[Video, open to both Courts]/open to action

[sculptor_of_aman]

[Rarely does this Elf address the Courts, and never has she looked happy doing so. She seems a little sadder this time, but those silver eyes are bright with determination.]

Hello to everyone.

For those who do not know me, I am Nerdanel, and I am, among other things, a sculptor. Morla has commissioned from me a work of grand scale. The Hall of the Remembered. She wishes to honor every Unseelie that has been lost. I intend to do just that. And so I am asking for your kind assistance, and thanking those who have already given me their stories.

In order to capture these lost ones, I need to know them. Some I knew. Many I did not. And so I ask everyone who has known a lost or fallen Unseelie to share their memories with me. How they died. How they lived. Whether they were loved or loathed. And it matters not to me whether you hail from the Seelie or Unseelie Courts. I will welcome all help offered.

There are many ways to share these memories. You can tell me your stories if you wish. Or, if it is easier, simply open your minds and hearts and allow me a look at what you remember. I will share in this with all of you, if you will allow it.

I am at the Station to gather what stories I can, for those who wish to meet me in person. If you are in need of transport, my son Makalaurë--Maglor, perhaps, if that is the name you know better--will be glad to help.

I thank you all for your patronage.

Comments

[sculptor_of_aman]

According to Morla, their numbers rival the stars in the sky. You can surely understand the enormity of the task before me.

You seem surprised. But, yes. He is my secondborn. Maedhros was my eldest, and Celegorm my third. Four other children followed them, but to my knowledge, they have never set foot here.

All Eldar possess the sanwe-latye, the thought-opening, to some degree. Some are great speakers, their minds so open that their thoughts and wishes flow forth freely or penetrate the most hidden of minds. Others, like myself, have our thoughts so open that we might receive and understand, but we do not impose so much upon others. Some are more open to the beasts and birds, others to the earth and its more silent lives. The nuance of the talent varies from Elf to Elf, but the concept remains the same: when thoughts are open, we are more in tune with all around us.

I cannot take anything. And I have no desire to dominate those minds opened to me. But some find it easier to simply allow a glimpse than to have to find the words to speak aloud. Yet, whether by words, or pictures, or thoughts, or anything else, I will gratefully accept the knowledge that will allow me to provide the rich depth and detail the lost deserve to be remembered as vibrantly in their absence as in their presence.

[survivra]

Well. Good. I wouldn't want my mind penetrated with thoughts I didn't ask to have. [ she looks uncomfortable. there's a lot to think about wrapped up in that answer. ] I'm glad I'm not an elf.

Either way, that task sounds near impossible. You'll be working until you're dead, surely—Morla doesn't expect you to do it alone?

[sculptor_of_aman]

[That gets a smile, but while it is full of knowing and resignation and a bittersweet sadness, there is little mirth in it.]

If this commission is to claim my life, it will not be due to age. Our people endure for eternity, barring other circumstances. And that is why it must be mine to complete. The only way others will be able to help will be indirectly. Providing me with the living memories to capture those no longer with us. Morla herself has promised a great deal of aid in this way, more than anyone will, for which I am grateful. I am but the conduit to transfer those memories into the art.

But Morla will color them in her own way, as do all who remember them. The more memories shared with me, the more accurate my rendering.

[survivra]

So, I've heard, of long age and... other circumstances. [ katsa frowns and is quiet for a moment ] This is something you like doing—dwelling so long and spending so much time on mournful memories? Or did Morla not give you a choice?

[sculptor_of_aman]

Initially, I asked her leave to commemorate a piece to honor the sacrifice of my son, Tyelkormo. She granted it, but then asked if, at her behest, I would honor all who have been lost, no one above any other. I accepted the challenge. It shall become my finest piece.

[survivra]

That you should even need permission at all to honor your own son. [ she laughs once, humorlessly. it's clear what katsa thinks of that. ] But I wish you luck, if it's something that gives you pleasure and pride.