A/N: Chapter three up! Hooray!
Chapter Three: Being a Hero
Odd POV
Ulrich gazed into space, eyes open and seeming focused on the board, but, as his best friend, I knew better. His mind was completely elsewhere. Aelita's was too, it seemed, but at least she really was kind of paying attention. Ulrich was lost to us. He barely blinked as I sketched him lightly on my piece of paper, not bothering to take notes. Honestly, I wouldn't remember this stuff anyway. As I sketched him, eyeing him out of the corner of my eye, I wondered what he was thinking about. Probably Yumi and William again. Not many people know this, but Ulrich never really liked Yumi, at least not romantically. She liked him first, and he sort of felt like he was supposed to like her back. The whole on again and off again thing really got on his nerves though, and it tried the patience of everyone on Team Lyoko, particularly me. Ulrich was my best friend. I didn't want to see him going through such complicated things day in and day out. I didn't understand why he didn't just pick any of the other girls around that were clearly smitten with his athletic good looks. As I thought this, Ulrich moved slightly, jarring himself out of his thoughts, and ruining the pose. Sad and a little frustrated at this, I worked a little longer from memory before it was finished, but it didn't quite look right. I stuffed it into my sketch pad with all the others and returned my attention to the board. It did me little good. I'd missed the first three quarters of the lecture. I had no clue what we were talking about.
A note landed in front of me, making me jump. It was in Ulrich's sloppy and very pressured handwriting, making me grin, excited to read it. There was just a childish adrenaline rush about passing notes with your best friend in class. I let the excitement bubble for a little bit and then read it.
Odd—Do you have any idea what she's talking about?
No, I wasn't paying any attention, I scrawled back, handing it to him. He sighed frustrated then replied.
I hate science. It's a waste of time. To think, we could be on Lyoko figuring out how to kill XANA.
I enjoy the breaks we get most of the time. I just wish I didn't have to spend my time off from saving the world in a science classroom.
No kidding. This sucks. I didn't respond to him for a moment, mostly because I felt he'd pretty much summed it up. Then he added, What do you think of Yumi's cousin?
Like I said, she's nice and I like that she can keep Sissi in check. Why?
Just curious if you were going to try to date her, too, or not.
I didn't really have a response to that, so I thought for a second. No. I don't think so. She isn't really my type. And if she joins the Lyoko Warriors, I really couldn't date her.
I thought your type was anything with legs. And why couldn't you date her if she joined up?
Haha, very funny. I have a very selective type. The only trouble is, a lot of girls are very selected. And I couldn't date her because we'd be around each other too much. And, well, we would eventually become more like friends. It's the same reason I could never date Yumi or Aelita.
No, you couldn't date Aelita because she's A nasty scribble flowed over the paper as I snatched it away and stuffed it into my pocket. I gestured at Jeremy and Aelita. Jeremy didn't know Aelita's, well, situation, and Aelita didn't know that Ulrich had found out… from me no less. Ulrich repressed a laugh and I glared freely. We sat there, pretending to pay attention. Not long after our note writing was finished, the bell rang.
I hopped up, excited to go to Italian because it was my ancestors' language. My grandparents spoke it at home all the time when I was younger, and my parents knew a little, but I wanted to know all of it. Ulrich and Jeremy trailed behind me, Aelita next to me. She appeared to look for Yumi and Faye as they exited their classroom and wasn't disappointed. They appeared walking out of the door, not long before we got there. They walked in front of us, because they hadn't seen us. William walked in the middle and the two Ishiyama girls were on either side of him. It was kind of funny, they seemed like a matched set. All with dark eyes and hair, wearing black, though Faye was the most colorful. Aelita seemed to notice this too, and looked down at herself, seeming a little sad.
"Hey, what's wrong, Aelita?" I asked, softly enough for the others not to hear.
"Nothing. Just… Just Faye… She's really great. I just wish I'd fit in with them a little better," she said just as softly. "I'd like to hang out with her more."
"So you girls are getting along well?" I asked, winking at her. She blushed, making me smile.
"Well, yes, I mean… Like I said, I like her," she smiled. "I just don't know if… well, you know."
"Right. I do," I sighed, thinking back to class. "We should meet at the factory, you and I, to talk after we eat a quick lunch."
She nodded. "That sounds great."
