As the golems rumbled to life, the cavern vibrated with their slow, deliberate movements. Aren tightened his grip on his weapon, feeling Sharu's energy surge at his side. The pedestal with the glowing fragment seemed almost to pulse in response to the awakening guardians.
"Three of them," Dorian muttered, sizing up the stone constructs. "This might get messy."
Liora steadied her Ice Wolf, eyes narrowed. "We need to be smart about this. If they're anything like the last one, hitting the cracks should weaken them."
Aric nodded, a flicker of flame sparking at his fingertips. "Then let's make some cracks."
Before the golems could fully break free from the wall, Aren gave the signal. "Lyra, give us some cover!"
Without a word, Lyra directed her falcon to swoop overhead, casting dense shadows that distorted the cavern light, confusing the golems' tracking. Aren and Sharu darted to the left, aiming to flank the nearest construct.
Dorian's lion unleashed a shockwave at the center golem, aiming low to destabilize it. The stone giant faltered but didn't fall. Aric's salamander followed up, sending a jet of fire into a forming crack, heating the stone to a molten glow.
One of the golems swung its massive arm toward Liora, but her Ice Wolf conjured a barrier of ice, shattering the stone limb as it struck. Seizing the opportunity, Liora launched a spear of ice at the exposed joint, splintering the rock further.
Aren didn't hesitate, pushing forward and leaping onto the weakened golem. Sharu's silver light burst forth as he struck the core with a concentrated pulse, and the corrupted energy within fizzled and dimmed. The golem collapsed, crumbling to pieces.
"One down!" Aric called, already turning his attention to the next one.
But as the second golem advanced, something changed. The cavern itself seemed to react—the symbols on the walls pulsed brighter, and an oppressive energy filled the air. The golems' movements grew faster, more fluid, as if the cavern's power was reviving them.
"What's happening?" Dorian shouted.
Lyra's falcon screeched a warning, and Liora quickly pulled Aren back. "The cavern—it's reinforcing them. We have to disrupt the symbols!"
Aren glanced at the walls, realizing that the carvings were acting as conduits, channeling energy into the golems. "Break the symbols! Stop the flow!"
Dorian directed his lion to unleash a powerful shockwave at the nearest wall, cracking the glowing glyphs. Aric followed up with a burst of flame, scorching the intricate patterns. As the energy flow broke, the nearest golem shuddered and slowed.
Taking advantage, Aren and Sharu launched another synchronized strike, piercing through the stone giant's core. As it collapsed, the final golem began to falter, its movements jerky and uncoordinated.
Liora combined her ice with Lyra's shadows, encasing the golem's legs and forcing it to stumble. Aric didn't hesitate, blasting it with fire until the core cracked open. Sharu's final attack shattered it completely, and silence fell once more.
As the dust settled, the pedestal's glow intensified briefly before dimming. Aren approached cautiously, noticing that the fragment's pulse had weakened. He reached out, picking it up, feeling the same strange warmth as before.
"This one's different," Aren murmured, examining the fragment. "More intact. Less corrupted."
Dorian glanced at it, intrigued. "What's the deal with these things? First, monsters guard them, now the cave itself tries to stop us."
Lyra's eyes remained fixed on the pedestal. "It's like the fragments are tied to something bigger. Something ancient."
Before they could speculate further, a rumble echoed from the passage they had entered. Lance Vermilion's voice rang out from the corridor. "Looks like someone got here first."
Emerging into the chamber, Lance and his team eyed the collapsed golems with a mixture of annoyance and admiration. His gryphon let out a soft screech, clearly unsettled by the cavern's energy.
"You really don't know how to leave well enough alone, do you, Valen?" Lance smirked.
Aren didn't bother responding. "We found the fragment. It belongs to us."
Lance raised an eyebrow, clearly considering his options. "Maybe. But the academy's rules say anything gathered during the trial is fair game. Hand it over, and we won't make this difficult."
Dorian stepped forward, his lion growling. "Back off, Lance. We're not in the mood for your ego."
Lance's grin sharpened. "You're not in the position to make demands, Thorne."
The tension mounted, but before it could escalate further, Velia Rune stepped in, her crystalline fox gleaming under the cavern's dim light. "We're not here to pick a fight, Lance. If they took down those golems, they earned it. Let's just report the finding and move on."
Surprisingly, Lance relented, though his gaze remained hard. "Fine. But don't think this makes you special, Valen. Just lucky."
As Lance's group left, Aren exhaled slowly. "That could have gone worse."
Liora shot him a look. "Don't relax yet. He won't forget this. We'll need to keep an eye on him."
Lyra nodded in agreement, her falcon settling on her shoulder. "And there might be more fragments like this. We should report it to the academy and see if anyone else found similar artifacts."
Aren pocketed the shard, determination in his eyes. "Right. But first, let's get out of this cavern before it decides to come alive again."
As they retraced their steps, Aren couldn't help but feel the weight of the fragment against his side. The questions about its origin and purpose remained unanswered, but one thing was clear—their discovery was only the beginning of something far larger.
As they emerged into the fading daylight, Aren took one last glance at the cavern's entrance, wondering what secrets still lay buried within the earth—and whether they were meant to be uncovered at all
.