I have watched nearly every episode of Code: Lyoko, and I think it's time I bring that show onto the TDE2 stage.
You know, I still don't what's cooler: the outfits or the weapons?
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
Chris' recap: "Last time on Total Drama Everything 2, we set a new record for most good-luck messages in a single episode. And a record for weirdest message in TDE history. Poor Yusei. Speaking of him, Ivy's evil planning had certainly messed up his partnership with Nom Nom in more ways than one. After an emergency landing, we had to come up with an impromptu challenge inside a dusty old mine. Gaz made the move to warn Mandy of what was coming, only to get tied up in a weird situation with Double D. He's finally noticing his feelings for her! Whoo! Yusei and Nom Nom soon found themselves trapped in their own problems. That, and an elevator Nom Nom screwed up with. So both had to work together to escape, helping each other with different problems along the way: total despair, and a stuck foot. That was pretty funny. After escaping, Yusei tried to cover up for Nom Nom by taking the blame for the elevator's breakdown. That breakdown cost his team the challenge, and Yusei was immediately branded as the one to go. Dude would have been a goner. But then Nom Nom decided to pay back for previous actions and told the truth, sacrificing his job on the condition that Yusei stays in the game. So Yusei lives to fight another day, but I lose an intern. Oh well. They're expendable. While I search for new workers, our competitors are getting a challenge truly spectacular. Who will be virtually beaten? Find out here! On Total. Drama. Everything 2!"
*theme song*
"Okay, what am I doing now?" Ruby asked the rest of the Moons. Apparently, they were all playing charades. Ruby started to crouch low.
"A cockroach?" Leo asked.
Ruby shook her head and started to take several slow steps as quietly as she could.
"Maybe a shadow?" Yusei suggested.
In response, Ruby looked around and spotted a large cardboard box. Quickly, she grabbed it and crawled under it so that the box covered her completely. The box crept slowly.
"A beetle, perhaps?" Leo asked.
"Oh, for the love of God!" Gaz exclaimed, while Double D also stood up.
Gaz faced her team. "It's Snake! She crept around, and then crawled into a box. How did you guys not get that?"
"Why would a box help in stealth missions though?" Leo asked.
(Author's Note: Right now, Snake is watching this, and is calling Otacon to tell him, "Told you so.")
"Gaz, you know they don't play video games as much as you do, if at all," Double D pointed out.
"Did I ask for your opinion, Sockhead? No."
Yusei smirked. "When do you think she's going to admit it?" he whispered to Leo.
"Not another bet, please. I'm still getting hate mail from my dad after the Deadpool incident."
"Fair enough."
Frustrated, Gaz walked to her seat in Economy and turned back on her Game Slave. Five seconds later, Chef walked in.
"Got messages for the dark kid and the pretty boy," he said, throwing a device to Gaz and Leo before leaving the room.
Curious, Gaz took the device and turned it on.
(Gaz's message, submitted by Guest)
The video plays the song "I Won't Say I'm In Love" from the Disney movie Hercules. One change, however, is that a screenshot of Gaz is covering Meg's face.
After the song ends, Deadpool pops up in front.
Deadpool: Come on, you know you love the sockhead.
*end*
Gaz responded by running straight to the cargo hold so she could bump her head repeatedly on the wall in frustration.
"You! Have! Got! To! Be! Kid! Ding! Me!"
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
"Deadpool, I am going to kill you!" Gaz exclaimed.
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
At the same time, Leo was watching his message.
(Leo's message, submitted by Storygirl000)
(We open up in Bellwood. Julie is there, talking to someone offscreen.)
Julie: Ben, are you sure you want to do this?
Ben: (offscreen) I've already made peace with the fact you two are dating. I'll be fine.
Julie: Alright then...
(Ben comes onscreen and stands next to Julie.)
Julie: Hey, Leo! We saw the last episode and-
(Suddenly, an explosion sounds. The resulting blast knocks the camera to the ground and turns the visuals to static, though noise is still heard.)
(We here Ben and Julie yelling, the former something to the effect of "Not again!". Then comes sounds of a battle, then of two bodies hitting the pavement.)
(Silence.)
(Voices are heard again.)
? (recognizable as Story): ...disappointingly easy. Oh well. Musha (the Pokémon Munna), have you extracted his memories?
? (presumably Musha): Munna!
Story: Great! Now transfer the memories to Duplica (Ditto).
(A flash is heard, followed by some more silence.)
Story: How are you doing, Duplica?
? (sounds like Ben, but is presumably Duplica): I feel...weird. I'm not really used to transforming into humans.
Story: Do you have all his memories?
Duplica-as-Ben: I think so...I can't help but feel like I'm missing something important, though.
Story: Relax, it's probably nothing. Can you fake being knocked out?
Duplica-as-Ben: Yep!
(Another thud.)
Story: And now, to take the real thing.
?: Hssssss...
Story: Relax, Sedusa (Salandit), we'll douse him with your pheromones after we get back to my hideout. Now, Zora!
? (presumably Zora (Zoroark)): Zor?
Story: Keep a close eye on Duplica, will you? If they get found out, use this to teleport the both of you back to me and give this note to whoever found out.
Zora: Zora zor.
Story: Thanks! Next stop, the Drama Plane to exact some much needed revenge...hey, what's this?
(Sound of the camera being picked up.)
Story: Guess they were filming something for a competitor...might as well send it to whoever they wanted to send it to.
(Camera feed goes black.)
*end*
If there was any reason for Leo to be mad at Story. It was now. He facepalmed and sighed in frustration.
On the bright side, it looked like this fan would be coming to the plane. Considering the "TEAM JULIE" t-shirt she was wearing, Leo presumed the fan would be coming to exact revenge on Ivy. That was something that couldn't be missed.
"She tells off Ivy, I tell off her," Leo told himself.
(Meanwhile…)
"So you're saying Gaz is telling you lies?" Ivy asked Mandy.
"Yep. You know what she keeps saying?"
Ivy raised an eyebrow. "What?"
"She keeps saying you're going to betray me somehow. Ridiculous, right?"
Ivy's jaw clenched. How did Gaz find out? Still, she had to remain calm.
"Completely. We both know we need each other to survive in this game. I'm sure she knows that too."
Mandy nodded. "So her lies may be so that I will lose trust in you and get you eliminated, thus ridding me of my most important ally?"
"All to make sure you follow after me. Exactly."
It was all Mandy could do not to get angry. "I knew it. If she thinks she's getting rid of me that easily, she has another thing coming."
Ivy turned away so Mandy wouldn't be able to see her sigh in relief.
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
"That was close," said Ivy. "Mandy's getting difficult to manage. It may soon be time to decide if now's the time to do it. If I take her to the final three, I can backstab her there and easily claim the money. However, Mandy could be dragging me down all the way there.
