Spider-Bots Rising

Chapter Twenty-One: The Way Through

"I think I might be able to help with that!" Nigel called down to Abby and flicked his tail. "We'll have you out of there in no time, my dear!"

He sucked his cheeks in and squeezed his lips together. Then he released them together with a wet POP, and Abby began to rise. The hole filled back up with dirt beneath her, pushing her back towards the surface. In a moment Abby was back on the ground. The cave floor looked as though there had never been a hole in it. They all rushed forward to hug her.

"Nice to see ya, kiddo," Chuck said. He had gotten to his feet and was even looking fairly steady. "For a second there we, uh, thought we maybe lost ya to The Net."

"Yes," Nigel added. "You were, um, rather brainwashed, to tell the truth."

"I r-r-remember walking up to the orb," Abby said. "But after that everything came in fl-flashes. I was there, but not there. Like. Being. In. A. Trance." She paused, thinking. Then she looked at the Dreamseeker. "Then. I. Heard. Your. Voice. It was like...waking from a dream. At least, I think that is what it w-would be like. I. Knew. Who. I. Was. Again."

"Exactly!" the Dreamseeker yelled. "That's the whole thing! That's been it all along and I was just too blind to see it!" She raised the compass to her face. She would have kissed it if it weren't for her helmet.

"D'you wanna let us in on the good news there, chief?" Chuck asked, looking confused.

"The compass!" she cried. "It's been the way through this mess the whole time! It's the key! Well, no, I'm the key! We're the key– all of us!" She laughed. She felt giddy with glee.

"Terribly sorry," Nigel said, "but I'm afraid I don't understand. Who is a key? And what are we a key to?"

Understanding was flooding through the Dreamseeker's body faster than she could put it into words. She took a deep breath and tried to explain.

"The compass has never steered us wrong, right?" she asked.

"Right," the other three chimed.

"And every time the compass has warmed up, or lit up, or come to life, it's been when there's an important decision to make, right?"

"I guess so," said Chuck.

"But here's the thing," the Dreamseeker said, her voice thick with excitement. "Every single time that happened, I knew what the right choice was. I already knew it!"

"So the compass is worthless?" Nigel said. He looked disappointed.

"No! Just the opposite! I always knew the right way, but I didn't trust myself. The compass helped me to trust the instincts I already had!"

The three of them looked at her blankly.

"Okay, just listen," she went on. "When we first met Abby, we weren't sure we could trust her. I thought we could, I felt it right away. Chuck was...not so sure. But when the compass warmed up, I knew I was right! And it happened after we beat Aranay too! When I walked off after our fight, I was angry. But I knew deep down that we had to stick together. And that's exactly where the compass pointed me! Right back to you guys! Do you see? I am the compass! I just never believed in myself before."

"I think I underst-stand," Abby said. "But how does this help us beat Queen Arachni? Do you know what to do? If you are the compass, you must kn-know. How. Do. We. Win?"

"We'll win because we're all the compass," she said.

"Hey, Dreamseeker are you feelin' alright? Maybe you should lie down a second..."

"Think about it!" the Dreamseeker went on, ignoring Chuck. "What is the best way to combat brainwashing? It's thinking for yourself! Knowing who you are! Being proud of being different! And every one of us here knows something about that. We all have the power to fight off The Dark Web, just like Abby." She smiled. "And that's exactly what we're going to do."