Greetings, Programs. Happy Tron Tuesday!...and I'm royally pissed. ;P
People have told me that Tron Uprising was on Netflix. I just got an account a few days ago and not it's not available! Anyone else experience that? I seem to recall one of the producers of the show announcing they needed more views and it seems they're not even allowing anyone to do so. What the heck?
But other than that, I'm in a relatively good mood. Only 8 more days of school left. Still gotta finish final projects...and then move onto finals...yay...School's trying to kill everyone through work... X_X

Chapter 11 – Not Afraid

Jeremy's POV

"Fine." He said lightly. "But I want to know something."

"What." Ally snapped.

He smiled. "I'd like to know feedback of how you and Ace feel about your new abilities sometime. Could you do that…Ally?"

She stiffened when he used the name Beck still called her by. "Maybe." She forced out through clenched teeth.

He smiled. "That's all I need." Jeremy stood up. "Maggie will personally escort you out. But feel free to come back anytime." On Ally's way out, he added. "And if you want us to enhance your boyfriend's abilities, we'll gladly do that."

Jeremy knew he was provoking her but she was smart enough not to attack him. She needs to get a feel for her new…abilities. Besides, he wasn't at all intending to offend anyone. He knew that she knew deep down that being adapted was useful.

He stayed in the room when they were gone, out of the facility; not even bothered what Alpha and Ace plan to do next. They'd obviously share their "horrifying" experience and discuss the warnings he gave them about Clu.

He shook his head sadly. "No matter what they try, a lot of Programs won't make it." Jeremy lifted his head when the door opened again and Maggie rejoined him.

"They're idiots." She said dully. "Do you think they'll even take you seriously?"

Jeremy shrugged. "Time will tell." He drawled out. "But for now, they'll sort out the confusion we caused them from bringing them here."

"I have to tell you, Jeremy," Maggie started hesitantly. "This is the biggest risk we've ever taken. You adapted two powerful Specials that are highly dedicated to the Rebellion and you're just…letting them go."

"Oh, but see," He smiled. "You and I both know there're lots of cards to be played yet from the other teams." Jeremy locked eyes with her. "We both know what to expect."

He exhaled slowly through his nose. "They'll be back. And we'll be waiting."

…

Beck's POV

Beck couldn't do anything in his apartment other than sit on the bed and worry about Ally.

Where is she now?

Is she okay?

What did she go through?

Why did she have to be taken?

Who exactly took her?

What do they want?

And to make matters worse, Ace was reported missing several PectroCycles ago. And Beck was sure this wasn't a coincidence.

He chewed on his thumbnail – a habit Mara had gotten into a while back. And now he was doing it.

The door to the room slowly opened and he looked up. His eyes widened when he saw Ally's head peek in.

"Hey," She said quietly.

He jumped to his feet and embraced her tightly. Beck ran his fingers through her hair, looked at her face to make sure she was real, that she was really there, and hugged her.

"I was so worried." Beck whispered.

He heard Ally making noises of discomfort and she pulled away. "Beck, I-"

"Shh, it's fine. You're okay now." He tried to assure.

Ally shook her head. She sat down and stared at the ground. "No, Beck, it's not fine." She said quietly. "They…" She hesitated and bit her lip.

Beck frowned at her. "Al, what did they do?" He feared the worst.

"They did something to me." She said slowly. "Some sort of procedure."

His eyebrows furrowed. "Let's get you to Google." He moved to help her up but she flinched away.

"No." She said frantically. "I-I can't touch you!" Ally blurted out.

He stopped and frowned at her. "We need to get you to Google." He urged.

Ally slowly stood up and walked by him to the door. "Have you seen Ace?" He asked cautiously.

She nodded. "Jeremy did to him what he had done to me. I think he's with Evelyn to tell her he's okay."

"And how's he holding up?"

Ally shrugged as they walked to Google's lab. "He's just as freaked out as I am." She hesitated. "He's…not happy."

