The sun is shining over a sprawling medieval battlefield. The sound of clashing steel and war cries fills the air. Amidst the chaos, the author, clad in shining knight armor, stands valiantly, wielding a sword in one hand and a shield in the other. A group of enemies circles menacingly.
Author: (parrying a blow effortlessly) Ah, greetings, loyal readers! Welcome back to another casual day in the life of your humble author. (slashes at an enemy) As you can see, I've been keeping myself quite busy with... (dodges a spear thrust) …a little light sparring between chapters.
Enemy 1: (growls) You've updated again already?! This can't be! You were supposed to vanish for months!
Author: (chuckles while blocking another attack) Oh, those days are long behind me, my foe! I've trained in the arts of writing discipline and swift updates. Now, my quill is as sharp as my blade. (swings sword in a flawless arc, disarming Enemy 2)
Enemy 2: (staggering back) This… this can't be happening! Writers don't update this quickly!
Author: (with a smirk) Perhaps, but I'm no ordinary writer. I wield the power of both storytelling (delivers a final blow to an enemy) and determination!
Enemy 3: (panicked) No! No more cliffhangers! Have mercy!
Author: (sheathing sword as the remaining enemies retreat) Ah, worry not. The next chapter is on the way, and it's one you won't want to miss. Think knights, battles, and a grand medieval showdown—complete with all the epic duels and heroic moments. I've been sharpening my literary skills just for this.
The battlefield grows quiet, and the author stands tall, brushing dust off the gleaming armor.
Author: Now, I must return to my scribe's table and finish crafting the next chapter. But until then, dear readers, thank you for your continued support and for joining me on this adventure. As you can see, writing is both an art (winks) and a battle. Stay tuned for the next epic installment, and remember—(raises sword)—the pen is mightier than the sword, but today I'm using both!
The author gives a dramatic bow and strides off into the distance, sword gleaming in the sunlight.
Scene: Paris.
As one would expect on an ordinary night, there was a peaceful silence which was broken by a noise from the rooftops.
That noise came from Ladybug who was seen crashing into a chimney that formed a web crack upon impact, groaning in pain.
However, she didn't have time to dwell on this as she had to duck down beneath an arrow that embedded itself where her head was a second ago.
Gray Wolf who was wearing a specially modified laser tag vest landed on the same roof as she walked to Ladybug menacingly while twirling her bow staff.
"You can do better than that, bug," tsked Gray Wolf before charging towards Ladybug who performed a kip up behind Gray Wolf, avoiding the staff swing. She twisted midair, wrapping her yo-yo around the chimney and pulled herself forward, generating enough force to deal her opponent a strong punch.
Just as Ladybug was about to stomp on the sensor on Gray Wolf's chest, the latter tripped Ladybug, causing her to fall off the roof, but the holder of creation caught a lamppost and, while grabbing a trash can lid, swung to land on the opposite roof.
Gray Wolf fired a volley of arrows at Ladybug who blocked them with her makeshift shield before throwing it like a frisbee, forcing Gray Wolf to dodge while giving Ladybug a chance to wrap her yo-yo around Gray Wolf's leg, pulling the lupine heroine towards her.
Gray Wolf then swiftly twisted her body mid-air, aiming a powerful kick at Ladybug's chest. Ladybug barely managed to deflect the blow with her forearm, staggering backward. Ladybug swiftly released her yo-yo from Gray Wolf's leg and swung it around, aiming for Gray Wolf's weapon hand. Gray Wolf reacted quickly, deflecting the yo-yo with her bow staff.
Ladybug gritted her teeth, focusing her energy. With a determined look in her eyes, she launched herself at Gray Wolf, aiming a flurry of attacks and kicks, only for her opponent to block and dodge with agility until she had to leap into another roof.
While Ladybug went after Gray Wolf, beneath them, on the road, Cat Noir was running only for something to swoop in and tackle the feline who dropped to the ground just in time as his opponent soared over him revealing himself to be Sky Falcon who flipped and landed to face Cat Noir with a sadistic grin with his wings retracting. He also was wearing a laser tag vest like his sister.
"Well, well, well, look who decided to drop by," said Cat Noir as he drew out his baton.
"Couldn't let you have all the fun, kitty," said Sky Falcon, drawing out his short sword.
Cat Noir lunged forward, his baton poised for attack, while Sky Falcon expertly parried the blow with his short sword. The two heroes engaged in a swift and dynamic exchange of strikes and blocks, their movements fluid and precise. With a quick flourish, Sky Falcon spun around, aiming a powerful strike at Cat Noir's side. Cat Noir narrowly dodged the blow, countering with a swift jab of his own. The clash of metal echoed through the night as the two heroes continued their intense duel.
With a flick of his wrist, Cat Noir activated his baton's extendable feature, turning it into a staff. He twirled it expertly, the metal gleaming as he moved to attack. Sky Falcon flipped acrobatically above Cat Noir's horizontal swing as the former then became aggressive in his attacks. Cat Noir went on the defensive as he skillfully parried his attacks until Sky Falcon found an opening and split the staff in two and proceeded to leg sweep Cat Noir who flipped to his feet and twirled his batons.
Cat Noir then swung them in a swift and intricate pattern, aiming a barrage of strikes at Sky Falcon. Sky Falcon deftly dodged and blocked each attack with his short sword, his movements graceful and precise.
"You're getting good, kitty," said Sky Falcon, "But not good enough."
With a sudden burst of speed, Sky Falcon closed the distance between them, launching a series of rapid strikes at Cat Noir. Cat Noir was forced to retreat, narrowly avoiding each blow with agile footwork and quick reflexes. He then countered the bird of prey's attacks, their duel intensifying with each passing moment.
