A/N: Greetings, everyone! Yep, I'm really sorry I was out of action for these long three months...but I made a resolution to update this week, and I stuck to it! Chapter 27 might also take a little long to get up, but I'm working at it. Believe me when I say that not updating wa painful for me as it was to all of you. Thank you all so much for contending with my schedules and at-random updates, and I'm more than happy to present the new chapter to all you!

Before, however, we leap into Chapter 26, I want you all to note a new transition method that I'll be using-times and locations. I paced this like an actual Code: Lyoko episode, which scenes and spinets of scenes from both Lyoko and the XANA attack areas, so I wrote down the times and locations so that you all know which two scenes are simultaneous. On the actual drafts, I used two separate documents to keep track, one called the "SciLab side" and one called the "Lyoko side", just so I could write cohesively. If anyone is interested in the separate drafts, comment on it.

Now, without further ado...

CHAPTER 26 -BEGIN-

Lyoko, 1:30 AM

A single file denoting a delayed devirtualization appeared on Jeremy's screen so abruptly that it startled and thoroughly warded off the temptations of sleep from his bag-ridden eyes. It was riddled with the signature of the desperate-maneuver code Jeremy had previously installed in a certain team member, and he thought with relish that this very fleeting file served as proof to the usefulness of it. But there would be time for gloating as an aftermath, not for the duration of the dire circumstance.

The presence of this file only had one meaning backing it, and Jeremy permitted the delayed devirtualization to commence. It was a miracle that the last-resort code broadcasted so far in the Undernet, but if it served its purpose, then Jeremy welcomed its presence unbiasedly. From its sheer distance, the uploading of materialization command would take a half hour to complete, albeit an eventful half hour. Jeremy scowled as the supercomputer alerted him of an Activated Tower.

*************SciLabs, 1:30 AM*************

Chaud's face paled as the abruptness of the unfolding spectacle grasped his attention; the specters claimed the scientists as their own instantly, entering their bodies without the rejection they had experienced in Chaud's case. Interestingly enough, they selected their hosts with intelligence, as they did not attempt to override Chaud's consciousness a second time, but that did not deter them from taking possession of everyone present.

This little observation only consumed five seconds of the vital time left to him, and Chaud's strategic mind already formulated a resort. In all likely circumstances, he would be a prime target of possessed specimens. Said specimens would pursue him.

Thus, a shelter of some sort would be apt to contain, or else divert, the scenario. However, because these specters had demonstrated recalling the past incident, Chaud immediately realized that a hiding tactic would not bedazzle them. Instead, Chaud chose the only option left to him because lack of alternative, which was to flee the vicinity.

Once the prospect struck him, he felt uncomfortable in complying with the notion of running away, as the predictability of it was so glaringly obvious.

Displaying his fear signified vulnerability. Nevertheless, he fled, the white drainage of his face visible as it became reflected in the overhead, blinking lights. Curiously, these specters had an effect on electrical appliances. In retrospect, this fact was unremarkable as these specters had infiltrated them whenever they appeared, but it sparked nothing short of an idea in Chaud's mind. Though his resort could be interpreted, or rather, better described as, desperation, it would be a worthwhile endeavor.

**********Lyoko, 1: 40 AM*************

The Skid arrived on Lyoko with an entrance no less graceful than when it had departed, and exiting the majestic ship were its three surviving occupants, Aelita, Ulrich, and Odd. They were not unduly perturbed by the presence of enemies, as that was to be expected. Instead, what had disturbed them was lack of Life Points.

Barely managing to recover from the escapade in the Net, the newly-arrived trio had a base bar of 30 points apiece, which was not ideal for hand-to-combat. Even when Yumi joined their ranks with a full, fresh 100 Life Points, the vast range of difficulty only wavered slightly, the overall problem present as ever.

Currently residing in their shelter of Lyokoean sand dunes, the warriors consulted one another for a plan of operations. Yumi gestured to the black outline of William as he presided over the until of assembled Taratulas.

