And here be chapter ten! Ulrich's great escape! Or something like that…
Chapter 10
"I had another dream last night," Aelita said to Jeremie after about three minutes of silence at breakfast.
Jeremie looked up from his pancakes. So that was what was wrong. Aelita hadn't said anything since she had greeted him earlier, and Jeremie had assumed she was just tired, or worried about Ulrich and Antea. Aelita usually didn't like to talk about it when something was bothering her, so Jeremie didn't say anything either. Odd was still asleep, so he wasn't there to break the silence. He and Aelita were alone right now—well, not alone alone, they were in the cafeteria, but they were the only ones at their table, fairly secluded from the rest of the school—so he felt a bit awkward talking to her. But now that she had spoken up, he realized she needed him to.
"I thought something was wrong," said Jeremie, "What was the dream about?"
"Well," Aelita began, "It started out on Lyoko, in this kind of no-place… And then I saw my mother there. I tried to follow her, but she kept running away… And I saw her start transforming into… I can't exactly remember what she looked like. It's slipping away. But then she disappeared, and I went to the hospital to go visit Ulrich, and he was gone. I don't really know if those two events are supposed to connect. I thought maybe whatever it was my mother turned into had to do with Ulrich's disappearance. I called him when I woke up to make sure he was okay, and he didn't answer. He was probably asleep, but still, it's really starting to bug me."
"So you think that dream means something's happened to both of them?" Jeremie asked.
"Last time I dreamt about Lyoko," Aelita said, "It ended up coming true. That was when I lost my father. What if I'm about to lose my mother, and Ulrich, too?"
Jeremie's eyes bulged. That was true. When Aelita had dreams like this, they predicted the future. Jeremie didn't know how they did; maybe it had to do with her telepathic link to Lyoko. But if Aelita had interpreted this dream correctly, then they had to figure something out. Maybe she didn't interpret it correctly. Maybe…
"Maybe Ulrich didn't get kidnapped or killed," said Jeremie, "Maybe he left."
Aelita raised an eyebrow. "But why would he do that?" she asked.
"You know him," said Jeremie, "He's really dedicated to our mission. If he could think of a way to help, he'd do it."
"Do you really think he could?" Aelita asked.
"Could what?" asked a high-pitched voice from behind, catching Jeremie and Aelita off-guard. Jeremie screamed and jumped out of his seat.
"ODD!" Aelita screeched, her reaction about the same as Jeremie's, "How long have you been standing there?!"
"Well," said Odd, "Seeing as I asked a question regarding what you were talking about, one can only assume that I haven't been here for more than five seconds."
"That sounded uncharacteristically intelligent," said Jeremie.
"You gonna finish that pancake?" Odd asked.
"There's Odd," Aelita grinned.
"Maybe if you got up earlier," said Jeremie, "You wouldn't have to steal food from other people."
"I only get hungry when I'm fully awake," said Odd, "Now can I have that pancake, pleeeaaase?"
"Fine," said Jeremie, pushing his remaining pancake over to Odd.
"So," said Odd, stuffing his face, "You still haven't answered my other question."
"We were talking about Ulrich," said Aelita, "I had a dream where I went to see him in the hospital and he wasn't there."
"…Which means one of three things," Jeremie continued, "He's either left, been kidnapped, or dead."
"Oh," said Odd, wolfing down a glass of milk, "Cool."
"Were you even listening?" Jeremie asked, tapping Odd on the head.
"Huh?" Odd asked, pancake crumbs escaping his mouth. Jeremie repeated what he and Aelita had said.
"How do you know you didn't have that dream because you were stressed or anything like that?" Odd asked.
"Don't you remember what happened last time I had a dream like this?" Aelita asked.
"Oh…" said Odd, his face suddenly becoming somber as he remembered the loss of Franz Hopper, "Yeah, your dreams are special, aren't they?"
Aelita shrugged. "I guess they are."
"Did you try calling him to make sure he's okay?" Odd asked.
"As soon as I woke up," said Aelita, "But he didn't answer. I mean, he was probably still asleep, but…"
"We were thinking he might have left," said Jeremie, "He gets really upset when he can't help us, so it makes sense."
"But how could he do that?" Odd wondered.
"That's what we were just trying to figure out," said Jeremie.
"Try calling him again," said Odd.
"I was thinking that, too," said Jeremie. He pulled out his phone and dialed Ulrich's number.
RING.
RING.
Jeremie grew impatient.
RING.
This was getting annoying.
RING.
RING.
RING.
RING.
RING.
Was Ulrich ever going to answer?
"Hello," said Ulrich's voice, and Jeremie started to speak, but stopped as he realized this was just his voicemail. "You've just reached Ulrich Stern. I'm not here right—"
Jeremie hung up and called again. After a few more seconds of that stupid incessant ringing, he heard someone pick up.
"Ulrich?" Jeremie asked.
"Hello, Mr. Belpois."
Jeremie gasped and immediately terminated his call. That wasn't Ulrich's voice.
"Hey, Jeremie, you okay?" asked Odd, "You look kind of pale. Who was that?"
"It was…" Jeremie began. He could hardly speak. He was sure he knew who answered. If he was right, then that meant Ulrich was in trouble. Big trouble. Jeremie finally finished his sentence, heart pounding.
"It was a Man in Black."
**
Jeremie, Aelita, and Odd all bolted from street to street, gasping for air, trying to get to Ulrich before it was too late. If Ulrich was running away, he was probably heading for Kadic, so it was likely that they would run into each other at some point.
"Which way do we go?!" Jeremie asked, panting as they came to an intersection.
"Yes, Mr. Infallible-sense-of-direction," Aelita added, "Which way?"
