As always, thank you to Khanofallorcs for being the beta for this chapter! :)
Chapter Nine
"So, um, Boss," Alec said, leaning up against the desk. "You got my suggestion, right? Co-anchor and all? Bringing some fresh blood to the station and all?"
The producer looked at him, frowning. "Don't you have to be on set right now?"
The TV host let out a laugh, though some of it seemed forced. "Actually I have fifteen minutes, our guest got delayed because of traffic, thought I'd take the chance to talk to you and all, since my schedule is pretty packed nowadays... Well, I'm sure you know how that is, Lucien. Lu, my man..."
Lucien sighed. "Look, Alec, this channel has built up a good name over the years, and that has been through following key guidelines. You're the face of the station, and people... they don't do that well with sudden changes, especially unnecessary ones. Bringing on a new host... that would hurt our ratings badly."
"Actually, I've done the math– and it actually depends on who you bring in. Not some no one from nowhere to build up, but someone who will bring the ratings with them."
"In other words, someone who would be expensive to hire?" Lucien said, and Alec gave him a small smile– but he just sighed in response. "Alec, we have a contract, and I have no intention of breaking that contract– and I hope you don't either."
"That contract was made when we didn't have like a dozen shows running!" Alec countered. "I'm hosting every. Single. One. It's running me to the bone, any break I have just for a chance to try to breathe– I don't have time to even see my daughter! I'm one person, man– I can't be everywhere at once!"
Lucien glanced at his watch. "If you want to reach your next set on time, I'd recommend you leave now."
"...Yes, sir," Alec said with gritted teeth, turning to leave the office. He didn't say much to his colleagues as he passed them in the halls, mind racing.
When he had first applied for this job at TVi he had been a nobody– but he had exactly the energy and the personality the young station had been looking for in their channel, someone to host whatever show came their way. It had been the perfect place for those with no name to bring their ideas to give them a chance– the little Paris station random and sporadic with what they aired. Impromptu game shows, contests, reality shows, and even an occasional documentary– he and his camera crew there for each one. Whatever had done well would stay and receive the funding it needed, others were dropped in favor of whatever fresh idea came their way.
Then their TV station had blown up with popularity following an episode of Alternative Truth, and the rest was history. Ratings had risen, larger names started appearing on their shows, and most of all, more ideas were presented to the team, and more shows began to be made– all of which he was expected to host, as it had always been for each show that aired– but he was beginning to reach his limit.
"M. Cataldi," his makeup artist beamed as he entered the studio. "Just in time, we were looking for you, come right this way!"
He let himself be led away, quick touches of makeup being applied as his clothes were straightened out, his assistant going over the script with him one last time. He was sure he had memorized the gist of it at some point, they all seemed to blur together nowadays. Alec let out a sigh as a microphone was pressed into his hand, and he looked up at the clock– two minutes before they went live.
"I'll be right back, left something in the break room," he called, and he gave his signature smile when he saw his worried crew. "Don't worry, I'll be back in a blink of an eye."
His smile faded as soon as he made his way into the breakroom, letting out an exhausted sigh as he leaned against the door. He'd be expected to spend the next hour smiling as if everything in the world was going his way, and Alec was more than willing to take a moment of just nothing, even if it would only be for a moment.
He saw something flicker out of the corner of his eye, glancing down just in time to see a black butterfly merge with his microphone. Alec began to panic– but that was all drowned out as he felt a new presence in his mind. The only thing in his focus was his frustration and exhaustion, and honestly nothing else mattered in the moment.
"Worked like a dog, but then kicked to the streets like a mutt when asking for a single scrap," the presence in his mind mused, her voice soft and alluring. "You've helped make the TVi station what it is, yet they refuse to ease you from the burdens you carry."
"I love being a host," Alec told her, holding his microphone tightly. "But this is starting to be too much, even for me. I don't have time to do anything but work– and that's all it's become now, work– there's nothing left to enjoy."
He felt his spark of anger grow, and the voice seemed satisfied with this. "I am Monarch, and I can help you with these trials you face. I can make your job enjoyable again, and I can give you the chance to do everything you both want and need to do."
"You can?" Alec said hopefully.
"Of course, Multiman," Monarch replied. "But in return I need you to do something for me– retrieve the Miraculouses of Crimson Beetle and Lady Noire. But I don't think you'll have any trouble overwhelming them, will you?"
Multiman grinned as dark bubbling energy engulfed him. "Of course not, Monarch."
Marinette loved Manon, she really did, she was like the little sister she had never had. But sometimes it was exactly that... she was like a little sister– meaning that no matter how much she adored the little girl she could be exhausting, overwhelming, and at times outright annoying.
"No, Manon– don't touch my designs!" Marinette yelped, leaping for the young girl as she opened up her sketchbook.
"But I wanna draw just like you!"
"Great, um, yes– great idea!" Marinette said, wheeling around to put the sketchbook on her desk, but falling to the ground in the same action as she turned back to make sure the girl hadn't gotten her hands on anything else. "Ow..."
Manon letting out a laugh was no surprise. The silent laughter from the kwami in her pocket wasn't really one either. "Ooo, this is a pretty color, I want to use these markers!"
She pushed herself to her feet, quickly pulling the markers from Manon's grasp. "We can't use those, these are fabric markers, we can only use them to draw on fabric."
"We can draw on fabric?!" Manon said in excitement, Marinette realizing her mistake a moment too late.
