Bosk of Finrad

“Today is the day! I will make it into the adventurer’s guild today!” Bosk said to himself as he laced up his worn boots. “I will make the sisters proud of me!” Bosk grew up in a small orphanage on the edge of Finrad, a medium-sized human kingdom. Bosk, being a tall grey half-orc, stuck out wherever he went. His long red hair didn’t help much either.

“Bosk! Hurry up! You don’t want to be late again! That would make three years in a row!” a yell came from the hall.

Bosk stood up from his small bed. He had outgrown it four years ago, but he didn’t mind. It felt familiar and that was more than enough for him. Bosk looked around his room one last time. It was small, no more than seven feet across and deep. He smiled as thought back to all the memories of the room. He had accidentally put countless holes in the walls while he practiced his strikes. This year he knew for sure that he would make it! “I just put on my boots!” Bosk yelled back as he opened the door.

“Well, there is no reason to yell. Your voice carries you know.” Bosk was shocked by the small Sister standing before him. Sister Nova might have been the shortest Sister at the orphanage, but she was the only that seemed to be able to corral Bosk. “Now, I need to check your gambeson. No need for it to go flying when you decide to do a backflip like last year.”

Bosk looked down at the little Sister and smiled to himself. “Do you think I will be able to get into the guild this year?”

Sister Nova looked up at Bosk and saw the big goofy smile. “They would be fools to not let you in!” Sister Nova replied. “You are the strongest person in the entire kingdom, how could they not let you in? Now get going.” Sister Nova smiled back at Bosk as she stepped out of the doorway. She knew that his spirits needed to be high in order for today to go well.

Bosk with a look of sudden realization took off down the short hallway and waved back to Sister Nova. “I will buy everyone a big new home after I get in!” And with that Bosk was through the door and on his way to the keep for the exam.

“Please make it. They are going to turn you away if you come back.” Sister Nova was coming to tell him, but she didn’t have the strength to tell Bosk.

As Bosk made his way through the lower level of Finrad he couldn’t help but start skipping with glee. He knew there was no way for him to fail the exam this year. He had put too much effort into preparing for him to fail this year.

“Good luck today Bosk!” A small elderly man yelled to Bosk as he opened his store.

“Thank you, Mr. Drock! I will be sure to tell the other adventures where to get the best gambesons!” Bosk called back. His skipping had turned into more of a light jog at this point as the excitement was starting to make his blood warm.

“Bosk! When you get in be sure to stop by the pub tonight! We will need to celebrate!” A brawny woman called out to him as he ran past her.

“Scar! You know I don’t drink!” Bosk responded.

“AH! I know that, but that doesn’t mean we can’t drink in our Adventurer’s honor!”

Bosk smiled as he continued through the interwinding streets receiving more and more cheers as he neared the upper district of Finrad.

Finrad sat atop a cliff looking out over the Trimere Sea. The castle sat overlooking the sea and this is where the Adventurer exam would be taking place. Finrad was then split into two districts. The upper district and the lower district. The nobles and Adventurers lived in the upper district and would never divert from the main road through the lower district. The lower district was home to Bosk though. That was the one thing about becoming an Adventurer that saddened him in a way, but he would be sure to visit the lower district often.

Bosk ran through the upper district giving the citizens little attention as he raced toward the castle. As he got halfway through the district he started to hear the bells of the castle ring. The exam! It was going to be starting any second. Bosk was in a dead sprint now. He knew he couldn’t be late this year. An Adventurer was never late and it would only be used against him. He was picking up speed constantly at this time. Bosk felt like his emotions of wanting to make everyone proud of him were pushing him to run faster than he had ever moved before. As he rounded the final corner to the castle he saw that the gate was still open. He had made it in time.

“Don’t close the doors! I made it on time! This is the year!” Bosk exclaimed as he dashed through the doors.

A guard who was leaning up against the door rolled his eyes as Bosk bolted through. “You still have 5 minutes before the doors close.”

Bosk found himself in a small courtyard and was surrounded by other young adults dressed to take the exam. Bosk looked around at all the other candidates and their beautiful metal breastplates. The chainmail glistened in the sun as if they had all freshly polished it this morning. Bosk looked down at his dull red gambeson. He was proud of it, but he couldn’t help as if it was inferior to other armor. His gambeson was finely woven and thick, but it didn’t have the shine that the other armor did. Bosk was made aware of the difference between him and the other candidates. People from the lower district didn’t apply to be adventurers. They had to focus on feeding their families and being an adventurer was far too dangerous.

Bosk was representing the entire lower district today. He wanted to show the upper district that the lower district was full of strong and intelligent people. Bosk rushed over to the sign-up tables and proceeded to fill in all of his information.

“Haven’t I seen you here before?” asked the table lady.

“You might have. This is my third time taking the exam! I am sure that I will pass this year.” Bosk replied

“Third time! Honey, you do know that being an adventurer isn’t for the lower districts right.” the lady replied.

“Well, I guess I will just have to prove you wrong!” Bosk said this with a coy smile as finished filling out the paperwork.

The exam focused on a plethora of physical tasks and combat. Candidates were judged by how well they worked together with their fellow candidates and how well they fared. Bosk, being used to this exam, knew being quick to make friends with the group he was assigned to was essential. Each group was made up of five candidates. The candidates that were paired with Bosk were all taking the exam for the first time and their names appeared on the board as such.

