Note: August, the last month of summer vacation for those who go to school or other places of learning. For those who work, they barely get a vacation, so pity them. For this website, it's a month of new stories and new chapters (if authors are updating their stories, that is). As such, it's time for a new chapter for certain stories. Not only will this one be updated, but so will Love Or Lust. There might even be a new story posted.
In order to prevent myself from rambling, it's time for chapter twenty.
Chapter 20: Expect the Unexpected
At Wagstaff, Jeremy was in the library, looking over the files from the supercomputer. He was thinking about all the missions that had taken place since the Lyoko Warriors had arrived in Seymour's Bay. Not only had X.A.N.A made his way to the sleepy town, but he was using a new factory to launch attacks in an attempt to take over the world. If not for the team, those living in the New Jersey town would've been killed, and no one would've known what was causing their destruction. Only those added to the supercomputer would know what was going on, and would be the only ones with their memories intact when a Return To The Past was activated. Sometimes, it was better to leave the task of saving the world to those who work in the shadows.
Once he left the library, Jeremy wondered about the factory near Kadic. From what he heard, a construction company was bound to tear it down, which would expose the other supercomputer to those inside. That would leave them with a machine capable of sending people to a virtual world, though only children would be able to be Virtualized. As far as Jeremy knew, adults would not be able to enter Lyoko and leave unscathed. If the construction workers tried to access it, then there's no telling what could happen to them. At best, they would be Virtualized, but wouldn't be able to gain an avatar. At worst, they would either be killed or reduced to molecules.
Walking down the hallway while holding a folder, Jeremy wondered if any of his classmates at Kadic had thought about heading to the factory back home. Seeing as the Lyoko Warriors weren't at the school at the moment, there was probably someone wondering what they were up to. Considering the occasions where a Return To The Past wasn't needed, that meant that a student or teacher had some suspicion about the strange events caused by a X.A.N.A attack. After all, William remembered events that would've been erased from his mind when a Return To The Past was triggered. The Belcher family even dreamed about Lyoko before they found out what it was, even though it was otherwise impossible for them to do so. With that in mind, if someone at Kadic was curious about strange stuff, they were probably wondering what the source was.
Putting his folder in the classroom mailbox, Jeremy knew that everything was ready for tomorrow. He graded the papers he had received from the students in the computer lab while in the library, being careful enough to put the files from the supercomputer inside. The others had already put theirs in the designated slots for the classes they taught. As such, the spectacled blonde was happy, knowing that he wouldn't have to remind them about it. With everything taken care of, there was no need to worry about something going on in Wagstaff. Tomorrow was another school day, and everything was alright.
In the morning, the Belcher children entered Wagstaff, hoping to get through the day without much trouble. Tina had been studying for a biology test the other night, and was confident that she would be able to pass it. Gene knew that pizza would be served on that day, so he wanted to eat lunch later. Louise wasn't interested in lunch or schoolwork, but something else. This time, the nine-year-old wasn't planning a prank or anything like that. Rather, it was something within the school that had gotten her interest.
A few days ago, Louise had heard rumors of a strange noise on the playground. Regular-Sized Rudy had started the rumor, claiming the noise was coming from under the slide. Most of the kids in school thought that it was a gas leak, while others thought that it was a snake. Whatever the reason, Louise was interested in seeing what could be causing the noise. She hadn't heard the noise on the playground, but she figured that it would start the moment she entered recess. Even if it was something minor, the nine-year-old wanted to see what it was.
The day went on smoothly, with no conflict of any kind. While Tina had completed her test, she wouldn't know if she passed until tomorrow. Gene had two slices of pizza at lunch, but he figured that was enough for him. As for Louise, she was unable to see what the cause of that noise on the playground was. People were hogging the slide, to the point where she couldn't get close to it. Once school had ended, the Belcher siblings went home to recharge their batteries for the next day.
