The beginning of our tale finds our adventurers in Autumnvale, a quiet city on the eastern coast of Fablerûn. It was a cold winter evening, and though it was barely past four o'clock, the sun had begun to set and the snow-dusted cobblestone streets were already illuminated by the gentle glow of enchanted streetlights.
Ryder Lockwood, who had been staying in town for a few weeks visiting her good friend Fritti Humdur, was waiting on the forest gnome to finish closing up shop at the Hidden Mushroom. Business was slow and she'd come all this way to see him, so he was locking up earlier than usual. Few customers were keen on walking along the outer fringes of the city at dark anyway.