The voice had barely finished intoning its warning when a single bright light flared in the center of the room. Vash ducked and flattened himself against a stack of crates. The light swept across the room, passing over his hiding place and then moving on. It was a bright light, focused into a single beam, like a hooded lantern or a lighthouse. Useful for a targeted pool of light, but it left many shadows for a skilled assassin to use to his advantage.

He crept to the edge of the stack of crates and peered around the edge. The room was still too dark to make out many details, other than the shadowy bulk of stacks of crates and boxes, but a few details became clearer with the additional light source. Vash spotted the source of the bright light easily enough. A large crystal floated in the air in the center of the room. One facet emitted the light in a targeted beam, sweeping across the room in a slow circle. Still crouched, Vash craned his body to see what the light revealed. Mostly it was as he expected, wooden crates and boxes, but they stood stacked in a strangely random way, creating a kind of maze with dead-ends and corridors.

So I just have to avoid the slowly moving light? Vash thought. Shouldn’t be too hard.

The light moved over one of the dim yellow glows that he had spotted earlier when first entering the room. Vash froze and felt his blood go cold. A crudely shaped humanoid figure stood rigidly against the wall. Someone had fashioned its features into a blocky approximation of a human, with gaping holes for eyes and mouth. The glow came from the statue’s mouth, like a candle was lit somewhere in its chest and the illumination was only strong enough to reach the first opening. The eyes were dark black pools of shadow.

Vash recognized a golem when he saw one. They were fairly common among merchants and trading houses in Sathsholm. A Malconian rune prominently carved on its forehead, a Lotros rune, the rune of motion and action. That meant that it could move as well as observe. Most golems were immobile, simply serving as watchers, able to alert their masters with their loud, booming voices. Others could move, chasing their prey with terrifying speed and precise motions. Common golems being made of simple, fired clay was an advantage for the thief. Their outer shells could crack or shatter like any other clay jar. The exceptions were the ones made with clay from the Underlands. The black clay that formed on the banks of the deep underground rivers and lakes had a sheen like obsidian when fired. When formed into a golem, the deep clay had a strength more akin to solid brick. Chipping away and eventually breaking it was possible, but with far more difficulty than their common counterparts.

The golem moved slightly with the light, tracking its progress across the room. Vash stifled a curse as the light passed over a second golem of the same construction as the first, then a third.

That’s bloody overkill. Vash thought. Even if I had a weapon, there’s no way I could fight three off. He considered the layout of the room, the lack of light, and the golems themselves. So this is a stealth challenge.

The light sweeping around the room revealed a door in the opposite corner of the room. Royce had said that the goal was just to get to the end of the Gauntlet. So his goal appeared to be to cross the room without being smashed into a paste by the golems.

Using Shadowmeld would make him nearly invisible unless that spinning light caught him in the open. However, Shadowmeld was a major Talent and would use a large amount of his remaining mana. He didn’t want to deplete his mana and find out there were still three rooms left.

I’ll have to try it the hard way. Vash thought. Can’t chance draining my Core. Leave the major Talents for if I really need them.

INTRUDER. Intoned the three golems in unison, one hollow voice. SURRENDER NOW. YOU HAVE SIXTY SECONDS TO COMPLY OR WE WILL SUBDUE YOU BY FORCE.

Vash did his best to ignore the creepy, hollow voices. Focus on the job at hand.

The light swept across his hiding place again. Vash waited until the light had passed him, then darted to the next pile of crates a few feet away. When Vash began to move, the spinning crystal paused, swinging back in his direction. He barely made it behind the crates before the circle of light passed over them. If he had moved a moment sooner, he would have been caught in the open.

The crystal paused, drifting back and forth as it searched for more movement. Vash waited, heart pounding, until the crystal began its sweep of the room again.

INTRUDER, SURRENDER NOW. YOU HAVE FORTY-FIVE SECONDS TO COMPLY OR WE WILL SUBDUE YOU BY FORCE. The golems boomed, Vash heard the scrape of ceramic on ceramic. He peeked around the corner and saw the golems moving their heads slowly, following the path of the light. The golems stood at the center of three of the walls, giving them a good, wide view of the room. Vash had to be careful as he moved. It was possible that if he moved to one spot, and it was open to the view of one golem, then there would be enough light to expose him. But he was also running out of time. He couldn’t dither, hoping that he could see a path through. He had to take a risk and pray that luck was on his side for once.

Crouched at the edge of the small pile of crates, Vash waited until the light was a good distance away before darting to his next hiding spot. It was a longer stretch in the open, but the placement of the boxes allowed him cover on two sides while his back remained to the unoccupied wall. Again, the light stopped and swung back towards Vash’s movement, faster this time. Vash heard the scrape of the golems moving their heads to look. He risked a bit of mana and fed his Enhance Ability Talent, picking up speed while keeping his footsteps light.

