Blue eyes stared up at neon lights above.

It had taken her some time to wake up, although she wasn't entirely sure just how long. It was some hours at least, that much she was certain of. It had taken quite a while after initially coming to to realize just where she was. That was to say, a foreign place. The strong odour of antiseptic and overall cleanliness of her surroundings was enough to clue her in rather quickly as to just where she currently found herself. Amazingly, despite her pass-time as one of the heroes of Paris and general clumsiness, she had somehow managed to avoid ever having to come here before this date. She supposed that it was only a matter of time until her luck ran out and she ended up in a bad enough state to warrant a trip to medical professionals as opposed to some ointment out of a pharmacy and some band aids to patch up a few scrapes. The young woman didn't need to know the exact medical details of just what had happened to her to know that it could largely be summed up as a "severe bump to the head". She had been fortunate to avoid surgery.

A brief glance to her right confirmed that she wasn't alone. A familiar face was sitting there, keeping her company. The Dupain-Cheng bakery was exceptionally closed today. All of it's occupants were out. One was a patient at the local hospital and her two parents were visiting, stubbornly ignoring their daughter's claims that she was alright and that they could go home and stop worrying. In truth, she was rather relieved to have them by her side. They provided both familiarity and a feeling of protection that she wasn't sure that she would have found anywhere else on Earth.

It had only been a short while ago that she had managed to muster the strength to even begin contemplating trying to make sense of what had happened. She knew she'd taken a blow to the head the doctor and her parents had spelt that much out to her. It was the rest that had started to come back to her. In truth, right now, she would rather not think back to the events which had lead her to be here. They brought her back into the terrible reality and that terrified her. It wasn't so much what she had lived through. Give it a day or so, she would be right as rain. Adrien however would not be. It had only taken her a few moments to twig that some excuse must have been given as to just what had happened to her. There were no police officers about and not enough of a panic for anyone to be aware of the abduction. Someone had covered for her, come up with some form of excuse. Her friends she guessed, the other miraculous holders were no doubt the ones to be thanked.

Now she waited.

She was only patient because of the medicine, painkillers which had something of a tranquillizing effect on her and in order to prevent her parents from worrying. The feeling of helplessness was a truly terrible one. She knew that out there somewhere, Adrien was being held captive. His captors were merciless. They had demonstrated that much on both occasions they had been so unfortunate as to run into them. The young woman tried not to linger on the matter, telling herself that if she hadn't seen the other miraculous holders at this point then that must have been because they were hunting down their friend. They would rescue him, she repeated to herself as the minutes trickled by. Any moment now, Adrien - perhaps a little battered and bruised – would walk in. He would let her know that he was alright. The danger had passed and that they would be alright.

Her mother squeezed her hand gently, drawing the young woman's attention:

"Are you okay, honey?"

"Better." She forced a weak smile. "It'll teach me for being so clumsy."

"It was an accident Marinette. There was nothing you could have done."

She offered them a soft smile, one which didn't quite manage to hide her pain. It was best that her parents just thought that she'd tripped, fallen backwards and hit the back of her head against the curb. It wasn't entirely a lie; her skull had made contact with asphalt. That was the main reason for her being here. The cut lip was a little more difficult to explain. A result of her stumbling and falling a second time as she tried to get help, that seemed to be the current hypothesis. Naturally, she didn't contradict that version of events, claiming that she couldn't quite remember (again, not entirely a lie, things were decidedly hazy at the moment). Being famed for clumsiness had its advantages. Nobody questioned how it could have happened. At least not yet, perhaps that would come later when she had recovered. For the time being, they were more concerned with her well-being. That suited her just fine.

It was about an hour later when something else occurred to her. She ended up kicking herself for not noticing it sooner. It took a fair amount of self-control to avoid shouting out in concern and alarm. Instead, she had to try and play it cool, non-nonchalant. Although with the benefit of hindsight, she could probably have gotten away with quite a lot without too many questions being asked given that she was suffering from a concussion. Instead, at a seemingly random point in the day, she turned to her parents and questioned in as innocent a manner as possible:

"Where did my earrings go?"

"I don't know." Her mother's reply was honest. "Some of the hospital staff probably took them for safe keeping when you were brought in."

"We can ask around to get them back for you. I know you're fond of them." Her father gave her a gentle and understanding smile. "You used to wear them all the time as a girl."

"Yeah. Yeah I did..."

