Jack was really starting to regret leaving the refuge. Oh, he still felt the burning need to save Helmrest. And he agreed with Elia, braving this dungeon was the best chance they had at obtaining help. Or at least, obtaining something they can sell and use the coins to buy help.
But couldn’t we have… I don’t know, found a nice dungeon?
Then again, Jack thought he shouldn’t be complaining all that much. They made it in without using too much of the potions. Brom’s blood allowed them to bypass most of the traps. They did have it good.
With the sole exception of the two massive murdering golems currently running at them.
“Shit! Mrk, get back! Brom, to the front!” Jack shouted.
Not that he needed to. Brom was already advancing, while Mrk had melded with the shadows.
Jack stayed where he was. The golems certainly looked dangerous, but he couldn’t know for sure until they clashed with Brom. Depending on how that went, he’d either jump in to help his friend or take aim from a distance.
He didn’t have to wait for long. With a roar like rocks falling, the first golem reached Brom and smashed his club into Brom’s shield. The dwarf spoke no Skill, but the blow still didn’t make him kneel. He did crouch a bit, which must have meant that while they could fight the golems, they weren’t easy opponents.
Besides. It had only been a one-armed swing.
The second golem had almost reached Brom, when an arrow struck it in the chest, lighting it on fire. However, the fire didn’t catch on all too well on the mass of rocks now peppering its skin and it died out in a few seconds. The golem stopped for a moment, but after seeing that it was fine, continued on to its previous target.
Damn it.
Jack rushed forward, determined to get the second golem's attention, when Mrk came out of the shadows, right behind its knees. It seemed that the ratling had developed a preference for enemy weak points.
He slashed wildly, long-knives delivering cuts from all directions, but the weapons weren’t of that much use against a stone armored foe. Sure, chips and pebbles were flying off, but not enough to make a dent. Not even enough to catch the lumbering creation’s attention.
With a snarl, Mrk stabbed both his knives in the back of its knee. That seemed to do the trick, as the golem groaned and fell down to one knee.
Good. Now, on to the next o-
It all happened in seconds, but it seemed that their group had gotten the upper hand. Especially since Brom had managed to extend his ax in a thrust, right his opponent’s chest, toppling it over his sibling. Both golems were not picking themselves up for the ground, which was the perfect moment for them to make their move.
Unfortunately, Ava had the same thought.
“I’ve got it. Guys, their bodies can’t catch fire, but their clubs can. They’re made of wood!” The Satyr shouted.
…what?
“Ava, no!” Brom yelled out.
It was too late, however. Two arrows sailed out from Ava’s direction, impaling the golems clubs. Which truly were made of wood. And which yes, did catch on fire. And on a normal opponent, that might have meant robbing them of their weapon. In the case of rock skinned golems, however…
“Great, Ava!” Jack shouted back. “Now they have flaming clubs to beat us with.”
“Uh… I’ll admit this was my mistake. Sorry!” she shouted, wincing. “Let me make it up for it. |Piercing Shot|!”
This time, the arrow hit one of the golems in the head and came out on the other side. Still, the only thing it did was to make the creations stop in their advance. They were still standing, but perhaps they were cognizant enough to realize they could actually be hurt.
“They either do not have a core… no, they’re too big not to. It must be somewhere in their torso.” Brom muttered.
“Core?” Mrk asked.
“Like a heart.” Brom answered, before turning towards Ava to shout. “Next time, hit it in the chest. Dead center!”
“Got it!”
Jack wanted to ask Brom if he knew anything else about this type of creation, but the dwarf’s voice triggered something in them. With a lurch, the two golems moved, advancing once more.
“Ava can’t hurt them without her Skill. It’s only the three of us. Mrk, can you distract one of them? Brom, I’ll pin it in place, you chop off its leg.”
“Mrk try.” The ratling seriously said.
Brom just nodded.
Jack didn’t see Mrk disappear from his view, but he did see the ratling appear from behind one of the golems. He didn’t try hitting the knee again, but used the knives as grappling hooks and climbed on the golem’s back, before starting to chip away at its head.
The creation’s arm seemingly couldn’t bend that way, so it was a winning strategy. Jack only hoped it would buy them enough time.
Once he was near enough, he shouted.
“|Ensnaring Vines|!”
