Royal Alliances (AU,M/L,MATURE) Chapter 17- 12/19/06[WIP]

[belleoftheball]

Title: Royal Alliances
Disclaimer: The characters of "Roswell" belong to Jason Katims, Melinda Metz, WB, and UPN. They are not mine and no infringement is intended
Pairings: CC with a focus on M/L
Rating: MATURE
Summary: The original pod squad were not the only royal qroup to come down to earth.
Author's Note: Ok this is my first Roswell Fanfic although I did love the show when it was on. By all means dont be gentle if this stinks let me know, I'm a big girl I can take it.



Cover Art by Chynna Princess

As she drove through the dark & quiet streets of Roswell, New Mexico; Liz Parker took in the town. It wasn’t the normal type of place her “family” would locate to. She supposed it was Tarus’ way of hiding in plain sight. Even as she thought this she grimaced at the UFO center with its ads for authentic alien autopsy photos.

Shaking her head she drove on out of the downtown area before finally turning onto Cactus Drive. Once she reached her destination she double checked address not quite believing what she saw. “What the hell?” she whispered to herself as she took in her surroundings. This was not the hotel or short lease apartment she was used to living in. This was a 3 story home that looked like something out of Better Homes and Gardens.

Just as she was about to pull out her cell phone to get the correct address the front door swung open. “Chica!” A short fairy like girl rushed out the door followed by dark haired boy who simply shook his head and smirked as the fairy threw herself into Liz’s arms.

Liz laughed as she hugged her friend back “Hi Ria, Alex” Maria let go of Liz just long enough for Alex to get a hug in. Though she was happy to see them Liz had to ask “What’s with the digs?”

Maria smiled brightly as she pulled Liz into the house. “Isn’t it great. We finally have a real house with a yard and a kitchen larger then a closet, there’s even a study though half of that is now being taken up by Alex’s computers.”

Liz shook her head as she dropped her bags in the foyer. It was obvious Maria was excited but she didn’t want her friend getting her hopes up. “The place is great Maria but you shouldn’t get to attached. Who knows how long we’ll be here?”

Alex looked up with confusion in his eyes “Tarus didn’t tell you?”

Liz shook her head not liking where this was going “No, I haven’t been in contact with him since you left Phoenix.” That had been a month and a half ago. The group generally moved into small towns in stages as not to draw to much attention to themselves.

Maria plopped down on the couch before stretching out. “Guess that’s what the letter’s for.”

“What letter?” Liz’s question was answered by Maria’s finger which twitched towards the kitchen and caused the envelope in question to come flying out and into Liz’s waiting hand. Liz sighed as she opened the letter murmuring under her breath “Been here since the 40’s and he still refuses to use the damn phone” Unsurprisingly the sheet inside was blank. Liz sat down on a comfy leather chair while Alex took a seat next to Maria snatching the bowl of popcorn that had been in her lap. Liz waved her hand over the paper and for a brief moment her royal seal flashed across the page, 5 points of light forming an upside down V shape. Then the letters true message came through.


Your Majesty,
After years of travel and training; yourself, Lunaria, and Avier are prepared to go on without my constant presence. I can assure your safety is as secure here as it would be anywhere else on this planet. I am also certain you will be strengthened even further given time.
It has been an honor and privilege to serve you, Medina. Though not physically with you, I will continue to serve the interests of both you and our people. Should you need to reach me you need only activate the orb which I have entrusted Avier with.
Your humble servant and protector,
Tarus

Liz stared at the letter almost expecting the words to change. She couldn’t believe Tarus had left them, not that she felt abandoned, but still. Their shapeshifting guardian had been there since they hatched nearly a decade before. Liz stood and moved to the living room window which showed the garden Maria had no doubt planted in the backyard.

Most kids grew up on Fairy Tales like Snow White and Cinderella. Liz grew up with the story of her previous life. She had been Medina, Queen of the planet Nevar who had ruled with the help of a relations advisor; Lunaria who was now Maria; and a technological advisor; Avier who was now Alex. Unfortunately her planet was conquered by a ruthless dictator named Kivar. War broke out and the queen and her followers were killed. Apparently though there was a back up plan, The DNA and essence of the queen and her most trusted advisors were mixed with DNA from humans and the reincarnated group was sent to earth. They landed safely in the 1940’s and their protector Tarus waited patiently for nearly 50 years for the pods to develop and hatch. Once they did he dedicated himself to prepare and train them for the day they would return to Nevar and free their people. Liz shook her head, she was resigned to the responsibility after all what choice did she have?

She turned to Maria and Alex with a small smile on her face “I guess Roswell finally has some genuine aliens, huh?”

Little did Liz know, she was wrong. Roswell had in fact had aliens for quite some time. At that moment across town one of them was startled from sleep abruptly. Max Evans gasped as his upper body flew straight up. He was sweating badly and his blankets were twisted around his body. The words that left his mouth had no meaning to him and only caused more confusion in his mind “She’s here”

********
So honest opinions should I continue?

[belleoftheball]

Wow! I'm got some awesome feedback so I'm gonna give this a go.

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The next day Alex Whitman entered hell. This for him was riding to school in the back of Liz’s mustang while Maria played radio nazi.

“Can you hear the-em they talk about us; telling lies well that’s no surprise…” Maria sang along happily from the front seat as Alex stewed.

It wasn’t until her restricted dance moves knocked the hand that was holding his coffee did Alex finally snap. “Enough! I can’t take this anymore! Liz please make her stop; I have reached my limit and it is The Go-Go’s”

Despite herself Liz was enjoying her friend’s torture “It’s not that bad Alex."

“Yes it is”

Maria laughed as she switched stations “I’m sure we can find something…Ahh!” The Steve Miller Band started to flow through the speakers and Alex could only shake his head as Maria sang. “Some people call me the space cowboy”

Unable to stop herself Liz piped in “Some call me the gangster of love…c’mon Alex!”

Accepting the fact that this was his life Alex joined in, hey it beat The Go-Go’s “Some people call me Maurice…cause I speak of the pompadous of love”

Their sing-along was complete by the time they reached West Roswell High. As soon as the car had stopped Alex and Maria jumped out. Liz was about to follow when she noticed the jeep parked beside her. It was an old army issue but Liz felt a strange vibe coming off it. She pushed the thought away chastising herself for giving so much thought to an old jeep.

She caught up to Alex and Maria not noticing the looks that followed her as she crossed the parking lot. They did not however go unnoticed by Alex “How is it you manage to get the attention of an entire parking lot?”

Liz rolled her eyes at Maria’s answer “It’s her royal mojo”

Anxious to change the subject Liz asked “Give me the breakdown of the school, Ria”

“Social or Academic?”

Liz answered matter of factly “I already talked to Alex”

“Oh, social then. Typical High School, sports are everything. Head jock’s name is Kyle Valenti, his father is the local sheriff. The town’s resident tramp is Pam Troy…”

“Maria!” Liz exclaimed even as Maria continued

“Just wait till you meet her. Let’s see… Oh, avoid this jerk named Michael Guerin, major attitude problem. Which reminds me; I have found you a man!”

Liz rolled her eyes “Oh god, Please don’t”

“I’m serious Liz. He’s smart, sweet, not to mention gorgeous. He’s perfect for you.”

“Uh huh. Cause I know every guy I’ve met is dying to get with a girl from another planet.” Alex snickered at Liz’s remark and received a deadly glare from Maria.

“I’ll have you know Max is great”

“Max Evans?” Alex asked with a raised eyebrow.

Liz watched the looks Maria & Alex were giving each other “What? Does this guy have a third eye or something?”

Alex shook his head in response “No he just kinda keeps to himself”

A thought struck Liz and she pulled a slip of paper out of her bag “Evans… Who’s Isabel Evans? She’s supposed to give me a tour of the school…and why is Alex turning red?”

As Alex sputtered Maria answered “He’s in love with Isabel”

“I…I’m not-“

With a hand gesture Maria blew off Alex’s stumbling denial “She’s Max’s sister not to mention head cheerleader, student council member, and basically queen of the school.”

“Queen huh? I still don’t have my crown” Liz turned toward the voice that came from behind her. The girl who had spoken was gorgeous with long blonde hair, brown eyes, and a killer outfit. “You must be the new girl.”

“Liz Parker” Liz held her hand out and the girl shook it with a slight smile.

“Nice to meet you, I’m Isabel. If you want I can give you the tour now.”

“Umm...That would be good.”

“Alright. Bye Alex” Isabel and Liz walked off leaving Maria to deal with Alex who had a goofy expression on his face.

A little uncomfortable now Liz tucked a strand of dark hair behind her ear and asked “I hope we didn’t embarrass you back there.”

Isabel flashed a smile that immediately put Liz at ease “It’s fine. I didn’t hear anything bad unless you have a problem with royalty?”

With a little smirk Liz answered “Trust me I don’t”

As Isabel was giving the tour an extremely busty blonde bounced up to them. “Iz, I wanted to make sure you knew about the party at my place Friday.”

Liz could tell Isabel was forcing the strained smile on her face “I heard about it. Pam this is Liz Parker she’s new. Liz this is Pam Troy.”

