Disclaimer:

Don't sue PLEEEASE!

Special Thanks:

WAHOO! Seventy reviews, that's a whole lot better than zero or two or three. Thank you EVERYONE especially to all my staff members who are helping me in the production of this fic even though I'm not paying them but don't tell them that.

Episode 8: End of Take

She was trapped. Despite her best efforts of trying to run away from the abomination that was chasing her, the monster had finally cornered into a small room.The helpless womanpressed herself against the wall as tightly as she could, secretly hoping that she would phase through it like a ghost. The monster licked it's lips with its grotesque tongue and began to taste the air around it. It's meal was only inches away from it. It leaned in close, brandishing its saliva-covered teeth when it suddenly a loud bang was heard just before it fell over. The woman looked at her attacker and noticed a gigantic gaping hole in the monster's body. Then she turned her head and saw both her hero and her lover leaning against the doorway still holding his handgun which was still smoking at the barrel. Overjoyed by her sudden rescue, the woman leapt into her rescuer's arms and shared a passionate kiss with the man she loved.Their lips parted from one another before they walked away from the monster's corpse hand in hand, never to part. The scene faded to blackness and the credits began to roll.

A James Finson film.

Jeremie rolled his eyes and silently bowed his head in shame. That had to be one of the worst movies he had seen in his life and he could not believe that the principal lacked enough sense, and good taste, to show that piece of garbage to the entire student body of Kadic Junior High.

Jeremie tried his best to sum up his disgust in two words, "Totally ridiculous."

Ulrich had his own views on the film and decided to use three words instead. "That was great!" The boy said wide-eyed still attentively watching the credits.

"You actually liked that piece of garbage? The plot was weak, the characters were stereotypical and the entire premise was just awful."

"Oh come on Jeremie, just sit back and enjoy the show. It's not everyday that we get to watch a movie in school."

"If I were to do that, I think I'd start to lose IQ points."

"Oh come on Einstein," Odd butted in. He was seated on the opposite side of Yumi and had to lean forward to get a good view of the boy he was talking to. "You got more than enough to spare."

"Well since you're here Odd, mind sharing your views on the movie?"

"Well I thought the special effects were really good."

"Is that why you were chattering your teeth? For the sound effects," Yumi joked at Odd's expense.

Jin too was a little unsatisfied with the movie. He sat in-between Ulrich and Yumi so he too had to lean forward to face Jeremie.

"Man, why couldn't we watch a more classic movie. Aliens in space is a concept that has been doneway too many times for my taste."

"Then what would you pick for us to watch?" Jeremie asked, curious about Jin's taste in movies.

"Monthy Python's Quest for the Holy Grail BABY!" Jin then cleared in his throat and began to speak in a regal, British accent, "I command you, as King of the Britains to stand aside!"

Odd recognized the famous line and soon joined in, "I move for no man."

"Now stand aside worthy adversary."

"Tis but a scratch."

"A scratch?! You're arm's off!"

"No it isn't"

"Then what's that then?"

"I've had worse"

"You lie!"

"Come on, you pansy!"

Odd and Jin finished their dialogue and both leaned over Yumi, who was sitting in-between them, and gave each other high fives.

"Man I'm so glad that I found someone else who loves that movie," Odd said while pumping his fist towards the ground. "I tried showing it to Ulrich but he just didn't appreciate the humor."

"Neither did my sister."

Yumi buried her face in the palm of her hand. "Birds of a feather" she said quietly to herself right before she looked up and saw theprincipal walk on stage.

"Hey guys listen up," she said in an effort to get her friends to be quiet.

"Ladies and gentle," The elderly man's bold voice echoed throughout the school's auditorium. "That was a film by famous director James Finson. He's here right now to talk about his exciting career in the film of cinema."
"Oh God, he's doing it again," Jin said in despair.

"Yeah I know, it's like he enjoys the sound of his own voice," Yumi replied slightly impatient with the elderly man.

"Not that sis. He is still wearing that awful brown suit. There is nothing and I mean NOTHING cool about a brown suit."

Yumi buried her face in her palm once more but this time was accompanied by the likes of Ulrich and Odd for they too overheard Jin's comments and wondered how he could get so easily worked up about one man's choice of clothing.

During the entire move, Clayton was sitting on the edge of his seat. He was already on cloud nine when he found out that the school was going to be playing one of James Finson's films but now they got the man himself to speak to them. That bit of information alone sent the boy's excitement skyrocketing.

Dirk on the other hand was less enthusiastic. He casually leaned back in his chair, and was just in the auditorium because he had the opportunity to get out of class. Originally, Dirkthought that Clayton came here for that sole reason also, but seeing his large friend's current pattern of behavior made him discard that conculsion. If Dirk didn't know better, he could have sworn that Clayton was actually enjoying the movie. He was mouthing the lines to the film as if he knew every single word of dialogue.

It did not take a genius to figure out what was really going on here.

"You're obviously a fan of Finson huh?" Dirk asked, acting upon his suspicions.

"Of course. I've seen all his movies at least five times and this is my favorite one. "Abomination" is his best work yet!"

"There's no accounting for taste here," Dirk slightly scoffed at his friend's choice of movies but had enough decency to respect his decision.

"So Dirk, what did you think of the film?" Clayton asked, hoping that his friend would see the director's true gift of movie making.

"Horror movies aren't really my forte but I will say the thing held my interest so it wasn't acomplete waste of my time," Dirk said with his eyes closed.

Clayton acknowledged his friend's comments with a small nod before turning his attention towards the stage. Dirk clasped his hands behind his head and adjusted his posture before continuing his little "review".

"I really don't know what makes these movies so special. Now if this was "Enter the Dragon" then I'd be giving the man a standing ovation."

Clayton was too busy staring at the stage as his idol approached the microphone stand.

"Can you be quiet? I want to listen to this."

"Humph." Dirk let a small grunt escape his lips as he tried to get some rest before the presentation was over.

The esteemed director pried the microphone free before speaking into it.

"Hi there, for those of you who are wondering, yes I am the James Finson and I'm here to scout for new locations for my next movie. I've heard that there's an old abandoned factory nearby and I think I'll head there for my first stop in my tour of this city. Well that's all I have to say after you guys are dismissed, you can find me in your school's cafeteria where I'll be signing autographs."

The students crowed the entrance of the cafeteria. The building was still closed off to allow the famous director to take his seat and prepare himself to face his fans. This was indeed a rare event, but something equally as rare was happening nearby. At that given moment, three of Kadic Junior High's most well-known groups were all holding meetings among themselves simultaneously and they all involved Finsion and his latest movie in their agendas.
Group number one, Sissi's gang. A self-given title conceived by the group's leader. Composed of three members, Sissi, Nicholas and Herb. Mainly know around campus due to the girl's popularity and her unique status of being the principal's daughter.

Sissi flipped her hair and looked at her two male friends."You two boys are going to see the beginning of my career as an actress."

"How are going to do that?" Nicholas asked.

"I'm going to ask James Finson of course, you numbskull!"

"But Sissi," Herb said trying his best to reason with the star-eyed girl. "If Finson is only here to look for places to shoot his movie, then obviously the casting process had already been completed."

"Well then Herb, after he gets one look at me he'll just have to give me the female lead and drop whateverno-name actress he already has like a ton of bricks."

Herb sighted to himself. There were so many flaws in his friend's plan. It was just destined for failure, but he didn't say anything as not to anger the girl any more.

Group number two, The Troublesome Duo. Consists of two members, Dirk Kap Hwan and Clayton Mil. Mainly known around campus for their strong arm tactics and decisive acts of cunning. Clayton is feared for his short-temper and strength while Dirk is known for his intelligence and fighting prowess.

"Let me guess Clayton, you want to get an autograph from the director?"

"Of course."

"You know what? In the nine years that I've known you, this is the first time I find out about your fandom with this guy. What gives?"

Clayton leaned against a nearby tree before he began to tell Dirk about his admiration for Finson. "You remember when we had to do a report on a famous person for our English class last year?"

"Yeah."

"Well I just saw one of James Finson's films and I decided to do my report on him. I started reading up on the guy. He was held back a grade just like we were and he didn't get along with the rest of the students."

"Please don't tell me that because of him, you want to become a movie director," Dirk said coldly.

"No, but reading James Finson's life story did give me hope."

"Hope?!" Dirk said slightly shocked. He could not believe that his large friend could sound so cheesy. "Don't get all sappy here Clayton."

"Look, Finsion was just like us when he was in school and he's now a big shot director. I'm just saying that it's people like him that show us that we still have a chance for making a name for ourselves."

"Whatever Clayton, you think what you want to think. I still got a reputation to defend here."

"What about you Dirk, do you ever think about the future? We can't be in Kadic Junior High forever."

Dirk was slightly taken back by his friend's question but he did his best to mask his shock. "I got my own plans once we're done here but they're for my eyes only."

Clayton sighed to himself. Dirk still had his own secrets that he would not reveal, not even to his best friend.

"So Clayton," Dirk asked his friend once again. "If you're so hopeful about the future, why do you still hang out with me and rough up all the students that gives us a hard time?"

"The same reason that you do Dirk. We've had our fair share of being on the receiving end of the harassment and I think it's time we show these people not to mess with us."

Dirk allowed a small smile to escape from his normally emotionless face. "Looks like my enforcer hasn't gotten soft after all."

Group number three, The Weirdo Bunch. Title given to them thanks to the efforts of Sissi. Consists of five members: Yumi and Jin Ishiyama, Ulrich, Odd and Jeremie. Popular around campus for many reasons. For one, Ulrich, Odd and Yumi all had their fair share of fans of the opposite sex. Jin also drew attention to the group as his theatrics and over the top antics frequently amused the students of Kadic Junior High. Not to mention having the school intellectual prodigy was a big plus as well. They can usually be scene righting the wrongs of Sissi's Gang and The Troublesome Duo. Yumi served as the unofficial leader of the group since she has the most experience and can keep a level head during the most precarious of situations out ranking her brother despite his position of being the oldest in the group.

"We gotta find some way to discourage Finson from using the factory for his latest movie," Jeremeis said while adjusting his glasses.

"Yep, with all the cameraman and all that other good stuff that goes into movie making, he'll find out about XANA for sure," Jin tacked on to Jeremie's statement. "Who knows what he will he do once he makes that discovery? But I'll tell you, once he finds out about Lyoko, it will be like the opening of Pandora's Box all over again."

"Well, how do you suppose we get rid of him?" Odd asked, lacking a plan of his own.

Ulrich's eyes suddenly lit up in excitement. "I got an idea!"

"Did I just hear that right?" Odd said while banging his ear with his palm as if he was dislodging an object from the inside of his skull. "Ulrich said he had an idea."

"I did say that Odd, don't worry. I'll take care of everything."

Ulrich waved to his friends goodbye and took his place inside the massive crowd in front of the cafeteria's doors.

"Why do I have a bad feeling about this?" Jeremie said as he watched his friend leave their group's company.

Jeremie watched a large bald man open the doors to the cafeteria. Judging from the fact that he had never seen him before and that he was wearing a black tee shirt with the word "security" written across his chest, obviously he wasone of Finson's bodyguards.

"May I have your attention please. James Finson is ready to sign all of your autographs. Please form a single-file line and don't push."

The students complied and eagerly waited for the their turn to meet the director in the flesh.

J-A-M-E-S

F-I-N-S-O-N

The director finished signing yet another one of his pictures and handed it back to its original owner. He always loved interacting with his fans for it always reminded him that his work was still appreciated.

"Thank you Mr. Finson!" The student said excitedly before leaving.

"Don't mention it, take care now," the director said cheerfull as he watched yet another satisfied fan leave the cafeteria.

"Next please," Finson called out and saw a young girl with long black hair and wearing a yellow headband standing in front of him, but that was not the first thing he took note of.

"Pink" That was the initial thought that entered James's mind when he saw her. "So much pink."

The girl laid down one of his photographs and he began to sign his autograph once more.

"So who will I address this picture too?"

Sissi flashed a smile at James before delivering her answer, "To Sissi. My number one fan and the girl that I will help propel to stardom by offering her the leading role in my next movie." Sissi was absolutely sure that Finson would agree whole heartedly and give her what she asked for once he saw the sheer amount of charm and beauty that she possessed.

"I think Sissi would suffice."

Sissi stared wide-eyed at the man in front of her. She thought her plan would almost guarantee a part in her movie.

"You know Sissi," James chuckled. "You have a lot of nerve. I already have finished casting for my movie and all the slots have been taken. Maybe next time okay?"

Sissi snatched the photograph from James's possession and stormed out of the cafeteria all while making a huge scene for all the students to see.

"Another satisfied customer," James thought to himself, slightly amused by her confidence. "Ok who's next?"

Suddenly another student approached him. It was a boy this time, dressed in green.

"Do you have a picture for me to sign?" James asked wondering why the boy before him was empty handed.

"No sir, I came here to help. My name is Ulrich."

James soon found himself chuckling after hearing the boy's offer, "I see that this entire school is full of nerve. So, what do you have to offer me?"

Odd, Yumi, Jin and Jeremie all watched their friend's efforts in getting the director to stay away from the abandoned factory.

