Original subtitles

Mr. Marlowe?

Marlowe?

Are you Mr. Marlowe?

Mega Marlowe on the street.

Frank to my friends.

What can I do for you, sweet lady?

I want to surf.

Surf the net?

Through the Matrix?

Do I look like a wirehead?

Heck, I want to buy some.

Ah, a fantasy ride on the tech wave.

You got the credits, I got the chips.

Full res.

Never done tech before, have you?

I got a special today.

Three for the price of one.

Go ahead.

Take them.

Damn bugs.

It's the best.

All those things you've ever dreamt about, but were afraid to try.

Tech's gonna let you live on them.

I know.

Use it every day myself.

What about the headset?

You sell that too?

Yeah? You're on your way to work, right?

Gonna put some time in on the Marlowe case, I'll bet.

What do you know about Marlowe?

Not much.

Just that he's a tech dealer you spent months trying to put away.

You got close. Even took him to trial once, but he walked.

That must have hurt.

Who are you?

A friend who just did you a big favor.

Frank Marlowe won't be selling any more tech.

I killed him last night.

For you, Jake.

And this is only the beginning.

I think this is where you say thanks, pal.

Killing Frank Marlowe, that's one hell of a boast.

You don't believe me?

I don't even know you.

Call me Peter.

That's it?

Just Peter?

What do you expect, my full name?

Place of residence.

Complete life history. There it is.

Well, you said you're my friend.

Friends don't hold things back.

Nika, there's a code three at your desk.

What is it?

A cardigan. He's asking for an emergency trace.

I can't nail him down.

This is more important than the death of one dealer, and you can be part of it,

intrigued.

Well, I got a lot of questions.

All of which will be answered if you prove yourself.

Right now, I just want you to know you're not alone anymore.

I'm not a crank, Jake.

You have an ally.

I could always use an ally.

We've talked long enough.

If you want to hear more, meet me at the overpass south of Skellam Square.

At midnight.

Come alone, don't wear a tracer, and bring me a name. A name?

Another tech dealer, if you like. Whoever you want me to take care of

Your friend's signal was programmed to break down as soon as he signed off.

Good trick.

Yeah, well, not good enough.

You proved yourself.

Right now, I just want you to know you're not alone anymore.

Doesn't look very dangerous.

Yeah, well, neither did Lizzie Borden.

Yeah, well, Lizzie doesn't match any outstanding warrants.

And he has no priors, no history at all. I mean, the man's a ghost.

Well, dig deeper.

Frank Marlowe's dead. This guy claims he killed him. Not likely. I scanned the

autopsy report.

Marlowe died of a cerebral hemorrhage. Now, you couple that with a high level

serotonin in his brain... And you have got the most probable cause of death.

Tech overdose.

Probable.

But not definite.

Winger, what brings you out in the daylight?

You informed Metro that someone confessed to a murder.

That dictates an automatic investigation.

If there is a murder to investigate, I mean, this guy could be getting his

out of confessing.

Could be.

Do you intend to meet with this individual?

Who can say?

Proper procedure will be followed in this matter.

Winger, you'll just scare him away.

Nevertheless, you are our only contact with Peter.

Remember, I told you that it was a mistake to alert Metro.

You will be tagged and monitored at all times.

For your own safety, as well as for the purposes of my investigation.

Look, if you don't want to humor him, at least humor me, okay? I'll come along

for the ride.

Why is there always a cop around when you don't need one?

Trans test.

Alpha. Beta.

Do you register, Gardigan?

Yeah, I register.

And so does everybody for two blocks around.

Now keep a lid on it, will you?

Silence is gold.

Jake, I'm disappointed.

I thought you wanted to work with me.

I showed up, didn't I? And you're wearing a standard -issue fleece tagger.

I expected more.

I wait.

For what?

The police have traced my transmission? They can't, you know.

I'm sorry, Jake. We both seem to be wasting our time. Hold it, hold it.

