Roswell Fanatics

Disclaimer: The characters of "Roswell" belong to Jason Katims, Melinda Metz, WB, and UPN. They are not mine and no infringement is intended.


Chapter 17: The Interrogation

Late the next evening, the parents all met up at the Whitmans’ house to have a serious discussion. Many of them were concerned about the fact that Jim, a fellow parent, had known the truth about their children for over a year and had never said a word. The teens had been told in no uncertain terms that this was a parents-only meeting.

“Jim, I don’t understand why you didn’t come to us. These are our kids for heaven’s sakes! You had no right to keep this from us.” Dianne Evans had put a lot of thought into the stories they heard yesterday and she was furious to know her kids had been in danger but Jim had never said a word.

“I am sorry that I didn’t tell any of you. The day I found out about their ‘other-worldly’ status, I almost lost my son. Trust me, I know how serious this stuff is.”

“But why would you keep us in the dark then?” Philip asked.

“Look, I’m not going to say I made the best decision but I had very limited choices at the time. You have to understand, your kids were terrified of people finding out the secret …if their secret came out, they were going to leave town. Alone. I was the only adult who knew the secret so it was up to me to keep them as safe as possible. I couldn’t risk them running.” Jim shook his head, knowing it must sound like a lame excuse to the others.

“They were going to run? What were they going to do about money? What about food, shelter, clothing?” Nancy was flabbergasted the kids had been so afraid that they’d leave town completely.

“That’s why I couldn’t risk telling anyone. They would’ve just hopped in the Jeep and drove as far as it would take them. They assumed they would be able to get jobs and find a place to rent in some random town, wherever they ended up.” Jim shook his head sadly before continuing.

“We have a very strong, smart group of kids but they were scared. They’re just teenagers for Pete’s sakes! I suspect if they had run they would’ve found a way to get by, but I didn’t want it to come to that. I had to make a decision and I felt they’d be safer here.”

Charles Whitman was the first to break the silence that had fallen over the group. “I appreciate your honesty Jim. I’m sure this hasn’t been easy for you.”

Amy Deluca walked over and knelt next to Jim. “Thank you for helping them Jim.” She gave him a gentle kiss on the cheek before continuing.

“I can’t think of one person I’d trust more with Maria’s safety…” Her sweet gaze suddenly turned deadly serious. “Except for me that is. I’m her mother and you will never keep me in the dark again. DO YOU UNDERSTAND ME?”

Jim’s mouth went dry and he nodded in fear. He’d known Amy long enough to realize that she was going easy on him right now. You do not cross Amy Deluca and live to tell about it. He was lucky to get that kiss on the cheek instead of a smack to the head. She was the toughest darned hippy he’d ever met and that was one of the many things he loved about her.

The tense atmosphere in the Whitman living room was shattered by the sudden laughter that erupted. It was just too funny watching Amy make the Sheriff squirm. It really lightened the parent’s spirits.

“I have a few questions and I need you all to know, I don’t mean to offend anyone.” Jeff needed a few honest answers and he thought Jim might be a more objective source than Liz.

“Other than their powers…are the kids different in any way?” A few of the other parents shot angry glares at him, so he clarified a bit. “I mean, we’ve all seen the ridiculous Hollywood movies and heard the wild rumors since the crash…all of that stuff is total rubbish, right?”

Jim chuckled before addressing Jeff’s question. The other parents were glaring indignantly but secretly they wanted an objective opinion too. They didn’t really consider the pod squad to be dangerous but many of them wondered if they were different.

“Let’s see here. They don’t have antennae, and they obviously aren’t little green men. The uncaring, heartless alien portrayals are completely wrong. These kids have more heart than some of the humans I’ve met over the years.” Jim smiled fondly and then refuted a few more alien myths.

“They aren’t here to take over the Earth, but you’ll never hear them say ‘We come in peace’ either. They did hatch from pods but they have no intention of creating ‘pod people’. They don’t eat brains, or any other part of the human anatomy for that matter.” This last comment was met by a bunch of disgusted groans. Ignorance knows no bounds in Hollywood it seems.

“They do seem to have an affinity for covering sweet foods in Tabasco sauce. Isabel calls it their dietary quirk…sweet and spicy. They like going to the movies on the weekends and hanging out with their friends every chance they get. They hate homework and elevator music.” Jim stopped, thinking he was starting to make his point clear. These kids were not really as unusual as you’d think.

“Isabel used to talk on the phone for hours on end. When she was little, she idolized Madonna but she’ll never admit it now…apparently that’s not cool anymore.” Dianne smiled in remembrance.

“Max loves that clunky old Jeep of his even though it barely runs. A boy’s first car you know…” Philip added with a wink.

“Michael has read Ulysses cover to cover at least twenty times. War and Peace too. He has such a gruff exterior but he’s actually a very intelligent young man. He can inhale a novel faster than most people can read the TV Guide. From what I’ve heard, he’s also quite a gifted artist.” Jim told the shocked group.

“Ava taught herself to sew in New York. They didn’t have anyone to look out for them, so she learned to make do by herself. She made a beautiful full size quilt for Maria’s bed earlier this week. Handmade quilts like those sell for a hundred dollars or more. She said it’s just a relaxing hobby but honestly, I think she could make a career out of it if she wanted.” Amy added, since she was the only one in the group who’d had much of a chance to meet Ava.

The parents continued their discussion for another half an hour or so before heading home for the night. There were plenty of fond memories about each of the podsters to share with the group. Jeff’s question certainly got quite a few responses, but he still wasn’t one hundred percent sure that Liz would be safe in Roswell. Well-loved yes, but safe?

Disclaimer: The characters of "Roswell" belong to Jason Katims, Melinda Metz, WB, and UPN. They are not mine and no infringement is intended.


Chapter 18: I Spy With My Little Eye…

The parents had desperately wanted to come along for the second official training session at the quarry, but since Tess would be there it wasn’t possible. They had to settle for a detailed recap later in the privacy of their own homes.

Once again, the group split in half for training but this time things played out quite differently. Alex and Kyle were strategically placed with Liz, Isabel and Tess. The plan was for the two of them to distract Tess while the others trained. No one wanted a repeat performance of last week when she spilled all of their progress to the enemies.

Liz was feigning an attempt at getting a premonition, while in reality she was actually trying see if she could get another vision like the other night. She was quietly focusing on her parents, in the hopes that she’d be able to ‘see’ them like she had Lonnie, Rath and Tess in her dream. If she could harness this remote viewing thing, the group would be able to stay more informed on the others’ plans.

Kyle noticed Tess staring at Liz suspiciously. A glance over at Alex convinced him to begin ‘Operation Distract Tess.’

“Aaaarrrgh!” Kyle suddenly jumped up on top of a nearby boulder, screaming like a girl. “Scorpion!” He bounced up and down hysterically, pointing to an imaginary spot in the sand about ten feet in the other direction. Alex barely managed to cover his snickering as Kyle’s high-pitched screams echoed off the quarry walls.

Isabel yanked him down from the boulder, quietly hissing, “Shut up! You’re breaking Liz’s concentration.”

Kyle pulled his arm out of Isabel’s iron grip. He glanced over at Tess and with a sheepish grin said, “Oops. My bad…it was just a rock. Carry on.”

Before Isabel went back to join Tess, she turned to Kyle and whispered, “You’re supposed to distract Tess…not everyone else.”

Kyle looked at Alex and shrugged. “Well it worked, didn’t it?”

Alex was watching Liz so closely that he didn’t even hear Kyle’s last remark. Liz was sitting nearby with an unreadable expression on her face. Her eyes were shut and she looked like she was either sleeping or meditating.

“What’s she doing?” Alex was startled out of his thoughts by an intrusion from Tess. She was watching Liz with more suspicion than before.

“She didn’t have much luck with the premonition thing, so she decided to try meditating first this time.” Kyle whipped out the first lie that came to mind.

Alex glared at Tess’ back as she walked away muttering, “As if that’ll help her…”

Liz suddenly opened her eyes and gave Alex a big wink before joining the other two girls. The noticeable skip in her step told him that she’d hit the jackpot. She’d have to wait until later to tell the others what she saw though. For the rest of the training session, Liz hung back acting as though she wasn’t having any luck with her powers.

Isabel was making great progress with her new ability. She fled Michael’s mind when she realized he was thinking about how sexy Maria looks when she’s mad. She openly scowled at Kyle after seeing a very graphic image of Jody Ann, Playmate of the Year, floating around in his head. Max traumatized her for life with the pictures of Liz that were running through his head.

“Oh my God…what is wrong with you guys?! Is that all you ever think about? Is it too much to ask that you think of puppies or kittens…or anything else when we’re training?!” Isabel yelled, disgusted.

Maria was getting better at reigning in her powers. Max got to practice healing after Maria set fire to Michael’s shoes during an argument. “Take that Spaceboy!” She hollered.

Michael paid her back by turning her favorite pink shirt a hideous shade of grey-brown. “Right back atcha Maria!” Michael smirked.

Just as air began to crackle with Maria’s fury, Max discovered that he could project his shield outward to protect others. His shimmering green shield flared to life around Michael, as Maria moved to set the big alien’s shoes ablaze again.

Irritated at being thwarted, Maria backed off and the three resumed practice in relative peace. Much to her delight, she discovered she could now use a bit of her alien mojo to do some simple color changes. After a little assistance from Isabel, Maria had perfected the art of adding honey blonde highlights to her own hair. And with a bit of subtle assistance from Max, she managed to add comical pink streaks to Michael’s hair. The poor guy had no idea why the others were pointing and laughing at him when they left for the day.

Later that night when Liz arrived home, she told her parents about the training session. Her parents listened anxiously as she recounted the way she’d focused on them trying to get some kind of vision.

“It was like I was standing right here in the room with you.” Liz said. Her parents looked at each other nervously, knowing exactly what she’d witnessed.

“Are we doing the right thing here? That boy has turned her life upside down. She might be in danger now and we’re doing nothing.” Jeff anxiously paced around the living room.

“There’s not much we can do now Jeff. Do I hate that she might be in danger? Yes, of course I do. Am I willing to risk the consequences of tearing them apart? No. I don’t think I am.” Nancy crossed her arms, waiting for Jeff to argue.

“I feel for him and his family, really I do. I owe him everything for saving Liz’s life and I know that he would never want her to get hurt but that doesn’t mean it won’t happen. You heard what those FBI thugs did to Max…and I think we got the edited version! What if that was Liz?!” Jeff stopped pacing for a moment and then voiced the real source of his fear.

“If we send her away, they might find her anyway. The FBI, the ‘dupes’ they told us about, the enemies Future Max mentioned…any one of them could track her down and she’d be alone. Defenseless. If we let her stay, she’ll have no choice but to fight…she won’t be alone though. How can we possibly make a decision like that?” Jeff sighed in defeat.

That was all she’d had time to see in her earlier vision. If she‘d watched any longer, Tess would’ve gotten suspicious. Liz wasn’t entirely sure if Tess had bought the ‘meditation’ story Kyle fed her. That one small vision had been exhausting but it had more than served its purpose.

“I’m part of this now dad. I chose to be part of this the day Max healed me. He never wanted this life for me but it wasn’t really his decision to make. It was always my choice, and it still is. I love you dad, but this isn’t your battle. I need you to accept this.”

Jeff walked over and gave Liz a weary hug. He wanted more for his daughter. This wasn’t the life they’d envisioned for her at all. She was right though. It was her battle now. Sending her away would mean secluding her from the only other people on this planet that could protect her.