"Oh man, when Ulrich get's an idea in his head I get worried and I do mean worried," Odd said slightly afraid of the backlash his friend could cause.

"What do you mean?" Jin asked. He had only known Ulrich for a few months now and was unaware of the danger's one could face when following his advice.

"Let's just say that Ulrich doesn't think of his plans all the way through," Jeremie replied.

"Example."

Odd decided to answer Jin's question, "Well remember when we decided to prank Sissi by using my dog Kiwi?"

Jin thought back to the moment that his friend was describing.

"YOU DON'T DO A PRANK THAT INVOLVES YOU BREAKING THE SCHOOL RULES IF YOU'RE MESSING WITH THE PRINCIPAL'S DAUGHTER CAUSE SHE'S GOING TO BURN YOU IN THE END!"
"Oh yeah, how could I forget? And if I recall, Sissi found out about Kiwi you were in some serious hot water with Jim and the principal."

Odd nodded his head and continued his explanation, "Yep, that was Ulrich's idea."

"I can see what your referring to. Now I'm getting scared watching him now."

"Oh come one guys, show a little faith in him," Yumi said while peering through the window. "You know what they say. Even a blind squirrel finds a nut sooner or later."

Ulrich was a little uneasy being in the man's presence. Confronting strangers was not one of his strong points since he liked to keep to himself most of the time.

"Well you see, I heard that you wanted to visit the abandoned factory later today. Well I can take you there and serve as your guide."

Finson was intrigued by the boy's offer. Maybe he was useful after all.

"Ok you win, meet me here once I'm finished with the rest of these students and we'll head over there together."

"Thank you sir."

James watched Ulrich leave the cafeteria and was relieved that all the strange events that the day held for him already played out.

"I wonder if I'll meet anymore helpful fans?" James asked himself before he heard a loud voice echo across the cafeteria.

"MOVE!" The mysterious voice commanded from the back of the room causing one student to take notice.

The boy did not even bother to face the bossy individual as he already knew that it was just some impatient kid wanting to cut ahead in line.

"Just who do you think you are? If you want to meet Finson, you have to wait in line just like the rest of us!"

"I don't think we have to."

"Listen punk! I've been waiting for an hour now and if you think..." The boy turned around and saw a very angry student tower over him. "OH MY GOD! IT'S DIRK AND CLAYTON!"

The student's instantly parted in front of the Troublesome Duo like the Red Sea thus granting the two individuals uncontested access to the director. Dirk walked in front of Clayton down the isle of students and heard their countless whispers concerning their behavior. It was the usual round of chatter, empty threats to beat him up, rumors about his personal life and even a few blushes from some of the female students in the crowd. It was strange that there were actually some girls who found his brooding look and choice of clothing to be very attractive. Dirk walked by all of these conversations for he didn't care what those strangers thought of him. All he wanted to do was get to Finson and get out of the building.

"So I see that you have some serious muscle here," Finson commented on the spectacle he just saw.

"Mine name is Dirk and this is Clayton. I think you know why we're here."

"Does your friend talk or is he a mute?" Finson asked jokingly.

Clayton couldn't take it anymore. He shoved past Dirk and slammed Finson's picture on the table.

"Mr Finson. I am one of your biggest fans. I'vewatched all your movies at least five times over. "Abomination", "Requiem", "Abyss" you made it I've seen it!"

"Then you must have enjoyed today's viewing then huh?"

"That I did. I especially loved the use of lightingin the final scene. You laminated your female lead, while at the same time,cast an even darker shadow over the alien. Thuscrafting the ultimate scene of good vs evil."

Dirk could hear some students snickering at his friend's knowledge of Finson's films and sought to end it. He turned around and saw a nearby student laughing his head off and grabbed him by the collar.

"You think this is funny kid? Cause I'm not laughing. You better shut your trap or I will make sure that you won't be able to open it again."

The student nervously nodded in agreement while the other occupants remained silent.

Dirk balled his hands into fists and got into his fighting stance.

"Anybody else feel like giggling right now?" Dirk challenged the room. He smiled as he watched a majority of the students back away as not to anger him any further. "That's what I thought."

All of this was going on behind Clayton's back so both he and Finson were not aware of what he was doing. Clayton turned around and faced the director once more, "I wish there was a way I could help in your film."

James held up his hand and halted the boy's offer, "Look I already had a girl who wanted to act and a boy who wanted to be my guide when I head over tothe factory. If you want a piece of the action, you gotta prove to me that you're even worthy of setting foot on my set."

James got up from his chair and walked over to Clayton and stood toe to toe with him. Finson saw out of the corner of his eye that his guards were getting a little uneasy with him being in such close proximity with the large boy.

"Ok now...what's your name?"

"Clayton."

"Ok now Clayton, I'm a generous guy. I'll give you one chance to impress me so make it count. Show me what you got I don't care what it is, just show it to me."

Clayton really didn't know what he could do for the director. It was then that his best friend helped bail him out.

"Clayton here is one of the strongest people I know."

Clayton got the larger picture that Dirk was hinting at. "Maybe I can help life equipment for you?'

"Is that so?" James said slightly impressed. "How strong are you kid?"

"There was this one kid giving him a hard time, so he grabbed the guy by the neck and lifted him off the ground with only one arm," Dirk quietly boasted.

"But that was only a teenager? For him to win over my respects he has to lift something a little larger, like an adult. An adult like me."

"What are you saying?" Clayton asked.

"Let's see if you can pick me up. I wanna see if your strong enough to work on my film."

"Are you serious?!" Clayton said shocked that the man was making such a crazy suggestion.

James really loved moments like these. Moments where he could risk getting hurt in a blink of an eye. He absolutely did not know if this person was indeed friendly, but he didn't care. He just enoyed the adrenaline rush he got whenever he was in a potentially dangerous situation.

"That I am, show me what you got."

Clayton approached the director and stared him directly in the eye as they were roughly the same height. He took a few moments to mentally psyche himself up before he grabbed the man by the collar with both hands. James waved his hand behind him to keep his bodyguards at bay and watched the boy with a smile to see what he was capable of. Clayton tensed his arms and was able hold the director in the air for a couple of seconds before gently setting him back down to the ground.

"Such strength," Finson said amazed by the boy's physical abilities. "You're even stronger than some of people working for me! You're in."

To say that Clayton was excited would be an understatement. "Really?! Thank you Mr. Finson!" Clayton then removed a small piece of paper from his backpack and jotted down a series of numbers and handed the crude note to his idol. "This is my cell phone number, call me when you need me to work."

James pocked the note and faced the large boy, "But you're friend has to stay. I'm only taking people that I have a use for and I don't think I'll be in need of his services anytime soon."

Clayton looked back at his friend and was slightly disappointed but saw him shrug his shoulders.

"Doesn't really matter to me," Dirk said nonchalantly. "Let's just get out of here."

Dirk turned around and walked towards the door followed closely by Clayton leaving the rest of the students behind to ponder the sight they just saw.

"Man are you watching this?" One student said.

"They're really good," Another gasped in awe.

James Finson wasn't the only person drawing a mass audience that day. A majority of the students who already had their pictures autographed were now standing in a large circle, along with Yumi and Jeremie, minus the company of two boys. Those missing individuals were in the middle of the large circle and were both breakdancing.

Those two boys were Odd and Jin.

It started off as an innocent way to kill time. First Odd asked Jin to teach him how to Moonwalk. Then Jin asked Odd to showcase some of his favorite dance moves. Before they knew it, their little "show and tell" session grew into a full fledged dance battle that was drawing in more students with each minute that ticked by.

"I thought you only knew how to dance like Michael Jackson?" Odd asked slightly impressed with Jin's skills.

"I never said I didn't know any other styles of dance."

"Let me guess, your friends in America."

"But of course."

Odd got into a pushup position and began spinning on both his shoulders with his legs in a V position performing a common breakdance maneuver called the windmill. Jin responded kindly by doing a single-arm handstand and spinning on the palm of his right arm before landing on his feet and jumping in the air throwing all his weight behind him. The crowd watched Jin's attempt at the backflip as his body was now perfectly perpendicular to the ground. Jin looked at the students watching him and saw a familiar green outline in his vision.

"Hey it's Ulrich!" Jin exclaimed in mid-flip happy to see that his friend made it back from Finson with news to report. Too bad he forgot all about his dance battle with Odd and the risky maneuver he was currently doing.

THUD!

"OooOO," The crowd said in union, winching in pain knowing full well that indeed that was not a pleasant experience. They watched his body slump over until he was lying flat on his face before walking away ,

"That's my Aniki," Yumi said while shaking her head. "The Master of Disaster."

Odd walked over to Jin and helped himstand up. "Let me guess, you never done a move like that before huh?"

"Nope, just thought it would be cool if I could pull it off."

"Figures."

Jin slowly got up and rotated his neck in a circle to remove the stiff feeling he had in the area before turning his head to Ulrich. "So how did it go my friend. I take it that you sent Finson packing."

Ulrich was a little uneasy with his answer since he had yet to deliver the desired results. "Actually, Finson is still going to the factory."

"WHAT?!" Came the shocked reply from the rest of his friends.

"Chill out guys and let me finish. I offered to take him there myself and show him around the place. I'll make sure he stays away from the elevator so he won't find out about XANA and Lyoko. In the meantime, I'll feed him a bunch of lies so that he will indeed be "sent packing" as Jin would put it."

Jeremie decided to add his own variation to Ulrich's plan, "Though that plan might actually work, I still feel a little uncomfortable having a stranger in the factory. Do you mind if we watch your little "tour" from afar. Don't worry, we'll try our best to stay out of sight."

"I don't see what the problem is," Ulrich said while shrugging his shoulders.

"Ok then it's settled. We'll head to the factory now and find a good vantage point. Make sure that Finson does not arrive at the factory before us. Do anything you can to slow him down. We'll call you once we're ready for your arrival."

Odd smugly walked up to Ulrich with his hands in his pockets, "Oh man Ulrich, I can't wait to see your persuasive speaking skills. If you're plan fails miserably then at least I'll get a good laugh in the end."

"You're so supportive," Ulrich said flatly as he watched his friends walk towards the park.

"Ok Jeremie, where are going to hide?" Odd asked. The remaining four members were now in the factory and were scanning the vicinity for an ideal place to conceal themselves from Finson's vision.

Jeremie pointed to a ledged near the elevator shaft that was not too high off the ground, "Up there"

Yumi looked at the direction that Jeremie was pointing to and was a little confused. "How are we going to get up there?"

"Simple, there's a nearby ladder that will take us there. All we have to do is climb it."

Jeremie lead the group to the ladder and began his accent. Upon reaching the top, Jin leaned against a nearby iron beam and pulled out his cell phone so that he could get in contact with Ulrich.

"Yo Ulrich, Finson bothering you?"

"Not yet, he's still in the cafeteria but I can see that he's down to his last few autographs."

"How fortunate for you. We've just gotten into position in the factory so you can bring your friend over anytime now."

"That's good."

Ulrich looked up and saw the director walk towards him. "Looks like you called just in the nick of time. Finson is making his way towards me which means we'll be at the factory in no time. See you later."

Ulrich was the first to hang up and left behind a dull ring in Jin's ears. The boy then pocked his cell phone and faced the rest of the group.

"So what's going on?" Odd asked the Japanese boy.

"Finson will be here any moment now."

"So anybody here have a good backup plan if slash when Ulrich's scheme falls apart?" Odd asked turning to the rest of his friends.

"I got it!" Jin said while snapping his fingers. "We have Ulrich lure Finson right below us right before we jump down and start beating him up like ninjas. Then he'll HAVE to leave. He would be leaving in a stretcher but he'll be leaving none the less."

"I don't think that's a good plan," Yumi said while facing the factory's gigantic double doors.

"Ok, ok, ok new plan."

"What is it this time?"

"We have Ulrich lure Finson right below us right before we jump down and start beating him up like asamurai. Oh yeah, I mean come on, ninjas? What was I thinking? A samurai is much better suited for this plan."

Yumi ignored Jin's attempt at humor and instead focused on the factory's doors once more. She saw a ray of light enter the factory as two shadows stood in the doorway, that could only mean one thing.

"Ulrich and Finson are here," Yumi said out loud right before being hushed by the group.

"Wow, look at this place. It's perfect!" Finson exclaimed as he looked around the large factory.

"You think it's perfect, but the place is paretically falling apart. The wall are crumbling and the foundation is getting weaker. Any moment now the wholebuilding could come crashing down on our heads. We should really be getting out of here now."

"Nonsense, we're staying. I love a dangerous shoot and the constant threat of having a building collapse on me only sweetens the pot."

Ulrich couldn't believe his ears, if a normal person were to hear that, they wouldn't hesitate to get away from the place but James Finson saw this risk as an invitation to shoot his film here. Ulrich had to think of another excuse to get him to leave.

"But what's really scary about this place is all the rats that live here."

"Did you say rats?" Finson asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes," Ulrich said hopefully thinking that he triggered some sort of subconscious fear of rats in the man.

"I was actually going to call the studio to send some rats over for a few scenes but since we got an abundant supply here looks I won't have to make that request."

