"Do something, Kajal!" Chandrika's voice trembled, cracking under fear. "You're her mother—save her!"
Varun stumbled to Kajal's side, clutching her arm.
"Mom, please… please save Kiara. You can't let her die."
But Kajal didn't move.
Her face had gone blank—too blank—her eyes wide as if staring into some invisible abyss.
"I… can't."
Her voice broke, barely forming the words.
"This poison… it is Sarvavasik Vish. The deadliest venom of the serpent clan. Once it enters the bloodstream, even I cannot cure it."
The room fell into a suffocating silence.
Bhoomi let out a strangled sob, holding Kiara tighter.
"No… no, no, no—Kiara, wake up, my child… please…"
Kiara didn't stir.
Her eyelashes fluttered once, then stilled.
Her body sagged, lifeless against her mother's lap.
And then—
Yuvaan froze.
Something was happening.
"Kiara…?" he whispered, his eyes widening.
He looked down—and his heart plummeted.
Kiara's feet were fading.
Not dissolving like dust…
Not vanishing like smoke…
But turning translucent.
As if she were slipping out of this reality.
"Kiara is disappearing!" Yuvaan's voice cracked, raw with terror. "Father-inlaw! Moti baa! Somebody—she's being pulled away!"
Kajal squeezed her eyes shut, guilt clawing through her chest.
"She isn't dying," she said in a whisper that felt like a death knell.
"She is being taken."
Yuvaan stared at her, breathless.
"Taken where?"
Kajal lifted her gaze—haunted, defeated, trembling.
"To the Realm of Trishanku."
Everyone gasped.
"That poison…" Kajal continued, her voice quivering, "doesn't just kill. It drags the soul into Trishanku—a realm between life and death. A place where no one returns from. A place where neither reincarnation nor resurrection is possible…"
Yuvaan's throat tightened, disbelief clawing at him.
"You're saying…"
His voice was barely a whisper.
"…Kiara will be trapped there forever?"
Kajal nodded, tears slipping silently down her face.
"It means," she whispered, "my daughter will be neither alive nor dead. Lost… suspended… unreachable."
Yuvaan felt the ground tilt beneath him.
His hands clutched Kiara's fading wrist, desperate, trembling—
"No. No. NO—Kiara, stay with me. Stay. With. Me!"
But more of her began to vanish…
Her legs… her hands… her torso beginning to flicker with an otherworldly glow.
And in that moment—
Yuvaan realized he was watching the love of his life being pulled into a realm where he could never follow.
Into a fate worse than death.
Into a void where even hope couldn't survive.
Heavy footsteps pounded down the stairs.
Vikram burst into the hall, breathless, the ancient Reeva Granth clutched to his chest. His eyes darted to Kiara—already fading from the waist downward—and the color drained from his face.
"I found the solution," he announced, voice shaking with urgency, "but… it's nearly impossible."
Yuvaan snapped his head toward him, hope trembling through his veins.
"Nothing is impossible," he said fiercely.
"Just say it, father-in-law."
Vikram swallowed hard, the weight of the truth sitting heavy on his tongue.
"The Life Gem," he whispered.
"The Jeevan Mani. It can counter any poison, even the Serpent's trance venom."
A small gasp rippled through the room.
Yuvaan didn't hesitate.
"Then let's find it. Right now."
Vikram looked away, pained.
"It cannot be found," he said quietly.
"It can only be… created."
The words hit Yuvaan like a punch, but he didn't flinch.
"Then create it," he insisted.
"You're the best at potions, remedies, all this Reevavanshi stuff—please, do something!"
Vikram shook his head, his voice strained with helplessness.
"It's not that simple. A Jeevan Mani isn't brewed. It isn't summoned. It must be forged with… with power."
He locked eyes with Yuvaan.
"Great power."
"Then let me make it," Yuvaan breathed immediately.
His voice didn't tremble, not even once.
Vikram's lips parted in shock.
"Yuvaan… it's not as easy as it seems."
Yuvaan took a step closer, desperation and determination burning in his eyes.
"Father-in-law," he said steadily, "please stop beating around the bush. We don't have time. Kiara is slipping away every second."
His voice broke softly.
"Tell me… what does it take?"
Vikram finally exhaled, defeated.
"The person who creates the Life Gem…"
His voice dropped to a whisper.
"…will lose their powers. Forever."
The room froze.
Even Kajal looked up sharply.
For a moment—just a breath—everything stopped.
But Yuvaan didn't.
He didn't blink.
He didn't hesitate.
He didn't even breathe.
"To hell with those powers," he said, voice thick but unwavering.
"As long as I can save my Kiara… I don't care if I lose everything."
A collective gasp echoed.
Bhoomi's hand flew to her mouth.
Susheela's eyes filled.
Vinod lowered his head in disbelief.
Even Varun stared at Yuvaan as if seeing him for the first time.
And Kajal…
Kajal felt her heart twist painfully.
This was the boy she had sworn to kill.
Yet here he was—willing to destroy himself without a second thought to save her daughter.
Vikram stepped back, stunned.
"Yuvaan… your powers… you are the reincarnation of Kaal, born with impossible strength—"
"I don't care!" Yuvaan shouted, his voice cracking.
"She is my wife. My life. My everything. What use are powers if I can't protect her?!"
The hall went silent.
Awed.
Shaken.
Moved.
Yuvaan knelt beside Kiara, brushing his thumb across her fading cheek.
"I'll give up my darkness. My strength. My destiny. All of it."
He pressed his forehead to hers, voice trembling.
"If it means Kiara breathes again… I'll do it."
Everyone watched, speechless—because for the first time, there was no trace of Kaal in him.
Only love.
Desperate.
Selfless.
Unconditional.