Application: Paradisa

[perfectisnteasy]

CHARACTER
CHARACTER NAME: CLU 2.0
SERIES: Tron
CANON POINT: At the end of Tron: Legacy, once Flynn performs the Reintegration.
LOSS: CLU will lose his ability to manipulate computer code and/or programming. Since he was unable to create programs of his own, only to repurpose what already existed to further his own plans ... this will take away the biggest skill he had at his disposal, as far as being able to prove himself. It will also compromise a HUGE part of his directive (see ATC)... and for CLU, his directive is ev. er. y. thing. He won't be crippled to the point of not being able to function - but he'll FEEL like he is, until he gets over it and realizes he still has plenty of margin for badassery.

ABOUT THE CHARACTER: CLU's name stands for Codified Likeness Utility - he is, effectively, an AI clone of programmer Kevin Flynn, circa 1983. Flynn created him in his likeness so that he could build his virtual world, the Grid, more efficiently, and hone it to perfection. CLU effectively carries Flynn's state of emotional maturity at that time - his personality during that phase of his life, frozen in time as a computer program. However, 27 years is a long time for an AI to exist, and CLU has developed traits and issues of his own far beyond Flynn's that make the man and his program vastly different. Where Flynn has grown in some respects, CLU has stayed stubbornly the same... particularly when it comes to his directive.

Upon his creation, CLU's given directive was "to help create the perfect system". As such, CLU is a massive perfectionist, sometimes to the point of aggression. Everything in his world has its place - EVERYTHING - and if something is out of place or not up to his exacting standards, it must be either fixed or eliminated. A little quality control is one thing - but CLU's directive is so broad that he has defined perfection as ruthlessness, to the point of genocide: wiping out an entire "species" of programs because they were not part of his plan for the Grid. This ruthlessness also shows through in a lightning-fast, white-hot temper that can come on without warning and leave as fast as it came, making whoever happened to be unfortunate enough to witness the outburst wonder if it even happened at all. He inherited the seeds of this temper from Flynn, but it's grown into a monstrosity of its own in his hands. If the consequences of his anger lead to adverse results, CLU's quick to place the blame on someone he considers inconsequential, and let them take the fall for his own mistakes ... after all, he's supposed to be The Perfect Program building The Perfect System ... clearly, any errors that ensue could never be his fault. (Did I mention he's stubborn, too?)

But why so angry, CLU? The answer's as simple and as old as time: Daddy Issues. Or, well, more specifically, Programmer Issues. After creating him to build the Grid, Flynn would spend long stretches in the Real World, watching his son grow up - and effectively abandoning CLU to handle the Grid on his own, without the man who'd sworn to be his best friend, and half of "one hell of a team". Alone, and with a very vague directive to follow, CLU had to figure things out and forge ahead on his own, waiting impatiently for the times when Flynn would come back to the Grid and offer his approval for any progress. Flynn's visits were never frequent enough for CLU ... and then the ISOs, self-perpetuating AIs, appeared on the Grid. Flynn was fascinated by them, and spent more and more time in the virtual world ...but even less of it with CLU. And as such, the program developed a jealous, possessive streak a mile wide and twice as deep. Not only were the ISOs disrupting his Perfect System, but they were stealing his User away from him - and deep down, whether he realized it or not, that was even worse. Because of this sense of abandonment, CLU really, really, really needs people who approve of him and like him, and want to give him their attention. If he really wants someone in his life, and they won't reciprocate his interest, he'll even go so far as to MAKE them like him - not only did he reprogram Flynn's other right-hand-AI to be his own personal bodyguard and yes-man (the infamous Rinzler, formerly known as Tron), but he repurposed an entire ARMY'S worth of programs to serve under him, spectate his Grid Games, and applaud adoringly to his rousing Perfect System speeches. "Attention whore" is putting it lightly.

