Word: Timbre

 

timbre

[ tam-ber, tim-; French tan-bruh ]

noun

1. Acoustics, Phonetics. the characteristic quality of a sound, independent of pitch and loudness, from which its source or manner of production can be inferred. Timbre depends on the relative strengths of the components of different frequencies, which are determined by resonance.
2. Music. the characteristic quality of sound produced by a particular instrument or voice; tone color.
3. characteristic tone of expression:

   the masterful rhythm and timbre of his writing.

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               The door slammed shut. The room’s darkness was banished by light stones embedded in the walls. Dozens of identical crystals rose into the air, suspended by the magical power of the room. The three people who entered looked around, trying to find the trial’s rules for this chamber. It was easy to see. A plaque attached to the wall near the door told them what they needed to know.

               “Okay, let’s see.” Said the party’s warrior, Cole. “Blah blah blah, flowery language. It pretty much boils down to finding the one crystal that’s different than the others and using it to unlock the door.”

               The other two party members, Alicia the mage and Jackson, the bard, nodded. They had done various puzzle challenges before and knew basically what to do. They just needed to find the theme of the room and go from there.

               “Okay, nice and easy.” Alicia said. “It sucks that there’s so many, but let’s see what they’ve got.”

               She approached a crystal and reached towards it. Once she did, it let out a clear, steady note. The mage closed her eyes and focused her magic, trying to identify something. The other two looked on.

               “Sound based, obviously.” She said after a few moments. “So just listen for the one that has a different note or something? Shouldn’t be too hard.”

               She headed for the next crystal. It activated, emitting the sound of a similar, but not quite the same, instrument. Cole and Alicia looked at each other in confusion. Jackson had his eyes closed, listening intently.

               “So…” Cole began. “Do you think one of those two is the key, or is there a different trick?”

               Alicia went to a third crystal. It sounded the same as the second. Her brow furrowed. “Okay, it can’t be that easy, can it?”

               Cole shrugged. “Don’t know, don’t care. The first one was different enough.”

               The warrior reached out to grab the first crystal.

               “Hold it.” Jackson said. The other two froze. The bard headed to a different crystal. The note was different that the others. He tested several. Each produced a similar but slightly different note. “Hm, I think I got it. It’s not the note, it’s the timbre.”

               The other two looked at him confused. Jackson looked at them for a moment, like he was expecting them to react somehow. A small grin crossed his face.

               “Hey, Alicia, is this what it feels like to be you? Considering how much you have to explain about magic, it feels nice to be the expert here.”

               “It is nice.” She said with a nod. “Although it can be a bit frustrating too. You two really need to brush up on your basic magic theory.”

               “Okay, we can talk about this later.” Cole said. “The point is you know what the trick is?”

               “I do. It’s not the note itself that matters. Timbre is…” He paused and mulled the words over. “The quality, I guess? Like a higher quality instrument being used, or a more skilled musician using it. There’s more to it, but that’s the basics. So far the notes have been different, but the timbres have been the same. Don’t worry, I got this.”

               The other two could only shrug. They went from crystal to crystal, letting Jackson listen to each note, often several at once. It was an hour later that he finally declared and end.

               “Got it. It’s this one.” He said, plucking a crystal out of the air. To the other two, it sounded no different than the others.

               Even so, neither stopped the bard as he went to the far door and inserted the crystal. The runes around it glowed and the crystal vanished. A second passed before the door slid open with a muted rumble.

               “Great. Onto the next one.” Cole said.

               “Yup. Let’s just hope the rest are that easy.” Jackson said as the trio headed on to their next challenge.

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Just a little something to do on the weekend, I suppose. Nothing much to say about it, really.