"Er– how about we go downstairs and watch TV?" Marinette said quickly. "You go down and pick a show, and I'm sure Mom will have a treat you can have, and I'll get some things for you to draw on while we watch a show?"
"Yes!" Manon said in excitement, lunging for the trapdoor, and Marinette sank down into a chair, letting out a sigh of relief as peace once again returned to her room. It only took Plagg a moment to phase out of her pocket, a disgruntled look on his face.
"I don't get why you humans are so keen on having those," Plagg muttered.
"Kids aren't so bad.. usually," Marinette said with a laugh, pulling out the collection of colored pencils she bought especially for when Manon came over. "Handful though, hence why I don't plan on being a mom until after university."
"Whatever, I'm going to take a nap down there while you watch the loud one," Plagg said, drifting up towards her loft.
"And what if there's an akuma?" She asked. "I already had to go looking for you during the Horrificator attack, you're staying with me."
"But your bed is so much better than your pocket..."
"Our food delivery should have been delivered by now, so that means there should be some camembert downstairs," Marinette replied, tucking the paper and color pencils under one arm– and moments later there was a blur of black diving into her pocket. It still surprised her how well cheese worked as a bribe with the little cat.
As she reached the family room she found Manon already in front of the TV, munching on some cookies as she flipped through some stations. She set out the art supplies in front of the young girl, who immediately laid them out on the coffee table, scribbling away. Marinette smiled, about to settle down on the couch with her own sketchbook– but a hiss from her pocket reminded her she had a promise to make good on, and she headed into the kitchen in search of camembert.
"Mari, Mari!" Manon called from the other room, causing Marinette to shove a wedge of cheese into her pocket as she rushed back to where the girl was.
"Is everything okay?" She cried as she rushed through the doorway.
Manon was grinning, pointing at the TV excitedly. "Lookie! It's my Daddy! He's on TV!"
Sure enough on the screen was Alec Cataldi, hosting the first episode of TVi's new show, Last Chance to Dance. Marinette let out a small sigh, coming to sit on the couch. "Yep, it sure is."
"On this show they have a bunch of dancers dance for a professional," she said the last word slowly, puffing up her chest. "Dad told me all about it– I hope we can see a ballerina!"
"A ballerina would be awesome to see," Marinette agreed. "Is this what you want to watch?"
"Yep!" Manon said, grabbing a pink colored pencil and scrubbing a tutu onto the person she had been drawing. "Do you like dancing, Marinette? I get to dance to music no one has heard before when Mom interviews singers!"
"I'm sure you're a much better dancer than me, with all that practice."
Manon grinned at her. "Of course I am– you'd just trip if you tried to dance!"
She rolled her eyes at this, though a smile tugged at her lips, and she flipped open to her latest design ideas– a variety of hat designs staring up at her. With the contest from Gabriel coming up she wanted to put forward her best work, though she had yet to find a perfect one. She began sketching a new one, not quite sure where she was going with it, as derby hats were something she hadn't done before.
She just hummed lightly as Manon talked on about the show, not really paying attention.
"Ooo, that dress is pretty!"
"Mmmhmm."
"That's dancing?"
"Mmm."
"Why is Dad wearing so much purple? He never wears purple."
"Yep..."
It wasn't until someone knocked at the door that she was pulled from her thoughts, jerking her head up. She hesitated for a moment, but knew that her parents would be busy in the bakery right now. She pushed herself to her feet, Manon still engaged with the dance show, heading over towards the front door.
"Hello– M. Cataldi?" Marinette blinked in surprise. "Um, what are you doing here?"
"Hello, Marinette," he said cheerfully. She had only met the man on a few occasions, since Manon spent most of her time with her mother. "I'm not interrupting, am I? I'm just here to pick up Manon."
"Oh, um, Mme Chamack wanted me to watch her for another hour or so... I swore she said you were too busy to have her over tonight." She shifted in the doorway.
Alec laughed, the sound warm and loud, and Marinette chuckled uncertainly. She wasn't being rude about it, right? She wasn't quite sure how their custody of Manon worked, but she knew that Nadja typically had her.
"Well, I was able to get some more free time in my schedule," he leaned up in the doorway. "Thought I'd spend the afternoon with my little girl since it's been so long. Don't worry, I'll make sure you're still paid the same, I'm sure you cleared your schedule to watch her," he scowled slightly. "I know how frustrating it can be to work with those."
"Um, sure?" Marinette stepped to the side. "Come on in, I'll go grab Manon, she's just coloring right now."
Alec stepped into the apartment, and Marinette headed back towards the family room, where sure enough she was still watching her dad's show. Marinette couldn't help but notice that Alec was wearing the same outfit from when the show was filmed– a lavender long sleeve shirt, and dark maroon pants. There was a logo of some kind on his shirt pocket, the same one on his microphone– was it one especially for the show? Usually the station just used the TVi logo.
She shook herself out of her thoughts. "Manon, your dad is here to pick you up."
The little girl jerked her head up. "Daddy is?"
"Yep," she said with a smile. "He's in the front room waiting for you."
Manon let out a cheer, grabbing the picture she had been coloring and bolting from the room. "Daddy!" She cried. "I thought I couldn't see you until next weekend!"