A/N: These next few chapters have a whole lot M/L angst and some very fluffy M/M moments. I promise you that Max and Liz will have a happy ending in this story and you won't have to wait for the end to see it. I am a Candy fan but I have great things in mind for the Dreamer duo too...scouts honor. Also, I couldn't remember of the teens were in their junior or senior year during MITC so for the purposes of this fic, just assume that they are all seniors.

Disclaimer: The characters of "Roswell" belong to Jason Katims, Melinda Metz, WB, and UPN. They are not mine and no infringement is intended.


Chapter 19: Plans in the Making

It was at their first official parent-teen meeting that the group announced their finalized plans for translating the Book. They were once again all gathered at the Crashdown. Ava stayed behind at Maria’s house to prevent Tess from spotting her out in the open but Maria had already filled her in on everything so she wasn’t missing much.

“There were enough open spots left for this weekend’s Las Cruces tour for me to sign everyone up. We would leave Friday right after school and then return Sunday afternoon. I picked up some pamphlets if anyone is interested.” Max got straight down to business, feeling slightly uncomfortable about briefing the parents.

“First thing, first. You’d be staying in the dorms right? No coed sleeping arrangements allowed?” In one fell swoop, Amy Deluca managed to make every teen in the room blush furiously. Maria, who had been comfortably cuddled up next to Michael, quickly moved over to put some distance between them. The last thing she wanted was another round of ‘the talk’ from her mother.

“No coed arrangements. All of the rooms are pre-assigned, with boys in one building and girls in another. I made sure that Alex and I would be sharing a room though, with Michael and Kyle right next door…we’ll be staying right down the hall from the resident computer labs.” Max gave everyone a sharp, meaningful look. It was clear that they had every intention of coming home with the completed translation.

“Will any of you actually be looking into applying there for next year? I mean that’s your cover story anyway. Have any of you put some thought into what you’re going to do next fall?” Jeff Parker was trying to be subtle with his concerns but he really needed to know that Liz was still going to have a life of her own, outside of all the alien chaos.

“I’m hoping to catch the tour of their molecular biology department. I’ve read about some genetics studies they are doing there that look really fascinating…I’d love to learn more about those too if possible.” Liz was obviously excited. It was quite evident that she had not completely given up her dreams of becoming a scientist.

“There are a bunch of different programs I want to look into. Of course I’ll be checking in with their performing arts department, no big surprise there. They also have some kind of individualized degree program with classes on alternative medicine and herbalism that look pretty interesting. Oh and then there’s the criminal justice program…Ava wants me to grab her some pamphlets on that so I might as well check it out while I’m at it too.” Maria rambled excitedly on about her ambitious plans for the trip.

“You know I’ll be ogling their computer science labs…and maybe their robotics programs too if I get the chance.” Alex’s parents looked relieved when he spoke up.

“Max and I want to check out their political science programs if we have time. Seems somehow appropriate…” Isabel trailed off as her mother gave her a teary eyed hug.

“What are your plans Michael? What interests you?” Philip Evans didn’t really mean to put Michael on the spot. He and Dianne felt horribly guilty for leaving Michael alone in the desert the day they found their children. There was obviously so much more to the young man than he’d ever realized and he wanted to take the time now to get to know Michael better.

Michael nervously scratched his brow. “I don’t really know. I’m not sure what I’d be good at. Not business, not computers, not science…” Michael shrugged and trailed off, embarrassed.

Amy Deluca felt her heart clench at his lack of confidence. “You don’t really need to decide anything right now. Most college kids don’t really know what they want to do until their second or third year anyway, right? You have time.” She smiled and gave Michael a little pat on the arm before steering the attention away from him. “What about you Kyle?” She asked.

“Coach said that I should be able to get a scholarship to Las Cruces no problem if I keep playing as well as I did last season. I’m not sure what I would want to major in, but that’s probably where I would end up going.” Sheriff let out a relieved sigh that Kyle had put some thought into the matter.

“So you guys will get there Friday evening and then what? Start working on the translation Saturday morning? Will that be enough time Alex?” All heads swiveled toward Alex at Mrs. Parker’s question.

“I’ll have to start working on it right away Friday night after we check in. Our activity should stay pretty much undetected as long as we only operate at night after all of the researchers at the supercomputer lab have gone home. I think I can tackle it in two nights.” Alex looked around confidently at the group.

The meeting lasted another half an hour before everyone decided to call it a night. They discussed their plans at length, with quite a bit of input from Charles Whitman regarding the technical, computer details. Tess thought the parents had been fooled into thinking this was just some innocent campus tour and Max warned the group not to let it slip that they knew otherwise.

As the meeting broke up, Max overheard Maria gushing to Liz about the date Michael had planned for tomorrow evening. He had actually taken some of Max’s advice and offered to take Maria out to a real restaurant for once. Max was surprised to realize that he was a little bit jealous that Michael’s relationship was going so well while his own relationship with Liz was nonexistent at the moment. It was truly a surreal feeling for Max to be jealous of Michael.

It occurred to Max that Michael had come so far in the last year when he felt like he was just moving backwards. Maria had finally managed to bring Michael’s stonewall crashing down and now that Amy knew the truth, he was quickly becoming part of her family. Michael was so happy now and it was obvious to everyone around him. Max, on the other hand, felt like he had made no progress at all, in fact, it felt like things were actually getting worse as time passed.

Maria noticed Max looking over like a lost puppy. She said goodnight to Liz and bounced over to give Max a pep talk on the way out.

“Girlfriend, you nearly burned a hole right in the back of her head back there.” Maria teased him.

“What should I do Maria? Future Me messed everything up. I mean, he was me…how could he have ever thought I’d fall out of love with her?!” Max shook his head in irritation.

“She just needs time Max. You know she still loves you…jeez, everyone knows that. The thing is, she kind of got steamrolled with all this ‘destiny’ crap. She doesn’t hate you or anything. She just needs some time to heal.”

“But she’s sending all these mixed signals. She agreed to keep an open mind about us until after we find out what the Book says. Then she ignores me for days. Then she stands by my side, holding my hand while I tell our families all of our secrets…but then she pulls away again. I don’t understand!”

“Yeah, and you saved her life and let her see your soul…then you gave her that lame ‘take a step back’ speech. Then you made out with her like there was no tomorrow and found that Orb. Then your mother appears with a message about your destiny and you say ‘It’s just the four of us now’…but then two seconds later you tell Liz you love her and want her in your life. You’re really one to talk about giving mixed signals Max!” Maria sighed in exasperation.

“Think about it this way…would you jump at the thought of letting her back into your heart if you knew that you might find her in bed with Kyle again at any moment?” Maria, never one to mince words, was trying to make Max understand Liz’s position.

Max flinched. “She never slept with him Maria.”

“Not the point. It broke your heart seeing them together. You were crushed! Well pushing you away broke her heart too. Until your ‘destiny’ gets sorted out by the translation, you’re basically asking her to come running back to you without any assurance that she won’t catch you in bed with Kyle.” Maria patted his arm and got into her car. As she was leaving, Alex walked up and noticed the confused look on Max’s face.

“You obviously weren’t using your Maria filter, man. She was trying to tell you that Liz looks forward to losing you to ‘destiny’ again, just about as much as you look forward to seeing her in the sack with Kyle again. Either scenario ends in a broken heart. Liz is just trying to make sure her heart survives intact this time. If the translation comes out the way we hope, then maybe she’ll have the reassurance she needs.” Alex saw frustration mixed with understanding dawn on Max’s face.

“One last thing though Max. If this translation delivers bad news…I want you to back off. It’s not fair to string her along if she can never really have you in her life. I’m asking you man to man here. If this goes bad, I need to know that you’ll respect her wishes.” Alex wasn’t really asking Max to set Liz free if it came down to it. He was telling him.

“I can’t live without her anymore than I can live without air Alex. I won’t make a promise I can’t keep. Let’s just take this one step at a time…Translation first, decisions later.” Max looked Alex in the eyes, waiting for a reaction. The taller man reacted only with a sober nod.

Timelord31 - Poor Ava is stuck at the Deluca residence during the big trip to Las Cruces. Tess will be there, so unfortunately Ava will have to keep out of sight like usual. I promise she won't stay in hiding forever...


Disclaimer: The characters of "Roswell" belong to Jason Katims, Melinda Metz, WB, and UPN. They are not mine and no infringement is intended.


Chapter 20: Date night

The next evening, Maria was rushing around her house like a mad woman trying to find the perfect outfit for her date. It wasn’t like she hadn’t gone out with Michael before, but this time it was more like a real date. They were going to a nice restaurant…one that Michael had actually made reservations for. They would be dressing up and he was even going to come to the front door to pick her up.

“Mom! Can I borrow your green shirt…that wrap around one?” Amy giggled as Maria poked her head out of her bedroom already wearing the shirt in question.

“Well I suppose Maria…since you went to the trouble of finding it and putting it on already.”

Maria managed a sheepish grin before yelling, “Thanks mom!”

Just then the doorbell rang. Amy opened the door and was met with a vision of a very dressed up, respectable looking Michael. He was actually wearing khaki pants and had chosen a very flattering black button-up shirt to go with them. His usually unruly hair was nicely combed and he held a bunch of wildflowers in one hand.

“You clean up nice Michael.” Amy said with a sassy grin.

“Thanks.” Michael looked away nervously. “Is Maria ready?”

Maria chose this moment to make her dramatic entrance. She looked fabulous in her black a-line skirt paired with the green v-neck wrap around shirt borrowed from Amy. The shirt made her hazel-green eyes stand out brilliantly.

“I’m ready. Let’s go Spaceboy.” As the teens left, Amy and Ava sat back and made bets about how long it would be until the couple had an argument and there was even a side bet going about who would start the fight. Fighting was like a hobby for those two.

When Michael and Maria arrived at Chez Pierre, a local French restaurant, they were immediately seated at a lovely corner table adorned with a vase of lavender, jasmine and gardenias. Michael had actually done a little research on herbalism for the occasion and had made a special request with the management to have these specific flowers at their table. They were supposed to represent love. His effort did not go unnoticed by Maria.

“Oh Michael! You arranged all of this for me?” She reached across the table to hold his hand. They had now ventured into uncharted territory in their relationship and it was amazing.

“I know you like this kind of stuff. I wanted you to have a nice time.” Michael shifted nervously.

“It’s perfect! I can’t believe you went to all the trouble.” Maria’s eyes narrowed in mock suspicion. “Who are you and what have you done with my boyfriend?”

Michael rolled his eyes. “I’m not completely emotionally retarded Maria,” he grunted.

After ordering their meals, they sat back and had an actual conversation. Stonewall Guerrin and Hurricane Deluca actually managed to have a civilized conversation without one argument. Maria made a mental note to mark this day on her calendar because it likely would never happen again.

“So do you think this is how things were for us in Future Max’s timeline?” Maria asked.

“Nope.” Michael paused, trying to find the right words. “Do you want to know what made me decide to show you everything last Christmas?" Off her nod, he continued.

"I was sitting at the Crashdown with Max watching the way he mooned over Liz and I realized that you would never pull a one-eighty on me the way Liz did with Max. I didn’t know about the Future Max thing...all I knew was that she broke his heart in the worst way and left him with no explanation at all. I kept thinking, Maria would never do that.”

“So Future Max’s meddling actually made you appreciate me for once then?” Maria asked with a sassy grin.

