Death and Destruction
"Marinette, are you alright? You've hardly touched your food." Sabine asked, concern evident in her eyes and voice. The trio were sitting down at their little table, a wooden trencher in front of each, with a healthy sized salmon steak on each, seared to perfection as only her mother could, a long roll of wheat bread underneath, and a pottage of peas that finished out their meal. The youngest still had most of a salmon present, only a couple of bites from the bread taken, and none of the pottage touched.
"I'm alright, mama." she picked at the meal with her fork before her again. "Just... when we served the son of the baron... I... I don't know..." Marinette couldn't get over the sensation that jolted through her body when she touched his hand, and the look in those emerald orbs. She also couldn't deny the fluttering of her heart when he had finally pulled down his hood, revealing handsome features. "At first he seemed so nice, but then..." She missed the clandestine looks her parents gave each other.
"You found out he was the son of the baron, and your opinion of him changed?" Sabine queried.
"Honey, you really shouldn't let someone else's family influence your opinion of them." Tom offered. "Besides, you heard his guard captain. His father didn't even permit him to walk around in town. We should never have seen him, and most likely will never see him again."
A sigh escaped her lips. "Even so... what he said about "escaping" from the manor," she looked up at her parents, "it's not right. Nobody should be a prisoner in their own home."
Sabine nodded. "As much as I agree on a fundamental level, that is not for us to judge, honey." Bowing her head, the older woman closed her eyes. "Gabriel Agreste is the baron, and he rules over this area of Paris. We cannot go against his orders, or his rules. If he says that his son needs to be kept safe in his manor house, then who are we to argue?"
Leaning back in her chair, Marinette set her fork down. "I don't think I'm hungry anymore. May I be excused?"
Tom sighed with a nod. "Go ahead, honey." Standing up, she excused herself, and entered the small room her parents had designated as her sleep area. Dropping onto her straw bed, she stared at the warm coals of the cook fire, her mind wandering.
'He's the son of the baron, but he seemed so nice.' Marinette reached up to feel the increase in her heart rate, she sighed. 'Mama and papa said I shouldn't judge people by the conduct of their family, but... how can I look past that?' Shaking her head, she sighed. 'Perhaps I should give him another chance. He didn't even correct that one guard when she paid for the croissants.' In her mind, she saw his emerald green eyes as they looked at her, the softness causing her breath to catch, and how his face seemed both boyish yet handsome. Flopping onto her side, she let out her breath as she rolled over onto her back, her hands clasping over her chest while her eyes closed. "I'm such a fool..." she mumbled to herself.
Clearing away her daughter's food meant splitting it between Sabine and Tom, something that didn't happen very often, but when they did this time, the Asian woman sighed. "I think our little Mari is growing up." she commented, low enough to make sure only her husband heard. "This is the first time she's ever really noticed a boy."
"She definitely knows how to pick them." Tom shook his head. "He never told that woman that he'd already paid a silver, did he?"
"No, and yet the look he gave me told me not to mention the difference in price." Sabine sighed. "It felt like I was doing something wrong, but in truth, that silver came in handy for tax collection later in the day."
"Part of me wishes we could get together with him, talk with young Mr. Agreste. Learn more about him, and" Tom looked back toward where his daughter disappeared, "see if he feels the same way about our little Mari, that she potentially feels about him."
"Who knows what will happen in the future, but I also know that fairy-tales never come true for people like us." Sabine gave her husband a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes.
"Maybe not, but I do know that you're my fairy-tale princess." Leaning in pressed his lips to hers, the jolt of passion prompting her to deepen the kiss. When they separated, she snuggled against his chest.
"I love you." they said in unison.
oOo
Boot heels clacked against the stones of the corridor, echoing as he walked to the stairs going down to the catacombs. Adrien started to descend the steps just as Nathalie stepped out from the other side of the corridor, her eyes narrowed at the upper entrance as she walked swiftly, and quietly toward where the young baron disappeared. Listening for a few minutes, she closed her eyes. 'This is nothing new. I should let him have his quiet time.' Taking a deep breath, she continued onward, her eyes closed.