Snapping on her bubble gum Pam sized Liz up. Most people would have felt uncomfortable under the blatant scrutiny but Liz was not about to let some high school Pamela Anderson wannabe shake her down. Pam seemed to give her approval though. “Welcome to West Roswell, you should definitely come to my party Friday it’ll be a great way for you to meet people. Anyway I’ve got a run. Oh Isabel, tell Max I said hi.” With that Pam bounced her way back down the hall.

Liz cleared her throat searching for the right words “She’s really…”

“A complete and total slut” Isabel answered for her

“Yep that about covers it. Not to gross you out but the way she said your brother’s name…”

Isabel’s face scrunched up in disgust as they continued to walk down the hall “Trust me I know. I’ll have horrid nightmares about it. She developed this weird fascination with Max a few weeks ago. Luckily he’s smart enough not to touch her with a ten foot pole. Anyway this concludes my tour of Roswell High; its small and nothing ever happens here.”

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

Two classes later Isabel was spending her lunch hour having to listen to Michael drone on and on and ON about the new Metallica CD. “So help me god Michael. if you do not shut up I will meld your lips together.”

“Damn, what’s your problem?” But considering the fact that Isabel had actually done it before, Michael wisely shut up.

Isabel pushed her tray aside and focused on her brother. Max looked exhausted and had dark circles under his eyes. “You ok, Max”

“I’m fine just haven’t been sleeping well”

Isabel stood up stretching her arms up “Alright then, as entertaining as you boys are I think I’m going to go find Liz.”

Max finally looked up in confusion “Liz who?”

Isabel sighed picking up her tray “Liz Parker, the new girl. God Max you really are out of it. She just moved here from Phoenix, I gave her the tour this morning. She seems really nice. Anyway, she’s probably sitting with Alex and Maria.”

Michael choked on his Snapple “DeLuca? You say I talk too much and you’re going to go sit with Maria DeLuca? She never shuts up!”

While walking away Isabel spoke over her shoulder “Its quality Michael, not quantity.”

Michael looked to Max with a confused expression “What the hell does that mean?

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

By early afternoon Max had gone from tired to just plain exhausted and Michael was not helping. Apparently he was still steamed about Isabel leaving them at lunch. Although he had little to say about Isabel and a lot about Maria. “She’s annoying man, she is not capable of just shutting up and standing still.”

Stifling a yawn Max asked “Why don’t you just avoid her then?”

“I tried! She’s just always there! And now she’s working at The Crashdown. How am I going to avoid her at work?”

Then it struck Max and he couldn’t help but chuckle “You like her”

“What! No way in hell! I mean sure she’s nice to look at and she has a great ass, but I’m not attracted to her.”

Max smirked as they turned toward his history class “Sure man whatever you say.”

“Besides we shouldn’t form bonds with any of these people. We don’t belong here, Max”

Max let out a low groan “I do not want to have this discussion again for the 50th million time.”

“Fine you and Isabel just go on pretending to live completely normal lives then.”

Max’s hand reached for the classroom door “Thanks we’ll do just that…Son on a Bitch!” The hand that had been on the door knob shot up to Max’s left shoulder which was burning like hell.

Michael jumped to attention “What!”

Max’s shoulder was killing him as he shoved Michael aside and rushed into the nearest bathroom. His back was facing the mirror and he pulled his shirt up enough to see the back of his shoulder.

Michael threw the door open “What the hell Maxwell?!”

Max was strangely calm as he pointed to his shoulder “Michael look” A black symbol had formed on his shoulder like a tattoo. It looked like a whirlwind and he had never seen it before though it seemed strangely familiar.

Michael asked the question Max was thinking “What the hell is going on?”

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

Liz had been in the empty History class talking to Alex. He was ecstatic Isabel had sat with them at lunch and Liz could tell he really liked her. She was laughing as her hand grasped the door knob and then blinding pain shot thru her left shoulder causing her to stumble back in pain.

“Liz! You ok?” Alex jumped forward as Liz pulled on the neckline of her shirt to see her back. Alex stopped short as he saw the whirlwind symbol. He and Liz stared at her shoulder for a moment before he asked “What is going on?”

Liz shook her head obviously confused and whispered softly “I don’t know”

Song Credits: Our Lips Are Sealed: The Go-Go’s
The Joker: Steve Miller Band

[belleoftheball]

Ok here is the next chapter and just so you know the next chapter will have ALOT of answers in it. So I hope you guys enjoy this and feedback is always a plus.



That afternoon two groups met on opposite sides of the Roswell High Campus. Max Michael, and Isabel spoke in hushed tones under the bleachers of the football field.

“This is bad, very bad” Michael ever the optimist was pacing the small space available like a caged cat.

Though concerned Isabel was at least trying to remain calm “We don’t know what it means Michael”

“Uhh Hello! Symbols just magically appear on Max’s back and you don’t think that poses a problem?

Annoyed now Isabel jumped up “Fine! Lets just all freak out and see where that gets us.”

Having had it Max stood between the two “Enough! Arguing isn’t going to solve anything” Frustration was growing as Max raked his fingers through his hair “Look I don’t know what this means and I don’t suppose you two have a clue either?” He looked to his sister and friend satisfied when they shrugged in agreement. ”Great so the best thing I know to do right now is just go on like we have been and act normal.”

“We can’t just pretend nothing’s happening, Max”

Max looked at Michael “I don’t know what else we can do”

Resigned Michael leaned against a support beam. “I just hate not having any answers. You would think whoever sent us here would have at least gave us directions, a guide…something.”

Having calmed Isabel stood next to Michael giving his hand a reassuring squeeze. “We don’t know if they did or not. Who knows what happened in the crash. But you’re right this just sucks”

Max grabbed his bag off the ground and handed Isabel hers. “Well then we are all in agreement about one thing. Look let’s go grab something to eat, I’ll check around the UFO center tomorrow on the off chance I’ll find something there.”

Isabel rolled her eyes at the mention of Max’s job, it seemed so demeaning to her. She let go of the smart ass comment on the tip of tongue and led the way out of the bleachers, turning back to see Max digging through his bag.

“Damn, I forgot my Psych book in class. We’ll have to stop there on the way to the jeep.”

Michael gestured to the space in front of himself and Isabel “Lead on, Maxwell”

***************
Meanwhile in the band room Maria was focused on a slip of paper Liz had drawn the symbol on. Finally she threw her hands up “I’ve got nothing. Not that surprising, premonitions and whatever are more your power Liz”

Liz released a low sigh “I know but there’s something with that symbol. I can feel it represents something powerful but when I try to focus on what that something is; it’s like a veil comes down and blocks the information.” She jumped off the desk she had been perched on “We need to contact Tarus”

“I don’t know what good it would do” Alex muttered under his breath

Maria turned to him confused “What do you mean by that?”

“C’mon guys, you don’t find it strange that out of the blue Tarus leaves us and then not 24 hours later Liz ends up with alien symbols popping up on her skin. He knew something is going on”

Maria shook her head vehemently “No Tarus would never let anything happen to us. The only feelings I have ever felt from him were love and loyalty” That was after all a huge part of Maria’s power, being able sense people’s intentions.

Liz felt Maria’s concern as she answered. “Alex doesn’t mean Tarus would betray us, but he’s right. I think Tarus knows a hell of a lot more then he let’s on. I mean he tells us we have these past lives and this great mission but if you ask for details he closes up tighter then a clam.”

Starting to feel uneasy Maria tentatively asked “What do you mean?”

Liz was pacing as she spoke now “Alright, what about our personal lives? Our families? I mean we know the three of us were close but what about anyone else? And what I’d love to know is why Khivar came after us?”

Maria raised an eyebrow “Isn’t that obvious? I mean he wanted Nevar & you were queen. Take you out and he get’s the prize. Me & Alex were probably there and died with you.”

Alex moved in next to Liz to stop her pacing which was driving him crazy. “I think what Liz means is what was so special about Nevar that he declared war on the whole planet just to turn around and decimate the place?”

“Exactly” Liz added as she gathered her things.

Maria joined her while scolding herself for being so blind “Ok I say Tarus has questions to answer.”

They were nearly to the door when Liz slapped the palm of her hand to her head “My notes!”

Alex stopped short “Huh?”

“My psych teacher was going to leave some notes for me so I can catch up”

Sighing Alex opened the door “Alright Psych notes first, alien mystery second”
****************
Liz entered the empty class from the back door while Maria & Alex waited outside. She found her notes and was stuffing them in her bag when the front door opened. When she looked up her gaze was instantly locked into a pair of amber eyes and she immediately felt her heart stumble in her chest. He was by far the most handsome man she’d ever seen dressed casually in jeans and a black t-shirt. Despite herself the best opening line she could come up with was “Hi”

Max snapped out of the haze he had been in while taking in the beauty before him “Hey, I just forgot my book” he stated while moving towards his desk feeling like an idiot. He couldn’t think of anything better to say? And how in the hell hadn’t he noticed her before?

As if reading his thoughts she spoke “I’m new here, my name’s Liz”

“Oh yeah my sister Isabel mentioned you” What she had failed to do was inform her brother that the girl was quite possibly the woman of his dreams.

