Chapter 6: Hot Tamale
Like it happened every time they used the "Holy Trinity plus one" routine, they went blind, without knowing what to expect. The only thing they knew, was the last thing Alya had told them. She had told them that the Akuma had showed up near Jardin des Grandes Explorateurs. Knowing that, they found a hidden place and transformed. Because the attack was on the other side of the Seine, Ladybug ordered Dragonfly to go ahead and assess the situation and get a first look at the Akuma. Flying as fast as she could, the dragonfly heroine arrived at her destination in a matter of minutes, and what she saw, was anything but good. Located between the Jardin de Luxembourg and l'avenue de l'Observatoire, that garden was known to be a place where numerous outdoor events were held over the course of the year. And on that day, there was one of those events taking place, a street food festival, where you could try numerous dishes from countless countries. A true delicacy for every foodie, who would love to try new experiences, or to anyone who was looking for a place to get a quick bite. From hamburgers to cone-shaped pizzas; from French fries to kebab; from sushi to ramen, there was something for everyone. And because of that, the place was packing with people, when the Akuma first showed up, panic ensued everywhere. Shooting flames from his hands, as well as using what looked like chilli pepper-shaped pistols to spread those very same flames.
The Akuma was just as Alya had described him. He looked like a pot-bellied Mexican bandolero. His black and red outfit, complete with sombrero and a double bullet belt filled with red chilli peppers, instead of bullets, around his chest, made him look like he had come out of an old cartoon. But it was his white-clown face with a black mask around his eyes that told people he was an Akuma. Seeing him, Dragonfly wasted no time in facing him. Upon flying over the garden, she did not see anyone hurt, and she wanted to keep it that way. The faster she engaged him in combat, the faster he would be dealt with, and with it, the faster she and the others could go back and enjoy the concert.
"Hold it right there, man! I don't know what was the reason why you were akumatized, but let's stop this, before someone gets hurt." -Dragonfly ordered the Akuma, as she landed right in front of him. Looking at him, he looked more cartoonish than menacing, but that did not mean a thing.
Aiming one of his guns at Dragonfly, he tried to burn her alive. She quickly dodged the flames that came out of the guns, only to be caught by surprised by what happened the second after. Instead of propelling themselves forward, the flames moved with a mind of their own, following Dragonfly. Dodging them again and again, the flames finally stopped following her, when she hid behind a nearby statue.
"You think you can stop Hot Tamale with those cheap words, niña bonita?!" -Hot Tamale asked Dragonfly, as he kept laughing like crazy. –"Because if you do, let me tell you that you picked the wrong hombre to mess with!" -he laughed with a laugh that sounded more like a roar.
"Great… an Akuma that is the spitting image of a Mexican stereotype. That Moth-breath is really running out of ideas for Akumas." -Dragonfly thought to herself, as she looked from behind the statue, to see where Hot Tamale was standing. –"Look, if you're going to start talking Spanish here, let me just remind you that we're in France, okay? And second, my Spanish's quite rusty… so be a good Akuma, and stop taking revenge on whatever who or it is, so I can beat you, destroy that nasty butterfly you have inside you and call it quits." -she told him. –"Believe me, I've got better things to do tonight than fighting you."
"You're joking, niña. Nobody tells Hot Tamale what to do!" -Hot Tamale told her, as he walked in her direction. –"You will not stop me from taking revenge on those malditos chicos, who told me my food was disgusting, after taking a bite! Once I find them, I will make them pay for it!" -he said. –"Pero before I do that, I will give Hawk Moth what he wants. Your miraculous, as well as the miraculouses of your friends, when they arrive."
"Well, at least I know why he ended up being akumatized."-Dragonfly thought to herself. –"He's vengeful, but I don't know how smart he is. From the way he speaks, he doesn't sound like he's very smart, but that might just be a trick. Plus, his control over the flames is going to force us to fight him from a safe distance." -she thought. –"Look… I'm sure they didn't do it on purpose."
"Not on purpose?! They spit it out, right in front of me, and said that Mexican food is supposed to be extra spicy, and that my food did not have any picante at all!" -Hot Tamale shouted at her, as he once again fired his guns, shooting flames which blasted the stone statue Dragonfly was using as a hideout. –"True Mexican food only has the right amount of picante!" -he exclaimed, infuriated, once more shooting flames at Dragonfly. –"But if they want spicy, I will give them spicy!"
Not wishing to be turned into a roasted dragonfly, the pink-haired heroine took the sky, hoping to find another way to deal with Hot Tamale. Like every other Akuma, this one also had a short fuse. And she was going to use it to her advantage.
"There goes the "nice girl" approach… I guess I'll have to use brute force on this guy." -Dragonfly said, as she made U-turn in the air, and threw her frisbee at Hot Tamale. –"Don't even know who were the guys who decided to insult his food like that. But I know one thing. If I don't keep him occupied, until the others arrive, he's going to burn everything around here." -she thought.
It did not take long for her to understand that fire was not his only weapon. It turned out that Hot Tamale also had a trick up his sleeve. A trick that resided in the chilli peppers that were on his double-bullet belt. Taking one, he then threw it at Dragonfly, only for this one to explode in mid-air, like a grenade. Dodging one, she quickly decided she was going to have to keep her distance from Hot Tamale.
"Great! Now he has grenades, or whatever those exploding chilli peppers are supposed to be." -Dragonfly thought to herself. –"Can't let him use those, or someone might end up hurt." -she thought, when she saw a few police cars arriving at the scene. –"Looks like the police has arrived, and I don't know if I should be glad to have some back-up, or if I should be worried."
And she had good reasons to be worried. Usually the police officers that responded to an Akuma attack, helped to evacuate the place where the action was happening, making sure that no civilian would be around, when things got too rough, and that was a good thing. It helped the heroes not worry about the safety of people, and focusing on taking down any Akuma. Unfortunately, it also made the police officers a target for the Akumas. And although some Akumas did not care about them, focusing only on the targets of their revenge, others enjoyed to target everyone that appeared in front of them.
Still, trying to focus on the Akuma, she charged against him, hoping to keep him busy, so the police could evacuate the area, as well as restrict the access to it. Using her frisbee and her speed to her advantage, she tried a series of fast attacks against Hot Tamale, trying to wear him out, and thus force him to make a mistake, any kind of mistake that could benefit her and the others, once they arrived. Dragonfly knew that because of her super speed, the others would take a little longer to get there, and thus, it was her responsibility to have him a little bit exhausted, as well as figuring out what kind of tricks he was capable of, so she could then tell the team about them.
