Chapter Text
Adrien Agreste, aka Chat Noir, was in charge of security on the Miraculous Spacecraft.
It was his job to find any possible safety threats and eliminate them.
He checked the oxygen every day. He ran stability checks on the engine and reactors. He made sure that the ship's data was synced, so that information from the navigation could reach the engine.
The best part of his job was when he got to blow up asteroids. Chat Noir was known for destruction. In a good way. When the spacecraft entered uncharted asteroid fields, he was in charge of blasting the biggest ones, while Ladybug steered them to safety.
Ladybug.
The captain Ladybug was miraculous. Adrien admired her spirit, her commitment to science, her intelligence, her voice, the way she talked about earth. He admired everything about her.
And maybe, just maybe, he had a little bit of a crush on her. He wasn't going to say anything, because that would be weird. He didn't even really know her that well. Her favorite color was pink, and she was wicked at card games, which they played during breaks, but he didn't know her name.
He didn't know any of their names. Carapace, Rena Rouge, Ryuko, Viperion, Pegasus, and Queen Bee, were all just faces behind masks.
He had no idea what any of them looked like. They kept their helmets on most of the time, just in case anything happened. If there was an oxygen leak, already having the helmets would give them the extra seconds, minutes, that they needed to survive.
It was a safety precaution, more than a secret.
There were a lot of secrets aboard the ship.
Keeping the mission a secret was part of the contract they signed.
If anything on this mission went wrong, no one would know what happened to Adrien Agreste.
Chat Noir would be remembered as a failure, if he failed to secure the ship.
The other area that Adrien had been intensely trained in was Alien invasion. The only way to deal with a hostile species was violence. The safety of his crew mattered, first and foremost.
Not that Adrien believed in Aliens.
(Well, he believed that there could be life outside of earth. Plants, and basic lifeforms could possibly thrive on other planets.)
Adrien didn't believe in sentient alien lifeforms.
He was told to be prepared for anything, from a classic ufo and green-eyed monster, to shape-shifting creatures who pretended to be a part of the crew, gaining trust before killing everyone.
It sounded like something out of science fiction. The information that Adrien had been given was vague and boring.
It didn't even confirm the existence of Aliens, it just listed possible varieties.
Basically, it was a load of shit. It was conspiracy theories and nutjobs.
Adrien focused more on actual, real threats to security, like giant asteroids, rather than hypothetical threats like Aliens.
So many things would destroy them before Aliens.
He was standing in weapons, showing Queen Bee how to aim and destroy asteroids, when an alarm went off.
Adrien was an expert on the ship's emergency alarm system. He had memorized every life-threatening alert, and dangerous beep.
So it was weird that he didn't recognize this alarm.
"Emergency team meeting."
"What?" They had been aboard the spacecraft for months. Months.
There had never been an emergency team meeting.
Queen Bee started sprinting towards the cafeteria.
Chat Noir followed closely behind.
It probably wasn't a life and death scenario. If Adrien had to guess, it was about food supplies. They weren't running low, but the greenhouse hadn't worked as well as planned. The lack of sunlight stunted the plant's growth, which was a problem.
They had enough to survive, but not enough for any extra.
By the time Adrien got to the Cafeteria, there were six other astronauts waiting there.
Ladybug cleared her throat. "I bet you're wondering why I gathered you here today."
Carapace folded his arms. "I was in the middle of rewiring the navigation board, this better be important."
"Chat Noir was teaching me how the guns work." Queen Bee whined. "I really want to keep learning from him."
There was some sort of message she was trying to send. Adrien wasn't sure what it was and he didn't care. There was no time to flirt on a spaceship.
He ignored Queen Bee and did a quick head count. Something wasn't adding up.
There was Ladybug, and Ryuko, and Queen Bee, and Carapace and Rena Rouge and Pegasus-
Adrien. "Shouldn't we wait for Viperion?"
Ladybug's shoulders started shaking and she sat down.
At first, Adrien thought she was laughing.
Ryuko pushed everyone back. "Give Ladybug space, she's panicking."
They followed the command. Ryuko was the highest ranked Astronaut, after Ladybug.
If Ladybug was incapacitated, all power went to Ryuko. She was in charge.
"No-" Ladybug choked out, "stay here."
Hesitantly, they all stepped closer.
"Viperion... he's gone." Ladybug shuddered.
Adrien hated the slight relief he felt. Ladybug and Viperion had been so close. A little too close, not that it was any of his business.
He wasn't making a move anyways.
Ladybug needed support. A friend.
And Adrien had to do his job as head of security.
"How did it happen?"
"He.. stabbed... not an accident." She muttered.
He sat down next to her. "Did you see who did it?"
A nod.
"Can you tell me?"
Ladybug started sobbing.
"Hey, buggaboo, it's okay. All you need to do is point, and I'll deal with the threat."