“I guess. Without that little reality check, I probably would’ve kept pushing you away…telling you it was for your own good. We don’t even know if we were still together in that other timeline. For all we know, you might have eventually left me and run off to New York to pursue your singing career or something. Who knows?” Michael shrugged helplessly.

“Well if you had kept pushing me away, I probably would’ve left eventually.” Noticing Michael’s hurt look, she continued.

“You really had me thinking you didn’t want me in your life. That really hurt Michael. In case you haven’t noticed, I don’t exactly take rejection well.” Michael looked away guiltily but Maria kept talking because she wanted him to understand.

“After my dad left, I told myself I’d never let a man toss me aside like that again. When a girl gets jerked around over and over eventually she starts to believe that she’s got to do something to protect herself. That’s what Liz is doing right now. Don't be too quick to judge her because we’ve all closed ourselves off at one time or another…it’s like self-defense. She’s just kind of regrouping so to speak.”

“At least Future Max didn’t completely screw everything up. We’re happy…Isabel and Alex are happy. Now if Max and Liz could just get it together, things would be fine. I get why Liz did what she did but Max’s moping is making me crazy. One second he’s all happy because he thinks he and Liz have a shot at getting back together and then the next second he’s crying in his Cheerios.”

Maria interrupted. “Hey, what do you mean ‘Isabel and Alex are happy’?” Isabel was still trying to keep things with Alex kind of quiet for now. Maria hadn’t told anyone that she knew Isabel was in love with Alex. To her knowledge, only Isabel, Alex and herself knew.

“I’m not blind Maria. Isabel hasn’t really yelled at anyone in weeks…the Ice Queen has retired. Alex is always by her side and they’re always sneaking glances at each other when they think no one is looking. It’s obvious, isn’t it?” Michael was far more astute than Maria had given him credit for.

The duo finished off their dinner and headed back to Michael’s house. It was so rare that they got time alone that they wanted to take full advantage of it. Just as their make-out session was getting into full swing, Michael insisted on taking her home. He knew that he had to stay on Amy’s good side if he wanted to continue seeing Maria and her creepy mom radar would just know if they had too much fun.

After Michael left, Amy and Ava made Maria sit down and tell them all about the date. She babbled on for nearly five minutes straight about what a great time they had. Maria was puzzled when Ava stuck out her hand and accepted twenty dollars from Amy.

Disclaimer: The characters of "Roswell" belong to Jason Katims, Melinda Metz, WB, and UPN. They are not mine and no infringement is intended.


Chapter 21: Campus Life

Friday afternoon was filled with a flurry of activity as the teens prepared to leave for their ‘Las Cruces tour’. The parents were all there to wave them off. Each teen, minus Tess of course, had their new cell phones handy and Amy Deluca had gone the extra mile, giving each of the girls a can of pepper spray to keep in their purses.

As the bus pulled away, the parents couldn’t help but have a collective shudder of fear. It wasn’t any easier now, knowing what kind of danger their kids were facing but there wasn’t much they could do to help this time. This was something the teens would have to tackle on their own and the parents would have to trust them to keep each other safe.

Things with Tess were strained as always but no one could really tell if she suspected they were on to her. As per usual, she carried on her meaningless banter with Kyle while glancing seductively at Max every chance she got. Little did she know, everyone noticed her game and it was nearly making Max and Kyle physically ill. When the bus finally arrived at their destination, the group was thrilled to get out and put some space between themselves and Tess. The only one left with no reprieve was Isabel. She had to share a room with Tess and the mere thought of it put her on edge.

The teens were shown to their dorm rooms by the chaperones so that they could put away their luggage and then they were all to report to the dining hall for dinner.

“Oh my God…this room is like a closet! They actually expect two people to live in here?!” Maria immediately started babbling when they’d reached their dorm room.

“It’s not that bad. Look, the beds can be stacked up like bunk beds and then you’d have room for a TV over in the corner.” Liz looked over at Maria and a sudden realization hit them both at the same time.

“We could be college roomies chica! Wouldn’t that be perfect?” Maria was bouncing up and down hugging Liz silly.

“Maria you’re squishing me!” When Maria let go, Liz continued. “I don’t know if you get to pick your roommate your freshman year in college. I think they randomly assign roommates. It would be great if we ended up together though…” Liz trailed off as her friend rolled her eyes.

“Girl, have you learned nothing over the last year?! Do you really think our friends couldn’t ‘rearrange’ the paperwork for us? Heck, maybe by then we could rearrange the paperwork ourselves!” Maria was so excited she was nearly clapping with glee.

“We better get going because we only have fifteen minutes to find the dining hall.” Liz’s attempt to bring Maria back to reality did little to contain her friend’s excitement. The girls linked arms and set off for the dining room.

When Isabel saw Liz and Maria approaching, she walked up to them and hissed, “What took you guys so long?! I’ve been sitting here with that beast for like ten minutes already!” To punctuate her remark, she flashed a quick glare at Tess who was sitting at a table across the hall. Tess was busy looking around for Max so she didn’t notice Isabel’s vicious glare.

“So are we going to get in there and eat so we can get this show on the road already?” Michael suddenly appeared behind them, impatient as usual.

“Cool it Spaceboy. Dinner starts in about five minutes and then they have some admissions guy coming in to give us a speech that will no doubt bore us to tears. After that we’re free to do some exploring around campus…” Maria gave Michael a sassy little smile as he scowled over the evening’s itinerary.

The speaker was nearly as boring as Maria had predicted, but thankfully he was brief. As the group started filing out of the dining hall, Maria gave Michael a quick kiss for good luck. The guys decided to take a quick ‘tour’ of the lab housing the supercomputer to see how many people were still there. They found it nearly deserted and the security guard at the door kindly told them that everyone was leaving for the night and they’d have to come back in the morning for a tour. They hiked back to their dorms and planned on waiting an hour before hacking in from the computer lab down the hall.

Alex had scanned the pages of the Book into image files, which he then burned onto a CD. He planned to use the campus network to basically hijack the supercomputer, download the images from the Book and activate the cryptography program all from his terminal in the dorms.

The guys managed to get into the computer labs fairly easily. Since it was Friday night, most of the actual students were out with friends, so there were plenty of open computers to use in the lab. Michael quickly surveyed the perimeter and was pleased to find no security cameras in the hall or in the computer lab itself.

The guys were pretty much in charge of the mission because it would look too suspicious if the girls were caught sneaking around the computer lab in the boys’ dorms. Michael, Max, Alex and Kyle filed into the deserted computer lab and Alex got to work. He found it to be surprisingly easy to hack his way in to the supercomputer’s cryptography program and was able to start downloading the Book’s images much sooner than he’d expected. As he gave the supercomputer the order to execute the program, the guys sat back and started surfing the Internet hoping to look busy while secretly watching the program’s progress.

The translation was completed on that first night in the lab. The program had been able to match most of the symbols to identical ones found in various Native American languages. This aided the program in translating the rest of the document at lightning speed. Alex printed a few copies of the translation and then saved it to floppy disk just for good measure. It took him nearly an hour to erase their tracks in the computer’s logs but when he was done he was confident he hadn’t overlooked even the tiniest of details.

After they crept quietly back to their rooms down the hall, Michael grabbed two of the extra copies of the translation and stealthily snuck into the girls’ dorms to deliver them.

I want to send a big thank you out to:

jbfan
Timelord31
roswck
BlondeDramaQueen
Poison Ivy
maxandlizforever

I'm so excited that you guys like this story. You sure do know how to make a new author feel right at home. Now fasten your seatbelts my friends because I'm about to take you for a ride through my version of 'destiny'.



Disclaimer: The characters of "Roswell" belong to Jason Katims, Melinda Metz, WB, and UPN. They are not mine and no infringement is intended.


Chapter 22: Destiny Revealed

You are the Royal Four. You were born of royal blood from the Houses of Zandros and Rathemere on the planet Antar, in the Alpha star system. You ruled over the Royal Antarean Empire. Zan was the King, head of the diplomatic house and Rath was the Master Commander, head of all civil and planetary defense. Princess Vilondra, Zan’s sister, was a very prominent Antarean diplomat and humanitarian. Lady Ava, Rath’s sister, coordinated the planet’s judicial programs.

Zan and Rath ruled side-by-side, as was tradition for the eldest descendants of the two Royal Houses. Millennia ago the members of these two houses decided that a dual form of leadership would be most successful in ensuring the prosperity of Antar. The Royal Empire controlled all interplanetary affairs between Antar, Saria, Nedra, Eros and Thalos, the five planets of the Alpha star system.

After generations of petty disagreements between the five planets, Zan felt that it was time to put the squabbling to rest. Zan was on the verge of negotiating peace for all five of the planets but it was fleeting. Together with his sister Vilondra, Zan was able to settle centuries old disputes between four of the five planets. The Alpha system was on the verge of a golden age, but for the lone voice of dissent from Eros.

Prince Kivar, of the planet Eros, resented the leadership role Antar had over his planet and set out to overthrow the Royal Houses of Zandros and Rathemere. There were whispers that Kivar intended to wed one of the Royal Ladies to stake his claim for rulership of Antar. The traditional Antarean hierarchy is patrilineal in nature however, the ruling body is comprised of the eldest surviving members of both Royal Houses. The chosen mates of the rulers are given equal status and as such, great care must be taken when choosing life mates. The Royal Four decided to close ranks to prevent Kivar from gaining access to the thrown via Princess Vilondra or Lady Ava. King Zan wed Lady Ava and Commander Rath announced his betrothal Princess Vilondra.

Kivar knew the arranged marriages were merely a political strike against him so he waged a quiet campaign to corrupt the other four planets. Soon the star system was divided. He used every form of deception at his disposal and was able to use Nedra’s insecurities to turn them against the Royal Antarean Empire. Thalos begrudgingly joined Kivar only after he threatened to bring an interplanetary war to their very doorstep. Only Saria remained loyal to the Empire. Kivar brought a devastating war to Antar’s homelands and all four of you were killed. A royal seer demanded that your bodies be collected at once, to reclaim your essences so you may be reborn.

We combined your Antarean DNA with that of the people of Earth so that you may be raised there, away from Kivar’s tyranny until such time that you may return and save your people. Kivar has the strongest mental powers within the known universe, second only to the powers of the Royal Four when united. His power of suggestion has been said to make entire armies lay down their arms in surrender without a fight. That power, coupled with his massive army has made him a most formidable enemy. We believe the following prophecy, recorded in the oldest of Antar’s historical documents refers to you.

The Royal Four, reign once more
Now Eight where once there were Four
On a strange world, so intolerant of
Peace abound whence they find love

This prophecy, one of many made by the most powerful seer in Antarean history, is what prompted us to believe you may once again return to your people. This is why your own royal seer demanded your essence be gathered. Your reign was the first in Antarean history to consist solely of descendents from the two founding Houses. Traditionally, the King and the Master Commander found suitable mates from other noble houses, but you bonded from within. For that reason you were hailed as the Royal Four. The prophecy, recorded generations before your time, specifically mentioned you by name.

The strengths of the Royal Four were complimentary in every way and when joined, created a nearly flawless unit. Kivar wounded you in your last life because your unit was incomplete at the crucial time of attack. A unit created by you and your mates would be powerful enough to defeat Kivar once and for all.

You were sent to Earth with four protectors and two mentors to educate you in the ways of the Royal Empire. This book was composed using an encoded form of traditional human languages as a precaution in the event your mentors were injured. The people of Saria have sworn their allegiance with the true Royal Antarean Empire. If your protectors or mentors are injured, call upon the Sarians for assistance.