Minutes went by, and she continued to do what she had set herself to do. But Hot Tamale looked like he had enough energy to continue doing that through the rest of the night. And to make matters worse, he was beginning to have more control over his powers, now being able to manipulate the flames that came out of his guns, to assume the forms of small desert animals like vultures, scorpions and rattlesnakes. These flaming animals did not have a very long-life span, eventually burning out. But during the time they were alive, per say, they would spread flames everywhere they walked or flew by.
"Time to put out this guy's pets." -Dragonfly said, as she threw her frisbee into a nearby fire hydrant, knocking it and sending water in a circle around it, putting out some of the Hot Tamale's fire creations. –"Hope the fire department doesn't take too long to get here. This is one Akuma that we're definitely going to need their help, if he decides to light up the surrounding buildings." -she thought to herself.
Tired of dodging attacks, Dragonfly ignored the little voice inside her, that was telling her to stay away from the Akuma, and decided to face him head-on. Attacking him with both hands and feet, she delivered multiple attack combos, all of which he was able to defend, while jumping around like crazy.
"Is that all you got niña?! Because if it is, I'm going to turn you into pollo asado!" –Hot Tamale said, as he fired a few more balls of fire at her, this time with his bare hands.
Like she had told him before, Dragonfly's Spanish was quite rusty, but she still remembered that "pollo asado" meant roasted chicken, and if she could not come up with a way to knock him to the ground. Clenching her fists, she started to attack him, hitting him in the chest, shoulders and even in the face, hoping she would land him a blow that would put him out of commission, or at the very least, stagger him back. Unfortunately, with all that, she allowed her emotions to get the best of her and guide her actions, as she battled Hot Tamale, who took advantage of it, by making her trip, and pinning her to the ground. Placing his hand on her neck and his knee on her chest, he could not help but to look Dragonfly in the eyes and wonder just what was going through her mind right then.
"Hawk Moth will be very feliz, when I deliver him this miraculous you have around your neck… right after I turn you into a libélula asada, Dragonfly!" -Hot Tamale said with a malevolent smile on his face, as he readied himself to burn her to ashes.
But as Hot Tamale was about to turn Dragonfly into a roasted heroine, he was hit on the head by a circular object, which forced him to let go of her neck. The object was none other than Ladybug's yo-yo, who shot at it at the Akuma, hoping to save her friend, who she saw was in trouble. Taking advantage of it, Dragonfly curled her right leg and kicked Hot Tamale on the chest, kicking him off her, sending him fly a couple of meters. Landing in front of her, Carapace winked at her, letting her know that she was no longer alone.
"Hold it, right there, mister!" -Carapace said, as he placed himself in front of Dragonfly. –"If you think I'm going to let you burn my friend, you're sadly mistaken."
"Ha! I see that more heroes have come to play, huh?" -Hot Tamale said, as he got up. –"Más miraculouses for me to give to Hawk Moth then." -he laughed.
As Carapace stood between Hot Tamale and Dragonfly, Ladybug and Grizzly Bear quickly went to see how she was.
"If Antelope was here, he would probably be asking you if you're so fast, why are you letting this guy beat you, you know?" -Ladybug pointed out to Dragonfly, as she helped her up. –"It's a good thing I'm not him." -she smiled at her. –"Are you alright? What's the situation?"
"I'm okay, considering things. And do the words "complicated" and "intricate" mean anything to you?" -Dragonfly asked her.
"It's that bad, huh?" -Grizzly Bear asked her.
"You bet it is." -Dragonfly declared. –"This guy has an array of tricks that go from shooting fire from both his hands and his guns, and he can also create animals made out of flames." -she told her. –"And I haven't even told you about the exploding chilli pepper…"
"Exploding chilli peppers?" -Grizzly Bear asked her.
"Yeah, the ones you see on those bullet belts around his chest." -Dragonfly told him. –"They're like grenades."
"Well, don't you worry. The cavalry has arrived, and we're ready to help you take this guy down." -Ladybug smiled at her, when suddenly, they saw themselves covered by an energy shield.
A moment later, one of the exploding chilli peppers Dragonfly had told them about, hit the energy shield and exploded, with the heroes instinctively crouching and placing their arms in front of their faces. Hot Tamale had decided he had given the heroes enough time to help Dragonfly getting back up, and attacked them. Luckily, when Carapace saw him throw one of the chilli peppers, he instinctively reacted, by creating an energy shield that protected them. After the blast, the shield disappeared, as Carapace went to check on the rest of the heroes.
"Are you guys, okay?" -Carapace asked them.
"Y-Yeah. I think we're okay." -Dragonfly said.
"Yes, but I still got my ears buzzing." -Grizzly Bear admitted.
"That was a dirty move, mister." -Ladybug said. –"We've dealt with many Akumas who tried to kill us. And if there's one thing I hate about you all, is that you all try to kill us, when we're down." -she told Hot Tamale, while looking him in the eyes. –"But believe me, when I tell you the same thing I tell to the other Akumas. We're harder to kill than you might think."
Ladybug did not know what she had told that to Akuma. She did not know if she had told him that to try and scare him, or if she had done it to chase away any bad thoughts or traces of fear that were creeping into her mind. Still, by saying those words, she felt less stressed and capable of taking on any challenge they threw at her.
"We will see about that, niña! You and your amigos are about to see just what I'm capable of!" -Hot Tamale told her, as he pulled both his guns from the holsters and fired at her.
Evading the attack, Ladybug quickly understood what Dragonfly was talking about, when describing how dealing with Hot Tamale was being a little hard. And to make matters worse, his continuous and incredibly annoying laughter was making her wish she did not have any ears. With only three other members, besides herself, to fight that Akuma, for a moment she regretted not having decided to ask one or two more of her friends to come along. Still, she knew there was no time for that kind of regret. If they wanted to get back to the concert, before this one began, they had to defeat Hot Tamale.
"Let me have him! One well-placed punch in his face, and I'll knock his lights out." -Grizzly Bear told
"He's all yours. Give him your best shot, Grizzly." -Ladybug said, giving him permission to attack him.
Unfortunately, and unlike what she was thinking, things did not go as Ladybug had planned them. She, along with Carapace, Dragonfly and Grizzly Bear, attacked Hot Tamale, hoping their combined strength would be enough to take him down swiftly. But it turned out Hot Tamale had more tricks up his sleeve. He attacked them with everything he had, preventing them from even coming near him. And if it had not been for the help from the firefighters, who had been dispatched to where fight was taking place, things could have gotten even messier, as the Akuma and his fire creatures began to torch up the trees and nearby buildings, so as to cause chaos and mayhem. More than once, Carapace was forced to cast energy shields to protect anything that could catch fire. The las thing they needed was for that part of the city to be turned into an enormous pile of ashes.
