Chapter Thirty-Four: All Together Now
For the past few days, Jalil had pondered just what he could do to help his sister. He had been given access to the ITAA database, and yet it was entirely useless in his hands, especially now that the alliance had dissolved. After so long of feeling useless, he finally could do something to help.
For him, it was child's play: connecting this database to every rabbit Miraculous around the multiverse–every one that remained, at least, after Death's Head's rampage. With the destruction of the Warren, and Fluff weakening further and further, the remaining Bunnyxes were scattered. In order for them to stand a chance against Death's Head, they had to unite once more.
That part was up to Alix. "Alright…you're up," said Jalil, initiating the connection. Alix's watch was now linked to those of all her counterparts listed in the database. "Go ahead and do your thing!"
"You got it!" Alix prepared for her speech…only to realize she had no idea what to say. "Um…okay, so, let's see…" This was the most pivotal moment of her life, and she couldn't come up with anything. She knew that not everyone would make it out of this battle, so how could she ask them to sacrifice their lives for their sake?
"Alix?" asked Adrien. "Is everything okay? You did have a plan here, right?"
"Of course I did!" she said. "It's just that…I'm not sure how to phrase it. We already took such a big blow when Death's Head destroyed the ITAA. If we don't make it this time, then…"
Gabriel held out his hand. "May I? I believe I know what to say."
Everyone turned to him in surprise. Even though he had changed quite a bit, he still didn't seem the type to give big, grandiose inspiring speeches. "Are you sure?" asked Marinette. "No offense, but a Gabriel might not be who these Bunnyxes want to hear…"
In spite of that, Alix handed him the Miraculous. "I trust him," she said. "If you say you know what to say, then say it."
He took the watch, looking into the holographic image it displayed. It was impossible to make out, but hundreds of Bunnyxes were about to receive his words. The fate of the entire multiverse depended on this moment–he had to make it count.
Taking a deep breath, he pressed the button to transmit. "Holders of the rabbit Miraculous. Members of the ITAA. Protectors of time. I know that right now, I am the last voice you all expected to hear. The last voice you wanted to hear. But I send this message not with a plea for forgiveness, but a plea for action. Right now, all of our homes, our worlds, are in grave danger. Death's Head seeks to rewrite the multiverse to fit his twisted idea of love.
Once, I might have believed this was for the best. That as long as my family could be happy, any sort of change, no matter how it punished others, was worth it. Thanks to this belief, I lost so much… I have no right to demand that you join us in our fight. But I implore you, do it not for my sake, or even for yours, but for all the innocent lives that my counterpart's callous actions will destroy."
Alix, Marinatte, and Adrien hung onto Gabriel's every word. He had gained the attention of some of the other heroes as well, who turned to listen. He was hardly recognizable as the man who once terrorized Paris.
"I do not believe that I am a hero. I do not expect to be rewarded for my contributions to this coming battle, and neither should you. I know full well that traveling to this world, facing against Death's Head, could mean my death. But I will go anyway. If my sacrifice could undo even a fraction of the pain I caused others, then I would be more than willing to give my life. But even without redemption, I will go. And so should you all.
Come alone if you must. If there are any heroes remaining in your universe, bring them along. If anyone has the strength and courage to wield a Miraculous, then let them come, and face the end of everything head-on! This will be our last stand, our final push against the darkness! Even if we fall, we will fall in the name of preserving our worlds! So come! Come and fight!"
"Let's do it!" shouted Carapace. Cries of agreement followed from the various heroes.
"For Lady Noir and Mister Bug!" yelled Kagami. "For everyone Death's Head's crusade has taken from us!"
"Death's Head means to find the Genesis Point. If we do not stop him now, he will get his wish. Follow our signal to the dimension in question–that is where we will make our final stand." He ended the transmission, handing the Miraculous back to Alix. "With any luck, that should gain us at least a few allies," he said.
"We can only hope," said Alix. "But there's no time to wait for them. Death's Head has a head-start on us, so we've gotta move. Who here's coming with?"
Kitty Noir and Scarabella shared a glance. "Count us in!" said the former. The other members of the Resistance stood behind them, ready to join the fight.
"We will fight with you as well," said Kagami, her counterpart by her side. "Death's Head will pay for what he has done."
