I T ' S     H E R E
F I N A L L Y

Third Person

Tanith's blue eyes searched everything out the window, but for the tenth time that night, found nothing. A heavy sigh escaped her as she trudged to the couch, plopping herself down. Tanith rubbed her face as if trying to rub away any stress or worry. It wasn't working.

Glancing at the clock, it was getting close to 1 AM, and the hybrid hadn't gotten any sleep. Everytime she tried, restlessness only plagued her. The half snake had tried everything but taking a walk. True, that one was most likely to work, but she couldn't bring herself to go out. Something nagged her in the back of her head.

The city was peaceful and sleeping, but no matter how hard she tried, it just left like there was something wrong.

It felt like the calm before the storm.

Tanith knew the feeling too well to deny it, and even though she went through it many times, it was unnerving. Way more unnerving than before.

Finally giving up on the quest for sleep, she pulled out her knitting supplies. For some reason, Tanith always could turbo knit while stressed and she came to the conclusion that she had to make the most of the night.

Nothing would stop the feeling from leaving her.

************************************************************

"So, how goes the robot?" Cody asked, speaking into the phone.

Some clanking of metal from the other side responded as well as sparking, fizzing, and one frustrated sigh. "Not well. Making the actual body? Easy. However, I'm attempting to make a Artificial Intelligence and that's going terribly wrong. I can't seem to get the programming right."

Cody munched on some food before speaking again. "Well, that sucks. Is that really a good idea though? Haven't you seen the movies and books? Those things turn on you and then you start the apocalypse. Is that what you want? To start the robot apocalypse?"

"WELL MAYBE I DO! Plus, it's not like we're in a book." The Professor pointed out. From the other side of the phone, a loud and sudden spark made him let out a cry. Professor Pikalus groaned and soon the sound of something metal being thrown on the ground alerted Cody it wasn't going well.

"THAT'S IT! I'M DONE FOR THE NIGHT! GOOD NIGHT!" He screeched into the phone. Just before he hung up, the king stopped him. "WAIT! Come on, talk to me for a while." The line went silent for a moment but then he huffed. "You can't sleep?"

Cody sighed. "Yeah. I don't know why but I feel on edge. I mean I was fine all day but it happened around 10 or 11 and ever since then I just can't even lay down for long. Any tips?" Professor thought to himself for a while then suggested sleeping pills. Cody opened his mouth, hesitating.

"I dunno man. Sleeping pills? I thought of it but I don't know if I like all the effects it could have after I take it. Plus, I don't think we even have any."

"Well, I have some really good ones if you want."

"Really?"

"Yeah--ey ar---- perfect f---------- and I tak----- veryday an---- fine!"

Cody blinked in confusion, getting up off of his couch. "Uh, Professor? You're kinda cutting out there bud."
"Wh---"

Cody chuckled. "Did you forget to pay the bills or something?" From the other line, Cody made out a sigh. "No. Hold o---- walk ar--- ind better---- wifi... Can you understand me now?"

"Yeah actually. What's going on over there?"
"There might be something wrong with the cell towers. I'm going to check them. I'll get back to---"

Suddenly, the line cut out. Cody rolled his eyes. "Stupid cell towers... You had to choose now of all times to stop working? I'm bored out of my mind here!" The penguin exclaimed. Checking his phone, he grinned. "Well, at least some of them are still functional. I still have wifi at the palace. Oh well, I'll just play Angry Birds for now."

****************************************************

Professor Pikalus let out an angry huff and refrained from throwing his IPhone. The connection had gotten so bad, he couldn't even talk to Cody. Now he knew that it was on his shoulders to fix the towers before everyone woke up and complained to him. This was going to be a long and sleepless night.

Hooray.

Oh well, at least he had his coffee to keep him up.

The scientist chugged the drink down without thinking and started to grab supplies.

"Okay, wrench, wires, hammers, basically the entire tool box. Dang it, I thought I made the cell towers pretty well, what could possibly mess them up? Maybe angry animals messed with them? Burnt out wires maybe? I better prepare for everything..."

Pikalus practically tore apart the place, but a screwdriver was not in sight.

"What? I put that in the toolbox with everything else! Did one of the inters move or borrow it? Or maybe I left it outside... I was using it to get into the ships fuse box..."

The mad scientist pondered it for a while before nodding. "Yeah, I did didn't I?" He shook my head and strolled into the dark. Surprisingly, the night was dark, much darker than normal and nobody around. Pikalus was about to pull out his gun, when he realized that it was late at night. This was normal.

Proffesor waltzed over to the supplies and dug through it, finally finding it. Smiling at his work, he was about to set off when a horrifying thought occurred. "Wait..." Whipping around, the Atlantean noticed what was truly wrong with everyone being gone.

"Where are the guards?"

**************************************************

Finishing off the sweater, Tanith threw the dark purple sweater down on the coffee table, sighing. There was nothing more to do. Making another sweater just seemed excessive to her. Staring it and the table down, she began to wonder if it were truly a coffee table if she never drank coffee, let alone used the table for it.

A very paranoid thought caused her to check outside again just to satisfy it. If she checked, it would satisfy that nothing was wrong and just to go to bed already.

