Chapter 21: One by One

Located on the border between Montmartre and Saint-Ouen-sur-Seine, Les Puces de Saint-Ouen flea market, or simply known as Les Puces, is not only the best flea market in Paris, but also one of the best in the world, specializing in antiques and second-hand goods. Books, jewelry, antique furniture, vintage clothing, among other things had a place in it. Its roots traced back to 1870, although its official founding occurred in 1885. Those who loved antiques, would find themselves in paradise, when visiting it. The place was so exclusive, that only the best of the best were allowed to have a store, a stand or a boutique in that place. People would visit it, in search of something special, either for themselves, or for a loved one.

But on that day, the only thing they would find was chaos and pandemonium. The petrified victims of the Jackal-like creatures blended with the stone statues and other objects that were for sale in that flea market as the awful creatures searched for more victims. Many tried to escape, only to end up with their hearts stolen by those beasts, before becoming statues, while the ones who initially managed to escape them, ran into the energy barrier, maddening them with fear, before suffering the same fate as all others.

Antelope, Arachnid and Flamingo were in the vicinity, looking for any signs of the Akuma, when they decided to give a hand to some police officers that were doing their best to keep the Jackal-like creatures from hurting some civilians. It was amazing to them, how without no kind of powers, these men and women continued to risk their lives to protect the innocent. Signalling Antelope to follow him, Arachnid jumped in, just in the nick of time, kicking the Jackal-like creature and saved one of the officers, who was about to have his heart robbed.

"Mind if we step in?" -Arachnid asked, as he lassoed the creature he had just kicked, along with two more, and then hurled them in the air,

"Strike one!" -Antelope shouted, as he hit one of the Jackal-like creatures on the face, knocking it down. –"Strike two!" -he yelled, as he did the same thing with one more. –"Strike three! You're out, dog breath!"

"You better take these people from here, and find a place to hide, officers." -Arachnid told them. –"You've done enough. Now, it's our turn."

Hearing the arachnid hero say that, the officers nodded and escorted the civilians, leaving Arachnid and Antelope to fight the Jackal-like creatures, who had got back on their feet, and were joined by a few more, who had heard the commotion and decided to check.

"What are the odds of us getting a word out of these things, about where the Akuma is, man?" -Antelope asked Arachnid.

"About as good as you coming up with a plan before jumping into the fray. Unlikely." -Arachnid shot at him, with a smirk on his face.

"Hey!"

"Don't blame me for pointing this out. You're the one who asked." -Arachnid told him.

"Should've known Max wouldn't lose an opportunity like this." -Antelope thought to himself. –"Yeah, well, let's get to work, Spider-Man." -he teased Arachnid.

"You do realize it, that I hate it when you call me that, right?"

"Of course, I do. Why do you think I take pleasure in doing it?" -Antelope laughed, as he dashed out of there.

Up in the sky, Flamingo wasted no time in using her powers to create several duplicates of herself, to aid her in helping the people who were running form the Jackal-like creatures.

"Split up and help everyone you see, and get them to somewhere they might be able to hide." -Flamingo ordered her copies.

Complying with Flamingo's orders, her copies quickly did as they were told, saving everyone they saw was in danger. To say the people were happy to see them, would be an understatement. Terrified as they were of the Jackal-like creatures, when seeing Flamingo's copies coming their way to help them, some people could not help but to compare them to angels.

As for the original Flamingo, she too went to help. But this did not last long. She had just helped a mother and her little daughter to safety, and was about to find someone else who needed help, when she was nearly hit by a sharp object, that grazed her right leg. When the object hit the ground, she immediately recognized it. It was one of Rapier's

"Don't think that just because I'm wearing pink, that that makes me a defenseless princess!" -Flamingo exclaimed, as she tried to hit him with a roundhouse kick.

"Miss me, princess!" -Rapier taunted her.

"There's only one person who gets to call me that, and it ain't you, you rabid pigeon!" -Flamingo shouted, as she created two more copies of herself to help her fight, Rapier.

They continued to fight, with Rapier having the upper hand. Even with two additional copies of herself, Flamingo had weakened herself. She hoped that the strength in numbers would give her the upper hand. And usually this would be the case, but not when she had already wasted a lot of her energy creating dozens of other copies, which continued to do as they had been told.

"Missed me again!"

"I'm too slow. I shouldn't have multiplied so much." -Flamingo thought to herself. –"But maybe I can use that to my advantage."

A plan quickly formulated inside Flamingo's mind, and she wasted no time in putting it to action. Signalling her two copies to attack Rapier, she sacrificed them to put some distance between herself and him. She wanted him to follow her, and so he did. She wanted him to think that she was fleeing, but that was not the case. She wanted him to get close to her, so she could fight him with her bare hands.

"If I can get my hands on him, I might be able to strike him down." -Flamingo thought, as she slowed down, allowing the villain to close in on him.

With a twisted smile, Rapier quickly caught up with her. And just as she wanted to, Flamingo allowed him to close in on her for the killing, only for her to trick him and land a serious punch to the stomach. Not giving him time to react, Flamingo proceeded to punch him again, and again.

"Got to keep punching! That way, he'll eventually lose consciousness." -Flaming thought to herself.

