The Deepest Secret
The Conclusion!

Angie took a sip of water as she felt more intrigued by the story Ace was telling her. "So, you had to go back to the monastery still wearing that costume?"
"Oh, it was not pretty," answered Ace with a light chuckle. "Some of the monks actually did give me quite a stare. I felt so embarrassed to be in that outfit at the time because it was skin-fitted. I wanted to change back into what I had worn earlier so badly I ran to my room the minute we were back in the monastery."
"That's understandable. I'd be a bit nervous if that happened to me."
"Angie, my friend, have you ever felt mixed between nervous and excited?"
"At times, yes. Um, why do you ask?"
"When those two feelings mixed, hell nearly broke loose, and I almost destroyed the monastery by accident."
The young magician's eyes widened in disbelief. "You've got to be kidding!"
"Remember, I was just starting to learn what I had with the Magic Force, so my nerves were still very high at that point in my life."
"Dude," Cosmo interrupted, "I gotta hear this part again."
"Well, okay, Cosmo, since you asked so nicely." Ace was being a little sarcastic but meant well. "I was asleep in my room in the monastery, still stuck in the costume. During the days following the rescue, I had a series of dreams that would first send me out of control, and then forever set my destiny…"

**18 Years Earlier**

Ace Cooper had saved his teacher's life from a group of nomadic criminals hours earlier, with a power he finally knew about…a power known as the Magic Force. The only setback to it was he was unable to change from the weird costume he mysteriously created when he was able to summon its power. This costume is so uncomfortable, he thought to himself. Why can't I wear what I had on before all this happened? I may never be able to leave the monastery at all if I stay in this thing.
During the night, he entered the dreamscape once again, hoping to find the mysterious stranger who helped him find the courage to beckon his magical power.
"I've got to find him," Ace said in the grassy area. "He's the only one who can tell me how to get out of this costume. I can't wear it forever."
As he kept running everywhere to find the stranger, he spotted a shadow in a nearby forest. "That's him!"
The stranger noticed but did not run away in fear.
Ace quickly ran to the stranger, whose outfit was exactly the same. "Please, I need to know who you are. I think you're the only one who can tell me how to get out of this costume."
"Because you were finally able to face your destiny and let go," said the whispered stranger, "I will show you who I am."
The stranger walked forward into the light. The face revealed blue eyes, a small tuft of white hair on the top of his head, and the streak around the sides and back, all of which sent a chill down Ace's back.
"Oh, my God!" whispered Ace in total dismay. "You're…me!"
The stranger, a perfect look-a-like of Ace, lightly chuckled. "You're right. I am you. I'm the part of yourself that you were afraid to face all this time. Why did you keep running away in fear of this part of you?"
"I-I don't know," Ace tried to answer. "I guess…I was just too scared to understand what I had to begin with. I was so scared of hurting another person I cared about. I already hurt at least three people: Derek, Gus, and Mona. I just wanted to get away from the source of all my problems…Electro City itself. Since all the pain was there, I figured leaving there completely would help me be free of this curse."
The inner duplicate shook his head. "You just saved your mentor's life, and you were able to help two other people on the barge before you came here. How can you still think of it as a curse?"
"I could've harmed them if I weren't careful with what I had to do."
"You don't understand. You were able to use your powers clearly when you let go of what kept you from using them, your fear. What did it feel like to see clearly what you could do?"
"It was a mixed feeling of fear and excitement," Ace answered calmly. "I was still nervous about this power coming around. While I was looking for Master Kao, though, I had this overwhelming feeling of determination, like I wouldn't let my fear stop me from finding him and helping him."
"You found a reason not to be afraid of your power…you care about people. When you do gain a friend, you won't let anything stop you from making sure he was safe. You can see the truth about people…some honest and some deceitful. There is nothing to fear from what you have."
"I hope you're right. Oh, um, is there any way I can get out of this costume? I've been getting some rather strange stares from other monks."
The inner self laughed. "I understand. If you want out of that thing, just use your will. Think about wearing something else, and you'll have what you need."
"Thanks," Ace said in relief. "This is kinda embarrassing."
When Ace awakened in the middle of the night, he found that his costume was gone, and his regular clothes had returned. "Oh, man. Am I glad to be out of that outfit. Last thing I need is to create a scene." He then went back to sleep and had no further sleeping problems. The next two days, though, would create a change in the direction of his life…

