Here we go, a part and its actually on time. Thanks to everyone following along this story. Thank you very much.
Nibbles2- Thank you very much.
Alex and Tess? would I kill them? Looks at other stories. Lets see, Alex is dead in one and both Maria and Max have died in another.... And if we include Sorcerer and Stargazer.... I think Max is the only one who didn't almost die.... No I think the question is whether I would let them stay dead....
Natalie36- Thank you very much.
RhondaAnn- Thank you very much as always. As for Alex and Tess, well see above. As for what Michael is doing, well he is going to try to protect Maria from future invasions by Future Maria. Yep, you're right, you're probably not going to like where this leads. As for Maria, who do you sooth, terrified toddler that you consider your daughter, or bonehead boyfriend who might be trying to do something suicidal to help you.
Keepsmiling7- Thank you.
Disclaimer- Roswell is not mine and no infringement is intended.
Shadows of the Past part 30
Maria-
Maria cradled little Stephanie trying to somehow comfort her.
And to forget that Michael might very well be doing something critically stupid right now.
She just wished that little Stephanie could talk, could somehow communicate with her.
But she couldn’t. It was like she didn’t know how to talk. Maria could feel impressions of her wants and needs. Of what she liked.
No actual communication.
Who was she? Was she a future child? Was she the lost soul of the baby that never was from the timeline Liz had altered?
Maria kissed Stephanie’s forehead and rocked her.
Or was she something or someone different. Someone or something trying to get their attention. But if so why choose a small girl? One that looked so much like her and Michael.
She felt as Stephanie stiffened in her arms.
Fear. Her little girl was afraid of something.
Maria’s powers immediately came to the fore. If something came and tried to hurt her Stephanie it was getting blasted.
A familiar figure appeared. Herself. Her older evil self. “So, my dear, have you made a decision?”
“I will never serve you. How could you do that to me? Make me think that you had sullied my relationship with Michael. You know how much that would hurt! How could you!” She switched her hold on Stephanie, to free up one hand. And a bolt of brilliant green energy flashed toward her older self.
Future Maria easily parried it. “You are rapidly making me lose my patience with you. I need your help. And I will have it. It just would be so much easier if you cooperated.”
“And making me think I was losing my mind is supposed to make me want to help you? Making me think you can impersonate me in my most intimate moments…..”
“Maria. You are vulnerable. I certainly was. I can teach you. Make you able to resist and repel those who would use you….”
“By doing it yourself?”
“If I must. You have a chance at happiness that I never got. But you have enemies that you have no clue of and weaknesses that can be exploited. You in particular. You and a small group of humanity is vulnerable to infiltration and co-option. While just about anyone if vulnerable to mind warps, you and that small group can be possessed. Even as you are now, even now that you are a Companion it can still be done. It is just harder. You have to know. I can help you protect yourself.”
“But you want something in return.”
Future Maria waved a hand and a set of chairs appeared. “Come sit. Maybe I made a mistake. Maybe you can be reasoned with. I don’t remember being particularly reasonable when I was young. Particularly when faced with someone I would consider a potential enemy. And you do consider me one don’t you my dear?”
Maria looked down. Stephanie was holding onto her tight. Staring at her future self. Well alternate self anyway. There was no way she was letting that become her.
She would rather die.
Future Maria sighed, “Of course. Not that I have played this well I fear. My jealousy perhaps. You have so much of what I wanted. Even what you are…. How did they do that? Never mind. It is not important. What is important is that you listen to me. And that you help me.”
“Why?”
“What do you know of the Dardarion?”
“The what?”
“The Fourth race of Aryjhael. The Demons of the Deep. Those who would be as gods?”
“Excuse me? Aryjheal? Demons and gods? Have you completely lost it?”
“Aryjhael was what Antar was once called. Long, long ago. Two thousand? Twenty-two hundred? It is so hard to say. Their years and ours are not the same. Anyway, disaster came to their world. Which was fairly well advanced, more so than we are now. Space travel, colonies on other worlds, that sort of thing.”
“Okay. So why should I care?” Those chairs were looking awfully inviting. For a girl that was just a dream, Stephanie seemed awfully heavy.
“Because their world was destroyed. They knew it was coming but were helpless to stop it.”
This story. It was familiar.
Courtney. Courtney had told her something similar. “A star. It exploded.”
Future Maria looked impressed. “Yes. My you are much more well informed in this timeline. Stop me if you already know what I am going to say.”
Stephanie had calmed down. And the fear had abated. Maria let her down and Stephanie dragged her over to the other chair.
And clambered up to her lap. Her little legs kicking at the air. But the look on her face….
She wanted to hear what her future counter part had to say. Why a child who could not speak cared what was being said….. But then Maria always had the impression that Stephanie could understand them.
She just could not talk.
Very well. What could it hurt?
“Go on.”
“Most of the people of Aryjhael died. But because they knew it was coming, new waves of deadly radiation were coming they prepared various ways for a least a small portion of their people to survive. One group, perhaps the richest, took to the stars. They settled on the colonies that were far enough away to not be sterilized by the blast. These would become the Dardarion….”
“Wait! I was told it was the Mithar…. That the Mithar were the group from the colonies.”
“And so they were. They were once part of the Dardarion. But when the true extent of the horror the rulers of the Dardarion planned….. They rebelled. Some perhaps just wished to stand aside, to not take part in the vile plans of the Dardarion Archons. The Great Schism is what they call it amongst the Mithar. Most probably do not know that they once belonged to the Great Enemy. Not that most Antarans believed in the Great Enemy anymore. Not until they returned.”
“Okay, so there are a bunch of evil aliens. See I knew Tess was evil….” Only she didn’t really feel that way anymore Not anymore.
Future Maria shook her head. “Ava was a proponent of the Eidolon. That mystic claptrap is the remnants of the technologies the Mithar used against the Great Enemy. There was a reason they were allowed to settle on Antar after the war. I know Tess was a bitch, but if you could keep her there it will gain you a little more safety. Our lives would be so much easier if Khivar had not been so keen on exterminating them.” She sighed. “Chalk up another screw up by the Emperor. Although in truth how could he know?”
“Know what?”
“The Dardarion. To them the souls of sentient creatures are nothing more than, than engineering supplies. In my reality we are fighting them. And we are losing.”
“Boo-hoo.”
Future Maria just glared at her. “My world is your world my dear. They are out there. Waiting. And they know about Earth. We are further away, but that will not protect us forever. You, my dear, have more time to prepare. But prepare you must.”
“Okay. So we have to get ready for yet another group of evil aliens. Fine. Bring them on.”
Future Maria had to smile slightly, “Hopefully you will never have to fear them. They are cowards. If the Antarans and their colonies had not weakened themselves. If so many of the Mithar had not been killed. If I had not killed Max.” She looked away.
“Wait, what does Max have to do with this?”
“More than we knew. Ana never trained me to recognize Companions. My Liz was one I suspect. All of those healed by Max are. Somehow he retains a piece of Zan. Memories of how to use the Granolith to amp his powers. For it was not just the Mithar Schism that saved Antar from being consumed and turned into a farm…. It was the Companions. They were made, developed for the purpose of defending Antar. Somehow the Granolith changed them, made them more than they were.
“And that is why I am here. The Destiny Book had been sent as a primer, a way to teach the defective batch how to use their powers.”
“Defective batch.”
“Your friends.”
“You can’t mean… I mean surely you can not believe that the New York set were the real deal?”
“Not really no. They weren’t. But they retained their past lives memories. Your group didn’t. It is there but they can not access it. They were defective. Only Vilandra kept them from being destroyed.”
Maria shivered at the thought of Michael never having existed. Destroyed in a lab on Antar.
Maria shivered again. And felt as her substance as her very essence rippled.
And it hurt.
A lot.
Stephanie clung to her, but she could feel herself fading. Even now the dream world seemed like distant mist.
Future Maria was over in a flash. “What is happening? You can not die on me!”
Maria felt as energy flew into her. It was not gentle. Not like Max’s or Michael’s. But Future Maria was pouring healing energy into her.
She felt as she rippled again…. As if something inside of her were changing…..
As she faded she could see Stephanie’s desperate eyes emploring her to stay…. And she heard, perhaps with her ears perhaps with her mind. “Mommy, don’t leave me!”
And she was gone.
------
Michael-
Michael/ Rath stared down at his love. Pale peach, so different from Reyla’s soft blue or Vilandra’s dramatic bronze.
But he loved her. How he loved his Maria!
Not that his current self had a clue. There had been a time when he’d been considered a ladies man, able to wine and dine with the best of them.
Poor clueless Michael.
Rath chuckled. How did I ever get so lucky? Surely the gods have favored me. Too bad I don’t believe in them.
He closed his eyes and felt along the link that bound them. So very precious. He reached out to touch her cheek. So soft.
Ah, memories.
He could feel his current self, could feel Michael. He was pouring through his memories, tearing himself up to find what he needed.
Maria was vulnerable. In danger. And he Rath might know how to protect her.
Flash-
Cadet Targan sat stiffly at his desk. Rumor had it that Magistra Sofani had left for Antar a few days ago. And she would be gone for some time to take care of her new born child.
But she’d been the only Mithar on staff. Who would teach them about Mithar tactics?
They scared him. The whole thought of being controlled or seeing what wasn’t there….. It really frightened him.
Not that he was about to admit that.
If he managed to get into the Guard like he hoped, he would have to have a high score in this area. The last thing they needed was a rogue Guardsman. There was little doubt that there would be an uprising amongst the Mithar again soon. Seemed to happen like clockwork. And the Guard would lead the way.
He had to be ready.
But without a teacher, how could he be? He didn’t want to be some garrison commander of some backwater fort.
There was the sound of a cane scrapping along the floor. Cadet Targan knew better than to look. Class had started even if the teacher had not arrived. They needed to wait patiently and keep eyes front.
Even if no teacher arrived, the proctors would expect them all to patiently wait for one. Until the class’s scheduled end.
Out of the corner of his eye he saw as one of the old Arch-magisters walked up to the front of the class. Slowly.
He was old. More than two hundred at least. But his eyes were bright as he looked at the class.
“So. This is what we have today. Not as good as I could hope nor as bad as I feared. I will be leading this segment of your training.”
There were a few grumbles. The Arch-magister was not Mithar. What could he teach them of Mithar Eidolonics? No Taran had ever learned more than the most basic techniques.
Even most Mithar found it difficult in the extreme.
“Silence.” The room grew quiet. This man could cause no end of suffering to a recalcitrant cadet. Up to and including expulsion.
“Very good. No obviously I will not be able to warp any of you. I am not a master of Eidolonics. What I can teach you are a variety of techniques that will allow you to resist and repel such attacks. I warn you that they are difficult. And somewhat advanced for many of you. But until we can find an appropriate teacher who meets out stringent requirements, this will have to do.”
Until they found someone they could trust was entirely loyal. And loyal Mithar were in such demand by other Royal Agencies…..
End Flash-
Oh. Of course. She must be one of the wild humans that Vilandra’s scientists used to use to explore Earth. A daughter or granddaughter. But if the threat of possession was real, then it must be dealt with.
Rath could feel Michael pull at him to protect his love.
Michael wasn’t ready for this. Rath could see the shield’s he himself had fashioned still in place. As long as they were, Michael himself was safe.
But to do this, Rath would have to lower them. He would be vulnerable in a way he had never been. The psychic pressure could be too much for him.
And then there was the question of stability.
Michael might need as much healing after this as Maria would. There was considerable risk…..
Rath could feel as Michael reached for the reins, reached for control.
This whole enterprise was foolish, but better by far that he did it rather than his younger untrained self. Too great a chance to hurt Maria, too great a chance of straining himself.
And so Rath lowered his defenses. The pressure was not as bad as he feared. The humans had yet to develop this technology. But he could feel the part of him that was Michael brace against it.
Rath began the procedure, placing his hands on Maria’s temples. The part that used to be so hard for him was so easy with her. Connecting with Maria was like breathing. Instinctual.
He sought out the weak points. The gaps in the natural defenses that even humans possessed. They gaps were huge.
Genetic abnormality most likely. Would lead to greater sensitivity to certain phenomena. Fascinating. And if Michael were right about Ana, then potentially devastating.
For Maria was a Companion. Rath could see more defenses developing. It would be hard to possess her. Unless she let them in. Unless she were somehow connected to them.
Or they were her. Future Maria would sail through those gaps. And Maria wouldn’t know how to stop her.
Rath could feel his body shiver from the strain, from the intricate use of power. It was too much. But it needed to be done. Rath had to patch those gaps.
He used what he had. Michael and Maria were already linked, already connected. So Rath fused them closer. Michael’s defenses would become Maria’s defenses. A threat to one would be a threat to the other.
A fine sheen of sweat soaked his body even as it shuddered from deep chills.
He could feel as both of their souls, as his soul and hers shifted in response.
It was done.
He bent to kiss her, but he was shivering too hard. He collapsed onto the floor, hands still trailing up to her head.
And he lost consciousness.
------
Tess-
Tess’s mind leapt back into consciousness.
Where was she and why did she hurt so damn much?
Her eyes opened slowly. She was in Alex’s car. They had been going home…..
They had translated the Book! And. And….
I’ve been shot..
She ran a self diagnostic.
She’d been shot twice. Once in the fleshy part of her leg. Lucky that it hadn’t hit any major blood vessel or she’d have woken up dead. The second wound was more serious.
She’d been shot in the stomach.
I’m dying.
Wait. Why am I even conscious..
Oh yeah.
I’m not human.
Ava had woken her. She might not be much in combat, but the girl was determined to survive.
As was Tess.
The first step was to slow the bleeding. The wound was too much for her. She couldn’t fix the mangled organs. Too complicated. But she could slow the rate at which she bled out. Give her some time.
Hopefully someone would save her.
It hurt so very much.
Her wounds taken care of she looked at Alex. His airbag had not deployed. His head rested on the wheel, blood dripping from a broken nose.
She should check him. Do what she could.
Moving hurt so much. She thought she actually lost consciousness at one point. And she was bleeding all over Alex’s car.
Hopefully he’d forgive her.
Fortunately he hadn’t been shot. But there was something seriously wrong with him. With his head.
And she couldn’t connect with him. It was like his aura had collapsed. It was still there, he was still alive.
For now. But neither of them wouldn’t last too much longer out there.
“Help!” came a pathetic cry from her throat.
She heard a sound of someone hammering at the front window. She looked up with hope.
Only to feel despair. It was a man dressed in desert camouflage, his face hidden by a mask of some sort. And he held a rifle. The rifle he had used to get her attention. And he was aiming at her.
She was going to die.
-------
Isabel-
Isabel got up and moved towards the door. A door that she had locked.
But her hands were shaking too much for her to undo the lock.
FOOM. No door blocking her way.
Alex needed her. And nothing would stop her.
Nothing.
Her mother walked around the corner, “Isabel, what is wrong?”
Isabel looked at her mother and asked, “Where is Max. I need Max.”
“I think he is still at the Crashdown. We’ll be leaving in a few minutes ourselves….”
Alex was hurt. Her abilities at healing were poor. Always had been. She’d been able to do more than Michael, but that was because Michael hadn’t been able to use his powers well at all.
She needed Max. And they needed to hurry.
Isabel walked toward the garage and the cars. The Jeep would be with Max. But she would need to get Max. No time to run all the way there.
“Honey, what is wrong? What can I do to help.”
Another door. FOOM. Another entrance.
Her father watched as she turned the door to the garage into matchwood. “Isabel Amanda Evans, you will explain to me right now…..”
Isabel stopped. She loved them. But they didn’t understand.
But she loved them.
They deserved and explanation.
A quick one.
“Alex has been hurt. Hurt bad. Max can save him. I need the car to get him so that he can save Max.”
“I am going with you,” said Diane.
“Honey are you sure that….”
“I am leaving now. If you are coming we are going now.” The last delivered in an ominous duotone.
Philip made a quick decision and opened the garage door as Diane got into the car. “I will call Max and tell him to be ready to meet you. Call me and let me know how I can help.”
Isabel opened the door and turned the car on. Without the keys.
Philip smiled, “So I guess all those threats to you and Max to take your keys away when grounded were pretty useless.”
“I love you daddy.” And Isabel floored it.
She had the love of her life to save.
And nothing would stop her.
Nothing at all.
-------
Kyle
Kyle was much of the same mind. What he felt from Tess was much more vague.
There bond was not quite as strong as the one Alex and Isabel shared. And Isabel was Vilandra reborn, the woman who had been the closest the Antarans had ever had to a telepath. So there was little doubt that what she had felt was much more detailed.
Kyle knew that she was hurt. And roughly where she was.
And that he would do anything for her.
Kyle didn’t even think about grabbing Evans. His first thought was to get to his loved one. To protect her with his life if need be.
And he was much closer.
He’d been worried about the whole Book drama and had gathered his rifle to plink cans in the desert. To wait for Tess’s hopefully successful return.
Not that it would do much for the anger their friends would undoubtedly still have.
What Tess had done to Alex was wrong. Kyle would defend her, but he wasn’t about to deny the fact. Nor would Tess to his pride. She knew she had screwed up and would do what she must to regain their friends confidence.
He so loved her.
So when he felt the pulse of pain and terror he was running immediately to his car, his favorite hunting rifle left behind. And he was speeding to where she was.
It took just minutes for him to get there. In time for him to see a man with a rifle pointing it at a car near where he felt Tess to be.
No time to be certain.
He cursed himself for leaving his rifle behind.
Only…. He had done something a couple of days ago. Had thrown a baseball hard enough to wound….
No time to search. So by instinct he grabbed a cup full of air and threw it. A shimmering ball of blue and green.
And ran up to save Tess.
The ball of air hit the gunman, knocking him over. Had there been something solid encased, it would have seriously wounded or killed the man.
As it was, the gunman was stunned, his gun knocked away.
And then Kyle was on him. Kyle was a good wrestler, and at the moment not inclined to play fair. The other man was older and a little stronger.
Kyle still won. Eventually choking him, albeit not as long as he would have liked.
One could not interrogate the dead.
And he had a feeling that there would be some questions that he and his friends would like to ask this bastard.
But with his opponent passed out he walked over to the damaged car.
Alex lay slumped against the wheel, blood trickling from his nose. But breathing. Kyle knew better than to move him.
Tess lay there, a little smile playing on her lips.
Kyle’s heart fell. There was so much blood. “Oh, baby….”
Tess’s voice was thick and hoarse. “You came…. You came to save me…..”
“I will always come for you, baby, you know that.”
Kyle walked around to the other door. And opened it. He noticed the bullet holes in the door. He looked back at the gunman.
If he didn’t need to see to Tess first….
Liz could always get flashes off of his gear right? No need for him to live.
Tess looked pained as she turned to face him. “I love you Kyle. Have I ever told you that. So pretty.” Her voice was getting a slurred dreamy quality to it.
“No Tess. Stay with me. Please honey stay with me.”
“Okay. You came for me. For me.”
“Yes Tess. Just stay awake, okay, baby?”
“It hurts Kyle. Do you think I will come back? Do I have a soul?”
“Yes Tess. It’s a beautiful soul.”
“I’ve made so many mistakes Kyle. I’ve messed up bad. Will I come back as a bug, do you think? Or maybe a plant. A plant would be cool. Maybe a tree. An apple tree. You like apples, right, Kyle?”
“You’re not going to die Tess. I won’t let you. I came for you, now you have to stay for me.” He reached into his pocket, to his phone.
They needed help. Any help.
“Stay with me Tess, you have to stay with me.”
So he did what was imprinted on him. He was after all the son of the local sheriff. He called 911.
------
Max
Max tightly clenched Liz’s hand as Isabel’s somewhat erratic driving placed them on the highway.
How they had not been stopped was a wonder to Max.
Hold on Alex. Hold on Tess.
We are coming.
Shadows of the Past (CC ALL, Teen/Mature) Epilogue- 10/31/09
Moderators: Anniepoo98, Rowedog, ISLANDGIRL5, Itzstacie, truelovepooh, FSU/MSW-94, Forum Moderators
Re: Shadows of the Past (CC ALL, Teen/Mature) Chap 30- 08/29/09
Thanks again to everyone who is following along this story.
Arianneleigh- Not so much collide as rush swiftly past each other.
RhondaAnn- Maybe a bit. A bit of an infodump chapter I'm afraid. This one not as much.
keepsmiling7- Trouble, as I set up the final conflicts for this particular story. Maybe five to ten chapters left before I slog into book four.
AvalonRose- No problem, hope life is settling down for you.
Michael did something that on the surface is simple, but will have serious ramifications. In this story Vilandra survived her wedding, the incident that killed the other Pod squad members. She lasted long enough to set up the whole enterprise and to sabotage the Antarans to give her family a head start. As for Tess, well if she was so neccessary that Timeline one Max would come and destroy his relationship with his true love just so she would stay in Roswell.... There has to be some reason. And if she needed to be specifically in Roswell there has to be reason why as well. IN this story it is because if she left her enemies would kill her. And she has skills and talents they will need in the future.
Thanks.
DeDe PR- Thanks. Kyle has spent his life trusting in the authorities. He might be a little cynical about them at times, and he undoubtably hates how much time his father spends away from him to serve the community. But in a clutch situation he would gravitate to them if he wasn't thinking clearly. By the time he thought of Max it was too late.
Who is Stephanie? Good question, one that will be answered soon. Well before the end of this story anyway. And Michael will still have his defenses. but he will share them with Maria. Rath changed the fundamental nature of their bond.
Disclaimer- Roswelll is not mine and no infringement is intended.
Shadows of the Past part 31
Isabel-
Isabel was racing to where she could feel Alex. Only something was still wrong with how he felt. His mind felt… flat. Like he wasn’t really there in connection with her.
Her mind gibbered at the idea that he might be gone. That she might have lost him for good.
Max could fix him.
Max could heal anything.
Right?
“Isabel, honey, please be careful. You can’t help Alex if you get pulled over.”
Isabel rolled her eyes. Her mother had demanded to come along. At least Max and Liz were quiet.
Probably making to busy staring into each others eyes.
Isabel looked at them through the rear view mirror. Max looked grim and Liz….. Liz’s eyes were glowing blue again.
Kind of scary really. There was just something about Liz that put her on edge when her eyes turned. Something wrong. Like a wave of bad energy flowing from her.
Isabel gave her head a little shake. I’ve been spending too much time with Maria. But that didn’t make it any less true. It wasn’t like she felt a threat from the girl, or thought Liz would willingly hurt her or Alex…. Just that there was something… wrong… about her. Something that made her almost fear her.
Which was silly. Liz was her friend. There was nothing to fear from the girl.
It took her a moment to realize that these feeling didn’t originate from her, from Isabel. They came from an older part of her.
From Vilandra. Something in Liz had changed, had grown. Something that frightened her past self. And it wasn’t a normal fear. Vilandra didn’t think of Liz as a threat per se, rather there was a feel…. An odd sense of menace radiating from her.
Like she was now.
As far as she could tell Max didn’t feel it. Of course, Max being Max, he wouldn’t feel threatened by Liz if she held a gun to his head. And would love her even if she pulled the trigger on said gun.
Isabel could feel a weight from him as well. But it was a familiar presence. It calmed her.
She could feel them getting closer. Even with that horrible flat feel she could sense his exact position.
Almost there.
An ambulance roared past her, sirens blazing.
“Is that Alex?” asked her mother.
Isabel shook her head and kept the car speeding ahead.
She could feel him getting so very close….. And then pass her in a second ambulance.
Isabel whipped the car around to follow him. The car began to spin out as she lost control.
But she did not have time to crash. Time to get hurt. Not when Alex needed her. So she reached out with her mind and stopped the car.
“Isabel Amanda Evans if you ever do anything so reckless again, young woman…..”
Isabel let it roll off of her. Max and Liz understood. She could feel it.
At least she thought so. Until a soft voice said., “Stop.”
Such a quiet word. But it reverberated all through her skull. Through her very bones.
She HAD to obey… She had to.
Isabel stopped the car, profanity rolling off of her tongue. She wanted nothing more than to go after Alex, she could feel him recede as his ambulance pulled away from them.
Liz opened her door and got out of the car. “I have something I need to do. Go ahead without me.”
“Liz, we can’t just leave you on the side of the road,” said Max.
Isabel had no trouble with that. Not when Alex needed her….
“I need to do something, I don’t really understand it. But there is something here, something that if it fell into the wrong hands…. I have to stay.”
“Well then I am staying with you.”
“No Max, they need you. Go with Isabel to the hospital. Do what you can for them. I, I need to do this.”
“Liz wants to stay, great. Can we go now?” The last part came out as almost a whine. The fact they were still here, the fact she could feel Alex pull away from her was hurting her. He needed her.
“I….”
“Max, go ahead and go along. I will stay with Liz.” Diane said.
Isabel looked at her mother in shock.
“Go take care of your young man. But when this is over, we are going to have a long talk. About many things.”
“Okay,” Isabel said softly.
Diane got out of the car.
Max looked at Liz imploringly.
Liz gave him a kiss. “Go on, we’ll be fine.”
Max shook his head. “Call me. One of us will pick you up.”
Isabel wasted no time. She gunned the engine and left her mother and her brother’s girlfriend behind them.
Max was silent.
And reflected on how things had changed. It was a sign of how much Max trusted Liz to be able to protect herself that he let her stay on the side of the road this late at night. And Liz trusted Max enough to save her friend that she would take care of some odd business on the side of the road.
But one question loomed in her mind, one question that she used to distract herself from her fear of Alex’s injuries…..
Why had she stopped? Why had she felt so compelled to do what Liz had commanded her to do?
That tiny bit of her, that remnant of Vilandra had a suspicion, but it wasn’t sharing it.
And it struck her, Vilandra wasn’t afraid of who Liz Parker was…. She was afraid of WHAT Liz Parker might be…..
Isabel rushed to the hospital.
-------
Sean-
Had someone only a few months ago told Sean he would be in New York with an alien hybrid and someone who claimed be possessed by an alien, he would told them to lay off the drugs.
Only here he was.
All because of a girl. The clearest blue eyes he’d ever seen. And her body, her figure…. Just thinking about her made his heart beat a trace faster.
She filled his dreams.
She was way out of his league in so many ways it wasn’t even funny. And there was the fact that she wasn’t human.
None of it mattered. Not one bit. Had she given him one hint that she saw him as something other than a comrade…..
But she hadn’t. And he wasn’t going to push it. Not now. He knew her story. She had told him everything.
Everything.
She still mourned for Zan, for Carlos. And the strange triangle between her, Tess, and Kyle…. Her life was already messed up enough to not add his troubles to them.
He was quite simply a screw up. Or he had been. He would not fail Aeron.
He loved her.
It had started with attraction, probably little more than a severe crush. But over the last few weeks he had grown to know her. Grown to know the complicated fragile girl that was Aeron…..
And he loved her.
When they had been in Colorado it had seemed so innocent, she had seemed so strong.
But the first time she had seen the sky line as their cab moved toward their hotel…. She had sobbed.
Zan. Her slain lover. Whatever she had felt for Kyle, part of her was still in love with him.
Poor Sean Deluca didn’t have a chance. He set his head against the window and looked over the city. He heard as someone entered his room. He stared at the sky line. He just wanted to be alone.
Until he heard the soft sound of sobbing behind him. Aeron.
He turned around to look at her. Her beautiful face was blotched and her eyes red. She was wearing the thick flannel pajamas they had picked up when they had gotten to Colorado.
She looked lovely to him. And as unattainable as the stars.
She looked up at him and said softly, “Hold me.”
And he did.
--------
Maria-
Maria woke up with a gasp.
Her head hurt. Her body hurt. There was even a strange and exquisite pain as she felt as if her very soul were changing.
She looked at her hand. There were flashes and glows all along her body. But no electric arcs. It all was inside of her. Changing her.
No. Completing the changes already begun.
How she knew that she wasn’t sure. She just knew.
She sat up and moved over to face Michael. He was laying on the floor, body covered in sweat.
She spent a minute admiring her lover’s body, before she moved to hold him.
Moving hurt so much. She nearly blacked out when she stood up.
She wasn’t well. She was sick. Very sick.
