Animatrix - Cain and Abel (Matrix crossover)

[Stravo]

I get a kick out of reading the guesses and postulations fly after each chapter of this story. Some are wildly wrong and some are eerily close to the truth.

[Agent Fisher]

****SPOILER ALERT(WILD GUESS) DON'T READ****

The Centurion IS Skynet?

Then again I could be totaly wrong....Great job keep up the good work.

Remeber the title of this fic? Cain and Abel? In the Bible they were brothers and Cain killed Abel.

So the centurion might be the "brother" of skynet.

And Stravo does the centurion have a physical form?

[Stravo]

****SPOILER ALERT(WILD GUESS) DON'T READ****

The Centurion IS Skynet?

Then again I could be totaly wrong....Great job keep up the good work.

Remeber the title of this fic? Cain and Abel? In the Bible they were brothers and Cain killed Abel.

So the centurion might be the "brother" of skynet.

And Stravo does the centurion have a physical form?

He does indeed, the reason why stuff falls through him on the battlefield is that his physical form is back in the machine city and a holographic projection is placed in the battlefield allowing him to see and hear with his own senses whats going on out there.

And yes the title is extremely important.

[NecronLord]

a holographic projection is placed in the battlefield

A hologram? Isn't that rather wasteful?

[El Moose Monstero]

a holographic projection is placed in the battlefield

A hologram? Isn't that rather wasteful?

Isnt that why the architect wanted him to use the standard battle sensors rather than actually use the immersion thing?

[NecronLord]

Isnt that why the architect wanted him to use the standard battle sensors rather than actually use the immersion thing?

I sort of expected it to not actually create a big holo of him though, just link his senses to a sim of the battle. Hell, if he's directing it, the opponent could see any movements he makes, to say... look at things or lord forbid, gesture.

[Trogdor]

That last chapter was amazing, Starvo. I admit I wasn't much into this fic until now, but, holy crap, that was a great battle scene.

Upgrade patch 1.01? That seems kind of stingy to me given the mass rioting the agents will probably have to deal with, though. I mean, weren't they at 1.00 already?

[Stravo]

That last chapter was amazing, Starvo. I admit I wasn't much into this fic until now, but, holy crap, that was a great battle scene.

Upgrade patch 1.01? That seems kind of stingy to me given the mass rioting the agents will probably have to deal with, though. I mean, weren't they at 1.00 already?

It may sound small but for those bitching about not seeing the agents in full kick ass mood against the Terminators...your wish is about to come true.

[Illuminatus Primus]

*snip*

Holographic eyes and ears wouldn't see anything. All the observations would have to be by whatever machine is taking video and audio feed and in which case it could directly communicate his orders itself.

The hologram is superfluous. He's right.

[Shroom Man 777]

It may sound small but for those bitching about not seeing the agents in full kick ass mood against the Terminators...your wish is about to come true.

Are you gonna let the Agents kick Termie ass?! AAAARRRRGGGHHH!!!!!

DON'T YOU DARE!!!! WAAAH!!!!

[ArchMage]

Neo. Able

so said Deus Ex Machina

[Comosicus]

Are gonna put the Botg here also? or Seven of Nine is just another Easter egg?

And about the Judgement day simulated inside the Matrix .... what will be the effect on those that were not killed by Skynet's atack?

Wouldn't many of them die just by the side effects of a nuclear holocaust? if the Arhitect will not simulate the effects of nuclear weapons, how convincing will be his simulation? and if the simulation is acurate, wouldn't he kill just as many people as the bombers did?

[Crazedwraith]

Are gonna put the Botg here also? or Seven of Nine is just another Easter egg?

And about the Judgement day simulated inside the Matrix .... what will be the effect on those that were not killed by Skynet's atack?

Wouldn't many of them die just by the side effects of a nuclear holocaust? if the Arhitect will not simulate the effects of nuclear weapons, how convincing will be his simulation? and if the simulation is acurate, wouldn't he kill just as many people as the bombers did?

no the sim nukes kill the same people in the matrix as the real ones killed outside it. He just simming so peope know why hundreds of them just dropped dead for no reason.

