Tron: Deliverance

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Gem had survived and very long time when many beings like her had died senselessly. Part of this survival was her own skill. She had an aptitude for being in the right place at the right time. And she had always been good at masking her presence. She did not have a particularly strong camouflage routine like some administrators or specialized security programs.

But she had found you often didn't need a particularly good disguise. What you needed was an understanding of what other programs expected in a given situation. All she ever had to do was fit inside that role and no one ever looked at her twice. Except to stare at her as she walked past that is.

So, as she explored Kevin Flynn's sanctuary with Sam Flynn and Quorra, she stayed quiet. She had won programs' trust before. Often by going unnoticed. Until the program you wanted to win over began to build you as a fixture of their environment within their subroutines.

If one stayed innocuous, one could eventually be accepted just about anywhere. Not liked perhaps, that came with being found useful.

So Gem tagged along, quietly offering her help where needed. She felt that she was executing this perfectly.

At the moment, they were poking around the outside of the sanctuary, specifically at the security protocols layered on the outside of the structure. Sam Flynn and Quorra were debating some minute detail of the structure, wondering why Flynn had elected to add some piece of the security matrix.

"Why would the shielding against errant code need to be this thick?" Sam Flynn was saying.

"You have only seen the one grid bug Sam but they are a menace. Especially here in the out lands" Quorra responded.

"Alright then. What's up with the energy masking in both directions. I get maybe dad wanted to hide that there were people alive out here, but wouldn't the double layer make it hard for him to pick up on signatures coming towards the hideout?"

Quorra was silent at this.

"Not only that but from what I'm seeing the shielding extends downward, like, into the ground"

They walked the edge of sanctuary, stopping at a gaping crack in the ground near its base.

"We have to turn back here. This crack extends for a ways. We won't be able to walk much further around the perimeter"

Gem was pursing her lips in thought. An energy shield extending downward. That was an interesting feature. The rest of the security measures seemed cohesive, logical. So why was that piece in place?

"I would like to go down into the crack a ways. I am curious" Gem said softly. Her voice so even it didn't even make the user and ISO jump even though she had not spoken in hours. Without further explanation, Gem pulled a grappling line from her belt. It was a sleek piece of equipment. Only the best for Zuse's 'partner in crime' as he put it.

She anchored the line to the edge of the crack and began lowering herself down. It was a bit tight, but she kept her eyes on that shielding subroutine. No matter how far down she went, the shielding was still there.

Very interesting.

She ran out of line and had to start winching herself back up. Quorra and Sam Flynn were crouched at the mouth of the crack. Quorras face was lit with curiosity. But Sam Flynn's was stiff, guarded.

Gem had already made progress as he was no longer hostile. Merely suspicious of her presence. She could work with that. When Gem was just a few feet from the mouth of the crater, she heard an ominous crack. Suddenly, the ground anchoring her began to shiver and crumble.