Disclaimer: Roswell, and its characters do not belong to me. Melinda Metz, Jason Katims and 20th Century Fox have that particular pleasure. I’m simply borrowing them until the Season 2 DVD’s get released.
Chapter Seventy – Healing
Ava began to weep at what she saw in the Granolith. Jim Valenti stood before them, completely healed, while Zan lay unmoving at his feet.
“Step out, Jim Valenti,” said Drinian. “The Granolith’s work is not yet finished.
Jim stepped out of the Granolith and walked straight into the outstretched arms of his son.
“Jesus, Dad,” Kyle whispered, brokenly.
“I’d do it again,” said Jim.
“Please, all of you, you need to focus,” said Drinian.
“Everyone, back into position,” said Max, a new authority in his voice. “I was right when I said I couldn’t do it. I can’t, but we can. Zan reminded me, we’re stronger together than we are apart. The Granolith needs all of us to make this work. It’s not about me, and it’s not about any one of you, it’s us!”
Kyle quickly returned to his corner of the square, and the Granolith began to pulse with color again, only this time, the light ranged from deepest green at the base to a bright gold that came shooting out of the Granolith. The room filled with dazzling gold, and it enveloped the group as they stood around the Granolith.
“It’s not working!” Max shouted to the others. “Focus all your energy on Zan. He needs all of us to help him.”
The golden light grew brighter and brighter, until at last, it was almost a pure white. It subsided with a flash, revealing Zan’s body still lying in the Granolith, and the bodies of Max and the others lying on the floor, their outstretched arms reaching as if to embrace the Granolith, and the figure lying in side of it.
“Che’koth, what the hell is going on here?” demanded Jim. “What happened to my kids?”
Che’koth smiled at Jim’s reference to his kids. His wife had been wise to suggest Earth as a place of refuge for their children. They had so many people who loved them.
“Be calm, Jim Valenti,’ said Drinian. “Have faith. Max did. It was a lesson he finally learned, and now you must learn it to. Faith is what brought you back, and faith is what will save them.
As Drinian spoke, Max stirred first, struggling to pull herself up to his hands and knees. He pulled himself over to Liz, and pressed his ear to her chest. His shoulders sagged with relief when he heard her heart beating strongly in her chest.
Max looked around in dazed confusion and saw Michael and Kyle both pulling themselves to a sitting position. Max pulled himself up and struggled weakly towards the Granolith as Michael dragged himself over to check Alex and Isabel.
Max reached out and touched the base of the Granolith. As soon as he did, the Granolith immediately turned various shades of blue, ranging from a midnight blue at it’s base to the palest ice blue at it’s pinnacle. The light quickly faded, and Zan stood up inside the Granolith and stepped out and stood next to Max.
“What the hell happened,” Max said, his voice still weak.
“You got me,” said Zan, his voice just as weak as Max’s. “Last thing I remember was the two of us switching places. After that everything is a blur.”
Alex stood up slowly and helped Isabel to her feet, with Michael’s help. They walked slowly over to Kyle and Ava, while Michael moved back over to help a struggling Maria.
“I so do not feel good,” said Maria. “Actually, I feel like I just worked 3 double shifts in a row at the CrashDown. Anybody mind cluing me in on what just happened?”
“I think that’s everybody’s question,” said Max, lifting Liz to his feet with Zan’s help.
*****************************
“We can discuss this later,” said Drinian, “But right now, I believe the people are waiting to see their king.”
“Then you’d better go see them,” said Max. “I’m sure they’ll all be very happy to know that you’re alive.”
Liz looked at him to see if he was being bitter or sarcastic, but he seemed to be truly sincere.
“I’m not the king any longer, Max, you know that,” said Drinian. “I stepped down and succeeded the throne to you. I cannot retake the throne again. It is Antarian law.”
“I meant it every time I said I wasn’t anybody’s king,” said Max. “I’ve proven it more times than I can count. I understand that the Granolith chose me, but I’m not sure what to do about it. I can’t ask Liz to stay here, and I can’t imagine staying here without her.”
“Max, none of this has to be decided right now,” said Kitana. “All we are asking you to do, all of you to do,” she said, including the rest of the group in her glance, “Is to go out and let the people know that all is well.”
“But is it fair to them to have me, to have us, go out here when we don’t know if we’re staying?” asked Max.
“Max, I am pleased to see you thinking of the people,” said Drinian. “You are their king. Go to them, let them know you survived, and that those who died did not die in vain.”
Max turned to the others. “What do you think, guys?” he asked.
“Max, you need to do this,” said Liz. “Che’koth, I mean, Drinian is right. We don’t need to make any decisions now, but we do owe it to the people out there to let them know everything is okay.”
“She’s right,” said Michael. “Come on Maxwell, you’re not wearing the crown jewels or whatever, your just letting them know you’re alive.”
“Isabel, what about you, what do you think?” Max asked.
“I don’t know, I’m just as confused as you,” she said. “We’ve had a couple of huge shocks,” she added, looking at her parents. “I can’t even begin to take it all in. Let’s just take one step at a time, okay?”
“That was helpful,” said Max with a wry grin. “Ava, what about you?”
“I agree with Michael and Isabel. A lot has happened in the past few hours, you need time to take it all in, but you also owe it to those people out there to let them know you really are here,” said the petite blond.
“Zan, what about you?” asked Max.
“Why you askin me, man? You’re the king, remember?” asked Zan. “I’m good with whatever you decide.”
“No, we’re the king,” said Max. “I’m you, and you’re me. If we had both been together at when the Granolith activated, it would have chosen both of us. If I go out there, you’re going out there with me.”
“Okay,” said Zan, finally. “I got your back.”
“And I have yours,” said Max with a smile. “Come on everyone, let’s go greet our public.
Drinian looked on silently, pleased at the strength and maturity both Max and Zan had shown in what could have been an incredibly awkward situation. They still had so much to discuss, and so many things to explain, as well as so many decisions to make, but for right now, everything was going to be okay.
Tomorrows Yet to Come (CC ALL,YTEEN/MATURE) [COMPLETE]
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majiklmoon
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majiklmoon
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- Posts: 361
- Joined: Tue Nov 13, 2001 10:55 am
- Contact:
Chapter 71 added 10/18/04
Disclaimer: Roswell, and its characters do not belong to me. Melinda Metz, Jason Katims and 20th Century Fox have that particular pleasure. I’m simply borrowing them until the Season 2 DVD’s get released.
Chapter Seventy – One – The Royal Seal
“That wasn’t so difficult, was it?” asked Kitana after the others returned from the balcony.
“Only if hordes of adoring people are scary,” said Kyle.
“We need a plan,” said Liz. “It’s time to sit down and think about what comes next.”
“It’s also time for a lot of questions to be answered,” said Isabel. “Including why you never told us you were our father,” she added, looking at Drinian.
“You are right,” admitted Drinian. “We do have much to discuss.”
“Later,” interrupted Max, who had been, up until now, sitting quietly in a chair away from the others.
“Right now, we need to recall what is left of the Senate. Is there any way to contact the surviving members?”
“Yes, there is,” said Drinian, a smiling appearing on his face.
“And we need to recall the surviving cabinet members and advisors as well,” added Zan. How soon can this be done?”
“Word can be sent out immediately,” said Drinian, his smile growing wider still. It pleased him to see his sons making decisions regarding their world.
“How long will it take them to get here?” asked Michael, joining the conversation. “And what about the Royal Antarian Guard. Did any of my men, I mean the men survive?”
“Many did, and were imprisoned. “We freed as many as we could. Most of them formed the core of the resistance group,” explained Kitana.
“Hey, Space Boy, slow down,” said Maria. “What’s with the my men thing?”
“They are his men, Maria,” explained Drinian. “He’s finally accessing the memories of Rath, as are Zan and Max. They are calling upon the knowledge of their other lives to help them with the decisions they are making now.”
“Maria, relax,” said Michael, taking his wife into his arms. “I’m not planning on staying here. I made my choice; my life is with you, on Earth. But while I’m here, I’m going to do what it takes to help rebuild this world.”
“When did you get all noble?” Maria asked with a watery smile. Sometimes Michael could be so insightful, it was almost scary.
“How soon before we can get everyone assembled?” asked Max.
“Most could be here by tomorrow,” said Drinian. “Would that be acceptable to you?”
“Yes,” answered Max and Zan simultaneously.
“Fine,” continued Max. “Make arrangements for them to arrive, we’ll have to prepare quarters for them all, and after that, we sit and we talk.”
“So be it, Majesty,” said Drinian, bowing his head to hide a smile.
“Don’t call me that!” Max yelled, in mock anger, while the others echoed the sentiment right along with him.
********************************************
The very tired group finally sat down to a meal together late in the evening. They amazed the palace staff by working right along side them to remove the signs of battle, and prepare the palace for the senate and cabinet members. By unspoken agreement, nothing of importance was discussed over dinner, and instead, Jim filled them in on the happenings in Roswell since they had been gone.
When the meal ended, they left the great hall and traveled though the palace to the stand outside the sealed doorway to the throne room. Isabel proudly removed the barrier, and the group entered the throne room. Max and Kyle shared a private smile while they examined the seal that appeared on the throne. By unspoken agreement, they decided to keep the panic they shared when the seal appeared unmentioned.
“Max, please step forward,” commanded Drinian. “And take your rightful seat as the King of Antar.”
A reluctant Max stepped forward and sat on the throne. He looked out at his friends and gave an uncomfortable smile.
“What do you think?” he asked the room in general.
“It’s so you, girlfriend,” said Maria, breaking the tension that had begun to mount.
“I’d like to try something if you don’t mind, Max” said Drinian. “Please step down and remove the seal.”
“Remove the seal?” asked Max in confusion. “How do I, never mind, I know, access the memories,” he finished with a smile. He passed his hand over the seal and it disappeared from view. “I did this before,” he said. “When Kivar attacked the palace. Michael and I came in here first and removed the seal.”
“That’s right, my son, you did,” said Kitana. “You knew the dangers Kivar presented, and you took what measures you could to ensure that he could never rightfully take the throne. Only the King, or a descendant of the king could cause the seal to appear.”
“That’s why he wanted the Vilondra clone,” whispered Isabel. “He wanted a make her pregnant. That way, the child could take the throne, and he could control the child.”
”But it didn’t happen, Isabel,” said Alex, pulling her to him. “It didn’t happen.”
“Zan, please take the throne,” said Drinian.
“Why?” asked Zan, refusing to move.
“Let’s just call it an experiment,” said Drinian with a laugh.
Zan reluctantly moved forward and sat on the throne, and the seal appeared again. When it did, the others gasped in amazement.
“What does it mean?” asked Liz. Is Zan the king now?”
“I’m not done yet,” said Drinian. “Zan, remove the seal. When he does, Kyle I want you to take the throne.”
“Hey, I’m kingly in my own right,” said Kyle, “but I’m not the king, you know?” Never the less, when Zan removed the seal, Kyle stepped forward and sat on the throne, and the seal appeared again.
“Put it out, put it out!” he shouted, causing Max to laugh.
“Now who’s channeling whose inner panic, Kyle,” Max said.
“Shut up, Evans,” said Kyle. “I have a few things I could add to this conversation, and you wouldn’t like them very much.”
“This is me, shutting up,” said Max as Kyle stepped off the throne. Max quickly removed the seal, and Drinian motioned for Liz to sit down.
Liz gave Max a nervous smile, but did as she was asked, and the seal appeared. She jumped up quickly out of the throne and moved to Max’s side and took his hand.
“I don’t think I liked that very much,” she whispered. “What does it mean?”
“I guess we’ll find out eventually,” Max whispered back.
Together they watched as the rest of their friends sat upon the throne, and caused the seal to appear. When they had all finished, they looked at one another, while a thousand unspoken questions echoed in their heads.
“We are almost done,” said Drinian. “Max, if you would remove the seal please?”
Max stepped forward and removed the seal. After it was gone, Drinian sat upon the throne that had once been his own. Everyone waited expectantly, but the seal did not appear. Drinian stepped down and escorted Kitana to the throne. She perched delicately upon it, but again the seal did not appear. When she stepped down, Drinian motioned to Jim to step forward. He did so, reluctantly, afraid of what would happen. He sat gingerly on the throne and waited, but the seal did not reveal itself.
“What does it mean?” Liz asked again, this time louder. “Why is the seal appearing for all of us, but not for you?”
“I gave up the throne,” explained Drinian. “I can never reclaim it, nor do I want to.”
“Great,” said Alex. “We know why it didn’t turn on for you, or whatever it does, but why did it turn on for us?”
“It’s very simple, Alex,” said Drinian with a grin. “When I said the Granolith chose, I was correct. When I said it chose Max, I was wrong. The Granolith chose you all.”
Chapter Seventy – One – The Royal Seal
“That wasn’t so difficult, was it?” asked Kitana after the others returned from the balcony.
“Only if hordes of adoring people are scary,” said Kyle.
“We need a plan,” said Liz. “It’s time to sit down and think about what comes next.”
“It’s also time for a lot of questions to be answered,” said Isabel. “Including why you never told us you were our father,” she added, looking at Drinian.
“You are right,” admitted Drinian. “We do have much to discuss.”
“Later,” interrupted Max, who had been, up until now, sitting quietly in a chair away from the others.
“Right now, we need to recall what is left of the Senate. Is there any way to contact the surviving members?”
“Yes, there is,” said Drinian, a smiling appearing on his face.
“And we need to recall the surviving cabinet members and advisors as well,” added Zan. How soon can this be done?”
“Word can be sent out immediately,” said Drinian, his smile growing wider still. It pleased him to see his sons making decisions regarding their world.
“How long will it take them to get here?” asked Michael, joining the conversation. “And what about the Royal Antarian Guard. Did any of my men, I mean the men survive?”
“Many did, and were imprisoned. “We freed as many as we could. Most of them formed the core of the resistance group,” explained Kitana.
“Hey, Space Boy, slow down,” said Maria. “What’s with the my men thing?”
“They are his men, Maria,” explained Drinian. “He’s finally accessing the memories of Rath, as are Zan and Max. They are calling upon the knowledge of their other lives to help them with the decisions they are making now.”
“Maria, relax,” said Michael, taking his wife into his arms. “I’m not planning on staying here. I made my choice; my life is with you, on Earth. But while I’m here, I’m going to do what it takes to help rebuild this world.”
“When did you get all noble?” Maria asked with a watery smile. Sometimes Michael could be so insightful, it was almost scary.
“How soon before we can get everyone assembled?” asked Max.
“Most could be here by tomorrow,” said Drinian. “Would that be acceptable to you?”
“Yes,” answered Max and Zan simultaneously.
“Fine,” continued Max. “Make arrangements for them to arrive, we’ll have to prepare quarters for them all, and after that, we sit and we talk.”
“So be it, Majesty,” said Drinian, bowing his head to hide a smile.
“Don’t call me that!” Max yelled, in mock anger, while the others echoed the sentiment right along with him.
********************************************
The very tired group finally sat down to a meal together late in the evening. They amazed the palace staff by working right along side them to remove the signs of battle, and prepare the palace for the senate and cabinet members. By unspoken agreement, nothing of importance was discussed over dinner, and instead, Jim filled them in on the happenings in Roswell since they had been gone.
When the meal ended, they left the great hall and traveled though the palace to the stand outside the sealed doorway to the throne room. Isabel proudly removed the barrier, and the group entered the throne room. Max and Kyle shared a private smile while they examined the seal that appeared on the throne. By unspoken agreement, they decided to keep the panic they shared when the seal appeared unmentioned.
“Max, please step forward,” commanded Drinian. “And take your rightful seat as the King of Antar.”
A reluctant Max stepped forward and sat on the throne. He looked out at his friends and gave an uncomfortable smile.
“What do you think?” he asked the room in general.
“It’s so you, girlfriend,” said Maria, breaking the tension that had begun to mount.
“I’d like to try something if you don’t mind, Max” said Drinian. “Please step down and remove the seal.”
“Remove the seal?” asked Max in confusion. “How do I, never mind, I know, access the memories,” he finished with a smile. He passed his hand over the seal and it disappeared from view. “I did this before,” he said. “When Kivar attacked the palace. Michael and I came in here first and removed the seal.”
“That’s right, my son, you did,” said Kitana. “You knew the dangers Kivar presented, and you took what measures you could to ensure that he could never rightfully take the throne. Only the King, or a descendant of the king could cause the seal to appear.”
“That’s why he wanted the Vilondra clone,” whispered Isabel. “He wanted a make her pregnant. That way, the child could take the throne, and he could control the child.”
”But it didn’t happen, Isabel,” said Alex, pulling her to him. “It didn’t happen.”
“Zan, please take the throne,” said Drinian.
“Why?” asked Zan, refusing to move.
“Let’s just call it an experiment,” said Drinian with a laugh.
Zan reluctantly moved forward and sat on the throne, and the seal appeared again. When it did, the others gasped in amazement.
“What does it mean?” asked Liz. Is Zan the king now?”
“I’m not done yet,” said Drinian. “Zan, remove the seal. When he does, Kyle I want you to take the throne.”
“Hey, I’m kingly in my own right,” said Kyle, “but I’m not the king, you know?” Never the less, when Zan removed the seal, Kyle stepped forward and sat on the throne, and the seal appeared again.
“Put it out, put it out!” he shouted, causing Max to laugh.
“Now who’s channeling whose inner panic, Kyle,” Max said.
“Shut up, Evans,” said Kyle. “I have a few things I could add to this conversation, and you wouldn’t like them very much.”
“This is me, shutting up,” said Max as Kyle stepped off the throne. Max quickly removed the seal, and Drinian motioned for Liz to sit down.
Liz gave Max a nervous smile, but did as she was asked, and the seal appeared. She jumped up quickly out of the throne and moved to Max’s side and took his hand.
