CHAPTER 2: NEW ARRIVALS
"Reports of a strange light from a factory, in a small city in France, have lead to an international investigation tha-"
Channel Flip
"Power has returned to normal worldwide, but as for the cause has still left people baffled as to how this is even possible."
Channel Flip
"As for the identity of the young teens that were seen at the factory have yet to be found, but believe to be from an international boarding school called Kadic Academy. A highly regarded school that for ye-"
Channel Flip
"Public outcry from all over the world, have been demanding that their governments release information on what is the cause to this strange event that has taken place only a few hour's ago."
Channel Flip
"Religious sects from all over the world as you can see. Millions have flocked to Churches, Synagogues, Temples, and other places of worship, to prey for redemption, believing this strange light as a sign from God hoping to finally ha-"
Channel Flip
"As the President of the United States and the Ambassador of France are about to make a worldwide statement in the UN, to both calm and assure the world that whatever is the cause of this will be investigated, and to assure everyone-"
Channel Flip
"It's an alien invasion we need to get prepared, they have contacted the mothership, and are heading for us right now. We must ready everyone to- let go of me officer! We can't waste any time, we can't waste any time, we-"
Channel Flip
"Geez it's everywhere, on every TV station in the world." Jim said while flipping channels on the small TV in his room.
()()()()()()()()
In Delmas's office.
"I send my daughter here, and in less then a day she turns up missing?" A tall and large dark skinned man by the name of Mr. Knight said while standing in the principles office along with his African born wife Mrs. knight. And as well of the rest of the gangs parents, that have come for various reasons before they found out their kids were missing.
Ulrich's parents came to talk to him about how his grades were finally improving over the last few weeks, but still not good enough. Odd's parents were there just to surprise him because they miss him. Jeremie's parents came to talk about his college acceptance that he has been receiving lately. Williams parents to check up on him, after all they still feel William is still not well. Unaware that for a long time their son was possessed by Xana, and that the gang made a digital clone of him that for a lack of a better word was 'a little slow' and just wanted to spend some time with him. And as for Yumi's, parents they were called by Delmas over the fact that she's missing.
"Mr. Knight please, the police are looking into it as we speak, and will give us an answer as soon as-"
"I want to know where she is now!" He yelled slamming his fists onto the desk, cracking it a little bit, his eyes full of anger, but also concern for his only daughter. His wife came over and put her hand on his shoulder.
"Please calm down dear, they will find her as soon as possible." She assured him, in her light African accent.
"I just can't believe they're all gone, where could they possibly be?" Odds father ask.
"All we can do is hope for the best and wait for the police to find them." Odd's kind mother says while holding her husbands hand with both of hers.
"Don't worry Mrs. Della-Robbia, I'm sure your son and his cousin, Aelita are somewhere near." Mr. Delmas answers.
"Wait, what cousin?" Mr. Della-Robbia asks with confusion.
"Why Aelita Stones of course. His cousin from Canada." Delmas replies.
"We don't have any family in Canada. And there's no one on any side of our family that has Stones for a last name either." Mrs. Della-Robbia says as well.
"What is going on here? First our kids are missing, and now we have a mystery girl who claims to be from this family, but isn't?" Ulrichs father chimes in, knowing at least who their sons are friends.
"Now that I think about it, we talked to Hiroki, and he said that Yumi and her friends ran off into the woods before all this happened." Mr. Ishiyama said.
"Maybe we should look in the woods to see if we can find any leads." Mrs. Ishiyama said in response.
"Yes we should, after all my daughter did see them go in the forest too, and Sam also seemed to be following them." Mr. Delmas said, scratching his beard.
"Well then lets not waste anytime then. Lets go." Mr. Belpois said heading for the door, but before he opened it, Jim walked in with two secret service like men behind him with serious faces.
"What is the meaning of this Jim?" Delmas said rising from his seat with his hands on his desk for support.
"Well these guys have found out that our students are from this school, and want to talk to you." Jim said as one of the agents walked pass him.
"I know this is very serious to you all, so understand, we will ask you questions regarding your kids, and hopefully we will find an answer. So if you know anything at all, maybe we will find a lead to this, because after all your children were at the epicenter of this strange event." The brown haired Agent said, with a serious but caring tone.
"Well my daughter was only here for a few hours, there's no way she can have anything to do with this." Mr. Knight says to the agent.
"Yes we know. We already eliminated her as a possible suspect in this case, at least for now. You used to be a Spec. Ops When you met your wife in Africa before settling here in France am I correct?" The Agent said turning to him.
