Session 26

November 7th

Cold begins to settle over the land as claws of winter sink into it. Ophelia, Eden, and Della are on the only road that will take them to Altenheim, when suddenly the light around them begins to dim. The sun is in the sky, but the world is darker as if it were eclipsed. The three of them slow to a halt and take in the situation. Unsure of how to progress, Della suggest they backtrack to see if the effect reverses. They do. This only proves more concerning, and more confusing.

Eden thinks back to all of his favorite books. One creature, simply called the Dawn Drinker. A creature that feeds on light and hunts in the shadow. He shares this with his companions, who are less than thrilled by the news. Given that it will only grow more powerful the more light it drinks in, he recommends they find and kill the creature. With heavy sighs, they move away from the path and search for the creatures lair.

The deeper into the creature's sphere of being they move, the further darkness creeps in around them. The world is black as night. Eden is able to cast light on his staff, giving them some vision, but even that is eventually swallowed into near darkness. They eventually find a small cave entrance covered by brush. Della takes the lead stepping into the cave, only for their foot to catch on something. Leaning down with their lanturn, they find a well-made canvas bag on the ground. Inside are unlit torches, a tinderbox, molded rations, and a folded note. With their dimmed light, they read the note: "If someone else finds this bag, beware the beast in the back of this cave. It drinks the light."

With that warning in hand, the party creeps deeper into the twisting cavern. They can smell rotten, stale fish, and the distinct scent of bats nesting deeper into the cave. Yet, Ophelia notices there aren't any sounds of bats. When they pass by a small pool of water in the middle of the cave Della notices somthing on the large wall moving towards them. It's a strange, almost fish-like creature that opens its mouth as if to cry out—and reveal a strange inner-mouth. They attack before the three of them can try to divise a plan. It's a rough battle, but they manage to dispatch all of the creatures, identified shortly after as horror flints. On the bright side, Della thinks to spider climb up the to horror flint's nests at the top of a large wall nearby, and find a variable pile of treasure mixed into the dead bats.

Though wanting to press forward, they looked at their collective wounds and decided that it wasn't worth the risk. Though the dawn drinker fosters a dangerous enviroment, it isn't in itself a hostile creature. For that reason, they decide to retreat for the day and rest overnight.