Chapter Ten: Abysmal

Alix looked around as though to verify the state of the timeline. "You made a wish? Did you know at the time that there'd be…?"

"Consequences? Yeah, I did," Adrien replied. "To get something, you have to give something. I just had no idea that this would be what I had to give."

This only confirmed that making a wish was, through unknown means, the impetus for the universal decay. "I highly doubt you could have known that," said Gabriel, a hint of a fatherly tone in his voice. "I doubt anyone could have." He was quiet for a bit, before his curiosity got the better of him. "What exactly is it you wished for?"

Adrien gave a wry smile. "I wished that the Miraculous had never existed," he said, causing Alix and Gabriel to glance at each other. "Not in the past, the present, or the future. That all traces of them would be wiped away, completely forgotten. I figured that…that if we lived in a world without Miraculouses, none of this ever would have happened. Mom would still be alive, you would never have become Hawkmoth, I wouldn't have…" He sighed. "Nevermind. None of that matters right now. Come on, there has to be something in here."

He headed off further into the decaying city, followed by the other two. "Seems like that wish didn't exactly pan out," said Alix. "Why did those two Miraculous stay with you?"

That reminded Gabriel: he didn't have either Miraculous with him after he had made his wish either. At the time, he had assumed it was because he had died. But if Adrien had retained his, even though he shouldn't have, was there something else at play here? "Yes, why is that?" he asked.

"Because Bunnyx saved me," he answered. "My Bunnyx, I mean. The moment that Gimmi began to grant my wish, she appeared, and carried me to the Warren. When we tried coming back here…this was all that waited for us." He stopped in his tracks, looking down. "I couldn't believe what had happened to this place at the time. I couldn't believe that everyone I knew was just…gone." He turned to Gabriel. "I guess that's something we have in common, huh?"

"I…" Gabriel didn't answer. "Alix, have there been other survivors from these universes that have been destroyed? And did they have the Miraculous with them?"

Alix thought for a moment. "None that I've ever encountered myself. I didn't get the chance to visit many after my falling-out with the ITAA. Your universe was actually the first one like that I'd really been to. Since we probably would have heard something of it if they did, I'd say no."

"Guess I really am special then," Adrien said with a humorless smile. "Now the only question is why?"

"...Uh, because your Bunnyx saved you," Alix replied. "I thought that would be obvious. Not really a mystery there."

Adrien tapped one of his earrings. "Yes, but I brought my Miraculous with me. Shouldn't that have prevented the wish from being granted? Or at least disrupted it somehow? I could be wrong, but doesn't that seem odd to you?"

For Gabriel's part, he had never considered how removing a Miraculous from a universe would or would not disrupt its effects. Understandably, such a topic had never come up before now. While he couldn't verify it one way or the other, he had to admit it did make sense. "There is one way we could test it," he said.

"What? Making a wish, here and now?" Alix said in disbelief. "Are you nuts? Even if we still can, there's no telling what effect it could have in a universe like this!"

To both of their surprise, Adrien actually agreed with Gabriel. "I think it's worth a shot," he said, coming to a stop beside a half-melted building. "...What? It's a sure way to get more information on whatever's happening. Plus, since there's no past or future here, we can guarantee that there's no danger of affecting this timeline!"

"Yeah, except for us," Alix muttered. "But fine, sure, go ahead, meddle with the already-unstable fabric of time and space. Just don't blame me if we're reduced to our component subatomic particles or whatever."

Adrien took this as an invitation. "Tikki, Plagg, divi–hang on." Before he de-transformed, he turned back to the other two. "We should probably settle on what it is we're wishing for first. Wouldn't want to waste our only chance."

"Just wish that we knew where the Ripplers are coming from," said Alix. "And we can lose, um…I dunno, where you had your sixth birthday or something. Just hurry."

He turned back around. "Tikki, Plagg, divide." His costume disappeared, revealing the two Kwamis. "Reveal your true selves!"

All three of them were expecting the embodiments of creation and destruction to manifest before their very eyes…but instead, the Kwamis only glanced at each other, and shrugged. "I'm sorry, but the true extent of our powers is useless here," explained Tikki. "Whatever happened here, it goes beyond creation and destruction."

"Yup. Plus, the most powerful being in the universe can't exactly exist where there's technically not a universe," Plagg added. "But hey, we're still here! We can still help ya with whatever you need."

"Such as uncovering the origins of the Ripplers?" asked Gabriel.

Tikki had an uncomfortable look about her. "According to Fluff, the Ripplers are beyond time and space. Because of that, it's safe to assume that they're beyond creation and destruction as well. And the only being beyond that…"

"...is Gimmi themself," Plagg finished.

