A/N: Here is the first installment of my Jerlita Roleswap AU. The whole thing is partly inspired by Cybra's Switch AU over on FFN. 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~~~!
"When Aelita stumbles upon a virtual world inside a supercomputer, her life and the lives of her friends will change forever."
Episode 1: Ignition, Part 1
(Based on XANA Awakens, Part 1)
Aelita Schaeffer's Diary, date: 30 September, 2005
Long story short, we have a really cool hangout now!
Let me explain:
Ulrich and Yumi have been disappearing after classes every day for the past week, only reappearing in time for dinner. Today, Odd and I got a little too curious, so this time, we followed them (into the sewers, unfortunately).
Their destination turned out to be the old, abandoned Renault factory, on the banks of the Seine River. We found them...sparring. That's it, just sparring, the thing they always do. Odd and I tried our best to stay hidden, because sparring is how Ulrich and Yumi flirt. It doesn't happen in public very often, but it's always so fun to watch. Anyways, despite our "elaborate stealthing" (Odd's phrasing), Ulrich and Yumi caught us anyways.
Apparently, Ulrich stumbled upon the factory nine days ago, and he liked being there, because it was a great way to train in Pencak Silat without any distractions. Two days later, he showed Yumi, who immediately thought the same thing. The two have claimed it as their private training area, to get away from everyone at school. Odd asked if "everyone" included him and me, and the lovebirds apologized. They really only relaxed when I reassured them that Odd and I wouldn't tell anyone, but only if they let us come here too.
And that's how the old factory became our secret hangout.
There was an elevator lift there, too, and I was about to check it out, but Odd, Ulrich, and Yumi all warned me that it would probably break down if I tried to use it, so I didn't.
Don't tell anybody, but I can't get rid of the feeling that I should have ignored them.
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
Aelita Schaeffer's Diary, date: 4 October, 2005
Ulrich and Yumi have begun training Odd and me at the factory too, for self-defense, because I asked them to. I can see what they mean by it being a peaceful place to train, because Herve keeps bugging me. How can I let him know I'm not interested in him without sounding too mean?
In the factory, we've also found pieces of scrap that I can use to fix my mixing board, and Odd can use for his next movie set. And of course, it still remains a secret that only my friends and I know about. I have to admit, having a secret hangout is pretty cool.
Today, the others stopped me again before I could go anywhere near the lift, still citing the rusty cables. I understand their concern for my safety, but I'm curious as to what's down there. The others suggested it was a storage area, to store all the parts (which makes sense). If that's the case, then there's other things we can use for future projects.
That's what I told them, anyways, because I really want to see what's down there.
(Sigh) Guess I'll have to find out another day.
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
Aelita Schaeffer's Diary, date: 9 October, 2005
Omigod, omigod, omigod, omigod, omigod!
The coolest thing just happened to me! I have to tell you all about it!
Y'know that lift I've been so interested ever since Odd and I followed Ulrich and Yumi to the factory? Of course, you do. Anyways, earlier today, during our usual visit to the factory, I had made the choice to come back here after dark, alone, to see where the lift went.
I kept my promise (made to myself), and I came back after curfew, after Jim made his rounds, and I finally took the lift down. I thought I was hallucinating when I saw I'd discovered a sort of computer complex with a lab, scanners, and especially this supercomputer straight out of a sci-fi movie!
And that's not all. Even though I was scared stiff, and hoping I wouldn't regret all this in a minute, I decided to start up the supercomputer. When I booted up the monitor, I discovered the last thing I ever thought I could find in an old abandoned factory.
There on the monitor was a sleeping boy against a dark green background made of binary code. He has a blond hair, a pair of goggles attached to the top of his head, and what seems to be a light blue scarf around his neck.
"Wow!" I exclaimed. "What is all this?! A video game?!"
Unfortunately or fortunately (I can't decide at the moment), my shout woke up the boy (revealing beautiful blue eyes). He seemed to look around, before finally centering his bewildered gaze on me, "W-What?! Who are you? W-Where am I?"
I promptly introduced myself as Aelita Schaeffer, a student from the nearby Kadic Academy. As for where he was, I just told him the truth, that he seemed to be an artificial intelligence program on this supercomputer.
He seemed to understand all the computer terminology, but as for me and Kadic, he came up blank and asked me to explain. I told him I was a human girl and that Kadic was the school I went to.
When he asked me about the pink hair, I stuttered out that I got it from my mother. (Gosh, he's cute.)
I could've very easily stayed up with him all night. He seemed very intrigued about my life and human culture, and I didn't mind giving him the answers. Unfortunately, it was past midnight when I finally checked my cellphone for the time, so I had to go. I apologized, but he stopped me and asked if I would be coming back. I smiled and nodded, promising him that I would be back during my free period after Chemistry class.
He smiled back and told me, "I'll be waiting."
See? I told you it cool. I think I'll keep this as my little secret for now. Don't tell anyone, dear diary~
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
The next day was 10 October, a Monday, and Aelita Schaeffer hated Mondays, because it was the day after Sunday, which was the day she could sleep in and didn't have to worry about classes.