Please make me aware of this thing.

I can live without it.

You heard what he said. He wants to talk to the guy. Just give him five minutes.

Three minutes.

It's all about the children, protecting the future.

That's right.

If you keep the next generation off of tech, there'll be no more tech.

That's a nice thought.

Now, why don't you tell me how you supposedly took out Marlowe?

Because right now, it looks like nothing more than an OD.

My method is almost too good.

Totally undetectable, but very effective.

Yeah, okay, are we gonna bob and weave all night here?

Or are we gonna get to it?

Now, what do you want from me?

It's not complicated, Jake.

I want to join forces, form a partnership.

Two words.

Why me?

You're special.

I've studied your career. I know how you turned your life around from tech head

to tech crusader. You're the best.

Nobody's put away more lords than you.

We share the same goals.

Okay. Suppose we do this.

What's next on the agenda?

Another test.

What, are we going to take out another dealer?

No.

A tech lord.

And I want you to pick him.

No names come to mind.

I'm surprised.

It seems we're out of time.

Wait. Relax.

I'll pick a lord for you.

One you'll never miss.

Nice timing.

What have you learned?

Not much. Just that my new pal can't wait to kill another tech lord.

I have scanned every database, military and civilian.

There's no match anywhere. Peter is still a complete mystery.

Okay, well, maybe he's had a full butte job. You know, changed his face, his

prints. Try and match with his height and weight. Yeah, and if he's picked up

pair of shin implants, dropped a few pounds, I'm wasting my time.

We don't have any time to waste. We've got to nail this guy before he hits his

next target.

Yeah, I've got to get some color, you know? I've got to let the white stuff

wait.

I have a delivery of chocolate torte for Mr. Imago.

Looks good, Mr. Imago.

Hey. We usually get a little something extra with our tour.

Sure you don't want to earn a little tip?

No.

Thanks.

One dessert I have to do.

See if we can narrow this down a little bit.

He wants me to pick the next target.

Which means this isn't about who he wants to kill.

No. No, it's about who he thinks I want him to kill.

Oh, that's a big help. I mean, you've only got the heaviest caseload in

Over, what, 30 Lords.

I mean, there's no way that we can cover them all.

Well, maybe we don't have to.

He was talking about children.

How they had to be saved from tech.

Wait a second. Marlowe was notorious for getting kids hooked on tech.

Cross -reference.

Lord's known for dealing tech to kids.

Nick Stein, Margo Wald.

Here is a likely one. Albert Imago. He started out dealing tech to school kids.

All right, then get a location on him. Cole Winger.

Tell him we'll meet him there.

Beat it. We're closed.

Not before we have a talk.

Oh, I'm sorry, sweetcakes, but I already got her dessert.

Can the jokes, Margo?

Think a hit's coming your way?

Oh, yeah.

You trying to tell me that the great Jake Cardigan is gonna put himself out

save yours truly?

Do I look like I was born Tuesday?

No, but you look like you got a fever.

Maybe you should have stayed home in bed.

Nothing wrong with me.

Just hot in here.

Someone's coming.

Cover the entrance.

Nobody there, boss.

Albert Amago.

Departmental downsizing necessitates a reduction in caseloads.

As a cost -cutting measure, I have, therefore, decided to execute you.

You crazy mech.

You can't touch me.

I got lawyers, remember?

Boss, what's wrong?

Cops.

Cops are here.

Boss, nobody there.

Kill them.

Kill them all.

Marco, Marco, take it easy.

Take it easy. You're hallucinating.

He's in real.

You were right. He should have stayed in bed.

What was it you gave them, Vance?

Bad tech?

An hallucinogenic poison?

Phenocyclidine, perhaps?

Yeah, and then I hung around so they'd go crazy and shoot at me.

Get a point, Winger.

You're obviously unaware that Mr. Vance used to work for Osborne Kazimer.

Amago's biggest rival.

And someone who has been gunning for Amago for years.

