Originally Posted by Tarlonniel
It's definitely a thing that's been going through my head. Comparing notes about our respective kidnappings would seem like an obvious thing to do for anyone at all curious about what the mindflayers have been up to. Especially when it comes to folks like Lae'zel - where the heck was she when the squids got her? How did they get her? Was Gale in Waterdeep - did the squid raid go that far? How long has it been since everyone was kidnapped? It must have been a good amount of time since

Cazador has had time to recruit hunters to comb the countryside far and wide for Astarion.

I don't understand why no one's asking these questions.
I think everyone who was stuck in the pod was not aware of the passage of time, so it is very possible. Lae'zel seems to be fresh out of creche, which apparently is not that far off from where the EA happens?

As for Astarion,

when you use speak with the dead on the monster hunter he tells you it wasn't Cazador, but Maiden Fel, who sent him. It might be that they have been tracking him for longer (likely using magical means).