The Enemy Within

By Flying Star

Disclaimer: A world without danger, my world without the rights. In other words I don't own Code Lyoko.

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Palantiri: Hmm, I've missed a few episodes ( darn Cartoon Network, taking it off weekdays), but from episode guides, I'd guess, " Frontier"? As for what happens, well you'll just have to read.

Diamond-halo: Thanks, and thanks for sticking around. Here's the last part.

J: Interesting name. Thanks, glad you enjoyed it.

D Wolf Falls: That chapter was the one I enjoyed writing the most. Yay! I'm glad I stumped you, I was hoping that people would think it was Yumi. I hope the this last part is to your liking. Thanks for sticking with the story.

Cybra: Ah! I know you from your stories! I love "The Eternal Enemies" and " Wild Ride". I think I even remember browsing though some of your SWAT KATS stuff. : Blushes: Thanks, it was a story that's been floating around in my head, and it finally decided to write itself. Here's the last part.

This is it, the final chapter, really. With Jeremie gone, what can the team do?

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Conclusion: Hope

They were huddled in the factory. The remaining members that fought to keep XANA from winning. And while once again they'd succeeded, it had been at a great personal cost.

Ulrich and Odd sat on either side of the console, their heads bowed in quiet frustration and anger. Both blaming themselves for not doing more, for failing to save their friend. Ulrich keep clenching and unclenching his hands, his eyes shut, still unable to comprehend the loss. While Odd muttered angrily to himself.

But their self-hate paled in comparision to how Yumi felt. She sat slumped in the console chair, her wounds gone, shoulders heaving as she continued to stare at her hand. The same hand that had pressed the button, reversing time but not saving him.

' It's my fault.' she thought. She had been there when XANA had revealed his plans, and she had failed to stop him. If only she'd kept him from going into Lyoko, then maybe things would've been different. She refused to feel any measure of pride for reconnecting the one scanner.

It just wasn't fair. They had won, and yet lost at the same time. Saving the world, but killing their friend in the process. Jeremie, who had sacrificed himself for them, for the human race.

As they grieved, the monitor in front of Yumi flickered to life, Aelita appearing on the screen. Her eyes silently watching, face seemingly neutral. After all, she's a computer program, supposedly incapable of feeling emotion. The logic made perfect sense, IF she was just that. But she was more than that, she lived, she breathed, she did have feelings, feelings that were now being torn to pieces as she turned away from the screen.

Twin globes of glistening moisture were leaving wet trails down her cheeks. She was crying. Tears....something thought impossible in Lyoko.

But none of that mattered to her.

Her hand reached up, brushing lightly against her lips. A kiss...her first, from the one who had mattered the most to her. And she had felt it, another impossibility. Her mouth curved upward at the memory. She had felt confused at first, wondering about this strange new feeling, a warm tender sensation that had sent shivers up her spine, leaving her breathless.

A wonderful feeling....that she'd never get to experience with him again.

Aelita's smile crumpled as fresh tears came to her eyes.

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In the upper level of the factory, the closed scanner suddenly came to life, it's door slowly opening with a hiss of steam. And from that steam, a hand emerged, grasping the frame.

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" So, what do we do now?" Odd's question was the first words uttered since the time reversal.

Ulrich sighed, kneading his hair with his hands. " I'm not sure. Without Jeremie...."

" WE FIGHT!"

Both Ulrich and Odd looked up, startled as Yumi glared down at them, tears still running down her face.

" Ah, come again?" Odd involuntarily cringed as Yumi jumped off the chair, her face still a mix of anger, sadness, and guilt.

" We fight XANA, right here right now! I'm getting the scanners ready, we're taking the fight to him!"

" I highly advise against that."

Yumi whirled around, glaring daggers at the pink-haired sprite. " And what do you know, Aelita?!" She yelled, coming up to the screen and jabbing a finger in Aelita's 'face'. " He killed Jeremie, murdered him! If that isn't a a good enough reason for wanting him dead, I don't know..."

" Shut up!"

Yumi stumbled back, suprised at the soft spoken girl's angry tone of voice, before recovering her composure. " Now see here..."

" No! You listen to me!" Aelita glared back at Yumi, before looking down and sighing. " Yumi, I miss Jeremie, alot. I would do anything to get him back. But charging into Lyoko in a blind rage won't bring him back, deleting XANA won't bring him back. " her head raised, eyes searching the room, until they landed on Ulrich. When she spoke again, her voice was subdued. "I- I barely got a chance to experience the emotion you call love. The togetherness that you and Ulrich share."

Yumi's eyes followed Aelita's, a blush coming to her cheeks as she saw Ulrich's do the same.

Odd, for his part, stayed back, his eyes looking anywhere but on the three. He didn't feel he had anything to contribute to Aelita's conversation.