The only good thing that had happened, was them finding out more about the Akuma. Dragonfly had already found out the reason why he had been akumatized, but now who he was. To find out that information, Ladybug had to use a little bit of reverse psychology, like she had done with other Akumas. Hot Tamale, just like other Akumas only talked about what he wanted, namely revenge and wanting to fulfil Hawk Moth's orders. But the scarlet heroine, as well as her friends had learned from Master Fu a couple of tricks to help them communicate with the Akumas, as a way to gather as much information as possible from them, and then use that same information to defeat them. Tricks that some might say, was the kind of knowledge psychology students learned about when in college, while for Master Fu, it was the kind of knowledge that came from a lifetime of learning, and that most people should know about. Using those tricks, she found out that before he was turned into Hot Tamale, his name was Gustavo Salamanca, a young Mexican emigrant, who had come to Paris to learn with some of the best chefs in the world, but eventually decided instead to show people what true Mexican cuisine was, by getting his own food van and . Sadly, nothing of what Ladybug was able to find out about him, was going to help her or the others to defeat him. And it was not long until they lost the track of time. Between attacking Hot Tamale and blocking his attacks, which more than once placed police officers and firefighters who were trying to help, the heroes had their hand full with that guy. Carapace believed he would be able to contain him inside one of his energy bubbles, but Hot Tamale was a lot faster than his physique would suggest, and the turtle hero slowly, but steadily began to feel exhausted from using his powers to cast protective energy shields all around the place.
But when they all thought Hot Tamale could not get any faster, he used his power over the flames and created a fire mustang, to use as a ride. It was the he became even faster than before. The only one who could keep up with him was Dragonfly, and even she was advised by the others to not attack him head-on. To fight him, and lend a hand to Dragonfly, Grizzly Bear was forced to break pieces of rubble from the pavement, and then use them as projectiles, which he threw with the use of his brass knuckles. Some failed their target, while others were hit it, but not with the necessary force to knock it out. Hot Tamale was proving himself to be a formidable adversary.
A bit desperate to finish the fight, Grizzly Bear and Dragonfly decided to use a combo attack, hoping it would work. This one had only been used by them once in battle, and it did not end up working as it was supposed to. It involved her being thrown by Grizzly as fast as he could, like she was a boulder, thus allowing her to accelerate to a much faster speed already in the air, and hitting her target with twice, if not thrice the amount of force. The first time they had tried it, Dragonfly ended up going through several concrete walls, before coming to a stop, after failing to hit the target. Holding her breath, she allowed herself to be thrown by Grizzly Bear, while having her eyes fixed on Hot Tamale.
"Let's do this!" -Dragonfly told her teammate, who wasted no time in throwing her.
Already in the air, Dragonfly targeted Hot Tamale. She was imagining herself clobbering him on the abdomen, pushing him off his fire horse and into the ground, where she would then punch him on the face, until he passed out and the Akuma Butterfly exited his body. As she closed in on him, she was certain she was going to hit him, only for Hot Tamale to turn the tables on her. Seeing her coming, the Akuma ordered his fire steed to ride towards her and to jump over her, which was what happened. She had failed to catch him by surprise, but she was not going down without a fight. In front of her, she saw her ticket out of that tight jam.
"Maybe I can use that street lamp to make a U-turn and hit him on my way back." -Dragonfly thought to herself. –"I'm not letting this clown get away, if I have a saying on the matter." -she thought.
Timing her moves, she extended both arms, as she closed in on the street lamp, and on the right moment, she grabbed it. For a split second, she felt like her hands were slipping, but she managed to hold her grip on the lamp, forcing her body to turn back. She tried to pull up, but at the speed she was going, it prevented her from pulling that stunt, without snapping her spine in half. Instead, she placed her arms in front of her face and waited for the impact, which came soon after. Hitting the ground, she felt her body being thrown into the air, only to fall into the ground again. And in the end, she hit Grizzly Bear, who tried to catch her, only to be hit by her. When this happened, he was launched a few meters in the air, before going against a street lamp, tearing it from where it was and falling to the ground, right next to Dragonfly. He did not know how he had not lost his senses, but he figured that the major headache, combined with the deafening laugh of Hot Tamale, were partly responsible for it. With his head ringing from the knock on the head, the bear hero tried his best stand back up.
"I swear to God, that if I get out of this mess in one piece, I'll never, ever complain about facing a wimpy Akuma." -Grizzly Bear thought to himself, as he massaged the back of his head, which was aching badly. –"Damn, I wasn't expecting that to… watch out!" -he yelled, as he diving forward and placing himself in front of an unconscious Dragonfly, protecting her from a fire blast, which hit him on the back. Gritting his teeth, he felt his back burning up, and quickly started rolling on the ground, putting out the fire. Once the flames were out, he thanked the fact of his suit being flame proof, preventing him from getting a 3rd degree burn all over his back. –"That was a close one…"
Seeing them both on the ground, Hot Tamale laughed and decided that once the other heroes were down for the count, he would come back to retrieve their miraculouses. Without knowing it, both Dragonfly and Grizzly Bear had luck on their side, again. If by chance Hot Tamale had decided to take their miraculous right then, neither one, nor the other would be in a position to face him.
"Just you wait. I'll be going for you, you crazy Mexican! Just you wait!" -Grizzly Bear said between his teeth, as the Akuma rode out of there, leaving them behind. –"Come on, Alix, wake up..." -he said, as he shook Dragonfly, trying to wake her up. –"Come on! Wake up!"
"W-What happened?" -Dragonfly asked, as she looked at Grizzly. –"O-Ouch… my left shoulder… I t-think… I think it's broken." –she gritted her teeth, as she touched it with her right hand.
"Don't worry about it. Nino will fix you up in a jiffy." -Grizzly told her, as he carefully grabbed her with both arms, trying to ignore his own pains. –"But first, I'm going to have to get you to somewhere, where you'll be safe." -he said, as he looked around. –"Perhaps the best thing to do, is to leave with the paramedics in one of the ambulances, while I go look for him."
All the while, Hot Tamale went on laughing like crazy, seemingly unstoppable, as he changed targets, going after Carapace. None of the heroes seemed to have a single second to catch their breath. And if things were not bad enough already, Reptile, one of Hawk Moth's lieutenants, and most likely the one who had discovered Hot Tamale and asked his master to akumatize him, showed up, almost out of nowhere and attacked Ladybug.
