Chapter Three: A Man's House is His Castle

This was it. Months of planning had all led up to this moment. The man with the coat steadied his nerves the best he could as his comrades-in-arms prepared to launch their attack. The Agreste mansion was just around the block. They moved as individuals, trying to look as inconspicuous as possible.

The small army had geared itself with whatever weapons they could get their hands on. Some improvised, arming themselves with wrenches, pipes, gardening tools, and the like. Only a handful had managed to acquire firearms, and even then mostly pistols. One woman had even somehow gotten a broadsword. As for the man himself, he had the most important tool of all, secured in the briefcase he clutched to his chest.

Every member of the vigilante mob heard their leader speaking over the radio. "Everyone, listen up. We only get one shot at this, so we have to make it count. The moment we set this thing off, Hawkmoth will know we're coming. From the research we've done on the police's response time, we'll have around eight minutes before help arrives, less than that if Ladybug and Cat Noir decide to show up. Aside from that, there's always the possibility of Akumas. Needless to say, we'll need to move quickly. Group A will enter in through the back, and deactivate the mansion's defenses. Following that, Groups B and C will enter through the front and side entrances. You all know your mission. Good luck out there."

And that was that. He was trusting them to get the job done. To finally free the city from Hawkmoth's influence. There hadn't been an Akuma incident in months, but that just meant he was planning something big. They had to stop him as soon as possible.

Using the gaps in security they had found after intensive surveillance, a small group hopped over the wall, accompanied by the coat man. They stood to the side, waiting for him to give them an entryway. He approached the back wall, placed his briefcase down, and undid the latches.

With careful precision, he placed the charges against the wall. The others made sure to get to a safe distance, eagerly anticipating the moment they could head inside. Detonator in hand, he ran off to join them, and with a signal, pressed the button.

Gabriel threw open the door to his study, quickly locating the Gorilla. "Make sure Adrien is in his room, and make sure nobody gets in! Go!" The bodyguard nodded, racing to protect the boy. "That just leaves us."

"I was afraid of this day," Emilie said. "Alix, Gabriel…the people attacking us have no interest in justice. All they want is vengeance, and they are prepared to hurt my family to get it. Are you prepared to fight them?"

"'Course!" said Alix. "As a Miraculous holder, this is kinda my job. What about you, Gabe?"

Without a Miraculous, Gabriel wasn't sure how much help he could be. "I will do whatever I can," he replied.

Emilie had already procured a pair of sabers, which had been mounted on the wall. "In that case, I think you'll need this." She tossed one to Gabriel. His fencing skills weren't what they used to be, but his time as Hawkmoth should be enough to see him through. That said, he still expected Alix would be doing a majority of the work.

He was just getting used to this new blade when he noticed the couple had gone over to Emilie's painting. They stood close together, standing right on the hidden platform Gabriel had used so many times before. "And where are you going?" he asked. "What exactly do you intend to do from there?"

Gabriel's counterpart glanced at him over his shoulder. "Even the odds." With that, he pressed the buttons on the portrait, disappearing into his secret lair, this time alongside his wife.

Behind him, he heard Alix call out "Fluff, clockwise!" There was a flash of light, and Bunnyx stood there when he had turned around. "Ready to go kick some butt?"

"As I'll ever be." The invaders had made their way into the foyer by this point, likely spreading out to search for him. The two of them opened the door, to see the house being torn apart by the invaders, most likely looking for evidence on his alter-ego in addition to himself. Even though this wasn't his house, Gabriel was still filled with rage. "You came here looking for me? Here I am!" He held his sword aloft, daring them to attack.

"There he is!" one of the fanatics yelled, pointing. A surge of them ran up the stairs to meet them. Bunnyx hopped over the bannister to the ground floor, leaving Gabriel to handle them alone. Which, to his surprise, he did. The first of them lunged at him, to which he responded by bashing their head with his hilt. He then caught another's wrist before they could strike, hurling them into the first attacker. The last one swung a wrench, which he blocked with his sword.

The two were now face-to-face. "You come into my home, threaten my family, and expect to walk out unscathed?" growled Gabriel.

