Chapter 23: Screamer's Swan Song
When Ladybug was hit in the nose, this one began to bleed. She knew Screamer had not broken it, but she did not have the time worry about it. Wiping the blood from her nose and upper lip, she got back up and tried to counterattack him, as he broke free from Arachnid's lasso and the Panda Roux's chains, attacking her teammates. But just like it happened with most of them, she too was caught by one of his sonic screams, and thrown several meters in the air, before hitting the ground again.
"Ouch, my boobs!"-Ladybug said, as she massaged her chest, having landed on it. –"That guy's going to pay for this." -she thought to herself, when she was hit by another sonic scream, which sent her flying once more, this time making her land on her butt. –"Crud… this is getting ridiculous! I'm starting to feel like I'm a ragdoll, which keeps getting tossed around by a kid!"
"Enough! It's time for me to finish you out." -Screamer said, as the chains around his forearms began to glow red, melting the rest of the ice that were still covering them. –"Until I have your miraculouses, Hawk Moth won't let me go on tour. So, I'm going to kill you, get your miraculouses and then get the heck out of here. The world needs to hear my music and see just how I am the greatest rock star ever!" -he exclaimed, as he was about to attack Ladybug.
Not waiting to feel the burn from his chains, Ladybug got herself up and kicked him in the face, making him angry.
"You're not leaving this stadium, buster!" -Ladybug told him, as she began to spin her yo-yo, turning into a shield. –"Your musical career will end, before it even starts!" -she shot at him.
"Let's see if you keep saying that, when I have my hands around your neck!" -Screamer yelled at her, when he was hit on the back by something hard.
"Take your paws away from her, ugly!" -Chat Noir ordered him, as he pointed his staff at him.
"Oh, so you want to go first, huh?! Fine by me." -Screamer said, as he threw the chains, trying to hit Chat, missing him by mere centimetres, after he threw himself to the left. –"You can run, but you can't hide, kitty!" -he told him, in a maniacal voice, as he attacked him with the flaming chains. –"When I'm done with you, instead of being called Chat Noir, you're going to be Charcoal Noir instead!"
"Charcoal Noir?! Dang, this guy is really bad with puns and jokes!" -Chat Noir thought to himself, as he jumped over Screamer.
Antelope was not the kind of person, who liked to be left watching what was going in the sidelines. And that personality trait of his had gotten him into trouble, more times than he could remember. Still, he could not help it. He was the kind of person who wanted to be part of the action, no matter the situation or the danger it could pose to him. And right then, as he peeked over the pile of debris that he and Dragonfly were using as a hiding spot.
"Stop checking on what's going on! You're just making me wish I was there, kicking that guy's butt!" -Dragonfly told him, annoyed.
"I'm making you wish that? Well, you lying there, recovering from your injury, forcing me to stay here, guarding you, are making me wish I was there, kicking that guy's butt as well, but we can't all have what we want, can we?" -Antelope told her in a sarcastic tone. –"And worst, the battle seems to getting really good, right now." -he said, as he continued to observe their friends fighting Screamer.
"Well, excuse me, but I didn't plan on getting my leg cooked, this evening!" -Dragonfly shouted at him, annoyed. –"Besides, it's not like your big and swollen ego would do any difference, bonehead" -she said, sarcastically.
"What?! Say that to my face again!" -Antelope demanded, after hearing what she had told him.
"Why? Are you deaf now?" -Dragonfly asked him, in the same sarcastic tone as before.
"No, but I don't believe you've got the guts to say it!" -Antelope shot back at her.
"Oh, I do have the guts to say it, and I'm going to spell it for you, just in case you're too dumb to understand it!" -Dragonfly shot at him. –"I said… Duck, now!" -she yelled, as she threw her frisbee.
Ducking and then turning around, Antelope saw a woman with red glowing eyes, being hit by Dragonfly's frisbee. Unknown to both, the woman was Penny Rolling, Jagged's agent, who had fallen under the control of Screamer, just like everyone else in that stadium. As she got up, she tried to attack Antelope, who used his baseball bat to hit her on the head, putting her unconscious. Looking at her, lying on the ground, Antelope could not help but to feel sorry about her, like everyone else he and Dragonfly were forced to knock out, just because they were under the Akuma's control.
