The golem recoiled, its body shaking from the impact of Vergil's blow to its shoulder. The runes glowing there now flickered like embers about to go out, sparking in disjointed patterns. It was as if something inside it was screaming in rage and confusion, as if it had been forcibly awakened from a long sleep.
Vergil landed softly on the ground, sword still in hand, his eyes fixed on the creature. The silence that followed was brief, thick as fog, and soon broken by his voice:
"What was that?" he asked, frowning. "Did I... turn something off?"
Zuri slid from his shoulder to his collarbone, her voice echoing directly in his mind with a thoughtful tone.
"Many of these golems have weaknesses carved into them," she said, with the calmness of someone reciting from an ancient manuscript. "They are mechanisms designed to ensure that they can be controlled. Like emergency valves."