“Isabel? You must be Max then.” Liz couldn’t believe it Maria had been right he was gorgeous. She would seriously have to consider allowing her friend to use her supposed match-making skills.

“Yeah, It’s nice to meet you Liz” Max then accidentally knocked over a stack of papers sitting on the edge of the desk “Damn it” Feeling like an even bigger fool he bent down to pick up the papers as Liz followed to do the same. But when there hands touched a bright gold light sparked between them before a wall of energy blew them back to opposite sides of the room. Both immediately jumped up throwing their hands out to form shields. The front and back doors flew open and the other teens rushed into the room.

Liz immediately ordered out “Maria, Alex over here now!” They immediately took safety behind Liz’s shield while Michael & Isabel got behind Max’s. Liz never broke eye contact with Max as she asked “Who are you? Skins? Or just one of Khivar’s goons?”

“We don’t know what you are talking about”

“Right” Believing he was lying Liz motioned to Maria indicating she should get a read off them. But Michael saw the look and thought it was a signal to attack. He shot off a red energy ball in their direction.

Alex immediately shot his own blue energy ball which consumed Michael’s before flying back into his waiting hand. With cool eyes and a colder voice Alex warned “Don’t even think about doing that again”

Isabel took a step forward looking to diffuse the situation “Alright look we don’t want to hurt you and it’s pretty obvious we wouldn’t be able to if we tried. I swear we don’t even know what a khivar is but if someone comes in here right now we are all screwed.”

Maria whispered into Liz’s ear “She’s telling the truth”

Nodding Liz focused on Max. Sweat was starting to form on his forehead; it was obvious he didn’t use his powers often. “On 3?” she asked softly

Max nodded in agreement “one, two …”

They both dropped their shields and the groups simply stared at each other for a minute. Finally Maria spoke up “OK this isn’t awkward”

Liz rolled her eyes “Alright if you’re not the enemy then who are you?”

Michael unsurprisingly took the offensive “Who the hell are you?!” Maria yelled back and the two started bickering.

“Christ” Liz muttered under her breath as she rubbed her shoulder. The symbol had started throbbing again.

“Liz…”

Liz looked to Alex and followed his gaze to Max who was rubbing his shoulder in the same way. Without any thought process she just knew. She felt something in her stomach drop as she asked “You have it too, don’t you?”

Max didn’t know how; but he knew exactly what “it” Liz was referring to. Without a word he turned around pulling down and stretching out the collar of his shirt to show the symbol. When he turned back Liz did the same.

“What does it mean?” Max finally asked breaking the silence that had conquered the room.

Liz answered briefly “I’m not sure; but I know someone who does.”

[belleoftheball]

Thanks for all the great feedback! Now without further ado....

Max and the others remained silent and annoyed as Michael and Maria once again started arguing in the empty school parking lot. For his part Max was too focused on Liz to really care about anything else. He had always wondered if there were others out there like them. Now he knew and some how that was even more alarming because these three definitely had more knowledge about what was going on then he did. And Liz… well she was the most alarming especially considering for some reason they shared the same body art.

“Maxwell! Haven’t you been listening?” Michael practically yelled into Max’s ear

“God! What?!” Max answered rubbing his ringing ears

“I was saying we can’t just follow them wherever they say, while they sit there and plan how to kill us.”

Maria rolled her eyes “Trust me babe. If we wanted you dead, you would be. But I really would not be tempting me right now”

“That’s enough!” Liz finally exclaimed startling everyone “How about this? I will ride in a car with Max, Michael & Isabel. Alex and Maria can take my car. And we will go wherever you want, to discuss this. Will that work?” Apparently not; since Liz’s plan was immediately met by protest on both sides. Maria and Alex going on about how they wouldn’t leave her alone. While Michael accused her plan of being a set up. Liz could feel a dull headache form as she yelled “Shut Up!” She focused on Maria and Alex “Look, I can take care of myself” She then turned to Michael “It’s not a set up if I let you choose the location and you don’t have to worry about Maria and Alex they won’t leave me or hurt you unless I order them to”

“And why is that?” Michael asked with a sneer

Liz stepped towards Michael with a menacing glare. “Because I’m the leader, moron. But hey, if you want to be in a car with Maria that’s just fine with me. Your call pal.” She walked towards Maria and Alex, tossing Alex her keys and leading them away for a private conference.

“I could say this is a bad idea but it wouldn’t do any good” Alex stated while opening the trunk and pulling out the floorboard. He usually kept the orb in the car in case they ever had to make a run for it.

Liz sighed while throwing her bag and the light jacket she had been wearing into the car. “I just need you guys to trust me on this, I know what I’m doing.”

Maria gave her a quick hug “If any of them lay a hand on you, that’s it. I will blast them back to wherever they came from”

Liz laughed a little before getting serious “I don’t know where we are going but I want you guys to be on alert. I know you hate to Maria but you need to constantly be reading all three of them and Alex, I need you to be ready for anything.”

With a smirk Alex shut the trunk “Sure give her the easy job”

Back near the jeep Max and Isabel were stuck listening to Michael as he continued ranting. Finally Isabel asked “Well what would you do Michael? blast them on the spot?”

“No, but you two are taking this way to lightly.”

Max countered “Damn Michael at least their making an effort. You’re the one being difficult.”

“And you’re the one making googly eyes at their “leader””

At that point Liz walked over “Alex and Maria need to know where their going”

“How about the desert? No one will be out there” Isabel suggested as she hopped into the back of the jeep.

“Whatever” Michael grumbled as he followed Isabel.

Liz was silent as she closed her eyes for a few seconds. Max was slightly uncomfortable as he asked “Aren’t you gonna tell Maria & Alex?”

Liz opened her eyes “I just did” and with that she walked over and climbed into the passenger seat.
The others looked at her with shocked expressions “You can speak with your minds?”

“Yeah, can’t you?”

Max shrugged as he started the jeep and drove out of the parking lot. He glanced over at Liz every few minutes but she just stared out into the desert. Isabel watched the two and couldn’t help but inwardly snicker at her love struck brother. Even if he had a thing for Liz they still needed answers “Liz, would you mind telling us what you know?”

Liz turned back to Isabel and replied “I’ll tell you what I know if you tell me what you know.”

Max answered “Well that’s easy. They found us walking in the desert when we were around eight. That’s all we know.”

Liz’s eyes widened “That’s it?”

Max turned his head meeting her eyes “That’s it”

“Damn” Liz couldn’t believe it. As hard as her life had been at least she had some answers. “Well I definitely know more than you.” And with that she told them about Nevar and who she had previously been. By the time she was finished all three of them were looking at her like she had horns growing out of her head. “What?”

Michael was the first to speak “You expect us to believe that you were the queen of some planet out there? Are you on drugs?”

Liz glared at him “Alright then why do you think they sent you here?”

For once Michael was speechless and Isabel asked “You have to admit it does sound…unusual”

Max surprised them all by what he said “Doesn’t sound so crazy to me. I mean there had to be a good reason to send you here. Otherwise why waste the energy and effort on anyone short of royalty… Where the hell did you land?”

“Iowa in 1947” Liz answered simply

“Iowa? What the hell is in Iowa?” Michael asked

“Fields and nothing much else. That was kinda the point nothing to draw attention; sorta how you imagine this part of New Mexico was before the crash.”

The rest of the trip was driven in silence. Liz was aware of the glances Max kept sending her and was doing her best to ignore them. She couldn’t explain the connection she felt to him; it was like how she felt when she first saw Alex and Maria when they hatched. Shaking her head at the thought Liz focused on the road.

Eventually they turned off the main road and Liz could see the rock formation ahead. Max parked the jeep and Liz stepped out and stared at the formation. She could here Maria and Alex pull up behind her and it wasn’t long before they joined her. The others stared at them obviously confused. They seemed to almost be a trance. Finally Michael came up waving his hand in front of their eyes “Anyone there?”

Maria smacked his arm away “Yes. Can’t you feel that?”

“Feel what?” Isabel asked

“You were found near here weren’t you?” Liz asked before she started to climb up the rock.

Max was right behind her and the others followed closely. “How did you know that?”

Liz reached the top and looked around “I know because this is where you were; I can feel the energy off it.” It was like a low hum just beneath her skin, similar to the cave in Iowa but also something else she couldn’t place her finger on.
******************************

Maria followed Liz and Max up the rock. She stopped short suddenly and looked behind her to see Michael “Oh my god, stop it!”

“Stop what?” Michael answered defensively

“Look my power is reading people’s emotions. So quit looking at my ass, cause lust is pouring off you right now.”

“Trust me I do not think of you that way.”

They had reached the top and Maria checked below to be confident Alex and Isabel were far enough behind her. She stepped towards Michael running the tip of her finger down his chest. She then seductively whispered in his ear “Is that so?” Satisfied when she felt the desire practically radiating off him; Maria stepped back mentally cooling herself off.
********************

Liz followed the hum to the wall of stone in front of her. Confidently she waved her hand in front of the wall and was surprised when nothing happened. “Alex?” She looked behind her and Alex was helping Isabel with the last bit of the climb before coming to Liz. “I have the right spot, don’t I?” Liz asked as Alex studied the wall apparently seeing something the rest didn’t.

