Gladiverserac approached the peak of Sapphire Mountain fully confident that her landing would be cushioned by the mystical pillow which Robbi had shown her. The albatross had assumed that this cushion would be conjured wherever she chose to land and be akin to running into a large feather-pillow. What she had failed to realize and what Robbi had neglected to explain was that with the small wizard firmly strapped to her back, unable to see the ground below, the protective orb would not be under Gladiverserac, but around her.

As soon as Robbi felt the bird descending for her landing, she concentrated, focusing her mind. Gladis first noticed a sluggishness in her wings, like trying to fly through water, next, it seemed to her that her vision blurred. To anyone looking from the outside, the albatross and wizard were clearly surrounded by an egg-shaped translucent mass. Gladiverserac panicked slightly and attempted to gain altitude, but to no avail.

She could see a group of moles on the peak ahead, staring up at her. When it became apparent to the beasts that the mighty bird was plummeting toward them, they scattered. With the ground only a few feet below her and unable to control her direction, she closed her eyes, preparing herself for a crash.

The leading edge of the magical shield touched the ground and Gladis could feel herself starting to turn tail over beak. To her delight and surprise, there was no sense of impact, only a series of squishy, soft bumps and bounces. The two travelers rolled across the mountain top in their invisible egg, finally coming to rest a few hundred feet from Arisha's temple.

Robbi dissipated the shield and dismounted the albatross. She laughed uncontrollably.
"I'm so sorry Gladis, I forgot I wouldn't be able to see the ground until it was too late. Wow, that was something...what fun...oh...oh...I need to catch my breath," she panted in excitement.

"A great surprise it was," Gladis said calmly preening her feathers, "far worse have I landed though. Thou art a useful companion...thine pillow of magic...soft it was."

As  the two friends recovered from the landing, a group of moles gathered round, staring at the enormous albatross, a bird never seen this far inland. The rank of moles parted and a cheerful familiar face emerged.

"Yogi!" Robbi called out happily.
The mole-king rushed up to the wizard and gave her a hearty hug.

"Oi wasn't expecting you so soon. It's wonderful to see you," he glanced up nervously at the big bird, "who is your scary friend?"

Robbi stood and motioned toward the albatross.
"This fine beast and my friend is Gladiverserac Presapornaweev. She is a friend to all mariners and a servant of the good and just. A finer ally we could not wish for."

Yogi bowed to Gladis.
"Moi pleasure Gladiverserac, Oi am Yogi of Gleneden and you are welcome here."

"Felicitations, Yogi of Gleneden, I have been told thou art a fine and noble king. An honor it is to meet you."

After the introductions were complete, Yogi escorted Gladis and Robbi in the direction of the temple, where Arisha still lay immobilized, surrounded by a ten beast mole guard. Robbi leaned toward the mole-king.
"How is she, Yogi?" Robbi asked.

Yogi shook his head.
"Oi can't really say, she's aloive, Oi see her breathing very slow, but asoide from dat, she is as still as the dead," the mole felt immediately bad for his choice of words, "Oi mean she doesn't move...but as Oi said, she is aloive."

"That is good news to me...thank you for guarding her."

"Dere is no need to thank me, moles have served Arisha since de beginning, she is no less a mother to us than to dis world," an anxious look crossed the mole's homely face, "Oi have not heard from moi son or brother, dey are long overdue, have you heard any news of dem?"

Robbi took Yogi's paw gently.
"Let me say first that they are well, that is the important thing," Robbi began.

"But...?" Yogi interrupted.

"But they are trapped on Xenoth."

"Oh no! Moi Wilbur...Eggy...on Xenoth?"

"We have been in contact, Chumley spoke to them. It is less dire than you think. Egbert believes there is a way off the island."

Yogi calmed considerably.
"Moi brother is not given to fantasy. If Egbert said dere is a way to escape, den it's true. Dey are well, dat is what's important."

"I have much more to tell you," Robbi began, "and very little of it is good."

"Den tell me straight, Oi wish to know," the mole king said sternly.

