(Untitled)

[rockin_outloud]

Matrix!AU

It was dark. Dark and dank and he'd done the living in a cave thing, but there was always an escape. Self-imposed isolation was nothing compared to no way out. Two days and he was craving a return. A return that, according to Chimera, to Candice, wasn't possible. He kept quiet, going about the duties on the ship assigned to him, trying to

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[misschimera]

He had no idea everything that it entailed but she wasn't going to keep him out of the loop much longer. He needed the matrix, they all did, even when they were out. The Matrix was freedom; a game with no rules, at least for them.

"Sit down, she instructed, leaving Switch to smirk behind her back. The room was a mass of wires and damp, cold metal. He was warm. She remembered that much.

[rockin_outloud]

He did as she said, lying back in a seat that reminded him strangely enough of a dentist's chair, watching in mild apprehension as she clicked restraints over his wrists and ankles.

"Is this the part where you tell me it's not going to hurt a bit?"

[misschimera]

"It's going to hurt," she warned, voice soft. "A lot." No need to sugar-coat it; he wanted it, he'd take it. They all did.

"Than again, first times always do." Her joke was cold comfort, she knew. Lying a hand on his forehead, she held his head still before he could protest. "See you inside."

And with that, he was plugged in.

[rockin_outloud]

His mouth opened in a silent scream, the pain a sudden, brilliant blast inside his mind, racing along his nerves. And then in the next second, it was gone, leaving him blinking slightly against the impossible whiteness of his surroundings.

"Hello?" he called out, stupidly, automatically, hands smoothing over the worn, soft cotton of his t-shirt.

Lance blinked, looking down at himself, taking in the ripped jeans and heavy boots, the missing plugs in his arms. They were gone. Everything was back the way it was supposed to be. But it that was true, then--

"Where the hell am I?" he murmured.

[misschimera]

"Simulation program," Candice replied, entering behind him. Her own skin was clean, no holes, no marks. Her hair was longer, just like it used to be. Switch was playing nice.

"Feels real, doesn't it? Just like the Matrix."