“It’s the right spot, but it’s not our’s Liz.”

Understanding, Liz turned to Max motioning him over. She looked him in the eye and quietly asked “Trust me?” With that she lifted his hand to the same spot she had placed hers and both were startled when an opening appeared before them. It wasn’t long before the whole group was in the pod chamber. Isabel, Max, and Michael studied the three incubation chambers they had spent years in. The place was exactly like the chamber Liz had developed in except for the strange hum which had only grown stronger. She bent down and touched one of the pods immediately getting a flash of a young Max while he was still in the pod. She shook the image away and focused on the space beyond it. “Son of a Bitch” She climbed thru ignoring the protests behind her.

This definitely was not in Iowa. It was a large cone-like structure obviously alien origin. It wasn’t long before everyone had joined her. They stared at it in silence before Liz finally spoke taking the orb from Alex “Tarus has soooo much to explain and once he's through I'm going to kick his alien ass back to Nevar.” She held the orb in her hands for a few seconds before it emitted a low whistling sound.

Isabel stared at the orb and asked “What the hell is that noise?”

Liz released an annoyed snarl “The alien equivalent of a busy signal. Tarus get your ass here right now!”

Suddenly the air in front of her shimmered and an older man appeared. He had short brown hair, blue eyes, and was dressed in jeans and button down shirt “M’lady” he answered before noticing Max, Isabel, and Michael; He immediately bowed “I see you have found the Antarian Royal Family”

“Antarian?” Liz asked confused “Ok you need to start talking now cause they have no idea who they are and we have some major questions.”

“Excuse me but who the hell is this?” Max asked more then a little freaked out by the conversation and the sudden arrival.

Maria gave quick introductions “This is our protector Tarus. Tarus this is Max, Isabel, and Michael. Now that’s over with answers, now.”

Tarus straightened as he spoke “As you wish Lunaria. Nevar has had an alliance with the planet of Antar for nearly a thousand years. That alliance is renewed as each new monarch takes the throne. When Kivar conquered Nevar he also took control of Antar and the leaders of both planets were re-engineered and sent to earth.” He stood in front of Michael “You were Rath. General of the Antarian army and second to the king.” He moved on to Isabel “You were Vilandra; crown princess of Antar” Finally he reached Max “And you were Zan, King of Antar”

Michael muttered under his breath “and I thought Liz was nuts”

Tarus looked to Liz and Max “I assume the seal has appeared on your shoulders?”

Liz nodded “What does it mean?”

“It represents the alliance between both planets”

After processing a few moments Max asked “Why didn’t we have a protector?”

Tarus answered sadly “I believe they died in the crash or shortly after. I was with the Medina and her advisors; and was not aware of the crash”

“How did you not know about the crash?” Isabel asked shocked

Alex was the one to answer “He spent 40 years in a cave; you miss things”

Liz jumped in “Wait just a minute, how come you didn’t tell me about them? It would have been easier if there were more of us. Not to mention we nearly blasted each other to hell this afternoon cause we didn’t know what was going”

“Medina, I was under orders not to disclose that information to you. You had to learn on your own.”

Annoyed now Liz asked “Ordered by who?”

“Your past self and your husband gave the order before they died”

Everyone’s jaws dropped and Liz stuttered a bit before asking “Husband? Wha…What husband?”

Tarus simply pointed towards Max “Your husband, King Zan”

[belleoftheball]

Thank you everyone for the great feedback. I'm glad you are all enjoying the story. I won't be able to post more until at least tuesday, i'm going on vacation. So Happy Easter everyone and here is the next chapter.




From the moment she came out of her pod, Liz Parker had been the leader of her small family. Typically this meant making sure Maria stayed calm in a crisis and helping Alex stay focused. The point was she was the one to make the decisions, to set the path that the others would take. With this role she had rarely been in the position where she didn’t know what to do or say next. This however was definitely one of those times. As she looked at Tarus with her mouth dropped to the floor Liz pointed between herself and Max “Husb… Marry…Him…and me?” She couldn’t even form a full sentence.

Max had a similar expression on his face; this was all too much. This morning he was at least able to pretend he was normal. But in the past two hours he had learned there were more like him, he was the reincarnation of an alien king, and the girl he had felt an immediate attraction to was his past self’s wife. He definitely needed to sit down.

The shocked reaction of the others slowly started to fade a bit. Maria was the first speak “See, I told you he was perfect for you”

“Maria!” Liz was practically hissing at her friend

Max finally snapped out of it “Hold up, this is happening too fast.” He turned to Tarus who looked at him expectantly “Ok, I want to hear the whole story; start to finish and do NOT leave anything out. I want to know how we ended up on earth, what the hell this thing is…” He pointed towards the cone in the center of the room before pointing back between himself and Liz “and about us. All of us”

Tarus bowed his head slightly “As you wish King Zan”

“And don’t call me that”

Liz sighed, moving to stand beside Max “It’s no use. I’ve tried to get him to stop calling me Medina for years”

As Tarus began to speak the group closed in, listening the way children gather to hear a story. “As I stated before, you were all leaders on your respective planets, Zan and Medina being the rulers. Antar and Nevar had always been close allies and they are physically very close to each other. In fact the seal the royals now posses symbolizes that. The whirls represent each planets respective orbit around a central satellite built to commemorate the alliance all those years ago. The satellite is in fact a sort of temple, sacred to our people. In any case you were all nobility in one form or fashion when Zan and Medina each came of age. It’s tradition for the future monarchs to spend a season together at the temple shortly before the younger monarch is to take the throne. The time is supposed to be spent gaining a familiarity with each other so the alliance can continue with strong ties.”

“I take it Zan and Medina did a little more then get familiar” Max shot a glare at his sister who simply shrugged. Hey, she wasn’t the one who had a former spouse; at least she didn’t think she did.

Tarus continued on “Vilandra isn’t far from the truth. During the ceremony to reinstate the alliance, Zan and Medina also made their vows to one another.”

Michael jumped in “Wait did they get hitched just to reinforce this freakin’ alliance?”

“Absolutely not!” Tarus’ shout caused everyone to jump, especially Liz, Maria, and Alex. They had never seen him snap at anyone or anything. “I apologize Rath, but you need to understand I have stood guard for the alliance for several lifetimes and serving Zan and Medina was my greatest honor; they truly loved one another.”

Max and Liz looked at each after that statement but quickly glanced away. A calmer Tarus continued speaking “The marriage was not met well by all. While Zan and Medina were fair and wise rulers; not all their predecessors were the same and there was still hard feelings among some of the people. There were some who saw the marriage as away of giving the King and Queen even more power. These rebels came under the leadership of a noble from Nevar named Khivar. Despite the efforts made by the alliance, and each of you, Khivar was unable to be stopped and he eventually overtook the capital of Antar and killed you all.”

Alex hadn’t heard that part of this story before “Why would a Noble get involved with a rebellion like that?”

“He wasn’t creating a democracy as they call it hear on earth; after you were killed he essentially became a dictator. I have no doubt he’d crown himself King but he doesn’t possess any of the three seals.” Tarus practically spit the words out like they left a bitter taste in his mouth.

“Three seals?” Max questioned

Tarus moved to the cone in the middle of the room and placed his hand along the side of it’s base. Two symbols formed in the center of the cone. One was made up of five points of light forming a V shape, the shape shot out of the cone and landed on Max, Michael, and Isabel. The other symbol was the same as the first only flipped upside down, it landed on Liz, Maria, and Alex. “These are the seals of your respective planets; the third of course is possessed only by Zan and Medina.”

The cone of light died down and Tarus continued to speak “After your deaths a plan that had been formed previously took effect, and you were all sent to earth with this” he pointed towards the cone “The granolith is the most valuable possession of the alliance. It is able to funnel energy into a single compressed state making it possible to do a number of things even time travel. It is vital that Khivar never gain control of the granolith if he does the entire universe will be at his mercy.”

“You were all sent here for the main purpose of protecting the granolith, hopefully someday you may be able to save our planets as well. Unfortunately Khivar learned of parts of our plan and he is aware you are here. He sent some of his warriors, called skins here to eliminate you. Medina, Lunaria, and Avier have faced and defeated some of them but I promise you there are more. You must always be aware of this and train to fight.”

“We don’t umm… I mean we’ve tried not to use our powers so much. We didn’t want to draw attention to ourselves” Isabel was slightly sheepish as she spoke.

Tarus appeared concerned as he spoke “I understand your reasoning for that, it does however create a problem. Medina, Lunaria, and Avier will have to train you.”

“Wait! You’re leaving?!” Liz asked shocked. He dropped all these bombshells and now he was bailing.

“I must your majesty, now that you found the King and the others our enemy will soon be coming after you in full force. Hopefully I can distract them enough to give you time.”

“Hold up, what about the rest of us? You gave Max and Liz all this info on their past selves what about us?” Michael asked impatiently.

