Coup
Two months of storm clouds and rain later, a quartet of sloops floated up the Seine during a lull in the bad weather. 'Mom's going to be pissed, but the plan had to change after Fred was arrested. Who knew that Stone had King Bourgeois' ear?' the thought barely coalesced as Luka turned the wheel, sending the first vessel toward the Royal Palace. He looked down at the men on deck, covered in canvas for the sails that usually propelled this type of ship. Rowers down below pushed the ship onward while the young man at the wheel looked for the signal. 'If that little harlot isn't in position, this will be the shortest coup on record.'
Within the royal palace, a young girl walks through the servant's corridors, climbing stairs until she reached the floor she wanted. Unlatching the door, she pushed it open to see a hallway beyond. An arched doorway that led to the southern tower was exactly what she wanted, and she slipped out into the hallway with a bare whisper of fabric. Looking left and right, she noted the lack of guards, so she moved silently toward the archway, a three stick candelabra in her left hand.
Ascending the curved stairs, she reached the window of the tower that overlooked the south, her eyes catching sight of the ships. Those eyes glittered with malevolence as she set the candelabra on the sill. Stepping back, her lips curved into a smile as she descended the stairs. 'More needs to be done.' she looked left, then right, before heading straight for the servant's entrance again. 'Time for part two of our plans.'
It didn't take long for Luka to see the signal, and almost instantly he turned the wheel until the side of the ship grazed the stone pier. "Lash down the fore and aft! Go! Go! Go!" he called out as the gangway was slammed down, and the men started rushing forward. A couple of militia guards saw the armed soldiers, and attempted to stop them, but found themselves easily dispatched.
Two hundred men rushed forward as the guards on the walls prepared to repel the invasion, at least that was the plan until the drawbridge was lowered, and the portcullis raised. Rushing forward, Captain Raincomprix ascended the steps to the guardhouse. "What in the name of..." he started to ask, only for the guard at the wheel to turn around, and melt into that of a lovely young woman wearing an unusual outfit. "We are betrayed by a spy!" he shouted, reaching for his rapier.
Vixen rushed forward, her weapons coming out of their sheaths. "Nope, by an assassin." he had barely pulled his weapon, with the majority of it remaining it the scabbard when she leaped upon him, her blades pointed down at him. Staggering back, he saw her eyes glittering with mirth as her mouth opened with a cry of delight. Her fists came down with a flash of silver, his mouth opening in a scream of pain as they tumbled down the stairs.
By the time the pair landed on the wall, with Vixen on top in a very suggestive pose, the captain was already dying. The two blades had been thrust in behind his collarbone up to the hilts. Her fists did a little turn, cutting through his heart and lungs before she slowly pulled the blades out. In front of her a pair of guards watched as she stood, boneless, upon the body of their captain, her head lolling around with a wide smile and an insane giggle. Tossing most of the blood off of her blades, her eyes opened fully as she licked her lips obscenely before rushing forward.
Down below, over one hundred soldiers were already pushing their way into the courtyard. Swords clashed as their charge was met by the king's personal guard. In the center a man with black and red armor stepped forward, golden scaling filling the parts in between his plate gauntlets, sabatons, and breastplate, a cape fluttering out behind him while connected by a golden clasp with a red glowing jewel in the center. On the cape was a symbol of a swirling storm surrounded by a dragon's sails. His helmet was in the form of a dragon with horns going back over the crown of his head, while the teeth surrounded his eyes in a mask. A golden sword flashed out three times and six men fell from the furious swipes. Rushing forward, he powered through another half-dozen as they flew into the walls of the castle. Each of the soldiers lay there, sprawled out, as if hit by a battering ram.
"I am the Dragon Knight, and with this armor, I AM INVINCIBLE!" Armand shouted. Looking around he smirked under his helmet. "Take care of the guards. The king and his harlots are mine!"
oOo
King and Queen Bourgeois were awakened when a guard pounded on their door. "What is the meaning of this..." he started to shout only for the sounds of battle to filter through. The guard looked at the pair.
"I'm sorry, your highness, but we have been betrayed from the inside. A spy and assassin has let hundreds of soldiers into the courtyard, and several guards are dead." Leaning back at the sounds of combat so close by, he looked back in as the king and queen stood from their bed. "We must get you and the queen out through the secret escape route."
"What about our darling Chloe?" the king asked as he pulled the last of his clothes on, the queen pulling on her robe.
"Her handmaiden is getting her now."
oOo
Chloe was roused from her dream at the pounding on her door. "Princess! Get up!"
"Ugh," she wiped the sleep from her eyes as she sat up in her bed, "someone better be dying out there." Stomping over to the door, she wrenched it open. "What is going on?!" she shouted.
"We have to get you to safety!" Sabrina exclaimed. "People are dying out here!"