And she continued to punch Rapier, without allowing him to even have the time to fight back. Each punch was stronger than the previous one, with Flamingo placing all of her strength into them. After numerous punches, she finished him with a well-placed uppercut. As Rapier spun downwards, Flamingo thought she had put him out of commission, and could not help but to smile. Unfortunately, things are not always what they seem, and this was one of those times. Rapier endured Flamingo's punishment, but he always had an eye on the prize. Falling down, he waited for the right moment to make one of Hawk Moth's golden Akuma Butterflies appear, and then, he threw it at the pink-feathered heroine.

"W-What…"

Flamingo did not have the time to finish that thought, when she was engulfed by a bright light, disappearing into thin air. And when that happened, her copies began to disappear as well. Without her around, they could not exist. Rejoicing with his victory, Hawk Moth's flying lieutenant, let out a victory cry.

"Enjoy the little time you still have, birdy princess! You'll be a corpse, soon enough!" -Rapier laughed, as he saw all of Flamingo's copies on the ground disappear, one by one.

When the three copies of Flamingo that were fighting alongside them disappeared, both Antelope and Arachnid knew there was something wrong. Fearing for Flamingo's well-being, the two of them quickly made their way out of the flea market's main building, to see what happened to their teammate. The first one to arrive outside was Antelope, but he did not see anything or anyone suspicious.

"What happened to Rose?" -Antelope thought to himself, as he looked around. –"Her copies only disappear when she either tells them, or when she's injured." -he mused, as Arachnid stopped by his side. –"And I don't think she would order them all to disappear, at the same time. So, something must've happened."

Looking up, Arachnid also tried to look for any sign of the flamingo heroine, their friend, in the sky. But what he found was no friend. Instead, it was a foe. Rapier was coming down to greet them.

"Rapier!" -Arachnid shouted, when seeing him approaching the ground.

"Where's Flamingo?! What did you do to her, bird brain?!" -Antelope asked, demanding an answer.

"Wouldn't you kids like to know?!" -Rapier taunted them. –"Don't worry, you'll be with her soon enough!" -he laughed.

"Oh, this guy is about to see what happens when he messes with one of us. I'm going to bash his head with my bat!" -Antelope stated, as he got ready to jump into the sky, when Arachnid stopped him.

"You keep him entertained, and make sure that he goes toward the direction of that building over there. I got a plan." -Arachnid whispered to Antelope, while pointing at the tall building that was about two blocks away.

"Consider it done." -Antelope said, before jumping as high as his legs allowed him.

Arachnid's plan was simple. He was going to climb all the way to the top of the building, and then use his lasso to grab Rapier and then, force him to answer a couple of questions. Doing what his partner told him to do, Antelope kept bouncing into the air, trying his best to hit Rapier with his bat, while also driving him towards the building Arachnid would be waiting for.

"Well, well, did you come to play with me?" -Rapier mocked Antelope, who was then a couple of meters above his head.

"Yes, I did!" -Antelope said, as he began to descend. –"Bet you can't catch me, even if you can fly, and I can't!" -he dared him.

Knowing Rapier was a fan of playing games, Antelope knew he could not resist a race, especially when he himself, was at a disadvantage. And so, it began a fight between the two of them, where Antelope kept bouncing around, as Rapier tried to hit him with his razor blades. At the same time, crawling up the wall of the tallest building in that neighbourhood, Arachnid was determined to get to the rooftop, in a record time, to catch Rapier off guard. He did not know if his plan was going to work, but he had faith that it would. In his mind, he had faith it would.

"It has to work. It's risky, but if Kim can bring him close enough for me to catch him, we can extract some information from him." -Arachnid said, as he continued to climb up the wall. –"Because from the way things are looking, we can't risk losing more time looking for the Akuma. We'll just have to beat its location out of Rapier." -he thought.

It took him a couple of more seconds to get to the building's rooftop. But once he got there, he knew just what to do. And that was to wait for the right moment. Observing Antelope and Rapier, he needed for his partner to bring their opponent as close as possible to the building, while also making sure he was not spotted. The surprise element was critical for his plan, and he did not intend to blow it.

"Alright, Kim… whenever you're ready, bring him towards me." –Arachnid said, as he continued to watch the two.

A few more minutes went by, with Antelope and Rapier exchanging blows, when Antelope finally decided he had given Arachnid enough time to position himself. Taunting Rapier, the antelope hero did good on his end, and made Rapier follow him towards the building, where Arachnid was waiting. Not knowing what his partner was going to do, Antelope decided to improvise and force Rapier to try and use him as a pincushion, while using the building's balconies as resting places.

"Whatever you're going to do, you better do it quickly, Max." -Antelope thought to himself, as he jumped to an upper balcony, avoiding another volley of Rapier's razor-sharp feathers.

Looking down, Arachnid realized it was time to get busy. Calculating his next move, he jumped out of the building, targeting Rapier, hoping to land on top of him, without him realizing he was coming. When he nearly on top of villain, he opened his arms and grabbed him, causing him to start falling, due to the weight. Holding on to Rapier, placing his arms around the villain's arms, Arachnid believed he had caught him. Rapier tried to free himself, from Arachnid's embrace, but the spider hero was determined not to leg of him. Not seeing another option, Rapier swirled in the air at an incredible speed, forcing the holder of the spider miraculous to let go of him. As he fell, still a little dizzy from all the spinning, Arachnid had to quickly regain his equilibrium, to shoot his rope at Rapier, hoping to lasso him.

