Chapter 18: An Insane Plan and An Uneasy Truce
Obeying his master's orders, Rapier continued to watch as the battle unfold, while waiting for the other lieutenants to show up, on top of a building facing the Louvre. His will was to go against the orders given to him, and jump into action, spreading further chaos in what looked like the most chaotic battle he had ever seen. But he knew that if attempted to do such a thing, Hawk Moth would punish him severely. Seeing what was happening, the urge to disobey Hawk Moth's orders grew with each passing second.
"Where are those idiots?! What's taking them so long to get here?!" -Rapier thought to himself, without taking his eye off the battle that was happening on the other side of the river.
He did not have to wait long for an answer, as about a minute later, Reptile, Brutus and Madame Romani showed up. Just like rapier, they were ready to fulfil their master's orders and take on the Miraculous Team, as well as La Paon.
"Took you long enough to get here!" -Rapier commented, clearly upset, before making contact with his master. –"Hawk Moth, they're here! What is it that you want us to do?!" -he said, telepathically, with his voice echoing inside
"Watch your tongue, Rapier! You would do good to show proper respect for our master, by not addressing him that way." -Brutus warned him.
"Whatever! If he has a problem with the way I address him, then he can tell me!" -Rapier told Brutus. –"And you're not the boss of me, so stop giving me advices and orders! I didn't ask for any of you!" -he said, practically spitting the words in Brutus face.
"This Rapier doesn't respect anyone. And worse, he clearly doesn't know his place, nor does he understand that bravado isn't enough to win a battle." -Brutus thought to himself. –"How can the master tolerate such behaviour from him, is a mystery for me." -he thought.
This was not the first time that Rapier talked to Hawk Moth, as if he was his equal, instead of his superior. Ever since he was recruited by the holder of the moth miraculous, the flying lieutenant saw himself as the best of them, and his swollen pride had given him the confidence to even go up against Hawk Moth's orders, more than once. And no matter how many times he was punished, he did not change his ways. That alone made Brutus' blood boil. Neither him, nor the other lieutenants addressed their master that way. And to him, there was nothing more important than respect and sense of duty towards their master, which were things Rapier had. To him, he was nothing more than a loose cannon that needed to be put in his place.
"Rapier, you, Reptile and Madame Romani will go after the heroes." -Hawk Moth said. –"Take advantage that their busy dealing with that Sentimonster, and get their miraculouses." -he ordered them.
"About time!" -Rapier exclaimed with a cocky voice, while letting out a laugh. –"I tell ya, this is going to be fun!" -he said, while rubbing his hands together in anticipation.
"Yes, master." -Reptile said. –"I have a score to settle with some of them. Namely two heroes who dress up as an antelope, and a dragonfly." -he thought to himself, as he pulled his switchblade from his pocket.
"Very well, master." -Madame Romani said, as she made her crystal ball appear. –"But what about Brutus?" -she asked Hawk Moth, who promptly answered that question.
"Brutus, I want you to deal with La Paon and bring me her miraculous." -Hawk Moth ordered him.
"It shall be done, master." -Brutus declared. –"Her miraculous will be yours, as well as her head." -he said.
"But, master, why should he deal with La Paon?! I'm just as capable as him!" -Madame Romani shouted, indignant.
"Because I said so. And if you do not want to end up facing my wrath, you will do as you're told." -Hawk Moth warned her, with a menacing and cold voice echoing in Romani's head. –"Do I make myself clear?" -he asked her, in the same tone as before.
There was silence one could cut with a knife, after that threat from Hawk Moth to Madame Romani. She knew better not to ignore Hawk Moth's threats. More times than she could remember, she had been punished, both physically and mentally by him, for disobeying him, or failing him.
"If he wants me to take down those brats, then I'll do just that. But if I see the opportunity, I'll go after that La Paon and kill her." -Madame Romani thought to herself.
"Good. Then, go. Attack." -Hawk Moth ordered. –"Attack both La Paon and the Miraculous heroes. Bring me their miraculouses." -he said, as an evil smirk appeared on his face.
Thanks to the combined efforts of Corbeau Noire and Arachnid, the stone dragons had been restrained, and were now being held by Corbeau's living shadows and Arachnid's lasso. Louve Grise and Panda Roux, who had brought them there, by turning themselves into bait, were now trying to catch their breaths, hoping to join their friends in holding the creatures, soon.
"Hold them down!" -Arachnid yelled at Corbeau Noire. –"We have to give them a little bit more time to get things gone."
