(Live RP) “The Road We Rebuild”
Reflections after the Gathering
Penned by Naridalis
I arrived at the kin house in the quiet light of evening. It seemed others had returned then also, as there was a gathering of kin in the courtyard. I had scarcely settled Sylva in the stables before I was swept into the heart of a storm: a summons called by Mervedis, who I learned was our rarely seen Company Archivist.
The Archivist, an Elf who looked young comparably, but whose eyes held stories of the world, stood before us all to speak plainly of what many gathered had certainly thought privately:
“What happened while I was away?” she asked. “This place is in ruins.”
It was clear at once that she had returned not just to observe, but to rekindle what had nearly been lost. Her concern was not misplaced. The Company, for all its lingering strength, bore deep wounds: Deorla’s betrayal, the disbanding of trusted bonds, and the uncertainty of what leadership, if any, should follow.
Among the voices gathered were Raspberrien, burdened with exhaustion and lingering suspicion; Tarnon, seasoned and steady, who spoke with the weight of long membership; many others to whom Naridalis held no acquaintance…. and then there were some who took every opportunity to cast blame, stir division, or declare the Company broken beyond repair.
The Elf Celedon, ever the cold critic, spat his venom with poise: “Only Elves have the strength to resist the Shadow,” and “You are only deciding who will hold the Company in their hands when it crumbles to dust.” He laughed at the hope of mortals, yet lingered long enough to show, I think, that even he was not untouched by hope’s ember. As I said to him he was, “still watching, still talking… You haven’t quite let go of hope... or perhaps you still care, in your own way.”
I would be remiss not to speak further of the Dwarf named Narali too, whose presence during the gathering was quieter than most, but no less pointed in its delivery. Their words were not loud, yet they carried an edge sharpened by pain or conviction perhaps. When the talk turned to Deorla; her betrayal, her crimes, her final severing from us, Narali did not seek to soften the blow.
Their tone suggested something deeper than mere frustration. A belief, perhaps, that all in the Company, are culpable. That by silence, by trust, by even failing to see things, we allowed Deorla to rise, to lead, to murder innocents in our name. Though Narali didn’t seem express anything indicating her own responsibility for this in the same regard.. only others…
It is a heavy thought though… And not entirely untrue.
None of us who stood near Deorla can claim to have known nothing. Some knew too little; some knew too much. And most, like myself, stood in the grey between… sensing, questioning, but never quite daring to call it aloud. Hoping we were wrong, or didn’t see the full picture…
Narali’s judgement, whether fair or not, forces reflection. She offered little hope for repair, nor seemed to desire healing. But even their bitterness serves a purpose, if it holds a mirror to what we were too proud, or too afraid, to face.
If Narali sees the Company as permanently stained, I do not share their view. But I will not dismiss it. They remind us that moving forward must never mean forgetting what was done. Not just by Deorla, but by the silence that allowed her shadow to grow.
Let the words of such dissenters weigh, even if they wound.
But this gathering was not about Celedon or Narali. It was, I believe, about finding what remains.
Of the many others present, whose voices were not laced with anger, but of concern, they sought to offer something just as necessary…. hope, spoken plainly, or shown in their presence alone.
I think first of Velkhar, who, despite being unknown to most of us, spoke with honest clarity: “I've no quarrel trusting or working with any of you, so long as you all pull your weight.” It was not said with ceremony, but with expectation, one that binds us more tightly than oaths ever could. I found his directness refreshing, and I said as much: “Trust is earned by action, and now is the time for all of us to pull our weight, together we can rebuild what was lost.”
Meltharian, too, stood out, not by boldness, but by sincerity. She came as an outsider, hesitant, having heard that this was a Company that once tried to do good. Her question… whether she was welcome, whether she should return on another day…. struck me deeply. What could we offer her but honesty? I told her: “You’re welcome. We don’t hide from our problems, as you can see.” Mervedis remarking as well that, “We might need new blood now, especially”.
She stayed. That, to me, was a quiet act of courage.