She entered the cafeteria the next morning on only six hours of sleep and five minutes behind everyone else. Her friends were already at their usual table, chatting away and blissfully unaware of what had happened last night.
Odd Della Robbia, age 14 (just like her), was her cousin through their mothers. To be honest, they acted more like siblings than cousins, and it showed in the way they bickered over (what seemed like) every little thing. He was the jokester of their little quartet, and everything about him was loud. His voice, his appearance, his personality, his dog Kiwi, everything. Despite all that, Odd was very friendly and you wanted him on your side.
Ulrich Stern, also age 14, was the silent one of the group, and Odd's roommate (he had a love-hate relationship with Kiwi). He kept his problems, especially his family, to himself. Aelita didn't know what his parents were like, or what he endured back home, but everytime they had to go home for the holidays, Ulrich always seemed to dread it. But what Ulrich lacked in volume, he made up for in loyalty and martial arts skills. He also really liked Yumi.
Yumi Ishiyama, age 15 and a grade above the other three, was the group's older sister. She was always there if you were in trouble or just needed someone to talk to, and she always felt like it was her job to look after the others. Definitely because she had a younger brother named Hiroki. Yumi was also a day student; she lived off campus. She also really liked Ulrich, but both were too stubborn and emotionally constipated to admit their feelings aloud.
Aelita sat down next to her cousin (her usual seat) after getting her breakfast serving from Rosa. "Hey," she greeted them, her voice thick with exhaustion.
"Hey, sleepy head," Odd greeted her with his usual cheerful demeanor. "You got up five minutes later than you usually do. We get breakfast together, remember?"
"Yeah, sorry," she replied. "I was up late last night working on a new mix." Lie. She was busy talking to an artificial intelligence. "No matter what I did, I just couldn't get it right."
She had decided, while taking her shower this morning, that she would keep her discovery secret from her cousin and friends. She didn't know how they would react to it; they might even tell her to turn the supercomputer off. It hurt a bit. They were her friends, after all. But it was also really exciting. Her secret felt like it was straight out of a sci-fi movie.
"You'll get it eventually," Yumi replied. "Everyone has off days."
Aelita shrugged and began drinking her hot chocolate, just as a girl their age, with long black hair came up to their table.
"Good morning, Ulrich sweetheart~." It was Sissi Delmas, the principal's daughter. Her real name was Elizabeth, but good luck getting her permission to call her that. "How did you sleep?"
"Fine," came Ulrich's short one-word answer. A classic sign that he didn't want to talk to you.
If Sissi knew that, she paid it no mind. "That's good. Anyways, I've got something very important to tell you."
"Which is?" Ulrich asked, still answering shortly. Aelita didn't blame him. Ulrich and Sissi were friends, but Sissi did not hide her crush on Ulrich at all, and Aelita knew how that felt. She went through the same thing every day with Herve Pichon (except she and Herve were not friends).
"Oh no, I'm not going to tell you that easily," Sissi replied, smiling sweetly. "I will give you a hint, though: it's something about you and me. If you want to know more, come by my dorm tonight at eight. I'm counting on you, Ulrich!" She called out, as she walked away to her own table, completely missing Nicolas smiling to try to get her attention, only for her to completely ignore him.
Once she was gone, Ulrich sighed and hung his head in his hands, "How many times am I going to have to turn her down for her to understand that I only like her as a friend?"
"Careful, 'Ulrich Sweetheart'," Odd warned with a grin on his face. "She's still nearby. She might hear you."
"So? I'm not saying anything mean," Ulrich pointed out.
"You gonna go?" Yumi asked, trying not to sound like she was jealous (and kinda failing, if Aelita had to admit).
"Nope," Ulrich replied. "Why?"
"Nothing, nothing," Yumi scrambled to justify her curiosity. "But you might to tell her you won't be there. No girl likes being stood up."
"True," Aelita added.
The warning bell chose that moment to ring, signaling the start of their classes. The quartet then went their separate ways, with Yumi heading to Gym and Aelita, Odd, and Ulrich heading to Chemistry.
With every step she took, Aelita became more and more excited. Because every second that passed was one second closer to when she could see that boy again.
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
The circular walls around the boy all glowed a deep blue, the color only interrupted by pale blue data windows that lined the walls, each presented in binary code. The floor under him was also circular, fitting the curved shape of the structure he was in, and on its surface was a three ringed symbol.
But as remarkable as all of that would've been to anyone else, the boy ignored it. It had long ceased to be a marvel. This structure was his home, all he's ever known, even if he has only been awake for approximately ten hours now. He wanted to see what was beyond this structure, but he didn't want to venture outside without Aelita there to guide him.
He didn't know what this feeling was, why he was so reluctant to see her leave, but he didn't like it.
As if on cue, his thoughts became real, as Aelita's voice sounded all around him in that moment, "Hey, Artificial Intelligence, I'm back, as promised. Are you there?"
"Yes, I hear you," he replied, that feeling disappearing now that Aelita was back. When he concentrated enough, he could see her pink hair and green eyes. "But, um...do you mind calling me something else, please?" He didn't like being referred to as 'Artificial Intelligence', and he didn't know why.