Marinette smiled as she watched Manon run and jump into Alec's arms, who spun her around once, bringing her into a hug. "I was able to get some extra time." He said happily, planting a kiss on her forehead. "Especially for you– what do you say we go and get some ice cream?"
Manon's eyes were wide. "Before dinner?"
"If you promise not to tell your mom, that is."
"Yes! Yes! Let's go, let's go right now!"
"Say goodbye to your babysitter first," Alec said, setting her and the ground. "And a thank you to her watching you too."
"Thank you, Marinette! Bye! See you next time!" Manon said swiftly, dragging her father towards the door. She laughed, and Alec let out a small chuckle, raising a hand in farewell.
"Bye, Manon," she said, moving forward to shut the door. "You two have fun."
"Byebye!" She called, and Marinette let out a small sigh. The extra free time was definitely more than welcome, especially if she was going to get paid the same. She locked the door behind them, before heading back to the family room to clean up Manon's art supplies before she settled down to focus on her derby hat once more.
"What a fantastic performance!" Marinette jumped slightly as she heard Alec's voice, glancing up to find the TV was still on. She reached for the remote to turn it off, when she paused slightly as she looked at the screen, looking at the small 'live' icon flashing in the corner.
...How was this episode being filmed live when Alec had been here just moments ago? Would the show really lie about that? What benefit would that give them?
Marinette's eyes drifted down to the strange logo on the microphone she had noticed earlier, her stomach twisted as she saw the small symbol of a butterfly, the same one that was on Alec's shirt.
Purple shirt. Not the TVi blue he always wore on the air.
"Plagg..." Marinette said slowly. "Who did I just send Manon off with?"
"Well, this isn't creepy at all," Lady Noire muttered as she hopped from rooftop to rooftop, her eyes trained on Alec and Manon as they wandered the streets of Paris. She was starting to wonder if perhaps she was overreacting– because the two of them hadn't done anything remotely suspicious in the time she had watched them. Alec had done exactly what he had promised– taking Manon to Andre's cart to get ice cream, and the two of them had gone to the park from there.
Currently the man was pushing his daughter on the swings, a genuine smile on his face as she laughed, begging to be pushed higher.
Lady Noir sighed, leaning back on the roof she was on, wondering what her life had come to. Here she was stalking father and daughter just because the man had been wearing an outfit with a butterfly on it. It's not like butterflies represented evil or anything, but after these last two months it had surely come to feel that way.
"Everything okay, Lady?" A voice asked, and she felt herself jumping in surprise, ears straight up in alarm as she leapt to her feet, she turned to see Crimson standing there, green eyes looking down at her in confusion.
"O-oh, hi," she said uncertainly, rubbing at the back of her neck. "What are you doing up here?"
"...Saw a post on the BeetleBlog that you were about," he finally said. "Came to make sure everything was alright, but it didn't seem like there was an akuma on the loose or anything."
She looked down at the playground, where Alec was now catching Manon as she went down the slide. "...No. There isn't," she closed her eyes. "I thought there might be, but honestly I think I was overreacting, saw something on TV and jumped to conclusions..."
He smiled, sitting next to her. "Sounds like an interesting story."
"Gets too close to identity things, I'm afraid," she replied, offering a half smile back.
"Kinda strange, isn't?" He asked, looking out over the streets and apartments. "We've been working together for a while now, but we really don't know anything about each other. I don't even know your name or what your face looks like."
"It's kinda weird, actually, thinking about you having a name aside from Crimson," she said after a moment. "Hmm... Victor."
"What?"
"You look like you could be a Victor," she said.
He laughed. "Not even close, I'm afraid."
"Umm... Crimson... Crim... Chris."
"Well if I'm Chris then you're La... Ladina."
"How did you know?"
"Wait– really?"
She stuck her tongue out at him. "Nope!"
"And why is this episode still airing?!"
Multiman looked up as he heard shouting as the commercial break began, everyone looking up to see Lucien storming up towards the first worker he came across, this happened to be his assistant, the poor woman backing up with wide eyes as the angry boss bore down on her. Multiman's hand tightened around his microphone, his distaste of the man rising to the front of his mind. He felt Monarch's presence take interest in his stirring emotions, but she said nothing as they watched the producer scream and shout.
"We have procedures to follow!" Lucien cried. "I don't care if we have to cancel the show– we do not record without all cast members here– do you hear me?!"
The woman had her hands up defensively. "B-but sir, everyone is here, I don't know what you mean–"
"Oh, are you all that blind?" He sneered. "I think a missing host is nothing but a red flag– we do not air anything without Cataldi on camera– is that clear?"
Multiman sneered slightly at the mention of his old name, the one the producer loved to throw around to the point that it didn't even sound like a name anymore. He twirled his microphone about, wondering how long it would take his producer to notice that he was in fact right here, doing his job as his contact both required and as he loved– his other responsibilities being left in the care of himself, of course.
"B-but M. Cataldi is here, sir," the woman said, pointing towards Multiman, and Lucien's gaze whipped towards his, eyes widening.
"Hello, Boss," he said cheerfully, smiling wide, but his eyes were cold. "Could you please leave my assistant alone? She has been nothing but lovely to me, and I don't like you shouting at her."
"Impossible," he whispered. "I just saw you at the coffee shop– we talked, you–"
Multiman shrugged. "Yeah, I am sure one of me was, I've always liked coffee breaks, but haven't been able to take my breaks there since they've gotten shorter and shorter." He took a step towards his boss. "Now look, you leave her alone. I'm here working as I need to, so nothing to get worked up over."
