"Seems like the fairy really did a number on you," one of the mud golems said to the water golem as they walked. The group had noticed how apprehensive she was when it came to talking about the guardian fairy.
"You'll understand when you meet him," Dianah defended herself. She could feel the contempt coming off these stupid golems. Underneath it all, she knew they had some sort of inferiority complex, since she was above them in rank.
"I am glad I made a lasting impression," suddenly, as the group were engaged in banter, a voice sounded off from the jungle. Momentarily, a fairy flew from the direction, and he was looking at Dianah.
Meeting her terrified gaze, Kigen smiled and said, "although it would seem it was not enough to discourage you from coming back."
As Kigen spoke, the other golems were taking their time staring at the newcomer. In their eyes, there was no fear, just curiosity and some amusement.
"I persuaded her to come back, show me the way," the leader of the pack said as he stepped forward. "I have long admired you fairies and would love to meet them all. Why don't you invite your friends to come out as well."
Kigen was rather shocked. This man, or golem, could tell the location of his kin, and even call them out. This sensing ability was top notch.
"You might not like it if they come out," Kigen said, facing this spokesman.
"Isn't that why we are here? I suspect, it is also why you are also here. Let's not waste time, come out little fairies," The man seemed to overflow with confidence.
Seeing this, Kigen did not rush forward. Instead, he flew up and away, heading towards the tree line. Once here, several fairies gathered around him. Moreover, a strange form of energy exchange was happening, linking all their energies together. This way, they could attack as one.
With Kigen at the helm, the group of fairies became an impressive collective, acting as one being. With a thought, Kigen made the group to charge at the enemy with brute force.
Kigen knew that there was no way this group would show up just like that, especially after the demise of their fellow member just days ago. As such, he knew they would have something up their sleeve.
This had been a matter that kept him up for days. Once they started practicing the formation, his mind was finally at ease. With this, he hoped they had enough firepower to counter anything the enemy had planned.
Suddenly, the mud golems, alongside Dianah, were caught up in the advance of the fairies. Without stopping, Kigen and his people penetrated through each and every person, leaving behind gaping holes.
With this onslaught, the huge humans started disintegrating and falling to the ground. The entire scene looked grotesque. Given the fairies had punched through them from all sides, they did not seem to have a single body part still attached.
Something was worrying Kigen. Despite their attack, they had not been able to identify the golem cores, which meant that their enemies were not fully dead. Sure enough, he could see them reforming, drawing from the earth to repair their bodies.
Just as he was calculating his next move, something happened behind him. Some of the fairies were falling from the air, tumbling down on the ground. Kigen was shocked, but then he understood what was happening. His own wings were beginning to get sluggish, less affluent to flying.
"Oh no!" Kigen realized that some mud had stained their wings as they were attacking the enemy. At first, they ignored it, thinking it harmless. At best, it soiled their wings. Big deal, they could wash up later. Who would expect the mud to have a mind of its own? Not only was it hardening, but it had started to spread to the rest of the wings, ensuring the fairy was severely impeded from flying.
Down below, the fairies that had been downed were realizing that this was not the end of their suffering. The mud seemed to draw from the earth, growing bigger and encapsulating the fairy within. Just like that several dozen fairies were captured.
Meanwhile, the golems had managed to reshape themselves. They were now standing tall in their human forms, staring at the fairies like hungry wolves.
"Turns out, this was easier than expected," one of the golems spoke, his eyes fixed on Kigen. From his gaze, Kigen could tell, he intended to provoke him, and oh was he provoked!
Clenching his fist with rage, Kigen shot forward, heading straight to the golem that had spoken. The mud that had been threatening to slow down his wings was thrown off by his furious fluttering of wings.
Kigen's movement were so fast that to the golems, he seemed to be teleporting. One minute he was one place, the next, he had already crossed several dozen feet and was already attacking the golem that had spoken.
Curiously, Kigen did as he had just done a few minutes ago, punching through the golem. However, he did not come out the other side. Even the golem in question was shocked as its body began to seal around the wound Kigen had just dug. Looking on, Dianah had a bad premonition, was history going to repeat itself?
