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Beware the corpse cleaners...
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The Cave Linger, also known as the Sarcophagus Beetle, is a common denizen of dry, sandy crypts or desolate, shadowy caverns. It resembles a large, brown beetle, with a rough, bumpy outer carapace covering its body. Each limb ends in sharp, curved claws, perfect for burrowing or clinging to cave walls. The Cave Linger measures approximately 3 feet long, with a wingspan of around 6 feet when it unfurls its leathery, membranous wings, which it does rarely, preferring to crawl or fly only short distances.
These creatures feed on decaying flesh and will sometimes live within tombs or underground ossuaries. They are scavengers, hunters of the dead left behind by adventure-hungry parties or forgotten victims of ancient battles. A pack of Cave Lingers can swiftly reduce a corpse to nothing more than bones or a skeletal frame, with their crimson, needle-sharp mandibles that gleam like a predator's fangs. Though they typically don't attack living beings, if provoked or desperate for food, they could swarm and injure, if not kill, an unsuspecting victim.
These creatures have an uncanny knack for sensing death, finding bodies even when hidden from prying eyes, as though drawn by some otherworldly magnetism. They communicate through a series of buzzing vibrations, subtle enough to escape notice by most humanoids but effective in coordinating group activities, such as feeding or in defense.