"Oh, okay, sorry about that," she sounded surprised, but was more than happy to grant his request. "Let's see, according to the files I see here," on the computer he guessed, "you don't have a name, at least none that I can see."
"Maybe you could...?" he trailed off, not knowing how to phrase it.
"Make one up for you? Sure," she picked it up without hesitation, her voice sounding bright and cheerful. "How do you like the name..." she trailed off, thinking he surmised, "Marin?"
"Marin?" He thought it over.
"I-I mean, unless you can think of a better name..." she replied. There was that verbal glitch again. What was that about?
"No, it's perfect," he reassured her, not sure if she could see his smile. "I like it. But I'd like it even more if I knew what I was doing here. And what 'here' even was."
"Well, according to the files I'm looking at," Aelita said, "you're in a virtual environment called 'Lyoko'. And if you're really an artificial intelligence, then it makes sense for you to be this world's guide."
Marin nodded. It did make sense. "If you are correct, if I am Lyoko's guide, as you put it, then it makes even more sense for me to know what is beyond this structure."
"Tower," Aelita corrected him. "These files call that structure a tower. There are eighty-four in total. That means that there's possibly a large world to explore."
Marin stood up from his seat at the center of the platform and walked down the path the top prong of the symbol led to, only to be stopped by the wall of the tower. "I don't see a door or gateway." He pressed a hand to the wall. "How am I supposed to-" He cut himself off as he leaned his hand into the wall, only for his hand to begin phasing through it. He took his hand back in surprise.
"Marin?" Aelita called out, sounding concerning.
"Nevermind," he told her. "I found the way out." He placed his hand back to the wall, and when it began phasing through again, he took a step and another, eventually phasing through the wall altogether.
On the other side, he was even more surprised, and excited, to see purple mountains and pathways against an indigo sky. There was a whole world to explore outside of his tower, and he was finally getting to see it!
"Aelita, I'm outside now," he relayed, looking around. "You have to see this."
"I'd love to," Aelita replied. "Think you can give me a visual?"
"I'll try." He thought of what he wanted to do and concentrated hard, breathing a mental sigh of relief when he felt the signal go through to the computer on Aelita's end.
"Wow!" he heard Aelita exclaim. "Marin, there isn't just a mountain region out there! There's an entire world! I count four sectors! Each one is different! This is so cool!"
As he continued walking, Marin felt himself raise an eyebrow in confusion, "What does that mean, 'cool'? How is this at a fairly low temperature?"
"Well, y-you're right, that is the definition of 'cool'," Aelita answered, along with that verbal glitch again. "But 'cool', in my world, can also be used to describe your enthusiasm for something."
"Oh, I see," he replied, understanding her meaning. "You mean to say you are enthusiastic about this virtual world."
"Yes," she said. "That's exactly what I mean."
Marin stopped in his tracks when two small, strangely-shaped creatures came out from behind the rocks he was approaching. "Um, Aelita? I'm not all alone here. There are some creatures here too."
"That's fantastic!" Aelita exclaimed in her excitement. "This virtual world has an entire ecosystem with virtual living creatures! Can you get closer?"
Marin didn't have time to answer, since the two creatures began firing lasers at him. He immediately turned tail and ran back towards the tower. "No, I can't!" he told her. "They're attacking me!"
"Oh no! Get back to the tower!" Aelita's excitement vanished, replaced by sheer panic.
Marin was almost at the tower he just emerged from when he felt another laser hit him in the back, sending him to the ground. He laid there, trying to process the pain he felt from the laser.
"Marin, hurry up!" Aelita's voice cut through the pain. "You're down to twenty lifepoints!"
He did as she said, getting to his feet and getting back to the tower. He got hit once more, but this time, the shot pushed him right into the tower.
He laid there on the pathway to the platform, taking note at how the pain was going away this time.
"Your lifepoints are regenerating," Aelita said, mainly to herself. "Marin, are you okay?"
"I am...operating within satisfactory parameters," he replied, deciding to wait until the pain died down completely before moving. "Perhaps it was a poor choice to venture out on my own." His voice quiet, he followed that up with a question, "What were those creatures?"
"Enemies," Aelita told him. "And I'm thinking the same thing. The next time we explore Lyoko some more, I'll be back with either bodyguards or a weapon you can use. Until then, stay inside the tower. It seems to be a safe place. Those things didn't follow you inside."
"Acknowledged," he said, still lying still.
Aelita paused for a moment, before speaking, "Sorry, Marin, but I have to go. My Italian class starts in thirty minutes. I'll be back, though, I promise."
"Good luck," he said. She didn't respond to that, so he assumed that she left, heading back to her school (whatever that was). But once she was gone, he was left stewing in his own thoughts once more.
Aelita said he was Lyoko's guide, but he wasn't the only artificial intelligence here. Those creatures attacked him as soon as they saw him. So that left one troubling question:
Who was Lyoko's guide: him or whatever was controlling those creatures?
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
Aelita made in back in time, with twenty minutes to spare before she had to head for Italian. In her head were thoughts and possible ideas on how she could help Marin defend himself from those monsters (they weren't creatures anymore; they had attacked Marin on sight).
