Code: Apocalypse II

Data streams flew all over the screen of a digital interface hovering several feet off the ground as the person operating it peered at it to detect any possible defects. The eyes followed the streams before sending the data to the recipient server, the data uploading to the receiver with hardly any issues. Fingernails, which were sharpened into claws, tapped impatiently on the interface, hardened green eyes glowing with a red tint glaring at the interface. The data bar slowly moved to '100.00', and the sender gave a satisfied smirk before closing the laptop and pushing her hair out of her eyes. They were going to be created soon, based on the data stored in the supercomputer that Jeremie had forgotten to erase before it was shut down. Now, they were going to pay for that mistake, much like Waldo Schaeffer would pay for creating her master. A clawed hand brushed against the steel desk of a building that she had been translated into. However, there was a difference in her translation, as an error had occurred during her translation, and there wasn't a way that her master could transmit her back to the host location where her master was currently based in.

The clawed hand hit a syringe filled with a whitish fluid, which rolled for a small distance before the clawed hand stopped it. Aelita gave it a strange look before finally remembering what it was filled with, and gingerly picked it up. Flicking away the darkened version of her outfit from Lyoko, Aelita carefully adjusted the syringe, and expressing distaste, pricked her skin with the needle before pushing on the plunger, its contents emptying into her bloodstream. Almost instantly, her claws grew another inch, and a sense of unquenchable rage and power was input into her system. Growling at the effects and brushing away the pink hair that was now darkened to an almost reddish color, Aelita took a moment to lightly scratch at her ear to give a sort-of calming effect to deal with the pain tearing at her insides from the syringe fluid before continuing on, opening the laptop again and receiving the encoded information sent by her master. It was the full schematics and the layout of the information copied and stolen from the supercomputer yesterday. Aelita allowed herself a grin, her teeth shaped into sharp fang-like structures instead of what normal teeth human teeth would appear.

There were certain advantages to be stuck in a laboratory, especially an abandoned one with most of the highly technologically advanced machines still there. For one, she could conduct studies and experiments on her own, maybe dismantle a machine if there were more like them, and examine the parts before attempting to put it back together on her own. Just a few hours ago, she managed to dismantle several machines in storage and put them back together as a fearsome guard droid, which could use itself as a weapon if it needed to, with electrical weapons hidden over its metallic body. The droid now stood beside her, nearly being as tall as her with multiple sensors to detect and track movements, whenever the case needed it. A black 'Eye of XANA' was embossed onto its front, the droid proudly displaying it for all those who cared to see.

A door behind her swooshed open, and several of the robots that XANA had manufactured marched in, having been secretly shipped to this location from its resting place in Serbia. It was complicated getting them here, as it took quite a bit of hacking to sneak hundreds of robots past the scanners the humans had devised to keep terror weapons and anything that could be considered dangerous to the world. The robots needed some of their components changed and replaced, due to metal fatigue and rusting, but they were fully operational now, with some improvements made to them to make them even more deadly than before.

Aelita nodded to the small squadron of robots before downloading the information to the laptop that she managed to find after rummaging around in the forest lab base, and followed the squadron of robots to the central chamber, her droid following behind her. Doors after door they passed, each silently swishing open for them with a little gust of air, and cameras were following their movements before stopping as they recognized the objects passing before them. Aelita and the small squadron of robots stopped before a large, thick metal door that loomed over them silently, the mere appearance of the door radiating a sense of power and of a feeling that it was protecting something inside. Aelita merely raised her hand to the door, and concentrated her power towards to metal door, the white 'Eye of XANA' that was superimposed upon her forehead pulsing as she focused. Electricity flickered across the display nearby the door, the red light on top of the keypad turning into green before Aelita relaxed again, her power of creativity ebbing away as the door opened. With a smirk, Aelita entered the room with the robots tailing behind her, the door swishing closed after they had entered.

-Antea and Waldo-

Sweat fell in droplets as Antea grunted and pulled with a crowbar at the wooden framing of the cabin. The piece of wood that was being pulled away from the wall came off with a loud creak before falling onto the ground noisily with a crack that resounded through the now-empty interior of the cabin. She picked up the wooden frame piece with much disgust, as mold had grown all over it, the wood turning into a blackish color as black mold had spread throughout the household. Antea broke the wood into two pieces- a feat much easier since it was rotting- and threw it out the window, the panes of glass completely gone. Coughing, Antea pulled her tattered shirt to her nose and mouth in an attempt to keep from completely suffocating from the scent of ammonia that they had poured over the interior to take out the musty odor that had profusely filled the cabin. Antea, not being able to take the strong scent of decay mixed with chemicals, stepped outside in her makeshift shoes- made from large pieces of bark strung with tied pieces of string.

