Chapter Three: Complications Arise

They never made it to the factory. Halfway down the sewer, they were stopped by a blockade of guards, each dressed in black suits. (A/N: Sans sunglasses. Didn't want them to seem too MIB-ish.) Ulrich, Odd and Yumi skidded to a stop on their skateboards. Aelita and Jeremie were flipped over the handlebars of his scooter.

"W-what the--"Odd began, but a guard hit him over the head before he could finish. All went black as they were knocked uncounscious and apprehended by the strangers.

"Well, well, well. If it isn't Jeremie Belpois," a man's voice awoke Jeremie from his temporary slumber.

"Who...what...?" the young genius stuttered. "Where am I?"
"Why, Jeremie, don't you recognize this place?" Jeremie looked around. They were in the Super Calculator room, and the man was sitting in his chair!

"Where are my friends?" Jeremie asked, beginning to get angry.
"Your friends aren't important right now." Jeremie squinted at the stranger. He was wearing a white labcoat and was bald with sideburns and a beard.

"Who are you?"
"So many questions, young Jeremie. But if you must know, my name is Doctor Gibson." Jeremie snorted at him.

"We've been watching you, Jeremie," Gibson continued. "Cutting class, seemingly vanishing in the park through your secret passageway. Saving the world is too big a task for junior high students." Jeremie eyed the exit, and guards were standing by the elevator door.

"The XANA super computer system and... Lyoko... were created with immense data storage capabilites, access to any computer in the world, and now, now, with the help of your materialization program, the ability to create. Mankind had always been able to design and construct, but never create from pure will. Through reproduction, one could create life, but it is never original. Now, if one wanted to create a perfect soldier, all one would have to do is write a program and presto! Instant army." Gibson began to smile. "We at EMPIRE have a vision to make the world a better place. By any means nescessary. If that means conquering it first, then so be it."
"You're insane!" Jeremie shouted, backing away. Doctor Gibson gave him a little tsk.
"You just don't understand, child," he said. Jeremie sprang up and dashed towards the door, and punched the button for the elevator.
"Sir, shall we recapture the boy?" one of the men in the black suits asked.
"Let him go."
"But, Sir--"
"I said, let him go! There is nothing he can do to stop us now." The twisted doctor chuckled, and then threw his head back and laughed maniacally. The guard who had spoken to him began to laugh again.
"PATTERSON!"
"Yes, sir?"
"Shut up."
"Yes, sir."

I know, I know... short. Extremely short. Hey, it didn't look that bad on the forum (by the way, that forum is Un Monde Sans Danger, an online community with sections dedicated to Code: Lyoko. /advertising)