The cave of Canis was hauntingly beautiful.


Mossie gingerly pads between the wreckages of creatures long past, and felt unsettling presences crawling up her spine. Curiousity and dread, as always, war within her in equal measure. The glittering stones within make her wonder--could one create new life from the destruction that must've occured here in ages long past? Would echos of the original Gembound remain?

She flattens her ears. This room isn't a funky kind of unsettling, like Tsetse. It's just creepy. She needs to get in and get out asap.

"Collector?" She yowls, hoping desperately the rumors hadn't just been rumors and she wasn't screaming into the void of this creepy cave for no reason. "I summon you, pretty please?"

The touch of Order here was maddening. Whether their forces had 'won' and left, or 'lost' and left--it didn't matter to him. He could come and go with a breath, a thought--he feared them very little--but it was like a rusted blade grating at the edges of his very essence.

Well. At least he was being summoned. This would be a welcome distraction. For a time.

The Collector shifted from where he was standing, perhaps a dozen yards off to Mossie's left, leaning back (arms crossed) against a warped stalagmite. "And summoned I am," he crooned, extracting one arm from the other to tip a loose salute the little cat's way.

Crimson pinprick eyes regarded her intently.

"And what a polite little creature you are, too. I am the Collector. Please. Tell me who you are, and how I might help you."

@Mossie

"I always try"--and sometimes fail"--to be polite, sir," she says with a dip of her head. "My name is Mossie. Sorry if I'm getting any of this wrong. I'm kind of new to summoning all-powerful dubious entities for power and all. But what I want is to know about the most powerful creatures in the caves, so I can find someone to pledge myself to and give me purpose."

Her tail flicks side to side with nervousness, but she pushes on. Anything was worth the answers she sought.

"I'd like to pledge myself to someone who knows, someone who wants me to spread enlightenment, someone who can grant me my wish of purpose." Her eyes blazed with fervor. "I'll do anything!"

"Dubious," he murmured as if surprised, with the slightest little 'tsk,' and the faintest hint of reproach in his mild gaze.

"A pleasure, Mossie, I'm sure," he then went on at last, once her request had been fully given. He turned, pulling a chair forward to sit on. The chair was worn, wooden, and had not been there mere seconds before.

"You are, if you'll permit the point, committing something of a logical fallacy here," he began. A second, smaller chair was pulled out from behind his own, set before him, and patted gently with black-clawed hand in invitation. "The most powerful creatures are not necessarily those with the most knowledge. And purpose, well..." Crimson pinprick eyes glittered, though with what remained unclear. "There is a story I told another, once, one who came to me to seek purpose. I will tell you, in the spirit of honest trade, that there's no point seeking 'purpose;' you're a creature of clay who will melt and one day be forgotten, and nothing you create will ever be remembered. It's all very nihilistic," he went on, with a dismissive wave of one hand, as if--perhaps ironically--none of what he was saying really mattered.

"If you're asking me to list the most knowledgeable creatures, I might do so. If you'd prefer the most powerful, I can certainly do that. But what are your restrictions? I presume," and he lifted one hand ticking off points on his claws with his other, "this creature must be within the caves and thus contactable to share that wisdom; they must be willing to speak to your kind--there's no point in prostrating yourself before the Creator, after all, he'd likely simply eat you," he mused, looking the little cat over. "And presumably, for your purposes, must have some level of wisdom..?"

Of course, there were other things he could push Mossie toward--and his sense of grim mischief flickered through him. "There are, of course... other options, other ways to contact beings that might guide you... But either way, whatever you require--and please, take this time to clarify to me exactly what you wish; power or knowledge--they are two different things-... Whichever you choose, my services do come at a cost."

@Mossie

Mossie shudders. "Logical fallacies. How dreadful." Mossie thought she was above them, but apparently not.

"That may be so, sir, it may not. But by the time I'm gone, I wouldn't know, would I?" She thinks back to Tsetse. If she'd been devoured by a dinosaur tomorrow, she still would've been brought joy by following her purpose.

"Those do sound like restrictions I'd follow, yes. But if I'd may, I'd like a bit more information before I agree one way or another--word has it your prices are quite steep, after all." Mossie had no qualms with getting her claws dirty, considering the amount of beasts she'd slain already. It might be tricky, though.

"Is there any entity who has a decent amount of wisdom, will give me power for following them, and..." she paused. "Has some fucked up rituals to follow? Last part's optional. I just think it'd be funny."

Before Mossie had quite finished, he'd gestured questioningly at the chair, inviting her up a second time. "Sit, if you wish." And then he listened. And when she'd finished, well-...

The Collector stared, for a beat.

Fucked-up rituals? He suppressed a smile. "I like the way you think. That would be amusing," he responded, tapping claws on his knee.

For a moment, the Collector appeared lost in thought, those crimson eyes trained on Mossie almost absent.

"You know," he began at last, "I think there is such an entity..? I have long called it The Shadow, for it seems to lurk unseen, simply watching these caves. But there is a way to contact it. I have no reason to do so myself, of course, but..."

He seemed to hesitate, a frown in his words when next he spoke, as if reluctant. "Let me be clear... The Shadow knows a great deal. Perhaps everything you would wish--I cannot say for certain. It holds depths of knowledge that would shock and scar you."

