Zutar sat near the waterfall, watching the water pour down from above. She was remembering everything her mother taught her, for her mother told her all of her secrets. Unfortunately, her mother had died, at the hooves of Astraea, and Zutar knew exactly why. She hated the deer. She would never voice her hatred of Astraea in front of the masters for her safety. So instead, she would bear her hatred in silence. The only master she trusted was Tenzin, the ice phoenix. He proved himself to be benevolent. The rest she was wary of, except for Astraea, whom she hated. Zutar respected another thing in the caves as well, aside from Tenzin, the spire. The spire was the life source for the caves, as she learned from her mother. She respected it. Though, the caves could do without a creature like Astraea.

@Thothaga

as a maiden she tiptoes shy with her light...

Thothaga had felt the tremors. It came from Polaris as the stone spit open and birthed a monster, Raheerah. She had scurried from tunnel M as fast as her legs could carry her.

Polaris was on fire! The heat and smoke was spreading through the tunnels. Thothaga dared not go in to far, even though the source of all magicka, the Spire, stood amongst the flames. There was nothing she could do that wasn't short of pointless suicide. The fire would have to run its course.

Thothaga took shelter in Pisces, hoping that its wetness would discourage any flames that might travel from Polaris. Thothaga could not heave and cough with her primitive book lung's, but if she could she would. By the time she made it to the waterfall, the spider nearly collapsed from overexertion. She drew her legs in and slumped against a mossy boulder as the falls spritzed her black-blue hairs with water.

Thothaga was dizzy from a lack of oxygen, but her mind still raced. By the Spire-Mother, what happen? She hoped the the Divine and Rot Children would be alright. She hoped the Spire could stand against the inferno because there was absolutely nothing she could do to quell it. Thothaga had never felt so helpless in her life, and never so tired.

"Thothaga speaking."
Thothaga thinking.

@Zutar

As Zutar sat near the waterfall, she took notice of a large, blue looking spider who seemed to have collapsed during the waterfall. She squinted her eyes for a moment, then shook her head in disbelief. Was that Thothaga, the spider? From everything her mother Aetius had told and taught her when she was alive, was of Thothaga the spider. Her owl mother explained how she met Thothaga at Polaris, and how she had arcane magic. Aetius had sworn her loyalty to the spider before she died, so in a way, she guessed the spider was like family to her. But was that really Thothaga? Zutar rushed over to the collapsed spider, not even minding the drops of water coming on her from above. The hybrid approached the spider with caution, not wanting to scare the it. "Thothaga, is that you? I am Zutar, Aetius's daughter. My mother told me a lot about you. Unfortunately she is not here in these caves to live anymore." Zutar circled the spider, attempting to get it on its feet, wanting to help. She attempted to use her side, to gently get some of her legs up. "Come, let's try to get further away from the waterfall, you're sort of getting quite wet. We can talk now if you wish. You look tired. What in the caves is going on?" Zutar was completely oblivious to the horrors going on in Polaris. Though, her main goal was to help the spider.

@Thothaga

as a maiden she tiptoes shy with her light...

The giant spider had just slipped into torpor when a voice calling her brought her back. She jumped, startled by the sudden appearance of a gembound. "hUH? Whozzat? How'd you know my name?" Thothaga tried to scramble to her feet, but the dizziness weighed her down and she gave into fatigue. The spider plopped down on the mossy stones, this time with legs splayed out. Her black eyes stared blankly at the cat-bird hybrid as spilled out words. She felt somewhat confused, and overwhelmed Her brain had yet to be delivered enough fresh oxygen to bring her mind back to full working compacity, however, Thothaga did manage to catch some what Zutar said. Slowly, she started to piece it together.

"Polaris... on fire." She rasped. By now, she was aware of her sluggish thinking. Thothaga allowed Zutar to help her up, slightly leaning on her for support. "Thank you, child." Thothaga focused on moving her eight feet, trusting Zutar to take her somewhere drier.

Aetius.. gone? The gears churned in her head. So that's why she had not seen the owl in a while."You are.. Aetius'... daughter." She had to say it out loud to fully comprehend. Aetius never told her about having a daughter, or perhaps there was too much smoke in her system to remember. After a ways, Thothaga slumped down on her belly, unable to walk anymore. "It's all gone t'shit!" The spider hissed. She looked deflated, defeated, and a little singed. "We're all gonna die."



