I stared up at all the bandits that had surrounded us. The lead man was bald, with a scar that ran down his face. His face was twisted in lust as he looked at the two women behind me, and I couldn’t help but feel angry at the fact that he was looking at my family like that. I bristled slightly as I stepped in front of them. “Listen, if you turn around now, no one will get hurt, and we will act like nothing happened.” I narrowed my eyes and glared at them angrily. How dare they think they may do something like this?

“Or, how about you give us the women, and maybe we will let you live?” The man sneered, and the surrounding group snickered.

That made my blood boil. I glared at them as I reached down to my hip and pulled out my grimoire, and I could feel Serilda’s gaze pierce behind me.

“Kairos, what are you about to do?” Her voice was quiet and filled with a twinge of fear.

“This is your final warning. Leave now, and you will live.” I ignored her question and stared at them. I could imagine myself radiating waves of power, but I knew that wasn’t happening. I didn’t want to take the lives of some mortals since it didn’t seem fair to cut their lives short. Not that I would, but I would make them pay for defying me.

“Oh, what are you going to do, take our names down?.” The lead man snarled, and I let out a sigh. So be it then.

I flicked open the grimoire and felt my mind connect to it, and with a thought, I wrote they would all bow before me. A heartbeat later, it was like a giant fist had smashed them into the ground, prostrating them.

“What?” the lead bandit snarled as he struggled against whatever force had held them down.

“I told you that if you left us alone, you would live on.” I slammed the book cover shut and placed it back at my hip, and walked forward to the lead bandit. Who twisted his head up at me? The fear spread in his eyes as he stared at me.

“Let me go, you stupid motherfucker.” He hissed as he tried to fight against whatever restrained him.

“You expect me to just let you go? After trying to attack me and, above all else, attack what I hold dear?” I asked as I pressed my foot against his head, pressing it into the ground. “Of course, your attack wouldn’t have amounted too much. Even so, it’s the principle of the matter.”

The man growled as he tried to fight, but it was to no avail. I was angry and would not forgive the man for doing something like this. I would be willing to overlook a lot but not a threat to my family. “Adrastea, if you would be a dear and pass your judgment on these men. Normally I would never allow such a thing, but they have displayed a significant amount of hubris.”

She stepped up and looked at them for a moment before turning her attention to me. “Father, if I may, they should not be judged too harshly for their crimes against us personally, for they are unaware of who we are. However, they should still answer for their crimes of banditry.”

I nodded my head and stepped back and nodded. “So what would you recommend as punishment?

“Strip them of their memories, and make them serve the community, for their hearts are imbalanced by their crimes. Allow them to rectify their mistakes.” She gave me a slight bow as she finished her words, and I put my attention back on them.

If it were up to me. I may have given into the blood lust that brimmed just under the surface but thankfully, what she said made sense. The bandit leader backed up his head and regarded me with a fearful gaze. “Who are you?” He asked, this time placated by our conversation about his fate.

“I am Kairos. The creator of this planet, and you have insulted us. However, be at ease, for your fate was decided.” His eyes widened as I pulled out my grimoire and opened it.

“Please, have mercy I…” His words were cut short as I quickly started to mentally write in what I wanted to happen. I would strip them of their memories, and they would go back into the city and serve everyone in it, mind, body, and soul, until the price of their crimes was paid in full. With that pinned in, the light in their eyes faded for a moment, and all the struggling stopped.

I allowed them to stand, dismissed them all, and watched as they stumbled in the opposite direction. The rage that I felt coiled around my heart faded and i stared at them. I felt slightly bad, knowing I stripped them of their memories, but it served a purpose. They didn’t need to know who we were. We were only here visiting. I took a deep breath and calmed my nerves a bit. I was so angry with them, and it wasn’t even because I was so far above them, nor was it the looks of lust on their face. What really bothered me was the fact that it was directed at the two girls behind. Those two were mine, though not in a sexual sense. More like family, and I would be damned if any thought they could get away with doing something like that.

I felt a hand press against my shoulder, and I cast a glance behind me and saw that it was Serilda, who was gazing at me with no small amount of worry in her eyes. “You scared me for a moment. I thought you were going to kill them all.”

I shrugged, tore my eyes from hers, and looked down the road, where the former bandits had already vanished. “I considered it. But I stopped myself.” My reply was quiet as I turned inward, thinking about it. I would kill anyone who laid a hand on them.

“I’m glad you didn’t.”

“Me too, Serilda, me too.”

The three of us came across a large gate with a few guards clad in armor standing in front of it. A small line extended from the door filled with dozens of people. Some of them looked to be merchants, trying to pull their wares into the town. The rest wore tattered clothing and had bags filled with various items. I crossed my arms, stood in the line, and turned to Serilda. “Do I need ID cards or anything to get in?”

“Not that I know of. If you have nothing, you would have to register at the gate, though, which may take some time.” She crossed her arms, and I glanced at Adrasteia and saw her gazing at the crowd of people, clearly excited at being here.

“I think we can spare a few moments to register. Besides, it isn’t like it matters all that much. I could write it to the city, but I feel like that would draw too much attention to us.”

She swiped back a strand of long black hair and nodded her head. “That’s true. It should be free the first time, as long as we have a good enough excuse, or if you want to use that fancy book to help us out a bit.” She gave me a slight wink, and I felt a grin cross my face. While she didn’t advocate for large-scale use of this grimoire, small, subtle things shouldn’t hurt all that much.

I flipped open my book and jotted out a small text explaining that we could get through the gate and register without paying a fine. This way, I wouldn’t be too invasive with this book, yet it would be enough to get me what I wanted. I closed the book and glanced at the line that had inched forward. Now all we had to do was wait.

“Name and business traveler.” A guard clothed in leather armor stood before us with his hand wrapped around his spear. He eyed the two girls behind me wearily as he tried to judge us.

However, before I could say anything, Serilda spoke up. “Greetings. My name is Serilda, and this is my husband, Kairos, and our daughter Lillia. We are traveling refugees, and we lost our identification cards when our village was burnt down by some roving bandit groups.” She laced her arms through mine and rested her head on my shoulder.

The man looked between us for a moment and nodded. “I’m sorry for your loss. Take the door here and fill out your identification paperwork.” He made a motion to his right.

I gave him a curt nod, and Serilda flashed him a radiant smile. “Thank you so much.” She purred as she grasped my arm tighter as we walked past him. I turned to her and gave her a weary smile. Oh, she was a little actress.

When we emerged from the shadows of the registration office, I held a small metal tablet with my name etched on its surface. I stared at it, and a strange feeling flattered in my chest as I stared at my name. It was surreal, to say the least. My first personal possession in this new world. It would be something that I would cherish for ages to come. I clenched the metal card, slid it into my pocket, and scanned the city. It was time to see what the mortals had been up to.