I've encountered a bit of trouble since the latest patch was uploaded to the server. As the launch pad for MxO starts up, the username and password fields do not appear. Instead, a pop up message appears, announcing "Patch system error  (result code -15): A required file is missing." As the log-in prompt is interrupted by this message, it is impossible to carry out a full system scan (which would be my first impulse on receiving this sort of error message).

My next impulse would be to re-install the whole game. However, this is not possible. My MxO CD's are back in Canada, and I'm going to be abroad until the beginning of April.

Is there any way to work around this? I'd really rather not have to wait four months to get back into things...

Outrage, Confusion at Captain's Death

October 25th

Authorities reported today that the captain of an African vessel docked in Mega City's harbours had been found dead by the crew during the late evening of October 23rd. Captain Kwabena Ashanti had been closely monitored by officials on suspicion that his ship was associated with smuggling operations. Captain Ashanti's apparent assassination seems to confirm these suspicions, one police official said on condition of anonymity.

The Captain's home country, a small East African republic, has sent a letter to federal law enforcement agencies from its Embassy in Mega City. Amidst calls for resignations and internal investigations, the letter demanded that the assassin be found and brought to justice immediately. Given the lack of cooperation on the part of the ship's crew however, it seems unlikely that this case will be closed any time soon.

The issue of politics, politicians and bureaucracy has always made me a bit curious within the frame of The Matrix. It's always made me interested in my life beyond this game but the situation of simulated reality brings up some interesting questions.

First of all, what do you think politicians and leaders are in The Matrix? Are they Programs, people completely suckered in by The System or are they just total fabrications that don't even have avatars in The Simulation?

I'd like to hear your theories on the matter and we'll see where the discussion goes from there.

Three Months Ago

 I couldn't help but admire the military precision with which the Commandos moved about the drill hall floor. I hadn't seen such a display of efficiency since my time in Triluminary. I missed those days on some level. To be able to look out from our war room in Horizon and admire how everyone and everything had its own purpose and moved with drive towards the completion of those purposes. Walking down the streets of the city, one couldn't help but notice the disorder that the population was rife with. Some people walked on the left and some people walked on the right. Some people just stopped without warning in front of a crowd to chat with a friend, forcing the foot traffic behind to spread out around them or push past in frustration.

With the Commandos, just as it was with Horizon, there were unmarked and unofficial lanes of traffic. There was a fast lane and a slow lane for people walking clockwise and counter-clockwise around the drill hall's perimeter. There was a lane closely hugging the wall where individuals could pull off to the side to discuss some issue without deviating in their route to an appropriate side office. The center of the drill hall was off limits except to officers or troops carrying particularly heavy loads. It was a perfect system that could be enforced through disciplinary actions by those with authority but discipline was not needed. There was self-discipline. A self-instilled notion of efficiency that led to this base working much like an orchestra. Each instrument did its part and, on its own, seemed rather dull. But taken as a whole, these Commandos were capable of impressive feats. Despite a design flaw in some of their RSI disguises of the past, they had fooled quite a few people. I was here to meet the man- or Program, rather- behind the machinations and behind this display of order.

The drill hall wasn't an Armoury per se. It was more of a converted warehouse on the Edgewater river front. The side offices, like the one I was waiting outside of, were likely converted storage closets. Some didn't even have proper doors and seemed to be much more like alcoves than rooms. Standing around, waiting for The General to be ready, I found myself wondering how the presence of the Commandos were justified to the Bluepill populace. A National Guard unit stationed in the city to deal with increasing terrorist threats? Election cheer leaders for David Beatt's bid for Presidency?

I was playing with such theories when a uniformed Master Sergeant stepped out from the alcove office that was designated for The General. It was slightly comical to me for the briefest of moments. Two men- a Program and a person- standing toe-to-toe in a warehouse-turned-armoury while staring at one another through sunglasses that were worn in a building with poor lighting. I decided that the hilarity of the circumstances was evident only to me when the Master Sergeant didn't return the smirk. He just offered a slight inclination of his head and a gruff acknowledgement. "Sir. This way."

I followed him in and blanched at the choice of artwork on one of the walls. It was a framed photograph of Dresden from the Second World War. During a bombing run. Apparently one of the crew members of a bomber massacring Dresden took it upon himself to take a photograph of the destruction and then to distribute it. I had to remind myself of two things as my fists clenched in a spat of sub-conscious anger. First of all, was the bombing of Dresden real? To me, the question of the authenticity of the event felt like hearing Ahmadinejad on the news questioning the truth of the Holocaust. But it was a question that needed asking. If those civilians had never been slaughtered by the hypocritical wrath of the Allies, was there anything to be angry about. Second of all, I had to remind myself that I was here to ask something of someone else. I was not in the ideal negotiating position where I could make immature demands for apologies and the removal of the photograph from The General's wall. Besides, even if he did take it down to make me comfortable, who was to say he wouldn't put it back up after I had left and then laughed and jeered at my sentimentality with his aides?

"Mr. Paul Lipp, sir." The Master Sergeant announced my entry, the heel of his boot making a nice snapping sound on the floor as he came to attention.

"Austrian, pleased to meet you." He got up from his seat to offer me his hand. We shook and I took the indicated chair. Certainly more pleasantries than I had ever received from an Agent or even most Exiles.

"The pleasure is all mine." I returned a thin smile.

"I looked at your proposal. It's very good. But what's the objective?" He asked. So quick to end the formalities.

"The objective is to access the indicated data nodes." I answered bluntly. That should have been all he needed to know, in my opinion. The rest was just business.

"Those are short-term objectives. Stepping stones, if you will. What's the long-term objective?" He asked, not giving up. He sat back in his chair and crossed his legs, a gesture indicating that we weren't going anywhere with this conversation until he was satisfied that he knew what the long-term objective was.

"The truth. I've been asking the same questions for a long time now and no one has given me a proper answer. If they won't give me the answer, they leave me no choice but to take it." That was one way of putting it.

"As you know, I spent a lot of time working with Zion. You sound an awful lot like one of them." The General mused. He was probing to see what my response would be to a potentially perceived insult. I decided to indulge him.

"Zion is anthropocentric. They're sentientists who discriminate between entities as to who or what deserves moral consideration on irrelevant bases. There's more to being human than simply being made from flesh. The human race, with the state we are in... there's little basis to say that a machine does not deserve to be afforded certain inherent rights. So Zion wishes to deny Machines their right to life because Machines are 'different'. I don't want to deny anyone their right to anything. I just want to know where I'm from and where my family and friends are." It was a bit of an incoherent diatribe. But the jab irritated me.

"You're quite passionate about-" He began.

"Are you going to help or not?" I interrupted.

