Chapter 9: The Fight Before Halloween
While the rest of the team dealt with the pawns Hawk Moth had created, Ladybug and Chat Noir were fighting against the big bad villain himself down the avenue, who was proving to be a fierce opponent. Blow after blow, Hawk Moth was fighting them with everything he had. And though the two heroes were starting to feel exhausted, the villain himself did not seem to even be breaking a sweat, as he attacked them both wish his cane, as well as his hands to counterattack everything they threw at him.
"You two are resilient, I'll give you that." -Hawk Moth said, as he swung his cane at Ladybug, missing her nose by mere inches. –"But as resilient as you might be, I have the upper hand in this fight."
"If by having the upper hand means that you are trying to bore us to death with your monologues, then, yeah, you really do!" -Chat Noir joked, as he landed a punch on the villain's shoulder. He had aimed for his chest, but he dodged at the last minute.
"You will pay for your insolent words, Chat Noir." -Hawk Moth said, as he punched him in the face. When his hand hit Chat's face, the feline hero felt like he had just gone against a brick wall. Confusing him with that move, Hawk Moth than kicked him in the chest, sending flying for a couple of metres. –"Aren't you getting tired of being my punching bag?"
He had just said that, when he was hit on the back of the head. Ladybug, using the fact that the villain was too busy with Chat, had managed to get behind him unnoticed and kick him. The blow was so hard that Hawk Moth staggered for a couple of feet. Seeing the opportunity to inflict damage on him, ladybug did not hold back. Combining her martial arts training with a couple of dance moves she saw on numerous videoclips over the years, she managed to land a few well-placed blows on Hawk Moth.
"Instead of talking, you should be more aware of what's around you!" -Ladybug exclaimed, as she threw her yo-yo at him. Her intention was to wrap it around his body and then pull the string, making the villain fall on his back. Unfortunately, Hawk Moth grabbed with his left hand and pulled it, making Ladybug fall on her face. Looking up, she saw him approaching her, though she did not have to look to know what he was approaching. The sound of the tip of his cane hitting the asphalt was unmistakable.
"You and your boyfriend are starting to get on my nerves, Ladybug." -Hawk Moth told her, as he looked at her.
"He's… not… my… boyfriend…" -Ladybug said with her teeth clenched. –"Though I wouldn't mind if he really was." -she thought to herself, wondering how in the world could she be thinking about that, when her mortal enemy was looking at her, ready to kill her.
"Really? Well, it doesn't matter. Once I finish you, I'll take care of him as well." -Hawk Moth told her, as he lifted his cane. He was going to finish her with one blow, that would split her head into two.
"Catacylsm!"
That was the word it was word by both Ladybug and Hawk Moth, just before Chat jumped and sunk his claws on Hawk Moth's back. He knew that his attack would not have the same effect if had when he used it against most of things, but he knew that it would still hurt him like Hell. Feeling the claws sinking into his back, Hawk Moth screamed in pain, giving Ladybug an opportunity to kick him in the stomach. The pain was so strong, that he knelt down in pain.
"W-Why, you l-little…" -Hawk Moth said, as he tried to get up.
"Watch your tongue! There could be kids around here who might be listening, you know?" -Chat Noir joked, as he pointed out to the people that had remained behind the traffic separators to see the fight. As the fight went on down the avenue, the police officers assigned to the specific locations to keep the order, advised the people to exit out of there in an orderly fashion, but they were just mesmerized by the battle.
Tired of hearing him and his jokes, Hawk Moth clenched his fists and swinging both his arms, he fired a purple shockwave that caught both Chat Noir and Ladybug by surprise, sending them flying a couple of meters in the air, before they hit a shop window, breaking it and landing inside. Confused and astounded, not to mention hurt, by that attack from Hawk Moth, the leader of the Miraculous team and her second in command asked themselves how did the villain managed to do that. The first time they thought him, he never used energy based attacks. They did not know if those attacks were the result of him saying that on that night his powers were stronger, or if in their previous encounter, he did not feel like using them. But one thing was for sure, they packed quite the punch.
"Are you okay, milady?" -Chat asked Ladybug, as he tried to get up, though that last attack from Hawk Moth, combined with the feline's use of his special attack, had left him exhausted.
"I-I'm okay. And you?" -Ladybug said.