With the day over at Wagstaff, the Lyoko Warriors were in the library, looking over the papers they received from the students they tutored. Needless to say, they were a bit impressed with the scores each student had gotten. Some of them had improved since the last test, as a few students had gone from a C to an A-. Others didn't have passing grades, but they had still gotten higher grades than the last time. The moment they had finished grading each paper, the Lyoko Warriors were intent on taking the folders back to the office. From there, the teachers would get them back.
"Gee, who knew that the students would do better on their tests this time?" Odd asked.
"You don't even teach, Odd." Yumi said.
"Doesn't mean I can't be impressed about the test scores." The blonde said.
"They may have improved, but some of them might get held back." Sissi spoke. "I mean, Jocelyn has a higher grade, but she's still got an F."
"And one of the kids I tutor is dumber than a sack of dirty laundry." Ulrich said. "He's strong, but I can't explain a whole lot to him."
"In the very least, he'll have a solid career as an athlete." Odd stated.
"I'd happily give you one of the kids I tutor." William said. "Most of the students I'm in charge of helping are smart, even for their own good."
"The students I tutor are a 50/50 deal." Aelita said. "As a plus, they're very passionate about music."
"Some of the kids I tutor have trouble at times," Yumi spoke, "but they can pull through. How about you, Jeremy?"
"I've had no problems with the students I tutor." Jeremy said. "Heck, some of them are patient enough for me to finish my lecture."
"Makes you wonder why we even tutor if some of these kids barely need to improve at all." Sissi said.
"It's our duty now, so we can't abruptly quit and leave these kids in the dust." The spectacled blonde said.
When they had left the library, the Lyoko Warriors had taken their folders to the office, putting them in the slots designated for each classroom they tutored in. Once that was out of the way, they left the office, intent on heading out of Wagstaff. There wasn't much for them to do in town at night, so they decided to hang out at the factory for the time being. Jeremy was merely intent on checking for activity on the supercomputer. If there was a X.A.N.A attack, then he would have the others enter Lyoko and fight their way to the Tower. If not, then everything was alright for now.
After doing a quick search, Jeremy noticed that no Towers had been activated. However, he decided to keep looking through the data the supercomputer had collected. The rest of the Lyoko Warriors left the factory, deciding to head back to Wagstaff before anyone got suspicious. Jeremy followed them soon after, having found nothing new about Lyoko's data. Not even a Sector had a change to its code, meaning that everything was intact. However, if something had changed by tomorrow, then the Lyoko Warriors had a problem.
Inside their home for the night, the Belcher children wondered if there were other supercomputers that could access Lyoko. Jeremy had mentioned to them that there was a supercomputer miles away from Kadic Academy and, as far as anyone knew, that was the other method of fighting X.A.N.A. However, he had also mentioned that the AI had managed to create duplicates of Lyoko's Sectors known as Replikas, which were even tied to other supercomputers. Since these were X.A.N.A's creation, this didn't count, especially given how they were destroyed when the Lyoko Warriors thought they had defeated him for good. The supercomputer in Seymour's Bay was a mystery, considering how no one knew if it was created by X.A.N.A or Aelita's father Franz Hopper. It was more likely the latter, as it didn't appear to be a death trap.
Putting any additional thoughts aside, Tina, Gene, and Louise fell asleep. By tomorrow, they would be ready to take on the day. Tina hoped to see what she had gotten on her test. Gene hoped to get a better grade in physical education, as being in bad shape was bad for a mission on Lyoko. Louise was intent on finding out the source of that strange noise from under the slide. Whatever it was, it was something that had piqued the nine-year-old's interest.
As the sun set over Kadic Academy, a teen boy was sneaking out of campus. He was dressed in dark clothing that masked his appearance, so that no one noticed him moving around. There was no one else on campus aside from himself, so he was clear. However, he wasn't simply planning on stealing snacks or doing graffiti. Rather, the boy was intent on finding something that he felt held the answers to the strange happenings around Kadic. As long as no one noticed he was gone, he was free. He hoped that he would find out why there were such strange happenings taking place in his school.
