Before I get started, I would just like to apologize for being so late with this chapter. I'm not gonna give you any excuses, if you want the reason it's still up in the update section of my profile. It's been just about a month and I feel really bad about not being able to update in so long. But it was kind of a good thing because a lot of the ideas for this chapter I just got within the past few days. I made this chapter extra long for you guys. Now it's time to reply to some reviews and give out some points.
top20fan13: Thanks. -Laughs- No, it's not Milly. But I'll tell you what, for making me laugh you get 1300 points.
Doggiegal: That would be two no's and a yes. 3000 points to you and sorry about the wait.
AltonShadefoot: Thanks.
UlrichGirl: I did make it one of them so 3000 points to you.
Disclaimer: I don't own Code: Lyoko, it's as simple as that.
Last time on Dreams of Closure: Ulrich and Aelita found XANA's hiding place, the Central Processing Tower of Lyoko. Aelita entered the tower unaware of the dangers that await her within while Ulrich stayed outside to face XANA's new minion who has yet to reveal him/herself. The chapter ended with the cloaked figure saying, "Now it's just you and me Ulrich."
Read, enjoy, and review.
Ulrich stood up. "Not for long it won't be," he said. "TRIPLICATE!" he yelled as two clones split from his sides. The three Ulrichs got ready to strike the cloaked figure.
Aelita walked to the center of the platform as the rings of the platform started to light up. She stopped and slowly rose to the upper platform. She walked to the center and placed her hand on the screen to begin accessing the tower information.
"What do you think you're doing?" A voice boomed inside the tower.
"XANA." Aelita replied in a cold tone as she started to look around for the location of the voice.
"Let me guess, you're here to try and get revenge on me for eliminating your friends, and you're also looking for the anti-virus. Am I right?"
"Yes, and soon you will be gone for good."
XANA chuckled a little, "To bad you won't find the answers you seek."
"Of course I will, this tower holds all information in and of Lyoko." She turned back to the computer screen and continued searching.
"But who says I'm not blocking them from your access."
"And who says I don't have programs that can get around your block."
"You ready to do this?" Ulrich asked.
"Whenever you are."
Ulrich motioned at his clones and the three ran toward the figure while he (the figure) just stood there. Before the clones even had a chance to attack, they were deleted by a couple of flying objects. Now the figure looked around for the real Ulrich who had disappeared when his clones rushed into battle.
"Oh Ulrich, come out and play." he taunted.
Before he knew it, Ulrich was on his shoulders. "It's time to see who you really are," Ulrich said as he jumped off his shoulders. He kept his sword out so that it sliced the cloak that concealed the figure. Ulrich jumped back as the cloak fell to the ground. Who was hidden under the cloak? Ulrich looked in sheer disbelief and horror at the figure standing in front of him. All he could do was let out a barely auditable, "No."
"Oh really, and how could you do that? You know that I know any information that pertains to Lyoko so you have no secrets that you could possibly hide from me." XANA slowly came towards Aelita, hoping that he could rid himself of this little annoyance once and for all.
Aelita could feel XANA slowly creeping up on her. She knew exactly what to do. "Computer, activate program picture zero three."
"Locating program" the supercomputer said.
"Oh and what exactly is that supposed to do Aelita, are you gonna show me how happy you were with your 'friends'?"
"Program located"
"You'll see XANA"
"Program activated"
Aelita continued to look through the information in the tower while XANA's presence moved closer and closer to her. Just as XANA was getting within striking distance of Aelita, a green wall appeared around her stopping him.
"What is this?" the now irate program asked Aelita.
"A little program that Jeremie created just for you."
"That is illogical. Any program that is created pertaining to Lyoko is sent to this tower and I become aware of it."
"This program is special. On a computer that wasn't connected to Lyoko, Jeremie created a program to mask programs from you and this tower so that you would think it's nothing more than, oh say a picture."
"There is no way that child was smart enough to do that."
"Jeremie was smarter then you seem to give him credit for."
"No matter, it will only be a matter of time before I can delete this program just like all the other ones that child tried to use. And then you can join him."
Ulrich started to walk back in disbelief. "No, it can't be, you can't be here... Odd."
"Oh but I am, and I'm better then ever before."
"No, you can't be, you're supposed to be dead."
"I never died, in fact I feel more alive now then I've ever felt."
"But you were... and we... Aelita said there was no way you could survive."
"I'm here now, aren't I? And I'm even better then I was before, watch. LASER ARROW!" he shouted as an arrow shot from his glove.
It was fast, so fast that Ulrich didn't even have a chance to react until it made contact with his stomach. Ulrich clenched his stomach in pain, but slowly regained his composure as the virtual pain went away.
"Odd, why did you do that?" Ulrich asked, confused by Odd's actions.
"I work for XANA now." Odd said in a monotone voice.
"But why? What about us and our cause?" Ulrich was even more confused with his friend's confession.
Odd let out a chuckle. "Ulrich, I'm faster, stronger, and all around more powerful because of XANA. He has given me a second chance, a chance to do some real good. And look what else I got." He reached behind himself and pulled out a sword, similar to Ulrich's, that was sheathed on his back.
"How can you do any good, you're working for the evil that we fought so hard to try and stop?"
"Let's just say I'm working from the belly of the beast." Odd quickly shot two more arrows at Ulrich. But Ulrich was ready this time. He quickly dodged one of the arrows, but the other one hit him in the arm.
Ulrich ignored the pain. 'This can't be Odd, the Odd that I knew would never join up with XANA. So what do I do? Should I fight him?' The little voice in the back of Ulrich's head knew exactly what to do.
'Fight,' it told him. 'If you don't fight then you'll never be able to help your friends.'
