Unknown leaned against the headboard of her bed, legs extended in front of her, arms crossed loosely over her stomach. Her eyes lay closed and her head tilted back slightly as her chest rose and fell with each light breath.

The bare walls around her were a soft off-white color, the room was rather empty, containing only a gray-lined bed pushed into a corner and a small white desk against the wall opposite of it. The face of the desk was bare, revealing the faded surface was scratched and slightly discolored from wear. The closet next to it saw the door slightly ajar, enough to see it was mostly empty save for a few items hanging from the metal racks inside, a number of empty clothing hangers, and a cardboard box by the back wall. The air was pleasantly warm, at least in comparison to the ever-growing chill outside, and the single light mounted to the white ceiling remained dormant, leaving the room dark without its glow. Only a distant mechanical humming filled the space of the otherwise silent room.

A knock came at the door.

"What is it?"

"Manager wants to see you," Traceback's quiet voice spoke from outside.

Unknown sighed as she reluctantly opened her eyes. She pushed herself over the edge of the bed as her feet met the carpeted floor. Unhurriedly, she made her way over to the door and pulled it open, watching the shorter redhead shift aside as she stepped into the brightly-lit hallway, squinting a bit as her eyes adjusted. She closed the door behind her with a soft click, and the pair started down the hall.

"What's this about?" Unknown asked, her voice echoing faintly off the painted white walls.

"I'm not sure," Traceback answered quietly, as brief as always. "Sorry."

After a moment of silence, Unknown spoke again.

"How's your training these days?"

"It's alright, thank you."

"I remember you were doing well against Amnestica before I left."

"I'm not as good as her yet, but... I might be soon."

"I think you will."

"Thanks..." She paused for a moment, her eyes briefly flicking up to the older girl's back before her gaze returned to the floor. "...how was UA?"

"It was nice."

"Did you... meet any heroes?"

"A lot, actually."

"Oh, that's good."

Unknown glanced back at her from the corner of her eye. "You know, it's not wrong to want to be a hero."

"But it is."

"Manager isn't always right," she hummed, watching out of the corner of her eyes as the girl frowned slightly, "But then again, what do I know? Don't listen to me," she shrugged. "Anyway, we're here. You can go ahead."

Traceback nodded as they came to a stairwell. Unknown watched as the younger girl stepped past her, down the stairs, and into the living room just below, heading towards a couch where Horus sat with a book in hand. The older girl turned to the right where a plain white door stood, knocking twice before pushing it open.

"Unknown! I was waiting for you," the Manager greeted cheerfully as he waved her over.

She took a seat in front of the small desk, watching as he shuffled a few papers and placed them in a neat pile. "I just got a message from Shigaraki: he needs you to meet up with some of the others later today- something about a new mission."

It had been roughly a week since she returned: roughly a week since they joined the League of Villains. With the tremendous media firestorm around them visible at every turn, Shigaraki had decided to lay low for a while until the attention waned. After all, it would be difficult to do much with the entire country on the lookout for them, though he must have run out of patience as it seemed he was eager to continue with his plans, whatever they were.

"When are we leaving?"

"Just you, actually, and you'll need to head out soon if you want to make it on time."

"Just me?" she furrowed her brows. "How come?"

"Shigaraki formed a new partnership with some yakuza group; apparently their leader asked for you," the Manager hummed, tapping his chin thoughtfully as he leaned back in his seat.

"Isn't that a little… odd?"

"It sure is! They probably want your quirk for some specific purpose- I'm sure we'll find that out soon enough, so in the meantime, let's indulge them a bit."

She glanced down at the desk between them, rubbing her fingers together unconsciously. "Can I ask you something?"

"Of course- what is it?"

"Why did you agree to join the League of Villains?"

The Manager smiled lightheartedly as he tilted his head back, gazing at the ceiling. "Well, our goals are similar enough for now. We can use their numbers and they can use our fame, and besides, I wouldn't say we're joining them exactly; they're just another means to an end."

"What happens when our goals are no longer compatible with theirs?"

"Then we'll go our separate ways."

"I don't think it'll be that easy."

"Probably not. Shigaraki doesn't seem like the type to let people go just like that, especially knowing the kind of trouble we could cause him later on. It might not go as cleanly as we would like, but that's never stopped us before. In the end, we'll do what we have to regardless of who gets in our way, isn't that right?"

Unknown's attention fixated on the desk as she considered his words, and underneath them, his intentions.

"But enough of that! Here's the address of that place you need to get to. You might want to hurry- no good being late!" He smiled as he handed her a small slip of paper with an address scribbled on it.

She nodded, pocketing the note before rising to her feet and moving towards the door.

"Unknown."

She paused, one hand on the metal doorknob. She glanced over her shoulder to see a faint grin on the Manager's face.

"Lay low for now. Go along with whatever they ask, and make sure to keep me updated, alright?" his dark eyes smiled at her.

With a nod, she pulled her gaze away from his and slipped out of the room.