Walking through the forest, the teen found himself looking at a massive building from across the bridge. It was a bicycle factory that had been shut down years ago, but there were rumors of something strange hiding beneath it. He didn't know how, but he thought that Jeremy Belpois and a few others had visited the factory prior to them being called in to tutor students at another school. With them gone, the boy couldn't question them or ask them to bring him with them. They had likely seen what was underneath the factory, which made it all the more intriguing for him. Once he reached the building, he promised himself that he would be careful and take a quick peek at what was inside.
The next day, the Lyoko Warriors were at Wagstaff, having just handed back the papers they graded. A few of the students had thanked them for said papers, happy about their grades. Once that was out of the way, the team went to the library, intent on speaking with whoever came to them. However, they had no visitors for the rest of the day, which was rather disappointing. Not even the Belcher siblings had visited them, presumably being busy with something else. Whatever it was, the Lyoko Warriors hoped that it wouldn't keep them from heading to the factory when X.A.N.A was on the move.
When just an hour was left in school, the Lyoko Warriors decided to head to the factory and make sure a Tower hadn't been activated. If there was one currently in use, then they would call their allies for some backup. If not, then everything was fine. The moment the team set a foot inside, Jeremy went to the lab and accessed the supercomputer. As he did that, the others entered the lab, wondering if anything was up on Lyoko. Even if there wasn't an activated Tower, there could still be an army of X.A.N.A's monsters looking to be sent to the real world.
"So, anything unusual?" Ulrich spoke.
"No, not even a Tower has been affected by X.A.N.A." Jeremy said. "Looks like we're in the clear for the time being."
"X.A.N.A must be taking a day off from trying to kill us and take over the world." Odd said.
"If he is, then he must be relaxing for the time being." William said.
"He's a virus, viruses don't relax." Yumi stated.
"Even if he could, I highly doubt that he would have a lazy day." Sissi spoke. "He'd probably brainstorm some new plans to use in our later fights with him."
"Hopefully, X.A.N.A doesn't plan on attacking after all." Aelita said.
Suddenly, Jeremy heard an odd frequency coming out of the headset. At first, he thought it was the sound card being glitchy, but he was wrong. The spectacled blonde briefly exited LyokoLand to check it, only to find that it wasn't damaged or being attacked by a glitch. Once he went back to LyokoLand, he heard the frequency again, but decided to listen more closely. Each sound came out in a pattern, the next sound being less distorted than the last one. After a few seconds, it became clear to Jeremy that this was not some frequency from Lyoko or a glitch on the supercomputer, but something different.
It was a voice!
"Jeremy, what's wrong?" Aelita asked.
"There's a voice coming out of the headset!" Jeremy spoke. "I don't know how to explain it, but someone else is on Lyoko!"
"How is that even possible?" Ulrich asked.
"Whoever is trying to talk to us must be using the supercomputer under the factory back home." The spectacled blonde said.
"You think we should call the others?" Sissi asked.
"I would do that if I were you, because I think they would be interested in this little mystery." The teen said.
As Jeremy worked at the supercomputer, Odd took out his cellphone and went to call Wagstaff. He was hoping that his call would be picked up by a teacher, so that he could reach the away team. If someone was on Lyoko, everyone had to be together in order to find out who they were. Saving the day was a group effort, after all.
Back at Wagstaff, Louise was about to look for the source of the strange noise on the playground. It was under the slide, so she had to wait until everyone was away from it. The nine-year-old knew that it would be weird to do so while people were using the slide, especially since the kids on it weren't aware of the rumor. Whether or not it was something X.A.N.A was influencing, she had to make sure. For all the youngest Belcher sibling knew, it could just be something mundane, such as a snake. If it was, then she hoped to have it as a pet.
Once Louise was near the slide, she heard someone call for her.
