The Dismal Silence (CC/MM, Teen) 1/1 04/03/10

[PML]

Title- The Dismal Silence

Disclaimer- Roswell is not mine and no infringement is intended.

Category- CC-M/M

Rating- Teen

Summary- This is a companion piece to A Kiss to Build a Dream On. It takes place not long after Kyle reaches the Evan’s apartment to confront Tess. (Chapter 20) That is the Thursday before Christmas. The man who would have died is now safe, at this point his fate is safe. Theses stories take their place.

Naturally it would be much easier to read if you have already read Kiss up to that point. But I will strive to make it accessible on its own. Just understand that Liz is in a very bad place, and Tess is influencing people in her immediate area unconsciously. Inducing emotional rollercoaster rides that will drive much of the rest of the story.

Hope you enjoy

Michael-

Michael felt stupid as he snuck into the hospital. Why should he have to play commando just to be with the one he loved?

Because he loved her there was not doubt about that. Not now. It has been said by countless fools that you don’t truly know what you have until it is gone.

And he knew very much do his sorrow how true it was. Because he had known intellectually how important Maria had become, but he still hadn’t done enough to show her how much he truly cared.

Because she frightened him. How silly was that. Here he was a powerful hybrid, with what were essentially super powers, and he was frightened of a girl.

A girl who had only ever been, well maybe not always only been kind to him. Because she hit him a lot. But she had been there for him. She yelled and argued, and honestly he had enjoyed most of it. Not all of it, to be true. But he enjoyed it so much more than this dismal silence that surrounded him now.

He raised his palm to stop another of the cameras before it could see him. Nothing permanent, just a temporary seize while he sneaked by.

That was another thing that Maria provided. She magnified his powers. She sharpened his focus. It had gotten to the point where she didn’t even have to be with him anymore. But with her in his mind, with her along in a spiritual capacity, he could do things he never could before.

Needless to say he had never mentioned this to anyone. He could already hear Isabel’s laughter and see Max’s amused smile. Maybe Maria would get it, but it would just be one more piece of ammo for her in their arguments. And seriously, he did not need to give her more to play with.

Or at least he hadn’t

Now she was in a coma. The doctors didn’t really know why. Her brain was concussed but not horrifically. Not like the damage she had suffered inside.

For one thing, if she ever woke. No make that when she woke, because she would. No matter how bad the odds against it. She simply had to. No, when she recovered she would never walk again. Her back had been broken in several places. She was at the very least a paraplegic. Even if the spinal cord was able to be adjusted enough for her to regain some feeling, both hips had been simply shattered. Her legs snapped like twigs in multiple places and one knee cap……

‘God, I wish I could help her.’

Yeah, he was to the point of asking a God he did not believe in for help. But she had believed. That had to matter right? He wouldn’t not help her because her boyfriend did not believe, right?

His own powers were definitely not up to the task. Good enough that he could feel every break and strain. Note every internal injury. He could see it all. He just couldn’t fix it.

And Max. Max could fix it. But without her to connect to, without her mind in play he would fry her while he did the repairs.

It had taken a long time to understand exactly why Max needed to connect to someone. But Michael had spent a lot of time this summer quizzing Tess. And the blonde had known a ton about the theory behind their abilities.

She’d been such a help to him this summer. Had made him safe. He understood why the others didn’t trust her, and in truth he didn’t either. He didn’t hate her. In fact he was fond of her.

But trust was a coin he was very sparing with. He wasn’t even totally trusting with his fellow hybrids anymore.

Both Tess and Isabel were holding secrets, and his relationship with Max was rocky at the moment.

No, the only person he really trusted now was himself and Maria. And if Maria died…..

Michael blinked back a tear. He paused a moment to get a hold of himself before he continued.

It was so strange to be here this late. He hadn’t seen anyone. Not even at the nurses station. They all must be doing something.

Well it was making his sneaking easier.

He crept up to Maria’s room. It was also empty of people but the machines that were keeping her alive made up for the noise. Looking at her, so pale, tubes sticking into her…..

It just hurt him so bad. Her body broken, her voice stilled.

And Max could not help her as long as she remained comatose. The whole time she had been in surgery had been hell on earth for him. It was funny, but he had actually bonded a little with Amy over it. She had finally seen him as more than a threat to her daughters virtue.

On the whole it wasn’t worth it. He would much rather he was lying on that hospital bed, with all that it would mean, than she was.

