Jeremy virtualized himself onto Lyoko. As he had been just one time, he landed on his butt, not used to that world. His suit looked like the one from the movie Tron, but with more of a grey colour with light blue lights and no helmet. Instead, he wore some blue cyclops glasses and, on his arm, rested a keyboard that could deploy a virtual screen on the air.
In front of him, rested the light sphere, surrounded by the rest of the monsters from before: two tanks, 10 hornets and 2 megatanks. With the little experience he had, Jeremy knew he would never survive that, so he started planning.
His keyboard functioned as a laptop for Lyoko, but also served to create some temporary weapons, so Jeremy thought of constructing a cannon and some laser guns. With that, he proceeded to type and try to save his friends.
At the same time, Ulrich was on Sissi's room talking. As it was almost curfew, Ulrich decided to leave before Jim caught them. He grabbed his phone and saw he had 1 message left and so he heard it before leaving:
"Ulrich, I hope you hear this message as soon as possible. Aelita, Odd, Yumi and William have all disappeared inside of Lyoko. I don't know what's happened to them or how to find them, but I can't always sit on my chair and hope for the other to succeed. I'm going inside. I've never been more afraid. It's not the first time I enter, but it's my first mission and I'm alone. If you listen to this message, please, I beg you, come running to the factory and virtualize yourself into the scanners; I've left you the instructions. I hope to see you here. We are their only hope. The entire world's hope. Wish me good luck."
- There's no way… Jeremy would never go to Lyoko.
- Where? And why did he mention my sister?
- What am I even saying? How do I know anything about Jeremy and Lyoko?
Ulrich grabbed his head as it started to hurt. An overwhelming sensation of remembrance was taking over his head. He couldn't remember anything but somewhere deep inside him knew all the answers he asked.
- Ulrich dear! Are you alright? What is happening?
- I… I need to go Sissi.
- What? If it's not to the infirmary, then you're not.
- I need to go to the old factory. Jeremy, your sister and others are waiting.
- Then I'm coming with ya. Like it or not.
- Don't. It could be dangerous.
- Don't protest. I've already grabbed my purse.
- Okay. But be aware that we'll pass through the sewers.
- I, I… I don't mind it -said a lying and trying to sound confident Sissi.
As fast as they could, the two of them arrived at the old factory. Ulrich was waiting for some attack to happen, because even though he didn't join the gang, he still fought the attacks on Earth, trying to avoid the necessity of returning to the past. Also, the fact that the last time he was in the sewers every bee, wasp and rat of Paris decided to attack him, didn't help him relax.
They arrived to the elevator after a difficult decision of coming down the ropes. Ulrich entered the first, opened the button compartment and entered the password, closed it and hit the button.
- How do you know the password? -asked Sissi
- What pass-? Em… I don't know, let's just go.
They arrived to the computer room and saw Jeremy's note on the computer.
- This is not going to be easy.
- Oh don't worry, I can handle it -said Sissi while sitting on the computer.
- You understand it?
- Yeah, Aelita's taught me a lot about computers, it's like she was born in one from everything she knows.
- Okay, so you stay here and do that once I'm inside the scanners downstairs.
- Scanners? What are you gonna do?
- I'm going inside the computer -said while he hit the elevator's button and the doors closed-, so be watchful and guide me.
- Umm, alright.
Ulrich got inside the scanners and Sissi proceeded to virtualize him following Jeremie's instructions. Soon, he was landing on Lyoko again.
- Sissi, could you tell me where Jeremy is?
- What's that -said Sissi while looking around, just to find the source of the sound on the headphones, which she proceeded to put on- Okay now, do you hear me? Jeremy is in front of you to the left.
Ulrich nodded and then used his superspeed to look for him, but soon found the giant orb that had caused his presence.
- Ulrich! -cheered Jeremy while approaching- I didn't think you'd came.
- When you said that you were coming in here alone, something told me that it was off. Like your outfit by the way.
- Thanks. But you're right, something terrible happened. Do you see that light sphere? They're trapped in it and they don't even know it. I've scanned it and it seems that they're in some kind of illusion. I don't know what XANA's tries to do, but since it has deposited all of its energy in it, since he hasn't attacked the Earth.
- And how do we save them?
- I've come with a plan: you'll go inside and find them while I try to break the sphere. The combination of you making them aware that they're dreaming and me weakening the defences will make it disappear.
- Alright. Let's do it.
- Ulrich please be careful dear! -said Sissi through the mic.
- You brought Sissi?!
- There's no other way she would have let me go alone in here. And if it wasn't for her I would have been here way too later.
- Yeah Jeremy, if you need help with anything maybe I can help.
- Well, em yeah sure.
- Okay great -said a confident Ulrich- I'm going inside; wish me luck.
Inside the sphere
The four of the warriors were having a dream of the end of the world. They were at a Kadic on fire, the forest was burn, the buildings destroyed and everything under an orange foggy sky. XANA's robots where everywhere on the streets, so they were hiding behind the gym.
- What is this? What's going on? -asked a desperate Yumi
- This can't be happening! Not again, I've let it happen again! -said a now young Aelita crying.
- Princess, calm down, we're here with you. We'll figure this out -tried Odd to calm her down-. Now, what do we-
- There they are! Get them -said Thyron from the distance, ordering the robots to shoot them.
- Thyron! -screamed Aelita-. Go! Now!
