(Back at the citadel)

"Gentlemen and gentleladies, our moon is high in the sky and I fail to see it properly myself." Jackie remarked in a cold tone. "Please open the ceiling so we can behold the main object of our plan."

Justin and Blake nodded in agreement and somehow opened the ceiling, revealing a blood moon high in the sky. "A blood moon?" Hope asked in confusion. "Why do you even want to see the blood moon? What does it have to do with anything?"

Star took a look at the blood moon and, remembering a certain event, immediately realized what plan Jackie possibly had. "Jackie, I know what you're trying to do, and your plan isn't going to work! Even if Marco arrives too late-"

"When Marco arrives, the plan will already be in notion and he'll be too late."Jackie responded in a smug tone.

(Meanwhile, with Marco, Janna and Brittney)

The trio kicked the gates open and immediately rushed up the stairs, dodging some guards on their way there. Once they finally reached the top, Marco leaned closer to the door and tried to overhear Jackie, but he only got to hear dead silence.

Thinking the worst, the trio opened the door and were immediately attacked by the shippers as Jackie watched with a smug smile. As they fought, the trio tried to reach Star and Hope: Marco used his karate skills, Brittney and Janna used...well, everything.

Then, in the middle of the fighting, Marco and the girls turned around and saw a confused Star and Hope staring at them. They simply waved hello with blank expressions before resuming the fight.

"Enough."

Everybody suddenly stopped what they were doing and Marco turned around to see Jackie with a bored look. "We don't need to waste our time fighting pointless battles." She stated. "Specially when it serves no purpose."

Marco immediately ran after Jackie and landed in front of her in a karate position, which failed to get a reaction from the skateboarder. "What are you trying to do, Jackie?"

"I'm simply telling the truth." Jackie replied as Marco's stance returned to normal. "Tell me, you're already in the citadel, Star and Hope are perfectly okay, the blood moon is high in the sky, what will fighting accomplish for you outside of waste your energy?"

"...Fine then, I get your point, but what do you want?" Marco replied. "Do you want me to intertwine souls with Hope?"

"It wouldn't work, not for the moment anyway." Jackie sneered. "Your soul and Star's soul are already intertwined."

"How did you-"

"Here's the deal: the connected between your soul and Star's soul will be broken by your hand during the blood moon, and once that's broken, you will bind your soul with Hope's. Either you do that, or I kill Star and your friends."

"What?!" Everybody yelled in surprise.

Jackie simply smiled in a way that suggested she could yell "surprise!" if she could. A long time passed and Marco tried to think

"I'll do it."

"You picked the right answer, Marco." And then the light of the blood moon bathed the room. "And just in the nick of time too."

Marco looked up and saw the blood moon as Jackie snapped her fingers and both Hope and Star were released from their containment. Hope remained behind as Star went to Marco, and the blood moon's light revealed a chain that connected both teenagers together, and they glanced between it and Jackie before they grabbed it.

Star and Marco started to pull the chain, but it didn't seem to work the first few times.

Eventually, the chains immediately started to break a little, but just as they seemed to be on the verge of breaking, a sphere was formed from there and it expanded and expanded until electricity flew around it.

Then, in the instant before it exploded, Jackie smiled victoriously as he sphere broke apart and exploded, taking the entire citadel with it. After the explosion, Star, Marco and Hope, alongside their other classmates, fell and hit the ground close to the remains of the citadel.

Missing from the classmates, however, was Jackie, whose body was nowhere to be seen. "Where did she go?" Star thought in surprise.

Afterwards, however, Hope got her attention and they turned around to see Marco sitting close to a pond. They went to him, sat next to his side and tried to think of something to say before he uttered, "Are you two okay?"

"Yeah." Star answered while Hope simply nodded. "What about you? Are you okay?"

"Yes, but who cares?"

"We do."

"And what happened to Jackie?"

"Nowhere to be seen."

Marco remained silent and looked at the pond with a somber look. "Is something wrong, Marco?" Hope asked.

"Jackie was the sole reason we decided to date in the first place, and now not only did she force me to unbind souls with Star, but she's nowhere to be seen and we have no idea what happened to her." Marco answered as he slapped the body of water. "I don't know what to do anymore."

"Oh, Marco, just because our plan got seriously derailed and jeopardize doesn't mean we have to stop dating." Hope reassured as she put her hand in Marco's shoulder. "And trust me, after what happened today, you definitely need a different adventure."

Star cheered up and danced a little as she cut open a portal to the dance lounge. "A calm adventure." Hope explained.

The princess calmed down, closed the portal and laughed in embarrassment. "Just remember, if you want to do something more relaxed and calm, come see me." Hope spoke to Marco. "I'll try to make the time feel worthwhile, I promise."

As the duo looked at each other, a shooting star passed by and they exchanged smiles before Marco answered, "Alright."

Hope smiled and got up before leaving. Marco got up as well and looked at the girl before he turned to Star and said, "Let's go Star."

The princess nodded in agreement and went back home with the boy, though she glanced at Hope one last time before leaving.