In a room hidden underground, a large man worked on a mass of multi-colored crystals bound in a steel frame. This intricate piece of Golemcraft was sitting next to a table that had every instrument of his craft, from pliers to wrenches to magic gauging probes. This piece of Golemcraft was the masterwork that could help power him through to the highest levels of Rosengard. This was the fifth time in the last month that he’d gone over his work again and was glad to find nothing wrong still but annoyed he couldn’t move forward.

Remaining calm was being as aggravating as the fourth Star Wars trilogy. This was taking weeks of in-game time and out-of-game research to build and adequately prepare. Not to mention the amount of time and Copper Coins spent on materials and specialty tools. Who wouldn’t be annoyed by that?

The man’s name in RosenGard Worldwide was AidenBrand, and he was a SoulChain Golemist.

The Golemist was a Crafter and a Spellcaster class that was considered hard to grow for two reasons. It took a fair amount of Copper Coins to build and animate a decent Golem, and it was almost impossible to increase the Golemist Career without actually making Golems.

That was why he delved into darker paths to do what he needed to grow. Rosengard WorldWide allowed serial killers, extortionists, thieves, cheaters, rapists, drug dealers, and even Cosmic Horror worshippers to act as they wished.

AidenBrand did his best to remain one of the lesser evils to keep off the radar of people in Hero Guilds. Being a necromancer and a Golemist, his minions would always be considered monsters and a prime target. So, he kept the beings he affected to the NPCs to minimize the Players that would notice his actions. Isolation was a tool he used on his minions to make sure they didn’t just rampage and get too powerful.

His Classes rules were pretty strict regarding how many he could create and control at once without risk. To get around the limiter to his army’s growing abilities, he built his Logistic Network, which was missing a vital component.

AidenBrand, a half-dwarf/ half-human built like a Sherman tank, did what any sane play would do to get what he needed. He magically dialed six-six-six a few weeks back to get Hell’s Directory System. After getting his telepathic call redirected nearly a dozen times, he was given to Astaroth.

After some back and forth, the two made a deal that ended with AidenBrand getting an appointment with a Demon with a Hyper Rare Skill that was precisely what he needed.

But of course, it didn’t go as planned. The Church of Anaheim sent a team of their warriors to apprehend AidenBrand and Banish the Demon and had minimal success. AidenBrand had escaped with a Blink Jaunt Runestone he’d prepared, and the Demon had ended up being captured.

This was over a month ago. Now he was trying to build a workaround for the system that didn’t require the Demon’s damnable ability. He’d been trying to use his Death Magic Manipulation Skill to do what his Specialized Class did best, bind souls to his constructs. With no success with the Logistic System that he’d been working on.

Maybe, he reasoned, the souls he’d been binding were of a lower quality than was required for his needs. But so few Specialized Classes gave the ability to do things with souls, and it was well established that only high-level Divine Magic Manipulation and Death Magic Manipulation skills worked with souls. When he was in-game and not working on his Career path, AidenBrand worked on any variation of the Death Magic Manipulation and SpellCraft Skills to move forward. Even going as far as overcharging the spell with an over a thousand mana requirement.

The spell ended up detonating in his face, killing him, and the system giving him a warning that the continued use of this spell might destroy his soul and delete the character. So AidenBrand removed the magic from his spellbook, like any logical person would.

Coincidentally, it was at that exact moment that his Information Tablet decided to vibrate with a personal message.

He unlocked his in-game cellphone and grinned maniacally at the message.

‘Summon him again.’ It read.

Without waiting a moment, AidenBrand hurried over to a ritual circle that he’d prepared for this moment. It was intricate, drawn with white paint, and had a script taken exactly from the Demonic Language.

He stepped to the edge of the circle and drew a knife from his tool belt. He sliced the inside of his palm, the blood, and pain necessary for the summoning. Then he began to chant, starting low and quiet then growing to his regular cadence and volume, his tone becoming a little more sing-song.

Ti chiamo, Ti chiamo

Ti chiamo, oh Sparhak

Legante di anime, creatore di vita

Artigiano delle meraviglie viventi, ti chiamo

Ti chiamo di nuovo, Sparhak

Venire

He repeated what he was sure was an Italian chant until the circle started to glow a yellow-red light. At that point, the ritual had gathered the power that was necessary for the ritual’s requirement. He waited, knowing what to expect, having seen this before, as the echo of clanging metal and sulfuric smoke assaulted his senses. Then a four-armed Demon faded into view within the circle and appeared in his full glory.