"I think our best chance," she muttered, "Is to lure him away."

They all nodded in collective concurrence. Yumi, as though their leader, then turned to each of them and asked, "Any ideas how to manage that?"

Politely, Aelita rose a finger. Not a whole hand. That was the way Jeremy caught a teacher's attention, and she developed what she deemed to be his cutest habit as one of her own.

"I was thinking," she replied, her first statement an obvious fact, "That Ulrich has the best chance out of all of us to get William away. With Triplicate and Super Sprint. It really doesn't matter that Ulrich's clones have ten Life Points each, as William's sword is an instant devirtualization anyways."

"And the rest of us?" Odd chimed.

Aelita tilted her head, considering the possibilities offered by the other capable members. Jeremy could not send them their vehicles due to the dire necessity of immediately decoding an unexpected file, and they were thus left to their own devices.

"I can handle the Taratulas," Yumi stated confidently, breaking Aelita's chain of consideration. "And then you can run towards the Tower the second it's clear."

"All of them?" Aelita protested, indicating their numerous unit with a look of unmistakable disbelief on her face. "By yourself?"

"Neither," Yumi replied, withdrawing her tessen fans. "Coming, Odd?"

Earnestly, Odd saluted her. "Yep!"

Aelita's reaction was immediate disbelief, her incredulousness towards the magnitude of their aspiring feat an obvious manifestation on her face.

"Alright," she replied.

And they dashed to take their combat positions, Aelita, stilled, as she awaited for the route to be cleared. She could not risk direct combat during this vital stage.

*************SciLabs, 1: 40 AM*************

Chaud, upon pretense of distress, made haste as though he were thoroughly terrified. His face remained sheet-white, and his eyes, despite being widened with alleged fear, glittered with relish of his plan. Contrary to the assumption that he was fleeing blindly like a faint-hearted bystander, he actually ran with purpose.

The specters would recall that from their previous encounter that he would be searching for a safe hideaway. While this was partially true, they remained ignorant of the full extent of the idea. Chaud, though reluctant to admit his imminent fear was affecting his judgment, sought fortification. His intended refuge could easily ensure safety as the virus controlling the scientists, whatever it was, clearly attempted an act of a larger scale than the last.

Since it had merely possessed one person the previous time, it had been much simpler for Chaud to contain the situation. Now, however, as an entire team fell under its control, Chaud needed a plan that encompassed these circumstances of en masse. And, to his unwavering dismay, he saw that Sean unfortunately could not withstand possession of the virus, as Chaud mentally predicted that Sean would be perfectly able to; the moment he realized Sean was in the pursuing party of possessed specimens, his incoming dread steadfastly intensified .

No assistance, he solemnly acknowledged as he turned a corridor, out of plain sight. I have to do this on my own.

He did not risk releasing the hurried breaths that accumulated within him; doing so could just as easily alert unwanted persons of his location. Chaud flexed his fingers to circulate his joints, preventing his entire body from stiffening from his angst. If his entire frame remained unmoving, that would be his stance screaming frozen insanity. He fingered his route amongst the walls like a groping man whose senses were addled by unrelenting darkness, almost blind in his attempts to navigate.

But, the method worked; as his fingers grappled for a handle, Chaud's eyes remained fixated upon the corridors, in case of a forthcoming silhouette that signified an approaching adversary. His hopes rose when he felt the familiar post of a door lintel, and, for a wavering moment, his eyes swiveled to scan for a doorknob. Victoriously, he slid it open, and slipped in hastily. It was a mere empty chamber, nothing more than a janitor's room, but Chaud welcomed it nevertheless.

If ProtoMan were here, I'd run to get a Dimensional Area going. But since he's not. . .

Chaud worked quickly and seized a pair of pliers, alongside a screwdriver, from a nearby shelf. There were plenty of equipment rooms scattered throughout the facility, and it was more than likely that he would enter one in a time of crisis. Check. Step One complete. Now, as he expertly removed the vent and stepped inside its contained shaft, Chaud, prepared to mocked for executing a repeated measure, ascended to Step Two, in which he wished to confirm a suspicion of his. It applied directly to this time of crisis, and if he was right, then he had a two-thirds complete plan.