On most occasions, she would have seen him coming. But this time, she was too busy fighting off the flames that were consuming some nearby bushes. Fearing that the flames would continue to spread and consume some nearby trees, and then the food vans near them, she decided to help the firefighters, by using her yo-yo like a shield and cutting the plants. That way, the risk of these blowing up was minimum. Unfortunately, by focusing on that, she did not notice Reptile approaching her, having used his powers to change his appearance into that of a firefighter. When he got close enough to her, he did not hesitate. Grabbing her from behind, he tried to stab her on the chest, only for her to defend herself. Even so, he was still able to stabbed her left arm, before she threw him to the ground. Looking at him, her brain tried to understand what was going on, as he sprung back up.
"Guess who, Ladybug?" -Reptile said, as he assumed his real appearance
"Reptile!" -Ladybug said, as she tried to ignore the pain in her arm. –"Should have figured it out it was him or one of Hawk Moth's minions. Excluding bullets, the only weapons that can pierce our outfits are theirs or Akumas'." -she thought to herself.
"First blood's mine!" -Reptile exclaimed enthusiastically. –"Next, I'll cut off your earlobes, and take your miraculous with me… but not before I carve open your chest and rip your heart, so you can still see it beating, before you die." -he smiled at her, with a psychotic smile that would put Hannibal Lecter to shame.
"If you think you're going to do that, you've got another thing coming, Reptile." -Ladybug said, as she continued to put pressure on the wound the lizard man had done her.
"We'll see about that, Ladybug." -Reptile said, as he charged against her, trying to cut her with his switchblade.
Even bleeding from her arm, Ladybug was not going to let Reptile get the best of her. She and the others had learned from Master Fu that as long as they still had a good arm or a good leg, a Miraculous Hero has a fighting chance of winning a battle, even when the odds were against him or her. So, she decided to make use of one of her trump cards, her legs. Attacking Reptile, she hit him with a series of rotating kicks, while continuing to place pressure on her wound. The cut was deep, and she knew that if she did not find a way to make a tourniquet, she was going to continue to bleed out. Unfortunately, she did not have the time, or the materials to do such a thing right then. Looking for something that would help her stop the bleeding, while also trying to escape Reptile, who kept attacking her, the scarlet heroine decided to use her surroundings to her advantage. Surrounded by food vans, she would crouch and roll beneath them, hoping to outwit Reptile, while also looking for something to help her stop the bleeding. Getting up, she entered in the first food van, looking for a first-aid kit, only to not finding it.
"Where's a bandage or a rubber band when you need one?" -Ladybug asked herself, as she kept looking for the first-aid kit.
It did not take long for Reptile to hear and locate her. Finding her, the lizard man tried to stab her once again, only for her to land him a kick on the face. Exiting the food van, Ladybug tried to look for a place where she could hide, and find something to patch-up her wound, before bleeding to death. But Reptile quickly caught up with her. Trying to attack her, the scarlet heroine could only do one thing, and that was to dodge his attacks, while throwing the occasional kick. Trying to find a way out of that jam, she decided to use her sixth sense power, to help her find a solution that could, at the very least, prevent her from being stabbed by Reptile once more. But as she was about to use it, she tripped on a rock and fell on her back. Before she could get up, Reptile placed himself on top of her, with his right knee on her stomach and his left scaly hand on her left arm, squeezing her wound, inflicting her as much as pain as possible. Grinning menacingly at her, he readied himself to kill her.
"Don't worry, I'll make sure to cut off your heart as quickly as possible, so you can see it beating. But let me just warn you, it's going to hurt a lot, not that that will stop me from doing it, but still…" -Reptile laughed maniacally, as he was about to stab her.
But as he was about to stab her, Reptile was hit on the face by a silver staff that seemingly came out of nowhere, making him stagger backwards and fall on his back. But that was no ordinary staff. It was Chat Noir's staff. Looking around, Ladybug saw the feline hero on top of a food van, after which he jumped form it, landing near her, while grabbing his staff back.
"What are you guys doing here?" -Ladybug asked, surprised to see him. She was not expecting him to show up and save her bacon.
"Did you really think we were going to let you have all the fun, milady?" -Chat Noir asked her, while showing her a tender smile.
(Flashback)
The doors to the arena had already opened. At least, that was what the security guards and people in charge of handling the entrances were saying. It was a little hard to hear them, thanks to the music that was in the air. Slowly, but steadily, people began to enter, and as they crossed the entrance, they were given all sorts of Jagged Stone's promotional material, from small posters wristbands and keychains. But the members of the Miraculous gang that had remained behind were hardly paying attention to what was going on around them. They were too busy, trying to understand how the battle against the Akuma was going, through the Internet. The only things they had managed to find out through social media, was that the Akuma's name was Hot Tamale, that he had fire powers, and that Ladybug, Carapace, Dragonfly and Grizzly Bear were having trouble stopping him. It was stressful for them to see their friends in trouble, without being able to help them, because they were asked to stay behind and guard their places. And it was not just making them stressed. It was also making them feel absolutely powerless.
"We should have gone with them." -Sabrina sighed, as she imagined the battle in her mind.
"Do you think they can take him down?" -Rose asked the others.
"I don't know. But it's not the first time there's an Akuma with fire powers." -Alya said, as she continued to go through the news articles, hoping one of them would give her and everyone else the news they wanted to hear, and that was the Akuma's defeat. She was worried about the safety of the team members that went to face Hot Tamale. –"I would be lying if I said I didn't want to be there to help them." -she sighed, as she imagined how Nino and the others were.
And she was not the only one. All of them were thinking about how their friends were, and how they should have gone with them. It was true that the four of them believed they would be enough to deal with the Akuma. But now, it seemed like the four of them would not be enough to stop him.
"I can't take this. I just can't." -Adrien sighed. –"I can't just stay here and… well, you know what I mean. And I bet you are feeling the same way, aren't you?" -he asked the others.
None of them had to answer that question for Adrien to know he was right. He just had to look into their faces, but especially into their eyes, where the words "fear", "anxiety", "concern" and "distress" were mirrored. There was no way to hide that from Adrien, or any other person who knew them well enough. In their minds, stress and fear were beginning to mess with their judgement, and they were beginning to imagine the worst possible scenarios, even if the odds of those scenarios were incredibly slim. And as for Adrien, those thoughts terrified him, especially when thinking about how Marinette could get hurt. He knew she could handle herself in combat. After all, she was no damsel in distress, and had beaten him in combat more times than he could remember, even if in some of those times, he acted like a gentleman and allowed her to defeat him. But that did not stop him from fearing for her well-being, as well as the well-being of Nino, Alix and Ivan.
