Disclaimer: Code Lyoko is copyrighted by Moonscoop.
I only own Lila and Mia. Mary is owned by AeroJester203. Kayori is owned by
decode9.
This chapter was written by me. It was edited by AwesomeFanFictionAuthor.
Enjoy!
Fight To The Finish
Inside the scanner room
POV Lila's
With the smoke fully cleared now, I'm about to run over to give Future Aelita a hug, but instead of walking over to us, she starts falling.
"Lila, quickly, she's going to fall!" Yumi exclaims. I run over to her quickly and kneel, catching Future Aelita just in time, but I can't see her face.
"Is she okay?" Sissi asks, concerned.
"I think she's been through a lot," I say.
"Then what do we do?" Odd asks.
"We take her to Mary's house," I reply.
Ulrich and William look at each other. They nod, then run over to help Future Aelita up. With the freight elevator's doors open, the others give us space to bring her in.
Afterwards
Outside Mary's house
Mia rings the doorbell rapidly, and Mary swings the door open. She sees the others panting, as well Ulrich, William, and myself holding Future Aelita.
"Is that…?" she asks. We nod.
"Bring her inside, quickly," Mary urges.
Inside the living room
Ulrich, William, and I go over to the living room and gently lay Future Aelita down on the couch. Mary looks at all of us.
"Can any of you explain how she's here?" Mary asks. There's a pillow on the couch, so Ulrich and William put it behind Future Aelita's neck for comfort.
"She arrived in the scanner after we lost the Skid," Jeremy explains. "And freed Mia."
Mary looks at Mia and smiles at her.
"I'm glad you're back," she says.
"To be honest, I don't really feel like I've been gone," Mia replies.
I can't help but look at Future Aelita. The last time I saw her… it was bad. Really, really, bad.
"Jeremy I can't believe it… our theory was right. Hopper, my grandfather kept her safe…" I trail off.
"That seems to be the case, it's really incredible," Jeremy says.
"Anybody notice her change in her color?" Odd asks.
"Uh well yeah," we all say in unison, including Aelita.
"I'm sure there's some sort of explanation for that," Mary surmises.
We can't help but ponder on all of this. Was my grandfather the one who sent Future Aelita to us?
We look at Future Aelita a yellow glow is pouring out of her.
"Um guys, why is Future Aelita glowing?" William asks.
My eyes widen.
"Of course! That's!" I exclaim, trying to find the right words. It's the other half of Benevolent Future Xana from Future Aelita's timeline. He expels himself from Future Aelita, then flies over to Mary.
A yellow light engulfs Mary, and she closes her eyes for a moment, then her eyes open and she starts blinking rapidly.
"Mary?" I ask, concerned.
"Should we help her somehow?" Yumi asks.
"No… I don't think we should interfere," I say.
"Are you sure?" Sissi asks.
"I'm sure," I reply.
It keeps going like this for a few minutes, but then the blinking starts slowing down and finally stops. Mary seems to be talking to both of the Future Xanas inside her mind, she then looks at us and nods.
"I understand, I'll tell them," Mary says.
"Tell us what?" Mia asks.
"Future Xana from the dark timeline showed me everything. After your death, Lila, he found his way over to Aelita. He hid himself within her, so that even the scanners couldn't pick him up. He was with Aelita the entire time even up to the moment of her near death. He tells me that you, Lila, thought Aelita was dead, correct?" she asks.
"I did…" I trail off.
"That is because he made you believe she was. He and the Future Xana that has been living within me have the ability to change the human body temperatures," she explains.
"They do?" Aelita asks.
"Yes," Mary replies. "How do you think I got Delmas and Miss Yolanda to excuse me from the rest of classes today?" she asks.
"Makes sense," Ulrich admits. "So you're saying he faked her death?" he asks, catching on.
"I am," Mary replies. "And eventually when she was dropped into the digital sea, her body didn't immediately disappear. In fact, Franz Hopper saved her from near eternal virtualization and then brought her to a tower in an undisclosed sector. Future Xana isn't sure which sector, though. But because he had been hiding for so long within Aelita, he was able to, and over time, expel the bullet that caused her head wound. He used most of his power to seal up Aelita's wound. From there, he simply kept Aelita alive long enough to let the tower's healing properties do its job," she explains. We look at Future Aelita on the couch, then back at Mary.
"And… she's okay?" Odd asks. Mary shakes her head.
"She wasn't for a while," she says. "She was in a comatose state during all of this. Unfortunately… she forgot everything."
"Everything?" I ask.
Mary nods.
"Amnesia is a side effect after such a traumatic event," she explains.
"But now…?" Sissi asks.
"But now she's fine. She remembers everything, more or less," Mary replies.
"More or less?" William asks.
