Chapter Thirty-Two: Bad World Rising

The heroes were stunned. The true strength of Panoptes' invasion had been revealed, and it threatened to crush Paris in an instant. Panoptes himself rose up to his enormous city-beast, looking down on the helpless city below. All those worthless humans, who treated people like him like trash…soon, they would all be replaced. Soon, Sentimonters would be all that remained of this pathetic world…and all those like it.

Gabriel couldn't speak, looking around at the massive tendrils ensnaring the buildings around them all. A moment later, he realized that Bunnyx was trying to get his attention. "Gabe! Gabe, eyes down here! Come on, we've gotta move!"

"Move where?" asked Kitty Noir. "What are we supposed to do against that thing!?" She glanced down at Bunnyx's watch. "Hang on…couldn't you bring in help from other dimensions? We could have an army on our side, o-or a Panoptes who's good!"

Alix liked this idea, but before she had time to consider it, they realized they had another threat to deal with. In spite of everything that had just happened, Hawkmoth and her two remaining minions weren't ready to give in just yet. "You weren't thinking about leaving let, were you?" She stepped out of the shadows, flanked by Argos and Queen Bee. "We still have unfinished business!"

"Are you still trying to take us on?" said Huli Jing in disbelief. "Look around you! If we don't do something now, this city will be crushed! Even you can't be cruel enough to let that happen!"

She smirked. "Can't I?" With a small gesture, she sent her followers after the group. But before Queen Bee could summon her bees, a ball flew through the air, clobbering her aside. Likewise, just as Argos moved in to strike, his fan clanged against a sword. Sabrina and Kagami were no longer her puppets.

"Chloe, you know she's right!" Miss Hound pleaded. "We have to work together to stop Panoptes! Even if you don't care about this world, you still care about our world, I know you do! If he isn't stopped here, Panoptes will do the same there as he's doing here!"

But Queen Bee refused to give in. "Ugh! What is it with this new Sabrina, always talking back? I liked you better when you obeyed!" She thrust out her arm, a swarm of bees rushing towards her former lackey.

Both Kitty Noir and Lady Noir rushed to her aid, twirling their staffs to deflect the onslaught of mind-controlling bees. "Sorry, Chloe–but she's with us now!" Kitty Noir declared.

"And we look out for our friends!" said Lady Noir, glancing back at Sabrina. She smiled, overjoyed to finally be part of a real team. She called her ball back to her hand, ready to continue fighting.

Meanwhile, Kagami continued clashing with Argos, his fan continuing to strike against her sword. But she stayed on the defensive, merely blocking his increasingly aggressive attacks. "I know you think we have something in common merely because of our shared origins," she said, "and in a way, we do. But that does not mean I can overlook your crimes. I will no longer stand beside you, Felix, nor Hawkmoth. Now, I am my own person."

"All you are is a puppet!" he retorted, hurling himself at her again and again. "As long as you continue to stay with the Resistance, that's all you'll ever be!" He feinted, going in for a decisive blow, only to be stopped by another sword, its owner swiftly knocking him to the ground.

"It seems you have quite a lot in common with my Felix," said the other Kagami, her blade pointed at her foe. "You, too, don't seem to adhere to your own beliefs on what makes us 'real' people. We have chosen our alliances, just as you have chosen yours. And you have made a poor choice."

Hawkmoth looked around. She was outnumbered and outmatched, and the situation clearly wasn't in her favor. But it wasn't in their favor, either. "Alright, I'll admit, you have me beaten," she said. "But let's see how you handle something a little more…worldly." She spread her arms, bringing the mass of tendrils threatening to envelop the city. "Best of luck to you!" She, Queen Bee, and Argos then disappeared into the shadows of the ruined school, leaving the heroes to clean up this mess.

Scarabella tried to follow them, but Marinette stopped her. "Hold on–she's right. This thing's gonna eat the whole city if we don't do something soon. We need to get up there and take Panoptes down!"

"That's not our only problem," said Blackbug, turning around. With their master indisposed, Death's Head's army of Ripplers were left to their own devices. But rather than hunting down more Miraculous bearers, they were attracted to the outpouring of terror caused by the incursion of the massive, tentacled crimson orb. Slowly turning towards its source, they ran into the city to begin picking off the people.

"Then there's no time to waste!" said Mister Bug. "We'll split up! Half of us go up there to confront Felix, the other half protect the city from those things!" He dashed off to do just that, with Lady Noir following close behind. Eager to keep the populace safe, Huli Jing, Carapace, Miss Hound, and Pegasus followed.

This left the original four, plus both Kagamis, Scarabella, and Kitty Noir. "Alix, can you get us up there?" asked Blackbug.

"That, I can do!" She opened a portal that the eight of them jumped through, vanishing into Redworld.

Below, in the city, pandemonium reigned. The tendrils were slowly advancing, crushing buildings that they wrapped around. But the Ripplers proved to be the more immediate threat, chasing after the civilians as they ran for their lives. One leapt for a fleeing woman, only for a boomerang to slice through it, carrying on to destroy another few before returning to Pegasus' hand. "Corral them towards the city center!" he said. "Don't let them get through!"

