With a swift and decisive motion, I released the crimson bands of Cyttorak, sending the first thief plummeting to the ground. The moment her feet touched the floor, she sprang back into action, her nimble form moving like a shadow, closing the distance between us.

Using Aqua Eructo, I created a stream of water surrounding me and snatched her she came towards me with a swift strike in mind, throwing her towards her accomplices.

Her fellow assassins were closing in as well, momentarily distracted by their hurtling leader.

I then summoned the emerald lashes of Ikonn from my outstretched hands, closing them in together before they split out to attack from different angles.

Successively, I bound them together with the Ebon Bands of Cyndriarr, ensuring that they were rendered motionless at once, even if I was squeezing the life force out of them.

With that, I created a portal below them and sent them away from the Sanctum and into a desolate place in the Sahara Desert.

I was done with playing games in my Sanctum, ad if they were the League of Assassins, they would have been better than that. They didn't feel authentic.

Although the first thief had hinted at a profound knowledge about me, she didn't feel like the Talia I was recently with.

I sent a wave of magical energy through out the Sanctum and it resumed it's original state while restricting all passes into the Sanctum.

I then embarked to retrieve the crystal and take it back to Supergirl before another relentless group came to attack me again. Although I could defend against them, I didn't want this to be my current norm as I had other things to do.

Nthirium would be safe in Star Labs, and it was probably better if it was a way from my magic.

But I had also glimpsed into the future and seen chaos coming into my sanctum. That's why I had hastily sent away the assassins.

In the corridor leading to the room where the Nthirium was, I felt a presence from behind me, lurking in the shadows that had resumed into the Sanctum.

Hadn't I cleared all of the assassins, and renewed the protection in the Sanctum? Or was there someone else who had been in long before?

I felt a bit of anger rush through my body as I wondered what path to choose. I would go for the Nthirium and then clear of all the rats and mice that dared to anger me in this moment.

In the chamber where I had created an entry way into the mirror dimension to the location of Nthirium, I found the crystal glowing in the dim light. It had siphoned away all the magic that was keeping it in the mirror dimension.

I knew it was currently siphoning magic from the Sanctum, as I kept having to replenish the magic keeping the illusion and defenses up, and the OmniSight Aegis.

I grabbed the Nthirium and headed back for the foyer at godspeed. The weird feeling I had felt emanating from within it now felt more radiant, probably because the crystal had been exposed in magic for a long time.

It must have had a hard time siphoning magic from within the mirror dimension, that's why it managed to remain there since the day I took it.

The weird feeling I was getting from the crystal wasn't a sense of power, but an absence of power. Unlike a normal relic, this artifact seemed to be diminishing power instead of amplifying it.

What could have created such a thing? There was the properties of the Nth metal imbued into the crystal, but there was something else too that amplified it's magic drain.

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Back in the foyer, I found a female seated on the table, her expression calm and expecting.

"Word spreads around quick." She started confidently. "So, you are the sorcerer running around town, taking whatever you desire?"

Her face was shielded by the shadows as she spoke.

"You took something of mine, and I want it back." She said.

"You want the crystal too?" I asked, with the unmatched relaxation I possesed. But it killed me to know the anyone could just enter the sanctum as they pleased. The Nthirium crystal was really keeping me on edge.

"Tell me. Who are you and what do you intend to do with anti-magic?" I continued. "But more importantly, how did you manage to get in?"

"Crystal?" She asked uncertain. "Who said anything about crystals?"

"And anti-magic?!" She said chuckling, as if it was hilarious. "What even is that? That's the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard of."

"As for how I got in, I just had to wait for the barrier or illusion, or whatever nonsense you have going on here, to go down." She replied. "It's been doing that all night. Your magic is a serious whack-job."

Who would have the audacity to accuse the Sorcerer Supreme of being a whack-job?!! They clearly underestimated me.

"Then, if it's not Nthirium, what are you accusing me of taking?" I asked amidst gritted teeth.

"I hear that you've taken quite a lot around without even concealing your identity." She said. "You've got some nerve, and that makes me regard you with some respect."

"However," she continued, "there are things you should never steal, and that includes the dagger you took from the library."

She leaned into the dim light, showing her half-grotesque face. One half was human, while the other showed the face of a demon.

I wasn't taken aback by this. I had seen my share of ugly things, and if she was intending to scare me, she would have to try harder.

She then dramatically added. "No one steals from this queen and gets away with it."

"Mazikeen." I said in realization. "I was wondering when I would be graced by your presence."

I had had my suspicions of the dagger I took.

"So you know of me, and yet you chose to steal from me?" She asked.

"In truth, I was wondering why an angel-killer was lying around in a dusty shelf, publicly, where it could easily be taken by anyone." I explained. "I was wondering why you chose to be that careless."

"That was none of your business." She snapped.

"True. True." I replied.

"You seem to know some things meant for only a few. How do you know it's an angel-killer? Why haven't I ever heard of a Doctor Strange up until now?" She asked a series of questions.

"I'm that good at keeping my identity concealed, and I choose when to be found by professionals like you." I boasted.

"As for the dagger, I don't really have an intention of keeping it, even though it could be useful." I continued. "But I'd rather not have you and your companion chase me tirelessly in pursuit of this small thing."

I summoned the knife from a concealed place in the shelves, and soared it smoothly to her.

"That'll be all?" I asked. "Give Lucifer my regards. The regards of the Sorcerer Supreme."

"Clever choice." Mazikeen said. "You're not so much of a whack-job as I thought."

"Not because you willingly gave me the dagger, but because your magic is really good at fabricating stuff. This is some good mimicry, with a lot of attention paid to detail." She added, seeing through my little illusion.

"But you're stupid to think that I don't know what my blade looks like and feels like." She continued. "If you want to play games with me sorcerer, then we shall play like never before. Give me my blade or end up regretting it."

"Fair enough." I said, a smirk on my face. "Take the real blade and leave."

I now fetched the real blade concealed in my tunic and handed it to her, using magic. It was good keep, but unnecessary. I would have to go to the heavens or Los Angeles inorder to have to use it against an angel. That wasn't in my schedule just yet.

"Alright." Mazikeen said. "I'll take my leave now handsome. You're not as entertaining as I hoped you'd be, though."

"Let me give you a hand with that." I said while opening a portal to Lucifer's counter in Los Angeles, relatable to the movies.

She keenly searched the view inside the portal, and I could see the wrinkling in her now human face, as she thought.

"Have you met with the Devil?" She asked. "How do you know so much about him?"

"I'm a bounty hunter for knowledge." I replied.

"I appreciate your show of kindness, but I'm not stupid enough to fall into one of your traps. For all I know, you could be God parading the Earth as a sorcerer in your plan to send us back to hell." She expressed her doubts. "I'll be sure to let Lucifer know of your existence here."

That I didn't care about. Lucifer was harmless, crippled by an unwavering amount of daddy issues, and always ready to make a deal. There was no need to worry about him.

"I'll however do you a favour before I leave." She said as she walked towards the entrance. "All those items you took around New York have owners who are very interested in getting their things back. Be careful."

"One more thing." She added. "There's a group outside your castle planning to strike soon. You should be ready, and from what I hear, they are not underestimating you."

"Sure." I said. "I'll be ready to gladly welcome them into my domain."