Ulrich now knew that he had to fight. He unsheathed his sword and charged at Odd. Odd shot two more arrows at Ulrich, but Ulrich blocked with his sword. The two arrows flew back at Odd with increasing speed and hit him in the stomach. Odd clenched his stomach in pain.
"You can't work within the 'belly of the beast' without first becoming its dinner."
Odd charged at Ulrich, ready to attack him with his sword.
'He's defiantly much faster, I'll give him that. But he's still new with a sword.' Ulrich thought as Odd got closer to him.
Odd swung at Ulrich, but Ulrich blocked. He tried again and again Ulrich blocked. Odd kept on swinging and Ulrich kept on blocking. "I'm changing XANA." Odd said in between swings.
Odd stopped attacking and moved back a few feet.
Now it was Ulrich's turn to attack. He charged at Odd. Odd quickly held his own sword up to defend. The two blades struck resulting in a loud CLANK that filled the area.
They stood there, neither one wanting to give up any ground to the other while struggling to hold their own ground. Then Ulrich spoke, "You can't change XANA, you can only be changed by him. He'll corrupt you with power. You can't make a difference like that."
"But I am making a difference, his attacks have been coming less frequent and have been less severe."
Realizing that neither one would give, they jumped back, separating from one another. "What happened to the good old days Odd? What happened to us fighting the good fight? You remember, good versus evil."
"I'm still fighting the good fight, it's just that I'm playing by some new rules."
Ulrich saw that Odd was lowering his defenses. He took the opportunity to strike. He quickly ran up to Odd and slashed his front side.
Odd had lowered his guard and didn't realize that Ulrich was attacking him until it was too late. He clenched his stomach in pain.
Ulrich stood over Odd. "Keep playing by those rules and you'll lose the game."
"You think that you can win, but you can't Aelita."
"You're not gonna get me to lower my guard that easily." Aelita continued to search for the information that she was looking for.
"Fine, but Odd certainly gave up hope on you pretty easily."
Her friends name. It stung her when XANA used his name like that. "Odd's dead, he didn't turn his back on us." Aelita's voice was laced with sorrow as she remembered what had happened two years ago.
"Check outside and see for yourself."
XANA was finally getting to her, he knew it and so did she. But she was curious about what he was talking about.
A giant screen appeared to the side on the tower wall. On it Aelita could see exactly what was happening outside the tower.
There was Odd. She gasped at the sight of him. She knew that he couldn't have survived, but there he was. Aelita also saw Ulrich. He was talking to Odd. Then Ulrich was bending over in pain. After a second, he got back up and they were talking some more. That's when Odd pulled out a sword.
"I thought he could do with a few upgrades, only being equipped with ten arrows didn't really seem fair in a fight." XANA said.
Aelita didn't respond, she just continued to watch the screen. She still couldn't get over the fact that she could see Odd right before her face. 'It's a trick.' she thought. But she knew it wasn't, she knew it was Odd. But as she watched, she noticed something. The cat like creature that Ulrich was fighting wasn't moving exactly the same as the one that she knew.
Aelita turned away from the screen and back to her own research.
"What, done already? But they're just getting to the good part."
Ulrich knew that if he wanted to win, he would have to strike again while Odd was still down. He moved back over to Odd who was clenching its stomach. "I'm sorry Odd." he softly said as he swung again causing the boy to flinch in pain. Ulrich backed away from Odd. "Computer, life point update." Ulrich yelled up to the sky.
A computerized voice answered his call. "Ulrich, thirty life points. XANA's monster, twenty life points."
Odd stood up. He was laughing. "Fight the good fight, good versus evil. Huh, you still think everything is just black and white." He became serious. "It's not as easy as that, there are also gray areas. Good and evil, they're just words and nothing more than that."
"You're right, but in this case I would have to say that it's pretty much good versus evil."
"Haven't you been listening to what I've been saying?"
"And did you not just hear the computer? You're not Odd, you're just one of XANA's lackeys." Odd got an agitated look on his face. "What, you don't like lackey? Hmm... How about toady?" Odd grew even angrier with that last remark. "Oh, wait, I got it. Flunkey! That's it. You're just a flunkey here to do XANA's bidding. The real Odd would never sink so low as to work against his own friends, no matter what XANA is offering him."
Odd couldn't take any more of the verbal abuse that Ulrich was giving him. Blinded by his own rage, he charged at Ulrich. Ulrich quickly dodged and tripped Odd.
Ulrich stood over Odd one more time. "It's over, you've lost."
"I've lost? Do you have any idea what you're about to do?"
"What I have to do too save Aelita and the world."
"No, haven't you learned anything? There's no right and wrong. There are only choices. XANA's offering paradise. And you chose against it."
" Paradise? No, XANA wants to either kill everyone or he wants to find a way to take away our free will."
"And look where free will has gotten you. Wars, murder, pain, suffering, heart break."
"I didn't say we were smart. I said it's our right. It's what makes us human, something that you're not. Now to finish this so I can help Aelita." With that said, Ulrich thrust his sword down into the fake Odd. He slowly de-virtualized into nothing but pixels. After nothing was left, Ulrich pulled his sword out of the ground.
Then something caught his attention. Out of the corner of his eye he saw something move behind the tower.
He turned around. "Show yourself!" he yelled at the person.
Toady- A person who flatters or defers to others for self-serving reasons
So what do you think? Send a review to let me know. I'm going to get started on the next chapter tomorrow so I will try my best to have it up by Friday, but it might end up being later then that. How about another chance to get some points?
Who is the new person hiding behind the tower? 2000 points for the right answer. There will be an updated point total at the end of the next chapter and in my profile. Now I bet all of you are wondering what the points are for. Well, the winner gets something special at the end of the story. So leave a review and get some points.