The Marsh-Stalker didn't just roar; it hissed, a wet, rattling sound that sprayed black ichor across the crystal-clear water of the grove. It lunged, its claws carving deep furrows into the soft peat, but Riley was faster. A single, shimmering arrow hissed from his bow, thudding into the creature's shoulder and knocking its aim off just enough for the team to scatter.
Target locked, Riley shouted. Newcomers, take the flanks! Aria, Sofia—hold the center!
But before the team could engage, a frantic series of splashes echoed from the ridge above. The three Silver Siphon archers weren't running away; they were running toward the grove, and they weren't alone. Behind them, the fog was churning, tossed aside by the bulk of two even larger Stalkers and a swarm of Level 24 Marsh-Crawlers.
"If we can't have the lilies, nobody does!" one of the archers screamed, his nameplate flickering with a red glow as he intentionally pulled the aggro of every monster in a fifty-yard radius. "Have fun with the train, you Level 9 losers!"
It was a classic, dirty move—the Train. They were dragging a swarm of certain death right into the Chaos Squad's lap, planning to use their own high-level escape skills to vanish at the last second, leaving the monsters to feast on Riley's team.
Riley, they're bringing the whole neighborhood! Aria yelled, her hands crackling with more electricity than usual. I can't CC that many! My mana will bottom out in ten seconds!
The newcomers were already pale. Jonathan raised his shield, but his legs were shaking. Rezion's staff was glowing a faint, desperate blue. This wasn't a duel; it was a stampede.
Sofia, Riley called out, his voice steady even as the first Marsh-Crawler leaped onto the clearing. Do the thing.
Sofia didn't ask which thing. She stepped forward, ignoring the snarling monster just ten feet away. She didn't raise her staff to strike. Instead, she planted it firmly in the mud and knelt, her hands pressing into the cold water.
Nature's Lullaby, she whispered.
A soft, pulse of golden light rippled outward from her. It didn't do damage. Instead, it interacted with the Ghost-Lilies they had just harvested. The remaining flowers in the pond began to vibrate, releasing a thick, sweet-smelling pollen that acted like a massive sedative. The monsters didn't stop, but they slowed. Their movements became sluggish, their eyes clouding over with a localized daze debuff.
Now, Riley said, his eyes tracking the Silver Siphon players who were just about to use their 'Vanish' scrolls. Hayley, reset their clock.
Hayley didn't need to be told twice. She blurred through the fog, appearing behind the lead archer just as his scroll began to glow. With a surgical flick of her wrist, she didn't kill him; she hit him with a [Sap] strike. The scroll fizzled. The archer's stealth failed.
"What?! No!" the archer yelled.
Because of Sofia's pollen, the monsters were confused. Because of Hayley's strike, the archers were the most aggressive targets in the clearing. The Stalkers turned, their yellow eyes locking onto the Silver Siphon players.
Aria, help them along! Riley commanded.
Aria cackled. [Static Repulsion]! She slammed her palms together, sending a shockwave of violet energy that didn't hurt the monsters, but physically blasted the three archers right into the center of the Crawlers.
"Wait! No! Stop!"
The Silver Siphon players were swarmed in seconds. Their health bars plummeted as the monsters they had brought to kill the Chaos Squad turned on them instead.
While the sabotage backfired in a spray of pixels and screams, Sofia stayed focused on the first Stalker—the one Riley had shot. It was still snarling, but it was trapped in her pollen cloud. She crawled toward it, her hand outstretched.
"Easy, big one," she murmured. "You're just hungry and confused. The bad men are gone now."
She cast [Soothe Animal], a low-level skill that should have been useless against a Level 28 elite. But combined with the Ghost-Lily scent and her own freakishly high empathy stat, the Stalker's red nameplate flickered... and turned yellow. It let out a low, confused whimper and sat back on its haunches, watching her with a tilted head.
"Good boy," Sofia whispered, her face breaking into a soft smile.
Aria looked at the carnage, then at Sofia petting a literal killing machine. "I will never understand how you do that. I would have just blown its nose off."
"We're done here," Riley said, watching the Silver Siphon players' nameplates vanish as they were sent back to the Oakhaven graveyard. "But we can't stay. The scent of that fight will bring more. Kipp, tell me you got the last of them."
"I got them," Kipp panted, holding the final preservation box. "Every single one."
"Then let's find a hole to crawl into," Riley said.
As they turned to leave, Lumi—the little wisp—suddenly zipped away from the group. It didn't head back toward the path. It dove straight into a rotted, hollowed-out tree stump submerged in the black water. It began pulsing a frantic, rhythmic purple.
"Lumi found something," Riley muttered, his brow furrowing. "A hidden interior cell. Down there."
"In the swamp water?" Jonathan asked, horrified. "I just got this armor cleaned!"
"In the swamp water," Riley confirmed, already wading toward the stump. "The Secret Lab. Move, before the Stalker wakes up from Sofia's nap."