"I thought we had dealt with every last one of them." -Antelope commented .One of the things they did, while also fighting Reptile, was to deal with the technicians, roadies and other people that were on the backstage and fell under the control of Screamer.–"Guess we missed one." -he said, as he looked down at Penny. –"Nice throw, by the way."
"Thanks, but… Duck, again!" -Dragonfly shouted, as the two of them repeated the same move as before. A second later, Reptile's ugly face, was hit by Dragonfly's frisbee.
Reptile had been moving among the debris, searching for the perfect opportunity to surprise the heroes, and attack them, just like his master had ordered him to. But his bitter hatred for Antelope and Dragonfly had made him ignore part of those orders, and focus on finding them, before helping Screamer. Not to mention that Screamer looked like he had things under control. He could focus on hunting down the two heroes that had used him as a piñata that evening, that by the time he had finished them, the Akuma would still be battling the rest of the Miraculous Team. Unfortunately for him, both Antelope and Dragonfly had other plans, that did not include being caught and beaten by one of Hawk Moth's minions.
"You?! I thought I had dealt with you, already." -Antelope told Reptile, as the reptilian man got back up. –"Either you're stupid, or you're just a masochist, for coming back for another dose of pain. Ready for round two, ugly?" -he asked him.
"You're going to eat those words, brat! You, and your friend there!" -Reptile said, as he pointed his switchblade at Antelope. –"This time I won't settle with just stabbing you. I'm going to carve out your hearts from your chests, and then force them down your throats!" -he threatened them, when he was hit on the face again; this time, with twice the strength.
"Less talk and more action, dingus!" -Dragonfly exclaimed, as the frisbee returned to her hand. –"If you spent less time talking about what you're going to do, and actually did it, you might be able to come out victorious… but then again, your brain is obviously too small to even consider that. Hawk Mouth really needs to get better help." -she insulted him.
"You mock me, but you're about to…" -Reptile threatened Dragonfly, when he was hit on the face, this time by Antelope, who used his bat. –"Why, you!" he yelled, as Antelope hit him again in the head. Making use of his speed, he hit him in the head numerous times, until Reptile finally passed out.
"And this time, stay down, for your own good, snake breath." -Antelope told the unconscious Reptile, as he looked around for something to tie him up with. –"This time, I think I'm going to use something a little more resistant, to tie you up. I don't want to lose more of my time, dealing with you, tonight." -he said, as he grabbed a twisted piece of metal from the ground, and wrapped it around Reptile's torso and arms. –"You may be strong, but I don't think you're strong enough to get out of this one, scaly."
"We do make a pretty good team." -Dragonfly said, as she watched Antelope finishing tying up Reptile.
"We? What do you mean, "we"?" -Antelope asked her.
"Oh, come on, don't act like that! If it wasn't for me, you would've been caught first by that woman there, and then, by Snakey McSlytherin over there." -Dragonfly pointed to both Penny and Reptile, on the ground. –"Face it, we make a pretty good team, even when we're both not at 100%" -she said.
"Fine… I guess we do." -Antelope sighed. –"But don't get any ideas. You know fully well, that I'm a lone wolf." -he declared.
"Lone wolf? More like lame wolf!" -Dragonfly laughed, while accidentally moving her injured leg. –"O-Ouch! Dang it!"
"Better not move that leg… Carapace might need to use his powers on you, a second time." -Antelope said, when a loud roar was heard, coming from the battlefield. –"What was that?!" -he asked.
"I recognize that roar. And either I'm absolutely wrong about it, or this Akuma's reign of terror is about to end." -Dragonfly told him, with a mischievous smile on her face.
Thanks to Chat Noir's intervention, upon which he was joined by Carapace and Flamingo, who took Screamer head-on, Ladybug managed to retreat to a safe hiding place, behind yet another pile of debris that was once part of the stage, to think on what her next move would be. Just like it was happening with her friends, exhaustion was settling in, and she knew that it would only be a matter of time before she would be too exhausted to even come up with a plausible idea to deal with the Akuma. Taking deep breaths, she tried to come up with an alternate plan, while continuing to ignore the crowd, who continued to bang their fists against the energy barrier, while screaming Screamer's name.
