Wheew! I am soooo sorry that this took so long to get up! But I made it nice and long and we're getting into the heat of it now. The minuet I get 5 more reviews on this story I'll post the next chapter! Thanks to all my reviewers I love you all! and now, On with the tale:)
Odd sat at the table eating at an alarming rate. Ulrich cast a glance at him and then looked away. "So, Jeremy how's Aileta?"
Jeremy smiled and stared at his food. "She's good. But one thing worries us, Why has X.A.N.A. been so quiet lately. Its been almost three weeks since his last attack. Usually he attacks much sooner, cunning fox that he is. I wonder what he's planning…"
Odd looked up from his plate "Something big I hope! These past three weeks have been boooorrrriiiinnnnnggg!"
Ulrich cuffed his best friend lightly over the head ruffling his blond and purple hair. "You moron! Do you really want to risk the lives of people just so you can get a thrill fighting monsters in Lyoko?"
Odd gazed at his friend "What's the difference if we can save them? That's why we go to Lyoko isn't it? I could go to Lyoko anytime to fight monsters but what for? It means something then. I don't go to Lyoko just for the thrill. That's just how I feel when I kill monsters."
Ulrich looked at his friend in surprise. Then glanced at the others as the blond turned back to his food. Yumi slipped her hand into Ulrich's and he looked at her. "Whatever happens," she said including the whole group in her words. "Whatever he's planning we'll handle it as it comes and until it does there is nothing we can do." Ulrich squeezed her hand and smiled at her.
"You're right," said Jeremy "All we can do is wait."
"Hey, where's Lilly? I haven't seen her this morning." Said Yumi. Odd glanced around the cafeteria. "Huh, you're right. I wonder where she is?" he said. Ulrich shrugged "Maybe she left already?" Odd nodded. "probably."
But still deep down he felt a pang of worry and doubt what if she's not ok? He asked himself. The worry gnawed at him for a moment followed by a blinding fear that he couldn't understand. Why the heck was he scared? The sun was shinning and outside there was hardly a cloud. Yet for a moment he was consumed with sickening fear, what if she's hurt or worse what if, what if, what if….. Then he shoved the fear to the back of his mind. If she's not in class then I'll worry, but what do I have to worry about now? After a while even Odd pushed way his plate and they went to class.
Odd didn't have any classes with Lilly till after lunch so he had no idea if she had been there or not. He met up with Ulrich and Yumi and couldn't help but feel a slight twinge of jealousy at seeing them holding hands and walking close together. I wish I knew if Lilly sees me like that. He thought. They went to Jeremy's room to find him sitting, looking very pale, at his computer his cell phone clutched in his hand. "Guys! I was just about to call you!"
"Jeremy what's wrong?" asked Yumi "It's X.A.N.A. he's launched his attack!" The three fighters exchanged glances. "Are you sure?" Asked Ulrich "I'm positive!" cried Jeremy
"But Jeremy, nothings happening. The whole school is like it always is." Said Odd "Look, all I know is X.A.N.A. hasn't activated just one tower! This time he's activated two! We have to go to the factory… Now!" Jeremy said. Aileta appeared on the computer screen behind Jeremy "Guys, he's right. There are two towers activated here and monsters are beginning to show up! You had better hurry!" That settled it and they left the room in a hurry.
When they got outside they looked around anxiously but nothing seemed out of place. "If this is an attack, where's the attackers? Asked Yumi. Ulrich shrugged. As they ran Odd heard a low, faint buzzing but he pushed it towards the back of his mind and ignored it. When the entered the tunnel the little metal wasp that had flown behind Odd flew off. It's mission of spying complete.
They were all tense and alert watching for the first signs of attack. But none came. They made it to the factory and before they knew it they were dropping gracefully to the virtual ground of Lyoko. They looked around tense and waiting.
Aileta called and waved from down the trail and they went to her. She led then quietly around the corner and pointed in the direction the tower was.
She pointed to where the path was blocked by a pod of roachsters and whispered "They're blocking the way to the tower. There's no other way to get past. We'll have t-" she was cut off as she shivered violently and dropped to the ground.
She hugged it the way a rabbit does when a hawk flies over, like she wanted to disappear under it.
Ulrich grabbed her shoulder "What is it? What's wrong?" she couldn't speak, only mouthed the word "X.A.N.A.!" They glanced over the corner again to see a dark shape standing in front of the monsters.
It was blacker than the blackest velvet, blacker than shadows and midnight put together. And it's shape kept changing, shifting to look like a man, a dragon, a raven, a wasp, all without loosing the inky blackness. The only consistency was it's yellow eyes with red pupils.
"Come out, children!" it called suddenly, it's voice cutting their souls like razors "Come out heathens! Come out Fools! Come out you damned feral brats!"
They looked at each other but didn't move.
X.A.N.A. paused and then he said "Come now, don't you wish to know what has become of you're friend? Don't you want to know what I'm up to?" it laughed coldly "That's your mission isn't it? To match me step for step?"
Again they met eyes and as one they stood up. Finally, they faced their enemy. Slowly, like people moving under water they walked around the corner to stand before X.A.N.A. Is this going to be it? Odd wondered Will this be our last fight? For the span of a moment no one moved, the white surveying the black.
"What is it you're taunting us with now X.A.N.A.?" asked Ulrich "What friend are we missing?"
Yumi cried "You cant mean Jeremy!" again X.A.N.A. laughed his bone chilling laugh and said
"No, no not he, I merely cut him off. I thought the fighters should talk to the enemy without interruption."