Odd slapped himself in the forehead. "Man this thing is sinking faster than Titanic, HEY ULRICH mmph mmmph" Odd soon found his mouth covered by Yumi and Jeremie as he almost blew their cover.
"What was that?" The director asked after hearing a humanoid voice.

"Oh that was the ghosts, they say that this place is haunted."

"Haunted! Man this building keeps getting better and better."

Falling walls? Rats? Ghosts?! It was obvious that Ulrich did not possess the gift of the gab. Jin winced in pain after hearing all the pathetic lies that Ulrich spewed out in order to draw James away from the factory. Not able to contain his emotions any further Jin turned around and threw a wild punch in the air to release some of his anxiety.

Too bad he forgot about the metal pole that he was originally leaning against.

KLANG!

"Now what could that be?" James asked once again after hearing the loud metallic noise echo throughout the factory.

"Told you the place is falling apart."

Finson walked by the elevator and peered inside. "So where does this freight elevator lead to?"

"Oh that thing. It stopped working ages ago. It would be a miracle if it were to work again." Ulrich saw yet another opportunity to try to drive the director away and quickly acted upon it. "You know, I heard rumors that there's nothing but old barrels of toxic waste down there."

Finson ignored the boy's last remark and approached him while placing his hand on his shoulder.

"You weren't kidding when you said you know this place inside out. How about you help me with this film, you could be a technical advisor."

"Please, please, please," The four friends pleaded in unison.
"Ok," Ulrich said smiling at the director.

"That's great to hear but you do know we have to talk to theprincipal since you will be missing an entire day of school."

"YES!" Yumi, Odd and Jeremie cried out in celebration before covering their mounts with their own hands to try to keep themselves quiet.

Odd was the first one to speak once he saw Ulrich and Finson leave the factory as quickly as they entered. "This is going to be SO COOL!"

"But he's still using the factory Odd." Jeremie said still concerned about having their secret discovered.

Yumi noticed that her brother was unusually quiet at this joyous moment and wanted to find out why, "Is there something wrong Jin?"

"I think I punched that beam a little to hard," Jin said as he looked at his right hand. "Guess I'll have to pay the infirmary a visit."

Odd was the first to look at Jin's hand for a closer inspection, "That doesn't look too good."

Jin's knuckles were black and blue and were slightly bleeding. The overall sight wasn't very pleasant but at the same time, the injury looked pretty light. A visit to Nurse Dorothy wouldn't hurt. Jin drew his fist into his jacket's sleeve concealing it from view.

"So now what?" Jin asked trying his best to ignore the pain signals that his body was sending him.

"Well seeing that the whole fiasco with Finson is over, we might as well make sure you arrive to the infirmary safely so that you don't acquire anymore injuries," Jeremie said slightly amused.

"Hello Nurse Dorothy," Jin said in a cheery voice while waving his left hand. He made sure that he befriended the nurse since he realized that he might me making a lot of trips to the infirmary sometime in the near future.

Jin looked back at his friends and nodded, letting them know that he wasn't in need of their escort.

"Hello Jin, do you need my help?"

"That I do," Jin removed his right from its hiding place and showed it to Dorothy.

The nurse glanced at the injury before going to the infirmary's refrigerator to get an ice pack.

"Here, place this on your hand, it will help control the swelling. Now let me get a closer look at it."

Jin held up his hand and allowed Dorothy to further inspect it. Aside from the blue and brown marks the decorated the boy's knuckle and a small amount of blood smeared over them, it looked relatively normal.

"You're fortunate Jin...no broken bones."

"I get that a lot, I must be a really lucky guy." Jin tried balling his hand into a fist to see how much he could maneuver it but winched in pain after moving his fingers.

Dorothy saw Jin's reaction and walked over to a small drawer in her shelf not too far away that was marked with the word "Anaesthetics" and removed a set of pills from it. She then grabbed a glass from another shelf and filled it with water. Because the drawer was near the bed that Jin was sitting on, he was able to examine its contents and noticed a small brown bottle. Once he read the label he became inquisitive about its presence in the drawer.

"Why do you have that bottle in there? Wasn't the use of that substance discontinued after they found safer solutions?"

"Don't worry Jin, I don't use that stuff on my patients. I just keep it there as a relic of ancient medical history to remind myself that the science is always changing and evolving for the better."

"Well that's good" Jin forgot about his pain and tried balling it once more only to retract his fingers in agony.

"Well looks like you're in a lot of pain. Here, these are some mild painkillers."

Jin held up his left hand to stop her advance.

"That's ok, I think I can manage. I'm not a big fan of that sort of thing unless I'm totally ravaged by pain. I prefer to just bite the bullet and suffer through."

Dorothy was confused by the boy's actions. She never had a student refuse her help in any way shape or form. However, when Jin said that, he looked real serious as if his pain was in his heart rather than just his fist.

"Would you mind if I ask why?"

Jin continued to stare at his hand while he applied pressure to it using the ice pack the nurse gave him. "I prefer not to nullify my pain so that I can always remember the mistakes I made before."

Dorthy realized that she was about to tread on a very touchy subject with the boy and wisely decided to cease her questioning. Jin's injury was light so she could allow him not to take the painkillers if he really didn't want to.

"Well that's all I can do for you. Just keep the ice pack on and you're hand will be fine in a few hours. Have a nice day."

Jin slowly walked to the infirmary's exit but stopped once he got to the doorway.

"Thanks," Jin said right before he left the room. Dorothy heard his word of gratitude and figured out that he was not referring to his medical treatment but to the fact that she did not probe into his personal secrets any further.

"I'll never understand that boy," Dorothy said quietly to herself as she began to log in his visit.

Ulrich and James stood in front of the waiting room of the principal's office and prepared themselves to try to persuade the man himself. Ulrich looked up at the older man and saw Finson slap himself in the forehead.

"Oh man I almost forgot. I need to call the other student that I promised to have help me."

The statement floored Ulrich. He thought that he was the only person from Kadic Junior High that was going to be helping Finson. Guess he was mistaken. Now he had to worry about his" little helper" getting in his way.

"Other student?"

"You heard me correctly, I'm calling him now, so please give me a moment."

Ulrich watched James pull out his cell phone along with a small piece of white paper and walk away. Ulrich hoped that this "other student" wasn't Sissi, then that would defiantly be a nightmare for him. James suddenly appeared in Ulrich's field of vision and began to talk to him.

"Glad that's done. He's nearby and will be here shortly."

Ulrich let out a sigh of relief when he heard James say "He" meaning that Sissi was not going to be with him.

"Hey, there he is now!" James said while looking up at the large boy walking towards him.

Ulrich turned his head in the direction that James was looking at and his heart sank. The student that was helping Finson out was a MILLION times worse than Sissi.

"Ulrich, this is Clayton. He's going to be lending his strength to our production."

Clayton stared a hole straight through Ulrich.

"Hello Ulrich," Clayton greeted his enemy calmly.

"Hello Clayton," Ulrich responded not so kindly also.

"Ah I see you two know each other. Now I don't have to go through all the trouble of introducing you guys to each other," Finson said with a smile too bad Ulrich and Clayton weren't as happy.

Ulrich really had to struggle to contain the rage burning inside of him. There was no way he was going keep Clayton under wraps but he had to try. The fate of Lyoko and Aelita's life rested upon it.

Clayton too was wrestling with his emotions. He so wanted to punch Ulrich's face in but that would jeopardize his position in working with his idol. These two enemies had to learn how to get along if they were going to stay in Finsons's production.

James saw both of his recruits calm down a bit and made his way inside the principal's office.

The principal stopped reading the documents he had in his hand to greet the latest occupant in his office.

"Hello there Mr. Finson. What can I do for you?"

"Well I've decided to shoot my movie in the factory so I guess I will be staying in this town a bit longer."

"Well congratulations on your recent development. I'm sure that old building will prove to be an excellent set for your latest project."

"Well that's what I want to talk to you about. You see, two of your students have requested to lend their aid in the production of my latest movie and if they were to work with me, they would have to miss a few days of school. I wanted to know if it was ok with you to allow them to go."

At that moment, the principal finally noticed that Finson did not arrive in his office alone as he saw Ulrich and Clayton standing right by his side.

"Boys I appreciate your enthusiasm, but what jobs can you do that is so important for the two of you to miss school."

"Actually," Ulrich replied trying his best to sound professional and calm. "Finson wants me to be a technical advisor for his movie since I know the ins and outs of the factory."

Clayton soon took his cue and supplied his own answer on why he was needed.

"Finson said he needed more people who could lift heavy equipment and he said that I fit that role nicely."

Once Clayton finished his statement, he silently thanked his friend Dirk for keeplng up the image that they were regular students at Kadic Junior High.It would have been a lot harder for him to convince the principal if he ever got wind of his "extra" activities.

The man was taken back by the responsibilities that the two students were willing to accept. He thought that they would be performing menial tasks such a filing paperwork or running errands for the crew. Not jobs like these.

"Is this true?" He asked wanting to confirm Ulrich and Clatyon's stories.

"But of course. Why would they lie to you?"

"Mr. Finson, asPrincipal of this school I can not allow these two boys to go work on your movie."

"But sir.." James pleaded, trying his best to win over the elderly man.

"Look, Ulrich and Clayton's parents paid their tuition money so that their sons can receive the best education that we are able to provide. I can't just let them leave school just to work on a movie." The elderly manturned his attention to the two boys, "Believe me when I say this, but its for your own academic good."

Finson figured that he may have to grease the principal's palms a bit if he wished to enlist the aid of Ulrich and Clayton.

"If you let them come with me, I'll put your name in the credits."

"My decision is final Mr. Finson. Good day." The principal emphasized the "good day" portion of his answer indicating that his part in the conversation was now over.

The trio left the principal's office all saddened by thehis refusal.

"Man I can't believed he said no. I offered to put his name in the credits and everything."

Ulrich was desperate to work on Finson's movie. It was his fault that he was even filming in the factory in the first place so the least they could do was keep an eye on the gigantic mess he made.

"Are you sure there's nothing you can do?"

"Well if you don't have his permission, then that doesn't leave us with too many options."

"I think I can help you with that," came a female voice that all three individuals recognized with ease.

Finson looked up at saw the familiar girl with the headband that he previously saw in the cafeteria.

"So much pink," he silently thought to himself before speaking, "And what makes you think that you can sway his judgement to favor us? I offered to credit him in my movie and he flat out refused."

"Well he is my father after all but if I help you, I expect you to return the favor also."

James, Ulrich and Clayton all saw where this was going and bowed their heads. The three of them really didn't have much of a say in things as they were at Sissi's mercy.

Sissi flashed a victory smile at the three males and walked towards her father's office.

"Don't worry, this won't take too long."

Ulrich looked at Clayton before turning his head towards Sissi. Now he had to work with TWO of his enemies. He mentally kicked himself for not thinking through with his plans once again and waited for Sissi's arrival.

Odd sat on the floor of his room and was busy playing with Kiwi while Jeremie watched him from the corner of the room. Yumi and Jin had long since left for home but not before checking in with them to see how things were going. Jin wanted to leave so that he could rest his hand while Yumi followed so that she could catch up on her sleep.

"So Einstein," Odd said while petting his beloved dog, "Do you think Ulrich will do a good job in guarding our secret?"

"Well he has to.He either succeeds or Lyoko and Aelita are done for."

Odd was slightly surprised in frankness in his friends's reply. "My, aren't we the troubled one here today."

"Sorry Odd, I know I should have faith in Ulrich, but I'm just worried that's all. Ironic isn't it?"

"What?"

"That at this moment, our worst enemy is human and we're actually protecting XANA from their prying eyes."

The dorm's doors opened and revealed a worried looking Ulrich standing in the hallway.

"This can't be good," Odd said to himself as he watched his friend take a seat on the floor nearby.

"So what did theprincipal say about you missing school?" Jermeie asked wanting to dispel any doubts.

"Well he said yes."

"ALRIGHT! ULRICH THE TECHNICAL ADVISOR!" Odd picked up Kiwi and spun in circles to commemorate this event.

"If you got the job, then why do you look so unhappy?" Jeremie asked still having some burning questions to ask.

"Because Finson hired two other students that I think you won't be thrilled to hear about."

"Other students? Like who?"

"Clayton for one."

"CLAYTON!?" Odd and Jeremie gasped in unison.

Odd quickly stopped spinning and gently set Kiwi done before asking his own set of questions. "Wait a minute, you're actually telling me that the principal oked Clayton's release? I thoughthe would flat out refuse his request with all the trouble he's caused."

"I thought so too but you gotta factor Dirk into the equation."

"Dirk?"

"Because of Dirk, he and Clayton have been able to conceal their strong arm tactics from the school's faculty all while faking an image that they're good students."

"So that's why they're not causing any more problems in our classes. They're faking out our teachers but that's all the bad news you have for us right Ulrich?"

"Nope, there's one more"

"Oh no, please let it not be Dirk," Jeremie pleaded.

"It's not Dirk but she's just as bad."

"Ulrich, when you said she, you don't mean..."

Ulrich nodded his head. "Finson agreed to let Sissi be in his film in exchange for theprincipal allowing us to go off campus."

"It seems like with every minute that passes by, your plan keeps getting worse and worse."