"Indeed he will." The sheer fury this voice carried sent chills up most of their spines. Mayura emerged from the shadows, her face matching her tone. "I am coming with you. And I will not rest until Death's Head has been torn to shreds."
"Then it seems we're in agreement," said Gabriel. "Alix? Lead the way."
She pointed her umbrella. "Burrow!" A portal appeared, though it didn't have the same rounded appearance they usually had. This one was jagged and nonuniform, looking like it would spread out at any moment. "We'd better go while it's still stable. Three different universes colliding makes traveling to other ones pretty tricky."
One after another, everyone leapt through the portal, knowing that their ultimate trial lay on the other side. And they were ready.
"...And so, it is with great honor that I present Ladybug and Cat Noir with the highest honor Paris can bestow: the key to the city!" Mayor Bourgois gestured to the two heroes as the crowd applauded, watching them step onto the stage. Cat Noir and Ladybug waved as they were handed a giant ceremonial key by the mayor.
Ladybug stepped up to the podium. "Um, thank you so much to the mayor for this oversized novelty key. And thank you all for supporting us for these past few months. I was just an ordinary girl with an ordinary life not long ago, so for someone like me to be given such an opportunity…well, it's just very inspiring!"
She looked at her family, who were all beaming up at her. But just beside her, Adrien let his smile fall. There wasn't anybody in the audience from his family. No Gabriel, no Nathalie, even the Gorilla was nowhere to be found. Was his dad's mission really so important to him that he couldn't at least come and see this moment?
Whether or not Ladybug noticed his disappointment, she momentarily took his mind off of it. "But I would never have made it this far if it hadn't been for my partner and friend, Cat Noir!" She pulled him closer, sharing the key with him. "I couldn't have asked for a better person to hold the cat Miraculous. He's been with me since the beginning, and I'm so grateful he's stuck around this long." She smiled up at him. "Here's to you, kitty-cat."
Adrien was truly flattered by her words, smiling back. The crowd gave more applause and a few 'awws' as cameras flashed. Looking back into the crowd, he realized that, although his family wasn't there, there were still plenty of people who cared about him. Alya, Nino, Kagami, even Chloe had shown up. Maybe as long as friends believed in him, he was right where he belonged.
But all was not well on this day. The crowd's joyful noises soon quieted as another sound began to drown them out: laughter. Specifically, the malicious kind. Everyone, especially Adrien, knew the sound all too well. "Hawkmoth!" he declared.
The source of the laughter revealed himself, walking up to the stage as the crowd parted. "I told you I would be crashing the ceremony, didn't I?" he said with a smirk. "And I've come with a plan that will surely deliver me your Miraculous!"
"That's what you say every time!" said Marinette. "Well then, what Akumatized villain have you cooked up this time? Let's put on a show for the audience!" There were a few scattered 'yeah's and 'whoo!'s from the crowd.
A knowing smile spread across Gabriel's face. "Oh, I think you'll find that my supervillain this time will be so much more than anything you have ever faced!" He began to pace back and forth. "You see, Ladybug, I have found a source of discontent so potent, so powerful, that when Akumatized, it will result in the greatest enemy you will ever face! And its source is right here with us today! None other than…" He pointed towards his son. "...you!"
Cat Noir was shocked. "M-me?" he asked. Suddenly, it all made sense. That was why nobody came to see him today. Hawkmoth told Nathalie and the Gorilla to stay away, so he'd feel alone. "But you can't Akumatize me! That's…cheating!"
"Is it?" he asked. "The power of the butterfly allows me to Akumatize anyone else feeling powerful emotions. It was never limited to just civilians! Now, Ladybug and Cat Noir, say goodbye to your partnership–and your Miraculous!" He thrust out his arm, and one of his dark butterflies darted forth towards Adrien, while a nearby figure watched from the shadows with bated breath.
"No!" shouted Marinette, trying to leap in front of her friend. But whether the Akuma would have gone to him or her was a question that would remain unanswered. As at that very moment, a bright blue light appeared between them and it. A portal manifested, sharp and unstable. The Akuma was prevented from going any further as several figures emerged. First was another Gabriel and another Alix, followed by another Adrien, Marinette, and yet more copies of their friends–there were even two Kagamis.
