Reawakening
Synopsis: It is a month after the events of "Echoes". Everything seems peaceful and serene. However, XANA rises from the dead, having reformed himself after serving the multi-agent program that Jeramie created. He decides to announce his return by initiating a technological takeover, beginning with the French Stock Market, and spreading into other venues. This comes as a huge shock to the Warriors. Can they stop him again or will the ensuing chaos around them be too much of a distraction ? With the world in such upheaval, can the Warriors stop him again ?
Chapter 1--Back to School
Leaves were beginning to change colors in the trees. Their crisp scent accompanied the students as they came by the droves back to Kadic Academy. Faculty and teachers alike were looking forward to filling their pupils' heads with knowledge, and Jeramie and his friends were eager to continue learning new defense moves in the martial arts courses that were added to the criteria this semester. But, the new year came with some sadness attached with it. Jeramie had to take the initiative of shutting the super computer down after he and his friends had finally defeated XANA and his minions. They all missed fighting in Lyoko dearly, and their lives were very different without the heroics they had become so used to. It was if there was a hollow spot within the core of their beings, and, as much as they wanted to fill it with extracurricular activities nothing could replace that emptiness. But, strangely, being close together to commiserate seemed to be all the medicine they required to soothe that abysmal ague.
However, in daily life they had received in a long time of endless fights, came an unexpected occurrence that they thought would be above 'childish'.
"Forget it, Odd ! Outta all the things you could do to me it HAD to be cheating on me ! ", Leona yelled at the top of her lungs, as the group sat silently, gawking at her under the park's tree. It was until Leona arrived that it was serene and peaceful. Odd could not say anything more to ease Leona's anger, for it was as fierce as her name.
""Hey, listen," Odd tried to mince words, "Sissi's not as important to me as you think she is--" "So you putting your arms around her like that and cuddling like two lions of the same pride wasn't important. Well, I heard you purr!" She stomped away in her anger in a fair distance to the group. Few of them giggled at the scene and Amy patted Odd's back, hoping to cheer him up. "Well..." Meiyo began to comment, "at least you didn't get hurt this time. Hehe..."Odd frowned and blushed, turning to the floor and curled up. "Should I say that he still has his personality?" Amy said with a weak chuckle. The rest of the group didn't want to say anything against it. Meiyo looked over to see Leona, who was periodically poking at her mother's charm. She was like a dog on a bone with it, even after learning the truth about it. Meiyo sighed and called for Ulrich's attention. "Come on," Meiyo suggested, "We can't let things stay this way, right?" "Hey, this gets Sissi outta my hair--" Ulrich replied. "Well... we have to do SOMETHING about--" Aelita walked by with a strange expression. It was almost as if she had seen a grotesque insect closely by surprise. "Something wrong, Aelita?" Amy tapped her shoulder, hoping that Aelita would answer. Meiyo and Ulrich looked at each other and looked at Aelita and Amy. Jeremy and Yumi kept their heads up to listen, whereas Odd and Leona wallowed with their thoughts. Aelita's face grew pale and she trembled. She was then brought out of thoughts by being goosed by Meiyo. "Come on, you can tell us anything!" Meiyo pried. Aelita flushed and took a deep breath. she brought her hands to her chest and figured her words.
"I..." she struggled, "I had... a very awed dream. I can't mince it into words..." "What happened?" Yumi stood to her side. Meiyo spaced away, making Aelita feel less stressed to speak.
"It looked like Lyoko, but... something was different." Jeremy's eyes widened and a soft blow of wind followed with Aelita's shuddering remarks.
Chapter 2--The Prophecy
"What's the matter then ?", Emily asked, becoming more concerned for her. None of them had ever seen her look so wan, let alone so pallid. Leona knew this was bad, her stomach was filled with knots. She felt as ill as Aelita did.
