Title: The Power of Eight
Author: pooklette
Disclaimer: The characters of "Roswell" belong to Jason Katims, Melinda Metz, WB, and UPN. They are not mine and no infringement is intended.
Category: M/M, M/L, CC
Rating: Teen
Summary: Sequel to “The Power of Love.” Our beloved podsters and crew are in college now, struggling to blend in with the crowd while their true calling looms constantly overhead. Together with their royal guardians and their families, they will see exactly what happens when history repeats itself. Future Max changed a lot, but some things might just be inevitable.
I recommend you read “Power of Love” first, if you haven’t already, otherwise you’ll be hopelessly confused. This fic is very Candy, Dreamer, Gazer and Alleyleader (Kyle/Ava) friendly. I have no intention of breaking up our favorite duos.
A/N: Just to clear up some confusion, I thought I’d jot down a quickie alien character list to clarify all the new names you’ll see here.
Kaden – A male Antarean soldier that was recruited by Rayna to join the Sarian forces, also Michael’s royal guardian
Connor – A male Antarean soldier that was recruited by Rayna to join the Sarian forces, also Maria’s royal guardian
Talia – A female Sarian soldier and Liz’s royal guardian
Jonas – A male Sarian soldier and Max’s royal guardian
Sondra – A female Sarian soldier and Isabel’s royal guardian
Brayden – A male Sarian soldier and Alex’s royal guardian
Lance – A male Antarean soldier that was recruited by Rayna to join the Sarian forces, also Ava’s royal guardian
Dillan - A male Antarean soldier that was recruited by Rayna to join the Sarian forces, also Kyle’s royal guardian
Damon – A male Antarean soldier that was recruited by Rayna to join the Sarian forces, also moonlighting as an employee at the student union where Maria and Ava work.
Valerie – A female Sarian soldier moonlighting as an employee at the podsquad’s favorite coffee shop near Las Cruces
Prologue:
She was running as fast as her legs would carry her. They were so close…she had to keep moving. Was it the FBI? No, it wasn’t them…this time it was Kivar’s men. The trees were whipping around as she ran past, creating angry red welts on her arms and legs. She couldn’t seem to catch her breath. Her lungs felt like they were about to burst. Suddenly, a hand grabbed her from behind and she screamed…
Liz shot up in bed, her scream echoing off the walls. Startled, Maria tumbled out of the top bunk and landed in a heap on the floor. Like a reflex, Maria sat up and pushed her hands out in front of her in a defensive pose. Purple arcs could be seen flowing freely between her outstretched hands. Maria’s royal guard, Kaden, appeared behind her as though he stepped directly out of the shadows. He surveyed the room in anticipation.
“Lizzie? You OK chica?” Maria said cautiously.
Liz’s sobbing made her voice thick. “Just a dream…it was just a dream.” She croaked.
Chapter 1: Crazy Days
Liz’s backpack thumped on the ground like a lead weight. The coffee shop was usually fairly quiet at this time of night. That’s precisely why she and Max had a standing date there every Thursday. As always, their assigned Sarian guards, Talia and Jonas, were occupying a booth nearby.
Max quickly shut his Psychology book and leaned over to give Liz a kiss. They had really come a long way in the last year. After the crisis with the dupes, they were able to slowly rebuild their fractured relationship into the blissful romance it was now.
Their first semester of college had been rough. After being together constantly for the entire summer after graduation, their cramped new college schedule proved to be a rude awakening. When they weren’t in class, they were studying and when they weren’t studying, they were sleeping. Their royal guards subtly followed their every move so consequently, even when they did manage to find some alone time, they weren’t really alone. Eventually, they grew accustomed to their hectic lives and started enjoying their sparse free time together.
The entire group, all eight of them, would meet in the dining hall for breakfast every morning before rushing off in different directions for class. It was ironic that the entire ruling body of an alien nation, together with a large group of alien soldiers, went completely unnoticed by the general public. On a busy college campus, they were all rendered nearly invisible in the constant hustle and bustle around them.
The parents had all chipped in and bought laptop computers for the teens. They knew that the teens were intent upon keeping up with their Antarean studies as well as their college ones. Since they couldn’t very well modify any of the campus computers to read the little diskettes Larek provided, they would have to have computers of their own to work with instead. The gang remained dedicated to their ‘alien studies’ however, because of their busy schedules, they were only able to have ‘alien study sessions’ together every other weekend.
The Sarian guards Larek had sent managed to blend into the mainstream American culture quite efficiently, in part because they all appeared to be no more than twenty years old by Earth standards. They all had chosen ‘human’ names that closely resembled their Sarian and Antarean ones. With a little creative editing of certain key documents, many of them were able to get themselves registered at the university as students and there was at least one guard in each of the Roswellians’ classes. The rest of the guards spent the majority of their time patrolling the campus, on the lookout for threats of an alien kind.
Soon, the gang’s first semester would be over and they all would be traveling home for Christmas. Max was really looking forward to the upcoming break. He and Liz would finally be able to spend some much deserved time alone.
“What are you thinking about?” Liz asked Max, noticing the far away look in his eyes.
“I was just thinking about Christmas. I want this year to be really special…” Max trailed off with that far away look in his eyes again.
“It will be special, Max.” Liz suddenly stopped, her eyes dancing with fear. “I haven’t seen Isabel lately…Oh that can’t be good. It’s only a matter of time…”
Max nodded. “The Christmas Nazi. Yeah, we’ve been lucky so far. She already roped Kyle and Ava into volunteer duty at the Christmas Pageant.”
Liz giggled. “We should’ve warned Ava…she was a sitting duck. She never even stood a chance, did she?”
“I blame Kyle. He should’ve known better. See the key is, when you see Iz walking up with her clipboard, you just turn the other way and act like you’re late for class. I’ve used that method to escape her twice this week.” Max grinned, proud of himself for avoiding the Christmas Nazi so effectively.
Liz swatted him on the arm playfully, while making a mental note to keep her eye out for Isabel. When it comes to the Christmas Nazi, there truly is no shame in running.
“So my parents are really going all out this year. They’re so excited about having a group celebration at the Crashdown.” Liz said.
“I can’t believe the way things have turned out. One minute your dad hates me, and the next he’s planning a Christmas party with my family.” He paused and then quietly said, “I got your parents a gift…”
“Seriously Max? You didn’t have to. They don’t expect you to.” Liz said, although she wasn’t really surprised he’d do something so thoughtful.
“It’s not much really. It’s just something I made for them actually. Alex and Maria helped a lot, so did Talia. I can’t really take all the credit.”
“What is it?” Liz asked impatiently. There was no way she’d be able to wait until Christmas to find out now that she knew it was something he’d made by hand…especially if it was something that required the help of her friends and her royal guard, Talia.
“You have to promise not to tell Michael. I mean it Liz…he’ll never let me live this down. It’s sort of…well…he just won’t understand.”
“You know I won’t tell Michael…now tell me what it is!” Liz said in exasperation because she knew Max was stalling.
“OK…I made them a scrapbook.” Max nervously fiddled with his coffee cup before elaborating.
“Maria and Alex made me copies of a bunch of photos they had from when you were kids. I put those pictures, and some new ones Talia took on campus, together in a big scrapbook. It’s supposed to sort of chronicle your life…and show them that you’re still happy, even after all you’ve been through.” Max looked down, embarrassed. He hadn’t told her in detail what her father had said to him the night he gave his blessing for their relationship.
{You can choose to love my daughter and give her a long happy life, or you can keep your distance…leaving her when she needs you most. It’s your choice…}
Part of the reason Max had chosen to give Nancy and Jeff a scrapbook for Christmas was to show Jeff that he was taking his message very seriously. Max loved Liz and he had every intention of making sure that she had a long, happy life.
Liz threw her arms around him and gave him a big hug. After giving him a soft kiss, she said, “It’s perfect Max. I know they’ll love it.”
“I hope so because you have no idea how hard it was to explain to Talia why she had to carry around a camera all semester…and why she couldn’t tell you about it!” Max chuckled. “For weeks she was convinced that I was asking her to spy on you.”
Max and Liz enjoyed another hour of alone time before the rest of the group started trickling in. It was almost funny that so many people were looking to the stars for signs of intelligent alien life when there was a café full of alien royalty and soldiers just down the street.
The eight of them sat, sipping coffee and gabbing about classes. Thankfully Alex had distracted Isabel from her Christmas Nazi duties for the night, so they were all able to relax a bit before heading back to the dorms to cram for finals.
“So how goes it in Abnormal Psych, Maria?” Alex asked.
“Ugh…you’d think that class would’ve been easier. I mean it’s not like I haven’t seen my fair share of the abnormal back in Roswell. Take Spaceboy here, for example.” Maria shot a playful glance at Michael.
Michael’s scowl suddenly turned into an impish smirk and he said, “Very funny Maria. We’ll see if you’re still laughing after the final.”
“What would you know about finals anyway? Most of your history professors shelled out take-home finals…you’re almost done already. Must be nice!” Kyle pointed out.
“Hey, not my fault you decided to major in engineering dude. Didn’t it occur to you that you’d actually have to take science classes for that?” Michael teased.
Ava thumped her brother over the back of the head. “Hey! I’ll have you know, Kyle is doing very well in his science classes.” Under her breath she muttered, “Now his English Lit class on the other hand…”
Kyle shot a feigned wounded look at his girlfriend. “Seriously, who uses English Lit anyway? Like I’m going to be sitting there, designing a car, and all of a sudden have this urge to write a novel…yeah right.”
“Kyle, it’s very important to have a well-rounded education. You can’t just focus on your major and ignore everything else. They just want us to be able to excel in a lot of different environments.” Liz declared.
“Um…Liz? Weren’t you the one complaining about having to take Art History?” Isabel teased.
“Oh…that. Well you see…” Liz stammered, blushing. She knew there was no way they were going to let her talk her way out of that one, so she changed the subject.
“So what classes are you guys taking next semester?” She asked.
The group sat around discussing the upcoming semester for another half an hour or so before heading back to the dorms. The group left in shifts. They had a whole routine planned out for such gatherings. They always trickled out in groups of two, with their guards exiting first to secure the perimeter. They had spent the first few weeks of school perfecting routines such as this, in an effort to ensure they weren’t going to be drawing too much attention to themselves or their guards.
The Power of Eight (CC,ALL,TEEN)Ch5-7, 4/16/06
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pooklette
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The Power of Eight (CC,ALL,TEEN)Ch5-7, 4/16/06
Last edited by pooklette on Sun Apr 16, 2006 12:00 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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pooklette
- Newbie
- Posts: 48
- Joined: Sat Jul 09, 2005 12:21 pm
Disclaimer: The characters of "Roswell" belong to Jason Katims, Melinda Metz, WB, and UPN. They are not mine and no infringement is intended.
Chapter 2: Home Sweet Home
“You’re not going to the hardware store for Maria’s gift again this year, are you?” Max and Michael were seated in their favorite Crashdown booth, having returned home for Christmas vacation only two days ago.
“Nope. Got it covered already.” Michael couldn’t resist a chuckle at the shocked look on Max’s face.
“What did you get her?” Max eyed his friend skeptically. Michael had been very tight lipped about Christmas this year. He had a big secret and Max was dying to find out what it was.
Michael put on his best devilish smirk before saying, “Can’t tell. It’s a surprise.” Off Max’s impatient frown, he added, “Don’t worry about it…I followed the rules this year.”
Max shook his head in amusement. Just then, Liz trudged out of the backroom in her waitress uniform, complete with antennae and all. She made a beeline for Max and slumped down into the booth at his side.
“Remind again me why I agreed to work over Christmas break?”
Max gave her a kiss on the forehead and pointed out, “Because Isabel tried to rope you into decorating duty and you were wise enough to volunteer your time here instead.”
Michael looked at her with an expression of sheer awe. “You think your dad could still get me on the schedule for this week?” The serious expression on his face gave his friends a good laugh.
“Yeah, laugh it up Maxwell. By the way, have you picked out a Christmas tree yet?” Michael’s evil grin stopped Max’s laughter dead in his throat. Liz giggled even harder at Max’s panicked expression. Isabel would send him back to the tree lot a dozen times to find the perfect tree if necessary, and they all knew it.
“Uh huh. That’s what I thought.” Michael said with a knowing smirk. “See you later…I’m out of here.”
Michael tossed some money on the table and got up to leave. He needed to put the finishing touches on one last gift. This Christmas was going to be really special and this gift was just one part of a big holiday surprise. He was really nervous, but the whole thing had been planned for months so there was no turning back now. Maria didn’t suspect a thing, which was exactly the way he wanted it.
At that particular moment, Amy, Ava and Maria were having the time of their lives. They had spent the whole morning Christmas shopping and having some much needed girl talk. They were presently sitting at a quaint little coffee house enjoying some herbal tea. Amy was trying to get Ava to dish about her relationship with Kyle.
“Come on Ava! Don’t be shy…anyone can see you two are in love.” Amy prodded. “What are you getting him for Christmas?”
Ava blushed. “I got him season tickets. You know how much he loves sports and…well…baseball’s not so bad really.” Her blush deepened.
“You do realize that you’ll have to go to like every single one of those games with him, right? Do you have any idea how boring…” Maria trailed off and took a good look at Ava for a second. “You’ve got it bad girl! It must be love if you’re willing to go through all that!”
Amy laughed, thrilled to see the girls so happy after all that they’d gone through last year. The kids had really pulled through and things were finally looking up for all of them.
“So, when are you going to settle down Mrs. Deluca?” Ava’s bold question left Amy choking on her tea. The girl had a point though…She and Jim had been ‘dating’ for over a year now and she honestly had no idea if he would even consider getting remarried.
“Far be it from me to pry mom, but…oh who am I kidding. Of course I’m going to pry! What’s going on with you and Jim anyway? You’ve been dating for like forever.” Maria sat back and studied her mom’s reaction to the question.
“Well…it’s complicated.” One look at the girls told Amy that she wasn’t going to be let off the hook easily, so she elaborated.
“We love spending time together and he’s wonderful but I don’t know where this’ll end up. I don’t know if he would ever want to get remarried. I don’t know if I would want to take that step again either.”
“I never thought I’d be saying this but…he’s a good guy, mom. For an oppressive pig, that is.” Maria said with a saucy grin. “If you make each other happy then what’s the point in holding back?”
In an effort to take the attention away from herself, Amy turned to Maria and put her on the spot.
“So how’s that big hairy ape you like to call a boyfriend these days?” It was Amy’s turn to fix Maria with a sassy grin. Despite her description of the big alien, she really did have a soft spot for him. She hadn’t seen him yet since they’d come home for Christmas break because he was staying over at the Valentis’ house. She actually missed him, though she wouldn’t dare admit that out loud.
“Michael is Michael. He chews with his mouth open, belches at the weirdest times and leaves the toilet seat up. How could I resist those charms?” Maria joked. “Seriously though…He aced all his classes last semester. He even made the Dean’s list! He thinks college is easier than high school because your whole grade depends on like one essay and a couple of test scores…no homework necessary.” Maria was obviously proud of Michael’s accomplishments in school, despite the fact that her own first semester had been a real struggle.
“Wow! Sounds like he’s getting serious these days. And how were your grades Maria Deluca?” Her mother asked sternly.
Maria shrugged in response. “My grades were OK. I didn’t make the Dean’s list but I got B’s so it wasn’t too bad. Michael’s right, the whole no homework thing is nice but the tests are wicked. I think I’m starting to get the hang of things though.”
“Next semester we have all our classes together so we can be like our own little study group. That should make things a lot easier.” Ava added.
Maria laughed. “Yeah, especially since Ava here is on the Dean’s list too. Maybe some of her smarts will rub off on me!”
“Good work Ava! So you’re enjoying college then?” Amy asked.
“Well…I never thought I’d get the chance to do something so…normal. It’s kind of surreal. I just want to make the most of it, you know?” Ava said shyly. Things had changed for her so much in the last year that it felt like she was living someone else’s life sometimes. She didn’t want to take anything for granted.
“So tell me what the rest of your friends are up to…” Amy said.
The rest of the afternoon was spent shopping and gossiping. By the time they got home that evening, the entire trunk and half the back seat of Amy’s Jetta was filled to the brim with gifts. The girl’s part-time jobs at the student union had really come in handy. They had managed to save up enough money during the semester to splurge a bit for Christmas, hence the carload of shopping bags.
That night, over at the Valenti house, Michael and Jim finished wrapping the last of their gifts. They were monopolizing the entire dining room table for the task. Isabel had dragged Kyle out shopping, claiming he’d need her help if he wanted to give Ava a proper Christmas gift. He had tried to tell her Buddhists don’t celebrate Christmas but she knew he was only trying to get out of shopping so she would hear none of that.
When he finally got back from his shopping trip, his arms were loaded full of shopping bags. He was even clenching a few bags between his teeth. Jim and Michael watched, amused, as Kyle dropped off the bags in his room and then stomped back out into the dining room, muttering about “crazy women” the whole way.
“Women are crazy. I mean seriously crazy! Isabel dragged me all over that stupid mall today. Honestly, is it really necessary to spend five hours shopping?!” Kyle threw himself down in one of the dining room chairs. The poor guy looked exhausted.