"I'm peachy." -he grinned.
"I don't know about you, but I feel like I was runover by a truck." -Ladybug said, as she tried to get up. Luckily, unlike Chat who landed on a hard surface, she landed on something soft. Looking around, she found out that they had been thrown inside a furniture shop.
"Like I said… peachy." -Chat tried to pretend that he was not hurt, but he was not doing a very good job at it. Leaning against something that used to be a chair, he tried to get back on his feet. When this one broke, and made him fell on his knees, he decided to use his staff to do the job.
"We've got to go, before he decides we're not worth the trouble." -Ladybug told him, as she got back on her feet.
"I don't think… we're going to have to worry about that." -Chat said, as he pointed outside the broken window shop.
Standing outside the shop, Hawk Moth entered through broken window shop. Looking at him, both Ladybug and Chat Noir knew he was pissed, just by the look in his eyes, and that was not good… not for them, at least.
"You two are going to beg me to kill you quickly…" -Hawk Moth told them in an incredibly serious and sinister voice.
At the same time, a little further back, Grizzly Bear and Antelope were fighting both Reptile and Madame Romani, who had been ordered by Hawk Moth to dispose of them. Just like Ladybug and Chat Noir, the two heroes were having a bit of a problem with Hawk Moth's goons, who like their boss, seemed stronger than usual, as if their abilities had been heightened somehow. Still, that did not stop them from fighting them with all their might. While Antelope made use of his speed and leaping ability to evade Madame Romani's multiple illusions, Grizzly was using Reptile as a punching bag.
"You can't keep dodging my illusions forever, kid!" -Madame Romani exclaimed, as she made a pack of hungry and vicious wolves appear in front of her. Howling, the illusionary creatures tried to bit Antelope, only to fail, as he jumped five meters in the air, only to land on top of them with both feet, smiting into smoke
"If your plan to destroy me involves keep throwing doggies at me, let me just tell you this…" -Antelope said, as he speeded out of there, just to show up behind Madame Romani. –"… you better come up with something else, because
"Then try this!" -Madame Romani exclaimed, as she grabbed him by the shoulder, and threw him a couple of feet away. Landing hard on his back, Antelope did not have the time to react, before he saw himself with Madame Romani with her foot on top of his chest. –"If my illusions don't work on you, then let's see if my hypnotism does." -she said as looked him in the eyes.
Antelope tried to look away, but it was too late. Using her mesmerizing powers, Madame Romani looked him in the eyes and began to hypnotize him. He struggled a bit, but she was too strong for him. Smiling evilly, the gypsy witch pondered on what she was going to do next with him. With Antelope under her power, she could give him any order, and he would have to obey her, whether he wanted, or not.
"What to do? What to do?" -Madame Romani mused to herself. –"I could ask him to just hang over his miraculous, and then, I would know he really is… but what's the point of knowing that? Once I have his miraculous, it will be all over. No, I think I'm going to have a little fun with him first." -she kept musing to herself. –"Perhaps I'll make him jump from the top of one of the nearby buildings, commanding him to land on his head, so he breaks it, along with his neck… or maybe, I could command him to snap his own neck with his bare hands… oh, yes that would live up my night. And then, I'll just take his miraculous from his dead body and give it to Hawk Moth."
But before she could do any of it, Reptile, who was thrown by Grizzly Bear, fell on top of her, thus breaking her control over Antelope. While the villains tried to get back on their feet, Grizzly helped the antelope hero get back on his feet. As he got up, he took left hand to his temple, rubbing it, because it felt like his head was about to explode.
"Are you okay?" -Grizzly asked him.
"Y-Yeah… but that woman trying to hypnotize me, gave me a colossal headache." -Antelope said, as he kept rubbing his temple. –"What's with these guys that look like they're stronger than usual?" -he asked, as he saw both Reptile and Madame Romani also getting back on their feet.
"I don't know, but I don't intend to let that stop me from using that two-bit snake as a punching bag, man." -Grizzly said, as he crackled his knuckles in anticipation. His comment gaining him the full attention from Reptile.
"We'll see who'll use who as a punching bag, kid!" -Reptile growled at the bear hero.
Looking at Grizzly Bear, Antelope asked him:
"You want to switch? It's not that I'm tired of rumbling with that witch, but I could go for a round against lizard boy over there."
