- ...how could you even think of it, I can't understand! Moreover, you didn't even try to discuss anything with us, just, as usual, presented us with a fait accompli. You're behaving worse than a child, Odd! Besides...

Yumi's words entered one ear and went out the other.

He smoothly maneuvered into another curve, barely keeping his eyes open, especially since the circumstances forced him to drive relatively slowly. His eyelids seemed to weigh a ton and a bit more, and he could have fallen asleep at the wheel if not for Ishiyama's shouts above his head. And only that could help him because the content itself made no impression on him.

As expected, she started yelling at him from the moment they arrived in the Megapod. At first, he tried to deny, especially when she called him thoughtless , but after the first 'Shut up, Odd ,' he decided to adapt. So he listened to her tirade about how foolish he was, how senseless his reasoning was, and how dangerous the whole situation was - basically nothing new.

He leaned back comfortably in the seat, and it didn't take long for his thoughts to automatically wander. What they served for lunch? He hadn't eaten anything in a while. Maybe he could check it himself; they should finish the mission before noon, right? Of course, unless he falls asleep on the factory floor before that.

But he couldn't go to sleep, not yet. First, he wanted to take a shower and stop at the gas station. He also needed to pick up his things from a friend before he left the city, and... Damn , he had to postpone the biology assignment until tomorrow, or Hertz will kill him! What was it about? Something related to membranes and cells; he was never good at that. Maybe he should ask Alex for help?

Ah, yes, Alex.

He wondered if William was still alive. Considering the girl's expression, he wouldn't be surprised if she had devirtualized him, and he would actually like to see that. The more he thought about it, the more he regretted not staying with her instead of Dunbar. He would surely have more fun than now.

Maybe he should have stayed with her? In theory, it was supposed to be her last mission, and therefore Odd's last chance to feast his eyes on Lyoko with her. Instead, he sat here, enduring Stern's gaze, Aelita's meaningful silence, and Ishiyama's criticism. And he would definitely throw it in Jeremy's face if he heard again that he didn't sacrifice enough for the team.

- And-

- Okay, Yumi, enough. I think he gets it. - Ulrich muttered, and hey! At least he tried.

- And I think he doesn't. If he understood, he would apologize to Aelita instead of arguing with her!

Odd wasn't surprised by that either. Lately, news from his life spread among the Lyoko warriors faster than information about XANA attacks. When did they tell her about what happened on the Skid? When he talked to Meyer? Or maybe Einstein was giving her the report even during the discussion?

Well, it didn't matter now.

- Now my apologies will sound much more natural, all thanks to your subtle suggestion, Yumi, thank you. - said Della Robbia in a monotone voice. Although they could hear a sarcastic tone in it, it wasn't as sharp and pronounced as usual. In such situations, he always tried to be more careful around Ishiyama.

- As if apologizing was ever natural for you. - she retorted, and he couldn't disagree with her... but he could ignore her. Or rather, he could, but the girl didn't give up, trying to ruin his already not-so-good mood at all costs; - Besides, you still haven't explained anything to us.

- You didn't give me a chance.

- Well, you have it now. - she replied, crossing her arms on her chest. - Maybe you can start by telling us where you were all night?

He clicked his tongue in irritation.

- Why out of all things are you so interested in this? Isn't there a better topic for discussion?

- You were out of contact, and usually, it doesn't end well for you after attacks. - Stern interjected, staring at him with a serious look. - We were worried.

Odd could swear he was about to shoot himself any moment now.

- Unnecessarily. I was driving around the city, okay? Had to take care of a few things, nothing special. - he announced; there was no point in hiding that.

After all, Jeremy probably checked his location at some point, and that's what frustrated him even more. He didn't want to waste his breath explaining something the warriors already knew.

- Seriously? - scoffed Yumi, leaning over his seat, as if he hadn't heard her shouts well enough that half a meter away. - If you felt so fantastic that you decided to take a ride , you might as well have let us know that everything was okay with you. It's a two-minute job, Odd!

- What I do in my free time is my business. I never confessed to you, and I don't intend to turn everything upside down just because I got a virtual parasite.

- No one's telling you to turn one hundred eighty degrees, but damn it, you're an adult man, so stop behaving like a child!