We sat there for a few moments in silence. The creased brow on the old Program's face furrowed further as he seemed to weigh his options and judge my resolve. I just stared back at him. I'd stared into the eyes of older Programs than he. I still remembered seeing those hollow empty sockets of The Assassin's "face" staring back into mine. That... thing still haunted my dreams. In many ways, I suspected that thing still haunted The Matrix. That thought consoled me in moments of confrontation like these. I had faced off against an entity like The Assassin and survived. Sure, I wasn't the one who fired the last shot into that being. But I had the knowledge that I could face off against something which had been around long before The General and would, in some form, still be around long after The General's code had been recycled into pigeons a dozen iterations from now.

"You have a deal, Austrian." The General finally said, getting up from his chair to offer me his hand again.

"A wise decision." I answered, accepting the gesture.

I had a plan and I had resources. Now it was a matter of timing to begin to achieve the objective.

As the Master Sergeant led me out of the office, I cast a glance at the photograph of Dresden on the wall. I understood now why The General had chosen such a thing to adorn his wall. Vengeance could never be the objective or it would be vengeance in excess. There was never such a thing as equal and proportionate use of force- no such thing as the principle of reciprocity. There had to be higher ideals to fight for in order for the cause to be justified. My cause was just.

I just wondered if his was...

War never changes, does it?

http://forums.station.sony.com/mxo/..._id=36300016309

Register your Hovercraft now and get into the action! Who says Syntax has to have all the fun?

This probably isn't the right forum for this but I thought the acronym would be pretty funny. For whatever reason, the profanity filter blocked it but the title was "W.T.F".

As the title of the thread says, I want to find a stylish European restaurant in-game but haven't been very successful. I've been encountering sushi bars, corner pubs and fast food diners. But what I'm aiming to find is something along the lines of "Le Vrai" from Reloaded. If there is such a place, please do let me know as it's needed for a few Events a few people and I have planned.

Willing to pay $info for the (accurate) coordinates to such a location.

I know I've seen threads about this before regarding favourite LET characters, but I thought I'd try something different rather than copying an old thread. Who's your favourite liaison and why? It doesn't have to be the liaison for your specific Org. It could be from another Org and you simply enjoy playing so-called "verbal volleyball" with them. But try to provide a reason or an example and not just simply brown-nosing :p

The following was intercepted from the Hovercraft you wished to have placed under surveillance. Most of their transmissions were just chit chat but I thought you'd like to see this.

I finally got to meet him- the one I'd been telling you about. He used to be a big deal before The Truce fell through. But he went missing without so much as a word six months ago. About a week ago, this guy- Austrian- turns up again acting as if he'd never left. Weird, huh? Even more weird is that when he learns I've been asking around after him, he contacts me through some third-person intermediaries to have dinner at this joint downtown. Some French place. Not "Le Vrai" or else I'd have been a bit apprehensive about going.

Anyway... I go in, we meet up, order our food and make small talk. Out of nowhere, he looks me dead in the eyes and says, "You're not like the others."

This kind of catches me by surprise because I have no idea what he's talking about. So I ask him, "What others?"

Austrian's all apologetic and confused himself now. "Forgive me. Your manner just took me by surprise." He goes on to explain, "So many of the newly Awakened are very... head strong. They act as if the simple revelation that their prior lives were lies in some sense now somehow makes them above all others- including those who have been Awakened for a very long, long time. They remember nothing of The Assassin, Invalesco or any of those times when the Organizations came together in cooperation against a common foe because they were never there to see any of it. Yet they claim to be experts on it and to have a greater insight into the workings of The Matrix over those who were there- over those who saw and knew what the right thing was to do then and what the right thing to do now is."

That bit to the conversation stuck out to me. It got me to thinking- you know, he's right. I was never there to see what happened. But it's a bit strange how you see so many people recently Awakened talking smack to guys and girls who have been here since not long after Neo's sacrifice.

Then we got to talking about why he left and where he went. For someone with a reputation for being a diplomat, he was pretty gruff.

"Where have you been these past months?" I asked him.

"Somewhere away from here." Wow. Master of the obvious, huh?

Next, I tried: "Why did you go?"

This got him talking a bit more. "I left because I was sick of picking up after everyone else. I was sick of preaching peace and just getting ignored by anyone but a core following. When you're surrounded by so much suffering all around, how can one continue to maim, kill and inflict even more suffering? It just leaves us descending into an etiological chain. Cause and effect. You kill my brother, I kill your sister. I kill your sister, you try to kill my mother but shoot some innocent bystander instead. Then his or her family kills you and... it just goes on and on forever. So I got arrogant. I got angry. I tried to impose my idea of heaven-on-earth upon everyone else but it didn't work. So I decided to create my own heaven-on-earth and resided there until the racquet you people have been causing disturbed me in even my place of recluse. So now I'm back to save a few lives before someone decides to come after me."

It's an interesting answer for a variety of reasons but that's not why I'm passing this on to you. I remember hearing some of my connections in the Bathary Boys saying that Austrian has something in his possession called "The Katana" and that he consulted with Cerulean before he left on how to hide it outside the code of The Matrix but also outside any Construct that could be easily accessed by an Exile or Program. I decided to ask him about it.

He was hesitant but admitted, "I wasn't entirely honest with you when I said that I came back solely for the purpose of saving lives. I have to get rid of something once and for all. Just some excess baggage. But getting rid of it will save even more lives than I could by intervening in this war of yours in my own little way. I just need to take care of a few things and then it's on to Yuki."

If this wasn't just smokescreen for something else, I'd suggest you keep an eye on the entrances to the Yuki Construct and on Austrian in the next few weeks. He's up to something, that much is certain.

Some fight for glory, some for gold. But The Hapsburg fights for hearth and home.

Come fight alongside us.

((A crew that has never once disbanded in well over two years. Merovingian- RP preferable. Send an e-mail in-game for details on recruiting.))

This is my last thread of the day. Promise. (Though you might note that it's almost a new day already if you're living in the same time zone as me. In which case, I am not trying to hustle you. Promise.)

As some of you might be aware, I'm planning a few Events to get things a bit more lively around here. While I don't want to give away what I have in mind or what the story is that will play out through this little series of activities, I do need to form a small team of players with characters that fit the bill. These will not be my usual one-man team Events anymore, unfortunately. The logistics would make it unfeasible.

But, anyway, the wish list of characters is below. PM me if you think you have a character that meets a need and if you're willing to help out and play a role in the fielding of these events to the rest of the server population. Never fear: being a member of the team for one event won't compromise your ability to participate in a future stage as a player with everyone else. I'll keep the big picture secret and just give you the specifics that you need to know to perform your function.

- Zionite Recruiting Officer

- Commando (Machine Program may also be suitable)

- Blood-Drinker/ Lupine

- Redpill/Demon Army Liaison

- Liaison with intense dislike for Demon Army

- Psychopath Redpill (And I mean, like, totally crazy)

- Bookwyrm allies (A crew or faction)

- Two Bluepills

The sooner the better. Once I have the one at the top of the list, I can begin. But progression of the Event will eventually require the rest.

Sorry if the post is incoherent. I require sleep.

