There were "Pirates!" aboard, and they were doing a decent job of slaughtering the crew. It was a gory, dismal sight that would haunt any person for many days to come.
BrewStirr Hammer was not totally unprepared for the gory sight that greeted his fiery red eyes. He had heard many tales of oppression and war during his years of preparation as a Wizard's apprentice as a member of Clan Hammer in the Blister Mountains, but to witness such actions up close and personal gave him no time for reflective pause ... were he to see the light of another day.

These past weeks BrewStirr Hammer had been careful not to reveal the nature of his true abilities as a Wizard/Evoker, but now was not the time, nor the place, to continue his charade as merely a ship's cook and dishwasher!

Without waiting to see what his other three companions would choose to do, BrewStirr Hammer set his sights on the largest and fiercest pirate ... unleashing a Magic Missile spell to help turn the tide of the unexpected attack ... hoping that his companions would do their part to repel the invaders ... and together save one another's skin!

"Moradin ... Protect Me!"

Because BrewStirr Hammer does not have his Spear with him, he looks around for a weapon or somewhere to gain a better vantage point to help battle the pirates. He also looks for any 5lb objects that he may use his Mage Hand spell on to use as a weapon. He also looks to see if the way is clear to climb up towards the crows nest to gain a better vantage point to defend himself or launch another attack against the invaders!

The halfling began his "sea song", then the dwarf began one of his own. It seemed contagious, for the crew above began their own singingm but they didn't seem to all be singing the same song. The result was more cacophony than melody, but it had the desired effect. The mood above and below seemed to change for the better. And while Jon did not sing with the rest, he was not above slapping his leg or stamping his foot in time to whatever his ears heard.

When the halfling stopped singing, his demeanor changed. The lightness seemed to leave his face and was replaced with a sort of curious look. When the rest of the "washing crew" stopped singing also, the screams from above-deck could be heard plainly. About the same time, some of the "crew" came rushing down-deck, stumbling and/or falling on their way donw the ladders, some screaming, some bloody, all of them showing fear -- or something akin to it.

Jon needed no prompting to turn and rush up the ladder, fighting as best he could to make his way to the upper deck against the rush and press of those trying to escape that area. As soon as he gained the deck, he glanced about to see what was happening, drawing his short sword as he looked. He could have wished for his bow or staff, but he had left them under the watchful eye of a fellow passenger. Jon was briefly thankful that he had the weapon he had, because it didn't look as if the boarders threatening (and killing) the crew were going to let him just walk up to his stash and claim them.

And noticing those who were invading their peaceful little vessel, he also noticed that the ships, although side-by-side, were facing opposite directions, and the ropes they had used to grapple and pull the two vessels together were strained by this odd circumstance. Maybe, just maybe, if all or some of the ropes were cut, the boarders would have other worries more pressing. It was worth an attempt

The majority of the crew were defending or fleeing, so Jon felt that a plea to them for help to do what he was about to try would fall on ears deafened by other worries. He did a double-take when he saw the dwarf making gestures and muttering, rather than grabbing a weapon. He glanced about for Ja'ara or the halfling and (if nearby) asks the nearest to assist him as he tries to cut the ropes. Whether or not either of them is near enough to hear him, Jon will run to the nearest grappling-rope, as quietly as possible so as not to draw undue attention to himself, and try to slash it in twain with his short sword. He will move on to cut the next rope only after the one he is currently working on becomes severed.

"Pirates!"
Ja'ara looked up from his dishes with a start. The songs of his fellows had abruptly stopped and ther sounds of panic could be heard above deck. Ja'ara thought back to those that relieved him in the crow's nest, and the deck of cards they carried up with them. Clearly they were not quite doing their duty. He cursed himself silently for not ensuring they kept a good watch as he left. His haste had cost him, he would have to remain patient as he was taught.

Ja'ara turned and made his way up on deck, not even noticing the dish he still held in his hand as he did. He surveyed the carnage on deck the moment he reach the top of the stairs. The pirates were definately onboard, and those crew left seemed to be slightly overwhelmed. Ja'ara looked about, alone he was outnumbered and probably outmatched, the pirates were definately more numerous than he, he would have to make their numbers worthless. He looked about for a vantage point, somewhere he could place himself to limit the ammount of exposure his flanks would have to the pirates' weaponry. As he moved he did his best to toss the plate at the closest pirate he could see, he would do this one with his fists as he had been taught.

