Can't Escape The Darkness

Chapter 9 Back Here Again

It wasn't long before Lyria and Fractureverse Kaia left for the Fractureverse. Much to her reluctance, Lyria had to be carried there, by Fractureverse Kaia as she was still in a bad way. "What happened here?" Lyria gasped when Fractureverse Kaia flew over the ruins of the pillager town. Buildings were burnt to ashes and rubble lay everywhere. The dead littered the streets while the air lingered of the stench of soot and decay. It was a devastating sight where nothing had remained untouched or intact.

Fractureverse Kaia sighed as she glanced at the aftermath of Fractureverse Lyria's warpath once again. "Unfortunately when I arrived the damage had been done. Perhaps there might have been survivors but in any case there's nothing left for them and they would've likely fled westward for the Saltbourne. As you can see everything else has been reduced to nothing. The only thing that remains around here is that cursed mirror, which unfortunately wasn't broken on the other side before the army of evil crossed through." Fractureverse Kaia explained sadly.

Gliding over the town Fractureverse Kaia landed them both just on the outskirts. She placed Lyria carefully on the ground as she began scrambling around some shrubbery. Lyria tilted her head as she watched her, much confused. Then Fractureverse Kaia pulled something out of the foliage revealing the Mirror of Reversion. 'Oh no not this mirror again.' Lyria thought, having revaluations of her past experience the last time she'd looked in this mirror. While she was hesitant to go near the mirror again, she could see that there wasn't anyone on the other side almost as if Fractureverse Kaia and herself didn't exist.

Deciding it was safe enough, Lyria didn't protest at all against Fractureverse Kaia helping her through the mirror and onto the other side. It was a very strange sensation looking at a similar destroyed landscape but the ruins of each building slightly different to that in the other reality. "I guess no two things burn the same way." Lyria exclaimed. While Fractureverse Kaia made no acknowledgement of this statement, she couldn't help but agree. She stayed quiet letting Lyria adjust to her surroundings.

"Do you mind if I can borrow your star for a few minutes?" Fractureverse Kaia asked, breaking silence. "Um sure but why do you need it?" Replied Lyria, summoning her nether star to her left hand. "I need it to summon a nether portal as it would make things easier for us." Fractureverse Kaia explained as Lyria handed her the star. "How does one summon a portal?" Lyria said much intrigued by the matter. Fractureverse Kaia didn't reply for a moment until a portal suddenly appeared. "That's awesome! How'd you do it?" Lyria asked her. Once again there was no response as Fractureverse Kaia carried Lyria through the portal.

As soon as they'd crossed through the portal disappeared suddenly in front of their eyes. "Creating portals is a very complex and delicate process. One must be able to foresee where the portal will lead to so that one doesn't walk right out into danger. The other problem is that portals that have been summoned tend to shut quickly so you have to be quick when using them or a very nasty fate will be bestowed upon you. Of course I shall teach you once you've recovered, however it takes a long time to learn as it's a difficult skill to master." Fractureverse Kaia informed her now that they were safely in the Nether.

"Oh ok then. I understand." Sighed Lyria a little disappointed. She then looked down at the landscape below as Fractureverse Kaia flew. While the Nether was particularly vast and barren, it was abnormally desolated. Trees had been knocked down and entire lava lakes had dried up leaving behind huge craters. The evidence of the mass destruction Fractureverse Lyria and her followers had caused was plainly visible. As they passed over a village, Lyria could see it was deserted just from the damage the houses had received.

"I don't know what to say. I'm lost for words at the lengths my evil counterpart went to here. This was clearly a large-scale and horrific war. I just hope she hasn't done this to my reality yet." Lyria sighed, continuously taking in the trail of destruction. "I can't guarantee that she hasn't. I'm afraid the best I can do is train you and hope that Lord Karlos will agree to send out our army to bring down that monster." Replied Fractureverse Kaia, clearly referring to Fractureverse Lyria. "Thank you. You've done more than enough already. It's not your fault this happened. It's just nice to know I'm not alone." Lyria said as she looked up and smiled.