"You think you can lecture me!?" The invader shoved Gabriel back, repeatedly swinging his weapon. The wrench was heavier than his sword, but he managed to parry each strike, but was being forced towards the wall. "You'll pay for everything you've done, Hawkmoth!"

Before he could be cornered, Gabriel distracted his opponent with a quick slice to the arm, causing him to drop his wrench. Before he could recover, he shoved him over the side of the railing. This, however, attracted the attention of a more dangerous foe.

The gunshot rang out, and the bullet whizzed by Gabriel before he had time to react. Thankfully, it passed by his head and collided with the wall behind him. "Die, you monster!" Its wielder fired several more shots, leading Gabriel to take cover.

A blue portal appeared next to the gunman, and out of it came Bunnyx, striking him with her umbrella. He fell to the ground, and she made sure to recover the gun that he dropped. "Keep up the good work!" she called to Gabriel, disappearing through another burrow. He was sure there was the slightest hint of sarcasm in her voice. Nevertheless, he headed towards the source of the explosion to hopefully stop the flow of intruders.

His path took him into the dining room, where he was greeted by many more of the would-be avengers. Their eyes all focused on him at once, and in the brief moment before they attacked, he knew he couldn't take them all on at once. Maybe he didn't have to; he held up his sword, his professional stance convincing them that maybe rushing straight at him wasn't the best idea.

A few of them still took their chances, however. One wearing armor cobbled together from pots and pans attempted to tackle him, but he was easily dodged. After pushing him against the wall, Gabriel leapt onto the table, knocking down another with a kick to the head. The rest of them, now convinced that he could take them out one at a time, all banded together for safety in numbers. Undaunted, he ran in, sword raised.

His weapon met with one of theirs, but another met with him–Gabriel felt something hard collide with his temple, knocking him down. Though his vision was blurry, he raised his blade just in time to block another strike. Now that he was down, the group surrounded him, each trying to strike him at once. Gabriel scrambled back, but they were on top of him too quickly. He could only wave his sword around wildly, hoping that it would connect.

The door at the other end of the room burst open, and before Gabriel knew it, his attackers were falling to the floor. He caught some quick flashes of black darting back and forth, with the sound of a blunt object colliding with the intruders' skulls. No, it couldn't be…

"Hey fellas, I've heard of a citizen's arrest before, but I'm pretty sure you're missing a few steps." Cat Noir perched on the tip of his staff, looking down at the groaning intruders. He hopped down and went over to Gabriel, helping the man to his feet. "Are you alright, Mr. Agreste?"

"Fine," Gabriel said, his vision returning to normal. "How did you get here so fast?"

Cat chuckled. "Oh, I just happened to be in the area! Don't worry, Ladybug will be here soon. Get to safety, and let us handle these guys."

It felt strange to be on the same side as Cat Noir, but Gabriel wasn't one to complain, given the scenario. "No. I can't sit by while my family is in danger! Even if I don't have powers like yours, I still have to fight!"

Cat Noir gave him a firm but caring look. "You want to protect your family, but I'm sure they want you to be safe, too. Don't worry, we'll do everything we can to stop these people." He ran out of the room, leaving Gabriel alone.

He wouldn't just sit around and wait for those two to handle this. He wouldn't put the lives of his family, even another version of them, in their hands. Anger filled him as he gripped the hilt of his sword…just as a black butterfly landed on the blade.

It was a sensation he had only experienced twice himself, and even then, he had not felt the connection he did now. It felt like he and Hawkmoth were in the same room, the latter looking down at him from a mighty perch. "Bisector, I am Hawkmoth. I call upon you in our hour of need, to protect our family. Let your anger fuel your sword, and use it to capture our enemies."

Gabriel then spoke the words he had heard so many times himself: "Yes, Hawkmoth." And with this contract, his form was enveloped by darkness. When he had been metamorphosized by the Akuma, he wore the same suit he had as the Collector, only this time it was obsidian in color, streaked with red. His saber had become the same color, its dark blade glowing with ominous light.

But despite his menacing appearance, Bisector felt no desire to harm the innocent. He had no desire to retrieve Ladybug or Cat Noir's Miraculous. And rather than being consumed by his rage, it instead filled him with the drive to fight alongside them. With newfound speed, he raced towards where the fighting was strongest.