Beck pinched his lips together but said nothing else as he opened the door to Google's room and waved Ally in first before entering and shutting the door behind him.

Google looked up from a microscope of sorts and his eyes widened. "You're back!" He exclaimed. "We were worrying about you." His happy expression died completely when he noticed her grim expression. "Is something wrong?"

"I think she needs to get looked at." Beck said. "Something happened to her."

"What kind of examination?" Google asked as he directed her to an examination table.

"Basically everything." Ally said. "Physical, codes in the disk, etcetera."

Google sighed. "I'll start by looking at your basic code." He pulled off her disk and opened it up. The moment he caught a glimpse of her code, his brows furrowed. "Oh." He mumbled in surprise. "That's odd."

Beck leaned closer to get a better look at her code. "What is it?"

Google pulled up the images on a larger screen. "Just looking at your code here." He pointed to a spot where a zoomed in image of her code branched out. "I can see you were artificially…" He searched for the right word. "Modified; changed."

"Well, what's different?" Beck asked.

"A lot of things." Google replied. He turned to Ally. "Have you experienced anything weird since…whatever they did to you?"

She nodded slowly. "…Yeah."

Beck turned to her. "Like what?"

She paused and thought about it. "From what Jeremy told me, my five main senses should be more…improved." Ally chewed on her lip. "When I got into a scuffle after the procedure, I got a few cuts. When it was over they just-" Her eyebrows knitted together. "Healed. On their own. Gone completely."

Google took notes of what Ally was telling him. "Is that all?" He asked.

Ally shook her head. "I'm…faster, stronger, more balanced, and…my intelligence got boosted back to the way it was…before my accident in Argon."

"Intelligence capacity…restored?" Google asked. "Or just improved?"

Ally paused. "I don't know." Then she remembered something. "The procedure also did something else. It really freaks me out."

Beck looked at Ally in a way he rarely did. Concern. "What is it?"

"It's kind of hard to describe exactly." She started. "But if I come in physical contact with another Program, I can read their disks."

"Through physical contact?" Google asked.

"Well, are you able to…switch it off or something?" Beck asked.

Ally shrugged. "I've never tried."

"Well let's try it now." Google stopped taking notes and held out his hand.

Ally hesitantly took it and she tensed up. Her mouth fell open and her eyes widened. She was seeing something.

Beck furrowed his eyebrows. "Ally." She squeezed her eyes shut. "Focus. Block it out."

She gasped and pulled away. Google looked at her carefully. "What was that like?"

Ally clenched her fists so tight they made cracking noises. "Time seemed to slow down. I could see everything in just a matter of nanos." She started shaking. "Google, do you think you can undo this?"

He glanced at the screen that displayed her code and then her notes. He pinched his lips together. "I'll see what I can do. But I haven't seen anything like it. I may have to see Ace too. Maybe run some physical tests later."

Beck looked at Ally. "Can you block out the ability to read disks?"

She nodded slowly. "I have to work on it though."

Google nodded. "Good. Now you might want to go see Evelyn when you're ready so she knows you're okay."

Beck put his arm around her and she stiffened. Ally blinked hard and shook her head a few times and looked at him. "You shouldn't do that." She warned.

"I'm okay with it." They walked out of the room. "You'll be fine."

…

Evelyn's POV

Ace sat stiffly in a chair while Evelyn paced the room in the basement. "What exactly did they do to you?" She asked.

"They appeared to have enhanced me but shouldn't be the concern right now." He insisted. "I heard Jeremy warn that Clu knows what we're up to and I think we should heed those words."

"Even though they took you against your will and operated on you?" She asked.

Ace narrowed his eyes dangerously. "Normally I'd be flattered that you're so concerned for Alpha and myself but I think what Jeremy said is important. Even though Maggie and himself is creepy, I don't think they've ever lied."

Evelyn sighed. "We'll talk more about this later. There's already enough problems on our hands."

"Like what?" Ace demanded. "What's going on?"

Evelyn sighed. "The disappearances are getting more frequent."