Unlike Jeremie, Odd actually found an ounce of humor in his friend's predicament. "Ulrich and Sissi quite a romantic couple I'd say."

"So what happens now?" asked Jeremie.

"Well, Finson told us that we're going to be staying inside the factory for the entire shoot so I'm here to get some things for the "wonderful" night I'll be spending there but don't worry, I'll do my best to stay in touch with you guys to let you know how things are going back there."

"Well you wouldn't have a hard time keeping people away from the elevator."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, before we left the factory, I made sure to close the shutters over it as not to draw to much attention to the areat."

"Thanks Jeremie."

"Hey I just realized something" Odd exclaimed which instantly put Ulrich and Jeremie at a sate of unease. "You're going to spend an entire night alone with Sissi in the factory. Man won't Yumi be the jealous one."

"Real funny Odd."

Ulrich walked over to his closet and removed a medium sized duffel bag and began filling it with an assortment of cloths, bathroom supplies and other various items that he would think that he would need and walked out of the room. He walked toward the building's entrance and saw Clayton leaning against the wall wearing his usual "tough guy" look and holding a similar looking duffel bag in his right hand. Working with Clayton could have its problems so Ulrich thought it would be in his best interest to try to "befriend" his enemy.

"Look Clayton, if the two of us are going to be working with Finson, we have to come to a truce. As long as we're in the factory, we don't start any confrontations with one another. I stay out of your business if you stay away from mine."

Ulrich figured if Clayton would leave him alone then he would have an easier time guarding the factory's secrets.

Clayton had to use all the self-restraint he could muster to not throw a punch at Ulrich. He could not believe the audacity the boy had to try to come to a compromise with him after all the suffering he caused. However, Clayton realized that if he were to engage Ulrich in combat, then he would most defiantly lose the once in a lifetime chance of working with James Finson. As much as he hated to admit it, he had to accept Ulrich's offer of peace.

"Deal," Clayton said, scornfully looking at the boy. "But once the movie is finished, it's over so you better start watching your back."

A sly smile spread across Ulrich's lips. "I wouldn't have it any other way."

Clayton noticed a slender figured behind Ulrich and walked towards the building's exit.

"Looks like you ignored my advice." Clayton chuckled to himself before walking outside and disappearing from Ulrich's sight completely.

"Oh Ulrich dear," Cooed a female voice behind. Ulrich already identified the speaker knowing that there was only one person in this entire school that would call him "Ulrich dear".

"What is it Sissi?"

"Can you please be a gentlemen and help me carry a few of my items to the factory?"

Ulrich trained his vision to a stack of boxes lying right next to the girl and let out a small sigh. "A few items huh? Looks like she dragged her entire room with her," He thought to himself.

"Don't worry, this is only half the stuff I intended to bring. I only brought what I thought would be absolutely necessary."

"Thank you for you kindness," Ulrich allowed a hint of sarcasm to escape alongside the statement which Sissi was able to detect.

"Hey don't forget that it was because of me that you're working on this movie in the first place. If you don't want me to change my father's mind again then you better help carry these boxes."

Ulrich lifted the packages and struggled to keep them balanced in his arms.

"Next time, I'll leave the planning to Dirk, Jeremie, Yumi, Jin and Sun Tzu," he thought to himself before walking out of the door with Sissi.

Fortunately for the overworked boy, the factory was within walking distance from the school. Ulrich was still struggling with Sissi's belongings and was surprised to seethat he went all this way without dropping a single box. Clayton walked behind the group not wanting to associate with them. Once again, he was quiet and walked slowly towards the factory noticing Ulrich's plight. Clayton was rather entertained by the site rather than concerned and didn't offer to help the boy. Sissi ignored what was going on behind her and boldly marched towards the factory.

"Consider yourself to be lucky Ulrich and Clayton. The two of you are about to whiteness the birth of my successful acting career. Don't worry, when I get famous and have fans all around the world, I'll be sure to remember you two."

Sissi stopped her victory march when she saw a woman wearing glasses sitting at a desk with two large men dressed in suits on both sides of her.

"Do the three of you have any cell phones on you?" She asked in a serious tone of voice.

"Of course, what kind of self-respecting person in this day and age would not have one?" Sissi pulled out her own cell phone to verify her thesis.

"Confiscated!" The woman said sharply extending her hand which just demanded it to be filled with the offending object.

"WHAT?!" Sissi was shocked with how forceful the woman became right before noticing a large cardboard box in front of her.

"Place you cell phones here."

Sissi complied with the woman's demands but not quietly. She stomped her foot and let out a loud huff of disgust before placing her phone in the box. Ulrich was able to fish his phone from his pocket all while carrying the ridiculous amount of boxes he was holding, which was no easy task. Clayton followed suit and showed no hostility while performing the act for all he cared about was working with Finson. He looked up and saw middle-aged man walk over to their little group.

"Hello there my name is Daniel Robinson. Mr. Finson instructed me to show you around the place."

Daniel noticed that all three children were carrying their luggage and thought it would be hard for them to walk around the factory if they were holding these large bags.

"You can place your items in that area over there." Daniel pointed towards a section of the factory that was crowded with bags and was guarded by several people. "Don't worry, you're possessions are safe with us."

Ulrich was delighted when he heard the news and eagerly set off to rid himself of Sissi's "necessities" .

Daniel watched the kids place their bags in the area before resuming his tour.

"Follow me."

The group walked in silence for a few minutes before Ulrich asked the first question.

"So why does Finson not want to have cell phones on his set?"

Clayton could have easily answered that question knowing all of the director's habits inside and out but choose to remain silent.

"It's a safety precaution. Mr. Finson is afraid that some of his employees would leak information about the movie out to the press so he keeps everyone on set until the shoot is completed. We pretty much live and work here. It's a lot of fun." Daniel tacked the last statement on as not to discourage Finson's latest "workers".

Ulrich was worried. Without his cell phone, he couldn't contact his friends incase there was trouble. He just had to get it back.

"What if something bad happens here and we need to call our parents?"

"When you're working with Finson, there are no problems."

Sissi was once again having the time of her life at Ulrich's expense. The only thing better than her becoming an actress, was all the time she had with Ulrich.

"It's just you and me Ulrich. Cut off from the rest of society with no one but each other to provide companionship. This is so romantic."

Ulrich rolled his eyes when he saw Sissi's dreamy look. "I'm thrilled," he said in a monotone voice before walking away from her.

Clayton leaned against a nearby iron beam and tried his best to contain his excitement. At this given moment. At this given time. He was actually working on a James Finson movie. This was almost too good to be true. He then heard several labored grunts nearby and saw a two men lifting a very heavy box before setting it down.

"Man this thing is heavy," The first worker commented while wiping the sweat from his forehead. "Where are the other two guys who were supposed to be helping us carry this thing?"

"Arnold and Lance had to go help set up something out back."

"Great, just great. Well we gotta keep moving. This box is not going to move itself you know."

Clayton slowly walked his way towards the two tired workers seeing this as an opportunity to show his worth.

"Need a hand?"

"Sure just..." The first worker looked at Clayton's facial features and turned away. "You're just a kid and what on Earth are you doing here?"

"James Finson invited me. Just let me help."

The second worker chuckled at the boy's offer. "Let him try. I could sure go for a laugh right now."

The worker's friend nodded in agreement and they both picked up the box on opposite sides. Clayton grabbed the longer edge of the rectangular box and leaned it towards him so that he took the brunt of the weight. The three lifters slowly walked over to a large object hidden behind a white sheet and gently set the box down.

"Wow kid, I gotta hand it to you, you really helped us out back there. What's your name?"

"Clayton Mil"

The second worker recognized his name and snapped his fingers. "Wait a minute I know this guy! Finson told us that he was brining over a kid from the local school to help us lift objects around this dusty old place. He said you were strong and he wasn't kidding about you. Welcome to the team."

"Thanks."

Clayton watched the two workers open the box and saw that it contained a several wires and computers.

"So what is this for?"

"That." The worker pointed to the large object covered by a white blanket.

Clayton saw out of the corner of his eye the esteemed director walk up to the sheet.

"Can I have your attention please people." All of a sudden, the entire production staff of the movie began to crowd around Finson. "I am about to show you my latest masterpiece so sit back and be amazed by my creative genius once more."

Finson removed the covers and revealed a horrific green alien that was attached to series of wooden planks that were holding it upright. It's skeleton bulged out of its skin dark green as one could see every bone in painstakingly detail. The alien's head was the most horrific of all which was very long and allowed it to have an a equally large jaw that just threatened to eat you if you got too close.

"This is the latest in animatronic technology as we can now operate this thing with computer now."

Ulrich looked at the alien and was less impressed. Sure it looked scary but that was not the point here. It's just that he's seen this design before.

"You know, that monster looks a lot like the one from the movie..."

"Do not say that about MY creation!" Finson interrupted the boy. "I pride myself knowing that all my movies are original and that I do not and I repeat DO NOT copy from other works of film!"

Finson stormed away from the set leaving Ulrich behind with a puzzled look on his face.

Ulrich felt a hand on his shoulder and looked only to see Daniel's smiling face.

"Don't worry, we all noticed that too. Finson is real sensitive about having his work being compared to other movies. I guess this is my fault since I forgot to warn you about that."

"Wait Mr. Finson!" Sissi yelled out stopping the man in his tracks. "Can I see my script? We professionals have to get our lines memorized."

"Just give me a minute." Finson removed a small index card from his blazer's jacket and quickly scribbled the desired information before handing it to Sissi.

The girl took one good look at her "lines" before screaming in terror.

"AHHH!" Sissi turned the card around and revealed that indeed that was her only line in the movie.

"Hey you got it," Finson said slightly impressed. "You're going to be the alien's fist victim. Twenty seconds of glory. Gory glory too."

If only Finson could see the glaring look Sissi was giving him. Maybe he would have been more generous and add in an extra five seconds of screen time for her.

Nighttime overtook the factory surprising all of its occupants. Working on Finson's movie proved to be an exciting experience as they failed to realize how quickly time had flew by. Daniel was soon on the ledge that Yumi, Odd, Jeremie and Jin used to spy on Ulrich and Finson earlier that day and had a megaphone in his hand.

"Ok folks, it's getting pretty dark outside. We might as well call it a day and get some rest."

Daniel watched from his perch the flurry of activity that was occurring on the factory's floor as the various workers began to pitch the tents provided for them by the studio.

"And so concludes the first day of work." Daniel said as he returned to the floor to join his co-workers.

"WHAT?!" The movie's technical advisor said in a voice that was laced with both shock and disgust.

"You heard me, I said we only have one tent left. Looks like the two of you will have to share. You were just too slow my friends. It's first come first served." The man at the desk said.

Ulrich took the tent and the supplies and walked away with Sissi by his side. There was nothing he could do about this development and had to make the best of the situation, even if that best involved spending a night with Sissi.

"I can't believe this is happening to me." Ulrich said in disbelief seeing how his fortune was not playing out in his favor.

"Me neither," Sissi cooed into his ear for the second time that day.

Ulrich brushed the girl's comments away and began to set up their means of shelter for the night. "If Yumi ever found out about this, she'swouldhave my head on a stick."

Ulrich finished the assembly of the humble living quarters before unrolling his sleeping blanket inside the tent.

Now.

Now was the perfect time to act. Its victims have turned in for the night and allowed it to roam the factory and do whatever it wished. Today's plan called for the destruction of its enemies along with a little irony thrown into the mix. What better to destroy its enemies than with an instrument that is primary used for entertainment and recreation.

Dirk lie in his bed and stared at the ceiling of his room. He was plagued with an uneasy feeling that was constantly nagging him in the back of his mind which drove away all desires to sleep. Ever since Clayton left, Dirk had yet to receive a call from his friend which was strange since he was always so prompt in doing so. It was more of a safety plan that the two of them thought up of. When you were the two most hated kids on the campus of Kadic Junior High, it's a good idea to know where your friends are at incase things got out of hand. Dirk quickly got out of bed and changed into his normal school clothes, a pair of black dress shoes and slacks along with a black button up dress shirt which he quickly checked in the mirror before opening his door to venture outside.

Dirk quietly crept around the dorm's hallways and go to the exit before realizing that he overlooked a crucial fact about Finson. He always had bodyguards around him and most likely, he would have some posted around the factory to protect the people inside thus preventing him from entering.

"Looks like I'm ill prepared at this moment. I need some extra supplies if I wish to overcome this "slight" obstacle." Dirk quickly entered his room once more to get a few key items that was crucial for his success.

Dirk's dark attire allowed him to stalk to and fro around the campus of Kadic Junior High under the cloak that the night sky draped over him. He quickly darted from tree to tree and concealed himself as best as he could all while trying to make his way to his desired destination. He looked at the building's familiar red cross symbol before approaching the door. Dirk reached into his backpack and removed his trusty lock pick which he did not hesitate to use to the building's door. Dirk was lucky that night, for the principal had to replace the alarm system on that particular building so it was virtually defenseless and was easy an easy target for the cunning individual standing outside its doorway. With a few more turns made using the device, he heard a distance click on the other end signaling that he was now free to enter. Dirk then approached another lock door and repeated the process all over again before he could step inside the room he was looking for all this time.