"It's obvious that he's not as dumb as one might think he is. He is resourceful, and he can get out of a tight jam. Even when we think there's no way he can get out, he will do it." -Ladybug thought to herself. –"Plus, we're running out of time. We're beginning to run on fumes, and if the crowd manages to climb over the barrier, not only we'll have to fight Screamer, but the crowd as well. We could try and use his own powers against him, but I don't see how we're going to do it, when there's practically nothing around us, we can use to pull that How are we going to…" -she mused about, when she heard the same roar that Dragonfly heard, and recognized it. –"Looks like Ivan's up to something… and something big!"
Ladybug, like Dragonfly, understood what the holder of the bear miraculous was going to do, and in a matter of seconds, the rest of the team did as well. As Grizzly used his power, the golden holographic bear engulfed him, while growing in size. As that happened, he did his best to keep control of it. Since he discovered that ability of his, he had trained hard, under the supervision of Master Fu, to perfect his control over it. But even with all the training he had gone through, Grizzly felt that he was far from being able to control that ability he had unlocked. Still, that did not stop him from giving it a shot, hoping that that was enough to stop Screamer.
"Remember, you can do this. Just remember your training, and what Master Fu told you: Relax, and let the power flow through you, but without taking control of you." -Grizzly thought to himself. –"We are one, together, and we must work together, if we are to stop this creep and this crazy fight." -he continued to tell himself.
As Grizzly unleashed the beast within him, Corbeau Noire and Arachnid stood by his side, while Forest Doe and Rena Rouge made their way to where KISS, Jagged Stone and Roger were, to get them to a safer location. The ice barrier that Louve Grise had created to protect them from the fires that had been burning around them, had for the most part, melted, and so, it was imperative to get them out of there. Knowing Grizzly's "Spirit of the Wild" attack would neutralize any kind of magical attack, they were afraid that if the spheres where they were being held, accidentally grazed against the giant holographic bear, could be destroyed and they could end up getting hurt or squashed by it; something no one wanted.
"Heroes to the rescue, Fang, heroes to the rescue." -Jagged Stone told his pet crocodile. –"Hey, you know what? I think that could be the title of a really cool song! As soon, as I get home, I'm going to start working on it." -he said, as he began to compose the lyrics in his mind.
"This is humiliating…" -Gene sighed.
"Oh, for you, everything is humiliating." -Eric told him
"Not everything. But being saved by a bunch of kids… that, can be considered humiliating, especially because of who we are… I'm just glad that a certain someone is not here, to watch us in this kind of situation." -Gene declared.
"Are you talking about…" -Paul asked.
"Don't say its name! We promised, never to speak its name, ever again, after what happened in Salem!" -Gene warned him.
"Okay, okay, I wasn't going to say it!" -Paul told him. –"Still, try not to look so gloom and doom, when they save us. They're risking their lives to save the day." -he said.
"Gloom and doom? A little more and you're quoting Mick and his band's song, Doom and Gloom." -Tommy joked, referring to the Rolling Stones.
"Well, you know me. I'm the jokester of this gang." -Paul said.
Screamer, who was busy fighting Chat Noir, Flamingo and Carapace, also heard the roar. And seeing what was heading towards him, the Akuma quickly blasted the heroes away, with one of his sonic screams, so he could face Grizzly Bear, without any kind of interruptions. Looking at him, he could tell that what he was doing was different from what any of the heroes had tried, until then. Still, he was not going to let Grizzly spook him with one of his tricks. He had plans, and those plans did not include being beaten by any of the heroes.
"Cute… Winnie the Pooh has come to play." -Screamer mocked Grizzly. –"Well, if you want to play, I'll be more than happy to play with you. But I'm warning you. I'm not going to play nice!" -he smirked evilly, as he played a chord on his guitar.
Letting out a powerful sonic scream, he tried to blow the giant golden bear away, only to see that his attack did not produce the desired effect. The only that happened, was the bear roaring even louder than before, as it placed itself on its rear legs, assuming a threatening pose.
"What the…?! I don't know how you managed to evade that sonic scream, but I'll show you! One more killer sonic scream, coming right up, Winnie the Pooh!" -Screamer exclaimed.
Taking a deep breath, Screamer let out another sonic scream, which hit Grizzly. When this one failed to do any damage, Screamer let out another, and another, continuing to attack him, to see that every single one his attacks, did not hurt his opponent. The other heroes, who were right then just watching what was going on, could not help but to smile, as they already imagined how that fight was going to end.
