The Tallest Tower

Plot: Many years ago, the king and queen of Thaecia had a child, but that child was cursed. To spare themselves and the kingdom of their shame, they sent the child far, far away--to the very edges of the kingdom and an old, abandoned fort by the name of Kavia.

In time, this tale faded from the memory of the peasant folk...and in its place began a rumour. A tale of a princess so beautiful even the Gods envied her beauty. In their fury, they sent a dragon to guard the fort of Kavia, sparking a generation of knights who sought to claim the fair maiden's hand for their own.

Thousands died or were scared away by the princess's furious guardian, leaving ash and fire in their wake. But now the time has come; the king and queen are dead. The Throne calls the wayward heir home, but a dangerous shadow is rising in the West. And it seeks to lay claim to all the realm.

You are amongst those chosen to journey forth, be it by choice or force, and bring the fair princess home. Many dangers await you on the road ahead, many false leads and one huge secret. Are you ready to brave the task that you have been set?


Maps & Info:
Map of the Region;

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Ancient Thaecian Fort of Kavia;

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The "Main Gatehouse" faces a south-western direction.

On Mages & Myth;

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Mages are, in a word, rare. They're almost a thing of myth, though there are at least a dozen or so known mages living in the kingdom of Thaecia alone. The odds are One mage to every Two Thousand mortal men, and Thaecia is the largest of the Five Kingdoms. Although the practice of magecraft is not outlawed in Thaecia, the other kingdoms may not be so forgiving. Because of the rarity of Mages, they're trending towards forbidden and outlawed. Few of the kingdoms have gone so far as to make this fear law, but when they do... Be glad you're not a mage. The only one who has gone so far as to outlaw mages and magic entirely is Sevari--Thaecia's ancient enemy. Peace reigns, but one must ask for how long.

Myths are on an entirely different level. Once, a very, very long time ago, Mages flourished across the entire continent, drifting across borders and between social classes as they pleased. As the years passed, they grew more and more seclusive and retreated into places they called "Mage-States", city-states exclusive to magic-wielders. That caused a backlash amongst the non-mages, inciting a mage-hunt across the realm. It was brutal and bloody hunt, but the mages were fierce in protecting their culture (and their magic) and fought back before retreating from the public eye. After a few generations, the mages had successfully managed to fade into semi-obscurity and after a few more, they were little more than folklore to most people. Of course, one might still encounter the occasional mage, if they were lucky. Or unlucky, as some would say.

Now, after such a long period of calm, the mages are beginning to step back into the light. Their numbers might be drastically diminished, but their spirit is not broken at all. The Mages are willing to work towards a compromise, but the people have to learn not to fear them first.

A trio of Mages are actually currently staying with the Thaecian Royal Court, and one of them is set on joining the Quest to Rescue the Princess.

Rules:
- Usual YWS/SB rules.
- ALL posts must be readable, co-relate to previous posts and have correct spelling. That means no chat speak.
- 800 characters minimum or about 165 words for those of you using MS Word or other writing programs. Use this Wordcounttool if you're not sure.
- Swearing; it's allowed just don't overdo it. No F-bombs.
- Romance is allowed but no sex scenes; No one needs to read about details.
- Fantasy creatures exist here, but be reasonable. They are rare.
- Magic is rare here. Like one in every few thousand. (Ask me first).
- Don't God-mod. Please, it's not fair. And no Mary/Gary Sues either. They annoy me.
- Please don't double post unless there have been no new posts for at least 24 hours.
- Please have a name and place at the top of each post. Such as Name | Place. OR, for example;[i] Mia | Town.[i]
- Please PM me (ScarlettFire) and the creator of a character before killing them off or state in your profile if you are going to die before the end of the SB. No one likes it when they're randomly killed.


Character List:
- Knight - Claimed by @Remembrance.
- Knight - Claimed by @TheForgottenKing.
- Mage/Healer - Claimed by @ScarlettFire.
- Thief M - Claimed by @ChildOfNowhere.
- Squire - Claimed by @Alvarin.
- Squire M - Claimed by @XxXTheSwordsmanXxX.

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NPCs:
- Knight - Claimed by @NicolMemo.
- Squire M - Claimed by @StellaThomas.

