The darkness inside Ground Epsilon was absolute. It wasn't just the absence of light, but a tangible presence, a thick blanket that muffled sound, disoriented direction, and played tricks on the mind. The air inside felt cold and stale, a remnant of the ventilation system now running on emergency power, carrying with it the faint smell of damp concrete and old metal. It was in the middle of this lightless world that the most unlikely of alliances began to take its first steps.
Mine's bare hand felt small and trembled slightly on the shoulder plate of Tatsumi's Incursio armor. The metal felt cold and solid beneath her palm. Every step Tatsumi took was steady and confident, becoming Mine's only anchor in this sea of darkness. She hated this feeling. She hated having to depend on anyone, let alone the young man who had shattered her pride the day before. Every second she had to suppress the urge to pull her hand away and scream, but cold logic—and frankly, a little bit of fear—kept her silent and following.
For Tatsumi, the sensation was no less strange. Mine's presence behind him was a constant awareness. The echo of the soul within him hummed with a confusing energy—a mixture of a strong protective instinct and a familiar annoyance. His analytical mind, however, was fully focused on the mission. He moved with a silence he had learned from Akame, each step calculated. His thermal visor gave him a blurry image of the world, a ghostly painting made of residual heat. The pipes on the walls glowed faintly, while the concrete floor remained dark and cold. He wasn't just walking; he was mapping. Thirty steps straight, a ninety-degree turn to the left, there's a three-way fork ahead.
"The corridor forks into three paths ahead," Tatsumi whispered, his voice, muffled by his helmet, sounding otherworldly in the silence. "Left seems to descend to a lower level. Right looks like a dead end, maybe a storage room. Straight ahead seems to be the main path."
"How can you tell?" Mine retorted, her voice tense.
"Thermal sensors detect changes in temperature and airflow. The main path has the most consistent airflow," Tatsumi explained. "We'll stick to the main path for now. It's easier to track our position."
Mine didn't answer. She just tightened her grip slightly. She was beginning to realize that Tatsumi's calmness wasn't arrogance, but pure competence. And that, for some reason, made her even more irritated and a little... impressed.
Elsewhere in the Labyrinth
Elsewhere in the dark facility, a very different approach was being taken. Katsuki Bakugo, who had no patience for moving silently, had found his own way to "see."
BOOM!
A small, controlled explosion erupted from his palm, momentarily illuminating the wide corridor. In that flash of light, his sharp eyes recorded every detail—doors, intersections, potential hiding spots—before the darkness swallowed everything again. He would then listen carefully to the echo of his explosion, using a primitive sonar to sense the size and shape of the space ahead. It was a noisy, reckless, and extremely dangerous method as it gave away his position to everyone around. But it was his method. He wasn't trying to hide. He was hunting.
Meanwhile, the two most analytical students in Class 1-A had coincidentally found each other. Momo Yaoyorozu, who was fumbling along a wall, nearly collided with Shoto Todoroki. After a tense moment where both almost attacked each other, they quickly realized they were on the same team after using their flares in perfect synchronization. Now, they moved as a highly efficient unit.
"I can create a dim chemical light source," Momo whispered, "but it would make us a target."
"No need," Todoroki replied. He placed his right palm on the wall. A very thin layer of ice began to creep along the surface, spreading throughout the corridor. "I can feel vibrations through the ice. If anyone moves near us, I'll know." He then lit a small, thumb-sized flame on his left palm, providing just enough light for them to see, but not enough to be seen from a distance. They were a team of professional heroes in training, turning the situation's weakness into their strength.
The Encounter at the Intersection
Tatsumi and Mine had been walking for nearly fifteen minutes. The awkward silence between them had begun to thaw slightly, replaced by the synchronized rhythm of their footsteps.
"So... that shield from yesterday," Mine suddenly spoke, her voice quieter now, her curiosity overcoming her pride. "It's not part of your main armor, is it? I've never seen you use it."
Tatsumi paused for a moment. "It's... a partial manifestation," he replied, choosing his words carefully. "Faster than summoning the full armor, but also weaker. I'm still practicing it."
"Weaker?" Mine muttered, more to herself. "That thing blocked my strongest attack like it was nothing."
Before Tatsumi could answer, he stopped completely, raising a hand to signal Mine to be quiet. His thermal visor had picked up something. A heat signature, hiding behind an intersection ahead. Unmoving. Waiting.
"Someone's ahead," he whispered. "In ambush."
Mine immediately went on alert, raising her Pumpkin. "Friend or foe?"
"Don't know. And I don't want to risk starting a blind fight," Tatsumi replied. "We have to use the flare. It's the only way to know for sure."
Mine gritted her teeth. Using their only flare felt like a waste. But she also knew Tatsumi was right. It was the logical tactical decision. "Fine," she hissed. "But if it's red, I'm shooting first."
"Deal," Tatsumi said. He took out the small flare tube from his belt. "In three... two... one..."
He snapped the flare.
FSSSHHH!
The corridor was instantly flooded with a bright green light for ten seconds. No, not green. Red. A menacing red light.
And in that red light, they saw her. Standing at the corner, in a ready-to-attack posture, was Ochako Uraraka. Her usually cheerful face now looked tense and determined.
The light died, plunging them back into a darkness that was even deeper than before, leaving a red afterimage on their retinas.
The silence was now filled with a new, dangerous knowledge. Uraraka was an opponent. She knew where they were. And they had just wasted their only identification tool.
A Spark in the Darkness
Uraraka wasted no time. From the darkness, she touched the ceiling above Tatsumi and Mine's last known position. With a soft hiss, a large section of the ceiling panel and the pipes above it lost their weight and began to fall silently towards them.
"Get down!" Tatsumi shouted, his instincts taking over. He pulled Mine down and covered her with his armored body, becoming a living shield as the rain of light debris hit his back with dull thuds.
Beneath him, Mine felt her heart pound, a mixture of fear and... something else she couldn't identify. She was trapped between the cold floor and Tatsumi's solid body.
"I can't see her, but I know roughly where she is!" Mine hissed from under Tatsumi. She tried to aim her Pumpkin towards the corner. "Give me some light! Just a little!"
It was a request based on blind trust, a request she would never have made a day ago.
Tatsumi didn't hesitate. "Get ready!"
He channeled the last flicker of energy he had saved, not for an attack or defense, but just for illumination. The green lines on his armor glowed with a dim light for less than a second.
For Mine, one second was more than enough. In that flash of green light, she saw the silhouette of Uraraka preparing for a second attack. She didn't shoot to injure. She shot the wall next to Uraraka.
BLAM!
The muffled energy shot hit the wall, creating a small explosion that momentarily lit up the corridor and sent a shockwave that made Uraraka stumble back. In the distance, they heard the sound of her quick footsteps as she retreated to find a new position.
They were safe. For now.
Tatsumi got up, helping Mine to her feet. They were back in total darkness, their breaths ragged.
"Good shot," Tatsumi said, his voice sincere.
There was a brief pause, then Mine's voice came through, quieter and less sharp than usual. "...Good cover."
In the total darkness in the heart of the enemy facility, a seed of reluctant respect and an unexpected partnership began to grow between the dragon and the sniper. They might still be rivals, but tonight, they were comrades-in-arms.