"Horde Wraith? Anything I need to know?" Colin asked, flexing, and unflexing his hands in an attempt to remain calm. The Scarecrow was facing them staring at the two of them, especially Nox as if it was unsure what to do.

"Horde Wraith are the weakest type of wraith. To supplement their power, they eat the soul, remove the morality, and twist the flesh of their victims. By capturing the soul of a Horde Wraith, AidenBrand helped remove its main weakness. Heaven take him," Nox ground out.

"Hehe. Hahehaheeeee. Hawhee," the Scarecrow cackled out. Its laugh was disjointed and loaded with malicious insanity. It bent back, its peals of laughter aimed for the heavens as it released the final notes of its happiness. "It's almost too good to be true. A Goblin that has Visited the Halls of Hallowed Shadow, how perfect you will be when I add you to my horde," it proclaimed.

Nox smiled himself at the thing, "Oh I rather doubt that. You see, attempt to strike me down, and I shall unleash more power than you could ever imagine."

The green flame in the Scarecrow's eyes intensified and seemed to bore into Nox's form. "No, you can't. You're still incredibly strong, but you are missing parts of your soul that I will consume. Along with the rest of you if you try. So, go on Goblin. I dare you," it goaded.

"What is it talking about?" Colin asked.

Nox, however, did not look up to meet his gaze. Instead, the Goblin took a step towards the Scarecrow and reached inside his jacket. Pulling his cane free from his own shadow, Nox grabbed the head of the cane and pulled. A slender, four-sided, rapier slid free from the solidified shadow of the cane. Its metal gleamed oddly in the moonlight, seemingly a dull unreflected midnight blue-black that was positively covered in paragraphs of tiny scrawled runes.

"Would you like to test that theory," Nox threatened, aiming the tip of the weapon at the Scarecrow.

"All that bluster, all that might, now a faux shield to defend your pride. How far you must have fallen. Get them! I want the Goblin alive!" the Scarecrow screamed.

The five Fleshwarped human's holding their captives released them in perfect sync. They fell to the floor, and their captors didn't spare them a second glance. They immediately went from standing still to full scrambling sprint in a moment as they went after Colin and Nox.

Growling, Nox fell back into his own shadow and reappeared in a burst of dissipating darkness above the first of the Fleshwarped Humans. He drove his blade into its chest, and the dark blade's runes shimmered with glowing silver light for the barest of moments. The impaled Fleshwarped Human's skin dyed an inky black as the blade's enchantment took effect. A moment later, the monster collapsed in on itself, and Nox fell into the floor, through his own shadow.

Colin cast his Lesser Knockback spell, throwing the next one back into the monster behind it. Since his Mythic Xiphos had already been drawn, Colin approached them while holding the short sword ahead of him.

"Oi, DevilWalker!" Nox shouted, throwing three waterskins into the air towards the ones he wasn't tearing through like tissue paper.

Grinning, Colin used Frost Shaping on one one of the waterskins and simply froze it into a massive piece of hail. It crashed into the Fleshwarped Human's head with a sickening crunch before it collapsed to the ground. The other two he let crash next to the bodies of the ones Colin Knocked away. With a quick application of Frost Shaping, he had a spike of frost thrust out and impaled the two of them through the side of their ribs.

Nox finished the two that he was dealing with mere moments before Colin, and his grin was nowhere to be seen. The Goblin looked apprehensive, nervous,maybe even ashamed as he stared at the Scarecrow. While the thing was only standing there, looking as menacing as it did when he first saw it, the loss of its captives didn't seem to bother it. Its gaze was just lingering on Nox with blazing green intensity.

"Nox?" Colin said, unsure of how to act around him.

The Goblin's gaze never met his own as the silence stretched for long seconds. "I'll explain later, DevilWalker, I promise. You'll have to take this thing on your own," he spat, disgusted himself and the living field ornament. "No matter how badly I want to help."

"Alright," Colin said, acknowledging Nox's words. "Any suggestions?"