“You should’ve seen this coming man. Don’t you know that last minute Christmas shopping is a cardinal sin in Isabel’s book? Next year, do your shopping early and for heavens sakes, run the other way when you see Isabel approaching with that stupid clipboard of hers!” Michael lectured Kyle, almost in a brotherly way.
“So what did you get for Ava, son?” Jim asked.
“Well I got her a digital camera and a photo album. I know she missed out on a lot, being stuck with those goons in New York and all, so I figured she’d like to have some pictures of her real friends now. Isabel made me buy her this expensive pair of earrings too. She said something about us having to make Ava’s first real Christmas extra special or something.”
Michael smirked at the mention of the earrings. Last year Isabel had done the same thing to him. She bought Michael a pair of pearl earrings for Maria, and it took him nearly six weeks to pay her back. “Dude, I feel your pain,” he said, laughing.
Kyle wandered out to the kitchen to find himself a snack. On the way out of the room he yelled, “I’m really starting to think women are nuts. Are you sure you should ask her in front of everyone? Are you that sure she’ll say yes?”
Jim and Michael exchanged nervous glances. Would she say yes?
Chapter 2: Home Sweet Home
“You’re not going to the hardware store for Maria’s gift again this year, are you?” Max and Michael were seated in their favorite Crashdown booth, having returned home for Christmas vacation only two days ago.
“Nope. Got it covered already.” Michael couldn’t resist a chuckle at the shocked look on Max’s face.
“What did you get her?” Max eyed his friend skeptically. Michael had been very tight lipped about Christmas this year. He had a big secret and Max was dying to find out what it was.
Michael put on his best devilish smirk before saying, “Can’t tell. It’s a surprise.” Off Max’s impatient frown, he added, “Don’t worry about it…I followed the rules this year.”
Max shook his head in amusement. Just then, Liz trudged out of the backroom in her waitress uniform, complete with antennae and all. She made a beeline for Max and slumped down into the booth at his side.
“Remind again me why I agreed to work over Christmas break?”
Max gave her a kiss on the forehead and pointed out, “Because Isabel tried to rope you into decorating duty and you were wise enough to volunteer your time here instead.”
Michael looked at her with an expression of sheer awe. “You think your dad could still get me on the schedule for this week?” The serious expression on his face gave his friends a good laugh.
“Yeah, laugh it up Maxwell. By the way, have you picked out a Christmas tree yet?” Michael’s evil grin stopped Max’s laughter dead in his throat. Liz giggled even harder at Max’s panicked expression. Isabel would send him back to the tree lot a dozen times to find the perfect tree if necessary, and they all knew it.
“Uh huh. That’s what I thought.” Michael said with a knowing smirk. “See you later…I’m out of here.”
Michael tossed some money on the table and got up to leave. He needed to put the finishing touches on one last gift. This Christmas was going to be really special and this gift was just one part of a big holiday surprise. He was really nervous, but the whole thing had been planned for months so there was no turning back now. Maria didn’t suspect a thing, which was exactly the way he wanted it.
At that particular moment, Amy, Ava and Maria were having the time of their lives. They had spent the whole morning Christmas shopping and having some much needed girl talk. They were presently sitting at a quaint little coffee house enjoying some herbal tea. Amy was trying to get Ava to dish about her relationship with Kyle.
“Come on Ava! Don’t be shy…anyone can see you two are in love.” Amy prodded. “What are you getting him for Christmas?”
Ava blushed. “I got him season tickets. You know how much he loves sports and…well…baseball’s not so bad really.” Her blush deepened.
“You do realize that you’ll have to go to like every single one of those games with him, right? Do you have any idea how boring…” Maria trailed off and took a good look at Ava for a second. “You’ve got it bad girl! It must be love if you’re willing to go through all that!”
Amy laughed, thrilled to see the girls so happy after all that they’d gone through last year. The kids had really pulled through and things were finally looking up for all of them.
“So, when are you going to settle down Mrs. Deluca?” Ava’s bold question left Amy choking on her tea. The girl had a point though…She and Jim had been ‘dating’ for over a year now and she honestly had no idea if he would even consider getting remarried.
“Far be it from me to pry mom, but…oh who am I kidding. Of course I’m going to pry! What’s going on with you and Jim anyway? You’ve been dating for like forever.” Maria sat back and studied her mom’s reaction to the question.
“Well…it’s complicated.” One look at the girls told Amy that she wasn’t going to be let off the hook easily, so she elaborated.
“We love spending time together and he’s wonderful but I don’t know where this’ll end up. I don’t know if he would ever want to get remarried. I don’t know if I would want to take that step again either.”
“I never thought I’d be saying this but…he’s a good guy, mom. For an oppressive pig, that is.” Maria said with a saucy grin. “If you make each other happy then what’s the point in holding back?”
In an effort to take the attention away from herself, Amy turned to Maria and put her on the spot.
“So how’s that big hairy ape you like to call a boyfriend these days?” It was Amy’s turn to fix Maria with a sassy grin. Despite her description of the big alien, she really did have a soft spot for him. She hadn’t seen him yet since they’d come home for Christmas break because he was staying over at the Valentis’ house. She actually missed him, though she wouldn’t dare admit that out loud.
“Michael is Michael. He chews with his mouth open, belches at the weirdest times and leaves the toilet seat up. How could I resist those charms?” Maria joked. “Seriously though…He aced all his classes last semester. He even made the Dean’s list! He thinks college is easier than high school because your whole grade depends on like one essay and a couple of test scores…no homework necessary.” Maria was obviously proud of Michael’s accomplishments in school, despite the fact that her own first semester had been a real struggle.
“Wow! Sounds like he’s getting serious these days. And how were your grades Maria Deluca?” Her mother asked sternly.
Maria shrugged in response. “My grades were OK. I didn’t make the Dean’s list but I got B’s so it wasn’t too bad. Michael’s right, the whole no homework thing is nice but the tests are wicked. I think I’m starting to get the hang of things though.”
“Next semester we have all our classes together so we can be like our own little study group. That should make things a lot easier.” Ava added.
Maria laughed. “Yeah, especially since Ava here is on the Dean’s list too. Maybe some of her smarts will rub off on me!”
“Good work Ava! So you’re enjoying college then?” Amy asked.
“Well…I never thought I’d get the chance to do something so…normal. It’s kind of surreal. I just want to make the most of it, you know?” Ava said shyly. Things had changed for her so much in the last year that it felt like she was living someone else’s life sometimes. She didn’t want to take anything for granted.
“So tell me what the rest of your friends are up to…” Amy said.
The rest of the afternoon was spent shopping and gossiping. By the time they got home that evening, the entire trunk and half the back seat of Amy’s Jetta was filled to the brim with gifts. The girl’s part-time jobs at the student union had really come in handy. They had managed to save up enough money during the semester to splurge a bit for Christmas, hence the carload of shopping bags.
That night, over at the Valenti house, Michael and Jim finished wrapping the last of their gifts. They were monopolizing the entire dining room table for the task. Isabel had dragged Kyle out shopping, claiming he’d need her help if he wanted to give Ava a proper Christmas gift. He had tried to tell her Buddhists don’t celebrate Christmas but she knew he was only trying to get out of shopping so she would hear none of that.
When he finally got back from his shopping trip, his arms were loaded full of shopping bags. He was even clenching a few bags between his teeth. Jim and Michael watched, amused, as Kyle dropped off the bags in his room and then stomped back out into the dining room, muttering about “crazy women” the whole way.
“Women are crazy. I mean seriously crazy! Isabel dragged me all over that stupid mall today. Honestly, is it really necessary to spend five hours shopping?!” Kyle threw himself down in one of the dining room chairs. The poor guy looked exhausted.
“You should’ve seen this coming man. Don’t you know that last minute Christmas shopping is a cardinal sin in Isabel’s book? Next year, do your shopping early and for heavens sakes, run the other way when you see Isabel approaching with that stupid clipboard of hers!” Michael lectured Kyle, almost in a brotherly way.
“So what did you get for Ava, son?” Jim asked.
“Well I got her a digital camera and a photo album. I know she missed out on a lot, being stuck with those goons in New York and all, so I figured she’d like to have some pictures of her real friends now. Isabel made me buy her this expensive pair of earrings too. She said something about us having to make Ava’s first real Christmas extra special or something.”
Michael smirked at the mention of the earrings. Last year Isabel had done the same thing to him. She bought Michael a pair of pearl earrings for Maria, and it took him nearly six weeks to pay her back. “Dude, I feel your pain,” he said, laughing.
Kyle wandered out to the kitchen to find himself a snack. On the way out of the room he yelled, “I’m really starting to think women are nuts. Are you sure you should ask her in front of everyone? Are you that sure she’ll say yes?”
Jim and Michael exchanged nervous glances. Would she say yes?
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pooklette
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Disclaimer: The characters of "Roswell" belong to Jason Katims, Melinda Metz, WB, and UPN. They are not mine and no infringement is intended.
Chapter 3: White Christmas
When Christmas finally rolled around, each family was having a small gathering at home before attending a group party at the Crashdown later. The families had all formed close bonds over the last year and there was a massive pile of gifts stacked up in the back room of the Crashdown to prove it. At six o’clock on the dot all the families started arriving for what would prove to be an outstanding holiday celebration.
Jeff and Nancy had joined the tables together in the center of the restaurant and covered them in beautiful green and gold tablecloths. The Whitman and Evans families had donated their best Christmas china for the occasion too. The gifts surrounding the colossal Christmas tree in the back corner completed this perfect holiday scene.
The soldiers had chosen to remain outside, guarding the perimeter instead of being inside celebrating with the families. They didn’t feel it was their place to act so informally in front of the Royal Families and no amount of encouragement from the pod squad would change their discomfort.
Conversation flowed effortlessly throughout dinner. After dessert, everyone gathered around the Christmas tree to open presents. It was near chaos as the decorative paper started flying and people started talking at once.
“This is beautiful! Mr. And Mrs. Evans…you didn’t have to…” Liz was was gently handling the gorgeous leather portfolio the Evans’ had given her.
“Max mentioned you used to keep a journal in high school. Since you’re starting a new chapter in your life, we thought you might like to have a new journal to go with it.” Dianne said smiling.
“Thank you very much Mr. and Mrs. Parker. This is perfect!” Max inspected the impressive desk set they’d given him. They’d even gone to the trouble of getting the pens engraved with his initials.
“You’re welcome Max. I hope it’ll fit on your desk in the dorms…I know how small those things can be.” Jeff said.
Isabel gasped when she opened her gift from the Charles and Gloria Whitman. “This is amazing! How did you know?”
“Alex said you had a flair for organizing, so I thought you might be able to use it.” The rest of the pod squad fell silent when they saw Isabel inspecting a brand new leather bound organizer, complete with dividers and a clipboard. They knew exactly what she would be saving that for…holiday torture, Christmas Nazi style.
The group quickly resumed opening their gifts in an effort to avoid the wrath of Isabel. It was best not to call attention to yourself during the holidays. She had this terrifying knack for assigning grueling holiday chores to anyone who caught her eye.
“Jim this is amazing! Where did you find this? I’m…I’m speechless!” Maria gushed. Jim Valenti had bought her a beautiful new guitar, complete with a monogrammed case. Tucked into the case were a few dozen sheets of handmade paper to record her music on.
“Actually, Michael helped me find it. I knew just what I wanted to get you and he helped me order it online. Guess it’s about time I learn how to work a computer on my own, huh?” Jim chuckled.
Maria turned to Michael with a look of adoration. “So that’s what you’ve been hiding! I knew you were hiding something from me…I thought maybe it had to do with my Christmas gift but I never would’ve guessed this!”
Amy let out a sudden gasp as she unwrapped the large gift from Michael. Underneath all that sparkly paper was a beautiful framed painting of herself, Jim, Maria and Kyle. On the surface, it looked as if it was a formal family portrait. Upon closer inspection, Amy noticed a beautiful golden light shining in the background, making them all look almost angelic. It was the single most stunning work of art Amy had ever seen.
“Oh Michael! You painted this yourself didn’t you? This is stunning!” Amy was actually moved to tears. “What made you think of putting us all together like this? I don’t recall having a photo like this…” She sniffled.
Michael looked over to Jim nervously. It was now or never. “It was kind of a special request from Jim.” He mumbled.
The entire room had now gone quiet. They’d all seen Michael’s beautiful painting and knew that it was more than just a heartfelt Christmas gift. The message in that work of art was very clear.
Jim slowly approached Amy and pulled something from his jacket pocket. Maria gasped at the sight of the small velvet box in his hand. Kyle slowly approached, a smug grin on his face.
“It looks completely natural, doesn’t it? The four of us…together.” Jim said, looking deep into Amy’s eyes. When she nodded, he dropped down on one knee and his voice suddenly developed an uncharacteristic quiver.
“Amy, I love you. You make me so happy. When we’re together, I feel so young…so free. I know you feel the same way. I should’ve asked you this a long time ago but I wasn’t sure if you…well…if we were ready. There’s really no reason to wait though is there?” Jim paused, realizing that the moment of truth had come, and everyone was waiting.
“Amy Deluca, will you marry me?” Jim opened the velvet box and held it out, showing her the gorgeous diamond ring inside.
Amy let out a cry of joy and lunged at Jim, wrapping him up into a ferocious hug. She started kissing his face all over, not even realizing that everyone was watching. Jim cleared his throat nervously and pointed over to all the onlookers.
“I think we’re going to need a definite answer on this one Amy.” He said with a nervous chuckle.
“Yes! Of course I’ll marry you Jim!” She said. She even blushed a bit when the rest of the group started cheering.
Maria had watched the whole scene in shock but as the group started cheering, she suddenly came out of her stupor and realized that Michael had known about this all along. His painting had been part of the plan, which means that he must have been in on the secret for quite some time. She turned to Michael with an unreadable expression.
“You knew this was going to happen tonight and you never said a thing.” She said quietly. “I can’t believe this…you knew…” Her reaction wasn’t quite what Michael had been hoping for so he scrambled to explain.
“It was supposed to be a surprise Maria. I didn’t want to ruin the whole thing…” He stammered.
“I can’t believe this…my mom’s getting married! Jim proposed and you helped him plan the whole thing. Do you have any idea what you’ve done Michael?” Maria looked up at him with tears in her eyes. “I can barely remember what it was like to be part of a regular family…one with a mom and a dad. I’m going to have that now…a family…” Maria’s tears spilled down her cheeks unchecked.
“Umm…you know I’m not good at this stuff right? So you’re going to have to tell me if you’re mad or happy right now, cause I can’t figure it out.” Michael scratched his brow in confusion.
Maria laughed and swatted Michael on the arm. “I’m happy you dork! I can’t believe you helped with all this!” Michael started to protest, saying that he’d only been responsible for the painting but Maria cut him off.
“Oh quit being so modest. You forget that I can see right through you. You didn’t just do this as a favor to Jim…you did this for me. When my dad left, it left this giant hole in my family. It was suddenly just mom and I against the world. You knew how much I wanted my family to be whole again, didn’t you? That was my gift this year wasn’t it?” Maria beamed up at him lovingly.
“Well yeah, that was a part of it but there’s something else too.” Michael reached behind Maria and grabbed a small gift off the table. “I hope you like it.” He said.
Maria quickly tore through the wrapping paper. She opened the dainty box and found a velvet jewelry box inside. She carefully opened the jewelry box and pulled out the beautiful golden locket that was inside.
“Oh Michael! It’s beautiful.”
“Open it.” He said. When he reached forward to help her open the clasp, his hands were shaking. He put a lot of thought into this gift and he really wanted her to like it.
“Hey! That’s my favorite Prom picture! We all looked so happy there…” Maria smiled in remembrance. “Why did you leave the other side empty?” She asked.
“Well I thought maybe you could put a real family picture in there after your mom and Jim get married.” He paused and then whispered one last thing. “Then you’ll be able to keep both your families close to your heart all the time.”
While Maria smothered Michael in a hug, Liz and Max looked on happily. Liz turned to Max and teased, “Well I guess you don’t have to worry about how Michael will react to the scrapbook you made for my parents, huh?” Max just shook his head and laughed in response.
After the excitement from Jim’s surprise died down a bit, the rest of the group resumed opening presents. Ava had spent Christmas morning with Maria and Amy so when she was finally able to open her gifts from Kyle at the Crashdown she was ecstatic. She loved the camera and immediately started testing it out.
Click. Kyle’s happy dance over the season tickets from Ava was recorded on her camera. She moved the camera out of the way just long enough for Kyle to plant a very serious kiss on her lips.
Click. Ava took a photo of Jim while he opened the country music CD box set Maria bought him.
Click. A photo of Alex opening the Palm Pilot Isabel had gotten him. His expression of glee was forever preserved on Ava’s digital camera.
Click. Ava snapped a beautiful photo of Jeff Parker scooping Max into a big manly hug after looking at the scrapbook he had made. Ava made a mental note to give a copy of that picture to Liz.
Click. Amy gleefully inspecting her new engagement ring, with Sheriff Valenti at her side.