His attention strayed to the security monitors, each showing a different part of the factory. Passing over the scanner room, he did a double take. "No, it can't be, it's impossible." he whispered, shocked. Not even bothering to alert the others, he ran for the elevators, pushing the open button and jumping inside. He looked up as the doors closed. The three were still conversing, unaware of his departure as he rode the elevator to the scanner room.

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( Back in the main floor)

" Do you really believe it's the same for me?" Aelita asked, addressing Yumi, who was sitting back in the chair, trying her hardest not to break down again. Ulrich was sitting next to her, an arm draped across her shoulders. He was gently stroking her cheek as he monitored the screen for any signs of XANA, so far nothing.

" Yes, though you came from a computer program, your feelings for him are certainly real." Yumi squeezed her hands together, feeling guilty for discussing new love with one who's love had just died. Tears came to her eyes.

" Yumi, " Aelita pressed her hands to the screen. " Don't blame yourself, XANA knew what this would do to us. From what I've heard, you did more than most people in your position could've done. The best we can do now is to continue the fight, it's what Jeremie would've wanted." Neither Yumi nor Ulrich could see her hands shaking as she brought them to her sides.

A small smile appeared on Yumi's face, even as a few tears still fell. " Aelita, for one who's so new at emotions, you certainly know the right words to help me feel better." she sighed. " Still, I just can't help thinking that there could've been some other way, a way that would've prevented his death."

" We may never know." Ulrich spoke up as he looked away from the screen, intending to wrap his other arm around her, when they heard the elevator doors open.

" Guys, you're not going to believe this!" Odd excitedly called out as he exited the elevator.

Ulrich and Yumi turned, their jaws dropping in disbelief.

" Um, may I see?" Aelita asked shyly from behind.

Wordlessly, the two moved aside, allowing Aelita a full view of Odd, and the person holding his shoulder for support. The person raised his head, giving them a weak smile. " Hey guys."

Aelita felt a tear run down her face. " Jeremie?"

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Total chaos erupted. Both Ulrich and Yumi jumped up, their chairs crashing to the ground as they ran to the two. Yumi was the first to speak.

" H-how?" It was the only thing she could voice as she stared at this impossible vision.

Jeremie shook his head as he leaned on Odd. " I'm not sure, one minute I was standing in Lyoko, awaiting my death, and in the next I was in the scanner room. I can't figure it out, for all intents and purposes, I should've died."

" I think you did." Aelita said softly.

Jeremie looked at her, before motioning to Odd to help him. With Ulrich's help, the two walked Jeremie to the command console, where he sat down wearily. " What do you mean, Aelita?" He asked just as softly, a warm smile on his face.

Aelita smiled back, before sobering. " After I deactivated the tower, I decided to do a scan of the immediate area. I guess I was hoping for a miracle, but your signal was gone, deleted from the mainframe."

Odd shrugged. " So, his signal was gone. We reversed time, that means he wouldn't be recorded in Lyoko."

" No, it's not that. His profile was listed in the file as teminated, deleted. Lyoko did erase him." Her voice was barely above a whisper, her eyes not meeting Jeremie's.

" So I didn't survive, but somehow I'm here, alive." Jeremie mused, before shaking his head. " It doesn't make sense."

" So, even Einstein's stumped." Odd quipped, receiving an elbow from both Ulrich and Yumi.

" Maybe you're a copy?" Ulrich asked.

" You mean like a backup file? I don't think that's possible." Jeremie replied as he scratched his hand, it felt itchy for some reason.

" Do you think a strand of your hair remained in the scanner, maybe the scanner used your DNA?" Yumi suggested.

Jeremie frowned. " Quite impossible, even if there had been any hair, it only originally worked for Aelita because it recognized her computer code. It wouldn't work for any of us because our DNA is human, not digital. It doesn't work in reverse. If it was that easy, we wouldn't have to worry about dying." 1

" Maybe Lyoko granted you an extra life?" Odd chimed in. " I mean, some games grant you extra lives if you perform certain deeds. And Lyoko is similar to a game, sortof."

"Something like sacrificing my life to save the world?" Jeremie slumped down, still feeling drained from his experience. " I'm really not sure if that's feasible." He placed his elbow on the console, resting his head on his hand. " Maybe some mysteries are best left unsolved."

" What do you think, Aelita?" Yumi asked " Aelita?" She turned to the screen, Jeremie and Ulrich doing the same. The pink-haired girl was gone.

" Aelita?" Jeremie looked around in a panic, before noticing the elevator doors opening.

In the time it took for him to gasp, Aelita was kneeling in front of him, hugging him fiercely.

"A-Aelita, air!" Jeremie squeaked as Aelita let go, blushing a deep crimson. " You accessed the materialization program." It wasn't a question. 2

" Yes, Jeremie. My stay can only be brief because of the virus, maybe a couple hours." 3 She blushed even harder as she studied her hands, when she looked up, her eyes were shining with tears. " I-I just felt I had to see you, in person again. I felt so happy when you kissed me."