Then used it again. And again. Each time, his spell sprouted vines from the stone floor, anchoring the golem's leg. It couldn’t rip free in one move, but Jack could see that each of its movements caused some of the vines to snap. He would have replenished them, but he was too light-headed to cast again.
Thankfully, Brom closed in. Shield raised, he advanced quickly, ducking under far-reaching swings and darting towards the blocked leg. Perhaps the creation sensed danger because it started to lash out with its club, aiming to strike at the dwarf.
Some of the strikes did land, but they only slowed Brom down, didn’t stop him. Seeing this, the golem stopped trying to rip off the vines and grasped his club with both hands. With a huge arc, the golem swung its flaming club in a downward swing.
Jack didn’t even have time to shout. Brom shouted his shield Skill, right when the hit landed. But he did more than that. He must have used the energy stored in the shield as well since the club wasn’t just blocked. It was exploded in a rain of flaming shrapnel.
Not ceding the initiative, Brom ran forward and shouted.
“Quick Swing!”
His enlarged ax met with the golem's leg and blasted off its rock armor, revealing the clay underneath.
However, it wasn’t enough. The other rocks and pebbles on its body were already dislodging themselves, moving to cover the gap in its armor. Oddly enough, the sight of the clay ‘flesh’ reminded Jack of his first days in the clearing. Making pots and baking them. Simpler times.
If it worked then…
Aiming at the still exposed clay, Jack used his Skill.
“|A Fire a Day|!”
And it worked. The clay instantly combusted, hardening and cracking. It might have been the overall danger or maybe just his increased level, but Jack’s Skill seemed to work even better than before. A portion of the golem’s leg hardened, from mid-thigh to mid-calf, rocks falling off.
Brom ignored the huge grasping hands and used his ax to cut at the leg again, before retreating.
The golem tried to advance, but a cracking sound made it look down. With a snap, its leg broke and the golem went down, one leg and one stump being not enough to support its weight.
A cheer might have been in order, if not for the blood-curdling scream that followed this event.
Mrk!
Turning his gaze, Jack saw the other golem moving away from the wall of the corridor. It seemed that not being able to grasp the stabbing ratling, the golem decided to squish it instead, ramming its back into the nearest wall. It was… unfortunately effective, as Mrk’s broken body fell and landed on the floor.
Jack had started running before the golem had even started to turn around. Mrk tried to use a Skill and move away from the lumbering foe, but at least one of his legs was broken. He didn’t make it two steps, before falling to the ground with a yelp.
The golems hand was almost on Mrk, when Jack stabbed it. It should be said that for an unenchanted rapier, his blade went in quite deep. Not deep enough to hurt the golem, but deep enough to get its attention.
It halfway turned towards Jack, before two more attacks hit it. An arrow penetrated its chest, going out the other side, but it didn’t go down. Brom’s shield met its club, while his ax targeted his leg. They unloaded every hit they had in the golem, trying to make it back away from Mrk.
But for some reason, the creation kept trying to grasp him.
“I thought it’s you they hated!” Jack shouted towards Brom. “Why are they going towards Mrk?”
“I don’t know.” He grunted. “Poor programming, perhaps. Take out wounded targets first.”
Jack grunted and slashed his rapier, avoiding the golem's hand, while Brom was blocking its club. Footsteps behind him made him startle and he saw Moran and Ava arriving near Mrk.
“|Asses Injury|… fuck! He’s got multiple broken bones. He’s also leaking blood.”
“So heal him!” Jack snarled, dodging a giant finger.
“I can’t right now. I need to set his bones first. I need time!”
“Incoming!” Ava shouted and nocked.
Slowly, but surely, the other golem had made its way towards them. And it was almost on top of them. It wasn’t as dangerous as before, club smashed to bits and one leg gone, but it could still hamper them. Still, the golem wasn’t looking at them. It was looking at…
Mrk
“This fucker’s after Mrk as well. We have to take them out.”
“How?” Ava shouted.
“Brom, if I take out its head, would it collapse?”
“No.” the dwarf shouted back, striking the golems club with his ax. “The core’s not there. It’s in the chest.”
“I’ve already hit the chest! Dead center, like you said!” Ava said.
“Dead cen- Curse you sentimental fools! It’s where the heart should be!”
While it was good that they had finally found a way to maybe take them out, the second golem had finally reached them properly. There were two massive creations and only two fighters. Three, if you counted the archer.