"Answer us X.A.N.A.!" said Odd. Dread had filled his stomach again "What about our friend?"
X.A.N.A. fixed Odd with his cold stare. "Oh, but you already know, don't you?" Odd's stomach clenched and slowly he nodded. Lilly his mind whispered
"But, I'm going to tell you anyway, I like to watch you squirm. Lilly is mine. She has always been mine, ever since Lucifer took her." said X.A.N.A.
"Who's Lucifer?" yelled Odd
"Hmn? Oh, she might have told you about him as 'The Bad Man'. Anyway, I have her, and once I convince her to join us, you'll have more than you can deal with."
Odd smirked "As if Lilly would ever listen to a word you have to say!" he spat.
The dark mass performed what might have been a shrug "Perhaps you're right. But that just means one less brat for me to deal with. My time grows short. You have about thirty minuets to deactivate the towers… both towers, or Lilly will either be dead or completely mine. If she turns, well… you'll have a lot of trouble on you're hands. There's great possibility for evil in that girl."
Odd growled "That's what you think! Why would there be evil in Lilly?"
X.A.N.A. chuckled dryly "Hate can be a powerful lever, it's the doorway to evil…and there is great hate with in that girl, if you haven't noticed it you're blind"
With that and a last maniacal laugh the dark shape vanished and the lights of the monsters turned on. All of them shot at once and all of them were hit but none of them got devirtualized.
They jumped behind trees and rocks and retaliated. Odd rolled to where Ulrich crouched behind a rock.
"Can you guys find the towers without me?" he asked.
Ulrich stared at him like he was an idiot "Are you insane!" he cried
"No!" Odd replied "But how are we going to deactivate the towers and save Lilly if we're all here?"
Ulrich paused in mid swing and looked at him "Odd,… I cant believe I'm saying this…but, you're right."
Odd beamed "Good!" before Ulrich could stop him Odd jumped out from behind his tree. He shot twice and killed two monsters. They turned their lasers on him and before they shot him he killed two more.
He felt a sharp pain as the lasers hit him and then the familiar dizzy sensation of being devirtaulized.
The minuet the scanner doors opened and his feet touched the floor of the warehouse he was sprinting up the stairs. He burst into the room to find a panicking Jeremy.
He was yelling their names into his headset and frantically typing the keys. Odd grabbed his shoulder and Jeremy nearly jumped out of his skin.
"Odd!" he yelled and grabbed Odd's arm in a fierce grip. "What happened! The screens went fuzzy and I lost contact with you! I still don't have it back! Don't just stand there, tell me what happened!"
Odd grabbed Jeremy's hand and pulled it off of his shoulder. "There's no time!" He cried "You'll get contact back, when you do have the others tell you. I have to go!" with that he turned and ran towards the elevator with Jeremy's protests ringing in his ears.
His lungs were burning by the time he got to the park but still he ran. The grounds were deserted, everyone else was in class. He ran into the park without knowing why.
He was almost blind from running for so long, his eyes not even focusing on the trail in front of him, all of his mind was focused on running. He tripped over something, fell hard and got the wind knocked out of him.
Gasping, he almost didn't look at what he'd tripped over. But he glanced back and saw the book that Lilly had dropped as she fell. He picked it up and brushed dirt from its pages.
On the inside cover was written "Property of Lilly DeGrande" in Lilly's rich script. He looked around on the ground by the book, looking for anything that might tell him what had happened.
His hand ran over something cold and metal and he picked it up. It was a mechanical wasp. There was a tiny hole where its needle of poison had been and he could now guess what had happened.
She'd been either stunned or knocked out by the wasp and then taken. But taken to where, Where! He cast around for a foot print, a broken branch, anything that could help point him in the right direction.
He got on his hands and knees to peer under the bench…and he smelled smoke. He sat up and closed his eyes focusing only on his sense of smell. Again he caught it, the smoky smell of a burnt fuse or wire.
He opened his eyes and again looked around. 'Where is it coming from?' he thought urgently when his eyes landed on the small park light on the edge of the trail. At night they turned on and you could see the path.
This one looked like it had been fried. It's bulb was broken, the plastic cover was melted and the wires inside were black and charred. Odd glanced at the next light and saw it was the same way. So was the one after that.
But none of them behind Lilly's book were!
Suddenly it clicked 'It's a trail!' Odd thought 'when X.A.N.A. travels by circuit like this, everything gets fried. This is X.A.N.A.'s trail!' he leapt up, Lilly's book tucked tightly under his arm and ran following the broken lights.
He was so focused on the lights that he almost ran into the garden wall. He didn't hesitate to see if the coast was clear, he jumped and pulled himself over. He sat on the top of a moment looking for some clue, and found it.
The street light above his head was emitting a thin stream of smoke, as was the neon sign of the restaurant across the street. He hoped down landing catlike on his feet and kept running.
Lilly, he thought using all his will, hoping irrationally that his power from Lyoko may have carried over and she could hear him. Lilly don't listen to anything they tell you! Not about themselves or about us! Lilly…be safe.
His heart was pounding and his lungs strove to keep up with his pumping legs as he ran past the schools grounds and down the street.
well that's it for this chapter. Now, the next one you get to actually hear the whole story about what happened to Lilly before she came to Kadic, I didn't want to put it in and make it so long but it was essential to the plot. Review people! I accept anonomys review too so even if you're not a member Review!