Tempus Figits

Synopsis: A continuation of 'Double Trouble'. A new Knight, a time-traveler named Tabitha Shore (aka Tempus) bears a secret no one else can know of. She fears she will breech time/space protocol if she utters it to anyone. Her mission is to ensure the victory of the Warriors/Knights over XANA. However, the very force she isn't supposed to speak of, namely a creature called Wormwood is out to become the most powerful being in the Universe by absorbing everything in it. Only she has the ability to put Wormwood to an end.

Telepathic journal...

Tabitha Shore, confidential. I relay these words with a fair amount of trepidation knowing what the consequences may be if I am unable to ensure the success of the Knights and the Warriors on earth against a sentient viral being known as XANA. I possess the only key that can insure his downfall and the installation of eras of peace both the realms of the Wired and Earth have never known. Yet, I fear these wavelengths might be tapped, so I must guard my thoughts. I have installed a psychic shield just to make certain no one or nothing gets access to this vital information.

I am needed to be a catalyst for the Warriors and Knights in the continuing war against XANA. I don't know if they will trust me, considering I'm not of this time but seeing I am the catalyst for emminant victory, there is no other recourse.

Chapter 1—Tabitha Meets the Warriors

Tabitha realized she needed to enroll at Kadic Academy in order to meet with the famed Lyoko Warriors, Tapwater Titans, Southdale Spartans and the Digital Knights. Knowing that no one in this era would recognize her title, she felt registering under her original name would be the logical recourse.

It had been eons since Tabitha had entered an educational facility but it felt comfortable and familiar to her. In her time, she was known as simply 'Teacher' and she had been responsible for 'stoking the flames of knowledge in every universe'. She had kept the peace and due to her regerative skill, even though in all accuracy, she was hundreds of years old. She had witnessed many things in her lifetime, including the formation of the Lyoko Warriors and how their ranks had grown. In her understanding, such things had happened in 'a twinkling of the eye'. Some people might've thought of her as a Goddess of some sort, but that title, she humbly thought, was far too lofty for a lowly time traveler such as herself.

Going through Kadic and mingling with the humans made Tabitha feel truly alive and purposeful once again. This is what she truly adored about her mission and existence. Her first encounter was with a young genius by the name of Jeramie Belpois. She instantly liked the young boy and his gentle smile. She first gained his trust before revealing who she truly was, a routine she would have to undergo with the Tapwater Titans, Southdale Spartans and the Digital Knights. It seemed like a Herculean task, but these sort of things were Tabitha's forte. It wasn't anything new or different. The only challenge was keeping the cipher of destruction safe from the wrong hands. It was only meant for using against XANA. The cipher would destruct him upon release and delete any further trace of his information in the Wired. Generally speaking, XANA would no longer be able to reform himself and fortify his fleshly form. It was a rather extensive and intense way of fighting against an unearthly evil but there could be no other method. It was either this or complete genocide of the Lyokoians, Watchers and other civilizations that the band of heroes had not yet discovered and Tabby wasn't about to have it.

Chapter 2—Preemptive Strike

In the abandoned factory, Tabitha gathered her newest friends together. They had a multitude of questions that she couldn't answer for fear the result would become unfavorable. As maddening and frustrating as that was, they decided to accept the fact that Tabitha was bound to protecting them and the future they were going to create together.

In Tabitha's future, there was a being known as Wormwood that had the ability to absorb everyone and everything. There was a certain point in time in the Universe that Wormwood grew tired of encompassing galaxies, novae and planets that he needed more energy. Wormwood, though immortal, was growing old. Like Tabitha, he had existed for eons, but he was possibly the eldest creature in the Universe. Wormwood didn't care for anything other than itself and once it found itself on trajectory to Earth, Tabitha was aware she had another troublesome matter on her hands. Not only was she supposed to insure the victory of the Warriors and their league but also, the eradication of Wormwood itself. There was a juncture in time and she could transport herself there to fight Wormwood herself, cutting off any of his energy supplies with a single flick of her staff. Immediately, she had a brainstorm. This was not an insurmountable problem as she once thought. She would simply put the cipher in perfectly capable hands. She saw a kindred spirit within Sissi Delmas. The cipher itself was in the form of a locket that could only be opened with the utterance of one secret word that came from Tabitha's language and people. Sissi was a bit of a polyglot, so the key wouldn't be hard to state. Before Tabitha left, she promised she would return right before the battle with XANA.