"You want to go after Sissi?" Yumi was saying, as Aelita approached. Yumi, Odd, and Ulrich were by the vending machines, and she sounded very amused. "No offense, Odd, but you're really not her type."
"Listen to the wise Yumi Ishiyama, Odd," Ulrich said. "It's not worth it."
"Says you," Odd replied. "Listen, you're not interested in her, Ulrich, so when you turn her down tonight, I'll swoop in and be her knight in shining armor. It will get her off your back for good, Ulrich. Think about it."
"I appreciate the gesture, good buddy," Ulrich retorted, "but our real problem is protecting our dear Princess from her unwanted suitor, Sir Herve Pichon."
Aelita announced her presence by sighing in frustration, "Ugh, don't remind me."
"Hey, cuz, how was your homework cram session?" Odd asked, reminding Aelita of the hasty excuse she made when they attempted to follow her to the factory after Chemistry was over.
"Good, same as usual," the pink-ette replied. "You should come with me next time. It might get you out of the remedial classes danger zone."
She knew it sounded detrimental to her secret, inviting Odd along. But she knew it was one sure way to get (at least) Odd off her back.
"No way, Princess," Odd laughed, just like she knew he would. "Studying and getting good grades would ruin my reputation. I'll leave being the group's brains to you."
Aelita giggled as she pulled out a coin from her pocket. She inserted it into the machine, but when she pressed the button labeled '6', a sudden jolt shot through her entire body in a flash through the finger she used to press the button. She'd been shocked before, but never this badly.
She immediately fell to her knees. Her brain felt fried as her three friends immediately gathered around her. "Aelita!"
Yumi was gently shaking her. She could tell by the black blob in front of her. "Aelita, you okay?" Funny, she remembered asking Marin the same question.
She only groaned. She then felt Yumi promptly pull her arm around the black-haired girl's shoulders and helping the pink-ette to her feet.
"I'll go take her to the infirmary," Yumi told Ulrich and Odd, as she also slung Aelita's bag around her shoulder. "You two tell the principal, okay?"
All four missed the familiar, yet strange four-pronged symbol flash across the buttons on the vending machine that had shocked Aelita.
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
The next few minutes were a blur to Aelita. When she came back to reality, she found herself lying on a bed in the infirmary as Nurse Yolanda took her blood pressure. Yumi was on Aelita's other side, waiting patiently yet also worriedly for the diagnosis.
"It's nothing too serious," Yolanda was saying. "Just a minor electrical shock and some superficial burns."
"So she'll be okay?" Yumi asked, sounding relieved.
"She'll be just fine," Yolanda replied. "Though if she has gym class today, I would recommend letting her sit it out."
"I do," Aelita finally spoke. She knew she looked as tired as she felt. "It's after my Italian class."
"Alright, then. I'll write up a note for you." Yolanda then left for her desk in the corner, leaving the two girls alone.
"You wanted some juice, right?" Yumi broke the ice with a light joke, "Looks like you got it."
"Very funny, Ishiyama," Aelita replied, her voice dripping with the light sarcasm used between friends, before she got serious. "Thank you."
"Don't mention it," Yumi told her, as she walked towards the exit. "That's what friends do. I'll drop by your dorm tonight after my martial arts class to see how you're doing before I head home."
Aelita smiled and nodded. She was lucky to have such good friends. But Marin...
There was no one there to physically pick him up and bring him to the tower. She was there, yes, but she didn't know how to send herself to Lyoko, or how to bring herself back so she didn't have to miss any classes.
Regardless, she was Marin's only friend. And that made her sad.
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
Yumi was very grateful Ulrich had showed her the old factory. It was indeed the perfect training ground. Why? Because lately their martial arts class had gotten a little too crowded.
It used to be just her and Ulrich, and Jim as their instructor. But then, Sissi joined to get closer to Ulrich. Then, Hiroki had to take an interest in it, along with his friend Johnny. She and Ulrich were the most skilled in the class, but sometimes, it felt good to be the only two in the room sparring.
Anyways, class was over now, and she was heading towards Aelita's dorm, as promised, when she heard her friend scream. Yumi's blood immediately cold. Aelita sounded scared, and Yumi never heard any of her friends sound like that before.
So she immediately ran to the pink-ette's room, and when she opened the door, she found Aelita being attacked by her lamp, which appeared to be shocking.
Yumi would've stayed there in shock at the situation had Aelita not called out, "Yumi! Help!" She still sounded panicked, scared, fearing for her life.
So she ran towards her friend and grabbed the lamp. Just touching the thing was shocking her, but she managed to power through the pain and throw the lamp onto Aelita's bed.
The two girls took a moment to catch their breath, and Aelita meekly saying, "Thanks, Yumi," broke the silence.
"Your little friend was pretty aggressive," Yumi told her, referring to the lamp that was now lying down on the bed. "Did you program it to do that or something?"
"No, I had nothing to do with it," Aelita replied, as she walked over to her desk chair and set it up right. "I don't understand. It started moving on its own and attacked me."