Miss Hound's ball ricocheted all around the street, striking down the invaders one by one. "Right!" The team moved to prevent the Ripplers from giving chase, which thankfully wasn't too difficult as they were drawn towards the Miraculous as well.

Mister Bug stood before the fleeing masses, joined by a small army of copies. "Good luck getting past us!" they all declared in unison. The Ripplers struggled to make sense of the multitude of heroes, before eventually just charging. Only one of the Mister Bugs could actually dispatch them, but this was made up for when Lady Noir jumped in.

"Cataclysm!" she shouted, placing her palm down on the street. Cracks appeared, and it crumbled, trapping many of the Ripplers in a ditch. Her staff, and Mister Bug's yo-yo, made short work of them.

There were still more Ripplers, but most had given up on their chase to focus their attention solely on the Resistance. However, while they could be easily handled, they were no longer the bigger problem. Redworld's tendrils continued to envelop the city, crushing everything in their way. "Does anybody have any ideas to deal with those?" asked Carapace.

"Only one thing we can do right now," said Lady Noir, readying her staff. "Smash them as best we can, and hope the others know what they're doing up there!" Leaping up to the nest of tendrils, the six of them prepared to keep the encroaching tentacles at bay. But to truly save the city, it was up to Gabriel and the others.

Gabriel emerged from the portal, landing on a street near the city center. The copy of Paris within Redworld remained remarkably similar to the real thing, but now, the sky was blood red in color, casting a tinge over the entire replica. More false people stood in the streets, glaring at the heroes with eyes glowing in the same color. He prepared to reach for his cane, as they looked like they could charge at any moment.

But they stayed where they were, waiting for orders from their master. The heroes gazed up at the sky, and there he was: Panoptes, his many eyes looking down at them as he hovered like a celestial judge. "Felix!" shouted Blackbug to his cousin. "I thought it would be obvious, but you're going too far! You don't need to destroy all humans just to create a world where Sentimonsters can live in peace!" He gestured to their surroundings. "Look around! Redworld doesn't have to be used for destruction! It can be a refuge, a safe haven!"

Blackbug's pleas were cut short as Panoptes shot out a projectile, which hit the ground right beside his foot. "I thought you of all people would understand," he said, his voice barely audible. "That you would know what it was like to be treated as an object, a mere tool. But you're too far gone. You've lived among the humans for so long, you've become one of them. You're no better than a human yourself!" He rose higher, raising his arms. "You deserve nothing less than to be erased alongside them!"

That was the Sentimonsters' cue to charge. They ran at the heroes with near-literal fire in their eyes, most of them with only their bare fists. "I'll go after the big guy, you hold the little guys back!" said Alix. She vanished through another portal, reappearing above Panoptes. He darted out of the way, but she simply opened another portal beneath her, launching herself into him.

Everyone else did battle with his legions. The Sentimonsters were being driven by a ferocity that none of them had ever seen, no doubt borrowed from their master. But as she battered them aside with her staff, Marinette couldn't help feeling conflicted. She had seen firsthand that not all of them agreed with Panoptes' hostile takeover–just how many of them were his slaves, forced to fight on his behalf. "Stop!" she urged. "You don't have to obey him!"

"Yes…we…do!" said one of them, clearly struggling to even speak as he tried to grab her.

"We can't…disobey him!" said another, continuing to get up no matter how many times Scarabella knocked her down.

Her conflict only grew when she noticed Adrien among the hordes of clones. "Adrien!" she called out, and though Blackbug briefly glanced her way, the local one did not appear to hear her. Instead, he went over to attack Kagami, who thankfully recognized him.

"Adrien?" she said, her eyes widening as he came closer. She held up her sword to hold him back as he tried to wrestle her to the ground. "What is… How? Is Panoptes somehow controlling you?"

The other Kagami appeared behind Adrien, striking him on the back of his head with the hilt of her blade. "He is controlling them all," she said. "This will not end until Panoptes is defeated."

Alix was doing her best to do just that, following him around the city. She couldn't fly like he could, but her portals were a suitable substitute. "So, you're gonna free the Sentimonsters in every timeline, ever," she said. "Then what? Just gonna sit around and bask in your efforts? 'Cause what you've got here doesn't look much like a 'paradise' to me…"

"Of course a human wouldn't understand the perspective of a Sentimonster," Panoptes hissed, repeatedly launching projectiles at the pursuing Bunnyx. With quick movements, she was able to redirect them back at him, which gave her a window of opportunity to portal right above him.

"Clout!" she shouted, her bangle charging with energy. Before any of his eyes could blink, Panoptes found himself smashed into the pavement below, a crater and a shockwave resulting from the impact. The concussive blast of air reached far enough to blow back the Sentimonsters a block or two away, momentarily stopping the fight. "Actually, I like to think I understand you well enough," Alix said as she landed beside him, tugging on her flail threateningly.

The rest of her team hurried over once they saw that Panoptes was down. But although he had taken a powerful blow, he was far from out. "You really think you've won?" he asked, resuming his floating. The others prepared for him to make any sudden moves, their weapons at the ready. "I created this world! I am its sole master!" More and more of the clones appeared from out of the buildings, surrounding everybody. "I alone can decide its fate! And none of you can possibly challenge me!"