'I didn't mean it...' was the first thing that came to the princess's mind as her handmaiden took her wrist, and led her away from her room. The two young women ran, with Sabrina leading, as the sounds of battle closed in on all sides. 'If my family makes it out of this, I swear on everything I am that I'll be a nicer person!'
"This way!" Sabrina exclaimed as they turned down a hallway, and she pushed a massive portrait of the royal family to the side, revealing a servant's hallway.
"Ugh! I'm not going in there!" Chloe balked, glaring at Sabrina. "That's the servant's passages. I wouldn't be caught dead in there!"
"We have no choice, princess! It's the only way to get past all the fighting." Sabrina urged as she pulled the resistant aristocrat into the hallway. Once they were inside, Chloe turned her head away in disgust. Even so, the young woman that was her handmaiden still pulled her down stairs and through hallways as she heard fighting on the opposite side of the wall. At one point one of the portraits was pierced by a golden blade right in front of the two girls, causing the princess to let out a scream. The combat on the other side didn't seem to stop, but Sabrina pulled the royal past the weapon even as they heard a body slam against the door that separated the two hallways.
"I heard something!" they heard behind them, prompting the two young women to go faster. "It was behind here!"
oOo
Adrien was roused from sleep by the sounds of combat close to the Agreste mansion. Plagg shot up to look out the windows as militiamen fought with dark clad warriors. "What is going on?" the little Kwami asked.
"I don't know, Plagg." he then looked off in the distance at the royal palace. "It kind of looks like a coup."
"What do you think we should do?" the little creature asked.
"The only thing we can do." Adrien thrust out his ring hand, "Plagg, claws out!" The flash of emerald green light from the young man's window was momentary, causing only a few people to turn their heads left and right before Black Cat landed with his staff twirling. Slamming one end of his staff against the abdomen of a warrior in dark blue colors, he grabbed the other, and twisted him around until he was on the ground. "Who do you work for?!"
Deflecting away the return sword strike, he hit the flat of the blade with his palm, breaking the weapon. Hoisting the warrior up, he glared at him, the light from the moon making his eyes glow like a demon as he growled. "D-Dark~b-blade... w-we work for..." the warrior felt Black Cat punch him in the abdomen so hard, he lost consciousness.
Separating his staff into fighting sticks, he stalked toward the royal palace, his weapons ready for whatever enemies might come forth.
oOo
Marinette was having such a wonderful dream, of her and Adrien swimming in a small lake next to a waterfall, her bare body illuminated by the moonlight while he walked toward her. Her eyes drank in his slender, toned physique, her body clenched at the sight of what he was graced with as he stepped up to her, the water at his mid-thigh. Wrapping her arms around his neck, they started to kiss, her body tingling as his fingers traced over her thighs, hips, and going higher. When the kiss broke, she saw Chloe standing there, her eyes wide with horror.
Taking a step back, she looked around. She was no longer in the swimming hole, but inside the royal palace. Chloe was mouthing the words "Help me!" but no sound came out as blood started to pour from her mouth and eyes. Looking down, she saw that she was still standing in liquid, but instead of water, it was crimson and sticky.
A scream tore itself out of Marinette's mouth as she sat up, sweat covering her body as she looked around. Tikki floated over to the young woman, "Are you alright?" the little creature asked.
"No... I... I had a dream about Chloe." Marinette felt hot tears falling down her cheeks. "Tikki," she shivered at the next words, "she was dead."
Sounds of battle far away from her drew Marinette's attention. "Come on..." she urged and slipped out of her room just as her father and mother sat up, having been woken up by her scream. When she was out in the woods, she brushed her hair away. "Tikki, spots on!" The crimson flash filtered through the trees before she leaped over the first couple of houses, and landed on the street. Ahead of her she could see multiple figures in combat, but one caused her to smile. "Black Cat!"
Leaping up, the black clad warrior kicked out, hitting two of the soldiers in the head as he heard a familiar voice behind him. Without a glance back, he slammed his baton against the abdomen of the warrior on his left, before grabbing him and throwing him into the one on the right. The two went down in a heap. "Good to have you join me, milady." Cat remarked.
"Any idea what's going on?" Beetle asked as she rushed forward, slamming her fists into another warrior's abdomen, picked him up, and threw him over her until he landed on his back.
"I'm helping the militia," he answered, "but I also learned that they were hired by Darkblade." Looking at her, he saw pain cross Beetle's face. "What's wrong?"
Scowling, she looked at him. "I... I'm afraid we may be too late to stop the coup. The royal family... they may already be..."
Black Cat clenched his eyes shut. "If anything has happened to them, then I will kill Darkblade myself." the growl that came from him caused her to take a step back.
"Don't take revenge on..."
"No," Black Cat looked at her, "I won't, but I will see justice done."
Hearing that, Ladybird Beetle nodded with a small smile. "Okay. Let's go."
oOo
"Lady Tsurugi?" a young woman's voice called out at the door.