So why did she feel so calm? Why did she feel this was right? That this should be happening.
She wasn’t really worried about herself. It was Michael that worried her. He looked so flushed. She held out her hand and without a thought a thermometer that had been on her dresser flew to her hands.
She popped it in her mouth. And went over to Michael.
His skin was hot to the touch. And he was mumbling. They were not human words. Somehow she understood that. In fact, she almost felt like she could understand some of it.
She pulled out the thermometer in her mouth.
107 degrees.
Huh.
I should be dead. Or in a coma. That is way to high for a normal human.
She shivered as she felt another ripple roll through her. Changing her.
And changing him. It was all so clear to her right now. She could see deep into Michael, past the blue and green that disguised him. To the Gold and Crimson that made up his essence. Only there were streaks of green now.
She looked at herself. The Green and Gold that made her up was now had a delicate filigree of Crimson.
He had given part of himself to her. And she had returned the favor.
It was changing them.
She checked Michael’s temperature. 112 degrees. Wow.
We need help.
But the thought of walking out of the room, of getting further from Michael…. She just couldn’t do it.
So she did something. Made herself stronger somehow. And lifted him into bed.
And joined him.
Her mother would kill them. It was one thing to know your daughter was sexually active, another to catch her in bed with a lover. But Amy would get over it.
She needed to be with him. Needed to touch him.
She felt as the electric pulses that were roaring through her body began to pass into his. And it felt right. As did the sudden silky feel of webbing that began to surround them.
They were unbalanced. Michael’s body was just trying to protect himself. And to protect her. She was instinctually trying to do the same for him.
We need time. Time to heal. To balance each other.
Maria used her powers to drag the covers over them. And clung to him.
The real world fell away. And she joined him.
He had been alone, in a desert full of answers alone. Waiting. For her.
She walked up to him And at her smile, the desert bloomed…..
------
Laurie-
Laurie rolled out of bed. It wasn’t really that late, but she’d been waking up so early lately for the experiments that she naturally went to sleep early.
Serena was a morning person. Laurie was becoming one.
It was funny what one would do for someone they loved.
But Laurie could feel change in the air. Things were happening. Frightening things. Wonderful things. And some that were both.
It was almost like she was feeling a tugging sensation. And she could not understand it. But it was keeping her awake.
No real reason to keep Serena awake simply because she couldn’t sleep.
So she looked at the tests that they had been working on. Serena was a physicist. Biology wasn’t really her strongest subject. But even Laurie, who’d been denied a normal High School education could tell there was something wrong with the cells they had taken from the strands of hair she had taken from Isabel.
Only…. It depended on the test. The first few the cells all but glowed green when the solution was added to place them under the slides.
Twenty four hours later they looked normal. Normal human cells.
Too bad they couldn’t send the hair follicles to a lab to have them tested for chemicals or drugs. Something was running through that girl’s system.
And that didn’t even include the fact that she looked so much like her grandmother.
Serena planned to test to see if they were closely related. It was a crazy idea, but Serena thought Isabel might be a clone. An alien hybrid of some sort.
Too weird.
But fun.
It was little bit later when she heard Serena pad into the living room. Laurie looked up at the sleepy chocolate face of her love.
They had gotten an apartment when Serena had realized she would be in Roswell longer than she had thought. Laurie sometimes wondered if Serena was staying because of her as much as the resources Brody Davis could offer.
Well even if he ever cut off the funds, she still had enough access to her grandfather’s funds to keep her experiments running. More if the Evans could pry them from her aunt and uncle.
And it was nice to not have to stay with her mother’s grandparents.
They always considered her a freak.
Serena looked at her and said, “Come back to bed. Its too late for any of that.”
“I’ll be right in.”
“Okay,” Serena gave her forehead a kiss and walked back into their bedroom.
Laurie smiled as she watched Serena stumble back into their room. She was lucky. And she knew it.
She wasn’t up to anything strenuous, but maybe she could get a little power cuddling out of this. Laurie followed Serena into their room.
------
Diane-
Diane had surprised herself when she had offered to go with Liz.
A Liz with cobalt blue eyes.
A girl who could stop her headstrong daughter with a word. And who held her son’s heart in her small hands. She needed to know her.
For somehow she knew that Liz was going to be a permanent fixture. She and Philip had talked about this. And he was sure that both of their kids were just going through a phase. That these sudden firm relationships between her kids and their partners.
Diane wasn’t so sure. It wasn’t just that she was fairly sure that Isabel and Alex had slept together…. Oh, she wasn’t positive. But the level of possessiveness she had for the boy. Off the charts.
Young love.
As for Liz, well Max had been after her for a long time. And since she’d found out that he cared for her, that he had gone so far as to save her from a fatal bullet….
Well, to hold an infatuation for that long was certainly not impossible. But she thought it went deeper. On her end too. At least Nancy thought so.
Nancy was treating her like their kids were already married. That the ceremony was certain, just hadn’t happened yet.
Of course, it was hard to predict the future. And they were young. These things could change.
But her nagging motherly intuition didn’t think so.
So she needed to know this little slip of a girl. And Alex. She needed to know a lot more about him.
She hoped for her daughter’s sake the boy was not too badly hurt.
All of this is why she was walking under the stars with a seventeen year old girl. They came upon the site of the accident. There was a Mustang parked along side the road. It didn’t seem damaged at all.
The other car on the other hand…. Its back window had been smashed. And several police officers were wandering around like it was a crime scene.
Maybe it was.
“Excuse me, are either of you in need of assistance?” said one of the police officers.
Liz spoke up, “What happened here?” It was in a commanding tone, her blue eyes blazing in the glare from one of the police cruisers headlights.
The police officer stiffened and answered, “Some one decided to take some potshots at this car, Ma’am. We have the rifle, but the suspect escaped. We’ll find him.”
“Good. I need to look at the car. There may be something there I need to retrieve.”
Diane just looked at the police officer and Liz. There was no way he would let her, that he could let her….
The police officer bit his lips. It was like part of him was fighting it, but he said, “Okay. Let me get you a set of gloves. Try not to ruin any of the evidence, Ma’am.”
What the ….? He was going to let a seventeen year old girl contaminate a crime scene?
This was appalling! This was her tax dollars at work! How could he let her…..
Oh. My. God…..
He isn’t letting her.
She is forcing him…. He could lose his job over this.
She looked again at the seemingly harmless little girl Max loved.
Not so harmless after all.
She followed Liz to the car, wincing when she saw the bullet holes.
Liz put on a set of gloves and touched the car. That is all she did. And hissed as if singed.
A look of wonder and worry passed across her face. She reached in and grab a set of computer print outs. Bloodstained print outs.
“Liz, what are you doing to that poor man.”
“We need this. We need this so very badly Mrs. Evans.”
“Why? What could make it worth forcing that man to, to break the law.”
“Answers. These print outs…. Their the answers your children have been looking for. We need to look through them. But not here. Come on.” Liz walked over to the Mustang. She pressed her hands on the passenger side door and said, “Get in.”
“Liz….”
“This is Kyle’s car. He’ll forgive me….. I hope.” She walked over and opened the driver side door and slid in.
Liz looked at her, “Come on, get in. We need to get to the hospital. Isabel is going to need you.”
Diane looked at the car. This is wrong. This is so very wrong and illegal. She is stealing a car. Just because it is her friend’s doesn’t mean she has the right to…..
Diane slid into her seat.
Liz was right. Isabel might need her. If her boyfriend were hurt badly, or heaven help them if he died…..
She would do anything for her children.
Anything.
Arianneleigh- Not so much collide as rush swiftly past each other.
RhondaAnn- Maybe a bit. A bit of an infodump chapter I'm afraid. This one not as much.
keepsmiling7- Trouble, as I set up the final conflicts for this particular story. Maybe five to ten chapters left before I slog into book four.
AvalonRose- No problem, hope life is settling down for you.
Michael did something that on the surface is simple, but will have serious ramifications. In this story Vilandra survived her wedding, the incident that killed the other Pod squad members. She lasted long enough to set up the whole enterprise and to sabotage the Antarans to give her family a head start. As for Tess, well if she was so neccessary that Timeline one Max would come and destroy his relationship with his true love just so she would stay in Roswell.... There has to be some reason. And if she needed to be specifically in Roswell there has to be reason why as well. IN this story it is because if she left her enemies would kill her. And she has skills and talents they will need in the future.
Thanks.
DeDe PR- Thanks. Kyle has spent his life trusting in the authorities. He might be a little cynical about them at times, and he undoubtably hates how much time his father spends away from him to serve the community. But in a clutch situation he would gravitate to them if he wasn't thinking clearly. By the time he thought of Max it was too late.
Who is Stephanie? Good question, one that will be answered soon. Well before the end of this story anyway. And Michael will still have his defenses. but he will share them with Maria. Rath changed the fundamental nature of their bond.
Disclaimer- Roswelll is not mine and no infringement is intended.
Shadows of the Past part 31
Isabel-
Isabel was racing to where she could feel Alex. Only something was still wrong with how he felt. His mind felt… flat. Like he wasn’t really there in connection with her.
Her mind gibbered at the idea that he might be gone. That she might have lost him for good.
Max could fix him.
Max could heal anything.
Right?
“Isabel, honey, please be careful. You can’t help Alex if you get pulled over.”
Isabel rolled her eyes. Her mother had demanded to come along. At least Max and Liz were quiet.
Probably making to busy staring into each others eyes.
Isabel looked at them through the rear view mirror. Max looked grim and Liz….. Liz’s eyes were glowing blue again.
Kind of scary really. There was just something about Liz that put her on edge when her eyes turned. Something wrong. Like a wave of bad energy flowing from her.
Isabel gave her head a little shake. I’ve been spending too much time with Maria. But that didn’t make it any less true. It wasn’t like she felt a threat from the girl, or thought Liz would willingly hurt her or Alex…. Just that there was something… wrong… about her. Something that made her almost fear her.
Which was silly. Liz was her friend. There was nothing to fear from the girl.
It took her a moment to realize that these feeling didn’t originate from her, from Isabel. They came from an older part of her.
From Vilandra. Something in Liz had changed, had grown. Something that frightened her past self. And it wasn’t a normal fear. Vilandra didn’t think of Liz as a threat per se, rather there was a feel…. An odd sense of menace radiating from her.
Like she was now.
As far as she could tell Max didn’t feel it. Of course, Max being Max, he wouldn’t feel threatened by Liz if she held a gun to his head. And would love her even if she pulled the trigger on said gun.
Isabel could feel a weight from him as well. But it was a familiar presence. It calmed her.
She could feel them getting closer. Even with that horrible flat feel she could sense his exact position.
Almost there.
An ambulance roared past her, sirens blazing.
“Is that Alex?” asked her mother.
Isabel shook her head and kept the car speeding ahead.
She could feel him getting so very close….. And then pass her in a second ambulance.
Isabel whipped the car around to follow him. The car began to spin out as she lost control.
But she did not have time to crash. Time to get hurt. Not when Alex needed her. So she reached out with her mind and stopped the car.
“Isabel Amanda Evans if you ever do anything so reckless again, young woman…..”
Isabel let it roll off of her. Max and Liz understood. She could feel it.
At least she thought so. Until a soft voice said., “Stop.”
Such a quiet word. But it reverberated all through her skull. Through her very bones.
She HAD to obey… She had to.
Isabel stopped the car, profanity rolling off of her tongue. She wanted nothing more than to go after Alex, she could feel him recede as his ambulance pulled away from them.
Liz opened her door and got out of the car. “I have something I need to do. Go ahead without me.”
“Liz, we can’t just leave you on the side of the road,” said Max.
Isabel had no trouble with that. Not when Alex needed her….
“I need to do something, I don’t really understand it. But there is something here, something that if it fell into the wrong hands…. I have to stay.”
“Well then I am staying with you.”
“No Max, they need you. Go with Isabel to the hospital. Do what you can for them. I, I need to do this.”
“Liz wants to stay, great. Can we go now?” The last part came out as almost a whine. The fact they were still here, the fact she could feel Alex pull away from her was hurting her. He needed her.
“I….”
“Max, go ahead and go along. I will stay with Liz.” Diane said.
Isabel looked at her mother in shock.
“Go take care of your young man. But when this is over, we are going to have a long talk. About many things.”
“Okay,” Isabel said softly.
Diane got out of the car.
Max looked at Liz imploringly.
Liz gave him a kiss. “Go on, we’ll be fine.”
Max shook his head. “Call me. One of us will pick you up.”
Isabel wasted no time. She gunned the engine and left her mother and her brother’s girlfriend behind them.
Max was silent.
And reflected on how things had changed. It was a sign of how much Max trusted Liz to be able to protect herself that he let her stay on the side of the road this late at night. And Liz trusted Max enough to save her friend that she would take care of some odd business on the side of the road.
But one question loomed in her mind, one question that she used to distract herself from her fear of Alex’s injuries…..
Why had she stopped? Why had she felt so compelled to do what Liz had commanded her to do?
That tiny bit of her, that remnant of Vilandra had a suspicion, but it wasn’t sharing it.
And it struck her, Vilandra wasn’t afraid of who Liz Parker was…. She was afraid of WHAT Liz Parker might be…..
Isabel rushed to the hospital.
-------
Sean-
Had someone only a few months ago told Sean he would be in New York with an alien hybrid and someone who claimed be possessed by an alien, he would told them to lay off the drugs.
Only here he was.
All because of a girl. The clearest blue eyes he’d ever seen. And her body, her figure…. Just thinking about her made his heart beat a trace faster.
She filled his dreams.
She was way out of his league in so many ways it wasn’t even funny. And there was the fact that she wasn’t human.
None of it mattered. Not one bit. Had she given him one hint that she saw him as something other than a comrade…..
But she hadn’t. And he wasn’t going to push it. Not now. He knew her story. She had told him everything.
Everything.
She still mourned for Zan, for Carlos. And the strange triangle between her, Tess, and Kyle…. Her life was already messed up enough to not add his troubles to them.
He was quite simply a screw up. Or he had been. He would not fail Aeron.
He loved her.
It had started with attraction, probably little more than a severe crush. But over the last few weeks he had grown to know her. Grown to know the complicated fragile girl that was Aeron…..
And he loved her.
When they had been in Colorado it had seemed so innocent, she had seemed so strong.
But the first time she had seen the sky line as their cab moved toward their hotel…. She had sobbed.
Zan. Her slain lover. Whatever she had felt for Kyle, part of her was still in love with him.
Poor Sean Deluca didn’t have a chance. He set his head against the window and looked over the city. He heard as someone entered his room. He stared at the sky line. He just wanted to be alone.
Until he heard the soft sound of sobbing behind him. Aeron.
He turned around to look at her. Her beautiful face was blotched and her eyes red. She was wearing the thick flannel pajamas they had picked up when they had gotten to Colorado.
She looked lovely to him. And as unattainable as the stars.
She looked up at him and said softly, “Hold me.”
And he did.
--------
Maria-
Maria woke up with a gasp.
Her head hurt. Her body hurt. There was even a strange and exquisite pain as she felt as if her very soul were changing.
She looked at her hand. There were flashes and glows all along her body. But no electric arcs. It all was inside of her. Changing her.
No. Completing the changes already begun.
How she knew that she wasn’t sure. She just knew.
She sat up and moved over to face Michael. He was laying on the floor, body covered in sweat.
She spent a minute admiring her lover’s body, before she moved to hold him.
Moving hurt so much. She nearly blacked out when she stood up.
She wasn’t well. She was sick. Very sick.
So why did she feel so calm? Why did she feel this was right? That this should be happening.
She wasn’t really worried about herself. It was Michael that worried her. He looked so flushed. She held out her hand and without a thought a thermometer that had been on her dresser flew to her hands.
She popped it in her mouth. And went over to Michael.
His skin was hot to the touch. And he was mumbling. They were not human words. Somehow she understood that. In fact, she almost felt like she could understand some of it.
She pulled out the thermometer in her mouth.
107 degrees.
Huh.
I should be dead. Or in a coma. That is way to high for a normal human.
She shivered as she felt another ripple roll through her. Changing her.
And changing him. It was all so clear to her right now. She could see deep into Michael, past the blue and green that disguised him. To the Gold and Crimson that made up his essence. Only there were streaks of green now.
She looked at herself. The Green and Gold that made her up was now had a delicate filigree of Crimson.
He had given part of himself to her. And she had returned the favor.
It was changing them.
She checked Michael’s temperature. 112 degrees. Wow.
We need help.
But the thought of walking out of the room, of getting further from Michael…. She just couldn’t do it.
So she did something. Made herself stronger somehow. And lifted him into bed.
And joined him.
Her mother would kill them. It was one thing to know your daughter was sexually active, another to catch her in bed with a lover. But Amy would get over it.
She needed to be with him. Needed to touch him.
She felt as the electric pulses that were roaring through her body began to pass into his. And it felt right. As did the sudden silky feel of webbing that began to surround them.
They were unbalanced. Michael’s body was just trying to protect himself. And to protect her. She was instinctually trying to do the same for him.
We need time. Time to heal. To balance each other.
Maria used her powers to drag the covers over them. And clung to him.
The real world fell away. And she joined him.
He had been alone, in a desert full of answers alone. Waiting. For her.
She walked up to him And at her smile, the desert bloomed…..
------
Laurie-
Laurie rolled out of bed. It wasn’t really that late, but she’d been waking up so early lately for the experiments that she naturally went to sleep early.
Serena was a morning person. Laurie was becoming one.
It was funny what one would do for someone they loved.
But Laurie could feel change in the air. Things were happening. Frightening things. Wonderful things. And some that were both.
It was almost like she was feeling a tugging sensation. And she could not understand it. But it was keeping her awake.
No real reason to keep Serena awake simply because she couldn’t sleep.
So she looked at the tests that they had been working on. Serena was a physicist. Biology wasn’t really her strongest subject. But even Laurie, who’d been denied a normal High School education could tell there was something wrong with the cells they had taken from the strands of hair she had taken from Isabel.
Only…. It depended on the test. The first few the cells all but glowed green when the solution was added to place them under the slides.
Twenty four hours later they looked normal. Normal human cells.
Too bad they couldn’t send the hair follicles to a lab to have them tested for chemicals or drugs. Something was running through that girl’s system.
And that didn’t even include the fact that she looked so much like her grandmother.
Serena planned to test to see if they were closely related. It was a crazy idea, but Serena thought Isabel might be a clone. An alien hybrid of some sort.
Too weird.
But fun.
It was little bit later when she heard Serena pad into the living room. Laurie looked up at the sleepy chocolate face of her love.
They had gotten an apartment when Serena had realized she would be in Roswell longer than she had thought. Laurie sometimes wondered if Serena was staying because of her as much as the resources Brody Davis could offer.
Well even if he ever cut off the funds, she still had enough access to her grandfather’s funds to keep her experiments running. More if the Evans could pry them from her aunt and uncle.
And it was nice to not have to stay with her mother’s grandparents.
They always considered her a freak.
Serena looked at her and said, “Come back to bed. Its too late for any of that.”
“I’ll be right in.”
“Okay,” Serena gave her forehead a kiss and walked back into their bedroom.
Laurie smiled as she watched Serena stumble back into their room. She was lucky. And she knew it.
She wasn’t up to anything strenuous, but maybe she could get a little power cuddling out of this. Laurie followed Serena into their room.
------
Diane-
Diane had surprised herself when she had offered to go with Liz.
A Liz with cobalt blue eyes.
A girl who could stop her headstrong daughter with a word. And who held her son’s heart in her small hands. She needed to know her.
For somehow she knew that Liz was going to be a permanent fixture. She and Philip had talked about this. And he was sure that both of their kids were just going through a phase. That these sudden firm relationships between her kids and their partners.
Diane wasn’t so sure. It wasn’t just that she was fairly sure that Isabel and Alex had slept together…. Oh, she wasn’t positive. But the level of possessiveness she had for the boy. Off the charts.
Young love.
As for Liz, well Max had been after her for a long time. And since she’d found out that he cared for her, that he had gone so far as to save her from a fatal bullet….
Well, to hold an infatuation for that long was certainly not impossible. But she thought it went deeper. On her end too. At least Nancy thought so.
Nancy was treating her like their kids were already married. That the ceremony was certain, just hadn’t happened yet.
Of course, it was hard to predict the future. And they were young. These things could change.
But her nagging motherly intuition didn’t think so.
So she needed to know this little slip of a girl. And Alex. She needed to know a lot more about him.
She hoped for her daughter’s sake the boy was not too badly hurt.
All of this is why she was walking under the stars with a seventeen year old girl. They came upon the site of the accident. There was a Mustang parked along side the road. It didn’t seem damaged at all.
The other car on the other hand…. Its back window had been smashed. And several police officers were wandering around like it was a crime scene.
Maybe it was.
“Excuse me, are either of you in need of assistance?” said one of the police officers.
Liz spoke up, “What happened here?” It was in a commanding tone, her blue eyes blazing in the glare from one of the police cruisers headlights.
The police officer stiffened and answered, “Some one decided to take some potshots at this car, Ma’am. We have the rifle, but the suspect escaped. We’ll find him.”
“Good. I need to look at the car. There may be something there I need to retrieve.”
Diane just looked at the police officer and Liz. There was no way he would let her, that he could let her….
The police officer bit his lips. It was like part of him was fighting it, but he said, “Okay. Let me get you a set of gloves. Try not to ruin any of the evidence, Ma’am.”
What the ….? He was going to let a seventeen year old girl contaminate a crime scene?
This was appalling! This was her tax dollars at work! How could he let her…..
Oh. My. God…..
He isn’t letting her.
She is forcing him…. He could lose his job over this.
She looked again at the seemingly harmless little girl Max loved.
Not so harmless after all.
She followed Liz to the car, wincing when she saw the bullet holes.
Liz put on a set of gloves and touched the car. That is all she did. And hissed as if singed.
A look of wonder and worry passed across her face. She reached in and grab a set of computer print outs. Bloodstained print outs.
“Liz, what are you doing to that poor man.”
“We need this. We need this so very badly Mrs. Evans.”
“Why? What could make it worth forcing that man to, to break the law.”
“Answers. These print outs…. Their the answers your children have been looking for. We need to look through them. But not here. Come on.” Liz walked over to the Mustang. She pressed her hands on the passenger side door and said, “Get in.”
“Liz….”
“This is Kyle’s car. He’ll forgive me….. I hope.” She walked over and opened the driver side door and slid in.
Liz looked at her, “Come on, get in. We need to get to the hospital. Isabel is going to need you.”
Diane looked at the car. This is wrong. This is so very wrong and illegal. She is stealing a car. Just because it is her friend’s doesn’t mean she has the right to…..
Diane slid into her seat.
Liz was right. Isabel might need her. If her boyfriend were hurt badly, or heaven help them if he died…..
She would do anything for her children.
Anything.
Re: Shadows of the Past (CC ALL, Teen/Mature) Chap 31- 09/08/09
Thanks as always to those of you reading this story.
Arianneleigh- Thanks.
Natalie36- Thanks.
Keepsmiling7- Thanks.
RhondaAnn-On Antar, the Consort (who ever happens to be married to the ruler) has little actual power, only that political power given to them by the King or Queen, or that gained by their influence on the same. They gain no special abilities and no special link to the Granolith. Ana did something to Liz, and it is still growing.
Poor Amy.
Diane knows her kids have abilities. But knowing and watching them use them.... completely different things.
chanks_girl- Well Diane is a member of the local establishment..... thanks. I hope you enjoy this part. a lot of set up for the final chapters of this book.
AvalonRose- Thanks. Serena and Laurie are very close. The parents are indeed in for a shock. Remember, these kids are sixteen, seventeen, and eighteen.... How many high school loves/ crushes do you know that lasted much past high school let alone forever. And each of these kids is claiming they know who they will love forever..... Easy to see this as teenage dramatics. It is not, but how could the parents know?
But they will.
DeDe PR- Thanks. Yep, Emily is back. But please note, that Liz has complete control on Emily at the moment. Hope you enjoy this part.
Disclaimer- Roswell is not mine and no infringement is intended.
Shadows of the Past part 32
Tess-
Tess was in pain and confused as the ambulance raced towards the hospital. But as long as Kyle was allowed to hold her hand she remained calm.
Through their bond she could feel his love and his determination to save her. To never let her fear, to never let her be alone.
To be there always. And she knew he would come for her. Always.
As she would for him.
Strange energies flowed between them, bonding their souls tighter and tighter as they committed themselves to each other. And as long as they could maintain even the smallest touch, all was well.
The ambulance quickly got to the hospital and Tess was wheeled away into surgery. And Kyle was left behind. Oh, the bond didn’t go away. It was still there.
But it was weaker. And Tess began to panic. Not that Kyle would leave her, but that he would not be allowed to be with her.
It had long been her fear, long been a reason she had denied her feelings for him. She knew the day would come when fortune would wrest them apart, and she did not feel she could handle it. Easier to live in twilight if you have never seen the sun.
But she had. She had given in. And now she was being taken away.
In reality she was only being moved a short way, to where they could treat this strange patient. This odd girl who as far as they were concerned should already be dead. But their job wasn’t to figure out how she had survived, or why she seemed active with a temperature that should equal death or coma…..
That would be for latter analysis, although they were working on trying to cool her down. But they needed to stop the bleeding before anything else. And so into surgery she went.
Tess didn’t realize that these people meant only to help her. Oh, they planned on studying her afterwards, maybe write a paper or two. But they were not here to cut her up and dissect her.
Good thing she was too weak for her powers to be effective.
Instead she flailed and fought. She had to get back to Kyle.
And they sedated her.
Blackness consumed her world.
--------
Amy-
Amy came home a small smile on her face when she saw the truck parked outside. Life was so much easier know that Maria had her own vehicle.
It was a little strange that the house was dark.
Maybe Maria had been tired.
Amy walked into the kitchen and heated the kettle. She was going to make herself some soup. Amy noticed that the dishes hadn’t been added to.
Strange. Had Maria not had an appetite when she got home? Maybe she would want something now.
Anyway, she should check on her daughter.
She opened the door. A series of sharp scents rolled through. A sharp spicy smell, different from any drug she had ever smelled rolled out. And sex. The smell of sweat and other fluids, the heaviness of the pheromones…..
She shut the door.
She couldn’t deal with this right now.
Her baby was having sex!
Sure she had known it was going on. Had talked to her a ton considering birth control.
Amy wasn’t ready to be a Grandma. She wasn’t even forty yet!
She rushed back into the kitchen and opened up one of the cupboards. And placed a generous amount of whisky in her coffee. She then stared at the bottle and took a swig directly from the bottle.
She had to get hold of herself. She took another sip of the whisky. Somehow she had to gain control of this situation.
The problem was that the situation was now entirely different than that of a few months ago. Then all she was worried about was her daughter’s taste in boys. She known boys like Michael…..
Or so she had thought. Somehow she doubted that reborn alien generals were that common. He had a fate, he had a destiny, and apparently Maria had chosen to be a part of it.
Amy mulled over her late night conversations with Courtney before the poor alien woman had died. She took another sip of whisky, swirling it around her mouth in thought.
The truth is that part of her was proud of her daughter. She was stronger than Amy had any right to expect her daughter to be. The other part of her was screaming how insane and dangerous this all was.
And it had already left an indelible mark. Maria was different now. Like them.
Amy could remember being tossed through the air like a toy, her arm broken like a twig. By a causal flick of her daughter’s wrist. And then her daughter coming to her aide, frying those aliens that had captured her and Courtney with lightning…..
No, disturbing her now without a good reason would be a tad bit dangerous. She knew how annoyed she got when disturbed while…..
No. Not a scene she needed in her head…..
The phone rang.
She debated picking it up. She was afraid it would be something else. And right now she couldn’t handle anything else.
The answering machine picked up. “Maria? Michael? Anyone? We really need you both right now….. Where are you? Tess and Alex are hurt, and we all need to be together now…..”
Amy walked over and picked up her phone. “Liz?”
“Mrs. Deluca? Where is Maria? She said she was going home and, and I feel…. I don’t know how to describe it, but I just know she is there…..”
