Breaking the Mask (Book Three)

Chapter 12

Hordes of magical ladybugs dashed through the destruction of the city, reviving all damage that has been done. Ladybug and Chat Noir, along with their three companions, all stood in an isolated part of the city taking deep breaths after a long, tiring battle.

"Good job, guys," Chat Noir said through breaths, "Glad you can still fight even after the huge time gap"

All five of the heroes detransformed at the same time. Adrien caught Plagg in his hands and fed him some cheese.

"I'm concerned about another wave like that coming," Marinette said, "I unfortunately have no information on the rest of the holders' whereabouts, so looks like it's just the five of us again"

"Well, we took out three monsters like the badasses we are," Nino said.

"We don't know if the next wave will be bigger, though," Adrien came in, "That was the first time we've had to fight more than one"

A notification tone sounded from Alya's direction. Alya took her phone out of her pocket to see what the emergency is this time. She hoped they weren't under attack again. They were already drained from the previous battles.

Fortunately, her hopes were working in favor of her and there were no new monsters to take care of—not at the moment at least.

"Guys, this is both good and bad news," Alya began, "I'm looking at a British news channel. The good news is that they've found the source of these things"

All of the heroes' faces lit up at the news.

"So, are we gonna go take out this villain like last time?" Chloé asked.

Adrien and Marinette exchanged brief, worried glances with one another before looking back at Alya.

"Before we rush into that," Marinette began, "What's the bad news?"

"It looks like the next wave of attacks is coming sooner than we think," Alya explained, "Apparently more and more monsters are coming out of an underground location in London"

"What about other countries?" Adrien asked, "How are they doing?"

Alya scrolled through the screen, skimming over the conditions around the world.

"There's currently one in Manila that just got dealt with," Alya said, "That's the most recent and farthest one from the source. They've also reached other countries in Asia and Africa, as well as the east coast of the United States"

Suddenly, a another news article popped up on her screen. Then another. And another. At this point, there were too many to count. It would take forever for her to list each location that was plastered on her screen. Alya gasped and covered her mouth when she saw that some countries are already suffering from casualties.

"Twenty deaths in Madrid," Alya said quietly, "The first statistic"

At that, Marinette clenched her fists and cursed under her breath. Just when she thought it couldn't get any worse, people are dying now. If they don't do something soon, the entire world will be in chaos. How could someone be so desperate for her and Chat Noir's miraculouses that they endanger the whole world?

"I guess we have no choice," Marinette mumbled, "We have to take out this villain and end this mess"

Adrien nodded, "I agree. We need to stop it before other countries start facing casualties"

"Do you have a plan, Marinette?" Chloé asked.

Marinette rubbed her temple, trying to come up with something. Anything.

"Maybe you three should stay here to protect the city from the next wave," Marinette said, "Adrien and I will go to London and take out the villain ourselves"

Nino's eyebrows shot upwards at her idea, "Are you sure you won't need our help?"

Marinette nodded and flashed him a small smile, "Trust me. Adrien and I are much stronger than we were back then. We don't even have to detransform after using our powers now, not to mention we even have power ups"

"Besides," Adrien butt in, "They're after our miraculouses, so we'll be the ones to end this once and for all"

"I guess you're right," Nino said, "If that's the case, then we're all counting on you to save the world"

Chloé and Alya nodded in agreement after hearing Nino's words. Chloé's phone vibrated in her back pocket. The blonde slid her phone out of her pocket and read the notification, panicking in response.

"Sorry guys, I'm running late for an appointment right now," Chloé said quickly, "Catch me up later, okay?"

"Gotcha," Adrien responded, "Thanks again, Chlo"

And with that, the blonde turned away from the group and took off running. Adrien and Marinette turned back to Alya and Nino, resuming their conversation.

"I'll tell you what, though," Marinette continued, "I'll leave the miracle box with you guys. If anything happens, I'll send you a call for help. Use the horse miraculous to quickly get to our location. The miraculous is a pair of glasses"

Alya nodded, "Got it"

Marinette turned to her husband, "Let's go home and pack, it's best if we leave as soon as possible"

"But what about the kids?" Adrien asked.

"Alya and I can take care of them," Nino offered.

"Are you sure?" Marinette asked, "They can be pretty rowdy at times"

Alya laughed and patted Marinette on the back, "Girl, we don't mind at all. We're more than happy to watch them for you"

"I guess we don't really have a choice," Marinette turned back to Adrien, "Let's get going"

~

Marinette pressed a button on the side of the house, summoning a loud bell that rang inside the house. Adrien stood next to her with their three kids.

"Why can't we go to London with you guys?" Louis asked.

Adrien patted his green-haired son's head, "Your mother and I have some serious business to take care of and we're not allowed to bring kids"

The door opened, revealing Nino. Nino stepped to the side to let the kids in. As soon as she saw them, Alya excitedly ran to the front of the house and engulfed all three of the little Agrestes in her arms, nearly suffocating them.

"You guys get to stay with us for a bit!" Alya squealed, "Isn't that great?"

"Alya, I... can't breathe," Hugo said with a scrunched-up face.

Alya pulled back from the hug, allowing the kids to catch their breaths. Adrien, Marinette, and Nino couldn't help but giggle at them.

"Come with me to the living room," Alya said, "You kids can pick out a movie to watch for tonight"

Louis and Hugo's eyes lit up at the mention of movies. Emma, however, remained silent.

"We should watch a horror movie!" Hugo yelled excitedly.

"No way!" Louis snapped.

"Why not?" Hugo asked, "Your instrument is already something straight out of a horror movie"

Louis pouted at his brother's words, "Hey! At least mine doesn't make people lose their hearing"

"You sure about that?" Hugo smirked.

"Boys!" Marinette warned from the doorway, "You are at somebody else's house right now! No fighting about instruments, got it?"

"Please no fighting in general," Adrien added.

The boys went silent at their parents' request. Alya giggled at their reactions and continued leading the kids away from the door. Once the kids were out of sight, Marinette handed Nino a large bag containing the miracle box.

"We better go catch the train now," Marinette said, "Thank you guys so much"

Nino nodded, "No problem. Be careful out there, okay?"

Adrien patted his best friend on the shoulder, "We'll be fine, bro"

With one last goodbye, Adrien and Marinette stepped away from the door and headed on their way to save the world.