Truth Seeker

Chapter Six

Ladybug landed in an alley not far from Alya, who was in the park with Nino, watching their little siblings as they rode the carousel. She knew that Alya would be the perfect stand in: smart, able, level - headed, confident, and loyal. She was probably the best superhero of them all after herself and Cat Noir. She had complete faith in her.

 Ladybug flung her yoyo to hit Alya in the shoulder, quickly drawing it back. Alya whipped around and saw her. A huge smile spread across her face and, assumingly, she was about to tap Nino and show him. Ladybug shook her head frantically and beckoned her over.

"Uh...Nino? I forgot my phone at home. Stay here and watch the kids, I'll be back soon," Alya said. She jogged quickly to the alley and ducked around a corner with Ladybug.

"What is it, Ladybug?" Alya said, giving Ladybug a confused but curious look. Ladybug gazed at her solemnly before speaking.

"Alya Cesaire," Ladybug started. "This is the miraculous of the black cat. It grants the power of destruction. The new villain Truth Seeker is a powerful one, and the true Cat Noir has been frozen by his powers. I will need help from the cat's powers, and I am entrusting it to you this time. You will use it for the greater good, and return it to me once the mission is over." 

Ladybug held out her hand with the ring in it, Plagg stowed inside the ring until Alya took it. She looked from Ladybug to the miraculous, and back again several times. At last her eyes landed on Ladybug and stayed there. 

"You...you want me to be the stand in Cat Noir?" Alya said with disbelief. She shook her head. Ladybug knew her emotions were complicated, for she hadn't said a single word about the Ladyblog. 

"I do," Ladybug said. "I know you're competent. I had you in mind as soon as I heard the news. You can do it!" Ladybug nodded encouragingly as Alya hesitantly took the miraculous. Instantly, Plagg zipped out of the ring, his bright green eyes shining.

"I'm Plagg, your kwami," he said with a smile. "Just so you know, I'll be expecting cheese once this mission is over."

"Plagg," Ladybug scolded with a laugh. Alya smiled.

"Come on, what are you waiting for? Just say, 'Plagg, claws out!'" Alya slipped the ring onto her her middle finger and nodded.

"Plagg, claws out!" Alya exclaimed confidently. A green flash, and then Alya briefly examined herself: She had two short, dark orange braids that faded to black, and completely olive green eyes. Her suit was almost completely black except for the two interwoven green lined belts at her waist, that dropped off into a tail at the back. Her hands and feet were a dark silver, and she had a pair of cat ears atop her head. Going down about halfway from her neck was a zipper that started with a green paw pad at the top.

"I. Look. AWESOME!!" Alya squealed, swishing her tail around gleefully. 

"Don't get distracted. Mission first," Ladybug said with a laugh. 

"Of course, master," Alya grinned, spinning her stick playfully. Ladybug smiled as they leaped up onto a building and began running across it, searching for Truth Seeker.

Suddenly she felt a pull backwards, and then something long and hard held at her throat so she couldn't duck away. She strained her eyes upward and saw the akumatized face of Adrien. Briefly a surprised look crossed his face as he saw Alya in the cat outfit, which she figured was just a reaction to the new cat miraculous holder. Ladybug felt a pang of sadness in her chest, but she pushed it away determinedly. Saving him was up to her, and she couldn't let him down. 

The staff like object held her jaws closed so she couldn't say anything, but more specifically, so she couldn't call her lucky charm. "Give me the miraculouses, and neither of you get hurt," Truth Seeker said in a cold, quiet voice that was nothing like the Adrien she knew. She had to bite her lip so she didn't cry. 

Alya threw her stick in a low arc that took his feet out from under him, and he fell over as Alya caught her stick. Ladybug leaped up and joined Alya at her side. She got into a ready stance, swinging her yoyo in a fast red blur. 

"Not a chance," Alya said. Truth Seeker leapt over to the next building, sprinting across and then leaping back, attempting to knock them over. They both flung their weapons at him simultaneously, but he spun around and ducked. 

"We need to get off of the roof...uh, new Cat Noir. It makes too easy of a defeat if he gets us off of the edge," Ladybug hissed at Alya.

"Just call me Panthera," she said as she nodded curtly. They both leaped away into a flatter area. Panthera grabbed Ladybug by the arm and they ran into the mayor's hotel, kneeling behind a couch.

Ladybug shot her a confused look. 

"We should ambush him. He's knows our general area, but if we can create a distraction that will just catch his attention for a second, we can pin him down and search for his akuma," Panthera explained quickly. Ladybug flashed a grin at her.

"I knew you'd be the one for this mission! You've got the brains of a true hero," Ladybug said. Panthera smiled at her with pleasure and pulled her away to find a better hiding place. 

They leapt behind the receptionist's desk just as Truth Seeker burst into the hotel. 

"I know you're in here," He said, somehow loudly and quietly at the same time. He began throwing things around, vases crashing to the floor and couches and chairs flopping onto their sides. 

Ladybug quietly picked up a stray glass marble off of the desk. She motioned to Panthera that she would throw it, and when he turned his head they'd pounce. She nodded and gave the signal. 

Ladybug threw the marble across the room, making a loud plinking noise when it hit the smooth, shiny white floor. As predicted, Truth Seeker's head whipped to the direction of the noise, and Ladybug and Panthera leaped over the desk, pinning Truth Seeker to the ground. He struggled frantically, but Panthera held his hands behind his back and kept his legs to the floor with her knee as Ladybug searched all over for an object that could contain an akuma...

There! She zipped open a pocket, and inside was a phone. Adrien's phone. She began to grab it and was dropping it to the floor so it would break, but Truth Seeker's hand wriggled away from Panthera's grasp and he caught it just milliseconds before it hit the floor. Ladybug snatched at his hand but he had a firm grip. He spun up and kicked at the same time, knocking both of them away. 

When Ladybug was up again, he had his hands on her ears, about to take her miraculous. She pushed him away and flung her yoyo at him. He dodged and shot a blast of blue light from an odd button on his hand, and she ducked. That must have been what was freezing everybody in the streets. She was surprised he hadn't used it until now. It must've run out at some point, otherwise he definitely would have tried before.

She knew it was time. Their options were looking pretty bleak right then.

"Lucky charm!" Ladybug called out. She whipped her yoyo up into the air, and a magical pink light swirled all around. When the light died down, something fell from the air and into her hands which was...

"An umbrella?" A medium sized umbrella, red with black polka dots, was laying in her hands.

 "I guess we could use it to reflect the blasts?" Panthera said with a shrug as she dealt with Truth Seeker.

She quickly folded it up, clutched it in her hands, and looked for a solution.