She tried her best to mask her concern from them. She had to pretend that they were just some cheap pieces of jewellery and not some of the most powerful magical artefacts the world had ever known. Unable to do anything right now, she could only tell herself that her parents were likely correct. It was more comforting that the alternative.

One of the few things that she could recall quite clearly was someone trying to take her miraculous. It was a position that she had been in more times than she cared to count. There had been something else there in the darkness with her. She'd been so close to unconsciousness that it was largely impossible for her to differentiate between reality and her imagination playing tricks on her. The alley was distorted in her mind. Some of what she thought she could recall was no doubt fabrication. Even some of her time spent in this hospital bed, with her head bandaged up seemed unreal. She'd made a mental note to ensure that she protected her brain in the future. They didn't think that she'd have to stay in here all that long, that was perhaps the only good news. Just so that they could ensure that there were no complications and that she was healing properly. A couple of days She had been lucky. Cat Noir hadn't been so fortunate.

It took longer than she had anticipated for Alya to show up. She was even more surprised when it became apparent that she was alone. A quick excuse was given: Nino and Chloe both had arrangements that they couldn't escape until later on. Marinette understood that if that was true, then they'd already escaped and that it was Carapace and Queen Bee who had something else to do. Her friend looked tired. No doubt she'd been out there trying to find Adrien for hours now. The young journalist put on a good act. She smiled softly, no doubt attempting to be as reassuring as possible. She checked that it was okay for her to be here. They greeted her affectionately, letting her come in close to check on the injured patient. It took a fair amount of self-control for Marinette to play dumb, pretend that there wasn't anything more to this than her being clumsy and falling over:

"You really hit your head girl."

"Tell me about it..." She grumbled under her breath. "Are you okay?"

"Am I okay?" Alya chuckled genuinely amused. "I'm not the one who cracked their skull on the asphalt!"

"It's not that bad." She forced a smile, it was a lie but one which she felt compelled to tell.

They chatted for a while. It could have been the medicine or her injury or a combination of both but she felt tired. She found herself more than once beginning to drift off. Her parents and Alya were keeping her company. They chatted when they thought that she was well enough and might need her mind taken off of current matters and were silent, allowing her to rest whilst they remained by her side when she found herself a little weak. They were brilliant. She would have to thank them more thoroughly later when she was better. For the time being, her mind remained elsewhere. With every passing moment, the knowledge that Adrien was gone was only going to become more real.

It took quite some time before she had the opportunity to speak in private with Alya. She'd managed to convince her parents that she was okay and they could head home for the night. She would be okay, the young woman assured them. Hospital visiting hours were coming to a close and whilst they gathered their belongings and went to ask about her earrings, it gave the fox miraculous holder a few brief moments alone with her friend which would enable her to get serious and explain some of the details she dared not speak about in front of her family. She leaned in close to ensure that nobody around could possibly overhear what she had to say. Marinette's heart was in her mouth. Being bedridden was a strange thing. It made it possible for the mind to conjure up all of the worst possible scenarios. She needed at least some of those to be put to rest…

"The others know where Adrien is and your miraculous is safe. We'll tell you more tonight."

She left it at that, unable to explain any further as Mr. and Mrs. Dupain-Cheng came over, eager to say goodnight to their daughter. Marinette forced herself to put on a brave face. The notion of her parents leaving her was not one which she particularly liked the sound of. They provided a primal form of comfort which in her current state she was pained to leave behind. Still, Alya's words had given her some hope: at least they knew where Adrien was. With any luck, they would be planning some manner of rescue mission and would be ready to sweep in and bring him back home. She bid them farewell with a soft smile. In theory, she would be able to go home tomorrow. The doctors were impressed with how she was doing but still wanted to keep an eye on her for the night, at least that was what the nurse had said.

They left, creating something of a painful absence for the young woman. Now, all she could do was wait.

Initially, Marinette had planned to stay awake. If her friends planned to fill her in on what was going on tonight, then they would likely have to sneak in at some point. It was only fitting that she would be awake to great them. She had assumed that she wouldn't sleep that much, if at all. Other thoughts would keep her up, prevent her from being able to rest properly. Instead, whether it was a result of the medicine or that she was still struggling to get over the shock of what had happened, she found herself drifting off into a dreamless sleep.

