The creatures aboard the West Wind all stood near the front of the ship staring at the spectacle of the liberated Ürgod in stunned silence. The gargantuan monstrosity had descended the cliff-face behind the waterfall and floated ominously silent behind the Brotherhood fleet, craning its head from side to side as though considering its next move.

It began swimming in an undulating motion, not side to side like an eel or snake, but in a wave-like motion, up and down, throwing up large waves as it circled the harbor. Around and around, its nearly four hundred foot mass moved at increasing speed, causing larger and larger swells which began to buffet the red-sailed ships with increased violence.

Onboard the West Wind, Gladis was fascinated and turned to her friends.
"What purpose doth the creature fulfill with its dance?" she asked of no one in particular.

"Ah'm guessin' our nasty monster is stretchin' a bit. Been trapped in a mountain for a coupla thousand years, ain't it? Must be feelin' a bit stiff." Chumley answered.

"I'm glad we're not them ships up close to that devil, they're bobbin' like corks in a tub,"
Winky observed.

Groggs gave his friend a playful shove.
"What would you know about tubs? You ain't ever used one as I recall."

Thoris interrupted the light moment with a sobering thought.
"I wouldn't get too comfortable, ith only a matter of time till that beatht geth to our little ship. I think thith ith ath good a time ath any to give Ashy hith potion from Arisha."

Chumley shook his head.
"Do you see that thing Sebastian? It's almost ten times Ashy's size, 'e won't stand a chance. Ah hate ta think ah brought mah slimy friend all this way just ta serve 'im up to that thing for slaughter."

Robbi glanced back to the Asherouboros tank. She pointed to it.
"I don't think that's going to be our decision. Ashy seems to be going a little crazy himself."

Everyone looked to the rear of the ship. The tank was shaking furiously. The Asherouboros was rearing its head high out of the water, quivering with rage and frustration at the presence of Xenophus. Again and again it crashed into the side of the tank, unable to shatter the spider-glass.

Robbi looked concerned.
"We've got to get the potion to him now...before he hurts himself. He'll get out of the tank soon, it's almost ready to swamp, and those bladders holding it up are bound to rupture if he keeps struggling. He'll attack that monster whether he drinks the potion or not. I don't know what Arisha's essence will do for him, but maybe it will give Ashy a chance."

Prester Jauba and the two Brotherhood monks who had fled the sacrificial cave at the Ürgod's awakening had been weaving through the maze of tunnels within the mountain for a long time, seeking escape.

The tremors were constant now and the rain of rocks in the passageways was a constant threat to them. Some tunnels were totally collapsed, forcing the trio to backtrack and explore other possible avenues of escape. So it was that, with great relief, Jauba could hear the voices of two beasts up ahead through a narrow crack in the granite wall.

Bobo was pacing nervously in tight circles around Ozab's cave while Egbert sat on one of the stone benches. Although small pebbles were raining down from the ceiling, the cave seemed solid and stable. Egbert was not confident that this situation would continue. Small cracks had begun to appear in the stalactites hanging throughout the space and the constant shaking was causing those cracks to spread and grow.

Egbert addressed the nutria.
"Oi think we need to get out of here. Take a look outsoide and see if we can make it to the beach without getting squashed boi anything falling down the cliff."

Bobo walked to the cave entrance and peered outside. Although there was still a steady stream of debris falling, most of the larger boulders had been dislodged during the earlier tremors. He called back to Egbert.
"I think we kin make it, buddy, we might get a coupla bumps on our noggin, but our chances of getting' squished have gone down a lot."

Egbert smiled to himself and stood.
"Oi'm glad you're confident, of course moi noggin is a bigger target than yours...all roight, I'm coming."

Suddenly a voice from behind the mole called out.
"You're not going anywhere Lord Egbert."

The mole looked up to see Prester Jauba and his two archer-beasts, bows drawn, standing a few feet behind him. Jauba continued.
"At least some good will come of this day. You have been a thorn in my side, mole. First you humiliated my Gleaners and then the entire Brotherhood with your escape. It is time to pay your debt. Say goodbye to the world, Lord Egbert."

He turned to his archers and nodded. As they adjusted their aim, a blade flew through the air and struck the monk closest to Egbert. The beast dropped in a heap.

Jauba overcame his shock and shouted at the remaining archer.
"Shoot!"

As the stoat brother released the shaft, Bobo rushed and jumped across the cave, simultaneously releasing another knife. The arrow shot toward Egbert who had no time to react. Before the shaft could reach him, Bobo jumped in front of the mole, taking the projectile in the right side of his torso.

The force of the arrow at such close range was so strong that the arrowhead continued through Bobo and into Egbert's side. The archer who had fired stood for a second, then collapsed with Bobo's knife protruding from his neck. Only Jauba remained uninjured. He looked down at his fallen and connected foes, laughing.
"How marvelous. I get to finish you myself as soon as I locate a weapon." The sable began to search his fallen subordinates for a blade.

Egbert grimaced in pain, pinned tightly to Bobo. The nutria was fading in and out of consciousness, sending bolts of pain through the mole's body each time he shifted his weight. Egbert looked desperately for a weapon to use against Jauba. He grabbed any nearby rocks within reach and flung them in the sable's direction.

Once more Jauba laughed.
"You'll have to do better than that...ah here we are!" He pulled a short dagger from one of the fallen brothers. He looked down at the struggling mole, "Let no one say I'm not fair...go on take one more shot at me before I skin you." He stretched his arms to either side, "Go on!"

Egbert looked around and saw a large stone at his side, as he reached for it, a violent quake rippled through the cave. Jauba, in an attempt to maintain his balance, stepped back. His footpad caught on the fallen archer and he fell backwards onto his rump.

