Word: Poseur

 

poseur

[ poh-zur; French paw-zœr ]

noun

, plural po·seurs [poh-, zurz, paw-, zœr].

1. a person who attempts to impress others by assuming or affecting a manner, degree of elegance, sentiment, etc., other than their true one.

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               “So, how many applicants do we have?” Reiner asked.

               “Three.” Replied Marah.

               “That’s it?”

               “Yup. What, did you expect more? We’re not exactly a well known party.” She said, laying out their options.

               Reiner slumped onto a chair next to his party member. “I know. But I’d still hoped for something more, you know? I mean, there’s lots of adventurers that are just getting started and should be looking for a party, right?”

               The thought was interrupted by the sound of metal. The duo looked up to see a man dressed in very nice plate armor. Almost too nice. Reiner thought it might be decorative, but one could never really be sure. Magic armor could be very elaborate, after all. He had an equally ornate long sword strapped to his hip and a matching shield on his back.

               “So, I hear you two are looking for a new party member!” He said in a loud voice. “Well, you’re in luck! For before you stand Sir Leopold of Kellwood! Greatest knight in all the land!”

               Reiner leaned in close to Marah. “You ever hear of this guy?”

               “Nope. Seems like a big blowhard to me.”

               “He one of our applicants?”

               “Nope. Those are for a shield warrior, an archer, and a combat alchemist.”

               Reiner thought. He was a healer, and Marah was a rogue. So the addition of a good defender would be welcome. But then again, she was definitely right about him seeming to be a big braggart. Well, as long as he had the skills to back up his claims of being “the greatest knight,” Reiner didn’t much care what Leopold said.

               “Greatest in the land, huh?” He said. “Guess you must be pretty good with that sword, right?”

               “Of course!” The knight said proudly. “I’m among the best swordsmen in the world!”

               “So then you wouldn’t mind a little test, right?”

               “Of course! I welcome any challenge!”

               “Marah, if you would?”

               “No problem.”

               The slender woman stood and approached the large knight. She cracked her neck and stretched a bit.

               “Try and hit me.” She said. “If you can, you’re in. Don’t worry, big guy, I won’t hit back. We go until you either land a hit, or you get too worn out to keep trying.”

               “A simple task! Do not worry, fair lady, I won’t hurt you.”

               “Oh feel free.” Reiner said. “If you land a hit, I’ll fix her right up.”

               Sir Leopold smiled wide and drew his sword. He swung in a large overhead chop. Marah looked confused as she easily dodged. Another attack came, with another effortless evasion by the rogue. Reiner could immediately see the problem. The man was completely inept. Reiner had seen goblins that wielded a sword better. His attacks were slow, big and telegraphed a mile away. At first, the healer thought Leopold was trying to lure Marah into a false sense of security. Get her to lower her guard by feigning ineptitude. But as the minutes wore on, it because obvious that he was just bad.

               The fact that he barely lasted five minutes did not hurt that conclusion either. After that time, Leopold fell to one knee, using his sword to keep from falling over. Sweat dripped from his face and he was gasping for every breath.

               “I see you are quite nimble.” Sir Leopold said, gasping for breath between each word.

               “Well, yeah, I totally am.” Marah said. “But you’re also really slow.”

               “I am one of the swiftest blades alive!” He supposed knight said, doing his best to not seem completely exhausted.

               “Uh-huh. Sure you are, buddy. Sure you are.” The rogue said, rolling her eyes.

               “Hey, uh, Leopold?” Reiner said before an argument could begin.

               “Sir Leopold!”

               “Right, sir Leopold. Listen, we’ve got some other prospective party members coming in later, and we’d rather give them a shot first. But if any of them don’t make the cut, we’ll be sure to contact you.”

               “Ah, very well. I shall be gracious and allow those before me the chance to join your fine group. But if you ever have need of a great knight, do not hesitate to contact me!”

               He slowly and wobbly stood. His knees barely held up as he tried to maintain steady step. Other people around them just looked at the man with pity.

               “Well, let’s hope the actual applicants aren’t that pathetic.” Marah said as she returned to her seat.

               “Yeah. Let’s hope.”

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

 Hm...pretty sure I've used this kind of setting before, haven't I? The whole adventuring party looking for new recruits thing, I mean. I guess it's just something I like writing?

Word: Assiduously

 

assiduously

[ uh-sij-oo-uhs-lee ]

adverb

1. with careful and consistent effort; diligently or tirelessly:

   The Department of Health is still working assiduously with the schools to prevent further spread of the disease.

2. constantly; ceaselessly:

   He referred to the boys assiduously as “gentlemen.”

 ********************************

               Two of the masters watched as the smallest of the students practiced. The child swung their sword endlessly, despite the fact that everyone else had long since ended the day’s training.

               “What do you think?” Asked one of the masters.

               “Admirable dedication. If anyone else had that kind of will, I would consider them as a true disciple. But this one?” the other said.

               The first master nodded slowly. His colleague continued.

               “I do not understand why we even allowed her to enter the school. The arts we teach are not for girls to learn. They do not have the fortitude for it.”