Without a watch or any nearby clocks, she wasn't able to tell what time it was when something woke her up. She couldn't have said what it was but the hair on the back of her neck and arms was sticking on end. Lying there, she felt that something had changed. A cool atmosphere seemed to have settled in, chilling both the room and its occupant. With a pained groan, the young woman sat up in her bed and glanced around. Initially, her tired eyes failed to pick up on anything in particular. It was the same empty and dull hospital room that she had fallen asleep in. Something had changed though. It was something of a sixth sense inside of her which seemed to whisper to her not to fall asleep and to look again. It took a second for her to scan the place again. Only then did she spot the figure in the corner of the room next to a partly opened window, her features obscured by the shadows which she seemed to be taking shelter in. Instantly, panic set in. Acting on pure instinct, Marinette made a grab for the emergency assistance button that the hospital staff had given her. A commanding female voice however cut her short:

"Don't scream."

The figure stepped out into her view. For a moment, Marinette didn't recognize her. Instead, she saw something of a monster. A strange creature with skin a pale blue hue and eyes violet, bordering on the pink. There was something of an otherworldly aura which seemed to be originating from her. She moved slowly, gracefully, seemingly gliding. Instinctively, the young woman pulled the covers up a little higher in order to shield herself. There was no need however as the intruder stopped several feet short of the bed. She seemed to be content to stand there and fix her, as if she were waiting for something. Curious, the patient frowned. There was something decidedly familiar about this individual. They had met before… But where? If this person was giving her the creeps and a voice inside of her head was requesting that she keep her guard up, there must have been a reason why.

It took a few seconds for the flashes of memory to return. That figure had been down the alley where she had lost Adrien. She wasn't one of her attackers however no… Her head hurt from the strain of trying to think back to events but she forced herself to do so none-the-less. Suddenly, in a matter of seconds, it all came back to her:

"Nathalie..." It had been a while since she had seen the woman like this.

"Well at least you don't have amnesia. We can be grateful for that much."

The decision to give the woman back her miraculous had seemed like a risky one to the former Ladybug. It wasn't as if her actions were comparable to those of Queen Bee's first outing. No, Nathalie Sancoeur had been fully aware that what she was doing was wrong in every sense of the word and was hurting others and had gone along with it anyway. Giving someone with such loose morals such a powerful weapon, one which they had already misused in the past, seemed like a terrible risk to take especially when the guardian of the miraculouses at the time had been largely powerless. She was special to Adrien, Marinette knew that much, although she was aware that perhaps she didn't quite understand it. There was no denying however that Mayura had saved her and prevented the theft of the Ladybug earrings. It was possible that she had misjudged someone who was admittedly very hard to like in the first place.

It was funny how much of Nathalie was present in Mayura at the moment. The way that she stood, straight and cold. There was a sharp intelligence behind her eyes, one which seemed to be evaluating the situation, almost sizing her up. Marinette couldn't help but feel that she was being examined and found wanting. It would be apparent that right now, she wasn't in a state to risk getting out of bed. If nothing else, the hospital staff would doubtlessly notice.

"How much do you remember?" Her tone was serious, business-like and professional.

"Enough. I hit my head. Ad-" She stopped herself remembering that there could easily be people to hear their conversation. "Cat Noir, they took him."

"We know that. They're hiding out in a warehouse in Saint Denis." The woman informed her calmly. "Queen Bee and Carapace are keeping watch."

"So you're going to rescue him?!"

Her excitement at the prospect was real. Adrien had likely suffered enough already. Something caused the young woman to hesitate. It occurred to her that if they were planning such a move, they would want all of their allies present to make sure that it was a success. Two – where was Rena Rouge in all of this?! - wouldn't be enough. Not when they didn't know what to expect. There were at least four enemies, one of whom would likely be injured curtsy of Mayura's attack. They were however dangerous and well-trained. If Cat Noir had struggled to match them and had ended up defeated – albeit when outnumbered – on both attempts, then they would most definitely need to go in strong.

With a pained wince, as her body reminded her that it wasn't just her head that had taken a bashing but the rest of her in the process, the young woman made for the end of the bed. The urge to provide assistance drowned out any protests however that her system might otherwise have voiced.

"Don't even think about it." Nathalie's voice was cold but firm, leaving little room for debate. "You're in no state to even think about fighting."

"Cat Noir needs my help. He needs all of our help." The young woman declared, eyes narrowing as she fixed the assistant.

"Right now you'd be more of a liability than anything else. We can't afford to lose the Ladybug miraculous or for them to get another hostage."

"So what… You're planning on going in without me?" Marinette raised an eyebrow, somewhat dubious. "That's risky."

"No. We're not."

