WARNING! FIREWALL HAS DETECTED A VIRUS!

[SupSatire]

The Grid.

From afar, one could say it looked like it always had; The buildings reduced to no more than horizontal strips of light stacked on top of one another, some brighter than others, some higher than others. The surface of the grid shimmered and fluctuated, never staying the same shade nor the same gradient. It wasn't the ground that was moving. It was the people. Each citizen was lit up in a criss-cross of light. Each Light Bike that sped by cast fluorescent glow up the wall. The whole city was alive, bathed in light, as it had been since as long as anyprogram still functioning could remember. In fact, the only program that could still recall the great wasteland that came before The Grid was Tron himself.

But once you get closer, the real changes became evident. The streets were clean. No corrupt programs were lingering here and there. No Black Guard patrolled the streets. The whole Grid seemed safer, especially with the propaganda files littered about; "The Users Protect Us". Every program had a purpose to do, and even more amazing, they all enjoyed it. Save for one.

Zilch was on guard duty again. It was understandable. He was User: Neil's best firewall, but the fact didn't make him feel any honored, or privilaged. He was always the first line of defense, and when he wasn't on duty, his User prevented him from straying too far in case a threat was detected. That was rubbish. There was only one possible program that could pose any threat to his Users files, and Zilch had a mutual understanding with said virus. Regardless, he was always the prime choice to stand guard. He was tempted on more than one occasion to slack off, maybe lose some credibility, become a backup firewall. But he couldn't. Not just that he shouldn't, he couldn't. It went against his very programming to not be the best he could be.

And by the Users, he hated it.

So here he was, standing at his post in between the crimson double doors of the warehouse that held User: Niels personal files. He was a giant of a program, standing considerably over six feet tall. His black Light Suit was interlaced with broad bands of neon green light that ran from hip to hip, meeting and shooting up his spine. His muscle-knotted arms were completely bare, but inlaid in the pale skin were a grid of green that didn't stop until midway across his palms. Above a raised collar, his face was set with a almost permanently furrowed brow and a high, long nose. His eyes were half closed, almost bored as he looked out onto the street, his jaw set in a frown. His hair was black and cropped short into long sideburns that met his jaw, a ruffled green mohawk on the crest of his head.

The Data Disk on his back was trimmed with green as well.

So Zilch stood unmoving, unnatural neon green eyes looking out at the street, hoping that today was the day that some ruffian tried to tamper with his Users files. Make his job more interesting. But he knew this was not the day. Only one program came down here. A program he would be neither unhappy nor particularly happy to see.

As such was the nature of the best friend.​

 

[Risi]

Cloaked and hooded, Echo snuck slowly through streets. Her small limbs made it easy for moving through large crowds and sneaking past firewalls. Being a virus, she was already built as a small program, but she was easily the most swift of programs. After all, she had to be; she was the newest update of her user's virus after all. Her data disk held quantities of binary code to steal, hack, pirate, and replace files as she deemed fit. A small smile slid up her soft lips as she rounded the last corner before her destination.

Within her final check, she made sure each of her deep purple LED light strips were covered with the long cloak, as were her dark flickering blue eyes. With a final breath she began to blend, into the walls of the warehouse, into the atmosphere of the area, into the thick foggy air even. There was a large program standing at the set of double doors, but he posed no threat to her as she silently snuck towards his post. Then, with a inaudible click she was within the doors.

Her smile grew wide then, shutting the doors with no noise behind her, and waltzing within the large database of files. Letting down the hood of her cloak, her blonde hair spilled forth from the back of it and she skipped merrily to the largest platform of data. The top of her data disk was glowing angrily, signalling her user of success, from the back of her cloak as her lithe fingers scoured through massive amounts of data. With a touch, some were deleted, others placed elsewhere... She was no real threat to this user's data, she was a simple prank to Neil at the moment, but she could be so much more now that she had gotten it.

That wasn't her purpose though, and she was to do as she was told. Once she had done that, she moved to exit the same way she had come in from, figuring it would be much of a hassle. A quick flick of her wrists and her hood was covering her head once again, even to the violet tips of her long hair. She didn't expect the large crimson doors to make any noise as she left, however, it didn't seem that it was her lucky day anymore. As she moved to shut the door behind her, a large clunk was made and she gasped. She was dead now. Her head spun to see the large man and she began to run, not caring to hide any more she tossed her cloak back on him attempting to buy herself time and blend in to the spectrum of light that came from the other programs of the grid.

