Chosen Destiny (Book Seven of the Chosen Universe)

CHAPTER FORTY-EIGHT

CHAPTER FORTY-EIGHT
ELLIOT

As Jezzeff glowed with power, he vanished into a portal. The shield shattered. Elliot ran to Dora and pulled her into his arms.

"Not again... Not again..." He began whispering over and over as tears streamed down his cheeks.

No one dared to move at first. Then, slowly, Patti began to cry. Cooper wrapped her in his arms and tried to comfort her. Stephanie and Lachlan were both crying, too. Lex was clearly struggling not to. The cats made mournful sounds.

"Not again..." Elliot continued to repeat, his voice only a whimper now.

Charleigh knelt beside him, remaining stoic as the leader because someone had to. "I'm sorry, Elliot," she said softly as she diligently checked for a pulse. "Jezzeff stole all of her life force. Dora is gone."

"No," Elliot insisted stubbornly. "No, she's not... I'll fix this. I'll stop it..."

"El... You aren't dreaming this time," Lex said gently.

"We can find a time traveler. We can prevent this!"

"Jezzeff will only go back in time, too," Stephanie pointed out sadly.

"It's not real... It's not real!" Elliot insisted. He couldn't do this again.

He felt himself starting to slip in and out of the realm. His body was becoming unstable. This had never happened before, but Elliot understood he was losing control of his powers. If he didn't get a grip on himself soon, he'd be torn apart, scattered across different realms, and he wouldn't come back this time. He wasn't sure that he cared anymore.

"Elliot..." A new voice said. Elliot looked up and saw Reyzzo approaching him with someone he didn't know by his side. The stranger seemed oddly familiar.

"Stay back, Mother Fucker!" Cooper snapped.

"We're here to help," the other person said. "I'm Jy, Son of Braydee and Ezzex, and the only other survivor of the original Children of the Flames."

"Reyzzo works for Jezzeff!" Stephanie replied. "He's not here to help!"

"Consider this my resignation," Reyzzo said. He paused. "Between Jy breaking Sezzon's loyalty spell and Aiyana attaching Leffy to me, I've seen the error of my ways. I want to help. Elliot is my brother. I've never had a real family before."

"Why the hell should we believe you?" Cooper demanded.

"You shouldn't. You have no reason to trust me... But only Jy and I can ground Elliot now."

A portal opened. Tazzan landed in front of them with Leopold. He looked at Dora and genuine sadness appeared on his face before he turned angry again.

"Let them help," Tazzan said. "If you don't, we'll lose Elliot, too."

The team reluctantly stood down. Tazzan looked at Reyzzo and Jy and said, "No funny business, Incubi, or I'll put you both down myself."

"Understood," Reyzzo agreed. He and Jy each put one of their hands on Elliot. As their energy filled him, he felt his power surge. The Flames wrapped around all three of them. Only then did his energy calm down. His body stopped phasing in and out and he was able to breathe again.

Elliot began sobbing as the truth sank in. "I came back to save her and I still couldn't stop this," he whispered.

Reyzzo and Jy did not release him. Jy used his free arm to gently rub Elliot's back. It was soothing, but it wasn't enough. Nothing could comfort him now.