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Gizalmaluke's Grotto… It was said to house a mighty creature known as the Golem. Buddy had read about it in a book of rumors basically and the thought of it was too good to pass up. The book read that the Golem would protect its master and any of his or her allies from harm if it could be tamed. What better force to wield as a body guard than an impenetrable and indestructible rock creature.
Buddy stood in front of the stone doors that blocked his entrance. One would think that the doors of the only grounded connection of countries would be accessible to anybody. He shrugged and thought to himself about the two countries that this particular mountain range separated. Burmecia wasn't really known for their travelling spirit, there were a few here and there, but they were still a rarity to find in Midgar at least. Lindbulm on the other hand was known for their mist powered Airships to carry them wherever they wanted as long as they stayed in the Mist Continent. But no, plain stone doors that were unmovable stood steadfast and block his way. The odd part about the doors was that they had a large stone bell attached to it. When the initial push or pull techniques didn't work, the next thought was of course to ring the bell. Unfortunately, no matter how hard he tried to move the bell, it wouldn’t budge, which means it wouldn't ring.
"Kweeeh!" Buddy slumped to the side of the door as he tried to think about which step to take next as the Chocobo begged for another Gyshal Green. Buddy reached into a makeshift pouch and rummaged around in it until he felt something like his intended target. He tossed it to the yellow bird and it "Kweh'ed" in delight as it swallowed it whole without hesitation. The Chocobo seemed to be content as it turned around in a circle and then plopped onto the rocky surface.
Buddy sighed as he looked around. He was in a small ravine that formed out of the mountain range. Its dismal coloring and rocky atmosphere seemed to kill happiness just by looking at it. Instinctively he reached around his back and twisted the guitar forward. He needed to think and he seemed to be able to reason a bit better when he was playing music.
The tune was a very bleak sounding song, full of drawn out and low notes. It reflected the surroundings appropriately as Buddy closed his eyes to consider possibilities. He could always take the Chocobo over to Lindbulm and get some information about the Grotto in town. He would have to release the Chocobo though and the walk back to the forest where he picked this one up was not a quick one. Chocobo's cut travel times in half if you were considering walking.
He stopped playing for a moment and tapped the body of the guitar with his palm for a quick break in the song to pick up a different beat. Lindbulm had possibilities, though the after effects would be annoying, and it wasn't even a given that he would find anyway of entering the Grotto. He looked over to the Chocobo who was just a large ball of yellow feathers now. Snoring like a train through, Buddy gave it a quick look of disbelief. It was surprising that the bird didn't wake itself up. He looked back to the door. As silly as it sounded, maybe it required some sort of secret display of motion or something worse…a password. Buddy grinded his teeth at the thought of the door needing a password like those of literary design. A perfect predicament for a mute…
In frustration he waved his arms about in front of the door. He tried dances, bowing, and all sorts of random arm and leg movements and positions before finding himself out of breath. He sat himself back down against the rocky wall, crossed his arms over his chest and snorted through his nose. He was going to find a way in there and no force on earth was going to stop him! He would think of a way!
" Beyond this door lies the power of the earth. A man built and cast by stone and magic. Years ago. And animated by the spirits of the world. The golem. The creature however, is dangerous. And was sealed away, much like the other summoning beasts. However, unlike the others. The golem does not have much of a mind of its own to choose its master. Rather its master chooses the golem. We. The dwarves and Burmacians found this to be unfair, and being cautious. Least the golem fall into the wrong hands we prepeared a test.
The doors of this place are usually opened by Bells. However this door is different. This is the door of the golem. To unlock the door. A person must first find the [ Control Rod] , by finding the control rod within the Grotto's depths, the person will gain passage into the room of the golem.
