Lightning flashed overhead, streaking through the cloud filled sky. Sheets of rain poured down, pummeling the lone figure in the streets. A bolt of lightning flashed downwards, sparks flew up from the stone it struck, only a few feet away from the stranger. Bathing the traveler in light, the lightning revealed crimson hair, flattened by rain, plastered to a pale feminine face. Streaks of hair ran diagonally over her face. Every single muscle of which was set in grim determination. Vibrant blue eyes, made all the more striking by their feline pupils, glanced over everything around her. Her clothing, just as drenched as her hair, laid flat against her skin. Outlining all of the woman's curves, and edges, hardly anything was left to imagination.

Her entire body was outfitted with weaponry. A bow was slung over her back. Her shield, a buckler, was strapped over her bow. Underneath these, against her lower back, sat a quiver. Only twelve arrows sat within it. Two swords, both made of steel, were strapped to the woman's left hip. The foremost blade was the shorter of the two. A one-handed blade, the broadsword was a weapon the woman was well acquainted with. The second sword was a hand-and-a-half blade, or a bastard sword for short. Brown boots moved through the thick mud. Thick, heavy duty trousers covered the woman's legs. A sleeveless, water-logged tunic was worn over her upper body. The woman's dark brown jacket was tied around her waist, holding down the woman's green tunic.

Mud splashed up, rain poured down, lightning flashed through the sky. Elizabeth walked through the rain, her boots covered in mud. Rivulets of water rolled down her water-logged hair. Rolling down her smooth skin, the rivulets turned into miniature rivers. Falling from her strong jaw, forming a waterfall, the rain splashed against the fabric of her tunic. Tiny droplets flew into the air as the water hit the fabric. Then the rivulets formed again. Forming rivers once more, the water ran down the length of her shirt. Pooling just above the sleeves of her jacket, the water rippled with Elizabeth's every step. As the pool began to fill, the water shook and splashed out. Then large drops of water flew through the air once more. As they fell, the water headed towards the muddy ground. Then a boot appeared. Water droplets splashed against it, their existence disintegrating into thousands of imperceptible droplets.

Elizabeth sighed as she moved down the muddy road. Buildings, long lost, forgotten, and destitute rose up around her. Piles of rubble lived here and there, large steel constructions quickly rusting in the everpresent rain of Railoch. The distant lights of Gobethio shone. They flickered between the onslaughts of rain. So very far, so very far. However, Elizabeth knew she was already in Gobethio. Its abandoned streets, its homes and shops and people were gone, forgotten by the present. The only ones that lived there now, the only ones that could possibly know anything about the true Gobethio, lived in the wake of its crumbling ruins. The weak, the starving, the poor, all of whom stared out at the lone figure that passed through their mist. They, themselves were hidden behind the twisted wreckage that surrounded Elizabeth. SHe hadn't seen them in a while, not since she herself had been one of them. 

Elizabeth remembered that day, so very long ago. She had been 16 at the time. Living on her own, her mother having died from sickness a few years before, Elizabeth had stolen and scrounged for food. Then a man, coming out of nowhere and wounded beyond repair, had stumbled into the outskirts. Elizabeth had been there when he died. She had taken his sword and shield, without a second thought she had stripped his body and hidden it in the rubble. It wasn’t her proudest moment, but it got her to where she was today. 

Elizabeth smiled in the rain as she thought about where it all began. She had stumbled into a tavern, the same one she was going to now. Lifted the sword to the counter and asked for a job. Rev, the current owner, was sitting at the bar. He nearly fell out of his seat when he heard her request. Rev’s father just laughed at her from behind the counter. Then he passed her a pint of ale and told her if she could drink it without throwing up, then he would give her a job. Elizabeth swore she lost half her stomach that night.

Looking up, the woman was suddenly drowned in the lights of Gobethio. People began to fill the streets as well. They ran from building to building, trying not to get drenched. Elizabeth couldn’t help but to smile and laugh at these people. She had been walking through the rain for half a day now. The rain was nothing to her. Taking several turns Elizabeth found herself in front of one of the more destitute buildings. She smiled as she looked up at it. In the past eleven years not a thing had changed. Still just barely holding on. A steel plate swung from the tavern’s door. The Golem’s Core was written across the plate, the face of a golem crudely painted behind the words. Elizabeth stopped for a moment. Water constantly poured down from the tavern’s roof. Taking a deep breath, the woman passed through the flowing curtain. Her hair and clothing becoming even more soaked as she did so. Leaning forwards, Elizabeth rung out her hair. The drying mass bunching up and becoming a frazzled, curly mess again. Tying it back around her head, the woman pushed open the tavern’s door.