 

[SupSatire]

He had thought he had heard the doors shift behind him, but had dismissed it as exhaustion. Now he was sure his hunch was spot on as a purple flash slipping past him before it was obscured by a black mass hurtling towards him. He seemed casual, almost cocky as he took his time slipping his hand behind his back and raising it moments later, Disk in hand. A horizontal swipe later and the tatters of the cloak parted around him before he gave chase. A flash of purple here, a streak of blond there, and he was upon her only footfalls away from the ever shifting crowd of programs. He closed his vicegrip of an arm around her waist and with a soundless heave, lifted the Virus off the ground.

"No, no, NO." He barked as he carried her back to his post over his shoulder. "That's against the rules, virus girl." His voice was melodic for someone looking like they were carved from stone. The double doors were still hanging open and, using his foot, he flung them open and tossed the violet virus inside the warehouse. It was then that he rounded on the street once again, planting his back on the crimson double doors, jarring them closed. Despite his rigid demeanor, he was actually bouncing with excitement. Or at least he would be, if he knew how to bounce with excitement. He had quarantined the virus that had been giving Neil so much trouble.

Maybe now he would give him a break.

 

[Risi]

With a slight fist, she banged on the doors, yelling through them, "Let me out, you brute!" Echo was livid now, she would have rather of been decommissioned than quarantined. Still, the large doors remained closed through her banging. Technically, to her user, Echo's job was done. Would it have been better for her to go unnoticed? Perhaps. But truthfully, her user would be pleased that she got in at all, let alone executed her programming correctly. There was no need to rescue her from the file warehouse if she had worked properly, which she had, so now she was stuck. Carried over the shoulder of a hulking firewall program no less. And, he'd shredded her favorite cloak as well.

If she ever was released, he would be buying her another.

A few hours later, or longer it seemed, the firewall's user seemed to be booting up his device as the files began to glow heavily. Echo hoped for the best, but expected the worst. Luckily, in all of Neil's fury over some specific missing file, he passed over the virus warning that was set to expire in mere seconds. With a small ping the large crimson doors popped open for her, printing out a release receipt for her just before she exited.

With a jaunty smile, she handed it to the firewall program; rather, she smacked it to his large chest. He was at least eight inches taller than her, but she didn't back down. "You owe me a new cloak," she then told him promptly as her light strips glowed within her black sneak suit. The light strips ran suggestively each on either side of her generous curves; over the cusp of her breasts, accenting her thin waist line, and back to her large hips, stopping only after the line continued down her silhouette and past her curvaceous calves. Her blue eyes blinked up at him through long dark lashes impatiently, her hand still resting on his chest angrily.

 

[SupSatire]

Cloaked and hooded, Echo snuck slowly through streets. Her small limbs made it easy for moving through large crowds and sneaking past firewalls. Being a virus, she was already built as a small program, but she was easily the most swift of programs. After all, she had to be; she was the newest update of her user's virus after all. Her data disk held quantities of binary code to steal, hack, pirate, and replace files as she deemed fit. A small smile slid up her soft lips as she rounded the last corner before her destination.

Within her final check, she made sure each of her deep purple LED light strips were covered with the long cloak, as were her dark flickering blue eyes. With a final breath she began to blend, into the walls of the warehouse, into the atmosphere of the area, into the thick foggy air even. There was a large program standing at the set of double doors, but he posed no threat to her as she silently snuck towards his post. Then, with a inaudible click she was within the doors.

Her smile grew wide then, shutting the doors with no noise behind her, and waltzing within the large database of files. Letting down the hood of her cloak, her blonde hair spilled forth from the back of it and she skipped merrily to the largest platform of data. The top of her data disk was glowing angrily, signalling her user of success, from the back of her cloak as her lithe fingers scoured through massive amounts of data. With a touch, some were deleted, others placed elsewhere... She was no real threat to this user's data, she was a simple prank to Neil at the moment, but she could be so much more now that she had gotten it.

That wasn't her purpose though, and she was to do as she was told. Once she had done that, she moved to exit the same way she had come in from, figuring it would be much of a hassle. A quick flick of her wrists and her hood was covering her head once again, even to the violet tips of her long hair. She didn't expect the large crimson doors to make any noise as she left, however, it didn't seem that it was her lucky day anymore. As she moved to shut the door behind her, a large clunk was made and she gasped. She was dead now. Her head spun to see the large man and she began to run, not caring to hide any more she tossed her cloak back on him attempting to buy herself time and blend in to the spectrum of light that came from the other programs of the grid.