“Ava, how many more fire arrows left?” Jack shouted, dodging under a fist.
“Just the one! But I can’t use my Skill yet!”
Damn.
“Be ready!” Jack shouted.
Mrk had the right idea after all. Sure, you might get squished if the golem catches on, but the one-legged creation would probably have a hard time lifting itself up. Or so Jack hoped.
He ran forward, weaving through grasping arms and made its way on the golem’s back. A rapier wouldn’t make a hole in the rock armor, but an ax might. He started hitting away, one hand for support and one wielding the ax. Seconds felt like hours, while the creation flayed, trying to shake him off. An eternity later he finally removed enough that he could see the clay underneath.
“Ava! Ready?”
“Yes! Jump off!” she shouted, taking aim.
If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.
But while she was looking at the opening Jack provided, she didn’t notice the huge club preparing to crash down on her.
Brom’s too far.
He didn’t know if it would work. He only hoped it did. Jack let his ax drop and jumped away, one hand already in his pouch. He pulled out a scroll and aimed it at Ava. Jack shouted at the same time she did.
“Fire Shield!”
“|Piercing Shot|!”
A shimmering shield of fire materialized above Ava, just in time to block the massive swing. Jack landed roughly, one of his shoulders protesting insistently. He didn’t have to wonder if her flaming shot reached its target, as a wave of clay and rocks splashed on the ground near Jack, a few stones hitting him as well.
“One down!” she cheered, with no idea how narrowly she escaped being splattered to death.
Jack would have cheered too, but the landing took out all the air inside him. Besides, his eyes were on the remaining golem. The fire shield worked better than intended. Not only did it shield Ava, but it also obliterated what remained of the enemy’s club. But that didn’t mean it was out of the fight.
The golem lurched forward, taking advantage of their position and Brom’s shock. The dwarf had been running towards the Satyr, intent on saving her. Only he was now in the wrong location to stop what came next.
The creation looked much too primitive for actual thought, but it might have been peeved that its swing didn’t reach its target. So, he attacked the only one of them currently unprotected. His right leg smashed into Moran, throwing him into the wall. The young man’s shout of pain let Jack know he was alive, but now but Mrk and their healer were down.
“Moran!” Brom shouted.
Ava didn’t shout. She just let out a roar of rage and pain and charged at the golem.
“Ava, no!” Jack shouted, but it was too late.
The Satyr jumped, grasping onto the golem’s chest and using one end of her bow as a dagger, stabbing away at its rock armor. A heroic move, but heroes die in dungeons, as any experienced adventurer might have told her. The golem grasped Ava in one hand while using the other to fend off attacks from Brom.
“Damn it, Ava!” Jack shouted. “Brom, target its legs. We have to take it down before Mrk and Moran bleed to death.”
“Trying!” Brom grunted.
They went all in. The fact that Ava was still cursing and stabbing was keeping the golem distracted, while Jack and Brom were each hacking away at a leg. Though only one successfully.
After using his shield to blast away a rock-covered fist, Brom shouted.
“|Quick Swing|!”
Just as before, his enlarged ax blasted away the rocks covering the golems knee. However, this time his ax returned to normal, having lost its magic for the time.
We're running out of resources. Still, better than running out of lives.
Dragging the second scroll out of his pouch, Jack aimed and said the literal magic words.
“Fireball!”
An orb of fire materialized and flew, incinerating Jack’s scroll in turn. It hit the golem in the knee and worked its magic. In seconds, most of his leg had hardened and its movement cause it to shatter. It dropped to the ground, supporting itself one a knee and a stump.
If Jack wasn’t sure before if the creation in front of him could feel spite, he was assured of it when he saw its head turn and peer at Ava. Somehow, Jack felt pure hate emanating in waves from it. Hate and a desire to keep crushing. To crush something else. To crush… One. More. Thing.
With a jerk, Ava stopped stabbing the golem’s hand and screamed.
“It’s crushing her!” Brom shouted.
Jack saw the golem’s second hand reaching towards Ava as well, no longer caring of the damage Brom inflicted on it. With his final reserve of magic, Jack managed to use the |Ensnaring Vines| Spell. Only two times, but it managed to pin the golem’s hand to the wall.
Still, if they didn’t do something, it would rip it open soon. And Ava was still being crushed.