Ace started the day by gathering herbs and spices from the garden. The morning was slightly breezy, but he had nothing to worry about, at least now that he could finally understand about the Magic Force within himself.
He took a sniff of the home-grown ginger root. "Mmm, this is gonna be great in a soup. I can't wait for lunch today."
Master Kao walked up and noticed Ace's upbeat attitude. "Ah, you were able to find a way out of your strange clothing last night."
"Yes, sir, I did. All I really needed to do was think about getting out of the costume, and I woke up not wearing it anymore. It's just too bad my hair is going to be like this for the rest of my life."
"I would not worry about your hair, Ace. I think it makes you look like a distinguished person."
"Yeah…too distinguished. I don't know if I'll ever get used to this hair."
"Will your friends recognize you when you return?"
"I don't know if they'll recognize me, if I plan on returning to Electro City."
Master Kao became slightly concerned. "Does anyone know you are not there?"
"No…not even Derek Vega, one of my closest friends. Nobody knows I left."
"Are you not afraid that you will miss your friends there?"
"Master…how am I going to have friends when I have this Magic Force power inside of me? If I go back, more people will think I'm a freak. I think it's better for me to be here, away from it all."
"You have learned what your power is, but you will not use it?"
"I don't know. I'm just so confused about all this right now."
"Ace," the priest said placing an arm on the young man's shoulder, "learning your power is just one part of your destiny. There may be more questions for you to answer by going back to where this began."
"Master, I can't. I can't just go home and say, 'Hi, I discovered I have this power called the Magic Force, and I don't have a clue as to what I'm supposed to do with it.'"
"I know this will not be easy for one of your youth. You wanted a normal life, and now this may be the life you will have to take."
"So," Ace said in slight anger, "I'm stuck with this Magic Force thing, huh? Maybe it's best if I just stay here forever."
"You cannot be secluded here for the rest of your life. Tell me, what do you fear more…harming people with your power or facing those you left behind?"
"I guess it's both. I'm afraid I'll hurt someone again, and I know Vega will be furious about the fact I left without telling him…or anyone else." Ace stared upwards to the sky, a small tear coming down his right cheek.
"My friend, your stay here should not be permanent. You will only do more harm to yourself by not going back to Electro City to face your past and learn from it."
Ace then faced his teacher. "Master, there's something I have to tell you. I am—I mean, was—a juvenile delinquent. I was a criminal. If you want to turn me over, I'll understand."
The priest showed no anger to his pupil. "I will do no such thing, Ace. You are just lost and confused. You do not know who you are or what your path in life is. That is why you left your home, to try to find yourself. Have you while you have stayed here?"
"Well, almost. I know I have this power, but I'm not sure what I'm supposed to do."
"That depends on you. I cannot decide that for you. That is a decision you must make on your own."
Ace nodded, as he understood. "Yeah, I can't let you do everything for me. Thanks."
"You are quite welcome, Ace. Now, how about I at least help you with the herbs and spices."
The young man laughed in delight. "Okay."
The teacher and the student picked the right spices for the soup to be used for lunch later.

