A/N: Here is the next installment of my Jerlita Roleswap AU. Hope you all enjoy it~
Disclaimer: I do not own Code Lyoko in any way, shape, or form.
Note: Remember, any episodes not mentioned either as the inspiration for a chapter or just in passing are not part of the AU, mainly because the roleswap makes them useless, and those only mentioned in passing are just filler and/or would be the same no matter who has what role.
!~~~J~E~R~L~I~T~A~~R~O~L~E~S~W~A~P~~A~U~~~!
"After he is attacked on Lyoko, Ulrich begins acting strangely. What is his deal? Is he being possessed by XANA or something?"
Episode 6: Double Trouble
(Based on Image Problem & Cruel Dilemma)
Aelita carefully watched the supercomputer monitor in front of her. The holomap showed Ulrich (represented by a green arrow) and Jérémie (represented by a yellow arrow) running 30 degrees North, the location of the tower her monoscan had picked up.
It was strange. She created the monoscan to help Jérémie locate towers whenever he couldn't pinpoint where XANA's pulsations were leading him. But this time, the monoscan had gone off by itself.
The holomap showed the tower coming into view. "You should be able to see it by now," she told them.
"No kidding," Ulrich replied, the two arrows on the holomap coming to a stop right in front of the tower. "It sticks out like a sore thumb. But the tower's aura is blue, not red." He paused. "No monster in sight either."
"Confirmed," Aelita checked her screens. Ulrich was right. Everything was quiet. "But be careful. You never know."
"I'll go check it out from the inside," Jérémie cut in, before the yellow arrow moved, going inside the tower and moving up to the second platform within the structure. A couple of seconds passed, before Jérémie's interface popped up on screen. "Sorry, Aelita. It looks like a false alarm. According to the interface, there is no digital activity within this tower, and I don't sense any pulsations either. Not anymore, at least. Are you sure this is the right one?"
"Yeah, the monoscan picked it up," Aelita replied. "At least for a few seconds. Sorry, Ulrich, it looks like I dragged you here for nothing."
Ulrich's response was an unsettling scream. She had never heard him cry for help like that.
"Ulrich?!" Jérémie was starting to panic. "Is he still on your screens, Aelita?"
Aelita was typing in commands, expanding her view of the holomap, "No, I can't find him! Ulrich, do you read me?! Ulrich!" Still nothing. "I don't believe this! It's like he just disappeared!"
"If he was devirtualized," Jérémie began.
"My screen would've shown it, including the monster that shot him down," Aelita finished. "Come on, he couldn't have just vanished into thin air!"
"Check the scanners," Jérémie told her. "He could be there."
"Okay, I'll go and check," Aelita said. "You stay inside the tower, Jérémie!" She then pulled the earpiece out of her ear and placed it back onto the keyboard, and left for the elevator.
She pressed the button to take her down one level. After waiting for what felt like an eternity, the lift stopped and the doors opened.
There was Ulrich, laying down on the floor, having emerged from one of the scanners, but he was out cold.
"Ulrich!" She ran to him, worried out of her mind.
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
Yumi and Odd were at the school, waiting by the vending machines. After hearing of Aelita's monoscan picking up an activated tower, the two had volunteered to stay at school and keep an eye out for any signs of a XANA attack.
So far, nothing.
Yumi was going over her homework for her later history class, as Odd was getting some hot chocolate from the vending machine. He took a sip and immediately grimaced in disgust.
"Eck! What's wrong with the hot chocolate today?" Odd asked. "It tastes like dirty sweat socks and an old pair of sneakers!"
Yumi didn't look up from her homework as she responded in jest, "And how would you know what that tastes like?"
Odd poured out his drink, now a waste of money, into the nearby trash can, saying, "Don't ask." Likely his sisters, if she had to guess.
Yumi giggled, before using her pencil to correct a mistake she had made.
"Yoohoo, Ulrich darling!"
Great, just what they needed.
Sissi approached the duo, and her shoulders sagged with disappointment when she just saw Yumi and Odd. "Oh, Ulrich's not here?"
"Nope," Yumi replied.
"Aww," Sissi feigned concern, "did he desert you, his darling Yumi, for once?"
"Like your brain?" Odd interjected. "Because it deserted you a long time ago."
Sissi frowned, as Yumi cooked up a quick excuse, "Ulrich's studying with Aelita for a test. He asked for privacy." Her phone then went off, and she picked up quickly, "Yes, Aelita? Alright, we'll be right there." She hung up, and turned back to Sissi, "Well, that's our cue to leave. Bye, Sissi!"
Yumi gathered up her bag and left, with Odd following, though not before turning back to Sissi as she placed a coin in the vending machine, "I recommend the hot chocolate! Take my word for it!"
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
Yolanda Perraudin watched as Yumi Ishiyama, Aelita Schaeffer, and Odd Della Robbia carried in an unconscious Ulrich Stern and placed him on one of her beds. Once their job was complete, Ishiyama and Della Robbia went to the side of the room to give Yolanda space, but Schaeffer stayed, a very concerned expression on her face.
"What happened to him?" Yolanda asked, as she took Stern's blood pressure.
"He passed out while we were studying," Schaeffer explained. "I don't think he got enough sleep last night."
"I bet your teachers are giving you too much homework again," Yolanda muttered. "I told them to cut back, or else, this is what will happen to their students!"
"Will he be okay?" Della Robbia asked. It felt strange, seeing him expressing any emotion other than joy and mischievousness.