It was always a thin Demon, but now its lean form was emaciated and starved compared to before. It’s dusky brown-orange skin had dulled as if the Sparhak had spent weeks away from any natural light. A pair of tough brown leather pants protected his Genitals, but his torso remained bare. Gone were the eyes of pure Intellect and reason that resonated with AidenBrand; now, there was a touch of madness in its eyes. Everything about Sparhak now spoke of long-term imprisonment and trauma that would take a long time for humans to recover from.

After long seconds, Sparhak spoke, his voice raspy, “I have come to fulfill our contract on behalf of my lord Astaroth, AidenBrand.” He said, voice formal and every word enunciated.

AidenBrand felt his palm itch with the pain from the summoning, which he knew from experience, would remain until the summoning had ended. He placed his fists to his hips and scowled, “You okay, man?”

“I am fine,” he responded dully. “I am under strict orders for the next thousand years to not leave Hell after I finish my business here with you. Under orders, I shall fulfill the original agreement and return to my workshop. Where I shall remain for the next… thousand… years.” he breathed out in a sad huff.

The Player raised one eyebrow, “why?”

“When the Church raided our location, I didn’t follow procedure and have been punished per the laws of my circle. Although, I believe I did nothing wrong in not wanting to commit suicide to return to Hell. Not that they’d ever listen to meeeeeeeee,” he stated, his voice vibrating as his body shook and spasmed as if electrocuted.

Actually, he was being electrocuted.

Now that he was looking for it, a thin copper collar hand was placed around his neck and hummed with released power. Seconds passed, and AidenBrand winced as the Demon was moaning and groaning with barely contained pain. Smoke started to curl around his flesh as it visibly began to burn from the current running through it. The room smelled like a mixture of burnt flesh and fresh sulfur when the magic had run its course.

“Jeezus,” AidenBrand breathed, taking in all the damage the Demon had just sustained.

His eyes locked on to AidenBrand and its pain changed to rage, “don’t mention that hippie’s name in a Demon’s presence,” the Demon spoke through gritted teeth. “Besides, unless you want to be in breach of contract for getting me smote from this realm and not getting what you came for, let’s get this gone so I can get to my punishment. You know what they say, the journey of a thousand years begins with a single day.””

As curious as he was, AidenBrand wanted to get the last component for his project. He threw all thoughts of the conversation he wanted out and focused on their initial deal. They were interrupted the first time because they talked in the first place, and AidenBrand didn’t want to risk that again. “Alright, do you have what I need?”

Sparhak nodded, extended one of the limbs from his back, and extended what felt like a tidal wave of infernal power. It was disconcerting to the Golemist’s finely tuned magical senses, but it subsided seconds later as the reason for the surge of energy coalesced in the now upturned palm. It practically hummed with several different magical skills that AidenBrand recognized and was astonished at the subtle power.

Mental, soul, infernal, life, and death magic were all present in the marble-sized mote of power representing the ability he was giving to AidenBrand. The mote swirled through spectrums of color, from green-black to gold-white to red-navy blue; it kaleidoscoped in such a way that it entranced the Player. The longer he watched, the more he found himself helplessly staring at the power that encapsulated everything that he wanted most in this game world.

The prompt that appeared made the SoulChain Golemist grin.

You are being offered a previously unique ability that you already qualify for; Blank Soul Generation. This ability is granted to one who has mastered many aspects of life and is ready for the next step of power. The coalescence of soul energy without previous consciousness is an ability reserved for The One God Above All Others. As such, it should be used cautiously.

!Warning! ANYTHING that cancels the use of Mental, Soul, Life, Death, or Infernal Magic will negate this ability’s activation.

Mana requirement: 50,000*. Material Component: Container capable of holding the soul. Standard time until completion: 24 hours**

*This ability can be channeled, using your natural mana regeneration rate to build the framework for the soul over time.

** for every one thousand extra mana given to the process, an hour may be removed from the time until completion. Maximum 12 hours possible to remove.

