Chloe chased after the hind as it rampaged through the streets, smashing everything in its path. Cat Noir was not far behind her but neither could get close because they were too busy either moving people out of the way or saving them from the destruction the hind left in its wake. Cat Noir was yanking people from wrecked cars or using his extendable staff to reach people who hung from holes in buildings. Chloe was trying to use her Allocation power, which while helpful for getting people out of the way of the hind, often dumped people in places that weren't much better, like the poor man that landed in a trash bin or the couple that ended up in the river. She shouted quick apologies as she leapt from rooftop to rooftop.
It quickly became apparent that the hind was running towards the explosively loud guitar riffs, rather than away. Chloe had the sneaking suspicion that the massive beast intended to stomp the source of the noise into oblivion like it had so many of the cars that had been crushed underfoot.
"So what's the plan, Miss Hiss?" Cat Noir asked as he caught up to her, looking excited to help.
"Simple, you go deal with the akuma while I deal with the hind," Chloe responded sternly, causing Cat Noir to pout before he began to argue.
"You can't be serious! According to the myth, it took Hercules a year to catch the hind, and no offense, Miss Hiss, but I don't think you can do this by yourself," he said as he ran alongside her while the riffs grew louder.
"I appreciate the concern, but I can't have you or Ladybug interfering and I definitely can't have you cataclysm the hind," she said before she took the chance and tried to jump on the hind's back. The supernatural beast easily dodged and quickly turned its head, snorting gouts of flame at her, forcing her to leap away. The car that she'd landed on was melted into a puddle of sludge at an alarming rate. "Ok, note to self, don't let the hind hit you with fire. Good to know."
"Actually, the fire should not be so effective on you thanks to us. Your skin is like our scales. It's the hooves that are more worrisome, and the horns," Naje said in her head.
"I'd still recommend avoiding the fire. After all it makes for good practice and we all know practice makes perfect," Haje added as she continued chasing the hind and soon enough they reached the source of the sound
Jagged Stone and his crocodile Fang had both been akumatized and were fighting with Ladybug. They had turned the area around the July Column in the Place de la Bastille into a small warzone filled with people rocking out uncontrollably. And now Chloe, Cat Noir and the hind were there to make things worse, much, much worse.
"Cat Noir? Matasp?! What the heck is that thing?" Ladybug asked as she swung on her yo-yo out of the path of Fang's green fire while staring at the hind.
"Don't worry about it, M'Lady. We're on it!" Cat Noir called back as he launched himself forward with his staff.
"No, I'm on it, you fur-brained buffoon!" Chloe shouted. "You help Ladybug with Guitar Villain and get him away from the hind!"
"How did-?" Ladybug started to ask before she had to jump out of the way of a blast of sonic shockwaves from Guitar Villain's guitar. Ladybug's focus returned to the matter at hand, "Cat Noir, you handle Guitar Villain while I wrangle a dragon. Matasp, good luck with whatever you're dealing with."
"Wait, we're just going to leave to her to deal with that by herself?" Cat Noir shouted even as he did as Ladybug instructed and began attacking Guitar Villain.
The hind wasn't going to make things easy for them, it pawed deep gouges in the pavement as it glared at Guitar Villain and let out a horrific screech of its own before charging the akumatized rockstar, with its wicked gleaming horns aimed right at him.
Chloe summoned all of her willpower and pictured Guitar Villain moving and he disappeared from the hind's path before he could attack it with his powers. Unfortunately, Chloe unintentionally sent him to Fang and he blasted Ladybug off his pet croco-dragon.
"This mosh pit is getting a little too wild even for an original rocker like me!" Guitar Villain shouted. "I've got better things to do than jam with you lot. Peace out!"
Fang wheeled around and flew away, leaving an irritated hind to rampage about. The hind let out another screech before giving chase.
"Man, that thing must hate rock," Ladybug said as she and Cat chased after Guitar Villain.
Chloe focused on catching up to the hind but its speed was unreal and on top of that it kicked up a storm of pavement and other debris that kept forcing her to dodge out of the way.
"I mean, to be fair, if all that noise hurts our ears, imagine what the hind is going through. It doesn't help that someone did try to ride it without its permission," Chloe yelled as she flipped over a kicked car.
"Who'd be dumb enough to ride that?" Cat asked as they watched it kick off the ground and onto rooftops in an attempt to catch up to Guitar Villain.
"Can't say, but it's my job is to get it home unharmed before someone realizes it's missing," Chloe said as she managed to get closer. She reached for one of the apples, hoping it would draw the hind's attention but as her attention shifted, the hind lashed out with a hoof, kicking her square in the gut.