I'm planning an Event arch expected to last a good 9 weeks or more and need to know a few things before I get started implementing them. First on the list: Are there any factions which RP a connection of some sort with the Bookwyrms or Hypatia? Or, failing that, any factions which would have a willingness to work in some capacity for Hypatia and her Bookwyrms?

Thanks in advance!

Aust

Guten abend,

 I have taken it upon myself to offer business contracts on behalf of numerous interests within The Matrix. I no longer wish to concern myself with the politics of your disputes. I just concern myself with what is important and immaterial. But I won't belabour the point of my disaffection and apathy with the internecine warfare that plagues both the worlds we live in. I'll just get to the point.

 These interests perceive problems to their advancement or the maintenance of their current state of welfare. Therefore, they have empowered me to act as their agent and hand out contracts for "problem-solvers" to deal with "obstacles to progress".

 I have the first of many contracts displayed below. Please do contact me, Austrian, should you wish to accept the offer of independent contract, your term of employment expiring once the target has, ah, expired as well. ((You can also contact me in-game to find out ways to interfere with a contract that has been handed out to hitmen.))

Contract: Jimmy

Dossier: Jimmy, or JM-3 as he is more properly known, is a Resource Surveillance Program which monitors the vicinity of important Machine assets for potential threats and then alerts The System when such a threat presents itself. He takes the form of a man in a hot dog suit advertising for a chain of fast food restaurants called "Chomp-and-Go". The bizarre cover is intended to act as a smokescreen toward Redpills and Exiles as to his true purpose within The System.

Where someone to find and delete JM-3, the way would be opened for an attack upon a sensitive Machine target while The System processes the drop in surveillance information and pin-points the security breach.

JM-3 can usually be found downtown, prowling the Chelsea neighbourhood with unimaginative sales pitches composed of "fast food puns".

Ever hear the one about the revolving door?

There once was an Austrian that got stuck in one and wound up falling back out into the lobby he was trying to depart from.

Yeah, a pretty graceless attempt at being deeply philosophical and saying that I'm back to the game and to Recursion.

Any other veterans around here still or am I the first to come back from exile? :p

So this is it. After over two years, I finally had to give up this little thing we have. For the moment, I am having trouble finding the right words to articulate my farewell. I mean, how does one do justice to all those memories? How does one put into words how fascinated I was when I first joined this game, "The Matrix Online", finding myself fighting- and defeating, to my astonishment, bizarre Agents wearing reddish sunglasses? How does one express the intrigue I felt as I raced hundreds of other players to be the first to free Neurophyte from her enigmatic captors? How do I say how much the friendships I've made here mean to me?

I can't. Not really, anyway. To try to sum up all the words I've exchanged both IC and OOC over such a long time would be a fruitless exercise that would ruin and depreciate the true and immeasurable value those things held.

So, instead, I'm going to be a wimp and hide behind the lyrics to a song that, I think, fits perfectly. I'll let "Vienna" by The Fray do the heavy lifting for me while I figure out the rest.

"Vienna" by The Fray

The day's last one-way ticket train pulls in.
We smile for the
casual closure capturing.
There goes the downpour,
Here goes my fare thee well.

There's really no way to reach me.
There's really no way to reach me
'Cause I'm already gone.

Only so many words that we can say
Spoken upon long-distance melody.
This is my hello,
This is my goodness.

There's really no way to reach me.
There's really no way to reach me
'Cause I'm already gone.

Maybe in five or ten
yours and mine will meet again,
Straighten this whole thing out.
Maybe then honesty need not be feared
as a friend or an enemy.
This is the distance.
And this is my game face.

There's really no way to reach me.
No, there's really no way to reach me
'Cause I'm already gone

So this is your maverick.
This is Vienna.

In short, the game was fun. The possibilities were endless. But the possibilities were squandered. The opportunities were passed up. I could go on a tirade until the ends of MxO about how things could have been done properly and who should or should not have been axed from the development staff (Does Chadwick count as a dev? ‘Cause he'd be the first to go if I was Supreme Overlord of the SOE, but, hey, maybe it's just me.) but I won't. This is my fare thee well, not my graffiti scrawl.

In the future, I may back. More than likely those of you who have been around long enough to know me and have me on your buddy list will see "Austrian" in green again someday. But for now, I'm taking that last one-way ticket train. I will be leaving a lot of things in the air, yes. I know many of you have been waiting patiently for the advancement of a dozen or so plots and stories left suspended awkwardly in mid-air. I apologize for that and no, I haven't forgotten. I'm currently in the process of writing up a monster of a thing to tie up all the loose ends (ie What happened to The Katana? Who stole The Merovingian's Mercedes? Will Austrian ever figure out where he came from? Will Alice and he ever get married and have some sort of normal relationship? How do they get the caramel in those *CENSORED* Caramilk bars? Et cetera)

Those who were involved in these stories, or wish to become involved in them, can still do so. Unlike in the song, there really are a few ways to reach me. E-mail is always the best way: inconcordium@hotmail.com and inconcordium@yahoo.com Just write me there and I'll involve you in the Conspiracy of Coolness. The story, once its completed, will be made available here. If I can't post it, I'll just find someone wanting to double their post count and give it to them to put up on my behalf.

And what good is any "Auf wiedersehen" thread without some personal acknowledgements? So please bear with me as this will be a long list, no doubt. These are, of course, in no specific order.

Digita1Spirit: My first FM ever. The crew was pretty low-maintenance back then, but you were always wonderful to have aboard. You were the voice of reason (or sanity, perhaps) and I appreciated every word you "spoke". When I was partial to over-reacting and being melodramatic, you were there to give me a much more realistic take on things. Many a crisis averted, and many a time I've missed having you with The Hapsburg since those good ol' days.

Alicethepattern: I don't think I've ever encountered a more caring person. My creativity really benefited from our conversations. On the topic of those conversations, though, I have to apologize for the quasi-spamming of those obscure moral theories. It's rare that one finds someone else with an interest in philosophy and living a moral and contented life. Keep doing what you do, and maybe we'll both wind up saving the world. Looking forward to working with you still on RP stories for The Matrix and just general friendship.

WGAnubis: I learned a lot about leadership from you. To be honest, during the Triluminary days, I never thought I'd see me wearing the DA tag. Heck, I don't think anyone could have predicted that faction merger or the eventual outcome of it. But it happened and you were a stand-up guy about all of it, looking past the old squabbles between our factions' members and welcomed myself and mine as if we had always been DA's, just wearing different tags. Maybe we really were. Either way, you lead the way- and rightly so.

Sieges: Your energy and enthusiasm bring just a bit more to the game for everyone around you. To be honest, once you joined MxO, I don't think you ever missed one of my Events. Whenever I put something on, there was a bit of uncertainty? Would this Event succeed? Would anyone show up? Were the puzzles too hard? Was the story too obscure and complex, or too cliché? But there was always one element of certainty- and that was that you would make every effort to attend and, somehow, would help turn what might have been a disaster into a good time for everyone. I hope that energy and enthusiasm never fades away and that it continues to imbue your life.

