Chapter 9 Black Night Sky

Chapter 9

Black Night Sky

As the storm grew bigger, clouds swirled and pillared; a powerful updraft filled them like balloons. Every once in a while lightning coursed through the mass of clouds, pulsing towards a ball of orange energy that hung high up in the sky.
The storm was now at its peak, about to release its fury upon downtown Amines. Its purpose was to cast doubt on the guardians, the Lyoko Warriors, who had chosen to stand up for the people and against the storm's masters. A scene straight out of a disaster movie was about to unfold as lightning crackled and popped loudly.
A lone light flew like a shooting startowards the storm cloud, which was glistening with heavenly and otherworldly glamour.

Aelita flew as fast as a speeding bullet. Her body was tucked into itself and streamlined, her crystal wings remained steady. Using the updraft of the storm to her advantage, the young girl rose into the air, her crystal covered body cutting through the darkness like a blow torch through butter. Strands of pink hair flapped around her head. Determination grimaced her face.
Aelita knew what was at stake. She knew what would happen if she failed, she knew what would happen if she continued to live in fear; she knew that everything she loved would be lost. But not today.
On her birthday, she would not allow her newly found humanity to cost someone's soul.

A pair of crystal wings flapped powerfully, bringing Aelita at an altitude just above the storm's ball of energy. Aelita threw her legs out as she came to a stop. She scouted around, looking for a proper place to attack the storm from.
“I’ve gotta hit the eye of the storm, where the energy is being drawn towards,” Aelita thought. “If I do that, the positive energy from my beams should disrupt the negative energy that is inside the storm, causing it to lose shape and its power!”

The storm crackled loudly as thunder echoed through the air.
“I’m getting too old for this,” Aelita joked as she focused on pulling the energy from her body to strike the storm.

Then she noticed a strange pulsation coming from the center of the storm. At first it seemed like the storm was drawing in more energy. But the pulsation grew stronger, focusing on a section of the ball just in front of her. An electric arc jumped out of the ball as it formed a familiar symbol. The eye of Xana protruded from the lightning ball. Aelita braced herself for a possible attack.

The symbol slowly drifted away from the storm, making a screeching sound like that of metal being scraped against metal. Then, it collapsed on itself and formed a ball of energy. The ball began to twist and move as it suddenly stretched outwards, sprouting limbs. A pair of twisted, clawed legs appeared, followed by a pair of arms with wings attached to them. Finally, a head sprouted out of the top of the lightning figure, a pair of sharp horns appeared on the head and a pair of red lights appeared on the center of the forehead, forming eyes.

Aelita watched in shock as she realized just what it was that had manifested itself.
“Aether?!”

“A god of air is not restricted to any realm.” Aether said in a echoing and high pitched voice. “Your friends thought I would ambush them in the tower where the storm raged on Lyoko. Fortunately, your friends' idea, much like your existence, was an error.”

“How are you controlling that?” Aelita asked.

“Through the very tower that I activated!” Aether said triumphantly as he opened his clawed hands; small sparks of electricity arched from his fingertips.

Meanwhile, on Lyoko, the interior of the tower was black and red, indicating that it was in use and activated. The only source of light came from the holo panel at the center of the room. A large shadow was cast upon the walls of the tower – a shadow of a triumphant Titan who managed to outmaneuver his enemies.

Aether stood in front of the holo panel, holding his hand right in front of the panel, using it as a type of port so that he could control the storm back on Earth. Every action he performed on Lyoko was mimicked on Earth.

“If your friends made it past that strange Hydra creature, and into the tower here, I would have definitely been easily defeated. However, your friends did not, which is their downfall!” Aether smiled as he glared at the panel.
A direct feed to Earth was being broadcast on a second window of the holo panel; the feed showed Aelita floating in midair right in front of his electrical puppet. He could see the shock and surprise in her eyes. Yet he didn’t see fear... but determination. This disgruntled Aether. Usually Aelita was as timid and scared as a kitten. Yet this Aelita seemed different and much more focused than usual.

“And now, my dear helpless girl, it's time that I grounded you... permanently!” Aether shouted as he shifted his hand on the panel.

