Chapter 22: Battle on the Rooftops
Aphrodite's laugh echoed all over the place, forcing the Ladybug and the rest of the heroes to look around them for her. And they were not the only ones. The people that were inside doors, and had been watching the whole thing through their windows, were also looking to see where the laugh was coming from.
"Where are you?! Show yourself this instant!" -Ladybug asked, demanding the Akuma to reveal herself.
The laugh increased in volume to the point where the heroes were forced to cover their ears because of just how loud it was. Then, the wind began to blow, and they all saw small trails of pink dust dancing in the air. Slowly, these trails began to converge in the middle of the square. Staring at it, Ladybug and the others saw the Akuma, slowly acquiring form. When it finally stopped, staring at them was a blonde woman with alabaster skin, wearing a pink and fuchsia gown and an impish smile on her face. Looking at her, they all could not help but to feel like she had jumped out of an Ancient Greek drawing.
"Aphrodite!" -Ladybug exclaimed.
"You know my name, I am touched." -Aphrodite said, as she looked at the five heroes.
"Yeah, and that's not all we know!" -Chat Noir shouted at her. –"We also know that you're turning this city upside down. That stops here and now!" -he said.
"Really?" -Aphrodite raised an eyebrow at the feline hero, while laughing. –"You think you can stop true love
"True love?! You call this true love?!" -Rena Rouge asked her, as she pointed at the love zombies that were
"And you think that the love that Valentine's Day keeps advertising is true love?!" -Aphrodite asked the fox heroine in a mocking voice. –"Compared to it, the love that I am spreading everywhere is purer than any other!" -she exclaimed.
"Purer?! You're making people fall in love with the first person or thing they see in front of them! How is that true love?" -Ladybug shouted at her.
"True love is what you see… no attachments, no worries, no commitments, nothing! Just pure bliss and excitement! That's what is true about love!" -Aphrodite said.
"That's not love! That's lust, not to say something worst!" -Panda Rouge told her. –"True love is when you love someone, more than anything else and you're willing to sacrifice everything for that someone. True love is when you
Panda Rouge's speech had been an emotive one, and he truly hoped that he would be able to change Aphrodite's vision on what she thought true love was, making it easier for him and the remaining heroes to defeat her. But when he finished talking, and he looked her in the eyes, he instantly knew his words had fallen on deaf ears. Once again, an Akuma was not willing to see the light.
"Let's agree to disagree on that matter, young hero." -Aphrodite said. –"Besides, you and your friends are but children. What do you truly know about love?!" -she asked Panda Rouge with a disdainful voice.
"More than you, apparently!" -Rena Rouge said. –"We may be young, but that doesn't mean you get to treat us like little kids!" -she shot at the Akuma.
"Enough chit-chat!" -Carapace said, as he drew his tonfas and placed himself in position, ready for combat. –"We're going to beat you and stop this madness you created, whether you like it or not. And before you have any ideas of asking it, no, we're not going to give you our miraculouses." -he stated.
Seeing him do that, Ladybug and the others also placed themselves in position, ready to fight. Looking at them, Aphrodite could not help but to laugh. She found it funny to see the Miraculous heroes thinking they could beat her. In her eyes, they were mere insects. Insects who could not grasp the idea of what true love really is. She looked at their miraculouses and knew that Hawk Moth wanted them. Still, she felt like playing with them, before annihilating them.
"Then, you'll have to catch me first." -Aphrodite said, as her body began to slowly began to dissolve into pink dust, as it was then blown by the wind.
Seeing her do that, the heroes, wasted no time in going after her. Chat Noir, Carapace and Rena Rouge quickly made their way towards the buildings' rooftops, chasing the trail of pink dust that was heading north. As for Ladybug and Panda Rouge, they stayed behind, as the scarlet heroine decided they were going to need reinforcements, and fast.
"We've got to call the others and tell them to get here, on the double." –Ladybug said, as she looked at Panda Rouge. –"Could you call them and warn them that we're heading north, up Rue Blanche, while I go ahead and help the others?" -she asked him.
"I've got just the thing to warn them to come and meet us. You go ahead, while I do this. Leave it to me!" -Panda Rouge said, as Ladybug dashed towards the action. –"I'll catch up to you in a moment!" -he said.
