[04] || [The Lord of all Horses] || [Open]

[the_white_rider]

Characters: Gandalf, optionally Shadowfax and YOU.
Setting: Room 2-08, Dormitory Floors / Corridors, Meadow Floor, Floor Forty-Five, Anywhere Else.
Format: Action for a start, but will follow.
Summary: As a result of his death in the event, Gandalf has regained his horse: Shadowfax, the Lord of all Horses. While that's a pretty good news, keeping the horse safe may end up being kind of hard. Feel free to talk to Gandalf (and his horse)! There will also be an option without the horse.
Warnings: Nonthing for now, will update if something comes up.


Room 2-08 (Backdated to the 1st)
[ Well... Upon waking up, that's quite a surprise. Hopefully his roommates are not here or they are still sleeping, because otherwise they'll be able to witness the white horse that appeared in their room, and who may end up being a problem. Not that the horse is bothersome, he is quite quiet and obviously domesticated. But as all horses, he is big and takes lots of space.

Gandalf smiles upon seeing his horse of course- Or rather his "old friend" as he calls Shadowfax. Although, the horse's presence here raises some questions. Obviously he got him as compensation from the costume, but... ]

How did you get here now...? How did they--

[ He pets the horse before looking at the door, first things first. Finding a safe place for the horse. He trusts Shadowfax to avoid monsters and less than commendable people, but the safest the place for him, the better. ]


Dormitory Floors / Corridors (Backdated to the 1st)
[ You may happen to see a strange scenery- The White Wizard leading Shadowfax throughout the Dormitory Floors and the Corridors of the tower (not riding it unless necessary of course) as he seeks a fine place for the horse to stay. The strange part is probably the horse, though Gandalf is quite glad he is here.

Sometimes monsters get in their way, but there are weak for the most parts and Gandalf is quick to dispatch them with his staff, or sword if this is really required. ]


Meadow Floor (Any day between the 1st and the 8th)
[ Finally it is at the Meadow Floor that Gandalf decides to let Shadowfax be. Maybe the White Wizard will pick another floor later, the Forest Floor is much more dangerous, but without a doubt more adapted for the horse.

In the meantime, you can see Shadowfax running freely around the meadow, sometimes stopping near Gandalf as the wizard pets him. Note that the horse carefully avoids stepping on the flowers, for the most part. ]


(No Horse) Floor Forty-Five
[ Gandalf stares throughout the windows of the observatory. Probably the most interesting and less useless of the new floors- All the other floors are more sordid jokes by those in charges without much interest. He can stare for hours long, as he thinks to the riddles and questions. And of course, as he does that, he smokes his pipe-weed.

Whenever a dead and faceless humanoid crawls on the outside though, Gandalf looks unfazed. It admittedly did surprise him at first and he is horrified at the idea of what they may actually be, but after a while, you just get used to it. ]

Anywhere Else
[ You may be able to find he White Wizard pretty much anywhere around the tower between November 1st and November 10th, with his staff in hand and carrying large books around. The books he was writing previously has gotten notably thicker.

However, the horse is not following him throughout the tower. No, thankfully enough the wizard has find a place where the horse can stay safely, and flee the monsters if necessary. ]

Comments

Meadow Floor, November 6th.

[tohko_amano]

Tohko liked the meadow floor. It was usually peaceful and quiet, the perfect place to read. While Tohko loved Konoha's stories, she was taking a break and reading 'Alice in Wonderland'. She was just about to tear out a page, when she spotted something white out of the corner of her eye. She quickly closed the book and looked up, but instead of a rabbit, she spotted a large white horse running by.

Chuckling, Tohko ran after the horse, book in hand, half-expecting it to pull out a waistcoat pocket any minute now. However, it did no such thing, and instead led Tohko to an old man with long white hair.

"Oh, good morning! Does this horse belong to you?"

[the_white_rider]

Much for similar reasons ,Gandalf enjoyed this floor. Probably most everybody in the tower did and so did Shadowfax. The White Wizard turned and smiled when he saw Shadowfax had met a young person and that she had followed the horse. When Shadowfax got close, Gandalf petted the horse and nodded to Tohko before answering.

"Good morning young lady. In a sense, yes you could say that."

