Note: There are plenty of things I want to say here, but I feel as though I would spoil the chapter by doing so. I try not to spoil stories during my author's notes, as I was bad about doing so in my early stories. As such, it's better to let you read the story and see what happens instead of giving hints. Even if it's foreshadowing, that's better for the story instead of an author's note. I just don't want to accidentally reveal what's going to happen before you read the chapter. Hopefully, you like what goes down.
Now that I've said that, it's time for chapter eight.
Chapter 8: Parents Know Best
The weekend had rolled around, and Tina was out at the farmer's market with Bob. Bob had come up with a new Burger of the Day, so he needed to get the special ingredients for it. As Gene and Louise ducked out of going with him, Tina decided to accompany her father. She was in charge of holding the ingredients, which she was happy with. As long as she didn't encounter one of her tutors, the day would be fine. While she liked talking to the Lyoko Warriors, the thirteen-year-old did not want Bob to get caught in the middle of a X.A.N.A attack.
"So, Tina, what made you want to come with me?" Bob asked.
"I just wanted to spend the day with you." Tina said.
"Are you sure you didn't just want to come because melons make you think of butts?" The man asked.
"Actually, I just wanted a break after school." The thirteen-year-old said. "You know how school is, with all those crazy tests, study halls, and homework."
"I know." He said. "I was in school once."
As they came up to a booth that was selling vegetables that grew in the ground, from radishes to potatoes. The Burger of the Day called for yams, so Bob wanted to get enough to last through the day. Tina looked around with him, trying to look for yams that were in the best condition. She looked at one, only to put it down after noticing how rough it looked. Picking up another one, the thirteen-year-old found that it was okay. After that, she gave it to Bob, letting her father put it aside.
Tina then heard a familiar voice calling out. She turned her head for a moment, finding out where the voice was coming from. By looking to the right, the thirteen-year-old saw Yumi among the farmers, standing behind a cart. From what Tina could tell, she seemed to be selling a drink of some kind. The fact that the Lyoko Warrior had a drink cart seemed odd, considering how she was a teenager and not an adult. Perhaps there was an explanation behind it.
"Tina, are you okay?" Bob asked, noticing how distracted she was.
"I'm okay!" Tina said.
"Isn't that one of your tutors?" The Belcher patriarch asked, looking in the same direction that his daughter was.
"Yeah," the thirteen-year-old said, "and I don't know why she has a cart."
"When we get done selecting the yams, we'll go talk to her, okay?" He asked.
"Okay." She said.
Once they got done getting the yams for the Burger of the Day, Bob and Tina went to see Yumi. By walking closer, Tina could see what one of her tutors was selling. It was a reddish-purple liquid that had ice cubes in it. Whatever it was, the drink clearly wasn't something the Belchers had before. Neither Bob or Tina could tell if it was alcoholic or not. If it was alcoholic, then Yumi had to break the law in order to sell it.
"Tina, Mr. Belcher, good to see you!" Yumi greeted.
"Hey, Yumi." Tina spoke.
"What are you selling there?" Bob asked.
"Oh, nothing much." Yumi said. "It's just a punch consisting of grapes, berries, and apple juice."
"It's not alcoholic, is it?" The man asked.
"No, it's more like fruit juice." The teen said. "Aelita and Ulrich worked on it with me."
"What about your cart?" Tina asked.
"Jeremy helped me get it." The brunette said. "If you're wondering where everyone else is, they're just hanging around."
"Should we talk to them as well, Tina?" Bob asked.
"No." Tina said. "But I'll see them at school on Monday."
"Are you sure?" He asked.
"Yeah." She said.
Having gotten what they needed, Bob and Tina decided to leave the farmer's market and head back to the restaurant. Like before, Tina was tasked with carrying the yams, while Bob carried the rest of the stuff. Once they had gotten to the restaurant, they saw Linda, Gene, and Louise doing various stuff. While Linda was behind the counter, it appeared that she hadn't touched any of the cooking appliances. Gene and Louise were sitting in a booth, doing something. By walking closer, Tina saw that her younger siblings were filling the ketchup and mustard bottles.
"So, how was your trip to the farmer's market?" Linda asked.
"It was pretty good." Tina said.
"It should be." Gene spoke. "It's a trip to the farmer's market! There are plenty of interesting foods there!"
"We also saw one of your tutors." Bob said.