Slowly, Ladybug raised her arm and pointed at the person that Adrien expected least.
Her second in command.
Ryuko.
Before anyone could react, Adrien pulled out his handcuffs and cuffed Ryuko. "Why?"
Ryuko laughed. It was a deep, sinister laugh. It didn't feel human. "I was just completing my mission."
"You were supposed to be rerouting the navigation-" Ladybug sobbed.
"The old Ryuko was supposed to do that." Ryuko chuckled. "My mission was to get rid of all of you."
"And, how exactly do you plan to do that?" Adrien crossed his arms. "You have no idea how many security measures I've put up."
"Only four that I could disable."
The lights flickered. The oxygen alarm started beeping. That was two.
Hopefully she was bluffing.
Adrien sent Carapace and Rena Rouge to fix the Oxygen. He sent Pegasus alone, to fix the electricity. Pegasus was highly skilled with technology. He would be able to fix it before anyone else.
"How are you doing this? Why would you kill another human?" He shook Ryuko's shoulders, searching for an answer.
"Bold of you to assume I'm human."
It was Queen Bee who asked the question they had all been too afraid to ask. "If you aren't human, what are you?"
"Me?" Ryuko laughed again. "Haven't you figured it out, Chat Noir? You did study my kind to the best of your abilities."
"An alien?" Adrien frowned. "I didn't realize you were real."
"I'm not just any alien. I'm an imposter."
"Those aren't real." He denied. "They're just theoretical."
"Oh believe me," Ryuko cackled, "I'm as real as you are. Akuma
"Akuma, that's what you call yourself?" He was stalling, trying to figure out a way to defeat her. She hadn't given him much information, but maybe-
Ryuko sighed. "That's one name. Akuma, Imposter, Shape-Shifter, its all the same-"
Adrien didn't remember much about the imposter-types. He had only heard of the akuma once. They were a parasite, that looked like dark butterflies. They were supposed to fly towards an unsuspecting victim, entering the bloodstream within seconds.
Once they invaded a body, they had complete control. They could rewire the brain and mimic language. All they wanted was to kill.
And as far as anyone knew, no way to reverse the effects of an akuma.
Definitely a major security threat.
Ladybug looked up at Adrien. "You're familiar?"
He swallowed. "Unfortunately."
The words Ryuko said next gave Adrien more fear than he had ever felt in his life.
"And I'm not alone."
Ryuko pulled her arms out of the cuffs and procured a knife.
She took a deep dive towards Ladybug, and-
Queen Bee stabbed a sharp needle into her arm.
Ryuko's body slumped to the floor. Motionless.
She looked dead.
"Have you been experimenting with medical supplies again?" Adrien asked as Ladybug looked up at Queen Bee.
"What the hell was that, Queenie?"
"It was Venom." Queen Bee gave a syringe to Ladybug and one to Adrien himself. "A very potent paralyzing agent of my own invention."
"Why?"
"In case one of you went crazy, or needs medical help. I don't have anesthesia and I'm not doing surgery on a wiggling body."
"Thats.. terrifying." Adrien admitted.
"..genius." Ladybug nodded.
"How long does it last?"
Queen Bee shrugged. "On me, a few hours. If she's really an alien, I have no idea."
"We have to take her away." Adrien frowned. "I don't know what to do with her, but she's a threat to everyone's safety. I think we can lock her up in the medbay, if we strap her down."
Ladybug shook her head. "There's a protocol for this."
"There is?"
"Protocol F."
Adrien had the safety manual memorized. Why couldn't he think of protocol F- "isn't that only in worst case scenario, if someone becomes unstable?"
"She's already killed one. She tried to kill me." Ladybug frowned. "But if you have a better idea, let me know, Mr..Security, since you're so great at making sure we all stay alive."
That was harsh, and it stung.
Ladybug knew it too. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean-"
"You're right." Adrien took a deep breath. "Its the only option to ensure the safety of everyone else."
"I'd say that she qualifies as unstable." Queen Bee agreed. "I diagnose her with the medically insane."
"This isn't a time to joke."
"Its how I cope, sorry. I can grab her arms?"
With Queen Bee's help, Adrien dragged Ryuko to the trash dump.
He frowned. "I wish there was another way. Do you know anything about extracting Alien parasites?"
Queen Bee shook her head. "No, I'm trained in science, not science fiction."
"Me too." Adrien and Queen Bee threw Ryuko's wiggling body into the trash bin.
"I thought it was supposed to last an hour," Adrien whisper-shouted.
"It is!" Queen Bee snapped back.
Ryuko was laughing hysterically. "Don't you want to know who the other imposter is?"
"You're bluffing." Adrien glared. "It was only you."
"But what if I'm not bluffing?"
The idea was too terrifying to imagine.
