Before Marius or Dante had time to react, the entire room was covered in a forcefield. Dante widened his eyes in shock. He never expected his mother to go to these lengths. She was attempting to trap him there. 

Dante went to the door of his room and attempted to go through it but he was pushed back by an unseen force, knocking him onto the ground. Marius quickly went forward to help him back up. 

“Without my order, you will not be able to leave this room until you’ve fully recovered,” Cecilia warned before she took her leave. 

Dante curled his hands into fists. He refused to accept this. He had to do something. Just as he was about to turn to Marius, Cecilia had the royal guards arrest him. 

“Lock Lord Marius in the dungeon. Without my orders, no one is allowed to let him out.”

As soon as she gave the order, Marius broke free from the guards and made a run for it. He knew well he was breaking the rules but he did not have a choice. He had to get out of there. 

If Dante was going to be stuck in the palace, he would have to find a way to get Laina to him. Neither of them had much time. But he knew one thing for certain. Both of them would regret it if they did not get to see one another one last time. 

“What are you imbeciles doing?! Get him!” Cecilia yelled at the guards. 

He knew he could not keep running forever. So Marius took to the skies, making his way towards the gateway between the two realms. Dante gritted his teeth. He had to find a way to get out of here. 

A soft chime of a bell caught his attention. Dante was pleasantly surprised to see that it was none other than Shadow, his cat. How could he forget? Just like Titan, Shadow had the ability to traverse between realms at ease. 

He picked Shadow up in his hands and placed her down on his lap. She purred softly as she curled her body into a shape of a round cushion. He gently stroked the fur on her back as he let out a sigh. 

An idea crossed his mind. 

In case Marius does not make it to Gaeia, he needed a way to get to Laina. He needed her to get to the Realm Gates. It was the closest place they could be.

So near, yet so far. 

Dante leaned down and whispered into Shadows’ ear. The smart kitty understood the wishes of her master. She rubbed her head on the side of his cheek before leaping off his bed. She disappeared into the shadows without a trace. 

Breaking out now would do him no good. He had to wait for the right time to enact his plan. Dante touched the Soulium Locket he had around his neck. He could feel the warmth from the locket was unlike before. 

“Don’t give up, moon kiss. We can do this,” he whispered as he kissed it. 

~

One week. 

Seven days. 

That was all Laina had and time was ticking. All the plans she had made have failed. All the crystals and gemstones she had accumulated were either used or given to Dante. She could feel her body weakening. 

Looking down at her hand, more of her skin had turned into the color of ash. She slipped on a pair of gloves to hide it and wore long sleeves. She put on layers of makeup to hide her pale skin tone. 

But how long would she be able to hide it for? If only she could find a way to unlock her hidden powers, she would have a chance. 

“Your Majesty, a letter from the Oracle,” A messenger drew Laina out of her thoughts. 

She thanked the messenger and read the contents of the letter at once. It carried a glimmer of hope. In three days, there was going to be a natural phenomenon, The Solar Solistice, where the Sun would be at its strongest. With Laina’s remarkable affinity with the Sun and the element of fire, this was perhaps her best chance at being able to harness her former powers. 

If she was at the Temple of the Sun during the Solar Solistice, it could greatly amplify her powers. She might have just enough power to traverse the two realms. But there was a catch.

“Your body could be reduced to dust, unable to withstand the powers you possess. Should that occur, you may be lost forever,” Laina read the words out loud and let out a sigh. 

From what she could see, death was at her doorstep no matter what she did. So why not give it one last shot? Thorne listened on in his silence. He knew Laina had already made up her mind. He had made up his mind too. 

Kol fell silent after that night. He kept his promise to Laina. No matter how much Florin and Margaret asked, he did not say a word. But his actions spoke louder than his words. Since that day, he never left Laina’s side. 

When Margaret learned of Laina’s plans to go to the Temple of the Sun, she protested her decision. This resulted in an all-out argument between them.

“No! Absolutely not. This… this is suicide, Laina! There has to be another way, there has to be!”

This was as she had feared. Laina would do everything and anything to get to Dante. She knew how strong their love was. But as her best friend, she could not let her die. Not again. 

Margaret was shaking. She had tears in her eyes.

“I have to do this, Margaret. I… I can’t live without him. And if I am going to di-“

“Don’t say it, I don’t want to hear it!” Margaret yelled as she covered her ears. 

Laina had tears in her eyes too. She walked over and placed her hands on Margaret’s. She slowly moved her hands down. 

“If I am going to die. I want to see him one final time,” she said solemnly. 

Margaret crumbled onto the ground. She got down on her knees while holding Laina’s hand. 

“Margaret? What are you doing?! Get up!” Laina gasped in shock as she tried to pull her best friend up.

But she shook her head and refused to do so. She looked deep into Laina’s eyes with tears running down her cheeks. 

“Laina… please… I beg of you. I can’t lose you again.. Not like this.”