“I don’t think I liked that very much,” she whispered. “What does it mean?”
“I guess we’ll find out eventually,” Max whispered back.
Together they watched as the rest of their friends sat upon the throne, and caused the seal to appear. When they had all finished, they looked at one another, while a thousand unspoken questions echoed in their heads.
“We are almost done,” said Drinian. “Max, if you would remove the seal please?”
Max stepped forward and removed the seal. After it was gone, Drinian sat upon the throne that had once been his own. Everyone waited expectantly, but the seal did not appear. Drinian stepped down and escorted Kitana to the throne. She perched delicately upon it, but again the seal did not appear. When she stepped down, Drinian motioned to Jim to step forward. He did so, reluctantly, afraid of what would happen. He sat gingerly on the throne and waited, but the seal did not reveal itself.
“What does it mean?” Liz asked again, this time louder. “Why is the seal appearing for all of us, but not for you?”
“I gave up the throne,” explained Drinian. “I can never reclaim it, nor do I want to.”
“Great,” said Alex. “We know why it didn’t turn on for you, or whatever it does, but why did it turn on for us?”
“It’s very simple, Alex,” said Drinian with a grin. “When I said the Granolith chose, I was correct. When I said it chose Max, I was wrong. The Granolith chose you all.”
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majiklmoon
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chapter 72 added 10/20/94
I just wanted to say thanks to everyone for all the great feedback you've left me during this story. I am a total feedback junkie, and all of you have fed that particular addiction in a big way 
*********************************
Disclaimer: Roswell, and its characters do not belong to me. Melinda Metz, Jason Katims and 20th Century Fox have that particular pleasure. I’m simply borrowing them until the Season 2 DVD’s get released.
Chapter Seventy – Two – The Story Unfolds
A stunned silence filled the room; nobody knew what to say. Finally Jim broke the silence.
“Why don’t we go someplace a bit more comfortable and figure this out,” he said. “No offense against your throne room or whatever it is, but it isn’t really a welcoming kind of place.”
Drinian roared with laughter. “Jim Valenti, I do like you,” he said. “I haven’t quite forgiven you for knocking me out back on Earth, but even that worked out to our advantage.”
“Why don’t we return to the family quarters?” suggested Kitana. “It is far more comfortable, and we can relax and talk there.”
“Um, we may not want to go there,” Isabel said, quietly. “Kivar took them over as his own.”
“He is unable to erase the memories that already exist in that room, my daughter. We spent many happy times there together, and no power on Antar could remove those memories,” Kitana explained, reaching out to take Isabel’s hand in hers.
They traversed the hallways of the palace and found themselves standing outside the doors to Drinian and Kitana’s private rooms. Drinian pushed the door open and stepped inside. He surveyed the charred but still recognizable remains of Isabel’s clone on the floor, and quickly stepped back into the hallway and closed the door.
“Perhaps we need to find another room to talk in,” he said, placing himself between the group and the doors.
“What is it?” questioned Kitana. “What has happened?”
“There was some fighting in there,” said Drinian. “The room needs to be cleaned, that is all.”
“That isn’t all,” said Kyle, suddenly, “And Isabel needs to see it. She can handle it.”
“See what?” asked Isabel. “What do I need to see?”
Drinian reluctantly stepped away from the door, and allowed Isabel and Alex to step forward and open the door. Isabel’s hand hovered over the handle. She didn’t want to go in there, but she knew that if Kyle said she could handle it, she could handle it.
“Isabel, you don’t have to do this if you don’t want to,” said Alex.
“No,” she said, resolutely. “Kyle thinks I need to do it, so I’ll do it.”
She squared her shoulders and pushed the door open and walked into the room, Alex still by her side. She stopped and stared in horror at the charred remains of her duplicate on the floor.
“He killed her,” she whispered. “It’s my fault that she’s dead. She saved me, and he killed her.”
“I’m not really sure about that, daughter,” said Drinian. “I think she did it herself. If Kivar had done this, no part of her would have remained. I believe she fired an energy bolt into her own body. She was not completely consumed because when she died, the energy supply to the bolt would have been cut, of course.”
“She was far more noble than I could ever dream of being,” said Isabel, wiping a tear from her eye. “She saved me from that monster, and then, rather than be with him, she took her own life. I’d like to think she realized in the end that he was evil.” She turned to Drinian and Kitana. “Would it be possible to honor her in some way?”
“Why as me, daughter? You have been chosen to lead, as have the others. The decision is yours,” said Drinian.
“Then I say we do it,” Isabel said decisively. “But I also think you are right, Father,” she added, testing the word for the first time. “This is not the place for us to talk.”
“Come with me, children,” said Kitana.
“Wow, look at her,” Ava whispered to Maria. “She’s really slipped into mother mode.”
“I heard that,” Kitana said with a grin. “Behave, Ava, I am your aunt after all.”
Her words sent a shock waves rippling through Michael. He hadn’t made the connection yet. Che’koth said his sister was Michael and Ava’s mother. He smiled slightly when he felt Maria’s hand creep into his. She squeezed his hand and smiled up at him.
“Looks like the Christmas card list is getting bigger this year, Space Boy,” she whispered.
Michael laughed appreciatively, but deep inside, he was thrilled. He loved Maria, and there was no doubt she was his life, but finding out that Ava was his sister had filled an aching void in his life. And later, when he found out that Max and Isabel really were family, he felt that void fill even more. Adding an aunt and uncle to the mix really rounded things out for him.
Kitana opened a door, and led the group into what Liz took to be a drawing room, a very formal drawing room. She looked around at the elegant furniture, looked down at her own dirt smeared clothing and sighed. There was no way she could sit on any of the furniture looking like this.
Kitana passed her hand over a dark spot on the wall, and a panel slid back to reveal a door. She pushed the other door open and led the group into a room that resembled a family room back on Earth. The furniture was much simpler, and looked pretty beat up already. In fact, it looked suspiciously like a room where two small children could grow up and play, without fear of ruining something of value.
“I know this place,” said Max, looking around.
“I would hope so,” said Drinian. “You spent much of your childhood here, playing, and then, when you started your education, you would study here. And now, I think it is fitting that we have a kind of summit here to answer the questions that I am sure are echoing in your minds.”
“Why didn’t you ever tell us who you were?” demanded Max before anyone had a chance to sit down.
“You certainly aren’t wasting a lot of time, are you, Max?” said Drinian. “But, it is a fair question, and I will do my best to answer it. It is a long story though, and I suggest we all make ourselves comfortable before we begin.”
Drinian waited until everyone was seated, before he began his tale.
“When your pods were sent to Earth, along with the Granolith, it was with the intent that you would remain in stasis, and not emerge until you were adults. At the same time, the memories we implanted in you were supposed to develop and mature, as you did, so that when you left your pods, you would have a full working knowledge of life on Antar. However, you exited the pods early. Why, we do not know. It is possible that the pods were damaged when the ship carrying them crashed. But you emerged far sooner than anticipated and with no memories of your lives on Antar.”
Drinian paused, waiting to see if they had any questions for him, but the group sat, spellbound, waiting to hear what he would say next. Taking a deep breath, he continued his story.
“As I said, it was planned that when you emerged, you would know how to activate the Granolith, and find your way home, if you chose, to fight for your world.”
“What do you mean, if we chose?” Max asked.
“Max, the decision for you, for all of you, to come back here could only be made by the four of you, not by me. I was, am, your parent, not your master,” said Drinian. “In any event, you emerged as young children, and had, for the most part, wonderful lives.” He glanced at Michael, the sorrow in his eyes revealing the pain he felt at Michael’s upbringing.
“When the eight of you activated the Granolith, it was cause for celebration here on Antar, or so I thought. At first, I thought it was the four of you, but when I saw you there, all of you there, my heart was filled with both joy, and sadness.”
“Why?” asked Liz.
“I was overjoyed to see that my family was alive,” explained Drinian, “But when I saw how happy all of you were together, how you belonged together, I knew I couldn’t ask you to come home and fight this war.”
“You keep talking about how it was our choice to come back or not,” said Max. “But you never gave us the choice. By remaining silent, you made the decision for us,” accused Max.
“I want you to think for a moment, Max. I knew almost right away that Liz was with child. I also had some inkling of the terrible evil you were going to be fighting in Tess. Suppose I had told you everything, right then and there, would you have left Liz, your unborn child, and everyone you’d ever known to come back and fight this war?”
Max couldn’t say anything because he realized what his father said was true. He could never have left Liz. He thought about what his father said, and came up with another question.
“Fine, after everything was said and done, and we were here, willing to fight, why didn’t you tell us who you were?”
“And how fair would that have been?” asked Drinian. “I believe your Earth expression is laying a guilt trip on somebody? How could I do that to you?”
“He tried to tell you so many times,” Kyle said. “If you had just paid attention, you would have known.”
“Oh, and I suppose you knew?” Max asked, anger and frustration making his voice harsh.
“Yeah, I did know,” said Kyle. “I’ve known for a while now.”
“Right, and did Liz tell you, or did you tell Liz?” demanded Max, some of the repressed jealously he felt towards Kyle coming to the surface.
“Neither, you dumb jackass,” said Kyle. “The love Che’koth felt for you was easy to read. It just poured off of him. Besides, if you had just listened to him, you could have figured it out on your own. He kept urging you to access the first Zan’s memories, as well as he memories of the royals that came before you. If you had done that, you would have found that your father’s memories weren’t there. They couldn’t be, because he was still alive.”
“How did you know, Liz?” Isabel asked. Did Kyle tell you?”
“No,” said Liz, quietly. “I just listened to Che’koth talk. He treated you, well all of us, actually, exactly like our parents do. Plus it was pretty easy to see the love he felt shining in his eyes. I called him on it a while ago, I was going to ask him outright, but he reminded me of the position I was putting myself in if he did tell me. I would have been forced to either keep a secret from Max, or share something Che’koth didn’t want us to know. So I didn’t ask him.”
At this, Drinian laughed. “Instead, she asked me if the face I wore as Che’koth was my true appearance. I could truthfully tell her that it wasn’t, and then, she asked me to please reveal my true appearance to her. I did, but I never truly confirmed her suspicions. Your wife, my son, is a very clever woman indeed.”
“I have a question,” said Zan, who had, up to now, remained silent.
“Yes, Son, what is it?” asked Drinian.
“The Granolith, what the hell is it, and what happened when it showed up on top of the palace?”
*********************************
Disclaimer: Roswell, and its characters do not belong to me. Melinda Metz, Jason Katims and 20th Century Fox have that particular pleasure. I’m simply borrowing them until the Season 2 DVD’s get released.
Chapter Seventy – Two – The Story Unfolds
A stunned silence filled the room; nobody knew what to say. Finally Jim broke the silence.
“Why don’t we go someplace a bit more comfortable and figure this out,” he said. “No offense against your throne room or whatever it is, but it isn’t really a welcoming kind of place.”
Drinian roared with laughter. “Jim Valenti, I do like you,” he said. “I haven’t quite forgiven you for knocking me out back on Earth, but even that worked out to our advantage.”
“Why don’t we return to the family quarters?” suggested Kitana. “It is far more comfortable, and we can relax and talk there.”
“Um, we may not want to go there,” Isabel said, quietly. “Kivar took them over as his own.”
“He is unable to erase the memories that already exist in that room, my daughter. We spent many happy times there together, and no power on Antar could remove those memories,” Kitana explained, reaching out to take Isabel’s hand in hers.
They traversed the hallways of the palace and found themselves standing outside the doors to Drinian and Kitana’s private rooms. Drinian pushed the door open and stepped inside. He surveyed the charred but still recognizable remains of Isabel’s clone on the floor, and quickly stepped back into the hallway and closed the door.
“Perhaps we need to find another room to talk in,” he said, placing himself between the group and the doors.
“What is it?” questioned Kitana. “What has happened?”
“There was some fighting in there,” said Drinian. “The room needs to be cleaned, that is all.”
“That isn’t all,” said Kyle, suddenly, “And Isabel needs to see it. She can handle it.”
“See what?” asked Isabel. “What do I need to see?”
Drinian reluctantly stepped away from the door, and allowed Isabel and Alex to step forward and open the door. Isabel’s hand hovered over the handle. She didn’t want to go in there, but she knew that if Kyle said she could handle it, she could handle it.
“Isabel, you don’t have to do this if you don’t want to,” said Alex.
“No,” she said, resolutely. “Kyle thinks I need to do it, so I’ll do it.”
She squared her shoulders and pushed the door open and walked into the room, Alex still by her side. She stopped and stared in horror at the charred remains of her duplicate on the floor.
“He killed her,” she whispered. “It’s my fault that she’s dead. She saved me, and he killed her.”
“I’m not really sure about that, daughter,” said Drinian. “I think she did it herself. If Kivar had done this, no part of her would have remained. I believe she fired an energy bolt into her own body. She was not completely consumed because when she died, the energy supply to the bolt would have been cut, of course.”
“She was far more noble than I could ever dream of being,” said Isabel, wiping a tear from her eye. “She saved me from that monster, and then, rather than be with him, she took her own life. I’d like to think she realized in the end that he was evil.” She turned to Drinian and Kitana. “Would it be possible to honor her in some way?”
“Why as me, daughter? You have been chosen to lead, as have the others. The decision is yours,” said Drinian.
“Then I say we do it,” Isabel said decisively. “But I also think you are right, Father,” she added, testing the word for the first time. “This is not the place for us to talk.”
“Come with me, children,” said Kitana.
“Wow, look at her,” Ava whispered to Maria. “She’s really slipped into mother mode.”
“I heard that,” Kitana said with a grin. “Behave, Ava, I am your aunt after all.”
Her words sent a shock waves rippling through Michael. He hadn’t made the connection yet. Che’koth said his sister was Michael and Ava’s mother. He smiled slightly when he felt Maria’s hand creep into his. She squeezed his hand and smiled up at him.
“Looks like the Christmas card list is getting bigger this year, Space Boy,” she whispered.
Michael laughed appreciatively, but deep inside, he was thrilled. He loved Maria, and there was no doubt she was his life, but finding out that Ava was his sister had filled an aching void in his life. And later, when he found out that Max and Isabel really were family, he felt that void fill even more. Adding an aunt and uncle to the mix really rounded things out for him.
Kitana opened a door, and led the group into what Liz took to be a drawing room, a very formal drawing room. She looked around at the elegant furniture, looked down at her own dirt smeared clothing and sighed. There was no way she could sit on any of the furniture looking like this.
Kitana passed her hand over a dark spot on the wall, and a panel slid back to reveal a door. She pushed the other door open and led the group into a room that resembled a family room back on Earth. The furniture was much simpler, and looked pretty beat up already. In fact, it looked suspiciously like a room where two small children could grow up and play, without fear of ruining something of value.
“I know this place,” said Max, looking around.
“I would hope so,” said Drinian. “You spent much of your childhood here, playing, and then, when you started your education, you would study here. And now, I think it is fitting that we have a kind of summit here to answer the questions that I am sure are echoing in your minds.”
“Why didn’t you ever tell us who you were?” demanded Max before anyone had a chance to sit down.
“You certainly aren’t wasting a lot of time, are you, Max?” said Drinian. “But, it is a fair question, and I will do my best to answer it. It is a long story though, and I suggest we all make ourselves comfortable before we begin.”
Drinian waited until everyone was seated, before he began his tale.
“When your pods were sent to Earth, along with the Granolith, it was with the intent that you would remain in stasis, and not emerge until you were adults. At the same time, the memories we implanted in you were supposed to develop and mature, as you did, so that when you left your pods, you would have a full working knowledge of life on Antar. However, you exited the pods early. Why, we do not know. It is possible that the pods were damaged when the ship carrying them crashed. But you emerged far sooner than anticipated and with no memories of your lives on Antar.”
Drinian paused, waiting to see if they had any questions for him, but the group sat, spellbound, waiting to hear what he would say next. Taking a deep breath, he continued his story.
“As I said, it was planned that when you emerged, you would know how to activate the Granolith, and find your way home, if you chose, to fight for your world.”
“What do you mean, if we chose?” Max asked.
“Max, the decision for you, for all of you, to come back here could only be made by the four of you, not by me. I was, am, your parent, not your master,” said Drinian. “In any event, you emerged as young children, and had, for the most part, wonderful lives.” He glanced at Michael, the sorrow in his eyes revealing the pain he felt at Michael’s upbringing.
“When the eight of you activated the Granolith, it was cause for celebration here on Antar, or so I thought. At first, I thought it was the four of you, but when I saw you there, all of you there, my heart was filled with both joy, and sadness.”
“Why?” asked Liz.
“I was overjoyed to see that my family was alive,” explained Drinian, “But when I saw how happy all of you were together, how you belonged together, I knew I couldn’t ask you to come home and fight this war.”
“You keep talking about how it was our choice to come back or not,” said Max. “But you never gave us the choice. By remaining silent, you made the decision for us,” accused Max.
“I want you to think for a moment, Max. I knew almost right away that Liz was with child. I also had some inkling of the terrible evil you were going to be fighting in Tess. Suppose I had told you everything, right then and there, would you have left Liz, your unborn child, and everyone you’d ever known to come back and fight this war?”
Max couldn’t say anything because he realized what his father said was true. He could never have left Liz. He thought about what his father said, and came up with another question.
“Fine, after everything was said and done, and we were here, willing to fight, why didn’t you tell us who you were?”
“And how fair would that have been?” asked Drinian. “I believe your Earth expression is laying a guilt trip on somebody? How could I do that to you?”
“He tried to tell you so many times,” Kyle said. “If you had just paid attention, you would have known.”
“Oh, and I suppose you knew?” Max asked, anger and frustration making his voice harsh.
“Yeah, I did know,” said Kyle. “I’ve known for a while now.”