"That Akuma is about to get his butt kicked, Grizzly Bear style." -Carapace thought to himself.
"This is going to be good." -Queen Bee said.
"It's true that this ability of Ivan is a little overkill, but who cares? As long as it manages to put Akumas out of action, you won't hear me complain about it." -Arachnid mused to himself.
After getting tired of seeing his sonic screams, not producing any damage to the giant golden bear, Screamer decided to change his approach. Instead of just letting out sonic screams, he decided to combine them with fire, letting out powerful fiery whirlpools, which hit Grizzly's giant holographic golden bear.
"Burn, baby, burn!" -Screamer laughed maniacally, just before firing another fiery whirlpool at Grizzly Bear, along with two large fire balls.
"You can throw anything at me, idiot. In this form, I can't be hurt… but you can." -Grizzly Bear thought to himself, when he began to feel like something inside him was wrong. –"N-No, not yet! I need to retain full control of it…" -he said, as he tried to serene his mind. –"Remember what Master Fu told you. Don't think about the outcome of the battle, or about maintaining control. Think calm thoughts, and remember that this creature is like an extension of your being, so, you must keep calm, otherwise, you will lose control."
Calming his mind and the feelings inside it, Grizzly quickly resumed his attack on Screamer, who was beginning to wonder if the bear hero had any sort of weakness. Continuing to use his fire powers against him, Screamer decided to take things a bit more seriously, as he prepared himself to use his flaming chains on him. Launching them against Grizzly, these went through the golden bear, where they became just plain chains. Pulling them back, he tried the same trick once more, only to see it failing. Grizzly was putting him against the ropes, and Screamer was then feeling like he was between a rock and a hard place. He tried to come up with a way out of that jam, but none of his attacks seemed to work against the miraculous hero.
"Crud! How can I defeat this thing?!" -Screamer thought to himself, as he let out another sonic scream, while trying not to panic. This was the first time he felt like he could be defeated.
"Screamer… listen to my voice!" -a raging voice echoed, inside Screamer's head. It was the voice of Hawk Moth, who was not happy with what he was seeing. –"What are you doing? I've given you the power to destroy those insufferable kids, and you can't even destroy one of them!" -he berated at the Akuma. –"Maybe I should have chosen someone else to be my champion against these heroes."
"No! I can do this! He's big, but I still haven't played my last song!" -Screamer answered him.
"Then, do it. Use the energy from the crowd, to counterattack Grizzly Bear and destroy his miraculous from him, before you do the same with the others!" -Hawk Moth told him. –"And remember, I can always take your powers away." -he said, before breaking the psychic link.
Taking those words to the letter, Screamer was not going to let the villain do such a thing. He needed his powers, if he was going to prove to the rest of the world. And to keep them, he would do anything, including, killing every last member of the Miraculous Team. Focusing, he tried to figure out how he was going to use the energy from the crowd to his benefit. And then, he felt it. A massive amount of energy, pulsing from every last person in the stadium. Energy that was ready for the taking. He did not know what would happen if he used it, but he was more than willing to do it.
"Fine! If you want to get personal, then it's time for me to show you a new trick! One that it's going to rock you and everyone else here!" -Screamer announced. –"My adoring fans! Give me your energy, so I might smite this guy with the power of rock!" -he yelled at the top of his lungs.
Saying those words, the crowd's screaming and cheering came to a halt, as something unbelievable happened. Suddenly, the eyes of everyone under Screamer's control, turned white, as what could be described as a white string of energy, shot from people's chests, making its way towards Screamer, who quickly absorbed it. One by one, the people began to fall to the ground, depleted of energy. Absorbing the energy from the crowd, Screamer decided to mimic Grizzly Bear, by also projecting a giant holographic version of himself, which engulfed him, the same way it happened with Grizzly. Feeling more powerful than ever, he roared, as he made appear a giant guitar, which exploded into flames.
"And now, let's see if you can handle the music, teddy bear!" -Screamer exclaimed, as his giant holographic self, swung the flaming guitar and hit Grizzly's holographic giant bear, making him fly a couple of meters into the air, before landing on the ground.
This was the first time, someone managed to hit and harm Grizzly Bear, while using that attack, and this caught him and the rest of the heroes by surprise. Stunned by what happened to him, he began to feel like he was losing control of the giant golden bear he was inside of, with it beginning to act all feral. Clearing his mind, he tried his best to retain control, even if it was getting harder to do it.
