Unleashing Valor
By: Tellemicus Sundance
New Lyoko
When the first explosion had erupted from the theater, Odd, Aelita, and Jeremy, after recovering, ran outside and all the way to the factory. As it was, the factory was on the other side of the city. Running was their only option as they'd spent most of their money for snacks.
Needless to say that they were breathless when they finally arrived, almost fifteen minutes later. Sagging against the elevator sides while waiting for it to lower them to the scanners, Odd tried desperately to get his breath back.
Aelita, for reasons unknown, seemed to be in slightly better condition than her blonde-purple haired friend. Therefore, it was her who had the strength to talk first. "Do you think we'll have to reverse time again?"
"God," he panted. "I—hope—not."
The elevator stopped and the doors opened moments later. Rushing into their scanners, Odd called out, "We're in!"
As soon as he sat in the seat, Jeremy engaged the scanner for active towers. Normally it took only a moment for the needed information to be found and displayed. But for some reason, this time it was taking much longer.
But because he was scanning and transferring Odd and Aelita, Jeremy didn't think much of it. That is until the search was completed. He stared at the screen with wide eyes and he was had to constantly remind himself to breathe.
Odd and Aelita found themselves in the Forest Region of Lyoko. But the moment they touched down, they noticed something very different with the computer realm. It no longer looked like they were in a computer.
It looked like an actual forest: the trees, ferns, a breeze, grass, everything. Even the digital void that they'd always been careful to avoid was no longer there. It was like they'd been transported to a location on an alien planet.
"Guys!" Jeremy's voice called into their minds. "You're not going to believe this!"
"In case you didn't notice, Jeremy," Odd said in a deeply sarcastic voice. "After landing here, I don't think anything you've got to tell us will surprise me."
Ignoring the comment, Jeremy continued as though he didn't even hear him. "Xana has activated every single tower in Lyoko. I can't be sure, but I'd hazard a guess that it's transforming Lyoko into a more realistic replica of Earth."
"You don't say?" Odd said sneering.
Aelita, meanwhile, had walked over to a nearby stream. Bending down, she experimentally dipped her hand into the water. The result surprised her greatly as she raised it back out.
"Jeremy!" she cried. "I can feel! I can breathe!"
As she was saying this, Odd noticed it too. Lyoko was so much like Earth that he could feel the clothing he was wearing, the air he was breathing, everything.
"Whoa! She's right!"
"Incredible!" Jeremy said, obviously impressed. "Xana really has… Oh no. Careful, you've got three Wasps approaching you fast."
"Where?" Odd called out, raising his wrists and searching the area.
"Due south," he said. "About thirty seconds to arrival."
"Hide, Aelita," Odd said softly as he faced the direction of the approaching enemies. She needed no further prompting than that. She hid herself behind a tree and among a patch of ferns.
A faint, but quickly approaching buzzing sound was the only warning the lone warrior had before a trio of lasers shot forth. Odd grinned before he dove under them. The land behind him where the lasers hit erupted as though a bomb went off.
Ignoring the damage, Odd dashed forward as he sprayed arrows into the air. The Wasps split up and flew in different directions.
"Eat this!" he cried. As if on cue, he hit his mark and the Wasp he was aiming at detonated. "Oh yeah!"
"Odd! Look out!" Aelita cried.
Too late. A Wasp's laser had buried itself into his back. A howl of surprise and pain erupt from him as he was thrown forward.
"Move, Odd! Eighty Life Points left!"
Somehow finding the strength, Odd managed to roll to the side as the Wasp swooped down. Growling in his anger, he didn't hesitate to pepper it with arrows as it passed by. One found its mark and the Wasp exploded.
Standing to his feet, Odd heard the last Wasp approaching from the side. He turned and sprinted toward it. The two fighters advanced on one another in a head-on clash.
Leaping over an incoming laser, Odd sprayed the remaining arrows from one of his wrists at the Wasp. The Wasp managed to dodge ever so slightly to side that none the arrows hit its vulnerable eye.