The new arrivals were clearly ready for a fight, as they had their weapons drawn when they landed. They looked around, clearly expecting to be attacked, surprised to find they were in the middle of a public gathering. Everyone was surprised to see them as well, seeing how they had emerged from a portal that appeared out of nowhere. The local Hawkmoth, Ladybug, and Cat Noir just stared, their prior conflict momentarily forgotten.
"Um…" Bunnyx awkwardly looked around at everybody. "Hi there! So sorry to interrupt, but, uh…" She pointed at Gabriel–the one who came through the portal with her. "Has anybody seen a guy who looks like him? Except kinda rotted, and with a big hat? Creepy smile?"
Nobody had seen Death's Head, but they were about to. A dark presence soon became known, sending a chill down everyone's spines. Even though they couldn't see him, they could sense his presence, as though instinctually aware of the danger he posed. "Impeccable timing as always, heroes," a hoarse voice croaked out.
Death's Head made his appearance. Like his local counterpart, he appeared among the crowd, with the throng unaware of him until he suddenly spoke. Unlike Hawkmoth, this mutilated figure was cause for panic, with the people nearly trampling each other to get away from his scarred visage.
"Here I was, ready to snatch up the last drops of power I needed, only for you to waltz in and make things difficult. Oh, well…I suppose that's in your nature, isn't it? I'll have to do something about the meddlesomeness of your ilk once I rewrite the laws of reality. Perhaps I'll start by sealing off all of the different universes from each other! But that's for later…let us focus on the now!"
A swirling horde of Akumas burst out from Death's Head's coat, darting for everyone in the crowd. "Shell-ter!" Carapace's barrier protected the heroes, but only the heroes–the rest began to fall to the butterflies, being mutated into Ripplers one by one.
"We've gotta do something!" said Scarabella. She took a moment to think. "Pegasus, Bunnyx, get as many of these people to safety as you can! Blackbug, Kagami, Kagami, you focus on taking out those Akumas. Huli Jing, you're on distraction duty. Viperion, do your thing. Marinette, Hawkmoth, Kitty, you're with me. Everybody got it? Good. Break!"
Despite having mere seconds to receive their roles, the team knew exactly what they needed to do. The moment the shield came down, they sprang into action. Portals opened one by one, whisking the survivors out of harm's way. A pair of localized storms popped up, their strong winds keeping the remaining Akumas from creating any more Ripplers. As for the ones that had been created, Huli Jing made sure they had too many targets to choose from, while Blackbug took them out.
Carapace made sure Miss Hound was safe as well. "What can I do?" she asked, looking at the fight. "You all saved me from Hawkmoth. I want to return the favor!"
"Right now, staying alive is the best thing you can do," Carapace told her. "Baby steps, right? Wait here." He returned to the fray, fighting alongside the rest of the Resistance. And he wasn't alone.
Just as a horde of Ripplers was surrounding a group of civilians, a shadow fell on them from above. An enormous moth crushed the Ripplers beneath its weight, dispatching those that remained with its sharp limbs. "Go! Eradicate them!" shouted Mayura, riding on the beast's back. "Eradicate them all!"
Four of the heroes were engaged in combat with Death's Head. Even without his army of Ripplers, he was a formidable foe, a pair of blades jutting out of his wrists clashing with Gabriel's sword and Kitty Noir's staff. "You all should be helping me!" he said, remaining nonchalant even as he darted all around, his body moving in inhuman ways. "After I obtain Gimmi's power for myself, everyone lost in this foolish war will be brought back, good as new! And all of you will be able to live the lives you deserve! Is this truly worth fighting over?"
"Not if the price is being your slave!" said Scarabella. She darted in, struck him with her yo-yo, and got out of range, repeating as he battled the others. "And who's to say your other selves even want that?"
"Me! I say that!" Growing frustrated at the heroes' insistence on remaining alive, several sharp limbs sprouted from Death's Head's body. These forced Gabriel and Kitty Noir to retreat, piercing into the ground in an attempt to skewer them.
Marinette ran up to swing her bat into one of these legs, though the force wasn't enough to do much damage. "And what about the universes where you never married Emilie? Or where you never had Adrien? They're just supposed to give up their happiness for your sake?"
He scoffed as he swatted her away. "'Happiness?' How can any variant of mine know happiness if it is not with my true family!? Anything other than the real Agrestes is simply a farce!" He drove two of his insectoid legs down towards her, though she was able to hold them back with her bat.
