-1Like I said, I have more time on my hands then I know what to do with right now. So typing stories, I will. As for the titles, I have made titles for them, but there will be indication of who is rescued in the chapter. For example, this chapter is Storming the Desert US. The US stands for Ulrich Stern. When Yumi is rescued, it will have YI, Odd is ODR, and the fourth sector I have a surprise waiting for that one. The final chapters will have an obvious title.
Disclaimer: I don't own Code Lyoko. I own Yami(not Xana), Jennifer, the overcycle, and the plot belongs to me.
Anyway, time to begin Storming the Desert.
Xana's ReBirth
Chapter 7: Storming the Desert; US
Yami/ Xana's POV
By the time we reached the base, it was getting darker out. But while Jennifer disliked the nighttime(for very good reasons, too), I loved it. Quiet. But right now, It was stealth that I wanted. If it was just me, it would've been much easier to get in. But she had insisted on coming with me, and it was pointless to argue with her. But one thing was troubling me….I was feeling emotions I had never felt before. Emotions I should not be able to feel. I am a program, nothing more. So why was I feeling the need to protect her? I would have to figure it out later. Business now, thoughts later.
"Yami, how're we going to get in? I don't see anyway in." Jennifer commented, breaking my chain of thought.
"Don't worry, I know how to get in. Just follow me." I said, once again pulling my pistol out and thumbing the safety. I pulled down my goggles and tapped the side of it. The desert base map came up, an entrance lit up in red. The radar reactivated, showing anything within a 20 foot diameter. 5 monsters, identity unknown. I had no idea what monsters to expect. Jennifer was hanging onto my sleeve, for reasons unknown to me. She looked nervous, though she had the kunai ready in her other hand. She was a good markswoman, a very precise and deadly markswoman. But she, like me, preferred hand-to-hand combat. We both felt more in control that way.
"Jennifer, stay close and don't fall behind. We don't have enough room for very many mistakes here." I muttered, looking behind me slightly. I expected to hear a comeback, but it never came. She just nodded and crept along with me towards the southern part of the base. The domed surface had a lip over the wall. I wondered why it would have a lip, since no human is allowed up here besides people working for Hopper's personally army or security.
I looked at the map and pushed on the wall in front of me; it opened up. But just enough for one person time fit in at a time. And you had to crawl your way through it. Not that I cared, but I would very much rater be able to see her at all times. I could tell she was scared, she hadn't ever come face-to-face with one of the monsters patrolling the place. I just hoped she wouldn't lose her head, both figuratively and literally.
"Jennifer." I muttered quietly.
"Yes Yami?" She replied, looking at me.
"I want you to go first so that I can make sure that nothing follows us." I explained.
"But what if something is waiting on the other end? You're the one with expertise on this, not me." She said, not complaining, but stating the obvious. I should go first, and make sure nothing was waiting for us. So why was it that I wanted her in front. I knew why, so that nothing could sneak up on her from behind.
"Don't worry, if something is in the hallway where we will end up, I'll pull you back. My radar has a radius of 10 feet. I'll be able to tell if your in danger." I explained. She looked a little uncertain but did what I said. As I crawled in after her, a looked at her. She was shaking….
"Jennifer!" I hissed quietly. "Calm done! Nothing is going to pop out at you, I promise." She stopped and looked back at me as best as she could. She was scared, big time. Saying you want to help is one thing, doing it is another. I smiled softly at her, and smiled back a little. As she was about to exit, three quick beeps sounded from the earpiece in my goggles. Something was near!
I swore quietly before dropping on my stomach and grabbing Jennifer's leg and yanked as hard as I could. She yelped at the sudden jerk but quickly pulled her head back in. It was at that moment I realize there was enough room to sit slightly. I watched as she collapsed on the chest as well. She must've seen whatever was patrolling. I aimed my gun at the opening, wondering if it was a kankrelot. If it saw us, I had to destroy it quickly. But because we were in a vent, the entire base might hear the gun shot. But it turned out to be a creeper. I waited a few seconds before moving again.
"Okay, go. It's clear." I whispered. She quickly scrambled out of the vent and I followed. "Are you alright?"
"Ye..yeah. I th..think s..so." She said, stuttering.
"This is why I wanted to come alone." I muttered, not meaning to be rude by it but stating a point that I knew might happen.
"I'm not t..turning back n..now. I'm helping you whether you l..like it or not. It just startled me." She muttered. I knew she wouldn't, and part of me was glad that she was this willing to help me. It meant that at least someone cared about me. But she leaned against that, her hand over her heart. I watched her, realizing she was trying to calm herself down. She smiled softly before giving me a thumbs up.
"Okay, let's go before something else comes." I said, putting the gun away and placing my hand on the sword hilt.
"Alright." She said, grinning. Amazing how she was able to switch moods so quickly. But I knew that she would be a lot more careful now. We ran quietly down the hall, her following me just a few paces behind. As we ran, 5 beeps sounded this time. Suddenly 5 red dots appeared on the radar. At the same time, 2 tarantulas steeped into the hallway and stopped, seeing us.
