Chapter Text
"I've been expecting you, hero." Kurogiri said. He had been—for all of the last fifteen minutes. Anyway, it seemed like an appropriately dramatic and villainous thing to say.
The ranger standing at the other end of the corridor was difficult to make out. It was too dark. All for One had not invested much thought into lighting his evil tower of necromancy and all things nefarious. The man had gone blind long ago.
"Well?" Kurogiri said, because the ranger still hadn't said anything, and he needed to start a conversation. Tomura had the teleportation tome—he would be able to copy portions of it and sell them. There was a market for that in Tokyo. He would be safe and provided for.
But all that meant the tome was not here now. Left without his magic, Kurigiri had only one remaining move. He had to choose his moment carefully.
"Are you the one who built this place?" the ranger said, taking another step forward. The shadows still covered his face. "Did you fill these rooms? Is this your magic?"
"Yes," Kurogiri said. It wasn't true. But All for One was dead, and Tomura was running ship-shod over the desert wastes. In time he would be sure footed, he would find his stride.
Kurogiri would buy that time for him.
"It won't work," the ranger continued, "Your magic won't work now."
The man was still moving, like he thought Kurogiri might not notice his approach if he went slow enough. He must be used to creeping up on deer, who ran at movement. Now he treated his enemies as his prey. That was his mistake. Kurogiri was one setting snares within these walls. He knew exactly what it took to stop a would-be hero.
Some weeks ago, a dragon had landed on this side of the tower—stayed for a while and then taken off again. In the meantime there had been a fight between it and some undead constructs. Without All for One giving directions, no one had bothered to repair the damage.
“Come quietly,” the ranger said, and he grabbed Kurogiri’s arm. For the first time the edges of his face were visible—just the impression of an unshaven chin and red rimmed eyes.
With his free hand, Kurogiri yanked out the linchpin stone from the broken wall they stood under.