Gnolls are just gnolls, Joe thought to himself while shaking the acrid blood from his glaive. The monsters had fought with a speed and intensity surpassing the others they'd faced so far, but in the end, Joe and Diana's superior stats and weaponry made it a foregone conclusion. They pocketed the loot and moved forward down the path. Neither one said anything as they crept towards the new open meadow. They moved cautiously, being careful not to trip in the dim light.

Inside, two gnolls roamed around while a dark purple crow cawed noisily from a tree at the far edge. Joe didn't have to search long for a new monster as it sat in the middle of the clearing. It looked like a beautiful rose bush was planted in the middle, but Joe no more believed that than he'd been fooled by the Treant boss previously. The pair watched the monsters move for ten minutes, nothing out of the ordinary appearing to give away the rose's deceit. Joe did note that the gnolls avoided getting close to the rose. Once again, they retreated to talk out their strategy.

"The rose is obviously a monster," Joe said.

"Yeah, it has the same essence as the gnolls and that crow. The mana is different, though; more of it and poison heavy."

"Why not? It's been a whole ten minutes since something in this rift tried to poison us. I was worried I might not have to fight off new and deadly toxins this trip." Joe's voice was dripping with sarcasm and annoyance.

"We can just leave. We've gotten more than we planned, and I'd say that the test run has gone well."

"I want to see the next boss. Those gnolls weren't a challenge at all. If we can get some more information, it will be easier for everyone to push to the next level."

Diana stood there and started down the path towards the new monsters. She didn't say anything for five minutes, and Joe left her to her thoughts. Diana clearly felt the need to protect him from pushing too hard and damaging his body further. With monsters and risk, that was always going to be a risk, though, and eventually, she nodded before moving forward. Joe knew he was right; now was the time to push forward. The information they gained now could save lives in the future.

The fight was rather anti-climactic. Diana skewered the crow on its first pass and bashed it into the ground. A heel stomp stopped the monster's struggling before the flames erased its existence and freed her weapon. The two gnolls were easy to handle for Joe. Compared to the hound, they moved slowly, and the lack of mass made their strikes easy to deflect. Through it, all the roses sat there and didn't move. Joe had already suspected it was ambush oriented, but to continue the routine while every other monster in the clearing died seemed dumb even by rift monster standards. Then again, he had tricked the first gnolls into bashing each other into the thorn walls.

They stood around five feet away from the rose and continued staring at it. There wasn't so much as a twitch after five minutes. Joe had passed from minor admiration for the monster's dedication to outright annoyance. The annoyance was at himself, though, because if the monsters were all this weak, he'd been seven times a fool not to push forward with Nik and level up.

"Alright, I'ma kill this thing, and we can get moving."

Joe moved forward and swung his glaive in a hard vertical strike. The rose finally moved as Joe attacked, sliding to the side and lashing out with its branches. Those were out of reach and insufficient to stop the massive weapon's momentum. However, the roots that shot out of the ground caught Joe entirely by surprise as they wrapped around his calves. The pressure was pulling his legs together, but the monster was too weak to finish the task. The damn thorns on the roots did manage to punch through Joe's skin and tingle with a telltale burning.

"One time not getting poisoned," Joe roared. "Is that really so much to ask?"

Joe adjusted his swing while ignoring the pain building in his legs. This time a horizontal strike left the monster plant with nowhere to dodge and lopped it off near the ground level. There was surprising resistance as if Joe had cut through bone instead of a monstrous plant. The stem and stump bled a disturbing amount of bright red blood for half a minute while Joe stood there panting and poisoned. He'd already eaten a pair of berries but didn't take his attention off the rose until the fire consumed it, leaving some coins and a bright red rosebud behind.

Nothing was said as Joe ate another berry and sat down to meditate and fight off the poison. When he focused the berry's mana on his legs, he was surprised to see how far the poison had spread. The burning was far less intense than the thorn wall, so he'd thought it was weaker than the other poisons in the rift. Joe was wrong. It hurt less, but it was far faster acting. There seemed to be a numbing component as he felt foreign mana working towards his core. Where the poison passed, his senses felt muted, and his body's vitality seemed to drain away.