"I've got you now, you overgrown pigeon!" -Arachnid exclaimed, as he hung to the lasso. –"Now, I've got to get him down, without falling like a rock." -he thought to himself.

With Arachnid's rope around his legs, Rapier saw his movements restrained. But the spider hero had made a mistake. He did not aim for Rapier's arms, where most of his strength was. And that gave Rapier the upper hand in that situation.

"You're going to be sorry you had that poor excuse for an idea, kid!" -Rapier shouted at Arachnid.

Taking him for a spin, Rapier started doing all kinds of aerial stunts, while also throwing his razor-sharp fathers at Arachnid, trying to shake him loose. As hard as it was to hold on, Arachnid tried his best to climb the rope. In more than one occasion, he almost fell, but he was determined to not fall, not only because he wanted to question Rapier, but also because from that height, it would be a nasty fall.

"You're not getting rid of me that easily, creep!" -Arachnid shouted, as he continued to climb the rope, while Rapier performed another loop in the air.

Seeing his partner in trouble, Antelope decided he needed to do something. Jumping from balcony to balcony, he went up to the top of the building, where he then jumped over the ledge and tried to grab Rapier. Unfortunately, due to Rapier's speed, he failed to get him, only for Arachnid to catch him.

"I've got you!" -Arachnid said, as Antelope held on. –"Hang on!" -he told him.

Tired of playing games, Rapier decided it was time to give Antelope and Arachnid the same treatment he had given Flamingo. Thrusting up, he flew into the air at top speed. Both Arachnid and Antelope were forced to use all of their strength just to not let go.

"Don't let go of me, man!" -Antelope yelled at Arachnid, as this one was using all of his strength not to let go. –"What I wouldn't give to have the ability to fly, right about now!" -he thought to himself, as he looked down.

Climbing higher and higher, it did not take him long to get up above the clouds, where the air was thinner, and where both miraculous heroes began to feel uncomfortable by the lack of oxygen. It did not take long either for them to start feeling like dizzy, complicating things for them. Arachnid began to see all blurry, and knew it was a matter of seconds before he lost consciousness. Still, he tried his best to remain conscious.

"I-I… I-I can't… pass out. If… I-I do, Kim and I…. we'll be goners." -Arachnid thought to himself; while doing his best both remain conscience, while holding on to both his rope and Antelope's hand.

But as much as he wanted to keep good on that word, the levels of oxygen to his brain dropped to the point he passed out, without realizing it. And as this happened, Arachnid's grip on both his rope and on Antelope's hand loosened, and he let go of both. When this happened, Antelope should have shouted for help, but he did not, for he too had lost consciousness. Without the heroes weighing him down, Rapier viewed himself with one less problem, and a chore he had to finish.

"Time's up for you two turkeys!" -Rapier exclaimed, as saw both Antelope and Arachnid falling down. –"Give my regards to Hawk Moth, when you wake up!" -he laughed maniacally, as he threw the two golden Akuma Butterflies at them.

As minutes went by, Louve Grise was feeling weaker and weaker. She could feel her strength being drained, with her outfit slowly regressing. It only would be a matter of time before her whole face was visible. But it was hard for her to even think about it, as it was getting harder for her to keep her thoughts together. The pain she was feeling all over her body, combined with a nauseating headache, were beginning to take its toll on her. And to top it all, she had begun to see and hear things that were not there. Just like Hawk Moth had told her and Queen Bee, their worst fears were haunting their minds, speeding up the weakening process.

"Don't…. Don't let that… get to you, Sabrina." -Louve Grise thought. –"T-Those fears are all… are all lies! They're… not real! None of it is!" -she kept telling herself, while looking down at her feet, realizing that the tips of her boots were beginning to regress, revealing the sneakers she was wearing.

She could hear her own voice whispering to her some of her fears, which she knew were lies. She could her it saying that her parents were ashamed of her; that Chloe did not love her and was just using her. Horrible, terrible things. And it was taking most of her mental strength just to tell herself that none of those things she was hearing were real.

"No! That's a lie!" -Queen Bee thought, as a tear ran down her face. –"That's not true!... Not anymore!" -she thought.

Queen Bee was also being affected by the same kind of thoughts as her partner. But unlike Louve, she was having a harder time to ignore the lies and fears in her mind. It was telling her that she was a horrible person, as well as telling her that no matter what she did, her mother would never care about her, and that one day, even her father would forsake her. But the worst, was hearing that voice inside her mind telling her that she would end up alone. She would never admit it; at least not out loud, but that was her biggest fear. To end up alone, without friends or family, or anyone who cared for her.

Corbeau Noire, Flamingo, Antelope and Arachnid, who had just been teleported and placed inside energy spheres had yet to go through what the bee and the wolf heroine were, but it would only be a matter of time. The longer they remained inside those energy spheres, the more they would feel its effects. Right then, the only thing they were feeling was their bodies aching like they had been hit by several trucks, as well as a massive headache.