"I think you lost me," Yumi said. "Do you mind explaining?"
Aelita was quiet for a moment. "No. Forget it. It's nothing."
Yumi promptly reached into her pocket and pulled out her cellphone. She sent her parents a text, and waited for a few seconds before getting their reply. Once she got it, she smiled and put her phone back in her pocket.
"There," the Japanese girl said. "My parents know I'll be late coming home because one of my friends needs my help. Now what's going on?" Aelita remained silent. "C'mon, tell me. What if you get attacked by a hair dryer and I'm not around?"
"Haha, very funny," Aelita finally spoke, even if it was to be sarcastic.
Yumi sat in Aelita's desk chair in an 'I'm waiting' position, "I'm not leaving until I what's up."
Aelita sighed, "Fine. What have I got to lose? I'm already in way over my head, so I might as well tell you. It's just so crazy." Aelita promptly closed her door. "Yumi, can you keep a secret?"
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
Aelita had no idea what to think right now. She was just attacked by what appeared to be the same thing that attacked Marin earlier. And now she was about to show Yumi her biggest secret.
The two had just swung from the ropes, and Aelita was gesturing towards the lift. "What?! We told you not to use the lift!"
"It works," Aelita shot back. "I've gone down here twice now. And in order for me to show you what's going on, I have to use the lift a third time, and you have to go with me."
Yumi paused for a moment, looking as if she'd like to argue, but she chose not to, to which Aelita was relieved.
Yumi join her in the elevator, and Aelita pressed the button to go down. Their first stop was the supercomputer room. There, Aelita explained that she had started it up, and that it ran something special and directly out of a sci-fi movie. Yumi was confused, yet also intrigued.
Their second stop was the lab. Aelita went directly to the monitor.
"So that's the mega computer you started up," Yumi said. "Now what's so special about it?"
"Supercomputer," Aelita corrected, before pressing a button, and the holomap of Lyoko reappeared in the center of the room. "And that is what is so special. This supercomputer houses a virtual world called Lyoko."
"Aelita, I think this morning's electric shock fried your brain," Yumi told her. "This is just the control center of the factory, that's all."
"And what would call this?" Aelita retorted, before typing in a command to bring up Marin's interface. Just as expected, Marin's face appeared on screen. "A program for spray-painting doors?"
"Hello, Aelita," Marin spoke. He sounded much better than he did when she left him earlier.
"Whoa, who's the boy?" Yumi asked.
"Marin, this is my friend, Yumi," Aelita introduced them. "Yumi, this is Marin, a humanoid form of artificial intelligence who lives on Lyoko."
Marin slightly bowed his head, "It's nice to meet you, Yumi."
"Don't mess with me," Yumi wasn't impressed, though. "You programmed him, right?"
To her surprise, Marin was the one who answered, "No. I woke as soon as Aelita restarted the supercomputer. I don't know who I am. My memory has been erased."
"Marin has to hide in a tower," Aelita explained, "and if he leaves, he gets attacked by monsters." Yumi saw Marin nod. "I know this sounds crazy, Yumi, but you have to believe me."
"I don't know, Aelita," Yumi began pacing. "What if...what if it's just a giant video game?"
"Then it's a very dangerous game," Aelita immediately replied. "My lamp just tried to kill me, remember? You're the one who saved me. And what's more, the logo I saw on my computer screen just before my lamp attacked me was the same logo I saw on the monsters that attacked Marin earlier."
"Interesting," Yumi replied. "So you think the virtual thing that attacked Marin also wants to kill you?"
"That's what it looks like," came Aelita's response.
"You know what?" Yumi solemnly said. "If that's true, if it's that dangerous, I think you should shut it down and call the police."
"I know, Yumi, and I will," Aelita promised, and Yumi took note of how sad she looked as she did so. "But first, I want to help Marin understand what he's doing inside this supercomputer. I think that if I can send myself to Lyoko, I might be able to help him find out. And if I'm right, I might be able to bring him back here, to our world."
"Okay," Yumi decided to indulge Aelita this time. "How do you plan to do that?"
"Follow me."
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
Aelita led Yumi down a level, where the three cylinders were.
"What's all this?" Yumi asked, in awe of what she was seeing.
"Scanners," Aelita explained, before stepping into one of them. "I still haven't found the program to bring Marin back to Earth, but I managed to dig up the one that allows someone to be sent to Lyoko from here. In fact, the supercomputer analyzes your molecular structure from these cabins, and then breaks down your atoms before digitalizing them and recreating a digital incarnation in the virtual world."
"Translation?"
"You go inside the cabin," Aelita said, "you're teleported to Lyoko."
Yumi knocked on one of the scanners. "Aelita, be realistic. These things don't exist yet. There's no way."
"You still don't want to believe me, do you?" Aelita asked.
"On the contrary, actually," Yumi said, "I would love to. But virtualization is straight out of science fiction."
Aelita exited the scanner, "Then why don't we test it out? That way you have proof that I'm not just making this all up. But we're going to need a guinea pig."
Yumi smirked, "Oh, don't worry. I have one in mind, and I'm sure Ulrich would appreciate it."
