Chapter Six

It was another long cycle of rescuing programs from the curfew before he was finally able to get some rest. He didn't realize until now just how exhausted he was when he crashed on the nearest sofa in the locker room. Copper and Link were talking about going to the club later on that cycle. Mara and Zed were working down on the main floor. Dash was in Able's office giving the latest reports of fixed vehicles. In all, it felt like a normal cycle at the garage.

It was almost like Able had never left them. Things were finally peaceful again, and Beck had to wonder how long that peace would last. Tron left him with little to know information about the Rogue, which only made him more curious about the program. He'd gone to Tron City himself to investigate when Beck returned empty-handed. He should have been angry with himself, but honestly, Beck was more relieved.

Our last encounter didn't end well, he reminded himself.

The Rogue was furious when he found Beck fighting in the coliseum. So, Beck had to assume that the Rogue knew who he was, or his alter ego. It left him feeling worried that other programs would find out as well. Besides, Tron was better at tracking programs down than he was. If anyone could find the Rogue and gather any intel on them, it was Tron.

So that left Beck with doing whatever he felt like when he wasn't working at the garage. It was so strange, not needing to follow Tron's every word. Beck frowned as he realized just how familiar he had gotten with following orders. It was almost ironic when he thought about it. During the earlier days of becoming the Renegade, he had been reluctant to follow orders and had less confidence in his ability. Times certainly had changed over the last xilacycle.

"Hey, Beck, there's someone here to see you." Beck flinched at the sound of Dash's voice. He turned to see his fellow mechanic standing in the locker room, a sly grin on his face. "She seemed pretty eager to have a 'little' chat."

Beck's eyes lit up at that, and Dash's grin grew wider. It couldn't be who he was thinking of. She left and would likely never return. So Beck was left with guessing who could possibly have taken their time to see him. He stood up and headed to the elevator that took him down to the main floor. What he saw next caught him completely off guard.

Paige was standing at the entrance of the garage, talking quietly to Mara and Zed. Both programs didn't seem afraid of her, though. Beck was surprised by this, considering Paige was probably one of the commanders who marked them. Maybe she had been gentle, and explained the real reason behind the situation. Whatever her reasons for being here, Beck was left feeling worried that he'd done something wrong again.

"Beck, I was wondering when you'd be back," Paige said as she greeted him warmly. Beck eyed her warily as she looked at him calmly. "I'm sorry for interrupting whatever it was you were doing. I just thought it would be nice to catch up."

"We'll just leave you two alone," Mara told them, pulling Zed away while he protested about wanting to see exactly what happened.

Beck only rolled his eyes once Zed was gone, knowing that he'd give the full scoop anyways once this was over. Zed was the kind of friend who loved hearing gossip around the garage. Especially when it came to whoever Beck happened to hang out with. He was just grateful that Mara saw the sense to drag Zed out of the conversation before it got anymore awkward than it was.

"Paige, you never want to have just a 'normal' conversation," Beck reminded her as they headed outside the garage. Paige only shrugged and leaned against the wall as they stood outside. "What's this really about?"

"I actually just wanted to…" Paige took a deep breath and rubbed the back of her head as she tried forming the right words, and that only made Beck all the more curious. Paige never stumbled on her words. She was always so sure of herself, and sought out perfection, like Clu. "Look, this isn't easy for me to say, because I actually mean what I say. So, I'm just going to get straight to the point. Would you like to hang out, again?"

Beck only stared at her in disbelief. After all these cycles, Paige had asked him out again. At first, he thought he should be angry for her returning like this. Especially after the way she had left him like that. Surprisingly, he wasn't angry. Going out with Paige might actually be a good distraction for him.

"Yeah, that sounds good," he replied after thinking about it.

Spending a night out with Paige actually sounded like a good idea. Especially since he wouldn't have any protective eyes watching him. For the first time in cycles, Beck was actually looking forward to hanging out with Paige again.

…

Another long cycle went by with little to no incidents. Mira was relieved, and worried about that. Something was up. Clu had left Tron City to spend some time in Argon after all the incidents from the Renegade. But that didn't mean programs weren't still suffering from his lack of presence. Mira had been working overtime to ensure that programs were recovered from their injuries or rescued from the coliseum.

