Karastak sat within a small room with only a window to peer out of. In front of himself was a decorative desk facing outwards, and within the four corners were the images of chained Devils and Angels painstakingly holding up the flat surface above. Whereas the surfaces around said beings were a depiction of great wealth, and the hellscape awaiting those who became too greedy up until their deaths. On the other hand, the rest of the room was far too clean with white washed walls so that the desk, and those who sat behind it, were the main focal point of the room.

However, he was alone here, with a burlap sack sitting upon the desk as Little Mother squeaked whilst flying around the room with great curiosity. Her curiosity was soon full, and decided to land atop the bag, resuming her squeaking as she wiggled her body, sniffing every corner before flying into the Human's dark hair.

Himself, on the other hand, sat upon a wicker chair devoid of a back. This didn't concern him, as he leaned his body against an upright staff with a diamond spike embedded at the top. One which had to be shrunk down by a metre and halved its thickness due to it being geared towards him being a Human now.

As he kept his eyes shut, he stretched out his senses to the maximum. One where he was only able to glean the smallest of scraps of information regarding what was occurring. For he had come to open up a new account with the Bank of Synthanos, but due to his great amount, they needed an expert to deal with both the amount and authenticity of the coins. For although they were as real as any gold coin, each were stamped differently and held a twinge of magick.

The latter was easily explained, as a few arcs of lightning erupted around the diamond tipped staff and his hands. Whilst the former caused a little stir to ripple outwards, resulting in him being ushered into this little room as they retrieved an expert.

He didn't need to wait for long. As the door opened suddenly, causing the little bat under his hair to jump and squeak. Whereas Karastak himself breathed in slowly, erecting his back as his eyes opened to reveal a mouse of a woman wearing a cream coloured smock. She even had a pair of glasses to go with the outfit to accentuate her rounded features, pouting, red lips, and eyes which always seemed to be on the verge of tears. Not only this, but the skin of the woman was of charcoal in colour, whilst her hair was non-existent, causing him to raise an eyebrow when he noted it, but shook his head clear of anything.

“So?” he asked slowly, his voice a baritone as it rumbled gently against her.

“So,” she responded with a sigh, and took off her glasses so as to pinch the bridge of her nose for a time. After which she replaced them and clasped her hands in front of whilst looking in his direction, “The gold is real, but I'm afraid we can only reimburse you for half of its total amount. That is,” her eyes took on a shrewd glint of greed, “unless you tell us where you got it from.”

'Absolute power corrupts absolutely. Especially in the only bank within the city,' his mind sighed, but spoke, “I'm an Enchanter, and these are my earnings.”

“Oh,” she drawled, “so you're just a Mage, huh? Well, Mr. Mage, how did you get all of this gold?”

“Are you deaf, woman?” he growled, “I'm an Enchanter. E-N-C-H-A-N-T-E-R. I enchant objects, weapons, clothing, and armour with magick so they perform better. All of this,” he waved at the sack, “is what I've gained over the years, and...” He paused, staring at the woman who was grinning malevolently, “You don't have an Enchanter class upon this world, do you?”

“What are you talking about, Mr. Mage? Of course we have the Mage class here,” she reached under her desk and fiddled with something. Of which caused a cacophony of voices to ensue behind the door at his back, as well as the thunder of a dozen fast approaching heavy soled boots.

To which he stood tall once more, and grabbed at the bag, only to find that it was currently being held by the woman who grinned, “You will be taken to the stockades and questioned where you got it while we hold on to all of your belongings,” and peered up at the diamond spike resting atop his stop.

Here, he frowned just as the door opened to reveal nearly twenty armed individuals with one of them holding a set of silvered shackles. “You can take him,” she waved at those before her, staring greedily at the burlap bag holding hundreds of gold coins.

However, as they moved cautiously to apprehend Karastak, they drew back suddenly as he thumped the end of his staff upon the stone floor, “-”

“,” called out someone from behind the soldiers, but widened their eyes as a pair of crimson eyes glared in their direction. Thus resulting in them shouting, “DEMON!”

