Underneath the Silhouette-Chapter 88: Golem Tears

Just imagining Shade running with those ridiculously small legs, she figured he’d probably get caught right up, swatted away like an annoying fly, or worse. It was a suicide mission for someone in his current state.

"Just do it! Trust me!" Shade insisted, his voice sharp with an uncharacteristic urgency, cutting through her doubts. His small hand, still clutched in hers, squeezed with a surprising amount of pressure.

Hearing the conviction in his voice, and seeing the desperate sincerity in his fevered eyes, Eirin made a split-second decision. Against all logical reasoning, she ran towards the sparkling pool, her boots splashing loudly in the shallow water near the edge.

The monster, Girak, its attention fixated on Shade and its desperate cries for "Nævi," flinched at the sudden movement, its massive head turning slowly. "No!" the monster screamed, its voice a thunderous roar, as he lumbered, chasing after the teenage girl, prioritizing the precious flower.

Shade, with a surprising burst of his own, immediately threw a ball of brilliant, condensed fire right at Girak. It wasn’t the powerful, devastating inferno he could usually conjure, but a bright concentrated orb. It dispersed as soon as it landed on the monster’s rocky figure, leaving only a faint scorch mark and a sizzling sound, but it was enough to momentarily draw the creature’s attention.

Girak turned around slowly, its blurry, orange eyes attempting to focus on the small figure. "Nævi, is that you?" it cried, its voice laced with a mixture of confusion and childlike hope. His eyes, though still glowing, seemed blurred by tears or some internal distress.

It began to chase after Shade, its short, stubby arms outstretched in front of it, leaving Eirin an unexpected, crucial opening to go and pick up the flower without any further hindrance.

Eirin looked around frantically, trying to find something that could help her reach the middle of the pond, where the weeping bindweed pulsed with ethereal light. There was no rock she could step on, no fallen branch long enough, no shallow path that would lead her dry-shod to the flower.

Knowing how Shade continued running desperately away from the lumbering monster, his small form dodging and weaving, Eirin knew she had to be quick. Time was of the essence, and Shade wouldn’t be able to hold off the monstrous Girak for long in his weakened state.

The teenage girl took a deep breath, steeling herself against the cold. Then, without further hesitation, she jumped into the sparkling pond.

The water, surprisingly wasn’t so deep, reaching only till her chest, though its magical coldness seeped into her bones. Her breathing grew heavier, shallow gasps escaping her lips, and unconsciously, instinctively, she released a surge of her own mana into the water around her, trying to generate warmth or perhaps just a burst of speed. frёewebnoѵel.ƈo๓

At that moment, as her mana rippled through the magical pond, Girak stopped attacking Shade and turned around, its attention snapping fully back to Eirin.

"Luxfield!"

Eirin turned around after hearing Shade shout her name, her heart seizing in her chest. That’s when she saw the huge monster, Girak, lumbering heavily, running directly in her direction.

With a colossal roar, the monster jumped into the pond, its immense weight shaking the very ground of the cavern. The massive splash created a powerful wave that slammed into Eirin, causing her to lose her foothold in the shallow water.

Eirin fell backward, her head submerging beneath the surface. She swallowed too much of the cold, magical water, gasping, almost drowning in the sudden, terrifying submersion.

Before she could even struggle to the surface, a massive, stony hand plunged into the water, closing around her. The monster pulled Eirin out of the pond with surprising gentleness, lifting her effortlessly into the air as she coughed water out of her lungs, sputtering and gasping for air.

"Nævi, you came back," the creature rumbled, its voice softer now, tinged with an unbearable sorrow and a fragile hope.

Eirin slowly opened one of her eyes, blurry with water and fear, she saw the colossal monster staring right at her. Its enormous stone eyes, usually glowing with dull orange light, were now filled with shimmering, clear tears that looked like tiny, glowing crystals, streaming down its rocky face.

The initial surge of primal fear began to dissipate, replaced by a bewildering empathy as Eirin saw the emotions swirling in the colossal monster’s eyes. It wasn’t the blind rage of a beast, but a deep, heart-wrenching sorrow.