Robbi shared everything she knew. The look of concern on the mole's face grew as the dangers to the world became clear. When she had finished, a somber mood permeated the mountaintop. She put her paw on Yogi's shoulder.
"I need to speak to Arisha now. The prophecies say she plays an important part and I believe them."

"She's roight where you left her, behoind de temple. We can't speak to her, course, and we don't know if she can hear us, but we sing to her and tell her mole-tales to keep her spirit up."

Robbi kissed Yogi on the forehead.
"You are a sweet creature. You cannot hear her, but she can hear you, so the songs and tales have been a great comfort, I am sure."

Yogi smiled. He glanced over his shoulder at Gladis, who followed in their wake in absolute silence.
"Your friend does not speak much," he commented.

Robbi smiled.
"Actually, she does. She is just in total awe of Arisha, a little overwhelmed, I think. She can be quite garrulous when the mood strikes her."

"She's a big girl, Oi've never seen any skoi-beast her soize."

"She's not petite, that's for sure," Robbi agreed.

They rounded the corner of the temple and Robbi saw Arisha where she had left her, on her back and curled as though dead. She had expected what she saw, but the sight distressed her none the less. Her concern was replaced by a small measure of joy when she heard Arisha's voice in her mind.

"It is wonderful to feel your presence, child. I am overjoyed to see you well."

"Oh, Arisha, I am so happy that you are still with us," Robbi said aloud.

"Doth she speak to you?" Gladis asked softly.

"She does," Robbi smiled, "she is no better, but thankfully, she is no worse."

"Come my dear girl," the voice in her head insisted, "sit by me and tell me all you know."

Chairs were set around Arisha's immobilized body. Robbi sat by Arisha's head and placed her paw gently next to the giant spider's eyes. Yogi sat by her side and Gladis, without a chair, nestled down next to Yogi. Robbi began to recount the events which had transpired since the last time she had last seen the golden spider. She spoke of the events of Seth-e-Raman, the Deev, the sinking of the Rubitar, the discovery of the prophecies, and finally the opinion of Vattus that the Asherouboros was, in fact, the Secret King. She spoke of the plan to transport the monster to the sea, and the need for Arisha's web to make the required glass. Arisha remained almost silent, speaking only to ask that the wizard repeat the prophecies several times. When Robbi was finished, everyone sat silently, awaiting the spider's response.

Arisha finally spoke, gently onto Robbi's mind.
"These are horrible and disturbing events. I feel great guilt for not having foreseen them. It has been so peaceful that I allowed my guard to lower. My greatest shame however is in my treatment of that poor tormented beast on which we now place our hopes. The Asherouboros did not ask or strive to be. I have ignored him for half a millennium, allowed him to suffer. I am its creator and as Neure says in his prophecies, his mother, and I have been a poor one. Even after it saved us from Khalis, I paid him no mind... I will speak to you alone of him before you leave the mountain.

"But let me now speak of the other matters you have mentioned. Use your Abitar chip to cut out a large piece of this cocoon in which I lie and present it to your hedgehog glass-maker with my blessing.

"As to the Scarlet Brotherhood...Azmeritus' plan means the end of our world and all that dwells upon her...he must be stopped, the Ürgod is an aberration not meant to roam in the waking world. It is a reminder of why goodness must triumph and be diligent. Again I find myself asking great sacrifice and courage from those I love while I remain on my mountain, useless..."

Robbi protested.
"You are helping now, you are thinking of us first, before yourself. What more can we ask? You haven't even mentioned your own condition."

Robbi could feel the spider chuckle.

"There is nothing I know to be done. I cannot discern the poison the Deev used, so my condition is what it is and will remain so. It is of little importance compared to the other threats we face. I wish to speak to you alone. I know that only you can hear me, but have your friends retire to rest and eat while we converse and sit together. They may return later to sing to me, it has been a great pleasure to me, let them know."

"I will," Robbi affirmed.

"I will require two containers, each able to hold a gallon of liquid."

"We brought several large flasks Herman made for us to hold water, will they do?"