"I'm trying, but these guys are stronger than they look!" -Corbeau Noire told him, as she gritted her teeth, due to the sheer strength she was making use of, just to control the numerous shadows, which were having a hard time gripping the stone dragons.
"I know, right?!" -Arachnid said. –"Look, when I give the signal, we both release them and make them follow us!" -he said, as he strived to hold both creatures with his lasso.
"O-Okay!" -Corbeau Noire said, as she ordered the shadows under her control, to tighten their grip around the stone dragons' wings and tails.
"Don't you guys worry. We'll help you with them, in a minute." -Louve Grise said. –"Just give us a moment to catch our breaths." -she said.
Creating a pathway for Surtr to move, without deviating from its course, Carapace was hopeful Grizzly Bear and Dragonfly would be able to make it follow them to the middle of the pathway, where they would meet the stone dragons, which would be lured there by Corbeau Noire and Arachnid, where Surtr would then crush them under its feet. It was a simple plan, yet dangerous at the same time. But Arachnid believed it was going to work, and so did the others.
Seeing that Carapace was almost finished, Arachnid decided to warn Corbeau it was nearly time for them to make their move. He knew he did not need to tell her that, but reassuring her, helped him not to stress out further.
"Okay, it's moving this way. Just a few more seconds and these things will be History." -Arachnid said. –"It'll be nice to have one less thing to worry about." -he commented.
"I wouldn't be so sure about us having one less thing to worry about." -Corbeau Noire declared. –"We've got company, everyone." -she warned the others.
Corbeau Noire had seen that move more than once. The thick fog that was covering the ground and moving like it had a mind of its own, was not going to fool anyone, who had seen it before. That was all part of a dramatic entrance, courtesy of Madame Romani, who made the fog around her dissipate. And when she did that, she revealed that standing next to her was Reptile, and above them was Rapier.
"Just when we think that things couldn't get any worse, these guys show up." -Panda Roux commented, with a grim voice. –"Either Hawk Moth wants to take advantage of us being attacked by La Paon to get our miraculouses, or he's got a bone to pick with her too, and sees getting our miraculouses as a bonus." -he thought to himself.
"We'll deal with them! You guys just make sure those things get turned into dust!" -Louve Grise told Corbeau and Arachnid. –"Just what we needed; these bozos." -she thought to herself. –"Let's get him, Panda!"
"I'm right behind you, wolf-girl!" -Panda Roux exclaimed, following Louve.
Louve Grise did not hesitate to attack Madame Romani, who also didn't hesitate to cast several illusions that attacked her. These were demonic dogs and giant snakes with teeth as long as stalactites and thrice as sharp. Using her ice breath, she attempted to freeze, while making her way to the gypsy witch, who quickly understood that unlike some of the heroes, Louve was one that preferred a more hand-to-hand approach. At the same time, Panda Roux dealt with Reptile, who was anxious to sink his switchblade into the chest of every single member of the team and carve out their hearts, before removing their miraculouses.
"Can't you idiots see that we're busy?!" -Panda Roux asked him, as he used his spear to swoop Reptile's feet, only for him to jump over him and cut his left cheek, but not too badly.
"That's why we're here." -Reptile hissed at him. –"Our master figures that you'll be easy prey." -he taunted him, before attacking him again.
"Easy prey?! Sorry to rain on your parade, idiot… literally! But we're never easy prey for the likes of you!" -Panda Roux said, as he shrank his spear, turning it into a pen, and quickly designed a rain cloud, bringing it to life, soaking Reptile. –"How do you like that, lizard breath'" -he mocked him.
"You think soaking me wet is going to stop me?!" -Reptile asked, as he charged against him, only for Panda to leap over his head.
"No. But this will!" -Panda Roux smirked, as he landed, and brought another drawing to life.
One of the good things about Panda's powers, was that he could create just about anything, as long as it created one thing at the time, and it did not take all of its energy. And for that occasion, he knew from the start how he was going to deal with Reptile. After soaking him, he felt a little bit of freezing wind would do him some good. Bringing the drawing of a large air conditioner set on "Freeze" to life, the wind coming out of it, hit Reptile right on the face and he began to feel his energy disappearing. Shivering, Reptile fell to his knees, as he dropped his switchblade.
"S-So… S-So c-c-cold…." -Reptile shivered.