He heard the gunfire before he saw it: Cat Noir was doing battle with a heavily-armored man wielding a compact automatic weapon. Bullets flew around the room, but the Miraculous holder managed to evade them all with ease. "Easy, big guy! Maybe we could talk this out?" His attempt at diplomacy was only met with another volley. Cat rapidly spun his staff to block the bullets; "Okay, maybe not!"

Bisector moved in to attack, but the gunman turned his attention to him and fired. Using his superhuman agility, Bisector parried every last bullet, his sword and the arm that wielded it nothing more than a blur. Cat was no doubt surprised to see him, and was understandably on guard. Before long, the man had run out of ammo, and moved to reload. This was when Bisector darted forward, and struck.

Rather than being cleaved in two when the saber passed through him, the man was instead transformed into white light, which was then absorbed into the hilt. A single notch appeared on the blade: a tally mark. "One down. Many more to go." He turned to Cat Noir, who was seemingly unsure of whether or not to attack him.

"Uh…Mr. Agreste?" he asked. "You aren't feeling any desire to steal my Miraculous, by any chance, are you?"

"Not this time," he replied. "My only interest is evicting these unwanted guests. And please…call me Bisector."

Though still unsure, Cat Noir was at least sated by this explanation. "Well then, let's clean house!" Now united, the pair returned to the foyer to battle the ever-increasing horde of invaders.

The small army had managed to bypass the mansion's defenses, opening the front door for their comrades. Bisector and Cat Noir raced back to the foyer, surprising the collection of armed intruders they came across.

Gabriel had been able to hold his own against a few of them before, but now that he was Bisector, it was no contest. His saber absorbed hostiles left and right, adding a series of tally marks to its blade. They were seemingly unprepared to handle an Akumatized foe, so their ranks quickly devolved into pandemonium. Cat Noir was able to handle any stragglers, and Gabriel swore he saw Bunnyx's trademark burrows keeping them both safe from the shadows.

"He's right there!" they heard someone shout. "Akuma or no Akuma, we can't let him get away!" The two were then met with a surge of new invaders, spilling in through seemingly every door and window. The one who had given the orders, a man wearing a coat, aiming a hunting rifle at the pair from atop the balcony.

Cat Noir was undaunted, quickly propelling himself up to the second floor to deal with the sharpshooter. But his aim was on Gabriel, lining up the shot with the precision of a master hunter. The barrel exploded as the bullet flew out, only to collide harmlessly with his sword, falling to the floor with a clatter.

"Cataclysm!" With him distracted, Cat Noir touched the gun, dissolving it into dust. "Y'know, something tells me you don't have a license for that thing. Here, catch!" He then hurled the former gunman to the floor below, where he became yet another tally mark.

Nearly the entire blade was covered now as Bisector fought his way through the gradually-thinning masses. "How many of these lowlives are there?" he hissed through gritted teeth, disarming and defeating one that came from behind.

Two more fell to the ground as Cat Noir landed in between them, knocking them out by extending his staff. "Hard to say–Hawkmoth's not exactly a popular guy." He threw his staff like a boomerang, knocking out another before it returned to his hand. "Not that I think you're Hawkmoth, of course. I might just be on their side if I did!"

Gabriel only responded with a huff as he intercepted one heading for the Miraculous holder. "I appreciate the help." He had intended it as a sarcastic retort, but it ended up coming out as genuine. And perhaps it was. Chat Noir was less aggravating to fight alongside rather than against–not by much, but it was something.

While they were holding off the majority of their forces, the Gorilla stood guard at Adrien's door, hurling any that attempted to get near. Unfortunately for him, his nearly-superhuman strength was no match for the taser one of them was packing. As he fell to the ground, a handful of the intruders gathered by the door before throwing it open.

"Adrien!" shouted Gabriel, leaping up to the second floor. Even with his newfound agility, they would reach his son before they did. All he could do was make sure they didn't hurt him. He raised his sword as he lunged towards the group.

But as soon as the door opened, he was met not with the sight of his terrified son, but with the familiar whizzing sound he had come to despise. Quick as a flash, the crimson disc shot out from the room, ricocheting off each of the attackers' heads as they fell to the floor. The yo-yo returned to its owner's hand, who stood triumphantly in the doorway.