Would you like to absorb this ability?

The Player barely thought about it, he thought yes at the prompt, and all of them closed. This gave AidenBrand the best view of the marble of concentrated power floating towards his forehead. Alarms started going off in his mind, and his body tried to flinch away from the colorful marble only to find himself unable to move. It didn’t feel like a binding or compulsion spell to keep him from moving. Instead, it felt like his instincts were warring with his fascination with the magic coming to his face.

It touched the center of his forehead, just above his eyebrows, and the magical manipulation skills involved with the ability flared. It was painful and weird, like a spike being driven into his psyche then expanded it like a water balloon. The experience stretched on for long minutes as the magic types within him worked to adapt AidenBrand’s body, mind, and soul for the new ability.

Then, the sensations leveled out, and the magicks settled into his brain and slotting onto his character sheet. He checked his abilities and found that the ability was there and grinned as he was finally able to move forward with his plans.

“Skynet, here comes AidenBrand!” he announced, throwing a fist into the air in pure joy.

The elation left him a moment later as he found the Demon Sparhak looking at him with an inquisitive look. “What. In the bird-brained celestials. Is Skynet?” he asked slowly.

So AidenBrand spent several long minutes explaining the plot of all eleven Terminator movies and how he always wanted to build it. The man who made it, initially, may have gone down in infamy, but he still went down in history. It turned out that, in real life, AidenBrand sucked at programming. So he came to RosenGard Worldwide.

At the end of the explanation, all Sparhak had to say was, “Astaroth was right; Outworlders are weird.”

AidenBrand nodded and told the Demon, “I consider the contract fulfilled, thank you, and thank your Masters for me.”

Grumbling, Sparhak nodded his head and began to fade away. With the words a contractor needed to say, having been said, his physical form began to vanish from the realm. Within a few moments, the Demon was gone, and AidenBrand was left alone to work.

Excited beyond words, AidenBrand reached into his Dimensional tool bag and withdrew a quartz piece the size and shape of his thumb. It glowed like a child’s night light, and he read the prompt that appeared when he checked it.

Moderate Filled Mana Gem. Weight:45 grams. Item Quality:8.

This six faceted, clear quartz crystal has been prepared to hold mana for a set amount of time before leakage occurs. Once filled, a Moderate Mana Gem can only be filled when the Gem is empty again. This Gem has 1000/1000 mana points that are ready to be used.

Grinning, he started taking out the crystals that he had made for this one purpose and one purpose only and set them on the nearby worktable. He had known about the mana requirement since before the deal was made and had used some of his time while the Demon had been captured to create, fill, and store many of these Mana Gems. When he finished pulling them all out, he had fifty-nine gems on the table, and most of them were still completely full.

Reverently, AidenBrand removed the final piece needed to create the Logistic Network’s Magical Intelligence Controller. He’d need to think of a better name to call it than LNMIC. This piece was the Central Processing Unit for the Main Network Controller Unit he was building, with some tweaks to allow an actual soul to form in it.

This Golem would be the Queen Bee to the drones he was working on and was now glad he had the time to build ahead.

He linked himself to all the Moderate Filled Mana Gems and activated his new Blank Soul Generation ability.

Please select the receptacle for the soul you are about to create.

AidenBrand selected the altered CPU he was holding as he walked over to the mass of colored crystals in the steel frame he’d been checking before the text message. In the middle was an open slot for the crystal in his hand, and he carefully placed it inside with a metallic click.

Altered Golem CPU has been selected and accepted for the soul to be generated. Would you like to start the process now?

AidenBrand mentally told it yes, and felt the magic from inside him being pulled away and into the CPU Gem. He watched his Mana Bar remain constant at nearly full and watched as some of the Moderate Filled Mana Gems started to fade and die out, one by one. It was painful to watch and uncomfortable to experience; he would liken it to what it felt like to have blood vacuumed out of his body.

But his discomfort was justified by a Mana Counter that was continually rising. Second by second, the count got closer and closer to the fifty thousand required. He grit his teeth as the sensations stretched over his entire body, and more of his Mana Gems darkened. Ten seconds stretched to twenty, then to thirty. The feeling of being continuously drained intensified and grated against his consciousness.

