AN: I thank God for this chapter and I hope that you all enjoy reading. I hope to see you all next time and I hope you have a good rest of your week.

Pagliacci-11

Chapter 77

Brynja was silent as she sat in the sterile white room looking out over those who still lay imprisoned to the world of the horizon next door. There were countless numbers of them, hundreds of millions laying flat in the titanium coffin that bound them. The black fleshy mask covered their faces, and their bodies would occasionally twitch but as she looked out over the vast sea of people, she realized that the genuine awakening as she had was a truly rare gift. There were cases like hers that lay dormant waiting for a new life to take her place and be amongst the observers as they were called.

As she watched over them, Jon Barrow came beside her and said, "Do you see now? The precious gift that it is to be you? That is why I can't let you go back. Yes, you have those who wakeup and they can genuinely be acclimated to our world. But a power that is higher than me, higher than all of us, dictates when and if that will be. Brynja, you are extremely vital here to help bring stability to the interplay of regimes that we have set up to ensure a concrete government. Not only for the people, but our world as a whole."

Brynja was silent as she heard these words and as she looked out over the vast sea, she realized her responsibility to the people who lay before her. The countless lives that if they awoke and rejected their host form, they would be without. Without a purpose, without direction, without a family to take them in. It fell to her to provide that stabilizing force, to provide for the goodness and the future of those who were yet to break free. She looked at Jon and she looked back at the sea of the sleeping observers.

She sighed and she said through a choked sob, "It was because of his innocence and willingness to trust me that drew me to him. I wanted to save him from the world he lived in; the hell he was sure to face."

"I understand." Jon said gently and he sat down beside her, "But that is not for you to decide. Odd will face his trials and he will have hardship and he will have toil. But the fact remains that we have a means to keep him together, to keep him from falling apart. The fact is that Louis has his role to play and his autonomy for some time has allowed him to be able to be strong with Odd was weak and, in that regard, we deem it best to reimplement him as Odd's protector.

The fact is, that for all her perceived favors, Natasha left massive gaping holes for Odd to navigate which may seem to be well on the surface, but in reality, our technicians found that Odd can't truly cope with what has happened. So, we are grafting in Louis to make Odd stronger when we bring his daughter back into his life and we give his sisters back their lives."

Brynja looked at Jon, "Jon, what did they do to him? Why is he filled with such hatred for them?"

Jon looked at her and then said, "It's time I showed you."

Meanwhile, Odd was sitting in the silence of his room. He was back home, to stay this time and, in many ways, it was both beautiful and yet alien. He'd come home with his parents and he was more than elated to see them but something lingered, something he'd desperately hoped had been resolved. On the way home, his parents were immensely quiet and speaking only in fragments and the reason this was, was because they found out that his sisters were recovering from the condition in which Natasha had put them in. In many ways, Odd had hoped that Natasha would have truly negated the worst parts of it but he could tell there were greater forces at play. As he thought silently in his room, a voice came to his attention.

"You aren't alone." It said, "I won't let them hurt you and I won't leave you. Not this time."

He thought a moment, "Who's talking to me?"

"It's Louis, Odd. I've been sent back to you to help you face what you're just realizing."

"They survived; they're fucking alive!" Odd thought as his eyes began to water, "I thought that—"

"I know what you thought," Louis replied, "but even the butcher has compassion. But that compassion is harsh and twisted. The fact is that your sisters are going to be released from their prisons and they will be back in your life. But you aren't alone anymore."

Odd began to weep gently, "I was hoping this would end all of it, but now they're back?!"

"Odd, admittedly, the cruel fate that Natasha had planned for them is something only a monster would do in all conscience. However, those who have a genuine stake in this honor the validity of the circumstances around the lives involved. Your daughter has been returned to her crib and she is being looked after by one of our people until your parents can pick her up.

But I'm telling you, you're not alone in this. My commanders have restored your mother's memory of the conversation you had when you were on your break and that is why they were truly quiet. Your parents know the genuine scope of everything that has been done to you and they are working hard in their own way to rectify just what has happened and as you know, it's not at all an easy decision for them."

