A/N - Hey guys, and welcome back to the story! I'm so glad you've decided to stick around! I'd like to take a moment to reply to the lovely reviews people have left;
Senza Luna - The way I have it set up, the paladins aren't quite what it seems you think they are. You'll just have to wait and see ;)
Mikkey234 - Dude, that's awesome! i can't believe you like three of the same fandoms as me! I hope you enjoy this as much as my Unfortunate Fairy Tale story.
Resa - Haha, yep, the plan is to do the whole thing... even though it might take a long time. As for Altean Tikki and Plagg... you'll see soon enough!
Eeveecat1248 - I'm glad to provide this for you! (Btw, love the username.)
Anyway, I hope you all enjoy this chapter!
The group stared in awe at the wall, which was covered with… well, just about everything. Maps, diagrams, and photos were tacked up side by side, some with lines connecting them, some with notes doodled on them.
"What have you been working on?" Marinette asked Adrien in awe. He smiled, fighting to conceal a blush.
We might be getting invaded by aliens soon, he reminded himself. Get a grip.
"I can't explain it, really." He admitted. "After father pulled me out of the Garrison, I was kind of lost and found myself drawn out to this place. It's like something… some energy was telling me to search. Luckily, my family already owned a small cabin out here, although I'm not entirely sure why."
"Search for what?" Marinette asked.
"Well, I didn't really know at the time… until I stumbled across this area." He pointed to an area of the map of the canyon which had been circled and been labeled 'energy source'. "It's an outcropping of giant boulders with these caves covered in these ancient markings. Each tells a slightly different story about a giant bee and-"
"Wait a second, a giant bee?" Chloe asked skeptically. "You can't be serious, that sounds utterly ridiculous." Adrien ignored her.
"Anyway, they all share clues leading to some event, some arrival happening last night." He turned to Marinette. "Then you showed up."
So that's how he knew to come rescue me, Marinette thought, before turning to the rest of the group.
"I should really thank you all for getting me out of there." She said graciously. Alya and Nino smiled, but Chloe just snorted.
"So, did anyone else from your crew make it out?" Alya asked, curious. Marinette thought for a moment, brows furrowed in concentration.
"I'm not sure," She said finally. "I remember the mission and being captured. After that, it's just bits and pieces." She was clearly frustrated by her inability to remember.
"Yeah, sorry to interrupt, but can we go back to the aliens?" Nino chimed in nervously. "Where are they now? Are they coming? Are they coming for us?"
"I can't really put it together," Marinette admitted with a sigh of frustration. "I remember the word 'Miraculous'. It's some kind of weapon they're looking for, but I don't know why. Whatever it is, I think we need to find it before they do."
The rest of the team murmured their assent. They were silent for a moment, until Nino cleared his throat.
"Um, well last night I may have been rummaging through Alya's stuff and-"
"You were what now?" Alya exclaimed. Nino's face grew red and rubbed the back of his neck.
"Uh, yeah, sorry. Well, anyway I started reading her diary and-"
"My diary?!" Alya's face was beginning to match the color of Marinette's jacket.
"...and I noticed that the repeating series of numbers the aliens are searching for looks a lot like a Fraunhofer line." He finished.
"Frown who?" Adrien asked, confused.
"It's a number describing the emission spectrum of an element, only, this element doesn't exist on Earth." Nino explained. "I thought it might be this Miraculous. And I think can build a machine to look for it, like a Miraculous Geiger counter." Chloe beamed at him.
"Nino, it looks like you have an ounce of intelligence after all!" She declared.
"Uhh, thanks?" He replied uneasily. "Anyway, the wavelength looks like this." He pulled a folded piece of paper from his pocket. Straightening it out, he showed the group the graph, which depicted an uneven line. Adrien's eyes widened.
"Wait a second… give me that!" He snatched the paper from Nino's grasp and proceeded to hold it up against a picture of the canyon.
A perfect match.
They stood silent, looking out upon the canyon. In his hands Nino held a tracking device, of his own invention, while Alya carried the miniature satellite. Since he had mentioned her diary, the two could barely look at each other without blushing, but Alya still dutifully followed Nino as he led them through the canyon, eyes focused on his screen.
"I have to admit it, this is pretty freaky." Chloe commented as she, Adrien, and Marinette trailed behind Alya and Nino. Adrien nodded absently.
