"Tonight, should have been a great night. Our warriors have returned after a long journey and brought back meat for all of us to eat. Unfortunately, I bear sad and bad news." Kamaria wasn't planning on beating around the bush, so she directly said that as she looked at everyone.
"What is happening?"
"Did something happen?"
The tribesmen were unease when they heard that. They started whispering to each other, curious about what was going on. Thankfully, the priestess didn't leave them hanging for a long time.
"As you are all aware. On the day of my summoning, we nearly landed in the hands of the cannibals and became their meals."
"Yes, that happened, and it was scary."
"Thankfully, the priestess killed all of them and we were saved!"
Kamaria smiled wryly as she listened to that, but still continued as she tapped the staff head.
"We fought and won, which should have been a relief, but unfortunately that isn't the case. On the same night I arrived, the Great God gave me a vision, and it wasn't anything good.
The cannibals will be coming for an attack and this time, they won't be joking. Because of those that were killed, they will become wary and once they become wary, they would try their best to eradicate a threat.
My appearance here will threaten them and they would do anything in their power to make sure I either join them or they kill me!" as soon as she said that, the tribesmen were in disarray.
"How could that be your fault?"
"Yes, if you haven't killed those shameless cannibals. We would be dead by now."
"There is no way that we will allow them to bully us."
The warriors clenched their fists as they listened to that. Unlike the ordinary people, they were the ones fighting with these cannibals. They lost so many brothers and friends to those man-eating people.
To think that they would want to take the priestess from them and, in the process, eradicate them, they were filled with so much anger.
Thinking about the tribe that had gotten smaller with every attack, Deene, who still remembered how his father sacrificed himself to save him, directly knelt down, making a thud sound which attracted Kamaria, who was checking everyone's response.
Wondering what he was up to, Kamaria felt touched the next second when the young man loudly vowed, "Priestess, I will give my life to fight off those bastards. We can't let them spill any of our blood. If we were to die, we will die fighting!" his teeth gritted and fists clenched.
There was a certain fire in his eyes, which made her curious about what he had experienced for someone his age. Unfortunately, she was unable to think further as all the warriors followed suit and vowed to fight.
Hearing their vows, as a priestess she was indeed touched, but there was no way she was going to let anyone die with her around.
"At ease, my warriors!" she gestured for them to rise on their feet and they did so but their fighting spirit had been ignited. She could sense their aura from where she was sitting. It made them look very manly.
"Don't worry, with me here. Nothing will happen," she said reassuringly before continuing, "the cannibals will indeed come but when they do, they won't find us here. We will be moving locations and when its time, I shall tell you.
That is why tonight, with everyone present, I wanted to address you all. Starting from tomorrow, the warriors will not go to any hunting grounds to hunt. You shall be helping me to harvest food nearly. We have found the bamboo forests and, in those forests, there should be small animals called bamboo rats.
If we find them, then we are lucky. That will add to our meat reserves and if we don't, then we just harvest the shoots. It's still food. However, since you are hunters, you shall be working in those forests and doing your best to find them. Moreover, digging the shoots as well will fall on you.
The others have workloads waiting for them. It shall be all hands on deck in days to come.
During this period, all food shall be rationed. So don't complain when you get your share. The ration of meat will be reduced. As you have seen, the animals are becoming scarce. Until we find more animals for meat, we shall not be splurging like we used to.
But you must not worry about meat as well. Recently we are fishing and one day I will show you how to prepare the fish to consume. Fish can replace or be an alternative for meat. So even if we can't find animals in the future, we can still rely on fish.
So, from now on, we shall have more staples, vegetables and a little meat. Anyway, that's all for food. If anyone has a question, then this is the time for you to do so."
Kamaria looked at her people as she said so.
Once she gave the floor to them, Hamza who had his chance stolen by Deene a while ago was the first to ask, "Priestess, so will all the animals hunted now be kept and be eaten on the road or when we reach the new place?"
"Good question. We shall prepare some for the road and the majority will have to be eaten once we reach the new place. We can still survive on vegetables, staples and fruits. And don't worry about the food getting bad. I will take care of the problem," she answered, not just Hamza but everyone who was curious about the matter.
"Where is the new place located?" Deene made his second appearance, and Kamaria nodded with satisfaction when she heard that.
So far, no one had asked her where that place was. It was nice for a change to see that someone was very concerned.
"It's somewhere very far but to the North of where we are right now," she generously answered Deene, not hiding the sparkle in her eyes as she did so.
Hamza, seeing that, clenched his jaws as he felt challenged. How come this young warrior was so active? Could it be that he was interested in the priestess and wanted to be seen?
Unfortunately, those thoughts were hidden and not said out loud.
A few more questions were asked, and she answered them generously. After providing more insight on the issue, she resumed her address. "With all that said, I want to remind all of you that you must work hard. Not just for the tribe, but for your sake. Anyone who doesn't work and participate will not eat my food. No one here was born to serve you. We all fight to get what we want. So, bear that in mind."
"Lastly, I will repeat this once, and I hope that you will not force me to say it again. Everyone must take a bath every day with ash since I haven't found a good replacement …." This time, she directly emphasized the body parts that needed a lot of attention, making everyone feel shy for a moment. But she was worried that if she didn't do so, these people might just rub their bodies and the results would remain the same.
"Use charcoal to brush your teeth and tongue. That way, your mouth won't stink when you talk. If you want to talk to me, make sure that you have bathed properly and your mouth washed. Don't make me hate you because of not doing so.
When you are defecating, remember to do it away from the tribe. By doing it everywhere, you promote flies and other germs, which would then make us sick in the future. Besides, the place where we live will stink and not smell nice. So please, let us be respectful of the place where we live. If you are found not following that, you shall be punished severely."
Kamaria understood that telling a child something requires constant reminders. But they weren't children, and she believed that they would understand and follow what they had been taught.
"Oh~ and another important thing, you all must be wondering about the ceremony. We shall have it when we go to the new place. However, when it comes to picking the people who will serve me. I shall do so at my own pace. As long as I find you pleasing to the eye, you will be chosen. For now, I have already picked someone to be my maidservant. Her name is Amari. That's what you must call her," she said to them before looking in the direction where Amari was and calling her, "Come here!" and all eyes were in that direction.
Under the inquisitive gazes of many, Amari stepped forward, and the women were shocked.
'A woman has a name!' such a revelation dumbfounded them.