In what might seem like a total contradiction, CLU still holds many of the parts of Flynn's personality that give him the potential to be a pretty likable guy. Both the man and the program are absolutely brilliant strategists and innovators - where Flynn thought of WiFi a good 20 years ahead of its time, CLU similarly had the idea of changing the board when he got tired of the game, bringing new pieces in to the Grid from the outside world. Anyone who tries to strike up a game of Go or Risk with him in the Game Room will find themselves in for an uphill battle. He's also got charisma through the roof, and an ability to read people. Within minutes of talking to someone, he'll get a bead on what kind of person they are, what they want, what drives them - and most importantly, what he thinks they need to see in order to like him. Nine times out of ten, he'll deliver - both to serve his own ends, and to genuinely get people's approval. If someone has given CLU their trust, their devotion, and their approval - their genuine friendship - he can never completely, truly abandon them, even if they supremely piss him off or upset his directive. (Case in point: for all the anger and resentment he harbors toward Flynn, at one point, he has his User vulnerable, with a clear shot to a kill - and can't take it.) It remains to be seen whether or not he'd actually sacrifice himself for someone - the mun's guess is that the sacrifice's result would have to be completely in line with the achievement of his directive, as well, making such a gesture REALLY rare. In all fairness, CLU does hold the potential to change: at the end of his canon, before the Reintegration, Flynn's apology causes him to hesitate and waver, before coming after him. It may be case of "too little, too late", but he genuinely does consider laying down his arms, as it were - even if only for a moment.

Even with all this Linkin-Park-flavored complexity, most people's first impression of CLU would be that he's a Chill Dude. This ties in to his need for approval, sure, but it's also hard-wired into him from being a copy of Flynn at the core. He's got a healthy sense of humor, a ridiculous knowledge of 80s pop culture, and an outwardly laid-back nature when he's trying to gain himself a new crop of friends. He could easily pass as a normal human from the 80s, to a point - and unless someone asks him directly, he may well pretend that he IS. However, one of the most interesting details about CLU, personality-wise, is that he doesn't lie. Ever. He'll avoid topics smoothly, or simply omit facts, but he will not outright lie. After all, it's not in a program's nature to provide falsehoods: lies suggest at their core that the truth is imperfect. And that just won't fly, man.


ABILITIES: CLU has a LOT of abilities as a program ... but that's in the Grid, so in Paradisa he's going to be considerably Nerfed, especially with his programming as his loss. He's extremely skilled in hand-to-hand combat, however, and adept with two Grid-specific weapons: his Identity Disc, and a Baton. The Baton is best compared to an Android: it's a little device full of apps that let it create and do a bajillion different things. Once it's snapped open, it releases code that allows it to turn into several things: a light-cycle, a jet, and an actual baton, to name a few canon examples. ((External link to TronWiki's entry on the Baton for reference.))

The Identity Disc looks like a chakram or a neon Frisbee at first glance - but it's more than just a fancy glowy weapon. It is, in effect, CLU's boot disk, and contains all his coding and programming - it could even be called the soul of a program, if you wanted to get really philosophical. Any programmer, with a little finesse and the right knowhow, could open up the Disc and call up holographic representations of CLU's source code, or view video clips of his memories.

ALSO: as CLU is essentially a very sophisticated AI, he will be unable to enter the Dead Zone, unless he is on a loss or participating in a plot which has turned him into a normal human being. Any characters with the ability to manipulate technology or sense it will have "access" to him, and I intend to put up a permissions/FYI post to this effect.


THIRD-PERSON WRITING SAMPLE: Down in the arena, the crowd roared as the floor was scattered with another shower of pixels. "Combatant Seven: De-resolution." The announcer's light, emotionless voice drifted through one of CLU's ears and straight out the other, as he sprawled in his chair by the window. He had a perfect view of the arena, and the dark, jagged hills of the Outlands beyond, stark against the storm-clouded sky - but he didn't really see any of it, either. His mind was far, far too far away for that - preoccupied with his User.

Flynn. CLU knew he was out there, somewhere, tucked away in some little forsaken hole in the mountains. The last trace scans of the Creator's coding signature had told him that much. But that had been cycles and cycles ago: too long without a sign of him. Not even a whisper through the current of the last remaining Rebels, as his honor guard rounded them up and rectified them, or assimilated them into the Games. CLU's plan had worked, or was on the verge of working: he knew it, he'd run the figures at least a thousand times, ran them through his mind the way humans counted sheep, or stars, or steps on stairways, unconsciously. His system was almost perfect, right on the edge of it, so close ...