"So, what, you're saying that there's something out there just as powerful as Gimmi?" said Alix, clearly skeptical. "I don't suppose there could be a Dark Gimmi running around out there, huh? Well, it is a big multiverse…"

"That's very unlikely," Tikki responded. "Although versions of the same Kwamis have their own experiences and personalities throughout different realities, they are all technically manifestations of the same being. For example, even though it might seem like there's many Tikkis out there, there's really only one of me. The same is also true of Plagg, Fluff, and especially Gimmi. Because of this, it's impossible for a Kwami to turn against itself. However, two people using the power of the same Kwami can turn their power against each other."

This was all lining up to indicate one possibility. "Could someone have made a wish to destroy the multiverse?" Gabriel wondered. It was hard to imagine someone wishing for something so extreme, but given everything he had seen, it was certainly possible.

"There's definitely people out there who would want that," said Alix, nervously glancing at Adrien as she said this. "But hey, if you're half of Gimmi, shouldn't you know what wishes have been made?"

Plagg shrugged again. "Eh, this multiverse stuff really isn't my forte. Think of it like this: our powers and experiences are shared, but our memories and personalities aren't. It doesn't make a whole lotta sense, but hey, at least it makes things simpler!"

Gabriel had to disagree on that. "In any case, this hypothesis is our best lead. Is there any way we can pursue it any further?"

"Not without heading back to the Warren," said Alix. All three of them silently agreed that was never happening. "Our next best bet would be to go to timelines just before someone makes a wish, and see what the effects are."

"Didn't you just say that was super dangerous?" asked Adrien. "Besides, what if someone wished for everyone in the universe to be their slaves? Wouldn't we be affected too?"

"I'd get us outta there in time," she countered. "And no offense, but your lead in this universe turned out to be a whole lotta nothing. So unless either of you can think of a reason to stick around, I say we get moving."

"It could be worth looking around for a bit longer," Gabriel said. "At least until we can be sure there's nothing here for us."

Alix gave him a look. "I know for a fact there's nothing here for us. Know how I know? 'Cause there's nothing here, period! Any sort of 'clues' that would've been left here are long gone, ravaged by the Ripplers. What you see here is what you get, and…are you even listening to me?"

Gabriel had closed his eyes, focusing intently on a feeling. "You said the Ripplers destroyed this place. Do they often frequent these destroyed timelines?"

"Uh, yeah, that's more or less their whole thing," Alix replied. "Once whatever makes this happen happens, they show up in bulk, before disappearing. Nobody knows why they do, but they do."

"I see," Gabriel said. "If that is the case, then why do I still sense Ripplers here?"

This earned him another quizzical glance from Alix, as well as one from Adrien. "You're just mentioning this now?" she said.

"I only just checked now," he responded. "You mentioning the Ripplers reminded me. And now that we know, it would be foolish not to investigate." Sensing them again, he headed off in the direction the feeling was strongest. "This way."

Alix and Adrien followed, the latter seeming to recognize the path. "If we're going where I think we're going, I might have been onto something," he said nervously. Alix wondered what he meant, but figured she would find out soon enough.

Their path soon took them to what was left of the Eiffel Tower. Gabriel held out an arm to stop the two, but he didn't need to: the entire area around the tower was crawling with Ripplers. Dozens of them. Swarming like a mass of insects, they appeared to be searching for something.

"Looks like I was right to bring us here after all," said Adrien.

"And why's that, exactly?" asked Alix.

He pointed to the top of the tower. "Because that's where I was when I made the wish." He turned to face the other two. "Don't you think it's weird how the Ripplers are still here? It's like they're here for a reason…and whatever it is, they still haven't found it."

To Gabriel, it was blindingly obvious what it was they were after. "The Miraculous," he said, glancing at the ring and earrings. "That is the only explanation. When I awoke to find my universe in tatters, both of my Miraculous were gone. Yet you were rescued by Bunnyx, and thus still have yours. The only question that remains is what reason they could have for stealing them."

"I think that part should be obvious," answered Alix. "More Miraculous means more wishes. The Ripplers' boss probably figured out about the multiverse, and sends these minions out to collect every pair of ladybug and cat Miraculous out there, one by one. It's pretty much as close to wishing for more wishes as you can get."

This was, at least on the surface, a reasonable hypothesis. "Is that even something you can do?" wondered Adrien. "I guess I sort of assumed Gimmi only granted one wish per person. Guess there's no real rule against it, even if it's technically the same Gimmi each time."

The group was ready to ponder further, but they were interrupted by someone finding their hiding spot. One of the Ripplers had split off from the others, leaping down on them from atop a nearby building. "Above us!" Gabriel drew his sword, slicing the being in two before it could land on them.

