After a few minutes of sitting around to recover their energy, the group crept down the hall. It had been long enough since their last fight that it didn’t seem likely anything else had overheard it, but there was no point taking chances. They crept down the dark hall, following its curves deeper into the earth. The scent of mildew grew stronger with every step, and a faint mist greeted them, prickling against their skin. It was mostly concentrated around their feet, sending wisps of swirling white up with every step they took. The Mesh prickled at Arwin’s skin, telling him that there was faint power stored within the mist – or, more likely, whatever had created it. After a few more minutes of walking, they reached the end of the hall. A stone door sat before them, its surface flush with the walls around it. It was plain, aside from a small green crystal jutting out from one side of it like a doorknob. “That’s not suspicious at all,” Rodrick said, squinting at the door. “Something nasty past this, you think?” “Probably,” Arwin said with a nod. “I’d say the mist is coming from beyond the door. It’s probably something a little stronger than what we’ve faced before.” “What are the chances it’s waiting on the other end of the door to attack us?” “Nonzero,” Arwin admitted. “But this mist could be a good sign. If we can take out whatever is waiting for us, I’d be willing to bet we’ll be able to get some good stuff from the victory.” “I’d be willing to try. I’m topped up on magic right now, so as long as nobody gets hurt too seriously, I can keep everyone patched up for a while,” Anna supplied. “I’ll believe it when I see someone else try it.” “Let’s just kill this thing already, shall we?” Anna asked. “The mist is tingly. I don’t like it. I know it’s not doing anything, but it kind of feels like I’ve got ants trying to crawl up my pants.” Arwin grimaced at that thought, then hoisted his hammer and started toward the golem, Rodrick at his side. The monster didn’t respond to their approach, and Arwin kept his guard up to make sure nothing else was lurking in the shadows. Golems were pretty non-confrontational so long as they weren’t annoyed, so it was very possible for another monster to be in the room. But, at least as far as he could tell, there wasn’t anything else in the area. He wasn’t even sure where the door to the next room was – though he would have bet a fair sum of gold it was probably behind the waterfall. Dungeons always liked sticking things behind waterfalls. As they grew closer to the golem, a dull grinding noise echoed through the room. The golem’s head shifted up, dim green lighting in the sockets that made up its eyes. It hadn’t attacked yet, but it was watching them. “I think it sees us,” Rodrick said. “I don’t know if sees is the right word,” Arwin said. “It doesn’t actually have eyes. It’s just magic manifest. Golems don’t process information or thought like we do, as far as I’m aware.” “It means I don’t have to feel bad about this,” Arwin replied, rearing back and swinging his hammer, empowering the blow with [Scourge]. The hammer slammed into the side of the golem’s head with a resounding crash, sending a spray of stone fragments flying everywhere. The monster staggered, catching itself on the ground with an arm. It shoved itself upright, stone screeching against crystal as it stood upright. Rock flew from the ground, filling the crater Arwin had made in it. “I think you pissed it off,” Rodrick said, taking a step back as a dull hum filled the air. The translucent green crystals covering the monster started to pulsate, their light reflecting in the mist around them. “So I did,” Arwin agreed. “The core isn’t on the left side of its head, in case you were wondering.” The golem lurched forward, bringing a large, rocky hand the size of Arwin’s upper body down toward him. He dove to the side and the ground shook behind him from the force of the golem’s blow. Rodrick darted at the monster and slammed the butt of his sword down into the top of its arm, cracking the stone slightly. His eyes went wide and he skipped back, avoiding the golem’s other hand as it swept at him. “Nine Underlands, that thing is really hard to crack. How’d you damage it so easily?” “I’ve got a bloody hammer,” Arwin replied. And an ability that lets me grow far more powerful than I normally am. Just a small buff, really. Definitely not a big deal. The golem rumbled toward them, raising a hand. Crystals shifted across its body, gathering in its palm and forming into a large, jagged sword. It swept the blade and Arwin dropped to the ground, just barely ducking under the powerful blow in time. The rush of wind from its passing buffeted his hair, and Rodrick let out a slew of curses from behind him. There hadn’t been a loud crunch, so the warrior must have avoided the attack as well. As the golem went to pull the sword back for another swing, Arwin attacked once more. He brought his hammer hurtling toward the other side of its head like a meteor, slamming it into the stone with all the force his body could muster. Another loud crash echoed through the room. The force of his blow, empowered by [Scourge], sent the golem staggering several feet to the side. Rubble rained down from the huge crater, but there was still no core to be seen. The wound quickly started to patch over. Arwin went to attack again, but he was forced to abandon the attempt as the golem nearly impaled him with its enormous crystal sword. He twisted at the last second, letting the weapon scrape across his armor with a loud screech. “You okay?” Rodrick yelled. “Fine,” Arwin replied with a grimace. The golem was a bit faster than he’d expected – or perhaps he was just slower than he’d once been. It was probably a mixture of the two. “The golem’s core isn’t in its head. Let’s go for the body, around the heart area.” “I’ll distract it,” Rodrick said, running up and smacking the golem on the arm before Arwin could respond. It turned toward him, bringing the crystal sword whistling for Rodrick’s head. A blue glow enveloped the golem, slowing its movements for just an instant. Rodrick leapt back and the sword whiffed him. Arwin’s hammer shot out and caught the golem in the shoulder with another spray of stone. A resounding chime rang out as he struck some of the crystal, and a tremor raced down his arms with such intensity that Arwin was forced to drop his hammer. He hopped back, cursing and shaking his arms off. Whatever the crystals were made out of, it was really strong. Arwin used [Arsenal] to summon his hammer back into his hands. The golem reached out for him, and Rodrick unleashed several rapid – but largely ineffective – attacks into its back.