"Who are you?" Adrien finally asked.
"Marinette, last name unknown, Agent 1492058, code name: Siren." She said blatantly, her answer sounded like she had read it word for word, and maybe she had.
Adrien seemed a little disappointed in her answer. Last name unknown? Agent? Code name? Siren? He had heard the woman from the bracelet call her Siren, but what did it mean? Her answer had only left him with more questions.
"Your name is Marinette?" He asked again. She nodded in response. "Okay um..." Adrien began. "If you're not working for Akuma, then who do you work for?" Marinette's gaze was locked on the deserted road ahead of her.
"GUARD, that stands for Government, Undercover, Agents, Remade, Division." She answered calmly, almost like they hadn't been shot at a few moments ago. Adrien nodded in understanding despite the fact he didn't understand at all.
"Okay, so you're one of the good guys?" He asked. Marinette was quiet for a moment.
"I work for good people, that doesn't mean I am one." She didn't say it menacingly but with a twinge of self doubt as if she didn't believe she was a decent human being, which Adrien didn't believe to be true.
"You saved me didn't you?" He responded, trying to persuade her. She sighed.
"Technically yes." She commented.
"Then you're a good person as far as I see." Adrien retorted.
"One good act doesn't make me good, besides you hardly know me." Adrien shrugged at her response.
"I know you saved my life," Marinette rolled her eyes, obviously irritated and tired of arguing.
"Next question." Marinette uttered, a hint of annoyance in her voice.
"Okay, okay," Adrien said in an attempt to calm the tension. He took a moment to think about what to ask next as he rubbed his right cheek. He bit the inside of his mouth when he fell on the concrete. The iron-like taste of blood had diminished but the flesh of his mouth was still raw.
"That bracelet-" He began to say.
"It's a commlink, allows me to communicate with my associate at GUARD." Marinette interrupted, pointless questions seemed to rub her the wrong way.
"Alright," Adrien sorted through his thoughts again. "You said your last name was 'unknown', do you mean classified?" She shook her head.
"No, I mean I don't know my last name." Adrien was puzzled.
"You don't know your own last name?" She glared at him through the corner of her eye.
"Next question."
"Okay, I won't ask about the last name." The blonde said defensively then continued his line of questioning. "Got any family?" Marinette's expression stayed cold and unchanging.
"Maybe." She answered, her tone didn't sound as if she was answering indifferently but suggested that she genuinely didn't know the answer to Adrien's question.
"Maybe?" Adrien repeated.
"Next question." Marinette said coldly.
"Note to self don't ask about family or the last name." The green eyed boy retorted.
"Look blondie, I don't mean to be rude but I don't know." Marinette said combatively, her annoyance clearly evident. And she wasn't the only one starting to lose patience.
"What do you mean, You don't know? How do you forget your family and your last name?"
She didn't answer and a blanket of silence surrounded them. They said nothing for a long moment, finally Adrien gave in. "I'm sorry, I won't ask again." The blunette nodded.
"Thank you." Was all she said.
He could tell he had hurt her. She didn't show it, she hardly showed any emotion, her face remained still and neutral. But he could tell by the way her eyes appeared distant and hollow as if she was searching for something in the distance but it was too far away to see clearly.
In the silence he still felt a lot of his questions unanswered. "Marinette?" He asked quietly. She glanced over at him briefly. "Where are we going?" She smiled at his question, it was probably the first real smile he had seen from her.
"Somewhere safe."
Adrien smiled back.
"Are you gonna tell me where or are you gonna put a sack over my head until we get there." Marinette chuckled. She had a cute laugh that filled the space with joy and contentment
"Well I thought you might want to chit chat for a bit before I bring out the sack." They giggled for a moment, her chuckle obviously contagious. It felt nice to laugh after all that had happened the last 10 minutes.
They drove a few more blocks, the streets still bare and lifeless. Marinette looked rather calm but her knuckles were white from gripping so tightly to the wheel. She gave the occasional glance in the mirror, checking to see if they were being followed. It was during one of these occasional glances when she looked forward and slammed on the breaks. A spike strip laid flat across the road. The car skidded and all its weight shifted to the left. Their bodies jolted and Marinette's head smacked against the side window. The vehicle rolled on its side as the tires passed over the jagged spikes. Adrien faded out of consciousness.