By the time Unknown arrived at the destination point, she was puzzled to see it was a rather normal-looking house. She made her way around the front gate, as Shigaraki had left instructions to meet at the side door, and quickly spotted two familiar figures, as well as a third, unfamiliar one.

"Unknown!" Twice waved enthusiastically as she approached the trio. Toga grinned upon noticing her and offered a wave as well. "Now we're all here!" he declared a little too loudly.

The man next to him, whom she didn't recognize, wore a hooded white robe and a long, tan mask resembling a bird's beak. It wasn't quite what she was expecting from the yakuza.

"Took you long enough," he stated lowly, turning to open the small white door behind him and motioning for them to follow.

The hallways seemed quite normal for a traditional-style building like this- that was until they came to a decorative vase, that upon pushing a series of buttons, opened to reveal a hidden corridor behind it. She followed quietly as the hooded man led them through and into the plain, winding halls, each one seemingly identical to the last.

The metallic walls here were of the same tone as the floors and ceiling, often containing long stretches without any features on either side.

After some considerable amount of time spent weaving through the maze of indistinct halls, they finally stopped in front of a large metal door that looked the same as all the others. The man turned the shining handle and pushed it open. Unknown stepped into the room behind Twice, Toga trailing after her.

Nine men turned their attention to them. Her eyes scanned across the room as she assessed the strangers. They were... quite the group of characters, judging by their unique appearances, and it seemed they had a bit of an affinity for strange masks. The white-cloaked man motioned to the trio expectantly as they exchanged glances.

"I was forced to be here- I'm Toga."

"We look forward to working with you! That's not true!"

"Hi."

"The League of Villains and Sacrosanct?! Let's fight!" a large burly man shouted, undoubtedly ready to jump at them were it not for another man swiftly reprimanding him. Before they could begin to argue, however, one of the other men spoke.

"Good, well in that case, we're glad to have you here. Now that we're working together, all you need to do is follow what I tell you. It would also be helpful to know your quirks."

Her eyes trailed to the sole seated figure in the room, masked like all the rest, though his was notably more intricate. It didn't take much to gather he was the leader, though he seemed a bit young to her.

"I don't want to tell you," Toga mused plainly. She rocked back and forth on her heels, making no effort to hide her disinterest. "I don't really like you yet."

"I'm not telling! No way!" Twice crossed his arms in front of him vehemently.

The man sighed and gestured to a figure behind him.

"What is your quirk?" A man wearing a dark cloak and wide-brimmed hat asked simply. Though a black plague mask obscured his face, she could tell the tilt of his head was pointed towards Twice.

Unknown raised an eyebrow as Twice's unwillingness seemed to all but disappear; a lengthy, enthusiastic explanation of his duplication ability spilled freely from his mouth, complete with exaggerated hand motions and gestures to invisible references behind him. The cloaked man then turned to Toga, asking the same question, and the same unusual display ensued before the girl could stop herself.

'A truth-inducing quirk?' she thought, narrowing her eyes as the blonde next to her made stabbing motions with her hands. The very next moment, she seemed to abruptly return to her senses, eyes round and blinking in confusion.

Lastly, the man turned to Unknown as he repeated the same question once again. "What is your quirk?"

An unpleasant compulsion flooded over her as her mouth opened on its own. "Pressure manipulation. I can affect the pressure exerted by anything within sight. I can only activate it on objects I'm touching or those I can clearly see, but that's only for activation; I can maintain it afterward even if I break contact. I can produce larger changes on closer objects. Touching me is dangerous." She bit back a frown as she internally gagged in repulsion. The foreign tingle finally left her body as she mulled over how much she did not appreciate that experience. Fortunately, her answer seemed to please the man as he turned to address all three of them.

"Did you hear anything from Shigaraki about betrayal?"

The "no" escaped from her lips at the same time as the other two. Her fingers twitched in silent irritation as the discomfort burned through her veins.

"Very good," the seated man spoke again, leaning forward to rest his elbows on his knees. "Now, since you'll be here often, you should be familiar with the base. Mimic will show you what you need to know."

The small hooded figure next to him stepped forward and gestured assertively towards them. "Follow me, and make sure to keep up!" he ordered, already headed towards the door.

The three collectively bit their tongues, resisting the urge to step on the tiny man before reluctantly following behind him. Before they could move, however, the young leader spoke again.

"Not you, Unknown."

She turned around, dark eyes instantly meeting golden ones. He rose to his feet, brushing off invisible specs of dirt from his clothing, and approached her languidly.

"Come with me," he said, stepping past her without a second glance.

She looked to Twice and Toga questioningly, but they seemed equally as puzzled.

"Don't let him do anything creepy to you," Toga whispered loudly, hands cupping her mouth. Twice only had time to shoot her two thumbs up before they were led away by Mimic and his incessant shouting.

"Come," the white-cloaked man motioned impatiently.

She turned back to him, now standing next to the dark-haired leader, and quietly followed them out of the room.

