Felix Agreste was no longer quite himself after Imra demanded it was time. He let the god of death consume him one more and shove him into that icy-hot darkness; where it locked his limbs in like cement and set his mind on fire.
"Here comes the fun part." Imra growled as he slipped on the miraculous rings one by one.
One by one, Imra pulled the miraculous over his fingers and wrists. One by one he was flooded with memories of his ex-comrades he murdered; Karo, Maribeth, and Nigel. All from the moment they were chosen as miraculous users to the day of their deaths tugged a fine string somewhere within Imra.
Wrapping the fox miraculous around his wrist; tying the band he felt another rush of hot magic course through him. He saw the life of Lila, a confused and often misunderstood girl. Once akumatized by Hawkmoth she was probably one of the most powerful akumas Ladybug and Chat Noir fought earlier in their teen years. He saw the young girl grow into a more disciplined and tamed hero, until she was fatally taken down by one of Hawkmoth's stronger akumas. Her memories faded quickly after Imra put the bracelet of one of the older miraculous users, Master Fu.
His was much more informative, from the time he was a younger man and claimed the Book of Miraculous from a mysterious woman to the time his home country fell into chaos and he took possession of a magical bracelet left behind in the wreckage. And for many many years he trained and fought as a much less undercover hero, and then mentored other miraculous users until one of them was stolen. He went missing for another few years, only to gift the final miraculous to a clumsy school girl and a well-minded model; both with big hearts. Those heroes became Ladybug and Chat Noir. Finally, his memories zoomed in on his death by the hands of Hawkmoth, who personally attacked him one dreadful night and inflicted a heart attack that took his life immediately.
"If there was one thing Gabriel Agreste became, it was desperate. He wasted too many years retrieving these miraculous, and now he's dead." Imra spoke out loud. He stared up at the black clouds, some that almost seem to reach out to touch his blacken hand. He exhaled as the magic of the miraculous coursed through him. He unleashed his transformation, much similar to the one weeks ago facing Gabriel Agreste, but he grew taller and his muscles bulged with black and purple. His skin an ebony black where black robes with impossible folds all the way down. He drew his dark sword made of onyx that leaked of black smoke.
Very close, Imra heard the war cry of a familiar hero, one he would be taking the life of shortly. He smirked as he flexed his limbs, waiting for their arrival.
"Ladybug and Chat Noir, it's time to meet your demise." Imra stared off into the dark distance.
Chat Noir was the first to land in the battle zone, facing the dark deity and the miraculous that seemed to almost absorb into whatever what was flesh. They glowed dimly, as if struggling to fight the darkness absorbing them.
"IMRA!" Chat Noir faced the god of death. Beside him, Papillon, and Ladybug stood, ready with their weapons.
"There you are. Are you going to hand over the miraculous to me already?" Imra smiled, bemused.
Ladfybug huffed, "You can bet your ass we're not."
Imra cackled, "This, could've been so much easier for us all...and especially when you brought your foolish friend. How dare he wear the butterfly miraculous in disgrace."
"The more talking you do, the more butterflies I'm planning on shoving down your throat." Papillon considered.
"You fools amuse me to this day. Let's be realistic, you're not going to stand a chance. You don't even have a vessel to trap me in. What are you going to do? Say 'pretty please' and I'll be on my way?" Imra told them, arms folded.
"We were hoping it would be that easy. But, personally I don't mind beating you to a black splotch, brother or not."
Imra chuckled, a bit of Felix's voice blending in as Ladybug noticed. "Dear foolish Adrien, what a child you always were. Not even all these years you have changed a bit." Imra/Felix snarled, "That Chat Noir ring is rightfully mine. No I didn't have a miraculous like everyone else. I was always the odd one. The ugly one, the strict one, the nobody. I always was better than you, and I DESERVE WAY MORE THAN YOU DID."