"Well, his blood pressure is normal," Yolanda relayed. "His heart rate is normal. Nothing appears to be wrong with him. He's just...sleeping."
Schaeffer shared a glance with Ishiyama and Della Robbia that held more than just concern, which Yolanda didn't understand. Hence why she paid no attention to it.
"You three go on back to your classes," Yolanda reassures them. "I'll take care of Mr. Stern."
"Okay," Schaeffer reluctantly agreed, before leaving the room, following Ishiyama and Della Robbia and closing the door behind her.
Yolanda was checking Stern's pulse via his wrist when he opened his eyes.
"Ah, you're awake," she exclaimed. "Feel any better?"
The boy immediately took his wrist back from her, clutching it close to his chest, as he sat up.
"Oh, no, no, no!" Yolanda immediately said, gently grabbing him by the shoulders and usher him back into a lying down position. "Lie back down. You need to rest."
But he resisted.
Usually, though stoic, Ulrich Stern had a spark in his eyes that showed his spirit, his will to live and his love for his friends. Not this time. This time, he gaze was completely stoic.
Almost as if he was a robot instead of a human.
Stern suddenly seized her firmly by the front of her blouse, and Yolanda barely had time to react, or stew in her fear, as Stern effortlessly sent her flying onto the other bed, as if she weighed nothing.
The stoic expression on his face as he got up and left the room was the last thing of him she saw before blacking out.
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
"Are you sure he didn't get hit by a laser?" Odd asked Aelita. The pink-ette had explained the real story behind Ulrich passing out. "Maybe there was a Megatank hiding somewhere."
"No, there was nothing on my screens," Aelita replied. "And I checked the logs. There's no record that he was devirtualized because he lost all of his lifepoints."
"Well, in any case," Yumi cut in, "something abnormal happened."
"That's for sure," Aelita said. "But until I know what happened, no one is allowed to go back to Lyoko."
Odd sighed, "Fine."
Yumi's gaze wandered off to her right, where she just so happened to see Ulrich stumbling around, as if he was lost, "Hey, Ulrich!"
Ulrich immediately turned around, as if startled.
"Guess you're feeling better, good buddy," Odd said with a relieved smile.
"You had us scared," Yumi added.
"Tell us what happened," Aelita urged.
But Ulrich stayed quiet. Then he turned to walk away, but Yumi stopped him by placing a hand on his shoulder, "Hey, are you sure you're okay? You seem a bit jumpy."
"I guess whatever happened to you," Aelita admitted, "it must have really been scary."
"Don't worry," Ulrich finally spoke. "I'm just tired."
Aelita looked at him with green eyes full of concern, "Do you even remember what happened?"
"No, sorry," Ulrich's response was quick. "Come on, let's go over to the factory now!"
That threw the other three for a loop. He didn't remember what had happened, but he wanted to go back to the factory?
"In your condition?" Yumi asked, not believing he was serious. "That's a pretty crazy idea. Aelita's right. Let's try to find out what happened before any of us go back to Lyoko."
"Yeah," Odd agreed. "In the meantime, we've got more important things to do! Like eating lunch, for example!"
Ulrich said nothing, but led the way to the cafeteria with a stoic expression. Odd following, but turned back around to shrug at the girls. He was confused.
What was with Ulrich?
Yumi leaned in towards Aelita, "What about Jérémie? Is he safe?"
"Yeah, I told him to hide in the tower," Aelita admitted. "He'll be fine as long as he doesn't decide to venture out on his own. And in this case, I really hope he doesn't."
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
Ulrich apparently wasn't hungry. He just stoically watched the other three eat.
"So you really don't remember what happened?" Aelita asked again, to make sure.
"No, nothing," Ulrich replied.
"Do you think it could've come from the scanners?" Yumi asked. "We don't know if there are any side effects from prolonged use."
"I'm not sure," Aelita admitted. "I still don't know who built the supercomputer in the first place, or why Jérémie's trapped inside, let alone about the side effects of the scanners."
"Maybe it's a bug?" Odd offered.
"Maybe," Aelita shrugged. "If it is, it's going to take awhile to find it."
"Or maybe XANA's trying a new angle of attack," Odd continued.
"Again, maybe," Aelita said, before taking a sip of her drink. "I honestly have no idea, but I do think all of these transfers may be becoming a health problem." Yumi had a good point there.
Odd suddenly smiled as someone named Sissi came up behind Aelita and Ulrich's side of the table, "Hey, do I smell fish or just cheap perfume?"
"You're such a riot, Odd!" Sissi exclaimed. "Uh, Ulrich? What do you say we get together after school?"
"Get together with you?!" Yumi asked, smiling. "Sounds very tempting, I'm sure, but Ulrich would rather die than go out with you!"
"Keeping the competition as far away as you can, mademoiselle?" Sissi teased. "Why not let Ulrich answer for himself?"
Ulrich's stoic expression did not change as he finally replied, "I don't have any plans tonight, so sure. I'll go out with you."
Aelita, Odd, and Yumi's jaws all dropped at the same time. That was the exact opposite of what Ulrich usually said to Sissi!
"Ulrich, do you have a concussion or something?!" Odd demanded, now angry. "You and I have plans tonight, remember?! It's boys' night!" It was Friday. Friday night was the night Odd and Ulrich pulled a prank on someone, usually Jim or Sissi.