Later that evening, Ace sat among the monks and meditated quietly, feeling peace for the first time in a long time.
However, he soon started to see his close friend Derek Vega in his mind…a rather angry Derek Vega.
"Why did you leave, Ace?" asked Vega angrily. "You don't want to face the consequences of your actions, do you?"
Ace started breathing heavily. "I-I'm sorry, Vega. I needed to get away from there before I could cause more problems."
"You'll be facing a lot more problems when you come back here, like jail time for leaving my care. You are nothing more than a juvenile delinquent."
"Stop it! I know what I've done is wrong, but I can change! I can make myself a better person!"
"Ha! You'll never change, Cooper! Once a delinquent, always a delinquent."
In the mindscape, Ace saw his hands glowing white-hot. "What the—? What is this!? What's wrong with my hands!?"
"You think you're in such control, huh, Cooper? Well you're not! And you'll never be in control again!"
Ace fell to the ground and curled himself. Soon, his entire body started shining in the white-hot light. "What is wrong with me!?"
Ace opened his eyes and screamed, "NOOOOO!"
He mysteriously changed into his costume again and started channeling the white-hot lightning through his body. His eyes were quickly changing colors…from blue to glowing violet to sparking grey and into an intense fiery blue.
The other monks became very alarmed by what was happening to the young man.
Soon, sparks of lightning flew away from him and struck different parts of the room, forcing the monks to flee from that area of the monastery in fear.
The only monk who did not leave was Master Kao. "Ace, what is happening to you?"
"Master Kao!" Ace yelled in complete fear. "You've got to get out of here! I could hurt you!"
"No…I do not turn away from one who needs help. You are losing control of your entire being."
"Please, Master! For your safety, you must leave right now!"
"Ace, let me help you. Why are you losing control?"
"My…my friends…they don't think I can change my life! They're right, I can't!"
"You can change your life. Your life is in your hands. You can let your power overtake you, or you can take control of yourself and use your power as an advantage. It is up to you, Ace."
Mysteriously, he had a vision appear before him, one which showed a beautiful black panther and a teenage boy with red hair. Wha—what's going on here? Who are they? Despite Ace's confusing vision, he actually started to calm himself down, the lightning dissipating and his eyes changing back into the regular blue.
Although he was not physically scarred, he was emotionally scarred. "What have I done?"
Master Kao slowly came up to his pupil. "Are you all right?"
"No, I'm not. I could've hurt you. Why didn't you get away?"
"Because I was worried about you. I do not leave a friend behind."
Ace gasped at his teacher's words and realized the truth. Do not leave a friend behind…that's what I've done. I have friends who do care about me. I was too afraid to understand that, though, because all I thought about was the possibility of hurting my friends with this Magic Force power.
"Will you be all right, Ace?" Kao asked calmly.
"Yes, I think so." Ace's calm helped him change out of the costume again and back into his regular clothing. "I'm going to get some sleep. I'm just tired out right now."
"Sleep well, Ace." Master Kao left the room for Ace to gather himself.
In the middle of the night, though, Ace packed everything he had. He was ready to leave the next morning…

Very early in the morning, Ace tried to sneak out of the monastery quietly. "The sooner I leave, the safer the monks will be."
"Where are you going, Ace?" asked someone standing behind him.
The young man gasped in fear and turned around. "Master Kao!"
"Why are you leaving? Are you trying to run away again?"
"No," said Ace, shaking his head. "Master, what happened here last night has caused me to…rethink about where I really belong. I believe all the answers I seek…are waiting at home."
"Ah, you finally understand. I am proud of you, young man."
"I'm just sorry it took scaring the daylights out of you and the other monks for me to realize that."
"No harm done, Ace. If it were to help you find your lost answers, then you have achieved your goal. I hope you will find all your answers back in Electro City."
"Thank you, Master. And…thank you for everything. When I came here, I felt like a lost child. Now, I feel I've grown up a little."
Just as Ace started to leave, his teacher stopped him. "Wait, Ace. There is something I want to give to you, as a memento of your time here."
"Master, you don't have to."
"No, I want to give this statue to you. It looks big, but it is rather light. This facial statue symbolizes good luck and good fortune. It also shows a person's true face. Remember your stay here as a time where you found part of what you sought."
Ace graciously accepted his teacher's gift. "Thank you. I will never forget what you did for me, Master Kao. I basically owe you my life."
"No life is owed when out of friendship. Take care of yourself, Ace Cooper. Good luck in finding all your answers."
"Farewell, Master Kao." Ace then quietly left the monastery, and his troubled past, behind him for good.