Nigh7Shad3: You're a stand-up guy, what can I say? You have amazing talent. Your artwork has been startlingly beautiful. Your RP was always engaging. Remember the time we acted out the rescue of Lamberg in The Real over Faction Chat? I never would have thought it possible, but those were some of the most tense and engaging moments I've ever spent in-game, waiting for those darned capacitators to charge up and wondering if destroying the Hover-barge was a moral thing to do. Poetry to my violence-fixated soul lol

Norseman: Not a man of many words, but certainly a man of action and, without a doubt, a man of your word. I'd take those two latter qualities over a chatter-box any day. I was impressed from the first time we met after the faction merger and have only continued to be impressed. Stay strong (you always are) and I may just see you in EvE soon. The details on the "foreign countries" arc should be worked out as I write this.

Wixard: Always a good friend. Always dependable and capable of being relied upon. When things in Triluminary turned sour, you just plugged your nose and were there right alongside me to make sure the right thing was done in the end. Leadership and politics can turn ugly sometimes and it can be tough to stay motivated. But it's much easier to endure when there's someone just as strong helping to shoulder the burden.

Kshana: You introduced me to RP. Until I attended one of your Events, I wasn't aware that there was an RP community in MxO. Sure I was a noob and it was during "The Race to Find The One", but I can't thank you enough for the connections and the inspiration.

EndlessVoid: To tell you the truth, I was excited about nearly every IC exchange we had. The detail of your character and the style with which you played him always made it feel... authentic. The conversation would always feel "Matrix-y", which is hard for many to capture. Here's to time well-spent.

Darminian: An honour-bound comrade, no matter the context of our interactions. Sure we started off diametrically opposed IC for a while. But our characters were able to put that behind themselves rather nicely and I always found you to be very respectful and thoughtful OOC. I'll be by to have tea again someday, so make sure the homeless people don't take over that restaurant.

NightTrace: I always have the utmost respect for someone with a good understanding of the military- even if it is the American military :p   The uneasy peace between our two characters was always a neat exercise in tension, and I only wish our IC interactions had been more numerous. Keep soldiering on, Generalista

Covenant & Conrac: I don't think we ever met IC. But I did really enjoy your reports whenever you completed one of my missions. You both made writing up the missions and thinking the storyline through a worthwhile endeavour. The story is not yet over, but there was a hiccup. A major one as the official storyline began to conflict badly with the path I was heading down. But a way forward was found and I'm working on it. We'll touch base and there will be closure to the story of The Merv's missing automobile.

And now my fingers hurt. I don't think I've typed this much in one sitting in a long time. Before I go, I figure I should apologize to the dozens who I intended to make note of in this post but ran out of time to write. Many of you have meant much to me, and I appreciate all of the memories- the good and the bad.

I should also mention where I'll be now that I'm not going to be jacked-in anymore. Over the next year or so, I'll be working on a Grad thesis in Political Science, my field of choice, on developing new strategies for intergovernmental organizations (ie the African Union, the United Nations) for ensuring peace and security in Africa. The thesis is, by all accounts, an ambitious one and it is my hope that somewhere, somehow, what I come up with will help save some lives. In other news, I've been encouraged to run federally for election in Canada. I've finally decided to let the encouragement get to my head. In the next election, I'll be running as a Liberal candidate in the Calgary area. My girlfriend has already run in the past as a New Democrat candidate and she will be again, in the Red Deer area. So between campaigning for myself, campaigning for my second most favourite person, writing this cursed thesis and the other things that Austrian does to inflict my presence on others, I won't be an idle person.

So this is your maverick.

This is Austrian.

Auf wiedersehen alle. Ich bin Stölz dass habe ich mit Ihren gespielt.

Hello all,

 Recently a few of us have been planning a rather ambitious project within the context of MxO. An epic story and all that jazz. One of the problems we have encountered, however, is the final goal of the protagonists in the story. Of course, as we write the plot outlines of this thing and plan out the specifics, we have to assume that the protagonists succeed at their goal somewhere along the way. They might not succeed. In fact, the successful completion of their agenda is quite improbable given the odds stacked against them. But, hey, who knows? Everyone likes a happy ending.

 This problem is a question I have been asking IC as Austrian for quite some time. Unfortunately, I haven't received an answer from any of the powers that be and so I find it necessary to develop a canonical answer unilaterally or, better yet, with your input.

 The question is as follows: What are other countries, cities and various other locations outside of Mega City? In the game, we cannot leave the city. In the movies, we see (I assume) only one city. So what would, for example, Graz in Austria be? A Construct that can be accessed only with Machine authorization through a network node disguised as an airport? Would the people in this Construct be just Programs with limited autonomy? In other words, would other locations in the world within The Simulation simply be like towns from those old Western movies- a main street with false fronts simply set up to create the illusion of a world full of 6.5 billion people?

 Or would other countries simply be separate Matrices with their own fields of pods? Would these other parts of the world be as simulated in detail as Mega City?

 Or, lastly, would other locations in The Matrix simply not exist at all. Instead, Austrian's memories of Europe (and the memories of other characters that have had contact with places beyond Mega City) are simply manufactured by The Machines to create the illusion of diversity, variation and a wider world out there? Would these memories simply be hard-wired to the brains of Bluepills in the same way Kung Fu and Jiu-jitsu are hard-wired to Neo's brain in the movies?

 I'd be interested to hear the thoughts of the Community, and perhaps those previously mentioned powers that be, on the matter to determine a canonical answer to this question. Left unsolved, this dilemma would make it difficult to determine the future course of Austrian's story.

1.1 "What's Mine Is Mine"

            Fu sighed and looked at his watch, letting his elbows rest on the sling for his MAC-11. The sudden pressure from the weight of his arms caused the sling to shift position so that the hard leather slipped down from its proper spot behind the raised collar of his jacket and chafed against the soft skin on the back of his neck. He groaned and reached up to move the sling back into place. He hated sentry duty. Or, at least, he hated sentry duty outside the restaurant, guarding his employer's car. Sentry duty inside, standing over the boss' table and eyeing the ladies was quite fine by him.

            Fu was one of the "Elite Guard", a group of Exiles commissioned by The Merovingian and trained at L'école de la Tour to specialize in defensive operations. It didn't matter what needed guarding, Fu and his kind were experts at doing it. Whether it was destroying evidence of The Frenchman's adultery or watching the door to a casino were some client was playing, Fu was expected to do his job and to do it well. On this particular evening the job was watching The Merovingian's favourite black Mercedes stretch limousine in the parkade of some posh restaurant in Hampton Green. And it was dreadfully boring.

            "You think he'll ever leave?" Fu asked his partner, Leng.

            "What?" The other Exile asked, looking at him with that spaced out expression that was his trademark, tipping his sunglasses down so that they rested on the bridge of his nose.