"Mandy has no loyalties herself. In fact, she probably thinks she's the one pulling the strings on our alliance. It may soon be time to show her who's really in charge."
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
"So what do we have in the way of candidates for the intern job?" Chris asked Chef.
"We got this weird rabbit in a dentist outfit. He sent his application through Deadpool's Morning Merc."
Chris rolled his eyes. "I won't even ask." Then he went to the intercom button.
"Attention, competitors. We are about to reach our next destination. The country may seem familiar, but not the destination. Yep, we're in France again."
A wave of confusion hit the competitors.
"Isn't France 'been there, done that'?" Yusei asked.
"Yeah, we went to Paris for the fashion show," Ruby replied. "Wonder what we're doing here this time."
(One rough landing later…)
The competitors stood outside the airport, where Chef drove with a bus. Everyone quickly boarded it, still confused.
Once the bus was moving, Chef stood up to face the competitors.
"First of all, I want to congratulate everyone on making it this far in the competition," Chris said. "We started off with twenty-two competitors, and only ten remain. In fact, this is the perfect moment."
"Perfect moment for what?" Mega Man asked.
Chris smiled. "Oh, nothing. Just that this will be the last challenge before the merge. Nothing special."
The truth of this announcement hit home, and everyone started whispering.
"Once one team loses and sends one of their own packing, the teams will be dissolved, and everyone will be going alone. And don't worry. Chef and I don't have bets on the winning team today. So whichever team wins the challenge, every single member will automatically get a ticket to the merge. The other team, you know the drill."
Everyone gulped.
"Also, just like last season, two competitors will be coming back. One has already been chosen by the show itself, and other will be chosen in the next Aftermath (this is the poll choice; explanation to come). And this time, competitors from this season and last season will have a chance to make it back."
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
"I really hope one of them is Julie," Leo said.
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
"Snake, Julie, Deadpool, or Toph would be fantastic," said Yusei. "But really, anyone but Lammy."
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
"Please let it be Sonic!" Ruby said.
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
Chris was smiling. "Now, you may be wondering why we're in France again, when this place was where we had our fashion competition."
"The thought had crossed our minds," Moka told him.
"Well, you're about to find the reason behind this revisit. In fact, here we are."
Chef immediately slammed on the brakes, and everyone was thrown forward from their seat. Chris, who was standing up, was thrown to the windshield.
SPLAT!
"Note to self," Chris said in a muffled voice. "Don't ever stand in the aisle when giving the announcements."
(Later…)
Once everyone recovered from the rough stop and got off the bus, the group was even more confused. They were standing in front of a large factory, filled with conveyor belts and broken machines.
"I think you got the wrong place," Double D said.
"Actually, this is the right place," Chris said. "Anyway, we're technically not doing the challenge here. Everyone, right this way."
More confusion and excitement. Everyone followed Chris and Chef to what appeared to be an elevator.
"We're doing this in a secret area below ground," Chris said. "And Yusei, don't worry. It's not broken this time, let alone sabotaged."
"Not funny," Yusei said.
Everyone quickly got onto the elevator, and Chris pushed the down button. "Here we go."
No one said a word as the elevator went down. It felt like they were going at least a mile underground. Finally, it stopped.
"In order to do this challenge, we've asked for a little help," Chris said. "This guy knows this place by heart, and will make sure everything goes smoothly."
The elevator doors opened, and everyone gasped. They were looking at a large machine, glowing with power. In fact, it appeared to be a highly advanced computer.
And someone was using it.
He was a guy with neat blond hair and wearing a sweater and pants. He turned to the group, and smiled.
"Looks like you guys made it," the mystery guy said.
Chris nodded, then turned to introduce the guy. "Competitors, this is Jeremie Belpois. He attends a boarding school not far from here, and is an all-around brainiac. He has agreed to help us with the challenge."
"Just as long as this is over by six," Jeremie pointed out. "I got my date with Aelita later tonight."
Chef rolled his eyes at that comment. Moka mouthed out to Harry, "Who's Aelita?" Harry shrugged.
"Anyway," Chris said. "Jeremie and a group of friends familiarized themselves with this place over two years as they battled an evil computer virus known as XANA. And they did it by way of this supercomputer, of which there is a large part of in the two floors below us. After they succeeded, they all shut the supercomputer down."
"But in light of Chris' wishes, we decided to turn it back on just for today," Jeremie added. "This thing is what will keep the challenge going. One feature that this thing has is what will be the focus today. This supercomputer is the link to an incredible virtual video game-like world known as Lyoko. And a floor below us, there is a link room that can transport anyone into that very world."
Chris smiled. "I'm sure, by what you just heard, you can figure out where you all are headed."
Slowly, it dawned on everyone. And Gaz was suddenly more interested than she had ever been for a challenge.
"Don't tell me," she said, almost grinning.
"Yep. You guys are heading right into Lyoko."
Gaz was more thrilled than when she learned of the Game Slave 2's release date. She was going inside a video game!
"Here's how Lyoko works," Jeremy told everyone. "There are five Sectors that we can directly access: Ice, Desert, Mountain, Forest, and Sector 5. Transportation Towers are scattered through the first four, and a taxi system and tunnel is used to get in and out of Sector 5. Use these as you wish to get between the Sectors.
"Once inside, you will be automatically granted costumes, abilities and weapons related to personality, dreams, desires, even heritage. I understand that some of you have abilities of your own, so we'll be merely enhancing those once you're in.
"Of course, there needs to be a reason to use those abilities. Inside, there are various monsters such as Kankrelats, Hornets, Bloks, Krabs, Megatanks, Tarantulas, Creepers, Mantas, and Scyphozoa. If you're not focused, you can easily be devirtualized-a.k.a. lose all your Life Points-and sent right back here."
Chris looked at everyone. "But it's not just those monsters you will have to face. It's each other. This challenge is a Battle Royale. Rules are simple. Once everyone is in, they will have to kill both monsters and the enemy teams. Get devirtualized, and you're out. Last person standing wins their team invincibility, first class, and guaranteed spots in the merge."
Now that they knew what they were in for, everyone was excited.
"Looks like everyone's ready to go. Competitors, step back into the elevator and head one floor down to the link room."
Now everyone was in a hurry, and they practically ran into the elevator. Soon, they were heading down.
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
"Who else gets to say they were in a video game?" Mega Man asked. "And I'm made of technology myself. This will be easy."
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
"Whoever came up with this is a genius," Ivy said.
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
"This is the single most amazing challenge Chris has come up with," Gaz said.
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
"Gaz has plenty of experience with stuff like this," Mandy said. "But I know I am going to take her down."
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
The elevator stopped, and the competitors stepped off. What they saw were three large, strange looking capsules. Everyone stared at them in wonder.
"Anyone else excited about this?" Ruby asked. Everyone else raised their hands.
