The Champion of Shadows, assisted by Shade and Vague and Wynona the Air Mage, sets up an ambush for the "golem" that has been attacking villages in the territory of Zahirinee. Patience pays off, and the Champion succeeds in defeating the golem by observing its behavior, determining what sort of golem it might be, and breaking it off from its contact with the ground by shoving a wagon downhill and "scooping" it off the ground with it.

Once the golem is weakened, and Shade uses her "Spiritwrack" on it, it's evident that this is not a true golem, but an artificially created undead creature, set loose to wreak havoc on Zahirinee … and, Shadow surmises, quite possibly meant to implicate Governor Zahirinee in the deaths of several innocents.

The heroes venture to a cavern and find eight maidens abducted by the monster. Four of them are dead, but the other four are taken to safety. Governor Zahirinee expresses his gratitude on behalf of his people.