Amy bit her lip. “She’s, um, preoccupied, and she can’t come to the phone.”
“Mrs. Deluca, you know how dangerous our lives can be. Tess was shot. Their car crashed. We need to deal with this. I’ll apologize to her later, but I need her now!”
Right. Of course, Liz wasn’t the one who was going to be a fried pancake in a few moments. “I’ll, uh, try to get her.”
“And, if you could ask her where Michael is. We can’t seem to raise him anywhere. And….”
“I’ll ask.” She wasn’t about to admit that Michael was likely lying right next to her right now. Both of them had to be asleep, it was silent, no moans or cries.
Amy walked back into Maria’s room, still overwhelmed by the strength of that sharp strange smell. Hopefully she didn’t have to be on the lookout for an alien drug as well.
It took all of her strength to go to that bed. To lift it up just a little to wake her daughter up.
And Amy screamed. And screamed.
-------
Liz-
Liz head the scream from the phone.
Something was wrong with her friend….
Flash-
Liz stood in a circle, Healing stone in hand.
Maria and Michael were in the Balance. And they would get them out.
Liz smiled at Amy, her mother, and Diane. Only four stones. Ava had two of the others.
Four.
It would have to be enough.
End Flash
Liz wrenched the car around and began making way for the Crashdown. And the four healing stones.
“Wait, I thought we were going to the hospital?”
“I am needed else where. You are too. How well do you know Michael and Maria?”
“Pretty well. Michael always was hanging about Max and Isabel when they were growing up. And Maria….” Diane paused took a deep breath, “For a while there I thought Maria was Max’s girlfriend this summer. They spent so much time together.”
“They are good friends. I made a huge mistake this summer. A huge one. So did Michael. Michael less than me, he had more of a reason. Me, well, I just didn’t want to get in the way. Let my insecurities carry me off. Something I will not let happen again. I abandoned my love when he needed me most.”
“Liz, I think you are being a little harsh…..”
“Did Isabel tell you about the White Room.”
Diane was quiet for a moment. When she spoke it was silent and pained, “A little, I feel like she left something out but….”
“Your son was tortured and would have been killed. And, and I helped him. But I, after, after when we heard from his real mother. I just couldn’t take it. I knew I wasn’t worth it, that, that he deserved more than a small town girl…. That he had a destiny greater than me.”
“He loves you Liz.”
“I know. I know he does. And I him. But make no mistake, we hurt each other. And we may again. I hope not. But it may happen.”
“You are not exactly filling me with confidence here, Liz.”
“You and I have a lot to talk about. Max and I, and our friends, what we have is special. Different. Max and I are bound in a way that is, well metaphysical almost. Maria and Michael share a similar bond. At least they do now. And they need our help.”
“I asked to be part of this. I suppose I can help. But how?”
“The healing stones. What effects them is different from what Max can heal. Max will have to deal with Tess and Alex. We will deal with Michael and Maria. There is no time to waste.”
Liz pulled the car over and ran towards the back. Her mom was in the upstairs apartment. It would be quicker up the fire escape. Funny there had been a time when going up this way had been tough…..
--------
Kyle-
Kyle felt as his bond to Tess dwindled. He felt her fear and desperation. But they held him back.
They would not let him pass.
He could feel her getting weaker, feel her sense of loneliness and fear.
Kyle could feel her dying. Dying alone. And that was her great fear. Not that she would die. But that she would be alone.
Alone and abandoned, like she had been in the Pod chamber.
How could he show her, prove to her, that he would be with her always. How could he do it when she was facing death on the operating table?
Kyle moved quickly and grabbed a chair. There had been times when he had been able to calm his mind and feel everything in the area. He had thought at first it was something that you gained when you meditated, and maybe to a degree that was true.
But since his powers had been growing, he knew that they affected this. Knew that it was made many times more powerful, many times more effective. And if he could feel or touch Tess, if he could bridge that gap…..
Kyle closed his eyes and begun. It was hard to focus. Both from his fear for Tess, and the bustle around him. And then when he felt himself flow, felt the surrounding are, he felt all the pain, hope and loss….
And there…. There she was. Drifting softly into the dark. Perhaps from a religious stand point it was foolish and counter productive to do what he was going to do. Buddhists were supposed to remove attachment, reduce connection to the world.
But Tess needed him. And he would be there for her.
Contact…..
Back in the hospital, Kyle’s body slumped into the chair. His breathing was calm and even, and it would be hours before anyone realized that he was anything other than asleep…..
---------
Michael-
Michael stood there and watched as Maria joined him. And with her, everything changed.
Suddenly the world didn’t seem so empty and dry. So very black and white.
Maria added color to his life.
And around him the desert bloomed. He walked over and grabbed a flower to drape in Maria’s hair.
She just stared at him, a little quirk of a smile. “So, what happened.”
“Well, Rath wanted to protect you. And the only way he could see to do that is to place you behind his, my shields.” Michael shook his head. “I didn’t even realize they were there. No wonder Tess spent so much time with me, she couldn’t warp me like she could the others.”
“So she fed you a line and you bit.”
Michael looked away, “Yeah. Uh, Sorry?”
Maria giggled. “Did you just apologize?”
“Hey, its not like anyone other than you is here. And you, I…..” Michael blushed, “You don’t know how important you have become to me. How much it, I…. Damn it, I wish I could put it into words! I read like a bazillion novels and you would think I would know, how, or what to say. And, and,”
Maria gave him a kiss, “Thank you, Spaceboy. For everything. Now we just need to figure out how we get out of here.”
“Yeah. The Balance. And your stuck with me.”
“Well, I can think of a way to pass the time…..”
Michael stared at her. “Do you ever think of anything else?”
“Do you?”
Michael looked around, “Not really. Um, we should go over to that spot over there. Last thing we need is for one of us to have cactus needles in our butt or something…..”
Maria filled the quiet desert air with laughter.
And deep in the Balance, Michael made love to Maria.
------
Max-
Max watched his sister as she drove recklessly into the hospital parking lot. Luckily they didn’t wreck.
As soon as Isabel placed the car into park, she wrenched the car door open and ran towards the hospital.
Max hurried behind her and closed the driver side door. Personally, Max was amazed that Isabel wasn’t making the cars move out of her way so she could have a more direct path.
He had never seen her like this. He had seen her angry, seen her focused, but this….. God help them all if Alex died.
Isabel might just level the hospital.
When he caught up to Isabel, she was laying the drama on with a trowel.
“I want to see my fiancé, and I want to see him now!”
Fiancé? When did that happen? But on Isabel’s hand a ring shown, a ruby surrounded by diamonds, glittering brightly in the light.
This close Max could feel his sister making those stones glitter and shine much more than they would under normal light. And the band of white gold glittered under the all but glowing facets.
There was a wave of emotional force that carried before his sister like a tsunami….. He could feel the security bend and break under her demands. Isabel could not mind warp, but she had a formidable presence she could augment.
Like Liz. Only with Liz, it was somehow more…. Imperative. When had his Liz become so formidable? He didn’t know if he had been more shocked when she had issued the command at his sister, or that his sister had obeyed.
It jogged a memory. Not one of his, one of Zan’s…. And it worried him somehow. That there was something… wrong… about how Liz had commanded his sister.
Not the request, but how it had been done.
A problem for a later day.
Isabel tried to rush into the room they were examining Alex in, but the kept her out. No amount of pleading would move them.
Isabel would have to wait.
How was he going to do this? This wasn’t like Phoenix. People knew him here. And their entrance basically guaranteed they would be remembered.
He heard a gasp not more then ten feet from him.
“Max?”
It was Alicia.
Why now? Why here?
She ran and gave him a hug. She whispered in his ear, “I know what you did, and there is no way I can thank you enough. If ever there is a way I can help you or your friends…. Anything.”
He looked over at his sister. She was chewing on her lip and looking at the room Alex was in. Alicia might as well not exist for all she paid attention.
Her mind was on Alex and Alex alone.
Alicia pulled away. “So why are you here? Sydney is having some follow up tests. They want to keep a good track of her.”
Max looked at her, and a plan began to form in his head.
First he would have to find Tess, she had to be somewhere in this hospital. But Alicia’s grandfather had a lot of power and influence….. Maybe Alicia could help…..
-------
Alex-
Alex had no clue where he was. It was dark, the only light being a weird glittery light that seemed to percolate from above.
It seemed familiar somehow, like he’d seen that strange light somewhere else before. He was walking by column after column. Far in the distance he could see one that was lit, but it was too far to make out any details.
And there was a sense of dust and age to the place. And an eerie feel, like he wasn’t alone. Like he was surrounded. By ghosts.
Alex shivered.
And walked amongst the columns, striving to get to the one that had light.
It was going to be a bit of a walk. And he was so tired and thirsty. But he continued.
It was important. How he knew, he wasn’t sure. But he needed to see this.
She needed to know.
It was almost time. Almost time to decide.
Alex continued to walk.
Arianneleigh- Thanks.
Natalie36- Thanks.
Keepsmiling7- Thanks.
RhondaAnn-On Antar, the Consort (who ever happens to be married to the ruler) has little actual power, only that political power given to them by the King or Queen, or that gained by their influence on the same. They gain no special abilities and no special link to the Granolith. Ana did something to Liz, and it is still growing.
Poor Amy.
Diane knows her kids have abilities. But knowing and watching them use them.... completely different things.
chanks_girl- Well Diane is a member of the local establishment..... thanks. I hope you enjoy this part. a lot of set up for the final chapters of this book.
AvalonRose- Thanks. Serena and Laurie are very close. The parents are indeed in for a shock. Remember, these kids are sixteen, seventeen, and eighteen.... How many high school loves/ crushes do you know that lasted much past high school let alone forever. And each of these kids is claiming they know who they will love forever..... Easy to see this as teenage dramatics. It is not, but how could the parents know?
But they will.
DeDe PR- Thanks. Yep, Emily is back. But please note, that Liz has complete control on Emily at the moment. Hope you enjoy this part.
Disclaimer- Roswell is not mine and no infringement is intended.
Shadows of the Past part 32
Tess-
Tess was in pain and confused as the ambulance raced towards the hospital. But as long as Kyle was allowed to hold her hand she remained calm.
Through their bond she could feel his love and his determination to save her. To never let her fear, to never let her be alone.
To be there always. And she knew he would come for her. Always.
As she would for him.
Strange energies flowed between them, bonding their souls tighter and tighter as they committed themselves to each other. And as long as they could maintain even the smallest touch, all was well.
The ambulance quickly got to the hospital and Tess was wheeled away into surgery. And Kyle was left behind. Oh, the bond didn’t go away. It was still there.
But it was weaker. And Tess began to panic. Not that Kyle would leave her, but that he would not be allowed to be with her.
It had long been her fear, long been a reason she had denied her feelings for him. She knew the day would come when fortune would wrest them apart, and she did not feel she could handle it. Easier to live in twilight if you have never seen the sun.
But she had. She had given in. And now she was being taken away.
In reality she was only being moved a short way, to where they could treat this strange patient. This odd girl who as far as they were concerned should already be dead. But their job wasn’t to figure out how she had survived, or why she seemed active with a temperature that should equal death or coma…..
That would be for latter analysis, although they were working on trying to cool her down. But they needed to stop the bleeding before anything else. And so into surgery she went.
Tess didn’t realize that these people meant only to help her. Oh, they planned on studying her afterwards, maybe write a paper or two. But they were not here to cut her up and dissect her.
Good thing she was too weak for her powers to be effective.
Instead she flailed and fought. She had to get back to Kyle.
And they sedated her.
Blackness consumed her world.
--------
Amy-
Amy came home a small smile on her face when she saw the truck parked outside. Life was so much easier know that Maria had her own vehicle.
It was a little strange that the house was dark.
Maybe Maria had been tired.
Amy walked into the kitchen and heated the kettle. She was going to make herself some soup. Amy noticed that the dishes hadn’t been added to.
Strange. Had Maria not had an appetite when she got home? Maybe she would want something now.
Anyway, she should check on her daughter.
She opened the door. A series of sharp scents rolled through. A sharp spicy smell, different from any drug she had ever smelled rolled out. And sex. The smell of sweat and other fluids, the heaviness of the pheromones…..
She shut the door.
She couldn’t deal with this right now.
Her baby was having sex!
Sure she had known it was going on. Had talked to her a ton considering birth control.
Amy wasn’t ready to be a Grandma. She wasn’t even forty yet!
She rushed back into the kitchen and opened up one of the cupboards. And placed a generous amount of whisky in her coffee. She then stared at the bottle and took a swig directly from the bottle.
She had to get hold of herself. She took another sip of the whisky. Somehow she had to gain control of this situation.
The problem was that the situation was now entirely different than that of a few months ago. Then all she was worried about was her daughter’s taste in boys. She known boys like Michael…..
Or so she had thought. Somehow she doubted that reborn alien generals were that common. He had a fate, he had a destiny, and apparently Maria had chosen to be a part of it.
Amy mulled over her late night conversations with Courtney before the poor alien woman had died. She took another sip of whisky, swirling it around her mouth in thought.
The truth is that part of her was proud of her daughter. She was stronger than Amy had any right to expect her daughter to be. The other part of her was screaming how insane and dangerous this all was.
And it had already left an indelible mark. Maria was different now. Like them.
Amy could remember being tossed through the air like a toy, her arm broken like a twig. By a causal flick of her daughter’s wrist. And then her daughter coming to her aide, frying those aliens that had captured her and Courtney with lightning…..
No, disturbing her now without a good reason would be a tad bit dangerous. She knew how annoyed she got when disturbed while…..
No. Not a scene she needed in her head…..
The phone rang.
She debated picking it up. She was afraid it would be something else. And right now she couldn’t handle anything else.
The answering machine picked up. “Maria? Michael? Anyone? We really need you both right now….. Where are you? Tess and Alex are hurt, and we all need to be together now…..”
Amy walked over and picked up her phone. “Liz?”
“Mrs. Deluca? Where is Maria? She said she was going home and, and I feel…. I don’t know how to describe it, but I just know she is there…..”
Amy bit her lip. “She’s, um, preoccupied, and she can’t come to the phone.”
“Mrs. Deluca, you know how dangerous our lives can be. Tess was shot. Their car crashed. We need to deal with this. I’ll apologize to her later, but I need her now!”
Right. Of course, Liz wasn’t the one who was going to be a fried pancake in a few moments. “I’ll, uh, try to get her.”
“And, if you could ask her where Michael is. We can’t seem to raise him anywhere. And….”
“I’ll ask.” She wasn’t about to admit that Michael was likely lying right next to her right now. Both of them had to be asleep, it was silent, no moans or cries.
Amy walked back into Maria’s room, still overwhelmed by the strength of that sharp strange smell. Hopefully she didn’t have to be on the lookout for an alien drug as well.
It took all of her strength to go to that bed. To lift it up just a little to wake her daughter up.
And Amy screamed. And screamed.
-------
Liz-
Liz head the scream from the phone.
Something was wrong with her friend….
Flash-
Liz stood in a circle, Healing stone in hand.
Maria and Michael were in the Balance. And they would get them out.
Liz smiled at Amy, her mother, and Diane. Only four stones. Ava had two of the others.
Four.
It would have to be enough.
End Flash
Liz wrenched the car around and began making way for the Crashdown. And the four healing stones.
“Wait, I thought we were going to the hospital?”
“I am needed else where. You are too. How well do you know Michael and Maria?”
“Pretty well. Michael always was hanging about Max and Isabel when they were growing up. And Maria….” Diane paused took a deep breath, “For a while there I thought Maria was Max’s girlfriend this summer. They spent so much time together.”
“They are good friends. I made a huge mistake this summer. A huge one. So did Michael. Michael less than me, he had more of a reason. Me, well, I just didn’t want to get in the way. Let my insecurities carry me off. Something I will not let happen again. I abandoned my love when he needed me most.”
“Liz, I think you are being a little harsh…..”
“Did Isabel tell you about the White Room.”
Diane was quiet for a moment. When she spoke it was silent and pained, “A little, I feel like she left something out but….”
“Your son was tortured and would have been killed. And, and I helped him. But I, after, after when we heard from his real mother. I just couldn’t take it. I knew I wasn’t worth it, that, that he deserved more than a small town girl…. That he had a destiny greater than me.”
“He loves you Liz.”
“I know. I know he does. And I him. But make no mistake, we hurt each other. And we may again. I hope not. But it may happen.”
“You are not exactly filling me with confidence here, Liz.”
“You and I have a lot to talk about. Max and I, and our friends, what we have is special. Different. Max and I are bound in a way that is, well metaphysical almost. Maria and Michael share a similar bond. At least they do now. And they need our help.”
“I asked to be part of this. I suppose I can help. But how?”
“The healing stones. What effects them is different from what Max can heal. Max will have to deal with Tess and Alex. We will deal with Michael and Maria. There is no time to waste.”
Liz pulled the car over and ran towards the back. Her mom was in the upstairs apartment. It would be quicker up the fire escape. Funny there had been a time when going up this way had been tough…..
--------
Kyle-
Kyle felt as his bond to Tess dwindled. He felt her fear and desperation. But they held him back.
They would not let him pass.
He could feel her getting weaker, feel her sense of loneliness and fear.
Kyle could feel her dying. Dying alone. And that was her great fear. Not that she would die. But that she would be alone.
Alone and abandoned, like she had been in the Pod chamber.
How could he show her, prove to her, that he would be with her always. How could he do it when she was facing death on the operating table?
Kyle moved quickly and grabbed a chair. There had been times when he had been able to calm his mind and feel everything in the area. He had thought at first it was something that you gained when you meditated, and maybe to a degree that was true.
But since his powers had been growing, he knew that they affected this. Knew that it was made many times more powerful, many times more effective. And if he could feel or touch Tess, if he could bridge that gap…..
Kyle closed his eyes and begun. It was hard to focus. Both from his fear for Tess, and the bustle around him. And then when he felt himself flow, felt the surrounding are, he felt all the pain, hope and loss….
And there…. There she was. Drifting softly into the dark. Perhaps from a religious stand point it was foolish and counter productive to do what he was going to do. Buddhists were supposed to remove attachment, reduce connection to the world.
But Tess needed him. And he would be there for her.
Contact…..
Back in the hospital, Kyle’s body slumped into the chair. His breathing was calm and even, and it would be hours before anyone realized that he was anything other than asleep…..
---------
Michael-
Michael stood there and watched as Maria joined him. And with her, everything changed.
Suddenly the world didn’t seem so empty and dry. So very black and white.
Maria added color to his life.
And around him the desert bloomed. He walked over and grabbed a flower to drape in Maria’s hair.
She just stared at him, a little quirk of a smile. “So, what happened.”
“Well, Rath wanted to protect you. And the only way he could see to do that is to place you behind his, my shields.” Michael shook his head. “I didn’t even realize they were there. No wonder Tess spent so much time with me, she couldn’t warp me like she could the others.”
“So she fed you a line and you bit.”
Michael looked away, “Yeah. Uh, Sorry?”
Maria giggled. “Did you just apologize?”
“Hey, its not like anyone other than you is here. And you, I…..” Michael blushed, “You don’t know how important you have become to me. How much it, I…. Damn it, I wish I could put it into words! I read like a bazillion novels and you would think I would know, how, or what to say. And, and,”
Maria gave him a kiss, “Thank you, Spaceboy. For everything. Now we just need to figure out how we get out of here.”
“Yeah. The Balance. And your stuck with me.”
“Well, I can think of a way to pass the time…..”
Michael stared at her. “Do you ever think of anything else?”
“Do you?”
Michael looked around, “Not really. Um, we should go over to that spot over there. Last thing we need is for one of us to have cactus needles in our butt or something…..”
Maria filled the quiet desert air with laughter.
And deep in the Balance, Michael made love to Maria.
------
Max-
Max watched his sister as she drove recklessly into the hospital parking lot. Luckily they didn’t wreck.
As soon as Isabel placed the car into park, she wrenched the car door open and ran towards the hospital.
Max hurried behind her and closed the driver side door. Personally, Max was amazed that Isabel wasn’t making the cars move out of her way so she could have a more direct path.
He had never seen her like this. He had seen her angry, seen her focused, but this….. God help them all if Alex died.
Isabel might just level the hospital.
When he caught up to Isabel, she was laying the drama on with a trowel.
“I want to see my fiancé, and I want to see him now!”
Fiancé? When did that happen? But on Isabel’s hand a ring shown, a ruby surrounded by diamonds, glittering brightly in the light.
This close Max could feel his sister making those stones glitter and shine much more than they would under normal light. And the band of white gold glittered under the all but glowing facets.
There was a wave of emotional force that carried before his sister like a tsunami….. He could feel the security bend and break under her demands. Isabel could not mind warp, but she had a formidable presence she could augment.
Like Liz. Only with Liz, it was somehow more…. Imperative. When had his Liz become so formidable? He didn’t know if he had been more shocked when she had issued the command at his sister, or that his sister had obeyed.
It jogged a memory. Not one of his, one of Zan’s…. And it worried him somehow. That there was something… wrong… about how Liz had commanded his sister.
Not the request, but how it had been done.
A problem for a later day.
Isabel tried to rush into the room they were examining Alex in, but the kept her out. No amount of pleading would move them.
Isabel would have to wait.
How was he going to do this? This wasn’t like Phoenix. People knew him here. And their entrance basically guaranteed they would be remembered.
He heard a gasp not more then ten feet from him.
“Max?”
It was Alicia.
Why now? Why here?
She ran and gave him a hug. She whispered in his ear, “I know what you did, and there is no way I can thank you enough. If ever there is a way I can help you or your friends…. Anything.”
He looked over at his sister. She was chewing on her lip and looking at the room Alex was in. Alicia might as well not exist for all she paid attention.
Her mind was on Alex and Alex alone.
Alicia pulled away. “So why are you here? Sydney is having some follow up tests. They want to keep a good track of her.”
Max looked at her, and a plan began to form in his head.
First he would have to find Tess, she had to be somewhere in this hospital. But Alicia’s grandfather had a lot of power and influence….. Maybe Alicia could help…..
-------
Alex-
Alex had no clue where he was. It was dark, the only light being a weird glittery light that seemed to percolate from above.
It seemed familiar somehow, like he’d seen that strange light somewhere else before. He was walking by column after column. Far in the distance he could see one that was lit, but it was too far to make out any details.
And there was a sense of dust and age to the place. And an eerie feel, like he wasn’t alone. Like he was surrounded. By ghosts.
Alex shivered.
And walked amongst the columns, striving to get to the one that had light.
It was going to be a bit of a walk. And he was so tired and thirsty. But he continued.
It was important. How he knew, he wasn’t sure. But he needed to see this.
She needed to know.
It was almost time. Almost time to decide.
Alex continued to walk.
Re: Shadows of the Past (CC ALL, Teen/Mature) Chap 32- 09/17/09
Thanks as always to those reading along.
Arrianeleigh- Thanks. I can tell you there is some resolution in this part. That helps, right?
keepsmiling7-thanks. Hopefully this part helps.
chanks_girl- Thanks. I always thought that loneliness was a key to Tess's character. She is one that would have abandonment issues.
Poor Amy. One bottle would not have been enough to buffer the shock though.
RhondaAnn- It will. But it will be subtle. Doing anything in the Balance has consequences.
All Diane saw was Max spending a lot of time with Maria. It would have been the only time he would not have been moping and sullen. The two really did comfort each other and formed a fairly strong friendship. Nothing romantic about it, but Diane couldn't truly know that.
The ring Isabel was flashing was one that Alex persuaded her to keep until she was ready to accept his preposal. (Her answer had been in effect, yes, but not right now.) She had been wearing it on her neck for the past few days. No mention of the ring in the story, mind. Just that Alex had preposed. Several times.
DeDe PR- Thanks. It will be a while before they truly figure out what Ana did to Liz. And it was something that even Ana did not truly mean to do. A dangerous mistake on her part.
tequathisy- Thanks. I think the answer to your question is yes.
AvalonRose- Thanks. I will touch on Future Maria. Maybe not for a couple of parts, but she has not gone away. But her main vehicle for interaction in timeline two has been lost. (she can no longer possess Maria)
Alex is going to be lost for a few more parts. And it will cause some serious problems.
Disclaimer- Roswell is not mine and no infringement is intended.
Shadows of the Past part 33
Tess-
She stood in a valley. It was very beautiful and soothing. A nearby brook babbled and she could hear the rush of a nearby waterfall.
But it was the Gate she studied. It was broad and golden. A path ran through the valley right up to it. The gate was latched, but she knew it would open at her touch.
And if she passed through, she would never return. Not as she was.
She would be dead. Fully dead this time.
What lay on the other side? Heaven? Rebirth? Oblivion?
She didn’t know.
There was no separation now between Ava or Tess. There was only her. One person, one soul.
She didn’t want to die. Both of her lives had been so short. And she had just found love.
Not perhaps the One. Not the person who was naturally her soul mate. She didn’t believe in such things.
But he could become her soul mate. He could become the One.
She so wanted to stay, to hold on and see if Kyle was truly her match. It had felt so right….. But now she would never know. Never know for sure.
She hoped, hoped that she would someday get another chance. That they could meet again, in another life or some other plane of existence. That they could be together.
Together forever.
And now….. Now she would never know. She would be alone in death like she had been in life. She was so tired of being alone….. So tired of being afraid.
Maybe, maybe Oblivion would be better. Maybe it would be best to just cease to exist, to cease to be.
Then at least she would not be alone.
She walked up to the Gate and reached for the latch…..
“Wait! Tess stop.”
She turned and looked. It was Kyle.
Tess. Yes. I am Tess.
Kyle looked angry and frightened. “Why Tess? Why are you leaving me?”
“I have to go. I have to. I am sorry Kyle. Sorry that I couldn’t live with you. But someday you will find….”
Kyle moved forward, almost touching her. “Stop Tess. Just stop it. Haven’t you gotten it through your thick skull that where you go I will follow. Always and forever.” He reached out his hand for her to hold.
Her heart did not race. It did not melt or any such.
Here in this place she didn’t have a heart. She didn’t really have a body. This was all beyond her mortal mind and she knew it. Both of them were naked souls on the cusp of death.
Kyle was risking death. Risking Oblivion.
For her.
She didn’t have a heart here. But a sense of exultation swept through her. It was deep and profound.
Kyle loved her. He would risk anything for her. Anything.
She wanted nothing more than to clasp his hand and bind him forever to her. For here, in this place, it would bind them more deeply than any physical bond.
But he would die. The thought of his glorious eyes dimmed, his ready smile and funny quips stilled forever….. She couldn’t do it. She needed it more than anything….
But she would not let him destroy himself. Not even for her.
She cried. “I can’t Kyle. I can’t. You will die.”
“Tess…..” The fear and worry on his face gave way to anger. “What gives you the right? What gives you the right to decide my life and fate for me? This is my choice. And I choose you. All of you, the good and the bad. Don’t take that away from me.”
Tess just stared at him, her hand moving slowly towards him, slowly bridging the gap. By an act of will she stopped it. Stopped it just short of connecting with him.
She would not let Kyle die.
Better get this over with. She turned and reached again for the latch……
“Tess…. Please…. Don’t leave me here. Don’t leave me all alone…..”
Alone. Alone. Alone…. The words echoed inside of her. The pain in his voice echoing the pain in her soul.
She turned. She reached out. And she clasped his outstretched hand.
He pulled her into his arms.
There was a soaring feeling as she felt herself shift. As he became a part of her, and she of him. Their bond was complete.
Kyle held her for what seemed a very long time. But eventually she sighed and looked back at the Gate. It called her still. Called them both now.
But Kyle held her fast. Would not let her go.
“Kyle….”
“I know. I feel it too. But Tess we have to fight it.”
“Why Kyle. I am dead. I can feel it. My body. It died. And now…..”
“When we go, it will be together. I will not let you go alone. But Tess, sometimes when everything looks hopeless, that is the very time you just need to hold on. Hold on for just a moment more and victory will be in your grasp.”
“Come on Kyle, it would take a miracle.”
“Well…. I believe in them. Don’t you?”
No. She didn’t believe in miracles. But she did believe in Kyle.
