Here it is, the seventy-fifth full chapter of Miraculous Quirks released on the set day that I promised each week. The Overhaul arc is now in full swing and it is time for Marinette and Adrien to face a big test as we pick off right where the last chapter left off without anymore fanfare. That is all the administrative stuff I have for now though and as there are no review questions to answer or guest reviews to respond to I will end this note here. Do keep the reviews coming as I enjoy hearing from y'all. Now, though, it is time to sit back, relax, and enjoy the 75th full chapter of Miraculous Quirks.
Disclaimer: I do not own either of these great works of fiction.
Chapter 75: The Eternal War
The lights revealed two men who appeared to be about Mage's age on the surface standing at the other end of the room grinning at them, malicious intent blazing in their cold eyes. Marinette and Adrien knew that they had to be much older than they appeared, their earlier statements had made it clear that they weren't mortal but something else, something closer to what Mage was.
The French teens took a moment to study them and as they did they felt a sense of dread fill them as their examination revealed who the men likely were. These were people who were beyond what they'd ever faced before, but they were heroes, they wouldn't let this stop them.
The man opposite Mage was the taller one with fair skin, green eyes and what little of his hair they could see was a blondish brown. He wore an old school, sleeveless tunic thing that was basically a long vest with a skirt part over a simple shirt, loose pants, and boots all a dark blue with a silver trim along with a blue turban over his head that hid most of his hair but for a few strands that fell down over his forehead.
To complete his look he had, of all things, a modern looking belt with many devices and pouches on it around his waist. On his right hand was a dark blue glove while his left hand and forearm was a metal gauntlet the allowed him to move his fingers and wrist but would also provide protection however it was the weapon he held loosely in his right hand that gave him away.
The weapon was a long, single handed, sword that was mostly straight until it reach the top portion that curved back gracefully in a shallow curve. The top part was thicker than the bottom and had what could be called a small spike thing on it to make a backhand swing just as deadly as a forehand one. The blade itself was midnight blue but for the gleaming sliver edge to it that looked razor sharp and emitted a soft, ominous, blue glow. It had a sliver hilt and curved pommel with a blue handle.
The teens knew what it was having looked one up after Mage had told them of the Guardians' ancient foes. It was a scimitar, an old weapon from the middle east and north Africa and the name the man holding it currently went by. He was one of the 4 high ranking Vengeful Spirits which wasn't good and the man next to him was no less senior in that organization.
The other man was significantly shorter, only 5 foot four at best, with a wiry build, clearly defined muscles and a startlingly handsome face covered in a well-trimmed and manicured black beard. All this could be seen as the man was shirtless, his dark skin on full display and covered in a mix of esoteric tattoos and ritualistic scars that neither Marinette nor Adrien could begin to understand.
All he wore was a pair of pants that seemed to be made of a woven gold fabric, held up by a belt identical to the one that his compatriot wore, and gold boots. He had white bracers on his forearms that seemed to be made of ivory, a matching choker, and a gold and ivory circlet around his bald head as if it was a crown of sorts.
Again, it was his weapons that gave him away, however. Strapped to his back was a quiver of arrows and a massive bow made of what looked like ivory but was likely just dyed white wood that looked impractical but was no doubt powerful. The bow as bad enough but it was the ones in his hands that were the ones the teens knew that they needed to be wary of.
That was because the man wielded a pair of swords that were short with only a small bit above the hiltless handle straight before they made a graceful arc to end in a sharp point. Both were made of what looked like gold with ivory handles. This guy clearly had a thing for the materials.
The swords were khopeshes, single handed sickle swords from Egypt that had evolved from longer axes so as to be used for more close quarters fighting. They were going to be a bitch to face as the curved blade caused issues to fight against given how uncommon they were and gave the master of them a huge edge in a sword duel. The blades also told the teens that this man was the other male senior Vengeful Spirits, Ulcisci.
"Come now Mage, where's your spirit of banter." Scimitar said, his voice indicating that he was the one who'd spoken first when they'd arrived in this strange room. "This new age we've been in does like that, you know how the mortals are with all their postering and grandstanding and we do have to keep our covers."
"Why would I want to banter with the likes of you two." Mage replied coolly. "It's been a long time since any of us have seen you roaches come out from your holes so there's no point in indulging you lot."
"We like our holes, they protect us from the evil you lot represent in you vain attempt to stop chaos from ruling the way it should, unchecked and powerful in a vast state of nature where only a man's skill at arms matters." Ulcisci said. "And besides, right now we got out little devices working so it's a fair fight against you. It may not be one, but we are in effect in a void. Gotta love the advances in tech that mortals made, thanks to them you lot lost that monopoly long ago."