The sounds of song, laughter, and boastful shouting roared out from the doorway. Rev was behind the counter, drying a freshly cleaned pint glass. The Talin brothers, mercenaries and fun-loving fighters shouted and danced in the corner of the filled room. A troop of halflings danced on several tables. The bard, Samson, sung from the nearby corner. As Elizabeth stepped into the building, the sounds of joyful merryment died away. Her feline gaze swept over everyone around her. Frustration began to grow on her face as the halflings started to climb down from the tables. Sparks of lightning began to flash between her clenched teeth. 

“Hey, Daughter of Railoch! Back from the dead?” Rev’s voice carried over the silence of the entire tavern. As Elizabeth began to move forwards, she called back.

“I never died, Rev. Get me—”

THUNK!!!
THUNK!!!Elizabeth’s voice was cut off as a metal cup smacked the back of her head. Scowling, Elizabeth turned around to face her attacker. What greeted her was the viking-like chest of William Clanker. As Elizabeth looked up to face the 6’6” man, the ruckus of the tavern returned. “Damnit, Clanker, you know I can’t fucking stand it when you do that.”

“Yep, but I wouldn’t have to do it if you stopped giving the halflings death stares.” Clanker smiled as he moved past Elizabeth. Taking a seat at the counter, Clanker pulled out a seat for Elizabeth.
Grumbling, she took her seat. Then ordering her regular pint of mead, Elizabeth fished out the coins for Rev. Turning back towards Clanker, she started to talk. “There’s a new golem, over at Nirn’s Tower. You know, the two that is lying on its side along the road.” Noticing the look of recognition that passed over Clanker’s face, Elizabeth continued her story. “Well, he’s a big guy, must’ve devoured at least ten other golems. Took out some peddlers too. Anyways, I need some help. You know of anyone?”

Clanker looked away for a moment, thinking. “Sorry, can’t say I do. Honestly, you’re the only one that I know who is crazy enough to go after fully functional golems.” Smiling, Clanker winked at Elizabeth. “But then again, I guess it pays better than being a part of the guard.”

She heard down the grapevine that there was a golem hanging around Gobethio, and pretty close too. Normally she wouldn't be so interested if it weren't for a particular tidbit of information her scouts relayed. It was a big one–and unlike the other defunct ones this still had enough working in it to attack and assimilate parts from its fallen brethren. Contrary to what people thought of Antikythera, it wasn't all made of magic. Most of her inspiration had come from her visits to Baltil and Gobethio years ago. She had just combined what she saw and made it better. Simple as that. Her staff were created out of her experiments in replicating the works of the late dwarven god of the forge, and until now she didn't have the resources to begin studying the old tech of ancient Railoch. Also, this specimen happened to be wandering around her doorstep. Shiloh wasn't leaving more dangers than necessary around the area. The continual lightning storms and torrential downpour were lethal enough.

In a specially crafted set of clothes treated with waterproofing materials and resins, she set out from the front door of Antikythera and traveled down Via Fulminis. Soon she was in the valley proper, and had a small pyramid of crystal in her hand. A thin beam of light shone from it, showing her the way to her target. A blank clay mask was on her face, leaving only two slits for vision. over them she had her goggles to keep out the rain. Though they were useless in areas with void storms, they did the job on the practical end. Every inch of her body was covered and her appearance made it difficult for a bystander to tell who or what was beneath the leather armor. She had stuffed her hair in as far as she could, but somehow the rain found ways to seep in. 

