The rocky exterior of the creature cut Charlie's throat as it made its way down, refusing to go down smoothly. While alive, the creature didn't even struggle, dying before it even had a moment to reveal it's true form. Now that it was dead, Charlie wished that it would put up less of a fight. The thing was heavy too, weighing Charlie down more than even a couple of Sklite corpses.

It really was like a goddamn rock.

Still, this was Charlie's first victory against the elusive fauna of the desert canyons basin. Too long have they escaped Charlie's grasp, skittering away to safety before he even had a chance to spot them, but no longer. Now, Charlie would come for them - not even their outstanding camouflage would save their tough hides from his sight.

Charlie skulked down the long and winding paths carved out of the canyons baked stone floor. There were sharp layers to the stone floor descending deeper and deeper into its vast expanse, almost like the tops of smaller and smaller mountains were squished together. He wasn't worried though, the return back would be much quicker since he wouldn't have to stop every few meters to cast his underdeveloped Mana sense.

If by some chance he ventured too far, or came across a creature beyond his ability to easily handle, Charlie could simply turn around and return to the cave with his tail still attached to his body. With the moon still high in the sky, Charlie had plenty of time before the scalding sun came up to signal his demise - and unlike before, he would not dismiss it's corroding nature.

While it was not as powerful and ever-present as the sun from Earth, it still shouldn't be underestimated. As Charlie experienced previously, sunstroke still existed, and he was certainly not built to withstand that level of heat anymore. Even the normally sun-loving-lizards chose to stay in the shade for the majority of the day.

The creature that not only resembled stone, but weighed like one too, really put a painful hamper on his progress - forcing Charlie to stop and rest frequently. The additional weight also burned through his stamina, and quickly. Charlie was still happy that he had been successful in his Magical endeavour, but to take from the wise words of Frankie, the juice was not worth the squeeze.

Whilst heavily weighed down, the journey began to look a tad too dangerous. Charlie had played with fire once already, and received heavy burns in return - so he simply turned around and made his way back to the lizard cave.

Or, so he would have, if he could.

It should have been obvious to Charlie by this point in his second life, and it was that if there was anything that could go wrong, it would go wrong.

Whether it was lucky or unlucky, Charlie faced down a pack of smaller rocky creatures, alerted by their loudly clacking legs. They resembled some ugly sort of insect creature - six legs, heavy pincers on their front and mean looking mandibles. Though what caused Charlie concern was the strange and pointy appendage that stuck out from the back.

It was like a long hooked fang made of solid stone, tipped by something even sharper - glinting beautifully in the silver light of the moon high above.

They were slow to skitter on their rocky legs, carrying a monstrous amount of weight, but Charlie was even slower. The stupid rock in his stomach acted like an anchor, mooring him to the deserts floor. Charlie had to try his best, even if he'd simply wear himself out, well before he could even dream of escaping, he still had to try.

Charlie's mind raced for a solution, racking his memories for anything that could help right now. Yet nothing came up, no hidden nugget of wisdom surfaced itself.

All Charlie felt was fear.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

Even if it was futile, Charlie couldn't stop himself from fleeing. With four rocky insects hot on his tail, Charlie felt pressured like never before. He might be able to take out one, maybe two if he were lucky, but four was simply out of the question.

Their heavy, rock-like and pointed insect legs clacked loudly against the stone in the distance, and it was slowly getting louder. They were bridging the gap that separated them, and Charlie was quickly running out of stamina.

The stupid rock sitting in his stomach was going to be the end of him. There he had been, foolishly overconfident and leisurely stroking his own ego - and for what? To simply be turned into mush by the ugly and inconceivable creatures chasing him?

Charlie would have turned to mush, if the situation remained the same, but, whether it was lucky or unlucky, things quickly took a turn for the worse.

Charlie, even through the terrifying situation, felt a sharp stinging pain radiate from below him. The stone creature that resided within Charlie was so heavy that it pushed down on his underbelly, and crushed it between the dry and sharp stone beneath. There was a streak of blood leading all the way back the way he came, and it finally struck Charlie as to why he was being hounded like so.

Though, knowing why didn't change the situation much - it was still good to understand why the world was suddenly turned upside down.

The dry stone let out deep vibrations that shook Charlie's mind, and momentarily stopped the unceasing approach of the rocky insects. The world shook, violently spewing dust and debris in all directions, until the thundering vibration erupted into a earth-shattering geyser of stone and sand.

Thrown into the air, Charlie soared alongside the dozens of tons of stone, before being quickly, and painfully, brought back to the ground by the dumbbell-like creature in his stomach. The added weight acted like a ships anchor, keeping him grounded amidst the chaos - regardless of whether he wanted to or not.

In the brief moment that Charlie spent in the air, he had seen the source of all of this. A horrific monster erupted from the rigid stone with such ease that it resembled Charlie breaching the rivers surface. It was like the stone itself melted and rippled without cracking when in the presence of the colossal monster.

The rocky insects that were persistently chasing Charlie mere moments ago found themselves in deep trouble. They were simply too heavy to be thrown into the air like he was - for if they were, they might have avoided the blind fury of the monster.

After landing with a crunch and a sharp pain shooting through his ribs, Charlie quickly gathered his bearings and looked onward to the jaw-dropping scene. Through bloodied vision and painful breaths, Charlie finally laid his eyes on the true form of the monstrous creature.

It defied everything Charlie had come to understand about the world, and Magic. He had never forgotten the creatures from beyond this realm, including Axxatal, but they were not bound by the rules of the universe. They existed outside of reality, outside of limits, yet this, this thing, surely it was bound to the laws of the world.

It was like living sand given form. It's beige and yellowed skin shimmered with water-like waves, the cracked boulders and large debris that hit its body were quickly absorbed into its enormous form, never resurfacing again.

Hundreds of yellowed tentacles shot out at great speeds, sending clouds of sand from their fraying edges and latched onto the four rock insects with vice-like grips.

They were lifted high above the ground like they were nothing and thrown into the air as if they were pebbles. This creature, this monster - it was a calamity.

It destroyed the canyons ancient stone like it was a child playing in sand. It dealt with the rocky insects as easily as a child would a toy.

Charlie needed to run - now!

The titanic sand monsters body had no mouth, yet it somehow screamed with an unholy voice. It was like a mountain being split in half, torn asunder by raw power - it was like the earth wept.

Charlie fled, putting everything he had into his escape and therefore didn't get to see what became of the pesky insects. Though in reality, there was only one outcome possible and the nitty gritty didn't really matter - they were dead either way.

In Charlie's escape the gravel and sand dug deeply into his wounded underbelly, pressed ever-deeper by the lethal weight of his last meal. At least the pain meant he was still alive, that the monster didn't actually kill him, no matter how preposterous it seemed.

Unfortunately, no matter how far Charlie fled, the bloody trail he left behind was going to lead the monster right to him. Charlie didn't think that the creature was particularly looking for him, but was likely attracted by his blood.

It meant that maybe, just maybe, there was a way to survive this.

The plan that quickly formed in his head was stupid, certainly, but Charlie was particularly good at surviving his own stupidity - for the most part.