"Thothaga speaking."
Thothaga thinking.

@Zutar

Zutar looked on, worried as Thothaga slumped to the ground. Well, at least they were some way away from the waterfall. Zutar listened to the spider carefully as she spoke, thinking of what to say. Once Thothaga had relaxed on the floor, Zutar talked warmly to the spider. "Thothaga, I know you may seem tired, but I need you to listen carefully to me." Zutar spoke slowly so the spider could comprehend. Thothaga needed to hear what she had to say. "I know your name, because my mother Aetius knew you and considered you a teacher. I am Aetius' biological daughter. She gave life to me." So far so good. "Astraea is a very dangerous, cruel and ruthless master. He murdered Aetius. The reason why he did it, is simply because Aetius knew what he looked like before he was a deer. He took her stone from her." Zutar made sure not to speak to loudly. "He cannot be trusted. Now, Thothaga, what is happening in Polaris, and why are we in danger?" Zutar made sure to speak slowly so Thothaga could understand her. The spider seemed very out of it, but she was still paying attention to her at least.

@Thothaga

as a maiden she tiptoes shy with her light...

"Yes... that sounds like Astraea." Thothaga rasped in a agreement. "A great big beast has set it ablaze, child, ABLAZE!!" She raised her front legs and shook them as she spoke, as if to mimic flailing hands. "And its gonna destroy everything, saw it in my web I did! Just-FWRUUMM- nothing but ash!"

As if to prove her point, Pisces trembled, sending pieces of loose rock falling down and splashing in the pools and streams. Thothaga withdrew her legs to protect her eyes from the debris. The sound of roaring echoed fainting down tunnel M. "AH! IT MOVES!" She shrieked. Thothaga scrambled to her feet, then promptly collapsed when her blood couldn't keep up. She groaned. "Go on without me, child, save yourself.. if you can." It wasn't everyday she acted melodramatic, but fear and fatigue brought it out. The spider reached out a leg to Zutar as if to stop her. "But.. before you do-" Thothaga leaned in towards her and lowered her voice. "-what did Astraea look like?.. Did Aetius tell you before she...?" Thothaga trailed off, not wanting to jog what might be a painful memory for Zutar. If she was going to die in an inferno she might as well die knowing some dirt the stag didn't want getting out.


"Thothaga speaking."
Thothaga thinking.

@Zutar

Zutar would gladly tell Thothaga what the damned deer used to look like. But she would refuse to leave Thothaga here. First though, she would give away Astraea's most personal, shameful secret. So in a hushed tone that only Thothaga could hear, she spoke of what her mother Aetius told her. "Yes, she did tell me literally everything before she died, including what Astraea used to look like, so listen close, Thothaga." Zutar sat down quickly, as if she was going to tell a story to a child....

"My mother Aetius went to Orion and sat on The Throne, using hindsight on it. And what she saw was Astraea sitting on the Throne. Astraea was a two legged creature at the time, who sat on The Throne, his two arms were on the armrests of the throne. He had long flowing hair too. He had weird, smooth skin and perfect complexion that was so pure and white, it looked as if it might be carved from alabaster. The one thing that had not changed, was that his red gem was still on his forehead. His eyes were pale blue. In her next vision, she could clearly see all of him then with more details. He had a slender body, with pale colorless skin and silvery white hair draped from his head almost as long as his body. He was very tall too." Oh but that was not it at all. She had more. "Then my mother saw something else in her visions as she sat on the throne. She saw Astraea old self, speaking to Nemean. Nemean was in Astraea's hands and she screamed this sentence. 'I'm telling you they're a bunch of liars we should eat them'. Then Astraea asked Nemean what Totum and Enki thought of her sentence. I knew who Totum was, but I did not know Enki at all. That name was new to me. Nemean then yelled at Astraea in response saying someone killed Totum." And that was the whole story. Though, there was another small part to this.