"Fly, my Akuma!" declared Gabriel, sending the butterfly towards Marinette, where it landed on her bat. "Miraculator, you are needed once more!"
"About time!" she said with a grin. Upon transforming into her Akumatized form, Marinette was able to push Death's Head back. She got back to her feet, pointing her club at him. "You aren't ready for this!"
Death's Head snarled, lunging for her. "I am ready for everything!" He repeatedly struck with his pointed limbs, though her weapon, and she herself, was much sturdier now. With every blow, her power charged, until the studs on her club rotated to each show the symbol of the monkey.
"Including this? Uproar!" Death's Head was too close to dodge her next strike. It barely caused any damage, but its real purpose was to disrupt his powers. "Not feeling so good, now, huh?"
He placed his hand on the ground, but the concrete refused to crumble. "A temporary delay of the inevitable, nothing more," he said. "Let us see if your friends are faring any better than you!" He darted away, leaving his Ripplers to handle them.
This world's heroes–and villain–were fighting back against the invaders as well. "What are these things!?" asked Cat Noir, nearly overwhelmed by the mass of Ripplers. He had fought enemies with terrifying powers before, but one touch of these things could cause anything to dissolve. Just as a few of them were about to catch him unawares, with him noticing their presence just as they were about to envelop him, the Ripplers fell to Hawkmoth's blade.
"Whatever they are, they will not harm my son," he said. "That is an honor I reserve!" He and Cat Noir went back-to-back, facing off against the army surrounding them.
"We should do this more often!" Cat Noir said.
"Agreed," said Hawkmoth, as the Ripplers charged.
Desperate to get the civilians to safety, Ladybug had created a one-woman defensive line, holding them back while Carapace, Pegasus, and Bunnyx did their things. "Not how I wanted today to go!" she said, her yo-yo thinning out their numbers. But as she swung it at a figure approaching from behind her, she found it caught. And then dissolved.
Death's Head grinned, the yo-yo crumbling to dust in his grasp. "Ladybug, Ladybug, fly away home," he said, slowly walking closer. With no weapon, she was forced to retreat. "Your house is on fire, your children will burn. I had hoped to have taken your power the painless way, but since those meddlers so rudely interrupted, I'm afraid this will have to do." He reached out, attempting to grab her earrings.
But before he could, Ladybug felt something small bump against her back. "Fetch!" In a sudden flash, she found herself standing on the roof of a building, next to Miss Hound. "It…it worked! I saved you!"
"You did!" said Ladybug. "But who's going to save us?"
Since Miss Hound had to be close enough to throw her ball in order to use Fetch, they were still within Death's Head's sights. He leapt towards them, only to be intercepted by an unexpected source. One wouldn't expect a harp to make for the best weapon, but neither Viperion nor Death's Head would agree, seeing as how the former was using his to repeatedly pound the latter's face.
The pair rolled to a stop in a field, with Viperion swiftly getting to a safe distance. "Wretched serpent," said his foe. "I am surprised–surely you, with your ability to roll back time, should see how pointless this all is. Has it not become obvious that you cannot beat me?"
"You're right–we can't," he admitted. "I've rewound this battle almost thirty times now, and we haven't come any closer to winning." He gazed up at Death's Head, a defiant smile forming. "But I have a feeling that's about to change. See, we can't beat you…but they might be able to."
"What are you prattling on about?" he asked, almost amused. "Who?"
Nearby to the battle, there was a flicker of light. A portal appeared. Through it came another Bunnyx. Behind her, another Hawkmoth, and behind him, another Mayura. "Somebody call?" said the Bunnyx.
They were not alone. One by one, more portals began to appear, each one bringing in other variants of the heroes. Steampunk ones. Futuristic ones. Dinosaur ones. Through one, a powerless Gabriel alongside a Queen Bee. Through another, Ladybug and Cat Noir, literally their respective species. And through another still, Jalil, flanked by Ryujin and Nathalie. "Hey, sis! Check it out! They got our message!"
"They sure did!" said Alix, looking around at all the portals. "This is…incredible! You made this happen, Jalil!"
"Ah, I had some help," he said humbly.
Death's Head looked around at all of the arriving heroes as well, aghast. "No. No, NO!" His face (and voice) distorted even further with rage as he turned to Viperion. "What did you do!?"