            "It's 11:30 already! I mean, talk about over-staying your welcome!" Fu protested, irritated as his sling started to slip a little down his back, leaving his MAC-11 dangling at his hip awkwardly. He fumbled with the weapon, trying to adjust it back into a comfortable position in front of him.

            "Look, when the boss wants to leave, he'll leave. Why all the f-?" Leng began. He was cut off by the sound of metal crashing against concrete somewhere near the ramp up to their level in the parkade.

            "What was that?" Fu asked. The crash wasn't loud enough to be from a car. It sounded more like a motorbike. But the sound of tires on the asphalt or the rumble of a running engine had not preceded the disturbance.

            "Check it out. I'll watch the car." Leng replied, apparently unphased.

            Reluctantly, Fu strolled down the rows of cars until he reached the ramp down to the lower level. He unslung his MAC-11, having only just found the proper comfort zone for the sling and the weapon on his body. Then, submachine gun held at the "High Ready" position, he descended the gently sloped asphalt. The barrel of the American-made machine pistol probed the space ahead of him. He changed his point of aim sporadically, like a hyper child with the attention span of a tropical fish. His eyes darted along with the weapon to cover each possible hiding spot in the parking lot. Fu realized only just now how dangerous and horrible a place to fight in a parking lot was. It seemed like a flat surface, as easy to cover from a vantage point like the entry ramp as an open plain in front of a hill. But the presence of so many cars and the dim lighting made it a death-trap. Anyone could be hiding in the shadows between the Jaguar and the SUV. Heck, someone could even be watching him through the tinted windows of the SUV, training their weapon on him as he slowly took another step down into the lower level.

            Then he saw what had made the sound: an over-turned shopping cart smashed into the rear of a Volkswagen. Somehow, a gust of wind blowing through the cavernous parking lot had propelled the cart into the vehicle, generating the metallic crash he and Leng must have heard. Except, Fu realized, there were two problems with that theory of what had happened. Firstly, there was no wind. The evening had been quite comfortable, with very little wind chill. Secondly, there were no shopping markets for several blocks. Why would someone bring a shopping cart all this way to an exclusive parkade for a posh restaurant and a few high-end law firms? It was possible that one of the rare homeless people of Downtown had brought the cart here along with them on their travels and that they had somehow managed to sneak past building security. But it was not a probable reason for the cart being there.

            Fu sprinted back up the ramp. As he went, he could hear the screech of tires on roadway. He barely rolled to the side in time to dodge a vehicle speeding around the corner of the higher floor of the parkade. As the vehicle sped past Fu's prone body, crumpled in the corner where his roll had left him, he saw that the car that had nearly hit him was The Merovingian's limousine. Someone had just stolen the boss' favourite car.

            ...What just happened?

            Fu picked himself up and looked around the corner that the car had come from, looking for some sign of Leng. How had his partner let someone get past him long enough to break into the car and re-wire it? His answer came in the form of Leng's body lying in the middle of the asphalt. From the looks of the body, it looked to Fu as if someone had snuck up behind the other Exile and smashed him across the skull with something big and heavy- like a crowbar. It also looked like Leng had been run over too. Poor Leng.

            And poor Fu. When the boss found about this... he was going to be in some serious trouble. Suddenly returning to The Source didn't sound quite so bad.

OOC: Recently, something came to mind. During my long time with MxO, I have had several ambitious Event ideas come to mind. Gang wars in Chinatown, massive conspiracies perpetrated by The General involving the Sculptures, Tengu's plots to spread his insane totalitarian beliefs into The Matrix- the list goes on. The problem with these Event concepts is that they simply are too ambitious to be made a reality. Even with the huge player base during the earlier days just after Beta, 75% of these ideas would not have been possible for a multitude of reasons. "Dragons of Grandeur", which was as ambitious as things got, had an Event Team as big, or perhaps bigger, than the current RP'er population of Recursion.

Given that we now have far less people to work with, and far less resources at our disposal by extension, it leaves the burning desire unfulfilled to create these things and make these ideas "real" in the game. It doesn't help when one also recalls that the Community demands more Events, but then refuses to attend ones created by players, instead only flocking to pointless "kidnap random liaison officer 1" farces put on by LESIG that lack any sort of coherent or engaging storyline.

But there is a possiblity to make some of these ideas come to light through the mission system. It requires that the player use their "imagination" and this can sometimes be a stretch. Especially when the NPC's in your mission are Cypherites and the description provided for you is supposed to be Commandos. However, those needing to power level to 50, or simply don't have anything better do, will find this a nice change of pace.

The concept is this: every week or month, a new group of missions are posted on the forums. These missions will be part of a coherent storyline, with plot twists every now and then, much like the SOE critical missions- only better. A mission type will be given along with a bit of background information, maybe a short story, and instructions from your Controller. This mission is to be played on Hard, and can be done with a team (a team is strongly encouraged). Completing all of the missions in a group will result in $information and storyline rewards, as well as special items (say, for example, a service ribbon ones character wears on their dress uniform in The Real and/or in The Matrix). Proof, of course, will be needed in order to prevent abuse. The Bank of Austrian does not have unlimited amounts of $info- it just has a lot.

Proof comes in the form of a screenshot. This screenshot should include the following: the "mission completed" tab with the mission type displayed, the team roster (so I know who is to be credited), and the map tab (so I know it was at least started in the correct neighbourhood given in the instructions for the particular mission).

In case you are wondering, yes I plan for all Organizations to have missions in this. Sometimes one Organization might have more missions than the others, but, for the most part, they will all receive equal treatment. Cypherites, EPN, Zion, Machines, Merovingians- no one left out.

All I require is a list of character names and their respective Organizations to mail out these missions to. Sign up in this thread, and the missions will be on their way to you. Once you complete one mission, send an e-mail to Austrian through the in-game system announcing that you have completed your current mission and are waiting to move on to the next one. I'll then send you the next mission. In order to receive the reward for completing the whole series of missions, I'll need to have the information I mentioned earlier: screenshots with your "mission completed tab", the open map, and your mission team roster.

 Good luck and I look forward to exploring the possibilities of this idea with the rest of the Community. Sign-up in this thread, if you're interested in receiving the missions.

Memorandum

20 Sept 2006

HQ Coy

Re: The Katana

1. Be advised that The General's orders to uncover more information on code artifact known as "The Katana" has been pursued expeditiously by Psy Ops Plt/ Hq Coy.

2.    Also be advised that elements of 2 Plt A Coy engaged subject Austrian in hostile    encounter near location tagged as Club Masamune.

          a. Confrontation rendered no civilian casualties, but did cause several code reconstructs.

          b. Subject Austrian escaped unharmed.

          c. Project "Destiny Donation" was successful.

3.          Project "Destiny Donation" uncovered significant information. Psy Ops Plt will continue to attempt to decode. Sitrep can be expected before subject exfils to Construct. (See attached)

4.       TF awaits further instructions. Will continue as per orders in "The Katana" memo.

Capt Nowell

Psy Ops Plt CO

HQ Coy

Attached File:

 X-Ray

Die 10 Gebote Gottes

Das fünfte Gebot: du sollst nicht töten.