Michael snuck over and whispered in Ava’s ear. Her eyes widened in surprise and she motioned for Amy, Jim, Kyle and Maria to all go stand together over by the tree. As they all lined up in front of the tree, Maria saw Michael smiling at them from behind Ava.
“Wait! Michael and Ava, you guys need to be in this picture too! Lizzie? Can you come take a picture of us for a second?” Maria called.
Liz and Max walked over together, admiring the family that stood before them. Jim and Amy were cuddled together in the center with Michael and Maria on their right and Kyle and Ava together on their left. All of them had come such a long way and this was going to be so much more than just some random photo. It was going to be a symbol of happiness.
“Everybody ready?” Liz asked. “OK then, on three then…one…two…three!” Click.
Chapter 3: White Christmas
When Christmas finally rolled around, each family was having a small gathering at home before attending a group party at the Crashdown later. The families had all formed close bonds over the last year and there was a massive pile of gifts stacked up in the back room of the Crashdown to prove it. At six o’clock on the dot all the families started arriving for what would prove to be an outstanding holiday celebration.
Jeff and Nancy had joined the tables together in the center of the restaurant and covered them in beautiful green and gold tablecloths. The Whitman and Evans families had donated their best Christmas china for the occasion too. The gifts surrounding the colossal Christmas tree in the back corner completed this perfect holiday scene.
The soldiers had chosen to remain outside, guarding the perimeter instead of being inside celebrating with the families. They didn’t feel it was their place to act so informally in front of the Royal Families and no amount of encouragement from the pod squad would change their discomfort.
Conversation flowed effortlessly throughout dinner. After dessert, everyone gathered around the Christmas tree to open presents. It was near chaos as the decorative paper started flying and people started talking at once.
“This is beautiful! Mr. And Mrs. Evans…you didn’t have to…” Liz was was gently handling the gorgeous leather portfolio the Evans’ had given her.
“Max mentioned you used to keep a journal in high school. Since you’re starting a new chapter in your life, we thought you might like to have a new journal to go with it.” Dianne said smiling.
“Thank you very much Mr. and Mrs. Parker. This is perfect!” Max inspected the impressive desk set they’d given him. They’d even gone to the trouble of getting the pens engraved with his initials.
“You’re welcome Max. I hope it’ll fit on your desk in the dorms…I know how small those things can be.” Jeff said.
Isabel gasped when she opened her gift from the Charles and Gloria Whitman. “This is amazing! How did you know?”
“Alex said you had a flair for organizing, so I thought you might be able to use it.” The rest of the pod squad fell silent when they saw Isabel inspecting a brand new leather bound organizer, complete with dividers and a clipboard. They knew exactly what she would be saving that for…holiday torture, Christmas Nazi style.
The group quickly resumed opening their gifts in an effort to avoid the wrath of Isabel. It was best not to call attention to yourself during the holidays. She had this terrifying knack for assigning grueling holiday chores to anyone who caught her eye.
“Jim this is amazing! Where did you find this? I’m…I’m speechless!” Maria gushed. Jim Valenti had bought her a beautiful new guitar, complete with a monogrammed case. Tucked into the case were a few dozen sheets of handmade paper to record her music on.
“Actually, Michael helped me find it. I knew just what I wanted to get you and he helped me order it online. Guess it’s about time I learn how to work a computer on my own, huh?” Jim chuckled.
Maria turned to Michael with a look of adoration. “So that’s what you’ve been hiding! I knew you were hiding something from me…I thought maybe it had to do with my Christmas gift but I never would’ve guessed this!”
Amy let out a sudden gasp as she unwrapped the large gift from Michael. Underneath all that sparkly paper was a beautiful framed painting of herself, Jim, Maria and Kyle. On the surface, it looked as if it was a formal family portrait. Upon closer inspection, Amy noticed a beautiful golden light shining in the background, making them all look almost angelic. It was the single most stunning work of art Amy had ever seen.
“Oh Michael! You painted this yourself didn’t you? This is stunning!” Amy was actually moved to tears. “What made you think of putting us all together like this? I don’t recall having a photo like this…” She sniffled.
Michael looked over to Jim nervously. It was now or never. “It was kind of a special request from Jim.” He mumbled.
The entire room had now gone quiet. They’d all seen Michael’s beautiful painting and knew that it was more than just a heartfelt Christmas gift. The message in that work of art was very clear.
Jim slowly approached Amy and pulled something from his jacket pocket. Maria gasped at the sight of the small velvet box in his hand. Kyle slowly approached, a smug grin on his face.
“It looks completely natural, doesn’t it? The four of us…together.” Jim said, looking deep into Amy’s eyes. When she nodded, he dropped down on one knee and his voice suddenly developed an uncharacteristic quiver.
“Amy, I love you. You make me so happy. When we’re together, I feel so young…so free. I know you feel the same way. I should’ve asked you this a long time ago but I wasn’t sure if you…well…if we were ready. There’s really no reason to wait though is there?” Jim paused, realizing that the moment of truth had come, and everyone was waiting.
“Amy Deluca, will you marry me?” Jim opened the velvet box and held it out, showing her the gorgeous diamond ring inside.
Amy let out a cry of joy and lunged at Jim, wrapping him up into a ferocious hug. She started kissing his face all over, not even realizing that everyone was watching. Jim cleared his throat nervously and pointed over to all the onlookers.
“I think we’re going to need a definite answer on this one Amy.” He said with a nervous chuckle.
“Yes! Of course I’ll marry you Jim!” She said. She even blushed a bit when the rest of the group started cheering.
Maria had watched the whole scene in shock but as the group started cheering, she suddenly came out of her stupor and realized that Michael had known about this all along. His painting had been part of the plan, which means that he must have been in on the secret for quite some time. She turned to Michael with an unreadable expression.
“You knew this was going to happen tonight and you never said a thing.” She said quietly. “I can’t believe this…you knew…” Her reaction wasn’t quite what Michael had been hoping for so he scrambled to explain.
“It was supposed to be a surprise Maria. I didn’t want to ruin the whole thing…” He stammered.
“I can’t believe this…my mom’s getting married! Jim proposed and you helped him plan the whole thing. Do you have any idea what you’ve done Michael?” Maria looked up at him with tears in her eyes. “I can barely remember what it was like to be part of a regular family…one with a mom and a dad. I’m going to have that now…a family…” Maria’s tears spilled down her cheeks unchecked.
“Umm…you know I’m not good at this stuff right? So you’re going to have to tell me if you’re mad or happy right now, cause I can’t figure it out.” Michael scratched his brow in confusion.
Maria laughed and swatted Michael on the arm. “I’m happy you dork! I can’t believe you helped with all this!” Michael started to protest, saying that he’d only been responsible for the painting but Maria cut him off.
“Oh quit being so modest. You forget that I can see right through you. You didn’t just do this as a favor to Jim…you did this for me. When my dad left, it left this giant hole in my family. It was suddenly just mom and I against the world. You knew how much I wanted my family to be whole again, didn’t you? That was my gift this year wasn’t it?” Maria beamed up at him lovingly.
“Well yeah, that was a part of it but there’s something else too.” Michael reached behind Maria and grabbed a small gift off the table. “I hope you like it.” He said.
Maria quickly tore through the wrapping paper. She opened the dainty box and found a velvet jewelry box inside. She carefully opened the jewelry box and pulled out the beautiful golden locket that was inside.
“Oh Michael! It’s beautiful.”
“Open it.” He said. When he reached forward to help her open the clasp, his hands were shaking. He put a lot of thought into this gift and he really wanted her to like it.
“Hey! That’s my favorite Prom picture! We all looked so happy there…” Maria smiled in remembrance. “Why did you leave the other side empty?” She asked.
“Well I thought maybe you could put a real family picture in there after your mom and Jim get married.” He paused and then whispered one last thing. “Then you’ll be able to keep both your families close to your heart all the time.”
While Maria smothered Michael in a hug, Liz and Max looked on happily. Liz turned to Max and teased, “Well I guess you don’t have to worry about how Michael will react to the scrapbook you made for my parents, huh?” Max just shook his head and laughed in response.
After the excitement from Jim’s surprise died down a bit, the rest of the group resumed opening presents. Ava had spent Christmas morning with Maria and Amy so when she was finally able to open her gifts from Kyle at the Crashdown she was ecstatic. She loved the camera and immediately started testing it out.
Click. Kyle’s happy dance over the season tickets from Ava was recorded on her camera. She moved the camera out of the way just long enough for Kyle to plant a very serious kiss on her lips.
Click. Ava took a photo of Jim while he opened the country music CD box set Maria bought him.
Click. A photo of Alex opening the Palm Pilot Isabel had gotten him. His expression of glee was forever preserved on Ava’s digital camera.
Click. Ava snapped a beautiful photo of Jeff Parker scooping Max into a big manly hug after looking at the scrapbook he had made. Ava made a mental note to give a copy of that picture to Liz.
Click. Amy gleefully inspecting her new engagement ring, with Sheriff Valenti at her side.
Michael snuck over and whispered in Ava’s ear. Her eyes widened in surprise and she motioned for Amy, Jim, Kyle and Maria to all go stand together over by the tree. As they all lined up in front of the tree, Maria saw Michael smiling at them from behind Ava.
“Wait! Michael and Ava, you guys need to be in this picture too! Lizzie? Can you come take a picture of us for a second?” Maria called.
Liz and Max walked over together, admiring the family that stood before them. Jim and Amy were cuddled together in the center with Michael and Maria on their right and Kyle and Ava together on their left. All of them had come such a long way and this was going to be so much more than just some random photo. It was going to be a symbol of happiness.
“Everybody ready?” Liz asked. “OK then, on three then…one…two…three!” Click.
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pooklette
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- Joined: Sat Jul 09, 2005 12:21 pm
Disclaimer: The characters of "Roswell" belong to Jason Katims, Melinda Metz, WB, and UPN. They are not mine and no infringement is intended.
Chapter 4: Trigger Happy
The podsters and crew spent the entire week following Christmas just relaxing and spending time with their families. Michael and Maria had asked the soldiers to accompany them out to the quarry on the following weekend to help them all practice their powers. Michael hoped that the soldiers would be able to help them hone their powers more efficiently. The parents insisted on coming out to watch this time.
When they got out to the quarry, they strayed from their usual routine of splitting up into separate groups for practice. Michael finally managed to get everyone, royals, soldiers and parents alike, out there together so he hoped that they could take advantage of the situation and concentrate on each person one at a time.
“Max, why don’t you go first.” Michael suggested.
“What do you want me to do? It won’t be very realistic if I just stand out here shielding myself from nothing.” Max pointed out, puzzled.
“I want you to shield all of us…everybody. Then try to fire a blast out while maintaining the shield.” Michael answered calmly. He knew that blasting wasn’t Max’s strength but that was kind of the point. He wanted each of them to push themselves to the limit.
“Uh, OK. I think maybe everyone should step behind me then…I’m not that good at aiming my blasts yet.” Max said nervously. The last thing they needed was for someone to get hurt out here today.
He extended his arm and his green shield flared to life around the entire group. The soldiers nodded with approval. Max then extended his other hand and concentrated on gathering his energy to create a blast. The shield began to flicker and it distracted him. He let out the blast and it barely made it through the shield before dissipating into thin air.
“Sorry…I saw the shield start to flicker and I got distracted.” Max looked down in embarrassment.
“Sir, if I may make a suggestion?” Max’s guard, Jonas, looked to Michael for approval.
“Please, go ahead. That’s why I asked all of you to come out here with us today.” Michael waved for Jonas to continue.
Jonas turned back and addressed Max directly. “Sir, you have to find your trigger. Antarean powers are regulated in what you would call the prefrontal cortex. This area of your mind also regulates your emotions. Generally, in the beginning, Antareans learn to master their powers by using a strong emotion or desire to trigger them. Once you learn to harness your powers, you will no longer have to rely on that trigger.” He said.
“Anger…that’s your trigger Max. That has to be it!” Liz said.
“Yeah, that does me a lot of good out here, doesn’t it.” Max said, rolling his eyes.
“Well obviously Maxwell here doesn’t have what it takes to defend his family, so I guess we’ll have to move on to someone who does. Hey Maria, you ready to go next?” Michael asked with a glint in his eyes.
“Hey! I can defend my family just as well as she can!” Max said, offended. He didn’t want to admit that Michael had hit a nerve in a big way. Failing to protect his family was Max’s greatest fear.
“Apparently you can’t Maxwell because if we’re attacked, you won’t have the luxury of just standing there with your shield up…unless you expect the rest of us to take the fall just to protect your precious Liz. Is that it? You assume that you don’t have to know how to use your powers because the rest of us grunts will come to the rescue?” Michael knew he was laying it on really thick but he had to find a way to make Max mad enough to unleash his powers.
“Michael, we’ve been friends for as long as I can remember but this time you’ve gone too far.” Max’s eyes started turning black as coal. “When have I ever asked anyone to sacrifice themself for me? When?!” The others backed up as a violent electrical charge started emanating from Max. His eyes had now turned completely black.
Liz put up her hand, ready to shield Michael if necessary. She knew what Michael was doing but right at the moment, Max didn’t and she didn’t want to see anyone get hurt.
“If you actually think you can defend anyone other than yourself Max, then show me now. Don’t just stand there…do something for once!” Michael provoked.
Max gave Michael an icy glare and then turned and pointed to a group of nearby boulders as though he was a baseball player predicting a homerun hit. He waved his left hand nonchalantly and his shield reappeared, more brilliant than ever. He extended his right hand and a fiery green light shot out of his palm and made a direct hit to the boulders. Everyone ducked as tiny remains of the once massive boulders came raining down upon the protective green shield. When the dust settled, everyone was shocked to see that the boulders had been completely obliterated by the intense blast.
“Well done Maxwell…well done.” Michael patted him on the back. Max looked over to his friend and realized what he’d just done. His eyes returned to their normal shade of brown.
“Shit Michael! Next time, a little warning would be nice…What if I had hurt you?!” Max exclaimed.
“You wouldn’t hurt me. I know that you wouldn’t…no matter how mad you are. I trust you completely man. I just had to make you let go for a minute. Do you have any idea how hard it is to get you to lose control?” Michael chuckled, glad that Max understood why he had said the things he did.
“Yeah see, that’s the thing Michael. Some of us actually like to show a little bit of restraint. Maybe you should try it sometime.” Max said with a grin. He decided it wasn’t worth it to be mad at Michael for the things he’d said because his heart had been in the right place.
“Why don’t we have someone else go next? I think I’m done yelling at Max for now.” Michael said with a smirk.
Liz stepped up next. Michael instructed her to do the same thing Max had just done. She wasn’t sure if she could hold up a shield and blast at the same time but she tried anyway. She knew from their experience at the pod chamber that anger was most likely her trigger as well. When she saw her friends and family being attacked, a protective fury came over her and she was pretty sure that’s how she managed to conjure up a shield on her first try.
Liz engaged her shield and then took a deep breath. She pictured Tess in her mind. She forced herself to remember the way Tess had betrayed them all by joining Lonnie and Tess, how she had ravaged Kyle’s mind and nearly killed him. As she relived these memories, her anger began to grow. She pictured the scene from the pod chamber and the way Tess just cowered behind Rath as he tried to murder everyone she loved.
Liz’s breaths were coming out in furious gasps. The ground began to rumble and the shield became an opaque shade of green that no one could quite see through anymore. Liz raised her hand and there was a deafening explosion somewhere outside the shield. When silence fell outside Liz’s shield, she dropped it. The wreckage left in her wake stunned the group. She had completely destroyed a group of boulders on the far side of the quarry and left a giant crater in its place.
“Um…so it looks like you found your trigger Liz. Care to share with the class?” Maria laughed nervously.
Liz blushed. “Well…it turns out anger is my trigger too. Let’s just say, Tess made a great target.” She smiled sheepishly.
“Hah! I knew that hussy had to be good for something!” Maria quipped.
Michael rolled his eyes. “Good job Liz…glad you’re on our side.” His comment was met with laughter from the group.
“Ava, you’re up next.” Michael called out.
He instructed Ava to try to bend light, the way she had described doing back in New York. If she was able to do that, then he wanted her to follow that up with her fire trick.
“Michael, what if I was just warping that guy and didn’t realize it. I don’t want to warp you guys…you know how I feel about that.” Ava protested.
“Look, just try it for a second. Maria knows how to block a warp so she’ll concentrate on blocking and then if she sees the shadow or whatever too then you know you’re not warping. OK?” Michael compromised.
Ava sighed. “I guess. Maria, promise me that you’ll tell me immediately if it’s a warp. Promise me.” Ava said seriously.
“I promise. Now go do your thing girl.” Maria flashed her a toothy grin.
Ava stepped forward and began concentrating as she had done so many years ago in that New York tunnel. She felt the familiar whooshing sensation and things began to get all blurry before her eyes.
“What’s happening Maria?! I’m going to stop if you don’t answer me!” Ava yelled, struggling to retain her concentration.
“You’re shimmering! It’s like you disappear and then reappear or something…keep going!” Maria yelled. This was no warp. She was certain of it.
