Qivys

"Did ya see anyone around before the ogre came crashing through mister?" Directed at Gerrard. "Coz we only seen goblins, and goblins ain't no good. Caution p'rhaps fire we go lettin' this voice up." He approaches the hole and cautiously peers in. 

(Darkvision to 60ft if that helps. Here's an unmodified roll if you need a check of some sort 17.)

((Haha. With a roll like that he'll be lucky to see his toes))

Peri:

"Aye, we'll drop ya a line presently.  Let us tie it off first.  But first, who might we be pullin' up, and how'd ya come t' be in a hole in the backside o' nowhere?  I can't be pullin' a monster out of a hole, puttin' my frailer companions at risk!" ( Persuasion 20 to learn who they're rescuing. ) He will also attempt to peer down into the darkness. (Devil's Sight gives him 120' of normal sight)

((Are you sure Quivs is looking in the right hole?  ;)  ))

((Oh sure, after continually whiffing on the worg, I roll TWO Nat 20s to persuade an already-cooperative NPC!))

Qivys peers into the black gap and sees a humanoid peering back, about fifteen feet down. A goblin. It seems to have an injured foot, and appears to have been busy trying to stack debris against one wall. The walls are ancient slabs of stone, and the uneven hole is filled with stones, soil, and dead leaves. It's a sizable space that extends beyond your sight to the north. The creature wears a chain shirt, unlike the leather-clad goblins you encountered earlier. It has a scimitar slung to its belt, and it holds a javelin in its hand, pointed straight up at Qivys.

"The Ghoch Band ain't good. It's great!" it exclaims in accented Common. "You Fenwaster? Throw down a rope!"

Peri seems him now, as well. (OCC: Devil's Sight, sorry!) The goblin squints up at the halfling. "I am Toktok, Lord of the Ghoch. I was battling a wolf and fell down this hole. Get me the rope! We promise your safety."

Peri:

"Toktok, Lord of the Ghoch, fell in a hole and knocked his block.  Now he's buried under tons of rock, With nothin' t' do but flap and squawk!"  Peri dissolves into laughter, delighted with his poetry.

Gerrard:

Quietly, Gerrard whispers to Peri once he has finished with his hilarity, "Didn't you mention something earlier about being on a mission to 'disperse' some goblins?  This may be an opportunity to do so without further bloodshed, if that meets the terms of your employment."  Gerrard looks nervous, though, even through his tiredness.  "I've never dealt with goblins directly before," he thinks, "but I have heard they are evil, sneaky creatures--I'd better be on my guard."

Toktok impatiently limps in a circle, pacing. He continues to point the javelin upward at the party. "The Ghoch are massing forces nearby. They come soon. You helped the Ghoch by killing the giant and the wolf. The Ghoch will help you by granting you safe passage through these lands. You help the Ghoch by helping old Toktok out of this hole."

The uneven bottom of the void where Toktok stands is about 15 feet down. The gap is narrow - an awkward squeeze for a human or dwarf, although a goblin or halfling could slip through easily.

"Fenwaster! Rope!" Toktok snaps his fingers.

Gerrard:

Just now realizing he neglected to answer The Dwarf’s question, Gerrard says with embarrassment, “I haven’t seen a goblin before today, Master Qivys.  I think I might have been carried here in the Ogre’s sack.”

Peri:

Wiping his eyes, Peri gets his mirth under control.  'Twasn't that funny, Peri lad.  That ogre must've shaken ya more than you knew.  He peers down at the impotent tyrant once again.  "So what's down there, anyhow?  Looks t'be more than your basic hole in the ground.  Anythin' worth seein'?"

Dwal

Dwal will look around the area, looking for any other entrances and the like. 

Perception: 12

Dwal finds little but boulders and weeds and scrub. There is a faint trail that picks up on the west end of the clearing that slopes down into more thinly wooded, grassier lands further west. There doesn't appear to be any other deep holes like this one.