**Present Day**

Angie found herself in awe about Ace's time at the monastery. "So…one of your statues, came from Master Kao?"
"That's right. To this day, I've never forgotten what he did for me, helping me learn more about myself."
"Okay, so how did you earn your way back to Electro City?"
"I still had more than enough money to afford the train trip back to Bombay. When I went to the port, I saw Captain Balken and Floorer again."
"Really? Cool!"
"They didn't have to say anything. Captain Balken simply asked if I needed a ride back to Electro City, so I accepted right away. This time, we had no problems, mainly because there were no cars on the boat."
Everyone laughed at Ace's joke.
Angie said, "Okay, so you made it back to Electro City safely. What was next?"
"First was to face Vega, which scared me the most, and then there was the first time someone else's magic reached out to me, telling me I wasn't as alone as I thought…"

**18 Years Earlier**

As soon as he arrived back in Electro City, Ace went immediately looking for his friend Derek Vega. I just hope he won't be too mad at me for leaving.
He soon made it to Vega's apartment and quietly knocked on the door.
The detective yelled, "Keep your shirt on, I'm coming!"
Same old Vega, all right, Ace thought.
When he opened the door, Vega went into shock. "Ace…Ace Cooper!? Where the hell have you been for the past eight months!?"
"I, um," he tried to answer, "I left…so I could find myself. I was lost."
Vega softened his voice and said, "I was worried sick about you. When you didn't report to me, I thought Jack had finished you off. Where were you all this time, and…what happened to your hair?"
"Let's see, um, Bombay, Tsetang, and a monastery where I learned what I really have. That's the cause of my slight hair adjustment."
"Really? Well, come on in here, and tell me all about it."
Ace entered the apartment and sat down on the sofa. "Well, let me start with this, Vega. I've figured out what I've got. It's called the Magic Force."
"Magic Force?"
"Yeah. It's what I was afraid of for the longest time. I had to use it to rescue at least three friends I gained throughout my eight-month absence. Plus, when I had to finally summon its power, I ended up in a really weird costume." Ace continued his tale, with Vega's eyes growing wider at every sentence.
When Ace finally finished, Vega shook his head. "That sounds so unbelievable…I actually believe it."
"You…do?"
"Of course. You think I forgot about when you saved my life in the museum? I thought you had a special power inside of you, but I didn't think it was anything like this."
"So, what'll happen to me now, Vega? I was gone for eight months."
"To tell you the truth, I really don't know. You're so close to being 18 now, so I'll give you two choices. You can either go back to being a criminal and end up in jail for probably the rest of your life, or you can stay with me and turn your life around for good."
"After everything I've been through, I'll take the second choice. Thanks, Vega."
"Don't thank me just yet, Ace. After all, I'm gonna have to explain tomorrow to the chief about where you were for the last eight months."
"What will you say?"
"I'll make something up. I'm not going to tell them about your overseas trip. Who'd believe me? Now, get some sleep. You've been through enough as it is."
"I appreciate that…more than ever now."
The next day, Ace stayed at Vega's apartment supposedly to sleep in. However, Ace secretly started cleaning up the rather messy apartment the same way he did at the monastery. "Boy, oh, boy, Vega's not gonna believe what I've done to this place when he gets off work."
In the early afternoon hours, though, Ace was in the middle of mopping the floor when he developed a sharp pain in his head. "Ow!" he yelled painfully as he dropped the mop. "Why does my head hurt so much!?"
Closing his eyes, he had another vision…one involving a different person, not himself. "What is this? Who am I seeing?" Mysteriously, he could feel the person's heart. "It's strange. I can almost…sense this person's feelings. I…I can hear something from the person…"
I have to help Daddy, said the soft voice of a small child in his mind. I want to save Daddy.
"A little girl? She wants to rescue her father…someone she loves with all her heart."
The vision and feeling quickly faded, leaving Ace completely shocked. "Could it be possible…someone out there is just like me and has this strange power, too?"
He then picked up the mop to quickly finish the floor.
An hour later, Vega entered his apartment to find it as clean as a royal throne room. "Oh, my God! Ace, you cleaned my pad?"
"Yeah, Vega. It was long overdue for a cleaning, and I just wanted to do something for you, that's all." Ace gave a wide smile.
"I know that look, Ace. You're hiding something, aren't you? You know you can't fool me."
"Well, I did clean up, honestly, but something weird happened to me. If I told you, you'd think I were crazy."
"Oh? Just try me. I'll listen."