Lucien wheeled back towards the crew. "He was here the whole time? During recording?"
"Yes, sir," a cameraman said.
"Most animated I've seen him in weeks," another crew member commented. "We got good footage."
Lucien looked absolutely lost. "But... but I saw you. There's no way you could have been here, not when we were both–"
"Does it matter?" Multiman snapped. "I'm working as you so desperately wanted, and I've got another show to host as soon as this one is over, so don't waste my time."
"Um, we don't have any other recordings scheduled for tonight, M. Cataldi," his assistant said meekly. He smiled sweetly at her, as she most certainly didn't need more shouting.
"It's not through the station, don't worry– just another contract I need to honor."
Lucien snapped his head up with this. "You can't work with any other company or stations– that's in your contract!"
Multiman smirked. "It's personal business, Boss, nothing to worry yourself over. Now, if you'll excuse me, we're back on the air in two minutes."
"We're not done talking, Cataldi," he growled. "You've yet to explain a single thing to me, don't you dare turn your back on me again–!"
Multiman froze, before turning back towards his boss, eyes flashing purple. The man backed away at this, eyes impossibly wide as he walked towards him, voice going cold. "I'm not in the mood to deal with you at the moment," he said in a low voice. "But since I have one minute until we're on air again, I'll just have me deal with it."
He ignored the gasps that echoed through the studio as he aimed his microphone right at himself, a bright glow filling the room. As the burst of light faded there stood an exact copy of Mulitman appeared next to him, who opened his eyes, smiling at Lucien.
"Hello, Boss," the clone said. "How about we go to your office and talk about this?"
"Wh-what's going on?" Lucien stammered, pointing from the clone and back to the original. "What are you? What have you done with Alec?"
He turned back to him, grinning. "I'm afraid you overworked your dear Alec, Boss. But don't worry– I, Multiman, am more than capable of handling whatever you need me to do. I can work while we discuss the job, and all the while I can enjoy a nice break and an afternoon with my daughter– I can do everything I want and need to do."
The clone took a step forward, and Lucien scrambled back towards the fearful staff, who didn't seem to know how to react. "Stay away from me!"
"We can even film multiple shows at once!" The clone said happily, while the original finished speaking for him. "We have so many more opportunities we can take advantage of. All you have to do is give the word, Boss!"
"He's one of Monarch's monsters!" A cameraman cried.
Multiman looked slightly hurt at this. "Monster? No, no. Sure, Lady Monarch is my new sponsor, but there's nothing to fear." He grinned. "All I need is to deliver a ring and a pair of earrings to her– and I have the ability to do everything I need to– isn't that a wonderful deal?"
Apparently they didn't seem to think so, because the staff and coworkers were quick to rush toward the doors. Both Multiman and his clone crossed his arms, watching as they swiftly tried to evacuate as soon as he mentioned Monarch, and he was pretty sure he heard a few people mention calling the police, another the heroes.
"Looks like we'll have to do this ourselves," Multiman said with a sigh, aiming his microphone at the clone. A bright flash filled the studio, and it faded there stood a dozen clones of Alec, all dressed in purple. The original waved his hands at them. "Everyone get into place, we have a message to deliver for Monarch."
He went up onto the set, one of the clones straightening out his outfit before retreating, another manning the camera, two others picking up abandoned boom mics as he got everything ready to film. Alec grinned at the camera as they went back on air.
"Sorry for that delay," he said cheerfully as soon as one of the clones signaled they were now recording. "We ran into a small issue, and I am afraid we will be unable to film the rest of Last Chance to Dance– though I must say the contestants were amazing! What will we be doing with the rest of our time, though? Well, I have a small message to deliver for my wonder sponsor– Lady Monarch!" He smiled into the camera. "So, if Crimson Beetle and Lady Noire would make their way down to the TVi station, I would love to have a talk with them. That will be all for tonight– thank you for tuning in!"
With that he took a bow, and one of his clones cut off the recording.
It was relaxing, just spending some time with Lady Noire up on the roof. It was even better than patrols, where they were still discussing battles and keeping an eye out– but rather for a moment they felt like regular kids hanging out, even if they were still transformed. Just truly able to relax, jokes and puns passing between them.
"Crimson Beetle! Crimson Beetle!"
He sighed– because of course it couldn't be long until they were noticed up on the roof. Both of the heroes peered down, and found a small crowd had swiftly gathered– but instead of what appeared to be excited fans they found a much more fearful group calling up to them. It didn't take him long to rise to his feet, swinging down onto the streets below, Lady vaulting right after him, and the crowd backed away somewhat.
"Is everything okay?" He asked.
"The new show–!"
"They asked for you–!"
"We think he's working for Monarch–!"
"Woah, wait, I can't understand you all at once–" He began, but it was useless.
"Barricaded the station–"
"–Sure that Alec's going to attack soon–"
"Quiet!"
Lady Noire's voice echoed with a hiss, instantly silencing those who had gathered around them. She took a step forward, braid lashing as she pointed to the nearest person. "You. What exactly is going on?"
