Quorra

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Background

Powers and Abilities

Quorra is a world-class athlete, combatant and super-genius. She has eidetic memory and the ability to interface with any computer system. She maintains a rigorous physical regimen, including running, gymnastics, yoga, weight training and martial arts.

This is in addition to her research and development activities, in particular her work with the ISOs, helping them develop their potential. Without the support of ENCOM personnel and a personal staff made possible by her affiliation with Sam Flynn and ENCOM itself, she would probably have a little (but only a little) difficulty keeping up quite the same pace 5 years on from the end of Legacy.

She also makes use of the Quantum Teleporter and blank “whiteroom” cyber dimensions to maintain her edge in the cyber world. She takes advantage of the relative flow of time in the “whiterooms”, which can be adjusted as needed. She can effectively perform any research or other work needed on the ratio of one virtual day to each real-world minute, if needed.

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Superhuman

In human terms, her IQ is genius-level and her capacity for learning and retaining new information is virtually unparalleled. She is able to hold her own against nearly any human in the fields of combat, science, technology, art and debate, to name a few.

She is Einstein, Leonardo DaVinci, Bruce Lee, Katherine Hepburn, General Patton and more, all rolled into one. Quorra the first “superhero” of the “real world” of Tron.

She also has unfettered access to:

• The ISO Compute Cloud (a world-class AI supercomputer).
• The primary ENCOM Quantum Teleporter, which are housed at ENCOM HQ in San Francisco.
• Real-world versions of the Grid Combat Suit and Identity Disc.
• A few of the latest experimental ISO-built gadgets.

The ISO tech consists mostly of nanotech-enhanced versions of devices available in the real world. Examples include jet packs, hang gliders, flamethrowers, night vision goggles, laser cutters, etc.. When not using the ENCOM corporate jet or the Quantum Teleporter to get to offices in other cities, she typically travels on her special ISO-built motorcycle.

Quantum teleportation

In addition to transporting humans to and from “cyber” dimensions like the systems seen in Tron and Tron: Legacy, the Quantum Teleporter can transport ISOs from those dimensions to the “real world”. There they take the form of human beings, as seen at the end of Tron: Legacy when Quorra comes to the “real world”.

The original Quantum Teleporter at ENCOM HQ in San Francisco and its counterpart at ENCOM Tōkyō are also sometimes (rarely) used to transfer personnel and equipment near-instantly across the Pacific via a cyber dimension.

ISOs may have exceptional physical and mental attributes, skills and advantages in human form. They can also have powers like (in DC Heroes RPG terms Interface and Recall that make some amount of sense for a translated cyber being.

But the current state of things is that “super powers” that can’t be translated to the real world without some kind of reasonable physical basis given the realistic milieu of Tron don’t work.

Examples would include Matter Manipulation, Transform, Chameleon, Mental Probe, Telepathy, etc.. Things like Flight, Gliding, Flame Project, Projectile Weapons, Radio Communications, etc. obviously will transfer if built into cyber gadgets. Edge cases like Force Field or Invisibility will work if they have at least Serious Burnout, more likely Catastrophic.

ISO norms

Non-ISO cyber beings could theoretically be transferred to the “real world”. But without major modifications to give them standalone AI capabilities, they would essentially be lifeless, inorganic (albeit eerily realistic) puppets.

Similarly, vehicles and other objects from cyber dimensions can translate, but without modifications many of the larger and/or flying designs in particular would not work well or at all in the “real world”.

The ENCOM Prototype Combat Vehicle was specifically designed and built in a blank “whiteroom” template cyber dimension to be translateable to the “real world”. And it still has some bugs to work out before it’s completely reliable.

The cutting edge application for the Quantum Teleporter is to transport a human to the cyber dimension, have an ISO use beneficial powers on them, and transport them back. The effects of Damage Transference, Transform and other healing/changing powers have been shown to translate. This means that otherwise incurable conditions such as cancer, birth defects, blindness and missing limbs can be healed.

More controversial uses of this effect include changing someone’s appearance, or giving them special abilities. An extreme application is to make them immortal by creating a “backup” of their cyber form that can be recreated in the real world over and over again, with the same age and physical appearance, but with updates to memory and skills copied from the last real-world iteration.

These uses have been forbidden by Sam Flynn, and even medical use requires case-by-case approval.

History in the making

This is the circumstance which led to the events of Tron: Genesis, where former ENCOM Chief Scientist Edward Dillinger corrupted IO Lux. He unlocked his potential abilities and brought him to the “real world” in an attempt to recreate the Quantum Teleporter technology for lucrative and power-gathering uses.

Dillinger hopes to use Lux to grant himself a “grey market” monopoly on the power to give the wealthy elites youth, beauty, immortality and special abilities, in both the cyber and real worlds. He would also control the ability to instantly travel around the world or potentially even to other worlds.

Quorra and Sam Flynn, along with a small cadre of ISOs who have been entrusted with the ability to transfer back and forth from the cyber dimensions, are in a race against time. Their aim is to prevent Dillinger and Lux from perfecting the dangerous and corrupting uses of the Quantum Teleporter technology.

In addition, Lux has his own secret agenda: to create an army of corrupted ISOs and powerful cyber weapons, and use them to bring a new order to the “real world”. His ultimate goal is to rule with a corrupted Quorra by his side and destroy Sam Flynn and any “users” who stand in his way.

History

Quorra is the beautiful, vivacious and courageous ISO warrior Sam Flynn brought to the “real world” at the end of Tron: Legacy. In the five years since Tron: Legacy, Quorra has led the effort to unlock the potential of the Quantum Teleporter and recreate the miracle that led to the birth of her species, the ISOs.

