"If we're not careful we could get incredibly lost in here... We're not leaving any type of trail behind us so how do we know where we've been before and where we've not been?"
"If you'd have noticed you would have known I was taking us through using the 'left-side wall' system. Follow only the left wall around any maze or tunnel structure and you will inevitably make your way to the end. The only way you could get lost is if there was only one way in and out..."
"That's still a possibility... Besides, we're not looking for the way out, we're looking for the room with the Eye of Ender in it..."
"Well we need to hope that we find it fast, or at least one of those towers that are always here. We'll need to rest up for the night soon."
"I don't think we need to. Those HoN Co. guards have a big enough lead on us without us stopping for rests. We should keep going until we find it."
Rounding the next corner that we came to, I half expected to be faced with the view of the large open room with the Affinitas cages flanking the basin in the middle. But instead it was just endless tunnel after endless tunnel. Eventually however, we came to a much smaller section of tunnel that ended with a small set of Nether brick stairs heading up. THEROS went first leading the way, followed closely by me and then THEXIS. As we ascended, I hoped that we would leave the Nether stone behind and get back to the dark purple brick walls that suggested we were in the right place, but once again we were faced with the same Nether stone surfaces. We left the stairs behind, continuing on with our monotonous march around the structure, in search of the room that would hopefully still contain the Eye of Ender.
We've found it! Well, not the room, but we've found the small lava basin that points towards the entrance of the main structure! As almost further proof, the structure beyond it was only constructed from Nether bricks! We had to come down a very long corridor and up another set of stairs to find it, but now that we had things would go much better from now on!
"Now that we've found the lava basin here, we can employ the 'straight path' part of our exploration and take the path straight ahead of us."
THEROS led the way forwards down the path straight ahead of us, following the twists and turns that wound around. It was odd, but I felt more comfortable here than I had in the strange passages and tunnels beneath us. I think it as linked to the fact that I was now in a place that I recognised and I was better able to deal with a situation in a place I recognised.
Now that there weren't any fires along the walls to help us see by, we were forced to use torches again to light our way. THEXIS seemed happier with this method anyway as it also allowed us to track our path back to the entrance. Then logically, all we had to do was follow the right wall back the other way to get back out, going in the opposite direction. I'd obviously leave that to THEROS as he was the one leading the way. Part way along the passage however, THEROS stopped abruptly and held up his hand. We followed suit and stopped just behind him. We stood in silence for a moment or two, trying to figure out why THEROS had stopped us so suddenly. He seemed to be acting rather odd; a frown furrows his brow, as he seemed to strain his ears in one direction, listening for something that we couldn't make out. After a moment or two, he turned to us rather oddly...
"Did you hear that...?"
"Hear what? I couldn't hear anything..."
"Voices... I could hear voices just up ahead... There was more than one of them... A group of people..."
"The HoN Co. team? Do you think they're here already?"
"It's possible; they did have a lead on us, and if they're disciplined, they could probably cover a larger distance than us in a shorter time. That and the fact that they've likely got a duplicate copy of the map and coordinates..."
"We'll just need to be careful around here then. Don't make any unnecessary noise, and try to keep a look out for any unexpected movement or sounds."
We continued to make our way down the passage, following it around the corner, to be confronted with the very room we were looking for! The basin sat in the centre of the room, sunk into the floor, but the presence of smoke suggested someone had beaten us to it again. THEROS moved to the centre of the room, slowly and carefully, just as the two Guardians emerged from the swirling smoke. They kept looking at him the entire time he moved; THEROS stopped and looked down, before quickly turning around.
"They've taken this one too! Quick, we've got to get to the entrance quick! Maybe we can stop them and take it back before they leave!"
"What'll we do if we confront them? They're bound to be armed... I doubt they'll let us take out our blowpipes and knock them unconscious..."
"We'll think about that when we get there. Until then, run!"
Despite the noise and sudden movements, the Guardians remained calm and almost completely motionless. I was beginning to think that they were definitely passive, only attacking those that stole what they were meant to be guarding. As we ran down the corridor, I kept sneaking glances back to see if they were pursuing us, but there was nothing but the colour of dark purple lit by the occasional torch. Let's hope we were able to cut them off before they reached the entrance. Then we could launch a surprise offensive! Although what that would consist of I didn't know...
Syeonyx signing off
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