“How do you guys feel about going to that ruin?” He asked.

“I can feel a deep resonance with my element, but I cannot tell whether it is a positive or negative one. Either there is some powerful artifact there, or a powerful monster,” Maranta said. She operated with a curious sort of fighting style, leveraging her elemental power to act as a mage, while still retaining her skills as a martial fighter.

“I say we check it out,” Jonathan replied.

The others all nodded, and they made their way across the lava fields, picking their way through the flows. The lava here was far hotter than the lava from the earlier realm, and would easily burn through Jonathan’s skin. It would probably immolate the others instantly if they dared to step into its fiery depths.

The field of lava was about five miles wide, and with their speed and dexterity, they made it to the center in a matter of minutes. Most of that time was spent avoiding drifts of lava. It continuously spread and cooled across the obsidian ground, leaving patches where a careless foot could step through, and land in molten rock.

The ruin loomed ahead, a gothic edifice made out of obsidian, with accents of what looked like bronze on the crenellations. It appeared to be some sort of church, going by the iconography etched into its surface. Pictures of the same brawny Uthraki from the fort’s center covered its surface, showing him fighting against armies of strange, tentacled monsters with stunning backdrops of lava waterfalls and chasms that could swallow cities. It seemed that the natural beauty of the realm only increased the further one went towards the center.

The entrance to the church was surprisingly untouched by wear and tear, and it revealed a small courtyard within, dominated by a large statue. Veins of glowing rock crisscrossed the statue’s surface, and it seemed to almost be alive in a way. Below it was a trapdoor, descending to some hidden basement.

Jonathan strode into the courtyard, letting the others examine the artwork. He headed towards the statue, and began to summon his elemental energy. Something about the statue almost made him think that it was alive. His superior perception could make out tiny fluctuations in the statue’s surface. A moment later, this was proven unnecessary, as the statue blinked, and began to rise.

“Intruders. You violate this holy place. Prepare to be cleansed in the name of the Lord of this realm.”

“A bit arrogant of him to choose that sort of name, is it not?” Jonathan asked.

He hadn’t exactly been religious back on Earth, but he had been enough that some random Uthraki warlord pretending to be a god rubbed him the wrong way. Rather than respond, the golem simply took one step forwards, and began to cycle energy throughout its body. Jonathan did the same, and he whistled for his allies to come in. This would potentially be a valuable battle in terms of essence acquisition.

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As purple fire played across his gauntlets, Jonathan rushed the golem, and used his armor ability. Inky black ash swirled across the armor, empowering its defensive powers. As the golem strode forwards, it held out one arm, and the stone beneath it began to warp.

A longsword made out of black rock ascended into its hand, and the golem held it expertly, before slashing at the air. A crescent of light shot out, and Jonathan met it with his fist in the center. His Void ability overpowered the energy, shattering the technique. He decided to rely on his gauntlets here, as he didn’t want to die because he was fighting with a handicap. Although practicing with his club and mace was important, neither weapon was good enough to stand up to this kind of abuse.

The golem surged forwards, with surprising speed, straight into a spear of condensed rock from Maranta. The construct bulled its way through the strike, shattering the rock with ease. Its sword flashed out, aiming for the gap between armor plates on Jonathan’s body. He sent his own hand out, using his stamina to empower the motion. It locked around the sword, and he tugged, trying to pull the golem off balance.

Tendrils of rock rose from the ground and rooted the statue in place, stopping Jonathan from moving it. It then channeled energy through the sword, changing its shape into a far narrower blade. With a quick flick, it withdrew the suddenly thinner weapon from Jonathan’s grasp.

The golem then thrust the weapon forwards, widening its end, and into his gut. Jonathan was torn off his feet and sent flying towards the wall. He cracked the rock with his landing, but luckily, nothing was broken. He got to his feet, and watched as his allies engaged the golem. It was clear from the very start that they were severely outclassed.

Raising one hand, Jonathan condensed his conceptual energy until a mote of pure consumption hovered over it. Then he surged forwards, through a swipe of the golem’s sword, and buried his hand in its stony flesh.

Maw of the Void ripped through the stone, and projected a cone of power out the back of the golem’s form. Cracks spread across its features, but it did not fall. Instead, the statue glowed with an internal light, before detonating its outer layer, sending a storm of shrapnel in all directions.

With a desperate maneuver, Jonathan sent his Void energy rushing out in a cloud, eating away at the rock before it could reach him and his allies. This blunted the attack but did not stop it. Instead, he was pattered with tiny shards of obsidian, which sent vibrations racing across his armor. It ultimately held, but it was still stressed by the force. Meanwhile, Maranta erected a wall of stone before her and the others, deflecting the attack.

As the dust cleared, the form of the golem was revealed, far thinner than before. It was slender where it had previously been thick, and seemed capable of great speed. The hole from Maw of the Void was still conspicuously present, but because of its new form smoothing out its features, it seemed to be a part of it now.