Panda Rouge could call the others and let them know what Ladybug had asked him to tell them, but he had a better idea. It was not the first time he used that trick, and he sincerely hoped it would work, like it did the previous times. Scribbling the message Ladybug had told him, he then drew a firecracker and placed the message inside it. Lighting up the fuse, the firecracker shot upwards into the sky, as he himself hurried and tried to catch up to the others. As for the firecracker, once it reached a predetermined altitude, blew up and a giant message ended up written in the sky: "Sainte Trinite, north, up Rue Blanche. Get over here, now!"
"Works every time!" -Panda Rouge thought to himself, as he looked up and admired his handiwork.
And he was not the only one saw the giant message in the sky. The rest of the heroes also saw it, as they continued to pursue Aphrodite, who had not rematerialized herself, and was still a trail of living pink dust, flying through the air. Seeing that, the heroes could not help but to feel a little idiotic, chasing a trail of dust. Never before had they chased an Akuma who could turn in to dust and escape that way. Still, that did not prevent them from continuing to chase Aphrodite. Down on the ground, more love zombies continued to chase after those that had not been infected by whatever it was that was making people turn that way.
"Hate to leave the people downstairs like this, but if we let Aphrodite escape, it'll be even worse." -Ladybug thought to herself, as she tried to think of a plan to –"If she's not stopping, guess, we'll just have to taunt her, and hope, that like every other Akuma, she has a massive ego and gets ticked if we begin to insult her." -she thought to herself. –"Hey, Aphrodite! For someone who loves to preach about the true love, you sure love to run as well!"
Understanding what she was trying to do, the others did not waste time in following her lead.
"Yeah, what's the deal?! Are you going to continue to run like a chicken, instead of fighting us?!" -Rena Rouge asked us.
"Guess she is. Because if her courage was as big as her ego, she would stop running and would face us!" -Carapace exclaimed.
"Come on… what did you expect? She's just a fake goddess of love. You can't expect much from someone who's just a cheap knock-off of the real deal." -Chat Noir joked.
"Yeah, after all, what is she going to do? Throw us a lot of paper hearts, while preaching about what is love?!" -Panda Rouge asked, which earned a couple of laughs form the
And just like Ladybug had predicted, like all other Akumas, Aphrodite's ego was also the size of small planet. It was only a matter of time for her to get ticked off by those insults, and when she did, she immediately pulled herself together, appearing in front of the heroes.
"As true love is my witness, you will pay for those insults!" -Aphrodite told them.
"Make us, lady!" -Panda Rouge said, as he threw his spear at her, only for her to go through her body. –"W-What?!" -he yelled, as he tried to understand what had happened.
"Like I said before, you'll have to catch me first… but it's not going to be that easy." -Aphrodite laughed.
"An illusion?!" -Rena Rouge thought to herself. –"No, I don't think so. I think that because she can turn her body into that pink dust, she also has the ability to make our weapons phase through her." -she thought. –"If that's true, then, we've got to find a way to get around that little problem."
"Let's see if you're as fast as you say you are!" -Carapace exclaimed, as he charged against her.
The Miraculous heroes all tried to attack her, but Aphrodite was not only fast, she also moved with such a grace that it almost looked like she was not walking, but floating. For about thirty seconds, she did not attack them, and merely dodged their attacks. But when she finally went on the attack. Firing what seemed to be pink arrows, made out of the same dust she had turned into before, she tried to attack them. If she was not an Akuma, and was not trying to kill them all, maybe they would take a moment to appreciate her grace and her pose.
"I thought you would be faster than this, Miraculous heroes." -Aphrodite commented, as she threw a few more pink arrows at them, with one of them nearly scratched Ladybug's left leg.
"You haven't seen nothing!" -Ladybug said, as she threw her yo-yo against Aphrodite, only for her to dodge to the side. –"How can she move this fast?! It's like her feet aren't even touching the ground." -she thought to herself.
"It's time for you to get your heart broken! Cataclysm!" -Chat Noir yelled as he was about to hit Aphrodite on the back, only to go through her and fall over the ledge. –"Whoa… okay, this was not in the program!" -he said, as he pulled his staff and extended it, pinning it against the buildings, preventing it from falling to the ground, where hundreds of love zombies were running wild. –"Oh, no, forget it. This kitty cat has nine lives."