Well, we sat all the way through Italian, and when we were finished, we headed off for lunch. We met up with Yumi and Faye, who had left William with some other friends of his. Milly and Timya came up suddenly, snapping a picture of Faye standing with Yumi. "Yumi, Faye! Would you answer some questions for the Kadic news?" Milly asked, flipping open a note pad.
"I'd be happy to," Faye said, "but we're about to eat. Can it wait 'til later?" The two stubbornly agreed that it could, then we made our way through the line. Jeremy went first, followed by Yumi, Ulrich, me, Faye, and Aelita. We all sat at the same table. We talked, laughed, and ate, then I made the excuse that I needed to go see Kiwi. Aelita said she'd go with me and we left to make our escape to the factory. Once we were in the sewers, she and I started to talk about things.
"How's Ulrich?" she asked. "Is the Yumi situation getting any better?"
"Yeah… I mean, he's gotten to where he realizes he doesn't want her. He just… doesn't quite know what to do about it. I mean, I think it's hard for him to accept that he doesn't after all this time of trying to get her, you know?"
"Do you know how he came to this conclusion?" she asked, not probingly, but gently. Kindly. This was why I loved Aelita more than anyone else in our group, with the exception of Ulrich, as he was my best friend. Aelita was like a sister though, and I loved her dearly for that. It was nice to finally have someone to talk to about everything. She wasn't judgmental. Really, she was in a similar situation.
"Yeah," I sighed. "He said he likes someone else. Wouldn't tell me who." By this time, we were swinging on the ropes down to the bottom.
"Any idea who?" she asked. I shook my head sadly.
"But that's okay. What about you?" I asked as we got in the elevator.
"Well, I don't know what to do. I mean, we just met. How am I supposed to… I just don't know." She blushed. This was the trouble of being the way we were. We were the minority. Or so we thought. A lot of people didn't actually act on it, were content to live their lives in misery instead of standing up and facing what they felt. It made me sad, really.
"Do you have any idea?" I asked, unintentionally mimicking her earlier words. She shook her head, looking defeated. I put my arm around her as we entered the lab, offering comfort. Or, I hope that's what I was doing. That's what the intention was. Her mobile rang, startling us both.
She fished it out of her pocket and held it to her ear. "Faye? What's going on?"
Aelita POV
"Faye? What's going on?" I asked.
"Aelita! I didn't know who else to call, I don't have anyone else's number. Yumi's gone crazy! We were just in the cafeteria and having a good time. She started freaking out and attacking us! There was lightning shooting out of her fingers and she picked up Jeremy and threw him across the room! I was so scared! Ulrich got him out and William is in there trying to hold her off, but we don't know how long that'll be and I'm so confused! What just happened?" Faye rushed, panicking a bit.
"Faye, listen very, very carefully to me. You need to find Ulrich and tell him that we need him on Lyoko," I said calmly, hoping to soothe Faye's nerves. It seemed to work a little bit.
"What's Loko?" she asked, the panic momentarily replaced with curiosity.
"He'll know what it means, Faye. Just stay calm. Find him, tell him if he can to bring Jeremy. If not, then leave him some place safe. I have to go now. Be safe, Faye." I had to get to Lyoko and deactivate the tower. I'd already found its location using the superscan. I had to save Faye. I couldn't let her get hurt.
"No! Aelita don't leave me! All this weird stuff is going on!" she exclaimed, her voice filled with raw fear. Sheer terror held my undivided attention at the thought of Faye alone with Yumi still on the loose.
"Faye, it's okay. Calm down," I said soothingly. Then I heard Faye screaming before the line disconnected and there was a dead tone.
Faye POV
I ran with Sissi, Herb, and Yumi on my tail. I ran blindly, going far too fast to pay much attention to where I was going. Aelita's voice still reverberated in my head, telling me it was okay, that I needed to be calm. Well, that was pretty easy for Aelita to say. She wasn't here with these three, was she? I saw the direction that Ulrich had taken off to with Jeremy, and followed it, leaving it to faith that I would find my way to him. Then, all of a sudden, somehow, Yumi was in front of me, blocking my path. It was like she had moved with some kind of super-human speed. Sissi and Herb stood behind me, blocking any attempts at a retreat.
