Chapter 14:

The wolf, a midnight black, stared eye to eye with Dante, a feral growl rumbling deep down from its hairy chest.

Dante had at the wolf's first appearance assumed an undisputed authority dispatching Drew and Eric to find an unblocked exit, and Riley to find a phone to call animal control. He wasn't planning on letting the AC get at the wolf until the tower was deactivated which would be when either he got to Lyoko or if Drew could get out and try Plan B. B for Backup.

Now, he was staring the wolf down knowing the moment one looked away the wolf would attack. This stare war was a war of dominance. Who would be declared alpha male, the puppet of XANA or XANA's successor. They both had iron wills. They were going to be here a long time.

#1. #2. #1. #2 . . . #3!

"What – kind (pant) of weapons (wheeze) do you (pant) have?" Stella asked behind the rigid Sakura. The continuous 100 meter dash/sprint was over!

Sakura materialized a dagger in each hand, and pulled another from a hidden leg sheath. When she spoke the detached tone alerted Stella to the danger, "Stella, hide and try to find a tower."

Stella slowly peered around Sakura to see a battalion of the strangest looking creatures in her life.

"Okay." With turning tail and running, Stella disappeared.

Sakura assuming a fighting stance stared down the new monsters. She'd heard of them from Dante, the place was practically crawling with them, sicklets, the mini snakes. Resembling a king cobra they were fast, shot lasers from their eyes, and their fangs were deadly. The eye of XANA was on the back of their hood.

Doing a somersault backwards as the first one attacked, Sakura growled under her breath, "Where are you guys?"

[Fast forward

"No one is on Lyoko." Drew announced from his seat. Riley snapped shut his silver razr, "Stella and Sakura aren't picking up."

"The most recently activated tower is still connected with Lyoko." Drew announced.

Looming against the wall as a dark shadow, Dante inquired calmly, "Has plan B been run from Lyoko?"

A tapping of keys then a, "No." was heard. Riley walking up to the console suggested, "Try tracking down Sakura's cell phone signal. Maybe she can tell us something." More rapid typing was heard. "I've got a lock. She's in the scanner room."

[Rewind To Lyoko

10 down, one to go. Too bad that this sicklet looked like the mother of all sicklets. Hmmm . . . . Maybe I should call them skillets contemplated Sakura. Stella had run in the opposite direction of the skillets, so hopefully by now she was safe in a tower.

The sicklet/skillet rose up so it was eye level with Sakura. Sakura with a flourish unfolded a fan and blinked. There were needles embedded into it.

So the mama sicklet spits needles with great speed. Grabbing her whip Sakura attacked successfully destroying mama sicklet, and was hit by part of a needle barrage in the process.

Stumbling back against the glacier wall Sakura touched her sparking torso amazed she hadn't devirtualized. I can't lose all of my life points until I know Stella is safe. With that Sakura turned and ran off in the direction Stella had gone.

Why me? Why is it that whenever I go to Lyoko there is always a monster or three guarding my safe haven? Stella wondered.

Crouching behind a grey ice rock Stella spied on the tower and its guards, two hornets and two tarantulas.

Okay, so if I look like Sakura would I have her weapons? Stella glanced down at her attire and jumped with Shock. She'd changed, again!

Reaching down into her belt (her outfit that looked strangely similar to Elizabeth's at the end of Pirates of the Caribbean 3: At World's End. The outfit she wears to the brother hoods meeting. The deep navy blue one) she pulled out of a pocket on the belt a fan. Stella grinned. Maybe the odds weren't completely against her.

o o

O

"I told you it would work," mocked Drew grumbling over the memory of Eric's smug tone when he, Drew, realized his, Eric's, idea worked.

The air vents, seriously. Who would have thought they would be big enough???? Too escape, no less.

He and Eric had split from the electronics store. Eric went to check with animal control's progress, and Drew had slipped away to go to the factory, and enact Plan B. He was almost inside the entrance of the factory when he saw them, tigers with the evil eye of XANA in their eyes.

Drew's eyes flickered about before he, with catlike grace, started climbing the nearest support for the factory. It led to the rafters.

Below him he heard a feral snarl and the tower trembled from the weight of a feline coming to maul his guts out.