" You felt it?" Jeremie asked, surprised.

Aelita nodded. " It was such a wonderful feeling." She hugged him again, this time more gently before whispering in his ear. " I missed you so much, I felt like my world collapsed when I imputed the code, knowing that my actions caused your immediate demise."

Jeremie grabbed her hands, mirroring what she had done in Lyoko. " Aelita, I willfully gave up my life for the people I love. Would you have done any different?"

Aeltia realized the truth in his words. Of course she would've done the same. " Oh, Jeremie!" She sobbed, burying her face in his shoulder. " It was like I lost a part of myself when you were deleted. I've never felt that way before."

Jeremie rubbed her back as he said soothingly. " That's because you never experienced true love before today." He smiled as she gazed into his eyes, her cheeks pink. " There's no one I'd rather be with than you."

Aelita's smile grew brighter as she spoke. " I only want to be with you."

Without saying another word, she leaned forward, her lips meeting his as the two embraced. It was a kiss of pure happiness, all their pent up worries and fears melting away as they continued.

" About time." Odd smiled playfully. " Now how about we..." He paused as he turned to the other couple.

Yumi and Ulrich were locked in an kiss just as deep as Jeremie and Aelita.

In between the two couples, Odd threw up his arms in mock exasperation. " Why am I always the odd man out!?" He moaned.

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An hour later found Jeremie and Aelita up on the roof of the factory, their legs dangling over the roof edge, their hands linked as they gazed up at the stars.

They're beautiful, Jeremie." Aelita commented she continued to look upward.

" Not half as beautiful as you, Aelita." Jeremie brought his gaze down to hers as she giggled softly.

Jeremie absentmindedly scratched at his hand, a motion that Aelita noticed.

" Jeremie, is something wrong with your hand?" She asked, concern lacing her voice.

" I'm not sure." As he looked down at his hand, he gasped.

" What is it?"

The back of Jeremie's hand still bore the mark of XANA. Only now it was faint mark, a slightly reddened scar engraved in the flesh.

" It's a reminder. " Jeremie said quietly, carefully tracing the scar. " A reminder that XANA's still out there, a threat to our world and yours." He sighed. " Aelita?"

" Yes?"

" Do you think it'll ever end? "

" One day, Jeremie." She laid her head on his shoulder. " One day we'll sit up here without any worries of XANA or viruses. One day the fight will end."

" Do you think we'll win?"

" After everything that's happened, yes. It may take months, maybe even years. But I believe that we can triumph over XANA." She leaned back, giving him a tender kiss on the cheek before standing up. " I'm afraid my time is almost up." She said sadly.

" Do you need my help?" Jeremie asked quietly, the reality of her situation quickly sobering him.

" Yes, and don't worry. We'll find the anti-virus someday. But until then, I want you to promise me two things."

Jeremie stood up, locking his gaze with hers. "Anything Aelita."

" Promise me you'll sleep when your friends are sleeping."

Jeremie nodded. " I will. We don't want a repeat of what happened. And what's the second one?"

" That you'll wait for me."

Jeremie smiled as the two started walking to the roof access. " I'd wait until the end of time, so long as I could be with you."

They embraced again, before heading down the stairs to the scanner room.

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In the forest region of Lyoko, the tower which Aelita had deactivated glowed with a blue light. And inside, on the identification screen, where Aelita's first tear had fallen, a few new lines of text sat.

Subject: Jeremie

Code: Retrieval

Request: Granted

In the world of Lyoko, things only look hopeless, if you give up hope.

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1 In the episode "Just in Time" Jeremie managed to bring Aelita back after she was reformatted, aka deleted, using a materialized strand of her hair. If it really was that easy to bring the others back that way, then I'm sure he would've done it when Yumi 'died' in "Cruel Dilemma", or at least in some future episode. So far he hasn't mentioned being able to do so.

2 In " Ghost Channel" Aelita managed to activate the scanner to send Jeremie into the false world that XANA created. So I assume if she really wanted to, she could materialize herself on rare occasions without Jeremie's help.

3 In " False Start" Aelita couldn't stay in the real world because of XANA's virus, but she could be materialized for short periods of time. I figured she could stay for at least a couple hours at a time, since they really didn't mention how long she can stay.

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Ahhh! I'm done, I'm finally done, and with a happy ending. Well, sortof, considering Aelita still has the virus, so I guess a bittersweet ending. Thanks so much to all who reviewed. It was a fun story to write. I hope you enjoyed the end. I just couldn't kill off Jeremie permanently, which is probably a shock to all my Teen Titans reviewers, since I'm usually killing off main characters. And besides, he and Aelita are so cute together. But anyway, please if you read, review. I'd like to know people's thoughts on this final chapter.