The Wicked
Chapter Four: The War
"Hawk Moth was using you," Ladybug declared as she faced down those she once considered friends. As her leg continued to throb, the young woman forced herself to stay strong and show no weakness. "Whatever the Akuma gave you, it wasn't worth it. They gave you power, but that was just so they could turn you into pawns."
Chat Noir studied his opponents, struggling to see through the blood and darkness overtaking his eye. The Miraculous felt his heart beat faster as he cast his pain aside and searched for a movement or strike.
"You don't know what you're talking about," Aurore declared, the fog around her beginning to waver. "You never had what we did. You don't know what it's like to have power and see it all ripped away."
"Yes, I do," the ladybug Miraculous replied with sorrow welling up in her voice. "I was akumatized too. I heard all the lies, all the promises…I thought I could change the world and everybody in it. But I was wrong. It's not the Akuma or its power that frees us: It's who we are and what we do. Please, whatever's happened to you, we can work through it."
"Not interested," Kim declared as he pulled another arrow from his quiver and prepared to fire. "You're nothing compared to us."
"Think about it, Kim," Chat spoke up, seeing his wayward classmate through all the hatred and anger he now wore as a face. "Is what you're doing going to bring you closer to the ones you love? If you kill us, what's going to change? The Akuma couldn't change anything before, and it won't now."
"Bethany," Ladybug called out. "The Akuma might let you turn into someone else on the outside, but you'll never stop hating who you are as long as it's with you." Mistake's eyes began to shift as uncertainty began to set in. "Do you really want to feel fear and anger for the rest of your lives?"
Silence fell over the fog-veiled area, though it was filled with unrest. Kim slowly raised his bow towards his enemies as time itself seemed to slow. His feline eyes focusing in on the beast before him, Chat Noir charged forward, bearing his claws. Ladybug felt the terrible sting of pain surge through her leg again, yet she forced herself forward. Despite their willingness to battle, the two Miraculous each shared the same thought: They're still human.
"Damn it, Kim, put it down!" Chat Noir snarled as he gripped the blond young man's bow. Before the Miraculous could tear the weapon apart, a bolt of electricity struck his back and rendered him temporarily paralyzed.
Jalil prepared to deliver a crushing blow to the feline hero's spine, only to feel his legs bound by a tight wire that pulled him back so sharply he collapsed on his back. Kim turned his eyes to Ladybug as she flipped in the air and tackled Jean, allowing Chat to recover. Like the coward he had become, the young man pulled back his arm and aimed his arrow at the female Miraculous, but soon witnessed his bow shred into pieces as Chat Noir's claw sliced through it. As Kim recoiled, his arrow falling to the ground, the feline hero drove his fist upward into the blonde's chin before knocking Jean on his back with a toss of his baton.
They'll ruin everything! Aurore screamed to herself as she raised the cloud of fog.
"Not so fast!" Ladybug cried out as she threw her yo-yo and wrapped it around Aurore before the fog consumed her image. Despite her binding, the elemental continued to expand the veil of fog. "Aurore, call off this fog, now!"
The blond young woman began to snicker in a voice that was not Aurore's. "You stupid bitch!" she cackled. "I might not be able to copy their voices, but I can copy just about everything else!"
As the fog continued to darken and spread, Chat Noir lost sight of his opponents and began to rapidly turn in different directions. The injury to his eye, coupled with the dampening effects of the fog, restricted his senses. Suddenly, he felt another surge of electricity assault his body and bring him to his knees. Turning towards the source of her partner's screams of anguish, Ladybug felt an armored foot drive itself into her wounded leg and send her onto the ground, her yo-yo retracting and releasing Bethany.
Their eyes honed onto their targets, the wicked ones quickly grabbed the Miraculous and slammed them together before forming a circle around them. In a hellish harmony, they began to pummel, kick, electrocute, swear, and claw at the two as the heroes attempted to reorient themselves. Ladybug felt her charred flesh undergo countless blows and scratches as her leg continued to throb. Chat Noir felt the repeated impact of armored feet stomping on his stomach until he coughed up blood. Like a mad flurry, the wicked ones joyously continued their vicious assault as those they once saw as heroes suffered and bled.
