The Agreste Mansion was quiet. Eerie so. Despite Ladybug's most cautious efforts of peering through the windows from afar, she hadn't been able to see even the faintest sign of life. That naturally raised the question as to whether or not Adrien was even still in there. That was a worry. He could be anywhere. They found themselves looking over their shoulders, ever fearful of a potential attack.

When one had failed to materialize, they had found themselves readying himself to go through with the plan. Luka was nervous. That much was clear. More than once, he had been offered the opportunity to go back. He didn't have to risk his life. They would find another way. He was brave however. He didn't back down and refused to abandon his friends. The risk to his life didn't seem to be a show stopper as far as he was concerned, although he clearly wasn't entirely comfortable with the uncertainty as to just what he would be facing.

"You don't have to do this." Marinette urged her former boyfriend.

"If I don't, you're not going to be able to help that woman, Nathalie." He reminded her refusing to take his eyes off of the building. "You guys have saved Paris so often. It's only fair that I help out..."

"I don't want you to get hurt..." It was all that she can think to say.

"Thank God..." He offered her a relieved smile. "Given how long we were dating I'd be worried if you did."

With a trembling hand, she let him go. He slipped away, dressed in clothes which weren't his own. He approached what could very easily be his death, seemingly without fear. Whilst he did that, Marinette took her own position atop the roof of a nearby building. It provided her with good visibility. From there, she could see Luka as well as her other friends, all prepared to intervene at the slightest sign of things going south.

Ladybug was poised and ready. She could sweep down and be by his side in a matter of seconds. Of course, that might not be enough. One touch, just the one from Cat Noir's cataclysm and Luka would be dead. He knew the risks. They'd explained them to him several times and he'd witnessed first hand the power that the avatar of destruction could wield. Still, Luka wasn't fazed. He was determined to do whatever he could to put an end to this. So it was, that he marched right up to their enemy's lair with nothing more than a boiler's suit and a bag full of cobbled together tools scavenged from their respective houses.

He rung the bell and waited with his heart in his mouth. At any moment, the young man half-expected to see a shadow charge towards him and to be turned to dust. It took all of his self-control to stay where he was and not to flee. His call went unanswered. Hardly surprising given the current situation. It was worrying however. Whilst they could reasonably assume that Cat Noir might be out there somewhere trying to hunt them down, it was Nathalie who was the real concern. She'd been trapped in the house with the villain. There was no telling just what had happened to her. Silence didn't seem to point towards anything good.

Finally, just as he was about to turn away. There was a beep, a confirmation that someone else was on the other end:

"Who is it?" It was a woman's voice, raspy and frail.

Startled, for a moment, the young man could only stare at the intercom. They'd planned this all out carefully. Gone over it several times to ensure that it all flowed naturally. If it didn't, Adrien would smell a rat and well… Best not think about what would happen if that occurred. Still, there was something about the way that the woman spoke on the other end that unsettled Luka. She just didn't sound right. The tone was such that he found himself instinctively on edge, apprehensive and fearing the worst.

"I'm the plumber ma'am. You called about the leak?"

"The leak-" There was a sudden pause, it lasted a few moments. "You mean the bathroom. Of course, come on in."

Sure enough, there was a beep and the massive iron gate unlocked. Tools in hand, Luka forced himself not to look backwards over his shoulder in the hopes of catching one last glimpse of the girl who he was doing all of this for. Instead, the young man forced himself to keep his attention focused ahead of him. This all had to appear as natural as humanly possible. If he did anything to draw attention to her, the game would be up. As he approached the forbidding building, his heart thundered. Every fibre in his body commanded him to turn around and run. He had to make a break for it. The survival instinct was a powerful thing.

He got right up to the door before it was opened a creak. There was someone on the other side. Luka stopped dead, fixing them fearfully. It was only after a few moments that he noticed that they weren't moving. It was one person, a woman, alone. If anything, they actually seemed to be bracing themselves against the door. Instinctively, he felt that they were in some sort of trouble. They appeared to be hurt. A mixture of curious and cautionary, he approached uneasily.

"Ma'am, are you okay?"

"I'm fine!" The response was clipped and harsh but failed to hide the pain that she must have been in. "Come on. This leak isn't going to fix itself. You're late enough as it is!"

The response was… Strange. Marinette could remember Nathalie complaining to her boss about there being a leak in the upstairs bathroom which meant they had little to no hot water up there. He'd claimed to be aware of that much and that he'd contacted someone to deal with the issue. Given that notionally, at the time, he shouldn't have been lying, they had decided to assume that he had indeed made some calls and that the tradesmen were merely late. Enter Luka. A young man who knew next to nothing about pipes and leaks and who none-the-less found himself playing the role of a plumber.

Clinging to his own courage, the former holder of the snake miraculous pushed on and entered the building. The door was shut behind him quickly, as if to seal themselves away from the outside world.

