The tunnels of the Cave of Two Lovers were wide enough, and in some sections of the path, the ceiling was completely invisible. At the very least, the fire created by the soldiers couldn't dispel the darkness enough for me to see the cave's highest point. Even knowing the capabilities of Earthbenders firsthand, it was difficult to believe that this place was created by people. Especially, as the legend stated, by only two: a pair of lovers.
Perhaps these tunnels were expanded and… decorated over time. Sometimes on the walls, one could read various inscriptions in an archaic version of the local language or see massive statues whose shadows danced sinisterly whenever a light source appeared. Not only I but also the other fighters were impressed by the environment. They even tried to step in each other's footsteps, not wanting to accidentally get lost in these tunnels.
We weren't wandering aimlessly through the tunnels, expecting luck to find the exit for us. I followed the rule of the right hand. That is, I always walked along the right wall, touching it with my hand. Sooner or later, this would allow our squad to get out of the tunnels, which looked more like a genuine labyrinth. A map, charting our route, was also gradually being drawn up. Princess Azula herself took charge of it. And at certain intersections, we left marks just in case. However, the variety of markings on these walls was sometimes so numerous that there was nowhere to place our own.
I couldn't help but admit that the tunnels made me slightly uneasy. As far as I know, there is no complete map of these places, the acquisition of which would allow one to easily escape the labyrinth. And one of the soldiers even recalled a rumor that the Cave of Two Lovers rebuilds itself from time to time. It just takes on a new form and changes. All by itself. He said that in a month, these would be completely different tunnels. Most of the large halls would remain the same, but the paths leading to them would change.
An Earthbender or Airbender in our squad would have been helpful. With such helpers, finding an exit would clearly be easier. Or alternatively, creating one ourselves. It's a shame that the former rarely cooperate with representatives of the Fire Nation, and the latter are extinct.
We had been roaming the tunnels for several hours. We even managed to take a break and eat a meal during that time. But the exit still hadn't been found. Moreover, it seemed to me that we were gradually descending deeper underground. It imperceptibly grew cooler, and an unpleasant dampness appeared. No, it was more like humidity. If you listened closely, you could hear water dripping somewhere, hitting the stone floor with a sharp sound.
Endless corridors followed one after another. We visited many huge halls whose purpose we never understood. We went from sections with well-finished floors and walls to places that looked as if they had been dug by a huge beast with massive claws, and then back again.
The men were nervous. For most soldiers, being underground was a bad sign. Usually, when a Fire Nation representative ends up underground, it means they have been killed. Buried alive by Earthbenders. These tunnels were quite the trial for many seasoned veterans in my squad. Sometimes I even noticed them touching themselves, trying to check if they were in some kind of nightmare.
At one point, it seemed that we had entered territory where people hadn't been for a long time. And even before, one could say that humans were a rare visitor in the tunnels of the Cave of Two Lovers. Only marks on the walls indicated that someone occasionally appeared here. But now, even those were gone. The tunnel was increasingly starting to resemble an abandoned mine. Very occasionally, we even encountered all sorts of rusty tools underfoot. What they were doing here was genuinely incomprehensible to me, since with Earthbending, the extraction of minerals became laughably simple. Decoration could be done using the same bending. Of course, this required a finer control over one's power, to be a master Earthbender, but I had no doubt that such benders could be found with a proper search. But here, it was as if ordinary people had once worked, a long time ago. With picks, shovels, and other tools. The only things missing were rail-mounted carts or, failing that, wheelbarrows.
A few fighters took turns in the vanguard of our squad so that the whole group wouldn't blunder into a dead end and waste time. They were Firebenders and used their own bending to light the way. Suddenly, a flash of flame erupted near the two soldiers in the vanguard, completely blinding eyes unprepared for such an action. A familiar roar of flame, rushing straight towards us, hit our ears. Even louder than during my sparring matches with Princess Azula. The exposed areas of skin felt a powerful wave of heat approaching the body with every passing moment…
By some miracle, before the flame covered our squad, I managed to create a sufficiently large sphere of fire. It protected the group, but it couldn't hold for long. Soon, the flame, caused by the ignition of methane, should have swept away my flimsy defense and enveloped us, frying us to a crisp, but Princess Azula intervened, reinforcing my fire sphere with her own bending. Understanding that death was close, most of the fighters joined the Princess, and through our combined efforts, we managed to hold the sphere until the frenzy of fire outside subsided.
