The Enemy Within

By Flying Star

Disclaimer: I can't return to the past to grab the rights. In other words, I don't own Code Lyoko.

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Note: Story is now four parts. Just flows better this way, and I think it adds more suspence.

I give my thanks to the people who wanted me to continue, and for their reviews.

Yumi's Twin-Kagome: As you wish, I hope this is to your liking.

Eilian Rhoss : Whew, thanks. I was really worried about delving into a different catagory. But people like you make me feel it was worth it. Thanks for the information.

Unnamed One: Thanks, I'll have to check around.

Codeearthaelitak: Glad you liked it.

D. Wolf Falls : I was hoping they were in character. Jeremie will seem OOC, but you'll know why in this part.

Midnight Dove: laughs I checked around to make sure.

Hikaru: Ulrich and Yumi are in this chapter, but we won't have the UxY until chapter 3 and 4 now.

Little by little, XANA reveals his plans, but there's more, much more in store for the Lyoko team.

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Chapter two: Deception

With the clang of metal upon metal still ringing in his ears, Jeremie skipped the bottom two rungs as he ran through the sewer access tunnels. He didn't bother to grab his scooter as he passed through each junction, his mind knowing the exact route.

Arriving at the elevator access and punching in the code to enter, he couldn't help a small, self-satisfied smirk as the doors slid open. " Too easy." he smiled.

Heading to main computer, he sat down, punching in the numbers for Ulrich's mobile phone. " Nothing." he muttered as he recieved no response. " I guess I shouldn't be surprised, what with the racket Odd makes." Pulling up Odd's number met with success as he heard a groggy response.

" Mmmhello?"

" Odd, it's Jeremie. I need you and Ulrich at the factory."

There was the sound of rustling bedsheets on the other side of the line as Odd sat up. " Sleeping beauty didn't awaken for you?" he asked teasingly.

" This is not the time for games, Odd! XANA's on the attack. Just get him up, I have to contact Yumi. Alert me if you see anything out of place."

" One sec, I thought I heard something." There was a pause as Odd brought the phone away from his face, followed by a large rumble. A few moments passed before he came back on. " Jeremie, it's the school! XANA's attacking the school with schoolbuses!"

" And I've got Aelita's coordinates, try to see if you and Ulrich can escape. I'll fill Yumi in and have her meet me at the factory. Keep in touch."

" Right, I'll keep my mobile on me." There was a click as Odd cut the connection.

" And that brings us to player number three." Jeremie said mockingly as he punched up Yumi's mobile number.

" Hello?"

" Yumi?"

" Jeremie, is that you?"

" Yes, and we've got trouble. XANA's taken control of the Kadic school buses, and Ulrich, Odd, and the rest of the students are trapped inside! I'm trying to contact Aelita, but I'm not getting a signal!"

" Don't worry, Jeremie. I'm on my way to the factory."

" No! I mean, check out the school first. Try to see if you can find a way to free them. If you can't, then get here as quickly as you can."

"But what about Aelita?"

" Aelita will be fine, I told her to hide in the nearest deactivated tower. Just get to the school."

Yumi looked at her mobile phone. Since when did Jeremie insist on nobody helping Aelita? True, she was safe in a tower, but the way he was around her, he always needed, no.... wanted someone in Lyoko in case things went from bad to worse in the real world, and to protect her.

" Yumi?"

Still, maybe he reasoned the situation wasn't as bad as she thought.

" Yumi? Are you still there?"

" Yes, yes I'm still here, Jeremie. I'll go to the school."

" Good, keep me informed, and I'll keep trying to contact Aelita."

"Good luck." Yumi finished, closing her mobile phone as she ran to the school, hoping the situation wasn't as bad.

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She was wrong, it was worse. More buses had joined and were now circling in two lines of six, and as they passed one another the line tightened, closing off any chance of escape.

" Damn, XANA certainly likes to play for keeps." Yumi muttered as she tried to find a way in. Something still nagged at her though. It made more sense to have the buses ramming the school or waiting for some unsuspecting person to cross their path. The circling did little more than block escape or entry, but did little to harm anyone.

She frowned. XANA was a lot smarter than that, there had to be some other reason, but what? Shaking her head, she focused her attention back on the buses. " It's safe to say that I can't go through them, but how about above them?"