Beware on your journey. Kivar will send many to harm and deceive you. You must prepare yourselves. The seal of your Royal House is imbedded within your essences so all those loyal to the Empire will recognize you as the rightful rulers of Antar. You left behind no heirs, so rightfully you are still the leaders of the Royal Empire. Kivar has taken over your post in your absence, but his is a bloody reign. He has destroyed the safety and order Zan worked so hard to obtain.

Be on your guard at all times. While your powers were immense in your last life, we believe they will be enhanced through the process of binding your Antarean and human genetic materials. Antarean and human physiology are very similar. Human brains are capable of manipulating matter, just as ours are, but they have not yet discovered their abilities to do so. Your Antarean DNA was combined with human DNA to increase the likelihood of your survival. Antareans are naturally smaller in stature than humans but these characteristics were deemed to be adverse to survival on a foreign world.

If you choose human mates, the connection you form will assist them in accessing neural pathways their human brains have never used. They will develop powers akin to your own, and will likely also discover their own unique powers over time. They will inherit a royal seal identical to your own, as would happen if you had chosen an Antarean mate. We have found evidence that humans may fear people outside of their own social groupings but that is not true of Antareans. Your life mates will be accepted as one of our own upon your return to Antar.

The Granolith has been sent with you for your protection. It must never leave your possession. The power contained within the Granolith has never been fully realized and it can be a very dangerous weapon in the wrong hands. When the time comes for you to return home, it will be your guide.

We believe the unit forged between the Royal Four and their chosen mates will offer the strength to end Kivar’s tyranny and reunite the five planets once more. You must therefore remain together in this life so that you may rely on the strength of your combined powers to see you through dark times and bring you home. Open your hearts and master your powers. Your reign will bring peace to our system.

***********************************************************************

By the next evening, all of the teens had read the translation. There was a flurry of questions when they were all able to meet up again at dinner. They managed to find a table at the far side of the room where outsiders wouldn’t overhear them.

“So, you guys were like equals or something then right? Max was the one who did all the talking and Michael was the one who took action when talking didn’t work. My God, that would explain so much!” When Maria finished her excited babble, Michael scowled at her.

She had a point though. It really did make sense. Max excelled at dealing with people, whereas Michael was nearly hopeless in that aspect. Michael was always the first to suggest taking action in a crisis situation whereas Max tended to dig in his heals and avoid confrontation at all costs. Zan was a negotiator, and Rath was a protector. It was obvious that these talents had carried over into this life as well.

Max chuckled at Michael’s irritated scowl. “It does seem to fit, doesn’t it? I’m not a risk taker, but Michael is.” He turned to Michael and continued. “In a crisis situation, you just want to dive in and take care of things but for me it’s different. I can’t just make snap decisions like you do. Maybe that’s why…I’m not supposed to be the only one calling all the shots.” Max sighed; feeling like a huge weight had been lifted off his shoulders. Michael looked at him in surprise.

"When you think about it, the description of Vilondra really rings true doesn't it? It said she was this great diplomat and humanitarian. That sounds exactly like Isabel." Alex pointed out.

"Oh definitely! I mean, who's the one always trying to keep the peace between Max and Michael? Isabel. Who's the one always planning those 'feed the needy' dinners and those 'secret santa' drives for the hospital at Christmas time? Isabel." Maria said with a grin.

Michael shook his head. “What I don’t get though is, why did the emissaries call Rath your second-in-command if we were equals? It doesn’t make any sense.” He was having a hard time believing that he was this great leader in his past life…or that he was supposed to become a great leader again in this one.

“It sounds like your government had a clear division of powers. For example, the House of Zandros was like the US Congress and the House of Rathemere was like the Senate and Judicial branch all rolled in one. The two houses together made up the Executive branch…. the Royal Antarean Empire. Each side of the government worked together to reach the same goals but in diplomatic matters, Rath would’ve defaulted to Zan’s judgment and in security or judicial matters, Zan would’ve been second to Rath. The peace summit was a diplomatic matter, a negotiation, so Max would’ve been the lead man and Rath would’ve been his second.” Liz finished her declaration with a flourish.

“There were so many answers in that book but does anyone else feel like they have more questions than they did before? I expected it to be more…specific, I guess. How are you guys supposed to know how to run an entire planet anyway?” Alex was reeling a bit conflicted by the information they’d received. He was glad they’d gotten some answers but those answers had just raised more questions.

“They expect us to use the Granolith to just pop over to another planet and overthrow the same evil tyrant who killed us in our last lives. Yeah, like we have a clue how to do that. I’m thrilled that the whole foursquare ‘destiny’ thing wasn’t true but I feel weird about being happy because the rest of the translation was a little…dark.” Isabel was torn between relief and fear. The translation had encouraged them to follow their hearts in regards to choosing a mate and for that she was nearly giddy. On the other hand, the rest of the translation painted a bleak picture of tyrants and war.

“I don’t understand the part where it said you could call on the Sarians for help…how are you supposed to call them? Telepathically? With the Orb?” Maria asked.

“Maybe you can send interstellar messages when you join your powers. We know Isabel can read minds…maybe when you guys join it amplifies your powers and you can sort of reverse the process. You know, send messages out instead of just reading what’s inside.” Liz theorized.

“Oh wow!” Kyle suddenly exclaimed. “I just realized…Isabel would’ve been like Max’s third. Or wait…his fourth?” Isabel shot Kyle an icy look for his comment.

"Don't push it Valenti. I may be in a good mood but my generosity only goes so far..." Isabel's icy scowl dissolved into a sarcastic grin. The poor guy didn't even realize she was kidding until the rest of the group started laughing.

“Seriously though. If Zan died, Vilondra would’ve become Queen. They closed ranks though, so if both Zan and Rath were assassinated, Ava would’ve become the leader of the diplomatic house because of her marriage to Zan and Vilondra would have ended up the head of security. Right? That seems backwards, doesn’t it?” Kyle actually did have a good point hiding somewhere in all his babbling. Jaws dropped around the table when they made the connection.

“We should’ve never closed ranks the way we did. All of the descendents from both Houses were killed. If we’d chosen other mates, there would’ve been heirs to take over. We basically handed the entire planet over on a silver platter.” Michael said, feeling guilty.

“That’s why we were sent here. To live long enough to find suitable mates…” Silence fell as Tess voiced what they were all thinking. They had made a fatal mistake in their last lifetime and an entire planet was counting on them to make it right in this one.


I hope you liked this chapter because I had a devil of a time writing it and I'm still not sure I love it...

Coming in Chapter 23: A minor meltdown from Maria, a major Dreamer moment, a glimpse into Kyle's thoughts...and much, much more. The story really picks up speed from here on out.

Disclaimer: The characters of "Roswell" belong to Jason Katims, Melinda Metz, WB, and UPN. They are not mine and no infringement is intended.


Chapter 23a: Revelations, Part I


The teens all agreed to meet up at Michael’s apartment on Sunday night after having dinner with their parents. Each teen had to share their copy of the translation with their parents privately, at dinner, before the meeting at Michael’s. There would be no time for large family meetings this time because they couldn’t risk Tess becoming suspicious.

As the bus pulled up to the high school to drop off the tour participants, each teen was scooped up into a big hug by his or her parents and immediately shooed into waiting vehicles. The parents had been waiting all weekend to see their children come home safe and sound…hopefully with translations in hand. Michael and Maria were shanghaied by an enthusiastic Amy Deluca, who had spent the entire weekend holed up with Ava waiting for news of the group’s success.

“So Alex had the translation done in one night? I thought it was going to take longer. How did he get it done so quickly?” Amy was surprisingly comfortable talking about the alien translation. No one could have predicted that she’d be reacting so well to all of this information.

“Apparently there were a lot of similarities to Mesaliko, Navajo and Apache symbols. I guess the Antareans didn’t want Kivar’s people to be able to read the Book so they used pieces of local languages and art instead.” Maria was nearly bouncing in her seat at the dinner table because she was finally able to speak freely with her mother about the alien abyss.

“What I don’t get is, what about the message we saw when we activated the Orbs? Was that all just one big mindwarp then?” Michael’s face dissolved into a great scowl as he realized that the vision must have been another one of Tess’ tricks.

“It all sounds so outrageous but it feels right. I never told Zan this, but I don’t think I was in love with him in that other life. And I know this sounds crazy, but it always felt so wrong to me that Rath and I weren’t closer in this lifetime. The stuff in that translation would explain everything though. Zan and I had an alliance, not a romance, and Rath and I were family…” Ava trailed off shyly. She didn’t know how Michael felt about being her brother and she was afraid of an outright rejection from the only family she had now.

Michael’s head jerked up quickly when Ava mentioned being his sister. He had realized Ava was his sister after reading the translation but he was afraid of what her reaction would be to the news. ‘She doesn’t look too upset,’ he thought. His mouth moved silently like he wanted to say something but nothing came out. Amy, sensing the tension in the air, changed the subject quickly.

“If I’m understanding this correctly Michael, you’re the head of an entire planet’s security concerns. So this bond you and Maria have…” At Amy’s implied question, astonishment dawned on Maria’s face.

“Oh my God Michael! Am I like your partner in crime now?! I don’t know how to be a leader! For heavens sakes, I can’t even make it through a shift at the Crashdown without having at least one minor meltdown. They can’t possibly think I’ll be able to help run an entire planet, can they?!” Maria’s wild eyes danced with anticipation.

“I don’t know. I think that’s what they had in mind, but I’d understand if you didn’t want…” Michael stopped when he saw Maria’s eyes well up with tears.

“I don’t want out Michael…I just don’t want to let you down. What if I screw up? There’s an entire planet at stake here!” Maria broke off sniffling. Amy dug a vial of cypress oil out of her purse and handed it to her.

“This isn’t something you have to worry about right now, OK guys? You don’t even know if you’ll be able to go back to your home planet anyways. You don’t have a ship, do you?” Michael shook his head no and the conversation turned again.

“The translation only mentioned four of us. They cloned us and basically like inserted our essences into our clones. That must be what’s wrong with the others then…they were made different. They were made by someone else…” Ava pointed out something that had been nagging at her ever since she read the translation.

A hush fell over the room as Amy said, “It’s like they have no souls…”

The scene over at the Evans’ homestead was quite similar to the one at the Deluca’s. Max was still marveling over the fact that his parents had been so accepting of them now that they knew the secret.

“I always knew we weren’t ‘destined’ to be together. I mean, come on! Michael and I? Our relationships were basically political alliances for heaven’s sakes! For some reason I feel like maybe we were all close in that other life, but I don’t think any of us was actually in love.” Isabel was uncharacteristically giddy tonight. She felt like the translation had given her back control over at least a portion of her life.

“So how did Alex feel about this translation Isabel?” Her mother was enjoying watching the animated way Isabel was carrying on.

Isabel blushed. “Um, well Alex…he was hoping it would have more answers than it did. It told us so much but everything we learned just brought up more questions.” She said.

“That’s not what I was asking and you know it. Stop being coy Isabel.” Dianne said with a grin.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about…” Isabel trailed off when her mother gave her a sharp look. “OK fine. He wasn’t freaked out at all about any of it. He even said that Vilondra sounds just like me.”

