Varian woke up and saw that the ground was purple. He quickly widened his eyes and had no idea where he was.

"Ah! What?! Whe-where am I? Aquaria?" Varian looked around quickly but he saw that there was debris floating around him. "What the?"

Suddenly there was a face of a scary looking spirit girl that appeared over the tree that was floating around. The tree started to drift towards him.

"Wha- where-where am I?! Who are you?!" Varian asked in shock and disbelief.

"A friend. Or at least I'd like to be," the girl spoke before the tree sunk below the chunk of ground Varian was standing on.

He peered over the edge and saw the spirit girl, now with a body, standing upside down on the underside of the chunk of land.

"There is a way to save Cassandra. The final incantation," her voice echoed around in the air.

Varian backed up, feeling a bit panicked but then confused. The girl floated up the edge and was standing upright a few feet in front of Varian.

"The sundrop. You must use it against the moonstone's power." She floated forward before her body split in half around Varian.

"What? No, no. But there is no other incantation. It's not on the scroll," Varian said as he pulled out the scroll, turning to look at the girl who's halves joined back together.

"Isn't there? You just need to know how to look," she spoke cryptically as her head turned towards him but her body was still facing away from him before she faded away.

A gust of wind took the scroll from Varian's hand and the scroll became huge as it landed in front of Varian in an upright position.

"You need to use the sun to see the sun," the girl's voice echoed as the scroll dropped but the images of the sun and moon stayed floating in the air.

"Use the sun to see the su- wha- I don't understand!" Varian thought hard as the sun and moon started circling around his waist.

Suddenly the floating platform was engulfed in green flames as the girl's head reappeared, ten times bigger than Varian, floating over the flames.

"Use the sun to see the sun," she repeated and the flames roared as they enlarged.

Varian backed up and let out a cry as he fell off the platform.

He sat up and breathed heavily as he came to his senses.

"That was a dream..."

He then realized that he was still stuck in the cage of black rocks that was hundreds of feet from the ground below.

"Oh, why couldn't this be a dream?" Varian put his head in his hands, wishing Aquaria was with him.

He then thought about his strange dream and looked at his backpack before grabbing the scroll.

"'Use the sun to see the sun'," Varian repeated what the spirit girl had said in his dream.

Varian hummed in thought and moved his goggles from his head to over his eyes.

"What does it mean? Any ideas, Aqua... oh, right..." Varian groaned, remembering that he was alone.

He had no idea what it meant.

💧

Aquaria was humming to herself, trying to keep calm. She heard a sound and snapped her head towards the spot where the sound originated from.

"Pascal?!" Aquaria whisper yelled and he looked at her. She put a hand in front of her lips and he nodded before continuing to sneak around the black rocks.

Suddenly, Cassandra rose from the floor and walked towards her throne as Pascal made himself blend in so he was hidden.

Aquaria looked at Cassandra and bit her lip slightly.

Cass heard a familiar squeaking sound and glanced back to see a quick flash of green disappear behind one of the black rocks.

She walked over and the rock sunk into the floor, revealing the chameleon.

Pascal waved nervously and Aquaria gasped as Cassandra grabbed him.

"Don't hurt him, Cass!" Aqua urged as Cassandra made a small cage of black rocks on her hand around Pascal.

"Don't worry, princess. I told you that I don't want to hurt you and I don't want to hurt anyone else either," Cassandra snapped.

"But that voice said that you are gonna fight Rapunzel," Aquaria said and Cass glared.

"How can you hear her but no one else, other than me, can?" Cassandra growled and Aqua shrugged.

"I don't know but why did you put Varian out there and not me? What if he falls? What if-" Aqua was so worried that something would happen to Varian.

"Please, he's smart enough not to try anything. And you have powers that would allow both you and him to escape." Cassandra laughed and Aqua breathed heavily.

"I could use my powers against you right now and stop you!" Aqua shouted.

"But you aren't going to do that because I have your precious boyfriend sitting hundreds of feet off the ground. It would be ashame if his cage dropped." Cassandra smirked at the princess.

"You wouldn't." Aqua narrowed her eyes at Cass.

