Loradove did not delay for even a second. As soon as the first arrow found its mark, she released a second arrow at one of the stirges descending from outside the tower.

Knowing the creatures would soon be too close for her bow to be effective, she grabbed her hand axe, preparing to swing it at the first one to come within range. 

Loradove heard the commotion and bounced over to the tower to join her companions. She saw Ghilberti move in front of Galydan, and peered up into the tower to see what the fuss was about. With her keen eyes and darkvision, she quickly recognized these as stirges and prepared for battle.

"HEY G's," she said, nocking an arrow and taking aim at the nearest of the monsters. "I DON'T THINK THOSE CRITTERS ARE COMING TO MAKE FRIENDS."

Having encountered these flying beasts before, she knew they needed to take down as many as possible before the swarm reached them, so she shot her arrow at the first and quickly prepared to shoot another. 

"IF EITHER OF YOU KNOW A SPELL TO TAKE DOWN A LOT AT ONCE, THIS WOULD BE A GOOD TIME TO USE IT."

Loradove was momentarily offended at Ghilberti shushing her before she even said anything, but she had to admit that he was probably right to do so. If any of the party were going to give away their position or otherwise cause a disturbance by making too much noise, it would be her. She nodded her head begrudgingly and looked around.

Eager for more adventure, Loradove carefully investigated the area for any sign of enemies or anything worthy of further examination. She was rather hoping to spot a cave or secret doorway or... well, anything else besides rocks and dirt. She made sure her dagger was within easy reach in case she needed to draw it quickly to deal with a surprise threat.

As she walked around the area, she took care not to touch the crumbling tower because she definitely didn't want it to collapse on Galydan as he was looking inside. 

Though it was only a short time ago, Loradove felt as though several days had passed since the encounter with the goblins. She almost couldn't remember what they were even doing. When Ghilberti suggested he take the lead, she almost didn't hear him. She shook her head to clear the cobwebs and looked around, surprised to see they were surrounded by actual cobwebs.

She spoke in her usual cheerful tone, but kept the volume fairly low, just in case someone (or something) was nearby, aiming to be audible only to her companions. "Sorry G, I guess I zoned out for a minute there! Well this doesn't look too promising, does it!? If you want to go first then I'm sure not going to stop you!" Loradove was almost tempted to cut open the web and see if there was anything useful in the hut, but she thought better of it. She readied her bow,* prepared to shoot any enemies that might appear. Following the tortle, Loradove also stepped carefully, doing her best to avoid the webs as she walked and keeping her bow at the ready. As they proceeded up the path, she continued to look around for any objects or creatures on the ground or in the web. 

After a few steps, she turned to address Galydan in her best impression of a whisper. "You coming, G?"

___________

* [her original bow with her own arrow, not the goblin ones]

Loradove awoke refreshed and happily assisted her companions with moving the goblin bodies to the spot Ghilberti found. After that, she looked through the gear they had collected from the goblins to see if there was anything worth taking. 

"HEY LOOK! If we divide the coins into three piles, they are exactly equal! We should each take a third!" she exclaimed, putting her third into her coin pouch, and gestured at the other two piles for Ghilberti and Galydan to claim their own share.

"What do you guys think about these weapons?! I could always use more arrows, and a spare bow or two! Some extra swords probably wouldn't be the worst thing either! OH! Do either of you know detect magic? I guess I never learned that spell, I don't know why, I probably should have I guess but I didn't, anyway if you do it might be a good idea to check this stuff to see if any of it is special, I certainly don't need ALL of the swords and bows, but do you guys mind if I take a couple of the bows and swords and if you don't want any of the arrows, I'll take em all but if you do want some then we should divide those up too, so what do you guys think?" she barely paused to take a breath while speaking as she looked over the items. She hopped around rather cheerfully as she moved from place to place feeling the excitement of the day's impending adventure. 

[If no one else wants any of the weapons, then Loradove would take the two best looking swords and bows, and as many arrows as she can reasonably carry.]

After assessing the goblin weapons, she would pack up the rest of her gear and prepare to leave. 

"I agree with Galydan! It would be good to go up to the top and look around! No point in going back where we came from!" And with that, she bounced out the door onto the path. "TO THE TOP!" 

Loradove watches the falling goblins with great satisfaction, and when the last hit the ground, she put away her bow and arrow. 

"I GUESS THESE GOBLINS WON'T BE ANSWERING ANY QUESTIONS TODAY! OOPS!" She was trying to speak quietly so as not to disturb the snoozing tortle, but was still a bit pumped up from the battle so she was not doing a very good job of it.

She then made her way to the fallen goblin that was furthest from Galydan and started searching it for weapons, valuables, and/or any useful information or items. "YOU TAKE THAT HALF," realizing she was still speaking too loudly, she cleared her throat. "And I'lltake this half over here," she said to her companion in her best attempt at a whisper. Alongside Galydan, she continued to search the remaining goblins, being sure to set aside any items which she or her companions might be able to use. Once they had all been examined, she suggested they move the bodies off the path into a more concealed area. "IN CASE *ahem* ...in case anyone else comes along, you know? Then maybe we can have another rest as well."