Odd was concerned, "You mean, mom and dad know—they know everything?!"

"It's not for you to be afraid of, Odd. It was a great wound, a horrid wrong that was done to you and because of that your parents are genuinely weighing just what to do with you and the situation of the sisters being rehabilitated."

Odd thought a moment and said, "Yeah, I forgot just how badly Natasha messed them up. But Brynja told me you guys had the ability to cure all kinds of injury, something Yolanda made. Can't you use that to speed the process?"

"The council in their wisdom deemed it best that your sisters undergo the natural process of healing and rehabilitation. That is their sense of justice. Yes, we could heal them, but the council thought that in consideration of their heinous crime, that your sisters undergo the long and agonizing road to recovery and that in their mind is punishment enough."

Odd sighed, "It's better than killing them I suppose, even though I could live with that."

"Thankfully such a decision is not in your hands." Louis replied.

Odd was silent for a time and then he said, "Louis, how's Brynja?"

"She has her concerns for you, but she accepts her role in our society. As time goes on, you will forget her and what time you spent in our empire will seem like glorious memories of treasured youth in the sweet kiss of summer's embrace."

"You mean, I'll never see her again?" Odd asked, "It's not fair!"

"Not fair? Odd, to keep the two of you separate will save you both from hurt! What the two of you had will always be with you deep inside safe and secure. That is what the high council has allowed. The simple fact is that neither of you are ready in your respective fields. You are not ready for all our world means and she is not able or willing to go back on decades of progress. If either of you were, don't you think the council would allow to make such a condition allowing you to be together?"

Odd was silent a moment and then he said, "So, this is it then? This is as they say, 'it'?"

"The high council has given its judgement and they have concluded that communication between our worlds must cease forever. Until I become a natural part of you as I should have been from the beginning, you will have prominent memories of your time with Brynja as a salve for your wounds to ease you into recovery. But after time has passed, you will remember only being with your own kind."

Odd then asked, "Why am I given this privilege? What about the others? My friends, what about them?"

"Because you have seen the greatest part of our world, you will be let down with the gentlest approach we can give. It's not unlike another we're giving the same grace to who also came from your world."

"Sissi, you mean?"

"Correct. She has done her duty and done it faithfully and she will be rewarded in accordance. But she has a strong desire to return to your world because she genuinely misses her life. So, such a privilege is granted but her memory of her time here will be erased piece by piece and she will see these pieces as dreams just as you will see your memories of our world."

Odd nodded, "Glad to see that it's an even hand across all fields. Alright, so where do you come in, exactly?"

"I cannot tell you that now. It will be revealed to you at the proper time."

"Great." Odd replied with a slight sigh, "Alright, let's get ready for when they come home."

Meanwhile, Jeremy and Aelita had finished a wonderful yet rigorous sexual portion in light that Jeremy's parents weren't home. As they recovered, they both felt immensely relieved as if a truly massive weight were off their backs.

"It's so good to enjoy this without fear of the world ending." Aelita said with a sigh.

"But you can't deny the whole end of the world thing had its own portion of a turn-on." Jeremy replied to which Aelita gently slapped him.

"Oh, stop it!" Aelita said with a laugh, "But you know what I mean."

"Of course, we don't have to worry about Sylvia or Natasha conquering our world. Yeah, it's really relaxing." Jeremy said as he gently wiped the sweat from his brow, "Now, we just need to hear from Sylvia how she intends to go about all of this."

"Do you think that her people let alone her will genuinely leave us alone?"

"I think that in all reality we have to consider them coming back to be something of an eventuality." Jeremy replied, "I'd love to think otherwise, but it's not in the cards if Sylvia's personality is anything to go by."

Aelita sighed, "Fair enough. So, what are we looking at?"

"Who knows, honestly. But I don't put any money on her pulling out of here any time soon. Just call it a gut instinct."

