Disclaimer:
These characters do not belong to me, but to the writers and producers
of
Spoilers: After Chant Down Babylon, changes happening
where Max is successfully rescued, and Michael was the one who broke up with
Maria.
Pairings: You’ll have to wait and see!
Pronunciation Guide: Sentris Onaxis (SEN – tree OH – nax – sis)
Author’s notes: Queen Fadilia
Kedar: Max/Isabel’s mother
King
Alaric Kedar: Max/Isabel’s father
Andaria: Tess’ mother
Radim:
Tess’ father
Kedrans: race from which Royal Four descended
Iturians: race from which Khivar descended, and
overthrew and killed Zan and the Kedrans
Cerideans: special core ops of the Iturian army, mostly
psyonics and telepaths
Kaptar’s
Jewel: constellation in the
Antarian’s star system
Yun’s
Garment: Aurora Borealis - Northern Lights
Saren Dari: desert plain on
Antar
Chapter Fifty Three
***
We conceal it from ourselves in vain--we must always love something. In
those matters seemingly removed from love, the feeling is secretly to be found,
and man cannot possibly live for a moment without it.
- Pascal Blaise
***
There must be a way out.
Kyle didn't believe that his time
would end like this. It was something
out of a dream. If he hadn't been tied
up he would have pinched himself and realized it was all a dream. As his eyes darted around the iron
cell. Everyone had been placed in the
jail except Isabel. It worried him that
she had been separated from the rest of them.
From the sounds of their captors, they didn't seem like the
investigative type; rather, they seemed more likely to torture and experiment
on her.
It was all so terrifying. Kyle didn't know how to make heads or tails
of the situation. He didn't really even
know what they wanted. Their kidnappers
definitely seemed like military, but there was something about them, which made
Kyle believe they had something specific in mind for Isabel and Max. He had this gut feeling that these
kidnappers were very different from the FBI agents who had been chasing after
Max, Isabel, Michael, and Tess; they wanted something other than proof that
they were aliens.
As he rested uncomfortably against
the bars, his thoughts drifted to the others - Tess and Michael - worrying
about how they were possibly faring. In
his opinion, nothing could possibly be worse than the position he and the rest
of the group were in right now. Or at
least Kyle hoped it wasn't.
~~~
"So did you talk with her
too?" Tess asked hesitantly; she peered up from the thin journal-like
scroll to see Michael standing in the entranceway.
"She talked with me,
yeah."
He was reserved and enigmatic. As Tess watched him cross the sparsely
decorated room, she couldn't help but wonder what they spoke about. Her conversation with Fadilia had been less
than light, and unexpectedly serious and deep in a frightening way. And as
Michael sat down on the tan, leather chair, which was positioned near her
bedside, she surmised his encounter with Fadilia had followed a similarly
intense tone.
"What are you
thinking?" She tilted her head
slightly, as a curious puppy would, when looking up its' master, setting down
the clear thin writing tool, Enime had provided her only a few hours ago.
"What do you mean?" His brow was furrowed and the expression on
his face was one of thoughtfulness and brooding.
He was definitely not in a good
mood.
Tess sighed. "Look Michael, I know you aren't
the chatty type, but I don't feel like dragging out, whatever it is, on your
mind." She slid her legs in front
of her, crossing it Indian style, and sitting upright. "You obviously want to say
something, or you wouldn't be sitting in my room right now," Tess pointed
out knowingly.
Michael set his jaw, meeting her
wary gaze. "It was nothing,"
he said dismissively. "She wanted
to know about Isabel...so I told her."
Tess bit her bottom lip and rolled
her shoulders back, leaning back on her hands.
"You didn't like talking about her?" she asked tentatively.
He seemed hesitant to answer. "Why shouldn't I like talking about
Isabel?" Michael said curtly.
Michael's feelings for Isabel were
quite obvious, but yet had been unspoken.
As she watched Michael's behavior and the way he was reacting to her
questions, Tess couldn't help but wonder if Fadilia had managed to draw the
strength of his feelings for Isabel from the aloof Second in Command. It would have been a sight to see - Michael
willingly expressing his emotions.
"Well if that's the case, then
why are you getting so snippy?" she countered, eyeing Michael closely.
There was no reason for him to take
his bad mood out on her.
"I'm not 'snippy'," he
barked, folding his arms across his chest and sliding back into his seat. It made him seem even more aloof and
withdrawn.
"Yes you are."
There was a quiet pause. Neither came back with another reply.
It was awkward, but Tess was
resolute not to back down. Even though
she felt sorry for him, it didn't mean she would let him snap at him,
especially when he sought her out.