"Wait," Sissi was reluctant. Ulrich's answer was clearly not what she was expecting. "You're not trying to make fun of me, are you? Are you serious?"
"Why not?" Ulrich said. "You're really pretty."
Sissi's face broke out into a smile, "Great! I'll waiting for you in the park after school! Ciao!"
As soon as Sissi left, Yumi immediately rounded on Ulrich, "What the hell are you trying to pull?! Eh?! Casanova?!" Her jealousy was shining through.
"I'm not trying to pull anything," Ulrich stoically replied. "She's been waiting for it for ages, so I might as well indulge her."
Yumi was now so mad, she couldn't speak.
Fortunately, Aelita and Odd were saved from the impending and inevitable between the two thanks to Mr. Delmas, who walked up to them and placed a heavy hand on Ulrich's shoulders.
"Mr. Stern, I'd like a word with you," the principal didn't sound very happy. "It is not a request. Come to my office, right now."
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
Jérémie was getting impatient just waiting inside the tower. Aelita had told him to stay where he was until she came back, and he'd been waiting for her to call him back. But so far, nothing on her end.
He studied the interface in front of him. Usually, he'd study Earth customs, moreso now than Aelita had proven he was a human like her and their friends. But not today.
What had happened to Ulrich?
The interface wasn't telling him anything.
But then he closed the interface and got to his feet when he felt faint pulsations. And they were nearby.
As soon as he left the tower, the pulsations he felt got stronger. They were leading him to the iceberg right behind him.
He tilted his head in confusion when he peered out from behind the giant icicle he was using for cover.
That orange orb wasn't there before. Was it?
He had to get closer. What even was that thing?
He saw an opening, a path spiraling upwards to the summit where the orb was. And he took it.
But as he ran up the path, the Kankrelats standing guard began firing at him, forcing him to get as close to the wall as he could.
He took a deep breath as they continued firing at him. This was going to be a challenge.
He was nowhere near the summit yet, and XANA's monsters had already spotted him.
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
Yumi was pacing as she, Odd, and Yumi waited for her anger to die down.
"What is wrong with him?!" Though, judging by her current rant, it would be awhile before Yumi cooled off. "Is he mad at me or what?!"
"I don't know," Odd could only shrug in sympathy. "But he blew off our boys' night. Believe me, Yumi, I'm just as mad at him as you are."
"I'm not mad," Aelita softly admitted, "but I am worried. He must have had a really bad shock."
"Ishiyama!"
The trio turned to see Nicolas Poliakoff stomping towards them, with an embarrassed Hervé behind him.
When Nicolas reached them, he immediately went off on Yumi, "Your job is to keep Ulrich preoccupied so that he and Sissi don't go out! So what's this I hear about Sissi having a date with Ulrich after school today?!"
Aelita immediately stepped in to mediate, "Believe us, Nicolas. We're just as surprised about this as you are. If you want an explanation, go and ask Ulrich himself."
The pink-ette remained in between Yumi and Nicolas. The last thing she neither wanted nor needed right now was one of her friends getting into a fight. The whole deal with Ulrich was stress enough.
"Fine!" Nicolas finally stomped off. Hervé just rolled his eyes, before following his friend.
The coast now clear, Aelita rolled her eyes before she addressed Yumi, "Geez. I'll leave you to your soap opera. I've got a psychopathic supercomputer to feed."
More like a blonde elf boy to contact, but the message was still clear.
She wanted some time to herself.
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
Mr. Delmas pounded a fist on his desk, "Stern, this is unspeakable! Yolanda is still very upset! What did our poor nurse do to you?!"
Yolanda had gone to him the moment she woke up, and told him everything. She was attacked by a student who normally only used his martial arts prowess to break up fights. Not start them.
"How could you have done such a thing?!"
Stern had no reaction. He simply stared straight ahead with an icy detachment.
Mr. Delmas heaved a sigh of discouragement, "Two hours of detention in the library. Is that understood? Now go!"
A tense silence immediately filled the room. Stern was not budging, not even blinking.
Mr. Delmas sighed again, "There's something troubling you, isn't there, Mr. Stern? Family problems? If so, there's a better way to deal with them."
Stern turned away from him but did not move, seemingly debating on if he should leave right now or not.
"Very well," Mr. Delmas gave up. "Keep this up and I'll have to inform your parents about your behavior."
That seemed to get a reaction out of Stern. Finally. "No, not my parents!"
Stern was glaring at him, as if trying to will bad karma and luck into existence. But the principal wasn't buying it, "That's enough, Mr. Stern."
He then walked over to the phone. He moved to pick it up, only for Stern to slam his hand down on top of the elder's, preventing him to doing anything with the phone.
"What is the meaning of this, Mr. Stern?!" Mr. Delmas cried out.
"Not my parents!" Stern shot back.
"I'm not going to warn you again!" Mr. Delmas said, angered. "Get your hand off the phone this instant, or I'll be forced to suspend you!"
"NO!" Stern, with a weird three-ringed symbol flashing on his forehead, raised the phone over his head and swung it down.
That was the last thing Mr. Delmas remembered before he blacked out.
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
"What?!" Aelita exclaimed. Jérémie had contacted her and told her of his little adventure outside the tower. "What were you doing outside?!"
"I felt pulsations," he was calm. "I found a glowing orb on the summit of the iceberg behind the tower, but before I could get a closer look, the Kankrelats opened fire. I just barely made it back to the tower."