(OOC: Moving somewhere where they can't get around me. Throwing a plate. Shiny.)

Momma always said I would make a good bard. Finder thought to himself as he inadventantly led the crew in song. He was such a better singer than all of them though. Human voices were pitched far too low, they could barely overcome the sounds of the sea.

The dwarf was even worse. No, it took a halfling to pierce the air and water and ambiant sounds. Finder's high pitched squeeking echoed especially well down in the dishwashing station. He was rather pleased.

But in typical human fashion, the ones above got too distracted to pay attention to their surroundings. Finder's ears perked up, and apparently the rest of the crew took too long in following suit.

Pirates. WHHHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

Finder loved pirates. He would have been one had he been born near a boat. Unfortunately these pirates seemed more intent on murder than exploration. Oh well. A fight it was then.

Not that Finder had any intent whatsoever on fighting fair.

"Hehe. Look everyone! That dwarf thinks he's a wizard!" He shouted, half to make an observation, and half to draw attention away from him. The incantations and hand motions just provided an easy out.

It only took a second for Finder to slip into the shadows, plate still in hand.

(OOC: Hide! Draw Dagger! Wait until something comes near where he can sneak attack by either throwing the plate or stabbing a pirate. He'll also keep an ear out to judge how the above ground battle is going.)

Jon was the first to act, moving quickly and rushing over to the ropes tossed over from the other boat. He shoved through the crowd and moved along the front edge of the boat. His goal was to avoid the pirates, but as soon as they had made their way across the ropes, they were bombarded by the passengers on the ship. It's not applicable to imply that they weren't acting though. They were slaughtering the unarmed passengers as fast as one could imagine a net behind this boat would collect fish.

Still, he was within striking range of the pirate when he cut the first rope. The cut was clean, easy, and swift. But it brought him more danger than he had bargained for. The pirate struck at him. Unfortunately, he was distracted by the fight at hand, and over-estimated the length of his shortsword. The strike missed Jon by a mile. What ensued as the blade struck the rope was a lot to notice. The rope fell from the boat much faster than gravity would draw it. It was clear to Jon why. There was another pirate on it, and he fell into the ocean below as the rope was cut.

Ja'ara was the next to act. He was ready to attack, but aiming over the heads of everyone was a difficult task. He moved toward the front of the boat, and positioned himself at the end of the boat, opposite the attack. There was little chance they could reach him through the crowd. This, unfortunately, made the throw difficult for him. Still, with all of his years of training, even such a strange weapon was easy to throw. The plate left his hands smoothly and flew at the pirate who had just swung at Jon. The attack was decent and the plate hit the pirate, hard. It shattered as it struck him in the arm, and the flakes cut his face and arm. Still, he seemed to stand steady, ready to continue slicing away the crowd in front of him.

That was what he did. He waved his blade through the crowd of unarmed crewmen. They attempted to dodge, but the other crew behind them stopped them from avoiding the blade as it cut through them, dropping them as quickly as fish turn belly up in a barrel of boiling water...assuming you could boil water in a barrel without setting it on fire...but that's enough oceanic references for the moment. There were *THWANG*s of crossbows being fired from the other ship, including the very loud *THWANG*s of ballista.

The dwarf decided to cast a spell, aiming to eliminate the pirates attacking. He selected one who's rope had not already been cut. It was a rational move. There were good reasons to target another person. For one, there were plenty of others to attack the man who already had plate shards sticking from his arm. Additionally, with a bit of luck, he could strike fear in those back on the enemy ship if he proved that there was a caster here, and he was capable of doing some damage. The magical blade appeared in the air before him and flew at the pirate. The enemy was struck in the chest and forced to back-step at the blow.

"Hehe. Look everyone! That dwarf thinks he's a wizard!" It was Finder's voice that echoed over the crowd. What was truly disturbing was that it really did echo. The word wizard struck both ships silent. A few of those fighting even stopped to glance back at who had made the comment. Fortunately for Finder, he had already hidden in the crowd. This was very unfortunate for the dwarf, who now had all the attention to himself, his hands still posed and pointing at the pirate who had just had a glowing thing strike him. So much for covering up his status as a caster...