Jeremie's voice came in through the computer. "Glad to see you guys excited," he said. "Since there's ten of you, and there are five Sectors, we're going to send you in two at a time. After everyone is in, we're going to give you some time to discover what weapons and abilities you have at your disposal. We'll start by sending two of you into the Ice Sector. Who wants to volunteer?"
Gaz, itching to get started, called out, "I'll do it."
"Then so will I," Mandy said, infuriating Gaz. She wasn't about to let Mandy spoil her fun.
"Excellent. Ladies, simply step into the scanners, and get ready."
Giving each other one last glare, Gaz and Mandy stepped into two separate scanners.
(Author's Note: While everyone's going in two at a time, the competitors' virtualization sequences will be intercut with each other.)
The next several minutes were busy, as everyone took their turns with the transfer. After Gaz and Mandy, Ruby and Ivy decided to go into the Forest Sector. Leo and Moka went in next, heading to the Desert Sector. Harry and Double D then got ready for the Mountain Sector. Finally, Mega Man and Yusei stepped in to be taken to Sector 5.
"Time to get rolling," Jeremie said. "Transfer."
His screen got the readings of whoever was in the scanners.
"Scanner."
Cue to showing everyone suddenly being blasted with a gust of air. The excitement was building.
"Virtualization."
All ten competitors felt the scanners suddenly being filled with light…
(Then…)
Cue to another shot of each competitor virtualizing into different sectors, before then each fell and stuck the landings.
Mandy and Gaz stood up to investigate their surroundings. Ice was everywhere. It was as though it was the only material in the entire area. In some spots, it was a clear field. In others, ridges rose high above them.
The girls looked at each other, and with only another hateful glare to each other, they set off in different directions. They would worry about each other later.
Heading behind a rock, Gaz looked around. No one was watching her. Perfect.
She then took stock at her outfit. She was wearing an armored black jumpsuit, with no sleeves but long fingerless striped gloves, and a skirt, with matching boots. The skull that was usually on her regular outfit adorned her back, as well a few spots on her hair. However, what worried her was that she couldn't see anything on her outfit that looked anything like a weapon.
"Hmmm…" Out of curiosity, she looked at her hand, then thrust it to her side. To her amazement, an orb made out of fire came out. She was holding fire! To complete her theory, she threw the orb as hard as she could at a wall. It exploded on impact.
She then stared at an ice rock, concentrating on it, until it burst into flames.
Fire powers. Gaz could not be any more pleased. The perfect thing to take down Mandy with.
Speaking of Mandy, once she was outside of Gaz's earshot, she also took stock. She was wearing a pink jumpsuit with legs that went to the knees, with black shoes. She still had her usual headband inside her hair. She noticed a weird device on her hip, so she removed it. It immediately morphed into a sword, glowing pink. Mandy stared at it in awe.
Then she looked at the space in front of her, and mover her hand. To her surprise, a tree, which she was thinking of, sprouted in front of her. But when she tried to touch it, it instantly vanished. She tried the same trick, and a cat appeared. It, too, disappeared when she tried to touch it.
"Looks like, along with the sword, I might just have the power of illusion," Mandy said. "Now we're talking."
(On the Forest Sector…)
Various trees were seen around the Sector. Hardly anything wasn't green. Without looking at each other, Ivy and Ruby separated and set off.
Ruby had found a safe place to hide so she could study what she had. Her outfit was very similar to what she normally wore, except her cloak and tights were silver, and the rest of the outfit was accented with it. She noticed her Crescent Rose was on her back, and she removed it, then unfolded it into its scythe form.
The scythe seemed to have gained a large transformation, as it now looked more advanced. The same was noted when she switched to the gun form. Then, out of curiosity, she zoomed one hundred feet, and what she experienced surprised her. She had never gone that fast before with her Semblance.
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
"Sonic would be so proud," Ruby said.
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
Ivy found herself wearing a green short-sleeved suit with gloves, and several plants adorning her outfit and her hair, which was tied back into a curly ponytail. She figured her abilities weren't going to change, and to test this, she made several vines come out of the ground, easily able to whip anything.
"Nothing like using what you're used to," she told herself.
(In the Desert Sector…)
It looked a lot like the Ice Sector, except everything was either red, orange, brown, or yellow. Leo and Moka gave each other a nod before heading off.
Leo was wearing a silver and black armored long-sleeved jumpsuit, complete with the Nohr flag on his shoulder pads. He found a long stick on his back, so he removed it. It immediately turned into a long bow staff with short blades on either end. Not bad. He didn't have Brynhildr, his tome, so he just tried sprouting a tree five feet away from him. Sure enough, it sprouted. And it was absolutely real. He then tried to move a nearby boulder, and was successfully able to throw it. This would surely do a lot of damage.
"I imagine Toph would be impressed," he said.
Moka was wearing a long pink dress that she imagined a high-ranking vampiress would be wearing, with black boots. Her hair was also done in a ponytail. A sort of blade thing was on her hip, so she took it, and it unfolded into a boomerang.
"Pretty," she said, testing it out. It automatically came back to her hand.
(In the Mountain Sector…)
Several tall mountains dotted the Sector, with other rocks scattered about. Double D and Harry looked at each other.
Double D was wearing a red shirt with tight black pants and boots, with the whole outfit being covered with what looked like equations. He still had on a black sock-like hat.
Harry was wearing a red robe over a red/gold jumpsuit, with the Gryffindor lion emblazoned on the cloak. Harry's glasses had been turned into impressive-looking goggles. On his boots were shapes that looked like the lightning-bolt scar on his forehead.
"You don't look half bad," Double D said.
"Neither do you."
Then Double D looked at the twin devices on his belt. He removed them, and they immediately turned into long knives. "I guess this will do, Double D said. "I wonder if my brain will have any effect here."
He looked at a rock, and it immediately started levitating. "I knew it. Telekinesis. How could I not have that?"
Harry smiled, then spotted his wand at his side. He pointed it at a mountain, and another rock also levitated. Harry also tried shooting an energy bolt at it, and was successful.
"Not exactly the magic I'm used to, but I'm happy," he said.
Double D smiled. "Good luck", he said as he ran off.
"You too."
(Sector 5…)
This Sector was definitely...weird. Everywhere Mega Man and Yusei looked, there was blue. Various blocks kept moving, and it looked like some sort of world all on its own.
With only a nod to each other, Yusei and Mega Man headed off in separate directions to assess the situation.
Yusei found himself wearing a dark blue/orange armored long-sleeved jumpsuit with matching boots and gloves. His outfit was accented with red dragon's face.
He quickly found that he had what looked like a handgun on his hip, so he removed it and tried shooting at a wall. A laser beam was shot out, and it easily hit the wall.
"Not bad," he told himself.