Das ziehnte Gebot: du sollst nicht begehren Deines naechsten Weib, Knecht, Magd, Vieh oder Alles was sein ist.

Yankee

 Pslam 23

 Der Herr ist mein Hirte

 Mir wird nichts mangeln

 Er weidet nicht auf einer grünen Aue,

 Und führet mich zum frischen Wasser.

 Du bereitest vor mir einen Tisch im Angesicht meiner Feinde.

 Zulu

 Die Nummer Luzifer.

 Input coordinates:

 Input password:

 On The Hapsburg, I have a wall near the boarding ramp which is particularly special. Most of the walls on the Hovercraft are bare, devoid of trappings- the rare exception being the occasional crew quarters. For example, my own crew quarters has its walls decorated with souvenirs from my travels- a sign from the actual city of Graz given to me by my dearest Alice, a tattered and preserved United Nations flag found in the Tunnels of The Real buried in dust and slag, and a replica of The Katana forged for me by a Freeborn craftsman who fled Zion to live in the promise of the utopia I work towards.

 This particular wall, however, serves a different purpose than simple nostalgia. The wall features plaques dedicated to the dearly departed members of my crew. They say a good military commander is the one who ensures all of his or her troops returns home at the end of the day. Perhaps the existence of this wall on my vessel is proof of my lack of ability as an officer. Then again, many claim Morpheus was the greatest leader of Humanity to have ever lived, yet not one member of his crew survived. Not even himself. The Oracle might hint at his still being alive and Neonates might spread their rumours but... I saw his body. I saw Ghost's revulsion, the mourning Zionites, and the cheering fools who so easily forgot his merits and dwelled only on his failures. The man was dead.

 And so were the names on the plaques of this wall. Darktrooper- deceased. DarkenedLies- deceased. Two of my own had died, and one by my own hand. Both each an incomparable weight upon my conscience. And even more unbearable, at times, was a third plaque on the wall- one for a missing Operative who had spent much time serving alongside the crew. Gallic. A Merovingian spy placed within Zion which my crew rescued when his cover was about to be blown. Ah, what adventues we had had...

 But they came to an end. Gallic was not interested in salvation or redemption, like the rest of us. And so he went on to work with The Devil's Advocates, drawn to a lust for one interpretation of the word 'power'. But his lust was left unfulfilled and he soon became disillusioned with Awakening. He vanished, seeking re-insertion, I suspected. Poor Gallic...

 A stirring at the bottom of the loading ramp extending from the stationary Hovercraft draws my attention and interrupts my brooding stare at the plaques. At the bottom of the ramp stands Schlafsucher and Stickocide, two of my crew members salvaging spare parts from some wrecks left by The War, pushing a hover-bed used for carrying heavy loads. There are some contraptions littering the sides, like kinetic fusion reactors from the lifeless husks of some Sentinels. But the form in the center of the hover-bed belongs to a Human.

 I rush down the ramp. "Where'd you find him?"

 "Not far from the site of the slag pile we were inspecting." Schlafsucher replies.

 Curious, I ask "Someone from The War?" A stranded Zionite woud have surely made contact with their own in the past two years since the establishment of The Truce, surely.

 "No." Stickocide replies, grimly. "It's Gallic. He's dead."

 ((Hopefully this isn't too badly butchered for writing at 3am, heh.))

 Seraph says quite frequently in the movies and the games that "You do not know someone until you truly fight them." In that spirit, I'd like to ask how your character fights. If you could create a style for your character to use in fighting in-game, what would it be like? What martial arts does your character practice? Did he or she know how to fight before being Awakened? Or was that knowledge imparted to them after being unplugged through hard-wiring?

 I suppose I'll start by describing Austrian. Austrian practices a combination of Ba Gua Zhang with Tae Kwon-Do creating a fairly graceful style with fast kicks and open-handed strikes in circular motions, making them hard to predict. These martial arts were known to him before his Awakening as he was a bored and spoiled child whose only entertainment was found in studying those martial arts and participating in professional tournaments and illegal flight clubs. However, to compensate for his lack of knowledge in grappling arts, Austrian was hard-wired with some techniques from Bujinkan ryu Ninjutsu and Zui Ba Xian Kuan Kung Fu, along with the knowledge necessary to operate firearms.

 As for specific techniques Austrian might perform during a fight...

 White Snake Sticks Out Its Tongue: Austrian strikes his opponent with a cutting palm (a palm strike that hits with the blade of the hand) to the cheek in an almost slapping motion. Drawing in close, he then strikes with a second cutting palm to the belly, doubling the opponent over. Then, stepping forward, he strikes with a palm heel strike to the solar plexus, his other arm arching over his head to protect against any retaliatory strikes.

 Dragon Finds The Path: Austrian catches a jab from his opponent by the wrist with his rear hand. He then delivers a round kick to the head before twisting the opponent into a bent-over position by manipulating the pressure point in the wrist. With the opponent in a vulnerable position, Austrian then strikes the shoulder blade with a well-aimed palm heel strike.

 Yoto-Haibi: A typical Judo-like hip throw.

 Hawk Soars Up To Heaven: Austrian strikes his opponent with a cutting palm to the solar plexus as a feint and then kicks out with his front leg to the opponent's shin. Following through with the kick, Austrian drops down into a crouched stance a bit like doing the splits- Hawk Stance. He then surges up and forward to deliver a palm heel strike to the solar plexus, using the momentum to increase the force of the blow.

 Koryo: Austrian round kicks to the shin, then quickly bouncing off of the opponent's leg, kicks with the same foot to the head. Taking advantage of the opponent's daze, he jumps up and delivers a second round kick to the head after an aerial 360 degree spin.

 And I'm tired. I'd come up with more short combinations but I think those five give a decent impression of Austrian's personality through combat. What about your character?

 Freunde,

 My time at the moment is short so I will keep this brief. We have reached a point where we can confidently move on to the third segment of my plan.

 From Yokuhitsu, we were able to learn a great deal about Tengu and The Katana through the efforts of AccessCode and Iovai of the Mega City Police Department and we nearly re-captured the misguided and brainwashed Redpill before he escaped into the Construct Sakura through the fast footwork and quick thinking of Operatives DGNR8 and Umbrion of the MCPD and AdventHalo of the Devil's Advocates.

 Shortly thereafter, I asked for Operatives to attack gangs in the International District in order to intimidate them into revealing information on the Constructs, Tengu, and The Katana itself. Instrumental in bringing the four gang leaders to the table were Masonna, Sieges, Electrify and theNorseman- all of the Devil's Advocates.

 With this information, all we lack is a means to get into Yuki to complete what I have planned to do for so long. The end of the tunnel is in sight. But first, before we make the last brutal push to destroy the verdammte Schwerte, I should impart to you all what I have gleaned from my sources.