"I can do this… focus!" -Grizzly told himself. –"Just because this guy can also pull the same stunt as me, doesn't mean, I can't take him down." -he thought. –"I still got at least thirty more seconds, until you start acting like a wild animal, and I can't control you, so don't you dare start acting like it, before time."
"Come on! Is that all you've got?! You really are a sorry excuse for a bear, Winnie the Pooh!" -Screamer laughed as he hit Grizzly with the guitar once more, before letting out a powerful sonic scream, which made him retreat.
Ladybug and the rest of her team had believed that with Grizzly's attack, it was only a matter of minutes before the battle was over. Unfortunately, with that new ability of his, Screamer had managed to turn the battle's tide, placing him on the winning side.
"This just took a turn for the worse." -Louve Grise stated, as she, and the others saw Grizzly being hit by Screamer, which they all thought was impossible to happen.
"You think?" -Queen Bee asked her, in a sarcastic tone.
"We better give him a hand!" -Ladybug said. –"Anyone who can fly, go up and break his concentration." -she declared. –"The rest, you come with me. We attack the legs!"
"On it, girl!" –Rena Rouge said, as she, Flamingo, Corbeau Noire and Queen Bee flew out of there.
"We're right behind you, milady." -Chat Noir said, as he extended his staff.
"You go ahead. I have to do something first." -Carapace warned his friends.
As the rest of the heroes charged against the Akuma, Carapace made a small detour and did something he regretted not doing, the moment he and the others first showed themselves on stage. And that was, to cast an energy shield around the spheres where the hostages were, to protect them. Once that was done, he did not waste time and joined the others. Up in the air, the flying members of the team began to fly around the head of the holographic Screamer.
"Get away, you meddlesome insects! I'll deal with you, once I deal with Winnie the Pooh, there." -Screamer said, his voice booming around the place, as he attacked Grizzly Bear.
"Sorry, but you'll have to deal with all of us, you idiot." -Queen Bee declared, as she threw her trompo at the holographic Screamer's face, hitting him. Unlike with what happened with Grizzly's holographic bear, the holographic Screamer seemed to be able to feel pain, and things did not pass through it.
"In the Miraculous Team, you mess with one of us, you mess with all of us!" -Corbeau Noire exclaimed.
"That's right! It's one for all, and all for one, like the Three Musketeers!" -Flamingo said, as she created three copies of herself. –"Only three?! I'm really getting exhausted." -she thought to herself.
"Not that a pea-brained Akuma like you, could ever understand that!"-Rena Rouge said.
"You're going to regret saying that…" -Screamer said, as he tried to grab them, with the hand that as not holding the flaming guitar.
Taking advantage of the distraction the girls were posing for Screamer, Grizzly Bear attacked him, hitting right in the head. But he was not the only one who took advantage of what was going on. Coordinating the rest of the team, Ladybug saw that the best way to help Grizzly, was for them to use Screamer's size to their advantage. They were going to make him fall on his back, and hopefully break his concentration, thus giving Grizzly, the advantage he needed to end that fight.
"So, what's the plan, bugaboo?" -Chat Noir asked Ladybug.
"We're going with the Brave Little Tailor routine." -Ladybug answered him, as the others also listened to her.
"Oh, that's one of my favourites!" -Panda Roux said. –"A couple of extra-strong ropes, coming up!" -he said, as he began to draw that rope.
"My lasso is at your disposal, as always." -Arachnid declared, with a chivalrous voice.
"We better hurry. I don't know how much longer he'll be able to control that holographic bear." -Forest Doe warned the others, afraid of what would happen, if her boyfriend lost control
"Don't worry. This will be over in a couple of seconds." -Ladybug told her, trying to reassure her, everything would be alright. –"How are those ropes coming along?"
"They're nearly finished." -Panda Roux said, as he gave it a couple of extra details to it. –"There, they're finished." -he declared.
"Okay, then, let's get this done. Everyone knows the drill. Grab a rope and be careful." -Ladybug told them, as she herself grabbed a rope. –"Let's go and give Ivan the help he needs to finish this!"
