Yes, I know, I'm horribly late. Please forgive me. Anyway, huge plot twist in this chapter, and the story itself becomes apparent. I planned something like this in another story I was going to write at some point a LONG time ago (maybe a year or so) but that story crashed and burned, and I decided to fit it into this story instead. This chapter totally takes the story in a new direction.
Anyway, go and read!
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Chapter 9 – A Change of Enemies
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"OddOddOddOddOddOddOdd!!!"
Ulrich's eyes opened slowly and he looked around at his dorm room. Finally, his eyes slid to the alarm clock and he groaned.
"I know I'm usually up early, but give me a break!" he muttered. "It's only 2 AM!"
"OddOddOddOddOddOddOdd!!!"
Ulrich realized that the high-pitched female voice outside his dorm was probably Kirsten, and that she may possibly be calling for Odd. Then again, it was very hard to decipher, as she was speaking faster than a normal human could. There was only one explanation.
"She overdosed on coffee again," Ulrich muttered as he got up. He shuffled over to the door as the haze of sleep lifted, and seemed somewhat awake by the time he opened the door. Sure enough, there was Kirsten, in all of her twitching, hyper glory.
"It's two in the morning," he said when Kirsten realized he was there. "Bother us later."
"It'sreallyimportant!!!" she shouted at him as he jumped in surprise. He glanced up and down the hallway and pulled her inside, shutting the door soundlessly.
"Quiet!" he hissed to her. "If anyone else hears you in the boy's dorm, you'll get a detention for sure!"
"Okayokayfine," she muttered as she leapt onto Odd's bed. "Wakey-wakey!" she shouted at him, completely disregarding Ulrich's warning.
"No…" Odd muttered, "anything but the meatballs and gravy! Take the soup surprise!"
Once again, Odd's dream had something to do with food. Ulrich wasn't surprised. He watched as Kirsten shook his shoulders as hard as she could, and he fully woke up.
"But I want my meatballs and…oh…hi Kirsten," Odd said to the girl as she bounced up and down on the side of his bed. "What do you want?"
"Watch this," she told him, her words no longer scrambled together. The coffee was probably losing its effect.
Odd just stared at her. "Watch what?"
"Just watch," she said as she closed her eyes. "Code Lyoko."
Just like before, her body began glowing bright blue. She hovered just above the ground and there was a bright flash of light. When the two boys could see again, they both gasped.
"How…" Odd muttered.
"I dunno!" Kirsten exclaimed. "You just say the words and you change! It's awesome!!!"
"Okay…" Odd muttered. He stood up and said "Code Lyoko!"
His transformation went the same way as Kirsten, but with a purple glow instead of blue. Within moments, he was standing there in his cat form.
"Wow!" he said. "This is awesome!"
Kirsten laughed as he did several backflips effortlessly. He was about to climb up the wall when Ulrich grabbed his shoulder.
"Don't go leaving claw marks all over the dorm," he scolded the cat-boy. "Jim will pitch a fit if that happens."
"Speaking of which," Kirsten muttered, "I better get back to my dorm."
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The next day was the day of the Costume Dance. Five of the six of them had transformed into their Lyoko forms. Jeremie, however, went out and bought his own. He ended up going as a vampire, and his costume wasn't half-bad.
All of them stayed together for a few moments, but eventually split up.
"I love you, Yumi," Ulrich whispered to his girlfriend as he rested his chin on her shoulder. They stepped slowly in time with the song.
"I love you too," Yumi whispered back. She leaned back to look him in the eyes. A moment later, they were kissing.
From across the gym, Sissi glowered at them, but they didn't notice. She ignored everybody around her until William finally got her to dance.
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"Aww, isn't that cute," Odd whispered as she spied on the couple.
"Odd, even though spying on them is fun," Kirsten muttered, "I'd rather be doing what they're doing."
With that, she grabbed his head and pulled him into a kiss.
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"You're so beautiful, Princess," Jeremie said to Aelita as he tried not to step on her feet.
"Now that you took those fangs out, you look handsome too," Aelita joked. "Handsome enough to kiss."
Jeremie didn't need another invitation. He leaned towards her and kissed her.
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"And now that the dance is nearly over," Jim announced several hours later, "I would like to announce the winners of our costume contest! We have prizes for the boy, girl, and couple with the best costumes."
The students turned to him and almost started to pay attention. Sissi usually won every year, so there wasn't much to be interested in. Still, if anyone stopped looking towards him, he would probably notice and start yelling.
"First is the best-dressed boy," Jim announced. The crowd actually paid attention to him now, because it was physically impossibly for Sissi to win. "The boy with the best costume is…Odd Della Robbia!"
The audience clapped, while the Lyoko group and a few others cheered. Odd walked up and accepted the prize, which was a gift certificate to a local restaurant.
"Next is the best-dressed girl," Jim continued. Here, everybody stopped paying attention. Nobody really cared, as Sissi was about to win anyway. She was already sauntering towards the stage. "This year's prize goes to…Aelita Stones!"
