Cat's Eye (Lukadrien)

Volume 1, Chapter 7

The melody resonated out from the chords, the after tones ringing throughout the room. "That-" the smaller boy began, a single tear dropping down his face, "it was beautiful Luka."

The blond leaned in, and Luka's breath caught for a moment. Adrien's emerald eyes stared back at him, just an inch away from his own. In that split second, Luka finally understood what all those cheesy pop songs were about. He'd devoted so much of his life to studying music of as many kinds as he could get his hands on, and he'd always dismissed this notion of attraction. He was sure it was exaggerated, or made up for the lyrics and the marketing appeal. His own parents broken marriage had convinced him "love" was a lie. He'd tried to settle, tried to convince himself he could feel that way for Marinette, but it had never been real. Not like this. In that singular suspended moment, that felt like a lifetime of unadulterated bliss, Luka's whole world view shattered. Adrien's golden locks suspended over his eyes, and his scent filled the space. Was it a cologne? Who cared? It was rich and warm, like rays of sunlight and lemongrass had been woven together into a delectable scent that Luka didn't ever want to forget for the rest of time.

As they leaned in closer, it seemed like Luka's whole world was rocking. The rocking grew stronger, and stronger until suddenly, the boat shook. Entangled with Luka, Adrien was practically thrown across the room. By the time he could see what was going on, he was certain the room had practically turned on its side. He and Luka were lying on what had been the wall.

"You okay?" the taller boy's voice filtered in through the faint ringing from the impact.

Adrien nods, then chuckled a little, "Is it just me, or did your song rock my world so hard that this entire room is sideways?"

"Not me, unfortunately. I think the boat must've been knocked on its side." Luka smiles softly.

Adrien flushed, before flicking himself gently, hoping it'll focus himself onto the task at hand. "It's probably an Akuma attack."

Luka nodded, and the pair hurried through the swaying corridors. By the time they reached the deck, the situation had made itself clear. The villainess stood by the dock, waves of blue energy emanating from a mirror in her right hand. Around her were various civilians on the street, sobbing miserably into the pavement with a glowing blue aura around them.

"I am Desolater!" the villainess proclaimed proudly. Her face was tracked with tears, and from her ears were little mirror earrings. "I will make you all feel the despair I felt." Looking towards the boat, her lip curled as she pointed her mirror. "Luka Couffaine. You're next."

A bolt of blue energy gathered from the mirror, blasting towards Luka. Darting forwards, Adrien knocked the taller boy down, narrowly avoiding the trajectory. Instead of striking Luka, the bolt continued on, instead striking Luka's mother as she ran up onto the deck.

The change was rapid as a blue aura surrounded her. Anarka's eyes welled with tears, voice turning pleading, "Please, why did you hurt me like this. WHY! I'd do anything... please why don't you love me back?"

The boys exchanged a glance, crouching behind the sideboard of the barge.

"What if..." Adrien whispered, eyeing up routes off the boat, "she's Kagami?"

"Then you and Ladybug get your asses out there and beat the damn Akuma." Luka's gaze darted over the board for a moment, "I'll buy you some time."

"Wait what are you-"

"I believe in you." Luka winked briefly, before his frame raises above the fragile shielding of the board, diving over it into the water below "Come and get me, Kagami."

Desolater let out a cry, before running forwards into the river bank with him. Immediately, Adrien darted along the boat into a storage capsule for ropes, transforming quickly into his water form before jumping back out and into the river.

Submerged, his vision quickly adapted. Luka's half climbed up onto the stern of the boat, as Desolater was pursuing him submerged behind. Her akumatised form seemed be made of heavy metal, as she ran across the bed of the river rather than swimming.

With his water form's speed, it doesn't take long for Chat to overtake her and reach the stern. Extending his staff with one hand, he wraps the other around Luka's waist, pulling the two of them out of the river, accompanied only by stray bolts of blue from Desolater's mirror, which scrape past them, only just missing.

Desolater screamed.

The sound emanating blue energy that forced the water in the river to part, she thudded across the now dry riverbed, water crashing back in as her scream faded away. Her metal arms rang out a clanging noise against the stone walls of the bank, as she hauled herself up, and before Chat can react she screamed again, blasting both him and Luka across the bank and into the air.

Midfall, Chat grabbed onto Luka again, extending his staff to slow the velocity of the fall. He can take the hit, he knew it. The miraculous suit increased the resilience of its wearer immensely. But Luka? A fall at that rate from that height would kill him, if not cripple if the speed weren't reduced. As he managed an improvised, but not deadly landing, Chat released a momentary breath of relief before he raised his staff spinning to shield from incoming energy bolts.

He went to reach for Luka with free hand, only to hear the zoom of a wire and turn to see the taller boy whisked away to a red figure on the rooftops.

Assured that Luka was (probably) safe with Ladybug, Chat charged forward again, shielding staff in one hand as he activated his cataclysm in another. Darting left and right, he somersaults over a stream of blue bolts and reaches to touch the mirror with his cataclysm.

As his fingers reached closer and closer to the metal, Desolater smirked. She whispered, "Kagami", before the mirror glowed a purpley green-black colour, not similar to that of Chat's own cataclysm. A giant Japanese character erupted between them, blasting Chat back away from the mirror.

She touched the ground beneath her, and smugly proclaimed "Cataclysm."