"Too bad you're cold blooded-ish. I don't know why we don't use this trick on you, more often." -Panda Roux said. –"But I do know this. I know I'm going to make sure that tomorrow, you won't want to get out from under the rock you'll crawl under tonight, Reptile." -he said, as he turned his spear back to its regular size, and got ready to use it on the lizard man.
And while Louve and Panda dealt with Madame Romani and Reptile, up in the sky, Rapier had set his eyes on Dragonfly, who was forced to abandon her initial assignment of serving as bait for Surtr, to deal with him. Ever since Rapier joined Hawk Moth's ranks, Dragonfly was forced to refine her aerial combat skills to meet Rapier's own combat skills. She still considered herself the radical queen of the skies of Paris, but she knew the bird-man was more than a match for her. Throwing her frisbee at him, she failed to hit him.
"Why is it that creeps like this guy always target me?! Is it because I manage to get on their nerves, or something?!" -Dragonfly thought to herself, only to answer her own questions. –"Oh, who are you trying to kid, Alix?! Of course, that's why! You're always getting on their nerves and beating them to a pulp. It's only normal they want your head!" -she thought, when her train of thought got interrupted, upon dodging one of Rapier's razor-sharp feathers, which missed her by mere inches. –"Hey, bird-brain! Why don't you come here and fight me with your own hands, instead of trying to use me for target practice?! Or are you chicken?!"
She just could not help herself. Instead of just trying to beat her opponent, Dragonfly felt the need to taunt it. No matter how hard she tried, she just felt the need to do it. That tended to get her into a lot more trouble than she usually bargained for. Not that that would prevent her from having fun doing it. Her mother had always taught her that there was nothing wrong about having fun, while doing any kind of work. And saving Paris from Hawk Moth and his cronies, was something she enjoyed doing, no matter how hard sometimes it was.
"I'll show you, who's chicken, little girl!" -Rapier yelled, as he charged against her.
"Call me little girl again, and you're going to swallow my fist, creep!" -Dragonfly shouted, as she dove under him, evading his attack.
"You talk big, but are you really going to do something about it?!" -Rapier laughed, as he twirled in the air to face Dragonfly and threw two hails of razor-sharp feathers at her.
Dodging Rapier's attack, and tired of him, Dragonfly decided to punch the daylights of him. Spinning as fast as she could, she dashed towards him, making him think she was going to hit him, only to stop and throw her frisbee at his head, hoping to take advantage of the element of unpredictability. But this failed, and Rapier was able to grab her, by placing his arms around her in a bear hug. Struggling to get free, Dragonfly knew she had to do something, or otherwise she was going to end up the same way she did, when she fought Rapier for the very first time.
"Like I said once, you've got spunk." –Rapier whispered at Dragonfly's ear, in a low, almost disturbing voice, before letting out a maniacal laugh, which pierced her eardrum. -"But it's over, now. Struggle all you want, I'm not letting you go." -he said, as he began to squeeze her, as she felt her ribcage starting to break in more than one place. –"It'll all be over soon. The pain and your life…"
But before he could finish that sentence, he felt a blunt impact on the back of his head, which forced him to release Dragonfly from his grasp, while falling several meters, before he could regain his balance once more. Looking up, he saw that what had happened had been the handiwork of none other than Queen Bee. She had finished helping the fireman pour out the flames on the museum's rooftop, and seeing Dragonfly in trouble, made her priority to help her.
"That guy's got a head as hard as a coconut." -Queen Bee commented, as she rubbed her knuckle. –"Are you alright?" -she asked Dragonfly.
"I… I am now." -Dragonfly answered, as she took deep breaths and massaged her chest. –"If you hadn't showed up, that bastard would've broken my ribs and stopped my heart." -she said, as she took one long deep breath.
"Need a hand dealing with him?" -Queen Bee asked Dragonfly.
"Sure." -Dragonfly said. –"Help me take this guy for a spin!" -she told her, while looking Rapier in the eyes. –"It's time for him to know the meaning of pain, the hard way."
At the same time, Arachnid's plan to deal with the stone dragons was already in motion. Noticing that Dragonfly had problems of her own, Carapace and Grizzly Bear decided they would have to do without her. Taking the lead, the turtle hero and Grizzly got Surtr's attention and made it follow them through the path the turtle hero had come up with.
"Come on, big guy! Come and get us!" -Carapace yelled at Surtr.
"Here's another incentive to come after us, fool!" -Grizzly Bear exclaimed, as he jumped and punched Surtr on its right lower leg.