Aelita nodded and turning to Jeremy she asked, "Your mom keep menthols on her?"

"Yeah, there's a pack in her tampon box. I didn't know you smoked."

"Ever since this all started, I've been sneaking one every five days. It helps to punctuate the week."

Jeremy sat up as Aelita left the room, "But you don't smell like smoke!"

Aelita came back after a few moments and she said, "I always smoke down-wind and I chew a lot of mint gum as well as use a lot of mouthwash to keep it off of me."

Jeremy nodded, "Well we all have our vices."

Aelita opened his bedroom window and with a small matchbook she kept in her coat pocket, she lit the cigarette. As she took her first drag a look of relief came over her as Jeremy observed.

Jeremy chuckled, "Now I don't feel nearly as bad for having Sylvia's weed that my double brought me."

Aelita shrugged, "Hey we all have our vices as you say, enjoy yourself. But I'd advise not here, weed stinks up a place like no other. Better you smoke outside like near your pool-house so it looks like your neighbors are the ones with it."

"You're very good at deception, aren't you?"

Aelita shrugged, "Maybe Natasha rubbed off on me, hard to tell. How long until your parents get back?"

"They went to the doctors for a checkup so, an hour, an hour and fifteen at most—why?"

"Just checking for how much time we have left before we have to button-up and be good kids again." Aelita replied as she blew her smoke out the window, "Well, we've dodged a bullet and that's a good thing. So, what do you recommend we do until we hear from Sylvia?"

"There's nothing really that we can do except sit and wait. So, until then, let's enjoy our break and make the most of it. As far as I'm concerned, the ball is out of our court and in Sylvia's and as such, what happens next is not truly our problem."

Aelita nodded, "Fair enough." She finished her cigarette and put it out in the windowsill. She lay back in bed beside Jeremy and after a moment, she asked, "Jeremy, would you say that our group heavily relies on you?"

"They'd be lost without me in the old days." Jeremy replied, "But you know that already."

"It's just—it came to mind that only Ulrich ever took the time to learn the ins and outs of the supercomputer. Why do you think the others never truly bothered to learn?"

"Well, Ulrich had his own motivations back then and it's not hard to see why he'd learn to use the supercomputer for just such a cause. That said, the rest of the group I think just liked to rest on the constant that you or I would be able to use the supercomputer and coordinate elements of our missions. But seeing how this war is ending, I don't see much reason why we should hold onto how the supercomputer functions for the long-term."

"Would you feel it better to say that you'd like this chapter of our life to close?"

"Not just me but I think all of us involved would. I mean, sure, it's fun and we had our great times as a group. But we can't keep doing this forever, and even if we did, we'd have to find successors eventually."

"True." Aelita replied, "So, you have no issue then with deactivating the supercomputer? Truly balancing and closing the book?"

"No, it's something that's welcome especially after all of this."

Aelita looked at Jeremy, "Does it bother you that I smoke?"

"Well—it's unexpected but I don't begrudge you a vice. As I said, we all have to have one."

Aelita was silent a moment, "We all have to have one, huh?"

"I wouldn't take it too personally. I mean, my grandfather took his vice too personally and he was a miserable man. I think grandma really hemmed him in to with the aspect that he should fight his vices if he were to call himself a Christian. The thing is, he eventually developed this mindset that what's the point of living long if he's miserable? While that doesn't excuse what grandpa turned into, I can more than see his point in hindsight. Just because one has a vice, it doesn't necessarily mean it's the end of the world. All things in moderation, you know? Better to admit you have a vice as opposed to repressing it all the years of your life. It's just one of those things, like many, that you just have to work on and wrestle some control from."

Aelita nodded and thought for a bit, "It's just so hard to think we've come all this way. It doesn't seem possible at times, you know?"

"A lot of things don't seem possible, but here we stand." Jeremy replied.