- Fine. - he snorted. - If you stop acting like my mother.

With a groan, the girl fell back into her seat.

- I don't have the strength. - she muttered, briefly burying her face in her hands, and only for those few seconds could Odd experience the bliss of the desired silence. - Sometimes you're so-

- Fine. - Jeremy interrupted then, taking on the duty of pulling the Della Robbia process. - If you don't care about your own health and safety, that's okay. Your choice.

And although the tone of his voice was calm and composed, Odd suspected there was something more behind it. There was always something more.

- But?

- But, a hermitage is a different story. - he continued, and Odd groaned elongatedly. Here it comes . - That's why I want to know why Aelita found the three of you in her room?

- What?! - Ulrich interjected, shooting the boy an incredulous look. - You promised not to go inside! Why did you let them in there? Have you gone mad?!

And damn it, he didn't even know how close to the truth his words were hitting.

- Exactly. - he nodded, tapping the tip of right joystick with his index finger. When he didn't hear a response and saw the stupid expression on his friend's face from the corner of his eye, he couldn't take it anymore. - And how the hell do you think?! - he growled, raising his voice. - That idiot opened the door himself and went upstairs!

- Where were you then?

- Watching Alex! Because, by the way, I promised not to tell her anything, and I kept my word. - he hissed through clenched teeth, sending him a glare before focusing back on the road. - Besides, stop blaming me for everything! You're burdening me with all the responsibility when it was Aelita who ran to the park on her own? Seriously?

- Don't even try to start! - Ishiyama warned him.

He had no intention of listening.

- I'm not starting anything, I'm stating a fact! - he defended himself, and then turned directly to Aelita; - Why did you even go there, huh? To spy on me?

- I... of course not. - she said, clearly unhappy with how he cornered her. - I just wanted to help you get rid of them.

- I didn't need anyone's help, I could handle it myself! - he replied, clenching his jaw and the controls even tighter. - And now Moreau knows that something is going on, and I have no idea what I would tell Alex to explain where the hell you came from!

- Just don't tell her anything. Cut the subject, and that's it; you're very good at that. - Yumi hissed.

- As you can see, it doesn't work on everyone. - he retorted in a similar tone, frustrated and angry. He became even more annoyed when he was told to stop once again.

- Just apologize and let's forget about it! - Ulrich complained, as the voices of the warriors merged into one, horribly loud sound that grated on his ears. - What does it matter who's to blame for what when it's all over?

- You'd sing a different tune if you were in my place! - noticed Odd, squinting his eyes. Stern was definitely digging his own grave today. - Besides, it's your girl who keeps the subject going, not me.

- Because I don't understand how you can be so shameless!

- And I don't understand why none of you can trust me?! - he snapped, and he hoped it sounded less desperate than it did in his own ears.

Why was he always the one getting the blame? Why was everything he did and said considered worthless? Why did everyone demand and demand, even though none of them wanted to believe in him?

W̩͖͉̰̪̞̗̉̔̅̈́̈́h͕̳̲̥̔̑̋̇̊̇͆͒̾̽͛̏͋̔́y̠̜͉͉̙̱̞͌̈́̂̍͆̈ ḋ͙͎̤͉͔̮̤͓͂͌̽̅̈͌i̮̟͇̪͓̬̰̦̓̃̔̒̿̓̌͑̆̂ď̬̳̥̜̣̙͕͚͚̖̄͒̅ h͓̲̖̖̒̅̅̀ͅe͕̠͉̲͇̖͚͖̖̯̭̾̉̊̂̽̿͗͑͋̃̿̓̒ͅ d̗̣̗̲͔͓̟̥̐̋̈́̅̔o̞̙̳̖̬̊͋͌̉̈͂̆̃͊̌͂̾̑̑̚ ť̳͚͔͙̠̜̞̝͎̫̭̓̌̔̽̍͂̔̆̓̇̾́̚ḧ̪͍̭͔͙̥̖̦̣͇̞̖̪̙͓̣́̑̽͊͊̽̎̏̚i͉̯̯̝̱͚̰̬͙̘̋̈͗͐ͅͅś̯͎͙̩̋̀́̓̀̓̅́̀͛ ṯ͖͓͓͚͉͇̳̩̝̇̅̃̂̏̆̓͊́̆̍̉͊̉̌ͅō͙̟̫͚̳̣̟͎̘͇͇͚͙̜͇͛͂͗͛͐̑ͅ h̬̭͕̗͚̞̖͇͉͈̬͛̃͌̽̾̎̇́ì̪̪̪͓̘͍̪̝̗͉͖̉̊͐͛̌̀͗̌̌͛̍̑ṃ̠̱̥͔͍͓̞̗̦̘̱̅̈́̔̏̽̍̅͑s͔̯̞̥͔̝͍͇̩̗̮̱̞̋́̊͌ė̙̘̠̲͓̲͚̉͌͗̈̇̌͗͐͒͑̆̚l̠̭͎̞̩͛̐̌̅̂̿́̔̅̇̌͗̍̽̊f͍̲̭̫̞̜̠̬͑̐̀̊͗̋͒?͔̙̮̖̖̤̠̯̝̗̖͚͈̄̎̅͆ͅͅ

