Latimer briefly contemplates the breeze he notices, but is quickly lost in thought to the aroma of the soup and conscious of the growling of his stomach.  "Near death experiences tend to make one hungry, I assume... or maybe it is just the body telling me it needs fuel for recovery."

At breakfast, the bald man eats heartily.  "Again, thank you for your hospitality. Clearly not all in these parts welcome us, but I have hopes that for many, this will soon change.In any case, I agree with the others.  First priority is to see if we can find our friends and make sure they are safe.  But we will be back."

Cressel - The small red bird chirps melodically. It watches you sketch and - you can't be certain - but the little fellow seems to pose for the portrait. When you are done, it hops onto your sketchbook to admire the work. It chirps again happily.

Its movement suddenly calms. Instead of quick twitches, its head moves with the steadiness of a larger creature. It opens its beak. A low female voice croons into your mind:

"Two were taken and buried alive. 

One for a secret, one for a prize.

Three were taken and shut in a cage. 

Two out of sorrow, one out of rage.

Four were stolen and broken to bits,

No one will mourn for those little… villains."

The bird actually winks at you and darts away, giggling.

//

Latimer - The wind feels playful and eager to be off to somewhere else, but you do not understand all its twisting meaning.

//

Caledon - Daran fetches the shield and returns inside with it, polishing it with a rag.

"A Watcher, you say? Nay, I was no Watcher, though near enough, if you ask me. Where the Order of the Watchers safeguards against enemies of a supernatural origin, my companions and I safeguarded against far more mundane evils. I served as a member of the 'Order of the Gauntlet', a vigilant company of warriors who seek to protect the innocent from the 'depredations of evildoers', or so it goes. The Order stands ever ready to smite the tyrant, enforce justice, and enact retribution against any who try to subjugate or harm others."

Daran frowns at a sour thought.

"Well, that is, it used to be. Fewer and fewer recruits by the year, you know. I am officially retired now, but... well, I still have contact with the Order. Told them about the Redbrands almost a month ago. Their reply was to 'hold fast' and 'help will come when it can'. I fear their once noble strength has waned beyond recovery..."

He coughs, smiles, and lays a hand on the shield. 

"I tell you what, lad: I will lend you this shield until those goblins and the Redbrands are dealt with. Keeping this shield for good comes with conditions, but we can discuss those later. For now, you had better either come back with this shield - or on it." 

[Caledon receives 'Sentinel Shield']

//

All - Daran bows to all of you. "No need to thank me none. Should be I thanking you! If you manage to save your friends and make our town safe again, we will all be in your debt. Now be off with you! I imagine the road will not be easy…"

[Is there anything else you folks would like to do or discuss before setting forth in search of Gundren & Sildar? Feel free to mention it and I will address it.]

//

*Cue traveling music. Any suggestions?*

The day is clear and clean and quiet outside of town. No other travelers on the Triboar Trail yet. By midday, you reach the sight of the goblin ambush and find the goblin trail. To your discomfort, the corpses of the horses are gone with only faint signs of being dragged away by some large, clawed beast. 

[Marching Order: Nephira scouts ahead I assume (Perception Check, please), but then who comes next and so on?]

Caledon keeps a move and a dash behind as Nephira scouts ahead trying to keep in visual range.  He will stick close within 15’ of Cressel.  He’d want to keep to one side perhaps Latimer on the other.  Gotta keep your caster safe, is his thoughts.

 Strength of a Thousand Men

Amazed at the "bird" he'll jot down what it said and be sure to tell the others as soon as they are on the road. He'll spend the walk to where the horses are/where, going on and on about what the word of the "bird" meant. Until someone tells him to stop.

Latimer discusses marching order with Caledon briefly and nods agreement.

Nephira once again scouts ahead 60', doing her best to remain quiet and sticking to the shadows, her awareness on the edges of the forest, almost hungry for a chance to put more arrows in those goblins...

Caledon’s hammer whooshes through the empty space his shield fwooms forward as he body checks rolls and overhead smashes his imagined goblin foe.  His face shows a hardened resolve.  “Oh sorry just getting my head in the game.”

Nephira - Ten minutes down the goblin trail, you spot a snare laid in wait for trespassers. It is easy enough to warn the others, dismantle, or avoid entirely. Scoping out the area reveals no goblins waiting to ambush you, but there are more signs of goblins. 