**Present Day**

"I told Vega about the strange vision," said Ace, "but I said nothing about hearing your voice, Angie."
"You knew it was my voice?" Angie asked while appalled.
"Not at that time. Remember, we were able to communicate with each other on at least four different occasions. Three at times after you used your powers…"
"And the last being at Mom and Dad's funeral after their fatal accident," the female magician completed. "However, there's that one time I still have trouble believing for myself, the one time Dr. Collins claimed that I was able to rescue you from the water torture chamber when you were setting that world record. The only thing I can remember was saying, 'Just go for it.' After that, it's all a blank to me. Is it I don't remember, or I don't want to remember?"
Cosmo was a little surprised by this revelation. "Whoa, hold it! Dude, you mean to tell me Angie helped you escape from that torture chamber while Spade and Diamond gave me fits down in the Ring's basement?"
"Yes, Cosmo," Ace answered seriously, "from her dorm room at Iowa State. While Angie was recovering in Washington, we discovered that she really did rescue me from the chamber just before that rod crashed through. Somewhere in her heart is the time she did save me." He then turned to Angie. "It appears you really don't remember what happened. However, I think I can help you make some sense. Take my hands."
Angie did so without hesitation. "What are we going to do?"
"We're going to travel in the mind's eye back to that night nearly five years ago, the first time you saw me on television while you attended college. Now relax. Clear your mind of everything except what you were doing that night."
Calming herself, the younger magician slowly closed her eyes and started feeling from her heart. Glowing softly in her light-blue aura, she could see herself going back to the night in question. "Term…paper…"
Ace then closed his eyes to travel into her mind. "Good," he said calmly. "Tell me everything you were doing before you saw my performance that night."
"I was…working on a term paper…"