He looked at the horse with a smile, remaining silent for a moment before turning his attention back to the young woman.

"Nevertheless, I not consider Shadowfax such as a belonging, but as an old friend who has been at my sides through many an adventure. Yet how he was brought here is a mystery."

[tohko_amano]

Tohko chuckled. "I'm glad to hear that. Hopefully those adventures were pleasant ones." People having animal friends and vice-versa was not uncommon in stories. After all, Alice loved Dinah, and The Prince tamed a fox for a short while. Their parting could have moved the most stone-hearted of people to tears.

"Hmm..did you get him with a note saying something about a consolation prize? If you did, then you got him as a small gift if you died during the candy event. I got something similar."

[the_white_rider]

"Many were, yet some were less pleasant and trust me, they are all stories better kept for another day."

He smiled warmly still. While everything came to a good conclusion, he couldn't say the entirety of their adventures had been pleasant. Adding to that, he wasn't the best for story-telling compared to some of his fellow comrades. He chuckled at her words about the note and shook hos head.

"Yes, of course. But the mystery lies elsewhere."

He let the horse go and turned to her, meanwhile Shadowfax just stands nearby. She may try to pet him if so she wants, but she better be careful, you never know with horses.

"They claim our worlds have been destroyed, all life gone. Maybe my eyes and heart are fooling me, but Shadowfax looks very alive to me. Assuming he comes from the very same world than I, what does it imply about our captors? The truth is fickle."

[tohko_amano]

Being a book girl and a lover of stories, Tohko was a little sad to hear that he wasn't going to tell a tale or two. "Alright then. I shall wait for another day to pass then."

Tohko petted the horses mane for a moment before letting him be. While she had only read of horses in stories and books, she was pretty sure that he might be nervous around new people. Animals and humans were similar in that regard. All the while, she focused on the mans words.

"It is a little hard to get the truth out of the Administrators, but..I'm pretty sure that they're lying to us about our worlds being destroyed. After all, they have a tendency to lie about other things and put us in horrible experiments, so why trust them about the fate of our worlds? Plus..the newly built graveyard. If it was made to fit every dead person in our worlds, they would probably need a whole tower to fit all the people from my world alone. As it looks now, it was probably just built to mess with us a bit.

Plus, the gift I got was a notebook full of a friends stories that were in his handwriting. It's hard to fake that, unless the person is still alive, so they must be lying. At least..that's what I think."

Floor 45

[bow_of_the_galadhrim]

[Legolas joined the wizard, silently, though he knew that Gandalf was likely perfectly aware of the elf joining him. He was still upset about the cemetery floor, though he didn't show it. Between Tohko, Chidori and Haldir, he'd recovered as well as he might from seeing the graves of his friends.

That wasn't what plagued his thoughts now though. It was Haldir and his hands. He'd already wounded the march wardens pride enough though, he couldn't outright ask Gandalf for help now.]

[the_white_rider]

[ Oh, Gandalf had seen the graves. He knew a lot, but he didn't know Legolas had seen them as well. Maybe they'll have time to speak about it later- Gandalf doesn't believe any of the graves indicates actually dead people.

He remains silent for a moment, not turning to Legolas at first. ]

I wish our eyes would allow us to pierce through those clouds. An observatory positioned at an height making observation an impossibility. That's typical from our hosts, mind games. They claim to be low on resources and yet they waste time and materials into making such floors.

[ A short pause, still looking outside. Gandalf can guess Legolas probably has something to ask, so better introduce it slowly. ]

Yet this holds some interest, if only we could catch a glimpse of the outside world... Maybe you, Haldir or Idrial may have more luck than I?

[bow_of_the_galadhrim]

[A blessing in Legolas' favor, he preferred that Gandalf not know the tears he shed over the graves or his attempt to dig at Gimli's. There would more than likely be a lecture in store for the elf if the wizard had, somehow, found out.]

They claim many things, such as having rescued us.

[Not that he'll say it but he might have been starting to believe Middle Earth is gone. He still had hope though.]

Perhaps but I fear that my eyes cannot pierce the fog here. For all the strength of elven eyes, they are not strong enough for this.

[the_white_rider]

[ The White Wizard nodded slowly as a reply. ]

They probably believe it, yet I have seen more indicating that they- Accidentally one can hope, doomed us. Yet I do not believe they are outright evil, not anything like the evil that dwell in Middle-Earth or gather in this tower.