"Louise, Jeremy wants to see us!"
It was Tina who said that. Louise turned around to see her older sister standing a few feet away from her. Gene was with her, presumably having already gotten the message from Jeremy. Needless to say, they were ready to head to the factory while Louise was not.
"Can't this wait?" Louise spoke. "I'm about to solve a mystery!"
"Well, you can solve it later!" Tina said. "Jeremy said that whatever's going on is urgent!"
Knowing that there was no way to get out of it, Louise reluctantly abandoned her search to find the source of the noise under the slide. She followed Tina and Gene out of school, with Henry, Jimmy Junior and Zeke joining them. While she would be preoccupied with the mission, the brunette promised herself that she would find the source of the weird noise. Even if it was something mundane, the mystery was still intriguing. Putting that thought aside, she hoped that the emergency at the lab wasn't anything huge. Then again, anything could happen on Lyoko, even when X.A.N.A hadn't launched an attack.
As they waited for the away team, the Lyoko Warriors watched as Jeremy went through Lyoko, checking to see if any Towers had been activated. He figured that the person who was using the supercomputer at the lab near Kadic was in control of one, given how they were trying to contact the lab the team was currently in. None of the Towers were glowing a different color, meaning that they weren't active. With that in mind, Jeremy guessed that the person using the other supercomputer was going through Lyoko like he was. But whoever they were was a different story, as their voice was coming out in garbled speech patterns. Jeremy listened more carefully, but he still couldn't confirm who was using the other supercomputer.
"No luck, huh?" Ulrich asked.
"Unfortunately for us." Jeremy said. "Whoever is using the supercomputer back home isn't in control of a Tower, but that's not good. If they're just looking through Lyoko, then they're at risk of being attacked by X.A.N.A! It doesn't help that they're speaking, but nothing they say is coming out clearly!"
"Hopefully, the others get here." The brunette said.
"Wait." The spectacled blonde said. "Hold on! Whoever is using the other supercomputer is speaking again! I can understand them more clearly now!"
"Who is it, Jeremy?" Aelita asked.
By listening closely, Jeremy could hear a familiar voice in the headset. This was someone the Lyoko Warriors knew at Kadic well, being a classmate of theirs. Not only that, but he had been in a group with Sissi before she had been accepted into the team. He was even one of the smartest students in school, next to Jeremy himself. Of course, this meant that they were rivals in terms of academics, not that Jeremy really cared. It seemed like the team wouldn't speak to him for quite some time. However, that was until today.
"It's Herb!" Jeremy spoke.
"Herb?" Ulrich asked.
"Oh great, why is he using the supercomputer near Kadic?" Odd spoke. "Could he be looking for a way to spoil the secret to the police?"
"Tell that boob to get off of it, Jeremy!" Sissi said. "He'll interfere in the fight against that jerk X.A.N.A!"
Readjusting the headset, Jeremy tried to contact Herb. He wanted to be quick, knowing that his academic rival was at risk of being attacked by X.A.N.A. Even if he could use the other supercomputer, that didn't mean that the spectacled brunette wasn't at risk. After all, the only way to defend against possession was to be Virtualized into Lyoko, barring the Scyphozoa getting hold of you.
"Herb, is that you?" Jeremy spoke.
"Jeremy?" Herb's voice came out of the headset. "Why is your voice coming out of this video game?"
"It isn't a video game, it's a virtual world with ties to the real world." The spectacled blonde said. "The supercomputer you're using acts as a gateway between both worlds. I'm speaking to you through a supercomputer that was set up in the town I'm tutoring in with the others."
"Wait, there are TWO of these things?!" The spectacled brunette cried.
"It's a long story. Look, Herb, I need you to get off the supercomputer you're using! There's a force of evil hiding within the virtual world, and it could target you if you keep using the supercomputer!"
"Alright, I'll get off it, but you'll have to tell me more about it when you, Sissi, and the others get back to Kadic!"