"I TRIED helping. You never let me. You're the immature one. You're vile and cruel and beyond scum. I swear I would avenge everyone you hurt...everything you done. Everything you killed. All for some selfish cruel reason. Do you really..." Chat Noir stepped closer, "Really..."
Imra/Felix snarled.
"Really think, Bridgette would forgive you for all of this?" Chat Noir sneered. "She wouldn't even look at you."
"Shut. Up." Imra hissed.
"YOU KILLED HER FRIENDS. HER DEATH WAS NOT THEIRS TO BLAME. YOU ARE TO BLAME FOR THE AFTERMATH." Chat Noir bellowed.
"YOU KNOW NOTHING OF HER." Imra screeched, causing a thick black gust knock the heroes back a few feet. They remained on their feet as Ladybug watched Imra clutch his blade.
"Careful...remember the plan guys." Ladybug warned the men. They nodded as Papillon waited on the cue.
"I want you all, dead." Imra deadpanned as he unleashed a column of black ice that erupted from the ground, darting towards the heroes as they split ways.
Papillon boldly acted as he summoned the white butterflies to distract Imra as the graceful Ladybug/Dragonfly soared the sky with her iridescent wings. Chat Noir launched his powerful fur legs as he gained altitude. Umra swatted the butterflies, using a deadly wave of black smoke to diminish the swarm. Papillon dodged out the wave as he summoned the butterflies in a purple magical light as he used it to gain altitude.
Ladybug equipped her yo-yos as she took a dive low to the cobblestone road. She flung her yo-yo that wrapped around the neck of Imra as she halted to a hard stop. Her padded toes arched up to her weight as she yanked the yo-yo string and cause Imra to stumble forward, glaring a harsh eye at her.
Imra yanked the string causing the heroine to stumble forward. Chat Noir pounced into action as he clawed Imra, yanking him back as he slashes his chest, black smoke curling around him. Imra snarled as he threw Chat Noir off on his back as the black cat rose back on all fours, his claws extending more.
"Give it up!" Ladybug panted, her wings fluttering anxiously as she retracted her yo-yo. Somewhere in the distance, Papillon circled the battle as he clapped his white gloves together. He shielded himself in a capsule of white butterflies as he concentrated on getting into Imra/Felix's head.
Imra only chuckled before Chat Noir sprinted after him again, his left hand drawing a green glow of energy charged into a powerful fist. Imra readied his blade to take down the black cat until Ladybug stunned him with both of her yo-yos. She launched herself in the air and drop-kicked him from behind, causing him to stumble forward.
Chat Noir smashed the palm of his hand into Imra's face, clutched his face with sharped claws, while his other arm wrestled to press into his neck. Ladybug searched for the miraculous as she yanked one of Imra's arms out as he struggled.
"Ahh!" She flinched as wires of black veins slapped against her gloved hands and forearm, burning through. She yanked her hand back as Chat was throw off again by a harsh kick to the gut as Imra rose.
"LB are you ok?!" Chat Noir checked. She nodded frantically as their eyes stayed glued to the god of death, as he slowly raised his sword.
"Give. Me. The miraculous!" Imra roared as he swung his blade as a shower of onyx shards rained upon the heroes. Chat instinctively reached for his staff he momentarily forgot about; twirling it above him and his lady as the staff deflected the shards of onyx. They stabbed the stone road causing cracks and holes in various places.
Chat lowered his staff as Ladybug heard a distant voice call out no in a plea. A voice that sounded foreign but warning as if guilty. Ladybug slowly looked up at the god of death as his pointy yellow teeth sneered at them. His arm outstretched as he clutched his hand.
"DIE!" Imra commanded as the spikes in the ground sharply extended and the miraculous heroes eyes flashed in horror.
"NO!" Papillon commanded as he summoned a swarm of butterflies to deflect the attack, the spike penetrating Imra's side as he stumbled. Finding the butterfly miraculous wielder, he glared menacingly as he snarled.