“He’s right. You certainly are a humanitarian in this life as well. He sounds like a special young man.” Her mother said with a devilish grin. Philip and Dianne knew that Isabel was trying to keep her involvement with Alex a secret but she wasn’t fooling anyone. They were quietly thrilled that she’d found a nice boy that made her happy.

“You’re so quiet tonight, Max. How do you feel about all of this?” Philip was concerned that Max was shutting them out again. He’d been so reserved ever since they’d picked him up from the high school earlier.

“I have no idea what to think right now. We got so many answers but we also ended up with more questions. How do they expect us to bring peace to a planet light years away from here? We don’t even have a ship. Our entire army couldn’t stop Kivar the first time, but they think the four of us can somehow do it?” Max paused, deep in thought. “Not the four of us…eight of us…” Max finished with an expression of complete awe on his face.

“Max, what is it?” Isabel was startled by the sudden change in Max’s demeanor.

Max was deep in thought, muttering, “Future Max didn’t have Ava…Liz’s powers don’t combine with mine. They would only work with the other three.” Max suddenly jumped up from the table, grabbed his keys and headed for the door. He sputtered, “I have to go see Liz!”

Over at the Parker residence, dinner was a rather tense affair. Jeff and Nancy had gotten very quiet after reading the translation. Liz knew they were mulling over the fact that her powers could only exist if she was Max’s ‘chosen mate’. It also was very obvious that they were concerned over the translation’s warnings about Kivar’s henchmen.

“Would you guys please say something? I have no idea what you’re thinking right now and it’s scaring me.” Liz looked at her parents with tear filled eyes.

“This is a lot to take in Lizzie. How do we even know this Kivar is still alive? If he is, are you marked now? According to that translation, your powers mean that Max chose you to be his…mate.” Liz’s father scowled at the choice of words. It sounded so barbaric.

“I don’t know dad. I have no idea what to think about that…” Liz trailed off, looking like her heart was breaking.

“Honey, do you want to be with Max?” Nancy’s eyes probed her daughter. “Don’t tell me what you think we want to hear…I want to know what you feel.” Nancy’s question prompted a flurry of emotions to cross Liz’s features in rapid succession. It was obvious she loved him fiercely but something was still holding her back.

“I love him mom. I miss him so much! But I don’t think that I’m meant to be with him. Future Max said that we bonded and I started developing powers in his timeline, but the absence of Tess made it impossible to defeat their enemies. He told me himself that they needed Tess. He may have loved me, but he doesn’t really need me, does he?” Her emotional declaration was cut short by a knock at the door.

Jeff opened the door to see a very flushed Max. “We’re having a bit of family time here Max. You’ll have to come back later.” Jeff didn’t want to be rude to the young man but he had to think about his daughter. She was obviously in pain right now.

“Sir, could I please just speak to Liz for one minute? It’s very important.” The determined look on Max’s face convinced Jeff to let him in.

“You can say whatever it is you were going to say in front of us then Max. There’s really no need for secrets anymore, now is there?” Jeff fixed Max with a stern look that convinced him not to argue.

“Um…OK. Well, when we were talking about the translation at home I realized something that Liz needs to know.” Max looked up to see both Nancy and Liz staring at him as he followed Jeff into the dining room.

“You’ve got our attention Max, please continue.” Nancy honestly hoped whatever Max came to say was going to be something that would lift her daughter’s heavy heart.

“OK. I think Future Me had it completely wrong all along. In his timeline, they had never translated the Book. I’ve been thinking about this all afternoon and now I understand why they needed Tess.” Max paused for a second when he noticed Jeff glaring at his choice of words. He continued on, even more determined to explain his thoughts.

“The four of us make this unit, foursquare…whatever you want to call it…because our powers are so complimentary. We all have such different abilities, but apparently they combine together well. It’s not us that make the unit…it’s the combination of our specific powers. The translation said that our chosen mates would inherit powers like our own. Meaning, Liz’s powers would be very similar to mine…” Max saw the sudden realization appearing on Liz’s face, so he turned to her and continued.

“If Michael, Isabel, you and I joined together, we wouldn’t be as strong because the combination of powers wouldn’t be quite the same. You would be able to take my place in the foursquare because our powers will be similar, and Maria would be able to take Michael’s place, but only Ava’s…significant other…would be able to take her place. Future Me didn’t know…” Max looked around the table and was surprised to see Liz’s parents had quietly left the room without him noticing. He desperately hoped he hadn’t made them angry by crashing their family dinner.

Liz noticed his puzzled look and said, “They heard every word. I think they just wanted to give us a little privacy.”

Max sighed and cautiously took Liz’s hand. “Liz, this is what I was trying to tell you last week. It’s not that you weren’t strong enough in that other timeline…It was just that they didn’t understand, so they were doing it all wrong. I love you and I need you in my life. Don’t you see what this means? It’s like you’re the other half of me…my soul mate. Please just think about this Liz, OK?”

Just then, Jeff and Nancy came back into the room carrying four slices of pie. To Max’s surprise, Jeff even brought in a small bottle of Tabasco.

“So, just to get a few things straight here Max, you’re saying that Liz would be able to combine her abilities with the others and it would keep her safe?” Jeff was really trying to keep an open mind for Liz’s sake but he needed to know that Liz would have some measure of safety if she chose to reunite with Max.

“Yes sir, I do think that’s possible. I think it’s something we should test at our training sessions…That is, if Liz is still going to be training with us…” Max looked away, unable to hide the desperation in his eyes.

Liz took Max’s hand, and with a look of determination she said, “I’ll be there Max. I think we should give it a try.” The double meaning in her statement was not lost on anyone in the room. Liz had finally found the reassurance she needed. She had found her place in the group…and it was not second to Tess or Ava as Future Max had insinuated. It was right where she’d always wanted to be…with Max.

“There’s one more thing we need to sort out though Max. In Future Max’s timeline, we came up with that horrible time travel plan together. We didn’t have all the facts and we almost made everything worse. From now on, we all stick together and we think things through before we act. The enemies that caused the end of the world were probably Kivar’s men. If we all would’ve worked together, maybe we could’ve stopped him. None of this had to happen…” Liz was quickly starting to see that their future selves had gone so far astray that their demise had been almost unavoidable. Amazingly, Future Max had changed things…just not the way he intended.

“So Future Me didn’t completely screw things up. If he hadn’t come back, we wouldn’t have translated the book.”

“What did he have to do with that?” Nancy asked.

“When I saw Liz and Kyle…uh…She wasn’t acting like herself at all. Then, suddenly she has these new powers and Ava said I changed her somehow. I thought maybe something I did made her act that way. None of it made sense though. That’s what made me think we needed to translate the Book…because the Liz I knew was suddenly just gone.”

“I wanted to translate the Book to convince you that you had to be with Tess. I thought…Future Max said…well you know. Anyway, at least now we know better.” Liz asked.

Both Max and Liz wore ear-to-ear smiles. The translation, though dire in part, had given Max and Liz their lives back. They no longer felt like prisoners of fate. They were free to decide their own fate…together. Neither one of them was worrying about Kivar's role in their future right at the moment. There would be time enough for that later.

After dessert was finished, Max and Liz left together for the meeting at Michael’s.

Disclaimer: The characters of "Roswell" belong to Jason Katims, Melinda Metz, WB, and UPN. They are not mine and no infringement is intended.


Chapter 23b: Revelations, Part II

(This is a continuation of the group's reactions the night they come home from Las Cruces...)

Tess rushed off as soon as the group got back from Las Cruces. She told Jim and Kyle that she just needed some time alone to think about everything. Her absence gave the men time for a much-needed father and son talk.

“Where do we fit in with all this dad?” Kyle asked his father after handing over his copy of the translation.

“What do you mean?” Jim asked.

“I guess I never really made it a secret that I didn’t want to be a part of all this. Don’t get me wrong…I’m glad that Max healed me. It’s just that my new lease on life came with all these freaky alien strings attached.” Kyle tried to gather his thoughts for a moment.

“It’s weird. I want to be part of this but I don’t. Part of me is relieved that they got the answers they wanted, but part of me feels left out. Max has Liz…sort of. Michael has Maria. Isabel has Alex. They’re playing out their destiny already and they didn’t even realize it. They found their path. What’s mine?”

“I can’t answer that son. You have to choose your own path. Now tell me what’s really bothering you.” Jim, being as perceptive always, knew that his son wasn’t only distraught over ‘finding his path’.

Kyle looked embarrassed. “As long as I’m part of their world, I’ll be alone. We can’t bring anyone else into this chaos but Isabel, Liz and Maria are already spoken for…they’re like sisters anyway so dating any of them would just be wrong on so many levels. Oh and Tess is evil, so that’s a definite no too. I guess I just didn’t see myself being the only one to end up alone…”

“So why don’t you just tell Ava that you care about her? I know that’s what you’re getting at here. You’ve been eyeing her ever since she came back to town…but she has this big important destiny and you’re not sure if she’s interested in making you part of it, right?” Jim chuckled at Kyle’s indignant expression.

“I’m your father Kyle. I notice these things.” Another chuckle. “Just talk to her…I know you want to. What’s the worst that could happen?”

“She could laugh…or blast me with her death ray eyes. She could think that I’m some pathetic human who’s only interested in her because she’s royalty…not because she’s beautiful and kind and smart…” Kyle trailed off, embarrassed he’d revealed so much.

“If you really thought she’d do any of those things you wouldn’t care so much about her. Sounds to me like you’re letting fear make your decisions for you. That’s no way to live son, you know that.” Jim smiled, hoping his son would take his advice. Despite Tess’ betrayal, Jim knew that Ava was different.

While Kyle and Jim were sharing a rare father and son moment, Tess was pushing her SUV to the limit in an effort to get out to the pod chamber. When she reached her destination, she whipped out her cell phone and called Lonnie.

“Nasedo was wrong. There is no Destiny…” Tess broke off, trying to stifle the tears that were threatening to spill over.

“What?! What’d you find out?” Lonnie was as impatient as ever with the little blonde alien.

Tess read off the entire translation to her. Lonnie interrupted frequently, swearing. When Tess finished, she waited for Lonnie to call off the plan. There was no way they could go through with the whole thing now. Their people weren’t waiting for four of them to come back and save them…they were waiting for eight.

“Nothin changes. No way am I givin up my ride home to some human. You gotta make em’ forget.”

“The four of us can’t just show up alone Lonnie! You heard the translation…Maria was right. Our people need eight of us to return!”

Lonnie finally had enough. She decided to pull out all the stops to get Tess to cooperate.

“You think they’s gonna bring you with em’ when they go? You guys aint tight like that. Who you gonna hook up with anyway? Max don’t want you. Michael’s your blood. You gonna mate with a human? Humans don’t get us, Tess. They’ll find out you’s an alien and run for the hills…probably turn you into the FBI too, yo. You think Max, Michael and Isabel would come for you then? You wanna die in some FBI lab just because Maxxie’s too busy sniffin after that mousy Liz girl?” Lonnie was laying it on thick. When she heard the tell tale sounds of Tess crying on the other end of the line she went in for the kill.

“You’s dead weight to them girl. They’ll leave you alone here the first chance they get…” Lonnie listened as Tess’ sobbing hiccups subsided and became nothing but a cold silence.