Aelita floated in the air as she glared at Aether. Anger filled her body as she remembered what Aether put Puck through. She wanted this.
“Stop talking and gloating,” she said as she held out her hand, “And bring it!”

Lightning form of the Titan crackled and popped as a pair of wings suddenly protruded from its arms. The lightning bird flew towards Aelita as its wings spread open wide.

Aelita held up her hands. She flapped her wings powerfully as she managed to maneuver out of the way of the electrical Aether, who passed directly underneath her. She could feel the hair on her body stand. It made her realize that she had to keep her distance from this new foe. She couldn’t attempt to connect any possible blows or make contact with the entity; if she did, it would more than likely electrocute her. She needed a different tactic to defeat it. It was time to put everything she learned about her Savior powers over the past few months to good use. She felt really confident with her powers now, but getting to that point was a process.


Amines France
The factory
A few months ago

It was a warm and beautiful Saturday. The humidity was low and enjoyable, a cool breeze blew. With afternoon classes finished for the weekend, it would be a great day to lay back and relax... or to test someone's limits.
In the parking lot behind the large and dilapidated factory stood a large wooden table with multiple computer monitors and terminals on it. Each monitor served different purpose; some recorded the subject in question while others monitored their vitals. A series of cables taped to the ground ran from the computers towards a series of video cameras that were set up in a circle. Some recorded images in infrared, while a select few monitored in real time.

Aelita watched as the others prepared the equipment. She looked to her left; she spotted Jeremy and Special Agent Knight finishing up the connections to the computers and cameras. She felt quite out of place. The others wore their usual clothing, while she stood there in her workout clothes, a slim pink and blue tank top with a pair of matching pink and blue running pants.

She felt a bit nervous about all that was about to transpire. Yet she knew it was something that she had to do in order to learn more about her newfound powers and who... or what she actually was.
She had to know what she was capable of, and prove herself that she was not the one thing she feared the most: a threat. Even though Aelita had an idea of what her powers were during her time in America, she was worried that her powers might also act as a double-edged sword. Even though her powers saved her and her friends' lives, she was worried that there might be repercussions. If that was the case, then what would happen? Would people fear her? Would people try to destroy her and the ones she cared most for? Or would she accidentally hurt herself or one of her friends? She had to understand just how she could control her powers and what she could do.
Aelita cleared her mind as she glanced over at her boyfriend. She smiled as she watched Jeremy tinker with the connections. He looked like a kid in a candy store.
Jeremy twisted his fingers as he adjusted the final connection to small coaxial cable that was plugged into the rear of one of the monitors. He felt the metal locking device slide to a stop as he realized it was ultimately connected.
“There we go. I think we're all ready.” Jeremy said as he stood up and placed his arms on his hip.

George looked up at him and nodded. He slowly turned back to look at the table behind a thick clear blast shield where Odd, Jessica and Travis sat.
“Hey Odd, do we have a feed on the final camera?” George asked.

Odd slowly looked up from his phone as he replied to a text from Sissi. He glanced at the TV.
“No. Sorry, it's not on yet.”

Jeremy peeked up over the camera in confusion. “The signal should be connected and running to the monitor. Are you sure?”

“Well, I'm looking at the screen here and it doesn’t have anything on it,” Odd said as he looked at his phone, receiving a new text from Sissi.

“Since when is the monitor in your lap, Odd?” George asked.

“I'm telling you, it's not working. The screen is black.” Odd said, pointing at the monitor.

Jessica took a sip from her soda and leaned over, she reached behind the screen and pressed a button.
“Helps if you turn it on,” Jessica said with a smile as she patted him on the shoulder.

Odd looked at Jessica and slowly turned to look at George and Jeremy who both had a look of aggravation on their faces.
“Hey... It's on now.” Odd said with a smile.

“I warned you about letting Odd help with the wiring.” Jeremy said as he turned and smiled at Aelita.

“You mean to tell me Odd can't even turn on a simple TV?” George asked.

“All I can say is, it's odd.” Jeremy said. “And you should have learned by now.”

