So he orders several pizzas. It's <strong>the</strong> easiest, and he could add on pasta to that. He used to run a pastashop; th<strong>is</strong> wouldn't be too hard.Neo goes around <strong>the</strong> place once more and still doesn't find a computer. He starts looking slightlyagitated.Hanging around <strong>the</strong>ir presence continues to feel uncomfortably surreal; somehow it's much morebearable when it's just him and one of <strong>the</strong>m. There <strong>is</strong> something about watching <strong>the</strong>m interact with eacho<strong>the</strong>r that makes him uneasy, and somehow it makes <strong>the</strong>m seem less real, like mere automatonsprogrammed by him with certain character<strong>is</strong>tics and modes of thought.But when he <strong>is</strong> alone with just one of <strong>the</strong>m, <strong>the</strong>y seem completely human; which unnerves him in atotally different way.He wonders what it feels like from <strong>the</strong>ir point of view – in relation to him, in relation to each o<strong>the</strong>r...And, with a sinking feeling, he remembers Griffin, still locked up, and hopes that he will be okay."Are you looking for something?" he asks.Neo gives a start. "...Yeah. A computer.""I don't have one."Neo shifts uncomfortably. "I know. You told me. But..."Neo looks fitfully around in a desperate sort of way, as though it would make a computer somehowmaterial<strong>is</strong>e out of nowhere. Houses had computers. It was a fact of life, he thought. Which meant that<strong>the</strong>re had to be one here somewhere, just... hiding or something.The telev<strong>is</strong>ion comes on in <strong>the</strong> background playing some inane detergent advert<strong>is</strong>ement.A yell and splash informs <strong>the</strong>m that Tommy and Jesse just pushed Heaver into <strong>the</strong> newly-d<strong>is</strong>coveredswimming pool.**The deafening silence <strong>is</strong> starting to get to him, and Griffin finally forces himself to accept that <strong>the</strong> door <strong>is</strong>not going to open any time soon.But he stays calm; looks at <strong>the</strong> chainsaw, considers h<strong>is</strong> options. He's probably managed to guilt-tripReeves. He hopes he has, with a sudden twinge of anger, but <strong>the</strong>n he tries to suppress <strong>the</strong> hurt ofbeing unloved by h<strong>is</strong> creator, because <strong>the</strong>re's no point in dwelling on that.He runs h<strong>is</strong> free hand slowly along <strong>the</strong> serrated edge of <strong>the</strong> chainsaw and feels <strong>the</strong> mild pricks of pain,driving home h<strong>is</strong> mortality; tries to imagine powering it up and directing it through <strong>the</strong> flesh and bone ofh<strong>is</strong> right wr<strong>is</strong>t, and <strong>the</strong> thought brings h<strong>is</strong> left hand to a stop. He retrieves h<strong>is</strong> hand from <strong>the</strong> chainsawand holds it close.Griffin slides lower down <strong>the</strong> side of <strong>the</strong> bed and leans against it, eyes shut. The sound of h<strong>is</strong> quietbreaths fills h<strong>is</strong> mind.He wonders what <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>rs are doing. He wonders if he can tell; if he can sense <strong>the</strong>m; if <strong>the</strong>y areconnected in more ways than <strong>the</strong>y think; but he gets nothing, and so he gives up trying.He tries to sleep. Perhaps when he wakes, things will be different.Someone has to come eventually.
Seventeen suspicious-looking, mostly-armed, and not-quite-heterogeneous individuals congregated on<strong>the</strong> street corner. At least one of <strong>the</strong>m looked lost."You don't know where to go, do you?" Conor asked.Ludlow tried to ignore him. He gazed out at <strong>the</strong> street and tried to look as though he knew exactly wha<strong>the</strong> was doing."Figures," Johnny Utah muttered. "We're just going to stand around here until someone takes us away."John Constantine casually lit a stolen cigarette and smoked, shifting h<strong>is</strong> position a little such that he wasdirectly beside <strong>the</strong> 'No Smoking' sign that marked <strong>the</strong> entrance to a restaurant."Someone has to know something," Shane said. "All those people escaped yesterday – <strong>the</strong>y must havegone somewhere.""Maybe <strong>the</strong>y were killed," Perry suggested.Bob Arctor looked sad.A random approaching passerby saw <strong>the</strong>m, stopped, <strong>the</strong>n chose ano<strong>the</strong>r direction."...Is it really that important to get home?" Conor pondered aloud. "Life kind of sucked.""Look after that," not-Tim said to Alex, gesturing at <strong>the</strong> cooking pot of pasta as <strong>the</strong> doorbell rang and heran out of <strong>the</strong> kitchen to answer it before someone else did."Stay away from that door," he said pointedly to Rupert, <strong>the</strong>n opened <strong>the</strong> door and said hi to <strong>the</strong> pizzaguy.**"Hi," said <strong>the</strong> pizza guy in return, holding out <strong>the</strong> pizza boxes and looking expectant in a financial sort ofway. <strong>Not</strong>-Tim took <strong>the</strong> pizza from him and paid him, whereupon <strong>the</strong> pizza guy dug out a small digitalcamera from h<strong>is</strong> pocket."Uh," he said, "I'm also a paparazzo in training. Can I take your photograph and sell it for lots ofmoney?"<strong>Not</strong>-Tim declined, and so <strong>the</strong> pizza guy settled for selling a story about Keanu Reeves' secret pizza orgyparty to a tabloid that paid him a few thousand dollars for <strong>the</strong> exclusive interview.Pizza guy gone, not-Tim dumped <strong>the</strong> pizza on <strong>the</strong> table. "Pizza!" he said. "Get a towel from <strong>the</strong>bathroom," he said to Heaver, who had successfully climbed out of <strong>the</strong> swimming pool and was nowsuccessfully dripping water everywhere.He went back into <strong>the</strong> kitchen hoping that Alex was still alive and that nothing was on fire. Living forprolonged periods of time over a large body of water sometimes made people complacent when it cameto matters of flammable things.But Alex was still alive, and <strong>the</strong> pot was bubbling happily."Griffin's still <strong>the</strong>re," Alex said after a while.
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"Your behaviour these past few mont
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Neo sank down on the sofa.He looked
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Next morning62nd Floor. Arrival Lob
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It is in fact at the cafeteria that
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'There is no exit here', read the h
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Back from his breakfast, Griffin sa
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Griffin glanced back at the three p
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Alex looked up."...That's Paul, tha
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The floor hackers stared at their l
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"Okay," Conor continued. "Situation
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"We want to get out as much as you
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Yawning, Paul pushed open the door
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Jack lunged at his neck. Both of th
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Then they fell silent again as Neo
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"I did you a favour, Jack," Griffin
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"That's one," Neo said helpfully, p
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New guy gave a start. "Uh," he said
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His mom made better waffles than th
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Tommy reluctantly handed over the b
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It is after a day or two living at
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There had existed for a time an Ame
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he was pretty sure was a broken nos
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Night. A shortage of actual beds me
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Neo yanked his finger away to safet
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Neo sat by himself in the cafeteria
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Splash.The sudden rush of cold shoc
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The stairwell door opened and the b
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"Get everyone in here in fifteen mi
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Human beings have a strange tendenc
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Jack shrugged. "Suit yourself." He
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"-but we won't know for sure either
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**"We were just trying to get home!
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"It's John, assholes."John Constant
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The mob surged through both doors o
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"What?"A sudden telepathic message
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At the rear, not-Tim turned to face
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The lift dinged and opened its door
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Group B: Shane, Perry, Jjaks, Chris
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