Though they made a fortified camp, Lowa raising berms of earth to serve as make-shift walls, there were no attacks in the night, and everyone managed to have a good night’s sleep. Well-rested, they woke to the scents of Romer’s breakfast and ate magnificently, the scrambled eggs provided by the hens brought by Balmia were a particular success. Though she was kind of pissed the birds were being kept in cages on the other day, they were left to roam in the walled camp now.

“Recovering mana? Well, Druids have a natural propensity to seek energies in the forest, we have to focus a little harder when outside, but… It’s just a matter of practice, you should make an effort to be always open, sponging the ambient mana as you expend yours,” she replied to Leanor’s question on how she could improve. The girls were sitting on a little circle, plates held on their crossed legs or knees, the two of them and Valena, who seemed to be in a really bad mood.

“What’s gotten into you today, Valena?” Balmia asked as she didn’t offer any extra advice to the younger girl. Balmia had noticed that Valena was an extremely helpful person, always lending a hand when needed, which defied the common belief that necromancers were egotistical and self-centered.

“Ah, sorry. I’m just really not used to sleeping on camp, like this. I’ve always been more of a city girl. They do have mattresses there, would you believe it?”

“No use for a mattress. My teachers have always taught me that pain and physical discomfort means that your weakness is going away,” Balmia replied, deadpan. Leanor started laughing as Valena scowled at her new friend.

On the other side of camp, the warriors sorter their equipments out and talked among themselves.

“What a boring night, Maia! No one even tried to kill us this time!” complained Mons.

One of Garner’s original avowed warriors looked surprised at them. “Where the hell did you two come from?” the man asked, trying to adjust a splint on his arm, a memento from yesterday’s fight.

“We were on the peace-force sent to Ghent,” replied Maia. Ghent was a formerly allied kingdom to the southeast of the Realm that had splintered, and the King had tried to stabilize the situation - a ruthless tribal war - by sending the Army down there. It had kind of worked - all the tribes got together to push back the foreign intruders, and the Army got its ass kicked back into the Realm. Then, the tribes promptly got back to warring between themselves, and the King just gave up on them.

“I think they got the meaning of the word wrong down there, new guy,” explained Mons. He then dismissed the guy’s complaint, that funny fella thought that Mons was the new guy for some reason. That was simply not how it worked at all, but he would teach them that in time. These guys were hilarious. Maybe he would deign to remember their names one of these days.

Tealdin was mistreating one of the camps walls with fire spells, trying to improve his accuracy and efficiency, while Garner observed and gave one occasional tip. Lowa was sitting nearby, using a mortar and pestle to prepare some more particular concoctions. The old witch hasn’t used that many of hers, as most of them were better used against men and beasts, but she liked to have some variety in her cape slash arsenal. Rajpul was still out of it, and sleeping deeply. After everyone had a free hour after breakfast, Chief started calling everyone to the center of the camp, where Master Garner and Lowa would divulge their strategy.

“Gather around, people!”

“Coming, Chief, coming!” said Mons as he arrived, the last of the camp.

“Very well. Let’s start. It seems we might have a dangerous golem to get rid of. I planned on taking all of our fighters, but you four were pretty battered yesterday,” Gardner said, pointing to his experienced people, all of them with bandages and other signs of injury. “So, we’ll let you guarding the camp - I hope it’s not as eventful as it was yesterday, but you’ll have the walls and a flare to call if you need us.”

“We liked very much what we saw yesterday with the main group,” Lowa took over, praising the apprentices and newcomers specially, smiling at each one “but depending on the opponent, today might be a lot more deadly. Be on your toes, people!”

“Yes,” agreed Garner, “before we attack, we’ll send Maia scouting again. We’ll be close by in case she needs support. After analyzing the golem, we’ll decide on a plan of action. We head out in ten, gather your stuff and meet me by the exit.”

***

“Why do I get stuck with the shitty jobs,” wondered Maia aloud, though silently as she reached her chosen vantage point to observe the situation.

“Maybe because you don’t know how to drag your feet. See, I’m brilliant, but I don’t show off, so I don’t get those,” Mons answered his sisters’ rhetorical question.

“You’re standing right by my side, you dumb fuck. You are as far from brilliant as can be. And you also get the shitty jobs, but because people just want you go away,” Maia said, her comeback almost whispered as she got near the top of the hill. She silently told her brother to piss off and be silent, and made a ruder gesture when he was about to complain. Mons huffed in annoyance, muttering about his selfless solidarity, but shut up.

Maia peeked over the top of the hill, and took some time before she could take her eyes out of the beautiful Spire. She almost swore as she realized there were two Giant golems in the field around the enormous magical tower. Huge creatures that seemed like giant walking plates of armor - not to far off from reality, actually - and both of them had large tree trunks as clubs. One of them, the most distant one from their position, was simply laying down and looking at the sky. Maybe he was deactivated? She wished - she could see small movements from the ‘sleeping’ golem. The other one was a lot angrier, moving from side to side, and from time to time, hitting the gate of the Spire with his weapon.

What the hells?

Weren’t these golems supposed to come out from the Spire? Why was the automaton hitting its gate? Another mystery she wasn’t particularly looking forward to discover. The thing was huge, it must have between 3 and 3,5 meters tall, and she didn’t bother to estimate its weight - really fucking heavy, she’d bet. The creature didn’t see to be too dexterous, but one good hit could send her or her brother flying, with some broken ribs in the best-case scenario. The good news, the Giant was alone besides its sky-gazing brother. There were some broken pieces of other golems she could recognize - maybe the automaton was aggressive even to his ‘kind’?