“Right, and did Liz tell you, or did you tell Liz?” demanded Max, some of the repressed jealously he felt towards Kyle coming to the surface.
“Neither, you dumb jackass,” said Kyle. “The love Che’koth felt for you was easy to read. It just poured off of him. Besides, if you had just listened to him, you could have figured it out on your own. He kept urging you to access the first Zan’s memories, as well as he memories of the royals that came before you. If you had done that, you would have found that your father’s memories weren’t there. They couldn’t be, because he was still alive.”
“How did you know, Liz?” Isabel asked. Did Kyle tell you?”
“No,” said Liz, quietly. “I just listened to Che’koth talk. He treated you, well all of us, actually, exactly like our parents do. Plus it was pretty easy to see the love he felt shining in his eyes. I called him on it a while ago, I was going to ask him outright, but he reminded me of the position I was putting myself in if he did tell me. I would have been forced to either keep a secret from Max, or share something Che’koth didn’t want us to know. So I didn’t ask him.”
At this, Drinian laughed. “Instead, she asked me if the face I wore as Che’koth was my true appearance. I could truthfully tell her that it wasn’t, and then, she asked me to please reveal my true appearance to her. I did, but I never truly confirmed her suspicions. Your wife, my son, is a very clever woman indeed.”
“I have a question,” said Zan, who had, up to now, remained silent.
“Yes, Son, what is it?” asked Drinian.
“The Granolith, what the hell is it, and what happened when it showed up on top of the palace?”
-
majiklmoon
- Addicted Roswellian
- Posts: 361
- Joined: Tue Nov 13, 2001 10:55 am
- Contact:
chapter 73 added 10/21/04
Disclaimer: Roswell, and its characters do not belong to me. Melinda Metz, Jason Katims and 20th Century Fox have that particular pleasure. I’m simply borrowing them until the Season 2 DVD’s get released.
Chapter Seventy – Three Confession is Good for the Soul
Max stood up and walked across the room and stepped out onto a small balcony that overlooked a private courtyard. He leaned against the railing and watched the two moons come up over the mountains in tandem, filling the courtyard below with a shimmering light.
Max felt so conflicted, he didn’t know what to do. He knew he sounded like a pompous arrogant ass every time he opened his mouth lately, but he couldn’t help it. He was so confused. He wanted nothing more than to sit down and talk to his father. Not Che’koth, or Drinian, or whatever the hell his name was, but his father. The man who taught him how to hit a ball, and drive a car. The one who rescued him and Isabel from the desert that dark night so long ago.
“Mind if I join you?” the Sheriff asked, standing in the doorway.
“What, oh, no, Jim,” said Max, coming out of his reverie. “How are you feeling?”
“A hell of a lot better than I’ve felt in a long time, I’ll tell you that,” said Jim.
“Guess we took care of all those other aches and pains when we healed you, huh?” Max asked with a grin.
“Well, yeah, you did,” admitted Jim. “But that wasn’t what I was talking about. I was talking about how I felt in here,” he said, pointing to his heart. “I am so relieved Max, because for the first time since I found out about all of you, I know you’re safe. You aren’t in danger anymore. Not from Tess, or Kivar, or any alien race of super soldiers. The nine of you can finally start living.”
“Yeah, that is something bordering on the side of incredible, isn’t it?” said Max.
“And yet, I’m getting a feeling that you’re still pretty unhappy, Max. Why is that?”
“I don’t know,” said Max. “You’d think I’d be on top of the world, instead, I’m acting like a world class jackass. For Christ’s sake Jim, I’m a king, a freaking king! How many kids grow up pretending they’re a king, and here I am, King Max.”
“It’s a pretty big responsibility, isn’t it?” asked Jim. “But I’ll tell you one thing, Max, if you chose to shoulder it, you’ll do fine. I’ve never seen you fail at anything you’ve tried to do. And I’m going to be honest with you, son, I don’t think that’s what’s bothering you. Now do you want to talk about it, or are we going to sit here and look at the moons all night?”
“God, Jim, I don’t know. I really don’t,” said Max, his expression conveying the anguish he was unable to verbalize. “You know what I was sitting here thinking about a few minutes ago? How much I wish I could talk things over with my dad. You know, get his take on everything.”
Jim smiled to himself, at last Max was getting to the route of the problem.
“Well, you can,” he said. “He’s sitting in there right now with the others talking.”
“He’s not my dad!” Max shouted, unaware of the tears streaming down his face. “He’s not. My father is Philip Evans. He’s done everything for me, and that man in there, what has he done?”
“He gave you life, not once, but twice,” said Jim, calmly, pulling Max into his arms. “And he sent you far away so that you and the others would have the chance to live. You’re right Max, Philip is your father, and nothing will ever take that away from you. You don’t have to choose, you have room in your heart, and in your life to love them both.”
Jim listened quietly while Max poured out his conflicted emotions about having two fathers, purging himself of all the doubt he was feeling. When Max calmed down, he pulled away, embarrassed at his outburst.
“I’m sorry,” he stammered. “I acted like an ass.”
“No, now you’re acting like an ass,” said Jim. “Before you were acting like someone who has been through a lot, and has a lot to deal with. I want to ask you a question, Max.”
Max stared at Jim, puzzled by the unexpected turn in the conversation, but listened quietly.
“Do you love Liz?” the Sheriff asked.
“Well, yeah, of course I do,” said Max. “What’s that got to do with anything?”
“Do you love Isabel any less than you love Liz?”
“Well, no, but that’s different,” said Max.
“Okay, what about Michael, you love Michael, right?” asked Jim, pressing the issue.
“You know I do,” snapped Max, getting angry.
“And Kyle and Alex? What about them?”
“They’re my best friends,” said Max. “I’d die for them.”
“And me, Max, what about me, Max? I’d like to think that you love me, because God knows I love each and every one of you kids and I think of you as my own,” said Jim, emotion thickening his voice.
“Jesus, Jim, if it wasn’t for you, I’d probably still be stuck in the white room. You saved my life. I- I don’t know what I, what any of us would have done with out you,” Max said, softly.
“Then let me ask you one more question Max. Knowing how you feel about me, does it diminish, even one little bit, the love you have for your parents?”
“No, it doesn’t,” Max admitted. “I guess I’ve been a complete jackass, haven’t I?”
“No, what you are is a confused young man who has gone through more in the past few years than anybody in our world will ever go through,” said Jim. “Well, if you excuse me,” Jim continued, “I’m going to head inside. It’s getting pretty chilly out here.”
He walked to the doorway and stood in it for a second, looking at the moons rising higher over the mountains. “Think about it, Max.”
******************************************
“Is he okay?” Drinian asked Jim when he returned to the small gathering.
“He will be, but it’s going to take some time,” said Jim. “But Max is a smart boy, Che’koth, he’ll come around.”
“He came around already,” said Max, walking up to the two men. “Thank you,” he said to Jim. Jim merely nodded and slipped away to go join the others across the room.
“And thank you,” Max said to Drinian.
“What do you thank me for?” asked Drinian.
“As a wise man explained it to me,” said Max, smiling at Jim Valenti. “You gave me life, not once, but twice. Thank you for that, and thank you for letting us go, and giving us the chance to have a normal existence. It couldn’t have been easy for you to make that choice. But you did it. Everything you did, you did for us, and I’ve been a perfect bastard about the whole thing.”
Drinian stepped closer to Max and pulled his son into an enveloping bear hug. “You are so welcome my son,” said Drinian. “I hope you never have to feel the same kind of pain and agony I felt at making that decision.”
“I don’t know if I could be as selfless as you were,” said Max. “I’ve proven more than once what a selfish bastard I can be.”
“You are young,” said Drinian. “In most instances, selfishness is part of the package. Selflessness tends to develop as you mature.”
“When you’re ready,” said Max. “I’d like to hear the rest of your story. Father,” he added, this time saying the name with love and respect.
Chapter Seventy – Three Confession is Good for the Soul
Max stood up and walked across the room and stepped out onto a small balcony that overlooked a private courtyard. He leaned against the railing and watched the two moons come up over the mountains in tandem, filling the courtyard below with a shimmering light.
Max felt so conflicted, he didn’t know what to do. He knew he sounded like a pompous arrogant ass every time he opened his mouth lately, but he couldn’t help it. He was so confused. He wanted nothing more than to sit down and talk to his father. Not Che’koth, or Drinian, or whatever the hell his name was, but his father. The man who taught him how to hit a ball, and drive a car. The one who rescued him and Isabel from the desert that dark night so long ago.
“Mind if I join you?” the Sheriff asked, standing in the doorway.
“What, oh, no, Jim,” said Max, coming out of his reverie. “How are you feeling?”
“A hell of a lot better than I’ve felt in a long time, I’ll tell you that,” said Jim.
“Guess we took care of all those other aches and pains when we healed you, huh?” Max asked with a grin.
“Well, yeah, you did,” admitted Jim. “But that wasn’t what I was talking about. I was talking about how I felt in here,” he said, pointing to his heart. “I am so relieved Max, because for the first time since I found out about all of you, I know you’re safe. You aren’t in danger anymore. Not from Tess, or Kivar, or any alien race of super soldiers. The nine of you can finally start living.”
“Yeah, that is something bordering on the side of incredible, isn’t it?” said Max.
“And yet, I’m getting a feeling that you’re still pretty unhappy, Max. Why is that?”
“I don’t know,” said Max. “You’d think I’d be on top of the world, instead, I’m acting like a world class jackass. For Christ’s sake Jim, I’m a king, a freaking king! How many kids grow up pretending they’re a king, and here I am, King Max.”
“It’s a pretty big responsibility, isn’t it?” asked Jim. “But I’ll tell you one thing, Max, if you chose to shoulder it, you’ll do fine. I’ve never seen you fail at anything you’ve tried to do. And I’m going to be honest with you, son, I don’t think that’s what’s bothering you. Now do you want to talk about it, or are we going to sit here and look at the moons all night?”
“God, Jim, I don’t know. I really don’t,” said Max, his expression conveying the anguish he was unable to verbalize. “You know what I was sitting here thinking about a few minutes ago? How much I wish I could talk things over with my dad. You know, get his take on everything.”
Jim smiled to himself, at last Max was getting to the route of the problem.
“Well, you can,” he said. “He’s sitting in there right now with the others talking.”
“He’s not my dad!” Max shouted, unaware of the tears streaming down his face. “He’s not. My father is Philip Evans. He’s done everything for me, and that man in there, what has he done?”
“He gave you life, not once, but twice,” said Jim, calmly, pulling Max into his arms. “And he sent you far away so that you and the others would have the chance to live. You’re right Max, Philip is your father, and nothing will ever take that away from you. You don’t have to choose, you have room in your heart, and in your life to love them both.”
Jim listened quietly while Max poured out his conflicted emotions about having two fathers, purging himself of all the doubt he was feeling. When Max calmed down, he pulled away, embarrassed at his outburst.
“I’m sorry,” he stammered. “I acted like an ass.”
“No, now you’re acting like an ass,” said Jim. “Before you were acting like someone who has been through a lot, and has a lot to deal with. I want to ask you a question, Max.”
Max stared at Jim, puzzled by the unexpected turn in the conversation, but listened quietly.
“Do you love Liz?” the Sheriff asked.
“Well, yeah, of course I do,” said Max. “What’s that got to do with anything?”
“Do you love Isabel any less than you love Liz?”
“Well, no, but that’s different,” said Max.
“Okay, what about Michael, you love Michael, right?” asked Jim, pressing the issue.
“You know I do,” snapped Max, getting angry.
“And Kyle and Alex? What about them?”
“They’re my best friends,” said Max. “I’d die for them.”
“And me, Max, what about me, Max? I’d like to think that you love me, because God knows I love each and every one of you kids and I think of you as my own,” said Jim, emotion thickening his voice.
“Jesus, Jim, if it wasn’t for you, I’d probably still be stuck in the white room. You saved my life. I- I don’t know what I, what any of us would have done with out you,” Max said, softly.
“Then let me ask you one more question Max. Knowing how you feel about me, does it diminish, even one little bit, the love you have for your parents?”
“No, it doesn’t,” Max admitted. “I guess I’ve been a complete jackass, haven’t I?”
“No, what you are is a confused young man who has gone through more in the past few years than anybody in our world will ever go through,” said Jim. “Well, if you excuse me,” Jim continued, “I’m going to head inside. It’s getting pretty chilly out here.”
He walked to the doorway and stood in it for a second, looking at the moons rising higher over the mountains. “Think about it, Max.”
******************************************
“Is he okay?” Drinian asked Jim when he returned to the small gathering.
“He will be, but it’s going to take some time,” said Jim. “But Max is a smart boy, Che’koth, he’ll come around.”
“He came around already,” said Max, walking up to the two men. “Thank you,” he said to Jim. Jim merely nodded and slipped away to go join the others across the room.
“And thank you,” Max said to Drinian.
“What do you thank me for?” asked Drinian.
“As a wise man explained it to me,” said Max, smiling at Jim Valenti. “You gave me life, not once, but twice. Thank you for that, and thank you for letting us go, and giving us the chance to have a normal existence. It couldn’t have been easy for you to make that choice. But you did it. Everything you did, you did for us, and I’ve been a perfect bastard about the whole thing.”
Drinian stepped closer to Max and pulled his son into an enveloping bear hug. “You are so welcome my son,” said Drinian. “I hope you never have to feel the same kind of pain and agony I felt at making that decision.”
“I don’t know if I could be as selfless as you were,” said Max. “I’ve proven more than once what a selfish bastard I can be.”
“You are young,” said Drinian. “In most instances, selfishness is part of the package. Selflessness tends to develop as you mature.”
“When you’re ready,” said Max. “I’d like to hear the rest of your story. Father,” he added, this time saying the name with love and respect.
-
majiklmoon
- Addicted Roswellian
- Posts: 361
- Joined: Tue Nov 13, 2001 10:55 am
- Contact:
chapter 74 added 10/23/04
Disclaimer: Roswell, and its characters do not belong to me. Melinda Metz, Jason Katims and 20th Century Fox have that particular pleasure. I’m simply borrowing them until the Season 2 DVD’s get released.
Chapter Seventy – Four – A Father’s Story
“Are you ready now to hear the rest of the story?” Drinian asked.
“Well, actually, I’m kind of hungry,” said Kyle. “Do you think we can get something to eat before we begin.”
“Kyle,” Kitana said kindly. “This is a palace, and you are one of the chosen rulers. You can have anything you’d like.”
“Hey, you, wench,” said Kyle, pointing at Ava. “Fetch me a Ho Ho. Ow, ow! Hey, cut it out!” Kyle shouted while everyone else laughed. Ava, in retaliation for Kyle’s little outburst had used her powers to set the pillow he sat upon on fire.
“Actually, you will find that all of your belongings, including those you had stored in the tunnel room have been brought over to the palace,” said Drinian. “So finding you some food that you will enjoy won’t be very difficult. We will arrange for somebody to bring in some,” he paused, searching for the right words.
“Junk food,” offered Alex.
“Exactly,” smiled Drinian. “Thank you Alex.”
“Okay, now that we have the food issues taken care of,” said Kyle. “I’m good.”
“Before I can tell you what you want to know, I want to share something with you, all. I made a very big mistake, and because of it, our world suffered a great loss. It was because of me that Kivar was able to take control.”
“No, Drinian, it wasn’t,” said Kitana, placing her hand on her husband’s arm. “Kivar was an evil, villainous man, and he would have found a way, no matter what.”
“No matter,” said Drinian, addressing his wife. “They need to know my role in everything so that they don’t blame themselves.”
He took deep breath, steeling himself to share the unhappy memories that led to the fall of Antar. Seeing the pain and sadness in his eyes, Liz moved forward, and knelt down next to his chair. She didn’t say anything. There wasn’t anything she could say, but she wanted to be there to support him, the way he supported and comforted her when she lost her child.
Drinian looked down at Liz, and saw the love and support reflected in her eyes, and he smiled. Reaching down, he took her hand in his and squeezed it gently, drawing strength and comfort from her.
“I turned my back on a very important part of our culture while I was Antar’s leader,” he said. “And I made the mistake of passing my beliefs on to my son, and this played a large part in allowing Kivar to take control of Antar.”
“Why, what was it?” asked Zan, clearly confused.
“The Granolith,” answered Maria and Ava. Both girls smiled at each other, the animosity they once felt towards each other was long gone.
“Exactly,” said Drinian. “It was the Granolith. “But how did you know?”
“We saw it appear on top of the palace,” said Ava. “And you could just see this change come over the faces of the people. It was like they all had blindfolds taken off or something.”
“Exactly,” said Drinian. “You both are very observant. That trait will serve you well in your lives.”
“See that, Space Boy,” Maria said, nudging Michael in the side. “You should pay more attention to me.”
“I always do, Maria,” said Michael, rolling his eyes skyward. “I always do.”
“So, you were saying, Father,” said Max. “About the Granolith?”
“Yes,” said Drinian, suppressing the smile of satisfaction he felt at Max’s words. “The Granolith. It is a very important part of our culture, and one I chose to, while I did not ignore it, I didn’t respect it either. The Granolith is a religious icon of sorts. We have a central deity that we worship, and it is common belief in our world that the Granolith was given to us by our deity.”
“That doesn’t explain what Ava said she and Maria saw happen when it reappeared,” said Isabel.
“I’m not explaining this well,” said Drinian. “I will ask you to just bear with me while I try to explain this. The actual physical structure of the Granolith is rumored to have just appeared thousands of years ago. Our people assumed it was a gift from our deity. Technology is also a very important facet of our lives, and someone at one time, managed to harness the energy of the Granolith.”
“But what does it do, exactly?” asked Liz and Alex simultaneously.
“You two are ever the scientists, aren’t you?” laughed Drinian. “We are unaware of many of the gifts of the Granolith, but one thing it does do is impede the ability to mind warp.”