“It's not my fault the sun is right over my shoulder and pointing right at the screen!” Odd said in his defense.

Travis and Jessica slowly looked up towards the sun which was directly above them. However, a small pop up tent kept the equipment in shade.
“Um, Odd?” Travis asked before he was cut off by Jessica. Travis glanced at her in confusion; she shook her head, indicating that Travis should just let it go. Travis nodded as he glanced out at George and Jeremy who were walking away from the final camera.
“Are we all set?” Travis asked.

George gave a thumbs up as he walked over to the tent and lightly slapped Odd in the arm.
“As long as the sun doesn’t tamper with our equipment, we should be.” George said as he reached for the large tablet which received all information and statistics from the equipment. George grabbed a small metal case and walked over to Aelita with Jeremy close behind.

“About time! I would like to get a tan and all, but I burn like a lobster in lava.” Aelita said.

“Good thing we brought sunscreen.” Jeremy said.

George opened the case, revealing a small watch-like heart monitor and a black plastic strap.
“Ok, Aelita, I need you to put this on your wrist,” George said as he handed her the watch-like monitor. “And this goes around your chest,” he added as he pulled out the strap. “But you can wear it over your clothes, so don't worry.”

Aelita placed the strap around her chest. Soon, a beep sounded from the monitor on her wrist.
“OK. Now what?” she asked.

George then reached behind him and grabbed a pair of lead pads off the table. “I will need you to turn around,” he motioned.
As Aelita turned around, George peeled the adhesive part from the lead. “This one goes on the back of your neck, it monitors your brainwaves, while the other one goes on your side and monitors your breathing rate.”

“Sounds easy enough... just tell me I don't need to do a cat scan next.” Aelita joked.

“That will be later.” George remarked.

“Why are we doing this again?” Odd asked.

“Because the U.N. wants to know just what Aelita is capable of, and Aelita wants to know as well.” Travis said.

“But we know what she's capable of, kicking ass and looking good at the same time.” Odd said, nudging Jeremy. „Relax, Einstein.”
Jeremy merely rolled his eyes in response to Odd's comment.
“I also meant,” Odd continued, „why out here in the parking lot and not in some government test range?”

“Because the French government doesn’t approve ofour actions. And right now we are doing all we can to keep them from coming and arresting all of you.” Travis said.

“Arrest us?” Aelita asked. „Why?”

“They don't trust the Supercomputer or Aelita in the hands of children. They feel power will corrupt you and things will get out of control.”

“But we have fought Xana, Xervix and now Mal-tech for 4 years now. Why would they consider us a threat?” Jeremy asked.

“Because even though there where no fatalities in Las Vegas, the Strip was heavily damaged and the world is now aware of the power you posses. There are people who want to throw you kids in jail, kill you, dissect Aelita, and use the Super Computer as a weapon. And France is at the center of it because that's where you reside and where the Computer is. So, the government isn’t very happy.”

“Dissect me?” Aelita shuddered.

“If someone tries to make a move on you, we got you covered.” Travis said, assuring the nervous teen. “If not... Odd and the others will.”

“What's the U.S.'s take on this whole thing?” Odd asked.

“Washington saw what happened in Nevada and at Area 51. They are aware that the only way to stop Xervix from escaping again is to work with you to destroy it. Afterwards, I am not sure.”
Travis turned and looked at the concerned kids who stared at him. “But don't worry... Once this is over, we will make sure no one comes after you guys.”

“It will probably get turned over to the United Nations' newly created Earth Defense Force, and I know one of the guys who works for them. They are a good group.” George said.

“Who's that?” Jessica asked.

“Dr Sangasa.” George said.

“Isn't he chasing the whole Super Tyler creature?”

“Yup. Right now he's in Korea.” George said.

“Ok ok, back on track, guys,” Odd said. “So... that means?”

“Once this whole... thing is taken care of, you get your lives back,” Jessica added.

“And besides, we need this test info for when the physician comes in a week.” George said.

“Who is this guy? Should we worry?” Jeremy asked.

“No... he's a member of the CIA and he's very good at his job. I worked with him before.” Jessica said.

“It's the other 3 I'm worried about.” Travis added.