Deceased:
- Thief F - @NPC/Created by @AllisontheWriter.

Character Template:

CodeSelect all

[b]Name:[/b]

[b]Age:[/b] (17 or older please)

[b]Gender:[/b]

[b]Rank:[/b] (Mage/Knight/etc)

[b]Appearance:[/b]  (description and picture)

[b]Personality:[/b] (Include likes and dislikes, strengths and weaknesses)

[b]Flaws:[/b] (If you have one/any)

[b]Abilities:[/b] (Main magical ability if mage - abilities like pick-pocketing, etc, for non-mage)

[b]History:[/b]

[b]Up for love:[/b]

[b]Other:[/b]


I suppose you want me to say "--and here we begin our fine tale with a princess stranded and a group of soon-to-be-heroes in an epic adventure that will span the entire land, fun and family friendly!"

No.

Fine then, I know you're thinking, give us something. I suppose you want an introduction to this fair tale. Something to let you in on what's going to happen.

Humph.

No.

This will be no fair tale, filled with wonders and heroes. This will be no fair tale, no epic adventure where everyone lives in the end. No. This will be a feast.

Not the good kind, in case you were hungry or something.

...Oh, oh yes. I guess I should introduce our entourage, hoping to meet up with their prize, their fame, their... princess.

Ah, look Loren. Come close, gather around. They will soon embark on their journey. Off to become legends, go down in history and fame!

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA

First we have a knight who believes he is invicible! Did you hear that? Such arrogance. Did you HEAR THAT? Arrogance! He... he will be the first. I'll toy with him, poke at him and reveal all the imperfections that he shoves in the corner. He will be mine.

...Oh yes, sorry. There are more, yes, I'm getting to them.

Oh yes, another knight, and this time a woman. Did you hear that? Her trust will be her downfall. A gullible heart is the easiest to bleed. I wonder... what's in it for her? We will soon find out, won't we? Hahaha, yessss. Yes we will.

Oh, and then they have a healer. How hi-lar-i-ous. To think there would be time to heal. She'll be licking her wounds after this. Yes, she will be the most... interesting. Her reluctance to hurt others... maybe she herself has been hurt too much. She will... break.

...What? No, you stop threatening people. No --they're not even here. That makes it BETTER.

Oh, squires. Yes. They will die fast. Moving on.

And then there were two. Two thieves, at that! Only in for the money, the fame? Or perhaps... maybe these crooks have a bit of love left in them.

Ugh. Love. Yes, the female one is clinging onto a lost hope. Ugh. Hope. I hope she falls to her death.

And then... there's him. Powerful and cunning to a fault, yet afraid of what that may hold. Curious about life, but terrified of losing it. He will be fun to play with, if he doesn't kill himself before I get to him.

Yes... we do have quite a group here. Misfits, nobles, nobodies, all comrades for a common goal. But, how long does that last? The mind is a fickle thing, and can cripple even the most powerful of beings. Trust me on this.

They will not last.

They must.

Morwenna slowly paced down the balcony, eyes on the training yard below. Warner Kersey was yelling at the recruits again. She sighed, gently setting down her staff and coming to a stop near the railing. Why couldn't he just be nice for once? She leaned on it and frowned at the sight below. Estella was watching from the side. Morwenna was grateful that the knight's back was to the balcony.

Grip tightening on the railing, she forced herself to look away. Estella hated her; the feeling was somewhat mutual. Morwenna's grip tightened on the railing and on her staff as Warner paced up and down the line of squires, yelling at them for slacking on the job or threatening to have them tossed into the dungeons. She exhaled carefully, catching Estella glancing up towards her as the female knight shifted her stance. Great, that was the last thing she needed: the mage-hater to notice her presence.

With a tiny grunt, Morwenna pushed off the railing and turned for the stairs. Her descent did not go unnoticed by the squires or by Estella. Hopefully the latter would ignore her. "Warner," she called as she reached the bottom of the staircase. "That's enough. They're terrified enough with threats of imprisionment or bodily disfiguration. There's no need to add execution to the list."

"Don't tell me how to do my job....you don't see me telling you how to do yours."