It came to a point where they pushed away. Cat Noir threw one of his batons at Sky Falcon who deflected it but failed to dodge a flip kick to the face as Cat Noir followed it up with a few strikes with his baton until Sky Falcon caught his wrist with one hand and grabbed his neck with the other while activating his wings as he flew up, spun him around and threw him into Ladybug as she was having her own fight with Gray Wolf.
Both Ladybug and Cat Noir fell and landed in the street. A second later, Sky Falcon and Gray Wolf landed side by side as the bug and cat duo got up to face them in a standoff.
"Had enough already?" taunted Sky Falcon.
"Not even close," said Ladybug, "Lucky Charm!"
Ladybug flung her yo-yo into the air, and then suddenly appeared in her hands was a circular red and black polka dotted shield.
"A shield?"
"I do hope it can at least shield us," said Cat Noir.
"I might have an idea," said Ladybug as she leaned in to whisper something in his ear before Cat Noir looked at Ladybug.
"Are you sure?"
"Do you trust me?" said Ladybug
"Yeah, I do, Milady."
"Then go, now!"
With a bit of reluctance, Cat Noir ran off, leaving Ladybug.
"He never learns, does he?" said Sky Falcon before unfurling his wings and taking off, leaving Gray Wolf and Ladybug once again.
"You really should have stuck together, now you deal with me," said Gray Wolf.
Ladybug then chuckled, "Oh yeah? Look who's talking."
"Doesn't matter. You'll be finished anyway," said Gray Wolf as she took a deep breath, "Alpha's Howl!"
She fired a concentrated sonic blast at Ladybug who quickly used the shield to protect herself while absorbing the soundwave. She threw her yo-yo behind Gray Wolf as it was wrapped around a fire hydrant. With a good tug, the hydrant was pulled out from the ground and crashed into Gray Wolf from behind, interrupting her as she staggered forward.
Using this opportunity, Ladybug threw her shield diagonally which bounced off the ground before landing a clean hit on the sensor on Gray Wolf's chest, emitting a buzzer sound as the lupine crashed into a car from the force of the shield as she wheezed in pain.
Up in the sky, Sky Falcon was looking for Cat Noir when his HUD pinpointed the feline's location.
"Gotcha," Sky Falcon grinned, "SkyDive!"
His wings flared with energy and propelled him in a high speed dive and landed right in front of Cat Noir before giving him a Spartan kick, sending his opponent flying momentarily before skidding on one knee.
As Cat Noir looked up, he felt a blade pressed against his throat as Sky Falcon had zoomed aside him.
"Game over, bro," said Sky, "You may have lasted this long but my point still stands, no one can beat me."
"Are you sure about that?" Cat Noir smirked.
This prompted Sky Falcon to look down to see the Cat Noir's hand placed on the sensor on his vest had been destroyed by the latter's Cataclysm.
"Damn. How did I not see this coming?" said Sky Falcon, moving his sword away from Cat Noir's neck and standing up before offering his hand which Cat Noir took.
"Never underestimate the power of bad luck," said Cat Noir.
"Cheese and rice, LB! What's that shield even made of?" groaned Gray Wolf as Ladybug approached her and helped her up.
"I don't know, Vibranium maybe?" shrugged Ladybug, "Are you okay."
"Yeah, I'm good. I've taken worse hits," said Gray Wolf, "Let's all take five. Training's over."
Ladybug nodded in agreement before tossing her Lucky Charm into the air, "Miraculous Ladybug!"
Immediately, the magical ladybugs began to repair all the damage caused. And it was at that moment Cat Noir and Sky Falcon arrived.
"So, what do you guys think about this training?" asked Gray Wolf.
"It was definitely intense," said Ladybug, "But I speak for all of us when I say we learned a lot."
"Yeah, and we would have been in serious trouble if you guys were really villains," said Cat Noir, "Would it have hurt to at least hold back a little?"
"That was the idea," said Sky Falcon, "The point of it all was to not hold back in order to test your limits and break through."
"And you two didn't disappoint," said Gray Wolf who then yawned, "I think it's getting late, guys."
Ladybug yawned, "Yeah, you're right. We should get some shut eye."
With that, the M-Team went their separate ways.
Timeskip.
In the morning.
Scene: Marinette's room.
Just as Nadja reported the recent events on her computer, Ladybug had just returned to her bedroom.
"The M-Team have saved Paris yet again," said Nadja as Ladybug detransformed.
"And yet again, Marinette hopes she'll finally have enough time to complete her magic box," said Marinette as she quickly made her way to her desk to finish her latest creation.
Tikki looked at the box curiously. "What's the magic box for, Marinette?"
"To lock up my diary and all my secrets," Marinette explained.
Tikki's eyes widened. "Every little secret? You're telling me that you write everything down in that thing?"
"Uh… yeah, something wrong?" she asked as she repeatedly closed and opened her box to test if it worked.
"Well, for one, what if someone finds out you're Ladybug? And two, what if someone finds out you're Ladybug?!" said Tikki frantically as Marinette placed her diary in the box.
"Not gonna happen," said Marinette confidently. "Try it, Tikki."
Tikki flew into the box and attempted to lift the diary, but suddenly, the box closed by itself, trapping her inside.
"Hey!" said her muffled voice.
"And… it works!"
Marinette unlocked the box to free Tikki when her eyes turned to the news.
"Yesterday, Mr Bourgeois was re-elected as mayor of Paris for the fourth consecutive term," said Nadja, showing the scene outside of City Hall. From there, Marinette could see Mayor Bourgeois with Chloé waving. "Here we see Mr Bourgeois with his daughter."
"Ugh! Look at Chloé, acting as if she were the mayor of Paris!" Marinette grumbled. "Oh! Which reminds me, Class Representative Elections are tomorrow!"
"What's so bad about that?" Tikki asked.