"Really?!" Louise asked, sounding surprised before switching her tone. "I mean, which one?"
"The Japanese one." He said.
"Yumi?" Gene asked.
"What was she doing at the farmer's market?" Louise asked.
"She was selling some kind of punch, which was non-alcoholic." Tina said.
"Did you gossip?" Linda asked. "Talk about any cute guys in town?"
"All they did was talk about the punch." Bob said.
"It looked good, but Dad and I didn't have any." Tina said.
"Uh, Tina, can Gene and I talk to you for a moment?" Louise asked.
Louise and Gene had practically pushed Tina into the restaurant's bathroom. The two feared that she had spoken to Yumi about the factory and Lyoko out in public. As much as they wanted Bob and Linda to get involved, the Belcher children could not risk their parents getting seriously injured or killed in the crossfire. X.A.N.A was an entity more dangerous than the occasional threat the family dealt with in the real world. They had been through several close calls, but an evil AI was something different. For all they knew, the siblings were unable to have their parents fighting on Lyoko alongside them.
"Tina, did Yumi say anything about what we do at the factory?" Louise asked.
"No, all we did was talk about the punch she was selling." Tina quietly said.
"Okay, good." The nine-year-old said. "If Jeremy calls us later, then we'll go to the factory, head to Lyoko, and get Aelita to the Tower."
"How do we know if X.A.N.A will attack today?" Gene asked.
"We'll know when something strange is going on." The younger girl said.
"Which is also our life." The eleven-year-old snarked.
"Kids, are you going to come out?" Bob was heard through the door. "We need you to help out at the restaurant."
"Coming!" Tina said as she opened the door, revealing that Bob was standing in the doorway.
"What were you talking about in there?" Bob asked.
"Oh, nothing." Louise lied.
"It wasn't nothing." Linda said. "You kids were talking about a factory and something about a tower."
"It's a dream factory," Tina said, "which specializes in helping people build towers."
"Okay." Bob said, clearly not believing a word of what his daughters had told him.
Tina held open the door to the bathroom, allowing Louise to walk out. Gene was about to leave the bathroom, but he suddenly stopped in his tracks. He let out a gasp, which worried not only Tina, but also Bob, Linda, and Louise. While their parents could only see that the eleven-year-old looked shocked, the teen and the child could see that something had touched him. It was something invisible to the human eye, but visible to the Belcher children. Either way, it was something dark and sinister.
"Gene?" Bob asked.
"Are you okay, sweetie?" Linda asked.
"I. Feel. Fine. Mom and Dad." Gene spoke, albeit slowly.
"Sure you're okay there, Gene?" Louise asked out of suspicion.
Gene didn't say anything, only walking to a booth. As he walked by, Louise could see that his eyes were flashing. It was hard to tell at first, but there was a familiar symbol in her older brother's eyes. His eyes looked like they were glitching out, but the symbol was there. It was something both Tina and Louise wouldn't forget until the day they died: the Eye of X.A.N.A. X.A.N.A had managed to possess Gene, the reason being unknown at the moment.
Upon seeing the symbol in Gene's eyes, Tina and Louise agreed to keep an eye on him, so that they could stop X.A.N.A from using him to cause chaos. The sisters went to work, with the eldest delivering food to each table while the youngest helped Bob at the grill. X.A.N.A-Gene only sat in a booth, not moving or saying anything. As she gave the customers their orders, Tina occasionally checked on her possessed brother. She went to Louise every so often, telling her that there was no activity from Gene. However, they both had to remain vigilant, as something bad would have happened if they weren't.
Meanwhile at the farmer's market, Yumi had gotten finished selling the punch she had made. With it all gone, she went to join her fellow Lyoko Warriors. Like the brunette, Jeremy had manage to get the entire team their own carts, so that they could sell stuff to any passersby. Of course, no one in the group was a farmer, so they had to sell something they had made. From baked goods to drinks, the Lyoko Warriors made additional money beyond their tutoring jobs. Once they were all done, they went out on the sidewalk.
"So, how did the rest of you do?" Yumi asked.
"Well, the brownies that Jeremy and I worked on sold better than we expected." Aelita said.
"At least your stuff sold better than mine." Odd said. "And to think, I was working in Wagstaff's kitchen for two hours yesterday!"
"I think the soup I had with me sold pretty well." Ulrich said.
"Remind me never to try baking again!" William spoke. "My hands are still aching from yesterday!"