"Well… okay, I guess we ca switch. But don't put him out of commission, okay? I still want to get him back for that punch he gave me in the nose, a couple of minutes ago." -Grizzly warned him.
"Okay, don't worry. I won't break your toy. I'm just going to soften him a bit." -Antelope grinned.
"You talk big, but let's see if you can dodge my attacks!" -Reptile exclaimed, when he felt someone tapping him on the shoulder.
"You mean like this?" -Antelope smirked, as he punched him in the gut, making fly a couple of yards in the air.
"G-Get him!" -Reptile exclaimed to the gypsy woman, as he pulled himself up.
But before she could react, Grizzly came at her and punched her in the ribs. It had not been his strongest punch, but against a woman, even a woman as strong as Madame Romani, it prevented her from casting any kind of illusion or trick that could help Reptile to defeat Antelope.
"I'm you opponent, you wench, not him!" -Grizzly told her.
"In that case… you're going to be sorry for being my opponent, Grizzly Bear!" -Madame Romani glared at him, her eyes filled with anger from that last punch of his. He could tell that she was not going to go softly on him, which was exactly what he wanted.
"Bring it, witch!" -Grizzly exclaimed as he attacked her, once more.
As the fight went on, back at the parade Carapace, with a little help from Rena Rouge, Queen Bee, Louve Grise, Corbeau Noire, Flamingo and her several copies, managed to get every single Hawk Moth pawn there was and confine them to energy spheres, gathering them all onto a single place, where they would not bother anyone at all, until they were restored to their true appearance. Stacking them up in some of the floats, they knew they would not hurt anyone while in those spheres.
"That was the last of them." -Rena Rouge said.
"Good." -Flamingo said, as she made all her copies disappear. –"I didn't expect to be so many of them."
"And if it was not for Queen Bee who took most of them while they were up in the air, there would be a lot more." -Carapace said.
"Well, I was not going to let them get away, now was I?" -Queen Bee joked as she landed near her friends.
They had not counted them, but as they looked at the amount of green energy spheres that Carapace created to hold them, they easily assumed that there were at least about 80 or 90 Hawk Moth pawns there.
"So, what are we going to do with them? We have to get those Akuma butterflies form inside them." -Corbeau Noire.
"But they're so many. It's going to take us all night." -Queen Bee whined about it. Just the idea of having to extract those butterflies, one by one from those poor souls, was making her feel even more exhausted than she already was.
"Don't be so melodramatic. I say that in a matter of 20 minutes, we'll have them all back to normal." -Carapace said. –"If all of us land a hand, we'll have this done in a jiffy."
"And what about Ladybug and the others? They're probably in need of our help." -Louve Grise declared.
They had been so busy taking down the akumatized Disney cast members and the pawns, while protecting the people that were attacked by either one of them, that they had completely forgotten about their friends, who stayed behind to take care of the main villains. They all believed they were able to take care of themselves, but a little help never hurt anyone. Taking charge of things, Rena Rouge decided to stay behind and herself to take care of the pawns, while the rest of them went ahead to help Ladybug and the others.
"She's right. They're probably in need of help. You guys go and see if you can help them. I'll stay behind and take care of these. Once I'm done, I'll join you."
"You're sure you don't want any help? I can stay and help you." -Carapace asked her.
"No, you go with them. I'm almost certain that your defensive and healing powers are going to come in handy." -Rena told him.
"But we can't just leave you alone to take care of this." -Flamingo told her.
"It's going to take you forever to do this alone." -Corbeau Noire declared.
But before the fox heroine could answer her, another heroine showed up. Forest Doe had just helped Dragonfly taking down of the akumatized cast members, and was now joining them, while Dragonfly herself flew ahead to give a hand to Ladybug and Chat Noir.
"I'll stay with you and help you out." -Forest Doe told Rena Rouge.
"Thanks." -Rena smiled, with Doe returning the smile. –"Okay, while she and I take care of this, you guys go and help the others. Remember, be careful." -she said. They were all starting to get exhausted, and one thing that is true, is that when a person starts to get exhausted, it tends to make mistakes.
"You got it." –Louve Grise said.
"Don't take too long to get this done. We'll be expecting you." -Carapace winked at Rena, who smiled.