Group 4 ~

~ Adam Silverflow, 17, son of Theodore Silverflow, Royal Guard of Finrad.

~ Clara Finrad, 17, magic-imbued daughter of Queen Amalia Finrad.

~ Bosk, 15, Orphan half-orc,

~ Alfred Sowfield, 17, Son of Maxwell Sowfield, Advisor to the Queen.

~ Heinrich Von Schwan, 17, Son of Richard Von Schwan, Grand Master Knight of Finrad.

This group seemed different to Bosk. It was as if this group had been chosen to give him the best chance at succeeding. With the influence that his fellow candidates’ names carried he should be guaranteed a spot in the guild by performing well today.

Bosk made his way over to the gathering area for group 4. They would be given 30 minutes to become acquainted with each other and divide roles among their groups. As Bosk arrived at the spot the other 4 members were already gathered and talking to each other.

“Adam, are you sure that we are going to pass with our fifth member?” Heinrich asked. Heinrich was the second smallest member of the group and had a bow slung over his shoulder and a small dagger on his belt. By the look of him, you wouldn’t guess that he was the son of a Grand Master Knight. His hair was a golden blonde color and thick. His face was equally as slender as he was and his chin came down to a point.

“Well as long as he knows how to handle his rage we should be fine. The last thing we need is one of our party members taking us out.” Adam Silverflow responded. As Bosk approached he noticed how the group seemed to be centered around the charming boy in the center. He had strong shoulders and stood about 6 feet tall with short brown hair. You could tell that he came from a wealthy family as his armor was properly shined and polished.

“Hello there! My name is Bosk! I am so excited to get to take the exam with all of you today!” Bosk chimed in as he neared the group. “May I ask your names so I know who I am protecting today!” Bosk didn’t want to waste any time getting to know his group today. He was on time for once so he wanted to make sure to use the extra time.

“Boy you are quite the chatter aren’t you.” The tall lady of the group answered. “My name is Clara. I am glad to see that I will be able to focus on my magic today. I am assuming that you often draw the attention of your foes.” Clara stood one inch shorter than Bosk at 6 foot 3. She had broad shoulders and the muscles to match. Bosk marveled at her short blonde hair and her face that was nestled between cute and intimidating.

“I have never met a mage like yourself! You must have some real power behind your fireballs!” Bosk was growing excited. In his mind muscle was power and to have such a strong teammate would only help him.

“Well, my magic could be better. I have to make sure these three knuckleheads stay out of trouble. Why don’t I just introduce everyone?” Clara replied while gesturing to the group.

“Knock yourself out,” Adam replied. The final member of the group nodded at Clara. Bosk thought it was odd that he responded in this way. Why didn’t he just say yes?

“Alright, well first of all,” Clara made a large gesture towards Adam, “our fearful leader, Adam Silverflow. There is no battle he isn’t willing to run away from.” Adam glared at Clara as she snickered to herself.

“Someone has to take the high ground.” Adam snapped back.

“Yes, usually that is the one with the bow though,” Clara said as she leaned and motioned toward Heinrich. “This would be Heinrich Von Schwan. Some say that he once slew the side of a barn. We have yet to see the proof of it though. He is however quite adequate at lifting special reports from our parents’ offices.”

Bosk bellowed in laughter as he then motioned toward the final, and smallest member of the group. “So that must make you the cleric of our group then. How many miracles a day are you up to?” The final member just looked at Bosk with wide eyes and started moving his hands in different formations.

“His name is Alfred Sowfield and yes, our cleric. He is selectively mute and can only whisper out prayers. We all worked out a sign language that we use to communicate with each other.” Clara said in a calm, slightly somber tone. “I am sure that you will pick up on it quickly though! Just know that Alfred will have your back if you have his.” Alfred wore simpler armor. His hair was matted and longer than the rest of the groups. His smile seemed to rest on a shallow frown. It confused Bosk why Alfred wouldn’t have better equipment or better-kept hair given that his father worked in the castle. Bosk wanted to see what Alfred’s smile was like with the thousands of freckles on his face so there was only one option for how he would respond.

“Oh! I will always protect my party members! I am the strongest in the city after all. What type of person would I be if I didn’t use that to protect others?” Bosk responded while smiling at Alfred. “I will be sure to learn quickly to make sure we both succeed!” Alfred smiled back and put his right open hand over his chest.

“That means thank you,” Adam interpreted. “You seem to be very jubilant for a half-orc. My father talked about the ferocity that half-orcs had in battle. They seemed to have the strength of 5 men. Do you hold your rage for battle?”

“Rage? I am sorry I don’t follow. I was raised at an orphanage in the lower district since I was a baby. The nuns taught me to always smile and to try and share it.” Bosk said with a look of confusion on his face.

“I see. Well, this should be interesting then. Good to have you on the team! Bosk… do you have a surname?” Adam asked as he hesitated with an outstretched hand.

“No… I don’t.” Bosk replied as he gripped his left arm and started to look away from Adam.

“All is good! You are a child of the city then! Bosk of Finrad! Has a good ring to it doesn’t it!” Adam exclaimed as the group agreed with him. “Bosk of Finrad welcome to the Outcasts!”