Taking balance, Chat launched himself against the building and began to climb it back up, using his claws to dig just deep enough into the concrete. In a matter of seconds, he was back up on the rooftop, where the fight went on. Aphrodite was proving to be a more resourceful enemy than they believed she would be. But she was not the only one with tricks up her sleeve. Using her flute-staff, Rena Rouge wasted no time in using her Mirage power, conjuring a few copies of herself and of her fellow teammates, in hopes that with more of them around, Aphrodite would have a harder time guessing which ones were the real ones, and which ones were the illusions.
"Let's see if you can find the real ones." -Rena Rouge thought to herself.
"Oh, you think that just because there are more of you now, that you can stop me?" -Aphrodite laughed maniacally. –"In case you have forgotten, I have an army at my disposal, and they will do anything I order them to." -she said, as she snapped her fingers.
Down on the street, the love zombies, obeying Aphrodite's orders, quickly began to pile up on top of each other and to climb the building's front, in a scene straight out of World War Z. Seeing that happening, the heroes were once again surprised by what Aphrodite could do, and in a matter of seconds, both real heroes and illusions, were up to their necks in love zombies. Seeing that Aphrodite laughed maniacally.
"Take care of them, my darlings. Show them what true love is all about." -Aphrodite giggled, as her body once more turned into dust. –"I must go and spread more love, elsewhere." -she said.
Obeying Aphrodite's orders, the love zombies wasted no time in attacking the heroes, trying to grab them and kiss them, so as to turn each one of them into a love zombie as well. Carapace quickly used his powers to erect a few shields to protect them from those enemies, but it was a matter of seconds, before he understood that the shields would not be enough to keep them at bay. Because of their incredible speed and agility, as soon as the shields were placed up, they would just crawl over them or jump over them.
"I don't know if I said this before, but we're in a pickle, right now." -Carapace said, as he swung one of his tonfas and hit a love zombie on the abdomen –"Maybe you can use your special ability to glue these guys to the building, just like you did before?" -he suggested Panda Rouge.
"No! it will take too long! In fact, we shouldn't even…. Cataclysm!" -Chat Noir exclaimed, as he used his attack on the rooftop, rusting it and sending a few love zombies down into that building's attic. –"As I was saying, we've got to go after her!" -he declared.
"Look out!" -Rena Rouge warned him of a love zombie that was just a couple of meters from him, as she herself, somersaulted over another one. –"I'm with him. We've got to keep moving!" -she exclaimed.
"Agreed. Keep following her! We can't let her get away!" -Ladybug said, as she jumped onto a chimney and resumed the chase. –"Where are the others? They should have been here by now!" -she thought to herself.
And the scarlet heroine was not the only one thinking that. Chat Noir was also wondering where the rest of the team was.
"Where are they? What's taking them so long to get here?"– Chat Noir thought to himself. –"It's going to take the strength and skills of the whole team, if we hope to stop this Akuma."-he thought.
Queen Bee had just finished saving a mother and her two children from being turned into a love zombie, when she saw the message Panda Rouge had placed on the sky, and knew it was time to join the main fight. As much as she liked to save civilians and hear them praising her, the bee heroine knew that there was no time for such thigs, right then. If Aphrodite had been sighted, she needed to go and lend them a hand.
"Okay, it's time to go." -Queen Bee said, as she dove into the ground, to grab Louve Grise, who was then throwing gusts of icy wind with her fans, against a small horde of love zombies. –"Grab my arm, Louve!" -she shot at the wolf heroine, warning her.
Hearing Queen Bee saying that, Louve Grise looked over her shoulder and extended her arm. Grabbing her, the bee heroine pulled her upwards, as she went back up. Louve Grise did not say it, but she was happy that Queen Bee had picked her up when she did. Using her ice powers, the way she had been for the past half hour, had consumed a lot of her energy, and she needed a little break to rest.
"I was wondering when that Akuma would show up." -Louve Grise told the blonde. She too had noticed the message in the sky. –"It's just too bad it wasn't us who found her." -she added.