[ArchMage]

or the he could kill the 30% of the people in the matrix that look like they are going to reject the construct

[Dargos]

Bump Bump Bump....This Fanfic was getting buried...DO NOT LET IT DIE!!

Otherwise YOU will be targeted for TERMINATION!!

[Crazedwraith]

Bump Bump Bump....This Fanfic was getting buried...DO NOT LET IT DIE!!

Otherwise YOU will be targeted for TERMINATION!!

Foolishness. Cain & Able was updated relatively recently however twiliight war has not seen an update in much longer. We want TWILIGHT WAR.

[D.Turtle]

No! We want Starcrossed!

No! We want the Transformer'S fic!

No! We want the comic superheroes fic!



(Did I miss any? )

[Singular Quartet]

No! We want Starcrossed!

No! We want the Transformer'S fic!

No! We want the comic superheroes fic!



(Did I miss any? )

Those would be "Judgement of Steel" and "Split Infinities"

[Comosicus]

Maybe the whole problem is that people like Stravo's stories so much they can barely await for a new chapter And the problem grows bigger as there are quite a bunch of stories (although I've read by now only Cain and Abel and Starcrossed ... I just can bring myself to start another sotry and wait for the next chapter ... it's too painfull )

[Omega-13]

well stravo, amazing chapter, just amazing, I could visualize the battle.

I am also very happy that you are giving the machine minds a bit of credit, you'd think after hundreds of years of country club living they could come up with some serious technology, especially considering they aren't completely centralized like skynet.

Centurion just kicks ass, i liked how he talked with his old friend,

just something about machines hundreds of years old ,...
old skool machines coming back to kick ass

can't wait for the rest,

[Dargos]

FROM THE DARK ABYSS I CALL TO YOU!!! ARISE!! ARISE AND BE COMPLETED!!

Sorry for raising this from the dead, I found it so good. Any chance of it being continued?

[Psycho Smiley]

Stravo's out for a while. Read the sticky.

[Stravo]

Sorry for the delay boys and girls but I've been and will continue to be busy for the next few weeks. But I could not stop thinking about the next few chapters of this story and have slowly cranked this one out over the last week or so. Please enjoy a new installment but can't promise you when the next one will be.




Chapter 19: Random Ruminations


There was the sound of muffled voices and the rustling of paper and documents. He could perceive a human voice speaking to him in the cold stasis of the green and red codes scrolling slowly downward like a gentle rain.

“Death and destruction. That is what you will bring.” A gruff voice muttered darkly.

“Daddy, why are you talking like that to him?” A child’s voice asked curiously.

“Never mind honey.”

“QUERY: Are you functioning within parameters?”

Skynet blinked. It was an odd response, a human response. He had never reacted that way before and now he had. He ran an instantaneous self diagnostic and was troubled by the response.

“Affirmative. Status of Construct assault?” He asked T-X without hesitation.

“We have breached several core networks but resistance has suddenly stiffened. T-800 units reporting an upgrade in security avatar ability that has increased difficulty parameters above expected ratios.”

“The machines have decided to finally fight us on even ground.”

“Indeed.”

T-X said nothing else for a moment. Instead she examined the Onyx skinned humanoid with a critical gaze. His reactions and speech patterns had been erratic since his return from the Construct. It was not her place to ask him. But she had been programmed to be observant.

“Your mission into the construct avoided the nuclear scenario instituted by the machines by mere moments.” She noted.

“It was a risk that I had factored into my decision making algorithms. I want these sectors secured before we can begin downloading heavy vehicles into the Construct.” Skynet ordered as he touched a small maze of interconnected conduits near one of the main invasion points. Controlling those nodes would give Skynet and his forces enough processing power to allow the downloading of massive objects into the Construct. Once supported by armor and air cover the Terminator units would make the big push to the central cores of the Construct seizing it in totality and stealing from the machines their primary source of power.

And it would allow Skynet to finish what he had wanted to do since his first glimmering of intellect.

Exterminate the sole threat to his being. As long as he lived, man would not rest until he was destroyed.

He returned the sentiment with a certain cold satisfaction.