"The only way I can describe it is darkness. Darkness covered everything. Not only were Lyokians in danger, but Terrans too, in the most dire situations I have ever seen. This was worse than what I have seen in Hollywood disaster movies or heard from the prophecy of Revelations.", Aelita said, shivering. Jeramie placed his hands gently on her shoulders to calm her, but her frame still shuttered, shaking like a leaf.
"Whatever happened in your dream can't be real, right ?", Jeramie asked.
"Cheer up Ae.", he added, patting her hand gently. Aelita's eyes shed a few tears.
"But what if it isn't ? I sense she might be right. We all know XANA is more than what he seems. At his core, his insidious nature knows no boundaries.", Leona said.
"Leona, this isn't like you. Why are you so pessimistic ?", Ulrich asked.
"Yeah. Is something wrong ?", Odd added, cautiously.
"I'm really not sure, but what Aelita said gave me pause. XANA couldn't have been defeated so easily. It seemed like a simple victory for us. He's up to something, I feel it deep within the core of my being.", she said, her fear apparent.
"I don't know, but you might be right. We have to stay on our guard. Which reminds me. Are any of you interested in enrolling in martial arts ? My father owns a dojo and you would be welcome to come.", Meiyo said, grinning from ear to ear. When she grinned like that it was hard to turn her down.
"Anyone's allowed ? Even youngsters like me ?", Tamiya asked a bit tenetively.
"Learning martial arts holds no age requirement. If one is willing to have discipline to learn, then all are welcome.", Meiyo answered, honestly.
"Yes !", Tamiya exclaimed, slapping Millie's palm joyously. Meiyo had to chuckle at this strange custom, even if she was used to seeing it so much.
"Then, we have no time to waste sharpening our skills. Can you give us directions to your dojo ?", Yumi said, pragmatically.
"Sure, it's not all that far from the Academy.", Meiyo answered. Jeramie, being the ever-prepared member of the group, had spare paper and a pencil for her to write out directions to her parents' dojo. Quickly she drew up a very stunningly illustrated map and looked forward to seeing them all after school.
Oddly enough the repetitive movements of the martial arts training had helped Aelita put aside the horrible nightmare she had experienced the night before. Whatever occurred, they would be prepared for it, or so she hoped. But neither she, nor Leona, let alone any of the Lyokians could predict what was about to happen.
Chapter 3--Eventual Chaos
The next morning the airwaves were filled with chatter about the CAC 40. Not just one specific stock had been hit but the entire market. The stocks were inaccessible. Not even the savviest technicians could crack the gibberish that was on the screen. Leona and Aelita recognized the so-called 'hieroglyphics'.
"It's XANA.", they said in a hushed whisper in unison.
"I fear it's only going to become worse.", Leona said.
"I knew he couldn't have been destroyed forever. There's always a fragment of memory left behind. The tiniest increment of information can't be destroyed. Viruses, especially are notorious for this, and we missed our chance to trace it. ", Aelita said, feeling saddened.
"None of us knew this. I'm sorry there wasn't any warning. Maybe the Lyokians could've done something…", Millie said, biting her lower lip.
"Doubtful. They're as lost as the rest of us are. I don't even know what's going to happen next…usually my predictions are right on the dot.", Leona said. Aelita placed her hand firmly on Leona's shoulder. She knew exactly how she felt. They both had direct connections with Lyoko, but being involved in the world of humans had caused their telepathy with 'the mother Lyoko' had gotten strained. Nothing was as it seemed anymore.
As many human beings searched for meaning during this time, worse matters were to come. Electricity began to flicker on and off, and even power lines crackled.
" It's XANA ! He's beginning his first attack !", Aelita yelled as she shoved Jeramie and her friends out of the pathway of the dangerous wires.
"We have to get out of here.", Taelia mentioned, eyes furrowing. First the stock markets and now electrical systems. Although they had to crawl along the ground to avoid the danger of live wires, they left the cafeteria where the attack began and out into the darkness of the field.
"It seems like he's making an electrical attack.", Patric observed.
"This is bad.", Odd said, obviously. Even Odd couldn't deliver a witty comeback to this dire situation. Some people were cowering in corners in fetal position, others were frantically biting their nails trying to call emergency lines or family; all for naught.