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
Yumi returned ten minutes later with Kiwi in her arms. After placing the dog inside one of the cabins, she took the ladder back up to the lab, where Aelita was waiting.
"Okay, Aelita, Kiwi's all set," Yumi said.
"Alright, we'll see how it goes. It's not gonna be a piece of cake," Aelita said, before beginning to type up the commands necessary for the virtualization process. "I just hope Odd's not going to kill us for this. We can have Kiwi back before he or Ulrich notice the dog is gone."
"About that," Yumi sheepishly admitted. "Sissi just so happened to call Ulrich because he stood her up right when I was about grab Kiwi. The call woke up Odd and Ulrich both, and I passed Sissi on the way out of the dorms, so I'm pretty sure all three are on my tail."
Aelita rolled her eyes, "Perfect. I mean, Ulrich and Odd, we can handle, but Sissi's gonna be the real pain. Okay, here we go. Transfer guinea pig." She pressed the button to begin the process. "Scanner guinea pig." Just then a beeping sounded from the screen. Aelita looked up from her notes to see a familiar-looking humanoid being scanned via the process. "W-What? That's a weird looking dog."
"That's no dog," Yumi began, realization coming to both girls. "That's Odd!"
His hairstyle was different, but his avatar was just as loud as he was normally (yeesh, all that purple).
"I don't-!" Aelita started to panic. "I don't know how to stop the procedure!"
"Odd!" came Ulrich's voice from the scanner room.
Sissi's voice quickly followed. "Help! He's been mummified!"
Yumi sighed in frustration, "I'll take care of them." Aelita watched as Yumi ran towards the ladder and began to climb down.
The scanning was complete and the program indicated that Odd was being transferred to Lyoko in that moment, as a green arrow formed on her screen, with what appeared to be an ID card with Odd's information on it attached to the arrow. The holomap indicated that Odd was in the Mountain Sector.
She waited for a moment. "U-Um, Odd?"
"Aelita? Is that you?"
"Yes. Are you okay?" she asked.
"I'm fine. But, uh," he paused, "i-is this a joke or something?"
"Um, no." She then turned her attention to the scanner room. "Yumi, it's okay! Odd is safe and sound on Lyoko!"
"You mind explaining?" Odd asked, cutting her off from her conversation with the other three down in the scanner. "Where am I? Am I in a video game? This looks like the opening level of Ninja Fighters 3."
"I'm don't really know, actually," she chose to be honest. "It's a virtual world. That much I'm sure of."
"Cool," Odd said, before his ID went from 100 lifepoints down to 80. "Uh, that's a lot less cool. Aelita, there are these giant cockroaches attacking me." So he did see the two red circles behind him. Maybe she should warn him next time. "Is that normal?"
"Yeah," she replied. Those were the same monsters that had attacked Marin, after all.
"Oh, nothing to worry about, then," came Odd's relieved voice.
"Um, that's not what I meant, Odd," she started to panic. What if Odd lost all of his lifepoints? She didn't know what would happen. He could be virtualized forever? Or deleted. "You have to get out of there." She turned her attention back to the scanner room. "Yumi, Odd is in danger! I need some time to devirtualize him! I don't know what to do!"
"Then send us to whatever this Lyoko is. Odd needs our help," Ulrich was the one who replied. "Though I would like an explanation."
"You'll get one, I promise," Aelita said. "You and Odd both. So you and Yumi are going?"
"Yep," Yumi answered.
"What? Go where, Ulrich?" Aelita heard Sissi ask.
"To a virtual world where weird monsters want to massacre you," Yumi explained, with the truth for once.
"That's right," Ulrich seemed to pick up where Yumi left off. Aelita admired their teamwork. "If you want to go out with me, now's your chance. We never abandon our friends."
"No thanks," Sissi answered. "I prefer real worlds. I'm not into the other kind. Plus, I couldn't possibly miss cheerleading practice tomorrow morning."
"See ya, chicken," Ulrich replied. "Aelita, Yumi and I are ready to go."
"Okay," Aelita pressed in the same command that led to Odd's accidental virtualization, making sure that two people were being virtualized rather than just one. "I'm starting up the procedure. Transfer Ulrich, transfer Yumi. Scanner Ulrich, scanner Yumi." Both of the wireframes of their avatars showed up on her screen, and she breathed a sigh of relief. Odd looked like a giant purple cat, while Ulrich and Yumi looked relatively normal, as a samurai and geisha respectively. "Virtualization!"
She smiled when two green arrows appeared next to Odd.
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
Odd was still running away from those cockroach monsters he had encountered when Aelita spoke again, "Odd, stay where you are. I've programmed your position. Ulrich and Yumi are on their way to help you."
"Great," he said, "I was starting to get bored here all alone." He watched Ulrich and Yumi both form in the sky in front of them, and he winced in sympathy when they both came crashing down. "Welcome, lovebirds," he greeted them as they both got to their feet. "I've lost those monsters, but they shouldn't be too far away."
Ulrich immediately noticed the weapon he was carrying. He unsheathed it and began studying it by swinging it through the air in front of him, "Whoa, this sword is so cool!"