“None of the rest of you had married when you died though you were very close to one another, stronger than family. You were a great warrior Rath; I should know I trained you. Avier was a genius with technology, his inventions and skill advanced both planets well being. Lunaria was able to convey the needs of the people to those in charge. Vilandra was a beloved leader in her own right, looking out for those without a voice; the poor, young, and ill. Zan and Medina would not have been able to rule without the rest of you; you were extremely loyal to one another so much so you died together.” Tarus was starting to fade away as he finished speaking “Trust one another, it’s the only way the past won’t repeat itself.”

The group looked to each other and Max could almost hear the subtle click that occurred as they met each others eyes. He knew it would take time but like it or not they were a single unit now.

*********************************
Miles away a skin by the name of Marus crossed the New Mexico state line and felt the subtle shift.

So Medina had found her former King, Khivar would be pleased. Those who defied him before would suffer and Khivar would have what he always desired for true power.

[belleoftheball]

Thanks again for the great feedback. Sorry about the wait, work took precedence. But hey! I do think this the longest part to date.



Whispers followed the three new students of Roswell High as they walked out to the quad in silence. The whispers were a result of the vibe the trio sent out, as if they were on a mission. Liz walked like a leader as she was flanked on either side by Maria and Alex. After they had all left the pod chamber yesterday no one really said anything besides “See you tomorrow”

Now the group stopped in front of the table where Max, Michael, and Isabel were seated. There was an awkward moment of silence before Max decided to break the ice. “Hey”

“Hi” Liz answered in response. She cleared her throat a little before proceeding “We were just wondering if you guys wanted to get together this afternoon to…study.”

“Study?” Isabel asked a little confused. Obviously Liz was trying to hint around to something else but she wasn’t following.

Liz nodded her head “Yeah for history. You know that chapter where those people are preparing for that… battle.”

Catching on Max and Isabel immediately answered “Sure”

Michael however was slow “What? Hell no! There’s a hockey game on tonight and I don’t even have history with you.”

Maria rolled her eyes “You know what? You’re an idiot.”

Michael immediately stood up “And you’re a loud mouth little pixie brat”

Alex took a step forward between them “Ok I know where this is going so let’s just stop now.”

Isabel leaned forward and whispered into Michael’s ear “They’re not talking about a study group; they’re talking about training, genius”

Michael shrugged “Oh, ok”

Liz sighed lightly “Alright we’re just gonna go now. See you after school.”

“Guys, wait. Do you want to sit with us?” Isabel asked while pushing Michael over to make room.

Liz was about to say alright; when the bell rang signaling the end of lunch. She smiled apologetically “Guess not. See ya later”

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

Liz was happy to get to her Science class it was after all her favorite subject. As she introduced herself to the teacher she couldn’t help but feel relieved at the thought of not having to deal with any of the ramifications of her past life for at least an hour.

The teacher handed her a text book “Alright Liz. You’re all set. Take a seat at lab table 4 and your partner will be Max Evans.”

Liz looked up and sure enough there was Max sitting at table 4. Ok, so maybe she would have to deal with some of the ramifications. She took her seat as the teacher began the overview for the lab they would be doing.

As the teacher spoke Max couldn’t help but look at Liz. She was gorgeous; and he had been married to her. Well his past self had been at least. As she took notes for the lab he noticed how she unconsciously tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. Christ, Isabel had been right the night before when she said he was acting almost obsessive around Liz. He couldn’t even help it; it was like he had recognized her the second he saw her.

“Max? Max?” He was drawn from his thoughts as Liz lightly poked his shoulder with her pencil. “We need to start the lab now”

The teacher had already lit the burners and most of the class had already started. Slightly sheepish Max shook his head “Sorry. Guess I dazed out for a second”

Liz shot him a quick smile “Don’t worry I take pretty good notes”

They both focused on the lab and ended up doing well. When the teacher came by to review their work she gave them both A’s before instructing them to clean up. However when they both reached for the same test tube a white spark shot out of their connecting hands and caused the burner which was still on to suddenly spit out a high flame. Liz screamed out as the flame burned her hand and Max quickly pulled her back to him. The class was in an uproar as the teacher rushed forward. The flame had gone back to normal and the teacher quickly shut the gas off before saying “There was probably an air pocket in the gas tank. Liz let me see your hand.”

Liz suddenly realized she was clutching on to Max’s upper body and immediately took a step back meeting his eyes. She could see the concern in them as she held her hand out to the teacher “I’m ok” She stated more to Max then to the teacher.

“Well the burn isn’t bad but you need to go to the nurse to get it wrapped up. I’ll get a pass for you”

As the teacher went to get the pass Max whispered to Liz “Was that you or me?”

“I think it was us together. Look I’m fine we’ll talk about this latter” Liz gathered her things and sent Max a reassuring smile before going to the nurse’s office. Her hand was hurting like a bitch.

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

As Liz was waiting in the parking lot for the others when Maria rushed forward hugging her tightly before lifting up her bandaged hand. “Oh Chica! I just heard; something about an air bubble in a gas tank? What really happened?”

Liz sighed before pulling her hand back “Max and I happened. Our hands touched and…poof”

“You created fire?”

“No, there was this spark and it ignited the flame”

“Jeez” Maria asked shocked.

“Yeah tell me about it” The others were walking to them and they gathered around the cars. Liz cleared her throat before looking at Max, Isabel, and Michael “I guess you can just follow us back to our house”

“You three live together?” Max asked a little surprised

“Yep. The three musketeers” Maria answered throwing her bag into Liz’s car.

“But what about your parents?” Isabel asked

Alex climbed into the front passenger seat “Don’t have any. Look we can discuss all this at the house.” And with that they all climbed into their respective vehicles and drove away from the school.

***************************
When they reached the house Liz led them all to the spacious finished basement which had been converted into a training room. “Alright to start with I need to know your specialties”

“Specialties?” Isabel asked

“Yeah the power you have that the others don’t. I have visions of the future and can form a shield, Maria can sense people’s emotions, and Alex can work any piece of technology he wants…”

Liz was interrupted by Michael “Wait his power is he’s a major geek?” Michael’s hand suddenly came up hitting his own face. “OW! What the hell!”

Alex smiled back at him “That was me. I can temporary control other people when I want to.”

Maria was laughing as she spoke “Yeah, it’s kinda like the first episode of South Park when the aliens take control of Cartman’s body and make him sing Judy Garland. Hey that’s not a bad idea for you Michael.”

“I don’t think so” Michael answered defiantly but he still took a step back away from Alex. He decided it would be best to change the subject “Look the only thing I can usually manage to do is blow stuff up when I’m pissed, I don’t exactly have the best control.”

Liz nodded her head “Alright. Isabel?”

Isabel was pulling her hair back into a ponytail “I can dreamwalk people. I just kinda hop in and take a look at what they’re dreaming about.”

Impressed Liz then turned to Max “and you?”

Max took a step forward with his hand out “Give me your hand”

Liz’s eyes narrowed a bit but she gave him her bandaged hand. There was slight white spark but it didn’t hurt any worse then a static jolt. Apparently the sparks that resulted from their contact were weakening as they spent more time together. Max slowly unwrapped the bandage and laid his hand above Liz’s burnt hand. There was a slight golden glow and when Max moved his hand away the burn was gone.

Liz looked up surprised and met Max’s eyes “Wow”

They stared at each other for a minute until Alex finally said “God, they’re doing that look into my eyes soul mate thing again.”

Liz and Max immediately took steps from each other and Liz’s cheeks were pink with embarrassment as she spoke “Alright. Isabel you work with Alex, Maria can work with Max, and I’ll take Michael.”

Maria shot her a devilish look “Maybe you should work with Max, after all you both can put up shields”

Liz was practically grinding her teeth “We’ll work on that later. If you work with Michael the only thing you two will accomplish is killing each other.”

Maria however knew better. She didn’t need her power to know that Liz was extremely attracted to Max Evans. But she’d let it go, for now. “Whatever you say chica” She then looped her arm around Max’s “Alright pal, let’s see what a king can do. We’ll just stick to the basics for now.”

*********************
An half an hour later Isabel was getting more and more aggravated. “I’m telling you Alex I can’t read people’s minds, just their dreams.”

Alex however remained patient despite Isabel’s frustration. “And I’m telling you, you can. Look Isabel, when you dreamwalk people you are basically reading their minds. It’s just easier when they’re asleep because they don’t have their guards up.”

Isabel still wasn’t convinced “Why do we need another mind reader anyway? We have Maria.”

Alex rotated his neck which was getting stiff. “Maria’s not a mind reader, she’s empathic. There’s a difference. It’s like this; Maria can sense if someone’s happy, angry, guilty, whatever. It’s a good tool but emotions are unstable and there is no way she can absolutely know what is causing those feelings. But if your power works the way I think it does you’ll be able know the actual thoughts of a person. Now, you’re power isn’t perfect. I don’t think you’ll get an automatic reaction the way Maria does; but with both of you I think we might have a chance.”

“Do you really think we’ll have fight?”

