The events of yesterday still lingered in the air like smoke.
Paris was safe once more — thanks to a mysterious new hero with wings of flame. The city was buzzing with speculation, every news channel analyzing the battle footage, every influencer theorizing. Some believed he was connected to Ladybug. Others thought he was a rogue vigilante. But no one could confirm a thing.
And that's exactly how Kai wanted it.
Hidden.
Just a quiet student in class. Not a firebird streaking across the sky.
But reality had different plans.
Marinette whispered to Alya, her best friend and the one running the Ladyblog. "Did you get a better shot of him?"
Alya nodded. "Better than the grainy rooftop ones — I've got slowed-down footage of him clashing with Gearcrash. He's fast, Mari. Like, really fast. And the fire? It's not like anything we've seen before. No Miraculous we've tracked does that."
Adrien leaned over. "Maybe he's a rogue hero?"
Alya rolled her eyes. "More like an undercover one. That kind of coordination? That's trained. Either Ladybug knows who he is — or she's scrambling to figure it out, too."
Kai sat a few seats away, quietly scribbling in his notebook, though he wasn't writing anything. Fiero's voice echoed in his head.
"Your aura's leaking again."
He gritted his teeth. "Sorry. Still getting used to... whatever this is."
"Your flame reacts to strong emotions. Excitement. Frustration. Attraction."
Kai paused.
"Wait, what?"
Fiero chuckled. "Just an observation, flamehead."
Kai quickly closed his book, his ears tinged pink. He glanced forward — Juleka sat just a row ahead. She wasn't looking back. But somehow, he knew she'd heard something.
Gabriel Agreste stood beneath the glowing chrysalis-like machine, his jaw clenched.
"Phoenix Blaze… A new flame in my perfect plan." He turned to Nooroo, his purple kwami.
"Too unpredictable. Too powerful. I need time to understand him."
"What will you do, Master?" Nooroo asked gently.
Gabriel stepped toward a new white mask.
"I will watch. And while I watch, I will make Paris tremble. One crack at a time."
The sound of clanging echoed in the background as a young woman tightened bolts on a motorcycle engine. She wore grease-stained jeans, a cropped jacket, and a headband that pushed her bangs back.
Her name was Selene Rochard — a local gearhead and robotics enthusiast.
Selene had once been on the short list to intern at a prestigious engineering university.
Until the application was "lost."
Then the scholarship vanished.
Then her family garage was bought out by a corporate chain.
One injustice at a time — until now, she stood bitter, broke, and building alone.
"I'm so tired," she muttered, smashing a wrench against the floor. "Tired of doing everything right, only to be stepped on."
A soft breeze passed through the room… and turned cold.
Purple butterflies fluttered in.
Hawk Moth's voice echoed inside her mind.
"You've been pushed down too long. Let me give you the strength to strike back."
Her eyes glowed violet.
"Call me… Voltline."
Kai crouched along the ridge of an old cathedral, watching the skyline. Fiero floated beside him, unusually still.
"You feel that?"
Fiero's eyes narrowed. "Yes. Another one's coming."
Suddenly, the power grid in three city blocks shut off — boom. Darkness swept across the Seine. Only the flicker of backup lights from buildings remained.
Then, a humming sound began.
Electricity surged into the sky like a whip.
Kai stood, fire coiling around his arms.
"Guess break time's over."
Transformation Sequence
"Blaze up! PHOENIX BLAZE!"
The golden flame spiraled upward like a tornado. Kai emerged in his armored form, his fiery wings unfurled, burning brighter than ever.
He soared toward the tower near the blackout zone.
Voltline hovered above a broken radio tower, suspended by magnetic coils around her wrists and heels. Her suit crackled with charged circuits and glowing blue veins.
"You heroes only save the city," she spat. "But what about people? What about me?"
Kai hovered in the air across from her. "You don't need to do this. You can rebuild your life."
"Rebuild?" Voltline laughed bitterly. "That's easy to say when you're already flying."
Electric tendrils lashed out toward him. Phoenix Blaze twirled, dodging between sparks.
He retaliated with a fire arc — but Voltline absorbed it, converting it to energy.
Fiero's voice crackled: "She's using kinetic absorption! Don't give her fuel!"
"Noted!" Kai grunted.
He dove toward the base of the tower instead, slicing through the circuit conduits with a flaming blade. Voltline shrieked as her coils lost synchronization and her flight faltered.
Kai closed the distance.
The akumatized object — a broken internship badge — glowed inside her visor.
"Time to cool down," he said.
He launched a small flame missile — carefully controlled — right at the badge.
BOOM. The badge shattered.
The corrupted butterfly emerged. Kai reached forward.
"Phoenix Seal!"
The purifying flame burst through the night sky.
The butterfly floated away.
Selene collapsed, tears streaming down her face.
"I… I just wanted to make something of myself…"
Kai caught her. "You still can."
Later, Kai returned to his perch above the Seine.
Another saved.
Marinette, in her Ladybug attire, appeared quietly beside him.
"…You're good," she said simply.
He didn't look at her. "You too."
"Do I get a name?" she asked.
Kai smirked. "Phoenix Blaze."
She smiled. "Nice to meet you, Blaze. Let's see if you can keep up."
With that, she vanished.
Kai stood still.
Heart racing.