"Me? I didn't do anything," he said, still grinning. "But your old friend called for some of her new friends. I'd get ready to make their acquaintance if I were you."
When everyone had arrived, a small army had amassed. All of the fighters launched into action, now easily matching the Ripplers in sheer numbers. Heroes both familiar and strange pushed the horde back and got all the remaining civilians to safety. Now, there was no need to hold back.
The air around Death's Head literally simmered with rage. He thrust out a hand to summon more Ripplers, only to find that no reinforcements came to his aid. "What!?"
"Oh, did we forget to mention?" A Bunnyx, accompanied by several other rabbit Miraculous-holders, appeared nearby. "We decided to bring along some warp-blockers, too. Can't have you running away in the middle of the battle!"
Taunted by the visage of his old enemy, Death's Head threw himself at the group, only to once again be tackled. This time, it was by Tomoe, bearing the Miraculous of the dragon. "You took my daughter from me!" she bellowed, hacking away at him with her sword. "Now you will know the fury of Ryujin!"
And know it he did, with her blade severing many of his insectoid limbs before he was able to strike back. He did, however, manage to dart away to avoid one of her strikes, before reaching out a hand to destroy her. This, too, was foiled by a sword, but not hers.
Death's Head screeched as his arm was, once again, severed. He staggered back, glaring at the figure clad in black and red who was responsible. "Your reign of terror is drawing to a close, demon!" said Bisector. "Prepare for the final curtain!"
Incensed, Death's Head concentrated all of his energy to regrow his lost limb. "Throw as many lambs to the slaughter as you wish, but it will change nothing!" On the subject of limbs, more insectoid ones sprouted from him, replacing the ones he had lost. "An entire army of Bunnyxes could not kill me! This will only delay your doom!" He shot one of the pointed ends towards him, only for a yo-yo to wrap around it and stop it in its place.
"Not so fast, Death's Head!" Scarabella retracted her weapon, and Kitty Noir and Miraculator joined her. "You don't have enough power to reach the Genesis Point. And so long as you can't absorb another wish, you won't be getting there!"
More and more of the heroic army appeared to surround Death's Head. Ryujin held her sword at the ready, more than eager to slice him to ribbons. Hawkmoth approached, his sword ready to meet his enemy's blades should he attack. Blackbug's hands crackled with the power of destruction.
Her umbrella slung over her shoulder, Alix broke through the crowd, a smirk on her face. "Face it, Gabe, there's nowhere for you to run. It's time we finished what we started all those years ago." As her expression turned to one of determination, she pointed her weapon at him. "And don't think you're getting out of it this time!"
It seemed like Death's Head was truly trapped. His army had been destroyed, he was cut off from other dimensions, and he was faceted with far too many opponents to defeat them all. He grit his teeth, his insect limbs twitching in anger…until he started to laugh. "Yes, it would indeed appear that way, wouldn't it, Miss Kubdel?"
Alix's weapon lowered. "Uh, yeah, it would. So what's so funny?"
"Did you notice anything strange when you broke open the barrier between dimensions?" he asked. "A doorway that would not close, perhaps? Why, by forcing several realities to collide, you must have destabilized them quite a bit. Opening a Burrow to a fourth would only have worsened the problem, to say nothing of adding countless portals to that number!"
Her eyes widened as she realized what he was saying. "No…"
"Yes, I'm afraid you've caused the barrier between realities to thin to a most dangerous degree. All it would take is the slightest bit of force, and not even warp-blockers would be able to hold it together. But where could that sort of force come from, I wonder?"
"Enough of this!" No longer wanting to listen to his rambling, Ryujin dashed towards Death's Head. But before her blade could sever anything important, he drove his limbs into the ground, where they pierced through reality itself. A shockwave spread out from the point of impact, throwing the gathered heroes back.
The sky darkened and energy swirled as Death's Head tore open a hole in the universe. A nebulous void opened up beneath him, from out of which poured an army of Ripplers. Quickly getting their bearings, the heroes fought against them as best as they could, but many were overwhelmed. And in the chaos, there was nobody to stop Death's Head from disappearing through the opening. "Farewell, Alix. I will be sure to remember your contributions to paradise!" With that, he vanished.
