The gravity of the situation sometimes hits us as unexpectedly as a ton of bricks, and often twice as hard.
I spent a good portion of this morning staring at the horizon, just off of the Kobayashi Boardwalk. Since I was a teenager, it has always been one of my favorite places to meditate and think about the issues I face. Today was no different in that respect.
Over the course of my time here, albeit short, I’ve learned much more about the mind of the average operative, or at least I’d like to think so.
Most of them have clear and distinct reasons for being who they are, working for whom they do, and acting how they act. Some do not, but those are far and few between. Of these operatives, many have their own agenda, independant of their organization and sometimes even independant of their faction and/or crew. One thing that rarely changes, however, is their devotion.
They do what they feel they must, because they believe in it. Merovingian operatives often perform their duties because they choose to, but as time progresses, they believe they must… that to disobey the Frenchman’s order is to subject yourself to pure, true danger. They believe that they have no choice in the matter.
Machinists often believe that though the Machines do not necessarily have the best interests of mankind at heart, the human race’s best chance at survival lies with cooperation with the Machines and the upholding of the Truce. Strangely enough, you’d be surprised how many Zionists feel exactly the same way.
The Cypherites tend to feel as though by being awakened, they’ve lost something. Whether it be their families, friends, lifestyle, or that they’ve somehow become less human than before… they feel that what they have lost is something that should be protected at all cost, and that the only true insurance of it’s continuance is reinsertion.
E Pluribus Neo, however, believes that if we ignore the past, we will be forever doomed to repeat it. Until recently, we have been locked in a never-ending cycle where no progress could be acheived, no solutions could be made. One man changed that, because he chose to do so. Neo. And while, perhaps, the prophecy that Morpheus always spoke of has not yet been fulfilled, and Neo has not yet brought true peace to this world and that outside of the simulation, it can only serve as evidence that he is not yet finished with his destiny.
Morpheus’ signal beacons claim that both he and Neo are indeed alive, and that the Machines are covering up this information from all outside sources.
If you ask me, yes, I am prepared to believe that. I am quite willing to believe that Neo lives to this day, a slave of the Machines, imprisoned from himself and those whom he saved. I am even willing to act on it.
But without a plan to have Neo freed… to have him returned to us, then action is a moot point. One could raise a commotion in the simulation all they wish, but until such a plan is acheived, they would only be causing themselves that much more work to reach the goal.
So for now, we choose the diplomatic path. We smile, tip our hats, and wish well those who would kill us at the slightest hint of our uprising against those who may very well be looking to end us all. We bless them, and remind them that he sacrificed it all for them as well, and we wish them the best of luck along their path… reminding them that if it were not for him, they would not be able to make the choice they have… and that there are still many that are hindered from making that choice.
…And we wait.