Alex mind briefly flashed back to the summer before when he, Liz, and Maria had faced a group of skins. “I know we will but don’t think about that now. Just close your eyes, breathe deeply and try to read my mind” Alex wasn’t really expecting Isabel to read minds today. Not that she didn’t have the power but it had been suppressed so long that it was rusty. He watched as Isabel breathed deeply and was struck by how gorgeous she was.

Isabel lips curled up into a smile and she opened her eyes “You were thinking how good I must look in red.”

Alex eyes shot wide open and his face turned a deep shade of crimson “I…I well you would look good in red.” Alex cleared his throat “That’s very good now let’s try something else.”

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

Liz was feeling a dull headache form in the base of her skull. Michael was being difficult as hell and it was grating on her last nerve. He had been trying to blow up the bowling ball sized rock which was on the floor for over 30 minutes and so far no dice.

Michael dropped his hand “I told you, it only works when I’m pissed”

Liz sighed deeply “Maybe it would work better if you focused more than complain”

“Hey I’m trying here! Just because you were queen in your last lifetime doesn’t mean you rule over me now. Who the hell would want you for a queen anyway?”

Liz visibly flinched at the comment but still spoke in a steady voice “I’m not asking you to honor me as a queen, Michael. I’m just trying to help you. Whether we like it or not our enemy is coming and we will need you if we’re going to survive. You have the power to do this but you need to learn how to harness it, that’s all I’m trying to do here.”

Michael felt like an ass, he could tell he had hurt Liz with his words but she was still willing to help him. He knew it wasn’t Liz’s fault he didn’t have control of his power it’s just the frustration was starting to get to him so he lashed out and Liz was the easiest target. He looked to the side where Maria was working with Max. God, if Maria had seen how he had treated her friend she’d hate him. Michael spoke softly “I’m sorry. What do you want me to do?”

Liz smiled and nodded her head at the apology. She hadn’t missed the way Michael had looked at Maria “Alright I want you to close your eyes and blank out your mind.”

“But before you told me to focus on the rock…”

“I know but I want you to try something else now. Close your eyes and blank out your mind.” Liz watched as Michael followed her instructions. She moved behind Michael and instructed him to keep breathing; as she spoke to him she used a very calming voice. Liz placed her hand on Michael’s shoulder as she told him to keep his mind blank; she could feel the tension slowly leaving his muscles before she stood on her toes to whisper in his ear. “You know Maria likes you too, right?”

Michael’s eyes shot open and the rock exploded and would have caused serious harm to everyone if Liz didn’t put up a shield to deflect the debris. Liz smiled brightly at Michael “See it’s not about anger, it’s emotion. You just have to control yours.”

Michael whispered harshly “Why the hell did you just say that? To get a rise out of me?”

Liz was still smiling “Of course. But that doesn’t make it any less true. You don’t have to be empathic to see that.”

**************************
Max and Maria had been watching Michael and Liz since Liz instructed him to close his eyes. Max couldn’t help but feel a surge of jealousy as Liz placed her hand on Michael’s shoulder and whispered in his ear. He knew it was ridiculous, It wasn’t even an intimate gesture but it still made him want to punch his best friend. After the rock blew up the two spoke in hushed tones before Liz laughed out and gave an uncomfortable Michael a hug. Max was literally seeing red when Maria punched him on the shoulder.

“OW! What was that for?”

Maria seemed to be steadying herself, the feelings she had picked from Max had nearly knocked her down “Sorry but I had to snap you out of it, you just about knocked me down there. Don’t worry pal, Liz isn’t interested in Michael; she’s to busy trying to sort out her feelings for you.”

“Is that the empath speaking?” Max asked

“No, just the friend.” Maria answered with a smile

[belleoftheball]

Thank you sooooo much for the feedback I'm so glad you all are enjoying my little flc. Sorry this part is so short the next one will be longer, promise.



That night Liz was sitting on her bed using a towel to dry her recently washed hair when Maria came in and practically jumped onto the bed. “You know you could just wave your hand and voila, dry hair”

“I’m good thanks” She started combing through the damp tresses “By the way I didn’t get the chance to ask you, how did Max do this afternoon?”

Maria used her powers to load a DVD into the player “We worked on basic energy blasts and molecular rearrangement. He did pretty good until he saw you whispering sweet nothings into Michael’s ear.”

“What?! I did not…with Michael”

Maria laughed “Chill babe, I know and Max knows. I just think he wanted to be the one you were whispering to. Hes got it bad for you, girl”

Liz absently continued combing out her hair before finally doing as Maria suggested and drying it with her powers. “I don’t know what to do about that”

Maria’s face scrunched up in confusion “What’s to do about it? I mean he likes you, I know you like him. I’m failing to see a problem here, Liz”

“That’s the point Maria. I don’t know if he wants to be with me cause of me or this whole past life thing. Hell, I’m not sure if I like him for the right reasons.”

Maria seemed to mull over that for a second before tentatively asking “Does it really matter?”

Liz raised an eyebrow “Uhh yeah. I think it matters a lot, Maria”

“Hold on just hear me out. When Alex and I came out of the pods you were waiting for us, why?”

Liz stood and moved to the window looking out “I couldn’t just leave you.”

“But you didn’t “know” us. You didn’t remember that other life, hell we still don’t remember it.”

“I recognized you Maria. I might not have known who you were but, I knew you and Alex were important to me so I couldn’t just leave. I knew you were my family”

Maria smiled before giving Liz a quick hug “Exactly, you recognized us Liz, just like you recognize Max now. It’s the same thing. You don’t feel like caring for me and Alex was a mistake or something you were forced into, do you?”

“NO! I don’t care about that past life you and Alex are my family now regardless and I wouldn’t change that for anything.”

“I know. Just because we lived a life together before doesn’t mean we don’t have a choice now. You, Alex, and I chose to be a family because of who we are now. If you want to be with Max, great; if not, fine. The point is you need to make that decision based on the present; not some past we don’t even remember.” Maria smiled brightly “Although personally I say you and Max would make a great couple”

Liz smiled slightly “He is great.” She then decided to change the subject “So what’s the deal with you and Michael?”

“Me and Michael? I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Liz shot her a knowing smile “Please, I know you have a thing for him otherwise you wouldn’t let him get under your skin so much.”

“Whatever. He’s just annoying”

Before Liz could respond Alex entered the room with a tray full of snacks and two bank cards. He placed the tray on the bed side table and handed the cards to Liz and Maria “Your accounts are now full and my hard drive has once again been wiped” Alex being the technologically gifted individual he was, had become an excellent hacker and was able to place money into their bank accounts. Yes it was illegal but it was necessary and it’s not like they went crazy with the cash; they only bought necessities. That’s why they also kept jobs so as not to draw attention to themselves.

The three of them got comfortable on the large bed with Liz in the center holding the popcorn. “We have a huge living room why are we in my bed”

“Cause it’s more comfortable and it’s not the same having a sleepover in the living room” Maria answered matter of factly before starting the movie.

****************************
They had all fallen asleep half way through the movie but Liz didn’t sleep calmly. A vision came to her in her dreams.

She was in the desert and could see Max’s pod chamber not to far off. A battle raged around. Energy blasts went off left and right. She watched helplessly as Alex and Isabel were hit. Their attackers had surrounded them and there seemed to be no escape. She screamed as Maria was thrown off a rocky cliff with Michael soon following. Then in a daze she turned just in time to see Max take a direct hit in his chest and felt something inside her die along with him. And all she could do was continue to scream.

Alex was trying desperately to wake Liz up. Her erratic movement had woken him and he thought she was just dreaming but now her body was convulsing and he knew it something else. “Liz! Liz! You have to wake up!”

Maria was petrified as she tried to stop the convulsions. Whatever was happening in the vision terrified Liz to the point even Maria shaking in fear.

Suddenly the convulsions stopped and Liz sat straight up screaming Max’s name. Once she stopped screaming enough to realize she was awake she looked between Maria and Alex before she burst out sobbing uncontrollably into Alex’s shoulder.

[belleoftheball]

As promised here is a longer chapter! And I certainly hope all my fellow dreamers out there will enjoy this one.
Thanks again for the feedback!




It was 3:00 in the morning and the shrubbery and curbs along the streets of Roswell were suffering immensely. Max however really didn’t give a damn as he pulled into the driveway of Liz’s home. He barely got the parking break set before he jumped out of the jeep and began pounding on the side door. He could see the lights on upstairs and continued to pound until a frazzled Maria opened the door.

“Max? What the…”

Max didn’t wait for her to finish before he pushed past her and moved towards the stairs “Where is she? Is she ok?”

Maria rushed forward going up the steps right on Max’s heels “Wait a second, how did you know?”

“I just did. Which room?” Max had woken up 15 minutes before in cold sweat with a desperate need to get to Liz. He didn’t know what was going on; all he did know was Liz needed him.

Dumbfounded Maria simply pointed to the master suite at the end of the hall and followed Max.

Alex had barely gotten Liz to start breathing normally again when Max came in startling them both. Alex was even more startled when Liz practically leapt out of the bed and into Max’s arms. He looked to Maria with a confused expression as Max held Liz tightly while murmuring reassurances in her ear. Maria shrugged and motioned for Alex to follow her out. After they closed the bedroom door Alex sighed “Guess we won’t be needed, huh?”