"Ummm…" Odd mused, "Left!"
"Ummm?" Aelita repeated, "Why the hesitation?!"
"Are you sure?" Jeremie asked.
"Even an infallible sense of direction needs time to think!" Odd defended.
"Alright, alright," said Jeremie, "Left it is!"
Aelita's head was throbbing as she ran, both from exhaustion and from anxiety. What if Ulrich wasn't running away? If the Men in Black had his phone, who was to say that they didn't have him as well? They'd hurt him badly enough already…
What were the chances that Ulrich was even alive?
**
Ulrich couldn't believe the day he was having. First he had to roll off of his bed and drag himself onto the wheelchair, causing him great pain. Then he had to sneak out of the room and find an elevator. Then it turned out the elevator was out of order, so he had to use the stairs, which was just delightful. Then came more sneaking around in a squeaky wheelchair, with no idea where he was going. When he finally found his way outside, he had to wait on the sidewalk for who knows how long just to be able to cross the street. He wasn't even sure how to get back to Kadic. So there he was, wheeling around like a wild man, trying to figure out which way to go.
Just remember it's all worth it, Ulrich thought to himself, trying to keep from losing his temper. He was doing this to save Jeremie, so it was worth all the aggravation. Ulrich wheeled across the street as the traffic light turned red, desperately hoping that he was going in the right direction. He really wished he could walk right now. Then he'd be a lot faster. Ulrich looked back and forth, making sure he was safe.
Suddenly, the light turned green.
Ulrich panicked at first, but then he tried to calm down, telling himself there was no way that the drivers wouldn't see him. Or so he thought.
A big red semi-truck started driving towards him. Ulrich gasped, desperately turning the wheels for his life. He felt a sudden burst of speed, and in no time he was safe at the sidewalk. The truck zoomed behind him. Ulrich began panting, still in shock from his near-death situation.
"You okay?" asked a voice.
"Huh?" Ulrich asked. He looked behind him, and was stunned to see who it was.
"Yumi?!" He asked. So that was why he got faster all of sudden. Yumi pushed him.
"I leave you alone for one day and you jump in front of a truck!" Yumi said as she hugged him.
"Thanks for saving me," said Ulrich, "How'd you find me?"
"Aelita called and said you were missing," said Yumi, letting go of him, "And she thought that the Men in Black might have kidnapped you or you just ran off or something."
"The Men in Black," Ulrich said, "They're after Jeremie! They came by earlier this morning and asked me where he was. They said they'd keep coming back until he came to visit me. They took my phone, so I couldn't just call him to warn him. I had to go tell him in person."
"They really want that diary," said Yumi.
"Anyway," said Ulrich, "Now that you know what's going on, you can tell Jeremie. I'd better go back before anyone finds out I'm gone."
"You can't go back there, Ulrich," Yumi protested, "It's not safe anymore. Not with them stalking you. You've got to hide."
"But if they find out I'm gone, they're gonna know I ran off."
"And what do you think could happen if they never find Jeremie there? They'll still know something's up. The best way to get to Jeremie is by threatening one of us. You're injured right now, which makes you the perfect hostage. We can't risk that."
"So what you're saying is that no matter where I go, we're pretty much doomed?"
"But we're less doomed if you just keep running," said Yumi.
"Guess I'm a refugee now," said Ulrich.
"Pretty much," said Yumi.
"Fantastic," Ulrich moaned, "So should we call the others and tell them where we are to try and figure out how all this is gonna work?"
"Best not," said Yumi, "The Men in Black can probably track a phone call."
"So we have to go looking for them?"
"Unfortunately," Yumi replied, "And since Odd thinks he has a GPS installed into his brain, he's probably leading the way."
"This is gonna take a while," said Ulrich.
**
"Turn right!" Odd called to his comrades on their quest for Ulrich.
"Are you sure?" Jeremie asked.
"Stop asking me that!!" Odd snapped.
"But ARE YOU SURE?" Aelita repeated.
"I know where I'm going!" Odd said, "Yes, I'm sure!"
"Alright, then…" Aelita murmured.
"Don't look at me in that tone of voice!" Odd whined, "You're making me nervous!"
"Don't look at— What?!"
"I don't know!" Odd yelled, "Okay, now left!"
Aelita and Jeremie finally stopped arguing and did as Odd said.
"And this is your final destination!" Odd stated with pride.
"ODD!!" Jeremie yelled.
"What?" Odd asked, wondering why Jeremie and Aelita weren't singing his praises.
"Look where you just led us, Odd," Aelita said.
Odd turned around and gaped in awe. Even though it wasn't where he was originally planning to go, it was exactly where he wanted to be. He almost dropped to his knees and bowed down in worship to the beautiful temple of glory.
"YOU TOOK US TO MCDONALD'S!!!!!" Jeremie screamed.
"I'm sorry!" Odd defended, "My stomach is stronger than my internal compass!"
"Nice going, Odd," Aelita fumed, "Do you have any idea where the hospital is?"
"Yes!" Odd said.
"Okay, then," said Aelita, calming down a bit, "Let's go."
"Wait, wait, wait!!" Odd griped, "I haven't eaten in a whole hour! Can we at least stop and get a double cheeseburger while we're here?"
"NO!" Jeremie yelled.
Isn't Odd just wonderfully stupid? Contrary to most opinions, I, in fact, love McDonald's. It's awesome. Even though my health teacher calls it "poo on a bun" I still think it tastes good. I don't really care how fat it might make me in the future (Like Odd, my metabolism is off the charts :P)… Anyway, how's Ulrich gonna do as a fugitive? Why am I constantly asking you questions that I should know the answers to???