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Shadow Moth entered the warehouse.
“Is everyone here?” He asked Socqueline.
She nodded, “What is this about?”
“We have a mission. We’re going to take out one of the most powerful members of the Miraculous Team.”
Marc brought the blood bread from Marinette’s parents.
While they had to consume blood, it got rather bland if you ate nothing else, so many vampires got creative. Sabine and Tom were prime examples.
“Enjoy it, dear,” Sabine said.
“And tell Marinette that we need another blood bag,” Tom said as he carried a drained body over his shoulder.
“I will.”
He left the bakery, “Orikko, sunrise!”
Rooster Bold jumped onto a rooftop and made his way to Françoise Dupont.
Shadow Moth and his allies were watching, “Now is the perfect time to strike,” He said and let a butterfly out of his cane.
Rooster Bold sat down to eat. The school was empty as it had been ever since their invasion had come out into the open.
That was why he liked to come here. It was quiet, and he was unlikely he would be disturbed.
He heard footsteps behind him and ducked.
Chat Félix flew above his head.
So much for not being interrupted.
A yo-yo wrapped around Rooster Bold’s arm, and he turned to see Socquelinebug.
“Well, if it isn’t the counterfeit Ladybug and Chat Noir.”
“How many times do we have to tell you people,” Chat Félix said, “Our names are Lady Beetle and Black Cat.”
“Whatever, Subli–”
A wave of water crashed into him before he could finish.
“Grragg! What was that?!”
“That would be me,” said a girl who looked like a mermaid with legs.
“Ondine?”
“You may call me Nereid.”
“Ah, after the Greek sea nymphs.”
He tried to run away, but an owl-shaped boomerang flew into his path.
“Well, I know who this is, eh M. Damocles?”
The Owl stepped out of the shadows wearing a lighter version of Dark Owl’s costume.
“We’re putting a stop to your reign of terror, young man.”
“Is this it, or is there anyone else?”
A swarm of pigeons signalled the arrival of Mr. Pigeon.
“Of course,” Rooster Bold said.
A swarm of pigeons dived at him, which he dodged.
The Owl threw another owlarang, which he blocked with his pen.
“You can’t win this,” Black Cat said as he attacked, “You’re outnumbered!”
“Am I?”
A portal opened, and Pegasus came out with Caprikid, Polymouse, Ryuko and Bunnyx, along with a swarm of regular vampires.
“You idiots,” Bunnyx said, “I can travel in time. Did you really think I would allow one of us to be killed?”
“As a matter of fact,” Lady Beetle said, “No.”
More figures appeared on the rooftops.
“Rooster Bold wasn't our real target,” She continued,” It was you, Alix.”
Bunnyx looked up as a shadow fell over her.
She grabbed the man holding a stake by the throat.
He stabbed at her chest, but the stake splintered against her Miraculous suit.
She raised an eyebrow at him.
“Ah sh–”
She bit her fangs into his neck and ripped his throat out.
“Aaaahh!”
All around her, the vampires fought Shadow Moth’s rebels.
She dropped the man unceremoniously and prepared to get out of there.
“Burrow!”
But nothing happened.
She cursed. How were they blocking her power?!
Ryuko licked the blood off her sword as she prepared to fight Nereid.
“You think a little sea spirit can defeat a storm? Water Dragon!”
Nereid tried to control Ryuko’s water form, but it had no effect, looks like she would have to buy time.
“I’m not little,” She backflipped away.
Lady Beetle blocked attacks from the vampirized Aurore and Mireille.
“Why are you fighting? Aurore asked, “The world is ours!”
“This is Paris. People here never give up.”
Black Cat fought Rooster Bold and Caprikid.
“You dare go after the boy I love!” Caprikid said.
“How many people’s loved ones have you killed? Black Cat retorted.
“Oh, hundreds, I imagine,” Rooster Bold said,” Sublimation!”
He became invisible and hit Black Cat several times.
“Genesis!”
Black Cat became wrapped in chains.
“Cataclysm!”
The chains turned to dust.
“That’s a pretty good imitation of Adrien’s power, “Caprikid said, “But you and Socqueline are just that… imitations.”
“True, but we know martial arts.”