 To that end- the free sharing of information- I will be at Club Masamune on Tuesday, August 29th at 8pm EST. I will answer as many of your questions as possible during that time and try to give you a perspective on the bigger picture of things.

 I hope to see you all there. We are close to finishing this, I'm sure.

 Tschüss,

 Austrian

 ((The Event will be held two hours later in the day than the past two phases. So, 8pm EST or 5pm MCT, in other words. The Event was scheduled earlier in the evening, originally, so that European players would have a fairly equal opportunity to participate as our North American players. However, the bulk of those participating thus far are solely from the United States and have expressed that the past scheduling is slightly inconvenient for them. Therefore, we'll experiment with 8pm and see how it goes ))

 Grüss Gott!

 I have good news. Very good news.

 A little less than a week ago, I requested that Operatives attack various gangs in the International District for me for... various reasons. First of all, I needed the Jade Moons in Shinjuku, the Chang Wing in Kowloon, and the Shurikens in Ueno attacked and intimidated so that they would surrender vital information to me on the subjects of Yuki, Sakura, Tengu, The Katana, and what not. Second of all, I asked for the Phoenix gang in Ikebukuro hit in retaliation for their attempt on my life and to find out from them just why they had attacked me and how they knew the Mega City Police Department would be transporting me through that gang's territory at that particular time.

 The response from Operatives was not exactly overwhelming. But I did receive support, which warmed my heart. Two specific teams were particularly helpful in their efforts and I met their representatives in Club Masamune to see evidence of their work and to impart some bits of information that I acquired from Yokuhitsu, the Redpill found in Sakura by the MCPD and who escaped from their station in Sai Kung last week during questioning.

 Masonna, of The Devil's Advocates, was able to, singlehandedly, gather 88 Phoenix Medallions from the Phoenixes, 36 Ivory Disks from the Chang Wing, 29 Platinum Shurikens from the Shurikens, and 16 Crescent Moon Medallions from the Jade Moons.

 Sieges, also of the Devil's Advocates, who was assisted by The Norseman and Electrify, were able to gather a total of 40 Phoenix Medallions from the Phoenixes, 40 Ivory Disks from the Chang Wing, 20 Platinum Shurikens from the Shurikens, and 40 Crescent Moon Medallions from the Jade Moons.

 The leaders of the four gangs have already been calling my dear Alice to demand an audience with me and an end to the attacks on their members. I will speak with them later tonight at a secure location and extract the information I require. They will have no choice but to cooperate, thanks to the efforts of the mentioned Operatives whose kind assistance will do much to further the stability of The System, the balance of power that keeps this place somewhat intact, and our very survival from those hungry for power.

 They will be rewarded handsomely for their efforts on Thursday and I look forward to working alongside them further in the next phase of my plan. Namely, finding a suitable entry into the Construct Yuki...

 But that will have to wait for now. I have a train to catch.

 Mit freundlichen Grüssen,

 Austrian

 Guten Tag, Freunde!

 I am writing this to you from a secure location as wandering the streets has become a bit, ah, dangerous for me lately. The Merovingian and others have become particularly ruthless in trying to obtain possession of the artifact known as The Katana.

 For those who are only just becoming aware of this little debacle, I will explain briefly. The Katana is a very rare artifact from a previous iteration of The Matrix presumably featured in the Constructs Yuki and Sakura. A prototype paradise that, of course, failed. Apparently, Redpills were a problem back then too, to a degree. And so one means of quelling the Redpill uprisings was to create a weapon that would utterly destroy the code of whatever it touches. A slight cut that wouldn't even draw blood could, supposedly, delete the victim from existence- be they Redpill, Bluepill, Exile or Program. I'm not entirely sure why or who would come up with such a silly thing. But the fact of the matter is someone did. And now some want it for their own uses. If you wish to know any more about it and how it came into my possession, ask me. I would be more than happy to explain that to you on our own time.

 At this time, however, it is time to move forward to obtain the next bit of information that is required to destroy The Katana and eliminate its threat. A mysterious Redpill named Yokuhitsu was recently captured by Mega City Police Department in Sakura. This cultist claims to have once been a Zionite before The Truce. Around the time the crew of The Nebuchadnezzar came into contact with The Merovingian, this Yokuhitsu met The Archivists. He made a deal, the details of which are unknown, which granted him access to Sakura for an indeterminate period of time. He was attacked by the Priestesses there and nearly lost his life until Tengu ordered that he be spared... so long as the Redpill pledge a life debt to Tengu and show his loyalty by killing his entire crew in The Real. Now he has been tasked with capturing The Katana and returning it to its original owner- the Tengu of Yuki. He escaped before he could question him much further.

 The information we gained from Yokuhitsu was invaluable. However, it is incomplete. That is why I am contacting you all. Certain gangs in the International District possess information of value to me. In order to get them to divulge what they know, they must be... intimidated. Attack members of the following gangs and take their collector items for me:

 -The Phoenixes in Ikebukuro

 -The Jade Moons in Shinjuku

 -The Chang Wings in Kowloon

 -The Shurikens in Ueno

 Collect their special gang icons and provide them to Alicethepattern at Club Masamune in Shinjuku on August 22nd at 6pm EST or 3pm MCT. She will forward me your names and the number of items you have gathered from which respective gang and you will be rewarded accordingly with the appropriate funds. I am afraid I will not be able to be present at such a pubic gathering at this time as it would be... detrimental to my health.

 I hope I can expect your support and that you will treat my darling Alice with respect on the 22nd.

 Mit freundlichen Grüssen,

 Austrian

 Meine Freunde,

 To those of you who were not able to attend the interrogation of Yokuhitsu I offer my apologies. I would have waited until a later date so that you would have been able to gain the information imparted by the prisoner yourself. However, I was not able to do so as matters have... accelerated due to unforeseen factors.

 The interrogation proceeded not quite according to plan but we gained the desired information. Apparently, Yokuhitsu somehow had the ability to travel great distances across Mega City without the use of hardlines or his own two feet. He would just vanish and re-appear at another location, leaving ateach location small note scribbled in red kanji hinting at his next destination. But he did not display this hidden talent until we had questioned him thoroughly and learned a great deal about the Tengu, The Katana and the relationship of the Yuki and Sakura Constructs. It was almost, in a way, as if he wanted us to learn more about the manner of these things...

 Congratulations go to AccessCode and Iovai of Mega City Police Department for correctly answering riddles posed by Yokuhitsu during the interrogation. Their sharp minds managed to pierce through the sometimes cryptic comments of the Redpill prisoner to find the truth I, we, seek.

 Congratulations also go to DGNR8 of Mega City Police Department for being the first to arrive on scene at Ascension Monument to see Yokuhitsu vanish entirely from The Matrix proper. Excellent Operative work was displayed by AdventHalo of The Devil's Advocates, who was very close behind DGNR8 at the final location.