"They will be perfect. Retrieve them and send your friends away."

Robbi did as she was told. Her friends did not question the request and soon the small rat sat alone with two glass globes at Arisha's side.

"What do you need me to do?" Robbi asked.

"I have been considering the prophecies of Neure which Vattus translated. The last stanza is the one which guides me. The first line reads- 'His mother's gift infuses him'. If I am the mother, as I suspect, then I need to send the gift."

"What gift?" Robbi asked.

"Empty the water from your flasks," Arisha instructed. Robbi uncorked the glass globes and emptied their contents onto the ground.

"Now place the containers under each of my fangs."

Robbi picked up the first of the flasks and climbed gently onto the golden spider's paralyzed body. She walked up the center of the giant arachnid's chest, between the curled legs until she was below the massive head.

Two long, dangerous,  scimitar-shaped fangs protruded from the base of Arisha's mandibles, each the length of Robbi's body. The wizard carefully rested the glass containers on the spider's chest so that the tip of the fang rested in the neck of the flask. She repeated the procedure with the second flask.

When she was satisfied that both fangs were well contained within the containers, she climbed off of Arisha's body and seated herself once more by Arisha's head, gently stroking her friends face.

The spider's voice echoed in her head once more.
"Now, my darling, I need you to move to the back of my head, behind my eyes. You will feel a soft mound directly over the top row of eyes, push inward as hard as you can several times."

Robbi walked behind Arisha's head, carrying her chair with her. She positioned the chair and stood on it, examining the top of the arachnid's cranium. She studied the goddess's eye-cluster, eight pearl black eyes arranged in three rows about halfway down her face. Directly above the cluster she felt a noticeable bulge. It felt soft. Leaning forward and pushing inward, Robbi applied pressure.

"Harder!" Arisha's voice urged.

Robbi repeated the procedure, this time channeling all her strength into the effort. As she pressed, a viscous blue liquid began to flow from Arisha's fangs into the glass globes. The small wizard continued the process until the containers were full. At Arisha's instruction, she retrieved the flasks and re-inserted the stoppers.

"There you have a mother's gift, Robbi. Instruct Chumley to present it to the Asherouboros if they reach the open sea."

Robbi examined the sky-blue fluid with curiosity.
"What will it do for him?" she asked.

"I cannot say for certain. The Asherouboros has craved my essence for centuries to the point of near insanity. This time I give it freely. What it provides him, what purpose it could serve the beast...we will only know when it happens, but it is the only gift in my power to give. Now, Robbi, cut my cocoon. Take a piece to your friend Herman for his glass to work his magic."

Robbi felt Arisha chuckle again, "It is amusing that as peaceful a creature as you describe him to be is the head of the Guild of Assassins, but that odd fact too, fits the prophecy... 'a gentle killer's skill protects'...his glass tank would certainly protect the beast."

Robbi removed the Abitar chip from her frock and cut a two-foot square swatch of the densely packed webbing from the cocoon on which Arisha lay. She rolled it up and stuck it in her belt. The sun had begun setting in the west and the sky glowed a golden-violet.

"It is up to you and your friends now, my dear child. I feel so helpless."

Robbi laid her head on the spider's golden body.
"You've done all we hoped for," the wizard said gently, "don't feel guilty, we are just thankful you are alive."

"Barely, I am trapped in a body which cannot move...but this is a time for hope, not self-pity. I would like for you and Gladiverserac to sleep at my side tonight before you leave in the morning. I crave the company of loving beasts. The moles have lifted my spirits and you two shall lift my heart. Perhaps I can coax a song out of your friend, albatrosses have lovely voices."

Robbi chuckled.
"Gladis would pluck all her feathers and paint herself green if you asked, I don't think coaxing will be necessary."

Gladis was both shocked and delighted that Arisha wanted to hear her sing a song. She huddled with three moles holding instruments, a squeezebox, a flute, and a fiddle-like instrument called a 'wizzer'. The albatross frantically hummed a tune to them and when she was satisfied that they had the gist of her song, she turned toward Arisha shyly.