"Chloé is running for class rep," Marinette explained. "The one person who cares the least about the students and the most about herself.
"Well then, maybe you should run!" Tikki suggested.
"I totally would, but don't you think I got enough to do with my duties as Ladybug and all my schoolwork?"
"Yes, but if you truly believe in something, you have to try and make it work. It's better to fail trying than not having tried at all!"
Marinette looked uncertain. "Maybe…
Tikki gave her an encouraging look. "Don't underestimate yourself, Marinette!"
"Armand D'Argencourt, one of Bourgeois's opponents and fencing instructors of Françoise Dupont High School, was pummeled in the polls," Nadja continued. "In fact, D'Argencourt acquired the least number of votes in Paris History."
Marinette then saw the clock on the computer and gasped as it was almost 9.
"I'm going to be late for school! Again!" Marinette panicked as she put her diary box away. "See, this is what I'm talking about!"
She quickly grabbed her bag and turned off the computer before running to school.
Scene: Collège Françoise Dupont.
Miss Bustier was now discussing the class elections.
"Chloé is running for the class representative position, and Sabrina will be her deputy. Do we have any other candidates? Miss Bustier asked, looking around the class.
Kim was about to raise his hand, but a quick glare from Chloé and Sabrina caused him to pause.
"Yes, Kim?" Miss Bustier asked.
"Um, uh… nothing," said Kim, lowering his hand.
Marinette then rushed into the classroom, completely out of breath.
"Hi! I'm sorry! I-uh, I-uh, the bus…" She quickly remembered that she lived across the road and started coughing terribly. "…dry throat!"
She then quickly took a seat next to Alya.
"Chloé's running again!" Alya informed her. "She's been class rep since when? Kindergarten?"
"Oh! Why don't you run as a candidate?" Marinette asked. "You'd make an awesome representative!"
Alya shook her head. "No can do. My blog is a full-time job!"
"All right, I'll give all of you till the end of lunch to decide if you'd like to be a candidate," Miss Bustier informed them.
Scene: Court.
During lunch, Chloé began talking to the other students about the election, no doubt stopping them from running as candidates against her.
Marinette approached Kim. "So what did Chloé say to you this time? She offered to go on a date with you?"
"No, she threatened to tell everyone I'm afraid of spiders," said Kim.
Marinette then went to Rose. "She told me that if I ran for the election, I'd get kicked out of the scrapbooking club, and you know how much I love all those stickers, colorful scraps of papers, and gluing!"
On the other hand, Alix had no interest in running for class rep. "I couldn't care less about being a candidate, and what's your excuse?"
"Well, uh, um, I'm… really busy!" said Marinette, thinking about her job as Ladybug and saving Paris.
"With what? Late night studying?" Alya joked as she then leaned in "Eye bags aren't a good look for either of you."
"No shit, Sherlock," said Camilla, "Student rep isn't my thing."
"Same here," said Toby, "I don't do politics."
"Well, I guess I would run if no one else does," said Marinette.
Scene: Classroom.
"So, any new candidates who would like to run against Chloé and Sabrina?" Miss Bustier asked eagerly
Marinette looked around the classroom, more specifically at Kim and Rose, the latter of whom squealed.
Miss Bustier sighed. " Given that Chloé and Sabrina are the only candidates, there's no point in voting. So, Chloé and Sabrina…"
Chloé and Sabrina sighed in satisfaction, but their satisfaction was short-lived as of the last minute; Marinette raised her hand.
"I'll run!" she announced.
Everyone, apart from Chloé and Sabrina, looked at her excitedly.
Miss Bustier, too, was surprised. "Wonderful! You'll need to develop your campaign and have a speech ready by tomorrow. We'll have the vote then."
It was then that the teacher remembered something.
"Oh yes, and here's another announcement. For some reason, the school was registered for an exchange program."
That got the class curious. Meanwhile, the twins were looking away with innocent looks, knowing full well they were the culprits responsible for that. Miss Bustier then continued.
"And I'm very sure that this class rep will handle the activities of hosting students from another school for a few weeks. It's a great opportunity to learn about different cultures and make new friends."
Scene: Court.
Once everyone was outside in the courtyard, Marinette, Camilla and Alya sat at a bench to discuss Marinette's campaign speech.
"So, let's hear the scoop on your campaign! How are you gonna represent?" Alya asked.
"Represent? Uh, I have no idea. I still can't believe I raised my hand…" Marinette admitted.
"Hey, don't worry! You've got this. Just be yourself and speak from the heart," said Camilla encouragingly, "You'll do amazing."
"Way to go Marinette." Looking up they saw Nino, Juleka, Rose, Toby and Ivan walking over to them. "You spoke from the heart. Truly authentic." Rose said.
Marinette was quite taken aback. "Huh? Oh, uh… Thanks."
"When you win, can we get more comfortable chairs?" Rose asked. "They're so hard, I can barely concentrate in class. Maybe pink ones!"
"And it'd be primo if we could listen to our beats while we study in the library," Nino added.
"Uh, you know... um, I don't—you know," Juleka murmured something.
"What?" asked Marinette, confused.
Toby spoke up, "She's asking if we can be able to watch horror films."
This surprised Juleka who looked at Toby as he mouthed "You're welcome."
"Uh sure, Juleka." Marinette said.
Alya then noticed Adrian making his way down the stairs. "Adrien! Marinette can count on your vote, right?"
"Sure, depending on her speech," said Adrian as he walked away.
Marinette just stared at Adrian with a dreamy look. "Better get cracking on that campaign." Alya smiled and nuzzled her head.
Chloé was watching from afar, but despite Marinette's popularity, she was still very confident in winning the election. "I've watched how my daddy wins every election, and I'm going to follow in his footsteps. I know just how to win!"
"By having the best campaign?" said Sabrina.