"I'm not sure what Future Xana of the dark timeline means by that, but he won't explain any further," Mary replies.
"I see… but she's here. I mean, she's really here," I say.
"She is," Mary nods. "Why don't all of you head back to school and unwind? I'm sure you'll need to since Jim and Mr. Delmas might end up giving you detention for skipping class."
"What else is new?" Odd laughs.
We can't help but smile at that.
Afterwards
Library
Sure enough, we did end up getting detention, Sissi included. But we don't really care, because we have Future Aelita to look forward to tonight.
Later at night
Inside Mary's house
We're back at Mary's house, Yumi told her parents she'd be staying at a friend's house tonight, so she doesn't have to worry about being late. We look at Future Aelita, who is still sleeping soundly on the couch. Mary must have given her a blanket earlier in the day. I'm sitting on the chair, while Jeremy, Aelita, and Sissi are sitting on the other smaller couch. The others are standing.
"Has she been like this all day?" Yumi asks.
"She has," Mary replies. "But she's been through a lot. It's only natural."
"Maybe we should take shifts," Odd suggests, he brought Kiwi over with him. He's staying in one of the rooms upstairs.
"That might be a good idea. Mary and I can take the first shift," I say.
"Okay. Mia, how about a little house tour then?" William asks.
"Mary, do you mind?" Mia asks.
"Not at all," Mary replies. "Go on," she insists.
The others smile as they all head upstairs. Mary and I go sit on the couch.
"Did you bring anything with you to keep you occupied?" she asks.
"I brought the copy of my father's laptop," I reply. "And I've got some more homework to do, too."
"Okay, I'll make you some tea in the meantime," Mary says, getting up.
Later at night
12:30 am
POV Jeremy's
With the others asleep, I've been watching Future Aelita with Mary. Although… we actually should probably stop calling her that, considering our timeline is now the future for her. A bit of a redundancy, honestly. Mary is awake, and the others are all upstairs sleeping.
We see Future Aelita starting to yawn. She starts opening her eyes. I look at Mary, and she nods. I go over to Future Aelita's side and bend down on the carpet.
"Aelita?" I ask. Future Aelita turns to me, surprised.
"Jeremy… it's you. Where are Lila and the others?" she asks.
"They're upstairs, do you want me to call them?" I ask.
"Yes please," Future Aelita replies. "We have… a lot to talk about. Is my father around? I need to ask him something."
"Your father… you mean… in your timeline, he's back on Earth?" I ask.
"He is…" Future Aelita trails off. She looks at Mary.
"I take it then… you haven't rematerialized him?" she asks.
"No… I mean, there's no way we could…" I trail off. "He's hiding on the network."
"The network?" Future Aelita asks. She sits up slowly, then looks at Mary.
"Why didn't you tell the others how to materialize my father?" Future Aelita asks.
"I… don't know how to," Mary answers truthfully. Future Aelita's eyes widen.
"Huh…? But you did in my timeline."
"Really?" Mary asks.
"Aelita… when exactly did you beat Xana in your timeline?" I ask.
"Well… Lila died on the night of what would have been the attack of the zombified kadic members," Future Aelita replies.
"We defeated Xana shortly after Lila's death with the help of the copy of your laptop."
"You did?" Mary asks, surprised. Her eyes widen, making a realization. She sighs.
"Of course… that means you freed me at an earlier time too, correct?" she asks.
"We did," Future Aelita answers.
"In this timeline… it took a little longer for Lila and the others to save me. Our Xana must have taken that knowledge from me in order to prevent me from materializing your father. He tortured me physically and psychologically. I'm sorry…" she trails off.
Future Aelita takes the blanket off. It's so strange to see her in her old overalls.
"Don't be," Future Aelita says. "Let's wake the others up now and go to the lab to materialize my father. From there… I think I've got an idea we can use to finally wipe Xana. Once and for all."
Mary and I look at each other. Our eyes widening.
Afterwards
Inside the lab
POV Lila's
Future Aelita has the copy of my father's laptop opened. Mia holds it while future Aelita finishes explaining her plan.
"You want to do what?" Odd asks.
"A preemptive strike," Future Aelita replies.
She continues typing in her father's materialization program, making a few adjustments.
"But why? With Jeremy's multi agent system Future Aelita it-" I start to say, and she stops typing. She looks at me.
"Can you not call me that? It's a bit of a redundancy," she requests. "After all, to me this is technically the future now even though it's your present."
"Fair enough, what should we call you then?" William asks.
"Stones will work for now," Stones replies.
"Okay, Stones it is," I agree. "So about this plan?"
"Right. So in my timeline, we launched a preemptive strike against Xana. We defeated him without having to travel on...the network, you called it? Or taking care of replikas. Or the uh, Kolo-" she stammers a bit.