Ulrich eyed his friend before sighing, just as Odd expected; not commenting on his words in any way.

- How can you say anything about trust when you tried to hide this whole thing from me? - Stones noticed, and her voice carried a clear undertone of sadness. - You keep avoiding us! If you had come to me, we would have figured it out together.

- Of course, we would. - he mocked. - You can see how great we're doing when we discuss something together.

- Only because you can't admit to being wrong. - Yumi stated, and he could swear that blood was boiling in his veins at that moment.

- So, that's what it's about? Fine, damn it, here you go! - he shouted and abruptly hit the brakes. Shortly after, ignoring the guys' questions about what the hell he was doing, he turned and looked straight into the girl's face; - I fucked up , satisfied?! I shouldn't have told them about the hermitage, it was irresponsible, and I'm well aware of that! Besides, I dared to be stupid enough to think I could handle it somehow. But I didn't! As usual, right, Yumi? Good thing there's someone with me who always reminds me of that. - he spoke with the sharpest, most disgustingly ironic tone he could muster, and even the girl herself didn't try to interrupt him at that moment. - So if you want to get back at me, go ahead, devirtualize me. Or yourself, whatever, because I don't give a damn about this mission if it's going to look like this!

The dark eyes of the girl widened slightly, as if she didn't fully believe what he was saying - and that made him even more determined to prove to her how serious he was in his words. And if Ishiyama didn't want to talk to him after this? Fine! At least he would have some peace.

It's not like much would change between them.

- No one will devirtualize anyone here! - Ulrich's hand landed on Della Robbia's shoulder, but the blond behaved as if he didn't feel it at all. - Calm down a bit. - he asked a bit quieter, and only then did the boy's gaze shift to his roommate. - Let's deal with the mission, and then we'll handle the hermitage issue. We'll launch a return to the past, and-

- I'm afraid we won't make it. - Jeremy interjected, to which Stern grimaced slightly; it wasn't the best time for this type of information. - Everything is messed up for me here, and even if I work all night, I'll finish the earliest tomorrow evening.

Odd dug his claws into the armrest, and if he could, he would jump out of the supercomputer screen right now and strangle Einstein with his bare hands.

- Excuse me?

- Believe me, I regret it as much as you do, Odd, but it can't be done any faster. I've been fixing it since yesterday. - Jeremy replied, and at that moment, something clicked in Della Robbia's brain, and his golden eyes took on a sinister glow as he squinted and glanced towards Aelita.

- Did you know about this before you followed me to the hermitage?

Initially, she wanted to deny it, but under the influence of his gaze, all her courage left her in an instant, taking her voice with it. She couldn't lie, even if she wanted to; therefore, she lowered her gaze and nodded with shame.

Stern, on the other hand, tensed up in his seat, convinced that Della Robbia would do something crazy - shout, try to devirtualize himself, or teleport and walk to the core on foot; that would be very much in his style. But instead, he just fell silent and returned to his place. Without a word, he continued driving, although the silence wasn't as pleasant as he imagined.

He focused back on the interface, paying no attention to Ulrich's attempts to make eye contact. In such moments, he didn't need his care, but rather pretending that everything was fine - precisely what his parents had accustomed him to. They never asked questions, and if they had to confront him, they limited themselves to empty words and promises that it would get better. It never did, but they couldn't know that; they disappeared faster than the boy could respond with a stupid 'thanks '.