Closing his eyes, Chat Noir struggled to breathe as his head smashed into the ground and his body fell into spasm as the electricity burned his skin. Clenching his fist at all times, just to hold onto his Miraculous, the young man soon heard nothing but a high-pitched ring as the horrendous reality he had been thrown into slowly faded to make way for a dream. With death near, Adrien opened his eyes to see Ladybug standing above him, her eyes hazy and her lips wet. Lying atop a cool, unfamiliar bed topped with soft sheets, he watched as his idol knelt down in front of him with blushing cheeks so warm he could feel their heat radiating and a desperate, needing, wanting expression on her sweat-glazed face. Her fingers, though obscured by her costume, felt as soft and electric as her own flesh as they caressed his hand and made their way up his naked arm. Letting out a heavy sigh of ecstasy, Ladybug laid herself down atop Adrien's chest, as if making him a silent promise. Slowly, the two grew closer to one another until their moist, salty lips collided and shared a passionate kiss so intense it burned.
Tears and blood streamed from Chat Noir's eyes as his muscles ached, his flesh was slit, and his mouth tasted of blood. Despite his powers, despite his training, and despite all he had done, he was little more than a helpless child again. His strength gone, Adrien no longer held back his cries and screams for help.
Clenching her ears with both hands to protect her Miraculous, Ladybug felt her enemies dig their nails into her cheeks and force themselves downward until streams of blood covered her face on each side. The constant barrage of blows and kicks wracked her body time and time again, jolt after jolt. Having bit her lips, the young woman tasted blood as it welled up over her mouth. Surges of electricity continued to assault her body while cruel words poured into her ears. Robbed of her senses, Ladybug attempted to curl into a fetal position to protect her stomach, but the blows and kicks wouldn't stop. Finally, she closed her eyes and found herself lying alone on a silk bed as it floated and flowed into the gentle waters of an unknown ocean. Her eyes opened widely as she took in the peaceful world she had escaped to. Slowly, she sat up, found herself dressed only in a loose-fitting white sundress, and felt her ears. "My Miraculous," she fearfully exclaimed upon feeling naked ears void of even the holes from previous piercings. "Tikki? Are you here? Tikki, please! …Please don't leave me alone." Looking out at the endless sea before her, Marinette felt the cool waters dance over her unharmed but tender feet. Suddenly, a gentle hand touched her shoulder: The hand was warm and soft, like that of a child, and filled her with comfort.
"Marinette?" a familiar voice called out as its other hand rested upon the girl's shoulder. "Marinette, can you hear me?" The voice was soft and loving.
"Tikki," Marinette sighed with joy and relief. "You sound so grown up. No…you sound like an angel from Heaven."
"I talk with your voice, Marinette," the voice answered. "I always have. I'm not a Kwami in this world. I'm whatever you need me to be."
Turning herself around, Marinette saw a beautiful young woman with skin as pale as snow, hair as red as roses, and as long as the white gown she wore, and a face so kind, rosy, loving, and untouched by time or pain. Extending from the mysterious woman's back were two full, heavenly angel wings so white they seemed to glow. Streaks of red and spots of black decorated the angel's wings and gown as she slowly stroked her delicate fingers through Marinette's long hair. "You can't stay here long, Marinette," she sorrowfully declared.
"I know, Tikki," the young woman answered. "But…I need to know what to do. We can't beat them…and if we lose control for a second, they could die. How can we stop someone who isn't even akumatized? How can they be that full of hate?"
"You've always seen the good in people, Marinette," Tikki reminded her beloved friend. "Your powers have helped bring that out in them. Maybe they can pierce the darkness that's made its home in their hearts."
"What does that mean?" Marinette begged of her friend. "Tikki, I don't understand."
"You have to go, Marinette," the angel declared. "If you stay here much longer, you'll never leave."
"Tikki, no!" the dark-haired young woman begged. "Tikki, please! Please, I can't do this. I'm not strong enough. Please!"
Opening her eyes, Ladybug gasped with all her might as tears streamed down her mask and washed over her raw cheeks. Turning to her side, she forced herself to see through the fog at Chat Noir, who was slowly losing the will to go on. Swallowing hard, Ladybug pushed past the wicked ones, as if they no longer existed, took her partner's hand, lifted him up by it, and began walking away. Before the two could escape, a cold, heavy chain wrapped itself around them, compressed them into a back-to-back bind, and sealed itself around their battered bodies. Upon finishing his trick, Jean led the charge to eliminate the Miraculous once and for all. However, a blinding light from the young woman's yo-yo froze them in their tracks, and by the time it faded, Ladybug and Chat Noir were nowhere to be seen.
