Ring-Maker [Worm/Lord of the Rings Alt-Power] [Complete]
- Thread starter Lithos Maitreya
- Start date
- Crossover Users' Choice!
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Evil M. Lurker
What Lurks at Midnight
- Location
- The City, USA
Hey Mark Anglin, Mark Angelinno!
...or maybe Radagast?
...or maybe Radagast?
AionVal
(Verified Figment)
- Location
- Beyond The Veil
Plot twist: Mark is actually Saruman that has been left in Arda to atone for... well, everything.
In all seriousness, I'm getting strong Gandalf vibes... Why? Because of the convenient timing of his arrival and the couple of references to timing and travel.
After all, A wizard is never late, nor is he early. He arrives precisely when he means to.
In all seriousness, I'm getting strong Gandalf vibes... Why? Because of the convenient timing of his arrival and the couple of references to timing and travel.
After all, A wizard is never late, nor is he early. He arrives precisely when he means to.
My evidence is as follows:
- Mark's voice is described as "clear and unwavering, a deep baritone." This matches up with Maglor being known as a great singer.
- Mark says he moved from the west when he was just a kid. This doesn't fit any of the Maia, who are ageless beings, unless he was just outright lying. But it fits perfectly for a son of Feanor.
- Cirdan, the oldest known elf in Middle Earth during the Third Age, is described as physically very old. Thus, it is possible for elves to age physically at least under some circumstances, but they still won't die just of old age.
- Gandalf and Saruman were extremely well known to Sauron. I find it hard to believe that Taylor wouldn't immediately recognize them. But Sauron and Maglor never met afaik.
- Location
- New Zealand
I don't know enough about LotR lore to make an educated guess who this is, but my first thought was Tom Bombadil.
Maglor would also fit, especially since he was hurt by the Silmarils, which are already heavily implied to be the Endbringer cores. Leviathan attacked and fled via the ocean and Maglor cast the Silmaril out into the sea.
This is definitely confirmation that he is more than thousands of years old.
SanguisAnima
Σ Series Z10/0 Group A 4A-GELU Mk1
- Location
- nowhere important
*eyebrow arching upwards*
Nice little pun there, and I doubt it was missed by Taylor.
Crazael
Rehydrated Demon King
- Location
- Lost to the vagaries of time.
I mean, if he's Tom, he's basically an avatar of Eru, and would thus be older than time itself.
There's several theories of just 'who' or 'what' Tom is, from Eru incarnate, to the spirit of the Song, to Arda in human form. No one knows, and it's possible Tolkien never pinned it down in his head.
- Location
- Russia
From what I remember, the closest thing to a canon explanation we have for Tom Bombadil is "it's the toy of Tolkien's children that almost got flushed down the toilet by accident".
Evil M. Lurker
What Lurks at Midnight
- Location
- The City, USA
And I just noticed you never tell us what color his hair is.
deathofrats0808
Don’t think of it as dying; just as leaving early
- Location
- Earth
Except we also know that in canon, Elves become wraiths if they spend too long in Middle-Earth. How would Maglor have survived the millions of years necessary to reshape the world to such an extent? Plus, Cirdan is only described as "grey and old" which doesn't imply the same sort of aging we see here. And that could be because of sorrow (something we know affects Elves very differently to Men) rather than simple age. Also, if it is Maglor, why is he here, and not by the shore?
Maia aren't actually ageless. They're older than the world, but they had a beginning.
For a one, Taylor does vaguely recognize something about Mark, then takes another look and decides she doesn't recognize him, but is probably missing something. For another, Sauron was less familiar with Gandalf than you think. They were enemies, but they never really met. The closest interaction they had was when Gandalf led the armies of the free peoples to the Black Gate, and that was both shortly before the destruction of the Ring and still at a distance.
Also I don't think it's Gandalf or Saruman. I suspect it's one of the Blues or Radagast.
- Location
- Germany
They exist longer than time or any concept of it though.
To quote:
Might as well call them ageless.
Fragnostic
Cheshire
- Location
- Neko City
The hierarchy goes like this:
Eru/Iluvatar -> Ainur { Valar -> Maiar }
Maiar are to Angels what Valar are to Gods
Morgoth was a God, the Wizards were incarnated Angels and Sauron was a Fallen Angel.
Tom Bombadil isn't anything. He just is.
Alternatively, you can call him Master (!) of his domain.
Now as for our mysterious person, does his name form any telling anagrams?
Can't be Gandalf because he left for Valinor, can't be the Blue Wizards because they went East and never came back or even fell. Can't be Saruman because he was killed by Grima in the Shire...
Also, are the West and East their respective directions? Couldn't the Earth have gone through a Geomagnetic Shift during all these millennia?
Eru/Iluvatar -> Ainur { Valar -> Maiar }
Maiar are to Angels what Valar are to Gods
Morgoth was a God, the Wizards were incarnated Angels and Sauron was a Fallen Angel.
Tom Bombadil isn't anything. He just is.
Alternatively, you can call him Master (!) of his domain.
Now as for our mysterious person, does his name form any telling anagrams?
Can't be Gandalf because he left for Valinor, can't be the Blue Wizards because they went East and never came back or even fell. Can't be Saruman because he was killed by Grima in the Shire...
Also, are the West and East their respective directions? Couldn't the Earth have gone through a Geomagnetic Shift during all these millennia?