"Don't worry. I'm sure that by the time we get there, Marinette and the others will have left a piece of Aphrodite for us to take care of." -Queen Bee smiled at her. –"We better find and warn Rose and Juleka to come with us. They might have not noticed the message in the sky." -she said, as she did not see them.
"I think they did, look!" -Louve Grise said, as she pointed to their left.
Having seen the message in the sky, Flamingo and Corbeau Noire, wasted no time in wrapping up what they were done to a group of love zombies, and took to the air. They were both a little exhausted from all the fighting, not counting the little scare that Flamingo gave to her girlfriend. But other than that, they were ready for anything. Seeing both Louve Grise and Queen Bee approaching them, they waved at them.
"I guess you also saw the message, as well." -Queen Bee said.
"How could we miss it? It's huge!" -Flamingo giggled. –"Are you two okay?" -she asked them.
"A little out of breath, from playing Snow Day with all those love zombies, but I'm good." -Louve Grise smiled.
"Me too." -Queen Bee said. –"I don't know about you girls, but I lost count of how many persons I saved, after the twentieth." -she admitted.
"Us too. That Akuma turned this city into a jungle… not literally, but you get my meaning." -Corbeau Noire said. –"But now it's time for us to teach it a lesson. Shall we go?" -she asked the girls.
"Lead the way." -Queen Bee said.
At the exotic animal exhibit, the chaos caused by Aphrodite and her love zombies settled down a little, as most of the love zombies was either caught by the Miraculous Heroes, or had run away to infect other people. While Grizzly Bear, Forest Doe and Antelope checked to see if every love zombie had been trapped, and if the people who had been lucky enough not to get turned into a love zombie were alright, outside, Dragonfly and Arachnid were looking for any signs of Aphrodite. Things were such a mess when they arrived, that they hardly had the time to see if there were any signs of where Aphrodite had gone to.
"See anything?" -Arachnid asked her.
"No! And I don't think we're going to find anything that can tell us where that Akuma went!" -Dragonfly told Arachnid. The truth was, she did not know what she was supposed to be looking for, in the first place. –"Akumas are not exactly known for leaving a trail of breadcrumbs behind… and things are just too chaotic, for us to pinpoint where that one could have gone to." -she said.
"Keep looking! Who knows, maybe she has left something for us to… hey, look!" -Arachnid said, as he pointed to the sky.
Up in the sky, was the message Panda Rouge had sent them all, signalling that he and the others needed help. Seeing it, Dragonfly knew that the worst was still to come, though deep down, for her, who loved battle Akumas, as much as she loved to skate, the best was still to come. Just from thinking about it, a smirk appeared on her face, in anticipation. Not wasting time, she dove and went inside the tent to warn the others.
"Move it, everyone! Panda just send us an invitation for the party that's happening near Sainte Trinite!" -Dragonfly warned the three heroes.
"Sainte Trinite, you say? Race you there!" -Antelope exclaimed, as he sprinted out of there, as fast as his feet allowed him to.
"Hey! You didn't say "Ready, Set, Go", you idiot!" -Dragonfly protested, as she dashed out of the tent.
"Let's go!" -Forest Doe told Grizzly Bear.
"Right behind you!" -Grizzly Bear told her.
But they were not the only ones who were going after the Akuma. While most reporters fled the scene, when Aphrodite first appeared, Nadja and her team continued to do what they were paid to do. Even though earlier on, she had gone through a most terrifying and traumatic experience with that panther, she was not going to let that stop her from following the Miraculous Heroes and show them triumphing to the whole world.
"Grab everything, and come on. We're following them!" -Nadja told her team.
"Following them?!" -Louis asked her.
"Yes! Let's get the van and follow them!" -Nadja said. –"You heard them. They're going to Sainte Trinite, and if they're going there, that's where the action truly is." -she said.
"Are you sure about that?" -Jacques asked her. Just like Louis, he was not sure going after the heroes, to see them battling an Akuma was such a good idea.
"Yes! Come on, go and get the van! We've got a story to cover." -Nadja declared, as she quickened her pace.
