Captain Hardrock swung her light sword round and round and round, desperately trying to knock out the many, many other fox heroines racing around her. Sparrow, Tikki and Plagg gawked. "If I didn't know any better," the latter rubbed his eyes, "I would think that Master Fu cloned one of the miraculous!"
"Perfect," Sparrow sighed as Tikki awed at the many heroines, "as if one Chloe was lacking in the annoyance department."
It wasn't just the multiple Foxy illusions that caught the heroes off guard. Oionos was clinging to one of the sails, all of which were on fire, and Thirio was riding a wild cannon that spun fast enough to make one sick simply by watching from afar.
"This is what you consider a rescue mission?" Plagg let out a low breath. "These guys seriously need some basic tips before they head into a real fight."
Captain Hardrock noticed them standing by the door. "ARG! Let me sea prince go before sweet Liberty send you off the plank!"
Tikki poked Sparrow on the shoulder. "When a Kwami controls the body of their partner, none of their powers work. I have no way to cleanse her of the akuma!"
One of the Foxy turned to them as the rest clobbered Hardrock. "Took you long enough to get them up here," she narrowed her eyes, "but…something seems off. You two feeling alright? The way you two are staring at me is freaky."
"No time," Sparrow snapped, "we need to get them to the hotel now!"
She nodded and gave a shrill whistle. "Thirio, Oionos, time to get out of here! Give me a hand! I want to wrap this pirate princess up quickly!"
Captain Hardrock stood no chance. Thirio drew forth vines grown from the plants below the ship and wrapped her up. Oionos leaped over her, whipping a glob of poison at her feet. It melted the wood beneath, sending her crashing below deck. Foxy whisked her illusionary selves away as the group heard Hardrock squawking below.
"Let me go, ye scabby hags, before I get Liberty to crash ye into the oblivion!"
"Aw," Oionos sighed, "and Thirio and I were so excited at having a chance to use our special abilities in battle."
"The time will come, surely," Sparrow began to lead them off the ship, "but for now, we return to Le Grand Paris and put you guys on the other teams while I deal with Ladybug and Chat Noir. The last thing we need is you new guys getting tackled-"
"Excuse me," Foxy wagged her finger at him, "since when are you an expert on how strong other heroes are?"
Tikki gave him another tap. "We really need to be going…"
I am aware of the time crunch, he studied the irritated expressions of his teammates, but none of them are going to make this simple, and the less I have to explain about the Kwami possessing our friends, the better…
"Alright, fine," he had no time to argue, "head to the Eiffel Tower and meet up with Yeti and her team while I take Luka and the others back."
Thirio glanced at Tikki and Plagg. "You two feeling okay? Can you not cleanse Hardrock while we're here?"
Plagg shook Chat Noir's head. "We need to…recharge! Back at the hotel."
Oionos nodded. "Take care, you three." With that she and the other two leaped onto the rooftops and headed out in the opposite direction.
"Come on," Sparrow led Tikki and Plagg the other way off the show, ignoring Hardrock all the while, "Nathanael will be waiting for us."
Nathanael and Master Fu were waiting out front when Sparrow and the others landed. They were quick to get inside and to the elevator. "Marinette, Adrien," Nathanael checked on his friends as the elevator rose, "where have you guys been all this time?"
"Those are not Marinette and Adrien," Fu explained. "For now, their Kwami partners Tikki and Plagg are controlling their bodies, which have obviously been through much trauma. I need to make a special concoction in my room that will cleanse their systems."
"It was awful, Master," Tikki practically wailed as they entered their floor, "Captain Hardrock was trying to drown them, and nothing Plagg or I could do would have helped!"
Once inside the big room, Sparrow laid out Luka on one of the three couches, while Tikki and Plagg stretched out on the others. Nathanael clenched his fists with apprehension. "Will they be okay, Master Fu?"
Master Fu shook his head. "They will have to be. Tikki, Plagg, join me in the other room while I make the potion."
The Kwamis nodded the heads of their partners and shut their eyes.
"Spots off."
"Claws in."
In a flash Marinette and Adrien were back to their pale, clammy, shivering selves. Nathanael was at their sides just as quickly, covering them with blankets and placing pillows under their heads. The Kwami flew out of the room behind Fu and shut the door behind them. Sparrow was out of his suit in a second and at his brother's side as Cheep hovered over the coffee table. "They look worse, Felix…"
Stating the obvious certainly does wonders for my nerves.
Nathanael stood and walked to the door. "I'll go and see if Master Fu will let me give them some medicine for their fevers. Watch them until I get back." He closed the door behind him quietly so not to disturb the tense peace.
Felix knelt by Adrien and put a hand to his forehead. The heat was enough to nearly leave a burn on his own skin. "…What have I done?"
Cheep landed on his shoulder. "This is not your fault. In fact, do you think HawkMoth knew this was happening?"
He had been wondering the same thing. "Perhaps not…no, father would never place Adrien in so much danger, even for his crazy plans."
"So then…why did Hardrock go to all the trouble?"
Felix grimaced at the horrible truth. "Somebody besides HawkMoth wanted them dead."
