Hot.

That was my first thought. Hot, coarse, and bright. I could vaguely remember traveling with my caravan through the Indren Desert, on our way to the trade city of Kren. I could remember that we got almost halfway there before our skiffs broke down, the gears clogged with random scrap we went through. The screeching was the only warning we had before a sand wyrm found us. The sound of tearing metal and screams still echoed in my mind. But… I remember the wyrm's maw as I died… so how was I here?

I slowly opened my eyes to the sight of carnage. The twisted wrecks of my caravan greeted me, blood staining the sand red as still bloody bones rested in the dunes. I could feel the discordant power from the broken enchantment that once protected my fleet. I could see the glint of broken glass scattered about among the debris, the remains of lenses and windows reflecting the beaming sunlight that beat down across the desert. I looked down at myself and questioned my own eyes. I had no body, only a faint red glow from the center of where my chest should be. A dense cloud of wind in a vaguely humanoid shape made up the rest, and I was actually floating a few inches above the ground. An arid spirit. I had become a spirit, cursed to roam the desert until banished. I tried to move, and found that I could move the wind like my own body. Because it was. I gathered myself and thought, Status.

—

Name: None

Titles: None

Class: None

Race: Arid Spirit

Level: 1

—

Str: 10

End: 15

Dex: 20

Agi: 23

Wis: 40

Int: 47

—

Active Skills:

Sand Manipulation Lvl. 1

You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

Appraisal Lvl. 1

Gust Lvl. 1

Passive Skills:

Scorching Body Lvl. 1

Craftsmanship Lvl. 1

—

I sighed, my status proving me right. I begin picking my way through the wreckage, searching for anything remotely useful. I found a few intact weapons; a couple cutlasses, a spear and a staff. There was an assortment of cogs and springs, with only one mana cell surviving the attack. After trying, and failing, to pick things up normally, I began using [Sand Manipulation] to move the items I wanted. I'm not really sure why I was collecting these things, but I didn't want them to simply rust away in this hellish place. Everything was made of bronze and wood, but the wood was beyond salvaging. A few of the larger scraps of bronze could probably be reused. 

Ding!

—

Requirements reached. Class unlocked: Sandstorm Scavenger.

–

I read this with a bit of excitement. A class could make or break my future. Classes grant great benefits to the person who gains them, and each one has requirements that must be met to select them. The classes differed greatly in rarity and power, and some were even exclusive to a certain race. Common classes were guards, farmers, bakers, ect. Uncommon were warriors, rangers, heralds, and priests, while rare were royal guards, berserkers, paladins and the like. Epic was the generals, artificers, high priests, and other such powerful beings. Legendary was the realm of heroes and gods. Unique are classes that are specific to the individual, and have and will never be seen again. People who gained a unique class were heavily sought after, and the strength of the class varied wildly. One unique class could conjure entire armies from thin air, or call the wrath of a god upon their foes, while another might only be able to tell if someone is lying, or what the weather would be the next day. I focused on the class, excited to see what it did

—

Sandstorm Scavenger (Uncommon, Exclusive): An arid spirit that has gained an interest in the relics of the desert, it has become proficient at collecting and scavenging items of interest throughout the desert.

—

That sounds… interesting. I feel that it could be good, depending on what I get with the class. I pull up the class screen to select it.

—

Do you wish to equip: Sandstorm Scavenger as your job?

—

Yes! I confirm the class, and a few more windows appear.

—

Class: Sandstorm Scavenger.

Skills obtained:

Shifting Sands Lvl. 1

Sandstone Vault Lvl. 1

—

I immediately checked the skills.

—

Shifting Sands: Allows the user to travel through sand, teleporting to a location.

Sandstone Vault: Allows storage of non-living objects in a subspace. Amount of objects is determined by skill level.

—

Those were much better than I was expecting, and it's only an uncommon class? I seem to remember that you can upgrade your class if you meet certain conditions, but I'll see about that later. For now, let's test the skills. [Shifting Sands]!

My nebulous body collapsed, flowing through the ground and reforming in the place that I had focused on. Further attempts revealed that if an area had no sand, then I could not travel to it. Next was [Sandstone Vault].

I used it on my pile of random things as a test. A layer of sand flowed over them and then collapsed, the objects no longer there. I checked my status and found that what was in my vault was detailed in the description of the skill. I glanced at the sun, seeing that it was nearing dusk, and began to head in the direction of Kren. I decided against using my teleport, as I wanted to appear as just another spirit. I could see a few others in the distance, the telltale red glow revealing the outline of their transparent bodies. I sighed mentally, resigning myself to this new life. As I wandered, I decided I would continue on the path of a merchant and regain a more human form.

Tomorrow is a new day.