Azmeritus stood on the battlements of the Deev castle staring thoughtfully out at the Cold Narrows under the early morning sky. It was the first time he had left the sacrificial cave in weeks, but now, with the conspiracy against him crushed and the remaining senior clergy fanatically loyal, he was safe anywhere under Brotherhood control.

The mongoose was feeling oddly nostalgic as he scanned the scenery around him. It would all change soon, never again would tranquility be pervasive on Arishamal, never again would bird-song fill the air or sea creatures school along the Narrows. In less than two days, the world would be devoured and what the new world would resemble was beyond even Azmeritus' imagination.

A rare smile crossed the albino's face as he looked down towards the docking area of the castle. A single small skiff with a tall lateen sail cruised southward along the coast, away from any impending battle and away from the awakening of the great beast.

Though the pilot of the craft was too distant for Azmeritus to recognize, he knew it was Deeb Shatus, former Deev, former Scarlet Brother, former supplicant, once undying and then dead, and finally alive again, a blank slate...devoid of memories and dreams with nothing to guide his existence but Azmeritus' instruction to go to the furthest reaches of Xenoth to live. The mongoose found himself strangely moved at seeing his onetime 'perfect' follower abandoning the stage before the final act of his drama was done.

The arrival of both the pirate force and the World's End armada had not gone unnoticed by the Brotherhood. Azmeritus had, in fact, expected and anticipated it as a fulfillment of the Neurean Prophecies. The invasion force did not concern him, thousands of Scarlet Brothers manned trenches radiating outward from the Deev Castle on the plateau ready to defend the castle to the death.

The Deev Castle itself, even without the external reinforcement, was nearly impenetrable and the finest of the Brotherhood warriors were stationed within its walls. The royal supplicants for the awakening had been moved from the Brotherhood compound to the sacrificial cave within the castle grounds, so until the ceremony was complete, the massive gates of the castle could remain sealed, after which no defense would be necessary.

The one thing that still bothered Azmeritus was his inability to identify the Secret King. He did not know who this king was, whether he was at Xenoth, or even if he existed at all. It was the one piece of the Prophecies he had not mastered, the one piece which could still threaten his success. It was this unknown threat that had prompted the High Priest to station his entire fleet at the base of the cliff below the waterfall cascading from beneath Deev Castle.

In Azmeritus' eyes, The harbor of the castle was the only vulnerable access which might serve as a point of attack against the ceremony. The thirteen fully manned and armed Brotherhood war-ships anchored in a tight semi-circle around the castle docks provided an almost impenetrable shield against any assault, even one by the illusive Secret King and his forces, no matter who he might be.

As Azmeritus paced the battlements, Bishop Skaar, accompanied by Prester Jauba approached. After a quick bow and a curt greeting, Skaar gave his report.
"Your Excellency, the castle is fully secured and the royal supplicants are housed in the sacrificial cave," Skaar informed his master.

Jauba couldn't help sniggering and added.
"Former Chief Acolyte Zaphyr is most unhappy with his new-found duty as supplicant, he spends a great deal of his day lamenting his fate."

Azmeritus smiled.
"He should be rejoicing in his honor. It is always a shame when a beast doesn't recognize the glory he has been granted. We can only hope, for his sake, that he realizes how lucky he is before he journeys toward his final fate...I only wish he were more worthy...ah well, I have done what I can to allow him redemption, the rest is up to him."

The mongoose continued his walk along the battlements with his minions following. He addressed Skaar, "What of those who would stop us...the mainlanders and pirates, where are they?"

"The mainland force is to the north, nearly five hundred strong. There seem to be about three hundred Lokians, a hundred locals and the remainder, castaways and volunteers. They will need to attack across the plateau where we have fifteen hundred beasts dug in around the castle, it will be suicide for them if they attack."

"Excellent," Azmeritus said with satisfaction, "and the pirates?"

"They have landed to the south and are making their way here from that direction. There are three hundred of them and they face a steeper climb up to the plateau. Our force is waiting for them on high ground, armed with boulders and archers...they should be decimated before they get anywhere close to the summit ...if they attack at all. They will doubtlessly wait and see how the battle is going before they commit themselves to fighting."

