Hollering back towards the group
How many children are missing? Perrin here found tracks of what looks to be 5 small humans of halfings heading west along the wall here
He nods as he ticks off on his stubby fingers, "That's probably them, all right - Mikra and Kimi, Hollin and Savram, . . ." he looks up the hill to the east, "and Jurin, he must be with them, too."
"Time fer huntin' kobolds it be." Gilgar rumbles as he stands up. "Tha's what them tracks be an' tha's where the danger tuh them kids be, I reckon. Well c'n wait... Boy." Gilgar's gruffness doesn't lessen as he speaks to the child. "Where be this haunted place ye speak of?" His eyes bulge slightly as the word "haunted" drawls out.
Daleson looks at the boy, "Are you speaking of Elara's?" Receiving a timid nod in exchange, he turns to the party, "Elara's Halfway House. She took in the orphans in the area, gave them a place to call home. It burned to the ground a few months back." There's sadness in his eyes as he adds, "Lost every one of those kids and Elara, too. No one's been back since we tried to put the fire out, but it was just too late."
He takes a steadying breath and continues, "To get to the Halfway House, you take the road west out of town - same road you came in on. The first right takes you to the Halfway House, going straight takes you to the Consortium's cutyard."
Aye Gilgar, the Well can indeed wait. Does everyone have the gear they need to hit the road?
"I think the well has told us what it can." He points at the bag, "Someone brought the blackscour to the well." He points at the footprint that was protected by the basket, "And there have been kobolds about."
"It's not enough to say for certain that the kobolds did the deed, but it pretty damning that they were skulking around here, around this well."
I agree, and we were attacked by a handful of them in the woods. Something has them acting up, and with missing kids, I worry that the 2 could be related.
So, we should be on the road as quickly as we can
Gilgar stands, white-knuckled and fidgeting as he looks off in the direction they've been directed to go.
"When we see your kids, we will pass along the message that they need to head home right away."
Laucian turns to Nox, "I am ready to go."
Well I say we should get down the road then
With Nox will literally start down the road if noone gives him reason to pause.
Tracking
"I'm not sure these kobold tracks and the disappearances are related. These kobold tracks are quite a bit older, maybe a week or more. We are fortunate it has not rained lately. The kids' tracks aren't older than a day or two."
As you walk, the kids' tracks seem to be moving from bush to bush, tree to tree, and it become obvious that they are trying to evade being caught by someone in town.
The kobolds' tracks, on the other hand, seem to be of a more experienced sneak. They rely less on obstructions like bushes but they keep to the low areas and natural depressions, traveling on all fours a few times.
There seems to be no real relationship between the two trails. When you reach the road to Elara's, the kids' trail turns directly up the trail and they seem to be walking right down the middle, all efforts at stealth forgotten.
The kobold track crosses the road for a hundred or so feet before turning to parallel the road to Elara's.
Nox will drift into the forest a few strides and move parallel to whoever is leading the group up the road.
Graymoon is happy to let the dwarf take point on whichever trail the party considers more important. Just out of curiosity, the ranger will track the second trail until/unless it gets to where he cannot see the rest of the party, then he will return to walk alongside.
Gilgar pushes forward, tracking the children. Completely unconcerned with stealth, he follows their tracks as quickly as he can while still keeping the obvious signs of their passing clearly in his sights.
Laucian walks behind Gilgar with his staff in hand using it more as a giant walking stick. "I wonder if these two things are connected? I don't know why they would be, unless the kids saw something they were not suppose to."
He contenues to ponder the situation, but having learned a little from their previous travels, he isn't speaking quite as loudly.
Gilgar speeds up a little... Perhaps an attempt to get away all the talking???
The trail that Graymoon is following seems to be moving farther from the road as it approaches the trees, so he jogs across the grassy area between to join the others as the road enters the woods. It continues a short way into the trees before opening into a large clearing - whether it's natural or the lumber was harvested long ago is hard to tell.
In the center of the clearing lies a low hill. The blackened husk of the orphanage lies atop the hill. Charred timbers are strewn among piles of caked ash and the only edifice left standing is a soot-stained stone arch.
A small stuffed doll lies below the arch, her face seared off and her patchwork dress spilling dirty stuffing. Beside her, a troop of half-melted tin soldiers stand in formation, their bodies twisted and deformed by the blaze that claimed their owner’s life.
As you enter the clearing, you can't help but notice the silence. Even Laucian feels like maybe he shouldn't say anything here.
Survival (tracking):
Gilgar continues to follow the childrens' tracks, working to trace their steps through the area.
Just short of reaching the actual ruins, you see that the children were not alone. More prints (kobolds!) emerge from the ashes near the arch. They are old enough that they might not be from the same point in time, but four of the kids' prints appear to dart in different directions - away from the arch - but two only run in circles and don't even reach the trees. One looks like it didn't go very far before it falls flat - you even see the partial impression of a face in the loose soil. The fourth runs to a point where he seemed to think he was hiding behind something because you can see that he knelt down - but there's nothing here. Near the fifth set of prints, you find a kobold tooth in the dirt, a sight that gladdens your dwarven heart, even though you may not admit it.
It takes very little time for you to find the path leading out of the clearing, child and kobold tracks interspersed.
perception
"... and then the guy just started laughing." Laucian's story takes an abovious pause as the group enters the clearing. The group quickly finds that this does not stop him though. It only changes the story.
"You know, this kind of reminds me of a place. This place was crazy. This little hut sat in the middle of a clearing with a whole punch of wooden figures surounding it. At first it all seemed fine, but to our surprise they started moving." At first, the story seems like the witch's hut encountered a few days back, but some key parts to the story seem to be made bigger, and more exciting.
