Word: Eyesome

 

eyesome

[ ahy-suhm ]

adjective

 Archaic.

1. pleasant to look at.

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               When Ben woke up, he was on a beach. A sprawling, white sand beach. The gently lapping waves of the ocean were soothing and formed interesting patterns in the sand. Behind him was an array of tropical plants, forming a colorful barrier separating the surf from the land. It was beautiful. Idyllic, even. Practically something out of a postcard.

               And Ben had no idea where he was. He tried to remember where he had come from, but he kept drawing a blank. He remembered the smell of chemicals and lights that were a bit too bright. The details of anything about his former location were missing though.

               Well, if he had to wake up in an unknown location, at least it was a nice place. Not like some of the stories he had read where the protagonist wakes up in a deep dark forest. No, a peaceful beach was a fine place to have been spirited away to.

               The sound of soft footsteps on the sand reached his ears. He turned to see who was there. It was a woman. And she was just ass beautiful as the beach. That is, she looked right out of a magazine. Features so flawless he was not sure if it was natural or due to some very expensive makeup. A light, almost translucent sundress that hinted at her curves in the gentle breeze. She even wore a beach hat to shield her face from the sun.

               Really, she was the kind of woman one would expect to find on a beach like this. She stopped in front of him and gave a gentle smile.

               “Hello.” She said simply.

               “Uh, hi.”

               “You’re new here, yes?”

               “Considering I don’t even know where I am, I’d say so.”

               “Oh you don’t need to worry about things like that. It’s not important. What is important is that you’re here now.”

               Ben was not so sure. He could think of several reasons why knowing his current location was important. Just knowing how he got there from his previous location would answer a lot of things. He still had no idea where that was. He recalled some kind of rhythmic beeping. And lots of people coming and going. Yes, there were definitely more people. Some of them might even be worried about him.

               “Are you sure?” Ben asked. “I mean, knowing where I am seems pretty important.”

               “Quite sure.” The woman said. “But if you really want to know, I’m sure you’ll figure it out soon enough. I would recommend not thinking about it though. Those thoughts don’t end well.”

               “What do you mean?”

               “Oh just that others who think about minor things like that tend to not do well. It ruins things for them. And why would you want to ruin all of this for anyone?” She asked, spreading her arms wide and doing a small spin.

               “It is a nice place.” Ben admitted. He was not sure why knowing where he was would cause problems, but he could think about that later. “So, if you’re not going to tell me where we are, can you at least show me around? There is more here than the beach, right?”

               The woman seemed to perk up right away. “Oh, yes. Lot’s more. More than you could do in a hundred lifetimes.” She went to his side and hooked an arm around his and gently guided him away from the beach. “Come on, I’ll give you the tour. At least, part of it. There’s so much here that it would be hard to show you everything on your first day.”

               The two of them walked towards the vegetation, the woman talking about some of the many things to do. As they went, Ben thought he felt something brush against his back. Feathers? It felt like feathers, but he did not see any birds around, nor did the woman have anything with feathers on it. Oh well, it was a faint feeling, so he probably just imagined it. He would figure it all out later. After all, he had all the time in the world. 

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Okay, it's pretty clear what's happening, right? Like, it's not that hard to figure out? Okay, just making sure everyone's on the same page here.

Word: Venerable

 

venerable

[ ven-er-uh-buhl ]

adjective

1. commanding respect because of great age or impressive dignity; worthy of veneration or reverence, as because of high office or noble character:

   a venerable member of Congress.

2. a title for someone proclaimed by the Roman Catholic Church to have attained the first degree of sanctity or of an Anglican archdeacon.
3. (of places, buildings, etc.) hallowed by religious, historic, or other lofty associations:

   the venerable halls of the abbey.

4. impressive or interesting because of age, antique appearance, etc.:

   a venerable oak tree.

5. extremely old or obsolete; ancient:

   a venerable automobile.

