Chapter 7: Chapter. 7: Vault Room

Part of me felt that I had to be terrified, to quake in my boots as I stared at the rocky giant that stood before me, and yet all that I saw was an opportunity. I was inside the vault of a Golden Era city, there had to be great things to find. It was a step to change my fate, to grow stronger and change things. Once I returned to the camp, things would go back to normalcy, I would go back to mining and starving, to being mistreated and shouted at for no reason.

I didn’t want that.

I wanted to be great. I wanted to see my father once more. I wanted to live. However, in spite of all the excitement, I felt afraid. My legs trembled for a moment, as I saw the Compound Golem get ready to fire another salvo of projectiles, but I still urged my whirring flames to protect me. The rock giant raised its hand, and with a flash of light, it fired.

Three stakes of red light were fired in my direction, but this time I managed to burn two off and dodge the last one. I nearly stumbled in the process, but I managed to move towards the Compound Golem. I pointed my finger at it and shot a [Fallen Ember Bolt].

The blue projectile zipped and struck the Guardian of the Flying City of Laiken. However, contrary to my expectations, the fire was immediately extinguished, and it left nothing more than a black scorch mark on its torso. I rapidly approached my pickaxe, however my heart rattled seeing that, my confidence was shaken in just a moment.

All this time, I had been relying on the aspect of Fallen Flames to deal with the dangers of the Grand Mine of Armag Hollow, but now it was proven to be ineffective against this enemy. It did not even flinch as it raised its arm. I panicked for a moment, before I remembered that I too could fend off its attacks. And as expected, it was mechanical and brainless. Once more, it fired the salvo of projectiles that was charred at the hands of my flames. I picked my weapon up from the ground.

The Compound Golem did not move as I stared at it, holding my pick tightly to my body. I didn’t consider myself to be an impulsive person, but this time around I was second-guessing myself. My eyes darted to the exit, and the orange barrier was still there. No, it wasn’t impulsiveness, I was just fighting for my life, whether I did it out of excitement or necessity, it didn’t matter.

I gripped onto the metal shaft with utmost strength gritting my teeth.

“I’m doing it for my future.”

The Compound Golem of course, simply raised its arm in reply, but this time around I understood. My adversary was nothing more than a creation of the Golden Era. It was a mechanical thing, artificial, manufactured. No matter how I thought about it, it wasn’t as dangerous as a Prowling Harvester that could recognize my attack patterns. If anything the Compound Golem was like a machine, something with a predetermined set of movements that its mechanism would allow. It wasn’t a danger to me.

I smiled as it fired the three projectiles once more. It was immune to my fire, but with a wave of my hand the projectiles were burned in the air, disappearing as if they never existed. The Compound Golem did not react to the action as it lowered its arm, but I took my chance and rushed towards it. Even though my leg was still technically injured, [Fallen Embers] allowed me to ignore its state and fight as if I was in top form.

In a moment, I found myself next to the Compound Golem as I launched a deluge of flames. The rock of its body did not even change color as I did so. I hesitated for a moment, feeling confusion, before deciding to swing my pickaxe at its leg. Or I intended to do so before I saw a flash of light that made me pause mid swing⁠—

My entire vision turned red as I felt a shockwave ripple through my body. I was sent flying through the air dozens of meters back as I hit the wall on the other side of the room. A shock of pain jolted me back to consciousness as I stared at the Compound Golem off in the far distance. I saw as it slowly raised its hand to shoot at me once more, and at that moment, I couldn’t help but let out a chuckle.

“You have to be kidding me...”

The stakes of light were shot. With a grunt, I flared my flames, barely managing to burn all three just before I was impaled onto the wall. I couldn’t help but groan as I slowly got up from the ground. It was more than obvious to me that I had underestimated the Compound Golem more than I could’ve ever imagined. Even though the [Fallen Embers] were quickly numbing the pain, I could just feel it in the movement of my body⁠— things felt wrong.