Attacking them with its sword, Surtr did just as they predicted. The gigantic Sentimonster followed them, attempting to kill them. Running as fast as they could, they did not look back, as they heard Surtr's moving behind them. It was at this moment that Arachnid knew it was time for them get the next part of the plan into motion.
"Okay, it's time! Release them!" -Arachnid told Corbeau Noire, as he loosened his lasso.
"Here we go!" -Corbeau Noire said, as she ordered the shadows to let go of the stone dragons.
Free from the heroes' grasp, the creatures' breath fire on them, just before taking up to the sky. Afraid that they might fly away, Corbeau Noire ordered her own shadow to stretch and grab the creatures' necks, pulling them down, hoping that would get them to try and chase her.
"Come here! If you want to go and chase anybody, then you can start with me and Arachnid!" -Corbeau Noire yelled at them, as they breath fire on them once more.
"I think you pissed them off!" -Arachnid exclaimed, as he ran from the flames.
"No kidding, Sherlock! Move!" -Corbeau Noire exclaimed.
"Since when, do you act all sarcastic?!" -Arachnid asked her.
"Since we're being chased by these guys! Now, stop with those questions and run!" -Corbeau Noire yelled.
Running towards each other, the heroes knew that what they were about to do was dangerous, but fear was not something that worried them. They had all agreed that if things went sideways, Carapace would create a shield to protect him and Grizzly, while Corbeau Noire would grab Arachnid and fly away.
Determined to eliminate their targets, both Surtr and the stone dragons pursued them, one trying to crush them, the other trying to barbecue them. To make sure that Surtr kept his eyes on them, and not on the stone dragons that were chasing, Grizzly Bear called it out, as he kept running. Each duo thought they were going to be either crushed or barbecued. But like it happened before, they put their nervousness aside and trusted each other. And like a well-oiled machine, they did as Arachnid had told them. Once he and Corbeau Noire got close enough to Carapace and Grizzly Bear, they turned back and sprinted the way they had come from, with the other following them. This confused the Stone dragons who tried to attack them, only for them to defend themselves, using Carapace's shield ability. As expected, Surtr continued to chase them, and did not realize the stone dragons were in its way.
Realizing they had been duped, the stone dragons still tried to fly out of there, but it was too late. Stomping on them, there was a distinct stone crushing sound heard, as they were reduced to rubble. A second later, numerous trails of blue smoke escaped from beneath Surtr's massive foot, signalling that whatever was controlling the stone dragons, was gone.
"And they're History!" -Carapace exclaimed, smiling.
"I love it when a plan comes together!" -Arachnid exclaimed, celebrating that triumph.
"You're just saying that, because it was your plan." -Grizzly Bear joked. –"But it was a good one, I'll give you that." -he admitted. –"Dangerously crazy, but good, nonetheless."
"Now, we just have to worry about the big guy… and those freaks working for Hawk Moth." -Corbeau Noire said, as she looked over her shoulder and saw Louve Grise fighting Madame Romani. –"I'm going to give her a hand!" -she said, as she ran to help the wolf heroine.
"Go! We'll handle this guy." -Grizzly Bear said.
At the same time, Ladybug, Chat Noir and Forest Doe continued to fight La Paon, as their battle left the Jardin des Tuileries behind, and made its way to the Place de la Concorde. Like it happened before, upon seeing the Miraculous heroes fighting what seemed to be an Akuma, most people in the square ran away, while some remained to see what was happening. And like always, one of the heroes had to tell them to run. This time, it was Ladybug who ordered them to run, being forced to use her yo-yo as a kind of whip to scare them away.
"Get away! Do you guys want to die?!" -Ladybug yelled at the bystanders. –"It's always the same old thing!" -she thought to herself.
Attacking Chat Noir and Forest Doe with her rapier, La Paon suddenly felt something was not right. She had experienced that feeling before. One could say it was quite familiar. It was the distinct feeling of losing one of its creations. In the past, she felt more times than she could remember. And she did not expect to feel it again, so soon.
"How dare they?!" -La Paon yelled. –"Your friends did a number on those stone dragons I broughs to life!" -she said, enraged. –"But if they think they can get away with it, they have another thing coming!"
Reversing her rapier to its fan form, in one quick swoop, La Paon pulled several feathers from it and sent them flying into the air. These quickly began to change shape, until they resembled what many would describe as blue and red feathered bat-like creatures. Flapping their wings, they flew in the direction of the Louvre, when one of them was taken down by one of Forest Doe's arrows. She was about to fire another one, when La Paon once more transformed her fan into a rapier, and threw it at Doe, who managed to dodge it.