As for Hawk Moth, he was feeling on top of the world, right then. Though his initial plan to capture the Miraculous heroes in the Hotel de Ville had failed, his lieutenants were doing a good job capturing them, one by one. As Julius Caesar once said, "Divide et impera", or "Divide and conquer", and without wanting to, Hawk Moth had forced the Miraculous Team to divide itself, making it easier to confront and catch them. And seeing them struggle to keep him from finding who they were behind their masks, the villain could not help but to taunt them.

"Why do you keep fighting? I've told you already, there's nothing you can do, but to accept defeat." -Hawk Moth asked, taunting Louve and Bee. –"Your friends too will find out soon that is foolish to fight." -he said, as he looked at the four remaining heroes.

"G-Go… suck on a lemon, you psycho!" -Louve Grise shot at him, enraged. Even with all those nasty thoughts inside her head, she still had the energy to muster up an insult.

"You'll… be eating those words, s-soon enough… y-you d-disgusting creep…" -Queen Bee said.

"There are only eight of you left. Do you really believe that you still stand a chance of defeating me?" -Hawk Moth asked her, before letting out a laugh.

The answer to that question was not long in coming, and it was Arachnid who threw it at the villain. He was still a bit confused by what had happened to him, when Rapier hit him with one of Hawk Moth's special golden Akuma Butterflies one moment, and reappearing there the following one. But his mind was still clear enough to give back their enemy a proper response.

"Y-You better wish… we d-don't stand one." -Arachnid told him. –"O-Or otherwise… y-you'll b-be sorry." -he added.

"When I g-get out of here… I-I… I'm g-going to break your teeth, you b-bastard." -Antelope threatened Hawk Moth. –"A-And then…. I'm going to use the r-rest of y-your… y-your head for… t-target practice!"

Each threat that came out of the heroes' mouths was music to Hawk Moth's ears and to his ego. It amused him to listen to them, saying what they were going to do to him. Childish desires, which would never come to fruition. And being who he was, he had no problem in rubbing it in their faces.

"You will never get out of those energy spheres. They will be your tomb, my boy. Yours and your friends." -Hawk Moth told Antelope, before letting out an evil laugh. –"And if just like your friends over there, you're still hoping for a miracle, you can forget about it." -he said, as he pointed to Louve Grise and Queen Bee. –"God himself could not help you… or any god for that matter."

Tired of listening to Hawk Moth's pompous speeches, but mostly pissed at his current situation, Antelope let out an angry yell, while trying to free himself. He glared at Hawk Moth, and if looks could kill, he would have made the creep's shiny masked head explode into tiny bits, or stopped his beating heart. Unfortunately, he had to settle for the wishful thinking. Seeing him like that, Hawk Moth wasted no time in taunting him once more.

"Go ahead! Scream! Yell all you want! It won't make a difference to me." -Hawk Moth laughed. –"It'll only exhaust you further, and leave you closer to your death." -he smirked. –"Like I said before, your lives and your miraculouses belong to me, now."

He was about to continue taunting the Miraculous heroes, when he was interrupted by the appearance of two more energy spheres. Inside them were Carapace and Rena Rouge, and they both looked like they had been through a rough patch. Unknown to the remaining heroes, but Madame Romani had ambushed them and gave them a run for their money, before sending back to Hawk Moth.

"Ah, two more." -Hawk Moth commented, as he looked at the two new energy spheres, where the two heroes were now trapped. –"And then, there were six." -he said, smirking, and feeling confident about his victory, more than ever. –"One by one, you will all end up here, fit for the taking."

The battle between Grizzly Bear and Brutus raged on, as the bear hero tried his best to get Brutus away from Saint-Pierre de Montrouge's church, where he had left Dragonfly unconscious, to recover from her apparent nervous breakdown. He did not know if he knew about Dragonfly's position, but he was not risking it. And so, he forced him to follow him through the jam-packed streets, while also avoiding the Jackal-like creatures, who continued to search for new victims. They were already two blocks away, when Grizzly threw Brutus inside a shop, breaking the window in the process. Entering it, he saw it was a second-hand shop, with all kinds of objects inside. Clothes, furniture, knick-knacks; the whole place looked like a hoarder's version of Ali Baba's cave. And because of how Brutus was thrown inside, things were all upside down and scattered through the floor, creating the perfect place for one to disappear.

"Where are you?" -Grizzly Bear asked himself, as his eyes looked for a place, where Brutus could be hiding.

Suddenly, from behind him, a Jackal-like creature materialized and attacked him. Grizzly, who was caught by surprise, did his best to attack it, with a powerful punch. But because this creature could turn itself into sand, it tricked Grizzly, and then placed itself behind it. If not for his quick reflexes, the bear hero would have had his head bitten off.

"Get off me, dog-breath!" -Grizzly Bear shouted, as he punched its chest.

Growling, the Jackal-like creature threw him to the ground, with Grizzly falling on his back. Pinning him down, it opened its mouth and was about to bit Grizzly's head, when who should come to his rescue, but Brutus himself.

"Keep away from him, you mindless beast!" -Brutus yelled at the Jackal-like creature, as he grabbed it threw it on top of a cabinet, shattering it. –"He is my opponent, not yours! Go find someone else!" -he shouted, before hitting it in the head, and scaring it. This gave Grizzly the time to get back up.

"W-Why did you save me?" -Grizzly asked him.

"I did not save you. I merely want to beat you myself That creature had no right to interfere in our duel!" -Brutus answered him.

