Tigressa, Tigressa Burning Bright
Note: Taking place soon after "Plague of the Tigress". Upon taking the guise of "Katharine" again, she notices that pride can be an extremely powerful emotion, more deleterious and devastating than anything she has ever witnessed. Using her Vanity Spell, the Warriors fall victim and begin bickering about who should be the "true leader" since Jeramie has been the leader long enough. Not affected by the spell, Emily does her utmost to bring the gang back to its senses, but will it be too late to save the Warriors AND the warring residents of Lyoko from themselves before all hell breaks loose ?
Chapter 1—Katharine's Enchanted Mirror
Another new year had started for the alums and the Warriors were anticipating their final years of classes. It would be a bittersweet occasion when summer came about and they would be graduating and entering "the real world", but summer was the least of their concerns. The friends were eager to begin their new classes and enjoy the new activities that would constitute their schedules. What they weren't aware of, however, was the fact that "Katharine" had also enrolled in Paris Academie yet again and she had a new trick she was prepared to enact.
It was a typical day, save for the rowdiness of the students' conversations and leisure activities taking place during free time. Tigressra, who was talking to XEN about her current status into a small, thin silver communicator, was unexpectedly approached by Herve and Nicholas. Herve almost instantly recognized the young lady as the monster they had fought on Lyoko only a few months ago, but she didn't seem to respond to that name.
"You must have me confused with someone else, Herve.", Tigressa said, with a bit of a sardonic smirk. He grinned and unknowingly blushed at her flirtatious manner.
"Yeah, Herve. You're too paranoid. Why would Tigressa want to follow us back here after that defeat she suffered ?", Nicholas mentioned, patting his best friend on the shoulder.
"I never thought of it that way.", Herve stated, seeing his friend's point of view.
"I don't mean to be rude, but Herve looks like he has a smudge on his face, and Nick, it seems you have a piece of something in your teeth. You can use my compact if you like.", Tigressa said, with some sultriness and handed over her enchanted mirror. She had enacted a vanity spell on the object minutes earlier after observing how strong the human emotion of pride could be. It was the most deleterious emotion that a human being could experience. She already observed that Nicholas and Herve were beginning to bicker with one another. Without any further deliberation, she shared her enchanted mirror with the other Warriors. She forgot about Emily, thinking that she had been entranced herself because she had grown overzealous with how successful her plan had been thus far. While everyone that had seen the mirror had started grousing at one another, Tigressa had fled and started the same plot all over again.
Chapter 2—The Outcry From Lyoko
Apparently the fighting on earth had only begun and with Tigressa's attack on the Lyokoians beginning with the newly engaged XANA and Oleander had begun throwing insults at each other because of another version of avarice, envy. Neither of them had anything to want from the other, but from the spell of the mirror the two of them had begun arguing about everything and were on the verge of exchanging blows.
Tigressa and XEN snickered at the fighting that was occurring around them and the chaos and melee that ensued.
"My love, my creation, you are a genius ! Initiating the plan in the human realm was innovative by its own merit, but bringing it home spread the icing on the cake. My love, you are a deliciously vicious and evil creature.", XEN said, wrapping his cloak around her and kissing her passionately on the lips. She sneered sardonically and chuckled at the sounds of shouting resounding around her.
"I take after my creator, love.", Tigressa said, and the two began to kiss romantically to the sounds of fights beginning to break out.
When Emily emerged from her last class of the day, she took note of a horrible scene that unfolded before her eyes. Everyone had started fighting, and some had even begun taking swings at one another. She had tried to step in and stop some of the fights, but it was no use. It had even come to the point that she had been pushed around enough and had begun pounding on the ground in futility. She could hear screams building around her as well as those from Lyoko. She wasn't certain how this all came about, but she could deduce that XEN was behind it indirectly.
Emily had tried everything to dissuade the campus from fighting and cried out in her loudest, shrillest voice to grab their attention. Even doing that was absolutely no good whatsoever. Feeling helpless, tired and worn out, she surveyed the bellicose surroundings about her once more. She fell to her knees and began to cry.
"Please stop ! Enough ! Fighting solves nothing !", she screamed as her tears continued to fall. Before she knew what had happened, everyone fell to the ground with a mighty thud and had fallen asleep. Apparently, the milk of human kindness from her endearing tears had broken the enchantment the mirror had over those entrapped by its curse.
