A fact I (intentionally) saved for here: this story was published on April 12, 2013. 101 years ago on this day, in case you weren't aware, Titanic continued to sail westward to her fate after leaving Southamption two days earlier. The actual date of the sinking is April 15, 1912, which is why I published this story when I did. I still have much work to do!

I don't own Code Lyoko or any of its respective characters, they rightfully belong to MoonScoop. The plotline and original characters (OCs) in this story are my creation, and any similarities between these and those of others are coincidental.

CHAPTER I

There was a crude image on the chalkboard that appeared to have been drawn in a hurry. It was somewhat boxy, the lines were not completely straight, and the windows were irregularly shaped blobs.

In spite of these flaws, the figure was still recognizable as a ship from the early 1900s, prominently topped with four cylindrical smokestacks. In history, fourteen ships had this feature: five German, one French, and eight British.

The drawing, unsurprisingly, depicted the most famous of them all: the RMS Titanic. Hailing from Great Britain, she was the largest ship of her time and had been labeled as 'practically unsinkable.' But on the night of April 14-15, 1912, the ship struck an iceberg and sank with a large loss of life largely contributed to a limited number of lifeboats.

Mr. Widner had taught this lesson many times, but since this was his first year as a history teacher at Kadic Academy, a boarding school located within a suburb of Paris, he delivered his lesson with lower quality than he had in the past. Despite this, he was impressed with his presentation, which was better than he thought it would be.

"When the ship was built," Mr. Widner taught, "the British Board of Trade had ruled that ships exceeding ten thousand tons had to carry a maximum of sixteen lifeboats.

"Titanic did carry four more lifeboats than the law required, but it hardly mattered. Combined, the twenty lifeboats could carry just over half of those on board. Some left half-empty, because the crew were afraid they would buckle or flip over."

One of the students raised her hand. Mr. Widner knew this to be Elizabeth Delmas, the daughter of the principal. Although most of the teachers called her this, Mr. Widner called her by her preferred, more well-known name, Sissi.

"Did Jack really die when the ship sank?" Sissi asked.

Mr. Widner smiled. The many times he had taught about Titanic before, questions relating to Jack Dawson and Rose DeWitt Bukater from the 1997 Titanic movie had been common. And he knew just how to answer them.

"Sissi, this may disappoint you," he began, "but Jack and Rose weren't real people. They were created just for the purposes of the movie."

Some light murmuring erupted in the classroom as this fact sank into the minds of the students. Being more tolerant of chatter than many of Kadic's other teachers were, Mr. Widner let it continue before resuming his lecture.

The lesson continued, covering Titanic's history, notable passengers and crew, and other facts. Then came a new discussion—one student asked if there would ever be a second Titanic.

"By the way plans are proceeding at Belfast, where the ship was built," Mr. Widner said, "the RMS—that is, Royal Mail Ship—Titanic II will be ready to sail exactly one hundred years after the original."

More murmuring. Mr. Widner went on, "I'm completely serious. A British billionaire named Clyde Burke announced the construction over three years ago. The ship is currently sitting incomplete at a dry dock there."

The new teacher looked at the clock hanging on the wall. There were less than a minute remaining in class.

"Friday," he announced, "we will be visiting the Titanic Artifact Exhibition being held in downtown Paris. It's a half-hour-long bus drive, and the exhibit will last about an hour overall. Everyone here will attend barring circumstances beyond my control, and Jim has agreed to accompany us as a chaperone."

With that, the bell rang, and the students left the classroom.

It was lunchtime at Kadic. The students filed in to get their food and spend some social time with their friends. One group, however, sulked together at the largely undisturbed side of the cafeteria where they always sat.

Although they had prevailed into the new school year together, the five friends still shared that slight feeling of emptiness that they had felt last spring.

When XANA was defeated, Aelita, Jeremy, Odd, Ulrich, and Yumi could have found it a good time to be happy and proud of their victory, but instead were filled with depression resulting from their memories of them fighting him and being on Lyoko, and in Aelita's case, the death of her father, Franz Hopper, who had created it all and gave his life to defeat XANA once and for all.

Life had been pretty normal for them recently (the worst case of depression occurring immediately after XANA and Hopper died) but today was different. After all, it had been six months to the day since Aelita had truly become an orphan. As a result, she was quieter today than she normally was. So, her friends decided to try to get her to speak up.