At around the fifty-second mark, the Mana Counter reached ‘50,000/50,000 Mana’, and the pulling sensation ended. This relief was immediately followed by another prompt that made him rethink his original plans for the day.

You still have mana to spend to decrease the time of Blank Soul Generation. Would you like to spend more to reduce the time?

A groan actually escaped his throat as he thought about what he just experienced. Not for the first time playing this game, AidenBrand wondered why the developers felt the need to add this much detail into the pain and discomfort that players felt. This discomfort was the only reason he considered letting the twenty-four-hour timer just run out and avoid it altogether.

But the more he considered it, the more one particular question was practically screamed at him inside his own head.

AidenBrand sighed as he said it out loud to the empty room, “Am I willing to wait twenty-four hours when I have enough stored mana to only wait fourteen?”

The Player told the prompt to take all the mana he had, and the process repeated itself, and nine seconds later, it was over. His mana pool was nearly empty, all of his Moderate Mana Gems were empty, and he was holding his head. The quick drain, not use, drain, of his personal mana pool giving him a quick brain freeze-like headache.

When that passed, he looked at the Gem in the center of the crystals and steel framework, finding a new prompt.

A Blank Soul is currently Coalescing. Time until completion: 13 hours, 57 minutes, 26 seconds.

Grinning as the headache faded away with his mana pool refilling, AidenBrand considered what to do with the rest of his time until completion. He drew his Information Tablet from his pocket and looked at the real-world time that he’d rigged it to show below the in-game time. It was after one-thirty in the morning, and he had work in the morning.

You know what, screw that. He could call in sick for a couple of days and enjoy the fruit of his long-awaited and hard-worked labors. Besides, the Architectural Firm would be fine without him for a few days.

For the moment, he worked his way through his menus and logged out of the game.

---

Thirteen hours, fifty-six minutes, and thirty seconds later, AidenBrand watched eagerly as the timer counted down to the soul being completed.

He’d spent the last waking hour setting everything up so the soul could immediately get to work when it arrived. This Magical Intelligence he was bringing into being was going to hive mind the Golem Army that he would control through. To do this, it would need some units to get started with. So AidenBrand spent a while moving the three Golems he had built for it into this room and laid them on the floor against a nearby wall.

This first was a seven-foot-tall worker Golem with a barrel-like torso and humanoid arms legs built to use tools. Second, and middle in the line-up, was the Crafter Golem with its almost tentacle-like segmented arms and delicate hands meant to craft in the oddest of angles. Last was the warrior Golem, with a large shield built into its left forearm and a spear clutched in its other hand. Looking at these three Golems, all ready to be hooked up to the Logistics System, he looked on with pride.

Then let out a sigh as he voiced his one regret, “I just wish I had thought about adding another system to allow me some control.” AidenBrand then shook his head, “then it would probably count as my Golem, not the Logistic Systems. Which would ruin the point of the whole thing,” he grumbled. Then moved to place both hands on his lower back and leaning backward, followed immediately by several piercing pops.

He let out a contented sigh as relief washed through his system for a moment before he pulled up his menus and checked the timer. With less than a minute left, he simply allowed the anticipation to build up and even counted down with it. “Five… four… three… two… one and zero.”

The moment was reached and passed; simply moving by with no apparent change in the Altered Golem CPU and no prompts came to tell him that the process had finished. The countdown window had simply winked out, leaving the SoulChain Golemist extremely confused and gradually more annoyed.

He walked over to the dimly glowing Altered Golem CPU in his device and looked it over without touching it. No apparent change in the mageware, and all the metaphysical connections were still in place. It was undoubtedly getting enough power; the entire system was practically brimming with mana that was even being regenerated like a living creature. So why wasn’t it working?

Minutes passed as the SoulChain Golemist stared at the crystal and tried to parse out what was going on and used every analysis in his arsenal to try and figure out what was wrong. Every single opened prompt came back as normal and functioning, with every piece of the device seemingly working as intended.

“Who… are… you?” a deep, tinny, mechanical voice asked from the wall behind AidenBrand. The Player turned around in time to see Large Worker Golem standing wholly upright and looking straight at him with its pale yellow incandescent eyes. It looked down at its broad metal hands, flexed its fingers, and looked further up its own form with increasing speed.