At the bottom entrance to the catacombs, Adrien looked at the long corridor with alcoves on either side. Lit torches on burned in their iron sconces offering illumination so that there were few shadowy spots in the passage. On his right, he saw a large tub with more than a dozen wooden handles. Reaching down, he pulled one up, noting the bulbous, cloth wrapped head. In only a few seconds, he raised it over the nearest torch and heard the whump of the flame taking hold of the oiled fabric. Without hesitation he entered the catacombs, the various alcoves full of ashes and bones passing by with every step.
Following a preset path that took him through centuries of tombs, he came to a large cavern with a light coming through a window in the fake mausoleum above. Moonlight reflected off the silver casket with a crystal cover. Setting the torch in an available sconce, he approached the central dais with a calm reverence. When he was nearly beside the coffin, he saw the golden haired woman inside, resting on satin pillows, her pale skin and pure white gown seemingly locked in a moment of time. If there was a possibility of her supple bosom raising and falling, he could've imagined that she was simply asleep. "Hello, mother."
Dropping onto one knee, he bowed his head. "I'm sorry for not visiting sooner." A sigh escaped his lips. "I only seem to come to you when I have a problem, don't I?" Tears welled up in his eyes. "Please forgive me, I don't mean to neglect you, but... I have a problem. Father doesn't seem to care about the people we're supposed to rule over." He could hear the bitterness in his voice while tears slid down his cheeks. "I know it's not right, and I want to follow his edicts, but I want to help the people, like you taught me. Please help me, because I don't know what else I can do..."
A light blue glow seemed to appear on the opposite side of the casket, and he nearly leaped back at the sight of the spectral visitor. It was only when the form coalesced into a feminine form, floating over to the casket that he realized who this was. "M-Mother?" he gasped. When she sat down, he tentatively stepped forward. The smile, that very same smile he had grown up loving to see on her face was there, but her eyes were sad. Bringing up a hand, she pointed to the side.
Turning to look, initially all he saw was a blank wall, but that dropped down until it made the floor. Looking back, he blinked. "Do you want me to go there?" He watched as she nodded once, before reaching out and touched the hilt of his rapier. Seeing the motion, he looked back up at her eyes, and saw an intensity there he'd never seen before now.
Her meaning was clear "upon entering, get ready to fight".
Dropping onto one knee in front of her, he bowed, his head going through her luminous lap, but he could feel the cold there, while another touched the back of his scalp. It was a familiar thing, a hand on his head to show that she had given her permission to leave. Standing from where he knelt, he watched as she gave him another smile, before fading away. "Thank you, mother."
Retrieving the torch, he walked over to the entrance and passed through the strange doorway to fully enter this new passage. With the torch in his left hand, he reached across to the hilt of his rapier, only for the door to slam shut behind him. Turning around, he looked back from the way he came, but shook his head. 'No going back now...' a shiver coursed down his spine as he continued through the tunnel until he emerged, to stand in a massive cavern.
Bones surrounded him, the entire cavern was strewn with them, the walls appeared to be skulls going up to the domed ceiling. "My god! There must be thousands!" Walking forward, he found a massive dais with a throne of skulls sitting in the center. Upon the throne sat a lone skeleton wearing a collection of iron armor, tinged black as if having been charred by a dragon. A few wisps of silvery hair fell from under the helm with a pair of broken points on either side, while the empty eye sockets reflected the light of the torch.
Turning around, he saw that there was no way out of the domed cavern. Following his path of footprints back, he saw that the doorway had gone, to be replaced by a wall of skulls and bones. "Great, now how am I going to get out of here?" he breathed.
For a moment he listened to the absolute quiet until the sounds of dry bones moving caused him to turn around. Ripping his rapier from its scabbard, he watched as the skeletal warrior on the throne stood up, reached behind its back, and produced a staff that extended. "Are you worthy?" the creature breathed slowly, a pair of green glowing points of light growing in its eye sockets to indicate eyes.