"THAT WAS MY FAVORITE CLOAK, YOU STINKING ORC-FACED TOE-LICKER," Loradove shouted at the goblin as she prepared her next arrow.

"IT GOES WITH EVERYTHING," she growled, and fired at goblin #3.

Adrenaline surging after another successful hit, Loradove look around at the rest of the goblin party and assessed the situation. She did not want to give any of them an opportunity to escape or strike back, so she turned her attention to the freshly unentangled goblins. Loradove took aim and sent another arrow at goblin #2, hoping to weaken it before it had a chance to take aim at her or one of her companions.

Loradove resisted the urge to call out triumphantly when her arrow found its mark. She saw the goblin drop down and considered whether to take aim at the same goblin again. She decided it was unlikely to run away and thought it would be better instead to weaken its companion, lest the other goblin try to make a break for it or charge at the cabin. She took aim and fired an arrow at goblin number 7.

Disappointed by the previous goblin's great luck at bending over just as her arrow was about to strike, Loradove was pleased to see Galydan's spell catch it before it had a chance to fight back. She noticed that some of the other goblins were readying their own arrows and quickly prepared another of her own. She took aim at Goblin 8 and fired an arrow, hoping this one would hit its target before the goblin could fire back.

Loradove saw the goblins pass and observed the weapons they were carrying. It was clear they were up to no good. She thought of all the villagers she had met, especially poor Mrs. Molkin, and fumed at how cheerful these goblins were as they marched along. NOT ON MY WATCH, she thought to herself.

After the goblins had passed and were about 30 feet away, Loradove glanced at Galydan and nodded, then fired an arrow at the nearest goblin, trusting that her companions were ready to back her up.

After being awakened by Galydan, Loradove immediately springs to her feet quietly hurries around behind the hut. She is impressed to witness her Tortle companion's transformation and makes a mental note to compliment Ghilberti on this later; she has never seen someone so large transform into something so small.

Loradove crouches low behind the hut to remain out of sight, listening carefully to the approaching voices to determine whether they might be friends or enemies. Hoping for the former but preparing for the latter, she readies her bow and arrow and holds her action, preparing to shoot if the newcomers are hostile. Based on her recent conversation with the squirrel, she suspects these may be goblins on their way to the village.

While waiting for the oncoming party to arrive, Loradove feels a bit of exhilaration over the potential conflict that may or may not be coming. Not to say that she looking forward to a fight, but if this party is on their way to wreak havoc on the village, she will relish in thwarting their plans. No one will bring harm to those villagers as long as she is able to do something about it.

When they had reached the other side of the bridge, Loradove looked around and sighed.

"Well, what now? It is probably too late to make the climb up and over the ridge as it will probably be dark by the time we get there and there will probably not be much of anywhere to take cover for the night! We certainly wouldn't want to be caught out in the open if goblins were to find us! Should we try to find a safe place to rest for the night? Or... even kind of safe-ish? What about that stone hut over there? Should we go and see if it's open or if there is someone there who might be able to help direct us? I feel like stopping to rest would do us good and then we can get going again in the morning! But if you want to keeping going, I guess that's fine with me too! The dark doesn't bother me at all but I don't know how well you two can see in the dark! What do you think??"

After speaking with the squirrels, Loradove jogged ahead to rejoin Ghilberti and Galydon as they followed the trail through the woods in search of the boys. When she caught up with her companions she filled them in on her conversation. “From what my little friend described, it seems like there might have been goblins sniffing around the field recently so we will of course want to be prepared for unpleasant visitors! Of course I’m sure you were already prepared, but at least now we can almost definitely be pretty sure there are goblins nearby! Possibly."

When they reached the road, she looked around to see the options, then spoke again “I don’t think there’s any point in returning to the town, do you? I don’t know about you guys but I came here to help, and I think the best thing we can do is go to the ridge to see if we can find anything! Sherriff Erhardt seemed to think that’s the best place to start, anyway! It’s a bit far away though so we might want to think about finding a place to rest and eat on the way! We should probably take turns being on watch if we do. What do you guys think? I mean, we have to do SOMETHING, right?! We can't just keep wandering around the village."

Loradove listened to the grieving mother's tale with interest, hoping to find some detail which might hint at the next logical step. It seemed that investigating the pastures was the only option which made sense and the gnome was eager to do so. Before leaving, so placed a small hand on Mrs. Molkin's shoulder and said in an uncharacteristically somber tone, "I can't promise we will be able to find and return your boys, but I can assure you that I will do everything in my power to bring them home."

"Come on boys, there's no time to lose!"

And with that she bounded out the door, following young Aston Browning towards the pastures. As a natural explorer who is most at home in the forest, Loradove felt confident that she and her unconventional party would have the skills to discover any details which may have been overlooked by the villagers who were unlikely to be as skilled at tracking as herself or her companions. As the group investigated the area for signs that might lead them somewhere, Loradove watched and listened for any small creatures nearby who may have seen or heard something that could give them a clue. After all, most humans and goblins seemed not to take notice of the birds and other small animals of the forest, and certainly wouldn't take pains to lower their voices or disguise their movements from squirrels and so on. If any curious forest creatures came around, Loradove would gladly cast Speak with Small Animals to learn if they have seen or heard anything that may help the party in their search. 

