A Letter to the Noble District
Last trine, a great disservice was done to the people of Cordor.
We stood against hundreds of our neighbors. People with families, children, friends, and dreams were slaughtered by our hands.
Why did this happen? Were these people not offered aid? Were they left to rot?
They were not. Efforts were made by our citizens to offer food, create jobs, and improve the standard of living in the slums. Each one fell through. Be it stolen goods, misappropriated funds, or some other nonsense: any efforts to improve the quality of life of these people was thwarted. They were not left to rot by us.
The question becomes: who did?
The Noble Houses of Cordor, those who live within the palaces beyond the gates, plotted against us. They stand now as traitors to the people. It was by their hands that an artificial famine was created, that the Royal Guard's incompetence was exploited, and that the discontent were driven to violence rather than a peaceful solution.
Could this have been prevented? Could our government have stopped it? It's unlikely. Those who live within the Noble District are untouchable to those of us who live below. They live above the law, subject only to their own whims and courtly machinations.
Last trine was a chess match. On our side, the hand of the Crown that wishes to keep its power. On the rebels', the hands of the Five Noble Families who look to usurp it.
Our neighbors and friends lie dead. The Crown remains silent; we performed as we were supposed to. Obedient tools to keep them in power. The five noble families remain unpunished, free to plot once more.
The only people who truly lost were those of us below. Those of us who were forced to protect our homes and our kin. Those in the slums who are now without fathers, brothers, and friends.
Cordor lost a part of its soul today. The noble district is untouched. They do not give us the dignity of acknowledging the ones who saved them. They do not protect us. They do not offer a true solution which would prevent this from happening again.
Cordorians, the 28th of Uktar was not our victory. It was an atrocity. I call for the Crown to address the people and take steps to dismantle the laws that allowed this rebellion to happen. May Cordorians never again shed the blood of their neighbors.
Day 1, Month 12 (Nightal), 187 AR
''Voice of Reason''