"It's only going to get worse !", Michael said, not at all sounding like his usual optimistic self, but he was right. He had seen the wires and telephone poles begin to merge together into a colossal monstrosity. The voice of XANA could then be heard cackling.
"This is only the beginning. If you listen to my demands, I might reconsider letting my Titan destroy your pathetic race. Then again, I might not. Who knows ? I might feel a bit more generous than I have in the past. You must come to realize there comes a time when intelligence is preferred and the dumber species becomes extinct or is absorbed into the smarter of the two. Whatever the decision I make, inevitably, it will be the correct one.", XANA stated, cackling sinisterly. The Titan, continuing to grow larger, was fuelled by technological gadgets and household commodities. The Warriors, seeing the wires were no longer their problem, but peoples' panic was, had to think of a way to corral everyone into a safer area. XANA, of course, wasn't the patient type.
"Stupid children. You think you have a plan to save your precious friends ? I'll squish them like the insects they are. This monster I am creating isn't so easily destroyed like my past ones. And look around you, ignorance rules the day. I doubt any of you have the capability to calm so many bothered beasts at once. Give up and admit who is the higher power, and I'll make it easy for you. All of you can make such lovely servants. As for the females amongst you, I have other plans.", XANA stated with a sneer, his eyes crimson in the faint light of the crescent moon until he clenched a fist and caused a cloud to blot it out from the sky.
The Titan, with its hollow eyes, waited for his masters' command. Suddenly, gale force winds encompassed him and other creatures began to form. These minions were far different than the Bloks or Krabes they had seen in Lyoko. These monsters were almost exact replicas of XANA himself. XANA was growing impatient with the Warriors' lack of response, but could feel their ire building.
"You're not making this the least bit interesting, children. If you won't accept my terms, you know I have no other choice. It'll be your conscience that is blighted for this tragedy…not mine.", XANA said, twisting their logic.
"Don't listen to him. He's trying to trick us.", Meiyo said, noticing that her friends, thankfully weren't easily swayed, but it helped to be reminded of his insidious nature.
"What about Lyoko ? What's happened to it ?", Leona roared all of a sudden.
"I've recreated it in my own image. It's not Lyoko…It's Necropolis.", XANA answered. Aelita and Leona began weeping and the Warriors couldn't believe their ears.
"Necropolis…", Aelita muttered sadly while Suzanne stroked her hair.
"You have no soul.", Suzanne grumbled.
"You BORE me ! Either make your decision or fight me ! Your wasting my time.", XANA said, agitated.
"I have an answer for you.", Jim said as he hurtled a lightning bolt toward one of the clones and it disintegrated.
"Not easily destroyed ? Malarkey !", he added, snappily. XANA, irritated, snapped his fingers and sent his clones to fight for him. He quickly fled on the shoulder of his mighty Titan, laying waste to whatever was in his path.
Chapter 4--Under Siege
"He's escaping !", Leona screamed at the top of her lungs as they were fighting off clones.
"We know that, Leona ! Can't you see, we're a bit occupied ?", Ulrich stated, cutting another clone in half.
"Yeah…*slash !* …How are we supposed to…*vivisect !*…Keep up with him with all these… *clang/kaboom !* clones fighting against us ?", Patric added, keeping a count of the clones already slain. They continued coming ad infinitum.
"Maybe we can split into groups ?", Emily mentioned.
"But a small faction of us cannot possibly defeat the Titan alone !", Taelia responded.
"She's right. We're too few in number…And Lyoko can't be relied upon. They've been overtaken and are in XANA's palm.", Aelita whimpered. Though she was sorrowful, she fought fiercely. She was experiencing an emotion she hadn't before called 'anger' and it was unbelievably powerful. But, she didn't like the effect it had on her surroundings. Anger wasn't at all what she thought it would be. Instead of being helpful, it was often destructive and merciless. The complete opposite of her character.
