AN: So here's the first chapter of Freedom. And yes, this is a crossover with Avengers :) I've been planning this one for months, just like Rogue. And to make things more interesting, I'm giving the chapters actual titles! Never thought I'd be doing that, but it just seemed like a good idea. Enjoy, and please read and review!

Chapter One

The Real World

For a while, darkness surrounded them. A cold, blustery wind swept past them. Noises could be made out around them. And as her eyes adjusted to the darkness, Mira could see that they were in a small room.

She didn't even notice that Beck had finally stumbled to his feet. Rinzler jumped off of her shoulder and sat beside her, unsure of what to do next.

"Where are we?" Beck's voice was shaky. Mira had a feeling they were both in for a shock when they found out where they were.

"I would assume that this is Flynn's arcade," she replied.

They were standing in an office of some sort. Behind them was a computer desk. Mira's eyes narrowed when she saw what appeared to be a weapon of some sort. Just beside the strange weapon were stairs that she guessed led to the room filled with games.

"Come on, we need to get out of here," she murmured.

Beck eyed her warily before following. She knew what it was like, to be in such a strange world. When she first followed Flynn she had been terrified.

I can't freak out now, she told herself. We'll both get through this, one way or another.

Rinzler bounded after them as they walked up the stairs. It felt like cycles had passed before they finally reached the second floor. And when they did, Mira had to stop herself from gaping in shock. Beck stood beside her, arms folded as he tried to take in everything at once.

All of the games that she had once been familiar with were covered. It looked as though the place hadn't been cleaned in cycles. Mira could remember what dust looked like. The Grid was always void of any allergies or germs that might create sickness.

"Wait, someone's coming." Mira stiffened when Beck grabbed her by the arm by sheer instinct. The fur along Rinzler's neck began to stand on end when the door nearby swung open.

An elderly looking User with short, silvery white hair stepped into the room. His eyes widened in shock when he noticed that the room wasn't empty. But it wasn't the strange way he looked that caught Mira's attention. It was his casually dressed outfit that made her shift uncomfortably from boot to boot.

"I guess that stranger was right," the User finally scoffed after recovering from the shock.

"Who are you?" Mira demanded. She didn't want Beck or Rinzler to attack unless they knew this User wasn't a threat. Users reacted differently from programs. That much she remembered.

"Alan Bradley." Alan's smile told Mira that he wasn't a threat. Besides, he didn't look like he could actually harm them if he wanted to. "Well now that I've told you my name, what do I call you?"

Mira exchanged a wary look with Beck. He simply shrugged in response, unsure of what to say.

"My name is Mira, and this is Beck," she explained. "We're not exactly from around here."

Alan smirked at the response. "I can see that. The suits are a bit of a giveaway."

"Why are you here?" Beck finally found the courage to speak up. Alan raised an eyebrow at that. Mira stiffened when she noticed something oddly familiar about his behavior. Something that reminded her a bit too much of someone they had left behind on the Grid.

"Well, I check up on the place every couple of months," he explained. "My last check up resulted in finding someone standing in the very spot you're standing in. Guy said he stumbled through a Portal and ended up here. Thought he was half crazy."

Horror surged through Mira when she thought of the way Cyrus had suddenly vanished during their fight. She glanced at Beck, who by now looked just as startled and worried.

"Do you know where he might have gone?" Mira tried to keep a straight face when Alan frowned at their expressions.

"No," he admitted. "You might find some information though by asking around."

"Thank you," Mira said. It wasn't much of a lead, but if Cyrus was on the loose, than he needed to be stopped.

"Do you have any idea where you're going?" Alan's question caught Mira off guard.

She bit the bottom of her lip as she thought of an answer. Truthfully she didn't know where to go next. Normally Tron would have given her an idea. But she couldn't rely on his help forever. Especially now that she was in the User world.

"Honestly, no," she sighed. Beck watched Alane through narrowed eyes as he pulled out a card from his coat.

"Call these people," he suggested. "They might know where to look for your friend."

He tossed the card over, and Mira caught it with ease. She raised an eyebrow when she noticed the symbol etched on it.

Eagle with a scroll. Somehow the symbol seemed oddly familiar.

She glanced at Beck once more as Rinzler jumped onto her shoulder. Something told her that this was only the beginning of a long journey. And with Cyrus on the loose, anything was possible.

. . .

"Sir, the energy level spiked up again." Agents were moving from computer to computer as another anomaly showed up. Something like this had not happened since the Tesseract was removed from their hands. "It's coming from the same location."

"What exactly is the location?" Director Fury turned to look at Agent Hill. She was holding a tablet with the readings from a few days ago.

"It's at a place called Flynn's Arcade sir," she explained. "The energy level is dying now."

Director Fury pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration. SHIELD had bigger threats to worry about than this. Just yesterday there was a report of some maniac trying to turn over every car in the same city Agent Hill had mentioned.

"I want you to investigate," he ordered.

"What about Agent Romanoff or Agent Barton? Aren't they more qualified for missions like this?" Agent Hill gave him a look of confusion.

"They have their own missions to worry about," he snapped.

Agent Hill simply nodded in response and turned off the tablet.

Once she was gone Director Fury held back a sigh of exhaustion. Just another long day at HQ. Nothing big going on. And everything would be just fine. He hoped.

AN: So yeah, we already got to meet Alan, and he'll be making more than one appearance throughout the story. So of course will SHIELD and all of the awesome agents I've come to know and love ;) Please let me know what you thought of this!

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