The Collector of Regrets
Filed under: Mirecourt Entities | Dream-Intruders | Death-Bargainers
Contributor: FDG Field Archivist No. 3
Last updated: May 2025
Overview
When the dying reach for words they never said… when a current hums through a dead wire… when a child speaks a secret never taught—Mistress Eelisk may be near.
Known as the Collector of Regrets, she glides through the Mirecourt and beyond, her touch found in hospice whispers, attic flickers, and that strange sting when swampwater kisses your skin too sharply.
To some, she is salvation.
To others, she is memory’s thief.
To the FDG, she is a threat cloaked in grace.
Appearance
Mistress Eelisk moves with a sensual, serpentine grace, half-woman, half-eel. She has been described as:
- Body: Sinuous and long, eel-like below the waist. Skin is smooth and cold, coloured pale grey-silver, like drowned moonlight.
- Hair: Long, black, and perpetually wet—dripping even in firelight. Some say her hair moves independently, tasting the air like tendrils.
- Face: Almost beautiful. But the smile is too wide, too knowing. Her teeth are delicate but innumerable, like river fish. Her arms are too long, always reaching, always gentle until it’s too late.
She wears no robe, but is often draped in necklaces of silver wires, rusted keys, broken earrings, and teeth.
Abilities and Behaviour
- Dream Intrusion & Reality Slipping:
Mistress Eelisk can pass through cracks in mirrors, puddles, attics, riverbeds, electrical lines, and memories. She is a traveller through liminal spaces. If you’re standing in the doorway between choices, she may already be behind you. - Regret Collection:
Eelisk gathers what the living no longer carry well—regrets, unsent letters, final apologies. She stores them in a glowing jar of regrets, which smells of metal and funeral flowers. - Bargaining the Dying:
Her most well-documented role: Appearing to the near-dead to offer a final bargain—one cherished memory for one more day of life. The day is real. The memory is lost forever. Most accept. - Electrokinesis:
Mistress Eelisk can pull energy from old wires, dead batteries, gaslight fittings, and swamp-gas pockets. She leaves behind the smell of ozone and rusted lilies. At full strength, she can short-circuit an entire hospital wing to reach a single dying patient.
Folklore and Signs
- The Water-Sting Warning:
If you touch water and feel a sharp, sting-like pulse, followed by a static prickle on your skin or a burst of intense déjà vu—you have likely brushed past Mistress Eelisk. - Mirror Flicker:
Children in swamp-bound homes are taught not to look too long into old mirrors, especially those with silvering cracks. Eelisk is known to watch through them, and once, to step through. - Jar Dreams:
Some people dream of a woman holding a glowing jar and offering them a trade. They awaken, having forgotten something vital—a song, a name, a vow—and feel as though they’ve been weeping.
Role in the Mirecourt Hierarchy
While she holds no title, Mistress Eelisk is whispered to be favoured by Lady Wyr and tolerated by the Mud-Queen. She is not of the court, but the court has need of her.
Her talents make her invaluable for retrieving the unspoken, erasing the inconvenient, and preserving the Mirecourt’s secrets. She is feared—but often invited.
It is said that the Heron Prince once made a bargain with her to erase a lover’s betrayal. The price? He no longer remembers who it was.
Summary for Field Operatives
| Trait | Detail |
|---|---|
| Threat Level | Moderate to High. Charming but invasive. Will bargain before taking. |
| Signs of Presence | Water stings, static discharge near mirrors, flickering attic lights |
| Containment Risk | Very High. Cannot be bound physically. Avoid reflective surfaces. |
| Engagement Advice | Do not accept bargains. Do not follow her into reflections. Bury regrets in iron. |
Quote from Field Report #287:
“I told her I was ready. She smiled, reached inside her jar, and showed me my sister’s laughter. It smelled like honeysuckle and old copper. I said yes. When I woke up, I had another day… but I can’t remember what colour my sister’s eyes were.”
—Field Operative “K”, recovered audio tape, 1997
Faylinn Defence Group 