Joey's face remained stern as he killed creature after creature. He tried to remain focused but thoughts of his family and all the good times they had together kept popping into his head. He remembered the times when his brother, Steve, had snuck out with him in the middle of the night to pick up some pretty chicks. He was remembering playing checkers with his nephew, Nicholas, and watching his sister, Janine, sing back-up for some pretty famous musical artists. He remembered Christmases when he was younger and how his parents always used to spoil him rotten. The year he had gotten the Superman cape for his birthday...
Every memory that came to him only made him more angry. It's these filthy, stinking aliens that are to blame. He had no problem dusting them. His conscience never held him back. He didn't think he could make these creatures pay enough for what they had done.
"Especially Emerel..." As if coming out of a reverie, he remembered the Saurian he was truly angry at. Today was the day to extract his revenge. He looked around, trying to spot the leader of this horde of alien lizards. A large Saurian ran into his line of vision, he snatched his arm forward, killing it with his sword.
He walked across the lawn, criss-crossing between Saurians and hunters, looking for his target. Occasionally one of the enemy would slow him down, but he took the time to finish them off.
And then the crowd parted and he spotted who he had been looking for. There Emerel stood, pushing the seemingly lifeless JC towards the edge of a window ledge. Joey started to run but he was too late. He watched in horror and Emerel braced JC against the very edge and push him off. Joey saw JC fall off the edge and he knew Josh would die from that fall.
"Nooooooooo!! Emerel!!" Joey screamed, trying to get the creature's attention.
Emerel looked up with a frown, annoyed that someone was interrupting his moment of triumph. A smile spread across his face as he recognized the hunter running towards him. He smoothly climbed down from the ledge and advanced towards the young man.
"Well, if it isn't the last Fatone! Were HAVE you been keeping yourself?" He smirked.
"Oh, I've been around. I believe I owe you something.." Joey tried his best to remain calm. He knew he would need all his strength and concentration to outwit Emerel.
"You do, huh? Well, I can't wait to find out what it is!" He placed his hands on his hips and waited for Joey to make the first move.
"You know what, Emerel? You talk too much!" Joey lifted his laser gun and advanced. Emerel laughed as he shoved Joey to the side, causing him to shoot a tree instead.
"You think YOU can beat me, Fatone!?! The mighty Mallory McMallard couldn't. Your precious 'JC' couldn't. Why on earth do you think you can?"
Joey was tired of all this talking. He bent down and did a spin kick, attempting to knock Emerel off his feet.
***
Justin placed Lance beside JC's body.
"Justin?"
Justin nodded and placed his hands on JC's chest. After a moment, he looked up at Lance and shook his head. "He's dead. There's no heartbeat, nothing. It looks like his neck was broken."
Chris looked away so that the other guys couldn't see how upset he was.
"What do we do now? I don't think Joey will be able to hold Emerel off much longer..."
Justin said and pointed to where Joey and Emerel were fighting. Emerel held Joey by the neck and Joey struggled for air.
"He's choking him!" Chris yelled and looked at Lance for direction.
Lance looked down in sorrow at his friend. "But he's supposed to live. The prophecy said he would live."
"Maybe he's not the one, Lance. The point is, none of us are going to live if someone doesn't stop Emerel!" Chris was getting desperate. If Mallory and JC couldn't defeat Emerel, he knew that him and Justin couldn't and he wasn't willing to risk Justin's life, not after protecting it for so long.
Lance gave up and collapsed to the ground. He had been holding on in hopes that he could help JC but now it seemed all for naught. Nicolette was dead, JC was dead and it looked like Emerel was going to win.
Justin saw Lance hit the ground and knew it was up to him and Chris now. "Chris! Go help Duke! He needs to free Mallory. It looks like her and the Ducks are our only hope. I'll stay here and heal Lance."
"No, I'm not leaving you here by yourself! Not so close.." he pointed at Emerel, "to HIM."
"Chris, please! We have to do this! Hurry!"
Seeing no better course of action, Chris took off to do as he was told. Justin looked down at Lance and began to work his magic.