               The first master looked at the child. He was not so sure he echoed the thoughts of the other man. There was something about the student’s eyes. He had seen that fire before. It was found in all those who had become masters. Even he had once had that look in his eyes, long ago.

               “So what should we do? We have already accepted her.” The first master said as he looked at the girl.

               “We do as we always have. We teach. We treat her as we do the others, as is proper. She will eventually come to realize her place is not here with a sword in her hand.”

               “You are so sure she will fail?”

               Looking at her relentless effort, the first master could not see failure coming easily. Surely it would come. It came to everyone. It was a matter of what one did afterwards that mattered. He could see that child picking up a broken sword before she ever picked up a cooking ladle.

               “Of course. It is simply a fact of life. Women do not possess the strength for battle. That is why they avoid bloodshed whenever they can.”

               The first master said nothing. The student kept swinging her sword. Each swing was imperfect and wasteful. But that was to be expected. No student ever performed even a basic swing right away. Often it took years to master even the simplest of sword strikes. No, he could not fault her for her lack of skill. But they drive that kept her going was certainly worthy of note. And he could not help but feel that his colleague was mistaken. At least about this one.

               “Come, my friend. She will tire herself out eventually.” The second master said. “We only need to treat her like any other student, and she will leave on her own.”

               “I wonder.” The first master said quietly.

The second did not respond. The man was already turning to leave. The first took one last look at the young student, diligently swinging her sword like it was the only thing in the world that mattered. No matter what his fellow master said, he was sure she would succeed. And he would keep an eye on her. She was not disciple worthy yet. But if she continued as she was now?  Well, being known as the master with the first woman as a true student was certainly something of note. 

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

Yeah, you know the kid's going to grow up and kick major butt. That's how these stories go, right? It wouldn't be fun if she just quit midway through the training arc. 

Word: Apathy

 

apathy

[ ap-uh-thee ]

noun

, plural ap·a·thies.

1. absence or suppression of passion, emotion, or excitement.

   Synonyms: coolness

   Antonyms: fervor, ardor

2. lack of interest in or concern for things that others find moving or exciting.
3. Also ap·a·thei·a, ap·a·thi·a [] Stoicism. freedom from emotion of any kind.

 ************************************

                              There was something wrong with the town. The party of adventurers noticed the oddities right away, seeing as they were not particularly subtle. The entire populace went about their day with a listless, blank look in their eye. None of them, not even the children, showed any emotion at all. They simply existed.

               “Okay, this is creepy.” Said Mara, the party’s rogue. “Like, really creepy. Seriously, it’s worse than that one place that got taken over by a weird hive mind ooze monster.”

               “I don’t think it quite goes that far.” Replied Daniel, the fighter of the group. “But it is pretty bad. You think it’s some kind of spell?”

               “Gotta be.” Mara said. “Nothing can make people act this dead inside other than magic. Borr, you wanna check these guys out?”

               The party wizard was already examining the people. He had gone right up to a man who was listlessly carrying goods around. Probably transporting things to one of the small shops. Borr was able to go right up to the man without any problem. The man just looked at the small mage and kept walking. It allowed Borr to examine the man without any resistance.

               “Yeah, it’s magic. A big spell. Really big. I don’t quite know what it does yet though.”

               “I don’t know. It seems fairly obvious.” Daniel said. “It makes people apathetic to, I think everything.”

               “On the surface, yes.” The wizard said. “But magic is never that simple. Even my most basic spells have many layers of complexity.” Both of the party members braced themselves for a lecture on the nature of magic and spellcraft. Fortunately for them, it never came. “And I can promise this is a very complex spell. I’ve seen many that can cover a wide area, but never so thoroughly as this one. And a complete suppression of emotions? That’s complex, advanced stuff. I’d love to see the spellbook of the people who made this.”

               “After we pry it from his cold, dead hands, right?” Mara asked.

               “I thought that went without saying.” Borr nodded. “Whoever made this spell is brilliant, but very dangerous. Not someone that can be allowed to roam free.”

               “Great.” Daniel said. “So, will this apathy spell affect us? And how long do we have before it does?”

               Borr went up to a different person, a woman cradling two eerily silent children. He performed his magic, examining the spellwork closely.

               “It will affect us, yes. In fact, it’s already started to. But it’s a slow burn. It’ll be at least two days before we see any change in how we act, and another three before we’re fully under the effects. But it’s okay. If we leave the area of effect, it should wear off within a day or two.”

               “So, does that mean if we take a few of these people out of the town they’ll recover?” The fighter asked.

               “Yes. It will take a bit longer than it would us, because of how deeply the spell is rooted in their minds. But it will fade eventually. There might be some lingering effects, but nothing serious.”

               “Cool.” Mara said. “So we just grab someone who looks like they’ll know stuff, drag ‘em out of town and wait till they wake up. Then we question them about the who, what and where. And then we kill someone and take their stuff.”

               “A bit of a simplification, but yes.” Borr agreed.

               “Alright, we’re agreed.” Daniel nodded. “I’ll go find someone that fits. And keep an eye on each other, just in case the spell works a bit faster than planned.”

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

A mid-level quest for a DnD party, I guess? Or just a general fantasy story. Could go either way, really.