They charged, both of them wielding axes, striking at anything they could. Its leg, its thigh, its crotch. Anything and everything, hoping the golem would let her go.
For the second time since encountering it, it spoke.
“OaTHbrEAkeR!” it said voice like gargling rocks.
“It wants me!” Brom said, desperation clear in his voice. “He wants to hurt me!”
“They why is it killing Ava?!”
“Because- because it can’t get to me. And killing any of you would hurt me more.”
The dwarf looked stricken. His swings were getting slower, desperation starting to show.
“Brom! Look at me! If you give up, Ava’s going to-“
A scream from said Satyr made Jack shut up. The golem was still trying to free his other arm, but the hand grasping Ava had tightened, one finger trying to cave her chest in. She looked at him and mouthed something. It was probably ‘help me’, but that wasn’t what almost sent Jack tumbling towards despair. It was the look on her face. Fear and sorrow and loneliness.
Can’t- Won’t let you die. I need- I need healing. How? Potions… No. I need… scrolls. SCROLLS!
Aure said that a couple of the scrolls they’d found were healing scrolls. Weak, the equivalent of cheap healing potions, but he still had them. His trembling arm grasped the scroll and pulled it out of the pouch, while Brom kept on hacking at its leg.
He raised his hand and for a moment blanked, not knowing what to say. Was there a name to the spell?
Fuck the name!
Jack poured his magic into it and felt the spell activate. A flash of light flew towards Ava and a wet cough let him know that she regained her health. Well. Part of it. She still looked in bad shape and the golem still had her, but at least she started to struggle again.
The creation itself didn’t seem to like that, since with a roar it ripped its other arm free and tried to make sure Ava stayed dead.
“Brom! I’ve got one fire scroll left. If you make me an opening, I can use it!”
“It will not kill it.” The dwarf said. “Not without breaking its core.”
“Fuck killing it! We need to get everyone and run!”
The dwarf took a look at the golem and nodded. Roaring, he charged, abandoning his shield in favor of Jack’s ax. The golem didn’t manage to coil its other hand around Ava, as Brom climbed up it and started landing blows to its elbow. The dwarf was fighting desperately, delivering ax hit after ax hit. The creation tried to smash him against the wall, but the dwarf proved that stubbornness might be a dwarf trait, but it wasn’t always a poor one. He clanged on, now allowing himself to be grasped and determinedly slashing away at the arm, trying to jump over to the hand grasping Ava.
Jack meanwhile was slashing continuously at the golem’s leg. It might not do much damage, but he had already reached clay. If he could take it down the normal way… but a rapier wasn’t much good. Still, if he could, then perhaps he could use the scroll to break away its arm… free Ava. A voice stopped him from is slashing and pulled him from his thoughts.
“Jack…”
He looked up to see Ava struggling to speak to him.
“Got… new Skill… too weak to use…” she said, pointing at her chest.
Jack’s eyes widened. He did have a second Healing Scroll, but he was saving it until she was once again on the brink of death. It was the only way he could think to make them last. Still, if she received a new Skill.
Will it be enough? If I waste it…
He looked around, at his downed friends. Mrk lying into an increasing pool of blood. Moran looked like he tried to get to him, but passed out halfway there. Ava was being increasingly crushed and Brom was still shouting and slashing.
Have to trust them. Have to trust her.
He pulled out the scroll and scraped together enough magic to activate it. The magic flew again and it invigorated Ava. With a grunt, she placed her hand by the bow, drawing back the string, though there was no arrow in her hand.
“|Temporary Skill: Lunar Barrage|”
From her bow flew not an arrow, but an entire swarm of them, all glowing like the moon. They peppered the golem’s chest, chipping away at the rocks until only naked clay remained behind. Growling, the golem dropped Ava, trying to shield itself, but it was too little too late.
Now I’ve got you.
“Brom!” Jack shouted, already running. “Pull me up!”
Scroll in hand, he ran forward and grasped the ax Brom had lowered for him. The dwarf pulled him up, himself only hanging by the other ax implanted into the golem’s ‘skin’. The creation finally understood the threat and tried to brush them off, but Jack had only reached its chest.
Planting the Firetrap Scroll on the chest clay and activating it, Jack jumped down but was still scorched by the fire igniting and racing its way along the golem’s body. His spine gave out a worryingly crunching sound as he landed, but his only thought was to turn back and look.
