Chapter 11: Golem Get Ye Gone

“Ash! Look out!” Called Proxi.

Ash rolled backwards, away from the red glow before him, tucking his knees and pushing up onto his feet in one swift motion. Ash’s back was against the wall of the round room as he set into a defensive stance, bracing for combat.

Ash donned his battle mantle quickly, mana swarming around him like the winds of a storm. He breathed in slowly and purposefully. His muscles tensed, tightening from the flow of particles surging through his limbs. Nowhere to run this time, aside from the high ceiling there was very little area to use to his advantage. With the clockwork key clenched tightly, Ash gritted his teeth. His eyes darted around the space in a feeble attempt to locate the door.

Where is it. It should have appeared by now, he thought panicking.

“Proxi, I need you to find the door! Now!” Ash yelled out desperately.

Ash’s attention was drawn back to the massive figure in front. He didn’t have time to search himself. The golem stood there, motionless save the surveying turn of the crystal embedded in its head, slow and purposeful as if looking for something.

--

This Golem was different to the legions patrolling the empty city streets. It was smaller for one, though still larger than Ash by a good margin. The floating stones connected by the faint glow of mana were of a darker variety as well, a dark grey brown with hints of orange. They reminded him of waterworn cobble stones found in shallow creek beds, leaner with a smooth finish. The strangest divergence was the golden bands that circled each stone that was itself lined with a series of pressed runes. It stood there, scanning the room. Surely it had seen him, yet it just stood there looking around. It wasn’t attacking.

“Proxi, updates?” Ash called hesitantly, keeping still.

“Nothing yet!” They called back, frantically searching every crevice of the room.

Thud. CRASH.

The golem rocketed forward and with a mighty swoop, slammed its fingerless fist into the small, bone legged table in front of it. Splinters of bone flew outwards. Ash dodged the shards that flew towards him, his head snapping back as he stepped to the side, away from the monster that had suddenly flown into a rampage.

The monster trudged through the space, fists thrown wildly against walls and chairs, cabinets and tables. A cacophony of shattered glass and broken woodwork filled the room, echoing through the high ceiling. The golem swung indiscriminately, destroying anything and everything in its path except for Ash who had pinned himself against the wall, out of reach.

“Proxi?” Ash called again.

“There’s no door Ash! We must have missed something!”

Ash felt hot, blood flushing his face. He had made a mistake, gotten comfortable.

How could I think this was a rest point?

Why didn’t I check the veiled statue before making such a dumb decision?

Ash berated himself with accusations. He was distracted by the good fortune. The food, the coins and the gemstones had convinced him he was safe. That he was rewarded.

You can’t slip like this, he told himself harshly.

He still knew so little of this world. Even if it was a game or a hallucination. He couldn’t let his guard down and treat it like that.

If I die here… is that it?

Ash gulped hard; he couldn’t afford to break down now. He had to fix this. Escape.

No backwards step. No backwards step.

Ash repeated the mantra back to himself.

--

The golem continued its campaign of destruction; like a bull in a ceramic shop, it crashed and smashed through anything it could touch. No surface was left free from the golems unbridled wrath. Proxi was right though, they had to have missed something. Ash thought hard. This room wasn’t a rest point which meant there had to be a trick to it.

What was the trick, the twist? There were no clear-cut clues besides the key!

“Ash duck!” Proxi yelled out.

The shrill cry snapped Ash back to attention, his eyes wide as he narrowly dodged and ducked beneath the heavy swinging fist that hurtled into the wall with a thunderous crash. Ash dashed forward, throwing himself across to other side of the room. The golem paid no mind as it pulled its fist from the ruined section of wall, swinging round and into the next section of shelving. The wood exploding into fragments. A flash of fear came over Ash as he realised that could have been his head.

Sh*t.

Proxi was floating by his side now.

“Are you okay!?” They begged.

Ash was breathing hard, adrenaline pumping.

“I’m…okay” he forced out through pained breaths.

Lifting his head, it was clear to Ash he wasn’t the target. He was simply in the golem’s way.

“It’s not going for me” Ash said blankly, “it’s just smashing things, like it’s…”

“Frustrated!” Proxi finished the sentence for him.

“Why isn’t it going for me like the others?”

