Life was feeling normal again. I no longer felt as if I was walking in a dream. It was time for me to face all that had happened and explain it to my friends. Alexander was dead. We were free. We couldn't be stopped, and there was work to do. I passed Alexander's notebook around the table. Several entries had been marked by me because I felt that they were very important. Beverly, Roy, and Tyla looked over the pages carefully. I watched as their eyes went from shocked, to angry, then to confused.

  "Well, at least we now know what the fumes are," Roy said after a moment.

  "How awful," Beverly sighed. Tyla glanced around, as if thinking of something happy to focus on.

  "Things could be worse. At least we know the truth now," was all I could think to say.

  "This explains a lot. But I do still have a few questions," Tyla piped up.

  "Well, I'll do my best to answer. What do you want to know?"

  "The whole tearing doors down thing. What the heck! How did you do that?" she asked.

  "I would like to know too," Beverly added.

  "I think I might have missed something. Someone fill me in, please," said Roy.

  "Tiffany can break through double bolted doors now," Tyla said. They were all looking at me now. Right, I really needed to tell them. This would be a little chunk of good news to cheer them up. I smiled.

  "I guess the short version is I found out that my Adamantine is much stronger than I had thought. If you look through enough of his journal entries, you'll see that he describes the Adamantine as being almost like a reflection. It reflects the emotional and mental state of the one who carries it. These effects are shown in the body. Intense fear can cause the Adamantine to change your body's abilities. The stronger you feel, the stronger your Adamantine will make you." Their eyes were shining now. It was an idea that was as crazy as it was wonderful. If it wasn't for the fact that I had already felt this effect, I wouldn't have trusted it

  "That's so... amazingly weird. I don't know what to say!" Beverly was the first to speak. Tyla laughed softly. Suddenly, the air felt lighter. It seemed as if some of the heaviness had been lifted. I smiled.

  "I guess that Alexander just pushed me to an extreme I had never known before. That was what gave me the strength to face him. It's funny, the moment I made up my mind to do it, it became easier," I said. If Tyla had been born with the Adamantine she'd probably be more powerful than anyone else. I also found the thought of Tyla having that much power terrifying. But her will was strong enough on its own. After all, she had made it so far on her own. That thought sparked a new question.

  "How did Alexander find you?" I asked. A strange look crossed Tyla's face.

  This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

  "Um, well, I was hanging out in a hotel. I wasn't sure where to go. I thought I could just hang out in the city and not be spotted." I glared at her. Long ago, I had learned to spot that look that she had on her face right now.

  I rested my hand on her shoulder. Sure enough, a memory was filling her mind. She had come back for me. Of course. I didn't know if I should smack her or hug her.

  "Liar," was all I said. I tried to keep my voice stern and steady. "I told you to stay away."

  "I-I couldn't leave you! I didn't have anybody! My new friends and all of my family had been taken away a--" she paused. "I'm sorry. I should have listened to you, I should have trusted you!"

  "Yes, you should have!"

  "I--I'm sorry. I promised myself I would trust you more. I will. Now that things are over, I will. Nothing like this will ever happen again!"

  "Oh, Roy! Could you help me move the stuff out of the thing, please?" Beverly asked suddenly.

  "Sure!" They were out of the room in a flash. Tyla and I froze. I hadn't noticed just how loudly we were yelling at each other.

  "You shouldn't have come back," I said more softly. But if she hadn't, I wouldn't have found the strength to fight Alexander. But I didn't say that, I was busy scolding her.

  "I'm sorry," she said again.

  "I need you to trust me."

  "I do trust you!"

  "Can I trust you with a secret?" An idea tickled at the back of my brain. I should tell her. She had a right to know. Telling her my secret would no longer put her in danger now that Alexander was dead.

  "Would you like hear one?" I asked. Her eyes were glowing like gemstones now.

  I lowered my voice even more.

  "I can read minds," I whispered.

  "Oh, that explains a lot."

  "You aren't surprised?"

  "Not really. I mean, I didn't think you could. But I'm convinced there isn't anything that you can't do," said Tyla. I smiled at her.

  "Maybe there isn't."

  "Tyla! Come look at this!" Roy called out suddenly.

  "Coming!" I felt surprised but also happy about Tyla's reaction to the news. I had expected her to feel shocked and angry. Maybe I didn't know her as well as I thought I did. I closed my eyes and savored the stillness in the room around me. Outside I could hear the soft but cheerful voices of my friends. Oh, how good it felt to be alive! I opened my eyes. There was even a certain kind of beauty in those awful, blinding lights that surrounded me. The way they lit up the walls and made things shimmer was truly breathtaking. I caught a glimpse of my reflection in the smooth polished marble of the table. I looked tired but happy. I wasn't a god. I had power, but at the end of the day I knew who I was. I was Tiffany Walker. Nothing more, nothing less. I was perfectly happy to be Tiffany Walker forever.

  "TIFFANY!!" Tyla's voice shattered the stillness in an instant. "Mama and Papa! They're awake now!" she cried.

  "What, really?" I leaped to my feet. There were tears of joy in Tyla's eyes. We flung ourselves down the hall. My heart felt light as a feather as I ran. A part of me wanted to laugh, a part of me wanted to cry. A part of me didn't know what to do. I grabbed Tyla's hand and pulled her in the right direction. Happy memories were spinning around in her mind

  I had never run so fast before in my whole life. We burst into their room. Was I dreaming? Or were those my parents? Roy and the guard were talking to them. They were looking around the room with sleepy and confused looks on their faces. For a moment I could only stare at them as Tyla screamed and attacked them with hugs. This was real. They were awake now; things were getting better.

  "Are you two alright?" Papa asked right away. I opened my mouth to answer him, but nothing came out.

  "My goodness! Tyla, what happened to your face?" Mama asked suddenly.

  "A lot has happened, okay!" Tyla sobbed into her mother's shoulder. That was true. At last, I found my voice.

  "We have quite the story to tell you," I said.