Chapter 329: Chapter 313 – Life in the Prairie

“Whoever coined the term ‘trappings’ to describe what most considered civilized society could not have been more apt, in my opinion. All too often people found themselves so used to the comforts and conveniences of modern society that they turned dependent on it to live, and often had no idea what needed to be done to survive without them.

 

While it might not be that bad in smaller cities, much less villages, try to pick some random citizen of a large, populous city, the sort where people could easily live their lives without ever leaving its walls. If you dumped said person out in the wilderness, chances were greater than even that they would have no idea how to live without all the conveniences they were used to.

 

It was one reason why some people out there made use of some of the modern conveniences, but at the same time lived their lives most of the same way their ancestors did. Because for some people, the trappings of society were not worth what one lost in exchange for its embrace.” - Vaudja of Clan Ambershine, Senior Shaman, circa 291 FP.

To her surprise, Celia found that life on the prairies to be a blissful, peaceful, pleasant experience. The orc clan were nomads, who moved around the prairie as they followed herds of migratory animals, like great four-horned aurochs, wooly bisons, or various sorts of great lizards. The current encampment of the Bloodfang Clan was situated not far from where many such herds grazed contentedly, and in the close vicinity of a small, crystal-clear stream to boot.

 

During the daytime, several parties of hunters and warriors would depart the encampment, as they tried to bring down some prey for the Clan. Not all of them would join the hunt, however, as younger ones would be taught to forage for various sorts of edible wild plants, tubers, and fruits by some of the more seasoned hunters amongst them.

 

Aideen and Celia had been invited by Orica herself to join her party for the hunt, and they watched how the orcs hunted. As was typical for cultures that relied on hunting for their sustenance, the orcs generally mastered the usage of spears and bows to bring down their prey. The skilled archers would injure - or when lucky, kill - a prey from afar and drive them into an ambush of spear-wielding hunters that would then end the prey swiftly.

 

The entire clan itself was not too large a community, probably around a thousand five hundred to two thousand orcs, barely the amount of people that a large village in the empire might have. One stark difference however, is how every member of the clan seemed to have something to do, other than children who were simply too young to be given responsibilities of their own.

 

While the hunters - and part of the warriors, who often also hunted as well - were out on the hunt, the rest of the warriors protected the encampment, while others in the clan did whatever tasks they had in hand. Some weaved fibers and threads into mats and rugs, or made clothing out of leather and makeshift fabrics. Others prepared food for the rest, or cared for the various mounts and domesticated animals the clan kept.

 

Everybody in the clan pitched in with the work that needed to be done, as the communal spirit was strong with the orcish tribes. Unlike humans, who typically perceived their identities as closest to their immediate family first, the orcs had the strongest sense of belonging to their clan first and foremost. Part of it was cultivated by their culture, and how they raised their young.

 

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The young orcs were raised communally, together with the other youngsters of the clan, by whichever adults were tasked with taking care of the young on that particular day. While they would be returned to their respective parents come evening, the clan as a whole would take care of the young regardless of their parentage should their parents be lost or indisposed and thus unable to do it themselves. That in turn helped foster a spirit of unity with the clan from a young age.

 

Part of the reason for that was because of a peculiarity of orcish culture that had made Celia blush in embarrassment when she first learned of it. Orcs were extremely promiscuous in their youth, and those dalliances would at times naturally result in children. Such children born out of wedlock were generally considered simply as children of the Clan itself, rather than those of their parents.

 

On the other hand, once an orc had chosen a mate for themselves and bonded with them, they turned fiercely monogamous. Orcish marriages lasted until death, and even then, it was rare for a widow or widower to re-marry, so strong was the bond between them. The odd juxtaposition of positions baffled Celia quite a bit, though Aideen was more familiar with it since the orcs of Ur-Teros were the same way.

 

After she lived in their midst for a couple of months, Celia could no longer connect the orcs before her with the man-eating savages from the stories she had heard. To her, they had turned to just another people, doubly so as she slowly learned their language with the aid of the Shaman and his apprentices. Burlier, green-to-gray skinned, tusked and slightly hunched people, but people all the same.

 

Compared to how humans relied on agriculture, the orcish ways where they relied on hunting and gathering might have looked obsolete and primitive, probably one reason the stories were so quick to label them as backwards, savage barbarians. Celia couldn’t help but find that such a life had its own charms, though, an entirely different one to “civilized” life to be sure, but it was just as valid a way of life.

 

She began to wonder if what the Empire was doing was the right thing in the first place, but Aideen quickly informed her that there was no right or wrong way to live one’s life, as long as they were at peace with themselves. The problem was that many people often viewed their way as the right way, the only way there should be, and tried to impose that view on others.

 

Naturally, such things would often just lead to conflicts and bloodshed.

 

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