Chapter Seventeen: Home Sweet Home

They had traversed for what felt like several days, and Kara along with her father had come no closer to an exit from the desert and she was beginning to feel discouraged. " Our exit should be coming up here soon" Kalivare explained but Kara again, saw nothing that would indicate.

" What are you talking about? " She groaned at the idea he could possibly be lying to her just to keep her moving.

" Nope! There it is! " Kalivare smiles as he points to a giant sand - pit of sorts that seemed to stretch open at least twenty times her own size.

" There is a pit. You do realize that right? It's a pit! " she stares down the pit swing a small cyclone forming at the center of it. " I know what it is, It's a portal to the Underworld. Not all of us can teleport you know? " he had made a good point. To those who didn't have the magical prowess to do so, there had to be a faster means of travel, even in the Underworld. She had just not see it used before. But then again, she had never seen a pit such as this in the Underworld.

" Come on " Kalivare motions for Kara to come with him as he jumps into the pit, slowly sliding down slowly to the center of the pit. " Ugh.." Kara groans as she leaps along with him.

Kara fell through the sky and landed hard on the ground along with some of the red sand that had made its way into her hair and other parts of her body.

" Oh god " Kara chokes and proceeds to cough out some sand as her father walks up behind her. " Yeah I should've told you to keep your mouth closed" he laughs, still holding Gabriel on his shoulders.

" How did you know about that portal? " Kara asks as she coughs out the remaining bits of sand that had invaded her mouth. It tasted like cigarette ash.

" What..? " Kalivare asked, seemingly caught off guard by her question.

" How did you know the portal was there? If you have only been there once and have been locked up the entire time. How did you know about the portal? " She stood to her feet, looking back at him.

" I know a lot of things Kara. And it's going to take a long time to explain those things to you but If you really want the answers, I can give them to you but can we get Gabriel back home first? " he looked to Kara with an uneasy feeling washing over him. She was going to doubt him for a Long time. But it made sense, look at what her mother had done to her and her friends.

" Fine. Let's take him home right now then.." Kara stares at her father before looking away and snapping her fingers and they suddenly arrive at the Lycan Kingdom.

Lysette had taken baby Penelope and placed her inside the crib Shawn and Raven had made months ago in preparation. They were more than prepared for almost everything. Raven was asleep, she had been through so much and needed the rest. Lysette stared down at young Penny, who was blissfully unaware of the chaotic world she had been born into.

Lysette pulls the compass trinket that she had taken from Gabriel's room and stares down at it. It pointed in no direction as the needle had long since been broken, but it still radiated its magic and Lysette could feel it burn in her hands.

" I hope it will be safe with you, young one" Lysette reaches down and places the Compass on young penny's small body, and watches as it slowly begins to phase through Penny, until it had finally dissapeared from sight

Kara and Kalivare arrive at what use to be the Lycan Kingdom. Seeing that it had been completely destroyed. The Vampires had long left by this point.

" What happened.." Kara walks around as she surveys the destruction. Hundreds upon hundreds of Lycans in the street, and those were the ones that had still a body that was intact. " Vampires..." Kalivare responded. He had seen this level of destruction before. His people were pretty telling when they left an area they had feasted through.

Kara walked to where the Castle of the Lycans use to stand but it had since been reduced to rubble. " No.." Kara's heart sank at the sight of the destruction.

" Perhaps some people survived.." Kalivare suggested but Kara felt as though this was not possible. She hoped, but it seemed very unlikely.

Explosions blast off in the distance. Kara and Kalivare look to the sky and see the energy balls continuing to rain down.

" We have to find Raven and Lysette" Kara said, as they vanished yet again.

Shawn's sister had removed the wall separating their rooms brick by brick and had brought him into their room where Valshi slid her bed across the black brick floor to reveal a trap door. " How long has this been here..? " Shawn asked as Xilema reaches down and opens the door. " It doesn't matter, we need to hurry before they find out " Shawn is rushed down the hole and his sisters quickly follow suit, using the little magic they had left to pull the bed back over the door so that they could not be discovered.

Though it took some time, they managed to find their way outside of the Palace.

Once outside, Shawn looked to his sisters and thanked them for helping him escape. " We miss our brothers but we trust you and your judgment. Mother and Father do not seem to care, but we do " they assured him. Shawn needed allies now more than ever and so he nodded in approval as they made their way back to the Underworld.