It would be a horse. Standard riding horse. Black and white checkered fur, with one red check replacing a black one, and one green check replacing a white one. It would be trained to stand absolutely still and make no noise, even at the presence of another horse. Its personality would be near-non-existant, as all it would do is silently stand and stare. It would be a very smooth ride, not spending extra energy, looking almost like it were glining.
Why the hell does he keep messing with those damn puzzles? "Hey Thesues, are you listening? Goddammit, pay attention! Life isn't all a big freakin' puzzle...there is no answer...Moron."
You return to a comfortable, way-side inn that has housed you numerous times over the years. You find that the kindly family that runs the inn has just been threatened, beaten up, and robbed. You track down the bandit leader and capture him. What will you do now?
Torture him, asking him innane questions that there are no questions for and/or make him argue and continually contradict himself. (Assuming he is a Shadow-Dweller with an inferior Psyche) I would make mental contact with him and drive him insane, making him recede into his own mind. The only focus of his existance to solve a puzzle which has no answer.
What was your character like at the age of ten? Was your character a wimp, bully, nerd, snitch, klutz, popular? Write up a little description, and, if you like a little day-in -the-life story about your character at that age.
He was very popular...Theseus the Puzzle-Master his friends would call him. He would astound his friends with the parlour tricks he had picked up, and baffle them with puzzles of his creation. He was the scrappy little kid who would do anything for a dare.
Going back to the guilty bandit, assume that you decide that banishment in a far-off shadow is an appropriate punishment. Describe the place you would seek for this purpose.
A shadow inhabited only by a maze. A maze with no entrance or exit. The maze would be as bright as crescent moonlight (just enough to see) There would be no sky, and the sound of his echoing footsteps and his breath would be the only noise he would ever hear forever.
Assume your character needed/wanted to spend some time in a place like the Mythical Old West. Assume it's around 1875, after the Civil War. Your stay will be for a matter of years. Describe what role and appearance your character would adopt.
Theseus would be a watchmaker. This would allow him to work with his hands. He would spend hours and hours working with tiny gears and springs. He would wear tan pants and a vest, with a white shirt.
Answer the same question above with regards to the Swashbuckling era of pirates, Privateers, and Musketeers.
An alchemist. He would work within the parameters of the Shadow to try to create lead into gold and the like. He would dress very plainly.
Describe your character's personal bedroom or suite at whatever locale the character thinks of as 'home'. Describe the contents and the various rooms, the style of the furniture. Describe your favorite reading spot, and favorite chair. What would be the character's preferred reading?
Theseus' bedroom in Vmrtnz looks like something straight out of an Escher painting. He has a large manor house on a small hill. The stairs in his courtyard are similar to Escher's painting, most leading nowhere. The one set of stairs that lead to his door have an enchantment which causes the stairs to create its own field of gravity. You mostly walk backwards, on the underside. His bedroom and his entire home is strangely normal: Shadow Earth Victorian...mostly cherrywood with lots of greens and violets. Very comfortable. His favorite reading spot is his puzzle room/library: it contains puzzles and books from across shadow. His chair is very plush. One of those oversize "kryptonite" chairs. His preferred reading genre is murder mystery, but his favorite book is "The Sound and the Fury," by Shadow Earth's William Faulkner.
Which self-improvement course does your character need more: "Assertiveness Training", "Ten Steps to a New Love Life"' "how to Win Friends and Influence people", "Organizing your Life" Why?
"How to Increase Your Attention Span." Because he can't stay focused on one thing for too long.
Which course would your character be qualified to teach?
"How to read between the lines."
If your character uses servants, which servant is most trusted? Most liked? Most indispensable? Describe them.
Theseus has never needed personal valet typeservants. His love of puzzles is *not* an all-consuming obsession. He has a maid which comes every once in a while to clean. That's about it.
Everybody has some little item that they regard as somehow sacred/important. A piece of clothing, a memento of some event, whatever. What is your character's sacred item? How did your character find it? How did it come to be important?
A necklace. The pendant has an enchantment which makes it change shape, forming different geometric shapes (circle, cone, dodecahedron, etc.) He was resting in a distant Shadow. He and a female companion layed a blanket down for a picnic. When he sat, he sat on it. It was a pyramid. Ouch. He couldn't figure out why he found it, or who created it, or who lost it...quite the mystery.
Strange as it seems you find yourself in need of the service of a hunter-killer beast. It can take any form you request, and, in this case, it will be something of a calling card, how would you like it to look?
A sphinx with a beautiful human face. A beautiful face on a horrible beast...quite the paradox.
Describe your character's voice. Would you say your character speaks with formality? Casually? Does the character have any favorite expressions/curses?
He speaks casually. His cadence and octave is unremarkable. "Well, Shit on Me" often appears on his lips.
The Toughie:
As has been mentioned, Zelazny somehow learned of Amber and eventually wrote a fictitious series of novels about the True City. It is obvious he talked with some Amberite (quite possibly Corwin, considering the slant on the books) to gain information about Amber. You are not in the books, though many Amberites figure prominently. Why do you think Zelazny's source left you out of the information they gave him, or, if they told Zelazny about you, why did he chose to leave you out of the story?
"Corwin and Random suck. They went to see this guy and only told them about their kids. Oh well, the books are a bunch of crap anyway."