"You know, I don't understand you." -Grizzly Bear said, as he dodged one of Brutus' attacks. –"You could've just watched that thing kill me, but you decided to help me out. On top of it, you're always talking about honour and respect when in battle, and yet, you work for a psychopath, who's too afraid to get his hands dirty in a fight!" -he shouted.

"Do not talk about my master that way!" -Brutus shouted back, before landing a punch on Grizzly's face. –"A great leader doesn't have to get his hands dirty, when he has soldiers willing to obey his commands, while leading them to victory!" -he stated, as he continued to charge against Grizzly.

"Sounds like I struck a nerve" -Grizzly smirked at him, dodging one more attack. –"Now, if you don't mind, I'd like to know where you sent Corbeau Noire." -he said, before attacking Brutus, yet again.

It looked like Grizzly had decided to taunt Brutus, just for the sake of things. But there was a reason for him to be doing that. He wanted to make sure Brutus kept his eyes on him, as he led him away from where Dragonfly was. Another minute went by, before they exited the shop, with Brutus kicking the bear hero so hard, that he went through the wall, ending up on the street.

"Is that all you got?! Because I can do this all day!" -Grizzly Bear exclaimed, as he got up, while Brutus came out of the hole in the wall.

"You have the spirit and might of a warrior. It is just a pity that you fail to see the ways of my master, and how he will reshape this world, for the better."

"Yeah, well, I don't believe in the whole "the strong will survive, and the weak will perish" motto, that your boss keeps preaching about." –Grizzly Bear stated, as he bumped his fists. –"I'm more of "the strong have a duty to protect the weak"" guy." -he said.

The fight raged on, with the two of them fighting as if they were raging titans. This was not the first time they fought, but it was the first time that a battle between them was taken to the extreme. They both not only used their immense great strength and powers against each other, but they also made use of all sorts of objects in the street to try and injure one another. Cars, lampposts, bicycles; anything they could get their hands on, they would use it.

"O-Okay… I've got to put him out of commission, and fast." -Grizzly Bear thought to himself, as he began to feel the first signs of fatigue. –"But not without finding out where Hawk Moth is hiding." -he told himself, as he dodged what used to be half of a van. –"Come on! My grandmother can throw better than you!"

He continued to taunt Brutus, but Hawk Moth's lieutenant was no longer interested in what he had to say to him. Like everything else, all good things must come to an end, and Brutus had decided that he had had enough fun with Grizzly. It was time for him to send the bear hero to his master.

"It's time we end this." -Brutus thought to himself, as he evaluated his surroundings.

It took him about two seconds to come up with his next move, once he evaluated his surroundings. To his left, stood a van. Quickly grabbing it from behind, he threw it at Grizzly, who caught it, before sending it back at Brutus. What he did not realize, was that was exactly what Brutus wanted him to do. In the mere seconds it took Grizzly to catch the van and throw it back, Brutus placed himself behind him, and made use of another golden Akuma Butterfly, throwing it at Grizzly. The holder of the bear miraculous saw the golden insect, throw the corner of his eye. But when he did, it was already too late. As soon as it landed on him, the same glow that enveloped Corbeau Noire before, enveloped Grizzly and teleported him to Hawk Moth's location.

"You were a formidable opponent. I will miss our encounters." -Brutus thought to himself, "Master, I've managed to capture Grizzly Bear. He should be arriving to your location, just about now." -he warned Hawk Moth telepathically.

At the same time as this happened, Ladybug was closing in on the location Grizzly had told her he and the girls had found refuge. Swinging down the streets, she kept asking herself if she had done the right choice, by leaving Rena Rouge and Carapace, while coming to Grizzly, Corbeau and Dragonfly's aid. And the more she thought about it, the more she had to remind herself that it was the rational thing to do.

"No! Adrien and Mylene were already on a mission of their own. I could've asked if the master could come to their aid, but I'm closer." -Ladybug mused to herself. –"Besides, Nino and Alya can take care of themselves. This isn't their first time in a battle." -she thought.

It was true. It was not their first time in battle. But it was not Grizzly, Dragonfly and Corbeau's, and yet, from what the bear hero had told Ladybug, they were in serious trouble. Trying not to assume the worst had happened, she doubled her speed, and hoped that she would be able to get there on time to help. The screams of people begging for help continued, and it was hard for her to ignore them. But she knew that alone, she would not stand a chance against that army of creatures, and so, she pushed on.

"And to think the day started the way it did… I should've known that something bad like this would happen on my birthday. With my luck, it was inevitable." -Ladybug thought to herself, as she jumped from one building to another.

When she sighted the church, there was no sign of Grizzly or Corbeau anywhere, and once more she assumed the worst. Her eyes scoured her surroundings, hoping to see one of the two heroes, or even both. But the only ones there were Ammit's Jackal-like creatures, which continued to roam the streets, looking for new victims, while ignoring those they had already turned to stone.

"Where are you guys?!" -Ladybug asked herself, while also starting to feel a tightness inside her chest. Anxiety was beginning to build up inside her.

Not seeing Grizzly or Corbeau, the scarlet heroine made her way towards Saint-Pierre de Montrouge's church belltower, where she found Dragonfly out cold. Kneeling down beside her, the first thing she did was check if the pink-haired heroine was breathing. Upon feeling her breathing, Ladybug tried to wake her up.