"What!" Suddenly, the golem yelped as it reacted to Kigen's attack. The fairy inside it was not staying still. He could feel as massive tentacles were growing from its hands and feet. More than that, these tentacles seemed to be absorbing his essence.
Kigen was doing the same thing he had done with the previous golem. Since beating them does not kill them, then he would consume them from the inside.
However, things did not turn out as before. This time, the golem was very much aware of what he was doing, and it was fighting him back. At first, the mud seemed to coalesce around him, squeezing him. It seemed the golem intended to squash him like a bug.
Kigen was too sturdy for the thing, and with his tentacles wrapped around him, the golem could not touch him. Hence, the golem could only try to expel him from its body. Using its claws, it started digging into its own body, trying to find the offending fairy.
The other golems, and many fairies that were watching, were shocked by this display. To the fairies, it was a foregone conclusion. Once the senior attacked, the senior won. To the golems, this was a bewildering sight to behold. They did not know how to react.
These golems had once been humans. Therefore, it was not normal for one of them to simply start digging at his gut with his own fingers. They even paused to watch this horrific display.
Meanwhile, the golem was finding out that digging out Kigen was easier said than done. Kigen had wrapped himself into a ball, with tentacles surrounding and protecting him. These tentacles had then proceeded to grow and extend all over the golem's body. Given the golems were made of mud, they were much easier to navigate than flesh.
Within no time, Kigen had extended his tentacles in every part of the body, all the while absorbing the essence of the golem into himself. With every second that passed, the golem continued to weaken, parts of it solidifying and falling off. It looked sick.
Finally, it managed to rip open its body and expose Kigen, or what was visible of his body, to the rest. What the saw horrified them to no end. Dianah had been apprehensive of Kigen before, now, she was downright scared, no, terrified of that fairy.
They saw what look like a node, or a ball of roots coiled around where the heart should have been. Then, massive roots extended from this node, stretching far deep within the golem. Where they reached, it was anybody's guess, but judging from the state the golem was in, it was not that had to imagine.
The once easy-going mud golems suddenly turned pensive as they saw their brother's plight. None of them wanted to share in the misery. Meanwhile, the fairies were looking on with glittering eyes. They had just been inspired.
Tande in particular looked as though a new door had been opened for him. His horizons were broadened, and now he was seeing a new way of subduing his enemies. How brilliant! What's more, there were ready subjects for him to try this out.
Without wasting time, he shot forward like a bullet, much like Kigen had. He'd already identified the target in mind, so he simply punched through the surface tension of the mud. Once he was lodged in, he began his assault.
Since this was his first time, he made sure to extend the tendrils from his arms and feet as far as possible. His ball-like shape was not as sophisticated as Kigen's, but it still succeeded in giving him space and protecting him from the harassments of the golem. Then, he spread his tendrils within the golem, furiously absorbing the essence of the golem.
The moment Tande moved, Nina and Foli did as well, each attacking the golem closest to them. It would seem that they too were similarly inspired. Seeing this, the other fairies also moved, trying to replicate what their senior was doing.
In mere moments, several golems looked diseased and unable to move. In fact, the golem that Kigen had attacked was the one in the least pitiable state, since the others had been crowded. Some had up to five or six fairies in them, absorbing their essence.
The moment the fairies responded, Dianah, who had been frozen in horror, had reacted instantly. She hardened her frozen exterior, becoming like a statue. On the inside, she drained into the ground, abandoning her outer shell. In this way, she managed to evade the fairies once more.
However, a deep shadow had been cast in her mind, and she dreaded her next encounter with these fairies. If at all possible, she never wanted to meet them again.
It took the fairies several moments to fully absorb the essence of the golem. Kigen was not sure if they were dead since they had not found any cores. Perhaps the cores had merged with the mud, maybe that was what they were absorbing, or perhaps not. Without any proof to go by, one could only assume the worst.
After that, they managed to free the fairies that had been captured, with a very enthralling tale. A happy ending it had been, but not so for their kin, far away.