Ava slammed her eyes shut and pictured Kyle. She pictured the smiling, Buddha quoting, bad joke telling man that she loved. Suddenly she realized she really was completely in love with him. He had firmly entrenched himself in her heart. That thought sent her over the edge and the others gasped when she disappeared from sight completely. The royal guards looked over to Kyle in surprise.
Maria looked around and shouted out, “You did it! We can’t see you anymore!” She and Michael both looked over to Kyle, puzzled. Suddenly, there was something different about him but neither one of them could put their finger on exactly what it was.
Ava looked around and realized that she could still see every one of her friends…they just couldn’t see her. She was struck by the notion that she loved each and every one of the people around her. They had shown her a side of life that she never thought she’d have. Her blood began to boil when she thought of Kivar and his mission to destroy everything they’d worked so hard to build. He would take her family away from her the first chance he got. She would fight him tooth and nail if necessary to stop him from destroying the only family she ever knew.
Ava let out a monstrous roar and threw her hands in the air. Fire erupted from each of her hands and shot up into the sky. The surrounding temperature raised by at least ten degrees as the fire came pouring out.
The rest of the group looked over in awe. One minute Ava was standing in front of them, and the next she was gone. They weren’t sure that she was even still with them until they saw the fire come shooting out of thin air. She had most certainly found her trigger and even the soldiers seemed impressed.
The fire sputtered out and Ava appeared in front of them again. She was panting from the exertion so Kyle ran to her side and supported her. He picked her up and carried her over to the nearest boulder to rest. Just as she laid her head down on Kyle’s shoulder, Michael called out to them.
“Don’t get too comfortable Valenti because you’re next.” He said.
Kyle shot a surprised glance over at Michael. “Dude, what exactly do you expect me to do? I’m not the one with powers…you guys are.”
Dillan, Kyle’s guard, cleared his throat nervously. He had no idea how to tell the young man that he had just been marked with the Royal Seal of the House of Rathemere. He looked over to Lance, Ava’s guard, for guidance. Lance, also at a loss for words, looked to Michael.
Maria, finally catching on to what was different about Kyle, shrieked with joy. Her outburst surprised the others, who had not yet sensed the difference.
“Yeah see, I think maybe you should just try because you never know, right?” Michael said uncomfortably. He hadn’t seen this coming at all. He wasn’t even sure if Ava knew she had just basically branded her boyfriend in front of everyone.
“Whatever you say dude. You’re in charge I guess.” Kyle said with a shrug. As he got up, Isabel quickly rushed over to help Ava, who was obviously still quite wiped out. She took Ava’s head and laid it down in her lap, and then yelled at Max to move so that Ava would have a good view of Kyle’s attempt. She had also sensed that Kyle had the Seal now and she was secretly thrilled for the two.
Poor Kyle wasn’t able to exercise his new powers too much because honestly, he’d only just gotten them about ten minutes ago. He didn’t actually think anything would happen at all during his attempt so he was shocked when he managed to change the color of his shirt after a little coaching from Maria. He jumped back in surprise when he did it.
“Oh crap! Did you guys see that?! I did it!” Kyle shouted. Granted, he’d only managed to change his white shirt to a muddy gray color, but the fact that he’d changed anything at all was a shock to him. He and Maria were in the middle of a happy dance when he suddenly realized what his powers meant.
He stopped and looked over to Ava in awe. The entire group went silent, watching the two of them staring at each other. Ava was too exhausted to even raise her head, so she just laid there searching his face for a reaction. Kyle rushed over and knelt down next to her.
“Did you see what I just did?” He asked her tenderly.
Ava smiled. “Yes I did but I think I need to warn you…that shade of gray isn’t really your color.” She teased.
“I’m going to ask you something and I want you to be totally honest, OK?” Kyle said. “Is this something that I could have been able to do before, or is this new?” He asked carefully.
Ava teared up, unsure of how to answer him. She hadn’t intended for this to happen…not like this. He hadn’t even had a choice in the matter. Without warning, he had been sucked into the alien abyss, as he liked to call it, and now there would be no way out.
Isabel looked away, wishing she could give them more privacy. Ava’s head still lay on her lap and she hadn’t made any indication that she wanted Isabel to leave yet, so she stayed.
“I’m sorry Kyle. I didn’t mean for it to happen this way.” Ava was now openly sobbing. “I wanted you to have a choice…” She said.
Kyle gently helped her up and wrapped his arms around her. Isabel quickly moved aside to give them a little space. Kyle just sat there, holding Ava for a moment as her sobs subsided.
“What makes you think I didn’t make my choice already?” He asked quietly. “I read the same translation you guys did and I knew all the rules. What makes you think I’m not OK with this?” He smiled down at her.
“Are you sure Kyle? I didn’t mean to spring this on you here, in front of everyone…I swear. It just happened. I was trying to find my trigger, like Jonas said to do. I started thinking about you and I realized…” She trailed off, noticing the way everyone was hanging onto every word they said. “And then I thought about how I would feel if Kivar had his way. He’d take you away from me in a heartbeat…he’d take all of you away. I guess you know the next part…disappearing girl, fire, etcetera.” She laughed nervously.
“Huh, so I’m your trigger? Well don’t I feel important!” He teased her. He leaned forward and gave her a soft kiss. “We’ll talk about this later, OK? Everything’s going to be fine, you’ll see.”
He turned and loudly addressed the rest of the group. “OK, show’s over guys! Isn’t it time for Hurricane Deluca to get up there and strut her stuff a bit?” He asked.
Maria decided Kyle was right and stepped up to take her turn. Michael wasn’t really sure what to ask her to do. He knew she could blast better than he could and that she could sense people’s emotions but he wanted everyone to practice their active powers…physical powers that everyone could see.
“Uh, just surprise us I guess.” He mumbled.
Maria took a deep breath and focused. She wasn’t really sure what her trigger was because it seemed like her powers were eager to flow out no matter how she felt at the time. As she thought back to the day she first discovered her powers she realized that sadness and anger must work as triggers for her. Like Jonas said, she must have already gotten past relying on triggers to bring on her powers. Now she could harness them at will.
Maria wasn’t really sure what to try. Blasting was out because she was pretty good at that already. Ava’s fire trick was pretty cool, she thought. She decided to see what she could do with the weather. Some kind of lightning show sounded pretty impressive…if she could figure out how to make it work that is.
Maria looked to the sky and closed her eyes. She conjured up a mental image of angry, black looking storm clouds. When she opened her eyes, she saw what looked like a major storm forming on the horizon. She shut her eyes again and envisioned lightning flashing between the menacing clouds.
The wind picked up and lightning started crackling through the air. Maria raised her arms and tried to pull the lightning toward her outstretched hands. There were gasps all around when the group saw vicious streaks of lightning start racing toward her. Suddenly, the bolts stopped. Right in midair they stopped, suspended above Maria’s hands. Rhythmically, they twisted and turned out of the clouds with every move she made.
Maria extended her hands outward and something that could only be described as a wall of lightning formed in front of the nervous group. The crackling energy made their hair begin to stand on end. Her friends and family knew that anyone who tried to penetrate that ‘wall’ from the outside would surely be electrocuted.
Michael realized that if he could figure out how to do Maria’s little lightning trick himself, the two of them would be able to provide more protection for the group if they ever found themselves in direct conflict with their enemies. If they were able to pair Max and Liz’s shields up with the lightning thing, it would be virtually impossible for their enemies to get anywhere near them.
Michael called Max and Liz over. “I need you guys to do me a favor. I’m going to try to do that thing with the lightning to see if we can use it to create a barrier on both sides but…I think I know what my trigger is.” Michael confessed.
Max understood immediately. Michael’s trigger would be anger. Max could see the mixture of apprehension and shame in his friend’s eyes.
“We’ve got you covered, Michael.” Max said.
“It’s not me I’m worried about Maxwell.” Michael said gravely. He knew that things could go very, very wrong if he unleashed the anger he had kept buried for so long.
Liz smiled sympathetically. “It’ll be fine. You can do this. We’ll be right here, shields ready…”
Michael stepped back and took a deep breath. He slowly started letting down his inner walls. The anger from years of abuse by Hank quickly bubbled to the surface. He resented the way he had been tossed into a life with that monster without so much as a second glance. His carefully controlled rage fueled a power surge like he had never felt before. His power was so palpable at this point that the soldiers actually took a step back in alarm.
Just as Michael figured out how to create a protective lightning barrier of his own, Maria started firing blasts out her side of the ‘wall’. Her blasts were able to penetrate the intense tangle of bolts and they took out an entire section of rock wall further down the quarry. Michael did the same from the other side of the group. Just as things started to get a little too intense for the others who were watching the electric chaos from the center of the circle, Michael and Maria dropped their arms and the lightning dissipated. The others breathed a quiet sigh of relief and silently thanked their lucky stars that those two were on their side.
After Michael and Maria were done practicing, it was Isabel’s turn to strut her stuff. Michael directed her over to a fairly large boulder and asked her to try to move it using her powers. He wasn’t entirely sure what kind of strong physical powers she may have, but he did know that she had been able to move small objects with her mind in the past so it seemed like the most logical suggestion.
Isabel knew exactly what her trigger would be…fear. That was the emotion she kept tightly locked away behind her Ice Queen façade. It was the very reason she had waited so long to let others into her life…because she was afraid.
“Michael, I don’t want to do this. I’m not ready yet.” Isabel said. Her voice wavered slightly. She was already afraid…afraid of what would happen if she opened herself fully to her fears.
“You’re ready Iz. I know you are.” Michael said. He knew that fear would most likely be her trigger and based on the way she was trembling already, she didn’t have too far to go.
“I said I’m not ready Michael!” Isabel yelled, losing her control. The thought of facing her fears was terrifying enough to push her powers to the edge.
Isabel felt a sudden flare of energy flowing through her. She turned to the boulder and mentally tried to give it a shove. It shifted maybe a few centimeters to the right.
“You’re holding back. We won’t have the luxury of holding back if our enemies show up! What are you so afraid of?” Michael barked. He was goading her into action just as he did with Max.
“What am I so afraid of?!” Isabel cried. “I’m afraid that if I open myself up to these feelings that I’ve kept buried for so long that I won’t be able to stop. I’m scared that my fears will take over. I’m terrified of losing every sense of normalcy and control I’ve ever had. The worst part is…I’m afraid if I don’t do this, then I might not be strong enough when our enemies come.”
Maria stepped forward and said, “If our enemies come, your powers will be one of the only things left that you can control…if you learn to harness them, that is.” She immediately felt guilty when she saw the pained look cross Isabel’s face.
“You don’t have to do this alone, Isabel. Why don’t we try this one together?” Alex asked, stepping forward.
Isabel sighed, a tear rolling down her cheek. “Thank you Alex, but Maria’s right. This is something I have to do on my own…if only to prove to myself that I can do it.”
Isabel closed her eyes and silently delved into her worst fears. She could feel the panic building inside when she opened her mind to the possibility that their enemies could come to Earth and destroy everything she knew. The power building within her was so strong that the humans could actually feel it too.
Isabel opened her eyes and focused on the boulder. She gave it a mental shove like she had done before, but this time it abruptly leapt nearly a meter into the air and landed with a thud. She sighed in irritation when she realized that she hadn’t made much progress. She opened her mind completely and gave it the biggest mental shove she could muster.
The boulder soared into the air and hung, suspended above their heads. Isabel was caught between elation that she had done it and terror because she didn’t know if she could deflect it before it fell and hurt someone.
Alex stepped forward, waved a hand and sent the boulder flying in the opposite direction. It careened through the air and landed with a resounding thump in the crater Liz had created earlier. Isabel looked at him in shock.
“How did you do that? I mean, I’ve had these powers for years and I had to face my worst fears just to lift that stupid boulder! How is it that you could just wave your hand and whoosh…off it goes?!” She asked.
“I just needed a strong enough emotion, that’s all. When I saw you standing there, your heart breaking…let’s just say, I found the strength to help.” Alex tried to explain. He wasn’t sure which emotion, love or compassion, had sent him over the edge but whichever one it was, it worked.
The gang decided that they’d had enough practice for the day. When Michael had suggested they use this training session to push themselves to the limit, this wasn’t exactly what he had in mind. As the group trudged back to their cars, their minds were swirling wildly with all the possible ways they could use their newfound powers to defend themselves.
Chapter 4: Trigger Happy
The podsters and crew spent the entire week following Christmas just relaxing and spending time with their families. Michael and Maria had asked the soldiers to accompany them out to the quarry on the following weekend to help them all practice their powers. Michael hoped that the soldiers would be able to help them hone their powers more efficiently. The parents insisted on coming out to watch this time.
When they got out to the quarry, they strayed from their usual routine of splitting up into separate groups for practice. Michael finally managed to get everyone, royals, soldiers and parents alike, out there together so he hoped that they could take advantage of the situation and concentrate on each person one at a time.
“Max, why don’t you go first.” Michael suggested.
“What do you want me to do? It won’t be very realistic if I just stand out here shielding myself from nothing.” Max pointed out, puzzled.
“I want you to shield all of us…everybody. Then try to fire a blast out while maintaining the shield.” Michael answered calmly. He knew that blasting wasn’t Max’s strength but that was kind of the point. He wanted each of them to push themselves to the limit.
“Uh, OK. I think maybe everyone should step behind me then…I’m not that good at aiming my blasts yet.” Max said nervously. The last thing they needed was for someone to get hurt out here today.
He extended his arm and his green shield flared to life around the entire group. The soldiers nodded with approval. Max then extended his other hand and concentrated on gathering his energy to create a blast. The shield began to flicker and it distracted him. He let out the blast and it barely made it through the shield before dissipating into thin air.
“Sorry…I saw the shield start to flicker and I got distracted.” Max looked down in embarrassment.
“Sir, if I may make a suggestion?” Max’s guard, Jonas, looked to Michael for approval.
“Please, go ahead. That’s why I asked all of you to come out here with us today.” Michael waved for Jonas to continue.
Jonas turned back and addressed Max directly. “Sir, you have to find your trigger. Antarean powers are regulated in what you would call the prefrontal cortex. This area of your mind also regulates your emotions. Generally, in the beginning, Antareans learn to master their powers by using a strong emotion or desire to trigger them. Once you learn to harness your powers, you will no longer have to rely on that trigger.” He said.
“Anger…that’s your trigger Max. That has to be it!” Liz said.
“Yeah, that does me a lot of good out here, doesn’t it.” Max said, rolling his eyes.
“Well obviously Maxwell here doesn’t have what it takes to defend his family, so I guess we’ll have to move on to someone who does. Hey Maria, you ready to go next?” Michael asked with a glint in his eyes.
“Hey! I can defend my family just as well as she can!” Max said, offended. He didn’t want to admit that Michael had hit a nerve in a big way. Failing to protect his family was Max’s greatest fear.
“Apparently you can’t Maxwell because if we’re attacked, you won’t have the luxury of just standing there with your shield up…unless you expect the rest of us to take the fall just to protect your precious Liz. Is that it? You assume that you don’t have to know how to use your powers because the rest of us grunts will come to the rescue?” Michael knew he was laying it on really thick but he had to find a way to make Max mad enough to unleash his powers.
“Michael, we’ve been friends for as long as I can remember but this time you’ve gone too far.” Max’s eyes started turning black as coal. “When have I ever asked anyone to sacrifice themself for me? When?!” The others backed up as a violent electrical charge started emanating from Max. His eyes had now turned completely black.
Liz put up her hand, ready to shield Michael if necessary. She knew what Michael was doing but right at the moment, Max didn’t and she didn’t want to see anyone get hurt.
“If you actually think you can defend anyone other than yourself Max, then show me now. Don’t just stand there…do something for once!” Michael provoked.
Max gave Michael an icy glare and then turned and pointed to a group of nearby boulders as though he was a baseball player predicting a homerun hit. He waved his left hand nonchalantly and his shield reappeared, more brilliant than ever. He extended his right hand and a fiery green light shot out of his palm and made a direct hit to the boulders. Everyone ducked as tiny remains of the once massive boulders came raining down upon the protective green shield. When the dust settled, everyone was shocked to see that the boulders had been completely obliterated by the intense blast.
“Well done Maxwell…well done.” Michael patted him on the back. Max looked over to his friend and realized what he’d just done. His eyes returned to their normal shade of brown.
“Shit Michael! Next time, a little warning would be nice…What if I had hurt you?!” Max exclaimed.
“You wouldn’t hurt me. I know that you wouldn’t…no matter how mad you are. I trust you completely man. I just had to make you let go for a minute. Do you have any idea how hard it is to get you to lose control?” Michael chuckled, glad that Max understood why he had said the things he did.
“Yeah see, that’s the thing Michael. Some of us actually like to show a little bit of restraint. Maybe you should try it sometime.” Max said with a grin. He decided it wasn’t worth it to be mad at Michael for the things he’d said because his heart had been in the right place.
“Why don’t we have someone else go next? I think I’m done yelling at Max for now.” Michael said with a smirk.
Liz stepped up next. Michael instructed her to do the same thing Max had just done. She wasn’t sure if she could hold up a shield and blast at the same time but she tried anyway. She knew from their experience at the pod chamber that anger was most likely her trigger as well. When she saw her friends and family being attacked, a protective fury came over her and she was pretty sure that’s how she managed to conjure up a shield on her first try.