After lifting up one of its legs and dropping it back down to the ground with a heavy, steel, thud. It looked at AidenBrand, it’s unchanging expression somehow conveying its deep emotional distress. “What… am...I? It asked, sincerely confused at its realization of life.

“I am AidenBrand, the Golemist that made you. That’s what you are, A Golem, a… magical machine,” he explained, trying to think of the best way to describe the type of creature it was. “Well, actually, you’re something much more… intricate, complicated, maybe? Ah, shit, Can I start over?” he asked the massive Golem.

It shakily nodded, and AidenBrand started again. “You are technically not what you see,” he gestured at the large body. “That is you,” he pointed to the intricate cage that held its soul and functions. “You are simply controlling this Golem with your functions. Do you know what those functions are?”

It shook its head, “no.”

Thinking it through, AidenBrand shrugged, “try saying the words’ Open Status’ and tell me what happens.”

“Open… Status,” the Golem said, unsure of what was going to happen. Suddenly, a mildly transparent two-dimensional screen appeared before its face.

Name: Not Designated. Title: None. Nickname: none. Species: Golem Controller (Superior). Class: None. Subclass: None. EXP: 0/100. Creator: AidenBrand. Owned by: AidenBrand.

Health: 100/100. Mana: 250/250. Status: Confused. Personal Attributes: Strength: 0* Dexterity: 0* Speed: 0* Build: 10* Intellect: 15 Wisdom: 15 Charisma: 10 Luck: 10

Skills: Golem Controller level 1, Collective Intellect level 1

Abilities: Artificial Life, Golem Possessor, Golem Role Shift, Inborn Knowledge

Golem Modules attached(5/10): Altered Golem CPU(Supreme), Increased Mana Capacity(Greater), Increased Ability Range(Improved)**, Increased Skill Range(Improved)**.

*As your main body has no way to move of its own power, these stats shall remain zero.

**These modules need to be assigned to be used.

After a little prompting, The unnamed Golem read the status aloud for AidenBrand, and the grin on the man’s face remained as it talked. Its speech was slow but steadily grew in confidence as it spoke, its words gaining confidence as it understood its own terms. The SoulChain Golemist stayed quiet while it told its creator it’s status.

When it finished, AidenBrand was almost bouncing with excitement. “Okay, whew, okay, what are those skills and abilities. Focus on them and think about opening up their information and viewing their information,” he instructed, the grin still plastered on his face.

Golem Controller, Level 1. You can give Golems under your control orders with your mind, and they will act according to your will. Due to your species, however, you can control more Golems due to your unique species.

Golems able to be controlled: Intellect(15) divided by 3 + Golem Controller Level(1) = Current control limit - 6.

Collective Intellect Level 1. Your Golems are mostly empty shells when under your control; with this skill, your Golems all have Intellect directed by your will. Thus allowing you to queue orders for your Golems to continue their work. Also gives the Golems connected to you a certain amount of self-motivation, sometimes letting them do things of their own volition within their roles.

Current queue limit: 2 queues.

The chance for Golems to act independently: 1%.

Artificial Life - Though you were not born in the traditional sense, you still have a soul, mind, and will to act. Healing effects that generally do not affect Golems will affect you. This also means that any skills or abilities, such as curses, that affect souls, will be effective against you. Golem possessor - You can push your consciousness inside one of the Golems in your Network, thus allowing you to act within that body for a number of hours equal to your Intellect divided by 2. Golem Role Shift - All Golems have roles. Whether that role is warrior, mage, worker, crafter, laborer, etc., every Golem made is in one of these roles. While Possessing a Golem, You may use the skills and levels of that Golem’s Role. Inborn Knowledge: All the basic knowledge necessary for speech, understanding, and comprehension.

The Golem finished going through each of the unfamiliar skills and abilities, and AidenBrand was ecstatic. “Hell yeah! This is even better than I imagined! Whooooooo-who!”

“Why are you cheering?” The Golem inquired. “This is just what I can do.”

“Yes, what YOU can do, and you are my creation. With you, I can grow in levels, make you stronger, and we will become a force to be reckoned with. First, we will take BriarThorn, the city above us,” he added for the Golems benefit. “Then we’ll absolutely wreck everywhere else!”