Grabbing the nearest tree, she vaulted onto the roof of a passing bus. Immediately the bus swung out, fishtailing back and forth in an attempt to dislodge it's rider. Yumi held on, gripping the roof as tightly as she could, waiting, waiting......there! As the bus swung around again, she crouched and leapt, the forward momentum from the bus adding distance to her leap.

Her hands had barely grasped the edge of the school roof, her legs scrabbling for purchase when a sound, worse than anything Odd could make, assaulted her ears. The sound of brakes squealing and gears shifting.

Looking over her shoulder she gasped. The outer circle of buses were straightening out, and heading right for her! Digging her fingers into the loosening roof tiles, she pushed down with her arms, slowly pulling her body up.

Her teeth clenched, panic beginning to settle in. Too slow, she was going too slow, the lead bus would be on top of her in mere seconds.

Panic and fear drove her on, her body on autopilot as her feet finally found solid footing, her legs tensing as she jumped. She made it just in time as the lead bus slammed into the schools' foundation, making the building shudder. Two more buses followed, before the rest returned to the circling vehicles.

On the roof, Yumi breathed a sigh of relief. ' I'm never doing that again.' she thought as she found an open window. ' I hope Ulrich and Odd are okay.' She slid into the hall, starting her search.

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While Yumi had been trying to gain access to the school, Odd and Ulrich were trying to get out.

After waking Ulrich and filling him in on XANA's latest attack, the two slipped out of their room.

" Seems pretty quiet to me Odd." Ulrich mentioned as they walked past the janitor's closet.

" Believe me, XANA's into heavy metal, and I don't mean the rock variety." Odd joked grimly as they made it to the back door. Sure enough, flashes of headlights illuminated the buses driving past. Odd glanced over at Ulrich. " Any ideas?"

" Besides getting out the door, no." He studied the buses, watching as the alternating lines passed each other. " They really don't seem to be doing anything, do they?"

" No, just going around in a circle."

" So, maybe they won't notice us?" Urich commented as he grabbed the door handle. As he did, there was the sound of brakes hissing and tires squealing. Startled, he let go, backing up warily as Odd peered outside.

" Don't know what you did, but some of the buses are leaving, wonder why?" Odd questioned, watching as a portion of the buses suddenly turn away from the line. The lead bus's headlights were just appearing around the corner.

" Now is not the time to question, let's go." Ulrich grabbed his hand, dragging him through the doors as they ran toward the factory.

Odd chanced a glance back at the band of buses. " Um, Ulrich, hate to be a bother, but.... they noticed!"he yelled as he pulled his hand free. Watching in fright as the remaining buses, now lined up side by side, drove forward, heading right toward the two.

" The trees!" Ulrich yelled back. " Get up the trees!"

The two increased their speed, running full tilt toward the outer reaches of the parking lot. Their feet pounding the pavement as the buses closed in.

Barely making it the two climbed and then clung to the nearest tree, bracing for impact. An impact which never came.

Cracking open an eye, Odd watched as the line, having reached the edge of the lot, turned in perfect unison, before returning to their newly rejoined other line. " Weird, it's not like XANA to give up so easily."

" Again, not the time to question. Let's get to the factory." They resumed running, unaware of who they had left behind.

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Inside the school, Yumi's wasn't having much luck. A few students were awakened by the crash, but they stay huddled in their rooms. And Odd and Ulrich's room was empty, which either meant they'd escaped, or were still trying to. Now, she figured, she'd have to find a way out without being run over.

Walking past the janitor's closet, her foot struck a small object. Picking up the broken flashlight, she heard a slight thumping noise coming from the door. Grabbing the handle, she opened the door, only to jump back when Jim's large body suddenly fell at her feet. " Jim?"

The gym teacher didn't look very good.

" Easy, easy. " Yumi said as he lay on the floor. Resting his head on her knee she asked, " What happened to you?"

Jim only stared, his eyes glazed and unfocused, looking through her as he started mumbling. " N-no, no! Keep away...s-stay back. Jeremie don't, get away! Get away! Please, so dark. Ahhh!, the eyes...the eyes!!! Please, not the eyes." His body jumped, his head nearly striking Yumi face as his eyes grew wide, spittle flying from his mouth before his eyes shut and he suddenly slumped.

Yumi quickly checked for a pulse, relieved when she got one. It was slightly erratic, but going strong. " He's just out cold. The poor guy, he's in shock." It was then that she noticed the blood covering her hands. Gently easing her leg out from under his head she examined him further. A large bloody bump adorned the back of his head. Obviously the reason for his disorientation and confusion.

