Magic from the Heart Part 6

Later on, Ace, Cosmo, and Angie were back at the Express.

While she got everything set up in her room, Ace and Cosmo had a quick discussion in the living room.

"Well, I guess now's the time," Ace said with a sigh.

"You're going for it, dude?"

"Yes, I must. I have to confront her about her own powers and help her understand we don't want to throw her out."

"Good luck."

In her room, Angie placed her family photo on top of the dresser as her mini-disc player was running a tune by a popular recording artist of the 1990s: Sarah McLachlan. The first few lines of a certain song always moved Angie's spirit. "Possession" was a favorite of hers and her mother's because they both had endured crazy lives and weird luck. At the beginning of the song, Angie heard the words, "The night is my companion, and solitude my guide; would I spend forever here, and not be satisfied . . ."

She stopped the player and looked at the photo of her and her parents. "If Mom and Dad were still alive, I wonder what they would think of me right now. I'm so far from home, yet I have this mixed feeling of being both safe and scared: Safe just to be in a home, but scared because of my secret." Walking to the window, she closed her eyes and calmly asked herself a line from that song. "Will I spend forever here, in Electro City?" She opened her eyes again in wonder.

Angie looked outside her window when she said, "Come on in, Ace." Turning around, she noticed the door did not yet open. "That's funny," she said to herself. "I thought for sure he was there already."

The door then opened, and Ace entered the room, only to see the surprised look on her face. "Angie, are you all right? You look like you've seen a ghost or something."

"I'm not so sure, Ace. I could've sworn you were at the door earlier. It was as though I felt or sensed your approach somehow."

"How strange." He sat down on the side of the bed and said, "It's just as well because I need to talk to you about something anyway."

She sat next to him. "I'm all ears, Ace. What is it?"

"Angie, for the strangest reasons I'm able to hear what you're thinking and sense how you're feeling."

"Really?" she asked with a slight anxiousness in her voice.

"Yes. In the last couple of days, I've felt something in my mind, and that something has to do with you, or with your heart."

Angie's eyes grew wider as she grew worried. "I don't understand what you mean, Ace."

He looked straight at her and said, "I know you've been concealing something. You claim to have slipped on water and fell backwards; had trouble sleeping, which is actually true; and experienced both a headache and a stomachache. I know in reality they're all cover excuses because something has been coming from your heart."

"You're losing me here." Her voice began to tremble.

"Maybe this will clear it up. I've had three different visions, and they all involve you doing something."

"What do you mean?" she asked, growing more fearful by the second.

"In the first one, a man on a metal ladder is threatened by an electrical wire, and that man is your father. The second involves using a wild horse to stop a runaway bull from harming some kids. Finally, the last one has to do with a young lady named Ashley falling from a mountain. In every case you're using some kind of magical power to save the people in danger."

Angie stood up and stepped back toward the wall. "How could you know that?" she asked with a trembling whisper. "Only one other person is supposed to know anything about it."

Ace got to his feet, closed his eyes, and in a very low tone slowly said, "Angie, I can sense something very special about you. It seems . . . you have a magical power within yourself, more specifically within your heart."

With her back against the wall, she shuddered. "What are you talking about? There's nothing special about me. I'm just a shy, quiet nobody who can cook, that's all."

"I don't believe you," he said slowly, still low-toned with his eyes shut. "You're hiding this power you possess out of fear. You're afraid Cosmo and I will make you leave if we learn the truth."

"Stop it, all right, just stop it!" Angie yelled as she put both hands to the side of her head in complete fear. "I'm not hiding anything from you!"

"Angie, please, I just want to help you with this. I don't want to hurt you."

"Leave me alone, Ace," she said angrily. "You have no right to learn about my past!"

"But Angie—"

"I said leave me alone!" She then felt the power in her heart stronger than ever. After placing her hands on her heart, the power quickly flowed to her hands, which let her fling her arms out and made Ace fly across the room!

He crashed into the wall and landed hard on the floor.

Angie was shocked at what she had just done. "Oh, no!" she said, fearing the worst. She ran up to him and tearfully asked, "Are you all right?"

After a few seconds, Ace woke up and calmly said, "Oh, I'm fine. Just a slight headache, that's all."

She fell to her knees and broke down into more tears. "I am so sorry, Ace. I did not mean to do that to you." She then placed her hands on her face in shame.

Ace got up to his knees and gave her a consoling hug. "It's all right," he said calmly. "I'm not upset with you. You were just confused and frightened. I know it wasn't intentional."

Angie took her hands from her face, looked at her friend, and simply asked, "Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure." He next made a handkerchief appear in his right hand. "Here, I think you need this."

