Chapter Fifteen:

"-and then he said that he was going to take drastic measures. Dude, he's up to something, and I don't like it."

Adrien leaned back on his couch, biting his lip and drumming his fingers against his folded arms. His mind was going a thousand miles an hour and he had barely registered anything Nino had said. Was his father trying to kill off Marinette? Why would he do that? And even so, was he just disapproving of her or actually planning on sending deadly things after her.

"This isn't good..." he muttered.

Nino scoffed. "That's what I've been trying to tell you, man."

"So that whole charms face off last night was all planned out?"

"By the sounds of things, dude, yeah."

Adrien rubbed his face with both hands, trying to make sense of everything. What could his father possibly do? Well, for one, he could tell the Game Master to make more traps. And secondly, he could make the media hate her. That would pull her down in the ranks and receive help from the outside world.

Unexpectedly, he yawned. He was still exhausted from the night before, having stayed up all night to be on watch for Marinette and Nathanael. His eyelids were so heavy, it was hard to not nod off, but now with this new information, there was no way he could just go to sleep.

"What are we going to do? I want the Miraculous Games to be fair for everyone. Bias shouldn't decide someone's fate," he muttered.

Nino shrugged and leaned against the arm of the couch. "Though I have to agree with you on that one, the games are a sick and twisted place. It's a trap for everyone who steps foot inside."

"A trap..."

Adrien began to theorize. He knew where every trap was in the entire arena. If he could just look at the plans, he could warn Marinette.

But how?

He had a feeling that his father would attack before night came around again, but he wasn't sure how he was to go about it. He couldn't just upright and leave as Chat and jump into the arena. He would be caught and the games would have been for nothing. And he didn't know if Ladybug would get pulled into the situation. News of a protector charm was already spreading like wildfire through the media.

No, being caught couldn't be an option.

Nino waved his hand in front of his friend's face. "Dude, are you psyching out or something?"

Adrien blinked, coming back to reality. He looked up at his friend and gave him a guilty smile. "Sorry, Nino. I guess I'm just really tired."

Nino gave him a scan through. "Yeah, you don't look too hot, dude. It looks like you got attacked by a wild bird."

"More like three of them..."

"Huh?"

Adrien forced a smile. "Nothing!"

His friend gave him a raised eyebrow but didn't bring up his comment.

"So... what are you going to do, man? Your father is picking sides."

"Nino," Adrien stated, "I have been too."

"Well, you're allowed to! This whole thing is for you, bro."

Adrien bit the inside of his cheek in order to stop him from spilling his secret. You don't know the half of it, buddy...

"In all honesty, Nino, I have no idea what I'm going to do. There really isn't anything I can do."

His friend sighed, collapsing onto the couch next to him. "I guess all we can hope for is the Ladybug's protector charm to step in." He patted his friend's shoulder. "He'll take care of her, don't worry, man."

Adrien slumped lower. You don't know that, Nino... You don't know even the half of it...

He had to get out of here. His father was up to something, whatever it may be, and it needed to be put to a stop. He had probably ordered the Game Master to do some sort of terrible, horrible deed. Chat Noir had to do some investigating.

* * *

Around noon, Chat Noir was barely able to sneak out of the house. It hadn't been an easy task, thanks to Natalie, but once he begged for a shower instead of having lunch, she had agreed. Hygiene was important after all.

Chat jumped onto the roof, trying to stick to the shadows as much as possible. His black suit stuck out like a sore thumb, but he had no other choice. Ladybug's life was in danger.

Peeking around the corner of a chimney, Chat scanned the area. Nothing. Now was his chance.

With a quick leap and a slide down his staff, he dropped down in an alleyway next to the building that the Game Master used as a lair. Chat tried to keep his head down, for risk of being recognized. People began to walk up and down the streets once more. Wearing all black with tech ears and a belt as a tail, Adrien was sure he was going to get caught and the poor Chat costume would have to be stored away for a long time.

No, Marinette was in danger. He had to risk it.

People passed by the alley, all chatting with someone, looking at their personal devices, or watching the live feed from the arena on the many billboards that were in the area. Chat waited for them to clear out, but in the meantime, he watched the billboard. Alec and Nadja were having a discussion on one of the charm's personal life. As they talked, the billboard flickered with different scenes of the Charms in the arena. At the moment, the camera was focused on Queen Bee, who was having a hard time washing out mud from her 'perfect golden locks'.

Chat snorted. She totally deserved it.

The scene then flipped to a tree shot that looked down on a tent. Two individuals were sleeping soundly inside. Adrien's expression softened. It was Marinette and Nathanael. His lady was stirring, but still not yet awake.

She was adorable when she slept.

The camera switched again, yet, this time, Chat had lost interest in the feed. He scanned the area again. Clear. Time to go.

He dashed into the government building, being careful to close the door silently behind him. Once he was inside, he ducked behind a plant. He had barely missed being seen by a government official. Breathing out a sigh of relief, he began to sneak toward the entrance to the Game Master's lair. It took him a few minutes, but he was able to get inside without being seen.

As he closed the painting, his high-tech ears twitched. It caught the sound of shuffling. Chat launched himself up into the rafters, scanning his gaze across the area. The room was still dark and he couldn't see any lower than the catwalk, but that didn't matter. He could see the Game Master at his console.