“Other 3?” Aelita asked.

“Yeah, we're being assigned 3 new members.”

“Who are they?” Odd asked.

“A member of the British SAS who will be in charge of security, a member of the Russian FSB who will also deal with security and a new tech girl who lives right here in France.” George said.

“You mean they don’t think you guys can do the job?” Odd asked, concerned.

“This is no longer a U.S. lead investigation. The U.N. wants people looking into it as well.” George responded as he flipped through the tablet. “They should be arriving a few days after we come back from America.”

“Seeing as how Russia and the United Kingdom are the biggest backers of this team, they wanted men who can relay info to their governments. And France... Well, for all the hate they have given us, are sending some tech wiz out here to catalog all the equipment... Probably to tell them it's a threat.” Travis said as he glanced over at a confused Odd. “But don’t worry, we're still in charge.”

“That’s not fair...” Odd said. “You guys do a great job, why cant they just let you guys help us?”

“Aww, thanks, Odd.” Jessica said. “These guys aren’t all bad. I mean, it's not like there gonna come and ruin everything.”

“Still it's stupid...” Odd said as he looked towards Jeremy. “Jeremy is the only tech guy we need.”

“Actually, it would be nice to have some more time off with someone else helping with the computer besides myself and Aelita.” Jeremy said, handing Aelita a bottle of water.

“Ok, I think we're all set now.” George said as he stepped away from Aelita to get a reading from the monitors. “Aelita, I will need you to head over to the spot I showed you earlier.”

“Alright... And then I go super hero?” Aelita asked.

“Yup,” George said. He placed a hand on her shoulder and looked down at the girl. “Just relax and do your thing, and make sure to hit that target.” George said, pointing over Aelita's shoulder.

He pointed towards a large wooden board with a small sensor strapped to it to register the strength of Aelita's energy attack. The board was roughly the size of a car and even wider, with a large red target on it spray painted in the shape of a New Dawn symbol, just enough to gather a good target for Aelita.
“I'll need you to hit the target with your beam. That sensor there will measure the strength of your beam.” George said as he stepped back.

“Just wait till we get back to the desk and behind the blast shield, OK?” Jessica said.

Aelita nodded and acknowledged the instructions with a grunt.

“Think you can pull it off?” Jeremy asked.

“I think I got an idea.” Aelita said, giving a thumbs up. “It's just like that Deadliest Warrior show.”

“Just be careful, OK Princess?” Travis asked as he patted Aelita on the shoulder and made his way over to the desk which sat behind the blast shield.

All except Jeremy returned to the table. The young teen wanted to make sure Aelita was ready for this. He turned to face his girlfriend and handed her a bottle of water he brought from the table.
“Well, you ready?” Jeremy asked as Aelita opened the water.

Aelita let the water pour into her mouth as she chugged it. Even in her usual workout clothes it was still quite hot. Aelita nodded as she swallowed the water.
“You know what, when this is all over... the whole Lyoko and Mal-Tech deal...We should go on vacation.”

“Where would you like to go?” Jeremy said.

“Hawaii would be nice. I’m ready for a break from being a superhero and all the spy stuff and government agents and all.”

“Would make a nice book though, wouldn’t it?” Jeremy asked.

“I'm thinking of a TV show.” Aelita joked as she took another swig of her water.

“Odds’s all over that one.” Jeremy said as he glanced at Aelita. “You look good.”

“Come on, these are just old workout clothes.”

“Yeah, but you look good in pretty much anything,” Jeremy smiled. “Why don’t you wear one of those mid-drift tank tops? Like how Yumi wears them on her clothing.”

“I'm not used to wearing clothing that exposes my navel. It's a thing you have to get accustomed to, I guess.”

“The reason I ask is that sometimes you look like you're overheating in that thing when you run.”

“And you're in those khakis. Why not wear shorts, huh?”

“I guess... for the same reason you don’t wear a mid drift.”

Aelita smiled lightly as she looked at her boyfriend.
“Thanks Jeremy, I know you are trying to relieve the tension with the whole test thing.”

“It's what I do after all.” Jeremy said, rubbing the back of his head.