"Kolossus?" Odd asks.
"Yeah, that," Stones replies.
"Okay, but Jeremy's program isn't finished yet," Yumi explains.
"Ah, but it is," Stones says.
"Huh?" We all ask. Mia makes the connection.
"Of course… Lila, the information is inside the copy of your laptop," she says.
My eyes widen.
Of course! I think. Stones turns to Mia.
"I've been meaning to ask, who are you, exactly? I know all of you but you," she says.
"Huh?" we ask.
"You don't know me?" Mia asks.
"No," Stones replies. "Should I?"
"Well… you may have known me by my other alias. My initials are MB," she reveals. Stones' eyes widen.
"You're MB?" she asks incredulously.
"I am," Mia replies. "Mia Bedard. Although my real name is Mia Dunbar. Long story short, I come from the same future world as Lila. Only I arrived shortly before you and Franz Hopper materialized each other to Lyoko. I materialized myself first, and hid in a sector of my own creation for years until Lila and Mary solved my passcode," she summarizes.
"Oh…" Stones trails off. She gasps, making a realization.
"Oh no…" she trails off, saddened.
"What's wrong?" William asks.
"When Lila died in the dark timeline, we burned a lot of her things. Jeremy and I were so sick of MB's laptop… we burned it," she explains.
"What?!" Mia exclaims.
"Okay, but it can't be all that bad, right. If you go back, you can turn the supercomputer on again, can't you?" Ulrich asks.
"No we can't," Stones replies.
"Why not?" Yumi asks.
"We had to launch a massive return trip around the world. It took all the supercomputer's battery power to do it. It was different from the usual ones we launched because we had to make sure everyone forgot who you were Lila. Besides us," Stones explains.
"Even Cameron?" I ask.
"No…" Stones trails. "He eventually remembered…"
"I see…" I trail off.
Maybe I haven't heard from him because he remembered everything and knows I told him a lie to protect him from the truth... I think.
"In any event, Stones… can you materialize my father?" Aelita asks.
"Right, doing that now," Stones replies. She starts typing then presses the enter key. She cracks her knuckles.
"All done, head down to the scanner room," she suggests.
"We're on it," I say.
Afterwards
Inside the scanner room
All of us but Stones huddle up and look at the center scanner as it whirs to life. It hums for a while, longer than it usually would, and then opens at last. Smoke wafts out, obscuring a hunched figure leaning against the back wall, coughing. A hand exits the fog to grab at the doorway of the scanner. Using it to support himself, he stands up straighter in an attempt to leave the scanner as the smoke clears.
My eyes widen at the sight of my grandfather. I look at Aelita she seems absolutely overwhelmed.
"It's really you," Aelita says.
Odd, Yumi, and Sissi cheer. William, Ulrich, and Mia give each other high fives. Mary puts her hand on my shoulder and I smile. Grandpa Hopper is really here. We did it.
Ulrich pumps his fists together.
"Stones, you did it! Hopper is with us!" Ulrich exclaims.
Franz looks at Aelita, surprised by how much she's changed.
"Aelita - is that really you?" he asks.
"It is," Aelita replies. "A lot's happened, dad."
He looks at all of us and nods, "I see you made a few friends. I'm glad. Could you help me out of the scanner and into my lab? I'm afraid I'm a little unused to having a body again."
Aelita nods. She helps him out of the scanner and supports him as they walk into the freight elevator.
Afterwards
Inside the freight elevator
We're all in the freight elevator, processing what's happened.
"Einstein, do you think maybe we should warn him about you-know-who upstairs?" Odd asks.
"Oh right," Jeremy replies, adjusting his glasses. "Mr. Hopper-" he starts.
"Franz, please," Franz insists.
"Right, Franz. Um… we have a, uh, friend upstairs," Jeremy says.
"A friend?" Franz asks.
"Yes, that's right," Mary replies.
"When you see her… you might want to try to stay calm," Jeremy says.
"Why wouldn't I be calm?" Franz asks.
Sisis, William, Mia, and I look at each other. I then look at Franz.
"Well… you'll see," I reply.
Afterwards
Inside the lab
The freight elevator's doors open. We walk Franz into the lab, with Aelita guiding him. He raises his eyebrows.
"Is that… Aelita?" Franz asks.. Stones turns her chair, revealing herself to this version of her father.
"Hi dad," Stones replies. "It's me… but not me."
"Can someone please explain to me why there are two versions of my daughter in the same lab?" Franz asks.
"We can do that," Mia says.
"Mh-hmm," Sissi says.
Stones gets off Jeremy's chair, then Aelita brings Franz over to his chair to sit down. I speak up, then start to give Franz some proper explanations on what's been going on recently, along with some big important changes to this timeline. It takes a few hours for me to finish a summarized version.