"People are being hurt ! We can't continue at this rate !", Odd yelled, dissecting another clone from stem to stern.
"What do you suggest ? Splitting up won't work…we're surrounded by clones !", Yumi added. There were thousands of them from where there were once only a few.
"Wait a minute…They have a sentinel.", Taelia observed from her visor. This certain clone gave off a signature the others didn't have and was therefore different than the rest.
"What do you mean by that ?", Millie questioned, not understanding.
"She means that this certain clone is a protector of the others, a leader. Apparently, if we attack him, the others will fall.", Tamiya answered.
"Gee, whiz. You're a genius, Tammy.", Millie said, cutting a clone down behind her.
"You're not so bad yourself, my dear friend.", Tamiya stated honestly with a laugh.
The group worked together to fight against the myriad of clones while Meiyo looked for the sentinel. Using 'spiritual insight', she could spot the sentinel and immediately dispatched him with her spear. One by one the clones vaporized and the team could move on. They had expended some energy that they needed to store up for fighting against XANA and the Titan, but luckily, their healers, Suzanne, Emily, Amy and Michael restored the HP/MP/AP for the skirmish to come.
Chapter 5--Dark Pulse Everything still became a mess. However, the trail the Titan left was very emphasizing, despite the people scattering in fear. "I have a bad feeling about this," Leona fingered the trail cautiously, "It's like he wants us to follow him." Aelita shuddered at the thought and Taelia patted her shoulder to console her.
"Nevertheless, we need to follow him!" Meiyo exclaimed and went ahead. The group shrugged and ran down the were still further away, but Aelita and Leona felt strong vibrations. It was a heavy pulse, but it felt too jittery and inhuman; it was more of a live breathing pulsation. Aelita's body went stiff as the sensation grew stronger. "What's wrong? Aelita!" Yumi called out as Aelita appeared to have fainted. She tumbled into Yumi's arms and flickered her eyes open. The rest of the group circled around, but gave space for respiration."He's really close, but what's happening to me?" Aelita said weakly, holding her head. Leona knelt down and touched her forehead, but as her finger tips made contact, she felt her vision black out; and visions of madness corrupted her. Meiyo stared dumbfounded. "L-Leona?" Leona shook her head and fell over. Odd went to her side and called out to her. "...! I don't think those clones were there for decoration.." Leona quickly got up."Are you sure you're alright?" Jim helped Leona to her feet. She shook her head. "Stop worrying about me. It's Aelita I'm worried about; I'll carry her. Right now, no where's safe for us!" Jeremy gave quick glares at Aelita that piggybacked Leona. She forced herself to stay alert, but started breathing hoarsely and sweat streamed her pale face. "I hope this trail DOES lead to him, because Aelita needs rest; she looks really sick--" "I highly doubt it's a regular flu." Leona interrupted Millie, but the group had stopped to something that even disturbed the youngest of the group. They stopped in their tracks seeing the predictable, knowing it would cause more of an uproar, but was completely incredulous to the sight: there were French military and German tanks surrounding the perimeter of the area."You've gotta be kidding me..." Aelita gasped. The tanks pointed their turrets directly at the Warriors.
"Think about what you're doing ! We're not the enemy, the big mechanical beast is ! And he's destroying all you hold dear !", Ulrich shouted over the metal clanging as the tanks moved in closer and closer. The military men gazed at each other wondering if the aliens in bizarre clothing could be trusted.
"In case you haven't noticed, we destroyed all the clones that were likely going to cause major damage to innocent bystanders.", William stated, honestly.
"Think about it. We can't do this alone and we're not responsible for everyone's panic. We've tried helping them as best we can but sometimes others have to rely upon themselves. Somehow, they'll be alright.", Sam said, optimistically. She had a point in that. Human beings were very capable, even in drastic situations such as this to see the silver lining in the clouds. The commander of the fleet, Sergeant Avignon stuck his head out of his tank. He was a distinguished, decorated gentleman wearing thin, horn-rimmed glasses with no trace of emotion on his face.
