AN: Hey guys, you haven't forgotten this fic yay! lol. Thanks for the feedback and encouragement. I don't know how much this next part will explain, but here goes...
PREVIOUSLY
“How is Liz?” asked Isabel. She liked her brother’s future wife, she had dream walked her a few times when she found out who she was and then actually having spent time with her when they’d had to deal with Khivar and the virus - Isabel had long ago decided that Liz Parker-Evans, was perfect for her brother. As long as Zan didn’t interfere and got around to breaking his connection with Liz, things would be fine.
“Alive,” Zan replied.
“Good. We’re all caught up now. What’s the status on that rat-bag?” demanded Rath.
“Said rat-bag is scheduled to meet with Sean for the drop in an hour and thirty,” Isabel informed.
“Brief us on the op on the way, let’s get this thing done,” responded Zan.
She nodded, opening the doors with her powers for them. That’s what she loved about being with people like her; she could openly use her powers recreationally.
****
9.
Now, no matter where I am
No matter what I do
I see your face appearing
Like an unexpected song
- Sarah Brightman - The unexpected song
The drive to the meeting point had been occupied with Sean D rubbing his hand on her thigh and regaling her with all the disgustingly creative things he would have done to her if not for Khivar. To be honest, Liz would have preferred torture from the devil she knew. She didn’t doubt that if given the opportunity, she could goad Sean to killing her quickly. Khivar was a wild card, an unknown player. He had no appeal whatsoever to her sense of hope.
Sean’s tongue licked her cheek. She flinched away from him staring anywhere but in the car. There was no one in here to help her; psycho A.J. pinned her in on the other side, Tess was driving and Steve? Was in the front passenger seat. Max was in the other car, but even if he’d been in this one, he couldn’t help her. He wasn’t Max Evans anymore, but Kane.
“Aww baby, you’re not afraid of me are you?”, his voice dribbled with mock concern.
This time, Liz angled her head and met his sharp leering eyes. She idly concluded that if given the chance, she would have no problem putting a bullet through his head.
“If I told you I wasn’t, you’d know I’d be lying,” she replied.
“You bet I would.” His fingers reached out for some part of her face, she flinched away before he made contact her expression conveying her extreme revulsion. Sean merely laughed. “Don’t worry; I won’t taint you any further. Even though I’d love to.”
“Khivar’s orders?” she couldn’t help but ask.
“Part of the deal,” he enigmatically replied.
“What are you getting for me?” she asked curious to know as much as possible about her new bad guy.
“Christmas has come early for me, I’ll say that. Now, let’s get back to my fantasy of torture huh?”.
Liz leaned back into her seat and stared straight ahead. The wish that her father couldn’t hear everything Sean was now gruesomely describing to her was futile. The virtually undetectable transmitter planted on her right breast was communicating everything to them. If it was found on her person - which according to their tech guy was almost impossible - she was as good as dead.
At least that death would be quick, she mused, and it’s the best out of a bad bunch of ways to die options.
By the time they arrived at the drop point, the tactical team would be in place ready to…well do whatever they had to.
Although Liz was confident they knew what they were doing, she had a gut feeling that things were going to go wrong.
Or maybe, it was just because she was scared.
****
Both groups pulled up at the same time, cars coming to a halt a safe distance away from each other.
Michael activated his earpiece. “Base Ops, this is Eagle 1. The vultures have arrived.”
“Copy, Eagle 1. Proceed as planned; let’s get this show on the road.”
Michael would be more than glad to put the adrenaline pulsating within his vessels to physical use, but he had to maintain position, like the rest of his team. For now, using Alex’s newly improved rad-comm- x-ray binoculars, he watched Sean, A.J, Steve and Tess emerge from one car. They all appeared not to be packing, but he knew better. All of them were loaded.
The other car unloaded, he verified Max, but Liz hadn’t made her appearance yet. He guessed that as the bonus, she was under their protection, Sean D’s bargaining chip with Khivar if he decided to screw him.
Liz Parker’s sudden involvement in the operation was a pain in the ass, in Michael’s opinion. He had Jeff Parker monitoring his team’s every move, not to mention her crazy chick friend of hers had threatened to hunt him down even if he was CIA and wring out his balls if he didn’t do his best to get her friend out safe.
It was a tense minute, before the rest of Khivar’s team unloaded from the second car, which included Khivar himself.
“Doug, got his image?” Michael asked.
“Affirmative, the sucker is caught on candid. Uploading it to Alex.”
“Got it,” Alex confirmed a few seconds later. “Starting scan now.”
“Good”, Michael responded. They now had a face to the name and would run it through all known databases. Khivar might be in line of a long list of aliases this guy had, because there was no way, someone who did business with Sean D, was invisible. He had to have popped up somewhere else. These guys were underground filth dressed up in fancy suits.
****
“Isabel, do you know what your bro is up to right now?”, Zan asked staring at the image of his dupe on screen.
“I told you, he doesn’t tell me. I don’t ask,” she replied.
“You should have ‘cuz he’s here,” Lonnie supplied.
“What?!”. Isabel abandoned her lap top and crossed over to the surveillance screen they had set up. “Damn it Max!”.
“Khivar must know,” said Zan.
“Tess is there, they must have planned this,” added Rath.
“Get the diamonds and kill my dupe at the same time,” Zan mused. It was a good plan. A damn good one at that.
“You need to find out what op is going down there, who’s in charge and get some control,” he ordered Isabel.
“On it,” she nodded and walking away from them, flipped on her cell and went to work on her laptop.
He knew she would be, her brother’s life as well as the future welfare of two worlds was at stake.
“Plan still sticks?” asked Rath.
Heads turned towards him, soldiers waiting for orders from their leader.
“Keep Max safe, take out Tess along with Khivar,” Zan told them. “If there’s another team out there from the human side, they’re as good as dead unless Iz can get them to back off. We’ll use Ava on the survivors. Get ready.”
And with that, he left them in search of a private place. He needed time, no matter how minimal to control the jittery feeling coursing through his nervous system. It had been driving him crazy ever since they’d arrived at the meet point. He didn’t have time to delve too deep into its significance; he focused on pushing it aside and getting his head back in the game.
****
The two groups advanced on each other to the central meeting point.
“All teams on alert. No screw ups, no twitchy fingers,” Michael warned, even though he had hand picked his team, “this gets done fast. The Dove is priority one.”
A series of ‘copy’s’ echoed through his comm. link. Every one knew what was at stake here. They all knew or had worked with Max, they’d have his back and they all wanted to bring Sean D down.
****
“Yo Zan.”
Rath’s call drew him back to the hive of activity.
“What?”.
“The connection with you and Liz, it’s intense right?”.
“Right.”
What did Liz have to do with anything right now?
“Does it get stronger with proximity?” he asked.
“Bro, you know it does,” Zan answered more than irritated by his Second’s irrelevant questioning.
“Just wondering why you ain’t feeling her now.”
Irritation vanished and daunting clarity emerged. “What?”.
Rath glanced at him and then pointed to the screen, his tone grim. “She’s here.”
Not willing to believe that his luck could be that bad, Zan sought the surveillance screen for proof. It was there, in living colour.
He bit back the slew of curse words that threatened to spill out. Max had a firm grip on her arm and was leading her to Khivar.
“This is a problem.”
“It’s fucking big problem. What the hell is going on Duke?” asked Rath.
“Max is on a black ops mission to bring in Sean D,” Isabel explained. “Looks like two black op departments just crossed paths,” she added wryly.
“Did you tell them to stand down?” Zan asked. “They can’t handle this.”
“They think they can. They don’t know Khivar’s an alien,” she responded.
“They will soon,” he told her grimly, “he’s not going to let them all live. This is going to get very messy.”
“I’ll see what more I can do on my end,” Isabel offered.
Zan ran tense fingers through his hair as he turned back to study the screen. Things had suddenly escalated to a critical point none of them expected. “Turn up the audio on this.”
Khivar really had this plan tight, but how did he manage to get Liz? He wondered. And how could his dupe just hand her over to him? Didn’t he feel that desperate need to protect her? To cherish her? Even if he didn’t remember their past lives, their chemistry always took care of that.
“Ah, Elizabeth,” Khivar’s voice sounded loud and clear.
Zan didn’t even notice the energy jolt he sent into the earth as he watched his enemy reach out for his Queen. “I’m going to kill him.”
****
“How nice to see you again.”
Liz frantically searched her memory for recognition but found none. She didn’t know who this guy was, but he seemed to know her. There was something bout him that made her blood run cold, she didn’t want him anywhere near her, so she stayed very still and very silent in his iron clad grip. He tilted her chin up and somehow forced her to raise her eyes to meet his. He stared into them, stripping her of any sense of security, then he smiled and still holding on to her, stepped back.
“Ava did a good job. You don’t remember a thing do you?”.
“I have a feeling if you were involved, I wouldn’t want to remember,” she retorted.
The words came out unvested, as usual, talking made her feel less likely to scream or cry.
“Hate to break up the reunion, but I’ve got places to go,” interrupted Sean.
Khivar didn’t even look at him; his eyes were still fixed on her. “This won’t take too long.”
She was relieved when his attention shifted to Max, she could finally breathe. “And you, enjoying your human life, working for its government instead of fighting for your own.”
Guns that had been tucked away were now pointed at Max.
“What’s he talking about Kane?”, asked Sean with lethal calm.
“Not Kane,” Khivar corrected with obvious pleasure, “Special Agent Max Evans, black ops CIA”.
****
“Eagle 1 to Base Ops, he’s been made, we’ve got to extract him.”
“Not yet-”
“Sir, we don’t get him out of there now, they’ll blow his head off.”
“Agent-”
“Michael is that you?” interrupted a familiar voice.
“Isabel?”, he asked surprised.
What was she doing interrupting a secure channel?
“Listen. I don’t have much time; you have to trust me on this. You’re about to see some strange things, Sean D and his buds are as good as dead, just have your men protect Max and Liz, when the time comes okay?”
“Isabel-”
“Michael. I will explain everything, but do what I say now. Max’s life is at stake and Liz is- you don’t know how important she is. We need her alive.”
This was Isabel, Max’s sister. She was family to him. Family who had a desk job somewhere safe. Or so he had thought.
“Who do you work for?” he asked.
“The same people you do. Do you trust me?”.
“You’re Max’s sister.”
“Then do this.”
She wasn’t asking him to do something he wouldn’t do in the first place.
“Okay.”
****
“You’re fucking CIA?!”, Sean boomed. “You’re dead.”
Max knew didn’t doubt that he could die, but it wasn’t on his list of things to do especially with Liz here. He had to get her- get them both out of this mess and he had to do it fast, but had no idea how.
“You really should have stricter screening controls Sean,” chided Khivar. “Tess?”.
Tess, diamonds in hand, walked over the divide and joined Khivar.
“Fuck!”, supplied A.J. at the obvious betrayal.
“She works for me,” Khivar proudly told them.
Max was somewhat relieved when the guns previously trained on him, rounded on Khivar and his crew. Instead of panicking or responding alike, Khivar motioned his hands in a placating motion.
“Relax,” he signalled for the two cases of cash, already given the green by Sean, to be handed over. “I’m not about to screw you Sean, Tess was planted for other reasons.”
Max had a sinking feeling that he was the reason, but wanted it verified. “What reasons?” he asked.
Tess smiled at him, her eyes a colder blue than usual. “To screw you and kill you. But then, we stumbled across your Queen and couldn’t pass it up. I’ve fucked you, then you’ve fucked- or maybe raped her if it wasn’t consensual- the chemistry, you probably couldn’t help yourself. Then to top it off, you hand her over to your enemy.”
The world was spinning around and not making a whole lot of sense to him. Why would they think Liz was a Queen? And chemistry? Was he that obvious?!
“You don’t remember me,” Khivar picked up from Tess, “You don’t remember Antar, your planet or why you should be hating me right now, which is fine with me. Because when you do remember,” he jerked Liz flush against him. Max instinctively advanced on him, but backed down at the selection of guns aimed his way.
“See, still you want to protect her, but don’t even know why. Am I right?”.
His clenched jaw wouldn’t permit him to speak.
“You will,” nodded Khivar knowledgeably. “I won’t be there when you do, but I can just imagine the regret, the guilt and anguish will eat you alive.”
Liz wanted to turn and run, to kick and scream when his arms came around her waist and his eyes and hands slithered all over her body, but she couldn’t. She literally couldn’t command her muscles to move. There was something about his eyes, in the way Khivar looked at her that pulled at her memory.
“You are worth the wait and the frustration,” he told her. “You’ll definitely breed well.”
The thought of his hands and mouth greedily reaching for her, fired up her blood. She moved towards, not away from him. Her eyes narrowed to slits. “Anyone who refers to me breeding, like a horse, needs to go back to the middle ages. I will never breed with you.”
To her revulsion, he was turned on by her anger; she could see it in his eyes. That and something else. It only lasted for a few seconds, but she had seen it. His eyes; cornea, pupil, iris- all turned a mesmerizing and shimmering black.
Then the memory came- not a memory per se, but retrieved knowledge. Breaking out of his grasp, she stepped away from him. “You’re an alien.”
The words sounded strange but familiar, as if she had uttered them before in another place, another time but they’d been as true then as they were now.
Khivar was an alien.
“So are you, so is he and, so is she,” he confirmed.
Liz surveyed his crew and knew. “So are they.”
The bolt was brilliantly blinding and caused her to jump back. The source was multiple- three to be exact. Their entrance demanded a pause of other worldly silence and then all hell broke loose.
****
Michael couldn’t believe what he was seeing, but it had been verified. There was a person who looked like Max, one who looked like him and another who looked like Isabel exchanging…energy bolts with Khivar and his men.
What the hell was going on? Clones? Some new experimental weapons?
He didn’t know and was determined to get answers from Isabel once this thing was over. It was chaos, but one thing was clear, who the good and bad guys were.
“All teams move in and stay out of the way of those bolts. Do not deviate from the mission. I repeat, do not deviate from the mission,” ordered Michael as he led his team into action.
****
Bullets were whizzing past, energy bolts found targets or were deflected. Liz felt like she was in a war zone. She’d gotten free of Khivar during the momentary confusion and had somehow managed to shield herself behind one of the cars, but the madness was reaching her there too.
She nearly screamed when someone crouched down next to her.
“Max!”
There were two of him now, her mind reminded her. One was…it had to be Zan.
“We need to get out of here.”
He seemed calm and controlled. She supposed he was used to this.
“Like soon,” she agreed.
She watched as he raised his head and scanned the area before crouching back down to her.
“We’ve got to move fast. Whatever happens, just follow my lead. The goal is the warehouse behind Sean D’s cars okay?”.
No it was okay, none of it was okay, but there was nothing she could about it except survive.
“Okay.”
“On the count of three. One, two, three!”.
Liz had expected him to let go of her hand, but at the count of two he had grabbed a hold of it and at three, pulled her with him. She ignored the noise all around her, her one focus was on the building which offered shelter and safety.
Which was why she had no idea whose camp the bullet that pierced her abdomen came from. She felt its impact, but didn’t stop running. She pressed her hand against the wound and kept up with Max until they paused behind a car.
“You okay?” he asked her.
“Yeah.”
He looked at her, and then did a double-take at her hand covering her stomach.
“It’s just a scratch,” she lied.
Praying that he would buy the sincerity she forced into her eyes.
He held her gaze for a breathless moment before turning his focus back to assessing their chances. When she was sure that he wouldn’t look down at her, Liz eased her hand away, the wound was staining her shirt in dark red and it didn’t seem to be stopping. She covered it back up with her hand.
“You ready?” Max asked.