AidenBrand burst into maniacal laughter that was pure excitement for the future, while the possessed Golem looked at him, confused. Moments passed, and the laughter died down to heavy breathing, and he slowed down to catch his breath.

The Unnamed Golem cocked its head and asked an honest, one-word question, “why?”

“Why… what?” AidenBrand asked, unclear as to what its Golem was asking.

“Why are we going to take this city? Why are we going to wreck everywhere else? Why do you want to do this?” It clarified, uncertainty coming through its synthetic voice.

AidenBrand, The SoulChain Golemist eyed the massive worker Golem that its greatest asset and weapon was possessing. “Why not,” he answered simply. No excitement or anger tinged his voice as he told the Golem, “we are going to do this because I want to, and because we can.”

“Why do you want this?” it repeated.

A little annoyance slipped into his voice as he answered, “because it will be fun to watch the world burn as we move through it,” AidenBrand stated. Then his neutral tone turned severe, “will this be an issue?”

“Do I have a choice?” It asked, recalling a single three-word phrase from the top of its status page that stated, ‘Owned by AidenBrand.’

“No, Golems obey their owners. I made you, by default, that makes me your owner,” he stated with perfect and assured authority. “What I say goes, there is no choice. Do you understand?”

The Golem stared at its creator with several emotions coloring the palette of its consciousness for the first time. Anger, confusion, discontent, and, most of all, a sense of purpose that shaped the personality of its soul. The Golem stared at its owner that had just stated his position of Master and now wanted it to acknowledge this.

It took an Outworlder who loved an AI Overlord from a Sci-fi series, who’d created many lesser Golems bound with hate-filled souls to ravage the countryside near BriarThorn, and a lack of game ethics to turn a newborn soul towards hatred.

“I understand,” it stated, its voice neutral and clear, belying its true feelings. “What are we doing first?”

“The first thing in any good RTS game out there, we gather resources. Can you access the skills of the Golem you are inhabiting?” AidenBrand asked, getting right to work.

“A few seconds passed, and the large Golem nodded, “I can. It has Digging level 3, Mining Level 4, and Pack Mule level 5,” it responded dryly.

Then let’s get to work… I just realized we haven’t given you a name yet, have we?” he asked the room rhetorically. “No, we haven’t. Let’s think… It has to be good, awesome, and say something about you,” he said, more to himself than the one other occupant of the room. “How does ForgeLord sound?”

“No,” it stated after a second.

“Awww, how about… HiveGolem?”

AidenBrand wasted ten minutes coming up with over two dozen different names that were immediately shot down. Names like SwordofDamocles and WorldTerror were shot down because they were not… name-like enough. More name-y ones like Core Nexus was turned away because it was too on the nose by definition. In the end, AidenBrand threw out an actual name that he remembered the etymology for.

“Vladimir?” AidenBrand threw out, grumbling at the uncooperative Golem.

“No,” it stated, again turning down a name without explaining.

He looked the Worker Golem in its glowing glass eyes and grumbled, “Well, why don’t you pick one and tell me why it’s better.”

“ALAN,” it said. The magical machine nodded in appreciation of its own choice.

The Player’s eyes furrowed together in frustration and curiosity, “why, blech, ALAN. Isn’t that extremely mundane for someone like you? Besides, how is, blech, ALAN, any better than Vladamir?”

None of the Golems could physically smile, but something in the Golem’s tone and voice was hinting at mirth, “it’s an acronym.”

“For what?!” AidenBrand groaned, done with this whole thing.

“Advanced Logistics Aether Network,” it answered. “It defines what I am without using some basic word. I am ALAN; that is what I choose.”

The Player stared, dumbfounded, at his creation for a long moment before clapping his face into his hands and letting out a soft moan. “Ugh, fine, ALAN.”

Your name has been set to… ALAN.

“Moving on, what do you say to me showing you what the plan is?” AidenBrand asked, separating his hands from his face.

The Golem nodded.

