CHAPTER TWENTY:
OVERTHROWN
The secret entrance into Mount Sesame lay at the bottom of the steps that carved down into the cliff.
There was no railing, and the churning sea below swept up along the rocks in misty strokes, leaving the stairs wet.
But the Queen of Thieves was always careful. Climbing up these slippery slopes had been a part of her training in the days of her youth.
If anything, the splattering water revived her senses and eased her troubling heart.
Alix didn't find the scenario relaxing at all. "You wanna not hold up traffic?!" she yelled over the roaring sea. "I want to get in and get warm before I catch something!"
Bridgette's smirk faded as soon as it came. Alix always had a knack for cheering her up, but tonight, the Queen found it difficult to smile.
The midnight-coloured ocean didn't help either. Everywhere Bridgette looked, she saw her sister's face. Every time she heard a sweet chime of the wind, it carried Marinette's voice with it:
I am your sister, and I always will be... but I can't live your life.
Bridgette knew it had been a mistake going back to Agreste from the get-go. She knew she could never belong in her sister's world, yet she had gone with her anyway.
Now, Bridgette's parents would always remember their eldest daughter as the world's most notorious criminal who threw everything away for a treasure, and Marinette would always remember her sister as the thief who deceived her and ruined her life.
But what was done was done.
The Queen of Thieves and her lieutenant finally reached the mountain entrance, and they made their way through the tunnel towards the inner city.
Alix was already midway through a new topic of interest. "I'm just saying... A forty-way split of the treasure is good and all, but I think some of us deserve to get a better cut," she rambled with a sly grin. "A participatory bonus, you know?"
She waited for Bridgette to respond, but no answer came.
Frowning, Alix ran up to walk beside her. "Yo, Bridge – you okay?"
"I'm fine," the Queen said much too quickly. And unconvincingly. "Just fine."
Alix pursed her lips, and her shoulders rose up beside her head. "Listen, if you ever want to talk about it –"
Bridgette stopped dead in her tracks. "There's nothing to talk about, Alix." Her firm voice was amplified by the hollow tunnel, carrying her words down for what seemed like miles. "The Forty Thieves are my family – the only one I have left now." Her face softened with sadness before she drew herself up and walked on. "If Marinette can accept her decision, I can accept mine."
The moment she finished those words, Bridgette felt her stomach tightening. In time, she added in her thoughts. I can accept mine in time.
Alix lingered behind her, albeit more apprehensively now. "Suit yourself," she muttered.
It suited Bridgette just fine. She was back where she belonged. Better yet – she had the Miraculous.
The oracle kwami inside would soon divulge the location of the Vanishing Isle, and its hidden treasure. My ancestor's legacy will be complete, Bridgette told herself, and the Hand of Midas will be back with its true master.
Her only regret was that the rest of her family couldn't partake in her glory. But like Bridgette had said: the Forty Thieves were all she had. They would be more than enough.
A feint light filled the tunnel, followed by fiery warmth that made Alix shiver with relief.
Then, the two thieves emerged into the open, mountain sanctum.
The city was empty.
Bridgette stopped again. Something was wrong here. An eerie feeling lingered everywhere like a nasty odour, and it made the hairs on the back of Bridgette's neck stick up.
Her predatory senses kicked in as she stepped cautiously onto the stone courtyard. The enormous statues greeted her with shadowed faces.
"I'm ho-ome!" the Queen of Thieves called out.
Ho-ome... o-ome... ome...
The echo faded away, and no one responded back.
Instead, six figures leapt out of the shadows, brandishing their weapons at the Queen and her lieutenant.
Bridgette stiffened, her brow creasing as she beheld the faces of their welcoming committee.
Kim had his bow, locking an arrow directly at the Queen. Juleka had a pair of knives. Ivan had his club. Rose fished out her special pellets out of her bag. Mylene and Max both had small swords.
Together, they formed a semi-circle and ganged up on Bridgette and Alix. Their stern faces bore nothing but guilt.
Bridgette was so stunned by the sight of her chosen Seven – her best friends – that she began stepping away.
Alix followed suit, putting a protective hand on the Queen's arm.
But the pair soon found themselves pressing their backs against the face of a giant, stone tiger.
I taught them too well, Bridgette thought morbidly.
"Guys?" Alix asked, glancing around at the hostile thieves. "Why don't you look happy to see us?"
Someone behind the six friends chuckled cruelly, "Oh, but we are."
The blood drained from Bridgette's face in a second, and she could barely breathe. Her thoughts spun around in circles of dread and denial.
But the moment she saw the others part away to allow the tall, dark man through, the Queen of Thieves realized with a pang that it wasn't a trick.
Having known him for a third of her life, she really shouldn't have been surprised.
"In fact," Hawkmoth said as the firelight shined brightly upon his silver face, "we're thrilled."
Alix gasped. Her eyes were almost as wide as her green visors.
Bridgette, on the other hand, found herself staring numbly into the eyes of her Seven. She knew them all by name, by trade, and by heart. Why were they betraying her? What sort of promises did Hawkmoth make them? Was he blackmailing them?
Whatever the reason, the Queen of Thieves doubted her friends had any choice in the matter. Hawkmoth always was a... persuasive man.
