The next day was...well, it was alright. Clouds covered the sky to the north, warning of potential rain later in the day. A chill ran through the breeze as well, even off of the mountain. Whether fall had arrived or this was just a short-lived herald, it was clear that summer was on its way out. As for the Challengers climbing their way up the mountain, they sounded more than a little upset.

"I still can't fucking believe my parents cursed me!" Slinz walks with an angry energy leading her to the front of the party, and Bank needs to rush a bit to catch up to her on the left. The young man shoots her a look - and another to the demon walking on her right for good measure.

"Are you sure that's what happened, Slinz? I mean, we don't even know this guy, and he comes up with this story out of nowhere?"

The guy in question affects a wounded expression. "You doubt my expertise? Granted, curses in general are not exactly my field. But curses affecting luck, my friend? They are beyond my ability to create or remove, but I have certainly learned to recognize them and their effects."

Nalaney shouts upwards, from where she and her brother are taking up the rear. "And you know this curse on her comes from her parents?"

Slinz answers that question. "No, but it explains fuckin' everything. Describe it again for them, would you, Lionel?"

"Certainly. I believe this curse to be a Curse of Failure. It doesn't affect your health, or your everyday routine, but when attempting to succeed at something important to you - such as a career in Challenging - the curse shifts your luck sufficiently to ensure you fail at it."

The newly-promoted Vanguard of the team furrows his face in confusion. "But from your parents? This curse could have gotten you killed! Even if they don't care about the rest of us..."

The drider shakes her head. "They're trying to discourage me from Challenging! They think if we fail enough times, I'll go crying back home and become a merchant like they wanted! They...the curse wouldn't actually kill me, would it?"

Lionel frowns. "On one hand, if someone who was cursing you wanted you dead, there's a hundred more efficient options to choose from. On the other hand...I think that perhaps your parents lack a comprehension of just how dangerous Challenging is, perhaps ironically. Getting unlucky a bit too much at just the wrong moment...yes, it could possibly kill you."

Nalaff exclaims from the rear. "Then why in the bloody blazes are we going into the dungeon today!? Shouldn't we be focusing on getting rid of this curse, instead?"

"A small risk, my friend. I have...theories about this dungeon which I would like to test, and if they are correct, then I believe we will all be quite safe. Oh, one question before we arrive, though - does anyone here use the luck charms found from this dungeon?"

Bank nods. "Of course - and I suppose it explains a few things, if we've been needing them just to get this far. Why do you ask?"

"For this run, I ask that you store them away. In fact, I have a song or two I'd like to play before...hrmm...this is odd." As the party makes the final turn before the dungeon entrance they spot a black-garbed woman standing before it, apparently speaking to the door. Most of the team don't recognize her, but Lionel does, and it was very much not someone he was expecting to see outside. Once they get a little closer the woman turns at the sound of their approach, and most of the Miserables freeze for a moment at the sight of her gray-skinned face and red-colored eyes.

"Ah, morning there! Your group has good timing, you know."

Lionel collects himself first, asking a question in a neutral tone of voice. "Do we, Madam Floor Boss? Before we get to that, might I ask what brings you outside today?"

Before she can answer, Bank asks a question of his own. "What!? She's a floor boss? Outside the dungeon!?"

Taly waves the question off, dismissively. "Yeah, I can go outside, it's not a big deal. I'm not going to fight you, we've actually got some other announcements to make today, and we don't want to have to wait weeks for the next Association inspection. I don't suppose you'd all mind passing on a few messages for us? I suppose we could pay you with some minor loot, or something."

With the lowbies a little slack-jawed, Lionel answers for them. "I think we'd be happy to do so, Lady Banshee. ...What sort of announcements did you have in mind?"

Taly smiles as she answers. "Two main points. First off, the dungeon is trying out a new level of openness and honesty in its dealings with Challengers. Anyone who's gotten luck charms from the dungeon, or anywhere else - toss em. Or...no, just don't wear them into Worthy Dungeon, I suppose, they're still good elsewhere." Taly breathes deep before continuing. "We've been tricking you."

----------------------------------------

Sitting at The Lucky Bastard, Elance, Sable, and Lilly were making up for the lack of sufficient regional office space by borrowing a table for their chat with Shieldbreaker Trush. The pair had already largely caught up Elance on the details of their trip the evening before, but this was their first time meeting the dungeon's 'applicant', and it was time to see if their week spent in the dungeon had actually provided them with any useful insight. After the introductions and the ordering of a round of drinks, Sable kicked things off.

"So, Trush of Tash'narc. Heavy-class Challenger, former veteran of the Valleylands army. Combat experience with both mortals and monsters. As far as all that goes, I'd say you've got a damn good resume for the position you're looking for. Course, you're not exactly applying for a normal job."

This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

"I'm certainly not, Paladin Bluehair." The middle-aged orc nods in agreement, an easy smile on his face. "I have to admit, I'm curious to hear about your experiences living in a dungeon, and how you think it might apply to this whole...process of yours. Any gaps in my 'resume' I ought to fill in for you? Things I ought to know about a dungeon?"

Perhaps worried that Sable was about to start off with talking about Floor Five, Lilly steps in. "Well, for starters, we've heard about your professional career. How would you describe your personal life, though? Any interesting hobbies? How do you interact with, ah, peoples of differing origins?"

"Well, to start with the latter question first, that's an easy one. The army might've been all Valleylanders, but I spent more time than that as a Challenger. A traveler too, though never visited the Domain, getting a passport to the dungeons there is a pain in the ass even for folks who ain't borne arms against them. I've worked with all sorts, some of my most common companions were an elf and a half-gnoll. If you're referring to my potential coworkers, aye, I've heard they've got a slime and a demon on staff already, aside from the more monstrous types. Wouldn't bother me none."