"CRAP!" I swore as I got in front of Jennifer. The tarantulas sat on their hind legs and raised their front legs, revealing the twin laser blasters on each leg. They started firing at us, while I blocked any that got too close.
:Jennifer, grab my gun and shot them in the head!" I barked, feeling her hand grab the gun and yank it out of it's holster. She was a better markswoman then me anyway. 5 shots rang out, both tarantulas blew up. My eyes widened. "I knew she was a good shooter, but to take out two in only five shots!?" I thought, amazed.
"Yami, are you alright?" She asked, noticing the burn on my right upper arm. One had gotten past me and would've hit her in the head. Luckily another shot had already been near there so I was able to block it. But I had to use my arm to do so.
"Yeah, it's fine. But we have to move. More will come here soon and I don't want to get caught again." I said, and she nodded. Suddenly, I was the nervous one. Would Ulrich attack me once he found out who I was? I hoped not. As we ran towards where the blue area one my radar was, we suddenly entered a large room. In the center was a large brown ball. It looked almost to be a Megatank, but it soon cracked and fell open, smoke filling the room.
A deep growling filled the room, and I felt Jennifer grab my arm. I moved my blade in front of me, unsure of what the noise was coming from. As the smoke cleared, I saw a large creature with a conical body, a dome on top, and many tentacles around it's body.
"The Scyphozoa!?" But it was brown and on the end of the tentacles were points. It had a strange brownish- white orb in the sac-like dome on the top of the main body. It definitely was a new one.
"Yami, what the heck is that thing!?" Jennifer squeaked, cowering slightly behind me. It suddenly lurched forward and attacked.
I shoved Jennifer away before the tip of one of the tentacles shot at me and stabbed my left shoulder. I yelled out in pain and swung the blade at the tentacle. I hit my target and it fell off. But the Scyphozoa didn't retreat. I realized I would have to destroy it completely. That might be hard.
"Jennifer, stay away from it at all costs! Don't get near it!" I shouted, dodging another tentacle. My left arm was just about useless, but I was right-handed so it didn't really matter.
"But your shoulder, you can't fight like that!" Jennifer stated. I would have trouble taking it out, but it was bulkier then a normal Scyphozoa so it would be slower. I had never made it like that because it needed. Suddenly it moved faster then it's bulky form should've allowed and grabbed Jennifer.
"Alright, now it's doing a great job of PISSING ME OFF!" I yelled, running at it with my sword in both hands, ignoring the pain in my shoulder. I quickly slashed at the tentacles holding her up. What was it trying to do!? As she fell, another tentacle grabbed my neck and squeezed, lifting me up as well.
I hadn't expected it to do that, so I accidentally dropped my sword. I grabbed at the tentacle, trying to rip it off to no avail. But as my vision started to dim, a grey blur flew through the tentacle holding me.
"I..I told you that you would need my help."
I fell down to the floor, rubbing my neck and saw that Jennifer had saved me. Apparently the Scyphozoa hadn't expected it either and retreated slightly. I quickly grabbed my sword and ran back at it. Two more tentacles launched at me, but this time I was ready. I grabbed one of them and slashed the other. I slashed the one I was holding, and let it drop. 4 tentacles down, 6 left.
It retreated again, and moved towards Jennifer again. But she launched another kunai at it, severing a tentacle that was about to attack her. I saw my chance and threw my own kunai at the eye. I didn't know what would happen, but what I wanted it to do happened. It blew up into many tiny pieces. But what happened next surprised me. The dome was still floating….
"Um, is that supposed to happen?" Jennifer asked, having had run back over by me.
"No, it's not." I muttered, holding my sword in front of me in case it tried attacking us again. It then shattered, but an orb with what looked like brown dust swirling around in it was left. I walked towards it, wondering what it was. As I placed my hand on it, it started to glow brighter before my body absorbed it.
"What the heck was that!?" I asked myself.
"What was it?" Jennifer asked, handing me my sword.
"I don't know. But we better hurry up and get out of here." I said, grabbing my sword. But as I placed my hand on the hilt, the dull grayish color turned to a light brown and what looked like sand started swirling softly around the blade. "What the…no way!?"
"What is that?" Jennifer asked, backing away from it slightly.
"I think I know. When Hopper took my power, he must've split it up and put it in different monsters. Somehow, I just gained it back…" I explained, realizing it. "I have the power of the Desert back."
"Is that a good thing…?" Jennifer commented.
"Yes, I think so. The virus was contained in me, not my power. But that does mean that we might have to face more of those." I said, watching the sand whirl softly around the blade.
Suddenly I remembered that we shouldn't stay here longer then we needed to. "Come on, lets go." We were almost right on top of the area Ulrich was in. "We don't have much farther to go."
We approached what I hoped was the door, my sword still out in case something was waiting on the other side. It slide open and I saw it was very much like a prison. I slid the sword back into it's sheath and stepped into the room. Jennifer followed close behind, having grabbed the thrown kunai and slipping them back between her fingers like a claw. She had 15 now out of my 50.