"Ha! Whatever! The secret to winning in politics is ruining your opponent's reputation!" said Chloé menacingly.
Scene: Dupain-Cheng House.
Marinette was back in her room, jotting down everything she could use in her campaign.
"Softer chairs, music in the library, scary movies…" she said, writing them down in her diary and looking up at Tikki. "I'm writing down everyone's issues! Now I just have to get all this in my election speech."
"I'm proud of you; I'm sure you're gonna win! You'll make an awesome class rep!" said Tikki.
"They're all relying on me to defeat Chloé. Even Adrien, do you realise that?"
Marinette then heard her phone vibrate and saw that Alya was calling.
"Marinette, the battle's on," she said.
"Why? What's going on?" Marinette asked as she put her diary back in its box.
"Chloé's invited the whole class to her campaign launch party at City Hall, and she's got Jagged Stone coming, too!"
"Seriously? Jagged Stone, my favourite star?!" said Marinette excitedly, gazing at Jagged's poster. "I love him! Oh, and so does everyone else."
"Precisely! She's trying to buy student votes with autographs!"
"Not if I have anything to say about it!" said Marinette determinedly. "Meet you there!"
Marinette then left the house but forgot to lock her diary box.
Just outside was Sabrina, who had been waiting for Marinette to leave under Chloé's orders.
"I'm going in, Chloé," she said over her phone.
She then quickly hid her phone as she entered the bakery.
"Hello!" said Sabine, who was busy handling several customers.
"Hi there!" Sabrina waved. "Marinette borrowed my math book for our Geometry homework, but I need it back."
"Marinette's not here, uh, I've got customers to attend to, but go on up and grab it from her room if you don't mind."
"I'd be glad to, thanks!" said Sabrina as she went upstairs.
Scene: College.
Both Adrien and Camilla had fencing classes with Mr D'Argencourt who had also run in the Paris election for Mayor but had lost to Chloe's dad.
Adrian was currently sparring with Mr D'Argencourt, who spread his arms out, leaving himself wide open for an attack. Adrian immediately seized this opportunity and attacked, but Mr D'Argencourt spun his arms behind his back, used his sword to disarm Adrian, and knocked him to the ground.
"Wow, Mr D'Argencourt, never seen you on fire like this!" said Adrian as Camilla helped him to his feet. "That was some attack!"
"It ought to be," said Mr D'Argencourt, handing Adrian his sword back. "This particular maneuver hither was developed by my ancestor Darkblade."
"Darkblade?" Adrian stared.
"Sounds like a conquering warlord name," said Camilla.
"In the days of yore, Darkblade conquered Paris and ruled over it with an iron fist until he was overthrown vence by a wealthy Frenchman who used his dirty gold to buy the loyalties of the common people. To think that not so long ago, my ancestor's flag was waving above Paris…"
What they were unaware of was the fact that Nadja Chamack and her cameraman were hiding close by and It was at that point that Nadja entered the school with her cameraman. "Is that what you ran in the election, Mr D'Argencourt? To seek revenge on your ancestor's behalf?"
Mr D'Argencourt looked at her furiously. "Part le fer! Who dost we have hither?"
"Nadja Chamack. Don't be bemused; it's just the news!" she said, turning back to her cameraman. "Do you have anything to say about your quote-unquote landslide defeat?"
The janitor then started to approach them. "Hey, you! Excuse me! How did you get into the school?"
"I think it's time to get back to the studio!" said Nadja, running away.
The janitor just chased after them. "Get back here!"
"Here endeth the lesson," said Mr D'Argencourt, looking very annoyed.
Scene: Hawk Moth's lair.
At his lair, Hawk Moth could sense a new powerful negative emotion.
"A loser and an utter failure in an election," Hawk Moth smiled, opening his window. "But the perfect candidate to lobby my own campaign." He then began to corrupt a butterfly, turning it into an Akuma. "Fly away, my evil little akuma, and take control of this defeated fighter!"
Scene: Outside the school.
The akuma flew towards Mr. D'Argencourt, who was leaving the school only to be ambushed by Nadja Chamack.
"Mr D'Argencourt, it has been said, and I quote, that you're "stuck in the dark ages like a stubborn old rusted battle-axe". What do you have to say to that?" Nadja asked.
"Poisonous wretch!" Mr D'Argencourt growled furiously and walked away. "Darest thou approach with such venomous questions? Begone now, pestilent pain in the neck!" He then bumped into a billboard which was sporting a poster of Mayor Bourgeois. In his anger, he sliced it into pieces with his sword and seconds later; the akuma corrupted it.
"Darkblade… In return for the powers I'm giving you, you'll capture Ladybug and Cat Noir's Miraculous for me," Hawk Moth offered.
"When the flag bearing the emblem of mine ancestors lies once again upon the roof of City Hall, then to thee I shall indeed be indebted!" Mr D'Argencourt promised.
He then began to transform. Nadja's cameraman lowered his camera, stunned, but Nadja lifted a backup. Soon standing before them was a mediaeval knight in black armour with red highlights holding a massive long sword.
Nadja looked at him nervously. "Anything y-you'd like to say about your t-transformation into a—"
"Darkblade! The lord of Paris!" he said, raising his sword and a beam shot out of its hilt, striking Nadja and her cameraman. The two of them are nearing knelt before Darkblade, who then taps their shoulders with his sword, and they turn into knights. "Thou shalt become my knights! Soon mine army shalt be immense and unstoppable!" With his sword, he sliced a billboard in half, turning his sights to City Hall. "We shall take City Hall by storm and reclaim the throne from Bourgeois the Usurper!"
Adrien and Camilla, who had stepped outside, witnessed all this as their kwamis drifted idly.
"Whoa, that's some medieval madness!" said Plagg.