He was dazed for a moment before his blurry vision finally cleared and the black dots that danced in front of his eyes disappeared. He was hanging upside down, the only thing holding him in place was the seatbelt that was buried into his ribs. He felt a burning go though his spine and he grinded his teeth as he waited for the pain to subside. Adrien cricked his neck over to see Marinette fiddling with her seatbelt.
"Blondie?" She called.
"Yeah?"
"There is a knife in the glove box. Can you reach it?"
He opened the glove box and a small black backpack fell out. He rummaged through its contents, flint and steel, water bottles, dried food, first aid kit, wire, rope, flashlight, flares, compass, and so on. But amongst the items was a blade in a leather sheath. He passed it over to the bluenette and she banished the knife with skill as the razor sharp edge sliced through the seatbelt.
She fell to the roof of the car and crawled over to him. The side of her temple was red and bloodied from when her head collided into the driver side window. The scarlet liquid ran down her face and was smeared across her cheek bone.
"Are you alright?" Adrien asked, ignoring the pain in his ribs.
"I've survived worse." She mumbled as she tugged at the strap across his chest and positioned the blade underneath. "You okay?"
Adrien was holding his breath to give her space to work the metal edge though the thick material. "I'm fine." He answered between breaths. He had answered truthfully, besides a stiffness in his joins, he was alright. At last, the seatbelt was cut in two and Adrien toppled over to the roof of the car.
Marinette pulled him up by his waist, and guided him to the right side window. She resheathed the knife and packed it away in the backpack before swinging it over her shoulder. Then, she gently pressed her fingertips against the glass, and the sound of a gentle hum filled the air. Within moments the window shattered. Fragments of glass were spread across the asphalt. "How did you do that?" Adrien asked, stunned. All she did was touch it and the window broke into a thousand tiny shards.
"Long story. I'll explain everything once you're safe." Marinette answered. She crawled through the small broken window and gestured for Adrien to follow. He pulled himself through the narrow opening, being careful not to cut his hands on the mess of glass fragments, and grabbed Marinette's outstretched hand. Once again she pulled him up with enough force to pull his shoulder out of place. They both took a moment to look around. They were in the middle of a narrow road with buildings lining the sides. The buildings were tall, very tall. They were in the heart of Paris with banks and malls lining the sidewalks.
Up ahead was a four way. From directly ahead an army of masked men approached.
They wore dark armor from head to toe and walked in rows covering the entire road and flooding onto the footpath. There could have been hundreds. Their strides were in perfect unison causing a loud boom with every step.
Terror stuck like a bolt of lightning.
"Is that the squadron you called for?" Adrien asked, a bit of optimism lining his words. Marinette swallowed and shook her head.
"No."
That one word was all it took to shatter all hope. That one word was enough to make Adrien's blood run cold. They turned their heads to see another army of masked men approaching them from behind pinning them down. They were boxed in and defenseless.
They both stood still, like a deer in headlights. As the army grew closer and closer, the sound of their steps grew louder and louder. They were only 500 meters away on either side. Adrien tried to speak to Marinette but his words were lost in the echo of their strides. Suddenly, the soldiers in the front of the mob lifted their weapons, menacing looking firearms, and the same loud gunshot went off. Marinette grabbed his hand and pulled him along into an unknown direction. He followed blindly. They heard a few more gunshots go off and a volley of metal darts landed near their feet. Once again Adrien's mind went to the words Marinette had said before.
It's not their aim that's off.
They bolted across the asphalt road and over the sidewalk and into a random building. Marinette thrusted the glass doors open, her hand still clutching his. Together they ran through what seemed to be an office lobby. The man at the counter yelled at them to stop as they ran past. They took off through a door labeled "stairs" before he was able to say another word to them.
Marinette and Adrien took off up the steps. They had just made it to the seventh story when, through his exhausted breaths, Adrien asked. "Where are we going?"
Marinette didn't bother looking back at him and just answered. "Not sure yet." That statement didn't make him anxious at all.
Their legs ache from fatigue. They bent over their knees trying to catch what little breath they had. But their break didn't last long. The scent of lemon started to fill the air.
"What is that?" Adrien asked. Marinette glanced over the stairwell and looked down over the long spinning towers of stairs.
"Oh no." She mumbled under her breath.
"What is it?" Adrien questioned as he joined her by the railing. He glanced downward at the mountain of steps they had just run up. Quickly rising to the ceiling was a could of yellow fog. The honey colored mist covered the steps and was towering up like a billow of smoke.