"You! How dare you destroy one of my precious creations?!" -La Paon yelled at Forest Doe.
"Precious or not, I'm not going to let you complicate things for my friends!" -Forest Doe told her.
"Your friends are going to end up, just like the three of you… dead!" -La Paon laughed, as she made her rapier show up back in her hand. –"They will be killed ether by my feathered creatures, or by Surtr." -she continued to laugh, though unlike before, this laugh of hers was filled with rage. –"They will accomplish what Hawk Moth's Akumas weren't able to do."
"You underestimate us, lady!" -Ladybug told her.
"And that's going to be your downfall." -Chat Noir added. –"Doesn't matter if you think your precious Sentimonsters and other creations you come up with are stronger than any Akumas we've faced so far. We'll find a way to defeat them and wipe the floor with them." -he said.
"If we don't wipe it with you, first." -Forest Doe shot at her.
The cheek of the heroes, when saying that, was beginning to get on La Paon's nerves, and she was not going to let that go unchecked. Gritting her teeth, she was about to strike them again, when a new opponent entered the ring, surprising her and the heroes. Feeling something approaching her from behind, she dodged to the left, to see a spear hitting the ground, and sink its tip into the concrete, before turning to dust. Looking over her shoulder, she saw a redhead man with golden and black armour
"Hold it, right there!" -Brutus yelled at La Paon.
Looking at him, La Paon immediately saw that he was not an Akuma. But she would not even need to have looked at him to know that. Just from feeling the magical energy that came out of him, was enough for her. She knew that he was one of Hawk Moth's lieutenants, the same way the heroes knew that Brutus showing up meant only one thing; trouble.
"From the way you look, I take it you work for Hawk Moth." -La Paon said.
"That is correct. My name is Brutus." -Brutus said, identifying himself.
"Brutus, huh?" -La Paon asked, as she looked Hawk Moth's lieutenant in the eyes. –"I guess Hawk Moth sees himself as too important to fight his own battles." -she said. –"He always loved to let others do the fighting for him. Always afraid to dirty his hands."
"You will regret saying those things about my master." -Brutus said, as he pulled a halberd from his chest, and pointed it at La Paon. –"If he has chosen me to deal with you, then it's because he deems me more than capable of handling you, and more importantly, defeating you." -he said.
"Surely, you jest." -La Paon said, before laughing. –"You are nothing more than a glorified Akuma! I'll deal with you, the same way I will deal with these three." -she continued to laugh.
"Cease that infernal laughter and face me!" -Brutus said, as he readied himself to attack her. –"Let the metal of our weapons decide the fate of our fight!" -he cried.
"Very poetic." -La Paon said, with a voice filled with sarcasm, while looking over her shoulder to Ladybug and the others. –"Don't go anywhere. Once I deal with this brute, I'll finish you off." -she laughed.
Still laughing, she attacked Brutus head on. The sound of the metal from both her rapier and his halberd meeting each other, echoed in the air. This was followed by several blows, with the two of them trying to their best to disarm one another. Observing the fight, Ladybug, Chat Noir and Forest Doe quickly understood that La Paon and Brutus were equally matched. While La Paon's strikes were not as strong as Brutus', she made it up, thanks to her speed. And the same thing could be said about Brutus. He was not as fast as La Paon, but each of his blows were powerful and accurate.
"What do you say, if we give him a hand?" -Forest Doe asked Ladybug and Chat Noir.,
"Should we?" -Chat Noir asked back.
"Well, it's like they say. The enemy of my enemy, is my friend. And in our case, he is, for now." -Ladybug said, as she began to swing her yo-yo. –"Let's do this!" -she said, as she ran towards La Paon and Brutus.
Following Ladybug's lead, Forest Doe and Chat Noir engaged La Paon into combat, fighting side by side with Brutus. The battle changed locations, with them progressing outside Place de la Concorde, and making their way into Pont de la Concorde, where there was a traffic jam, caused by people abandoning them on the street, as they tried to look for a safe place to hide. Making use of them, Brutus decided to hurl them at La Paon, but failing to hit her, as she avoided them, moving around as if she was dancing.