Finder had a great opportunity here. He could throw his plate at the pirate who'd already been hit by one. It would be easy to cover up, and easy to do with everyone distracted by a bigger threat. His years of practice easily overcame throwing such a strange object and he struck the pirate easily. Unfortunately, even though the plate shattered on impact, he realized the human must have been significantly stronger than he. The shards didn't lodge into the man as the others had. It was very fortunate he was trained in finding weak spots. it was only a slight cut, but it was a slight cut to the man's throat. The pirate fell to the ground as the plate cut across his trachea.

The sunlight glimmered off the masts as the battle continued on the boat. Still, more pirates were now aboard, and a rope was now tied to the mast of the other ship to be thrown across. But with the calls of wizard, a dead pirate in the ranks, and the cutting of ropes. It was anyone's guess what might happen next.

((That's round one, get those actions in))

Now this was why Finder decided to go on this ship! He remembered his days of throwing rocks, how everyone commented about how easily he handled a sling, how gracefully he could toss weaponry. It was natural to his race.

The halfling caught a quick smirk as the blood gushed from his pirate target's neck. Unfortunately he was now down a weapon, and these pirates seemed dead set on slaughtering the whole ship. Too many arrows flying around to risk going outside. They would have to come inside eventually. Finder made a break to get below deck, doing his best to hide along the way. Something down there would be of use.

Cursing out loud for his lack of bow and arrows, weapons he could really deal damage with, Jon was nonetheless relieved when he notice that his downward movement to cut the rope took him out of the path of a wildly-swinging blade of one of the boarders. Growling, he looked up to the sword-wielding pirate just as a plate slammed into the bloke and broke into shards of fired ceramic. Then a short, sudden silence ensued, during which the word "wizard" echoed a few times. But the sounds of battle restarted all too soon, and seemed the more violent for the pause. The first plate to hit his opponent was followed close-on by a second plate that evidently hit something vital, for the man clutched as his throat even as he fell.

That worry eliminated, Jon began to move to the next nearest rope and noticed that men on the other ship were readying to fly another rope over to the beleaguered vessel on which Jon was a passenger-slash-crewman. It was tied to the mast of the pirate ship and looked to be headed for the mast of their own boat. A quick glance showed all that were capable were fighting, those that were not fighting were either running or dying.

Jon had no illusions of living forever without danger or injury, although he had entertained hopes of it ... He ran forward, silently slashing at anyone in his way, to intercept the path of this new binding threat, this mast-to-mst rope. He would either cut the rope or, failing that, cut the carriers of it. It must be prevented!

"Hehe. Look everyone! That dwarf thinks he's a wizard!" It was Finder's voice that echoed over the crowd. What was truly disturbing was that it really did echo. The word wizard struck both ships silent. A few of those fighting even stopped to glance back at who had made the comment. Fortunately for Finder, he had already hidden in the crowd. This was very unfortunate for the dwarf, who now had all the attention to himself, his hands still posed and pointing at the pirate who had just had a glowing thing strike him. So much for covering up his status as a caster...

The sunlight glimmered off the masts as the battle continued on the boat. Still, more pirates were now aboard, and a rope was now tied to the mast of the other ship to be thrown across. But with the calls of wizard, a dead pirate in the ranks, and the cutting of ropes. It was anyone's guess what might happen next.
BrewStirr Hammer had only seconds in the silence to create a diversion that could possibly halt the blood lust of the attacking pirates!

Something ... anything ... to hopefully turn the tide of battle!

He was extremely agitated by the stupidity and ill advised bad timing of the Halfling who blurted out his silliness ... drawing the pirates' attention to the actions of the Dwarven Evoker!

Quickly he sprang to the side of the My Fair Lady where the Pirate Ship had been strongly fastened alongside ... focusing every ounce of remaining energy into casting a BURNING HANDS Spell in the direction of the pirate ship's trappings that were most susceptiple to flames ...concentrating on the exposed burnable objects within 15 feet on the intruding pirate ship!

"Moradin Guide My Aim!"

After unleashing the BURNING HANDS Spell ... BrewStirr Hammer uses his talents to get below decks as swiftly as possible ... to get to his quarters where he can grab his gear ... while the pirates deal with the diversion of their ship catching on fire!

It was clear to Jon after his trip to the next pirate-protected rope that the rope from the other mast was just another toss-across, not any more special than the one he was about to cut. His actions were effective enough to continue to delay the onslaught. Unfortunately, this rope was not currently holding a pirate as there were now two in front of Jon. Only one was able to take a swing at him because of the crowd, but these men were skilled with their blades. They were shortswords, some rusty from lack of maintentance, that these men were swinging. This man thrust heavily into Jon's stomach and Jon Small's eyes rolled back into his head and he fell to the ground. The adventurer was still breathing, but not a threat to anyone anymore.