******************************

               The novices entered the great hall. Most of them looked around at the resplendent room. The entire thing was a testament to the beauty of simplicity. Everything there looked simple and functional. But anyone with any real senses could tell it was anything but. The long carpet that lined the floor looked like it had been spun out of wool, but those who knew what it actually was could tell it was worth more than some cities. The wood the room was made out of was older than most nations. Even the candles that lit the place were worth more than most could make in a lifetime.

               Most of the novices were looking at the place, admiring everything in it. One was focused on the two people in the center of the room. One was the Venerable Elder, and the other an attendant. An old man sat in a chair that, like the rest of the room, was simple in appearance only. He wore voluminous robes that concealed his form, white hair that was cut short, and a matching beard that nearly touched the floor.

               The other was a small woman. She wore the robes of a servant and wore her dark hair in a tight bun. The novice thought she was quite pretty, but there was no chance he would voice such an opinion. Not here.

               The old man looked over the assembled novices and his eyes narrowed. He glanced at the woman, who stepped forward a few steps.

               “The Venerable Elder acknowledges the novices, and forgives your lack of manners as you do not know any better yet.  This will, of course, be your first lesson when you start.”

               The novices shuffled nervously. Had they done something wrong already? One of them looked closer at the two figures. There was something off about the situation, but he could not quite put his finger on what. Before he could, the old man spoke in a deep, booming voice.

               “Be grateful, young ones. For I shall personally give you your first lesson. When entering the room of an Elder, the first and last thing you must do is bow to them. I trust none of you are so foolish as to not know how to do that.”

               The novice focused on the words and suddenly, it dawned on him. He took a deep breath and cleared his mind. It was still not easy, and took a moment to do, but he focused on the flow of energy that permeated all things. He was only able to do so for less than a second, but in that short time he saw just what was happening, and what he needed to do.

               All the novices bowed. Most did so to the old man on the chair. One bowed to the young woman at his side. This was immediately noticed by all. The other novices were confused. The old man and woman looked at each other. The man spoke.

               “You there, novice. Why do you bow to her and not to me?”

               “Because, sir, although you are an elder, she is the Venerable Elder.”

               “Oh? And what makes you say this?” He asked.

               “Forgive me, but I looked at you both with the true sight. Sir elder, your energy is strong, but not what someone as lofty as the Venerable Elder should be. But when I looked at madam, I saw nothing. A being with no energy at all. I know little of the ways of the world, but I know that only the dead should have no energy at all. Which means she is hiding it. The only reason for this that I can think of is that she is the true Venerable Elder testing us novices.”

               The room was silent for a moment. Then a small sound came. The woman’s lips curled into a smile to match the small laugh that escaped her. That small laugh flowed into more.

               “You see? I told you there would be one to figure it out.” She said joyfully.

               The old man sighed and stood, leaving his chair. “Yes. Yes you did, Elder.”

               He stepped to the side and the woman took him place. The other novices looked horrified that they had messed up, but the woman, the Venerable Elder, did not seem mad at all.

               “Excellent work, young one. I shall be paying quite a bit of attention to your growth. I hope you continue to show the intelligence that you showed today. As for the rest of you, fear not. This was indeed a test, but there is no punishment for failing. It was simply a way for me to know which of you deserves to be watched more closely. Now then, I will say that my attendant did not lie. Your first lesson shall be given by the Venerable Elder, but it is not a lesson in basic manners. Instead, I shall teach you the most important lesson you will ever learn.

               “Always be aware of what is really happening. And never make assumptions based on appearances.”

*************************

Oh yeah, you know there's going to be some magic kung-fu stuff going on. I mean, come on, is there any other way this could go? 

Word: Ebullient

 

ebullient

[ ih-buhl-yuhnt, ih-bool- ]

adjective

1. overflowing with fervor, enthusiasm, or excitement; high-spirited:

   The award winner was in an ebullient mood at the dinner in her honor.

