"Why resort to such harsh words, my friend?"
As soon as Garrett finished speaking, the main door swung open with a whoosh, and a figure in white robes stepped out from within.
"With such a distinguished guest visiting, why was I not informed?"
He cast a somewhat disappointed glance at the guard at the door, scolding him.
"You may leave. There's no need for you to guard this door anymore."
"...Yes, my lord."
The guard lowered his head in response and quickly departed.
"Saruman."
Gandalf gave a slight bow as a form of greeting.
Garrett nodded slightly, showing minimal courtesy.
In truth, even if Saruman hadn't betrayed the Free Peoples, his personality still wouldn't be particularly likeable. It wasn't his betrayal that made him unpleasant, it was his arrogance and jealousy that led to his betrayal.
"It's rare for the legend of the wilderness, founder of the free settlements, and dragonslayer, Garrett, to visit my humble dwelling. Please don't take offense at the disrespectful words spoken at the door, those under me lack proper manners."
"Of course, I don't blame him," Garrett replied with a smile. "After all, someone else taught him those manners."
Saruman's face stiffened.
"Ahaha, gentlemen, if I may, why don't we continue this conversation inside? The doorway really isn't the best place for discourse," Gandalf quickly stepped between the two, trying to defuse the tension.
"I don't mind," Garrett answered first.
"Then please, follow me," Saruman stared at Garrett for a few seconds, then turned and walked toward the upper levels of the tower, as if none of the earlier exchange had occurred.
Behind him, Gandalf desperately shot Garrett pleading glances, but Garrett simply walked forward, pretending not to notice.
These two stubborn fools!
Gandalf's eyelid twitched, lost for words.
If those two actually fought, there'd be no stopping them, neither was someone he could restrain.
By the Valar, please let them have a civil conversation...
---
In the upper levels of Orthanc, Saruman sat on the highest chair, lifting a cup of tea and taking a sip.
Garrett and Gandalf sat at a smaller table below the main seat, with cups of tea placed in front of them as well.
For a moment, the atmosphere was quiet. If one were to ignore their history and just observe the scene now, it might resemble some sort of refined tea ceremony.
Garrett took a small sip to confirm it was indeed regular tea, no unusual ingredients, no poison, then nodded slightly and began surveying the hall.
Since the entire tower was built from black stone, the interior felt somewhat dim. The only light came through stained glass windows and a few standing lamps with protected flames.
There were two unobstructed doorways in the hall, one on each side.
The left seemed to be a research chamber, with many papers covered in notes spread across the tables and various small items scattered about.
The right side appeared more sparse.
In the center of that room was a stone pedestal, upon which something was placed, currently hidden under a thick, opaque cloth.
If he had guessed correctly, beneath that cloth was the palantír stored in this tower.
The palantír, a seeing-stone of great wonder.
Its users could not only communicate with each other, but also use it to observe the realms where other stones were located. Truly, it was the surveillance system of Middle-earth.
Before his betrayal, Saruman had already used the palantír to monitor Gandalf's movements, watching him constantly.
However, the palantír also had its drawbacks:
If the user lacked strong will, they would see disturbing visions that could shatter their focus and trouble their mind.
Only those with resolute spirits could control it, steering its gaze toward what they wanted to see.
That was the normal function of a palantír.
But at the current time... since one of the palantíri was in Sauron's possession, anyone who used one recklessly risked being forcibly "connected" by Sauron, essentially dragged into a vision-link, and then having their location exposed and tracked down.
Very dangerous.
That's why, aside from Sauron's palantír, all the others still in Middle-earth were kept covered like this, physically blocking the "eye" to prevent being observed.
Currently, there were four known active palantíri in Middle-earth:
One in Minas Tirith, one here with Saruman, one with the Elves at the Grey Havens, and one in Sauron's possession.
Excluding Sauron's, among the remaining three:
The Grey Havens stone didn't connect with the others, it could only gaze across the sea toward the Undying Lands. It was more of a window to Valinor, not much practical use.
The Minas Tirith stone was royal property, but the throne was currently vacant, so no one had the authority to use it.
When the War of the Ring would begin later, the then-steward of Gondor would activate the stone to monitor Mordor's movements. His hatred for Mordor would be so intense that even Sauron couldn't manipulate him.
But in the battle of wills, the steward would still come off worse, despite being in his prime, he would quickly begin to show signs of age. By the time Minas Tirith fell under siege, he would completely lose his mind and attempt to burn himself alive. The ending might be tragic, but honestly, that steward would have far more backbone than Saruman ever did.
One man would face off with Sauron and break down, but wouldn't betray his people.
Another? Would chat for a few minutes through the stone and simply surrender.
Hard to say which was worse.
"Now then," Saruman broke the silence, pulling Garrett's attention away from the covered stone.
"A figure as renowned as yourself suddenly appearing here, what brings you to my tower?"
"I've heard that Orthanc houses the most comprehensive and profound books in all of Middle-earth," Garrett replied. "I've come here for those. I hope to look something up."
"I see."
So that's all? Just another visitor here to borrow some books?
Saruman took another sip of tea, feeling slightly reassured.
"Very well, I grant permission."
His tone was arrogant, but he still agreed.
"However..."
He continued, "The books here didn't simply appear from thin air. I spent many years collecting and organizing them. Some were even written by me personally."
"To mere mortals, the knowledge in these pages is something they could never attain in their entire lives."
Although he looked down on and envied Gandalf, they were both of the same order. So even if they didn't get along, unless there was compelling reason, they still had to tolerate and assist one another.
But non-Istari?
"Gaining something should come with a price, you understand that, don't you?"
"Yeah, I get it," Garrett responded, pulling out a golden apple and casually tossing it toward Saruman with a swift motion.
Caught off guard, Saruman only had time to throw up his hands defensively.
The movement was too quick, he didn't even get a clear look at what had been thrown.
As the golden object struck, a loud thud echoed through the hall. he clutched his stomach where he'd been hit, his face twitching in pain, and then turned furious.
"Throwing something heavy at me, what's the meaning of this?"
"Why don't you look at what you're holding?"
"What else could it be besides a stone, what?"
When he finally saw what he was holding, Saruman's eyes went wide.
----------
Note: Maybe you're interested in another Minecraft story?
One Piece: A Minecraft Player?