The air was driven from Chloe's lungs as she was launched backwards. To say it hurt was a woeful understatement. She was amazed she was still in one piece from the force of the blow as it felt like nearly every one of her ribs had been broken.
She fell, unable to move and was kept from smashing into the pavement by Ladybug's yo-yo. Chloe bit her lip to keep from screaming in pain as the yo-yo's cord wrapped around her body, letting her know just how badly she was injured. She had never felt her healing powers work before and the sensation of bones, skin, and muscle trying to reknit themselves made her want to pass out.
Cat Noir caught her and landed on the nearest rooftop, setting her down gently. He caught sight of her body mending itself and covered his mouth as he looked away nauseously. Chloe grimaced and pushed off him, struggling to her feet. She had to use her khopesh to lean on and could hardly do more than shuffle forward.
"Hey, slow down, Miss Hiss, you're injured!" Cat Noir said as he rose and moved to stop her.
"I'll be fine," Chloe grunted, knowing it would be true but still struggling with how painful it was to feel her body putting itself back together. "Need to keep…going after…the hind."
"Matasp!" Cat Noir shouted, making Chloe pause as it was the first time he had used her title. "You need to wait! I can see you're healing but you'll just hurt yourself more if you keep going. Let us help."
"I can't," Chloe growled as it became easier to breathe, though she was wincing as her ribs fixed themselves one by one.
"He's right, Matasp," Ladybug said as she landed in front of Chloe. The look Ladybug gave her was sympathetic but also stern. No wonder Marinette would go on to become such an amazing team leader. "I know doing your job is important, but I think working together is our only chance of stopping both Jagged and that animal."
Chloe frowned, partially from the pain and because she could feel Haje and Naje grumbling in her head at the idea of working with Miraculous. Still, it would probably be much easier to catch the hind if Guitar Villain were out of the way.
"Fine, what did you have in mind?" Chloe asked as she mentally shushed the snakes.
Elsewhere, hidden away from prying eyes, Hawk Moth stood in his observatory lair, watching through the eyes of his most recent akuma victim, Jagged Stone.
"Guitar Villain, what are you doing? You had Ladybug and Cat Noir in your sights and failed to collect their Miraculous. You will uphold your end of our bargain," Hawk Moth said menacingly.
"Yeah, but you never said anything about the giant metal deer that seems to have it out for me," Guitar Villain said through the link that Hawk Moth's magic created.
"Giant metal deer?" Hawk Moth asked, momentarily caught off guard. "Show me!"
He saw through Jagged's eyes as the rocker wheeled around on Fang's back, seeing the hind leap across the rooftops of Paris, punching massive holes through the roofs as it went.
"Interesting," Hawk Moth said to himself as he rubbed his chin. In all his years searching for magical artifacts like the Miraculous, he had never come across anything like that. Could this be a new avenue of resources he could exploit? It might prove just the thing to help him finally take Ladybug and Cat Noir's Miraculous.
"Change of plans, Guitar Villain. Capture that beast and bring it to me!"
"Looks like Hawk Moth knows about the hind," Cat Noir observed as the three magically imbued teens raced across the rooftops, noting that Fang had banked back around.
"Just stick to the plan!" Ladybug said as she began twirling her yo-yo while her other hand made sure the sheet her lucky charm had generated was tied tight around her.
"Let's finish this!" Chloe said as she and Cat Noir leapt into the air, both grabbing his staff as Cat Noir made it extend impossibly long, shooting them even higher to meet Guitar Villain and Fang. Chloe was the first to strike at him, attempting to mimic the round house kick the First used on her. Guitar Villain brought up his guitar to block and when her foot struck the cords the instrument let out an ear-splitting twang that made everyone in the area flinch.
"Hey, hey, watch the cords, they're sensitive!" He shouted before swinging his guitar at her in response. Meanwhile Fang snapped at Cat Noir only to wind up with Cat Noir lodging his staff in the dragon's maw.
As Fang tried to shake the staff free, Cat Noir swung up and joined Chloe to fight Guitar Villain.
"Mind if I cut in, Miss Hiss?" Cat Noir said with his usually bravado.
"Just get me an opening," Chloe said as she prepared herself and held the index and middle finger of her right hand together.
"Can do!" Cat Noir said with a grunt as he engaged Guitar Villain in hand to hand. Chloe knew the Miraculous enhanced a person's abilities, but there was something about Adrian's fighting style that said he wasn't relying on the Miraculous alone. After several open handed palm strikes that left Guitar Villain on unsteady feet from dodging, Cat Noir swept the rocker's legs out from under him.
