James woke to the crackling remains of last night’s fire and the uncomfortable realization that sleeping on dungeon stone sucked. He sat up with a groan, rolling his shoulders as the rest of the party stirred.

  Lyra stretched her arms over her head, yawning. “Anyone else feel like they got stomped on in their sleep?”

  “Only emotionally,” Lillian muttered, rubbing her eyes.

  Garrick cracked his neck. “Could be worse. We could still be dead.”

  “Debatable,” Riona grumbled, still lying on her back. “But hey, at least we didn’t immediately charge back in like idiots last night.”

  James smirked. “Wow. Restraint. That must’ve been hard for you.”

  Riona shot him a lazy thumbs-up. “Painful, but I endured.”

  Lyra stood, brushing off her coat. “Alright, game plan: We’re not dying this time.”

  Lillian snorted. “Solid plan. Let’s see if it survives the next ten minutes.”

  James pushed himself up and glanced toward the dungeon entrance. The stone corridors had shifted, twisting into an entirely new layout. The familiar paths from yesterday were gone.

  “Dungeon’s changed again,” he said. “So we’re going in blind. No idea where the boss room is, no idea what’s between us and it.”

  “Sounds like every other day,” Garrick said.

  James sighed. “Let’s get moving.”

  The new dungeon layout was just as miserable as the old one—maybe worse. The first couple of chambers had some standard enemies: skeletal warriors, a few aggressive gargoyle statues, and one very pissed-off mimic that nearly took Garrick’s leg off before they put it down.

  “So, fun fact,” Riona said, shaking mimic goo off her blade. “These things are getting faster.”

  “Or we’re getting slower,” Lillian muttered. “Because we’re tired.”

  “Not an option,” Garrick said. “We need to find the boss room before the dungeon shifts again.”

  They pushed forward, navigating through twisting hallways, avoiding traps, and cutting through enemies. Lyra handled most of the puzzle elements, using her knack for figuring out mechanisms and hidden switches. James, meanwhile, tested out his summons, calling forth shadow beasts and skeletal warriors to scout ahead or trigger potential traps.

  They made steady progress until they reached it.

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  The boss room.

  The massive stone doors loomed before them, now marked with new symbols—glowing runes that hadn’t been there before. The same eerie feeling from last time crept over them.

  James tightened his grip on his sword—no, wait. He’d done that too many times before.

  James rolled his shoulders and took a steadying breath. “Alright. Last time, this thing pulled some cheap tricks. We assume it’s got more.”

  Riona cracked her knuckles. “No more surprises.”

  Lillian tilted her head. “That’s the kind of thing you say right before something awful happens.”

  Garrick grunted. “Only one way to find out.”

  James took a step forward, placing his hand on the cold stone. The doors rumbled and swung open.

  The boss was waiting.

  And it was smiling.

  As soon as they stepped through the threshold, the air shifted.

  One moment, James was staring at the boss—a towering, armored figure wreathed in shifting black mist—standing at the center of the vast chamber. The next, everything went wrong.

  A pulse of energy exploded outward.

  James barely had time to register the sensation before his entire existence blinked out.

  No pain. No warning. Just—

  Nothing.

  Then, he was back.

  Slamming face-first onto the cold stone outside the dungeon entrance.

  James groaned, rolling onto his back as the rest of the party landed hard around him, all of them coughing, swearing, or just laying there in stunned silence.

  Lyra sat up first, her eyes wide. “What the fuck was that?!”

  Riona groaned, rubbing her temples. “Did we just get tele-fragged?”

  Lillian blinked. “I—yeah. I think we did.”

  James sat up, still trying to process. “Did anyone even see what happened?”

  Garrick just stared at the dungeon entrance, his expression unreadable. “…It didn’t attack. It didn’t cast anything.”

  James frowned. “Then how the hell did we—”

  “It moved into us,” Garrick said, his voice grim.

  The realization hit all at once.

  The boss had just stepped forward, occupying the same space they had—instantly deleting them all.

  Lyra groaned. “That is the cheapest, most bullshit move I’ve ever seen.”

  Lillian let out a short laugh, half-disbelieving. “Oh my god. We got spawn-killed.”

  James exhaled sharply, staring up at the dark sky. “Alright. That’s a new one.”

  Riona pushed herself up, shaking dust off. “So… we going back in?”

  The group fell silent for a moment before James shook his head. “Not yet.”

  He gestured to the clearing outside the dungeon, still strewn with the remnants of last night’s camp. “We take the night. Rest, think. We’re not walking into that thing’s hitbox again like idiots.”

  Lyra sighed in relief. “Good. I’d like one evening where we’re not instantly murdered.”

  Garrick grunted in agreement and started gathering firewood. Riona stretched before flopping down by the firepit, looking exhausted but amused.

  Lillian sat down beside her, smirking. “Alright, well, if we’re stuck here for the night, we might as well do something useful.”

  James raised an eyebrow. “Like what?”

  She gestured around. “We’ve been in a party together for a while now, but we barely know anything about each other outside of combat. If we’re gonna keep getting our asses handed to us, might as well make it fun.”

  Riona leaned back. “You mean ‘talk shit until we pass out’?”

  Lillian grinned. “Exactly.”

  James smirked. “Alright. Who’s going first?”

  Lyra cracked her knuckles. “Oh, I’ve got stories.”

  As the fire burned, the group settled in for the night—not as battered survivors, but as comrades preparing for the next round of insanity.