"It was twice the size of the wade tower and had flaming fire coming from its feet! Jer, I think we need to hurry up with our plan!" Sissi exclaimed from the blonde's bed. Odd sat near Sissi's feet, petting Kiwi while the whole gang crammed into Jeremie's room.
"Not only that, now we know for sure that there are more replicas out there," Yumi said, "And with this...this-"
"Kolossus, with a K, remember," Odd smiled.
"It's gonna be hard to do anything on the replicas," William said.
"Which is why Sissi, Aelita, and I have been working on a program to get Franz Hopper back AND defeat XANA," Jeremie explained, "With it, we should be able to finally put an end to this."
"Right, and we've worked out all the kinks except one, right?" Sissi asked. Jeremie sighed, gritting his teeth slightly. He nodded. "Good." She stood up, stretched, and cracked her stiff neck. "I think we should get some rest and let Jeremie calculate the last part of the program."
"Oh, now you want me to work overtime," Jeremie huffed. Sissi giggled, ruffling the blonde's head. "You know, one day, I'm gonna grow up so tall that you can't even reach my head."
"HA! That'll be the day," Sissi laughed as they left the room. The team walked their separate ways while Sissi went to her room. She wasn't alone for long.
"You got a moment?" Odd asked.
"Of course," Sissi almost smirked. Whenever they were alone, a sudden giddy tingle would run up her spine. They wouldn't do anything, but it still happened nonetheless. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing. It's just... we haven't really talked about the... school attack," Odd blushed with a nervous grin.
"Oh."
"So. What do you think?"
"I told you what I think and feel," Sissi crossed her arms.
"Yeah, but I... don't really know what a steady relationship is. Plus my street cred as a ladies man is out the window," Odd huffed.
"You mean the likelihood of you getting slapped by another girl?" Sissi smirked, "Trust me, it's high."
"How are you okay with this?"
"I know you're loyal. Once you've made your mind about someone, you don't seem to let go," Sissi shrugged.
"How could you know that?"
"In the previous timeline, you kinda had a thing going on with my penpal in Norway."
"Really, Norwegian? Why didn't you let her come?"
"Because she caused you guys to break up faster than I ever could. Plus," Sissi grumbled under her breath, "She's pretty shallow, and this is coming from the queen of shallowness."
"Former queen," Odd smiled. Sissi smiled back. "So... why didn't you tell me earlier about your feelings?" It was silent for a while.
"I... I didn't want you to leave. I was scared," Sissi trembled to say the words, "that I would push you away like I did with Ulrich."
"Sissi, you're nothing like that anymore."
"Still," She wiped her eye, staring at the floor, "I was afraid." Odd suddenly gave her a peck on the lips. Sissi jerked her head back and covered her mouth. She liked it, but it was still their first kiss. She wasn't expecting this bubble of joy to cough up like a laughing hiccup.
"Well, you don't have to be afraid now," Odd charmingly grinned.
Sissi blushed brightly and scoffed, "Smooth, Romeo. Really smooth."
"I try my best," Odd grinned with a big-hearted smile.
Later on, the team regrouped after another deep search into Sector Five. The data had given them all they needed to finally run their program. "What exactly is the program?" William asked as they walked over the factory bridge. Jeremie glanced over to Sissi.
"It should be safe for now," She said.
"Right," Jeremie straightened his glasses, "We're gonna be launching a multi-agent system to take down XANA. It's the only way to completely defeat him once and for all."
"Isn't that risky?" Yumi asked. "I mean, XANA is a Multi-agent system as well."
"It'll be alright, Yumi," Sissi said, "We've already done some of the calculations, and we've made sure that everything is right as rain. Jeremie and I have been working on it for a while to get it ready. There's just one problem: The power."
"The Supercomputer should be powerful enough, but Sissi can't stop being paranoid about it. And so am I," Jeremie sighed.
"What's important is that we're ready for anything, and if XANA tries to rear his ugly head, then I've got something for him," Sissi grinned with the marks of a madman. Worry covered everyone's faces. Later on, while everyone, save Jereme, was eating at the mess hall, Odd kept asking Sissi about her secret weapon. "Don't worry about it," She said, "Just know that it should be enough to keep XANA at bay."
"But whatever we do," William added, "we're gonna have to figure out a way around our Kolossus friend. You know he's going to be there."
"I've been figuring that out," Sissi said with the same large mad grin. "Every XANA monster we've fought has a weak point, and most times it's where the mark of XANA is."
"So if we get those two marks on his eye and his sword-hand, we could defeat the Kolossus?" Ulrich asked.
"Exactly," Sissi grinned, "Swords would probably be the best. It would immobilize him. Thankfully, since William has been fighting with you guys, he's immune to XANA's possession... I hope. Either way, Ulrich doesn't have to be the only one."
"Well, now we have a battle strategy for Kolossus," William said, "But what about when XANA attacks Jeremie in the real world?"
Sissi rose her eyebrow but her smirk never left her face. "I'm proud of you all, you know. A few months ago, you all would have been calling me paranoid. Now I can't get you to stop thinking like me," She chuckled. "We need two people there with Einstein, so you and I will have to protect him."
"Right," William said. Just then, Einstein called them to the factory. They ran at full speed. Sissi glanced at Aelita who was running faster than all of them. "Slow down! Aelita! We're not as fast as you."
"Come on!" Aelita shouted back. They got to the manhole, went through the sewers, slipped down the ropes, and got into the elevator. Sissi couldn't shake the excited nature from her bones. She saw Aelita had it too. The corners of the elf's lips were at a slight upward curve.
"Are you okay?" Sissi asked.
"Yeah," Aelita replied.
"No bad feeling or anything?"
"No, you?"
