Beginner's Luck: Growth 6

Mining stone was not fun. Even with his divine blessings and the use of resonance, the stone before him seemed to resist all of his efforts. It didn't help that Mason didn't seem to want to help at all in the process, and only continued to stare at him. Taking a moment to breath and assess his progress Fluke had an epiphany. If wood required a chopping action and wide blade, perhaps stone needed a different type of resonant focus in order to get results. Using insight and his focus, he looked at how the energy seemed to surround the pickaxe head. The energy was rounded and smooth, and when he swung the tool, the energy almost resisted his efforts when it made contact with the stone. He examined the outcropping before him:

Stone: 990/1000

Could I need to make the energy be more penetrative?

Letting go of his resonance that surrounded the pickaxe, he took another swing at the stone. This time however he used the energy to assist his body, rather than the tool, letting the point of the pickaxe do the work. With the force he applied the stone before him the point buried itself further into the stone than he had previously been able to. Swinging a few more times he saw more progress and checked the stone again.

Stone: 900/1000

Fluke smiled and was about to go back to work when Mason spoke up.

"Woah calm down friend! If you want cobblestone then by all means keep doing what you are doing. But what we need is a slab of stone." Mason walked over and used the flat edge of his pickaxe on the outcropping. The stone began to fall but defying logic and reason the stone began to show the edges of a large cube.

Fluke switched to the other side of the pickaxe and saw that the stone maintain its integrity but also began to break in a way that a structure underneath was revealed. Then he switched back to the pointed side and continued working on the edges and chipping away the surrounding rock. The crystal lights dimmed, and Fluke realized he needed to keep his resonant energy extended to keep his work area well lit. A thought came to his mind:

It's like this whole situation was created to train my skills in resonance.

"Not just your resonance, but your mind and body as well." A soft and seductive voice blanketed the quiet working area. Fluke stopped and turned around. There standing completely out of place was the goddess Suerta, still in her luxurious and revealing dress. She was waving a hand in front of Mason's face, but the man didn't react. She pouted and let out a long sigh. She turned her attention to the boy a few paces away, reaching one arm behind her back and grabbing her own other arm as she sauntered forward. Doing this pushed her chest forward, which made Fluke's heart skip a beat. The dirt didn't cling to her dress as she passed, it was if there was a subtle barrier protecting her from the grime of the world.

Fluke rested his pickaxe down beside him and suddenly felt self-conscious. Looking at his shirt now covered in grime, blood, and sweat from all of today's activity, he was sure that he must've smelled terrible. If he did, the goddess gave no sign that she could tell. She slowly melted into his personal space, but did not make physical contact with him.

"You musn't be made at the Librarian. His life has been one battle after another..." She smiled and walked back to the tunnel where he had come from. She made an exaggerated showing of peering down the tunnel, bending over slowly and putting one hand over her brow as if she was shading her eyes from the sun.

"I know I said 'don't be greedy' champion. But you really ignored that floating orb down there to come..." She turned towards him again, crossing her arms and rested her left elbow on her left hip. "Play with rocks?"

Fluke focused on her with Insight, and for a moment it was if his mask flickered. Seems he was unable to examine her. She waggled her eyebrows at him from across the way. He lifted his mask and put hand behind his head chuckling nervously.

"Oh, but you are curious. Aren't you Fluke?" With a wink, she walked slowly towards him, stopping to look up at the crystals that provided light. Fluke moved towards her suddenly feeling brave.

"Did you set all of this up? This rift world?" Fluke stopped and gestured to their surroundings with both his hands. She gave him a quick side eyed glance, and pretending to ignore him.

"No... I didn't make this world. But I do have some ability to shape how you interact with it. Your Insight will guide you to make leaps and bounds in progress. Make sure you don't forget to use your divine blessing, that bad luck is just about to spill out and wreak havoc if you aren't careful." She turned and closed the gap between them again, getting close without touching.

"Did you like Parche? He said you were a fast learner. Don't neglect your growth in the Liminal. Balance is key." She smiled again with that smile that said she knew more than she was letting on. Every word that came from her voice was like warm blanket. It was suffocating and intoxicating but comforting all at the same time. Fluke nodded and felt himself unable to speak.

"Each quest you complete will not only grant you progress, but you will find that the quest givers will go through changes as well. When you finish here, I want you to bless something with all that bad luck and go to the floating orb. I think that if you can master your resonance here, you'll be ready to see what secrets it holds." She turned her attention back to the crystals on the wall. Fluke found his courage again and asked more questions.

"How should I use the energy in the Liminal? And do you think I am wasting my time with the outsider?"

The goddess tapped her chin and thought of a response without turning to face him.

"Think of everything I have given you thus far... And I think you will find your Liminal path becomes quite obvious. As for the Derboul..." She turned now and once again crossed her arms.

"Using him to train is simply... delicious." She lifted her chin looking at him with pride.