Even so, she found enough time to work at the club when she wasn't using her alter-ego. It was oddly refreshing to get a break from all the trauma that some programs faced while encountering Clu's soldiers. She knew it wasn't healthy to keep pushing herself to the point of exhaustion. After living on her own for so long, Mira began to understand the limits she had as a User, and she tried pushing herself until there was no fight left in her.

Rinzler sat perched on her bed as she looked through the memories of her disk. She winced as she recalled her last encounter with Beck ending so horribly. He'd put himself in danger by getting captured by Clu's soldiers. To make matters worse, they ended up parting ways on a bad note. While Beck didn't know who she was at the time, it still left her feeling guilty.

I wish there was an easier way to do this, she thought sadly. She had left Argon City for a reason. Staying in one place for too long was dangerous. Programs were already beginning to question her appearance as she got older and a bit wiser with age. Knowledge of the Grid was what had given her the chance to survive for as long as she did. But being a User had more downsides than she wanted to admit out loud.

One of the many downsides to being a User meant that she grew with each passing cycle. Programs didn't seem to age the same way Users did. She knew she would have to leave within a couple of a xilacycles when her own appearance began changing once again.

"No one ever said this would be easy," she said to no one in particular.

Rinzler only mewed in response, blinking his large reddish-orange eyes as he looked at her. Another memory suddenly resurfaced, one that Mira would have preferred not to think of.

Images of the coliseum and her younger self reappeared. Mira found herself staring at the image of what she looked like after Clu had found her. Fresh wounds from a fight against the real Rinzler were obvious. Cuts and bruises from previous fights could also be seen, but the wounds delivered at the coliseum were the worse.

Her life would never be the same as it was when she was younger. She knew now that she would forever remain scarred, both mentally and physically. Clu was the reason behind this, and she hated him now more than ever for everything he had done to her.

"I'll be back as soon as possible," Mira sighed once she'd put her disk back in place.

She replaced her usual appearance with the disguise she used while out in the public. The last thing she wanted was for anyone to recognize her from the days in Argon. There were enough rumors of a User roaming around that city for her to think twice about using her old appearance. She knew that Clu had been looking for her, and if he ever found out that she had been living in Argon, there was no telling what he would do to those programs.

Once she was finished getting ready, Mira headed for the door and found the streets oddly quiet. Her eyes narrowed thoughtfully, leaving her wondering just what the heck was going on. Normally, Tron City was constantly bustling with activity. She had gotten used to the noises of trucks and light cycle driving right beside her apartment. She decided to shrug off the sudden unease and made her way towards the club.

That was when she realized something was wrong. Mira looked over her shoulder cautiously. She'd gotten used to constantly looking over her shoulder out of fear of being followed. One time, she'd almost gotten caught by gang members while on her way back to the apartment from work. It ended with the gang members losing the fight, but it also reminded Mira that she would never feel safe on her own.

A pair of hands suddenly reached out and grabbed hold of her. Mira reacted faster than she thought possible by spinning around and facing the attacker. Her eyes widened in disbelief as she saw a program dressed in all black, with only a few white circuits. And in that split nanocycle, she recognized the program who had ambushed her.

"We need to talk," he said in a grating voice that always made her skin crawl with unease.

"That's not going to happen. I'm already late for work," she retorted before turning around and heading back to the club in question.

Unfortunately, he was persistent. Mira flinched when she felt him grab hold of her arm, keeping her from getting any farther. She had to fight back the instinct to throw him over her shoulder. Tron wasn't a program who could easily be taken down.

"We need to talk, now," he insisted.

Mira only glared at him, and once again, she was thankful for the disguise she had. He could have seen right through the ruse, but he wasn't making a scene. Tron City was dangerous, and crawling with soldiers who wouldn't hesitate to capture them both.

This isn't going to end well, she thought as she realized how determined he was to interrogate her. Tron knew her well enough that he would see right through her. So she would have to be extra careful this time, and make sure that he didn't recognize her for who she really was.

…

A fit of laughter erupted from Paige's lungs as she beat Beck at another light cycle race through the streets of Argon. He scowled in annoyance as he got off his light cycle and turned it back into a baton. She rarely acted this way around anyone, unless she really liked them. Beck was an exception to that rule.

