The Countdown

Keep holding on

50 days and counting....

In the darkness of the night, the masters quickly made their way to the northern mountain where various caves and tunnels could be seen winding throughout the pass. Po had learned early on while been toured around the village that the tunnels were originally made for the pandas to hide and even inhabit. However, after everyone pulled together and got the supplies they needed for their new home, the passageways were abandoned and hardly ever touched. Except of course for now as Kai and his Jade Army were slowly approaching the village by means of them.

"Which tunnel do you think he could be in?" Monkey asked as the masters hiked up a slope where other slanted mountain passes could be seen around them. "There's a gazillion of them!"

"This one," Po remarked, going down a slope a little behind them. "One of the tunnels goes to where Kai's coming in."

"Lead on, Dragon Warrior," Tigress told him, walking after him along with Viper and Monkey.

The cave was dark inside with little light to guide them except for a single lantern that Po carried with him to guide the way.

"How can he reach the village through here?" Viper noted. "When your dad said the village was secret and closed off from the world, we assumed there was only one way in."

"For us there's only one way in," Po corrected. "Dad and the rest of the villagers took the easier way in since mountain climbing isn't really for them. There were three ways in here, but one of them was destroyed a few years ago by an avalanche close by."

"And the one Kai's taking must be the other way in," Tigress finished.

"Exactly. Probably as a surprise attack."

Monkey chuckled. "Not surprising," he admitted. "Kai is one of those guys who knocks down your back door and makes himself right at home rather than just knocking."

"Unfortunately," Tigress noted with a small growl.

The masters walked through the cave in almost complete silence as they kept an eye out for Kai and his minions. Their footsteps echoed around them as they braced themselves for any surprise attacks around the corner or in the event that Kai could be overheard talking about a plan. After sometime of walking, the group approached a wide room with two tunnels connecting to it and clear signs of being inhabited. Remnants of grass beds were scattered across the floor, tally marks were made on the walls, and smoke stains from cooking could be seen on the walls of the cave.

"I'm assuming they lived in here?" Viper asked Po.

"Yep. This was one of those caves. It's actually kind of nice in here, minus it being cold an all."

"So which tunnel do we take?" Tigress asked, interrupting the conversation. "I'd like to stop Kai before he inflicts any harm on the village."

"Right," Po said quickly. "We take the one in front of us."

The masters began to move forward when they saw a sudden fleck of green approaching them from the end of the tunnel.

"The Jade masters!" Monkey exclaimed.

The army can barreling into the tunnel Po letting out a cry of alarm before belly bumping some of them backwards into the tunnel. The warriors got into position and proceeded to battle the incoming masters, blocking weapons and dodging incoming blows that could prove fatal. However, it wasn't enough as the majority of the Jade Army got past the masters which resulted with them getting badly beaten and knocked against the cave walls. Seeing the army running away, Po cried, "They're heading to the village!"