"Keep this locket safe. It will not only be your savior but the Universe's as well.", Tabitha reminded her before transforming her staff into a transmat.

"I shall return. Don't you worry.", Tabitha reassured. Sissi wondered if Tabitha had chosen the right person to carry out such an onurous deed as the one she had been given. Her friends asuaged any of her fears, reminding her she was the most compitent person for that grand responsibility. Given that in mind, she was well aware she could come closest to XANA and grant him release of what had been a shadow of existence.

Somewhere on the cusp of time itself, Wormwood had been hurtling through multiverses following his olfactory to the odd, succulent and ambrosial odors of Earth.

On the edge of the Milky Way galaxy, Wormwood slithered closer and closer to his culinary goal. It unhinged its jaw and set its multifaceted teeth whirring past each other beyond normal G-forces. His turbine-esque maw had begun to cause a singularity and at any second, Earth would become part of his lunch.

Just then, a rather well-dressed lady in a suit appeared out of the particles of time itself, which, for all intents and purposes, should be impossible. But not for a time traveler. Wormwood seemed a bit irate at the ginger with amythyst eyes. He knew her kind and that she was the last.

"I was about to enjoy a rather satisfying meal and you go and ruin it for me. What audacity, 4th Dimensioner !", Wormwood shouted. Tabitha shook her head back and forth.

"Where do you get the right to eat any galaxy and planetary system you choose ? There are quintillions of people, nay googols of people you have slain in your quest to satiate yourself.", Tabitha sighed. She knew this next battle was going to be long and drawn out and she only prayed that the Warriors, Titans, Spartans and Knights were gearing up for the most important battle they would ever partake in.

Chapter 3—Into the Belly of the Beast

Meanwhile...

In simulation, the teams had paired up and begun sparring with each other.

"It was odd, really. She said goodbye but disappeared so abruptly.", Marcus noted.

"I wonder when she'll be back.", Josephine chimed in.

"She said she had some business that needed attending to.

So cryptic.", Angela added.

"We can't fret over that now. We must focus on honing our skills for the battle.", Jim said, hoping he didn't sound too paternal or pedantic. Yet, what he said was true, valid and practical. They couldn't stand around yammering away and worrying about a force they had no control over.

"I think Tabby's trustworthy. We don't know much about her, but there's something in her eyes. She has warm, kind, gentle eyes, and I feel her heart is golden and tremendous.", Sissi said before catching her opponent, Taelia off guard and pinning her to the floor. The two partners bowed respectfully and got up to fight once more.

"She'll be fine. Let's continue training until we receive further instructions from her.", Ulrich said, reminding them of their true mission.

In the Rift (on the edge of the Milky Way)...

Wormwood was growing more and more irritated with Tabitha's swift manuevers. She had hit him at every turn and avoided his fierce relatiatory strikes. Bellowing, he made one final charge at her, only to find that he had been pierced by her staff, right through his multichambered hearts. The energy coming from the staff was an energy he had never encountered, and though dying, he was given a serenity that defied his consciousness. The only words he could gurgle out were 'Thank you' before he dissipated into the cosmic dust. The realm of Earth was going to be safe, at least, for now. But Tabitha had more important duties to relegate herself to. She had to return to Earth, digitize herself into Lyoko and prepare her friends for a battle they would remember long into their golden years.

After what seemed to be long hours of sparring, the teens sat back and refreshed themselves with bottled water and crisp fruits and vegetables. It had been quite a while since they had eaten breakfast and the small repast was enough to satiate them. In a blinding light, Tabitha burst forth a seam in time and dusted remaining particles off her clothing. She looked almost angelic with the residue of galaxies on her suit.

"We haven't much time.", she stated, which for her was a very eerie irony. The words themselves didn't distress her. She had dealt with hairier situations than this and she knew all these adolescent humans would be more than capable to best their nemesis once and for all. Each Warrior, Titan, Spartan and Knight called out their own personal audio key to transform and transport themselves into Lyoko. XANA had already set a plan into motion, but he would be taken by surprise this time, especially by Sissi and her team, which had been set out to infiltrate XANA's secret underground grotto. The others would lie in wait for instructions and act as back up if Sissi and her team had gotten themselves in trouble. Even if they didn't, the others had a feeling their services were going to be needed.