Taking on constructs provided a different sort of challenge under these conditions. Most of her current arsenal of weaponry had their capabilities vastly reduced in the overcast skies and pouring rain, and she wasn't sure of how resistant they were to magic. Essentially brute force was the obvious route, but if she didn't want to bang up the chassis and parts too badly she'd have to go about this carefully. In hindsight, she should've stocked up on more things to repel lightning. A wyvern-bone blade was in her hand as she creeped along the the soggy, charred earth. It had an odd metallic sheen on the ancient bone, having applied an even coating of liquid lacriamium hours before. The less metal she had on her person when she was out here–the better. With her luck getting hit by lightning was inversely proportional to the average man's luck at winning the lottery.

Tracking took hours, with the sky the same bland grey it was impossible to know for how long. Sure enough, the crystal brought her to the place where her target was. A broken structure having fallen in two was nearby, and the only shelter around from the elements. The building's stone was stained with years of mud and rain with the occasional blackened portion from a stray bolt of lightning. Up ahead, she saw it. A towering, asymmetrical figure with two white specks she guessed were its eyes. Its arms weren't even, showing where it had added on portions from cannibalizing others. Its jerky and lumbering movement reminded her of an ogre. Hopefully it didn't have the same speed as one. Some bent scrap was lying around it, probably the remains of the last golem it had taken parts from. Keeping low to the ground, she used the mud to make herself blend in. How close could she get before it would realize a potential threat was present?

For the time being, she'd start with simple observation. If she was going to confront this thing sooner or later, noting possible weak points were critical. That lacriamium coat wouldn't last forever.

Elizabeth stood at the door of The Golem’s Core. Her clothes, hair, and weaponry were all dry. However, that wouldn’t last forever. The top flap of her bag maved as something squirmed inside. A yip sounded as Elizabeth took a step towards the ever-present curtain of water. Startled, Liz opened up her bag. There, staring back at her, was a strange little thing. It was about a foot in length with stubby little legs. Covered in small white scales, a thin mane of light blue hair ran down its spine. Lifting its head over the side of her leather bag, it yipped again. 

“Hey Felix, keep quiet. People tend to get freaked out by you.” Patting the small dragon’s head, Elizabeth closed the top of the bag. Sighing, and grimacing just a bit, Liz stepped out into the ever present rain and darkness that was Railoch. Liz took several turns in the backways of Gobethio before she found the little shack she was looking for. It was a single story building hidden between two three story buildings. Al the structures around it were dark and abandoned, but this little building was filled with light. A great stack of smoke rose through the air above it.

Knocking on the door, Elizabeth walked into the old smithy. A man, aged and white-haired, sat at the forge. As he tended to the coals, his grunt of welcoming came out. “Oi, I’m closed for the day.” Without turning around, the old man continued to poke at the coals.

“Arnold, it’s Liz.” Arnold’s head jerked up as he heard the woman’s voice. His back straightened, and though it could not be seen, a great smile sprouted underneath the mess of beard the man had. 

“I said I was closed.” Arnold twisted his head around. Catching Liz’s eye, the woman knew he was only joking now. As Arnold finished up poking the coals of his forge, the man swung his massive body around. Sitting on one of the many anvils in the room, he sat with his arms crossed. “I hope this is just a social visit.” Arnold did, in fact, hope for this. However, he also knew as well as anybody that Liz’s visit was in no way a social visit.

“No, Arnold, it’s not. I came here for what I ordered a week ago.” Elizabeth walked up to the counter that extended from the wall towards the back of the room. Setting her leather bag on top of the counter, she dug around inside it. Finding Felix, Liz petted the creature’s mane. Dragging the unrestrained Ataiyan out of her bag, Liz let the small dragon fly around her for a moment. Arnold scowled in the background as he thought back to what happened a week ago.

Liz had come into his shop, bloody and slightly beaten. There was a great big smile on the woman’s face when she did it though. Lugging the large, silver, core container of a fallen golem, the woman had slammed it down on his counter and demanded that he turn it into a spool of wire.