Franz takes his glasses off, he rubs his eyes, then puts them back on.
"I see… that's a lot to process," he says.
"We know," Yumi says.
Franz turns to Stones.
"So you're the version of my daughter I saved from near eternal virtualization?" He asks.
"I am," Stones replies.
"I'm glad I did. I wish I did more… but it seems that you didn't need any more of my help. How do you plan on dealing with this current timeline's Xana?" he asks.
"Stones wants us to launch this preemptive strike against Xana, but we're not entirely sure about it," Jeremy says.
"Stones is right," Franz agrees.
"And it's not just that… there was this link in my timeline between Sector Five and Lyoko. Someone put it there a while back, that wasn't you, but we could activate a bunch of towers to power the multi agent system," Stones says.
"So - you want to use activated towers as batteries for Einstein's program?" Odd asks.
"Exactly," Stones replies.
"That link you mentioned, Stones… I was sorta responsible for that," Mia says.
"That makes a lot of sense now," Stones says.
"So what do we do now?" William asks, speaking up.
"Now all of you get to bed. It's late. Stones and I will use the information on Lila's copy of Jeremy's laptop. Together we'll recreate Jeremy's multi agent system program. You kids go back to Mary's house, but Aelita, Lila… I want you two to stay for a bit. We need to talk."
"Okay," I say.
"There's one thing I don't get, though," Sissi says, speaking up. "Even if we launch this preemptive strike, what do we do about the Kolossus?"
"My program will be able to handle him," Jeremy says confidently.
"I wouldn't worry too much about this… Kolossus," Franz says.
"Why's that?" Mia asks.
"Because, Mia, if we launch this preemptive strike against Xana, he won't have time to power up the replikas to call forth the Kolossus. Even if he does manage to eventually, it'll be too late by then," Franz surmises.
"Ah, okay," Mia nods.
"Franz is right, we should all go," Mary says. "Lila, just text me when you and Aelita are done talking, okay?" she asks.
"I will," I nod.
The others start to leave the lab. They enter the freight elevator and Yumi presses the red button to go up.
"So what is it you wanted to talk to the three of us about, daddy?" Aelita asks.
Franz sighs. He takes his glasses off again, rubs his eyes, puts them back on, then puts his hands together on his lap.
"I… I take it the two of you know why Xana was created?" Franz asks.
"We do," I reply.
Stones looks confused,
"You told me why Xana was created in the dark timeline. Did… you not tell me everything?" she asks.
"At the time… I imagine you had just lost Lila in that timeline, correct?" he asks. Stones nods.
"That's right," she answers.
"Then… the one thing I wouldn't have told you… was that I created Xana," he says, with regret in his voice.
"You-you did?" Stones asks, bewildered.
"That's right. In the very beginning, he was meant to combat a Project known as Project: Carthage. However, he quickly became too autonomous. He was supposed to protect us during those days. For some reason… he simply didn't. Whether it was the idea of power that altered his programming, or a flaw that wasn't undiscovered in time… ultimately it was my fault. I created him," he admits.
Stones looks to the floor, saddened that her version of her father didn't tell her did. I speak up.
"Franz… I can't go into the details too much, but in my future world… I became Xana's vessel. Over the years, he started to change… maybe I had influence over him, I know he had some over me. He tried to hide himself deep within my mind… but that didn't stop the change he experienced when my father died. He took over my body, and saved my life in the process. From there… he did everything to protect me in my future world. He created Mary, erased certain memories, and had Mary pose as my father for years," I explain. "If it weren't for him…" I trail off, but then look at Franz.
"I wouldn't be alive today," I finish.
"So you see, daddy, in a way… creating Xana was the best thing you could have done," Aelita admits.
Franz smiles slightly.
"If you put it like that… I suppose so," he then turns to Stones. "Stones… do you…?"
"It's okay, Franz," Stones says.
"I understand. What's more… I surprisingly agree with Aelita and Lila. During my memory recovery in that tower… the Benevolent half of Future Xana from my dark timeline showed me things. Everything Lila had experienced in her future world. So I get it, I really do."
"Thank you. There is one more thing, Aelita," Franz says, looking at her.
"Yes daddy?" she asks.
"Tomorrow I want you away from the final battle," he says, suddenly.
"Huh? But why?" Aelita asks, surprised.
"I'm going to have you and Jeremy go somewhere on Lyoko's Ice Sector," Franz says.
"Um… Jeremy isn't really a fighter," I say.
"That's okay. I'll make some equipment for him to use in a battle that should prove useful," Franz says.
"So that means he won't have the same outfit he did when he went to Lyoko," Stones says to herself. "Huh, cool."
"Jeremy actually fought with you on Lyoko?" I ask.
"For how long?" Aelita asks.