Chapter Four Part II:
Aftermath
Opening their eyes, the two heroes found themselves in an abandoned warehouse far below a darkened sky. Like fallen angels, the Miraculous felt the pain of impact as well as the sorrow of a shattered image of the world they once knew. Silence filled their hearts as she found they hadn't the strength to break the chains or even stand up. Time passed by so quickly in that horrible silence: Minutes became hours that bled into days, each void of hope or the promise of rescue.
His ribs tightly bound, left eye completely red, and every muscle aching and throbbing, Chat Noir leaned forward and spat a clot of blood onto the cold, metal floor. Her breath heavy, eyes blackened and moistened, and her leg still sharply stinging, Ladybug felt the chains binding her wrists and breasts as her bloodied lips parted just to allow more gasps of air to escape. Deprived of the light of day for so long, the Miraculous forced themselves to remain strong, even in the growing presence of despair. Their bruises, cuts, sores, and aches ran deep as the two struggled to remain conscious. All that had been left to them was their Miraculous, and soon, those would be taken away as well.
Their lips having healed, and their blood having ceased to spill, Ladybug and Chat Noir felt their dry mouths crack and beg for water as their empty, aching stomachs cried for anything to eat. Stripped of all pride, they struggled to remain conscious every minute.
"…Marinette," Chat Noir finally managed to choke out. "I asked Plagg…he can't unlock these chains."
"Neither can Tikki," Ladybug declared as she hung her head in sorrow. "Besides, we can power down. They'll find us any minute."
"What do we do?" the blond young man begged, tears streaming from his eyes. "Marinette…what do we do? When they find us, they'll take our Miraculous…and then they'll kill us, won't they?"
"…Adrien," the dark-haired young woman answered, though her throat ached and her voice trembled. "Use your Cataclysm. Then run. Power down and run and don't stop until you're back home."
"Marinette, my hand's holding yours," Chat sorrowfully declared. "If I use my power, you'll lose your hand, maybe the whole arm." Silence fell once more, though it was now filled with intense thought and a growing feeling of desperation.
"…It's okay," Marinette decided with a tearful smile. "Adrien, it's okay…I'll be alright. Once we're free, we can run. We'll find a way to fight back."
Chat Noir lowered his head and let his hair hide his miserable face. "Marinette…I'm so sorry," he sobbed. "I couldn't stop them. I couldn't save you. And I'm afraid…I'm afraid to die…I don't want to go. Marinette, I was all alone when Ladybug found me…the first time I transformed, I was a kid again…My eyes were weak, my paws were too big, I couldn't even stand…I was weak and afraid and sad and lonely…Then I heard my mother's voice…and her and Plagg told me everything would be okay…And then I found you. When Ladybug talked to me that first time, I realized you were more than a superhero, and more than the goddess I made her into…You were like a mother. The more I got to know you, the more I fell in love with you."
"Adrien…" Marinette tried to be merciful.
"But the more I knew you…" Adrien began to choke on his breath as the terrible truth rose to the surface.
"Adrien," Marinette began to plead.
"…The more I knew I didn't deserve you!" the suffering young man finally cried out. "And the more I knew I couldn't keep you. I kept thinking, if I could just make myself better, I could turn into the man you loved…That I'd be worthy…But I never did. After I found out you were Marinette…and that Marinette was Ladybug…I felt so afraid."
"Adrien, you've always been worthy," the dark-haired young woman finally declared, her reddened eyes flowing with hot tears. "I was the one who was never good enough for you. The only reason I even had the courage to tell you was because I was jealous and sick. I didn't think you'd leave Lila…I didn't want you to…Adrien, you know about my feelings for you…but I never deserved to have you…And after I found out you were Chat Noir…I prayed that you would find someone else. I prayed that you and Lila would fall in love, get married, and…" The lump in Marinette's throat began to choke her, though her awful truth pained her even more. "And that you'd never have to see me again…and that I wouldn't see you again so I wouldn't have to remember what I lost. I didn't treat you right as Chat Noir. I took you for granted, told you what to do, made myself your leader…And I'm so sorry for that."
"Marinette…" Adrien gasped out, his red eye crying tears of blood. "Do you remember what I was when you found me? Do you remember what I did? All the sins I owned? I needed help…I needed someone to show me the light…You did that for me. Thank God for you."