The woman woman simply starred at Mayura. Eyes wide and mouth hanging open slightly, aghast. She wasn't entirely sure how to process such a statement. Rescuing Adrien should have been a priority given the circumstances in which he had been taken from them. Every moment they spent discussing matters or otherwise putting that off would mean another that he would have to spend in the company of some decidedly cruel individuals whose plants Marinette would rather not even think about. Nathalie wasn't a fool or naïve about the ways of the world. She would be acutely aware of all of these facts. As would the others, they wouldn't hesitate to overrule the woman if they thought it was in their friend's best interests. It took a fair amount of self-control not to get angry and to try and take it out on the woman. Perhaps her weakened state was to blame or she was struggling to wrap her head around the current situation.

"But… He needs to be-" She stammered wondering how to phrase it properly.

"There's at least four of those people and now they have the Cat Miraculous. That means there needs to be at least four of us." She paused for a few seconds before finally adding. "One touch… One touch and they could kill any of us. Maybe even two. We can't run the risk."

She wanted to object. It made some sort of sense. Cat Noir – or whatever other name someone misusing the jewel might go by - was a formidable foe. With the power of destruction at their command, they could easily wipe out any enemies without much effort, rendering them little more than a pile of ash in the process. That wasn't something that they would want to face unprepared. She could understand that. There were other circumstances however that made things far more complicated. She was trying not to think about everything which could be happening or might have occurred. This wasn't the news that she had been hoping or expecting to hear. At this point, she'd assumed that they would have at the least had a plan that they were about to implement. This almost sounded like they were going to give up.

"So you're just going to leave him there?!"

"Of course not!" Nathalie snapped not raising her voice but evidently somewhat offended by the suggestion. "-but we can't afford to be reckless. They have one miraculous already. We need Ladybug."

"Then let me come!" Irritation had already taken hold.

"Not in this state. Give it a day… You don't need to be in the heat of the action but at least able to walk." The woman held out her hand, displaying the two earrings. "The miraculous and book are safe-"

"Adrien isn't!"

"He knew the risks." Somehow, despite everything, the assistant still sounded calm, almost detached from what she was advocating. "If he were here, he would tell you he'd rather live with the consequences than have the rest of us pay the price for them."

Marinette narrowed her eyes. She found herself searching the woman for something – what, she couldn't have said – was what. Her natural instinct was to be rather cautious where the assistant was concerned. Their past encounters weren't something that was so easily forgotten. A part of Ladybug, a terrible part which she didn't like to admit existed but was none-the-less impossible to ignore completely at times, couldn't help but wonder if this might somehow suit Nathalie Sancoeur. After all, she had spent a good many years of her life conspiring against them, in an attempt to steal their miraculouses. Could this all be part of some plot? After all, she now had the powers of the peacock one again which had been given to her by a young and inexperienced guardian who had vanished.

The young woman shook her head in an attempt to banish such thoughts from her mind. She reminded herself just how much the woman had put on the line for them and how she had helped Adrien, maybe even saving his life. If he trusted her, then she was rather inclined to put her own doubts aside and assume that the assistant was honest, if a little cold. Still, she couldn't help but voice her disbelief at the woman's apparent lack of concern for the young man:

"Don't you want to save him?"

"Not at the cost of the rest of the world." She was met with a negative shake of the head.

"You realize they could be hurting him, right?"

"Given that he's the last guardian and knows who has the miraculouses, where the rest of them are and the secrets of the book. It's a certainty."

"If the situations were reversed-" The younger of the two began.

"I don't doubt that Cat Noir would come flying to rescue of Mayura." She raised her voice slightly, just enough to let Marinette know that she'd pushed things a little too far. "I'm not him though and if you're implying that I'd rather wait a while so that we could be sure of rescuing him, instead of rushing in. Then you're correct."

There was a certain coldness behind Mayura's eyes now. It was different from the usual detachment that could be found behind the woman's gaze. This one was somewhat sharper, angrier, directed at her. Much to Marinette's surprise, the wielder of the peacock miraculous actually came closer. Her steps were fast, heels clicking against the tiled floor of the hospital. She looked like someone who'd been pushed just that little bit too far. In those few seconds, it struck the young woman just how vulnerable she was. She didn't have her miraculous or anyone around to help her. At least not in good enough time to save her if she required it. The woman stopped just in front of the bed so that she cast a looming shadow. Was this some sort of attempt to intimidate her. Because it might actually have been working.

"What do the others say to all this?"

"They're about as happy as you are but are also aware that there's going to need to be more than three of them to make a move."

"You're refusing to go in with them unless they do what you say? That's called blackmail!"