Tomoe opened her eyes slowly from her meditations. "Yes, Mary?"
"I'm sorry to disturb your meditations," she shivered at what she had seen, "but there is fighting in the streets between people dressed in dark attire, and the local militia." She tried to keep her voice from becoming too tremulous as she added, "They appear to be coming this way."
Standing quickly, the older woman pulled her katana from the black lacquered stand. "Inform Kagami of the situation. We will defend our new home."
Bowing, the young woman nodded. "Of course, Lady Tsurugi." With that, she stood from where she had been and made her way quickly through the manor. It wasn't long afterward that Mary rapped on Kagami's door with her fist. "Mistress..." she barely managed to get out before the door opened. Leaping back with a squeak, she looked at the hard gaze of the young woman in her sleeping attire.
"Yes?" Kagami asked.
"Th-There are men fighting in the streets close by, and..."
"Inform my mother that I shall be there shortly." With that, the door slammed shut.
"Of course, mistress." Mary ran back to Tomoe, and gave her the message.
Within minutes, the two women were outside of their home, swords in hand and rushing into the fray. Unlike with the militia, the two women were highly trained, and nearly a dozen of Darkblade's soldiers fell to their blades. It was only when Kagami started to pursue, that Tomoe stopped her with a word. "No." She turned to look at her mother, who only glared at the soldiers. "This is not our fight. We remain to defend our home, but not to interfere in the internal struggles of these people."
"How about my friends?" Kagami asked. "Adrien can handle himself against armed opponents, but Marinette is still a novice at unarmed combat." She looked out across the town. "She could die if she tries to defend herself."
"It is not our fight, Kagami." Tomoe announced.
Kagami looked at her mother with incredulity. "Perhaps it is not your fight, mother," she threw blood off of her blade, "but it is mine." With that, she ran off, her mother watching her go.
"No! Kagami!" she shouted, but the younger woman rushed forward.
Mary arrived beside the woman seconds later. "Do you want me to bring her back?"
Looking down at the young woman, she blinked. "Are you skilled in combat?"
For a few seconds, Mary looked sheepish. "N-No, but I'm fast, and if I can get close to her, I know your daughter can defend us both."
"You have much bravery." Looking back at the retreating form of her daughter, she nodded. "Bring her back safely." Without another word spoken, Mary rushed off in pursuit of the Japanese girl.
oOo
Deflecting a strike from his opponent, Luka swiped down with his second cutlass, knocking the rapier from his opponent's hand. Punching with the basket hilt, he watched as the militiaman fell onto his back, blood coming out of his nose. "Can none of you stand against me?" he asked as several men took steps back from him. He scoffed as he kept his blades at the ready. 'Leave me to keep our escape route ready.'
There were nearly a dozen men around him in a half-circle, but none of them dared to take a step forward. Apparently, they felt they could keep him at bay with their rapiers pointed at him. Luckily for him, there was a major problem with that thinking, since he still had his back to the ship. When one of the militia stepped forward, he glared at the woman as she pointed her sword at his chest. "Surrender and we will show mercy, fight, and I will end your life myself."
Luka's laugh was bitter and caustic as he smiled at her. "Considering how many I just killed, there's no way you can stop me. Besides, all I have to do is keep you here, and my allies will take the castle. Once they have killed the king and queen, anything I do or say will be inconsequential." When she lunged at him, he deflected her attempted strike with his blade, letting hers slide down his cutlass before his other one came in for a strike on her shoulder. She deflected with her dagger, but it caused him to push her back, where she stumbled, and fell onto her rump. "See, what did I tell you?"
"Nothing of merit." they heard from the side.
Turning to the sound of the voice, they watched as a young woman in a white and red outfit stood with one hand on her sword scabbard, her short hair framing her face. Luka blinked at the sight of her, his heart pounding at the look of finality on her face. "Who are you?" he asked.
"Kagami Tsurugi, only daughter to the Tsurugi family." bowing to him, she straightened up with her hand hovering over her katana's braided handle. "All of you," she instructed the militia, "the royal family is in danger. I will take him."
"As... much as I would enjoy being physical with such a lovely young woman," he watched as her eyes widened and a blush started to appear on her cheeks, "I really should help my allies."
"You go nowhere." Kagami instructed as she moved to stand in front of the young man. Glaring at the rest of the militia, she watched as they backed away, and cleared out to rejoin the fight.
Luka smirked. "Are you really going to fight me?"
"I've seen your tactics," Kagami smirked back, "so this won't be much of a fight."
The glare from Luka made her smile more just before he lunged forward with his twin swords. With her push against the tsuba of her sword with her thumb, the young woman practically ripped the blade from its scabbard, and slashed at the young man. Her sword rang as metal impacted metal, and with that the battle was joined. Neither paid much attention to the young woman that followed Kagami, her body shivering as she leaped onto the gangway of the nearest ship, and stealthily made her way inside of the vessel.