Yumi had enjoyed a refreshing bit of skiing on her vacation and while she had a slightly vexing time teaching Hiroki the basics, she rationalized to herself that it was better that Hiroki learn now how to ski so he wouldn't be at a social disadvantage later in life. If his infatuation with Milly was any indication, she knew that the girls her brother was fascinated by were often going to be the ones who he had common ground with but the minutia of what made that common ground would be tested where it truly counted. As she sipped some of her cocoa, she looked at the burning log in the fireplace. It was a mesmerizing and very inviting element to her that helped to calm her more than she admitted. She wished she had a similar aspect at home, but most chimneys were largely ornamental with prolonged use resulting in expensive sweeping.

As she sat in the relative silence of the room, her mother came into the room gently and sat down across from her as she began to read the paper. Yumi looked at her and she saw that the paper was the usual business pulse checker as her mother had often termed such papers. Even on vacation, Yumi knew that her mother would keep her ear to the ground looking for better opportunities for Takeo relating to overall employment. In some ways, Yumi couldn't help thinking that such a habit defeated the purpose of an excursion such as this.

Finally, she spoke, "Mom, why do you always do that?"

Akiko gently folded the paper and looked at her, "What do you mean?"

"I mean that every vacation we have, every time it seems you're always looking for some opportunity to advance daddy in his workplace."

Akiko smiled slightly, "Because to ensure such vacations as this, your father needs to be kept abreast of his competition and to be kept abreast of corporate competition is the first step to ensuring his overall success."

"But we're on vacation. Would it kill you to enjoy yourself?"

"I am enjoying myself. For me, helping your father to have the upper hand, no matter where he may be in work, that is my enjoyment. It's keeping one step ahead that gives me a kind of purpose if you will, and we all need our purpose at the end of the day."

Yumi looked at her and then asked, "Is that all life is to you? A standard rat-race with escalating levels to get that piece of cheese by any means necessary?"

"That's how a lot of this world would prefer to have you trapped, in just such a mindset. But to research one's competitors is how you break this mold by proactive measures to better yourself. So, you'll forgive me if I have your best interests at heart until it's time for your feet to hit the ground in the employment sector." Akiko folded her newspaper back up and continued reading.

Yumi was in stunned silence and then asked, "Is this what life has always meant for you?"

"Not always, at least not before I got married. But once I did, I evolved into a mindset that put the family first and how does one put the family first? By being proactive while your husband works to better him and enrich the family by extension. It is the duty of any good and dutiful wife to want to seek this kind of betterment for the family to ensure their happiness and stability. What did you think I did all day? Tended house? Cleaned up yours and Hiroki's messes until you had the sense to come in out of the rain? No, I sought always to better this family as best I could."

Yumi nodded and she then said, "Is that all life is? A blend of working relationship and love where needed?"

Akiko put her paper down and said, "Not quite. It's a working relationship that is endued with love. It's love that keeps your father and I together through our struggles because Lord knows we've had them. However, where what I do seems cold and detached, it's always with the betterment of the family in mind. Sometimes, it's busywork, but someone has to do it. The truth is that it's a parent's duty to provide the best they can for their child until such time as the child can provide for itself. What this takes the form of is an education or work skills that can help you support yourself and then in turn repeat the cycle with your own children.

Is it going to be easy to provide for yourself? No, and that's what your life's partner should help you to achieve, a greater sense of stability for both of you. I mean, in all honesty, would you prefer to go into the realm of life I brought you out of when we moved to France? Japan's job infrastructure is one of the most brutal and yet oddly familial approaches to business there is and at the same time, if you don't perform as is expected of you, you're shunned."

"Is that what Japan did to you? Progressively groomed you to always look for some kind of advancement?"

"Yeah, because who wants to be stuck in remedial bargain-basements forever at best or at worst, on the fringes of society where one barely counts? In Japan it's all about the team and the corporation which frankly some say should be looked at as your pseudo-family. While that sentimentality is true to a point, corporate only cares about its genuine earnings at the end of the day and in theory proactive elements are rewarded. But in exchange the company works the genuine life out of you with just enough time to recharge as you sleep and even then, to be a real corporate kiss-ass you willfully embrace overtime and don't take a holiday at all. It's from this form of hellhole of being a good little servant that robs you of what counts. Sure, you meet societal standards of being a provider, but you never get to see your family at times where it counts.