Morwenna snorted. "That's because you know I'll refuse treatment if you do." She smirked, coming to a stop beside where he'd paused in his pacing. "And honestly, if you scare them anymore, one will have a heart attack and guess whose job it is to fix that?"

"Obviously not mine," he said, turning to look at her. She raised an eyebrow at him. "Mine is way more important than to save lives... These soldiers need training."

She frowned. "They're not soldiers, Warner."

He scoffed. "Not yet, that's for damn sure." He crossed his arms.

"Yes, that's for sure indeed." Morwenna blew out a frustrated breath. "I wanted to talk to you, but clearly you're too busy." She snorted again and turned away, coming face to face with Estella. She hesitated, raising her eyebrows. "Is there a problem, Estella?"

"This is a training ground for people of honour, Morwenna, not your illusions."

Morwenna bit back her anger and instead went for sarcasm. "Then how did anyone let you roam here?" Snickers floated around the battered and exhausted squires, and Estella's face turned red.

"It takes an especially brave woman to mock others."

Morwenna growled. "Anyone can swing a sword or thrust a stick. It takes someone a step above to fell a person with only their tongue." She shrugged, driving it home. "Not that you would know the intricacies of using your tongue on others."

"You--" Estella roared, raising the blade that was once at her hip.

"Whoa, whoa, whhhoooa!" Warner grabbed her wrist with lightning speed. He pushed Estella's wrist down, forcing her to point the sword at the ground. "You two need to take your problems somewhere else. You're distracting the squires!" As an after-thought, he added, "in more ways than one."

Morwenna stared needles at Estella. "For a knight, you seem to have no honour! Outrightly aggressive, that is not chivalry!" she spat, then turned on her heel and stalked away. Warner was right, of course. They were distracting the squires. Most of them, anyway. She thew one last comment over her shoulder as a deterrant. "And do not dare to think of following me, Estella!"

She heard Warner sigh. "Can't get a damn thing done with you two around. Estella, continue these squires' training, and I swear to everything holy if there's not sweat puddles underneath each and every one of them, someone will have to answer to me." He shouted at the squires to get their asses moving again, nodded to Estella, and rushed after Morwenna's disappearing figure.



Warner practically skid to a halt when Morwenna's figure jumped out from a corner. Chest heaving and labored breaths, Warner greated her. "You sure know how to disappear when you want to."

"That armor slowing you down, Warner?" Morwenna glanced past him, eyeing the hallway warily. "I had to make sure you weren't followed."

Warner smirked and crossed his arms. "By Estella?"

"By anyone," she hesitated, "but yes, especially Estella." She narrowed her gaze at him. "Do we really want her to come with us on this mission?"

"Yes, yes she does. She really isn't a bad person, Morwenna. She just... doesn't make friends well."

Morwenna scoffed. "Is that what you call what just happened back there? Not making friends well?"

"Well, that... Uhh, look I dunno. My only point is that she knows the knights and squires here better than anyone. She'll know what kind of team we need for this serious of a quest. Like it or not, she's the best person we have right now for that."

"Well, then," Morwenna crossed her arms, "who has she set up for us?"

Warner fidgeted in his suit as he pulled out a crumpled scroll. Squinting as he opened it, he began to read aloud. "Oh-kay, so there's you and I--"

"Of course."

"--Estella, and she picked two squires from the ranks who she believes will make good knights one day--"

"I doubt her judgement on that."

"--and that's it so far. She believes a smaller group would be faster, but still as effective."

Morwenna rubbed her chin in deep thought, fingers tightening on the staff she still held. "That's certainly true. Do you trust the squires she's picked?"

"They're as good as any right now," Warner shrugged, "experience and honour, that's what makes a knight. Training is just an added bonus."

"Then it's settled. We're all set --well, almost."

"Almost?" She flashed him a knowing smile and he backed up, pointing a finger at her. "Nuh uh, no. I knoooow that face, Morwenna. What are you planning?"

Morwenna's eyes seemed to stare past him, or deep through him. "We'll pick up... a friend along the way." And with that, she went silent, staring off in the distance.

Warner stared at her.

Nothing.

His eye twitched. She was tempted to smirk, but that'd ruin the effect.

Still nothing.

"So... what kinda friend is this? Like, Estella, orrr --?"