"It's an airborne drug." She said covering her mouth with her sleeve. "It will knock us unconscious if we breathe it in. Cover your mouth and nose. We have to keep moving." Marinette said, turning away from him and continuing to scale the tall tower of stairs, Adrien following close behind her. They sprinted as fast as their legs could carry them but the citric smelling gas was rising fast.
Adrien's ribs ached with each stride but he forced himself to keep moving. One more step, he thought to himself repeatedly with every gasping breath. As Adrien struggled his way to the top, Marinette was urging him forward, eventually grabbing his arms and pulling him up the never ending staircase. Finally, the two of them stop at a landing in between two flights of stairs.
"Catch your breath." Marinette instructed, her words muffled by the sleeve she held over her lower face. Adrien took the opportunity to suck in a few deep breaths which only intensified the aching in his ribcage. He decided to breathe through the pain but then the air started to taste sour. He glanced over at the lemon fog, crawling its way up the stairs. Slivers of mist climbed up like boney fingers reaching out to suffocate them. The golden smog flooded the landing where they stood and was rising just above their ankles, making it impossible to see their shoes through the thick layer of fog.
"We need to move." Marinette said before grabbing his wrist and jerking him back up the staircase. Adrien placed his hand over his face, making breathing that much harder. A few more flights of stairs and they were finally at the top. A large metal door stood in front of them. Marinette pulled at the door knob but it wouldn't budge. It was locked from the outside. The lemon cloud was rising quickly and was making Adrien feel a little groggy despite the adrenaline he felt pumping through his veins.
He observed as Marinette got down on her knees and peered into the keyhole. She placed one hand a few centimeters in front of the door knob. The same humming sound he heard before the car window shattered filled the air. It was a hypnotic noise that rang though his eardrums like a pulsing purr. The gas cloud was now at Marinette's waist and slowly creeping up Adrien's legs, the heavy scent of lemon was suffocating and made his eyes sting from the potency. Suddenly the lock clicked open. How did she unlock it? Adrien thought to himself, but before he could ask her, she swung the door open.
They both ran onto the rooftop, slamming the door behind them, trapping the drug cloud inside. Marinette locked the door once again. They took a few steps back and watched as the honey colored smog leaked its way through the cracks in the door frame. Luckily the wind carried the fog into the east and away from them. Adrien took a deep breath, filling his lungs with fresh air that cleared out the overbearing scent of lemon. The aching in his abdomen had faded into a light soreness but his legs still felt weak and wobbly. Not to mention the stinging in his mouth that erupted whenever he spoke.
"Are you alright?" Marinette asked through her shaky panting. Adrien nodded.
"How is your head?" He questioned, his cheek throbbing with every word. She reached up to her bleeding temple and wiped the blood from her cheekbone, which left a red, jagged cut in the shape of the letter V on her forehead. Dark, sticky blood still slowly seeped its way out of the wound.
"I'll be fine." She stated indifferent towards her own well being. Adrien got the sense that she was lying to make him feel better, so he pressed her.
"Are you sure?" He asked again. "You hit your head pretty hard." Marinette shook her head.
"I've had head injuries before, it's just a cut, I'm okay." She said a little more convincing this time, putting Adrien's worries to rest.
Suddenly a loud bang came crashing against the metal door causing both of them to stumble backwards out of fear.
"Akuma?" Adrien asked, the work still felt strange coming out of his mouth.
"Yeah." Marinette responded, her voice sour at the mention of the murderous group. Another loud bang rattled against the door.
"What do we do?" He asked, panic filling his voice.
"Come here!" Marinette called to him. She waved him over to the edge of the building.
"I don't think right now is an appropriate time to admire the view." Adrien remarked.
"Just get over here." She barked. Adrien obeyed the order, not seeing any other choice.
The two of them peered down the side of the building, making Adrien feel uneasy about how high up they were, but he had Marinette's hand gripping his arm tightly for support.
On the street below was an army of men dressed from head to toe in black armor. They flooded the streets, leaving no more than a few inches of space between them as they stood in organized rows. They looked like swarms of ants from up on the rooftop but Adrien still felt his stomach tighten with fear at their numbers. Marinette pulled him by the arm to the other side of the rooftop. There wasn't much of a view from this side, about a few meters in front of them was another tall building, a story or two shorter than the one they stood on now.