It's why France had a great calling for your father and me. It was the aspect that it prized the individual over the tribe and while care for the tribe is essential, it's nice to get an atta-boy as my friend William told me because one's own efforts. The nation of Japan hardly gives that and it's why many are leaving. They want appreciation; not to be worked to the bone with minimal thanks. Now, should you thank someone for every little thing? No, it's unhealthy and shows a form of weakness and reliance and besides mankind is not worthy of such thanks. That said, the point being is that many aspire to be respected and given their proper accolades and in the community mindset this isn't as willfully embraced. For the individual, the community feels, if praised to much, will get a swell head and maybe so—but it's nice to know you belong and are genuinely appreciated as well."

Yumi nodded and she sat back in her chair, "I get it. So, the family is the unit that is most important in the community and the community thrives off of the goodness of a family that knows its self-worth. Is that about right?"

"It's very close. But the thing is so many have lost that very key perspective. It's not about the self although we do love our accolades and it's not purely about the community. it's about the goodness of knowing the worth of both therein and where they balance each other out. Unfortunately, the world has yet to get with such a picture otherwise things would look a lot different. And as much as I'd like to say this is an easy understanding to grasp, it's much harder to implement. The tug of war between self and community must first be reconciled in the individual before it can be applied to the whole."

Yumi nodded and then the door opened with Takeo and Hiroki coming in from outside. Hiroki quickly took of his coat and his boots before rushing to the fire and putting his hands out over the fire.

"Oh, it feels so good." He said with joy as he felt the warmth spread to his fingers.

"Are you doing well, Ladies?" Takeo asked as he put his coat on a nearby hook.

"We're just fine, dear." Akiko replied, "Would you like me to get started on lunch?"

"That would be great. It's nice outside but a hot meal sounds so much better." Takeo replied.

As Akiko went into the kitchen, Takeo was writing some notes on a notepad before he put the pad into his coat.

Meanwhile, Ulrich was at his house going over recent police reports. Ever since what had happened at Menagerie Park, Ulrich had spent a lot more time listening to the local police scanner and what he had found was troubling. There were definite actions being taken by someone but if it was Sylvia or Natasha, Ulrich couldn't tell. All he knew was that there were wars on local street gangs being waged in the dead of night every other night. But based on what he was hearing over the scanner, it was done with such a pristine sense of violence, that even the police were baffled.

As Ulrich had listened to his Uncle Blake, he found that the violence of these attacks was unprecedented. Of course, he knew Blake saved the juiciest details for his parents only but from what he could gather, entire gangs of people were obliterated in what Blake called, "organized carnage." There were reportedly only bone and body chunks that remained of the men and women and from this the only thing that could genuinely be determined was the number of those killed. Even this proved a challenge as often what the police were left with was nothing but bloodied chunk pools in the locations. However, what was more concerning was that there were no hints of any kinds of bullets from the assailant.

Yet, given the genuine proximity of the public to these locations of the gangs, no one ever reported anything until whatever happened was over. Many had heard the gunfire but had attributed it to the usual violence of the area. However, even the most vigilant of such neighborhood watchmen didn't notice anyone particular going in or out. But what Blake did reveal is that they were dealing with someone who was using a weapon of great firepower as the splash patterns of blood indicated a massive force moving at equally as massive a speed and yet there were no signs of that impact anywhere else around the crime scenes. Ulrich silently contemplated all of this and as much as he wanted to call the others, he wanted to be sure of just what all this possibly meant.

Odd was silent after Louis had explained the process of how all this was to slowly unwind. After he'd listened to the beginning stages of what the mirror verse's council had decided, Odd asked, "May I speak to Brynja, Louis? Just one last time?"