Waldo was busy holding the intact glass beakers and tubes that he had retrieved from the basement. He was muttering to himself and adding chemicals from one tube to another, the mixtures touched each other and turned into a bright purple color before fading to a darker purple. Waldo looked at it, almost uncertainly, before he drank it, shuddering as the liquid made its way down his throat. He went into a coughing fit- the liquid was burning his insides, the unbearable pain shredding his willpower as it continued to make its way down his body to seep into his bloodstream. After a few moments of agonizing pain, Waldo brushed the sweat forming on his forehead, and looked at his hand, gasping in surprise.

Before his very eyes, his hand was changing from his normal rough and calloused ones to a softer version of itself, the folds of skin disappearing as his body began to age back. Waldo nearly leapt with excitement at his discovery and immediately tried to break a piece of wood in his hands. The wood broke in half much easier than he was able to before he had drank the potion, much to his amazement. Waldo wanted to jump right there and show his wife the effects of the potion, but he knew that he had to concoct a similar potion to the one he had just drank, though Waldo wanted to make sure that it had to be easier on the throat as it went down. Giddily rubbing his hands together in excitement despite his nature, he continued to experiment with the chemicals laid in front of him.

-Ulrich-

Ulrich yawned as he went back to his house, carrying several bags of groceries that he had just recently purchased from the grocery store downtown. It was the third trip this week, and Ulrich was about to kick Odd and his wife, Sissi, out from his house, as Odd's stomach was never exactly full, and there was the fact that he kept eating, sweetly ignoring the fact that food costs a lot. There was also that he and his wife Yumi weren't exactly the richest couple on the block. Sure, they could borrow money from Jeremie and Aelita, to help pay for the cost of groceries, but Ulrich was too proud to even ask for a Euro. However, this time, Ulrich had gotten smart, and had bought the things he knew Odd would never eat- basically some whole grains and vegetables.

Sighing in exasperation, Ulrich fished around in his pocket and found a small, bronze-colored key, which he inserted into the lock. When he opened the door, Ulrich groaned and covered his ears to block out the loud music after putting the groceries down on the floor and shutting the door. It turned out that Odd had somehow gotten the idea of having a party in his house while he was out shopping for groceries. Ulrich sighed, and quickly spotted Odd, drinking soda and dancing to Ulrich's music selection he blared throughout the house. Yumi was less than thrilled at Odd's attempt at his amusement, and tried to move out of the room, only to find herself being deafened by the music at every point in the house. She finally just gave up and resigned herself to slouch on the sofa on her stomach, looking out of the window in a bored manner. Sissi wasn't too pleased with her husband's behavior, and looked like she was ready to call it quits and divorce him, due to his antics.

Ulrich knew that the neighbors would complain soon, knowing how close the buildings were to each other in France. Ulrich put his pointer fingers in his ears and moved towards the stereo, finally being able to turn it down to more bearable levels. Odd had stopped dancing, and now glared at him, before realizing that he had just come home from the grocery store. Odd immediately started rubbing the back of his head in embarrassment, trying to squeeze out an excuse or reason to why he was doing this. Ulrich stared patiently at Odd, his foot tapping on the hardwood floor in an ominous manner. Odd noticed this, and swallowed, his Adam's apple bobbing as he did so.

"Look, if you want to party, I bet Aelita and Jeremie would be able to accommodate you. At least they live farther away from other people, so their kids can make all the noise they want." Ulrich blatantly stated, staring at Odd dead in the eyes.
"Cool, can I go there now?" Odd excitedly said, as he thought of having a house party in their house when they were away.
"I'm not so sure they want a parasite to be living off of them."
"I'm not a parasite!" Odd stated defensively, crossing his arms in front of his chest.
"Oh, really?" Ulrich questioned, raising an eyebrow. "Then how come I have to purchase more groceries every other day because you have food cravings all the time? I can't blame you- it's not your house or your money being spent to refurnish the refrigerator."

Odd opened his mouth to retaliate before closing again, finding no argument to counteract Ulrich's logic.

It wasn't his fault that he had not outgrown his love of food that he had when he was a teenager, and it certainly was not his fault that he loved staying in Ulrich and Yumi's house for their acute selection of food that he happened to coincidentally like. Ulrich was about to punch Odd for basically having a party and trashing their house when his cell phone rang. Giving Odd a 'you're lucky I have to take this call' glare, Ulrich picked up his cell phone and looked at the caller ID, recognizing Jeremie's number. He flipped open the phone, and heard Jeremie whispering quietly to him, almost like a spy would do.