"You said it, cheddar face," said Luupa, "He just put the evil in medieval."
Both teens quickly re-entered the school.
"Time to transform!" said Adrien, "Plagg! Claws out!"
"Luupa! It's Full Moon!"
Both Adrien and Camilla then transformed into Cat Noir and Gray Wolf respectively.
Outside, Darkblade approached Adrian's bodyguard. "Zounds! What a great beast to join our conquest!"
He then promptly zapped him with his sword and transformed him into a night.
"Part le fer!" said his knights as more of them joined their ranks, and they marched down the streets of Paris.
"Let us to battle, knights! Part le fer!" Darkblade cried out.
Cat Noir and Gray Wolf then landed in front of him, blocking his path.
"The people had their say, and they chose Bourgeois over you, D'Argencourt!"
"Even though it's beyond us how or why they still vote for that guy," said Gray Wolf
"Thy peoples matter not to me. D'Argencourt was defeated, not Darkblade! En garde!" said Darkblade, as he and Cat Noir charged one another with weapons in hand while Gray Wolf dealt with the knights.
Scene: Toby's room.
Toby was seen at his desk as he was tinkering on a drone. It was then that Breeze flew over to him as he groaned.
"TOBY, I'M BORED!" Breeze whined in frustration, "Can you please entertain me?"
"Why don't you go and play with Connor?"
The dog in question was seen lying down next to where they were as his ear perked up at the mention of his name.
"Uh, no thanks. I still have some of his drool and it's not good for the feathers."
In response, Connor sent a mischievous look towards the kwami, making a pleased noise to himself.
"As you can see, I'm busy," Toby said.
"Yeah, I know you're busy, that makes sense. I don't really have anything else to do, but you, you got stuff to take care of, that's fine. After you're done, uh, would you wanna go for a flight?"
Before he could respond, he received a text message and saw it was from Camilla, notifying him about the akuma attack in the form of butterfly emojis.
"Okay, fine. We're doing it now," said Toby as he got up, not noticing Breeze silently cheering in victory only to immediately stop as Toby turned to him, "Breeze! Take Flight!"
He then began to transform into Sky Falcon.
Scene: Marinette's room.
Meanwhile, Sabrina went through Marinette's room, trying to find some dirt on her.
"Chloé, I made it in. So, what am I looking for?" she asked, talking to Chloé on her phone.
"Anything. As long as it's totally embarrassing."
Sabrina began searching the room and saw one of Marinette's homemade hats. "Wait, I had one just like this!" She then turned her attention towards the desk. "How about… a ball of yarn! Or a screwdriver?"
"'Course not, dingbat!" Chloé yelled. "A disgusting photo of her or some really tacky piece of clothing! Dig around a bit!"
Sabrina looked at the photos of Adrian before turning towards Marinette's diary. "Ohh… how about her diary?"
"Wow! You can actually accomplish something when you put my mind to it!"
Sabrina reached for the diary, but the box closed around her hand the moment she touched it. She yelled, trying to free her hand and dropping her phone.
"Sabrina? Sabrina?!" Chloé yelled.
Scene: City Hall.
Marinette had finally reached City Hall, just in time to see the campaign launch party starting.
"I'm pleased to welcome you all to the official launch of Chloé's electoral campaign," said Mayor Bourgeois. "And a special thank-you to world-famous pop star Jagged Stone for endorsing her."
All the students stared at Jagged Stone, amazed, and one by one, they went to receive their autographs.
"And, when you vote for me, you'll get free tickets to Jagged's next concert!" Chloé offered.
Alya had just walked away from the signing booth when she came face-to-face with Marinette.
"Huh! You got an autograph?" she said, looking disappointed.
Alya quickly took to one side so that no one could hear them. "Uh… Yeah, got you one too." She pulled out a second CD and handed it to Marinette. "Sorry, couldn't help myself."
Marinette reached out towards it but then pulled her hand away. "Nope, I'm not falling for it." She then smiled and grabbed her arm around her shoulder. "But, I'll consider forgiving you if you vote for me."
Alya chuckled and nodded.
Scene: Lock Bridge.
Meanwhile, at the Pont des Arts, Cat Noir and Darkblade were still fighting, and Darkblade performed the same feint-and-strike he did to Adrien before. Cat Noir then waited for the attack but fell prey to the attack again and lost his staff.
"Seriously? How did I not see that coming?" Cat Noir moaned.
Darkblade charged in, swinging his sword, only to be hit by Gray Wolf's arrow as the archer went to help up the feline.
"Never underestimate the power of bad luck," said Gray Wolf, "Or wasn't that what you said?"
"Using my words against me," said Cat Noir, "Shame on you."
"Take them!" Darkblade ordered his knights.
As they advanced, Gray Wolf fired a volley of arrows at Darkblade only to deflect them one by one until both her and Cat Noir were cornered. Seeing that they were outnumbered, they merely threw themselves off the bridge. When Darkblade and his knights looked over the edge, they could see no trace of them.
"Nary a minute to be wasted! City Hall awaits us!" Darkblade commanded.
From under the bridge flew Sky Falcon with Cat Noir and Gray Wolf holding onto his arms.
"City Hall huh?" Sky Falcon said, having heard everything.
"They go first, then we'll catch up," said Cat Noir.
"Or we can just beat Sir Farts-a-lot and his posse of clankers to it," said Gray Wolf.
"Yeah, that too," said Cat Noir, "Okay M-Team. Let's do this!"
Scene: City Hall.
Jagged Stone was still signing autographs when Sabrina arrived and quickly approached Chloé with her right hand behind her back.
"What took you so long?" Chloé asked in a demanding voice. "You'd better have gotten her diary."
"I did! Sorta…" Sabrina then showed the locked diary box over her hand.
Chloé quickly turned Sabrina around, away from their classmates. "What is that?"
