Every house had secrets. And the mansions each team resided were no different. It was up to the one staying there to discover these secrets. More often than not, such huge mansions had their own secret bunkers or escape rooms. Some had tunnels that stretched further than the eye could see. Others were built over water sources, and had exits that led to creeks. The Orange Team's mansion was no different. Their secret was a simple one, and it would bring envy to any person. It was a very useful secret, especially for those who operated in the shadows like them.
Their secret was a secret bunker which was connected to an underground exit. It had been discovered the moment they moved into this place. Black Hand did a sweep of the building to root out any hidden appliances or traps that may have been set up. They were competing in the Grand Tourney, but they hadn't forgotten that they were in enemy territory. Just like they had their own hidden agendas, their enemies may have had their own. However, Black Hand didn't discover anything out of the ordinary when he searched the place for the first time, and that made him very doubtful. For it was odd. They had gone as far as to ask City Lord Sutton to give up his daughter. The man loved his child like she was his only treasure, and they had stepped on a huge landmine by insisting that his child be given over to the Young Master as a concubine. Black Hand didn't think that City Lord Sutton had forgiven them for one moment. So he did another sweep of the mansion. This time, his sweep was more thorough, and yielded results. However, they weren't the results he thought he would find. The results of his sweep was the secret bunker. And when he investigated the bunker, he discovered the secret exit. It really was an impossible feat to hide anything from a Snake. Black Hand didn't hesitate to share his discovery with the team. When they discovered the secret bunker, it had many cobwebs and was extremely dusty. There was nothing in it, and it seemed that it hadn't been used for a long time. So after doing another sweep of the house – the final one – and Black Hand was confident that there was nothing hidden in the mansion, they started using the bunker as their own.
Black Hand couldn't move, so it was Orange Ivy and Vital Orange who made their way towards the secret bunker. They took many turns, and followed a path marked out specially by Black Hand using traces only they could identify. Soon they found themselves in front of a sturdy looking wall. They stopped right in front of the wall, and scrutinised it closely. They took quite some time to find what they were looking for. If Black Hand had come with them, he would have found it in a heartbeat.
"Found it," Orange Ivy announced, and reached out to push in a particular brick that looked just a tad darker than the rest. Although Black Hand wasn't here with them, Orange Ivy was a Fox, and his student. Although she wasn't as fast as her Master, she could still find the 'key' if she had enough time. That was the reason why she came with Vital Orange. If Vital Orange had come on his own, he would have lost his way. He wouldn't have been able to successfully follow the markings that Black Hand had left behind without getting lost several times. It was because Orange Ivy was leading the way that they found the wall on their first attempt.
An entire section of the wall creaked and caved in when the slightly darker brick was pushed. That section of the wall slowly moved backwards, and slid to the side to reveal a long staircase that led deeper into the foundations of the mansion. Vital Orange held out the lamp he had prepared and handed it over to Orange Ivy. The Fox lighted the lamp and then proceeded to go down the cascading steps.
They descended the stairs for a while. It was about five minutes later that they reached the end of the staircase. They hadn't yet reached their destination. The stairs only led to another riddle, for there were three paths that the lamp shone brightly upon. And only one of these paths led to the place they sought.
"Whenever I come here I marvel at the brilliance of this mansion's architect," Orange Ivy sighed and followed the path that went straight down the middle.
"You admire the architect, but I think that person was crazy," Vital Orange frowned and said as they reached yet another crossroad. Orange Ivy didn't even pause to think about the path to take. She immediately picked the path on the left, and Vital Orange followed her without any questions.
"Why would someone without any loose screws in their head, make something like this," Vital Orange continued. Only Snakes and Foxes would think this place was cool. And maybe Mongooses. But no other warrior would come here and marvel at the architecture. This place was a maze, and it was easy to get lost here for days, even weeks. Vital Orange had no idea how Black Hand had been able to navigate this entire place in just a week.
"Not loose screws, but a genius," Orange Ivy stated with shinning eyes. Vital Orange just shook his head and didn't say anything anymore. It was useless to argue with someone like Orange Ivy – a Fox. He had been through this a million times with Black Hand, and never had he been able to successfully convince the Snake that this wasn't the work of a genius, but an insecure madman.
The two walked in silence from then on. One of them was admiring the endless maze, whereas the other was focused on keeping up with the Fox and not losing sight of her. Soon they reached the end of the maze, and a large door was the only thing in their way. The door was made entirely of stone – good quality stones that were difficult to destroy. Even Vital Orange couldn't break it apart with the power of a Tiger!
"You're up Captain," Orange Ivy stepped to the side and made way for the only man who could push open this door.
"Sure," Vital Orange nodded his head and walked up to the large door. He placed his hands on it and took a deep breath. He mustered all the power he could summon, and his aura was fully unleashed. The stiffening power of a Tiger had Orange Ivy shaking slightly from being in such close proximity to the source of the aura. She subconsciously took a few steps back.
"Roar!" Vital Orange roared loudly as his rioting aura collated, gathering in his arms. With the full force of a Tiger, he pushed the door open. The large door was slowly pushed aside, and what was behind it was revealed. Orange Ivy extinguished the light from the lamp and basked in the glow of the sun. She breathed in deeply as she took in the beautiful scenery around her. There were large trees all around her, and beautiful green grass. Birds flew past them as they chirped happily, singing a song which the humans knew nothing about.
"This is still tiring," Vital Orange muttered as he wiped the sweat from his brow. This wasn't the first time he had done this. But no matter how much stronger he got, this never got easier.
"This place is still as beautiful as ever," Orange Ivy remarked, and Vital Orange nodded his head. "I still can't believe that a madman was able to dig an entire passage to a forest outside Asher City. What a maniac." Vital Orange sighed and said.
"Not a maniac Captain, but a dedicated and deeply inspiring artist!" Orange Ivy argued.
"Let's just do what we came to do," Vital Orange shook his head and said. Orange Ivy nodded her head and placed her hands on her ears to cover them. Vital Orange suddenly drew a deep breath and let out a loud whistle that shook the entire forest. His long whistle lasted a full five seconds, and it was only after it was over that Orange Ivy took her hands off her ears.
Ten seconds later, a happy chirp greeted the duo, and a beautiful red bird arrived in front of them with speed so great that none of them would have been able to react if it was an attack. The bird flew around them happily, before it settled on Vital Orange's arm. Vital Orange playfully flicked the beak of the bird a few times, much to its amusement; Orange Ivy stroked its feathers gently, an action that had it chirping in comfort.
"I want you to do something for me Turbo," Vital Orange said to the small bird, and it curiously cocked its head to the side as if to say, "What is it?"
"I need you to deliver this to the Dragon Lord," Vital Orange instructed and then attached a small piece of paper to the leg of the bird. If Mane had witnessed this, he would have been stunned. Who said there was no paper in this world?
"Go now," Vital Orange instructed, and the bird darted into the sky like a streak of light. Soon, it had disappeared.
"Let's go," Vital Orange ordered, and Orange Ivy nodded her head and left with her captain.