And so she held…… Against all hope of success, she held.
-------
The doctor looked down on the beautiful blonde that lay dead before him. It was such a shame. He looked up at the clock. “Time of death is….”
The machines picked up a faint heart beat.
That was impossible. They had tried everything. And now, when they had given up…..
“Come on people. We can still save her.”
And they set about doing just that.
--------
Alex-
Alex walked among the dusty columns. Only they weren’t truly columns as they did not reach all the way to the ceiling. A ceiling that seemed impossibly far above. He touched one of them, it felt smooth and hard. It felt man made, it was so smooth. And each pillar was exactly the same.
He wished he could see better, that there was more light. But the glittering light above threw so many conflicting shadows, it made it harder to see rather than easier.
He had to keep moving to the lit pillar.
He wasn’t sure how long it took him. It felt like forever, but it couldn’t have been that long. He looked at his watch, but it was stopped. Heck of a time for the battery to die.
As he grew closer, the glowing pillar seemed like it was a glass column filled with some fluid. And in it there was a small body floating inside.
What…..
As he grew closer he could see more details of the little girl. She looked so very familiar.
It was Stephanie.
-------
Maria-
Maria looked up at the alien sky and held Michael close. It wasn’t really possible to sleep here, but he was still in her arms.
At peace. Sated.
So was she.
The environment here was changeable, much like a dream. But too often dreams shifted and faded when you realized you were dreaming. Not here in the Balance. Here you had access to all that you were.
And the barriers that had been between Rath and Michael had faded. Oh the memories were spotty and dim, but they were there. This starscape was one of them.
It was so strange to look up into the sky and not recognize the patterns. Even stranger to recognize some. For Maria did. Courtney had left her a treasure trove she had barely touched. Now in this place she felt it open to her.
How much she would remember she was not sure. Michael had only remembered snatches last time he was in the balance. Bits and pieces of his past, filtered through his mind.
Maria reached over and with her powers plucked a flower from a nearby cactus. In her hand she changed it to a Niradel. A flower that had last bloomed in the Garden of Drimordjian. Now lost forever.
It was strange that she, Maria Deluca, might actually be the last one to remember that bloom. The scent was heady, akin to a rose, but not quite the same.
If only she could bottle it…..
A complex chemical formula rolled through her mind. Attar of Niradel. It had been a major export of Drimordjian, the bloom not hardy enough to survive on the surface of Antar. It too had changed in the ceaseless constancy of the Arks.
When Drimordjian had been destroyed, an artificial version had been created. Not the same. But it had smelled as sweet. But still not the same.
It was so hard to forget that Courtney had once been a scientist. Or that Vilandra had been one as well. Strange to think of her friends having other lives before this one. Literally. Sure she had known, but still… It was strange to have confirmation.
It was strange to have this knowledge, to just know…. And yet be just herself. To be Maria Deluca.
She felt Michael stir. She handed him the flower.
He looked at her. He had a slight smirk and said, “You do know I’d prefer a tool box or…..”
“When we get out of here I want you to draw this for me.”
He smiled and placed the flower in her hair. A sudden look of worry passed across his face. “Did you feel that?”
Maria shook her head. Had they come for them. Or was it something more sinister?
“It’s like someone is calling, pulling me. I need to help them.”
“What is it?”
“I don’t know.” Michael got up and reached for his clothes. Which was silly, because they weren’t real. Only she and Michael, and the essence of this place were actually real here.
Courtney had done a lot of study on the Balance.
Maria stood up and her clothes just appeared on her body. Why not? She wished a mirror and made changes, her clothes flitting from one style to the next.
Michael’s droll voice called her back, “If you are done?”
Maria blinked and decided on a fairly practical blouse and jeans. With a pair of really expensive boots she had seen in the window of a shoe store. She had wanted them but they had been so expensive…..
Not a problem here.
Michael huffed and walked off.
Maria quickly followed. “So, what do you think it is?”
“I don’t know. I really don’t. But I think…. I think someone is calling for help.”
“Here? In the Balance? Is that even possible?”
“I don’t know. It may be a trap. Maybe you should….”
“Don’t even finish that thought, buster. We do this together. And I’m not helpless. Not any more. I can protect myself.”
Michael looked at her and sighed. “Yeah. But that won’t stop me from worrying.”
Maria just giggled and grabbed his arm. She was determined to keep him safe. Just as she knew she could trust him to protect her.
Michael kept talking, “Sometimes something like this would happen on the battlefield. Soldiers could get destabilized and slip into the Balance. There was a trick to, I don’t know, sense disturbances in the Balance…. And we could find them before they lost coherence and died.”
“They died?” Maria looked up at him fearfully. It was one thing to walk along into possible danger, another to realize that you were staring face long into a death you might not escape.
“They were un-Balanced. We are not. We’re just… stuck. We need someone to call us home. But I think,” Michael was all smiles again as he glanced at her, “That we keep each other safe. As long as someone comes before our bodies suffer too much we’ll be fine.”
Maria paled. Their bodies were laying naked on her bed. The person most likely to find them would be her mother.
Amy would not be pleased.
Michael was still smiling at her, but his eyes were searching. He lifted up one hand and… twisted.
Everything changed. They were in a valley now. It seemed similar to her.
Someone was dying. Her eyes scanned, looking for a doorway or gate. Someone was most definitely in trouble.
She saw them first. Kyle was holding a frightened but bright-eyed Tess. Tess was dying and Kyle was holding her back from the brink. Risking himself.
Maria looked at Michael. He had done much the same for her. Her heart swelled.
She didn’t particularly care for Tess. She didn’t really hate her anymore, but still wasn’t her favorite person…..
If Kyle was willing to risk death for her. She saw the bond that connected them, the slow blending of their essence……
How could she not help? The whole romantic aspect of Kyle’s actions alone would guarantee her assistance.
And she could tell that Michael would do the same. Probably not for the same reason. She loved him dearly, but while he could on rare occasion be romantic, he never was a romantic. If he knew what she was thinking he would roll his eyes about all the weak-kneed chick fluff.
Tess turned to look at them. Her face was a mixture of hope and worry. “Please tell me you aren’t caught here too?”
Michael was to the point. “What happened.”
“Someone tried to kill me. I was shot several times. Once very serious. I’m, I’m dying.”
“Tess, we’ll get out of this, you just have to believe me.” Kyle turned to Michael and Maria, “So how did you come to be here.”
Michael shrugged.
“I’ve been, well I’ve been possessed. Michael used some of Rath’s memories to help protect me. It, uh, had some minor set backs. But we’re fine. Really.”
Tess looked at her and Michael.
Maria could feel as Tess… touched her somehow. Used her powers probably.
Tess said, perhaps a little wistfully, “They are better than fine. They are Balanced. Why are you two still here.”
Michael said, “We’ve lost the way. Someone’s going to have to bring us back. Let us help you.”
“Yeah, but how? I’m holding her, but I can feel my grip slipping. And then we’ll be through that gate. And gone. Last thing we want to do is drag you in too.”
Michael sounded so very sure when he said, “You won’t. I will anchor you. And Maria will anchor me.”
Michael reached for one of Kyle’s hands, his other hand laced in Maria’s.
Maria instinctively grasped Tess’s hand. And sighed as if shocked.
They were bound now.
It was different than what she had with Michael. Very different. But just as strong in its own way. Out of the corner of her eye she could see Michael and Kyle sizing each other up.
It had happened to them as well.
How long they stood there she wasn’t sure. But she began to feel a different calling. Very different from what was calling Tess.
Maria peeked over and saw her mother. Worry creased her face, worry and love. And maybe a bit of anger towards Michael.
But they couldn’t leave! Kyle was exhausted. He’d hid it from Tess, but he really had been on the edge of himself holding her for as long as he had.
If they left, Kyle would hold as long as he could.
And both Tess and Kyle would die.
Maria felt as Michael gripped her hand tightly. She knew what he was asking. What he proposed. That he stay and she go.
Foolishness. She didn’t even bother to ask. She knew what the silly man would say.
No. She would NOT leave. Thank you.
There had to be a way to make them understand…..
------
Diane-
Diane sat quietly in the Sheriff’s cruiser. She’d been only slightly surprised to see Sheriff Valenti waiting for them at Amy’s house.
Their relationship was a topic of gossip around the town.
She just wished she didn’t feel like such a failure. A failure and a fraud.
She had promised to help young Liz out. To aide her however she could. Even to participate in the use of the Healing stones.
But Isabel called. She’d been so distraught. Diane simply couldn’t focus on Michael or Maria. Not with her intense daughter in danger of coming undone.
The Sheriff was off to find Kyle. Neither Max nor Isabel had seen him. And apparently they had help. Kyle’s Mustang had been at the site, so he had probably taken the Ambulance back with Tess….
Diane closed her eyes. Their children led such dangerous lives. Why couldn’t she protect them…. Somehow, she and the other parents had to find a way to protect them.
It was a horrible feeling to feel so… helpless.
-------
Max-
Max sat in one of the offices Alicia had managed to persuade the local hospital staff to let them use. He looked over at his new ally. How much could he trust her? She seemed to know so much and to be thankful for what he did.
But he was very aware that she was also John Ibanez’s granddaughter. And a member of Far Sight. A fairly high ranking one at that.
How much was she drawing from her gratitude and how much for her desire to understand them?
He looked over at his sister. She was tearing apart a napkin, bit by bit. And then to Alicia’s amazement Isabel would reform it. Only to tear it up again.
She was at wits end. Unfortunately he could not get access to either Tess or Alex. Alex’s injuries were bad, but not horrible. He hadn’t broken his neck, and the concussion while bad did not seem like it had caused any severe internal injury.
But he wouldn’t wake up. And that worried the doctors.
What worried Max more was how Isabel described Alex’s mind. Flat. Like there was no one there. But not gone. Not dead.
Max desperately needed to see him.
Or Tess. She had been in surgery for over two hours now. And the doctors kept telling them not to give up hope.
Yeah. That was cheerful news…..
To make matters worse, the call Isabel had made to their mom had brought even more bad news.
Michael and Maria were in a cocoon. Similar to what had been forming around Michael last year. Only this time it was complete.
Max needed to be there. But if the opportunity arose he needed, desperately needed to be here to. And Tess at least sounded like she might be near death.
Max had never been so torn. What should he do?
And then Liz was there.
Alicia gasped. Obviously she saw her.
Isabel just nodded to Liz. Liz waved and turned to Max. She tried to talk. But there was no sound.
And so she touched him.
Max felt a sudden rush of confused and urgent images. Somehow Michael and Maria were helping Tess. And Kyle.
Kyle was here?
Max needed to be here and there. Simultaneously.
It was impossible. Even for him. Even with the Granolith.
How, how could he save them?
And it came to him. There was a way. But it entailed doing something that had never been done. Liz’s image was still there, still waiting for him.
He reached out and with his essence called to her. And as she had done to him, lent her a portion of his power.
And more.
Much more.
Max Evans sat down tiredly and hoped that everything would be alright. But he had done what he could. Now he just had to wait.
Wait for the moment when he could heal his two friends.
------
Liz-
Liz sighed as she stared at the circle. Things had not gone as she planed. They had been about to start when Diane had gotten that frenzied call from Isabel.
After that Diane had been to distracted. There was no way she could focus just on two friends of the family. No she had a child in pain.
Amy had been another problem. Convincing her to let go of her anger and fear about the whole situation had been hard. Understandable really, but necessary.
Her own mother had been firm in her desire to help.
As had her father. Why that surprised her she didn’t know. But it had. She had known that he had cared for Maria, heck he had been the closest she’d had to a father growing up. But that he cared for Michael….
Stupid. She should have seen it. Her dad had once been a rebel without a clue as well. Of course he’d understand Michael. A little. The alien hybrid aspect not as much, but still it was a bond of sorts.
And so now they begun. One by one the stones lit up. And she could see them.
They were not alone. They were joined by Kyle and Tess.
And while Kyle and Tess were trapped they would not leave. But it was Tess that was the focus of the problem.
She was dying. And Kyle had held her from death, lending his life force to support hers. How he was doing it Liz had no clue. But he had.
And now Maria and Michael were supporting both of them.
It was too much for the four stones. Too much of a load. It would aide them, but would not resolve the problem.
She needed help. But to give up the work and energy they had spent to use the healing stones…. It would take a while before they would be able to try again. Time that Kyle and Tess might not have.
Max. Maybe there was something Max could do. Maybe he could sneak in and heal Tess. Somehow.
That would solve the problem.
So she tore a tiny bit of her focus, a tiny bit of herself and floated along her bond to Max.
And she was there. She tried to talk to him. But again she could tell he could not hear her. So she touched him and through their bond tried to communicate.
He staggered slightly back under the weight of the images. But she could feel the steady pulsing of his love for her. His trust.
A trust that she vowed not to betray. Not again. It had hurt them both too badly, and in the end had accomplished little.
He reached out for her, and she felt a level of trust that almost staggered her.
And along the bond came a wealth of strength and power.
And more. Much more.
He passed to her a portion of his Seal.
She paused. Momentarily stunned at Max’s largess. Now she had the power, all she had to do was figure out what to do with it.
And soon. She could feel the others weakening. She didn’t know if she could manage the healing stones by herself.
What could she do?
It came to her. Not her thought. Not Max’s thought. Just sudden insight.
And she healed them. All of them.
------
In that moment the world was changed. Destinies and ancient plans faltered and failed.
Serena’s wind had become a hurricane…. One that would effect not just the fate and destiny of Earth, nor one that would shape the Five Worlds and their colonies. But one that could very well affect the shape and destiny of the galaxy, possibly even the universe.
And those with the right knowledge and power felt fear and dread as for the first time the full power of the Granolith was wielded in alien hands……
Things would never be the same.
Arrianeleigh- Thanks. I can tell you there is some resolution in this part. That helps, right?
keepsmiling7-thanks. Hopefully this part helps.
chanks_girl- Thanks. I always thought that loneliness was a key to Tess's character. She is one that would have abandonment issues.
Poor Amy. One bottle would not have been enough to buffer the shock though.
RhondaAnn- It will. But it will be subtle. Doing anything in the Balance has consequences.
All Diane saw was Max spending a lot of time with Maria. It would have been the only time he would not have been moping and sullen. The two really did comfort each other and formed a fairly strong friendship. Nothing romantic about it, but Diane couldn't truly know that.
The ring Isabel was flashing was one that Alex persuaded her to keep until she was ready to accept his preposal. (Her answer had been in effect, yes, but not right now.) She had been wearing it on her neck for the past few days. No mention of the ring in the story, mind. Just that Alex had preposed. Several times.
DeDe PR- Thanks. It will be a while before they truly figure out what Ana did to Liz. And it was something that even Ana did not truly mean to do. A dangerous mistake on her part.
tequathisy- Thanks. I think the answer to your question is yes.
AvalonRose- Thanks. I will touch on Future Maria. Maybe not for a couple of parts, but she has not gone away. But her main vehicle for interaction in timeline two has been lost. (she can no longer possess Maria)
Alex is going to be lost for a few more parts. And it will cause some serious problems.
Disclaimer- Roswell is not mine and no infringement is intended.
Shadows of the Past part 33
Tess-
She stood in a valley. It was very beautiful and soothing. A nearby brook babbled and she could hear the rush of a nearby waterfall.
But it was the Gate she studied. It was broad and golden. A path ran through the valley right up to it. The gate was latched, but she knew it would open at her touch.
And if she passed through, she would never return. Not as she was.
She would be dead. Fully dead this time.
What lay on the other side? Heaven? Rebirth? Oblivion?
She didn’t know.
There was no separation now between Ava or Tess. There was only her. One person, one soul.
She didn’t want to die. Both of her lives had been so short. And she had just found love.
Not perhaps the One. Not the person who was naturally her soul mate. She didn’t believe in such things.
But he could become her soul mate. He could become the One.
She so wanted to stay, to hold on and see if Kyle was truly her match. It had felt so right….. But now she would never know. Never know for sure.
She hoped, hoped that she would someday get another chance. That they could meet again, in another life or some other plane of existence. That they could be together.
Together forever.
And now….. Now she would never know. She would be alone in death like she had been in life. She was so tired of being alone….. So tired of being afraid.
Maybe, maybe Oblivion would be better. Maybe it would be best to just cease to exist, to cease to be.
Then at least she would not be alone.
She walked up to the Gate and reached for the latch…..
“Wait! Tess stop.”
She turned and looked. It was Kyle.
Tess. Yes. I am Tess.
Kyle looked angry and frightened. “Why Tess? Why are you leaving me?”
“I have to go. I have to. I am sorry Kyle. Sorry that I couldn’t live with you. But someday you will find….”
Kyle moved forward, almost touching her. “Stop Tess. Just stop it. Haven’t you gotten it through your thick skull that where you go I will follow. Always and forever.” He reached out his hand for her to hold.
Her heart did not race. It did not melt or any such.
Here in this place she didn’t have a heart. She didn’t really have a body. This was all beyond her mortal mind and she knew it. Both of them were naked souls on the cusp of death.
Kyle was risking death. Risking Oblivion.
For her.
She didn’t have a heart here. But a sense of exultation swept through her. It was deep and profound.
Kyle loved her. He would risk anything for her. Anything.
She wanted nothing more than to clasp his hand and bind him forever to her. For here, in this place, it would bind them more deeply than any physical bond.
But he would die. The thought of his glorious eyes dimmed, his ready smile and funny quips stilled forever….. She couldn’t do it. She needed it more than anything….
But she would not let him destroy himself. Not even for her.
She cried. “I can’t Kyle. I can’t. You will die.”
“Tess…..” The fear and worry on his face gave way to anger. “What gives you the right? What gives you the right to decide my life and fate for me? This is my choice. And I choose you. All of you, the good and the bad. Don’t take that away from me.”
Tess just stared at him, her hand moving slowly towards him, slowly bridging the gap. By an act of will she stopped it. Stopped it just short of connecting with him.
She would not let Kyle die.
Better get this over with. She turned and reached again for the latch……
“Tess…. Please…. Don’t leave me here. Don’t leave me all alone…..”
Alone. Alone. Alone…. The words echoed inside of her. The pain in his voice echoing the pain in her soul.
She turned. She reached out. And she clasped his outstretched hand.
He pulled her into his arms.
There was a soaring feeling as she felt herself shift. As he became a part of her, and she of him. Their bond was complete.
Kyle held her for what seemed a very long time. But eventually she sighed and looked back at the Gate. It called her still. Called them both now.
But Kyle held her fast. Would not let her go.
“Kyle….”
“I know. I feel it too. But Tess we have to fight it.”
“Why Kyle. I am dead. I can feel it. My body. It died. And now…..”
“When we go, it will be together. I will not let you go alone. But Tess, sometimes when everything looks hopeless, that is the very time you just need to hold on. Hold on for just a moment more and victory will be in your grasp.”
“Come on Kyle, it would take a miracle.”
“Well…. I believe in them. Don’t you?”
No. She didn’t believe in miracles. But she did believe in Kyle.
And so she held…… Against all hope of success, she held.
-------
The doctor looked down on the beautiful blonde that lay dead before him. It was such a shame. He looked up at the clock. “Time of death is….”
The machines picked up a faint heart beat.
That was impossible. They had tried everything. And now, when they had given up…..
“Come on people. We can still save her.”
And they set about doing just that.
--------
Alex-
Alex walked among the dusty columns. Only they weren’t truly columns as they did not reach all the way to the ceiling. A ceiling that seemed impossibly far above. He touched one of them, it felt smooth and hard. It felt man made, it was so smooth. And each pillar was exactly the same.
He wished he could see better, that there was more light. But the glittering light above threw so many conflicting shadows, it made it harder to see rather than easier.
He had to keep moving to the lit pillar.
He wasn’t sure how long it took him. It felt like forever, but it couldn’t have been that long. He looked at his watch, but it was stopped. Heck of a time for the battery to die.
As he grew closer, the glowing pillar seemed like it was a glass column filled with some fluid. And in it there was a small body floating inside.
What…..
As he grew closer he could see more details of the little girl. She looked so very familiar.
It was Stephanie.
-------
Maria-
Maria looked up at the alien sky and held Michael close. It wasn’t really possible to sleep here, but he was still in her arms.
At peace. Sated.
So was she.
The environment here was changeable, much like a dream. But too often dreams shifted and faded when you realized you were dreaming. Not here in the Balance. Here you had access to all that you were.
And the barriers that had been between Rath and Michael had faded. Oh the memories were spotty and dim, but they were there. This starscape was one of them.
It was so strange to look up into the sky and not recognize the patterns. Even stranger to recognize some. For Maria did. Courtney had left her a treasure trove she had barely touched. Now in this place she felt it open to her.
How much she would remember she was not sure. Michael had only remembered snatches last time he was in the balance. Bits and pieces of his past, filtered through his mind.
Maria reached over and with her powers plucked a flower from a nearby cactus. In her hand she changed it to a Niradel. A flower that had last bloomed in the Garden of Drimordjian. Now lost forever.
It was strange that she, Maria Deluca, might actually be the last one to remember that bloom. The scent was heady, akin to a rose, but not quite the same.
If only she could bottle it…..
A complex chemical formula rolled through her mind. Attar of Niradel. It had been a major export of Drimordjian, the bloom not hardy enough to survive on the surface of Antar. It too had changed in the ceaseless constancy of the Arks.
When Drimordjian had been destroyed, an artificial version had been created. Not the same. But it had smelled as sweet. But still not the same.
It was so hard to forget that Courtney had once been a scientist. Or that Vilandra had been one as well. Strange to think of her friends having other lives before this one. Literally. Sure she had known, but still… It was strange to have confirmation.
It was strange to have this knowledge, to just know…. And yet be just herself. To be Maria Deluca.
She felt Michael stir. She handed him the flower.
He looked at her. He had a slight smirk and said, “You do know I’d prefer a tool box or…..”
“When we get out of here I want you to draw this for me.”
He smiled and placed the flower in her hair. A sudden look of worry passed across his face. “Did you feel that?”
Maria shook her head. Had they come for them. Or was it something more sinister?
“It’s like someone is calling, pulling me. I need to help them.”
“What is it?”
“I don’t know.” Michael got up and reached for his clothes. Which was silly, because they weren’t real. Only she and Michael, and the essence of this place were actually real here.
Courtney had done a lot of study on the Balance.
Maria stood up and her clothes just appeared on her body. Why not? She wished a mirror and made changes, her clothes flitting from one style to the next.
Michael’s droll voice called her back, “If you are done?”
Maria blinked and decided on a fairly practical blouse and jeans. With a pair of really expensive boots she had seen in the window of a shoe store. She had wanted them but they had been so expensive…..
Not a problem here.
Michael huffed and walked off.
Maria quickly followed. “So, what do you think it is?”
“I don’t know. I really don’t. But I think…. I think someone is calling for help.”
“Here? In the Balance? Is that even possible?”
“I don’t know. It may be a trap. Maybe you should….”
“Don’t even finish that thought, buster. We do this together. And I’m not helpless. Not any more. I can protect myself.”
Michael looked at her and sighed. “Yeah. But that won’t stop me from worrying.”
Maria just giggled and grabbed his arm. She was determined to keep him safe. Just as she knew she could trust him to protect her.
Michael kept talking, “Sometimes something like this would happen on the battlefield. Soldiers could get destabilized and slip into the Balance. There was a trick to, I don’t know, sense disturbances in the Balance…. And we could find them before they lost coherence and died.”
“They died?” Maria looked up at him fearfully. It was one thing to walk along into possible danger, another to realize that you were staring face long into a death you might not escape.
“They were un-Balanced. We are not. We’re just… stuck. We need someone to call us home. But I think,” Michael was all smiles again as he glanced at her, “That we keep each other safe. As long as someone comes before our bodies suffer too much we’ll be fine.”
Maria paled. Their bodies were laying naked on her bed. The person most likely to find them would be her mother.
Amy would not be pleased.
Michael was still smiling at her, but his eyes were searching. He lifted up one hand and… twisted.
Everything changed. They were in a valley now. It seemed similar to her.
Someone was dying. Her eyes scanned, looking for a doorway or gate. Someone was most definitely in trouble.
She saw them first. Kyle was holding a frightened but bright-eyed Tess. Tess was dying and Kyle was holding her back from the brink. Risking himself.
Maria looked at Michael. He had done much the same for her. Her heart swelled.
She didn’t particularly care for Tess. She didn’t really hate her anymore, but still wasn’t her favorite person…..
If Kyle was willing to risk death for her. She saw the bond that connected them, the slow blending of their essence……
How could she not help? The whole romantic aspect of Kyle’s actions alone would guarantee her assistance.
And she could tell that Michael would do the same. Probably not for the same reason. She loved him dearly, but while he could on rare occasion be romantic, he never was a romantic. If he knew what she was thinking he would roll his eyes about all the weak-kneed chick fluff.
Tess turned to look at them. Her face was a mixture of hope and worry. “Please tell me you aren’t caught here too?”
Michael was to the point. “What happened.”
“Someone tried to kill me. I was shot several times. Once very serious. I’m, I’m dying.”
“Tess, we’ll get out of this, you just have to believe me.” Kyle turned to Michael and Maria, “So how did you come to be here.”
Michael shrugged.
“I’ve been, well I’ve been possessed. Michael used some of Rath’s memories to help protect me. It, uh, had some minor set backs. But we’re fine. Really.”
Tess looked at her and Michael.
Maria could feel as Tess… touched her somehow. Used her powers probably.
Tess said, perhaps a little wistfully, “They are better than fine. They are Balanced. Why are you two still here.”
Michael said, “We’ve lost the way. Someone’s going to have to bring us back. Let us help you.”
“Yeah, but how? I’m holding her, but I can feel my grip slipping. And then we’ll be through that gate. And gone. Last thing we want to do is drag you in too.”
Michael sounded so very sure when he said, “You won’t. I will anchor you. And Maria will anchor me.”
Michael reached for one of Kyle’s hands, his other hand laced in Maria’s.
Maria instinctively grasped Tess’s hand. And sighed as if shocked.
They were bound now.
It was different than what she had with Michael. Very different. But just as strong in its own way. Out of the corner of her eye she could see Michael and Kyle sizing each other up.
It had happened to them as well.
How long they stood there she wasn’t sure. But she began to feel a different calling. Very different from what was calling Tess.
Maria peeked over and saw her mother. Worry creased her face, worry and love. And maybe a bit of anger towards Michael.
But they couldn’t leave! Kyle was exhausted. He’d hid it from Tess, but he really had been on the edge of himself holding her for as long as he had.
If they left, Kyle would hold as long as he could.
And both Tess and Kyle would die.
Maria felt as Michael gripped her hand tightly. She knew what he was asking. What he proposed. That he stay and she go.
Foolishness. She didn’t even bother to ask. She knew what the silly man would say.
No. She would NOT leave. Thank you.
There had to be a way to make them understand…..
------
Diane-
Diane sat quietly in the Sheriff’s cruiser. She’d been only slightly surprised to see Sheriff Valenti waiting for them at Amy’s house.
Their relationship was a topic of gossip around the town.
She just wished she didn’t feel like such a failure. A failure and a fraud.
She had promised to help young Liz out. To aide her however she could. Even to participate in the use of the Healing stones.
But Isabel called. She’d been so distraught. Diane simply couldn’t focus on Michael or Maria. Not with her intense daughter in danger of coming undone.
The Sheriff was off to find Kyle. Neither Max nor Isabel had seen him. And apparently they had help. Kyle’s Mustang had been at the site, so he had probably taken the Ambulance back with Tess….
Diane closed her eyes. Their children led such dangerous lives. Why couldn’t she protect them…. Somehow, she and the other parents had to find a way to protect them.
It was a horrible feeling to feel so… helpless.
-------
Max-
Max sat in one of the offices Alicia had managed to persuade the local hospital staff to let them use. He looked over at his new ally. How much could he trust her? She seemed to know so much and to be thankful for what he did.
But he was very aware that she was also John Ibanez’s granddaughter. And a member of Far Sight. A fairly high ranking one at that.
How much was she drawing from her gratitude and how much for her desire to understand them?
