Dark Miois Mio’s sinister alter ego inSplit Fiction. This cyborg wields a deadly red scythe and bombards you with devastating AoE attacks, making her one of the toughest bosses in the game. But don’t worry. Once you get the hang of her moveset, she becomes much easier to handle.

In this guide, you’ll find how her abilities work, how you can dodge and counter her attacks, how to deal effective damage, and most importantly, how to prevent Dark Mio from impaling Zoe with her scythe. Yes, it’s possible, and it’s not a bug.

Dark Mio holds a giant green ball, Mio and Zoe are running away.

Phase One

To damage Dark Mio in phase one, you’ll need towait for her to throw an armored ballat you. Next,Mio has to hack the ballto remove its armor and aim it at Dark Mio.Zoe then uses Magnetizeto repel the ball, damaging the boss.

You’ll need torepeat this process three timesto move to phase two. This is the only window for you to deal damage.

Mio flies over the wall, Zoe is jumping toward a yellow propeller.

During the rest of the first phase,focus on dodging Dark Mio’s attacks. Be careful; she won’t stay still waiting for the green ball to hit her, and she will keep attacking with various other moves.

Dark Mio’s Abilities In Phase One

Here areDark Mio’s movesets in the first phaseand how to counter them:

How To Counter

Exploding Patterns

The center of the arena glows pink as Dark Mio plunges her scythe into the ground,sending out pink patterns that explodeand instantly one-shot players after a short delay.

The patternschange three times.

Watch yourpositioning to avoid stepping on the pink lines. There’s no need to jump or dash excessively. Stay calm andmove to a safe spot where the arena isn’t covered in pink patterns.

Vertical Slash

Dark Mio uses her scythe tolaunch vertical projectilesat Mio and Zoe.

Sprint in one direction to dodge or dash right before the projectiles hit you.

Mio and Zoe run along two green magnetized wall, Dark Mio is ahead.

Falling Orbs

Dark Mio conjures black-and-red orbsand fires them at Mio and Zoe.

Avoid the marked areas.

Exploding Spiral

Dark Mio flies around the arena,carving pink lines in a spiral pattern that ends at the center and explodes.

Avoid the pink patterns and stay away from the center of the arena.

Mio runs towards a giant gauntlet, Zoe is right behind.

Dashing Attack

Dark Mioemits pink rays from her eyes before dashing at her target.She typically repeats this attack four times.

Keep an eye on the rays andquickly dash or sprint out of their rangeto avoid her next attack.

Zoe runs on an unfurling bridge to reach Mio, Mio is dodging projectiles.

Neck-Grabbing

Dark Mio grabs Mio by the neckand slams her to the ground,surrounded by green electricity.

Mio needs to hold down her button to stall for time while waiting for Zoe touse Magnetize to repel Dark Mio.

Dark Mio emits a ring of fire.

Clone Summoning

Dark Mio summons multiple clonesthat surround the arena. The clones then dash straight at Mio and Zoe.

Before a clone attacks,it raises its scythe.Use this as a cue tododge in the right direction.

Dark Mio is stunned, a purple triangle appear on her, signaling that Mio can hack into her brain.

Phase Two

After a brief cutscene where Dark Mio pushes Mio and Zoe off the tower, the chase sequence of phase two begins.Dark Mio will bombard you with red-black orbs. They will hit much more frequently than in phase one, but don’t worry, they don’t do that much damage.

Keep moving and cross the platforms.Jump onto the yellow propellersat the end of the road to pass the tall wall. Beware of the round sawblades and the fire-spitting gun as you chase Dark Mio.

Mio is in Dark Mio’s brain, Zoe is outside.

Eventually, you’ll reach two large green walls that slam together.Zoe should use Magnetize to push them apartand prevent your duo from being crushed.

Keep chasing Dark Mio until a massive gauntlet drops from above.Mioneeds tohack into the gauntlet to shatter the metal door.Once the door is down,Zoe should run to the green padand use herMagnetizeability tolaunch herself to the other side.