Joe popped another berry in his mouth and continued to push back against the invading toxin. The mana was too slippery, and his senses were not up to rooting it out of every nook and cranny. Instead, Joe shepherded the healing mana into a rough wall and swept it downwards. Wherever the life mana disappeared, he would push more there and eradicate the hidden pockets of poison. The process took a half hour and two more berries, but eventually, he stood up and looked around. Diana sat nearby, watching him intently. He was pretty proud that his legs didn't shake after that ordeal.

"Well, that sucked," Joe said. He didn't wait for a reply as he stood and walked back towards the first clearing. The gnolls hadn't spawned yet, and Joe kept walking back towards the rift exit. Diana walked silently behind him, lost in her thoughts. She didn't expect Joe to stop and almost ran into him when he sat down in the middle of the path, facing back the way they'd just come.

"Gnolls should be back soon enough. I want to replace those berries."

"We've got enough at this point. We can just go back and meet the others."

Joe nodded at her words. She was right, and he knew it. He wasn't moving aside, however. He felt a stew of emotions bubble up in his mind. He felt anger at his carelessness and the waste of getting poisoned yet again and annoyance at his skills not being able to handle the poison without significant help. Behind both of those, it was the fear of being too weak to survive in this world. He'd felt he was strong after facing Frank and breaking into town. The hound had shown him how fragile he was.

"It's not just about the berries," Joe grumbled. "That hound should have killed us. It was luck as much as anything that saved our asses, and I don't want that to happen again. I'm gonna get strong enough that I won't have to worry about that again."

"You're still busted up from the last fight, and you were wounded and poisoned again!" Diana raised her voice at the end, and her exasperation was obvious even to someone as emotionally clueless as Joe. "You won't get anything done if you are dead or crippled."

"I've got to do something," Joe yelled back. Diana flinched away from him, and he cursed himself for a fool. He had plenty of easier ways to feel like a complete asshole without yelling at emotionally traumatized people. The regret at his outburst cooled the rest of his emotions. Joe took a deep breath and let it out before continuing. "I'm sorry. I'm going to get stronger one way or the other. I want your help, but I'll understand if you can't give it."

Diana didn't get any closer to him, but she didn't shy away either. Joe was hopeful that the situation was resolved until he heard Diana speak. Her voice was cold when she talked, and Joe felt a cold iron nail drive through his heart at the tone. At that moment, he felt more like a monster than any of the little murder machines they faced here in the rift.

"I'm not getting myself killed in here, but I'll help. If I think it's suicide, I'll bow out, but I won't just disappear on you."

"Thank you." Joe was quiet, and the words barely left his lips, but he knew she'd heard him. They sat on the grass in the unnatural dusk light while the silence stretched between them.

There was nothing else to say, and a minute later, Joe heaved himself to his feet and started down the path. The gnolls were back and a welcome distraction. Joe didn't wait for Diana to catch up, instead sprinting forward and silently bisecting one while its back was turned. The fight wrapped up quickly, and Joe picked up his loot before moving forward again. He waited for Diana at the path before the next meadow, and she gestured for him to go first.

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The fight went better the second time. Once again, Diana handled the crow quickly, and Joe killed one of the gnolls in the first few seconds of the fight. Then he knocked the other in the side of the head with the haft of his glaive before kicking it in the chest as hard as he could. The gnoll flew backward and impacted the rose. Thorns from the stem pierced it while roots burst from the ground to constrict the bound monster. The gnoll started to foam at the mouth, but Joe ignored that as he swept his weapon horizontally, cutting the rose off at ground level. He quickly stepped back and waited for the fire to consume both monsters.

"That," Joe said, "was way easier."

