While Puck still spends most of his time on the Matrix, it is not the place of peace and comfort it once was. One of the things Puck has always loved about the Matrix is that it never forgets, that the things and people stored there never fully go away. But that’s come back to bite him in the ass, because Deus is still out there. The AI knows that one of his chief lieutenants has left him. I can’t understand how an AI thinks, especially one like Deus, but it’s likely Deus sees this as an abandonment, a betrayal. Puck, more than anyone else, knows how merciless Deus can be, and every moment he is on the Matrix, he is waiting for Deus to find him and initiate whatever revenge he has planned. Even worse than Deus, perhaps, is Pax. She is out there, hidden, but fully capable of taking action against him. Worse, she knows him better than almost anyone but the AI, and his death may not be sufficient for her. She knows that Puck is still out there, seeking something. He always said it was Deus who reached out to him, but I think it was Pax who made it happen, who made him into what he has become. Deus would likely just kill him, but Pax could turn him into a danger to himself, to us, and to everyone else on the Matrix.