"Not for a damn long time, and I would appreciate it if you never bring it up again." Mr. Knight said with a serious tone, remembering some things he wish he would forget.
"Sirs please, my Jeremie is a good boy, and so are his friends, even though I haven't met them yet except for Aelita, that one holiday break. So I still believe they are not the cause of this." Mrs. Belpois said, she had blond hair and bright blue eyes just like Jeremie, and she had a heavy French accent.
"Your name is Belpois, yet you don't have an accent like her?" The Agent asked her husband.
"Oh, well I'm of French descent, but I was born in New York, and I got a collage scholarship in France and well... long story short, I met my wife and I settled here with her." He replied looking at his wife of the fond memory he often thinks about.
"I see. Well then, we will search their rooms, maybe we can find some clues there." The Agent said to both the parents and his partner. But before they headed to their rooms, Jim said to them.
"Uh you know they're about to address the world at the UN, I suggest we watch. After all the whole schools waiting as well, after you canceled all classes today, Delmas." Jim suggested.
"I guess we should Jim, maybe the governments might have found out what is the cause of all this. There's a TV system in the teachers lounge." Delmas said to everyone in his office.
"Well then lets head to the teachers lounge first." The agent said, and with that they headed there.
()()()()()()()()
They entered the teachers lounge and turned on the TV to the news channel. "Now let's see if there's been any changes." Delmas said flipping to the world news station, and on that channel a news woman reported.
()()()()()()()()
"Welcome back, we are moments away from the world address at the UN of this strange event taken place today. But before that we have found the identity's of the young students that were seen entering the factory before the strange light that shot up into the air." She began to explain the viewers all over the world. "Investigators have tried to enter the factory but have reported that there is an 'electrical barrier' preventing them from entering, just outside of the entrance to the factory, but will continue to try to find a way in." She said showing an image of the barrier to the factory.
()()()()()()()
"How strange, a barrier. Do we even have that kind of technology?" Jeremie's father said to them.
"I don't recall any of us allowing them to release information on our kids." Ulrich's father said looking towards the agent.
"I'm afraid your looking at the wrong man here, we have nothing to do with this. There's many other ways to get information on people these days." The Agent said defending himself.
"Look their showing our kids now." Ulrich's mother said pointing to the screen.
()()()()()()()()()()
"Now as for the students." She said as an image of each of the gang appeared on the screen and began to report them.
"Ulrich Stern, a 14 year old, in 9th grade." Showing his picture.
"Yumi Ishiyama, a 15 year old in 10th grade and also a day student only." Her image next.
"William Dunbar, a 15 year old in 10th grade, but was kicked out of another school for putting up posters all over his last school." His picture showed.
"Odd Della-Robbia, a 14 year old in 9th grade." A funny picture of him.
"Jeremie Belpois, a 14 year old in 9th grade." His picture next.
"Samantha Knight, a 14 year old in 9th grade, and only just transferred to Kadic academy only a few hours ago." A photo of her from her old school.
"And finally, Aelita Stones, a 14 year old in 9th grade. But reports say she is a cousin of Odd. But files show she has no relations to him at all. And it also seems her record has been forged from an investigators recent report. So this mystery girl only adds more to the strange event that has happened today." The reporter said, going over the gang's identity.
()()()()()()()
"Great! Now the whole world knows about our kids, and this mystery girl Aelita. What are our kids doing, forging fake records for her?" Mr. Stern sighed.
"Do you think she has anything to do with this?" Odds mother asked.
"Why not? After what's happened today, I don't know what to think anymore." Yumi's father said confused as well.
"Hey look, something's happening with the signal." Jim said pointing to the screen, and sure enough the next scene that's about to take place, will show the world what is the fate of the gang.
()()()()()()()()
"We now go live to the UN and... wait what's happening?" She said with her finger to the earpiece, and as she continued in an alarmed state. "Ladies and gentlemen, a strange signal, from what seems to be coming out of nowhere is hacking into all satellite signals, and is transmitting an image between all television channel signals, and any place where there is a television signal, like Time Squares in New York, and-" But she never finished as their channel changed.
()()()()()()()()
"My god, is that, it can't be?" Delmas said in shock, looking at the image, while the gangs parents watched with looks of shock on their faces.
()()()()()()()()
"Look! It's them, it's the guys!" Emily said, watching the screen in the students lounge along with the other students who sat there in shock of what they, and the world was seeing.