He looked over at his sister. She was tearing apart a napkin, bit by bit. And then to Alicia’s amazement Isabel would reform it. Only to tear it up again.
She was at wits end. Unfortunately he could not get access to either Tess or Alex. Alex’s injuries were bad, but not horrible. He hadn’t broken his neck, and the concussion while bad did not seem like it had caused any severe internal injury.
But he wouldn’t wake up. And that worried the doctors.
What worried Max more was how Isabel described Alex’s mind. Flat. Like there was no one there. But not gone. Not dead.
Max desperately needed to see him.
Or Tess. She had been in surgery for over two hours now. And the doctors kept telling them not to give up hope.
Yeah. That was cheerful news…..
To make matters worse, the call Isabel had made to their mom had brought even more bad news.
Michael and Maria were in a cocoon. Similar to what had been forming around Michael last year. Only this time it was complete.
Max needed to be there. But if the opportunity arose he needed, desperately needed to be here to. And Tess at least sounded like she might be near death.
Max had never been so torn. What should he do?
And then Liz was there.
Alicia gasped. Obviously she saw her.
Isabel just nodded to Liz. Liz waved and turned to Max. She tried to talk. But there was no sound.
And so she touched him.
Max felt a sudden rush of confused and urgent images. Somehow Michael and Maria were helping Tess. And Kyle.
Kyle was here?
Max needed to be here and there. Simultaneously.
It was impossible. Even for him. Even with the Granolith.
How, how could he save them?
And it came to him. There was a way. But it entailed doing something that had never been done. Liz’s image was still there, still waiting for him.
He reached out and with his essence called to her. And as she had done to him, lent her a portion of his power.
And more.
Much more.
Max Evans sat down tiredly and hoped that everything would be alright. But he had done what he could. Now he just had to wait.
Wait for the moment when he could heal his two friends.
------
Liz-
Liz sighed as she stared at the circle. Things had not gone as she planed. They had been about to start when Diane had gotten that frenzied call from Isabel.
After that Diane had been to distracted. There was no way she could focus just on two friends of the family. No she had a child in pain.
Amy had been another problem. Convincing her to let go of her anger and fear about the whole situation had been hard. Understandable really, but necessary.
Her own mother had been firm in her desire to help.
As had her father. Why that surprised her she didn’t know. But it had. She had known that he had cared for Maria, heck he had been the closest she’d had to a father growing up. But that he cared for Michael….
Stupid. She should have seen it. Her dad had once been a rebel without a clue as well. Of course he’d understand Michael. A little. The alien hybrid aspect not as much, but still it was a bond of sorts.
And so now they begun. One by one the stones lit up. And she could see them.
They were not alone. They were joined by Kyle and Tess.
And while Kyle and Tess were trapped they would not leave. But it was Tess that was the focus of the problem.
She was dying. And Kyle had held her from death, lending his life force to support hers. How he was doing it Liz had no clue. But he had.
And now Maria and Michael were supporting both of them.
It was too much for the four stones. Too much of a load. It would aide them, but would not resolve the problem.
She needed help. But to give up the work and energy they had spent to use the healing stones…. It would take a while before they would be able to try again. Time that Kyle and Tess might not have.
Max. Maybe there was something Max could do. Maybe he could sneak in and heal Tess. Somehow.
That would solve the problem.
So she tore a tiny bit of her focus, a tiny bit of herself and floated along her bond to Max.
And she was there. She tried to talk to him. But again she could tell he could not hear her. So she touched him and through their bond tried to communicate.
He staggered slightly back under the weight of the images. But she could feel the steady pulsing of his love for her. His trust.
A trust that she vowed not to betray. Not again. It had hurt them both too badly, and in the end had accomplished little.
He reached out for her, and she felt a level of trust that almost staggered her.
And along the bond came a wealth of strength and power.
And more. Much more.
He passed to her a portion of his Seal.
She paused. Momentarily stunned at Max’s largess. Now she had the power, all she had to do was figure out what to do with it.
And soon. She could feel the others weakening. She didn’t know if she could manage the healing stones by herself.
What could she do?
It came to her. Not her thought. Not Max’s thought. Just sudden insight.
And she healed them. All of them.
------
In that moment the world was changed. Destinies and ancient plans faltered and failed.
Serena’s wind had become a hurricane…. One that would effect not just the fate and destiny of Earth, nor one that would shape the Five Worlds and their colonies. But one that could very well affect the shape and destiny of the galaxy, possibly even the universe.
And those with the right knowledge and power felt fear and dread as for the first time the full power of the Granolith was wielded in alien hands……
Things would never be the same.
Re: Shadows of the Past (CC ALL, Teen/Mature) Chap 33- 09/29/09
Thanks again to everyone following along this story.
Arianneleigh- Thank you. There really is only one major scene left in this story before it switches to Redemption. Maybe a part or two. So this chapter is a transition chapter. Remember, that while a lot of aliens are shaking in their metaphorical boots, our heroes do not realize they've been doing the impossible consistantly.
chanks_girl- Thanks
GregInClearwater- Thank you.
RhondaAnn- Yes. But who and why? Well let me refer you to the infamous Momogram from season one Destiny. They are linked.
The bond between Tess and Maria will be touched on in the next part. Amy is too busy sqeezing the life out of her daughter for Maria to do much else in this part.
DeDe PR- Where Alex is will not be solved until early in Redemption. (Don't worry that won't be too long. I may have one or two more parts to Shadows.)
AvalonRose- Thanks. Yes. But Liz is not a healer. It will take time. But if the surgeons used a stopwatch camera on Tess they would find that she is regenerating. Alex was not affected by what Liz did.
Disclaimer- Roswell is not mine and no infringement is intended.
Shadows of the Past part 34
Alex-
Alex stared at Stephanie trapped in her Pod. How? How could this be?
And where exactly was he?
He felt it long before he heard it. His hair began to stand on edge. And a distant roar began to sound.
Was it just him or had the room gotten brighter? He looked up the glittering light above and watched as the chaotic patterns began to become orderly. And brighter.
They began to spin, to become a veritable hurricane of light, so bright that if he were looking at it with his eyes he would have been blinded.
As it was, it warmed him, filled him with a sense of well being. And a sense of familiarity.
“Liz?”
The subsonic sound and electric feel to the air became more and more intense. And the light too intense even for him as he was now.
He looked at the room of pillars in the sudden light.
Pods like Stephanie’s stretched off into the distance as far as his eyes could see….
Once more the room was plunged into darkness, the light above fading.
Only there was a difference.
Alex was no longer alone. It stood at the edge of his sight. Somehow he just knew it was female. And young. How he knew this? He wasn’t sure.
At the moment he wasn’t really sure about anything.
It moved closer, large eyes set in a bluish cast face. The mouth was small and the nose nearly none existent. It was smaller than him.
In fact it looked almost like a stereotypical Grey, almost. Except it was blue and had wispy but well tended hair on its head. And it was wearing a dress that wouldn’t be out of place on the front of one of Isabel’s bodice rippers.
It said something, a mass of clicks and whistles.
“Uh, hey. I come in peace?” Alex said back.
It lifted on hand and a light appeared in it. It looked at Alex intently in the bright light.
Alex really wished he could read its expressions. What exactly was he supposed to do at a time like this? Spending time with his part alien friends hadn’t really gotten him ready for this.
His friends were too human.
It slowly, and by Alex’s confused estimation, reluctantly stretched out a hand to him.
Heart pounding with a mix of fear and excitement he took the proffered four fingered hand. It, her hand was warm, warmer than his. This close he could see her eyes, they were a reddish brown. There was a smell too, sharp and spicy. But not unpleasant.
And then the connection started.
And Alex collapsed.
-------
Maria-
Maria felt herself wake. Her mind felt sharp and crystal clear, the strange sensations she’d felt ever since Max had inadvertently changed her were unusually strong.
The webbing that protected them, a substance woven of atmospheric Carbon, water vapor and dust, was coming undone. Its mission accomplished it would collapse.
Leaving Michael and Maria naked under the gazes of her mother and the Parkers. Adults that were her almost second parents.
Embarrassment laced through her, She felt the strength of Michael there ready to support her. But… There had to be a way to preserve a least a little dignity….
Without thought she used Courtney’s knowledge to reweave a portion of the webbing that had sustained Michael and her. She felt as it wrapped around her body.
A simple blouse and skirt. And a pair of pants and loose fitting shirt for Michael.
It was sadly easy. Courtney had had to escape more than once in a converted garment made of a bed sheet. Courtney had been a tad bit promiscuous, both on Antar and on Earth.
But that skill came in useful now.
Liz’s face was lit with a huge grin as she extended a hand to help Maria up.
Maria looked around and felt as Mr. Parker helped Michael up. She absently moved a hand in Michael’s direction. His hand met hers and the connection strengthened.
Liz moved aside for her mother who hugged her so tight her ribs creaked. She smelled slightly of tears and brandy.
“You are so grounded young lady. I, I… Thank God you are safe….” And Amy began to sob.
And Maria soothed her, using not only her presence but also tendrils of her powers to comfort her mother.
More of Courtney’s legacy.
She felt rather than saw Michael leave. He wasn’t going far.
And in truth even if he was, they would never truly be separated. Ever again.
Her own tears, happy joyous tears were added to her mother’s as they held each other tight.
Things would never be the same between them. Maria knew that for a fact.
But that was okay.
Because they would be better.
-------
Isabel-
Isabel wept silently as she held Alex’s hand. His mind still felt flat.
Alicia had persuaded the doctors to let Isabel and Max see him. Along with another doctor, one that she said worked for Far Sight.
Their secrets were becoming much too well known.
But that wasn’t important at the moment.
Max had healed Alex. Had summoned his powers and…. Physically Alex was fine. The other doctors would probably wonder about how quickly Alex had healed from most of the physical trauma.
But most of Alex’s injuries had not been severe enough to have Max’s healing leave a mark on him.
And still Alex would not wake up. And his mind…..
It was like he wasn’t there. That his soul was somewhere else. Somewhere she could not reach.
She would try to dream walk him later tonight, to see if somehow that could, could make contact.
Maybe Tess would know a way.
She was still in surgery. But the doctors seemed hopeful, possibly even elated.
Apparently she had nearly died. Isabel knew her brother was frantically trying to see her, to no avail. Not until after they were finished.
Hopefully he would be able to heal her just a little, enough to make sure she was safe. And do baby steps so as to not make the doctors to suspicious.
Gloria Whitman glided through the door and looked at her and Alex. “I see you reconsidered.”
“Sorry?”
“The ring. You reconsidered my sons proposal.”
“Yes. I just want him to wake. To tell him I love him and will never leave and…. Oh why do I always wait! Why do I always feel compelled to wait too long!”
Vilandra lurked under the surface. Her regret and angst magnifying Isabel’s. Making her edgy and despondent.
Gloria moved over and gave her a hug. “It will be okay. The doctors say he’ll be fine. He just needs to wake up.”
“What if he doesn’t? What if he never wakes up again? What will I do?”
“What I will do. Wait.” A tear slipped through the strong countenance of Gloria Whitman.
And the two of them held each other. Comforting each other and trying to allay the other’s fears.
-------
Kyle-
Kyle woke up and knew that everything would be okay. The world seemed crisp and bright. And he could feel Tess through his bond. Could feel as strange energies were slowly repairing her body.
She would be okay.
And he knew that neither of them would ever be alone again. No matter the distance, no matter the trials, they would have each other.
In this life and the next.
Forever.
He closed his eyes and reached out through the bond to his love. And gave thanks to his friends. True friends. Friends he would suffer and die for if necessary.
He owed them so much. For they had risked themselves for him. And for Tess.
Contact. His soul met hers and in a remembrance of what had been and a promise of what was to come, they joined together.
-------
Michael-
Michael took Mr. Parker’s hand and rose. Once he gained his footing, his other hand reached out and gained Maria’s small hand.
He loved his little Pixie so much.
He nodded thanks to Mr. Parker and looked over at Maria. Amy held her close.
Amy was probably going to kill him. But for Maria, Michael would suffer anything. And Maria loved her mother. Somehow they would have to come to an understanding. Because he wasn’t going away.
Ever.
Mrs. Parker gave him a hug. And Liz reached out to shake his hand.
Michael surprised both of them by pulling Liz into a hug.
How had he ever been so wrong about the girl? How had he ever feared her addition to their lives. For Liz had brought Maria.
And moreover Liz had brought Liz. The strategic genius that Rath still held recognized the same in Liz. Still comparably inexperienced, but that recognition remained.
Liz had a lot to learn. But then so did Michael.
That part of him that was Rath recognized that there was something… wrong… about the girl. Something dangerous. Even frightening.
But he didn’t care.
Liz would not betray Maria. And Maria was his primary concern now. Oh, he cared for his brother and sister too. Cared for Max and Isabel deeply. He owed them so much.
More perhaps because for so long he hadn’t even realized how much trouble he’d actually caused them. And likely would again.
No, he loved his brother and sister. But he loved Maria more.
“Be good to her, okay, Michael. Just don’t hurt her.”
“I could say the same of you and Max.”
Liz looked away. “I will try.”
“Liz, I know I must have said this before, but that whole future Max thing…. You should have told me. I would have understood, I would have helped…..”
Liz looked up at him. “I should have told all of you. Even Max. It was stupid. I was stupid….”
“Yeah. You were. Trust me, I’ve been there myself. But if we all work together…..”
“Sorry to interrupt,” Mr. Parker said quietly. “Do you mind if I have a word with Michael for a moment Liz?”
Liz shook her head, gave Michael’s hand one last squeeze and walked over to her mother. Amy and Maria were still squeezing the life out of each other.
Michael looked Mr. Parker and followed him when he gestured towards the door. The stopped just outside.
Mr. Parker turned to face him, his face unreadable. “Do you love Maria? Really love her?’
“I, yes.” Why did he care anyway?
Mr. Parker’s face remained impassive. “I actually was friends with her father before he left them. It surprised me, I had thought more of the man than that. But I do not want to see that repeated. Maria has had a tough enough time as it is. Oh, I know you had it harder. Never knowing your parents. All this extraterrestrial drama. But that doesn’t change the fact that Maria could very well fall apart if you left her. Amy did.”
Michael felt a bewildering array of emotions flow through him. Emotions that he didn’t really know how to express. So he tapped into one he knew all too well. Anger.
What right did Jeff Parker have to all but accuse him of someday abandoning Maria. How could he think that Michael would ever do that. Except….
Except for the fact that it had once been a given, and unspoken given between Michael and Maria, that he would one day leave for Antar. To take up again his duties.
That had changed, yes. But once…..
An odd sense of shame flowed into him. How could he ever have considered that? How could he have ever thought that would be right? To use Maria to while away the hours until he had to leave.
Anger and frustration stole his words. There was so much to say, so many things… And yet, what could he truly say?
Mr. Parker continued. “I really hope you don’t. Maria has been like a surrogate daughter for years, ever since Mark abandoned them.” He shook his head, “I would hate to have to pick up the pieces. And you know I never did meet up with him again, but if I had I would have beaten the crap out of him for that. And if you ever do something similar, leave her taking care of a child alone…. Well, you had better hope you do as well to cover up your tracks.”
“I would never, I mean I love her….”
“You say that now. In the full first blush of infatuation. Life is tough, Michael Tough and scary. Will you be there for her when she needs you?”
“Yes.”
Jeff sighed. “And your lives are going to be crazy and dangerous because of who and what you are.”
“Max loves you daughter, sir. He will be there for her.”
“This isn’t about Liz. Or Max. Him, I will be having a different chat with. I just want to make sure that you realize that I will be watching you. And I will help you. But if you hurt her….”
Michael gulped slightly. Which was on the face of it silly. Michael could turn the man into a pile of slag in second. And yet…
Michael respected him. Moreover he wanted his respect.
Jeff looked at him and sighed. “Well, I guess I just have to hope….” He shook his head. “So tell me about your plans after school?”
“Plans?”
“Do you plan to go to college? What kind of career were you thinking of? That sort of thing. Life moves fast. The time to plan is now.”
Why was Michael not surprised. This was Liz’s dad after all.
Still…. His life would have to change. He could no longer count on his alien family coming to take him home. No, he needed to find a way to survive here.
To make a life here. A life with Maria.
Michael and Jeff talked for quite a while.
-------
Liz-
Liz stared at Maria and Amy, happy for them. There would be arguments soon between them. But they loved each other, and that would see them through.
Liz was amazed at her father though. Talking with Michael. Helping him.
She turned to her mother. “Dad’s really a great guy.”
Nancy said dryly, “I’ve always thought so.” She looked at Liz searchingly, “You know we are going to need to discuss what happened tonight?”
Liz nodded. “A little later though. I still need to think some of it through. I’m afraid I don’t understand it all myself.”
Liz could still feel and echo of the Seal Max had give her. Loaned her is what Liz had thought of it.
But it wasn’t going away. She could still feel a sense of awesome possibilities just out of reach. She would need to corner Max. They had a lot to talk about.
And more than talk. She was ready. Their lives were too dangerous to wait. To wait and wonder what could have been.
She’d already talked with her mom about it, had already started on the birth control. Her mom wasn’t truly happy about it, not really. But she understood.
Funny that she would become closest to her mother after finding that she wasn’t really her birth mother.
“Okay honey. But we will need to talk about it. About all of it.” Nancy looked down at the amber rock she still held in her hands.
Liz looked up at her mother. “Mom, I need to make some calls. But when I’m done, would you like to help me find some of those answers?”
Her mother smiled. “Anything you need honey, and I am there. Anything.”
Liz made her calls.
Arianneleigh- Thank you. There really is only one major scene left in this story before it switches to Redemption. Maybe a part or two. So this chapter is a transition chapter. Remember, that while a lot of aliens are shaking in their metaphorical boots, our heroes do not realize they've been doing the impossible consistantly.
chanks_girl- Thanks
GregInClearwater- Thank you.
RhondaAnn- Yes. But who and why? Well let me refer you to the infamous Momogram from season one Destiny. They are linked.
The bond between Tess and Maria will be touched on in the next part. Amy is too busy sqeezing the life out of her daughter for Maria to do much else in this part.
DeDe PR- Where Alex is will not be solved until early in Redemption. (Don't worry that won't be too long. I may have one or two more parts to Shadows.)
AvalonRose- Thanks. Yes. But Liz is not a healer. It will take time. But if the surgeons used a stopwatch camera on Tess they would find that she is regenerating. Alex was not affected by what Liz did.
Disclaimer- Roswell is not mine and no infringement is intended.
Shadows of the Past part 34
Alex-
Alex stared at Stephanie trapped in her Pod. How? How could this be?
And where exactly was he?
He felt it long before he heard it. His hair began to stand on edge. And a distant roar began to sound.
Was it just him or had the room gotten brighter? He looked up the glittering light above and watched as the chaotic patterns began to become orderly. And brighter.
They began to spin, to become a veritable hurricane of light, so bright that if he were looking at it with his eyes he would have been blinded.
As it was, it warmed him, filled him with a sense of well being. And a sense of familiarity.
“Liz?”
The subsonic sound and electric feel to the air became more and more intense. And the light too intense even for him as he was now.
He looked at the room of pillars in the sudden light.
Pods like Stephanie’s stretched off into the distance as far as his eyes could see….
Once more the room was plunged into darkness, the light above fading.
Only there was a difference.
Alex was no longer alone. It stood at the edge of his sight. Somehow he just knew it was female. And young. How he knew this? He wasn’t sure.
At the moment he wasn’t really sure about anything.
It moved closer, large eyes set in a bluish cast face. The mouth was small and the nose nearly none existent. It was smaller than him.
In fact it looked almost like a stereotypical Grey, almost. Except it was blue and had wispy but well tended hair on its head. And it was wearing a dress that wouldn’t be out of place on the front of one of Isabel’s bodice rippers.
It said something, a mass of clicks and whistles.
“Uh, hey. I come in peace?” Alex said back.
It lifted on hand and a light appeared in it. It looked at Alex intently in the bright light.
Alex really wished he could read its expressions. What exactly was he supposed to do at a time like this? Spending time with his part alien friends hadn’t really gotten him ready for this.
His friends were too human.
It slowly, and by Alex’s confused estimation, reluctantly stretched out a hand to him.
Heart pounding with a mix of fear and excitement he took the proffered four fingered hand. It, her hand was warm, warmer than his. This close he could see her eyes, they were a reddish brown. There was a smell too, sharp and spicy. But not unpleasant.
And then the connection started.
And Alex collapsed.
-------
Maria-
Maria felt herself wake. Her mind felt sharp and crystal clear, the strange sensations she’d felt ever since Max had inadvertently changed her were unusually strong.
The webbing that protected them, a substance woven of atmospheric Carbon, water vapor and dust, was coming undone. Its mission accomplished it would collapse.
Leaving Michael and Maria naked under the gazes of her mother and the Parkers. Adults that were her almost second parents.
Embarrassment laced through her, She felt the strength of Michael there ready to support her. But… There had to be a way to preserve a least a little dignity….
Without thought she used Courtney’s knowledge to reweave a portion of the webbing that had sustained Michael and her. She felt as it wrapped around her body.
A simple blouse and skirt. And a pair of pants and loose fitting shirt for Michael.
It was sadly easy. Courtney had had to escape more than once in a converted garment made of a bed sheet. Courtney had been a tad bit promiscuous, both on Antar and on Earth.
But that skill came in useful now.
Liz’s face was lit with a huge grin as she extended a hand to help Maria up.
Maria looked around and felt as Mr. Parker helped Michael up. She absently moved a hand in Michael’s direction. His hand met hers and the connection strengthened.
Liz moved aside for her mother who hugged her so tight her ribs creaked. She smelled slightly of tears and brandy.
“You are so grounded young lady. I, I… Thank God you are safe….” And Amy began to sob.
And Maria soothed her, using not only her presence but also tendrils of her powers to comfort her mother.
More of Courtney’s legacy.
She felt rather than saw Michael leave. He wasn’t going far.
And in truth even if he was, they would never truly be separated. Ever again.
Her own tears, happy joyous tears were added to her mother’s as they held each other tight.
Things would never be the same between them. Maria knew that for a fact.
But that was okay.
Because they would be better.
-------
Isabel-
Isabel wept silently as she held Alex’s hand. His mind still felt flat.
Alicia had persuaded the doctors to let Isabel and Max see him. Along with another doctor, one that she said worked for Far Sight.
Their secrets were becoming much too well known.
But that wasn’t important at the moment.
Max had healed Alex. Had summoned his powers and…. Physically Alex was fine. The other doctors would probably wonder about how quickly Alex had healed from most of the physical trauma.
But most of Alex’s injuries had not been severe enough to have Max’s healing leave a mark on him.
And still Alex would not wake up. And his mind…..
It was like he wasn’t there. That his soul was somewhere else. Somewhere she could not reach.
She would try to dream walk him later tonight, to see if somehow that could, could make contact.
Maybe Tess would know a way.
She was still in surgery. But the doctors seemed hopeful, possibly even elated.
Apparently she had nearly died. Isabel knew her brother was frantically trying to see her, to no avail. Not until after they were finished.
Hopefully he would be able to heal her just a little, enough to make sure she was safe. And do baby steps so as to not make the doctors to suspicious.
Gloria Whitman glided through the door and looked at her and Alex. “I see you reconsidered.”
“Sorry?”
“The ring. You reconsidered my sons proposal.”
“Yes. I just want him to wake. To tell him I love him and will never leave and…. Oh why do I always wait! Why do I always feel compelled to wait too long!”
Vilandra lurked under the surface. Her regret and angst magnifying Isabel’s. Making her edgy and despondent.
Gloria moved over and gave her a hug. “It will be okay. The doctors say he’ll be fine. He just needs to wake up.”
“What if he doesn’t? What if he never wakes up again? What will I do?”
“What I will do. Wait.” A tear slipped through the strong countenance of Gloria Whitman.
And the two of them held each other. Comforting each other and trying to allay the other’s fears.
-------
Kyle-
Kyle woke up and knew that everything would be okay. The world seemed crisp and bright. And he could feel Tess through his bond. Could feel as strange energies were slowly repairing her body.
She would be okay.
And he knew that neither of them would ever be alone again. No matter the distance, no matter the trials, they would have each other.
In this life and the next.
Forever.
He closed his eyes and reached out through the bond to his love. And gave thanks to his friends. True friends. Friends he would suffer and die for if necessary.
He owed them so much. For they had risked themselves for him. And for Tess.
Contact. His soul met hers and in a remembrance of what had been and a promise of what was to come, they joined together.
-------
Michael-
Michael took Mr. Parker’s hand and rose. Once he gained his footing, his other hand reached out and gained Maria’s small hand.
He loved his little Pixie so much.
He nodded thanks to Mr. Parker and looked over at Maria. Amy held her close.
Amy was probably going to kill him. But for Maria, Michael would suffer anything. And Maria loved her mother. Somehow they would have to come to an understanding. Because he wasn’t going away.
Ever.
Mrs. Parker gave him a hug. And Liz reached out to shake his hand.
Michael surprised both of them by pulling Liz into a hug.
How had he ever been so wrong about the girl? How had he ever feared her addition to their lives. For Liz had brought Maria.
And moreover Liz had brought Liz. The strategic genius that Rath still held recognized the same in Liz. Still comparably inexperienced, but that recognition remained.
Liz had a lot to learn. But then so did Michael.
That part of him that was Rath recognized that there was something… wrong… about the girl. Something dangerous. Even frightening.
But he didn’t care.
Liz would not betray Maria. And Maria was his primary concern now. Oh, he cared for his brother and sister too. Cared for Max and Isabel deeply. He owed them so much.
More perhaps because for so long he hadn’t even realized how much trouble he’d actually caused them. And likely would again.
No, he loved his brother and sister. But he loved Maria more.
“Be good to her, okay, Michael. Just don’t hurt her.”
“I could say the same of you and Max.”
Liz looked away. “I will try.”
“Liz, I know I must have said this before, but that whole future Max thing…. You should have told me. I would have understood, I would have helped…..”
Liz looked up at him. “I should have told all of you. Even Max. It was stupid. I was stupid….”
“Yeah. You were. Trust me, I’ve been there myself. But if we all work together…..”
“Sorry to interrupt,” Mr. Parker said quietly. “Do you mind if I have a word with Michael for a moment Liz?”
Liz shook her head, gave Michael’s hand one last squeeze and walked over to her mother. Amy and Maria were still squeezing the life out of each other.
Michael looked Mr. Parker and followed him when he gestured towards the door. The stopped just outside.
Mr. Parker turned to face him, his face unreadable. “Do you love Maria? Really love her?’
“I, yes.” Why did he care anyway?
Mr. Parker’s face remained impassive. “I actually was friends with her father before he left them. It surprised me, I had thought more of the man than that. But I do not want to see that repeated. Maria has had a tough enough time as it is. Oh, I know you had it harder. Never knowing your parents. All this extraterrestrial drama. But that doesn’t change the fact that Maria could very well fall apart if you left her. Amy did.”
Michael felt a bewildering array of emotions flow through him. Emotions that he didn’t really know how to express. So he tapped into one he knew all too well. Anger.
What right did Jeff Parker have to all but accuse him of someday abandoning Maria. How could he think that Michael would ever do that. Except….
Except for the fact that it had once been a given, and unspoken given between Michael and Maria, that he would one day leave for Antar. To take up again his duties.
That had changed, yes. But once…..
An odd sense of shame flowed into him. How could he ever have considered that? How could he have ever thought that would be right? To use Maria to while away the hours until he had to leave.
Anger and frustration stole his words. There was so much to say, so many things… And yet, what could he truly say?
Mr. Parker continued. “I really hope you don’t. Maria has been like a surrogate daughter for years, ever since Mark abandoned them.” He shook his head, “I would hate to have to pick up the pieces. And you know I never did meet up with him again, but if I had I would have beaten the crap out of him for that. And if you ever do something similar, leave her taking care of a child alone…. Well, you had better hope you do as well to cover up your tracks.”
“I would never, I mean I love her….”
“You say that now. In the full first blush of infatuation. Life is tough, Michael Tough and scary. Will you be there for her when she needs you?”
“Yes.”
