Chapter 206 - My CO Stash #6 - Witchy Ways by World Reader (DnDXDCU) (2/2)

And with those final words, I'm pulled back from existence, and thrust into the portal my actions had opened.

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Ruin, the Card of Despair, has taken from you all of your material wealth for your hubris.

Vizier, the Card of Council, has been given the question, and is in the process of answering them as per its function.

Rift, the Card of Worlds, has stolen the Deck of Many Things from this plane and sent a possibility of yourself into that which is beyond the Far Realm.

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”...Huh. Does that mean I'm a new Adam White?” I ask myself as I reappear into a proper reality, some kind of park it looks like.

I fall on my back, looking up at the sky. It's night out, but there don't seem to be any stars in the sky, which is… worrying.

I close my eyes, and allow my mystical senses to open, allowing me to perceive the flow of the Weave around me. I've studied a bit of magic, not enough to be a proper wizard mind you, but enough to know the general flow that astral bodies and other mystical variables had on it.

And ignoring the beacons of magic on my person, I felt deep and listened to the background noise of the Weave…

It was different of course. I was apparently in a whole new planar system, which was one hell of a concept within itself, but the nature of the magics still felt familiar enough. And according to what I was feeling, there were still stars.

And I opened my eyes in tandem with my magical senses, and saw beyond whatever veil was covering them, to reveal a starry night sky. It was beautiful, and new. Stars that I didn't know, and no familiar constellations in the sky.

”...I wonder what the local gods are like…”

And so, I stand up, dusting my casual cotton clothes off. Oddly enough, they were devoid of any color…

And I only had my Periapt of Wound Closure and my Spellfire Bracers on me.

I pat my pocket. I didn't have my rune stone on me.

I'm in a place I know absolutely nothing about, nothing but the clothes on my back and two magical items, and I'm a spellcaster without my arcane focus.

...Oh gods, I don't have any money either.

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Gotham City, as I've learned wasn't a kind city. Which worked out quite well for me, considering I'd grown up an orphan who stole and lied to get enough money to eat.

Spell components were being acc_u_mulated in what I would call a half-assed component pouch made of cloth and string tucked away under my jacket. Some sand, a clump of fleece, petals from a rose, and it was all I needed, really. I mean, I'm not a wizard who needs spell components for days to be useful. As long as I had my voice and my hands free, I could cast most of my spells with no problems.

Like now, as I'm shoplifting while under Greater Invisibility.

Three sandwiches turned invisible in my hand as I stuffed them into my backpack. Quickly followed by bottles of water and other foodstuff.

Honestly, the technology of this world was amazing, to be able to do so much while completely denying the existence of magic.

I'd already scoped out what I'd need while under an illusion, so I was moving quickly through the isles, being careful not to bump into anything.

Thankfully, these convenience stores are small affairs, with little to no supervision, which was odd. Though, a teenager stuffing his backpack full of food and then disappearing would be too obvious for even the tired receptionists at the front to ignore.

”Open for me, archway of the fey.”

And with the incantation of Dimension Door softly muttered, I was on the other side of the street, teleporting just as my Greater Invisibility ended to the sidewalk across the street, half a block away.

Zipping up my bag, and slinging it across my shoulders, I began walking, not daring to look around since that would only make me seem more suspicious.

After waking up in Gotham City Park, I've been living off the streets again, just like my childhood in Valmata. My magic sure made it easier.

Mage Hand allowed me to distract or test potential pickpocket victims, making sure I stayed clear of anyone aware enough of their clothes and money. Greater Invisibility allowed me to steal from basically wherever I wanted since nobody had any magical defences anywhere.

As I joined the small crowd at the crosswalk, I quickly threw up a casting of Disguise Self. Blonde hair, blue eyes, less trashy clothes, and a quick pallet swap on my backpack.

People didn't look at what you're face like a lot of people believe. At least, not when they're looking for you. They look at what you own, what you're wearing, things like that. And in a bustling metropolis like Gotham, nobody paid any attention about the people around them, too busy with wherever they were going and what they had to do.

Was I being a bit overly cautious? Of course I was, I'd only stolen a few silv- a few dozen dollars worth of food. But if dealing with the fey had taught me one thing, it was that caution was always necessary when doing business. And thievery, while illegal, was still a business. It'd only take the police, as the guard was called in this world, a few sightings of me to incriminate me if they caught on to my thefts.

Besides, I've stolen quite a lot of stuff other than food, so it was good practice for when I stole other stuff.

My hand flicks out to the side as I grab the newspaper right off of the stand without anybody seeing.

Like that.

I eventually reached a little monument or other. It looked like a six-seven foot Zemerian obelisk, but there weren't any carvings and I, nor was anyone else it seems, wasn't remotely interested what the rusty old plaque said about it.

Still, it was an alcove from the street with benches to eat lunch and rest in.

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One hour passes, my trash thrown into the public dumpsters and the newspaper held up so I could read the little piece of 'Batman and Robin'.

Apparently, there were heroes in this world, but not like the common heroes of myth or even of the adventuring guilds back home. No, these heroes were public and flashy, larger than life, and adored by much of the populace. Honestly, it was interesting that even in this world the forces of good and evil clashed. Perhaps they truly were cosmic forces instead of mere societal constructs…

But the rumors of Batman being a vampire was worrying. But seeing as he has been seen in the daylight, they were probably baseless gossip.

And apparently, Robin was coming into his own, having been seen with several other junior heroes walking into the headquarters of the 'Justice League', who seemed to be the prime organization that dealt with uncommon technologies and powers.

I mean...aliens. Technology that even this world's advanced technology couldn't understand. Atlantis was also maybe real?

All of these odd things, and people still deny magic…

It's so... weird.

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Cla-clic

”Gimme the necklace, kid. Now.”

Five-six days in, and I'm being mugged. Mugged by a big muscular gang member that has definitely done this before, if the lack of nerves and tattoos are anything to go by.

I sigh, honestly hoping that I could go a full week on the streets without something like this happening.

My hands move up to the back of my neck, as though to unlock the clasp, but I was actually pointing a finger at the thug from the base of my neck.

”Foe.”

The man may have a gun to my head, but playing the defenseless victim always made people like him drop their guards to some degree.

And so, he died a quick death by my simple cantrip, two spheres of purple energy jumping from my finger to bash his head in.

The gun went off, but the blow had altered its trajectory enough for it to only hit the side of the alleyway I was using to get to my hideout.

”How about I keep it and you go to hell?”

I wonder if I've adapted to this odd world a bit too well?

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Author's Note: Those Spellfire Bracers are reskinned Illusionist's Bracers from the Guildmaster's Guide to Ravnica. For those who bother to look into it, yeah. Pretty gnarly with all the buffs Warlocks stack on Eldritch Blast.