Chapter 27: Crystal Guardian Trials. Part Two
A faint glow from crystals continues to show the path that the sphere is showing to Coal.
As he maintains walking on this path the glow from the crystals grow brighter and brighter and more intense.
A faint humming sound attracts Coals attention away from the orb.
He had not realized how distracting and attention grabbing the sphere was to him. Luckily, this humming sound distracted him, and he no longer walked along in a trance state.
With every step he took the sound became louder and more clear, but he could not make it out.
It was a strange and almost otherworldly sound, but it did not disturb or feel eerie to Coal.
The noise seemed oddly attractive and pleasant to the ear.
An opening in the path ahead could be seen and once he made it through he was met with a large circular chamber in which the sound was almost deafening, but it ended abruptly once he walked into the center of the chamber.
The chamber is filled with crystal formations and a pedestal ascends from the ground and on it a blue sword and shield.
Unsure of what to do he tucks the sphere into one of his satchels and picks up the sword and shield.
They have a surprising weight to them, but they are not unwieldable. In fact, they feel right as if he had always been wielding them.
After practicing a few swings he noticed that on the pedestal was a red key.
Thinking that the key was probably important to his trials he grabbed it, but once it was off the pedestal it retracted back down into the ground and the whole room began to rumble.
A voice once more enters his head. “Welcome Coal to the second trial! I wish you luck on this little puzzle.”
Some of the crystal formations began merging and huge crystal golems surrounded Coal.
Readying himself for combat, Muddy materializes behind Coal, but something was different: he was much larger than the last time he materialized.
Instead of being the size of two park benches, he was now a little over half the size of a carriage.
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He grips the sword and shield tightly, feeling their weight and balance in his hands. Muddy, the now giant mud turtle with lots of large spikes on his shell, stands beside him, towering over him with its increased size.
Coal looks around, taking stock of the situation.
There are several crystal golems surrounding him, and they appear to be moving in a coordinated fashion, almost as if they were being controlled by a single entity.
He quickly realizes that this is likely part of the puzzle that the voice mentioned.
The crystal golems start to advance towards him, and Coal charges forward to meet them.
He swings his sword in a wide arc, striking one of the golems and shattering it into pieces.
The other golems continue to advance, but Coal deflects their attacks with his shield and counters with his sword.
Muddy joins the fray, smashing into the golems with its massive mouth and paws knocking them back.
Coal and Muddy work together, fighting back-to-back and covering each other's blind spots.
As they battle, Coal notices that the crystal formations around the room are starting to change.
They are shifting and moving, almost as if they are alive.
He realizes that they are part of the puzzle, and that he needs to figure out how to use them to his advantage.
He quickly formulates a plan, directing Muddy to smash into one of the crystal formations.
The impact causes a chain reaction, and several of the crystals start to glow with a bright blue light.
Coal takes advantage of the distraction, striking the golems with his sword and shattering them into pieces.
Muddy continues to smash into the crystals, causing more of them to glow and emit a powerful energy.
The crystal golems start to slow down, their movements becoming sluggish and uncoordinated.
Coal takes advantage of this, striking them with his sword and shattering them into pieces.
As the last golem falls, the crystal formations around the room start to glow with a brilliant blue light. The room begins to shake, and a bright light once again fills the chamber.
The crystals around the room that merged and disappeared during the fight had reappeared and merged together and formed golems again.
Defeating the golems did not seem to be the solution to this trial.
He grabbed the sphere out of his satchel hoping that it would lead him to a solution, and a voice entered his head.
“Pay attention to the golems' movements and the key isn’t just a decoration piece.”
Coal takes a deep breath and focuses his attention on the golems.
He observes their movements closely, trying to identify any patterns or weaknesses.
After a few moments, he notices that the golems seem to be moving in a specific formation, almost like a dance.
He also notices that the key he picked up earlier has a symbol etched onto it that matches the pattern of the golems' movements.
Coal realizes that he needs to use the key to disrupt the golems' pattern and break their formation.
He takes a deep breath and charges forward, dodging the golems' attacks and using the key to disrupt their movements.
As he does this, the crystal formations around the room begin to shift and move once again, but this time in a different pattern.
Coal continues to use the key to disrupt the golems' movements, causing them to become more and more uncoordinated.
Eventually, the golems start to fall apart, their crystal bodies shattering into pieces.
As the last golem falls, the room fills with a bright light, and a feeling of warmth and relief washes over Coal.
The voice returns to his head, congratulating him on completing the second trial.
A door opens in the chamber, leading Coal to the next stage of his journey.
Coal takes a moment to catch his breath and collect himself before moving forward, his sword and shield in hand, and the sphere tucked safely into his satchel.