Grumbling slightly, Arnold quickly responded. “Yeah, I got some of it.” Getting up from his seat Arnold moved to the other side of the counter. Giving the small, white Ataiyan the evil eye for a moment, he began to rummage through a drawer on his side. Pulling out a steel pool, Liz could easily see the thin, almost thread-like, silver that ran around it. “I only got a hundred feet of it though. You’ll have to come back later if you want more.” Grumbling, Arnold returned to his work of poking the forge.
Smiling, ELizabeth tucked the silver wire into her bag. Returning Felix to the bag as well, Liz thanked Arnold. The old man only gave a grunt in reply. Leaving his pay on the counter, Liz walked out from the old smithy. Once again, the woman was getting drenched by the rain. Moving through the winding streets of Gobethio, Liz began to plot her attack on the golem. Escaping the city’s ever-present light Liz returned to the darkness of her childhood. The crumbled buildings moved past her. Elizabeth began to lose track of time as she walked along the mud filled roads. The rain was lighter than usual today, which was good. Good for her at least.
Finding Nirn’s Tower, Elizabeth made sure to steer clear of the Golem’s territory. It still stood on the hill the overlooked the crumbling ruins of the tower. Its lumbering body moved jerkily. Its white eyes glared out over the grass-filled hills. Liz moved silently through the tall grass. Making her way to the larger of the two crumbling masses, Liz found the little hideaway that she had built several years ago. Climbing up the wall, hidden from view and dry, Elizabeth unloaded her weaponry and baggage. Pulling out the spool of silver wire, Liz began to wrap some of the wire around the base of her dagger’s blade. 
Finished with that preparation, Liz got back to the ground level of the tower. Pulling together some kindling that had found itself among the ruins the woman quickly found a dry spot. Liz quickly built up a small pyre. Then, in the span of a moment, she spat out a tiny bolt of lightning. The kindling caught flame and exploded into life. The grinding of the golem could be heard from the tower. Immediately, at a pace far too fast for its bulk, the hulking machine charged at the crumbling mass of the tower.

Startled, Elizabeth immediately ran back to her raised alcove. Her foot disappearing over the edge just as the golem barreled into the tower.

Time dragged on in the rain as she laid camouflaged belly-down in the mud. She then noticed someone coming along the same way she had, and took shelter in the fallen ruins. The person probably didn't even notice she was here, as the golem hadn't either. The continuous rain made it harder for her to hear what was going on over in the ruins the new arrival had entered, but suddenly the golem sensed them. With a terrifying speed, it charged right into the damaged structure and rammed into it with its over-sized fists. An earth-rattling blow shook the area, sending small tremors right through her. "…Good lord, it is faster than a troll." She muttered under her breath as she tried to keep herself from revealing her concealed position. If this was how much force she was feeling just from the shockwave alone, then that stone structure wasn't going to last long. 

Now on high alert, the golem's eyes were a glaring yellow and it began to pummel the broken tower. Cracks were forming in the stonework and stone dust was flying. Hoping that this was her chance to change position with it now occupied, Shiloh began sliding away so she would be behind it. To her horror, it had a better level of detection than she thought as its head swiveled to the side just as she was mid-crouch. Thundering in her direction, she quickly began muttering a prayer for one's last rites as she hastily cast a protection spell. The mud reduced the traction she had beneath her boots and she slipped–ruining her plan to dodge just as the hulking metal giant started swinging. The spell flickered into effect just as an iron first sent her flying more than ten meters backwards.Tucking in her limbs and curling, she rolled like a pillbug before flopping on the soggy soil. She wasn't feeling anything yet, and that scared her. But before she had any time to think any further, the golem was readying for a second strike.

To an observer, the event was akin to a disgruntled shopkeeper backhanding a fly dead-on. She had sailed through the air for a few brief seconds before leaving a notable trail of her body sliding across the mud. It had completely forgotten about the person in the broken tower now that its attention was locked on a moving target. Having the wind knocked out of your lungs takes more than a few minutes to recover, leaving her no time to even teleport. Eyes wide and heart pounding, she was mentally screaming for help. In seconds that lumbering monstrosity would be bearing down on her and it'd smash her into a smear that even necromancers would have trouble reassembling. 'Stop, stop, STOP!'  Her mind begged, completely consumed with a fragile hope that it would miss then leave her alone.