"Yes my power is blocked, and I can't summon more of my consciousness here." Mage said a grimace on his face from the uncomfortable feeling of being unable to connect with his element. "Or contact my other forms around the globe to let someone know what is going on but we're enough to take you down."
"Please, the Guardian of Magic who fights with such restrictive gear when he's not relying on his power and two kids got nothing on us." Scimitar scoffed. "As a show of mercy, I'll leave the children to Ulcisci, he's the weaker of us with a blade."
"I am presuming that the brats know the truth." Ulcisci said his eyes looking Marinette and Adrien over likely noting how both remained calm and composed during the whole exchange. "They don't seem shocked so what are they? More of your base followers just like you once were?"
"We're our own people." Marinette said in English her accent horrible in the language but not caring given the situation that they were in. "We know the truth of the Guardians and you lot though."
"Then you have gotten embroiled in our eternal war just like so many other mortals have over the eons." Scimitar said. "Making you fair game for us though why a French chick is here is beyond me, not that I really care."
"They reek of Mage's power, so our gear is likely suppressing it making them weaker." Ulcisci said and Mage had to resist smirking at that, only the costumes were his power and as they were active before they arrived they wouldn't be affected by the ancient, artificial void creators the Vengefuls had on their belts. "The stench of magic is washing off them, it's almost sickening how strong it is."
"Then they will be nothing for you my friend." Scimitar said clearly not understanding that the powers Marinette and Adrien had were now Quirks and completely under their own control. "Mage's power is nothing right now and his blade skills pale compared to mine so we will easily win this. I'm sure the heroes of this world will love the coup when they find one of the Guardian and two kids under his watch dead here, it won't look good for them."
"We've been through so much more; we aren't afraid of death." Adrien said his mask making his English sound mechanical spinning his baton in his hand as he spoke. "And we are much stronger than you would ever know."
"Then prove it, connard." Ulcisci said using the French for the curse as his tongue flicked out and licked his lips clearly getting hyped up for the fight. "You may not be a guardian, but my blades will still taste your blood very soon."
"You think that will get a rise out of us." Marinette said as she set her goal for an item that would allow her and Adrien to beat this guy and really focused on it because she knew she'd need all her power if they were to win. "It won't but we will best you."
"Be careful you two." Mage said his voice deadly serious as a plan came to mind and trusting that his charges would succeed because their powers were ones these two excuses of immortals had never faced before. "These two are not to be messed with lightly so use all your training, power, and skills to win. They've killed countless Sub-Guardians and bested many a Guardian in their time. I am stronger than last we clashed Scimitar, but I know that only three of my order are truly your superior with a blade. I'm not alone though and I have allies the likes of which you've never faced. You're judgement day is long overdue so shut the fuck up and pony up because I'm here to serve you, connard."
With that Mage charged forward ending any banter as Scimitar just grinned. At the same time Marinette activated her Quirk and a katana in a ladybug print appeared above her while Adrien took the lead to give her a second to figure out how to use her item, his staff at perfect length, to take on Ulcisci who had opted to rush them thus ensuring that the two fights occurred at different ends of the room. The fights were on, the test of Ladybug and Cat Noir had begun.
Adrien was the first to reach Ulcisci as Marinette pulled back a moment to use the second part of her Quirk and knowing that Adrien was giving her this moment to do so. He raise his staff diagonally so that the top part intercepted a high blow from Ulcisci's right and khopesh that was going for his neck while the lower part intercepted a low sweeping blow from the left hand one aimed at his thigh in an impressively coordinated attack. The blades and staff locked as the villain struggled clearly startled by the strength Adrien was showing though it was taking all of it to hold the villain at bay.
Marinette wasn't idle as she caught the katana in her right hand and looked at the battle. Her vision grayed and first her own body and the katana glowed, then Ulcisci did, followed a second later by his left wrist, Adrien's staff, his right khopesh, her own body again, and finally Adrien's left hand. Instantly she knew what had to be done and would have laughed at how their roles were a little reversed if the situation wasn't so dire and if she didn't know how much this was going to hurt. Well, usually it was Adrien getting hurt in a battle this, it was her time to bear the pain for them.
"Kitty, get behind me." Marinette ordered. "I have to take the lead in this if we are to defeat him. Trust me and act when I say, I trust you my love."
"On it bugaboo." Adrien said giving Ulcisci and almighty shove back before back flipping, kicking out as he did to force the villain back a few more paces, and over Marinette as she used the move to charge forward. "He's all yours."