**Almost Five Years Earlier**

Angela Jacobs was in her senior year at Iowa State University. She sat alone in her dorm room working on a term paper for the Media Law and Ethics course. Although the paper itself was not due for another two weeks, she worked on it as though it were due the next day. She had displayed intense concentration on finishing the paper with the determination of a tiger. Little did anyone know she did that in reality to hide her pain and sorrow, along with a curse…the curse of a power she was frightened to have, since she could not rescue her parents from the terrible road-rage accident.
She had no roommate with her, since she felt very uncomfortable being around people.
Working herself so hard, she felt strained and stressed. "I need to take some kind of break. I feel so tired. I wonder if I'm burning myself out."
She did not join any sorority or any sports teams, feeling that they could interfere with her four-year scholarship she earned upon her high-school graduation.
On this Friday night, though, she actually felt like she was working herself to death. "I need to stop for now. I'm concentrating too hard. I need to rest my mind some. The more I work, the more tired I get. I guess I'm a serious type-A personality."
For the first time in over four hours that day, she got up from her desk and lay down on the couch. Angie then grabbed the remote control for the TV and turned it on, trying to find something to watch. "Nope…I hate wrestling, period…what a stupid game show! Now I know why Mom was such a big fan of The Price Is Right."
When she switched to the Sensa-News Channel, though, something caught her attention. "Wait a minute, what's this?"
She noticed a gentleman performing magic. She had seen magic before and thought immediately that this was going to be an ordinary show. "It's strange," she said. "This particular magician has me intrigued. Why, I don't know. I'm already starting to feel…calmer." She noticed all the amazing tricks he had done with the doves and the playing cards.
Next on the screen was announcer Duke Paparazzo. "It's time for the grand finale, and you won't believe what's going to happen tonight, folks. Ace Cooper the Magician is going to attempt to break a world record for being in the water for longer than five minutes while being tied up in a straitjacket. However, he's going to try it with a rod over the chamber."
"A rod and a straitjacket?" Angie asked curiously. When the camera looked at the rod above the chamber, Angie shrugged with slight nerves. "Whoa. The old water torture chamber with a bigger and more dangerous twist. This guy Cooper is either very brave, or very foolish."
She then saw Ace getting into the straitjacket. "He really wants to pull this off, but I just hope he knows what he's doing."
Ace then jumped into the chamber and started to work his way steadily out of the straitjacket.
Angie watched him very closely to make sure he was all right. "Take it easy, pal. Just take your time, and don't panic."
She never took her eyes off the screen for even a second when Paparazzo made a stunning announcement. "Five minutes! The Magician has just broken the world record for underwater immersion…but will he get free of those bonds in time before the giant rod drops?"
"You gotta be kidding!" she exclaimed. "It's already been five minutes!? Man, I couldn't last more than 30 seconds in that thing. I know it's got to be getting harder for him to breathe. I just hope he'll be all right."
"Only 15 seconds left now…14…13…"
"Hurry, please, hurry," she whispered. "You've got to get out of there."
"7…6…5…"
She counted down as well until she noticed the laser cutter had started two seconds too early! "Oh, no!" she said in extreme worry. "Timing's too soon…he'll be killed for sure!"
Angie then clasped her hands and started praying for his safety. "Please, I don't want him to get hurt…I don't want him to get hurt…"
Somewhere deep within her heart, something felt her grave concern for Ace's life, and it soon surfaced in the form of an aura of blue light. "Just go for it," she whispered softly.
What happened to me? thought Angie to Ace in the present time. I can't remember any of this.
Let your heart guide you, Angie, for it will reveal the truth.
Angie herself somehow lost sight of her bearings and mysteriously started chanting softly. "Please, help me keep him safe…help me protect him from harm. I do not want him to die." She then cried softly, being so concerned for the life of a gentleman performing his act more than 1500 miles away.
At the Ring Theatre in Electro City, Ace was still in the chamber to get out of his straitjacket, not realizing something had already gone wrong in his stunt. Suddenly, he heard a calm female voice in his mind. Just go for it…
What? Ace thought in surprise. Who said that? And what did she mean by 'go for it'? It's strange, but I can almost feel someone trying to reach out to me. Maybe she's warning me…something's wrong with the trick, and I don't know about it. He then tried to communicate with the other person telepathically. I don't know if you can hear me, but please tell me if something has happened.
Yes, the female voice answered, you are in grave danger. You must escape immediately.
I'm not sure I can do it in time.
Do not fear. Concentrate on your straitjacket for now. I will help you escape from the chamber…with my own powers.
Did she say 'her own powers'? Ace thought to himself. She has magical powers herself?
You must hurry, my friend. Time is quickly running out.
Back in her dorm room, Angie's unconscious state was ready to help the Magician so far away. "Please…help me get him out of there…now!"
The power within her answered her heartfelt command, which caused her body to glow even brighter than before.
In the chamber, Ace wrestled to get himself free of the straitjacket before it was too late. I think I've got it. But, I don't think I can get out of here.
All of a sudden, he felt a stronger force within his soul. She's serious…I can feel her power coming to help me. Just before the rod crashed into the chamber, he saw a soft tint of blue light.
When the rod did fall into the water-filled chamber, water splashed everywhere, but Paparazzo and the audience were afraid he did not survive his ordeal.
To their surprise, Ace appeared on top of the rod and was free from his bonds, causing the audience to cheer loudly and in relief that he was safe.
Ace then sent one last thought to his mysterious helper. Wherever you are, my friend, I thank you…for saving my life. He then spoke into his wristwatch communicator. "Cosmo, what the heck are you doing?"
In the dormitory, Angie's aura faded completely but not before she whispered, "He is safe now." After it completely vanished, she opened her eyes and was slightly confused. "What on Earth happened? The last thing I remember was praying for him to be all right." She then noticed the Magician on top of the rod on television. "He did get out of there safely! Oh, thank goodness he's okay."

