THE DISCOVERY, part 1

Venice, Italy

The others, he thought. The others will be beginning it soon. The End.

The man in the black robe stared out from the narrow window of an apparently run-down Catholic cathedral, looking out at what could account for the local equivalent of rush-hour traffic of boats and skiffs on the narrow canals and waterways that snaked through Venice like blue-hued ribbons. The man wanted to be back on familiar ground, the rough-and-tumble neighborhoods of London had always had a certain appeal to him. Maybe he would get that chance, go on vacation in a couple of days, if nothing drastic or eventful happened.

Unfortunately, that was years ago, when he was still so innocent. When he was still just another unknown delinquent. Before his elder brother ,Jon, one day revealed to him the family secret.

A secret, that all of the members of his extended family, are and were, members of a secret society.

A society called the Illuminati.

Surprisingly of all, Francis Mandrel had not been surprised himself. Eventually he became a member of the Society himself, through ceremony and blood oath, and he was surprisingly adept at arranging the accounts and balancing the budgets of a secret Order, something he could attribute partially to his photographic memory.

Over time he and his brother rose through the ranks, straight to the top. Francis, himself Second-in-Command, overseeing anything having to do with either of two things: time and money.

His brother was adept at handling the planning, specifically of the Plan itself.

The Plan, as it was now being called by those who were responsible for designing and conceptualizing it Francis included, was just months away from being enacted. He knew very well what it would do to the balance of power in the world.

"Well, daydreaming again, brother?"

It was Jon, his elder brother and mentor. He had entered the room in total silence, as usual. He was the only one Francis knew "who didn't push air out in front of him as he walked", as Jon was often remarked of as.

"It's too hot and humid here for my taste, I'll just be glad when we get back to jolly ol' London."

We are leaving sooner than we intended. The Plan's schedule has been accelerated."

What for, why?" This was surprising. Francis was usually one of the first to know about anything concerning schedule changes, especially concerning the Plan. It must have been an immediate decision by his brother alone.

"You already know about the unfortunate demise of the American President, do you not?"

"Who doesn't know by now. I can't even take a dump without hearing about it." The issue had been all over every paper, magazine, and television station, all over earth for the last week. It was starting to get sickening, hearing about it constantly, from everyone and everywhere.

Jon chuckled at his joking. Then his face got a look of seriousness in it. "Well, from this report from our contacts inside the American FBI seem to indicate that he was assassinated."

"How So?"

"Apparently old Thornton had an unscheduled phone call with a person of unknown origin. The call was recorded by the on-board flight recorder, and I just finished reading the transcript. It seems that the person who made the call may have been the one who 'silenced' him."

'Kill' usually was not used inside the Illuminati, it was too rough a word. 'Silence', on the other hand, was more sublime.

"Well brother, does this mystery person have a name?"

"I'm afraid so, we have heard it before. Apparently he goes by the name Xana."

Francis's eyes suddenly widened. "The Tibet incident."

"I know," Jon replied. You read the report as well."

"I did." Francis paused for a moment, trying to remember the details. He had read the classified document out of curiosity, and because of the bizarre circumstances surrounding the ship. He didn't remember many of the details. It did mention the name, and another similar to it. "Well where does that leave us?"

It has screwed everything up, that bastard's death. We may have to push on ahead of schedule." Jon turned and promptly left.

Francis looked back out the window, at the various boats in the canal. Screwed up everything indeed. He thought. It looked like he wasn't taking an all-important vacation from work after all.

Paris, France

"Okay, slow down. Tell us what happened again, this time slower."

They had met up after school had ended in Jeremy's room. Odd and Ulrich been nervously waiting to hear what was so important to Einstein and the Princess. Yumi had been told, somewhat. She wouldn't say anything until school had ended for the day. Now they were in the small room that served as Jeremy's bedroom.

Aelita had just ended her short story about the frightful encounter with the strange person in the hallway the night before. The place of two spires, the 'tomb', the person's strange, singsong voice. Her dream before it all happened.

And her friends had listened intently as she recounted her encounter the previous night.

"-and he just vanished, as if he was never there."

"I think it was Xana, regardless of what he would say," Yumi said.

Ulrich spoke up. "But if it was Xana, wouldn't he just try harming Aelita?"

"And who is this Ashton Cray?" Yumi asked.

If I remember from Franz Hopper's diary, he was one if the members of Project Carthage," Replied Jeremy. He worked with Franz Hopper with the other members, but I don't understand the part about the tomb. Aelita, as far as I know, you and your father were the only ones who ever went to Lyoko."

"Jeremy. I honestly don't know what to think, Xana would have just tried to harm me, but I don't know who else it could have been-" Then she remembered that Jeremy had something to say too.

"Jeremy, didn't you have something to say to us too?"

"I did. I'm so stupid, I can't believe I could have forgotten it!"

"Forgotten what?" everyone else in the room said almost in unison.

I had something to show you guys too. I got this e-mail sometime last night-well just see for yourself." A text box appeared on the screen:

Jeremy,

I could be your best friend or your worst enemy. You'll make that decision when we meet. You and your friends are in over your heads, and I may be able to help. I will find you when I need you.

TF

They were all shocked at this. The e-mail didn't admit it, but someone somewhere had finally found out about their secret. But who?

Whoever this person is, Jeremy thought, he was right about one thing, they were in over their heads. They were going to help to keep fighting their nemesis.

Odd was thinking for a moment about what Aelita had said. Two spires with a lake in the middle, it sounded familiar. Then he remembered it.

"Hey Jeremy, remember back when Xana corrupted the Superscan, and I had to search through Lyoko to find the activated Tower?"

Jeremy spun around in his chair. "Yeah, what about it?"

"When I was in the Mountain Sector, I remember seeing something like that, two mountains, with rocks and a pool of water and trees, but I never thought anything of it Aelita mentioned it."

"Maybe we should at least check this place out," Ulrich said. "If there's something there, it would be worth a look."

"I agree," replied Yumi. "If there's something important there that could help us fight Xana now more than ever, we should at least find out what it is-"

"But what if it is a trap left by Xana?" Jeremy interrupted.

"I don't think so Einstein," replied Odd. Remember he doesn't need Lyoko anymore, you said so yourself."

"You're right."

"A brief silence, then Aelita spoke up. So, should we try to see?"

"Okay, let's go check it out. That guy did say it was our destiny."

They all got a few chuckles out of that one.

"The verdict?" asked the old man.

It's not good, Sir. The disappearances are getting worse, now they're on land. There are reports coming in of mass disappearances in several coastal cities in Florida, as well as in Bermuda, Cuba, Haiti, and The Bahamas, basically all of the Caribbean nations. The Search-and-Recovery for the President has been called off and the 2nd and 4th Carrier Fleets that were on the scene have been evacuated from the area. There are also reports of Martial Law being declared in several of the nations in the Caribbean Theatre, but those are just rumor so far."

"How so, T-Bone?

"Radio or any other form of communications is intermittent at best to and from the Caribbean. There's some kind of electromagnetic field forming out there, jamming digital communications. We would have more success with smoke signals."

"What about anticipated casualties?"

"At the Current rates, Sir, we could be looking at losses in the tens of millions, and that is the positive view."

Texas was lost in thought for a moment. Well then, let's hope those kids figure it all out before then."

"Yes," T-Bone replied, "Let's hope."