The infirmary.

Seeing how it was too dark for him to see, Dirk removed a flashlight from his backpack and used it to scan the infirmary to search for the last item he needed for him to gain access to the factory. The light's beam came across a small drawer labeled "Anaesthetics", The sight of the drawer alone caused the side of his lips to curl producing a devilish grin.

"Good thing Dorothy keeps all her medical supplies neatly organized," Dirk commented before rummaging through the drawer. A small brown bottle caught his attention immediately causing him to pick it up. Dirk took one good at the bottle's label before placing it into his backpack and closing the drawer behind him.

"Perfect," He congratulated himself before running out of the infirmary and towards the factory to complete his mission.

Dirk was not the only one with insomnia issues. Ulrich too had troubled sleeping in his sky blue tent. It deeply bothered him that he had yet to establish contact with his friends letting him know of his current progress. There was only one way he could get in touch with his friends. It was very risky but it was the only way he could do so. Ulrich pulled his sleeves through his green over shirt and laced his shoes before leaving Sissi behind.

Sissi could not catch a wink of sleep. Here she was, in the middle of an abandoned factory alone in the same tent with the object of her desire. She could do anything she wanted. Tell him all of her deepest darkest secrets, reveal her true feelings for him or, if she was that daring, lean over and give him small kiss on the cheek. The possibilities were virtually endless and the thoughts frazzled her mind. She wrestled with his inner feelings whether to seize this glorious moment or to just let it slip through her grasp and hope that she would get another chance in the near future.

It was then she heard Ulrich leave.

He was hiding something from her she just knew. He had this worried expression on his face all day and we went out of his way to make sure that people stayed away from the factory's freight elevator. Maybe this factory shared a connection with the "Weirdo Bunch's" secrets. Well there was only one way to find out and that was by following Ulrich into the darkness.

Brandon really hated the night shift. Out of all the people in the factory that could have done this job Finson just had to choose him. He didn't even know why he accepted the job. He honestly hated working for the director. The hours were long, the pay was low and the guy was a paranoid megalomaniac. There were so many things he wished he could have said to his face. Things like, "You can take this job and shove it!" Or "Forget this. I quit!" But no, he just had to say yes sir like an obedient little dog. Oh well, he should just sit back and relax, it's not like anything interesting would happen at an abandoned factory in the middle of the night. Brandon leaned back in his chair and prepared himself for a nice relaxing nap when he heard footsteps nearby. He looked up and saw a well dressed male teenager standing on the factory's bridge. He quickly stood up and confronted boy.

"What do you want?"

"I wish to gain access to the factory," Dirk replied calmly not worried that he was being confronted by the employee.

"Well I can't let you do that."

Dirk answered in his usual cold tone of voice as he approached the man blocking his path. "I'm sure the two of us can come to a "compromise" if we work this out."

Dirk reached into his shirt and removed a small white envelop and threw it towards the man in front of him. Brandon caught the object and noticed that there was something inside of it. He opened the envelop and saw that is was stuffed with money. He couldn't make out all the details since he was standing in the darkness but he was able to see a green outline on the outermost bill. Not thinking twice about his actions, Brandon turned his back towards Dirk and began to count his money in the light. He greedily removed all the bills and noticed something was a miss. The giant wad of cash that he thought received was really just a one-dollar bill wrapped around a number of blank white slips of papers that were roughly the same size.

"What's going on here?!"

"Offer the enemy a bait to lure him; feign disorder and strike him." Dirk quietly said to himself quoting a passage from The Art of War. The man had just fallen prey to one on Dirk's most common tricks. He used this maneuver many of time, offering his victim a envelop that appeared to be full of money, playing off of the person's greed and distracting the target allowing him and Clayton to attack him from behind. He was about to execute the second portion of this move but had made one slight change to the trick. He drew out the brown bottle he took from the infirmary and a black handkerchief he had in his pocket and poured the contents of the bottle into the cloth before he quietly approached his victim.

Just when Brandon was enlightened about the boy's trickery, he felt one arm wrapped around the his neck while another hand pressed a piece of cloth to his face. He struggled to free himself from the hold, but the lock he was in made it a difficult task. Even though he was older than his attacker, the fumes coming from the handkerchief dulled his consciences and weakened him with every passing second. Brandon jerked his body one last time before yielding to the effects of the attack and passing out on top of the bridge.

Dirk slowly got up and threw his handkerchief over into the river below having no more use for it.

"All warfare is based on deception," Dirk chuckled to himself as he quoted yet another passage from The Art of War he picked up the enveloped used to trick the factory's lone guard. He looked at the body and spoke again.

"What you experienced my friend was the effects of chloroform. A common anaesthetic used to null the pain during surgery. When breathed in heavy amounts it can induce dizziness, headaches and, of course, unconscientiousness but of course you learned all of that the hard way didn't you?"

Dirk lifted the motionless figured and set it done in the chair that he was originally sitting in as to make it look like he was merely sleeping before entering the factory.

"We'll what do we have here?" The Korean boy said to himself as he gazed upon the endless amount of tents in the factory and that's when his eyes caught a glimpse of a pink silhouette in the distance. There was only one person who would wear that color and that was Sissi but something was amiss Dirk reasoned. Sissi was not the type of person to just stand up and walk into an unfamiliar area unless she had a reason to. However, he was not here to shadow the principal's daughter, he was here to find his friend. Dirk stepped into the makeshift camp and heard a familiar snore coming from a tent which he was able to identify.

"Time to give my friend a little wake up call" Dirk said as he kicked the figured from the outside of the tent. He watched the zipper travel across the tent's entrance and saw Clayton's head pop out. He had a very tiring day and didn't even bother to change his clothes for the night and was still wearing his school outfit.

"Dirk?" Clayton said with disbelief in his voice. "What are you doing here?"

Despite his initial worrying about the well being of his friend and bodyguard. Dirk still replied in his usual callous tone of voice.

"I wanted to see all the hoop law that this Finson character was able to generate. So I finally get to set foot on the set of the esteemed director. I'm not impressed."

Clayton was unaffected by Dirk's comment and stepped out of his tent.

"I suppose you have other things in mind than just looking around the set?"

"Actually yes. I just saw Sissi walk off right before I gave you your good morning kick. I say we follow her, sure beats me going back to school."

"Count me in." Clayton said while rubbing his eyes to make himself more alert.

"Good. Let's just hope that my time spent here is not a complete waste."

Ulrich adjusted Jeremie's headset to the it rested comfortable on his ears. He looked at the computer's clock and noted the late hour he was calling. There was only on person he knew that would be up at this time.

"Hello Jeremie." Ulrich greeted after dialing his friend's number.

"Ulrich, we've been waiting for your call. Did something happen to you?"

"I'm alright, Finson is just paranoid and confiscated all of our cell phones before we entered the factory. I'm calling you using the factory's computer."

"Well, what do we have here?" Came a voice in front of Ulrich which both him and Jeremie were all too familiar with.

"Ulrich, pleeeeeeeese don't tell me that wasn't just Sissi I heard."

Ulrich removed the headset and walked up to Sissi.

"Ok, I know this looks weird but you can't say a word about this to anyone."

"She might be quiet, but I don't think we'll be so cooperative."

"Oh no!" Ulrich said in horror.

Dirk and Clayton jumped off the ladder that they used to climb down to the computer room. They were able to find the secret passageway in the factory by following Sissi who, at the same time, was tailing Ulrich.

"Nice place you have here," Dirk said while looking at all the various wires and set down his backpack before looking at all miscellaneous items scattered around the area. Clayton for his part had reverted back to his usual silent persona opting to just be an intimidating force rather than participate in the assorted chit chat that his friend and Ulrich were exchanging.

"You too Dirk, you gotta keep this room a secret or else."

Sissi was not buying Ulrich's story one bit. "Or else what? A monster's is going to squirt goopy goo all over my face, huh?"

XANA had a real knack for showing up at the right time. A huge glob of slime fell from the ceiling and landed on the floor resulting in a loud splat to be produced. All four occupants of the computer room looked up and saw Finson's alien hunched over the room's railing garnishing its teeth at the children.

The sight of the alien loaming over him broke Dirk's calm demeanor as he allowed his emotions to escape in one violent outburst. "What the hell is that!"

"It's Finson's alien!" Clayton answered back equally as frightened. "But what's it doing here and alive!?"

"No time to explain, just follow me!" Ulrich commanded as he ran towards the elevator. He stopped his sprint once he saw Sissi paralyzed with fear. It reminded him about the time she was on the stage when the giant teddy bear threatened to crush her but was saved at the last minute. Ulrich shook the thought from his head as not to let it distract him. He grabbed the petrified girl by the arm and dragged her to the elevator. He waited for Dirk and Clayton to come aboard before pressing the giant red button that triggered its accent.

Dirk calmly leaned against the elevator's side and straightened his collar out before he recollected his serious composer.

"Looks like this won't be a waste of my time after all."

Sissi clung onto Ulrich's shirt for dear life, still deeply traumatized after seeing the hideous monster. Ulrich sensed the girl's fear and allowed her to do so, hoping that it would help her cope with the horrific sight.

Sensing that the worst was over, the group all let out a collective sigh of relief but the monster's entrance proved to be only the beginning. The elevator shook violently as it was hit from the bottom up. It's floor buckled in an upward motion as the alien resumed its hunt for the children.

"Any bright ideas Ulrich on how to escape from this death trap?" Dirk asked while backing himself into a corner.

Ulrich first hit the red button to stop the elevator's ride to the top and looked up. He then saw the elevator's escape hatch and pointed towards it.

"Up there!"

The boy jumped up towards the top of the small room and forced the trapdoor open before falling back down.

"Sissi, you go first!" Ulrich spoke with authority.

The girl meekly walked over to Ulrich still frightened by the alien and was soon hoisted in the air by Clayton where she promptly grabbed the hatch's ledge and lifted herself to the top of the elevator. Clayton was next to leave as he pulled himself onto the elevator's roof. Clayton then extended his arm into the elevator which Dirk took hold of and was soon brought up to Clayton's level leaving Ulrich alone to face the beast.

The alien had managed to punch a large hole in the elevator's floor and starred down its helpless victim. Ulrich distanced himself as far as he could from the monstrosity that wished to take his life but was stopped by the wall behind him. Fighting the alien was out of the question, and there was no where to run. He was essentially trapped but hope came to him in the form of an outstretched arm.

"GRAB IT!" Clayton yelled from the safety of the elevator's roof.

Ulrich could not believe his ears. Here was one of his worst enemies performing an act of kindness towards him. He wasted no time and held on to the arm watched the alien slowly disappear from his vision once again. Ulrich joined the other students on top and took a moment to catch his breath.

"I'm glad we're all safe," Sissi said out of relief before spotting the monster once again.

The alien tried its best to squeeze its body through the tiny opening but to no avail. Thinking quickly,Dirk ran to the trapdoor and kicked it so that it slammed shut. Themetal door closed ontop ofthe alien and managed toslightly injure the enemy in the process. Silence returned to the elevator and gave the group a time to calculate their next move.

Ulrich still couldn't believe that Clayton had actually helped him escape from the mutant despite all the enmity he and Dirk had against him.

"Thanks"

"Don't let it go to your head Ulrich," Dirk responded matter-of-factly.

"Look Dirk, if we're going to survive this then we need to band together. I know the four of us aren't exactly best friends with one another but we have to look past that if we want to stay alive."

Dirk really hated working with anybody outside of Clayton but Ulrich was right. The only way he was ever going to see the light of day was if he accept his enemies proposal. He reallydispised being suckered into these sort of situations.

"Fine we'll do this your way but this still doesn't change anything between us. Once we get out of this God forsaken factory you better start watching your back again."

"I know, your friend gave me the same message before I got here. My back is a prime target."

"So how are we going to get out of this shaft?"

"Through here."

Ulrich walked over to the ventilation shaft and ripped off the steel grated that was protecting it.

"Now let's get going before we see that thing's ugly head again."

The three other teenagers followed Ulrich's lead and crawled into the shaft and hoped that they would never see the hideous being again.

Jeremie was only able to hear a few loud roars before he lost contact with Ulrich. Things were looking rather grim back at the factory which caused a sense of dread to resonate within that shook him to the core. Looks like he and his friends will be working the graveyard shift tonight. He quickly entered in a few commands and soon dialed Jin's cell phone number. Since he already disturbed Yumi's slumber during the incident with the bulldozers he figured he might as well make sure that Jin had received the same treatment.

Jin's cell phone rang a total of two times before it was swiftly grasped by the Japanese boy's hand.

"Talk to me."

"Jin, Ulrich as ran into some serious trouble back at the factory!"

"Figures, I knew you weren't calling me for a simple midnight chat."

"It gets worse. Sissi, Dirk and Clayton are with him and they all know about the computer room."

"Cripes this is bad. Now I'm praying that this indeed is a XANA attack so we can return to the past and fix this mess."

"Look Jin, I'm going to wake Odd up and you do the same with Yumi. Meet us at the bridge leading to the factory."

"We'll be there soon."