He caught Rooster Bold’s invisible fist and threw him at Caprikid.
Mr. Pigeon was flying on his pigeons when Polymice started landing on him.
“What?!”
They bared their fangs and started eating him alive as he screamed.
The Owl was surrounded by his former staff.
“You’re pathetic!” Olga told him, “An old man playing a childish fantasy.”
“And yet you could never stand up to Chloé or her father!” Caline said.
“No matter what that brat did,” Fred added.
“Disgraceful,” Armand stated.
“That was true once,” The Owl said, “But no longer.”
He threw a flash grenade that blinded them and gave them minor burns.
“Max!” Bunnyx shouted to Pegasus, “I need you to–”
Pegasus was stabbed from behind by a clocked figure.
“No!”
As Pegasus crumbled to dust, Bunnyx launched herself at the figure. They ducked, but she managed to rip off the hood.
She stared in shock, “You?!”
It was her future self.
Earlier that day…
Gabriel looked at the adult Bunnyx, who faded in and out for a few seconds.
“The future I knew is gone. I have to be transformed non-stop to keep myself from being erased immediately.”
“Then why not go back and stop this?”
“Don’t you think I’ve tried?!” She shouted before composing herself, “Mini-vampire-me has the Burrow very well guarded. There’s no sneaking past, not as long as she’s alive… if you can call being undead alive.”
“How do you propose to do that? She can enter the Burrow at any time.”
“I know a few tricks she doesn’t. If I can get close to her, I can temporarily block her access to the Burrow.”
“But if you help us kill her…”
“I’m done for anyway. Not killing Mini-me would just be delaying the inevitable.”
The two Bunnyxs faced each other.
“You’re the one keeping me from the Burrow! You killed Max!”
“He wasn’t Max anymore, just as you’re no longer me.”
“No…” She smirked, “I’m better.”
Then she heard someone muttering and saw a priest on the roof above the fight between Nereid and Ryuko. It sounded like a… prayer? No, a blessing for…”
Her eyes widened.
“Stop him! He’s–”
Too late, the priest finished.
“Aaaahh!” Ryuko screamed in agony as her water form became holy water. She thrashed around, soaking everyone around her, and the other vampires' screams were added to her own.
Young Bunnyx tried to get away, but her older self pinned her down.
“No! Nooo!”
The water soaked her, and she burned.
Adult Bunnyx stabbed her with her umbrella, and she fell silent.
The only remaining vampire was Ryuko, who was a burned husk.
Black Cat had tears in his eyes as he ended her suffering.
Adult Bunnyx gave her allies a sad smile as she faded away.
“Who did we lose?” Gabriel asked.
“Aside from Bunnyx, we lost Xavier and a dozen others,” Socqueline reported.
“And the Miraculous?”
“Recovered,” Félix said, “But if you’re thinking about handing them out, there’s a slight problem with that.”
He picked up the Rabbit Miraculous, and Fluff appeared in a flash of light.
She bared her fangs and lunged at Gabriel.
“Stop!” Félix commanded.
“Oh my!” Duusu said in horror, “The vampirism spread to our brothers and sisters!”
“Most likely from being used by a vampire,” Félix agreed.
“Which means if we use them, we risk it spreading to us,” Gabriel gritted his teeth.
Félix renounced Fluff and put the watch down.
“At least we can keep them from our enemies,” Socqueline said, “And maybe we can figure out a way to cure them.”
“Perhaps,” Gabriel said, “But until then, we must continue with what we have.”
After the others had left, Nooroo flew up to Gabriel.
“I’m proud of you.”
“What?”
“In these darkest of days, you have started to use my Miraculous in the way it was supposed to be, Kamikos instead of Akumas, heroes instead of villains.”
Gabriel couldn't look at him. The fact it took losing everything and the end of the world for him to do the right thing said a lot about his lack of character.
Maybe someday he would earn Nooroo’s approval.
Ladybug and Chat Noir screamed in rage and anguish.
They had killed her friends, her family.
And without Alix, they couldn’t bring them back… or could they? Ladybug wondered. After all, she had brought people back to death more times than she could count.
Ladybug decided it was time to see what her powers were truly capable of.