Having left Ladybug and the other heroes to fend against her love zombies, Aphrodite continued to spread love, where she was going. She knew that she had been given those powers by Hawk Moth, to kill the Miraculous Team and bringing him their miraculouses, but in her mind, she believed that she could kill them later, after causing a little more chaos. Seeing a few people entering a shop and blocking the doors, she felt that like everyone else, they needed to know what true love was all about. Rematerializing herself in front of it, she was about to break through the door, when something else caught her eye… or rather, someone.
Clinging to a branch of a nearby tree, there was a young man wearing a purple shirt, a black jacket and jeans. He looked terrified, as he looked down and saw three or four love zombies trying to get to him. He had tried to run from them, but in the chaos, the only thing that occurred to him was to climb to a tree, hoping to escape his pursuers. Looking at him, Aphrodite immediately recognized him. He was Rene, the guy who stood her up the night before. When Aphrodite got her powers from Hawk Moth, one of her first thoughts was to seek Rene and teach him a lesson. And now, it seemed like she would not have to wait to do just that. Smirking evilly, she hovered to the tree where Rene was clinging to and confronted him.
"Well, well, look who we have here." -Aphrodite smirked evilly at the young man, who nearly dropped from the branch, upon seeing her. –"And here I thought I would have to look for you, when you just happen to be nearby." -she said, as she grabbed him by the collar, pulling him from the tree he was clinging to. –"No doubt looking for another innocent victim."
"W-What a-are you talking about?! What do you want from me?!" -Rene asked Aphrodite, absolutely terrified and not understanding what she was talking about. He never thought that one day he would be face to face with an Akuma.
"Don't you remember me? The girl you stood up yesterday?" Aphrodite asked him, with a malevolent smile on her face.
"Y-You? You're her?!" -Rene asked her, terrified.
"Oh, yes, I am… or I used to be." -Aphrodite told him. –"And guess what… you broke my heart… well, kind of. This stupid holiday did the rest, but you were the one who started it all." -she said, looking him in the eyes, the same way a tiger looks at a prey.
Holding him tightly by the collar, Aphrodite made her way up to the rooftops, where she had a plan to get even with Rene. He had hurt her, and now she was going to hurt him back. As for Rene, he was terrified and had begun to beg her to let him go and to show mercy, while telling her that it was not his fault, he stood her up. But no matter what he told her Aphrodite's mind was made up. She was going to have her revenge, and the whole thing was going to hurt him more, than it was going to hurt her.
"Please… Please, I beg you! Look, I don't know what happened, but my cell phone was robbed, and I couldn't text you that I was not going Let me go!" -Rene begged, as tears kept running down his face.
"Oh, stop it! Stop lying about it! Not only you're a pretentious idiot, you also think that that lame excuse will save you?! Do you think I was born yesterday?!" -Aphrodite snapped at him. –"Plus, you think all that crying is going to make me change my mind? Think again… for what you texted me, you deserve no mercy from me." -she practically spat at him.
"I told you! I didn't text you… I was forced to stay at work, and my cell phone got stollen! Whoever texted you that mean text, it wasn't me!" -Rene exclaimed, while telling her the truth, as they stopped at the edge of the roof. –"W-What are you going to do to me?!" -he asked her, though he had a pretty good idea of what was going to happen next.
"What am I going to do to you?! I'm going to do to you, what you did to me… the only difference is that when I break your heart, I'm also going to break everything else in you." -Aphrodite told him in a cold, almost cynical voice. –"For what you did to me, I should throw you from the top of the Eiffel Tower, but a fall from a five-stories building will have to do." -she said, when something went past through her eyes. Looking right it was a green and pink frisbee… Dragonfly's frisbee, which quickly returned to her owner's hands.
"Let him go, Aphrodite!" -Dragonfly ordered her, as she and Antelope arrived at the same time. Once again, their speed allowed them to arrive before the rest.
"Oh, more heroes… and here I thought I would only have to deal with a few of you." -Aphrodite said.
"I won't repeat myself again… let him go!" -Dragonfly ordered her.
"You heard her! If you don't, you're going to be sorry!" -Antelope warned her.
"Very well, if you insist…" -Aphrodite said.
Dropping him, Rene yelled, as he felt gravity doing its work. And just like it happened with some people, when they got shot, he felt everything around him slow down, as bits of his life flashed in front of his eyes. He knew that he was going to die, so he closed his eyes, so as to not see the moment when he would hit the ground.
