The Thorned Basin's heart was quieter than Riley remembered.
Sound seemed to sink into the moss. The canopy above was so thick the sunlight only filtered through in narrow shafts, streaking the air with dusty light. Vines draped from the branches like crimson chains. Flowers glowed faintly, opening and closing in a slow, steady rhythm.
It would have been beautiful, if not for the claw marks.
Long, deep grooves tore through bark and soil along the clearing ahead. The dirt was churned, as if something heavy and angry had dragged itself back and forth here dozens of times.
Aria let out a low whistle.
"Well," she said. "This definitely has boss energy."
Riley lifted a hand.
"Hold," he said. "Check your health, gear, spirit stamina. This is going to hit harder than the Blossom Wolf. Different kind of fight, too."
Hayes checked his equipment.
Hayley adjusted her grip on her shield's handle.
Sofia whispered soft encouragement to Echo and Les.
Kipp fed Mossling a small herb—the spirit chewed it slowly, eyes brightening.
Aria shook her hands out.
"Ready. Mentally unhinged and physically prepared."
"Keep behind Hayes until we understand its attack pattern," Riley said. "No solo heroics in phase one."
"Phase one," Aria repeated happily. "We're in phased boss territory. I feel honoured."
A low, dragging sound rasped through the clearing.
Something moved among the vines.
They swayed—then parted.
The Vineback Strider stepped into view.
It was taller than Riley remembered. A skeletal, almost deerlike frame made of twisted wood and corded vines, with four long, rootlike legs and a hunched spine covered in jagged thorns and pale flowers. Its head was wrong—no eyes, just a split, jagged maw that dripped sap and petals.
It moved like it hurt.
Every step left small, root-like imprints in the dirt and sent a ripple through the vines that connected back into its body.
> VINEBACK STRIDER — LV 8 (ELITE)
Kipp made a sound somewhere between a whimper and a squeak.
"Yeah," Riley said calmly. "That tracks."
The Strider turned its head not by turning, but by twisting—vines shifting and roots cracking—as its maw tilted toward them. The flowers on its back opened and closed slowly.
Small, bright green orbs pulsed at each petal's base.
Those would matter later.
"Hayes," Riley said, drawing his bow. "We follow your lead. Pull when ready."
Hayes nodded, stepped forward, raised his shield, and—
SLAMMED it against the nearest rock.
> SHIELD PROVOKE
The metallic boom echoed.
The Strider shuddered.
Then charged.
The impact shook the clearing.
Hayes dug his feet in, shield braced, as the boss's front limbs crashed into his guard. Thorns scraped across the metal with a screech. The force still pushed him back a step, but Verdant Guard shimmered around him—Les squeaking with the effort of casting it.
"Good," Riley called. "Hayley, watch the sides!"
The Strider's other two legs whipped around, lashing at her. She ducked one, blocked the other with her shield, teeth gritted.
"Harder than the Wolf," she grunted.
"It's built for attrition," Riley said. "Long fight. We manage stamina and damage over time."
Aria darted to the left, electricity sparking along her gauntlets.
"Dot, Sticky Trap, front!"
Dot spat a glob of adhesive web at the ground. The Strider's weight slammed into it, roots sinking into the goo, movement slowing.
Riley released his first arrow.
> SPIRIT SHOT
It struck one of the glowing nodes along the Strider's vine spine.
The orb flared—
Then dimmed.
"Nodes," he said. "Those are weak points. Hit those, not the legs."
Hayley pivoted, sword flashing. She slashed one of the orbs as its leg swung past her.
It exploded in a spray of sap and petals, the Strider jerking.
> CRITICAL HIT!
It let out a horrible creaking shriek.
Vines around the clearing whipped into motion, lashing toward them like living whips.
"Back! Back!" Riley shouted.
He fired again—
> PIERCE SHOT
The arrow streaked through the air and burst another orb. Vines spasmed and hesitated.
"Echo—Healing Pulse!" Sofia yelled.
Echo planted her paws and barked sharply. A soft wave of light rippled outward from her, washing over the group.
Minor wounds stitched.
HP bars rose.
Kipp gulped.
"Mossling—Herbcall, then Bindroot!"
Mossling spun in place and released tiny glows into the undergrowth.
> HERBCALL — Increased drop chance for healing herbs (Zone-wide, Short Duration)
Then, vines burst from the ground around the Strider's legs.
> ROOT SNARE
Partial hold, again—but enough.
The Strider struggled, its movements slower, giving Hayes and Hayley breathing room.
Les cast Verdant Guard on both frontliners in sequence, squeaking frantically but bravely.
"Les, you're doing amazing," Sofia told him, voice steady despite the chaos.
The Strider's flowers suddenly flared.
The orbs glowed brighter.
Riley's memory kicked.
"Spread! Don't cluster—"
The Strider convulsed.