*************SciLab Ventilation (1:45 AM-1:55 AM) *************

Chaud felt as though he were a mere shadow, fluid and untraceable as he was as he crawled through the shaft. The sensations his body broadcast to him were dulled, numbed, as he drifted through the freezing shaft, the only true feeling imparted being that of the various scratches peeling the skin of his wrist, inflicted there by the screwdriver hidden amidst his sleeve. He daren't draw the breath that ailed to be released, fearing it would bounce along the shaft, a worry that was spawned of his adamant paranoia.

But the sound came to him before he caused it. Chaud heard the sounds of another's struggle as he wiggled through the vent, and, as he was lead towards the scene by its resulting and unmistakable cacophony of shouts, protests, and echoed voices of possessed specimens. With a chill that rippled through his skin worse than any outward cold, Chaud asserted, as he viewed the unfolding spectacle through the grating of the vent, a realization that both assured and mortified him: he wasn't alone.

Other members of his team-Raika, Baryl, and Dingo, seemed likewise immune to possession as he was. They lacked the virus's iconic symbol in their eyes, the voices that exited their mouths were humanistic and their own, and their bodies did not fizzle like a projection upon being hit. Rejoicing inwardly, Chaud unfastened the vent and fell into the scene so abruptly, so simply, that both sides stared at his entrance with the utmost confusion, enough as it was to guarantee distraction.

Renewed in vigor because of his appearance, the likewise trio that were immune to the virus grabbed Chaud by the arm, and gave a mighty tug as they dragged him away with a sprint to safety. Chaud, whose eyes were impossibly keen to detail, noted immediately that Baryl was half-limping as he ran.

"I had no idea you guys were also resistant to possession," Chaud admitted, once they were out of plain sight and in a safer chamber. Tactics talk.

Since Chaud had appeared amidst combat, an action that superficially appeared as foolhardy, but now cleverer in hindsight, the group firmly believed that he was the one with the plan, and were now wholeheartedly willing hear its contents in their entirety, despite any tedium involved. Shrewdly, Chaud realized he had been able to derive this merely because he knew them so well since the previous year, and allowed himself the luxuries of a smile and breath as he commented on the obvious, their apparent possession immunity.

"The specters didn't seem to know that," Raika replied, his tone tinted with a light pompousness. He seemed, at best, pleased that the virus was not completely dominant in its ruthless control.

Chaud nodded almost absentmindedly, gesturing to Baryl's quivering foot as the latter tried to balance it into a stance that would not disturb the injured limb. "And they must have been upset by it."

"Yes, they were," Baryl grunted, surprising Chaud with the feeble rasp that was now his voice. His face contorted with the full pain of his leg, his torso trembling as though the burden were too much for his heart. Chaud was impressed by Baryl's firmness in warding off unconsciousness in this state, but his own heart sagged as he realized that the best thing for Baryl was immediate treatment for his injury, lest it become lethal when ignored and further strained.

Grimaces bounced and appeared on the group's faces when Baryl mustered his voice to speak again: "I'll never forgive the virus for making Sean do this to me."

"Sean?!" protested Dingo, who was a steadfast admirer of Baryl's. "Baryl, you never said-"

"I knew Sean wasn't immune before," Chaud cut in. "How did it happen?"

"Electrocuted my leg," Baryl said simply. "Never said it coming. I don't know how accurate Sean's throwing arm is, but under the virus's control he seemed like a perfect marksman. Fluid, even. It was like the virus felt comfortable in his brain."

