When Robbi first arrived in Thoth with Gladiverserac, she had made a point of going into the city by herself at the first opportunity. Her purpose, while covert, was not suspicious. She sought out the finest jeweler in the Black City.

The little wizard's objective was to fulfill Arisha's request and have a fine collar made for Gladis out of the golden hair and web which the spider had presented to Robbi for that purpose. The jeweler, a petite and ancient squirrel named Velesia, held the materials in stunned reverence as Robbi explained what would be required. Velesia's eyes moistened and Robbi expressed her concern.

"Are you all right?" she asked sympathetically.

The squirrel wiped her eyes with a worn kerchief and smiled.
"Please forgive me, I am a silly old fool and did not mean to embarrass you with my tears," she smiled warmly, "it is just that...to touch...to hold in my own paws...a piece of our blessed mother...I cannot express my joy enough. Thank you, kind lady, for allowing me this honor. I shall produce the finest collar I have ever made."

Robbi gently placed her paw on the old beast's shoulder and looked her in the eyes.
"I know you will." The small magus reached into her pocket and pulled out her Abitar chip. She shaved a small sliver of Arisha's hair from the end of the long strand and handed it to Velesia, "This is for you so that you may have a piece of our mother near you, always. This...," Robbi pressed the Abitar chip into the squirrel's palm, "...is so that you may shape and cut the web and hair, nothing else will work as well. You may return it to me when I pick up the collar."

Velesia was struck mute. She stroked her sliver of hair and carefully coiled it and inserted it into a locket she wore about her neck. The Abitar fragment she placed carefully on her workbench. She grasped Robbi's paw firmly and shook it vigorously.

"It will be ready in a week and I consider it paid in full, today...," the old squirrel placed her paw over her locket, "I have received the most precious thing I possess."

So it was that a week and a day later, Robbi accompanied by Gladiverserac, returned to the center of Thoth. Gladis was still entirely unaware of Robbi's motive for inviting her into the city. The albatross had never been to Thoth and anxiously acceded to the small wizard's request to accompany her.

After a delicious meal at a local outdoor café, Robbi led Gladis down the black cobbled road of a small alley and into Velesia's shop. Upon seeing the two beast's enter, the squirrel excitedly picked up a velvet case from her table and rushed to greet them. She hugged Robbi and bowed politely to the confused albatross.

"You must be Gladiverserac. I am honored to meet a beast so beloved of Arisha. I have been anxious to meet you, I hope you like it."

Gladis turned to Robbi.
"What doth she mean, Lady Robbia? What is it of which she speaks?"

Robbi took the velvet box and opened it. A broad smile spread across her face. She squeezed Velesia's paw.

"It's magnificent! You are an artist, Velesia."

The collar that the squirrel had produced was indeed a work of art. She had taken the thick web and hair and sliced each lengthwise a dozen times, then delicately braided and connected the strands in a checkerboard pattern of gold and white, three inches wide and a quarter of an inch deep.

The collar was fifteen inches long and capped in gold. The two golden caps were connected with a spider-web made of silver wire and joined by a filigreed golden clasp. The most stunning aspect of the piece was a vibrant blue lapis set in the front center of the collar. It was a two inch wide oval cameo with the raised form of a spider. The spider form was gilded, giving it the appearance of a golden spider resting on the surface of a deep blue sea. Gladis smiled approvingly.

"Love this, Arisha will. Magnificent it is!" she bellowed, thinking it was a gift for the golden spider. Robbi laughed and Velesia chuckled.

Gladis became confused, "A joke have I made? Why doth thou laugh?"

"Silly bird," Robbi said light-heartedly, giving Gladis a playful shove, "it's not a gift for Arisha, it's a gift from her...to you! It's made from Arisha's web and hair. She wanted to thank you."

Gladiverserac was dumbstruck. She tried to speak but could only manage a stutter. Robbi removed the collar from its case and secured it around the large bird's graceful neck. It hung delicately, not too tight and not too loose, it was a perfect fit.