"Yumi? What did you do to William?" I asked nervously, sizing up the fight. Yumi said nothing, and made to hit me. I dodged it, but just barely, and ducked under her arm, backing towards the park. "Yumi, I don't want to fight! I don't want to hurt you!" I said, dodging more blows. Shockingly, Herb grabbed me from behind and held me in place with a shockingly tight grip for someone so wimpy looking. I'd been so focused on not getting killed by Yumi that I didn't see him move behind me. Sissi stood off to the side, as though she thought this would be quick work and she wasn't needed. Yumi advanced, eyes flashing with some strange symbol. Yumi's fist snaked forward, connecting with a soft cartilage nose. Blood spurted over the back of my clothes and Herb was knocked away from me, letting me go. Again, I had ducked, escaping just barely at the last nanosecond. Yumi and Sissi closed in, eyes flashing that weird symbol and fingers sparking. Realizing I had no choice, but hating to do it, I used a round-house kick that should've hit the both of them in the head, except for some reason, my foot went through them. "This is bad," I stated, becoming more terrified by the minute, then I turned and ran. Herb was still down for the count. He appeared to be unconscious. One down, two to go, I thought as I ran.
Something with a very strong grip snagged my wrist as I went by a tree, snapping me back violently and making me feel like my arm had been dislocated from the force. I turned, ready to throw a punch, but instead sighed in relief. "Ulrich! Thank God! It's Sissi and Yumi! There's something wrong with their eyes and they've gone crazy! Aelita said that they need you on Loko, whatever that is, and that you need to bring Jeremy with you. Sissi and Yumi are right behind me, what are we going to do?" I asked, trying hard not to panic, but the weirder things got, the less control I seemed to have over the hysteria that threatened my mind.
"We're going to lose them, and I'm going to get to Lyoko," he said, right as the two cornered us from either side between two trees.
Aelita POV
"Okay, Odd. We have two minutes to get to the scanner room. And it looks like we won't have Jeremy this time to help us," I said, hurriedly typing in the delayed virtualization process. As we rode down the elevator, I filled him in on what was happening at the school. "XANA has possessed Yumi. We need to hurry and deactivate the tower, before it's too late. Faye's all alone, and Yumi seems to have found her."
Odd nodded, and we both stepped into the scanners. Soon, there was a hot feeling and I rose into the air before a brush of cold wind and I was virtualized on Lyoko in the forest sector. I dropped out of the air, landing on my feet, and Odd landed next to me. "I didn't have time to program the vehicles," I told Odd.
"That's okay, Princess. The tower can't be far," he replied, taking off. I rushed off after him. We ran along the trees, hurrying as the pulsations got stronger. The entire time, all I could think about was Faye, unprotected and scared. I didn't know if she had found Ulrich, or if she would. I had to hurry, had to deactivate the tower, for her, to save her. "Aelita, duck!" Odd tackled me just in time. I hadn't seen the Krab, and its shot had nearly hit me in the head. "LaserArrow!" Odd shouted, retaliating. Two of his three shots hit the Krab, one in its face, where its lasers were shot from, and the other in the XANA symbol on its back. It exploded, and we ran on, but were intercepted by two more Krabs and a Megatank behind us.
"Odd! We're surrounded!" I exclaimed, thinking only that this was going to take time, time that Faye and Ulrich and Jeremy may not have.
Ulrich POV
Faye faced Sissi, in an defensive stance as I turned to do the same, staring into Yumi's Xanafied eyes. Yumi and Sissi both pooled electricity between their fingers, gathering enough voltage to kill us. Both raised their hands, ready to use it. Their hair crackled blew back, circling their heads like demonic halos. I snaked my hand back, finding Faye's hand and interlocking our fingers as I looked death in the eye. Together, in sync, they through, just as I pulled Faye to the ground with me, shielding her with my body as the electricity crackled over us and shocked Yumi and Sissi, who were blown back by the massive amount of force. They lay flat on their backs, smoke rising from them.
"Come on," I told Faye, pulling her up to her feet. "We can't stay here." I took off running towards the passage to the sewers, leading Faye by the arm.
"Are they dead?" she asked, looking back over her shoulder, slowing us down a bit. I pulled her harder, trying to force her to keep up.
"No, just knocked out," I said, coming to a stop in front of the manhole cover, kicking up rocks and dirt as I did so. Faye skidded to a halt next to me.
"Why are we stopping? Don't we have to get away?" she asked. I pulled up the cover and gestured for her to go in.