"I will, just try to leave!"
The other end of the line went silent for a moment, as if Herb had left in no time. However, Jeremy could hear breathing coming out of the headset. It sounded unrestrained and panicked. Upon hearing this, Jeremy was concerned.
"Herb?" He asked.
"Jeremy, something's wrong!" Herb spoke. "I can't move! It's almost as if I'm glued to the computer!"
Upon hearing that, Jeremy looked through each Sector, hoping that Herb was just too frightened to move. However, his hopes were dashed when he saw that a Tower had been activated in the Forest Sector. It was clear that X.A.N.A had paralyzed Herb once he managed to get in control. With that in mind, Jeremy knew that the Lyoko Warriors needed to fight X.A.N.A in order to save their classmate.
"Oh no!" Jeremy spoke. "Herb, you've been paralyzed by our enemy!"
"Crap!" Herb said. "What do I do?!"
"Just stay where you are!" The spectacled blonde said. "We'll work on getting you free!"
"Alrighty then." The spectacled brunette said.
Jeremy looked at himself for a moment, checking to see if X.A.N.A had paralyzed him as well. Luckily, he wasn't paralyzed, but his own health wasn't his concern. His concern was getting whoever he could to Lyoko in order to deactivate the Tower and stop X.A.N.A's attack. Even if Herb wasn't the Lyoko Warriors' favorite person, they couldn't leave him in the state he was in.
"What's going on, Jeremy?!" Louise's voice rang out. "I was about to find out something!"
Turning his head, Jeremy saw the Belcher siblings, Henry, Jimmy Junior, and Zeke. Louise wasn't particularly happy to be in the lab, while the others were wondering what was wrong. As he was busy at the supercomputer, Jeremy gestured for Odd to explain what was going on to them. He was even setting up the Scanners so that he could send everyone to Lyoko.
"Well, a classmate of ours found the supercomputer back home, and X.A.N.A's paralyzed him." Odd spoke. "If we don't head to Lyoko and get Aelita to the Tower, he'll be stuck to the supercomputer forever!"
"And that is our problem, because?" Louise asked.
"Just come ON, Louise!" The blonde said out of annoyance, practically dragging the nine-year-old to the Scanners.
With Odd and Louise near the Scanners, Jeremy got two of them ready for the Virtualization process. The remaining three were meant for Aelita, Ulrich, and Yumi, so they went to go to Lyoko as well. Once they were all inside, Jeremy began to Virtualize his teammates and their pupil. While doing so, the spectacled blonde spoke to Herb through the headset.
"Herb, help is on the way!" Jeremy said. "Be warned, though, because this will be a bit awkward. Not only will Odd, Aelita, Ulrich, and Yumi be on Lyoko, but so will one of the students at Wagstaff we've been tutoring!"
"In that case, I hope I know what they're doing!" Herb's voice came out of the headset.
Upon being Virtualized into the Forest Sector, Aelita's main priority was getting to the Tower, stopping X.A.N.A's attack, and freeing Herb. The others would have to continue fighting while she was inside, though, as their enemy could try to disconnect the Tower. As they arrived, Ulrich and Yumi agreed to tag team every monster that came their way. Odd hoped to get Aelita to the Tower, though he was fine with throwing down against X.A.N.A's monsters. However, if he got sloppy, he would be Devirtualized before anyone else. Louise was not happy about being brought into the mission, but she knew that she had to help.
"The Tower isn't very far, so all we need to do is to keep an eye out for monsters." Aelita spoke.
"If there are any." Odd said. "X.A.N.A wouldn't spawn monsters the moment you're in the Tower, Aelita."
"And someone forgot who our enemy is." Ulrich snarked.
"Whatever, let's just get to the Tower!" Louise said.