"You're right. I wouldn't. Not unless I have to," Cass said with a huge grin.

"Don't hurt him! Please!" Aquaria pleaded, afraid that she could lose Varian.

"Then don't give me a reason to hurt either of you. I don't want to see you hurt but I will not hesitate to stop you if you try and interfere." Cass grimaced and turned to walk away.

"Please be okay, Var..." Aqua murmured as she pulled her knees to her chest.

🧪

Varian groaned as he studied the scroll.

"Needs the sun to see the sun! What does that even mean?!" He shouted before threw his goggles and the scroll away from him.

He threw himself against the side of the cage, crossing his arms over his chest with a pout.

"Aqua would kn-" Varian stopped when he saw the sunbeam coming from the sun shining through his goggles which revealed some writing on the back of the scroll.

"Sunlight," he said as he realized what it meant before he looked at the setting sun. "The words are hidden and it needs a beam of sunlight to reveal the incantation! Demanitus, you genius!"

He quickly grabbed his goggles but soon realized that he couldn't get a concentrated beam of sunlight with his goggles no matter how hard he tried.

"Don't worry, Varian! We're gonna get you out of there!" Rapunzel called from the tower but Varian didn't want to get out.

"Not now! I found the last incantation! It was hidden with a photoreactive ink! Obvious, right?" Varian snorted.

"Yeah, super obvious." Eugene rolled his eyes.

"No way! That's genius!" Aqua exclaimed from still in her cage and Varian perked up at the sound of her voice.

"The problem is, I need a concentrated beam of sunlight to see it," Varian said as he held out the scroll. "I mean, I tried using my goggles, but they're too scratched up. I need something else, like a, uh, prism or a glass."

"Or..." Rapunzel fished the engagement ring out of her satchel. "A crystal?"

"Is that a-" Eugene looked at Rapunzel with a grin.

"Yeah," Rapunzel confirmed with a smile.

"Awww!" Aquaria watched the adorable scene as she gave a bright smile.

"For me?" Eugene gently held her hands with love sparkling in his eyes. "You were going to ask me? I mean, I was going to ask you! All this time and you still find ways to surprise me."

Suddenly, the tower shook and Eugene almost drop the ring but he quickly caught it.

"Uh, she must know we're here," Rapunzel realized. "Okay, get the ring to Varian. I'm gonna go find Pascal."

Eugene stopped her and gently cupped her cheek after she turned to look at him.

"Be careful," Eugene said softly and Rapunzel smiled before she ran to find Pascal.

"Please be safe too," Aqua said to Eugene, wishing she could get out of her cage.

"I will, Squirt," Eugene said before he went out onto the beam that connected Varian's cage to the tower.

"Pascal?" Rapunzel called for her friend.

"Raps, Cassandra has Pascal," Aquaria told her sister and she gasped.

"No..." Rapunzel became afraid. "He has to be here."

The ground trembled as Cassandra rose up from the floor with Pascal trapped inside a little cage in her palm.

"Yeah, he's here," Cass said as she let Pascal out of the cage, allowing the chameleon to run back to Rapunzel. "You made a mistake coming here."

"Cass, I'm not leaving this tower until this is resolved," Rapunzel said with determination.

Aqua wanted to use this moment to get to Varian and Eugene. She closed her eyes and her body turned into water, letting her reform outside of the cage.

Just as Aqua was about the run, the opening that led to Varian's cage was blocked off as well as all the other entrances in the chamber.

"No! Varian! Eugene!" Aqua pounded on the wall.

"Then I guess you're not leaving." Cassandra smirked as Rapunzel let down her hair. "You do realize that I have complete control over the rocks now. And you know what this tower is made of."

A bunch of black rocks erupted from the ground and Rapunzel stood firm, blowing a strand of hair out of her face.

"Show her how powerful you've become."

Aqua stiffened when she heard that voice again.

"I'm not going to fight you," Rapunzel said and Aqua looked around for the source of the strange voice.

"Then this will be very easy," Cassandra replied before she threw her hand up. "Cresent high above, evolving as you go!" She pulled her hand down into a fist.