[One more Perception Check, if you please]

Perception: 21

Nephira silently signals to the others to watch out for the snare and to keep their eyes out for danger.

Nephira - Roughly ten more minutes down the path you spot a second trap: a rudimentary pitfall covered by woven branches and disguised by leaves, six feet by six feet. The goblin tracks all skirted around it. Still… not as badly constructed as you might expect, coming from goblins.

You all safely navigate the second trap and find no more goblin tricks along the way.

All - By midafternoon (and about five miles up the serpentine path) you notice a large hill looming through the treetops. There is a notable lack of the regular woodland critter noises, though no strange sounds in their place. An uncomfortable aroma of rot mixes with the fresh air. A turn in the path and Nephira motions to the rest to join her behind a large fallen log.

You can all see a wide cave opening in the hillside with a shallow stream flowing out of it, which is screened by dense briar thickets. A narrow dry path leads into the cave on the right-hand side of the stream (you are on the left hand side of the stream). The stream itself appears maybe two feet deep and slow moving, easy enough to wade through without much trouble. 

[What would you like to do?]

Latimer prepares his shield and war hammer for combat, should a hoard of goblins suddenly appear.  Then he searches for any signs of foot traffic around the stream or cave entrance.  "Anyone else see anything?"  

Caledon waits impatiently for a plan, (in a whisper) “If this is the place, should we watch for gobs comin out or sneak up to the entry or scout around for a back door?  Nephira you’re a great scout and tracker you got us here what do you say?”

I then also take a look listen and sniff (perception 21)

At first his ears flatten as the group stops, then they perk up and begin to twitch a bit as he tries to hear anything moving nearby. He sees the briar thickets and points his paw to it. "Nephira, would that be a good spot to scout from?"

Latimer - It smells like spoiled meat, dung (cannot identify type), and the stench of things growing in stagnant water (despite the flowing stream). There is more nuance to the scent that Caledon picks up on.

EDIT: You do not get the impression that the smell is from undeath.

Caledon - In addition to what Latimer points out, you can identify the scent of damp wolf fur and goblin musk coming from the cave.

Cressel - You notice the same smells as Latimer and Caledon. The stream appears too wide to hop (though I'd give it to you on a nat 20 or if you come up with some other tricksy method).

"Any one feel like taking a dip?" 

As Nephira listens to the suggestions of her companions, she's going to check the area around the mouth of the stream for tracks. Specifically, she's looking to see:

• If this is just one point of entrance...
• If there could be be a patrolling force nearby who might trap them from behind if they go in...
• If any tracks indicate the direction of someone carrying a hostage, like Gundran and Sildar.

 "Hold your horses," She says in a whisper, kneeling down to inspect the tracks. "First, I wanna see what we can learn about these gobs without going in blind..."

Nephira - You can see plenty of tracks leading to the mouth of the cave. Goblins. Wolves. Bugbear? Something was dragged, dropped, then dragged again across the stream to the path leading into the cave. You can see the various tracks leading every which way, though mainly down the trail you and your companions are on.

The dense briar thickets skirting the stream would make for a good lookout spot, but a properly stealthy group could feel confident of approaching without detection. The lack of forest critter activity is worrisome, but does not mean much if this is goblin territory. 

You feel confident you have discovered everything you can from a safe distance. Further investigation would require a closer look.

[What would you all like to do?]

Caledon Flowstone. 
“If you want to sneak in best if I trail behind I’m really not good at sneaking around otherwise if you want I can go ahead, then let em chase me for you three to get a prepared attack on any that chase me out.  I’m game for anything you’d like to try.”  After speaking his thoughts Caledon listens for agreement or other suggestions.

Latimer nods. "Sure, we can do that.  Although if a goblin hoard follows you, we could be overwhelmed.  But I fear the cave may hold significant disadvantages for us, so your plan seems the wisest.  Do not take much time, though - if you see nothing right away, come back and we will venture in together."

Unless someone has a compelling reason not to, Nephira will draw her bow, keep an arrow knocked and sneak slowly into the cave, scouting ahead no more than 30 feet, just to reconnoiter, coming to a full stop if she spots anything of note.