He loved her.

And he had never told her. He had taken from her flashes that had shown her deepest thoughts and desires and had never been brave enough to share himself.

If he had one regret, that would be it.

He reached over and touched her pale skin. “I’m so sorry Pixie, I wasn’t fast enough.”

She just lay there. No change. No movement. Still. Silent.

“Please wake up. Please?”

He touched her skin and with his powers reached into her. Not to her body, that he sailed through wincing at what his powers told him. But he reached her mind, and felt along there.

There was something there…. She was dreaming. And he could feel her dreaming mind.

He tried and tried but he could not enter. Not fully. But he felt as her dream shifted. As it sort of incorporated him. She was dreaming of him now. Part of him was there.

Maybe, maybe he could influence it. She could obviously sense him or part of him.

Maybe he could rectify his worst mistake. Maybe, maybe he could still tell her that he loved her.

Maybe he wasn’t too late after all.

So he focused his mind on the gossamer of her dream. And pushed his love, his memories, his life down that link. He could feel it change. Could feel his sense of her change.

And her eyes winked open. She looked around fearfully. She tried to talk, but the tubes down her throat kept her from doing it.

He was curious about whether she could now breath on her own. It would get him in trouble, but… No he should call Max first. It had been easy enough to sneak in. This would be the perfect opportunity.

Only, it was late. Calling wasn’t an option. And could he leave her. She looked up at him with such need. He could feel the fear roll off of her.

“You were in a bad car accident.” He gloried at the sensations that now rolled along from her along where they touched. Was this what he had feared? This connection to her?

“I need to call, Max. I’ll be right back.” He moved, but he stopped as he felt her starting to panic.

She couldn’t move, and she couldn’t feel her legs.

And she was scared.

So he held her. He rubbed her arms and the both cried. Her green eye meeting his brown. “I will never leave you Maria. Not like your father. I, I love you. Even like this.”

“How sweet.”

Michael turned around.

It was Ed Harding.

“You, you are dead.”

“Now did you really think I could die so easily, what with all four of you pouring your energy into me so near the Granolith itself. No, I just moved into the rock to heal. It took me a little while, but I got better. And what do I find? All of you abandoning your mission for these, these worthless creatures. And you, you seemed so ardent to do what was demanded of you by your duty. What happened, when did your devotion fail. When did you become so, weak.” He vaguely gestured at Maria.

“Where have you been? We’ve needed help, needed information. What exactly have you been doing?”

“I’ve been trying to protect you. You didn’t need me waiting on you hand and foot. For a little while I was starting to have hope that things would progress the way they should. But all of you have disappointed me. Not in your abilities, but in your devotion. Why are you not at Isabel’s side? She needs you now, more than ever. Don’t you know how damaging the things she learned could be to her? You let her find comfort for the mistakes of her past in the arms of a human?”

“What’s wrong with Alex? The kid tends to babble, but he’s tougher than he looks. Braver too. And Isabel loves him.”

“Alex? As in Alex Whitman?”

“Yes, who did you think I was talking about?”

“I may have made a mistake. Hmm. Well likely that man would still have used his leverage at some point or other.”

“You killed Grant.”

“The man had no right to be doing what he was doing.” Nasedo looked at him deeply, “You have no idea what your flighty bride to be was up to with him, were you?”

“Isabel is a big girl. She can take care of herself.”

“I beg to differ. I really do. She maybe as smart as she was on Antar, but she is still as foolish.. Here, take this if you don’t believe me.” Nasedo tossed a couple of pieces of paper to him. “Go on, take a look at your bride to be.”

Curious he turned the paper over. It was a smiling Isabel, basking in the summer sun, artfully posed. And very naked.

He looked away and then looked guiltily over at Maria whose eyes could track him, but could not quite catch who he was talking to. He could see tears of frustration in her eyes.

He smiled back at her.

She couldn’t with all the devices stuck down her throat helping her breath.

“So you can see that your Isabel needs more supervision that you thought. So why are you wasting time here with a stupid primitive.“ .Nasedo touched the wall and for just a brief second everything wend dark. And then lit up again. Nasedo sighed, “Backups.”

“You aren’t here for me. There is no way you could know that I would be here. You are here for her. For Maria.”

“You life will be less complicated with her gone, Michael. It will allow you to follow the path you were born to.”