"Putting all that aside, at least we're making a few extra bucks." Sissi said. "Of course, we had to sell what we made at a farmer's market. Weren't there any bake sales happening at a store that's going out of business?"
"From what I could tell, there weren't any." Odd said.
Jeremy did not say anything, only overlooking the data on his laptop. There was a Tower activated on Lyoko, which meant that X.A.N.A had launched an attack. However, there seemed to be no sign of the AI's influence at the farmer's market. So the question was where he could have been attacking. If it was somewhere far from Seymour's Bay, then the Lyoko Warriors would have had a hard time saving anyone from a X.A.N.A-influenced disaster. Not every attack was easy to fix, even with a Return To The Past.
"Any activity on Lyoko?" Aelita asked.
"So far, a Tower has been activated, but there's no sign of a X.A.N.A attack here in the real world." Jeremy spoke.
All of a sudden, an image flashed on the screen. It turned out to be the icon for Jeremy's email, meaning that he got a new message. He opened it up, seeing where the message could have come from. While he did not like to take his eyes off the data from Lyoko, especially when a Tower had been activated, the blonde knew that it could have been important. It wasn't a coincidence that the teen got a message when we was looking through Lyoko. Sure enough, when he opened the new message, he was greeted with something greeted.
Guess the fat one could not resist being possessed.
-X.A.N.A
"What's happening, Jeremy?" Odd asked.
"It's a message from X.A.N.A!" Jeremy says. "He's saying that someone called the 'fat one' was unable to resist being possessed!"
"The 'fat one'?" Sissi asked. "Who would that be? Who do we know that's fat?"
"Beats me," Odd said, "there's lots of fat people in the world!"
"I think I might know who X.A.N.A is talking about." Yumi said. "He's talking about Gene!"
"Or someone else who goes to Wagstaff." Ulrich said.
"Either way, we should split up." Jeremy said. "Aelita, Ulrich, you'll head to the factory with me, while the rest of you try to get Tina and Louise!"
"And Gene, assuming he's not the one X.A.N.A was talking about!" William said.
"Right." Aelita said. "Let's move out!"
As they continued to work at the restaurant, Tina and Louise often visited the booth Gene was sitting in. Teddy had come in moments prior, and he had been telling one of his stories. Of course, he was primarily speaking to Bob and Linda, though the Belchers would occasionally ask him questions. However, Gene was dead silent, not even making a single noise. As such, Bob, Linda, and Teddy grew concerned. Tina and Louise knew the reason, but they did not say anything.
"Wow," Teddy spoke, "Gene is really quiet today."
"It's like someone hit a switch and turned off what makes Gene special." Linda said.
"Not only is he not doing what he normally does, but he isn't helping out in the restaurant." Bob said.
"Maybe it's an off-day for him." Louise suggested, hoping to divert suspicion from the grownups.
Gene soon stood up, as if he decided to get up and move. However, considering how X.A.N.A had him under his power, the eleven-year-old was likely going to be used for evil. Tina and Louise were tense, knowing that something bad was going to happen. As for the grownups, they were glad to see Gene get up, but were still concerned. That concern mixed with curiosity, as the boy blankly stared at everyone, not saying anything. It was a bad sign when that happened, and everyone hoped that something good would come out of it.
"Mother, Father, is it okay if I take a walk for an extended amount of time?" Gene spoke, sounding as if he had forgotten how to speak.
"A walk?" Bob spoke. "Gene, are you okay?"
"I am perfectly fine." The eleven-year-old said. "I just want to get some exercise, which is what our fellow humans do."
"Okay." Linda said, not believing Gene's words. "Go ahead and get some exercise, my athletic baby."
Turning to the door, Gene began to rapidly march towards it. Clearly, X.A.N.A had given him some extra energy and athletic prowess. As he left the restaurant, the eleven-year-old walked down the sidewalk, in the same manner he did while walking to the door. Bob, Linda, and Teddy watched in utter disbelief, having never seen Gene move like that before. Now that it happened, Tina and Louise knew that they were going to be asked about what was going on. The grownups had seen X.A.N.A-Gene run faster than the speed of sound, so it was inevitable.
Before anything else could happen, the phone rang. Linda answered it, wanting to distract from the awkwardness that happened moments before.
"Hello?" Linda spoke. "Yeah, they're right here. I'll hand you to them! Just hang on!"
"Who is it?" Tina asked.