Ja'ara froze. He had not expected to see a comrade felled, and such a quiet life at the monastery had not prepared him for such an awful death. It was not visible to him that Jon was still alive. He had just seen the death of someone he had spoke to only moments before, and it seemed all too real to him.

The enemies on the boat continued to slaughter the 'crew'. The man who had thrust at Jon must have assumed him dead, because he continued slashing at the crowd in front of him. The other ship was starting to lurch too far, however, and the ropes were tugging dangerously at the railing. The *THWANG* of crossbows continued as the pirates reloaded their ballista. A portion of the crew pushed back hard at one of the pirates and managed to shove him overboard (a couple of them falling over in the process) after which they struggled at the grappling hook, unable to loosen it from the railing.

The dwarf had quite a task ahead of him. He would have to push his way over to the edge of the boat to get to an angle where he wouldn't light the crew on fire. At least, that was what he thought. As he approached the crew and pirates gave him a wide birth and he walked over to the rail of his boat rather easily. A careful look at the other ship, however, revealed it was a good distance away, and he realized his spell wouldn't reach. At best he could burn the ropes, but they would likely be wet with sea-spray and not light well. He'd have to come up with another plan.

Finder moved down-stairs without much difficulty. It wasn't as if anyone was looking for him, or even cared. However, it was quite a different situation downstairs. He had only made it 3 stairs in before he stopped short, nearly tumbling further down. from there down, there was mostly water. The ship was sinking, and the heavy ballista from the other ship had been tearing out large panels on the side of the ship. There were a number of crew-men splashing in the water, clearly unable to swim either for lack of knowledge or due to injuries. Still, something was strange. The room, the boat, heck the water itself. It was all very hot. Then he saw it. The side of the boat...the part that hadn't sunk yet...it was on fire. It was bad. There might not be much hope for this boat anymore.

One of the proper fighters was now lying on the deck. The My Fair Lady was sinking. The pirate ship was about to break away from the wreckage, and, for those above deck who could see, the captain was dead at the helm, with a crossbow bolt sticking into his neck from front to back. It was a sickening scene that meant one thing: This was a one-way trip for most aboard.

The dwarf had quite a task ahead of him. He would have to push his way over to the edge of the boat to get to an angle where he wouldn't light the crew on fire. At least, that was what he thought. As he approached the crew and pirates gave him a wide birth and he walked over to the rail of his boat rather easily. A careful look at the other ship, however, revealed it was a good distance away, and he realized his spell wouldn't reach. At best he could burn the ropes, but they would likely be wet with sea-spray and not light well. He'd have to come up with another plan.
BrewStirr Hammer noticed that the pirates made a wide berth when he approached, so he made his way across the deck in search of his other companions.

Then he noticed Jon laying on the deck of the ship and the Dwarf quickly sprang into action by unleashing a RAY OF FROST against the nearest group of pirates to buy himself some time to help his stricken comrade.


BrewStirr Hammer makes his way over to Jon to see if he is still alive and tries to protect him and help him any way possible!

Things were not going well, not even in the slightest. There were too many pirates, and certainly not enough of their crew left to stage an effective counter-surge. Much to the surprise of Ja'are however, was the skill of those he had just previously beign cleaning with. The dwarf even appeared to be some sort of mage from the way flames sprung forth from his fingertips so readily! The others had proved just as competant, with a second plate from the halfing assisting his in dropping one of the pirates that had boarded their ship. Jon, his comrade from the crow's nest got to work as well, at it seemed as if they might almost stand a chance. But then, it one swift motion that thought died in his head.

Jon's luck ran out, and man got stabbed roughly by one of the pirates. Ja'ara blinked and shook his head incase he was seeing things. But when his eyes refocussed he found he was still starring at the corpse of Jon, lying still on the deck, his blood already staining the planks beneath him.

Ja'are didn't even think, he just acted. Trying his best to avoid pirates (tumbling to avoid attacks etc) he made his way toward Jon's body, hoping to get it out of the fray as fast as he could. It was against his training to act so rashly, but he didn't care. Things needed to be done, and he'd have to be the one to do them. Hopefully the others would be able to cover him as he did.