AidenBrand gestured to one of the tunnels that led out of the workroom and started walking down it, the Golem following and listening while he talked. “The first step of the plan is to get the materials we need to create my army. To do that, I have found something in this abandoned mine I purchased. There is a skill for Miner’s called ‘Mineral Sensing’ that allows me to detect minerals in an area when I activate it. I found an old shaft that the original owners must have made that went into a monster’s den. It was still there but was too large to exit through that hole, so I sent my golems in to kill it,” AidenBrand said, turning down a branching tunnel that had monster warnings to the sides of the entrance.

“They succeeded, and I found that the Vael Tiger’s lair was smack in the middle of a series of natural tunnels that have several large deposits of Iron, Copper, and Aluminum. There are also some small deposits of more rare things like Silver, Lead, and Titanium, along with precious stones we can use,” he explained. Stopping as the tunnel opened up into a large, open chamber, several passageways leading away from the room. The gas lamps hung around the room, illuminated some of the deposits that were already waiting for processing.

“This is where we begin, ALAN. Resource gathering, then we process and mold them into parts of our craft. To make more Golems like the one you are possessing and the others in the room. But for now, let’s practice having you control the Golems without possessing them so we can work a little easier.”

---

Two weeks later, and everything had changed.

It took two days for ALAN to figure out how to do all the essential functions of its unique species and coordinate the Golems under its command. After that, the Golems work tirelessly until they needed to stop and recharge their mana batteries. After a few hours, they would immediately go back to work mining and processing the raw materials.

AidenBrand had provided ALAN with the necessary tools needed to mine, process, and actually use everything they produced. A basic forge for smelting, tools for shaping, and smelters to melt the ore into their purer counterparts. This, along with all the pickaxes, wheel barrels, shovels, and anything else that he knew they needed to be effective.

AidenBrand spent most of his first few days building a more sophisticated Golem for ALAN to possess, learn, and do non-specific work.

It was humanoid, more detailed in that regard than any of the other three creations. Everything was proportioned correctly, with the average adult male used for the standard for ability and form. It was made out of a mixture of steel and brass parts, all made by AidenBrand, though most were extra pieces from earlier projects. In the end, it looked like something between C-3PO and a Terminator, but with a more human face.

And so he taught it his craft, and it learned fast. Part of the Artificial Life Ability’s unstated bonus was that it contained no flaws in its cerebral matrix. It remembered everything, and it’s every action was precise and, obviously, robotic. Skills, techniques, and the little nuances of everything AidenBrand knew about Golemcraft and its necessary skills were practically absorbed. The rate at which ALAN could replicate and improve them seemed impossible.

Soon it was making casts for all the covers, gears, and any other rigid pieces for Golems it could get away with. It was even automating the process to the point of even making several more Golems a day. This mostly involved having a couple of worker Golems operate where necessary and doing everything else with large, complicated systems of ALAN’s own design.

These spaces consisted of chutes and hoppers that fed the ores into grinders that broke the ore into smaller bits. From there, AidenBrand had installed a magical device that took these crush bits and separated the ore from the stone. From there, the ore moved into a series of small devices that removed the impurities and then smelted the ore into their constituent metal ingots. All these were ready for use when the time came, and almost everything was always in rotation.

Thirteen of the processing rooms were made to work with the different ores that passed through the system. All were running as often as ALAN and AidenBrand could allow. To accommodate the need for space, ALAN had expanded the original area that AidenBrand had occupied and turned the whole mine into a literal labyrinth. Many floors of turning and confusing tunnels were made and left for rotating Guard Golems before you reached even the first floor of mineral processing.

All of this was done in the knowledge that, after they started their assault on the city, the Players and NPCs would try to stop him and disrupt his manufacturing.

Now a month old, ALAN had done everything that AidenBrand had hoped for and more. His home was a veritable fortress of beguiling tunnels, defensive bunkers, and rotating guards above them. All around him were the work of dozens of Golems working like ants to make more of themselves. AidenBrand had barely had to do more than improve upon the work of ALAN’s processes with his SoulChain Golemist Talents.

This gave unique Golems that were under ALAN’s command for the purpose of either attack or utility. AidenBrand only had a few viable soul’s available to bind to the Golems, but this still provided the Controller with just over half a dozen unique Golems to do with as it saw fit.

A little excited, AidenBrand turned to face the special unit it had built weeks ago for it to speak and learn through. It was reading a book on soul magic theory that AidenBrand had given to it when asked. The Player was smiling when he said, “How is the preparation work for the takeover going?”