"Alix! Alix! Alix, are you okay?!" -Ladybug asked, as she gently shook her.

The punch Grizzly had hit her with, knocked her out; to the point of Ladybug's voice felt like an insignificant little buzz, as she began to regain consciousness. And when she regained consciousness, she felt like her head about to split into two, such was the immense headache she had, which led her to ask Ladybug to speak silently.

"S-Stop! Don't talk so loudly!" -Dragonfly told her. –"I-I've got a splitting headache!" -she said, as she gritted her teeth.

"S-Sorry… Lie down." -Ladybug told her, preventing her from getting up, when her yo-yo began to buzz. Someone was calling her. –"Who could it be?" -she asked, as she opened it and saw Panda Roux's name. –"Hello?"

"Where did you go?" -Panda Roux asked her.

"I came to help Alix Ivan and Juleka. Didn't Alya or Nino tell you that?"

"They might have, if I had run into them." -Panda Roux said.

"What do you mean?!" -Ladybug asked him.

"I mean, that I haven't run into them." -Panda Roux answered.

When Panda Roux said those words, Ladybug felt a chill down her spine, along with a bad feeling in her stomach. It made her wonder if anything terrible had happened to them, or if they were forced to take the fight somewhere else, and Panda had simply missed them. Part of her wanted to believe they were alright, and Panda had simply nor crossed paths with them; after all, Paris was huge. But the other part was telling her that that kind of thought was just wishful thinking, and that something bad had happened to them.

"What are the odds of something bad happening to them, after I left them to come here?" -Ladybug thought to herself. –"What if coming here was a bad idea, and I should've stayed with them?" -she thought, only to be interrupted by Panda. –"H-Huh, what did you say?"

"I was saying, do you want me to look for them?"

"Yes…. I mean, no… I mean, yes…. I mean, no…. I don't know." -Ladybug sighed, frustrated. –"Look, keep looking for the Akuma, and if you happen to run into them, call me." -she told Panda.

"Okay. I'll do that." -Panda Roux declared. –"What about you?"

"I'm going to make a few calls." -Ladybug told him. –"Stay safe." -she said as she ended the call.

Hearing the whole conversation, Dragonfly gritted her teeth, trying to ignore the headache she had, and got ready to get out of there. She did not know why what happened to her happened, but she knew that she could not let the memory of it, stop her from doing what she did best. And that was to fly faster than the wind, and find where the Akuma they were looking for, was hiding, and force it to come out into the open.

"It's the only way to stop this madness. Otherwise, Jalil will get stuck as a garden gnome, for the rest of his life." -Dragonfly thought to herself, as the remembrance of what happened to her brother came back to her.

"Where are you going?!" -Ladybug asked her, as she saw Dragonfly getting back up.

"G-Going back to action." -Dragonfly said. –"My head's still hurting like Hell, but I got to find that Akuma." -she stated. –"It's the only way we'll put a stop to this."

"Hold on! Ivan told me that you were having a mental breakdown, or something like that. You shouldn't go back into battle, before we can see if you're okay, or not." -Ladybug stated.

"Maybe I did have one of those. But that's in the past, Marinette." -Dragonfly told her, sighing, hoping the headache would eventually disappear. –"I've got an Akuma to find!" -she said, as she dashed out of there, leaving Ladybug behind.

"Damn you, Alix! Why don't you ever listen to what others tell you?!" -Ladybug thought. –"Oh, forget it. If she believes she's A-okay, who am I to tell her otherwise?! Let her try to find the Akuma. Maybe she's luckier than all of us… speaking of which, I better try and contact Alya and Nino, to make sure they're okay, before going to look for Juleka and Ivan." -she mused to herself, as she called her. –"Come on, Alya, pick up."

Up in the air, Dragonfly felt her head killing her. Whatever had happened to her, that made her believe she had broken her legs and that she would never walk again, had been something pretty heavy. Still, she tried her best to put it all behind her, by focusing on the mission she had set for herself; finding the Akuma.

"Come on, where are you?! Where are you hiding?!" -Dragonfly asked, as her eyes searched the sky for any sign of the Akuma.

She was now flying over the Pompidou Centre, looking for any of sign of strange activity that might be linked to the Akuma, when her eyes caught the presence of someone she knew quite well, on the ground. While looking for the remaining heroes, Reptile had taken a little time to enjoy himself. And that meant targeting and threatening a family of six that was trying to get to the nearest Akuma shelter. From the way they were dressed, you could tell that these were people of great wealth; the kind of people that Reptile despised.

"P-Please, just let us go!"

"Not a chance, rich boy! People like you disgust me! Always looking down on us, from your ivory towers!" -Reptile shot at the man, when Dragonfly landed between them, and stared the lizard man in the eyes.

"Go! Get out of here! I'll handle him!" -Dragonfly told the family, who promptly ran, leaving the two of them.

"I'd be lying if I said I'm not angry, for not letting me have fun with those people… but I'd also be lying, if I said I'm not happy to see my favourite victim." -Reptile grinned, pleased to see Dragonfly. –"Today's the day that I end you." -he thought to himself.