Jeff sighed. “And your lives are going to be crazy and dangerous because of who and what you are.”
“Max loves you daughter, sir. He will be there for her.”
“This isn’t about Liz. Or Max. Him, I will be having a different chat with. I just want to make sure that you realize that I will be watching you. And I will help you. But if you hurt her….”
Michael gulped slightly. Which was on the face of it silly. Michael could turn the man into a pile of slag in second. And yet…
Michael respected him. Moreover he wanted his respect.
Jeff looked at him and sighed. “Well, I guess I just have to hope….” He shook his head. “So tell me about your plans after school?”
“Plans?”
“Do you plan to go to college? What kind of career were you thinking of? That sort of thing. Life moves fast. The time to plan is now.”
Why was Michael not surprised. This was Liz’s dad after all.
Still…. His life would have to change. He could no longer count on his alien family coming to take him home. No, he needed to find a way to survive here.
To make a life here. A life with Maria.
Michael and Jeff talked for quite a while.
-------
Liz-
Liz stared at Maria and Amy, happy for them. There would be arguments soon between them. But they loved each other, and that would see them through.
Liz was amazed at her father though. Talking with Michael. Helping him.
She turned to her mother. “Dad’s really a great guy.”
Nancy said dryly, “I’ve always thought so.” She looked at Liz searchingly, “You know we are going to need to discuss what happened tonight?”
Liz nodded. “A little later though. I still need to think some of it through. I’m afraid I don’t understand it all myself.”
Liz could still feel and echo of the Seal Max had give her. Loaned her is what Liz had thought of it.
But it wasn’t going away. She could still feel a sense of awesome possibilities just out of reach. She would need to corner Max. They had a lot to talk about.
And more than talk. She was ready. Their lives were too dangerous to wait. To wait and wonder what could have been.
She’d already talked with her mom about it, had already started on the birth control. Her mom wasn’t truly happy about it, not really. But she understood.
Funny that she would become closest to her mother after finding that she wasn’t really her birth mother.
“Okay honey. But we will need to talk about it. About all of it.” Nancy looked down at the amber rock she still held in her hands.
Liz looked up at her mother. “Mom, I need to make some calls. But when I’m done, would you like to help me find some of those answers?”
Her mother smiled. “Anything you need honey, and I am there. Anything.”
Liz made her calls.
Re: Shadows of the Past (CC ALL, Teen/Mature) Chap 34- 10/10/09
Thanks to everyone following along. This is the last full chapter of Shadows of the Past. There will be an Epilogue. And in a week or two I should post the Prologue to Redemption. Thank you again.
AvalonRose- Thanks Regarding Liz, it depends on what you mean by recover. Will she ever be the girl she would have been if Ana had not captured her? No. She will carry Emily until her dying day. She will face one more set of temptations that she will have to overcome. But at the end of the day she will still be herself, I think. But it will always affect her.
RhondaAnn- Courtney had a lot of tricks up her sleeve. She was a lot older than she looked.
Mr. Parker has watched Maria grow up along side his daughter. And he actually likes Michael, so he decided to help both of them.
Ana really messed Liz up. This was made worse by the fact that she never finished the job, she left some wounds that have healed in different ways than she would have expected. The aliens can sense what she has become. And it is something to fear. Exactly why will be one of the factors in Liz's subplot in Redemption. And Max has noticed it. He doesn't care. He just sees her as Liz.
The alien Alex met has a part to play. But it all depends on a decison that Max has to make. You will see.
As for the Mommygram- It told them to develop their knowledge, powers, and leadership before they returned. Think on that last. I don't think they were meant to come home alone.....
Keepsmiling7- Both of them were carrying secrets. They have shared them. But a lot has to do with the fact that Liz looks a lot like Rose. A reminder everyday of the fact that she has stolen her best friends life. But now that Liz knows.... It has been healing for Nancy. And for Liz and Nancy's relationship.
Arianneleigh- Thanks. It should start in a couple of weeks.
ja.forster- Thanks. One more to go. I hope you continue to enjoy.
DeDe PR- Thanks. Courtney used that trick quite a few times. Liz is going to face a crisis in the next book. As she faces what Ana has mistakenly made her into. There is a reason why the aliens fear her instinctually. Liz's phone calls were to various friends that she needed to coordinate with.
chanks_girl- Thanks. Alex's subplot will end early in Redemption. Please not that the alien girl's form was Taran (They are not hairless, or sexless like stereotypical Greys. And yes that will be touched on.) Trust me when I say he is not in danger. That girl will help him as much as she can.
Liz has a decent amount of control. But it is not complete. And she is very very strong. (As are the others. None of them have fully exerted themselves yet. Well Max has come close.) Emily is not gone, but she has been subsumed into Liz's persona. But she is still there.
GregInClearwater- Not quite. But you are actually close. She is sort of dead, and she is Taran. But Vilandra met her only once. When the little girl was executed.
Disclaimer- Roswell is not mine and no infringement is intended.
Shadows of the Past part 35
Max
Max hung up his cell phone. He closed his eyes.
A problem averted. And despite the fact he could still not get into see Tess, she was saved. All of them were safe now.
“Well, how are they?” Diane Evans asked. She had come in a couple of minutes ago. She remained out here while Isabel and Mrs. Valenti tearfully watched over Alex.
Sheriff Vallenti was looking for Kyle, who was supposed to be here in the hospital. Apparently he had been crucial to Tess’s salvation.
“Their fine. They are all fine.”
“Has that ever happened to you? Or Isabel? Is it something I should be worrying about now?”
“No. It never has.” Max paused a few moments. It was so strange now that his mother knew. Knew and not only didn’t care, was actively helping them. He looked at her in the eyes. “But it could. Michael has always had less control. He’s less balanced. Or he was.”
His mother gave him a hug. “I just don’t want to see you hurt.” She pulled back. “And Alex.”
“Physically he is fine. But it is like an empty house. He’s not there. There are a couple of avenues we are going to try. Tess might know more.”
“Ask Liz. She said she recovered something from Tess’s SUV that had answers. A formidable girl, Liz.”
Max couldn’t help a small smile form on his lips. It was true. Liz was wonderful.
And she loved him. He could still feel a part of her with him, even now.
“I love her.”
His mother just stared at him. “And she loves you. Have you two…..”
Max shook his head. “Not yet. We’re waiting until the right time, and…..”
“Just be careful. I, I can’t really say that I’m comfortable with this. I thought there would be more time. But both of you have grown up so fast. So very fast. Isabel says she’s engaged to Alex. Have they….”
Max was quiet, “You would have to ask her. But she loves him. Who we are, what we are seems to draw an intense bond. A connection. And it endures. During all of our troubles, the one I had with Liz remained fallow. But it was still there.” Max closed his eyes, reveling in the connection he had with Liz. So much stronger than it had been.
“If that is true…. Are you chained to them? Bound forever?”
“I don’t know. There is so much I don’t know about who and what we are. But this I do know. Isabel may have formalized her relationship with Alex, but I think that in a way, in an alien way, all of us are engaged with our significant other. With ties much tighter than a ring and a promise.”
“But what if, what if one of you dies? What if Alex dies? Where would that leave Isabel?”
Max winced. Trust his mother to place a finger on a personal worry. He really didn’t honestly know. “All of us would support her, would hold her and help her move on.”
Diane began to tear up and looked worriedly at the room Isabel sat holding one of Alex’s hands.
Max sighed softly, “Mom it will be okay. It will all be okay.” Max looked again at Alex’s room. He could heal the body. He knew that. He could mend any wound short of death.
But Alex’s problem was his mind. Or his soul.
Max could keep his friend alive. But another would have to help him bring him back to life.
-------
Maria-
Maria opened the door to see what Michael was up to.
He was talking softly with Mr. Parker. And she knew that he would not want to be disturbed. So she sent a little mental kiss, a brush of her presence against his, before heading back into the house.
Liz and her mother were reading the mass of papers she had brought. Maria’s own mother was fixing coffee. It had been a long night and looked like it would drag on later.
She herself wanted to drop by to see how Alex was doing. And Tess. She was linked to Tess now. How that was going to work, Maria didn’t know. But she felt the bond.
Actions taken in the Balance tended to be binding.
Maria shook her head. It was strange. That knowledge, Karis’s knowledge hadn’t yet faded. Would it stay? If so, how much?
She told her everyone that she was going to take a shower. She walked into her room to get her bath robe. It still smelled from her and Michael’s activities earlier. She ripped off her sheets. She would need to toss them in the wash when she was done.
Funny it was like her sense of smell had grown dramatically sharper. Only… she wasn’t really smelling anything more than normal. A Rhyjhaelian’s ingrained environmental sense, filtered to her own bodies needs.
Which according to her new senses was healthier than it had ever been. She had been caught in the healing back wash.
She was about to leave her room. She turned back and looked at her little vials of aromatherapy oils.
She hadn’t gotten Tess a present for Christmas. And all she’d gotten for Isabel was a card. She walked back to the oils and got to work. Might as well use the knowledge in her head while it was still there.
For a good twenty minutes she mixed and adjusted the chemicals she’d had. She needed to think what would suit Liz best. Niradel would have to do for now. Tess would get the same. More because she remembered how much Ava had loved the scent. Tess was not Ava, but Ava was part of her.
Tess would like it.
Isabel would get a complex concoction that Karis had remembered making for her on Antar proper. It had a sharp and subtle sweet scent.
She stared at the vial for a moment. Karis, Courtney as she was then, always adjusted the perfume to the natural scent and pheromones of the recipient. Maria didn’t know if she would be able to. Didn’t know if she would remember how.
To Courtney all was fair in love and war, and chemistry was an asset in her arsenal for both.
Maria shuddered as a the chemical mix for a toxin rolled through her mind. A mix she could wipe up with these same chemicals…..
Maybe it would be better for these memories to fade….
Maria set down the vials and walked into the bathroom. She had a lot to think about as the warm water poured over her.
Maria tried to ignore mineral residue from the hard water.
She knew that her life would never be the same.
------
Aeron-
Aeron lay there staring up at the ceiling of Sean’s hotel room. His warm body lay next to hers, one arm draped over her body.
He was snoring softly.
How had she let it come to this. There had been a time when she had thought Zan was her one and only. That there would never be another.
That she was Destined to love him, and he her. But she had always known that his eyes wandered. And that he remembered Lucia.
What would have happened if Lucia had lived? If they had been able to save her?
I would have been Tess. Driven to push her away. Only Lucy hadn’t been as meek as Cornball. She would have fought and fought dirty.
And I would have lost. She was his Liz.
Hopefully they were together now and happy. Both of them had not deserved what they had gotten.
She had survived. What did she deserve? She had wanted Kyle. Had nearly stole him away from Tess. But at the end she had let Tess have her shot at happiness.
What of her happiness? Didn’t she deserve to be happy?
She hadn’t meant to sleep with Sean. He had made his interest in her known, quite subtly actually. But then he was on the rebound as well. His Courtney. His alien Karis.
If he could love a Rhyjhaelian, knowing full well what she was…. Surely he could love her. Except she was on the rebound now, too.
Where this affair would leave them was anyone’s guess. Aeron didn’t even know what she wanted at this point. She had just been tired of being alone.
Her phone buzzed on the table. Her very own cell phone. She had never felt comfortable about them when she was living in New York. She had always been afraid that they could track her with them.
Still worried about it, actually. But there were people who needed to be able to get in contact with her. She could no longer count on being able to see people to pass along a message. Her sister and her friends lived half way across the country.
She calmly extricated herself and got her phone. Liz.
Why would Liz want to call her this late in the evening. Her heart seized as the worst possibilities came to her.
And she dialed.
------
Micheal-
Michael hurriedly rushed through his shower.
Maria had insisted he needed one.
She had smelled so very nice. The perfume had a smell that seemed almost familiar to him. A memory he could almost access. One of Rath’s memories.
When he had asked her, her gaze had been searching. But she hadn’t told him. She just gave him a kiss and told him to take a shower.
She was going to go to the hospital as soon as he was ready.
Like he wasn’t going with her.
He dried himself off and brushed his teeth. He’d started carrying around a small travel toothbrush with him wherever he went. Maria was more likely to kiss him if his breath smelled fresh. So he tried to keep himself prepared.
He looked at his hair a few moments. Not quite right. But he was in a hurry. Good enough.
He hurriedly got dressed and was still tucking in his shirt as he opened the door.
Surprisingly everyone was seated and reading a set of computer print outs. Huh. No one even looked up as he walked out. Maria had small tears slipping down from her green eyes. He walked over to comfort her.
“What are you reading?”
“About you. About all of you really, but…. The part I am reading is about who you were.”
Amy looked up, “It’s all real, isn’t it. Courtney had told me, and while I believed her…. Well if this is true….”
“What? What are you all reading.”
Liz spoke up. “The Book, Michael. The Destiny Book. Apparently it has been translated. No wonder Tess was shot for this. We need to keep this safe, well I think we can trust everyone here anyway.” She looked up firmly at Michael.
Oh. Worried that I would not trust her parents probably. He looked over at Mr. Parker and nodded. Mrs. Parker nodded back and continued reading.
He felt another surge. They were his family. How could he not trust them?
“We’re mostly reading the history sections at the moment.” Maria said. “I, I don’t have the courage to look at the mission plans they had for you..”
Michael looked at Maria. He desperately wanted to stay and read. This had been so much of what he had wanted for so long. But they were going to the hospital. It hurt him to say, “Uh, I guess we should go now.”
Maria beamed at him. She got up and gave him a big kiss. A kiss that ended with a polite cough from Amy.
He needed to talk with her. He was not going away. Not now, not ever. Maria was his, and she would have to grow to live with it.
He knew that he would have to adjust as well. He wasn’t looking forward to that part. But the talk with Jeff had opened his eyes a little. To dream of a life on Earth. A life with Maria.
“No, you stay here and read. Liz and I will go, well Mr. P is taking us.”
Michael opened his mouth. And looked hungrily at the computer print outs. Maria handed him the stack she had been reading.
About who he was. Who he had once been.
Maria pecked him on the cheek as she and Liz left. He could feel the amusement through the bond as he began to voraciously read.
He felt as they left. He continued to read. And continued for several minutes when Amy spoke up.
“We need to talk about you and my daughter.”
Mrs. Parker looked up as well, measuring glances at both him and Amy.
Michael had finished reading about his childhood and early career. It was just starting to get interesting. Particularly the parts where part of him would agree or disagree with the events written.
Rath. The part of him he was reading about. Funny how he disagreed as strongly at the parts that were glowingly wrong as much as those that painted him a fool. Well. That wasn’t important at the moment.
“Mrs. Deluca, this has got to be about the worst time for us to talk about this. Do you have any clue how long I have waited for even a crumb of this? How long any of us have waited? Fine. You want to talk about it? Me and Maria are together. Have we had sex, well you already know that we have. Will we have sex again? Yes. Will we be careful, to try to make sure our kids are born when we can fully take care of them? Also yes. A mistake might happen, but then I’m not even sure we can have kids. I’m mostly human, but am I human enough? We’ll see. I want those kids someday, Amy. I really do. And be honest you will want grandkids. Will I take care of her, in as much as she needs it? Yes. Now is that enough? Or did you want to argue about any of this. ‘Cause I’ve got to tell you, this is pretty much non-negotiable on my end.”
“Michael, it’s just that….” Amy waved a hand at the papers she was reading.
“That my life is dangerous? That it might have been better that we had not gotten involved. Maybe. But we don’t live in the world of maybe, we live in the world we live in. The decisions we have made may be regretted, but never take back. Amends can be made, but the past is the past. Maria and I met, we fell in love. She worked her way through my desire and need to keep her away, wore through my need to keep her safe. I will not let you take that away from her.
“And I will not leave her. Do you understand that? No matter what any of this says, I will not leave her. If I need to go, then I will go only if she comes with me. I am not Stephan or Mark or whatever your husband’s real name actually was. I will not abandon her. I am not going away. We are going to have to come to a mutual respect or this is going to get uncomfortable real quick.”
Amy looked down. What she was thinking he had no clue.
Nancy looked slightly shocked as well as amused.
“Are we done? I really want to read some of this.”
Amy looked up at him, her eyes were bright, but there was a small smile. “For now. But we will still need to talk about a lot of things. But for now…..”
Michael grunted and looked down. And continued to read.
-------
Alex-
Alex woke to find himself being held by a blonde girl. One still wearing that Regency era dress. Only she was human.
She was pretty, but somewhat gangly. All long limbs. But there was a beauty there. Her eyes were a dark brown.
She looked a lot like Isabel actually. Like she had when he had first met her in fourth grade. It was close but not quite. A blend of her and someone else.
He was still confused. He was still next to the pod that held a young Stephanie. And now?
She spoke first, her lips quirking in a small smile., “So. You are her chosen. A better choice this time, I think. You have not Khivar‘s power, but there is an honesty in you that she needs. And you need her as badly. She provides a focus, a cause for you to fight for. Yes. She has chosen well.”
“Who are you?”
The girl smiled, “I think the question you should actually ask is who was I?”
“Um, okay, who….”
“I was there on the day Vilandra died. The day she set us all free. Many of us sought release, but some of us, many more of us, decided that as she had helped us, we would help her. And so we wait.”
“Wait? Wait for what?”
“For the King to decide. It will be hard if he chooses to go, rather than stay. But I have made up my mind. Yes, she has chosen well.”
“I don’t understand. What is going on?”
“You are hurt. You should rest. I will be here when you wake. I will remain as I am for as long as you need me to keep company. But my choice is made. Now sleep.”
And despite a few protests he fell asleep.
--------
Liz-
Liz looked over at her father as they pulled up to the hospital. It was late, and likely they would not be able to visit with their hurt friends. But their other friends would likely need comfort.
Maria seemed oddly quiet. Liz was curious, too, at her friends perfume. It was a very pretty scent, but unlike anything she had ever smelled before.
Jeff stopped the car. “Okay, Maria. You are going to have to go in alone. I need to show Liz something.”
“Okay, Mr. P. Liz are you going to be okay?” Maria said softly in passing.
“It will be fine. Give them all my love. Particularly Tess. Make sure she knows that we love her. Alex knows, but she….”
Maria nodded and left.
Liz sighed. Hopefully it would be enough.
Her father started the car again. He drove what seemed like hours. Out of Roswell.
“Dad?”
“There is just a place I want to show you. A special place. One that your mother and I, that is Rose and I shared.”
And they drove on.
Her heart began to pound as she recognized where they were heading. The Pod Chamber. They were heading towards the Pod Chamber.
But she was human. Her mother was Rose Troy! She had felt it, felt as she was born. Felt as her mother died shortly there after.
All in flashes, but she knew that the infant in them was her.
He stopped the car. Not that far from where Max and the others usually stopped their vehicles. But not at the exact same spot.
Not near the footpath that lead to the Chamber.
He grabbed a blanket and a flashlight. Liz grabbed a couple bottles of water.
She was shaking. Who or what was she?
They passed along this different trail. She could actually see the Pod Chamber door not more than thirty feet away. And they kept climbing. Kept going up. Up to the top of the rock formation.
There was a little flat formation up there, not very large. Her father draped the blanket on it.
Liz looked straight down. The Granolith was right beneath them here. She could still feel it hum from the tiny bond that Max had passed to her.
Her father began to talk. “This was our secret spot. You know for such a distinctive rock formation, people usually can’t find it. Almost like it doesn’t want to be found.”
The Granolith. Using its power to hide itself. And the precious cargo not more than a few yards away.
“But your mother, Rose, she, she could usually find things. Could do the most amazing things. She loved this place. Said it called to her.”
Suddenly a flash came to her. An embarrassing flash. This was more than a place to snuggle with her father, a place to gaze at the stars. Stars that seemed so bright and alive here.
They had made love here on more than one occasion.
Liz had been conceived here. She shivered. She knew then that the Seal that Max had given her was not going to fade.
It was hers. It was her. It had always been her. It was why he had looked at her and felt a sudden connection. Why she had always drawn him. It had grown into love over time, but at first it had just been a sudden connection…..
Had it been his Seal that he had given her? Or had it been there all along?
Her father kept regaling her with stories of Rose. Punctuated by long silences as he too would gaze into the heavens to see if they would talk to him.
She herself stared firmly into the sky. Who am I? What am I?
The sky did not answer.
-------
Tess-
Tess woke in the morning. She hurt and there were bandages covering her abdomen and shoulder.
She was alive. And she could feel her body knitting itself slowly together. Healing much faster than normal. She would be well soon.
She looked over at a sleeping Kyle, one hand enmeshed in hers. She squeezed it slightly, sending a flare of love across their strengthened bond.
How had she gotten so lucky?
Kyle’s eyes slowly opened. It had been a long and tiring day for him, she knew. He bit back a yawn.
“Good morning Kyle.”
“Morning Tess.” He reached over and gave her a little peck on the forehead.
She longed to do more. Heck to even kiss him back, but she was too weak. She felt so strange. Her body felt worn, tired. But her mind felt… good. Balanced. She was Balanced.
Liz had healed more than just the body. This state would be hard for her to maintain, but she would try. Psionic health and mental health often went hand in hand, and she had issues to deal with.
She sighed. Might as well get started on one. She opened her mouth to speak, closed it and thought for a moment.
Wait…. Alex….
“Kyle how is Alex? Is he okay?”
“Still in a coma. Really has a lot of people stumped. Max was able to sneak in and heal him. Physically he’s fine. Except he won’t wake up. Isabel is going out of her mind with worry.”
“Has she tried to dream walk him?”
“Last night. She said she felt like she was getting close, but that something was barring the way. She was wondering if you could help her.”
“Of course. It’s partly my fault he was hurt in the first place. It might be a few days….”
“Try weeks. You were badly hurt.”
Tess grinned. “I’ll be better before you know it.”
“They talked about it. Max can’t heal you until you are out of the hospital. Too risky. Your wounds were too serious. Too many people know about them. Too many records.”
“Oh, God, the FBI and other alien hunters….”
“Will get nothing. You were apparently involved in a top secret experimental program as a child.” Kyle was shaking his head in delight. “You should see Alicia…. And yes she knows all about you all, or rather all about your Dupes. She’s, well, she’s pulled out all the stops. You have dedicated doctor now, by the way. He’s doing work ups on your altered metabolism, trying to figure out why your blood and cell samples look so strange.”
“I am going to be an experiment for the rest of my life.”
“No really, I think she means to help us. Max healed her daughter, and apparently Zan healed her….”
Tess nodded. That would explain…. Yes. That would explain a lot.
Another human to train. Another soldier in the coming war.
Those children in Phoenix…. Likely they would be affected. Or would they. Did their condition require the same high dose of power…. Well it had left a hand print so…..
“Tess?”
“Um, yeah, sorry just thinking about something. Sorry.”
“Oh, that reminds me. The whole gang is here except Liz and Michael. Liz sends her love. Which I got to tell you considering your history…..”
“Is now history. Kyle things are different. Particularly since Alex and I finished the translation….” Fear laced through her.
It was still in the car. On the side of the road. Easily obtainable by anyone…..
“Kyle. I need you to go to my SUV and fetch…..”
“Liz already picked up the Book last night. Michael’s reading it now. That’s why he’s not here. Liz had to work.”
“They know?”
“A little. They don’t understand how you both got it translated, anymore than they understand why someone keeps trying to kill you. Max said something like this happened in New York?”
“Yeah. Max healed me. It was close.”
“I’m not letting anyone take you from me. Do you understand that Tess. I will protect you. We’ll find out who it is and make it stop. I plan on living a nice long life and you will share it with me.”
“Oh, I hear you. And I will do the same for you.” The two of them smiled and stared at each other for a while happily.
Tess sighed and looked away. “There is something I have to do though. Something you were right about.”
“I am always right.”
“Don’t get cocky mister, or you will suffer a fall. That whole hubris thing.”
“Yeah. Um what did you need to do.”
“Call everyone in. I need to tell them the truth. We should have done it before we left. I should have come clean. But there you go. A mistake I need to fix.”
“You are going to tell them about Alex? About forcing him to translate the Book? Are you sure that is wise until Alex is healthy. I mean Isabel is, well I’ve never seen her like this.”
“No. I have another chance to start. And I am going to take it. Call them all in.”
Kyle shook his head, “Okay.” And he left to gather his drowsy friends.
Tess just stared at the ceiling and tried to figure out what to say. They would be angry. Some of them might even hate her.
Well that was nothing new. She could live with that. She could win them over in time. And if she didn’t she didn’t. It was just that simple.
But one of the paths to remain Balanced was honesty. Might as well start now.
Tess composed her thoughts.
--------
Isabel-
Isabel rocked back and forth holding Alex’s hand, trying to connect to him through there bond. What made it so hard is that she felt him, felt a part of him.
But there was something in the way. Something blocking her.
But how could she call him back if she could not reach him?
Kyle peeked through the door. “Hey, Tess is awake. She has something to say to everyone.”
“Tell her I’m busy.”
“Isabel, you really need to hear this.”
“I need to be with Alex. He might need me, maybe, maybe if I try hard enough, long enough I can break through….”
“Iz, this is really hard for Tess. It will be hard for you to hear, too. But you need to hear it.” He paused and then released a pent up breath. “It concerns Alex. Heck, for all we know it could be part of his current problem.”
Isabel looked up. She needed to hear this. She didn’t know that her mind had been working at the residues of the warps that still slightly clouded her mind. Warps that Alex was now free of, but she wasn’t. Not yet. But a part of her knew that something wasn’t right. “Lead on.”
They were all there. Crowded in the tiny room that Tess had to herself.
Isabel felt on edge. Nervous.
Tess cleared her voice and began to talk. “There is something all of you should know. It all started with Whitaker. She knew so much more about us than we did. I didn’t know until later what she had said to you about Vilandra, but she did mention some of it to me. When she thought I was you. When she tortured me.”
The silence in the room could be cut with a knife.
Isabel could feel herself vibrating with tension. She had known some of this. Tess had persuaded Alex to decode the Book….
“We needed to know more. Unfortunately Nasedo was dead. And there were undoubtedly limits to what he would have know. But we did still have a resource to check on.”
Maria softly said, “The Book….”
“Yes. I made a couple careful suggestions to Max, to Isabel, even to Michael. But none of you were really eager to find out too much of what had happened. Part of that is my fault. I had been pushing Destiny in all of your faces for such a long time…. Well, sorry about that.
“In the end I was limited to what I could work out. I actually started going to the Computer Club meetings, in hopes of finding a way to translate it. It was to be so much harder than I thought. I mean there are human languages that haven’t been fully decoded. This was an alien language. We didn’t even know the difference between a symbol, letter, or number. Or if there even was a difference.
“I realized early on that there was no way I could do this all by myself. I needed help….”
Isabel’s voice was quiet and cold. “Alex.”
“Yes. Only while he thought it was an interesting idea, he didn’t think it was possible. I pointed out the new super computer they had placed in Las Cruces, one that they were testing special software to crack codes. He still didn’t think that would be enough….”
Isabel stood. She knew. She knew what had happened. What had been to her love. “You mind warped him. You forced him to work for you.”
Max stood, “Calm down Isabel, I am sure….”
“If she had done this to Liz, would you be calm?” Isabel felt as her power surged into her.
She saw Kyle stiffen and move to interpose himself and Tess.
“No she is right. I used him. I’m, I’m not proud of what I did. I faked his trip to Sweden to give him time…. I was worried at first when Isabel found out, but she seemed to go along with it. And it gave them a lot of alone time. I, I should have come clean then. But I wanted success to take away some of the sting….”
“Your warps on Alex, I must have absorbed them through my connection to him. He didn’t even know. You SPLIT his MIND. YOU COULD HAVE KILLED HIM YOU TRAITOROUS BITCH!”
“I’m sorry. I just let it go for so long, until he broke through it. And he knew you would react badly…..”
Isabel raised her hand to strike.
Max reached over to lower her arm, to calm her. And was flung across the room for his trouble.
Maria went to help him. “Isabel you need to calm down, this isn’t helping anything.”
“And if it had been Michael? If she had tried to twist his head into a pretzel would you be so calm?” Isabel looked at Maria and saw the truth. “I thought not.”