“You gonna let em’ do you like that? Leave you here with nothing while they go live in your castle, with your peeps? You gonna let em’ make that Liz girl Queen?! Screw that girl! You got to fight for what’s yours…”

After the call ended Tess drove back to the Valenti house, shaking with rage. What little control she’d had earlier had been completely stripped away by Lonnie. Lonnie and Rath wanted power, money, and royal distinction. Tess had wanted acceptance. She wanted a purpose. Nasedo had drilled the idea of Destiny into her for so long that it was all she knew. Without Destiny, she had nothing. Years of loneliness had slowly chipped away at her and today she hit her breaking point. She would not be left behind. She would not let them throw her away. Now, she wanted revenge…

As Tess was leaving the pod chamber, back in town Isabel was just arriving at the Whitman residence. She wanted to squeeze in a little bit of alone time with Alex before the meeting at Michael’s.

Charles Whitman heard the doorbell and wasn’t surprised when he saw it was Isabel at the door. She and Alex thought they were doing a good job of keeping their relationship quiet but he and Gloria saw right through the act. Alex was happier and more confident than he’d ever been before. Coincidently, they noticed the transition right after Isabel had started making frequent visits to the house. Even a fool could see that those two are in love, Charles thought.

“Hello there, Isabel! We’re just finishing dinner. Would you like to join us for dessert?” He asked.

“Oh I’m so sorry for interrupting your meal Mr. Whitman!” Isabel said blushing. She was very nervous about facing Alex’s parents after they’d had a chance to read the translation. She was so sure that they’d want to keep her as far away from Alex as possible now.

Charles led her into the dining room. “Now how many times have I told you to call me Charles, dear?”

“Iz! I wasn’t sure if you were going to be able to make it over here before the meeting.” Alex greeted her with a thousand watt smile. “Let me just go grab another plate. We’re having Men In Blackberry pie tonight.”

After Alex left the room, Gloria studied the girl in front of her. “How are you doing Isabel? We read the translation…I’m sure that was a lot to take in all at once.”

Isabel laughed nervously. “Actually, I think that was my line. I wasn’t sure if…if I should come here tonight.”

“Isabel Evans, you are always welcome in this house.” Gloria said. She paused for a moment trying to find just the right way to explain their reaction to the translation.

“I will admit I was concerned about what I read in that translation, but who wouldn’t be? I don’t know that I think it’s fair of them to expect the eight of you to defeat that Kivar guy alone…although I do suspect you’ll try, won’t you?” Gloria searched Isabel’s face for an answer.

“I don’t know. We haven’t really talked about it yet. I don’t know how we’d even get home to try…we don’t know how to work the Granolith.” Isabel said nervously.

“If that day ever comes Isabel…if you guys ever have to leave…I know you’ll protect Alex. I know it.” Gloria nodded fiercely. She knew that Alex had given his heart to this girl and would follow her to the ends of Earth…or Antar for that matter. She wanted Isabel to know that she would support Alex’s choice.

“Thank you Gloria. I don’t know what to say…” Isabel looked toward the kitchen nervously, hoping Alex would hurry up. His parents were being so open and accepting and she wasn’t really sure how to react. What if he got hurt? How would she ever look them in the eyes again?

Isabel was nervously arranging and rearranging her silverware when Alex came back in the room with an extra dessert plate and a small bottle of Tabasco. They ate dessert in relative silence and immediately afterward, Alex whisked Isabel away to his room so they could talk.

“So my mom thinks you’ll protect me huh? There goes that macho image I worked so hard for.” He said with a smirk.

“You were listening in?” Isabel asked with a frown.

“Of course I was listening in! Liz and Maria are my best friends…they trained me well.” He pointed out with a playful smile.

Isabel rolled her eyes. “Alex, let’s be serious for a minute…” She said before Alex abruptly cut her off.

“Nope. Not this time Iz. I’m not going to let you sit here and convince yourself that I’m better off without you.” Alex said with conviction.

“Look, we need to talk about this for a second OK? A few weeks ago you said that normal is highly overrated and that I wasn’t asking any more of you than you wanted to give. That was before we read the translation though. We didn’t know what we were up against then…now we do. It’s not fair for me to expect you to risk your life fighting my battles just because some prophecy said so. So I’ll ask you one more time…are you sure you want to be a part of all this?” Isabel asked, embarrassed by the tears that threatened to spill over.

“After everything we’ve been through, I can’t believe you even need to ask me that Iz. I think the real question is, do you want me to be part of this?” Alex asked carefully.

“I don’t know how to answer that. I want you to be part of my life…God, you have no idea how much I want that. But, I don’t want to put you in danger just because I’m being selfish.” Isabel’s tears finally let loose and spilled down her cheeks.

Alex pulled her into a tight hug. “I’m pretty sure you read the same translation I did, right? You know, the one that said you guys would be nearly unstoppable if you combined your powers with your chosen mates. Us lowly humans will develop ‘powers akin to your own’ it said…that means that if you’re strong enough to fight, I will be too. That is…unless I’m not your chosen mate.” Alex finished tentatively.

“Oh Alex, of course you are! I just…I want you to know that I’ll understand if you want out.” Isabel was puzzled when a mischievous grin appeared on Alex’s face.

“Out, you say? Why that’s a fantastic idea! Let us go out for a romantic walk…perhaps we can stop by Michael’s while we’re at it. I hear he’s hosting a delightful dinner party tonight.” Alex turned on the charm, hoping to ease Isabel’s mind a little. He had no intention of leaving her, no matter what tricks this Kivar guy had up his sleeve.

Isabel giggled. “Are you sure Alex? Is this what you really want?” She asked, once again serious.

“Never been more sure about anything in my life. Now, let us go…we mustn’t be late for the party.” Alex stood up and offered Isabel his arm. “After you, my lady.” He said.

Isabel laughed. “Mustn’t? Since when do you say mustn’t?” Alex just wiggled his eyebrows at her in response. Isabel laughed even harder.

They linked arms and set off for Michael’s apartment. They had no idea what a wild night they in for.

Thanks for the feedback imnotlc and Timelord31!

Timelord31 - You always seem to know what's coming in the next chapter days before I post it...your perceptiveness just never fails to amaze me.

imnotlc - Thank you so much for the compliment on my story! It certainly brightened my day when I read that.


Disclaimer: The characters of "Roswell" belong to Jason Katims, Melinda Metz, WB, and UPN. They are not mine and no infringement is intended.


Chapter 24a: And So it Begins, Part I


The group met at Michael’s apartment as planned Sunday night. Because Tess was there, the only parent present was Jim Valenti. Everyone was excitedly chattering about the translation and their interpretations of it. The room was in near chaos as everyone talked at once.

“Alright now, we can’t all talk at once. Ladies first…Isabel, why don’t you start?” Sheriff tried to calm the group to get things started. They all looked so excited, he almost hated to end the moment.

“OK. I know you guys have all heard the story about Vilondra betraying her family. Nothing like that was mentioned in the Book though. Do you think that's because it never happened?” Isabel’s eyes shone with desperate hope.

Alex took Isabel’s hand before speaking his mind. He hated to see her suffer over some unsubstantiated rumor from her past life.

“I think there are two possibilities. That story could have been a lie made up by Kivar to discredit the royal family. That is possibility number one. On the other hand, the Book said you were a diplomat…maybe you met with Kivar hoping to prevent a civil war on your planet and when it didn’t work, people just made some false assumptions.” Alex noticed the others all had thoughtful looks on their faces, weighing the two scenarios he laid out.

He continued. “I don’t believe for one second that you’d betray your family out of greed or lust. I could easily see you trying to protect them though. I know you didn’t do the awful things they said you did. If you met with Kivar at all, it was because you were trying to protect your family…nothing more.” Alex finished, nodding with conviction.

Max added, “I completely agree. None of us actually believed that story anyway Iz. Maybe you were the ‘Royal Lady’ Kivar had set his sights on. Obviously our families knew you were innocent otherwise the Book would’ve said something about it. It’s probably just like Alex said. You’re a peacekeeper even in this lifetime…you probably only knew Kivar in a political sense.” After his reassurances and the affirmative nods from the rest of the group Isabel seemed to be more at ease so the conversation turned again.

“The translation said you were sent here with two protectors and two mentors. Obviously, we met one of your protectors but where did the others go?” Liz looked around the room for answers.

“Feds probably got them after the crash. That Air Force guy I had to interview mentioned adult aliens trying to protect our pods.” Michael paused, scratching his brow. “Hal said there were eight pods in the crash but the Book only mentions four of us. How’d four extra pods end up on the ship without anyone back home knowing about it?”

“Spies man! The bad guys infiltrated the lab where you were made and ran off with some of…er…you.” Kyle flinched as Isabel shot him an icy glare.

“Actually that would make a lot of sense. The technology was obviously very advanced on your planet. If it was that easy for them to clone you, then it would’ve been just as easy for Kivar’s followers to do it too.” Liz was the first to see the big picture so she spelled it out for the others.

“You’ve heard of nature versus nurture right?” Off her friends’ confused nods, Liz continued.

“Both our upbringing and our genes determine what kind of people we’ll become. If Kivar made a few tiny changes to the sequences in your DNA samples, he would’ve been able to clone himself a set of royal puppets. With the right training from some of his followers, he’d end up with four people, identical to you, devoid of any conscience or humanity. I’m sure they’d be very useful to him.” Liz saw understanding dawn on her friends’ faces.

“That still doesn’t explain how they could have gotten four extra pods on the ship without anyone knowing though.” Maria pointed out.

“They didn’t. There was more than one ship.” The teens turned their startled faces toward the Sheriff.

“Kivar couldn’t have gotten four extra pods on your ship without your people noticing. He obviously didn’t infiltrate your crew before take-off because you would’ve never made it here alive if he had. The fact that you’re here right now means that he couldn’t get to your ship before it left Antar. There had to be two ships…one with you and one with them.” Sheriff’s shrewd detective skills were as sharp as ever.

“So not only did the government cover up one UFO but they managed to cover up the presence of two?” Isabel asked in disbelief.

“That has to be what happened! I mean look at the dupes. They certainly fit the bill…no humanity, no conscience. I mean, my God…Rath is like one hundred percent Neanderthal!” Maria couldn’t resist taking a stab at Tess’ cohorts. She knew it would get under the little blonde’s skin. Of course, Maria was also secretly including Tess in that Neanderthal assessment.

Maria’s remark brought a dark look to Tess’ eyes and she said, “Shut up Maria. You don’t know what you’re talking about. Why are we talking about this anyway? The translation specifically said that the four of us have to be together to defeat our enemies. That’s why Future Max came back to make things right…because we weren’t together.”

The group was stunned that Tess was still insisting the royals had to be together as mates. It was like she was completely ignoring the prophecy and the stuff about ‘chosen mates’ and was just latching on to the parts that fit into her version of ‘Destiny’. After her comments at Las Cruces, they thought she had finally started to understand.

“Wow, you are so deluded girl! You can read right? Did you not see the part about…” Maria trailed off with a glare as Michael put a restraining hand on her arm. She knew she was angering the little gerbil, but right at the moment that was her intention.

“Tess, the translation says that you guys are free to choose our own mates.” Liz said, hoping to diffuse the situation. Max gave Liz a loving look and reached for her hand before turning and addressing Tess.

“We aren’t bound to honor some past life marriage of convenience. We weren’t in love…we were allies, more or less. The translation is telling us that this time, we have to follow our hearts a little more. I’m not really sure why Nasedo insisted that we all had to be together, but he was wrong.” Max honestly didn’t want to hurt Tess, and since she was a loose cannon already he tried to explain the situation to her as gently as possible.

