Beginner's Luck: 41

"You have 30 days to prepare before the Derboul return."

Lady Luck tossed the talisman back to Fluke with a wink. The return of the goddess had boosted their moral just by appearing. Before he or the Librarian could get a word out, the goddess continued talking.

"Every day, for the next 30 days, my sister Jinx will prepare a trial for all of you to face. Be on your guard, for even the Outsiders have ways to disrupt your progress, they will seek to overwhelm you. Because you both managed to survive the culling- this rift world will continue to grow and change." The goddess slowly walked towards the two men, with a look that inspired hope.

"How can we ever hope to keep up with the trials Jinx curses us with- especially if the Outsiders will come back?!" The Librarian was no longer overcome with dismay, but rather a boiling rage of indignation now shown on his face, and in growled in his voice.

"Tomorrow you will see what I have prepared to help you for the battles to come." A deliberate slow glance from Suerta silenced the older warrior- but at the same time was kind enough to inspire hope.

Jinx sighed with annoyance and rolled her eyes before adding to the conversation. "You go too easy on them sister. If they don't rise to the occasion now- then we will just continue to wait for those who will." Fluke may have been born a few days ago, but even he could tell the Mistress was using reverse psychology. Even though he could see she was playing them, it had worked: he felt his resolve double in the face of the unknown challenges. Fluke put his mask back on and looked at the countdown.

New wave: 20:00:17

The next 30 days would truly be a refiner's fire. The slow thump of Q walking around the village, and the now dwindling sounds of merriment outside reminded him of the truth he kept overlooking: He wasn't alone. He thought of the quests he had completed, he thought of the new tools and weapons he had at his disposal, he thought of how much he had grown in just a couple days. He looked to his mentor who now deliberately put his mask back over his face, standing with resolve. He looked again at the beds that had been prepared all around him. They weren't alone. He turned and met the flirtatious eyes and smirk of his goddess. She slowly nodded and left them with parting wisdom as an echoing knock of the wood around them signaled her departure from amongst them.

"Remember my champion: Luck is Luck- it is up to you to decide what kind of Luck it is."

____________________________________________________

After a few moments of silent contemplation, the Librarian began reaching into the pouch on his belt and pulling out handfuls of Cobalt shards. When a small pile of them now rested on the bed, he turned and offered them all to Fluke. The young man was shocked at the quantity of the shards and was confused when and how he had managed to get so many of the powerful projectiles.

"How?! When?!" Fluke picked them up and added them to his quick list of items.

"Please take them... I was no good at launching them or throwing them. But I did manage to use my shield emblem to catch all of the shards that were thrown my direction. When Q had killed the hermit skulls that had shot them at me, they automatically added themselves to my bag... I need to find myself a weapon. I need to be able to fight more than just one powerful opponent. We were overwhelmed by the massive numbers, and if they had been more powerful- we would've all died." The Librarian was clearly in deep thought as he spoke. Fluke looked at his shard count once all of the Cobalt shards had been picked up.

55 Cobalt Resonant shards

6 Fuchsia Resonant shards

6 Radiant Resonant shards

2 Emerald Resonant shards

2 Amber Resonant shards

Fluke looked at his list and wanted to find out what the Fuchsia shards were capable of. Looking down the list reminded him of his two new pets, Helmy and Noggin. They would slowly produce an endless supply of healing and protection, if they just watched over the two little crabs. For now, both the Cobalt and Fuchsia shards were a limited resource. Fluke excitedly shared this information with the Librarian, but the older man was still lost deep in thought.

"Maybe tomorrow there will be a quest that you can do to get yourself a better weapon?" Fluke said hoping to pull the older man out of his funk.

"Oh, there could be heh heh heh." Jinx interjected from her recumbent position on the bed. She sat up straighter, flashing her eyebrows at the boy while rubbing her hands miserly. She then licked her lips and then mimed out the action of flipping a coin complete with attempted sound effects. Fluke looked at his status list before making any decisions.

Mind: 1.35

Body: 1.35

Resonance: 2.19

Mask: 1.50

Current Enhancements:

The Green Gambler: All harvests, productions, rewards, boons, and yields are doubled when used successfully with a divine Talisman.

-25% with a failed Talisman use.

-Increased Productivity in Harvesting/Farming/Mining +10%

*(-25%) failed Talisman use

-Increased stamina and health recovery +5%

*(-25%) failed Talisman use

-Increased Quest rewards for 24 hours

*(-25%) failed Talisman use

-Increased resonance cultivation +5%

*(-25%) failed Talisman use

Current Event: Mass Migration- Sudden changes to the environment have caused chaos in the migratory patterns of the local sea life. A new food source is now washing out to sea. Something from the depths comes to investigate.

19:55:41

Fluke looked at Jinx who was grinning mischievously. Ignoring her antics, he asked for essential information.

"When do the Talisman perks reset for my mask? And how often can I use the Talisman for my mask benefits?"