"My mother sought out Nemean, and in return for Nemean telling her the truth, she became Nemean's loyal servant. Nemean confirmed that what Aetius saw was actually Astraea. Nemean also mentioned that five thousand years ago, some creatures got the idea to rebel and escape, and they succeeded, but used a lot of others in the process. She also said Enki was another master who died in the rebellion, but their stone was revived. Though there was a warning. Nemean said that Astraea died, but the thing that revived him made him a deer. Astraea felt it was a curse, and she warned my mother not to speak of this in front of Astraea. As her daughter, she told me everything she found and what went on in her life, entrusting all this information to me. Next thing I know, I have a child telling me Astraea killed my mother, all because she knew his secret."

She took a breath, and shook her head in refusal. She would not leave Thothaga here. "Thothaga, I don't care what you do with the information I gave you, tell whoever you like. He deserves to have his pride ripped from him. Now Thothaga, listen to me. I am not going to leave you here. We are both going to make it out of this and survive unharmed. Now, come." Zutar would attempt to lift Thothaga on her back. She would carry Thothaga on her back, and get them both to a safer part of the cave. She turned to see if the spider was comfortable before getting them both out of Pisces. "You alright Thothaga?"

@Thothaga

as a maiden she tiptoes shy with her light...

Thothaga's eight, beady black eyes stared blankly at Zutar as the hybrid spilled out what was quite possibly too much information at the time. A part of her marveled at how willing the hybrid was to sit down and tell a long winded story at time like this. The caves were crumbling around them and she was practically chatting her spidery ears. She had to remind herself that some gembounds dealt with stress differently. Talking must calm Zutar's nerves. Well, might as well get everything out while we breathe. She mentally shrugged.

"The Collector's name is Algol." She blurted out, then chittered mischievously. "But don't tell him that I told you that, heh-heh." Then it dawned on her that she may never get the opportunity. The spider drooped.

Storytime with Zutar did give Thothaga a much needed moment of respite as she rested there however. She felt her mind become sharper as her body began to balance out. Slowly, the giant spider unfurled her hairy legs and began to stand. "Don't worry, I am no snitch." Her words were clearer this time. She felt Zutar's back brush up against her belly, attempting to carry her as she stood. She would be forgiven if she thought the spider extremely light. "Really, Zutar, there's no need for all of this." Feeling her strength return, Thothaga lifted herself completely off the hybrid, towering over her like a hairy, blue-black cage. "I'm fine now, thank you." She stepped over Zutar and crawled towards Tunnel H. "I must return to the Divine. I.. I need to be there when he comes." Her words were somber. She promised to protect the Divine, from bugs and fiery dragons alike, but more so, she wanted to her last moments to be with the tree, cradled her great boughs. "Come, if you wish.." The spider paused and looked back at Aetius' daughter as the caves rumbled once again. "Although.. if you have other family, or friends, I must insist you go to them."

"Thothaga speaking."
Thothaga thinking.

@Zutar

Zutar was glad the spider was feeling better. She decided to follow Thothaga to this place called The Divine. "No, I have no friends or family. I will follow you to this place called The Divine, and stand with you. You are my family now. You knew my mother, and you were like a friend to her. I will help you. Lead the way." With that the hybrid walked next to Thothaga, waiting for her to lead the way. She wondered what this place called The Divine looked like. What was that place? She had never heard of that place in the caves ever before. Nonetheless, if it was important to the spider, it was important to Zutar. She waited for the spider to show her the way.

@Thothaga

as a maiden she tiptoes shy with her light...

Thothaga gave her a long, thoughtful look; or perhaps the lighting made it seem like she gave her a long, thoughtful look. There was no telling. Spider faces weren't really known or their expressiveness. Either way, she paused at Zutar's words. She expected Zutar to be alone but-

"You are my family now."

Thothaga never had been part of a family. It had always just been her -and more recently, the Divine- agaisnt the world. Then, Aetius had gone and gotten herself killed and now her daughter saught kinship with her. What did this make her? Zutar's godmother?

Thothaga had never "godmothered" anything before. She wasn't even sure if she was ready for a family, even if their time was short. But she wanted one. Fat chance of that now. She thought grimly.

At least she had Zutar.

"Very well, I.. thank you, child. " The spider finally said. The caves rumbled once more. Thothaga bristled. "Come, quickly." She rushed Zutar along as she scurried with her down the tunnel. "This way, let's not dally." She could feel the heat coming from one of the ends. Raheerah had taken his wrath to a different cavern, and she prayed that Cetus still stood.

*Exit Thothaga


"Thothaga speaking."
Thothaga thinking.

@Zutar