"When I grabbed the diary, this crazy box clipped down around my hand!" Sabrina whimpered.
"And I'm supposed to believe you? Ughhh… Why do I bother?" Chloé moaned.
Her tension was immediately turned towards Marinette, who was approaching their classmates.
"Do you realise that you're all being bribed?" Marinette pointed out to them. "Concert tickets are awesome, but they aren't gonna solve classroom problems."
"So what's your campaign then, Marinette?" Nathaniel asked.
"Well, um, I'm, um, thinking that cushions would be more realistic than buying new chairs," said Marinette, quickly leaning over towards Rose. "Your cushion could be very pink." Rose beamed, and Marinette looked at everyone. "And I'll see about listening to music in the library. Through headphones, of course."
"Remarkable," said Chloé sarcastically as she blocked her path. "You actually sound like a class rep. Too bad you don't have a chance of winning. A word?"
Chloé then shoved Marinette behind a pillar with Sabrina, who was currently hiding behind it.
Marinette then noticed her diary box on Sabrina's hand. "Oh! My diary! What were you doing—?"
"If you don't pull out of the race, all your secrets will be revealed," Chloé threatened.
"Don't-uh, I mean, uh, what secrets?" Marinette stammered.
"Ha! I guess we'll find out… as soon as I get my hands on a chainsaw!" Chloé smiled, much to Sabrina's horror.
Then suddenly, everyone heard trumpets playing a fanfare.
Everyone made their way to the door and opened it slightly to see a large array of knights hanging outside.
"O-ye, o-ye! Darkblade shalt speak now! Listen or be imprisoned!" said a knight.
"Henceforth, my flag shalt fly over thy kingdom! Bourgeois, pathetic knave, come hither and do battle!" Darkblade challenged.
Mayor Bourgeois frowned. "What did he say?"
"Basically, he's gonna bust you up," Alya translated.
"Ehh… Ask my secretary for an appointment! Mayor Bourgeois yelled, and he and the students shut the doors.
"Haha, hahaha! Bow down to Darkblade, or feel the wrath of mine sword!" Darkblade yelled, raising his sword.
"Part le fer! Part le fer! Dahhh!" the knights yelled as they charged at City Hall.
At that point, Cat Noir and Sky Falcon landed as Gray Wolf from the roof knocked the knights away with her arrows.
"Take them!" Darkblade commanded.
"Guys, do you only know heavy metal?" Cat Noir asked as he and Sky charged at the knights.
The bird of prey was the first to charge in as the thrusters from his wing pack gave him enough speed to ram into the first wave of knights, sending most of them flying.
Marinette was looking out the window just in time to see Cat Noir getting dogpiled.
"Ouch!" Marinette winced. "Guys… Hurry!"
Gray from the rooftops fired an electric arrow at the dogpile, electrocuting the knights before Cat broke out from under the pile with his staff.
"That was a nice warm-up!" said Cat Noir.
"Yeah, now comes the main event," said Sky Falcon as he made his way to him.
"Part le fer!" Darkblade yelled and jumped at the two of them.
"Get behind me!" Sky Falcon yelled as he swiftly drew his sword just in time to block the black knight's sword, before he spoke in a faux British accent, "Good day, sir. I do hope you have prepared to lose."
"I have only prepared so that thou shalt fall by mine sword, ye angel of death," Darkblade spat.
"Damn. I wouldn't consider myself an angel yet," said Sky Falcon, "But death is kinda a bit of a stretch."
And with that, they both pushed away from each other before beginning to engage in an epic sword fight.
Inside City Hall, Jagged Stone had heard the fighting outside but assumed some crazed fans were outside.
"Wait, do I hear the sounds of crazed fans? I can totally get them under control," he said, picking up his guitar.
Then, before anyone could stop them, he went outside and started playing his guitar and singing off-key. He only stopped when he saw Darkblade duel Sky Falcon who pushed him back only for the army to begin chasing the cat and bird duo. Darkblade approached Jagged Stone.
"Behold, a minstrel!" he said.
"Guys, guys, I know you love me, but no reason to fight over it," said Jagged.
"Are you the usurper's champion?" Darkblade asked.
"Say what?" Jagged frowned.
Then Darkblade zapped him and turned him into a knight. The students had opened the door slightly to get a better look outside and had just witnessed Jagged getting turned into a knight.
"Oh no!" Chloé cried.
"What are we gonna do?" Ivan asked.
"The doors, quickly!" Marinette yelled.
"'The doors, quickly!'" Chloé repeated.
Marinette then smirked. "Quit, Chloé!"
"'Quit, Chloé!' Oh…" she said, looking embarrassed upon realizing what she said.
"Kneel before thy flag of Darkblade! Bow down before mine eyes!" said Darkblade, approaching them.
The students quickly locked the doors.
Rose immediately ran to Chloé, who was hiding behind the reception desk. "Chloé, what should we do? What would a class rep do?!"
"Well, if indeed you vote for me, I'll provide you with an answer. Tomorrow!" she said
"But we can't wait until tomorrow!"
"Then you're out of luck. You'll have to ask someone else!"
"Hmmm…" Marinette pondered, then quickly ran upstairs. "Tikki, we need to talk."
Scene: City Hall Office.
The two of them quickly entered the Mayor's office, and Marinette began pacing up and down.
"What are you going to do?" Tikki asked.
"The M-Team need Ladybug, but the students need me, too!" said Marinette.
"Trust your instincts."
Meanwhile, the knights were still trying to open the door, and the students were getting scared, but then Marinette arrived.
"Kim, Ivan, lock the doors!" Marinette ordered. "Make sure all the windows are closed too, quickly!" The two of them nodded and quickly rushed to the doors and windows. "Nino, Juleka, Rose, Mylène and Alya, you come with me!"
