Harm and Harmony

-Chapter 36-

Day: 21

Days Left: 5459

Lives Saved: 0

"Harmony!" Corinna grabbed her spear and rushed to the chimaera's side. Her legs were covered in an earthy-grey substance that spread upwards. She clawed at it with her talons, but it merely resculptured itself, filling in the holes that Harmony's scratches had made.

Corinna's eyes darted from the blob constraining Harmony to her spear. Physical attacks seemed to be ineffectual against this type of monster. Corinna grabbed the pot of boiling water and splashed it onto the shifting creature. It shrieked, its form softening and now weak. The hold it had over Harmony's legs slipped away, and the earthy-grey substance fell to the floor.

Now free from the creature, Harmony shuffled away from it and stood up. Her legs tinged with pain from the boiling water but quickly healed as all her injuries did. Corinna stood in front of the chimaera with her spear out in a protective stance.

The viscous blob on the floor squirmed and writhed, now damp with steam rising from it. Then, it shifted and shaped. A hulking arm burst out it, and its fist slammed onto the floorboards, then another formed. The hands then pushed downwards, and a head and a pair of shoulders rose out of the blobulous pile. It continued to grow, with a torso following behind it, then finally a pair of legs formed out of the remaining material.

"It's a golem..." Corinna breathed, staring up at the creature that had now grown to reach the ceiling. Its face sagged from the water, its empty eye sockets caved in and sank, and its mouth drooped into a frown.

With a resounding groan, the golem stepped forward with one thudding and shaking foot and towered over the young woman.

Corinna clutched her spear tightly. Her weapon would be useless against such a thing. She darted to the kettle, ducking low to avoid any attack. But there was none. She turned back, kettle in hand, to see the golem pinning Harmony to the wall with an enlarged and stretched-out hand, its fingers sticking to the wall.

Even after flinging the remaining contents of the kettle onto the creature, the golem ignored Corinna, its drooping face focused on the chimaera trapped in its grasp.

Does it not see me as a threat? Corinna wondered, then realised...

No. 

It's only after Harmony.

After filling the washing up bowl with water, Corinna threw it over the golem's arm that imprisoned Harmony. With it now softened and weak, the chimaera easily tore through it and freed herself. She then reached for one of the armchairs and chucked it at the golem, creating a sizable dent in its torso.

Whilst Harmony pinned down the golem with the armchair, Corinna refilled the washing up bowl with more water. She glanced back at the blob that had used to be the golem's hand, the one that Harmony had ripped off to break free. It squirmed and shifted even when disconnected from the main body, slithering back to it. That was when Corinna noticed what it was made out of.

Clay.

It moves quickly and easily moldable when wet... then what about when it is dry?

"Harm! Fireplace!" she called out to the chimaera.

The clay golem flung the armchair across the room and Harmony with it. Standing back up, the chimaera glanced back at the fireplace behind her, then nodded at Corinna.

Whilst Harmony dodged the slow and lumbering attacks of the golem, enticing it closer to the fire, Corinna emptied the shelves of board games and picked up the bookcase, then waited, preparing for the right moment.

Now right in front of the fireplace, Harmony felt the blistering heat of the flames on her snake-tail. Inhaling a long breath, she waited for the young woman's signal.

The chimaera ducked and dove to the side, planting a foot on the golem's back and kicking it into the flames. Corinna charged at it and blocked up the fireplace with the bookcase. Together, Harmony and Corinna pushed against the bookcase, preventing the golem from escaping. Reaching out to the dial, Corinna turned the setting onto full power.

A clamour of bellows and wails resounded across the house. The golem screeched as the flames consumed its clay body, causing it to harden and dry. It banged against the bookcase that boarded its escape, soon finding itself unable to move.

Despite feeling the raging heat through the bookcase, Corinna continued to stay in position, waiting for the screams to eventually stop. She looked at Harmony to make sure she was safe. The chimaera returned a look with the same sentiment. The golem's cries of pain grew quiet, and Corinna could finally hear her own short and sharp gasps of breath along with the crackling of the fire.

She then heard another noise. A popping noise like something was cracking.

"Get out now!" Corinna grabbed Harmony's arm and dragged her outside.

They made it a few steps away from the porch when the side of the house exploded, blasting scattered bricks from the fireplace. Corinna dove and collapsed on top of Harmony, shielding her from the flying debris.

The chimaera cradled the young woman in her arms, turning her over to check the wounds that she had received. After deliberating none of them to be severe or fatal, and could be easily healed with her saliva, Harmony growled at Corinna, her talons gripping at her fur in vexation.

"Yeah, yeah." Corinna coughed, struggling to move. "You can heal fast, so there was no point in protecting you."

The chimaera continued to glare at her.

Corinna sighed. "And I'll leave the heroics to the immortal were-jackal, snake-tailed, winged monster thing." Her eyes drooped, almost entirely closing. She gazed back at the gaping hole in the roof where the chimney had been. Smoke was now billowing out of it.

The build-up of steam with nowhere to escape had likely caused the explosion, Corinna theorised. Either that or the clay golem had made itself hollow to shape itself into something larger and taller.

The front door creaked open, and a small blob of clay tumbled out.

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me," Corinna groaned. She struggled to stand up, using Harmony as support. "Let's go. Round two." Her legs gave way from the numerous scratches from the debris, and she collapsed onto the sand, caught by Harmony. "I don't suppose you have another fireplace, do you? Maybe we should draw it to the sea-"

The chimaera shook her head and picked up the young woman, who quickly fell unconscious in her arms, then ran in the opposite direction.