Chapter 4—Time On Their Side

"This way !", Tempus (Tabitha's digital form and alias) yelled, pointing east. The group of Warriors ran in the direction she pointed and followed close behind. XANA was oblivious, in his grotto, not knowing that he was about to be surprised by a preemptive strike. For this very situation, he had loyal, muscular, massive guards, that weren't afraid of throwing their weight around or sacrificing themselves for XANA's purposes. After all, they had been copied from his own data. The only thing they lacked was free will. Basically they were puppets of his would be regime, the one he had been striving for intensely.

Tempus advised her team to use stealth as they waited for Sissi's team, Beta, to infiltrate the grotto. They crept in as silently as they could until a passing jackdaw called, screeching loudly.

The guards immediately roused from their hypersleep and fought with all their might to keep Team Beta from passing through. Sissi, who had activated her camofladge, had already slipped into the cave unnoticed, past the guards, and was slowly approaching XANA's bedroom. Alpha Team had joined in the fight against the muscular guards, keeping them busy for a while. Tempus informed Sissi she would have nothing to fear and she would be joining her in a moment.

"In a few seconds, what seemed insurmountable odds will be nothing more but dust in the wind." Tempus stated, cryptically. Sissi didn't understand what this meant until she had been transported right to the foot of XANA's craggy bed, undisturbed. Tempus stood close by as Sissi came close to kiss her would be captor for the last time. She spoke the words that unclasped the destructive cipher and watched XANA's form flitter away into the rock and mire.

"And now, we run. Before everything collapses in what was XANA's realm.", Tempus stated, rather placidly. For a woman who dealt with the deconstruction of entire locales, she was perfectly placid. Sissi had a hard time seeing through her tears. For a man who had captured her so often in the past, she had developed feelings for him she didn't quite understand. Part of her heart would always belong to him somehow, even if it didn't make much sense. Maybe in some other universe, they could've been together, she mused while Tempus and she rushed from their completed mission.

The guards the others had been warring against had stopped mid-action and vanished into thin air. Before they could react, Tempus commanded, "Run !", and they dashed from the implosion of what had been XANA's lair. The cipher had completely vanquished him and any trace he could've left behind. No respawning, replicating or duplicating was possible. In fact, he was dead for good. The locket Sissi had been given was just that, or so she thought. Another surprise lay in wait for her and her teammates once they arrived home and celebrated their long-sought after victory.

Epilogue

Though it was bittersweet to say their farewells, especially to a friend who remained enigmatic yet gentle, caring and warm, everyone returned to their typical lives and went about 'normal' duties like chores and homework. Nothing seemed to have changed and time resumed its normal linear march.

Each member of the intrepid team had resumed the somewhat mundane role of their routines. Yet, life wasn't that stagnant for them. They had constant contact through email and snail mail and were still surprised that the final mission to destroy XANA had been such a success. He was indeed gone for good.

The crisis that had been mentioned by Tabitha had been diverted. The Warriors never knew what this was but the way Tabitha acted when she heard about it, in this case, the less said about it, the better.

Tabitha had to return to her own time, whenever it was. The team had grown fond of her and her immense wisdom. They had never encountered a time-traveler before and were curious of many different aspects of her life. She simply smiled at them and said,

"I will probably come back at some point. For now, be glad everyone is safe, including your universe. It's my privilidge to be keeper of this world and the virtual one as well." It seemed to be quite a responsibility to be holding so many different worlds upon her shoulders but the friends sensed this was nothing new for her. She could handle herself incredibly well and was amazingly level-headed about every possible and probable situation. Before she stepped on her transmat and said her final goodbyes, she congratulated them again.

"You truly have an astonishing team. You should all be proud fo the work you've done. You've proven to me just how resillient the human race is.", she said, hugging them and kissing all their cheeks. It was difficult not to feel a little sad when she vanished, even if her physical presense could still be felt. There would be moments in the future when the progeny of the Warriors would question about Tabitha and her bravery. They wouldn't hestitate to answer the truth. And maybe, just maybe, someday, they would have the privilidge of seeing 'Ms. Time Traveler' herself.

The End