Once, he used to hate it, but over time, he began to appreciate their little routine; mainly because it was familiar, normal. And it was certainly easier to bear than the persistence of friends and their exhausting attempts to constantly break and rebuild him as quickly as possible into his positive 'self,' which had long ceased to be the norm for him. He considered it a natural order of things, which he didn't try to fight, and Stern stubbornly refused to accept it. And Della Robbia couldn't decide whether he was grateful for it or if he held it against his friend for insistently believing in a lost cause.

Either way - again - at this moment, he simply didn't need it.

- I'm sorry. - they were almost at the end of the route when they heard Aelita's words, which forcibly pulled Odd from the darkest corners of his mind.

And although her quiet, almost tearful voice grated on his ears, he didn't say a word, hoping that the girl would stop at that - because he couldn't respond in the same way. A lump in his throat blocked access to the necessary words, which over time became increasingly difficult to pronounce, even in front of his closest friends.

However, it was just as hard to receive those words, especially from someone like Stones.

- You're right, I should have trusted you. - she continued, to his painful disappointment. - I swear I didn't want to spy on you, I just... just couldn't stop thinking that a stranger would be in the hermitage, looking at Dad's things and... it doesn't matter; it was stupid. I could have guessed that Xana would want to take advantage of the situation. Instead, I needlessly complicated everything and exposed all of us to greater danger, especially you. I'm really so-

- I understand. You don't have to. - he croaked, almost automatically; - After all, if I had said something earlier, nothing would have happened to you, right?

Despite his words being somewhat bitter and possibly sounding like another attack, they were a sincere admission of a mistake. If they hadn't gone there, Aelita wouldn't have followed their trail and wouldn't have lost the codes. He wouldn't have argued with Moreau, wouldn't have let Alex down, wouldn't have found out about his dreams...

- Is that what you meant earlier? That it's not your fault? - she asked, and the boy could see her pink hair out of the corner of his eye as she leaned forward. In turn, she noticed the tension from the way he straightened up and clenched his jaw when she placed her hand on his shoulder. - Odd, I'm not blaming you for this. Besides, I wasn't really mad, just worried. We all are.

He could endure shouts and insults, a heated argument, or even crying, but never what this girl did, and what he was currently falling victim to. He was too stubborn in his anger and always needed some time to cool down, unlike Aelita, who could switch from one mode to another in seconds.

In one moment, she could yell at him, and in the next, comfort him and say all those warm words. She didn't manipulate him; that's just how she was - honest in her feelings and, above all, honest with her friends. Every quarrel with her, no matter how small, always reminded him of how much he envied her for that.

- I know, but you don't have to because I'll fix it. - he muttered, glad that he had an excuse not to look her in the face at this moment; because he wouldn't be able to do it.

- That's not what I meant. - she said, and it seemed to burn from the spot where she took her hand.

His arms trembled when he allowed himself a short laugh. Of course.

No one ever blamed him for anything; they just worried. Of course, how could he forget.

At first glance, Cortex closely resembled the fifth sector. Similar to Cartagin, this world consisted of blocks and high walls, but here the space was entirely open, and the main theme was turquoise. In many places, darker elements of structures were noticeable, as if this world had never been fully completed. Sun rays, falling from a specific point in the sky, were also something unusual compared to the sectors in Lyoko.

She couldn't tell if it was a consequence of previous events or the specific climate of this place, but she felt uneasy. Despite traveling through the highest parts of the blocks and little that could escape her sharp eyes, she found herself looking around constantly, as if enemies were about to emerge from the ground.

But there were positive aspects to their ride - at least William kept silent. Mainly because he couldn't speak while in the form of digital smoke, which he boasted about for a good two minutes (she didn't ask) . This happened right after she refused to race him, and rightly so, because as it turned out later, she couldn't navigate the terrain at all. The uneven ground was the reason she almost fell off the platform. Twice.

Anyway, her partner in misfortune wasn't the only one who remained silent. For some reason, she also didn't hear Jeremy, although the thought that he might be busy with something during the mission reassured her. She hoped he was halfway through fixing the program... and even more so that he would reset them to the moment before the last twenty-four hours and save her from Charles' problem.