Mega Man, meanwhile, found himself in….really, there weren't many differences between his normal look and his Lyoko look (I couldn't figure out an outfit for him). What he noticed was that his left hand was now permanently his Mega Buster. Also, he also had his ceratanium disks on hand.
"I figured as much," he said.
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
"I don't mean to brag, but I guess my weapons alone are so awesome that they warrant no change," Mega Man stated.
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
"It looks like everyone has, more or less, an understanding as to their weapons and abilities," Jeremie said through his headset, so everyone could hear him. "Now, is everyone ready?"
"Yes!" All ten competitors said at the same time.
"Then it's game on!" Chris exclaimed.
Immediately, everyone started to move. Some people stayed in their starting Sectors, while Moka, Yusei, and Double D headed for the transportation towers (or a weird funnel hole in Yusei's case).
Moka was running towards the tower, which soon came into view. However, she immediately also spotted some trouble. Several tiny creatures (Moka guessed they were the Kankrelats) were surrounding the entire thing.
"Tsukune, wish me luck," Moka muttered as she got her boomerang out. Once she was ready, she threw it, and it managed to take out three of the Kankrelats, each of them devirtualizing into nothing. However, there were still plenty.
Moka threw the boomerang again, taking out a few more Kankrelats, but then she raised her hand on a whim, and all of a sudden, it started to glow red. Then, what looked like pure energy seemed to be flowing from one of the Kankrelats into her hand, until the monster devirtualized as well.
On top of that, Moka also felt like her own health was replenishing (she had taken a couple of hits from the monsters).
That made sense. It looked like aside from the boomerang, Moka had the ability to drain health. Just like a vampire. Moka smiled, then threw the boomerang again.
(Meanwhile…)
Yusei was brought right to the Mountain Sector, where he looked around to check if a monster or Star was nearby. Luckily, he saw nothing.
So he started walking, hoping something would happen. "Hello? Any monsters out there?" Yusei asked sarcastically. "Getting a little lonely here."
Just as a cue, he heard buzzing. Yusei pulled his gun out, then turned to a nearby mountain to investigate.
Then he saw them. Several weird flying creatures that looked a lot like wasps. Hornets. And they quickly saw Yusei.
As fast as he could, Yusei started firing at the Hornets, and managed to hit two of them. The rest, however, dodged and started to get closer.
"This is not good," Yusei muttered, then his own hand started to glow.
Out of curiosity and sorta knowing what it was, Yusei pointed his hand on the ground, and immediately several Hornets appeared, but this time, they were all blue. And they immediately began charging against the opponents, easily taking them out.
That was when Yusei understood. Apparently, he had the ability to summon copies of the Lyoko monsters to fight at his side.
"Sounds familiar," Yusei said. "I like it." And he immediately set off again.
(On the Ice Sector…)
Double D was exploring the area, hoping he wouldn't have to run into any other monsters. Of course, he figured he would, knowing the place. Still, better to delay the inevitable.
"I hope Gaz went somewhere else," Double D wondered. "I don't want to have to focus on her through this."
As he walked, he started hearing something coming towards him. Instinctively, he brought out his knives and turned around to see what they were.
"Krabs," Double D sighed. "Why did it have to be Krabs?"
Sure enough, there were two of them standing there, looking right at Double D. "Guess I have no choice, now," he said as he charged.
The first thing he did was use telekinesis to lift a Krab up in the air, and then throw it back down. Then he took his knife and gave a quick slash on the thing's head. To his delight, the knife also emitted an electromagnetic pulse, further weakening the Krab. In fact, it was enough to destroy it.
However, he was so relieved at the fact that he actually defeated a monster that he did not notice the other Krab behind him, ready to strike.
Just as he did notice it, however, that same Krab suddenly burst into flames and was destroyed. Confused, Double D turned around and saw Gaz, lowering her glowing-red hands.
"Didn't think you would actually be able to destroy something, Sockhead," Gaz said.
"Ha ha, very funny."
(On the Forest Sector…)
Ruby was using Crescent Rose to take down a charging Box, though she was having trouble figuring out which eye was the weak point.
"Who's idea was it to give this thing four whole eyes?" Ruby asked in frustration as she got ready to slash one of said eyes.
Luckily, this one managed to be the money shot, and when the scythe sliced the eye, the Box "screamed" and was destroyed.
"Gotcha!" Ruby exclaimed.
"More like I got you first," said a voice from behind her.
It was Ivy, and she immediately wrapped a long vine around Ruby and suspended her in midair.
"Congratulations, Ruby," Ivy said. "You have the honor of being the first person about to be eliminated from the challenge. How does it feel?"
Ruby just glared at her. "Did you ask Sonic that?"
"No. Now, bye bye." She formed another vine, which grew several long spikes. With Ivy's grin, the vine struck Ruby, causing enough damage to immediately devirtualize her.
(In the real world…)
One of the links opened up, and Ruby appeared, sitting down, exhausted, and in pain from the spikes. Apparently, even in the real world, it hurt.
"I am going to get that plant lady," Ruby seethed through gritted teeth.
"A valiant effort, but it's game over for Ruby," Chris said. "Ruby, come back up to the computer room so you can watch the rest of the challenge."
(Back on Lyoko…)
"Ruby's out?" Leo asked. "Must have been Ivy. Dang it."
He was wandering the Desert Sector, starting to feel a little bored. He had not found a single monster or other competitor since arriving. So he started doing a few swings with his staff so he wouldn't go completely insane.
Still, he had a lot to think about. A lot had happened to him and the rest of the Moons lately. Connie gets mauled by a lion. Double D is tricked into eliminating Julie. Ruby's boyfriend winds up eliminated. Yusei wound up in a troublesome situation with his worst enemy. And Leo didn't even want to get started on what Deadpool did that complicated things for him.
He was still thinking about all this when he became alert to a giant spider-like creature coming right at him.
"Oh great," Leo said, readying his staff. "Look who came to the party."
The Tarantula got onto its hind legs and shot two lasers at Leo, who blocked them with his staff. Then Leo used his earth control to throw a large rock at it, which managed to damage it and stun it. This was the perfect time to charge with the staff. Which is what he did, so he quickly sliced at the Tarantula's head, destroying it.
However, just as he was celebrating his victory, he saw what looked like a buzzsaw blade coming at him. It was too fast for him to dodge, and he wound up hit. Then he got hit with another disk. A third one wound up devirtualizing him.
"Nailed it," said Mega Man.
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
"In my defense, those things were way too fast for me to dodge," Leo said. "I'm pointing that out in case my father has the reaction I think he has."
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
"Two down, eight to go," Chris announced. "The Moons had better pick it up. They seem to have lost two competitors already."
The remaining Moons all groaned.