"A katana," Yumi gently corrected, before studying herself. "Wow..."
"Yeah, that Japanese outfit is pretty sharp," Odd complimented.
"Thanks, but...I don't have a weapon," Yumi said, right before something fell out of the obi tied around her waist and to the ground. She picked it up and blankly said, "A fan, that's all?"
"At least you guys have physical weapons," Odd complained. "And super cool outfits. Aelita!"
"It wasn't me, Odd," Aelita quickly explained. "Maybe the computer analyzes your imagination and uses your dreams to model your avatars on."
"I don't dream about giant purple cats!" Odd protested. "I'm telling you, these paws are useless!" When he said that, however, he accidentally shot an arrowhead from one of these said paws.
Ulrich barely managed to dodge it. "Hey, watch it!"
"It seems like those paws aren't so useless now, are they?" Yumi asked with a smirk.
"It appears not," Odd smiled back. "Sorry, Aelita, I take back what I said."
"You are forgiven," Aelita replied. "Now, how about you guys head to the tower Marin's in? That way, he can meet you guys in person!"
"Sure thing." Yumi said. "I need to apologize for my rudeness earlier anyway. Lead the way, Aelita."
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
Kiwi went straight to Aelita when the lift doors opened. She was about to give her friends the coordinates for Marin's tower, when Sissi interrupted her.
"Who's this Marin? A girl that's stolen Ulrich's heart besides Yumi? And what is all this?"
"Marin is a boy, Sissi," Aelita explained. "Not a girl. And this is the control terminal of the supercomputer. I'm sorry you were dragged into this."
Just then, the screen in front of them went black, before showing the same logo as before.
"Oh no," Aelita muttered. She then turned to the corner, where Kiwi was barking up a storm. Sissi immediately hid behind Aelita, as the two watched the cables Kiwi was barking at sparkle with electricity, before springing to life.
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
In Lyoko's Mountain Sector, Odd, Ulrich, and Yumi were walking down the path, still waiting for Aelita to give them those coordinates. Yumi had finished giving Ulrich and Odd the explanation Aelita had promised to give them.
"So Aelita turned on this supercomputer, which she found houses a virtual world called Lyoko, and Marin is this artificial intelligence that she's befriended?" Odd asked.
"Pretty much," Yumi confirmed, before admitting, "But I don't think 'befriended' is the right word."
"Really?" Ulrich asked. "How come?"
"Because I get the impression that Aelita's flipped for him," Yumi answered.
"For a virtual dude?" Odd asked. "Is she nuts?"
"She's related to you, Odd," Ulrich replied. "Of course, she is. It runs in the family."
"That's rude, y'know," Odd pouted, as the trio came to a stop.
"Don't hate Ulrich for telling the truth, Odd," Yumi giggled. "Hey, Aelita, are you going to give us those coordinates or not?"
But there was no response.
"Hey, Aelita! Are you asleep or what?" Yumi asked.
Still no response.
"I guess we'll have to find Marin's tower without her," Odd shrugged, before spotting a tower in the distance, surrounded by a blue halo. "Let's try that one."
The trio ran over to it.
"Marin, you in there?" Yumi asked. "It's me, Yumi!"
No response from Marin either.
Odd placed his hand on the wall of the tower, "Weird, there's no door. Woah!"
Just as he leaned against it, the wall let him phase through. He barely managed to grab the side of the walkway leading to the platform before Ulrich entered behind him and grabbed his ankles, with Yumi not far behind.
"What are you idiots doing?!" She was asking as she phased through, and she immediately grabbed Ulrich's wasit. "Woah! Please, Odd, don't let go!"
"You kidding? Wouldn't dream of it!" Odd retorted. "But I can't hold on for much longer! You guys are too heavy! Drop your weapons or something!"
"Nice try, Odd!" Ulrich shot back, just as Yumi lost her grip and fell down into the abyss, screaming on the way. "Yumi!"
Just then, Odd also lost his grip, and he and Ulrich fell into the abyss as well.
But within the abyss was what appeared to be a data stream. The two boys landed on a platform like the one they just fell off of, and saw a bewildered Yumi waiting for them.
"You okay?" Ulrich immediately asked her.
"Yeah, I'm fine," Yumi replied. "I, um, don't think this is Marin's tower. Let's go try another one."
"Right," the two boys both said, before following her out of the tower, each by phasing through like they did before.
"That's a weird method to enter a structure," Odd commented, referring to the phasing through the wall, as he, Ulrich, and Yumi exited the tower.
He paused, however, when looking out at the landscape in front of them. Instead of purple mountains against an indigo sky, they were now facing cyan glaciers against a navy blue sky.
"Did we...change sectors?" Yumi asked.
"It appears so," Ulrich replied. "And do you see that tower over there?" He pointed to a tower in the distance surrounded by a red halo. "Weird how it's not the same color as any of the others we've seen."
"Yeah, and those creatures," Odd pointed to their right. "They're kinda weird too."
Approaching them were three block monsters. One of them twirled around, before charging up its laser.
"It might be a good thing to beat it, don't you think?" Yumi asked.