All right, so Vance was a double agent.

What about Peter?

Yeah, the guy that led us, you remember?

Perhaps he was an associate of Mr. Vance.

I got no associates.

Who had both motive and opportunity.

All that remains to be discovered is the means.

Boy, that guy fires a synapse.

No stopping him.

Congratulations. According to the police transmissions, you've eliminated Imago

and one of his men.

Only one?

How do they scan it?

Probable tech overdose.

I doubt if even Jake can put all the pieces together.

Let's hope he doesn't. He'll go straight to the authorities. He won't.

I know how he thinks.

He's a tech head.

An ex -tech head.

It cost him his marriage.

His career.

Everything. Which is exactly why we shouldn't break him into our

Jake's redeemed himself.

He's just as committed as we are.

He's an unwarranted risk.

We don't need him. When the world realizes what we're up to, we will need

Jake knows both sides of the law.

His advice will be invaluable.

Either that, or he'll destroy us.

How you doing this, Peter?

Huh? You found out a way to wipe out tech users, haven't you?

What do you mean?

Imago, Marlowe, Hanover, they all had a taste for tech.

But Vance, he never touched the stuff.

That's because his old boss, Casimir, had a very strong policy.

No tech users need apply.

That's why you couldn't touch Vance.

But I can get every lord in town who does use tech.

Yeah, with a little help from your friend.

Whoever delivered that dessert to Imago.

Don't worry.

Cops didn't find anything.

You're good at what you do.

Listen, if we're going to be working together, don't you think it's about

that I met your associate?

Jake, my sister Rachel.

You wouldn't happen to be the one that gave Imago his just desserts, would you?

I'll get right to the point, Cardigan.

Peter trusts you. I don't.

I need some assurance.

How much more do you need?

I didn't go to the cops with this, did I?

We're about to fight a war.

Extreme measures will be taken. A great many people may die.

Can you live with that?

You've got a weapon that's going to wipe out tech? I can live with a lot.

Would you help us field test our weapon?

Depends. What do you need?

A name.

Another tech lord.

Someone beneath contempt.

Be outside the Bijou Theater at 0900.

And, Jake, I think we're really getting started now.

Hey, I admit it up front, all right? I used tech.

Won.

I got busted for it, and I paid for it. Big time.

New Smith, Allstate Forward 2037.

Two -time Con Trophy winner, went pro in 2039, three World Championships.

Your very first tech dealer was one Jill Maggio.

But these days, your dealer of choice is Paula Raynor, with whom you spent a

good part of yesterday afternoon.

You got nothing that'll hold up in court.

Nothing. Yeah.

Maybe not a court of law.

The court of public opinion?

That's something else.

I mean, you can kiss those sweet endorsements goodbye.

Okay, what do you want?

I want to borrow your face.

Alone? And not wired?

I feel we've turned a corner in our relationship, Jake.

Yeah, well, I feel like I've turned a corner in my relationship with the cops.

They're all over me.

They think I've got something to do with Imago's death.

What did you tell them?

I didn't tell them that you found a way to snuff out tech users.

But then again, I don't really know exactly how you do it now, do I?

A synthetic enzyme we developed.

Tetrahydron. Fantastic stuff.

odorless, tasteless, almost undetectable.

Perfect weapon.

If you've used tech even once, the serotonin in your brain has been

Our little discovery mixes with the serotonin, creates a chemical reaction.

And the user dies the way he lived, in the throes of fantasy.

Including me.

You're not like the others, Jake.

You're worth saving.

But people like Imago and Marlo...

They don't deserve to live.

Did you bring us a tech lord?

No. It's too dangerous to kill another tech lord.

You start a turf war.

Innocent people will be caught in the crossfire.

You have an alternative?

Yeah.

Pick a better target.

One that's going to give you even better mileage.

Recognize him?

Moose Smith.

Hockey star.

Boozing, womanizing, tech using.

Piece of filth.

Very well put.