It had worked. The clay on its chest had hardened, cracks appearing. And still, the creation tried to shake Brom off. But like before, it was too late. The dwarf leaped, ax in hand, and roared.
“|Quick Swing|!”
His ax’s magic hadn’t recovered. But it was enough. Brom’s Skill made his ax lodge itself deep into the clay and with a crack, a huge portion of his chest broke apart and fell down. Revealing a glowing gem, right where its heart would have been, had it been human.
The golem flailed, perhaps sensing how it exposed it was. It tried to drag itself towards the three of them. One could say they were almost equal in strength now. Jack was out of magic, scrolls and Skills. Brom had just used his. The golem might have been powerful, but its heart was now exposed.
What tipped the balance was Ava.
Sitting up and coughing a mouthful of blood, Ava nocked a regular arrow and aimed.
“This is for everyone! |Piercing Shot|!”
A flaming Skill enhanced arrow flew and smashed the glowing gem to pieces. With a final lurch, the golem broke down, a tall mound of rocks and clay left after its passing.
For a few seconds, the only sounds to be heard were their heavy breaths.
“I think I’m going to faint.” Ava said.
“Faint later.” Jack told her, wincing from the movement. “We need to heal the others.”
Eyes opening wide, Ava turned.
“Moran!”
***
The aftermath of the battle was… bad. They managed to save Mrk, but it took both of the Health Potions. They had to heal Moran first and that took some time too. By the time he was up and managed to set all of Mrk’s bones, the ratling had almost passed the brink of death. Healing Potions were no longer enough, so the young man opined that only Health Potions might work now. They did… but now they were out of them.
They also used up the majority of the Healing Potions. Out of the eight they came to the dungeon with, now they had almost two left. Only one Stamina Potion too, since those were used liberally to make sure no one fainted while saving the others.
The Strength and Iron Skin Potions were untouched, for all the good it did them.
“We’ve used all the scrolls too. Both the fire-type ones and the healing ones.” Jack confessed.
“At least we got out alive. Better than that, really.” Moran said. “All our wounds are healed and I don’t feel exhausted at all. We’re fresh.”
“That is beside the point.” Brom graveled. “The artifacts that allowed us to recover are all but gone. So are the ones we could use to inflict damage. I fear that if we are to continue… we are not prepared for an encounter of similar capacity.”
They all knew what that meant. They could still bypass the traps, probably, but if they ran into any more danger, chances were that they wouldn’t be so unscratched after that fight. Still, nobody wanted to back down. They had managed to come all this way. Just… walking away with no prize in hand? The thought was daunting.
Brom’s kin really had a way of building defenses. Speaking of…
“Brom,” Jack said. “I told you that you can tell your story in your own time, but… do you think any more Oathbreaker-related things will happen if we continue?”
Brom flinched a little, but stoically answered.
“I confess I do not know. I told you Jack, my kin hold oath in high regard. The concept of it… is different from other races. It is sacred. That is probably why they had built it into the very workings of those golems. If we were to run into any more of them… I believe they will attack on sight. Other than that, I do not know what other complications may arise.”
He furrowed his brows then and added something else, almost like an afterthought.
“But… yes. I believe the time to tell you all my story is closing in. After this dungeon… I will.” He sighed.
“Yeah…” Ava said, wistfully.
When everyone turned around to her, she startled.
Guess she didn’t mean to say that out loud.
“Uh… sorry. I was just thinking. You are all… probably wandering about my ‘trick’, right? With the bow?”
She received nods as an answer.
“Yes, well. I guess if Brom’s going to lay his heart out-
“I am not laying my heart out.”
“-then I will too. About… everything.”
The somber look on her face was as much characteristic to her as the serious mood was to their group. It felt oddly enough, that someone had to change the subject. Thankfully, at least one of them had that rare, mysterious ability called common sense.
“That’s nice of you two. But we should really decide what we’re going to do now. We can’t run on Stamina Potions forever. We need food and sleep. Camp. And we need to decide what we do after that.” Moran said, proving to be the voice of reason.
No one said anything for a few moments, preferring to exchange looks instead.
“Mrk says we goes on. We meet big danger, we run. Small danger, we fight. Maybe no danger?”
“Unlikely.” Brom said. “To imagine the treasury being unguarded… no. But I agree. We should at least scout ahead.”
