Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir

Stranger in Town, Chapter 18: Before the Fire

Kagami and her mother are becoming accustomed to their most unusual houseguest, and the Warwolves mission is more fully revealed, but a threat of literally cosmic proportions is approaching. Only one thing is certain: Nothing will ever be the same again.

…

Before the fire

The Tsurugi's Townhouse: Kagami's mother had reacted in pretty much the way Kagami had expected her to: denial, denial, denial. Yes, she had most definitely been married, yes, the man-she still gave no name-had deserted her, but that had happened immediately prior to her discovery that she was pregnant. So no. The creature could not be Kagami's…genetic donor. That should be obvious. No, she had never visited any clinic dealing in artificial insemination. No. Just no, no, and more no. She had finally ended up forbidding Kagami from any further discussion of the matter. "This is clearly some fantasy your young man has instilled in you. I forbid you to have any further contact with him. A fantasy such as that…denotes an unhealthy mind."

Kagami rolled her eyes. This was getting old. Her skin had returned to its normal color, and, she supposed, she had no reason to expect her mother to return to anything other than her old self. "Very well, mother, I shall do as you ask. But I cannot help but think that, should there be any repercussions, there will be no one to turn to."

Tomoe paused. "Repercussions?"

"If the data Lord Morax," she emphasized his name and title, "gathered is accurate, even in part, I am not only part Hell-creature, but part monster, as well. There is no telling what that might lead to, as I mature. Plus, if this is true, I'm the result of an experiment conducted by a powerful, clandestine organization. Were I them, I'd want to examine the fruits of my labors. But…" she paused, turning away, gesturing somewhat dramatically, "if what you say is true, then all that's simply a flight of fantasy, and surely nothing can ever come of it." This last said with as much sarcasm as she could put into the sentence, without seeming disrespectful.

Well, not too disrespectful.

For the first time, Kagami saw her mother's expression slip, ever so slightly. But she recovered quickly. "Of course. Surely.

"Now come. It is time for your training session. We can make good use of your…friend's accommodations."

….

After receiving Chloe's phone call, Sabrina had practically skipped and hopped all the way to Hotel Bourgeois, and now burst into Chloe's underground control center, excited to the point of shaking. "Yes? Chloe, I'm here!"

Chloe, in her "Red Wasp" persona, was busy at the main computer bank. She glanced around. "Oh, yes, Sabrina." She got up and turned towards the girl, placing her hands on Sabrina's shoulders, and looking her in the eyes. "Sabrina, I need you," repeating the words she'd used over the phone.

"Oh, yes! Yes!" Sabrina clasped her hands in front of her.

"In fact, all of Paris needs you."

"Uh, wh-what?" Sabrina was taken aback.

"Look," said Chloe, turning to her massed computer banks. Each one was connected to France's own police and criminal activity database servers, as well as far-flung international ones, some even military. Amazing what a little money could buy. With help from the right person. "I know you don't like being Phantasm, but right now, something strange is happening on the south side, and I need my best recon agent to look into it. I need you to look into it."

Sabrina visibly deflated. Why was that?-wondered Chloe. It must be her dislike of her "super" form, though for the life of her, Chloe couldn't figure why. It was a perfectly good power set. "Look, you know you don't have to. But my wasps tend to get noticed and mistaken for akumas, and the simple truth is, nothing beats eyes on the target, so to speak. You're simply the best there is for this job. Would you do this? For me?"

"Y-yes, Chloe, I mean, Red Wasp. Of course I'll do it." And she stood back and saluted.

"That's the spirit!" said Chloe. She pulled Sabrina in for a quick embrace, and so totally missed the look of pure bliss, coupled with a blush, that crossed the girl's face. "Okay. Here's the reports I've got so far. They all seem to indicate sightings of what can only be described as werewolves-" her gaze fixed on the reports, she failed to see Sabrina's face go pale, or her putting her hand to her chin in a nervous gesture "-curiously civilized werewolves, didn't harm a soul-" a tiny sigh of relief from Sabrina-"but they don't appear to be operating alone. Nor do they appear to be the only anomalies in the area; Ladybug and Cat Noir fought something very weird out that way just the other day. No heroics, now. I just need information. Who, what, when, where, and-if you can manage it, without endangering yourself-why." And she handed the sheaf of reports to the smaller girl. "Here. Look these over, and I'll get your eudaemon out of storage."

And she left Sabrina staring at the sheaf of reports, completely unaware that her best friend, her friend practically from the cradle, was seeing nothing except what might have been.

….

