Cave Stalker Culture

The Cave Stalkers are the only species in the Nightlight Zone able to form culture, or at least, culture that can be documented. While there is some variation between certain groups of Cave Stalkers, cataloguing the full extent of this culture is beyond our capabilities, and thus this will only be a general overview.

Culture

Major language groups and dialects

The Cave Stalkers speak their own and only major language - dubbed "Rrōn-onāqu" for simplicity - which is fundamentally similar to human language, though slightly difficult for humans to speak in its original form. Cave Stalkers are unable to replicate human languages with their voice box, due to their inability to produce nasal sounds like a human easily does. Instead, they use their telepathy in order to speak into a human's mind, able to learn their languages in the process.

Culture and cultural heritage

Because this species once had a much more advanced civilization, it is likely that their current culture is a mixture of several extinct cultures that diverged over time, though no living representatives can confirm this. As it stands currently, their set of beliefs revolve heavily around the natural world, as they heavily depend on its cycles to sustain themselves. Their religious beliefs are centered around survival in the wild rather than traditional theology.

Common Etiquette rules

Cave Stalkers have basic etiquette in the form of not attacking anyone unprovoked, and keeping to themselves if need be. The latter rules leads to different individuals' arms interlocking as a general violation of personal space, unless between two individuals with a close relationship. It is also common courtesy to not eat anything upside down, as Cave Stalkers find the sight of exposed beaks consuming food unpleasant. They are also particularly vocal about this. Another common etiquette rule is to not swim around behind someone's head, a.k.a. their blind spot, because it causes unease in most sensible individuals.

Common Dress code

They don't commonly wear much clothing, and the only clothing worn by these creatures will be satchels and bags made to carry items. These bags are most often worn on the back of the head, prompting an individual to swim backwards like a squid, so the bag doesn't get in the way of the head bending. They can also be worn by attaching the strap just underneath the eyes, so they hang above the arms, analogous to a waist bag on a human.

Wearing clothing - or even protective guards - on the arms would stiffen them, and make manipulating the environment much more inconvenient for their anatomy. Wearing clothing on the head would hide any recognizable features such as the horns and markings, and create what Cave Stalkers consider creepy. Although their siphons are used in reproduction, they are also not covered, as they also aid in respiration and are unable to function without being exposed to the water.

Art & Architecture

Cave Stalker art is almost always made inside caves. These artworks will mostly consist of lines carved in the rock conveying only contour, never being colored due to the Cave Stalkers' colorblindness. Some other cave wall art will consist of more 3D carvings, specifically shapes being carved out from the wall like a sculpture. A different type of artwork can be found with 3D statuettes left on the floors of caves, which can depict anything from animals, to tools, to deities. Cave Stalkers will often leave these behind as a message to future inhabitants of the cave, with the gist being if the carving is not damaged, chances are the cave is safe for habitation.

On the topic of architecture, Cave Stalkers currently do not build extravagant structures to live in, and thus do not have an advanced concept of architecture. Though, they did have different styles of architecture long ago.

Common Customs, traditions and rituals

One major tradition developed by the Cave Stalkers is that relating to trade. When two or more nomadic bands come into contact, they are likely to attempt to trade with each other. The chiefs of each band will present themselves, and give a basic rundown of the resources their respective groups have gathered. If one group catches wind of anything they want, a few trades will begin, while others may look for individuals to claim as romantic partners. The couple will either stay in the female Cave Stalker's band, or will mate and split apart, with an egg being left in the new mother's care. These trade customs being broken is usually a sign of offense.

Birth & Baptismal Rites

Most often, female Cave Stalkers will only lay one egg at a time when having found a husband. The individual is expected to not let the egg out of her sights, and must see to its condition at least once a day, sometimes spending long period of rest with the egg. It is common for the egg to have to hatch in its mother's cradle arms, as the first contact between a baby Cave Stalker and their mother is considered important above all else. Another important belief is that the baby should not be helped when hatching unless absolutely necessary, as it is considered its first experience with dealing with the forces of nature.

Common Taboos

One cultural taboo the Cave Stalkers have is to try to refrain from speaking harshly against the creature they believe swallowed their world, or else it will manipulate the ocean currents to work against them. A major social taboo they have is to keep their arms away from someone's siphon at all times, as sticking an arm into a siphon is how these creatures reproduce, and thus is reserved for mature romantic partners. 

Common Myths and Legends

Cave Stalkers have developed a diverse mythology attempting to explain their world, though most of it is likely far from the truth. As a general summary, they believe that the Nightlight Zone was swallowed by a creature of unimaginable sizes, and that Earth resides on its backside. That is why the Nightlight Zone is dark, while Earth is a paradise for its inhabitants, which is why the animals there are naturally weaker than those in the Nightlight Zone. They have a small pantheon of deities, structured like a mix of soft polytheism and animism, with these deities being modeled after several types of animal found in the Nightlight Zone. They also believe that they themselves were formed from amalgamations of different existing species, only given higher thought by their deities.

A large portion of their artwork is modeled after their mythology, representing various stories or gods. They make carvings into cave walls about them, as well as small 3D sculptures that are used as toys or simple decorative trinkets in their camps.

Ideals

Beauty Ideals

These beings have developed beauty ideals that have remained fundamentally the same across most bands that exist. Female Cave Stalkers with larger cradles on their arms are generally favored as more attractive, along with a more bulbous head shape. Male Cave Stalkers are favored in overall size and strength, with some horn and red mark patterns being preferred over others. Voices, however, are rarely scrutinized in the name of beauty as one would expect, as most Cave Stalker voices sound the same to each other.

Gender Ideals

Most nomadic bands of Cave Stalkers are generally egalitarian, with males being selected for hunting for meat, while females stay behind to look after children if they have any. Other tasks such as gathering, making clothing, or shelter are generally free for anyone to take part in. In family structure, most groups are matrilineal in nature, with inheritance gained from the mother. In rarer occasions, an individual Cave Stalker may never meet their father in their life, considering this species often reproduces when two different clans meet and part ways, with mothers raising their young alone in this case.

Courtship Ideals

In Cave Stalker relationships, most individuals generally do not care who makes the first attempt at courtship. Because it is a resource that is plentiful in their environment, these creatures carve stones or plant bark into small pieces of art, which can be presented to court someone else. A common unspoken rule is that it has to be a surprise for the other party, and dialogue is often less used in courtship. Another general rule is to not show rudeness to the other party, no matter what.

Related Locations
The Halocline Pits 
The Halocline Lake 
Related Myths
The Cave Stalker Creation Myth 
The Cave Stalker Afterlife 
Related Language
Rrōn-onāqu