"So, Odd," said Ulrich to his best friend and roommate, "any luck with any girls? Or did dating them all last year finally catch up to you?"

"No luck," replied Odd, confidently, "but that doesn't mean I'm dead in the water. Next time, for sure, will be the one."

"Be careful what you wish for, Odd," Ulrich replied back. "For all we know, you could be doing it wrong and Sissi was that one the whole time."

Odd's optimism melted. In his days as a Lyoko warrior, he and Sissi had those moments. And he attempted to keep these from escalating. Although she was now a part-time friend to the gang, that didn't mean anything for Odd…did it?

Okay, what if it did? It seldom hurt to try something new.

"All right," said Odd. "Say you're right, and Sissi really is 'that one.' I'd probably do a better job at asking her out than someone I know." Odd gave glances to Ulrich and Yumi, who were clearly not pleased, to say the least.

This was what was needed to get Aelita out of her sulking mood. She giggled at her friends' bickering. She also saw that Jeremy had joined in with their mirth.

But it was quick to fade, for another thought came to her, one that had been overshadowed by Aelita and Jeremy's many hours together in the computer lab to fight XANA with their combined smarts and by the death of her father. It had crossed her mind several times before and after XANA's defeat much like it had now, but in this instance it was bugging her like never before.

Aelita felt an urge to express this thought with her best friend, Jeremy, who this thought was concerned with the most along with her. But she wasn't sure how. Jeremy should have thought this same thought from time to time, and she felt that he should have been the one talking to her about it. But Aelita knew that Jeremy never was the type who could easily lead a girl like her through a relationship, so she had to help expand his horizons. Despite this, they had always maintained little more than just a typical 'just friends' relationship.

"Still thinking about your father?" asked Jeremy. Aelita realized she'd let her thinking be visible to Jeremy. "Yes," she lied. Aelita knew Jeremy, deep down, had similar feelings for her as she had for him. Admitting them could wait longer—but how much longer?

"So, how was history class?" asked Yumi.

"Mr. Widner gave us a long lecture on the Titanic," answered Ulrich.

"He's almost obsessed with it," chimed in Odd. "When Sissi asked if Jack and Rose survived, he surprised everyone by saying they weren't real. Even I knew that."

"Anything else?" Yumi asked again.

"We're taking a field trip to the artifact exhibit on Friday," said Jeremy.

"And Mr. Widner told us they were building a second one," said Aelita.

"I didn't know that," Yumi replied.

"You probably shouldn't tell anyone, either," said Odd. "If they don't know about it, they won't be on board when it sinks."

The former Lyoko warriors did little more than roll their eyes at their friend's lame joke.

"Come on, Odd," said Jeremy. "Travel by ship safer now than it was back then. There are more lifeboats and there's a good ice patrol. Besides, why a hundred years after the original sank? It's like you said, going out with Sissi."

"Oh," said Odd. "I was going to ask Sissi out when Titanic II sinks, but now I guess that won't happen. So instead, I'll ask her out after Ulrich and Yumi go out."

Ulrich and Yumi maintained their cross look, causing Jeremy and Aelita to take pity on them.

"Okay, really, Odd," said Jeremy. "Ulrich and Yumi don't need that kind of pressure."

"Besides," asked Aelita, "You aren't that serious about dating Sissi, are you?"

"Well, she did become our friend after we beat XANA," said Odd. "And she's the only girl in this grade I haven't dated yet."

"Who are you and what are you doing in Odd's body?" asked Ulrich, bewildered. "The Odd I know wouldn't think once about dating Sissi!"

"And the Ulrich I know would date Yumi!"

"And the Odd I know would remember when me and him switched bodies and what happened afterwards," said Yumi angrily.

Odd shuddered and stopped talking about his dare. The more he thought about it, the more he decided it did sound insane.

In the midst of Odd, Ulrich, and Yumi's chatter, Aelita readied herself to talk to Jeremy about her thoughts, but the bell rang for the end of lunch before that could happen.

I'll get my chance, she thought. Maybe during the week.

Although the ship was still under construction, the four towering smokestacks and the name on the bow gave away her identity.

