23/01/2025

Journal number 1, log 2, On the subject of mruki, the bottom feeders of dark spirits

Origin: Darkness, dampness, and corners, the mruki seem to inhabit spaces most people would consider horrid and disheveled, like the cockroaches of the spiritual they are very hard to get rid of, only persistent cleaning, both physical and spiritual will do the trick.

Emotions: I've mostly been tying them to hopelessness and giving up. But they seem to be connected to the "vibes" of the place where they are rooted rather than the people.

Description: Small blob-like creatures the color of dirt and grime having an odd amount of limbs, at least 3 and never more than 7, mruki have a singular orange eye that seems to reflect light like a cat, the smallest ones I've seen have been the size of small earbuds, the largest about the size of my palm, their size disparity creates a rough bell curve.

Mannerisms: Mruki are sedentary stalkers that settle in a place and do not move unless they have to, even if you shine a light on them they will not go away, you must shoo them away physically, best done with a broom. Mruki leave behind residue anywhere they go, so the quicker they're cleared the easier the cleanup will be. I generally throw them out of the balcony when it's time to clean them up, they don't seem to mind too much as they float lazily down to the ground.

Firuna (Coining this new term to mean the spiritual ecosystem in a given place): I have seen mruki be eaten and consumed by bigger spirits that have the same affinities, things like senki and furki are their natural predators. Will write about them another time. Mruki seem to also be the bottom feeders of the dark affinity spirits, showing the least destructive and most benign effects of entropy and lack of care.

Authors Note: I have still not figured out if spirits cause effects in the material world or if the material world causes effects in the "other", e.i. do mruki cause dirt, degradation, darkness, and a feeling of ickiness, or if those things attract mruki? Perhaps both to a certain degree.

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"Stop Serdika, if you have forgotten items in the metro call number 08555, stop Serdika."

I looked closed my notes app and checked over for anything forgotten then headed out of the metro. Opening up the maps app it took me a bit to realize where I was supposed to go, a witch shop hopefully they had everything I needed, and perhaps I could even get some information.

Stumbling trough the lightly lit underground corridors of the metro I saw dense gatherings of mruki in the corners, dust bunnies on the mosaics and other spirits wondering about, filling the already colorful halls with such saturated colors that it hurt my eyes to stare.

Eventually though, the turnstiles clicked, the cold air hit my face, and I hid my face in my scarf. The midmorning sun beat down on me as I made my way trough the cracked streets of the city filled with snow. Guided by my phone I made my way to an alley from the main road.

"A left and straight ahead... huh George street, wasn't that the name of saint?" I said to myself as I looked down the street, the panel blocks varying only by the amount they have decayed since constructed, that and their balconies' laundry.

There was a distinct lack of spirits, as my feet crunched the snow beneath me a sense of wrongness washed over me yet I proceeded forwards. My phone vibrated as I walked by stairs for the underground levels of a block, there was supposed to a shop here, but as I looked around the only things that caught my attention was the post board filled with obituary posters for which I gave a small prayer and the stairs. A black cat sitting on the top stairs caught my attention just before it jumped down and out of view. After a brief pause I decided to go down them and open the heavily rusted metal door at the end, no cat in sight, cold bit my hand back when I touched the handle of the door. Looking inside I saw a dimly lit space, candles giving a warm orange tinge to bottles, jars, herbs and different materials for witch-craft and rituals, the familiar smell of incense hit my face, although it was a lot more piercing then what I was used to. Coming inside I felt the rush of cold air from my back push me forward, a couple of pieces of paper coming loose from their places and flying around in the air. The rings of many wood chimes filled the place with a chaotic chorus causing a cacophony to litter around the room.

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"Close the damn door!" A commanding voice yelled from behind the counter in another room.

"Sorry!" I yelled back pushing against the metal door and closing it with a bit of push, the metal creaking in protest.

The winds died down, the candles returned to their balance and the room returned it's previous state. As I looked around one thing caught my attention, the black cat looking up at me, with keenly intelligent eyes, one of it's ears cut up and missing a few pieces, a mruki in it's mouth bleeding tar from the holes in it's body.

"There you are, thank you darling." My attention was pulled to a lady in a no-nonsense outfit, sporting jeans and a shirt with the logo of a metal band that I could not decipher the name of, short brunette bangs of hair rolled down her face, the rest of her hair hidden in a bun behind her head. "Now how can I help you? You caught me a bit off guard."

I looked back to the cat, only to find it gone. I stepped up to the counter and took a moment to look at all the endless supplies of the witch business.

"Just want some incense and a few ritual candles?" I said unsure of how she would understand 'ritual' and then added on "I've been wanting to clear out the bad energies in my life, and that seemed like a good start." I smiled, almost making myself laugh at my own cluelessness.

She looked at me for a moment too long and then nodded, turning around to grab a few items from shelves out of view. "Is the candle going to be used for dark rituals? light rituals? Connected to any particular god or gods?" She asked clarifying questions as she three stacks and one bag of incense on the counter.

I thought about it for a moment and then shrugged before grabbing the bag of incense to inspect it, 'White Sage' it read, from my cursory knowledge it would be perfect, and then my eyes roamed to the price tag, carefully putting it down and taking a look at the sticks, 'Clove', 'Ginger' and 'Nag Champa' seemed like more sensible options so I slid the 'Clove' one to the plastic tray and put down a few metal coins to pay for it.

"As I said the candle is going to be for clearing out bad vibes, and no not connecting it to any gods, don't want to bother them." I said as I looked at the candles and all their different colors. "What would you recommend?"

She looked at me judgingly before putting a set of simple green candles in front of me, six of them to be exact. "These should be fine enough for your purposes. Although I'd help if I knew kind of bad energy you're trying to expel I won't pry." She eyed me with what almost seemed like pity for a moment before taking the rest of the incense and putting it back in it's place.

I murmured a thanks as I put down the money and put the items in the pockets of the jacket.

"I have to ask, why is there no sign for a shop outside? I only managed to get in the shop out of sheer luck."

Without looking away from the cash register she said "Those who search for this place will find it no matter what. I expect you to come back." Looking up she gave me a smile, and with the click of the cash register I nodded and turned around to leave. The cat looking at me go.