5-7: Bloodlust
Let's see…where were we last time? Oh yeah! Yumi and Ulrich are over the wall and Janika just got rid of her senseless phobias, not to mention the fact that the other two are being swamped with dozens of monsters.
(((-7-)))
Odd pushed Aelita out of the way as the first Megatank fired. He narrowly escaped the beam and sent a pair of arrows at the eye before its protective covering could snap shut. But even as it exploded, the other tank had converged on them from a different direction and had its sights set on the pink-haired girl.
Aelita, weakened from her prolonged synthezation, couldn't move quickly enough to avoid the wall of red energy. It slammed into her while Odd was busy off a pair of Hornets that had ventured too close.
She hit the icy ground with a cry and was about to roll off the edge of a platform when a hand reached out and pulled her back. The digital girl smiled gratefully up at the cheetah-Warrior.
"Did Jeremy repair you?"
"I don't know, but I sure hope so. Let's get you to the Tower." She helped her friend to her feet. "Now if I could just figure out what my Special Ability is. Jeremy, are you allowed to give me a hint?"
The supercomputer's operator sounded distracted. "It's called Bloodlust, but I'm not sure how you access it. Right now I'm still working on fixing the final—look out for that Megatank!"
Janika rammed Aelita out of the way and cast a shuriken at her foe. The weapon glanced off the thick shell harmlessly. There was an explosion behind her and she turned to see Odd just lowering his arm after destroying a sneaky Hornet that had been ready to attack her.
She smiled faintly at him and then dove right to avoid another shot. The three friends huddled together.
"We need to get you out there," Odd said to Aelita, "but all those stupid robots keep getting in the way. We tried the decoy, but they just came straight back. A frontal assault doesn't do much good either when they outnumber us four to one. We need a new tactic."
The green-eyed girl was about to say something when a strand of hair blew across her face. She froze suddenly, all her features turning cold.
"What…happened…" she said, drawing the words out slowly, "…to my hair?"
Odd instantly grew uneasy. "Well…you see, it got caught when we were rescuing you and…Yumi kinda…did that."
Janika angrily threw back what was left of her unraveled braid. "I'm gonna kill her!"
White-hot anger welled up inside her. The claws on her hands lengthened, turning dagger-like and deadly, at the same time that fangs sprouted in her maw. The soft tones of her orange fur shifted to a darker, more dangerous shade. A catlike yowl issued from her throat as she leaped out of hiding.
Like orange lightning she decimated the remaining forces sent by their enemy. Janika hardly used her shurikens as she slashed and ripped her foes to pieces with her claws. She didn't run on two legs, but rather crouched and leaped from monster to monster on all fours.
They erupted in showers of sparks and pieces of shrapnel as the Warrior—more animal than human—furiously slaughtered them all.
(V)
Jeremy gaped at the readings on his monitor. "They're off the charts! Is this really Bloodlust? There is no possible way she can keep a grip on herself under this kind of strain." He fiddled with the keys. "Odd, make her stop! She's overloading her own systems!"
"You make her stop! She just took down X.A.N.A.'s army single-handed." Odd's reply was full of amazement and perhaps a trace of fear.
(V)
Teeth bared in a feral snarl, Janika sought more enemies to dispatch. She saw none except a figure with pink hair peering out from behind a bulge of ice. Ready to pounce at it, Janika failed to notice one last Hornet behind her. Stinger aimed, it sent a blast of poison toward the cheetah-girl.
Janika definitely hadn't expected to be attacked. The force of the hit knocked her end over end until she bumped against an ice pillar and lay still, half covered in green liquid. A Laser Arrow finished off the robot.
Jeremy was yelling at Odd as he rushed over to her. Aelita made sure the coast was clear and took off for the red-rimmed Tower.
"What just happened?! One second her stats were ceiling-high, the next she's a hair away from being devirtualized! Odd, keep her safe for two more minutes. That's all the time I need."
Unfortunately, that was also all the time the loco car would need to finish off Yumi and Ulrich. Not that Jeremy knew that.
(V)
They were trapped in a parking lot full of expensive cars with nowhere left to run. Once the car got past the fence, they were done for. The dark-haired boy finally managed to dial Jeremy's number while they were running and got his friend on the phone.
"We're in deep sludge here, Jeremy! Is Aelita even close to the Tower yet?"
He answered hurriedly, "She's waiting for my signal. She's standing right outside until I can finish correcting Janika's virtual matrix. Just another few lines of code and it'll be complete. Why? What's going on?"
"Oh, nothing much. X.A.N.A. has a burning car chasing us, that's all," Ulrich's voice was dripping with sarcasm. "We're pretty defenseless here since there's a stupid electric fence around the whole place and I doubt that'll keep something that doesn't feel pain at bay for very long."
"You're in that car dealership with the fancy vehicles, aren't you?"
"Yep. We climbed over a brick wall and now we're stuck. If you can hurry it up we'd really appreciate it."
"I'm doing the best I can."
Ulrich looked up as the fiery light came closer. The possessed car rammed into the fence and suddenly there were fireworks. Sirens and lights flared to life as the inanimate intruder entered the lot.
The car seemed to have some sort of homing device and knew exactly where the two teenagers were. They were up and running a moment later as the flaming automobile revved, slamming into a silver car. It followed them doggedly as they fled.
"Anytime, Jeremy!" he yelled into his cell. "Preferably before we get run down."
"All right! I can't risk your lives. I'm not done, but at least Janika won't be deleted. I'm sending Aelita in. Hang on for a few more seconds, you two!"
Yumi pulled Ulrich behind a truck and dropped to the ground. "If we don't make it out of here, I want you to know something, Ulrich." He turned to her, listening intently. "I...really, really like you."
And then she kissed him. Just a soft, tender kiss, but it was the best she could do on such short notice.
(V)
Janika blinked slowly. Everything was hazy. Finally she managed to focus on the figure kneeling over her. Her vision cleared slightly and she caught sight of Odd's purple clothes.
He smiled down at her. "That was cool. If X.A.N.A. sends any more monsters, it'll be too late for them to interfere. Aelita is about to enter the code now. Just relax."
He started to rise, but she reached out and grasped his four-fingered hand, suddenly anxious. For some reason she felt like she would never get this chance again.
"Odd…tell Ulrich I will wait for him…even if I can never have him. I'm sorry..."
The hopes he'd been harboring deflated. Odd could only crouch there, his hand in her clutch as a wave of white light enveloped them both.
The code barely saved Yumi and Ulrich as they threw themselves down to avoid the half-melted wheels of the deranged car. And then the past returned to be remade…
The reason it's taken me so long to update is b/c I've been home, and since there's no place like home, I've been busy taking care of bratty little Munchkins. (grumbles to self) I'll teach them to mess with me!