"A few minutes, he didn't last very long. Some sort of fault in his suit's functions," Stones replies.
"That's weird," I say.
"It was," Stones agrees.
"Okay then," Franz says, speaking up. "Stones and I will be done with everything sometime later this morning. Why don't you come to the factory by then?" he asks.
Aelita and I can't help but smile at him.
The Next Day
At breakfast
Inside the cafeteria
We're sitting at our table, still finding it hard to believe we're going to beat Xana today. Once and for all. We all have our breakfast with us, which consists of croissants.
Ulrich eats a bit of his croissant, but doesn't seem to like it.
"I wonder what they put into these croissants today. Yuck!" Ulrich exclaims. He tries to force some of the pastry down his throat.
Odd reaches over and swipes some out of his hand, "I'll take them off your hands."
"How can you eat those things, Odd?" Ulrich asks.
"Just watch," Odd replies, taking a big bite.
"How did you two sleep after getting back to Mary's last night?" Yumi asks.
"Pretty well, considering we only got a couple of hours," I reply. I take a sip of my tea.
"Yeah, my father said he should have everything done sometime this morning," Aelita says.
"Aelita…." Jeremy trails off. "Do I really have to go to Lyoko with you?" he asks.
"Of course," Aelita replies. Jeremy frowns, we can't help but laugh a bit.
"It seems strange, doesn't it?" Sissi asks.
"What does?" William asks.
"Pretty soon we won't have to worry about Xana anymore," Sissi replies.
"Yeah, it's hard to believe," Mia agrees. She takes a bite out of her croissant, then swallows it.
"Ulrich, I don't know what you're talking about. They aren't that bad," she says.
"If you say so," Ulrich shrugs.
Jeremy's phone starts ringing. He takes it out of his pocket, then looks at the ID and puts it to his ear.
"Yes, Franz?" he asks. There's a short pause. "We're on our way," he says, then hangs up.
"Mission time?" Yumi asks.
"Mission time," Jeremy replies. He puts his cell phone back in his pocket. We get up from our chairs, taking our trays of leftover food with us.
I really can't believe it. This is it! I think.
Afterwards
Inside the lab
We're in the lab, Stones looks at us.
"Okay, so we're going to go in groups of three. Jeremy and Aelita will be a group of two, though. You two are going to head to wherever Franz wants you to. The main tower for our program will be activated in the desert sector since it's security was updated recently. Odd, Sissi, and Ulrich, you three will protect that one. Mia, Yumi, and William, you will go to the chamber core of Lyoko in Sector Five to protect it. Xana will be sending monsters to those two vulnerable points. Lila and I will go with you, but we're going to stay behind so that I can launch the program at the terminal interface on the bridge. As for the other sectors, Franz will make sure that multiple towers are activated, so by the time Xana figures out where our main one is-" she starts to explain, but Odd interrupts her.
"It'll be too late!" he exclaims.
"Exactly," Stones says.
"Stones… are you sure William and I should even go to Sector Five?" she asks. "I might still look the same from when I was possessed and-" she starts to say, but Franz speaks up.
"Don't worry. Your original equipment has been restored. Even if you look like your possessed self, you'll still be in control," Franz explains. Mia sighs in relief.
"That's good then," Mia says.
"So what are we waiting for, an invitation?" Odd jokes. "Let's go then!" he exclaims.
"Here, here!" All of us but Franz exclaim happily. This is it, Xana. You're going down.
Many virtualizations later
Lyoko's Ice Sector
POV Aelita's
Jeremy is the last to be virtualized and lands flat on his bottom. I can't help but laugh lightly at the sight of him.
"Gee, thanks Aelita," Jeremy says.
"That's not why I'm laughing," I say. I offer my hand to Jeremy and he looks up at me. I look at his brown eyes, he seems to be questioning if he should take it, but he does. He gets up and looks at himself. He's in a standard shining silver knight suit. He reaches for a weapon on his back. It's a blade.
"Franz, I'm not sure I'll make any use out of it," Jeremy says. He turns to wave it around a bit.
"You'll do fine. I'm sorry, but you'll have to go on foot. The others have taken all their vehicles. They're on their way to their specified coordinates. You should see an iceberg dead ahead of you.
We see the iceberg ahead of us, with a waterfall flowing in front of a cave entrance.
"We see it," Jeremy confirms. He puts his blade in its sheath, then looks at me.
"Ready to go, Aelita?" he asks.
"I'm ready," I reply.
Jeremy and I start running for the iceberg.
Afterwards
By the entrance of the cave
Once we reach the entrance, we catch our breath.
"You can go inside the cave, you two," Franz says.
Jeremy and I look at each other.
It's strange my father is being so secretive about this, I think.
Jeremy and I start running into the cave. We pass by the small waterfall.