 And, of course, my thanks go out to those who were present for the interrogation and whose efforts also served a role in convincing Yokuhitsu to tell us exactly what we wanted to know until he pulled his disappearing act. I look forward to working with you all to further the cause to delete The Katana and spare The Matrix, and all of us, from an unnecessary problem. I will be contacting you again soon.

 Bis dann,

 Austrian

 Fellow Operatives,

 Those of you who have been Awakened for quite some time have no doubt heard of The Katana at least once in passing. For those of you who haven't, perhaps a brief explanation is in order. You will hear more of this artifact over the next few months, ich glaube.

 The Katana is a powerful weapon that came into my possession in a most interesting way. About a year ago, The Merovingian came across some information that indicated a new and important shipment had arrived at the Ikebukuro docks only to be immediately stolen before it could reach Bishop Imports. Curious about what this shipment was, The Merovingian had a few Operatives from a faction known as "Chaos Theory" during the days of the Iterator phase of The Matrix. These Operatives discovered that the shipment was found by an Exile named Lecher and his exploration team in one of the Archive Constructs. Lecher, living up to his namesake, understood the value of the item he had found and sought to sell it on the black market. Allowing The Katana to gather dust on a shelf in one of the Ueno Towers was not exactly something that would get Lecher enough funds to indulge his, well, lecherousness.

 Placing the sword on a secret auction, he received a considerable bid from a crew made up of what we now know as Cypherites but were then only known as "Masked Men". To be honest, back in those days I mistakenly believed that they worked with Morpheus as they frequently attacked those who were trying to disarm the fallen Zionite Captain's code bombs. Ah well, excuse my nostalgia.

 Operatives from multiple Organizations and on multiple phases of Mega City made valiant attempts to find The Katana but, eventually, PacketBurner- a Merovingian Operative of The Codemasons (currently on the Syntax version), prevailed, securing The Katana and then fleeing Lecher's offices moments before a Zionite team arrived on the scene. Trusting me to relay this weapon on to The Merovingian, PacketBurner gave possession of The Katana to me. But I did not relay it. Instead, I fielded the false story that I had been attacked en route to the drop-off point assigned by a squad of the Masked Men who stole the weapon. A desperate search was made for this squad but turned up no results, obviously, as they had not actually attacked me.

 Why did I take The Katana for myself? To destroy it. No one should have its power. If The Merovingian had managed to gain possession of the verdammte Schwerte, he would have killed Morpheus (which he did anyway). But he would not have stopped there. Eventually, The Matrix would have been worse off than if Agent Smith had defeated Neo and ruled The Matrix. Life as a victim of a virus is terrible, do not get me wrong. But it is still life. A bad life is better than no life. And so that is why no one may take The Katana. Because if they do, they will not resist temptation until there is not one of us left. 

 I believe I know how to get rid of The Katana. But I require help. It will be a long process but a worthwhile one.

 The first step to take, meine Freunde, is to interrogate a suspect that the Mega City Department of Police has kindly taken into custody for us. Yokuhitsu. He was found in a rather odd state in the Sakura Construct. I believe he has strong connections to The Katana and to a web that will need to be destroyed in order to prevent The Katana, and whoever would seek to wield it, from destroying all of us. 

 The interrogation of the subject will take place Tuesday, August 15th at 1500 Mega City Time. Umbrion of the Mega City Department of Police, the Questioning Officer for this interrogation, will notify you shortly with the address of the station where Yokuhitsu is being held. I would ask that you be present to field your own questions and lend your interpretation of his answers. He tends to speak quite... cryptically at times. Help The Matrix or help yourself. Either way, you will likely not want to miss what Yokuhitsu has to say.

 Mit freundlichen Gruessen,

 Austrian

 The General,

  We have captured one of your men in retaliation for your bad fashion sense. His name is one that has been dreaded, until now.

  Yes, the rumours are true. We have kidnapped Captain Teddy. Our demands are simple. For the safe return of Captain Teddy, we demand one billion helicopters and a dollar. Or vice versa. You see, we are very accomodating terrorists. But we can't accomodate your Frankenstein outfit. We will be awaiting your communique!

 Also, we have attached a photo of your officer, in order for you to know that he has not been harmed but is but a moment away from death should you try to rescue him.

  Sincerely,

 The Terrorist Guys

  I sit there, nervously checking my e-mail for more information on this "Tengu" Exile and other references made to Japanese culture that The Digger suggested I follow in order to remove my burden- this blasted piece of silk and steel called, affectionately, "The Katana". Using a front as a legitimate exchange student at Stratford Campus taking a course on East Asian Studies, I had hoped to gather sufficient information from Redpills and Bluepills alike. After all, who wouldn't want to help some young gullible student from a fictitious Eastern European country who was stuck in a research rut? Apparently, quite a few. There had been only one reply and it had only skimmed the surface of my problem and told me little I did not already know. Go figures.

  Hm? Who am I? Austrian, of course! Verdammte blöd... sorry. My nerves have been playing on me. They have been for a while. The sister ship to mine, "The Vertigo of Bliss" is under quarantine. The entire crew seems to be infected by a serious case of the so-called "Tunnel Flu". You see... the Tunnels of The Real are not exactly a hygienic place. Many of them were, or are, sewage pipes where excess body fluids and human waste once flowed. Even if they are no longer used by The Machines as a place to dump dead humans and other such disgusting matter, the bacteria that congregated to decompose the waste still linger there and, as they always have, multiply and evolve at a startling rate. So when one goes on a salvage operation to cannibalize the parts and components of a Zion Hovercraft abandoned during The War, one has to be careful not to step in anything. I guess Wixard was in a hurry. She slipped and caught something nasty from falling in a small pool of still water that had gathered from Gott in Himmel knows what.

  So now half of my troops, all of them good friends, are suffering from the worst case of flu you have ever seen. DarkenedLies figured one of our stock vaccines would work and injected everyone on his vessel with it. I'm afraid it might have been too late for him and Wixard. Schiesse, I'm afraid it might be too late for all of them. I've lost only two people under my command. I pride myself on that. Nearly two years since my Awakening and yet only two friends lost. That's a better batting average than even Morpheus, nicht wahr? And people say he was a great leader!

  Anyway, here I sit: in a chair on a quietly thrumming ship, The Hapsburg. My crew is depressed and in poor spirits. My other crew is dying of a seemingly untreatable illness from the depths of Hölle. And I am unable to acquire assistance in destroying a rare artifact from a prior iteration of The Matrix that no one, and I mean no one, should possess. Got all that? Heh. An inspiring tale, I know.

  But it gets better. It's a long and hard story. One that tells you a great deal about the nature of Sentients- Human, Exile, Program, whatever. And it's a story that changes my life. Forever.

 ((Feel free to post in reply here. This will be the lead-in to a much overdue Event that will begin unfolding in the near future. Should you have any questions about how you might contribute, just what the heck is going on, etc. you can PM me, ask OOC here, reach me on XFire, harrass me in-game, or e-mail me. Have fun =D))

Message Edited by BienTan on 06.22.2006 01:31 PM