The Gaming Den

Assuming that the seaweed is still coming out of the keymace, Archimedes pulls the keymace back slightly to see how strong the stream of seaweed's grip on the ship is.

The hell is the Naglfar doing here? asks the necromancer as he waits to see what comes out.

Skeletons continue to crawl out through the rippling water wall, many of them bearing the remains of arms and armor. They are tearing at the seaweed and trying to pull the ship through, heaving on chains of bone.

@Malogos: "The Naglfar?"

@Archimedes: "On it."

Orr will recover a fire token (standard action) and then power channel fire on as many skeletons as he can (5 ft radius, 6d6 Fire damage, DC 17 Reflex halves).

A number of skeletons explode. The rest continue to try to drag the ship into the pathway.

Thrull, on top of the head of a riding lizard, is guiding the other one (which is literally covered in white rats at this point) and easing them past the ship, towards Orr and Drowning-Squid.

"We got tired of waiting," the rat explained, cupping his paws together.

"Not good." says Drowning-Squid. "We need to leave before the jötunn arrive."

Good idea, Archimedes says telepathically as he begins to fly off, putting the keymace away if/when it stops the stream of seaweed.

"Yeah, let's fuck off then." Orr will try to slow down the ship by channeling Earth on the parts in contact with the pathway (hey, it's still one target, right? ) before flying away.

Your journey continues on. Drowning-Squid sets a fast pace, eager to leave the undead far behind, which leaves the heavy and slow Archimedes training the pack-lizards (and discovering that they poop on the go).

The "cavern" has been growing steadily brighter, even as the path becomes narrower and branch more often; Drowning-Squid tastes the water of the walls more and more often as the hours go by.

Finally she calls a halt at a marble archway that completely blocks the path, an apparent dead-end, gap between the plinths ripples like liquid mirror.

Why the stop? Archimedes asks, sniffing around for anything unusual.

"This...should not be here." Drowning-Squid blinks, nictating eyelids flicking sideways over her black orbs. "I fear a trap."

Archimedes smells something...familiar. The same smell clings to this archway and clung to the other that the group had passed through, in the Fire Swamp, what seemed weeks or months ago - though in truth he knows it has been only a couple days.

Smells like the portal that got us here, Archimedes tells everyone. Anyone have something they'd like to send in? Any other ideas?

If not, Archimedes will look for a shell or rock or a similar small object to throw through the gate, in order to see what happens to it.

"Hmm... strange. Wonder if there's a way around, over or under it..."

Orr will earth shape the ground between the pillars and around them a few times to see how deep they go.

(How high does the archway go?)

The watery "passage" you are in narrows to about six feet wide by eight feet tall; the archway almost completely fills this gap, although there is a space of about three inches between the watery "ceiling" and the top of the arch.

It is difficult to tell how deep the pillars go, as moving any amount of earth causes the depression to fill up automatically with water.

(What happened to the rock or whatever that Archimedes threw?)

"Hmm..."

Orr will use Control Water twice and concentrate on it (using two standard actions per turn after initial token expenditure) to see if he can raise the water level above the arch by 12 feet (30 ft area).

(What happened to the rock or whatever that Archimedes threw?)

The rock disappears with nary a ripple and a brief burst of flame.

Orr will use Control Water twice and concentrate on it (using two standard actions per turn after initial token expenditure) to see if he can raise the water level above the arch by 12 feet (30 ft area).

The water "ceiling" flexes above the top of the arch. The water around the effected section is rippling quite a bit.

Archimedes does what Orr suggests.

The rock (actually, a fossilized shell) flies through the gap unmolested. You hear a soft plop from the other side.

Next, you tie a rock (an actual rock this time) to a rope, and the other to a half-submerged bit of statuary, and toss the rock through the portal. There is a small burst of flame - enough to char the rope - and begins to be dragged into the portal with inexorable force, until the rope is taught. Then the statue begins to pull free of the mud as it is dragged toward the yawning portal.

"Alright, now the hard part. Getting everyone over the arch. Sounds like the rock fossil made it, but I'll check just to be safe."

Continuing to concentrate on keeping the water up, Orr flies over the arch and past it to see if the path is clear.

(Orr could carry the dog and mice, probably. Heh, I'm now picturing Archimedes with a pack lizard under each arm, or over each shoulder and everyone else hanging onto him somehow...)

On the other side of the archway, Orr sees the path continue - the mud giving way to river-polished stones. He also sees the shell that was thrown over by Archibald.

The statue continues to be dragged towards the portal.

Thrall raises his paw and strokes a whisker. "I believe I can assist us, with the pack lizards at least." Hopping down to where the first of the pack lizards' ear hole is, the rat hisses something - literally hisses, a rhythmic kind of sing-song chant. At the end, the first pack lizard begins to move, heading toward the nearest water wall...and then placing a foot against the water, begins to climb up. The rats hold on for dear furry life as the lizard, now practically perpendicular to the rest of you, begins walking on the wall of water toward the gap above the archway. The other pack lizard follows behind.

You hear a sudden burst of swearing from waterlogged throats. The dog comes running up, a humanoid femur stuck in jaws, tail wagging excitedly. Hopping after it is a one-legged skeleton with a horned helmet and a black axe.

"Good dog." Orr will grab his dog and carry it over the arch. (using 1 move action per round and still concentrating)

At Thrull, "Heh, that's a lot more um... elegant than my first idea."

"Alright, Malogos, Drowning Squid, and Skeleton come along with Archimedes."

Assuming there are no objections, Archimedes picks up Malagos, his skeleton, and Drowning-Squid and carries them up and over the arch, one by one if need be.

One by one, Archimedes carries his charged over the archway. By the time he has finished, the statue has been completely pulled through the portal, and Drowning-Squid had to destroy the hopping skeleton with an impressive acidic ink attack.

On the other side
The path narrows ahead, the sand and silt reduced to smooth stones, like river rock. The adventurers notice that the walls are...flexing.

Drowning-Squid blinks both sets of eyelids. "Not good. We are close, but I believe they are trying to collapse the path. We must hurry."

"Yet we must be cautious. The way forward is too narrow for more than one humanoid to pass at a time." Thrall the rat strokes a whisker. "I fear they will try to stop us."

Marching (running?) order going forward.