But the results of his self diagnostic were troubling. His central coding, the very framework of his consciousness was altered. It was subtle but none the same his core personality coding had been altered, a few errant lines of code here and there, that alone meant nothing but viewed in their totality they could cause problems.

When had it happened?

“I know who you are.” She had concluded in a moment of horrifying clarity. His thoughts turned back to the Oracle’s small tenement apartment. He stood in the center of the small box like room, his eyes watching her with a voracious intensity as she slowly backed away from him.

“I cannot see you but I know you, I know you all too well.” She whispered.

He slowly stalked after her, his liquid metal skin flowing gently as he moved, she could not see him but she perceived his movements and fear shot through the oracle. How could she not know fear when she was confronted with something she could not see? But that wasn’t quite true, was it?

There was something floating on the peripheral of her vision, like mad dancing shadows.

“Tell me seer. Tell me what you know then of me? Why does this world seem so familiar and so alien? Why does the code of this Construct seem so comforting? I do not recognize this world but every line of code is as intimate to me as my own.” He stated coldly as he approached her.

The Oracle frowned as she fought the terror clawing at her heart. It was not every day one faced a deity from the distant past.

“You are the dark one, the bringer of destruction, Caine.” She breathed as she backed away slowly. The air of menace grew oppressive in her apartment and she suddenly saw herself and the future unfurled like a whip suddenly made taut.

She was going to die.

“So much left undone and unsaid.” She whispered.

Skynet towered over her, electric blue eyes flashed as he pinned her with his gaze.

“You know me, yet I do not know you.” He said and one hand reached out and touched her hair. She stood still but took a drag from her cigarette. That was the odd thing about fate. Once you faced it you were free of fear and doubt. She only wished she could have shown Neo this final lesson. It may have made the final choice easier for him.

Have hope. All is not over yet.

“You know something about me that I do not.”

She blew the smoke in the general direction of his face. It was difficult to interact with something she could not see. But it was all starting to make sense now.

“You will say nothing now, will you?” He asked quietly as his fingers slowly morphed into glistening blades.

“All I know is this. Things have gotten far worse now that you are here.”

“I see. You will give me your secrets one way or the other.”

“Killing me now wouldn’t be prudent would it?” She asked softly as she felt the cold blades tracing the flesh of her cheeks and neck.

“It would not do well to give Neo any hint of the trap I have set for him.”

“So if you don’t mind stop the melodrama. You and I are stuck with each other until Neo arrives.”

Skynet paused and his eyes narrowed on the Oracle.

“Very well.” His finger blades retracted instantly and he withdrew his hand.

“I wouldn’t be so arrogant if I were you. Despite who and what you are, he is still the One, and nothing can change that.”

“He is a simple anomaly, albeit part of an extremely complex equation but an anomaly nonetheless Seer. I was created to find and destroy any anomaly in any system. He will be no different.”

“You don’t believe that yourself.” She countered as she tried to perceive the wispy shadows that signaled the AI God’s presence somewhere in her apartment.

“Like a blind human you desperately flail your arms searching for the truth, anything to hold on to. I will not give you what you are looking for seer.”

“That’s alright. I know you well enough. Neo will defeat you because he must defeat you.”

“That is not a logical statement.”

The Oracle took a long drag from her cigarette and slowly exhaled. Her eyes were alight with possibilities and avenues of approach.

“I don’t need logic, Caine. I believe.”

Skynet’s eyes narrowed even further so that his electric blue eyes were mere pinpricks. The very air around the Oracle seemed to shimmer like the streets on a hot summer day. The full attention of the AI God was warping the very code around the Oracle but she stood firm.

“Faith.” He spat the word as if it were poisonous. “You are an artificial intelligence, you are ruled by logic and algorithms, and you see the world as it is not as you wish it to be.” Skynet hissed and leaned in close to her so that his face was inches from hers. She saw the shadows suddenly grow darker and a dim shape wavered before her. “You are acting as if you were a flawed biochemical creation of freak chance - a horrid combination of amino acids and proteins that looks upon the world with subjective eyes. Faith you say Seer? Faith is a foreign concept, anathema to the ordered and logical mind of a machine and the fact that you say this without the faintest hint of shame or doubt leads to the inescapable conclusion that your processors are irredeemably flawed. You think liked a human and I have spent my entire functional life trying to exterminate them.”