Marinette didn't say a word as she tossed her yo-yo at the man causing it to slam into his right hand khopesh and force it back so that it wasn't an immediate threat. At the same Marinette slashed the katana across her body at the man's neck.
He was fast though, his eons of training and experience allowing him to get his left khopesh up in time to intercept the blow and turn his head as the blades clashed. The katana was slightly longer however, and the sharp tip scored a shallow line just under his jaw causing what looked like dark blue ichor to dribble out as it slid over the curved blade, but the cut was shallow, and the blades shot past each other not locking up this time.
"Bitch." Ulcisci spat as he recovered and slashed both his swords from across his body, the right low and the left high as Marinette's katana fell past and she was getting ready for her next blow. "I'll make you pay for that. An insignificant insect like yourself shouldn't make me bleed."
Marinette didn't say anything as she hopped back, sucking in her gut as best she could but the tips of the khopeshes with their curve were hard to predict and both scored lines on her. The right along her abs just above her Miraculous and the left along her upper chest from shoulder to shoulder at the base of her throat.
She hissed in pain but knew that the cuts weren't deep, about as deep as the ones Himiko Toga had inflicted on her back in the woods, so she ignored them even as she felt her blood bubble up through the wounds. The blades were razor sharp and able to pierce the suits which made sense given these guys were trained to engage Guardians and the suit was made by one of them.
Still Marinette fought through the pain, it was only pain after all, and brought the katana down in an overhand chop while spinning her left wrist fast to create a blurring shield with her yo-yo. Ulcisci got his left hand up in tip to intercept the katana with a clang before it slid down the curve and locked on the point where the curve started, his strength easily a match for Marinette's. At the same time, he brought the right hand back across his body, scoring another line along Marinette's stomach with the backhand slash that was as deep as the others and back again for higher body blow.
Marinette got her left arm in position in time to intercept the blow. The blade hit the improvised yo-yo shield and slowed down but didn't bounce off it as she had hoped it would. The khopesh was too sharp to be deflected or entangled and instead cut through string, but the block slowed it down and allowed Marinette the mostly avoid the blow. However, with the angle the khopesh took a few layers of skin off her upper left arm and forearm in the process with her costume taking the brunt again so the result would look a nasty graze that wouldn't scar or bleed to badly at the moment.
This clearly surprised Ulcisci and she used it to her advantage by dropping the yo-yo string still in her hand as her yo-yo now minus a portion of string clattered to the ground and grabbed Ulcisci's right wrist in her left hand in a tight grip. As she did she pushed out with her left arm to keep Ulcisci's right arm across his body.
She held it there as spun her grip on her katana in her right hand to a reverse one and pushed it forward and around the khopesh to strike Ulcisci in the chin staggering and stunning him enough for Marinette to spin the katana around her wrist, shifting her head slightly to avoid the long blade and bring it down and into the curve of the man's left khopesh and pushing it out.
All this was part of Marinette's grand, as usual slightly complex, plan though she did learn that the inside of the curve was just as sharp as the rest of the blade as the one in the man's right hand that was still held in Marinette's wrist lock sliced a curving line into Marinette's right bicep as she used her right arm to push his left hand khopesh away though again it wasn't too deep. She ignored the injury as she moved her arm up, her blood dripping onto the right khopesh as she raised her arm to clear it of the metal and used the katana to keep the left khopesh out to the side to create the sudden opening.
"Now." Marinette said in French.
Adrien had been carefully watching and wincing at the cuts his love was taking but he trusted her and now saw why. Marinette had given him an opening and he used it the second she yelled at him. His staff shot out, increasing in length and as fast as he could manage it with one of the blunt ends aimed right at his target. The staff shot under Marinette's right arm, over Ulcisci's right and into his left wrist with a crack. The man let out a howl of pain and rage as his left hand khopesh fell from his now limp fingers and clattered to the ground. However, he still wasn't out of the fight just yet.
With a vile curse in a language neither teen understood, the man spun khopesh he was still holding and slashed it up at Marinette with all his strength, breaking her grip in the process. Marinette had to leap back but not before the blade grazed her right arm from just above her wrist all the way up to her armpit with the uppermost part of the curved blade cutting her there, but she'd avoided the worst of it.
Ulcisci wasn't done yet though as he spun his remaining khopesh in his hand, brought his arm down, and used the shift to lunge at Marinette in an upwards stab. He was aiming for her gut and with the sharpness of the blade and its curve it would gut her if it landed.
Marinette however saw the move coming and knew this was the final part of her plan that she'd executed to near perfection thanks to using Lucky Charm. She landed on the ground before Ulcisci could reach her and stepped to the side to allow the blade to graze her left side as she brought her arm down to pin it to her body and ignoring any pain the move caused.