There were others still…. Erthera, a cartographer as it happens, asked plainly after Deorla’s absence and listened without flinching to the answer. Recommitting her support to move forward. Or Bethrelfin, who stayed seated with her cat, initially queit but attentive, present when she could easily have walked away as others did. She would stand strongly against the division that Celedon would sow, hailing the doom of the Company, asking of him “… how is it doomed exactly? Will you sit back and do nothing and let everything fail?"
At one point, amid Celedon’s bitter claims and the weight of accusation in the air, it was Seleni who reminded us gently of why we had gathered. Not just to settle scores, but to rebuild. She said little more than what was needed, but in her tone was calm, and in her bearing, intent.
Others, Cirvalad, Beorek, Brumgar, Frebbear, all listened more than they spoke, but when they did, it was with the voice of someone who weighs their words carefully, perhaps more than most.
All of these folk, again…. just some I recollect who spoke, were unadorned by rank or legacy…. they stayed. They offered what they had, whether it was patience, questions, or the willingness to listen.
The Company will not be rebuilt by speeches alone. It will be by such people, those who do not need to be asked twice, nor told they matter. And perhaps more than any of us, they are the reason I believe the Company can find its footing again.
When I spoke, I tried to do so as plainly as I could. Not wanting to enter into endless debates on the past, or casting aspersions on those assembled without proof.
I tried to express how I did not believe in recreating the same structures that failed us… no throne, no council with crowns of ash. I offered that instead of a single commander or even a council, that we build something truer to our nature, a decentralised structure, where trusted folk play a role in watching over the stretches of great East Road that they know best. Each one, a Keeper of sorts, guiding action in those places and striving to uphold our shared honour by guiding others, without command.. I proposed we begin a ledger in the kin house, where names could be recorded voluntarily… no appointments, only service. So that none need be chosen in secret or by popularity alone.
Mervedis, to her credit, listened and adapted her own proposals to my prior suggestions… lending my words her support. Where once she, and others demanded new leadership be filled immediately…. by the end, she and others agreed: that we would each take responsibility for the region we travel or serve in. That we would restore our reputation, not through great leaders, but through the actions of each one of us individually along the road; as it always should have been.
I had meant to further propose three simple tenets that we might adopt, shared by all who bear the name of the Company going forward. But I was taken aback by where the discourse was drifting… toward racial lines, Elder rule over the mortal races…
It was this descent into superiority, division, and ego that derailed what I had hoped to offer plainly to all present… a foundational code. The We, the Company of the East Road would renew ourselves:
- To protect the Free Peoples from harm; openly or in secret.
- To deal fairly in combat or trade, with honour given to those we work to serve.
- To cast no shadow through hidden allegiance, betrayal, corruption or unjust deed.
Alas, they went unsaid… the moment passed, overtaken by pride and posturing. That even the suggestion of Elven superiority should even be entertained…. have we learned nothing of the larger history of the breaking of the world?
Still, despite the fraying edges, sense was found.
Tarnon received many votes as a trusted voice among Men (a big part of the Company's membership). Salandril too, though not present, was proposed (by Raspberrien and myself) to watch the Lone-lands, given his trading activity and work in curbing brigands there. These made him an ideal local figure as keeper potentially, should he wish to do so… Others too may rise in time, if given the chance in different places.
But the majority agreed that no final roles should be forced in the moment. A future meeting would seek to assign such things, and in the meantime, those willing can step forward.
Mervedis herself, who began with fierce challenge, saw the shape of what we could become. She said, “I think it will be wise to stick so far to Eriador... let’s regain the trust of people here first.” That was where the meeting resolved.
By my recollection, the majority agreed on this:
- The Company will focus first on Eriador, where our name is most frayed.
- Those who wish to watch over regions or sections of the East Road may step forward.
- A regular gathering time will be set, to share reports and guidance, and solidify roles and responsibilities.
- And trust, always trust, must be earned by deed, not title. In this case, re-earned by all to whom association with the Company is intended.
As for the dissenters, their bitterness was sharp, but not without cause. Yet we do not heal by walking backward. And we cannot afford to lose ourselves again to division and pride. They may choose to walk a different path ultimately, away from us, but hopefully we can bring them with us and show them that in hope there is salvation to be found for the Company.
I do not know what will become of this new shape. But I know this: The Company still breathes. It still draws folk in who wish to do good. And for now, that is enough to build upon.
— N