Aelita sighed, "You shouldn't have left the tower."
"I know," Jérémie mirrored her expression. "But you know I can't ignore pulsations."
He was right. His Second Sight, what allowed him to sense pulsations in the first place, behaved a lot like Odd's Future Flash. It usually came whenever it felt like it, and it couldn't be controlled like Yumi's Telekinesis, or Ulrich's Super Sprint, or Aelita's Enhanced Senses. But there was also the fact that the pulsations Jérémie felt were XANA's footprints, so to speak, evidence of its digital activity.
"You're not too mad at me, are you?" Jérémie asked.
"No, of course not," Aelita reassured him. "You just worried me, is all. But you're right. If XANA's protecting that sphere, then it has to be important. It's a long shot, but it may have something to do with whatever happened to Ulrich."
"Should I go back?" he asked her.
"Not yet," Aelita advised. "I'll send Yumi and Odd in as back up." Not Ulrich. Not until she knew for sure what had happened.
"Aelita," Jérémie warned, "what happened to Ulrich may happen to Yumi and Odd as well. And you, if you're not careful. I think it's best if you guys stay away from the scanners for awhile. At least until we figure out what happened to Ulrich."
Aelita sighed, before reluctantly admitting defeat, "Alright, go on. But be careful. You'll have no weapon and no back-up."
He winked at her, "You know me," before logging off.
Perfect timing too, because just then, her doorknob turned and her door opened, to her surprise (no one had knocked). In stepped Ulrich.
"Oh, hey, Ulrich," she greeted. "I'd apologize to Yumi and Odd, pronto. You made them both pretty upset." She paused before remembering, "Um, what did the principal want?"
His gaze remained stoic, "We have to go to the factory now."
She met his gaze with a stoic glare of her own, "No way. First of all, there's no reason to go. And second, you need to rest." She turned back to her computer.
"I have to go to the scanner room."
"No," she was firm this time. "No one is going back to Lyoko until I give the order."
"Hey, it's important, you hear," Ulrich continued. "I have to go back to the scanner room."
He placed a hand on Aelita's shoulders and spun her chair around to face him. "W-What? Uh, Ulrich? W-What are you trying to–"
He placed a finger to her lips, "Shh," and he leaned in closer to her face.
She felt her face heat up, as she stammered out, "I, uh, I'm not sure it's a good idea! You should go to your dorm and get some rest!"
"Come on," he whispered rather seductively, the most emotion he'd shown so far. "Take me to the scanner room."
Aelita's face felt red and hot as she vehemently shook her head once it began evident to her that he was going to kiss her, "No! Y-You should really go home and take a bath, Ulrich! No, a cold shower! Very cold! Very, very, very cold! It'll calm you down!"
Just then, two more people entered Aelita's room without knocking. "Come on, Aelita, hurry up!" Odd said. "We have chemistry in ten minutes!"
But he and Yumi both froze, seeing the scene in front of them. Ulrich was about to kiss Aelita?!
Yumi had just calmed down from her rage over Ulrich agreeing to a date with Sissi. But seeing this? That had just crossed a line. It was the straw that broke the camel's back.
She immediately left the room, furious.
"Yumi, wait!" Aelita immediately followed her, part of her grateful to use this as an excuse to get away from Ulrich, but the other part genuinely concerned she might lose Yumi over this. "It's not what you think! I swear!"
Odd rolled his eyes before sarcastically congratulating Ulrich on the mess he made now, "Bravo, good buddy. I can't wait to see how you explain this!"
Odd left the room, leaving Ulrich all alone. Finally by himself, he studied Aelita's computer set-up with a smile.
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
Here we go, Jérémie thought, as he left his tower a second time. Remember, if you mess this up, no one will be around to bail you out. So be careful.
Hiding behind a giant stalagmite, he studied his path, before taking off for it in a sprint.
Sure enough, as soon as he revealed himself, the Kankrelats guarding the sphere starting shooting at him.
This time, however, he didn't stop running, only stopping when he got to an ice cavern. Clinging to the wall, he thought about where to go next.
That's when he saw another path, leading up to the summit.
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
Aelita wasn't paying any attention to Ms. Hertz's lecture. Something about clones...
Ulrich didn't show up to class, which was probably for the best. Aelita didn't think she'd be able to face him, or explain to anybody what happened when they inevitably caught on to the awkwardness between them.
Yumi didn't want to hear her out, which made Aelita sad. But knowing that it took Yumi awhile to simmer down, it made sense to give the Japanese girl some space to sort out her thoughts.
At least Odd hadn't abandoned her. He had sat down next to her right as the bell rang, signaling the start of class. He didn't say anything, only offering her what he hoped was a comforting smile.
For all that they bickered, there was no one else that either cousin was close to, whether at Kadic or at home.
Long story short: She didn't want to see Ulrich, and Yumi didn't want to see her. But at least Odd was still there.
Whatever had happened to Ulrich, it had practically driven a wedge in the group. At last. Something that Sissi's always been trying to achieve.
Classes let out, and Odd was practically escorting her back to her room, seeing that she obviously wasn't fit for any social interactions right now.
"Aelita?" the voice sounded familiar. That's why the pink-ette turned around to face the one who had called out to her.
She blinked, "Yumi?"
The expression on Yumi's face read guilt and self-resentment, and the Japanese girl immediately wrapped the pink-ette in a hug.