"WHAT?!" Sissi screamed. Unfortunately, she was drowned out by the crowd. They were clapping and cheering quite enthusiastically because Sissi hadn't won for once. She continued ranting until the cheering died down. Aelita had received the same prize as Odd.
"Finally, the couple with the best costumes is…" Jim announced, trailing off for dramatic effect. The crowd waited with bated breath. "…Ulrich Stern and Yumi Ishiyama!"
There was more cheering as the samurai and the geisha received their prizes.
"Could this night get any better?" Ulrich asked himself as he and Yumi walked back into the crowd.
"Well, maybe with a little help from me…" Yumi said as she leaned in to kiss him yet again. When they broke apart, Ulrich glanced past her and paled.
"Oh no," he muttered. Yumi quickly spun around and saw that one of the overhead lights was sparking. A moment later, a wisp of black mist leaked from it. She cursed in Japanese and grabbed Ulrich's wrist, dragging him through the crowd.
"Jeremie!" she shouted over the music that had just started back up. "Where are you?!"
"Here!" he shouted. The two followed his voice and found him and Aelita. A moment later, Odd appeared with Kirsten.
"Okay, I suppose you all know what's going on now," Jeremie muttered, "so let's get over to the factory!"
The other five nodded. All six of them made their way to the exit. They finally got out of the gym and onto the grounds, then sprinted for the manhole in the forest.
Kirsten glanced back as she ran and moaned. "Oh hell, the smoke is coming after us!" she shouted. "Put the pedal to the metal!"
That said, she poured on another burst of speed. It wasn't enough though. The smoke went into her head and she felt herself starting to lose control.
"Kirsten!" Odd shouted when he saw her fall to her knees, holding her head and groaning in pain. He ran back to her and knelt next to her. "Are you okay?"
"No!" she shouted. "No, I'm not! Hurry up and go to Lyoko! XANA's possessing me!"
"But," Odd started.
"No, you can't help me here," she muttered, feeling her control slip. "Help me by getting Aelita to the tower…"
She glanced up at him and he saw her pupils blurring, warping into the familiar symbol of XANA.
"Hurry up!" she shouted. A moment later, her eyes closed and her hands dropped to her sides. She stood up.
"Go!" Odd shouted. "I'll try to hold her off!"
They didn't ask any questions, choosing instead to run off into the forest.
"Come on XANA, let's see what you've got," Odd muttered. Kirsten's eyes opened and he saw the usual eye of XANA in place of her pupils. She smirked.
"The mission will proceed at any cost," she muttered in a distorted voice. "Whether it takes your life…or hers…"
Her figure blurred and disappeared, moving towards the factory. Odd cursed and followed at a slower pace, pulling out his phone to call Jeremie.
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"Okay Odd, hurry up," Jeremie said. Odd's icon disappeared from his screen as the phone program shut off. "Guys, XANA managed to evade Odd and should be here any second. I'll start the process."
He waited as the three got into the scanners, then started typing furiously.
"Transfer Ulrich."
Several stories below him, one of the three scanners lit up.
"Transfer Yumi."
The next scanner lit.
"Transfer Aelita."
The final scanner began to glow.
"Scanner."
Three wireframe figures appeared on his screen. They were gradually filled with color. When that was finished, he tapped the Enter key.
"Virtualization!"
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Once again, Kirsten woke up in a dark room, surrounded by a barrier of black smoke. She stood up and looked for the hole in the barrier. She spent several minutes looking, but found absolutely nothing. This time, there was no break in the barrier, not even a needle-sized hole. She collapsed to the ground and let out a sob.
"Help me!" she shouted into the darkness around her. "Let me out!"
No, the voice of XANA said in her mind, I plan to keep you for a very long time.
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Kirsten reached the factory and jumped down to the floor. She blurred for a moment and reappeared in the elevator. The console sparked when she gestured towards it, and the elevator began to move down. When she reached the correct floor, the panel sparked again and the doors opened to reveal the scanner room.
She stepped into the scanner and touched the inside wall with her palm. The entire chamber sparked and the doors slid shut as it warmed up.
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Jeremie was in the middle of sending vehicles to those already on Lyoko when the console stopped responding. A window appeared in the middle, which showed Kirsten being virtualized in her possessed form. The green wireframe was slowly filled in with color, starting with the black boots and jeans, and moving up as the red gem appeared in her silver belt, a black tank-top with a red XANA symbol appeared, and finally the black gloves and the naginata on her back were filled in with texture.
"Oh no," Jeremie muttered. "XANA's definitely up to something strange."
The console went back to normal. He immediately went back to typing.
"Hey, Einstein," Ulrich shouted, "what's taking so long?"
"Kirsten virtualized herself and that froze up the console. You'll get your vehicles right…now. Now I have to transfer Odd."
In front of the three in Lyoko's ice sector, three vehicles appeared.
"Thanks, Jeremie," Yumi said as she leapt on the overwing. Odd appeared and landed right on the overboard, and Ulrich got on the overbike.