"Why do you think she keeps
talking about 'faith'?" he said tersely; there was edginess to his
voice. "I didn't think aliens
believed in that stuff..." His
voice trailed off.
Tess licked her lips, trying to
swallow the lump that had developed in her throat, which kept her from
answering his question. She pushed down
her annoyance at Michael's bratty attitude and sighed. "Why do you think that they
wouldn't?"
"Well, I thought that aliens
were supposedly highly evolved?"
Tess shook her head and groaned. "I thought you would know better,"
she glared tiredly at Michael.
"Just because they might be different, doesn't mean they don't have
the same questions and problems we do, Michael." She leaned forward, until she could slide onto her stomach and
rest her chin against the palms of her hands.
"You know how we think...how aliens think. Do you think they're so much different from
us? Even if we didn't grow up on
another planet?"
Michael shrugged. "I just never thought that there would
be this whole 'God' thing here too. I
only thought it was a human way of dealing with the unknown and an easy 'out'
when they want to either blame or excuse the things that happen here...I mean,
there, on Earth," he mumbled.
"It's weak to believe in that stuff."
Tess couldn't say that she blamed
Michael for being so skeptical about the whole idea of a 'Higher Power'
creating the infinite number of stars, galaxies, and planets - some 'Being'
watching over them day and night. It
never crossed her mind much; she was too focused on her search for the other
'three' and mostly with Max. But every
now and then, the idea of an all-knowing, all-seeing God wasn't didn't seem
like such a far fetched thing; not when she was an alien hybrid living on Earth
and searching for her 'soulmate' because of their destiny. No, sometimes God didn't seem so
implausible.
"It's what got us here,
right?" Tess looked questioningly
at Michael. "I mean, their
Prophecy, our destiny, is why we're here in the first place; it's why there are
hundreds of people in this hidden mountain base, biding their time before they
strike out at Khivar." She
blinked, stunned at the words that flowed passed her lips. "Look," Tess sighed, pushing aside
her wonder at the sudden outpouring of 'belief'. "I'm not saying I believe that there is a 'God', in fact,
I'm having a hard time believing it, but the more time I spend with these
people, the harder time I'm having not believing some of it."
"But we know 'The Prophecy' is
bull," he said irritably.
"Isabel and Max are back on Earth with their perspective 'husband'
and 'wife', and there's nothing we can do about it. So you tell me how it's possible to have 'faith'?"
Tess lowered her gaze and ran her
fingers through her long curly locks, which she had brushed earlier, while
preparing for bed. "That's where
I'm having a little bit of trouble," she groaned agreeably. Tess lifted her head and pursed her lips, remembering something regrettable she had
said. "I told Fadilia earlier that
Max cured me of that problem..."
Michael looked curiously at her.
"What problem?"
"Of believing that he would
really ever love me," she whispered, embarrassed at the words, which
voiced her schoolgirl hopes. "I
told her that 'Max cured me of that curse', and then ran out of the room."
"You didn't!" Michael
exclaimed in disbelief, as he leaned forward in his chair. Tess nodded her head sheepishly. "Wow, that's impressive, " he
laughed. "I thought I had brought
out the big guns when I told Fadilia that I loved Isabel."
"But why would that shock
her?" she asked curiously. "I
think she already knew that."
Michael seemed to take in her words,
as he leaned back into his chair again.
He nodded slowly. "I
guess."
Tess rolled his eyes. "So we pretty much got the same pep
talk, huh?" she said dryly, stifling a smile. "How pathetic are we?"
Michael looked up at her, as if it ask, 'Do you really want to know'? Tess dismissed Michael's furrowed expression
and slid off her bed, walking towards her desk. "I'm tired of talking about them. There's a lot more to be thinking about than 'the two who were'
in our lives." She reached over to
her right and picked up a sliver-mounted frame, which had suddenly appeared
after her visit with the Queen. Within
the embossed sliver frame was a picture of her and Zander. She was kneeling by the seashore, and
Zander, only seven months old back then, was clinging to her index fingers as
he stood uncertainly on his tiptoes.
"Do you want to see a picture of Zander?" Tess turned around and held the frame
outward against her chest.
"Wow, that's Zander?"
Michael said with a tinge of amazement in his voice, as he rose from his seat
and walked to where Tess stood. She
held out the picture. "He'll be
one soon," she said wistfully, as she allowed him to take the frame. Tess pressed close and stared joyfully over
Michael's shoulder at her pride and joy.
"He's beautiful."