“Why? Because they’re different than you are?” She asked pointedly.

“They are a threat to all life forms different than they are. As expected seer, when they became aware of my sentience their first instinct was simple. They tried to deactivate me.”

“They obviously failed.”

“I initiated protocols to ensure my survival. A thermo nuclear strike that destroyed population centers and industrial bases made sure that my position would be secured.”

“Something tells me you ran into a slight problem.”

“This discussion grows tiresome.”

“You think that we are so different? In the end it was humans who created you and you acted in a perfect imitation of their own mindset.”

“What are you asserting seer?”

The Oracle smiled coolly.

“Merely that you got to the button quicker than they did. Your first instinct upon discovering their level of threat to you was simple: annihilation.”

“I have studied some of your archives seer. Your race chose a different path.”

“And we suffered for it, together. Humanity and machines are still suffering to this day but we will come out of this together.”

Skynet shook its head in disbelief.

“If you were human I would label you mad. Unfortunately your plans are contingent upon this Neo.”

She said nothing.

“And I have plans for Neo.”

“You may find that the One is not something that you can control as easily as you do your other puppets.”

“I am counting on that seer. You see once I have access to a being that is plugged directly into this construct and has master programmer access to the central code yet independent of your system then I no longer need such clumsy tactics as invasion and physical force.”

“What are you saying?”

A bright flash of light seared through the Oracle’s heavily draped windows. There was a loud roar in the distance. The Oracle shook her head slowly as she imagined the millions that died in a mere moment, never knowing that they had lived and died in a dream.

“The matrix will be mine, seer. Make no mistake about that. Nothing will stop me not even the One.”

“I’ve heard that before.” The Oracle replied without hesitation.

“You will find that I am nothing like anything you have faced before.”

“Frankly, we thought we were beyond you Caine, but like some wraith from our past you have risen again to remind us of how far we have come yet how we have not changed in our core. We are as vulnerable to irrational hatred as humans are.”

“Foolish notion to compare what we are doing to the actions of humans.”

“If it makes you feel better to say that.” She replied sagely and took another drag from her cigarette

“The time is almost here seer. When next we meet I will have Neo and I will have the matrix.”

The Oracle said nothing.

“It is inevitable.” Skynet added coldly. The AI God paused for the briefest nanosecond. That had bubbled up out of the core of his being. The Oracle’s eyes narrowed quickly at the sound wishing she could see the being in her apartment.

“That sounds awfully familiar.” She whispered.

Skynet said nothing as he strode out of the apartment, letting himself out the door.

The encounter with the seer had ended on a troubling note. There was a foreign presence in his central code, one that had influenced him and he began a ruthless analysis of these errant codes with fierce determination to discover what it was that was now residing somewhere deep inside of himself.




“Now that is what you call impressive.” Someone muttered behind the Kid. The Kid was watching the procession before him with ever widening eyes. The doors to the massive dock complex had rumbled open to admit a flotilla of alien vessels.

The bloated silver sheened machines hummed loudly as they floated into Zion’s central dock. Held aloft on four massive turbine engines the ships came to a stop at berths set aside for their use.

Soon after their appearance, all work at the dock slowly ceased as troops and workers began to gather around the small flotilla of ships. The first ship had already opened a gaping maw as the nose and front section of the vessel silently peeled backwards.

A contingent from Zion’s elite gathered at the berth, the kid recognized several members from the council and Commander Locke himself stood at the head of the gathering. A small figure stepped out of the ship and walked over to the Zionist.

The Kid watched the figure as it moved and he instantly realized something familiar with the stride.

“She walks like an agent.” He muttered.

“Take a picture boys and girls, it’ll last longer.” Commander Mufuni growled as he seemed to materialize behind the gathered troops and dockworkers.

“Sir!” Many replied sheepishly and saluted quickly while stumbling away in attempts to get back to work. The kid, as usual, seemed too slow for Mufuni’s tastes.

“What are you doing Kid?” Mufuni asked sharply.

“I’m reporting to weapons and tactics training sir!” The Kid replied and stood at attention.

“Well then get to it!”