Another pause, and a breath. "But the cost of that knowledge is... as you say, rather--ahem--twisted ritual. It would not harm you--I can say that much for certain. It will not reach beyond its veil and pluck out your eyes, for example. But it is..."

Crimson eyes glittered.

"...It is bitter, in some sense. It is, as many deities of this nest, chaotic. It is highly intelligent, but it bears a touch of... hm. Shall we call it, sadism? It does not hate your kind, and even perhaps enjoys their company to some extent, but it revels in its dominance, in its own way."

He plucked thoughtfully at his robes.

"It might ask, for example, for blood or stone to be sacrificed at its altar, or a chant sung to it in the night, or a message spread among other Gembound--and for these, it will grant you answers."

"I cannot tell you the nature of this thing--only that it was, at some point, created here by powerful beings and left to wander the caves. That it may be an echo of something that was once... greater. But it is very real, and it can give you what you wish, if you are willing to submit before it-... that is the decision you must make. And if you are interested... we can, perhaps, discuss prices."

He fell silent, for a moment, studying Mossie. "What I offer is a way to contact this being consistently, so that you may receive its commands and its wisdom, should it choose to offer it. And if this interests you... What have you to offer me..?"

@Mossie

Mossie pads up to the chair, sitting down.

"This Shadow certainly sounds like an interesting creature," she said, trying to hide her eagerness--though her rapidly flicking tail betrays her. "A little scary, a little demanding of blood, but..." she thinks back to her encounter with Tsetse. "All the most worthy creatures are, no? Including you, if the rumors are true."


Mossie hums, sitting back on her haunches. "That depends on what you want, no? Your title implies you like items--and I have some, though probably not any impressive enough for a creature of your power. A little fucked-up lizard gemstone here, a few strange hallucinatory toxins there...but that feels almost too easy, right?" She trains her gaze on him.

"I'm a hunter. I've only hunted Lessers before, but I wouldn't be opposed to taking down a Greater too." Her belly squirms with faint discomfort, but she forced it down. It would be worth it for purpose.

"I have greater magical aptitude than the average gembound, though there are certainly those more powerful than me. But given enough time, any price you name--I can pay it. Like I said before, I'll do anything."

The Collector nodded, palms pressing together briefly in thought. He smiled behind the hood, a barely-visible shift of black in shadow.

"It is. Interesting, that is. At least, I should hope so, or I am rather a terrible tradesman," he added, with a little laugh. "But if it does interest you... then I will tell you how it works, and what our deal will be, then."

He lifted a hand, raising three clawed fingers.

"First, you must build an altar of stone. It must be flat-topped, six to seven feet long, two and a half feet wide, and two feet tall. The best results will be gained if the stone is black, or dark in color, and something durable--but gemstone or simple carved rock, it does not matter the material. It must, however, all be carved from the same stone, so you may need someone with the element of earth to aid you."

One finger was ticked downward, folding against a hairy palm.

"Next, you must bring me the gemstone of a Greater Gembound. It does not matter whose, or how it was obtained--if you killed them or simply found the stone. And I will not ask," and he sounded more solemn, now. "I will use part of its magic to re-energize the item I will then give you, the reward for our trade: The Conduit of Shadow. The rest of the stone will be mine to keep, as per our trade."

The second finger ticked downward.

"Our contract will then be complete--but you will need to bring the Conduit to the altar and use it to summon The Shadow. Each summoning will cost one life--a Lesser is perfectly fine, but it must be killed upon the altar in the presence of the summoning device. From there, The Shadow will answer your questions and teach you its arcane rituals--but know that some of its answers may incur a cost of their own," he warned.

The third finger ticked downward and he folded his hand away, sliding it into his robe at chest-level--and when he withdrew it, it held a roll of parchment in his hand.

"If this is acceptable to you, you will agree to the contract and then you may begin your search for a stone, and go about making the altar."

The Collector then unfurled the scroll, turning it toward Mossie. It was battered parchment, filled with inked print, with a bare space at the bottom right just big enough for one paw. He pointed to it, the implication clear: she was to place her paw upon the spot to 'sign.'

He leaned in, leaned close. "...Do we have a deal?" he purred.

@Mossie

"In all honesty, I thought you'd ask for more," Mossie said with a dip of her head. "We have a deal, sir. I'll be back, hopefully soon."

She steps up, trying to calm her racing heart, and places a muddy paw on the signing spot.

Her mind buzzed as she bade farewell and left the creepy bone room with a spring in her step. She had a goal now, something to look forward to--and though it would be difficult, she knew the end result would be worth it. On top of someone who Knew, power beyond what she could taste...

She'd finally have something to do with her experiment lessers after she was done.

As Mossie's paw touched the parchment, muddy or not, it... changed.

A thread of smoke began to rise--then seared the paper with a flash. When she removed her paw, she would note a burned black imprint of her paw settled on the page, an ember-glow still fading from its edges and a twist of smoke still drifting upward.

The Collector stood up straight, shaking it out, and looked imperiously down at the cat before him. "The contract," he purred, "is sealed."

As she turned to go, The Collector faded from sight.

@Mossie (for visibility)