The woman pursed her lips. Anger flashing across her features for the briefest of instants. It would perhaps have been wise for her to call it a day there. If she pursued this any further, the chances of the woman snapping only grew. Nathalie was a difficult person to judge, all the more so from the fact that Marinette barely knew her at all. She knew what she was capable of though and that Mayura could be just as fearsome a foe as Hawk Moth. Her morals weren't always the most firm either, which might have been why the prospect of leaving Adrien to suffer for a while didn't seem to be daunting her that much. Perhaps that was an unfair judgement, it was evidently something which she would rather not do but her marble exterior gave off the distinct impression that it wasn't bothering her perhaps as much as it was the rest of them. She seemed to have accepted it as just one of these unavoidable things.

Ladybug could only imagine what her friend would have been like had it been the assistant a prisoner. He would have been climbing the walls if they'd asked him to be patient.

She didn't much like to be cause of not being able to go to their friend's rescue. It made her feel weak, like a nuisance. It could have been that which caused her to challenge the woman. In retrospect, she would be asking them to risk their lives. Even if she accompanied them, in her current state, she would be likely to be more of a liability than an asset. Even sitting here like this was enough to cause her head to spin. She was beginning to feel some regret, perhaps to even consider apologizing when Mayura suddenly spoke, her voice low and dangerous:

"You disapprove of my methods, that's your right. I couldn't care less. You want to try and save Adrien your own way? Be my guest. I think all debts are officially repaid in that department so don't expect me to have your back. Adrien will mourn. I won't. I'm handling this situation as I see fit. If we go in unprepared and not at full strength, they will kill us. Now, I'm not going to waste another second arguing about this with you."

"You haven't changed at all, have you?" Marinette was very close to jumping out of bed or at least trying to.

"I didn't get to where I am by listening to my heart. I had to use my head." The woman replied plainly.

"You got to where you are now because Adrien Agreste gave you a second chance!"

True to her word, it would seem that Mayura was about done entertaining the argument. Eyes narrowed briefly, she tossed something in the younger woman's direction. It landed on her lap. Surprised, the young woman glanced down to see a pair of tiny little jewels glimmering in the moonbeams. She recognized them in a flash as being her earrings. Cautiously, she took them in her hands, treating them as if they were made out of glass and might shatter at any moment. The time it took for her to raise her eyes back to where Nathalie had been, the woman had gone. She'd vanished into thin air. No doubt escaping out of the window, a trick that Ladybug had learned long ago.

The young woman didn't linger on the matter for much longer. Instead, she was quick to put her earrings back on. In a flash, a small creature materialized near her. Tikki looked around for a few seconds, evidently somewhat surprised by her surroundings. It only took her a few seconds to find and focus in on her partner once more. Marinette smiled softly, happy to have a figure of such comfort back by her side. There was no denying the concern behind the kwami's eyes as she faced her partner who had so evidently been injured. Hopefully, she would be able to tell that it wasn't anything to be concerned about, at least not any more. Remembering that this wasn't exactly a private place, Ladybug glanced around, eager to ensure that she was alone and no nurses were about to hear her speaking with some bizarre creature which couldn't be found in any zoology books outside of mystical ones.

"Marinette, are you okay?"

"Fine." Not entirely true but better than causing unnecessary concern. "I just hit my head. That's all… But they got Adrien."

"The same ones as before?" Tikki tilted her head to one side.

"I think so..." Marinette groaned as she rubbed the lump on the back of her skull. "It's still a little fuzzy."

She'd been trying to recall as much as possible from the attack. It was blurry making it difficult to tell apart truth from her own mind making things up to fill in the blanks. With each passing minute however, things seemed to be clearer. Whilst it at least would seem to indicate that she was recovering, it also brought back some memories which she would much rather forget. There was only so many times that she could hear her friend's screams and roars of fury as he'd finally been brought down. Now, something new emerged from her memories. Adrien had been speaking to her. He'd been desperate to get a single message across. Frowning, she struggled desperately to push deeper into her own mind. He'd been talking but not to her, not initially at any rate. He'd been yelling. His cries came back to her in those few moments, hitting her like a ton of bricks:

"He said it was a cult of some kind… The cult of Cain? No..."

"Kahn?"

"Yeah! You know about them?!"