"It looks beautiful on you," Velesia said honestly, "go over to the mirror and look for yourself."

Gladis stumbled over to the hanging mirror as though she were in a trance. She stared at her reflection and the wonderful collar about her neck. Tears streamed down her beak . She turned to face the squirrel and rat.

"Words, I doth not have. Remove this from my neck, I never will. Joy...joy fills me. Thank you Lady Robbia...and you, master jeweler...and most of all I thank Arisha. Oh joyous day!"

"I think she likes it," Robbi chuckled to the old squirrel.

"So it would appear," Velesia agreed, smiling.

Gladis was not the only beast being presented with a gift that day in Thoth. Winnie practically dragged his brother to the site of the furnaces. He could barely contain his excitement. Herman smiled broadly, amused at Winnie's enthusiasm.

When they reached the furnace, Herman noted that the forge still blazed brightly, a full day after the tank had been completed. The tank itself had been moved onto the Great Bridge in preparation for somehow containing the Asherouboros. Herman turned inquisitively to face Winnie.

"What'cha got goin' here liddle chum?" he asked.

Winnie smiled broadly.
"I'm just finished cookin' that spider-glass what I borrowed from ya, Hermie. I ain't got no idea if'n it came out right. I figgered we'd check it together."

Herman's curiosity was aroused.
"What is it? What'd ya make and why have ya been cookin' it so long?"

"I wanted it real liquid, for a long while so's all the liddle bubbles had a chance to percolate out and make it real clear. I also figgered that if'n I let it cook for a real long time in the hottest part of the forge, it would be real pure, all the other stuff would burn out."

"That's good thinkin' liddle brother, but you still ain't told me what exactly it is you done made."

Winnie sat on the edge of a large water-filled trough used by the metal-workers guild to quench their work and strengthen it. He dipped his paw into the cold water and faced his brother.

"I met this human fella what works with the metal-guild. A nice chappy, too, very smiley and all. His name is Ownie. He was helpin' with the tank skeleton, but he's a smithy, real good at makin' swords, tools and such, a fine artist too by what I seen of his stuff...anyways, this gives me a notion...his wife loves glass, you see, and there ain't much of a glass-guild here in Thoth...only a few makers what mainly does stuff for the pubs and such...anyway, I offers a trade. I blows a fine big vase with glass flowers on the side for Missus Ownie on the occasion of her birthday and in exchange he carves me a beautiful wax thing what I covers in plaster to make a mold. Then I burns out the wax and fills it with the spider-glass and it been cookin' ever since. I sure hopes it comes out nice."

Herman gave his little brother a playful shove.
"You still ain't told me what it is."

Winnie chuckled.
"I guess we should go get it."

Winnie and Herman walked over to the forge and manned the tongs to retrieve the plaster mold. It was about four feet high and two feet wide and deep. They set it down on the ground. The small amount of glass visible at the surface glowed a brilliant orange.

"When she cools a bit more, I wants to dump it in the trough," Winnie said confidently.

Herman was less certain.
"I don't know liddle gaffer, this here is glass, not steel. It could shatter into a million pieces, wouldn't ya rather just let it cool on its own?"

Winnie shook his head.
"If'n it shatters, it means it won't work fer what I made it for. I reckon I'll use the million pieces of spider-glass to make a necklace or such."

Herman laughed.
"I ain't much for wearin' jewels, though I guess anything what draws attention from me homely mug would be welcome," he fluttered his eyelashes, "well, let's go on and dunk it then."

The two hedgehogs moved the mold over the trough and released it. As soon as the searingly hot mold hit the water, steam and hot spatters of liquid shot into the air. The mold cracked under the stress, but remained over the interior glass. After a while the tumult ceased and Winnie carefully dipped his paw into the trough. The water, which had been near freezing was now tepid.

He reached down and pulled the cracked mold from the water and placed it on the ground. The small hedgehog retrieved a mallet from his belt and gave the mold a mighty whack. The plaster crumbled off the glass, leaving only a thin layer of muck obscuring the object beneath it. He picked it up and returned it to the water where he scrubbed it vigorously with a small brush laying at the bottom of the trough. The water turned a milky white.