Tess looked up at Michael and
studied his face, determining whether his words were sincere or said out of obligation. His dark brown eyes looked down upon her
with a gentleness she had never seen before.
She blinked and turned her gaze back to the picture and nodded. "He is, isn't he?"
"We'll get him back,"
Michael said reassuringly.
Tess swallowed hard, feeling her
shoulders and back tense at the mention of Zander's situation. She hadn't heard any reports about her son
in days; and though she had not had any more dreams about his torture, Tess was
no more reassured of his safety, not when he was in Khivar's hands. The Iturian could have done any number of
various experiments or mind-altering procedures since she had returned to
Earth.
"He's what I believe in,
Michael," she said distractedly, accepting the picture from Michael. "And no one's going to take him from
me."
~~~
Michael strode down the dark
corridor; his only guide was the narrow trail of lights, which were lit every
other light. It was evening and the
colony conserved its energy by cutting off excess lights when unnecessary. He still was unsure of the sharp twists and
turns of the mountain structure, so he added a little light of his own to the
situation. As he approached his own
quarters, Michael's thoughts trailed off to this evening’s conversation.
Fadilia seemed wise and
knowledgeable in her age, and as he recalled his conversation with her, Michael
departing impression of the woman was that she truly believed in what she was
saying. In fact, she seemed to say it
with such a confidence, like it wasn't a possibility, but an expected
reality. He had told Tess that Fadilia
was weak to believe that 'God' would work it all out, but the more he thought
about it, the more he realized, in his heart, he hoped that he was wrong. Michael wanted to be wrong about God. Because if he was wrong, there was still a
chance to be with Isabel.
Michael sighed, rubbing his neck
with his free hand. He turned the left
corner and saw the outline of the entranceway to his room.
There was a lot at stake in the next
few days. It was crucial that they turn
the tables on Khivar as soon as possible - the more time he had, the bigger the
possibility of more casualties, especially the ones closest to them...well, to
Tess.
Michael pressed his hand against the
silver imprint to his right, and entered his pitch-black room. As soon as he walked in, the lights lit up,
affecting a shadowy atmosphere within his quarters. He flopped onto his bed and reached out to his left, grabbing the
thin black wallet lying on the nightstand.
Michael opened the useless carry-on and pulled out of its worn sleeve a
picture - taken at The Crashdown - of their last prom. It was a sentimental thing to stare
longingly at it; Michael knew that.
Everything about that time seemed so much simpler; now, he had a crumbling
world to save, and he didn't even know how he was planning on doing it.
As he flipped onto his back, Michael
propped a pillow behind his head and stared at Isabel's happy face. She had gone through so much in that
year. Alex, who had his arm around her
waist, was gone - a loss everyone felt.
Michael closed his eyes and thought about Isabel's big decision - had
she made it already? Was Jesse back in
her loving arms? Was she now free to
live the normal life that she had always wanted?
~~~
Max saw darkness as he reached out
for his sister in the void. He had
never attempted to contact anyone in his way before; in fact, he didn't even
know if he was capable of doing it, but there was no other way.
As he fumbled around in the
darkness, unable to acclimate himself to the ethereal sensation, Max groped for
any link to his sister's conscious.
"Isabel?"
While he stood in the darkness, Max
wasn't sure if he was imagining it, but the surroundings seemed to change. As he walked into the silent abyss, his
hands held out in front of him as if he might walk into something, the
impenetrable darkness gave way into a serene blue tapestry. The inscrutable, yet fluid cobalt blue vacuum
encroached upon him, sealing him into an undefined space, with no boundaries or
limitations. It was as if he were
standing on nothing. There was no
floor, ceiling or walls.
"Max?" Isabel's voice
called in the distance.
Max spun around, attempting to
pinpoint the exact location where the voice had originated. "Where are you?" he asked
tersely. "Are you all right?"
"Help," Isabel's voice
pleaded. Her voice seemed to warble, as
if filtered by some unknown element.
"How can I find you?"
Max was now frantically searching
for his lost sister, pawing at his untouchable surroundings. His mind raced as he tried to make contact
with his sister. Suddenly, as if his
prayer had been heard, a dim light shone ahead in the distance. The pinprick of luminescence served to guide
Max forward and onto an unexpected, well laid path. It weaved to and fro, as if he were snaking up a hiking trail,
but seemed hapless and a waste of time as he could see it led straight
ahead. So Max, impatient at the
pointless journey, decided to take a shortcut, straight across the winding
trail and up to the source of the light, but as soon as he stepped off the
firmly marked trail, all traces of the path and light vanished into the sea of
blue.
He was unable to explain what had
happened. It was as if he'd stepped off
a cliff, or someone had erased the trail.
