Chapter 3

The day went relatively quickly. It was a tiring day, as their boss had asked them to do a little overtime. Fortunately, both kids didn't protest the extended time at their parent's work, as the manager had taken them under her wing for a while, and showed them around the building for a while, before letting them retire for some snacks and other forms of entertainment.

All the while, XANA slowly was sapping some of Aelita's strength, in order to rebuild his own. He had enough energy to take control for a few minutes, but XANA did not want to blow all the stored energy right away. XANA wanted to slowly drain her until he had enough power to take control, and finally accomplish what it had been planning for the last few years. XANA had to admit again, that she had really grown in the past thirteen years.

It had taken him almost all day to do absorb enough energy for a few minutes of possession. XANA would need to wait for at least two weeks to finally go back to where it all began…

-Two weeks later-

Tap, tap, tap went the button as a finger gently pushed it.

'Vendredi, dix trente, de L'après-midi (Friday, 10:30 P.M.)' The clock softly chimed out from the speakers on its front.

"The date?" asked Antea, seemingly to the clock in her hands.

'Le cinq juin (the 5th of June)' the clock replied, still counting away the seconds with a barely audible click.

Antea put the clock on the nightstand, and waddled toward the room she stayed in. It was a small room, but she liked it that way, as she would not need extra space until she grew up. It had to take a lot of persuasion from both of them in order to get one to herself, as Waldo, like all big brothers, liked to annoy her a little before going under the blankets to kip for the might. Yawning, she turned over her thoughts, closed her eyes, and within a few moments, was asleep.

-MEANWHILE (dun dun dun!)-

He awoke slowly, letting the thoughts wash over him like ocean waves. There was something peculiar about them. Sometimes they were rough, like water during a storm, sometimes comforting like clouds, or painful, like needles. This was something that humans took for granted- to have thoughts, and to feel feelings, while other life forms could not. It was amazing- how much humans take for granted, until they become humbled, or they were in mortal peril.

Choosing the latter, he decided that he would take advantage of the ignorance they paid to these attributes with the passing of this night. Yes, it was time. Now, he would go out, and finish what he had started. Now he, XANA, would be known once again, and he would be able to finish off the Lyoko Warriors before moving on to the rest of the civilian population. Fortunately, the team had gone far and wide during his absence. This was going to be easy…

Feeling her mind wander, Aelita sipped her coffee, trying to get it to "wake up". Warmth rushed through her body, and her eyes were involuntarily closing. Before she could stand up from where she was sitting, darkness came upon her, and she used the research papers [she was looking at previously] as a pillow. Not too long after that did her eyes open again, the unmistakable Eye of XANA flashing in both of them.

Flickering slightly, the possessed Aelita made a clone of herself, which promptly went upstairs to ease any suspicion. With a dismissive wave of her hand, the lights shut off, and Aelita phased through the walls to the outside. Running swiftly and not making a sound, XANA-Aelita reached the destination- The factory.

The factory itself remained barren, desolate, but in more need of repairs than in its former state several years ago. It was unknown why the government had allowed it to remain standing, but all that XANA was worried about was if the supercomputer was still working, and that the factory would not collapse due to its structural instability after more than a decade.

Jumping from the platform near the entrance to the factory, Aelita landed with a small thump, scattering the thick layer of dust that accumulated over time, abilities enhanced by XANA so that the vessel he was currently in would not be damaged. Flickering once again, Aelita's body passed through the floor and solidified in the Supercomputer room.

The supercomputer itself was silent, hidden under the dusty tri-cover of the metal protecting it from view. Once Aelita entered the room, an alarm rang out, and the tri-cover parted, with the supercomputer rising eerily from the ground, the dust billowing around it.

Slowly walking to the lever, Aelita wrenched it upward. The lever was stopped into place, after all the time passed, but with XANA's aid, she was able to free it.

With an electrical hum, the supercomputer roared back into life. Satisfied, XANA-Aelita dissolved once again into the ground, and re-appeared in the lab room. The screen flickered, and the screen lit up with fierce intensity. Once the light died down a little, Aelita walked over, and started typing rapidly some commands.

XANA Was surprised that the supercomputer was still functioning. Not as excellent as it was over a decade ago, but still operational. Aelita finished the commands and phased downward. Entering a spherical chamber that was dimly lit with age, the metal doors closed with a loud clang. An invisible wind coming from nowhere swept upward, ruffling the clothing as a ring of light encircled Aelita, moving downward as the wind continued to blow. Then, a brilliant flash of light lit up the chamber, and a force pulled her forward into the digital unknown.

With a thump, Aelita fell to the ground in a crouching position. Looking around, she grinned evilly, and said in a XANAfied voice, "Hello Lyoko. Your master is home."