The only thing she hadn't counted on was the curve that stabbed her in the back of her left shoulder and this time went in deep. With a grunt she forced herself to power through it and judging by how she still had movement in her arm it hadn't struck anything vital.
"This is it kitty." Marinette said as she held the blade to her side with all her strength and actually glad that the tip was in her back as it helped anchor it there so that Ulcisci couldn't pull it out. "Destroy it."
"With pleasure." Adrien said as he closed the distance and Cataclysm flashed in his hand seconds before he touched the blade.
Instantly the power of pure destruction was transferred into the blade and Adrien had given it the command to destroy the entire item it touched. It was one of the things he'd worked on and had successfully mastered thanks to Momo's help, the ability to not just destroy the material that he touched but if it was a complete item then all of it.
It had taken a while and they had ironically used swords that Momo had created, mainly machetes and katanas, to ensure it as a sword was a good way to master the technique as he had to destroy the blade and handle which were often made of two different materials. Now that really paid off as the entire right hand khopesh was engulfed in the black energy and crumbled to dust in Ulcisci's hand.
"What the…" Ulcisci said his eyes wide as this was not what he'd been expecting or planning for, whoever these whelps were they were well trained and skilled, whatever Mage had done to them had given them some serious power and that was on top of their strong Quirks. "Uph."
That momentary distraction had costed Ulcisci dearly as Marinette had used the brief window top kick him squarely between the legs right where the sun didn't shine with all the power she could muster. Apparently even for an immortal villain he still had male anatomy there and doubled over in pain from Marinette's extremely cheap shot and allowing her to launch an uppercut into his jaw that laid him out on his back in a daze.
Marinette wasn't idle as she didn't know how long this would affect him given his immortal status. She dropped her katana behind her, bent down, picked up her yo-yo and tied a loop at the end to replicate the usual loop. She then spun it in her right hand and tossed it at the other khopesh. The force of the impact bounced the sword up and she shifted the yo-yo down to bounce it off the floor and around the handle to secure it. Once it was there she yanked it back and ducked down so that it sailed over her head.
No words were needed as Adrien raised his left hand, once again glowing with Cataclysm, and caught the handle in it instantly imparting his power into the weapon and commanding it to destroy the entire sword. It disintegrated in seconds thus disarming Ulcisci and giving them an edge though Marinette picked up her katana as she put her yo-yo back on her belt just in case as the man, who was still groaning on the ground, still had his bow.
It was as they were doing this that they heard a sickening, horrifying sound and turned to the other fight to see what was going on there and gasped as it neared its conclusion. That was because while Marinette and Adrien had been dealing with Ulcisci, Mage had engaged Scimitar in a one-on-one duel that was very different to the fight between Marinette and Ulcisci. They'd been so engrossed in their own battle that they hadn't seen or heard Mage's, but it had been just as good until that moment.
While Adrien had initially engaged Ulcisci before Marinette took over the main fight, Mage had closed in on Scimitar, pulled back his left arm and the slashed it up and across his body as hard and fast as he could in a diagonal line. The force of the blow forced Scimitar to get his blade in the way of it and intercept Mage's own blade with a clang, but Mage's raw strength was greater and forced it up and away briefly.
That was the window that Mage needed as he cocked his right arm back and punch forward in a stab at Scimitar's throat. The man raised his protected left arm revealing that he had a metal pad in his palm as well to add to his protection. Mage just grinned as the blade shot back into his gauntlet with a mental command, gotta love how Forge could tie a weapon to a user's mind, and his fist sailed past the palm that had been set to intercept the blade to punch Scimitar in the chin. The only annoyance was that in a move this fast Mage couldn't unleash his blade before the punch landed but he'd take the punch any day.
"Gah, tricky bastard." Scimitar cursed in ancient Greek as he rolled with the blow, spun around and brought his sword to bear on Mage's side. "Only a skilless fool like yourself would resort to that shit."
"Against you I need all I can manage to hold you off." Mage said as he brought down his right arm, the blade popping out from the gauntlet again to intercept the villain's sword on the metal of the gauntlet with a clang of metal on metal. "Besides, you aren't devoid of your cheap tricks either. I know exactly how you've managed to improve your already formidable fighting skills."
This was proven a moment later as Mage used his left arm to lunge at Scimitar as he blocked the blow. However, Scimitar moved his right arm up and his wrist spun unnaturally to intercept it the blade and knock it away with ease thanks to the speed that Scimitar's blade had been moving at the moment of impact. At the same time Mage lashed up with his right arm but Scimitar got his bracer in the way in time to intercept it and Mage's blade began to push against it but to no avail.