However, that will not be the end of the test. In order to activate and imprint the Golem to its master. The new master must hold the control rod. And speak the summoning phrase, along with his name. This will awaken the golem, and ensure the first name it hears upon awakening will be that of its new master. The control rod can be found in the [ text is worn]- under the bell. The passphrase will be found in the room that brings light. "
[[ Follow the clues around Gizamalukes grotto to obtain the Golem summoning. The password can be up to you: 3000 words]]
Not moments after he had thumped down in the dirt out of frustration had the sun come up to shine down into the rocky crag. Its warmth was a welcome relief to the stale dreary air that hovered in the entrance to the Grotto, but the feeling was soon dismissed for a sense of dread. The way the sun hit the wall he was just staring at showed writing that had been difficult to see without it. The words were of the worst joke ever or more like a giant slap to the face by the gods. This ancient group of tunnel diggers wanted Buddy to SAY an entire phrase! You could almost see steam coming from his ears as ears as he fumed over his disability. He started kicking the ground in a mild tantrum only to be cut short by an angry chocobo, upset over the fact that a rock was accidentally sent a few inches from his resting head. The irate "KWEEEH" stopped him in mid outburst and he was able to get control over himself.
Oh the things I could do if I could only say something… Buddy mused to himself. The phrase was dripping with mental mockery, but Buddy believed every word of it. He had gone his whole life without uttering a single word. Even if was suddenly given the ability to talk, his speech would be nothing but dribble worse than an infants. Without the practice of speaking, he would know how to make the sounds required creating cohesive words and sentences. He opened his mouth and bared his teeth at the wall with an intimidating scowl across his face. The wall couldn't tell that he was upset, but somehow it made him feel better to let a little out. He started to pace around in a circle. It wasn't a good idea to waste his time here, kicking himself for something he couldn't control.
"It is what it is." He had heard that phrase once from one of his clients. They had done something to upset one of their own buyers and were being hunted by them; hence the reason Buddy was around. Unaffected by his loss though, Buddy watched as he nonchalantly shrugged it off, passing it to the wind with those words. Now a year later, halfway around the world, Buddy found himself using that phrase to calm himself down. He lifted one hand and reached into the inside breast pocket of his suit and pulled out a 3 x 5 note card from a stack he kept on his person along with a pen. Sticking the card against the smoothest surface he could find, he started to write down the inconvenient knowledge of acquiring the Golem. Finishing in a minute, he started looking around the area with a more piercing gaze than before. The inscribed characters suggested that "bells" and a "control rod" were the keys to getting around the cavern and inside the room of the Magic Rock Man.
Getting down to his hands and knees searching every crevasse he could find for a bell or rod-ish piece of equipment. On his knees, Buddy was beginning to wish he brought company for the trip. It would have helped to have an extra pair of eyes right now, and someone with a voice would have provided an even better companion. As he wondered around with eyes on the ground, he decided to look up for a moment. Well, at least I've got a little bit going for me. He mused to himself as he spied a bell inside a carved out hole. He walked a few steps over to it and lifted it up. It was a little heavier than he had imagined as he placed the curve in his other hand and examined it, turning it over to look at all sides of it. There was an elegant design about it as Buddy looked it over. It would make a nice souvenir for my trip out here.
He immediately ate those words however. When he was done looking over the stumbled on bell, he gripped the handle firmly and raised it to chest height and rung it several times in a smooth motion. The sound echoed in the ravine and Buddy watched as the bell disintegrated in his hands. The door opened to reveal the cavernous pathway known as Gizalmaluke's Grotto. He frowned for a moment, looking at the hand that the bell had been in. It probably wouldn't have been that easy to simply walk through the whole place with one bell, but it was still a bit ridiculous to have the bell be destroyed upon use, when this was supposed to be a pathway that connected the two regencies. They must've had to go through a ton of these in the past. He let the dust fall out of his hands and onto the ground below where it blended in perfectly with the dust that blew away in a gust of wind.
Buddy walked over to the chocobo and his gear. He gave a low whistle and flicked his head towards the bird, telling it that the service was over. It got up from its spot instantly and ran off away from the Grotto. He slid the sheath over his back and shoulder first, followed by his guitar as he watched the chocobo disappear. It wasn't anything new in the world to have a chocobo take off when you were finished riding it, what was strange was how it decided to wait for Buddy to give it permission. Buddy just dismissed it as the chocobo wanting more Gyshal Greens.