Morwenna groaned and smacked him. "I don't know yet, all right? You ruined my 'mysterious, vague line' moment."

Warner shuffled awkwardly. "So, is it over yet, or should I leave and come back?"

"Ye- gods, yes, it's over, Warner. You ruined the moment. Just... just start rounding them up." He nodded and left. Morwenna just shook her head at the nonsense that was one of her oldest friends. She headed off in the other direction, mumbling to herself; "Honestly..."

Warner paced in front of the new squires. He could see the fear in their eyes, and it only fueled his rage. They'd once again failed to do a smiple exercise. "I swear you're all so pathetic, I may as well kill you here myself!" Warner yelled. the smallest squire at the end of the line shrinked back a little more. Warner smiled to himself. "If you can't get this simple exercise down how can we expect you all to go out into a war and not die?! Pathetic the lot of you. Now I want all of you to drop and give me 300, and if I even hear so much of a complaint..." Warner was cut off.

"Warner," Morwenna called "That's enough. They're terrified enough with threats of imprisionment or bodily disfiguration. There's no need to add execution to the list." Morwenna walked up beside him..Warner rolled his eyes

"Don't tell me how to do my job....you don't see me telling you how to do yours." Warner responded gruffly. He hated it when Morwenna swooped in, in the middle of his trainings. She always had some issue with the way he did things.

Morwenna snorted. "That's because you know I'll refuse treatment if you do." She smirked, coming to a stop beside where he'd paused in his pacing. "And honestly, if you scare them anymore, one will have a heart attack and guess whose job it is to fix that?"

"Obviously not mine," Warner said, turning to look at her. She raised an eyebrow at him. "Mine is way more important than to save lives... These soldiers need training." Warner said with a boastful tone, trying to rile Morwenna up

Morwenna frowned. "They're not soldiers, Warner."

Warner scoffed. "Not yet, that's for damn sure." He crossed his arms. Daring Morwenna to bring it up again.

"Yes, that's for sure indeed." Morwenna blew out a frustrated breath. "I wanted to talk to you, but clearly you're too busy." She snorted again and turned away.

Warner blew out a frustrated breath. This woman was gonna drive him to drink....more.

He turned around to make sure his squires were doing what he told them to do. Instead they were watching with awed looks on their faces.

"You think that you're gonna get out of training today because Morwenna stepped in? I don't think so!" The squires dropped the smirks from their faces and got down.

Warner kept an ear on the women behind him as well as kept his eye on his lazy squires. He let them snicker when the girls started arguing but when Warner heard the sound of a balde being drawn. He quickly stepped in pushing Estella's wrist down, pointing the blade at the ground.

"Whoa, whoa, whhhoooa! You two need to take your problems somewhere else. You're distracting the squires!" As an after-thought, he added, "in more ways than one." The squires snickered.

Morwenna stared needles at Estella. And Warner didn't blame her, Estella was not easy to get along with at all. "For a knight, you seem to have no honour! Outrightly aggressive, that is not chivalry!" she spat, then turned on her heel and stalked away. Warner exhaled in relief. She thew one last comment over her shoulder as a deterrant to Estella. "And do not dare to think of following me, Estella!"

Warner watched Morwenna walk away, making sure he kept a hand on Estella's wrist to prevent her from going after Morwenna. "Can't get a damn thing done with you two around. Estella, don't think I'm not gonna punish you for those remarks or your actions just now either, you may be on our team but I'm still your superior," He turned back to the squires who were watching in plank positions waiting for him to give Estella her punishment. Instead he barked out orders
"continue these squires' training, and I swear to everything holy if there's not sweat puddles underneath each and every one of them, someone will have to answer to me." He shouted at the squires to get their asses moving again, nodded to Estella politely, and rushed after Morwenna's disappearing figure.

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Warner practically skidded to a halt when Morwenna's figure jumped out from a corner. Chest heaving and labored breaths, Warner greeted her. "You sure know how to disappear when you want to."

"That armor slowing you down, Warner?" Morwenna glanced past him, eyeing the hallway warily. Warner raised his eyebrow in question.

"I had to make sure you weren't followed."

"By Estella?" He asked, knowing the answer anyways.

