Breaking the Mask (Book Three)

Chapter 14

Chat Noir let go of Adrien's shirt collar and turned to face the spotted superheroine that interrupted them. With a snicker, the villain strode towards Ladybug, twirling his staff in one hand. Ladybug took out her yo-yo and prepared for any sudden movements.

"I was just looking for you, Bugaboo," Chat Noir said with a smirk.

Ladybug furrowed her eyebrows at the sound of his words.

"First of all, only Adrien can call me that," Ladybug muttered, "Second, you're gonna have to fight me if you want my miraculous"

"I've already been prepared," Chat Noir said.

Chat Noir extended his staff and swung it towards her. Ladybug jumped out of the way with ease. With a graceful spin, the superheroine landed a powerful kick to the villain's face, making him fly backwards from the force. Before he could fall to the ground, Chat Noir placed his hand on the floor and performed a back flip, landing safely on his feet. The villain gritted his teeth and lunged towards Ladybug with his staff raised.

Ladybug jumped over him and landed another kick right on his spine. She landed back on her feet with a smirk.

"You're much weaker than the real Chat Noir. Why don't you just give up and hand me back his miraculous?"

Chat Noir faced her and smiled evilly, "We'll see about that"

Ladybug raised an eyebrow in confusion. Then, with a snap of his finger, the room fell into pitch darkness. The superheroine panicked as a small breeze rushed past her. She shot her head from one side to the other, scanning the dark room for the villain's figure. But it was nearly impossible to see anything in such darkness.

"What's wrong, Ladybug? Are you scared of the dark?" The villain's voice echoed right behind her.

Ladybug turned around and threw her yo-yo in the direction of the voice, only for her magic weapon to land on the floor with a small thud. She gritted her teeth in frustration and retracted her yo-yo.

"Sad attempt, really," The voice taunted in her ear, "Try again"

Ladybug sensed his presence right next to her, sending a chill up her spine. She threw a fist in their direction, only for her fist to come into contact with thin air. Another small breeze whooshed past her, but it was impossible to catch him.

"Stop hiding and fight me fair and square!" Ladybug demanded.

"I don't believe there's a rule that our fight has to be fair," Chat Noir laughed, "Sorry, Bug"

Ladybug grunted in pain as a sharp blade pierced through the skin on her side. A great burning and stinging sensation followed shortly after, making the superheroine sink to her knees as she pressed her hand over her bleeding wound.

In the corner of the room, Adrien reached into his pocket and grabbed his phone. His flashlight sprung to life, illuminating a small portion of the room. The white light revealed a kneeling Ladybug with her blood seeping onto the ground and her face scrunched up in pain. The evil Chat Noir had his hands on her earrings, ready to take her miraculous until Adrien had brought light to the room.

Before Chat Noir could take her earrings, Ladybug smashed her fist into his stomach, making him retract his hands from her and double over. Chat Noir cursed and shot a glare at his cousin, who sat there with a smirk on his face.

"You little..."

Chat Noir called out his Cataclysm. With his right hand covered in the black aura of destruction, he charged towards Adrien. Ladybug panicked and called out to her husband. She tried to throw her yo-yo at his attacker, but the pain from her stab wound grew with each movement she made.

The smirk on Adrien's lips widened as his evil cousin came closer. Once he was close enough to attack, Chat Noir swung his Cataclysm at Adrien. Adrien brought up his right wrist to block the attack, causing Chat Noir to Cataclysm his restraint and disintegrate it into ash.

"Thanks for freeing me," Adrien scoffed, "Now if you don't mind..."

Before Adrien could reach for the ring on his opponent's finger, Chat Noir swiped his fist across Adrien's face. Adrien ignored his throbbing cheek and rose to his feet. He shined his flashlight directly in front of Chat Noir's eyes, causing him to squint and look away as the blinding light temporarily blocked out his sense of sight. The supervillain slapped the phone out of Adrien's hand, sending it flying out of his reach while the flashlight still shined into the dark room.

Chat Noir drew his staff and growled, "You're just as annoying as always"

Before Chat Noir could land another attack on his cousin, Ladybug's voice sounded from behind them.

"Lucky Charm!"

Chat Noir whipped his head over his shoulder to see a long, broken pipe land in Ladybug's hands.

"Stay away from him!" Ladybug yelled through her pain.

Chat Noir gripped his staff, "Whatever. You're powerless anyways. Your lady here should be easy to take care of first"

Ladybug shakily rose to her feet, trying her hardest to ignore the intense burning in her side. The red blood that was slightly darker than the color of her suit continued to spread through the stretchy material.

The pain only grew stronger as she stood up, making her grunt as her knees collapsed again. She had been too focused on her pain that she hadn't noticed how Chat Noir now stood directly in front of her with his staff raised, ready to land another attack on the weakened hero. He swung his staff in a downwards motion, making Ladybug flinch and close her eyes as she prepared for the hit.

However, nothing hit her. Confused, the superheroine opened her eyes. In front of her stood her husband, who held his arms up against the staff to block the attack.

"You'll have to get through me first, Félix," Adrien said, "I warned you not to lay a finger on her"

Félix snickered and jumped back. He gave his staff a single twirl before placing it vertically on the ground, leaning on it for balance.

"You know you can't beat me, Adrien," Chat Noir hummed, "How are you gonna fight without your miraculous?"

"I may not have my powers or even a weapon," Adrien began, "But that won't stop me from protecting her.

"Besides," Adrien continued, "I, out of all people, would know what Chat Noir's weaknesses are"

"Adrien," Ladybug called weakly.

Adrien looked over his shoulder at his wife and flashed a small smile.

"It's okay, Marinette," He said quietly, "It's my turn to fight this time"

Ladybug shakily held the broken pipe up to him, "Use this. I'll call for help in the meantime"

Adrien nodded and took the pipe from her. He faced his opponent, now with a weapon in hand. Chat Noir took his staff off the ground and got into a fighting stance before lunging towards him.

With the pipe raised, Adrien sprang into battle with his alter ego.