"Thanks"

Jin heard a click on the other end of the line before he turned off his cell phone and got dressed. He then grabbed his wireless headphones and placed them over his ears before grabbing his CD player and walking over to Yumi's room. He approached his sister's sleeping form and draped the set of headphones over her ears before pressing the play button.

Yumi was gently roused from her sleep by a soft piano track that was flowing through her ears. The song sounded deceptively simple yet at the same time required mastery of the instrument to play it. She opened her eyes and saw her brother standing near her bed and the fact that she was wearing his prized headset over her ears. At once she removed the device from her body and looked at her brother perplexed.

"Moonlight Sonata."

"What?" Yumi asked not knowing what Jin exactly meant.

"The song you were listening to, Moonlight Sonata, composed by Ludwig Von Beethoven. It's one of my favorite songs on the piano."

"Aniki, something tells me that you're not here to discus classical music at this time."

"I'm not. Jeremie called me and said that Ulrich is in some serious trouble down at the factory."

Hearing the words trouble and Ulrich in the same sentence instantly triggered the alarm bells in Yumi's head causing the adrenaline to flow throughout her blood stream.

"I'll be ready shortly," Yumi said in a determined tone of voice.

"Do you hear that?" Ulrich raised his hand and stopped the group. As he heard a rhythmic tap, tap that was close to them.

"I hear it to. Whatever is making those sounds, it must be pretty big." Dirk deduced.

"IT'S THE ALIEN!' Sissi panicked causing Ulrich to place his hand over her mouth.

"Be quiet Sissi or else that thing will hear us and know where we are." He warned the fearful girl.

"TOO LATE!" Clayton yelled out just before he felt his body being slammed into the back wall along with the others.

Jin crouched behind a set of bushes and peered at the factory's entrance.

"Man a samurai would be so cool to have here right now. No wait, a ninja. Wait, even better, a samurai ninja."

"Would you give the samurai a ninjas a break?" Jeremie said effectively silencing Jin. "We need to think of a way to get past that one guard without causing a commotion."

Yumi had an idea but before she could share it with the others she saw the guard's body collapse from the his chair and fall on the floor face first. The group gasped in horror at the sight. Odd and Jin quickly rushed over to the man to see if he was alright when they made a shocking discovery. Seeing how he was a good distance away from his sister and Jeremie, Jin pulled out his cell phone and began to dial her number.

"Yumi, you wouldn't believe this if I told you but this guy was knocked out before we got here."

"What?!"

"Yeah, his pulse is fine and I made sure he's lying on his back so that he could breath properly but defiantly somebody knocked this guy out."

"Well whoever did this has just provided us with a huge breakthrough. Let's just use this to our advantage and just get inside the factory."

"Roger that."

Jeremie tapped Yumi on the shoulder and gestured with his hand conveying the message that he wished to speak with her brother.

"Jin."

"What's up Jeremie?"

"Stay where you are until Yumi and I show up there. Then follow my lead once we get into the factory. I know a perfect place for all of us to meet and think of a battle plan."

"I'll be sure to relay that to Odd."

"Good, now let's get going. Ulrich is counting us."

Yumi overheard Jeremie's portion of the conversation and was able to pick up on all the details of the plan. Her and Jeremie ran down the bridge and rejoined with Jin and Odd as the four of then sunk into the factory and past the encampment. Jeremie's eyes darted to and fro until they came across the door he was looking for.

"This way," he whispered while turning the door's handle and allowing the others to step through the doorway.

Odd's mind was somewhat absent thanks to his early awakening provided by his friend so he was still unaware of all the details.

"So what do we have going on here?"

Jin took it upon himself to answer. "So far this is what we know. Ulrich, Sissi, Dirk and Clayton arein some serious trouble. Ulrich was talking to Jeremie just before he had to split."

"Wow, Ulrich, Dirk, Clayton and Sissi together in the same room. Now there's something you don't see everyday."

Yumi analyzed the situation before she offered her own suggestion.

"Looks like we have to take care of two problems. Getting into Lyoko and rescuing those four. We need to split up to do this."

"Great idea Yumi," Jeremie complemented. "So who's going where?"

As always, Odd was eager to take the plunge into the virtual world. "I'm heading to Lyoko!" He said excitedly.

"And I'll head to the computer room to man the scanners," Jeremie added. "Now what about the Ishiyama family?"

"I'm going to rescue Ulrich and the others," Yumi said confidently which put her brother at an unease.

This would be the third time that his sister went solo. He so desperately wanted to go with her but the determined look that she had in her eyes prevented him from doing so. This seemed like something that she wanted to take care of and take care of alone. Besides, if he really wanted to keep her safe, then he would be going into Lyoko with Odd. The faster they deactivate the tower, the faster they would get out of this jam.

"I'm heading over to Lyoko too so I can back Odd up. The more people we have in there the better our chances of success."

Jin looked over at Yumi once more and saw her nod hear head while closing her eyes. Silently thanking her brother.

"Take care of yourself sis."

"I will Aniki."

Yumi parted ways with the three boys and ran into the sewers to find Ulrich.

"Time for another rousing trip to Lyoko," Odd said full off boundless energy as he ran towards the computer room.

A loud scream can be heard on the factory floor. The scream did not belong to a teenager, but a young adult.

"EVERYONE, GET UP NOW!"

The entire camp's night of rest was rudely disrupted by the voice of the angry director. Daniel was the first by Finson's side and was ready to ask his boss what was wrong.

"What seems to be the problem?"

"LOOK!"

Daniel followed Finson's gaze towards the wooden planks that suspended his prized movie alien but was shocked to see them empty.

"Oh no," he said quietly to himself.

Finson was not as subtle. "My masterpiece! My creation! Where the hell is Brandon? He was supposed to be guarding this place!"

"I'll go get him sir."

Daniel stormed off into the distance while his presence was soon replaced by the female employee that was in charge of acquiring all the worker's cell phones.

"What news do you have for me Amy?"

"Mr. Finson, I've checked around the camp and all three students that you invited to work here are missing."

Soon Daniel returned with Brandon's arm draped over his shoulder. The effects of the chloroform were wearing off but the man was still weak from the attack.

"I found him sir, but he's in real bad shape."

"Brandon, what happened to you?" Finson asked trying to make sense of the chaos around him.

"A teenager did this to me."

The gears in James's head started turning once Brandon mentioned the youth.

"He was wearing all black."

James dove deep into his memory bank and tried his best to recall the attire of the three children. One wore all green, the other wore gray while the third was pink. This was the handiwork of a fourth party. Finson's eyes narrowed when he saw the children's trickery.

"That's it! Everyone spread out and find those kids! They couldn't have gotten very far!"

Yumi wandered the sewers in her desperate search for Ulrich and the others. She walked through the waterways until she heard two voices coming from the entrance.

Daniel and Amy stepped into the dark armed with flashlights. "Ok, let's start our search here."

Yumi panicked and tried to walk away but knocked over a wooden plank that was originally resting against the wall resulting in a loud sound to be produced.

"What was that?"

Daniel and Amy ran over to the area where the sound came from but found nothing.

"It's nothing Daniel. We should move on since we're wasting our time here."

Yumi watched the two adults leave from the safety of a nearby ledge that she managed to climb up of. She let out a sigh of relief and climbed down to the sewers walkway and resumed her search.

Jin and Odd faced each other from opposite ends of the elevator as it began it's decent to the bottom floor. They had to extra careful on where they stood since the two of them did not want to fall into the hole that the alien created an half-an-hour ago.

"Cripes, look at that!" Jin exclaimed. "If it were any bigger than the entire floor would give way."

"Well we better work quickly then. If that thing that's chasing them can punch through metal like this then human flesh and bone would not prove to be too much of a problem for it."

"We have to, for all their sake."

Odd watched Jin place his right fist into his palm and had him stop for his own benefit.

"I wouldn't crack those knuckles if I were you."

"What do you mean?"

"You did injure them didn't you?"

Jin looked at the position of his hands before drawing them away from each other.

"Thanks Odd, you saved me a lot of pain and suffering there. I'll just have to reverse the process then."

Jin cracked his left knuckles this time with the aid of his right hand.

"Much better."

The elevator stopped and opened its doors revealing the scanner room. Jin and Odd stepped outside, making sure to avoid the whole at all cost before standing in front of their scanners of choice. Odd walked inside while Jin removed his headphones before following suit.

"Transfer Odd. Transfer Jin."

Both the two boy's bodies hovered in mid-air as Jeremie typed in the next set of commands.

"Scanner Odd. Scanner Jin."

Odd and Jin's characters were uploaded into Lyoko and were ready to be used.

"Virtualization"

Odd landed in a crouch and instantly noticed two things about his trip to Lyoko. One, he was in the polar region which he despised with a passion. He always hated how cold it was and visiting the place almost put a damper on his spirit. Second, Jin was able to land on his feet and was not lying on his face.

"Wow Jin, looks like you finally got your landings down."

"But of course."

Jin took one step foot forward and slipped on the ice causing him to fall backwards and land on the back of his head.

"Then again, maybe not."

"Least you fell on your back this time."

"Hardy har, har. Would you mind giving me a hand?"

Odd extended a hand forward to help his clumsy friend up. "So Jin, what's on the menu today?"

Jin looked around the terrain and what it had to offer him before he made his weapon selection. He reached into his left shoulder and right rip to draw out his silver 45. caliber pistols and spun them around his fingers with ease.

"The ice bridge that we're on is too narrow for my rifle. I won't be able to get a shot off without blowing a hole through both your skulls."

The small movements that Odd's body was making attracted Jin's attention.

"You ok Odd?"

"Man its freezing here!" Odd complained before turning his head to face his comrade in arms. He looked at Jin and saw that he was not shaking at all.

"What's the big deal here?"

Jin looked over his Lyoko attire and an answer flashed into his mind. "Odd, I'm wearing at least three layers of clothing here. Yeah I'm cold but at least my outfit prevents my teeth from chattering."

Aelita ran up to her to friends and was currently jogging in place.

"Hey Aelita," Jin greeted his virtual friend. "Ah I see you're out on your usual mourning jog. It's really good for the heart."

Aelita was confused with Jin's last comment. The concepts of time and exercise escaped her.

"What are those things?" She asked innocently.

"Never mind."

"Odd, maybe you should start running in place like how I am. It would help warm you up."

Odd did as he was told and began to move his feet up and down while pumping his arms back and forth. Blood circulated throughout his body and drove out the cold.

"Thanks Aelita, now let's get to that tower."

"Hold it guys!" Jin ordered. "Let's use the icy terrain to our advantage."

"What do you mean?"

"Well because this ice bridge is so thin, it would be hard for any of XANA's monsters to get past one of use if we were to just stand in one place."

"Sooooo"

"So, we run in formation. Odd, you take the front since you're the strongest with Aelita right behind you. Then I'll cover the rear."

Odd's eyes lit up once he finally saw what Jin intended to do. "I get it! The only way XANA could attack Aelita is if he gets through us."

"Good, now let's go deactivate the tower."

Odd ran ahead first with Aelita and Jin right behind him.

Jeremie choose this moment in time to warn his three friends in Lyoko. "Warning, I detect five enemies coming your way!"

Jin looked around the polar region and saw that there were no monsters nearby.

"Where are they Jeremie? I don't see anything!"

Aelita tilted her head up and fixed her gaze towards the sky. "Odd, Jin, look! I see them."

Odd traced the path that Aelita's eyes were craving and he too saw the wing beings.

"Great, just what I need. A good battle would surly warm me up."

Jin spun his guns around his index fingers once more. "My thoughts exactly Odd. Now, LET'S ROCK!"

Yumi rested against the wall of one of the countless rooms in the factory to catch her breath. She couldn't keep up this frantic pace for long as its demands were taking a greater toll on her body. Only the prospect of saving Ulrich drove her to go on but even she had her limits. It was then she heard his voice.

"YUMI!" Ulrich called out from the back of the room.

All fatigue that was in the weary girl's body melted away once the sound of Ulrich's voice entered her ears. She rushed over to the far end of the area and found the four people she was looking for.

"Ulrich, what happened to you guys?"

Yumi saw her friend and enemies covered in a strange bluish-green substance that was pinning the four of them to the wall.

"No time to explain just get us out of here."

Yumi reached into her pocket and removed a small knife.

"Ok I'll cut you guys free so don't move a muscle."

Ulrich was unamused. "Boy, aren't you the funny one. Do you always carry that thing around?"

"I thought it might come in handy today. Looks like I was right."

Yumi drove her knife into the strange ooze that held the individuals captive. She carefully moved it side to side as not to hurt the prisoners trapped underneath. Ribbons of the substance feel to the Earth before being accompanied by Ulrich and Sissi.

"Oh Yumi, I'd never thought I be saying this, but I'm glad to see you!" Sissi cried out overjoyed that she was free to walk again.

"You two can kiss and make up later." Ulrich said flatly.

"Ahem" Dirk coughed loudly drawing Yumi's attention to the back wall once more. "I think you're forgetting something here."

Yumi flashed Ulrich a sly smile. "Why don't we just leave the two of them here. I'd say it's fitting punishment for all the grief they have caused us over the years."

Ulrich shook his head. "Under normal circumstances I would agree, but those two helped us when the alien attacked."