She didn't want to apologize to him, even if Odd was right about it. Lyoko couldn't be her excuse, and she should have spent more time with him, especially since she had long stopped doing all this just for him. Most importantly, she had to ensure his safety, and she was afraid that the recent attack might have harmed him in some way.

Because what if his amnesia was only temporary? What if this was a way for Xana to possess him more easily in the future? Jeremy himself admitted that he didn't understand what was happening with their enemy and how he kept launching new attacks. She didn't want to take risks, and avoiding an uncomfortable discussion in this way was a really tempting addition.

So, as far as she was concerned, Belpois had to reset them in time.

Even before they fully reached their destination, she could already see the goal of their journey from a distance, referred to by the warriors as the core. It was a massive sphere constructed based on a similar raw material as the rest of the darker structures within the platforms. She wondered if its interior looked as impressive as she imagined.

- So, what's the plan? - she asked when they stopped, and William transformed back into his normal form.

- Jeremy already talked about it. - he shrugged, then theatrically gasped and grabbed his head, saying; - Oh, right! I forgot someone here was late! What a shame, huh?

She looked at him as if he had just taken away her last reason to exist.

- Are all of you jerks, or just you?

- The biggest one is your boyfriend, and you're not complaining about him. - he emphasized the word boyfriend, well aware of what he was doing.

Instead of responding, she narrowed her eyes, raised her eyebrows, indicating that she wasn't going to listen to his nonsense.

He, in turn, didn't seem to care about it. So, a few moments filled with silence later, she resigned herself to the fact that she wouldn't hear that damn plan and turned her head away. It was then that he decided to take pity on her (or rather, capitulate in her eyes) and explained that after the others joined them, they needed to somehow introduce Aelita to the interface. Nothing more, nothing less.

Then she got off the motorcycle (the company itself was uncomfortable enough), and then walked to the edge of the platform to get a better look at everything. To her amazement, there were already two opponents on the bridge, whose appearance she could describe as... peculiar. She appreciated Tyron's color choices, but the rest was somewhat surprising. They weren't similar to each other like she and Odd were, but identical, deliberately programmed that way by Cortex's owner.

So, these were the famous ninjas, huh?

William initially joined her in observations, but quickly lost interest. Unlike Meyer, who couldn't take her eyes off one of the avatars, attentively watching the green aura shining on the edges of its limbs. Jeremy said they used swords, which they could use to deflect or parry any of the warriors' weapons.

She bit her lower lip, looking at her own claws. She could surely be faster than them (probably? ), but could her daggers penetrate their virtual steel? Since they destroyed the rock on the way back, maybe there was a chance? Or...

- Where are they, actually? - William suddenly spoke up, drawing her attention to him. - They can't be slower than us, especially with Odd behind the wheel.

She was about to tell him to take care of himself when she realized he was actually right.

- If something happened, Jeremy would have told us, right? - she muttered, giving him a bewildered look.

He shrugged and shouted.

- Jeremy! Any news? - after waiting for a moment and receiving no response, he furrowed his brow and turned to the girl. - You don't hear them?

If he was making an allusion to her cat ears at that moment, he was hitting her blacklist.

- No?

- Aha. - he nodded and rested his hands on his hips, smiling broadly. - We're fucked.

- Well, since we have a truce, I'd like to announce that we're almost there. - Odd said, forcing himself into his usual, disgustingly cheerful tone of voice, which he had no desire for. - Just a few more minutes and...

He cut himself off in mid-sentence as their vehicle was hit by the speeding Megatank.

He could swear he saw stars in front of his eyes as the monster pushed them into one of the walls, and he banged his head against Ulrich's seat. It took him a second for his brain to reconnect with his limbs before he reached for the controls and pulled the joysticks towards him firmly. He slowed down, letting the monster pass them, and quickly turned into a side passage, narrowly avoiding another one. And although the image seemed to blur before his eyes, and his brain throbbed painfully in his skull, a sharp smile appeared on his face.

At least now he couldn't complain about being bored.

- What happened there? Are you guys okay? - Jeremy yelled, to which Della Robbia furrowed his brow, putting his hand to his temple.