She looked up relieved to see that he wasn’t looking at her. “Yeah,” she replied.
He crouched down next to her. “Just like before, on the count of three.”
“Got it.”
“One, two…”
****
Zan saw Max escape with Liz into the warehouse. His relief at her safety was short-lived when he saw Khivar and Nicholas follow them. His dupe was powerless against them; Liz was wounded and didn’t have her memory back. She couldn’t access her powers.
Damn it, he hadn’t gone through all of this just to have her die due to some fluke.
“Rath!”.
His second didn’t even have to ask for an explanation. He just nodded. “I’ll cover you. Go keep her safe!”.
****
TBC
You've Got To Be Kidding,(M/L,MATURE), AN,, 20 Jul [WIP]
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AN: Hey everyone, I'm back with a new update that as usual has more questions than answers, so enjoy...
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Thanks for the bumps and feedback guys, I should be clearing a few questions up in the next update.
PREVIOUSLY
****
Zan saw Max escape with Liz into the warehouse. His relief at her safety was short-lived when he saw Khivar and Nicholas follow them. His dupe was powerless against them; Liz was wounded and didn’t have her memory back. She couldn’t access her powers.
Damn it, he hadn’t gone through all of this just to have her die due to some fluke.
“Rath!”.
His second didn’t even have to ask for an explanation. He just nodded. “I’ll cover you. Go keep her safe!”.
****
10.
And there's a reason why I keep my distance
Don't think you're gonna understand
This is the last thing that I need right now
And I am trying not to want to hurt him
Trying not to start this up again
- Diana Anaid - Last Thing
The warehouse softly illuminated with filtered light from the dusty windows, was a maze of large rooms with metal doors and old abandoned machinery that was home to a desert of rust. Max was leading them around by instinct and the uncharacteristic blind panic of utter bewilderment. His mind couldn’t process, couldn’t compute the events that had led to him and Liz running for their lives, not from Sean D, he wished it was from Sean D, but from two…non humans?
The energy bolts that Khivar and his other lackey had sent his way was enough to push through the shock of denial his mind wanted to revert to.
He came to an abrupt halt that had Liz slamming into his back. He hesitated long enough to work out their chances and then dragged her along with him into one of the rooms. He immediately got to work on creating a barricade . Thankfully, the door’s locks were in working order after some encouragement, so that a big iron slab bolt and a large metal door, kept them relatively safe from their pursuers.
At least it would give them enough time to find another way to escape.
He heard a sudden thud behind him and whirled around to find Liz on the ground.
“Liz?”.
****
The seconds before he uncovered the secret she was hiding beneath her hand, he had thought she was exhausted or had just fainted from stress and shock. When he found the wound, he wished it had been any of the reasons he had thought about. She had lost a lot of blood, the area around the wound was soaked. He lifted her top up to view the damage.
Compartmentalise Max, that’s what you do. She’s just a job.
He took off his jacket, bunched up in one hand while his other hand rested on her pale and clammy forehead.
“I’ll just apply pressure to the wound.” He tried to keep emotion out of his voice, he desperately wished for the detachment he was well versed in exercising, but her eyes, her whole expression, so accepting, broke him.
“To stop the bleeding,” he added. “Why didn’t you tell me?”.
She smiled and it came out more like a grimace. “What, when we were running for our lives? There’s nothing you can do. You don’t remember.”
Her words echoed those of Khivar’s but her tone wasn’t taunting or in any way bitter and that meant a lot because somehow, he knew that she knew that he if had remembered whatever information they thought he could, then he could have helped her.
“I’m sorry.”
Her bloodied arm covered his on her stomach. “It’s not your fault, besides, I’ve escaped death too many times for it not to finally get me.” She tried to chuckled but ended up wincing and he wanted to gather her up in his arms and make her feel better.
She took a fighting breath to talk to him and he was grateful. To hear her voice, was to giving him hope. “I just wish it wasn’t so slow and didn’t hurt so much. Fast and violent would be good.”
He was going to lose her, just when he had found her.
“No,” he whispered. He tilted her chin towards him as he bent over her. “You’re not going to die.”
“Max-”
“No!”. He searched for her comm. link. If he could get her out of here, she could be patched up in no time.
“Captain Crash to all sections. The Dove is down, I repeat, the Dove is down!”
He relayed their location with as much precision as he could and within a minute, Michael’s voice crackled through.
“Eagle 1 to Captain Crash, hang in there. Calvary’s on its way.”
“Okay. See,” he gently stroked back her hair, “they’ll be here in no time and-”
“Khivar’s here,” she interrupted.
Max turned to the door and listened intently but heard nothing.
Sudden through shattered him. She was dying. Hallucinations and delirium were a stage of dying weren’t they?
“Liz-”
Something slammed into the door making it vibrate and it definitely wasn’t a body.
Max looked at her once again bewildered. “How did you-”
Another blast cut him off. “The door won’t hold for long with the power they’re packing. We need to get out of here.”
Liz feebly tried to push his hand away from her wound. “There’s no we Max, it’s you. You need to get out here.”
Another slam. This time accompanied with the sound of metal changing shape.
“Listen to me Max, save yourself, escape this mess and go on with your life.”
“No.”
“You don’t know me. Don’t. Care. Just accept me as collateral damage and go. Believe me, it’s better for the big picture that I’m out. I’m the wildcard in all this.”
And that’s when I finally come in. It took me longer to locate her this time, yet I am joyful and horrified simultaneously at what I find.
She is with her intended, they have finally found each other yet she lays on the cold ground bleeding to death. Death calls to her, I can see it, feel it around her.
I want her to fight it. Not only I, but everyone concerned in the battles that are to follow need her to fight it.
Her beloved with so much undiscovered power looks on helplessly. He is a man of action but can do nothing to save the woman loved. If only he remembered, if only my powers could stretch that far.
He won’t leave her. It is a gift to watch. He doesn’t remember her and all he felt and still feels for her, yet loyalty and love burn through the unshed tears in his eyes. He will stay because he loves her still and he does not know it yet. It is truly remarkable.
The door disintegrates and Khivar and Nicholas step in. Max and Liz are both weak, he can kill them and I can do nothing but watch helpless with a deep need to save.
Max stand up, blocking their path to her. He will die for her if he has to.
I expect Khivar to kill him on the spot or throw in insults as he tortures him but his focus is on Liz. He tries to get a better view of her past Max.
“What’s wrong with her?” he demands.
“She’s dying,” Max responds with as much heat.
“Do something!”, Khivar yells.
Ah, so the rumours are true. His behaviour towards Elizabeth is uncharacteristic. Could it be he has feelings for the young reluctant Queen?
Max fruitlessly clenches and unclenches his fist. “I can’t,” he spits out.
So he knows. He knows that he could save her if only he remembered how.
“You’re useless,” comments a disgusted Khivar. A flick of his wrist sends Max crashing into the wall where he slumps to the ground unmoving.
My powers can reach out far enough to notify me of his continued existence. He is alive.
But what of dear Elizabeth?
I watch unseen, undetected as Nicholas asks Khivar for permission to dispose of her. Khivar shoots him a look that conveys the price to be paid at such a suggestion.
If she were not who she is, she would have slipped into nothingness sooner. She is weak and fading fast but summons the energy to struggle against Khivar as he gathers her into his arms and lifts her up.
I do not know where he is taking her, but it is evident that he does not want to kill her. I must assume that he is taking her somewhere to have her wound tended to.
I am notified of six auras in proximity and must draw away from these happenings for while to deal with them.
****
The rings were already surrounding them when Zan rushed in. He’d had to blast through a barricade Khivar had set up for him and that had slowed him down. Still, he had made it just in time.
“You’re not taking her anywhere,” he stated calmly and ready to do what had to be done. He registered Max groaning as he came to. Zan checked in his anger towards his dupe and focused on the real issue - getting Liz away from Khivar long enough to heal her.
He had felt her energy diminishing and it was the fear that he wouldn’t reach her in time that urged him on. To his surprise, the ring went out and Khivar advanced towards him. Guardedly, they watched each other as Khivar lay Liz gently on the ground.
“Heal her,” he told him stepping back.
No, Zan wasn’t surprised anymore, ever since Khivar had taken Liz that first time, he had developed some twisted thing for her. Liz never talked about it and as of yet had never let him see what had happened to her during those days with their enemy.
“Another time,” he vowed as Nicholas set up the transporter again.
“It’s a date,” Zan quipped before the pair vanished.
The bright light must have jolted Max because he was up and awake.
Too little too late Zan thought bitterly as he knelt by Liz. Her eyes were barely open. Zan checked out the wound, then her and remembered the times she had almost ended up like this. But he had always been there, she had never been this far gone before.
“Hello Gidget,” he whispered before tenderly kissing her cheek. He placed his palm on her wound and with his other hand, titled her head up and supported her neck as his lips met hers at the same time as he began to heal.
****
Max watched someone who looked like him with Liz.
Zan, Liz had called him Zan.
It was so unreal but it was very much his reality. A blue light seemed to jolt into Liz’s body, breaking away from the kiss, she gasped and gulped for air.
Relief was a welcome thunderstorm to his system.
Liz was alive.
He wanted to lift her into his arms, kiss and hug her, but something weird was going on between her and his clone.
The blue light now surrounded their bodies and was laced with green light but it wasn’t just light anymore, it was dynamic and volatile energy that warned Max not to interfere. He stood directly over them save for a few centimetres. He could hear ever word and was up close with where Zan’s hands were on Liz’s body.
Now that the crisis was over, he didn’t want his clone straddling Liz. He couldn’t even remember when his clone had shifted positions.
He felt like a pervert watching them but he couldn’t look away. Something was happening to Liz, her eyes turned pupil black and then they became green energy.
“Zan stop,” Max heard her say.
Zan’s hands were on either side of her face, his lips hovering above hers,” I can’t. I’m sorry. Just this one,” he pleaded, “again, just this once.”
She nodded accepting him. His lips crashed onto hers, her legs wrapped around him as hands explored and tongues duelled.
His dupe was in the room, her mate and intended. Zan knew he shouldn’t be doing this, but the call to her was so strong. They had connected on a base level and that was hard to let go of. Everything in him and he knew, a part of her, was urging, screaming for completion. For him to take her here and now for the bonding process to be completed in its entirety. Screw his dupe.
Max had had enough, sure the guy who was now mauling Liz looked like him, but he wasn’t him. Zan’s hands had disappeared under her shirt and the sounds that came from Liz, the sounds only he should be able to coax from her, was poking at something primal in him.
“Whoa, just in time for the show”.
His head snapped in the direction of the voice. It was Michael’s clone.
“Don’t worry yo,” he held up in his palms out in peace, “Iz is taking care of your dupe and his camp. I was sent in case something bad or,” he signalled to Zan and Liz, “something like this happened.”
Zan whispered something foreign, alien to Liz that wiped the smirk off Michael’s clone’s face. He was now looking back at Max with concern.
“Yo Duke, Zan’s my Duke and all but you seriously gonna let him just have your woman? ‘cuz that’s what’s gonna happen in a bit and if you’re gonna let it, we need to get the hell out of dodge.”
Something in him affirmed the clone’s words. Liz was his and if he let Zan do this with her, she wouldn’t be anymore. Zan had no right to her.
Ignoring the energy field around them, he grabbed his clone and shoved him off Liz. The blue light flowed into him and the green resided in Liz the moment he disrupted the couple - something Max failed to notice as he advanced on Zan.
“What did you think you were doing?!”, he questioned his clone.
“You’ve got to be kidding me.”
Liz’s voice drew Max’s attention away from Zan. She stood before them, alive, arms crossed over her chest and her eyes and hands crackling green.
“Liz,” the both said in unison.
“You did this to me again.”
Max was offended to discover that her statement was aimed not at him but at Zan. It was like he wasn’t even there.
“Gidget-”
Zan was suddenly slammed against the wall a few feet away.
“Don’t,” Liz warned against whatever it was Zan was going to say.
Feeling completely out of the loop and cheated, Max stepped aside and watched the drama.
“You need me Liz,” Zan told her.
“Go to hell,” she responded.
Zan didn’t seem to be affected by her words. “Your eyes are green and so are your hands.”
“What?”.
Max watched as she lifted up her crackling hands for inspection.
“Damn.”
“Can I?” Zan asked.
She nodded her head resignedly. He carefully approached her, then standing in front of her entwined their fingers and leaned in to fuse their lips together. The green energy slowly ebbed off Liz and when she opened her eyes, she slumped into Zan’s supporting hold.
“What did you do to her?” Max stepped back, his tone wholly accusing.
“She just had a minor energy overload,” Zan replied as he adjusted her to carry in his arms.
“You got us ready?” he asked Michael’s clone.
“We’re chillin,” the clone replied.
“Go? Go where? Where are you taking her?” Max asked.
Aah, finally, the unknowing King and his dupe finally converse. I watch the present happenings at the same time as I am briefed on the moments I have missed. By the time they are over, I am more than curious to find out what will happen now.
The teleported rings cover Zan, Liz and Rath with Max standing on the outside.
“She’s safer with me,” Zan replies.
Knowing what I have seen, the subtext to that comment, I too acknowledge as Max does.
Much needs to be resolved between the two Kings over each of their actions towards the Queen.
“You’re not taking her,” Max tells him.
“I’m taking her. Isabel will bring Michael to us. Everything will be explained. Right now, I’m wasting time talking to you, when I should be taking care of Liz. Are you coming or not?”.
Will Max abandon the normal of his life for this “madness”? for the worlds he does not yet know of and enemies he does not yet remember?
He hesitates, weighing his options. Then his gaze falls on Liz, nestled in Zan’s arms and I can see the choice is made. He steps in.
A bright light and they are gone.
I cannot follow them for the moment as I have strategies to plan and enact. I am hopeful at this turn of events yet as always, I am uncertain of Elizabeth.
She is indeed the wildcard on which fates of worlds and peoples rest upon. This she knows and yet also does not know. This she accepts but yet also does not accept. I pray that she triumphs over the challenges in her path because only then can we meet.
It will be a great honour and a moment of sadness and deep regret for me, but all must be done for peace.
For now, I watch these happenings and prepare my part accordingly.
****
TBC
behrlyliz
Ellie
frenchkiss70
g7silvers
Jason's Lover
kittens
Lizza
L-J-L 76
RosyLady
xsuper_novax
Thanks for the bumps and feedback guys, I should be clearing a few questions up in the next update.
PREVIOUSLY
****
Zan saw Max escape with Liz into the warehouse. His relief at her safety was short-lived when he saw Khivar and Nicholas follow them. His dupe was powerless against them; Liz was wounded and didn’t have her memory back. She couldn’t access her powers.
Damn it, he hadn’t gone through all of this just to have her die due to some fluke.
“Rath!”.
His second didn’t even have to ask for an explanation. He just nodded. “I’ll cover you. Go keep her safe!”.
****
10.
And there's a reason why I keep my distance
Don't think you're gonna understand
This is the last thing that I need right now
And I am trying not to want to hurt him
Trying not to start this up again
- Diana Anaid - Last Thing
The warehouse softly illuminated with filtered light from the dusty windows, was a maze of large rooms with metal doors and old abandoned machinery that was home to a desert of rust. Max was leading them around by instinct and the uncharacteristic blind panic of utter bewilderment. His mind couldn’t process, couldn’t compute the events that had led to him and Liz running for their lives, not from Sean D, he wished it was from Sean D, but from two…non humans?
The energy bolts that Khivar and his other lackey had sent his way was enough to push through the shock of denial his mind wanted to revert to.