"Zoe's taking care of it." Ace said.

"You look tired." Evelyn pointed out.

Ace frowned . "I am tired. I went through torture last cycle for something I don't think was worth it but I have information."

Evelyn rested her hand on his shoulder and he flinched back. "Don't touch me!" He said. "You need to listen."

"And you need to rest." Evelyn retorted. "Talk to me next cycle when you're feeling better."

He glared but didn't say anything. Ace stood up and left the room.

Evelyn collapsed in the chair he was just sitting on and rested her cheek on her hand. She was tired. Tired from arguing and planning and thinking about what Ace said, feeling burnt out from the panic everyone went through when Alpha and Ace went missing.

At least they were back now.

Ally hesitantly approached her in the room and folded her arms. "Hi," She took a seat close by.

Evelyn glanced up. "How do you feel?" She asked tiredly.

Alpha shrugged. "Oh, fine, other than the fact I got kidnapped, had a procedure against my will, and then having to deal with trying not to read disks whenever I come in contact with someone."

Evelyn raised a quizzical eyebrow at her remark.

"Other than all of that, I feel peachy." Ally said dryly. "…And I have pink hair."

"Ace showed me on his disk about what happened since he was taken. The procedure, the room, the talk with Jeremy."

"Yeah," Ally said. "We all had a bash."

Evelyn leaned forward in her chair. "Do you really think Jeremy is telling you the truth about Clu?"

Ally frowned. "I don't know. I'm not going to say he didn't give us a reason to not believe him. I'm really confused right now."

"What do you think their motives are?"

Ally shrugged. "They want Ace and me on their side. They also want Clu gone and Flynn back."

"We all do." Evelyn said dully. "I also want to drive my disk into Clu's head but I can't do that right now either."

Ally's expression turned from misery to distaste from what Evelyn said. "Google examined me." She said to change the subject. "He said he might be able to undo whatever the procedure did to me."

"Well that's good." Evelyn said. "Possibilities are nice."

"Fate isn't." Ally said. "I mean, what do you think Ace and I did to deserve this?"

"I ask myself the same question about the ISOs." Evelyn said. "But I don't hold the answers."

Ally sighed exasperatedly. "I'm sorry, I just feel like hammered code."

"Don't we all?"

Ally looked at Evelyn. "I heard Courtney's in containment."

"Yeah, so is her byte companion." She answered.

"Did they really inform you about the disappearances?" Ally asked.

"In a way, they helped clear things up and answer questions." Evelyn said. "You want to see them, don't you?"

"Yes," Ally said. "I want to speak with them."

Evelyn leaned back in her chair. "Be my guest."

"Thanks." Alpha stood up and headed for the exit.

"Alpha?"

Ally stopped and turned her head.

"Choose your words carefully when it's time for Courtney's trial." Evelyn cautioned.

She nodded and left the ISO alone.

…

Sam's POV

"Now that is a big door…" He whispered. From how he saw it, it looked like it was built to withstand a nuke bomb.

Sam immediately remembered the time a few years ago when he tagged Flynn Lives all over the door with graffiti.

Too bad it wasn't there anymore.

He headed inside and started climbing the staircase. On the second story, he stopped and peeked around the corner to see a security camera. He pulled out his laser and aimed it at the lens to blind it momentarily.

When he was sure it was deactivated, he ran up the stairs to pass it before it reoriented. He kept running up and up and up the flights of stairs until he reached the level he wanted. Lucky number 69.

This was where all the archives, history, and data was stored for everything about the company. This place was his mission tonight.

The annual prank in favor of his Dad.

Sam opened the door and exited the stairwell. Noticing the meeting going on, he slowly shut the door to make sure he made no noise. Then he casually walked past the glass doors like he owned the joint.

Sure. He thought. I'm the biggest shareholder.

He reached the security door to the room he wanted and worked on hacking the door. It only took a few seconds.

Totally a walk in the park.

But he didn't get to the tricky part yet.