Inside the cave
Jeremy and I reach the inside of the cave. We see a turn we can make then walk to it. We keep walking until we reach the end of the cave. Jeremy and I gasp. There should be more water here in the cave, but instead in its place is...
"A simulation bubble?" Jeremy asks, looking at the yellow simulation bubble that's taken over the cave.
"But Franz, why would you need to create a simulation bubble?" he asks.
"I… I think I know why, Jeremy," I answer. "But is it okay if I go in by myself?" I ask.
"Of course, Aelita," Jeremy answers. "I'll wait for you here," he says.
"Thanks," I say. "Daddy, I'm going in," I tell him.
"Okay Aelita," Franz says.
I put my hands out then slowly step into the simulation bubble.
Inside the simulation bubble
In the Hermitage
Opening my eyes, I see I'm in the Hermitage again. Or rather, the simulation version of it. I hear humming coming from the living room. I gasp and run over to the living room, then see someone on one of the chairs. A woman with long pink hair reading a book. She looks exactly like she did in my memories.
"Mommy?" I ask, shocked. My mother turns around and smiles. She closes her book, then gets up.
She goes over to behind the chair and I run over to her. I keep running until I reach her, then she wraps me in her arms.
"Oh Aelita," Anthea says, "I missed you so much."
I start to cry softly.
"Me too, mommy. I missed you so much too," I say.
"Come, we have quite a lot to talk about. And not enough time," Anthea says. So I follow her.
Sector Five
POV Lila's
On the bridge
Stones, Mia, William, Yumi, and I have made it to the bridge. We see that there are hatches already opened, meaning the Mantas are somewhere.
"Franz, we're going to need our vehicles," Yumi tells him.
"Coming right up," Franz says. William's Overdrive, Yumi's Overwing, and Mia's Overboard materialize one by one.
"How are the towers doing?" I ask.
"Xana's already sending in his reinforcements," Franz answers.
"Mia, Yumi, and William. You three better head to the Chamber Core of Lyoko now. I see that there are only a few monsters there that are trying to brew up some trouble."
"Right. We're on it," Mia says. I'm happy to see her in white again.
"Let's go, kiddo," William says.
"Okay!" she exclaims. William, Yumi, and Mia get on their vehicles. Tilting their weight, William and Mia fly off first.
"Good luck, you two," Yumi says.
"Thanks," I say.
"We've got it from here," Stones says. Yumi smiles and takes off as well.
Stones looks at me.
"We're going to do this together, okay?" she asks. It's still weird she has her black hair on Lyoko, but she mentioned once we were virtualized that she dyed it because of my death. I guess even though it faded in the real world, it would be permanent in the virtual one.
"Okay," I nod.
"Stones, Lila. Two Xana Bots heading your way," Franz informs.
I take my bow off its hook. I put an arrow on my bow, then pull the drawstring back. We see them zooming over to us, they're coming from the doorway.
Stones lifts her hand up. She summons her energy field to the palm of her hand. I'm surprised to see that it's a different color too, a deep purple.
"Energy field!" Stones exclaims. She launches one of her energy fields at the incoming Xana Bot, and I let my arrow fly at the other. Our aims are true and the Xana Bots explode.
Chamber Core of Lyoko
POV William's
We finally run up and enter the Chamber Core of Lyoko. We look up to see only four Xana Bots firing at the shield layer.
"Franz, we're here, how's the shield doing?" I ask.
"The first shield layer is about to give. Get going," Franz answers.
"We're on it! How are the towers doing?" Mia asks.
"All towers in the Forest Sector have just been destroyed, but the program is nearly ready, just a few more codes to enter into it," Franz tells us.
"Okay, we'll do our best to bide time here," Yumi says. We look to the steps up ahead.
"I wonder if I can still…" Mia trails off. She looks at herself, then closes her eyes. She breathes in and out, then opens them.
"Super smoke!" she exclaims. She disappears into a black smoke, heading upstairs, despite wearing her white outfit.
"Need a lift up ma'am?" I jest, offering my arm to Yumi, who smiles as she walks over to me.
"And they say chivalry is dead," she says.
Yumi takes my arm. I channel my fire powers to the soles of my feet, then we fly up. Mia reappears as herself on one of the top stairs near the shield. One of the Xana Bots spots us and breaks off from the others to attack.
Not good! I think.
"Shuriken!" Mia exclaims, she summons her shuriken using her black smoke ability, grabs it in her hand, and throws it just in time for the Xana Bot to turn to her. The shuriken hits the target eye of the Xana Bot, which explodes.
"Nice one," I say.