"You know what? I'm not staying here another second. I've got to go and help them." -Adrien declared, He could not just stand still, and wait for any more news.
"But what about the concert?" -Mylene asked him, as they kept moving. In about a minute or so, they would be entering. She was already thinking that they would have to let people pass them, so as to wait for the others to come back.
"Hate to say it, but… screw the concert. They're having their butts kicked and I'm not going to let the four of them deal with that Akuma on their own." -Adrien told them.
"But Adrikins, the concert, we…" -Chloe said. –"… no, you're right. They need our help." -she sighed.
"It's our responsibility to help them. And more importantly, it's our responsibility to stop that Akuma… even if it means not attending this concert." -Nathaniel sighed. –"This is an emergency, we're talking here."
"Look… I'm thinking better about this, and you guys don't have to come. I'll go alone and help them out. There's no reason for us all to go. You guys can stay and enjoy the concert." -Adrien declared, thinking that that was the best course of action. –"Screw it. If Marinette isn't here to enjoy the concert with me, then I won't go in. It wouldn't be special, not without her. But there's no reason for the others not to go and try to have a good time. After all, the tickets were very expensive. They would be wasting money, if they didn't go." -he thought to himself.
"You're kidding me, right?!" -Alya asked him, while rising an eyebrow at him. –"You're giving us the same speech as your girlfriend, and you know what? It's not going to work, Adrien. I'm going with you, whether you like it or not." -she told him.
"She's right, you know, Adrien?" -Chloe asked him, looking at him the same way the brunette was. –"You know we're not letting you do this all by yourself, right?"
"There are our friends too, you know?" -Juleka pointed out.
"She's right. We're going with you." -Sabrina smiled.
"What kind of people would we be, if we didn't go and help them, when they need the most?" -Mylene asked, as she thought about Ivan, hoping he was doing fine.
"And as for the concert, there will be other opportunities to see Jagged Stone in concert." -he said. He did not say it out loud, but he was especially worried about Alix.
"Right you are, Kim." -Max said, as he fist-bumped Kim.
Sometimes, during the night, just before sleeping, like it happened with most, Adrien's mind came up with some of the wildest questions possible, that would keep him awake, and unable to fall asleep. One of them was if there would come a day, when one of his friends would refuse to fulfil his duties as a hero, putting itself and its priorities ahead of everything else? More importantly, he thought of how he would react to it. But right then, he knew this was not going to be that day. Smiling to himself, he once again thanked for having such noble-hearted friends.
"Alright… I guess there's no point in trying to convince you not to come with me." -Adrien smiled, happy to see that none of them was even worried about losing the concert.
"Nope, there's no point, because even if you say no, we'll just ignore you." -Alya smiled at him.
"Then, what are we waiting for? Let's get going!" -Rose said, as she exited the line, followed by the rest of her friends.
(End of Flashback)
Looking at Chat, made her feel both happy and annoyed at the same time. Her pride just wanted to make her tell him that she, Grizzly Bear, Carapace and Dragonfly could have handled Hot Tamale and Reptile on their own. But in her heart, she was happy to see him coming to lend them a hand. As for Chat, seeing her hurt, he knew that he had to stop the bleeding. Removing his belt-tail, he decided to use it as a tourniquet. Wrapping it around the wound, he quickly tightened it, stopping the bleeding.
"Sorry about that, but I know you can take a little pain." -Chat apologized, as he checked her arm. –"That should stop the bleeding, until Carapace can heal you." -he said. –"Here, let me help you get back up."
"Thanks." -Ladybug thanked him, as she got up. –"You know, you didn't have to come, but, thanks for coming." -she smiled.
"And who says I'm the only one who decided to come and lend you and the others a little hand?" -Chat Noir asked her. –"The rest of the team decided you guys needed a little hand, so, we all came." -he told her.
"You'll pay… for what you just did, Chat Noir…" -Reptile growled at the feline hero, as he spat a couple of teeth Chat had broken him with his staff, interrupting the conversation the heroes were having.
"You touch her again with that blade of yours, and I'll make you swallow the rest of the teeth you still have, lizard man." -Chat Noir threatened Reptile. To say he was angry at the lizard man was little. He was pissed that Reptile had hurt the girl he loved, and he was going to show him what happens to those who dared to do that. –"I'll deal with this guy. But you better go and find someone who can heal you up. I'll catch up to you in a minute." -he told Ladybug.
"Those are some mighty big words and promises, kitty! But can you really keep them?!" -Reptile asked him in a mocking tone, as he swung his switchblade.
"Just shut up and fight!" -Chat Noir exclaimed, as he attacked the lizard man with his staff, who dodged his first attack. –"Find Carapace and he'll fix you up. I'll take care of iguana-breath here!" -he said, as he performed a backflip, dodging following Reptile's attack.
Leaving Chat Noir to deal with Reptile, Ladybug went looking for Carapace. And as she looked for the turtle hero, she saw the rest of the team spread across the battlefield. Some, like Louve Grise and Antelope were busy dealing with fire animals that Hot Tamale had created, these being much larger than the first ones he had created. This revealed that his powers and his control over them was still growing. Others, like Flamingo and Corbeau Noire were lending a hand to the firefighters, as they tried to control the fire. And then, Rena Rouge, Queen Bee, Forest Doe, Panda Roux and Arachnid were busy fighting Hot Tamale himself. Still, she saw no sign of Carapace anywhere.
"Where is he? He has to be around here, somewhere… but where?" -Ladybug asked herself, as she continued to look for him.
She did not see any trace of Carapace anywhere. But she did not see any trace of Grizzly Bear or Dragonfly either. For a brief moment, she feared that something bad had happened to them all. But she tried to put those thoughts aside, believing that they were more than able to take care of themselves. Their training had given them the skills and the strength to take on any adversary. Still, she needed to find Carapace, and there was no trace of him. Clearing her mind, she tried to come up with a solution to that predicament of hers. And then it hit her.
"I never tried this before, but maybe I can use my sixth sense power to find out where Nino is. I'm no good to anyone with my arm like this." -Ladybug thought to herself, as she looked at her left arm, bandaged using the tail from Chat's outfit. –"It's worth a shot." -she thought.