Chaud remained silent for a moment, a vital timespan in this instance that extended his uncanny disquiet excruciatingly. This assertion's obviousness unnerved him. Sean, who had fallen under foreign control once before, would certainly have made an ideal vehicle of choice for a supervirus in need of efficient hosts. As such, because of the prodigy's determination to never fall prey to foreign wills for a repeated time, Chaud half-expected him to devise a way to override the virus's impenetrable and apparently irreversible hold. Thus, his astonishment at being proved wrong, reinforced alongside the undeniable fact that the virus would be increasingly comfortable infiltrating a mind once manipulated before, elicited a seemingly-elongated silence from him.

"That's a terrifying thought," he muttered at last. "But I see your point in thinking that, Baryl."

Baryl heaved a sigh, which emerged from his strained lungs as an unintelligible croak. "Do you have any plans, Chaud?"

Chaud nodded again, this time gravely. Despite Baryl being an army tactician, there was no denying that he, Chaud, knew this particular SciLab Complex better than him, the foreigner. Furthermore, Baryl was in no fit condition to be in the commanding slot, and while this position would be reserved for Raika, also the skilled strategist, he was denied thus for the same reason as Baryl: foreignness. Chaud reported to this facility daily, whilst they did so from a distant call. Therefore, he obviously deserved the top position in mapping a strategy.

Which he had.

"I have a plan," Chaud said, almost triumphantly. "I just saved it as a last resort."

*************Lyoko: 1: 55-2:05 AM*************

Ulrich and William grappled once again to assert advantage. The Triplicate strategy had succeeded in diverting his attention from the Tower, but it contributed to his agitation, in which William had promptly dispatched two of the three clones in a heartbeat. Ulrich had thusly been reduced to a one-on-one, with an unfavorable ten Life Points to his name, a circumstance in which he fared poorly; William soon de-virtualized him in a fight whose caliber was pathetic and of a blatant, biased injustice.

Odd and Yumi, however, enforced strategy in their ambush. Yumi, employing her telekinesis, rose two confused Taratulas into the air and spirited them off the platform, sending their writhing forms spiraling into the embrace of the frothing, excited Digital Sea. This tactic cost her her basic defenses, and Odd, in a moment of epic sacrifice, shielded her from the third Taratula's laser, deflecting the shot and disintegrating it, but a lapse that allowed William to slice him thoroughly with a backstab of his zweihander.

This strike gripped Yumi's true attention, and, unsheathing her tessen fans, she took the leopard-like stance proceeding a lunge, and flung the two crescent-moon shaped projectiles in a fierce arc at her incoming adversary. She grunted in distaste when William repelled them with his zweihander, and bounded back with a well-placed pinwheel jump. She vaulted for a repeated time to retrieve her awry-aimed fans, still at a considerable distance from William's reach. William, seeing this, approached her, almost menacingly, as he carelessly touted his gleaming blade over his shoulder, raising it with sadistic anticipation when within reasonable combat distance.

"You think this to be already won, don't you?" Yumi muttered, extending her fans half-way, arching her back to match their position.

William allotted her the courtesy of response, his malevolent grin like a crevice on his usual stony, expressionless face. It saddened Yumi to see him so mindless, as XANA exerted no effort whatsoever in animating the personality of his forcefully-obtained marionette, which, in her somber opinion, indicated overlooking a vital part of him.

She had never been overly fond of William, but neither had she thought this disposable role of his was well-deserved. Angered by the hindrance he presented, which was not of William's own volition, Yumi proceeded to volley her fans once more. Now, however, she was more tactical with their placement. Feinting the intention of using the left, and then abruptly flinging the right-held fan at the last possible moment, she watched with a bittersweet relish as William defended the wrong side, and her right-thrown fan had nipped the armor of his shoulder. William growled with the low rumble of self-admonition, and charged, swiftly, at the beguiler to rectify his blunder.

Before, of course, his strike connected, Yumi predicted, subconsciously, of his next moment's resort, and her body had twisted to retaliate in accordance with her forewarning, even if her brain had little realization of it. Her left arm, now gripping her only reachable weapon, bent, elbow protruding, as she held her fan as though its primary function had been to shield the blow. She shouted, with unintelligible words of her garbled desperation, for an ally's aid.