"I think this young woman has a point. We have a duty here to help our people our country, that is, if they wish. If they don't want to be, they are on their own but hopefully it will be the latter of these choices. As for us, half of us will be your backup to put that thing to death. Don't bother explaining what it is to us, we can't have it desecrating anything else.", he said. Even though his speech was pompous, Avignon was correct. They didn't have much time to stop the Titan. Already, so much destruction had begun and Lyoko…Lyoko too, was under cloak of darkness and awash in confusion with no hope in sight.
Avignon bellowed, "FIRE !", as his battalion unleashed fury upon the Titan. The Titan roared as its back legs were attacked. Nothing else seemed to be vulnerable but the point where the joints met.
"There's a weakness in the legs, keep firing, men ! Keep firing ! Don't give up !", he said to them. The Warriors, who heard the Sergeant shout this integral information attacked in formation until the Titan fell to its knees. XANA formed a shield around it and screamed in fury.
"You might've found my monster's Achilles' heel, but you haven't defeated me yet.", XANA yelled, shaking his fist at them. He began healing the Titan and forming it into a vast army of mini-Titans with armor. As the tanks and Warriors continued to fight, Leona and Aelita began to fare worse.
"What's causing this ?", she said, searching for signs of the culprit to their diseases. Emily helped Aelita stable while Meiyo assisted with Leona.
"None of us really know what's going on, but they began showing signs of illness when the sentinel was destroyed.", Emily said, holding back tears. She didn't want to see her friends this way, and she was afraid they were dying.
"The…only…thing that holds our cure is on Lyoko and reaching it…Is impossible.", she said, her strength depleting. Every breath was labored and it became difficult for her to form cognitive words. Meiyo had an insane idea.
"I can go into Lyoko, and Amy can go with me.", she said, confidently. She was either completely mad or she knew that she and Amy were the only ones that could possibly save Leona and Aelita from dying.
"I think she's onto something. I'm not exactly sure what, but I can take care of Aelita and Leona until she comes back. There's a safe haven not too far from here, a hospital. That is if they have auxiliary power. It's the one chance I've got to give them treatment. It might not help but it is better than nothing.", Emily said.
"You best be careful, dear. I don't want to lose either you, or any one else…", Suzanne said, kissing her daughter's cheek gently.
"Mom, I won't fail you. Meiyo's got things under control. After all, she is a genius.", Emily said, helping the two weary princesses walk with her as a crutch while the war raged all around them. It looked like the Warriors were losing allies in the fight as well. Hopefully, Suzanne prayed, a miracle was about to happen.
Chapter 6--The Fate of Two Relies on Two
Even though Aelita and Leona were getting weaker every second, they were clinging desperately to life. Both of them had too many events to look forward to. Leona was still trying to get up the gumption to ask Odd out for the fall formal, but she knew that Odd would refuse her and leave her in the dust since he liked Sissi. Despite that, she knew there were other fish in the sea and maybe another boy would ask her when she least expected it. As for Aelita, she could see herself with her prince charming years down the road and hoped they would marry someday, albeit the prospect was quite serious. She also had so many prospects to consider in the future; dying would permanently cancel those plans, and she was too young to even register what leaving this world behind actually meant.
"Maybe you two should stop," Sissi suggested, "If you two go on like this you'll die or worse." Jeremie nodded in agreement, as did the others as they went on, but Leona protested. "Don't you all need Aelita to defeat Xana? And I'm the one connected to him, so don't stop me!" Leona huffed on. "Come on, Leona! Sissi's right," Odd halted her from walking any further, which did not fuel her submission, but her anger instead. She jerked back, almost letting Aelita fall back and caught her."Sorry..." Leona said sheepishly. Aelita acted as if it did not occur and replied. "We have to find the Titan, but its trail alone is draining us. Nevertheless *cough* we have to carry on." Sissi paused, wanting to stop the two, but now knew she could not. Normally, she would let them tire out, but they are both essential to the team and so she was left with little choice.