Liz engaged her shield and then took a deep breath. She pictured Tess in her mind. She forced herself to remember the way Tess had betrayed them all by joining Lonnie and Tess, how she had ravaged Kyle’s mind and nearly killed him. As she relived these memories, her anger began to grow. She pictured the scene from the pod chamber and the way Tess just cowered behind Rath as he tried to murder everyone she loved.
Liz’s breaths were coming out in furious gasps. The ground began to rumble and the shield became an opaque shade of green that no one could quite see through anymore. Liz raised her hand and there was a deafening explosion somewhere outside the shield. When silence fell outside Liz’s shield, she dropped it. The wreckage left in her wake stunned the group. She had completely destroyed a group of boulders on the far side of the quarry and left a giant crater in its place.
“Um…so it looks like you found your trigger Liz. Care to share with the class?” Maria laughed nervously.
Liz blushed. “Well…it turns out anger is my trigger too. Let’s just say, Tess made a great target.” She smiled sheepishly.
“Hah! I knew that hussy had to be good for something!” Maria quipped.
Michael rolled his eyes. “Good job Liz…glad you’re on our side.” His comment was met with laughter from the group.
“Ava, you’re up next.” Michael called out.
He instructed Ava to try to bend light, the way she had described doing back in New York. If she was able to do that, then he wanted her to follow that up with her fire trick.
“Michael, what if I was just warping that guy and didn’t realize it. I don’t want to warp you guys…you know how I feel about that.” Ava protested.
“Look, just try it for a second. Maria knows how to block a warp so she’ll concentrate on blocking and then if she sees the shadow or whatever too then you know you’re not warping. OK?” Michael compromised.
Ava sighed. “I guess. Maria, promise me that you’ll tell me immediately if it’s a warp. Promise me.” Ava said seriously.
“I promise. Now go do your thing girl.” Maria flashed her a toothy grin.
Ava stepped forward and began concentrating as she had done so many years ago in that New York tunnel. She felt the familiar whooshing sensation and things began to get all blurry before her eyes.
“What’s happening Maria?! I’m going to stop if you don’t answer me!” Ava yelled, struggling to retain her concentration.
“You’re shimmering! It’s like you disappear and then reappear or something…keep going!” Maria yelled. This was no warp. She was certain of it.
Ava slammed her eyes shut and pictured Kyle. She pictured the smiling, Buddha quoting, bad joke telling man that she loved. Suddenly she realized she really was completely in love with him. He had firmly entrenched himself in her heart. That thought sent her over the edge and the others gasped when she disappeared from sight completely. The royal guards looked over to Kyle in surprise.
Maria looked around and shouted out, “You did it! We can’t see you anymore!” She and Michael both looked over to Kyle, puzzled. Suddenly, there was something different about him but neither one of them could put their finger on exactly what it was.
Ava looked around and realized that she could still see every one of her friends…they just couldn’t see her. She was struck by the notion that she loved each and every one of the people around her. They had shown her a side of life that she never thought she’d have. Her blood began to boil when she thought of Kivar and his mission to destroy everything they’d worked so hard to build. He would take her family away from her the first chance he got. She would fight him tooth and nail if necessary to stop him from destroying the only family she ever knew.
Ava let out a monstrous roar and threw her hands in the air. Fire erupted from each of her hands and shot up into the sky. The surrounding temperature raised by at least ten degrees as the fire came pouring out.
The rest of the group looked over in awe. One minute Ava was standing in front of them, and the next she was gone. They weren’t sure that she was even still with them until they saw the fire come shooting out of thin air. She had most certainly found her trigger and even the soldiers seemed impressed.
The fire sputtered out and Ava appeared in front of them again. She was panting from the exertion so Kyle ran to her side and supported her. He picked her up and carried her over to the nearest boulder to rest. Just as she laid her head down on Kyle’s shoulder, Michael called out to them.
“Don’t get too comfortable Valenti because you’re next.” He said.
Kyle shot a surprised glance over at Michael. “Dude, what exactly do you expect me to do? I’m not the one with powers…you guys are.”
Dillan, Kyle’s guard, cleared his throat nervously. He had no idea how to tell the young man that he had just been marked with the Royal Seal of the House of Rathemere. He looked over to Lance, Ava’s guard, for guidance. Lance, also at a loss for words, looked to Michael.
Maria, finally catching on to what was different about Kyle, shrieked with joy. Her outburst surprised the others, who had not yet sensed the difference.
“Yeah see, I think maybe you should just try because you never know, right?” Michael said uncomfortably. He hadn’t seen this coming at all. He wasn’t even sure if Ava knew she had just basically branded her boyfriend in front of everyone.
“Whatever you say dude. You’re in charge I guess.” Kyle said with a shrug. As he got up, Isabel quickly rushed over to help Ava, who was obviously still quite wiped out. She took Ava’s head and laid it down in her lap, and then yelled at Max to move so that Ava would have a good view of Kyle’s attempt. She had also sensed that Kyle had the Seal now and she was secretly thrilled for the two.
Poor Kyle wasn’t able to exercise his new powers too much because honestly, he’d only just gotten them about ten minutes ago. He didn’t actually think anything would happen at all during his attempt so he was shocked when he managed to change the color of his shirt after a little coaching from Maria. He jumped back in surprise when he did it.
“Oh crap! Did you guys see that?! I did it!” Kyle shouted. Granted, he’d only managed to change his white shirt to a muddy gray color, but the fact that he’d changed anything at all was a shock to him. He and Maria were in the middle of a happy dance when he suddenly realized what his powers meant.
He stopped and looked over to Ava in awe. The entire group went silent, watching the two of them staring at each other. Ava was too exhausted to even raise her head, so she just laid there searching his face for a reaction. Kyle rushed over and knelt down next to her.
“Did you see what I just did?” He asked her tenderly.
Ava smiled. “Yes I did but I think I need to warn you…that shade of gray isn’t really your color.” She teased.
“I’m going to ask you something and I want you to be totally honest, OK?” Kyle said. “Is this something that I could have been able to do before, or is this new?” He asked carefully.
Ava teared up, unsure of how to answer him. She hadn’t intended for this to happen…not like this. He hadn’t even had a choice in the matter. Without warning, he had been sucked into the alien abyss, as he liked to call it, and now there would be no way out.
Isabel looked away, wishing she could give them more privacy. Ava’s head still lay on her lap and she hadn’t made any indication that she wanted Isabel to leave yet, so she stayed.
“I’m sorry Kyle. I didn’t mean for it to happen this way.” Ava was now openly sobbing. “I wanted you to have a choice…” She said.
Kyle gently helped her up and wrapped his arms around her. Isabel quickly moved aside to give them a little space. Kyle just sat there, holding Ava for a moment as her sobs subsided.
“What makes you think I didn’t make my choice already?” He asked quietly. “I read the same translation you guys did and I knew all the rules. What makes you think I’m not OK with this?” He smiled down at her.
“Are you sure Kyle? I didn’t mean to spring this on you here, in front of everyone…I swear. It just happened. I was trying to find my trigger, like Jonas said to do. I started thinking about you and I realized…” She trailed off, noticing the way everyone was hanging onto every word they said. “And then I thought about how I would feel if Kivar had his way. He’d take you away from me in a heartbeat…he’d take all of you away. I guess you know the next part…disappearing girl, fire, etcetera.” She laughed nervously.
“Huh, so I’m your trigger? Well don’t I feel important!” He teased her. He leaned forward and gave her a soft kiss. “We’ll talk about this later, OK? Everything’s going to be fine, you’ll see.”
He turned and loudly addressed the rest of the group. “OK, show’s over guys! Isn’t it time for Hurricane Deluca to get up there and strut her stuff a bit?” He asked.
Maria decided Kyle was right and stepped up to take her turn. Michael wasn’t really sure what to ask her to do. He knew she could blast better than he could and that she could sense people’s emotions but he wanted everyone to practice their active powers…physical powers that everyone could see.
“Uh, just surprise us I guess.” He mumbled.
Maria took a deep breath and focused. She wasn’t really sure what her trigger was because it seemed like her powers were eager to flow out no matter how she felt at the time. As she thought back to the day she first discovered her powers she realized that sadness and anger must work as triggers for her. Like Jonas said, she must have already gotten past relying on triggers to bring on her powers. Now she could harness them at will.
Maria wasn’t really sure what to try. Blasting was out because she was pretty good at that already. Ava’s fire trick was pretty cool, she thought. She decided to see what she could do with the weather. Some kind of lightning show sounded pretty impressive…if she could figure out how to make it work that is.
Maria looked to the sky and closed her eyes. She conjured up a mental image of angry, black looking storm clouds. When she opened her eyes, she saw what looked like a major storm forming on the horizon. She shut her eyes again and envisioned lightning flashing between the menacing clouds.
The wind picked up and lightning started crackling through the air. Maria raised her arms and tried to pull the lightning toward her outstretched hands. There were gasps all around when the group saw vicious streaks of lightning start racing toward her. Suddenly, the bolts stopped. Right in midair they stopped, suspended above Maria’s hands. Rhythmically, they twisted and turned out of the clouds with every move she made.
Maria extended her hands outward and something that could only be described as a wall of lightning formed in front of the nervous group. The crackling energy made their hair begin to stand on end. Her friends and family knew that anyone who tried to penetrate that ‘wall’ from the outside would surely be electrocuted.
Michael realized that if he could figure out how to do Maria’s little lightning trick himself, the two of them would be able to provide more protection for the group if they ever found themselves in direct conflict with their enemies. If they were able to pair Max and Liz’s shields up with the lightning thing, it would be virtually impossible for their enemies to get anywhere near them.
Michael called Max and Liz over. “I need you guys to do me a favor. I’m going to try to do that thing with the lightning to see if we can use it to create a barrier on both sides but…I think I know what my trigger is.” Michael confessed.
Max understood immediately. Michael’s trigger would be anger. Max could see the mixture of apprehension and shame in his friend’s eyes.
“We’ve got you covered, Michael.” Max said.
“It’s not me I’m worried about Maxwell.” Michael said gravely. He knew that things could go very, very wrong if he unleashed the anger he had kept buried for so long.
Liz smiled sympathetically. “It’ll be fine. You can do this. We’ll be right here, shields ready…”
Michael stepped back and took a deep breath. He slowly started letting down his inner walls. The anger from years of abuse by Hank quickly bubbled to the surface. He resented the way he had been tossed into a life with that monster without so much as a second glance. His carefully controlled rage fueled a power surge like he had never felt before. His power was so palpable at this point that the soldiers actually took a step back in alarm.
Just as Michael figured out how to create a protective lightning barrier of his own, Maria started firing blasts out her side of the ‘wall’. Her blasts were able to penetrate the intense tangle of bolts and they took out an entire section of rock wall further down the quarry. Michael did the same from the other side of the group. Just as things started to get a little too intense for the others who were watching the electric chaos from the center of the circle, Michael and Maria dropped their arms and the lightning dissipated. The others breathed a quiet sigh of relief and silently thanked their lucky stars that those two were on their side.
After Michael and Maria were done practicing, it was Isabel’s turn to strut her stuff. Michael directed her over to a fairly large boulder and asked her to try to move it using her powers. He wasn’t entirely sure what kind of strong physical powers she may have, but he did know that she had been able to move small objects with her mind in the past so it seemed like the most logical suggestion.
Isabel knew exactly what her trigger would be…fear. That was the emotion she kept tightly locked away behind her Ice Queen façade. It was the very reason she had waited so long to let others into her life…because she was afraid.
“Michael, I don’t want to do this. I’m not ready yet.” Isabel said. Her voice wavered slightly. She was already afraid…afraid of what would happen if she opened herself fully to her fears.
“You’re ready Iz. I know you are.” Michael said. He knew that fear would most likely be her trigger and based on the way she was trembling already, she didn’t have too far to go.
“I said I’m not ready Michael!” Isabel yelled, losing her control. The thought of facing her fears was terrifying enough to push her powers to the edge.
Isabel felt a sudden flare of energy flowing through her. She turned to the boulder and mentally tried to give it a shove. It shifted maybe a few centimeters to the right.
“You’re holding back. We won’t have the luxury of holding back if our enemies show up! What are you so afraid of?” Michael barked. He was goading her into action just as he did with Max.
“What am I so afraid of?!” Isabel cried. “I’m afraid that if I open myself up to these feelings that I’ve kept buried for so long that I won’t be able to stop. I’m scared that my fears will take over. I’m terrified of losing every sense of normalcy and control I’ve ever had. The worst part is…I’m afraid if I don’t do this, then I might not be strong enough when our enemies come.”
Maria stepped forward and said, “If our enemies come, your powers will be one of the only things left that you can control…if you learn to harness them, that is.” She immediately felt guilty when she saw the pained look cross Isabel’s face.
“You don’t have to do this alone, Isabel. Why don’t we try this one together?” Alex asked, stepping forward.
Isabel sighed, a tear rolling down her cheek. “Thank you Alex, but Maria’s right. This is something I have to do on my own…if only to prove to myself that I can do it.”
Isabel closed her eyes and silently delved into her worst fears. She could feel the panic building inside when she opened her mind to the possibility that their enemies could come to Earth and destroy everything she knew. The power building within her was so strong that the humans could actually feel it too.
Isabel opened her eyes and focused on the boulder. She gave it a mental shove like she had done before, but this time it abruptly leapt nearly a meter into the air and landed with a thud. She sighed in irritation when she realized that she hadn’t made much progress. She opened her mind completely and gave it the biggest mental shove she could muster.
The boulder soared into the air and hung, suspended above their heads. Isabel was caught between elation that she had done it and terror because she didn’t know if she could deflect it before it fell and hurt someone.
Alex stepped forward, waved a hand and sent the boulder flying in the opposite direction. It careened through the air and landed with a resounding thump in the crater Liz had created earlier. Isabel looked at him in shock.
“How did you do that? I mean, I’ve had these powers for years and I had to face my worst fears just to lift that stupid boulder! How is it that you could just wave your hand and whoosh…off it goes?!” She asked.
“I just needed a strong enough emotion, that’s all. When I saw you standing there, your heart breaking…let’s just say, I found the strength to help.” Alex tried to explain. He wasn’t sure which emotion, love or compassion, had sent him over the edge but whichever one it was, it worked.
The gang decided that they’d had enough practice for the day. When Michael had suggested they use this training session to push themselves to the limit, this wasn’t exactly what he had in mind. As the group trudged back to their cars, their minds were swirling wildly with all the possible ways they could use their newfound powers to defend themselves.
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Ti88
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another awesome fic finding its way here. i have to say i love the first adn what i've read of the sequel.
Roselle
Egyptian Dwelling Silly Sister Techie Connection
If we don't change we don't grow. If we don't grow we aren't really living. - Gail Sheey
My spelling is wobbly. It's good spelling but it wobbles and the letters get in the worng places - Pooh
Egyptian Dwelling Silly Sister Techie Connection
If we don't change we don't grow. If we don't grow we aren't really living. - Gail Sheey
My spelling is wobbly. It's good spelling but it wobbles and the letters get in the worng places - Pooh
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majiklmoon
- Dorkus Maximus and Super Wuss
- Posts: 14820
- Joined: Fri Oct 20, 2000 8:01 pm
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Island Breeze
- Feedbacking Sci Fi King
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- Joined: Sat Jul 02, 2005 11:11 pm
- Location: South Florida
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pooklette
- Newbie
- Posts: 48
- Joined: Sat Jul 09, 2005 12:21 pm
Thanks for the kind words guys! This story kind of took on a life of its own and veered off in a different direction than I'd planned. I hope you like the next few parts. :D
Disclaimer: The characters of "Roswell" belong to Jason Katims, Melinda Metz, WB, and UPN. They are not mine and no infringement is intended.
Chapter 5: Strategic Solutions
The last two weeks of winter vacation passed quickly for the gang. They tried to spend as much time as possible with their families and friends while they still had the free time to spare. Soon, they found themselves packing up again to head back to school.
The parents had all chipped in and purchased small refrigerator/freezer combos for the kids’ dorm rooms. Amy Deluca had then gone the extra mile, baking some of her famous pies to stock the freezers with. Liz and Maria’s squeals of joy were actually drowned out by more powerful cheers from Alex and Kyle. Amy’s pies were famous in Roswell and the gang was thrilled to have the opportunity to take a piece of home back to Las Cruces with them.
The gang piled into Max’s Jeep and the cute little Honda Ava had purchased from the junkyard back in New York. After a few more tearful goodbyes, the gang left. They managed to endure the four-hour drive back to school with a minimal amount of bickering.
As soon as they got all their belongings stowed away in their dorm rooms again, Liz and Maria whipped out their cell phones and called home to let the parents know they’d arrived safely. After countless reassurances that they’d keep their Mace close and their guards closer, they were able to hang up and head down to the dining hall for dinner.
They joined the others at a table in the far corner of the room. They all began inspecting their schedules for the spring semester.