As Screamer and Grizzly continued to fight one another, with Rena Rouge, Flamingo, Queen Bee and Corbeau Noire flying around the giant holographic Screamer's head, nagging him, Ladybug and the others made their move. Just like it happened in the Disney version of tale of the Brave Little Tailor, where Mickey defeated the giant, by sewing the giant's clothes, binding his limbs, and then swinging about the giant, sewing him up and causing him to fall, the heroes were going to do the same, but focusing only on the enemy's legs. Holding each one a rope, they all wrapped them around Screamer's ankles, which proved to be a little more challenging, than they thought, because of him being constantly moving. Even so, that did not prevent them from accomplishing their task. Once they had wrapped the ropes around their target's ankles, Carapace created a small energy shield, which he placed right behind Screamer, and waited for what was to come. Being too focused on defeating Grizzly, Screamer did not notice what the heroes had done to him, and when he ordered his holographic self to move his left leg, he lost his balance, which made it tumble on Carapace's energy shield, and fall backwards.
"Timber!" -Chat Noir exclaimed, as Screamer yelled, while falling on his back, making the ground tremble, when he hit it.
"Now that was quite the fall." -Louve Grise said, as Rena and the flying squad landed near her and the others.
Breaking his focus, the giant holographic version of Screamer disappeared, leaving just him, slightly confused with what had happened, and Grizzly Bear took the chance to attack him. Swinging the claws of the giant holographic golden bear, these went through Screamer, sucking his energy. He desperately tried to attack him, but as he was about to throw a fire ball, the holographic bear's claws hit him, again, sucking a little more of his energy. As this happened, Screamer could feel his energy being sucked out of him. A few more blows from Grizzly, and any shred of energy Screamer might have in his body, disappeared for good. Breathing heavily, Screamer could feel that all of his energy was gone. Still, gritting his teeth, he tried to get up, only to fail, the first time. Trying once more, he managed to get up, but the way his body moved, it looked like he was either drunk or about to pass out from exhaustion.
"N-No… I'm the greatest rocker in the world… I-I c-can't be defeated l-like this!" -Screamer said, as he tried to get back up. –"I… am… the… greatest… rocker… in… the… world…" -he continued to repeat himself, when he was struck in the back by a blunt object, which in this case was Dragonfly's frisbee.
"No, you're not. You're just another Akuma, with delusions of greatness, that's what you are." -Dragonfly shot at him, as he fell on the ground, depleted of energy and unconscious. Bored of not being where the action was taking place, the dragonfly heroine forced Antelope to get her to the battlefield, carrying her in his arms, where they arrived, just as Screamer was defeated.
"I thought I told you, you should stay away from the battlefield, for the rest of the fight." -Carapace pointed out.
"You did. But you know me, I can't stay away from an awesome battle." -Dragonfly said, in a playful tone. –"Besides, Speedy Gonzalez here wanted to see what was going on, with his own two eyes, as well." -she said, pointing at Antelope.
"Call me that, one more time, and I'll drop you." -Antelope warned her, as he was not a big fan of that nickname, she had come up for him. –"And I should really drop you, or put you in the ground, because of my shoulder." -he said.
"I better take another look at you guys, and use my healing powers on your injuries, again." -Carapace said.
And as the turtle hero said that, the Akuma Butterfly exited Screamer's body. Flapping its wings, it tried to run away from there, as if it already knew that if it stayed there, it would end up destroyed by one of the heroes.
"There it goes." -Rena Rouge said, as she and the others watched the black butterfly fly away. –"Who wants to do the honours and finish it?" -she asked.
"I'll do it. No more evil-doings, for you, you blasted Akuma Butterfly!" -Louve Grise exclaimed, as her fans began to glow. –"I relinquish you from evil!" -she said, as she threw both fans at the black butterfly, destroying it, before returning to her hands. –"There. One less Akuma Butterfly, for us to worry about."
I know I said that this chapter would be the last one, before the epilogue, but guess what? It isn't... xD I just got so carried away with the battle, that in the end, we're going to need one more chapter, before it's time to wrap-up things.
I admit that the last part of the battle wasn't planned like this, but hey, this is what we get, when we write. Things just happen. Grizzly turned out to be the hero of the night, with his Spirit of the Wild attack.
As always, feel free to comment, fav and leave suggestions to improve this fic and future ones as well. Next chapter will be online, soon.