"Maybe they can't…but I can."

At this unexpected voice, everybody turned to see who had just arrived. To their surprise, especially Gabriel's, Mayura stood beyond the crowd of Sentimonsters, her wrathful eyes fixed on Panoptes. To her side was Viperion, a stoic expression across his face. "Nathalie…" whispered Gabriel.

Panoptes apparently knew who she was, as several of his Sentimonsters broke off from the crowd to subdue her. But with a wave of her hand, they stopped in their tracks, standing aside to let her pass. "You know that won't work," she said, slowly making her way over to him. "I imagine you recognize me from your home reality? Then you must know what I can do."

In response to this, Panoptes unleashed a barrage of projectiles in her direction. She unfurled her fan, deflecting the shots that came at her. Viperion dashed in to block some as well, seeming to know where they would hit before they even came close. He had obviously done this before.

"You…you are the one who forces us to bend to your will!" snarled Panoptes. "I destroyed you once before, and I will do it again! I refuse to bow to the likes of you!" He raised his arms, and more of the red tendrils shot up from the ground, rushing towards her.

All Mayura had to do was raise her hand again, and the tentacles froze where they were. "When will you understand? You have no real power. There is nothing you can do that I can undo…including you yourself." She pulled forward, and Panoptes was dragged out of the sky, ending up on his knees before her.

None of the heroes were entirely sure what to make of this. A being of such power, thrown around like a ragdoll. Obviously, this was good for them, but one, Blackbug, couldn't help but feel that something was wrong here. He winced as Panoptes tried to get up, only to be forced back down by Nathalie's hand.

"You are a Sentimonster yourself, yes?" she said. "Then you know the power I hold over you." Holding out her hand, the peacock and butterfly Miraculous he had donned flew off of his lapel and into her palm. Panoptes' many eyes disappeared as he was reverted back to Felix. He looked much more pitiful as an ordinary human, no older than most of them, and with a heavy resemblance to Adrien.

He refused to surrender, scowling up at her. "You humans are all the same," he spat. "Go ahead. Even if you destroy me, another Felix will take my place. Only when Sentimonsters are finally free will we rest."

Nathalie took no heed of his warning. She raised her hand, her thumb and middle finger pressed together. "I release you from–"

"Wait!" Before Mayura could invalidate Felix's existence, she was interrupted by someone throwing himself between the two. That someone was Blackbug, having reverted back to Adrien. His eyes were screwed shut, and both hands were held outwards as though to separate them. "Just…please, wait. It doesn't have to end like this."

"Adrien?" asked Mayura, taken aback. "What are you doing? Do you have any idea what this Felix is capable of? What he has already done, to our world and his own? None of us will be safe so long as he exists!"

Adrien looked away, saddened. "I-I know, but…why do you have to destroy him? He's already powerless without his Miraculous! We could send him back to his dimension, let Kagami take care of–"

"Do I look like I need your sympathy?" hissed Felix, standing up. "You stand in my way just long enough to see me fall, and then you suddenly start vouching for me? Don't think I don't see what this is!" He began angrily approaching Adrien. "Does your need to play the hero also extend to championing this poor, lost Sentimonster? Getting me to see the error of my ways? Pah!"

"She's right: you've done plenty of horrible things," said Adrien. "But so did my dad. And because of that–no, because of my own indecisiveness, I'll never get to see him again. He'll never get to make up for it. But you can. There's still time for you to bring back all the humans, Felix. To make peace." Moving slowly, Adrien placed his arms around the double of his cousin. "I already lost two members of my family. I don't think I could stand to lose another."

While many of the heroes were conflicted on just how touching this moment was, Felix, hesitantly, did return his cousin's embrace. So at the very least, he wasn't about to resume his attack. At least for now, the city was safe.

And seeing as the battle was over, Gabriel approached Mayura. "Nathalie…take that off now, please," he said softly. It's too dangerous to use. You know what will happen if you try."

"I know," she said, "and I am aware of the risks. But seeing as our whole world was in danger, I should think that outweighs the risk. Doesn't it?"

Gabriel couldn't answer. Surely they could have defeated Panoptes on their own, couldn't they? And remembering what happened to his own Nathalie… "In any case, the threat has been neutralized. There is no reason for you to remain Mayura."

She looked over at Viperion, who had joined the others. "I hope you are right," she said quietly.

"So, you brought her here?" asked Marinette. "How did you know she could just stop him like that?"

"I tried just about everything," he said. "It was my last resort, but nothing else could defeat Panoptes. Not even–" His eyes suddenly went wide. "No! We forgot about him!"

Before anybody could ask 'who,' the street beneath them began to crumble. Cracks appeared as the pavement turned black, dissolving into dust as something forced its way to the surface. Everyone stepped back as that same something, or someone, emerged.

"I'm sorry, but did you just say you forgot about me?" asked Death's Head, his grin unnaturally wide. "Now, that won't do at all!"

AN: So, uh, apparently nobody told me season 6 was out... I'll probably wait until all the episodes are available and watch it all at once, so keep the deets to a minimum!