> POLLEN BURST
A cloud of shimmering yellow exploded outward, sparkling in the filtered light.
Hayes coughed, staggered.
Aria threw an arm over her mouth.
Kipp squealed and hid behind his sleeve.
Debuffs flashed on their HUDs.
> -10% Accuracy
-10% Move Speed
"Cleanse?" Hayley asked, eyes flicking to Sofia.
Sofia checked her skills.
"I don't have one yet," she said. "Just heals and Light Step—"
Les squeaked and puffed.
A little motes of green light drifted toward Hayes.
> VERDANT GUARD — partial mitigation versus sustained damage
Not a cleanse—but it would help the tanks survive long enough.
"Okay," Riley said. "We adapt. No cleanse; we play safer."
He loosed another arrow, aiming for a node near the Strider's back.
The shot grazed it.
"Accuracy debuff," he muttered.
Aria dodged a lashing vine, laughter on her lips.
"I don't miss," she bragged—
Then immediately slipped on a root, nearly eating dirt.
"Shut up!" she shouted at the ground. "You didn't see that!"
Dot fired a web thread to anchor her to a rock, sparing her from a follow-up strike from the boss's foreleg.
"Thanks, babe," Aria panted.
"Focus!" Riley called. "Hayes, hold center. Hayley, break nodes instead of legs. We win by cracking its spine, not chopping it down."
Hayes grunted acknowledgment as he blocked another stomping limb.
Hayley darted around the side, silver light gathering along Tommy's claws.
> SILVER SWIPE
Tommy leapt, slashing at one of the nodes. It shattered in a burst of light and sap.
Hayley followed through, blade biting into the exposed joint.
The Strider roared and reared, vines flailing wildly.
"Everyone BACK!" Riley shouted.
They scrambled as massive roots crashed into the ground where they had been—with enough force to crater the soil.
Riley rolled, came up on one knee, and pulled.
> SPIRIT SHOT
SPIRIT SHOT
PIERCE SHOT
Three shots in rapid succession—
The third punched through two nodes at once.
The Strider shuddered violently.
Flowers on its back began to wilt one by one.
Sofia saw her opening.
"Echo, Quick Attack! Les, Thorn Curl! Go!"
Echo sprinted, a streak of white-gold, slamming into a remaining node. Les rolled beside her, curled into a spiky ball. The Strider's leg slammed down and bounced off Les's bristling form, taking reflected damage.
> THORN CURL — 5% damage reflect
Modest—but it all added up.
The Strider sagged, movements becoming jerky, weakened.
Its HP dipped into the last segment.
But Riley knew better than to relax.
"Watch it," he warned. "It's about to—"
The Strider stiffened.
Every vine in the clearing went still.
Then every flower on its back flared at once.
"Oh no," Kipp whispered.
"DOWN! GUARDS UP!" Riley shouted.
It unleashed—
> VINE LASH STORM
Dozens of vine tendrils lashed out in every direction, whipping through the air like whips made of wood and thorn.
Hayes and Hayley braced, shields raised.
Sofia ducked behind a root, pulling Echo and Les with her.
Kipp hit the ground, Mossling lying flat beside him.
Aria took one look and dove behind Hayes.
"THIS IS A BAD LIFE CHOICE," she screamed as lashes slammed into the shield.
Damage numbers flew.
HP bars dropped.
Then Echo barked sharply again, releasing another Healing Pulse, stabilizing everyone just as the barrage began to taper.
It ended as suddenly as it began.
The Strider lowered itself, chest heaving, vines hanging slack.
"Now," Riley said quietly.
He stood.
Lumi brightened on his shoulder, guiding his aim forward, toward the last flickering node along the Strider's spine.
Riley drew his bowstring back.
Time seemed to slow.
> SPIRIT SHOT
He loosed.
The arrow flew true, slamming into the final node.
Light exploded from the creature's back.
The Vineback Strider let out one last long, creaking sound—
Then collapsed, vines cracking and breaking apart as its body dissolved into fading petals and curling roots.
Silence.
Then—
> PARTY XP GAINED
Progress to Level 8: 63%
Nobody spoke for a moment.
Then Aria let out a whoop.
"YES. THAT'S HOW YOU GARDEN, BABY."
Hayes sank to one knee, panting.
"That," he said, "was not gardening."
Hayley rolled her shoulders and sheathed her blade.
"I'll be feeling that in the morning."
Kipp lay spread-eagle on the ground.
"I don't want to be a plant anymore," he mumbled. "It's too stressful."
Mossling patted his cheek in sympathy.
Riley walked toward where the Strider had fallen.
A small cluster of items floated where its core had been:
> VINE THREAD ×2 (Uncommon)
STRIDER BARK CORE (Rare)
HOLLOW BLOOM SPORES ×1 (Rare Herb)
Riley's lips parted slightly.
