CHAPTER FORTY

Cody gritted his teeth in annoyance as he reached up his hand and grabbed onto Phantom's tail, pulling him out of the air. He placed his guardian into his lap and held onto him between his hands. "How many times do I have to tell you that flying in planes isn't going to kill you?" His guardian snuggled against Cody's hands, eyes wide and darting around.

"He's right," Dricer, who sat on Crystal's lap, agreed. He walked in a circle around her legs before curling up, his tail brushing against his nose. "This is probably one of the few times where we don't have to carry them around ourselves. If we weren't able to find an airplane that would've allowed us to fly—"

"—the airplane didn't allow us to fly," Crystal corrected her guardian. "There aren't any more pilots around to do that. Noah is using his powers to get us off the ground and to steer us towards the place Reihu told us about." She leaned her seat back and closed her eyes for a moment. "If it weren't for the fact that he and Pat have played so many flight simulators, I'd be panicking."

A light snort escaped Cody's lips. "It takes more than playing flight simulators to know the intricacies within successfully taking off, piloting, and landing a plane." He brushed his hair back from his face and thought for a moment. "Not to mention understanding weather patterns and sudden wind change."

Crystal opened her eyes and looked over at Cody. "If that's the case, then I'm sure Noah can handle it. I mean, considering his element is part of that." She gazed at him for a long moment. "Besides, SilverTatsu and ThunderTatsu are flying alongside the plane just in case Uriel comes to attack us or whatever. At this point, I wouldn't put it past him if he blew up the entire Earth even if it took him down too."

Frowning, Cody didn't respond to her statement. It was true that he certainly had nothing to worry about. They had all gotten a chance to get some well needed rest while at the Tipton. Not to mention being able to take a shower, change into some new clothes, and get something to eat. The first time in a while they had been able to relax in some sort of way. Despite knowing Uriel had the opportunity to do a sneak attack while they had all been sleeping, the beds from the Tipton hotel had nearly knocked them out in all of its comfortable glory. Waking up the next day, feeling groggy despite refreshed, they had immediately set out to get to Canada as soon as they could. There were no attacks, nothing getting in the way once they arrived at the airport. However it was then they were nearly stopped. Not only were there more Elementals than they had ever thought would come against them, but they hadn't put up much of a fight either.

I'm sure Uriel is just watching and waiting for us, Cody thought as he crossed his arms over his chest. Around him, he could hear the light hum of the plane as it soared through the sky, accompanied by the light snores from his friends. It isn't like anyone to let us go straight to where we need to go. Not unless he's aware of the abilities we managed to get from the Element World. What sort of connection does he still have there? Mother Nature did mention that he was one of the ones that were supposed to protect the world before he tried to take it over for himself. Working hard to take control of the Kingdom, even going as far as to try and banish the royal family from the throne. Then Cody gently shook his head. He hardly knew anything about the Element World and yet was already making assumptions that the kingdoms worked the same ways as they did in his world.

"What?" Hearing Crystal's voice once more, Cody turned to her and raised his eyebrows in question when he noticed her looking at him. "Your face is scrunched up, like it always does when you're thinking or something or are studying. What are you thinking about?"

"Why Uriel let us go," Cody said slowly. He brought his hands up to his face and gently rubbed at his forehead, he was starting to get a headache. "If everything is what we're supposed to believe it is, and Uriel had been the one that, truly, did cause all of us to get started with this. Why would he wait so long to attack us?"

"You might be over thinking this, Codes."

"I don't think so, Tally." Cody shook his head. Closing his eyes once more he concentrated on the unexplained things that had happened to him over the years. Why he felt a sense of dread whenever he had to go down to a dark basement, or a dark area in general. What had caused him to be so attached to his blankie for so long. Why Zack had always been so terrified to sleep at their grandparents' house for extended periods of time. Why Cody never liked being alone for extended periods of time as he was growing up, feeling there was something that was trying to get to him. It hadn't made a lot of sense at the time, but it all added up in that aspect. Uriel had clearly been following them for a long time, probably very aware of their powers long before they had been aware of them themselves. "This is all calculated. Maybe to be sure there's a stronger fight for him. Or else he wants to be able he can stop the prophecy before it even starts."

"And allowing all of us to be able to get to the next step in our powers does that because…?"

"Because he would…" That's what caused him to hit the proverbial brick wall. It was the only part of the explanation that hadn't made sense to him. What would Uriel get out of it if he had waited for them to get to the top level of their abilities? It'd be easier for them to defeat him wouldn't it? "Because he would be able to see that the prophecy is something that he could legitimately stop? I haven't gotten that far with my idea yet."