"Don't let it kill you," Nox said, flashing Colin a brief smile.

"No shit," Colin breathed out. He then gave Nox a stern look, "we will talk about this when this is all over, Nox," Colin told him, no wiggle room in his tone.

"Of course," Nox said, walking away from Colin and towards the houses. "For now though, I can help keep these freaks off you, DevilWalker. Defeat it quickly," Nox said, "who knows how long we have before these beastisie get another victim."

Colin nodded, drawing his Steel Dagger of Lesser Chill and took a deep breath. "I just have one question for you, Golem. Where is your Maker, AidenBrand?"

"Hehehehe, I know not. He left me here to slaughter and grow my powers to my dead heart's content. I care not either, I will grow and soon shall free myself from this accursed body. Before that, I think you will be an actual challenge, will you not?" It asked, it's sharp-toothed pumpkin grin seemed to grow even though that was impossible.

The Scarecrow started to lumber forward, coming closer with every lumbering step. Before it even got into range, it reared back its left claw and swung. Its joints would have dislocated if it were a living creature, stretching past its former reach and clawing Colin across his chest.

The protective enchantment on your jacket has turned the slashing attack into a bludgeoning and has reduced the damage. You have taken 42 points of damage and now have 177 health remaining. Due to the change in damage type, you have avoided the curse of wraith's rage.

"Fuck," Colin groaned, hurrying back to a defensive posture. This thing's attack was so fast that he had a hard time following the attack and had no chance to dodge since he had no idea it was coming. Now he figured that he might be able to do something to defend against it, but the attack speed would make that difficult.

He sprinted towards it and tried to use his sword to deflect the Scarecrow's whip-like claw, the effort throwing him back a dozen feet. He tried again, this time diving to the side to avoid it only to get a swiping backhand as the arm retracted.

"Hello, Walker!" an older man said from Colin's right. He looked and found Elder Chevy, standing and grinning at Colin. "Would you fancy a hand?"

"Sure," Colin said, confused at the Elder. "How would you do that?"

"Like this," Elder Chevy said, turning his attention to the Scarecrow. He extended a hand palm up and smiled as a single point of yellow-white light. The point grew to the size of a marble over the course of a few seconds, and ozone could be smelled on the air.

The Scarecrow must have been able to tell that something was up because it turned and lumbered towards the older man. It swung both its arms at Elder Chevy, and they lashed towards him with both prepared to collide with his chest.

Instead of connecting, the arms froze in midair and locked into place as smoke, and the Scarecrow's screams entered the night air.

"DevilWalker, I suggest we combine forces to defeat it. My body can only help for so long," the Elder said, a light sheen of sweat on his brow. He held his hand out, shaking as the marble of power shrunk to the size of a small bead.

Colin thought fast, He flipped the steel dagger of lesser chill around, holding the blade near its tip. Then judging the distance, he threw it at the Scarecrow, not wanting to hit it with his Xiphos in case the electricity that Elder Chevy was using traveled up it.

Instead, the dagger's tip sunk into the Scarecrow's side, and something odd happened. The electricity and the cold intermingled and twisted tendrils of Frost forked out from the weapon's handle, following the path of the lightning. Colin watched, unable to do much for the moment, as the Scarecrow pulled back its arms and took a giant step back and away from the mage who'd hurt it.

The Wraith Scarecrow reached down and grabbed at the dagger stuck into its side. Colin took the opportunity and sprinted towards the Scarecrow jumping up and swinging his sword down in a massive executioner's chop.

His Xiphos fell and bit into the Scarecrow's back, the sound of crunching wood meeting his ears, and collapsing shafts vibrated up his arms. He put his foot up onto the Scarecrow's back and pushed his sword free just as the Scarecrow swung itself around and threw an elbow into Colin's head.

You have taken 63 points of damage and now have 114 health remaining.

The blow knocked him to the ground and rung his bell for a solid two seconds. When he managed to clear his mind enough to focus, his eyes widened, and he shifted his weight and rolled away as the Scarecrow's square peg of a leg met the ground when his head had been before.