He came to an abrupt halt that had Liz slamming into his back. He hesitated long enough to work out their chances and then dragged her along with him into one of the rooms. He immediately got to work on creating a barricade . Thankfully, the door’s locks were in working order after some encouragement, so that a big iron slab bolt and a large metal door, kept them relatively safe from their pursuers.
At least it would give them enough time to find another way to escape.
He heard a sudden thud behind him and whirled around to find Liz on the ground.
“Liz?”.
****
The seconds before he uncovered the secret she was hiding beneath her hand, he had thought she was exhausted or had just fainted from stress and shock. When he found the wound, he wished it had been any of the reasons he had thought about. She had lost a lot of blood, the area around the wound was soaked. He lifted her top up to view the damage.
Compartmentalise Max, that’s what you do. She’s just a job.
He took off his jacket, bunched up in one hand while his other hand rested on her pale and clammy forehead.
“I’ll just apply pressure to the wound.” He tried to keep emotion out of his voice, he desperately wished for the detachment he was well versed in exercising, but her eyes, her whole expression, so accepting, broke him.
“To stop the bleeding,” he added. “Why didn’t you tell me?”.
She smiled and it came out more like a grimace. “What, when we were running for our lives? There’s nothing you can do. You don’t remember.”
Her words echoed those of Khivar’s but her tone wasn’t taunting or in any way bitter and that meant a lot because somehow, he knew that she knew that he if had remembered whatever information they thought he could, then he could have helped her.
“I’m sorry.”
Her bloodied arm covered his on her stomach. “It’s not your fault, besides, I’ve escaped death too many times for it not to finally get me.” She tried to chuckled but ended up wincing and he wanted to gather her up in his arms and make her feel better.
She took a fighting breath to talk to him and he was grateful. To hear her voice, was to giving him hope. “I just wish it wasn’t so slow and didn’t hurt so much. Fast and violent would be good.”
He was going to lose her, just when he had found her.
“No,” he whispered. He tilted her chin towards him as he bent over her. “You’re not going to die.”
“Max-”
“No!”. He searched for her comm. link. If he could get her out of here, she could be patched up in no time.
“Captain Crash to all sections. The Dove is down, I repeat, the Dove is down!”
He relayed their location with as much precision as he could and within a minute, Michael’s voice crackled through.
“Eagle 1 to Captain Crash, hang in there. Calvary’s on its way.”
“Okay. See,” he gently stroked back her hair, “they’ll be here in no time and-”
“Khivar’s here,” she interrupted.
Max turned to the door and listened intently but heard nothing.
Sudden through shattered him. She was dying. Hallucinations and delirium were a stage of dying weren’t they?
“Liz-”
Something slammed into the door making it vibrate and it definitely wasn’t a body.
Max looked at her once again bewildered. “How did you-”
Another blast cut him off. “The door won’t hold for long with the power they’re packing. We need to get out of here.”
Liz feebly tried to push his hand away from her wound. “There’s no we Max, it’s you. You need to get out here.”
Another slam. This time accompanied with the sound of metal changing shape.
“Listen to me Max, save yourself, escape this mess and go on with your life.”
“No.”
“You don’t know me. Don’t. Care. Just accept me as collateral damage and go. Believe me, it’s better for the big picture that I’m out. I’m the wildcard in all this.”
And that’s when I finally come in. It took me longer to locate her this time, yet I am joyful and horrified simultaneously at what I find.
She is with her intended, they have finally found each other yet she lays on the cold ground bleeding to death. Death calls to her, I can see it, feel it around her.
I want her to fight it. Not only I, but everyone concerned in the battles that are to follow need her to fight it.
Her beloved with so much undiscovered power looks on helplessly. He is a man of action but can do nothing to save the woman loved. If only he remembered, if only my powers could stretch that far.
He won’t leave her. It is a gift to watch. He doesn’t remember her and all he felt and still feels for her, yet loyalty and love burn through the unshed tears in his eyes. He will stay because he loves her still and he does not know it yet. It is truly remarkable.
The door disintegrates and Khivar and Nicholas step in. Max and Liz are both weak, he can kill them and I can do nothing but watch helpless with a deep need to save.
Max stand up, blocking their path to her. He will die for her if he has to.
I expect Khivar to kill him on the spot or throw in insults as he tortures him but his focus is on Liz. He tries to get a better view of her past Max.
“What’s wrong with her?” he demands.
“She’s dying,” Max responds with as much heat.
“Do something!”, Khivar yells.
Ah, so the rumours are true. His behaviour towards Elizabeth is uncharacteristic. Could it be he has feelings for the young reluctant Queen?
Max fruitlessly clenches and unclenches his fist. “I can’t,” he spits out.
So he knows. He knows that he could save her if only he remembered how.
“You’re useless,” comments a disgusted Khivar. A flick of his wrist sends Max crashing into the wall where he slumps to the ground unmoving.
My powers can reach out far enough to notify me of his continued existence. He is alive.
But what of dear Elizabeth?
I watch unseen, undetected as Nicholas asks Khivar for permission to dispose of her. Khivar shoots him a look that conveys the price to be paid at such a suggestion.
If she were not who she is, she would have slipped into nothingness sooner. She is weak and fading fast but summons the energy to struggle against Khivar as he gathers her into his arms and lifts her up.
I do not know where he is taking her, but it is evident that he does not want to kill her. I must assume that he is taking her somewhere to have her wound tended to.
I am notified of six auras in proximity and must draw away from these happenings for while to deal with them.
****
The rings were already surrounding them when Zan rushed in. He’d had to blast through a barricade Khivar had set up for him and that had slowed him down. Still, he had made it just in time.
“You’re not taking her anywhere,” he stated calmly and ready to do what had to be done. He registered Max groaning as he came to. Zan checked in his anger towards his dupe and focused on the real issue - getting Liz away from Khivar long enough to heal her.
He had felt her energy diminishing and it was the fear that he wouldn’t reach her in time that urged him on. To his surprise, the ring went out and Khivar advanced towards him. Guardedly, they watched each other as Khivar lay Liz gently on the ground.
“Heal her,” he told him stepping back.
No, Zan wasn’t surprised anymore, ever since Khivar had taken Liz that first time, he had developed some twisted thing for her. Liz never talked about it and as of yet had never let him see what had happened to her during those days with their enemy.
“Another time,” he vowed as Nicholas set up the transporter again.
“It’s a date,” Zan quipped before the pair vanished.
The bright light must have jolted Max because he was up and awake.
Too little too late Zan thought bitterly as he knelt by Liz. Her eyes were barely open. Zan checked out the wound, then her and remembered the times she had almost ended up like this. But he had always been there, she had never been this far gone before.
“Hello Gidget,” he whispered before tenderly kissing her cheek. He placed his palm on her wound and with his other hand, titled her head up and supported her neck as his lips met hers at the same time as he began to heal.
****
Max watched someone who looked like him with Liz.
Zan, Liz had called him Zan.
It was so unreal but it was very much his reality. A blue light seemed to jolt into Liz’s body, breaking away from the kiss, she gasped and gulped for air.
Relief was a welcome thunderstorm to his system.
Liz was alive.
He wanted to lift her into his arms, kiss and hug her, but something weird was going on between her and his clone.
The blue light now surrounded their bodies and was laced with green light but it wasn’t just light anymore, it was dynamic and volatile energy that warned Max not to interfere. He stood directly over them save for a few centimetres. He could hear ever word and was up close with where Zan’s hands were on Liz’s body.
Now that the crisis was over, he didn’t want his clone straddling Liz. He couldn’t even remember when his clone had shifted positions.
He felt like a pervert watching them but he couldn’t look away. Something was happening to Liz, her eyes turned pupil black and then they became green energy.
“Zan stop,” Max heard her say.
Zan’s hands were on either side of her face, his lips hovering above hers,” I can’t. I’m sorry. Just this one,” he pleaded, “again, just this once.”
She nodded accepting him. His lips crashed onto hers, her legs wrapped around him as hands explored and tongues duelled.
His dupe was in the room, her mate and intended. Zan knew he shouldn’t be doing this, but the call to her was so strong. They had connected on a base level and that was hard to let go of. Everything in him and he knew, a part of her, was urging, screaming for completion. For him to take her here and now for the bonding process to be completed in its entirety. Screw his dupe.
Max had had enough, sure the guy who was now mauling Liz looked like him, but he wasn’t him. Zan’s hands had disappeared under her shirt and the sounds that came from Liz, the sounds only he should be able to coax from her, was poking at something primal in him.
“Whoa, just in time for the show”.
His head snapped in the direction of the voice. It was Michael’s clone.
“Don’t worry yo,” he held up in his palms out in peace, “Iz is taking care of your dupe and his camp. I was sent in case something bad or,” he signalled to Zan and Liz, “something like this happened.”
Zan whispered something foreign, alien to Liz that wiped the smirk off Michael’s clone’s face. He was now looking back at Max with concern.
“Yo Duke, Zan’s my Duke and all but you seriously gonna let him just have your woman? ‘cuz that’s what’s gonna happen in a bit and if you’re gonna let it, we need to get the hell out of dodge.”
Something in him affirmed the clone’s words. Liz was his and if he let Zan do this with her, she wouldn’t be anymore. Zan had no right to her.
Ignoring the energy field around them, he grabbed his clone and shoved him off Liz. The blue light flowed into him and the green resided in Liz the moment he disrupted the couple - something Max failed to notice as he advanced on Zan.
“What did you think you were doing?!”, he questioned his clone.
“You’ve got to be kidding me.”
Liz’s voice drew Max’s attention away from Zan. She stood before them, alive, arms crossed over her chest and her eyes and hands crackling green.
“Liz,” the both said in unison.
“You did this to me again.”
Max was offended to discover that her statement was aimed not at him but at Zan. It was like he wasn’t even there.
“Gidget-”
Zan was suddenly slammed against the wall a few feet away.
“Don’t,” Liz warned against whatever it was Zan was going to say.
Feeling completely out of the loop and cheated, Max stepped aside and watched the drama.
“You need me Liz,” Zan told her.
“Go to hell,” she responded.
Zan didn’t seem to be affected by her words. “Your eyes are green and so are your hands.”
“What?”.
Max watched as she lifted up her crackling hands for inspection.
“Damn.”
“Can I?” Zan asked.
She nodded her head resignedly. He carefully approached her, then standing in front of her entwined their fingers and leaned in to fuse their lips together. The green energy slowly ebbed off Liz and when she opened her eyes, she slumped into Zan’s supporting hold.
“What did you do to her?” Max stepped back, his tone wholly accusing.
“She just had a minor energy overload,” Zan replied as he adjusted her to carry in his arms.
“You got us ready?” he asked Michael’s clone.
“We’re chillin,” the clone replied.
“Go? Go where? Where are you taking her?” Max asked.
Aah, finally, the unknowing King and his dupe finally converse. I watch the present happenings at the same time as I am briefed on the moments I have missed. By the time they are over, I am more than curious to find out what will happen now.
The teleported rings cover Zan, Liz and Rath with Max standing on the outside.
“She’s safer with me,” Zan replies.
Knowing what I have seen, the subtext to that comment, I too acknowledge as Max does.
Much needs to be resolved between the two Kings over each of their actions towards the Queen.
“You’re not taking her,” Max tells him.
“I’m taking her. Isabel will bring Michael to us. Everything will be explained. Right now, I’m wasting time talking to you, when I should be taking care of Liz. Are you coming or not?”.
Will Max abandon the normal of his life for this “madness”? for the worlds he does not yet know of and enemies he does not yet remember?
He hesitates, weighing his options. Then his gaze falls on Liz, nestled in Zan’s arms and I can see the choice is made. He steps in.
A bright light and they are gone.
I cannot follow them for the moment as I have strategies to plan and enact. I am hopeful at this turn of events yet as always, I am uncertain of Elizabeth.
She is indeed the wildcard on which fates of worlds and peoples rest upon. This she knows and yet also does not know. This she accepts but yet also does not accept. I pray that she triumphs over the challenges in her path because only then can we meet.
It will be a great honour and a moment of sadness and deep regret for me, but all must be done for peace.
For now, I watch these happenings and prepare my part accordingly.
****
TBC
-
willowbv
- Addicted Roswellian
- Posts: 321
- Joined: Thu Aug 08, 2002 4:40 am
- Location: in a vegas chapel
- Contact:
AN: Hey all, happy new year!!!!! I'm back with a new part and finally some answers....
To:
alana
behrlyliz
Ellie
Emz80m
frenchkiss70
icequeen
Jason's Lover
Lizza
L-J-L 76
pandas2001
roswell3053
SmileeUk
Thanks for the feedback guys!!
PREVIOUSLY
Much needs to be resolved between the two Kings over each of their actions towards the Queen.
“You’re not taking her,” Max tells him.
“I’m taking her. Isabel will bring Michael to us. Everything will be explained. Right now, I’m wasting time talking to you, when I should be taking care of Liz. Are you coming or not?”.
Will Max abandon the normal of his life for this “madness”? for the worlds he does not yet know of and enemies he does not yet remember?
He hesitates, weighing his options. Then his gaze falls on Liz, nestled in Zan’s arms and I can see the choice is made. He steps in.
A bright light and they are gone.
I cannot follow them for the moment as I have strategies to plan and enact. I am hopeful at this turn of events yet as always, I am uncertain of Elizabeth.
She is indeed the wildcard on which fates of worlds and peoples rest upon. This she knows and yet also does not know. This she accepts but yet also does not accept. I pray that she triumphs over the challenges in her path because only then can we meet.
It will be a great honour and a moment of sadness and deep regret for me, but all must be done for peace.
For now, I watch these happenings and prepare my part accordingly.
****
11.
I’m falling down the rabbit hole, I’m falling into you,
I’m falling down the rabbit hole
Catch me
Catch me
And wake me from this dream
- Unknown
In the space of a breath, Max found himself in a sleek octagonal shaped metallic room.
Time had either somehow slowed down during the sudden change of location or they had amazingly…teleported at an unbelievable speed.
Teleported.
However Star Trek it sounded, that’s what had happened. Looking around the room, he summarised that they were in some sort of arrival chamber.
I bet in a place this slick there are hidden cameras everywhere, he mused.
While it was true that his unconventional career had instilled an automatic ability to adapt to every changing situation, Max had the distinct sensation of falling down a hole with no rock ledge or tree branch to grab onto. He now, had to adapt to the fall, the sheer stark weightless fear and excitement of the unknown.
His attention shot to the sliding walls. Tess stepped in - behind her, he clocked a long brightly lit corridor, he idly wondered where it led - but why was Tess here?!
“Ease up Duke,” spoke Rath beside him. “She ain’t your Tess. She’s Ava.”
As if that explains it.
Max acknowledged the comment with a slight nod of his head as he watched…Ava approach them with a relieved smile.
“You’re back and alive. Score!”.
Surrendering to the sensation of falling, he observed their interactions as someone removed yet involved in the happenings before him.
Ava hugged Rath.
“And we brought a little extra,” he added signalling to Max.
Ava turned to him and smiled. “Hi, I know this is probably mad crazy to you, but hang in there.” Without waiting for his response, she turned her attention to Liz who was still in Zan’s arms. Ava then looked up at Zan who shrugged. “I’ll tell you later.”
“She okay?” asked Ava.
They began to head out of the room then; Max fell in step as if he had always done it with them.
“She just had a power overload”, Zan answered. “Here, you carry her.” Zan’s unexpected gesture sparked quick action from him; he quickly took up Liz into his arms while Zan whipped out his cell. Max was all ears to the conversation.
“Iz…what’s the word?...that’s good…uh huh…okay do that.”
It was brief, but from that, Max gleaned that Isabel was okay, which was good and she obviously was on familiar terms with Zan. And she had a boat load of explaining to do.