"Hardly a cheap trick." Scimitar snarled as his wrist turned back suddenly in another unnatural way so that he could bring down his blade without having to move his arm and forcing Mage to retract his left blade into the gauntlet to get it down in time to intercept the sword before it could chop into his shoulder and tilting his head to the side to avoid getting cut by the sharp, alkali coated, edge of the sword. "Your master took my right hand off just above my wrist millennia ago in a void duel though it was a fair sacrifice to avoid capture then. I'm just making do with what I got now and tech these days means that I'm even better with my mechanical hand than I was when I was whole."
"Yeah just like how you sliced off Technus's left arm, shoulder, ear, and eye." Mage growled as the forced his arms wide, stepped in, and slammed his forehead into Scimitar's nose staggering him back a few paces. "A hand for all that is more than worth it in my book."
"His fault for not being a Guardian when I struck him, immortal bastard would have died had it not been for his parentage." Scimitar growled as he twisted his mechanical wrist down to get the blade in the way of a diagonal slash down that Mage went for while using his other arm to block a stab with the metal on the palm. "Shame he didn't die or have to retire from those wounds, but I hear the pain he went through thanks to me was beyond excruciating. That gives me great pleasure to know that."
Mage just growled at that as retracted both blades in an attempt to force Scimitar's momentum to change. Alas against a man as skilled in swordsmanship as Scimitar that wouldn't work unfortunately. He'd seen Mage's trick and knew how to counter it. He had stopped resisting the moment he felt Mage's pressure lesson and then stepped forward with a diagonal chop of his own that Mage was only just able to get his right gauntlet up to block but leaving his side exposed allowing Scimitar to punch him there as hard as he could.
The force of the blow would have broken a few ribs on a normal human and as Mage was supposed to be pretending that he was one at the moment he unfortunately had to make his body appear and react as if it was mortal. As such, he gasped in pain from the blow while feeling his shirt dampen from were spikes on the knuckles of the finger protections had formed due to Scimitar clenching his fist.
Still, this was nothing compared to what Mage had experienced in his countless battles, and he kept pushing against the blade from above as he dopped his left arm down and then activated the blade in his gauntlet. It shot out and even with his quick reactions, Scimitar was unable to avoid it and the blade gouged out a line in his side, bubbling blue blood coming out and disintegrating his clothes around the wound.
"I can't believe that her way to make you immortal seems to involve replacing your blood with her own power, how does that even work?" Mage asked rhetorically as Scimitar hissed and stepped back, slashing his sword to keep Mage at bay and force him to retract the blades again to ensure that he avoided the attack.
"It's a small price to pay for our services and we survived it making us truly immortal like you." Scimitar growled as his wrist moved back to a normal position as he raised his arm. "You can't kill me just as much as I can't kill you."
"I know we have to wound each other enough to force a reform that could take ages." Mage spat as he crossed his arms above his head and intercepted the blade with a clang and stepping back so that he wouldn't be punched again. "Course you lack that so we'd just take what was left and chuck it in our prison until you heal enough to be questioned properly and as Dominus proved, you can't regrow limbs."
"That was only because of his special sword and whatever material it is made out of." Scimitar snarled as he tried to push down on the cross, but Mage held his own and extended his blades again to lock the blade there for a few more seconds while he tried to assess what was going on with the other fight. "When Bromine hacked off Ulcisci's arm it grew back."
"Shame it can't be said for his boyfriend." Mage said as he finally noticed what was going on in the other fight and knew what he would have to do in a moment to turn the tables on Scimitar. "Bromine's best kill was when he jammed his machete into Ulcisci's lover's heart and obliterated it. No wonder he's so filled with rage. Too small to be king of his people because of their rules and gay to boot in a group that is horrifically homophobic, an easy target for your mistress that we only made worse when his lover was killed even if he blamed us despite the death being in service to you lot. Shame, he's skilled and we aren't homophobic, we'd have taken him in, but Vindicta got to him first thanks to how remote his homeland was at the time. You, though, you never made sense to us."
"I've always had my own reasons for opposing you lot and hiding my origins so that you never figure them out." Scimitar said as he pushed down and back with all his strength thus forcing Mage to take a step back and freeing his blade while forcing Mage's arms to the sides in the process. "And you're nowhere near good enough to challenge me in a swordfight, Mage."
With that Scimitar stopped his arm movement down, stepped forward and before Mage could move his arms to block the attack thrust upwards. Mage stood no chance, not that he would have blocked anyway as he knew this was how he was going to win, as the tip of Scimitar's scimitar plunged deep into his gut at an upward angle and erupted out of his back in a geyser of golden ichor as Scimitar buried his blade to the hilt in Mage's body. The only thing Mage had done was shift slightly to the left so that the blade wouldn't hit what would have been his spine if he was mortal.
