Three Golems

"I presume that is where our missing volunteers went?" Lecca said making the golems at the end of the hall shift.

"Ma'am, I recommend you fall back." Staff Sergeant baker said as he inched his finger towards the trigger of his gun, "We've got some rock-heads at the end. Captain what's the call!?"

"Hold fire!" Thompson said loudly. "Marco, Eugene, Anne! Make sure that Lecca doesn't fall into enemy hands!"

"Enemy hands!?" Marco said confused as he followed the man's orders. "What do you mean?"

"Cap! Golems are closing in on us!" Green said as steadied himself. "They look slow!"

"Don't underestimate them Private!" Patterson warned as he stepped forward on the left side of the hall.

Counting three total, each golem looked at the men with their beady, glowing red eyes. Each one had some appendage that was in the shape of a weapon. Their movements were sluggish, yet their heads twitched in an irregular manner suggesting otherwise.

"Captain!" Mike said alarmed now that the Golems were a quarter closer than they were before.

Pulling out a fragmentation grenade and pulling the pin, Thompson shouted "Cover your ears and close your mouth!" before throwing the olive-drab spherical device down at the golem's feet.

Not knowing what was happening, Lecca and the others followed his orders confused on why the other men did not do the same. Their questions were answered as a bright flash came from the golem's feet, and a sudden flash of pressure smacked into their bodies, making Anne fall to her feet.

Lecca's ears rang uncontrollably as more sharp noises echoed in her head. Tears flooded out of her eyes as she screamed falling to the ground, yet she could not hear her voice. She could only hear the thunderous cracks from the rifles being fired within the tunnel.

The other knights were in a similar state, and through the confusion of the dust and smoke that had been kicked up, PFC Green appeared in front of the princess. Looking at the young man with tears distorting her vision, the man's lips moved in a constant manner as he pointed towards the exit of the room.

With his answer not getting through to the silver-haired princess, Green called over Mike. Almost tripping as he stood over Green, the man apparently explained the situation to the sergeant making him spring into action by lifting the woman up by her left arm.

"They're still coming!" Simon yelled as he shot another three rounds into one of the golem's eyes. "What the fuck!"

"Keep them at bay. Don't let them get to close!" Patterson bellowed as the Rangers began to slowly back towards the door.

As Mike practically dragged Lecca out of the room, the giant golems moved frantically. They were a lost faster before, and their sudden movements almost placed them next to their former positions in an instant.

One of the golems whipped its appendage at Patterson, but thanks to Malkovich's lucky shot, a bullet pierced the eye the golem was using to aim, and it missed by a mere meter creating a large scar in the wall just behind the lieutenant. Pieces of stone and rocks became shrapnel as it splattered in the entire room. The abnormal pressure being made by the bullets was easily being snuffed out by the golem's volcanic footsteps. Yet due to their close distance, each eye was quickly destroyed by a hail of bullets.

One-by-one the golems collapsed to the ground. What once held together their rocky bodies was now gone, and the rocks dislodged themselves from each other.

"Cease fire!" Thompson cried out as he rose from the ground with the help of Baker.

"Holy shit!" Richard said a bit winded. "Was that all of them!?"

"Fuck Yeah!" Simon said as he kicked one of the bullet-hole-ridden heads, "They're dead!"

Taking several calming breaths, Thompson slowly shook off Baker's arm. He was curious of the large cubes at the end of the tunnel, so after the rest of their men had caught their breaths, he directed those in the room towards the cubed objects. The walk wasn't long, but it felt like an eternity as they sidestepped the rubble-filled crater in the middle of the room. The grenade had done a number on the golems, and it was thanks to the destruction it held that the men made it out alive.

Though, that was the only grenade the captain held. One down, six left.

Standing in front of one of the large crates, Thompson placed his hand on the cover. He gently pushed it open, and his eyes widened as he set eyes on a naked man curled up in the fetal position. He was alive. His breaths slowly emanated from the bottom of the crate, but a pool of blood coated his lower body.

Blood, bones and ligaments laid at the bottom of the crate. The stench was so unbearable that Green was instantly reminded of the sight he saw in Peshawar that day.

"Hey!" Patterson called out to the man. "Are you alright!?"

Awakening to the sharp voice that came above him, the man slowly lifted himself. He pressed his hand on a pile of intestines and brain matter as he grabbed the edge of the crate.

"Look at me!" Baker said pushing aside Patterson. "Can you see me?" he asked while turning a flashlight on.

The man covered his eyes as a sudden bright light hit his face, he was disoriented as he climbed out of the crate much to the alarm of the unknown men around him.

"Captain, what's your SITREP? I'm hearing a lot of shouting in there." Mike's voice played over a local radio channel.

Grasping the transponder on his shoulder, Captain Thompson was shaken as he answered, "We're okay Sergeant. We've found a civilian, possibly a member of the Volunteer Corps."

Shooting up from the ground, the blood-covered man screamed "The Volunteer Corps!" Tears escaped his eyes, and the men were perplexed as he fell to the ground. He let out a shrill scream as he covered his face to hide the tears he shed.

"Captain…" Green said as he looked at the large stack of crates behind the one they had opened. "What the fuck happened here?"

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Publicly Available Information: The Volunteer Corps:

The Volunteer Corps is a two-century old organization that is dedicated to supporting the frontier and fighting off the Demon Lords armies. The Corps recruit people with special powers and talents, and equips them with the best upcoming and newly built equipment to fight a never-ending battle.

Though the Corps hold high casualties, they are among the world's best organized fighting force.