At the same time, Panda Rouge took out the last Disney cast member, who had been akumatized, turning into the character he was portraying, which in his case was Oogie Boogie. It had been quite the battle between the two of them, but in the end, Panda Rouge's drawing reality ability allowed him to counter attack the villain's attacks, allowing him to prevail. Using his spear, and reciting the magical chant that allowed him and his companions to extract the Akuma butterfly from an akumatized victim, he grabbed and destroyed the evil creature.
"And that's the last of them." -Panda Rouge said, as helped the cast member getting back on his feet. –"Don't worry, you're going to be fine."
A couple of seconds later, Arachnid showed up, landing near him. He had just helped a group of people, who in the confusion, somehow, while running from the Akuma butterflies, managed to get stuck beneath one of the floats.
"I see you've been a little busy."
"I have, but luckily that was the last one of them... at least, I think it was." -Panda sighed.
"It was. Dragonfly and Forest Doe took care of Maleficent a couple of minutes ago, which was one of the last two Disney cast members still akumatized, and you took care of the second one right now." -Arachnid declared.
"And what about the Hawk Moth pawns? I saw Flamingo and her copies, as well as Corbeau Noire; Louve Grise and Queen Bee carrying them in that direction." -Panda Rouge told him, after which Arachnid told him about Carapace's plan on how to deal with them, and preventing them from destroying public property and hurting people. –"Well, that was a good idea, I have to admit. Are they going to get rid of the Akuma butterflies in them?"
"I suppose so." -Arachnid said. -"Look, I don't know about you, but I'm going ahead. Something tells me that Ladybug and the other three might need a little hand." -he stated.
"I'll go with you. I think the police can handle things from here on." -Panda Rouge said. –"And believe me, you're not the only one who thinks that."
"Alright then. Do you need a lift, or…"
"Are you kidding? With this little one, I'll even outrun Antelope." -Panda Rouge as he finished drawing for himself what could be described as a rocket-powered skateboard. Though he was used to seeing his friend do that, Arachnid still wondered how he was able to draw things that fast. –"I'll race you there." -he said, as he climbed to the skateboard.
"You're on!" -Arachnid exclaimed.
The fight between Ladybug, Chat Noir and Hawk Moth had taken a turn for the worst, when Hawk Moth blasted both heroes inside of a closed shopping mall. The villain had used once more one of his energy shockwave attacks on the two of them, which ended up with them going through a wall. Seeing themselves in the middle of the lobby, they were amazed just by how huge it was. Even Chat, who lived in a mansion, was amazed by the sheer size of that place. Neither one of them recognized the place, which meant that neither had been there before. Its décor was mix between the opulence of the rococo and the whiteness of the minimalism. A rather interesting choice of styles. In the ceiling there was an enormous golden crystal chandelier, surrounded by six smaller copies of the same. The floor was all made of black-polished marble. The stores were all of them, from famous brands such as Dior, Versace, Michael Kors, among many others. It did not take long for the two heroes to tell themselves that that was the kind of place where they would easily find Chloé shopping on a weekend, when she had nothing better to do.
As they tossed the rubble that was on top of them and got up, both Ladybug and Chat knew that every muscle in their bodies was going to be sore in the morning.
"I don't know about you, but I think that he's getting stronger with each passing minute." -Chat Noir said.
"I think he was not kidding when he said that his powers were stronger… and I think I might now why." -Ladybug said, as she shook the dust from her suit. –"If his powers are magical, just like ours, then, the fact that we're close to Halloween, his powers increase because of the supposed barriers between the world of the living and the world of the dead are frailer."
"But if that was the case, then, shouldn't our powers be stronger as well?" -Chat Noir asked her. –"Because I don't feel any stronger. Do you feel?"
Chat had a point. Ladybug herself did not feel any different or stronger. If their powers were magical, just like Hawk Moth's were, then why was he stronger and they were not? Still, they did not have the time to figure out what was really going on. Hawk Moth was going to come through the whole they made earlier, and they had to ready themselves.
"No… but right now, whether I'm right or wrong about this theory of mine, it doesn't matter. What matters is that we have to find a way to defeat him."