“And was that the giant flash I saw when the Granolith appeared, Father?” asked Zan.
Again, Drinian smothered a smile at hearing his sons call him Father. “That is it exactly, Zan,” he said. “When the Granolith returned to it’s proper home, the force field reactivated itself and broke the mind warp Kivar and his people had created. I was foolish; I didn’t respect the power the Granolith had. There are so many things that it is capable of doing, and I, in my arrogance thought that we didn’t need it.”
“You mean like the way it married us or whatever you want to call it, back on Earth,” said Alex. “I get it, but I don’t get how it did it.”
“I don’t either, or I would explain it to you,” said Drinian. “The collective consciousness that you absorbed, is stored, in part, in the Granolith. It isn’t something we did, it just happened when a person died. I believe when it was sent to Earth, it absorbed the collective consciousness of Earth as well, and that is how it knew that the eight of you were destined to be together. Each one of you compliments the other. You are like two sides of one coin, and the Granolith sensed that, and joined you.”
“So, it’s alive, then?” asked Isabel.
“Yes, and no,” said Drinian. “Is it a living, breathing entity, no, it is not, but it does seem to grow in sense of it’s abilities. It is very confusing, indeed.”
“Fine, it’s confusing,” said Maria. “Everything about you people is, so that’s no surprise, but I’m still not getting how your not believing in the Granolith led to all of this.”
“Many of our people learned how to block the power of the mind warp without the aid of the Granolith,” said Drinian. “I believe you told me one time that Michael had this ability.” He looked over at Michael who nodded. “You’re mother did as well,” Drinian continued. “She was instrumental in teaching many people this skill. But because so many people could do it, I did not believe the Granolith was a necessity. I did not guard it as it should be guarded. Each successive king of Antar is entrusted with the guardianship of the Granolith. I was derelict in my duties, and allowed it to be taken. That was how Kivar was able to create his intricate mind warp that enslaved our world.”
“But what exactly happened?” asked Max. “You didn’t just leave it unguarded, did you?”
“No, even I, in my arrogance would never have done that, but I wasn’t careful about the guards that I did chose, and worse, I allowed my attitude regarding the Granolith to rub off on you. You saw how I reacted to the Granolith, and you adopted my attitude for your own.”
Max’s expression darkened at his father’s words. He felt the weight of failure pressing down on him. He opened his mouth to answer his father, but Drinian was quicker.
“No, Max, it wasn’t your fault, and it wasn’t Zan’s fault,” he added, looking at his other son’s hangdog expression. “You learned at my knee not to believe in the Granolith. The fault is mine, and no others.”
“But since the Granolith was on Earth, you must have been able to gain control of it again,” said Liz.
“No, I was not,” said Drinian. “When Zan fell in battle, I made my way to the Granolith to see if it would choose me as King again. I knew our people needed a leader, but it would not choose me. I knew then what I had to do. I made arrangements to have it sent to Earth to watch over you. Had the incubation pods worked as intended, you would have known exactly what to do. Luckily, you were smart enough to decode the books and activate it yourselves.”
“Then how did the Granolith get to Earth with us?” asked Zan. “Or with them, I should say?”
“Zan, we had no idea how far Kivar’s duplicity stretched,” said Drinian. “You know of course how his people mixed up the pods. We knew from previous experiments that one set would prove to be more viable, and well, adapt better to the duplication process. You saw for yourself how evil Lonnie and Rath were, as was Tess. Statistically, one half of the embryos were going to develop poorly, or with defects. You, my son, beat the odds, and survived and developed with out the defects.” Drinian paused and took a drink from the cup Kitana passed him. He set the cup on the floor beside him, and continued his story.
“As I said, statistically, four of the eight embryos were supposed to develop with defects. We did our best to choose which had the best chance of developing normally. However, Kivar’s people switched the embryos before we had a chance to send them to Earth. Our people did the best they could to try and figure out which was which, but remember, there was a civil war going on at the time. In the end, the decision was made, and the Granolith went to New Mexico.”
“For the most part, your people chose well,” said Kyle. “I mean, Ava got stuck in New York, and we got Tess the beast, but honestly, I don’t think they ever figured two of the Zan pods would develop normally. What I want to know is what happened to their protectors? I mean, Nescado, not much in the way of a father figure, you know?”
Chapter Seventy – Four – A Father’s Story
“Are you ready now to hear the rest of the story?” Drinian asked.
“Well, actually, I’m kind of hungry,” said Kyle. “Do you think we can get something to eat before we begin.”
“Kyle,” Kitana said kindly. “This is a palace, and you are one of the chosen rulers. You can have anything you’d like.”
“Hey, you, wench,” said Kyle, pointing at Ava. “Fetch me a Ho Ho. Ow, ow! Hey, cut it out!” Kyle shouted while everyone else laughed. Ava, in retaliation for Kyle’s little outburst had used her powers to set the pillow he sat upon on fire.
“Actually, you will find that all of your belongings, including those you had stored in the tunnel room have been brought over to the palace,” said Drinian. “So finding you some food that you will enjoy won’t be very difficult. We will arrange for somebody to bring in some,” he paused, searching for the right words.
“Junk food,” offered Alex.
“Exactly,” smiled Drinian. “Thank you Alex.”
“Okay, now that we have the food issues taken care of,” said Kyle. “I’m good.”
“Before I can tell you what you want to know, I want to share something with you, all. I made a very big mistake, and because of it, our world suffered a great loss. It was because of me that Kivar was able to take control.”
“No, Drinian, it wasn’t,” said Kitana, placing her hand on her husband’s arm. “Kivar was an evil, villainous man, and he would have found a way, no matter what.”
“No matter,” said Drinian, addressing his wife. “They need to know my role in everything so that they don’t blame themselves.”
He took deep breath, steeling himself to share the unhappy memories that led to the fall of Antar. Seeing the pain and sadness in his eyes, Liz moved forward, and knelt down next to his chair. She didn’t say anything. There wasn’t anything she could say, but she wanted to be there to support him, the way he supported and comforted her when she lost her child.
Drinian looked down at Liz, and saw the love and support reflected in her eyes, and he smiled. Reaching down, he took her hand in his and squeezed it gently, drawing strength and comfort from her.
“I turned my back on a very important part of our culture while I was Antar’s leader,” he said. “And I made the mistake of passing my beliefs on to my son, and this played a large part in allowing Kivar to take control of Antar.”
“Why, what was it?” asked Zan, clearly confused.
“The Granolith,” answered Maria and Ava. Both girls smiled at each other, the animosity they once felt towards each other was long gone.
“Exactly,” said Drinian. “It was the Granolith. “But how did you know?”
“We saw it appear on top of the palace,” said Ava. “And you could just see this change come over the faces of the people. It was like they all had blindfolds taken off or something.”
“Exactly,” said Drinian. “You both are very observant. That trait will serve you well in your lives.”
“See that, Space Boy,” Maria said, nudging Michael in the side. “You should pay more attention to me.”
“I always do, Maria,” said Michael, rolling his eyes skyward. “I always do.”
“So, you were saying, Father,” said Max. “About the Granolith?”
“Yes,” said Drinian, suppressing the smile of satisfaction he felt at Max’s words. “The Granolith. It is a very important part of our culture, and one I chose to, while I did not ignore it, I didn’t respect it either. The Granolith is a religious icon of sorts. We have a central deity that we worship, and it is common belief in our world that the Granolith was given to us by our deity.”
“That doesn’t explain what Ava said she and Maria saw happen when it reappeared,” said Isabel.
“I’m not explaining this well,” said Drinian. “I will ask you to just bear with me while I try to explain this. The actual physical structure of the Granolith is rumored to have just appeared thousands of years ago. Our people assumed it was a gift from our deity. Technology is also a very important facet of our lives, and someone at one time, managed to harness the energy of the Granolith.”
“But what does it do, exactly?” asked Liz and Alex simultaneously.
“You two are ever the scientists, aren’t you?” laughed Drinian. “We are unaware of many of the gifts of the Granolith, but one thing it does do is impede the ability to mind warp.”
“And was that the giant flash I saw when the Granolith appeared, Father?” asked Zan.
Again, Drinian smothered a smile at hearing his sons call him Father. “That is it exactly, Zan,” he said. “When the Granolith returned to it’s proper home, the force field reactivated itself and broke the mind warp Kivar and his people had created. I was foolish; I didn’t respect the power the Granolith had. There are so many things that it is capable of doing, and I, in my arrogance thought that we didn’t need it.”
“You mean like the way it married us or whatever you want to call it, back on Earth,” said Alex. “I get it, but I don’t get how it did it.”
“I don’t either, or I would explain it to you,” said Drinian. “The collective consciousness that you absorbed, is stored, in part, in the Granolith. It isn’t something we did, it just happened when a person died. I believe when it was sent to Earth, it absorbed the collective consciousness of Earth as well, and that is how it knew that the eight of you were destined to be together. Each one of you compliments the other. You are like two sides of one coin, and the Granolith sensed that, and joined you.”
“So, it’s alive, then?” asked Isabel.
“Yes, and no,” said Drinian. “Is it a living, breathing entity, no, it is not, but it does seem to grow in sense of it’s abilities. It is very confusing, indeed.”
“Fine, it’s confusing,” said Maria. “Everything about you people is, so that’s no surprise, but I’m still not getting how your not believing in the Granolith led to all of this.”
“Many of our people learned how to block the power of the mind warp without the aid of the Granolith,” said Drinian. “I believe you told me one time that Michael had this ability.” He looked over at Michael who nodded. “You’re mother did as well,” Drinian continued. “She was instrumental in teaching many people this skill. But because so many people could do it, I did not believe the Granolith was a necessity. I did not guard it as it should be guarded. Each successive king of Antar is entrusted with the guardianship of the Granolith. I was derelict in my duties, and allowed it to be taken. That was how Kivar was able to create his intricate mind warp that enslaved our world.”
“But what exactly happened?” asked Max. “You didn’t just leave it unguarded, did you?”
“No, even I, in my arrogance would never have done that, but I wasn’t careful about the guards that I did chose, and worse, I allowed my attitude regarding the Granolith to rub off on you. You saw how I reacted to the Granolith, and you adopted my attitude for your own.”
Max’s expression darkened at his father’s words. He felt the weight of failure pressing down on him. He opened his mouth to answer his father, but Drinian was quicker.
“No, Max, it wasn’t your fault, and it wasn’t Zan’s fault,” he added, looking at his other son’s hangdog expression. “You learned at my knee not to believe in the Granolith. The fault is mine, and no others.”
“But since the Granolith was on Earth, you must have been able to gain control of it again,” said Liz.
“No, I was not,” said Drinian. “When Zan fell in battle, I made my way to the Granolith to see if it would choose me as King again. I knew our people needed a leader, but it would not choose me. I knew then what I had to do. I made arrangements to have it sent to Earth to watch over you. Had the incubation pods worked as intended, you would have known exactly what to do. Luckily, you were smart enough to decode the books and activate it yourselves.”
“Then how did the Granolith get to Earth with us?” asked Zan. “Or with them, I should say?”
“Zan, we had no idea how far Kivar’s duplicity stretched,” said Drinian. “You know of course how his people mixed up the pods. We knew from previous experiments that one set would prove to be more viable, and well, adapt better to the duplication process. You saw for yourself how evil Lonnie and Rath were, as was Tess. Statistically, one half of the embryos were going to develop poorly, or with defects. You, my son, beat the odds, and survived and developed with out the defects.” Drinian paused and took a drink from the cup Kitana passed him. He set the cup on the floor beside him, and continued his story.
“As I said, statistically, four of the eight embryos were supposed to develop with defects. We did our best to choose which had the best chance of developing normally. However, Kivar’s people switched the embryos before we had a chance to send them to Earth. Our people did the best they could to try and figure out which was which, but remember, there was a civil war going on at the time. In the end, the decision was made, and the Granolith went to New Mexico.”
“For the most part, your people chose well,” said Kyle. “I mean, Ava got stuck in New York, and we got Tess the beast, but honestly, I don’t think they ever figured two of the Zan pods would develop normally. What I want to know is what happened to their protectors? I mean, Nescado, not much in the way of a father figure, you know?”
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Chapter 75 added 10/25/05
Disclaimer: Roswell, and its characters do not belong to me. Melinda Metz, Jason Katims and 20th Century Fox have that particular pleasure. I’m simply borrowing them until the Season 2 DVD’s get released.
Author’s Note: This chapter is dedicated to my wonderful friend Patty, because it’s all her fault. She said the two words that are guaranteed to get me thinking – What if.
Chapter Seventy – Five – The Gadori
“What protectors?” Kitana asked, her face a mask of worry. “No protectors were sent with you.”
“Sure there was,” said Zan. “Nescado was always hanging around our crib, telling us about Antar, and how we were going back, and we were going to rule. He’d be there for months, and then he’d jet somewhere and we wouldn’t see him for a while.”
“Nescado came to us too,” said Max. “He’s the one who brought us Tess. He said he and some other protectors were sent down to watch over us, but they were all captured by the military when the ship crashed.”
“Tell us more about Nescado,” said Kitana. “What was he like?”
“He was cold and unfeeling,” said Liz. “He kidnapped me one time by pretending to be Max.”
“What do you mean, by pretending to be Max?” Kitana asked. “Surely you knew what Max looked like.”
“But that’s just it,” said Liz. “He looked exactly like Max. He was Max.”
“How did you find out he wasn’t Max,” Kitana asked, her face a mask of worry and fear.
“When he kissed me, I didn’t get the flashes I usually got with Max. These were angry and violent flashes. He was evil,” said Liz.
Max reached over and held her hand tightly wishing she didn’t have to relive the horrible memories of Nescado. That whole experience had been terrifying for all of them, but for Liz, especially.
“Gadori,” said Drinian, his expression bleak.
“What are the Gadori?” asked Kyle.
“The Gadori are a race of people who are, well adaptable,” explained Drinian. “They can adapt to survive wherever they are. They are able to change to look like the people around them. They not only learn to mimic their abilities, they develop them as well, to a certain extent.”
“So you mean that all the time Nescado was teaching us to use our powers, he was actually teaching himself?” Ava asked in horror. “We taught him to do those evil things?”
“No, Ava,” said Kitana, reaching out to place a soothing hand on the girl’s arm. “I’m afraid that the Gadori learned all about us many, many generations ago. At one time, they were enslaved, and we fought to free them. We thought they were our allies, and they traveled freely to Antar from their own planet. Who knows,” she added bitterly. “Maybe at one time they were our allies, but as time passed, the aligned themselves with Kivar. They betrayed us.”
“Okay, so you’re saying that Nescado wasn’t really sent down to watch over these kids?” said Jim. “Damn, I should have realized that, myself.”
“How?” Drinian asked, logically.
“I don’t know, I just should have known. These kids are my responsibility. I told them I’d help them, and I left them alone with their enemy so many times. He could have killed them all.”
“No, he couldn’t,” said Kitana. “When we fought to free the Gadori’s from slavery, they pledged their lives to us, they would always obey the ruling family, and never harm them. However they managed to leave themselves a way out of their pledge. A direct order had to be given from the Antarian king to a Gadori for the order to be filled. If the king were to make a proclamation, or issue a law, the Gadori’s were not honor bound to obey because it was not issued to them directly.”
“Sneaky little bastards, aren’t they?” asked Michael. “Now I’m wondering if Nescado is really even dead.”
“You have good cause to worry,” Michael,” said Drinian. “If they have sworn their fealty to Kivar, nothing except for death will end it. It won’t matter to them if Kivar is dead, they will still carry out their orders.”
“So, if their orders are to make life a living hell for Max, Isabel, Ava and Michael, they’ll keep on doing it?” asked Alex. “That is so not good.”
“Um, is anybody besides me freaking over the part where they can’t hurt the royal family, but they can hurt other people, like oh, say us, and our friends and families!”
“The Granolith has chosen you, Maria, you are protected,” said Drinian.
“But what about our families?” asked Isabel. “What about our Mom and Dad?”
“I’m sorry, they are not protected,” said Drinian, softly.
“Send guards down for them now,” ordered Max, acting like the king that he now was. “Jim, are you feeling up to going back with them to explain to everyone what’s going on?”
“Of course, Max,” said the Sheriff, standing up. “I’ll go whenever you think the time is right.”
“Father, how long before we can assemble a division of guards to watch over our families?”
“It will take several hours, most of the people I would recommend for this are home with their families,” explained Drinian.
“I hate to tear them away from that,” said Max. “Especially when they have risked so much for us already, but I don’t see any other way.”
“Alex and I can go down with my dad, tonight,” suggested Kyle. “That way, you guys can do the king thing or whatever you need to do. When they show up, we’ll beam back up, or whatever it is we do.”
“I’ll go with them,” said Zan, immediately.
“I don’t like the idea of any of us being separated,” said Max. “And you especially need to stay here, Zan. “You’re the king now, too. No more life of leisure for you, with leadership comes responsibility,” joked Max.
“Funny, brother, funny,” said Zan.
“He’s right,” said Michael. “There isn’t any way I can do my job and be your second in command if you’re on two different planets.”
“I don’t need you to baby-sit me,” Max and Zan said together.
“Who the hell said anything about baby sitting?” asked Michael. “I’m you’re general, not your diaper changer. I’m guessing we’re going to be planning strategies and stuff tomorrow when all the cabinet members get here. We need to be here to do that, not on two different planets.”
“That’s my husband, ever the voice of reason,” said Maria. “How about if I go back, too. I’m just as capable of doing guard duty as anybody.”
“No, you’re staying with me,” said Michael. “I want you here where I can protect you.”
“Michael, Michael, these caveman tendencies are so, well, Neanderthal,” said Maria, her joking tone belying the anger in her eyes. “I’m a big girl, I can blow the bad guys up all by myself now.”