"Well, um, we–" They stammered as they were suddenly put into the spotlight. "We're pretty sure there's another akuma down at the TVi station, Alec aired a message at the end of his show, talking about Monarch and asking for you–"
Everyone began speaking up once more, their chatting drowning out all the words they were trying to say. Crimson looked back at Lady, who had her baton slid open to the communicator, where she was scrolling through the news. Multiple video clips featuring the famous TV host Alec were visible– all showing the man dressed in purple, and Lady Noire tapped on one, turning the volume up as much as it would go, though they could only barely catch the words with those around them.
He didn't look like the last akumas they had faced, with a dramatic change to their apparel and appearance, but the words he was saying practically confirmed that he had been touched by Monarch's abilities. The butterfly logo on his shirt and microphone only helped with that confirmation– and at his side Lady Noire cursed.
"I knew it," she muttered. "I knew it, I should've kept looking–"
"Lady?" He asked, and she merely shook her head– but looked worried.
"We need to defeat this akuma as quickly as possible."
"Of course, but why are you–"
She gave him a desperate look. "I... I can't say anything. Identity reasons... we just need to stop him now." He saw her cast a glance out towards the crowd, looking out towards the park he had found her watching earlier, and she pulled out her baton. "At least this akuma doesn't seem like it will be running from us like with Stormy Weather."
She then vaulted up towards the roofs, leaving him to follow after her.
"Welcome, welcome!" Multiman said as they burst into the studio, holding out his hands with a smile. "I'm so glad you could join us."
"I think 'us' is an understatement," Crimson muttered, eyes flickering out at those who surrounded them– at least two dozen copies of Alec across the studio. Some were manning the cameras and the lights, but those were only a handful, the rest standing behind the Alec who appeared to be the main akuma– standing front and center with his microphone.
"What do you all want?" Lady snarled, taking a step forward, and he couldn't help but wonder what got her so agitated by this akuma. "What is your plan?"
"Plan?" Multiman asked, blinking at her. "I have no plan of any kind, I am only fulfilling my end of the bargain for my dear sponsor Monarch, who was kind enough to give me such a gift."
He aimed his microphone at one of the nearby clones, and with a burst of light another one appeared. The two heroes tensed, holding their weapons tightly, but didn't come closer, lingering by the door they had entered, because going further into the studio would only give an opportunity for the clones to block their exit.
"The Lady wants to know what your goals are," Crimson said, swinging his yoyo about, eyeing the nearby clones. "I mean, isn't it your job as a villain to monologue?"
Multiman let out a long sigh. "Look, I just want to be able to enjoy life, you know? Work, go home and rest, spend some time with my daughter. Thanks to Lady Monarch I'm able to do all that, but she needs those Miraculouses you are so selfishly keeping, causing her to have to work so hard. So what do you say? Hand over the little gems, and then this is over– no more akuma attacks, and I can carry on with my life– everyone wins."
"Afraid that's a no deal," Lady Noire growled, ears going back.
Multiman nodded. "Well, I see. In that case I'm sorry this had to result in a fight, I didn't want it to come to that."
Lady's ears flicked up, and seconds later Crimson heard the sound of doors shutting. He turned in time to see several more clones shutting the doors they had entered through, apparently coming from the hallways– and now trapping them in.
"Get them," Multiman said. "Try not to hurt them if you can, all we need are the earrings and ring."
Crimson began spinning his yoyo like a shield, Lady Noire split her baton into two as they stood back to back, looking at the many copies that were making their way towards them. "Well m'lady– have a plan?"
"Akuma has to be in the microphone," she replied. "It's the only thing that isn't copied with him, and it has Monarch's logo."
"We charge in, then?"
"What option do we have?"
Then without another word they charged forward, swinging their weapons as the incoming clones of Alec, sending them flying as they rushed at them. The clones seemed to have the natural protection that came from the magic they all wielded, but their strength seemed to be no more than a normal human's, while theirs was enhanced, allowing them to quickly progress towards where the original Multiman stood on stage, who gritted his teeth.
He aimed his microphone at himself, and with a flash of light five more copies appeared, who instantly formed a barricade around him.
"Watch out!" Lady said, extending her baton right in front of his face– the end of it slamming into a chair one of the Alecs had been swinging at him.
"'Scuse me," Crimson said to the clones, wrapping his arm around Lady's waist, before throwing his yoyo up towards the metal beams above them, throwing them up into the air. "They need to raise the bar on what they consider weapons– a chair, really?"
Multiman aimed his microphone at the chair, and with a beam of light a half dozen more appeared, which some of the other copies picked up, glaring up at the heroes in anger.
"So it's not just himself he can copy," Lady muttered, watching as Multiman fired the beam at various objects in the room– chairs, boom mics, various props from filming, all multiplying to give the clones something to arm themselves with. "I've got an idea."
He chuckled. "Of course you do."
"Drop me when I say so," she said, eyes scanning below, watching as Multiman continued to multiply the 'weapons' to give his clones something to hold. "And... now!"
He did as she asked, letting her fall towards the ground, and she extended her baton to both catch herself and to propel her forward– and his eyes widened as he watched Lady drop right in front of one of Multiman's beams.
The akuma himself was startled as well, freezing up– and when the light faded there stood five Lady Noires, all grinning. "Heh," one of them said. "Just like I thought."
"Get them!" Multiman snarled, and all the Ladies Noire drew their batons as the Alec's clones rushed forward, working as a single unit to fend off the rushing crowd.