"I'm sorry," the elder whispered. "I shouldn't have let my jealousy get in the way of our friendship."
Odd smiled when Aelita returned the embrace. Little by little, the group was coming back together.
"You're right," Yumi admitted, after she broke the embrace, reluctantly. "Ulrich is our biggest concern. He hasn't been himself since that incident."
"And I still don't have any clue as to what happened," Aelita added, part of her heart in despair.
Odd shushed the two girls, before pointing behind him at Sissi, who was obviously trying to overhear what the trio was talking about. "Let's talk in your room, 'Lita."
Aelita nodded.
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
Using his upper body strength, Jérémie lifted himself up and onto the summit. He had finally made it.
Looking at the sphere, he could see something inside.
He creeped closer to get a better look, and gasped.
It was...!
Bad timing, however, as the Kankrelats guarding the sphere noticed him and began shooting at him once more.
With no other choice, Jérémie ran away from the sphere, and the truth.
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
"Any idea what this orb thing is?" Odd asked. Aelita had just told him and Yumi about what Jérémie had found through his Second Sight.
"Not a clue. I sent Jérémie out to investigate," Aelita told them. "We'll contact him and see what he's learned." She took out her key from her pocket and inserted it into the lock, "Oh, that's right. I forgot to lock it."
"Ulrich must've closed it on his way out," Odd shrugged.
But when Aelita opened her door, the trio received a huge shock.
There, scattered all over the ground was Aelita's computer set-up. Her monitor, her CPU, her mouse, her CDs, her floppy disks, her keyboard, her chair, all of it. All in pieces, damaged beyond repair.
Aelita immediately knelt beside it and cradled her broken keyboard, "All of my equipment!"
"And it's only your computer," Yumi noted, studying the rest of Aelita's room. "You think it might've been Sissi's doing?"
"Why would she want to do it?" Aelita asked.
Odd knelt beside his cousin, "It could've been Nicolas. He sure was mad when we saw him today."
"Wait," Aelita asked. "Who was the last one to leave this room?"
Yumi froze, and Odd knew she got the same thought he did. The Japanese girl shook her head, "No, that's impossible! Not Ulrich!"
"I don't believe it either," Aelita admitted. "But he has been acting weird today. And when he asked to go back to Lyoko earlier, I had told him there was no reason to. Just moments before then, Jérémie and I had both decided to find out what happened to Ulrich first before sending anybody else to Lyoko."
"Well," Yumi solemnly said, "it seems like Ulrich created a reason. Whether this is a new XANA attack or not, it's highly likely it's using this drama with Ulrich to keep us occupied while it calmly and quietly gets rid of Jérémie!"
Aelita gasped in realization, "Oh, no, Jérémie! Without my computer, we can't contact him!"
"We can contact him in the factory," came Ulrich's stoic voice from the open door frame.
Aelita, Yumi, and Odd all turned to face him, and while they stared him down, one thought immediately all came to mind.
Whoever this person was standing in front of them, it sure wasn't the Ulrich Stern they knew.
With no other choice, Aelita sighed, "You're right, Ulrich. Let's go."
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
They were at the factory, and against Aelita's better judgement, she was letting Ulrich go back to Lyoko. The holomap showed that Jérémie was being chased by Kankrelats, so she calculated his route and programmed the trio's coordinates accordingly.
She took a deep breath, trying to ignore her gut instinct that was screaming at her that she was about to make a mistake, "You guys, ready?"
"Yep!" Odd replied from the scanner he was waiting in. "Do your stuff, Aelita!"
She entered the necessary commands, "Transfer Odd, transfer Yumi, transfer Ulrich!" To her surprise, only two avatars showed up on her screen, Odd and Yumi's. Maybe Ulrich's was delayed? "Scanner Odd, scanner Yumi, scanner Ulrich!" Nope. Ulrich's window still wasn't showing up. "Virtualization!"
On the holomap shown on her monitor, she saw two green arrows appear, right on target and right in the path Jérémie was sure to take, meaning he'd run into them for sure now. Good, that was one less thing to worry about.
But something was troubling her.
"Odd, Yumi, is Ulrich on Lyoko with you?" Aelita ask. Did the scanners delete him?
But then why would he insist on going to Lyoko? Did he have a death wish? She knew he didn't. It didn't make sense.
"No," Yumi replied.
"Geez!" Odd exclaimed. "What's with him today?!"
"I wish I knew," Aelita muttered, before opening up the security cameras. Bringing up the one placed in the scanner room, she saw Ulrich standing there in the middle, seemingly studying his surroundings. "I found him!" she told the other two. "He stepped out of the scanner at the last minute!"
"But why?" Odd asked.
"That's what I'm going to find out," Aelita replied. "You guys focus on Jérémie!" She pulled out the earpiece and ran to the elevator.
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
Jérémie leapt over an ice rock just as Aelita said that. Yumi blocked a laser that one Kankrelat had aimed at him with her fan, and Jérémie breathed a sigh of relief when the laser was reflected back at the Kankrelat that had fired, which destroyed it.
Yumi maintained her position in front of the blue elf, "Stay behind me, Jérémie."
"Laser Arrow!" Odd fired at the second Kankrelat, destroying it in one shot.
Now that the coast was clear, Jérémie immediately got to his feet, "Hurry! We have to go and free Ulrich!"