“Destiny. I can imagine doing my duty. And perhaps in time I will. Once I know and understand what it is. But to command me, to desire my service, are not they, are not my people supposed to help me as well?”

“That is why I am here, Michael. Trust me that this will help you. You will understand in time.”

Michael blinked for just a moment and then just blasted Nasedo. The room was filled with a golden bright light. Some of the machinery in the adjacent rooms went dead.

Maria’s room was unaffected.

Nasedo flew across the room. And he lay still.

“I will never serve your cause. If you are all that Antar has to offer me, then never.”

Nasedo got up and brushed off his clothes. “I see you’ve been practicing. Very good. Still not perfect, but much improved from the last time I saw you. I will have to thank Tess for being such a good teacher. Blasting was never her strength.”

Michael blasted again, but somehow Nasedo stopped it.

“You didn’t know I could do that, did you? Really Michael, there is so much I can teach you. Just let her go. All holding on to her will do is lead to more pain. You have already foolishly started the bonding process, just imagine how much more her death is going to hurt when that is complete?”

“You are not killing her.”

“Very well, since you won’t back down. I will have to correct you Michael. You are still a child after all. And children do need their discipline.” Nasedo threw a blast at Michael.

He knew he could dodge, but if he did the blast would hit Maria. So he took it and flew back against her bed.

How had he caught that blast? What had he done. His mind moved quickly over what his sense, his alien senses had felt.

And he felt something else. Maria’s hand softly reaching out to his.

He briefly turned and caught her eye. And knew. That she loved him and had confidence in him. To protect her, to protect himself.

To defend and protect them.

Michael stood up and faced Nasedo.

Nasedo’s face showed a tiny bit of respect. “So you show some resolve. But that will not be enough.”

Michael blasted him out of the room. With Maria supporting him, he could do anything. A sense of euphoria began to descend on him.

Not quite battle lust, but a sense of incredible focus. He smiled again at Maria and walked out to eliminate the threat. Once more he wondered at the lack of people. Where was security? Shouldn’t they have reacted to the power outage.

But it seemed that once he left the critical care area the lights were solely on back up. Power must be out inside the entire hospital.

Still what of the patients?

He walked down the hallways, blasting at Nasedo. Deflecting the return blasts.

He came across a group of bodies. They weren’t dead. Just deeply asleep.

How, why? Did Nasedo have some weapon that Michael didn’t know about? Something that would knock people unconscious?

Round and round the hospital they went. Until Michael chased him down stairs to a large room. Michael could hear the generator hum with power.

But he was caught in the chase, in the need to find and destroy Nasedo. Their blasts flew back and forth. Finally he cornered Nasedo right in front of a large circuit breaker box.

Nasedo stood there panting, “You know, you show true promise. I think with a little work you will be ready.

Michael just reached in and blasted for all that he was worth. Trying to reduce the shape shifter to his component atoms.

But his blast missed

Nasedo sunk into the Stone foundation, almost disappearing.

Michaels blast went and hit the box. There were sparks and everything went dark.

Michael used his powers to make a small light. He looked around now frightened and looked around for his enemy.

Why hadn’t Nasedo pulled that trick before. If he could move through solid objects….. There were numerous occasions where it would have given the shifter an advantage.

Nasedo had been toying with him all along. But why?

“Very good. Very good, Michael. Now how long do you think you little bird will last without all those complicated machines? It’s a pity, she had such a sweet voice. I might have spared her if I thought you would ever leave her. But I know you, I do. Always stubborn, always headstrong.”

“You, you monster.”

“I wasn’t the one who destroyed the back up generator, Michael You did. I am sure that in time you will realize that it really was for the best. Good bye for now.”

“Wait, where are you going?”

“In the direction you pointed me. Thank you for that. This will save me time.”

“Wait? Wait, there has to be someway you can help me, help her! Please! Please, I will do anything.”

But outside of the tiny pool of power driven light he could only hear silence. He cautiously began making his way back to Maria.”

But he was starting to get nervous, like he couldn’t get enough to breathe.

Panic. He was feeling Maria’s panic, it was so strong. She was dying.

So he raced back to her room, ran as fast as he could. And tripped on a tiny bit of cleaner that must have been spilled in his and Nasedo’s fight. His arms flailed as he tried to catch his balance.

It was not enough. He tripped headfirst into the wall. He was able to buffer the blow slightly with one hand. But he hit very hard.

“Maria!” He cried out in despair as darkness took him.

And he knew no more.