Propelling himself forward, with the help of his staff, Chat Noir tried to use Cataclysm on her, only for her to see him coming, and attack him, slashing his chest with her rapier. Hitting the ground, Chat gritted his teeth in pain, as he looked down and saw the tear on his chest. A little blood was coming out of the cut, but nothing too serious. Knowing he had to get up, he tried to do so, only to see La Paon coming towards him, ready to stab him. To his surprise, Brutus blocked La Paon's attack with his hammer, thus saving him, and forcing her to retreat. Looking Hawk Moth's lieutenant in the eyes, he was about to thank him, when he prevented him from doing so, with what one could call a warning.
"Don't think any of this, changes anything. I will still defeat you and take your miraculous, along with your friends'. But for now, my objective is her and her miraculous." -Brutus told Chat Noir, before charging against La Paon, once more.
"I think I can live with that." -Chat Noir said, still incredulous about what had happened, as he looked at the fight opposing La Paon to Brutus. –"O-Ouch… this stings a lot." -he said, as he touched his injury. –"Hope this doesn't leave a mark. It would be hard for me to explain this."
Watching the two of them fighting, Chat Noir thought the whole scene was surreal. And he was not the only one. Forest Doe and Ladybug had the same thought, as they made their way to check on Chat Noir. Never in their life, did they imagine seeing one of their enemies fighting alongside them, facing another enemy. But like always, there was the usual doubt, which itself was not a bad thing, in that situation. After all, Brutus was still their enemy, and there was no guarantee that he would not turn against them, if he was ordered by Hawk Moth.
"Are you okay?" -Ladybug asked him, worried.
"Don't worry, milady. It's just a cut." -Chat Noir said. –"You should see when I cut myself shaving.
"Save the jokes for another time, silly kitty." -Ladybug said. –"We need to focus, if we're going to take down that woman, with a little help from Brutus." -she said.
"Do you really think we can trust him?" -Forest Doe asked them.
"Maybe." -Ladybug said. –"If this was Reptile or Madame Romani, or that crazy Rapier, I would have my doubts. But Brutus is someone who values honour and respect, more than anything. If he says that he won't attack us, then he won't." -she said. –"Still, that doesn't mean we can trust him entirely."
"Agreed. Like you said before, the enemy of my enemy is my friend, for now." -Chat Noir said. –"After all, he's still working for Moth breath. Just because he's not trying to kill us now, doesn't mean he won't try it later on." -he added, agreeing with Ladybug.
"So, let's help him fight her. But if he tries anything fishy, we let him have it." -Forest Doe said.
"Pretty much." -Ladybug said. –"Keep your eyes peeled, and let's take La Paon out. Oh, and one more thing. If Brutus manages to get his hands on her miraculous, take it from him. We're not letting Hawk Moth get his dirty hands on it, no matter what. Since he created it, for all we know, he could want it for himself, instead of destroying it." -she told them.
"You got it, milady." -Chat Noir said.
Determined to stop La Paon, the three heroes charged together, hoping if they combined their fighting routines, they would be able to counter her attacks. This proved to be effective, but not for long, as La Paon started to display other fighting moves that she had not used yet, countering the heroes attempts to defeat her. The only one who seemed to have the upper hand in that fight was Forest Doe, who continued to resort to her invisibility technique. But even she could not remain invisible forever, and once she became visible, she became a target. Brutus continued to swing his hammer at the holder of the peacock miraculous, without much luck.
"I will not let you make a fool out of me! Not when my master is counting on me taking your head and your miraculous to him!" -Brutus declared.
Grabbing one of the abandoned cars, he hurled it at La Paon, which she easily dodged. Enraged, he quickly grabbed another and threw it at La Paon, before pulling two Kukuri knives from his chest and attacking her with them. He was about to stab her with them, when she turned around and block them with her rapier.
"Nice trick! But I saw that one coming from miles away!" –La Paon exclaimed, before kicking him, sending him fly a few meters in the air. –"You'll have to do better than that!" -she yelled, before screaming in pain.
"Mind if I try my luck?!" -Chat Noir asked her, after using Cataclysm on her back.
La Paon had seen Brutus' trick, but she failed to do so with Chat's. Gasping for air, she did her best to ignore the agonizing pain shooting through his back. She was not expecting it, and that just made her angry at the
"Now, you really done it, cat boy." -La Paon glared at him. –"If you want to play dirty, then, I'm going to show you and the others how we did things, back when I was trying to conquer Camelot and the rest of the world!" -she told him.