"Do you think we could jump to that building?" Marinette asked.
"What!?" Adrien was completely dumbfounded at her statement. "Are you crazy?" Marinette shook her head.
"We could make it." She reassured him. Another crash against the door, making Adrien's muscles tense up at the sound.
Before he could protest, Marinette grabbed his hand and pulled him to the center of the rooftop. She gripped his wrist tightly, digging her nails into his skin. Suddenly she sprinted towards the roof's edge, pulling Adrien along with her. He caught up to her and ran alongside the deranged girl. He didn't have time to listen to all the alarms going off in his mind, telling him to stop. He just ran, until there was no room left to run.
As they approached the ledge of the building they pushed off and fell through the air. After what felt like the longest eight seconds of Adrien's life, they crashed onto the shorter building's rooftop. Adrien landed on his left shoulder which absorbed most of the blow. He grunted as he found his footing and got to his feet. His shoulder was aching but it could have been worse. He extended his hand out to Marinette who was still lying on her back, trying to suck in the air that was knocked out of her lung. She took his hand and Adrien lifted her up as she gasped for breath.
"Thank you." She mumbled but it came out as a croak of syllables.
"You're welcome." Adrien responded. After a moment he asked. "Now what?" The girl shook her head as she coughed.
"I'm not sure. We can't stay here." Finally, her breathing began to steady.
"There is nowhere left to go." He said as he searched for a means of escape. There was nothing on this rooftop. Not a door into the building, a ladder, a way to the ground. Nothing.
"We need to get to the ground," Marinette explained. "The Akuma soldiers will have that door knocked down any second." Adrien started to think about the banging on the door.
"How have they not picked the lock yet? It only took you a few seconds." He asked, confused as to their slowness.
"I jammed the lock." Marinette answered. "They will have tried taking the door off its hinges but the old things are rusted shut so their only option is to break it down. It's an industrial door so it will take them a while. But that doesn't matter. That army in the street will be making its way around the block so we need to get out of here before they box us in."
Marinette jogged over to the rooftop edge. And peered over. The street was still bare but the army of ants would soon invade the area. "We need to jump." She said plainly. Adrien scoffed.
"Just when I thought you couldn't get any crazier." Marinette rolled her eyes.
"I'm being serious." Adrien let out a half laugh, but Marinette did not join in. He stared at her, trying to see if there was an ounce of mischief in her eyes, but there was none. He could still hear the distant pounding on the metal door as she repeated herself. "We need to jump."
"I saw rope in that backpack, could we use that to climb down." She shook her head.
"It's not long enough."
They both looked at each other in worried silence. "Do you trust me?" She asked. Fear struck Adrien as he peered down at the ground which seemed to be kilometers away from where he stood. He glazed back up at Marinette and could honestly say that he did trust her. She had saved his life, what she saved him from, he had no idea, but she still saved him.
"Yes." He answered.
"Good." Another loud crash hit against the door. Adrien's head snapped towards the sound. They were close. The industrial door must have started losing their integrity by now. "Adrien." Marinette said, gripping his arm.
"Yes?" He asked, focusing his attention on her.
"You need to jump." Adrien wished she was kidding before but he could tell by her stoic expression that she was dead serious.
"We're at least fifteen stories up!" Adrien protested. "We will die if we jump!" Marinette gripped his shoulder tighter.
"I promise, we will make it out of here alive, and I always make good on my promises. Now please, we need to go now!" She begged. Another crash struck the door. Adrien's heart was beating out of his chest.
"Marinette?" He asked.
She was gone. He looked around the rooftop, she wasn't there, he peered down from the tall tower which made him dizzy for a few seconds but he quickly regained his senses. He saw what looked like her on the sidewalk. A small black and blue speck on the ground. She waved her arms and motioned for him to jump. How she survived was a mystery to him and he was baffled to see her still breathing. Another impact hit against the door and this time it flung open. The crash of the metal was enough to give Adrien the courage he needed.
He threw himself forward and flung his limbs around as he fell through the air. Pure fear and adrenaline filled his veins. His limbs were stiff from terror and his mind raced with worry. He fell through empty space for what felt like an eternity. That was until he felt himself start to slow to a stop. The ground was not yet under his feet. He just laid there, suspended a few meters above the ground. Floating on air.
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Word count: 3710 (Not counting this)
THE BOY FINALLY KNOWS
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