“I just don’t want anything to happen to you, okay?” Michael shouted.
“Well, since you put it that way,” said Maria, throwing herself back against the chair upon which she sat. “What girl could turn her back on a pronouncement like that.”
“Kyle, Alex, I’m not ordering you to go, I’m not even suggesting it,” said Max. “But if it’s what you want to do, then I say go for it.”
“Come,” said Drinian, standing up. “I’ll take Kyle, Alex and Jim to where we stored the belts. And from there, I’ll begin send word to the men who will be returning to Earth.”
They all stood as one, and those remaining had hugs for those that were leaving.
“Stay safe,” Isabel whispered to Alex. “And tell my mother,”
“I know, you love her,” said Alex. “You know I will, Isabel, and I’ll make sure they know you’re safe.”
“I don’t want you to go,” she whispered.
“I have to Isabel, it’s for the best. Kyle and I are the ones who can be spared to go back and make sure everything is okay back home,” Alex explained.
“I know,” Isabel said. “But I don’t have to like it.”
“I’ll be back tomorrow, Isabel, I love you.” He held her tightly and kissed her passionately and turned and walked over to where Drinian and the others were waiting.
Kyle and Ava said their goodbyes in a quiet corner of the room. Kyle reached down to wipe away a tear that tracked down Ava’s cheek.
“I can’t believe I’m acting this way,” Ava said. “I’m being such a baby.”
“You’re not being a baby,” said Kyle, struggling to contain his own emotions, trying to be strong for Ava. “And I’ll be back tomorrow, I promise.”
“It’s just that we’ve been nothing but apart since we came here, and now you’re going back down there. You can’t get more apart than that,” Ava said, laying her head on Kyle’s muscular chest.
“I’ll be back,” Kyle said again, this time in his best Terminator voice. It wasn’t a good imitation, but it had the desired effect, causing Ava to laugh.
They finally finished saying goodbye, along with a great many thanks to Jim for all he had done for them. The remaining group stood silently together as they watched their friends walk out the door to begin their return journey to Earth.
Author’s Note: This chapter is dedicated to my wonderful friend Patty, because it’s all her fault. She said the two words that are guaranteed to get me thinking – What if.
Chapter Seventy – Five – The Gadori
“What protectors?” Kitana asked, her face a mask of worry. “No protectors were sent with you.”
“Sure there was,” said Zan. “Nescado was always hanging around our crib, telling us about Antar, and how we were going back, and we were going to rule. He’d be there for months, and then he’d jet somewhere and we wouldn’t see him for a while.”
“Nescado came to us too,” said Max. “He’s the one who brought us Tess. He said he and some other protectors were sent down to watch over us, but they were all captured by the military when the ship crashed.”
“Tell us more about Nescado,” said Kitana. “What was he like?”
“He was cold and unfeeling,” said Liz. “He kidnapped me one time by pretending to be Max.”
“What do you mean, by pretending to be Max?” Kitana asked. “Surely you knew what Max looked like.”
“But that’s just it,” said Liz. “He looked exactly like Max. He was Max.”
“How did you find out he wasn’t Max,” Kitana asked, her face a mask of worry and fear.
“When he kissed me, I didn’t get the flashes I usually got with Max. These were angry and violent flashes. He was evil,” said Liz.
Max reached over and held her hand tightly wishing she didn’t have to relive the horrible memories of Nescado. That whole experience had been terrifying for all of them, but for Liz, especially.
“Gadori,” said Drinian, his expression bleak.
“What are the Gadori?” asked Kyle.
“The Gadori are a race of people who are, well adaptable,” explained Drinian. “They can adapt to survive wherever they are. They are able to change to look like the people around them. They not only learn to mimic their abilities, they develop them as well, to a certain extent.”
“So you mean that all the time Nescado was teaching us to use our powers, he was actually teaching himself?” Ava asked in horror. “We taught him to do those evil things?”
“No, Ava,” said Kitana, reaching out to place a soothing hand on the girl’s arm. “I’m afraid that the Gadori learned all about us many, many generations ago. At one time, they were enslaved, and we fought to free them. We thought they were our allies, and they traveled freely to Antar from their own planet. Who knows,” she added bitterly. “Maybe at one time they were our allies, but as time passed, the aligned themselves with Kivar. They betrayed us.”
“Okay, so you’re saying that Nescado wasn’t really sent down to watch over these kids?” said Jim. “Damn, I should have realized that, myself.”
“How?” Drinian asked, logically.
“I don’t know, I just should have known. These kids are my responsibility. I told them I’d help them, and I left them alone with their enemy so many times. He could have killed them all.”
“No, he couldn’t,” said Kitana. “When we fought to free the Gadori’s from slavery, they pledged their lives to us, they would always obey the ruling family, and never harm them. However they managed to leave themselves a way out of their pledge. A direct order had to be given from the Antarian king to a Gadori for the order to be filled. If the king were to make a proclamation, or issue a law, the Gadori’s were not honor bound to obey because it was not issued to them directly.”
“Sneaky little bastards, aren’t they?” asked Michael. “Now I’m wondering if Nescado is really even dead.”
“You have good cause to worry,” Michael,” said Drinian. “If they have sworn their fealty to Kivar, nothing except for death will end it. It won’t matter to them if Kivar is dead, they will still carry out their orders.”
“So, if their orders are to make life a living hell for Max, Isabel, Ava and Michael, they’ll keep on doing it?” asked Alex. “That is so not good.”
“Um, is anybody besides me freaking over the part where they can’t hurt the royal family, but they can hurt other people, like oh, say us, and our friends and families!”
“The Granolith has chosen you, Maria, you are protected,” said Drinian.
“But what about our families?” asked Isabel. “What about our Mom and Dad?”
“I’m sorry, they are not protected,” said Drinian, softly.
“Send guards down for them now,” ordered Max, acting like the king that he now was. “Jim, are you feeling up to going back with them to explain to everyone what’s going on?”
“Of course, Max,” said the Sheriff, standing up. “I’ll go whenever you think the time is right.”
“Father, how long before we can assemble a division of guards to watch over our families?”
“It will take several hours, most of the people I would recommend for this are home with their families,” explained Drinian.
“I hate to tear them away from that,” said Max. “Especially when they have risked so much for us already, but I don’t see any other way.”
“Alex and I can go down with my dad, tonight,” suggested Kyle. “That way, you guys can do the king thing or whatever you need to do. When they show up, we’ll beam back up, or whatever it is we do.”
“I’ll go with them,” said Zan, immediately.
“I don’t like the idea of any of us being separated,” said Max. “And you especially need to stay here, Zan. “You’re the king now, too. No more life of leisure for you, with leadership comes responsibility,” joked Max.
“Funny, brother, funny,” said Zan.
“He’s right,” said Michael. “There isn’t any way I can do my job and be your second in command if you’re on two different planets.”
“I don’t need you to baby-sit me,” Max and Zan said together.
“Who the hell said anything about baby sitting?” asked Michael. “I’m you’re general, not your diaper changer. I’m guessing we’re going to be planning strategies and stuff tomorrow when all the cabinet members get here. We need to be here to do that, not on two different planets.”
“That’s my husband, ever the voice of reason,” said Maria. “How about if I go back, too. I’m just as capable of doing guard duty as anybody.”
“No, you’re staying with me,” said Michael. “I want you here where I can protect you.”
“Michael, Michael, these caveman tendencies are so, well, Neanderthal,” said Maria, her joking tone belying the anger in her eyes. “I’m a big girl, I can blow the bad guys up all by myself now.”
“I just don’t want anything to happen to you, okay?” Michael shouted.
“Well, since you put it that way,” said Maria, throwing herself back against the chair upon which she sat. “What girl could turn her back on a pronouncement like that.”
“Kyle, Alex, I’m not ordering you to go, I’m not even suggesting it,” said Max. “But if it’s what you want to do, then I say go for it.”
“Come,” said Drinian, standing up. “I’ll take Kyle, Alex and Jim to where we stored the belts. And from there, I’ll begin send word to the men who will be returning to Earth.”
They all stood as one, and those remaining had hugs for those that were leaving.
“Stay safe,” Isabel whispered to Alex. “And tell my mother,”
“I know, you love her,” said Alex. “You know I will, Isabel, and I’ll make sure they know you’re safe.”
“I don’t want you to go,” she whispered.
“I have to Isabel, it’s for the best. Kyle and I are the ones who can be spared to go back and make sure everything is okay back home,” Alex explained.
“I know,” Isabel said. “But I don’t have to like it.”
“I’ll be back tomorrow, Isabel, I love you.” He held her tightly and kissed her passionately and turned and walked over to where Drinian and the others were waiting.
Kyle and Ava said their goodbyes in a quiet corner of the room. Kyle reached down to wipe away a tear that tracked down Ava’s cheek.
“I can’t believe I’m acting this way,” Ava said. “I’m being such a baby.”
“You’re not being a baby,” said Kyle, struggling to contain his own emotions, trying to be strong for Ava. “And I’ll be back tomorrow, I promise.”
“It’s just that we’ve been nothing but apart since we came here, and now you’re going back down there. You can’t get more apart than that,” Ava said, laying her head on Kyle’s muscular chest.
“I’ll be back,” Kyle said again, this time in his best Terminator voice. It wasn’t a good imitation, but it had the desired effect, causing Ava to laugh.
They finally finished saying goodbye, along with a great many thanks to Jim for all he had done for them. The remaining group stood silently together as they watched their friends walk out the door to begin their return journey to Earth.
-
majiklmoon
- Addicted Roswellian
- Posts: 361
- Joined: Tue Nov 13, 2001 10:55 am
- Contact:
Chapter 76 added 10/26/04
Disclaimer: Roswell, and its characters do not belong to me. Melinda Metz, Jason Katims and 20th Century Fox have that particular pleasure. I’m simply borrowing them until the Season 2 DVD’s get released.
Chapter Seventy – Six A Homecoming of Sorts
The rising sun broke over the palace highlighting the banner, which still hung from the roof. Someone had climbed up during the night and changed the pictures of the group, and the writing to a gold tint, and the sun reflected off of it, shooting sparks of light into the courtyard.
Max leaned out over the railing surrounding the balcony and gazed down over the city as it came to life.
“It’s quite a sight, isn’t it,” said a voice behind him. Max turned around and saw Zan standing in the doorway.
“Yeah, it’s something,” said Max. “Kind of awe inspiring actually. They’re just going on like nothing happened. We fought a major battle yesterday, and today, it’s business as usual.”
“I know, it gives me faith in man’s ability to adapt,” said Zan. “I don’t think I could be half as resilient as these people.
The two men stood side by side watching the city come to life, until the sound of a bell ringing reminded them of the summit meetings that they needed to attend. Standing up, they walked into the room to be greeted by a waiting messenger.
“Your Majesty,” said the messenger, bowing his head. “I have a message for you.”
“Yes,” Max and Zan answered together. The messenger, totally confused wordlessly held out the paper.
Max reached out to take it and together the two men laughed as the messenger scurried away.
“I guess we need to make a decision,” said Max, before he opened the message. “I’m open to suggestions, because quite frankly, I don’t have a clue what to do.”
“Me either,” said Zan. “It was a hell of a lot simpler when the Granolith had only chosen you.”
“Last night before they left, Kyle suggested we put Velcro on our backs and stick ourselves together and rule Antar as “Zax, the Two Faced King.”
Zan exploded with laughter, the image of him and Max stuck together, sitting on a throne, amused him in a way very few things had done before.
When his laughter subsided, Max playfully cuffed him on the shoulder. “Got the visual, huh?” he asked.
“Oh yeah,” said Zan, “And it was a doozy.”
“Yeah, I know,” said Max. “I laughed for about an hour last night. Liz was less than pleased. I think she’s ready to kill Kyle.”
“She’s nice,” said Zan, suddenly. “Liz I mean. Well, actually, all of you are really nice. I was prepared to hate all of you, you know? But I’m really glad I found all of you.”
“Even Kyle?” Max asked, thinking back to the acrimonious feelings the two shared when they first met.
“Yeah, even Kyle. As long as he keeps treating Ava okay, that is,” Zan replied. “It really tore me apart when I thought she took off with Rath and Lonnie. I was prepared to hate her as much as I was all of you, but it turns out I was wrong. She’s got a family now, and that’s all that matters.”
“Zan, you’re part of our family too,” said Max. “You’re a part of us. We’re connected now. I mean, my parents are going to freak when the find out about you. Dad will probably insist on putting bunk beds in my room.”
“Ah, you’re married to Liz, remember?” Zan asked.
“Yeah, but they don’t really know about that. Well, I mean they do now, since the Sheriff filled them in on everything, but I’m not sure how well they’re dealing with that particular aspect of the situation,” explained Max. “They’ve probably moved right into denial land next to Liz’s parents. Hence, the bunk beds.”
“I can’t go back there with you, man,” said Zan, his speech reverted back to the way he spoke in New York “That’s you’re life. There ain’t no room for me in Roswell, New Mexico.”
Max looked at Zan, unable to find the words to convince him that he was welcomed in his life. He knew his parents would adore having him around, and would happily shower him with all the love he lacked growing up.
“What’s the note say?” Zan asked in an effort to change the conversation. He knew he had no place in Max’s life, and it was tearing him apart to know that he’d have to say goodbye to them very soon and disappear from their lives.
Max unfolded the note and read it, and passed it to Zan. “It seems our royal parents request the pleasure of our company during breakfast,” he said.
“Cool, I’m up for it,” said Zan, brightening visibly. “That Drinian is pretty cool. I thought he was a cool shit when he was Che’koth, but as our old man, he’s straight up.”
Max followed Zan out the door and down the hall, only listening with half an ear to what Zan was saying. The beginnings of an idea had started in his mind, and he wanted to give it time to grow before he said anything to anybody.
Liz and the others had just sat down at the large table with Kitana and Drinian when Max and Zan entered the room. Max slid into place next to Liz, and nodded to his Antarian parents without saying a word. Zan made their apologies for late arrival, and sat down next to Drinian.
Talk resumed around the table, and Liz used the opportunity to whisper to Max.
“What’s wrong?” she asked, keeping her voice low.
“Nothing, in fact, something may be very, very right,” said Max, mysteriously. “I can’t say anything right now, I need to think about it some more, but I think when I do tell you, you’ll think it’s great.”
“Thanks for clearing that up for me,” said Liz with a smile. “As long as you’re okay, I’m good with whatever it is. Suddenly, she spun around; trying to locate the sound of cheering that suddenly filled the room.
“What’s that?” she asked no one in particular.
“I think I might have an idea,” said Drinian, “But I’ll hold my tongue and see if I’m right.”
Moments later, the door to the room burst open filling the room with the sound of cheering, and Kyle and Alex walked in, their arms filled with packages, smiling in delight.
“Hi Honeys, we’re home,” they chorused.
Isabel and Ava both laughed with delight and jumped up to greet them.
“How did you know?” Max asked Drinian, after he greeted his friends.
“Well, I took the liberty of arranging transport for the guards a little quicker than you had planned,” explained Drinian. “I know Alex and Kyle are more than capable of taking care of things, but I also know the Gadori are very cunning, and the more people we have down there watching your families, the better.”
“How are they, Alex?” asked Isabel. “Are our parents okay?” Realizing what she said, Isabel’s hand crept up to cover her mouth. “I’m sorry,” she said, looking at Drinian and Kitana. “I don’t mean any disrespect to either of you, but,” she paused, unsure of how to continue.
“Isabel, my daughter,” said Kitana. “You have not been disrespectful to us. In fact, I would have been saddened had you not expressed concern for Philip and Diane Evans. They are your parents. They cared for you, and protected you when we could not, and we shall forever be in their debt. It is fortunate that we are capable of loving a great many people, and our heart expands to welcome them all.”
“Thank you for understanding,” said Isabel.
“You’re parents are fine,” said Alex. “They send their love. We brought back letters from all of them for you.”
Zan watched the joyful reunion, an ache growing in his heart. It would be so great to have somebody on Earth waiting for me to come home. The only person I ever had was Ava, and she doesn’t need me anymore, she had Kyle now.
Zan pushed back from the table and tried to slip unnoticed out a side door, only to be stopped by Kyle’s shout.
“Hey, Zan, where do you think you’re going?” Kyle asked as Alex handed Maria and Liz their letters. “I have one here with your name on it.”
“What?” asked Zan. “What are you talking about Valenti? I don’t have anyone who gives a rat’s ass about me left on Earth. Everyone that cares about me is right here.”
“Don’t be to sure about that,” said Kyle, tossing him an envelope. “That’s from Philip and Diane Evans. They can’t wait to meet you. In fact, when we left, Max’s dad was trying to decide if they could add on a bedroom, or you and Max would be happy with bunk beds.”
“I told you,” said Max with a grin. “Zan, you have to figure, anybody who would take in two kids they found wandering around naked in the desert have to be pretty accepting of stuff.”
Zan took the envelope from Kyle and stuffed it into his pocket. “Thanks, man. I’ll read it later.”
“No problem,” said Kyle. “And hey, Zan,” he said, lowering his voice. “Ava and I want you to know you have a place with us, and my Dad wants you to come stay with him, too. So don’t be too sure that there aren’t people who care about you, okay?”
“Hey, listen up, everyone,” Alex said. “There is a crowd of people outside the palace waiting for you all to wave or something, and some guy downstairs asked me to tell you that all the cabinet members and stuff are here. The summit can start whenever you all are ready.”
Chapter Seventy – Six A Homecoming of Sorts
The rising sun broke over the palace highlighting the banner, which still hung from the roof. Someone had climbed up during the night and changed the pictures of the group, and the writing to a gold tint, and the sun reflected off of it, shooting sparks of light into the courtyard.