She had nothing to lose, and she desperately needed to be healed, if she was to join the rest of the heroes in battle. So, she made use of it, and tried to see if by using her sixth sense, she was able to locate Carapace or not. At first, nothing happened. She saw no signs that the power was even working. But then, in the distance, three different things were highlighted. The first was a building. The second one was a group people. And the third one was an ambulance. Seeing that, she assumed that Carapace was near that place. Running as fast as her legs allowed her, she hoped that the turtle hero was where she believed her power had told her he would be. As she approached it, she had to jump over the protective barriers placed by the police, to keep anyone from entering the perimeter where the fight was taking place. And like always, there were people watching what was going on. Once more, people's curiosity overrode their common sense, and told them to stay there and watch how things unfolded, instead of looking for a safe place.
"Excuse me, excuse me… coming through!" -Ladybug said, as she moved through the crowd. –"Why is it that people don't understand that they shouldn't be here? Are they so desperate to see us battle an Akuma, that they risk their lives just to do it? If I was them, I would go home and lock myself in my bedroom, instead of staying out here, where I might get hurt." -she thought to herself, as she continued to walk through the crowd, who kept applauding her and telling her just how great of a job she was doing. Some even asked her if she was alright, after seeing her injury, with her answering them back with a confident smile. She did not want people to worry about her.
It was a little hard for her to get through the crowd, without bumping into anyone, but she managed to get to where her power had told her Carapace would be. And as she reached the ambulance, she saw Grizzly Bear and Carapace, along with two more paramedics, around a gurney. Wondering why they were there, and who was on the gurney, Ladybug hurried to their side.
"Hey, what happened?" -Ladybug asked them, when she saw the person Carapace was treating in the gurney was Dragonfly. –"Are you alright?!" -she asked Dragonfly.
"A broken shoulder. But she'll be alright in a bit." -Carapace said, without taking his eyes off what he was doing. The paramedics that were watching were both astonished by how the turtle hero was using his healing powers to fix Dragonfly's shoulder.
"You on the other hand… ouch… don't look so good." -Dragonfly said, as she noticed –"Hey, is that Chat's tail?" -she asked Ladybug, seeing it around her arm.
"Oh, this? Courtesy of Reptile, and yeah, it's Chat's tail." -Ladybug declared. –"He's taking care of Reptile, as we speak." -she said.
"Reptile? I was wondering which one of Hawk Moth's lieutenants was responsible for this Akuma." -Grizzly Bear asked her. –"Glad Chat came to help us. We could use any help we get." -he said.
"Not just him, the rest of the team also came to lend us a hand." -Ladybug told them. Because they were so focused on Dragonfly, neither she, nor Carapace and Grizzly Bear, did not notice the other heroes arriving.
"At least, that explains why that Akuma did not come after me, when Ivan came to get me to cure Alix." -Carapace thought to himself. –"Well, if the rest of the team is here, I think we've got better odds of beating this guy a lot faster. There, good as new." -he told Dragonfly. –"Try to move only your right arm and shoulder for a bit, to give your shoulder the time to properly heal."
"Okay, I'll try, but I won't make promises." -Dragonfly said. as she exited the gurney. -Thanks for the assist, guys." -she smiled at the paramedics. –"I'm going back and see if I can help the others. And you should really get that checked."
"Don't worry, I'll take care of that." -Carapace said, as
"Now that we have the whole team here, maybe we can solve this quickly and still make it back to see most of the concert" -Ladybug thought to herself, as she saw the time in the watch that belonged to one of the paramedics. –"Ouch!" -she exclaimed, as Carapace removed Chat's belt-tail, exposing the wound.
"Sorry about that… it's a nasty cut, alright. That Reptile was really trying to cut your arm off." -Carapace said, as he handed her the belt-tail. –"Here, you can give it back to him later." -he said, as he observed the wound.
"He was actually aiming at my chest." -Ladybug admitted.
"Good thing he missed." -Carapace said. –"Don't worry. I'll have you healed in a minute or two. And then, we'll join the others and take care of that Akuma." -he assured her.
Unfortunately, even with the whole team fighting him, Hot Tamale was proving to be a much more resilient and stronger Akuma than he initially looked. Not only he had mastered his powers over fire a lot faster than any of them had thought he would be able to. One of such powers was to turn his whole body on flames, making it almost impossible to get near him, as he continued to ride the fiery mustang he had created. And on top of all that, he also decided to take the battle to a different place, the Jardin du Luxembourg, up the street. Built in 1612 by Marie de' Medici, the widow of King Henry IV of France, the garden was created for a new residence she constructed, the Luxembourg Palace. Known for its lawns, tree-lined promenades, flowerbeds, model sailboats on its circular basin, and picturesque Medici Fountain, it drew in thousands of people, mostly tourists, who wanted to see its sheer beauty. But right then, most of the lawn and flowers had been torched by Hot Tamale, as he continued to fight the Miraculous Heroes, most of which were now on the ground.
"So, chicos and niñas, are you ready to give up?" -Hot Tamale asked them, as he threw some explosive chilli peppers at the heroes, who did their best to evade them.
"That's it! I'm going to pour out those flames, and then use you as a piñata!" -Queen Bee yelled at Hot Tamale.
"Come at me then, pequeña abeja!" -Hot Tamale told Queen Bee.
Spinning her trompo and creating a shield with it, the bee heroine dashed towards Hot Tamale, intending to put an end to his antics. Seeing her, Hot Tamale pulled out his weapons and fired bursts of fire at her. Luckily, her trompo allowed her to keep the flames away, by continuously spinning it. Flying around him, she tried to find an opening in his defense and attack him. After a couple of seconds, she became tired of not being to find any opening, and allowed her temper to get the best of her, by throwing her trompo at him. But instead of hitting him, the trompo missed Hot Tamale, who threw her an explosive chilli pepper, which blew up in her face. The explosion did not burn her face, on account of her placing her arms in front of it, but it still threw her away, with her hitting the ground pretty hard. The only thing that prevented her from losing her senses was the fact that she did not land on her head.
"This is ridiculous! Utterly ridiculous! What's the matter with us today?!" -Queen Bee asked in frustration, as she slammed her fist against the ground. –"To think that because of this idiot, we're all here, instead of being in Jagged Stone's concert… it gets my dander up!" -she thought, as Louve Grise, who went to her aid, helped her up. –"We're used to taking care of Akumas like this guy, and for some reason, we're not even able to land a punch on him! It's like he predicts our every move!"
"I don't think he's predicting them. I think that his attacks are so random that he we just can't figure a way to counterattack them." -Arachnid said. –"Plus, those fire animals he keeps creating aren't making things easier." -he declared.
"Well, we better come up with a way to stop him, or else, the Luxembourg Palace will become a blazing pile of ashes." -Louve Grise said
"Not on our watch." -Flamingo said, as she and some of her copies landed near them. –"Let's try and attack him from all flanks. He can be fast and he might be in flames, but I don't see him having eyes on the back of his head, or on the sides. Back me up, Corbeau." -she told her girlfriend.