His grimace turned into a pain-filled scowl as he looked over the Scarecrow. He had no idea where to hit it to get a good solid hit on it. If it were humanoid instead of Golem, Colin could aim for vital organs or weaker points in the anatomy to cripple it. That knowledge was transferable to a point, but he had no idea if the center of its chest had a vital spot. The clothing and straw on its body made noticing anything critical almost impossible.

What he needed was to see its insides and figure out where he could hit it. But he had no good way to create fire and burn the clothes off, or see past them to stab the right spot. He wondered what else Elder Chevy could do that might help him but couldn't rely on the old man's help. He was already looking exhausted and was getting ready for another strike as it was focusing on him.

The Scarecrow laughed; it actually laughed at the Elder then down at Colin. "This body grants me power enough to withstand you both. Both of your powers combined couldn't be rubbed together to make a mere glimmer of what it will take," the Golem gloated. It's gaze lingered on the Elder for a moment before its grin widened, "you're weak, old man. I'll come for you after I have him join my ranks." Having said that, it turned and looked at Colin.

Something about what the Scarecrow said jogged a memory in Colin's head from his college days. It sparked an idea that might just help but he needed a minute to make it plausible. Looking at the wizened Elder who was still charging a spell, Colin shouted, "Elder! Do you think you can give me a minute?"

"Maybe, I'm not as strong as I used to be," he said, the marble of light above his palm gaining color. It became a deep leaf green light that seemed to lance out of it as he continued to pour mana into it.

Meanwhile, the Scarecrow was approaching Colin, its sharp-toothed Jack O lantern grin seeming appropriate for the creature coming towards him. He scurried on his back away from the Golem, hoping to give the Elder a few more seconds to do whatever it was he was attempting, while he pulled up his kinetic magic spell creation menu.

Dividing his attention between the Scarecrow and the menu made the next few nerve-wracking seconds frantic as he stood up in a hurry and worked.

The Scarecrow let out a joyous cry of victory as it got within striking distance. Rearing back its left arm, claws extended and ready to hit him with the five metal claws on its hand. Suddenly, a flash of green light burst from the Elder's hand and impacted the ground at Scarecrow's legs.

Colin took a few quick steps away as thick roots and vines snaked out and grasped at the Golem's lower extremities. The snaking vegetation slithered up and around the body of the creature, holding it as still as a hostage victim, struggling and howling in rage.

"Hurry, DevilWalker! That's the most I can do," Elder Chevy wheezed, collapsing to the floor in a heap. His torso moved, so Colin was sure he was still alive, but there would be no more help since Nox was nowhere to be seen. Too busy being vague and mysterious.

His eyes flit back and forth between the restrained Golem and his spellcrafting but worked as carefully as he could. He did everything he could think of to make this a spell he could cast at his current level. He made it a spell that required him to touch his target, made the mana expenditure large, he even made it so he had to announce the spell out loud and hoped for the best after he filled in the spell effect.

The system is now analyzing your newly crafted spell, please wait and see the results.

After dismissing the prompt, Colin looked at the Scarecrow and took a hesitant step back. It had gotten one of its arms loose and was using its bladed fingers to cut through the restraining vines. It had gotten its other arm free while Colin watched, starting immediately on the foliage that held its torso.

"YOU FUCKING WRETCHES!" it screamed as it struggled to free itself, slicing every vine and root. "Once I am out! I will kill you, convert you to my cause, and tear your corpse apart to act as an example to those who'd defy me! Then I will take this entire town and march upon BriairThorn, take them and convert them to my cause as well. All will witness my power and despair before death falls upon them!" it screamed as it sliced through another root.

This thing was certifiably insane, Colin confirmed for himself. He was confident enough before, but now that it was talking and spouting such war-like and genocidal plans, he was absolutely sure. He didn't know if this had to do with the Horde Wraith side or the Golem side of the whole monster, but it didn't really matter. Colin gripped his Mythic Xiphos and aimed the tip at the pumpkin head of the Golem, deciding to act instead of waiting for the system to finish its analysis.