He turned to the entrance. It was already lit! Strange that what appeared to be an abandoned travel route was still illuminated by torches that should have burnt out long ago. Buddy scratched his head in confusion by the sight, but let it go, dismissing it as an old magic that kept this tunnel's luminosity. With one last look at the old writing on the wall, Buddy stared at it with disdain for a second then pass over the threshold and finally into the Grotto. As he walked a bit further into the tunnels, the stone was cold and wet and the air was thick and clammy. There must have been an underground reservoir in the tunnel to give off this kind of atmosphere.
Buddy eyes darted back and forth, from floor to ceiling and wall to wall trying to find any sign of danger to him or this "control rod", but as he looked around one question was raised in his mind.
Buddy had never been inside a place like this before. It was barely lit, dank and the smell of mold seemed to permeate the air around him. It was a lot like some of the slums residences, except that the walls of this place were carved with intricate designs that held an ancient beauty of their own. Every few steps of so he would catch himself gawking at the structures and wall drawings. Growing up and living your whole life in Midgar, didn’t really provide the prospect of cave diving or tunnel hopping as a pastime and Buddy was silently grateful for this chance to explore this ruin, even if his intentions were to pillage it of a great prize.
A little ways into the Grotto and couple of bells later, Buddy found himself in a large open room with an assortment of bridges and several different doors, two of which were extremely different from the others he had witnessed thus far. The first one was the most notable thing in the cavern, a bright and immaculately white door that seemed to repel all the grime and dirt that made the cave. It had a large bell on the front, indicating that it held a similar spell as the rest he had to pass through. He would need to find another bell if he wanted to search this room and his curiosity would probably drive him crazy if he didn’t try to. Giving it a longer glance, it looked like this was the place that someone would more than likely hold weddings in. Did the Burmecian’s come here to get hitched? Did they even want to be hitched? Buddy had never met one before and only seen their features in books he had read on other inhabitants of Gaia. They looked exactly like rats except they walked upright and were drastically larger than any rat he had ever witnessed in the slums. Buddy realized that this and so many more inquiries about the world around him would be answered if he would travel more. The thought of seeing the world sent a quick shiver down his spine as he involuntarily tried to shake it off.
The other door was a little more discreet, but it was exactly what he was searching for! Across the cavern on a slender stone bridge stood a large door that appeared too large for the piece of sculpted rock it was sitting on. The frame of the door was wider than the bridge itself a sat directly in the middle of the stone platform. An unguarded entrance to another part of the cave sat many yards behind the door, but the size of the stone door made it impossible to get to that mouth unless you could fly.
The obstacles that stood before him meant little to nothing as he turned his eyes to the walls and the floors to find some sort of roc or bell to move on to another room. He had noticed that the spell on the doors allowed the person to pass through them anytime they wanted to after they had been opened by a bell, so perhaps the control rod he was looking for was buried deeper in Gizamaluke’s Grotto. He had been fiddling with a guitar pick, flipping it over his fingers while he examined the dimly lit cavern hall. With a snap, the guitar pick was flicked to the ground and a blue shield shone brightly and illuminated the floor of the Grotto for a few important seconds, giving Buddy the chance to see things on the ground that most would miss. He grinned at his cleverness. Early on in the Grotto, Buddy had placed a protect spell on his pick. The light from the initial spell placing itself on the strumming tool was what helped him catch a bell lying on the floor that would have otherwise been unnoticeable in the faint lighting. It was common effect that when the protect spell was activated by damage, it shone a bright, protective barrier. So the gears of Buddy’s mind started turning and when he tested out the theory, the results couldn’t have been better! The instant the pick hit the floor and took the slightest scratch against its plastic, the spell activated and revealed the lost items of many decades. And fortunately, the pick was the last thing to stop radiating light, so Buddy was able to pick it up before it dimmed completely and was lost to the floor. He carried a few more on him, being the musician he was, but why waste?
