Nyx and I thanked the man and ran towards the battle. We could hear it as we neared it. I ran out into the castle gardens. It was a mess. I saw King Ed. Screams echoed. I finally reached Mrs. Darkson, then I froze. King Ed hit her with a black ball. She fell backwards and the ball opened.

To me, it happened in slow motion. A beam of light went into the ball. It landed in King Ed's palm. I knew what had happened. I felt a sharp pain in my chest, like someone had stabbed me with a blade so sharp, it could pierce anything in its way. I ran towards King Ed with all my might. I slammed into him, and the ball fell out of his hands. I caught it and ran to Mrs. Darkson. I fell down next to her.

"You can't win, Amanda," a voice told me. I clutched the ball close to my chest. I felt a hand on my shoulder. "You just have to accept it," he assured me. I wasn't going to listen to King Ed. Not a word. Suddenly, I heard him fall to the ground. Nyx! I turned around, and sure enough, Nyx had tackled him to the ground. The armies were all watching in shock.

I turned back to Mrs. Darkson. I held out the ball with her soul in it. She slowly took it in her hand. Someone else put a hand on my shoulder. I turned around. I was facing a man. "I'm Mr. Darkson. I take it you're Amanda. Let's do this," he told me. I turned back to Mrs. Darkson. The ball was gone, but the pain wasn't. Mrs. Darkson sat up. She looked at me.

"Thank you, Amanda," she told me. She smiled and hugged me. "Why do you have to die?" she cried. She let go and put her hands on my shoulders. "Amanda, just so you know, I'm sorry I left you at the orphanage when you were baby. I'm sorry I was a horrible mother," she told me. The news shocked me. She was my real mom. The man standing behind me was my real father. That explained why I had blonde hair and blue eyes like her.

Suddenly, I felt like the pain was eating me. Mrs. Darkson hugged me tight, tears streaming down her face. "I love you," she admitted.

"I love you too," I responded weakly. My voice sounded if it were going to crack in half. Suddenly, the pain went away. I felt something come. A feeling. Something different then I had ever felt before. Love. I had never felt it in this depth. I hugged my mom with a new strength. I felt another arm around me. Dad. We sat there. King Ed screamed, and it faded into nothing.

"He's gone forever," Nyx whispered. I smiled. We sat there, as a family. As a loving family. Mom turned towards Nyx. She opened up an arm for her. Nyx shook her head. Mom laughed and pulled her in, and we all ended up laughing.