When the woman turned back to see him, he almost fell over. Half of one side of her face was scratched and scared beyond recognition. It looked like she had been mauled by some kind of animal. The wounds were deep enough for the teen to find himself wondering just how it was that she still had her eye. What was more, they appeared to be relatively fresh. Whilst they had both dried up and scabbed over a little, they couldn't be more than a few days old. That left only one likely culprit…

"There was an… Accident, with Mr. Agreste's latest photo-shoot at the zoo." It was all that she offered to justify her current state.

Luka chose against questioning things any further. Sometimes, he reasoned, it was better not to know. Given what he'd been told, he could imagine and that was all that it took for him to instantly begin to feel a sense of dread. Standing there, it was difficult not to envision the possibility of just turning tail and running away. Bravery came slowly but remained firm. He couldn't flee. Not now that he'd seen just what he would be abandoning this woman to.

He followed her in silence. She had a noticeable limp to add to her list of ailments. The way that she dragged it, he wouldn't have liked to say if she'd broken something or not. He decided against asking or staring. Instead, the young man checked to see if the coast was clear. His eyes darted around, scanning each and every corner and shadow in search of Adrien or Cat Noir. He seemed to be remarkably absent – not that Luka was complaining. Still, it wasn't comforting. At every moment, he thought that the man might suddenly spring out of nowhere and cut him down. The tension was such that he found himself obliged to ask:

"Isn't your boss here?"

"No. Mr. Agreste is out on an errand. Not that it's any of your business."

Adrien out? That sounded perfect. Although it did raise the question as to just why Nathalie hadn't made a break for it? His eyes flickered back to the assistant, this time scanning to see if he could ascertain the extent of her injuries, fearing that they might be what was preventing her from fleeing. Whilst it was clear that she was in pain. It shouldn't have restricting her movement to an extent that escape was impossible. She could evidently open the doors and wasn't tied up or restrained in any obvious way. So the question was: why was she still here?

One last glance confirmed that if Adrien was indeed here, he was very well hidden. Luka came to a stop, somewhere on the steps. There was no need to proceed any further with this charade. If nothing else, he had no idea how to fix a leak and didn't particularly feel like embarrassing himself. The woman was higher on the steps before she too halted, turning round to face him.

"Madamoiselle Sancoeur, I'm not actually a plumber. My name is Luka Couffaine, I'm here to get you out of here!"

He had sounded dynamic but also stressing the importance of his mission and yet for some reason, Nathalie seemed to be unimpressed. She didn't so much as bat an eyelid. Adding once more to the mystery. For a moment, Luka actually found himself wondering if he'd been sent to the right address or if somehow Marinette and the others had failed to understand something about the situation. Were it not for the damage which had been done to the poor woman, he would certainly have had more questions that he currently did.

There was a strange silence. Perhaps his bewilderment didn't fully register or she failed to recognize it. Whatever the case, the delay until she provides him with a response is quite a substantial one:

"I know who you are."

"Then lets go before Adrien gets back!"

"I'm not leaving." It was a simple declaration, given calmly and plainly.

Not expected. They'd planned all of this on the basis that Nathalie Sancoeur – if she was still alive – would want nothing more than to be carried away from here and to safety and freedom. He couldn't even begin to comprehend why she would want to remain here. Sort sort of deluded idea that if she did as she had evidently been told, she would be safer than outside? Fear? A misplaced loyalty? All possibilities which he wasn't about to linger on. They simply didn't have time. If he was caught here like this, it would be curtains for the both of them.

"I can't seriously leave you like this! He'll kill you!"

"No he won't. Unfortunately for me, I'm more valuable to him alive than dead."

"Look at what he's already done to you! That is his handiwork, right?!" It was inconceivable that anything other than miraculous holder or a wild beast could have done this to her.

"Of course. I made the mistake of crossing him." She let out a heavy sigh, bracing herself against the baluster. "For the time being, I'm just going along with everything that he wants."

"You don't have to endure this..." The young man stressed to her. "Come with me… You'll be safer."

The woman shook her head slowly. Her legs were shaking slightly. Was it fear? No… Judging by the way that she lowered herself down so that she could sit on the step. She was exhausted. That much was clear and still in a fair amount of pain. Sympathy took over Luka. He forgot about the irritation in the face of the woman's stubbornness. It was replaced with compassion and a deep desire to help this person who was so clearly suffering. He approached slowly. Unsure just what he could do to make things better. Perhaps he could signal Marinette and the others. They could break in her and drag her out by force…

He hadn't entirely given up however. Reasoning that perhaps a softer approach would do the trick. Surely, there must have been some way of making her see sense.

"You can't stay here… We'll-"

"I know that I'd be safer with you." She cut him short. "-but like this… I can at least keep an eye on him."