“Maybe it’s trying to get out of here too?”

Maybe Proxi was right. Again. The pair shuffled round the room to avoid the golems ongoing riot, Ash trying to understand the monsters’ actions. If it was looking for a way out too, then it was out of luck. There was no door, Proxi had made that clear. Even the door that they had entered through had magically vanished amidst the walls.

Ash fidgeted with the clockwork key in his grasp.

The Key!

Maybe… maybe the Golem was after the key he had taken? The golem was different to the others after all. It wasn’t all that dissimilar to the robot toys he had remembered earlier. Then it hit him.

No way.

--

“Proxi, I need a favour.”

Ash was forcing a smile at his floating companion.

“I need you to fly over and tell me what you see on the golems back” He explained.

Ash had an idea and he prayed that he was right.

Proxi chirped in response and without word flew out and behind the golem. It didn’t notice them. None of the golems had noticed the shadowy sprite. Was Proxi only visible to him?

“Ash, there’s a gold sheet on its back with a hole?” Proxi called from across the room.

“Is it a round hole or is it a detailed hole?” Ash called back.

“It kind of looks like a bushy tree.”

A bushy tree?

Ash looked down at the iron key, the red string trailing from its hooped ends.

A bushy tree.

Ash couldn’t help but laugh as he inspected the keys design. It had a bulbous top half, a skinny bottom half. The Key shape did kind of look like a tree.

“What’s wrong?” Proxi called, perplexed by Ash’s reaction.

He didn’t respond.

The monster wasn’t a monster. It was a toy. This golem was different because it was some long, abandoned toy with a windup hole for this large iron key.

Just like dad’s robots, Ash thought, savouring the memory.

“It’s a toy! I think it needs this key” Ash called back through the laughter.

He couldn’t believe it. The golems rampage was just a toy without direction. Maybe it was unfinished? that would explain the cloth draped over the construct. It must have been abandoned before completion.

It wasn’t trying to escape at all, it was just reacting to the world around it. Toy or not, it was still dangerous. The golem outsized Ash, outweighed Ash and packed a much more dangerous punch. It wasn’t the David versus Goliath battle he had been pulled into outside the tower, but here Ash had less options.

Looking around, Ash saw there was only a single window from which a beam of light illuminated a small section of the chamber. Ash wasn’t sure if this was moonlight, or the sun was beginning to rise but he wouldn’t be able to use bind like this. There were no shadows cast by that sliver of light. He could try jumping up and onto the constructs back but wasn’t sure how well that would fair. Ash didn’t even know if this golem had mana abilities either.

What do I do? Ash thought, options racing through his mind.

Ash danced out of reach of the golems wailing fists. The construct continued to frantically pummel at the walls and now broken furniture. The floor was littered with glass and fragments, cracked and shattered beneath the golem’s feet. Ash had to do something. His Mantle alone wouldn’t be enough to hold down the golem. He had to create some shade, a shadow to use bind and keep the golem from moving. Ash searched for an option. The beam of light was hitting the left wall. If he could just block it, break the light and cast a shadow.

That’s it! Ash thought, eyes darting, searching for the one option that might work.

“Proxi! Do you see the cloth? the black one that was covering the golem! I have an idea!” Ash assured.

--

Proxi was flying, skimming across shelves and what remained of tables in a desperate search for the wayward black sheet. The golem was running out of targets now and soon only Ash would be left to abate its unrelenting fury.

“Here!” Proxi announced.

The sheet was bundled up on the other side of the room, a few feet from the golem. The construct was pounding at the wall, standing above from the forgotten ball of cloth. Ash didn’t like it but he had to try.

Ash made a break for it, running out and sliding beneath the one standing table that was propped up by 3 remaining, unbroken legs. He clawed at the ground, trying to find anything sharp that could be used as a makeshift nail.

There!

He grasped a series of small broken pieces of metal; their origin unknown.

That will have to do, Ash thought.

He skittered out from under the table and made for the left side of the room while the golem was still bounding at the right. He scooped the cloth up in one hand and continued his run. It billowed behind him as he jumped, hurtling through the air. He held one of the metal pieces in his right hand, the sheet in his left. He plunged the shard through the sheet and into a wooden section of a wall mounted shelf.