The door unlocked and Sam stepped in, not knowing he stepped through one of the sensors. Sam pulled out his flashlight and looked through the archive room to find what he was looking for.

The newest thing about to be released from the Company.

ENCOM OS 12

When he found the bin he was looking for, Sam pulled out his phone and started installing the file. Only a few seconds later, the door opened and a security guard stepped in.

"I know you're here!" The officer shouted. "Let's make this easy."

Sam looked down at his phone, which was about halfway finished downloading. "Come on, come on." He urged the device as if it would help it go faster. It was almost finished.

He heard the guard's footsteps get closer and could almost pick up the sound of a taser charging up.

The download finished and Sam wasted no time to escape. He avoided the guard on his left and bolted through the exit after the guard shouted. "Freeze!"

Sam sprinted through the labyrinth of hallways towards the stairs. The path to his dramatic exit.

He stopped by the glass doors to smirk and chuckle at the masterpiece he'd given Encom in return for the file he took.

There it was, his recording of Marv barking at the camera. Sam couldn't see everyone's faces that were turned to the screen, but he had a pretty good idea. Some of them were panicking and typing furiously into the digital keyboards.

Sam heard running behind him and started making his way to the stairwell again. He had to ascend a few more floors to reach the roof. Sam pushed through the door to the roof and climbed the ladder on top of the crane-type structure on top of the building.

The officer wasn't too far behind and by now, Sam was sure he had backup. Not that it mattered though.

He stood perched at the end of the crane above the street. Sam reached up and tugged on the straps to make sure the pack was secure on him. With the moment of peace he decided it was best to give a few words to his old man.

He was, after all, sort of doing it for him.

Sam sighed. "Hey, Dad," He whispered. "How're you doing?"

It wasn't really a stupid thing to ask. To this day, people still wondered what the heck happened to the man that just vanished into thin air. It was so unlike him.

Sam looked down at the ground and for a moment, enjoyed the view. He was up high, the cars on the streets almost looked like toys to him. From up here, Sam could get a good look at how big the world really was.

It made him feel small.

Insignificant.

Sam snorted. No, not insignificant. Otherwise no one would be chasing him right now.

Well, he did just take Encom's most valuable and secure operating system and put it on the web for free.

But hey, Kevin would've done the same.

Sam turned around when he heard the rattling of keys, a sure sign that the security guard followed him up onto the crane.

"Where are you going to run to now?" He shouted in mockery as he slowly approached him.

Sam's eyes widened. His plan was to prank Encom, not put an officer's life in danger. Sam looked at the other security guards that remained on the solid roof. They just stood there and pointed their flashlights.

Useless.

"Hey, you don't want to do that." Sam held out a hand as a gesture to stop the guard, but he just got closer.

"Didn't anyone tell you? Stealing is wrong!" The officer said back.

"You can't steal something designed to be free." Sam retorted.

"Now I've gotcha." The security guard said, not heeding Sam's words at all.

"Don't sweat it, your boss is okay with it." Sam said vaguely.

"The hell he is!" The guard said disbelievingly. Well, who'd believe something like that from a total stranger?

Sam specified what he meant from his last remark. "Your boss works for the CEO and the CEO works for the shareholders. Now do you know who the biggest shareholder is?" Sam asked, knowing where it was going.

Everything was in his favor.

The officer almost looked confused. "I don't know, some kid." He said.

Sam smirked and gestured to himself the moment a flashlight beam found his face.

Then the security guard visibly connected the dots. "Y-you're Mr. Flynn?" He asked, obviously confused. "Why?! This is your father's company!"

Sam's expression dulled. "Not anymore."

"What?" He asked. "Hey, kid-" The guard saw what Sam was going to do. "No! NOO!"

Sam leaned backwards and gravity did the rest for him.

…

Valor's POV

The first round was an easy win for him. Of course, the second match was a bit more challenging, as was the third. Valor felt guilty for having to take the lives of other Programs.

These prisoners were strays without memories and knowledge of fighting, defectors of the army that were caught (of which were few), innocent Programs caught after curfew, or User believers.