"It can't be worth it..." Is all that Luka could mutter as a reply.

"Isn't it? Someone has to make sure he doesn't go after innocents. Besides, from the inside, I might be able to learn something of use." The woman frowned, her gaze travelled over the young man. "Do you have a plan to defeat him?"

"Not at the moment. We still don't really know what's going on to be honest."

Nathalie let out a heavy sigh, allowing her head to slip back and rest against the balustrade. It was clear that she was in pain. In those few seconds, it seemed as if all of her strength had somehow been drained. Luka approached slowly, cautious. He had half a mind to pick her up and drag her out kicking and screaming if needs be. There was something behind his eyes however, a certain glimmer that let him know she wasn't entirely mad. The cogs and gears were still grinding and she was thinking clearly enough.

Suddenly, in a matter of moments, it seemed as if a new dose of life had been infused back into her:

"They didn't want the miraculous or the book-" The woman informed him. "Well, they do but it wasn't their first target."

"Who is "they"?" Luka couldn't help but ask confused.

"The Cult of Kahn. Haven't you been briefed?" There was a tone of exasperation behind her voice which was impossible to mistake.

"Only briefly." He stressed, things had been urgent and Marientte and the others were evidently still confused by everything that had happened. "They're the guys who took Adrien, right?"

"Yes. He was always what they were after."

This was the sort of thing which he realized that the others needed to know. Just why she was insisting on telling him about this here and not coming with him was beyond the teen. She would have been infinitely safer! Still, he had to work with what he had. If she refused to be rescued, then he had no choice but to listen and take in as much as he could here. Even the tiniest scrap of information could prove to be of valuable use later on. Perhaps, she had managed to discover something important which would allow them to get the better of Adrien later on.

"I don't know how they did it… But that's not Adrien. It's Kahn himself."

"What you mean he's possessed?" The thought sent a shiver down the other lad's spine.

"I think so. He did this to me and didn't even blink." She winced evidently in a considerable amount of pain. "I don't think Adrien, even at his worst could do that. You probably won't be able to appeal to his better nature."

"Then how do we stop him?"

It seemed desperate. He figured that perhaps some of the kwamis would have an idea. After all, they were far older than all of the humans associated with them. With the akumas, at least it had been relatively easy. This sounded like something completely different. For starts, there were no easy targets. Nothing that they could go for to set their friend free of whatever control he was under. It seemed in his mind like the only way of actually stopping him might be to do so physically and that would inevitably entail hurting the young man. He could only hope that the others would have some sort of a better plan.

The only good news was that Adrien himself wasn't to blame for his actions. That, Luka suspected would be quite the weight off of Marinette's heart.

Nathalie shook her head slowly in response to his question. He hadn't been expecting her to know. It was just something he'd asked on the off-chance. Had there been some miracle cure, he had little doubt that she would either have informed them earlier or used it herself.

"I don't know. Adrien's still in there though. A prisoner, I guess." Her gaze flicked down to her watch. "You need to leave. He'll be back any moment now."

"I can't just leave you here." He repeated one more time, aware that his plea was likely to fall on deaf ears once more.

"You're going to have to, because I'm not coming." This time, she raised her voice, as if to enforce the notion. "I'll stay here. Keep an eye on him. Come what may."

There was a certain acceptance in the way that she said the last part which made Luka reluctant to argue. She'd made her decision…

It was with more than a little reluctance, that the young man turned herself away from the woman he had been set here to help. There was a feeling as if he was abandoning her. Worse, sentencing her to death. Given the damage that had already been done, it didn't seem impossible that Adrien, Kahn, whoever it was, would end her life if it suited him. Just why she was still alive was mystery enough. He forced himself to leave however, reasoning that the sooner that he informed the others, the sooner he would be able to help Nathalie.

With that in his mind, he practically bolted out of the building. Running as fast as his legs would allow. All of the fear which he had been struggling to repress suddenly took a hold of him, propelling forwards. He didn't care how strange he looked as he charged out of the mansion. The thought that a plumber suddenly fleeing in such a manner might look suspicious didn't even occur to him.

He had to tell Ladybug/Marinette. Let her know what was at stake.

Nathalie watched from afar. Her strength was gradually returning. Although her leg continued to pain her to an extent that made standing or walking difficult, it was now at a level that she could just about bear. Propping herself up so as to look out of the window at any rate wasn't much of a challenge. It was with a heavy heart that she followed the figure past the gates and back out into the streets. Already, she could see a few figures moving on the rooftops, closing in so as to ensure that they friend was alright before whisking him off to safety.

"Right on schedule..." A voice next to her spoke gleefully, stepping out from the shadows. "Wait long enough and the pray comes to you."

"What are you going to do?" She questioned, turning back to face him.

"Why… Give chase of course." White teeth flashed as his face was distorted by a monstrous grin. "I do so love to hunt."