Crimson watched them for a moment, but it seemed each clone was indeed a true copy of his Lady– having their own mind and not at the command of Multiman. He scanned the crowd for the original, who was slipping back among his clones, but he could see the microphone. Lady was right, the akuma had to be in there, or else they wouldn't be guarding it so zealously. He pulled himself up on the beams, making his way from beam to beam, before jumping down to cut off his retreat.
"Not so fast!" He snarled, yoyo lashing out to the original's wrist. The akuma gritted his teeth, before passing the microphone off to a nearby clone, who ran into the crowd of Alecs.
"Gosh darn dang it," he cursed under his breath, quickly releasing Multiman and throwing his yoyo back up as several Alecs tackled him. His weapon drew him up towards the ceiling, one of the copies having a firm grip on him going up into the air as well– but he kicked him off.
The Ladies for the most part were able to hold their ground, standing in a ring, all facing outwards with their weapons, but the sheer numbers of the Alecs– whose numbers were only growing with the microphone whisked away among them– were enough for them to eventually gain the upperhand, pulling the baton from one of the Ladies' grasp, turning it around on her to slam her into the ground.
"Lady!" Crimson cried, immediately jumping down to rush to her aid– but the Alecs had already grabbed her hand, reaching for her ring.
"Where is it?" One of them snarled, reaching for the other hand– which was also ringless. The Lady replied by bringing her knee up, slamming it into the chin of one of the ones holding her, and another Lady Noire brought her baton on the one that had taken hers, yanking it from his hand just as Crimson had come rushing forward, his yoyo wrapping around the last one pinning her down, sharply pulling him a way.
"Thank you," Lady Noire said, pushing herself to her feet as another Lady Noire handed her the baton back.
"No problem," Lady Noire replied, nodding.
"Glad you could join us, Crim," Lady Noire said as they all stood back to back. "Any idea where the akumatized object went?"
"This is so weird," Crimson muttered, before shaking his head. "One of them took off running with it– wouldn't be surprised if they tried to leave the room." He glanced down at the Lady Noire next to him. "Um... where is your ring?"
"Only I have it," Another Lady Noire said– presumably the original. "I don't think it's in his power to copy magical objects, I guess?"
"Nah," Lady Noire said, jabbing her baton into the stomach of an Alec. "Our batons were copied– I think it's the ring itself that can't be copied."
"Let's get back up onto the beams and find that akuma," Lady Noire said. "We can talk about this later."
Crimson was feeling a bit dizzy. "Um, sure."
He threw his yoyo up, while all the Ladies used their batons to push themselves up towards the ceiling, onto the beams where they were safe from the army of Alecs. They all peered down, and with five pairs of cat eyes it didn't take them long to spot the Multiman with the microphone, one of the feline heroines pointing towards it.
"There!" She said, and sure enough the Multiman holding the purple microphone was rushing towards the large double doors in an attempt to flee.
He didn't stand a chance– even with an army of clones behind him–as six heroes dropping in from above was more than though to knock the Multiman to the ground, the microphone sent flying into the hall as one of the Ladies pinned him.
"Get it!" He cried, several of his clones rushing out the door towards the akuma.
The nearest Lady sprang forward, running on all fours. She hesitated for a moment, before raising her hand up as she leapt towards it, claws brushing against it. "C-cataclysm!"
Nothing happened.
One of the Alec clones reached her moments later, kicking the microphone away from her grasp, racing after it himself, another jumping on Lady to keep her down before she could pursue them. Crimson glanced at the four Ladies with him– and sure enough the one with the ring was with him.
"It can't copy the Miraculouses or our powers," Crimson said. "Come on!"
He and the ringed Lady charged after the Multiman fleeing with the microphone, the others going to help the pinned one, before all four of them barricaded the hallway, going to hold off the clones for as long as they could.
The Multiman soon realized he was being pursued and outnumbered, aiming his microphone at himself– summoning three more for them to fight as he continued running. Crimson and Lady looked at each other, no words passing between them in that moment, but they knew what to do.
She expanded her baton, rushing forward to engage the three copies, while Crimson turned and charged towards the wall, running up the side of it and down the hall, pushing off as he caught up with the one with the microphone, slamming into him. The two of them tumbled across the floor, the microphone once again falling from the clone's grasp.
Crimson rolled, making sure the clone was pinned beneath him, who writhed in his grasp. Once he was sure he wasn't going to get away he lashed out with his yoyo, which wrapped around the handle of the microphone.
Then with a flick of his wrist he sent it flying into the wall, shattering it instantly– a black butterfly flying out of the remains. He wasted no time in capturing it, feeling that now it was safe enough to release the copy so he could purify the akuma.
The white butterfly came flying out of his yoyo– and it was only now that he realized he hadn't summoned a Lucky Charm. He hesitated for a moment, before hastily calling for one: "Lucky Charm– Miraculous Ladybug!"
The Lucky Charm yoyo dropped into his hand, nearly identical to his weapon, but he tossed it into the air just as quickly. He let out a sigh as it turned into a burst of energy, pink light flooding the hall, rushing off through the building. When he turned he saw that the copy had been fighting was now gone, so instead he made his way back towards where he had last seen his Ladies.
There was only one Lady now though, and one very confused Alec. Lady Noire was gripping her head tightly, and he went over to her in worry. "Hey, you okay?"
She looked up at him miserably. "Imagine having five different sets of memories for the same event."
"You remember all of them?" He said, surprised.