- Did it hit me too hard, or does he sound a bit fuzzy? - he turned to Ulrich, who shrugged in response.

- How is this possible? Does Xana know about the mission? - Einstein continued, and Odd was well aware that he must have seen the same number of red dots on the screen of his computer as he had on his own radar.

And neither of them needed to know the exact number to be aware that it didn't look too good.

- Apparently. - he replied, gritting his teeth as they felt another impact, this time from behind. - Our surprise plan is off the table. - he added, then warned the rest of the warriors to hold on tight.

- What?! We can't-

- You have a better idea? - he snapped, sharply turning once again; thereby losing one Megatank and pushing back several Krabs that jumped out from another corridor. - If Xana knows, he won't let us get to the core that easily, especially without a vehicle.

- Odd's right. - Ulrich chimed in, shooting at the monsters with the cannon, or at least until it was shot down by Mantas. - I'm sure Tyron will be thrilled that we're bringing a sea food as a welcome gift.

- He'll be delighted. - Yumi muttered.

- The question is, which ninja will be sliced first. - echoed Aelita, gripping the driver's seat tightly.

- Probably those without a double shield? - Odd grinned, tapping one of the buttons on the right.

Jeremy took a deep breath, barely holding his nerves in check. How on earth were they talking about it so calmly? He felt like only he saw how seriously their situation had escalated. He gritted his teeth as his eyes tracked new data appearing on the screen, not understanding even a fraction of what he was reading. He couldn't focus, and the only thing he could think about was...

How.

Xana.

Knew?

How did he catch them again? He couldn't keep scouts on Cortex's territory all this time, could he? And even if he could, he wouldn't materialize additional monsters so quickly... right? He didn't know anymore; nothing was certain, and nothing made sense! Where the hell did he get so much power for this after two consecutive attacks? How was he able to continually evolve and grow in strength when he was systematically getting rid of codes? How was he doing it?!

- Jeremy! - Aelita's voice finally broke through to his mind, pulling him out of the chaos of his own thoughts. - Megapod won't hold for much longer, we'll need to evacuate!

- Did you let Alex and William know?! We'll need them! - Yumi added, and Einstein could feel the blood rushing to his cheeks.

Fuck.

He knew he forgot something.

- Oh, right. About that...- he cleared his throat and adjusted his glasses. - There's a small problem…

She watched as a new ninja appeared on the bridge, walking at a leisurely pace toward the passage. About two-thirds of the way, a spotlight fell on his silhouette, and soon after, the core gate began to open. The avatar entered while the remaining two didn't move an inch from their positions.

A wide smile almost burst out from her lips.

Bingo.

- What a bore! Is there some kind of curse on you, and now you've passed it on to me or what? - complained William, sitting with his head down against one of the walls.

She had no idea when he got there.

- Stop whining. It's probably nothing.

Actually, it crossed her mind that he had been teasing her all this time, but nothing in the boy's behavior indicated he was joking with her. Nonetheless, as long as they were in the virtual world and no one tried to devirtualize them, she intended to sit quietly and wait...

- Do you think we should deal with them? I mean, if you're not scared.

... even if it meant going crazy because of Dunbar.

- And end up in the scanner before the others arrive? Great idea.

- We could scout the area. And, no offense, but we wouldn't lose much with your devirtualization.

In response, she couldn't help a disdainful snort that escaped her lips.

Was she biased?

Yes.

Was she exaggerating a bit?

Perhaps, but nothing that came out of William Dunbar's mouth so far managed to convince her to change her opinion about him. Besides, their feelings seemed mutual, and in her eyes, that was reason enough not to bother pretending - at least, not to the extent that their mission would suffer for it.

- Hey! What if he hears us? - he suggested, and if it were up to her, he did it way too enthusiastically. Maybe he was the one who had already gone crazy. - Jeremy, if everything's okay, devirtualize the motorcycle.

Both of them looked at the vehicle, which, despite the passing moments, remained motionless. She was the first to turn her head, but William stubbornly stared at the motorcycle.

- Alright. - he continued, undeterred by the failure. - In that case, devirtualize it if we need to start worrying.

She rolled her eyes and didn't have to turn around to know that it also didn't work.