Creeping forward, Chat's ears twitched as they took in the ticking the Game Master's fingers tapping his keyboard. A string of code was projected in front of the Game Master, but Chat couldn't read what exactly it said. He stopped at the end of the rafters, leaning down in order to get a better view. What was the Game Master doing?

Just then, he scoffed and almost sent Chat jumping five feet in the air.

"We'll see how well our so-called 'Miraculous' Ladybug can withstand this."

Before Chat could connect the dots of whose voice that sounded like, the Game Master hit the enter button on his keyboard. The code swirled, turning into a funnel of numbers, letters, and dashes before spun itself into the arena -- all the way around the spot where Nathanael and Marinette were sleeping.

Chat watched on in horror as the trees around them erupted in flame. His heart pounded in his ears, no doubt throwing the high-tech sensors off. As much as he had hacked the Game Master's console, he had no clue how to turn a command off. And even if he did, he knew he would be too late. Even if he could run as fast as his legs could carry him to the arena, he wouldn't make it.

With his eyes watering, Chat stared down at the Game Master, who typed in something that Adrien didn't recognize. A giant lock appeared in the hologram. It was locked.

There was no stopping what the Game Master had done.

* * *

Marinette yawned, awakening from a groggy dream state. She had barely gotten any sleep the night before, but even as the sun came up, she was able to catch a few Z's.

Something tingled in her nose. She sniffed. Was that smoke?

She opened her eyes. It was blurry at first, but once she blinked a couple times, the danger came into focus:

Fire.

She sat bolt upright, starting to shake Nathanael.

"Nathanael! Nate! Get up!"

He moaned, brushing her off. "Just a few more minutes..."

"Nathanael, get up! We're gonna die!" She shook him harder. Behind her, she noticed the edge of the tarp catch aflame. "Nathan! Please, get up!"

He opened his eyes, staring groggily up at her. "W-what?"

"We need to go! The tent is on fire!"

That got him up and moving. Panic was evident in his expression as he tried to scramble to his feet. Marinette scooped up the mostly-empty red backpack and grabbed Nathanael's arm.

"We have to run, now!"

The stumbled out of the tent, only to find that the forest all around them was up in flames. Marinette spun in a circle, trying to find a way out. Chat, where are you when I need you? From what she could see, it was pretty-

"There!" She exclaimed. Her finger pointed to an opening in the flames. It was barely big enough to jump through. It was the only exit.

"We won't make it," Nathanael insisted.

"We have to try."

Hand in hand, Marinette and Nathanael rushed toward the opening. It took a minute of Marinette dragging Fox along before he finally got in the groove. He pulled ahead and jumped first. He safely hit the other side before the flames could lick at his skin.

Marinette was not so lucky.

She yelped from the flames but was able to backpedal before she had been engulfed.

"Marinette!" Nathan shouted through the heat.

"I'm okay! I'll find a way out. Get to safety!"

"No, I'm not leaving you!"

"You can't stay here. You're going to get burnt." She met his gaze through the blaze. "I promise I'll find you, okay? Find somewhere safe to hide." She gave him a sad smile. "Be the sly fox I know you are."

Nathanael looked like he wanted to protest, but a tree next to them ended their conversation. The trunk cracked and, as a result, it began to fall.

"Run!" Marinette demanded. She didn't see his expression after that. The tree crashed to the ground, hot coals and heat flaring up from its base. Marinette screamed, the flames engulfing her for a painfully agonizing second. She hit the ground, coughing and gasping. The air had been stolen from her lungs.

The fire closed in around her. The smoke filled the air until Marinette was positive that there was no more oxygen in the world. The flames around her grew closer and hotter.

"C-chat," she coughed out, "Chat, I need you..." She tried to crawl away, but the fire quickly ate its way onto her clothes. Another tree tipped, hitting the ground and covering Marinette in burning ash. She screamed with what air she had left.

In desperation, she reached down to her waist holster. Her grappling hook was searing hot, but she knew that there was no other way out.

Gripping it tightly, she bit back a scream and pulled it out. Pointing it into the unknown, smokey sky, she sent out a silent prayer. Please, get me out of here.

BANG!

* * *

"She shot blindly!" Alec exclaimed, throwing his hands up. "You have to admit that it was a crazy move, Nadja!"

"It was quite impressive," Miss Chamach agreed.

"Do you think she'll have some serious burns?" he asked.

Nadja nodded. "Without a doubt. The thing that concerns me the most is if she'll be able to survive her injuries. The burns must be life threatening."

"Who knows? Maybe her protective charm will step back in."

"That is always a possibility, Alec. Anything's possible in the Miraculous Games." 

---

Hey guys! 

First off, I owe you all an apology. I had been working on this chapter for a while, but I kinda pushed it to the backburner. I've been trying to finish my Kindred Spirit manuscript, 2nd book to Soul Mate, before the end of the month, so yeah... that's my excuse... I'm sorry... 

Good news is that I know exactly what I'm going to be doing in the next, like 6 chapters of this book! If I find the gumption, I plan on updating as soon as possible. 

Thank you so much for all the support you guys give me. Every vote and comment keeps me going. 

And, speaking of votes, be sure to leave one before you leave, please!

As always, have a miraculous day everyone. :)