But what had he said about Jeremie? His incorherent mumblings had seemed to imply Jeremie as the culprit. She shook her head, the blow to his head must've been messing with his memory, Jeremie would never strike another person. She flipped open her mobile phone, dialing the factory's private number. A moment later a voice answered.

" Yumi?"

" Jeremie, I'm at the school. I haven't found any sign of Odd or Ulrich. But I did find Jim, he's been attacked."

" By the buses?"

" No, it looks like he was struck from behind with a blunt object."

" Hmm, not good." There was a brief pause. " Yumi, Odd and Ulrich just arrived, I'm getting the scanners prepped. If you can, get here as quickly as you can. The screen's showing multiple monsters converging on the tower Aelita's hiding in. We're going to need all the help we can get."

"What about Jim?" Yumi asked.

There was a longer pause." Get him to the nurse, I'm sure he'll be fine. He's a tough guy. He can handle a few bumps." Jeremie's voice was dismissive. " I need you here." There was a click as he ended his call, leaving Yumi to stare at her phone for the second time in as many hours.

Again shaking her head, Yumi slipped the phone into her pocket and bent down to grab Jim's shoulders. Luckily the nurse's office wasn't far from where she was, which would give her a chance to check something else out before she met the others.

Now dragging Jim through the corridors, she had a moment to think. ' Jeremie's behavior has been..strange to say the least, but it's probably due to stress. After all, XANA's been running us ragged the past few months.'

Realizing she was at the office, she laid Jim back down before knocking. After a few moments of slience she feared the nurse wasn't in, but sighed as the door cracked open.

" Yes, may I help you?"

" There's been a mishap." Yumi gestured to the floor, at which the door opened fully.

" Oh Jim!" the nurse exclaimed, bending down to examine his head before her gaze turned to Yumi. " What happened to him?"

" I'm not sure, I found him in the hallway, barely conscious." It wasn't really a lie, more like a slight bending of the facts.

Either way the nurse didn't question her further as they both carried Jim into the office. Now that he was on a bed, Yumi asked, " Is he going to be okay?"

The nurse nodded. " It looks like a mild concussion. But his vitals appear good. I'll have to monitor him to make sure."

" Good, I've gotta run. Keep me informed." Yumi left the room, searching until she found Jeremie's room. It was unlocked, eliminating the hassle of trying to pick the lock. Slipping inside, Yumi made a beeline for Jeremie's computer. Reaching for the power button she hesitated. There, around the button, was a series of blackened lines spreading out. Examining it more closely she realized the lines were scorch marks, their source of origin unclear until her eyes happened upon the unused power plug outlet behind the desk. The outlet was beyond burned, it had melted into the wall.

Cautiously, Yumi, using the rubber eraser end of a pencil, pushed the button. The computer hummed to life, seemingly none the worse for wear. Again she hesitated, wondering if it was safe to touch the keyboard. A quick touch with a pair of scissors brought no reaction, leaving her satisfied that it wasn't electrified. Sitting down she typed in the communication line to Lyoko.

" Aelita, are you there?"

" Yumi?" Aelita questioned. " Where are you? I thought Jeremie said you were at the factory."

Yumi froze, feeling uneasy, " Aelita, Jeremie sent me to the school to help Ulrich and Odd escape."

" That's odd. Jeremie informed me that they arrived earlier without incident and are being scanned and sent to my position."

Yes, I know, but I found Jim in the school janitor's closet. Aelita, he was attacked, and he mumbled some things that seemed to imply Jeremie as the attacker."

" That seems rather impossible." Aelita answered

" Yes, I thought so too, at first. But there may some truth in his words. Listen, did anything happen earlier in this room? Strange power surges or anything like that?"

" Actually there was a brief power surge right before Jeremie left the room, why?"

" One of the power outlets is burned as well as slight scorching on the power button to this computer. Aelita it's real important that I know how long after the power surge did you feel the pulsations?"

" Not long, maybe only four or five minutes. " she gasped. " Do you think....." the line suddenly went dead, Aelita's face disappearing into a sea of static.

" Aelita, Aelita!" It was no use, she'd lost the connection. Still wary of the power button, she used the pencil to turn it off.

" First the buses, then Jeremie's odd behavior, and now this. There's definitely more going on. I think it's time I had a little chat with Jeremie, face to face."