"It's one of your tutors." The woman said.
Taking the phone from Linda, Louise spoke into it.
"Hello?" Louise spoke.
"Louise, has Gene been acting strange?" Jeremy's voice came out of the phone.
"Well, he's been awful quiet today." The nine-year-old said. "Hell, he even went running down the sidewalk."
"Then it turns out the message I got from X.A.N.A was right!" The teen said. "Gene's been possessed by him!"
"What do you want us to do, Jeremy?" The third grader asked.
"Is it a work day at your restaurant?" The tutor asked.
"Yeah."
"Then the team will be there shortly! Aelita, Ulrich, and I are at the factory! We'll keep an eye out for Gene!"
The call ended, so Louise handed Linda the phone. Bob and Linda looked at Tina and Louise, curiosity marking their faces.
"So, what was that about?" Bob asked.
"Oh, they were just calling about how we were doing in class!" Louise lied.
"How are you doing in your classes?" Linda asked.
"Good! Good!" The nine-year-old said. "Very good! Right Tina?"
"True." Tina said.
Bob and Linda looked at each other for a moment, then looked at their daughters again.
"Tina, Louise, what is going on?" Bob asked.
"What do you mean, Dad?" Tina asked.
"I mean that you, along with Gene, often walk off and disappear for an hour." He said. "Every time we think to ask what you have been doing, something happens and the day restarts."
"And we keep having these odd dreams about you fighting some weird creatures!" Linda said.
"Do we happen to be wearing our normal clothes in your dreams?" Louise asked.
"No, you're not dressed in your everyday clothes." Bob said. "Louise, you're dressed as a commando, while Tina is dressed up like an acrobat. Gene's dressed up like a cowboy, and he even has some sort of laser pistol."
Tina and Louise were surprised. It was one thing for them to have dreams about Lyoko, but now Bob and Linda were having them. Not only that, but they seemed to remember everything that happens before a Return To The Past. At this point, it was hard to lie to anyone in the room. Louise knew it as well as Tina did. With their tutors/teammates coming to the restaurant, they knew Bob and Linda couldn't be kept in the dark for much longer, even if it was for their own good.
"Dad, don't be mad, but Gene, Tina, and I have been going to this virtual world in order to fight an evil monster who wants to take over the world." Louise spoke. "That monster has possessed Gene, and we need to free him from its control."
"Louise, do you know how weird that sounds?" Bob asked. "I mean, how do we know our dreams aren't just a coincidence?"
All of a sudden, Odd opened the door.
"Tina!" He shouted. "Louise, we need you at the factory!"
"Now do you believe us?" Louise asked, looking at Bob.
"I don't believe it." Bob said.
"Our dreams were REAL?!" Linda asked.
"Yes, and we need to get to the factory!" Louise said.
"We can't just take off in the middle of a work day!" Bob said.
"Dad," Tina spoke, "Gene's possessed, and if we don't get him back, we'll lose him for good!"
Bob and Linda knew that they did not have any choice. If they didn't let their daughters go, then they would lose their son. However, that didn't mean that everyone in the restaurant could leave. Someone needed to watch after the place, even if it meant running the business for a day. While they knew that the tutors would be with Tina and Louise, the Belcher parents knew that one of them had to go with them. It was better for an adult to get involved than let the fate of the world hang in the balance of teenagers and children.
"Alright." Bob said. "But I'm going with you and your tutors! Kids REALLY shouldn't be doing this!"
Walking out of the restaurant, Bob walked down the sidewalk with Tina, Louise, Odd, Yumi, William, and Sissi. As they knew where the factory was, the tutors led the way, even telling Bob that it wouldn't be long before they reached it. The Belcher patriarch was, naturally, reluctant to head there. All he wanted to do was have a normal workday, even if something went wrong. Gene being possessed by a computer program and learning that his kids were fighting against said program were two of the last things he wanted to learn about. However, there was no time for complaining, as he knew what Tina and Louise needed to do.
In the lab, Jeremy was overlooking the Mountain Sector, which was where X.A.N.A had activated the Tower. He sent Ulrich and Aelita there, so that they could make it there and free Gene from X.A.N.A's control. The spectacled blonde had not heard back from the others yet, so he didn't know whether or not they were coming. Knowing that Gene was possessed, the teen figured that he was likely on his way here, either to destroy the supercomputer or force himself into Lyoko. He hoped that the others would be here soon. If not them, then Tina and Louise would have worked.