"And the Deev?" Azmeritus asked.

Skaar looked less pleased as he answered.
"We have not yet determined where they are. We found their ship...it used to be one of ours, the Neure, but they were long gone. Their trail seems to head along the coast toward the castle, but the cliff is full of caves in which they can conceal themselves."

Azmeritus sat down on the battlement wall.
"They will try to make their way to the dock and fight their way up the stone steps to the castle. I want every step of that ascent manned with one of our brothers...remind them that the Deev cannot be killed within the shield, only subdued. We will only need to defend our castle for a few more hours until Xenophus awakes, then it will be his pleasure to crush our foes. The Deev will be in for a great surprise and the rest will suffer a despairing defeat. I want no mistakes, no excuses, no surprises. Make certain every brother is well fed, well-armed, and alert for the next day and a half. Triumph is within view."

Jauba ventured a question.
"When will the ceremony begin? Will it be like the rest, at the height of the full moon?"

"No, Prester, it will commence when the moon first passes the horizon tomorrow...at about four in the afternoon."

Jauba smiled.
"Then there is no stopping us."

Azmeritus returned the sable's smile.
"While I have avoided being overconfident thus far, Jauba...I am inclined to agree, we are on the verge of a new tomorrow...Xenophus' tomorrow...the Ürgod's triumph!"

Skaar's assessment of the Deev's whereabouts was correct. The Minge and their non-Deev crew sat in one of the many caves dotting the imposing cliffs below and just north of the castle. The mood was dark. It had become apparent to Prince Vasheron and the rest that the hoped for uprising by Zaphyr against Azmeritus had failed. There would be no coup, no inside help to assist the Deev in their conquest of the Brotherhood. Vasheron sat on a boulder facing Captain Mobus with the remainder of the Minge gathered closely by. He fumed.

"We should never have trusted that weak creature, never have believed he was clever enough to outsmart the mongoose. Now we will win the old-fashioned way, by crushing everything in our path. We will fight our way up to the castle along the stone steps and kill everybeast we see until Azmeritus' head is on my sword!"

"Won't they expect us and prepare?" Mobus asked.

Vasheron stood and angrily answered.
"No one can prepare for the Deev! We are the masters of war! They think they can trap us, overpower us, but that is not so. The very nature of the stairs up to the castle favors us...not more than three across can face us at any time till we reach the entrance. They can stab and cut us, but they cannot hurt or kill us...not on this island, our island...and they cannot keep us out of our castle. We have dwelt within its walls for centuries and know all its secrets. When we reach the castle, they will expect our force to charge the rear entrance...they will be in for a surprise. We will enter through the drain tunnel by the rear cisterns...that will allow us a dozen different points to surface within the castle."

Mobus nodded.
"The mess-hall would be best. It is unlikely to be heavily defended."

"I agree," Vasheron said re-seating himself, "from there we will head to his precious sacrificial cave. Azmeritus thinks the cave is easily defensible with a few archers and soldiers because the access ridge is so narrow...he did not take my Minge into account. We will walk through his hail of arrows and pull his black heart from his wretched pale body!"

Azmeritus took his lunch on the battlements, enjoying the bright breezy day after his long self-imposed exile in the damp interior of the sacrificial cave. Jauba and Skaar returned to his side after seeing that the castle and plateau's defenses were properly set up to the High Priest's instructions. The mongoose was in almost a jolly mood, the years of preparation and planning finally ready to bear fruit. He sat at a long table, ravenously devouring a poached whitefish and drinking a local wine from a large pewter tankard. He glanced up at his acolytes.

"Are all our defenses set?" he asked.

"Yes, eminence," Jauba answered, "it is all as you requested. Everyone is on high alert, watches, patrols, and lookouts have been tripled. Scouts have been sent in all directions and their reports sent to me each hour."

Azmeritus nodded as he continued to eat his meal. He addressed Jauba and Skaar between chews.
"Good, good, has anything been reported?"