"Good job, girl!" Alya smiled and leaned over to the reception desk. "Now, there's a future class representative in the making."
Chloé quickly emerged from the reception desk. "Well, I was going to say the exact same thing. Sabrina, Ivan, Kim, go lock the doors!"
The knights were still trying to break down the door; they were now using one of the posts as a battering ram.
"We have to barricade the entrance!" Marinette ordered.
The students began gathering all kinds of objects in the room to make a barricade.
"I hope they haven't gone too medieval on the M-Team!" said Nino.
"It's time to retreat!" said Marinette Intern to Mayor Bourgeois. "Sir, we gotta get out of here!"
Mayor Bourgeois nodded. "This way!"
He then began leading the students to safety.
"I'll catch up with you guys!" Marinette yelled as they ran up the stairs. "I'll make sure all the windows are closed first!" Once they were gone, she opened her purse, and Tikki popped her head out. "This should be safe now. "Tikki! Spots on! Ha!"
She then began to transform into Ladybug.
Scene: Outside the City Hall.
The knights had cornered Cat Noir and Sky Falcon.
"Back off, you tin cans!" said Cat Noir.
It was then that an arrow struck a knight in the head before firing off a number of projectiles in a spinning ring around the arrowhead, hitting several knights around the initial target.
"Guys, you have to fall back," said Gray Wolf through their earpieces.
"No need to tell us that twice," Sky Falcon said before opening up his wings, knocking away a few knights and grabbing Cat Noir as he flew up and into the hallway on the second floor where Gray Wolf was at.
"Hey guys," said Ladybug as she approached the team, "Sorry I was late. I was busy doing damage control inside,"
Cat Noir merely shrugged, "We were managing just fine by ourselves, you know. But it's always nice to see you."
"So, what of everyone?" asked Sky Falcon.
"All are safe and accounted for," Ladybug reassured.
"Come, formation!" Darkblade commanded.
The knights then began pressing themselves against the wall, forming human ladders. Then more knights began climbing onto the shoulders, scaling the wall. Fortunately, using their acrobatic skills, the M-Team were able to knock them down.
Ladybug swung out with Sky Falcon joining her as they both knocked them down like bowling pins. Cat Noir and Gray Wolf were standing on the window's ledge, as the latter shot some of the knights down while the former used his staff to push them back.
"Strike!" Cat Noir smiled.
"Cursèd, colorful acrobats!" Darkblade cursed.
He approached two cars, and when he placed his sword upon them, they transformed into catapults. Then, to their bewilderment, they watched as the knights mounted the catapults, launching themselves at City Hall.
"Pull!" a knight yelled.
"Why are they going on the roof?" Cat Noir asked just as a knight ungracefully slammed none-to-gently into the wall beside their window with an 'oof!' "Well, at least some of them."
Ladybug's eyes widened in realization. "The flag!"
"What flag?" asked Sky Falcon.
"Tally ho!" Darkblade yelled as he launched himself onto the roof. Once there, he cut the flagpole in half with his blade. "Ha, haha! Once these stripes are supplanted by mine coat of arms, I shalt reign supreme!"
His knights then tossed the flag bearing his crest onto the roof and into the hands of some of his knights that made it to the top. The M-Team made their way to the roof just in time to see the flag.
"The Akuma must be in his sword!" Ladybug theorized.
"How are we gonna get a hold of it?" Cat Noir asked.
"Leave it to me!" said Sky Falcon, outstretching his wings, "SkyDive!"
He took off in a burst of speed and rammed into Darkblade off the roof as they crashed through several buildings before crashing into the street as Sky Falcon leaped off him in a backflip, leaving the medieval knight skidding to a stop.
"Let's see how you try to mount your flag now, Sauron!" said Sky Falcon, twirling his sword as Darkblade got up in anger.
"Perish for thy transgressions, fiend!" snarled Darkblade as he charged at Sky Falcon, only to be met with an electric arrow that momentarily stunned him.
Gray Wolf landed beside her brother as did Ladybug and Cat Noir just as hundreds of knights began advancing from all sides.
"Not if we have anything to say about it! En garde!" said Cat Noir as he charged at Darkblade with staff in hand, and soon, the two of them began to duel once more.
"It won't be long before the M-Team show up to meet their doom!" Hawk Moth laughed, seeing it all.
"Sky, give me a lift!" said Gray Wolf to Sky who nodded before launching forward to grab her from behind as he flew up to hover above the knights as the lupine took in a deep breath, "Alpha's Howl!"
Gray Wolf released a sonic howl as Sky Falcon was spinning around, knocking back all the knights surrounding them, leaving Darkblade, Cat Noir and Ladybug.
"Lucky Charm!" Ladybug yelled, tossing her yo-yo into the air. Then, suddenly appearing in her hand was a toy ladybug. "Uh, okay…" she said, confused as she looked around for any hint of an idea while winding up the toy. Her eyes fell upon the gap between Darkblade's armor and body. "Let's hope he's ticklish."
Darkblade performed one of his feints, but Cat Noir wasn't falling for it this time.
"Not this time," he said.
He then quickly threw his staff at Darkblade who deflected it, giving the feline the opportunity to deal the knight a flip kick before catching his staff and putting him on the defensive.
While they were fighting, Ladybug ran forward and slid under Darkblade, tossing the toy ladybug into the gap in his underarm. He then began laughing furiously, proving that he was indeed very ticklish. He was so busy laughing he accidentally let go of his sword, which Cat Noir caught.
"Cataclysm!"
When he said this, the destructive energy caused the blade to form a huge crack before he proceeded to break the sword in half, releasing the akuma.
"No more evil-doing for you, little Akuma," she said, opening her yo-yo and began spinning around. "Time to de-evilize!" She then swung her yo-yo, catching Akuma. "Gotcha!" She then released the purified Akuma. "Bye-bye, little butterfly. Miraculous Ladybug!"