"Yeah... they were all me." She looked down at her ring. "...Trying to summon my power and getting nothing is just as frightening as it going out of control."
"You did awesome," Crimson said. "All off you."
She grinned, before offering her hand. "Pound it?"
"Pound it," he replied, bumping fists.
"Um..." Alec said uncertainly, looking between them. "What just happened, exactly?"
Marinette found Manon in the same park after the akuma fight ended, the young girl sitting on a bench, staring out with almost a blank expression, knees drawn up to her chin. She let out a small sigh of relief, glad that she hadn't ran off, and raced over towards her.
"Manon!" Marinette called, and immediately Manon whipped her head towards her, her demeanor lighting up– though she wouldn't necessarily say it was happy.
"Mari!" Manon cried back, bolting from the bench and racing towards her. Marinette let out a slight grunt as she slammed into her, but immediately knelt down and brought her into a hug.
"Are you alright?" She asked, seeing that the girl's eyes were puffy, suggesting that she had been crying. Manon gave a small sniff, but nodded, and she brought her back into an embrace. She felt guilty, for having let her go off with an akuma in the first place, but now she had been left alone without explanation. "Do you want to go back to the bakery? Have some cookies until your mom comes to get you?"
"I want Daddy," Manon whispered.
"I know," she replied softly– because she didn't know what else to say. She knew how Paris reacted to those akumatized, and now wasn't the time to bring Manon to Alec. Especially considering that he would have no recollection of the afternoon with his daughter.
"No, I need to find Daddy!" Manon insisted, and tears began to well up in her eyes. "We... we were playing at the park on the merry-go-round, and then he said we were going to go to the zoo next– and then suddenly he disappeared! He disappeared, Mari– just poof! I hafta go find him!"
"Did he disappear when the Miraculous Ladybugs came by?" She asked, and Manon bobbed her head, before wiping away the tears she was trying to hold back. "You know the ladybugs are good, so there's nothing to worry about– they fix everything."
"But he's gone!"
"I'm sure the ladybugs just took him back to work," Marinette said cheerfully. "He usually works at this time, doesn't he? The ladybugs were probably flying by and thought 'oh! This man must be lost– let's take him back to work!' and then they took him back to the TV station."
"Why didn't they take me?"
"Because little girls play at parks," she said, forcing a smile on her face. "Didn't you have a lot of fun at the park today?"
"Yeah..." Manon said, but clearly her worries weren't eased. "How do the ladybugs know where Dad works? What if they made a mistake– what if he's lost forever?"
She pulled out her phone, pulling up the newsfeed. None of the recent articles looked appealing, but still she scrolled through the headlines and found a video. She made sure to keep it muted, and showed Manon the clip of her father walking out of the TVi station.
"It looks like they took him to the right place, that is your dad's work, right?"
The little girl looked instantly relieved, and Marinette was swift to put the video away, not wanting Manon to take the time to notice the expression on her father's face, or the way people pulled back as he walked by.
"The ladybugs did get it right!" She said excitedly, before crossing her arms. "But he wasn't supposed to be at work, he was supposed to be taking me to the zoo– so the ladybugs better not take him back to work again!"
"I'm sure they won't," Marinette said with a laugh, offering Manon her hand. "So, do you want to go have some cookies at the bakery?"
"Yes!" She said excitedly, slipping her hand into Marinette's.
"Well, Alec," Lucien said, refusing to make eye contact. "Your wish will be honored. There will be another host on this show, because ratings are going to plummet if your face so much as shows up again."
Alec knew this was coming, he knew it was, but still it hurt to hear. He looked up at his boss, towards his now-former co-workers– but none of them were looking at him. Still, he had one thing up his sleeve, because he knew that if this job got away it wasn't likely he would get another one.
"Sir, you do realize I'm under contract, right?" Alec said slowly. "You just can't fire me like this, it would be breaking the contract."
"That's why I'm not firing you," Lucien said stiffly, and Alec jerked his head up in surprise. "You will still be paid your minimum rate, granted not as much as you'd get with each show, but I'm fine with that. That will be how it is until your contract is up– then you will have no further association with TVi."
"Lucien–"
"Be grateful, Alec," he sneered, turning to leave. "You're still going to keep draining money from this company. And from whatever new host we have. They won't be paid as much because... because some corrupted person had their job beforehand."
Alec jerked his head up at these words.
"Get off of TVi property," Lucien said, turning to leave. "Coming onto it once more will be trespassing and the proper authorities will be called."
"Yes, sir," he muttered, because he had no other argument to put forward. Alec turned to leave, it felt so wrong to leave the studio even though just a day before he would have been grateful for such an opportunity.
No one spoke to him on the way out. No one would even make direct eye contact with him.
Things didn't get better once he reached home– when he finally pulled out his cell phone and found it full of messages from people he didn't want and none from those he needed. He scrolled through his contacts, searching for probably the last person he should be calling, but he couldn't help but press call on his ex-wife's number.
"You've reached Nadja Chamack. Please leave a message."
"Hi, Nadja," he muttered, still feeling strangely empty. "Just wanted to speak with Manon, please have her call me. Bye."
Manon never called him back that night. Next time he called it only rang once before it jumped straight to voicemail, he felt panic setting in as he realized that he might have been blocked. He needed some way to contact his daughter, especially right now. He had nervously paced his apartment all that day, fearful of what Manon would think of him. He knew his face was all over the news– his akumatized self had broadcasted it without thought. He didn't dare go outside again, for he had seen the papers and notes that had been plastered all over his door when he had gone to check the mail.