“Hey! We’re still going to be able to meet for breakfast.” Maria said with glee. She also secretly noted that she and Michael had two hours of free time every Tuesday and Thursday afternoon when Max and Liz were in class. Finally they would get to have some real alone time without roommates getting in the way.
Michael inspected the schedules and realized that Kyle and Ava also had free time together every Tuesday and Thursday morning when all the rest of them would be in class. He glared over at Kyle.
Kyle shot a thousand watt smile over at Michael and cautioned, “Don’t even think about pulling that overprotective brother crap with me Michael. Remember, Maria will be my sister soon and you really wouldn’t want me to interfere in your business would you?” Kyle grinned fiendishly and added, “That is, unless you want me to tell Amy about all those ‘study sessions’ you two had last semester…”
With that, Michael paled and Maria laid into Kyle as though they were already siblings. The others just sat back watching the show. None of them were brave enough to stand in Maria’s way when she was gearing up to dish out a verbal tongue-lashing. By now they all knew better.
After a couple of thumps to Kyle’s head, Maria felt better and they were able to continue studying their schedules. Normally, students don’t pay nearly this much attention to their friend’s class schedules but for this group it was absolutely imperative that they know exactly where each of their friends were going to be at all times.
After memorizing all eight of the schedules, they started planning out their strategy for group meetings. They would be able to use the same breakfast routine as last semester but they found that they were going to have to change their usual Thursday night coffee house plans a bit. Liz had signed up for a biology study group that met on Thursday nights and Michael had taken a job in the registrar’s office that required him to work Wednesday and Thursday evenings.
“Michael, what possessed you to take an office job anyway?” Isabel asked intrigued.
Michael rolled his eyes. “It’s not an office job, Iz.” Off her disbelieving look, he continued. “Seriously. All they want me to do is some filing and computer stuff. It’ll be easy…I get my own cubicle and I won’t have to deal with any people.” Michael pointed out.
Isabel laughed loudly. “Filing and computer stuff…cubicle? That roughly translates to desk job Michael.”
Michael just shrugged and said, “Whatever. Beats working in a hot kitchen everyday.” He was originally attracted to the job because it would help him scope out the student body better. He would be dealing with student’s records, meaning they’d have an advantage over anyone who tried to pose as a student to get close to them.
After a good chuckle, they continued planning out their weekly meeting schedules and escape routes. Michael had been absolutely insistent that everyone plan a number of various escape routes from each of their classrooms. It was the only way he could think of to ease some of the fears he had about staying out in the open while Kivar’s minions could be lurking around any corner.
Maria had proven to be remarkably talented at finding creative ways to sneak in and out of nearly any room on campus. With Liz’s help, she had created comprehensive lists of escape routes from all of the common areas, such as the library and dining hall. She and Isabel batted their eyelashes a bit and convinced one of the campus maintenance men to let them see copies of the original blueprints for the buildings. They told him they were doing a historical study of the campus. It worked like a charm and now Maria was able to cross-reference every hallway, stairway and ventilation duct almost effortlessly from memory.
“Since my biology lab is on the fourth floor, I can’t very well use the window as one of my escape routes, so what do I do?” Liz asked. She had her notepad out and was faithfully making lists of each and every pertinent detail of their plans.
Maria tilted her head back in thought for a second. “That’s in Foster Hall, right?” Off Liz’s nod, Maria smiled smugly as though the answer was obvious. “OK, here’s what you do. If you can’t use the door, run to the supply closet at the back corner of the room. There’s a huge ventilation shaft located dead center in the ceiling of that closet. Head straight down that shaft for about twenty yards or so and then you’ll see a vent that opens up into the genetics lab. Hop out there and make a run for it.” She paused for a second as Liz scribbled furiously in her notebook.
“If you can’t get to the supply closet, you’re going to have to go out the window.” Maria added with a sassy grin. Liz immediately protested but Maria cut her off.
“I’m not saying dive out the window girlfriend! Just open the window and crawl out. There’s a big ledge that leads around the corner of the building to this huge pipe that runs all the way down to the ground below. I think the maintenance guy said it had something to do with the old rooftop air conditioning unit or something. Just shimmy down that pipe and you’re home free.” Maria declared with a flourish.
“Are we in the Twilight Zone or something here? Is that what’s happening?” Kyle asked suddenly. “Because that’s the only explanation I can come up with for how Maria knows all this stuff.”
Maria thumped him on the back of the head again and rolled her eyes. “Kyle, I know things must get confusing in that musty old gourd you call a brain but try to stay with us for a second, OK? My ideas work because they are just too unorthodox for anyone else but me to come up with. Kivar’s guys will never be able to predict our movements this way.”
Alex laughed and said, “You’ve got that right.” Then he turned to Michael and asked, “So what’s our meeting point this semester?”
Michael thought for a second and then said, “Activity Center. If you spot any of Kivar’s guys or FBI agents, head for the Activity Center. It’s right in the middle of campus and from there we can take Stewart Street straight out to the interstate.”
Max looked around at his friends with a bemused smile on his face. “Who would’ve ever predicted we’d all be sitting here, together, plotting out escape routes and meeting points.” He shook his head in bewilderment.
“When Max first healed you Liz, I was so mad at him. I was so sure you’d freak out and tell everyone.” Isabel confessed. “We’ve really come a long way since then, haven’t we?”
Ava took Kyle’s hand and added her two cents. “I’d say things have worked out pretty well for all of us. I never would’ve pictured myself here…like this.” She said with a smile.
Maria snorted and said, “I don’t know what you guys are talking about…I always knew I’d grow up to become the Commander of an entire alien race in a galaxy I’ve never heard of.” She laughed and added, “I’m not a bit surprised by how things have turned out…I mean, look at how well I took it when Liz let me in on the big secret! Cool as a cucumber I tell you.”
The group broke out into fits of laughter as they remembered the tale about the day Maria found out the podsquad’s otherworldly status. Cool as a cucumber she was not. She ran screaming into the street and suffered from stress-induced nightmares for weeks afterward.
Isabel decided a change of subject was in order. “OK…so moving right along then. Do we all have a night off to meet at the coffee shop, like last semester?” She asked.
Liz studied the schedules before saying; “It looks like we’re all free on Monday, Tuesday or Friday nights.”
“I can’t do Fridays…I have practice every Monday and Wednesday evenings and games every Friday. We’ll have to do Tuesdays.” Kyle pointed out. His baseball scholarship was paying his tuition so he wasn’t willing to miss practice unless absolutely necessary.
“If we do the coffee thing on Tuesdays, then will we still be able to have our ‘group study time’ on Saturday evenings?” Alex asked. He was referring to their private ‘Antarean study sessions’. If they wanted to learn as much as possible about the entire history of the Royal Empire, then they’d have to stay diligent.
Maria shook her head. “Ava and I can’t do Saturday afternoons. We both work at the student union from noon to four. We could probably do Saturday mornings though…” She said. When everyone nodded in agreement, Max decided it was time to bring their planning session to a close.
“So it’s settled then…we’ll meet up at the café on Tuesday nights and we’ll have ‘group study’ on Saturday mornings. I think that covers everything, right? We memorized all the schedules, worked out escape routes and picked a meeting place…I think we’re all set.”
“Not quite Maxwell.” Michael shook his head. “I’ve been thinking about it and I think it’s time for us to pick a new code phrase. We don’t know for sure if Tess ever figured out our flu code so just to be safe, I think we should decide on a different one.”
They were all very aware that they’d sent Tess, Lonnie and Rath to Antar last spring. They had no idea if Kivar had executed the evil trio or if they had joined him. Larek’s intelligence forces had not been able to acquire any information about the trio’s whereabouts once they were ‘captured’ by Kivar. Their status seemed to be a very well guarded secret. It was quite possible that Kivar would’ve spared them, hoping to use them to infiltrate the royals. If he had, they could show up back on Earth at any time, without warning.
“Not to complicate things, but I think we should come up with a few different code phrases. You know, like one phrase that indicates you’re in trouble and one that identifies you as part of the group…” Liz said, already trying to formulate ideas for simple key words.
“Oh! Good idea chica! Like, if I think someone’s following me but I don’t want to blurt it right out in a crowded hallway or something, I’d call one of you guys on your cell and use the ‘trouble’ code. If I want to make sure Ava’s really Ava and not Tess, I’d use the other code. I like it!” Maria said, nodding in approval.
“Oooh! For the ‘identity’ code we could ask, ‘How is your basket weaving class going’ and the answer would be ‘great’. They actually do have a basket weaving course over in the Arts Annex so it won’t be too obvious that it’s a code.” Isabel said.
At the amused glances from her friends, she added, “God you guys…it’s not like I’m actually going to take that class! I just remembered seeing it in the course catalogue.” She rolled her eyes in indignation.
Max chuckled and said, “OK…basket weaving it is then. What about the ‘trouble’ code?”
“How about using a variation of the basket weaving thing? If you think you’re in trouble, you could call someone and say ‘I think I flunked my basket weaving test’. That way, we don’t have too many different phrases to remember and we can use both of them together if necessary. For example, if I think Rath is back in town and I ask Michael how his basket weaving class is going, he can either say ‘great’ to indicate he’s really Michael or if he’s in trouble he can say the thing about flunking his test…either way, we have a confirmation that he’s Michael but he’ll also be able to warn us without sounding suspicious.” Alex suggested.
“Subtle, concise…I like it.” Ava said, nodding.
Michael looked at her as though she’d suddenly sprouted an extra head. “You actually like the basket weaving thing?! I thought you were supposed to be my sister?” He said, eyes widening in exasperation.
Maria reached out to swat Michael on the arm but he dodged the blow. “Just once, couldn’t you guys come up with a code that isn’t so embarrassing?” He asked irritably.
Isabel smirked devilishly and teased, “Oh Michael, quit being such a baby. The basket weaving thing is fine and you know it. We had a good idea…just admit it.”
Michael knew he was fighting a losing battle. “Fine. It’ll work I guess.” He admitted grudgingly. As an afterthought he added, “But next time I get to pick the code words.”
After dinner was over, the gang retired to their dorms. They still had some unpacking to do and many of them had early morning classes scheduled for the next day. It was a good thing that they’d gotten their plans all mapped out early in the semester because they would soon need those code phrases and escape routes. Before the semester was over, they would find out the fate of Tess, Lonnie and Rath.
Disclaimer: The characters of "Roswell" belong to Jason Katims, Melinda Metz, WB, and UPN. They are not mine and no infringement is intended.
Chapter 5: Strategic Solutions
The last two weeks of winter vacation passed quickly for the gang. They tried to spend as much time as possible with their families and friends while they still had the free time to spare. Soon, they found themselves packing up again to head back to school.
The parents had all chipped in and purchased small refrigerator/freezer combos for the kids’ dorm rooms. Amy Deluca had then gone the extra mile, baking some of her famous pies to stock the freezers with. Liz and Maria’s squeals of joy were actually drowned out by more powerful cheers from Alex and Kyle. Amy’s pies were famous in Roswell and the gang was thrilled to have the opportunity to take a piece of home back to Las Cruces with them.
The gang piled into Max’s Jeep and the cute little Honda Ava had purchased from the junkyard back in New York. After a few more tearful goodbyes, the gang left. They managed to endure the four-hour drive back to school with a minimal amount of bickering.
As soon as they got all their belongings stowed away in their dorm rooms again, Liz and Maria whipped out their cell phones and called home to let the parents know they’d arrived safely. After countless reassurances that they’d keep their Mace close and their guards closer, they were able to hang up and head down to the dining hall for dinner.
They joined the others at a table in the far corner of the room. They all began inspecting their schedules for the spring semester.
“Hey! We’re still going to be able to meet for breakfast.” Maria said with glee. She also secretly noted that she and Michael had two hours of free time every Tuesday and Thursday afternoon when Max and Liz were in class. Finally they would get to have some real alone time without roommates getting in the way.
Michael inspected the schedules and realized that Kyle and Ava also had free time together every Tuesday and Thursday morning when all the rest of them would be in class. He glared over at Kyle.
Kyle shot a thousand watt smile over at Michael and cautioned, “Don’t even think about pulling that overprotective brother crap with me Michael. Remember, Maria will be my sister soon and you really wouldn’t want me to interfere in your business would you?” Kyle grinned fiendishly and added, “That is, unless you want me to tell Amy about all those ‘study sessions’ you two had last semester…”
With that, Michael paled and Maria laid into Kyle as though they were already siblings. The others just sat back watching the show. None of them were brave enough to stand in Maria’s way when she was gearing up to dish out a verbal tongue-lashing. By now they all knew better.
After a couple of thumps to Kyle’s head, Maria felt better and they were able to continue studying their schedules. Normally, students don’t pay nearly this much attention to their friend’s class schedules but for this group it was absolutely imperative that they know exactly where each of their friends were going to be at all times.
After memorizing all eight of the schedules, they started planning out their strategy for group meetings. They would be able to use the same breakfast routine as last semester but they found that they were going to have to change their usual Thursday night coffee house plans a bit. Liz had signed up for a biology study group that met on Thursday nights and Michael had taken a job in the registrar’s office that required him to work Wednesday and Thursday evenings.
“Michael, what possessed you to take an office job anyway?” Isabel asked intrigued.
Michael rolled his eyes. “It’s not an office job, Iz.” Off her disbelieving look, he continued. “Seriously. All they want me to do is some filing and computer stuff. It’ll be easy…I get my own cubicle and I won’t have to deal with any people.” Michael pointed out.
Isabel laughed loudly. “Filing and computer stuff…cubicle? That roughly translates to desk job Michael.”
Michael just shrugged and said, “Whatever. Beats working in a hot kitchen everyday.” He was originally attracted to the job because it would help him scope out the student body better. He would be dealing with student’s records, meaning they’d have an advantage over anyone who tried to pose as a student to get close to them.
After a good chuckle, they continued planning out their weekly meeting schedules and escape routes. Michael had been absolutely insistent that everyone plan a number of various escape routes from each of their classrooms. It was the only way he could think of to ease some of the fears he had about staying out in the open while Kivar’s minions could be lurking around any corner.
Maria had proven to be remarkably talented at finding creative ways to sneak in and out of nearly any room on campus. With Liz’s help, she had created comprehensive lists of escape routes from all of the common areas, such as the library and dining hall. She and Isabel batted their eyelashes a bit and convinced one of the campus maintenance men to let them see copies of the original blueprints for the buildings. They told him they were doing a historical study of the campus. It worked like a charm and now Maria was able to cross-reference every hallway, stairway and ventilation duct almost effortlessly from memory.
“Since my biology lab is on the fourth floor, I can’t very well use the window as one of my escape routes, so what do I do?” Liz asked. She had her notepad out and was faithfully making lists of each and every pertinent detail of their plans.
Maria tilted her head back in thought for a second. “That’s in Foster Hall, right?” Off Liz’s nod, Maria smiled smugly as though the answer was obvious. “OK, here’s what you do. If you can’t use the door, run to the supply closet at the back corner of the room. There’s a huge ventilation shaft located dead center in the ceiling of that closet. Head straight down that shaft for about twenty yards or so and then you’ll see a vent that opens up into the genetics lab. Hop out there and make a run for it.” She paused for a second as Liz scribbled furiously in her notebook.
“If you can’t get to the supply closet, you’re going to have to go out the window.” Maria added with a sassy grin. Liz immediately protested but Maria cut her off.
“I’m not saying dive out the window girlfriend! Just open the window and crawl out. There’s a big ledge that leads around the corner of the building to this huge pipe that runs all the way down to the ground below. I think the maintenance guy said it had something to do with the old rooftop air conditioning unit or something. Just shimmy down that pipe and you’re home free.” Maria declared with a flourish.
“Are we in the Twilight Zone or something here? Is that what’s happening?” Kyle asked suddenly. “Because that’s the only explanation I can come up with for how Maria knows all this stuff.”
Maria thumped him on the back of the head again and rolled her eyes. “Kyle, I know things must get confusing in that musty old gourd you call a brain but try to stay with us for a second, OK? My ideas work because they are just too unorthodox for anyone else but me to come up with. Kivar’s guys will never be able to predict our movements this way.”
Alex laughed and said, “You’ve got that right.” Then he turned to Michael and asked, “So what’s our meeting point this semester?”
Michael thought for a second and then said, “Activity Center. If you spot any of Kivar’s guys or FBI agents, head for the Activity Center. It’s right in the middle of campus and from there we can take Stewart Street straight out to the interstate.”
Max looked around at his friends with a bemused smile on his face. “Who would’ve ever predicted we’d all be sitting here, together, plotting out escape routes and meeting points.” He shook his head in bewilderment.
“When Max first healed you Liz, I was so mad at him. I was so sure you’d freak out and tell everyone.” Isabel confessed. “We’ve really come a long way since then, haven’t we?”
Ava took Kyle’s hand and added her two cents. “I’d say things have worked out pretty well for all of us. I never would’ve pictured myself here…like this.” She said with a smile.
Maria snorted and said, “I don’t know what you guys are talking about…I always knew I’d grow up to become the Commander of an entire alien race in a galaxy I’ve never heard of.” She laughed and added, “I’m not a bit surprised by how things have turned out…I mean, look at how well I took it when Liz let me in on the big secret! Cool as a cucumber I tell you.”