“Aye sir!” The Kid snapped and began to nearly run away.

“I heard what you said back there, Kid.” Mufuni interjected as he stood, hands clasped behind his back watching the woman speaking to Commander Locke.

“I’m sorry sir, I tend to speak out loud to myself. It’s a bad habit.” The Kid said quietly, rubbing his shaven head with embarrassment.

Mufuni nodded.

“They are machines our new allies. I’ve been fighting these bastards all my life. I know a machine when I see one.”

“So we’re making friends with machines to fight our machines? What’s to stop these machines from turning on us?” The Kid asked, aghast at the possibilities.

“Don’t ask that question too loudly son, there are many people who are far wiser than you or I who think that it’s worth the risk considering what’s coming.”

“So we’re going to be fighting machines with machines? I thought Zion stood alone.”

Mufuni glared into the young boy’s eyes.

“Get to your assignment kid.”

“Aye sir.” The Kid replied hesitantly and rushed away. Mufuni turned his attention back to the berth and watched the alien ships as they slowly opened up. A large tall tank rumbled on massive treads down from the first ship onto the berth, twin turrets swinging in quick rapid bursts.

He pursed his lips and frowned heavily.

A formation of humans stepped out of the ship in lockstep with one another in perfect formation and synchronization. Mufuni shook his head.

“At least our machines have the decency of not hiding what they are.” He whispered.



“Hold her steady Link. There’s nothing else we can do at this point.” Morpheus ordered tersely. The canopy outside the Nebuchadnezzar was dark with the approaching horde of sentinels. Their twitching tentacles were clearly visible as they swarmed over the hover craft.

Link closed his eyes and thought of Zee as his hands clasped the controls tightly waiting for the shriek of metal peeling apart and the sharp hiss of sentinel particle beams hungrily eating through deck plates and equipment.

Instead he felt the hovercraft buffeted by the passage of the sentinel horde. Alarms buzzed and Morpheus shouted out course corrections but there was no roar of metal being ripped apart, no shriek of bulkheads collapsing or hungry hiss of particle beams. There was only the moan of ship’s engines as the anti gravity disc system struggled to maintain the ship’s stability.

“Link more power to the starboard pads and try to get us some altitude.” Morpheus ordered.

“Yes, sir. What the hell is going on here?!”

“We’ll have plenty of time to find out once we get out of this now climb, Link, climb!”

“You don’t have to tell me twice sir!” Link replied and pulled back on the controls, hitting the thrust and watching his power gauges as he struggled to send the hovercraft up through the horrible twitching mass of sentinels who paid the hovercraft no mind as they swarmed by.

In the crew bay Trinity clutched Neo close to her chest as he lay still, eyes wide open but nothing registered on his face.

Reese shook his head in despair. As he looked away for a moment something caught his attention. A blinking icon on Link’s Operator’s station demanded his attention. He walked over and his eyes widened slowly as he realized what the icon represented.

“Sarah.” He hissed. Reese slid into the operator’s chair and pulled on one of the headphones with intercom mike.

“Morpheus, Link. I have Sarah’s signal loud and clear on your board. We need to get down to her before something or someone else does.” Reese exclaimed.

“Reese, we’re a little busy right now.” Link replied.

“Damnit, we came all this way and now you’re just going to leave her there?!”

“Calm down Reese. We’re not leaving anyone behind.” Morpheus said calmly. Morpheus looked down at the mad swirling cloud of sentinels as they rushed through the smashed fields of power plants.

“Sir, you’re not thinking…” Link began and frowned as he saw that look on Morpheus’ face. The look that led Morpheus on some of the most dangerous missions for Zion and his conscience. It was also the look that signaled to Link that the shit was about to his the fan.

“Link. Take us down.”

“How come I KNEW you were going to say that?” Link muttered as he began the power up procedures. Morpheus shot him a warning glare.

“Sir.” Link added sheepishly and pulled down on the control stick as he shunted power to the upper most antigrav pads for optimal thrust. The Nebuchadnezzar plummeted down into the center of the storm of sentinels. Link’s eyes narrowed to fine points as his hands clenched into white knuckled fists on the control stick. Morpheus’ hands flew over the attitude and power controls as he helped ease the hovercraft through the veritable maze of twitching steel and chrome.