"Cassandra, don't!" Rapunzel cried as Cass raised both her fists into their and the tower trembled.

"Rapunzel! Watch out!" Aqua tried to run to her sister but she was too late.

A large black rock shot Rapunzel up into the air and it crashed into another rock above it.

Aqua gasped and prayed that Rapunzel was okay.

The rock lowered and there was nothing for a moment before Rapunzel's hair shot up and she stood unscathed on the rock.

"Maybe it won't be as easy as you think," Rapunzel said, not wanting to give up on Cassandra.

"Now that's more like it." Cassandra grinned and Aqua backed away to the opposite side of where the opening had been to lead to Varian and Eugene. "But there are some things your hair can't block."

The ground beneath Rapunzel fell through and she dropped out of the tower.

"Rapunzel!" Aqua ran towards the hole but two black rocks formed an x and stopped her.

"Stay out of this, Squirt," Cassandra warned but Rapunzel had climbed back up, having snagged her hair on some rocks which stopped her fall.

"Sorry, Cass, but you are not getting rid of me that easily," Rapunzel said as she stood on the ground again, a determined gleam in her eyes.

Cass grimaced and a black rock sent Rapunzep foying over towards a bunch of pointed black rocks but Raounzel caught herself, swinging back onto the solid ground.

"Cass, please! This is not who you are!" Rapunzel persisted.

"Wrong! I finally know who I am!" Cassandra snapped and she sent down black rocks from the ceiling.

Rapunzel ran from the rocks until Cass hand one snag her hair and sent her into the wall. Cass sent five back rocks at Rapunzel, keeping her pinned to the wall.

"I will never stop trying to get through to you! I won't fight you! I won't justify your hatred and there is nothing you can do to change that!" Rapunzel called down to Cassandra who looked to the side. "Nothing!"

"Oh, there isn't? Because I kinda think there is," Cass said and Aqua looked to see the wall opening. Varian's cage came sliding in with Varian inside it still and Eugene standing on the outside, holding Varian's hand comfortingly.

"Welcome back boys. Let me help you out," Cass said before a line of black rocks shot towards Eugene and there surrounded him, holding him tight. "You won't fight me, but will you fight for him?"

"Cass! Leave him alone!" Rapunzel demanded.

"Break her spirit!"

Aqua looked towards Rapunzel after hearing the voice again but it came from near her sister this time.

"I just realized I forgot to give you my birthday present, Eugene," Cassandra said smoothly before she clenched her fist and the rocks constricted around Eugene.

"Don't give into her! Don't do anything she says!" Eugene called to Rapunzel and Aqua was about to run to Varian but some rocks caught her feet.

She thought about turning into water to escape but she thought better of it.

"Rapunzel! I have the final incantation! You have to use it!" Varian held out a rolled up piece of paper.

Pascal shot out his tongue and grabbed the paper before showing it to Rapunzel.

"Final incantation?what is he talking about?" Cassandra became defensive.

"Never mind that! You are more powerful! Finish this!"

Cassandra listened to the spirit girl and glared at Rapunzel. "Cresent high above, evolving as you go!"

"Rapunzel!" Varian cried as rocks shot up from the ground towards Rapunzel. "Use it."

"Power of the sun, gift me with your light. Shine into the dark, restore our fading sight," Rapunzel recited the incantation and her hair started to glow, her eyes glowing bright.

Aqua watched in shock as her sister started to float away from the wall.

"Rise into the dawn. Blazing star so bright!" A blast of energy shot out from Raounzel and the chamver started to crumble.

"Impossible!" Cassandra shielded herself from the blast.

"Burn away the strife. Let my hope ignite. Let hope ignite." Rapunzel floated towards Cassandra. "Let him go, Cassandra."

"I don't fallow your orders anymore!" Cass shouted and sent black rocks shooting at Rapunzel from the ground.

"I said let him go!" Rapunzel threw her arms open and the black rocks exploded.

Cass growled as she made even more black rocks rise but they stopped in front of Rapunzel who held her hand out. Electricity crackled between the rocks and they burst for a second time.

Aqua gasped when she saw a black ball with purple electricity in the air.