Crazael
Rehydrated Demon King
- Location
- Lost to the vagaries of time.
Nothing about Gandalf going to Valinor says he couldnt have been sent back to Middle Earth at some point to keep an eye on things and to help ensure Taylor gets where she needs to be to complete her journey of redemption.
deathofrats0808
Don’t think of it as dying; just as leaving early
- Location
- Earth
Eh, sort of? It depends what you define as time. They do have a beginning though, and there were events that can be tracked as being before and after those events, even if the distance between them is hard to work out.
Technically speaking, the Valar are also angels. Just more powerful ones
Could be the Blues. While they did disappear, that doesn't mean they left. They just went to help out with the Easterlings and Haradrim (although, yeah, Tolkien did say they'd abandoned their duties at one point).
Saruman was unbodied, not killed. Maia are, AFAIK, unkillable within Arda. He was probably recalled to Aman after he was unbodied and then imprisoned or otherwise punished though.
- Location
- Germany
No, I would read that so, that the is no "before", except for Illuvatar simply being.
His first act was creating the Ainu, there are no events, no temporal landmarks to compare anything to, before that.
deathofrats0808
Don’t think of it as dying; just as leaving early
- Location
- Earth
The first act the Elves knew of was his creating the Ainur (Ainu is singular). Probably because that's where they heard about Eru, from the Valar and Maia. And IIRC, the Ainur were not formed all at once, which would mean only the eldest of them is actually ageless.
deathofrats0808
Don’t think of it as dying; just as leaving early
- Location
- Earth
None of them do. The Ainur aren't Mirröanwi, they're Ëalar. They only have physical bodies to interact with people better.
And that's true, but they're not unaging in the sense that they don't have a "youth".
I think that I have just figured what ominous happen @Lithos Maitreya is setting up for.
We interrupt this program with a very important board cast.
Clears throat loudly.
Suspenseful music plays in the background.
*DUN DUN DUHN*
Declares in loudest voice.
NOW HEAR THIS NOW HEAR THIS
THE LONG AWAITED, EPIC SHOWDOWN TO END ALL SHOWDOWNS
THE ULTIMATE FACE-OFF BETWEEN TAYLOR AND THE SLAUGHTERHOUSE 9 WILL BE HAPPENING SOON WITHIN THE YELLOWSTONE CALDERA
Sighs loudly
*Ahhh*
We now return you to your normally scheduled programming.
We interrupt this program with a very important board cast.
Clears throat loudly.
Suspenseful music plays in the background.
*DUN DUN DUHN*
Declares in loudest voice.
NOW HEAR THIS NOW HEAR THIS
THE LONG AWAITED, EPIC SHOWDOWN TO END ALL SHOWDOWNS
THE ULTIMATE FACE-OFF BETWEEN TAYLOR AND THE SLAUGHTERHOUSE 9 WILL BE HAPPENING SOON WITHIN THE YELLOWSTONE CALDERA
Sighs loudly
*Ahhh*
We now return you to your normally scheduled programming.
AionVal
(Verified Figment)
- Location
- Beyond The Veil
Aaaaaaaaaaaaa??? What?
I have no way of refuting that since my time machine is in the wash. You could be right, I suppose, but it feels more like a character development moment for
This feels more like the end of her journey that began when she broke the mace and reformed it into a sword. She's supposed to re-make the One Ring, her greatest weapon for Evil and cause for downfall, into a tool for Good and redemption. That's why she's coming with Sophia and Emma, because they represent her letting go of the past and turning over a new leaf, but in human form. That's why
The fight with the S9 could very well happen in the next arc, but it just doesn't feel right for this one, IMO.
Also, with the forging of the One, and therefore getting as high in the power-scale as
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Your argument is sound and I will say that it is better than mine. Of course, it was also a poorly thought out spur of the moment post, resolution to massive character arcs and the start of new ones makes more sense than my.
Also noting that the ominous darkness is most likely the darkness we saw at the end of the last chapter. True darkness, the darkness that is all-consuming darkness that seek to make all things a reflection of itself. Thinking about this story always makes me reflect deeply on Christianity. And always brings out the Lewisian philosopher in me.
Also good job catching my half-baked monologue.
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deathofrats0808
Don’t think of it as dying; just as leaving early
- Location
- Earth
There is one explanation for Mark that I don't think has been passed around actually. He could just be some random guy. Not one of the Istari, or an Elf, or anything. Just a bloke.
I don't think it's super likely, but it's entirely possible.
I don't think it's super likely, but it's entirely possible.
- Location
- New Zealand
If he's just some rando, then his inclusion makes no sense and adds nothing to the story at all, unless he suddenly becomes very important later on.
Mind you, I can see this becoming similar to Tom Bombadill, where he's introduced, talks to the cast and never returns, despite some hints that he is ancient and obscenely powerful. He's there to remind us that not everything is understood, and that there are still mysteries out there.
Mind you, I can see this becoming similar to Tom Bombadill, where he's introduced, talks to the cast and never returns, despite some hints that he is ancient and obscenely powerful. He's there to remind us that not everything is understood, and that there are still mysteries out there.
deathofrats0808
Don’t think of it as dying; just as leaving early
- Location
- Earth
Characters who are unimportant to the plot turning up, helping with one thing, and then disappearing, never to be seen again is a very Tolkien thing to do. Look at Háma or Haldir. I don't think that's the case here, but it would fit fine with the tone.