The next time he flicked the pick to the ground he caught the bell shape of the door spell breakers. He wouldn’t be able to get there in time before the light of the spell ran out, so he gathered his downed pick and made a bee line for the general direction of the bell. After a couple of yards he stopped, This looked like the general area of where he had seen it. He knelt beside a rocky wall and dragged the pick down the side of the abrasive surface.
…Nothing happened…
Damn it! This was the third time he had to place the protect spell and he knew that the energy of casting spells had a limit to them before he would end up exhausted mentally. He snapped his fingers and the blue shield spun around the pick for a moment and brightened up the room with it. He looked around without hesitation, but wasn’t able to pick up the sight of the bell again. He scratched the pick against the side of the wall again and the pick shone bright. Buddy pulled it down slowly as his head turned as much as it could to find the bell.
There! He caught it and with one hand grabbed a large rock and pulled up and then against it, propelling him slightly, just enough to get over the boulder without much effort. He scrambled to the location and slammed the pick against the floor. HA! Gotcha! The bell appeared at Buddy left side and he picked it up.
The heavy stone bell was cold and a little wet, but it didn’t matter. Buddy was going to see what was behind that white door now! The temptation was almost too much. Buddy wanted to hold the bell up over his head with hands outstretched and have a cool little musical number play for his success in finding the item, but he stopped himself mid stretch as the curios door now lay in wait for him to open it.
The door was on an elevated platform and Buddy had to walk up a flight of stairs to get to it, but the second he was in front of the door, he waved the bell in the air in a fluid motion, letting its magical ring echo throughout the rest of the hall. Just like every other bell he had used so far, it disintegrated in his hands and the door he was in front of opened slowly as magic dragged its heavy stone doors across the cavern floor.
As expected, this room was certainly different from the others. Buddy dragged his pick across the door as he walked under the threshold, but it turned out to be unnecessary as the room was already well lit. The light revealed a very open area dressed in soft colors. Surrounded by a spiral staircase that ran against the wall, the centerpiece of the room was the largest bell he had ever seen. Buddy gave out a short snicker and pulled the paper he had copied about access to the Golem from his pocket. He had scribbled down everything he could read on the riddle, but he remembered it had said something about a bell that needed to be a bit larger than the ones he was using to open the doors. The paper crackled as it was unfolded by his hands quickly. His eyes went back and forth, as he ran over every line until he reached the end. After some worn away writing, the second to last phrase read “-under the bell.”
Was it this bell? It looked like it could easily fit a child or a small man inside of it. Maybe this was where the control rod resided? He leapt over the railing of the stone staircase and landed on his feet on the floor below with a slight grunt. His guitar had slapped against his back when he landed and hurt his back a little, at least enough to warrant him to rub it a bit in hopes that he could smooth out the pain.
When he was done he made his way over to the large bell and stood in front of it. The ball that sat on top was a little taller that Buddy. He sighed. His back was about to take a beating it wouldn’t forgive him for. He knelt to the base of the bell and found a foothold to grab and when he had adjusted his feet, he took a deep breath and pulled up as hard as he could. He strained himself for a few seconds, until he just stopped and stepped back to take a few heavy breathes. The bell was stone, just like all the others in this damn cave. Buddy leaned against the closest wall and stared at the bell for a couple of minutes.
Okay…I’ll try that.
Buddy walked back up to the bell and stuck his hands underneath it again. He sighed and took in another deep breathe and lifted with everything he had in him. He felt dirt fall on top of his head as the bell moved up slightly. Couldn’t stop now! He squinted and the muscles in his face tensed as he keep lifting. His breaths were becoming unsteady and diverse as he strained every muscle he had to lift the unusual bell. Straining every muscle in his body, Buddy lifted the bell a few more inches into the air and suddenly let go! But the bell didn’t drop. Instead it sat on top of the outlined shape of a giant’s palm. Buddy was plopped down on the ground trying to regain any kind of stamina he had lost just now, but his head was still and lying flat on the ground in the same form of the palm propping up the bell.