"You really are a low-life." -Dragonfly commented- –"Attacking innocents, who have done nothing to you… why don't you pick on someone your own size, like me, snake breath?!" -she shot at Reptile.

"With pleasure!" -Reptile grinned, as he ran towards her.

Using her speed, Dragonfly quickly outsmarted Reptile, hitting him with both her arms, as well as her frisbee, while the lizard man tried his best to fight back. Swinging his switchblade, he did his best to try and hit his opponent, only to fail. Every time he missed, it was like his pride was stabbed, and that was making him madder by the minute. It looked like the victory was in the bag for Dragonfly. But this quickly changed, when a group of Jackal-like creatures showed up, and interrupted their fight. Targeting the heroine, they attacked her without mercy, forcing her to focus on them, instead of Reptile. Using her speed and her frisbee, she quickly dispatched them, by blowing them away, and reducing them to sand. One of them almost bit her right leg off, but fate was on her side, and she came out unscathed.

"Go find someone else to play with, doggies!" -Dragonfly shouted at the creatures.

While Dragonfly fought against the Jackal-like creatures, Reptile decided it was best to make a strategical retreat. Looking around for a place he could disappear into; his eyes saw something that caught his eye; a motorcycle. But this one was just a motorcycle, it was a motorcycle that was still running; no doubt property of an innocent civilian who dropped it, while fleeing for its life. Grabbing it, he decided it was going to be his ticket out of there. And being the devious bastard he was, he could not help himself from taunting Dragonfly, before getting out of there.

"Catch me if you can!" -Reptile said, as he revved up the motorcycle. –"I bet you won't be able to!" -he laughed, while speeding out of there.

"You think you can get away from me?! I'm the fastest being in this city!" -Dragonfly shouted at him, as she began to chase him.

Right then, the motorcycle's engine was the only to be heard, as Reptile speeded down the avenue, while doing his best to avoid all the obstacles in his path. Cars, buses, trucks, people who had been turned to stone, among others. But that was not going to prevent him from getting away. Thanks to his quick reflexes, he was able to dodge everything in his path, the same way a professional racer would. But despite this, Dragonfly was still hot on his tail. Fighting the Jackal-like creatures had consumed a good chunk of her stamina, but her pride was making it up for that small lack of stamina, giving her the edge she needed to continue the pursuit.

"You're not getting away, Reptile!" -Dragonfly shouted, determined to catch him.

Breaking in a crossing, he quickly turned left, going down a street that led to a tunnel. Speeding up, Reptile felt a rush of adrenaline coursing through his veins, as he entered the tunnel, believing he had given Dragonfly the slip. But she was waiting for him, at the end of the tunnel. Seeing her, he did not slow down. Instead, he sped toward her, determined to run her over. As for Dragonfly, she did not move.

"Let's play chicken!" -Dragonfly thought to herself.

As Reptile got nearer, she stood her ground, staring him in the eyes. She was not going to move an inch. Seeing this as a challenge, Reptile revved up the engine, with the intention of running over the pink-haired. Revving it up once more, he pulled a wheelie, intending to crush her with the bike's front wheel. Dragonfly waited until the very last moment, when the wheel was about to hit her, to jump over it, and grab onto the motorcycle.

"I've got you now, lizard breath!" -Dragonfly exclaimed, as she struggled to hold on to the motorcycle.

Reptile tried to get her off of the motorcycle. But in doing so, he lost his balance, causing to lose control. The following second, the motorcycle crashed against a wall, sending both Reptile and Dragonfly flying over. Landing on a nearby bush, Dragonfly considered herself lucky, she did not land on something harder. A loud noise was then heard. It had been the motorcycle that exploded.

"Glad I landed far from that motorcycle." -Dragonfly sighed. -"And where did he go?!" -she thought, as she looked around, only to find him standing in front of an open manhole.

"Follow me, if you dare!" -Reptile laughed, as he went down the manhole.

Huffing in anger, she quickly got up and then jumped inside the manhole. Landing in the middle of the sewer tunnel, her splash echoed all over the place. She could not see a thing, inside that dark tunnel. It was nearly pitch black. But that was not the worst part for her. The worst was the foul stench in the air. It simply reeked. But she did her best to ignore it. With water up to her knees, she needed to find where Reptile was hiding.

"W-Where the heck is he? What I wouldn't give to have Adrien's night vision right about now." -Dragonfly thought to herself, as she tried to listen for any sound made by Reptile, that would give out his location.

Right then, her eyes were pretty much useless. But not Reptile's. The lizard man was able to see in the dark. His night vision was not as powerful as Chat Noir's, but it still allowed him to walk in the dark, without bumping into things. In that sewer tunnel, that was his trump card, against Dragonfly.

"Oh, this is going to be fun." -Reptile told himself, as he grabbed a nearby piece of debris.

Throwing it to where Dragonfly was, this one fell in the water, the splashing noise echoing all over the tunnel, and startling the pink-haired heroine. The anger she was feeling for not having been able to get the lizard man before, kept growing, to the point that she lashed out on him.

"Come on out and fight like a man, you overgrown salamander! Or are you too afraid to face me?!" -Dragonfly shouted into the air.