"Don't worry, I've got you!" -Dragonfly exclaimed, as she flew upwards and saw the young man's expression of gratitude in his face.
"T-Thank you, thank you." -Rene thanked her.
"Just doing my job." -Dragonfly told him. –"Do you want me to let you somewhere specific?" -she asked him.
"Anywhere, but near that witch! She thinks I stood her up last night, but the truth is, it wasn't my fault. My boss forced me to stay at work until late, and to make matters worse, my cell phone was somehow stolen, while I was at work, and she thinks I texted her something she did not like!" -Rene answered Dragonfly. –"Whoever stole my phone, thought it would probably be funny to play a prank like that one with her, I don't know!" -he said in a desperate voice. –"Just get me away from her!"
"Alright, don't won't worry, I'll get you out of here. But if I were you, once she's back to normal, I would go talk to her straighten things with her." -Dragonfly told him. –"Can't believe this… Me, giving romantic advices to someone!" -she thought to herself. –"In the meantime, let's get you somewhere safe, while my partner dances the Tango with her."
As Dragonfly made sure to take Rene out of there, Antelope did his best to hit Aphrodite, which was proving to be quite the challenge, even with his super speed. At the same time, Ladybug and the rest of her group arrived to lend him a hand.
"Nice of you to finally show up." -Antelope said.
"Look who's talking! Panda sent you the message almost five minutes ago." -Chat Noir shot at him
"Yeah, well, I had to slow down a bit, because otherwise Dragonfly wouldn't be able to catch up with me and… whoa, that was a close one!" -Antelope exclaimed, as he nearly dodged a swing from Aphrodite. –"Careful, lady, I know I'm handsome, but I'm not looking for any kind of commitment." -he joked.
"Oh, really? Then, let's see if you like this!" -Aphrodite smirked, as she blew some of her love powder into his face. She had not used that power against one of the heroes, because she was having too much fun fighting them, but figured that the time was right to use it and see what happened.
Hitting Antelope on the face, he began to cough violently, as the love powder slowly and steadily began to cloud his judgement. Knowing that he was about to turn into a love zombie and do something stupid, like attacking one of his friends, he closed his eyes and jumped out of there.
"What did you do to him?!" -Panda Rouge asked her.
"I simply showed him what true love really is, that's all." -Aphrodite smiled maliciously at her. –"Like everyone else, he too, will learn what true love really is." -she said.
"Turn him back to normal, right now!" -Ladybug told her.
"Sorry, but I don't think so. But here, allow me to do the same to you and your friends, Ladybug." –Aphrodite said, as she once again used her love powder.
Spinning her yo-yo as fast as she could, Ladybug used it as both a shield and a fan, to send the powder back to Aphrodite, as the rest of the heroes engaged her in battle. And while they did that, Dragonfly was making her way back to help them. After dropping Rene on a safe spot, she hurried back, knowing just how dangerous Aphrodite was. If she was more than willing to kill Rene, because she believed he had stood her up, then she would be more than willing to kill her friends and steal their miraculouses, so she could give them to Hawk Moth. Flying as fast as she could, she noticed someone jumping from rooftop to rooftop. Closing in, she saw it was Antelope who was doing it.
"What's going on, with Kim?!" -Dragonfly asked herself, as she saw him acting weird. Worried about him, she dashed towards him.
The others, who saw her, tried to warn her, while battling Aphrodite, who was trying to do the same to them, as she did to Antelope. But they were too far, and Dragonfly was too focused on trying to catch Antelope, who by then was already a love zombie, and kept jumping from rooftop to rooftop, perching on the edge of the rooftops. She called him, but he did not answer her back. With her gut telling her that something was wrong, she dove and did her best to catch Antelope, so she could ask him what was wrong. Because he continued to jump, she missed on her first attempt, only to catch him on the second attempt.
"What's the big idea, you idiot?! Are you trying to get yourself killed or did you drink something that's making you act like a crazy idiot ?!" -Dragonfly asked him, not realizing Antelope was under Aphrodite's spell. –"Come on, talk to me, you idiot." -she demanded him.
"Hey there, Alix." -Antelope chuckled like a crazy man, as he looked her in the eyes, and she saw that his pupils were now pink, just like the pupils of every love zombie.