Easing out the door and closing it quietly, she made her way down the hall. Momentarily forgetting the buses, she opened the school door and blinked. Two rows of headlights were aimed right at her. " The buses..." She took a step back before noticing something weird. The buses weren't moving, but rather lined up in two lines facing the school, idling softly.

" Definitely strange." she muttered, slowly walking through the open path. The buses didn't move until she stepped off the parking lot, then they resumed their circling. ' Not normal XANA behavior, that's for certain.' she thought as she ran to the factory.

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In the main floor of the factory, Jeremie turned away from the secondary screen. " Sorry Yumi, can't have you snooping where you're not supposed to." On the transfer screen next to him the words ' Offensive Weapons Disabled' flashed repeatedly over the templates of Ulrich and Odd.

Watching the screen, he sneered. " Two players down, one to go."

On his hand the symbol of XANA pulsed brighter.

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Meanwhile in Lyoko, Ulrich and Odd, having been deposited in the forest region, were not having much luck against the hoard of monsters. Worse still, they had yet to find Aelita or even a tower.

" Impact!" Ulrich yelled, but then stumbled back as his blade richocheted off the Crab's XANA symbol. He recovered quickly, dodging a spray of retalitory fire. " Jeremie, something's wrong! My sword's not having any effect!"

" You think you're having problems?!" Odd called from a distance. " I can't get my laser arrows to fire!" he leapt to the side as a volley of Wasp fire flew past. " What's going on, Einstein?"

" A minor glitch." Jeremie's voice rang out from above. " I'll have it fixed in a moment."

" Sure hope so. " Ulrich grunted as a Wasp scored a direct hit to his back.

" You've lost twenty life points, Ulrich, " Jeremie warned. " better be careful."

" Easy for you to say. We're running on defenses alone." Ulrich replied as he deflected a pair of shots. " And where's Aelita?"

" Yeah, we haven't seen any sign of her. Are you sure you got the right coordinates?" Odd dropped down behind Ulrich, his right arm sparking from the last hit.

" Ten points lost, Odd. And I'm sure Ulrich, the screen shows her about a mile due west of you. You should be able to see the tower once you're through the next grove of trees."

" If we survive that long." Ulrich muttered as he and Odd ran from a pair of Crabs. "And what about Yumi? I thought she was supposed to be here already."

" She was....delayed. But she's on her way now."

" Okay." Ulrich cleared the grove, his face going pale. " Uh, Jeremie, we've got a problem."

Odd stopped next to him. " What's wrong....oh."

A literal sea of Crabs, Wasps, and Tanks filled the area. All weapons trained on the two.

" Jeremie, NOW would be the perfect time to finish fixing that glitch." Ulrich's said, his voice tense as the monsters closed in. "

" I'll say, we're outnumbered about two hundred to two here. Not good odds." Odd exclaimed, backing up, Ulrich following.

" Sorry guys, the glitch is taking longer to isolate than I thought."

" Well then the best offense is a good defense." Odd remarked.

" What do you mean?" Ulrich asked, keeping a wary eye on the shifting creatures.

" What I mean !" Odd grabbed his arm, yanking him off his feet as the two ran back into the grove of trees, the monsters in hot pursuit.

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Still puzzled from the sudden break in communication, Aelita rose from her meditative stance. She didn't know what to make of Yumi's words, what she was suggesting seemed impossible. Still, one thing was for certain, the pulsations were actually growing weaker, the tower couldn't be in this area.

" I must inform Jeremie." But before she could contact him she heard a shout. Turning to the outskirts of the area, her eyes looked out over the cliff, spotting something in the near distance. Standing closer to the edge she recognized the two figures emerging from the forest.

" Ulrich, Odd. They're here." The forest below suddenly erupted, hundreds of monsters pouring forth. " And they're not alone!" Raising her arms, she let herself fall forward, her body automatically tucking and rolling as she landed on her feet.

Running out from the base of the cliff she gestured to the two. " Come on, this way!" she yelled, as the two grateful warriors followed her to the transfer tower. Ducking inside, she looked over the two. "How long have you been here?"

" L-long enough. " Ulrich gasped as he leaned against the wall.

" I've been trying to find you. The tower's not in this area."

" Are you sure?" Odd asked, disbelieving. " Jeremie said it was here."

" I'm positive, the pulsations are very weak." she turned to the center of the tower, calling up a communication screen. " Jeremie?"

" Yes Aelita?" came the reply.

