Flyaway

Karen

Mail call. Small Brown got a box with brown jars in it, Pink-Gold got a card, and Kind Bronze got a paper that distressed him. Then they - all but Kind Bronze, who was off on a trip - rushed to the factory. White sent the others to Lyoko, then rushed out to stop a meteor -

White was with Kind Bronze and Pink-Gold, and they were talking.

I opened my eyes and groaned. What was with my back? It felt too heavy to lift.

Then I heard Aelita. "Karen?"

"What?"

"I can see your problem."

I thought about her tone. "Do I want to know?"

"You've got wings."

That hit me. I struggled to move and fell out of bed. I landed on my back and felt a burst of pain that wasn't on my spine. "Um…Aelita? I could use some help."

Aelita got me sitting up and helped me fold my wings properly. "How are you going to hide these?"

I looked at the bat wings sprouting from my shoulders. "The same way I hide my arms, of course: under my sweatshirt."

Aelita

When the mail call went up, I got an unsigned postcard! I hadn't a clue who could possibly have sent it. Jeremie got a card that said he had won a flight in a fighter jet, and Odd claimed guilty.

Karen sighed. "I figured this would happen. Odd? Try offering your stuff to Jim the next time he comes looking for something unusual. Jeremie, you still have to go on this flight, but Xana's attack is going to call for a return trip and Odd's going to go by your name the second time around. Aelita…" And she hesitated.

I looked at her. "Do you know who sent it?"

She finished, "You should find out for yourself."

I knew her face. She had on her How-Much-Should-I-Tell-Her face just before she answered. Plus, she was nervous. I think that meant someone at the table was the guilty one.

But who?

I looked at some of my friends' handwriting during class and I wasn't sure I had found the culprit before I was caught.

Jeremie

I went to the jet and was introduced to the pilot. After he described the flight in terrifying detail, I said, "That sounds great, but there's one part I'd rather you left out."

"What's that?"

"The flight!"

While they stared at me, I elaborated, "I'm actually terrified of planes, but I didn't want to chicken out in front of my friends. This way, you can take a few pictures of me in the jet, you'll get your job done, your magazine can save some money," I zipped my jacket, "and my friends will think I actually went on the flight!"

Now, I didn't think Karen would be fooled, but she'd understand. Wouldn't she?

"Sure, why not?"

Odd

I opened the dog food in my room, and immediately held it away. "Whew! What normal dog would ever eat this stuff?"

Ulrich asked me, "Whoever said that your dog is normal, Odd?"

Kiwi's barking got Jim's attention. He came in and immediately asked where the dog was.

I said, "That was me! Whenever I eat this…homemade pate that my mom makes for me, that's what happens! Ruff, ruff!"

Jim said that it smelled good and I took Karen's advice and gave it to him.

Jeremie

Some pictures were taken and the magazine guy said, "It's a wrap!"

I sighed. "Thank the heavens I'm not going into the heavens!"

I guess I spoke too soon, because the cockpit closed and the jet took off! "I thought we weren't going to fly!"

"I know, but I'm not the one controlling it. It's running on automatic, and the plane's flying itself like some kind of virus is controlling it!"

Virus? Xana!

The pilot tried to reboot the system, but Xana shocked him into unconsciousness. I told the crew on the ground not to worry, that I thought I could control the situation. Yeah, right.

I called the factory. Aelita and everyone was there. "If you're all at the factory, that means there's an activated tower."

"Relax, Jeremie. We can handle this."

"There's just one little detail: Xana has taken control of the fighter jet that I'm in."

Odd asked, "What are you going to do about it?"

"Unfortunately, the jet is armed. Xana must have a target in mind."

I gave Aelita my coordinates and she punched them into the supercomputer. According to Aelita, I was headed straight for the factory!

"That means that Xana's target is the supercomputer!"

"You'll be in firing range in fifteen minutes."

"Then that's all the time you have left to deactivate the tower!"

Karen

I was silent for a moment. Then I told Aelita, "You go to Lyoko. I'll send you in. I can be careful enough to type with these claws."

"What will you be doing after that?"

My face was grim. "Stopping the missile!"

I sent Aelita to Lyoko, listening to Jeremie's plea for us to be careful.

I managed to warn Aelita and the others about the Crabs and William, but they weren't doing so hot. Aelita was stuck, Ulrich was fighting William, and Odd and Yumi were devirtualized. I said, "Yumi, you watch the supercomputer. I'm going to watch for the missile." I stripped my sweatshirt and shirt off outside, spread my wings, and started taking short practice flights around the factory. Then, when I deemed myself ready for serious flight, I settled down on the roof and waited.
Soon, I saw the missile fly into view. I took off and flew towards it.

This is the stupidest thing you've ever done, Karen. Admit it.

I managed to grab hold of the missile with my newly-armored claws and tried my hardest to turn it. It wouldn't turn. So I chose my last-resort move: I crawled to the end of the missile, grabbed one of its tail fins, and yanked. Thanks to my brand-new strength, it pulled right off, making it spin off course. Unfortunately, I had overlooked one little detail: how it would spin. Its flames hit me dead on, and I screamed.

As I fell, barely conscious, I saw the fighter jet coming down towards the factory, and it seemed like Jeremie was staring right at me. In my mind, I heard Yumi's voice:

"Return to the past now."

I followed Aelita into Jeremie's room. Aelita found the postcard about the same time that Jeremie came in.

"So you're the mystery postcard writer."

"Yep! The hardest part was disguising my handwriting, but it was worth it, wasn't it?"

"Yes, Jeremie. It helped me to see that I'm not alone in the world. Thank you."

Then Jim showed up in the doorway. "Belpois! I've been looking everywhere for you. Have you seen della Robbia?"

"Uh...what's he done?"

"Nothing at all. I'm just wondering if he's still got some of that homemade pate left. It tastes really delicious!"

Aelita and I laughed as Jeremie answered, "Sorry, Jim, he took off. He had a plane to catch."

After Jim left, Jeremie looked at me. "Karen..."

"What."

"Were you flying before the return trip?"

I sighed and pulled off my sweatshirt. His eyes got big just looking at my arms. "How did that happen?"

"Xana gave me a virus through William. I bet that I'll be a complete dragon in just a few days."

"Not if I can help it!"

"Jeremie, I think this is supposed to happen. It might help us in the future. Just let me decide what to do about it."

Jeremie sighed and nodded.