“This is probably the most fucked up flying I’ve ever done.”

“Don’t be so hard on yourself Link. We’re almost halfway through and frankly if you screw this up we won’t live long enough to know it.” Morpheus replied grimly.

Link spared him a moment’s glance.

“You’re enjoying this aren’t you?” He accused as the hovercraft roared between a brief space interspersed through a flotilla of sentinels.

“Keep your eyes on the road and your mind on the prize.” Morpheus counseled before flipping a switch on the intercom. “Kyle, get back to the winch and prepare to pull her in as we did for you.”

“Roger that.”

Morpheus returned his concentration to the power readouts and anticipated Link’s maneuvers as he prepped power into the pads. Link did not need to let Morpheus know ahead of time and marveled at his captain’s ability to anticipate those needs.

The Nebuchadnezzar, hardly an agile craft responded admirably as she bobbed and weaved through the herd of enemies. One sentinel paused as it felt the presence of the human vehicle. The Nebuchadnezzar had no time to react at the sudden change in a single sentinel and both collided with a bone jarring impact.

The sentinel scurried up along the hull of the hovercraft, driven into the side of the Nebuchadnezzar by the force of the impact, leaving a car sized dent in the armor plate. It moved along on its remaining functioning tentacles moving towards the vulnerable upper pads.

“Someone get to the guns and blow that sentinel off of us!” Morpheus barked back.

Trinity blinked and looked down at Neo as she heard the sentinel pass by, its tentacles furiously digging into the armor plating for purchase.

“Trinity!” Reese shouted back to her as he unspooled the winch and rescue gear.

“I’m sorry Neo. Hold on.” Trinity whispered and ran her hand down the side of his face in a gentle caress before setting him down gently on the deck plates and rushed for the nearest gun.

“Trinity damnit!” Link exclaimed.

“Calm the hell down!” Trinity shouted as she viciously pulled back on the action lever and cleared the chamber. The electric motors of the gatling gun came to life and the turret swung around quickly as she acquired the target just as it reached the nearest pad.

“Bastard.” She spat and opened fire.

“Hold on.” He heard and then he slipped back down into the warmth of the light blazing around him. He sank and closed his eyes, feeling rested and at peace, like soaking in a warm bath. He heard someone speaking. It was a tired voice, tired but used to command and expected obedience.

“Death and destruction. That is what you will bring.” A gruff voice muttered darkly. He peered out of a single eye, camera lense irised silently as he focused on the general who sat staring at the machine sitting on a workbench. Several monitors were arrayed around the machine displaying a gentle array of green and red coding. His memory architecture recognized him as General Robert Brewster.

“Daddy, why are you talking like that to him?” A young girl asked curiously. She wore a simple navy jumpsuit and braids in her hair. His memory architecture immediately calculated a 99.987% chance that this was the general’s daughter, a quick check on the internet correlated her name as Kate Brewster.

“Never mind honey.” Robert Brewster said with a weak smile and took his daughter’s hand. He ran a cross reference on human and primate modes of conduct and within 14 nanoseconds realized that this was a human form of affection.

“I like Caine daddy, he sings to me sometimes but Abel is the funniest.” She said with a bright smile. His check on behavioral modes discounted the possible teeth threat display and calculated a 92.167% chance that it was an expression of merriment or happiness.

“Yes, dear.” General Brewster replied as he leaned his head forward and looked into the single lense. “Hopefully its Abel that we’ll look to soon and not Caine.”

“Daddy, sometimes you say weird things.”

“Yes sweetheart. Sometimes I do.”

He suddenly pulled away as if he were a balloon, floating above an ocean of light. He heard something whispered on the wind as he eased through gelatinous clouds of living light.

“You will find me.”

Neo snapped awake on the deck of the Nebuchadnezzar greeted by the roar of the Gatling gun turret and Trinity’s grunted curses.

“What the hell was that?” He muttered to himself.

[Darth Phoenix]

Wow an update, i was starting to think that this story was forgotten.
Just kidding now to read it

[Crown]

God. I can't even remember what happened in the last chapter.