Flora’s POV:

Yumi & I arrived in the Forest Region of Lyoko with no problem.

“So…what’s on today’s menu? A race I hope?” I asked as we started to walk. Even though Jeremy had yet to program me a vehicle, I loved Od’s over board & hoped that Jeremy would give me some thing similar.

“Well, on rare occasions, you may be forced to use anther person’s weapon. Your sword is very similar to Ulrick’s katena, so you girls will switch for today.”

“What kind of rare occasions was he talking about?” I asked as Jeremy began to program some targets for us.

“Well, there was 1 time where Od & I had a bit of a…Freaky Friday…”

“Oh. Dos that happen often?”

“No. Only that 1 time.” Yumi said & handed me 1 of her fans. “I’ll keep it simple to start with. Now, just open it up…”

“Wow, these aren’t just paper fans.” I said.

“They’re made of a light weight metal. Any way, just flick your wrist & aim it like a Frisbee.”

I stood a few feet away from a target. The fan flew all around the target, & started to come back to me. Not really sure what to do, I threw myself on the ground so it wouldn’t kill me. Yumi reached over & caught it.

“Don’t worry, even Od had trouble. Besides, I’ve worked with Ulrick’s katena a little, but not a lot. I’m sure you’ll have plenty of stuff to tech me.”

“Um…well…I never really thought about it before. It just kinda…happens…”

“It’s all right. I’ll watch you & try to copy you.”

Flora’s POV:

“YES!!!” Od cried as Yumi & I entered the lab. We had just finished training, & we were now reporting to a meeting Jeremy had called earlier.

“Happy to see us, Od?” Yumi asked.

“I got a check mark!” Od said, still very excited. “I get to actually go with you guys!” Od picked up the cup & gave it to us. Once we established that Jeremy, Od, & I would be gong, Jeremy & Alita began to brief us.

“Ok, you see, there have been some strange things in Florida lately…”

“Florida?” Od asked. “Yes! I get to go to Florida! Good bye storms, hello sun!” Ulrick, Yumi, & Alita just groaned. There had been storms the past 3 days, & it didn’t look like it would stop any time soon.

“Let me talk, Od. Any way, Florida’s ecosystem seems to be in trouble.” Jeremy said. “Sea turtle eggs have been fond broken all over the beaches.”

“That’s XANA’s attack? How are turtles important?” Ulrick asked.

“They only lay eggs once a year. Besides, other species of wild life are being effected too, just not as severely. It will case a chain reaction!” Alita said.

“What do you men?” Yumi asked.

“I men that once the turtles die out, any thing that eats them won’t have anything to eat.” Jeremy said. “Then they’ll die out, & what ever eats them dies too, until it reaches the top.”

“Which is us, right?” I asked. “So what do we do?”

“We have to figure out how XANA is dong this. If we can figure that out, maybe we can make an antidote to reverse what’s already been done. We also need to take care of the tower to stop any further damage.” Alita said.

Flora’s POV:

After checking into the hotel, we went down to a nature center that specialized in sea turtles. After an hour or so of following Jeremy from exhibit to exhibit, Od & I were starting to get restless.

“Hey, Einstein, when are we eating, huh? I’m hungry.” Od asked.

“You’re always hungry.” I laughed. “Didn’t you have, like, 5 bags of trail mix on the flight?”

“Yeh, 5 tiny bags. Besides, if I wanted to learn, I should’ve just stayed home.” He lowered his voce to a whisper. “Come on, guys! I want to be like James Bond! Where’s our excitement? Our adventure?”

“Od, we just landed a few hors ago.” Jeremy said.

“Yeh, & James Bond? I think you’re more of a Maxwell Smart.” I said.

“Look, here’s what you can do.” Jeremy whispered. “Take these, go into the back & get some test tubes. Then, go outside & get samples. I’ll need anything you can get, but definitely make sure to get samples of the water, sol, & plant life.” He handed us our ID cards.

“Hey, wait. Why am I a girl?” Od asked looking at his.

“ ‘Cuz that’s mine.” I said as I swapped cards with him.

*^*^*^*^*^

Od & I had changed into some clothes we fond in the back room. We then went outside to get the samples Jeremy needed. We talked about random stuff as we worked, the same kinds of stuff we would talk about as we trained together.

“Ok, so…which version of Freaky Friday do you like better?” Od asked. “The Lindsey Lohn version, or the original?”

I thought about that as I cut some leaves off some dune grass. “Well…I like scenes from both of them, but I think it would have to Lindsey Lohn’s version.” I said. “Ever notice how she’s been in a lot of films like that? She was also in the newer Parent Trap & Herby: Fully Loaded.”

“Yeh, but 3 isn’t a lot it’s just…some.”

“But it’s still more then other actresses I think of…”

“That doesn’t make it a lot. She wasn’t in the Muppet version of The Wizard of Oz.”

“True. That was really good, did you see it?” We always changed topics so completely randomly. We switch topics often, but we still followed what we were talking about…most of the time, any way.