Aelita took another swig from the bottle of water as she glanced around at the site.
“How is this gonna work?” Aelita asked as she swallowed the water.

“We got cameras that will capture how you transform and what you can do, an infrared monitor that will monitor your body heat, also we will monitor your vitals throughout the process with what George gave you.” Jeremy said as he pointed at the small monitor on Aelita's wrist.

Aelita touched the small monitor on her wrist as she wiggled it a little. “I'm ready to get out of this heat and get a shower... and a nap.”

“Don't tell me it's those nightmares again...” Jeremy said.

“Not really... just... I’m not sure.” Aelita said as she took the cap off the water bottle again. “It's a different kind of dream now.”

“When are you gonna tell me about these new dreams?” Jeremy asked.

“I... It's kinda... embarrassing.” Aelita said as she blushed.

“How embarrassing?”

Aelita said nothing as she took another swig from the water bottle and clutched it to her chest.
“I don’t know if I’m ready to tell you.”

Jeremy smiled as he wrapped his arms around her. “You can tell me when you're ready... Just don’t let it get to you like the last one did.” Jeremy said. “Can I ask you one thing?”

“Sure.”

“I don't die in this dream, do I?”

“No, no! You don't die... no one dies.” Aelita said as she breathed heavily. “All I can say is it was, uh, pleasant.”

“Then why is it so bad?” Jeremy asked.

“Because I’m not sure if I’m ready to even consider that part of my life.”

“What aspect?”

“My, uh, future and all.” Aelita said as she looked up at Jeremy.

“In that case, tell me about it when you're ready. I won't rush you.” Jeremy said.

“Okay,” Aelita said as she glanced around. “Where are the others, by the way?”

“Ulrich and Yumi had to study and William said something about training for something. They said they would drop by later.”

“What's William training for?”

Jeremy shrugged as he took the empty bottle of water from Aelita. “Are you still nervous?”

“A little,” Aelita admitted. „I have a general idea as to what I can do and all that. I just need to see what I’m capable of.”

“Like, how?” Jeremy asked in confusion.

Aelita looked up into the sky. “My parents gave everything to protect me. I want to know what it is about me that is so special, what it is I’m meant to do, and what it means for the world, for me, for the others...” Aelita quietly said as she glanced back around to Jeremy. “And for you.”

Jeremy smiled as he placed his hand on her shoulder. “No matter what happens, it won't change how I feel about you.”

Aelita smiled as she felt reassured about herself.

“Hey! We are ready, you lovebirds.” Odd shouted from the desk area.

“Good luck ,then.” Jeremy said as he turned and smiled at Aelita. “Love you.”

“Thanks. And I love you too,” Aelita said as she watched Jeremy slowly turn around and walk back towards the table.

“OK, Aelita. We're ready whenever you are!” Travis shouted.

Aelita took a deep breath. She slowly closed her eyes as she tried her best to cut her mind off from the outside world. She felt her muscles tense up, her mind focused on what she wanted to do. She felt the wind whip around her as she focused on trying to activate her powers.

Aelita felt something build up inside her. It started in the back of her mind and started to take over her body. She felt her entire body shake as she tried to activate her powers. Aelita raised her arms over her face in a cross like pattern, with her hands closed off into a fist. She felt her heart beat faster and faster as she felt her body prepare to unleash its power.
Aelita quickly threw her hands to her side as she yelled loudly. She felt all the tension unleash from her body as she continued to scream. Her eyes closed shut as she released all of her might. Yet nothing happened.
Aelita waited a few seconds before slowly opening one of her eyes to realize that nothing happened. She opened her other eye as she looked down at her hands in confusion.
“What happened?” She said to herself as she glanced around at her body.

“Was that you trying to go Super Sayian???” Odd asked from across the parking lot.

Aelita tried once more, only to have the same result.

“Hey, did you break it already?” she heard Odd again.

“No! I’m just stretching is all!” Aelita said as she blushed. She glanced over towards the table as she looked at the others who stared at her in confusion. “I'm going to do it now!”
“Hurry up, will you? I'm getting hungry!” Odd shouted.

