To Marry a Vigilante

Part 20

To Marry a Vigilante: Part 20

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"Cat!" Marinette shouted as she and the rest of Detective Club entered the room above, just in time to see the hero fall off the edge.

Marinette pulled out her rope-dart and swung it at the pillar in the middle. The girl then leaped over the edge and jumped down. Half-way through the flight, she pulled the rope and allowed her weapon to dislodge and fall back into her arms. She then tossed it into the platform and fell over the edge. She could see Cat's glowing eyes in the depth. At the last moment, she caught him and wrapped her arms around him. He could already move and responded in kind. They hung there for a moment, enjoying the relief that washed over them.

"Up or down?" Mari asked, chuckling nervously. Some tension left her with a bad joke.

Before Cat had a chance to answer, the akuma sailed past them, its cloak aflame. At the edge of the platform, Olive stood surrounded by a fiery aura. Then, as the fire died down she seemed to realize what she'd done and ran away through some hidden passage on the way down.

"I'll go after her. You catch the akuma." Marinette commanded. In truth, she needed some sort of cover to be able to transform and actually purify the butterfly.

Cat only nodded. The two shifted their bodyweight until they swung. Marinette managed to grab onto the shelf that led to a hidden passage while the Cat plunged his claws into the wall and slid down. To the discomfort of everyone gathered, it was not a pleasant sound.

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The Symbolist gathered himself from the ground and looked around. He was in some kind of entrance chamber, deep underground. There were tons of glowing mushrooms that enveloped the room with an eerie purple glow. There was a stone path leading toward giant doors. Over the doors, a large symbol of two interlocking "A" emanated cyan light that connected to the Symbolist.

Beneath the giant symbol, on the arc, there was something written. "eques caliginosus". The akuma scowled.

"They have no appreciation for symbols!" He then slowly approached the doors. As the Symbolist got closer, various signs started to glow one by one, revealing themselves.

A purple mask appeared over the Symbolist's face. Hawkmoth Jr. watched as his akuma communicated with the symbols and learned everything about the doors. As his hand touched the cold stone, the whole chamber shook at its base. The symbols on the doors turned purple for a moment before violently exploding and pushing the akuma across the room.

"Stop!" Black Cat yelled, revealing his presence. He landed behind him without any sound. But alas, it was too late. The akuma was already flying through the room, with purple smoke emanating from the burns on his body. The Detective Club saw everything as they descended from the ceiling on the platform.

When the Symbolist gathered himself, his mask was slightly cracked.

"I... I see!" The cyan light that shone from the crack was even brighter than the giant symbol. "I see everything!" he shouted. The moment he looked at Cat, the beam of light focused, and the hero had to dodge or he would be burned to crisp. "No! No! Too much! I don't...! No!" The akuma collapsed. A small purple butterfly exited his mask and started to ascend, leaving him to struggle on his own. It was clear that the pain was impossible.

Ladybug descended on her yo-yo from the hole. As she saw the butterfly pass her, she captured the item and purified the corruption.

As she landed on the ground, Cat ran to her, and side by side they walked to the akuma. Symbolist was now curled on the ground, sobbing in pain.