((Well, the gates are on the way to the Hearth is what I meant x.x sorry, my morning caff hasn't kicked in yet. Also, it would take about half an hour running from Grimbuld's shop to the Hearth on foot, if you didn't run into any trouble. It's quite a ways.))

Geoffrey grunts as he starts climbing back up to the kite.
"It's been years since I've had any reason to go there, I don't remember too much. Plus, the dwarves will have probably changed things since I was last around. Still though, it's your standard dwarfish architecture; massive, overbuilt support structures, tall halls with several choke points in fortified positions, the dwarves build everything like it's going to have to withstand a few battles because in THEIR lifetime, it probably WILL." he answers as he climbs up.

"We'll have to go a little bit underground as the Hearth was built right on top.... of.... the underground wells...." Geoffrey says as if he just realized something.
"So that's how they got in! That's why we didn't see them! They came through the cave systems... the Hearth's defenses are built to repel an attack from outside, not from underneath."
(No need to roll athletics again; your characters will just use the route they used to get down.)

Aelar climbs behind Geoffrey. At the top he says, How about this idea?  We take the kite to the Hearth and then the pilot heads to the gate, picks up some guards and heads to Lady Ashwa?”

((Well, according to the DMG, CR 30 enemies will have a save DC of 23, so yeah, 25 is quite frightening, or reassuring. Depends on whose side you're on.))

"Once we're done in the heart chamber, the only thing Ashwa might need is a capable healer, not guards. On the other hand, we won't need to hurry from place to place from then on, so it isn't an awful idea. At the very least, if the Kite is fast enough or we are too slow, it will buy Ashwa some more time... maybe." Meanwhile, Hyre tries to pull the string of the bow, trying to figure out its strength. If they truly do end up in a situation where he must use it, he should be as prepared as he can be... Though he doesn't nock an arrow in the bow, preferring not to waste the ammunition for nothing.

((Actually, that DC 25 was because Kallista rolled a nat 20+5 for imposing her will upon the Labors. The DC decays over time, but the Labors just couldn't really break free.))

Aelar nods in agreement but says, "True, but only after we succeed.  Let's get on it."  Seeing Hyre, Aelar steadies himself and then checks the pull of his new, temporary, bow, then tests the pulling and nocking of an arrow, though he doesn't pull the arrow back at all.

The bowstrings are uncannily easy to pull back and keep steady, even for beginners like Hyre and Aelar.

Leon looks doubtful, then makes a decision.
"Slightly different order of action... drop me off at the gates first. I'll see what I can do to help the situation there. Don't wait for me, just go as soon as I'm on the ground. If Geoffrey comes with me, we might be able to help organize the efforts clearing the gates and push through to get to Ashwa."
"I don't know my way around the Hearth anyway, certainly not when it may be potentially overrun. I may be of more use at the gates." Geoffrey agrees.
"I'm not keen on the idea of splitting up the group, but in this case, it may be the best option to be sure everyone is still alive."
((Plus, it gives Leon's character an excuse to not be there... makes it easier to bot and not make him do things he might not think would be appopriate for Leon.))

((That makes sense))

”Off we go…” Lazlo says fighting back his fear. 

Aelar nods, realizing he'd gotten confused about what came first, gates or Hearth.  "So, we drop you two off at the gates, pick up some guards, head to the Hearth, the rest of us get off and then the kite takes the guards to Lady Ashwa?  I like that plan."

”Erm… I think what Leon said was we drop Him and Sir Geoffrey off at the gates where they will rally the guards and bring them to Lady Ashwa’s villa? I believe? Meanwhile the kite will bring the rest of us to the Hearth. Where we may or may not be killed.” Lazlo audibly gulps. “As far as plans go, not too shabby. Except the getting killed part. Let’s skip that..”

((now I’m confused-  Is that what Leon said?))

Aelar shakes his head.  "That plan kills Lady Ashwa.  By the time anyone can get through the gates, Lady Ashwa and everyone with her'll be dead.  The only way to get help there in time is with the kite.  The gates are clogged with people trying to get out.   Ashwa doesn't have that kind of time."

"The best way to help anyone..." Hyre remarks, "or everyone, actually, would be to shut down the heart chamber as quickly as possible. Even if you bring in Sir Geoffrey and Leon, or even with a few guards, Aelar said there are about two dozen labours there. It was easy to take them out with Kallista's... new abilities... but there's only one Kallista. My point is, simply arriving at Ashwa's estate doesn't instantly save her. Shutting down the heart chamber does."

((Leon meant to take the kite to the Nest gates and drop Leon and Geoffrey off there, then the rest of the group makes for the Hearth to try and stop the heart chamber without him and Geoffrey, who will try to help with the efforts to get past the gates and let the rest of the Watch through so they can help Ashwa.))

Geoffrey grunts as Raia helps him up the rest of the way onto the kite.
"In either case, the gates are on the way to the Hearth; if there's a possibility that Leon and I can help there, we'll take the chance. You'll have Kallista and Raia with you, they'll probably be more use than I would be anyway." he states.

The driver spurs the kite into action and it flaps towards the Hearth. As the group gets closer to the Nest, the sounds of fighting--and panic--becomes louder. The amount of damage already caused by fires is significant and apparent from a considerable distance. By the time they reach one of the entrances to the Nest, they can see what's causing the problem; the actual gates have been bent from repeated impacts to the point where they can no longer open in the proper direction, and with all the Labors having gone haywire on the other side of the bars, the guards waiting on the other side of the gate have no effective means of forcing them open besides desperately pushing by hand.

This is further compounded by the dozens of broken bodies all crushed up against the fence bars. The Labors themselves seem to have moved on to attack other targets once they slaughtered the people trying to escape.

Aelar points at the milling confusion at the gates.  "That's what I was talking about.  Let's pickup however many guards we can, then go to the Hearth.  The guards, and whoever, can continue on to Lady Ashwa," he looks at the pilot, and please do go there first.  Then, you can start ferrying guards from this side of the gate to inside the Nest."

((Sorry for clarification Kina- the mob at the gates are inside the Nest and crushed to death? The Labors have abandoned the gate, but the gate cannot open because of the damage it has taken? Is there anyone still actively trying to get out of the Nest at the gate in danger? Are the guards just kind of like, standing there or are they freaking out?))

"Do you think they'd come with us? The guards, that is..."  Lazlo asks.

((Yes, the bodies were trying to get OUT of the Nest but were bottlenecked and slaughtered, crushed up against the bars of the fence by the Labors who also bent the gate closed. The Watchmen look like they're trying to find a way over the high fence bars (made to protect against invaders, so the Watchmen are on the side that has the defenses against being climbed over. The majority of the Watchmen are trying to force the gate open with little success. They don't have any siege equipment on hand or they're waiting for them to arrive.

Does that answer everything?))

((It does! Thanks!))

The pilot does as asked, thankfully the surrounding buildings are far enough away that the kite can get low enough that the rope ladder touches the ground. The desperation and urgency is palpable in the air as the Watchmen await their turn to climb on, though the kite can only take a dozen of them over the fence.
The evidence of the Watchmen's prior effort to pull the gates down by hand with ropes are left dangling impotently and forgotten. They just couldn't get a good angle to do much besides bend them slightly due to only being able to pull at their own height, though the fence is some 20 feet (a little over 3 meters) tall and the top of the fence ends in a sharp spike to deter climbing.

"How long 'til we get to the Hearth, Pilot?"  asks the elf.

"The Hearth is just a handful of minutes flight from here if we skim the town line." The pilot responds as they get to full capacity with guards.