Aelita let her hands drop to her side as she focused. Why was it she could activate her powers in Las Vegas but couldn’t activate them now?

“OK Aelita... Super powers.” Aelita said as she shook her shoulders. “Gotta use them.”
She reached down and looked at the crystal draped around her neck. When she activated her powers back in Las Vegas, the crystal was glowing brightly and pulsating. Now it looked like another crystal a girl would by at a jewelry shop.
“Um... hello?” Aelita held the crystal up to her neck. “I would, uh, like to use my powers now. Uh... Powers on!” Aelita said firmly. Nothing happened.

“Maximize!?” Aelita said loudly. “Um... It's morphing time?!”
Aelita glanced at the stone once more as she rubbed it. The whole situation was getting even more frustrating to her.

“Don't you know how to work it?” Odd asked.

“Shut up, Odd!” Aelita shouted as she glanced over at the table.

Then, the crystal glowed dimly. It caught Aelita's attention.

“What's wrong?” Travis asked as he stepped outside the blast shield. Jeremy slowly got out of his chair.

Aelita ran up to the table.
“I just don’t know how to work it!” she said hesitantly, looking up from the crystal.

“Called it!” Odd said.

“How did you activate it last time?” Travis asked.

“I got knocked off a roof and grabbed the System. Next thing I remember, it merged with me and I was wearing it.” Aelita said.

“Extreme stress, maybe?” Jeremy asked.

“Could be. Maybe it's activated at a time of distress?” Jessica suggested.

“Yeah, it has to be an emotional thing.” Odd said. „Look, certain emotions can trigger different reactions in people's minds. Stress can cause bodily harm and exhaustion can leave you openly susceptible to sickness, while happiness and excitement can help improve body's wellness.”

George stared at Odd in confusion. “Wow... you really do impress people at times.”

“I’m more then just a pretty face.” Odd winked. “Now we just need to find the trigger for Aelita.”

“Maybe a pleasant memory?” Jeremy suggested as he smiled back at her.

Aelita looked down at the crystal. She noticed that the glow in the crystal was residing. Odd must have been right, it was activated by her mental stability. A thought suddenly crossed Aelita's mind. She backed off and closed her eyes as she pictured a scenario in her head. She pictured herself and Jeremy; how they had become a strong relationship over the past few years as well as all he had done for her.
Suddenly, the crystal glowed brighter as it began to pulsate. The crystal elevated from her hands as it began to glow in multiple colors.
A lightning bolt shot to the ground where Aelita stood; the System activated its energy inside of Aelita. Her hair rippled with the force of the wind as large crystal objects began to manifest out of thin air around her and lock onto her body like pieces of armor. A large chest piece latched onto her back, while gauntlets and grieves latched on as well. A pair of crystal wings appeared on her back; they opened wide and then rested behind her, wrapped around her like a cloak, finally pulling towards her back and hardening, forming crystal like, angelic wings.
Aelita opened her eyes as she realized it worked. She had just activated the System!

George and the others slowly stood up after being startled by the lightning bolt. Travis looked out towards Aelita, who was now covered in a suit of crystal like armor. Within a few seconds she turned into a super powered being.
Aelita looked over herself to get a better glimpse of her new form. The crystal like substance that covered her body seemed similar to the crystal she had found in the Supercomputer. It felt light as a feather on her body and looked like glass. The armor had a metal shine to it, which prevented her from being able to see her body underneath. The suit looked like it was layered and patterned very similarly to plate armor she remembered seeing in her history books in class. Yet it looked like there was also more to it.
On the sides of her ribs where what looked liked small vent like structures that seemed to vent air from the outside and cooled her body. On her left arm was what seemed to be a small round disk. The disk sat slightly above her wrist and looked to be the size of a small frisbee.
Aelita looked over on her right arm to see what seemed another small round object. But instead of sitting on her arm like the disk on her left, it sat on her arm like a watch of bracelet would. The small crystal bracelet looked to be an inch thick and seemed integrated into the armor.

