Meanwhile on Lyoko, Zoltan and Appius were making their way to the center of the arena. They had been summoned by their master XANA and were to be delivered a message. Once they arrived, the armor-clad figure emerged from the shadows of his throne and approached his subordinates.
"You called for us, Master?" Appius hissed.
"The Creator has urgent news for us." XANA said. "He said it is imperative that the three of us are present."
Just then, a large screen popped up showing Will V inside the cockpit of the Artemis.
"Welcome, my lord." XANA and Appius said as the trip bowed in his presence.
"Excellent tidings, my programs." Will said. "Our common adversary has been found. Caleb Stern will be in state captivity and we will continue unopposed."
"And what of the other two?" Appius asked.
"Leave that to me." Will said. "You may now continue with your final phase of Project Apocalypse. After this sun rises, we will be left to rule over this world; my dynasty will be complete. Transmission out."
The screen then disappeared as XANA turned to his two minions.
"You heard him." XANA said. "We'll meet with our prey at the loading bay."
Back on the Artemis, Will was standing in the center of the main bridge as he heard the door slide open. He turned to see his three prisoners, Caleb, Issac and Olivia being forced in by the soldiers of the Grand Army who had captured them.
"Caleb Stern!" Will said pretending to be excited. "How fortunate it is to finally meet you."
"Skip the pleasantries." Caleb said. "What do you want from us?"
"Oh, how rude. I've forgotten my manners." Will said. "My name is William Dunbar V. Leader of North Paris and soon-to-be Eternal Conqueror of All Worlds."
Caleb's eyes just narrowed.
"You…" He said.
He then broke free from his captor's grip and charged towards Will. With a smug look on his face, Will just grabbed Caleb's fist, bent it backwards and threw Caleb to the ground. Will then walked over and pinned him down with his foot.
"I highly recommend you consider the stance you're currently in if you know what's best for you." Will said.
"You think I'm just gonna bow to your feet like that?" Caleb said angrily. "You killed my parents; I won't let you go unpunished."
"I don't know what you're talking about. But you did kill my brother, for that, you must suffer."
Will then grabbed Caleb by the throat and landed a few punches to the side of his jaw. He then threw Caleb against the wall.
"I've been meaning to do this for a long time." Will said.
"Will, stop it!" Olivia cried. "You got what you wanted, just leave him alone."
"Stay out of it, wench!" Will exclaimed.
"It's going to take more than a couple cheap shots to make me kneel." Caleb said.
"Then perhaps this will." Will said snapping his fingers.
Just then, two officers emerged from their positions on the bridge and made their way to Caleb. Caleb got a good look and was in complete shock upon seeing their faces.
"Redmond? Danny?" Caleb said.
His eyes didn't deceive him. His two former comrades were dressed in North Parisian garb and met him with wicked smiles.
"Well, if it isn't Prince Caleb." Redmond said. "Fancy finally meeting you in this position."
"Impossible." Caleb said shocked. "You can't be…"
"You didn't honestly think we'd go softly on you since our scuffle in the factory, did you?" Danny said. "Remember who gave you the idea to steal the Scipio drive that ended with you being exposed to the government? Not to mention the benefits of having XANA 2.0 being placed in his predecessor's domain."
"Wait." Isaac said. "You two knew about Lyoko this whole time, didn't you? Will let the drive be stolen."
"You didn't honestly think my technology would suffice, did you?" Will said. "I needed Lyoko so that XANA could grow and spread all across the Internet. With Appius as my architect and Zoltan as my defense, XANA could grow at an unstoppable rate."
"But how did Danny and Redmond know about Scipio?" Isaac asked.
"When we broke into Dupre's house, we noticed a few classified documents hidden under his bed." Danny said. "It told us everything we needed to know, even how to trigger the alarms."
"Then you were the ones who exposed us." Caleb said.
"I must thank you, Caleb." Will said. "Had it not been for you, we never would've have rediscovered Lyoko and Scipio 2.0 would've never gotten as far as it did."
Caleb could only stand there shocked.
"Ironic, isn't it?" Will said. "You vowed to protect your feeble kingdom, but all you did was bring it closer to destruction."
"Not today!" Caleb said getting back up and charging towards Will.
Will just dodged the blow and threw Caleb to the ground.
"Fine." Will said. "We'll do this the hard way."
"Your blade, Sir." Mackie said walking up with Will's gilded sword.
"Save it, Mackie. I don't need that crap to kill him." Will said removing his jacket. "I want him to experience pain before death."
Will then ran up to Caleb and landed more and more punches to his abdomen. Caleb just got up and drew two knives, one in each hand.
"Ah yes." Will said. "I've heard you're quite the expert at close-range combat, but let's see how you fare against pure hand-to-hand."
Caleb just lunged at him with his knives, but Will managed to block and intercept each attack with just his bare hands. Will then managed to clap his hands around one of Caleb's blades and twist his hands so that Caleb would lose control, causing the blade to fall out. Will then grabbed the blade and kicked Caleb, which knocked him back causing him to hit his head on one of the ship's metal supports.
Completely disoriented, Caleb was unable to fight back as Will grabbed him by the throat and held him high in the air.
"Now let's see how you fare without the aid of light!" Will said taking his knife and slashing Caleb across his eyes, permanently blinding him. Caleb could only scream in pain as large amounts of blood poured from his eye sockets
"Without the aid of the air!" Will said landing hard punches on each side of his body, snapping his ribs and puncturing his lungs. Caleb tried to scream, but could only let out a defeated wheeze.
"Will, stop it please!" Olivia said in tears. "He's suffered enough."
"Without the aid of movement!" Will shouted ignoring Olivia's pleas. He then turned Caleb around and gave a hard knee right in the middle of his spine, snapping his vertebrae and rendering him limp and unconscious.
Will then dropped Caleb's body to the ground as Isaac and Olivia just looked in shock. Redmond and Danny then went over and examined him.
"He's still alive, Sir." Redmond said.
"Excellent." Will said. "Place him in the prison hold. Meanwhile, I want the other two under constant surveillance. Mackie, get my shuttle ready; I'll be giving Kurnip his reward now."
"Yessir." Mackie said. Will then turned to Theo.
"Theo, come with me." Will said.
"Yes, my brother." Theo said reluctantly as the two walked away from the main bridge and to the next room over. Redmond and Danny then followed then as they dragged Caleb's body away.
Isaac could only bow his head in defeat as he watched his close friend be carried away.
"I'm so sorry." Olivia said.
I do apologize for the recent lack of updates. I have been really busy with a lot of stuff and have been forced to re-prioritize due to some unforeseen circumstances (bad grades, depression, my Aunt's wedding, etc). Despite this however, I have yet to give up on this story, especially since I'm so close to the end. So bear with me and I'll have more chapters in the coming weeks.
Please Review.