So, Bob and I take off after the ant-thing to try and find the kid. We're running around the damn woods with no tracks to follow, just guessing which way the thing went. Bob swears up and down he knows the way back to the cart, but of course, it dead ends right at the hole behind it. What a waste of time.
Bob, being Bob, just jumps out and apparently runs off to grab some gear, leaving me to look into the other hole on my own. I think I see the kid's arm, and I hear digging further down. I figure maybe, just maybe, we can get the kid and get out without that ant-creature noticing.
I ask Bob for a torch, and what does he give me? A glowing, balled-up piece of cloth. What is this, a sleepover? I drop down the hole and immediately see that the arm is detached from the kid. Not a good sign, and there's no screaming, so that's probably even worse. I have no idea where Bob went. I thought he was right behind me, but nope. He's just gone.
I work my way quietly down the tunnel, and what do I find? The kid. Wrapped up in a cocoon, stuck to the wall. Stored for a future meal. That's a goblin-sized mess right there.
Just as I'm about to figure out what to do, Bob calls down to me, yelling that we need to get going. I guess he's decided to just give up on the kid. I jog back and tell him I found the child and where the creature's lair is. What does he do? He just says "Okay" and runs off again. Seriously, what is wrong with this guy? Something is seriously faulty with him.
I head back down the tunnel, pry the cocoon off the wall, and drag the kid back to the entrance. John shows up to help, which is something at least. With John and Rip's help, we finally get the kid out of the hole.
As soon as I'm out, a bunch of the parents start to panic. They're just realizing their kids are missing, and a new wave of panic just washes over the caravan. And of course, they blame us. They're telling us we weren't doing our job while we were out here fighting off the creatures that ambushed the caravan in the first place.
Some merchant comes up to me and starts arguing. I tell him that at the very least, their OWN kids could have been watching their OWN children while we tried to fight off the creatures. I ended up snapping at him, but he got the point and went back to his cart.
Then, we find out that Hargrove was killed in the attack. The quartermaster, the priestess, and the cook are all thrown into a panic. But then, Bob, surprisingly, steps up. He's got some knowledge of the wilderness and gets the whole caravan to agree to turn around and hustle through the night to catch up to the people who took the children. It's going to be a long day and night, but at least we have a goal.
I'm telling you, if we don't find these kids, or if they've been hurt, things are going to get bad. These people are scared and angry. This could get very, very ugly.
Bob's been running around, barking orders and giving people directions, but he's not exactly sharing the whole plan. I guess we're just supposed to trust him.
He has us stop and wait while he runs ahead to check out the river. When he comes back, he's got this absolutely ridiculous idea. He wants someone to swim out and shoot glowing stones at any passing ships to see if they know anything. What is this, a game of Marco Polo?
He sends Luis to find someone from the caravan who can swim, and Luis comes back with a middle-aged gnome. This guy volunteers to help, hoping to find his own kid. He's so damn eager to help that he's even creeping Bob out. He's got a real sadistic streak, this guy, but at least he's willing to get his hands dirty. No one else in this whole caravan seems to want to do a thing.