David went down fighting, eyes blazing with rage as he spat curse after curse at the automaton. It was futile, of course; his vilest spells were useless against a foe with no mind to break nor flesh to rend. It was only second before the amulet was fastened around his neck.

~*~

Cerise went down blazing in a more literal sense, her fear and anger fueling blue-white flames that flickered about her body. El Dorado actually hesitated at their intensity before moving forward. She nearly burned through the chain of the amulet before it subdued her scream into silence.

~*~

Faraji didn't bother to fight. He only grinned with a vicious satisfaction as he noted a limp in El Dorado's gait, the dents from students' spells, the burns from Cerise's struggle. 

"Not so invulnerable now, are you?" He called out. The automaton didn't respond, instead moving forward to fasten the amulet with a glittering red stone around his neck.

~*~

"Take honor that you and your companions have been chosen."

Gloria carefully kept her expression neutral. The thing was speaking Classic Ch'olti'an, the language of the Mayan elite not too far removed from her native Ki'iche. They circled each other, each step carefully measured and controlled.

"Chosen?" She replied in the same tongue. "Chosen for what?"

"This unit is damaged. Resistance was more than expected. Magical power was insufficient in the youths. You will replace the unit, defending with magic until transmutation is complete."

It reached into its torso, withdrawing a final amulet attached to a lovely crimson rock. Its heart, Gloria realized; without that thing to sustain, El Dorado would soon be as useless as a toy without batteries.

"Transmutation? What transformation?"

All of a sudden, she recognized the gem in the amulet.  A Philosopher's Stone. Capable of sustaining life indefinitely- and converting base materials into gold. She suppressed a shudder of horror as she realized what was to come.

"They'll stop you." A prayer.

"Incorrect."

It moved in. She closed her eyes.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Requirements

-Magical artifacts have currently brainwashed the expedition heads into defending the repository. Fortunately, destruction of the artifacts will reverse the process- assuming you do it in time.

-One expedition head is going to attack you, doing their best to kill you. This attack may be magical or physical in nature. Your job is to destroy the artifact controlling them.

-Song Task! In addition to the requirement specified above, you will comment to reserve a song from the list below. Your entry must borrow themes, if not actual lyrics from your selection. Obviously, no two people may reserve the same song.

-A twist: the song you select determines which expedition head you encounter/fight. Each expedition head has two songs.

The Songs

Gloria Itza:

La Llorona by Lila Downs

Translated lyrics: http://lyricstranslate.com/en/la-llorona-llorona-weeping-woman.html

https://youtu.be/iq3dJgUyM_c

Icarus by Bastille- Reserved for Kamaria Sehene

https://youtu.be/A5JaxMaCIw4

David Goethe:

Arsonist's Lullabye by Hozier- Reserved for Kazuhiko Tommi 

https://youtu.be/-eJbxI-jZbA

The Darkness by the Cat Empire- Reserved for Christopher Barros

https://youtu.be/D8KTTrplm60

Cerise Chevalier:

Cheese by Stromae

Translated lyrics: http://lyricstranslate.com/en/cheese-cheese.html

https://youtu.be/_acwfi3RMOM

Bronte by Gotye- Reserved for Alejandra Verle

https://youtu.be/CRVioSql2Xw

Faraji Wekesa:

Carry On by Fun.- Reserved for Elspeth Anne Ladds

https://youtu.be/8JbS_KSj1Cw

Don't Stop  by Fleetwood Mac

https://youtu.be/Tm0nopK1BQM

Deaths: Two tributes will receive byes into the Finals. The other three will go up for votes, with one elimination.

Due Date: Sunday, July 17 at 8 PM EST