When Dane opened his eyes, he wasn't on the train anymore.
Hell, he wasn't even in the city. He was... somewhere... everywhere... nowhere.
However, one thing was certain: wherever this was, it was clearly not Earth, not in a longshot.
As he opens his eyes, he takes in the sight before him.
"Ahh, what happened?"
He asked.
"Where is this?"
He pondered.
The space around him was a swirling void of colors and shapes, constantly shifting and changing. It was beautiful and terrifying all at once.
It was like being in a spectrum of endless colors, or rather inside a literal kaleidoscope; everything was just so confusing, pointless even. Yet he could not deny its beauty; things that are often hard to understand are always so beautiful he thinks to himself.
Still dazed by the entire situation before him.
Dane tried to move, but his body felt weightless like he was floating in a dream. He reached out a hand and reached out towards the void of many ever-changing colors, which seemed to ripple around him as if the very fabric of reality was responding to his touch.
"What the hell...
He muttered, his voice echoing strangely in the colorful world.
"Ah, you're awake."
The voice came from behind him, smooth and melodic, but with a flux of mischief that sent a shiver down his non-existing, but existing spine.
Dane turned, or at least he thought he turned, and saw a woman standing there. She was unlike anyone he had personally ever seen in his life. Her hair was shimmering platinum in color, as long as it was straight like perfect spider silk, as it flowed down to her soft, bouncy ass.
Her eyes glowed with an unearthly light, like the sky reflecting the sea; it was deep blue, and it matched her elegant dress. She wore a simple black and purple dress that covered her entire lower half, leaving not even her bare feet in sight.
She had clear skin and a pipe in her mouth around her, and weird purple fireflies flew around her. She had on many different pieces of jewelry.
Her lips were covered in silver lipstick, and her eyes had sliver eyeliner on them. She had a large, firm pair of breasts; if Dane had to put a size on them, she was a solid J-Cup, given that those pair of twin peaks were struggling to stay firm in that expensive and classy-looking dress of hers. Of course, she also had a very curvy body, fit, and sinful in every detail; if it were for the way she elegantly carried herself with respect, Dane would have been inclined to think she was a highly paid porn star or a mature model.
But that aside, Dane blinked as he asked the woman, who was just floating in the colorful space alongside him.
"Who… who are you?"
He managed to ask.
The woman smiled, and there was something playful about it, like she was enjoying his confusion.
"I'm Beatrice."
She said, her voice filled with clear amusement.
"A witch in training, though I suppose that doesn't mean much to you now, doesn't it? Let's just say I'm the reason you're here."
Dane's mind raced at this response, but he just went along with it; however, he had to ask.
"Where... where is here?"
At this question, Beatrice waved a hand, and the colorful void around them shifted. The swirling colors and lights dissolved, replaced by glimpses of a world... or rather countless worlds in chaos.
Cities with structures he was familiar with, others with structures that were completely alien to him crumbling into dust, oceans boiling under blood-red skies, and mountains being torn apart by forces beyond comprehension. The scenes flashed by in rapid succession, each one more horrifying than the last.
"Umm, how do I say this?"
Beatrice said casually but answered back quickly.
"This place is called Kalpanas World. To put it simply, it's a realm where existence follows its own unique rules. Here, everything operates on a singular logic, one that sees all things as logical, even if they might seem impossible or contradictory elsewhere. In Kalpanas World, there's no such thing as impossible. What might appear illogical to others is just... how things work here. It's a place where the boundaries of reality are defined by its own perspective, and nothing is truly out of reach... That's the simplest way I can explain it."
"But speaking of worlds...
Beatrice laughed nervously as she continued.
"Uh, so… this mess you're seeing? Yeah, that's, um, what's left of your universe. Or, more specifically, what's left after I might have accidentally caused a tiny cosmic oopsie...
Beatrice said, a little nervous; she clearly wasn't good with explaining herself but tried nonetheless.
"Yeah, a little big bang, yeah, a very tiny, tiny one, hehehe. Thankfully, it was a small one... It just umm... um... wiped out countless realities and stretched out to countless more, spreading across the whole infinite stack of them. The good news is that, um, in all universes, or infinite stories that exist... reality is endless in both size and depth, or I would be in way bigger trouble for this little fumble. Phew!"
Dane stared at her, his mouth hanging open.
Unable to respond to what the hell he just heard.
"Um... are you ok?"
"..."
"Umm, human...
"..."
"..."
"..."
"..."
"I see, you need some time to process this information... understandable, very understandable... a reasonable reaction even."
Some time passed, or rather, time was non-existent here, but Dane was left stunned.
"..."
"..."
"...Did I, um, break the human mind?"
"..."
"..."
"Hello...human."
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
Eventually, Dane speaks up as he finally asks, eyes-twitching in horror.
"You… you destroyed the universe?"
"It was an accident!"
Beatrice protested, holding up her hands in mock defense.
"And it's not like I'm not fixing it... I'm reincarnating all the unfortunate souls into new worlds. But, well…
She tilted her head, her eyes gleaming with excitement.
"I figured I'd give you a little something extra for your troubles. Call it a... consolation prize. Yeah... yeah... problem solve."
Dane's mind was spinning. He'd been on the train, playing HDXD, and now... this? It was too much to process.
"Wait, wait, wait."
He said, holding up a hand.
"Let me get this straight... You destroyed the universe, and now you're just... handing out consolation prizes?"