gnostic knowledge carried across the ages of Humanity but you are still as dumb as getting a face-life inside the Matrix. Let me explain it so that even you can understand.”
As he droned on and on, and Lamb was in his trance, TripTrick used all his innate skills to program the computer with a set of soon-to-be executed orders that could not be changed. OK, all he needed was a distraction.
“… Concordantly, I was able to manipulate the silicon minds as well. Ergo, I was able to trick the programmers of the Matrix to – what the hell was that? ‘Almost there.’ But, oh shit! I forgot all about Dove! Where are you?!” Sorry guys, but I’ve got to spay some bitch.”
With Arc out of his mind, TripTrick is able to finish his project. “Thank God he’s gone, Lamb. Who WAS that? He is from the other ship, right?”
“Yes, he is the one prophesized. He is The Zero.”
“You must be kidding.”
“He will learn to manipulate The Matrix into doing his will. He will will us all into the future. He is the leader prophesized to us.”
“Don’t you see, Lamb? He is the False Lead, the Fulcrum’s Other Side, the Lead Block as opposed to The One who will be the Golden Feather.”
“Heretic! I MUST follow Him!” Lamb screams this in a crazed wavering high-pitched voice and lurches at TripTrick with the strength of a leopard. TripTrick is not prepared and is knocked onto the ground with Lamb’s hands quickly going around his neck. His head is raised and forced to the metal floor before he can react and he sees a flash of black followed by a splash of white.
She is a mere step away from her goal. She balances the double-headed hammer in her hand. She smiles at her cleverness.
“I heard that.”
“Oh shit.”
“Good, be scared you little cont-entious minx. It’ll help me zero in for the kill.”
“I have to keep myself from thi – damn!”
“Ahhh, down this hallway, are we? I am not going to kill you right away, you know. Perhaps I will be like an Incubus and drain you through your sexual energy. The difference between this and rape is that you will feel less like resisting.”
Dove is frozen in fear. She is literally paralyzed. She is helpless as The Zero inexorably zeroes onto her. She is doomed. She has doomed them all. Oh well, at least she tried.
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