Tanith peeked through the blinds staring out into the vast distance. See? Nothing is out there. Just being silly again, right? Right? Riiiigh- wait what's that? Was something there?

Squinting harder, the blue orbs caught something moving in the distance. Tanith would have played it off for just an animal when something else moved with it. More and more shapes were popping up and soon, she noticed how humanoid they looked. What seemed like a hundred human-like figures were coming closer. Her heart spazzed out of control.

"No, no, no, NO!" She cried out and fumbled for the phone. Dialing quickly, she managed to call someone before being cut off. Though frustrated, Tanith was just glad she got the message to them and could only hope they would listen. The hybrid knew what was happening, and this meant that no one would be safe. She had to get out.

Tanith grabbed anything useful, including the library book on Atlantis's history. Something told her she needed it. After all this, all she needed was an escape.

Her blue eyes drifted to the closet.

*******************************************************

Cody, still playing on his phone, jumped at the sudden ringing of his phone. Though is first thought was the Professor had fixed it all, he was proven wrong when the name "Snake Sorceress" Came up instead of "Science Dork." What does she want at this time of night? Blinking in confusion, he clicked the green button and put it up to his ear.

"Uh... Hello?"

"CODY!"

The voice screeched in his ear, making him cringe. "Sheesh Tanith! Not so loud!" The penguin complained. "Sorry Cody but this is important. You need to get out!"

Perplexed, he paused to process what she was asking of him. "Get out? Get out where? Where would I go?"

"I don't know, just somewhere safe and discreet and yes, out of the palace! Just run, there isn't much time left!"
"W-what? Why do I need to leave?"
"They're coming!"

The phrase sent shivers down Cody's spine. "Who's coming?"

Just then, the call cut out. The King of Atlantis looked down to find that the wifi was out. The last cell tower was down, and Cody was left with nothing but a cryptic message. He sighed and put it away. What was I supposed to do? What if leaving wasn't the right choice? In times like this, Cody wanted to consult Rasmus. Even if I did leave, I should tell him about it at least.

Leaving his bedroom, Cody made my way over to the counseling room, where he normally was. However, he wasn't there. Knitting my eyebrows together, the penguin tried the bathroom but nothing came up. Then, the king started to notice that there was a lot of missing people.

Where was everyone?

Rushing to the throne room, he sighed in relief. Finally, Cody had found other people. Rasmus as well as many of the other members of the council were there. "Oh, there you are! Hey, Rasmus, I need some advice."

Though he wasn't facing the king at the time, when he turned, a grim look was on his face. "Cody, I'm sorry but now is not the time. You need to hide."

"I- what?"

The rooster let out a long sigh, then came a little closer. "Cody, we are dealing with a full scale invasion right now. Guards are disappearing left and right and the cell towers are down, we suspect by our attacker, whoever they are. We aren't sure who is coming, but they are dangerous. We have no way of contacting the legions that we're in trouble and they are on the other side of Atlantis right now. We have no backup and our forces are dwindling. Get down to the library and stay hidden. The town is next to lost. It won't be long before the palace is taken and we cannot have our King down."

Cody gaped at his words. "What? No, I have to fight! If the city is lost, I will go down defending it!" The King protested but Rasmus had none of it. "That's enough Cody. The city needs you alive and here for them. Now I'm going to say it one last time before I have Sharkco escort you down there forcefully. Hide. We will defend you to our last Atlantean."

Cody grumbled and lightly argued, but deep down, he knew that Rasmus was right. If he went down, there was no telling what would happen. Hiding was the best option. Making his way down the stairs, he found himself leaning against one of the bookcases. Glancing around, he found himself completely alone. A tiny breath was let out as he waited.

At least twenty minutes had passed and everything was deathly silent. The only sounds seemed to be Cody's heartbeat, pounding out of his chest and the breaths he made. Then, something shuffled. Someone was here with him.

Cody was about to call out to it, but his judgement got the best of him. If someone was here to give him the all clear, why were they being so silent about it?

"I know you're here."

The voice stopped his heart. This wasn't anyone in the council or a guard. Though it was strangely familiar, it was the kind that sent shivers down your spine and a gut feeling that they weren't good news. Where have I heard this voice before?

More movement could be heard, but it sounded pretty far away. Cody was safe. For now.

"There's no use hiding. I will find you."

The penguin's heart palpitated, but he swallowed the fear down. Moving a little, he peeked around the corner, and when nobody was there, shifted to the next shelf. "Who are you?" The King demanded, doing his best to make his voice level. After speaking, the Atlantean changed spots again, not wanting to get caught. If they got into the palace, they were powerful.

A dark chuckle rang out in the room. "You haven't figured that out yet?" Cody gulped and started to move again.

"You always were a stupid penguin." It whispered in my ear. Horror overcame him as he jumped. Whipping around, his heart stopped.

"No..." His voice now barely a whisper as he stood there shocked. "No, no, you're dead! I-I..." The words got caught in his throat. "I killed you. You're dead. You... You can't be him!" Cody tried to reason with himself, but soon gave up. There was no deny in his heart who it was. "KrakenKid... You're alive."