(Later…)
Another hour went by with no one finding another enemy competitor, though they were kept on their toes with several monsters. Gaz and Double D found themselves against three Bloks, and Gaz bragged when she destroyed two of them and Double D only got one. Yusei's summoning ability came in handy when he went to the Forest Sector and found a large group of Kankrelats, which he killed easily with his own Blok copies. Ivy easily destroyed a Megatank, despite its armor.
Harry finished taking on a few Hornets and kept walking, wondering if he would fight another monster. This whole scenario of being inside a videogame was fun to him. Maybe Hermione would love to do some research on it.
Soon, however, he came across a Tarantula of his own. And unlike Leo, he wasn't as lucky with it, and wound up devirtualized.
"Finally, a Star is eliminated from the challenge," Chris announced. "I repeat, Harry is out! This is surely getting interesting."
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
"Why me?" Harry asked.
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
Ivy finished killing a Krab, and she was smirking. "Is there nothing here that can give me a challenge?"
She still had a lot to contemplate, considering the circumstances of everyone. Every competitor remaining had a factor that made them a threat. Double D had brains; Moka was friendly, with another side of her to boot; Yusei had his skills with technology, and an impressive fake out strategy; Mega Man was a powerful robot; Leo had his nature-manipulating tome; Harry could use magic in numerous ways; Ruby was fast and skilled with a scythe; Gaz was fierce and not afraid of anything; and Mandy….
Of course, Mandy was one of the strongest players left, if not THE strongest. But how long would it be before this strength would become a liability? Mandy could easily make her and Ivy look too much like threats.
Ding! Ding! Ding!
"Is this really necessary?" Ivy asked.
"Yes," Chris said through the speaker. "And hey, as the villain, you get your own villain song."
"True. Jeremie, cue the music."
(Author's Note: In all Disney musicals that have ever been made, the villain has to have their own song, one of a sinister tone to make those who listen to it chill. She's not from Disney, but Ivy's getting a villain song nonetheless. So here's "Watch Out"."
Ivy: Don't hate me because I
Am playing the game
Do you want to know why?
I will tell you, not a shame
I am evil to the bone
And rotten to the core
My true colors have shone
Do I dare say more?
Oh, I'm not sorry for all this
Or anything I've done
My simply greatest wish
Is to defeat everyone
Don't hate me for my plans
To take everybody out
It's just who I am
So you all better watch out.
Ash, you were fun
And so were you, Po
Toph was quite someone
And Deadpool equally so
Curtains for Jak and Daxter
And Julie was fine
Poor Sonic had a disaster
This whole game will be mine
And Mandy, oh Mandy
Your loyalty is true
The glory you can be
Oh I know that I'll miss you
But please understand
You are too killer
And know that there can
Be only one true winner
Oh, I'm not sorry for all this
Or anything I've done
My simply greatest wish
Is to defeat everyone
Don't hate me for my plans
To take everybody out
It's just who I am
So you all better watch out.
Ivy quickly took a bow before an imaginary audience. "Thank you. I'll be here all week."
However, for one competitor, things were about to get interesting….
Yusei was hiking through the Forest Sector, keeping alert and making sure his handgun was ready. He also had a few copy Kankrelats following him just in case. He was hoping to at least find Ivy before she could find him.
What he didn't expect to find was…..wait, was that laughter?
At first, Yusei was confused. That laugh sounded familiar.
He heard it again.
That's where it clicked. "Lammy?"
He turned, and sure enough, there was that familiar lamb, standing several feet from Yusei, smiling. "Hello, Yusei."
"Is that really you?" Why would Lammy be here? What was going on?
"Catch me if you can," Lammy said, running off.
Yusei ran after her. "Lammy, come back!"
He absolutely could not believe Lammy had come onto Lyoko. Did she want to talk to him about why things happened the way they did? What made her abruptly break up with him? Yusei's heart was fleeting at the chance to patch things up with Lammy, or at the very least, clear things up with her.
After a few minutes, Lammy stopped running, and Yusei stopped as well. "Lammy, was there something you wanted to talk to me about?"
Lammy smiled and held out her hand. "A lot of things actually," she said.
That was the only cue Yusei needed. He stepped forward until Lammy was right in front of him.
"I missed you, Yusei," Lammy said.
"I missed you too," Yusei said, reaching out to grasp Lammy's hand.
But just as he was about to touch her hand, it disappeared. The rest of Lammy vanished along with it.
And before Yusei could realize what had happened, the blade of a sword slashed across his back, doing enough damage that he lost his remaining life points.
Mandy stared as Yusei devirtualized right in front of her. Best thing she had done yet in this challenge.
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
"Was it cruel to use Yusei's heart against him?" Mandy asked. "Maybe. And that's just what I liked about it."
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
The link opened, and Yusei stumbled out, half shocked and half confused over what had just happened.
By now, he had figured the whole thing was a trick. Although, he also figured he should have known, as Lammy wasn't in Lyoko gear.
Still, it felt real, like the fear from the past few weeks had disappeared. For one brief moment, it was as though he and Lammy would be okay, and the trauma of the season had never happened.
As confused as he was, he at least knew two things were certain.
One, he was not going to get any sleep that night.
Two, he was definitely still in love with Lammy.
(Back on Lyoko…)
"Well, it looks like we're the only Moons left," Double D told Gaz.
"I'm not scared. We got this."
"Gaz, it's us against four Stars."
"And you forget I am a pro at playing video games. I have taken down 20 zombies at once many times before."
Not to mention the dream she had several days before.
"I won't deny that," Double D stated. "It seems like you're a natural at this."
Gaz looked at him. "Video games are kinda what helps me survive life back home. I have an annoying brother who's obsessed with the paranormal, as well as the hidden alien who goes to our school. Zim always talks about how he's going to rule the world, but he's way too dumb for it. If you want to know how bad Dib is, he once cursed me so that everything I ate tasted like pig. I even got quarantined for it. And it kept me away from pizza. Pizza, for crying out loud!"
Double D smiled. "I guess that is pretty bad."
"Duh."
"Well, ever since I moved into the cul-de-sac, my two best friends-and only friends-have been Ed and Eddy. My parents almost exclusively give me the orders to do chores through sticky notes scattered across my house. Eddy would always come up with a hair brained scam in order to get a few quarters so we could buy the humongous jawbreakers they have at the candy store. The entire cul-de-sac loves those jawbreakers. And even when the scam worked and we got the delicious treats, it would always come back to bite us in the end."
"And here I thought you didn't have a rebellious streak."
That made Double D smile. "I only participated in the scams because Ed and Eddy were my friends. That, and I cannot resist the jawbreakers."
Gaz nodded. "If I cared about something like candy, I would ask to try one. But I only want to focus on three things. Pizza, video games, and winning the competition."
She had left out a fourth thing, but she was not going to mention it to Double D.
Double D was about to say more when a buzzsaw blade flew right between them. It missed them, but they still moved back to see what was going on.
"Darn, I missed," said Mega Man.
