Chapter 21
From inside the hallway to the throne room, the explosion of blue light erupted, relieving the depressing hall of its darkness. The large hole cleared of the bright mist, allowing Aaron to leap through. He landed the dive in a roll, which then allowed him to continue charging. Aaron hadn't had time to think over the impact he just had on the Grid or his wound which to his amazement no longer hurt or bled. As he raced down the dark corridors, an alarm suddenly blared throughout the entire structure. "Oh great," Aaron breathed as he continued down the halls. As he rounded the corner and charged down the hall, three Guards emerged from intersections in the hall, discs blazing. Aaron instinctively dropped to his knees, sliding low on the glossy floor over the tosses of the guards discs. Aaron tossed his disc in mid slide, slicing down the middle guard. As he derezzed, Aaron slid in between the flanking programs. While still in a slide, Aaron jumped back to his feet without breaking stride. His disc returned to him with a hum which he caught as he spun, then released again in a second rotation. Anticipating the discs direct strike, the Guard pivoted to parry it away. The disc however hit the wall and ricocheted in an angle, striking the first guard from the side and bouncing from the opposite wall before striking the other from behind in the rebound. Aaron caught the disc again, and charged down the halls. By now, the Disciples were well on their way to the entrance of the Beta Grid. He had to intercept them, keep them from reaching the seal. As he contemplated the means by which he would do so, his thought immediately settled on the Defenders. So far, he'd only seen Sage and he was surrounded by Guards alone. He could only hope that his words had inspired the programs, though a feeling told him they needed more. Aaron had no idea where he was going and no sense of direction inside the dark halls. For all he knew he was going in circles. To his dismay, he emerged in the junction of a four way intersection. As his frustration grew he staggered back and forth, spinning and struggling to control himself.
"Stop and be still…"
The words lofted in his ear, resonating in his mind. He couldn't quite recall where he'd heard it. He stood alone in the middle of the empty hall. Aaron closed his eyes, taking deep breaths, clearing his mind. For reasons he couldn't explain, he slowly lowered into a crouch and placed his open palm on the glossy, black floor. He then filled his mind with a single thought, focusing on it with all his power and will. "I need to get out of here," he whispered to himself. From under his hand, a pool of light erupted. The orange circuitry lining the joint of the floor and walls flickered away to a pure white. The flat black walls and ceiling too suddenly showed traces of glowing circuits which streaked down the halls. The once dismal interior of the entire building now glowed and shined, filled with the relieving traces of the circuitry. Aaron opened his eyes and glanced in awe and wonder at the amazing sight of the surging life of the halls. He looked down at the floor to find a single streak of light in a cascading flash, continuing down the right turn. As he looked further down the path, he saw it bend, directing the way he needed to go. With a burst of joy, Aaron leapt to his feet and sprinted down the hall, following the cascading flash of the path. As he erupted from around a corner, he saw a Guard, mindlessly observing the sudden change of the halls. Dumbfounded, he was unaware of the disc which struck him, derezzing him to bits. Aaron caught the disc again, continuing down the hall. To his surprise, he encountered few Guards; strange since he recalled seeing an entire force spread out in patrols when he was escorted inside. Only after another minute of navigating the halls had passed, Aaron emerged to a wide flat area. At the opposite end of the room, was a door. Flanking both sides of the door, Guards drew their batons, activating the blades. Aaron skidded to a halt, disc in hand.
"Stop there intruder!" one Guard barked out at him.
"You're not going any further," the other remarked. Aaron sniggered as he raised his disc.
"What makes you think that?" he teased.
"Sealed tight, now drop your disc."
"Hmm," Aaron mocked. "I bet I can open that door without even taking either of you out," he mused boldly.
"I said drop the disc!" the Guard growled. Aaron shrugged then dropped low to the floor slamming the floor with his empty hand. The entire room's new white circuitry surged brightly with a violent flash of white light. The security door behind the Guards glowed with white circuitry before sliding open. In shock, the Guards glanced over at the open door. Aaron took advantage of their loss of focus and threw his disc which arched in a curve before striking down both Guards. As they collapsed into bits, Aaron ran through their piles.