That was the opening Chloe needed and she rushed in even as Fang tried to buck them all off. She jabbed Guitar Villain with her fingers and he stiffened as her poison paralyzed him, his fingers scant centimeters from striking another destructive chord. They went airborne from Fang's thrashing and Chloe managed to grab hold of Guitar Villain's ankle. As they began to fall, she felt a hand close around her ankle and looked up to see Cat Noir holding her as he clung to Fang's tail.
"You ready, Matasp?" Cat Noir asked.
"Go for it," Chloe shouted as she tried not to get too dizzy from her upside down aerial view.
Cat Noir swung them both towards a nearby rooftop and released Chloe's ankle. As they spun through the air, Chloe took a firmer hold of Jagged's body and managed to get her feet under her to land with stone-cracking force. The landing broke her concentration and Guitar Villain immediately began struggling to fend her off but his akumatized strength was no match for the power her Numinous imbued her with.
"Matasp, his guitar!" Cat Noir shouted as he grabbed Fang's wings and forced the dragon to land..
Chloe ripped the guitar from Jagged's hands and leapt away, making her way to Ladybug for the second part of their plan.
Ladybug, meanwhile, had been keeping the hind distracted, using her yo-yo to entangle the mythical deer's legs until they were thoroughly bound and it fell over. The creature continued to thrash and struggle and that's where the sheet her lucky charm had created came into play. She nimbly leapt around the animal's tossing head and managed to cover its eyes with the sheet. Blinded, the hind's struggling eased as its chest heaved from exertion.
"Easy, easy now," Ladybug said softly as she stood over the hind, mindful of its horns and the snout as sparks occasionally shot from its nose.
"Ladybug, switch!" Chloe called out as she tossed the guitar. Ladybug threw her the bag of apples before jumping to catch the guitar and smashing it against a chimney.
Chloe quickly fished an apple from the bag and held it out to the hind's nose, risking that Haje and Naje were right that she would be protected from the hind's flames. She tensed as the hind began sniffing the air but it seemed to grow calmer and didn't even struggle as Ladybug's yo-yo came free of its legs.
"Come on, eat it, it's ok," Chloe whispered before the hind's tongue tentatively darted out and touched the apple. Its lips quickly followed and it plucked the fruit from Chloe's hand. She immediately replaced it with another and then another as the hind devoured them almost instantly.
Chloe cautiously reached out to stroke the hind's snout as it chewed and though it initially pulled away from her touch, it quickly settled down after she offered it another apple.
"Aww, it's so cute, you'd almost forget that it can breathe fire and tore up half of Paris," Cat Noir said from behind her, prompting Chloe to look over her shoulder.
Cat Noir had Fang, now back to being just a crocodile, over his shoulder while Ladybug supported a very confused looking Jagged Stone.
"It looks like you've got everything under control, Matasp," Ladybug said before she stepped closer and reached for the sheet. "And now it's time to put everything back in order."
The hind struggled to its feet once the sheet came off, but Chloe held its attention with another apple, this time twisting it to snap it in half to make it last longer.
"Miraculous Ladybug!"
The absolute blizzard of ladybugs swept back over the trail of destruction as Ladybug and Cat Noir shared a look before focusing on Chloe.
"So, how are you going to get the hind out of here?" Cat Noir asked.
"Uuuuuuuuhm," Chloe trailed off as she realized she hadn't exactly figured that part out yet. Before she could say anything more, the hind stepped closer and nudged her with its muzzle before moving back and lowering its head.
"I think…I'm going to ride it out of here," Chloe said at the very obvious sign of deference from the golden furred doe. "Slowly, very slowly."
Ladybug looked like she wanted to say something but her earrings had begun to beep rapidly, "Well, good luck and thanks for the help. I've got to go!"
With that, Ladybug grabbed Jagged Stone and swung away. Cat Noir smiled and gave Chloe a casual salute.
"Jagged will want Fang back so I'll be going too. Have fun with the hind, Miss Hiss!" Cat Noir said before running after Ladybug.
Chloe waved goodbye as they left before the hind took the initiative and slipped its snout beneath her, flipping her into the air and onto its back. Chloe landed with a grunt and before she knew it, the hind was descending from the rooftops gracefully, without even a dent in the roof tiles or the ground. After all the destruction it had caused, seeing it move so nimbly came as a complete shock.
"I can see why Hercules kept you," Chloe said, marveling as it moved so fluidly it was almost like watching a ballet dancer. She leaned forward to rub behind the hind's ear as it picked its way through the city, "So where are we going big gal? You know the way home?"
