The Fellowship

(Ultima VII)

An utilitarian organization founded by Batlin, Elizabeth and Abraham.

During the time Avatar was once again in Earth after solving that gargoyle mess, Batlin travelled around Britannia and learned a lot of things.

After he reunited with the two friends - each having been travelling on their own - they decided to found an organization. Lord British didn't care much of them at first; He just tossed them out of his castle, but Batlin kept trying until Lord Britsh gave them his approval.

The organization is believed to be "compatible" with the Eight Virtues philosophy (of course, that's what all cults say about their relationship with other religions...) but they say the Eight Virtues are not really good because they accentuate one's flaws - not even Avatar could perfectly live up to them, they say. Their belief is based on The Triad of Inner Strength, the way of sanguine cognition:

1. Strive for Unity (Lack of common goal brings chaos)
2. Trust Thy Brother (Lack of trust makes us vulnerable)
3. Worthiness Precedes Reward (Emphasis on accomplishments, not on personal gain)

So much for the way they present themselves. Just before the Avatar arrived to Britannia once again, he was contacted by an apparently malevolent entity known as the Guardian. Apparently, this same creature also appears in the dreams of the members of the Fellowship...

...also, there's something fishy about the ways the Fellowship works: While they do help the poor and such, they make people to join them before they help them - if they refuse to be members, they don't get anything. So much for that utilitarianism...

Some have compared The Fellowship to The Church of Scientology (or any crazy cult, for that matter)... there are great differences between the two, but both have extremely suspicious ways of handling things. =)

Sources: Ultima VII and the accompanying document "The Book of Fellowship"

In Ultima VII, Alagner, who was said to be the wisest man in all of Britannia, had a very insightful analysis of the principles known as the Triad of Inner Strength being endorsed by the Fellowship and had this to say about them in his notebook:

This implies that the Fellowship considers itself an élite and prejudicial group. That implies that the Fellowship believed, just as the present United States under George W. Bush after the disaster of September 11, 2001 does, that if you are not for them, then you are against them. Now where would you be if you were against them...

The hidden subtext in this principle that the Fellowship promotes is obedience without question: trust your brother regardless of what that might imply.

If one does good deeds for the Fellowship, one will be rewarded for it, but of course if one does not do that, then one will get a reward as well... Rewards can be both good or bad.

And Alagner concludes in his study of the Fellowship:

...After careful study, I have come to the conclusion that the group is serving some higher, malevolent entity, referred to by the organization's inner circle as 'The Guardian'...

Source: Alagner's notebook in New Magincia from Ultima VII. Play the game till you reach the Wisps.