"Ulrich?" Yumi looked at him in confusion. "Ulrich's not–"
Jérémie cut her off, "The real Ulrich!" He pointed back at the orange sphere on the summit behind them. "The one who's here on Lyoko! The one that returned to you is a clone created by XANA!"
A XANA clone? Odd and Yumi glanced at each other. Everything made so much more sense now.
Jérémie turned his attention to their mission control, "Aelita! Whatever you do, don't go anywhere near Ulrich! Do you hear me, Aelita?! AELITA?!"
But there was no response.
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
The elevator doors opened right in time for Aelita to witness Ulrich pulling the plugs from one of the scanners, completely disconnecting it from the supercomputer.
"Ulrich!" she caught his attention. "What are you doing?! Without the scanners, the others can't come back to Earth!"
Ulrich dropped the cables and placed a hand to his head, as if conveying to her that he didn't feel well.
Aelita moved to comfort him, but she stopped in her tracks.
XANA was the one who wanted to destroy the scanners. Get rid of its opposition, the ones who could stop it.
"You're not Ulrich," Aelita began backing away. "Stay away from me, XANA!"
XANA used Ulrich's face to morph from a stoic expression into a sudden death glare, and it lunged at Aelita, who had no choice but to black out from the strike.
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
"Now!" Yumi gave the signal.
Odd shot a Laser Arrow at the Kankrelat guarding the Guardian, Odd's name for the sphere that was imprisoning Ulrich. It turned to face him and began firing at him. He cartwheeled to dodge all the lasers.
As he did so, Yumi and Jérémie made a run for the ice cavern, the pathway that led to the summit, to the real Ulrich.
Once the two made it to the summit, Yumi cleared her throat, directing its attention away from Odd and to her. While it was distracted, it was Odd's turn to run towards the ice cavern.
Yumi blocked the Kankrelat's laser with her fan before throwing it. It was destroyed.
As Yumi caught her fan, Jérémie came out from his cover and began studying the Guardian in full now that he was no longer in danger, obviously looking for a way to free Ulrich.
Yumi threw her fan at it, only for it to reflect her attack like it was nothing.
Meanwhile, Odd made it to the summit, but he stopped, suddenly frozen. The sepia-toned world he was taken to showed him the Guardian exploding after absorbing Ulrich.
When he came out of it, Yumi was right in front of him, looking worried. "Odd, you okay? You have a vision?"
"Yeah," he admitted, before explaining, "I saw the Guardian self-destructing after absorbing Ulrich into itself."
Jérémie raised an eyebrow in confusion, "But it already has Ulrich. It's a digital jail adapted to the body imprisoned in it. How can it absorb him a second time when it already has him?" But his confusion immediately turned to realization. "Of course! I can create a clone of Ulrich to convince the Guardian that it has the wrong prisoner! Good job, Odd!"
If one could blush on Lyoko, Odd would've done so due to Jérémie's praise.
Jérémie closed his eyes and raised his hands up into the air as if he was about to pray. He envisioned Ulrich standing in front of him.
Despite his eyes being closed, beside him, he could feel the Guardian immediately react. He could feel it pulsate, and stretch, before behind his eyes came a great flash. When he opened his eyes, the Ulrich clone was gone, as was the Guardian (as Odd had dubbed it), and the real Ulrich, though out cold, was in both of their places.
As Yumi ran to his side, Odd gently nudged Jérémie's shoulder, "Nice work, Prince Charming."
"You too," Jérémie smiled back, before sitting down and using his Second Sight to detect the tower controlling XANA's clone.
Ulrich came to with Yumi at his side, calling out his name, "Ulrich? Ulrich! Wake up!"
He groaned, before sitting up with Yumi's help, "What happened?"
"We should be asking you that," Odd told him. "Jérémie and Aelita both told us that you were guarding the tower while Jérémie was inside, and then they heard you scream."
"I could feel someone watching me," Ulrich explained, "and then I heard a strange crackling. Then something orange scanned me, and the next thing I knew, I'm here with you guys."
"I found XANA's tower," Jérémie cut in, still in his meditating position. "It's in the Forest Sector." He opened his eyes, showing the sheer concern and panic in his face, "But I can't contact Aelita. Something must have happened to her!"
"She's all alone with the other one," Yumi reminded him. "If he destroys the scanners, it's all over."
"Right, so you three have to be careful," Jérémie replied, before getting to his feet. He placed his goggles on, prepared to lead the way to the tower XANA had activated.
"Whoa, hold on," Ulrich said. "What other one? Who wants to wreck the scanners?"
"The other you," Odd told him.
Ulrich raised an eyebrow in confusion and curiosity, "The other me? Mind explaining what that's all about?"
"XANA sent a clone in your place," Jérémie explained. "And it's controlling the clone with a tower. The best way to help Aelita is to deactivate it."
Ulrich got to his feet, as he corrected Jérémie, "The best way for you to help Aelita is by deactivating the tower." Jérémie was confused, so Ulrich continued, "One of us needs to return to Earth and help Aelita. Right now."
"I'll go," Yumi volunteered.
"No, it's better if I go," Ulrich denied her. "I don't know how many life points I have left, so I don't know how much use I'll be to you. And even if towers do regenerate lifepoints like they do with Jérémie's, I also have a personal matter to deal with. It's between me and myself."
Jérémie was clearly still confused, "I don't think I understand." They had ruled that he was a human being, right? So, Ulrich began to suspect that Jérémie's amnesia was making his brain confused as to what friendship really was. Or was Jeremie born this way?