- Almost like summoning ghosts. - she observed, and the boy, almost against his will, chuckled.

However, the laughter quickly turned into a rumble and then a screech of tires as a speeding Megapod emerged from one of the corridors. They both looked at each other bewilderedly before simultaneously rushing toward the southeast wall to see what was happening.

- But they were supposed to... - she immediately stopped when a horde of Xana's monsters appeared just behind the vehicle.

Some, like blocks or mantas, were familiar to her; others, on the other hand, she absolutely couldn't recognize, and each seemed more dangerous than the previous one. The metal ball rolling behind the vehicle was particularly hazardous, attempting to push the vehicle (Odd! ) straight into the digital sea. It got even worse when the ball suddenly stopped, then split and formed a huge laser wall that passed by the Megapod only millimeters away.

Concerned, she looked at the passage, seeing that several monsters were also approaching from the north. They passed the bridge, although the avatars didn't seem surprised by them, certainly not as much as the sight of warriors whom they didn't turn their heads away from.

- Okay, I'll take it as a sign. - mumbled William, and the girl immediately turned her head toward him just in time to see a sword materializing in his hands.

He couldn't be serious...

- Wait! - she ordered, grabbing his forearm as he was about to jump into the middle of the fight with wheels and lasers. - What are you doing? They don't know we're here.

She pointed to the bridge, where new ninja were appearing, materializing no closer than the middle of the platform - what only confirmed her suspicions.

- That's our least concern. - he stated, burning a hole with his eyes where she touched him. - Einstein won't let us through to the interface. So, if the rest allows themselves to be devirtualized, the whole mission will go down the drain, along with our garfield.

Then he pulled his hand out of her grip, ran, and JUMPED.

That idiot really did it!

She immediately switched places with him, and shortly afterward, teleported right in front of him, blocking his way.

- What... How did you do that? - he mumbled, and maybe under different circumstances, she would have laughed at his bewildered expression if she weren't so infuriated.

- You're lucky if no one saw you! - she hissed through clenched teeth. - And now do yourself a favor and listen to me, okay?

At first, he blinked in surprise before crossing his arms on his chest and assuming his typical, scowling expression.

- Yeah, sure, I'm on it. - he snorted and was about to walk PAST her. Then he ran and JUMPED. AGAIN! And she once again teleported him to the same spot. - Stop doing that!

- Then stop jumping! - she shouted, pushing him away from the edge just to be safe.

- Don't tell me what to do!

- Somebody clearly has to! I thought you were just pretending, but you really are so fucking dense!

She didn't expect that in the next moment, she would find herself on the other side of the sword, and the dark eyes of its owner would stare at her distrustfully and hostilely. And even if she was slightly scared by his sudden reaction, she would never admit it.

- What are you trying to do, huh?

- Besides insulting you? Help Odd. - she growled, but just in case, raised her hands up.

- And you're helping him by keeping me here while the others are about to fight? To me, it sounds more like sabotage. Maybe I should devirtualize you?

- Are you serious?

She grimaced as he gestured with his wrist, raising the sword and forcing her to stand on her toes.

- Very.

- Okay, chill out! I have a plan, alright? Let me explain it, and if I don't convince you, I promise I won't stand in your way anymore. Deal? - she raised her eyebrows, puzzled when he waved his hand as if expecting something more. And when she understood what he meant, she squinted her eyes. - You're kidding.

- What? What did you say? I didn't hear too well . - even though he found the situation amusing, he maintained a stony expression, and the threat of his virtual blade was still at her throat.

- In your dreams! - she hissed before biting her tongue.

She absolutely didn't believe he could devirtualize her for real, but his involvement was crucial to the scenario forming in her mind. She couldn't let him escape and ruin everything before it had a chance to begin.

- If that's how you put it, I think-

She let out a long, annoyed groan.

- Fine. Please - she spat out the cursed word, and if looks could kill, he would die the worst, most painful death known to man.

He stared at her, pretending to consider, then glanced over her head at the warriors. Afterward, his gaze swept over the bridge, and then he returned to her, sighed, and relaxed.

- Alright, catwoman. - he finally said, and his sword disappeared from in front of her face. Then he smiled, clearly pleased with himself, and added. - You have ten seconds.

And oh. She would make sure he regretted it.