2. bubbling up like a boiling liquid:

   ebullient lava streaming down the mountainside.

   **************************************

                  Sam had just sprawled out on the couch. He was about to really start getting comfortable when the apartment door slammed open. He groaned mentally as he heard the rapid footsteps dashing towards him.

                  “Sam! Sam, Sam, Sam!” The newcomer said at a rapid pace.

                  He sighed. “What is it, Joyce?”

                  “Guess what?” Joyce said, coming to a stop in front him. She skidded a little bit on the tile floor, but that did not seem to bother her. She was smiling from ear to ear, and bouncing slightly on the balls of her feet.

                  “Knowing you, you probably found another kitten on the side of the road.”

                  “Nope! Well, not this time. Not for a lack of trying though.”

                  “Okay, a puppy then.”

                  “It has nothing to do with cute animals! I mean, I did see this super adorable puppy being walked by…that’s not important! Come on, guess! It’s something I’m going to do.”

                  Sam groaned, audibly this time, and forced himself to sit up. He sighed and looked at her with blank eyes.

                  “If it’s something you’re going to do, then I have no idea, and no way to even start guessing. Therefore, it’s pointless to even try.”

                  Joyce blew a raspberry. “Spoilsport.”

                  “Just tell me. Then I can go ahead and tell you why it’s a bad idea.”

                  She gave an overly dramatic pout that, for most onlookers, would result in them immediately falling head over heels for her. Sam had seen her make that look too many times to be affected by it though. She brighten up again immediately after.

                  “I’m going to be…” She paused and changed her stance. She stood with her feet shoulder-width apart and put her hands on her hips. “A superhero!”

                  Sam stared blankly. “A superhero.”

                  “Yup!”

                  “Okay, on to why that’s a bad idea. First of all, being a superhero is basically being a vigilante, which is illegal. And if you just want to have an excuse to go around helping people, you can do that without putting on a fancy costume.”

                  “Nope! Well, yeah, I am definitely going to do all that stuff, but I’m totally going to kick all kinds of bad guy butt too!”

                  “Just going to ignore the illegal part, huh? Fine. Do you know how to fight?”

                  “Nope!”

                  “Do you have any equipment.”

                  “Nope. But I’m designing a super cool suit.”

                  “I hope it’s something bullet proof.”

                  “Pff. That would ruin the look. Part of being a superhero is looking good. And you gotta admit, I’d look damn good in one of those costumes.” She said with a  wink.

                  His eyes darted down below her neckline for a moment. He did have to admit she would look alarmingly good in a comic-style costume. But that was hardly the point.

                  “You do know that doing that is basically inviting criminals to shoot you, right? Or worse.”

                  “They can try!” She said proudly.

                  He sighed and ran his hands down his face. “Joyce, just don’t. Unless you somehow spontaneously developed superpowers, which would fly in the face of every law of physics ever made, then this is just a terrible idea.”

                  Joyce grinned wide and chuckled. She took a few steps to the couch and slipped her hands under it. Then she picked up the couch, with Same still on it. He let out a yelp of surprise and clung to whatever he could as she lifted the couch over her head like it was nothing.

                  “Oh, by the way, I totally got superpowers!” Joyce said. “I got all the super awesome cool ones too! We can go somewhere, and I’ll show you and then we can brainstorm what my superhero name should be and what my costume should look like! Oh, oh, and if I should have a catchphrase or stick to one-liners! This is going to be so cool!”

                  Sam’s mouth moved, but no words came as he listened to Joyce cheerfully exclaim about everything they were going to do in regards to her upcoming superhero career. His mind furiously worked to come up with some explanation, but could not. All he could think about was that maybe this would actually work. 

   *********************************

    If I randomly got powers, I probably wouldn't be a hero. I know, I know, great power, great responsibility and all that. But I'm just not cut out for hero work. Really, I'd probably just use them to make my daily life a little easier.