Jeremie relayed the information the best he could. The avatar was now showing most of the monster's information. There were bits of it that were encrypted. Jeremie, feeling concerned, had plans on deciphering the data as soon as he could, though it could take several weeks or months to get it done. He suspected that the encrypted data may hold important clues as to how to defeat the new monster.
The monster's life points were really high. More than the Tarantula's. 300 life points was what the creature had. It wasn't the highest level they've seen. The Scyphozoa likely had a lot more, if not infinite. It was still high enough to allow it to survive more attacks than what the warriors threw at it.
Not surprisingly, it could wield electricity. The data revealed that it could only use so much electricity at a time. It would take a while for it to recharge. During this time, it would resort to using its black sickle claws, which were powerful in of themselves. The claws might also be used for climbing up surfaces, which meant that this would be the first non-flying monster Odd couldn't simply climb away from.
None of this information he initially revealed was what worried him. There was something else about the data that had him concerned. He hoped it wasn't true. But it was. The data didn't lie. The data didn't lie. He had hoped it was a fluke somehow, but now it was fully confirmed.
The monster had the ability to activate towers.
It was this news that shocked the group the most. It was unheard of for any of XANA's monsters to activate a tower. They had hoped, secretly, it was just a fluke thing or a coincidence. The data showed otherwise. Detailed on its card, it clearly proved, clear as day, that the red dragon could turn on any tower it wanted to by using the electricity coursing through its body.
And what was even more unsettling is the fact that they wouldn't know when a tower would be activated. Jeremie said he could reprogram the super scan to pick up these new tower activations, but it would take a while. In the meantime, they would have to keep on their toes a little longer.
After Jeremie finished explaining about the monster, the room fell silent. This lasted for several minutes, everyone in deep thought.
"So Odd..." Ulrich said. He had enough of the awkward silence. "What are you going to name this monster?"
Odd scratched his head thoughtfully. "I hadn't really thought of it yet. Something...catchy..like..." He let his mind wander. He searched for a name to call the new creature. He always loved doing this. It came almost natural to him. He snapped his finger. "Oh, I know! Sikler!"
Ulrich raised an eyebrow. "Really? Sikler?"
"Sure! Why not?" Odd smirked. "It has sickle claws, so..."
"That's a dumb name." Ulrich said.
"I'd like to see you try better." Odd said with a grin on his face. "Even you have to agree I always come up with the best monster names. If it were up to you, all the monsters would have dull names like...Dragon, Pointy Stick..."
"No they would not." Ulrich mumbled. He would have tried to name a monster once, but a particular incident he'd rather not talk about made him realize that, when it comes to naming things, Odd was the guy to do it.
Aelita smiled at this. It was nice that some tension was being relieved. A little bit of humor would do them all good. It wouldn't last long, she knew. Still, some relaxing was in order. The monster would be taken care of later now that they knew what it was capable of.
Jeremie, on the other hand, couldn't smile. As much as he wanted to, how he would have loved be happy, he just couldn't. The new monster, the Sikler as Odd named it, was going to be a lot of trouble. The Scyphozoa was already a pain already. Now there was this? He dared not think about what would happen if both appeared in the same sector together. That was a very real possibility, and unless his friends could destroy the Sikler, then it could devirtualize them and deliver Aelita to the Scyphozoa.
But something he noticed on the screen in today's battle and what he noticed from what his friends told him the first time they encountered this new monster likely shattered that theory. His friends said the monster chased Odd, only Odd. It could have fired at the others, but it only fired at Odd. And in today's battle on Lyoko, from what he could tell, it was almost like the monster was trying to concentrate on Odd. It was hard to tell with all that was going on. But the screen he watched certainly showed a pattern leaning towards targeting Odd.
Jeremie wanted to say something. He looked at his friends, watching them chatter amongst themselves. He wanted to keep them safe. He wanted to warn Odd that the monster may have it in for him, but he couldn't bring himself to say anything. His friends were just getting into better moods. He didn't want to bring them down again. He concluded that he would talk to them about this after he gathered more information.
