Quote from rkmobius >>

(The Shatter spell only deals damage to nonmagical items that are not being worn or carried, so I assume the journal and anything the drow were carrying are fine.)

 (Flavor text. Those items are the only things recovered even if you attacked them with soft cushions. I'll try to be clearer when it is something under your control.)

Quote from Guiltysparc >>

"I might could use a small rest to bandage myself."  He manages a weak smile and adds, "Curse the gods and my lack of adventuring ale."

Drusk agrees that the group will need to take a (short) rest at some point. However, you are in a race against time.
The Citadel elf cleric foresaw the scout party meeting a dire fate this night, which is only a few hours away. You don't know how far away they are.
If the party needs to rest often, you may lose the chance to save the scouts.

(I'm not trying to stop you from taking a short rest. I'm just asking if you have decided this is the right time for it.
If you were thinking about a bunch of short rests during the adventure, time will run out for the scouts.
If it is only a matter of health, Drusk does have more spells, and you have a few healing potions.

The module does have a time limit, but as written that wasn't made clear to the players.
I threw in the "prophecy" so you know that taking a long rest or too many short rests will have negative consequences.)

Quillary pads over to where Jorin is, still a little miffed that she missed out on much of the action. "I do think your ale might leak out of you, at this point," she jests. She crouches down in front of him, and with a strangely intimate (for her) move, leans her forehead (and her cat skull) up against his, putting her hands on his shoulders. "I would keep you from the veil, Jorin of the Bodt."

Cure Wounds (2nd level slot, IGL): 8 hp of healing

With a growl, she grips him more firmly and presses the skull into his forehead with hers.

Cure Wounds (1st level slot, IGL): 9 more healing

With a sigh, she leans back, still crouched before Jorin. "I am out of sorts underground. Persist, do not die, and I will buy you your ale when we return to the surface."

Spar exults in the mage's downfall. She looks through the journal, and, (assumedly, as she only speaks Common and Celestial), unable to read it, passes it over to someone else, likely Hildigrim. She looks around the rest of the chamber, wondering why the drow were there in the first place. "Was this their home? Just passing through? Weird place to hole up. Think the scouting parties came through here?"

She pats herself down, surprised to be relatively unscathed apart from the cloudkill poison, before seeing Jorin slumping and injured. She walks over and peers at his cuts and bruises. She paws a handful of dust or mud from the ground and slaps it on a wound. "You're fine! Just rub some dirt into it." (If he consents, he heals 8 hp from her Healing Hands racial trait.)

Spar can survive without a short rest, though she'd benefit from one. Whether they decide to take a short rest here or not, she looks around the chamber as mentioned above, and she also pokes her head into the passage to the east, trying to see if she sees anything or hears anything. It's then that she realizes she's got a miniature sun next to her head, and she first uses it to scan for markings on the hallways or any other clues, and then stows it back in her pack and tries to see if she sees anything further with her 120 ft darkvision. Assuming nothing, she returns back to the main chamber and listens to what the group has to say.

Spar had missed Quillary and Jorin's moment (delayed crosspost) and afterward she goes to Hildigrim, asks for the bag of holding, and pulls out the keg of ale. "Told you,'" she says, handing it to Jorin.

Jorin smiles at both Quillary and Spar as they lend him aid, but the smile broadens quite widely once Spar finds the keg of ale.  He takes a long draught, wipes his beard, and offers it to Quillary.

(Excellent find on the ale, i thought for sure i remembered us getting some, but then didn't see it in my inventory.  While Jorin is now at 100% of his spirits, he's only about 50% hp.  Do we have any healing potions?  I'd like to be something like 75% hp if possible.)

Quillary's face splits in actual joy as Spar produces ale for Jorin. She claps the woman on the shoulder heartily (as she imagines Jorin would do). "Well done! You are definitely well suited to this company!"

As the group goes about after-combat tasks, Quillary will approach the body of the drow mage, squat near her head, and spend a moment looking at her face (torn up as it is). After a few minutes, she shakes her head and stands up, returning to the group.

"I would hazard that this group is either a posted guard or a patrol. They were too... organized, to be anything else. But I agree, there does not seem to be much to indicate this is a permanent posting of any sort. Still, they might have sent a runner."

She goes to the exit, the one Spar walked down while Quillary was communing with the dead mage, and tries to make sense of the tracks or marks, trying to account for Spar's own footsteps. "Drusk, do you think these are outgoing? Those over there are Spar, I am sure." She points and mutters as Drusk Helps her.

Survival with Help and thus Advantage (IGL): 10 and 23

Jorin considers Quillary's take and adds, "Not permanent, no.  No supplies here, or shelter.  Patrol I think, there is only one path through this chamber, I cannot think of a reason to put a sentry force so large here."

(Spar gave Jorin her temp healing potion after the wormfight. Don't think she has any more potions...)

So do we want to short rest or keep moving?