"So they finally want me dead, huh?" I heard someone ask and recognized the voice. Ulrich Stern. I walked to the last cell, peering into it. Ulrich sat glaring at me from the center of the room. I smirked.
"They probably do want you dead, but I'm not them." I said, tapping the side of my goggles again. A small bar appeared in the center of my vision as it hacked the electronic lock. The light turned green and the door slid open.
"Who are you?" He asked, approaching me.
"A foe turned friend." I said, turning around. "Come, we have to leave here now."
"Wait. Foe turned friend? What…do…you…mean. YOU!?" Ulrich suddenly yelled, launching himself at me. "XANA!"
I quickly kicked him off me and stood up. I had expected it.
"I should kill you here and now! If it weren't for you, none of this would've happened!" He yelled.
"You might be right, but make sure you know what's truly going on before you kill someone." I said, turning around to face him.
"Oh? Then what's going on? Franz attempts to kill you so you think you can join us!? Not going to happen, Xana!" He shouted.
I sighed, I knew he would react this way. "Tell me, before Jeremie fell ill, did he ever tell you that he had found something that he hadn't known about before?" I asked. Jeremie had fallen ill almost immediately after he uncovered the truth about me. The virus.
"He said something about you not being what we thought you were. Something about a virus." Ulrich said, his eyes narrowing.
"Exactly. A virus." I simply said. His face went from anger to confusion.
"Alright, then explain it to me." He said, crossing his arms.
"We don't have time to do that here. We've got to get out of here first." I said, turning back around.
"Umm, yeah, point taken." Ulrich muttered.
"Follow me." I said, the door sliding open again.
"Who are you anyway?" Ulrich asked, looking at Jennifer.
"My names Jennifer." She said, "And before you say anything about be being friends with your enemy, don't. I already know what's going on, probably more then you do." She said, walking out the door after me.
"What the heck is going on here!?" I heard him ask himself.
We quickly ran out of the damaged room and still nothing on my radar. Strange, you'd think they were monitoring him. Guess not, makes it easier to get out of here. We approached the vent we came in through and Jennifer quickly crawled into it.
"You go next, Ulrich." I said.
He crawled into it and I quickly followed. Still nothing on radar. It was almost too easy. We exited the vent and into the moonlit darkness.
"So this is what night is like, I had almost forgotten what it was like." Ulrich muttered, gazing at the moon. Suddenly I collapsed to the ground, my vision clouding once more.
"Yami!?" Jennifer shouted and knelt next to me. I then remembered my bleeding shoulder.
"Cr..crap." I muttered, pushing myself up using my good arm.
"How'd you do that, and why didn't you bandage it up?" Ulrich asked, kneeling down as well.
"I guess I..I forgot about it. I didn't think it was that deep either." Muttered, shaking my head in an attempt to clear my vision. My eyes widened suddenly as Jennifer screamed in pain, falling against me.
"What the heck!?" I quickly pushed myself up again, seeing a trio of krabes standing to my left, the center krabes laser smoking. My face contorted in anger and I stood, the pain almost completely gone. I pulled out my sword and yelled, running at them. My eyes were once again blood red.
"Time. To. Die." I said, the sand once again swirling around the blade. I jumped up and stabbed the krabe that had attacked Jennifer. Before it blew up, I jumped onto the next krabe and did the same thing.
"One left…." I muttered. But it blew itself up before I could do anything else.
"Hey, you alright?" I heard Ulrich ask, helping Jennifer up.
"I..I think so. It just scared me more then anything." She said, breathing heavily.
"Damn krabes, why didn't they show up on my radar!?" I muttered. I suddenly realized something. When I had fallen down, I had hit my head. Or rather, my goggles had hit the floor. "Are you alright Jennifer?"
"Yeah, I think so. My back just stings, it'll go away though." She said, smiling slightly.
I grabbed the cube that stored the overbike from my pocket and tapped a tiny button on it and threw it. It transformed itself into what it stored.
"So, what now? And would you please explain to me what is going on, Xana?" Ulrich said, staring at me.
"Not now. I don't feel like explaining it 3 times. So you'll have to wait a little longer." I said.
"And his name isn't Xana, it's Yami" Jennifer said, crossing her arms.
Ulrich just rolled his eyes. "Whatever. But now what?"
"We rescue Yumi." I said, grabbing another cube that was the overcycle.
Ulrich got on the overbike and looked it over.
"So, can it still fly?" He asked.
"Yes." I said, getting onto the overcycle. Jennifer got on behind me again and wrapped her arms around my waist. "Follow me." I said, starting it up right away. We went to the nearest edge and flew off, Ulrich thumbing the red button that activated the flight feature. We headed in the direction of the Polar Region, but I realized something again.
"Why is my shoulder healed already!?"
Well, I got chapter 7 done. I might have this story done by the time I get back home. Cool. Expect chapter 8 soon.