The four started to run towards what was once the forest, searching somewhere to hide. Finally, they came across the sewer entrance and decided to head to the factory.
Quicker than they thought, they arrived to the factory bridge, where they found Jeremy and Ulrich on the other side of it.
- Fast guys! Come! -screamed Jeremy just before a bomb fell onto them.
The factory and the bridge was quickly destroyed, killing both of the teens.
- NO! -cried Odd while running to them.
- Odd! The bridge is falling, we need to get out! -said William while grabbing his arm and taking him to the other end.
While they were running from the falling bridge, the door from the opposite building opened.
- Come in! Fast! -said a voice from behind the door.
Without knowing who it could be, they all entered seeking some peace. Once there, they found that the interior didn't match the outside, as it looked like a mountain cabin. If you looked out the window, you could even see the snow.
- So glad I found you -said Franz Hopper while closing the door behind them.
- DAD! -said Aelita throwing herself into her father's arms-. It's happened again, it's all my fault. If I had had the courage to destroy the supercomputer after we came back to the past, XANA wouldn't have taken control over the world again.
- Aelita you don't need to blame yourself. It is my fault for constructing something so dangerous in the first place.
- IT IS MY FAULT! I hoped to use the supercomputer to find you one day, but the terror of XANA paralyzed me so I could neither destroy it nor turn it on. In fact, when Jeremy found it, I was in someway happy someone had switched it on. I was so close to find you, but I guess I was late.
- Do not worry, my dear. Here, why don't you all sit and rest for a little bit? -said Hopper guiding Aelita, grabbing her by the shoulder, and the rest to a living room with four chairs and a little table with just a lamp and some science magazines on it.
At the same time, Ulrich, with his civil clothes, entered the dream too.
- Ulrich? Can you hear me? I'm using my power of distant communication. -said Jeremy through his ear.
- As if I had you whispering in my ear. Jeremy, you'd need to see this. It's an absolute apocalyptic nightmare. It's just like that future that Aelita told us about.
- In that case be careful. There could be a real war out there. I'll guide you to them, Sissi is telling me about their exact location inside the sphere. It appears they had been moving, but now they've stopped for a bit.
- So children, how did you find Lyoko in this new timeline? I bet it was difficult to digest everything all at once -said Hopper while massaging the young Aelita's shoulders.
- Believe it or not -commented Yumi- it was like I already knew about it. Like I knew everything that Aelita told me, like I had already lived it, as in fact I already had.
- Yeah, I suppose that's an effect of the Return to the past -said Hopper caressing Aelita's bubble-gum pink hair-. Your consciousness remained on the supercomputer, but as you were too little to recover them, the result came in just bits, words, visions or vague memories of your past lives.
- Could I have some water? -asked William
- No -said a serious Franz-. There's no water here is what I mean. XANA took control of it. Every time you need resources you risk your life out there. And by the way, young man, who are you? I don't remember you.
- Of course you do, dad. He's William, the one that got possessed by XANA.
- Oh, so that's him. It's just I don't think I ever saw his face.
- Maybe -said Aelita while enjoying the massage her father gave her.
William looked at the old man, suspicious of his message and intentions.
Meanwhile, Ulrich had already arrived in front of the house.
- Are you sure it's here Jeremy?
- Yeah, Sissi tells me this is the epicentre of the sphere. Be careful, we don't know what could be behind that door.
Ulrich opened the door and found the four teens and Hopper on the living room talking. When they heard the door open, they all turned into that direction.
- ULRICH! -said Odd jumping from his seat to hug him.
Yumi followed him and also hugged Ulrich tightly, although with a little more shame and more bashfully. Aelita wanted to get up to, but her father immobilized her constraining her neck with his arm.
- How did you get in here? -said Franz while pointing his other hand, which sparkled with electricity, to him.
- Jeremy and I entered Lyoko and figured out a way to found you.
- Jeremy has entered?! -asked a surprised but happy Aelita.
- And you've finally decided to help us -said jokingly Odd while tickling him.
- SILENCE! -said a more XANA-like Hopper, who now had also sparkling eyes.
But in that moment, William grabbed the lamp on the table and hit him on the head, making him release Aelita.
- How you dare you bastard! -said XANA while attacking William with a ray, which caused him to hit the wall and fall-. Why did my past self choose you? You're pathetic.
- Leave him alone XANA -said Ulrich standing in front of the others, as Yumi went to help William.
- As you wish. I've already got what I needed.
- What did you take? -asked a worried Odd.
- Oh no! -said a crying Aelita realizing what had happened.
- They keys -said XANA while laughing and disintegrating himself and the cabin into light.
Suddenly, they all 5 where on the mountain sector again, but they found that they had company as they saw the scyphozoa where Franz Hopper was. They all fastly tried to attack it, but an horde of 30 kankrelats behind them didn't let them.
- Glad you did it Ulrich! -said Jeremy while approaching them at the same time he protected himself
- Jeremy! -said an adult again Aelita while hugging him- thank you for what you've done -then she kissed him on the cheek, making the young to blush as much as you can blush on Lyoko-. But now let's focus on defeating that jellyfish. If it gets away, XANA will free itself from the computer.
They all tried to prevent the Scyphozoa from escaping, but as they were all really tired and with few points left, in the end it escaped and the tower deactivated itself, thus leting XANA be free again from the computer.