Patrol duty, as could be suspected wasn’t the most interesting function of an Agent, especially when they were under orders not to interfere with rebel actions. Brown observed the other members of 0.2.8 for a reaction. As per usual Jones didn’t react, simply followed orders without complaining. The unusual point was that Smith didn’t react either. Their Command unit normally had at least a comment regarding every situation but for once Smith was silent. Obeying orders with a dispassionate singularity that equalled Jones. They made their way up the stairs leading to the loft area of an old building, a vantage point for surveying the movements of the rebels going to and from a particular exit. Brown suspected something more important was going on behind the scenes but so far all they had done was observe rebels scuttling about being rebellious. Reaching the door to the loft Brown could hear indistinct voices.
Neither of the Agents inside the room turned as 0.2.8 entered, the units continuing to stare out of the window, in the direction of the rebel exit. A small group of rebels disappeared into the building. Silently, the Strategic unit transferred data, reporting the observed rebel activity.
“Has there been any other activity?” Smith cut in.
With a shake of his head, the Strategic unit lowered his hand from his earpiece. “Should there have been?”
Smith simply stared out of the window. Brown detected the faintest traces of private communication between the Strategic and Combat units, much like the private communications that often passed between himself and Jones.
As the unassigned units left, Brown questioned Jones again.
“There is something that we are unaware of.”
“Ask Smith.” Jones replied.
“He will not talk to me.”
Jones paused before answering, “Perhaps it is something that we are not required to know.”
Brown frowned at that; it was hardly a satisfactory answer.
Scanning the reports, Lucifer noted that they were all boringly normal. Rebels coming and going through their exits, no increased activity, no mass armament, no rogue programs. He wondered what was taking them so long. The rebels had been allowed to copy Smith’s code, including the Eve Virus; they should have been creating small armies of rogue programs by now. But no, there was no increased activity, not even any indication that they’d even looked at the possibility of creating their own ‘Agents’. Had Raphael overestimated the rebels’ grasp of Matrix technology? Lucifer hoped not, since this planned conflict would give them the time to find another way of dealing with the human ‘Neo’.
A faint beeping alerted Lucifer to a communication on the monitor in front of him. Turning his attention to the screen he realised that he was viewing security camera footage of a back-alley near a rebel exit. He could clearly see several figures fighting; the level of violence was surprising, even for fully functional Agents. The sound of impact against walls and the sickening shredding of bone resounded clearly through the communication channels. Had Lucifer been human he would have been truly horrified, as it was, he watched with a slight look of distaste on his face. In the background he could hear Toleezu issuing commands to the units involved. The two Agents appeared to hesitate before pulling back and fleeing the scene. Lucifer frowned; it was that slight hesitation that bothered him. Agents that didn’t obey direct commands were a liability to the system.
“A liability to anyone who commands them?” came Raphael’s playful tone over the channels.
Lucifer made no reply.
“A danger, even…”
He felt Raphael close of the channel, point made once again.
Lucifer watched the camera move to track the movements of the ‘rogue’ Agents, these rebel created programs. They were just as capable in combat situations as any Matrix Agent, equal to them almost, apart from the one aspect that they lacked; the most important aspect of any Agent, any AI. They lacked a purpose, a reason to exist: the complete and unequivocal dedication to the preservation of the Matrix. This was the final definition between AI and rebel, the border between Order and Chaos. And without that reason, that dedication to Order, the AI would become as much of a danger to humanity as the rebels were.
Watching from the vantage point that they were stationed at, Brown noted the rebels running down the street towards their exit. They seemed to be quite desperate to get out of the Matrix. He noted the screams that carried from a distance and the smell of flammable items. Three figures ran towards the rebel exit. Brown watched them closely; they didn’t look like normal rebels…
“They look like…” he said softly to himself.
“Yes?” came Smith’s voice in his ear. He hadn’t realised that the Command unit was standing beside him.
“They look like Agents.”
“Yes.” Smith was calm.
“But no Agent would rebel against the system!” Brown turned to face his superior.
“Not normally, no…” Smith appeared to consider something. “Not with their control program intact.”
“The rebels could not remove the control program. It is integrated into our basic code. It is our reason for being.”
Smith nodded thoughtfully, “Without that reason we would be no better than the rebels.”
Both Agents were distracted suddenly by the eruption of violence on the street below. The Agent-like programs were in the process of killing several human bystanders, along with a rebel who had been making for the exit.
Brown drew his gun and turned to head for the door that Jones was already standing by. They needed no direct instructions from their Command unit to deal with the rogue programs, as Agents of the Matrix it was their duty to maintain order, to keep the millions of souls slumbering blissfully oblivious to the ruin of their world.
“Remain where you are.” The command sounded loudly through their communication channels, holding the authority that only the Enforcers possessed.
Jones and Brown looked towards Smith. The Command unit didn’t appear surprised by their orders.
“You will return to the Operations Plant under Toleezu’s command, when area damage reaches 50%.”
The communication channel closed.
Jones sat back down, never one to question orders. Brown moved towards Smith, who had returned to the window. “Raphael.” He heard Smith whisper as he watched the surrounding buildings begin to burn.
00:04, 24/04/02