[ It had taken a lot of time for Gandalf to understand that the administrators, as despicable and cruel as they are, may truly have benevolent intent. A few of them at least (Jason is beyond redemption). But that's a complicated matter better kept for another day. ]

They may for all we know, but I wouldn't put it past our hosts to limit your vision so you cannot see. There are well hidden secrets they are afraid of, after all. Afraid of the consequences if we were to find them.

[ Gandalf prefers for people to be prepared for the worse outcomes so he can only approve. Yet again he wouldn't approve of the circumstances that led Legolas to start thinking the worse may have happened. ]

But tell me my friend, what is it that weighs your mind?

Floor 45, 6th

[warriorscribe]

*Enoch isn't a fan of the new floors, himself. He's taken the approach of just not lingering long anywhere but the graveyard, where he'd remained to give mourners safety from spawning monsters the first day the floor appeared, and to take his mind off of the fact that he was still emotionally numb.

And now, now that he's feeling again, he's still working through (read: trying to push through) the pain and guilt that came with it. The faceless humanoid beings here were viscerally wrong as creations of any kind, but at least this floor was peaceful in a way that monotonous gray floor wasn't. The emptiness of that one was unsettling, such that he'd never stayed long enough to realize just how unsettling it really was.

Enoch watched a wall-climber warily as he stepped off the staircase, following its movements until it crossed Gandalf's path. He recalled the pointy-eared person he met in the elevator telling him he was of the divine. Not his divine, but...

Enoch approaches all the same, seeking welcome presence.*

[the_white_rider]

[ At first Gandalf just kept staring at the outside, apparently not paying much attention to Enoch, if any. But of course the White Wizard did feel his presence. Before long he starts speaking, still staring at the horizon. ]

I can only wonder what it is in the tower that keeps drawing the monsters to us. The whale months ago and now these... I would hazard a guess and say the liquid contained in our collars as it may bring them some stability and contentment.

But I believe there may also be something else they seek. The administrators mentioned the beacons they use to find worlds are what brings them to us. Yet the monsters born from the whales tried to reach the lower floors. Where the control room lies, and beyond... Beyond.

[ He stops and sighs, taking a deep breath. This was the daily dose of cryptic talk and theories about the tower (Gandalf could linger on for hours like this). He then turned to look at Enoch and smiles slightly. ]

I am glad to see you have recovered from what horrors befell you and the tower during the last month.

[warriorscribe]

In the most immediate ways.

*Enoch steps up beside him to look out at the clouds, and the occasional cluster of things that tried to get at them. He swallows heavily when they block out the light of the sun, only relaxing when they begin to disperse.*

Weren't they following us? They wouldn't hunt where there was no prey, and all of us were retreating downwards...

[the_white_rider]

That's good, that's good.

[ He smiles and looks as well, as unfazed as before. If anything, he is curious. ]

This may be another valid explanation [He nodded.] I hadn't envisioned it under that angle. Yet, when they kill us, they get nothing out of it. More mysteries i'm afraid I will be unable to solve.

[ He pauses and sighs. ]

But tell me Enoch, is there something you needed from me?

Meadow Floor, November 5th

[justabignobody]

[After five days of trying to lock his bat-pet away into the truck, losing it through the tower, and being utterly bewildered by it in general, Riku has resigned to let it sit on his shoulder and rub against his cheek every once in a while - though he is still almost as suspicious of Ruana's pet as he was upon receiving it.

New companion or not, he is still determined to keep up his own schedule, which happens to lead him to the meadow around noon, a notebook, a spellbook and his bat-pet (which he should probably name at some point) in tow, though in face of the horse that is currently around freely- ...just what...

Well at least the question of the owner is solved quite easily, given who is standing right in the middle of things.]

...Animals seem to be the theme of the season.

[Given that most people that Riku knows seem to have ended up with a pet...]

[the_white_rider]

I see you have been returned a companion as well. Theme of the season indeed, yet I find myself unable to decide whether I should be happy or concerned at Shadowfax's return.

