You begin to take form, from the formless dark cloud you usually are into a different creature. You feel yourself elongating as what usually forms your ghost limbs disappears; you grow longer and longer. Great fangs grow in your mouth; your eyes change from the red figments they were to the yellow of the serpent. Your scales glisten in the dim light, reflecting the sinister nature of your transformation. As you slither through the shadows, you quickly bury yourself in the sand; it is nearly time to strike, and like your wildlife counterpart, it shall be sudden.

This mindscape is an apocalyptic thing, with red sand and a sunless red sky, and in the middle lies Samarda, alone and horrified. ''Naram, Simbar, anyone, please! Where am I? What is this?'' She yelled as you snaked under the sand.

The only response she received was the eerie silence of the desolate landscape, broken only by the sound of her own frantic breathing. You had a plan ready; you would first beguile her, show her what could be hers if she would but accept your aid, and then you would move on to show her the battle was already lost (it wasn't, but she didn't know that) and that the bandits had already robbed her blind and left her behind in the desert.

You had used this guise before, to trick one of the first high priests into serving you; it had been effective then, and it shall do its trick now as well.

"The sands are red, as is the sky." Samarda asked, ''Is this the afterlife? Am I dead?''

"What you are isn't of relevance now, child of the desert." You replied with a smirk. "What matters is that you are in my domain now."

You remain hidden for now, so she asked. "Who are you?"

"Thou hast seen me before; thou hast partaken of the knowledge reserved for my initiated, for the heretic that provided you with this knowledge has escaped my wrath." You answered cryptically, rolling up your snake body to jump out of the sand.

''What, no i-'' You cut her off then and there, jumping out from the sand with a furious hiss, your yellow eyes glittering, your black scales glistening.

"But I am a just god; thou couldn't have known you were getting knowledge from a heretic. For that, I shall grant you my mercy. And mayhaps, my favour, for I am a generous lord as well." With a flick of your forked tongue, you awaited her response with an air of authority and power.