I didn’t know what was broken, or the amount of damage I had sustained, but one thing had become clear to me. If I ran out of mana, I would be in for a lot of pain and suffering. I coughed blood, feeling my ribs shift as I slowly stood up looking at the Compound Golem on the other side of the room. It raised its hand once more, unfeeling and uncaring, like a machine, but this time I did not feel disdain or any negative emotion. It was part of its function, and I couldn’t underestimate it. I had to remain calm and collected.

I took a deep breath, before I made my move. I ran towards the Compound Golem as it fired, spurring my flames onward, and with a swing from my now flaming pickaxe the red projectiles were erased from existence. Without losing momentum, I kept rushing at the rocky giant.

Another round of projectiles was fired and wiped, as I finally got within melee range, and that’s when I saw it shift and its rock slightly shone. In an instant, it clicked within my mind as I hopped back. I felt satisfaction from being able to see it coming this time around. Just a second later there was an explosion of red crimson energy; the entire chamber trembled as the orange lights flickered for a single moment.

A bead of sweat trailed down my forehead as I observed the air itself distort from the energy it had just released. However, I also noticed the lights on the Compound Golem grow dim, and I used that as my chance. Without thinking twice about it, I slid and swung my pickaxe at full strength; my weapon shining in a blue blazing glory.

In an instant, it clanged against the hard rock of the Compound Golem, sending sparks and a sizable chunk of rock away. It cleaved through the rock nearly effortlessly as a large gash was torn on its leg with a sizzling sound. The metal of the pickaxe was glowing in a bright incandescent orange surrounded by the blue flames, leaving a black trail where it had passed through.

I distanced myself, as I saw the Guardian turn towards me, its arms shining a bright red as it did so. In just a moment, and with explosive speed it slammed down on the ground with a flash of mana energy. It enclosed a circular space around it for a moment. I felt the air pressure shift as the air distorted for just a second. My heart trembled as the Compound Golem stood up once more and aimed its arm at me, ready to fire at me.

I felt some nervousness looking at its attacks, but at the same time there was another thought. One that while wasn’t completely conclusive made sense.

It will slam the ground to keep me away after its weakness period?

I pondered for a moment. Perhaps it was an over exaggeration to call it a weakness period, but the Compound Golem simply seemed sluggish when its lights were dim. It was painful that the thing was completely and totally immune to [Fallen Ember Bolt] but at the same time it allowed me to use my mana much more conservatively. The Guardian fired, interrupting my thoughts and forcing me to eradicate its projectiles from the air. This time however, it lifted its other arm and charged yet another attack.

It took just a moment, but it shot yet another triad of red stakes. I grunted, barely managing to burn the projectiles. And then, it alternated its arm once more, much to my dismay. I was taking a methodical approach to it, however it seemed that it wouldn’t allow me to do so anymore. But not all was for naught.

I looked at my incandescent pickaxe, then at the torn part of its leg and had some thoughts for a moment before smiling. I had a way to kill it after all. The Compound Golem fired, and I flicked the pickaxe, instantly singing the three mana stakes off from the air. I didn’t know if it was mana or something else, nor did I have time to actually think about it, instead I rapidly approached it once more.

The Guardian’s rock flared, its surface glowing for just a moment and I jumped back as it unleashed its shockwave. Its lights dimmed and once more I went in to slam it, this time much more prepared and ready to damage it.

I swung at the same spot in its leg, shearing off a layer of rock before doing it again and again. In just a moment I destroyed half of its limb before I saw it turn itself with its arms shining. And expectedly, all I did was hop back as it slammed the ground with utmost strength. As soon as the red light was flashing, I instantly rushed towards the Compound Golem, placing zero thought on what it was about to do next.

I simply swung and swung at the same gash, tearing and breaking through the rock as I saw other minerals and even wires inside of it. Sparks flew as the Guardian itself literally trembled under my swings. Its arms did not even so much as move as I did a final swing. And at that moment, the Compound Golem began to shine once more, but this time it was much more pronounced.