As there were no monsters in sight, Aelita brought out her wings and began to fly towards the Tower. Ulrich, Yumi, Odd, and Louise ran towards the structure, keeping an eye out for a potential ambush from a group of monsters. Sure enough, a group of Bloks walked out, firing lasers at the team. One of them managed to hit Louise, but it didn't do enough damage to Devirtualize her. In response, she threw a knife at the one who shot at her, destroying it in an instant. However, that didn't stop the rest of them from firing at the nine-year-old.
Once the others were in battle, Aelita decided to head in the Tower. That was until she was knocked over by a laser blast. It didn't Devirtualize the pink-haired teen, but it did hurt her. When she got back on her feet, she saw two Tarantulas standing near the Tower. As the others were preoccupied, the time-displaced girl fought against these formidable creatures. Not only did she dodge their attacks, but she had destroyed them both with a single Energy Field. With them out of the way, Aelita was ready to deactivate the Tower.
"Be careful, guys!" Aelita shouted to the others.
Right as she said that, Louise had destroyed another Blok, though it had Devirtualized her in a mutual attack. As such, Ulrich, Yumi, and Odd were left to fight X.A.N.A's monsters while Aelita was in the Tower. Odd was the only one who had received damage by a Blok, having gotten a laser to his chest. Ulrich and Yumi weren't doing so well against the Bloks, though they had yet to be hit by lasers.
"Jeremy, what's going on?!" Herb's voice came out of the headset. "My arms and legs are cramping up!"
"It's okay, Aelita's in the Tower!" Jeremy spoke into it. "Once she deactivates it, you'll be able to move again!"
As he watched the mission's progress on the supercomputer, Jeremy knew that Aelita was about to deactivate the Tower. Louise had come back to Earth a few seconds ago, having staggered out of a Scanner. Jeremy had thought about sending the others to Lyoko, but he figured that it would be pointless, given how the mission was almost over. However, a Return To The Past was needed, given how Herb was in trouble. By finding the supercomputer near Kadic, he had put himself in danger. Even if the spectacled brunette could be a potential new member of the Lyoko Warriors, the team felt as though they couldn't trust him.
The moment the Tower was deactivated, Jeremy heard a familiar voice come out of the headset.
"I can move again!" Herb spoke. "Jeremy, I can move!"
"That's great, Herb." Jeremy said. "But you won't remember anything about this mission."
"Why is that?" The spectacled brunette asked.
"I'm about to trigger a Return To The Past." The spectacled blonde said. "Once it is triggered, it will reverse time, sending the world back a day or two. Unfortunately, only those who are tied to the supercomputer and Lyoko will remember what happened, while everyone else will forget what went on. That includes you, Herb. While I would be happy to let you into the group, we fear thar you would spoil the secret."
"I understand." The teen said. "In that case, keep kicking butt and I'll wait for you to come back to Kadic."
Nodding his head, Jeremy agreed to do what Herb had said. He triggered the Return To The Past, rewinding time to earlier in the day. While it likely would cause Herb to wake up in the factory near Kadic, the Lyoko Warriors hoped that he would head back to school instead of poking around for the supercomputer again. Then again, he would probably just find himself back on campus.
Once the Return To The Past was finished, Louise found herself back on the playground. As such, this gave her the opportunity to find out what was causing that strange noise under the slide. Much to her chagrin, it turned out to be a bunch of cicadas. While the nine-year-old was disappointed in this outcome, she figured that it was better than a X.A.N.A-influenced catastrophe. Seeing as the mystery had been solved, she went back in Wagstaff, knowing that she had class in the next few minutes. Of course, she was mainly hoping to talk to the Lyoko Warriors.
Note: Well, a crisis was averted, though it was an aversion Jeremy was reluctant to do. Has Herb's memory been erased, or is it still intact? Who else is unaffected by the Return To The Past? Are they friend or foe? Will the away team get to do a mission by themselves? If so, what could X.A.N.A have in store for them?
Until next time, guys, this is ElectricWizard99, signing off. Peace!