Diana didn't say anything at first, but eventually, she spoke. "Most of the monsters seem top have a trick to them." Her voice had lost the hard coldness, but there was a distance that Joe recognized. It was the same as when they'd first met.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have snapped at you." Joe's words would have faded in the breeze if the rift weren't completely eerily silent. Diana didn't say anything, and Joe didn't press her. He knew that the apology was the easy part, as painful as it was. The hard part was waiting for forgiveness. After she didn't speak for a minute, Joe decided it would be easier to continue forward with the rift. He sat up slowly and stretched once he was on his feet. Diana joined him and remained stoically silent.

"Everything we learn here could save lives, and I'm the most likely to survive surprises, but if I'm being completely honest, I want to see the next boss and potentially level up. It's time to start moving forward again."

"If it's too dangerous," Diana's voice was distant, "I'm out. I'll tell you first. No surprises."

"More than fair."

Nothing else needed to be said as they moved forward down the rift. The last two clearings before the boss were increasingly difficult. The third room had two of everything, with the crows being difficult while watching the footing for the ambush roses. Joe wasn't entirely sure what their attack radius would be, and he wasn't looking forward to finding out without another level in regeneration and poison resistance. The final meadow was two roses and four crows. Diana killed three of the four, with Joe's heavier weapon being a liability against the more nimble monsters. Fortunately, it was still their best option regarding weed whacking the troublesome plants.

The path forward was the same as always, and they sat down to recover at the halfway point. The berries continued to help with tiredness and muscle strain but, after repeated use, seemed to have diminishing returns. Joe would have added it as item # 109 to his things that needed testing, but he was ready to finish the rift. After it felt like all the mana had worked into his system, Joe sat up and looked at Diana. She was sitting cross-legged and had her eyes closed as she directed the mana through her body. When Diana took a deep breath, Joe looked away so she wouldn't open her eyes to him staring at her.

Joe crept forward, and the boss meadow came into view. A mix between a raccoon and a black bear stood in the meadow's center, staring right back at him. Joe jumped back and was about to shout for Diana to run when he noticed the boss hadn't moved at all. He stifled the yell and moved to the other side of the path. Joe thought the boss's eyes followed him, but there was still no movement.

"I guess the playing possum theme is over at boss three."

Diana's voice sounded behind Joe's shoulder, and he jumped involuntarily. He'd been so focused on the boss that he hadn't heard her come up behind him. Joe almost brushed the thorns nearby and hopped away quickly. That led to a stumble and windmilling arms before he finally caught himself. Joe's face was flushed when he looked over at Diana. She openly laughed into her hands, and Joe's face went from pink to scarlet. He looked away and that only increased Diana's mirth. Finally, she snorted, and Joe's head whipped around. Both of them laughed for a few seconds before their giggles faded away.

The tension had broken, and Joe felt better. He smiled over at Diana, and she nodded at him before looking serious once again. Joe thought he knew what she was going to say but kept quiet.

"That thing is big. Is it worth the risk?"

"We can take it, and I need to level up. I'd be more worried if it were small or fast looking. Maybe we'll get lucky, and it's a straight-up fight."

"I wouldn't bet on that," Diana said. "Let's clear ourselves and escape path, and if we're still in good shape, we'll head back this way."

That was about as good an answer as Joe felt he would get. He gestured back the way they came, and both jogged back with renewed vigor. Joe was pumped at the thought of leveling again, and it showed. Diana only killed two of the crows, with Joe volleyball spiking one into the roses with his bare hand. It stung a bit but was so damn satisfying that the grin didn't leave his face until the next fight. They cleared the two rooms cleanly and jogged back towards the boss. Diana stopped them a little farther back, and they both ate a berry to be in top form.

"You up for one more?"

Diana looked over at Joe after a moment and sighed. Her slight smile took the edge off the sound.

"If it looks dicey we get back to that portal," Diana said.

"No arguments here." Joe paused before adding, "I know we can do this."

They looked at each other and then walked down the path. The boss continued watching Joe but never moved in their direction. Every step ratcheted up the tension, and Joe never took his eyes off the monster. His initial impressions were dead on as it was a raccoon the size of a bear. The front paws ended in wicked claws, and its eyes were solid black, but other than that looked like a regular raccoon. Joe was sure there would be some trick or trap to the fight. This rift was sneaky all the way through to its core.