Yumi takes out her fans, keeping one as a shield and using the other for-
"Hi ya!" she exclaims, throwing her fan at another Xana Bot. The two Xana Bots that were firing at the shield stop, and turn to us. They zoom around so Yumi misses her target. Yumi's Tessen Fan returns to her. I lift my hand up, then summon my fireball and throw it at the Xana Bot that continues to insist on shooting at the shield. It's a hit, the Bot is engulfed in flame. Two down two to go.
Lyoko's Desert Sector
POV Sissi's
Odd throws a rock on the ground, it's been… pretty boring here. So I speak up.
"Truth or lie?" I ask, wanting to play a game.
"Oh no, I'm not getting into this with you two," Ulrich says.
"Okay, I'll go. Truth: I'm really happy Sissi is my girlfriend," Odd says, smiling at me. I smile at two.
"Lie: Ulrich… remember when we had our first mission two and a half years ago?" he asks. Ulrich raises his eyebrow.
"Yeah, I remember."
"I told you, Sissi, and Lila-" he starts to say, but I interrupt.
"Wait, I knew about Lyoko back then?"
"You did, but you betrayed our trust," Ulrich replies.
"Oh… right, I think Lila told me something about that a while back. Anyways, Odd?" I ask.
"Well… I kind of lied about my hair being dyed. It's natural," Odd reveals.
"Well of course it is. I've never seen you dying your hair at Kadic once," Ulrich says.
"My dad was actually a natural blond too, but eventually it turned into a dirty blond brown color," Odd explains.
"Ah, okay," I say.
"Lie… let's see what have I lied about? Oh, Ulrich!" Odd exclaims. Ulrich raises his eyebrow.
"Remember the time when I said Kiwi ate your-" Odd starts to say, but the ground starts shaking. We fall on our bottoms.
"Ouch, that hurt," I say. I get up slowly, so do the boys.
"Franz, was that what I think it was?" Ulrich asks.
"Yes, the Kolossus is on its way much earlier than expected. I'm nearly there. Not much longer now," Franz replies. He's not as fast as Jeremy, but that might be an age difference, or he's just out of practice both with programming and having a body.
We turn to face the Kolossus as it emerges from the digital sea.
I really hate this thing, I think.
The Kolossus starts walking toward the tower. For now, its aura is still green.
We hear Mantas screeching, then look up to see them heading our way.
"Franz, better hurry! Or we're going to be knee deep in lasers!" Odd exclaim.
"I'm done! I'll have Stones and Lila launch the program now," Franz says.
Sector Five
On the bridge
POV Lila's
"Lila, Stones. It's time: I'm sending you the anti Xana program," Franz says.
"Okay!" Stones exclaim. She and I run over to the interface terminal, which pops up. Stones runs her hands along the interface terminal.
Suddenly, we hear roaring from behind us. I turn to see a monster I haven't seen before. It's slithering its way over to us.
"I'll deal with him, keep working on the program," I say. The top half of the monster is brown and hunched. While the bottom half of his tail is silver. There's a target eye on his head.
I wonder… are you… that creature Mia asked us about? And the one that Xana told me about when he possessed Jeremy for the first time? What did Mia call you… Creeper? Yeah, that was it. Interesting that Xana would send you considering the Xana Bot is far superior. But I guess, logically speaking, the more numbers he has, the longer he can stall us, I think.
I start channeling my ice powers to my hands while Stones works on the interface terminal. The Creeper opens his mouth and charges his laser. My snowflake amulet glows and the creeper fires off a laser. I unleash my ice blasts. My ice blasts fly at the creeper and the incoming laser. I keep channeling them, then walk forward. The laser is frozen mid air, and my ice starts to freeze the monster entirely. Once the Creeper is frozen, I turn my attention back to Stones.
"Is it ready?" I ask Stones.
Stones stops working on the interface terminal.
"It is!" she exclaims. Running over to her, I see a window on the right. There are these white little things in the window.
That must be the anti Xana program, I surmise.
Stones offers her hand.
"Together?" she asks.
I take her hand, and smile.
"Together," I reply.
With our free hands, Stones and I press the window on the interface terminal. I know my hand really isn't recognized, but it's the thought that counts. Stones's hand print is accepted.
Chamber core of Lyoko
POV William's
The two Xana Bots that are left have been dodging our attacks left and right.
"I swear, you're going-" I start to say, but then these weird little white streams of light come out of the core of Lyoko.
Yumi puts her Tessen Fans away, and Mia puts her kunai in her pouch. She closes it. I drop my hand.
"Wow," Yumi says.
"They're… beautiful," Mia says.
The little white streams of light make their way over to the Xana Bots. There's a bunch of them, so they quickly fly at the two Xana Bots, which explode on impact. The little white streams of light then start heading downwards.
On the bridge
POV Lila's
Stones and I watch for any signs of the program. Soon we see little white streams of light heading for the frozen creeper. With a single touch of their light, the creeper and the frozen laser shatter into pieces.