Taking the handkerchief to dry her eyes and blow her nose, she had a light laugh and said, "Thanks, Ace."

At that very moment, Cosmo and Zina ran into the room.

Panting very hard, Cosmo asked, "What happened in here?"

"Oh, not much," Ace started to answer. "I just ticked Angie off accidentally."

"What do you mean by 'ticked off accidentally,' dude? I heard somebody hit the wall."

Angie said, "Actually, someone did hit the wall." She thumbed at Ace.

"What!?"

"Calm down, Cosmo," said Ace. "Let me explain what happened here."

After hearing the story, Cosmo was surprised. "You mean Angie sent you into the wall with her own magic?"

"That's right, but it also confirms what I've suspected for the last couple of days." Turning to Angie, Ace asked, "You do have this gift, don't you?"

She tried her best to avoid that question but finally caved in. "All right, it's true, Ace. I do have this power, but I consider it more as a curse than a gift."

"But why?"

"I've been afraid of what other people would think. I was already an isolated person for being a study freak, but if anyone else knew about my powers, the situation would just get worse."

"Aw, man," said Cosmo. "That's gotta be tough, but how long have you had your magic?"

"Cosmo, I don't even know. The first time I used it was when I was seven, to save my father."

"You've known about this for 15 years," Ace said. "Did you ever let your parents know about it?"

"No, and unfortunately, they never will know. I wouldn't be the least bit surprised if you already know my parents were killed in a car accident."

"You're right. Angel gave us that information, but why didn't you tell your parents about your powers?"

"I was scared they might reject me, but believe it or not, I was going to tell them on the night of my high-school graduation. When I told Ashley my secret and explained I hadn't told Mom and Dad yet, she made me promise to tell them no later than that night."

"So Ashley," said Cosmo, "is the only other person who knows your secret."

Angie nodded with her answer. "Now as I said, I was going to tell them on graduation night, but just over four weeks before that night came the terrible accident. Two drivers engaged in road rage and put my parents right in the middle."

"Then," said a sad Ace, "you never had the chance to tell them at all."

"I lost the opportunity. I had only used my own powers three times in my entire life. After the accident, though, I vowed never to let this curse come out again. For over five years, I kept it under complete control. Then, when I got here, I started having problems controlling it. I think our handshake may have triggered my powers."

"That would certainly explain everything for the last two days."

"Yeah." Angie put her sad face down and said, "Guys, I'm really sorry for not telling you the truth about this."

Placing his hand on her shoulder, Ace told, "You don't have to apologize for anything, but you had nothing to fear by just telling the truth. Besides, we would never throw you out because of your own powers."

"Ace's right," Cosmo agreed. "You're our friend. You're kind, sweet, helpful, and a great cook."

"Maybe we could call you a 'culinary magician.'"

"That's no secret," Angie said, smiling again as she wiped her face clean. "Mom was the one who taught me how to put some magic into the kitchen."

Ace looked at the clock next to her bed. "It's getting late. I'd better call it a night for now."

He needed the rest, since he and Cosmo had less than two days to have their act ready.

Both Cosmo and Angie decided to go to bed as well.

Angie went to sleep feeling much better about herself yet still very uncertain of her own magical powers. She had no idea the next 24 hours were going to forever change her life . . .

Deep into the night, at a laboratory near the Grand Canal, a giant robot lay dormant. Beager Electronics was a new company in Electro City, and it won a huge contract with a construction company to build a large robot which could help speed up construction of buildings without having to deal with safety concerns to employees. The robot was very experimental, but tests had been successful. The big test was to be on Friday with associates from both companies.

On this night, though, three people all dressed in black had decided to break into the building and steal the robot for criminal purposes. Having already cut the main electrical wire to the security system, they easily went through the main offices and made it to the warehouse where the robot was set up. One of them was incredibly large with plenty of muscle.

"Uh, are you sure about this?" he asked curiously. "It's an awfully big piece of machinery."

"Will you shut up!?" said an average-built man with a slight German accent. "I'm getting sick and tired of your asking questions every few minutes!"

"Clam up, the both of you!" yelled an even thinner man with more of a German accent. "How are we supposed to get this robot out of here with you two bickering!?"

"Get Spade to stop asking so many stupid questions!" said the average-built gentleman. "Clockwise, will you tell Diamond to knock it off? I can't help asking questions."

"Look," Clockwise said angrily. "Black Jack needs this robot to put Cooper out of his misery forever! Now get your act together so we can get it to the boss!"