***
Josh's pain was enormous. He almost screamed out in agony but something was telling him that wouldn't be a good idea. He opened his eyes to the sight of the night stars above him. Noise surrounded him in an echo. He couldn't quite place the cause of it. He looked to his right. There he saw Emerel holding Joey by the neck. By the look on Joey's face, JC knew he couldn't breathe. It was all the motivation he needed to get on his feet. He lifted himself up as quick as he could, but everything felt like it was in slow motion. He reached into his boot and pulled out the safeted laser gun he had hidden there earlier in the day.
He began to inch over to his opponent. Emerel was only feet away but to JC's tired body it felt like miles. Pain exploded all over his body again. He doubled over. The change... he thought to himself. I must've just gotten my third death. He pulled himself back upright as he felt all of the pain start to seep away. Apparently this change didn't need as much time as the others had.
"Emerel!" JC screamed in confrontation.
Emerel recognized JC's voice and whipped around in wonder. "I guess the Prophecies WERE true. It doesn't matter. This time I'm finishing it!" He snatched the gun from Joey's hand and threw Joey backwards across the yard. Joey landed with a thud and rolled over, choking.
JC was in no mood for conversation. He dropped into a stance and prepared for Emerel's assault. When Emerel was only inches away, JC jumped into the air, flying over Emerel. He did a somersault in mid-air and landed directly behind the Saurian. Emerel spun around and slashed at the air. JC side-stepped and brought his leg around to catch Emerel in the back of the knees. Emerel's legs buckled and he fell forward. JC jumped down on top of his back and raised his arm to for the final laser blast.
As if they had all been called, all the remaining Saurians on the lawn sensed Emerel's danger. They stopped what they had been doing and rushed to aid their leader. Some of them were stabbed by the others as they ran towards the fallen Emerel.
JC heard the commotion and looked up to see the stampede of Saurians charging down upon him. He looked at his friends. Chris was helping Duke lift Mallory from her cage as the Saurians left them to attack JC. Justin was leaning over a badly hurt Lance, intently focused on what he was doing. Joey was still holding his throat and choking but he leapt to his feet as he saw what was happening. He tried to run over to JC to protect him but the sea of creatures were between him and JC.
JC knew this would be his only chance. He took a deep breath and shot Emerel with his laser. As he did so, Emerel's followers began to beat down on JC, trying to save Emerel. JC hit the ground as his victim died off. He tried to fend off the Saurians all around him, but there were too many. He felt various parts of his body being bitten and stabbed and still he fought against them. He was trapped under all of them and he fought courageously.
He felt a slight release of pressure as one by one the Saurians began to give up and vanish in a flash of green. It gave him renewed hope and he struggled even harder. Soon he could spot Joey, Justin, Chris, Duke, Wildwing, Mallory, Nosedive and Lance slinging the Saurians out of their way as they tried to get to him. He smiled, knowing in that moment how lucky he was to have them as friends.
He fought until the last Saurian disappeared and then he fell to his knees. Then he allowed himself to feel the pain from the attack. His entire body was covered in wounds, bites and tears. He resigned himself to fate. He had done what he had come to do. He had conquered Emerel.
"Kara," he said softly as he fell to the ground.
The guys rushed to his side. Lance lifted his body into his arms. Justin wasted no time in reaching out for JC, trying to get to him before it was too late. Justin closed his eyes and searched.
All the guys remained silent as Justin leaned over their friend. Lance couldn't stand to see his friend in such condition. Lance began to sob silently, no longer able to hold in all the pain he had experienced in just one evening. "Come on, Josh. You're going to make it. The prophecies said so." Lance tried to have faith in the story that seemed to have become true right in front of them.
Justin moved away from the body and sat down heavily. He closed his eyes and placed his head in his hands. "What's the point of being a Healer when I can't do anything!!!" Justin screamed at the night sky. Tears flowed down his face as he turned to look at Lance.
"What do you mean you can't do anything! He's still alive! I can feel him breathing!" Lance yelled desperately.