"Okay, so what does that mean for what Father Time said?" Crystal reminded him. He waved a hand, motioning for her to continue. "About going back to the time that his all started? Remember, you and Zack were the ones to figure it out before we even went to the Element World, that it all started, essentially, when you and Zack awakened. Back when we were fourteen and…call me crazy but even though all of this happened. I don't think time travel is possible."

Time travel may not be the answer, Cody thought, but didn't say it out loud. No one ever said anything that you actually had to travel through time. And having the powers of that Element…if you can even call it that…may not have anything to do with it in general…Maybe it has to do with the idea of manipulating time rather than traveling through it?

The thought continued to move through his head as he allowed himself to fall asleep. His head was empty of dreams or images he could remember, but he was restless all the same. As if he was aware of being constantly watched, much as he had been when he was young. But he was in an airplane, surrounded by his friends and all of their guardians. If it was something that was going to happen, would they all be able to feel it? His question was answered only moments later when he heard a deep guttural growl behind him. Immediately waking up—not because his nerves were shot, but because of the intense stab of fear he had when hearing the growl—he turned around to find Reihu crouching down in his seat, eyes focusing on nothing as he continued to growl. Cody watched as his teeth elongated into a sharp canines, eyes shifting into cat-like slits.

Phantom then struggled against Cody's hands before managing to wiggle out of his grasp and shoot up into the air, immediately turning into his beast form. Blazen did the same seconds before there was a large bump of turbulence, causing the plane to skip in the sky. Cody shot his hand out and grabbed onto Crystal's, holding onto it tightly. He then turned to his other side to make sure Tapeworm was okay, and found that he had grabbed onto the arm rests so tightly that roots, much like from the plant of a tree, encircled the ends.

"I'm okay," he said as he noticed Cody's gaze. He licked his lips then added, "I've still got the Oracle Element, don't worry." As if to prove his point, he reached down and patted the buttoned up pocket on his cargo shorts.

"What was that?" Aaron demanded, tightening his grasp on his arm rests.

"That couldn't just be turbulence," Bailey said. She reached to the satchel that that was slung around her neck and held it against her chest. The Book of Esme sat inside, Cody could see the spine of the book through the flap, and noticed that it glowed softly. A golden glow much like the lights on a Christmas tree in a darkened room, waiting for Santa to come. It was a beacon of hope in a way and he knew if it fell into Uriel's hands they had absolutely no way of being able to defeat him. "There's no way."

"Never felt turbulence like that before," Zack agreed.

Even from where his brother was sitting at the back of the plane, Cody could see the flicker of flame move through his eyes. It must've been something new after having received the element stone; for he could see his brother's eyes slowly turn red after the flame went by. His mind immediately went back to the black flame that surrounded his brother's hands.

That was different than any of the other flames they had seen. When Sydney or Julius used their Element with fire attacks the flame was always a solid color of reds, yellows, and oranges occasionally turning green, blue, or purple depending on the heat or the power encased in it. Whenever Riley used her powers there was always a black outline against hers, going back to the original of her DarkFire powers. When Zack used his, the outline of his flame was either white or dark red, sometimes moving through both colors as the seconds passed. But this time around the flames were completely black as if he had somehow managed to tap into some dark magic that changed the flames to the likeness of the darkness of space. There was nothing different about Zack, not in his face, in his demeanor…but still the sudden change in the flames that had appeared when they had been standing against the Elementals under Uriel's control and he felt an instant sense of unease.

Zack hadn't made any indication that he knew where it had come from, and that was worst part of it. If it was something he was able to develop…then what did that mean for Cody's powers?

"No way," Sydney agreed. He held out his hand and his new staff appeared in it, shining in its brilliance. Despite the low ceiling, he turned his staff as upright as he could and the jewel at the tip glowed, seconds before his eyes turned completely white. Cody jerked back in surprise and shock, having not seen his powers exhibited like that before.

Then everything around them had turned white, just for a second, before they got a clear image of Uriel. He was somewhere within the camps he had created, staring up at the sky with a smirk on his face. And he continue to watch the sky, as if he was able to look right into the plane that neared Canada and wherever they were directing themselves towards. And as they watched, Uriel lifted a hand and waved it aside. There was another large bump that moved throughout the plane, jostling the Elementals and their guardians throughout. All of a sudden, the sound of a scream filled Cody's head and he brought his hands up, slapping it over his ears.

There was another bump, this time accompanied by a large explosion and he soon found himself falling. For a moment, he was sure if it was still part of the vision that Sydney was showing him. But then he twisted through the air and found his gaze pointed towards the ground that approached as rapidly as it seemed that he was moving away from it. He twisted back around and watched, jaw dropping slightly when he saw the remnants of the plane they had been on. It broke apart in midair, as if thrashed by a three year old with a tantrum; he could see smoke and fire from the back portion of the plane. And yet, as he twisted and turned through the air, he couldn't find his friends.