She has been incredibly successful in this work. New ISOs are being born daily in the ISO Compute Cloud built as a new cyber home for them. These ISOs are variations of Quorra’s own code – essentially, her “children”.

The new breed of ISOs have begun to develop their own culture and technology, learning from and building upon the achievements of humanity. They are creating new works of art, scientific and engineering breakthroughs and potentially world-changing philosophical insights.

Applied teleportation

The Quantum Teleporter is being used to perform medical miracles on humans, create amazing new technological breakthroughs and more. However, much more work is needed to stabilize and perfect these advances.

Thus, it is believed by most experts involved in the mostly highly-classified secret work that it will take decades to turn most of these advances into reliable products and services that can be safely used to improve the lives of everyday people.

Interestingly, at first the U.S. government did not readily acknowledge the origins or nature of Quorra. It then was reluctant to grant her citizenship or allow her to be a free individual. However, Sam Flynn’s unrelenting advocacy and protection, not to mention the promise of unbelievable technological breakthroughs, won over the powers that be.

Both the U.S. and U.N. eventually came around to wholeheartedly embrace Quorra and the ISOs as a new race of intelligent beings, with equal rights to live, work and be free alongside humanity in both the cyber and “real” worlds. The ISOs have also been recognized as the first “native culture” in cyberspace.

A new species

Her relationship with Sam has evolved over the past five years. At first he was her friend, mentor in the ways of the “real world”, confidant and crush. Eventually they fell in love, and at the time of Tron: Genesis have lived together for the past few years.

Within the last year leading up to the events of Tron: Genesis, however, their relationship has cooled somewhat. They are still incredibly close and protective of each other, but between Sam’s duties running ENCOM and Quorra’s research and work with the ISOs, they have become somewhat more distant.

But Lux’s corruption by Edward Dillinger and the subsequent events have tested the relationship between Quorra and Sam as never before. She has felt the pressure to choose between Sam’s desire to destroy Lux, and her own wish to bring him back to the side of good.

Sam believes, at some level, that this is because she has feelings for Lux. Whether Quorra acknowledges this to herself or not, to some extent it is true. Ultimately she may be forced to confront this fact and reconcile it with the possibility that Lux can never be saved.

Description

Quorra looks exactly like Olivia Wilde, but in recent years her look has softened, she wears a lab coat while working at ENCOM, and she has grown her hair longer, so that she looks more like the character “Thirteen” from House. In Tron’s “real world”, there is no such person as Olivia Wilde, so she doesn’t go around looking like a clone of a famous actress.

But she is world famous in her own right, and has appeared on the cover of many magazines and on numerous television talk shows. She has also appeared in several award-winning documentaries about her, ENCOM, the Flynns, the ISOs and the Quantum Teleportation technology. These have been shown in theaters and on worldwide television.

She is the subject of several bestselling books. Some of these are factual, some stretch the truth or contain outright fabrications, and some are acknowledged fictionalized accounts of her exploits alongside Kevin and Sam Flynn and the ISOs. Interest in her has not really waned at all since origins were first made public, especially due to the nature of her work.

Quorra is considered a “citizen of the world” by many, and a symbol of the great promise of Quantum Teleportation technology and the miracle of the ISOs.

Truths

None of these published works reveals the complete truth of the workings of Quantum Teleportation, the system(s) or the outgrowths of those technologies. All of that work is considered amongst the most highly classified secrets of the U.S. government under their contract with ENCOM.

The innermost workings are only known to Quorra, Sam, Alan Bradley and a handful of trusted ENCOM scientists and ISOs. Unfortunately that trusted circle also included Lux, who has now shared some (though not all) of these secrets with Edward Dillinger.

Personality

Generally speaking, Quorra is courageous, intelligent, has a good sense of humor and regards the world with a great degree of wonder. She would lay down her life willingly to protect either the real or cyber worlds, her new friends at ENCOM, and especially her love Sam or her “children” the new ISOs.

Dillinger’s corruption of Lux and resultant misuse of Quantum Teleporter technology has led to a dark time for Quorra personally. She feels tremendous guilt for her role in unleashing this terror on the world, even though Dillinger’s evil is the only real cause, and the technology she helped create was solely meant for the benefit of mankind and the ISOs alike.

This has also added to the difficulties in her relationship with Sam. He wants more than ever to help her and protect her. But in the wake of the events of TRON: Genesis, he is dealing with his own lingering doubts about the long-term wisdom of bringing her to the real world, and especially helping her restore the ISOs and further develop the Quantum Teleporter technology.

Other traits

Compounding this are guilt and frustration surrounding his inability to use the technology to resurrect his father, and conflicted feelings about the impact of his father’s legacy on the real and cyber worlds.

Someday, Quorra would like to truly settle down with Sam and have a family, although the means to that end might be unconventional considering her origins. But that now seems like a distant dream in the face of the ever-present nightmare threat of Dillinger and Lux’s race to world conquest.

For the moment, her ISOs are her “children”, and she would do almost anything to protect any of them – even Lux. More than anything else, this may represent her biggest weakness, and has the potential to become the ultimate threat to both worlds.

DC Universe History

The world of Tron: Genesis as I envision it doesn’t really mesh with mainline DC continuity, but I suppose you could make it work if you took away the remaining limitations on the technology. Seems like a boring approach to me.

By Bryan Venable.

Source of Character: Tron: Legacy.