"Oh," he said. "That's… very nice."
Kipp scrambled upright instantly.
"Herbs?"
Riley pointed.
"Hollow Bloom Spores. Alchemists were fighting over these a month after launch in my… in theory. They're late-tier for this area usually."
Aria squinted at him.
"In your what?"
He ignored that.
"These spores," Riley continued, "are used in higher-grade tonics and some status-cleansing brews. We hold onto them for now."
"Agreed," Kipp said fervently, cradling the icon in his inventory like a newborn.
Hayes moved closer, eyeing the Strider Bark Core.
"Shield material?" he asked.
"Armor, definitely," Riley said. "Could be worked into a shield, a bracer, or a chestpiece. We'll have to find the right crafter or… maybe unlock that ourselves later."
Moggy and Tommy sniffed the air where the boss had fallen, whiskers twitching.
As the glow faded from the loot site, Lumi suddenly brightened.
Riley stiffened.
"Hold up," he said.
Lumi hopped down from his shoulder and toddled toward the far end of the clearing. He stopped near a curtain of hanging vines, tail flicking.
"Oh?" Sofia murmured. "He's doing the glowy thing again."
Aria gasped.
"TREASURE SENSE!"
Riley walked over, pushing vines aside.
Behind them lay a shallow alcove, half-concealed: stone walls veined with faint bioluminescent lines and a small, overgrown pedestal.
On that pedestal—
A chest.
Not the crude wood and rope of generic loot.
This one was stone, etched with faint patterns of leaves and stars, locked with a simple but elegant clasp.
Riley's heart beat faster.
Lumi chirped proudly.
"You're getting very good at this," Riley told him softly.
He stepped up to the chest and touched the clasp.
> SECRET CHEST DISCOVERED
OPEN? [Yes] / [No]
He selected [Yes].
The chest rumbled.
The lid rose.
Inside:
> NEW ALCHEMY RECIPE: MIRAGE DRAUGHT
Effect: +15% Evasion for 15 min, slight visual blur effect.
Riley's eyes lit.
"Oh, that'll be absurd in the dungeon," Hayley said, reading over his shoulder.
"And—" Riley scrolled.
> VINEGUARD BARRIER (Shield — Uncommon)
DEF: +12
Spirit Resistance: +4
Passive — Rooted Stance: After blocking 3 attacks in 6 sec, gain +20% DEF for 10 seconds.
Riley whistled softly.
"That's a tank's dream."
Two pairs of eyes turned to him: Hayes and Hayley.
He glanced between them thoughtfully.
Hayley shook her head.
"Hayes should take it," she said simply. "He's our main front. I can stay flexible as off-tank."
Hayes blinked.
"You sure?"
She nodded. "Better it anchors the person who'll be taking the worst hits."
Riley traded the shield over.
Hayes equipped it. The old one flickered away, replaced by a slightly larger model with faint vine motifs and a greenish glow along its rim.
He raised it experimentally, then lowered it again.
"Feels… solid," he said.
Riley grinned.
"It'll make the dungeon easier," he said. "And the draughts will do the rest."
Kipp carefully opened the recipe.
> MIRAGE DRAUGHT
Ingredients:
• Mirage Thread ×1
• Dewdrop Fern ×2
• Streamwater Flask ×1
Effect:
• +15% Evasion
• Slight visual distortion around the user
He swallowed.
"If we can find the ingredients, I can make a few before the dungeon opens," he said. "This will seriously help in avoiding heavy hits."
"That's the idea," Riley said.
He looked around the Basin clearing again.
Breathing harder than he wanted to admit.
Blood still humming.
But with a cool, steady line of satisfaction underneath it all.
This was how you were supposed to do it.
Not rushing in blind.
Not relying on luck and brute force.
Preparation.
Knowledge.
Teamwork.
This time, he was doing it right.
Aria slung an arm around his shoulders from behind with zero warning, nearly making him drop his bow.
"SO," she announced loudly. "Anyone else excited to be disgustingly OP in a starter dungeon?"
Hayley smirked. "It won't be that easy."
Aria grinned.
"Maybe not for everyone else."
Sofia hugged Les and Echo a little closer, eyes shining with a mix of nerves and excitement.
Hayes tested a few shield movements with the new Vineguard Barrier, getting used to its weight.
Kipp hovered protectively over the new recipe in his menu.
Riley took a quiet breath.
"We've got time before the dungeon opens," he said. "Next step is familiarizing ourselves with this area, getting a few more levels, and—"
"And catching more friends," Aria cut in.
Riley smiled faintly.
"And catching more friends," he agreed.
Lumi shimmered, his glow gently echoing the green-gold tones of the Basin.
The Thorned Basin seemed a little less ominous now.
Still dangerous.
Still wild.
But no longer unknown.
"Alright," Riley said softly.
"Let's see what else this place is hiding."