As silence once again invaded the building, the two slowly drifted into their own realities once more. This time, their battered minds brought them to their past. Their strength stripped away, the two were forced to endure their memories in their most honest, brutal light:
Sinking his ten claws into the side of the building, a dark figure began climbing the walls. The lights seemed to ignore him as he ascended without the aid of wires or equipment. Feet became stories within minutes as a black belt swung from side to side like a feline's tail on the stranger's lower back. Finally, he reached the upper suites and gazed inside. Here we go, he readied himself. Gracefully closing his cat-like green eyes, the young man felt the change and opened them to see the world in night-vision. The shadowy figure thrust his legs back and upward, flipping his body through the window and landing him before the thieves as broken glass lined his feet. "Purr-fect night for a party, huh, guys?" he confidently called out, catching the attention of the criminals. The group stared as the costumed young man slowly walked forward, his hips swaying slightly and swinging his belt-tail. "Only five? That's not much fun."
"Get him!" the female member of the group ordered as she gathered the stolen goods. The others charged forward, having expected the likes of Ladybug to make an appearance.
Popping his claws, the leather-clad figure smiled and gritted his teeth before charging towards his attackers. The four men separated, leaving one in front to attempt a tackle. Leaping into the air, the young man thrust his hands downward on the man's shoulders, forcing the tackler hard onto the ground. Cracked ribs: He's not getting up anytime soon, the cat-like figure happily calculated. Landing on his feet, he ran forward as the others scrambled to focus their flashlights. Lashing out with his right hand, the young man slashed another thief, leaving three scratches across his chest and knocking him into the left wall as his partner continued onward. Entering a summersault, the young crimefighter wrapped his legs around the right man's neck and pushed onward, knocking the man on his back and putting the young man back on his feet. Three down, two to go, he told himself as he ran towards his final foes. Reaching into his utility belt, the mysterious figure pulled out a small, metal pole and clenched it with both hands. Suddenly, the bar extended, allowing him to swing it and press the fourth criminal to the wall and expose the ringleader. "Just you and me now," he declared as he retracted the pole and lunged at the woman just as she pulled a pistol from its holster.
Reports went out that each criminal involved was either badly beaten or even put into critical condition. Extensive damage was found at the scene of the crime, but the only evidence was a pistol torn in half and a calling-card with 'Chat Noir' written on it. Upon witnessing the aftermath of the attack, Ladybug herself made it a priority to find the person responsible for such suffering and destruction.
Ladybug jumped from her vantage point and landed several feet in front of Chat Noir. The two stared at one another as the wind blew against them. Everything seemed to grow silent as their eyes, though veiled by masks, met. Onlookers began to assemble at a distance, all whispering amongst themselves. "That's him," one said. "That's her," others replied. Still, the two masked figures stood their ground.
It's really her, Adrien's heart fluttered as he swallowed a nervous lump in his throat. Protected by his mask, the young man began to walk closer to the one he admired so greatly. "As I live and breathe," he happily declared with an air of confidence in his voice. "I feel like I've spent all nine of my lives looking for you, Ladybug."
"So you're Chat Noir?" the red and black-spotted hero replied as she pulled out her yoyo and began twirling it in a flowing circle. "Tell me something."
"Anything, M'Lady," Chat answered almost lovingly.
"Those reports and rumors going through the city," Ladybug began, her voice grave and laced with anger. "The criminals found beaten and broken, the rumors of a cat-like figure stalking around the city…Were those all you?"
"Only me and me alone," Chat proudly declared as he placed a hand to his heart. "I'll do whatever it takes to keep this city safe."
"And what makes you different from those you've struck down?" the heroine demanded as she grew ever-closer.
His eyes widening, feeding the rapid beating of his heart, Adrien felt himself begin to sweat and grow uneasy. "Because I'm doing the right thing," he defended himself, unintentionally extending his claws. "I stopped robberies, broke up attacks…I did what I had to."
"You're acting out of anger and violence," Ladybug declared, tightening her eyes. "You don't act like a hero. Can't you see the city is afraid of you? No one knows where you'll strike next, or who you'll send to the hospital."
"I only go after the ones that deserve it!" Chat shouted, his emotions boiling and flowing into one another. "This city needs heroes! That's why we're here! I'm not killing or maiming, I'm just doing what has to be done, just like you are."
"Your last attack put at least two people in critical condition," the raven-haired young woman shot back. "Everyone deserves mercy. Where was yours?"
"I was looking out for the people being robbed," the cat-like figure retorted. "The criminals put themselves at risk. What I did to them was justice."