The door to the lab came open, causing Jeremy to turn around. Gene was standing in the doorway, not speaking or making a single noise. X.A.N.A was possessing him, and he was likely going to make the eleven-year-old destroy the supercomputer. If not that, then the AI was planning on getting to Aelita. Either way, Jeremy could not let the possessed Gene onto Lyoko. While he couldn't handle physical threats all of the time, the teen wasn't willing to let X.A.N.A stop the Lyoko Warriors for good.
"Sorry, X.A.N.A, but Ulrich and Aelita are on their way to the Tower." Jeremy spoke.
Letting out an annoyed sigh, X.A.N.A-Gene only walked up to Jeremy. He put out his hand, which was crackling with electricity. Jeremy braced himself, knowing that his enemy would use his possessed victims to attack people with electric bursts. To his surprise, the possessed Gene didn't use an electric attack on him. Rather, the teen found himself being lifted into the air, even feeling something wrap around his throat. He was unable to stop X.A.N.A from accessing the supercomputer.
"X.A.N.A," Jeremy gagged, "I get that you want to destroy the supercomputer or get to Aelita, but do you really have to rip off Star Wars to keep me from stopping you?!"
X.A.N.A-Gene ignored Jeremy, only entering the code for an instant Virtualization. The possessed eleven-year-old then ran to one of the Scanners, where it closed around him. Once he was free, Jeremy found himself unable to stop X.A.N.A from sending his new possession victim to Lyoko. As much as he tried to halt it, the Virtualization happened regardless. The spectacled blonde could only watch as Gene was sent to the Mountain Sector, as part of whatever horrible plan X.A.N.A needed him for. He then dropped to the ground, and began to slowly walk through the Sector.
"Oh no!" Jeremy spoke.
"Jeremy, what's wrong?" Ulrich's voice came out of the headset.
"Get to the Tower as quickly as you can!" The spectacled blonde said. "X.A.N.A's brought Gene to Lyoko!"
As soon as he said that, Jeremy heard the door open again. This time, the rest of the team had shown up, along with Tina and Louise. However, Bob was also with them. Jeremy only hoped that Bob had stumbled into the factory by accident, or that he came because he was concerned about Gene. Whatever the reason, the spectacled blonde knew that the Belcher patriarch getting involved was going to lead to him getting hurt. It was one thing for X.A.N.A to possess Gene, but him hurting Bob was something Jeremy not wanted to happen.
"We're here, Jeremy!" Louise said.
"So, THIS is the lab?" Bob spoke. "It's rather small!"
"Tina, Louise, why is your Dad here?" Jeremy asked.
"He came to help us, Jeremy." Tina said.
"And also because I keep having dreams about this virtual world you send my kids and your friends to." Bob said.
"Well, you're a little late, because X.A.N.A's already sent Gene to Lyoko!" Jeremy said.
"In that case, let us in, Jeremy!" Louise said, running to the Scanners.
"Yumi, Odd, go with Tina and Louise!" The spectacled blonde said.
Upon entering the Scanners, Yumi, Odd, Tina, and Louise waited for Jeremy to start the Virtualization process. It began when he typed in the code, causing the Scanners to come on. One by one, the Belcher siblings and their tutors found themselves being scanned, with their avatars being selected. The moment Jeremy hit enter, the four were Virtualized. As they went to Lyoko, they agreed to take down Gene as quickly as they could. If they didn't, then Aelita would likely be the one to end up under X.A.N.A's control next.
In the Mountain Sector, Ulrich and Aelita were only a few feet away from the Tower. Prior to that, the two had been fighting off monsters. Ulrich had destroyed several Bloks while Aelita handled the Hornets that flew towards them. However, the encounter did not leave them unscathed, as Ulrich had taken two laser blasts, while Aelita had been shot out of the sky. If they continued to take damage, then they would both be Devirtualized. From there, X.A.N.A's attack would continue.
Now that they were near the Tower, all that Ulrich needed to do was have Aelita deactivate it. Even if it didn't free Gene from X.A.N.A's control, then at least it would have stopped the evil AI's attack for some time. Before Aelita could enter the Tower, however, she was thrown to the side by a laser. The attack came from X.A.N.A-Gene, who was standing still and holding his blaster. In order to prevent the possessed eleven-year-old from Devirtualizing them both, Ulrich had Aelita enter the Tower. However, something told him that their enemy would use his new minion to stop what they were about to do.