"Great mother," she began, "honored I am to singeth this tune for thee." She turned to her band and nodded. The moles began a melodious introduction and at a comfortable point, the albatross began singing in an ethereal, melodious voice,

"Oh we save all the souls that we can,
You see,
They number one in three,
But the rest go down,
To the murky deep,
Their souls now roaming free.

An albatross has a job to do,
That's always filled with pain,
Not all survive
The sea's cruel heart
Amidst the wind and rain.

On the warm winds of Morgaard
I floated,
With the sea far below
Past the strand.
There I saw a poor sailor a'drownin'
And I flew down to lend him a hand.
And he struggled and fought,
But it wasn't for naught,
'Cause I took him then back to safe land.

For an albatross has a job to do,
That's sometimes filled with pain,
Not all survive
The sea's cruel heart
Amidst the wind and rain.

The sailor then said
In a whisper,
That his wife and young daughter
Would sing 'bout the ocean's
                 cruel hold on a poor sailor's soul
And the bird that would do such a thing.
Then he thanked me once more
On that wind-battered shore
In a manner well fit for a king.

For an albatross has a job to do,
That's not always filled with pain,
Not all survive
The sea's cruel heart
Amidst the wind and rain.

Oh we save all the souls that we can,
You see,
They number one in three,
But the rest go down,
To the murky deep,
Their souls now roaming free.
Their souls now roaming free."

The song was met with enthusiastic applause from the moles and Robbi. The wizard ran over and hugged the albatross around the neck.

"That was beautiful!" she said honestly.

Gladiverserac's beak blushed cherry-red. She looked up shyly.
"The Great Mother, did she find it pleasant?"

"I could here her purring in my mind, it brought her great pleasure, Gladis."

"Joyous am I then, Lady Robbia," The albatross smiled broadly.

The next morning as Robbi secured the two flasks and webbing firmly onto Gladiverserac's saddle in preparation for their departure, Yogi walked up to her to say his goodbyes.

"Fair winds, Robbi. It was wonderful to see you. Oi will continue to guard Arisha with moi moles and moi life. We all believe in you to save dis world again."

Robbi kissed the mole-king on the snout.
"Thank you, Yogi, we will try," she grasped his paws firmly, "and don't worry about Wilbur and Eggy, you will see them again soon."

"Oi know Oi will," the mole said resolutely, "Oi'll finish your saddle whoile you bid farewell to Arisha."

Robbi approached the spider and knelt at her side.
"I'm leaving now, I will see you soon."

"I count on that promise, child. Take care. There is one more thing I'd like you to do for me."

"Anything," Robbi replied.

"Pull one of my hairs and take a thin strand of my web."

Robbi did as she was told, carefully cutting a long thick golden hair off the spiders body with her Abitar chip and doing the same with the web. She looked to Arisha.
"What should I do with these?" she asked.

The voice in her mind was especially gentle.

"Have them woven together as a necklace for Gladiverserac. Present it to her from me as a gift of gratitude for her devotion and the lovely song she sang...," she chuckled, "it was a pleasant change from our well-meaning mole-friends who often sound like hyenas drowning in a pool of mud, bless them."

Robbi laughed aloud.
"Melodic hyenas, of course."

"Of course," Arisha agreed lightly.

Robbi had a last chat with Gladis before they left for Thoth to review their flight plan. Yogi had his moles bring some fresh food and water for the trip and helped strap the wizard securely in the saddle.

"Good luck to you both," the mole-king said brightly, "say hello to Chumley and Thoris for me."

"I will," Robbi answered, "and I'll make sure Wilbur and Eggy contact you when they are free." She could see the concern pass over Yogi's face. "They will be fine Yogi, I can feel it."

"Thank you, Robbi," he addressed the albatross, "take care of our wizard friend, Gladis, she takes too many risks."

"Fear not, your majesty, guard her with my life, I shall."

After a rapid run  across the plateau of Sapphire mountain, Gladiverserac and her passenger lifted gently into the sky and were soon soaring above the Plain of Mists on their way to the great Black City of Thoth.