Chapter Thirty: Overlap

Dazed, Alix pulled herself off of the wall, trying to remember what had happened. She had managed to catch Fluff's Miraculous, and had then tried to open a portal to where the others were. A look up revealed how that had gone: an enormous crack had appeared in the universe itself, towering up towards the sky. Two other versions of Paris were visible through the rupture, though what waitied within remained to be seen.

However, something from the other side had clearly made its way through, as a trio of figures had collided with her. "Hold on…guys!" she shouted, recognizing Adrien and Marinette. A version of Kagami was among them as well, though this one thankfully wasn't Akumatized. She helped them both to their feet. "Are you alright? What just happened?"

"You're asking us?" Adrien said. "You're the one who just blew a hole through reality!" He quickly glanced around the ruined basement. "What exactly have you been up to while we were gone?"

"Long story–there's no time for it now." Alix readied herself for combat once again, as Hawkmoth and her minions were sure to still be ready to go, regardless of dimensional breaches. "Just get ready to throw down!"

"What, again?" said Marinette, preparing her staff. The others present were slowly getting over the shock of the wall between dimensions being broken apart. This apparently didn't change anything for them, as the Dark Angels and their leader turned their attentions back to the Resistance with just as much animosity as ever. "Who'd you make any enemy of this time?"

"More heroes? Hmph, no matter," Hawkmoth said, unsheathing her sword cane. "Destroy them along with the others!" Her underlings turned their attention towards the newly arrived trio as well. "And get me their Miraculous!"

Wyvern was first to attack, darting in with her sword. But she found her attack blocked by her double, cutting her off before she could reach them. "I don't know what happened here, but I know an Akuma when I see one," said Ryuko. "Don't expect me to hold back, just because you are me!" The pair rocketed off into the air to do battle.

While the rest of the heroes clashed with the Dark Angels, Alya couldn't take her eyes off the new arrivals. "Are…is that…?" she asked.

Alix realized that, given what had happened to her Adrien and Marinette, seeing them again after all this time would be quite a shock. "Uh, yeah, they are," she said somewhat awkwardly. "Remember when I said I went on all sorts of adventures across the multiverse? Well, it was with these two. At least, it has been lately."

Alya stepped closer, recognizing the pair despite their costumes. "I…I don't know what to say." Her face was slightly pale, and her voice was slightly shaky. "I-I can't believe it's really you."

While neither of them knew what had happened in this timeline, it was fairly obvious that Alya was overjoyed to see them. "It's good to see you too," said Marinette, having not seen her own Alya in some time. On top of that, it was hard to ignore that she had the ladybug earrings. "Um…I see you've been busy."

Laughing, Alya wiped away a tear. "You could say that," she said. "So, you're Cat Noir where you come from?"

"Huh? Oh, no, this is just temporary," she told her. "I usually have a bat."

"A…bat Miraculous?"

"No, a baseball bat?"

"Hey, should we be helping here?" asked Adrien. There were plenty of heroes to face down the villains, but they couldn't let them do it alone. "These guys seem like bad news."

Realizing they were still in the middle of a fight, Alix readied her umbrella…which was now topped with an iron flail. "Good point–let's go!" She darted in, unfurling her canopy to protect Huli Jing from Queen Bee's swarm

"You two, on me," said Scarabella. "It's time we took the fight straight to Hawkmoth!"

Lady Noir prepared her staff. "Glad to!"

Blackbug readied his nunchucks. "Ready when you are!"

The three of them charged. Hawkmoth was almost caught off-guard, but she was able to deflect their attacks just in time. She moved with inhuman grace, dodging around their strikes and striking back with similar speed. "It doesn't matter how many more heroes you pull out of the woodwork," she sneered. "I have the means to create as many villains as I want!"

"Hey, speaking of villains, where did Gabriel end up?" asked Marinette.

Alix spared a quick glance into the third universe that had appeared. "I'm not sure, but he has to be in there somewhere. Hopefully he'll be able to find us…"

The moment the fissure had appeared, both Gabriel and Emilie had been transfixed–the former because of what he saw beyond it, the latter because she was seeing it at all. It had only been mere days since he had seen his companions, but it felt like lifetimes. However, it soon became apparent that they were locked in battle with yet another unknown threat.