Frantically searching for the voice-control box, Spade found it on a nearby table. Diamond took the box and started the robot.

Clockwise opened the warehouse door to allow the machine to come out without damaging the building.

Diamond ordered the giant to go to silent hover mode in order for no one to hear it in the night.

Clockwise then communicated by radio watch to Black Jack. "We have the robot, boss."

In his office, Jack looked at his visiophone and gave a nasty snicker. "Very well, Clockwise. Send it over to the Emerson Drive construction site." He grabbed his lucky rabbit's foot and said, "At long last, I have the means to be rid of that accursed Magician once and for all!" He laughed so nastily he started coughing very hard, just another problem in his condition.

The next morning, the sun shone directly into Angie's room. She easily saw the sun in her face and woke up. Angie put on a robe and went to the kitchen to start breakfast. "I'd better make a good meal this morning. Ace and Cosmo are going to need some energy, especially since they have only between now and tomorrow night to be ready."

A few minutes later, Ace was still asleep when his nose detected a tasteful scent. "Bacon and eggs?" he asked himself, sitting up on his bed. "Angie's up already, and I didn't even have to read her mind to know."

Soon, Ace, Cosmo, and Angie were eating bacon, eggs, french toast, and pancakes.

"Mmm," Ace said as he finished his meal. "Another masterpiece from our own culinary magician."

"Cut it out, Ace," Angie stated happily.

"You're embarrassing me. After all, I just need my own two hands to do this kind of magic."

"Speaking of which," Ace noted seriously, "I can tell you're still feeling anxious about your powers."

"Well, why not? I still think of them as a curse."

"I can understand why you're feeling that way. It's never easy to deal with something as strange as this in your life."

"Tell me about it." Angie then realized something. "Ace, I got so caught up in all the buildings yesterday I didn't ask Mona if there were recreational parks in the city."

"I'm happy to tell you there's Keaton Park near the downtown area. Do you need to go there?"

"Yeah, just to think about everything that's happened in the last couple of days."

Angel then popped up. "Ace, Lieutenant Vega's calling."

The three friends went to the study to find out what was happening. Ace saw Vega on the screen and asked, "What's going on, old buddy?"

"Beager Electronics was robbed last night." Vega then explained about the robot being stolen as well as its function.

"Is the robot experimental?"

"Yes, it's a prototype to be tested tomorrow. The scientists were supposed to work out the few bugs left in the robot. Of course, Friedrichs said you did it."

Ace just rolled his eyes. "Oh, brother."

"Don't tell me," said Angie. "Captain Friedrichs doesn't like it when you get involved, right?"

"That's an understatement, Angie."

"He's right," agreed Vega. "Friedrichs doesn't like either one of us because of our less-than-normal procedures."

"You need any help on this?" Ace asked.

"Not yet. It shouldn't be too hard to find a giant robot, unless another magician made it disappear."

Angie suddenly gasped in fear.

"What's wrong with her?"

Vega asked in concern. Ace then explained to Vega about Angie's situation concerning her magical powers. Vega agreed not to tell anyone else about her secret and apologized to her.

"So," started Cosmo, "what'll happen now?" "We'll continue the investigation, but if we get any breaks, you'll be the first to know."

After ending the conversation, Ace took Angie to Keaton Park so she could have a little time to herself away from the Magic Express.

In the park, seeing all the children playing made her smile because there was nothing better to her than to watch kids having fun. She sat down underneath a large tree and closed her eyes just to hear the children laughing. In a matter of minutes, Angie's soul was at complete peace, and she heard that one line of Sarah McLachlan's song over and over again. "Will I spend forever here?" she calmly asked herself. "I just might do that. Even though there is a crime problem, I like it here." The power within her heart came on again, but this time she did not feel so anxious as she had before. "Maybe I shouldn't hide this anymore, but I'm still a little uneasy about—"

She suddenly heard a sound to her left. A baseball had landed next to her. A little boy approached her when she picked up the ball and threw it to him.

"Thanks, lady."

"You're welcome. Don't mind me being here. Just keep playing."

As the boy went back to his game, Angie got up and walked around the park, noticing all the happy faces of parents and kids. It made her return to a time in her life when she and her parents had time to have fun. Returning to reality, she said to herself, "I need to remember the good times with Mom and Dad, not somber over losing them. It's the happy moments that'll get me through."

Back at the Express, Ace and Cosmo discussed the locks on the trunk for the show but then switched to the robot situation. "Why would someone steal a construction robot?" Cosmo asked. "And, like, where can you hide one 20 feet tall?"