Before she could react, Antelope kissed her on the cheek. He was trying to kiss her on the lips, but failed. Still, a kiss on the cheek had the same result, as Dragonfly began to feel dizzy and her mind clouded. She tried to fight it, but it was no use. In a matter of seconds, she was turned into a love zombie, and she only had eyes for one thing and one thing only, Antelope.
"How's it hanging, handsome?!" -Dragonfly giggled, as she kissed him. –"Have I ever told you, just how cute you look, when you try so hard to beat me?" -she giggled.
"No… but, maybe a couple of kisses, will make me not forget you said it." -Antelope chuckled, as he kissed her.
Seeing that happen, the heroes, who were joined by Forest Doe, Grizzly Bear and Arachnid, as they arrived at the scene and helped them fight Aphrodite, knew they were two players short. And it could not have happened at a worse time, because Antelope and Dragonfly were the only ones whose speed matched Aphrodite. She had showed she was fast, but now, she was moving with a speed only matched by the two fastest members in the Miraculous Team, alternating between her physical form and the form where she turned into spiralling dust. This forced the heroes to defend themselves, though some of them continued to attack her head-on. One of them was Forest Doe, who used her invisibility to attack her.
"Nice work, little girl, but your arrows won't be enough to stop me!" -Aphrodite said.
"Yeah, but she's not alone in this!" -Arachnid said, as he tried to lasso Aphrodite, only to miss. –"Crud!" -he cursed his luck.
"You witch! Turn Antelope and Dragonfly back to normal!" -Rena Rouge shot at her, as she tried to hit her with her flute-staff.
"I don't think so, but don't worry." -Aphrodite said, as she turned herself into dust once more, only to reappear a couple of moments later behind Rena Rouge. –"You're about to join them." -she said, when she was hit by one of Carapace's tonfas, before turning into dust again.
"Keep dreaming, lady!" -Carapace exclaimed, as he attacked her again. –"Nobody touches my girlfriend and gets away with it!" -he said, as he dodged Aphrodite's attack.
Seeing the battling unfolding, Ladybug knew that they needed Antelope and Dragonfly's speed, if they were to gain the upper hand on it. Aphrodite was too fast and too powerful to be taken head-on, without a trump card, or at the very least, a laid out plan.
"No matter how many of us are fighting her, she's just too fast; and she's not even using her power over the love zombies. We Kim and Alix, if we're to pin her down." -Ladybug thought to herself, as she did a backflip, dodging one more attack from Aphrodite.
As the battle raged on, Aphrodite heard Hawk Moth's voice inside her head, demanding her to get the miraculouses from the two members of the Miraculous Team that were now under her spell. When he saw what happened after she attacked Antelope, he could not help but to feel like he was a step closer to absolute victory.
"Dragonfly and Antelope are under your control. This is your chance. Use that to your advantage! Tell them to take their miraculouses and give them to you, now!" -Hawk Moth ordered her.
"In a moment. First, I'm going to take down two or three more heroes." -Aphrodite told the villain.
"I said, now! Tell them that, and then kill them!" –Hawk Moth roared at her, in an angry voice.
"Fine! You don't have to be a spoilsport! I'll do that, right away!" -Aphrodite said, as she ended the telepathic conversation.
I was going to post this yesterday, but I got a little sidetracked. Things really are heating up for our heroes, as the battle rages on. One of the things I love about writing battles for these fanfics is the fact that we have Paris as the perfect background for them. You can easily imagine the heroes battling against an Akuma on the rooftops of the iconic parisian buildings, or on the streets, by just checking one of the numeros images of the city online.
Once more, Aphrodite is giving the heroes a hard time, and with Alix and Kim not acting as their regular selves, things are about to get even worse. The cliffhanger that I had envisioned for this chapter was a different one. Still, after reading it over and over, I felt that it was best if I used that cliffhanger to start the beginning of the next chapter. As always, feel free to comment, fav and leave suggestions to improve this fic or its sequels. :)
P.S. Just to warn you that the next chapter might take maybe an extra day to be finished, because I've got a couple of things I need to take care of, and I might not have as much time to write as usual. Plus, I'm going to the preview of Sonic's movie, and that means, I'll have to work on one of my movie critics.