"No... it's strange... Like... I know everything is going to go crazy but yet I still have...peace... It's so-" The elevator opened up and Jeremie was right at the keys.
"I got a message from Hopper to meet us at the Ice Sector," Jeremie said.
"Alright, you guys know the plan," Sissi instructed. Aelita, Yumi, Odd, and Ulrich went to the scanners while William and Sissi stood at Jeremie's side. The Mechanist explained her action plan.
"Wow, that's amazing planning!" Jeremie exclaimed.
"Don't be surprised," Sissi smiled, taking out her phone and turning it off. William did the same. They didn't want a repeat of the last attack. Besides, they couldn't be interrupted. Not now.
The four ran through the Ice Sector and toward a cave with a digital waterfall racing over it. Aelita went inside alone. In the cave was a bright white sphere hovering over the water. "Daddy," Aelita whispered. Back in the computer room, everything was going fine when suddenly a sharp tingle went down Sissi's spine. She furrowed her eyebrows and glanced at William.
"I feel it too," He replied, eying every corner of the room. Sissi passed him XR-Sleeves while Jeremie analyzed the data.
"Jeremie, my father is going to send you more data."
"Alright, I'm already-"
Beep Beep Beep
"Oh great. An activated tower. What now XANA?" Jeremie grumbled. Just then, Sissi heard sparks behind them.
"William duck!" The teenager dropped to the ground as an electric bolt soared over his head. They looked back and a dark-suited man with sunglasses and an earpiece glared back at them. He was completely bald, and his lips curved into a forbidding frown. "Crap."
"Come on, XANA," William said, turning his sleeves on, "Let's take this outside." XANA didn't listen. The specter threw an electric bolt at William, launching him back to the wall. Sissi ducked the other bolt. She ran over to William and diverted the bolts of lightning. The specter growled and slowly marched toward the teen.
"You want me, come get me," Sissi grumbled. But the Specter aimed his hand at Jeremie. "NO!" It shocked Jeremie unconscious in the chair, and then the Specter's hand moved to Sissi.
But she wasn't there.
WHACK!
Sissi swung her electrified cane at its head. It crashed to the floor, sputtering and buzzing uselessly. Sissi rushed over to Jeremie, pulled out something from her bag, and waved it around his nose. Jeremie jolted awake. "Ugh! What is that?"
"Odd's sock. Good for getting people up," Sissi smiled briefly.
"GGGGRRRR," growled the Specter, standing back up. Sissi ran over to the elevator and slammed the open button.
"Come and get me!" The Specter turned back to Jeremie, but a conscious William jumped up, wrapped his electrified hands around the specter's neck, and wrestled him into the elevator.
"Where do you think you're going," William grunted. Sissi smashed the down button as the Specter threw William off. The black-haired teen crashed into the metal wall. The Specter towered over him and kicked him. William shuffled right. Sissi bashed its head with her cane again. It buzzed, but it didn't go down. William swept its legs and the specter crashed down as the elevator opened up to the reactor room. "Why here?" William asked.
"I've got an idea," Sissi said, "Come on." The two worked fast to get Sissi's plan into action, opening a floor panel and snipping some wires. They were just about to cut open a wire when the Specter came back to life. "Oh, Crap."
"Wait, where are your XR-Sleeves?" William asked.
"You're wearing them."
"Wait, so those are just normal black gloves you have on?"
"Not really."
"Why didn't you get another one?!"
"Because I don't need it. Keep him busy!" She shouted.
Meanwhile, the team on Lyoko ran at top speed to the edge of the Ice Sector. The massive monstrous Kolossus was stomping towards them while Franz Hopper struggled to send Jeremie some data. Odd and Aelita blasted the mantas out of the sky while Ulrich and Yumi made every effort to fight the Kolossus itself. Each stomp shook the entire sector. Ulrich panted as he jumped off Yumi's overwing and ran up the monster's arm. He ducked a Manta's blast and tumbled to the rocky moving surface, but he kept moving. Jumping onto the shoulder, Ulrich stumbled to the creature's 'eye' and stabbed it straight in the middle. The Kolossus froze. "HA! It worked! You've immobilized him. Nice work Ulrich!" Jeremie shouted. Yumi flew in and caught Ulrich.
"Now to get his arm," Yumi said.
"Jeremie, how's the data?" Aelita asked.
"It... It can't be," Jeremie said in awe. That's when Franz Hopper flew over to the Digital Sea and plunged into the turbulent waves, disappearing from sight.
"Jeremie, my father's gone!"
"Don't worry, I know why. He's given me the last piece of data I need to destroy XANA. You've got to get to Sector Five."
Boom!
Odd and Aelita looked back. The Kolossus started moving again. Ulrich and Yumi flew in, but the manta swarmed around them.
"You're gonna have to do it now, Einstein. I don't think-" Just before Odd could finish, a manta shot the overwing. Ulrich and Yumi jumped off, but Ulrich pulled out his sword as he fell onto the Kolossus's arm. The ninja plunged his saber into the monster's side weak point and fell to the ground. The Kolossus screamed in pain. "Alright! Ulrich did it!" Panting, Yumi raced over to Odd and Aelita.
"The Kolossus is down, Jeremie. Send us in," Aelita said.
"Already coming." But the Kolossus started to move... backward. As its massive lava-like body stumbled back, Ulrich shook himself up and tried sprinting out of the way, but the magma body was falling too fast! He couldn't move to the left or right quick enough.
"Ulrich!" Yumi shouted. It was too late. The Kolossus fell on top of Ulrich as Yumi, Aelita, and Odd were caught up in the bubble.
"Ah darn it," Ulrich grumbled as he came out of the scanner.
"It's okay, Ulrich, you did great. But Sissi and William need your help down in the reactor room," Jeremie instructed.
"On it!"
Continued...