"Yeah, let's go!" Odd replied, as he and Ulrich quickly followed Yumi in the opposite direction.
Pretty soon, however, the blocks caught up with them, due to the three being notified that there was an edge of the sector. Now surrounded, Ulrich unsheathed his katana and Yumi took out her fan.
The block Yumi was facing charged up its laser, and Ulrich just barely managed to block it with his katana.
Another block swirled and charged up a blue laser, but Odd managed to dodge it just in time.
The third block fired at Yumi again, but she managed to block its laser with her fan, by locking in a complete circle and twirling it around in her hand. The fan lit up as she did this, but she paid it no mind, solely focusing on defending herself and her friends.
Ulrich blocked two more lasers before jumping up on top of one block, and tried to strike it, but only hit its armor. He leapt back down to join Yumi and Odd just as Yumi blocked another shot to protect Odd.
"So how do you kill these things?" Ulrich asked.
"I wish I knew," Yumi said. "I also wish my fan was longer range!" Her fan blocked another shot, but this one knocked her fan right out of her hands. She had no time to react as the block in front of her shot her in the chest.
Ulrich and Odd could only watch as her body pixelated and eventually her wireframe too.
"No, Yumi!" they both called out. Aelita never told them what would happen if they got devirtualized. They could only pray that Yumi was back on Earth, safe and sound.
"I wish I knew how many times we could get hit before we get devirtualized!" Odd said, right before a block also devirtualized him.
Seeing he was the only one left, Ulrich leapt towards a block and stabbed it right in one of its four eyes. He jumped back, and cheered when the block he hit exploded.
But his celebration was cut short when one of the remaining two blocks hit him in the back, thus devirtualizing him as well.
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
Yumi opened her eyes to find herself in the scanner room. She was fine. Another scanner opened to reveal Odd. Odd was fine. A couple seconds letter, the third scanner opened to reveal Ulrich. Ulrich was fine.
"Great, at least we're alive," Ulrich exclaimed as he massaged the back of his neck.
"Thank goodness," Yumi added, as she tried to get to her feet.
"If you say so," Odd said. "I feel like I'm about to throw up." He certainly looked like he was going to.
"Help us!" came Sissi's cry from the lab.
"Come on, guys," Yumi said. "We still have a job to do."
Aelita was not fine.
The trio went up to the lab via the ladder, only to find the reason why Aelita seemed so preoccupied. The cables of the supercomputer had literally come to life and were holding her high up in the air. Kiwi was barking at the thing, while Sissi was in the lift, sobbing in fear.
"Aelita! Hold on!" Yumi cried, before grabbing a piece of scrap metal from the ground nearby and charging at it. She attempted to chop the cable live with electricity in half, but this thing stopped her halfway through by giving her a jolt. She cried out in pain, before the thing through her to the ground.
She barely managed to get to her knees when the cable sparkling with electricity came charging at her. Then she blinked and Ulrich was right in front of her, shielding her with his body, and the cable was frozen as Odd had used the same technique she had tried with the scrap metal.
"What do you know? It works the second time!" Odd said before chopping the cable in half completely.
That seemed to do the trick. The cable monster carefully set Aelita back down on solid ground, and Odd immediately ran to her to see if she was okay, just as Ulrich did the same for Yumi.
Kiwi stopped barking and Sissi stopped crying, as Aelita and Yumi reassured Odd and Ulrich that they were okay. But Aelita's mind was on something else.
The pink-ette ran to the computer and booted it back up, "Marin? You there?"
Marin's face popped up on screen, "Yes, I'm here. Is everything okay on your side?"
"Well, we're a little shaken up," Aelita was giving him a fake smile. "But it could've a lot worse. Boy, do we have a lot to tell you."
"Really?" Marin replied with a smile more real than Aelita's. "I can't wait to hear it."
!~~C~O~D~E~~L~Y~O~K~O~~!
Back in the Ice Sector, however, the tower Ulrich had spotted earlier was still glowing red.
TO BE CONTINUED_
!~~~J~E~R~L~I~T~A~~R~O~L~E~S~W~A~P~~A~U~~~!
A/N: Jeremie's Lyoko avatar here is sort of a blue male version of Aelita's. If you want a picture of how I imagine it, look up 'Jerlita Roleswap' on my Deviantart page (penname: SepticAbzies). Also, Jeremie's codename here, 'Marin', is an homage to his Evolution actor, Marin Lafitte.
Since Aelita has Jeremie's life, it means her parents are alive and are not in hiding, hence why her surname is 'Schaeffer'. Also, she and Odd are real cousins here, and they, Ulrich, and Yumi are already friends. The group already being friends felt like the best way to seamlessly bring Yumi to Lyoko and not have it feel awkward like it did in canon.
The group has been aged up here by two years. Aelita, Odd, and Ulrich are all 14 and in 9th Grade/Year 10, with Yumi 15 and in 10th grade/Year 11. Sissi still has a crush on Ulrich, but here Nicolas is the one who likes Sissi, while Herve has a crush on Aelita.
Finally, a translation of something Jeremie said: 'verbal glitch' means 'stutter'.