“I have the DVD.” Od said. “I think I brought it with me too.”

“We should watch that if we get time. I think my copy of the DVD is still in my closet at school.

“Why is it in your closet?”

“Alita & I don’t have a DVD player.”

Flora’s POV:

“Now this is what I’m talking about!” Od said the next day. “A day at the beach. I knew you guys didn’t work the entire time you fight XANA.”

“Od, this isn’t pleasure.” I said. We had gone back to the center to get clothes & even more test tubes. Then, all 3 of us went down to a different beach, which happened to be part of a huge resort.

“I want to compare samples.” Jeremy said. “Besides, we didn’t find any turtle egg shells yesterday, & this beach is huge. Maybe we’ll find some today.”

“Yeh, we’ll just look under every beach blanket.” Od said. I had to agree with him. It was as if everybody in Florida had decided to come to this beach today. Not to mention just about every resort gust that wasn’t at the resort pool.

“Well, I guess we start walking.” I said. We walked along the beach in the straightest line possible, trying to avoid sand castles, kids, & beach umbrellas.

“Why don’t we split up?” I asked. “It might be easer to walk.”

“Ok.” With that, Od started to walk closer to the ocean while I went up toward the dunes. Jeremy kept to the middle.

*^*^*^Later*^*^*^

I started to head back to where Jeremy was working. I had filled all my test tubes, & wanted to see what else he wanted me to do. I’m glad he trusted me now.

“Here’s everything I got. Is there anything else you’ll need?” I asked.

“No, I don’t think so. I got an egg shell sample though. Bad news is that the egg was so thin, you cold see the baby turtle inside.”

“Oh. That’s not good.”

“Yeh. A kid dug it up. He was screaming some thing about aliens trying to take over the world.”

I laughed. “What did you tell him?”

“That I worked for the government. We weren’t gong to let aliens invade on our watch.”

I laughed again. “Nice. Where did you get so good at making up stuff like that?”

“I learn from the best. Od taught me everything I know.”

“Yes I did. What did I do now?” Od asked as he walked up to us.

“Od, why are you dripping wet?” Jeremy asked.

“I was…um…getting samples of the water?” He held up about 3 test tubes of water. “I…uh…got some shells, too.”

“What ever, Od.” I said. “Any body else hungry? Let’s get some lunch.”

“Yeh, I’m starved!” Od said.

“I think you’ll need some dry clothes.” Jeremy said.

Flora’s POV:

We went back to the nature center. Jeremy handed us some different kits to test for various things. I was in charge of the plant samples. Woo hoo…

At lest Alita was at the lab. She called Jeremy on his lap top & talked to us as we worked. She was also entering data for faster analysis.

“Well, it seems like the plants are healthy.” Alita said after I gave her my data. “But the chemical you fond on the plants was also in the egg shell you guys fond. Maybe that’s the connection?”

“So…this has been happening all along?” Od asked.

“No, the plant seems to be coated in it, as if it’s a fertilizer or pesticide.”

“The area did start using a new company for pesticides.” Jeremy said, bringing up a file on the center’s computer. “But how did the chemical get in the egg? It’s not like they spry the beach with it.”

“Ok, so the turtles eat the grass.” I said. “What would happen next?”

“Well, pesticides are basically poison.” Jeremy said. “So they would die if they ate enough, but it wouldn’t go the eggs. It would stay in the stomach.”

Alita looked as if she would say some thing, but then said stuff to voices off screen. Then, Yumi & Ulrick came into view.

“How’s life at the beach?” Ulrick asked. “You are so lucky not to have to listen to Mrs. Hertz’s lessons this week. DDT was terrible, but what’s worse is that we have to write an essay about it…”

“DDT…That’s it!” I said.

“These results show the chemical is unknown.” Alita said.

“But what if it acts like DDT, & moves up through the blood stream? It would explain why the turtle eggs have it.”

“So…off to Lyoko?” Od asked.

“Not yet.” Jeremy said. “We need to find the computer XANA’s using & destroy it.”

Flora’s POV:

“Are you sure that he’s in this old museum?” I asked. “It doesn’t look like anybody’s been here in…years…”

“Until now, that is.” Od pointed towards the door. A couple of workers for the pesticide company where outside talking. Luckily, they couldn’t see us hiding in the bush.

“I don’t think XANA has taken over any of the workers.” Jeremy said. “If he had, they wouldn’t be standing around, they’d be treating the place like it was Fort Knox.”

“Then who has XANA taken this time?” I asked.

“Maybe their boss?”

“Why don’t you come inside & meet the boss? I’m sure he’d want to know if this…XANA…was inside of him…” A voce said from behind us.

Uh oh.

*^*^*^*^*^

“Now what do we do?” Od whispered as walked to the boss’s office. A guard was walking with us.

“Well, we’re in, right?” I asked. “All we gotta do is ditch this guy & try to find the computer.”