Kyle still stood in front of her. “Isabel, don’t do this. We need her. You know that. I know Liz has told you that we need her.”
“Get out of my way, Kyle.”
“No Isabel. You will regret this. You know how it feels to kill. I know too. This would be so much worse. She is wounded, unable to defend herself. I will not let you do it. I wouldn’t if I didn’t love her. But I do. If you strike her down then you must smite me as well.”
“Very well. You have made your choice. But I can not let this foul… serpent to slither among us any more. I will excise this cancer…..” Isabel gathered her full strength. And Blasted.
And was stopped by a golden shield.
Isabel turned to her brother. “I told you not to…..”
“I would have. But I didn’t. That shield. It is not coming from me.”
Kyle stood defiant and had a hand outstretched warding her away. There was a faint trace of shock on his face.
Tess looked surprised as well.
Kyle said, “I told you Tess. I WILL NOT let anyone harm you.”
“Thank you Kyle.”
Isabel stood there. Dumbfounded. Part of her wanted to reach for another blast….
But another part asked herself exactly what she was doing. How would killing Tess help Alex? When one of the possible needs were her skills.
‘My God. I nearly killed her.’ She stared at her palm, still faintly glowing golden from the residue of the force she had flung at Kyle. “Tess, I’m sorry. I just…..”
Tess looked at her. Both serious and sad. “No. I understand. I really do. If someone had hurt Kyle…. No I understand. But that is not all. This isn’t just about Alex. You resent me. All of you do. I kept harping on the alien things. Things you all wanted to avoid. Well, hello, you may want to avoid them but they might not want to avoid you.
“I seriously screwed up with Alex. And how I treated all of you. But you…. All of you… Particularly you Max, and you Isabel…. I was supposed to be one of you. To be part of your little group. Well you never really let me in. I was included, but reluctantly. Part of that was my fault, I admit that. But not all. None of you wanted to truly let me in. All of you still thought of yourselves as Three plus reluctantly One other…”
“Tess….”
“No Max. This has been building for a long time. I am trying to be honest. To maintain a realistic Balance. I am not one of you. I will never will truly be one of you. Maybe if I had grown up among you….” Tess shook her head, “But I didn’t. I didn’t No, you will never trust me as much as you trust each other. Will never truly fully let me in. And you will find, as I have that this was true even on Antar. I was always the extra, the person tacked on to give you a perfect Four. Well I am done with it. It is a distortion of True Reality. And I am done with it. Vi’at Mithar!”
Tess raised up her hand and twisted. And she did something.
Isabel felt as something was sundered from her. As a connection was torn and gone.
It hurt so very much!
Tess suddenly looked different. Felt different to her. They had been linked. Connected from birth.
And it was gone. Gone forever.
The Royal Four had failed. They were now the Royal Three. And while three was an important number to the Antarans, for many of the reasons the humans liked it. It wasn’t a holy number. Not like Four was.
Tess said calmly “There. I have given you what you want. What you secretly desired. I am not one of you anymore. Now go away so that I can rest.”
Isabel blinked. God it hurt! It felt like someone had died inside of her!
Kyle’s voice was wintry cold, “ You heard her. Get out.”
“Kyle….”
“Isabel, someday I might forgive you. But right now I can not stand the sight of you. Get the Hell out of here! Now!”
Isabel stumbled out of the room, aware that Maria and Max were talking to Kyle behind her. Instinctively she wandered into Alex’s room and grasped his hand. She drew all that she could from him, tried to call him back.
She needed him so.
“Oh, Alex! What have I done!”
-------
Thus ends Book Three of In Destiny’s Shadow. There will be an Epilogue and then Book Four will start shortly after. Thanks to everyone reading along this story.
AvalonRose- Thanks Regarding Liz, it depends on what you mean by recover. Will she ever be the girl she would have been if Ana had not captured her? No. She will carry Emily until her dying day. She will face one more set of temptations that she will have to overcome. But at the end of the day she will still be herself, I think. But it will always affect her.
RhondaAnn- Courtney had a lot of tricks up her sleeve. She was a lot older than she looked.
Mr. Parker has watched Maria grow up along side his daughter. And he actually likes Michael, so he decided to help both of them.
Ana really messed Liz up. This was made worse by the fact that she never finished the job, she left some wounds that have healed in different ways than she would have expected. The aliens can sense what she has become. And it is something to fear. Exactly why will be one of the factors in Liz's subplot in Redemption. And Max has noticed it. He doesn't care. He just sees her as Liz.
The alien Alex met has a part to play. But it all depends on a decison that Max has to make. You will see.
As for the Mommygram- It told them to develop their knowledge, powers, and leadership before they returned. Think on that last. I don't think they were meant to come home alone.....
Keepsmiling7- Both of them were carrying secrets. They have shared them. But a lot has to do with the fact that Liz looks a lot like Rose. A reminder everyday of the fact that she has stolen her best friends life. But now that Liz knows.... It has been healing for Nancy. And for Liz and Nancy's relationship.
Arianneleigh- Thanks. It should start in a couple of weeks.
ja.forster- Thanks. One more to go. I hope you continue to enjoy.
DeDe PR- Thanks. Courtney used that trick quite a few times. Liz is going to face a crisis in the next book. As she faces what Ana has mistakenly made her into. There is a reason why the aliens fear her instinctually. Liz's phone calls were to various friends that she needed to coordinate with.
chanks_girl- Thanks. Alex's subplot will end early in Redemption. Please not that the alien girl's form was Taran (They are not hairless, or sexless like stereotypical Greys. And yes that will be touched on.) Trust me when I say he is not in danger. That girl will help him as much as she can.
Liz has a decent amount of control. But it is not complete. And she is very very strong. (As are the others. None of them have fully exerted themselves yet. Well Max has come close.) Emily is not gone, but she has been subsumed into Liz's persona. But she is still there.
GregInClearwater- Not quite. But you are actually close. She is sort of dead, and she is Taran. But Vilandra met her only once. When the little girl was executed.
Disclaimer- Roswell is not mine and no infringement is intended.
Shadows of the Past part 35
Max
Max hung up his cell phone. He closed his eyes.
A problem averted. And despite the fact he could still not get into see Tess, she was saved. All of them were safe now.
“Well, how are they?” Diane Evans asked. She had come in a couple of minutes ago. She remained out here while Isabel and Mrs. Valenti tearfully watched over Alex.
Sheriff Vallenti was looking for Kyle, who was supposed to be here in the hospital. Apparently he had been crucial to Tess’s salvation.
“Their fine. They are all fine.”
“Has that ever happened to you? Or Isabel? Is it something I should be worrying about now?”
“No. It never has.” Max paused a few moments. It was so strange now that his mother knew. Knew and not only didn’t care, was actively helping them. He looked at her in the eyes. “But it could. Michael has always had less control. He’s less balanced. Or he was.”
His mother gave him a hug. “I just don’t want to see you hurt.” She pulled back. “And Alex.”
“Physically he is fine. But it is like an empty house. He’s not there. There are a couple of avenues we are going to try. Tess might know more.”
“Ask Liz. She said she recovered something from Tess’s SUV that had answers. A formidable girl, Liz.”
Max couldn’t help a small smile form on his lips. It was true. Liz was wonderful.
And she loved him. He could still feel a part of her with him, even now.
“I love her.”
His mother just stared at him. “And she loves you. Have you two…..”
Max shook his head. “Not yet. We’re waiting until the right time, and…..”
“Just be careful. I, I can’t really say that I’m comfortable with this. I thought there would be more time. But both of you have grown up so fast. So very fast. Isabel says she’s engaged to Alex. Have they….”
Max was quiet, “You would have to ask her. But she loves him. Who we are, what we are seems to draw an intense bond. A connection. And it endures. During all of our troubles, the one I had with Liz remained fallow. But it was still there.” Max closed his eyes, reveling in the connection he had with Liz. So much stronger than it had been.
“If that is true…. Are you chained to them? Bound forever?”
“I don’t know. There is so much I don’t know about who and what we are. But this I do know. Isabel may have formalized her relationship with Alex, but I think that in a way, in an alien way, all of us are engaged with our significant other. With ties much tighter than a ring and a promise.”
“But what if, what if one of you dies? What if Alex dies? Where would that leave Isabel?”
Max winced. Trust his mother to place a finger on a personal worry. He really didn’t honestly know. “All of us would support her, would hold her and help her move on.”
Diane began to tear up and looked worriedly at the room Isabel sat holding one of Alex’s hands.
Max sighed softly, “Mom it will be okay. It will all be okay.” Max looked again at Alex’s room. He could heal the body. He knew that. He could mend any wound short of death.
But Alex’s problem was his mind. Or his soul.
Max could keep his friend alive. But another would have to help him bring him back to life.
-------
Maria-
Maria opened the door to see what Michael was up to.
He was talking softly with Mr. Parker. And she knew that he would not want to be disturbed. So she sent a little mental kiss, a brush of her presence against his, before heading back into the house.
Liz and her mother were reading the mass of papers she had brought. Maria’s own mother was fixing coffee. It had been a long night and looked like it would drag on later.
She herself wanted to drop by to see how Alex was doing. And Tess. She was linked to Tess now. How that was going to work, Maria didn’t know. But she felt the bond.
Actions taken in the Balance tended to be binding.
Maria shook her head. It was strange. That knowledge, Karis’s knowledge hadn’t yet faded. Would it stay? If so, how much?
She told her everyone that she was going to take a shower. She walked into her room to get her bath robe. It still smelled from her and Michael’s activities earlier. She ripped off her sheets. She would need to toss them in the wash when she was done.
Funny it was like her sense of smell had grown dramatically sharper. Only… she wasn’t really smelling anything more than normal. A Rhyjhaelian’s ingrained environmental sense, filtered to her own bodies needs.
Which according to her new senses was healthier than it had ever been. She had been caught in the healing back wash.
She was about to leave her room. She turned back and looked at her little vials of aromatherapy oils.
She hadn’t gotten Tess a present for Christmas. And all she’d gotten for Isabel was a card. She walked back to the oils and got to work. Might as well use the knowledge in her head while it was still there.
For a good twenty minutes she mixed and adjusted the chemicals she’d had. She needed to think what would suit Liz best. Niradel would have to do for now. Tess would get the same. More because she remembered how much Ava had loved the scent. Tess was not Ava, but Ava was part of her.
Tess would like it.
Isabel would get a complex concoction that Karis had remembered making for her on Antar proper. It had a sharp and subtle sweet scent.
She stared at the vial for a moment. Karis, Courtney as she was then, always adjusted the perfume to the natural scent and pheromones of the recipient. Maria didn’t know if she would be able to. Didn’t know if she would remember how.
To Courtney all was fair in love and war, and chemistry was an asset in her arsenal for both.
Maria shuddered as a the chemical mix for a toxin rolled through her mind. A mix she could wipe up with these same chemicals…..
Maybe it would be better for these memories to fade….
Maria set down the vials and walked into the bathroom. She had a lot to think about as the warm water poured over her.
Maria tried to ignore mineral residue from the hard water.
She knew that her life would never be the same.
------
Aeron-
Aeron lay there staring up at the ceiling of Sean’s hotel room. His warm body lay next to hers, one arm draped over her body.
He was snoring softly.
How had she let it come to this. There had been a time when she had thought Zan was her one and only. That there would never be another.
That she was Destined to love him, and he her. But she had always known that his eyes wandered. And that he remembered Lucia.
What would have happened if Lucia had lived? If they had been able to save her?
I would have been Tess. Driven to push her away. Only Lucy hadn’t been as meek as Cornball. She would have fought and fought dirty.
And I would have lost. She was his Liz.
Hopefully they were together now and happy. Both of them had not deserved what they had gotten.
She had survived. What did she deserve? She had wanted Kyle. Had nearly stole him away from Tess. But at the end she had let Tess have her shot at happiness.
What of her happiness? Didn’t she deserve to be happy?
She hadn’t meant to sleep with Sean. He had made his interest in her known, quite subtly actually. But then he was on the rebound as well. His Courtney. His alien Karis.
If he could love a Rhyjhaelian, knowing full well what she was…. Surely he could love her. Except she was on the rebound now, too.
Where this affair would leave them was anyone’s guess. Aeron didn’t even know what she wanted at this point. She had just been tired of being alone.
Her phone buzzed on the table. Her very own cell phone. She had never felt comfortable about them when she was living in New York. She had always been afraid that they could track her with them.
Still worried about it, actually. But there were people who needed to be able to get in contact with her. She could no longer count on being able to see people to pass along a message. Her sister and her friends lived half way across the country.
She calmly extricated herself and got her phone. Liz.
Why would Liz want to call her this late in the evening. Her heart seized as the worst possibilities came to her.
And she dialed.
------
Micheal-
Michael hurriedly rushed through his shower.
Maria had insisted he needed one.
She had smelled so very nice. The perfume had a smell that seemed almost familiar to him. A memory he could almost access. One of Rath’s memories.
When he had asked her, her gaze had been searching. But she hadn’t told him. She just gave him a kiss and told him to take a shower.
She was going to go to the hospital as soon as he was ready.
Like he wasn’t going with her.
He dried himself off and brushed his teeth. He’d started carrying around a small travel toothbrush with him wherever he went. Maria was more likely to kiss him if his breath smelled fresh. So he tried to keep himself prepared.
He looked at his hair a few moments. Not quite right. But he was in a hurry. Good enough.
He hurriedly got dressed and was still tucking in his shirt as he opened the door.
Surprisingly everyone was seated and reading a set of computer print outs. Huh. No one even looked up as he walked out. Maria had small tears slipping down from her green eyes. He walked over to comfort her.
“What are you reading?”
“About you. About all of you really, but…. The part I am reading is about who you were.”
Amy looked up, “It’s all real, isn’t it. Courtney had told me, and while I believed her…. Well if this is true….”
“What? What are you all reading.”
Liz spoke up. “The Book, Michael. The Destiny Book. Apparently it has been translated. No wonder Tess was shot for this. We need to keep this safe, well I think we can trust everyone here anyway.” She looked up firmly at Michael.
Oh. Worried that I would not trust her parents probably. He looked over at Mr. Parker and nodded. Mrs. Parker nodded back and continued reading.
He felt another surge. They were his family. How could he not trust them?
“We’re mostly reading the history sections at the moment.” Maria said. “I, I don’t have the courage to look at the mission plans they had for you..”
Michael looked at Maria. He desperately wanted to stay and read. This had been so much of what he had wanted for so long. But they were going to the hospital. It hurt him to say, “Uh, I guess we should go now.”
Maria beamed at him. She got up and gave him a big kiss. A kiss that ended with a polite cough from Amy.
He needed to talk with her. He was not going away. Not now, not ever. Maria was his, and she would have to grow to live with it.
He knew that he would have to adjust as well. He wasn’t looking forward to that part. But the talk with Jeff had opened his eyes a little. To dream of a life on Earth. A life with Maria.
“No, you stay here and read. Liz and I will go, well Mr. P is taking us.”
Michael opened his mouth. And looked hungrily at the computer print outs. Maria handed him the stack she had been reading.
About who he was. Who he had once been.
Maria pecked him on the cheek as she and Liz left. He could feel the amusement through the bond as he began to voraciously read.
He felt as they left. He continued to read. And continued for several minutes when Amy spoke up.
“We need to talk about you and my daughter.”
Mrs. Parker looked up as well, measuring glances at both him and Amy.
Michael had finished reading about his childhood and early career. It was just starting to get interesting. Particularly the parts where part of him would agree or disagree with the events written.
Rath. The part of him he was reading about. Funny how he disagreed as strongly at the parts that were glowingly wrong as much as those that painted him a fool. Well. That wasn’t important at the moment.
“Mrs. Deluca, this has got to be about the worst time for us to talk about this. Do you have any clue how long I have waited for even a crumb of this? How long any of us have waited? Fine. You want to talk about it? Me and Maria are together. Have we had sex, well you already know that we have. Will we have sex again? Yes. Will we be careful, to try to make sure our kids are born when we can fully take care of them? Also yes. A mistake might happen, but then I’m not even sure we can have kids. I’m mostly human, but am I human enough? We’ll see. I want those kids someday, Amy. I really do. And be honest you will want grandkids. Will I take care of her, in as much as she needs it? Yes. Now is that enough? Or did you want to argue about any of this. ‘Cause I’ve got to tell you, this is pretty much non-negotiable on my end.”
“Michael, it’s just that….” Amy waved a hand at the papers she was reading.
“That my life is dangerous? That it might have been better that we had not gotten involved. Maybe. But we don’t live in the world of maybe, we live in the world we live in. The decisions we have made may be regretted, but never take back. Amends can be made, but the past is the past. Maria and I met, we fell in love. She worked her way through my desire and need to keep her away, wore through my need to keep her safe. I will not let you take that away from her.
“And I will not leave her. Do you understand that? No matter what any of this says, I will not leave her. If I need to go, then I will go only if she comes with me. I am not Stephan or Mark or whatever your husband’s real name actually was. I will not abandon her. I am not going away. We are going to have to come to a mutual respect or this is going to get uncomfortable real quick.”
Amy looked down. What she was thinking he had no clue.
Nancy looked slightly shocked as well as amused.
“Are we done? I really want to read some of this.”
Amy looked up at him, her eyes were bright, but there was a small smile. “For now. But we will still need to talk about a lot of things. But for now…..”
Michael grunted and looked down. And continued to read.
-------
Alex-
Alex woke to find himself being held by a blonde girl. One still wearing that Regency era dress. Only she was human.
She was pretty, but somewhat gangly. All long limbs. But there was a beauty there. Her eyes were a dark brown.
She looked a lot like Isabel actually. Like she had when he had first met her in fourth grade. It was close but not quite. A blend of her and someone else.
He was still confused. He was still next to the pod that held a young Stephanie. And now?
She spoke first, her lips quirking in a small smile., “So. You are her chosen. A better choice this time, I think. You have not Khivar‘s power, but there is an honesty in you that she needs. And you need her as badly. She provides a focus, a cause for you to fight for. Yes. She has chosen well.”
“Who are you?”
The girl smiled, “I think the question you should actually ask is who was I?”
“Um, okay, who….”
“I was there on the day Vilandra died. The day she set us all free. Many of us sought release, but some of us, many more of us, decided that as she had helped us, we would help her. And so we wait.”
“Wait? Wait for what?”
“For the King to decide. It will be hard if he chooses to go, rather than stay. But I have made up my mind. Yes, she has chosen well.”
“I don’t understand. What is going on?”
“You are hurt. You should rest. I will be here when you wake. I will remain as I am for as long as you need me to keep company. But my choice is made. Now sleep.”
And despite a few protests he fell asleep.
--------
Liz-
Liz looked over at her father as they pulled up to the hospital. It was late, and likely they would not be able to visit with their hurt friends. But their other friends would likely need comfort.
Maria seemed oddly quiet. Liz was curious, too, at her friends perfume. It was a very pretty scent, but unlike anything she had ever smelled before.
Jeff stopped the car. “Okay, Maria. You are going to have to go in alone. I need to show Liz something.”
“Okay, Mr. P. Liz are you going to be okay?” Maria said softly in passing.
“It will be fine. Give them all my love. Particularly Tess. Make sure she knows that we love her. Alex knows, but she….”
Maria nodded and left.
Liz sighed. Hopefully it would be enough.
Her father started the car again. He drove what seemed like hours. Out of Roswell.
“Dad?”
“There is just a place I want to show you. A special place. One that your mother and I, that is Rose and I shared.”
And they drove on.
Her heart began to pound as she recognized where they were heading. The Pod Chamber. They were heading towards the Pod Chamber.
But she was human. Her mother was Rose Troy! She had felt it, felt as she was born. Felt as her mother died shortly there after.
All in flashes, but she knew that the infant in them was her.
He stopped the car. Not that far from where Max and the others usually stopped their vehicles. But not at the exact same spot.
Not near the footpath that lead to the Chamber.
He grabbed a blanket and a flashlight. Liz grabbed a couple bottles of water.
She was shaking. Who or what was she?
They passed along this different trail. She could actually see the Pod Chamber door not more than thirty feet away. And they kept climbing. Kept going up. Up to the top of the rock formation.
There was a little flat formation up there, not very large. Her father draped the blanket on it.
Liz looked straight down. The Granolith was right beneath them here. She could still feel it hum from the tiny bond that Max had passed to her.
Her father began to talk. “This was our secret spot. You know for such a distinctive rock formation, people usually can’t find it. Almost like it doesn’t want to be found.”
The Granolith. Using its power to hide itself. And the precious cargo not more than a few yards away.
“But your mother, Rose, she, she could usually find things. Could do the most amazing things. She loved this place. Said it called to her.”
Suddenly a flash came to her. An embarrassing flash. This was more than a place to snuggle with her father, a place to gaze at the stars. Stars that seemed so bright and alive here.
They had made love here on more than one occasion.
Liz had been conceived here. She shivered. She knew then that the Seal that Max had given her was not going to fade.
It was hers. It was her. It had always been her. It was why he had looked at her and felt a sudden connection. Why she had always drawn him. It had grown into love over time, but at first it had just been a sudden connection…..
Had it been his Seal that he had given her? Or had it been there all along?
Her father kept regaling her with stories of Rose. Punctuated by long silences as he too would gaze into the heavens to see if they would talk to him.
She herself stared firmly into the sky. Who am I? What am I?
The sky did not answer.
-------
Tess-
Tess woke in the morning. She hurt and there were bandages covering her abdomen and shoulder.
She was alive. And she could feel her body knitting itself slowly together. Healing much faster than normal. She would be well soon.
She looked over at a sleeping Kyle, one hand enmeshed in hers. She squeezed it slightly, sending a flare of love across their strengthened bond.
How had she gotten so lucky?
Kyle’s eyes slowly opened. It had been a long and tiring day for him, she knew. He bit back a yawn.
“Good morning Kyle.”
“Morning Tess.” He reached over and gave her a little peck on the forehead.
She longed to do more. Heck to even kiss him back, but she was too weak. She felt so strange. Her body felt worn, tired. But her mind felt… good. Balanced. She was Balanced.
Liz had healed more than just the body. This state would be hard for her to maintain, but she would try. Psionic health and mental health often went hand in hand, and she had issues to deal with.
She sighed. Might as well get started on one. She opened her mouth to speak, closed it and thought for a moment.
Wait…. Alex….
“Kyle how is Alex? Is he okay?”
“Still in a coma. Really has a lot of people stumped. Max was able to sneak in and heal him. Physically he’s fine. Except he won’t wake up. Isabel is going out of her mind with worry.”
“Has she tried to dream walk him?”
“Last night. She said she felt like she was getting close, but that something was barring the way. She was wondering if you could help her.”
“Of course. It’s partly my fault he was hurt in the first place. It might be a few days….”
“Try weeks. You were badly hurt.”
Tess grinned. “I’ll be better before you know it.”
“They talked about it. Max can’t heal you until you are out of the hospital. Too risky. Your wounds were too serious. Too many people know about them. Too many records.”
“Oh, God, the FBI and other alien hunters….”
“Will get nothing. You were apparently involved in a top secret experimental program as a child.” Kyle was shaking his head in delight. “You should see Alicia…. And yes she knows all about you all, or rather all about your Dupes. She’s, well, she’s pulled out all the stops. You have dedicated doctor now, by the way. He’s doing work ups on your altered metabolism, trying to figure out why your blood and cell samples look so strange.”
“I am going to be an experiment for the rest of my life.”
“No really, I think she means to help us. Max healed her daughter, and apparently Zan healed her….”
Tess nodded. That would explain…. Yes. That would explain a lot.
Another human to train. Another soldier in the coming war.
Those children in Phoenix…. Likely they would be affected. Or would they. Did their condition require the same high dose of power…. Well it had left a hand print so…..
“Tess?”
“Um, yeah, sorry just thinking about something. Sorry.”
“Oh, that reminds me. The whole gang is here except Liz and Michael. Liz sends her love. Which I got to tell you considering your history…..”
“Is now history. Kyle things are different. Particularly since Alex and I finished the translation….” Fear laced through her.
It was still in the car. On the side of the road. Easily obtainable by anyone…..
“Kyle. I need you to go to my SUV and fetch…..”
“Liz already picked up the Book last night. Michael’s reading it now. That’s why he’s not here. Liz had to work.”
“They know?”
“A little. They don’t understand how you both got it translated, anymore than they understand why someone keeps trying to kill you. Max said something like this happened in New York?”
“Yeah. Max healed me. It was close.”
“I’m not letting anyone take you from me. Do you understand that Tess. I will protect you. We’ll find out who it is and make it stop. I plan on living a nice long life and you will share it with me.”
“Oh, I hear you. And I will do the same for you.” The two of them smiled and stared at each other for a while happily.
Tess sighed and looked away. “There is something I have to do though. Something you were right about.”
“I am always right.”
“Don’t get cocky mister, or you will suffer a fall. That whole hubris thing.”
“Yeah. Um what did you need to do.”
“Call everyone in. I need to tell them the truth. We should have done it before we left. I should have come clean. But there you go. A mistake I need to fix.”
“You are going to tell them about Alex? About forcing him to translate the Book? Are you sure that is wise until Alex is healthy. I mean Isabel is, well I’ve never seen her like this.”
“No. I have another chance to start. And I am going to take it. Call them all in.”
Kyle shook his head, “Okay.” And he left to gather his drowsy friends.
Tess just stared at the ceiling and tried to figure out what to say. They would be angry. Some of them might even hate her.
Well that was nothing new. She could live with that. She could win them over in time. And if she didn’t she didn’t. It was just that simple.
But one of the paths to remain Balanced was honesty. Might as well start now.
Tess composed her thoughts.
--------
Isabel-
Isabel rocked back and forth holding Alex’s hand, trying to connect to him through there bond. What made it so hard is that she felt him, felt a part of him.
But there was something in the way. Something blocking her.
But how could she call him back if she could not reach him?
Kyle peeked through the door. “Hey, Tess is awake. She has something to say to everyone.”
“Tell her I’m busy.”
“Isabel, you really need to hear this.”
“I need to be with Alex. He might need me, maybe, maybe if I try hard enough, long enough I can break through….”
“Iz, this is really hard for Tess. It will be hard for you to hear, too. But you need to hear it.” He paused and then released a pent up breath. “It concerns Alex. Heck, for all we know it could be part of his current problem.”
Isabel looked up. She needed to hear this. She didn’t know that her mind had been working at the residues of the warps that still slightly clouded her mind. Warps that Alex was now free of, but she wasn’t. Not yet. But a part of her knew that something wasn’t right. “Lead on.”
They were all there. Crowded in the tiny room that Tess had to herself.
Isabel felt on edge. Nervous.
Tess cleared her voice and began to talk. “There is something all of you should know. It all started with Whitaker. She knew so much more about us than we did. I didn’t know until later what she had said to you about Vilandra, but she did mention some of it to me. When she thought I was you. When she tortured me.”
The silence in the room could be cut with a knife.
Isabel could feel herself vibrating with tension. She had known some of this. Tess had persuaded Alex to decode the Book….
“We needed to know more. Unfortunately Nasedo was dead. And there were undoubtedly limits to what he would have know. But we did still have a resource to check on.”
Maria softly said, “The Book….”
“Yes. I made a couple careful suggestions to Max, to Isabel, even to Michael. But none of you were really eager to find out too much of what had happened. Part of that is my fault. I had been pushing Destiny in all of your faces for such a long time…. Well, sorry about that.
“In the end I was limited to what I could work out. I actually started going to the Computer Club meetings, in hopes of finding a way to translate it. It was to be so much harder than I thought. I mean there are human languages that haven’t been fully decoded. This was an alien language. We didn’t even know the difference between a symbol, letter, or number. Or if there even was a difference.
“I realized early on that there was no way I could do this all by myself. I needed help….”
Isabel’s voice was quiet and cold. “Alex.”
“Yes. Only while he thought it was an interesting idea, he didn’t think it was possible. I pointed out the new super computer they had placed in Las Cruces, one that they were testing special software to crack codes. He still didn’t think that would be enough….”
Isabel stood. She knew. She knew what had happened. What had been to her love. “You mind warped him. You forced him to work for you.”