Though he was still having trouble breathing correctly, he grinned a tired smile at his success and the practical use of his new technique. The palm was the focused energy in an area that took the shape of a protective hand. Buddy trained himself to create this as a way to protect the entire body of a person from a specific direction of attacks. He wondered if he could make the palm move and flip the bell over completely.
Buddy stood up, still breathing heavily, but now he had a little bit of his stamina back. His hand was still in the same position it was. If he broke that then the energy contained in the palm would disperse and he would be right back to where he started, without the strength to give it another try for a very long time. He lifted his steady palm higher in the air as he watched the side of the bell lift as well. It was a beautiful thing when success was on your side, but then something unexpected happened…
As soon as the bell was high enough a ball of white came flying out at an intense speed and leeched onto Buddy’s leg. The distraction made him lose his concentration for a moment, and the palm disappeared leaving the bell to fall back down. Buddy wanted to scream as he watched his hard work crash back onto the floor, but in only came in gasps of air that followed his outstretched arm. He dropped to his knees in defeat. His eyes drooped in depression and weariness, but soon lost all of that and shift to rage and he directed their gaze down to whatever had hit him and latched onto his leg. He could only wish that he had squished whatever it was, when he had fallen to his knees, but to his chagrin, there at the edge of his feet was the damned cutest ball of white fur he had every met. His eyes should’ve burned a hole right through the thing, but it didn’t even notice his rage, as it had its head bowed at him. He wasn’t sure f he was controlling his hands right now or not, but they were slowly reaching towards the damned Moogle that ruined everything. He was going to strangle it. He swore that he couldn’t control himself and that he was going to grab the creature by its neck and shake it around until it was dead.
Then it looked up at him, and with the biggest eyes you ever saw and said “Thank you.” Buddy blinked as he watched the Moogle pull out a small rod from behind its back and hand it over to Buddy’s quivering palm. He felt the anger in him subsiding at the thoughts of what this could be. The malice in his eyes focused on the rod in his hand now and soon left in exchange for a more overjoyed expression. He was still incredibly worn out, but he found the energy to stand up grab the Moogle and hug him. The side of the rod was a little worn, but Buddy was able to make out the words “Control Rod” out of what was left.
After a few minutes to recuperate and concentrate on what had just happened to him, Buddy listened to the Moogle’s story of how it had been trapped inside the bell, while looking for a spot to marry another Moogle. So I was right after all about this place. Buddy mused to himself. The Moogle was about to leave when Buddy made a frantic movement with his hands to get his attention. If he could get the Moogle to stick around and say the passphrase for him, that would make this complete, and Buddy would be walking out of the Grotto with a new power at his fingertips. He managed to pick up the fur ball’s attention and kept him around long enough to write down his request on one of his 3x5 note cards he kept handy on himself. To his satisfaction, he Moogle said it felt obligated to help him out with such a simple thing and Buddy breathed a sigh of relief. The only obstacle left was to find the passphrase.
The both exited the room via the spiral staircase and made it back into the previous room he had been in. It took a moment for his eyes to adjust to the dim light again after being in the bright wedding room, but they moved on to the thing bridge with the large Golem door way sitting on top. It was a little frightening when there were no guard rails or anything to hold onto when Buddy began to take his first steps in crossing the bridge. One false step or loss of balance and he was going down into the pitch black below him. He had read about these kinds of places in adventure books when he was younger, but why did they have to be real? He wished he had those wings that this new friend of his used to hover next to him, but it wasn’t the case and there wouldn’t be much use in wishing for them anymore.
He treaded carefully and slowly across the thin stone bridge and eventually made his way over to the door itself. He scratched his pick against the door and used the light to devise some sort of clue in how to utilize the control rod to open the door. After several scratches and looking all over the door, Buddy couldn’t find a single slot to stick this key in. He let his head plop against the door in frustration. The Moogle was talking, but Buddy wasn’t listening, he had come so far in here and now there wasn’t anyway to progress further. He lifted his head and in a desperate attempt, shook the rod like he had done with the bells of the Grotto.