"Super Sprint!" Ulrich said, rushing towards X.A.N.A-Gene.
As soon as Ulrich came towards him, X.A.N.A-Gene began to fire his blaster. His opponent dodged each attack, so it forced the possessed eleven-year-old to think of a different strategy. Under his new master's direction, he fired his blaster with precision, intent on disarming Ulrich. While he succeeded in knocking one katana out of the teen's hands, he needed to get them both away from him. The preteen fired his blaster again, managing to disarm his enemy. However, that did not mean that Ulrich was helpless.
Before X.A.N.A-Gene could fire his blaster again, he found it being knocked out of his hands. Yumi had thrown one of her fans at him, preventing him from Devirtualizing Ulrich. Louise and Tina rushed towards their possessed brother, brandishing their weapons. As they did that, Ulrich picked up his katanas, then ran back towards his teammates, where he joined Odd in attacking. One way or another, they were not letting X.A.N.A-Gene get to Aelita, or fall into the Digital Sea. Even if their weapons would prove ineffective, they were not going to let the preteen become X.A.N.A's new general.
Upon throwing an Energy Field at X.A.N.A-Gene, Aelita hoped that it would be enough to Devirtualize him. While it did hit the possessed eleven-year-old, it did not free him from X.A.N.A's control. The next hit would have to come from someone else, a task which was proving itself to be difficult, given how possession made him far more flexible and calculating. With no other option, Aelita entered the Tower, hoping that Gene would be freed upon its deactivation. If not, then being Devirtualized would have freed him. The Lyoko Warriors only hoped that X.A.N.A hadn't already turned him into a new minion.
With Aelita inside the Tower, Tina, Louise, Ulrich, Yumi, and Odd were forced to fight X.A.N.A-Gene by themselves. In one swift move, the possessed eleven-year-old Devirtualized Odd. Yumi was nearly Devirtualized, being saved in the nick of time when Tina knocked the blaster out of her brother's hands. Ulrich and Louise then attacked with their weapons, but failed to free Gene of X.A.N.A's influence. It was going to take more than their weapons to send him back to Earth, and they knew it. They kept fighting, desperately trying to stop X.A.N.A-Gene from getting away from them.
Back in the real world, Odd had just come out of a Scanner, and had joined Bob, William, and Sissi in watching Jeremy work at the computer.
"Aelita, have you Deactivated the Tower, yet?" Jeremy spoke into the headset.
"I already have!" Aelita said. "Is Gene still possessed?"
"Yeah, but it doesn't make any sense!" The spectacled blonde said. "Is X.A.N.A just not willing to give up Gene without a fight?"
"Speaking of X.A.N.A," Louise's voice came of of the headset, "Jeremy, what the HELL is this thing?!"
Looking at the screen, Jeremy saw something floating near Tina, Louise, Ulrich, Yumi, and X.A.N.A-Gene. Upon realizing what it was, the teen gasped. It was a monster that no one could defeat on Lyoko, no matter how hard they tried. Aelita had fallen victim to it several times before, as did Yumi and William. The monster could not be destroyed, even if the Lyoko Warriors attacked it with everything they had on hand. Flying near the team was one of X.A.N.A's most dangerous weapons: the Scyphozoa.
"Louise, whatever you do, don't let it near you, or on the Tower!" Jeremy spoke into the headset.
"Well, what IS it?" Louise asked.
"It's the Scyphozoa!" The teen said. "X.A.N.A has used it several times before, mainly to extract data or use it to possess someone on the team!"
"But why did it show up after I entered the Tower?" Aelita spoke. "It's been Deactivated, so there's no reason for it to be around!"
"Presumably for the same reason X.A.N.A possessed Gene!" The spectacled blonde said.
On Lyoko, the Scyphozoa floated towards the team. It was roughly the same size as all of them, not counting the tentacles. The creature itself resembled a jellyfish, with its transparent appendages and round body. Knowing what Jeremy had said about it, the group knew they needed to stop it before it grabbed any of them or tried to attack the Tower. But, how were they going to do it? Ulrich and Yumi were aware of how indestructible it was, so they worried about Tina and Louise rushing towards it. Gene being possessed was bad enough, so they didn't need the other Belcher children falling under X.A.N.A's control.