The group broke out into fits of laughter as they remembered the tale about the day Maria found out the podsquad’s otherworldly status. Cool as a cucumber she was not. She ran screaming into the street and suffered from stress-induced nightmares for weeks afterward.
Isabel decided a change of subject was in order. “OK…so moving right along then. Do we all have a night off to meet at the coffee shop, like last semester?” She asked.
Liz studied the schedules before saying; “It looks like we’re all free on Monday, Tuesday or Friday nights.”
“I can’t do Fridays…I have practice every Monday and Wednesday evenings and games every Friday. We’ll have to do Tuesdays.” Kyle pointed out. His baseball scholarship was paying his tuition so he wasn’t willing to miss practice unless absolutely necessary.
“If we do the coffee thing on Tuesdays, then will we still be able to have our ‘group study time’ on Saturday evenings?” Alex asked. He was referring to their private ‘Antarean study sessions’. If they wanted to learn as much as possible about the entire history of the Royal Empire, then they’d have to stay diligent.
Maria shook her head. “Ava and I can’t do Saturday afternoons. We both work at the student union from noon to four. We could probably do Saturday mornings though…” She said. When everyone nodded in agreement, Max decided it was time to bring their planning session to a close.
“So it’s settled then…we’ll meet up at the café on Tuesday nights and we’ll have ‘group study’ on Saturday mornings. I think that covers everything, right? We memorized all the schedules, worked out escape routes and picked a meeting place…I think we’re all set.”
“Not quite Maxwell.” Michael shook his head. “I’ve been thinking about it and I think it’s time for us to pick a new code phrase. We don’t know for sure if Tess ever figured out our flu code so just to be safe, I think we should decide on a different one.”
They were all very aware that they’d sent Tess, Lonnie and Rath to Antar last spring. They had no idea if Kivar had executed the evil trio or if they had joined him. Larek’s intelligence forces had not been able to acquire any information about the trio’s whereabouts once they were ‘captured’ by Kivar. Their status seemed to be a very well guarded secret. It was quite possible that Kivar would’ve spared them, hoping to use them to infiltrate the royals. If he had, they could show up back on Earth at any time, without warning.
“Not to complicate things, but I think we should come up with a few different code phrases. You know, like one phrase that indicates you’re in trouble and one that identifies you as part of the group…” Liz said, already trying to formulate ideas for simple key words.
“Oh! Good idea chica! Like, if I think someone’s following me but I don’t want to blurt it right out in a crowded hallway or something, I’d call one of you guys on your cell and use the ‘trouble’ code. If I want to make sure Ava’s really Ava and not Tess, I’d use the other code. I like it!” Maria said, nodding in approval.
“Oooh! For the ‘identity’ code we could ask, ‘How is your basket weaving class going’ and the answer would be ‘great’. They actually do have a basket weaving course over in the Arts Annex so it won’t be too obvious that it’s a code.” Isabel said.
At the amused glances from her friends, she added, “God you guys…it’s not like I’m actually going to take that class! I just remembered seeing it in the course catalogue.” She rolled her eyes in indignation.
Max chuckled and said, “OK…basket weaving it is then. What about the ‘trouble’ code?”
“How about using a variation of the basket weaving thing? If you think you’re in trouble, you could call someone and say ‘I think I flunked my basket weaving test’. That way, we don’t have too many different phrases to remember and we can use both of them together if necessary. For example, if I think Rath is back in town and I ask Michael how his basket weaving class is going, he can either say ‘great’ to indicate he’s really Michael or if he’s in trouble he can say the thing about flunking his test…either way, we have a confirmation that he’s Michael but he’ll also be able to warn us without sounding suspicious.” Alex suggested.
“Subtle, concise…I like it.” Ava said, nodding.
Michael looked at her as though she’d suddenly sprouted an extra head. “You actually like the basket weaving thing?! I thought you were supposed to be my sister?” He said, eyes widening in exasperation.
Maria reached out to swat Michael on the arm but he dodged the blow. “Just once, couldn’t you guys come up with a code that isn’t so embarrassing?” He asked irritably.
Isabel smirked devilishly and teased, “Oh Michael, quit being such a baby. The basket weaving thing is fine and you know it. We had a good idea…just admit it.”
Michael knew he was fighting a losing battle. “Fine. It’ll work I guess.” He admitted grudgingly. As an afterthought he added, “But next time I get to pick the code words.”
After dinner was over, the gang retired to their dorms. They still had some unpacking to do and many of them had early morning classes scheduled for the next day. It was a good thing that they’d gotten their plans all mapped out early in the semester because they would soon need those code phrases and escape routes. Before the semester was over, they would find out the fate of Tess, Lonnie and Rath.
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pooklette
- Newbie
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- Joined: Sat Jul 09, 2005 12:21 pm
Disclaimer: The characters of "Roswell" belong to Jason Katims, Melinda Metz, WB, and UPN. They are not mine and no infringement is intended.
Chapter 6: The Sleepers Awake
While the gang was settling into their hectic school routines again, a physicist from Arizona was arriving at the J. Edgar Hoover Building in Washington, D.C. After showing his credentials to a few of the right people, he was ushered into the office of the Director himself.
“It’s time sir.” He said while opening his briefcase and pulling out a number of overstuffed file folders.
“What do we know so far?” The Director asked with trepidation. The physicist before him was one of many ‘sleeper’ agents secretly scattered throughout the country. Harrison’s presence could only signal one thing…
“I have evidence of a series of sustained electromagnetic discharges, occurring roughly one mile outside of Roswell, New Mexico.” Harrison said.
Director Adams sat up at attention. “That doesn’t mean anything…it could’ve been lightning, right?”
“The anomaly originated from the ground sir. This was not a naturally occurring incident. I’ve been studying this event from every conceivable angle for nearly a month…” Harrison pointed out.
“Are you positive that this couldn’t have been caused by some kind of weapon? Terrorists perhaps?”
Harrison shook his head. “With all due respect sir…you and I both know what happened. Last month, ET phoned home.”
Director Adams looked away, deep in thought. “Roswell, New Mexico…home of one Maxwell Evans…” He mused.
“Harrison, you’d better be right about this. The fiasco with Pierce and the Special Unit…that can’t happen again. Do you understand me?”
Suddenly the Director’s phone rang loudly. “This is Director Adams,” he answered.
“Yes…I understand. I’ll be right there…” Adams said before hanging up the phone and letting out a strained sigh.
“It looks like ET got an answer Harrison.”
At that very moment over 500 miles above the outermost portion of the Earth’s atmosphere, a ship slowed in preparation for entering orbit. The passengers on that ship looked to Earth with a sense of wonder.
Chapter 6: The Sleepers Awake
While the gang was settling into their hectic school routines again, a physicist from Arizona was arriving at the J. Edgar Hoover Building in Washington, D.C. After showing his credentials to a few of the right people, he was ushered into the office of the Director himself.
“It’s time sir.” He said while opening his briefcase and pulling out a number of overstuffed file folders.
“What do we know so far?” The Director asked with trepidation. The physicist before him was one of many ‘sleeper’ agents secretly scattered throughout the country. Harrison’s presence could only signal one thing…
“I have evidence of a series of sustained electromagnetic discharges, occurring roughly one mile outside of Roswell, New Mexico.” Harrison said.
Director Adams sat up at attention. “That doesn’t mean anything…it could’ve been lightning, right?”
“The anomaly originated from the ground sir. This was not a naturally occurring incident. I’ve been studying this event from every conceivable angle for nearly a month…” Harrison pointed out.
“Are you positive that this couldn’t have been caused by some kind of weapon? Terrorists perhaps?”
Harrison shook his head. “With all due respect sir…you and I both know what happened. Last month, ET phoned home.”
Director Adams looked away, deep in thought. “Roswell, New Mexico…home of one Maxwell Evans…” He mused.
“Harrison, you’d better be right about this. The fiasco with Pierce and the Special Unit…that can’t happen again. Do you understand me?”
Suddenly the Director’s phone rang loudly. “This is Director Adams,” he answered.
“Yes…I understand. I’ll be right there…” Adams said before hanging up the phone and letting out a strained sigh.
“It looks like ET got an answer Harrison.”
At that very moment over 500 miles above the outermost portion of the Earth’s atmosphere, a ship slowed in preparation for entering orbit. The passengers on that ship looked to Earth with a sense of wonder.
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pooklette
- Newbie
- Posts: 48
- Joined: Sat Jul 09, 2005 12:21 pm
Disclaimer: The characters of "Roswell" belong to Jason Katims, Melinda Metz, WB, and UPN. They are not mine and no infringement is intended.
Chapter 7: Paranoia in the Ranks
Two weeks passed before the pod squad noticed anything was amiss. The gang was right in the middle of a particularly uneventful week when the feathers really started to hit the fan. They all met up at the coffee shop on Tuesday night, and immediately noticed that the soldiers were acting strangely.
As they sipped their lattes, the gang looked around in anticipation. They noticed Valerie, one of the soldiers assigned to café duty, was subtly studying a young couple at a table on the far side of the room. She was rhythmically tapping her fingers on the counter in concentration. Another quick sweep of the room showed Lance, Ava’s guard, sitting at attention, scrutinizing a group of middle aged men sitting on the park bench outside. Soon, the gang’s sense of paranoia kicked in big time.
“Um…is anyone else here getting a little concerned?” Isabel whispered.
She had tried to use her powers to scan the couple in the corner and the men out front. She was so nervous that she couldn’t seem to get a decent reading. The only impressions she got from the men was that they weren’t there specifically to harm her friends and she couldn’t get any reading at all from the couple in the corner. It wasn’t much of a reassurance though given the current state of alert the soldiers were in.
“I vote we find out what’s going on and get the heck out of Dodge. Who’s with me?” Maria muttered.
Max motioned for Valerie and she quickly approached the table. “We’re ready for the check now, Miss. I think we’re done for the night…” He told her, staring intently looking for even a hint of caution in her eyes.
She nodded stoically and quickly wrote up their drink totals on her order pad. When she handed Max the check, he looked at it quickly and then handed her a twenty-dollar bill. “Keep the change,” he mumbled.
Max handed the check to Michael and then addressed the group. “It’s getting late…everyone ready to head out?” He asked nonchalantly.
The others nodded in confusion and rose to follow Max and Michael out the door. Valerie had never charged them for coffee before. They were all dying to know what was written on that slip of paper.
Once they got outside Michael mumbled, “Just keep walking like nothing is going on. We’re just a bunch of random college students heading back to the dorms. Don’t use your cell phones and don’t say anything…unusual…in your rooms until we hear from the guards.”
They made their way back to campus with a few of the guards trailing closely behind. They couldn’t see nearly as many of the soldiers out there as they usually did. For some reason the guards had were straying far from the usual routine and it was making the pod squad unbearably nervous.
As soon as they made it back to the dorms, they parted ways and quickly headed back up to their rooms. Max assured them that the soldiers were right behind them and the best plan of action would be to head back to their rooms like nothing was wrong. He tucked the ‘check’ from the café into Liz’s hand and quickly walked off.
When the girls read the note, it did little to ease their fears.
I think your basket-weaving professor is here. I’ll ask him if you passed your test or if you flunked it. I’ll let you know what he says…
“What the hell is that supposed to mean?!” Maria gasped. The other girls shushed her. Michael told them it might not be safe to talk until they heard from the soldiers, so they really couldn’t discuss the note.
“Do you guys want to hang out here for a little while?” Liz asked, with an overly chipper voice. She was hoping that they wouldn’t sound suspicious if their rooms were bugged but she wanted Isabel and Ava to know they didn’t have to go back to their room alone.
Suddenly there was a knock at the door. “Who is it?” Maria called.
“It’s Sondra,” a voice answered. Isabel rushed over to let her royal guardian into the room.
“What’s going on Sondra?” Ava asked nervously.
“Valerie thought she saw your basket weaving professor in the café earlier.” She began cryptically. “Once she got a closer look at him though, she realized she was mistaken. Not to worry though…I think you passed your test.” She explained vaguely, hoping the girls would catch her true meaning.
Sondra was trying to tell them that she and the other soldiers had been concerned that the people in and around the café earlier might be dangerous. That’s why she modified the pod squad’s agreed upon code phrase and called the strangers ‘basket weaving professors’.
“It’s funny you mention that…I thought I saw one of the basket weaving professors outside the café on that bench…” Maria said.
“Yes, I know just who you are talking about...Lance and Kaden stopped for a chat with those men and found out they are physicists, here for a symposium on electromagnetism.” Sondra replied carefully. She was tapping the desk absent-mindedly as though something was bothering her.
“Well, I’m a bit tired so I’m going to head back to my dorm and catch some sleep.” Sondra added suddenly. “I’ll see you later Isabel?”
The girl’s eyes widened. Sondra was trying to ask Isabel to dreamwalk her. They were sure of it. If she wanted Isabel to dreamwalk her, then there must be more to the story than she’d let on. That would explain why Sondra was so cryptic with everything she said even though she had all but confirmed that the strangers at the café hadn’t been enemies. Perhaps the soldiers were starting to doubt the safety of the group…
Nearly an hour later, Isabel was curled up in bed attempting to find Sondra on the dream plane. She had been successful at gathering all of her friends together, but since she had no photo of Sondra and had never formed a strong emotional connection with her, it was quite difficult to find her. Suddenly, it occurred to Isabel that she should try to mentally call out to Sondra much the same way she could do during waking hours.
As the rest of the group studied their brilliant white surroundings in the dream plane, Sondra suddenly appeared as if out of thin air. The scene around them started changing and soon they felt their collective dream shift to a new location. It now appeared as though they were sitting in the Evans’ living room.
“Ok this is just weird. No offense Isabel, but I seriously feel like I’ve stepped into the Twilight Zone now…” Kyle commented.
“Whatever Kyle. It’s a private place where we can talk. You’ll live…I promise.” Isabel said with a roll of her eyes.
“Sondra, did you need to speak with us? Is that what you meant when you said you’d see Isabel later?” Liz asked.
“Precisely.” Sondra answered. “Thank you for bringing us all together Isabel.” She added before getting down to business.
“At the café tonight, we felt concern over the sudden increase in activity from outsiders. There were far too many unidentified people in your immediate vicinity. Our Earth studies indicated that your FBI often operates in such a manner. They use…what would you call it?” Sondra silently searched her memory for a moment. “Oh yes, undercover agents. They use agents disguised as ordinary humans to infiltrate a group and gather information. That is quite similar to the way Kivar operates as well…”
“So should we be worried or not then?” Isabel asked nervously.
Sondra hesitated a moment. “Our surveillance seems to indicate that the strangers are not of concern but…”
Michael interrupted. “But you’re worried anyway. Why?”
“The couple in the corner of the café appear to be tourists and Valerie wasn’t able to sense any malice in their thoughts. The men sitting on the bench in front of the café had a brief conversation with Lance and Kaden. They claim to be in town for a symposium on electromagnetism and neither Lance or Kaden were able to sense any malice in their thoughts either…” Sondra paused to organize her thoughts.
“At this point we have no evidence that the strangers were a direct threat to any of you, however…instinct is telling us that something isn’t right.” She confessed.
The gang was silent for a moment, trying to assimilate what Sondra had told them. They were relieved to hear that none of the soldiers had sensed an immediate threat from the strangers but at the same time, it was unnerving to find out that the soldiers were still concerned anyway.
“What does that mean? I mean…if those people don’t intend to hurt us then why are you guys still on alert?” Alex asked.
Ava sighed. “Just because those men didn’t purposely want to hurt us right then and there, doesn’t mean they won’t.” She said sadly.
Sondra nodded in agreement. “When a person is acting strictly on orders and has no concern for right or wrong, they don’t feel guilt, anger, hatred…there is no trace of malice in their thoughts…nothing for us to sense.” She explained.
“Oh crap.” Kyle said. “So basically as long as they don’t care whether they hurt us or not, we’ll never see it coming…”
“We don’t really know if that’s the case though.” Max assured Kyle. He turned to Sondra. “Can we sit it out and keep a watch on these people until Friday? After class on Friday, we can head back to Roswell for the weekend. If they turn up there too then we know…” Max suggested.
“It would be possible, Sir. You would have to watch your words carefully and keep your cell phones charged at all times. With certain precautions, I believe that you should be able to remain on campus for the time being.” Sondra mused.
“Now wait just a minute Max! I think we should trust our guards’ intuition on this one…I mean, this could be our lives we’re talking about here!” Isabel burst out. “Plus, we don’t even know if those people were FBI, Kivar’s guys, or just plain old tourists. Those odds are not in our favor!”
“If we just take off for home tomorrow morning, it’ll look too suspicious though. If those guys are really FBI or something, we’ll give away the fact that we’re on to them.” Liz protested, defending Max’s suggestion.
Kyle’s eyes went wide. “Who cares if they know we’re on to them! If tipping off the enemy is going to save our skin then I say let’s risk it.”