Now, this guy ODs?

It's going to make a big impression.

Maybe even scare kids off tech before they ever get started.

Two birds with one stone.

How can we get to him?

Well, whenever Moose does personal appearances, Cosmos provides security.

We'll be waiting for him.

All right, our fake moose should be all right. He's never done tech.

But you're taking a real chance going out there. Hey, if I'm in no show, Peter

and Rachel are just going to get scared off.

Okay, but listen, no unnecessary heroics, all right?

I mean, the important thing is to get a sample of the poison. It's not the end

of the world if Peter and Rachel get away.

All right, fine. Let's just get on with it, okay?

You ready?

Yeah.

We understand you've been under a lot of pressure. One moment, please.

I'll be hearing from a prepared statement, then I'll be glad to answer

questions.

First, I'd like to state in the strongest possible terms that the

charges are totally groundless.

In my 11 years in the league, I have never shaved a point, never consorted

gamblers, and I most certainly have put my tech problems behind me.

Thank you.

Boots, will you be filing suit against me?

Why haven't you returned my calls, Cardigan?

This is not a good time.

My investigation takes precedence over babysitting celebrities.

Oh, I'm sure it does.

Why don't you just take a look around, huh?

I'm working. I'll call you later.

Gun!

I'm hit, Jake.

I'm hit. I'm hit. Oh.

Get them off me! Get them off me!

No! No!

Finn!

Cardigan, this could all have been avoided if you had kept me informed.

No, no, Winger. He would have still come barging in here like a bull in a china

shop. And Sam would still be dead.

Oh,

Jesus.

Hey. Some performance, huh?

Oh, well, it would have been for real if you'd ever done tech.

Well. It's a good thing I leave a pain light.

No, it's a good thing that you had the presence of mind to fake an O .D.

Yeah, I thought I was supposed to take the hit.

You were, but Winger messed up the play. Did you get a blood sample in time?

They're analyzing it, but so far there is no trace of the enzyme.

It must break down real fast.

So what the hell did they shoot me with, a blowgun?

Needle gun.

Fires a sliver of ice, leaves no mark, and the ice melts in the body,

untraceable. That's great.

No sample, no antidote.

Which leaves us up a certain creek without a paddle.

Unless I can get to Peter's base of operations.

Oh, and you think he's going to invite you over for milk and cookies?

Well, I just got you killed, didn't I?

Maybe I could turn his sympathy into trust.

And maybe he'll just turn his needle gun on you instead.

Well, if he does, I hope he's as bad a shot as his sister.

You all right?

Yeah.

You know that woman that died today?

She was a good friend of mine.

This friend?

Did you know she was a tech user?

No. Right?

That's the horror of tech.

A person can use it and for a while still look the same on the outside.

Healthy.

Normal.

But inside they're not.

They're crippled.

I've seen it.

But you didn't see your partner give her soul to tech.

I'm sure she was denying what was happening to her. They all do. It is so

seductive.

You sound like you've had some personal experience.

My father died.

He used tech.

It killed.

Rachel and I still had our mother.

A strong, decent woman.

When we got in trouble, she didn't spare the raw.

But I appreciate that now.

She placed me on the right path, saved me.

I hate to mention this, Peter, but I wouldn't mind being saved myself.

I mean, it's not going to be long before somebody figures out who framed Moose.

And when they do, I'm going back to that freezer to do some hard cold time.

Then I think it's time you came in from the cold.

Your weapon, please.

Where are your troops, Rachel?

Vidfilm.

All right.

Welcome to the fold, Jake.

You always initiate your new members with stun guns?

Uh, precaution. I am sorry.

No apology necessary.

If we didn't play it slow and careful, I wouldn't want to be here.

To our new members.

And to the completion of the great plan.

So that was planned.

What went down today?

Your friend didn't die in vain, Jake.

Thanks to her, our field tests are complete.

Tetrahydroline has been proven to be 100 % effective.