“,” thundered the giant in the guise of a Human, and slammed his staff upon the stone with such a force that it cracked the floor. Resulting in twenty bolts of lightning, the colour of rage and scorn, lashing out from the tip of the diamond spike in all directions. No longer was it focused into a cone, but was instead given free reign over where to go, so long as none of it struck himself.

Therefore, they lashed out against the building's interior, first blowing a whole around the window where a crowd had gathered outside due to the commotion. However, they quickly scattered, screaming as debris flew out in large chunks of stone towards their direction. Whereas the woman holding the sack clutching it to her breast, protecting it as she dove off to the right as the remaining nineteen bolts flew wherever they pleased.

Once completed, he strode over to the woman, and snapped his fingers at the bag. Whereupon she gasped as the contents within became naught, but motes of energy that flew into his body. “Wh-what?” she stammered, “Wh-where did the gold go?” It was here that she saw the brown skinned Human, glaring down upon her with pity and great disappointment, “You,” she pointed in his direction, scrambling up to her feet, “Where is my gold?!”

“What gold?” he asked, twirling the staff around and sinking the spike into her gut. Of whom gasped as she stared down upon it gripping the shaft, her eyes widened as he grinned, “.” Which led to her trying to scream, as her entire body aged before his, and those still conscious's, eyes. Of whom gasped, trying to speak, but he already pulled out the spike, leading to the now frail body of the dark skinned female to topple over with a resounding crunch of her bones braking from the strain.

After which he grinned, leaping from the building where he called out, “,” and summoned up around himself twenty whirlwinds of air which swirled and spread outwards, concealing his escape from the city of sand and sun.

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Whilst the distance wasn't very far, he still didn't know where to go. On the one hand, there was a seemingly endless sea of sand and unknown dangers within. On the other, there was trying to grab a map or a guide to lead him out of the city. “Decisions, decisions,” he frowned on the outskirts of the city.

However, it was here that he noted a long caravan leading away from the city, off in the distance. Perhaps they could help, or even hire him on in order to just get him out of the desert, but just as he was to make up his mind, something occurred to himself. “The woman only heard Mage, not Enchanter,” he frowned, wondering if this world just didn't have the class, or if it was something to do with him being outside the system.

“Regardless,” he shrugged his shoulders, “I need to leave before more trouble ensues,” and dashed off in the direction of where he last saw the caravan in the distance.

*****

“Shit, shit, SHIT,” growled an unknown being within the cellar of a decrepit old hut. It was dark in the space, but it could see perfectly well with its soft, yellow glowing eyes, “Did the Mother send someone to us and we didn't get the message in time, or what?” It continued to pace for a time, but stopped as the ears beneath the cowl perked up at the sound of a door creaking open and shut.

Whereupon this unknown slowly unsheathed a saber at its waist, readying its body to lash out and strike against the unknown intruder, but sheathed it when the sight of a Human female appeared wearing a dusted and tattered smock with the emblem of an Angel and a Demon struggling over a coin upon her front. “Well?” it growled, “What happened? Why are the Humans running around without their heads while shouting about 'Demons'? Have we been compromised?”

“No,” the woman shook her head, “but someone new showed up and decided to put on a show in front of the soldiers at the bank. He even stabbed Madam Rhinestone and drained her of her life force-”

“WHAT?!” it howled, causing the sound to reverberate so much that age old dust shook free from their confines.

“It wasn't a Vampire, Boss,” she held up her hands, backing away slowly, “He stabbed her with a spike, and just drained her until she became old and frail. Honest!”

To which the other grumbled and growled nonsensical words, taloned hands beneath the cloak it wore clenched tight. “Find out who that was,” it spoke through clenched teeth, “and bring them to me. We need to deal with upstart Demons like him before they wreak too much havoc before our plans can come into motion.”

“And if he's gone?”

“Then pray to the Mother he is. Because our plans have already been setback by a year because of this stunt. More if it keeps happening.”