Chapter 3—Tigressa Takes Her Revenge
When Tigressa saw her mirror shatter and become particulate in the air, she snarled in rage.
"Why ! What has caused this to happen ?", she bellowed, looking to her love's crystal ball on his staff and saw that a young girl named Emily Morales had ceased the near destruction or battle at the Academie. The Lyokians had stopped fighting. Even XANA and his love had made up and were wondering what had just happened and if they had been yelling since their throats were strained and sore. Tigressa beat her fist into the landscape of Lyoko and growled.
"I'll show her. She'll be sorry she ever messed with the likes of me.", Tigressa said as she teleported in a blur of orange, black, white and tan, disappearing from the Lyokoian plane.
Emily couldn't believe that the simple act of overwhelming kindness and the purity of her tears had saved everyone, and she thanked her lucky stars that she had that type of ability, but most importantly, all of her friends were safe and no violence had occurred. However, just as she thought the chaos had come to an end, a flash of blinding color knocked her off her feet. She was suddenly met by a flourish of claws and a deafening yowl of rage. She could sense the anger that was directed toward her and knew it had to be Tigressa. Unable to fight back at first, Emily began to retaliate, receiving claw marks to her arms.
"You might think I'm the baby of the group, but I assure you I am not one to be underestimated.", Emily warned as she began to spar with the striped nemesis.
Tigressa merely laughed and chided her, wagging an elegant finger as to patronize the youngest member of the Lyoko Warriors.
"I really could care less what you perceive yourself to be, Emily Morales. Only one of us will walk away from this match alive and I will see to it that you will pay for ruining my plan.", Tigressa roared and swiped at the young girl's face again.
Emily blocked the claws flying at her face and landed a perfect kick to Tigressa's sternum. She would've been more ladylike in this battle, but she could sense that her life was in peril if she allowed Tigressa to slice any vital veins. Emily was tough and she wouldn't give up easily, and Tigressa was aware of this. They were equally matched, but Emily's vibrancy and youth were overcoming Tigressa's rage and lack-of-focus.
Tigressa's aggression was starting to wear her out, and eventually she could no longer fight against Emily. Emily had nary a scratch upon her svelte, somewhat muscular frame. She caught her breath and stood steadily, ready for another attack from Tigressa. Tigressa, however, had spent all of her energy and collapsed. Just then, she had been summoned back by XEN, who had also suffered as well. Her energy and his were one and the same, but the Warriors hadn't quite figured this out. Only now had Emily made the connection and she knew she could use this information for later when the Warriors were in need of it.
Epilogue
No one had any memory of being affected by Tigressa's vanity spell, save for Emily who had seen the outcome of it. However, the insanity of the day had thankfully faded away. The only side-effect that hadn't gone completely was Emily's sore muscles, but Michael had been more than happy to massage her shoulders and aching back to help her feel more at ease and relax at the day's end.
Tigressa had been defeated yet again, and like her Master, she was enervated. She would have to regenerate herself. All the seven deadly sins motivated her, and gave her power, but what she didn't realize was that Emily had seen through her so-called defenses to deduce that she was the key to destroying XEN. Since she was part of XEN, they were symbiotic. If she was destroyed, he in turn would be destroyed as well. This wouldn't happen for quite sometime, but at least knowing this integral strategy would keep the Warriors one step ahead of XEN and his nefarious schemes.
Albeit the school year was coming to a close and the students were preparing themselves for commencement, the air was full of mixed emotions. The Warriors didn't particularly wish to embark on journeys of their own, but they had to even if they didn't want to. Despite this, their friendships would remain strong, and they would always be close together. Even the older members of the crew had made a pact to "keep the family strong" as well as the Warrior spirit.
Even though graduation had come and gone, and the friends had their own lives, this wouldn't keep them from reuniting should an attack on Lyoko occur. They were "normal" people in everyday living circumstances, but whenever an alert sounded over their communication devices, they came together and fought as one yet again. Thus the circle continued, and it would always so long as the Warrior blood flowed throughout the generations. Eventually evil would be defeated and good would be victorious but until that time, the Warriors existed for the purpose of defending the helpless, helping those in trouble, and being heroes to one and all for so long as they drew breath and walked this Terra Firma.
The End