They had been wandering for over an hour now.
Aelita, Odd, Ulrich and Yumi had been wandering the streets, exploring dark alleys, fruitlessly trying to make a map, and even trying to get a good view from the tops of some of the buildings (not an easy task, seeing that they were pyramids with no real roofs), all in a desperate attempt to find the pulsations. Nothing had worked.
"Ugh. This is hopeless." Ulrich said, disgustedly.
"Don't give up yet! Don't stab yourself just to make sure the scanners are off line despite what Xana said and leave us here all alone." Odd said in a failed attempt at humor.
"That's not funny, Odd."
"Oh, c'mon. You know what we need? We need some sort of guide. Someone who can lead us out."
"Pftt. What are we going to do? Ask Xana to give us directions from the holomap?"
They walked onward. Aelita suggested trying to see if one of the overcars, as they had named the wheel less large enclosed vehicles with jets in the back that they kept seeing, would fly, but when Yumi pushed what looked like an on button in one of the vehicles, the displays lit up for a total of two seconds before the trunk of the car exploded with such great force that Yumi was thrown clear out of the vehicle and landed 25 feet away. Fortunately, she hadn't lost any life points in the explosion, but they all agreed that it was not something they would try again.
Soon afterward, they arrived at an intersection that seemed familiar. They were just about to start arguing about which way to go when the voices started.
"What was that?" Yumi said, startled. The total silence had been interrupted by a flurry of loud, ununderstandable voices, that seemed to come from all directions at once. It lasted for only a few seconds before it faded away.
"This place gives me the creeps. Were those the whispers mentioned on the sign?" Yumi continued when none of the others would say anything. It seemed like they were staring at something behind her.
"Yumi..." Aelita said, in what was almost a squeak, "What's that behind you?" Her voice was saturated with fear.
Yumi whirled around and stared. Suspended in the air, about five feet off the ground, was a perfect silver sphere about a foot across, simply hovering in midair without the benefit of wings or jets or any other sign of propulsion. Suddenly, on the side facing Yumi, a large eye opened. It stared Yumi in the face, who was staring at it in openmouthed confusion.
The ball wasted no time talking (could it talk?) and instead turned around and floated away.
"I think it wants us to follow it!" Aelita exclaimed. With that, they ran off to catch up with the ball. It led them down a narrow, twisting street and then down a wide, straight one before stopping. It turned around to face them, and in that single, large eye, they could see one thing.
Madness.
They watched as the ball suddenly floated straight up, faster than a bullet, coming to a stop above the level of the tall buildings around them. Then it sped off out of sight. Only then did they take stock of their surroundings. There was no doubt about where they were.
They were right back where they started. What remained of a frelion wing was still visible next to the boulder Yumi dropped.
"ARRGHHH!" Ulrich shouted, before he punched a hole right through a nearby fragile wall in frustration.
"Ulrich? Are you okay?" Yumi said, concerned.
Ulrich turned around, and for a second, something dark flashed through his eyes, something that none of the others caught. Ulrich growled, and when he looked up, his face was a mask of twisted rage.
"THIS IS ALL YOU FAULT!" He suddenly screamed at Aelita, pointing an accusing finger at the frightened girl.
"Wh- wh- what?" Aelita stuttered, meekly. "What did I do?"
"You were the one who was supposed to know Lyoko like your own body and prevent us from getting lost! You were the one who suggested that we drive that car which nearly killed Yumi! And you were the one who told us to follow that weird ball thing, when we had no idea if we could trust it or not! We were probably getting somewhere before you made us follow it right back to where we started! WHOSE SIDE ARE YOU ON?"
Aelita didn't say anything in her defense. She just took a step back, then sprinted off, weeping uncontrollably.
"Aelita! Wait!" Odd shouted, but she was already out of sight.
Odd turned to look at Ulrich, who was standing there, chest heaving. Odd exploded.
"WHAT WAS THAT ALL ABOUT?" He shouted at Ulrich.
"What do you mean what was that all about? I was just telling her the truth!"
"You idiot! Aelita has just run off, to who knows where, in this practically haunted city, where who knows what could get her, and all you can think about are those little mistakes she made!"
Yumi watched the shouting match, unable to do anything to intervene. She gradually became aware of more voices adding to the mix. The Whispers mentioned on the sign had started up again. Odd and Ulrich subconsciously shouted even louder to drown to the other noise, until Yumi finally screamed "STOP!" Loud enough for her voice to echo off the tall buildings around them.
The two of them stopped immediately. The Whispers continued for a few more seconds, while Odd and Ulrich noticed them for the first time, before fading away.
"Don't you see what's going on?" She said tearfully.
She was greeted with silence.
"A few weeks ago, I had a dream one night. In it, I dreamt that Ulrich got into a fight with Aelita. When I woke up, I laughed at it, because Aelita and Ulrich have never fought before, and because they had no reason to fight any time soon. But now... remember? The sign said that this was the city of WHISPERS, and we've heard them. It also said that this is 'the place where dreams come true', remember? Its happening!
Ulrich and Odd just stood there, looking at Yumi, while the creeping horrors took over their expressions.
"No... please... its impossible!" Ulrich nearly shouted.
"AELITA!" Odd shouted. His voice echoed around them. But there was no reply.
--------------------
Aelita ran. She didn't care where she went, only that she got away. Finally, exhausted, she sat down on the remains of a park bench, still crying into her hands. High in a building across the street, a silver orb with an eye on it watched the sobbing girl from above, transmitting everything it saw to its master, who watched with a combination of pity for the girl and absolute glee that the plan had worked.
"Do not worry, precious one," He said to her, even though she couldn't hear him. "I will come for you soon. Then, everything will be just as it should be."