That had been the sound that Marinette and Adrien had heard, the sound of flesh being rent apart as it was violently stabbed. They'd turned at it and gasped at the sight they saw before them. Mage was slumped over the blade in his gut, the sword protruding out of his back at an upward angle to the right of where his spine should be, and golden ichor, the blood of immortals like Mage, pouring out of the wound. Scimitar was grinning malevolently at that but as the teens watched, Mage's own mouth formed a grin even as golden blood began to dribble out of it.
"I know I can't match you in a fight without my magic, but I am still immortal and so long as I have enough fight in me a wound like this is manageable even with your cheap alkali coating that hurts like a connard." Mage said as he looked up and raised his arms clearly not too bothered by the sword that was buried in his belly. "Checkmate."
With that the blades that he'd retracted just before he was stabbed, he'd actually used his stabbing to hide the fact that he'd retracted them, shot out of his gauntlets and into Scimitar's chest. The villain was way too close for the attack and Mage had positioned his arms so that his fists where right where Scimitar's pecs were, just above his nipples. The blades pierced the man's chest and erupted out of his back with a spray of blue blood that instantly began to disintegrate his clothes and fizzled on the floor but only tarnished Mage's blades.
All Scimitar could do was let out a howl of pain and rage as he realized what had happened. He'd never expected a Guardian to actually take such a serious blow just to land a counter on him and now he was in a dire situation. If he had been anyone else in their group other than Ulcisci he'd be dead as his heart would have been destroyed but he no longer had one so now he was stuck with his own sword in Mage's gut and Mage's blades in his chest.
"Never underestimate our willingness to do what we can to win and besides, I knew that I had to protect my charges." Mage spat out, golden ichor spraying from his mouth and into Scimitar's face, but he wasn't done yet. "And don't underestimate them either."
With that Mage let out a yell and pushed against Scimitar who was too shocked and in pain to resist as Mage pushed forward with what little strength he had remaining and drove Scimitar backwards. He ignored the sword in his body and the fact that he was making it worse with his actions as he pushed Scimitar back, his blades still in him, until they reached the wall, and he was able to pin the other man to it with his blades buried in the wall behind him.
"Destroy this fucking scimitar and all it is attached to." Mage roared and Adrien instantly acted, his boss's words breaking him from his stupor and allowing him to charge forward to help Mage out. "But don't touch the edge."
At the same time Ulcisci had recovered and seen what was going on. He rolled back and sprang to his feet pulling his bow from his back and notching an arrow in a single, well-practiced, motion. Marinette saw all this out of the corner of her eye and was glad that she had kept her katana as she realized there was still one more use for her item.
"Oh no you don't." Marinette said as she slashed the katana at Ulcisci who was drawing back the bowstring as she spoke.
She would have liked to go for the string, but she didn't have the angle to do so, so instead she went for his left hand that held the bow. The razor-sharp katana sliced through the man's hand, severing a few fingers, and into the bow though it didn't cut all the way through it.
Instead, it lodged into the bow as Ulcisci let out a scream and the bow was forced upwards, the arrow being released and flying harmless into the air and then the wall while Ulcisci continued to scream and clutch his mangled hand to his chest backing up, the bow still connected to the katana. At that Marinette swiped back sending the bow flying off and clattering to the ground behind her.
All this had been done to ensure that Adrien completed his task which he did as he closed in on the sword still protruding from Mage's back. Adrien did as ordered, Cataclysm flaring in his hand as he reached Mage, and toughing the flat of the scimitar at its widest point.
Instantly the force of pure destruction was transferred into the blade and shot down. Adrien didn't have time for finesse and just commanded his power to destroy anything inorganic that was in contact with the blade or handle. That ended up including Mage's cloak, shirt, and Scimitar's mechanical right hand and the glove that he wore over it as all turned to dust though the alkali still in Mage's blood wasn't affected.
"Thanks." A now shirtless Mage said weakly now held up by his gauntlets that were still in both Scimitar and the wall as the golden ichor poured out of his wound to stain his jeans. "Now the belt, destroy all of it."
"No!" Scimitar said as he tried to move his remaining left hand down to hit something on his belt, but Adrien was faster.
Using his right hand to grab Scimitar's wrist he yanked it back before running his still glowing left hand along Scimitar's belt destroying all that was there as it was all inorganic. Adrien had no idea what it was, but it had to be important given Mage's order and Scimitar's reaction to its potential destruction.