“The men are okay, no one dead, just a few injuries that can be patched up. How’s Laine?” he asked.
Who was Laine? wondered Max. Whoever she was, Zan’s softened tone meant that she was someone very important to him.
****
They made it out of the corridor and into an open plan office area. The humming of high tech computers and gadgets, weird projections he had only seen in movies, all of that, was monitored by very focused people. Who all paused and watched their passage through the room.
Zan paused for a moment before they left to address them. “She’s okay.”
A tangible sigh of relief breezed through the whole room.
“I can have her back now,” and once again without waiting for a response from him, Zan did what he wanted. He took Liz out from Max’s arms and in a beat was walking and talking as two people briefed him on the Terzin situation.
Whatever that was.
Max studied his clone. Zan’s steps never faltered as he issued commands, he was confident, he knew what he was doing.
Inadequacy wasn’t a feeling he enjoyed, but at that moment Max felt it was the only one he could seek solace in.
****
Another hallway, a few turns, an elevator complete with retinal scans and palm activation, a few more turns and they were in what looked like an upscale home: wooden floor boards and panelling, soft lighting, living room, kitchen, bathroom, past two closed doors and a pause by one.
“You two can go now,” Zan told them.
Max was grateful for it. He had stayed quiet, he had observed the situation and relations in his new beyond the norm environment and now, he wanted to talk.
“You sure?” asked Rath.
“Do the rest of the clean up. I’ll talk to Max,” replied Zan.
The two gave him faint smiles of…support? He guessed, before leaving them.
Now Max didn’t know where to begin. Liz still lay unconscious in Zan’s arms.
“Is she going to be alright?” he asked.
“She’ll be fine.”
Max moved to open the door because it seemed that’s where they were going when it automatically opened. He sent Zan a questioning stare.
“You can do it too,” he responded before walking on ahead of him.
****
They were in a room.
Zan’s room.
Max wasn’t sure how he knew that, but it just seemed to fit: neat, forest green duvet, a more masculine dark oak panelling, sparse decoration of pictures. It was a lot like his room at his condo.
Zan carefully laid Liz on his double bed.
Liz on Zan’s double bed.
He wondered if they had ever shared it. Then shock away the surprisingly heart crushing images his mind came up with.
“You want anything to drink before we start?” Zan asked him.
“Water.”
Zan nodded and disappeared into a connecting room that Max assumed was a kitchen.
He stood still for a moment and was unsettled to discover that he was still falling. He stared at Liz, so peacefully unaware of what was happening around her. Time must have slowed again because the next time he was aware of his reality, he found himself sitting on the bed next to Liz, his fingers brushing her hair.
He wasn’t falling anymore. He had landed. Miraculously on his feet.
“Think fast!”.
His free hand shot out and caught the water bottle.
“Nice reflexes,” Zan commented.
Max slipped his hand away from Liz to open the bottle before slipping it back where it felt natural to go. Back to Liz.
Zan took a chair from his desk and sat facing him, beside the bed, beside Liz.
“You obviously got questions and I rate you for not raving ‘aliens are among us’ like a mad man,” he began.
Max had a long drink of water before responding. “And that’s what you are…aliens?”
He was still having problems processing it all.
And what was it all? He didn’t know the whole story. He glanced down at Liz, he didn’t know the whole story, but he wanted to.
“So are you,” Zan countered and then proceeded to stare hard at him as if waiting form some outburst.
A part of Max wanted to fulfil his expectation but the bigger part always saved reaction until he knew precisely what he was dealing with and it wouldn’t stop now.
“Just give it to me straight. I’ll hold off ‘til you get to the end,” he told him.
“Fair enough,” agreed Zan. “Human beings aren’t alone in the universe; in fact, there’s life on other planets, other galaxies. The Whirlwind galaxy, is our home, five planets make up our system. Antar is our home planet and you and I, are its Kings. Well there was only supposed to be one of us but I’ll get to that later. The US government knows aliens exist. They’ve been working with each other for decades, only they figure humanity isn’t quiet ready to understand the full scope of it all. We share technology and we do enjoy your t.v. shows.
Antar was ruled by the Royal family years ago, our planets lived in harmony but as all things political go, greed stepped in, unrest from different planets grew and from ours…a Brutus/Caesar thing went down and the whole Royal family: King Zan, Queen Ezra, Commander Rath his betrothed Vilandra and her sister Ava were assassinated by Khivar and his followers.
Khivar? Not a nice guy, so supporters of the Royal family and the American government joined forces to find a way to bring them back. I know what you’re thinking and no, it’s not because it’s out of the goodness of their hearts, and Khivar wants the Whirlwind galaxy and the rest, including this solar system to have as his satellite states. They help the aliens out and it’s their best chance of keeping Khivar away from earth. The Royal family are the key to the survival and success of a rebellion against Khivar.
Their power- our power is unparalleled. So they mixed our alien essences with human DNA from donors and re-created us. Alien-human hybrids. They made two sets for insurance, one set raised together by their protectors in New York with full knowledge of their past and purpose. The others were implanted with false memories of their lives on earth before they were six. They were scattered around the country, except for you and Isabel who stayed together because the Evans’ wanted you both. You were all adopted by human couples who fit the profile, who could be trusted to accomplish something crucial to the future existence of human society the way it is.
The New York set is us: me, Rath, Ava, Vilandra and…Ezra. The set was you, Michael, Isabel, Tess and Liz. What I’m saying Max, is you weren’t born. You were hatched and all the memories and pictures you have from your childhood before you were six… are all fake, created to ensure your safety and make you think that you’re…all human.
If something happened to us, then you would be called up to take over. Your memories from our previous life along with your powers would be unlocked. The alien side will balance with the human. Khivar found out about the recreation and not wanting to dilute himself, had himself cloned. The old Khivar died years ago, the clone takes his place now, he’s who we’re fighting, he’s who you met today.
That’s it. That’s the history. We’ve been working with the government, off book of course. You and I were never supposed to meet; our worlds were never supposed to clash while both of us were alive. Now they have and we have to deal with it.”
Zan sat back and waited. He had given him the hard facts, now he had to deal.
****
Max had questions, so many questions.
First off was: what the hell was going on?
Then came: when had Isabel found out
Why didn’t she tell him?
His parents. They knew and they’d lied to him! Did they really love him or was he raised out of duty?
An alien?, he was really an alien?!- Not alien, human-alien hybrid.
“You should be overwhelmed about now...”
Max looked up at Zan and found that he wasn’t looking at him as he said the words; Max followed the direction of his gaze and was amazed to see blue sparks from his fingers dancing with green sparks from Liz’s hair.
“..you are what you are.”
Millions of thoughts flooded his mind in a small space of time. He had important things to think about, his life was obviously more dangerous now…much more than he had bargained for and he had new responsibilities and-
“Ezra.”
That was the burning issue he wanted to discuss.
“She was your Queen,” he added.
He had seen the look of grief on Zan’s face when he had said her name, no matter how fleeting it had been, as well as the love and reverence in his voice. She was also nowhere to be found.
“She was,” Zan told him, “ but- she was so stubborn- Khivar killed her in battle before he really thought it through. She was my soul-mate.”
That was all he said, but Max wasn’t surprised by the brevity of his explanation. Somehow he knew that in losing Ezra, Zan had lost a part of himself, but he also had a priceless part of her too as she did of him.
Then another more pleasantly startling thought struck him.
“If Ezra was your soul mate,” he glanced down at Liz’s sleeping form and smiled. She had had every right to throw his world, to throw his off balance, to unnerve him, to make him want her in a mystifying way.
It was right for him to feel as if he had known her for an eternity and had been waiting for her all his life.
“Liz, she’s my Queen, my soul mate,” he finished.
“She’s your Queen,” Zan agreed.
“She’s mine.”
To honour, to love and cherish.
“I dare you to say that to her face when she comes around.”
It wasn’t the teasing challenge in his tone that had Max instantly tense and defensive, it was the silently unspoken, grudging reluctance to let go.
Max looked up and locked eyes with his determined twin.
“She’s mine, but you’re not going to step back from here are you?” he asked.
Zan shook his head. His expression still determined but also apologetic, “Us, being the way we were before, who we were with? We were engineered that way. Destiny,” he explained, “But this one,” he inclined his head towards Liz, “She’s all about creating her own destiny. So no, she was meant for you, but I’m not going to back off.”
Max clenched his jaw as his twin linked fingers with Liz. Zan's eyes suddenly cold hard and ruthless, “I’m creating my own destiny.”
****
TBC
To:
alana
behrlyliz
Ellie
Emz80m
frenchkiss70
icequeen
Jason's Lover
Lizza
L-J-L 76
pandas2001
roswell3053
SmileeUk
Thanks for the feedback guys!!
...yeah... she's not going to be happy about that either, but that's for the next partalana wrote: Liz in the other hand is like a virgin tape who all people remake when the song is pass of time.How times was she striped of her memories?
Alana
PREVIOUSLY
Much needs to be resolved between the two Kings over each of their actions towards the Queen.
“You’re not taking her,” Max tells him.
“I’m taking her. Isabel will bring Michael to us. Everything will be explained. Right now, I’m wasting time talking to you, when I should be taking care of Liz. Are you coming or not?”.
Will Max abandon the normal of his life for this “madness”? for the worlds he does not yet know of and enemies he does not yet remember?
He hesitates, weighing his options. Then his gaze falls on Liz, nestled in Zan’s arms and I can see the choice is made. He steps in.
A bright light and they are gone.
I cannot follow them for the moment as I have strategies to plan and enact. I am hopeful at this turn of events yet as always, I am uncertain of Elizabeth.
She is indeed the wildcard on which fates of worlds and peoples rest upon. This she knows and yet also does not know. This she accepts but yet also does not accept. I pray that she triumphs over the challenges in her path because only then can we meet.
It will be a great honour and a moment of sadness and deep regret for me, but all must be done for peace.
For now, I watch these happenings and prepare my part accordingly.
****
11.
I’m falling down the rabbit hole, I’m falling into you,
I’m falling down the rabbit hole
Catch me
Catch me
And wake me from this dream
- Unknown
In the space of a breath, Max found himself in a sleek octagonal shaped metallic room.
Time had either somehow slowed down during the sudden change of location or they had amazingly…teleported at an unbelievable speed.
Teleported.
However Star Trek it sounded, that’s what had happened. Looking around the room, he summarised that they were in some sort of arrival chamber.
I bet in a place this slick there are hidden cameras everywhere, he mused.
While it was true that his unconventional career had instilled an automatic ability to adapt to every changing situation, Max had the distinct sensation of falling down a hole with no rock ledge or tree branch to grab onto. He now, had to adapt to the fall, the sheer stark weightless fear and excitement of the unknown.
His attention shot to the sliding walls. Tess stepped in - behind her, he clocked a long brightly lit corridor, he idly wondered where it led - but why was Tess here?!
“Ease up Duke,” spoke Rath beside him. “She ain’t your Tess. She’s Ava.”
As if that explains it.
Max acknowledged the comment with a slight nod of his head as he watched…Ava approach them with a relieved smile.
“You’re back and alive. Score!”.
Surrendering to the sensation of falling, he observed their interactions as someone removed yet involved in the happenings before him.
Ava hugged Rath.
“And we brought a little extra,” he added signalling to Max.
Ava turned to him and smiled. “Hi, I know this is probably mad crazy to you, but hang in there.” Without waiting for his response, she turned her attention to Liz who was still in Zan’s arms. Ava then looked up at Zan who shrugged. “I’ll tell you later.”
“She okay?” asked Ava.
They began to head out of the room then; Max fell in step as if he had always done it with them.
“She just had a power overload”, Zan answered. “Here, you carry her.” Zan’s unexpected gesture sparked quick action from him; he quickly took up Liz into his arms while Zan whipped out his cell. Max was all ears to the conversation.
“Iz…what’s the word?...that’s good…uh huh…okay do that.”
It was brief, but from that, Max gleaned that Isabel was okay, which was good and she obviously was on familiar terms with Zan. And she had a boat load of explaining to do.
“The men are okay, no one dead, just a few injuries that can be patched up. How’s Laine?” he asked.
Who was Laine? wondered Max. Whoever she was, Zan’s softened tone meant that she was someone very important to him.
****
They made it out of the corridor and into an open plan office area. The humming of high tech computers and gadgets, weird projections he had only seen in movies, all of that, was monitored by very focused people. Who all paused and watched their passage through the room.
Zan paused for a moment before they left to address them. “She’s okay.”
A tangible sigh of relief breezed through the whole room.
“I can have her back now,” and once again without waiting for a response from him, Zan did what he wanted. He took Liz out from Max’s arms and in a beat was walking and talking as two people briefed him on the Terzin situation.
Whatever that was.
Max studied his clone. Zan’s steps never faltered as he issued commands, he was confident, he knew what he was doing.
Inadequacy wasn’t a feeling he enjoyed, but at that moment Max felt it was the only one he could seek solace in.
****
Another hallway, a few turns, an elevator complete with retinal scans and palm activation, a few more turns and they were in what looked like an upscale home: wooden floor boards and panelling, soft lighting, living room, kitchen, bathroom, past two closed doors and a pause by one.
“You two can go now,” Zan told them.
Max was grateful for it. He had stayed quiet, he had observed the situation and relations in his new beyond the norm environment and now, he wanted to talk.
“You sure?” asked Rath.
“Do the rest of the clean up. I’ll talk to Max,” replied Zan.
The two gave him faint smiles of…support? He guessed, before leaving them.
Now Max didn’t know where to begin. Liz still lay unconscious in Zan’s arms.
“Is she going to be alright?” he asked.
“She’ll be fine.”
Max moved to open the door because it seemed that’s where they were going when it automatically opened. He sent Zan a questioning stare.
“You can do it too,” he responded before walking on ahead of him.
****
They were in a room.
Zan’s room.
Max wasn’t sure how he knew that, but it just seemed to fit: neat, forest green duvet, a more masculine dark oak panelling, sparse decoration of pictures. It was a lot like his room at his condo.
Zan carefully laid Liz on his double bed.
Liz on Zan’s double bed.
He wondered if they had ever shared it. Then shock away the surprisingly heart crushing images his mind came up with.
“You want anything to drink before we start?” Zan asked him.
“Water.”
Zan nodded and disappeared into a connecting room that Max assumed was a kitchen.
He stood still for a moment and was unsettled to discover that he was still falling. He stared at Liz, so peacefully unaware of what was happening around her. Time must have slowed again because the next time he was aware of his reality, he found himself sitting on the bed next to Liz, his fingers brushing her hair.
He wasn’t falling anymore. He had landed. Miraculously on his feet.
“Think fast!”.
His free hand shot out and caught the water bottle.
“Nice reflexes,” Zan commented.
Max slipped his hand away from Liz to open the bottle before slipping it back where it felt natural to go. Back to Liz.
Zan took a chair from his desk and sat facing him, beside the bed, beside Liz.
“You obviously got questions and I rate you for not raving ‘aliens are among us’ like a mad man,” he began.
Max had a long drink of water before responding. “And that’s what you are…aliens?”
He was still having problems processing it all.
And what was it all? He didn’t know the whole story. He glanced down at Liz, he didn’t know the whole story, but he wanted to.
“So are you,” Zan countered and then proceeded to stare hard at him as if waiting form some outburst.
A part of Max wanted to fulfil his expectation but the bigger part always saved reaction until he knew precisely what he was dealing with and it wouldn’t stop now.
“Just give it to me straight. I’ll hold off ‘til you get to the end,” he told him.
