Tower (Code Lyoko)

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A tower is an object within the virtual world of Lyoko in the French animated television series Code Lyoko.

The towers serve as data processing nodes for the supercomputer, and as a link between Lyoko and the real world. By infecting these towers (usually one at a time, but sometimes more), Xana can attack the real world. Aelita, Jeremie, and Franz Hopper can operate the towers in the same manner, but not as skillfully; for example, Aelita must be physically present at the tower in order to manipulate it, and Jeremie's towers are easily hijacked by Xana.

Contents 1 Design 2 Way towers 3 Codes 4 Locations 5 Trivia

[edit] Design

Each tower looks like a giant white pillar with a base similar to a tree trunk. Around each tower are large, grey wires that lead back to Carthage. These wires allow anyone operating the supercomputer to activate the towers. Red energy can be seen pulsing through these whenever Xana activates a tower. The wires can be severed, which will isolate the tower from the rest of the system, effectively deactivating it. This has only been suggested once, in the episode "Revelation", but none of the wires were ever cut. The towers have no visible entrance, but any friendly warrior can phase through the surface of the tower. Xana's monsters, however, can't do the same (this is proven humorously in "Attack of the Zombies", where a Kankrelat chasing Aelita into a tower bounces off the tower's surface and then proceeds to run in a circle without getting up). Even though Aelita always ends up walking in straight, it is possible to miss and appear over the pit instead, as Ulrich and Odd did in "Xana Awakens".

The inside of each tower remains the same, regardless of whom or what is currently using it. The walls are covered with various images of moving binary code. There are two platforms; one at ground level and one higher up. Both platforms have the Eye of Xana printed on them, and the Eye glows when it is walked on. The upper platform has an interface that floats in mid-air, appearing whenever necessary. The interface allows Aelita to directly access the supercomputer. It is unknown if anyone other than Aelita can use these interfaces, but this may practically be the case, since she is the only character other than Jeremie who knows how the supercomputer works.

Around each tower is an aura that changes color depending on who or what is currently using it. If the tower is not being used or is being used normally by Aelita, it glows blue. In the first and second season, this is the normal state for any tower. When Xana activates a tower in order to attack the real world, it glows red. When Jeremie activates a tower, it glows green. Finally, when Franz Hopper activates a tower, it glows white. In the third season, the towers glow white as opposed to blue. This is due to Franz Hopper's intervention in "The Key".

Once a tower has been activated by anyone, Aelita has the ability to deactivate it. Xana can also deactivate its own towers at will. This occurs multiple times in "Cold War" and then again in "Revelation". Xana requires force to deactivate the towers of others. He accomplishes this by having Megatanks attack the tower in question. The force behind these attacks causes the tower to shut down completely after a short time. Laser-fire from other monsters is simply absorbed and dispersed by the tower.

Xana can also take control of towers activated by Jeremie, and has attempted this in "Tip-Top Shape" and "Revelation". Xana succeeded in the former instance and would have succeeded in the latter were it not for Franz Hopper's intervention. Franz Hopper can also take control of towers activated by Xana, as shown in "Revelation" and "The Key".

If the supercomputer is shut down, the effects of any activated towers are suspended for the period that the supercomputer is inactive. Once the supercomputer is reactivated, the effects of the towers automatically resume.

[edit] Way towers

The way towers (also known as passage towers) are four unique towers that exist in the four main sectors. Unlike the regular towers, they have specialized roles. Way towers allow people to travel between sectors by jumping into the data stream below the lower platform. Carthage is the exception to this, as it has no way tower, and can only be accessed through use of the Transport Orb, or by Jeremie's program. The way towers also manage the scanners' memory, and are never activated by Xana except in the episode "The Key" (when he activates every tower in preparation for freeing himself from the supercomputer), but are taken over by Franz Hopper shortly thereafter. The way towers also can be used to analyze those already in Lyoko, and this is used on Yumi in the episode "Missing Link". Further, Jeremie can use the towers to implement cures to anyone affected on Lyoko, as shown in "Temporary Insanity", where he cured Odd and Ulrich of hallucinations given to them by Xana. Finally, Xana is able to obtain total control over a sector by possessing Aelita with the Scyphozoa and having her enter the code "Xana" into the sector's way tower, at which point he deletes the sector. Aelita can also do the same of her own free will.

[edit] Codes

By using the interface at the top of a tower, Aelita can enter codes to access different functions of the tower. She does this by pressing her hand to the interface. The interface then displays her name. After a few seconds, it will clear and display the word "Code", followed by the relevant code on the next line. The first of these codes is "Lyoko", both the namesake of the show and the virtual world. By entering this code into a tower activated by Xana, the tower is reset to its normal state. A second and now obsolete code is "Earth", which was used in the episode "Code Earth" to materialize Aelita, but this is no longer necessary; Aelita simply enters any neutral tower and Jeremie runs her materialization program, transferring her to Earth. In the third season, this is no longer necessary since Aelita can devirtualize normally. The final code is "Xana", which is entered into a way tower by Aelita when she is possessed by Xana. Unlike the previous two codes, which appear in blue letters, this code appears in red letters. Once entered, Xana is given complete control over the sector it is entered in. Xana uses this method to delete entire sectors. Aelita can do the same on her own if she wishes, but there is no corresponding code.

[edit] Locations

According to the Code Lyoko DVDs, each of the towers is numbered and in a specific location. So far, only thirteen have been given exact locations. Since there seems to be no specific pattern to their order, the numbers of the other towers cannot be extrapolated from the numbers given.

• Ice Barrier:

#06 - 17° North Longitude, 37° East Latitude

#12 - 40° North Longitude, 16° East Latitude

• Desert:

#05 - 35° North Longitude, 15° East Latitude

#11 - 15° North Longitude, 10° East Latitude

#14 - 23° North Longitude, 35° East Latitude

#20 - 40° North Longitude, 35° East Latitude

#23 - 82° North Longitude, 07° East Latitude

• Forest:

#22 - 20° North Longitude, 45° East Latitude

#30 - 35° North Longitude, 20° East Latitude

#37 - 12° North Longitude, 20° East Latitude

• Mountain:

#16 - 50° North Longitude, 52° East Latitude

#19 - 45° North Longitude, 15° East Latitude

#21 - 72° North Longitude, 55° East Latitude

[edit] Trivia

• In the Garage Kids marketing pilot, the towers look roughly the same, but vary greatly in size. One of the largest is twice the size of a tower in Code Lyoko. In addition, it is unknown if the towers in Garage Kids were ever intended to be entered.