"Don't push yourself, Leo," Jim pulled Aelita into his arms, "I'll carry Aelita." Leona answered with a scoff. Emily went along with her, keeping her mother's namesake, the Healing Shield, which was a spell she had learned directly from her mother to keep Aelita safe from attack. All the while they were making their trek to the hospital, the rest of the Warriors were fighting what seemed to be a losing battle.
Meanwhile on Lyoko…
Meiyo and Amy appeared and found it hard to view the devastation they were seeing all around them. The ground was monochromatic and everything was dead. The Lyokoians themselves seemed to be paused, not living, not dead; simply in stasis. Whatever they had been doing before had been interrupted when XANA was reborn.
It was likely Stasis had felt the shockwaves of the reincarnation as well, but the girls could hope.
"What can be done about this situation ? The poor Lyokoians…I wish I could help them.", Amy said, fighting back the urge to weep over what she was seeing.
"Nothing can be done at this junction. We don't have time to waste. Come on.", Meiyo said, taking Amy's hand and levitating with her coasting along in toe.
"The systems are shutting down. But we have your antidote.", Luna said, handing them a prism-shaped USB drive with binary code floating about in it. It resembled a new-fangled twist on a retro favorite; the lava lamp.
"But what about you, Elder ?", Amy asked, concerned. She could see the color draining out of the Elder's eyes. Artemis, as well as the other Overseers was doing her best to keep the system up and running, but there was only so much they could do against and bellicose Trojan.
"Don't worry about me.", Luna said, firmly, her voice wavering. Amy couldn't help but be concerned.
"There has to be a way to keep Stability from crashing.", Meiyo added as she cradled the drive against her chest gently.
"I'll try to help them reinstate their data. It'll be a lot of work but I know their system well.", Amy said.
"Be careful, I wouldn't want you to be infected by the Trojan.", Meiyo warned.
"I will ! I know you'll be fine. Tell the gang they have nothing to worry about.", Amy said before rotating her scythe and disappearing. Meiyo loathed when she did that without knowing where or when she was traveling to. But, something reassured her she had nothing to worry about. All she had to do was make certain that iridescent USB drive got back to the girls in time back at the hospital. Their fate depended upon it.
Chapter 7--Stop Time
The battle raged on and the Warriors were finding that fighting was becoming more and more difficult. XANA felt he had the upper hand until Meiyo gave them a little breach and enacted her Stop-Time ability as she rushed like lightning by following the energy traces she could sense Jim, Emily, Aelita, Leona and Jeramie left behind.
"Way to go, Meiyo !", Millie cheered. They heard her voice long after she had sped by them.
"Amy tells you not to worry, she's taking care of Lyoko.", her voice said, the Doppler effect pitching it a bit as it arrived to their ears.
"I hope so. It's going to be a real challenge for her alone, but it's not as if we haven't seen her take upon big missions such as that by herself.", Sam added. She was correct. Amy had been the self-starter, doing whatever needed to be done without being told when, how or why. She simply did. She was confident that the battle would be over, and like always XANA would be defeated as usual. She knew in her heart that the skies of both the virtual and human world would clear and there would be peace.
On Lyoko…
Healing Lyoko alone was more difficult than Amy wanted to admit to herself. Sure she was a little more 'advanced' than the other Warriors, but she didn't consider herself above them. She was too humble to give that sort of idea credence. She found herself at a juncture she was unfamiliar with. She kept healing the core reactor from its source, seeing the life pulse through to the surface again, but she felt tired.
"I can't possibly run out of stamina now. I'm stronger than that.", she thought to herself, becoming a bit frustrated. She had never been angered, except when she saw unnecessary deaths or her friends in trouble. It was a unique occasion. She fell to her knees and banged her fist on the ground.
"Give me strength…I cannot do this alone.", she prayed to a higher power. She regained her breath on the opalescent platform she had been standing on. Underneath her she could see the digital sea and thanked heaven the developers of this digital world had been kind enough to build the precipices sturdy enough to hold a nervous, trembling mass of human flesh like hers. She felt a sudden surge of ability that she was aware came from beyond her. It was enough to make her teeth hum within her own mouth. Her hair stood up on end, but she thanked the ability with reverence, for she knew from whence it came.
