The Algorithm

Chapter ten - Thunder in the Desert

"You mean you didn't see which one you hit?" Marinette shook her head. "Great." The blond said, rubbing his forehead out of stress and annoyance. Marinette decided to repeat her question.

"Blondie?" She asked kindly, causing him to glance up at her. "Which breaker should I flip?" He thought for a moment.

"The first one." He said with little zeal, as if he wasn't sure of his answer. Reluctantly, and well aware of the risks, Marinette grasped the small breaker lever on the top and slowly flipped it to the right. Her body tensed as she heard the small click implying that the breaker was in place. As the lever was turned to the off position, the lights went out, sending them into darkness. Marinette flipped the switch back to the left as soon as possible and the room was flooded with light once again.

"It's not the first." She stated. Fear swept over Marinette, not fear of falling to the ground again but fear that they only had one more chance. If they picked wrong they would be trapped here. "Which should I do next?" Marinette said, hiding the terror in her voice as best she could.

"I'm not sure." The green eyed boy said.

"Adrien, please just pick." She begged, her fear becoming more and more obvious with each word.

"The third one." Adrien said, his tone was solid and sure but she knew he was just as scared as her.

She grasped the small lever and internally counted to three. One, two, three. She flipped the switch and waited for the inevitable fall. But it didn't come. Marinette slid down the chain and met Adrien at the ground. "Did it work?" He asked.

"I don't know." Marinette said while still short of breath. For some reason, they approached the door slowly, like you would a dangerous sleeping animal that they were afraid to wake. They grabbed the spinning wheel in the center and were amazed and relieved when it began to turn. It took both of them to open the door, and by the time they had spun the wheel enough for the door to swing open, their arms were burning with the effort.

The abyss of darkness on the other side of the door was only lit by the small red blinking lights. Adrien noticed Marinette hesitate. "What's wrong?" Adrien asked.

"I don't like the dark." She responded. After years of abuse in that hallway, Marinette had grown accustomed to the belief that the dark was a dangerous place. Her mind had tricked itself into believing darkness brought death. She knew it was a silly fear, the kind children would tremble over, and had never voiced it to anyone but she knew Adrien wouldn't laugh at her.

Adrien placed his hand in hers. "I'm right here, you'll be fine." His words gave Marinette the reassurance she needed and his presence put her nerves to rest.

Marinette and Adrien, with their fingers linked, put their free hand against one of the tunnel walls. With nothing but the red bulbs that seemed to be placed kilometers apart, to guide them through the black tunnel, they moved blindly. Occasionally they would hear footsteps echo through the halls but they were distant and Marinette reassured Adrien that there was nothing to worry about. They continued down the blackness, their palms pressed against the cold stone wall.

Eventually they found one of the distant red dots. Underneath the blinking red bulb was another doorway but this one had a regular door handle. They opened it and their eyes stung as Marinette reached for the light switch. Adrien hissed as the blinding light flooded the room.

After a few moments, his pupils adjusted and he was able to see despite the black dots that reappeared in his line of vision. They were in some kind of armory. The space was filled with rows of racks. The bottom shelf provided a home for the large black boots the Akuma soldiers wore. The next few ledges held the black jumpsuits and dark armor while the top rack contained the helmets that shielded their faces from view.