“Fair enough,” agreed Zan. “Human beings aren’t alone in the universe; in fact, there’s life on other planets, other galaxies. The Whirlwind galaxy, is our home, five planets make up our system. Antar is our home planet and you and I, are its Kings. Well there was only supposed to be one of us but I’ll get to that later. The US government knows aliens exist. They’ve been working with each other for decades, only they figure humanity isn’t quiet ready to understand the full scope of it all. We share technology and we do enjoy your t.v. shows.
Antar was ruled by the Royal family years ago, our planets lived in harmony but as all things political go, greed stepped in, unrest from different planets grew and from ours…a Brutus/Caesar thing went down and the whole Royal family: King Zan, Queen Ezra, Commander Rath his betrothed Vilandra and her sister Ava were assassinated by Khivar and his followers.
Khivar? Not a nice guy, so supporters of the Royal family and the American government joined forces to find a way to bring them back. I know what you’re thinking and no, it’s not because it’s out of the goodness of their hearts, and Khivar wants the Whirlwind galaxy and the rest, including this solar system to have as his satellite states. They help the aliens out and it’s their best chance of keeping Khivar away from earth. The Royal family are the key to the survival and success of a rebellion against Khivar.
Their power- our power is unparalleled. So they mixed our alien essences with human DNA from donors and re-created us. Alien-human hybrids. They made two sets for insurance, one set raised together by their protectors in New York with full knowledge of their past and purpose. The others were implanted with false memories of their lives on earth before they were six. They were scattered around the country, except for you and Isabel who stayed together because the Evans’ wanted you both. You were all adopted by human couples who fit the profile, who could be trusted to accomplish something crucial to the future existence of human society the way it is.
The New York set is us: me, Rath, Ava, Vilandra and…Ezra. The set was you, Michael, Isabel, Tess and Liz. What I’m saying Max, is you weren’t born. You were hatched and all the memories and pictures you have from your childhood before you were six… are all fake, created to ensure your safety and make you think that you’re…all human.
If something happened to us, then you would be called up to take over. Your memories from our previous life along with your powers would be unlocked. The alien side will balance with the human. Khivar found out about the recreation and not wanting to dilute himself, had himself cloned. The old Khivar died years ago, the clone takes his place now, he’s who we’re fighting, he’s who you met today.
That’s it. That’s the history. We’ve been working with the government, off book of course. You and I were never supposed to meet; our worlds were never supposed to clash while both of us were alive. Now they have and we have to deal with it.”
Zan sat back and waited. He had given him the hard facts, now he had to deal.
****
Max had questions, so many questions.
First off was: what the hell was going on?
Then came: when had Isabel found out
Why didn’t she tell him?
His parents. They knew and they’d lied to him! Did they really love him or was he raised out of duty?
An alien?, he was really an alien?!- Not alien, human-alien hybrid.
“You should be overwhelmed about now...”
Max looked up at Zan and found that he wasn’t looking at him as he said the words; Max followed the direction of his gaze and was amazed to see blue sparks from his fingers dancing with green sparks from Liz’s hair.
“..you are what you are.”
Millions of thoughts flooded his mind in a small space of time. He had important things to think about, his life was obviously more dangerous now…much more than he had bargained for and he had new responsibilities and-
“Ezra.”
That was the burning issue he wanted to discuss.
“She was your Queen,” he added.
He had seen the look of grief on Zan’s face when he had said her name, no matter how fleeting it had been, as well as the love and reverence in his voice. She was also nowhere to be found.
“She was,” Zan told him, “ but- she was so stubborn- Khivar killed her in battle before he really thought it through. She was my soul-mate.”
That was all he said, but Max wasn’t surprised by the brevity of his explanation. Somehow he knew that in losing Ezra, Zan had lost a part of himself, but he also had a priceless part of her too as she did of him.
Then another more pleasantly startling thought struck him.
“If Ezra was your soul mate,” he glanced down at Liz’s sleeping form and smiled. She had had every right to throw his world, to throw his off balance, to unnerve him, to make him want her in a mystifying way.
It was right for him to feel as if he had known her for an eternity and had been waiting for her all his life.
“Liz, she’s my Queen, my soul mate,” he finished.
“She’s your Queen,” Zan agreed.
“She’s mine.”
To honour, to love and cherish.
“I dare you to say that to her face when she comes around.”
It wasn’t the teasing challenge in his tone that had Max instantly tense and defensive, it was the silently unspoken, grudging reluctance to let go.
Max looked up and locked eyes with his determined twin.
“She’s mine, but you’re not going to step back from here are you?” he asked.
Zan shook his head. His expression still determined but also apologetic, “Us, being the way we were before, who we were with? We were engineered that way. Destiny,” he explained, “But this one,” he inclined his head towards Liz, “She’s all about creating her own destiny. So no, she was meant for you, but I’m not going to back off.”
Max clenched his jaw as his twin linked fingers with Liz. Zan's eyes suddenly cold hard and ruthless, “I’m creating my own destiny.”
****
TBC
-
willowbv
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AN: Hey guys, as usual, thanks for all the support. 
, but she's using the name Evans because she changed last name to escape Sean D...but there's a story behind the selection of the name too, which you'll find out about later
Shout outs to:
alana
Ellieicequeen
Emz80m
extingman - hey :waves: welcome to the fic
frenchkiss70
ISLANDGIRL5
janesdilemma
Jason's Lover
L-J-L 76
mezz
mlover25
QueenTrueLove
roswell3053
RosyLady
SmileeUk
PREVIOUSLY
Max looked up and locked eyes with his determined twin.
“She’s mine, but you’re not going to step back from here are you?” he asked.
Zan shook his head. His expression still determined but also apologetic, “Us, being the way we were before, who we were with? We were engineered that way. Destiny,” he explained, “But this one,” he inclined his head towards Liz, “She’s all about creating her own destiny. So no, she was meant for you, but I’m not going to back off.”
Max clenched his jaw as his twin linked fingers with Liz. Zan's eyes suddenly cold hard and ruthless, “I’m creating my own destiny.”
****
12.
This is over my head but underneath my feet
Cuz by tomorrow morning I’ll have this thing beat
And everything will be back to the way that it was
I wish that it was just that easy
Somewhere in Between - Lifehouse
There was a sharp knock on the door followed quickly the turning of the knob. Max was still working out in his mind how to respond to Zan’s declaration when the three bodies entered the room. His eyes widened at the sight of his best-friend and sister standing behind Rath. Forgetting to question how they had gotten here, he focused on the fact that their presence reminded him of his new reality and of his sister’s lies.
“Yo, sorry, for interrupting,” Rath began, “but these two want to talk to Max.”
“That’s fine.” Zan squeezed Liz’s hand lightly before rising from his seat. Max rose with him, not wanting his dupe to look down on him. Not after he made it blatantly obvious that he was after his woman.
“Liz should be fine here,” Zan informed him. “We’ll leave you to it.”
Max lifted an eyebrow at him. “We’re not done Zan.”
His dupe nodded in agreement. “We’ll talk later.”
Max clenched his jaw at the way his twin seemed so at ease around him, as if he didn’t consider him a challenge to making Liz his. He waited for him and Rath to leave before facing up to his friend and sister.
“You’ve been told?” he asked Michael, deliberately ignoring Isabel. He needed to get his boiling temper in check before he spoke to her.
“Rath debriefed me,” replied Michael with a frown.
“And?”, he asked.
Even though everything had happened incredibly quickly, even though he didn’t know everything about the alien madness he was in now, Max had made the decision early on that he would be in it and he would feel better if his best friend was with him.
“Seems to be the only thing that makes all this seem not insane and us not crazy, so I’m with it,” Michael replied. “You?”.
Max lowered his hand millimetres above Liz’s, watched the blue and green sparks dance and then looked back at his friend. “How can I not?”.
Michael grinned, his face brightened in the way it did when they were about to go on a mission that had a high probability of them ending up dead. “This is unbelievable! It’s fucking freaky.”
“That is the truth,” Max agreed empathically.
“Are you two just going to continue pretending I’m not here?” asked Isabel.
She watched as, they shared a knowing smile, probably some secret guy code, before Max finally turned his gaze her and he definitely wasn‘t smiling.
“Wasn’t going to do it indefinitely, just until I got a hold of the urge to disown you as my sister,” he replied with unsettling calm.
Although they only spent a few weeks a year together, Isabel knew he brother, him being calm at moments like this was very very bad.
“I know you’re angry-”
“What the fuck Iz? WHAT THE FUCK!”.
She flinched at the sheer number of decibels he hit. Her eyes jerked to Liz, who surprisingly was undisturbed by the noise level. Not that she should have been surprised, Liz was virtually comatose after a power overload.
“Max, just calm down,” she waved her hands up and down placating.
“I was calm,” he responded through gritted teeth.
Michael stepped aside as Max advanced on her, when Max was furious, he preferred to be a safe distance away. Not that he would hurt his sister, but his anger almost had a physical effect. He had been a little pissed off to know that Isabel had known about their origins all this time, but then again, Isabel wasn’t his sister, so he figured Max was pissed off enough for both of them.
“I was calm,” he repeated, “ when strange energy bolts were being tossed at me as I ran for my life! I was calm when I found out that I was an alien hybrid and most impressive of all, I was calm when my twin just told me that he’s after my soul mate.”
Isabel took a trembling step back. She would just let his get it all out before interrupting again.
“I’ve reached my limit,” he continued. “So, Iz, I will ask again. What. The. Fuck?!”.
“I second that,” piped Michael.
Isabel waited a beat to see if he would continue, but apparently he was done. He wanted her to respond now and she knew she had to make it good. “Okay, so you- both of you, have every right to be pissed at me since I’ve been omitting the truth from you for two years-”
“Two years,” he repeated dumbly. His sister had been leading some kind of double life for two years. In his job, he understood that people did what they had to do to survive, even by hiding the truth, but this wasn’t work. This was family and because it was, he couldn’t be philosophical about it. His thoughts ran wildly past him, he reached out and grabbed one to vocalise.
“You work in crisis management for national emergencies.”
****
Isabel sighed. The highs and lows of today had been draining, having to deal with Max’s almost dumbfounded shock instead of his anger was exhausting. Max usually kept it together, but, thinking back to the time she found out the truth, she decided he was keeping it together. He was taking it better than she had.
“I do,” she responded, “Two years ago, there was a case that caught my interest. Things just didn’t fit and no-one was making a big deal about it. I pursued it in my spare time and it was around the time that Khivar started dropping by earth, getting more hands on. Ava was sent in to mind warp me.”
“What is that? A mind warp,” asked Michael.
Isabel paused as she wondered how she could explain Ava’s mind warp.
“She can make you see things that aren’t there- create new memories or erase over old ones,” she tried.
They both looked mildly confused but seemed to understand her explanation on some level.
“Oh…cool,” said Michael.
“She didn’t do it,” she continued, “instead, she told me the truth and helped me retrieve my memories from my life as Vilandra. I guess she saw my potential. I’m a royal presence on earth, plus I’m damn good at my job and what bigger crisis can there be than that of a possible alien invasion?”.
“Invasion?”, echoed Michael.
“I’ll explain later. Right now, I just want to apologise for keeping the truth from you. Zan and Rath probably told you, but us sets were never supposed to meet. It kept us safe and I wanted to keep you safe,” she sent them a sad smile, “now you’re not so safe and I’m sorry for that.”
Most of the anger drained from Max’s face. He offered her a small smile. “I guess this is who were right? All this time we’ve been going on mission and serving our country instead of fighting for our planet.”
“You don’t remember it yet,” she told him.
“I will just like you did and I’ll help anyway I can.”
“Same goes,” quipped Michael.
“Why?” she asked.
It had never been this simple with her. She didn’t think it would be this simple for anyone.
“Everything just clicks. It feels right,” Max replied.
“Plus Khivar rubbed me the wrong way,” added Michael. “I’m getting a headache wrapping my head around this, but I’m in it however far it goes. Alien super powers should be a rush.”
Isabel laughed relieved and hugged them both. “Thanks guys. I’m glad.”
****
Max had a lot of questions he still needed answers to, but her confessions had raised a big one that took priority.
“You seemed surprised that we’d agree to be involved so fast. Why?” he asked.
“Because I wasn’t that eager, it took me a few days to come to a decision and…well because of Liz,” she admitted. “She…still isn’t eager to help us.”
Liz wasn’t eager to help yet she and Zan seemed to have an intense connection?
Zan and Rath had gone all out to save her and everyone in that room they had walked through seemed concerned for her welfare-
“What?- wait, that isn’t making sense. What am I missing here?” he asked.
He studied Isabel as she shifted uncomfortably, he could almost see her mind editing what to say.
“I thought you were past holding out on us,” Michael reminded her.
“I’m not holding out,” she returned, “I’m just trying to get this out right. Liz is different from us. All of us.”
“How?” asked Max.
“We all came out of these pods, which monitored our development and made sure we had the adequate nutrients. Liz’s pod was badly damaged in the deployment of our pods. No-one thought she would make it, except she did but something went wrong or strangely right depending on how you look at it.”
“Can the cliff-hangers Isabel, what’s wrong with the chick?” demanded Michael.
“When we retrieve memories of our past lives, it triggers the release of our powers. Liz can’t access her memories- we’ve tried, it’s like the trigger isn’t there.”
“But she has powers,” Max interrupted. “She threw Zan into a wall. How can she have powers if her memories didn’t trigger them?”.
She hesitated and this time, her response was so carefully thought out that Max was instantly suspicious. “We found another way.”
“What other way?” he slowly asked.
“Zan found it by accident, you can ask him all about it but the main thing is, she got her powers except with no memory, she isn’t very good at controlling them.
Her powers are also stronger than Ezra’s. We don’t really know what’s going on with her, but she has power, lots of it and she can’t control it. She’s a wild card because she just wants her normal life back and she can’t have it and…we really don‘t know what she‘ll do.”
“Why not?” he asked.
If the sets weren’t supposed to meet and Liz was accidentally drawn in and wanted out, then to his mind, Liz going back to living her life shouldn’t have been a problem.
“She’s too powerful to be normal,” replied Isabel. “You know the saying that behind every great man is a great woman?
Well that’s how Antar works. The king rules but not as well without the queen. At her coronation, the queen is given power from the royal bloodline. Liz exhibits more power than Zan’s Ezra ever did, more power than anyone can remember…and we don’t know why. Liz can’t be normal Max, because she isn’t a normal human or hybrid. She’s an anomaly.”
A stir and gasp drew everyone’s attention to the bed.
****
Max was by her side in an instant. He watched Liz’s eyes flutter open.
“Liz.”
Her movements stilled, her eyes blankly stared into his before she smiled and recognition dawned. “Max.”
His heart warmed at the fact that she could tell him and Zan apart. “Yeah, it’s me.” He helped her sit up. “How are feeling?”.
Liz wasn’t looking at him anymore, she was scrutinizing her surroundings in disbelief.
Her eyes landed on Isabel. “Here again,” she whispered. Then she focused on him gripping his hand. “You know don’t you?”.
He nodded.
“You still have time to get out of this before you get too involved.”
That was the last thing Max expected her to say. She didn’t seem overjoyed at being in Zan’s room or at seeing Isabel or about any of it.
Isabel had mentioned that she was reluctant, but looking into her eyes and reading her expression, Max had a feeling it went beyond reluctance.
He also had the sudden fear that if he told her why he wasn’t going to walk out, why he was fine with helping Antar, she wouldn‘t want to be within three feet of him.
Instead, he smiled at her and shrugged his shoulders. “Too late.”
I’m in love with you, he added silently.
****
TBC
LolQueenTrueLove wrote:
I hope Liz wakes up and says 'Boys, this double bed is big enough for all of us.'