The Tsurugi's: Tomoe Tsurugi had been absolutely right about one thing: the expanded area adjoining the garage made a perfect place to train. There was no need to go outside, unless, of course, they simply wanted to. Even the lights within what had been little more than a broom closet had expanded and multiplied to the point where any darkness that had previously been extant was a thing of the past.

And there were no windows.

Well, Kagami thought, that made sense. There hadn't been any in the closet when it was a closet.

They dueled with their bokkens, with Tomoe, as usual, besting her daughter by a small margin. "Focus, Kagami. You must learn to focus, while at the same time remaining aware of your surroundings." And, as usual, all throughout the session, she continued to exhort Kagami to remember the great warriors of Japan's past, particularly Ikari Gozen. "She fought at a time when the whole notion of women in combat was frowned upon, to put it mildly. But she was determined to fight for her people, to be the best. So must you, daughter. There will be those in your life whom you must fight for. There is no room in our family for 'nearly-so's'."

Kagami had improved much since the time Tomoe Tsurugi had been akumatized, but she recognized that there was still room for improvement. During a brief break, she noticed her creature, lying on its stomach nearby, watching them. For a moment, she was concerned that the monster might misconstrue what was going on, and think Tomoe Tsurugi was actually attacking her, but it didn't seem to be. Instead, it simply lay there, front paws folded inward, like a giant cat, watching the two of them train.

However, every now and then, Kagami noticed it inching a bit closer to her. It did not actually get up, but rather, just seemed to crawl a little bit closer to the two…and her in particular. Having seen the monster in action down in Hell, Kagami was concerned about what might happen should its protective streak come into play. But such did not seem to happen. So she just shrugged and ignored it.

She and her mother continued to train, and the monster inched ever closer. Kagami could have sworn, from the way its head was tilted, that it was actually smiling, or perhaps some facial expression indicating the same thing.

Down came Tomoe Tsurugi's bokken. Kagami, having expected this move, moved to block it…and discovered such was unnecessary, when the monster's enormous front talon suddenly appeared in the path of the descending bokken, easily deflecting it. Tek!

Another descending strike from Tomoe's bokken. Tok! Another interception from the monster. Still another, this one more stab than slice, designed to swerve around any ordinary deflection: Tlek!

"Kagami!"

Kagami couldn't help but laugh. "It's alright, mother. He means no harm; he simply thinks we're playing a game, and wants in on it." The creature looked at her, and Kagami could swear that, even with its stony expression, it was asking, Can I, huh, can I, can I?

Can I have a turn?

"This…is not…play!"

"Let me talk to him." And she led the creature off a ways. Rubbed its neck. It closed all its eyes, and rubbed its massive head against her. "Listen," she said, hoping against hope that the creature could understand her, somehow. It seemed to have done so a time or two. "This isn't a game. It's training. My mother is training me in combat maneuvers, to make me stronger, better prepared. So just…stay over here, okay? We'll, we'll play later, you and I, but for now, I have to do this alone. Okay?" The creature lowered its snout in what seemed like a disappointed gesture. "Look. I promise we'll do something, okay? But for now, just sit over here and watch, alright?"

"Tokubetsu," it said, dejection in its gravelly voice.

"Now don't be like that," she said, throwing her arms as far around its neck as she could. "It'll be alright, you'll see."

She turned-to see her mother standing less than fifteen feet away, staring at the monster. Her expression was one of complete and utter shock. "Kagami…child…did that thing just speak?"

Kagami's face closed up. She'd had a "gutful," to use a word she'd heard from Damien, of her mother's denials. "You didn't believe my explanation before; I see little point in repeating it, only to be rejected again. But this is what I meant: the creature has had some exposure to Japanese. How, when, I don't know." Then inspiration struck her. "Mother, come over here."

"What! No. I am perfectly fine right where I am."

"You're not afraid, are you?"

"Afraid!?" She crossed her arms. "Of course not."

"Then come over here. This is necessary, Mother. The creature needs to become familiar with you, and we need to know if it knows any other word. So far, I've only heard it speak the one."

Grudgingly, Tomoe took a few steps in the creature's direction, which turned its attention to her. Tomoe Tsurugi had taken off her VR glasses, and thus could only rely on her heightened remaining senses to determine the creature's exact location... Kagami took her hand, and, after a few tugs, overcoming the older woman's obvious reluctance, led her to within arm's length of the creature's enormous head. "What," the elder Tsurugi asked, acidly, "could you possibly hope to gain by this?" But she allowed herself to be led almost up to the creature's snout.

Kagami's creature looked first at her, then back at Tomoe Tsurugi. It extended its head and, without actually touching her hand, drew in a deep sniiiiiiiifff. Then it turned its attention back to Kagami, and ran its snout up and down her body, gathering in her scent. Then, back to Tomoe Tsurugi's still-outstretched palm for another sniff. Then it drew back altogether. "Okasama," it said, in its gravelly voice. Mother.