Yumi spun on her heel and faced Dirk. "Wow Dirk and Clayton heroes. You two do really have hearts."

"I have no time for games right now. Just cut us loose."

Yumi walked over the strange slime and cut the two boys loose. Ulrich then walked over to them and figured that it was now his time to joke around.

"Don't take it personally," he said with a smile causing Clayton to clench his fist tightly.

"THERE YOU ARE!" A loud voice boomed where Yumi originally stood.

"Finson spotted us and me without my chloroform," Dirk whispered to the group. He balled his hands into fist and was ready to charge the director but stopped the attack once he realized his friend's admiration for the man. As much as he hated getting into trouble he hated ticking off Clayton even more. He had been his enforcer and friend for quite awhile and pissing him off was not the smartest thing he could do. Plus, with half the student body wishing to extract their revenge on him, pissing off his only friend was not a good idea..

"Clayton, your admiration for this man would lead you to your downfall...and mine." Dirk thought to himself.

Ulrich too considered rushing the director but thought against it. Finson kept in close contact with all of his employee's and the minute they suspect something had happened to the director then the entire place would be swarming with people.

Finson noticed that there was yet another person that joined the rouge group aside from the boy dressed in black that Brandon informed him about but that didn't matter to him. All he wanted was his monster back. He lead the bunch into another room that had a table inside of it and took a seat. Yumi, Urich, Sissi, Dirk and Clayton stood on the opposite end.

"I got a few questions to ask you guys."

"Like what?" Dirk asked cooly, almost mocking the director with the frankness of his voice.

"Forget it, let's just cut to the chase. WHERE IS MY MONSTER?!"

Yumi tried her best to try to calm down the irate director. "Listen sir, this may sound strange but..."

CRASH!

Yumi could not finish her reply since an unknown force destroyed the door in front of her sending wooden splinters and debris flying.

"What the?!" The girl exclaimed as she saw the giant green alien step into the room.

"MY ALIEN!" Finson said overjoyed to see his creation return to him but the monster was not as excited. It reared its massive arm back and sent the man flying towards the wall. Finson impacted against the solid concrete with a solid thud causing him to bounce off the surface and land on the floor face first. Daniel and Amy overheard the commotion that was occurring in the adjacent room and went to investigate only to find themselves the alien's latest victims. The monster opened it's massive jaws and spat another set of blueish-green ooze at the two adults catapulting them out of the doorway and trapping them against the wall before it turned it sights onto the kids once again.

Ulrich looked around the room for anything that he could use to slowly that monstrosity down. He found his answer in the room's table.

"EVERYONE LISTEN UP! USE THE TABLE!"

The other four understood what he was referring to and all stood in one side of the wooden object.

"Ok on three. One, two, THREE!"

At Ulrich's signal, the table was thrown upwards and collided into the side of the alien effective stunning it.

"Run to the room in the back!"

Ulrich watched his companions run through the door before escaping himself. The alien tried to give chase but was stopped once it felt something tug at its tail.

Finson had managed to crawl on his belly and grabbed at his creation's tail pleading with it to cease it's destruction.

"I made you! I am your creator! You must listen to me!"

The alien really didn't care about Finson's cries for peace and simply plastered him against the wall joining the ranks among Daniel and Amy.

Ulrich stepped through the doorway of the factory's back room as Dirk and Clayton shoved an old filing case to barr the entrance.

Yumi assumed command at that moment. "Quick, everyone barricade that door with everything you can get your hands on!"

Ulrich, Dirk and Clayton set to work and grabbed every single heavy item they could possibly move and pushed it towards the door. No sooner was the barricade assembled, did the alien try to break down the door again dislodging a number of items loose in the process.

"Persistent aren't we?" Dirk mocked the monster that was threatening to kill them. "Well we better start arming ourselves cause this might get physical real quick.

He stooped down low and picked up a metal pipe and held it in his right hand. Ulrich and Clayton soon followed.

"You guys must be crazy!" Yumi exclaimed. "There is no way the five of us can take that thing out."

Dirk looked down at the floor before carefully picking his answer. "That maybe the case Yumi, but if that thing is going to kill me then I better make sure I leave a mark on it to remember me by!"

Yumi drew out her cell phone and dialed Jeremie's number.

"Jeremie, how are things looking in Lyoko because they're getting a whole lot worse here."

"Odd and Jin are busy fighting XANA's monsters but they in good shape."

"Please hurry!"

"Odd, Jin, Yumi and the others are experiencing some serious trouble. Get moving!"

"We're not exactly having a tea party out here you know!" Odd watched the hornets fly off once more before flying low again to launch another attack.

"Hey Jin, isn't this your speciality?"

"That it is."

Jin spun around and began running backwards all while waiting for the hornets to draw closer. Once they were in range, Jin fired four shots into the group causing them to scatter all over the place.

"Well that bought us some more time. I'm just getting sick of these things. It's time we fought back."

"But how?" Jin asked

"Over there in the clearing."Odd pointed to a large ice area that had two ice boulders that were shaped like ramps on both ends.

"I like the way you think,"Jin complimented.

"Ok here they come, we only get one shot at this so make it count."

The hornets flew in and eagerly awaited to attack Aelita but were in for a nasty surprise. Odd and Jin had managed to reach the clearing and they both jumped from opposite ends using the boulders to give them the necessary height. The two of them soared through the air as their bodies were parallel to both the ground and each other. Jin flew over Odd who was only a few inches underneath him and fired four more rounds but this time he concentrated his fire towards the middle hornet disrupting its flight pattern and holding it still for Odd.

"Laser Arrow!" Odd fired one of his ten arrows he had in stock at the hornet that Jin had marked causing it to explode once it pierced through its weak point.

The two heros both rolled into a crouching position and watched the remaining four enemies fly away to regroup.

Jin twirled his pistols around his fingers out of celebration. "John Woo eat your heart out."

Jeremie's voice was soon overheard on the intercom as to give the current Lyoko team a status report. "Ok guys, you have to go into that tunnel right behind you to reach the tower."

"Roger that," Jin acknowledged. He heard a familiar buzz in the air and saw the four hornets rocketing towards them.

"Odd, you and Aelita go ahead. I'll try to buy you guys some time."

"Ok, let's go Aelita." The two of them disappeared into the depths of the ice tunnel leaving Jin alone to contend with the hornets. His vision darkened as he watched the action around him slow down. Everything was now black and white as he targeted the roaches. He fired eight shots now and only had twelve left, six bullets in each magazine. He spread out his shots so that he only used three bullets on each hornet before saying his signature catalyst phrase.

"Activate Lyoko power...BULLET BARRAGE!"

Jin's vision returned to normal and he let lose a hailstorm of lead at his unsuspecting enemies. The hornets buckled under his assault and flew away leaving him alone for the time being. Jin ejected his two spent clips and loaded in his remaining magazines into the handle of his guns.

"Well that was fun, but I better hurry and meet up with Odd and Aelita. They might be in some serious trouble right now."

Jin didn't hesitate and soon slid down the entrance of the ice tunnel to join his friends in battle once more.

Contrary to what Jin was thinking, Odd was having the time of his life. He feet glided across the icy surface of the tunnel

"WHAOO!" Odd yelled out to express the euphoria he was experiencing. "Man I might as well settle down and live in this place!"

Aelita couldn't really respond to Odd's sense of humor as she was too busy sliding on her back.

"By the way Jeremie, where does this tunnel lead to?"

"Well Odd it..."

Odd saw the end of the path and the light coming from the other end.

"Oh well, might as well find out the hard way. GERONIMO!"

Odd and Aelita plummeted from the tunnels height and landed on the icy floor in a dazed heap. Odd took a moment to gather his senses together before helping Aelita to her feet.

"According to my holomap, Jin should be arriving shortly."

Odd smiled once he heard Jeremie's update. "Well knowing him there is only one way he's coming down here."

"And what way is that?" Aelita asked.

"AHHHHH!" Jin's screams could be heard above them.

THUD!

"Oh his face."

Jin propped himself on his arms and shook his head violent to shake the dizzy feeling he had.

Odd stopped down low and looked him in the eye. "Wow, three face plants in one day. That must be a new record for you."

"Whatever"

Jin slowly got up and focused on the tower, or in this case, towers. "Jeremie, we have a little problem here. I see two towers here!"

"That's impossible, the holomap shows only one!"

"See for yourself."

Jeremie brought up the window that showed him the video feedback that Jin's sunglasses were providing him and sure enough there were two towers that were in front of them.

"Well, one of them is fake." Jeremie concluded. "You have to choose one Aelita."

"But which one Jeremie? I'm not sure yourself." She said worryingly.

Jin and Odd heard the familiar buzz that the hornets produced when they were nearby.

Odd readied his wrist. "Well you better make your choice quick Aelita we got company!"

Odd wasted no time and confronted the monsters head on. "Laser Arrow!" Odd shot three arrows at the group but only managed to destroy only one hornet.

"Jin, you think you can launch a Bullet Barrage for me?"

"No can do, that stuff burns through my ammo like there was no tomorrow. I'm down to my last twenty shots and that's not going to last me for long."

Jin spun around quickly and unloaded his remaining ammunition on the roaches as the circled in for their next attack. "DIE!" The Japanese boy screamed as his bullets bounced off of the mechanical hides that belonged to the monsters.

"Here, let me show you how to take these things down," Odd boasted.He launched four more arrows into the crowed and destroyed another hornet leaving only two behind.

Aelita did not know what to do so much was riding on her choice. She could either be the salvation of her friend's world or doom it all with just a simple code. She was scared to act, afraid of the potential consequences that came with her decision.

"Come on Aelita, pick a tower now!" Odd shouted, trying his best to get the girl to move. "We can't hold them off forever!"

Odd fired his last five arrows and was disheartened to see that they failed to hit anything. Jin took Odd's place on the offensive and reckless fired his two guns for all that they were worth. Aelita was fed up with just standing still. Odd and Jin were right, they were indeed fighting a losing battle and couldn't keep the hornets at bay for long. She strengthened her resolve and ran to the tower that she believed to be the real one. She disappeared into the tower and inputted the usual string of commands to deactivate it.

AELITA

Things were looking bad for Yumi, Ulrich and Sissi. Real bad. Dirk and Clayton were now lying in a pile of debris compliments of XANA's alien. Despite the animosity the two held towards the others, they were the first to charge the alien when it broke through the barricade. The alien rewarded both of their efforts with a quick flick of its tail knocking them both into the pile of junk which sent various object tumbling down upon them. Yumi winched at the sight and was unsure if they were even alive anymore. The alien then set its sites on its two sworn enemies that stood in front of it. Yumi felt an icy cold presence around her neck as the alien constricted its tail around the small combination of flesh and bone.

Ulrich's eyes went wild at the sight. The held his pipe even tighter causing his knuckles to go white and ran into harms way to save the girl not caring of the danger he was putting himself in.

The monster saw his feeble attempt at rescuing the girl and shot out one of its claws which took hold of his neck causing him to drop his weapon. Ulrich was lifted in the air along with Yumi as both or them struggled to break free from the alien's vice-like grip.

CODE
Sissi was overtaken by fear once more. She was completely powerless in stopping the creature and watched helplessly as Yumi and Ulrich were slowly dying before her eyes. She could see their legs flailing back and forth desperately kicking the air but as time progressed their movements became more minute as the lack of oxygen began to take effect until the appendages were almost limp.
LYOKO
Aelita felt a wave on uncertainty wash over her body as he inputted the last command.

"Jeremie. I choose wrong!" She said in despair.

"Don't worry Aelita, I have faith in your choice." Jeremie pressed the return key on his keyboard and hoped for the best.

"Return to the past now."

A white light engulfed the factory letting him now that indeed Aelita did choose the correct tower.

Yumi and Ulrich felt the alien's grip lightened and allowed air to enter their lungs once more. They smiled at each other as the saw the white light approach them.
Jeremie and the others found themsevles resting underneath the shade of one of the many trees on campus."You're absolutely sure that you can get Finson away from the factory this time?" Jeremie questioned his friend.

"Don't worry, my new plan will keep that director away from the factory for years to come."

Ulrich turned his head and saw the security guard open the doors leading to the cafeteria.

"May I have your attention please. James Finson is ready to sign all of your autographs. Please form a single-file line and don't push."

"Well I gotta go. See you later guys."

Odd was once again bored and turned his head towards Jin. "So Jin, want to teach me how to moonwalk again?"

"Right after you finish your lesson on the windmill."

Ulrich was next in line and was ready to talk to the director.

"Mr. Finson." Ulrich said more confidently than last time. "I heard that you were planning to shoot your latest movie in the factory. I know the place inside out and I could give you a tour of the place."

"Really," Finson said slightly interested. "How come you're so knowledgeable of the area?"

Ulrich remembered the remark James made when he said that his alien looked like another movie monster from a different film and used it to his advantage.

"Oh that's because I did the same thing with the previous director that came here who decided to use the factory in his movie also."

Finson was outraged. "Other director!"

He stormed out of the cafeteria and pulled out his cell phone and began screaming at the unfortunate individual at the other end.

"How dare you suggest me to use this factory where another movie crew used it in their movie! I should have your fired and..."