Perception
Without waiting for Laucian to take a breath (He never seems to run out, anyway), Gilgar points along the ground at various spots, talking loudly as he walks to a certain point. "Then, them kids losed their addled minds, runnin' like dumb chickens..." Getting frustrated at having to talk over Laucian, and probably also at the apparent tactical idiocy of the children, he bellows "Tracks lead that way!" and stalks off, following the kobold and kid tracks.
Perception:
Graymoon follows as Gilgar describes what the ground tells him took place, saying nothing, just nodding in agreement. Suddenly looking up, he whips out an arrow and affixes it to his bow just as you all realize you heard something, too. Something out of place. Something on the north side of the clearing.
A child's sob.
Hearing the sob, Laucian directs his voice to that direction, "It is ok we are hear to help." While speaking he takes two steps in the direction of the sound and stops, waiting for a response.
Diplomacy
The only response is a gasp and silence.
Gilgar, upon hearing the sob, stops immediately. Still and tense, he slowly turns his head towards where the sound came from, scanning with sharp eyes.
Perception:
Gilgar, in a slightly uncharacteristic move, drops his axe to the ground, takes two steps towards where the sound came from, and crouches down. In a surprisingly soft voice he calls out... "Here, child. C'mere. Sure'n ye c'n see we ain't kobolds, an' Marl, Colbrin, an' Baleson sent us tuh look fer ye. C'mon out here, an' we'll get ye home safe, then we'll get Mikra, Kimi, Hollin, Savram, an' Jurin back safe." Gilgar smiles, and it actually looks genuine as he speaks.
Graymoon starts toward the girl, but hesitates at Gilgar's unusual behavior. He stops and intently studies the trees around the girl's position.
Nox will move towards the area, off to whichever side his position was favoring and slightly ahead of Gilgar
Aye Child, we are from the town. Come out, we will protect you
Nox will then scan the area as he sees Graymoon to be doing.
Perception
The girl is the only child to be seen. No other urchins peer from the foliage as she very hesitantly climbs up to standing and moves toward you.
She is very thin with piercing green eyes - when she's not looking at the ground - and the tattered dress she wears does little to hide the many scars on her shoulders. Once she's close enough and facing away, you also see that they cover the areas of her back that are exposed, as well.
Nox will move over to where the child is, and kneel down to look her in the eye.
You are safe now my dear, what has happened to you? I am Nox La'Athvanna. Are you injured?
If the child acquiesces, Nox will examine her wounds and scars to see where they may have come from and what immediate healing may be needed.
knowledge nature to ID source or scars
heal check
As the druid examines the girl's back, she says to the dwarf, "It was for my own good! She did this to us to make us better, she said." Tears well up her eyes and her lip trembles, but she does not cry.
Visibly angry, Graymoon responds, "Who did this, child? I would have a chance to make her better..."
Speaking calmly to the child, and turning her away from Graymoon if she appears afraid of him.
Child, you are in no danger here, my friend is upset that someone would harm a child such as you so cruelly. I am Nox La'Athvanna, my family has long cared for all who dwell in these woods, and my friends and I were sent to find some missing children. And what is your name dear? What can you tell us of what has happened here?
diplomacy
"They all died in the fire. I was the only one that survived." She begins to sob. "Oh! You don't mean the orphans, do you! You mean the ones the other night? I think they were from town, they weren't orphans."
No, dear girl, they were not orphans. Can you tell us what happened to them?
Nox will also cast Detect Magic to make sure that this young girl is indeed what she appears.
Not wanting to completely overwhelm the child, Gilgar straightens, retrieves his axe, then walks around the group to examine the tracks the girl leaves, comparing them to those of the other children (the ones mixed in with the kobold tracks).
Survival (tracking):
As a side note, a couple of the tracks you followed are small enough to be indeterminate, but the proportions of the other two indicate another male and a female.
"Well, I spend most of my time near here since," there is a catch in her voice, but she recovers with, "since that night. It was getting dark and I heard voices coming up the road, so I hid to see who it was."
She points down the road that the party came up. "There were five of them. They didn't bring any lanterns, though, so I couldn't see them really well and they really couldn't see where they were going."
She points at the opposite end of the clearing, on the western end, and adds, "As they were almost to the ruins, I heard something over there, a hissing and maybe talking, but I couldn't understand it. I yelled for them to run. One of the taller ones stayed and shouted for the others to run to town and the other taller one ran and hid - I think it was a boy - in the middle of the clearing. I don't know what he thought he was hiding behind. A chubby one stumbled and fell and the ... things fell on him and tied him up. The little ones ran in circles until they were caught - the things could see better and herded them together. The tall one that stayed - I think that one was a girl - she fought and fought until she realized that the other four were all captured. She threw her weapon into the ashes and gave up. They took them that way." She points at the opposite end of the clearing again.
"I was going to follow them, but a couple of the things started looking over here and I realized that they'd heard me, so I ran the other way."
You were very brave my dear. Can you tell me how many of the things there were and how long ago they left with the other children?
She straightens up with the praise. "My name is Jeva. It was too dark, I don't know how many there were - maybe two for each of the kids, but I don't think three, so... maybe ten or twelve?"
"They left with them right away, I think. I ran, but I didn't run far and by the time I came back, they were all gone, even the ones that looked for me. Are you going to get them back? I was hoping they would be my friends - I'll help you!"
Smiling warmly, and placing a hand on the child's shoulder You have helped Jeva, but I think perhaps we should get you back to town as quickly as possible.
Turning to the group I think I should take Jeva back to town. Perrin should be able to follow your scent easily enough for us to catch up.
"But I don't want to go back to town! I want to come along and help!"