The Elementalists

ROBIN

   Mark's gone. I watched him disappear. And I couldn't protect him.

I look down at the letter's I carved in my shirt that spell out his name. It was meant so that I would look down and remember him, since Daemon had said that I would forget about him. But Mark hasn't disappeared from my mind.

I look over at Daemon, who's blinking, and—on the verge of tears—I ask, "Daemon, how are we going to get Mark back?"

Time whirls around to face me, surprise on her face, and I hear Daemon ask, "What? Who the hell is Mark?"

My body grows cold, and I begin to say frantically, "Mark! The Fire Elementalist! Jamal, he's your cousin! Surely you remember him, right?"

Jamal raises an eyebrow. "I think Robin's gone crazy," he tells Daemon.

"I agree," Daemon replies. "Robin, I don't even know who the Fire Elementalist is. I haven't found them yet."

I think back frantically, and blurt out, "But Angel died protecting Mark! I got kidnapped protecting Mark! Liz," I look back, expecting Liz to be gone, but she's still there, "came on a scooter with Mark! Time made Mark disappear, that's why Liz is still here, because she affected just Mark's time, not the time of the people he interacted with!"

Tears fill my eyes, but I hold them back. Surely this is a just a stupid trick they're playing—why would I remember Mark but his cousin not?

"Robin, Angel got shot trying to get you out," Daemon says. "That's all we know. And Liz, she just showed up one day on a scooter."

"Your memories just have Mark removed from them!" I yell. "Daemon, of all people, you know that Time makes people disappear! Look, his name is in my shirt! I carve dit with this knife you gave me right before it happened! Why...don't...you...remember... him...too..." I begin to cry.

Suddenly Time is in front of me, and I start screaming, "No! Get away! What the hell happened to Mark?! Bring him back! Bring him back!" I try to run away from her, but I end up falling onto the ground. She leans down towards me...

And I snap.

Mark's gone...

He disappeared and only I remember him...

First Angel, and now Mark...

My mind goes blank, and fire begins to spin around my body. I hear Daemon and Jamal yelling my name, but I don't care. I don't even think about my actions; I just act on instinct.

And all of a sudden I'm on top of Time, pinning her to the ground, electricity crackling throughout my body. I moved so fast that Time didn't even have time to disappear or jump out of the way.

I hear Daemon yelling at me. "What the hell are you doing?! I told you she can only hurt you if she touches you, and you go a touch her! What the hell has gotten into you, Robin?!"

I barely hear him, though. My mind's only thoughts are that Mark is gone, that I've lost someone else, and that I couldn't protect them. And that's when I pull out Angel's knife and hold it against Time's throat.

Time's eyes widen and she lets out a small whimper. I hold the knife so close to her throat that a small, thin trickle of blood runs down the blade.

And then I say six words that I'm positive the girl wasn't expecting.

"I'm not going to kill you."

Time stares up at me in surprise. I glare at her and say, "Bring Mark back. Bring him back now, and I won't kill you."

"The boy will kill me," Time hisses, "so it makes no difference as to whether I bring him back or not."