Peri:

The halfling shakes his head at the angry goblin.  "The ogre beat the Ghoch, and we beat the ogre.  You can see why we're not especially concerned with their return.  No, I think you'd best wait down there a bit and reconsider your tone."  With that he'll back away from the hole, then turn to Gerrard.  "S'long as Toktok is on time-out, we can go ahead and gather up your belongin's.  Where's the ogre's lair?"

Gerrard:

"Yes, of course, it is over this way," says the tired and somewhat confused noble.  Leading the way to the cave from which he so recently escaped, Gerrard says to Peri once they are well enough away from the goblin, "If he speaks the truth, Master Fenwader, perhaps the goblins are preparing for an offensive against the civilized lands."  Considering for a moment, he adds, "or he could just be trying to save his skin by feeding us a story about his imaginary powerful nearby allies.  Truthfully, I am too tired to think it through properly."

Dwal 

Dwal will return to where the rest of the party is/was. If he sees Peri and Gerrard he will follow them. 

Unless one of you is staying behind with Toktok, the four of you head over to the spot Gerrard indicates - at the north side of the clearing, where the small, rocky summit begins.

The scrub-choked entrance is hidden by and mostly blocked with brush, brambles, and boulders. It's a small and apparently natural cave, filled with chaotic jumble of rubbish, bones, rubble, dead leaves, broken timbers, and who-knows-what-else.

A large empty sack hangs from an ancient iron hook on the wall. It appears torn and empty, and beneath it lay a freshly severed horse's leg, partly stained purple, and an old humanoid skull. A second sack lay on the floor; its contents, including a fancy riding saddle, are partially visible. A third sack, also apparently full, is visible on its side toward the back of the cave. The cave seems to have no other exits.

Gerrard:

Going to the sack that contains his equipment, Gerrard starts pulling out items and trying to re-pack them into two categories--what he can carry with him, and what is too heavy for him now that his horse is dead.  He also munches on a few rations.

OOC:  In the "too heavy" category:  Bit and Bridle, Chest, ruined shirt, 100 lbs of horse feed, riding saddle.  Everything else he is taking with him.

He repacks the remaining items in the saddlebags or on his body and attempts to clean up a bit, washing his face and hair as best he can before changing into the new shirt.

"Thank you again for helping me reclaim my possessions, heroes," says Gerrard, "The first bag is the one I was kept in, the second bag here looks to be my items.  I don't know what is in the third bag--perhaps the belongings of the unfortunate soul to whom this skull belonged?"

OOC:  If this can count as a short rest, Gerrard would like to spend a HD:  3

Peri:

"No need to abandon your ridin' gear, Lord Feldren; we can help you hump it back t' Saltmarsh, and you should be able to arrange transport from there.  Unfortunately our cart has fled along with our town guard contact, but Qivys could probably handle your saddle.  Just yesterday he carried a full firkin of ale out to some dotty old druid in the middle of the woods.  I'll tote the bit and bridle for you, and Dwal can carry the chest.  Sounds like a fair division of labor t' me."

Peri will then go to the third bag on the floor, standing back and opening it with the tip of his sword in case it's full of half-eaten horse.

As Gerrard sorts his things, Peri investigates the rear of the cave. There is a lot of matted down brush here - looks like a sleeping area for the ogre or the worg or both. A fine-looking, ornate old spear is propping up some nasty rags against a wall. Peri carefully unclasps the sack and pokes it open with his sword - out of it spills silver coins, quite a lot of them. Among the coins are a few flat wooden cases, latched shut, as well as a golden locket of some kind on a chain.

Would you all like to take a short rest? (Gerrard is exhausted.)

Dwal

"We can rest but I won't rest in this Ogre stink. Those things don't know what clean is and disease hangs about where they lay." he states.

"Trolls are worse but, both still ain't clean."

With that Dwal will walk out and wait for the others.

Peri:

He hefts the spear, checking the edge on his thumb.  He strikes a martial pose.  "Whaddya think, lads? A proper halfling's pike?"

((Peri's fine (other than a new arrow hole in his breeches) so if the others choose to rest, he'll park himself at the cave entrance and spend some time getting acquainted with the spear while keeping an eye on Toktok's hole.))

((Edited to remove the mention of Dwal.  Sorry, Dave, didn't mean to step on your post.))