"What?" he asked only for the skeleton to rush forward. Blocking the first strike, he danced away, deflecting the second, third, and fourth, only to hear more bones moving around him. Hearing something close by, caused him to glance to the side, only for the skeletal warrior to rush forward, knocking the torch from his grasp. Reaching across he pulled out his dagger. The torch flew until it landed in a three quarter circle of oil. The fumes ignited, to reveal the entire cavern, with all of the bones reforming into warriors.
Flames licked at the dry bones, but did nothing to stop these new enemies as they walked through the liquid. Seeing the armored skeletal warrior rush forward again, he blocked, deflected, and parried the strikes, only to see a black ring with the same design that was on the warrior's armor. With an attack of his own, he pierced the eye sockets of the warrior, cut across it's armor, and then chopped its hand off. Almost instantly the appendage turned to dust, sending the ring flying upward. Another of the skeletons grabbed it out of the air as hundreds of hands took hold of Adrien. Pushing him down, he watched as the skeleton with the ring clutched his wrist, and shook his rapier from his grip. "To the victor... the spoils..." the skeleton breathed out, it's fetid breath causing him to cough.
"No!" he tried to protest, but it opened his hand, and pushed the ring onto his right ring finger.
Adrien felt their hands push down onto his chest, sending spikes of pain through his body, and making him cry out. Two points of green light floated above him, those points seemed to glow with malevolence as he felt his arms starting to get squeezed painfully. "Do you want to survive this, kid?" he heard the harsh voice above.
"Wh-Who are you?!"
"I don't think you understand your predicament." The voice announced. "You are about to die unless you answer my question. Do you want to survive?"
"Y-Yes! Of course!"
"Good. Say the words, "Plagg, claws out", and then "cataclysm"... and you'll get out of this."
"P-Plagg... claws out!" he cried as he felt sharp bone piercing his flesh.
Energy flowed through out his body, knocking the skeletons back by a few inches. A black domino mask covered around his eyes and over his nose while a hood appearing over his newly shaggy hair, a pair of feline ears poking up, while a black and gray catsuit covered his body. With a growl, he reached up and touched the nearest skull. "Touching me will bring about a cataclysm!" Black energy enveloped the skeleton, and every one that touched it, causing them to fall to dust only a few seconds later.
Leaping up, he turned left, then right to search for any new threats. Looking over his body, he saw the black gauntlets with silver claws at the end of the gloves, his shoes too had paws with silver claws at the tips, and his sword belt had changed to one that twitched like a living... tail? 'Okay, this is too weird.' Reaching back, he pulled out the staff, before extending it a full six feet. "What is going on?" It was then that he heard a strange, slightly piercing sound, and saw one of the pads on the green paw-print in the ring disappear. "What's this? A countdown?" Shaking his head, he sighed. "Questions for later." It was then that he saw another passage had opened up.
Stalking forward, he watched as the tunnel gave way to uneven, broken stone. It wasn't long before he saw a glow ahead, as if moonlight was streaming through. After a few more minutes, he emerged from a nearly covered over cave to emerge in a dark forest. A trio of beeps sounded out seconds later, causing the swirling energy to envelope him again, nearly blinding Adrien before he was able to close his eyes. Upon opening them again, he saw the little creature outlined by the moonlight. "Heya, kitten." the voice was the exact same as before, the one that had helped him. "It appears that you're smarter than my last Chosen, which is going to make this all the better."
Gaping at the floating creature, Adrien blinked. "What... are you?" he asked.
"I, am a Kwami," Plagg announced, "a spirit of destruction. The harbinger of doom, and the personification of bad luck." Narrowing his eyes, those green slits glittered with malevolence. "You, kid, are my newest Chosen, and there's only one thing I want to know..." For a brief moment, Adrien took a step back before the little creature asked, "Do you have any cheese on you? I'm starving!"