Covered the name thing earlier on, but just in passion along with the info overload, so 'tis understandable that you missed iticequeen wrote: Oh and why Liz is using the name Evans or did you say already?
, but she's using the name Evans because she changed last name to escape Sean D...but there's a story behind the selection of the name too, which you'll find out about later Wow, you caught that huh?...I know, I know. How wrong is that? but Max hasn't processed that yet and once again, there is a story behind that as wellicequeen wrote:Ava/Tess, when Zan was mentioning everyone and who they were, was he saying that Ava was Vilandra's sister? Does that mean she is Zan's as well? And if so, does that mean that Max had been boinking his recreated sister?
After.extingman wrote: And Zan lost his Ezra in battle with Khivar, was that after they had been recreated?
A little bit.extingman wrote:If so, is that why he can't help himself around Liz?
Have they now?extingman wrote:And we know that he and Liz have had sex,
That will be discovered in parts to follow.extingman wrote:a baby was mentioned, Laine, is Liz her mother and Zan her father? If so, was that one of the memories that Zan took from her or was it Ava that did it?
Good question.extingman wrote:Plus the fact that during her abductions she wasn't gone for that long so how is it possible?
all in good time.extingman wrote:Zan also mentioned that Khivar had taken Liz as well, what did he do to her and how was she rescued?
Shout outs to:
alana
Ellieicequeen
Emz80m
extingman - hey :waves: welcome to the fic
frenchkiss70
ISLANDGIRL5
janesdilemma
Jason's Lover
L-J-L 76
mezz
mlover25
QueenTrueLove
roswell3053
RosyLady
SmileeUk
PREVIOUSLY
Max looked up and locked eyes with his determined twin.
“She’s mine, but you’re not going to step back from here are you?” he asked.
Zan shook his head. His expression still determined but also apologetic, “Us, being the way we were before, who we were with? We were engineered that way. Destiny,” he explained, “But this one,” he inclined his head towards Liz, “She’s all about creating her own destiny. So no, she was meant for you, but I’m not going to back off.”
Max clenched his jaw as his twin linked fingers with Liz. Zan's eyes suddenly cold hard and ruthless, “I’m creating my own destiny.”
****
12.
This is over my head but underneath my feet
Cuz by tomorrow morning I’ll have this thing beat
And everything will be back to the way that it was
I wish that it was just that easy
Somewhere in Between - Lifehouse
There was a sharp knock on the door followed quickly the turning of the knob. Max was still working out in his mind how to respond to Zan’s declaration when the three bodies entered the room. His eyes widened at the sight of his best-friend and sister standing behind Rath. Forgetting to question how they had gotten here, he focused on the fact that their presence reminded him of his new reality and of his sister’s lies.
“Yo, sorry, for interrupting,” Rath began, “but these two want to talk to Max.”
“That’s fine.” Zan squeezed Liz’s hand lightly before rising from his seat. Max rose with him, not wanting his dupe to look down on him. Not after he made it blatantly obvious that he was after his woman.
“Liz should be fine here,” Zan informed him. “We’ll leave you to it.”
Max lifted an eyebrow at him. “We’re not done Zan.”
His dupe nodded in agreement. “We’ll talk later.”
Max clenched his jaw at the way his twin seemed so at ease around him, as if he didn’t consider him a challenge to making Liz his. He waited for him and Rath to leave before facing up to his friend and sister.
“You’ve been told?” he asked Michael, deliberately ignoring Isabel. He needed to get his boiling temper in check before he spoke to her.
“Rath debriefed me,” replied Michael with a frown.
“And?”, he asked.
Even though everything had happened incredibly quickly, even though he didn’t know everything about the alien madness he was in now, Max had made the decision early on that he would be in it and he would feel better if his best friend was with him.
“Seems to be the only thing that makes all this seem not insane and us not crazy, so I’m with it,” Michael replied. “You?”.
Max lowered his hand millimetres above Liz’s, watched the blue and green sparks dance and then looked back at his friend. “How can I not?”.
Michael grinned, his face brightened in the way it did when they were about to go on a mission that had a high probability of them ending up dead. “This is unbelievable! It’s fucking freaky.”
“That is the truth,” Max agreed empathically.
“Are you two just going to continue pretending I’m not here?” asked Isabel.
She watched as, they shared a knowing smile, probably some secret guy code, before Max finally turned his gaze her and he definitely wasn‘t smiling.
“Wasn’t going to do it indefinitely, just until I got a hold of the urge to disown you as my sister,” he replied with unsettling calm.
Although they only spent a few weeks a year together, Isabel knew he brother, him being calm at moments like this was very very bad.
“I know you’re angry-”
“What the fuck Iz? WHAT THE FUCK!”.
She flinched at the sheer number of decibels he hit. Her eyes jerked to Liz, who surprisingly was undisturbed by the noise level. Not that she should have been surprised, Liz was virtually comatose after a power overload.
“Max, just calm down,” she waved her hands up and down placating.
“I was calm,” he responded through gritted teeth.
Michael stepped aside as Max advanced on her, when Max was furious, he preferred to be a safe distance away. Not that he would hurt his sister, but his anger almost had a physical effect. He had been a little pissed off to know that Isabel had known about their origins all this time, but then again, Isabel wasn’t his sister, so he figured Max was pissed off enough for both of them.
“I was calm,” he repeated, “ when strange energy bolts were being tossed at me as I ran for my life! I was calm when I found out that I was an alien hybrid and most impressive of all, I was calm when my twin just told me that he’s after my soul mate.”
Isabel took a trembling step back. She would just let his get it all out before interrupting again.
“I’ve reached my limit,” he continued. “So, Iz, I will ask again. What. The. Fuck?!”.
“I second that,” piped Michael.
Isabel waited a beat to see if he would continue, but apparently he was done. He wanted her to respond now and she knew she had to make it good. “Okay, so you- both of you, have every right to be pissed at me since I’ve been omitting the truth from you for two years-”
“Two years,” he repeated dumbly. His sister had been leading some kind of double life for two years. In his job, he understood that people did what they had to do to survive, even by hiding the truth, but this wasn’t work. This was family and because it was, he couldn’t be philosophical about it. His thoughts ran wildly past him, he reached out and grabbed one to vocalise.
“You work in crisis management for national emergencies.”
****
Isabel sighed. The highs and lows of today had been draining, having to deal with Max’s almost dumbfounded shock instead of his anger was exhausting. Max usually kept it together, but, thinking back to the time she found out the truth, she decided he was keeping it together. He was taking it better than she had.
“I do,” she responded, “Two years ago, there was a case that caught my interest. Things just didn’t fit and no-one was making a big deal about it. I pursued it in my spare time and it was around the time that Khivar started dropping by earth, getting more hands on. Ava was sent in to mind warp me.”
“What is that? A mind warp,” asked Michael.
Isabel paused as she wondered how she could explain Ava’s mind warp.
“She can make you see things that aren’t there- create new memories or erase over old ones,” she tried.
They both looked mildly confused but seemed to understand her explanation on some level.
“Oh…cool,” said Michael.
“She didn’t do it,” she continued, “instead, she told me the truth and helped me retrieve my memories from my life as Vilandra. I guess she saw my potential. I’m a royal presence on earth, plus I’m damn good at my job and what bigger crisis can there be than that of a possible alien invasion?”.
“Invasion?”, echoed Michael.
“I’ll explain later. Right now, I just want to apologise for keeping the truth from you. Zan and Rath probably told you, but us sets were never supposed to meet. It kept us safe and I wanted to keep you safe,” she sent them a sad smile, “now you’re not so safe and I’m sorry for that.”
Most of the anger drained from Max’s face. He offered her a small smile. “I guess this is who were right? All this time we’ve been going on mission and serving our country instead of fighting for our planet.”
“You don’t remember it yet,” she told him.
“I will just like you did and I’ll help anyway I can.”
“Same goes,” quipped Michael.
“Why?” she asked.
It had never been this simple with her. She didn’t think it would be this simple for anyone.
“Everything just clicks. It feels right,” Max replied.
“Plus Khivar rubbed me the wrong way,” added Michael. “I’m getting a headache wrapping my head around this, but I’m in it however far it goes. Alien super powers should be a rush.”
Isabel laughed relieved and hugged them both. “Thanks guys. I’m glad.”
****
Max had a lot of questions he still needed answers to, but her confessions had raised a big one that took priority.
“You seemed surprised that we’d agree to be involved so fast. Why?” he asked.
“Because I wasn’t that eager, it took me a few days to come to a decision and…well because of Liz,” she admitted. “She…still isn’t eager to help us.”
Liz wasn’t eager to help yet she and Zan seemed to have an intense connection?
Zan and Rath had gone all out to save her and everyone in that room they had walked through seemed concerned for her welfare-
“What?- wait, that isn’t making sense. What am I missing here?” he asked.
He studied Isabel as she shifted uncomfortably, he could almost see her mind editing what to say.
“I thought you were past holding out on us,” Michael reminded her.
“I’m not holding out,” she returned, “I’m just trying to get this out right. Liz is different from us. All of us.”
“How?” asked Max.
“We all came out of these pods, which monitored our development and made sure we had the adequate nutrients. Liz’s pod was badly damaged in the deployment of our pods. No-one thought she would make it, except she did but something went wrong or strangely right depending on how you look at it.”
“Can the cliff-hangers Isabel, what’s wrong with the chick?” demanded Michael.
“When we retrieve memories of our past lives, it triggers the release of our powers. Liz can’t access her memories- we’ve tried, it’s like the trigger isn’t there.”
“But she has powers,” Max interrupted. “She threw Zan into a wall. How can she have powers if her memories didn’t trigger them?”.
She hesitated and this time, her response was so carefully thought out that Max was instantly suspicious. “We found another way.”
“What other way?” he slowly asked.
“Zan found it by accident, you can ask him all about it but the main thing is, she got her powers except with no memory, she isn’t very good at controlling them.
Her powers are also stronger than Ezra’s. We don’t really know what’s going on with her, but she has power, lots of it and she can’t control it. She’s a wild card because she just wants her normal life back and she can’t have it and…we really don‘t know what she‘ll do.”
“Why not?” he asked.
If the sets weren’t supposed to meet and Liz was accidentally drawn in and wanted out, then to his mind, Liz going back to living her life shouldn’t have been a problem.
“She’s too powerful to be normal,” replied Isabel. “You know the saying that behind every great man is a great woman?
Well that’s how Antar works. The king rules but not as well without the queen. At her coronation, the queen is given power from the royal bloodline. Liz exhibits more power than Zan’s Ezra ever did, more power than anyone can remember…and we don’t know why. Liz can’t be normal Max, because she isn’t a normal human or hybrid. She’s an anomaly.”
A stir and gasp drew everyone’s attention to the bed.
****
Max was by her side in an instant. He watched Liz’s eyes flutter open.
“Liz.”
Her movements stilled, her eyes blankly stared into his before she smiled and recognition dawned. “Max.”
His heart warmed at the fact that she could tell him and Zan apart. “Yeah, it’s me.” He helped her sit up. “How are feeling?”.
Liz wasn’t looking at him anymore, she was scrutinizing her surroundings in disbelief.
Her eyes landed on Isabel. “Here again,” she whispered. Then she focused on him gripping his hand. “You know don’t you?”.
He nodded.
“You still have time to get out of this before you get too involved.”
That was the last thing Max expected her to say. She didn’t seem overjoyed at being in Zan’s room or at seeing Isabel or about any of it.
Isabel had mentioned that she was reluctant, but looking into her eyes and reading her expression, Max had a feeling it went beyond reluctance.
He also had the sudden fear that if he told her why he wasn’t going to walk out, why he was fine with helping Antar, she wouldn‘t want to be within three feet of him.
Instead, he smiled at her and shrugged his shoulders. “Too late.”
I’m in love with you, he added silently.
****
TBC
-
willowbv
- Addicted Roswellian
- Posts: 321
- Joined: Thu Aug 08, 2002 4:40 am
- Location: in a vegas chapel
- Contact:
AN: Hey guys, I'm back and hoping that this fic hasn't been forgotte since the last update was in January!!! That's such a long time, but hope you're still interested...
xx will
PREVIOUSLY
Max was by her side in an instant. He watched Liz’s eyes flutter open.
“Liz.”
Her movements stilled, her eyes blankly stared into his before she smiled and recognition dawned. “Max.”
His heart warmed at the fact that she could tell him and Zan apart. “Yeah, it’s me.” He helped her sit up. “How are feeling?”.
Liz wasn’t looking at him anymore, she was scrutinizing her surroundings in disbelief.
Her eyes landed on Isabel. “Here again,” she whispered. Then she focused on him gripping his hand. “You know don’t you?”.
He nodded.
“You still have time to get out of this before you get too involved.”
That was the last thing Max expected her to say. She didn’t seem overjoyed at being in Zan’s room or at seeing Isabel or about any of it.
Isabel had mentioned that she was reluctant, but looking into her eyes and reading her expression, Max had a feeling it went beyond reluctance.
He also had the sudden fear that if he told her why he wasn’t going to walk out, why he was fine with helping Antar, she wouldn‘t want to be within three feet of him.
Instead, he smiled at her and shrugged his shoulders. “Too late.”
I’m in love with you, he added silently.
****
13.
Without a word
Back and forth and around we go
I just wanted to let you know
Don’t you know you’ve got nothing to say?
- Headway
Liz sat cross-legged on Zan’s bed watching them all watch her with varying levels of curiosity. She was waiting form someone to say something, but instead, they all just watched her. Waiting to react against whatever she did or said.
What do they think I’m going to flip out? Light up like a firework with my powers?
Their mutual silence had stretched out to extreme awkwardness at least from her end. Initially she had been amused by and had used the time to get her temper under control. Unfortunately the time had allowed most of her thoughts to start creating an impact.
They had abused her mind again, she wasn’t going to let that issue alone.
“Okay. Can we all stop staring at the creature at the zoo thanks? I’m not on display.” She unfolded her legs and swung round to the edge of the bed. When she pushed herself off to stand, Max was immediately by her side helping her up.
“Be careful,” he softly warned her.
She smiled at him. “Thanks, but there was no need. When I wake up after these things, I’m pretty much wired. A good side effect I think.”
His incredulously amazed expression had her grinning wider. She patted him good-naturedly on the back. “Relax Max, you’ll get used to this.”
She glanced up at Isabel who shrugged apologetically.
“That’s not good enough anymore Iz. Is my room still here?” she asked.
“Exactly how you left it,” she replied.
Liz nodded and headed for the door. Images, emotions and knowledge swarmed her mind begging for her attention. She needed some space and her room here was a place of solitude.
At the door, she paused and turned back to Max who watched after her, to Michael who was taking everything in with interest and to Isabel who was studying her apprehensively. She would deal with Isabel later, but to Max and Michael she offered a sardonic smile.
“For what it’s worth, welcome to the team. I’ll see you guys later.”
****
Finding refugee in her room, Liz crossed over to the coded unit beside the door. Alien technology had its benefits, she programmed the beach simulation which painted over her mini open plan living area with and a sandy beach where waves lapped against the shore and light heat warmed up her skin. She felt peaceful and…away from the chaos of her life but even virtual reality couldn’t bring her the kind of serenity she desired.
“Simulation off,” she ordered. She was back in the living area they had made for her during her second time with them. She sat down on her bed, rested her face in her hands and let the memories flood her conscious awareness.
She remembered the first time…
****
…A sharp pain that blinded her eyes.
Then waking up on a cold table.
A dissection table. Strapped down. Bright lights. She couldn’t see him until he stepped into them.
Staggeringly handsome.