"We got company," Double D said.
"Yep, noticed," Gaz said.
Mega Man waved at them. "Sorry about this, but since you two are the last two Moons in the challenge, I don't want to waste this opportunity."
"You won't have to," Gaz said as she threw out two fireballs, which Mega Man dodged.
Double D quickly got out his knives. "Maybe we can work something out?" he asked.
"Dude, really?" Gaz asked.
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
"I am pretty sure viewers are confused as to why I have feelings for him," Gaz explained. "And I don't know either."
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
Double D sighed and used telekinesis to lift Mega Man into the air, and then drop him again. This allowed him to run up and attack the robot with his knives. Though he got a good hit, Mega Man was still there.
"Gaz, now!"
As though she had been waiting for that cue, Gaz launched a large fireball at Mega Man, finally taking him out.
"Success!" Double D exclaimed as he and Gaz high fived. Then they looked at each other. Gaz merely nodded, while Double D laughed.
"Good job," Gaz said.
"You too," Double D responded, but now his mind was reeling; that was the first compliment Gaz had ever given him!
However, five seconds later, that celebration was short lived. Double D was about to say something else when Gaz noticed something moving behind him. And she quickly saw who it was.
"Watch out!"
Before Double D could turn, he was automatically devirtualized.
"Double D!"
Shocked, Gaz looked up and saw Mandy, holding her sword as though she had just swung it. Behind her, Ivy was standing by, watching.
"I believe it's time we settled this," Mandy said.
(In the real world…)
Double D got to the main room, where everyone else was sitting. "What was that, exactly?"
"Mandy," everyone else said.
"Figures."
Chris was looking at the screen. "It looks like the fate of the Moons for this challenge hinges on Gaz," he said. "Let's hope she's as good at video games as she says she is."
"But she's never actually been inside a video game before," Leo told him. "She's not used to this."
Double D looked at the screen. "She'll do fine."
(On Lyoko…)
Moka was in Sector 5, impressed by how advanced it looked compared to the rest of Lyoko. She also did the interesting timed key thing in order to unlock a cool area.
Soon, she found herself outside the large dome and found the tunnel and what looked like Mantas flying in the distance. She turned back inside, hoping they wouldn't spot her.
Unfortunately, one did spot her, and quickly shot a laser at her, which was strong enough to devirtualize her.
(On the Ice Sector…)
"What's wrong?" Mandy asked. "Scared to fight back after what I did to your teammate?"
Gaz glared at her. "You'll pay for that."
"I don't think I will," Mandy told her. "Honestly, I was hoping it would come down to the two of us."
"Who am I?" Ivy asked. "Chopped liver?"
At this moment, Gaz was furious. "You're still blind to that jerk's lies? Mandy, I thought you were smart, but you clearly don't realize you're going to lose in the end if you follow her any longer. So I'm going to give you one last chance. Toss Ivy aside, and maybe I won't burn you to a crisp."
Mandy pretended to consider it. "Hmm, let me think about that." Then she took her sword and lunged. Gaz quickly created a fire shield.
"Fine. If that's how you want to settle this, then let's settle this."
"Nothing would make me happier."
Mandy quickly started slashing at Gaz, who dodged and launched a fireball at Mandy, who sliced it with ease.
"Total copycat!"
"Stupid jerk!"
"GOTH!"
"IDIOT!"
Both were attacking each other with a fury that no one on the show had seen before. Ivy was intrigued. This was her alliance partner at her finest.
"When I'm through with you, I would love to see how your team would take it," Mandy said as she and Gaz struggled in a stalemate. "I bet they would think you were too weak and stupid to beat me. You would cost them the challenge. And to think, right before the merge."
"How do you know your team won't think that about you?" Gaz asked.
"My remaining teammates are watching. They know if they eliminate me, I'll hurt them so badly they will have to sit on their eyes! It's clear to me that you, however, would never go so far. You're scary, but you will never be as scary as me!"
Infuriated, Gaz pushed Mandy away, and Ivy managed to grab her. Both of them hid behind a rock, where Jeremie's screen wouldn't be able to reach.
"You got her on the ropes," Ivy said. "That being said, I doubt I'm needed for this."
"So you want me to devirtualize you?"
"Exactly. I think you got this."
"Alright then," Mandy said, then slashed Ivy with her sword and devirtualizing her. Then she popped out from behind the rock and found Gaz looking at her.
"What did you and Ivy talk about?"
NONE OF YOUR BEESWAX!"
The started attacking each other again, dodging and blocking as much as they could.
Soon, their fighting brought them straight to a ledge (which luckily was a sheer drop to a lower level of the Sector, meaning it didn't go into the Digital Sea, but was still really high).
Both Gaz and Mandy were glaring at each other with malicious intent. Then they charged at each other and struggled again, right as they came within a foot of the ledge.
Gaz then saw what was behind them. That's it.
"All season long, you have been repeatedly trying to get me off the island, merely because of the fact that I am seemingly a lot like you. And we are." She was starting to move, so Mandy had to move to in order to keep up the struggle.
"We are certainly alike in many ways, but there are some ways in which we couldn't be any more different," Gaz continued. "I actually look the way I am! What kind of evil child wears a pink dress with a flower on it? I have a brother! You don't! But then there is the most important difference of all between us, Mandy!"
"Which is?"
"That unlike me, you never pay attention to what's behind you!"
Before Mandy could realize what had happened, she had already fallen off the cliff. Gaz had used a large burst of fire power to push Mandy off of her, and since they were so close to the ledge, Mandy couldn't stop herself falling. Mandy screamed in fury.
Gaz watched as Mandy landed several hundred feet below her to the ground, devirtualizing on impact. She fell to her knees and looked at the gorge, satisfied.
"Can I get out of here now?" she asked.
(Later…)
Gaz stepped out of the elevator, still exhausted from the fight. The Moons all cheered when she came out. For once, Gaz was actually happy about something. She had outright beaten Mandy. Speaking of which, Mandy was fast asleep.
"I may have had to cast a sleep spell on her so she wouldn't kill you," Harry explained. "I'll turn the spell off when the elimination ceremony happens."
Jeremie clapped. "Good job, Gaz. Quite the strategy."
Chris couldn't help but nod. "Anyway, the challenge was fun and all, but it had to come to this in the end. Gaz has won the challenge for the Mysterious Moons, meaning the Moons have invincibility, first class, and they are all guaranteed spots in the merge!"
For the first time this season, Gaz did something close to a cheer (she put her fist up and did an unenthusiastic "woohoo"). The rest were all more happy.
"Stars, I'll see you at the elimination ceremony. One of you is about to come to the end of their journey. We just have to find out who that is."
Jeremie nodded. "Now, if you excuse me, I have a date to go to."
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
"I can see the conversation already," Leo said. "'Did you make the merge?' 'Yes, Father.' 'Good, but it's not enough. I expect the million to be in your pocket.'