He took one step forward and-

Congratulations! Your original Kinetic Spell, Inefficient Igniting Friction, has been accepted as a fifth level spell. Spell name: Inefficient Igniting Friction

Mana cost: 75

Casting time: instantaneous

Range: touch

Duration: instantaneous

Effect: After saying the spells name, this spell forces the molecules in a flammable object to vibrate and heat up at extraordinary speeds. This immediately leads to the touched target to light up in flames and dealing fire damage depending on the material burned. For example, burning oil deals more damage than burning wood.

Not having time for anything else as the Scarecrow was slicing through the last pair of vines wrapped around its legs. Colin saw a few more prompts that he needed to look at but practically ordered them to go away until later.

He looked over the slightly revised spell the system had given him and nodded, it was simple enough. Taking several deep, quick breathes as he readied himself for what he knew he was going to have to do, Colin ducked into a sprinter's stance and waited for a beat.

Then he was off like a rocket towards the Scarecrow, not activating kinetic Vigor to conserve his mana, and ready to activate his new spell. The Scarecrow swung at him as he approached, its whip arm attack getting dodged and knocked away by a quick flick of Colin's Mythic Xiphos.

The Scarecrow freed itself from the last of the Elder's binding plants spell and spun its other arm around in a stabbing jab that Colin avoided altogether. Diving to the ground, he announced, "Inefficient Igniting Friction!" and touched the bottom of the Scarecrow's sackcloth pants.

With a hiss and a pop, the pants burst into flames, quickly spreading up the Scarecrow's clothes and igniting the hay underneath. The Scarecrow spent a few seconds trying to douse the fire, swatting at its clothes, and only helping to spread it to its arms faster. The golem-bound spirit howled as it used its claws to remove any offending portion of its engulfed body. Eventually just slicing and tearing through the padding that the hay and clothes provided.

Once removed, Colin could see the intricate parts of the Golem underneath. The frame was indeed composed of a lot of carefully crafted planks of wood fitted together with hinges and strands of glowing straw. The straw wrapped around the framework of the Golem, acting a sort of nervous system and helping to accomplish movement. In the chest cavity, several crystals of various sizes hung in place, suspended by glowing orange wires.

One, in particular, sat roughly where the clavicle would be on a person. The crystal was a deep shade of blue that had an overlay of ghostly green flickering around it like, well, a ghost. It seemed connected to every other crystal and intricate piece in the Golem's chest, helping to reinforce that this was indeed the Golem's core.

Of course, this was absorbed in the time it took for the Golem to scream in rage at what Colin had done to it.

Its pumpkin head was still ablaze, but the Golem didn't seem to care as it glared at Colin and approached. Cinders fell from its wood extremities with every step, and Colin hurriedly got to his feet and was a bit more confident now that he could see what he was dealing with. Taking his heavy dagger in his off-hand, Colin approached the Golem, meeting it halfway.

Colin caught its first claw swipe with both weapons crossed over each other and pushing it away. Then he stepped into its body, twisting the Mythic Xiphos around in his hand, and jabbed it in the Golem chest cavity. He wasn't aiming for anything, in particular, just trying to get something critical.

The Xiphos sliced through several wires but somehow missed the crystals that made up its systems. The naked Golem body checked him, knocking him back and tumbling away, using his acrobatics and dexterity to roll almost immediately back to his feet. The Golem roared as it stomped over to him and kicking at him with its stump of a leg.

You have taken 49 points of damage and have 69 health remaining.

The kick threw Colin onto his back, and Colin reacted on instinct. As the Golem approached and raised it's leg to stomp down on his chest, he grabbed onto the Scarecrow's leg and said, "Inefficient Igniting Friction," then pointed his other hand at its chest and activated his other spell, lesser knockback.