The two stared at one another, each seeming ready and willing to attack at any moment. "Tell me something else," Ladybug continued. "Your powers: Those things you can do. Where did they come from? Were you born with them?"
"…No," Chat confessed, gazing down at his claws and a black ring upon his finger. "They came to me. They chose me."
"Yours is the power of Destruction then?" she continued.
"Exactly," the young man nearly snarled. "Everything that gets close to me falls apart. But I chose to use that to do something. I thought you and I were alike."
"You chose this path," Ladybug called out. "Just like I did. But we're nothing alike. You went too far and people are suffering because of it."
Clenching his fist and feeling his claws dig into his gloves, Chat swallowed his pain, tightened his eyes, flared his hands out, and furiously charged towards his once-hero. Angry, afraid, shamed, and disenchanted, everything exploded within his mind and heart. "How am I any different from you?"
Swinging her yoyo, Ladybug snared her opponent's hand and cancelled his strike. "I'm a hero, and you're a criminal," she declared with pain in her voice. "You don't deserve that Miraculous. A Miraculous wouldn't harm others like you do."
"I had to do it!" Chat screamed as he struggled to free himself. "I'm stopping crime and trying to protect the good guys. Isn't that good enough?"
"Not even close!" the young woman replied as she extended the wire and jumped behind her foe. "You don't even see criminals as human, do you? That's why I have to stop you." Ladybug swung her wire around Chat's chest and caught the end, completing her snare and rendering him still.
Struggling to break free, Chat Noir began to tremble and grit his teeth. Finally, he thrust himself up and back, flipping over his attacker and knocking her back for an instant. "It doesn't have to be like this!" he shouted as he pulled the yoyo away from Ladybug. "I'm fighting crime and keeping the city safe. If criminals have to pay for that, isn't it worth it?"
"Why can't you see that's not how it works?" Ladybug demanded as she struggled to maintain her grasp on her weapon. "We have to protect everyone. No matter what happens, every life is precious. We can't stop criminals by becoming criminals." Making one final revolution, Ladybug tightly wrapped her wire around Chat's calves before returning to her stance before him. Gazing at her foe, the young woman saw his legs give way, allowing him to fall to his knees and surrender. Even through his mask, she could see his pain. "…And we can't protect the city if we're at each other's throats." Chat Noir refused to look up. "…Tell me just one more thing…Why do you do it? Why do you keep doing what you do?"
"…Because…because it's the right thing to do," the blond-haired young man gave in, closing his eyes. "And, more than anything, I wanted you to find me. You've changed everything, even me." Dropping his head and feeling the wire bind his body, Chat lost the will to fight back his tears. He had truly failed. "I'm sorry."
Seeing something in the vigilante that wasn't there before, Ladybug let go of her yoyo and lightened the grasp on him. "…You're telling the truth," she warmly declared as she began to walk closer. "I know who you are. I know…what you are. And I think, deep down, you're afraid, aren't you?" Chat silently winced, not daring to look his idol in the face. "…I was afraid too. I still am…and that fear is part of what drives us. That's why you fight them like you do. But it doesn't have to be like that, Chat. We have to learn to put our fear and anger aside and see everyone as a human being, just like us. Look at me." The young man refused to move, forcing Ladybug to crouch down and place her hand on his chin. "Look at me." Chat opened his reddened, feline eyes and looked up. "I know you want to do what's right," she whispered in a voice that sounded like a loving sister. "…But things didn't work out for you, did they?" The cat-like vigilante lowered his head once more. "I can give you another chance…Do it all over: Make it right again. You don't have to be this thing anymore. We can work together, Chat. Isn't that what you wanted?"
"Yes," Chat Noir confessed as tears began to run down his face.
"I trust you," Ladybug declared as she removed the wires from the vigilante. "But I won't let you keep on like you were. From now on, you and I are a team. I'll lead until you prove yourself to me…That's what Paris needs right now. Do you trust me to help you?"
As his mind returned to the present, Adrien allowed his tears to flow freely once more. "Thank God for you," he whispered.
Her mind pained by hideous memories from her time as Dark Bug, Marinette allowed herself to cry, though she tried to let her guilt fade away. Brighter than the Akuma's darkness was Adrien and Alya's love, compassion, and sacrifices to save the one they loved. "…Thank God for you, Adrien," she whispered just loud enough for her beloved friend to hear. "Always you…"
"Marinette, I'm sorry," Adrien declared. "But I can't hurt you. Please, forgive me."