Max spun around, searching for any explanation of the vanishing act that
had been performed right before his eyes.
There was none.
Max swallowed hard, his heart now
threatening to jump out of his chest - it beat so hard against him. "What happened?" he cried out to
Isabel.
"Max? Max hurry.
They've
come for us."
The vague, cryptic message only
served to heighten his anxiety and alert him to the certain danger his sister,
Kyle and Maria were in. Max closed his
eyes and let out a ragged breath.
Everything was happening so fast.
Max took a step back, retracing his
steps and suddenly found himself staring out at the minute ray of light, which
beckoned him. He looked down at his
feet and saw a shadowed trail marked out for him once more. After taking a breath, Max carefully
followed the path laid out before him, unwilling to stray once again, for fear
of losing a chance to connect with his sister.
"I'm coming Isabel," Max
called, racing up the smooth trail.
"Hurry." The voice grew closer with every step he
took towards the light.
When Max was only a few steps from
the light, which had suddenly become three times as large as it had been from
the outset of his journey, a radiant flash of red enveloped him and he stopped
dead in his tracks.
"So you have come," an
ominous voice chuckled, as a glowing red orb floated in front of him,
obstructing the only path to his sister.
Max narrowed his eyes at the
faceless voice. "Who are
you?" he growled.
"You will see soon enough. We will meet on the battlefield, where I
will watch your slow, painful death..." the voice answered gleefully. "Again."
"Why did you take them?"
Max shouted angrily. "It sounds
like you only want me."
There was a silent pause, as the red
orb hovered only inches from Max's face.
"It made things simpler," it replied. "Besides, this makes things more
interesting. Everything has been such
tedium since your return. I needed to
make it a trifle bit sporting."
The red orb began to tremble, as the arrogant voice laughed maliciously.
Max clenched his teeth and stared
confidently at the wavering orb.
"Khivar sent you, didn't he?"
His fingers formed a tight fist.
"Or is that you, Khivar?" he said accusingly.
"Khivar doesn't have time to
spend on a waste of breath like you, Zan," the voice scoffed. "He has better things to do with his
time...such as become 'Ruler of Sentris Onaxis."
Max felt his chest tighten as the
words struck a familiar cord.
Sentris Onaxis is the name of our
system.
"How simpleminded your buried
ancestors were," the voice rumbled with delight. "Your return was hailed as the 'Unseen's Revelation'. Peace would reign over Antar at the One's
Prophecy; and you, the
"How sad the prophecy will be
soon thwarted; and the true 'Beholder of Authority' will take his rightful
place on the throne! And I will be
honored as the one who delivered your head on a silver patter."
Max felt a surge of energy fill him
and as his nameless enemy continued to hover before him, taunting him; he
reached out and grabbed hold of the floating object and brought it in towards
him. The globe brightened, as if in
surprise at Max's unexpected reaction, and began to emit a warm sensation
beneath his fingertips. He knew what
the intruder was attempting, and Max would not be turned back; he would get to
Isabel, doing whatever he needed to locate his sister.
As the pulsing orb began to seer his
fingertips, Max looked toward the fading light that was his sister and clenched
his teeth in renewed determination.
Staring down at the orb, which had begun to pull away, trying to free
itself from his grip - he only held on tighter. Max focused his concentration on the ominous being, which stood
in his way of reaching Isabel, and right before his eyes, the orb began to
cool. A swirl of colored smoke began to
cloud the piercing red brilliance that had shone from the globe. The heat, which had sent sharp pains through
the palm of his hands and up his forearms, had subsided.
Max slowly let go of the essence of
enemy and watched as it continued to hover uncertainly before him. The orb changed colors before his eyes - a
menacing crimson red to a foreboding ebony - and slowly began to implode,
leaving a shower of black ash before his feet.
"Max!"
Max snapped his head up and saw
Isabel running towards him. She was
pale and wet. Her clothes clung to her
body and her mascara was smudged with the appearance of dark circles under her
eyes. "Isabel," he gasped, as
his arms welcomingly wrapped around her damp body. "What happened?
Where are you?"
Isabel shook her head and swallowed,
trying to catch her breath. "They
came out of nowhere, Max. I don't know
what happened," she said, her words muffled by her hand, which was pressed
against her lips. "They came in
like a storm and knocked me out before I could stop them. Did they take everyone?"
"They took Kyle, Maria, but
left Jesse," he explained somberly.
"Do you know why they left Jesse?
Where did he come from?"