Aelita looked onto her back and glanced at the wings. They looked larger then the wings on her Lyoko form. The wings gave off a bright, vibrant glow. Sunlight reflected off the wings in multiple colors, giving them a prism like effect.
Aelita didn’t feel any different. The armor neither over weighed her, nor was it restricting her movements as she rotated around to get a better look at her new outfit.
She looked up; the others slowly walked over to her. She noticed astonishment on their faces as they looked her over from head to toe. Travis approached her first. He carried a small Geiger counter to measure the radiation level. He continued to look at Aelita as if he was waiting for someone to tell him it was all a Hollywood stunt and not real life.
When the initial shock was over, he flipped the Geiger counter the on. He ran it up and down her body, taking note of the different readings that he was receiving.
„As far as radiation goes, there’s nothing.” he concluded. “It's practically at background level.”
He encouraged the others to approach Aelita.

Jessica walked up and took a close look at the wings. “It's... amazing,” she remarked. “It doesn’t hurt, does it?”

“Honestly, no. But it is a real rush when I activate the powers.” Aelita said as she watched Odd poke her shoulder blade. “Will you stop that?”

“I can't help it. The armor looks solid, but it feels more like warm water.” Odd said.

George held his hand up to his chin. “Where did the lighting come from anyway? It's a clear day.
Could she create the lightning bolt when she changed?”

“I think I might have an idea.” Jeremy said, gathering the others' attention. “In order to create something like this, Aelita would need more then just the energy she has in her body. To create this suit of armor, it must somehow pull all the ambient energy to her. It's being pulled at such a rapid succession that it formed the lightning bolt.”

“But... I thought the System creates energy. Why would it draw in ambient energy?” Travis asked.

“It's possible that the ambient energy it absorbs helps to stabilize it. Kinda like positive and negative energies.” Jeremy said as he looked at Aelita as well. “It's possible that the energy the System has doesn’t have a polarity. Instead it uses the ambient energy from the outside to polarize. Or maybe even the System doesn’t use the energy it creates to materialize the suit. It could keep that energy inside and use the ambient energy to manifest the armor.”

“So in essence, Aelita is a walking battery?” Travis asked. “And what we just saw was a very radical way of her being turned on?”

“A battery that flies and shoots lasers.” Jessica added. She looked up from Aelita's wings and towards Jeremy. “How much energy do you think she can draw in?”

“Hard to say. She could either draw in a small amount when she uses it, or she could draw in an unlimited supply.” Jeremy said.

“That’s scary.” Jessica replied.

“I guess we know now why Mal-Tech searches for me,” Aelita said as she twisted her neck around. “What's next?”

“We will check your vitals and make sure nothing's wrong with you,” George said as he pulled out the tablet that was connected to the computers. “Your blood pressure seems normal. Heart rate is around 50 beats per minute. Weird.”

“What do you mean?” Travis asked.

“Her pulse seems to be slower than when I did a baseline reading of her vitals. It was well above 75 bpm,” George said as he checked another reading. “In fact, respiration rate is a bit slower, too. As far as I know, such readings are physiologically present while deeply asleep.”

“Perhaps the System puts her in a calm, relaxed state? Like meditation?” Jessica suggested.

George nodded in agreement as he placed the tablet on the ground.

“Shall we measure the intensity of her laser beam now?” Odd asked.

“Yes.” George said as he pointed towards a target that Aelita was supposed to hit.

Aelita smiled as she watched the others head back to safety behind the blast shield. She glanced back at the target and looked square at it. She quickly got into a battle stance and held her fists to her side. She focused the same thoughts and feelings that she used earlier to activate her Savior form; now she visualized shooting the same laser she used earlier. A sensation flowed from her body and into her right hand. She looked down to see a bright blue and white glow emanating from the palm of her hand. It almost reminded her of her energy fields on Lyoko. She felt her body vibrate as a large laser beam fired. The beam was bright blue with a white center.

The beam flew from her hand and hit the target. The large target glowed red the longer the beam stayed in contact with it. Finally, after a few seconds the target exploded into a cloud of dust and splinters as the beam subsided and disappeared.
Everyone watched as the smoke finally cleared, revealing the destroyed target that once sat at the far end of the parking lot. The wooden plank was gone, leaving only splintered remains off the board. What intact pieces remained sat on the ground, burning slowly.