Determined to have them off her back, La Paon felt it was time to shake things up a little. Sticking her rapier into the ground, she unleashed a blue energy wave that swept everything in its path. The three heroes and Brutus flew several meters in the air, before landing on the ground or on top of one of the turnaround vehicles. Ladybug tried to use her yo-yo as a grappling hook, on one of the bridge's light posts, but luck was not on her side, and she ended up falling on her face. Hurriedly, she tried to get up, but in doing so, provided La Paon with the perfect way to get her off guard. Moving like a bullet, La Paon positioned herself behind Ladybug and grabbed her. Trapping her legs, she put her arm under the scarlet heroine's neck, and began to choke her.
"What a lovely pair of miraculous earrings. I wonder how I will look with them?" -La Paon said, as she continued to choke Ladybug, who was struggling to breathe. –"Let's see how they look on me, shall we?" -she asked, before letting a maniacal cackle..
Ladybug tried to break free from La Paon's grip, but she was stronger than she looked. She continued to struggle, but it was no use. She was stronger than any of the enemies she had faced until then. The only one who came close to that kind of strength was Hawk Moth himself. As she felt La Paon's fingers touching her left earlobe, reaching for the earring, she saw only one way out of that predicament. Opening her mouth as wide as she could, she sank her teeth into La Paon's arm, biting her as hard as she could. Yelling in pain, La Paon's choke her even harder, trying to make her lose conscience.
"That was very stupid! For that, I'm going to snap your neck, little girl." -La Paon declared, when she felt a strong pain on her back.
That strong pain was something hitting her was Rena Rouge's foot. This made La Paon release Ladybug, who rolled over the ground. Looking up, she saw her best-friend staring La Paon in the eyes, while preparing to beat her. The villainess attacked her, but Rena quickly countered her, by delivering a powerful uppercut to her chin and a well-placed round-kick, only for La Paon to try and stab her.
"Keep your mittens away from me and my friend, you witch!" -Rena Rouge exclaimed, as she shoved the upper tip of her flute-staff into La Paon's face, making her yell in pain, as she backed off. –"You okay, girl?" -she asked Ladybug.
"I am now, thanks." -Ladybug smiled, as Rena helped her up, without taking her eyes from La Paon, who had placed a couple of meters between them.
"You got here just in time." -Chat Noir said, as he and Forest Doe approached them. –"With your natural luck, I'm beginning to wonder if instead of having the fox miraculous, you should've been given the ladybug miraculous." -he joked.
"Thanks, but red isn't my colour. I'm more of a fan of orange." -Rena Rouge joked.
"Yeah, orange is definitely your colour, Rena." -Ladybug smiled at her, when she noticed Brutus approaching. –"Great, just what we needed!" -she exclaimed, as she readied herself to attack Brutus.
"Wait, don't! Don't worry He's on our side… sort of." -Chat Noir told her.
"Sort of on our side?" -Rena Rouge asked, suspicious, while looking at Brutus, who remained silent. –"Fine, but I'm keeping an eye on him, and the other on her." -she said, while pointing at La Paon.
Feeling that her last attack forced her to use a sizable piece of her power, La Paon needed to regain her strength back. But with four heroes to deal with, and one of Hawk Moth's lieutenants, that was not something she would have the opportunity to do. And to do that, she was going to need a little help.
"Come to me, Surtr!" -La Paon said, as her eyes glowed.
Hey, everyone! So, yeah, it took me nearly a month to update this fic, but I managed to do it, before the arrival of the Resident Evil 4 remake (just for a couple of hours, but still... xD). I'm about to go into the rabbit's hole and see where I end up. But I can promise you that for a couple of days, I won't think about Miraculous Ladybug. But don't worry, I'll do my best to write it, especially because over these last few days I've been quite inspired. Just allow me to finish the game first.
Regarding this chapter, it was a little bit complicated to write, especially with so many things happening at the same time. Still, I did enjoy writing it, and if I had to choose which part I had the most writing, then, that would be Ladybug, Chat and Doe's fight against La Paon, with a lttle help from Brutus, who we see here is helping them under a temporary truce. The following chapter is going to take place in a place which we've never stepped foot on in this AU, and if you guys are familiar with Paris' map, you will easily find out where it will be. I'll give you a clue, it's located in front of the Pont de la Concorde, where our heroes are battling La Paon (go check Paris' map, and you'll see where were going next).
As always, feel free to comment, fav and leave your suggestions to improve this and/or future fics.