"Aelita is our friend," Ulrich calmly explained. "She's all alone with my clone, and I can't leave her to defend herself. Go on and deactivate the tower, Jérémie. You're right; it's the best way to help Aelita, but it's something only you can do."
He, Odd, and Yumi could all see understanding come to Jérémie's eyes, before the blue elf smiled, "Okay. Good luck."
"You too," Ulrich smiled. "Just don't drag your feet."
He braced himself for Yumi's fan and he was smiling as it hit him, sending him back to Earth.
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
The clone had just disconnected the second scanner. It was working on the third one, when he felt the scanner start up and then cool down, signaling that someone had returned from Lyoko.
"Hey there!" the clone looked up to see the real Ulrich standing there. "You look just like me whenever I have a run in with my father!"
The clone tensed up, as Ulrich calmly raised his hands, ready to fight.
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
Yumi breathed a sigh of relief when she, Odd, and Jérémie saw the way tower on the horizon.
The cat boy and the geisha both followed the elf boy as he ran into the tower, before running to the edge of the platform.
Jérémie seemed to take a breath, before letting himself fall of the edge. She and Odd following his example, Yumi had to admit that it didn't seem so scary when you knew what to expect with a way tower.
The trio all landed on the same platform together, before exiting the tower. With his goggles still on, Jérémie quickly scanned the terrain full of green trees.
"There it is!" Jérémie said, pointing to their left. Not far away, the trio saw a tower surrounded by a red halo.
"What are we waiting for?" Yumi asked. "Let's go!"
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
Aelita woke up to blurry vision, but it cleared up in time for her to see two Ulrich's fighting each other. One of them (she guessed the XANA clone) ripped off the hatch leading to the supercomputer room and used it to block the other Ulrich's punch, sending him flying back into one of the scanners that was now offline.
She turned to that one and asked, "Ulrich? Is that you?"
"Yeah," he replied, and she immediately smiled. This Ulrich was filled with way more life in a single word than XANA's clone ever gave in its entire performance. "We need to buy ourselves some time until Jérémie can punch in the code."
Looking at the now open hatch, Aelita replied with a smile, "I think I have an idea."
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
"Be careful!" Jérémie told his two guards, as they approached the activated tower at a sprint. "The tower is being guarded by two Bloks."
"Right!" Odd said. "Go on and get to the tower, Jérémie! We'll handle them!"
As Jérémie ran off, Odd whistled for the two Bloks' attention, and immediately got it.
One of the Bloks twirled and fired its ice beam. Odd ducked, and the ice beam hit one of the trees behind him, causing it to be covered in ice.
Jérémie made his way around a small crater, one that led right to the Digital Sea. He was about to have a clear path towards the tower, when he was cut off by a Megatank laser. He immediately took cover behind a tree, and peaked out in time to see it close up and readjust its positioning to get a better shot at him.
"Laser Arrow!" Odd shot at one of the Bloks, and it immediately exploded upon impact. "One down, one to go!"
However, right as he said that, his body regained that weird sensation as his vision turned sepia-toned again, forcing him watch as a Megatank fired its laser at an unsuspecting Jérémie on his way towards the tower.
Yumi saw Odd freeze up, as did the second Blok, since it twirled before preparing to fire its ice beam. But Yumi acted quickly, throwing her fan and destroying it before it could fire.
"Odd!" she ran up to him. He quickly snapped back to reality. "That's the second vision you've had today! What did you see this time?"
Odd just vehemently shook his head, "We need to help Jérémie! He's about to be devirtualized by a Megatank!"
Despite the shock on her face, Yumi followed Odd as he ran towards the tower.
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
The clone pounced again, right at Ulrich, seeing him as the bigger threat. During the fight, Ulrich led the clone to the open hatch, purposefully falling down.
Meanwhile, Aelita came up right behind the clone and pushed it down, causing it to fall down the open hatch.
She and Ulrich shared a relieved smile, and Aelita turned back to the hatch. She peered inside, wanting to make sure the clone actually fell, only to be caught by surprise when it suddenly came up and grabbed her by the front of her dress.
"Aelita, no!" she heard the real Ulrich cry out.
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
Jérémie made a break for the tower. It was now or never.
Sure enough, he heard the Megatank fire, but the laser never hit him. Instead, it shot past him and moving away from him at a different angle.
While still running, Jérémie turned around to see what had happened, only to see Odd ramming the Megatank with his body.
He stopped and watched in horror as Odd and the Megatank both fell into the hole. A bright burst of light shot up, signaling that the Megatank didn't make it. Meanwhile, Odd was using his claws to hang onto the ledge.
"Odd!" he called out, as Yumi arrived on the scene.
"Take care of the tower, Jérémie!" Yumi called back at him. "I'll take care of Odd!"
Jérémie nodded before resuming his trek towards his destination.
He entered the tower at a run.
Three lives were hanging in the balance.
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
Ulrich could only watch as the clone got out of the hatch, still firmly holding onto Aelita's dress. The two struggled, but Aelita wasn't strong enough. The clone held her up over its head.
"NO!" Ulrich cried, as the clone threw Aelita down the hatch.
JEREMIE_
Aelita, thanks to pure luck, grabbed the edge just in time. But she wasn't out of the woods yet, as the clone began trying to pry the one hand that was keeping her here off of the ledge.
CODE_
Odd looked up to Yumi in fear as his grip began to slip, despite her holding out a hand for him to take, despite his claws being given to him specifically for situations like this.