My heart jumped as I leapt back. The Guardian followed after me by turning around but as its leg followed and placed on the ground, a crack resounded throughout the room. The rapidly gathering light vanished as the leg snapped with an explosion of rock. The Compound Golem let out a shrill sound as its entire body toppled to the side, slamming against the hard ground.

I held my pickaxe tight, my flames burning. But there was nothing. The Compound Golem’s orange light faded as it just died.

[You have slain: (Guardian of the Flying City of Laiken) Compound Golem.]

I blinked, as I relaxed my body. There were no levels, no mechanical sounds, nothing.

“That’s… it?”

I was disillusioned. The light around the room became a calm blue as the same artificial manufactured voice spoke, echoing.

[Disposal process has been carried out…]

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And then, there was silence. The orange around the room was completely gone, replaced instead by a blue light. I looked around only to see that the wall that was blocking the exit had completely vanished, and at that moment my confusion just grew.

That was it?

I walked around the room, my footsteps echoing dully on the calm atmosphere. Any and all mechanical sounds had completely faded, instead replaced by the quiet sounds of the cave. My fire made no sound as it had nothing to burn, it simply lingered, displaying its azure light for no one to see. I spent a few minutes checking the corners, the patterns around the room but saw absolutely nothing. No sign of a new Compound Golem, no secret entrance or indent, nothing.

That was it.

I felt irked to say the least. With a frown and a huff, I stepped over the stairs once more and approached the blue vault door. I looked at its textured metal, and assumed it was now open. I pressed the pickaxe between one of my armpits and reached for the wheel of the metal door. Grabbing its handles, I tried to spin it⁠—

Nothing. It didn’t bulge. It was just as immovable as ever.

That was… it…

My dissatisfaction turned to annoyance as I held onto my pickaxe once more, the now whitened tip turning into an incandescent orange in just a few moments. I didn’t even question how the metal hadn’t been softened by the temperatures as I simply swung at the door. Numerous thoughts of annoyance filled my mind, but there was a predominant one that was accentuated as I saw flying sparks and a couple centimeters of metal being torn.

I wasn’t going anywhere without getting some sort of reward.

I didn’t want things to end like this, or return to camp like this with no other option. With that in mind, and a lot of frustration I swung at the vault door. Its hinges were ignored as I aimed for the mechanism and at the frames of the wall. Rock was destroyed and crumbled, metal was chaffed away with sparks as I used all of my energy.

Slowly, and with a lot of cursing in between, I tore a sizable hole into the mechanism. The bolts literally snapped with a single swing and an explosion of dust. I saw the door wobble for a moment, as I took deep and heavy labored breaths. My emotions were a mess, my chest moved up and down and even though I kept the [Fallen Embers] at a steady rate, I could tell that in just about five minutes I would collapse to the ground, completely out of mana.

I looked at the now broken door, and gulped.

“This better have been worth it…”

I didn’t really know what I would do after I had to stop relying on my flames to stay conscious. I could tell that something was completely and utterly demolished inside of me, but I at least knew it wasn’t fatal. However, I also knew I was in for a lot of pain once [Fallen Embers] were inactive. But right now, even if I was being impulsive, it didn’t matter.

I switched the pickaxe to my left hand, and with my right, I reached for the vault door and pulled. The door let out a shrill cry as its hinges slowly allowed it to peel back, and what I saw was weird. I saw blue light, at first, and as I finally managed to open the door fully, my mind paused.

It was an impossibly large room, with a ceiling that was akin to a void. At the center, there was an intricate stone bridge with a rocky surface and no railings. It was a couple of meters wide and its side was a deep abyss that went seemingly hundreds of meters underground. Far to each side were walls, highly ornamented and full of intricate arches with cavities, where there were occasional statues of figures wearing armors in heroic poses. Their faces were destroyed, so I had no idea if they were supposed to be humans or something else. My gaze wandered around as my confusion increased.