Aelita, who had taken shelter as her meager amount of Life Points could not be haphazardly risked, was altogether happy to reciprocate, and obliged by hurling a well-aimed energy field at William's unguarded back. It was perfect retribution in her opinion.

XANA-William, defeated by the blast that had sapped his remaining endurance, became shrouded in the hazy veil of smoke that signaled his exit. Yumi nodded curtly, with a clear reverence towards Aelita's clever interception, despite the fact that Aelita would not see it as she ran for the Red Tower looming in the distance. Deactivation was imminent and truly forthcoming.

*************SciLabs, 2: 05 AM *************

The plan was extreme even in its lightest sense. It involved a tactic Chaud had once applied when under direct attack: a Dimensional Area. With the absence of their navis, of course, Cross-Fusion was already rendered impossible. But the significance of the Dimensional Area was not for its usage, merely its presence. It was merely a lure, a trap to contain what would normally be reluctant to oblige by human standards. The Dimensional Area, in mini-hemisphere, would serve as a cage to contain the possessed individuals until either the effects wore off, or else they figured a way to wrench free the virus's hold over them.

Of course, they needed a distraction to ensure a route to the complex's primary consoles in order to orchestrate the aforementioned tactic, and climbing through the ventilation, whilst spreading themselves out to attract attention in various unpatterned areas, was enough to ensue confusion and controversy towards their true intentions, and it aided them so that they gained a temporary access to the first mini-hemisphere, which neatly domed around a gathering of several possessed specimens. The contained individuals became agitated as this plan was successful, and when reinforcements arrived, Chaud's emotions plummeted southward, dreading the possible outcomes should he be mistaken in his next resort.

One wrong move and I'll undo the advantage I have, he acknowledged grimly, searching desperately for any present options. He needed another factor to upturn the circumstances to his favor...and it seemed that the circumstances were suddenly keen to presenting him with the advantage.

Chaud, who had seen and heard of plenty of cases concerning the popular saying "turning the tides", never had expected this miracle to transpire as it did, and he welcomed it with open, unbiased arms. Just when he feared that the previous miracle of Dr. Hikari suddenly being freed from the specter's possession would make its comeback, it actually did. Gray ooze drained away from the scientists' bodies in repulsion, fleeing back into the outlets from which they came, causing the entire ring of formerly possessed individuals to collapse like dominoes.

The net-savers stared blankly at their former, unconscious opponents, barely daring to believe in the sudden miracle that had save them; yet they also knew the circumstances and nature of the entire fiasco would add another layer of complications to their lives, one that an entire closet-worth of double-sided paperwork and forms could not hope to explain, report, or fill.

************End of Chapter****************

A/N: And that wraps up Chapter 26, people! Here are some closing questions I'd like to add:

What did you think of this chapter style? Is it too confusing to keep track of, did it feel too rushed, or do you think it's only good as a one-time resort and never again? Or did you like the pace? I need feedback...this isn't the last XANA attack by far. Obviously. So that information is no spoiler.

Another question: what do you guys think is the secret for the four, Chaud, Raika, Dingo, and Baryl, to resist XANA's possession? Any guess is up for grabs, but I preordained an actual reason from the start. If anyone gets it right, they will receive a Code: Desperate mega-spoiler Evolution Stone. And a consoling pat on the back.

Ah-hem! Now for everyone's favorite part...the trivia questions! Bwahahahaha.

1) XANA has attacked by "mass possession"-as in, possessing a lot of people at once-as an attack on multiple occasions. Name an episode where he has done this.

2) Name the MegaMan episode where Chaud used the ventilation to escape from a direct threat (hint: think Axess.).

3) Name an episode where a Lyoko Warrior used one of their powers against William in combat. They do not need to have been victorious. You may name an episode where they used their Lyoko power and lost anyways.

And...that's it! For real! Please, guys, review! They make the author's day when reviews are submitted!