"We are getting away. Hurry up, down there. I promise it's safe," I said, shooing her. She complied, hurriedly slipping down the ladder, jumping the last couple feet. I followed, replacing the cover, also jumping the last little bit. I grabbed my skateboard, and told her to grab either Yumi's skateboard or Jeremy's scooter. She opted for the skateboard and we made our way quickly to the factory end of the tunnel. "Okay, this is going to be weird, but just trust me," I said, stopping and leaving the skateboard. She left hers and climbed up behind me, then followed as I raced to the factory. I ignored the vertigo as I jumped and slid down one of the ropes. She followed me, somehow pretty graceful doing it. She followed me into the elevator, no questions asked. I stopped in the lab, putting the headset to my ear.
"Aelita?" I asked into it, watching the screen as two Krabs and a Megatank appeared around her and Odd.
"Ulrich? Where's Jeremy? Do you know if Faye's alright?" she responded. I heard Odd shout, "LaserArrow!" before he lost ten life points from the Megatank.
"Faye's here. Jeremy… couldn't make it. I left him hidden in some bushes. How do I virtualize myself?" I asked. "Simple, remember, I'm bad with computers."
"Can I help? I don't know what you're talking about, but I'm alright with computers," Faye offered, still a little shocked at how the lab looked.
"I don't know. It's really complicated," I said.
"Ulrich! We could really use you right now!" Odd yelled. "If she's good, let her!"
I got up and handed the headset out to Faye. "Just follow Aelita's instructions, okay?" I didn't wait for a response and ran to the elevator, pushing the button that would take me to the scanners. Once I was in, I waited for a moment before it closed, then waited a little while longer. I heard Faye's voice, slightly nervous but not wavering.
"Transfer Ulrich," she said. A hot feeling accompanied her voice. Two seconds later, "Scanner Ulrich." I rose into the air. A heartbeat and a half after, "Virtualization." The cold wind rushed over me and I landed on Lyoko, immediately supersprinting to where I knew Aelita and Odd would be. "Um… there's another red target coming up behind Ulrich's dot… It's a… um… well, I don't exactly know what it is… Looks like a big bowling ball on this screen," Faye said.
"Great, just what we needed. Another Megatank," Odd said as I approached the one behind him. I drew my saber as it fired it's wall at Aelita. She dodged and as it rested, getting ready to fire again, I jumped on its back, rolling it towards me.
"Impact!" I shouted, stabbing it in the eye, then I jumped off as it exploded. Odd had, by this time, taken out one of the Krabs.
"Ulrich, the other bowling ball is behind you," Faye said. "Odd, one more hit and you're out. You're down to ten life points… wait, if you lose them all do you really die?" she asked panicking.
I heard Aelita answer her, but didn't comprehend the answer as I switched places with Odd, letting him take the Megatank and going after the Krab. "Triangulate!" I shouted, sprinting around it, confusing it. It shot one end, but I jumped on its back and stabbed, effectively killing it. I jumped down, regaining my composure. "Fusion!" I said, merging my body with the other me. I glanced around me, looking for Odd.
"Aelita, look out! It's behind you and Odd just died!" Faye shouted. I quickly jumped between Aelita and the Megatank, blocking its wall with my saber.
"Go!" I shouted. She took off toward the tower as my feet started slipping back under me. She ran, sprinting toward the tower.
"Watch out, Aelita! There's a Krab!" Faye shouted, having picked up on what we called those. I glanced back, long enough for the Megatank to get a hit on me. Not good.
Jeremy POV
I woke up in the bushes and stood instantly, and my whole body hurt. "What am I doing here?" I asked, looking around in confusion. Herb stood a few yards away, and turned, looking at me. Lightning shot from his fingertips as he started walking to me.
"Waiting to die," he said. I turned and ran, knowing without seeing his eyes that he had been possessed. I hoped the others were okay. I grabbed my mobile out of my pocket and called the lab.
"Hello? Jeremy?" Faye's voice answered me.
"Faye?" I asked, double checking. "I'm being chased by Herb. What are you doing in the lab?"
"Ulrich took me here. Aelita and him are on something called Loko… Odd just lost all his life points. She's trying to reach something called a tower, she says it'll help us," Faye sounded confused by all of it.
"Lyoko. Okay, tell her to hurry. I have to go. Herb's gaining on me." I disconnected and tried to find somewhere to hide.
Odd POV
"Um… Aelita? Jeremy told you to hurry. Herb is chasing him," Faye said as I came out of the elevator and into the lab.
"Hello, Faye," I said cheerfully.
"Odd! Are you alright?" Faye asked, looking at me. "You lost all your life points!"