She observed until she was certain that she had see all the details she could. Then, the siblings went down the hill to where the rest of the group was waiting.

Maia succinctly reported everything she had seen, and added, “There’s a huge crystal at its back. I think they’ve gone for endurance this time to protect the mana crystal. Seemed like a bitch to break.”

“Thanks, Maia, Mons. What do you think, people?” Garner asked, glancing at Lowa, Chief and Orwin specially.

They got to planing.

***

“Hey, you angry and dumb bastard! Yeah, you - piece of worthless junk!” yellowed Mons from the top of the hill, accompanied by Chief and Orwin.

The creature stopped bashing the gate and turned back to the trio, regarding them coldly. Mons was not intimidated at all, and kept an endless barrage of offenses and insults.

“Well, I don’t know if that thing can understand anything, but your boy has a talent,” commented Chief.

“Tell me about it. I was really surprised he survived his first year in the Army, the boy’s tongue is a lot more sharper than his brain,” replied Orwin.

The thing seemingly got tired of all the insults hurled at it, and started ponderously moving towards them, starting to get some speed going. They readied themselves as the thing crossed the field, reaching the hill and starting to climb it. Round one of the plan was starting to work, they just needed all the other parts to do so too. It was not the biggest hill, and soon the creature was getting to the middle of it.

“Phase two,” said Chief.

“Phase two, for fucks sake!” yelled Mons, starting to realize that the creature might have understood him by the burning hatred in its red eye-like lights.

***

As he heard the call to start the second part of the plan, Tealdin rose and released a huge firebolt towards the Golem. The creature’s advance faltered, though it wasn’t hurt, and it turned to watch the newest person on its most urgent execution at once list.

“Now!” cried the apprentice!

Besides him, hiding in the small trench she’d excavated stealthily with her earth magic, Lowa and Balmia rose and executed their part of the plan. Together, they encased the Giant’s large legs with earth and stone, roots and vines to strengthen the prison. They kept on sending energy to their spells, doing their utmost to keep the creature pinned. It was too strong, however, and they knew they would be able to hold it for long.

As the duo focused, Tealdin bellowed, “NOW, MASTER!”

***

On the other side of the hill, hidden in a trench much like the other, rose Garner, Leanor and Maia. With the enemy stuck, its back facing them, they had the opportunity to attack its mana crystal freely. They didn’t hesitate, and started their attack. Maia enter rapid fire mode, releasing arrows as fast as she could, while Leanor started chanting a freezing spell at the automaton’s core. Garner started focusing a lot of energy on one single attack he hoped would be devastating.

Garner let loose his spell, a supercharged lightning bolt, and it barely nicked the golem’s core, mostly making it even madder.

“Shit! Let’s go, we have to distract it!” said Chief, running down the hill and being followed by the other two warriors.

“Don’t get hit,” warned Orwin.

“Says the man with the bright bald target on his head,” quipped Mons.

“I’ve noticed you have very little worth protecting at yours, boy. Attack!”

The warriors encircled the stuck golem, hitting its leg joints and making it focus on efforts on squashing them rather then getting free. The creature struck with wide swings that were too fast to make the warriors feel safe on the fight.

Tealdin and the other attacking mages focused their attacks on the topmost parts of the body of the creature, avoiding hurling any magic too close to their comrades. The golem was slowly being worn down, and though everyone was weary of declaring victory so early, things were working out. The automaton perceived its efforts were being insufficient, though, and changed strategy. He was already stuck facing Tealdin, Balmia and Lowa, and so he focused energy on its make-shift weapon and hit the ground, sending a shock wave through the ground.

The mages were thrown away be the force of the impact, flying and landing painfully, stunned and with their formation scattered. Without the strengthening, the Golem was able to break the material that was holding him in place, and things got a lot more dangerous suddenly.

“Mons, plan F!” ordered Romer as soon as it happened.

“Fuck, I hate plan F!” replied Mons as he started hurling insults again at the creature as he started running downhill. The creature didn’t hesitate, and turned to follow it.

“NOW, Valena!” cried Chief.

The woman appeared on top of the hill, and ordered her skeleton boar forward. The undead creature got its speed up, and smashed into the golems back, one of its tusks doing real damage to the core. And, fortunately to everyone - everyone but Mons, that was - the automaton toppled forward, falling on its front and starting to slide down the hill.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck!” cursed the blond-haired warrior as he ran to outdistance the incoming mass of the creature. He barely made it, tucking and rolling to safety right before the weight of the golem and undead boar plowed into him.

“After it!” ordered Garner, and everyone started running down towards the fallen creature, attacking when they could get a clear line of sight as the boar still tried to savage the creature. That impediment, though, was soon taken away as the Giant reached backwards and caught one of the boar’s legs, and smashed it into the ground ahead of him, breaking the skeleton in many pieces.

The Giant made it back up to his feet, but he was visibly weakened, and everyone started massing their attacks until the automaton’s mana crystal finally broke, the combination of being frozen and set on fire repeatedly making it easier for one of Lowa’s stone fists surging from the ground to break it.

As they were about to celebrate, they noticed the other Giant, stepping forward towards the body of its ‘brother’.

“Oh, shit. Did we have a plan for that too?” complained Mons as everyone readied to face another of the troublesome creatures.