Odd was actually in the process of turning around in mid-air that he didn't notice the pond that he was fast approaching. The water surprised him terribly but not enough to distract him from seeing the Wasp circling around. Thinking fast, he took a breath and dove under the surface.
The Wasp fired as many lasers as it could towards where it had last seen him. Despite Xana's brilliance, it hadn't predicted running into a situation like this. The Wasp couldn't see below the surface so it was firing aimlessly into the pond. Halting its barrage after a moment, the Wasp waited patiently for its prey to resurface.
Under the water, Odd watched the Wasp as it circled the pond and sprayed it with lasers. Thankfully none of them came close to him. If they had, he would've lost his breath and been forced up. But now as he watched it hovering, he realized this was his chance.
Aiming carefully, he shot one arrow.
The Wasp saw it coming but it wasn't ready. It was so unprepared that it couldn't dodge. The arrow pierced its Xana symbol and it erupted instantly.
Odd shot up only seconds later to take several deep breaths of air. Swimming to shore, he crouched briefly before shaking himself dry. Aelita, who'd come out of hiding, giggled as she watched his antics. Typical Odd.
"That was amazing, Odd," she said as she stopped next to him.
He grinned sheepishly as he scratched the back of his head. "All in a day's work, Aelita."
"Hey, Einstein," Odd called out after a moment. "What do we do next?"
"First, you need to get Aelita to the nearest tower," Jeremy said. "Then we can see what Xana…"
The two of the waited for a moment after he'd stopped talking. Growing impatient quickly, Odd said, "I take it something just happened, right Einstein?"
"You've got another monster approaching from the south," Jeremy said. But there was something strange about his voice, hesitant. "But…I can't tell what kind it is."
Off in the distance, they heard a rumbling like thunder. It was coming, fast. Then the ground began to tremble slightly. They glimpsed what appeared to be a black ball rolling towards them.
"What's that?" Aelita asked quietly.
"Something bad," Odd said simply.
The black ball came to a stop at the other edge of the pond. Then what looked like legs extended from the center of the ball. Two of the legs ended in three fingered pinchers. The other two seemed to be some type of hammer or pounding tool. On the top of the ball a small hatch opened and a head-like object appeared.
Odd could feel a wave of unease wash over him as watched all this. There was something about this monster that was just screaming out for trouble, serious trouble. He barely noticed Aelita as she was backing away slightly.
Then a flap, like an eyelash, lifted and the proud Xana symbol was visible for only a second before a laser bolt shot out. It crossed the distance of the pond in the blink of an eye and struck Aelita dead on.
Screaming out in pain, Aelita only had time to grasp her stomach before she was devirtualized. Odd stared at where she had stood in shock. He glanced over at where the ball monster stood… or had stood.
Looking around in surprise, he tried to find the monster. How is it so fast? That was all he had time to think before a loud crash erupted behind him as the ground shook violently. He was so startled that Odd found he was on the ground and staring up at the metallic ball.
It jumped!
It grabbed on to his waist with one of the pinchers and then raised one of the hammers. This is going to hurt he whimpered as he futilely tried to escape.
(A/N) First and foremost, I must give my baby sister credit for this newest monster. It was almost entirely her idea. I tweaked the basic appearance slightly, which she didn't like one bit. But she was rather happy that her monster was giving and is bound to give the kids such a hard time in the present and future. What do you think of it?
The only reason I agreed to use it was because I couldn't think of any others. Sure, I've created a few new monsters of my own, but I'm waiting to introduce them. That and the fact that mine are much better is why you're meeting hers first.
Plus, I would like to say. If anyone of you thinks that you have an idea that I would like, don't hesitate to say so. After all, if I do like it, I will try my best to incorporate it into this story. That will only make it better in the long run. Although, you'll have to hurry. With where the story is right now, there's only so much I can add until the 'point-of-no-return.' So, for all of us, don't hesitate!
Until next time: Search for Answers