She was afraid and inwardly panicking but of all things, the distinct thing that coloured her experience, was the way he stared at her. It was lecherous, alluring and…enraptured.
He spoke. “You’re an exquisite creature aren’t you?”.
“Exquisite creatures aren’t usually chained down,” she had tightly retorted.
He merely smiled dismissively. “Precautions”.
Charmed by her, that was what he said he was.
He had somehow knocked her out and strapped her down and he was charmed?!
“Who are you?” she asked.
****
An explosion rocked whatever holding they had her in.
Dangerous and handsome was gone. There were shadows, voices she would only later make out.
Then his face.
Another staggeringly handsome man but this one had added power. His eyes, blazing amber, they locked with hers.
And she felt it, the spark. It ignited and roared to life.
“Who are you?”.
“I’m Zan. That’s Ava and Rath.”
“What’s going on?”.
****
There was a reluctance to tell her but she had seen too much, felt too much to let it go.
“Your life isn’t what you think Liz,” Zan explained.
“You know my name.”
Amber eyes turned molten brown and surged into her. “We know more about yourself than you do.”
****
They told her the truth…
“Your parents aren’t your real parents…implanted memories…government…aliens…Antar…Khivar…you’re not human…alien human hybrid.”
She shook her head wishing it away. “I don’t want this”.
“You have no choice. Ezra’s dead, you need to take her place-”
“She was your soul mate, Zan. Don’t ask me that, we’re not the same.”
“This is your destiny.”
She fought it…
“My destiny is what I make it. You can’t access my memories, I don’t have powers. I don’t remember Antar or its people. I’m not a part of this.”
****
Vilandra tried to convince her…
“Zan needs a Queen.”
“Zan had his Queen and I’m sorry she died but I can’t be her! Apparently there’s someone else programmed for me. I don’t like either option.”
****
She battled with Ava and Rath…
“What do you want?” he’d asked tiredly.
“My life back. Ava make me forget.”
****
And Ava did. Until the second time…
When she spent a week with them.
When both she and Zan had tried to do the right thing and fight the chemistry between them.
When she yielded to her feelings for him.
When they needed her to amplify Zan’s powers. Except she couldn’t remember and couldn’t access her them to help him. It had taken her near death to find a way to awaken them.
When awakened though, her powers were strong, potent and out of control.
“You need a balance,” Zan advised her.
“How do I do that?”.
“Through me.”
“A little elaboration please?”
He pressed a soft kiss against her forehead. “I didn’t mean for this to happen Liz, I just had to save you but- the bonding it’s begun…we’re connected and it’s wrong because you don’t belong to me.”
She smiled up at him from her position on his bed. “I don’t belong to anyone Zan. I choose. I choose you. You decide what you want and let me know. Right now, I’d really like this balance you’re talking about.”
She had been reckless, drowning in power and in her feelings for him.
He had stood awkwardly before her, trying to resist. “You don’t know what you’re asking.”
“You offered,” she countered.
He sat down on the bed beside her. “I’ll be gentle, I’ll try to hold back but-”
She nodded already wrapping her arms around his neck drawing their bodies closer together. “No guarantees, I understand.”
****
There’d been a third time, she knew and she’d been away longer and things had happened that changed everything…again.
Liz desperately searched for clues about that third time but nothing came. Eventually, she knew it would and that the feelings she had now would all make sense. Before that happened, she would trust what her instincts were now driving her to do now.
****
xx will
PREVIOUSLY
Max was by her side in an instant. He watched Liz’s eyes flutter open.
“Liz.”
Her movements stilled, her eyes blankly stared into his before she smiled and recognition dawned. “Max.”
His heart warmed at the fact that she could tell him and Zan apart. “Yeah, it’s me.” He helped her sit up. “How are feeling?”.
Liz wasn’t looking at him anymore, she was scrutinizing her surroundings in disbelief.
Her eyes landed on Isabel. “Here again,” she whispered. Then she focused on him gripping his hand. “You know don’t you?”.
He nodded.
“You still have time to get out of this before you get too involved.”
That was the last thing Max expected her to say. She didn’t seem overjoyed at being in Zan’s room or at seeing Isabel or about any of it.
Isabel had mentioned that she was reluctant, but looking into her eyes and reading her expression, Max had a feeling it went beyond reluctance.
He also had the sudden fear that if he told her why he wasn’t going to walk out, why he was fine with helping Antar, she wouldn‘t want to be within three feet of him.
Instead, he smiled at her and shrugged his shoulders. “Too late.”
I’m in love with you, he added silently.
****
13.
Without a word
Back and forth and around we go
I just wanted to let you know
Don’t you know you’ve got nothing to say?
- Headway
Liz sat cross-legged on Zan’s bed watching them all watch her with varying levels of curiosity. She was waiting form someone to say something, but instead, they all just watched her. Waiting to react against whatever she did or said.
What do they think I’m going to flip out? Light up like a firework with my powers?
Their mutual silence had stretched out to extreme awkwardness at least from her end. Initially she had been amused by and had used the time to get her temper under control. Unfortunately the time had allowed most of her thoughts to start creating an impact.
They had abused her mind again, she wasn’t going to let that issue alone.
“Okay. Can we all stop staring at the creature at the zoo thanks? I’m not on display.” She unfolded her legs and swung round to the edge of the bed. When she pushed herself off to stand, Max was immediately by her side helping her up.
“Be careful,” he softly warned her.
She smiled at him. “Thanks, but there was no need. When I wake up after these things, I’m pretty much wired. A good side effect I think.”
His incredulously amazed expression had her grinning wider. She patted him good-naturedly on the back. “Relax Max, you’ll get used to this.”
She glanced up at Isabel who shrugged apologetically.
“That’s not good enough anymore Iz. Is my room still here?” she asked.
“Exactly how you left it,” she replied.
Liz nodded and headed for the door. Images, emotions and knowledge swarmed her mind begging for her attention. She needed some space and her room here was a place of solitude.
At the door, she paused and turned back to Max who watched after her, to Michael who was taking everything in with interest and to Isabel who was studying her apprehensively. She would deal with Isabel later, but to Max and Michael she offered a sardonic smile.
“For what it’s worth, welcome to the team. I’ll see you guys later.”
****
Finding refugee in her room, Liz crossed over to the coded unit beside the door. Alien technology had its benefits, she programmed the beach simulation which painted over her mini open plan living area with and a sandy beach where waves lapped against the shore and light heat warmed up her skin. She felt peaceful and…away from the chaos of her life but even virtual reality couldn’t bring her the kind of serenity she desired.
“Simulation off,” she ordered. She was back in the living area they had made for her during her second time with them. She sat down on her bed, rested her face in her hands and let the memories flood her conscious awareness.
She remembered the first time…
****
…A sharp pain that blinded her eyes.
Then waking up on a cold table.
A dissection table. Strapped down. Bright lights. She couldn’t see him until he stepped into them.
Staggeringly handsome.
She was afraid and inwardly panicking but of all things, the distinct thing that coloured her experience, was the way he stared at her. It was lecherous, alluring and…enraptured.
He spoke. “You’re an exquisite creature aren’t you?”.
“Exquisite creatures aren’t usually chained down,” she had tightly retorted.
He merely smiled dismissively. “Precautions”.
Charmed by her, that was what he said he was.
He had somehow knocked her out and strapped her down and he was charmed?!
“Who are you?” she asked.
****
An explosion rocked whatever holding they had her in.
Dangerous and handsome was gone. There were shadows, voices she would only later make out.
Then his face.
Another staggeringly handsome man but this one had added power. His eyes, blazing amber, they locked with hers.
And she felt it, the spark. It ignited and roared to life.
“Who are you?”.
“I’m Zan. That’s Ava and Rath.”
“What’s going on?”.
****
There was a reluctance to tell her but she had seen too much, felt too much to let it go.
“Your life isn’t what you think Liz,” Zan explained.
“You know my name.”
Amber eyes turned molten brown and surged into her. “We know more about yourself than you do.”
****
They told her the truth…
“Your parents aren’t your real parents…implanted memories…government…aliens…Antar…Khivar…you’re not human…alien human hybrid.”
She shook her head wishing it away. “I don’t want this”.
“You have no choice. Ezra’s dead, you need to take her place-”
“She was your soul mate, Zan. Don’t ask me that, we’re not the same.”
“This is your destiny.”
She fought it…
“My destiny is what I make it. You can’t access my memories, I don’t have powers. I don’t remember Antar or its people. I’m not a part of this.”
****
Vilandra tried to convince her…
“Zan needs a Queen.”
“Zan had his Queen and I’m sorry she died but I can’t be her! Apparently there’s someone else programmed for me. I don’t like either option.”
****
She battled with Ava and Rath…
“What do you want?” he’d asked tiredly.
“My life back. Ava make me forget.”
****
And Ava did. Until the second time…
When she spent a week with them.
When both she and Zan had tried to do the right thing and fight the chemistry between them.
When she yielded to her feelings for him.
When they needed her to amplify Zan’s powers. Except she couldn’t remember and couldn’t access her them to help him. It had taken her near death to find a way to awaken them.
When awakened though, her powers were strong, potent and out of control.
“You need a balance,” Zan advised her.
“How do I do that?”.
“Through me.”
“A little elaboration please?”
He pressed a soft kiss against her forehead. “I didn’t mean for this to happen Liz, I just had to save you but- the bonding it’s begun…we’re connected and it’s wrong because you don’t belong to me.”
She smiled up at him from her position on his bed. “I don’t belong to anyone Zan. I choose. I choose you. You decide what you want and let me know. Right now, I’d really like this balance you’re talking about.”
She had been reckless, drowning in power and in her feelings for him.
He had stood awkwardly before her, trying to resist. “You don’t know what you’re asking.”
“You offered,” she countered.
He sat down on the bed beside her. “I’ll be gentle, I’ll try to hold back but-”
She nodded already wrapping her arms around his neck drawing their bodies closer together. “No guarantees, I understand.”
****
There’d been a third time, she knew and she’d been away longer and things had happened that changed everything…again.
Liz desperately searched for clues about that third time but nothing came. Eventually, she knew it would and that the feelings she had now would all make sense. Before that happened, she would trust what her instincts were now driving her to do now.
****
-
willowbv
- Addicted Roswellian
- Posts: 321
- Joined: Thu Aug 08, 2002 4:40 am
- Location: in a vegas chapel
- Contact:
****
She found them all in the informal briefing room on the second level. The t.v. was on in the background. Zan and Max were steeped in heavy discussion. Rath and Michael were avidly studying files and reconnaissance photographs strewn over the desk. Isabel and Vilandra were working on something on the computer and Ava…was playing with a little baby.
They all stopped their activities when she entered the room.
They all seem right at home, she mused. Good for them I guess.
“Do my parents know I’m okay?” she asked trying to lift the sudden tension in the room.
“We sent word. Your dad wants to see you for himself though,” Isabel told her.
“I’ll bet,” she smiled. He was so over-protective of her, but then he had cause to be and she loved him for it.
“How are you?” asked Max.
No one would approach her and Liz was thankful for it. She didn’t want anyone clouding her judgment right now.
It was strange seeing Max and Zan together. What was even stranger to her, was that she had distinct feelings for each of them. Those two were another reason for her decision.
“Listen, um, thank you for saving my life,” she began, “I appreciate it. And I’m leaving.”
She turned to go praying, unrealistically, that they would just let it go, but they didn’t and she halted at their cries of indignation and confusion.
Turning back to face them, her gaze drifted from Zan and Max to the baby in Tess’ arms. Something was niggling at her memory…she shook it away to answer their questions.
“What happened today doesn’t change anything,” she began.
“Yo, you can’t just walk out after everything that’s happened!”, Rath argued.
“Khivar’s dangerous,” added Isabel, “now more than ever.”
“Everyone’s got problems,” she responded and turned to leave but once again paused. Something kept pulling her back and she had no idea what it was. Thinking maybe it was because she had more to say, she turned back to them once again.
“Khivar has always known where to find me. He didn’t until today and he still won’t come after me again yet. But when he does, it’ll deal with it. As of right now, Khivar isn’t my problem.”
“You can’t just-”
“Do you remember everything?” Ava asked interrupting Isabel.
“I don’t remember the last time, not like it matters, but I will”. She eyed Tess warily as she approached with the baby in her arms.
“Can you do me a favour?” Ava asked.
“Depends.”
“Can you hold her for like a minute?”. Without leaving room for protest, Ava was already placing the baby into her arms and Liz had no choice but to make sure she didn’t drop her.
“I’m not good with kids,” she told her uncomfortably. Her anxiety eased as the baby gurgled happily in her arms. “At least I don’t think I am,” she added.
Her gaze lifted from the baby to Ava who grinned at her expectantly and to the rest of the group who looked on…expecting the other shoe to drop. Liz wasn’t quite sure what it was they were waiting for her to realise.
“Cute kid, who’s is it?” she asked.
They were all staring at her as if…Liz looked down at the child again who held up its hand to her. Liz met it with her own and there it was, her third encounter with the aliens in brilliant stark Technicolor…
****
…They had needed her help again and she had been anything but willing…
“You had no right to wipe away my memory of the last time!”.
“We were trying to protect you!”, Zan countered..
“I didn’t ask you to! What you’re doing is using me. Having Ava mind warp me at your whim and then giving my memory back when it suits you and your plans. Whatever it is you want, I’m not doing it.”
“Khivar’s going old school on us…created a virus…referring to ancient Antarian scripts…our people are dropping like flies…only one way to synthesise a cure…a child with you and Zan’s DNA.”
She had gaped openly at them as she tried to process their request. “You want me to have a baby, so your rebellion can use it to heal a bunch of people I don’t know?!”.
“You don’t have a choice.”
“I do have a choice Rath and I’m making it. I’m not doing it. I’m not having sex with you Zan and I’m not going to have a child just for this. It’s not who I am.”
“You don’t have to sleep with me…just your egg and my sperm…fertilize…incubation…a human being in a day.”
“No.”
And she had left then. Blindly commandeering a car and heading nowhere. Somehow Ava had tracked her down, but it wasn’t Ava, it was Tess and the next thing she knew, Liz was strapped into a chair in a poorly lit room.
****
“What is it about you that has all these powerful men falling all over themselves?” Tess asked.
“Why don’t you ask them?” she retorted.
Something slashed at her left cheek, then her right. The wound was raw and stung like salt to doused over wound. Blood flowed downwards and stained her top.
“You’re pretty, but not that pretty. Maybe screwing up your face will sort my whole problem out.”
“And what exactly would that be Tess?”.
“You. You don’t remember but just like now, back on Antar anything you wanted, you got. Including Zan.”
Liz felt sick with disgust. “He’s your brother.”
“Half brother. My mother was one of his father’s concubines, the only one he chose to get pregnant in fact.”
“How proud must you be.”
That earned her a blast of energy that pounded into her chest and knocked her and the chair over.
****
…Her chest burned and her head screamed.
“Shame that you’re the damaged one huh? Can’t even use your powers on me,” Tess taunted her.
Liz tried to get up, struggled to move but it was to no avail.
She was having trouble breathing.
“Tess, what are you doing?”. The voice was lethally lyrical.
“Khivar, I was just-”
“Taking care of some personal business which I don’t mind…” He righted up Liz’s chair along with her in it. He then crouched down in front of her, his hand cupping her chin surveying the damage, his other hand tenderly pressing against her throbbing chest.
“Except when you do this,” he finished.
“But-”
“Get out Tess. I’ll only say it nicely once.”
Tess glared at her and left her alone with him. Liz wasn’t sure which one was worse.
Khivar undid the straps to her chair and wiped off the blood tinting her cheeks and neck.
“So we meet again Liz.”