Gabriel stood before her, debating how to react. Cat Noir appeared beside him, perching on the bannister. "I knew you'd be here soon, Milady!"

Ladybug's smile was not the smile Gabriel had come to know and hate. She looked just as heroic as ever, but something in her eyes was…empty. "You didn't think I'd make you handle this alone, did you?" she said, smiling. "Hawkmoth may have retired, but that's no reason for me to take it easy!"

"A hero's job is never done, eh, Bugaboo?" A sudden commotion came from behind them, as one last group of invaders ran through the door, weapons flailing. "Ah, speaking of…"

"This looks like the last of them," said Ladybug, standing beside the other two. "Let's finish this! Lucky Charm!"

As ladybugs swarmed above her head, a long metal pole fell into her hands. "Huh. This one seems pretty straightforward, actually."

Cat Noir took on a similar pose to her, his staff in the place of the pole. "Looking to copycat my style, huh? I'm flattered!"

Their in-battle borderline flirting was even more aggravating in person, Gabriel decided. With a groan of disapproval, he leapt over the bannister. "Enough talking! Let's finish this now!" He ran forward to greet the intruders with his blade.

As quick as he was, they were growing wise to his abilities. They held weapons or used makeshift armor to block his sword, which couldn't capture them if it couldn't cut through. Just before he could adjust his tactics, one of them struck from behind, coincidentally–or perhaps not–hitting the same spot he had been struck moments ago. He fell to the ground, and the intruders descended upon him in an instant, striking him with whatever they had.

"No!" With a cry, Cat Noir leapt in to assist, knocking the assailants away with his staff. He soon reached Gabriel, fending off his attackers by swinging his weapon in a circular motion. Seeing this, Ladybug was given an idea. Her vision traveled to the pole she had summoned…then to Cat Noir's tail…then to Bisector's sword.

She too joined the fray, sending villains flying with her yo-yo. "Cat, quick, I need your tail! And Gabriel, your sword!"

While Cat Noir was all too happy to untie his belt and throw it her way, Gabriel was quite unwilling to hand over his only means of defense. "What? Is this really the only thing you can think of?"

But the intruders were down but not out, with many of them getting up for another bout. "Trust her, Bisector, she knows what she's doing," said Cat Noir, fending them off. With no small amount of reluctance, Gabriel tossed his sword her way.

Ladybug got to work immediately, tying the saber onto the end of the pole with the belt. Before long, she had fashioned it into a long spear, or perhaps a lance, or more accurately a naginata. Whatever it was called, she threw the sword, now enhanced, to its original owner. "Gabriel, now!"

Gabriel caught the weapon, and in a single motion, whirled himself around in a circle. Cat Noir was agile enough to vault over the pole, but the rest of the intruders were absorbed by the sword. He planted the butt of the spear triumphantly on the floor, his eyes searching for any more targets. But it was just the three of them left, the battle finally won.

He let the weapon clatter to the floor, relieved for this to finally be over. As he sat down on the stairs, he could hear the sound of sirens in the distance–a bit too late, but better late than never. "Hey, that was some pretty fancy fighting," Cat Noir said. "Do…do you take fencing?"

"I did," said Bisector, not bothering to look up. "A lifetime ago." He didn't elaborate further, leaving Cat Noir to head over to Ladybug.

His ring beeped, indicating his power was nearly spent. "I'm about to transform back. Can you handle things here?"

"Always." Gabriel noticed that her smile, though confident, was curiously just as empty as before. After she had disassembled the weapon, Cat Noir disappeared back to wherever he came from. And then, pole in hand, Ladybug hurled her Lucky Charm towards the ceiling. "Miraculous Ladybug!"

Any damage done by the intruders, or the defenders, was undone. The invaders themselves were reformed, just in time for the police to make an appearance. And the Akuma fluttered out of Bisector's sword, returning to Hawkmoth's tower and leaving Gabriel as himself once more.

Ladybug watched as the Akuma flew off. "If you're here, then who has the butterfly Miraculous?" she asked.

"I'd sit down if I were you," Gabriel said, getting to his feet. "That might be a long story."