Ninety-Two: Getting Help

Still worried about Ladybug, Chat nonetheless follows through with her wishes and retrieves Viperion.

I had barely enough time to sit up and brush the glass shards from my costume before that sixth sense of mine kicked in; leaping blindly to the left, I narrowly escaped a second embrace by the wrecking ball as it swung through the side of the pharmacy. Vaulting up onto one of the remaining lamp posts, I turned in time to see the side of the building begin to crumble, and leapt up and away once more, seeking safety in the ash-shrouded rooftops I could barely see, even with my enhanced feline vision. Helicoptering with my baton for the final few meters, I dropped onto a concrete filigree, then snapped the baton open to tracking mode.

Three icons lit up immediately, showing me the location of the team relative to my position. I frowned, for they were just a few blocks away from me, presumably regrouping for another round with the sentimonster; I knew Ladybug had given me explicit instructions to safeguard the Miracle Box as well as round up more members of our group, but having seen first-hand what they were up against, I was reluctant to leave them. Still, a promise was a promise.

Leaping away from the sentimonster, I plowed through the ash and headed in the general direction of the apartment where Luka and Kagami now lived with their young child. Last I knew, he was on a break from his current tour, though as quiet as Hawkmoth had been, it had been a while since he'd last donned the snakeskin for Ladybug. As I neared that corner of the city, the ash thinned substantially, the fresh air sweet after the acrid. Flipping around a tree, I hurled myself upward and landed against the wrought iron railing of their balcony; pulling myself over, I landed in a crouch, and looked up just in time to see Luka slide open the glass balcony door.

I smiled slightly as the mop-haired guitarist stepped out and quietly closed the door behind him. Attired in just a pair of sweats and tank-top that showcased his impressive tattoos, I knew my timing was colossally bad; I was well aware the musician tended to write well into the wee hours of the morning. "Sorry to interrupt your midnight musing," I said.

Luka half-smiled. "The notes stopped coming when the akuma alert went out. I figured one of you would appear after what I saw on the news."

"Yeah," I said as I stood. "It's not good. We need you." Fumbling for a moment with my baton, I smiled sheepishly once I opened the storage compartment. "I'm doing this a bit differently tonight," I apologized as I stared at the small opening. "Hang on a second."

"Okay."

I knew the Snake Miraculous was in the Miracle Box, but also had no idea if I could open it since I wasn't the guardian. Looking up at Luka, I also wondered at the wisdom of revealing the current form of the Box to anyone, even a valued member of our team. Trusting that the magic would somehow know the right thing to do, I closed my eyes and visualized the bracelet Luka normally wore, then reached my paw into the baton. It was hard to believe the slot was big enough for my paw, but I set that aside when a claw touched something. Hooking it, I opened my eyes just as I pulled the Snake Miraculous from the baton. As I handed it to Luka, I began to have a far better appreciation for the strange physics the quantic energy seemed to adhere to, and wondered if I might be able to store something as large as an elephant within the baton.

Not that I'd have any time to try.

Luka slid the bracelet on, and Sass immediately appeared; several heartbeats later, the two of us were sailing over the rooftops of Paris, headed toward the growing destruction. The fires had grown larger by a significant magnitude, giving that end of the city an ethereal orange-red glow, one vaguely reminiscent of a nightmarish depiction of the underworld itself. For an awful moment, I wondered if the akuma would turn out to have horns, a pitchfork, and a malicious attitude to match. Glancing at Viperion as he ran beside me, I could tell by the look on his face that similar thoughts were crossing his mind; his tight expression reminded me of his own feelings for Ladybug's alter ego, and as we drew closer to the remains of our apartment, he began to look visibly ill.

"She's okay," I assured him. "We got her out with the rest of the residents."

"Good," Viperion replied, but meaningfully looked toward the destruction. "This is… apocalyptic."

"Yeah," I sighed. "Once more, Hawkmoth lays waste to our city." I looked back at Viperion. "What do you say we get down there and see if we can't help Ladybug kick some moth ass?" I asked.

Grinning menacingly, Viperion nodded. "With pleasure."

We nodded at each other and then leapt off the rooftop and down into the swirling ash.