Tomoe Tsurugi's reservoir of denial was evaporating fast. "I…don't believe it. How could it…You!" She turned to Kagami. "You must have taught it that! It's imitating you!"

This time Kagami didn't try to hide her sarcasm. "Oh, but of course. The first thing one does when one finds oneself in a Hellish other dimension is to seek out some gigantic, possibly malevolent, potentially carnivorous creature and give it language lessons. Everyone knows that.

"Mother. Do you truly believe that?

"I told Lord Morax that you'd raised me to be practical. How practical is it to deny the clear evidence of your own senses?" Inspiration struck her, and she climbed upon the creature, using its head spikes as rungs on a ladder. Once seated, she turned to her mother. "Come, mother"

"What?"

"Come up here with me. We're going for a ride."

But Tomoe Tsurugi was shaking her head. "It must've been some effect of that dimension you found yourself in. You've clearly lost your sanity, in all or part."

"And would Ikari Gozen hesitate to ride an actual dinosaur, mother?" Slyly. "Haven't you secretly always wanted to?"

Tomoe paused for what seemed like an eternity. Then, "It must be true what they say: insanity is hereditary: you get it from your children," she muttered, as she climbed aboard, sitting behind Kagami.

Kagami, sitting up front, had no idea what to say or do. She finally settled on the words she'd heard from the old American westerns: "Giddyap!" Hoping all the while they could stay on. From what she'd seen, the monster could move pretty fast when it chose to.

But instead of galloping like a horse, the creature simply walked forward, a brisk walk, true (have to make sure it gets enough exercise, thought Kagami) around the edges of the expanded room. Every so often it would stop and look around, as though making sure its riders were still secure on its back. Reassured, it began to move at a faster pace, and Kagami wondered precisely how she'd make it stop. But just as she was wondering that, it came upon the area where they'd been training, and slowed to a halt, allowing them to disembark.

Tomoe Tsurugi's facial expression was one of astonishment. "Kagami," she said, her hand still on the monster's side, almost caressing it, "This is no mere animal. I don't know what it is, but it is not a simple animal. And you say…you possess a certain amount of its DNA?"

"Yes, mother. Apparently I do."

Kagami's mother still had not removed her hand from the creature's rocklike hide. "I…have heard of this Ourobouros. They are reputed to be the standing definition of evil." She turned to Kagami. "But what could they expect to achieve by their…actions?"

"Mother…that I don't know. Neither does Lord Morax, except to say they seek to 'improve' the human species. Perhaps…I was to be one such 'improvement.'"

"That is…abominable."

"I quite agree, mother. It…" and here she sighed, considering a great fear of hers, one that had been bothering her for some time. "It may call into question my ability to bear children."

Tomoe nodded. "That thought had occurred to me. Child…if what you have told me is true, then you must never try. A creature even remotely like this, gestating inside you, would be a particularly ugly death sentence."

Kagami was silent. She had considered that angle.

"What I told you, in essence, was true. Your father and I were married-briefly. Why your Lord Morax could find no record of it, I don't know. But he disappeared shortly before you were born. I, of course, assumed the obvious.

"But now I have to wonder: was he, perhaps, no more than the delivery mechanism…for what would become you?"

….

The south side of Paris: the company of Warwolves under the High Lord Mastron Pureblood's command had been able to find a deserted apartment building and set up shop there, on the upper floors. This gave them an excellent view of the city, for a short distance, at least, while at the same time concealing their presence, as best they could.

The Warwolves had set up a command post in a large room on the top floor. At present, their commanding officer was busy polishing his sword, a replica of the humans' broadsword. He'd already seen to his rifle, which, had anyone seen it, would have been identical in appearance to the HK416 assault rifle, in 5.56 x 45 millimeter NATO, such as was carried by the French armed forces. That similarity was not accidental. It was an excellent weapon, lacking any serial numbers, of course, and he had strict orders not to use it, not that he needed them. The rifle was to be a last-ditch measure, and only to be used if all else had failed, and circumstances were dire indeed. Needless to say, it was not to be used against their quarry under any circumstances. Rather, it was to be used in defense of said quarry.

He much preferred to use the sword, or, better still, the stun gun, which he always kept handy. But the stun gun, like the rifle, only had a limited number of shots-hence the sword. And the…other weapons he, like all of them, carried. Such as the human-standard issue Ka-bar combat knife.

"Sir?" Ardent Bloodfang was standing next to him, his posture one of respect.

