After a restless night, Zita gathers the group to share a vivid and troubling dream. Audrey Rose suggests that the benevolent rainbow-horned creature in Zita’s dream might be a baku—a rare fae that feeds on nightmares and offers peaceful sleep in return. She also identifies the dream’s sinister orange-horned presence as a night hag, extraplanar entities from the Astral Plane that trade in mortal souls and wield powerful magic.
Later, after their morning practice, the party visits Madam Kerrington’s estate in the Fallen District. The area is now crowded with tents and lean-tos. Dahl observes that most of these makeshift homes appeared within the past two months. When Zita asks one of the squatters why they’re camped there, he explains that it's the safest place to sleep—elsewhere, people’s dreams are under attack.
Audrey Rose recalls something from a previous meeting with Madam Kerrington: a name—Sally Scrabblebones, a night hag active in the area. When Manored, Kerrington’s butler, lets them in, Audrey Rose whispers to Zita that Kerrington herself might be Sally in disguise.
Inside, Kerrington waits for them in the drawing room. She admits to attempting to summon Zita through dreams, seeking to instill urgency. As Zita recounts her dream, the group discusses the baku again, especially its role in shielding against natural and drug-induced nightmares.
Zita confronts Kerrington, asking why she appeared as a night hag in her vision and whether there is a connection to Sally Scrabblebones. Kerrington acknowledges that Sally is real and known in the region but denies any personal dealings with her.
When the conversation shifts to the Clavis Somnus—the mysterious dream key—Kerrington expresses interest in performing a psychometric reading on it. Zita agrees and takes her hand, triggering a vivid psychic vision:
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Scene 1: Zita finds herself back in the submerged dome temple, but it’s dry. Mira, the woman who gave them the key, is at the altar. Forrest Greevely approaches her, apologizes, and hands over the Clavis Somnus in hopes of resolving a misunderstanding.
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Scene 2: In the wreckage of the now-fallen house on Hook Street, Fral Tan—the missing nephew they were hired to find—uncovers the Clavis Somnus and a dark tome bound in silver.
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Scene 3: The house appears intact again. A bald, heavyset man is being pulled by tentacles through a portal. As he escapes, he drops the Clavis Somnus.
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Scene 4: That same man is later seen in a library, gleefully studying the same silver-bound tome.
Zita recalls that Fral Tan had indeed stolen a book along with the key. Audrey Rose connects this to a previous lead: a religious book taken by Josef Barvasi, one of Mira’s associates. Kerrington suggests that Zita may be developing the rare "gift of dreaming" and recommends they find the missing book. Audrey Rose proposes questioning Myra about Josef, while Zita is eager to return to the submerged temple.
During a group huddle, someone remembers the gang they dealt with in earlier shiver dealings—the Barvasi family. Audrey Rose links Josef Barvasi to the stolen tome. They set out, but when they arrive at the old house on Hook Street, guards tell them part of it remains flooded and under investigation. Zita identifies them as members of the Townsend Agency, and after recognition, they’re allowed limited information.
The party splits up to gather intel. Sabrina learns that the Barvasi gang has gone into hiding following a bloody purge of their associates. She arranges a meeting with the remnants of the gang for 100 gold—and a vague threat involving his vocabulary.
At dinner, the group regathers at a bar, where a street urchin, pale with fear, tells them to follow her to Rook’s Roost. Inside, Shroosh—the gang’s contact—sits in a daze, turban in his hands. The place is wrecked. Around ten Barvasi gang members lie dead, killed within the last day.
Sabrina comforts Shroosh, who reveals the gang had come to hide. He left briefly and returned to a massacre. Audrey Rose inspects the bodies, noticing strange puncture wounds the size of small drill holes. Sabrina takes a severed leg and arm, convincing Audrey Rose to store them in the bag of holding for analysis.
Back at Kerrington’s, they ask her to psychically investigate the remains. Zita touches her hand and experiences a sudden vision: A man at a door says he’s heading to a bookshop on Winding Way. Then chaos—flashes of violence and sickles shaped like spider legs. A mangy, flying creature with a metallic growl flits through the carnage.
Following this new lead, the group travels to Winding Way. The bookstore is trashed, its door kicked in. Behind the counter is a freshly killed body with similar wounds. Bosley hears whimpering and finds a 15-year-old girl hiding in a cabinet. She describes how someone burst in and slaughtered Diogorgio with a spider-like blade. She never saw a special book.
Searching the store, Bosley finds a crate of unsorted books, including a suspiciously old ledger that seems unrelated to the shop’s current business. Audrey Rose and Bosley investigate magically. They discover a bookmark of deception—an item that conceals both a book’s content and magical aura. When removed, it reveals the silver-bound tome they've been seeking. Audrey Rose quickly restores the bookmark to hide the book again.
The next morning, after a night of rest, London returns Zita’s constitution. Audrey Rose begins studying the mysterious tome. The group has finally recovered both the Clavis Somnus and the long-lost book—but the mystery only deepens, and dark forces seem to be one step ahead.
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