Matrix Online: Chapter 4.2 (Machines)
Matrix Online: Chapter 4.2b
Flood tells Merovingian operatives that the Merovingian wishes to consolidate his many “items of interest” that he spread out throughout the Matrix and wishes to collect them. The first is a statue being held by a Merovingian exile that has a “certain… taste for humans,” and this statue is obtained with little hassle. Flood says the second item is held by an exile outside of the Merovingian’s employment (which is confusing to the operatives) and may be harder to get. The exile ends up being uncooperative and slow witted, and refuses to hand over the item. After killing the exile’s guards, the exile hands over a key to his vault. On the way to the vault, the operatives meet Hypatia, the neighborhood contact. She tells them of rumors about “him collecting his things” and asks the operatives where he is going and how he will get there without his Effectuator. Realising the operatives know nothing, Hypatia allows them to collect a small book from the vault. Hypatia warns them to try to be aware of “the bigger picture” and not to be swept up in “circumstances beyond their control.” The missions are successful, but the operator is concerned about the Merovingian’s desire to gather his items.
The Merovingian claims to have invented the EMCP device that was accidentally discovered by Merovingian researchers and has hit a block in developing it into a portable weapon, needing the assistance of a certain exile to complete the weapon. Flood orders operatives to convince the exile to help by any means necessary. They take down the bodyguards and find that the exile already knew they were coming. He says the commandos have given him his fair share of troubles and is willing to help the Merovingian, but only if he receives advance payment by killing a rival program of his. One of Flood’s operatives soon takes out the rival exile, and returns to escort the first exile to the Merovingian lab.
Flood tells his operatives to escort a tester for the completed EMCP weapon. Researchers tell the operative that the “feedback issue” has been resolved, but a computer nearby lists the survival rate of users as only 85%. The operative and tester proceed to a commando base, and just after the operative begins to battle the commandos, the EMCP is activated successfully, deleting nearly all of the commandos. Flood tells operative and tester to proceed to a second location, and the same thing happens, except that the tester is physically harmed by the device, reminding Flood of the feedback problem. The operative escorts the tester to a nearby lab for analysis, and after delivery to the scientists, the operative decides to snoop around the lab. Hacking into an on-site computer reveals that the scientists have recently hacked into and deleted entries from the public service’s missing persons database for reasons unknown. The Merovingian declares the tests a total success, and distribution to all Merovingian operatives begins.
Flood contacts an operative to test the EMCP device again, this time with modifications that claim to destroy any Machine programs within a radius (agents). Flood forwards reports of a Merovingian building under siege from Machine forces to the operative, and the operative leads the exile named Tester to the place despite his skepticism that the ability to instantly kill any agent is too good to be true. Flood also says that tester should be forced to activate the device since he seems hesitant for some reason. As soon as the prototype EMCP device is activated, all exile programs including Tester fall to the floor, dead. As soon as the operative reconstructs, he is contacted by Flood, who says that whoever thought of the idea should lose their job and that he’ll personally find out who is responsible, even though it was likely his idea in the first place.
The Merovingian decides it is time for him to reclaim the captured Effectuator and has Flood arrange the details. Flood has his operatives infiltrate security control locations in the Tabor Park neighborhood and have hackers stand by to disable the systems when the time is right. At the same time, other Merovingian operatives attack Machine locations around the city to distract machines from the main operations. Agent Gray falls for it and spreads his forces out to deal with the assaults. When he realizes the Merovingian’s distraction strategy to free the Effectuator, Agent Gray orders consolidation of his forces to the Tabor location, only to find that Flood already did the same thing with his operatives a while ago. The huge Merovingian force storms the heavily defended facility due to no machine backup. With the help of hackers at the security buildings, they are able to deactivate the terminal controlling the Effectuator’s holding program. The Effectuator is freed, and machine backup arrives (redpills, programs and agents) and slaughters the entire Merovingian force. The mission, however, is declared a success since the Effectuator mocked the machinists with copies of himself before teleporting to safety.
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