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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Silver Moon" data-source="post: 1247388" data-attributes="member: 8530">Chapter 25, “Hit the Deck”, September 13th, 1019, 8:00 P.M.Not seeing anyone out of the front windows of the archer’s loft the party looks out the back windows.  The group of buildings consists of deck, approximately 50-feet square, with another howdah on each side of it.  The part of the deck below where they are has an upper deck, approximately 10 by 30 feet in size.    Backlit by the fire left in the wizardess’s tower, they can see that both of the wyverns are on the back deck, with a pair of gnoll troops now climbing onto each.   Two gargoyles are also present, one atop the tower by the left flank and another guarding the door to the tower.  Narg recognizes the door guard as the same one he recently wounded.    The group gathers around the windows.  “What do you think?” Narg asks.   Cassie replies “I thinking that this building wasn’t where the “Locate Object” spell was directing me but that one was,” pointing to the building with the gargoyles around it.    “Looks like the wyverns are about to take to the air again,” Alton comments.   “Better deal with them now instead,” Mojo offers.   “Fireball coming up,” Cassie states.She has already used both of the more powerful fireballs from her Crown of Might, so has to toss one from a studied spell.   The spell is very successful, with the fireball doing considerable damage.    She had centered the spell directly on the wyvern closest to the building where they assessed the leader to now be.   The outer edge of the fireball hits the wounded gargoyle, the impact of the blast knocking it off of the deck, and possibly to its death.   As the massive ball of flame emerges she comments that the hide of the beast must have been oiled given how quickly the wyvern is engulfed in the flame.   The flaming wyvern lets out a massive bellow, before collapsing dead onto the deck, its body still burning brightly.    Both gnolls seated on it are reduced to charred husks.   The second wyvern was just outside of the blast range and takes to the air.  Mojo lobs his hammer at it, but misses.    A frustrated Alton now draws one of his possessions that he had taken from his pack before changing to chimp form and had been carrying around attached to a rope belt.   The item is a souvenir from the 20th Century world that he originated from, a 45-calibur handgun.    He takes his first shot at the wyvern, the invisibility dispelling from him.   Alton’s first shot wasn’t even close and his second shot barely misses the rapidly departing beast.  His third shot is on the mark, hitting the creature in the side.   The wounded wyvern continues to fly away. ”Now what?” Mojo asks.  Narg answers, “We hit the deck, literally.”   “That’s a long way down,” Cassie comments.   Narg fastens his magical rope between two of the windows and starts to lower it to the upper deck below.   The Kadtanach starts to shake again, the burning wyvern falling off the deck.  “Be careful not to fall,” Purge comments.   Narg answers “What?  You think I want to fall 100 feet to my death?”  Mojo interjects, “Well, if you do I’ll laugh my ass off.”   Cassie says, “Oh no Narg, you’re not getting out of raising a kid that easily.”   “Yeah, then I’d have to,” Mojo states.  Narg answers, “Oh no you don’t.  If there is any person less qualified to raise a kid than me it’s you.” Narg gestures to the gargoyle atop the tower and tells Mojo “Cover me” and then climbs out of the window and slides down.    The gargoyle sees him, but does not move from its perch.   “Fine, it’s staying put,” Mojo says, and fastens the hammer back on his belt.  Mojo climbs out the window and and starts to slide down the rope after Narg. As soon as Narg’s feet land on the upper deck a dozen jet black, bony-ridged tentacles erupt from the deck floor.   A high-pitched scream begins to resonate as Narg gets lashed by some of the tentacles and entangled by others.   Mojo immediately grips the rope tight to stop his descent.  Up above Cassie says, “Ah, I know that spell.  Evard’s Black Tentacles.”   “Do something,” Alton yells.   She casts a Dispel Magic down onto Narg and the area around him.  The tentacles vanish and the alarm ceases.   Mojo slides the rest of the way down the rope.  Narg charges along the deck in the direction of the building where they have determined the helmet to be in, with Mojo following.    As soon as he runs out of the area that had been affected by Cassie’s spell another group of tentacles spring up in his direction.  His reflex actions are to jump back and also swing the Nargblade at the objects heading towards him.   He is successful with both actions, propelling himself backwards with a reverse broad jump while delivering a perfect swing with the sword of sharpness, severing the first two tentacles coming at him.  Mojo catches Narg in mid-air, and then turns to run back towards the rope.   The remaining tentacles begin growing and moving at them.   Narg says “No good, they’ll get us when we stop to grab the rope.”  “Okay Sundance, then we go for Plan B,” Mojo comments and runs to the right towards the edge of the upper deck, diving off of it.     The two of them fly through the air, Mojo releasing Narg, and both manage to land on their feet on the flower deck fifteen feet below with minimum impact damage.   The Gargoyle atop the tower now dives down in their direction. The tentacles do not pursue them off of the upper deck, but continue to swirl around down below where they had been.    Alton complains, “Great, they left those behind.  How do we get down without being grabbed?”   “I’ll show you,” Cassie comments, pulling up the magical rope and then using the Wand of Force.    She creates a Wall of Force, covering over the entire upper deck just above the swirling tentacles.    They lower the rope down and she and Purge then slide to the deck as Alton climbs down the wall.    The tentacles continue to swirl around under their feet beneath the invisible wall.  “Just like an ant farm,” Alton comments. Narg sees the gargoyle coming at him out of the corner of his eye, and pivots around with the Nargblade.  He gets in a perfect severing attack, the first striking the creature’s arm and wing, causing it to crash onto the deck and setting Narg up for the follow through on its neck, decapitating the monster.    Meanwhile, Mojo has spotted a pair of gnolls manning ballistae in the rear corners of the lower deck.   He tosses his hammer at the one furthest away, yelling to Narg about the other one.   Narg charges in that direction and Mojo lets the hammer sail a second time, killing the gnoll.  He yells to Narg “I’ve done my job, why don’t you?”  “What?  Did you miss the gargoyle?” Narg exclaims as he reaches the other gnoll and makes very short work of it.  Narg then gestures toward the glowing Cassie on the upper deck and says in a British accent “She shines out like a shaft of gold when all else is dark.”  He then gestures to the door and with the same accent says to Mojo “Shall we?”  Mojo gestures as well and in the same accent replies, “After you old chum.”  “Oh no, I insist,” Narg replies.  “Oh rather,” is Narg’s response.   “Very well,” Mojo answers, and they head towards the door.</blockquote>

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