Loradove is impatient to make some progress and wishes to head to the ridge as soon as possible to investigate the area and determine what to do next. As she expected to leave as soon as possible, she will have her gear with her already. As soon as the rest of the party is ready to proceed, she will head to the ridge with them. 

Loradove bounced nervously in her chair as she attempted to remain polite and reserved, waiting for someone else in the party to respond, but it was no good. She could restrain herself no longer and hopped up to stand on her chair.

"WELL YOU ALL HEARD THEM! CHILDREN'S LIVES ARE AT STAKE HERE!! THERE'S NO TIME TO WASTE!! ELAIDA, PLEASE SHOW US THE WAY TO MRS. MOLKIN!!"

She dropped payment for her cider and stew onto the table, and with that accomplished, she leapt to the floor and bounded out the front door of the tavern.

A moment later she returned through the door and cleared her throat. Then addressing Elaida at a more conversational volume she said, "Sorry, sometimes I get a little overexcited and forget my manners."

Turning to her companions she said "As much as I would enjoy visiting with these fine people all night, we came here for a reason and it wasn't to eat and drink! Let's go do some good!"

Then, to Elaida again, "Would now be a convenient time to speak with Mrs. Molkin? I feel that time is of the essence of we are to save these poor boys!"

Loradove polished off the rest of her stew and washed it down with some cider, then made a point of picking up her napkin and waved it around a bit before wiping her mouth with it, jsut to be sure Ghilberti had seen her use it. Remembering her earlier outbursts and the ensuing stares, she decided it would be best to let others speak before she did. She listened as Ortolf and the sheriff traded banter. She waited for what felt like days, but no one replied so she took it upon herself. A gnome can only be quiet for so long.

"Good evening sir! Since arriving we have heard that some young boys have recently gone missing! This is terrible news! We feel awful for their poor mother and would like to help! What do you know about the boys and this incident as well? Can you tell us anything else that might be helpful to us before we speak to their mother? Have any other children gone missing recently? How can we help? WE MUST... *ahem*," she cleared her throat, realizing that she had begun to shout again, and continued more quietly "I mean, we must know as much as possible if we are going to help bring these boys home."

Loradove follows Ghilberti's movement with her eyes as he slowly grabs her napkin and wipes his arm. Upon hearing his admonishment, she smiles sheepishly and mumbles "I'm terribly sorry," though with her mouth still full of stew it probably sounded more like "Mmm trrblee furry".

Loradove eats her stew and listens as Galydan and Ghilberti speak. Upon hearing Ghilberti ask about the Sheriff she shouts "MPHM WHA AH MPHM..." then pauses as she notices a few nearby people glancing in her direction. Realizing she might be speaking a bit too loudly and also still has a mouth full of food, she quickly chews and swallows, then lowers her voice. "I agree with Galydan, I am worried about these missing children also! I would be devastated if any of my family went missing, I can only imagine how Mrs. Molkin must be feeling with TWO of her children missing!! Horrifying!! We definitely must help her find them! She must be completely beside herself with grief and worry! Where may we find this lady? We should speak to her as soon as possible! AND THE KEEP! COULD THEY... I mean," she said more quietly, realizing that she has begun shouting again, "this 'unpredictable' youngin sounds suspicious! Could they be involved in all of this somehow? I suppose the sheriff is probably a better place to start than the keep anyway but of course we need to talk to Mrs. Molkin too!"

Then she begins to scarf down her stew and cider as quickly as she is able, in anticipation of a quick departure.

After everyone else in the party speaks, Loradove realizes she has probably talked too much as usual and reminds herself that not everyone wants to hear absolutely every thought that passes through her mind.

Once Ortolf's daughter returns with the beverages, Loradove requests a bowl of stew and a half pint of cider (at a more reasonable volume), then while waiting for the lady to return, wanders over to the table where Ghilbs and Ortolf are speaking and hops onto a free chair. She remains surprisingly quiet and listens as she waits for the lady to return with her stew. 

When the lady returns she asks if there are any places in the town where they should be sure to visit before they leave town.

Loradove glances around the room and notices the people staring. Undeterred, she decides this is a good opportunity to make some friends and get a little rest after a long journey. She steps towards the aproned woman with her right hand outstretched and speaks enthusiastically.

"HELLO! My name is Loradove, but you can call me Lora if you like, or Dove if you prefer, or if you don't like those names some people call me Timber or Sprout, you known because I'm so tall, well tall for a gnome anyway, and my brothers call me Chipmunk or Squeaker but I don't know why except maybe because I like furry little critters or maybe because of my voice, but anyway it's nice to meet you! These are my friends! What's your name? This is a nice place, are you the owner? There sure are a lot of humans in this town! Could I get a half pint of cider?! Do you have a menu? Is there somewhere we can sit down? Do you guys want anything?!"