…

..

.

Sucking in a strong gasp of air, seconds before hyperventilating, Cody pushed himself upwards. As he almost sat up straight, his forehead cracked against something, causing him to regain his breath as he let out a cry of pain and grabbed onto the lump on his forehead.

"Oh, he's awake!"

Before he could come to terms with his bearings, a hand was placed against his forehead, forcing him back against the pillows and his eyelid pulled open. Then there was a bright light in his face and he turned to the side, squeezing his eyes shut to get away. He should've known things would come to this; that his childhood fears of aliens coming to invade Earth—thanks to Zack's insistence of watching an alien movie marathon—had come true and he was part of the captives that were being experimented on.

"Cody, calm down." The voice was familiar to him, though he was sure he had never heard it before. "We're just trying to help you. No one here wants to hurt you." Pushing past the pain, he finally turned into the feminine voice. "As a matter of fact, I'd say this is one of the safest places you can be, eh?" Turning his head back towards the voice, he blinked rapidly as the light was moved over his face time and time again. "Looks like he's coming back, Diamond."

"If that conk on his head didn't knock him out even further, I'm inclined to agree."

Bringing a hand up, Cody shielded his face from the light and closed his eyes for as long as he thought it would take for the lights and bright colorful swirls to go away. Then he opened his eyes and focused on the faces hovering above him. He immediately recognized Diamond, as he gave a small smile and a nod in greeting. Then his eyes shifted to the other face above him and he managed to smile a little, recognizing it.

"Crys..." he whispered to her.

The face then illuminated in happiness. "So you're the boy that my daughter keeps talking about. She may not have said anything to me, personally, but I've heard enough to feel like I've known you forever. It's good to meet you, Cody."

Cody's eyes widened almost immediately as he took in more of the face above him. It was very much like the facial structure of his girlfriend, but at the same time he could see how it was different. A little more slender with a nose that turned up a little bit more than Crystal's. "Mrs. Manning?" He managed to ask. He brought his fingertips to his forehead before slowly pulling himself up into a sitting position. Kristin and Diamond stepped back, Diamond swinging his shotgun behind his back with the use of the holster that was strapped to him, and watched as Cody took in the sights around the room.

It was all...clean, technological, and far more advanced than anything he had seen in his life. Truthfully, it reminded him of the setup of the Mannings' basement. Though he was sure the kinds of things that were in the computers and the like were far more useful than the things they had back there. Thought at this point, he realized, most of that would've been destroyed by now, as was most of Boston.

"Where am I?" He asked finally. His nerves managed to become calmed when he noticed his friends all lying on cots around the room. Tilting his head back, he found that he had hit himself on a low hanging cabinet and brought his hand up to his forehead once more, feeling the bump that continued to throb along with his pulse. "What happened? Is everyone okay?"

"Cody, before you have a heart attack, I need you to drink this." Diamond turned back to Cody with a fizzing, green liquid in a beaker. The Water Elemental grimaced as he took in the appearance of the liquid, and then took it in his hand. The sound of a door opening across the room, caused him to turn around and stare, eyes widening as the others gathered into the room. "Mom. Dad. Mr. Moseby…" his words trailed off as he caught sight of the friend and family he remembered from Boston standing before him with others. "What? I don't…" He looked down at the beaker in his hand one more. "I think I need a stronger drink than this."

"Please." Kristin reached out and tapped the bottom of the beaker, pushing it closer towards his mouth. "It's strong enough, but not the kind that you're looking for."

I don't think anything is to get rid of seeing zombies for the first time in my life. Elementals, guardians…that I can handle. Cody brought the beaker to his mouth and tipped his head back, downing it in one gulp. It burned against his lips and throat, much like a warm carbonated soda did, and once he swallowed, he found the pain in his forehead to be immediately gone. As if someone had pressed a button that was to take away any and all pain from him.

"Now that that's done," Diamond said. He reached up and scratched the back of his neck. "I'm sure you all will have a lot of questions. But the first thing I need to tell you is…" he leaned towards Cody as Kurt and Carey moved across the room and grabbed onto him. "You were never on a plane."

In the middle of hugging his mother and father, he grabbed on too tightly, startled by what he had just been told. To some degree, he surmised, he should've been used to the idea that not everything was as it seemed. But it had all seemed so real. He didn't need to question it, just by looking at Diamond's face he could see that he was telling the truth. "That doesn't make any sense," he remarked.

"Cody…Cody you're squeezing me too tightly," Kurt gasped. "Daddy's happy to see you, but he needs to breathe." Then Water Elemental finally let go of his parents and dropped his hands to his lap. He turned the beaker back and forth in his hands before sniffing the remnants of the liquid he had swallowed.