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

Liz finally stopped crying and Max took a step back looking at her swollen eyes and tear streaked face “What happened?”

Liz took a deep breath before sitting on the edge of the bed still holding Max’s hand; he soon took a seat beside her. “I was sleeping and a vision came to me. Max it was horrible, we were all in this battle and… it was awful” she said the last part in a near whisper.

“Are you sure it wasn’t just a dream?”

Liz shook her head vehemently “No, I know the difference and this wasn’t a dream.”

Max could see she was serious and became very aware he didn’t want to know what the vision was about. But, he had to know. “I need you to show me.”

Liz shook her head even more violently “No, you don’t want to see this Max”

“Liz, if we are going to stop this from happening you need to show me.” He could tell she was still hesitant “I can take it” Liz slowly nodded her head and Max moved his hands to her face and the second their eyes met the connection was formed. Several images flashed through Max’s mind. Most of them were of Liz, Maria, and Alex together and a few were of Liz by herself looking at the stars from various locations; she almost seemed to be looking for something in particular. Finally he saw Liz’s vision and by the time it was finished he felt like he was going to be sick. Max abruptly ended the connection and immediately dropped his head down trying to force the bile back down his throat. He looked back up when he felt Liz place her hand tentatively on his shoulder. Silent tears were running down her face as she whispered “I’m sorry”

“It’s not your fault Liz. But we can change this right? That doesn’t have to happen.”

“I hope so. Most of the time I can change things when I have a vision but some things…”

Understanding Max whispered back “some things have to happen”

Liz immediately stood wiping her eyes”Well this isn’t one of those things I am not going to lose anyone I care about”

“Liz you’re not going to lose Maria or Alex; I promise.”

“I can’t lose you either!” Liz exclaimed taking both herself and Max aback. Liz’s face took on a pink tint as she stuttered out “o…or Michael and Isabel. I don’t want to lose anyone.”

Max met her eyes as he spoke “I swear to you, you want lose anyone”

Liz suddenly became aware of not only their close proximity but also the fact that she was in nothing but a small little tank top and shorts, which was fine around Alex but definitely not alright with Max. She jumped up quickly grabbed her robe wrapping it around herself; while Max looked away scratching behind his ear as he also began to blush. “I should probably head home”

“Yeah probably” Liz answered absently before her head snapped back up “Wait how did you know to come here? Alex and Maria didn’t call you; they were with me.”

“I just had a feeling so I came over.”

“But you didn’t know if there was an actual problem”

Liz jumped a little as Max pushed a stray strand of hair back behind her ear “I couldn’t take that risk.” He whispered back softly.

Liz literally felt her heart expand at the comment and before her mind could process she was asking “Don’t go”

“What?”

Liz whispered almost painfully “Don’t go. I don’t want to be alone.”

Now Max could easily have suggested that Maria or Alex were in the next room. But Max Evans was not an idiot; and when a beautiful girl whom he had previously been married to asked him to spend the night, the answer was yes. “I’ll stay as long as you need me.”

Liz smiled gratefully as they climbed into the bed and immediately fell asleep.

*************************
Sunlight streamed through the windows of Liz’s bedroom when Max woke up the next morning. He had actually spent the night with Liz, granted all they had done was sleep, but still. Liz was snuggled up next to him with her arms wrapped around him and her head nestled in the nook underneath his left shoulder. Yeah, he could definitely get used to this. Still it was probably a good idea to get out of bed and let the others know about Liz’s vision; so he slowly tried to ease out from underneath her. Liz apparently would have none of that since she released an annoyed noise before burying herself more deeply into him.

“Christ” he muttered under his breath as he played with the ends of her hair. He immediately stopped when he felt her stretch out apparently waking up.

Liz was very tempted to just snuggle back into her extremely comfortable pillow, when she realized her pillows generally didn’t smell so good or breathe. Breathe? Her head snapped up catching Max right on the chin.

“Ow!”

“Oh my god Max!” She immediately checked to see if she had seriously injured him “I am so sorry!”

Max moved his lower jaw back and forth trying to make sure it wasn’t broken or anything. “It’s alright I don’t think you caused any permanent damage.” He winced a little “Hurts like a bitch though.”

“I’m so sorry” She moved her hand across his cheek in an intimate gesture.

Their mouths were inching closer together when the bedroom door burst open and Maria walked in her left hand covering her eyes. “Sorry to Interrupt!”

Max liked Maria, really he did but at that moment he sincerely wished she would jump off the face of the planet. Liz scooted away from Max and the position they had been in. “You can move your hand Maria. Nothing happened.”

“Unfortunately” Max silently thought to himself.

Maria moved her hand and sent Max an understanding smile “Don’t worry girlfriend your time will come.”

Max’s face turned bright red. Damn empath. “I’m gonna wash up.”

Liz pointed towards the bathroom and once the door closed she slapped Maria’s arm “Did you have to embarrass him like that?”

Maria laughed lightly “He makes it so easy. How did you enjoy your sleepover?” She asked the question with a suggestive tone.

“Shut up”

“Oooh! Someone is in love” The sing-song voice Maria used had Liz seriously considering killing her best friend.

Just then the bathroom door opened and a more refreshed Max came out. “I think we need to call a meeting about Liz’s vision. I’ll call Isabel”

“I guess that leaves me to call Spaceboy” Maria said with an eye roll.

“And how do you have his number?” Liz asked with a sweet smile

“Bite me” was Maria’s response as she left the room.

Max dug into his pocket for his cell phone and dialed Isabel’s cell. She answered on the third ring “Max, why are you calling me at 7:00 on a Saturday? Wait why are you calling me at all? Aren’t you home?”

“No I’m at Liz’s. You need to get here as soon as you can.”

“What’s going on?”

“I’ll explain when you get here” Liz was opening drawers pulling out clothes and Max was distracted when he caught a quick glimpse of her underwear drawer.

“EWWW!”

Startled Max brought his attention back to the phone conversation “Isabel? What is it?”

“I just tried reading your mind and you were having impure thoughts about Liz that I really wish you didn’t share.”

“I wasn’t sharing” Max practically ground out through his clenched teeth.

“Whatever. I have to go find a way to pour bleach into my brain”

“Bye, Isabel” Max slammed the phone shut.

Liz came out of the bathroom where she had changed. “Something wrong?”

“I was just thinking how overrated empaths and mind readers are.”

[belleoftheball]

See I do keep my promises! It's kinda short though.



Alex, Maria, Liz, and Max were sitting around the breakfast table eating pancakes when Isabel & Michael got there. “OK What’s the emergency and are those blueberry?” Michael asked while fixing himself a plate.

The rest of them rolled their eyes and Liz handed him a bottle of Tabasco “I had a vision last night and it wasn’t a good one.”

Concerned Isabel sat down next to Alex before asking “What kind of vision?”

“The kind where we all die” Maria answered matter-of-factly before taking another bite of the Tabasco and syrup soaked pancake.

Michael’s fork dropped onto the plate “What?!”

Liz rolled her eyes “great job with the subtlety Maria.” She took a deep breath but relaxed when Max placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder “We are going to be attacked. I don’t know when but it will be near your pod chamber.”

Michael stood abruptly knocking the chair over “That’s it; we’re leaving town now. Everyone pack your bags”

“Hold up there, spaceboy” Maria used her powers to put the chair back into place and pulled Michael back down “Last time I checked Max and Liz were the leaders; not you.”

“What the hell! Max, you can’t seriously be considering staying here? You heard queenie if we stay we die”

Max looked to his friend and spoke calmly “Calm down, Michael. Liz and I have been discussing this and leaving is probably the worse thing we can do.”

Fear was evident in Isabel’s eyes as she spoke “Worse than dying?”

Liz looked towards Isabel with a sympathetic smile “If they attack us near the pod chamber that means they want the granolith. You heard Tarus we can’t just leave it there. Skipping town isn’t an option”

Michael was obviously irritated “Who the hell are “they”?”

Liz took a deep breath knowing what Maria and Alex’s responses would be “Skins”

Maria face lost all its color and Alex threw his napkin down on his plate with a look of total disgust on his face “Shit”

Isabel immediately turned to Alex “What are skins?”

“In a word, evil. They’re Khivar’s henchmen on earth. They can’t survive in earth’s atmosphere so they have these “husks” that look human. They’re strong you can only kill them by breaking the valve on their backs. Group of them nearly Liz, Maria, and I this summer.”

Max looked up alarmed before turning to Liz “You didn’t tell me that”

Liz shrugged her shoulders “Not a fond memory. Look we can’t leave so we have to be ready for them which means we have to up the training schedule.”

Waving her hand across the table Liz cleared it and cleaned the dishes earning an annoyed grunt from Michael “Hey, I wasn’t finished with that!”

Liz rolled her eyes yet again “Maria we’re switching; I’ve got Max, you train Michael”

Maria released a sound of outrage “No fair! You get King Charming and I’m stuck with Quasimodo?!” Michael shot her an angry glare which Maria ignored.

“Yesterday you said I should be the one training Max, remember?”