"By anyone," she hesitated, "but yes, especially Estella." She narrowed her gaze at him. "Do we really want her to come with us on this mission?"

"She's our best shot, give her a chance. She's not that bad a person."

Morwenna scoffed. "Is that what you call what just happened back there?"

Warner sighed. "Well, that... Uhh, look I dunno. My only point is that she knows the knights and squires here better than anyone. She'll know what kind of team we need for this serious of a quest. Like it or not, she's the best person we have right now for that. Don't get me wrong Morwen, I dislike her just as much as you do."

"Well, then," Morwenna crossed her arms, "who has she set up for us?"

Warner fidgeted in his suit as he pulled out a crumpled scroll. Squinting as he opened it, he began to read aloud. "Oh-kay, so there's you and I--"

"Of course."

"--Estella, unfortunately, and she picked two squires from the ranks who she believes will make good knights one day--"

"I doubt her judgement on that."

"I can't disagree with you there, but it's what we have to go with. She believes a smaller group would be faster, but still as effective."

Morwenna rubbed her chin in deep thought, fingers tightening on the staff she still held. "That's certainly true. Do you trust the squires she's picked?"

"They're as good as any right now," Warner shrugged, "experience and honour, that's what makes a knight. Training is just an added bonus, if anything I can keep their training going while we travel."

"Then it's settled. We're all set --well, almost."

"Almost?"

She flashed him a knowing smile and he backed up, pointing a finger at her.

"Nuh uh, no. I knoooow that face, Morwenna. What are you planning?"

Morwenna's eyes seemed to stare past him, or deep through him. "We'll pick up... a friend along the way." And with that, she went silent, staring off in the distance.

Warner stared at her. Almost unbelieving that she'd even mention something like that. What the hell is she thinking ran through his mind

Nothing.

His eye twitched.

Still nothing.

"So... what kinda friend is this? Like, Estella, orrr --?" He tried to get information out of her as best as he could.

Morwenna groaned and smacked him. "I don't know yet, all right? You ruined my 'mysterious, vague line' moment."

Warner shuffled awkwardly rubbing the spot where Morwenna had smacked him as if it hurt. "So, is it over yet, or should I leave and come back?" He asked stupidly

"Ye- gods, yes, it's over, Warner. You ruined the moment. Just... just start rounding them up." He nodded and left chuckling to himself and proud that he had at least gotten a little rise out of her. Morwenna just shook her head at the nonsense that was one of her oldest friends. She headed off in the other direction.

Warner chuckled and turned around, walking off with one last comment. "I hope you know what you're doing, Morwenna!"


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"Ok, I think you've all had enough for one day. Pathetic excuses for squires but nonetheless you've improved somewhat." Warner frowned at the squires getting up and either limping or rubbing their limbs. But that's not what he was thinking about. He wanted to know what Morwen meant by "A friend". Last time she said that it ended up with the both of them getting injured. Warner wasn't ready for another situation like that just yet.

But Warner wasn't allowed to dwell on that thought much longer. A page ran up to him and said with a sort of an authoritive tone.

"You've been summoned to the council hall at once." The page ran off again and Warner rolled his eyes before walking in the direction of the hall, wondering exactly what the hell this creep wanted now.

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The Council Hall was small, but airy, and Altan Shahar, their current Regent, was already waiting for Warner when he entered the room. So was Morwenna. Warner nodded curtly at Morwenna. He went to stand next to her. Altan was standing at the window, his back to the room.

"You summoned me, sir?" Warner made the statement come out as a question. He caught Morwenna glancing at him but decided to ignore the movement.

"You're late, Warner," was all Altan said. Warner supressed a smirk. Who the hell does this slimeball think he is? ...seriously, he thought, though he knew exactly how a soldier as fine as himself should act in the presence.

"Please excuse my tardiness, Sir. I was dismissing my squires for the night." Warner kept his face straight, a good soldier.

Altan waved a dismissive hand. "Irrelevant," the Regent muttered, turning from the window. "I have a matter to discuss with you three." Here, Altan cast a glance at Estella, who was skulking in a corner. "It's quite important."

Warner glanced at Estella with a warning look. "Whats this all about, sir?"