He cried when his grip finally gave out, and he fell towards the Digital Sea, towards the abyss.
He closed his eyes, waiting for him to hit the water, but it never happened.
Feeling Yumi's presence all around him, he opened his eyes back up to see her standing at the ledge, trying with all her might to use her rather weak Telekinesis to keep him from falling.
LYOKO_
Ulrich and Aelita both breathed sighs of relief when the clone depixelized. Jérémie had deactivated the tower.
But they weren't out of the woods yet.
Ulrich immediately got to his feet, ignoring the pain he was in, and ran over to the hatch. He immediately reached for her hand, only for her grip to give out as well.
"AELITA!" he cried, as he watch her fell.
But he was surprised to see her fall into a bright white bubble that was beginning to envelop everything.
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
By some miracle, they were all still alive. Time had rewinded to an hour before lunch, when Aelita had gotten that alert from the monoscan, the one that had lured Ulrich to Lyoko in the first place. They were now in Aelita's room.
"What just happened?" Yumi asked Aelita. "Did you set the Return trip to automatic or something?"
"No," Aelita shrugged. "But I'm not going to question it this time. It saved my life."
"And mine," Odd added.
"It was me," came Jérémie's voice from Aelita's monitor. The four turned to him. "I launched it straight from the deactivated tower." He smiled, seemingly out of relief, "I am glad you all are okay."
"Me too," Odd admitted. "Thanks for the save!"
"You're welcome," Jérémie replied. "You didn't really think I was going to leave you hanging, did you?"
It was a rhetorical question. Hence why Odd only smiled.
"So you can launch the Return program straight from a tower?" Aelita asked.
"Only from a tower I just deactivated," Jérémie explained, "but yes."
Aelita breathed a sigh of relief, "That's so great to hear!" Now, she could start helping on Lyoko more and more.
Jérémie smiled, as Ulrich leaned back against the wall, "So a clone of me, huh? Did it get me in any trouble?"
"Oh yeah," Yumi was honest. "Not only with the principal, but also with us."
Ulrich raised an eyebrow in confusion, and Aelita explained, "It didn't act like you. It made you blow off boys' night with Odd in favor of a date with Sissi."
Ulrich immediately reacted in disgust, making the other four laugh. That was the Ulrich they knew and loved.
"You guys may have proven that I am human," Jérémie cut in with an explanation, "but XANA is still an artificial intelligence, a computer program. This was likely its first time acting as a human. Had it acted more believable, I guarantee that the damage would've been done long before its cover was blown. But the fact that XANA was able to materialize another Ulrich proves that my materialization really is possible!"
"That's crazy!" Yumi smiled. "XANA's helping us with our materialization research?!"
"Back to work, then, Miss Einstein," Odd winked at Aelita.
Yumi cut in, "But why bother? If I were you, I'd just go and see XANA! It's got all the answers, apparently!"
"I wouldn't trust it," Ulrich warned. "Just look at the Ulrich it sent you."
"Well, appearance wise, the clone wasn't that different from the original," Odd pointed out.
"He sure was," Aelita protested. "I had my suspicions when it began insisting to go back to Lyoko, and I knew for certain as soon as it started to flirt with me!" Truth.
"Really?" Ulrich asked, leaning forward. "Do you have any proof that it's the real me you're even talking to?"
This was way too familiar, Aelita thought as she felt her cheeks heat up once more.
Yumi stood up to step in, only for her to be beaten to the punch by an annoyed-sounding Jérémie, "Alright, cut it out!"
The four humans in the real world all looked at Jérémie and his pout as shown on the monitor in surprise. That was, until Odd start laughing out loud.
Ulrich and Yumi also stole an amused glance and began chuckling, while Aelita's cheeks turned an even darker red.
All to Jérémie's confusion. He didn't understand why they were reacting to his request in such a way.
Odd took pity and explained, "Hey, Prince Charming, you're not jealous, are you?"
Jérémie's annoyance immediately turned to complete confusion, "'Jealous'? What is that?"
Ulrich and Yumi walked out the door, still laughing, and Odd following, telling his cousin, "Aelita, we'll let you field this one, okay?" with a smile, before closing the door behind.
The pouting face was now given to Aelita as she growled out, "Oh, payback will be swift, Odd Della Robbia."
Her cheeks only got darker as she heard Jérémie worriedly ask, "Aelita? Is everything okay? Why is your face so red?"
!~~~J~E~R~L~I~T~A~~R~O~L~E~S~W~A~P~~A~U~~~!
Next Episode: 7 - Love and Betrayal / Ulrich gets a love letter from a secret admirer.
A/N: Don't mind me. I'm just rewriting and adding lines of dialogue to these Season 1 episodes to better connect them to Seasons 2, 3, and 4, something the canon show should've done but weren't able to due to executive meddling.
That one scene in class where Odd sticks his tongue out at Jeremie, obviously having taken Ulrich's side, really pisses me off. Believe it or not, it's the first in a long line of instances where the others side against Jeremie for no reason whatsoever. Regardless, you're welcome for fixing it in this story, because while Yumi apologized here, Ulrich in canon did not (Jeremie's the one who had to apologize and explain).
And the episode ends on a light note to make up for all the interpersonal drama created by the clone. Jeremie experiences his first bout of jealousy, and Aelita plans her revenge on Odd for leaving her alone to explain what jealousy even is.