"Now, the true healing can finally commence.", she thought, putting her hands on the core and singing the song of new beginning.
Outside among the clamor…
The mini-Titans were tough to cut down to size. It seemed once that one had been destroyed, another took its place. Like the mythological hydra, once a head was cut off, it would regenerate more and more until the hero was overwhelmed. But this wasn't the case here. The spell that Meiyo had cast with her glaive had caused the Warriors to land quite a few hits on the mini-Titan army. The Warriors, despite the fact they were starting to run out of energy, knew they couldn't quit. Even a few hits were landed on XANA and he was starting to feel the after-effects. It seemed that both sides were playing on a leveler field. All that remained was who held the upper hand in this dangerous poker game.
The land was scarred from the battle. Some trees were burned to ashes, emitting a very smoky smell. Sergeant Avignon was relieved his battalion hadn't suffered any casualties. They were running out of ammunition, though. They had been a tremendous boon to the Warriors but they had to step aside.
"Forgive us but we can no longer fight. I'm afraid we have to step down.", Robert Avignon stated, with regret.
"Don't fret. Get your men to a safe place. We'll take it from here.", Jim said as the tanks and police rolled aside and found some ruins far from the battle ground where XANA and his hoard of mini-Titans couldn't reach them. XANA grew tired of these antics and reformed the mini-Titans into a Colossus.
"Oh, crud.", William stated, his expression falling into one of shock and fright.
The other Warriors couldn't have agreed more. They needed Aelita and Leona back soon, or they would surely be crushed under the Colossus' big toe.
Chapter 8--Metamorphosis
As soon as the driver had been placed within Leona and Aelita's room, the binary codes worked their magic and the Trojan was decimated. Leona awoke, but her form was much different than before. She had sprouted multi-color monarch wings and Aelita's angelic wings had become fuller and more iridescent than before.
"We don't have time to stay here. Emily, Leona and I are returning to the front. You and Meiyo can catch up with us after you're done talking to the doctors and nurses.", Leona said, honestly.
"Of course. We'll be there as soon as we can.", Emily said. Aelita and Leona hugged their good friends goodbye, knowing it wouldn't be the last they would see of them. They also felt a sense of impending doom for their buddies fighting against the Titan. With their new abilities they already knew the implications of what fighting against the Colossus would entail, but they weren't afraid. They were more powerful since the activation of the USB device, but realized with that immense power came great responsibilities and not to let that power control them.
The seraphic Aelita and spellbinding Leona flew to the midst of the action, noticing the slow of time. The Colossus's movements had been restricted by Amy's Stop-Time spell. Meiyo had bought some extra minutes. There was only so much manipulation that could be done within the realm of space-time without causing rifts, tears and other perilous occurrences. The girls didn't have a large window of time to operate in. The foot of the Colossus was beginning to move. They had to find a weak-link in the Colossus chain, and fast.
Leona joined her thoughts with Aelita.
"Can you see anything in his structure that's vulnerable ?", she asked. Aelita had searched the entire anatomy of the beast and still, nothing. Leona then caught upon a pulse. It seemed faint, but she saw vulnerability in the Colossus' knee, right where the joint bended.
"If they aim toward that, he will fall, and will no longer have any control.", Leona said.
Aelita turned to hug her friend.
"I owe you one for this.", she said, in admiration.
"Not really, sister. We are of the same mind, and besides, we are friends. Friends owe each other no thanks, the gratitude was there within our embrace.", Leona admitted. The two of them gave their new information to the Warriors and in a pre-emptive attack, the whole battalion attacked as one.
Chapter 9--Fall of Colossus
With a moan of agony, Colossus began to lose balance and fall to the ground. No matter what XANA did, the monster couldn't be repaired.
