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_ The Grids... A new digital frontier. It was a new way to picture clusters of information moving through a vast network of computers... but beneath the surface, just what did that data look like? Motorcycles? Jets? Trains? Were the circuits like freeways? It was an attempt to recapture a digital miracle, but did it awaken a nightmare instead? _

Written by: protoborg

One User may be the only thing to stand in the way between the Vice virus and the real world.

This is set in a non-canon universe where a network of Tron grid systems has been established and networked, each system maintained by an anonymous volunteer user. A few people who weren't supposed to got their hands on incomplete code and cobbled together their own systems.

Tron Expansion

Continuation - Chapter 1

The day I first digitized myself was amazing. At the time, I had no idea what was going on within the Grids. I would come to wish I had never even encountered the digital world. But I digress. I'm getting ahead of myself. Let's start at the beginning. I'm a gamer and had long fantasized about being INSIDE the games I played. I loved to play VR but it just wasn't the same. When I heard about Kevin Flynn going into the system, I nearly lost my entire shit! How cool must that have been?! To actually be inside the digital world and interacting with all those programs. Sure, he was racing to free the system from the maniacal MCP. Still, to be in there with those programs must have so damn cool. Then when his son went into the system to rescue him, that was uber cool! Plus, Sam Flynn had brought an Isomorph out into the real world! Wow! So when I heard about the Grid Expansion Project, I jumped at my chance to enter the Grids.

Come on! How could I not?! It was the ultimate gamer geekdom. The world inside the system beckoned to so many people. So imagine my horror when I found out... Ya know what? I'm getting ahead of myself again. Anyway, where was I? Oh yeah. The day I got my system. Like any proper gamer, I had an awesome rig to paly my games on. Even so, it was no Grid system. So convincing my parents (yes I still lived at home at that point) was a bit of a challenge. I was their 40+ year old gamer son and now I wanted to bring in another computer system. They barely tolerated the gaming rig I had set up. It took a while but I managed to convince them that I would be contributing something to the world finally. They begrudgingly allowed me to set it up in a corner of the basement where there was a lot of unused space that was being wasted. Of course, it didn't hurt that they were both major investors in Encom.

Finishing the set up took nearly three hours of crawling around the various parts of the system. The laser had to be bolted to the basement floor as it was very heavy and very fragile. I got all the parts connected and plugged in. I turned the power on and smiled as the machine began its start up routine. I knew this thing would take a while to finish starting. It was, after all, a very powerful computer capable of running an entire reality within its circuits. I went upstairs and flipped on the TV. I became engrossed in whatever stupid thing was on TV to the point that it was several hours later before I realized I needed to check on my Grid. Flipping the TV off, I stood up slowly popping the kinks out of my back. I headed down to the basement and over to the Grid system. I unlocked it and set about figuring out how the interface worked. A half an hour later, I thought I had it pretty much under control.

I clicked the icon for the digitizing laser and waited for the control program to boot up. I found the interface was fairly self explanatory. I set the system to auto recall me in one hour of real time, if I didn't activate the portal myself. I initiated the digitization process and stepped onto the platform. Standing still on the platform, I tried to keep my breathing steady. 5...4...3...2...1...nothing. I opened my eyes and was just about to step off the pad to go see what was going on when suddenly I couldn't move. The laser hit me and nearly instantly I was somewhere else. It still looked like my digitizing bay but with a very sleek electronic look to it. it reminded me of the office Sam appeared in when he got digitized, only much more decorated and less industrial. I stepped slowly off the digitizer platform and looked around the room I found myself in. Aside from a single program and a control panel, the room was more or less empty.

"Welcome to your System, Master User."

I glanced over at the program and noticed a HUD with its filename and health hovering next to it like some sort of game interface. I also had a set of crosshairs floating in the center of my visual field. Thinking a moment, the crosshairs vanished, I knew it would return when needed. I walked over to the program and started to ask it about the system.

"What is the name of this system?"

"User, this system has no name yet. You may go to the Kernel's office and give the system a name, if you wish."

"Which way to the Kernel's office?"

"Bit, please show the Master User to the Kernel's office."

[YES]

"Please call me Alex."

"Affirmative AlexOne."

"Just 'Alex' is fine."

"Yes, AlexOne."

I sighed audibly as the program was stuck in its programming. I just wanted to get on with this whole thing. i turned to the bit.

"Lead the way, Bit."

[YES]

I followed the floating geodesic orb as it led the way out of the port room. I looked at each program I passed and marveled at the array of names. Some were obscure, some more mundane. Most though I didn't even really process as I was just amazed at the way the place was put together.