Adrien had already let down one member of his crew. Ryuko would be the last. "Say Adios-"
He slammed the trashbin shut, as Queen Bee pulled the lever, to expel the trash into the vacuum of space.
At this point, the best thing to hope for was that Ryuko was really gone.
It would be too cruel a death.
After they launched her into the deep abyss of space, both Queen Bee and Chat Noir, sat down and breathed.
"What if she was right?" Queen Bee's hands were shaking. "What if there's another, waiting to kill us?"
"There isn't." Adrien tried to reassure her, but they both knew he had no idea.
Neither of them knew anything.
They sat there together for a few minutes.
"I killed her." Queen Bee took a deep breath. "It's my fault."
"Its what we had to do." Adrien frowned. "I'm as much to blame as you are."
The words were supposed to be inspiring, but they did nothing to ease the pit in his stomach.
Adrien had already failed. Two members of the crew had been compromised. Maybe one more.
It was all his fault.
When the oxygen alarms stopped blaring, Adrien took a deep breath and stood up. "Sounds like Carapace and Rena succeeded."
The lights flickered.
"Pegasus didn't."
"Not yet, at least." Adrien grabbed Queen Bee's hand and pulled her up. "Come on, we should check on Ladybug."
"You're right." Queen Bee shook her head. "We need to focus on what we have, not what we've lost."
"Ryuko was a great astronaut." Adrien looked at the trash dump. "She will be missed-"
"She was my girlfriend, you idiot." Queen Bee let out a choked sob.
Adrien really wasn't trained to deal with emotions. "I'm sorry."
"You failed her. You failed us." She sobbed.
"I know." Adrien grit his teeth. "I won't let it happen again."
"Promise?" She held out a hand.
He shook it, even though he had no way of knowing what could happen. Safety was never a guarantee.
Adrien lied. "I promise."
Queen Bee nodded. "Before we go back to Ladybug, I need to go to the bathroom. Its been a long day."
"Yeah." It had been the longest day of Adrien's life. He lost a crew member, and had to eliminate another.
"Can you wait outside? I don't want to be alone."
"Of course." Adrien gulped. "I won't let anything happen to you."
As promised, nothing happened to her. After five minutes, she left the bathroom, and Adrien took his turn, which was faster.
Then, together, they walked back to Ladybug.
By the time Adrien and Queen Bee got back to the Cafeteria, Rena Rouge and Carapace were already sitting with Ladybug.
Queen Bee rushed over and gave Ladybug a hug.
The two women, two of the strongest women Adrien had ever met, broke down sobbing.
It was heart wrenching, but Adrien had to focus on safety.
He did a quick headcount. The only person missing was Pegasus.
"He's still working on the lights?" Adrien frowned.
"Yeah." Carapace nodded.
"Me and Cara checked on him before heading back here. He said he didn't need our help."
"How long ago was that?"
"Maybe half an hour ago?"
That was when Chat and Queen Bee had been sitting on the ground. When they felt the crushing weight of guilt of killing another being.
Adrien stood up. "I should check on him."
"He's fine." Carapace waved. "You know how he is. Doesnt want to be bothered."
"I thought he would've been done by now."
"Yeah, well I guess Ryuko really messed them up." Ladybug tapped the walkie-talkie on her chest. "She also took out the coms."
"How?" Adrien pulled out his own walkie-talkie. "That should be impossible."
"Apparently not for an imposter."
The rest of the astronauts sat in silence.
The lights kept occasionally flickering.
They were mostly working, but every couple of minutes, there would be a total blackout. It was brief, but long enough for someone to stab someone else.
Everyone sat six feet apart.
There was an unspoken issue of trust.
If you had asked Adrien just one day ago if he trusted his fellow astronauts not to stab him in the back, he would not have hesitated to vouch for them.
Now, all of that trust had vanished.
After a few hours, Ladybug sent Rena Rouge and Carapace to check on Pegasus.
Together.
It wasn't a good idea to send one person out on their own.
That could have been exactly what the imposter wanted. If there was another imposter.
After what felt like an eternity, Rena Rouge and Carapace returned.
Only Rena Rouge and Carapace.
"Pegasus?" Ladybug asked.
Rena Rouge shook her head.
Carapace stared at the floor. "Decapitated."
Queen Bee gasped.
Adrien blinked back tears.
For the second time that day, an emergency meeting was called.
Ladybug looked around the table, at her fellow astronauts, and something wasn't sitting right.
Adrien couldn't see her face, not behind the helmet, but he knew that she wasn't okay. None of them were.
How could they be, after everything that had happened?
Her voice was shaky and hesitant, like she didn't want to admit what she knew.
What they all knew, whether they were willing to accept it or not.
"I think there's an imposter among us."
"But-" Adrien was supposed to secure the ship. He was supposed to keep everyone safe.
He had already failed Viperion and Ryuko.
He couldn't believe that he had failed Pegasus too.
"-Another imposter among us."