[ Gandalf had turned to Riku and nodded at his word. Soon the horse stops by them, allowing Gandalf to pet him. Or even Riku if he dares trying. ]

I have to say, Shadowfax's arrival in the tower has raised new questions. And he has been my companion through many adventures. Yet, I have a hard time trusting one of their gift will result in something positive in the long-term.

[ He looks at the "bat" on Riku's shoulder and smiles. ]

I am afraid I am not familiar with your companion's specie?

[justabignobody]

Not so much returned as given.

[He's never seen it before now after all... though given the wording this clearly wasn't the same for the wizard.

Turning his head when Gandalf refers to the bat(?), he smiles a bit uncertain as he reaches up to scratch its cheek.]

I guess, that makes two of us.

[the_white_rider]

[ He nods slowly at Riku's words, indeed 'given' is right from a tower standpoint. Yet not so much from his world's viewpoint.

He raises an eyebrow at the comment on the bat. Interesting indeed. ]

Interesting. Gifts given to us by our hosts generally relate to a significant part of our lives for best or worst, as Shadowfax here is to me. Maybe this companion is one you have forgotten or one you were meant to cross path with.

The Meadow, November 7th

[marchwarden]

[ A streak of white won the march warden's attention once he heard the sound of hooves. At first Haldir didn't know what to make of the noble steed. He knew that no such creature existed within the tower before, yet there it was prancing about within the meadow.

With a carefree ease that hadn't claimed him in months, Haldir watched in silence as the horse raced through the field. A wistful sigh escaped him. ]

[the_white_rider]

[ Those would continue running for a while. Yet before long the horse would stop before Haldir, quietly and slowly. Because, this horse can feel that this being is an Elf from the same world than he- Animals often have that kind of sixth sense (and it's probably even truer in Shadowfax's case).

And soon the horse is followed by Gandalf, who slowly arrives to see where the horse had stopped. And he smiles at Haldir of course. ]

It's been a long time Master Elf.

[ He smiles warmly and look back from Haldir to the horse. ]

I see you have found Shadowfax.

[marchwarden]

[ A surprised gasp nearly escaped him once the stallion drew near. He held out his hand towards the pristine white horse, smiling faintly as it sniffed him.

It seemed that most creatures share a strong liking for his kind, but that's to be expected. Elves are particularly fond of nature, and because of that animals of any kind are usually quite fond of them. ]

Vedui', hallaer.

[ He muttered as he combed his fingers through Shadowfax's thick mane. It was then that he heard the White Wizard's approach. ]

Indeed, I have. What majestic creature he is.

[the_white_rider]

[ Gandalf nodded slowly, not interrupting Haldir as he was close to the horse. It was not surprising that Shadowfax would easilly trust Haldir indeed. The White Wizard smiles. ]

He is one of the Mearas.

[ He pauses and the horse does not show any sign of irritating at Haldir combing him.. ]

I have to say, it was quite a surprise when I found him in my room a week ago now.

Meadow Floor - 4th

[handstands]

[as sheltered and small as his home world may be - no, have been - he's travelled to many worlds as a wielder and seen many things.

but never has he seen a horse like this. he doesn't know anything about them, but even he admires it. the only word that comes to mind is spectacular.

Terra had planned on practicing, but that's forgotten about with a sight like this.]

It's yours, Gandalf?

[the_white_rider]

[ Gandalf turns as he hears Terra's voice and nods slowly, approaching the young man as the horse runs around. ]

Yes, although I would liken him more to a companion than to a belonging. He is one of the Mearas and the lord of all horses, at least such is his status in the land I come from.

[ Gandalf smiles and soon the horse stops by them. ]

Shadowfax is his name and he has been my friend for years.

[handstands]

[Terra stiffens when the horse approaches, unsure what to do but tentatively holding out a hand nonetheless.]

He's...amazing. I've never seen an animal shine like this.

[he turns to Gandalf with a smile]

You're lucky to have a friend such as him.

[the_white_rider]

[ Gandalf smiles as well and nods. And Terra will find out the horse doesn't back down or anything; he probably feels the young man is one of Gandalf's friend. ]

I do consider myself lucky indeed. Albeit, his presence here raises some intriguing questions...

[ Such as how did they retrieve a horse from his world, which they claim has been destroyed. But that's another matter. ]

But what about you Terra? We did not speak in some time I believe, did you receive anything following last month?