Egbert looked up toward Jauba and saw the stalactite directly over the sprawled sable swaying and cracking. He grit his teeth against the pain and launched the stone with every ounce of strength in his massive body. The rock hit the stalactite with impressive force. It was enough to loose the mass of limestone from the roof. As Jauba looked up, he realized in horror what had happened. The sable tried to roll out of the way to no avail. The stalactite landed on him with a sickening thud. His body twitched a few seconds and then was still.

Egbert reached around Bobo body and broke the end of the arrow shaft off. Using all his strength and ignoring the searing pain in his gut, he lifted the nutria off his own body and the broken arrow which was still lodged deeply in the mole's side.

He forced himself to stand, then bent over and picked up his friend. Egbert slowly carried the nutria out of the cave, ignoring the small rocks pelting him from above. The mole made his way down to the beach and put Bobo down, looking back in time to see Ozab's cave spew forth an explosion of debris, signaling its final collapse. He sighed and lay face-up in the sand, letting the peaceful darkness of unconsciousness overtake him.

Xenophus stopped swimming and curled into a coil like a snake, its lower body resting on the bottom of the harbor, halfway between the bluff behind the waterfall and the arc of thirteen Brotherhood ships anchored to defend the Deev castle. It craned its head from side to side, taking in its new environment and deciding what it would do next.

The monster's mind did not process things as most beasts do. There was no emotion, no fear nor caution. It was a living machine of destructon, a predator whose prey was the entire world. Rather than an instinct for obliteration of anything in its path, the annihilation of life was its purpose, the reason for its existence.

The creature's moving head came to a halt facing the Brotherhood fleet. It began to unravel its body and move slowly but inexorably toward the anchored ships, stopping once to raise its head high out of the water and emit an ear-shattering roar that echoed along the shores of Xenoth. It was neither a cry of anger nor one of frustration. It was simply a proclamation that the Ürgod had returned to reclaim its domain.

Onboard the Brotherhood ships, the monster's purpose in approaching them was all too obvious. Panic began to spread among the crews. A few ships began the futile task of raising anchor, while almost all began lowering boats to escape the deadly onslaught. There was not enough time. Xenophus plowed into the centermost of the ships, grasping it in the clutches of its claw-like appendages and methodically snatching unfortunate beasts and men into its cavernous maw.

When most of the scurrying forms had been either swallowed or escaped overboard, the creature began lashing its body like a whip, shattering timbers, felling masts and ultimately sending the broken and battered vessel to the bottom of the sea.

So long was the monster's body that even as it was destroying the central vessel, its whipping tail crashed through the two ships anchored closest to its first target, sending bodies and debris flying through the air as though caught up in a tornado.

With the destruction of the first ship complete, Xenophus worked along the line, annihilating the next ship and the next, pausing only to snatch struggling mariners from the water to feed its endless appetite. Soon the air was rent with the screams and pleas of countless doomed beasts desperately trying to evade the horrific fate of their fallen comrades.

Captain Vargas of West Wind decided he was not going to wait until the last moment to prepare his ship for escape from the Ürgod. Seeing the size of the creature, he felt no confidence in the Asherouboros' chance of defeating it. He ordered anchors raised and sails ready to be set in anticipation of fleeing the area.

In the meantime, Robbi went below deck to retrieve the two flasks of Arisha's essence. Chumley stood by at a skiff, ready to transport the potion to Ashy's tank. Unfortunately for the hopeful comrades, they had not taken the Asherouboros' escalating fury into account.

In the tank behind the West Wind, Ashy was overwhelmed with an explosive combination of instinct and hatred. As soon as the Ürgod exited the cave and began its descent down the cliff-face, the Asherouboros was overcome by a sensory assault. The foul stench of its enemy combined with the first glimpse of its legendary adversary was more than it could bear.

He began pounding against the tank furiously, harder and harder. The bladders holding the tank afloat were stressed with each impact, finally tearing against the corners of the tank. As the bladders deflated, the tank began to sink. Onboard the West Wind panic began to spread as the tank disappeared below the surface.

Thoris pointed to where the tank had been and shouted out just as Robbi reappeared on the deck with the two flasks.
"The tank hath thunken! I can't thee the Atherouboroth anywhere!"

Robbi ran to the rail and beat her paw against it in frustration.
"No, no, no...not now! He's our only chance!" she scanned the surrounding waters, "can anyone see him?"

All the beasts on the deck looked over the water's surface. It was Chumley who finally saw him. He pointed ahead of the ship, in the direction of the Ürgod.
"There! 'E's attackin' the monster!"

"He won't stand a chance. He hasn't had the potion," Robbi lamented. Gladis strode over to the small wizard.

"Fly over the Asherouboros, I could. Perchance into its mouth the flasks I might drop."

Robbi shook her head.
"He only has one thing on his mind now...destroying that...that thing. You won't be able to get him to open his mouth for you or look up. I'm afraid we've failed," she said sadly.

Chumley draped his arm around the wizard's shoulder.
" 'Ere now, don't give up on Ashy, 'E might be able ta hold 'is own against that nasty... 'e's a pretty tough fella, ain't 'e?"

"I hope you're right, but that Ürgod is nearly ten times Ashy's size. Even with Arisha's essence...which none of us have any idea what it will do...even with that, his chances are slim. Without it...I think it's suicide for your friend," Robbi said somberly.

Chumley tried being optimistic.
"Let's not give up quite yet. Ah 'ave faith in me pal, don't ah? Let's just see what 'appens, shall we?"

No one said another word. Everyone turned toward Xenoth and the impending battle.