Just as she was sure her head would be caved in, a bright circular sigil in the shape of a stylized wheel flared to life on the golem's chest–freezing its movements. The gears and machinery inside ground to a halt as a shudder went through the rogue golem. It became as still as a statue, vibrating slightly as it was likely trying to resist a divine command. "…Don't move. Don't you dare move." Her voice forced out in a hoarse whisper. As if on cue, thunder rumbled overhead as the golem's locked position had its arm raised above its head–primed and ready to call down lightning. From above, a flash of electricity surged as a supercharged bolt hit the mechanical monster dead-on, nearly blinding anyone within its immediate vicinity. It was a direct hit, and that torrent of lightning had caused a major disruption in whatever was keeping the original golem together. Releasing the golem from stasis, its limbs fell to its sides as it began twitching spastically. It could still stand, but it had taken a heavy blow. For a moment , Shiloh thought it was almost down. Then the yellow lights turned red. The machinery inside it let out a high pitched whirring as it went berserk, and horror returned to the rogue's face.

In a blind rage, whatever restraint it had was wiped out by being overloaded with lightning and the golem started to smash its limbs every which way! Relentlessly it pounded into the earth, sending chunks of soil and mud into the air. Not taking any more chances, she activated a ring of sanctuary she had brought in precaution and vanished from existence just before the irate golem's arm drove her six feet deeper into the ground. It had completely gone haywire and was attacking anything in its sights, not just things that moved. Grabbing broken pieces of stone it hurled them at the remains of the tower with an unbridled fury. Some of the stones were the size of a person's head, others were much larger.  

Elizabeth cursed as the Golem's attention was diverted. Looking out of the tower, she could see the faint outline of someone being backhanded like a fly. "Damnit," A string of curses flew from Elizabeth's mouth as she quickly gathered her wire. Wrapping one end of it around her hand and forearm, Elizabeth secured it in place by donning her buckler over it. The rest of the wire was coiled up and strapped to her hip. Taking off her jacket, Elizabeth put her dagger back into the small scabbard on her right thigh. Making sure that her bastard sword was with the bow, Elizabeth donned her arming blade. 

Watching, the woman looked up just in time to see the lightning strike the golem. "Fuck," Elizabeth had never fought with a berserk golem, but she had heard tales. What made this worse was that the berserk golem started attacking both Elizabeth and the person way down there. Her eyes widening as a head sized stone came flying through the rain, Elizabeth jumped down from her perch. Rolling on the ground, she glanced up just as the sound of shattering wood filled her ears. Cursing, Elizabeth held out her arm. 

Felix, flying far above descended to her outstretched palm. Petting the small dragon's neck, Liz whispered in its ear. "Hey Felix, stay high. Okay?" With a purr, Felix rubbed his head along Elizabeth's neck. Tossing up the little beast, Elizabeth smiled sadly. She hated people, and people tended to dislike her. So she didn't want to go save this person, whomever they were. However, they might provide a good distraction for the golem. Cracking her neck and fingers, Elizabeth ran out from tower. Immediately, a stone came flying at her, implanting itself in the decayed tower's wall.

Sliding on the mud, Elizabeth dodged another incoming stone. Her hair, having been tied back in a tail, dragged through the mud, while Elizabeth rode on her shield. Pulling her arming sword from its scabbard, Elizabeth closed in on her target. She watched as it slammed one of its huge fists into the person's shielding, driving it further into the waterlogged ground. Small sparks of electricity began to form in Elizabeth's mouth. They jumped between her teeth and tongue, filling her mouth with a tingly feeling. Attempting to surprise the golem, Elizabeth jumped onto the woman's magic. Of course, while that might have surprised a normal golem, it did nothing for the berserk ones. The machine's larger fist came flying in from the side. Elizabeth barely had the time to ready herself. Crouching down and pulling up her shield, Elizabeth took the full brunt of the golem's strength. Looking ever more like the fly, the woman flew some twenty meters away.

Rolling on the ground, groaning, she eventually came to a stop. Her world spun around her for a moment as the rain fell to her face, but the flash of lightning through the sky brought her back. Grunting, she gingerly looked down at her left arm. It wasn't broken, but it was bleeding. The golem's fist had torn through her metal buckler, causing a strip of steel to drive itself into her arm. Grunting, she flexed her hand. Pain rocketed up her arm, causing her to gasp and arch her back. Shutting her eyes tight, she bit down on her lip. A small bead of blood fell down her chin as she stood back up. Pulling out her dagger, Elizabeth wrapped the other end of the silver wire around it.