“Holy shit!” Travis exclaimed as Odd poked out from behind him. Travis turned to George who was also in shock. “Did you get a reading off that?”

George looked down at the tablet and swiped over.
“All her vitals are normal, there was no change during the firing process.” George said. He then quickly looked at the second laptop and stared at the readings from the sensor. “This is... insane.”

“What?” Jessica asked as she glanced over his shoulder and looked at the reading that was on the screen.

“The sensor was destroyed, but before it went offline it sent a reading that the beam went from 120 degrees Fahrenheit to 10,830 degrees Fahrenheit or 6,000 Celsius in a matter of seconds as the beam intensified.” George said as he turned to face the others.

“So in essence, Aelita is human Godzilla?” Odd asked.

“Actually, that would be a good analogy for this. She must be able to emit the energy she stores up in her Savior form and discharge it similarly to how an electric eel would discharge electricity it has stored up.” Jeremy suggested.

“If she hit a human with that beam, she could vaporize them.” Jessica said.

“Yeah. Unless she was capable of controlling the amount of energy she could put into that beam.” Travis suggested.

Aelita looked over at the remains of the target in shock and awe, it was scary that she was capable of creating so much destruction and carnage in only a second.
“That was at full power.” she noted.
She quickly calmed down as she focused on the pleasant memories and feelings again. She felt her body shake as her Savior powers faded into a a burst of light. Leaving a sweaty Aelita in her gym tank top and spandex pants. She walked over to the table and plopped down in the chair.

“Why did you power down?” George asked.

“It's like Lyoko. I can use my powers the same way. Unfortunately, it's just as exhausting,” she explained.
She was worn out, but happy. She finally had an idea how to control her Savior powers!

“That’s weird. Who would have thought that Lyoko was like training wheels for you?” Odd noted.

“That is a weird coincidence,” Travis said. “Think your father had an idea?”

“Honestly, my father was on a whole new level of logic. I don’t know what to think anymore,” Aelita said as she took a vanilla envelope and began fanning her face to cool down. “According to the rest of his journal, he calculated all of this. I think he had an idea as to what would happen... And disguised it as a video game.”

“How do you control your powers on Lyoko?” Jessica asked.

“You focus on what you want to do and go with it.” Odd said. “I focus on firing a laser arrow out of my wrist and it happens.”

“Looks like the only thing different is turning the Savior powers on and off.” Jeremy said as he handed Aelita a bottle of water.

“But I'm pretty sure I got that down too.” Aelita said. “There’s still a lot to learn but I can figure it out after summer break when school's out.”

“Speaking of which, are you guys staying or going home?” Travis asked.

“I live in another part of the country, Ulrich lives in another part of the city...” Odd noted as he held up his hand and counted off. “And William, Yumi and Sissi are gonna stay here.”

”As for Aelita and me, we're gonna bounce back and forth between my place and the dorms.” Jeremy said. He slowly turned and looked at the agents in confusion. “Why do you ask?”

“We might need you guys to stay here during your summer break,” George said.

“WHAT!? I was gonna go to the beach!” Odd said.

“Sorry Odd, but this is an investigation and we need to finish it up before its too late.” Travis said.

“The sooner we wrap up this investigation, the sooner we can get on with our lives” Jessica said.

“Don’t sweat Odd...We can still go to the beach and all that,” George said.

“But...But....” Odd said as he slowly turned and looked towards Jeremy. “Are you guys OK with this?”

“I’m all for it and so was William, Yumi and Ulrich.” Jeremy said as he listened in on the conversation.

Travis slowly stood up and walked over towards Odd. He calmly placed his hand on Odds shoulder as he looked the young blonde square in the eye.
“Odd..Sometimes you need to make the hard sacrifices that a hero makes. To protect others, and those who are important to you.”

Jeremy slowly looked towards Aelita who wiped the sweat from her forehead as she panted.

“To protect those who are important to you?” Jeremy whispered as he looked at Aelita.

“To sacrifice...”