Louise threw her knives at the Scyphozoa, only for them to bounce off the creature. It only floated towards her, intent on getting a hold of her. Tina pulled her away from its line of sight, before aiming her staff at X.A.N.A-Gene. She swung her weapon at her possessed brother, only for it to get knocked out of her hands. The preteen then Devirtualized his sister with only two blasts of his blaster. This left Ulrich, Yumi, and Louise to deal with both him and the Scyphozoa while Aelita remained in the Tower.
Firing his blaster again, X.A.N.A-Gene formed a stone wall that separated Ulrich and Yumi from Louise. After that, he turned towards the Scyphozoa. It was now apparent what X.A.N.A's plan was: having the Scyphozoa steal something from Gene. Another option was for the creature to make his brainwashing much stronger.
"Gene!" Louise shouted. "Stop! Don't go near it!"
Her pleas fell on deaf ears, as X.A.N.A-Gene fired a blast her way. Instead of hitting Louise or Devirtualizing her, it formed a stone around her legs. This left her unable to run, let alone jump or crouch. With the nine-year-old immobilized from the knee down, X.A.N.A-Gene approached the Scyphozoa, eager to be embraced by its tentacles. Ulrich and Yumi tried to smash the stone wall, but to no avail. They were unable to stop the Scyphozoa from getting to their allies.
"Jeremy, we aren't going to make it!" Yumi spoke.
Back in the lab, Jeremy watched as X.A.N.A-Gene walked closer to the Scyphozoa. With Ulrich and Yumi unable to stop this from happening, it was up to either Aelita or Louise to save the eleven-year-old. Aelita was still in the Tower, meaning that she could have fired an Energy Field at Gene. Louise could even use her knives to Devirtualize her brother, thus freeing him of X.A.N.A's control. However, Jeremy did not want to risk the Scyphozoa going after anyone else. Time was running out, and X.A.N.A was going to make Gene into his minion unless someone did something.
"You've got to do something, Jeremy!" Bob said. "That evil computer program is going to make Gene go to that giant jellyfish!"
"I have an idea, Mr. Belcher!" Jeremy said. "Two of them, to be exact!"
As she was unable to run towards her brother, Louise was forced to watch as the possessed Gene stopped in his tracks. The Scyphozoa slowly arched its tentacles towards him, intent on carrying out its task. Once Aelita stepped out of the Tower, she saw what was happening. While she was frightened of the Scyphozoa, she was horrified to see that X.A.N.A was forcing Gene to let it have him. The pink-haired teen looked over at Louise, which made her upset. After all, the nine-year-old was only sitting there, only watching as her brother was about to turn into X.A.N.A's minion.
"Louise, do something!" Aelita spoke. "Don't let the Scyphozoa put Gene under a stronger possession!"
"I don't see you doing anything!" Louise said.
"Listen to Aelita, Louise!" Jeremy's voice rang out. "X.A.N.A's going to keep Gene under his possession if the Scyphozoa uses its powers on him!"
"But what can we do?!" The nine-year-old asked.
"Louise, can you hear me?" Bob spoke, using the headset.
"Yeah, and I don't know what to do!" She said.
"Throw something at Gene, or that gross creature!" The Belcher patriarch said. "Do you have something you can throw?"
Looking down, Louise forgot that she still had knives on her outfit. Taking one off, she threw it at Gene, right as the Scyphozoa was about to bring its top tentacles near the boy's head. It hit him on impact, causing the Scyphozoa to release its hold on him. With no time to lose, the nine-year-old threw another knife at her possessed brother, once again hitting him. As that happened, the grip of the monster loosened some more, almost dropping the eleven-year-old. Clearly, X.A.N.A was only after Gene, and no one else.
"Only fifty life points remaining!" Jeremy spoke, having the headset again. "Aelita, give Louise a hand!"
"On it!" Aelita said.
Gathering up some power, Aelita created an Energy Field and threw it at Gene. It hit the eleven-year-old, causing the Scyphozoa to drop him. Luckily, it wasn't floating above the Digital Sea, so he hit the ground of the Mountain Sector. To be sure that her brother would be freed of X.A.N.A's control, Louise threw another knife, hitting him in the head. After that, Gene became a wire frame version of himself, then soon dissolved. Right before he was completely gone, he let out a scream in his normal voice tone.
One of the Scanners opened up in the lab, which caused everyone to look over at it. When the Scanner was open, Gene was shown to be standing in it. He looked exactly the same as he did prior to going to Lyoko. It was hard to tell if he was still possessed or not. But, by getting a closer look, Bob saw that his son's eyes were normal. Gene had been freed from X.A.N.A's control, and he was probably glad to be back to normal.