Sable grins at the response. "Yeah, getting along with folks is maybe almost the most important thing, considering it's a lifelong gig. Uh, and by 'lifelong', I mean...a really, really long life, at that. How about the first question, though? Just a battle-junkie?"

With the point pressed a little, Trush's smile fades a bit. "Well, that's a bit of a raw spot, I'll admit. Used to do some woodwork, nothing huge, but I got real good with carpenter's puzzles. Dunno if you've ever seen em, but they're basically physical puzzles made out of bits of wood that fit into each other in different ways, to make boxes or pictures or whatnot. Unfortunately..." The man shrugs his amputated shoulder. "I can still work to solve some of em with one hand, but carvin' and craftin' em? I've had to let that pastime go, sadly."

Lilly lets out a bit of a sad sigh. "That's so unfortunate! But I suppose that would be doable if you had two arms again in the dungeon, wouldn't it? I'm sure it can provide wood, right?"

The Paladin laughs as a thought occurs to her. "Gods, if you sign up, I hope the Challengers around here like puzzle locks and that type of shit. I bet you could craft some clever ones."

"Aye, suppose I could at that. Is it really so boring in a dungeon? I keep hearing suggestions about how ya need something to occupy your time and all that, figured combat training would be a good enough hobby half the time as it was."

Sable shakes her head. "From what we saw, the real killer is that you don't need to sleep. I've heard the dungeon spirit actually practices some sort of meditation routine at night, gods know where she picked that up. But without sleeping or travel, the only real time-killer perks of the job are free booze...which may or may not get most monsters drunk, I'm not sure...or fuckin' up on Floor Five."

The Priestess groans at having let Sable slip one by her. "Sable!"

Before Sable can defend herself, Elance decides to step in for a moment. "Setting aside the matter of your level of promiscuity for a moment, Shieldbreaker - do you have any sort of personal attachments you'd be leaving behind? Matters left unsettled, anything of that sort? I know you said you didn't have children, but few people are entirely alone in their lives."

The orc shrugs. "I'm no hermit, certainly I've got old Challenger buddies. An older brother and his family, a trio of nieces and nephews there. More than a few old loves, sure. But anyone I'd regret leaving behind? No so much, Mother, no. I've said my farewells, and made sure my will was up to date in the event I was considered worthy. Hells, more than a few of them would be busting my balls about it if I did come wandering back, after making such a big deal of things."

"Well, I suppose that's about as good a situation as one could expect for this sort of thing." Elance takes a breath and glances through a few notes before looking back up at him. "To be honest, I rather feel like I'm looking for reasons not to let you go. Maybe that's just me being diligent, maybe I ain't being fair to your own choices. But - " If the dwarf was about to pronounce her judgment on his application, it ends up being interrupted by a shout from the tavern's front door. A drider woman and a human man walk in, the human making sure to catch everyone's attention, while an incubus slips up the steps to the private rooms.

"Hey, everyone, all Challengers, listen up! We've got a big announcement to let you know about!"

One of the barmaids gasps. "Slinz! You're pregnant already!? Congratulations! You know, we ought to start another wall display..."

Bank and Slinz are momentarily stunned, and the drider stammers. "What? No, I'm not pregnant! ...I hope. ...Why would that have been our announcement!? We have a message from the dungeon!"

While they already had the tavern's attention, that shifts the mood to a much more cautious one. Not seeing any Association agents in residence, Elance decides to take charge of prying the information out of them. "The dungeon, lass? Is there a danger?"

Bank picks up where he left off. "Less of one, actually! It's two parts to it, really. The first is, um...well, you know the superstition folks have been talking about, with the luck charms hurting people who wear too many? Turns out that was real, though not exactly how folks were saying. The dungeon - we heard it direct from one of the floor bosses - apparently the dungeon has a trick that reverses the effect of anything that changes people's luck. The good luck charms actually do give you bad luck while you're in there."

One of the Challengers, a dwarf man sitting at the bar, lets out a yell. "What!? That godsdamn, sneaky...but hold on now, it just gave that away? To your lot? Why in the world?"

Slinz speaks up in their defense. "We were just the first ones there today! Apparently the dungeon spirit had some sort of...change of heart or something recently. I, um...think it was starting to feel bad for us."

Elance tries not to chuckle at the thought as she prods them further. "Was she, now? So what's this second announcement, then?"

"Ah, right. The dungeon apparently has another trick, one that lets them teleport someone out of the dungeon when they ought to take a lethal hit, once a day. The dungeon's said they're turning that on now, with special conditions - it only applies to Initiates and Advanced-level Challengers, up to the third floor. But - if a party with Challengers at that level clears a floor after the day's rescue's been used up, they'll get extra loot for giving it a shot. And it'll warn folks when the rescue's been used, too."

A woman at the bar rubs her chin in thought. "Sounds like some sort of full-dungeon Challenge Mode, doesn't it? Wonder what the dungeon's trying to get at with that one - does it want to go pacifist with the newbies or not?"

The Bountiful Mother thinks it over for a moment before grinning. "Choice." As the tavern residents turn to look at her, she continues. "She's making it more certain that anyone who takes a risk in there is doing it with having made a proper choice about it. Some fool idiot gets in over their head and risks losing it - they get tossed out. A party sees that and keeps going, well...they made their choice."

The other dwarf seems unimpressed. "Like we need to be babied? We're Challengers, we all know the risks. Not that I'm complaining about the chance to spare a life a day, mind you."

"I have my doubts that every Challenger, least of all the youngest ones, truly understands that. But regardless, maybe it ain't for our benefit." The Mother smiles softly, this time mostly to herself. "Maybe it's something she's doing for herself..."