**Present Day**

Angie opened her eyes in shock. "You mean…I used the Magic Force within myself to help you escape that night?"
"Well, you didn't really use it," Ace replied seriously. "Remember that flute John Whitefeather had given you?"
"The one Bobby Riggins broke and—oh, my God! Of course! You mentioned that the Magic Force was able to sense how sad I was about that flute being broken."
"And the fact that it helped to mend the flute back together into one piece again."
"But…what about in this case?"
Ace put a hand on her shoulder. "Your Magic Force actually felt how worried you were about me being killed, so it willingly took you over to help me. The Magic Force spoke for you that night."
"I guess…my concern kept me in emotional control of my powers, but it sure didn't help in Washington."
"No…you lost all control of your powers when you finally unleashed those angry and painful feelings you had buried away. What you need the most help on right now is how to keep your powers under control when you do become emotionally high-strung."
"True. But I still can't believe Dr. Collins knew about that all this time."
"You must've glowed brightly enough for him to see you in his office, directly across from your dorm room. I'll bet that's what got him into his mad plot of using you and your magic to create a weapon."
"Ace…I'm a little scared right now. What if something like this happens again?"
"Angie," said Cosmo, "that's why you've got friends here to help you out. You don't have to face your problems alone. I oughtta know. I went through that myself before."
"We all did at one point," Ace added. "The important thing to remember is that we're all here now, together, and we can always talk to each other when we're feeling sad or upset."
"Yeah," said Angie. "Like Gwydion said, it's okay for me to be upset about things. It's just the way I tend to react to being upset or angry that's the problem for me…and acknowledging those feelings openly instead of hiding them."
"Don't worry, Angie," said Ace as he rubbed his hand in her hair. "You actually did right by taking out some of your frustration on that punching bag at Ashley's home when you had to go to that parole hearing. Exercise can be of help as well. Now, there will be times when it may be difficult for you to completely control your emotions."
Cosmo interjected, "Hey, dude, it'll be cool. We'll figure things out together."
Angie looked at her two closest friends with a smile. "I like the way the word 'together' sounds right now. I appreciate everything both of you have done for me in the three years I've been here. I know I'm truly part of a family, not a team of performers."
Zina then jumped on the sofa and started licking Angie's face.
"Okay, Zina, okay, I'm sorry," the female magician said in laughter. "I forgot you're family, too. Okay, stop, stop! C'mon, Zina!"
The two gentlemen laughed themselves, as Angie was right. She was in a rather unique but very special family.
"Let's see," said Ace. "It's too late to start cooking dinner, so let's go to the Scorpio Club, my treat."
"You serious, dude!?"
"Yes, I am, Cosmo. We've been through a lot in the past few days, and Angie, you need a break from cooking. So, how about it?"
"Ace Cooper," said Angie happily, "you've got yourself a deal, since I'm the one getting us the discount."
Knowing Zina could not go to the restaurant, Angie made a promise to her. "I'll get you a big New York-style steak, okay, girl?"
Zina let out a joyous growl of approval.
Just after they left, though, Zina had a mysterious glow of blue light around her. No, Ace had not told Angie about how Zina assisted him in finding her in Washington, at least, not yet…

THE END

Angie now knows Ace's past, which has given her a better understanding about herself, as she went through almost the same things in her own life. She also knows just how powerful her magic really is, after learning she really did help Ace escape from the water torture chamber in time. Her next step now is trying to keep her powers in check, especially when becoming highly emotional. Being around her "family," though, she knows she will not have to do this alone.