“Yeah, I’m in.” Ava added. “I mean, I’ve only got some shining stones. I guess I could make a necklace out of them, but… you know.”
Moran just rolled his eyes and nodded.
“Then that’s it.” Jack decided. “We’ll find a good place for a camp and rest for the night. Then we go on and see what waits ahead.”
***
None of them slept restfully. The side room they camped in was good enough. No traps, only one entry. Easily defendable. Their sleeping bags were comfortable. The food was… decent. They didn’t even have to make fire, trusting to the shining gems Ava collected like a magpie.
But no one could sleep easily in a dungeon. Danger always lurked behind every corner. So it was with a weary mood that they got up and continued with their mission. They still had the map, so they knew where they were going. It wasn’t far either. Brom estimated perhaps an hour or two of walking.
Walking. Casually walking through a dungeon. Brom’s blood had truly saved them, even if it caused constructs to become enraged.
“I thought it odd that such a place be guarded by only traps.” Brom told them. “I found it unbelievable. Yet last night I thought. Constructs, such as those golems consume magic. Mana. The better one is, the more it consumes. This place may be so ancient that only the poorest have remained operational.”
“Poorest?” Jack asked, disbelieving. “Those two huge golems were poor?”
“By the standards of my people.” Brom nodded.
“Hey, but that’s good, isn’t it?” Ava grinned. “That means there are no big angry golems left for us to fight. Well, bigger.”
“If we make it to the treasury without fighting anyone, I promise I won’t get bothered by Ava’s jokes for at least a week.” Moran prayed to no one in particular.
“Oh, you’re just saying that because you like it!” the Satyr winked at him.
Their conversation was cut short by Mrk returning. As always, their ratling friend had been scouting ahead. He was serious when he returned, but not alarmed. Jack took that to be a good sign.
“Mrk threw blood drops ahead. No traps.” He reported. “But came to two big doors. I says… maybe not enchanted. But big. Golem big. Mrk thinks treasury inside.”
“The map seems to agree with you.” Brom added.
They shared a look. Wariness. Relief. Eagerness. They were almost there. As one, they went on ahead.
The doors truly were big. And it was true, the golems could have walked through without hunching. They looked like they were made of a silvery metal. Flashier than iron or steel, but not pure silver. They gleamed, even in the faint light. Jack would bet anything that they were enchanted.
“Brom, do dwarven enchantments fade like constructs do?” he asked.
“They do… but not nearly as quick. And for such a working…”
Jack nodded. He expected as much. After all, he came to know that not one of them had luck on their side.
“Could we check to make sure?” Moran asked.
“I thinks same. But, how?”
“Would they react to magic? If I were to hit it with a |Bolt|, would it… glow or something?”
Brom thought and nodded. But before Jack could raise his hand, he spoke.
“Wait. The doors would probably react visibly. I believe the artisan behind such a creation would want to show off his work. But there is no telling if they would react only defensively.”
“Ah, yes.” Ava nodded sagely. “The famous ‘look how mighty I am before I smite you down’ work ethic. A dwarven classic.”
Brom ignored her and moved forward. He already had a small open wound, courtesy of shedding his blood. He wetted the tip of his ax in crimson and with it he touched the door. Jack held his breath, hoping that whatever conscious thought recognizing Brom as a foe existed in constructs didn’t also apply to the door.
What occurred next was… a little underwhelming. No flashes of light ignited, no ancient words warned them of their doom. The doors creaked for only a second, before parting smoothly. Brom let out a long, shuddering breath and turned to them smiling.
He would have told them that the danger had passed, but that they should still step with caution.
He didn’t. Because even as he turned, he saw that everyone was arming themselves. Shouting, cursing, looking with wide eyes at something behind him. A cold bead of sweat dripping down his brow, Brom turned.
Behind him, he saw a wide circular room. If it could be called a room. The entire Refuge would have fit in it. It was a sphere of a room, the floor dropping down to the center and with a dome as a ceiling. He would have noticed more, if not for the thing standing at the center of it.
It was gigantic. Even standing at the center of the room, which was far lower than the level Brom stood at, the thing towered over him. It was easily five times the size of the rock and clay golems. And it was armed and armored in dark metal.
A gigantic head swiveled up and the lights in had for eyes met his.
“OATHBREAKER!”