She then tossed her Lucky Charm into the air, and the magical ladybugs began reverting everyone back to normal. Darkblade then turned back to Mr D'Argencourt.
Mr D'Argencourt looked around, confused. "Hmm? Huh?"
The M-Team bumped fists, "Pound it!"
"Our duel is not over yet, my dear Ladybug. At the end of our battle, I will rule!" Hawk Moth vowed as he closed his window.
Scene: City Hall.
Ladybug quickly swung back in through the window, turning back into Marinette.
"Great job, Marinette," Tikki smiled. "You proved that you can be Ladybug and a student leader at the same time."
"Wasn't easy, but I'm glad I tried," Marinette smiled back. "Cause if I hadn't, I never would've known I could do it."
Downstairs, the students were removing the posters and chairs from the door, and Chloé noticed Marinette making her way down the stairs.
"So, where were you? Safely hiding under a rock?" Chloé sneered.
"Very funny, Chloé," Marinette frowned. "I got transformed… into a knight."
Adrien then sprinted down the stairs. "So did I! What a knightmare!"
"I know, right?" said Toby as both he and Camilla entered, "And that's not even my top 5."
"I'm still stumped that I didn't get Jagged Stone's autograph," Camilla said in annoyance.
Marinette then turned to Chloé. "Now that this is all over, I want my personal items back!"
Chloé panicked as the other students gasped and began to surround her.
Chloé panicked. "I really have no idea what you're talking about! I—"
Sabrina then shoved past her, holding her hand to Marinette with the diary box on it. "Oh, yes! Please take it off!" she begged. Marinette then pulled her towards her, pulled out her key and opened the diary box, freeing Sabrina's hand. "Thank you!"
Sabrina then ran off, clutching her hand cheerfully, leaving behind horrified Chloé.
"Got an explanation, Chloé?" Alya smiled, recording everything on her phone.
"I told you, I never took her diary!" said Chloé, folding her arms indignantly. "And I'm offended that you're accusing me."
"Then how did you even know my diary was in here?" Marinette asked, holding out her diary.
All the other students gasped, looking at Chloé with immense disapproval.
"Oh, well, uh…" said Chloé, feeling the weight of the glares upon her. She then immediately grabbed Sabrina, pulling her towards her. "Sabrina told me. It was all her idea!"
Naturally, none of the students believed that.
"So uncool!" said Nino.
"One of the reasons why I'm not into politics," said Toby.
"At least now we know nobody will be voting for Chloé," said Alya, approaching Marinette. "You're gonna be our new representative!"
"Uh… Not so fast, Alya," said Marinette.
"Ha ha ha!" Chloé laughed, pointing at her triumphantly. "See? She's undependable! She's already throwing in the towel!"
"No, I'm not!" said Marinette. "I just wanna be voted in fairly, not because you don't wanna vote for Chloé, but because you believe in me! I'm not gonna make promises that I can't keep, and I'm not gonna be able to get you everything that you want. But I am resourceful, and I know how to prioritize. I'm a good listener and a great multi-tasker. Representing you all is something I truly believe in. And most importantly, I believe in myself. So… Vote for Marinette, for class representative!"
All the other students cheered and clapped, even Sabrina.
"What are you doing?" said Chloé, glaring at her. "Are you out of your mind?! Ugh, what are you even good for?!"
She then walked away fuming, and Sabrina followed.
Scene: The Place de Vosges
It was in the middle of the night as it was the scheduled time for the M-Team's patrol.
Cat Noir, Sky Falcon and Gray Wolf were sitting on a bench with Ladybug pacing about in front of them.
"So guys, I have a very important announcement to make," Ladybug began.
"If this is about your speech in the campaign, I'd say it was a very good one," said Sky Falcon, "You have our vote."
"I agree," said Cat Noir with Gray Wolf nodding.
"Not quite what this is about but thanks, guys," said Ladybug, "Ever since we formed the M-Team, I noticed we haven't been talking about roles like leadership role..."
"I think it's pretty clear you're the leader," said Cat Noir.
"Speaking of opinion, there's this buzz going on in the Ladyblog," said Gray Wolf, scrolling through her bow pad, "They've been arguing nonstop who's the leader."
"Seen those," said Ladybug, "And with everything that's happening a lot lately and my responsibilities alone, I've decided I won't be leading alone."
"Whoa!"
"What?!"
Cat Noir raised an eyebrow. "Wait, what do you mean?"
"I mean, I want us to share the leadership role," Ladybug explained. "Each of us brings something unique to the team, and I believe we can make better decisions together."
Sky Falcon nodded thoughtfully. "So, like a distributive leadership model?"
"Exactly," Ladybug confirmed. "We'll all have equal say in decision-making, and we'll rotate the leadership responsibilities."
Gray Wolf grinned. "Sounds fair to me. Plus, it takes the pressure off of one person."
"Agreed," said Cat Noir, a smirk playing on his lips. "I guess we're officially the M-Team now."
"Yep," Ladybug affirmed with a smile. "The Miraculous Team, united and ready to protect Paris together."
Scene: Collège Françoise Dupont.
The next day of school.
Marinette had been elected as class representative. The entire class, except for Chloé and Sabrina, clapped as Marinette and Alya stood in front of them.
"By majority vote, Marinette is the new class representative, and Alya will be her deputy," Miss Bustier announced.
Marinette looked at Alya. "You'll be able to do your blog and be deputy. We can do anything if we put our minds to it!"
"I'm with you, girl!" Alya smiled.
And now, that mounts the flag, concluding the chapter. As always, drop a comment, leave a like, subscribe, send me your thoughts and I'll be seeing you next time.
PEACE!