His melodramatic tone irritated her into responding in kind. “So it would seem.”
He’d stared at her then as if searching for something. Employing the tactic she had cultivated since her first kidnapping incident, Liz made her eyes go empty and stared back with a completely blank expression on her face masking the furious thoughts of her mind.
His eyes roamed and bored eagerly into her. He was looking for something, he was also drawn…attracted?
She got her answer when his lips pressed against hers. She didn’t respond, just sat perfectly still until he pulled back. He got another chair and straddling it, faced her.
“You know, my scientists stumbled across something very interesting about you in the ancient scripts.”
“Did they mention me by name or was it just ‘the Queen’ and you’re interpreting it which way you see fit? I’m not a Queen Khivar. Ezra was, but I’m not.”
“Which is exactly why the scripts are about you. Do you want to know what they said Liz?”.
“Leave her be because she wants nothing to do with this?” she supplied.
He laughed. It was an attractive laugh, she noted. Khivar was definitely a lethal poison.
“You are charming. But no, to put it succinctly, what we’ve got so far is that , it all hangs on you Liz. Your decisions, your power and…”
His eyes turned luminous black then, that’s when she leapt up out of the chair, lifted her arm out to try and use her powers but it was too late. She wasn’t experienced enough at calling them up, Khivar was on her in a second. His lips, his body, plastered against hers, she tried to fight him off and found that she couldn’t move unless her wanted her to…which is how she ended up on the floor with him on top of her, kissing her, touching her.
He did something to her mind and she was suddenly kissing him back. She could feel power surging, throbbing in her, needing a release and Khivar urged her on. His voice sounded in her mind.
“I’m giving you another option Liz, just another option”.
She could feel his power radiating off him, craving hers, wanting to merge. But she didn’t want him, didn’t want this…whatever it was. So she fought him, not knowing how she did it, but suddenly she was inside him, could hear his thoughts, felt what he felt without giving any of herself away.
Liz found herself on top of him and feeling different…she felt more of herself. She pressed her hands against either side of his face, leaned over him until their noses brushed. Pure green energy laced with black crackled around them.
“I’m important to you. You’re going to let me go. This body doesn’t have much time to bear the damage Tess did to it. So you’re going to let me walk out of here and have Zan heal me.”
Khivar nodded and without knowing exactly how, she knew that he would do as she’d asked. She climbed off him, stood up, swayed and realised with acute terror that she had over-estimated how much her body could take.
She went under before she came into contact with the floor.
Then images.
One after another of people dying, Antarians. On Earth. On another planet…Antar. They fell in waves, their internal organs failed, they bled out. Then Ava, Vilandra, Isabel, Rath and Zan. All dead.
Then the voice.
“You have to save them my Queen, if not, this will end before it has truly begun. Sacrifices will have to be made but not this one, not this time.”
It was he who had pulled her under, this voice. She sensed his power, it was great but used sparingly and he was using it to get to her.
Why?
“It is my sincerest wish and greatest hope that we meet again your majesty.”
His presence left her then and without the pull of his power, she was free. She resurfaced and found herself in Zan’s bed. He was by her side the minute the blinked.
“You’re okay.” He reached out to touch her but withdrew his hand, she noted that it was trembling.
“What happened?” she asked.
“We got a call from your cell, it was Khivar. He told us where to find you. You were in pretty bad shape, I thought-”
“I’m okay,” she assured him. She pulled at her top and saw the glowing silver handprint. “Thanks to you huh?”. With a grateful smile, she closed her hand over his and gently squeezed.
He smiled and squeezed back before turning serious again. “He took you didn’t he?”.
“Tess did actually, Khivar brought me back.”
“Why?”.
“He wanted what everyone seems to want, to harness my power. That’s the reason he wants me alive.”
****
No-one had believed her explanation, that Khivar would just give her up. She didn’t want to tell them what had happened between them when she wasn’t sure herself. She just knew that now, in some inexplicable way, Khivar was connected to her.
“I’ll make a deal with you,“ she told them, “no questions about Khivar and I’ll…help cure that virus that’s killing your people.”
So they’d made the child that would save all of Antar from painful deaths. Her child with Zan, a girl, Laine. She’d chosen the name but had refused to hold her daughter.
“What’s the point, I can’t take her with me when I go back can I?. She has to stay with you…where it’s safe for her.”
She’d watched her all night though, she was like a miracle and so perfect. She had watched her child in Zan’s arms but had never held her because that night, she came to a decision.
“I’m not doing this. What I’ve done for you guys, that’s it. I’m through helping you.”
****
“Liz, you won’t fight for Antar, but maybe you’ll fight for Earth,” Isabel told her.
Liz looked up at her, trying to deal with the sudden onslaught of emotions that having her child in her arms roused. “What are you talking about?”.
“Those diamonds he had Sean D steal? Not just diamonds, they’re an energy source to power one mother of a weapon and it’s not for just Antar. He’s stepping up his invasion plan,” she explained.
From a sweeping glance of the room, she knew what that meant, what they were all thinking she should do.
“I need some time,” she responded.
For the first time, not in a fit of anger or conflicting emotion, but just because it was the natural thing to do, Liz used her powers to open the door and made her way back to her room to spend some quality time with her daughter.
****
TBC
She found them all in the informal briefing room on the second level. The t.v. was on in the background. Zan and Max were steeped in heavy discussion. Rath and Michael were avidly studying files and reconnaissance photographs strewn over the desk. Isabel and Vilandra were working on something on the computer and Ava…was playing with a little baby.
They all stopped their activities when she entered the room.
They all seem right at home, she mused. Good for them I guess.
“Do my parents know I’m okay?” she asked trying to lift the sudden tension in the room.
“We sent word. Your dad wants to see you for himself though,” Isabel told her.
“I’ll bet,” she smiled. He was so over-protective of her, but then he had cause to be and she loved him for it.
“How are you?” asked Max.
No one would approach her and Liz was thankful for it. She didn’t want anyone clouding her judgment right now.
It was strange seeing Max and Zan together. What was even stranger to her, was that she had distinct feelings for each of them. Those two were another reason for her decision.
“Listen, um, thank you for saving my life,” she began, “I appreciate it. And I’m leaving.”
She turned to go praying, unrealistically, that they would just let it go, but they didn’t and she halted at their cries of indignation and confusion.
Turning back to face them, her gaze drifted from Zan and Max to the baby in Tess’ arms. Something was niggling at her memory…she shook it away to answer their questions.
“What happened today doesn’t change anything,” she began.
“Yo, you can’t just walk out after everything that’s happened!”, Rath argued.
“Khivar’s dangerous,” added Isabel, “now more than ever.”
“Everyone’s got problems,” she responded and turned to leave but once again paused. Something kept pulling her back and she had no idea what it was. Thinking maybe it was because she had more to say, she turned back to them once again.
“Khivar has always known where to find me. He didn’t until today and he still won’t come after me again yet. But when he does, it’ll deal with it. As of right now, Khivar isn’t my problem.”
“You can’t just-”
“Do you remember everything?” Ava asked interrupting Isabel.
“I don’t remember the last time, not like it matters, but I will”. She eyed Tess warily as she approached with the baby in her arms.
“Can you do me a favour?” Ava asked.
“Depends.”
“Can you hold her for like a minute?”. Without leaving room for protest, Ava was already placing the baby into her arms and Liz had no choice but to make sure she didn’t drop her.
“I’m not good with kids,” she told her uncomfortably. Her anxiety eased as the baby gurgled happily in her arms. “At least I don’t think I am,” she added.
Her gaze lifted from the baby to Ava who grinned at her expectantly and to the rest of the group who looked on…expecting the other shoe to drop. Liz wasn’t quite sure what it was they were waiting for her to realise.
“Cute kid, who’s is it?” she asked.
They were all staring at her as if…Liz looked down at the child again who held up its hand to her. Liz met it with her own and there it was, her third encounter with the aliens in brilliant stark Technicolor…
****
…They had needed her help again and she had been anything but willing…
“You had no right to wipe away my memory of the last time!”.
“We were trying to protect you!”, Zan countered..
“I didn’t ask you to! What you’re doing is using me. Having Ava mind warp me at your whim and then giving my memory back when it suits you and your plans. Whatever it is you want, I’m not doing it.”
“Khivar’s going old school on us…created a virus…referring to ancient Antarian scripts…our people are dropping like flies…only one way to synthesise a cure…a child with you and Zan’s DNA.”
She had gaped openly at them as she tried to process their request. “You want me to have a baby, so your rebellion can use it to heal a bunch of people I don’t know?!”.
“You don’t have a choice.”
“I do have a choice Rath and I’m making it. I’m not doing it. I’m not having sex with you Zan and I’m not going to have a child just for this. It’s not who I am.”
“You don’t have to sleep with me…just your egg and my sperm…fertilize…incubation…a human being in a day.”
“No.”
And she had left then. Blindly commandeering a car and heading nowhere. Somehow Ava had tracked her down, but it wasn’t Ava, it was Tess and the next thing she knew, Liz was strapped into a chair in a poorly lit room.
****
“What is it about you that has all these powerful men falling all over themselves?” Tess asked.
“Why don’t you ask them?” she retorted.
Something slashed at her left cheek, then her right. The wound was raw and stung like salt to doused over wound. Blood flowed downwards and stained her top.
“You’re pretty, but not that pretty. Maybe screwing up your face will sort my whole problem out.”
“And what exactly would that be Tess?”.
“You. You don’t remember but just like now, back on Antar anything you wanted, you got. Including Zan.”
Liz felt sick with disgust. “He’s your brother.”
“Half brother. My mother was one of his father’s concubines, the only one he chose to get pregnant in fact.”
“How proud must you be.”
That earned her a blast of energy that pounded into her chest and knocked her and the chair over.
****
…Her chest burned and her head screamed.
“Shame that you’re the damaged one huh? Can’t even use your powers on me,” Tess taunted her.
Liz tried to get up, struggled to move but it was to no avail.
She was having trouble breathing.
“Tess, what are you doing?”. The voice was lethally lyrical.
“Khivar, I was just-”
“Taking care of some personal business which I don’t mind…” He righted up Liz’s chair along with her in it. He then crouched down in front of her, his hand cupping her chin surveying the damage, his other hand tenderly pressing against her throbbing chest.
“Except when you do this,” he finished.
“But-”
“Get out Tess. I’ll only say it nicely once.”
Tess glared at her and left her alone with him. Liz wasn’t sure which one was worse.
Khivar undid the straps to her chair and wiped off the blood tinting her cheeks and neck.
“So we meet again Liz.”
His melodramatic tone irritated her into responding in kind. “So it would seem.”
He’d stared at her then as if searching for something. Employing the tactic she had cultivated since her first kidnapping incident, Liz made her eyes go empty and stared back with a completely blank expression on her face masking the furious thoughts of her mind.
His eyes roamed and bored eagerly into her. He was looking for something, he was also drawn…attracted?
She got her answer when his lips pressed against hers. She didn’t respond, just sat perfectly still until he pulled back. He got another chair and straddling it, faced her.
“You know, my scientists stumbled across something very interesting about you in the ancient scripts.”
“Did they mention me by name or was it just ‘the Queen’ and you’re interpreting it which way you see fit? I’m not a Queen Khivar. Ezra was, but I’m not.”
“Which is exactly why the scripts are about you. Do you want to know what they said Liz?”.
“Leave her be because she wants nothing to do with this?” she supplied.
He laughed. It was an attractive laugh, she noted. Khivar was definitely a lethal poison.
“You are charming. But no, to put it succinctly, what we’ve got so far is that , it all hangs on you Liz. Your decisions, your power and…”
His eyes turned luminous black then, that’s when she leapt up out of the chair, lifted her arm out to try and use her powers but it was too late. She wasn’t experienced enough at calling them up, Khivar was on her in a second. His lips, his body, plastered against hers, she tried to fight him off and found that she couldn’t move unless her wanted her to…which is how she ended up on the floor with him on top of her, kissing her, touching her.
He did something to her mind and she was suddenly kissing him back. She could feel power surging, throbbing in her, needing a release and Khivar urged her on. His voice sounded in her mind.
“I’m giving you another option Liz, just another option”.
She could feel his power radiating off him, craving hers, wanting to merge. But she didn’t want him, didn’t want this…whatever it was. So she fought him, not knowing how she did it, but suddenly she was inside him, could hear his thoughts, felt what he felt without giving any of herself away.
Liz found herself on top of him and feeling different…she felt more of herself. She pressed her hands against either side of his face, leaned over him until their noses brushed. Pure green energy laced with black crackled around them.
“I’m important to you. You’re going to let me go. This body doesn’t have much time to bear the damage Tess did to it. So you’re going to let me walk out of here and have Zan heal me.”
Khivar nodded and without knowing exactly how, she knew that he would do as she’d asked. She climbed off him, stood up, swayed and realised with acute terror that she had over-estimated how much her body could take.
She went under before she came into contact with the floor.
Then images.
One after another of people dying, Antarians. On Earth. On another planet…Antar. They fell in waves, their internal organs failed, they bled out. Then Ava, Vilandra, Isabel, Rath and Zan. All dead.
Then the voice.
“You have to save them my Queen, if not, this will end before it has truly begun. Sacrifices will have to be made but not this one, not this time.”
It was he who had pulled her under, this voice. She sensed his power, it was great but used sparingly and he was using it to get to her.
Why?
“It is my sincerest wish and greatest hope that we meet again your majesty.”
His presence left her then and without the pull of his power, she was free. She resurfaced and found herself in Zan’s bed. He was by her side the minute the blinked.
“You’re okay.” He reached out to touch her but withdrew his hand, she noted that it was trembling.
“What happened?” she asked.
“We got a call from your cell, it was Khivar. He told us where to find you. You were in pretty bad shape, I thought-”
“I’m okay,” she assured him. She pulled at her top and saw the glowing silver handprint. “Thanks to you huh?”. With a grateful smile, she closed her hand over his and gently squeezed.
He smiled and squeezed back before turning serious again. “He took you didn’t he?”.
“Tess did actually, Khivar brought me back.”
“Why?”.
“He wanted what everyone seems to want, to harness my power. That’s the reason he wants me alive.”
****
No-one had believed her explanation, that Khivar would just give her up. She didn’t want to tell them what had happened between them when she wasn’t sure herself. She just knew that now, in some inexplicable way, Khivar was connected to her.
“I’ll make a deal with you,“ she told them, “no questions about Khivar and I’ll…help cure that virus that’s killing your people.”
So they’d made the child that would save all of Antar from painful deaths. Her child with Zan, a girl, Laine. She’d chosen the name but had refused to hold her daughter.
“What’s the point, I can’t take her with me when I go back can I?. She has to stay with you…where it’s safe for her.”
She’d watched her all night though, she was like a miracle and so perfect. She had watched her child in Zan’s arms but had never held her because that night, she came to a decision.
“I’m not doing this. What I’ve done for you guys, that’s it. I’m through helping you.”
****
“Liz, you won’t fight for Antar, but maybe you’ll fight for Earth,” Isabel told her.
Liz looked up at her, trying to deal with the sudden onslaught of emotions that having her child in her arms roused. “What are you talking about?”.
“Those diamonds he had Sean D steal? Not just diamonds, they’re an energy source to power one mother of a weapon and it’s not for just Antar. He’s stepping up his invasion plan,” she explained.
From a sweeping glance of the room, she knew what that meant, what they were all thinking she should do.
“I need some time,” she responded.
For the first time, not in a fit of anger or conflicting emotion, but just because it was the natural thing to do, Liz used her powers to open the door and made her way back to her room to spend some quality time with her daughter.
****
TBC