Tearing himself away from the sight, Gabriel sprinted for the elevator. "Gabriel! Where are you going?" Emilie cried after him.

"Those are the ones I told you about!" he replied. "I cannot let them do this alone!" The lift returned him to the study, where he retrieved the butterfly Miraculous. Though a part of him had hoped to never use it again, deep down he knew it was inevitable.

Running for the door, he hurriedly affixed it to his lapel. As soon as he put it on, Nooroo appeared before him. "Master Gabriel?" he said, confused. "I thought you said Madame Butterfly was retired."

"No time–Nooroo, wings rise!" Pleasantly surprised that they weren't dark wings, the Kwami was absorbed into the brooch, and Gabriel became Hawkmoth. He burst through the door, and with his enhanced strength, leapt in to join the fray.

Behind him, Emilie hurried down the staircase, and soon met up with Nathalie. "Miss Agreste, what is happening!?" she asked. "I heard a terrible noise, and the sky seems to have been torn apart!"

"I'm not quite sure myself–but Gabriel has just run off to help," Emilie said with concern in her voice. "I hesitate to say this, but…I think it might be time to consider using the power of the peacock."

Instinctively, Nathalie's hand went to her pocket where the Miraculous was stored. "If it comes to that, ma'am. If it comes to that."

As Gabriel approached the school, he began to notice a strange feeling overtaking him. He recalled feeling something similar while sensing for Ripplers, but this sensation felt much deeper within his being. It was as though something was bubbling up to the surface, and it seemed to rise higher and higher the closer he got.

He could see flashes of movement as well, even though there was nothing in front of him. These visions gradually began to take shape: He could see Miraculous bearers dodging out of the way of some sort of fast-moving ball, one of whom was Ryuko. She wasn't evading the projectile, however, she was engaged in a brutal sword fight with someone through whose eyes Gabriel was looking.

The visions slowly began to overwhelm him. He vaguely remembered something about different Hawkmoths sharing Akumas regardless of who they were, or where they originated. But even still, to create and maintain two Akumas at once–this other Hawkmoth had clearly surpassed him in this regard.

But if he could access their thoughts, then that meant he could de-Akumatize them as well. Fighting through the sensations, he continued on his path, finally making his way to the school.

It seemed that Hawkmoth had sensed his presence. She glanced up once he had arrived, but was able to ignore him in order to continue fighting the heroes. Her sword clanged against Marinette's staff, Alya's yo-yo, and Adriens nunchucks, seemingly all at once. Meanwhile, the rest of the Resistance continued fighting around them.

Alix was locked in battle with Queen Bee, her flail and her top repeatedly clashing as each tried to get closer to the other. "Two Miraculous for the price of one, huh?" Queen Bee taunted. "When I tear them offa you and give them to Hawkmoth, she'll make me her second in command! Maybe I'll even get that stopwatch of yours! I wonder what I could do if I could go back in time…"

She couldn't let that happen. Alix feinted to the side, darting in with her umbrella. However, Queen Bee seemed to have anticipated her move, knocking her away with a kick. She raised her leg to deliver another once, only for a quick shape to dart in, tackling her aside. Getting to her feet, Alix immediately recognized who it was. "I take it you're the one who brought us all together?" said Gabriel.

Smiling, Alix got back on her feet. "Yes, and I'm glad I did. No time for reunions, though–we've gotta deal with another you and her henchmen!" She readied herself to continue the battle, and Gabriel followed suit.

The trio was still fighting Hawkmoth, and the two Kagamis were still locked in combat. Queen Bee was now occupied with Carapace and Viperion, while Huli Jing and Pegasus faced down Argos. This left them with only one person left facing them: "Another Hawkmoth… You realize this changes nothing?" said Hellhound, her ball hovering menacingly by her shoulder as she walked closer.

"Oh, I'd say it changes more than you think!" said Alix. "Right, big guy?" She looked over at Gabriel, who wore the holographic mask typical of when he was communicating to his henchmen.

Both Sabrina and Kagami could now feel his presence. "Hellhound, Wyvern, no longer will you obey the Hawkmoth that created you! You will be our allies! Throw off your shackles!"