“Yeah, but I thought Alex could handle tall, dark, and annoying”

“Hey! I’m standing right here!” Michael exclaimed though no one paid him much attention.

Liz spoke calmly but with unquestionable authority “Alex is doing very well with Isabel; Max needs to work on his shield; so that leaves you and Michael. Go out to the desert and practice but stay away from the pod chamber; I don’t want to take any unnecessary risk.”

Maria released a huff of air “Fine, let’s go spaceboy”

Michael followed her out but the remaining four could here is mumbled reply “Quit calling me that!”

After Michael and Maria left the remaining four looked between one another before Isabel put $5 down on the table. “I give them 15 minutes in the desert before they kill each other or start making out.”

Alex added $10 to the pool “I give them 10 minutes”

Max and Liz shared a look before adding their money in “5 minutes” they both said at the same time.

****************************
It took them 15 minutes to get out to the desert. 10 of which was spent arguing over the radio until finally Maria completely shut it off. Then they started arguing because Michael claimed she was a bad driver. By the time they reached a deserted area Maria was ready to scream. She jumped out of the car spewing insults “You are the most egotistical, maniacal pig I have ever met!”

“Yeah? Well you weren’t saying that in the eraser room yesterday”

“Well obviously I was suffering some sort of temporary mental imbalance to EVER let you lay a finger on me.”

Michael shot a smirk her way which Maria was dying to slap off “Well you might want to see a doctor since that “temporary imbalance” has lasted for nearly three weeks!”

Maria finally released a frustrated scream “You started it!”

“I started it?!”

“Yeah. Who dragged whom into the backroom of The Crashdown that first day? I do believe it was you, Spaceboy”

“Quit calling me that!” A nearby rock exploded as Michael groaned in frustration.

“God, calm down Michael!”

“No, you know what? You want to insult me and ignore me in front of our friends? Fine. But you damn well are going to take some of the responsibility for what’s going on between us.”

“And what’s going on between us?”

Michael’s mouth opened and closed for a few seconds before he finally replied “Fuck it” Then he grabbed Maria and pulled her into a searing kiss which she happily returned.

**********************
Back at the house Alex and Isabel were practicing in the living room while Max and Liz were in the training room. Max caught on quickly as Liz explained how to keep his shield active for a longer period of time and how to allow energy balls to escape the shield but not let any in. After an hour they decided to take a break and took a seat next to each other on the basement steps. Liz was pulling her hair back into a ponytail when Max asked her “How can you afford to live here without parents”

“Well Alex, usually hacks into the bank’s computer system to set up phony accounts for us. But this is the first house we’ve ever lived in; usually it’s just apartment or long stay hotels.”

Max couldn’t imagine not having home. “Sounds terrible”

Liz shrugged her shoulders “We’re used to it.” She then smiled a little “It is nice though, having a real home. I’m glad we won’t have to move again; at least for awhile.”

“You moved around a lot?”

“Yeah, we were always watching our backs looking out for Khivar or skins. I’m sorry we brought them here.” Liz looked down at her hands as she said the words.

Max placed his hand under her chin forcing her to look up. “They would have found the granolith eventually. Besides there’s no way I could be sorry you came to Roswell”

Liz smiled sweetly as she leaned in closer to him “Really? And why is that?”

Without a word Max closed the space between them to kiss her.

[belleoftheball]

Hey thanks for the awesome feed back. I've gotta say though some of you were a little harsh towards Maria; just a reminder though Michael wasn't exactly singing her praises either. They have a disfunctional relationship; that's why I love them.

Anyway here is the next part; I'm not crazy about it but I've tried re-writing it three times and this is as good as I could get it; so here you go.



Isabel and Alex were enjoying a cold soda after their training session. Isabel looked around the living room and decided she liked it even if it didn’t fit her own taste. The room was reflective of the people who lived there. There were interesting candles and knickknacks scattered around the space which just screamed Maria. The state of the art entertainment center had Alex written all over it and the place was meticulously organized probably a result of Liz’s influence. She picked up a photo on the side table. It was of Alex and Liz in a tight embrace. Isabel was shocked by the stab of jealousy she felt just looking at the picture and suddenly she asked “Did you guys date?”

Alex started choking on his coke at the question “Me and Liz? God no!” Alex’s face took on an expression like he had swallowed rancid milk.

Still not completely convinced Isabel pushed “You’ve never considered it?”

“You ever consider dating Michael?”

“Eww. Point taken. But I mean you’ve dated other people right?”

Alex wasn’t entirely comfortable with the conversation and started peeling the label on his soda bottle out of nervousness. “We moved around a lot; so not really. I did some but nothing serious. Maria was the most socially active. Liz hasn’t showed any interest though; well until now.”

Isabel rolled her eyes “She and Max are sickening aren’t they? It’s like being bombarded with two of the most annoying types of relationships; You’ve got the lovebird cooing at one another and then in the other corner you have Michael and Maria fighting like cats and dogs before probably jumping each other. I’d prefer somewhere in the middle, you know?”

Alex met her gaze before nodding “I know what you mean.” He gathered every bit of courage he had to ask “Isabel, would you like to go…”

Alex was cut off as the front door flew open and agitated Maria came in still screaming as Michael stalked through the door. “I hate, despise, detest, and loathe you Michael
I-don’t-know-your-middle-name Guerin!”

Michael snatched the soda out of Isabel’s hand “Don’t hold back blondie tell me how you really feel”

“You..You…Aaagghh!” Maria finally screamed causing the nearby lampshade to blow up.

“Hey! Hey! What the hell is going on in here!” Max and Liz had rushed upstairs when they heard all the screaming.

Maria moved toward Liz “Liz! I can not work with that man! He is incorrigible!”

At the same time Michael stated his case “Max! I swear to god if I have to spend another second with that little brat!”

“Who you calling a brat!” Maria jumped up in outrage

“That would be you.”

Maria was practically shaking with anger “You son of a….”

Suddenly Liz’s voice cut out any protest “ENOUGH! What the hell is wrong with you two? You’re acting like three year olds!”

Max shook his head “Liz is right we have too much to worry about now for you two to keep acting this way.”

“Of course you’d take her side.” Michael muttered

Max narrowed his eyes at his friend “You have something to say Michael?”

“Nope that’s just a nice shade of lipstick you got on there Evans”

Max and Liz both turned red as Max wiped the remainder of Liz’s lipstick off his face.

Maria tugged on Liz’s arm “I can’t believe you made out with him; you never make out with anyone…OUCH!” Maria exclaimed as Liz pinched her arm.

Annoyed Isabel finally put a stop to the fighting “That’s it! The four of you need to cut the crap. Maria, Michael everyone knows you’re together so quit acting like you hate each other; it’s getting old.”

Michael and Maria stood with their jaws dropped to the floor “We’re not…”

Isabel shot her hand up in dismissal “Please, you two are obviously attracted to each other and there’s the fact that Michael shirt was properly buttoned when he left here.”

Max and Liz snickered as Michael readjusted her shirt earning Isabel’s wrath “And you two! Get together already cause this whole “will they, won’t they” crap is just annoying. You obviously like each other so suck it up and take the plunge.” Isabel finally took a deep breath from her rampage and turned to Alex “You want to go get something to eat? Great, you drive.”

Without another word Isabel left the house, Alex right behind her muttering under his breath “what a woman”

***********************
A week later things had calmed down. After Isabel’s speech Max and Liz officially became a couple as did Michael and Maria. Max and Liz were still sickening and Michael and Maria still fought but at least it was tolerable.

Michael and Maria were closing up at The Crashdown that night. Liz had gotten a job there also but she didn’t start until the next week.

“All right Spaceboy I’m taking the trash out” Maria yelled over her shoulder to Michael

“Fine”

Maria stopped short “fine? You’re not gonna yell at me for calling you spaceboy?”

Michael shrugged his shoulders “I got use to it”

Maria kissed his cheek before carrying the garbage outside. She had just closed the dumpster when she felt a pair of eyes watching her; using her powers she could sense the ill intent radiating off this person. She made a quick dash for the door when suddenly she was air borne and slamming against the brick wall. Maria felt herself slipping into unconsciousness when a pair of hands gripped her throat before lifting her off the ground. The man who stood before her squeezed her neck tighter. “Hello Lunaria, Long time no see.” Maria tried desperately to form an energy blast but was unable to as the man continued to speak “We’re gonna send a message to your royals; how does that sound?”
Panicking now and seeing spots form in her eyesight Maria scratched and the man’s arms releasing a disgusted moan when an entire layer of skin peeled off.

Suddenly the man flew away from Maria and skidded down the alley. Michael dropped his hand after releasing the energy blast and rushed towards Maria lifting her unconscious body up off the ground “Maria! Maria! Wake up!” Michael felt a wave of relief rush through his body as a groan passed her lips. He quickly scanned the alley trying to find the attacker but it was empty. He lifted Maria up into his arms and carried her back into the Crashdown. As soon as he placed her on the couch in the back and double checked that the doors were locked; Michael rushed to the phone dialing a familiar number “Maxwell! You need to get to the Crashdown now. We’ve been attacked”