Sliding behind the boxes, Vash was a mere heartbeat ahead of the light. The crystal kept the focused beam on his hiding spot, like an accusing glare.

INTRUDER, SURRENDER NOW. YOU HAVE THIRTY SECONDS TO COMPLY OR WE WILL SUBDUE YOU BY FORCE. The golems toneless voices sounded angry, though Vash knew golems did not possess emotions or personalities. They were just animated bits of clay that performed a set of tasks.

Three heavy feet thudded against the tile floor. The golems had stepped away from their spots on the wall. Another set of footfalls sounded after the first. They were moving.

Maybe I triggered a patrol? Vash thought. The beam of light moved on, slowly spinning, like a sulking child returning to their chores. Vash risked a look around the opposite corner from the departing light. The golems had moved away from their positions and were walking in a slow circle in the opposite direction of the beam of light. The blocky clay heads swiveled back and forth, movements becoming smoother and more natural. In the shadows, they could be any other guardsmen, albeit ones that moved with precise, measured steps.

COME OUT LITTLE MOUSE. One golem said, its toneless voice conveying more menace than any guardsman that Vash had faced.

YOUR FAILURE IS INEVITABLE. Another boomed. There was a heavy crash and the sound of splintering wood. Vash looked out, seeing one golem lashing out with a heavy, clay fist, shattering boxes and crates. It paused, as if admiring its handiwork, then continued its slow, methodical patrol.

Another crash to Vash’s other side. He didn’t have to look to know what was happening. The golems were removing places for him to hide. If the light increased its speed at all, he would be caught in the open before he could reach safety, since the next space he could use was several paces away. The other stacks of crates were open on at least one side of a golem’s gaze. Vash knew he was going to have to spend the mana and risk Shadowmeld. He just had to hope that he could get past this challenge without completely draining his Core.

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Vash took a deep breath, calming himself and forming the framework of his Talent in his mind’s eye. It was more intricate than the ones he’d used before, but it still only took a few heartbeats to form. He felt the Talent lock into place, then released the mana from his Core. The framework held, and Vash could feel shadows gathering around him. A cold numbness spread over his body, and the color faded from the world around him.

Mana flowed into his Shadowmeld Talent like a raging river. Iona described using the Talent as stepping out of the world for a few moments, and Vash couldn’t help but agree. He often felt like he was stepping from a place of warmth and color into a cold mist of gray shadows. Byar said that Shadowmeld was more than just a way to hide from prying eyes, but never went into detail. That was for later, when he earned a higher rank.

Breathing steadily, Vash fought the urge to shiver in the sudden cold, and waited for the crystal light to pass. He let it get a suitable distance from him before dashing for the next piece of cover. As he moved, he watched the crystal. This time, it did not pause and return to seek him out. It continued to sweep across the room as if he hadn’t moved at all.

That’s handy. Never noticed that before. Vash thought. Shadowmeld didn’t just hide the user from the sight of others, but from other senses as well.

Someday, Vash thought, I’m going to have to test it when I’m not in danger of being smashed to a pulp.

The sound of splintering wood caught Vash’s attention. A golem tore through the boxes that he had just left behind. The clay man tore apart the boxes methodically, searching through the detritus. Although the expression on the golem’s face never changed, Vash felt certain that the creature was confused and frustrated.

It didn’t know that I’d moved. Vash thought. It thought it had caught me.

That meant that the golems were tracking him the same way that the crystalline light was. Which meant that the golems were specifically hunting him, not just providing an obstacle. A feeling of dread washed over Vash. Something had changed. The previous challenges had been difficult and dangerous, but this one felt more targeted, intentional.

I need to get out of here. Vash thought.

The light swept past as the golem straightened and scanned the room. THE MOUSE HIDES.

WE MUST FIND WHERE IT HAS GONE. The second golem turned towards the center of the room.

The third smashed the nearest set of boxes. LEAVE IT NO PLACE TO HIDE.

Vash darted from his hiding place, narrowly avoiding the second golem as it trudged across the room. The creature’s heavy tread vibrated the floor when it walked. It turned its torso from side to side, looking for anywhere Vash may have gone. The first golem followed in its wake, smashing more boxes, throwing them across the room.

A stack of crates exploded into splinters in front of Vash, who skidded to a halt. The third golem tore through them, clay hands shattering wood, empty black eyes searching the shadows beyond.

Vash sidestepped out of the way of the golem. Even though it couldn’t see him, it could crush him just by walking in the wrong spot. The wreckage that the golems were creating blocked his simple path to the opposite door, and the light was inexorably sweeping around again. Movement was causing him to spend more mana to keep the Shadowmeld in place. The telltale fatigue of mana overuse was fogging Vash’s mind, slowing his movements.