"If it wasn't just the two of us, I would believe we had a chance… but…"
"Come on, we've been through a lot worse." -Ladybug lied. When saying that, she did not know if she was lying to Chat or to herself. –"Who am I trying to kid? We've never been this bad before… sure, we had to deal with several Akumas, but never with the one who created them in the first place." -she thought to herself, not counting the first time they faced Hawk Moth. –"Okay, relax. Everything is going to be fine. We just need to keep our heads cool, and everything will be fine."
As Hawk Moth came through the wall, the two heroes prepared themselves for whatever the villain was about to throw at them. No matter just how tired and fatigued they were, they were not going out without a fight. They both knew that the two of them could be on the verge of defeat, but they were not going to let Hawk Moth win that easily. Looking at the heroes, Hawk Moth smirked evilly.
"If you give up now, I'll give you a merciful death." -Hawk Moth said.
"And if we don't? Are you going to give us a painful one?" -Chat raised his eyebrow at the villain. –"Tough choice, don't you think, milady?" -he asked Ladybug, trying to lighten up the tension in the air.
"Indeed… and you know what? We'll pass on that offer of yours!" -Ladybug exclaimed.
"In that case, I'll enjoy sending you to the other world." -Hawk Moth smirked, when suddenly something hit him from behind, making him fall on his face.
To his surprise, what hit him were none other than Reptile and Madame Romani, both unconscious. Quickly turning his head back, he saw both Grizzly Bear and Antelope looking at him, both with a cocky smile on their lips.
"Thought we should give them back to you." -Grizzly Bear told Hawk Moth.
"Yeah. You really got to find better minions, because those two stooges are just… well, I don't even know a word that isn't an insult to describe them, you know?" -Antelope told him. –"Either way, you've got to find better help." -he laughed
Seeing his two lieutenants lying on the floor in front of him, made hawk Moth realize that the young hero might have been right about it. Once again, they had failed him by not being able to carry out a simple order, which was to kill both Antelope and Grizzly Bear and bringing him their miraculouses.
"Idiots… Do I have to do everything myself?!" -Hawk Moth thought to himself, as he made a mental not to punish the two of them later. –"You may have been able to defeat Madame Romani and Reptile, but I won't go down that easily. The four of you and your powers are nothing compared to mine."
"Maybe not… but what if instead of 4, you had 12 of us to worry about?" -a voice asked the villain.
Entering through the hole that Ladybug and Chat Noir had done, most of the Miraculous Team was standing there, ready to help their friends and defeat Hawk Moth.
"You're either incredibly brave, or incredibly foolish. But in the end, numbers don't matter. What matters is who has the most power, and I am that person here." -Hawk Moth laughed evilly.
"Says who? You?!" -Antelope asked him in a sarcastic tone.
"You've already caused enough trouble for one night, you psycho. It's time we finish this." -Queen Bee said. –"Ladybug, Chat, you two stay this one out and get some rest. We'll handle him."
Though they both felt that they should fight by their side, both Ladybug and Chat Noir knew that in their current condition, they would not be much help.
"Very well, come at me with everything you've got, you brats!" -Hawk Moth exclaimed.
Led by Queen Bee, the whole team attacked Hawk Moth, who wasted no time throwing energy attacks against them all, which caught them by surprise. As they kept fighting him, they had a taste of what Ladybug and Chat Noir had been facing over the last half an hour. The only one who did not throw himself against the villain was Carapace, who decided to act like the team's field doctor and look at his battered friends. Helping them walk to a more sheltered place, it did not take much for him to understand that they were used as a punching back by Hawk Moth. Once they found that place, on one of the mall's side galleries, Carapace told them to lie down and let him do his thing. Quickly, he used his healing powers to soothe their wounds. As soon as he used his powers on them, they began to feel much better. They were still sore, but at least they could now move with a lot more ease.
"Are you guys feeling better?" -the turtle hero asked them both, as he used his healing powers.
"Much better, thanks to you, bro." -Chat Noir told Carapace. –"You guys showed up just in the nick of time."
"Yeah, a couple of more seconds, and I think he would have ended us." -Ladybug sighed, as she tried not to move much, so as let Carapace's healing magic do its work in her aching muscles.
"What are you talking about?" -Carapace asked her, a little surprised by that statement.
"He's stronger than the last time we went up against them." -Ladybug told him. –"I think that it has something to do with his powers being stronger because we're close to Halloween and all." -she explained.