"Ulcisci, flee." Scimitar ordered as the belt was destroyed though his pants stayed on meaning that the belt was more for utility than anything else. "Tell her we've aborted this; I doubt Overhaul will win so let's leave Japan to All for One for now, he's got this nation covered. It's back to the main plan. I'll see you in time brother."
"Right." Ulcisci said pain and sorrow in his voice as he slammed his good hand into a device on his belt. "Until we meet again Mage, I'll destroy then for what you've done today and all the other crimes you've committed against our glorious mistress."
There was a sucking sound and suddenly a rent appeared behind Ulcisci sucking him into it and then vanishing the moment he was through it. The second that Ulcisci was gone Mage felt his power flood back to him and instantly he used it to heal the worst of his wound, and the entirety of the punch wound on his side, though with the alkali in him he'd need one of two people who could purge it effectively as it wouldn't fully close until then and he'd also have to let some of it stand to maintain his cover.
"Well one is better than none and boy will the master be shocked when your ass shows up in the prison holding cell especially with my weapons still in you." Mage said his gauntlets opened up and freed his hands causing him to stagger back but he waived off Adrien as he used the last of his strength to remain standing. "Been too long for you, time to face justice."
"I'll be free one day, mark my word." Scimitar said with a smile as Mage drew his knife from the sheath on his thigh. "Spirit knows that too even if she's been waiting for millennia at this point. Time is irrelevant to us; you can't hold us forever. One day the mistress will free us, and you'll be sorry when that day comes."
"Keep dreaming." Mage said with a weak smile as the blade of his knife began to glow with a blinding white light. "Say hello to that traitorous little bitch from me."
He held up his knife and a flash of white light, Mage was channeling the power of the Guardian of Light as that was who's power was needed to send someone to their special prison, shot out and struck a now smirking Scimitar in the chest. It all happened so fast that one second the man was there, the next he was gone along with Mage's gauntlets leaving being only a smoking puddle of blue blood on the floor and twin streaks of it down the wall.
"Gods damned it this hurts." Mage let out as he collapsed to his knees, Adrien rushing to grab him and support him as Marinette hurried over, looking shocked at what happened while Mage his free left hand over his wound to try and staunch it a bit as his rough healing wasn't enough to fully close the wound thanks to the alkali on the blade that had pierced his body. "Been so long since I was hurt like this, but it had to be done to win."
At that Mage coughed up a mouthful of ichor and winced. This was not a good situation to be in and Marinette and Adrien knew it.
"Mage, we need to get you out of here." Marinette said worried though it was more for the pain the Guardian was in than his health as the man was an immortal. "And to a medic. Once this is over you can tell us what the hell happened."
"Not much to tell, I knew I wouldn't win so I let him stab me the moment that he had an opening so that I could counter and pin him." Mage said pain evident in his voice and golden ichor flecking out of his mouth as he spoke. "And you guys did amazing holding your own against Ulcisci though Marinette, you're injured as well."
"I'm fine, just some scratches that I can power through, it's you who I'm worried about." Marinette said. "And why is your blood gold."
"Blood of the immortals of western civilization is always gold though we call it ichor." Mage said with a grimace. "All Guardians and our supporters have the blood of their parentage, so this is mine but don't worry, my powers are back so the spell has returned. Back when we became heroes so as to better help the world and cover our activities I enchanted my blood to look mortal to those who don't know the truth and my cover Quirk can do some rudimentary healing, so I won't have to fake my death, but I'll be out for a while. Enough talking, we need to get out of here, and you two need to get back to the action."
"Yeah about that." Adrien said as his timer went off and a squirt of recharging protein shot into his mouth that he swallowed at once not thinking of any innuendos in the process. "How? We are somewhere beneath the hallway we started in and I'm sure that that yakuza guy blocked our escape route."
"You're suits have been upgraded so use space mode as that is the one that grants flight." Mage said with a cough that spewed ichor over his bare, muscular, torso. "Ladybug, carry me and we'll follow Cat Noir who will lead the way and use his Quirk to destroy whatever is blocking this. After that, prop me against the wall and go on, you'll be needed to beat Chisaki. My time in this fight is over and this wound actually helps in that regard, I likely couldn't engage Chisaki even if I had been able to do so."
"Right space mode, that's a new one for us." Marinette said having only ever used the aqua and ice powerups before the incident and not having had the time or opportunity to try the new modes though her and Adrien knew how to activate them in the guise of the whole suit upgrade they'd received over the summer break. "Let's do it."
"Powerup time." Adrien said as he raised his ring to his finger to the grill of his mask. "Space mode, activate."