Bishop Skaar stood and walked to the closest parapet, pointing northward.
"The main force of mainlanders was seen mustering on the beach near Farewell Ridge. About five hundred beasts and men, as we thought. They were last seen heading inland and south, in our direction. Assuming they are headed to the castle, they should reach the plateau about the same time the moon rises in the afternoon.

"I have added troops along that side and they have dug in. We outnumber the attackers four to one along that side and will have no difficulty fending off their attack and holding them at bay easily till the ceremony is complete," Skaar paused, then continued, "As for the pirates, they are stumbling through the jungle, which is quite dense to the south. It is doubtful they will even reach the base of the plateau before the ceremony begins."

"Have you located the Deev?" Azmeritus asked almost casually.

This time Jauba answered.
"We believe so, we sent a patrol to the cliff face, only one brother returned. He suffered a deep wound, but remained conscious long enough to confirm their whereabouts. It was as we suspected, the Deev mean to ascend the stairs up to the castle face and attack from there. We have those stairs filled with defenders from the beach to the castle-front."

"Exactly as we thought," the mongoose said wiping his mouth on a serviette, "anything else? Any additional enemy ships?"

Jauba fidgeted and finally spoke.
"We have spotted one of the mainlander ships making its way up the coast towards us."

"A single ship?" Azmeritus asked.

"Yes, eminence, barely outside the shield." Jauba answered.

"That seems so pointless," the mongoose said almost to himself, "unless this so-called Secret King is onboard."

"We could easily send several of the ships guarding the castle harbor to attack and destroy the vessel." Skaar suggested.

Azmeritus thought a while before he answered.
"No, it might be a decoy or diversion. They may be hoping we will create a gap in our defense by chasing them. This is not a time for knee-jerk reaction. Remember...we do not need to defeat our foes, only detain them for a day and a half...then Xenophus will complete the destruction of our foes....no, no...we will hold firm and not be baited."

Skaar became agitated.
"But what if this Secret King is in fact onboard. You have said he is the only threat to us...to the ceremony."

"If he is trapped at sea...on a ship...with a dozen fully manned warships between him and his objective, what does it matter? He cannot get to my cave to stop the ceremony and when it is complete it will be too late for this so-called king. When Xenophus is awake we can sink your ship, Skaar, but until then we will only defend."

"As you wish, eminence." The two acolytes declared simultaneously. Azmeritus dismissed the two and walked back to the parapets, staring north and straining to see if he could make out the mystery ship.

"Is that you?" he said aloud, "is that you, Secret King? I know not who you are, but Xenophus will welcome you none the less. Come then, you foolish hero, meet your doom beneath the cliffs of Deev Castle."

The supposition made by both Azmeritus and Bishop Skaar, was, for the most part, correct. While the Secret King was not actually onboard the West Wind, he was being diligently towed behind it.

Captain Varga, who had remained in command of the ship, chose to lower anchor about a mile from the Deev Castle harbor, confident that he was far enough from the entrenched blockade to elude capture should the Brotherhood decide to raise anchor and attack. The ship rested on the calm waters about three hundred yards from shore and waited.

Winky and Groggs sat on the forward side rail staring at the imposing cliff face. The almost routine tremors on Xenoth shook the stone cliffs violently every half hour or so and sent cascades of stones and scree tumbling into the ocean all along the harbor side. Winky turned to his life-long friend.

"I'm sure glad we're out here, I don't fancy havin' them there pebbles bouncing off me noggin'."

Groggs nodded with a chuckle.
"Me neither. Your head's harder'n mine though, I reckon you'd be safe."

Winky gave Groggs a light shove.
"Yeah...well, your heads thicker'n mine, so I figger you'd be fine too."

Groggs became a bit sullen.
"I hope we ain't gotta fight. Remember the last time we was gonna be in a big battle?"

"You mean way back when we was attackin' Gleneden with Khalis' army?" Winky asked.

"Yeah, we wasn't what you'd call heroes, were we? We run off before the battle as I recollect."

Winky laughed.
"That's gonna be hard fer us ta do now ain't it? Seein' as how we're on a ship and all."

As they continued their banter, Robbi walked up to them.

"How are you guys doing?" she asked cheerfully.