"I could give you the rest of the conversation, but you already know what my father's like by now."
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
"Trust me, I never thought I would make it this far," Ruby stated. "But I did. I'm in the merge!"
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
"Meh, it's just going to be the same without the teams," Gaz said. "Although I doubt Double D and I will ever be the same again."
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
"Hopefully there won't be another MarioKart challenge to rain on my parade," Double D mentioned.
"I have a feeling things are going to get more complicated now. Gaz and I really seemed like we were in this whole thing together. I wonder if she'll be the same now that we're about to be merged."
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
"To be honest, I'm a little scared," Yusei explained. "I've been through enough this season. I've had to dress in a stupid toga. I've gotten stuck in quicksand. I was almost skewered by a giant bird. I got dumped. I faced a serial killer/demon hunter and nearly died. I wound up in a crazy predicament with a former rival. I was trapped in an elevator. I almost got kicked off. And now I've had an illusion that made me more confused than ever.
"A lot has happened that I cannot comprehend. And honestly, I'm a little worried about what the merge has in store."
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
Back on the plane, most of the competitors were in the cafeteria (Mandy was still under Harry's sleep spell). All of a sudden, a strange knock was heard.
"What was that?" Harry asked.
Everyone looked out the window and saw one of the most amazing sights ever.
A large creature resembling the moon was flying right next to the plane, and there was even someone riding it! She was the one who knocked on the door.
Chef quick pushed a button so the door would open, and the creature flew in. The strange girl jumped off the creature and dusted herself off.
"Nebby, return," she said, pulling out a Pokéball. Then everyone got a look at the girl.
She seemed to look like a normal person. She had short brown hair with red streaks, and brown eyes. She wore a pair of black-framed glasses, a pink shirt with "TEAM JULIE" on it in large black print, blue jeans, and black and white sneakers.
"Uh, who are you?" Chris asked. "We're not supposed to have visitors."
Some of the competitors immediately recognized her. "We know who she is," said Leo. "She's Storygirl000, a fan of the show."
"Just call me Story, thanks," said the girl, who now had a name.
"So what is it that you're doing here?" Chris asked.
"I know you have the 'no visitors' policy, but I merely needed to exact a little bit of revenge, because-"
Leo raised his hand. "Wait! Before you do, I want to have a little chat with you, Story."
Without another word, he walked up to Story and looked her dead in the eye.
"Let them go."
Story immediately realized what Leo meant by that. "That message was sent to you, wasn't it?"
"Yep. Now let them go."
"Fine."
She pulled out her phone and called someone. "Hello, Duplica? The jig is up. That message was sent to Leo. We're going to have to let both Ben and Julie go…..I know, I'm not happy about it either…...When I get back, I'll have Musha restore Ben's memories-"
"And you will also apologize to both of them for doing this?" Leo asked her.
"Okay!" She went back to her call. "Yeah, I'm going to have to apologize to them for this. We'll have to win Ben over the old fashion way…..Yeah, assuming he doesn't hit me with a restraining order. Anyway, I'll be back after my revenge mission. Love you….Bye.."
She hung up, and looked at Leo. "You have my word that I will let them both go, Ben's memories will be restored, and I will apologize for kidnapping them. Happy now?"
"That's all I ask."
"But just know that I am a big fan of Julie, and now that she's out of the game, I support you the same as I did her. In fact, check this out."
She snapped her fingers, and her pink shirt immediately turned into a silver shirt with the words "TEAM LEO" on it. She snapped them again, and it turned into a golden shirt with "JULEO 4EVER" on it.
"Not bad," said Leo.
Story nodded. "I know, right? Now that that's over, time for what I came here for. Where's Ivy?"
Everyone backed away, revealing Ivy, who was sitting at a chair and using a nail file on her fingernails. "And what do you want?" Ivy asked.
Story's face immediately turned into anger. "You eliminated Deadpool before he could reveal the truth about Lammy. Then you completely disregard my favor of you to teach Shroomy the pheromone trick! Then you outright eliminate my favorite competitor! I forgave you for that big mistake, but then you go and get Sonic eliminated after I warned you what would happen! And if all that weren't enough, you endangered Shroomy by throwing her out the window?! You are going to pay!"
Ivy was giggling. "And who's going to make me?"
"Oh, a couple of people. Zora, come on out!"
She threw a Pokéball, and a Zoroark came out. "Zor."
"Zora, you know what to do."
Now you all know what happens when person meets super awesome Pokémon. Ivy screamed in pain as Zora beat her up.
"Yikes!" Ruby exclaimed.
"Talk about painful!" Mega Man said.
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
"So maybe I underestimated this superfan just a little," said Ivy, covered in bruises and bloody bandages. "But at least she didn't kill me. And even if she wants to do worse, I doubt she can."
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
"She reminded me of Sierra for some weird reason," Chris said. "At least she didn't destroy the plane."
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
It took about an hour for Story to pull Zora off. "Okay, I think we've made our point," Story said before walking over to the groaning Ivy and whispering in her ear. "Mess with Double D and Gaz, and there's plenty more where that came from."
She then faced Chris. "Mission accomplished. I'll be going now."
Story recalled Zora, then brought back out Nebby. "Good luck with the rest of the show, guys. Especially you, Leo. And least of all Ivy."
With that, she flew off on Nebby and was out of sight.
"Glad that's over," said Chris. "Now time to check out that crate."
Earlier that day, a large crate had been sent in with the good-luck messages. Chris walked back to the cockpit and read the note on top of the crate.
Hey Chris, sorry things have gotten a little stressful. So to make you feel better, I've hired three interns to replace the one you just fired. I decided to ship them to you the cheapest way I could think of, which is why they arrived with the good-luck messages.
XOXO your secret admirer.
Curious, Chris pulled open the crate.
"HELLLLLLOOOOOOOOO, NURSE!"
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
(Later…)
The Stars were all in Economy (Mandy was still asleep), patching up Ivy. Fortunately (or unfortunately, if you're that kind of person), she appeared to be a fast healer.
"The advantages of being made out of plant," Ivy said. "They're extensive."
"I bet there are."
Ivy nodded, then looked at her team. "As long as we're here, I have an idea on who we should eliminate. And when you hear who I want gone, you'll understand that this is not a nefarious scheme this time."
The Stars were all wary when they heard this, so Harry pointed his wand. "No tricks. Got that?"
"You have my word."
(At the elimination ceremony…)
All five Stars were sitting and anxious. Mandy was awake and alert; Harry lifted the spell on her five minutes before voting started. And she had calmed down…..to an extent.
"When I find that little witch, I am going to make her pay for this!" she exclaimed.