Zoe repels Dark Mio, glowing green.

In the next area, Zoe will find another green pad to propel herself to the opposite side.Head to the curled-up bridge and hold Magnetize while runningalong the unfurling bridge to reach Mio. Make sure tolet Mio run ahead of Zoe. If the bridge collapses, it will one-shot Mio.

Climb the steps, andMio should hack the blocks to create X bridgesfor Zoe to cross. Here,Dark Mio will dish out some rings of fire. Jump to avoid them.

A yellow contraption on Dark Mio’s brain opens on Mio’s side.

Once you reach the end, Dark Mio will throw out some green balls.Repel them with Zoe’s Magnetize. Dark Mio will dodge a few times, but eventually, she’ll be stunned.Mio can now hack into her brain, entering the third and final phase.

Phase Three

A short cutscene will play, showing Mio now in Dark Mio’s brain. Zoe is tossed into a new battlefield. Zoe canmove between three platforms to dodge Dark Mio’s attacks, using the green padson both sides of each platform.

The tactic for Dark Mio’s boss fight in this phase is:

Zoe should keep an eye on Dark Mio’s position and move to the platform she’s facing, as that’s where the ball will land.

Dark Mio Abilities In Phase Three

SinceMio and Zoe are separated in this phase, Dark Mio’s abilities will differ on each side. Here’s a breakdown ofDark Mio’s abilities on Zoe’s sideand how to counter them:

Jump to dodge.

Red Zone

Dark Miofloods one or two entire platform with red energy, dealing continuous damage before exploding.

Run to the green pad andlaunch yourself to another platform.

Dark Mio summons black-and-red orbsand fires them at Zoe. There will be markers on the ground, indicating where the orbs will land.

Avoid them.

Scythe Plunge

Dark Mio drives her scythe into the ground. She’scovered in green electricity.

Use Magnetize to stun Dark Mio, creating an opening for Mio to attack her yellow cores, as explained in the tactic above.

Green Ball

(Under Mio’s control) Dark Mio hurls a green ball at Zoe.

Deflect the ball back at Dark Mio.

Twin Lasers

Dark Mio fires two laser beamsthat spread apart and then close in.

Wait until the lasers are close to you, then jump to dodge.

Here areDark Mio’s abilities on Mio’s sideand how to counter them:

Red Rings

Dark Mio’s cyborg eye will detach and lock onto Mio,firing red rings.

After Mio and Zoe successfully hit Dark Mio with the green ball once,the red rings will fire faster and more frequently.

Platform Slicer

Dark Mio fires lasers, creating lines across the ground.

After Mio and Zoe successfully hit Dark Mio with the green ball once, the lasers will start drawing circles. If Dark Mio returns to drawing lines, it signals she’s about tocut off parts of the platform.

Dodge everything.Watch out for the lasers that can slice off platforms,and quickly move to a safe one.

Shrinking Platforms

After Mio and Zoe successfully hit Dark Mio with the green ball once,some of the platforms begin to retract.

Watch your step.Always jump close to the wallso that you won’t lose your footing and fall even if the platforms retract.

You’ll need tohack Dark Mio’s brain and throw the green ball at her twice. The second time, Dark Mio will reflect the ball back at Zoe, turning the fight into a mini-tennis match.

After successfully countering, a cutscene will play, and here comes the part where you may be asking if the game is trolling you or not:Zoe and Dark Mio’s scythe.

How Not To Kill Zoe In Dark Mio Fight

If you’re having trouble with Dark Mio killing Zoe over and over during the climax, you’re not alone. To avoid having Zoe killed, when the two buttons appear,only Zoe should press hers.

If Mio presses her button too, Dark Mio will impale Zoe with her scythe no matter what you do.

So, to win the fight against Dark Mio,Mio must do nothingwhen Dark Mio tries to strike Zoe.