" I've met with Odd and Ulrich, but the tower's not in this area. Any news on your end?"

" Actually, I managed to isolate the signal. The tower's in the desert region."

" Okay, we're on our way." Standing side by side, the three mirrored each other as they dove into the informational malestrom that would send them to the next region.

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Having finished her run through the sewer system, Yumi pressed the access code for the elevator. As she waited, she again wondered how she could confront him. ' I can't just casually go in and ask him if he remembers slugging Jim.' The sudden grind of the elevator stopped her pondering as she entered.

Cringing at the hiss of the doors, she peered inside the room, her every instinct telling her to turn back, to bring some kind of reinforcements. But she had gone this far, and with the others already in Lyoko, she was on her own. Bracing herself she walked inside.

The room was empty.

' Then why do I still feel nervous?' she thought as she walked up to the monitor. Gasping at the readings, she quickly punched in Ulrich's and then Odd's stats. " This can't be right!" she squeaked. " This says their weapon systems are down! Odd's already lost fifty life points, and Ulrich down to sixty." Swiveling the layout around, she watched the three beacons heading in the wrong direction, drifting farther and farther away from the infected tower. She grabbed the headset, intending to contact them.

" So you finally arrived, Yumi."

Gasping, she turned around, seeing nothing in the room. " Jeremie?"

" I wondered if you'd come."

Her eyes scanned the far walls, finally landing on the speaker.

Twin circles of white light reflected out from the far side of the room as Jeremie stepped out from the shadows.

" Oh, Jeremie, you're here." Yumi jumped down from the chair, trying to stay calm. She took a moment to study him as he grinned back at her. Nothing seemed out of place, he looked just fine. Until she noticed another light radiating from his position, and instantly recognizied the XANA symbol glowing on his hand. ' Not good,' she thought as he continued to stare at her, that rather unnerving grin still plastered on his face. ' Jim was right, it was Jeremie that attacked him, but how, how did XANA get ahold of him?'

Memories of her XANA made duplicate flashed through her head. Back then she had fought and nearly died at the hands of her doppleganger. Jeremie had saved her and then nearly died himself when her double had thrown him to his death. Only a well-timed 'return to the past' had saved him. Now it looked like XANA had tried again, only this time using their most valuable member.

' So, it's safe to assume that this...creature, isn't the real Jeremie. Which means that he must be trapped by a guardian on Lyoko.'

" Are you quite finished, Yumi?"

She looked up, realizing that 'Jeremie' had moved closer, now halfway across the room.

" What's wrong, Yumi? Oh.." he glanced down, seeing where her gaze was focused. He brought his hand up. " I see you've noticed my new accessory." he smirked.

Discretion was no longer neccesary.

Yumi reached for the nearest object, which happened to be a metal bar. " You don't fool me, you're one of XANA's creations."

' Jeremie's gaze held no surprise as he calmly said, " How very perceptive of you. However, you're too late. Even now your weakened friends are being picked off by my monsters. And with the scanners unplugged, they'll be deleted, from both worlds." he smiled as he advanced on the frightened girl. " They'll be dead before you can reach them, as you will be."

Yumi adjusted her grip on the bar, holding it defensively. " N-no, you're wrong, " her shaking voice betraying her fear. " Even if I die, they will survive, and they'll rescue Jeremie from the guardian!"

She backed away a little more as 'Jeremie' started laughing. " Rescue him!? Dear child, he's standing right in front of you!"

" Then what..." her eyes widened. " XANA!"

X-Jeremie nodded. " Yes, your programmer belongs to me now."

" But why..how?" Yumi bit her lip as her back hit the wall. Nowhere to go, nowhere to hide, nowhere to run. Trapped, and at the mercy of their worst foe....alone.

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End part two. Yeah, just like some of the other stories that I've did, this one became longer than I thought. Part three is already being written, as well as part four. I swear, four parts is the maximum. . By the way, Yumi isn't OOC, she's facing XANA himself, in Jeremie's body, not very good odds for her. So what did you think? Do you think Yumi will survive? Can the others deactivate the tower, and is it really a good idea to do so? Here's a hint, the next chapter is entitled "Sacrifice". Anyway, if you read, please review.

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Here's a bonus teaser from chapter 3

Ulrich knew immediately who he was talking about. " What did you do to Yumi!? he shouted, his grip tightening on his sword.

" Oh, her?" the being smiled as he licked the crooked ends of his fingertips. " She got in my way."

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