"He's not human anymore, Lance. I can't heal him if he isn't human!"
Joey grabbed Justin by the shoulders. "What do you mean he's not human!!"
"Hey! Let go of him!" Chris demanded in defense.
Joey let go of Justin and apologized. "I'm sorry, Curly, I'm just upset..."
Justin nodded. "It's okay. I understand."
Lance gasped as JC opened his eyes. "Lance?" JC said hoarsely.
Lance wiped the tears away from his face and turned to look at JC. "Yes, Josh? What can I do?"
JC smiled. "You guys have been the best friends anyone could ever have, do you know that?" He looked at Joey, Justin and Chris individually and then looked back at Lance.
"Lance, I did what I came here to do. I finished now. Kara is waiting for me..."
"No, you can't go, Josh! We still need you. Fight it! Please, you're my friend." Lance pleaded.
"Yes, I am. As my friend, I need you to do something for me.."
"Anything! Just hang in there." Lance looked at Justin again, anguish in his eyes. Justin shrugged and looked away. "I can't do anything for him, Lance. I'm so sorry!! I wish more than anything that I could."
"Lance," JC whispered. Lance back down at the dying body in his arms. "I need to continue where I left off. I need you to..." There was more coughing. "I need you to help these guys finish what we've begun."
"But you've defeated Emerel, JC. It's over."
"No, it's not. Not while aliens of his type are still living. We defeated Emerel's army but he's not the only one out there scheming. I need you to promise me..." JC's voice trailed off.
"JOSH!!" Lance began to shake him, hoping to bring him back. "Don't you die on me now. Not after all of this!! JOSH!!" Josh's body went limp in Lance's arms. "No, no, no. Wake up, Josh! Wake up!" He began shaking JC violently in desperation.
Joey walked over and pulled Lance away from the body. Lance struggled to push Joey away and run back to JC. Joey held him tighter. "Lance! He's really gone this time."
"But he CAN'T BE!!" Lance retorted.
"I've been told the prophecy story all my life, Lance, I think I know it," Joey said forcefully. "It doesn't say JC will live three times, it says he will LIVE ON. And after tonight, he definitely will do that. No one will forget the name Joshua Chasez after today. Parents will be telling stories about him to their kids. Besides, that was Josh's 4th death. Emerel snapped his neck earlier, that was his third."
Lance shook his head in denial. "Nooo," he moaned quietly. "I can't handle anyone else dying...."
Justin felt completely useless. I can't believe I couldn't cure him!!
"We have to let him go, Lance. He's with Kara now. He did what he wanted to do. He was my friend too, you know."
Chris and Joey walked over and lifted an end of JC and began to carry him over to their van. "Come on, Lance," Joey said, "we have to go-"
"Wait!!" He was cut short by Justin's pleading call. "I think I know how to cure him."
Lance looked at him with skepticism, "But earlier you claimed you couldn't do anything for him..."
"I know. But I might just be able to give up my Healer abilities to Josh."
They all stared at him like he was crazy. "Jus, how will that help him?"
"Don't you see, Chris? When I got my powers the duck said that if I really wish for someone like Josh to be healed I can give up my abilities. I can sacrifice it to save him!"
He made his way over to where JC had been laid and placed his hands on him. Closing his eyes, he concentrated solely on giving Josh the powers and then felt as if he were giving a part of him to Josh....
The group was awestruck as a blue mist surrounded both Justin and JC. Lance had to shield his eyes as it brightened immensely, making it impossible to look at both of them. When it disappeared he rushed to their side as Justin took his hands off of JC's chest. Everyone expectantly waited for any sign of life in him but he didn't budge, nor breathe.
Lance felt new tears swell up in his eyes and turned away from the lifeless form, not wanting to soak in the fact that there was nothing they could do for him anymore.
Why Josh? Why'd it have to be Josh??
He buried his face in his hands, trying to hide his sorrow from the others.
"Lance?..."
Lance bolted upright at the sound. It couldn't be! Could it?.. He turned around and came face to face with the smiling form of.......... JC!