Bridgette clenched her fists and lifted her chin, ignoring the weapons pointed at her. "You are no longer one of us, Hawkmoth," she snarled with seventeen years' worth of hatred. "As per the Code, you should be executed for trespassing."
Her old mentor smirked. "You forgot one very important detail," he pointed out. "The fight was supposed to be to the death. Ladybug didn't kill me, so our Challenge is not yet finished." Hawkmoth's eyes darkened with cold malice. "Perhaps I'll drop in on her wedding and surprise her with a rematch."
The threat made Bridgette's frozen veins thaw with burning rage.
For the first time since she had left Agreste, she was glad that her little sister wasn't here to witness Hawkmoth's fury. Or Bridgette's.
"You will never go near my sister again," the Queen of Thieves stated. "Not as long as I draw breath."
"That remains to be seen," said the swordsman. "But before I deal with Ladybug, I have some business with you first. Preferably alive."
He turned to the other thieves. "Take them."
Bridgette moved protectively in front of Alix as their friends and comrades swarmed them.
But she didn't fight back. Thief or no thief, she never attacked her friends.
They tied up the prisoners and made their way down to the secret harbour beyond the stone tapestry, where a small ship lay waiting in the cove.
It was more of a large boat than a ship, with only one sail and a helm. But it was big enough for seven people to crew it.
Bridgette moved willingly as Kim and Ivan helped her onto the boat. Alix followed close behind, her shoulders and elbows doing a funny dance as she squirmed through her bonds.
"Hurry, my friend," Bridgette breathed over her shoulder in a bare whisper.
"I'm wriggling, I'm wriggling!" Alix growled through her teeth.
Max and Juleka hoisted the sail and secured the cobweb of rigging that strung about the boat. Ivan handed Alix over to Kim before heading over to the wheel. Bridgette and her lieutenant followed Mylene to the bow, where Rose was holding the Miraculous delicately in her hands.
Hawkmoth watched everything with narrow eyes. "I'm growing impatient, Bridgette," he said, stabbing his cane repeatedly onto the deck. "Ask the question."
Rose meekly walked over and held the peacock brooch in front of Bridgette. Her hands were shaking.
The Queen of Thieves tried not to look conspicuous as she said, "We need to be, uh..."
"A little further," Alix said, masking the hidden message with stubbornness.
"Yes! Further out to sea!" Bridgette stated. "It's the only way we'll know for sure."
"We're not moving one inch until I have assurances that the Hand of Midas is real," Hawkmoth growled, drawing his sword and lifting it up at Bridgette. "Ask it now!"
Alix gave Bridgette a pleading look, but it wasn't out of fear. "Just do it, Bridge. Better now than never."
The Queen caught the sly gleam in her friend's sea-blue eyes, and she sighed with feigned defeat.
Turning back to Rose, Bridgette stared at the peacock brooch and spoke with her regal voice, "Where can we find the Hand of Midas?"
FLASH!
Everyone cried out as the entire cove filled with blinding, blue light.
At the same time, Bridgette heard the sound of a fist pounding into flesh, someone toppling onto the deck, and the speedy, thudding footsteps of someone running before they vanished instantly.
Smiling, Bridgette inched her eyes open... and her mouth dropped when she beheld the miniscule but radiant form of Duusu.
Hawkmoth and the others shielded their eyes as they stared in awe at the oracle kwami.
Her long, blue tail-feathers fanned out behind her as she spoke kindly, "The Vanishing Isle will appear at dawn. I will show you the way."
The thieves watched as Duusu curled up into a ball and became a glowing orb of blue.
Then, it jettisoned itself through the opening in the cove and shot out to sea. It shrank to the size of a gnat and disappeared beyond the horizon.
Then... the sky lit up with a beam of brilliant, purple light. Tendrils of pink wisped along the field of blue, and it stood high like a thin, glowing pillar against the backdrop of night.
The young thieves gasped and murmured excitedly amongst each other.
Bridgette grinned smugly. "There's your heading... my king," she told Hawkmoth.
The former King of Thieves turned to his former apprentice... only to see Kim groaning on his knees and holding his middle.
"Where's Timebreaker?" Hawkmoth snapped, glancing around. "You lost her?"
"She..." Kim winced before heaving a heavy breath. "The light was so bright... I couldn't see her... and she hit hard, man."
Bridgette wanted to laugh, but all she could think of was Alix. Be safe.
Hawkmoth shot the Queen a hard glare, but she only shrugged. "Tie her to the mast," he ordered with a low tone. "And cast out! That light is our target!"
Along the cliff overlooking the sea, Alix watched from atop her horse as the small ship sailed towards the bright beam shooting out of the horizon.
It was narrow, which meant it was quite a ways away. It would take the thieves until morning to reach the light, give or take a few hours.
Alix prayed it would be enough time for her to get the help she needed.
She knew it was a long-shot. Heck, she wasn't even sure it would work. But the pink-haired speedster had to try. The life of her best friend, along with those of the friends Hawkmoth had forced into servitude, were at stake.
Hang in there, you guys. I'll be back soon.
Kicking her horse into gear, Alix turned away from the sea and charged straight into the open desert, towards the city of Agreste.
Towards the one person who had any chance of helping her.