"Yeah, I'm used to it. Have Sissi and Yumi shown up?" I asked, looking around the lab.
"No. The last time I saw them was before I got here. They shocked each other out." Faye frowned. "It won't permanently damage them, will it? Will you explain what's going on?" She jumped as we heard the elevator start moving.
"Faye, just keep doing what you're doing, and tell Aelita to hurry," I said, preparing to fight Yumi and Sissi.
Aelita POV
"Aelita, you have to hurry. Sissi and Yumi are on their way up!" Faye's worried voice informed me. The Krab she had mentioned stepped out from behind the tower and stood in front of it. It bagan shooting lasers at me. Ulrich had managed to kill the other Megatank, but must not have seen the Krab and was shot by it, squarely in the chest, disappearing.
"Ulrich!" I shouted, just barely dodging the lasers from the Krab and ducking behind a tree, defenseless.
"Odd!" Faye shouted, apparently forgetting she still had the headset. I could just barely hear Odd's screams in the background. "No, Yumi, it's me, your cousin, remember?" she said firmly. "You don't want to hurt me this isn't—AAAAAAHHHHH!" Her agony-filled scream filled my head, and hurt my chest, paining my heart with its own agony.
"Faye?" I called. "FAYE!" Her only response was to scream in even worse pain and then, all was silent. I assumed the headset had been knocked away. The instinct to protect her drove me out from behind my protective tree and out in the open. The Krab immediately fired at me, and I hoped I had the ability to get to the tower alone. If I didn't, I would die trying.
Jeremy POV
I had hidden from Herb behind a bush near the woods. He had found me, and now he stood over me, lightning shooting from his fingertips and into me. I screamed, feeling the white hot pain expanding within me, sending shockwaves of pain through my entire being, all over my body. Fought against it, tried to consciously force my heart to continue beating as it desperately wished to stop.
Faye POV
The pain increased as Yumi tortured me. I laid there, and finally shut my mouth, deciding that screaming wasn't helping me any. I was laying on the ground, but close enough that the headset was still on. Odd was down; Sissi stood over him enjoying his pain immensely. They both laughed evilly. "Aelita! Please!" I screamed.
Aelita POV
"Aelita! Please!" Faye screamed. Her voice, so full of pain, needing me to save her… something inside me snapped a little bit. I dodged the Krab's lasers, letting my determination fuel my feet. I sped right up to the Krab, still dodging, taking only one hit in the arm. Finally, I made it right up to it. I paused as It shot the laser from under its shell, and then raced under before it could hit me, right into the tower. I progressed quickly along the first platform.
Jeremy POV
I couldn't fight anymore. I laid my head back and accepted defeat.
Aelita POV
I did a flip as I rose to the second platform. I moved to the center and placed my hand on the screen.
Ulrich POV
I rushed into the lab only to be intercepted by Sissi. Her splitting her energy between Odd and me seemed to revive him a little. Faye lay on the floor, nearly dead from Yumi's power. "Ae…Aelita…." She mumbled, her head falling back onto the ground as her eyes shut.
Aelita POV
"Ae…Aelita…." Faye's voice, weak and defeated, came from the lab. I entered the code Lyoko. "Tower deactivated," I said as the data that made up the walls of the tower slid down and left them black.
Ulrich POV
Yumi and Sissi dropped to the ground, the XANA ghosts exiting their bodies. Odd, who was lying on the ground in pain, army crawled over to Faye, checking to see if she was alright. I stumbled over to the computer, pulling the headset away from Faye and hooking it over my own ear.
"Aelita?" I asked, my head full of pain.
"Ulrich! Are you alright?" she asked.
"Walk me through the return to the past function. Faye and Odd are hurt, and we haven't heard from Jeremy in a while," I said, bringing up the menu she said and typing in all that she told me to. I pressed the enter key. "Return to the past now," I said. The big white bubble engulfed everything, and it was as if we had started the day all over again. The world was safe again, for now. I looked at Odd and high-fived him.
"Good job on the return trip, Ulrich," he smiled as Aelita, Faye, and Sissi all made their way to us again.
"Thanks," I smiled as he propped his arm up on my shoulder and leaned against me. "You know, I really hate using the computer."
"I don't know why. It's just another part of being a hero," he said, grinning.
A/N: Long chapter, I know. But I hope it was good. I didn't really know if I'd be good at doing a XANA attack, but I hope it worked alright. Anyway, next chapter will hopefully be up soon!