After ten minutes of travel, he found her.
She was in a clearing formed by the roots of a massive, heart-shaped tree. But she wasn't alone. She was fighting a swarm of [Vine Stalkers]—humanoid plants wielding thorns like whips.
Seraphina moved like a blur, her daggers flashing. She severed a vine, decapitated a Stalker, and kicked another away. But for every one she killed, two more grew from the ground. The roots of the massive tree pulsed, birthing new enemies instantly.
She looked exhausted. Her movements were ragged. Her eyes were wide, vacant, locked in a thousand-yard stare.
"Cut... slash... step... repeat..." Seraphina muttered, her voice a broken loop. "Must... clear... wave..."
"She's caught in a logic loop," Alvian realized. "The shard is feeding her a scenario she can't win."
This was a training simulation gone wrong. A "Horde Mode" with no end condition. The System had discarded this shard because the difficulty scaling was broken.
Alvian dropped into the clearing.