Alex who had been very quiet during Max’s comments, suddenly shifted in his seat. He had been trying to see if he could read Tess, like Isabel could with him. He wasn’t sure if he was starting to develop powers yet but he had to try. Tess’ thoughts started roaring through his head like a freight train. Obviously, it had never occurred to her to block him. He jumped and grabbed Isabel’s hand; desperately hoping to connect and show her what Tess was planning.

Isabel was sitting back waiting to see Tess’ reaction to Max’s speech when she felt Alex touch her hand. She looked over to give him a smile, and out of nowhere she was assaulted with the strongest flashes she’d ever had. Tess’ unchecked fury was coursing through their connection and Isabel had to drop his hand to stop the flow.

“Oh my God!” Isabel wildly looked around at the others and realized she was going to alert Tess to what just happened if she wasn't careful.

“Michael! Um…you didn’t offer any of your guests a drink! What have I told you about being a proper host? Come on…we need to go get refreshments.” Isabel looked at Michael, pleading with her eyes.

“Isabel, what the…” Michael stopped with a grunt as Maria kicked him in the leg.

Maria turned to Isabel and said, “Come on. I’ll help you find something for everyone…” Alex volunteered to help too and they all hurried off into the kitchen.

Isabel and Alex started grabbing Snapples from the fridge and struggled to tell Maria, in whispered tones, what had just happened. Maria gasped and hissed, “That little hussy is going to mindwarp us all into thinking that her messed up version of ‘destiny’ was real?!”

“What are we going to do you guys? She could be mindwarping us right now and we wouldn’t even know it, right?!” Alex was obviously unnerved by what he’d found in Tess’ conscious thoughts. The pure force of her rage was enough to make him feel physically ill.

“We have to call Ava. She’ll be able to tell us how to block a mindwarp…and if we can’t, maybe she can undo whatever damage Tess does. I’m going to act like I forgot something in my car and then I’ll go out and call her.” Maria was being surprisingly level headed about the situation.

“Wait a minute! What if she mindwarps everyone while you’re gone?! Why do you get to go?” Isabel hissed.

“I get to go because Michael and I are the only ones that can blast and believe me…I will not hesitate to blast her hiney into next Tuesday if I need to. There’s no one left to protect us from her if Michael and I are both warped to oblivion.” Maria saw understanding appear in their eyes and immediately turned to leave. As she made her way back into the living room she told the rest of the crew she had to run out to the car.

“Isabel and Alex are bringing in the drinks. I have to run out to my car…I think I left it unlocked and my mom will kill me if I get her car stolen.” With that, Maria rushed out the door and around the building to her car. Once she was out of sight, she whipped out her cell and called home.

“Mom, I need to talk to Ava!” There were shuffling sounds as Amy handed the phone to Ava.

“What’s wrong Maria?” Ava sounded concerned.

“Quick, can any of us block a mindwarp?” Maria was whispering even though she knew that she hadn’t been followed.

“What?! Well, Rath used to be able to block them sometimes, so I guess maybe you and Michael could…why?”

“Alex got a reading off Tess and she’s planning on mindwarping us into thinking the translation confirmed her twisted little theory about ‘destiny’. If one of us can block her, can we fix the others?” The desperation in Maria’s voice could be heard loud and clear, despite her whispered tone.

“Yeah, I think so. A mindwarp is sort of like a waking dreamwalk I guess…or like a hypnotic suggestion. You know what it feels like when you’re having a bad dream and then in the middle of it you realize it’s only a dream so you sort of will yourself to wake up? It’s probably like that. If you start to feel like something’s not quite right, push with your mind. Will yourself to come out of it.” Ava didn’t think she was explaining it well at all and she was afraid she was going to get her new friend killed just because she couldn’t find the right words.

“OK, gotcha. Hey Ava? No matter what I say when I get home, promise me you’ll check to see if she’s messed with my head, OK? And if I don’t come home…find Liz. She’ll trust you.” There was a brief pause and then Maria added, “If you can’t find any of us…promise me you’ll protect our parents.” Maria was gearing up to go back in there and try to fend off Tess’ well-honed mental powers but she couldn’t do that until she made sure Ava would take care of her mother.

“I promise Maria.” After Ava said that, they hung up. Ava turned to Amy and started explaining what was happening. Amy immediately jumped on the phone and filled in the other parents.

Maria walked back into the apartment and immediately noticed something was different. Max and Liz were on opposite sides of the room, brooding. Isabel was wearing her best Ice Queen face and Alex had moved over to sit beside Liz, with a resigned expression on his face. Tess had worked her magic and now the others were right back in the heartbroken state they’d been in weeks ago.

Maria noticed that Michael was sitting apart from the group, looking around with an almost confused scowl on his face. She hoped that meant he wasn’t nearly as far gone as the others.

“Maria, what took you so long?” Tess’ face scrunched up in concentration after she said this. Maria knew it was time to make her stand.

She pushed out with her mind, silently repeating to herself over and over, ‘I will not let her win. I will not let her win…” Eventually she realized that Tess staring at her waiting for a response to some question she had not heard over her personal mantra.

“What? Why are you staring at me?” Maria didn’t think she’d been mindwarped. She still felt the same…she thought she still remembered the real translation. It was terrifying to know that the memories she thought were real might just be implants from Tess.

“I asked what you’re doing here? You read the translation. It said that the four of us are destined mates. You don’t belong here.” Tess watched Maria closely to see if the mindwarp had worked. She had been exhausted from warping the others by the time Maria finally came back from her car.

Maria decided it was time to test out her acting skills. “I’m here to support my friends. You guys might not care about the people you hurt in your little search for truth, but I do.”

Tess smiled smugly, thinking Maria had been fooled. The group stayed at Michael’s for another half an hour, discussing destiny in sober tones like they had weeks ago. It was as if their worst fears had been confirmed by the translation…or so Tess would have them think.

As everyone left for the night, Maria hung back for a second to be alone with Michael. He looked at her with that same confused scowl and said, “What do you want Maria?”

Maria lunged forward and pulled him into a big kiss. She desperately tried to open up a connection so he could see what had really happened tonight. She was practically throwing her memories at Michael and she didn’t actually know it was working until he broke off the kiss and yelled, “What were you thinking?! You were going to take her on by yourself? My God Maria, we probably would have defended her, thinking you were a skin or something! She erased all of our memories tied to the translation…including your powers.” Michael stopped yelling and gave her a crushing hug.

He mumbled, “I knew something was wrong. Right after you went to your car, Isabel and Alex came back into the room and Tess started scrunching up her face just like she does when she uses her powers. I kept thinking ‘What is she doing?’ Next thing I know, you’re walking back in and I’m wondering why you’re here.” Michael looked down ashamed as he said this. How was he supposed to be this great leader if he couldn’t even stop a simple mindwarp?

“Michael, stop that! You’re blaming yourself for this and you should be blaming her. The only reason I could stop the mindwarp is because I knew it was coming and Ava told me how. The ability to block a warp is actually your power anyway…my powers are just like yours, remember?” Maria smiled as he slowly nodded.

“So what are we going to do about the others? It’s not like you can walk around kissing everyone.” Michael scowled at the very thought.

“Can we bring them to Ava? She thought she might be able to undo the warp.”

“They don’t know about her anymore…they might attack her before she even gets a chance to do her thing. Hell, they’ll probably think she warped us!”

“Oh my God that’s right! How weird is that?” Maria paused for a giggle. “OK, so why don’t we go to my house and tell Ava what happened. We’ll come up with a plan from there.”

The drive back to Maria’s house was a wild one. Michael was driving and it was quite possible that he broke nearly every traffic law ever written in an effort to get there faster. When Michael and Maria pulled up to her house, they saw cars lining the street. They recognized the Parkers’, Evans’ and Whitmans’ cars right away and rushed into the house.

Amy ripped open the front door so quickly it nearly came off it’s hinges when she saw the two of them approaching. “Ugh, it’s about time you two! I was about to send out a search party!” Amy stopped her rant and studied the two teens, looking for signs of the mindwarp.

“I’m fine now Mrs. Deluca. Maria and I…talked.” He was not about to tell Amy exactly how Maria had brought him out of the warp.

Just then, Ava appeared and studied both Michael and Maria for a second. She turned to Maria, “You did it. You blocked her, didn’t you?” Off Maria’s nod she said, “The others are here already. She did a real number on them.”

They walked into a living room full of people. The parents were all studying their teens closely and the teens were shaking their heads in disbelief.

“Oh thank God you’re OK Maria! When we got home, our parents dragged us here and told us everything.” Liz wrapped her arms around Maria in a big hug. “Do you have any idea how much I panicked when my mom started talking about Czechoslovakians and mindwarping on the way over here?!” Nancy Parker chuckled tensely from the couch and chimed in.

“If the situation hadn’t been so serious, it would’ve been funny. Liz couldn’t remember that we were in on the big secret. When I told Liz we were bringing her here to break the mindwarp, her eyes popped open and I thought she was going to jump out of the car.” Nancy finished, eliciting a nervous chuckle from the group.

Isabel added, “We thought they were all skins or something, rounding us up for the kill. We were getting ready to run when Ava brought out the real translation and made us all read it. Then, the mindwarp sort of faded and our real memories resurfaced.”

“What are we going to do about the Sheriff and Kyle though? We can’t bring them here…Tess will get suspicious.” Philip, ever the logical lawyer was trying to come up with a game plan.

“I called and invited them over for dinner tomorrow night. It’s been a while since Jim and I got to spend any real time together, so he didn’t suspect a thing when I suddenly called him up and invited him over. When he and Kyle get here, we can make them read the real translation and then they should be OK, right?” Amy looked to Ava for confirmation.

“It worked for everyone else, so I don’t see why not. The mindwarp is sort of like a really strong hypnotic suggestion I think. If we give them something to trigger their real memories, it should interrupt the warp like it did for the others.” Ava looked around at all the relieved faces in the room.

Max finally spoke up from his corner of the room. “What are we going to do about Tess? Michael and Maria will be able to block her warp, but what if the rest of us can’t?”

Michael looked at him in disbelief. “You don’t seriously think we’re just going to let her to walk around here like nothing happened do you?! We’re going to find a way to put her out of commission…That’s what we’re going to do Max.”

“OK, let’s all stay calm here. Is there some way you can disable her powers?” Dianne looked around at the teens waiting for an answer.

“I don’t know how you’d disable her powers without killing her. Can you put her into a coma or something Max?” Ava asked. Before Max even had a chance to answer her question, an alarmed look crossed her face and she jumped out of her seat on the couch.

“She’s here! I can feel her. She’s almost at the front door!” Ava’s eyes darted to the door.

“Looks like she’s bringing the fight to us. How convenient.” Michael growled, cracking his knuckles.


To be continued...

Chapter 24b: Tess finds herself in hot water. Jim and Kyle put in a very dramatic appearance. Max will have to push his powers to the limit before the night is through...

Timelord31 - You hit the nail on the head...a 'smackdown' it shall be.

Grace52373 - Thanks for the feedback. Glad to see you're still following this story!

imnotlc - Thank you for calling me talented! I'm glad to see the humor in that scene between Liz and Nancy came through to the readers. I was worried it might sound a little flat. Thanks!

roswck - Yup, Tess is being a real jerk right now. She basically realized that everything she ever believed was a lie and she's not ready to give it all up yet. Not that she'll have a choice in the matter...

rosbuffyangelfanatl - Hello there! Glad to see you're enjoying the fic so far...I hope you like this next part as much as the last.