Max leaned out over the railing surrounding the balcony and gazed down over the city as it came to life.
“It’s quite a sight, isn’t it,” said a voice behind him. Max turned around and saw Zan standing in the doorway.
“Yeah, it’s something,” said Max. “Kind of awe inspiring actually. They’re just going on like nothing happened. We fought a major battle yesterday, and today, it’s business as usual.”
“I know, it gives me faith in man’s ability to adapt,” said Zan. “I don’t think I could be half as resilient as these people.
The two men stood side by side watching the city come to life, until the sound of a bell ringing reminded them of the summit meetings that they needed to attend. Standing up, they walked into the room to be greeted by a waiting messenger.
“Your Majesty,” said the messenger, bowing his head. “I have a message for you.”
“Yes,” Max and Zan answered together. The messenger, totally confused wordlessly held out the paper.
Max reached out to take it and together the two men laughed as the messenger scurried away.
“I guess we need to make a decision,” said Max, before he opened the message. “I’m open to suggestions, because quite frankly, I don’t have a clue what to do.”
“Me either,” said Zan. “It was a hell of a lot simpler when the Granolith had only chosen you.”
“Last night before they left, Kyle suggested we put Velcro on our backs and stick ourselves together and rule Antar as “Zax, the Two Faced King.”
Zan exploded with laughter, the image of him and Max stuck together, sitting on a throne, amused him in a way very few things had done before.
When his laughter subsided, Max playfully cuffed him on the shoulder. “Got the visual, huh?” he asked.
“Oh yeah,” said Zan, “And it was a doozy.”
“Yeah, I know,” said Max. “I laughed for about an hour last night. Liz was less than pleased. I think she’s ready to kill Kyle.”
“She’s nice,” said Zan, suddenly. “Liz I mean. Well, actually, all of you are really nice. I was prepared to hate all of you, you know? But I’m really glad I found all of you.”
“Even Kyle?” Max asked, thinking back to the acrimonious feelings the two shared when they first met.
“Yeah, even Kyle. As long as he keeps treating Ava okay, that is,” Zan replied. “It really tore me apart when I thought she took off with Rath and Lonnie. I was prepared to hate her as much as I was all of you, but it turns out I was wrong. She’s got a family now, and that’s all that matters.”
“Zan, you’re part of our family too,” said Max. “You’re a part of us. We’re connected now. I mean, my parents are going to freak when the find out about you. Dad will probably insist on putting bunk beds in my room.”
“Ah, you’re married to Liz, remember?” Zan asked.
“Yeah, but they don’t really know about that. Well, I mean they do now, since the Sheriff filled them in on everything, but I’m not sure how well they’re dealing with that particular aspect of the situation,” explained Max. “They’ve probably moved right into denial land next to Liz’s parents. Hence, the bunk beds.”
“I can’t go back there with you, man,” said Zan, his speech reverted back to the way he spoke in New York “That’s you’re life. There ain’t no room for me in Roswell, New Mexico.”
Max looked at Zan, unable to find the words to convince him that he was welcomed in his life. He knew his parents would adore having him around, and would happily shower him with all the love he lacked growing up.
“What’s the note say?” Zan asked in an effort to change the conversation. He knew he had no place in Max’s life, and it was tearing him apart to know that he’d have to say goodbye to them very soon and disappear from their lives.
Max unfolded the note and read it, and passed it to Zan. “It seems our royal parents request the pleasure of our company during breakfast,” he said.
“Cool, I’m up for it,” said Zan, brightening visibly. “That Drinian is pretty cool. I thought he was a cool shit when he was Che’koth, but as our old man, he’s straight up.”
Max followed Zan out the door and down the hall, only listening with half an ear to what Zan was saying. The beginnings of an idea had started in his mind, and he wanted to give it time to grow before he said anything to anybody.
Liz and the others had just sat down at the large table with Kitana and Drinian when Max and Zan entered the room. Max slid into place next to Liz, and nodded to his Antarian parents without saying a word. Zan made their apologies for late arrival, and sat down next to Drinian.
Talk resumed around the table, and Liz used the opportunity to whisper to Max.
“What’s wrong?” she asked, keeping her voice low.
“Nothing, in fact, something may be very, very right,” said Max, mysteriously. “I can’t say anything right now, I need to think about it some more, but I think when I do tell you, you’ll think it’s great.”
“Thanks for clearing that up for me,” said Liz with a smile. “As long as you’re okay, I’m good with whatever it is. Suddenly, she spun around; trying to locate the sound of cheering that suddenly filled the room.
“What’s that?” she asked no one in particular.
“I think I might have an idea,” said Drinian, “But I’ll hold my tongue and see if I’m right.”
Moments later, the door to the room burst open filling the room with the sound of cheering, and Kyle and Alex walked in, their arms filled with packages, smiling in delight.
“Hi Honeys, we’re home,” they chorused.
Isabel and Ava both laughed with delight and jumped up to greet them.
“How did you know?” Max asked Drinian, after he greeted his friends.
“Well, I took the liberty of arranging transport for the guards a little quicker than you had planned,” explained Drinian. “I know Alex and Kyle are more than capable of taking care of things, but I also know the Gadori are very cunning, and the more people we have down there watching your families, the better.”
“How are they, Alex?” asked Isabel. “Are our parents okay?” Realizing what she said, Isabel’s hand crept up to cover her mouth. “I’m sorry,” she said, looking at Drinian and Kitana. “I don’t mean any disrespect to either of you, but,” she paused, unsure of how to continue.
“Isabel, my daughter,” said Kitana. “You have not been disrespectful to us. In fact, I would have been saddened had you not expressed concern for Philip and Diane Evans. They are your parents. They cared for you, and protected you when we could not, and we shall forever be in their debt. It is fortunate that we are capable of loving a great many people, and our heart expands to welcome them all.”
“Thank you for understanding,” said Isabel.
“You’re parents are fine,” said Alex. “They send their love. We brought back letters from all of them for you.”
Zan watched the joyful reunion, an ache growing in his heart. It would be so great to have somebody on Earth waiting for me to come home. The only person I ever had was Ava, and she doesn’t need me anymore, she had Kyle now.
Zan pushed back from the table and tried to slip unnoticed out a side door, only to be stopped by Kyle’s shout.
“Hey, Zan, where do you think you’re going?” Kyle asked as Alex handed Maria and Liz their letters. “I have one here with your name on it.”
“What?” asked Zan. “What are you talking about Valenti? I don’t have anyone who gives a rat’s ass about me left on Earth. Everyone that cares about me is right here.”
“Don’t be to sure about that,” said Kyle, tossing him an envelope. “That’s from Philip and Diane Evans. They can’t wait to meet you. In fact, when we left, Max’s dad was trying to decide if they could add on a bedroom, or you and Max would be happy with bunk beds.”
“I told you,” said Max with a grin. “Zan, you have to figure, anybody who would take in two kids they found wandering around naked in the desert have to be pretty accepting of stuff.”
Zan took the envelope from Kyle and stuffed it into his pocket. “Thanks, man. I’ll read it later.”
“No problem,” said Kyle. “And hey, Zan,” he said, lowering his voice. “Ava and I want you to know you have a place with us, and my Dad wants you to come stay with him, too. So don’t be too sure that there aren’t people who care about you, okay?”
“Hey, listen up, everyone,” Alex said. “There is a crowd of people outside the palace waiting for you all to wave or something, and some guy downstairs asked me to tell you that all the cabinet members and stuff are here. The summit can start whenever you all are ready.”
-
majiklmoon
- Addicted Roswellian
- Posts: 361
- Joined: Tue Nov 13, 2001 10:55 am
- Contact:
Chapter 77 added 10/29/04
Disclaimer: Roswell, and its characters do not belong to me. Melinda Metz, Jason Katims and 20th Century Fox have that particular pleasure. I’m simply borrowing them until the Season 2 DVD’s get released.
Chapter Seventy Seven – Summits, Meetings and Surprises, Oh My!
The summit meeting with the cabinet members went better than anybody could have ever expected. Many of them knew of the plan to send cloned embryos away for safekeeping, but fewer of them were aware of how far the duplicity of Kivar actually went. To find out that the two sets of embryos were mixed together came as a shock to many of the cabinet members as did the news that the cloned embryos of their beloved king managed to beat the statistical odds and survive to maturity without any obvious defects or deviations.
This news caused a wave of discord and discontent among the cabinet members as they tried to decide who should rule over Antar. Max and Zan observed the proceedings, but both were reluctant to step forward and act as king.
“We have to do something,” Max whispered to Zan.
“Hey, you’re the king,” said Zan. “You do it.”
“You’re forgetting something,” said Max. “We’re both the king and we can both rule Antar. For that matter, so could Liz, Isabel, Kyle, or any of the others.”
“Do they know that, yet?” Zan asked, inclining his head towards the cabinet members.
“I’m not sure, why?” asked Max.
“Well, for once, I have an idea. Just go along with me, okay?”
“Okay,” Max said, warily. He could only hope Zan’s idea didn’t include abdicating the throne in favor of him. He hadn’t yet had a chance to tell Zan and the others about his plan, and he couldn’t do anything until they all agreed to go along with it. Especially Zan.
A loud piercing whistle filled the chamber, and Max turned to find Zan, standing on top of the table, fingers in his mouth, poised to whistle again.
A second blast of Zan’s piercing whistle was unnecessary, as the cabinet members quieted down and looked questioningly at Zan.
“Listen up,” he shouted, his voice carrying to every corner of the room. “You guys are all trying to decide which one of us is going to rule Antar, but none of you have bothered to ask if either of us want to do it, or even if either of us is [/I]fit[/I] to rule.”
A shock wave rippled through the crowd as they absorbed the meaning of Zan’s words.
“What say you, Majesty, you do not wish to rule our world. Why then did you come back to fight for such a right?” questioned one of the cabinet members.
“We came back because no person should be forced to live under the rule of a tyrant such as Kivar!” shouted Max, joining Zan on top of the table. “As far as we’re concerned, our job is done. We all have lives on Earth.”
“How then, will we know who will rule us?” shouted another cabinet member.
“Why can’t the Granolith chose?” asked Zan. “Doesn’t Antarian history say that if there is no clear choice, then the Granolith will lead the people to their new king?”
“Kind of sword in the stone, isn’t it?” Max whispered to Zan.
“Yeah, well, I guess every world had it’s own Arthur type legend. I guess we’re going to be Antar’s, Zan whispered back.”
“Tonight at sunset, we shall adjourn to the Granolith chamber, and see who the Granolith chooses,” said Max.
The two men watched as the cabinet members filed out of the room, still discussing their choice of ruler amongst themselves. When the room was empty, save for Drinian and Kitana, they jumped down off of the table.
“Zan, I don’t get it, other than buying us some time, what good was that?” asked Max. “The Granolith is going to chose both of us. It already has.”
“No, it’s going to chose all nine of us,” said Zan, with a smile. “The others need to be in on this too. I want the people to see that they have a lot of options open to them at this point. It doesn’t have to be a ruling king, just because that’s the way it always has been.”
He turned to look at Drinian and Kitana. “No offense, Father, Mother,” he said. “I’m not saying having a king is wrong, but these cabinet dudes really need to chill. They were just freed from Kivar’s rule, and they are ready to subject themselves to another ruler, regardless of who he is, and what he believes in.”
“No offense is taken, Son,” said Drinian. “I believe you are thinking very clearly, and what you are saying makes sense. The old ways may be good, but there is nothing wrong with looking at things from a different perspective.”
Exactly,” said Zan. “And if I may impose on you and Mother, for a moment, I was wondering if you wouldn’t mind going to get the others and asking them to meet us in the throne room just before sunset?”
“We would be delighted, Zan,” said Drinian, taking Kitana’s arm. “It will be a great pleasure to walk freely around the palace again with my beloved wife.”
Max watched in silence until his Antarian parents left the room before turning to Zan.
“We have to talk,” he said to his brother. “It’s my turn to have an idea, and I want to know what you think.”
“Shoot,” said Zan, leaning back in one of the chairs that had been pushed away from the table. He leaned back in the chair and propped his feet up on the table. “What’s on you’re mind, bro?”
“You realize of course, that hundreds of long dead Antarian legislatures are turning over in their graves at the way we’ve treated this table,” said Max, sitting on the table, looking at Zan. “Anyhow, it’s about this king thing. I don’t want it, I don’t want to be a king, I’m not a king. Hell, I can barely take care of myself, never mind a planet.”
“Yeah, well, I don’t wanna do it either,” said Zan, but his tone lacked the conviction that Max’s had. “I’d make a crappy king.”
“No, you wouldn’t, and actually, when it comes right down to it, neither would I. The only difference is, you want it, and I don’t.”
“What about the others, what if one of them wants to stay?” asked Zan. “Or even Liz, what if Liz wants you to stay and rule?”
“I can pretty much guarantee you that Liz does not want to stay,” said Max. “And I’m pretty positive Isabel won’t either. That whole clone thing freaked her out more than she’ll ever admit, but I’m betting she can’t wait to get home and see Mom and Dad. I can’t speak for Kyle and Ava, or Michael and Maria, all we can do is ask them. But Zan, if you don’t want to do it, then don’t do it,” Max added, looking incredibly serious. “Don’t stay here out of some mistaken sense of obligation to a world you know nothing about. You can always come home with us. You heard Kyle. Dad’s ready to build you your own room.”
The two men laughed and continued to discuss the pros and cons of their plan until the shadows began to lengthen and the day began to draw to a close.
“Hey, your Majesties,” a voice called from the darkened doorway. “If you’re gonna go all king like and summon us, don’t you think you ought to be there when we do show up?”
“Shit,” said Zan. “Sorry Alex, we got to talking and kind of lost track of time.”
“I guess,” said Alex, entering the room. “You missed lunch and everything. Too bad, it was that pladyia crap you ate so much of at the Training Academy.”
“Damn,” said Zan, regretfully. “I really like that stuff.”
“Zan, hesitating to point out the obvious, but as a king, you can kind of ask for it any time you want,” Max said.
“True,” said Zan, brightening, visibly.
“Come on, we’d better get to the throne room before the rest of them come looking for us,” said Max.
“No chance of that,” said Alex. “They’re all having fun watching Kyle have fun pretending to be king. Good thing he doesn’t really want to stay and rule, or the entire planet would have to convert to Buddhism.”
“So, uh, Kyle doesn’t want to stay, and really be king then?” Zan asked, as casually as he could manage.
“Are you kidding?” asked Alex. “He is so ready to go home and get some Saturn Rings at the CrashDown, that it isn’t even funny.”
“Oh,” was the only thing that Zan said. He looked over at Max to see an almost smug smile of satisfaction on his face.
“Nobody likes a know it all, Max,” he whispered.
“Wanna clue me in, guys?” Alex said.
“No,” they replied in unison, stopping before the throne room door.
“Nice to see you’re developing a freaky twin thing,” said Alex. “Can you do it in front of Maria, it would totally freak her out.”
“Some best friend you are, Alex,” laughed Max. “We’ll see what we can do, okay?”
“Good enough,” said Alex. “Now, can we please get this self imposed summit of yours over with? I want to spend some time with my wife, you know.”
“That’s my sister you’re talking about,” said Max and Zan, again simultaneously.
“Beam me up, Scotty,” said Alex, rolling his eyes and pushing open the door. “Hey everybody, looks like our illustrious kings forgot all about their meeting.”
“Sorry,” said Max, rather unapologetically. “We were talking. Anyhow, I suppose you’re wondering why we brought you all here tonight,” he joked.
“Actually, I took the liberty of forcing your father to tell us, Max,” said Maria, cheerfully. “And we’re all on board with whatever we have to do to help with the king thing.”
“Actually there’s a bit more to it than that,” said Max. “I need to know where all of you stand about ruling Antar. Is anybody up for the job, or are you ready to head back home?”
“Max, I know I’ve said I’ll follow you anywhere,” said Liz. “But I don’t think I want to live here forever as a queen or whatever.”
“Mother, Father, I am so happy to find out that you’re alive, and I never want to not have you in my life,” said Isabel. “But I don’t belong here. Maybe Vilondra did, but Isabel Whitman belongs on Earth with her husband.”
“We understand, daughter,” said Kitana. “We shall never truly be separated again, as long as there is love in our hearts.”
“Ava and I have already talked about it,” said Kyle. “It’s totally her call. She knows that she is my life, and I’ll do whatever it is she needs me to do.”
Ava smiled at Kyle and reached out and slipped her small hand into his. “I agree with what Isabel said. Antar is a wonderful place, but it isn’t our home. Our home is on Earth.”
“Michael, what about you?” asked Max. “Do you think you’d want to stay and rule.”
“Hell no,” said Michael. “I’m not a ruler, I’m the General, remember. I was second in command for a reason. I don’t have the temperament to be a king. Besides, Maria has a real shot at a singing career back home. I’m going to do whatever I can to help her achieve it.”
“Now do you believe me?” Max asked, turning to Zan. He looked at the man he now called brother the man he once considered killing, then turned back to look at the others. “Zan wants to stay and rule. Anybody have a problem with that?”
Shouts and cheers of celebration filled the room as one by one, each of the group went up to congratulate Zan on his decision and to offer their support. Kitana had just hugged him, hugging him as only a mother can, when the door to the throne room opened again. A lone figure walked in and moved towards the small group.
“Plash Nevenia,” said Liz, moving towards the woman who had been both teacher and confidant to her. “I’m happy to know you survived the battle, and I am sorry I did not try and contact you. You have been nothing but kind and generous to me, and it was wrong of me not to seek you out to reassure myself that you hadn’t been hurt.”
“I am fine, Lan, or should I say Liz,” said Plash, smiling at her. “And I know you have been busy. It would have been easy for me to join you at the palace, especially since I can now reveal my true self.”