Lyoko's Desert Sector
POV Sissi's
The Kolossus has nearly reached the tower. Ulrich is using his twin katana blades to reflect incoming lasers from the Mantas. I'm using my boomerang to do the same, and Odd is using his shield.
"Franz, we can really use the-" Odd starts to say, but then we see these little white streams of light heading for the Mantas. The little white streams of light envelope the Mantas completely and cause the monsters to explode. The light heads over to the Kolossus, which raises its arm to swing at the tower Jeremy has activated. However, the little white lights swarm around the Kolossus before he can do any damage. The Kolossus groans in pain, he tries to shake off the little white streams of light but it doesn't work. The magma in its body cools, the glowing gone, and the Kolossus falls back into the digital sea. Defeated.
The digital sea splashes from the impact, but thankfully not high enough to get onto the platforms.
Ulrich and I put our weapons away.
"Franz… it worked," Ulrich says, bewildered.
"The Kolossus is defeated," I say.
Inside the simulation bubble
Inside the Hermitage
POV Aelita's
My mother and I are talking, but then we hear Jeremy's voice from outside the simulation.
"Aelita!" Jeremy exclaims, from outside the simulation bubble.
My mother and I get up. I look at the door.
"I think it's time," Anthea says. I sigh
"There's still so much I want to talk to you about," I say.
"I know… me too. But at least we had this extra time together," Anthea says. I look at my mother and smile. I hug her, and she hugs me back.
"Go on. Join your friend Jeremy," she says.
"I will," I say. "I'll miss you, mommy."
"I'll miss you too, sweetheart," Anthea says. I grip my mother tighter, not wanting to let go… but eventually I have to tear myself away. I walk slowly to the door, take one last look at my mother, then grab the door knob.
"Good bye, my darling Aelita," Anthea says.
Outside the simulation bubble
Back inside the cave
The moment I break free, the simulation bubble has already disappeared. I see Jeremy is fighting against a Hornet that's entered the cave. Jeremy manages to reflect a laser off of his blade back at the Hornet, right in its target eye. The monster explodes. Jeremy turns to me, he sees I haven't gotten up. Jeremy runs over to me, then sheaths his sword and helps me up.
"You okay, Aelita?" he asks.
"Yeah… Jeremy…" I trail off, smiling at him. "It was my mother, Anthea."
Jeremy's eyes widen.
"Of course…" he trails off.
Hearing more buzzing coming their way, Jeremy takes out his sword. I lift my hand up, ready to summon my energy field. The Hornets enter the cave. They're about to fire at us, but then these little white streams of light envelop the Hornets. They explode.
The white streams of light leave the cave. Doing what they were programmed to do: find and destroy the Replikas one by one.
"Franz… was that…" Jeremy trails off.
"It was," Franz confirms.
Afterwards
Jeremy and I wait to hear from my father. It's been more than a few minutes.
"Daddy?" I ask, hopeful.
"That was the last of Xana's replikas. Xana has been… defeated."
Jeremy and I cheer in victory. We did it, we really did it!
I pull my arms around Jeremy, then, without warning, I kiss him on the lips.
Jeremy drops his sword, surprised. I know we aren't exactly boyfriend and girlfriend… but this isn't the first time I surprised Jeremy with a kiss on the lips. Today we won… and tomorrow… we'll be turning off the supercomputer. For right now… I just want this kiss to last. Who knows what the future will hold for Jeremy and me ?
TO BE CONTINUED
IN:
Echoes
Author's Note: This chapter was really great to write up without having to use the entire episode. I think I used maybe… two percent of it? I hope all of you enjoyed this very, very, alternate chapter of Fight to the Finish. Including Anthea in this chapter was something I figured Franz would do because Aelita herself mentioned to False Franz in Distant Memory that her father would have had Anthea in the simulation bubble with him there too. Given what happened to Anthea and that there will be no Changing Destiny: Lila's Journey - Evolution, I felt this would give Aelita a lot of closure. Also if I am being totally honest… I don't consider Code Lyoko: Evolution cannon at all.
Early in season 2 I believe, someone had asked me if I planned to bring the creepers into the fanfiction. I had no plans to bring the creepers in. I never liked them. They were too boring, and too slow. Hence, why I created the Xana Bots. However, I felt that I could at least bring one of them in… this chapter. Which is why a single creeper made an appearance.
Aelita kissing Jeremy by surprise was something for the Jerileta fans. :)
As for Yumi and Ulrich fans, don't worry. I have no plans for Yumi to end up with William after all of this.
So what did everyone think? I want to hear all of your thoughts on this chapter! Please critique it to your fullest extent.
Don't forget to review!
LyokoWarrior1994