Usually, Reptile would take those insults to heart, but not this time. This time he was bidding his time, taunting Dragonfly and making her wonder what his next move would be. Grabbing another piece of debris that was by his feet, he threw it against the tunnel's walls, startling Dragonfly, who this time threw her frisbee, hoping to catch Reptile. The frisbee ricocheted on the walls, only to return to her, by hitting her on the head. When this happened, gritted her teeth in pain, cursing her luck.

"Where are you?!" -Dragonfly asked. –"Either, I get out of here, or I got to find a way to get some light in here. If I can't see him, I'm a sitting duck." -she thought to herself. –"Calm down. You've trained with the others in complete darkness, for this kind of situations… but they weren't trying to kill you, while this guy is."

It was at this point that Dragonfly began to realize that following Reptile was not the best idea ever. Without realizing it, he had lured her into a trap. Blaming her impulsiveness, her mind was trying to find a way out of that predicament. But before she could decide on what to do, she heard another noise behind her. Without being able to see, she turned around and tried to hit what she thought was Reptile. But it was not him. It had been a rat falling on the sewer water.

"Come on, calm down, Alix. You got to clear your mind, or else this bastard will get the upper hand in this."

But she was not given the time to calm down; noy even a split second. She had just finished this thought, when she felt a kick on her lower back, which made her fall on her face. Diving into the fowl stanching sewer water, she almost puked. Getting back up, she once more felt a kick, this time to her right ribs, which made her hit the tunnel wall, only to fall in the water again. This time, however, she was not allowed to get back up on her feet, as Reptile placed his hands around her neck and began to strangle her.

"This is the end for you, Dragonfly!" -Reptile laughed, as she kept strangling her, with Dragonfly trying to pry his hands from her neck, with her own.

Trying not to panic, she tried to find a way to escape his grip. Driven more by instinct than rational thought, Dragonfly kicked Reptile between the legs, forcing him to release her. Emerging, she let out a cry of relief as she breathed in the foul sewer air. But she knew that that was just a temporary victory, as she heard Reptile growling in pain.

"N-Now, you're going to get it, y-you filthy lizard!" -Dragonfly shouted, as she charged in the direction of the noises Reptile was making.

Guided by both the noise and the anger she had brewing inside her, Dragonfly tried to get her hands on Reptile, only to fail the target and hit the tunnel's wall. Also mad about what she did to him, the lizard man attacked Dragonfly, and unlike her, he did not miss his target. Punching and kicking her, he then stabbed her in the abdomen with his switchblade. When this happened, she let out an animalistic cry, only to let out another one, when he pulled the blade out. Writhing in pain, she wished for it to stop.

"The master can have her dead body. I earned this, after everything she put me through." -Reptile thought to himself.

Grabbing her by the throat, he lifted her up, only to bash her head against the tunnel, not once, not twice, but thrice. He had caught Dragonfly, and he was not letting go of her. She was half-conscious, due to him bashing her head, but she was mostly in pain due to the stabbing wound. And without being able to see anything, she wondered what was going to happen next. One thing she was sure of; it would not be pleasant.

"Hawk Moth wants to kill you himself. But I'm going to ignore that fact." -Reptile grinned, as he pressed the tip of his switchblade against Dragonfly's cheek, with her feeling it. –"I earned the right to kill you and to take your miraculous… I wish that Antelope brat was here too, so I could kill him as well, but beggars can't be choosers." -he laughed, when a strong bright light began to radiate from behind him. –"What the…"

"You're not hurting her!" – a voice called out from behind him.

And that's it for now... who could be the hero that has come for Alix's rescue? You'll have to find out, on the following chapter.

First of all, I'm sorry if this update took so long. I wanted to post this two days before Climatiqueen, but I've been too busy to write. Still, I manage to finish it and here it is, that's what matters. So, we're down to six heroes, not counting miss Bustier and master Fu as Blanchelame and Song Dao. Things are about to get interesting.

Also, before anyone asks me, yes, I've seen Thomas' post about Chloe, and how he supposedly "loves" her as a character. No offense, but if he doesn't plan to do anything with her, when it comes to character growth, claiming that her essence is of a person who'll never change, and that us fans who thought she could change were wrong or misread her as a character, then, why bother bringing her back? Are we supposed to just ignore everything that happened to her, character wise, when it comes to season 2 and the first part of season 3?! (Probably, because we now have definite proof that it was Jeremy who was pushing for her redemption arc, and when he exited the writers room to work on the movie, that all went to Hell, because Thomas can't see the possibilities of having a character getting redeemed... and yes, that coming from someone who redeemed Felix, even though he is far worse thatn Chloe in many aspects). Once more, we see that the man is a hack as a storyteller (I mean, the fact that we continue, after six seasons, to see Marinette acting like a stalker and Adrien continuing to be depicted as perfect, without a single flaw, means that the guy has no concept of what character growth in a narrative is). So, yeah, those words, combined with this kind of behaviour from the series creator is one more reason why we fans must continue to write our own versions of the show.

And now that I got that out of my system, I've got to tell you some good news. I made a significant progress in the mapping of season 2, and I'm quite excited about it, because if the status quo of this AU is about to change, then it will change even further than anticipated. Also, I've got some new illustrations comng up, which you will all be able to see in my DeviantArt page. So, be sure to check the page during the following weeks. Anyways, as always feel free to comment, fav and leave your suggestions to improve this and/or future fics. You know that I always love to hear your opinions.