"I'll send in the request to our dimensional custodians. If they approve it and she accepts, then you may."

Odd felt his body jolt a moment and Louis replied, "It's been sent. We'll have a reply soon."

Odd sat down on his bed and he waited. A few moments later, his body jolted again, and Louis replied, "She has accepted. You'll go into a deep sleep in just a moment or two. Best you lie back on your bed, so you don't get hurt."

Odd lay back on his bed and closed his eyes. A sudden sleep seized him, and he was in the black room with a ruby-colored floor. Brynja stood before him and she asked, "What is it, Odd?"

"I just wanted to see you one last time before you were slated to fade into obscurity." Odd replied, "It's—going to be different with just your other self to talk to."

Brynja looked at him critically and then said, "Odd, do you not think it possible that the Brynja of your world is the person that eventually you would come to love?"

Odd was curious, "Go on."

"I've watched her in the time since I broke away including the time she spent with you at Kadic. Could it not be that for all her physical attraction, what also attracted you all to her was her genuine maturity emotionally? Not only was she hot in terms of the overall body but her mind was genuinely developing. Could it not be that the reason the girls of the group saw her with jealousy is that frankly she enticed their men in a way that they couldn't at the time?"

Odd thought a moment and said, "I'd never thought about it that way. But she was such a vain and full of herself person—"

"Is that what you think, what you genuinely believe or is that something that your friends impressed upon you? Consider what she said to you, Odd. That friends come and go in your life and that in time you get new ones. Where do you think such a statement came from?"

"Life exposure on some level." Odd replied.

"Correct, and because of that life exposure she posited the reality of her relationship with you directly as to how to not let yourself be held back by your friends. Real as they may be to you, and in many cases have been, it's a weakness of yours when your friends drag you down because of their deficiencies. You've had your time with Lyoko and now it is time for you to hang up that hat and all of you go into the world that awaits you. Brynja hasn't forgotten you and it was your zest for life that kept her enamored.

But what you call vanity, and some conceit, comes from her knowing what she genuinely wanted for herself, and it wasn't reliant on you as you've had others be reliant on your presence in the past. If you still long for Brynja the same way you long for me, the door will open if it was meant to be. However, you must decide for yourself what you want the most. The world that you live in is not on the knife's edge anymore and so it falls to you as to what to do with the rest of your life and find an identity outside that of Lyoko."

Odd was silent, "I understand. But may I ask, did our time together mean nothing to you?"

"It hurts me you would even ask such a thing, Odd. Of course, it meant something to me. But the reality is, is that we cannot be truly part of each other's world. The sad truth is that I can't go to your world and be reduced to a nobody when I spent so long trying to figure out my own. And you are not trusting of the powers that be to come to my side of things. So, this dissolution of our relationship is what must happen as the result of an impasse. Don't take it too harshly, it's just what our powers have in place for such situations in lacking an accord."

Odd was silent for a while and then said, "I just don't want to forget you. You mean so much to me, you showed me so many things."

"And the Brynja of your world can do the same, just not the same venue as you expect from me. It takes time to mature and see things as they are and the true test of a man or woman is knowing what is right and what is wrong and despite how much we may want something, that doing the right thing is what's best."

"I know it's just— "Odd began, "I know your world is possible and what it promises is truly beautiful and I want to, I want to come to your side of things but—"

"But you are not trusting of the powers in place and that is not your fault but a condition of your world. When it comes time to be free, seek me out again and we will talk. But you must learn to navigate your world and be strong in it. Once you have your sense of self truly affirmed, come back to me if that is your wish, and we can continue where we left off." She looked at her watch, "If you'll please excuse me, I have work to get back to. Odd, I wish you all the best and I hope you find what you're truly looking for. If you come looking for me, I will not be found. But if you're willing to give your world a chance to realize the beauty of my world and where it came from, do so. Once you have affected change for the better, come back and we will see where we stand."

At that moment, Odd awoke once more in the silence of his room.