It was three days later when his phone began ringing with a familiar ring tone– and Alec practically leapt from his bed to answer it. He fumbled with the device in his hand, desperately holding it up to his ear.
"Hello?" He said hopefully into the other end.
"Daddy?" Came Manon's voice, and he sank onto his mattress in relief.
"Hi, sweetie," he whispered softly.
"Mom says I'm not going over to your house this weekend." She said. "But I still want to come, we had so much fun at the park and ice cream and I wanted to do it again."
"It... it might be a while until you can come over again," he said, mind drifting to the threats he had found taped to his door. "But I do want to see you too. Call me as much as you like, and I'll answer no matter what."
"What if you're working?"
"No matter what," he repeated. "Also... also tell your mother that I want to see you no matter what too, okay?"
"Okay."
They spoke for a while longer, Manon mostly rambling on about what they had done together as an akuma– even though he couldn't remember a thing. As long as she had been happy though and not hurt... then he was just fine with that.
He laid in bed for a while when the call ended, not having the motivation to get up, nor did he have any reason to. It wasn't long until he heard knocking on his door, and he groaned and turned over.
"Just leave it out there!" He called. "I'm not going to read it anyways!"
"M. Cataldi?" A voice called from outside his door– a fairly young one too, which made him pause. He sat up a bit, heading out into the main room and peering out his peephole. "M. Cataldi, can I talk to you?"
Sure enough it was two teenage girls, and he had no idea why they would be there. Much too young to be selling things from door to door, and the fact that they were asking for him by name made him even more confused on what they wanted. He debated for a moment, before opening the door.
"M. Cataldi!" The one on the left said, beaming. "You're home! I was wondering if we could talk to you?"
His eyes flickered across her, the girl looking slightly familiar, but it was the other girl that he recognized in an instant. He stared at Aurore with wide eyes, who glared right back at him with clear distaste. She was actually making eye contact though... so he'd take it.
"Um... can I help you?" He finally asked.
"Yes, you can," the first girl said, taking a step forward. "I'm Alya Cesaire from the BeetleBlog."
"Ah," he said. "I thought I recognized you."
"And I hope you remember me," Aurore said. "I mean you were part of the reason why I was akumatized after all."
"Huh?"
"Um... your words weren't exactly kind to her when she lost," Alya said. "I don't think you did it on purpose... but yeah. You were rude to her."
"On live TV," Aurore added, before shrugging. "But hey, I forgive you. You're in the same boat as me now." She frowned slightly, pulling one of the papers from his door– which featured a purple butterfly with a deep red X through it. She crinkled her nose. "I see you got it worse than me."
He took the paper from her. "...I'm sorry if you have gone through anything like this. It hasn't even been a week and... let's just say I'm going to be changing my number."
"Do you mind if I take a picture of your door?" Alya asked, bringing out her phone. "It would be perfect for my upcoming article."
He eyed her. "...What article?"
"That's actually what we wanted to talk to you about," Aurore said. "As you have noticed, Alya here is willing to have a conversation with our kind without running in the other direction– though she did need some convincing."
She shifted. "I... I didn't realize what you guys were going through," she said, and then she looked up at Alec. "My next article is about what happened to akumatized victims after being purified, their stories and hopefully a video interview if willing."
"Victims..." he muttered, chuckling. "Haven't heard it phrased that way."
"If I recall correctly you've used the term 'monsters' and 'villains' a few times yourself." Aurore said.
He shrugged. "Won't deny it." He eyed the BeetleBlogger. "So, let me guess, you want to interview me too?"
"If you're willing," Alya said. "Also, I won't post anything without your approval– you can even talk to Aurore about it. She hand picked all the questions I asked her in our interview."
"I only cut out the stupid ones," the blonde said with a shrug.
"This is about getting word out there about what you've gone through, how everyone is treating you, how it's affected your education... or in your case, your workplace," she rocked back and forth on her heels. "It was my friend's idea, and no one else really seems to be saying anything about it..." She gestured to the door plastered in messages. "I didn't even realize this kind of thing was happening until people started talking about it with me."
He frowned slightly, looking at them. It was a strange request to be considering, he had been working in the professional field for so long that normally he would never consider working with a random person's little blog– but the idea she was pursuing was one that caught his interest, and an opportunity he wouldn't be against being involved with– one that could help him now. The BeetleBlog had gained a good audience in the short time it had been around. Sure, it was run by a young girl, but this girl often could capture footage that no one else could.
Perhaps a little guidance from someone with more experience in the field would be good for her– especially for an article like the one she mentioned. If this article actually gained some traction and went somewhere... it was a chance for him to escape this new reality he had found himself in. Get his job back, not have Manon kept from seeing him– and it could help anyone else that found themselves in the same boat as him.
He smiled. "Take as many pictures as you'd like," he said, gesturing to the doorway. "And as for an interview, I can definitely say you've captured my attention." He had to look around for a moment, but found a business card he thought he wouldn't have a use for. He held it out to the Ladyblogger. "Give me a call whenever– my schedule is pretty much cleared at the moment. We can find a place to meet, preferably a public place."
Alya happily took the business card. "Thank you, M. Cataldi– I'll be in contact with you soon."