"Okay, Yumi and Odd, go after Kirsten. She's headed towards Carthage already, so get to the edge of the sector as fast as possible. Ulrich and Aelita, head towards the activated tower, straight north," Jeremie ordered.
"Roger that," Odd said as he sped off with Yumi towards Carthage. Aelita hopped on the overbike and Ulrich sped off in the opposite direction.
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"Laser Arrow!" Odd shouted, shooting several arrows as soon as he caught sight of Kirsten in Carthage. She blocked them casually with her naginata without even looking in his direction. She continued down the hallway, Odd and Yumi close behind.
Finally, they made their way through Carthage and reached the elevator. Kirsten's elevator left just before they got there, so they took the next one, arriving not long after she did. She was already tapping the holographic console.
"Jeremie," Yumi muttered, "what is she doing?"
"I don't know, let me see if I can look into it."
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Jeremy began typing faster than ever before, his fingers becoming blurs. XANA was messing with the Carthage console, and that could never be good.
When he finally saw what was happening, he gasped, then swore vehemently.
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"STOP HER!" Jeremie shouted, his voice echoing all around Lyoko. "SHE'S GOING TO DESTROY LYOKO!"
Yumi and Odd didn't wait for an explanation. They jumped into action. Odd ran out and shot at Kirsten, who once again blocked the shots. Unfortunately, Yumi's fans came at her from the other side, and she was forced to jump to avoid them. Jeremie attempted to bypass the Carthage console as the three fought harder than ever before.
Yumi dodged a swing of Kirsten's naginata, and blocked the next one with her fans. She tossed one and wasn't surprised when it was blocked. Odd came up from the other side and shot several arrows, distracting Kirsten just long enough so Yumi could get the side of her stomach with her fan.
Kirsten let out an inhuman growl and ran for the console, her form blurring as she suddenly appeared in front of it. With a wide smirk, she tapped it once.
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"What the…" Jeremie muttered, "XANA's transferring to another tower…but it's not in Lyoko…"
He watched as the tower in the ice sector deactivated itself. Even though XANA was no longer using it, Kirsten remained possessed.
"It must be using some other tower somewhere," Jeremie concluded, "but where? Why did XANA leave Lyoko?"
After a few moments of typing, he took a second to read something from the screen and gasped.
"The Digital Sea?"
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With the tower of the ice sector deactivated, the four outer sectors of Lyoko were peaceful. There were no monsters. All forty towers had a calm blue aura.
Then, slowly, bits of the ice sector began to disappear, losing all texture and becoming a wireframe before fading out completely. It started at just one edge, but quickly spread, until holes were forming throughout the sector. The other three sectors were the same.
Lyoko was being deleted.
Ulrich swore as he tried to outrace the wave of destruction coming towards him. Aelita clung tightly to his stomach as they went faster than ever.
Finally, Ulrich sighed. "Jeremie, I can't outrun this. You have to devirtualize us."
Instead of hearing anything from Jeremie, he, Aelita, and the Overbike faded away just as the ground beneath them did the same.
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Odd fired another arrow at Kirsten, but she leaned to the side and it shot harmlessly past her shoulder. He watched as it headed for the barrier that surrounded the sector, only to see that the barrier had disappeared. Carthage was, for the first time, exposed to the virtual sky and Digital Sea of Lyoko.
Odd looked back behind him and watched as the sphere of sector five began to fade away from the inside out. Kirsten leapt off the platform and fell towards the Digital Sea.
"NO!" Odd shouted as he jumped after her. "KIRSTEN!!! I KNOW YOU'RE IN THERE!!!"
"I'm sorry Odd, but I have to devirtualize all of you," Jeremie said. "Soon there won't be anything to stand on and you'll hit the sea."
"NO!" Odd yelled, anger and desperation obvious in his voice. "NOT UNTIL I SAVE HER!"
"We have no choice! Devirtualization!"
"NOOOOO!" Odd screamed as he saw his feet turn into a wireframe. Just before he faded away, a faint red shield glowed around Kirsten and she hit the Digital Sea with a small splash.
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Yeah, I know, it's kind of similar to what happened with William. I've actually been planning something about XANA taking control of Kirsten for a long time (since the first time Kirsten was possessed, actually). Don't worry, the Digital Sea will be different from the one shown in the show, and their method of getting there will be different too. I had this idea a while ago, before the whole William thing, though it definitely changed since then. I was originally going to have her hide in Carthage, but the Digital Sea is more fun, and I've got some really good ideas for it…
Anyway, one more thing: I've changed the storyline so much now that I'm not sure if anything after this will be even remotely the same as the original story. Don't expect this to tie in to the sequel, "Living Up To A Legend." This will either be a stand-alone fic, or I'll wait a while before writing a sequel. Now that S4 is well underway, I'm much more inspired.
PLEASE review, and if you really like it, tell other people about it. I could always use more readers!
Oh, right, I just want to give a quick little hint about what might happen in the next chapter. I'm pretty sure that, if things go as planned, I'll be explaining why XANA is always after Kirsten.