Joe stopped just short of the clearing, and the boss remained motionless. That confirmed their hope that the boss wouldn't attack until one of them entered the clearing. Joe gave a final nod to Diana and sprinted to the boss's right. A roar shook the meadow, and the monster turned to face Joe. It moved forward quicker than the treant but still below Joe's top speed. Its feet tore divots from the grass, showcasing its weight and power. Joe turned and roared back, gripping his glaive tightly with both hands.

"Big Bearcoon," Diana shouted from the clearing entrance. She then turned and ran to the other side of the monster.

"I'm not calling it that. I don't care what Identify says."

The bearcoon roared and lunged forward to bite at Joe. He took a step forward and brought his glaive down with every ounce of force he could muster. Joe's ribs flared in protest, but he pushed the pain to the side and focused on his strike. The monster stopped suddenly, and Joe's swing came up short. It still cut through the beast's nose and buried itself in the ground. Joe reset his stance with a pull on his weapon and another twinge from his chest.

Black blood poured from the monster's split nose as it roared again and swiped at Joe with its vicious claws. He dodged back though the claws still gouged minor cuts in a line down his forearm. Joe glanced over it and saw Diana fighting to get a strike in. The tail swung back and forth with astonishing speed, leaving the sound of a whip cracking in its wake. She was getting in small gouges, but the damage appeared superficial.

Joe refocused on the monster in front of him. It swiped at him again, and Joe put his blade in the way this time. The boss lost a finger and roared once again. A sound like someone plunging a clogged toilet followed before the monster belched in Joe's direction. Tears immediately filled his eyes, and bile rose in his throat. It was the worst smelling thing he'd ever encountered, and Joe had been taking bites out of poisonous rift monsters. The monster finished its awful burp and charged.

Diana yelled behind the beast and drove her spear into a rear leg. She cried out as the tail whipped her in the shoulder, forcing her to stumble back. The bearcoon's charge stopped, turning on three legs to face Diana. Joe felt his mana dropping and realized that the belch was so nasty that it counted as poison. That made total sense in this rift. His skills worked on healing him, though, at their low level, it only took the barest edge off. That was enough, and Joe charged the boss with his eyes still blurry and his guts trying their damnedest to climb out of his mouth.

The tail whip cracked into his side, and Joe felt his ribs creak ominously. The pain didn't matter, and Joe swung for the one spot on the tail that couldn't move. His glaive sheared through the base of the appendage and carried through to the same leg that Diana had stabbed a moment before. The bearcoon stumbled to the side, and his claws missed Diana by inches. She rolled farther away before getting to her feet. The monster tried to turn towards Joe again, but Diana put her spear through its eye and into the brain in a darting thrust. It was a fantastic strike, given how small its eyes were compared to the monster's size. A moment later, fire consumed the boss, and both fighters collapsed to the grass.

Joe saw a small blue crystal sitting where the boss had stood but ignored it to eat a berry and heal. His mana plummeted fast as his body and skills did whatever they could to put him back together. By the end of the berry, the poison was cleared out, and the cut on his arm had scabbed over. Joe stood up and went over to where Diana was holding the crystal. She looked at his arm, and he shrugged. It was better than he ended most boss fights. There was no need to waste another berry on some glorified scratches.

"Identify says it's an essence crystal." Diana's voice was soft and breathy with amazement.

"That's a game changer," Joe said. "Depending on how that works, it would be amazing for the non-combat classes."

Diana nodded in agreement, never taking her eyes from the crystal nestled in her hand. Joe shook his head and went to the ever-present pillar next to the portal home. It was time to level up, and he shivered in anticipation. Before Joe selected the level up, he looked over his skill options to see if anything interesting had been unlocked. What he saw made his jaw drop. He read the words only he could see twice more before pulling his hand away and running back to Diana.

"Hey, I know this is crazy valuable, but I really need it right now."