"But if that was the case, shouldn't we also be stronger as well? I mean, our powers are different from his, but they have same origin." -Carapace stated.
"That's what I also told her." -Chat said. –"If our powers have the same origin, then why aren't we stronger?" -he asked as a loud explosion was heard, resulting in the whole place to start shaking.
"A-And like I told you before, I don't know. But the fact is that Hawk Moth is a lot stronger and… Watch out!" -Ladybug yelled, as she launched herself in the direction of Chat and Carapace.
Having been distracted with the conversation, they failed to realize that Hawk Moth had unleashed a powerful energy attack against the other heroes. The attack not only managed to throw the heroes against the walls, but also managed to do massive damage on the building's structure. Such damage resulted in a large piece of concrete from the ceiling right where Ladybug, Chat Noir and Carapace were to fall directly on them. If it was not for Ladybug's speed, the two of them would have ended up as pancakes. Still, in the ensuing chaos, Chat was hit on the head, when a small piece of concrete fell on him.
Worried about him, Ladybug kneeled right beside the feline hero, who showed no sign of life. Carapace, who also kneeled beside him, quickly checked his pulse.
"Is he…"
"Don't worry, he just passed out. Probably from being hit on the head." –Carapace told her. –"Fortunately, he has a hard noggin, so he'll be peachy." -he joked, trying to calm Ladybug down.
"But, he's going to be alright, isn't he?" -Ladybug asked him.
"He will, don't worry. But, when he wakes up, he'll probably have a nasty headache." -Carapace said. –"Stay with him. I'm going to check out what happened, and if the others are alright." -he told her.
"Okay." -Ladybug waved her head in compliance.
"Don't worry. I won't take long. And just to be on the safe side, I'm going to leave you guys with this." -Carapace declared, as he swung his tonfas and created a shield that in front of them, thus confining them to the side gallery. –"Be back in a second."
As she saw Carapace leaving, Ladybug asked herself if the rest of the team was alright. That attack had been quite strong, and she was sure Hawk Moth caught some of them with it. She just hoped they would not be hurt, or worse. Looking at Chat, she could not help but to admire just how peaceful he looked, given what happened to him.
"Oh, Adrien… this is the fourth time this month that I save you." -Ladybug thought to herself. –"You silly kitty… sometimes I wonder if your bad luck affects you too, and it's somehow pushing you towards me." -she smirked. Such an idea was rather ridiculous, but it had a nice ring to it.
Her train of thought was interrupted, when she felt her yo-yo vibrating. Recently, she and the others had discovered that somehow, their cell phones had fused themselves with their weapons, allowing them to make and receive calls while wearing their hero outfits. Grabbing it, she opened it and saw that it was her mother, no doubt calling her to ask her if she was alright.
"Crud, I can't answer this call now. But if I don't do it, mom will get worried and I'll be in trouble when I get home." -Ladybug thought to herself. –"Screw it! I just have to lie to her and tell her that I'm alright and hope for the best." -she told herself, as she answered the call. –"Hey, mom!"
"Marinette, are you alright?" -Sabine asked her. She had been watching the Halloween parade on the television, when the fight against Hawk Moth broke out. Fearing for Marinette's life, she tried to call her a couple of times already, but only now did she answered. –"I've been trying to call you."
"Sorry, mom, I must have left my cell phone on silent mode. But, I-I'm fine, mom. I'm with Adrien, Alya and Nino." -she lied.
"I just wanted to know, because of what's going on around there." -Sabine told her.
"I know, we saw it happening. But don't worry, we ran away and right now, we're on our way home." -Ladybug kept lying. She hated lying to her mother, but there was no way to do it, given her current situation. –"Oh, I'm about to run out of signal. We're going into the underground." -she said. –"I'll be home in about half an hour."
"Okay, then, honey. Your father and I we'll be waiting for you." -Sabine said, as Ladybug ended the call.
"Great! Now, I've got to find a way to end this quickly, or I won't be able to get home by the time I said I would be." -Ladybug cursed herself. –"There's got to be a way to end this quickly… but how?"
Sorry, sorry, sorry... I'm really sorry, guys. I really wanted to have this one done yesterday, but I fell asleep and could not finish it. Still, it's ready now, and I hope that you all liked it.