((Sui, don't kill me. I'm heroic.))

This was not good... they were going down. Finder always wanted to be a pirate. At least that was his current justification for what he was about to do.

"FFFFFFFFFFFFFIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE" the shrill voice cut through the air as the halfling zipped as fast as he could to the helm. It would be tough, but he had to make this jump to abandon ship. Chances are there wasn't a lifeboat, and if he missed he could always grab it after the ship sinks. He had most of his stuff on him. That was enough. With as much speed as he could get, Finder waited for the right opportunity and ran as fast as he could... looking for a good place to make the leap of faith.

Ja'ara was first to act. Perhaps it was his shock that got him to act so rashly, but he had decided it was necessary to save his ally. He rolled up to his ally who was lying next to the pirate and picked him up to carry him away. The pirate did swing at him, but he was clearly distracted (as was Ja'ara) and he missed, even as Ja'ara didn't realize he had swung at him. The jostle awoke Jon, who saw the black of unconsciousness fade as his body ached from loss of blood. (5 hp, but conscious again)

The enemies acted next, and the pirates slaughtered more crewmen. The *THWANGS* echoed loud again as the ballista fired in combination with the crossbows. Three crossbow bolts whizzed by the Dwarf as he moved to approach his allies. Unfortunately, these pirates weren't playing nice. The massive Ballista were reloaded now, and the wizard was the biggest target. The large-sized bolts struck the dwarf hard, one ripping deep into his arm, and the other striking straight through his chest and out the other side. The large arrow-heads then extended large steel rods out the sides and yanked the dwarf off the edge of the boat and into the sea below.

(both ballista hit the dwarf, and one crit-ed...41 points of damage. With your 7hp, that means dead. It was truly a pleasure having you as a part of the game. I'm sorry to kill you off so soon. Feel free to let me know and we'll get another character in for you. I don't like to lose players.)

Further, the ships kept moving opposite directions, and the ropes pushed their limits. The railing over which the grappling hooks were hung, tore away from the side of the ship, ripping from the wood of the ship with loud CRACK-ing sounds. It was clear the pirates had no concern for their own, as those who had only just made it over to the My Fair Lady found the railing ripped from behind them, and several of the pirates lost their balance, falling into the sea, and taking several of the crew with them.

The halfling made a point of causing havok again. His shout of 'fire' caused half of the rest of the crew to jump overboard, including the first mate. This left about 9 crewmates left on-board, aside from Ja'ara, Jon, and 2 pirates. There wasn't a dingy on the back of the ship, his quick glance told him, but he was running anyway, he didn't care at this point. Under different circumstances, he would leap for the pirate ship, but with even his strongest allies down, he didn't think this was the best idea. He leaped from the burning ship into the sea, only to realize that the sea wasn't so far down. The My Fair Lady was nearly sunk, but the Pirates had distracted them very effectively from the task.

There was a wizard down, the ship was almost sunk, and no one had prepared a way out. It seems the pirates had done their job. After all, even the whimsical Finder could see how tearing out the side-panels easily had afforded the pirates time to loot the ship while the crew was distracted with the above-deck battle. It was not a good thing to realize, but it seemed they were stuck here now. What would these adventurers do next?

Finder was a bit lost as to what to do. He couldn't make the jump, and certainly couldn't get back on board.

But all was not quite lost. He scavenged furiously through the waters to try and find a piece of driftwood. He couldn't swim forever and needed to at least buy himself some time to think.

(OOC: Sorry for the short post, I'm lost as to what to do)

Jon slowly came to, emerging from the darkness of unconciousness slowly and with difficulty. He felt the movement of his body being dragged, and reached up to tap his friend Ja'ara on the arm as he came to. He said weakly, "I'm okay. I'm okay."

As he tried to stand, he noticed by chance that his bow, arrows, backpack, and staff were only a few step from where Ja'ara had pulled him to. He moved to retrieve them as he glanced about for the dwarf and halfling. They were not to be seen. Picking up his gear, quickly donning backpack and quiver and slinging the bow across his shoulders, he gripped his staff as he tried to locate any thing -- anything at all -- that seemed to be floating that might hold his weight. Inwardly, he cursed the luck of circumstances that left him ill-prepared for this situation.

To Ja'ara, he simply said, "Find a float, friend Ja'ara! It seems we will have plenty of time to talk more until, or if, help arrives ..."