"Yes, corporal?" Not taking his eyes off his sword.

"Might I have a word with you?"

"You might." Bloodfang relaxed.

"...when I'm done here. For that matter, I take it you've seen to your weapons as well?"

"Uh, yes, sir. I have." And he stood there.

Commander Pureblood sighed. He knew Bloodfang would continue to stand there until he got his audience. "Oh, very well." He put his sword aside and motioned for Bloodfang to sit. "What seems to be on your mind?"

"It's our mission, sir. I'm a little confused as to our objective."

"You're confused? I thought it was made clear. We are to find and…capture, well, recapture, to be precise, the princess and return her to her father and mother. How can that be simpler?"

"But sir…this makes what? Six times she's…well, left, shall we say? Our goal is simple enough, but why does she keep doing this? Unless we know that, she'll simply escape again…and again…and again. Why does she keep doing so? And why did she come to this world, of all worlds? What is her ultimate goal? If we could determine that, perhaps we could prevent future…excursions on her part."

Mastron Pureblood, High Lord of the Warwolves Alpha Clan, sighed slightly. As a soldier, Bloodfang should simply follow orders. But his experience had taught him that explanations, limited though they may have to be, often went a long way towards getting soldiers to follow orders. "Understand, I cannot reveal everything to you. However, be it known to you that the princess hopes to establish peaceful relations between the humans of our world and us. To accomplish this, she seeks…something. I am not at liberty to say what. But should she be spotted, by anyone but us, a single bullet would end the royal line, of which she is heir to. So therefore, that will not happen. That is our mission, our goal."

Ardent Bloodfang's face registered shock. "She…wants to establish peace, actual peace, between us and those, those-*" He found he couldn't continue. The memory, the terrible memory, was just too strong.

Mastron Pureblood reached out and placed a paw on his corporal's shoulder. "I know, I heard of your experience. No one should have to undergo that. But keep in mind, these humans are not the ones who…did that. It would be wrong to blame these humans for what the ones on our world did, horrific as it was." Bloodfang was silent. "All the more reason to find the princess and return her to the world of her birth.

"This is not our world, and they do not need our antagonisms." He paused briefly. "By all accounts, they have enough of their own."

….

The outskirts of Paris: the old man had just come in from tending his meager garden, when something, some sixth sense perhaps, alerted him that something was wrong. His soup was already cold, and, in any case, he had little appetite these days. Each day was the same: get up, tend his garden, eat, and return to bed. His lifestyle was really rather depressing.

All his friends, his family, had preceded him in death, and, frankly, he hoped to join them in the near future. He was not suicidal; he simply had no real reason to live.

He felt so alone.

But now he sensed, with a sense not of sight or hearing, something…something coming his way. But what? No-one, aside from well-meaning but ultimately ineffectual social workers, ever came this way.

It had grown dark, so he took a lantern, an old-fashioned oil lantern handed down through generations, and went outside to look. What he saw made him gasp, and paralyzed him in his tracks.

For coming down the dirt road outside his house was what appeared to be a woman surrounded by a strange looking flame. She did not seem to be discomforted by the fire; indeed, she didn't seem to even notice it. When she got close enough, he could see that she was perhaps the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen, or even imagined, with shoulder-length brown hair, framing a face any supermodel could only dream about: flawless features, perfectly proportioned, dark eyes that seemed to lock onto his. She was wearing some sort of red pantsuit and tunic combo, this cinched around her perfect figure by a wide black belt. She was walking quite calmly, apparently unharmed by the weird flame, and carrying something in her left hand. He squinted, but against the backdrop of the fire couldn't quite make out what it was. Some sort of…gold rod? But no, it had something on the end…

Upon spotting him, she smiled, the sort of smile most men would literally die for.

He didn't realize he was about to.

"You," she purred. "You look like a nice man. You can help me. Won't you?"

Just like the rest of him, his vocal chords seemed paralyzed by the lovely apparition. But upon being addressed directly, he found his voice, even though it was barely a croak. "M-miss? Are…are you alright? Can I get you anything?" He was thinking, ambulance? Water hose, even?

"Oh, no," she said. She was now less than an arm's length away. Were those horns on her forehead? "You, you have everything I need, right here." And she put her arm around his neck, that queer fire not burning him, but producing such an unpleasant sensation that he almost wished it would. With surprising strength, she drew him forward, towards her head, her mouth, her lips pursing for a kiss, in what would normally be a dream come true, but was now a nightmare come to life…

The dogs along the neighboring hillside barked and barked for a long time. Then they hid, their tails tucked firmly between their legs, looking back over their shoulders, towards the old man's farmhouse…

…where no living being now resided.

To be continued…