“Good idea, but let’s bide some time.” Jeremy said. “Maybe we’ll be led right to it.”

*^*^*^*^*^

When we entered the boss’s office, all we cold see was the back of his char. We couldn’t tell whether or not it was safe, but the guard was still there, so we had no choice but to sit down.

“Leave us.” Oh great, now with out the guard, he’d do what ever he wants with us.

“I was wondering when I’d be seeing you.” He turned to face us. His eyes had XANA’s symbol in them. “Too bad you won’t leave alive.”

“Any ides, Jeremy?” I whispered.

“Um…get out of here & get both of you to the Replica?”

“Sounds good. I’ll distract him. Call we when you have the coordinates entered.” Od said. He stood & started to fight him.

Jeremy & I were long gone by this point though.

^*^*^*^*^*

I landed in the Forest Region. We had fond the computer after lots of running around, & Jeremy had wasted no time in sending me.

“I’m here, Jeremy.” I said. “It’s anther Forest Region this time.”

“Ok. The others will be there soon. Here’s your vehicle so you can get started.” I ran over to it.

“Um…Jeremy? I think you made some kind of typo.” It looked like an Over Board with a sail.

“Nope, that’s your vehicle. Just finished it a few days ago.”

Flora’s POV:

I saw the Skid fly over my head & land. Sadly, I wasn’t alone. Some Krabs came as I was waiting for the others, & it was tricky to take on so many at once.

The others started to fight alongside me as more Krabs came. I was holding my own, at lest until a tricky Krab decided to shoot my vehicle. I also took a shot to the chest as I fell & I felt the sword slip out of hand. It landed, stuck in the ground on the next platform.

“Jeremy? I need my vehicle again.” I called.

“Ok, I’ll get to it in a moment.”

Just then, a Krab set it sights on me. I knew that I needed my sword now. I quickly got on my stomach & reached out for it. I tried to ignore the Krab. Then, I felt the hilt in my hand. I got back up & quickly returned to battle.

*^*^*^*^*^

Alita went to the tower as soon as the last Krab was gone.

“Flora, that was amazing!” Yumi said.

“Thanks, I learn from the best.” I said.

“Um…I think she was talking about how you made your sword appear in your hand when you couldn’t reach it.” Ulrick said.

“Oh…When did I do that?”

“When you lost the sword & the Krab was attacking you.” Yumi said. “I guess we know what your Ability is now…”

“My what?”

“We’ll have Jeremy explain when you come home.”

Flora’s POV:

Jeremy had told us that the next flight home wouldn’t be until tomorrow, so much to Od’s delight, we were able to spend a day at the beach.

Of course, right now it was almost sun set, so I was just walking along the edge of the beach listening to my ipod when some body tapped me on the shoulder, scaring the crap out of me.

“Sorry.” Jeremy said. I paused my ipod.

“It’s ok.” I said. For a while we just kinda walked along.

“Thanks.” I said. “For letting me go to Lyoko. I’m glad you trust me now.”

“Well, if I didn’t send you, Od’s distraction would have been for nothing. You both work well together.”

I turned myself to face Jeremy as we walked. “What do you mean by that?”

“Just that when you both work together, you seem to get the job done quicker. Kinda like how Yumi & Ulrick work well because they both know martial arts.”

“Oh.”

“Why?” Jeremy asked suddenly. “What did you think I meant?”

“Nothing.” I said blushing. “Nothing at all.”

Eventually, Jeremy went over to a snack cart to get a drink. I kept walking, but I did turn my ipod back on as I watched Od in the distance.

 Talk about a sun set.

All I cold see were purples & reds

& her silhouette waving good bye 

I thought about what Jeremy had said. What he said made sense. I don’t have a crush on Od.

Do I?

  She didn’t come here

Lookn’ for love

& the cool thing was

nether did I.

Hey everybody! I’m so glad that you’ve liked this series so much! The hit cont for this story seems to grow everyday! Thanks for all the support!

Now, nobody left me any questions, so I’ll just explain a little about the science involved here, & then I have a few questions for you!

*^*^*^ Biomagnifications *^*^*^

All right, since there’s still a little summer left, I’ll try to keep this simple.

Biomagnification is when chemicals (like the chemical XANA made) get into the animal’s fat & stay there. When another animal eats it, the chemical then gets into their system. Most people know about DDT, & how it impacted bald eagles a few years ago.

My point? While this is fiction, chemicals can hurt the environment. But…can there still be a chemical that acts like DDT some day? Yes. Will it be used by an evil computer virus? Probably not, but if it is, I’m getting myself to France some how…

Remember, the chances of some thing like this happening are very, very, slim. But it’s still possible.

*^*^*^ A Few Questions *^*^*^

Since nobody left me any questions, I guess I’ll just have to ask you guys some!

Do you think Flora really has a crush on Od, or do you think they’re just friends?

Would you like me to keep writing this series?

That’s all for now, guys. See you in the next story!