"In answer to why, there could be a lot of reasons, such as industrial espionage, selling parts on the black market for money, using the parts to build something else, criminal purposes—"

"Stop. Criminal purposes. Angel, do you know of anyone who's at least tried to set up a deal with Beager?"

Angel appeared and said, "Yes. One week before Beager signed the contract with Windell Construction for the robot, Clockwise was trying to work out a deal to make it for supposed construction purposes."

"If what you say is true," Ace concluded, "Black Jack has the robot, and the only construction he's interested in is that casino on Emerson Drive. The problem is there's no way to prove it. A couple of nearby buildings can easily hide a 20-foot robot, and Clockwise is the master of twisting things around."

"What should we do?" questioned Cosmo.

"At least tell Vega what we know, but as long as we don't know anything else, Black Jack's got the next move."

Angie's spirit was completely immersed in the peacefulness of Keaton Park when she saw the same little boy who found the baseball running after it again. The boy concentrated so much on getting that ball he did not even realize he was running into the street, into heavy traffic!

Angie was the only person who could see the running boy and grew concerned for his safety. Suddenly, the boy's mother yelled, "Billy, watch out!"

Without hesitating for even a second, Angie was not going to see a little boy get hurt. "NO!" she yelled as she fully extended her arms. She began to glow in a light blue aura as the power in her heart quickly reached her hands, and she completely focused on saving that boy.

Billy was about to be hit by a moving truck when he stopped in mid-air and floated backwards into the park.

That very moment, at the Magic Express, Ace could see the image of Angie performing her heroic deed in his mind. "Cosmo," he said slowly with his blue eyes getting wide.

"What's the matter, dude?"

"Nothing's the matter, but Angie just used her own magic to save a little boy's life!"

At the park, Angie continued to levitate Billy back towards her. Billy's mother came up to Angie and watched him land safely on the ground. The mother hugged her child very tightly. "Oh, Billy, I almost lost you."

When Billy mentioned losing the ball, his mother said the ball was replaceable, but he was not. She turned to Angie and happily said, "Thank you for saving my son."

"If there's one thing I don't like to see, it's someone getting hurt." She then kneeled at Billy. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm okay, but how did you do that?"

When a crowd started to gather, Angie took off running very quickly. I sure hope no one saw my face, she thought. I had to do it, though. I had to risk the secret to save that boy. I just pray this doesn't cause any trouble.

On the way to police headquarters, Ace and Cosmo discussed both the robot and Angie. "As soon as we're done talking to Vega," said Ace, "we've got to find Angie. I can sense she's really scared because she had to use her powers in the park."

"Aw, man. I hope she's all right."

"So do I, Cosmo. I'm really worried she might try to isolate herself. To add to the problem, Paparazzo may get wind of this and try to find her."

"Then let's hope he doesn't learn about this."

About an hour later, Angie had used up all her energy running so fast she was very hungry. "It's a good thing I have some money in my pocket. I need it for some food." She found a nearby hamburger stand and bought herself a burger and a soft drink. "It may not be much, but at least I'll have the energy to get home."

When Ace and Cosmo discussed the robot situation with Vega in his office, the telephone rang. After receiving the message, Vega said, "Ace, this call has a person reporting someone other than you using magic to save a boy's life."

"That was Angie, I know. We're way ahead of you; come on, Cosmo." Ace turned to Vega and said, "Sorry about rushing off, but we have to find her before Paparazzo does."

"Of course, I understand."

The two ran out as fast as they could to the Magic Racer. Quickly taking off, they were determined to find Angie before anything could go wrong again.

Fortunately, Angie herself managed to get safely back to the Magic Express. "Oh, my aching legs. I never thought I'd make it back." After coming inside, she took her shoes off and lay on the sofa.

She then heard a purring sound and felt some fur on her right hand. "Hi, Zina," she said in exasperated breath. "You're the best thing I've seen since this morning. I am so tired." She fell asleep, feeling extremely nervous about having to use her powers in a public place for the first time.

Not too long afterward, Ace and Cosmo returned, finding both Angie and Zina fast asleep.

"You were right," Cosmo whispered.

"I knew I could see her getting back here safely." Ace kneeled down and said, "Angie, wake up."

She awakened and noticed the guys. "Oh, you're back. What time is it?"

"Nearly 3:00."

"All I have right now is some chicken noodle soup left. You guys don't mind, do you?"

"Nah," replied Cosmo. "We're gonna need to be healthy for tomorrow night anyway."

Later on, as Angie simmered the soup, Ace got a message from Angel. "Paparazzo's at the door."

