Mirrikh had ventured into Cetus, and since they had done so they had witnessed a wide variety of spiders from above. One in particular, that glowed with an array of colors, had caught their eye. It made beautiful webs, and it was more than simply a random spider.
The thought had reoccurred to them, that if they found more challenging prey than a mouse, they could hunt one for a stone instead of simply not hunting.
And so here they were, searching for one of those spiders that had caught their eye, but with a gemstone.
It did not take as long as they had expected to find one, and they hovered from above, watching the spider, twice as long as they were tall.
A part of them wanted to charge into the fight, but they knew their species was meant for more cautious hunting, even if they could hunt bigger prey.
They studied the gem for a moment. It looked like a white opal, perhaps. It was pretty, even through the fog. A good stone.
The spider had not noticed them yet, many creatures simply did not think to look up, and even if it did, it might simply see a butterfly rather than the predator that Mirrikh was.
A good time to see if their paralysis powder would hit. They shook it off their wings, directly over the spider.
The wind shifted, though, partway through falling and the powder blew backward. Some got in their eyes, but they were immune to the paralytic, at least. That didn't mean getting powder in their eyes was any more pleasant, though.
Well, that had been a dismal failure, though the spider was still yet to notice Mirrikh, as they flew upwards as they tried to get powder out of their eyes so as to not alert their prey.
Eventually, they cleared it well enough that they felt alright continuing.
The spider was still sitting in its web, waiting for prey. It did not know it would soon be prey instead, they thought.
Might as well start off strong, they thought, diving done and going for a flurry of attacks with teeth and claws, both of which contained their stonerot venom.
Except... they dove and missed the spider, ending up with legs stuck on the web. They wanted to swear, the spider's attention was now focused on them.
It was approaching, and Mirrikh might not be able to move their feet, which was. Not good. But it seemed to not realize that Mirrikh was a predator, moving in casually as if they were an insect caught.
Mirrikh would prove it wrong, they thought, going for not one bite at the spider, but a sudden many bites. It worked, their venomous bite catching the frontmost legs a great deal, calcifying the tissue.
They grinned sharply.
It stumbled backwards, apparently startled by the sheer amount of fight its 'prey' had.
To continue this fight, it would be best if they got their legs freed while the spider was still stunned a bit. They used their retractable claws, trying to break free of the web their paws were entangled in.
It failed, but at least they hadn't gotten more entangled.
The spider seemed done being stunned, though, and decided it was time to fight this odd butterfly, moving in with more drama this time, practically jumping over Mirrikh, so as to be on top of them.
The spider's head was close enough now that Mirrikh felt they could safely aim for it, at least. If he took the head, it was done. With a chomp, the spider was headless.
The body gave some flails for a moment, then fell backwards out of the web. Now Mirrikh just needed to get free and retrieve the moonstone.
...Easier said then done, of course. But at least there was no spider looming over them, now.
Much easier said then done. Mirrikh hissed in frustration as the web stayed intact, and their paws stuck on it. They had struggled pretty hard, they thought.
They really wanted to get free of this annoyance, but this was troublesome. They glanced around, trying to think if there was some alternate way they could do this.
No longer did Mirrikh think this web was anything approaching pretty. It was stupid, and annoying, and they hated it. They didn't know what to do other than continue their scratching and struggling.
This time, just barely, they broke free. Below, the spider's corpse was turning to oil, but Mirrikh saw the moonstone, glinting.
With a feeling of victory, they plucked up the moonstone. It was theirs now, until they felt ready to give life. And then it would another's, but of a greater like them.
[Exit Mirrikh]