()()()()()()()()()()
DAY 1
The beam of light shined bright, as it landed still too bright to fully make out where they were. The light touched down in what seemed to be a heavily forested area as the light landed. It's diameter was very large as it wavered on the ground for a minute before it slowly shrunk down smaller and smaller before it was completely gone. It headed back up into the clouds before dispersing away for good, leaving the gang lying on the ground of the thick forest. A few minutes passed before the gang regained conciseness, and then slowly got up confused and disoriented to what has happened.
"Uhhgghh! what happened?" Ulrich asked while rubbing his head.
"Why are we in a forest?" Yumi, asked as well.
"This can't be Lyoko." Jeremie said, looking at the surrounding.
"Yeah, you're here with us for once." William said, trying to make light of the situation.
"Is this supposed to be Xana's attack on us?" Aelita said confused.
"Where am I? How did we get here? And where did those clothes you're all wearing came from? Where... where did these clothes on me come from? Odd, what's going on?" Sam asked frantically while turning to him. "Oh my god, Odd what happened to you?" Sam said pointing to him.
"What? Is there something on my face?" Odd asked, unaware of his change.
"Uh... you can kind of say that Odd." Ulrich replied, looking at Odd in surprise.
"What, what's happened to me?" Odd said, looking at his hands and his body as well. His body was completely transformed as were the gangs clothes too. They were similar to their Lyoko outfits, but different as well. Odd looked like his cat-man attire, but it was his natural body that was changed too.
His hands and arms weren't as large when he was in Lyoko, instead they were normal sized and instead of four fingers, he had all five fingers each, and instead of a sleeve like look, he had purple stripes up his arms without that cat face on the top part, and instead of having both human ears on the side of his head, and cat ears on the top in his version 2 outfit, (A/N: which didn't make much sense in the first place) the ears were on the sides of his head like normal, but a bit pointed, and a little striped with purple. He had purple stripes where they usually are on his face, and purple stripes going down his back and a few down his chest, and the sides of his legs, his fingernails were pointed and can retract like a cat, along with his toenails. And his tail remand unchanged.
His suit however was different too. He wore a dark purple heavy jacket with loose sleeves that had straps on the sleeve ends to tighten them. He had a light purple and pink undershirt that didn't have a picture of his dog, Kiwi, peeing in the middle, and he had a light leather body armor under the shirt and two metal shoulder disks on, but without Kiwi's, or a cat image on it. His pants were almost like his old version accept purple on the outer sides and light purple on the inseams, as well the dull yellow knee-guards, and had almost knee-high boots that were on the inside of his pants that were blackish-purple.
"Odd, you sure look different." Yumi said, pointing out the obvious.
"Oh really? I didn't notice." Odd replied back in a sarcastic tone.
"Hey Odd, you have a bow and quiver set too." Ulrich said to him.
And sure enough, Odd's laser-arrow were changed to a bow set. His bow was large and curved at where the bow strings ends were, but not cumbersome. It was dark purple at the ends, but light purple near the arrow rest and on the inner side as well, and he had a quiver full of at least thirty arrows. "Wow, cool!" He said flicking the bow string with his pointed finger that lied across his chest. "But what is this?" He said raising his right arm and pulling the sleeve back a little, showing that he had large metal gray gauntlets on each of his arms, covered by his jacket sleeves.
"Be careful Odd, you don't know what that is." Jeremie said raising his hand in caution.
"Einstein, chill out, it can't be that dangerous." Odd said raising his right arm, bringing the side of his fist closer to analysis it, just inches from his nose as if he was looking at a watch. "I wonder what it is?" Odd continued.
SHING!
"WHOA!" Both him and the gang yelled as four long metal claws that were curved downward at the tips, sprang out from his gauntlets. The blades have sprung out almost nicking the tip of his nose.
"Wow, this is so cool. I'm like Wolverine!" Odd said bringing his other arm up and unsheathing the other blades as well, swinging them around.
"Odd be careful, you only just almost cut off your nose there." Ulrich warned, annoyed by Odds playful foolishness.
"Hey Ulrich, your sporting new duds yourself." Odd said. And sure enough Ulrich's outfit was changed too.
Ulrich's suit was no longer a one piece suit. It looked mostly like his version 2 outfit, but with a few key differences. First he had sheaths for his swords that were the same accept the sabers were a bit longer. He had a belt that look liked he can attach pouches too, his upper top was a zip-up style, which had sleeves and was all a bit thicker like armor, but also more loose, and he had larger arm guards as well, and full hand gloves, and his pants were more padded, and his boots as well. But his headband was a little longer and the symbol was slightly altered too.