Herman was becoming more and more curious, having still not caught a glimpse of the final object. Winnie removed and dried his paws, motioning to Herman.

"I think she's done. Go on, get your gift, I ain't got the nerve to see if'n it came out like I hoped."

Before Herman could reach in and search the milky water, Winnie warned, "Be careful when you grabs it, there are some sharp bits."

Herman thrust his arm into the water and gently felt around until he located the glass object. He grasped it tightly and drew it from the tank. His eyes widened as he saw the object clearly for the first time.

It was a crystal clear sword, a single pieced weapon entirely composed of glass, from blade to guard to pommel. The blade portion was shaped in a slight scimitar curve with a channel running down its center. An oval-shaped cross-bar spread upward in an intricate glass basket guard mimicking a spider-web and gathering at the pommel, which was carved in the shape of a crouching spider. Raised letters on the hilt spelled the names Gadral and Corkspike.   

Herman smiled broadly and asked for a rag to wipe the weapon off with. Winnie tossed a piece of cloth to his brother. Herman attempted to catch the rag on the sword, but as the light fabric landed on the blade it was cleft neatly into two pieces.

The large hedgehog stared in amazement at the impossibly sharp edge. He brought the blade close to his face to examine it. He saw that when the weapon was quenched in the cold water some of the glass had fractured under the process of rapid cooling and contraction, but only along the swords thinnest point, the edge of the blade. This had resulted in micro-fractures running into the body of the blade to a depth of between a sixteenth to a thirty-second of an inch. The end result was in effect a finely serrated edge, sharper than any blade Herman had ever encountered. He looked at Winnie.

"This is a masterpiece, liddle brother, a real beauty...What made ya think of makin' a blade?"

Winnie scrunched his features into a serious countenance.
"Ya needed a fine sword, Hermie. You're the master of the Assassins Guild and it's only fittin'. I hope that there thing is more'n just pretty. I was kinda figurin' that if'n this here glass is as strong as it's supposed ta be, that it'd be stronger'n steel and won't shatter when ya use it. Why not try it out?"

A worried look crossed Herman's face.
"I don't know, Winnie, it such a thing of beauty, I'd feel awful if I shattered it."

Winnie smiled and wagged his finger in front of his brother's face.
"I was taught glass-makin' by this fine beast named Herman Corkspike, a fine gaffer he is too, the best, I reckon, and he taught me one important rule about makin' the glass..."

Herman smiled and finished his brother's thought.
"...If it don't do what it's made for, it don't matter how pretty it is. You're a fine liddle devil Winnie Corkspike, usin' your brother's words agin 'im."

Winnie pointed to a foot-wide tree stump next to where Herman stood.
"Try that there stump."

Herman grasped the sword firmly in his paws and swung at the dead tree. He braced himself, expecting a solid impact and anticipating the clear glass sword to shatter. It passed through the wood like a hot knife through butter. Herman pirouetted unintentionally with the force of his own swing and fell firmly on his generous hindquarters. Winnie guffawed and Herman joined him in laughter. Herman put down the sword and picked his brother up, swinging him through the air.

"This is probably the finest sword ever made, liddle gaffer, and ya made it out of glass. I think you are a full glass master now, my brother. I'm right proud of ya."

Winnie smiled broadly.
"Are ya gonna pay me more now?"

Herman returned the smile.
"Since I don't pay ya, I reckon I'll pay ya twice as much."

Winnie put on a serious face.
"Since I'm a master gaffer now, I can't rightly work for less than three times as much."

"A tough negotiator, that's what you be. All right, three times."

"...and a big lunch!"

Herman picked up the sword and draped his arm around his brother's shoulder, leading him back to Thoth.
"I reckon I can rustle you up some fine chow in town. Come on master gaffer, let's find us a tasty inn to stuff our faces at. Then we'll find us a fine leather worker and get us a nice scabbard made to house this blade of yours."