The Colony of Mist

Having prided themselves in being the 'first' colony, the Colony of Mist had strived to stay as close to their ancestor's lifestyle as possible. Hunting the same food, living in the same environments, and living strictly by their deity's word, the Colony of Mist are known for being traditionalistic, stubborn, tough, and unshakable in their beliefs and opinions. Most respect their tenacity, while some struggle to understand why they can't move on from the past.

Living as their ancestors, lynxes, once did comes with its fair share of problems. The mountains are a harsh place to live between the long falls, unstable cliffs, and bitter winds. The Colony of Mist has the highest trainee mortality rate of all the colonies for this reason, and a simple walk around the territory can turn sour when one isn't paying attention. The relationship between teachers and trainees can become strained due to this- some teachers have been known to distance themselves from their trainees in case they die early. Many other colonies stereotype the Colony of Mist as inhumane or heartless because of this.

One of the colony's points of pride, however, was the story tunnels. A long tunnel with smooth walls and odd branching paths that loop back into the main path, the colony used this tunnel system to document the history and past of the colonies. Detailed paintings of events are drawn onto the walls, the beginning of known history starting at the entrance and continuing chronologically the further one goes. The branching paths were used to depict events happening around the same time or the lives and history of specific cats involved in the events being described.

The colony had the firm belief that was their duty to document these things, and that the Lynx carved the tunnel out themselves, having seen the future and knowing how to shape the tunnels for the colony to fill. Unfortunately, the Colony of Mist and Colony of Bones fought often over their respective systems of documentation, originally starting as a friendly rivalry before becoming something much worse. Before their collapses, the two had settled into a tense, but stable, truce.

Values / Taboos

Hard traditionalists, the colony values those who stick to the rules and have a strong sense of justice. The colony lived and died by the sacred decree, and expected its members to all respect and enforce it. The colony is also fairly religious, but unlike the Colony of Bones, didn't care much for devotion or acts of worship. Good teachers were also extremely valued, as it meant more trainees surviving through training.

Lawbreakers were shunned and almost always exiled from the colony, or viciously punished for even the slightest rule break. While breaking the additional laws added by the colonies wasn't looked down on as bad, breaking any of the original rules was to go against the will of the gods themselves. Reckless and careless behavior was also shunned, as sooner or later it would get them killed. Cats who acted this way were seen as walking corpses, who would eventually be found at the base of a cliff or on the end of a goat's horn.

Traditions / Religion

Tools / Trade

The Colony of Mist doesn't trade often, but the other colonies find a lot of value in goat byproducts. Certain organs can be used to make waterskins, the pelts are massive and are valued for keeping lodgings warm, and the horns are sometimes kept as decorations. The bones are sometimes traded to be made into tools, but the colony usually finds more use in using them for food. Trade often happens in warmer seasons when food is plentiful enough to have excess to trade away, and gets closed off during winter where every bit counts.

Foods

The Colony of Mist's primary food source was goat, and a single one could feed the entire colony for weeks. The whole carcass was harvested as quickly as possible and stored, a colony-wide effort to carry meat, organs, pelt, and bones back to the settlement. As such, almost every recipe uses goat in some way- using the meat, bones, organs, and rarely, the milk.

Tea - Plant leaves are boiled with water, and put into waterskins to drink. Originally created by healers trying to find different ways to get patients to take medicine, some cats found they enjoyed the taste of the mixture and began freely drinking it. Forget-me-nots, dandelions, and white clovers are the most common plants used.

Blood Patty - With an overabundance of goat blood, the colony has found out how to use them in meals more efficiently. Blood is mixed with birch flour and egg, and then poured on a cooking surface and left to cook. The result is flat, salty blood patties, often eaten with meat and gravy, or crushed berries.

Stuffed Birds - Stuffed with veggies and meats, and the wings are tied together to make a loop. While birds are normally plucked, Stuffed Birds keep their feathers to keep the meat clean. Attached to belts to keep as dinner while on long travels or journeys.

Sealed Goat Meat - Goat meat is put into a special oven alongside leaves, where the entrance to the oven is sealed with clay. The goat is allowed to cook over the course of several hours until the flames die down and the oven cools. The meat is then taken out and the leaves are discarded. The result is tender meat that is then added to other recipes or soups.