Ulrich could no longer hear him as he walked towards his car and drove away from the school.

Dirk and Clayton saw the whole ordeal from the back of the cafeteria. Clayton was just as furious as Finson was. Ulrich had managed to ruin his once in a lifetime chance to meet his favorite movie director and he was not going to let him off the hook for his latest transgression so easily.

"Don't worry Clayton, we'll handle this."

Ulrich walked outside with a smile in his face and approached the giant group of students that were forming a circle around Odd and Jin's dance battle.

"Man, are you watching this?" One student commented.

"They're really good," Another replied back accordingly.

Jin had just finished spinning on his right hand and flashed his friends the thumbs up sign signaling his next move.

"Oh no, he's not going to try it again. Please tell me Odd that he's not going to do it." Yumi said disbelief.

"Looks like he is," Odd said flatly.

Jin threw all of his weight behind him and jumped in the air and tried the backflip once again.

"Hey it's Ulrich!"Jin said excitedly once more.

THUD!

"OooOO"

And once again he fell on his head.

The crowd sensed that the battle was over and went along with their business. Yumi walked over to Jin and helped him up.

"The Master of Disaster strikes again," Yumi chuckled to herself. "So why did you try that move again?"

"It was the only way to get rid of the crowd so we could talk about Ulrich's plan."

"Speaking of which." Yumi waved her hand from side to side. "So Ulrich, how did it go?"

"Finson is gone for good."

"YES!" The group celebrated at the same time but stopped once they saw Dirk and Clayton walk towards their direction.

Clayton was the first to speak. "Ulrich, you're gonna pay for what you did to me! Let's go right now! There is no way you're going to beat me again!"

Odd and Jin exchanged glances before getting into their fighting stances ready to help out Ulrich in combat.

"What better way to conclude and dance battle than with a real one." Jin said smugly waiting for the two of them to make the first move.

It was obvious that the two of them had no idea how helpful the bullies were during the last XANA attack. Yumi held her arm up and held back Jin and Odd as Ulrich talked to their enemies.

"You're right Clayton, I can't beat you. You're just too strong more me and the only reason why I won our last fight was because I got in a lucky shot that's all.

Jin's jaw dropped to the floor. "Oh my god," he said stunned.

"Ulrich, surrendering to Clayton? Hell has frozen over," Odd remarked.

"Don't worry you two, I'll tell you what happened later," Yumi said wishing to inform the three boys about Dirk and Clayton's acts of heroism.

Clayton was just as surprised as the others he couldn't believe that Ulrich had just backed out of his challenged but he wasn't going to let him off the hook so easily. "COME ON! FIGHT ME!"

Dirk saw that his friend was getting out of control as his violent outburst could only harm his "good student" refutation he painstakingly crafted to fool the teachers of the school.

"Back off Clayton, you know you can rip this kid apart. Just let him go."

Clayton made one last hateful look at Ulrich before walking away.

"Looks like you're getting better at this whole planning thing after all," Yumi said while patting Ulrich on the back.

"Wow, unlike his physics class Ulrich has actually learned something today," Odd joked causing the rest of the group to groan at his attempt at humor.

"Some people will never learn." Ulrich said as he walked away.

END

Wishful Thinking:

Ok guys, if you want news concerning the Retelling Series, Fan Art, Code Lyoko articles and even VOICE ACTING CLIPS OF JIN AND DIRK then check out my site provided in my profile its really worth your time. Now if you would like to help me with the production of this fic then check my site out for all the details. There's also a lot of info about one of my favorite web series XIN on the site where I'm trying to be a voice actor of. Also, if any of you can draw out there, I would really love to have a picture of Jin in Lyoko. Just remember, he dresses similarly to Seraph from The Matrix except that he wears a white button shirt and has square-framed sunglasses.

Author Response:

This is a new section I added where I address any readers who ask me questions for me and all that other good stuff. Ok let's cut to the chase.

Danny le fou: Man your outtakes are really funny and I do mean that. However, if you have an outtake for me please e-mail it to me and save the reviews for the review box. I know this is hard for you since you are not a registered member but if you want my e-mail address then just check out my webpage in my profile.

Alliance: Sorry man, I can't tell you who Ghai is right off the bat. His identity will be revealed in due time.

Fallen Angle: Don't worry, I've been reading all your reviews and am fully aware that you would just LOVE to read another chapter ASAP. If you want to find out the progress of my latest chapter then just visit my site. I usually do a good job on keeping you guys posted on my progress.

Inulyoukai: I care about all of my fans. Reading the Retelling Series is no easy task since its so long. I would never intentionally shut you or anybody else out in the cold. I care for your opinion and everyone else's that wishes to contribute.

The-green-rose: I read your comment in my guestbook and made all the necessary changes to Image Problem. THANK YOU FOR POINTING THOSE MISTAKES OUT! I also see that you have concerns about the ages of the characters. Ok now according to the Code Lyoko message board the "official" ages are as follows.

Ulrich: 13
Odd: 13
Jeremie: 12
Yumi: 14

Yes it can be argued that Ulrich should be older since he plays on the ninth grade soccer team but the therm "ninth grade soccer team" is similar to the term varsity that we use here in the states so in reality Ulrich is just really good for his age and is playing on a higher level team. Of course I can be wrong but I would like to stick with the "official" ages to save me a lot of headaches.

Concerning the ages of my new characters.

Jin: 14
Clayton: 14 (a few months younger than Jin)
Dirk: 13: (a few months younger than Clayton)

Dirk and Clayton are indeed the same age as Yumi and Jin. It's just that Yumi and Jin are a little older than the bullies. One more thing, yes I DID take the name Ghai from XIN but the two characters only similarities are their names. Besides his name, I've take quiet a few elements from XIN. For example, I got the idea for Ulrich and Dirk's rooftop fight from episode six of XIN along with a lot of other elements. If you watch the series you'll see what I mean. This is just my way of paying homage to the cartoon.

Outtakes:

"Are you watching this?" One student commented.

"Man, they're really good." Another student replied.

Jin went for the backflip...

"Hey its Ulrich."

but fell on his head again.

THUD!

"OooOO"

"I've seen better" A female voice said in the back.

"WHAT?!" The two boys said in unison the looked up and saw Sissi, Herb and Nicholas standing in the circle.

"How bout it, your crew verses mine but since you guys have five members and I have three, two of you will have to sit out."

Yumi stepped forward and looked Sissi in they eye. "You're on!"

"So who's not going to dance?"

Jeremie pressed a special button on his laptop and it soon transformed into a giant turntable.

"Don't worry Sissi, I'll be the DJ for your little dance off."

Jin stepped forward and snapped his fingers. Suddenly a microphone was thrown towards him which he skillfully caught.

"And I'll MC this thing!"

Ulrich, Yumi and Odd stepped into the circle and stared down Sissi's gang.

"Yo what's up this is Jin Ishiyama rocking the mic. We got ourselves a battle here so let's get this party started alright! Spin that beat Einstein!"

Jeremie placed his hands on the turntable and started the battle.

Sissi's group wasted no time and performed a synchronized dance routine with the girl in the lead. The finished their number by striking a dramatic pose but the crowed wasn't buying it.

"Oh man that was WEAK! Ok guys, lets see if you can do better."

Ulrich, Yumi and Odd stepped forward and started breakdancing much to the crowds delight and all finished is a flashy handstand.

The crowd went wild.

"Well it's obvious who won that exchange."

"Man Sissi, YOU GOT SERVED!"

Jin and the others looked at the random heckler right before going into a patented anime facefault.

"I do not and I repeat DO NOT copy from other works of film!" Finson yelled at the unsuspecting boy.

"Then why do you have a guy wearing a black trench coat that looks a lot like Neo?"

"Didn't copy it."

"And the guy in the outfit that resembles a lot like Darth Vader."

"Didn't copy it."

"And the..."

"OK KID YOU WIN! I'M A TALENTLESS HACK!"

"Much better"

"Least I know all my movie lines are original."

Ulrich turned his head and saw a very large man wearing a leather jacket that was holding a shotgun.

"I'll be back." The large man clad in black said.

"Suuuure"

"What you experienced are the effects of chloroform. A common aesthetic used in surgery. In large amounts it...huh?"

Dirk looked at the man he just drugged and saw that he was walking around the place and saying random incoherent quotes.

"I LIKE COOKIES YES I DO! I LIKE COOKIES HOW ABOUT YOU?"

"What the hell?"

Dirk looked at the bottle and read the warning.

WARNING: WILL CAUSE HYSTERIA IF USED ON A MAN NAMED BRANDON IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT ALL WHILE ACTING OUT A SCENE IN A POPULAR CODE LYOKO FANFIC!

"Now what are the chances of that happening?"

"I made you! I created you! You must obey me!"

The alien took on good look at Finson and smiled.

"PAPPA!"

"Oh crap, I think I would have been better off being eaten."

Jin and Odd soared through their air with their bodies perpendicular to the floor.

Too bad they forgot to check their height in the process.

BONK!

Odd and Jin's head smacked into each other sending the two John Woo wannabes tumbling to the floor. The hornets watched the whole thing and laughed themselves silly until they exploded.

"Least you guys got rid of the monsters." Jeremie said trying to shed some light on the event.

"Shut up Jeremie!" Odd and Jin said in unison.

Time for some fan-created outtakes. The first comes from Dr. Thinker and the outtake takes place in Teddygodzilla right after Ulrich asks Milly out to prom.

Take #1

"Ok! I know that we are the future, but this is taking it OVER the line." Sissi ranted.

Ulrich & Milly sighed. Sissi already seem to be screwing up her lines or doing a bit of insulting to other people.

Take #2

"Ulrich & Milly, I want to one thing to you." Sissi ranted.

"What?" Ulrich & Milly remarked.

"This isn't a Dr. Thinker fic. So I will get you and your little friend sooooo!" Sissi laughed as evilishly as she can.

Yumi, Odd, Ulrich, Tamiya, & Milly had red from being embarrassed by another one of Sissi's bloopers.

Take #3

"This IS IMPOSSIBLE. What's make you think you can do?" Sissi stated.

"I'm Superman." Ulrich joked.

"Nice one." Jin stated.

Take #4

Sissi just spits and spits like she was Daffy Duck. Ulrich, Jin, Odd, Yumi, Tamya, & Mily seem to have five big umbrellas (the fifth one was held by Tamiya & Milly) with them.

"That was almost perfect." Jin stated.

Again Danny le fou graces us with yet another hilarious outtake, This time it's from Image Problem during big Dirk, Clayton, Herb and Nicholas fight.

Jin was thrown in between Odd and Ulrich while their opponents looked over them.

"Is there any way we can win?" Odd asked.

"There is one way, but I don't think you're going to like it." Ulrich replied.

"If it involves us winning, then I'm pretty much open for any suggestion." Odd shot back.

"Remember that little thing you swore you would never do again?"

"WAIT! YOU DON'T MEAN..." Odd gasped in horror.

Ulrich just nodded, and Odd sighed dejectedly.

"Alright, I'll do it."

Their four attackers plus Jin watched in confusion as the two stood side to side, a short distance away from other. Then, with perfect synchronisation, Ulrich and Odd performed a few moves that not even the lamest boys band would ever do, ending with their index fingers touching.

"FUSION!! HA!"

Take 2

After the light had subsided, a new person stood, sharing the physical attributes of both boys. He flexed his muscles and grinned.

"Behold, the power of Oddrich!"

"Very impressive, but there isn't any need to fight anymore." Jin said.

"What do you mean?"

Jin simply pointed at the four guys, who were currently sprawled on the ground, clutching their stomachs and roaring with laughter due to the ridiculous dance.

"Well, at least it worked." Jin deadpanned, trying not to laugh himself.

"Shut up." Oddrich growled.

Notes on the Chapter:

Sorry it took so long to write this but I had a lot of obligations to hold up. Thanks for being so patient with me and I promise I'll try to get these things out faster.

Now one of the biggest issues I had with the original episode was how Jeremie and the others waited until morning to check to see if Ulrich was ok. I mean come on! If I were them I would have ran right over there to see what was wrong if it meant saving my friend's life.

Well this isn't a favorite chapter in the Lyoko community so I decided to make my own special tweak to it. Since it didn't offer a lot in the character development department, I opted to show more Dirk and Clayton, more emphasis on Clayton. Clayton had always been a character I had a hard time developing since he never really said anything important in the fic, so I tired to use this chapter to give him some "star time" I also wanted to show the readers that indeed Dirk and Clayton are human beings and are on really good terms with one another. I hope this chapter gives you a new perspectives at their characters. I also showed through the course of this chapter that they are capable of doing good similar to their acts in Logbook. Don't worry, they are NOT going soft on our heros as they still hate them with a passion.

The scene with the chloroform bottle was really hard to write since doctors stopped using it as an aesthetic a long time ago so I had to come up with my own explanation for why Dorothy would have one in her office. Speaking of Dorothy, Jin's scene in the infirmary served two purposes. First, it gives the reader valuable insight on his character and second, it introduced the chloroform bottle that Dirk would use to knock out Brandon with.

Well that's all I have to say please leave a review and check my site out in my profile. Thanks for reading.