"What was that?! Spirits?!" exclaimed a soldier, watching the floor and walls of the part of the tunnel where the flame had rushed from continue to burn.
"Methane, possibly."
They somehow knew about this gas here. Probably with the help of Airbenders. And in the Fire Nation, it was feared even more than any spirits. After all, spirits cannot turn your own power against you, but methane is capable of that. Firebenders really didn't like the idea of being incinerated by flame…
My eyes watered from the heat, but I continued to peer ahead, only to confirm the death of the soldiers in the vanguard a moment later. Our mission hadn't properly begun, but we had already suffered our first losses… I shouldn't remind anyone who is responsible for one soldier currently feeding the fish.
The worst part of the current situation was that the map had fallen from the Princess's hands when she started helping me contain the raging fire that intended to incinerate us. It fell and flew right into my own fire sphere.
"We can't pass here. We're leaving," Azula commanded when, like me, she spotted a massive hole of unknown depth in the floor about fifty meters away. That is, even if we extinguished the flame, an insurmountable obstacle would still stand before us.
We moved backward much more briskly than we had towards the site of the explosion. Few wanted to remain in a place where members of the squad had recently died and the unpleasant smell of burnt flesh was spreading through the air.
But we couldn't go far. There was a tremor during the explosion. The rock formation around us turned out to be more or less sturdy, but the tunnel we had come from earlier had completely collapsed. I gave the order to all soldiers to clear the debris, but after about ten minutes, it became clear that the tunnel was completely blocked. We could consider that it simply no longer existed. We simply wouldn't have enough supplies to dig it out. The group's only option was to take another turn, but methane could be waiting for us there as well.
With a grim look, I selected one of the benders and sent him ahead of the main formation at a distance of fifty meters. A tiny flame burned in his hand. The bender hoped that if his flame was as small as possible, an explosion wouldn't occur. I didn't try to dissuade him.
Suddenly, palpable tremors shook the ground. Most of the soldiers quickly prepared to meet a new explosion, when a part of the wall near the fighter, who was walking separately from the main group, broke off. The snout of a local creature peered out of the resulting hole. The soldier completely misinterpreted the animal's interest. He squeaked in fear and threw a fireball at the Badgermole's face.
"Stop, you fool!" I yelled when it was already too late.
The blatant behavior of the intruder did not please the rightful master of the local tunnels. It growled, swung its paw, and the next second, several pieces of what was once one whole soldier fell to the floor.
The beast turned its snout in our direction. The fur on its face was barely smoking. I smelled the familiar scent of ozone. My eyes widened in surprise when I looked at Princess Azula. Lightning was about to shoot from her directed fingers. I tried to knock her off her feet so she wouldn't make a monstrous mistake, and I even succeeded, but the Princess's lightning still struck its target. The Badgermole was killed.
Immediately, I picked up the fallen Princess and threw her over my shoulder like a sack of potatoes.
"Run!" I shouted, quickly taking off, completely disregarding scouting for methane on our path, because if we delayed, we would die anyway.
The fighters froze for just a second, and then immediately ran after me, many of them even overtaking me, as I was carrying the Princess. I simply didn't want to waste time explaining the situation to her. Everything had to be done quickly.
Badgermoles were a species aggressive enough towards humans. They disliked intrusions into their territory. But in principle, it was possible to part ways peacefully, provided you didn't injure any of them. If you did, a Badgermole wouldn't let you off so easily. If you killed the animal, you had to remember that Badgermoles are pack animals and they understand the concept of revenge for their comrade. I didn't know that the Princess was unaware of the nature of these animals. And that fighter who was walking ahead earlier… He had clearly just finished his training. Seasoned soldiers would never strike a Badgermole first.
In a confrontation with these beasts, one should fear not their huge bodies or massive, sharp claws. A Badgermole is first and foremost a natural Earthbender. One of the very first, as the legends say. And an extremely skilled bender… Which was confirmed once more shortly after.
A whistle sound was heard from behind, followed by cries of pain. Ahead, a chunk of wall flew out, simply crushing several soldiers. The Princess on my shoulder squirmed in annoyance. I again smelled the familiar scent of ozone. The crackle of lightning, and something shattered very close to my back. A hail of stones flying sideways indicated that I had narrowly escaped death.
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