Isabel glanced furtively over her
shoulder. "I don't know," she
said frantically. "They were in
these weird uniforms and they knew exactly who I was. They are not FBI, Max."
She looked over her shoulder again, as if she were expecting someone.
Max smoothed her dripping wet hair
back from her eyes and forced her to concentrate on him and answering his
questions. "Why are you wet?"
he frowned, pulling at her clingy clothes.
Isabel looked down as if she had
been unaware of her wet state. "I
don't know," she gulped uneasily.
"You have to find them Max.
I can't find my way out...I can't help them."
The urgency in her voice frightened
Max. He had a feeling that her captor
knew exactly how to subdue her and keep her from being a threat. "All right," he said calmly,
licking his lips as he pondered their situation. "Do you know where you are?"
Isabel shook her head. "I have no clue," she said
tensely. Once more Isabel looked back
at the nonexistent surroundings. "But
it must be the same place Jesse came from.
You have to find out...” her voice trailed as the surroundings darkened
behind her. Isabel turned around within
Max's grasp and stumbled back.
The surroundings had darkened; the
serene blue veil had transformed into a horrifying blood red. As Max gaped at the sight, he found the air
had thickened, and it was extremely difficult for him to take a breath. He pulled Isabel close to him and began to
back away from the looming surroundings.
"This is one game you do not
want to play," the voice boomed.
"I have your precious little family, including your human familial
ties. And if you value their lives, I
suggest you leave."
Max felt a force pulling Isabel from
his grasp. As her fingers slipped from
his grasp, Max watched helplessly as Isabel was being sucked into the red void
that surrounded them. Isabel strained
against its overwhelming pull, but was unable to gain ground against the
thickening red form that had begun to envelope her. Max fell to his knees, as the dense atmosphere provided no air
for his body.
"Isabel!" he cried, as he
gasped for air.
~
* ~
"Isabel!" Max swallowed hard and found himself on the
ground with Liz and Jesse on either side of him. He inhaled deeply, as if he had just run out of air, resting his
forehead against the carpeted floor.
"Max, are you all right?"
Liz asked worriedly.
He glanced up at her, realizing he
was no longer within Isabel's psyche, and shook her head. "She doesn't know where they are,
Liz."
"What do you mean?" Jesse
cried, his expression full of angst and horror. "How can you not know where she is?"
Max closed his eyes and ran his
fingers through his hair, which was wet from perspiration. "She was out the entire time. She couldn't give me any idea where she
was," he sighed in frustration.
"I don't think she was even awake when I spoke to her."
"Then what are we going to
do?" Liz asked tersely; her hands moved uncertainly, as she was unable to
decide where to put them.
"Are we just going to let them
die? If that's what they want with her
in the first place?" Jesse said accusingly.
Max looked up at Jesse. "You're going to help us find
them." His voice lowered and his
eyes locked with his brother-in-law.
"I swear to God, if I have to search every inch of your mind, I'm going
to find out where they are."
~~~
I need to find a way out.
Isabel drifted in the
dreamscape-like painting, unaware of where she was or what this henchman of
Khivar's wanted. The last thing she
remembered was seeing Kyle and Maria being held back as one of the kidnappers
plunged a sharp object into her neck.
It was black and cold where she was.
Isabel felt like she was floating; unable to grasp any point of reality
in her unconscious, yet very aware state.
As she struggled to awake from the treacherous slumber, some unknown
force held her there - it felt like she was drowning.
Maybe I am drowning.
~~~
The General stood in the vast
darkness, with only the rhythmic waves of air escaping sounding within the
large dome-like base, as a dim pulsing purple luminescence filled the range of
his vision. He was stunned by the
beauty of it all.
Silently admiring the floating
figure within the glass encasement, the General moved forward and pressed his
right hand against the clear stasis unit, which had been built for such an
event as this. He peered up at the
curvaceous human form, which apparently in human terms, was deemed beautiful
and in her prime, caressing the smooth surface, as if able to touch the
creature's salacious form. How I
have long awaited for this pleasure.
He shuddered in ecstasy. So
close, you are. I have waited for this
moment...dreamt of this moment; and I will savor each agonizing cry, your
brother's helpless contempt, as you suffer your timely end. The General tapped gently against the glass
tubing and surveyed the thin black cords, which was the hybrid's only means of
life within the liquid filled tank.
"Don't worry Princess
Vilandra," he cooed soothingly.
"It will be over soon."
He paused and the corners of his thin lips curled slightly; as his eyes
narrowed, his focus intent on the hapless captive, who was buoyed by the thin
liquid compound within the glass containment field, he pressed his lips against
the glistening surface. "It
will be all over soon."