*****

“,” grinned Karastak as he leapt high into the air, using a dune as a ramp. Bright red energies wrapped around his legs and feet, doubly so as he had his Fleet of Foot skill active. He felt free in the air, and wondered if he could use his magicks to fly as any bird would. Even if it took time to grow accustomed to that sort of change, he was confident that he'd be able to soar through the air like any bird.

The caravan of a great many somethings was nearby, he knew this to be true, but after launching himself high from another dune, he had to upturn his smile into frustration. “They were right here. So where did they... go?” His nose caught the scent of something burning, and after turning this way and that, couldn't pinpoint where it was coming from.

It was the scent of burning wood, tarps, and yes, even flesh. “Oh for fuck's sake,” he growled, switching over to his , where the world exploded into reds, golds, and yellows, the colour of heat. However, there was also a stream of chalk coloured energy which drifted towards himself off towards his immediate left. To which he sighed, returning his gaze to normal, where he squinted in that direction. Whereupon he noted a faint trail of smoke rising above the dunes. One which should not be there, especially when they're so close to the city.

*****

“Mama!” cried out an eight year old boy with a dark skin tone, and wore loose clothing to help keep the sun from baking his small body. He stood upon the edge of a cart, watching as the adults fought off a dozen red coloured, giant ants the size of a camel. Each one had the ability to breathe a corrosive spray which caught everything and anything aflame. Of which was even possible to melt sand into glass with a concentrated stream.

A woman of the same skin colour and shaved bald rushed to the boy's side with the appearance of a kitchen aide whilst wielding a cleaver in her right hand, “Listen Anja,” she spoke breathlessly, pushing him towards the back of a sleighed cart, “You need to stay here while we take care of the Fire Ant Workers, okay? They're only Level 8, so I'll be back, just stay here.” Upon so saying, she left just as a man screeched with pain from being in range of the spray.

Whereas Anja just huddled in the back, praying to the Stars that someone would save them. Unfortunately for himself, something cracked near his position, and he blinked as a massive ant head the size of his entire body broke through the underbelly of the cart. Of which led him to scream an ear piercing scream that was echoed by the creature as it sprayed its own corrosive concoction up at the tarp above, resulting in it catching fire whilst his mother cried out, “ANJA!”

“No, Rhenna!” a hand reached out and grasped the woman's arm as she tried to rush off towards the sleighed cart, “That's a Level 24 Fire Ant Soldier. We're not equipped for that.”

“I don't care,” she tried to shake him off, “My son is in there, don't you see?” A finger pointed to the now wrecked cart, her son trying to get away as quickly as he could whilst the Ant, the size of an adobe hut, skittered after him with drooling mandibles.

“Shit,” he growled, but as he was about to shout for assistance, a streak of red and black lightning lashed out from behind them, striking the creature's thorax and revealing the soft innards.

“Go,” thundered a voice, and they turned to spy a Waterborn walking towards their position with a strange staff in hand. From the hair of this one shot out a white blur which squeaked several times as it plunged into the Fire Ant Soldier. Of which shrieked from the invasion of the white something before collapsing to the ground, dead. This led to the white thing to reemerge in triumph, before clinging itself to the brown skinned man.

Who then turned towards the rest of the group that were still fighting the Fire Ant Workers, and released several more bolts upon each head, reducing their lives to nil. Thus causing the remainder of those alive and well to turn and gape at the unknown Waterborn. Of whom sighed before speaking to them with some annoyance, “Do you know how long it took me to find you?” he glared at them all as a whole whilst they just stared, “You're the only ones who appeared to be leaving Synthanos's lands, and to be quite honest, I want to be gone from here as well. What with the city in turmoil right now.”

“Wh-what?” one stammered.

“There was a sighting of Demons in the city, and I'd rather not be there. So if you're willing to have me along, and are heading out of the desert, then let's get moving. Else I'll have you point in the direction of where the desert ends so I can get moving.”

“Um...”

They appeared to not know what to do or say, as everyone just stared at the brown skinned man with confusion. Thus leading him to sigh and shake his head at everything he's seen thus far.