"What happened?" Gene asked.
"Let's just say that X.A.N.A decided to take you out for a spin." Odd spoke.
"What about Aelita?" The eleven-year-old asked.
"Don't worry, Gene, she deactivated the Tower." Jeremy said.
Standing in the Mountain Sector, Louise and Aelita were then joined by Ulrich and Yumi. It didn't take long for the latter two to figure out what had happened. Given how X.A.N.A-Gene was gone, and how Aelita and Louise looked proud of themselves, it was safe to say it was another victory for the team. All that was left was either their Devirtualization or for Jeremy to launch the Return To The Past.
"Coast is clear, Jeremy!" Ulrich said.
"Should we do a Return To The Past?" Yumi asked.
"I don't see why we should." Jeremy said. "After all, the only slip-up we had was Tina and Louise telling their Dad about Lyoko."
Back on Earth, Bob signaled for Jeremy to take off the headset. The teen did so, only to be pulled into a brief conversation with the man.
"Jeremy," Bob said, "I'm not the only one who the kids told about Lyoko. Linda and Teddy heard about it, too."
"Perhaps a Return To The Past is safe." Jeremy said.
"Before you do that, I want to be part of the team." The man said.
"I'm not sure how you would join." The teen said.
"Yeah, the only way you would be a member is to get uploaded into the supercomputer." Odd said.
"Then load me into it!" Bob said.
"What?" Everyone in the room was shocked.
"You heard me." He said. "Ever since I started having dreams about that virtual world, I wanted to figure out the reason why. Now that I've been told about it, and seen what it's like, I want to be part of the team. Kids and teenagers shouldn't be doing this on their own, and you guys need all the help you can get!"
Letting out a reluctant sigh, Jeremy had Bob enter one of the Scanners. He started the upload, which would save the Belcher patriarch to the supercomputer. As if happened, there were no errors with the Scanners, meaning that it was a complete success. When it was done, Jeremy opened the Scanner, and Bob walked out of it. The spectacled blonde knew that Aelita was likely going to be upset with him, but he put that feeling aside. After all, like Mr. Belcher said, the Lyoko Warriors needed all the help they could get.
"I hope this doesn't delete his code right away." Jeremy said, typing in another line of code. "Return To The Past, now!"
Upon being input, the Return To The Past began. It soon engulfed the factory, slowly spreading all throughout the globe. While most of the damages X.A.N.A caused would be fixed, the Lyoko Warriors would remember everything that happened. That also included Bob, who had been uploaded to the supercomputer. By the time the Return To The Past was finished, everyone else in the world would have no memory of what had happened on the previous version of the same day. The world would be safe again, for the time being.
When the Return To The Past was complete, Bob and Tina found themselves back at the farmer's market.
"Wow, that was ... incredible." Bob said.
"Yeah, it's really a trip to go through the Return To The Past." Tina said.
"Now that I've been added to the group, Tina, you and your brother and sister have got to involve me in what you have been doing more." The man said. "I don't know what I would do with myself if all three of you were killed by that X.A.N.A guy, so I want to help as much as I can."
"We know you do, Dad." The preteen said. "You can't be involved in every mission, though. The reason Gene, Louise, and I didn't tell you about all this sooner was because we didn't want to see you or Mom hurt. I guess we had the same priorities then."
"Definitely." He said. "Now, let's go buy those yams again."
As it was a repeat of the day, Bob and Tina went to buy the yams they would need for the Burger of the Day. While they did that, Yumi watched them, all the while selling her punch to any passersby. She wasn't exactly thrilled to hear that Bob had been saved to the supercomputer. Even if he had insisted, the brunette did not want him to get hurt while helping out the Lyoko Warriors. Letting it slide, she continued to sell drinks to those around her. After all, Aelita was probably more upset about Mr. Belcher joining the group.
Note: It's official, everyone, Bob is an unofficial Lyoko Warrior. But, why is X.A.N.A already bringing the Scyphozoa back? Is he out to have Aelita under his control, or is he using it for something else? Are the Lyoko Warriors prepared to deal with it again? Can Bob help his children and their allies fight? Will he be able to go to Lyoko or not?
Until next time, guys, this is Newcomer24, signing off. Peace!