But he was not the only one in their heads. Their Hawkmoth's mask appeared as well. "Don't listen to him! I am your master! Me! Now keep fighting, or you know what will happen!"

Torn between these two voices, neither of them could really do what either of them were essentially frozen in place, twitching as their eyes darted about frantically. "I…want…can't…" sputtered Hellhound, her ball twitching just as erratically as she was.

In the battle between the two Kagamis, Ryuko saw this as her chance. Her hand shot out to grab Wyvern's Miraculous, snatching it off of her neck. Upon doing this, she reverted back to her original identity, collapsing. Ryuko caught her, however. "Kagami? Are you in there? Wake up!" But as the Akuma had not yet been purified, she was left despondent.

With only one Akuma to deal with, both Hawkmoths were able to focus much more of their influence onto her. And considering how well she had been able to handle two, the hostile of the pair won out. She grinned as Hellhound resumed her attack on the Resistance, her ball darting through the air to collide with them.

Gabriel and Alix were forced to take cover as it careened all through the room. "What was that!?" said Alix. "I thought you were supposed to be some sort of unbeatable supervillain! Why is this teenager so much more powerful than you?"

"Her willpower is strong!" he said indignantly. "If you can distract her for just a moment, I may have a solution…"

"Distraction is my specialty!" Disappearing through a Burrow, Alix appeared right above Hawkmoth's head, landing directly on her. She then used this opportunity to repeatedly clobber her with her flail, which definitely distracted her. She soon drew her sword and fought back, though this only further took her attention away from Sabrina.

Realizing he would be unable to coerce Hellhound to side with them so long as Hawkmoth was still giving her orders, Gabriel had to try another angle. Hellhound might not be on their side…but Miss Hound likely would be. "Hellhound, I release you from her service!" With a wave of his hand, the Akuma emerged from her ball, fluttering over to him.

"What!? No!" yelled Hawkmoth as Sabrina was freed, reverting back to her previous hero self. She lunged at the now-freed girl, only for her sword to collide with Carapace's Shell-ter.

The other heroes began to surround her. "Give up, Hawkmoth!" said Scarabella. "Your minions are beaten! There's nothing left for you!"

Indeed, it seemed that all of her Dark Angels had been bested. In addition to Hellhound and Wyvern being freed from her control, Queen Bee and Argos had been beaten down for the time being. It was only her against the eleven other heroes. But she was never one to admit defeat. She readied her sword, and…

"Isn't there?" The voice wasn't hers, or any of theirs. "No, perhaps not. But there is quite a lot left for me!"

Recognizing who this was, Marinette, Adrien, and Kagami were already on the defensive. Hovering in from his world, Panoptes entered the fray. Even the others, who didn't know who he was, were frozen in terror by his mere presence. "Friend of yours?" asked Gabriel.

"No," Adrien replied quietly. "Definitely not."

"And here I thought that one world suffice for my perfect paradise," he mused. "But I can't rest knowing there are other worlds where Sentimonsters are treated as mere fodder. With your power at my disposal, I'll transform all worlds into the perfect home for–"

His tirade was cut off when he was suddenly struck from behind by something flying through the air. This something was a someone, dressed in a dark outfit and wielding a staff. In fact, she looked very much like Marinette wielding the black cat Miraculous. As soon became apparent, that's exactly what she was.

Just after she landed, Panoptes found himself wrapped up by a yo-yo, and slammed into the ground. The weapon's wielder joined the other heroes, landing beside his partner. "Somebody call for a rescue?" asked Mister Bug with a wink.

Deep out in the space between spaces, the time between times, the sound of three realities colliding rang out like a bell. But because the ITAA had all but fallen apart, and Fluff was fading, there was nobody to hear it. Nobody, save Death's Head.

Floating in the void, surrounded by a dark miasma, the former Gabriel opened his eyes. The sound itself was curious enough, but the surge of energies that had caused it was most intriguing. He could already taste the sheer power that was emanating from the breach. Creation and Destruction swirling together in an irresistible cocktail…he had to have it.

"So close…" he rasped, the miasma around him dispersing into hundreds of Ripplers. The legion floated towards the dimensional collision, with him at its helm. "I'm on my way, White Rabbit. Are you ready for me?"