You Seem Surprised That I Can't Hear You.

Birgs are freaking awesome

The Flag Chase

Shown here is a late summer ritual carried out by the Ruruumi bachelor group: garbed in little more than a decorative collar, a young gifter climbs onto the back of a wild Ahoũitre, the Resplendent Flagdeer, to remove its brilliantly colored display feathers as a trophy to present during the nuptial gifting ceremonies in the fall. Using an obsidian knife, the cut must be clean enough to shed no more than a few drops of blood, without damaging the feathers, and performed without being hurled to the ground by the bucking animal. It is a sport requiring an impressive display of courage, agility, and control over one’s own trunkhorse, and for many kakroum bachelors, this and related high risk sports are a rite of status in their tightly knit brotherhoods. Many bachelor groups will specialize in ‘capturing’ a specific animal, though flagdeer are exceptionally prized for their feathers, which adorn the regalia of many clan residents. It is a feat that frequently ends in serious injury or death, but something that only a frivolous gifter can afford to perform, free from the responsibility of maintaining a village. In the process, he proves in himself the sort of strength and cleverness that any would-be mother would wish to see in her own daughters.

As for the flagdeer, it will be released after having been separated from its feathers. Though its wounds are relatively minor, it will have no hope of impressing its own kind in the coming mating season. Flag removal is a strategy employed by sparring male flagdeer as well, which will attempt to mangle or nip off the other’s display feathers to oust the competition. If the damage is minor, the flags will regrow the following year, but the cut made a birg’s knife frequently takes the entire “hand” of the appendage, preventing a complete regeneration.

Milder imitations of this sport are practiced by both children and adults. One common variant involves two teams, each defending am urwuzhu (mid-sized livestock) with a ribbon or flag tied to some part of its body. The opposing teams attempt to remove the flag from each other’s animal and carry it back to their section of the village. Such games can become immensely rowdy and still result in a lot of bruises, scrapes, and animal bites. Twowi children play a similar game, but wanting for a farm animal will chase after a fellow birg’s tail tassels instead.

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