"Alright, we get it," Chris said. He was still ticked from the crate; he didn't expect the interns he got to be the interns he got. "All of you have cast your votes, so we're about to get this over with. One of you is about to be kicked off, and right before the merge, no less. Ouch. Let's get the unpleasantness over with.
"Mega Man."
"Moka."
"And Ivy."
All three caught their bags, leaving Mandy and Harry; Mandy figured Ivy would tell everyone to vote for Harry, knowing he was the first Star taken out of the challenge. Neither looked worried.
Just behind the stand, Gaz was crouched down, listening in on what was going on.
"Okay, now why are you two here? Harry, you were the first Star taken out of the challenge. Ouch. And the fact that you know magic may have given you a threat rating. Double ouch. Mandy, you have been part of a dominating alliance, and you losing the fight with Gaz meant that your team is sitting here. Basically, both of you are here for the same reasons: threat level and challenge mistakes. Amazing how similar the bottom two can turn out to be in the end, huh. Pretty weird. So this is it.
"The final marshmallow goes to…"
"..."
"..."
"..."
"..."
"..."
"..."
"..."
"..."
"..."
"..."
"...Harry."
The look of indifference on Mandy's face didn't change immediately. Then it turned into a face of confusion.
"I'm sorry Chris," Mandy said in disbelief. "But I think you may have made a mistake and said his name instead of mine."
Chris shook his head. "Wanna see the passports?" He threw them at Mandy, who picked them up and looked at them. Sure enough, three of the marked passports were hers. The only two that weren't was her own vote against Harry and one against Ivy.
For once, Mandy didn't grasp the news straightaway. She looked at the passports back and forth, in utter disbelief and confused about what happened. Finally, she saw Ivy's face, and realized what happened.
"How could you?"
Ivy looked at her, with an innocent look in her eyes. After what happened with Zora, she was a little scared.
But Mandy was still processing the news. Ivy had betrayed her. And it wasn't like Nom Nom, who only betrayed her as a punishment for trying to betray him. Mandy knew why Ivy did it. Because there was only one winner. And Ivy was making sure it was her.
"HOW COULD YOU?!"
She immediately ran right at Ivy, but Mega Man restrained her at the last second. "Mandy, stop!"
The truth was, Mandy didn't have the heart to beat anyone up, including her traitorous ally. In fact, Ivy betraying Mandy wasn't even the worst part of it.
No, the absolute worst part about all of this was that Gaz was right.
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
"Ivy told us everything," Harry said. "Apparently, Mandy was so focused on trying to defeat Gaz that when Ivy tried to talk her into letting her help, Mandy not only flat-out refused, but devirtualized her because she believed she alone should have done it."
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
"She made a convincing case that her ally had to go," Moka stated.
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
"I actually didn't believe a word Ivy said," Mega Man explained. "So I voted for her. After what happened to the others, I am not taking any chances."
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
"It was actually me who told Harry to cast the sleep spell on her," Ivy said. "After she lost the fight, I knew she needed to go before her threat level and hatred for Gaz became a liability. With her asleep, she couldn't defend herself and convince everyone to vote off someone else. Whoever voted for me, that's just salt on the wound. It doesn't really matter.
"The point is, it's just like I said earlier. At the end of the day, there can only be one winner. And that's going to be me."
She waved at the camera. "Bye, Mandy. Thanks for everything."
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
This may have been the first time Gaz had ever seen Mandy defeated like this. For the first time ever, Gaz felt sorry for her rival. Quietly, she stepped out from behind the stand.
"I needed to see what happened," she told Chris. Then she stepped forward. "Mandy?"
"YOU!"
Mandy looked angrier than she had ever been. Slowly, she walked to where Gaz was standing. But despite the look on Mandy's face, Gaz didn't budge or even flinch. She had the same expression on her face, one that showed she wasn't scared.
Neither said anything for a few seconds as both girls stood there. Then, Mandy spoke, in an angry, yet quiet tone, loud enough only for Gaz to hear.
"I don't care what it takes or what you have do as long as you do it. Take. Her. Down."
Gaz immediately understood. She would do her best to obey Mandy's parting request. Without a word, she nodded.
Mandy nodded right back, then grabbed the parachute from Chef.
Without another word or gesture, Mandy hopped out of the plane and into the evening sky.
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
Talk about crazy, there. This may be my best elimination sequence yet.
Ivy finally did it. She turned the tables and betrayed Mandy, sending her off the plane and cementing Ivy as the ultimate villain of the season. Gaz was right all along, and it may be a long time before Mandy is ready to accept that fact.
However, it was Gaz being right that made Mandy make Gaz promise she would ultimately defeat Ivy once and for all. Mandy knew Gaz had earned the right to do so.
This was a difficult chapter to write, mostly because while I loved Lyoko, I hadn't watched an episode in years before preparing to write this. Not to mention I've been busy with school and stuff. Nonetheless, it was a fun chapter, where I brought in Jeremie and sent everyone into the wonderful world of Lyoko.
Gaz and Double D had a few bonding moments, and though we've known for a long time that they liked each other, this is the first time their affection truly showed. Now if only they could admit it.
Poor Chris. Yeah, I would scream out loud too. We don't yet know who sent him the crate. Still working on it.
Also, loyal TDE fan Storygirl000 made a guest appearance to make Ivy pay for everything she's done so far. Story, you never made the shirt change colors, so I simply made that part up just for fun. The TDE producers, however, will make absolutely sure you fulfill Leo's requests. So don't even think about cheating it off.
Well, now that that's over, it's time to talk about the merge.
With this chapter will also come the poll to decide which two competitors will come back. Also, I am announcing that thanks to Steven Universe's healing, Connie has made a faster recovery than we anticipated, and will be eligible for the poll! We're having her, Mandy, and everyone who has been eliminated so far, plus those who didn't compete this season. Sam and Snake will also be in there, and I do have replacements in case one or both of them are back in.
Here's how this works. One person's going to be decided by the poll (Viewer's Choice), and the other will be by my choice (TheMasterKat's Choice). If TheMasterKat's Choice is first on the poll, the runner-up will be Viewer's Choice. One vote per person. And please, don't vote for Deadpool just because he's Deadpool. The results will be revealed in the next Aftermath, where Viewer's Choice will be announced in the way of a competition, and TheMasterKat's Choice will be announced via reading a name out of a fancy envelope that Sam and Snake will have.
At any rate, here's info on the next chapter!
Connie, Julie, Sonic, Nom Nom, and Mandy come to talk and to compete, because they're in the running to decide who's getting a spot back in the game! But things are not going to be pretty. A sneaky rat is going to try whatever they can to sabotage the party, and one discovery may prove to be a nightmare for a current competitor.
Now all you can do is read and review, fav and follow, give me challenge ideas and locations, send in good-luck messages and audition tapes, and decide who is coming back for more fun! WHA HA HA HA!
Okay, see you next time. TheMasterKat out!