"Oh, Zack." Carey moved over to her other son and gently ran her fingers through his hair as he slept soundly. "I'm glad you're okay." She turned back towards the others in the room. "Is he going to wake up soon? How come the others are still asleep?"

"The reach Uriel had on them appears to have been stronger than we anticipated," Christian commented from where he stood with Core. Core nodded in agreement before going to the beakers and bottles set up on the other side of the room and started to mix things together. "But its better that we have everything ready for them when they do."

"What do you mean we weren't on the plane?" Cody asked, turning the attention back to him. He placed his hand on his chest as he turned and hopped down from the cot. He stumbled slightly and Kurt grabbed him around his waist before lifting him back up once more. "We were sitting on it when it broke apart."

"You only thought you were sitting on it when it broke apart." The smaller man that was with them walked forward via the use of a cane. He came forward until he was a few feet in front of the blond teen. "Uriel has more powers than any of you are used to, boy. The sooner you realize that the better. He projected an image in your head of what was to happen to you if you were to fly on that plane, thankfully, we managed to get you're here in time."

"Get us here?" Cody's eyebrows furrowed together. "Like… you teleported us?"

"That's not the word I would use, hey, but it works." Cody turned his attention towards the Australian accent and watched as the man that spoke to him dropped the beaker he was twisting back and forth in his hands, causing it to smash against the ground. The woman next to him let out a light sigh before stepping over the mess and walking over to Cody.

"You have to excuse my husband," she said with a very slight hint of an Australian accent as well—obviously picked up from her husband and having lived in the country for a while. "As much as he is an outdoorsy guy and manages to be good at nearly everything he tries, he also has the tendency to be clumsy. So watch your feet." She placed her hand on Cody's shoulder and smiled down at him. "It's nice to meet you, Cody, finally. You and Zack have really come a long way. I'm Renee and this is my husband, Reed."

"Cheers." Reed lifted a hand in a wave before walking over to Cody and shaking his hand with gusto.

"And my grandfather, Akito."

Cody's eyes narrowed as the Japanese man nodded at him. "Have we met before?" He asked the older man. "I don't know…it seems like I know you from somewhere." The man didn't respond and Cody turned his attention back to his friends. "Mr. Moseby, Esteban, London…what happened to you guys? How long have we been gone?"

"A couple of months now," Mr. Moseby explained.

Cody's mouth dropped open before it closed once more. That's what he had expected. There was no way they could've gone to the Element World and not have some sort of ramification to Earth. It was one of his biggest worries, really. Now he was worried whether or not he was starting to actually lose his mind. He was going to need a really good psychological evaluation once all of this ended.

"It's been a long time," Esteban explained. "So much has happened within in Boston. Oh, little blond peoples, it's been so bad without you around."

"He's right," London agreed. "There have been so many people that've…that've died so far. So many people captured. Not to mention they made off with all of my jewels and my money."

"Who knows what they're going to do with that," Cody said somewhat sarcastically. It was a valid question, though. What would Uriel need with that money if he had already managed to destroy most of the city? He scratched the back of his neck. "Please, if you're not going to tell me what's going on until after everyone wakes up, tell me that we're at least in Canada."

"You're in Canada, sweetie," Carey replied. "And you're safe."

Part of the heavy weight managed to lift from his shoulders. He wasn't sure that he'd be able to completely get rid of it until Uriel was dead, but at least he was able to stand upright for the most part.

"Do you have the Oracle Element?" Akito asked. Cody then nodded and motioned over to Tapeworm and the man walked over and patted the teen's pockets before pulling it out. It shone in his hand and he went over to Core, who twisted it back and forth in his hand before going over to a contraption in the other side of the room. He loaded the Oracle Element into what appeared to be a scanner and walked back over to Tapeworm. Pressing his finger into the trigger, he waved the scanner over Tapeworm's forehead then took a step back as a bright light started to shine within the room.

Bringing his hand up to shield his face, Cody found that the light seemed to continuously penetrate his hand before going to his eyes. The light continued to shine throughout the room and as he lowered his hand, he found a familiar figure forming within the light. His eyes widened as he recognized the stance of the form.

Then the light faded and he gaped in shock.

"I…I'm alive?" Max Montgomery asked, pressing her hands against her stomach. She looked p at her friends, brushing her braided pigtails behind her ears. "I'm…" her words failed her as she looked around the room before locking her eyes with Cody. Her face lit up and she hurried towards him, grabbing onto him. Cody hugged her tightly, his words failing him as well.

Through everything he had seen it was one of the few things that managed to render him speechless.

Because it was then that Cody knew what they had to do to defeat Uriel.