"Told ya," he whispered mockingly as he ran through the doorway. Aaron stopped in his tracks as he emerged into a spacious, open area, alit with Aaron's recent change of décor. Across from the balcony where he stood, there was no wall, only an orange energy shielded opening into the black misty, storm raged sky. Lined up in a neat procession were sleek aircrafts with wings folded in their landed position. Aaron looked around the hanger, scanning for his next move. The entire hanger was full of Guards on alert for the intruder. "If only there was some way I could blend in," he thought to himself. Aaron then stopped and closed his eyes again focusing on that very thought. Suddenly, Aaron's lightsuit flickered away to the orange circuitry. With a laugh, he opened his eyes and wrenched off the cloak he wore over his suit. He willed for his armor's helmet to activate. As he walked down the balcony towards the skinny staircase, his helmet closed in around his face. He casually though hurriedly walked down the thin, flat single steps which were supported only by jutting from the wall. He passed another Guard on his descent, completely anonymous to the program. Aaron reached the glossy floor and trotted down to the front of the hanger. He looked out through the shield and was surprised by what he saw. As his view scanned down to the surface far, far below, he saw through the mist flashes of light and a thunderous uproar boom through the glowing orange streets; Master City was a battle ground.
"What are you doing program?" demanded a Guard. His baton was gripped in his hand but not yet ignited. Aaron turned to the Guard, readying himself for any reply.
"The Disciples, where did they go?" he demanded back, edging his voice with gruff authority.
"Didn't say. They left on a shuttle with a patrol minutes ago," the Guard answered.
"I'm required to assist them," Aaron replied. He wasn't sure where the words were coming from, but they were working. "What's our fastest aircraft?" The Guard cocked his helmeted head slightly.
"Light Jet," he answered warily.
"Get me one," Aaron demanded. The Guard backed away, glancing down at his baton.
"They're on our batons. Identify yourself," he demanded. The Guard was extra cautious now. Aaron moved like lightning, he lashed out at the Guard, trapping him in a headlock while wrestling the baton from his grip. Once the baton was free, Aaron swung the Guard to his left and with a swift kick, pushed him through the shield over the edge and down to his demise.
"Hey stop there!" another Guard called out from across the hanger. Aaron moved quickly. He dove through the shield, plummeting through the air. Aaron rested in freefall for a moment before he gripped the baton with both hands and broke the two halves. Aaron was then forced onto his back with his arms down at his side. All about him, the blue flashes materialized into a cockpit. The Jet was of a new design, as most other vehicles were from the days of Sam Flynn. The Jet like all others was sleek with a narrow aerodynamic body, covered by a canopy. A single booster propelled him straight down to the ground, which was getting closer and closer. With a yell, Aaron adjusted the pitch, easily bringing the jet from its dive. The craft's small yet long wings expanded to the sides from the very front of the jet. The Guard though did not lie, the Jet was faster than a bullet fired from a gun. Aaron cried out excitedly as he darted in the air just over the rooftops of the unique architecture of Master City. With the adrenaline pumping, he dared to execute dangerous maneuvers in between the narrow gaps of the tower. As he spun the jet, he peered down at the streets below. Battles erupted through the shroud of mist. As the craft leveled out, he saw the wall of Tron City dead ahead of him. The wall, erected around the entire impoverished city, burned with the orange circuitry around its rim. Aaron glared at the oppressing structure with hate; such a thing would demoralize anyone. On the other hand, the destruction of it would inspire. Aaron stabilized the Jet and found the trigger on the throttles. He aimed the reticule at the base of the wall then squeezed on the trigger. The single rapid fire canon on the belly of the jet released a cluster of laser blasts. The impact on the wall caused massive damage as the blasts splashed the explosive light on the structure. As Aaron swept the wall with the canon fire, bits disintegrated, eating away the oppression, releasing the programs of Tron City. As he banked around, he saw the battle that raged below. The wave of programs beat away and vanquished the blockade. "Go get them!" Aaron cheered from inside the cockpit. As he saw the battle, his focus snapped again to the priority at hand, he had to stop the Disciples.