Marinette stopped herself suddenly. There was something behind the kwami's eyes that the young woman could only recall seeing a handful of times before: fear. The little avatar of creation actually looked to be terrified. It was always a little difficult to tell with these creatures given that they weren't human but generally, she found that her partner was pretty proficient at getting her feelings across. There could be no mistaking the dread behind her orbs. No doubt the name meant something to her and nothing good at that. It seemed as if Tikki had drifted off into some world of her own. She hovered there, staring out into space. Her partner hesitated to disturb her, wondering if it might be best to let her friend think things over and recover in her own time. Eventually, she shook her head, shaking herself out of her stupor.

There was a few moments of silence. It was enough to let Marinette know that it wasn't good news. Although that much she could likely have figured out for herself on the assumption that they knew what the were doing:

"You've heard of them?"

"Yes… A long, long time ago. A thousand years? Something like that..." Tikki spoke quietly, as if anything above a whisper could potentially let their enemies know where they were. "Something like that. A Cat Noir, one of Adrien's predecessors was killed fighting a great beast. A warlord from the Steppes came across the Miraculous before the Guardians were able to recover it. Lets just say they weren't exactly the nicest of people. For three generations, he and his family used the power to loot, pillage and destroy."

Marinette felt herself turn a little paler. She knew from her own experience that whilst it was never what they were intended for, kwamis could be used for evil. Adrien had told her about how he had spent many a night back at the temple talking with Nooroo and Dussu respectively. He had realized just how terrible it was for them to find themselves forced to aid someone with their dark intentions and to be powerless to do anything about it. After all, the kwamis were essentially bound to the will of their partner. Even a stubborn one like Plagg would be forced to obey even the most terrible of masters.

She didn't know what to say or how to respond. It wasn't something that she'd ever heard from any of the kwamis or the guardians. She couldn't help but wonder if Adrien had even heard of the group. At least, if nothing else, they now had a name for their enemies. They knew who they were dealing with, at least partly. A thousand years was a very long time to wait. It was hard to conceive that any organisation could last so long. It begged the question just what they hoped to achieve. No doubt they would want the cat miraculous – which they already had, she realized to her terror. After that? Probably world domination, in her experience, bad guys seldom had all that much imagination. She would need more information before she could even begin to contemplate the matter any further.

"Kahn was the last… The Worst..." Tikki continued with her explanation.

"Worst than the others?" It was a question the answer to which Marinette dreaded.

"He killed for fun… Solders, men, women, children… Guardians… A Ladybug."

The young woman's eyes widened. She had no particular delusions of immortality. She could die. Everyone could. Still, the idea that a Ladybug had already fallen to the organisation they were about to go up against was enough to send a shiver down her spine. They'd gone up against some pretty terrible foes before. Hawk Moth and Mayura had done their best to kill them, all just to steal their jewels and obtain their power. This cult sounded different however they would shed blood for no reason other than perhaps their own enjoyment. The idea of going up against such foes was enough to strike true terror into her.

Her mind flashed back to her friends. They were out there, spying on where they thought their friend was being held. Oh God… Adrien… She spun around to look out of the window. For a few seconds, she came close to transforming into Ladybug and racing out there. They needed to be warned about just what they were going up against. Maybe, just maybe, Nathalie had been right about being cautious and holding back until they were at full strength. Sitting up in her bed, her body informed her that she still wasn't quite ready to go into battle. There was still healing that needed to be done. Not much but some. Patience might be her only option for the time being. She might as well use that time to learn as much as she could about their foes:

"If he killed a Ladybug, then how was he defeated? Wouldn't that have meant that he had both miraculouses?"

"He did. That's why the guardians always kept the knowledge of how to use them a secret." Tiki paused for a moment. "It was the Snake and the Rabbit who actually managed to take him down."

"What are the chances of this Cult wanting to finish what Kahn started?" Dread filled the question.

"High. Which is why we needed to stop them…" The kwami's eyes softened as she fixed her partner. "We need you rested for that."

"Adrien..." It was the last lingering resistance which spoke through her.

Tikki didn't need to say anything. A slight shake of the head was enough to banish any notions of going to fight tonight. With a soft sigh, she closed her eyes. It was just how tired she was. In those few moments, it was as if everything had just suddenly crashed into her. Within a few seconds, she found herself placing her head back on the pillow. Her thoughts seemed to be fading away. The adrenaline of being woken up by Mayura's arrival and the subsequent revelations about their enemies had vanished leaving her feeling weak and reminding her that she was still recovering from a concussion. Still, worries lingered preventing her from closing her eyes and finding peace.

Her kwami came over to her, settling by her. The presence was enough to soothe some of her worries.

"It's going to be okay. We'll save Adrien. You just sleep. You need to get your strength back."

She didn't argue. She just drifted off into a world of nothingness.