"LET. HIM. GO!" Rapunzel commanded and Cass grinned.

Cassandra started to swing her arms, black rocks erupting from the floor all around. She threw her arms wide and closed them together.

Rapunzel threw her arms up and sent a blast of energy at Cassnadra, cracking the moonstone.

There was an explosion of power and the walls of the tower crumbled down.

The power was blowing everything away including the black rocks around Eugene and around Aquaria's feet. Then Varian's cage started to blow away and Aqua gasped.

"Ah! Aquaria! Eugene!" Varian cried as he tried to hold on.

"Varian!" Aqua panicked as her boyfriend was blown out of the tower.

Eugene grabbed Aqua and kept her close as the strong winds blew Cassandra over the edge as well but she caught herself on a ledge made of black rock.

Varian screamed as he fell towards the ground.

"Just because we're not there yet doesn't mean we're not getting there eventually!" Lance told Maximus with his arms out and Varian landed right in his arms.

"Lance?" Varian gasped, looking disheveled. He wrapped his arms around Lance's neck and smiled, happy to be alive.

"Varian! See? Here he is. And I led us right too him," Lance said as he held Varian.

Angry face palmed but Catalina smiled.

💧

Aquaria was pacing at the bottom of the tower nervously, waiting with Rapunzel, Eugene, and Pascal for the rest of the group to get to the entrance.

"Aqua!" Varian ran to her and she immediately dashed to him once she saw him come out of the tower.

"Varian! I was so worried!" Aqua hugged him tight and he spun her around once.

"I figured out the final incantation! Can you believe that?!" Varian grinned like a dork and Aqua laughed.

"I told you that if anyone could do it, it was you," Aqua said as she rested her head on his shoulder.

"Well actually, I had a little help from a ghost girl..." Varian said and Aqua picked her head up, looking at him weirdly.

"Ghost girl?" She was confused and thought about the voice she kept hearing in the tower.

"I had a dream when I was in the cage. This blue spirit girl was telling me to find the final incantation. She kept saying 'use the sun to see the sun'. I didn't know what it meant at first but I needed a concentrated beam of light to see the incantation. I don't know who she was though. She was scary," Varian admitted.

"I wonder if that's who was taling to Cassandra. I could hear her but I couldn't see her," Aqua said and Rapunzel raised her eyebrow.

"You heard a voice?" Rapunzel raised her eyebrow.

"Yeah. It was talking to Cassandra and she could hear it. I'm pretty sure she could see who was talking as well," Aqua said and Rapunzel hummed.

"We'll figure that out another time. For now, let's just get home," Rapunzel said and Aqua nodded.

"Yeah, I'm ready for some shut eye," Aqua said as Varian held her hand.

"We could definitely do with some sleep. Are you gonna stay over tonight?" Varian asked and Aqua hummed softly.

"I'd love to but I wanna see my parents and sleep in my own bed tonight," Aqua said to which Varian smiled and kissed her lips gently.

"Then I will make sure to see you tomorrow, princess. I will make sure to take you for lunch. I'll bring ham sandwiches." Varian grinned happily and Aqua nodded quickly. "I love you."

"I love you too, Var," Aqua replied to which Angry gagged.

"Ugh! You two are disgusting," Angry said as Catalina shook her head.

"You're just jealous that we're very happy together," Varian responded as he walked with Aqua towards the island of Corona.

"Whatever," Angry scoffed as they all started heading back towards Corona.

"Aren't you gonna go home, Varian?" Eugene asked and Varian looked at him.

"Yep but I have to grab a few things from the Demanitus Chamber first," Varian replied. "I didn't really get to pack up before we left you know."

"Aquaria..."

There was a soft voice in Aquaria's ear and she quickly shook her head.

"Squirt, you okay?" Eugene asked when he saw her shake her head.

"Y-yeah. Just a little ringing in my ears is all. I just need some rest," Aquaria said softly.

The voice sounded familiar but it wasn't the voice she had heard back in the tower. This voice was soft, warm, and kind sounding.

Who was trying to talk to her?

She shrugged it off, thinking it was just her mind playing tricks on her because she was exhausted.

It was nothing. Right?