“Jumping to conclusions with no clear plan of action will not ‘save our skin’. We have to keep doing what we’ve been doing for the last year…planning for the worst, hoping for the best and acting like normal. If we suddenly leave school in the middle of the semester, we’ll definitely attract attention to ourselves…especially if we all disappear at once. We don’t even know for sure if those people were enemies anyway. We could be calling attention to ourselves for nothing.” Max argued.
“Plan for the worst and hope for the best?! What the hell kind of…” Kyle’s rant was cut off by a piercing whistle from Alex.
“This is not helping guys. The only reason we make such a great team is because we work together. We don’t always agree, but we do work together.” Alex pointed out. When he saw the others start to quiet down a bit he continued. “I think we are old enough to discuss this without shouting at each other.”
Ava noticed the irritated scowl on Michael's face. She knew that her brother was desperately trying not to lose his patience but all this indecision was obviously grating on his nerves. 'Doing nothing' was definitely not his strong suit. In an effort to diffuse the whole situation, she switched the conversation back to the matter at hand.
“I’m not so sure those people could have been working for Kivar. We might be able to rule him out of the equation right now. He hasn’t exactly been known for using subtly with us in the past. From the information Larek gave us, Kivar doesn’t really sound like a patient man. I doubt he would go to all the trouble of sending spies down here just to follow us around…would he?”
Liz shook her head. “I don’t know. I mean, those people were right there…in the same room as us. If they were working for Kivar you’d think that they would’ve tried to take us out right then and there.”
“OK, so hypothetically if those people were FBI then, what’s the worst thing that could happen if we stay on campus until Friday?” Alex asked.
“They could capture us in our sleep, drag us off to some white room torture chamber…” Kyle trailed off at Alex’s withering glare.
Ava rolled her eyes and revised Kyle’s statement. “Worst case scenario…they try to capture us. Best case scenario…they think we’re idiots because we haven’t caught onto them yet and they get complacent.”
Michael nodded. “That could really work in our favor. If they think we’re too blind to see what’s really going on, they might not be in any hurry to take action. As long as we stay in public we should be OK. If they’re FBI, they won’t want to call too much attention to themselves either so they’ll avoid taking us on in public.”
“So if we run back to Roswell now, it’ll be like provoking them. They’ll come for us right away then.” Isabel mused. She sent an apologetic smile to Liz.
“Look, I’m not saying I love this plan but I guess I can see what you’re saying.” Kyle mumbled. “Shouldn’t we warn our parents though? If those guys were FBI they could have our phones tapped or something, right?”
Maria’s eyes shone with excitement. “Oooh! Leave that part to me. I can call my mom…you know, just to have a random mother daughter chat, and then I’ll feed her enough hints to get the point across. Then, she’ll do the rest of the leg work for us and tell the others.” She said.
Liz and Alex smiled in agreement. They knew that Maria would be the perfect person for the job. FBI agents could have every item in their possession bugged but they’d never be able to catch on to what Maria saying…they didn’t have the necessary Maria filters.
Max smirked in amusement. “I have no problem with that idea. What about you guys?” The others nodded in agreement.
“All right, so for now the plan is to stick around campus and act like nothing’s changed. If these guys are FBI, we’ll be able to use the escape plans we came up with at the beginning of the semester if we have to. If nothing happens, we go home this weekend and see if they follow.” Michael summarized.
Maria turned to Michael. “Would it work better if the guards were on a rotating schedule for now? I mean, won’t it look suspicious if people see us with the same one or two people twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week? I know we never worried about that in the past but if these guys turn out to be FBI…”
Michael nodded. “I like that idea. Any objections?” He asked the others. They all nodded in unison.
Michael addressed Sondra. “OK, then for the rest of the week you’ll have to rotate guard duty.” He said. He quickly outlined a rough plan of how the rotation could work and Liz used a bit of quick thinking to help him to hammer out the details.
They were going to continue acting like everything was normal, as always. Michael hated the thought of doing nothing about this situation but there really was no easy way to solve this. This whole incident could turn out to be nothing. If they could make it through the next few days without any kind of crisis, then they would all head back to Roswell. From there, they planned to have a private little reunion with their parents so they could explain what was going on and hopefully come up with a backup plan.
Chapter 7: Paranoia in the Ranks
Two weeks passed before the pod squad noticed anything was amiss. The gang was right in the middle of a particularly uneventful week when the feathers really started to hit the fan. They all met up at the coffee shop on Tuesday night, and immediately noticed that the soldiers were acting strangely.
As they sipped their lattes, the gang looked around in anticipation. They noticed Valerie, one of the soldiers assigned to café duty, was subtly studying a young couple at a table on the far side of the room. She was rhythmically tapping her fingers on the counter in concentration. Another quick sweep of the room showed Lance, Ava’s guard, sitting at attention, scrutinizing a group of middle aged men sitting on the park bench outside. Soon, the gang’s sense of paranoia kicked in big time.
“Um…is anyone else here getting a little concerned?” Isabel whispered.
She had tried to use her powers to scan the couple in the corner and the men out front. She was so nervous that she couldn’t seem to get a decent reading. The only impressions she got from the men was that they weren’t there specifically to harm her friends and she couldn’t get any reading at all from the couple in the corner. It wasn’t much of a reassurance though given the current state of alert the soldiers were in.
“I vote we find out what’s going on and get the heck out of Dodge. Who’s with me?” Maria muttered.
Max motioned for Valerie and she quickly approached the table. “We’re ready for the check now, Miss. I think we’re done for the night…” He told her, staring intently looking for even a hint of caution in her eyes.
She nodded stoically and quickly wrote up their drink totals on her order pad. When she handed Max the check, he looked at it quickly and then handed her a twenty-dollar bill. “Keep the change,” he mumbled.
Max handed the check to Michael and then addressed the group. “It’s getting late…everyone ready to head out?” He asked nonchalantly.
The others nodded in confusion and rose to follow Max and Michael out the door. Valerie had never charged them for coffee before. They were all dying to know what was written on that slip of paper.
Once they got outside Michael mumbled, “Just keep walking like nothing is going on. We’re just a bunch of random college students heading back to the dorms. Don’t use your cell phones and don’t say anything…unusual…in your rooms until we hear from the guards.”
They made their way back to campus with a few of the guards trailing closely behind. They couldn’t see nearly as many of the soldiers out there as they usually did. For some reason the guards had were straying far from the usual routine and it was making the pod squad unbearably nervous.
As soon as they made it back to the dorms, they parted ways and quickly headed back up to their rooms. Max assured them that the soldiers were right behind them and the best plan of action would be to head back to their rooms like nothing was wrong. He tucked the ‘check’ from the café into Liz’s hand and quickly walked off.
When the girls read the note, it did little to ease their fears.
I think your basket-weaving professor is here. I’ll ask him if you passed your test or if you flunked it. I’ll let you know what he says…
“What the hell is that supposed to mean?!” Maria gasped. The other girls shushed her. Michael told them it might not be safe to talk until they heard from the soldiers, so they really couldn’t discuss the note.
“Do you guys want to hang out here for a little while?” Liz asked, with an overly chipper voice. She was hoping that they wouldn’t sound suspicious if their rooms were bugged but she wanted Isabel and Ava to know they didn’t have to go back to their room alone.
Suddenly there was a knock at the door. “Who is it?” Maria called.
“It’s Sondra,” a voice answered. Isabel rushed over to let her royal guardian into the room.
“What’s going on Sondra?” Ava asked nervously.
“Valerie thought she saw your basket weaving professor in the café earlier.” She began cryptically. “Once she got a closer look at him though, she realized she was mistaken. Not to worry though…I think you passed your test.” She explained vaguely, hoping the girls would catch her true meaning.
Sondra was trying to tell them that she and the other soldiers had been concerned that the people in and around the café earlier might be dangerous. That’s why she modified the pod squad’s agreed upon code phrase and called the strangers ‘basket weaving professors’.
“It’s funny you mention that…I thought I saw one of the basket weaving professors outside the café on that bench…” Maria said.
“Yes, I know just who you are talking about...Lance and Kaden stopped for a chat with those men and found out they are physicists, here for a symposium on electromagnetism.” Sondra replied carefully. She was tapping the desk absent-mindedly as though something was bothering her.
“Well, I’m a bit tired so I’m going to head back to my dorm and catch some sleep.” Sondra added suddenly. “I’ll see you later Isabel?”
The girl’s eyes widened. Sondra was trying to ask Isabel to dreamwalk her. They were sure of it. If she wanted Isabel to dreamwalk her, then there must be more to the story than she’d let on. That would explain why Sondra was so cryptic with everything she said even though she had all but confirmed that the strangers at the café hadn’t been enemies. Perhaps the soldiers were starting to doubt the safety of the group…
Nearly an hour later, Isabel was curled up in bed attempting to find Sondra on the dream plane. She had been successful at gathering all of her friends together, but since she had no photo of Sondra and had never formed a strong emotional connection with her, it was quite difficult to find her. Suddenly, it occurred to Isabel that she should try to mentally call out to Sondra much the same way she could do during waking hours.
As the rest of the group studied their brilliant white surroundings in the dream plane, Sondra suddenly appeared as if out of thin air. The scene around them started changing and soon they felt their collective dream shift to a new location. It now appeared as though they were sitting in the Evans’ living room.
“Ok this is just weird. No offense Isabel, but I seriously feel like I’ve stepped into the Twilight Zone now…” Kyle commented.
“Whatever Kyle. It’s a private place where we can talk. You’ll live…I promise.” Isabel said with a roll of her eyes.
“Sondra, did you need to speak with us? Is that what you meant when you said you’d see Isabel later?” Liz asked.
“Precisely.” Sondra answered. “Thank you for bringing us all together Isabel.” She added before getting down to business.
“At the café tonight, we felt concern over the sudden increase in activity from outsiders. There were far too many unidentified people in your immediate vicinity. Our Earth studies indicated that your FBI often operates in such a manner. They use…what would you call it?” Sondra silently searched her memory for a moment. “Oh yes, undercover agents. They use agents disguised as ordinary humans to infiltrate a group and gather information. That is quite similar to the way Kivar operates as well…”
“So should we be worried or not then?” Isabel asked nervously.
Sondra hesitated a moment. “Our surveillance seems to indicate that the strangers are not of concern but…”
Michael interrupted. “But you’re worried anyway. Why?”
“The couple in the corner of the café appear to be tourists and Valerie wasn’t able to sense any malice in their thoughts. The men sitting on the bench in front of the café had a brief conversation with Lance and Kaden. They claim to be in town for a symposium on electromagnetism and neither Lance or Kaden were able to sense any malice in their thoughts either…” Sondra paused to organize her thoughts.
“At this point we have no evidence that the strangers were a direct threat to any of you, however…instinct is telling us that something isn’t right.” She confessed.
The gang was silent for a moment, trying to assimilate what Sondra had told them. They were relieved to hear that none of the soldiers had sensed an immediate threat from the strangers but at the same time, it was unnerving to find out that the soldiers were still concerned anyway.
“What does that mean? I mean…if those people don’t intend to hurt us then why are you guys still on alert?” Alex asked.
Ava sighed. “Just because those men didn’t purposely want to hurt us right then and there, doesn’t mean they won’t.” She said sadly.
Sondra nodded in agreement. “When a person is acting strictly on orders and has no concern for right or wrong, they don’t feel guilt, anger, hatred…there is no trace of malice in their thoughts…nothing for us to sense.” She explained.
“Oh crap.” Kyle said. “So basically as long as they don’t care whether they hurt us or not, we’ll never see it coming…”
“We don’t really know if that’s the case though.” Max assured Kyle. He turned to Sondra. “Can we sit it out and keep a watch on these people until Friday? After class on Friday, we can head back to Roswell for the weekend. If they turn up there too then we know…” Max suggested.
“It would be possible, Sir. You would have to watch your words carefully and keep your cell phones charged at all times. With certain precautions, I believe that you should be able to remain on campus for the time being.” Sondra mused.
“Now wait just a minute Max! I think we should trust our guards’ intuition on this one…I mean, this could be our lives we’re talking about here!” Isabel burst out. “Plus, we don’t even know if those people were FBI, Kivar’s guys, or just plain old tourists. Those odds are not in our favor!”
“If we just take off for home tomorrow morning, it’ll look too suspicious though. If those guys are really FBI or something, we’ll give away the fact that we’re on to them.” Liz protested, defending Max’s suggestion.
Kyle’s eyes went wide. “Who cares if they know we’re on to them! If tipping off the enemy is going to save our skin then I say let’s risk it.”
“Jumping to conclusions with no clear plan of action will not ‘save our skin’. We have to keep doing what we’ve been doing for the last year…planning for the worst, hoping for the best and acting like normal. If we suddenly leave school in the middle of the semester, we’ll definitely attract attention to ourselves…especially if we all disappear at once. We don’t even know for sure if those people were enemies anyway. We could be calling attention to ourselves for nothing.” Max argued.
“Plan for the worst and hope for the best?! What the hell kind of…” Kyle’s rant was cut off by a piercing whistle from Alex.
“This is not helping guys. The only reason we make such a great team is because we work together. We don’t always agree, but we do work together.” Alex pointed out. When he saw the others start to quiet down a bit he continued. “I think we are old enough to discuss this without shouting at each other.”
Ava noticed the irritated scowl on Michael's face. She knew that her brother was desperately trying not to lose his patience but all this indecision was obviously grating on his nerves. 'Doing nothing' was definitely not his strong suit. In an effort to diffuse the whole situation, she switched the conversation back to the matter at hand.
“I’m not so sure those people could have been working for Kivar. We might be able to rule him out of the equation right now. He hasn’t exactly been known for using subtly with us in the past. From the information Larek gave us, Kivar doesn’t really sound like a patient man. I doubt he would go to all the trouble of sending spies down here just to follow us around…would he?”
Liz shook her head. “I don’t know. I mean, those people were right there…in the same room as us. If they were working for Kivar you’d think that they would’ve tried to take us out right then and there.”
“OK, so hypothetically if those people were FBI then, what’s the worst thing that could happen if we stay on campus until Friday?” Alex asked.
“They could capture us in our sleep, drag us off to some white room torture chamber…” Kyle trailed off at Alex’s withering glare.
Ava rolled her eyes and revised Kyle’s statement. “Worst case scenario…they try to capture us. Best case scenario…they think we’re idiots because we haven’t caught onto them yet and they get complacent.”
Michael nodded. “That could really work in our favor. If they think we’re too blind to see what’s really going on, they might not be in any hurry to take action. As long as we stay in public we should be OK. If they’re FBI, they won’t want to call too much attention to themselves either so they’ll avoid taking us on in public.”
“So if we run back to Roswell now, it’ll be like provoking them. They’ll come for us right away then.” Isabel mused. She sent an apologetic smile to Liz.
“Look, I’m not saying I love this plan but I guess I can see what you’re saying.” Kyle mumbled. “Shouldn’t we warn our parents though? If those guys were FBI they could have our phones tapped or something, right?”
Maria’s eyes shone with excitement. “Oooh! Leave that part to me. I can call my mom…you know, just to have a random mother daughter chat, and then I’ll feed her enough hints to get the point across. Then, she’ll do the rest of the leg work for us and tell the others.” She said.
Liz and Alex smiled in agreement. They knew that Maria would be the perfect person for the job. FBI agents could have every item in their possession bugged but they’d never be able to catch on to what Maria saying…they didn’t have the necessary Maria filters.
Max smirked in amusement. “I have no problem with that idea. What about you guys?” The others nodded in agreement.
“All right, so for now the plan is to stick around campus and act like nothing’s changed. If these guys are FBI, we’ll be able to use the escape plans we came up with at the beginning of the semester if we have to. If nothing happens, we go home this weekend and see if they follow.” Michael summarized.
Maria turned to Michael. “Would it work better if the guards were on a rotating schedule for now? I mean, won’t it look suspicious if people see us with the same one or two people twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week? I know we never worried about that in the past but if these guys turn out to be FBI…”
Michael nodded. “I like that idea. Any objections?” He asked the others. They all nodded in unison.
Michael addressed Sondra. “OK, then for the rest of the week you’ll have to rotate guard duty.” He said. He quickly outlined a rough plan of how the rotation could work and Liz used a bit of quick thinking to help him to hammer out the details.
They were going to continue acting like everything was normal, as always. Michael hated the thought of doing nothing about this situation but there really was no easy way to solve this. This whole incident could turn out to be nothing. If they could make it through the next few days without any kind of crisis, then they would all head back to Roswell. From there, they planned to have a private little reunion with their parents so they could explain what was going on and hopefully come up with a backup plan.
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Island Breeze
- Feedbacking Sci Fi King
- Posts: 1791
- Joined: Sat Jul 02, 2005 11:11 pm
- Location: South Florida
I can appreciate Michael's feelings of wanting to do something. He's an action-oriented guy. And Kyle... 
well, this made me grin actually:
well, this made me grin actually:But Alex is right about working together. Great parts!Kyle’s eyes went wide. “Who cares if they know we’re on to them! If tipping off the enemy is going to save our skin then I say let’s risk it.”
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Gerry
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Hopeless Candy-Coated, Stargazing, Dreamer!
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Gerry
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Hopeless Candy-Coated, Stargazing, Dreamer!
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