"Always." -Corbeau Noire said, as she and Flamingo and her copies dashed towards Hot Tamale, leaving Queen Bee and the others behind.
A little farther from the action, in a small portion of the garden, that was still untouched, Ladybug and Chat Noir, accompanied by Panda Roux and Dragonfly were hidden, watching the battle unfold. Chat Noir had arrived a few minutes before, after taking care of Reptile, who was particularly ferocious that day. Their battle took longer than the feline hero would like to admit, but in the end, he managed to defeat him, while making sure he would not come after him, or the others. When he arrived, his girlfriend and the others were trying to come up with a solution to end that battle, while Dragonfly took a bit to rest. Her shoulder was still aching, even though she would not say it, not wanting to worry her teammates.
They had all lost the track of time, but they knew that they had been battling that Akuma for more time than they wanted to. And they also knew that if they did not come up with a way to stop him, that battle could take all night, and they did not have that kind of time.
"This guy looks unstoppable." -Ladybug sighed, as she massaged her arm, where Reptile had stabbed her.
"Are you okay? Is your arm hurting?" -Chat Noir asked her.
"I'm fine, don't worry. –Ladybug smiled at Chat Noir. Like it happened with Dragonfly, she did not want worry anyone else, especially because in a matter of hours that pain would be gone, and she would be left with little more than a bruise, that would disappear in about two days. –"I'm more worried about how are we going to stop this guy. He seemed almost pathetic when we first arrived, and now, he's turned into one of the toughest Akumas we ever faced." -she said. –"It's a good thing we're out in the open. I don't even want to imagine the kind of damage he would do, if we were fighting him in a confined space."
"I've been observing him, and I may have an idea to stop him. But you guys have got to get him to come near me." -Panda Roux declared.
"What do you have in mind?" -Dragonfly asked him.
"Ammonium polyphosphate."-Panda Roux said.
"Amo-what?" -Chat Noir asked, puzzled by what he had heard.
"Ammonium polyphosphate. It's basically flame retardant. I remembered it from our chemistry class with Miss Bustier, last month." -Panda Roux explained them. –"I'm thinking about drawing a large cannister filled with it, and then spraying him with it." -he said. –"Right now, his body is in flames and we can't even get near him, without getting burned. Sabrina already tried to freeze him, but the flames are so hot that they just melt her ice away in seconds. So, I think that if I spray him with that, the flames will be put out, at least for a little bit, and the strongest of us can take him out with everything he or she's got."
It was a clever plan. And usually Panda's plans, which rested on his creating powers, tended to work. Still, sometimes they did not, and there was always the chance that this could backfire on them. Even so, they were all beginning to get exhausted, and it was when exhaustion began to settle in, that they would often make mistakes. They had to risk it, and take down Hot Tamale, before any of them made a mistake that could cost them their lives.
"It could work, and he wouldn't be expecting it." -Ladybug said.
"There's one thing I forgot to mention. In order not to disperse the Ammonium polyphosphate from him, the attacks that we must use on him, will have to be physical, not magical." -Panda Roux pointed out. –"That means we can't rely on Chloe's tornados, or Sabrina's ice breath, or even Alix and Kim's superspeed attacks, because all of them will blow the polyphosphate away from his body." -he explained.
"What about my Cataclysm Bomb? Could we use it?" -Chat Noir asked him.
Cataclysm Bomb was a special attack that Chat Noir had been perfecting since Christmas-time. It consisted in him concentrating his trademark attack into a sphere and then release it. When he realized he could throw his attack at an enemy, he wondered if he could find a way to concentrate a significant amount of the energy from Cataclysm and then release it. And so, he began experimenting it, until he developed it, with a little help from Master Fu. When practicing it, his friends had playfully nicknamed it "Chat's Hadouken", because when he used it, he tended to use a voice like those of the characters from Street Fighter.
"I don't think so. It's magical, and the speed with which you'll shoot it, it will make the polyphosphate dissipate." -Panda Roux warned him.
"Maybe… But we could use it as the finisher." -Ladybug said. –"Let's say that after you spray fire retardant on Hot Tamale, we ask Max to hold him with his lasso, and then we ask Ivan to go against him with everything he has, softening him up. But that may not be enough… so, instead of letting Ivan do all the work, you use your Cataclysm Bomb on him, and finish the job… it could work." -she said, as she imagined it in her head. –"But, are you sure you can do it? Do you think you still have the strength to do it? Because if you don't, it might be dangerous to your well-being."
"Don't worry about me, bug-a-boo. I can do it. Just soften him for me." -Chat Noir said.
"Okay, but remember, we have to do this with the precision of a Swiss clock. We can't allow him to reignite his flames, no matter what." -Panda Roux warned them.
"It's a risk worth taking." -Ladybug told him. –"Alright, we have a plan." -she declared, while turning to Dragonfly. –"Go and tell the others what we have planned. And with the exception of Max and Ivan, the rest keep doing what they are doing. We can't let him even think that we are setting him a trap."
"You got it, Marinette." -Dragonfly said, as she was about to dash out of there, when she remembered one thing. –"Wait a moment, we forgot one last detail. How are we going to force him to come here?"
"Tell Kim to bring him here. If there's one person who can annoy an Akuma and lead him into a trap, it's him." -Ladybug told her.
"Roger that." -Dragonfly said, as she gave her thumbs up, before taking to the sky.
"Let's hope this works." -Ladybug thought to herself.
Quickly, and using her superspeed, Dragonfly warned her friends, one by one, about what they were going to do, while also dodging anything Hot Tamale or one of his fiery creations threw at her. It was not an easy task, given that she was trying her best not to move her sore shoulder, but she managed to do it. Following Ladybug's orders, the heroes continued to attack the Akuma, while Arachnid and Grizzly Bear slowly got ready to play their part in what they hoped, would be Hot Tamale's demise. Giving them an extra two minutes, it was only when he believed that they would be in position, that Antelope decided it was his time to shine. Running. He placed himself in front of Hot Tamale, who was then fighting Rena Rouge, and began what they all later would call "Operation: Firefighter".
"Hey, you in the ugly sombrero! Yeah, I'm talking to you! Come and get me, your overgrown bottle of Tabasco sauce! Come on! I'm right over here!" -Antelope insulted him, as he began to run from left to right. –"Don't tell me that with all those powers, the only thing you're going to do is just stand there and do nothing, while I mock you and insult you?! Come on, I can do this all day!" -he mocked Hot Tamale.