As she spoke, the woman’s features began to morph and change, as did her hair, changing from the short dark style she normally wore to a mop of blond curls.
“Dijanya,” whispered Drinian. “You are alive.”
He moved towards the woman, his face a mask of joy, only to be halted by a small gasp from Ava.
“Mother,” she whispered, as she slumped to the floor in a dead faint.
Chapter Seventy Seven – Summits, Meetings and Surprises, Oh My!
The summit meeting with the cabinet members went better than anybody could have ever expected. Many of them knew of the plan to send cloned embryos away for safekeeping, but fewer of them were aware of how far the duplicity of Kivar actually went. To find out that the two sets of embryos were mixed together came as a shock to many of the cabinet members as did the news that the cloned embryos of their beloved king managed to beat the statistical odds and survive to maturity without any obvious defects or deviations.
This news caused a wave of discord and discontent among the cabinet members as they tried to decide who should rule over Antar. Max and Zan observed the proceedings, but both were reluctant to step forward and act as king.
“We have to do something,” Max whispered to Zan.
“Hey, you’re the king,” said Zan. “You do it.”
“You’re forgetting something,” said Max. “We’re both the king and we can both rule Antar. For that matter, so could Liz, Isabel, Kyle, or any of the others.”
“Do they know that, yet?” Zan asked, inclining his head towards the cabinet members.
“I’m not sure, why?” asked Max.
“Well, for once, I have an idea. Just go along with me, okay?”
“Okay,” Max said, warily. He could only hope Zan’s idea didn’t include abdicating the throne in favor of him. He hadn’t yet had a chance to tell Zan and the others about his plan, and he couldn’t do anything until they all agreed to go along with it. Especially Zan.
A loud piercing whistle filled the chamber, and Max turned to find Zan, standing on top of the table, fingers in his mouth, poised to whistle again.
A second blast of Zan’s piercing whistle was unnecessary, as the cabinet members quieted down and looked questioningly at Zan.
“Listen up,” he shouted, his voice carrying to every corner of the room. “You guys are all trying to decide which one of us is going to rule Antar, but none of you have bothered to ask if either of us want to do it, or even if either of us is [/I]fit[/I] to rule.”
A shock wave rippled through the crowd as they absorbed the meaning of Zan’s words.
“What say you, Majesty, you do not wish to rule our world. Why then did you come back to fight for such a right?” questioned one of the cabinet members.
“We came back because no person should be forced to live under the rule of a tyrant such as Kivar!” shouted Max, joining Zan on top of the table. “As far as we’re concerned, our job is done. We all have lives on Earth.”
“How then, will we know who will rule us?” shouted another cabinet member.
“Why can’t the Granolith chose?” asked Zan. “Doesn’t Antarian history say that if there is no clear choice, then the Granolith will lead the people to their new king?”
“Kind of sword in the stone, isn’t it?” Max whispered to Zan.
“Yeah, well, I guess every world had it’s own Arthur type legend. I guess we’re going to be Antar’s, Zan whispered back.”
“Tonight at sunset, we shall adjourn to the Granolith chamber, and see who the Granolith chooses,” said Max.
The two men watched as the cabinet members filed out of the room, still discussing their choice of ruler amongst themselves. When the room was empty, save for Drinian and Kitana, they jumped down off of the table.
“Zan, I don’t get it, other than buying us some time, what good was that?” asked Max. “The Granolith is going to chose both of us. It already has.”
“No, it’s going to chose all nine of us,” said Zan, with a smile. “The others need to be in on this too. I want the people to see that they have a lot of options open to them at this point. It doesn’t have to be a ruling king, just because that’s the way it always has been.”
He turned to look at Drinian and Kitana. “No offense, Father, Mother,” he said. “I’m not saying having a king is wrong, but these cabinet dudes really need to chill. They were just freed from Kivar’s rule, and they are ready to subject themselves to another ruler, regardless of who he is, and what he believes in.”
“No offense is taken, Son,” said Drinian. “I believe you are thinking very clearly, and what you are saying makes sense. The old ways may be good, but there is nothing wrong with looking at things from a different perspective.”
Exactly,” said Zan. “And if I may impose on you and Mother, for a moment, I was wondering if you wouldn’t mind going to get the others and asking them to meet us in the throne room just before sunset?”
“We would be delighted, Zan,” said Drinian, taking Kitana’s arm. “It will be a great pleasure to walk freely around the palace again with my beloved wife.”
Max watched in silence until his Antarian parents left the room before turning to Zan.
“We have to talk,” he said to his brother. “It’s my turn to have an idea, and I want to know what you think.”
“Shoot,” said Zan, leaning back in one of the chairs that had been pushed away from the table. He leaned back in the chair and propped his feet up on the table. “What’s on you’re mind, bro?”
“You realize of course, that hundreds of long dead Antarian legislatures are turning over in their graves at the way we’ve treated this table,” said Max, sitting on the table, looking at Zan. “Anyhow, it’s about this king thing. I don’t want it, I don’t want to be a king, I’m not a king. Hell, I can barely take care of myself, never mind a planet.”
“Yeah, well, I don’t wanna do it either,” said Zan, but his tone lacked the conviction that Max’s had. “I’d make a crappy king.”
“No, you wouldn’t, and actually, when it comes right down to it, neither would I. The only difference is, you want it, and I don’t.”
“What about the others, what if one of them wants to stay?” asked Zan. “Or even Liz, what if Liz wants you to stay and rule?”
“I can pretty much guarantee you that Liz does not want to stay,” said Max. “And I’m pretty positive Isabel won’t either. That whole clone thing freaked her out more than she’ll ever admit, but I’m betting she can’t wait to get home and see Mom and Dad. I can’t speak for Kyle and Ava, or Michael and Maria, all we can do is ask them. But Zan, if you don’t want to do it, then don’t do it,” Max added, looking incredibly serious. “Don’t stay here out of some mistaken sense of obligation to a world you know nothing about. You can always come home with us. You heard Kyle. Dad’s ready to build you your own room.”
The two men laughed and continued to discuss the pros and cons of their plan until the shadows began to lengthen and the day began to draw to a close.
“Hey, your Majesties,” a voice called from the darkened doorway. “If you’re gonna go all king like and summon us, don’t you think you ought to be there when we do show up?”
“Shit,” said Zan. “Sorry Alex, we got to talking and kind of lost track of time.”
“I guess,” said Alex, entering the room. “You missed lunch and everything. Too bad, it was that pladyia crap you ate so much of at the Training Academy.”
“Damn,” said Zan, regretfully. “I really like that stuff.”
“Zan, hesitating to point out the obvious, but as a king, you can kind of ask for it any time you want,” Max said.
“True,” said Zan, brightening, visibly.
“Come on, we’d better get to the throne room before the rest of them come looking for us,” said Max.
“No chance of that,” said Alex. “They’re all having fun watching Kyle have fun pretending to be king. Good thing he doesn’t really want to stay and rule, or the entire planet would have to convert to Buddhism.”
“So, uh, Kyle doesn’t want to stay, and really be king then?” Zan asked, as casually as he could manage.
“Are you kidding?” asked Alex. “He is so ready to go home and get some Saturn Rings at the CrashDown, that it isn’t even funny.”
“Oh,” was the only thing that Zan said. He looked over at Max to see an almost smug smile of satisfaction on his face.
“Nobody likes a know it all, Max,” he whispered.
“Wanna clue me in, guys?” Alex said.
“No,” they replied in unison, stopping before the throne room door.
“Nice to see you’re developing a freaky twin thing,” said Alex. “Can you do it in front of Maria, it would totally freak her out.”
“Some best friend you are, Alex,” laughed Max. “We’ll see what we can do, okay?”
“Good enough,” said Alex. “Now, can we please get this self imposed summit of yours over with? I want to spend some time with my wife, you know.”
“That’s my sister you’re talking about,” said Max and Zan, again simultaneously.
“Beam me up, Scotty,” said Alex, rolling his eyes and pushing open the door. “Hey everybody, looks like our illustrious kings forgot all about their meeting.”
“Sorry,” said Max, rather unapologetically. “We were talking. Anyhow, I suppose you’re wondering why we brought you all here tonight,” he joked.
“Actually, I took the liberty of forcing your father to tell us, Max,” said Maria, cheerfully. “And we’re all on board with whatever we have to do to help with the king thing.”
“Actually there’s a bit more to it than that,” said Max. “I need to know where all of you stand about ruling Antar. Is anybody up for the job, or are you ready to head back home?”
“Max, I know I’ve said I’ll follow you anywhere,” said Liz. “But I don’t think I want to live here forever as a queen or whatever.”
“Mother, Father, I am so happy to find out that you’re alive, and I never want to not have you in my life,” said Isabel. “But I don’t belong here. Maybe Vilondra did, but Isabel Whitman belongs on Earth with her husband.”
“We understand, daughter,” said Kitana. “We shall never truly be separated again, as long as there is love in our hearts.”
“Ava and I have already talked about it,” said Kyle. “It’s totally her call. She knows that she is my life, and I’ll do whatever it is she needs me to do.”
Ava smiled at Kyle and reached out and slipped her small hand into his. “I agree with what Isabel said. Antar is a wonderful place, but it isn’t our home. Our home is on Earth.”
“Michael, what about you?” asked Max. “Do you think you’d want to stay and rule.”
“Hell no,” said Michael. “I’m not a ruler, I’m the General, remember. I was second in command for a reason. I don’t have the temperament to be a king. Besides, Maria has a real shot at a singing career back home. I’m going to do whatever I can to help her achieve it.”
“Now do you believe me?” Max asked, turning to Zan. He looked at the man he now called brother the man he once considered killing, then turned back to look at the others. “Zan wants to stay and rule. Anybody have a problem with that?”
Shouts and cheers of celebration filled the room as one by one, each of the group went up to congratulate Zan on his decision and to offer their support. Kitana had just hugged him, hugging him as only a mother can, when the door to the throne room opened again. A lone figure walked in and moved towards the small group.
“Plash Nevenia,” said Liz, moving towards the woman who had been both teacher and confidant to her. “I’m happy to know you survived the battle, and I am sorry I did not try and contact you. You have been nothing but kind and generous to me, and it was wrong of me not to seek you out to reassure myself that you hadn’t been hurt.”
“I am fine, Lan, or should I say Liz,” said Plash, smiling at her. “And I know you have been busy. It would have been easy for me to join you at the palace, especially since I can now reveal my true self.”
As she spoke, the woman’s features began to morph and change, as did her hair, changing from the short dark style she normally wore to a mop of blond curls.
“Dijanya,” whispered Drinian. “You are alive.”
He moved towards the woman, his face a mask of joy, only to be halted by a small gasp from Ava.
“Mother,” she whispered, as she slumped to the floor in a dead faint.
-
majiklmoon
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Chapter 78 added 11/1/04
Disclaimer: Roswell, and its characters do not belong to me. Melinda Metz, Jason Katims and 20th Century Fox have that particular pleasure. I’m simply borrowing them until the Season 2 DVD’s get released.
Chapter Seventy – Eight – Family Reunion
“Dijanya,” Kitana whispered, holding her hand up to her mouth. “My friend, you survived. I am so happy.”
Michael knelt on the ground helping Kyle support Ava. He looked up at the woman in front of him and stared.
“Is it true?” he asked, his voice catching. “Never mind,” he said. “I know it is. You look just like Ava.” His face darkened, and he turned back to Kyle. “Is she okay?” he asked, lowering his voice.
“Yeah, I think so,” Kyle whispered back. “I think it was just he shock. Ava, Ava, sweetie, wake up,” he said, turning his attention back to his wife. “Come on Ava, wake up.”
“Kyle?” Ava whispered. “I thought I saw,”
“You did,” Michael interrupted. “Come on. We have to get to the Granolith.” He and Kyle helped Ava to her feet, and Michael made sure she was steady before he moved over to where Maria stood open mouthed. He grabbed her hand and pulled her out of the room without another word.
“Well, that went well,” said Alex.
“Watch it, Whitman,” said Kyle, slipping his arm around Ava’s waist more securely. “I’m supposed to be the comic relief here, not you. Come on, Ava, let’s go make sure Michael’s all right.”
“Michael’s right,” said Max, addressing the rest of the room. We do need to get up there. We can straighten out the rest of this, later on. I’m sorry this is happening now,” he added, looking at the woman who claimed to be not only his aunt, but also the mother of his best friend. “We have another situation to deal with, and then we’ll get this straightened out, I promise. Mother, Father, are you coming with us.”
“Yes, Son,” said Drinian. “We will be along in a moment. You go on ahead.”
Max motioned to the others, and they walked out the door, following the path that Michael and the others took. Within minutes, they walked into the room that housed the base of the Granolith. The top of the Granolith exited out through an opening to tower above the palace.
“Majesty,” said one of the members of the royal senate. “We began to fear that you would not join us.”
“We said we’d be here, and we’re here, Nendron,” Max said in a cold hard voice. “Now, it seems to me that you are concerned about who is to rule Antar. We have something to show you.”
“Wait,” said a voice from the back of the room. “I want everyone to know I stand before any ruler that the Granolith chooses. I was foolish enough to turn my back on the power of the Granolith when I was young and foolish. It is a mistake I will never make again.”
The crowd gasped as Drinian pushed forward through the crowd, flanked by Kitana and Dijanya. He turned and surveyed the people crowding into the chamber.
“The Granolith will tell you the true ruler, and I want your solemn word that you will abide by its choice.”
“King Drinian!” shouted a man in the crowd. “It’s King Drinian and Queen Kitana, and Lady Dijanya. King Drinian has come back to rule over Antar again!”
“No I have not!” thundered Drinian. “Do you hear nothing, have you learned nothing from all of this? I willingly handed over the throne to my son, and now, to appease you, we will allow the Granolith to show you the true ruler. Max, Zan, whenever you are ready, you may begin.”
Max and the others took their positions surrounding the Granolith in the four square position, with Zan joining Max and Liz in their corner of the square. Almost at once, the Granolith began to pulse with light. It shot up from the base of the Granolith, shooting out of the top and coming down in columns of light, enveloping each person that stood in the corner.
As quickly as it had begun, the lights faded back into the Granolith and slowly down into its base. As one, Max and Zan stepped forward and faced the crowd.
“The Granolith has spoken,” they said. “And it has made its choice. We are all chosen as fit to rule Antar.”
“How can this be?” Nendron shouted. “How can the Granolith choose nine people to rule our world?”
“It doesn’t matter,” said Zan, speaking forcefully. “You agreed to abide by the decision of the Granolith, and the Granolith has shown that any one of us is fit to rule Antar. Now, if you will excuse us, ladies and gentlemen, we are going to visit with our families.”
Zan swept past the watching crowds, his expression almost haughty as he looked down his nose at them, almost daring any one of them to say anything. He winked at Max, who stepped out of the four square, along with Liz, and walked beside him out of the Granolith chamber.
The others fell in behind them, walking out in pairs, looking neither right, nor left. They simply took their cue from Zan, and walked from the room as if they owned it.
Once the door to the Granolith chamber closed behind them, Maria, then Ava exploded into laughter. It didn’t take long for the others to follow suit, and the nine friends stood in the hallway, holding on to each other for support as they laughed as if they’d never laughed before, or would again.
“Oh, my God,” snorted Ava, indelicately. “Did you see the looks on their faces when the Granolith did its laser light show?”
“That was great,” said Maria. “But not half as funny as Zan’s lord of the manor impression. I was just waiting for him to use the royal ‘We.’ I swear if he had done that, I would have lost it.”
“It was a bit extreme,” said Max. “But you pulled it off. Why didn’t you tell them that you were going to stay and rule though? We all agreed that if you wanted it, the job was yours. Does this mean you’re coming back with us, instead?” he added, hopefully.
“I don’t know,” Zan admitted. “After the news Michael and Ava got, I thought maybe they’d want to reconsider their decisions to stay. I mean since they have family here and all.”
“I’m not staying,” said Michael, his tone leaving no room for argument. “Maria is my family, and you guys are my family. I’m going back to Earth. Zan, I’ll miss you, man, but this place isn’t my home, and those people aren’t my family.”
He turned his back on the group and stared out the window at the two moons that were rising up over the horizon. Maria moved to stand next to him, and Michael slipped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her in close to him. No words were spoken, but the others could feel the healing love that flowed between Maria and Michael.
“Well,” hedged Ava. “I don’t know. Actually, I do know. I’m not a ruler. Maybe I’d consider staying here and visiting for a while, but I agree with Michael, this isn’t our home anymore, and I’m ready to go home for a while. The job is all yours, Zan. Have it with our blessings.”
She moved forward and hugged her friend tightly. “You’re gonna be a great king, Zan. You always were a leader.”
Chapter Seventy – Eight – Family Reunion
“Dijanya,” Kitana whispered, holding her hand up to her mouth. “My friend, you survived. I am so happy.”
Michael knelt on the ground helping Kyle support Ava. He looked up at the woman in front of him and stared.
“Is it true?” he asked, his voice catching. “Never mind,” he said. “I know it is. You look just like Ava.” His face darkened, and he turned back to Kyle. “Is she okay?” he asked, lowering his voice.
“Yeah, I think so,” Kyle whispered back. “I think it was just he shock. Ava, Ava, sweetie, wake up,” he said, turning his attention back to his wife. “Come on Ava, wake up.”
“Kyle?” Ava whispered. “I thought I saw,”
“You did,” Michael interrupted. “Come on. We have to get to the Granolith.” He and Kyle helped Ava to her feet, and Michael made sure she was steady before he moved over to where Maria stood open mouthed. He grabbed her hand and pulled her out of the room without another word.
“Well, that went well,” said Alex.
“Watch it, Whitman,” said Kyle, slipping his arm around Ava’s waist more securely. “I’m supposed to be the comic relief here, not you. Come on, Ava, let’s go make sure Michael’s all right.”