The hind snorted and continued to move until they reached an isolated spot among some willow trees in Buttes-Chaumont Park and it lowered its head, allowing Chloe to gently dismount. As she did she heard clapping and spun, thinking she would find Hermes waiting for her.
"Well done, definitely something new I didn't expect to see today." The voice was way too deep and booming, filling Chloe with alarm as she turned around. She saw a man who stood far taller than Hermes and was built like a tank to boot. He didn't try to dress with any sense of modern fashion, wearing a lion skin cloak and a dark skirt. His skin was tanned nearly as golden as the hind's fur and his smile dazzled as it exuded friendliness and caring. "Sorry, Hermes couldn't make it so I decided to come instead," the man said politely as he gave her a pleasant wave.
"Who are you?" Chloe asked, trying not to let her guard down around this stranger as he walked over to the hind. Rather responding with aggression, it began to nuzzle up to him, making him laugh as it did.
"Stop it, you. I know you missed me, you showed the poor people here that without question," he said as he stroked its head before looking at Chloe. "My name? I'm certain you've already guessed but I'm Heracles, or Hercules if you prefer, since that name has become more popular for some reason. I came instead of Hermes because I thought you might need my help with the hind but it appears I was wrong," he said as he smiled, which was totally unfair in Chloe's opinion. He was so charming that it made her want to smile just because he was. "Thank you for catching her, I was so worried for her."
"It was nothing, just a few apples and some peace and quiet, and she calmed right down," Chloe said, trying to act far too casually before asking quietly, "Is Hermes in trouble?"
"No, he is not because we've learned of Loki's involvement in this whole debacle. Poor Hermes was played, just like Pandora's box all over again," Heracles said chuckling. "But don't worry, you'll still get rewarded and then some since my hind is unharmed. I dare say she's even happy, it's rare that she gets to stretch her legs like this. Now, the first reward as Hermes promised," Heracles said as he held out a bag. "Soil for those apple and four bottles of wine, I added another two for your trouble. Make sure Naje and Haje don't drink too much, I've wrestled them when that happened. A thrilling bout, but also terrifying."
At that, Naje and Haje manifested. "It wasn't that bad!" Haje said defensively as Naje chimed in, "Plus you wanted to wrestle us!"
"True, but I don't think it was wise to have three gods try to wrestle one another. Artemis is still mad we didn't invite her," Heracles said, letting his rich laughter ring out as he began to walk off with his hind. "Stay safe Judge of Truth, you'll have your other reward later and keep your eyes open. I think your next task might be at your feet sooner than you think." With that cryptic warning, he and the hind vanished as they stepped into the shadow of a massive tree.
"You're friends with Hercules?" Chloe asked, stunned by the casual way Heracles had spoken to Haje and Naje.
"And Wukong, Ishtar, Loki, Thor, Asura, Izanami, and others but that's besides the point. Let's get home and relax and maybe have a drink. If Heracles picked those bottles of wine he knows what I like," Naje and Haje said that last part in unison. Chloe made sure to keep the bag well out of their reach as she made her way out of the park.
"You do realize that school hasn't ended yet? I need to get back there first," Chloe said, drawing sighs from the snake.
It took some doing getting to school before the end of classes. Fortunately Alix backed Chloe up about her job being the reason she missed several classes, though it did mean she had extra homework assigned to her. She considered that a light and manageable punishment.
As she began packing her things up to head home, Chloe found Marinette standing beside her. She was staring at Chloe intensely, just short of glaring.
"Is something wrong, Marinette?" Chloe asked as she continued putting things into her bag.
Marinette glanced around to make sure there wasn't anyone close enough to overhear and still dropped her voice to a whisper, "Yes, there's something about what happened earlier that's been bothering me."
"Oh?" Chloe said, unsure what Marinette was referring to.
"You knew the name of Jagged Stone's akumatized form without being told it. How?" Marinette asked, leaning forward to press her fists onto the table as she narrowed her eyes, as if she could discern the truth from scrutinizing Chloe herself.
Chloe paused, the truth about to leap from her tongue automatically. She wasn't sure why telling Marinette the whole story didn't seem like a good idea, maybe she just wasn't ready to air her laundry list of sins to someone who still made her feel wildly conflicted.
"And if I don't tell you?" Chloe asked, deciding to see how far Marinette would take this.
"Then it's going to be pretty hard to trust you if I know you're keeping something from me," Marinette said even more softly as she leaned in close.
"Then I guess it's a good thing I don't need you to trust me, only stay out of my way," Chloe said, making Marinette step back in shock. "I told you we might not end up on the same side," Chloe added as she stood and stepped past Marinette, leaving the superhero to watch her leave in disbelief.
Edited and Co-written by GrayNeko