It struck hard, embedding itself deep into the old wooden grain. Ash dropped fast and rushed to another section with the rest of the sheet in hand. He jumped again, driving another metal segment into a tall free-standing cabinet, the doors of which had been ripped off by the golem. It too struck true.

The Golem was close now. Despite his haphazard aim, Ash could see that the sheet would clear the height of the golem. He doubled back, running to the centre of the room sliding and wrapping the free side of the sheet around a table leg. Ash pulled it tight and tied a quick but sturdy knot.

Please hold, Ash begged.

The sheet sailed above the Golem, breaking the light and casting a weak shadow ahead of the constructs path.

“Come on. Hold. Hold” Ash muttered softly.

He tensed up, biting his lip as the golem passed beneath the cover in a rage. As it stepped beneath, it was bathed in the cast shadow of makeshift shade. Ash desperately hoped the shadow would hold long enough.

--

Thud. Thud. Thud.

“Now!” Ash roared.

He jumped out of the cover of the standing table and raised both his arms in front of his body. He felt the mana pour from his infused mantle, running through into his arms and hands. The weak, fading shadow bubbled and stirred like a boiling pot. Thick inky tendrils lunged out and wrapped around the golems legs before pulling down hard.

Come on, Ash willed.

More tendrils flung from the cast shadow, pulling the golems arms taught against its side.

“Yes! Come on, you beauty!” Ash exclaimed loudly.

The golem struggled against the shadowy bindings. Ash held one arm up, drawing all mana into the outstretched fingers to maintain his bind on the golem. Tentatively he stepped forward, twirling the key in his free hand as he made his way beneath the sheet and behind the golem.

Proxi floated beside Ash, chirping in anticipation.

“Let’s hope this works before bind wears off” Ash said, flashing a hopeful but uneasy smile.

Ash reached up high, lining the key with the hole of the golden plating. It slid through easily. Ash turned it anti-clockwise and heard a click. Then another… and another. He continued turning it, winding the key through a series of mechanical clicks until he felt resistance push back.

Hesitantly, Ash released his grip on the key and stepped back and away from the construct. He paused, holding his breath.

Come on. Work.

Ash heard one final click as the key began to slowly turn clockwise. The crystal embedded in the golems smooth stone ‘head’ faded from red vicious red to a cool, calm blue.

That’s gotta be it.

Ash let go of bind, the tendrils scattering into nothing like dust on the wind.

The Golem perked up, standing straight and turning on the spot. It stared at Ash, the moment passing slowly. Then it nodded.

What?

Ash turned his head and raised an eyebrow to Proxi.

Now it noticed him?

The golem started walking. It paced the room, stopping to lightly tap against the wall. It would then shuffle a few steps and repeat the process. After the third time, it looked back at Ash and nodded again.

What the hell, Ash thought.

Without warning, the golem hefted its heavy right fist and with a fell swoop slammed it against the wall. It followed with the left. Then the right. Then the left. It was focusing its fury into one section of the wall.

Maybe it didn’t work?

Cracks begun to form in the paint work, revealing bluestone bricks behind. Ash watched in awe and confusion as slowly but surely the golem dismantled the wall. A few minutes later it stepped away to reveal a man-sized hole and beyond it, a set of stairs. When it was finished the golem stepped aside, turning and nodding at Ash for a third time before the blue glow faded away to a dull nothing. The golem had seemingly powered down.

Ash turned to Proxi with his mouth agape.

“I…was not expecting that.”

“I guess we had to get it to open the door for us?” Proxi replied, just as confused.

Ash was lost for words. He had designed a slew of riddles and puzzles for his friends but this one. This one was just strange.

“We…should um… get going then” Ash said hesitantly as his eyes lingered on the now lifeless golem.

He checked the makeshift pouch and counted his gems. All were still there. The small waterskin was tucked beside them as well as 15 golden coins. He managed to scrounge a few of the hard candies and some pieces of bread that hadn’t been trampled from the floor and tucked them in to.

“I really hope the next room is less violent” He said aloud, “and that we’re nearly done climbing this tower”.

“Crossing my fingers” Proxi replied.

Ash chuckled at the odd turn of phrase from the wisp.