Eirin wiped the moisture from her eyes with the back of her palm, to better see the creature before her. Her forehead creased in a puzzled frown as the monstrous being’s glowing, stony eyes, once wild with fury, grew softer, almost pleading.

"It’s me, Girak!" the creature rumbled, a sound that vibrated through her very bones but now carried an undertone of desperate hope. The monster’s massive, boulder-strewn face split into a huge, unsettling grin, a terrifying display of jagged rock and glowing fissures.

It might have looked creepy and disturbing to anyone else, a grotesque parody of joy, but for Eirin, held aloft in its grasp, it made her wonder with a strange fascination what intricate, heartbroken thoughts could possibly reside within the mind of a creature named Girak.

’What was he calling me again?’ she thought, the name "Nævi" echoing vaguely in her memory, as she observed the gentle giant.

"G-Girak?" Eirin called its name, a tentative whisper against the cavern’s roar. The monster’s grin widened, and it rumbled with what sounded like pure, absolute delight.

"You called me—oh! Did you want to have this flower? It’s not good for you though—but I will give it to you if you want it," Girak said, its voice still a reverberating earthquake, but now filled with a childlike eagerness.

With astonishing delicacy, the golem lowered Eirin onto his hard, rocky shoulder, the stone rough against her cheek but surprisingly stable. Then, its enormous, boulder-like fingers, usually capable of crushing mountains, carefully, almost reverently, picked up the remaining weeping bindweed from the pond.

The luminous white petals, already wet with their own glowing tears, seemed to pulse even brighter in the creature’s grasp. He held it gently, a fragile beacon against his immense, craggy hand, and extended it carefully to Eirin.

"I’m so happy you came back for me. I knew you would never forget me, that’s why I slept and waited for you... for a very, very long time." The last words were a deep, sorrowful sigh, a sound that carried the weight of ages.

Eirin bit her lower lip, a nervous habit returning despite the fantastical situation. A cold knot of realization formed in her stomach. It seemed undeniably clear that the monster was mistaking Eirin for someone it had known, someone it had loved and lost, a figure named ’Nævi’.

"But I wonder what makes you want this flower? It drains your power before," Girak said, still mistaking Eirin.

"O-Okay, Girak," Eirin stammered, choosing her words carefully, trying to be gentle, knowing she was playing a part in a deeply personal drama that wasn’t her own. "I-I actually need this to cure something back where I came from. It’s... very important."

Its curious eyes looked directly at the flower. "But it cannot cure anything. It can seal magic, though—you don’t need it if you stay here with me." Hearing that caused Eirin’s heart to drop.

"I-I can’t stay here... I need to go back and help the people."

The monster’s joyful expression instantly crumbled. Its huge, glowing eyes filled with a fresh torrent of crystalline tears. A low, panicked moan rumbled from its chest, a sound of distress. It began to cry, great shuddering sobs that shock the cavern. Eirin, perched precariously on its shoulder, was baffled and confused on what else to do.

How do you comfort a crying golem?

"There it is! Kill it!"

A guttural shout sliced through the cavern, followed by the clatter of boots on stone.

Girak’s entire demeanor shifted in an instant. The sorrow vanished, replaced by a fierce, protective snarl. With a speed that belied its size, it pulled Eirin deeper into the crook of its massive arm, cradling her close and turned its craggy back to face the new threat.

The bounty hunters had returned, their faces grim and determined, now armed with heavier, more menacing weapons – crossbows, short axes, and even some strange, glowing contraptions that looked far too dangerous.

They immediately began shooting at the golem, their projectiles clattering against its stone hide with sharp, impotent impacts. But the monster, ignoring the barrage, simply smiled gently at Eirin, a faint, sad smile that tugged at her heartstrings.

"You must leave this place, before they find you and kill you like the others," Girak said, its voice a low, protective rumble, barely audible over the clatter of weapons.

With a surprising tenderness, it carefully let Eirin down onto the ground, then positioned its colossal body directly between her and the onslaught of bullets and bolts, acting as a living shield.

"Run, Nævi! I shall wait for you again, no matter how long it will take."

The tears streamed down its stony face, catching the cavern’s light like countless tiny diamonds.

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