A distinct sound rang through the cavern. It wasn’t the same as the bells, but it rung none the less. I was a more coarse noise like how the stone bells should’ve sounded instead of producing their entrancing, magical, seal breaking sound. The doors slowly dragged open, smalls stones and dirt fell from the top of the door frame as this door had apparently not been opened as much as the other doors in Gizamaluke’s Grotto.
Buddy watched as the door opened the way to him and he sprinted across the rest of the pathway without worry of falling, just thinking of the Golem ahead of him. The small mouth that leads into the next room was completely dark and Buddy stopped, afraid that the next step might end up taking him off the pathway. Suddenly, torches lit up the room ahead of him and showed him everything. His mouth dropped wide open at the sight of the large stone man in front of him. He had finally made it here and was about to obtain the Golem to summon whenever he required its assistance.
He pulled out the paper from his pocket and read over it again.
DAMN IT ALL! He had forgotten to look through the wedding room for the passphrase. He was so consumed about getting into this room when he had the control rod handed to him from the Moogle that he spaced it entirely. He kicked the wall, when the Moogle flew to his side.
“Excuse me, kupo, but I read a phrase inside the bell when I was trapped.” It timidly offered to Buddy. “I’ve memorized it, considering it was the only thing to read in there, kupo.”
Buddy snapped his head to the Moogle’s offer. He could quite possible kiss the fuzzy creature of coincidence. He flipped his hands quickly, several times over in an effort to get the fuzz ball to get going and say it. It cleared its throat and started, Buddy grinning like an idiot behind him as they both turned to the stone man in the center of the room.
“We are here to celebrate the union of this Golem to its master.” Buddy looked up, perplexed at the floating Moogle, who strangely appeared to start reciting something close to wedding vows. He held the control rod tightly in both of his hands as the Moogle continued on “The Golem is incomplete without man to protect from the dangers of this world.” The Moogle stopped for a moment and leaned over to the excited Buddy, “Pssssttt, what’s your name, pal?” Buddy snapped his attention to the creature and in a second, flashed his nametag that he had beneath his jacket. “Golem, through Buddy, you are now completed to serve your purpose.”
The cave seemed to come to life as the entire place shook. Buddy balanced himself and waited for the Moogle to continue, but the Moogle stared at him… Was he finished? Did it work? There was only one was to tell, Buddy would try to call the Golem forth to him.
Amidst the sudden earthquake, but stuck his fingers between his lip and blew as hard as he could. A piercing whistle shot throughout the room, and then Buddy waited for the Golem to do something extraordinary...
The room would stop shaking, and the giant seemed for now...to grow inactive. Then. Runes began to light up over its body. Blazing like a fire in the night. They calmed. Settled. And then slowly. The sound of grinding rock would signal that the Golem was opening its eyes. To your suprise its eyes were made of two finely cut emerald stones. They moved down, looking at the both of you. It lifted its arm, looked at it, and then lifted its leg. Following the same ritual for at least 3 minutes.
It then turned to Buddy and then. Once again suprisingly. It spoke.
" Well. That took awhile...I swear I was begining to think that no one would ever get through that bloody door....Yes...the whole concept of a dangerous Golem seems to be offputting to most people...either that or they were eaten alive by the overgrown fish living in these caves....."
It sighed. " Very well...you sought me out...you opened the door...I've got no choice but to follow you....". It scratched its stone head with a large finger. " Not complaining of course, following you will likely be far more interesting than being frozen in the one place, the only game I could play in here was count the bat faeces....urgh.....". It shook its head before begining to fade away. " Ah..well its begun. If you ever need me master, simply call...". The golem burst into a silvery light. Sparkles of which faded into your skin.
Within you felt the strength and durability of the golem. The power of the earth.