The ship was the RMS Titanic II, the flagship of the New White Star Line fleet—as a matter of fact, the only major seagoing passenger ship in the New White Star Line. She was an ocean liner destined to sail the same routes her namesake was to take starting on April 10, 2012, precisely 100 years after the original Titanic set sail on her fateful first voyage. For now, however, Titanic II sat incomplete in the dry dock where she had been built for the past three years.

Harland & Wolff Shipyards was unusually busy for a Tuesday afternoon. Work on Titanic II had recently fallen behind schedule, warranting the need for even more work hours and other necessities for building passenger ships.

"Their work hours will be worth it," said Clyde Burke as he looked over the dry dock at the ship. At forty-nine years old, he was the leader of the New White Star Line—named for the now-defunct line that had operated the original Titanic—and essentially Titanic II's father.

"I hate to see the workers waste away evenings and weekends to get back on schedule," he continued, "but it's necessary to ensure Titanic II sails for the one hundredth anniversary."

He was talking to his thirty-five year-old colleague and friend, John Sullivan, who had designed Titanic II. If anyone had disagreed about Burke being the ship's father, they would have instead said Sullivan was.

"And the way things are proceeding," Sullivan commented, "they will be back on schedule so that may happen."

Burke nodded. From the edge of the dry dock, they both surveyed the ship's incomplete elements like the paint, deck work, and erecting the masts. For Burke, however, this wasn't enough. He longed for a more close-up inspection.

"Do you wish to see her hull?" asked Sullivan.

"You read my mind," said Burke. With that, they descended a nearby staircase into the dry dock below. In four months, this area would be flooded and Titanic II would be towed out for her finishing touches.

Burke and Sullivan walked up to the left side, also known as the port side, of Titanic II. The first stop was the bow, or front of the ship. Some of the biggest differences between the original Titanic and her successor would be concealed underwater when she was finished. On the bow, this was the blunt bulb that increased fuel efficiency by forming a wave ahead of the ship and having her enter at the wave's lowest point.

Just aft, or to the rear of the bulbous bow were the bow thrusters, two circular holes in the ship's bow to help increase maneuverability by allowing the bow to move from side to side.

"I'm still amazed by the size!" exclaimed Burke, peering up to Titanic II's upper decks as he and Sullivan walked towards the stern—the back end of the ship.

"Yet she won't come out as the biggest ship in the world, sadly," Sullivan said with a hint of remorse. "There's bigger fish nowadays, like the Queen Mary 2."

"Right," responded Burke. "But as the only two operating ocean liners since QE2 was retired, Titanic II's biggest rival will perhaps be the Queen Mary 2."

"And what Titanic II lacks in size," added Sullivan, "she makes up for in popularity and authenticity generated by the original ship."

"Yes," said Burke. He chuckled, then continued, "Ironic, isn't it? A century ago, White Star Line and Titanic were competing against Cunard and Lusitania and Mauretania. Today, we, the New White Star Line, are using Titanic II to compete against Cunard and the Queen Mary 2."

"And thus Cunard and White Star's struggle for dominance of the ocean liner industry lives on to this day," Sullivan concluded for his partner with great finality. "Yes, very ironic," he said.

As they walked, Burke and Sullivan inspected one of Titanic II's two large horizontal stabilizers that could be retracted and adjusted. These were meant to help keep the ship from rolling in rough seas. They also noticed how the ship had a welded hull, instead of the weak rivets used on the original—a crucial factor that led to the first Titanic's downfall, not to be repeated today.

It was here that another man approached them. "Good day, Clyde!" he greeted.

Burke and Sullivan turned around to see forty-two year-old Loyd Davis walking up to them. His hair was thinning, and had a fair amount of facial hair. He looked like a proud man with few signs of age—and he had reason to be proud, for he was Titanic II's future captain.

"How are you feeling today, Loyd?" asked Sullivan.

"I'm feeling quite excited," replied Davis. "Mostly because I wonder what it will be like to command her."

"That is very exciting," Burke echoed. "You'll get your chance before you know it."

The three men continued their tour of Titanic II's hull, turning around at the propellers and walking forward—towards the bow—off her starboard, or right, side. With that, they exited the dry dock and marveled at the sight.

The recreation of the world's greatest ship was almost complete. Her design had received numerous upgrades from that of her predecessor, and as a result she was now more modernized and ready to withstand any kind of natural event that might cause her to founder.

What could possibly go wrong?

Hit 'next' to read Chapter II!