Wasn’t it supposed to be a vault⁠—

Then I saw it, at the very end of the room, there was the true vault door. Massive and imposing, much like the one that protected the storage in the camp. Numerous protrusions and rods ran along its skeletal frame full of metal cogs and gears. The door was slightly cranked open outwards, slightly letting some of its insides be visible from the crescent shape and that’s where I saw a golden glint.

I grinned. It was worth it.

Just as I was about to step into the bridge, I second-guessed for a moment. I remembered how the first time I stepped into the underground vault, the orange lights and the whirring mechanical sounds and simply halted. I pushed myself back with the doorframe nearly stumbling, and decided that I had to do something to test ⁠⁠— check that it was safe.

I thought for a few moments, blue flames wisping on and off from my body before I had an idea. I turned around and left the cavity on the pillar, instead walking down the stairs and towards the Compound Golem. Broken stone littered the ground, fragments of rock that had been splintered from the slain Guardian. I knelt down and grabbed three of them. Each stone was as big as my fist. They were hefted over my forearm and laid against my chest.

I carried them over to the entrance of the vault room and stood there for a second. It was awkward to hold the pickaxe and the stones on the same arm, but I paid it no mind as I grabbed one and threw it a couple of meters deep into the bridge. It collided against the ground with an empty rattle, and at that moment the entire room flashed orange. Before I had time to process or infer anything, there was a mechanical click and one of the statues’ arms shone. It seemingly came to life as its arm snapped in the direction of the rock, and pointed its palm outwards. Three bolts of yellow light were fired at the rock, pulverizing it in an instant.

What?

The entire process had taken about a second at most, and in just another moment the vault room returned to a calm blue light. Not wanting to infer anything, I grabbed another rock, and threw it yet again, this time further. This time, the same thing happened but two statues fired instead of one.

I frowned as I grabbed the last rock and threw it as far as I could, it traveled about a third of the length of the bridge. As soon as it landed, three statues activated and erased it out of existence. Some doubt filled me. I felt frustration. My eyes counted nine statues in the room. The further that one traveled into the room, the more attacks they would receive.

Perhaps it was some sort of test, but I felt frustration and even more than that, I felt impotence. There was no way that I could make it to the other side without dying. I gritted my teeth, for just a few moments before I finally sighed defeated. My flames began to dim. I closed my eyes.

It’s time to return⁠—

Numerous bellows interrupted my thoughts. They resonated through my ears for a moment, as my mind whirred in confusion. They came from the entrance, the back of the subterranean vault. With confusion and nervousness, I peered around the corner, and I saw them.

[(Beast of the Dark Hollow) Prowling Harvester. Lvl. 8]

[(Beast of the Dark Hollow) Prowling Harvester. Lvl. 7]

[(Beast of the Dark Hollow) Prowling Harvester. Lvl. 9]

A trio of Prowling Harvesters were sniffing and looking around, their gaping maws dripping saliva onto the ground. Normally, I would’ve felt glad and excited, but just a single look at my mana and I knew I could fire a single ember bolt before I was out.

I quickly hid in the gap, looking into the vault room as I slowly dimmed my flames. Soon they were completely extinguished as a numbing pain assaulted me. My breath caught in my throat as I struggled not to cry, but hearing the hisses and odd sounds from the Beasts of the Dark Hollow kept me steady. The sounds of their slow and careful footsteps entered my ears like gentle whispers.

The Prowling Harvesters were lurking inside the same room, and I was practically defenseless. I took slow painful breaths, tightly gripping my pickaxe hearing the sounds of the beasts as I looked at the room ahead. My heart felt restless staring at the bridge and the shattered rocks, and at that moment, I simply prayed that I wouldn’t be found by the Beasts of the Dark Hollow.

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