The Scarecrow was obviously above the weight limit of the spell but hoped that the spell might still push it a step away. With its leg in the air, the Golem was off-balance and easily knocked onto its back. Colin scrambled over to its other wooden leg and triggered, Inefficient Igniting Friction on its other leg before hurrying away from the Golem.

The wooden frame was burning a lot slower than Colin would have liked, but it remained lit nevertheless. His MP was low, HP might survive another hit or two, and he was feeling the exhaustion creeping in. He had no idea how to tell if it was close to death since the construct was moving and coming towards him.

"Damn you! Damn you, Damn you, Damn you to the Void!" the Scarecrow screamed at him in a fury. The charred wood at its legs snapped and splintered with its attempt to stand. Every second, the fire spread and ruined more and more of its wooden structure. Unable to rise, the Scarecrow turned from its back to its front and started clawing its way over to Colin.

With a final cry of indignant rage, the Golem went still as the flames ate into the final points of the artificial creature's health.

You have defeated the Horde Wraith Scarecrow and have gained 415 EXP. You now have 1432 /6075 Experience needed to attain level 10. Your Kinetic Magic Manipulation skill is now Level 6. Your Short Blades skill is now level 4. Your damage, attack speed, and reaction time with short blades has increased by a small margin.

That amount of experience was almost worth the trouble the Golem had given him before it finally kicked the bucket. The skill increases were welcome as well, but getting experience again was a relief. He almost expected to have to get that experience bank thing that Nox mentioned before he'd gain any…

"Shit!" Colin panicked. He scrambled for the flaming body of the Golem and reached for any of the crystalline insides of the Golem. Grabbing and pulling free every crystal, he could find and storing them into his dimensional bag. He even grunted in pain as he got a burned debuff from going too deep into its chest and pulling the last crystal free.

He tried to use the system to identify the crystals to no avail getting the usual result of not having the right knowledge skill, this one, Golemcraft.

Nox walked up to him while Colin sat cross-legged on the ground, letting his wounds heal. The Goblin was wiping the four-sided rapier clean before sliding it away into the cane he drew it from. Colin tried his best not to be frustrated at the Goblin, instead asking, "have fun?"

"Indeed. I kept all the other Fleshwarped abominations away so that you could fight it unhindered," Nox explained. "Did you manage to get its experience bank?"

"I think so," Colin answered, pulling all the crystals from the dimensional bag and placing them in front of him.

Nox looked them over and pointed to a dodecahedron that was an inch across on each side. It glowed and shifted between lime and forest green and had a different rune carved into each facet. "Ready?" Nox said, grinning excitedly.

Colin nodded, and Nox picked up the crystal with his fingertips and pressed the crystal into Colin's palm.

You have found a Filled Advanced Experience Bank from inside a Scarecrow Golem. You can drain the Experience from this item now if you like. Would you like to consume the Experience from this item now?

Colin said yes, and the green light drained from the item and flowed into his hand.

You have gained 7500 EXP and now have 8932 /6075 to attain level 10. Level up! You have gained 5 attribute points to spend and now have 10 to spend as you wish. You can now obtain a subclass. To do so, find a trainer for the class you want to learn. You have 2857 /9115 experience until level 11.

"Yes!" Colin whooped, raising a fist into the air. This was a big step forward in his plans. He wasn't sure yet what class he'd choose, but he didn't have to decide now. Now there were several other prompts to look through that he'd minimized during the fight, other crystals to identify, and a Goblin to talk to.

"Are we safe now?" Colin asked, a yawn escaping him as he spoke.

"We are. Everything that the Horde Wraith corrupted dropped dead upon its own death. Unless something insane happens, we are safe."

"Good," Colin said, standing up and going over to the Elder. He was unconscious and snoring in exhaustion. Smiling in relief, Colin pulled the Elders arm over his shoulder and carried/ dragged him back into his house. No other villager was around, so Colin hoped for their safety as Nox stepped into his shadow.

With a plan to sleep on the Elder's chair while the Elder slept in his own bed, Colin closed the door to the Elder's house and did just that.