Groggs smiled.
"We're just rememberin' what cowards we are."

Robbi stepped between them and draped her arms over their shoulders.
"You two are far from cowards. You've been with us from the start...you helped rescue Eggy from the Gleaners...you're here now...with us...facing the Brotherhood. Whatever you did in the past is in the past."

Winky looked happily at the rat.
"Thanks Magus Veritus, that's nice of ya to say. Can I ask you a question?"

"Sure...what do you want to know?"

"Me and Groggs ain't exactly sure what we're supposed to be doin' here. Are we attackin' all dem boats out there?"

Robbi laughed.
"Goodness no, that would be insane. We are here as a last option if our friends can't stop the ceremony. We're just here as an escort for the Asherouboros in the event that Xenophus is revived."

Groggs raised his hand like a schoolboy. Robbi chuckled.
"What Groggs? she asked.

"What does this Xenophus look like? How big is it?"

Robbi shook her head.
"We really don't know. It must be pretty big though...the last time it was awake it nearly ate every living thing on Arishamal." She smiled, "Probably pretty ugly too, I imagine, evil things usually are."

"Can the Ashyroo-thing beat it in a fight?" Winky asked.

"I hope it doesn't come to that. Ashy is big to us, but to that monster...I don't know. We're hoping Arisha's essence will give him some help, but again, we just don't know."

"When are ya givin' it to him?" Groggs asked.

Robbi laughed.
"I'm sorry if I sound like I'm repeating myself, but, again, I don't know. I'm hoping I know the right time when it happens."

The three were silent for a while, watching stones and boulders crashing into the sea. Winky ventured a glance back at the floating tank.

"The Ashyroo seems pretty calm," he said.

"I'm not sure he even knows why he's here," Robbi commented, "Chumley seems to think he does, but I'm not convinced. That poor creature is expected to save us and I fear he's oblivious to everything that's going on. I just hope that if it comes down to it, he doesn't just take off to the far reaches of the ocean without looking back."

Winky stared at the tank and smiled. He put his paw on Robbi's shoulder re-assuringly.

"That big fella's gonna be just fine. If me and Groggs ain't cowards like you say...then anything's possible. I'm tellin' ya, I'm with Chumley...that beast...the Ashyroo...he knows something's up. He's just takin' it all in."

Robbi smiled.
"I hope you're right."

Contrary to what Robbi thought, the Asherouboros was anything but oblivious to either his situation or his surroundings. During the journey from World's End and even at the height of the storm, the creature had been almost joyous in the myriad of sensory stimulations it was feeling and seeing for the first time. It had remained calm amid the flashing lightning, crashing thunder, wind, and waves, feeling unthreatened and secure. It's previous home, the Circe Sea was always in tumult. Even on the calmest of days, it was raised to a level of constant turmoil by the continuous underwater eruptions, boiling waters and whirlpools, making even a storm-bruised sea seem tranquil by comparison.

By the time the West Wind reached the placid waters of Xenoth, the Asherouboros' disposition underwent another metamorphosis. The nightmares and dark visions which had begun to plague the beast in Thoth returned, stronger and more vivid. Visions of the ancient foe it had never seen began to intrude more and more into its waking hours. Fury, rage, and hatred for this intruder upon his imagination fermented and multiplied beyond any rational anger.

It could sense that his nemesis was almost within reach, almost visible. It knew without truly knowing that a reckoning was at hand, that its horrible visions would soon become fact. A creature less steeled by suffering and hardship would lose what mind it had at the barrage of torturous visions the Asherouboros now saw, but the creature had been tempered by a millennia of grief and craving and had not only survived, but flourished.

It was also no longer alone. The beasts around it, who in times past had feared and despised it, now treated the monster with concern and kindness, with respect and even awe. Most supportive of all was the odd black rat who spoke to it in unintelligible words muttered in friendly and compassionate tones. Even in the darkest of days he could pull the creature from the edge of madness to the comfort of sanity. Even now, in the shadow of Armageddon, the beast known as Chumley could make the Asherouboros feel calm, awaiting the hour of its trial, resigned to the course destiny had written.