And just as Ladybug had predicted, Hot Tamale took the bait. Ignoring both Rena Rouge, who he was fighting with, and the rest of the other heroes, he began chasing Antelope, who promptly ran from there, ensuring that he would follow him. To also ensure he would not suspect a thing, the other heroes quickly threw out comments, telling Hot Tamale to come back and fight them, which he ignored. He was solely focused on Antelope.
"I'll burn you to a crisp, Antelope!" -Hot Tamale said, as he ordered his fiery mustang to canter faster. –"Andale! Más rapido! I'm going to show you just how hot things can get!" -he yelled at the hero, as he chased him.
Even as exhausted as he was, Antelope could still run circles around Hot Tamale. So, outrunning him would not be difficult. But he did not want outrun him. He just wanted to make sure he followed him. And Hot Tamale followed him, trying to burn him and blow him into smithereens. More than once Antelope allowed him to nearly catch up to him, before sprinting away from him. When he finally arrived at the place Dragonfly had warned him about, he stopped dead cold, and continued to mock the Akuma, who was closing in on him.
"You know one thing? I know we're supposed to call you Hot Tamale, but, quite honestly, the way you look now, you look more like a piece of meat that was left for too long in the fire, that actually caught fire!" -Antelope mocked him. –"So, I think that we should begin to call you Roasted Chicken… how do you spell that in Spanish, huh?!" -he laughed, as Hot Tamale and his ride stopped in front of him.
"You're going to regret calling me those names, chico. I'll burn you to cinders and I'll rip that miraculous of yours from your wrist!" -Hot Tamale exclaimed, as he was about to attack.
Out of the blue, Panda Rouge showed up from behind a bush, carrying a modified fire extinguisher filled with ammonium polyphosphate, and wasted no time in spraying Hot Tamale with it. Pressing the valve, a cloud of that white chemical covered the Akuma, putting out every flame in his body. In a matter of seconds, the fire horse he was riding disappeared, or extinguished himself, for the lack of better word, and Hot Tamale's whole body was covered with a layer polyphosphate, preventing him from lighting up. Coughing and sneezing, Hot Tamale did not have the time to react, as Arachnid made his move. Ordering his lasso to tangle to form a net shaped like a spiderweb, the spider hero threw it on top of Hot Tamale, who realized that he had been tricked into a trap, and tried to escape, by lighting himself up, only to fail.
"Que pasa?! What's going on?!" -Hot Tamale asked, as he tried to figure out why he could not light himself up.
"His flames are gone and he's restrained… release the Wolverine, I mean, the Grizzly Bear!" -Arachnid yelled, as he used all of his strength, just to prevent him from breaking the net.
Hearing Arachnid, Grizzly Bear jumped out of his hiding spot and proceeded to pound Hot Tamale. Seeing him, the Akuma tried to break free from his restraints, only for the bear hero to hit him right in the face. After that first punch, Grizzly continued to punch and kick him all over the body, taking a slight pleasure in working his torso. Each blow was more powerful than the previous one, as Grizzly continued his attack. He knew that if given the chance, Hot Tamale would be able to break free and reignite himself in flames, make it impossible for them to attack him, without burning themselves.
"Just a couple of more punches… come on, Ivan! You can do better than this. Put your back into it!" -Grizzly Bear thought to himself, as he continued to punch Hot Tamale in the abdomen and in the chest.
Grizzly's attack went on for what looked to him like an eternity. Punch after punch. Strike after strike, Hot Tamale was not even allowed to breathe, even though he tried to evade the bear hero's attacks, only for Arachnid to keep him in his place. Grizzly felt that he had given him the beat of his life, but kept punching him. He was not going to admit it to anyone, not even himself, but he was using him as a punching bag to unleash the anger of having his night ruined because of Hot Tamale and because of Hawk Moth. His plans for that night did not include fighting an Akuma. They only included going to a concert with his girlfriend and his friends.
"Hey, man! Leave something for me!" -Chat Noir said, as he got out of the place he was hiding. snapping Grizzly out of the trance he had gotten into, while beating up Hot Tamale.
"He's all yours, Chat!" -Grizzly exclaimed, as he finished his attack, by landing s punch on the left side of Hot Tamale's face, leaving him more dead than alive.
"Q-Que?!" -Hot Tamale said, absolutely –"Do you think… that this will stop me, mocosos?!" -he asked them, while trying not to pass out.
"Nope. But this certainly will. It's lights out for you, Hot Tamale… Arachnid, if I were you, I would hit the ground for cover, bro." -Chat Noir smirked, as he finished creating his attack. –"Cataclysm Bomb!" -he yelled, as he released the dark energy sphere.
Hey everyone! I know that I'm nearly 3 days late, but this chapter was a lot harder to write than I expected, and it's twice's big as I was planning to make it. So, I think I'm forgiven when it comes to the delay. But, I think it came out way better than I expected it to be. Originally the battle against Hot Tamale was not going to be this long, and it was only going to feature part of the team, but I just had so much fun writing him that I decided to give them the whole team to fight in what I think was a proper challenge... needless to say that that also changed part of the story that I had planned, but don't worry, everything will be back on track very soon.
For those of you who don't understand Spanish, I tried to use expressions and insults that could easily be understood even by those who don't understand the language. Still, any doubts, just go to the Google Translator and translate any word you might not understand. Though Spanish isn't my native language (it's Portuguese from Portugal, in case some of you are wondering), Spanish is quite similar to Portuguese in a lot fo things, so it makes it easy for me to write it, as long as I'm not writing a large chunk of text.
P.S. the following chapter might take the same amount of time as this one did, because in just 3 days, the second part of the new season of La Casa de Papel is premiering on Netflix, and I intend to watch it, so that's going to take a little bit of time to do. Still, I will try to complete the next chapter before this one premieres, because I don't want you all to wait for a new update on this fanfic of mine. Oh, by the way, before I forget, this one is dedicated to a very special friend of mine, Cátia Dias aka. Kitty Arsenic who was a momma for the first time a couple of days, and this chapter is my present for her and for her baby girl.
(Updated April 10th, 2020):
Because so many people have asked me this, and pointed it out, I decided to straighten this up. Chat's Cataclysm Bomb in my AU, is different from the Cataclysm Bomb he uses in the OG show, in "Chat Blanc". My version of that attack just has double the power of a regular Cataclysm attack, so no, the attack he throws at Hot Tamale is not OP. If I ever have one of the heroes, or even one of the villains use an OP attack, you'll read about it either on the story, or here, on the notes.