He had to find out why the monster was targeting Odd. He had to find out what the purple eye meant, why was it there. He had to figure out if the monster's activated towers were what had caused Odd's past couple attacks. There had to be a reason for all this. Odd was being signaled out, so it seemed. Once he figured out why, a course of action could be taken. In the meantime, he was worried that letting Odd back on Lyoko would make him a prime target. Maybe it was best for him to stay out of the virtual world for a while. Perhaps he would be safer.
Oh how wrong he would be.
sss
Odd sat down on the bench with his friends. He wasn't too happy looking. His friends understood why. Jeremie wanted Odd to stay out of Lyoko for a bit while he figured out what was going on. It may not take a long time, but Odd hated being forbidden from going to Lyoko. He loved it there. It made him feel so free, allowed him to exert his energy. He understood why he couldn't go. It didn't make him feel much better.
"Cheer up Odd." Jeremie said. "If I work on it all night, I could find the solution to our problem."
"What about class?" Yumi asked.
Jeremie frowned at this. He had almost forgotten. There were important classes tomorrow. He thought for a moment. "I'll just have the supercomputer run some tests while I'm away then and I'll look at the results when I can. Not as fast, but it's better than nothing I suppose."
"Yeah well I hope it isn't long. I miss butting heads with my main monsters, the Bloks!" Odd said, leaning back in the bench and folding his arms over his head.
Yumi smiled. "Don't worry, Odd. You'll be back on Lyoko before you know it."
"I know that." Odd said, giving his trademark smile.
sss
Back on Lyoko, in the Ice Sector, the monster, called the Sikler by Odd, moved about the snow again. It moved towards a tower, a different one this time. It looked up at it, inspecting it almost. A few sniffs with its nose, and it reared onto its hind legs. It gave the tower a sort of hug. Electricity shot through the tower, like it had before.
The monster watched, with gleaming yellow eyes, as the tower's glow changed to purple. Once the shift was complete, it let go of the tower. It stood in front of the tower and lowered its head. It put its head near the tower. The XANA symbol started to glow.
sss
Odd was back in Mrs. Hertz's class. He wasn't feeling as tired as he did before. He didn't even feel like taking a nap like he normally would. He stared at the chalkboard. He couldn't really make out what was being said. His mind was wandering around. He was awake, but he wasn't really hearing anything. He was zoning out in his own little world.
His mind went to that monster, Sikler. He didn't know why it was targeting him. He believed Jeremie noticed this pattern. Why else would he not want him to go to Lyoko? The others must know as well. He never told them the way the monster never looked spiteful towards anyone...except him.
What was it about him that the monster hated so much? The Sikler was just newly created. It had not encountered him enough to decide to hate him. XANA must have programmed her to go after him, but why?
'Do you really want to know why I hate you?'
That voice. Odd recognized it from before. He looked around the room, trying to pinpoint where it came from.
'Do not bother looking for me. I am not in the room. I am back in the Ice Sector.'
'You are that dragon monster.' Odd thought, hoping it would allow him to communicate with the monster. Maybe he could get some answers.
'Affirmative.'
'Why are you targeting me?' Odd asked.
A hesitation. 'Do I need a reason?'
'Well yeah you kind of do.' Odd did his best to keep his focus on the chalkboard. He didn't want Mrs. Hertz to think he was dozing off again.
'I suppose you deserve to know...before I kill you.'
Odd's eyes widened when the word kill was said.
'It is because you are a nuisance.' The monster said.
Odd frowned. 'Oh is that all? I thought I broke your favorite ice sculptor or something.'
A bitter laugh sounded through his head. 'You are a riot. It is almost a shame I must put an end to it.'
'I'd like to see you try, Sikler.' Odd gave a small smile of confidence.
'My name is Therizino.'