Max stood, “Calm down Isabel, I am sure….”
“If she had done this to Liz, would you be calm?” Isabel felt as her power surged into her.
She saw Kyle stiffen and move to interpose himself and Tess.
“No she is right. I used him. I’m, I’m not proud of what I did. I faked his trip to Sweden to give him time…. I was worried at first when Isabel found out, but she seemed to go along with it. And it gave them a lot of alone time. I, I should have come clean then. But I wanted success to take away some of the sting….”
“Your warps on Alex, I must have absorbed them through my connection to him. He didn’t even know. You SPLIT his MIND. YOU COULD HAVE KILLED HIM YOU TRAITOROUS BITCH!”
“I’m sorry. I just let it go for so long, until he broke through it. And he knew you would react badly…..”
Isabel raised her hand to strike.
Max reached over to lower her arm, to calm her. And was flung across the room for his trouble.
Maria went to help him. “Isabel you need to calm down, this isn’t helping anything.”
“And if it had been Michael? If she had tried to twist his head into a pretzel would you be so calm?” Isabel looked at Maria and saw the truth. “I thought not.”
Kyle still stood in front of her. “Isabel, don’t do this. We need her. You know that. I know Liz has told you that we need her.”
“Get out of my way, Kyle.”
“No Isabel. You will regret this. You know how it feels to kill. I know too. This would be so much worse. She is wounded, unable to defend herself. I will not let you do it. I wouldn’t if I didn’t love her. But I do. If you strike her down then you must smite me as well.”
“Very well. You have made your choice. But I can not let this foul… serpent to slither among us any more. I will excise this cancer…..” Isabel gathered her full strength. And Blasted.
And was stopped by a golden shield.
Isabel turned to her brother. “I told you not to…..”
“I would have. But I didn’t. That shield. It is not coming from me.”
Kyle stood defiant and had a hand outstretched warding her away. There was a faint trace of shock on his face.
Tess looked surprised as well.
Kyle said, “I told you Tess. I WILL NOT let anyone harm you.”
“Thank you Kyle.”
Isabel stood there. Dumbfounded. Part of her wanted to reach for another blast….
But another part asked herself exactly what she was doing. How would killing Tess help Alex? When one of the possible needs were her skills.
‘My God. I nearly killed her.’ She stared at her palm, still faintly glowing golden from the residue of the force she had flung at Kyle. “Tess, I’m sorry. I just…..”
Tess looked at her. Both serious and sad. “No. I understand. I really do. If someone had hurt Kyle…. No I understand. But that is not all. This isn’t just about Alex. You resent me. All of you do. I kept harping on the alien things. Things you all wanted to avoid. Well, hello, you may want to avoid them but they might not want to avoid you.
“I seriously screwed up with Alex. And how I treated all of you. But you…. All of you… Particularly you Max, and you Isabel…. I was supposed to be one of you. To be part of your little group. Well you never really let me in. I was included, but reluctantly. Part of that was my fault, I admit that. But not all. None of you wanted to truly let me in. All of you still thought of yourselves as Three plus reluctantly One other…”
“Tess….”
“No Max. This has been building for a long time. I am trying to be honest. To maintain a realistic Balance. I am not one of you. I will never will truly be one of you. Maybe if I had grown up among you….” Tess shook her head, “But I didn’t. I didn’t No, you will never trust me as much as you trust each other. Will never truly fully let me in. And you will find, as I have that this was true even on Antar. I was always the extra, the person tacked on to give you a perfect Four. Well I am done with it. It is a distortion of True Reality. And I am done with it. Vi’at Mithar!”
Tess raised up her hand and twisted. And she did something.
Isabel felt as something was sundered from her. As a connection was torn and gone.
It hurt so very much!
Tess suddenly looked different. Felt different to her. They had been linked. Connected from birth.
And it was gone. Gone forever.
The Royal Four had failed. They were now the Royal Three. And while three was an important number to the Antarans, for many of the reasons the humans liked it. It wasn’t a holy number. Not like Four was.
Tess said calmly “There. I have given you what you want. What you secretly desired. I am not one of you anymore. Now go away so that I can rest.”
Isabel blinked. God it hurt! It felt like someone had died inside of her!
Kyle’s voice was wintry cold, “ You heard her. Get out.”
“Kyle….”
“Isabel, someday I might forgive you. But right now I can not stand the sight of you. Get the Hell out of here! Now!”
Isabel stumbled out of the room, aware that Maria and Max were talking to Kyle behind her. Instinctively she wandered into Alex’s room and grasped his hand. She drew all that she could from him, tried to call him back.
She needed him so.
“Oh, Alex! What have I done!”
-------
Thus ends Book Three of In Destiny’s Shadow. There will be an Epilogue and then Book Four will start shortly after. Thanks to everyone reading along this story.
Re: Shadows of the Past (CC ALL, Teen/Mature) Chap 35- 10/18/09
Thanks to everyone who has followed along this story. I hope to see you all when I start Redemtion in the next week or so. (So many updates, so little time.)
Also, I should note that Epilogues in In Destiny's Shadow tend to cover bits and pieces of what the enemies are doing. To give a hint of what is to come. Thank you all again.
Arianneleigh- Thanks.
keepsmiling7- Thanks.
RhondaAnn- Thank you as always. On Maria it is perfume. It is not part of her, although it has been tailored for her. (Courtney's husk actually could use and manufacture perfumes and pheromones, and I suppose Maria could alter how she smelled if she put her mind to it. Thats practical molecular maniputlation/ chemisty. But she can not alter her body to automatically produce perfume like Courtney could.)
The girl with Alex was the girl in line right before Vilandra, when Vilandra was to be executed by memory glass. She was the first one freed when Vilandra opened all of the soul prisons in the Hall of Justice right before she died.
No. Liz is wrong about this. But it is what she would think. She was marked by it though, and that mark drew Max's attention when they first met.
Tess is going on a massive Truth kick at the moment. She did the crimes, and she is confessing them. But she has never felt welcome by the others in the Royal Four. She is not really one of them. So why pretend? Don't worry, she will explain her actions in much further detail in Redemption.
nibbles2- Thanks. Liz was marked by the Granolith, but she did not have a Seal at that point. This drew Max's attention. He was interested in her. And fell hopelessly in love.
chanks_girl- Thanks. Alex's companion will have considerable reprecussions in the following part, along with a major decision by the Royal Three.
Tess will explain her reasoning further in the next few parts in Redemption. It has more to do with recognizing reality and trying to be truthful to what she really is. And yeah, Kyle will forgive Isabel reasonably quickly. Even Tess admitted that she is in the wrong here.
Please note that Tess EXPECTED to die here. Kyle's shield was unexpected. By everyone. Even Kyle.
And note, those bumps do work on me. Would they work on you I wonder.....
DeDe PR- Thanks. I've been working toward that scene for well more than a year. I'm glad you liked it.
AvalonRose- Liz's conception marked her. Liz is wrong about the Seal, but she was marked. And that drew Max's attention. And he fell in love.
You are right about young love, it can and does last. But the odds, well they are against it.
Tess is just recognizing a reality that has existed since she got there. One that she could have overcome but through her actions made it impossible.
As for the Four Square, well that is more like the Round Table, or some other mythical organization. It was more for political and religious reasons than direct power potential. Four is a holy number to the Antarans. But yes. They could replace her.
Disclaimer- Roswell is not mine and no infringement is intended.
Shadows of the Past part Epilogue
T Greer moved among the roses in the new Garden he was building. He had decided that the plants that he would put here would not be those from home, but rather those from his new world.
He knew he would never leave Earth. He had known that for a long time. Nicholas had never truly understood that they had been exiled her as much to protect them as to find the Royal Four and the Granolith.
In fact, in some of his more recent discussions, frank discussions, with Khivar, he had been surprised to find that Khivar didn’t expect the Granolith to be returned.
He never had. He had simply wanted to know where it was.
And to find her.
Certainly there had been other considerations, scouting out the humans, discovering the resource base, their level of development. Their potential uses in the constant internecine wars amongst the Five Worlds.
Practical concerns that needed to be done. And knowing where the Granolith was located was important. Why Khivar wouldn’t say, but in Rhyajhaelian religious lore, it was one of the tools used to drive away the Darkness. It was troubling that it was no longer on Antar, but as long as its location was still known it could be used to drive off the Enemy should they ever return.
Greer shook his head. He was getting superstitious in his old age.
He looked down at his hand. His four fingered hand. It was so strange to not be in a husk. To be wearing just his own old body. And it was old. It was easy to forget that in a husk that kept the same age year after year.
He was old. Where had all the time gone?
At least he would leave something behind for the future to remember. That had bothered him. He had done his best in Copper Summit, but the need to blend in, the need to pass as a normal human town, kept him from using many of his best tricks.
But here, in the new Ark he had begun building, here he was free to use whatever he set his mind to. And this would just be the first of many. This world had wide and beautiful oceans. Plenty of space to build.
He looked forward to the day he could freely trade with the humans as partners. Khivar’s invasion was still slated for a decade or two hence. Although he could tell that Khivar’s heart really wasn’t in it anymore.
Not his worry.
He heard footsteps on the pathway and looked up.
The man was fairly handsome, although the scars did detract some. Rath had not let his medical team remove them.
He had earned them. That was what he said.
He was dressed in fatigues and stood at ease in front of Greer. Rath no longer flinched to see the alien figures walking around the Ark. “You called for me, sir?”
Greer walked slowly over to the table the translator was on. He lifted the mask over his face. It would change his Antaran to English.
Greer couldn’t speak English in his normal form if he wanted to. His mouth and vocal apparatus were simply too different. And while he understood English without translation, Rath would not understand Antaran.
Rath waited patiently.
His teachers had done good work. To bad they could not remove the Sigil that Dorian had placed on him. Greer could feel it even now. “I have a job for you, Rath.”
“Garit, sir. I go bay Garit now.”
“Why?”
“When a candidate enters the Academy he gives up his given name. And it known only by his family name. When you graduate you take the name of a Companion. Rathinar was a distant ancestor, whose actions had sullied the name. I chose to revive and bring it to honor.
“On Antar I succeeded far beyond my dearest expectations. But here on Earth…. Here I have brought shame to it. And so deserve it no longer. I am not Rath. Perhaps my Copy can still claim it, but I can not in good faith do so.”
Greer stared at the boy. The boy’s voice was still somewhat harsh, and his accent was still heavy. But there was significant improvement about him.
Yes. He would do.
“I need you to contact Max Evans. I need to speak to him. To make peace with him and his followers. I am not his enemy. Not anymore.”
“I doubt he would believe that, sir.”
“Max Evans is not a threat at this point to our plans. As long as he has no plan to return to Antar, Khivar sees on reason to harass him.”
Rath remained silent.
Greer continued, “As a personal aside I would like to go farther than just a truce. But I would need to meet him to discuss the details of any further agreement.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Travel arrangements and monies have been arranged for this trip. I am trusting you with this.”
“I will not fail you,” he turned to go.
Greer watched him go. So many changes in the young man. Good changes. When he returns, if he returns, he could very well have a bright future ahead of him. Greer was about to return to his roses when he noticed that Rath had stopped.
“Sir?”
“Yes, Garit?”
“May I, may I ask them for help to recover Lonnie?”
“Garit, part of the reason I need to speak with Max is about Nicholas. I have nothing against Max, he’s not really a Tarenon. But Nicholas and Ana will strike at them. As they will attack me in time. Khivar may be only seeking a truce, but I am seeking an alliance.
“And should those talks bear fruit….. I will ask his help freeing her myself.”
------
Ana kept her distaste of her surroundings to herself. Garish and ostentatious. Almost hideous, even by Vegas standards.
She had come her because she knew that another Protector was supposed to be in one of the major California cities. He probably had quite the web of informants there.
He might recognize what she was doing and try to put a stop to it.
And there was no way she could stay in Phoenix. Not only had she ended up involved with the King and his Companions, but there had been several human organizations that had been interested in her.
There had been a time when she would have scoffed at that. No more. Not until she had more of an organization to back her up.
A couple of partly trained kids just would not cut it. And some of the humans had powers. Weak powers, but powers never the less. She needed to know more what they were capable of.
She needed a safe place to reorganize and build. Las Vegas had seemed like a good place.
Unfortunately, Nicholas had thought so too. And he had gotten her first, with more of an organization.
Still, together they might be able to accomplish more than they had been able to do alone. She had plans to share with the small Skin. And secondary and tertiary plans for whatever his response might be.
Nicholas might not have taste, but he did have power.
And for that, Ana could forgive a lot.
She just needed time. For time was on her side in a way it wasn’t on Nicholas’s. Her new body was young, and it was fully hers. With proper care she could live for decades, perhaps more than a century. And she could easily raise protégés from among the human population.
Once again she regretted losing Liz Parker. The things she could do with one like that…..
No, in the end, she could use Nicholas to provide a safe haven. One that she would be able to keep when his Husk finally failed.
And it would. Soon.
Ana looked forward to that day.
------
Khivar rolled out of bed.
His wife called to him, “Honey come back to bed.”
Khivar shook his head in confusion. His last wife had died in an assassination attempt five years back.
His eyes cleared to show him Devra, his host’s wife.
It was hard to remember that he wasn’t truly Khivar. Just an avatar. But he still thought of himself as Khivar. Only….. Only less than he used to.
“I just want to check on the kids.”
Devra sleepily closed her eyes, “give them a kiss from me.”
“Yes, love.”
Funny. He did love her. More and more each day. Why had Amil wanted to leave his wife and children alone? What could have motivated the man to suicide?
Had the embarrassment of a failing career really have been that bad? That his mistress had spurned him as he lost ready access to cash and privilege?
He listened as Devra’s breath moved back into a sleeping pattern, to the slight snore that she denied. Khivar placed one hand above her abdomen.
The baby was healthy. Their baby.
His baby. For Amil Noor should have died long before it had been conceived. And in a way he had.
Devra had stuck by him as he remained in the hospital, despite the scandals that had broken. Amil had timed his death so he wouldn’t have to deal with the fallout.
Khivar knew that Devra had planned on divorcing him after he got on his feet. Only, Amil had been a changed man.
He had been Khivar. And Khivar had once thrown away a good woman, and was not about to do the same again. Even if it was only for a time. He would make sure that Devra and the kids were well taken care of when he finally did have to leave.
Only, he was no longer sure that he wanted to.
Khivar shook his head and wandered through the small house, so different from the high tech palaces he called home on Antar. And so much less suffocating. Here there was some hidden tension, he was hiding from some of the strongest powered individuals Antar had ever seen. And Max had been making Companions.
And then there was Liz Parker. What had Ana been thinking? If Khivar was right, and he prayed to every god in heaven that he was wrong, Ana had made a potential problem so much worse.
A Dadonari-hybrid Companion.
The combination was theologically impossible. Like calling someone a demon-saint.
He wouldn’t even have recognized it if it hadn’t been for Vilandra being so deathly afraid of the near mythical beings. She’d run into records of them while researching the Eidolon.
What was he going to do?
He looked in on his daughters. They were sleeping peacefully. So beautiful. He gave them each a kiss.
He walked to his son’s room.
And then there was Alex Whitman. He was Vilandra’s new chosen. What was he going to do about that?
He still loved Vilandra, and he knew he always would. But did he desire her enough to steal away the life of the one she now loved? To try and possess her once more.
Or would he finally let her go? He knew that he thought Khivar, the real Khivar would let her go. He’d already had a full life, and it would be wrong to kill the boy she loved.
But it would be hard. It was hard enough for him. And he at least had Devra.
He gave his fevered son a kiss. The leukemia the child had was far beyond the scope of his powers.
But not beyond Max’s. Max could heal him.
Max Evans, the rightful King of Antar. And in theory his deadly enemy.
Khivar sighed. So many problems. So much potential heartache. He walked back to his bedroom and lay down next to his wife.
And held her.
------
Lonnie held Erica, who had completely lost it.
Not hard when you consider how hard it was to think that your life was over, only to discover there was a good chance that when your jailers were finished with you they wouldn’t even let you die.
Lonnie looked up and saw Denise’s frightened eyes stare at her from a Mirror. Memory glass. The poor girl’s soul was trapped in memory glass. And would be until entropy finally wore her soul away.
There would be no afterlife for her.
Nor if she was realistic for Lonnie either. She was Nicholas’s favorite toy now, one that he liberally passed out to his friends, new and old. But someday that would change.
And she too would be fed to a sheet of glass.
How she wished Rath would save her. But she didn’t think he could.
No she was doomed. Damned. As was her soul.
How she longed for redemption…..
Also, I should note that Epilogues in In Destiny's Shadow tend to cover bits and pieces of what the enemies are doing. To give a hint of what is to come. Thank you all again.
Arianneleigh- Thanks.
keepsmiling7- Thanks.
RhondaAnn- Thank you as always. On Maria it is perfume. It is not part of her, although it has been tailored for her. (Courtney's husk actually could use and manufacture perfumes and pheromones, and I suppose Maria could alter how she smelled if she put her mind to it. Thats practical molecular maniputlation/ chemisty. But she can not alter her body to automatically produce perfume like Courtney could.)
The girl with Alex was the girl in line right before Vilandra, when Vilandra was to be executed by memory glass. She was the first one freed when Vilandra opened all of the soul prisons in the Hall of Justice right before she died.
No. Liz is wrong about this. But it is what she would think. She was marked by it though, and that mark drew Max's attention when they first met.
Tess is going on a massive Truth kick at the moment. She did the crimes, and she is confessing them. But she has never felt welcome by the others in the Royal Four. She is not really one of them. So why pretend? Don't worry, she will explain her actions in much further detail in Redemption.
nibbles2- Thanks. Liz was marked by the Granolith, but she did not have a Seal at that point. This drew Max's attention. He was interested in her. And fell hopelessly in love.
chanks_girl- Thanks. Alex's companion will have considerable reprecussions in the following part, along with a major decision by the Royal Three.
Tess will explain her reasoning further in the next few parts in Redemption. It has more to do with recognizing reality and trying to be truthful to what she really is. And yeah, Kyle will forgive Isabel reasonably quickly. Even Tess admitted that she is in the wrong here.
Please note that Tess EXPECTED to die here. Kyle's shield was unexpected. By everyone. Even Kyle.
And note, those bumps do work on me. Would they work on you I wonder.....
DeDe PR- Thanks. I've been working toward that scene for well more than a year. I'm glad you liked it.
AvalonRose- Liz's conception marked her. Liz is wrong about the Seal, but she was marked. And that drew Max's attention. And he fell in love.
You are right about young love, it can and does last. But the odds, well they are against it.
Tess is just recognizing a reality that has existed since she got there. One that she could have overcome but through her actions made it impossible.
As for the Four Square, well that is more like the Round Table, or some other mythical organization. It was more for political and religious reasons than direct power potential. Four is a holy number to the Antarans. But yes. They could replace her.
Disclaimer- Roswell is not mine and no infringement is intended.
Shadows of the Past part Epilogue
T Greer moved among the roses in the new Garden he was building. He had decided that the plants that he would put here would not be those from home, but rather those from his new world.
He knew he would never leave Earth. He had known that for a long time. Nicholas had never truly understood that they had been exiled her as much to protect them as to find the Royal Four and the Granolith.
In fact, in some of his more recent discussions, frank discussions, with Khivar, he had been surprised to find that Khivar didn’t expect the Granolith to be returned.
He never had. He had simply wanted to know where it was.
And to find her.
Certainly there had been other considerations, scouting out the humans, discovering the resource base, their level of development. Their potential uses in the constant internecine wars amongst the Five Worlds.
Practical concerns that needed to be done. And knowing where the Granolith was located was important. Why Khivar wouldn’t say, but in Rhyajhaelian religious lore, it was one of the tools used to drive away the Darkness. It was troubling that it was no longer on Antar, but as long as its location was still known it could be used to drive off the Enemy should they ever return.
Greer shook his head. He was getting superstitious in his old age.
He looked down at his hand. His four fingered hand. It was so strange to not be in a husk. To be wearing just his own old body. And it was old. It was easy to forget that in a husk that kept the same age year after year.
He was old. Where had all the time gone?
At least he would leave something behind for the future to remember. That had bothered him. He had done his best in Copper Summit, but the need to blend in, the need to pass as a normal human town, kept him from using many of his best tricks.
But here, in the new Ark he had begun building, here he was free to use whatever he set his mind to. And this would just be the first of many. This world had wide and beautiful oceans. Plenty of space to build.
He looked forward to the day he could freely trade with the humans as partners. Khivar’s invasion was still slated for a decade or two hence. Although he could tell that Khivar’s heart really wasn’t in it anymore.
Not his worry.
He heard footsteps on the pathway and looked up.
The man was fairly handsome, although the scars did detract some. Rath had not let his medical team remove them.
He had earned them. That was what he said.
He was dressed in fatigues and stood at ease in front of Greer. Rath no longer flinched to see the alien figures walking around the Ark. “You called for me, sir?”
Greer walked slowly over to the table the translator was on. He lifted the mask over his face. It would change his Antaran to English.
Greer couldn’t speak English in his normal form if he wanted to. His mouth and vocal apparatus were simply too different. And while he understood English without translation, Rath would not understand Antaran.
Rath waited patiently.
His teachers had done good work. To bad they could not remove the Sigil that Dorian had placed on him. Greer could feel it even now. “I have a job for you, Rath.”
“Garit, sir. I go bay Garit now.”
“Why?”
“When a candidate enters the Academy he gives up his given name. And it known only by his family name. When you graduate you take the name of a Companion. Rathinar was a distant ancestor, whose actions had sullied the name. I chose to revive and bring it to honor.
“On Antar I succeeded far beyond my dearest expectations. But here on Earth…. Here I have brought shame to it. And so deserve it no longer. I am not Rath. Perhaps my Copy can still claim it, but I can not in good faith do so.”
Greer stared at the boy. The boy’s voice was still somewhat harsh, and his accent was still heavy. But there was significant improvement about him.
Yes. He would do.
“I need you to contact Max Evans. I need to speak to him. To make peace with him and his followers. I am not his enemy. Not anymore.”
“I doubt he would believe that, sir.”
“Max Evans is not a threat at this point to our plans. As long as he has no plan to return to Antar, Khivar sees on reason to harass him.”
Rath remained silent.
Greer continued, “As a personal aside I would like to go farther than just a truce. But I would need to meet him to discuss the details of any further agreement.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Travel arrangements and monies have been arranged for this trip. I am trusting you with this.”
“I will not fail you,” he turned to go.
Greer watched him go. So many changes in the young man. Good changes. When he returns, if he returns, he could very well have a bright future ahead of him. Greer was about to return to his roses when he noticed that Rath had stopped.
“Sir?”
“Yes, Garit?”
“May I, may I ask them for help to recover Lonnie?”
“Garit, part of the reason I need to speak with Max is about Nicholas. I have nothing against Max, he’s not really a Tarenon. But Nicholas and Ana will strike at them. As they will attack me in time. Khivar may be only seeking a truce, but I am seeking an alliance.
“And should those talks bear fruit….. I will ask his help freeing her myself.”
------
Ana kept her distaste of her surroundings to herself. Garish and ostentatious. Almost hideous, even by Vegas standards.
She had come her because she knew that another Protector was supposed to be in one of the major California cities. He probably had quite the web of informants there.
He might recognize what she was doing and try to put a stop to it.
And there was no way she could stay in Phoenix. Not only had she ended up involved with the King and his Companions, but there had been several human organizations that had been interested in her.
There had been a time when she would have scoffed at that. No more. Not until she had more of an organization to back her up.
A couple of partly trained kids just would not cut it. And some of the humans had powers. Weak powers, but powers never the less. She needed to know more what they were capable of.
She needed a safe place to reorganize and build. Las Vegas had seemed like a good place.
Unfortunately, Nicholas had thought so too. And he had gotten her first, with more of an organization.
Still, together they might be able to accomplish more than they had been able to do alone. She had plans to share with the small Skin. And secondary and tertiary plans for whatever his response might be.
Nicholas might not have taste, but he did have power.
And for that, Ana could forgive a lot.
She just needed time. For time was on her side in a way it wasn’t on Nicholas’s. Her new body was young, and it was fully hers. With proper care she could live for decades, perhaps more than a century. And she could easily raise protégés from among the human population.
Once again she regretted losing Liz Parker. The things she could do with one like that…..
No, in the end, she could use Nicholas to provide a safe haven. One that she would be able to keep when his Husk finally failed.
And it would. Soon.
Ana looked forward to that day.
------
Khivar rolled out of bed.
His wife called to him, “Honey come back to bed.”
Khivar shook his head in confusion. His last wife had died in an assassination attempt five years back.
His eyes cleared to show him Devra, his host’s wife.
It was hard to remember that he wasn’t truly Khivar. Just an avatar. But he still thought of himself as Khivar. Only….. Only less than he used to.
“I just want to check on the kids.”
Devra sleepily closed her eyes, “give them a kiss from me.”
“Yes, love.”
Funny. He did love her. More and more each day. Why had Amil wanted to leave his wife and children alone? What could have motivated the man to suicide?
Had the embarrassment of a failing career really have been that bad? That his mistress had spurned him as he lost ready access to cash and privilege?
He listened as Devra’s breath moved back into a sleeping pattern, to the slight snore that she denied. Khivar placed one hand above her abdomen.
The baby was healthy. Their baby.
His baby. For Amil Noor should have died long before it had been conceived. And in a way he had.
Devra had stuck by him as he remained in the hospital, despite the scandals that had broken. Amil had timed his death so he wouldn’t have to deal with the fallout.
Khivar knew that Devra had planned on divorcing him after he got on his feet. Only, Amil had been a changed man.
He had been Khivar. And Khivar had once thrown away a good woman, and was not about to do the same again. Even if it was only for a time. He would make sure that Devra and the kids were well taken care of when he finally did have to leave.
Only, he was no longer sure that he wanted to.
Khivar shook his head and wandered through the small house, so different from the high tech palaces he called home on Antar. And so much less suffocating. Here there was some hidden tension, he was hiding from some of the strongest powered individuals Antar had ever seen. And Max had been making Companions.
And then there was Liz Parker. What had Ana been thinking? If Khivar was right, and he prayed to every god in heaven that he was wrong, Ana had made a potential problem so much worse.
A Dadonari-hybrid Companion.
The combination was theologically impossible. Like calling someone a demon-saint.
He wouldn’t even have recognized it if it hadn’t been for Vilandra being so deathly afraid of the near mythical beings. She’d run into records of them while researching the Eidolon.
What was he going to do?
He looked in on his daughters. They were sleeping peacefully. So beautiful. He gave them each a kiss.
He walked to his son’s room.
And then there was Alex Whitman. He was Vilandra’s new chosen. What was he going to do about that?
He still loved Vilandra, and he knew he always would. But did he desire her enough to steal away the life of the one she now loved? To try and possess her once more.
Or would he finally let her go? He knew that he thought Khivar, the real Khivar would let her go. He’d already had a full life, and it would be wrong to kill the boy she loved.
But it would be hard. It was hard enough for him. And he at least had Devra.
He gave his fevered son a kiss. The leukemia the child had was far beyond the scope of his powers.
But not beyond Max’s. Max could heal him.
Max Evans, the rightful King of Antar. And in theory his deadly enemy.
Khivar sighed. So many problems. So much potential heartache. He walked back to his bedroom and lay down next to his wife.
And held her.
------
Lonnie held Erica, who had completely lost it.
Not hard when you consider how hard it was to think that your life was over, only to discover there was a good chance that when your jailers were finished with you they wouldn’t even let you die.
Lonnie looked up and saw Denise’s frightened eyes stare at her from a Mirror. Memory glass. The poor girl’s soul was trapped in memory glass. And would be until entropy finally wore her soul away.
There would be no afterlife for her.
Nor if she was realistic for Lonnie either. She was Nicholas’s favorite toy now, one that he liberally passed out to his friends, new and old. But someday that would change.
And she too would be fed to a sheet of glass.
How she wished Rath would save her. But she didn’t think he could.
No she was doomed. Damned. As was her soul.
How she longed for redemption…..