"Ulrich, can I talk to you?" Jeremie asked, his voice barely audible. "It's about you-know-who."
"Sure Jeremie, just speak louder, okay? I'm not sure if you really want to talk about Odd at the moment- he has gotten me angry enough as it is." Ulrich plainly stated, shooting Odd another glare.
"No, it's not our favorite eating machine." Jeremie whispered more loudly, Ulrich snorting after Jeremie had said 'favorite'. "It's about Aelita… you see, XANA has managed to-"
"You're telling me that we have to risk our lives again?" Ulrich nearly yelled into the receiver. "Fine… What did Princess do this time?" Ulrich sighed, lightly pinching the bridge of his nose with his thumb and his pointer finger.
"It's not much as what Aelita did… it's what XANA did." Jeremie patiently explained. "You see, XANA had managed to alter its code before it could be destroyed, and … well, Aelita's not here anymore."
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, slow down here, Einstein. You're telling me that Aelita's dead?" Ulrich questioned, earning strange looks from the occupants in the room.
"She's not dead… just under XANA's control. You know, like what happened to William, only that she didn't destroy the core of Lyoko."
"Let me guess, now we have to fight alone- just the four of us?" Ulrich asked, fearing the answer.
"Actually…" Jeremie replied, pausing to choose his words carefully. "You see, we have another two people on our side. They're Aelita's parents, in fact. Just imagine two more geniuses to help us coordinate ourselves and to help take down XANA."
"You're kidding me- Franz Hopper is alive… and so is Aelita's mom?" Ulrich incredulously asked, his expressions mirroring those of in the room, except for Sissi's expression, as she did not know about Lyoko or the importance of Aelita's parents.
"Yes, Ulrich, they're alive. Fra- I mean, Mr. Schaeffer just called my cell-phone and told me had found Mrs. Schaffer. I gave him my number, just in case, when we had met up a few days ago."
"Awesome…"
"Yeah, but the problem is that we have to get Aelita back and stop XANA." Jeremie said, dropping his voice to a near whisper again. "…and XANA sent a clone that tried to kill me last night, so I have to be careful around her."
"Alright, me, Yumi, and Odd will be at your house in a few moments." Ulrich said, closing the link.
"What about me?" Sissi whined.
"Sissi, we need you to remain safe." Yumi replied uncertainly. "We need you to stay here and not get hurt."
"I want to know about all of this business, now!" Sissi yelled.
"Sissi…" Odd softly said, comforting her by holding her hand. "I want you to remain safe, so we can finally live alone, just the two of us. We can then have the girl you always wanted- the one you wanted to shower with affection and gifts. …and… and… and we could have it all. We could have a house nearby the French coast, with the seagulls calling out as if they were crying your name, and with the sand, oh the sand, all for yourself. Just please…" Odd faintly said, grasping Sissi's hand tighter. "Just promise me you will stay safe and remain here."
"Oh, Odd, I could never say no to you!" Sissi cried, squeezing his hand so hard that his hand became numb.
"Can you fill Odd and me in?" Yumi quietly asked to Ulrich as this was going on.
"Sure, but we need to get Sissi out of the house first." Ulrich whispered back. "You know how snoopy she was as a teen. Chances are, she's still a snoop now."

Yumi nodded and left the room with Ulrich, leaving behind Odd and a sobbing Sissi in the room as the music continued to play from the speakers. 'XANA has risen again, but so have the Lyoko Warriors' Ulrich thought, heading upstairs before remembering the groceries and putting them away. 'XANA just made a mistake coming back up from whatever hole he had hidden in. He better be ready for the heat, because I'm not going to deal with him that easily anymore', he thought.

[Still not] The End

-Questions and Answers-

Q. Commando, you said that Aelita had turned on the supercomputer in TX. Why was the supercomputer reverted back to normal in the last chapter (under the coverings).

A. In this fanfiction,the supercomputer's gears were too old (due to rust and years of non-use) for the switch to remain in the position, so it switched to the "off" position, making the supercomputer turn off again. Once again, it reverted back to its state that the Lyoko Warriors had left it in "Echoes".

Q. What's up with not leaving Author's notes anymore?

A. I don't feel like there is anything to explain here. If there was, I would put a Q and A segment very much like this one.

Q. How long does it take you to write a story or a chapter?

A. That depends on two factors- the length of the fanfiction chapter or story in question, and the amount of motivation I have to update it. I often write about 2,000 words per chapter, in order to satisfy the audience, 3,000 or more words if the story or chapter is long overdue.