We can now move into the final phase.

Which is what, exactly?

There are

2 .2 million known tech users in the city.

Observe.

Look at them.

Like a malignant growth.

A cancer.

But we can remove it.

You're going to kill two million people?

That's the plan. What do you think?

I'm taking out two million tech users.

Well, you got enough poison on hand for something like that? More than enough.

Not here, of course. Stored in a safe place.

Even if the police were to capture us, it would be released automatically.

An airburst across the city. Not efficient, but better than nothing.

Now, releasing that stuff in the atmosphere, I mean, that's going to take

lot of tech heads, but... Actually, there is a more effective approach than

dispersal.

Complete toxicity within the coverage pattern. So tell us, Jake.

What do you think?

What I think?

I think it could be a big mistake.

So far, you've kept a low profile. You go kill two million people?

You're going to have every cop in this city after us. And you can't stand the

heat. Is that what you're saying? No, that's not what I'm saying. I'm saying

we get caught, that's it. We're out of business.

With what? One city cleaned up?

Now you take that stuff and you release that in every city around the world. We

wipe out the problem all at once.

That's right.

You save an entire generation of children.

We don't have the resources for that.

It's too ambitious.

Then we build the organization until we do.

No half measures.

Or no measures at all.

Admit it, Cardigan.

You're only trying to delay us to buy time for the tech scum. No.

I'm trying to give you good advice.

Now, whether you decide to take it or not, that's up to you.

You don't know who your friends are, Rachel. Our friends don't notify the

of our existence.

They don't invent absurd plans we could not possibly carry out.

And they have never, ever used tech.

It's been a long day.

We're all tired and irritable.

Show Jake to his room. I'm sure he could use a good rest.

I can't believe you talked to him that way. And I can't believe you're so ready

to trust him.

The man's worked hard to pull his life together.

He devotes every day to fighting tech. Why shouldn't I trust him?

Peter, listen to me.

You have brought us this far.

Don't throw it all away. We need Cardigan.

Any person who uses tech, even once, is weak.

It's not that tech corrupted them.

It's that they're flawed from the beginning.

Cardigan is one of those people.

I say we get rid of him.

And I say he deserves a second chance.

If that's what you want.

Nika, I finally ID'd Jake's playmates.

Eric and Lisa Leary, long -time anti -tech activists.

He's a biochemist, she's a cyber programmer.

Got beat jobs and went underground.

Right after the firebombing of a tech lord's residence.

Eric looks like an especially sad case.

Yep, his mom had a thing for tough love. Put him in hospital twice.

So do you have a profile on this guy?

Classic sociopath.

He fits all the parameters.

But still no clue as to why he wants to recruit Jake.

I don't know.

So what's the verdict, Peter?

Am I in or out?

You're misreading the situation.

I don't think so.

Rachel's all over my case.

You got armed guards at my door.

You come in with a frown on your face.

Doesn't take a cyber scientist to put it all together and get that Jake is in

big trouble.

Rachel can't stomach the fact that she's working with an ex -tech kid, can she?

You don't know what it was like for her, for our family, when my father started

using tech.

Let me guess.

He was a great guy.

Loved his job.

Spent all his spare time with his kids.

Did all sorts of neat things with them.

Then all of a sudden he got bored with his job.

And he just quit.

Stopped doing things with you.

Stopped spending time with you.

And all he cared about is sitting in a dark room all alone with a tech band

wrapped around his head, zoned out.

Not knowing whether you're alive or dead.

And not caring.

Know something, Peter?

I was your father.

My wife.

My little boy.

My job.

Gave it all up for tech.

You know what? I would give my life up.

To stop that from happening to another family.

To another father.

Rachel could hear what you just said.

She would be very impressed.

Impressed enough to give me another shot?

If you're willing to take it right now.

It seems we're running short on time.

Someone has been doing some very thorough digging in the Matrix.

They've discovered who we are.

It won't be long until they find out where we are.