Ace opened the door and got the microphone in his face. "Mr. Cooper," said the annoying reporter, "there's a major rumor going around that someone besides you used some magic to rescue a little boy today."

Angie's sensitive hearing easily picked up the noise, so she went to a point just out of sight to hear more. When she heard Paparazzo ask a question about a possible rival magician, she grew highly anxious and quickly ran to her room.

Feeling very upset, she feverishly tried to reach her suitcases in the closet. Cosmo heard the commotion and entered her room to see a shocking sight. "Angie, what are you doing?"

"I'm leaving, Cosmo. I have to go."

"Why?"

"Because I'm a jinx to both you and Ace! Using my own powers is causing everyone to think there's a rival magician on the loose." Tearfully she added, "You two won't be able to concentrate as long as you have a jinxed person around here."

"That's not true," said Ace, entering her room. "You were able to save a boy's life without even thinking twice about it."

"I know that. I'm glad I was able to help him, but now it's caused bad publicity for you." She sat on her bed in despair.

Ace sat next to her and did the best he could to comfort her. "Angie, when Paparazzo asked about whether there was a rival magician, I said no."

"You did?"

"Yeah, because your magic resides within your heart, and no magician, not even I, can ever take that away from you. What you did for that child came from the heart, and to me, that doesn't make you a rival magician. The problem is you keep avoiding what you have, and you can't run away from this forever."

"Why not? It's worked for so long."

"Maybe so, but sooner or later you're going to have to face this, and it may come at a time when you might need your powers."

"Ace, what about that promise I made after losing my parents?"

"I'll be honest here. Even I don't think you'll be able to keep that promise much longer. If you keep fighting this, it may do more harm to you."

"I don't know what to do, Ace."

"Well, maybe this will help you feel better. About half the time, Paparazzo goes on rumors instead of sources."

Cosmo added, "That's true. He goes through anything to get that juicy story."

Angie laughed at the pair's jabbing jokes. "Thanks, guys. I'm feeling a little better now."

Ace smiled and said, "Good, because the Magician doesn't like it when his friends get hurt physically or emotionally."

"Thanks for being such a good friend." Noticing the clock, Angie added, "I need to get to the kitchen and get that soup ready for dinner."

At the Croesus Palace, Black Jack discovered the news on his video screen in his office. "I don't believe it!" he exclaimed. "A rival magician to Ace Cooper? This is just the news I've been waiting to hear, but who could it be?"

"It surely can't be Yago the Fire Magician," Diamond answered. "He's in jail in connection with the crime syndicate."

Clockwise added, "It is not Jimmy Hagen, either, since he kidnapped Cooper and tried to steal his secrets. He is in the psychiatric ward in the hospital."

"So," started Spade, "how can we tell who this new mystery magician is?"

"Our best opportunity," Jack stated, "is to get Ace Cooper into our trap with the robot. We'll lure the mystery magician out into the open by a secret code. When he comes, I can ask him if he would like to work for us."

Clockwise then asked an important question. "What will happen if he refuses to join us?"

"We get rid of both magicians and solve the problem permanently. On the other hand, if the mystery magician does want to work for us, I'll ask him to take care of Cooper to test his loyalty. No matter what happens, it's a win-win situation as we say good-bye to Ace Cooper forever!" He turned to Spade and Diamond and said, "Get that robot ready for a trip to Emerson Drive because tonight will be Ace's last night on this Earth!"

Hours after Ace, Angie, and Cosmo all had their dinner, Angie went to sleep early, still feeling the effects of all that running she had done earlier in the day.

As for Cosmo, he went to bed early as well because he wanted to make sure practice was flawless the next day with the performance just one night away.

The whole evening, Ace paced around nervously because he had two crazy situations with which to deal: Black Jack stealing the construction robot and Angie dealing with her magical powers breaking out.

A few minutes later, Ace sat on the sofa in the living room when Angel told him to come to the computer room. When she explained about picking up an unusual frequency, Ace decided it may be the stolen robot. "Angie and Cosmo are both asleep. I better deal with this one myself. Angel, get the Magic Bike ready."

Soon, Ace found himself at the old apartment building on Emerson Drive. "Angel," he said into his radio watch, "are you sure this is the right place?"

"Yes, this is where the frequency originated."

"I don't see anything unusual here, but I better not take any chances." Grabbing the back end of his cape, he started to yell something. "Magic—" He was suddenly struck from behind, and he fell forward, out cold.

"Not this time, Cooper," said Spade, holding a night stick in his left hand.

Diamond, standing next to Spade, tied Ace's hands and feet with some rope. "Not even your Magic Force can save you now."