"NATE!" Chat warned as he pounced on his limbs, sliding his staff underneath Imra's legs and knocking him off his feet as Ladybug struggled to hold down the god of death. He drew his blade to strike Ladybug with a jab, but Chat deflected it with his own staff, shoving Ladybug out the way. They fought for dominance, Chat merely struggling as Imra pressed down more until his back was to the pavement. Ladybug tried one more time to draw the two yo-yos around Imra and with her strength and wings drag him backwards off Chat.
Ladybug yanked harder, yelling as the strings were cutting the flesh of the mortal body Imra was in; rotting and slowly dying. She tugged once more and threw the god of death into the sky, both hands snapping back to slam him into the ground as the god was restricted in the magical strings.
And then Imra roared, black smoke swarming the two heroes on the ground as Chat found Ladybug, grabbing her waist before yanking her back from the smoke. Chat Noir twirled his staff and ward off the smoke back to Imra as the god stabbed his sword into the pavement causing the ground to shake and begin to collapse.
Both the hereos began to retreat as Papillon went back to concentrating on finding Felix; weaving through the darkness with eerie cries of evil and corruption. The butterflies were the only ones left to guide them.
"Now would be a great time-" Chat Noir leaped out the way of a column of onyx slinking back to Ladybug, "To let our five thousand plus selves help us."
"Not. Yet." Ladybug pointed out as she back flipped another strike from Imra. "Nate...he can do this. He's getting through to him."
Chat Noir snarled as he destroyed more shards of onyx and sprinting to higher ground to meet the same altitude as Ladybug.
"And then what? Convince him to stop? Felix will do everything to kill us! And we need to stop him. Imra is not at full power, the ritual isn't complete until he gets our miraculous." Chat Noir gritted his teeth as he charged Imra, clashing his sword with his staff as he yelled.
"We...we can't kill him." Ladybug hesitated.
Chat Noir stared incredulously at him, "What?"
Ladybug scanned the perimeter briefly before seeing the butterfly cocoon Papillon trapped himself in.
Ladybug. You're not going to like this. Papillon warned.
What's wrong? You're not getting through him? Ladybug asked.
It's not only that at the moment. There's no other way to trap Imra besides keeping him inside Felix at this rate. Papillon said.
What about the urn? He needs to be imprisoned in an urn. Ladybug was desperate to do anything but that...
I have to call your names. They're the only ones that can do this...it means Felix will die for sure. Papillon told her. They are the only ones that know how to create the urn. At this rate Felix will shrivel to nothing...he's a weak vessel for Imra and he's draining his life.
Nathanael...we can't...there has to be another way. Ladybug pleaded.
We don't have any more options Marinette! Papillon insisted. Chat Noir continued to hold off Imra.
"SOME HELP LB." Chat Noir snarled, his claws dragging against the pavement as he regain some posture, struggling a little.
"Give me a moment!" Ladybug yelled back as Imra's attention was drawn to her and Papillon. Chat Noir's eyes widen as Imra's full attention was on Ladybug. She immediately shoved Papillon out the way as shards of onyx spiraled towards them.
"Oh Ladybug, I told you that you can't get rid of me...especially harming another human being. You're hereos, you don't kill." Imra snarled.
Chat Noir stared at Papillon waiting for a cue as he stood posed to defend his allies.
"Forgive me guys. This is the only way to stop him..." Papillon spoke outside as he took a breath, "I summon thee, Libellule and Panthere."
What does, a hero know?
What does, a hero feel?
The world weighs heavily on their shoulder.
A burden repeating every single day, to cast judgement on those who do wrong.
For they are our heroes,
For they are here to protect us,
For they are the border between the light of humanity, and the gods that silently watch over us.
They are our protectors because,
they will die for us and the world will move on.
My friends my friends,
do not fret.
I fought for you and I and this is the path I have decided.
Apologize for the delay, had trouble getting the chapters done and I had went out of town for the past weekend. As of now I'm working on the last few chapters left...give me a bit more time. I been working days straight from my job and it's been stressful.
On the next chapter: Can we really save ourselves from death?