Each way he moved was blocked, either by the light, a golem, or crates and boxes being shoved out of place. Vash bit back a snarl. The Shadowmeld may cover his footsteps, but he doubted that his voice would be as well.

The light was sweeping his way again, and the golems had smashed all the covers that Vash could easily use. Under bright light, the Shadowmeld would burn away, making him visible. Vash had to move and move quickly. Darting past one golem, Vash narrowly avoided a hammer-like blow as it punched a box out if its way. Vash leaped over a pile of broken wood, landing lightly on the far side before immediately darting to his right to avoid a golem striding towards the place he had just vacated. The light was on his heels now. Vash ran towards the far door. The golems were behind him now, open ways through the crates that they hadn’t destroyed were just ahead of him.

Vash’s heart surged, a smile creeping onto his face.

I’m going to make it!

Vash’s Core was so depleted that he barely sensed the warning tug as the crate came flying at him. It was too late to change direction or duck. The crate struck him in the side, sending him crashing into a pile of boxes. His feet went out from under him and Vash went tumbling to the ground.

Warmth and light flooded back into his body and shadows burned away in an instant. Vash looked up to see that the light had found him, the beam pointed directly at him. The Shadowmeld evaporated like smoke on the wind. The other facets of the floating crystal burst into light, illuminating the entire room.

Vash winced at the sudden change of light, blinking to clear his vision. The sound of ceramic on stone caught his attention. The golems had seen him.

FOUND YOU! The golems intoned as one. The ground shook as they strode towards him, ignoring all obstacles in their way.

Vash scrambled to his feet, stumbling to one side as a clay fist struck the ground where he had been lying a moment before. The stone tile cracked in a spiderweb pattern with the force of the golem’s blow. Vash had barely regained his balance when a crate struck him. The wood cracked with the force of the impact and Vash felt the warm trickle of blood from a scrape across his scalp. He looked up and saw one golem picking up another crate, bigger this time, and preparing to throw it at him.

The first golem straightened, pivoted, and lunged at Vash. Enhance Ability sputtered to life in Vash’s limbs, allowing him to dance backwards away from the golem’s devastating fists. He was sluggish, though, his Talents wouldn’t last long at this rate. The golems moved forward, trying to corral him away from the exit door.

With a surge of mana, Vash leaped onto the pile of crates behind him, avoiding the first golem’s fists and the second’s hurled crate. He kept moving, jumping to the next pile just as the first golem smashed into the wood beneath him. Vash leaped from pile to pile, cutting a straight line toward the exit door. He didn’t look back. The scrape of ceramic and the crunch of wood told him everything he needed to know.

He landed hard on the floor in front of the exit door, his knees almost gave out beneath him as he stumbled and slammed headfirst into the door. Vash felt something crunch in his nose and blood ran freely down his face. He shook his head and reached for the latch.

It was locked.

Vash nearly screamed in frustration, shaking the immobile latch. He barely heard the thudding of clay feet behind him. A sudden thought struck him.

Where's the third golem?

Without turning, Vash threw himself to one side. The charging golem was going too fast to change direction. It crashed into the door, lashing out with its heavy fists with a killing blow meant for Vash. The door shattered and flew off its hinges into the hallway beyond. The golem stumbled and toppled, overbalanced. It crashed to the ground, half-in and half-out of the room.

Vash staggered to his feet. The golem was slowly pushing up onto its hands and knees. The other two were wading through the destruction of the room behind him, but would be there in seconds. Vash jumped up onto the back of the fallen golem, running across it, past the broken door and into the hallway beyond.

Tripping, he landed and rolled across the tiles, coming to a stop against the stone wall opposite the struggling golem. Directly above him stood a very surprised looking gnomish woman, her pink hair done up in a messy bun, and she was holding a rod with various runes carved along its length.

The gnome blinked down at Vash’s bloody face in surprise. “That wasn’t…I mean, it shouldn’t have…”

A clay fist slamming into the floor just beyond her toes interrupted her.

MOUSE! The golem roared. The other two golems crowded the doorway behind their fallen comrade. They hammered at the wall, stone chips flying as they fought to get to their target.

The gnome squeaked in surprise and fumbled at the rod in her hands, twisting the dials until certain runes lined up. She pointed it at the golems. “Stolva!”

Immediately, the golems stopped moving. The yellow light within their mouths faded and went out. They stood, frozen in the doorway, in the last pose they had been in before the gnome commanded them to stop.

For a moment, the hallway was silent. Vash panted, and the gnome made small panicky noises next to him. Finally, Vash sat up, wiped some of the blood from beneath his nose with his sleeve, and looked up at the gnome. “So…does this mean I passed?”