Unknown trailed just behind the two men as they made their way through the repeating hallways with practiced ease. After a few minutes with only the clicking of their soles to fill the invasive silence, her curiosity got the better of her.

"So who are you?" she asked flatly.

The cloaked man looked back at her with what she imagined to be an incredulous expression, judging by his posture.

"What? Shigaraki didn't tell you?"

"No."

The man shook his head and returned his attention to the hall in front of them. "We're Shie Hassaikai. This is our leader, Overhaul, and I'm Chronostasis, his right hand."

"Sure. Why am I here?"

"Watch your tone," he spat sharply, "You need to learn some respect or else I won't hesitate to-"

"It's fine, Chrono," Overhaul breathed dismissively, causing the said man to fall silent. He didn't look back at her as he spoke. "I have a job for you. You have a good quirk; I'm going to put it to use."

"And what job might that be?" she questioned. She watched as Overhaul stopped next to a large metal door and pushed it open, the hinges groaning quietly. She followed after the men, stepping into a large, old laboratory that smelled of iron.

Chrono approached one of the plain white cabinets and pulled out an empty metal beaker. He moved towards a set of large glass cylinders: tube-shaped contraptions that each stood at least three feet wide and nearly reached the ceiling. He located a small control panel, pressing a button that caused a part of the glass wall on the far right cylinder to open. He placed the container in the center of the raised metal platform.

"Use your quirk here," he instructed, closing the chamber door.

She looked at the container closely. The metal was gray and dull, even under the bright lights of the laboratory. It was certainly well-used, with visible wear and faint scratches marring the inside and outside alike, though notably, it was free of any rust or corrosion. After a moment, she shifted her gaze to the large machine containing it, slowly scanning the cylinder from top to bottom. There were two layers of thick glass making up its walls; the base of the machine and the inside platform seemed to be made of a metal similar to the beaker; both were also dull and faded, having lost their shine with age.

"Is this a compressor?" she asked, eyes skimming over the machine once again.

"It is."

"Then what do you need me for?"

"As it is, it can't produce high enough pressures, but we know you can."

"That's not a good idea."

He turned to her questioningly, the plastic eyepiece of his mask clouding his vision a bit. "And why is that?"

"These kinds of machines aren't meant to handle more pressure than they can create. The platform won't hold," she stated plainly, "it would be better to take it out and just use the counter."

"That's not possible. The mixture we need to pressurize also has to be heated at the same time; this machine is the only one we have capable of reaching those temperatures."

"Then I'm afraid I can't help you."

Chrono looked to Overhaul, as if wordlessly seeking his input, but the other man's golden eyes were already fixed on Unknown.

"Why should I believe you?" he asked, his voice low and dull.

"It doesn't really matter if you believe me or not. It's the truth."

"Then show me."

She raised an eyebrow questioningly. "The machine will break," she stated blandly, though he remained unperturbed.

"Then so be it."

She suppressed a frown at the blatant challenge and tore her eyes from his, turning to the compressor instead. The moment her sight landed on the surface of the breaker, a loud creak sounded as the metal platform quickly began giving way, the beaker pressing down on it hard enough for faint sparks to flicker at its base. In a matter of seconds, the crushing pressure deformed the thick platform, shattering the first layer of glass around it, bursting into shards of all sizes as it showered down inside the confines of the cylinder. The metal platform groaned louder as it suddenly had more room to expand away from the pressing force. Uneven curves quickly formed along the sides of the once smooth metal, pressing up against the second layer of glass that began failing as well. A long crack shot up from the point of contact before the pressure abruptly stopped.

The beaker wobbled for a moment inside the dramatic dip it had created in the platform, eventually clattering to its side.

Unknown turned back to Overhaul with an expectant look on her face, watching as he gazed at the crumbling machine with no visible reaction.

"I suppose you were right," he mused. "Chrono, find a stronger surface and figure out a heating device. Make it your priority," he instructed flatly before turning towards the door.

"Of course," the white-hooded man nodded dutifully. "What should I do with her?"

Unknown's hand twitched in irritation. There was something about these yakuza men that aggravated her.

"Take her to Mimic and the other two- she needs to know her way around as well." Overhaul stated before pausing, glancing over his shoulder as he reached the doorway. His eyes briefly locked with hers, a gleam of malice well hidden under his disinterested stare. "Oh, and welcome to the team."

Unknown soon caught up with Twice and Toga, who were both enthusiastic to see her still alive. The small cloaked man shouted at them to be quiet and to hurry up, though they had mostly learned to ignore him by then.

The underground base was complex and winding, the sheer number of wings spread across so many floors would be enough to overwhelm anyone, not to mention the hidden passageways and secret rooms scattered throughout the halls. She wondered just how deep the building ran. If the area they were willing to let them access was already so large, exactly how much weren't they letting them see? She could tell there was at least one more floor below the lowest level they were shown, simply from the faint noises periodically drifting up from the ground, in addition to the few less-well-hidden doors they passed.

She had no doubt there was much more to this place they didn't intend on letting them see, and for a moment, she faintly wondered why.