"What's up with them?" He asked, gesturing to Nino and Alya. Marinette shrugged.
"I don't know. Maybe Alya had something embarrassing written in her diary? I know I would hate it if anyone got their hands on my diary… not that I have one!" She added hastily. Chloe just snorted.
"I can't believe you two are so dimwitted." She scolded them. "Can't you see what's going on?" They both blinked uncomprehendingly at her, and she rolled her eyes.
"I'm getting a reading!" Nino called back to them, and they hurried to catch up. They found him at the mouth of a cave. After exchanging a few silent glances, they entered.
They were immediately captivated by what they found inside. All over the cave walls and ceiling were carvings depicting a bee, just as Adrien had described.
"Whoa." Alya breathed.
"You said it, sister." Chloe said, wandering over to the wall. As she brushed the dust from one of the bee carvings, she felt a strange sensation, a tugging in her gut. Suddenly, yellow light surged from the carving underneath her fingertips, illuminating the bee. She heard the gasps of astonishment from the others, and upon looking up realized that the rest of the carvings were glowing as well.
"They… they've never done that before." Adrien said, eyes wide.
A cracking noise could be heard from underneath their feet. Looking down, they could see the ground splitting open, glowing with the same yellow light as the carvings.
"Uh oh," Was all Chloe managed to say before the ground caved in and they fell.
They had hit the ground with a hard thud. As the others groaned on the floor, Chloe was the first to get to her feet, and what she saw made her jaw drop.
In front of her, behind what looked to be a force field of yellow light, was the bee. A huge, robotic bee. She had originally thought the idea of a giant bee to be ridiculous, but she had to admit… this thing looked badass. With black beady eyes and a stinger larger than her, the bee looked extremely dangerous, even as it perched on six legs in an awkward position. But Chloe didn't feel afraid at all. No, she felt... peace. Warmth. A strange sense of-
"Is this it? Is this the Miraculous?" Alya asked, struggling to her feet. Nino offered her a hand up, but she waved him off. Hurt flickered across his features.
"It must be." Marinette replied. She didn't hesitate to take Adrien's offer of a hand up, but never took her eyes off of the bee. As such, she didn't notice how his eyes lingered on her, and he reluctantly slid his hand from hers as she went to dust herself off.
"This is what has been causing all of the crazy energy out here." Adrien commented, walking towards it. "Looks like there's a force field around it." The rest of the group followed him.
Chloe felt the same tugging sensation in her gut. It pulled her forward, towards the mecha. It's large black eyes seemed to be staring into her soul.
"Does anyone get the feeling this is staring at them?" She asked. Feeling slightly foolish, she weaved in and out of the other group members, much to their annoyance, and still she felt its gaze rest on her.
"Um… no." Marinette replied, clearly judging her. Normally Chloe would've shot a glare at the other girl, but she was focused on the magnificent creature in front of her.
"Yeah… the eyes are totally following me." She declared.
Adrien approached the forcefield cautiously, before placing a hand on it. Golden light rippled beneath his fingers.
"I wonder how we get through this." He muttered to himself.
"Maybe you just have to knock." Chloe replied, strolling up beside him. Raising her hand, she rapped on the forcefield twice.
For a moment, nothing happened. But then, the forcefield shattered.
They both jumped back as the ground beneath the bee started to glow. The eyes seemed to sparkle, and when Chloe met them with her own, the world went black.
In a blue sky, five animal mechas soared.
A ladybug.
A black cat.
A turtle.
A fox.
A bee.
They were magnificent; ginormous, powerful, and beautiful on their own. But then… then they came together.
And suddenly, they became one. One giant robot.
The ladybug became the head, wing sliding up to reveal a face.
The black cat became the right arm, mouth clutching a silver baton.
The turtle became the left arm, shell transforming into a shield.
The fox became the right leg, and the bee became the left leg.
All together they were… Miraculous.
A/N - Hope you enjoyed this chapter. I'm sorry that I am really bad at describing things, and for the rather cheesy ending... I know how I want the animal mechas and Miraculous to look in my head, but I have trouble putting it into words, and I'm terrible at drawing, so I can't provide an image. Hopefully you all have good imaginations!
Thank you so much for reading, and I'll see you next time!
~ Elizabeth (FanOfDelicious)