Glancing up, Elizabeth could see the golem continue pounding into the person's shielding. Gasping as she stood, Elizabeth finished her preparations with the dagger. This was a technique that she had come up with a while ago, but never had the chance to test it. Well, she never had the chance till now. A few strands of ginger hair were plastered to her face, traveling down next to her nose. Water rolled off her face and arms, washing away the blood from her damaged arm. "Ok, let's try this again." Mumbling to herself, the electricity in her mouth continued to grow. 

Charging once more, Elizabeth slid under the golem's flailing arms. Looking straight up just as the golem looked straight down, Elizabeth let out a massive roar. Lightning shot out from her mouth, striking the golem in the face. The impact was so powerful that it caused the raging machine to backstep just a bit. Taking a glance at the person i the shield, she nodded at them. Then, stepping between the golem's legs, Elizabeth climbed up its back. The golem's arms flailed at her, though they never quite managed to reach her. Taking the dagger, Elizabeth reached up to the golem's head. Hoisting herself up and wrapping her legs around its neck, she saw as the golem's fist came flying at her. falling back just in time, Elizabeth's back slammed into the golem's. The breath was driven from her body. Gasping, trying to reclaim it, she hoisted herself back up. Then, without any bravado, she rammed the dagger into the golem's eye. To which she received another fist. However, the sudden lose of half its sight had made the golem falter. Instead of crushing her skull, it only bruised her face. Gasping from the sudden pain, Elizabeth fell from the golem's back. The silver wire flowed from its spool as she fell. Slamming into the ground, Elizabeth scurried out of the way. 

Taking her wire in both hands, Elizabeth could feel it as the lightning grew in her blood. The woman promptly poured her lightning into the wire. The electrical charge rushed down its length, all the way to the golem's eye. The great lumbering machine barely stopped in its tracks. In fact, it kept moving, but at a much slower pace, the excess lightning messing with the machinery in its body. Grimacing from the concentration, Elizabeth yelled at the stranger. "NOW! Hit it NOW!" Hoping that her voice carried over the distance, Elizabeth knew she didn't have much time before the golem broke free.

In that brief moment of respite when the magical ring activated its effect, Shiloh was recuperating while in a sort of pocket dimension away from the battle. She was lying on her back, feeling worse than she had in a while. Taking in deep, slow breaths she could feel her body repair itself with no threats to defend against. With her ascension her regeneration had improved greatly, and soon she was feeling less like she had something broken. Getting back up, she recast the spell of protection. Drawing her lips into a thin line she wasn't eager to return to the fray. But she had set a goal, and she wasn't leaving until she had that golem taken apart. She wanted those pieces to study. "Here we go again." The deity muttered as she left the dimensional sanctuary.

Back in the pouring rain, Shiloh flickered back into existence with much better timing. There was someone else fending off the golem, albeit barely. They were beat up pretty bad, and that thing was still kicking despite the damage it took. "NOW! Hit it NOW!" They screamed. Looking up at the lumbering pile of metal, the rogue grit her teeth. Oh she'd hit it alright… She'd hit it hard. "Now sit down–and go to sleep." She seethed, unleashing her pent-up fury. An explosion of shadows poured forth from her body, taking the form of hundreds upon hundreds of grasping hands. Latching onto the massive golem from every angle, they pinned it in place as she began to drain it of all the power within its body. Whatever magic or energy the other woman was putting in was being sapped from the machine too, as the deity devoured it from inside out. 

A great shudder came over the golem, as the power keeping it moving was completely removed. The light faded from its eyes and its movements froze up, until finally it collapsed to the ground like a giant felled by the stone from a sling. A great crash shook the nearby earth as it laid in the mud, lifeless and motionless like its kin. The great amount of power Shiloh had taken in was highly volatile, and drawing her axe she leaped towards the fallen golem to plunge the blade in between a gap in its armor, releasing the excess as a burst of electricity. With that gone, the writhing shadows dissipated and retreated to the unknown. As if to acknowledge the victory, the rain stopped for a while. Silence followed as she stood hunched over atop the golem's inert body. Dripping wet and now almost fully recovered, she began to pry off bits and pieces methodically, taking care to damage the parts as little as possible.