“Michael’s right,” said Max, addressing the rest of the room. We do need to get up there. We can straighten out the rest of this, later on. I’m sorry this is happening now,” he added, looking at the woman who claimed to be not only his aunt, but also the mother of his best friend. “We have another situation to deal with, and then we’ll get this straightened out, I promise. Mother, Father, are you coming with us.”
“Yes, Son,” said Drinian. “We will be along in a moment. You go on ahead.”
Max motioned to the others, and they walked out the door, following the path that Michael and the others took. Within minutes, they walked into the room that housed the base of the Granolith. The top of the Granolith exited out through an opening to tower above the palace.
“Majesty,” said one of the members of the royal senate. “We began to fear that you would not join us.”
“We said we’d be here, and we’re here, Nendron,” Max said in a cold hard voice. “Now, it seems to me that you are concerned about who is to rule Antar. We have something to show you.”
“Wait,” said a voice from the back of the room. “I want everyone to know I stand before any ruler that the Granolith chooses. I was foolish enough to turn my back on the power of the Granolith when I was young and foolish. It is a mistake I will never make again.”
The crowd gasped as Drinian pushed forward through the crowd, flanked by Kitana and Dijanya. He turned and surveyed the people crowding into the chamber.
“The Granolith will tell you the true ruler, and I want your solemn word that you will abide by its choice.”
“King Drinian!” shouted a man in the crowd. “It’s King Drinian and Queen Kitana, and Lady Dijanya. King Drinian has come back to rule over Antar again!”
“No I have not!” thundered Drinian. “Do you hear nothing, have you learned nothing from all of this? I willingly handed over the throne to my son, and now, to appease you, we will allow the Granolith to show you the true ruler. Max, Zan, whenever you are ready, you may begin.”
Max and the others took their positions surrounding the Granolith in the four square position, with Zan joining Max and Liz in their corner of the square. Almost at once, the Granolith began to pulse with light. It shot up from the base of the Granolith, shooting out of the top and coming down in columns of light, enveloping each person that stood in the corner.
As quickly as it had begun, the lights faded back into the Granolith and slowly down into its base. As one, Max and Zan stepped forward and faced the crowd.
“The Granolith has spoken,” they said. “And it has made its choice. We are all chosen as fit to rule Antar.”
“How can this be?” Nendron shouted. “How can the Granolith choose nine people to rule our world?”
“It doesn’t matter,” said Zan, speaking forcefully. “You agreed to abide by the decision of the Granolith, and the Granolith has shown that any one of us is fit to rule Antar. Now, if you will excuse us, ladies and gentlemen, we are going to visit with our families.”
Zan swept past the watching crowds, his expression almost haughty as he looked down his nose at them, almost daring any one of them to say anything. He winked at Max, who stepped out of the four square, along with Liz, and walked beside him out of the Granolith chamber.
The others fell in behind them, walking out in pairs, looking neither right, nor left. They simply took their cue from Zan, and walked from the room as if they owned it.
Once the door to the Granolith chamber closed behind them, Maria, then Ava exploded into laughter. It didn’t take long for the others to follow suit, and the nine friends stood in the hallway, holding on to each other for support as they laughed as if they’d never laughed before, or would again.
“Oh, my God,” snorted Ava, indelicately. “Did you see the looks on their faces when the Granolith did its laser light show?”
“That was great,” said Maria. “But not half as funny as Zan’s lord of the manor impression. I was just waiting for him to use the royal ‘We.’ I swear if he had done that, I would have lost it.”
“It was a bit extreme,” said Max. “But you pulled it off. Why didn’t you tell them that you were going to stay and rule though? We all agreed that if you wanted it, the job was yours. Does this mean you’re coming back with us, instead?” he added, hopefully.
“I don’t know,” Zan admitted. “After the news Michael and Ava got, I thought maybe they’d want to reconsider their decisions to stay. I mean since they have family here and all.”
“I’m not staying,” said Michael, his tone leaving no room for argument. “Maria is my family, and you guys are my family. I’m going back to Earth. Zan, I’ll miss you, man, but this place isn’t my home, and those people aren’t my family.”
He turned his back on the group and stared out the window at the two moons that were rising up over the horizon. Maria moved to stand next to him, and Michael slipped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her in close to him. No words were spoken, but the others could feel the healing love that flowed between Maria and Michael.
“Well,” hedged Ava. “I don’t know. Actually, I do know. I’m not a ruler. Maybe I’d consider staying here and visiting for a while, but I agree with Michael, this isn’t our home anymore, and I’m ready to go home for a while. The job is all yours, Zan. Have it with our blessings.”
She moved forward and hugged her friend tightly. “You’re gonna be a great king, Zan. You always were a leader.”
-
majiklmoon
- Addicted Roswellian
- Posts: 361
- Joined: Tue Nov 13, 2001 10:55 am
- Contact:
chapter 79 added 11/2/04
Disclaimer: Roswell, and its characters do not belong to me. Melinda Metz, Jason Katims and 20th Century Fox have that particular pleasure. I’m simply borrowing them until the Season 2 DVD’s get released.
Chapter Seventy – Nine – Intervention
Michael walked through the echoing halls of the palace, ignoring the beautiful artwork that would have, at one time, fascinated him. Instead, he looked blankly ahead, his mind focused completely on the events of the past couple of days.
He continued his journey down the hall, unaware of the footsteps that dogged his every move. He was unaware that is, until two sets of hands reached out and grabbed him and pulled him into an empty room.
“What the hell is you’re problem, Guerin?” shouted Alex. “You have personally turned one of my best friends into an emotional wreck.”
“Not to mention the pain you are causing my wife you egomaniacal, insufferable bastard!” shouted Kyle, pushing Michael against a wall. “I do not give a rats ass about the emotional pain I’m feeling pouring off of you right now. The only thing I care about is the fact that my wife is in our room, crying her eyes out, afraid to get to know her mother, because she is worried that it will upset you even more!”
“Not to mention your wife. Maria!” shouted Alex. “Yeah, remember her? She’s having a total freak fest over the way you’re acting. Jesus, Guerin, you’ve been moaning about your lack of family since you met Maria, and now, when you get a Mother handed to you on a silver platter, you turn your back on her. She’s worried that all that crap you gave her about her being your family is just that, a load of crap. You better do something about it, and fast, because Liz and Isabel are totally freaked, trying to keep her and Ava calm!”
“What the hell do you know about any of it!” shouted Michael. “Both of you have had perfect lives. You have no idea of what I went through!”
“Right, because having your mother walk out on you when you’re just a kid is perfect,” said Kyle in a sarcastic voice. “Oh boo hoo, poor Michael Guerin grew up in foster homes. His life is so tragic, let’s have pity party for him.”
“Let me go, Kyle, or I will kill you,” said Michael, his voice deceptively calm.
“Go ahead, do it,” said Kyle, purposely goading Michael. “At least if I’m dead, I’ll be spared the pain of watching you wallow in self pity.”
Behind Michael, an ornate vase exploded, sending shards of crystal flying across the room.
“What’s the matter?” asked Alex, “Is the mighty general losing his cool? Making things go boom. Poor Michael. He can’t handle the pressure, can he?”
There was a loud bang as a chair flew across the room and crashed into a wall. The impact was so hard that the chair bounced off the wall and slid several feet back into the center of the room.
“Shut up,” Michael ground out between clenched teeth, “Or that’s going to be you.”
“What?” laughed Alex. “You don’t think we’re afraid of you, the emotional cripple? Right, because you’re so freaking scary. You forget, we can block anything you can throw at us.”
“Oh yeah!” shouted Michael, pushing Kyle away and throwing up his arm. “Let’s see you block this!”
He fired a bolt of energy at Alex, but it bounced harmlessly off of the shield that Alex had thrown around him.
“That the best you can do?” asked Kyle, purposely taunting him. “Come on, let me have it.”
Michael spun around to face Kyle who had moved across the room when his attention was focused on Alex and fired an energy bolt at him. Again, it bounced harmlessly off of the shield that Kyle created with his powers.
“Look Buddha boy, I don’t know what the hell your problem is, or yours either Alex, but I want the two of you to leave me the fuck alone,” said Michael, clearly enunciating each word so that there would be no doubt that Kyle and Alex understood his meaning. “I want to be alone. Don’t you get it?”
“No, it’s you that doesn’t get it, Michael,” said Alex, moving closer to his friend. “You’re doing it again, your shutting everybody out, including the three people who love you more than anything else.”
“He’s right, Michael,” said Kyle, his voice calm now. “Maria’s falling apart, and so is Ava, and your mother doesn’t know what to do. She’s planning on leaving the palace so that you won’t have to see her again.”
“What!” yelled Michael. “The hell she is. There is no way I’m letting her abandon Ava and I again!”
He pushed past Kyle and Alex and stormed out the door and down the hall.
“Wow,” said Alex. “That was close. I didn’t think it was going to work.”
“Of course it was going to work,” said Kyle, smiling smugly. “I’m surprised even you couldn’t feel the suppressed emotions pouring off of him. He was just waiting to explode.”
“So of course, you decided that the best thing to do was get him mad at us and explode and possibly kill us?” asked Alex.
“Well, yeah,” said Kyle as the two walked to the door. “I mean, after all, we are perfectly capable of protect…uhhhh!” he said as a fist connected with his chin as he and Alex walked out the door.
“What the?” shouted Alex, only to be punched in the nose by the same fist.
Michael looked down at his two friends, now lying unconscious on the floor.
“Jerks,” he said. “I knew what you were doing all along.” He turned and jogged down the hall, searching his memory for the location of the rooms his family used when they stayed at the palace.
______________________________________________
Michael found the rooms, and pushed the door open without knocking. His mother sat on a chair staring blankly into the empty room.
“So, I hear you’re leaving,” he said.
“It seems to be the best thing to do,” said Dijanya, her eyes bright with unshed tears. “My being here is doing nothing but causing you pain. I don’t want that, so it’s best that I leave.”
“What about Ava?” demanded Michael. “Have you thought about how your leaving will effect her?”
“It might,’ said Dijanya, but not as much as the pain you’re feeling does.
“You are incredibly selfish,” said Michael heatedly. “But then again, so am I,” he added, the fight leaving his voice. “Why?” he asked. He moved closer to where his mother sat. “Why didn’t you let anyone know you were alive. If you had told Che’koth, I mean Drinian, he could have let us know. Didn’t you think we deserved to know?” he asked plaintively, his tone of voice sounding more like a wounded child than that of a mighty warrior.
“Maybe I should have,” admitted Dijanya. “But I feared for your lives, as well as my own. Nobody thought I was alive, and I was afraid to confide in anybody. I wasn’t certain who I could trust. I didn’t even realize that Drinian was Che’koth. You don’t understand, my son, what it was like, having to hide who I was for so long.”
“You’re kidding, right?” Michael asked, incredulously. I have no idea what it’s like to hide who you really are? You have got to be kidding me. I spent most of my life hiding who I was, so yeah, I think I have a clue as to how hard you had it.”
“You’re right,” said Dijanya. “I have never been very trusting. I’ve always held a part of myself back from people. It’s funny, you look so much like your father, but you are so similar to me inside. I have no excuse, I can only ask you to forgive me, my son.”
Michael knelt down on the floor next to his mother and looked into he face that was so similar to Ava’s. He looked into her eyes and saw the pain that she felt. The same pain he saw when he looked at himself in the mirror.
“Maybe we’d better talk,” he said.
Chapter Seventy – Nine – Intervention
Michael walked through the echoing halls of the palace, ignoring the beautiful artwork that would have, at one time, fascinated him. Instead, he looked blankly ahead, his mind focused completely on the events of the past couple of days.
He continued his journey down the hall, unaware of the footsteps that dogged his every move. He was unaware that is, until two sets of hands reached out and grabbed him and pulled him into an empty room.
“What the hell is you’re problem, Guerin?” shouted Alex. “You have personally turned one of my best friends into an emotional wreck.”
“Not to mention the pain you are causing my wife you egomaniacal, insufferable bastard!” shouted Kyle, pushing Michael against a wall. “I do not give a rats ass about the emotional pain I’m feeling pouring off of you right now. The only thing I care about is the fact that my wife is in our room, crying her eyes out, afraid to get to know her mother, because she is worried that it will upset you even more!”
“Not to mention your wife. Maria!” shouted Alex. “Yeah, remember her? She’s having a total freak fest over the way you’re acting. Jesus, Guerin, you’ve been moaning about your lack of family since you met Maria, and now, when you get a Mother handed to you on a silver platter, you turn your back on her. She’s worried that all that crap you gave her about her being your family is just that, a load of crap. You better do something about it, and fast, because Liz and Isabel are totally freaked, trying to keep her and Ava calm!”
“What the hell do you know about any of it!” shouted Michael. “Both of you have had perfect lives. You have no idea of what I went through!”
“Right, because having your mother walk out on you when you’re just a kid is perfect,” said Kyle in a sarcastic voice. “Oh boo hoo, poor Michael Guerin grew up in foster homes. His life is so tragic, let’s have pity party for him.”
“Let me go, Kyle, or I will kill you,” said Michael, his voice deceptively calm.
“Go ahead, do it,” said Kyle, purposely goading Michael. “At least if I’m dead, I’ll be spared the pain of watching you wallow in self pity.”
Behind Michael, an ornate vase exploded, sending shards of crystal flying across the room.
“What’s the matter?” asked Alex, “Is the mighty general losing his cool? Making things go boom. Poor Michael. He can’t handle the pressure, can he?”
There was a loud bang as a chair flew across the room and crashed into a wall. The impact was so hard that the chair bounced off the wall and slid several feet back into the center of the room.
“Shut up,” Michael ground out between clenched teeth, “Or that’s going to be you.”
“What?” laughed Alex. “You don’t think we’re afraid of you, the emotional cripple? Right, because you’re so freaking scary. You forget, we can block anything you can throw at us.”
“Oh yeah!” shouted Michael, pushing Kyle away and throwing up his arm. “Let’s see you block this!”
He fired a bolt of energy at Alex, but it bounced harmlessly off of the shield that Alex had thrown around him.
“That the best you can do?” asked Kyle, purposely taunting him. “Come on, let me have it.”
Michael spun around to face Kyle who had moved across the room when his attention was focused on Alex and fired an energy bolt at him. Again, it bounced harmlessly off of the shield that Kyle created with his powers.
“Look Buddha boy, I don’t know what the hell your problem is, or yours either Alex, but I want the two of you to leave me the fuck alone,” said Michael, clearly enunciating each word so that there would be no doubt that Kyle and Alex understood his meaning. “I want to be alone. Don’t you get it?”
“No, it’s you that doesn’t get it, Michael,” said Alex, moving closer to his friend. “You’re doing it again, your shutting everybody out, including the three people who love you more than anything else.”
“He’s right, Michael,” said Kyle, his voice calm now. “Maria’s falling apart, and so is Ava, and your mother doesn’t know what to do. She’s planning on leaving the palace so that you won’t have to see her again.”
“What!” yelled Michael. “The hell she is. There is no way I’m letting her abandon Ava and I again!”
He pushed past Kyle and Alex and stormed out the door and down the hall.
“Wow,” said Alex. “That was close. I didn’t think it was going to work.”
“Of course it was going to work,” said Kyle, smiling smugly. “I’m surprised even you couldn’t feel the suppressed emotions pouring off of him. He was just waiting to explode.”
“So of course, you decided that the best thing to do was get him mad at us and explode and possibly kill us?” asked Alex.
“Well, yeah,” said Kyle as the two walked to the door. “I mean, after all, we are perfectly capable of protect…uhhhh!” he said as a fist connected with his chin as he and Alex walked out the door.
“What the?” shouted Alex, only to be punched in the nose by the same fist.
Michael looked down at his two friends, now lying unconscious on the floor.
“Jerks,” he said. “I knew what you were doing all along.” He turned and jogged down the hall, searching his memory for the location of the rooms his family used when they stayed at the palace.
______________________________________________
Michael found the rooms, and pushed the door open without knocking. His mother sat on a chair staring blankly into the empty room.
“So, I hear you’re leaving,” he said.
“It seems to be the best thing to do,” said Dijanya, her eyes bright with unshed tears. “My being here is doing nothing but causing you pain. I don’t want that, so it’s best that I leave.”
“What about Ava?” demanded Michael. “Have you thought about how your leaving will effect her?”
“It might,’ said Dijanya, but not as much as the pain you’re feeling does.
“You are incredibly selfish,” said Michael heatedly. “But then again, so am I,” he added, the fight leaving his voice. “Why?” he asked. He moved closer to where his mother sat. “Why didn’t you let anyone know you were alive. If you had told Che’koth, I mean Drinian, he could have let us know. Didn’t you think we deserved to know?” he asked plaintively, his tone of voice sounding more like a wounded child than that of a mighty warrior.
“Maybe I should have,” admitted Dijanya. “But I feared for your lives, as well as my own. Nobody thought I was alive, and I was afraid to confide in anybody. I wasn’t certain who I could trust. I didn’t even realize that Drinian was Che’koth. You don’t understand, my son, what it was like, having to hide who I was for so long.”
“You’re kidding, right?” Michael asked, incredulously. I have no idea what it’s like to hide who you really are? You have got to be kidding me. I spent most of my life hiding who I was, so yeah, I think I have a clue as to how hard you had it.”
“You’re right,” said Dijanya. “I have never been very trusting. I’ve always held a part of myself back from people. It’s funny, you look so much like your father, but you are so similar to me inside. I have no excuse, I can only ask you to forgive me, my son.”
Michael knelt down on the floor next to his mother and looked into he face that was so similar to Ava’s. He looked into her eyes and saw the pain that she felt. The same pain he saw when he looked at himself in the mirror.
“Maybe we’d better talk,” he said.