Quinn anchors himself as he lowers Fergus. He had not seen Bryony take aim and let loose a shot, and the sound of the bow string twang beside him startled Quinn. He momentarily lost focus and let slip the rope but he quickly composed himself and held tight before Fergus hit the floor.

Quinn focuses his attention on the flesh nuggets  to gauge their reaction from the attack.

Bryony takes very careful aim, and lets loose a sharp arrow. It hits and penetrates the strange, misshapen gemmule, but does not kill it. (It is clearly wounded, but not deeply.)

The two strange creatures scatter out of sight. Fergus can see them retreat through open doorways into rooms to the south and east.

Fergus, his heart in his throat after a sudden drop nearly to the floor below, sees... a living room? Filled with collapse and debris.

"I got it!" Bryony says excitedly before she notices Quinn almost drop Fergus down the hole. "Oh no! Sorry Fergus. I didn't realize you were trying to talk to them."

The halfling attempts to help Quinn steady the rope, but she's not very strong and thus can't really do anything. "I can climb down next. Shooting them didn't really seem to work. They are tougher than they look!"

Fergus:

Thankful the FN’s didn’t stay around to snack on him as he dangled from the rope, Fergus unties himself and drops the last few feet to the floor.

Looking around, he considers the reaction of the creatures—do they appear to be intelligent and capable of speech, or are they acting merely on instinct?

Insight:  8

Quinn motions for Bryony to head down below with Fergus.

"Fergus! What do you see down there? Where'd they go?!"

Bryony joins Fergus at the bottom of the rope. Other than the collapse of the stairwell and the fallen dirt and debris from the sinkhole above, they find themselves in a once-tidy home, perhaps a couple of centuries old, completely intact. In Fergus' lantern light, you can see furniture ready to sit on, dishes on the table, an open book (in Dwarvish) on a side table, a hearth and kettle, a stack of dry firewood, and other household odds-and-ends. Three open doorways lead north, east, and south. (The tiny creatures retreated south and east.)

Fergus has never seen anything remotely like those alien creatures, but their behavior earlier did not suggest high intelligence.

Quinn and Jorzu watch from the edge of the hole above. Boona hangs back a little with the two boys, and Jurgen.

Fergus:

Calling up to Quinn, he says, “I’m fine, Quinn, you caught me in time.”  

Looking around, he adds, “This place looks lived-in, and recently—by someone who can read Dwarven.  If these alien-looking creatures are intruders here, the resident could be in danger.”

While he waits for others to come down who might wish to, Fergus moves around in the room and shines his light through each of the doorways, though he doesn’t go in.

”Hello, anyone home?” he calls out, adding, “there are some alien-looking creatures who fell in through the hole and may pose a danger to you.”

Perception (looking through doorways):  4

(Halfling Luck Reroll:  14 )

Quinn tests the rope to ensure that it's anchored securely before letting go. He turns to the others.

"There's some sort've house down below. Fergus thinks someone's been there recently.

Bryony? What should we do with Carp and Pip? Should we send them off or bring them with us?" 

His eyes drift over to Carp and Pip. He stands up tall to make himself imposing. He brings Lightbringer up to the level of their head to illuminate their faces. He speaks loud, direct and firm.

"Whatever Bryony says, goes. This ain't no game here. We've lost many friends and killed even more monstrosities to keep this town safe." 

(testing, testing...)

Nobody answers Fergus' call. Nor can he see where the tiny alien gemmules went.

Stepping a little closer, he does see rooms full of household furniture on three sides. To the south, he sees what looks like a small household shrine. Next to it lay a long-dead, skeletal corpse, and a book.

Fergus also notes that there is a thin film of very fine dust over everything. This house has been sealed for decades, perfectly preserving its contents. While it's lived in – indeed, it's a cozy underground home – it has not been lived in for many years.

Fergus:

Looking a bit closer, Fergus corrects himself, “The wood is dry and not rotted, so I thought it might be pretty recently occupied, but there is a fine layer of dust and a dried-out Dwarven corpse down here to the north, so I’ll have to revise my estimate to be much longer without a Living occupant.”

Quinn responds to Fergus. 

“Aye. What do ya think? Investigate or get outta here?”

Fergus:

”Oh, I am ever the curious one,” responds Fergus. Getting the open book from off the table, he puts it into the kettle (assuming it is dry/empty and large enough).  He then ties the end of the rope to the kettle (or another container large enough) and sends it up for Quinn to review.

”Bryony, do you mind watching my back as I go south and try to get that other book?  Hopefully we might learn something about what happened here to this poor dwarf,” asks Fergus.

Jorzu 

Now that the nuggets were out of sight Jorzu approaches the hole. He removes a bead from his pouch and crushes it against his head. He instantly floats an inch off the ground. With an usual climb/fly set of manoeuvres he descends into the dwarven home. He touches down just next to Byrony and looks around for Fergus. When he spies his friend he instead moves to the northern room. Allowing his gnomish eyes to adjust to the dim light he peers through the doorway hoping to gain a greater view than what a torchlit view might provide.

((Hoping Darkvision provides greater scope and detail in searching the room))

Perception 1 if needed

Jorzu descends magically and, moving to the northern doorway, spies a tidy bedroom. It is unoccupied.

Fergus mostly fits the first book into the bone-dry kettle, and tying it off, lets Quinn hoist it up to examine. Fergus then prepares to move into the southern room.

Quinn open's the book and quickly rifles through it.

DM: Is there a title on the spine or interior pages? Table of contents perhaps?

The idea of waiting up top while the other's explore down below does not sit well with Quinn. He turns to Carp and Pip.

"Scratch that. You two wanna help? Stay up here and watch our backs. Carp, you man the rope and make sure it doesn't fall in. Pip, you scan the tree's and make sure nothing sneaks up on us.

First sign of a threat, you two scream bloody murder at the top of your lungs. If you have to climb down below but stay in the main room. Don't go exploring!"

Quinn addresses Boona and Jurgen.

"You two can do what you will. Head down there and help or stay up top and stand watch. I'm going down."

Quinn glances at the old book. It's pretty light fare. The title (in Dwarvish) is "Practical Wisdom and Impractical Tales for the Stout of Heart" and is full of short fables and comic anecdotes. The table of contents begins with "The Cook Who Polished Pebbles Instead of Potatoes" and "A Tale of the Unpickable Lock and the Door That Was Never Locked." On the cover is a holy symbol of Dumathoin – a mountain with a gem at its heart. (But the gem is a cheap piece of glass.)

Pip nods nervously in agreement, as Quinn stows the book and begins to climb down into the underground dwelling.

Fergus:

Worried about the missing alien creatures, Fergus casts See Invisibility before heading south into the small shrine room.  He carefully approaches the skeleton, looking for any signs of motion.

Perception:  15

Fergus shines his lantern into the southern room, which seems to have the trappings of a prayer or meditation room. He sees nothing invisible, but he does spot the two missing creatures hopping anxiously behind a low table covered with religious paraphernalia.