Quote from Guiltysparc >>

(Excellent find on the ale, i thought for sure i remembered us getting some, but then didn't see it in my inventory.  While Jorin is now at 100% of his spirits, he's only about 50% hp.  Do we have any healing potions?  I'd like to be something like 75% hp if possible.)

The party seems to be planning a short rest in the near future, and Channel Divinity recharges on a short rest.
Drusk uses one of his CDs to get Jorin to half-health (41 hp), then Quillary does 2 cure wounds (+17) and Feldspar does some Healing Hands (+8) to get Jorin to 66/82 hp.

Besides whatever healing potions are in personal inventory, the party still has 2 regular healing potions (that expire in the next day) and a greater healing potion recovered from the last fight.

(Do we see/hear anything down the next passage?)

Drusk corrects Jorin. "You can't be at 100% spirits, because you just emptied out a lot of the ale."

Feldspar is correct that Hildigrim knows Elvish and has an interest in books.
Despite the halfling being 50' to the west when she found the journal, she barely has time to even notice the language of the script before Hlidigrim is standing before her, eyes glittering at the beat-up journal. Feldspar is a little taken back by the enthusiasm, but hands over the journal.

Hildigrim has to be nudged to remind him that the party is in a hurry, as he was starting to read the journal in more detail.
He reads aloud some of the recent entries that were on undamaged pages. (In the spoilers below, just to save space.)
Quillary has shown interest in the Bregan D’Aerthe (rebel Drow organization), but the group you just fought were "establishment" Drow, devoted to Lolth the demon goddess of the webs.
The religious rantings make it a little difficult to understand, but this group was hunting down an unbeliever/imposter who sinned against their Goddess.
This group of Drow seems unaware of the Lord's Alliance scouts.

Drusk (your half-orc cleric) says that the talk of dreams sounds familiar, and also might be what made the Alliance cleric so batty back in the Citadel.
Seems like Lolth's anger is concentrated on this region, making those of Elvish heritage aware of Her wrath.

Qullary is somewhat vexed by this Drow group trampling all over the trail left by the Alliance scout team that you've been following.
She gets everyone to look around the exit from this cavern, and you are able to find the path again.
This drow team was headed in the same direction that the scouts went. Coincidence, perhaps.

(You have a chance to discuss or take other actions. Let me know when you are ready to proceed.)

Quillary is ready to push on, no rest. She'll want a short rest when she uses her next and last Wild Shape, to get them both back.

(Backing up a little for comedy sake.) As Hildigrim realizes the cloud of death is quickly moving in his direction, his yelling to get his friends' attention turns into a yell of terror. He throws his arms up over his head, his eyes widening ... until the cloud dissipates. The halfling's almost scream turns into a squeak as it dies away. He looks around, and seeing at least one pair of eyes on him from across the room, he clears his throat and readjusts his posture into something more appropriate. "Is it ... over then?" he asks, somewhat quietly. He starts to look around to see if he can find any unbroken arrows when he notices Spar thumbing through a book.

Insert Quasi's on-point assertions about Hildi's obsession with books.

Upon Drusk's observation of the dreams, Hildigrim taps his chin. "Well, that excludes me. Any Elvish blood in you, new friend?" he asks of Spar. He looks at Quillary. "Not sure how this might affect someone with your ... condition." He drops his eyes back to the journal and continues skimming through it, barely noticing when someone puts the two drow poison vials in the bag of holding.

Quillary nods, "Aye, I was never much of an elf."

“Not me either. If we are going then we should go.” She begins to range ahead, in the darkness, eyes and ears alert.

The party continues forward, guided by Quillary to follow the 4th (most recent) scout party. After another half hour, you see more signs of traffic, probably from the earlier 3 scout parties, along with remnants of battles with various Underdark creatures.

Quillary holds up a hand for the party to stop, as the tracks of the scout party stop here. The way forward is blocked by a crevice which descends indefinitely into the darkness. You can see, forty feet away, on the far side, the remnants of a block and tackle setup that likely allowed humanoid creatures to cross this area previously. The crack in the earth is between 35 and 40 feet across as far as can be seen to the left or right of the path. (You can try going to the left or right, to look for any narrowing of the crevice, but Quillary doesn't think the earlier scout teams did that.)

Quillary looks up, judging the space. Room to Wild Shape into a Giant Eagle and carry people across?

"It is possible I could fly us across, though likely to only be one at a time," she says, softly like she's still thinking about it.

Quote from Mingofaust >>

Quillary looks up, judging the space. Room to Wild Shape into a Giant Eagle and carry people across?

(It can be done.
Could also carry one end of a rope with someone, and the first person carried across can get the block & tackle setup working again.)

With all the time Quillary spent visiting the Waterdeep aviaries in recent days, she would have to ponder which oversized flying beast would be most suitable for this task.

Feldspar also looks up and tries to ascertain if there is a ceiling/roof to this area.