And there were a surprising amount of Programs that believed in the Users. Valor, like many of the other combatants, didn't want to fight. One death in the arena meant one less Program for Clu to worry about but that wasn't the main reason.

Killing – overall – was wrong. Everybody knew it but there was still a bloodthirsty crowd shouting "Derez!" almost every other nano and a couple of brutish prisoners looking like they'll enjoy snapping everyone's heads off.

He shuddered. This, obviously, was the last place he'd ever want to be in.

Not like he had much of a choice though. It was either kill or be killed.

As Valor faced his next combatant, he tightened his grip on the disk he held. It was one of the bloodlusty Programs that have been eyeing him since he first arrived at the arena.

He quickly jumped up in the air to avoid the disk coming at his legs and dove out of the way as it bounced off the walls and ricocheted back to its owner. Valor threw his disk at the Program just as his arm came out to catch his disk.

His arm was suddenly a pile of cubes and Valor's disk returned to him. Clearly no one has bothered trying that tactic – cutting off someone's arm. Usually they try to make it a quick kill but Valor wasn't going for accuracy.

He just wanted to live and the best way to do that was to disarm your opponent, then kill them.

Valor threw his disk again for the final kill. Easy.

But having it easy didn't make him feel any better inside for taking a life. This was mental torture from guilt itself.

Torture before death.

He knew he was going up against Rinzler if he made it.

He is going to make it.

Initiating final round. The monotone voice announced. Combatant 9 versus Rinzler.

The beat from the crowd started.

"Rinzler!" Beat, beat. "Rinzler!" Beat, beat.

Valor was going up against a now brainwashed, merciless Tron in public. If Clu knew that his enforcer was battling an ISO in the games while he was watching he would've enjoyed this.

Valor drew a shaky breath and reactivated his disk. "After you." He said.

Rinzler didn't hesitate to throw his disk. Then he grabbed his second and tossed it in another direction.

It was hard enough to fight and dodge a single opponent with one disk but now he was against the Grid's greatest warrior. And he had 2 disks!

Valor deflected one disk with his own and dodged the other. Then he threw his disk just as the enforcer's disks returned.

Of course, he easily avoided the disk while doing a few fancy flips.

Show off.

Valor pinched his lips together and caught his disk. Then there was the telltale sound. Beeping.

He looked at one of the walls and immediately knew the gravity was being reversed. He turned and ran at the wall, climbing it right when the force switched.

That was when Rinzler went to attack him up close. Clu's right hand man swung his disk at him from one side and while Valor was blocking that, he thrust out his other disk straight ahead and plunged it into his abdomen.

Not enough to kill, but it was serious.

The beeping sounded again and Valor didn't have the chance to get to the wall. Gravity reversed back to normal and Valor fell downward to the floor.

He landed hard on his side and he hit his head on the ground, both of which aggravating his nearly fatal injury and causing him to wince. Valor turned onto his back just to see Rinzler come down on him and hold one of his disks at his neck.

Rinzler was savoring his victory, of course. The crowd started cheering. "Derez! Derez! Derez!"

Valor looked up into Rinzler's mask where his eyes should be and went limp. "I'm not afraid, Tron." He whispered quietly.

And Valor knew Tron could hear him.

It caused him to hesitate for just a moment and his growl got louder. He could feel the enforcer's gaze pierce him through that dark mask and knew he was trying to fight it.

But in the end it didn't matter, as he knew Rinzler would win the mental battle against Tron inside of that head of his.

It was worth a shot though.

Valor closed his eyes and gave in.

Game over.

Anyone who became attached to Valor...I am sorry. There will be more character death that was either in the trailer or foreshadowed. One thing, I have way too many OC's but I can easily take care of that... (that sounded totally cruel and insensitive, sorry ;P)
But there will be some possible unexpected twists and I really can't wait to end this trilogy! ;) It's been about a year since I've started the first book and I've come a long way...haven't I?
TRON LIVES! Toodles.