Which means we have no choice.

We must retrieve our supply of tetrahydroline and spread it throughout

Are you with us?

You know I'm with you, Peter.

I wouldn't be here if I wasn't with you.

But you released that stuff all over the city.

Am I still going to be with you?

This will protect you.

Then what is this?

It creates a low -level electromagnetic field that protects the brain from the

effects of the enzyme.

That's it, huh?

Ten kilos of concentrated tetrahedralin.

That's enough?

If so, we have, but it will be more than sufficient.

Sorry, Peter.

Thought you were one of us, Jake.

Yeah, well, life's full of disappointment.

Take that gun out and put it on the ground.

Slowly.

Nice and easy.

Kick it over there.

But I was so sure we were on the same side.

Fighting the same enemy.

Well, you know those red dots that you showed me on your map?

They're not the enemy, Peter.

They're human beings like you and me.

Now give me that thing.

You see, Peter?

I told you we couldn't trust him.

Don't.

It's empty, Jake.

Just like your heart.

Just like that container you're holding.

We've waited long enough.

You couldn't find Peter?

Nope. I checked his hideout. Nothing. No sign of him.

My guess is that he went to pick up the stash. Probably the real stuff this

time. Any idea how he's going to release it?

No. No, he just says he's got a new method.

Some system that can spread this over the entire city at the same time.

Well, this killer enzyme's water -soluble.

Nika, bring up the schematics for the city water system.

Oh, bad news, guys.

There are over five utilities involved with five different pumping stations,

one of which could be the point of dispersal. Jake, there's no time to

them all.

All right, wait a minute.

Now, they showed me a map of this dispersal system, and if I can remember,

was like an L -shaped, and it was, uh... I think the long end was pointing

northwest.

You just described the third water district.

Utility Transmetro.

Pumping station located at Eden and Kane.

Peter! Don't!

I tried.

I thought you were a man who had redeemed himself.

But Rachel was right. You're flawed like all the others.

What is it about all the others, huh?

Why do you hate them? They're tech heads!

Junkies!

Addicts.

The world would be a better place without them.

Without you.

And without you?

Come on, you're wearing that antidote patch right now.

And we know why, don't we?

Come on, Peter.

How many times have you done tech?

Once? Twice?

Just once.

I wanted to see what it was like.

Rachel never knew it, is she?

Which is why you brought me into this.

So that you had an excuse to develop that antidote patch.

Not for me, for you. To save yourself.

I'm not worth saving.

I failed, Rachel. Failed my mother years ago when I used the tech.

The things I saw.

Yeah, but they weren't real, Peter.

They weren't real. That was the tech.

It does that to you sometimes. It brings out stuff that you didn't even know was

in there.

Scares the hell out of you.

I know.

It was disgusting.

Whatever it is you saw.

You've got to forgive yourself.

I mean, you've got to forgive us all.

Forgiving is weak.

Blaming, justifying, rationalizing, making excuses.

That's why I failed, Jake.

That's why you failed.

It's over now, Jake.

Only a matter of minutes.

Peter?

Where are you?

Yes?

Rachel?

Peter?

What is it?

No. No.

James.

Sam.

Sam. Sam!

Joe.

Is

that

real?

Kiss me just... Tell me this isn't an illusion.

What I ought to do is belch you. You scared the hell out of me.

It's you.

Houston.

Obviously, the reports of your demise were greatly exaggerated.

Thanks, I think.

Greetings, Jake.

Don't be alarmed.

This message is set to run should you return without me, which means that if

are listening to this, it is all over.

Our mission has been completed.

But Rachel and I are probably dead.

My only regret is that we will not live to see the brave new world we have

created. A world free of the weak, the impure, the undeserving.

If we have died to accomplish this great cause, I do not regret it for a

single... Come on, partner.

I'll buy you a cup of coffee.

Roy Capra, Panic Java.

Oh, for you, Cardigan?

Nothing but the bad.

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