Ti88 - You cheater! Just teasing...I've done my fair share of board hopping too. You won't hear me yelling at you for feeling sorry for Tess. Any thoughts she may have had about adjusting to her 'new destiny' were pretty much destroyed by Lonnie's aweful manipulations.


Disclaimer: The characters of "Roswell" belong to Jason Katims, Melinda Metz, WB, and UPN. They are not mine and no infringement is intended.


Chapter 24b: And So It Begins, Part II


Liz and Maria answered the knock at the door with feigned looks of surprise.

“Tess! What are you doing here?” Maria asked sweetly. She didn’t bother to open the door further to let the traitor in.

“Actually, I was looking for Max. Imagine my surprise when I saw everyone’s cars outside your house. Any reason you guys are having a meeting without me?” Tess glared over at Liz and lost her patience.

“Let me in! I know they’re here…” Tess tapped her foot, waiting impatiently for the stubborn girl to open the door.

“OK. If you say so.” Maria opened the door further to reveal a room full of people glaring angrily.

Tess briskly hurried into the house and faced the group. When Liz saw her brow start to scrunch up in concentration, she tapped Tess on the shoulder to get her attention. Tess turned and Liz knocked her out cold with a vicious right cross.

“Good job girlfriend! I’ve been waiting for you to do that ever since the hussy pranced into town!” Maria bounced with excitement.

Liz gave her a saucy grin and said, “Next time I’ll give you the honors…”

Amy called Ava out of the back bedroom and then rushed to the phone to check on Jim and Kyle. She got no answer over at their house and prayed that they were OK.

“So what do we do with her now?” Isabel nudged the prone Tess with her shoe.

“The translation mentioned that when you form a connection with a human, it could alter their brain so that they could access the regions responsible for manipulating matter. So if you can open a person’s mind enough to help them develop powers, can’t you somehow reverse that process too?” Liz, ever the scientist was trying to come up with a rational solution quickly.

“Can’t we just shut that part of her brain off?” Michael, surprisingly, was supporting Liz’s idea. As much as he hated Tess for what she’s done, he wasn’t ready to kill her in cold blood either.

“That means someone would have to connect to her though, right? Is that really a good idea?” Gloria Whitman was unsure of the risk involved in this tentative plan.

“It’ll have to be me.” Everyone turned a shocked gaze on Max. “I’m the healer here. If I can repair physical damage then I can probably also cause it. It has to be me.” Max looked anguished as he finished speaking.

Ava piped up from her seat back on the couch. “We should all do it. We should combine our powers and give it a try. If we cause any…permanent damage…it’ll be on all of our shoulders.” Ava finished with a timid look in her eyes. She was still struggling to find her place in the group. Tess hadn’t exactly paved a clear path for her in their hearts.

“Max, can you guys do this without killing her? How will you know which region of her brain to disable?” Philip liked the idea of declawing the dangerous girl but he was wary of the kids attempting something that could make them killers.

“Hey, why don’t you scan someone while they’re using their powers? See if you can isolate the region of the brain that’s active when it’s happening.” Liz was determined to diffuse the situation with as little destruction as possible.

“I know! Scan me while I boil some water or something and then scan one of the adults. If you can pin down a spot that’s really active when I’m using my powers but isn’t used by the parents, then you know you have the right spot!” Maria flashed the group a big toothy grin.

“That could work. Does everyone agree that we should give this a try?” Max asked. Off their affirmative nods he said, “We should do this quickly then before she wakes up.”

The parents were all open to the idea and much to the amazement of everyone, Nancy Parker volunteered to be the adult guinea pig. Liz’s eyes sparkled with pride.

Maria filled the bathtub with cold water and then the entire group tried to cram into the bathroom to catch a glimpse of her powers in action. She closed her eyes and strained to control the flow of energy so she didn’t completely vaporize all the water right off the bat. Max’s hands hovered over her head as the water started to churn and hiss. He jumped back with a gasp at the force of the energy he could feel her suppressing.

Max quickly laid his hands gently on Nancy Parker’s head. He asked her a few questions, hoping to be able to get a good reading of her brain while she was concentrating on something, and then nodded quietly to himself. He started walking back to the living room and the others followed.

“There’s an area of the prefrontal cortex that went wild when Maria was using her powers but had no activity whatsoever in Mrs. Parker. That has to be the spot.” Max looked around at the whole group before continuing.

“If anyone has any objections, say it now. I think I can disable that part of Tess’ brain without causing any major damage to her other functions.” The parents began to slowly nod, so the group got down to business.

Max, Michael, Isabel and Ava surrounded Tess. Max leaned down and placed his hands on her head while the others joined hands and touched his back to combine their powers. Suddenly Liz, Maria and Alex walked up and joined the other four standing above Tess. It was their way of sharing the responsibility for whatever was to happen.

Max’s hands glowed above Tess’ head and perspiration appeared on his brow. After a long, silent minute he sat back and studied her still form. It had been so much easier to access his healing power when he was joined with the others.

“I think it worked. We’ll have to wait until she wakes up to know for sure but I think she’ll be OK.”

“Alright…before Tess wakes up, I have to ask something. That little show in my bathroom…are all of you that strong? I mean, Maria nearly vaporized all that water in less than two minutes without even breaking a sweat!” Amy had never seen a direct demonstration of Maria’s new abilities and she was looking shell-shocked when she finally did.

“Umm…actually, she was straining to hold back some of the power so no one got hurt. I have to admit, I’m glad she’s on our side.” Max’s comment was met with a nervous chuckle from the group.

“It’s because she’s so open with her feelings. She doesn’t hold back like the rest of us do. She just lets loose whatever’s on her mind. I think that openness prevents her powers from being repressed too.” Isabel said.

“So you were trying to hold back in there Maria? What happens if you don’t hold back then?” Jeff Parker was quickly warming to the idea of the kids having access to defensive powers like hers.

Maria smiled sheepishly. “I’m not sure. I always hold back because I’m not that good at controlling my powers yet. I’ve never really tried to go full tilt so to speak.”

“And these are Michael’s powers too right? Have you ever tried pushing your powers to the limit, Michael?” Charles Whitman was in wonder that one body could contain such an awesome force.

Michael looked nervously down at his shoes. Alex could see his discomfort so he tried to bail the big alien out. “Michael had to spend his whole life repressing his both identity and his powers, so his don’t flow quite the same as Maria’s do, dad. It’s kind of hard to open up when your life has always depended on you doing the exact opposite.” Michael gave a silent nod while staring at the carpet.

Just then, there was a knock at the front door.

Amy opened the door to reveal a nervous Sheriff and Kyle. Jim looked around, shocked to see everyone in the Deluca living room. Kyle just stood there, rhythmically drumming his fingers on the doorframe, eyes darting wildly.

“Amy, I was looking for Max and I saw his car outside. Could I borrow him for just a moment?” In his mindwarped state, Jim didn’t recall that the other parents had been let in on the secret. He was desperately trying to be subtle.

“It’s OK Jim. Come on in. We sort of have a situation here that you need to be aware of anyway.” Amy gave Jim a kind smile and led he and Kyle into the living room.

Max walked up and handed Jim a copy of the real translation. “I need you to read this.” He said.

Ava looked at Kyle with concerned eyes from across the room. He was standing by his father’s side, wringing his hat in his hands, eyes wild with fear. With alarm, she looked to Maria and whispered, “She’s been warping Kyle for a long time I think. Look at him…he’s terrified.”

Jim finished reading the translation and sat down with a thump. “She mindwarped us didn’t she? God, how could we have forgotten everything so easily?! That must be what happened to Kyle then. He’s not OK, Max. He’s been muttering incoherently about ‘reality’ and ‘traitors’ since we left Michaels. I was hoping you could help him somehow…” Jim looked to Max with desperation in his eyes. He noticed Tess lying motionless on the floor behind the couch and looked around at the others, puzzled.

Ava walked up and studied Kyle closer. She was caught by surprise when a sudden feeling of protective fury came over her. Tess had hurt him and Ava was enraged. She looked to Max and said, “You have to heal his mind. I think she’s been warping him all along. You can’t mindwarp people that much…they’ll start to lose their grasp on reality…” Just then, Kyle looked over at her and gasped.

“It was you wasn’t it?! You did this to me! No wait …not you.” Kyle looked around at the group in terror. “There shouldn’t be two. Arrgh, I can’t even think! There was one and then there’s two and then there’s one and then there’s two…” Kyle backed himself into the corner, crouched down like a caged animal. He continued mumbling to himself incoherently as blood started trickling down from his nose.

Max rushed up and placed his hands on Kyle’s head. Kyle flinched. “Kyle, I’m not going to hurt you. It’s me, Max. Tess mindwarped you and you’re confused right now. I can help you.”

Kyle looked up to him with pleading eyes and a connection flared between the two. Max was bowled over with flash after flash of Tess warping and manipulating Kyle to help her win Max’s affections. It was a wonder no one had noticed there was anything going on before now. After nearly two minutes, Max leaned back panting in exhaustion.

After a tense moment Kyle looked up at Ava with an expression of shame. He said, “I’m sorry I yelled at you. I didn’t know…I couldn’t remember…” He trailed off, at a loss for words.

“I know Kyle. It’s OK…” Ava tentatively approached Kyle. “How do you feel?”

“Like I just played fetch with a pack of rabid dogs…and I was the stick.” Kyle deadpanned. “Seriously though, I scared you. I’m really sorry about that.”

“It’s fine Kyle. I wasn’t scared of you I was scared for you. She will never hurt you again…I promise you that.” Ava said, with an intense look in her eyes. Kyle was overwhelmed with a sudden urge to kiss her right there in front of everyone. He shook his head as if to clear it.

“Hmm…My own personal body guard? I’m a modern guy…I think I could deal with that.” Kyle said with a wink. Ava studied him with wide eyes and then broke out into a shy giggle. Only Kyle would think of flirting immediately after a near death experience. In all reality, he was just trying to use humor to calm his raging emotions…and if flirting would help him do that, then who better to direct it at than Ava?

The group spent the next few minutes talking about everything that had happened. Thankfully Kyle’s memories had survived pretty much intact after Max healed the damage to his brain. There had been a lot of damage, but Max thought he’d be OK.

Tess started to stir from her place on the floor. She opened her eyes and looked around at the great circle of people around her. She quickly got up and backed away from the others.

“What happened? What did you do to me?” Tess looked wildly from person to person.

“How are you feeling Tess? Notice anything missing?” Maria taunted her from her place in the circle. Tess glared at the defiant human in front of her.

Ava stepped protectively in front of Kyle and spoke directly to her double for the first time. “You’ve been a very bad girl, haven’t you Tess?” The malice in Ava's voice sent a collective shiver of fear throughout the others.

Tess’ eyes went wide when she realized Ava was in town. Her hackles immediately went up and she tried to create a mindwarp long enough to get her out of the house and over to Lonnie and Rath’s seedy little motel in Hondo.

“Oops! How rude of us…we forgot to mention that your powers wouldn’t work anymore.” Isabel put on her iciest grin.

Tess tried to create a blast and nothing happened. ‘This can’t be happening’ she thought. Having no powers would make her no better than any of the other humans on this miserable planet. This was not part of the plan at all. She turned and ran for the door.

Michael moved to stop her but Max said, “Let her go. She’s not welcome here anyways. Let her go to Lonnie and Rath.”

Tess’ eyes narrowed and she bolted out the door. ‘When Lonnie and Rath hear about this they’re going to hit the roof’, she thought.