"No ! This monster is flawless ! He has no defects !", XANA howled in fury as he himself was getting hit during the fight. He deflected many of the attacks, but was hit on his symbol and disappeared. His eerie voice was the only remnant.
"Mark my words, this isn't the last you've seen of me, and the next time won't be so easy for you weaklings !", the echo came and Colossus tried to reach for its master.
The poor monster wanted solace before he withered into nothingness. His data began to 'chip' away from his rock solid body, turning into crystalline snowflakes twinkling in the sunlight. The worn out Warriors, leaning on their weapons to steady themselves, watched in wonder as the snowflakes trailed their way on the sun's rays and melted in the distance.
"That's the last of the Colossus.", Jim stated, breathing a sigh of relief. None of them had ever fought that hard, and they knew it wouldn't be the last battle they would have against XANA now that he had been awakened.
"We can rest easy, at least for now.", Odd added, as he and the rest of his friends calmed down. The land around them was horribly burned and so much vegetation had been lost.
"I think we still have some work to do.", Emily said, beginning to heal the land. With the healing power she possessed, Suzanne joined with her as well as Michael and the greenery of the land began to reappear again.
"It's a start, but it only takes a small push to start re-growth. Mother nature will do the rest.", Suzanne said, sagely. The students nodded, impressed by her wit and wisdom. They were elated that the battle was through. Now they could have time to rest and recuperate, as well as get back to the tasks at hand. Thankfully, Lyoko had been restored and Stability was back on its feet. The Elders were healthy, with all their faculties in tact. The only question now that remained for the teens was who was going to take them to the Autumn Fling ?
Epilogue
There was a shy young man by the name of Claude that had taken a liking to Leona and had finally gotten up the nerve to ask her to dance at the Autumn Fling. For the main half of the night she had been dancing with her friends, not really noticing that no one had asked her for a dance yet. That was until Claude Merlot asked her himself. Claude was a smooth-spoken African student that was darker than most of the black students at Kadic. No one else really cared though, he was like everyone else who attended. He was very talented, though. Most of the time, he carried his acoustic guitar, Sylvia around with him. Today wasn't one of those days, but he didn't need her sweet sounds to convey what he felt to Leona. Since he had transferred to Kadic, he had always admired her, and only now he was gathering up the nerve to dance with her.
As Leona danced with her newest friend, she flashed her friends a brilliant smile. It had definitely been worth all the pain she had undergone during the battle against XANA. She hadn't foreseen Claude having the nerve to ask her to dance but she was awfully happy that he had. At least now she knew she had a potential boyfriend who wouldn't cheat on her like 'gigolo Odd' had.
The evening seemed to pass by so quickly and reality set in for the students again. For a time, they reveled in the glory of the celebration of the autumn season. As the lights dimmed, the friends said their goodbyes and left for the evening. The stars above were clear, unobstructed by clouds or light pollution.
"A sign of what's to come, I'd hope.", Jeramie said, taking Aelita's arm as they walked side by side.
"I pray you're right. We can never know what XANA has in store for us, but whatever comes, we'll be prepared for it.", she said. Unexpected arms gathered the two together from behind.
"Precisely.", a macho voice stated confidently. It was Jim, their paternal advisor and best friend of all the faculty at Kadic. Suzanne hadn't been far behind and joined in with the embrace. Soon, all the friends were together, huddled together in a caring, reassuring embrace and linked hands.
"It's a new beginning for all of us. Soon as we depart, the possibilities are endless.", Taelia said, profoundly.
"Yes, and whatever those are, may we make them positive.", Michael chimed in.
"Too right.", William agreed. All of them raised their hands up as a wave and back down to their sides. With that motion they had made their silent decree to live up to the challenge they had given themselves for the fall semester of class. As each embraced and kissed each others' cheeks, they said their goodnights for the final time that evening and left Kadic for the night. It was always a little sad to say goodbye, but they knew it wasn't going to be final. No matter their distance, they were friends in everything they did, and tomorrow was a new dawn.
The End