Expectedly, the commotion attracted the attention of the rest. Soon enough, the entire parkful of Ripplers was staring in their direction, on high alert. "Guess we're doing this," said Adrien.

"Think of it as a way to test our theory," Alix said, readying her umbrella. "If they go after you first, that's more proof we're right!"

"Focus! Here they come!" shouted Gabriel. All at once, every Rippler there charged in their direction. Gabriel readied himself as the sea of swirling miasma approached, his sword prepared to strike. But with the sheer mass of them, he would have to take caution not to be overwhelmed.

Adrien, on the other hand, wasn't worried in the slightest. Smirking, he stepped forward as though challenging the horde. "Tikki, Plagg, unite!" The Kwamis melded with their respective Miraculous, transforming him into Blackbug. "Time for a little creation!" Light swirled around his hand as he raised it, causing a large wedge-shaped wall to ascend from the ground.

The barrier served its purpose, blocking off most of the Ripplers from taking them head-on. The swarm was instead corralled to either side, where Hawkmoth and Bunnyx made use of the effective bottleneck. Coming at them in what amounted to a straight line, their numbers were easily cut down. That said, their touch burned through the barricade, making this only a temporary solution.

"Now would be a good time to use your other power!" said Hawkmoth, watching as the wall began to dissolve. Black, smoky hands reached through the holes, grasping at the three before they could pull their way through.

"Sounds good to me!" Shadows swirled around Adrien's other hand, which he thrust forward. A blast of clouded air exploded from his palm, devastating what was left of the barrier and taking all the Ripplers behind it with it. Those on the side spread out, surrounding the trio.

Before they could close in, Alix opened portals under each of the three, warping them out of the circle before the Ripplers could close in. "Split up!" she ordered, before vanishing through another one.

Blackbug charged in, his nunchucks whirling. With his agility, he ran circles around the Ripplers, not letting them get a hit in. His weapon retained the extendable quality of its components, letting him defeat them from a distance. A bunch of them tried to surround him again, only for him to take them all out with one spin move.

Hawkmoth had the opposite strategy, letting them come to him. His powers weren't as useful for offense as the others, but his Miraculous-enhanced strength and reflexes more than made up for that. His sword cut through Ripplers by the dozen, with its sheath making for an effective weapon as well. Even with them coming at him from all angles, he cut them all down–save one. A single Rippler managed to avoid detection by being knocked to the floor by another in their feeding frenzy, allowing it to grab Gabriel's ankle.

This momentary distraction allowed the other Ripplers to swarm him, all piling on top of him. Forced to the ground, he prepared to focus his power into one strike to get them off, but he found them disappearing before he could. In came Adrien, the razor-thin wire of his weapon slicing through his captors.

"Not spent yet, are you?" said the young man, holding out his hand. Gabriel couldn't help grinning–secretly, he had always longed for the day he and his son could fight side by side. Of course, he always imagined Adrien would inherit either the butterfly or the peacock Miraculous, but this worked too. He reached out, taking his hand.

The moment their hands touched, it was as though Gabriel was thrown into another world. His body, his mind, were no longer with him. It felt like an out of body experience…yet his body was where it always was, right beneath him. He seemed to be standing atop the Eiffel Tower, as Paris was on fire beneath him. He felt not horror or pride at this sight, but…anticipation. The same anticipation a fox feels moments before a rabbit lets its guard down. And just as quickly as this vision came, it was gone.

He gasped when he came back to reality, as though he had surfaced after nearly drowning. A quick glance over at Adrien confirmed that he had experienced the same thing. "What…was that?" he asked, shaken.

"I'm not sure," Gabriel replied, quickly regaining his cool. "I have never experienced a vision this powerful before." They were left with little time to wonder further, as this moment of confusion allowed the Ripplers to coalesce, speeding towards them all at once.

Quick as a flash, Bunnyx appeared before them from a portal, opening up a larger one in front of the charging Ripplers. They all surged through, reappearing a good distance away, in the sky. "What was that all about?" she asked, as the Ripplers fell towards the ground. "You two touched hands, then looked all scared for no reason!"

"There was a reason!" said Adrien. "We saw…I don't really know what we saw. I mean, it looked like Paris burning, but I don't know if it was a flashback, or a premonition, or…something else!"

"There will be time to ponder the nature of our vision later," said Gabriel, as much as he wanted to know too. The Ripplers who had survived the fall, which was most of them, were returning to continue the fight. "Let us wait until after this threat is dealt with first."

Everyone agreed that this was the best course of action. Weapons at the ready, they charged.