... so where the hell was Flynn? He'd long given up hope that the Creator would actually congratulate him for completing his directive, but in his ruthless pursuit of it, he'd at least hoped for a little more anger, a little more of an outward show of disapproval. A little more attention. But instead, Kevin Flynn bided his time out in wherever-he'd-gone, and ignored him. The thought burned CLU just as badly as a bald-faced taunt, and he clenched a fist, to the point where his arm shook.

"I know you're out there," he hissed to the empty room, to the Arena, to the Outlands and the storm above - to the Grid at large. Because Kevin Flynn had made it all, and so addressing it was almost as good as the real thing. In that sense, CLU felt justified in talking to himself, even if it wasn't enough. It was true, though, and a problem: Flynn was out there. And for his System to be truly complete, for the last pieces to fall into place, Flynn had to be present. In front of him. Here. "You need to come back. You need ... to be here." The words came out through clenched teeth, and without even really thinking, CLU got to his feet and started to pace. "HERE. WHY WON'T YOU COME BACK HERE, FLYNN? WHAT, PERFECT ISN'T GOOD ENOUGH FOR YOU--?!"

The soft whoosh of the doors at the back of the room cut off his rant, and CLU whirled to see one of the Honor Guard standing in the archway. "Sir?"

Instantly, his rage melted away, the boiling point dipping down to the faintest hint of a simmer as he brought up a carefully cultivated smile. "... Yeah?"

"We fell short for today's rectification quota, sir." He fidgeted, had the look of a messenger who'd chosen the short straw ... and the mouth of one who knew he was about to get shot. "There just -- aren't enough rebels left out there. Everyone's been -- they're just so enlightened by your leadership --"

The praise floated right over CLU's head as he calmly strode up to the Guard, glancing down at the floor to catch the reflections of their circuits in its shine, as though he was giving the other program's words serious thought. "Mmmm. And are you still on board with this, Argo?"

"O-of course."

Smoothly, CLU pulled his Disc from his back and powered it on, pulling up a random line of code to "look" at, all the while eying the program as he fidgeted nervously. "Because I need everyone on board for this. Everyone. Which is WHY I NEED QUOTA MET, YOU SON OF A GLITCH." Without warning, he hurled the Disc at Argo, nostrils flaring, teeth bared in a violent sneer. Not even waiting until his pixels had disintegrated, he padded over to retrieve his disc and put it back between his shoulders. The moment all was in order again, he rubbed a hand over his face and returned to his seat, looking calmly out over the horizon.

"Not enough pieces left to play the game," he murmured quietly. "Guess I'll just have to find a way to make some more."

Because it was becoming abundantly clear that until the board was full, and the pieces were in exactly the right places, Kevin Flynn wasn't about to make his move. And if there was one thing CLU could say about the way this match was going, it was that he was tired of waiting for the endgame.



FIRST-PERSON JOURNAL SAMPLE: [at first, the only things the journal picks up are the faint sounds of electronica in the background, and the persistent, methodical clicking of a mouse. then CLU speaks up, his voice smooth and easy, amiable]

Whoever programmed this, I gotta give 'em a little credit: it's not half bad for a waste of time. Logically, it doesn't necessarily make a lot of sense - I can't see earthquakes and floods being a direct effect of one little cause - but it gives it a little flavor, spices it up a bit. And really, that's what makes a good game, isn't it? Gives the people in the stands something to watch. But you went a little off-track with your variables. I know the variety was s'posed to make it a challenge, and I get that, I do. But you could make it a little harder on a guy. Whatever a "Madagascar" is supposed to be? Total pushover, once you crack the code. Total pushover.

Far from perfect, but an A for effort, though, man. Any of you wanna meet me up in the Game Room, I'll show you how it's really done. [is that the slightest edge to his tone? maybe. or maybe you're just hearing things.]

INTENT: I've had CLU as a muse for a year now, and during that time, in PSLs, he's sort of grown into a bit of an AU. I want to see what happens when I rewind him to his original canonpoint and let him loose in a place like Para ... to see how the environment will affect him, whether it will help redeem him, or encourage his corruption. I'm not in this to cause "OMG HAVOC" among the muns with AI muses, or anything like that - I'd like to let his gamemates choose his fate, rather than steer him around to it myself.