Gabriel quickly got to his feet. There were hundreds of Ripplers, far too many to handle normally. "Everyone, get behind me!" shouted Blackbug, creating a wall to hold back the oncoming horde. The beings' touch threatened to burn through the barrier, to say nothing of the ones simply bypassing it. Knowing he had no other options, Gabriel summoned all the willpower he had, and sent out another Akuma.
The white butterfly was absorbed into Blackbug's weapon. "Puritas, heed my call!" said Gabriel. Adrien was then enveloped in a blinding light, transforming into his Akumatized form. He immediately knew what to do: he flicked his bell, the ringing sound purifying the Ripplers of their corruption. Now on their side, the white Ripplers stood down, giving the heroes time to rest.
Alix and Marinette came over to them. "Wow, two Akumas at once," said the former. "That's not easy to pull off. You sure you can handle it?"
Thankfully, two Akumas did not carry as much strain when those Akumatixed retained their free will, but Gabriel still had to concentrate to maintain the connection. "It is nothing," he said. "Now, we must follow Death's Head before he reaches the Genesis Point."
Looking at where he had just stood a moment ago, Alix didn't like what she saw. "Oh no…the portal's closing!" The portal, more of a haphazard rip than a true gateway, was indeed beginning to reseal itself. "If it closes, we'll have no way of reaching him!"
"Say no more." It was risky, but Gabriel knew what he had to do. Reaching down deep, as deep as he could go, he brought forth yet another Akuma. This one landed on Bunnyx's umbrella/flail. "Timekeeper, it is all up to you now."
Despite Alix's concern for Gabriel's wellbeing, she knew this was no time to hesitate. She too transformed, once more becoming Timekeeper. She opened her umbrella, pointing it at the closing portal, and the hands it displayed began to turn backwards.
The opening's closing slowed, more and more, until it finally ceased. Then, with a great amount of effort on Timekeeper's part, it began to reverse its course, opening just wide enough for a person to fit through. "Go, quick!" she said, straining heavily. "It feels like I'm holding up a bus without my Miraculous! I can't keep this open for much longer!"
With no time to waste, Hawkmoth and Miraculator dove into the opening. Puritas took hold of Timekeeper's umbrella, helping her over to it. "Just a little bit longer; come on, you can do it!" he encouraged.
Finally, they reached it. Timekeeper released her hold, and it began to shrink again. "Now, go, go!" She and Puritas leapt through, moments before it was gone for good. The city was quiet once again, the rest of the heroes having cleaned up the remaining Ripplers.
The Cat Noir who was an actual cat walked up to where the portal had been, poking the ground with his staff. "They're gone," he reported. "What are we supposed to do now?"
"I don't think we're opening that thing back up anytime soon," said his Ladybug. "All we can do now is hope they make it."
Surrounded by her army of Sentimonsters, Nathalie disembarked from her giant moth. "We have all seen what they are capable of firsthand. I think I speak for everyone here when I say there is no reason to doubt them. They will defeat Death's Head. I am sure of it."
"Most certainly," said Mayura. "This is your chance, Gabriel–avenge our boy. Destroy that monster for what he did to Adrien!"
"And for my daughter," said Ryujin.
"And my mother," said one of the Ryukos, inching closer to the double of Tomoe.
Viperion looked down at his bracelet. "It's out of my hands now. Whatever happens next is all up to them."
"Hey, if they're anything like our Ladybug and Cat Noir, I'm sure they'll make short work of him!" said Scarabella.
"Yeah, he doesn't stand a chance!" Kitty Noir agreed.
"Totally!" said Carapace.
"He doesn't stand a chance!" said Pegasus.
"We believe in you all!" said Huli Jing.
"If it weren't for them, I'd still be under Hawkmoth's control," said Miss Hound. "I wish there was more I could do to help…"
"We have all helped as much as we can," said Ryuko. "Now, all we can do now is support them from here."
"Well, that shouldn't be too hard," said Queen Bee. "I'm great at supporting people!"
"I can attest to that," said Bisector. "Good luck, Hawkmoth. I'm proud that I was able to bring you to this point with my Miraculous."
Jalil smiled. "Come on, sis. Show 'im what you're made of!"
The other Hawkmoth–the first Gabriel had encountered–stepped closer to the empty field. "You've come too far to fail now," he said. "I know you won't give in. All of you…the multiverse is in your hands." He clenched his fist. "Fight."