"Strange, my outfits the same, but a bit different too, I kinda like it." Ulrich said while checking out the new wears.
"I'll say, bet it doesn't ride up on you?" Yumi asked.
"Thanks, your outfit went through some changes as well." Ulrich replied back.
Yumi's outfit was a cross between her old and new outfits. First the top part was a kimono style which was long in the back, but the front stopped below her waist, and the colors were still two sided. The right side was dark purple, and the left side was dark red, and she still had the yellow silk sash tied around her waist, and her pants were the same color as the top part in her version 2 outfit, but her boots were almost black colored and a little higher, and she had dark pink shoulder pads as well, but she didn't have those tiny pill shaped bars that were over her eyesbrows, and her hair was down.
"I gotta say, I like the change." She said pulling out two of her fan-blades from the hidden compartment under her sash.
"Hey Yumi I think you also have more fan-blades." Ulrich said pointing to her back. And as he said, she had six more fan-blades making in total eight.
"Yumi, you have some kind of short sword too." Odd chimed in. She had a short katana blade strapped on her back under the sash.
"Neat, this weapon is called a tanto." She said while pulling it out of her sheath to examine it. "But what is this?" She said as she pulled out a fan like item from a sheath strapped to her back. It was at least twice the length of her fan-blades, and was much larger and curved at the end. "What could this be?" She said as she opened it up, to reveal it was a folding shield. "A folding shield! This is pretty cool too." Yumi said, holding it in her left hand with her tanto in the other.
"Looks like you upped your gear." William said to her.
"And your suit has changed too, William." Yumi replied back.
And just like the rest, his suit was slightly changed as well. His suit was mostly the same but the gray left side was a tad darker and went all the way down his arm with removable gloves, and his white right side was the same too, but the entire right arm was padded, as if to better protect his sword arm. His belt was still red, but with a large buckle, and his pants were the same and his boots were more larger. His sword was still the same butcher-blade style but with a larger hilt and guard now, and he had a sheath on his back that only holds it by the blades hilt. "Wow, cool, I like that I have a sheath for my blade now." He said while taking a few practice swings with his amazingly light blade.
"Well there's not much change to me. In fact I'm back to basics." Aelita said, for her outfit was her original version, but without the pink lines under her eyes, or pointed elf ears but she still had the red gem earring on her left ear.
"You look like you used to in Lyoko, Aelita. But you don't have the pointed ears or pink lines under your eyes." Odd said to her as she touched her ears to confirm what Odd said.
"Well I've had a bit of a change with my clothes." Jeremie said, for he was wearing a dark turquoise colored jacket with darker brown pants. "Well I suppose its fashionable." Jeremie shrugged.
"Well I guess I might as well show off what I got too." Sam said to them.
Sam was wearing a dark leathered, armored top with a few more, larger red lines on her front and back. The sleeves ran down almost to her elbows that had pads that were a lot like skating pads and elbow long gloves with a red stripe on each with holes on the knuckles that ran up almost to her pads. Her skirt was a bit longer and now leather padded with thicker strips going down around her waist, with rows of metal, pointed studs going down each of the thicker strips. It was still red in color, but the thicker strips were a darker red, along with a red stripe on the sides and fronts of her dark, padded pants. Her boots were black and went up to her knees with red stripes on the sides of each boot.
Her weapons consisted of two tonfas, but not some standard police ones. They were heavy and well designed, and were made of metal with leather handles and had loops at the waist for them. And on the back part, she had metal ones that were bladed instead, but weren't sharp where her arms would rest against. (A/N: The weapons are like the ones used by the clockwork guy in the first Hellboy movie.)
"Neat Sam, looks like you came armed as well." Odd said, trying to get her a little more calm to what has happened.
"I guess they are pretty cool." Sam said pulling them out, performing a few moves with Odd lost in staring at the motions she made.
"Odd, Odd, Odd!" Ulrich said, snapping his fingers in Odd's face.
"Wh-what, what, what is it?" Odd said coming back to reality.
"So now that we established are fashion statements. Lets figure out where we are already." Yumi said walking around a little in a circle.
"Where would we even begin to look?" William asked them.
"I guess we should start walking out of this forest for starters." Ulrich suggested.
"So which way should we walk?" Odd asked while looking around the massive woods. Unsure of where they should go.
Unknown to the gang, deep in the woods with them was strange figures lurking in the shadows of the more darker parts of the woods watching them, waiting to strike. Slowly closing in on them as they came closer and closer, waiting with anticipation of cruel desires. For these figures are here to slaughter them all.
END CHAPTER.