A grin spread across his face. "Took you long enough. I thought you would have at least considered that it was me. Oh well," His gun was out in a millisecond. "Back to business."

Just before he fired, Cody's legs started to work again and dodged out of the way. Working on adrenaline, Cody pushed down the bookshelf onto the kraken and bolted towards the stairs. As he did, a shot landed near his feet, alarming him and he skidded to a stop and used the nearest pillar as a hiding place. The clatter of books and wood hitting the floor told him that his rival was free again.

"You aren't getting away penguin!" He roared, frantically searching around. I let out a snicker. "Really? And who's going to catch me?" Cody made a run for it, charging up the stairs. Just as he turned, a large crab blocked his way. "Me."

Cody took a step back, reaching for his Atlantean spear, but a hit on the back of the head made everything go black. The king was gone before he hit the floor.

********************************************************

KrakenKid couldn't help but smile as Cody's body hit the ground. "Nice work blocking him Cannibal." Though he didn't say anything, CannibalCrab grinned.

KrakenKid, with the gun in hand, aimed it at the King of Atlantis's unconscious body. "Ohhh, how easy would it be just to kill him right now! He's right there! He can't do anything about it!" His tentacle twitched on the trigger. His partner sighed, shaking his head. "I know, but we can't. He still has a lot of use alive. Another time maybe."

Roughly grabbing him, the crab slung him across the shoulder. "Come on. We better get him back to the Conch Command." KrakenKid nodded and they set off.

Traveling through the town, they passed by many houses on the way. As they did, one caught his eye. His yellow eyes gazed up at it, and stopped him in his tracts. It was different from the rest. The color blue was replaced with red. No way... Is this?

A memory flooded back.

******

KrakenKid lead his army through the lands of Atlantis, sticking to the shadows. The lab was coming closer, which is where they needed to strike next. With both Baby Blooper and CannibalCrab by his side, he left invincible. As they neared, a tunnel with glowing pink mushrooms caught his eye. The leader signaled a halt and swam towards it, his son and best friend following.

His eyes gazed in, seeing how deep it was and thought for a moment. "I think we should send a small party to check it out. CannibalCrab, grab at least fifteen of your-"
"Dad wait! Don't go in there!"

Surprised by Blooper's sudden outburst, the two of them were facing him and giving him a strange look. "Why not?"

The child hesitated but final spoke out. "Remember my best friend Selena?" He nodded slowly. "She lives in there with her sister. I was hoping we could just leave them out of this."

"Blooper, I don't know. They could-"
"Dad please!"

KrakenKid hesitated. He wanted to let it go for his son and make Blooper happy, but they were dangerous and could tamper with his plans. His inner thoughts conflicted, causing clashing and a war to go on in his head. His general noticed his state and spoke up.

"Well, if we leave them out of it, you could also leave Tiffany out of it too. Then it's fair for both of you."

"Tiffany? Do you mean Tanith?"

"Oh that's her name... Yes, that one."

I froze for a moment, then gave an order.

"We're moving on. Leave the tunnel alone."

*****

After thinking back, KrakenKid decided on it. "You go on. There's something I need to check." Though CannibalCrab gave him a look, he shrugged it off and continued down the street. The kraken paused before walking up to the house and opening up the door.

"Hello?" He called out, shuffling in.

The house was empty. Slowly but surely, KrakenKid made his way into every room, but found nothing. He sighed, his eyes drifting off to the closet. Swimming over, he opened it.

Inside was some shelfs with a couple of books and a weapon or two, but nothing else.

Tanith was gone.

***************************************************

The Sisters gave off a bored sigh as they finally left their home. Sam swam besides her sister as they made the long journey to the lab.

"All wifi gone for hours, seriously Professor?" Sam huffed, speeding up.

"I know right? I though technical stuff was his life so why isn't the wifi working? He has some explaining to do." Selena agreed.

As the sisters made their way over, the sound of fighting got their attention. Exchanging looks, they simultaneously took out a weapon and followed it. They stayed off to the side, sneaking along. Stealth was natural for them so it wasn't hard. As they neared, visuals of the battle came to them.

Several Illithids were in a full battle with none other than PebbleTeen. With at least 10v1, against the female, she was doing pretty well. She took out them left and right, but her chest heaved. Sam knew she wouldn't last long.

"That's not a fair fight. Wanna give our fellow female some assistance?"

"Of course. Let's go kick butt."

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Okay so I've been planning how this chapter would go pretty much since the beginning. I put clues around chapter 11 I think and have been subtly building it up for the longest time. Of course, I decided to freak you guys out a bit by suddenly showing how close this chapter was to happening with a little friendly note at the end of my chapters.

Chapter 20 had to be a big one, so I made it very important.

Originally, I was going to make it all Cody's Pov, but I wanted to tell many parts of the story at once and build it up from there.

This chapter had a lot of big things, every single main character made some sort of appearance, there was man Pov's, including Sam's, and the rest is pretty obvious. 

Next chapter is going to be tense. :3

Anyways, I hope you liked it! Be sure to comment and tell me how I did! Bye!
P.S: Does this count as a cliff hanger? I have no idea.

--JustAnAtlantisWriter