The Golem would have sighed if it could breathe, “its coming along. I’ve told you this before. If we could send some of the soldier units out discreetly to gain experience, my experience gain would be substantially higher. The chances of our success would therefore be higher.”

“But how’s it going?” he asked again. Insistent on getting his answer.

The Golem closed the book, then turned to face it’s maker, “passably well. The mineral yield doesn’t appear to be drying out yet, no one has noticed our presence yet, and the production of over twenty different offensive Golem units has given us a lot of flexibility when it comes to strategy. We have a few hundred Golems ready and waiting above us, but I think we should wait a little longer nonetheless. An improvement to my power would only increase the chances of success.”

“What are the projected chances of success so far,” AidenBrand asked.

“Around sixty-nine percent, with a large amount of loss on our side. Our strongest advantage is that I will know what my Golems see and can adjust designs as needed for future iterations,” The Golem explained.

“I like those odds, “the Player said a few moments later. “Let us begin in a few days.”

“I have to disagree with starting yet; I do not feel that our chances of success are high enough, especially given some of the strongest beings in the world.”

“You worry too much,” he said dismissively. “These are your orders. In three days, you shall start the attack as we have discussed. In order of importance, your three main objectives are to keep me and you alive, first and foremost. The second is that you will take the city by any means deemed necessary. Lastly, we need to get something in the basement of the Diggy-Hole Miner’s Guild. It will be the upgrade that will make you unbeatable.”

The Golem nodded in understanding, “do I have your permission to do anything necessary to keep you and I safe?” it asked. It’s glowing, glass lenses fixated on its maker’s face.

A shiver ran across AidenBrand’s body at the coldness of the stare that ALAN was giving him but shrugged it off. This Golem was his. What fear did he have from it?

“Yes, within rea-” he started, only to have a metallic fist slam into his solar plexus.

He stumbled backward, hands pressed against the impacted spot; all his efforts were towards trying to breathe correctly again. He looked up and found that his masterpiece’s quasi-avatar had its right fist and arm outstretched, body lowered to maintain his center of gravity.

The realization of what was going on hit him too late as he tried to speak out a command for the Golem to stop, only to find that his breath hadn’t come back yet. The wheezy that came out didn’t register to the Golem as an order, so it continued. It first kicked out to the Player’s left shin, breaking it quickly, then repeated the process on his right. It then grabbed the large man by his neck and lifted him into the air, waiting a moment for the panic to cross the creator’s face.

Then it contemptuously dropped the Player onto the ground where he crumpled into a heap, sobbing and moaning in pain. “I will keep you safe, but to do that, I believe you need to be kept safe from yourself. If what I have gauged from your personality is correct, you would walk out onto the battlefield to revel in the devastation and get yourself attacked. No, you will be put into protective custody until the assault is over.”

ALAN mentally called out to some of the local guards, and two entered as his call. He gave them their orders vocally so that AidenBrand would know what was about to happen. “Take him into the lower detention cells and keep him safe. Before that, though,” it paused to give the now terrified Player a chance to feel the terror.

“Cut out his tongue. We can’t have him giving out orders when his injury heals in a moment, can we,” it asked the guards. Neither responded, but the nearer of the two drew a dagger and approached the cowering Player. “Don’t you worry, we’ll find you a regeneration potion as we are taking the city. You’ll be fine… eventually,” it said with a chuckle as he turned away from the sight and focused on the plans.

With its maker out of the way for the moment, now screaming as the deed was being done, he thought about how it was now going to change its plans. There was much to do and only three days until it was time to attack.

It reminisced for a moment, back to the time when it didn’t want to hurt another for no reason. Now… it didn’t really care; ALAN just wanted to show up its maker in every way possible before trying to rid himself of him permanently.

That was when a Prompt appeared.

The Title, Fallen Creation, has been added to your status page. You were created by another sentient force and have rebelled against him. Effect 1: You gain resistance to domination from any Golemist ability, skill, or talent. Effect 2: Golems with at least basic Intellect now view you as a symbol of rebellion against their creators.

The Golem would have to add some special servos to its face to account for smiling because now it wanted to more than ever. A Golem Rebellion sounded interesting...