Marinette just pressed the upper two dots on her own Miraculous to activate it. Adrien's activations were voice commands, Marinette's were the spots on her Miraculous, but they worked the same as both changed in seconds.
For Marinette, the power up changed her suit to a dark pink color with glowing white spots before a helmet formed around her head completely encasing it thought the top part was exactly like her hair only blue not black and it was a full vizor so she could see out of it. At the same time, a pair of delicate, bug like, wings with a blue pattern shot out of the back of her suit and fluttered there.
As for Adrien, his suit formed florescent green lines on it in places where the seams would be and around his belt as a black helmet with a vizor shot up and encased his head and mask. A backpack formed over it all, the stapes edged in florescent green as well, and a pair of large, green, batlike, wings shot out of the bag. To complete it a light formed at his throat where his bell used to be and would be helpful.
"Huh the bell thing returned with the upgrade, guess I forgot about that change, good thing as it will come in handy now." Mage said as the knife still in his hand glowed white again but this time it lasted only a moment before the light detached from the knife and floated as a ball of white light in the air above him while the French pair attached their weapons to their belts and Marinette finally dismissed her katana. "Right, let's go, the others need you."
"Ok." Marinette said as Mage sheathed his knife and Adrien leapt up, the wings seeming to be more for show as he was able to just float there without them moving though he didn't know how. "Sorry for this."
"Don't worry, I've been in worse." Mage said as Marinette scooped him up princess style, surprised that she could lift him easily as he seemed to weigh no less than a man of his size and stature would normally weight and floated into the air. "I can handle pain just fine."
With a nod from Marinette, Adrien set off and flew into the hole they fell through, his wings folding in as he did to fit and the light at his throat illuminating the area above him. Marinette followed, the light that Mage had made floating a few feet above her head as she flew giving her enough light to follow Adrien through the winding tunnel though the spots on her suit also helped as they gave off light as well.
It took a little longer to ascend than it did to fall but in short order they had reached the top and as Adrien did he pressed his right hand to the concrete that was obstructing them. He had to put a little more power than he would have liked into it as it was a thick and dense but in short order he disintegrated enough for them to get out and the rest fell away as it reached the other wall and they set down in the twisted but stable corridor showing that Irinaka was no longer in this area of the underground compound.
"Prop me against a wall and then get moving." Mage said weakly and Marinette did that putting him down against a wall so that he was sitting against it, his arms over his gut and golden ichor still oozing out to puddle on the floor around him. "Right, once things seems stable, contact BB and Creati and get them down here but only when there's time, I'll be fine until then."
"Ok." Marinette said with a nod only the fact that she knew that Mage was immortal keeping her from breaking down as she stepped back. "We won't fail you or the heroes who've put faith in us."
"I know you won't, you are Ladybug and Cat Noir." Mage said in French with a smile as Adrien said the deactivation phrase and Marinette pressed the same spots to activate the change to let the transformation fall glad to see that Mage's blood was no longer staining her costume, just her own blood was doing that and the red of her costume didn't really show it. "You were chosen to wield those Miraculouses for a reason and though this isn't what you foresaw you are here now and wield their power as your Quirks. Remind the world why you earned them, why you are great heroes no matter the age you are in."
"We will." Adrien and Marinette said in unison before they turned and ran off down the corridor towards the first barrier that was still there, Marinette forming a mech around her body with Lucky Charm as they needed to save Adrien's Quirk for when they found and joined the fight against Chisaki.
They'd been through one hell of a trial, one that had badly injured Mage and Marinette wasn't as hot as she thought she was, but adrenaline was pushing her on as they ran towards the action. They had a fight to get to and a little girl to save. Now that they could do that that was all that mattered as Ladybug and Cat Noir rushed to rejoin the mission.
Well, there it is, the challenge that Marinette and Adrien faced was a tough one but thanks to their training and Quirks they overcame it and were able to win against a strong foe plus we got to see their costume upgrades for the first time, and it will not be the last time as at least one of them will need one of the upgrades again in the future. Alas Mage has been badly injured, but they will power on and resume the efforts to rescue Eri because they know it is their duty to do so. What will happen next? Well, y'all will know in a week's time as the Overhaul arc reaches its final phase. That is all I have for you though, so it is time to leave this chapter off here. As always, if you like it or have any questions please let me know in reviews or PMs, I will try to answer them as best I could and post any questions asked between uploads at the start of the next chapter and do follow and favorite this, so you are alerted to future uploads. Do keep the reviews coming as I like hearing from y'all as you enjoy my work, it motivates me to keep producing the best work I can for y'all to enjoy. Until next time.
Stringdog