The Regent gave them a narrow-eyed look. "We need to recover the Thaecian heir," he said and stepped away from the window. "It's not going to be easy and I don't want to advertise a royal presence outside the captiol....so you'll have to be careful about this."

"I thought you already told us about this mission," Estella mutterd from her corner. Altan shot her a glare. She lowered her gaze and said something about having to work with mages under her breath.

"I mentioned it," Altan said, snorting as he sized her up and obviously--at least to Warner--found her wanting. "But I did not give you specifics."

"Estella," Warner said, tone sharp. "Stand down." He turned his attention back to the Regent. "Sir, if I may....what are the deatails of this mission?"

Morwenna shifted beside him, distracting Warner from the Regent. "Retrieve the princess," she inserted smoothly, face and voice betraying nothing. "Isn't that right, your grace?"

Altan nodded. "Yes, but do so discretely."

Warner's gaze narrowed. "Why discretely?"

Morwenna shot him an unreadable look. The Regent went unnaturally still. "There are people would would like to see the princess dead, Warner," the other man growled, placing a hand on the back of a chair. None of them had taken a seat at the small, oval-shaped table yet. "What part of that do you not understand?"

"Well, sir," Warner began, pointedly not returning the look Morwenna was giving him, "the fact that when a team leaves here...." He shrugged. "Well, someone is going to notice..." The Regent had a disgruntled look on his face now, but Warner refused to back down. "There's no way to be discrete about this, sir....that's what I dont understand."

The Regent opened his mouth to reply only to be cut off by Morwenna suddenly stepped between them, her back to Altan. "Warner," she hissed, gaze narrowed. "They'll notice us missing, but they won't know why. That was a stupid question, you brute."

Warner snorted. "Morwenna, there's no major missions outside here," he said sternly, "and everyone knows there will only be one reason for us to be leaving." He looked past her at the Regent. "The people aren't idiots."

"Morwenna," the Regent said sternly and she stepped aside, as impassive as she usually seemed. Altan's gaze met Warner's. "Really, now. Of course they're not stupid." He pulled the chair out and took a seat. "That's why I'm sending out decoys. I'm not a moron, Warner."

"Coulda fooled me," Warner mumbled under his breath. Altan shot him a glare.

"Sit down," the Regent said, tone permitting no arguments. "We have quite a bit to discuss."

Spoiler

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Nothing was better than the smell of the forge and the ring of a hammer against the anvil. These were Gobban's instruments, and he played them masterfully. He had been up since before dawn getting his chores done. Tending the coals in the fire. Getting the steel heated to begin working the order of tools requested by the local farmers.

He paused in his strikes to return the faintly glowing steel into the forge. He looked at the hammer and anvil that were now his, a sign that his foster father and teacher thought he was ready to make his own way as a Smithy. A few years of saving up and he might be able to afford to build a smithy in the next village over.

Of course, it was the dream of every smithy to be named the a royal smith and craft items to the needs of the castle. Just to open up a shop in the capital would have been a dream come true for Gobban. But a lowly peasant like him couldn't ever achieve such a status.

Especially with his reputation.

Haslfur was still asleep in the room. Even the blaring of trumpets wouldn't wake him. Drawing the red hot steel from the forge, he began to hammer the strip into a steady round shape. The steady ring of the hammer barely made him aware of the world outside. There were few times that a knight would request that this shop would reshoe a horse.

This was what he was good at. It was what he knew.

But his mind wasn't completely on the sword in front of him. There had been talk about knights rounding up young men as squires for a dangerous mission. But what did he really have to worry about? He was a Smith. His skills were only of use when there was fire and a hammer nearby.

Cooling the iron, he moved over to the horse and pressed the still hot metal to the hoof of the horse giving a soft hiss. Looking at the singe marks he could tell that the shoe was now fitted and just needed to be hammered into place.

Holding the leg between his knees, he began to tap the nails directly into the hoof before letting it down with pat to the horse's flank.

Seeing a small group coming to the shop, led by a well armored man - a knight- he quickly stepped forward, ignoring one of the squires calling him Whore's Son. "Good day, knight. If you are here for the horse I am just about to do a final once over and he'll be ready to go," Gobban said with a slight nervous shake in his voice.