It was a perfect night when I woke up. There was soft rain falling outside the cave. I emerged from my small abode to gather with the other bats that had woken in the cavern. We were a large tribe, our numbers peaking at the thousands. Our territory held the White-Tipped Caves and bordered the Mist River of Deep. Beyond the Mist River was territory that belongs to others.
The tribe was ruled by three kings who held equal power. The crown was either inherited or granted to a chosen heir before death. The kings employed a court of Elites and Nobles. Elites were the class of people whom the greatest warriors have come from and wore a silver chain with a ruby pendant. Nobles were the families that governed specific regions of land and wore a silver chain with an emerald pendant. Of equal standing to the Elites and Nobles were the Priests and Priestess who wore silver chains with a gold pendant. The next in line of rank were those of Tradesmen who wore an iron chain with amber topaz. These were doctors, smiths, and such. Next were the Hunters and Gatherers. They wore a cobalt chain with a moonstone pendant. Pendants could be customized to an extent, not beyond changing the base materials used.
Each class had a specific set of rights, however, the majority of these were only applicable to the higher class. Elites and Nobles were able to wage tournament duels in which each side would put at stake something of equal value. This could be something small such as wealth or to extreme lengths, they would wage land. These duels were known as the Contest of Rights.
Elites and nobles were also allowed to challenge and duel one another. These duels either ended in death or the yielding of one party. Duels could not be extended to one of another class below. Elites and nobles were also often the only ones able to afford the equipment and weapons for a duel.
The land of the Tribe had one massive central cavern. This was land that was ruled by the king. Small passages lead to other caverns that were ruled by the Nobles. The right to rule expanded outside of the cave as well. Parts of the forest have regular roosts and patrols running past the borders to make sure the land was defended.
I wore a byzantine chain with a moonstone pendant nestled in a cobalt cage. The cage resembled the pattern of a beehive. As a hunter, I was considered the lowest class. I would go out every morning to hunt for insects which I would then deliver to a patrol site. Patrol sites would have storage units to store food, by which at the end of the night we would take back to the Tribe.
Each Hunter and Gatherer must have their own storage unit. A fifteen percent tax was exacted on your total catch that night. The rest was to sell or eat. The taxed food was sent to the processing plant where the food would be preserved and stored away in one of the many Preservation Units.
I wore a canvas belt. Two pouches were attached to my belt. One pouch carried cricket jerky. The other pouch carried my pendant when I was hunting. I also wore a flight mask made from willow bark.
I was a pallid bat who had a brief childhood in the desert before my small tribe was assimilated into the White-Tipped Caves.
However, I still carried the customs of my tribe. This included the braided fur of my back. The fur was braided into the deathstalker scorpion. It was the old tradition of every male pallid bat to find one and hunt one. You must then eat the deathstalker scorpion whole. Once you did, the color of your eyes changed because of the poison. The effect would last weeks. When you returned and the whole tribe saw your eyes, they would then honor you as a mature adult.
Different color ribbons were interwoven in the braids to highlight the details. Then underneath the fur, further accents were tattooed in. Each pattern was unique. Mine was a top-down view of the scorpion in a mural style. Sections of my fur were separated to mimic the colors and effects of the geometric patterns of stained glass found in the steepled shaped building of the desert hunting lands. It was intricately woven and the braid would hold for a lifetime.