"You really do know how to have fun," he said in an accusing tone as they headed for their favorite spot.

A game of pool was definitely long overdue. Paige was gifted at it and often liked to show off her skills. She could still remember their last time spent at the gaming room. Unease swept through her as she thought of how she parted with Beck because she thought he was nothing more than a distraction. Now, she knew that was all a lie. He was a good friend, and someone she actually enjoyed spending time with.

"Do you think I just sit around and follow orders all cycle long?" she asked with a pouty expression, earning a laugh from Beck. "Though, it helps having someone who isn't as stuck-up as Pavel for a partner. Sometimes, I just can't stand being around him."

"Yeah, I'm sure you can't," Beck muttered under his breath as he grabbed a stick and prepared the game.

Paige was surprised herself that she had admitted that. Truthfully, she hated working alongside Pavel. Of all the programs working under Tesler's rule, Pavel was the worst. He had an arrogant attitude about him that would make her skin crawl. He was nothing more than a low-life coward.

The worst part was seeing him kiss up to Clu the whole time he was there. She had no doubt Pavel was looking for some kind of promotion, though those were rarely handed to Commanders unless they truly earned the title.

"So, are you planning on marking me like everyone else?" Beck's next question caught Paige off guard, and she cringed visibly.

She should have known he would ask that question, but she was hoping to avoid the subject all together. She hadn't made any plans to mark him like everyone else, but she knew that orders were orders. Clu or Tesler would eventually find out, and she would be forced to follow through with said orders.

"Beck, we weren't given much of a choice," she replied, her voice dropping to a whisper. "Clu's order is law. And if we don't comply, we get derezzed ourselves."

"That doesn't sound like much of a life," Beck said thoughtfully.

Paige bit the bottom of her lip as she prepared to fire at one of the targets on the table. She didn't like where this conversation was going, but she should have predicted that Beck would be curious. And now, it felt as if she had to tell him the truth.

"I shouldn't even be telling you this," she sighed after hitting her intended targets with more force than she'd hoped. "Clu gave those orders for a reason. He warned us that a User is on the Grid, and living in Argon City, for whatever reasons."

She didn't miss the way Beck's eyes widened at the mention of a User.

"He said that the User was his prisoner before an ISO rescued her. An ISO! As if having a User on the Grid wasn't bad enough!" She scoffed at the idea, glaring at the table as Beck took his turn. "I'd be more than happy to turn her in for that reason alone."

Paige noticed that Beck had stiffened, and when he fired at his target, he ended up breaking the stick in the process.

"Yeah, but you don't know what that User went through while Clu had her," she heard him whisper.

"Why should I care what she's been through?" Paige demanded, her voice growing cold. She hated Users almost as much as she hated ISOs. "Users are evil, just like ISOs."

Paige thought back to what had happened at the hospital she worked at all those cycles ago. It was only thanks to Tesler that she had survived the ISO attack at all. Quorra and her friend deserved to die as much as the User did. Neither belonged on the Grid.

"Maybe you should try being a little more open-minded," Beck suggested, but his voice was so quiet that Paige wasn't sure if he'd spoken at all.

She shook her head at the thought. It was better not to think of what the User could do while on the loose. She realized that if the User had been on the loose for so many cycles, they could have easily destroyed the Grid in that time. So, why didn't they?

Probably because they don't know how capable they are, she thought bitterly. Once they had finished the first round, everything went a little more smoothly. Paige realized that maybe Beck was just trying to make her feel a little better about the situation she was in. Knowing that a User was on the Grid might change his mind, too. Maybe he would be willing to join the Occupation once he found out the truth.

"You know, I think this is the most fun I've had in cycles," Paige sighed once they'd left the building. It was getting close to curfew, and she'd rather not be the program to arrest Beck for being out. "Do you wanna do this again?"

"Yeah, that actually sounds like a good idea," Beck agreed with her. "Next time, I will beat you in a light cycle race."

"I'd like to see you try!" Paige laughed as she punched him lightly in the arm. "I'll see you next cycle."

Paige smiled once he was gone and headed back for the garage. It was the first time in many, many cycles that she had this much fun. Perhaps it was just the stress of work, but Paige actually felt better after hanging out with Beck. And maybe eventually, they could become more than just friends as she had hoped.