Transformation
By DocPaul
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Transformation
Part 1
Life was a bitch, bitter and cruel in its need to pull
every ounce of suffering from those damned. It was late at night and the room
was quiet, as those not troubled by conscience slept the dreamless sleep of the
innocent. Tess moved through the room as quietly as she could. Stopping for a
moment, she leaned down and kissed her son as he slept.
The rest were in the living room. It was hard to find the
one she was looking for, but she did find him. Maria, Michael and Kyle slept on
the floor together. Michael was sleeping on his side with Maria next to him,
cuddled closely into his body for warmth. Kyle was on the other side of Maria.
Tess knelt staring at the human girl who had never trusted
or liked her. Maria never tried to be her friend, and her vote to turn her in
was completely understandable. Michael was the same. He had almost died at her
hands, turned over to his enemies. Had he only not left the chamber, all of them
would have been dead, even her son. There would’ve been no one to bring him
back to. Guess she owed Maria for that as well. It was because of her that
Michael refused to leave.
Kyle.
Tess searched his face for a moment. Sighing in grief, she
wished she could see his eyes once again. See him as he once looked upon her,
but that expressions was gone now. Leaning down, she placed a hand on his chest
and gently kissed his lips as he slept.
“I’m so sorry. Forgive me,” she whispered. The skin
beneath her hand warmed from where it laid on Kyle’s chest, and the regret she
felt for the betrayal she had served him weighed on her far more than the
betrayal of the others. Kyle had been something she had loved.
Tess knelt by the arm of the couch, and whispered to Liz,
wanting to wake her, but no one else, “Liz. Wake up.”
Startled, Liz gasped when she saw Tess. Propping herself up
on her elbows she whispered back heavily. “What??”
“Why didn't you vote against me?”
“Because I'm not a killer, Tess.”
Tess understood. Liz surely was a killer, but she needed a
distinction between herself and Tess in Max’s eyes. “I need a favor. I need
you to drive me somewhere.”
They drove to a hill overlooking
“Max loves you. Every time we were together. Every time
we kissed, he was thinking of you. He had these flashes … that I saw … and
… they were always of you.”
Liz looked straight ahead. It helped, but not really. Yes,
Max had thought of her, but he had still been with Tess despite it all. “Why
are you telling me this?”
“Because I know how much it must've hurt you.” They
studied each other for a moment, then Liz said, “So you're really gonna go do
this, huh?”, indicating the Air Force Base.
“At least I can do one good thing with my life.” Tess
laughed more at herself. “The tribe has spoken, and despite how they voted …
how you voted, I know how it
should’ve gone. This isn’t about you anyway, or even Max. It’s about Zan.
I’m his mother, and his safety is all I can care about.” She turned to get
out of the car, but turned back when Liz made a comment.
“You just did.” Liz told the girl, though one act of
goodness hardly absolved her. Tess nodded moving to get out of the car. “Hey,
Tess. You're not gonna let them throw you in the White Room, are you?”
“No.” Tess stopped before leaving one last time. “You
know how you said you’re not a murderer?” Liz nodded. “Sorry about that
too. I’m sorry you felt you had to lie.”
She exited, leaving a confused Liz in the car. She marched
down towards the chain link fence. Vaporizing a hole in it, she walked on
through into the compound.
Liz sat waiting in the car, uncertain whether Tess would
return or not. Suddenly there were sounds of confrontation from the base;
sirens, helicopters, loudspeakers. It was followed almost immediately by a
tremendous flash of light that split the night. Liz ducked gasping in disbelief
as the Rogers Air Force Base Complex exploded in a blast resembling a nuclear
bomb.
Liz’s hands shook on the steering wheel as she slowly sat
up to see the devastation. The peristaltic wave front had rocked the Cheville.
Her hand went to her mouth and at that moment she understood what Tess meant.
She was a murderess. The sounds of emergency vehicles sounded in the night fast
approaching ground zero. In one last ironic blow, Tess made her an accessory to
the murder of all the men on Rogers Air Force Base.
Back at the apartment, a glass of water vibrated from the
distant explosion, the windows rattled, and the baby cried, disturbed out of his
sleep. Kyle sat up suddenly gasping in pain, his hand going to chest rubbing it
unconsciously.
Michael sat up with Maria.
“What the hell was that?”
18
months post-graduation…
“Is he dead?”
“Not yet.” Michael stood up, wiping a shaking hand
across his mouth. “Now he is.”
Looking down at a weary Maria laid out on the floor, a
slash marring her face, he groaned as he gathered her in his arms.
“Michael,” she whispered in his chest. “Is he really
dead?”
“Yes.” Michael kissed her forehead rocking her in his
arms. “He won’t hurt you again.” Looking down at her, he tilted her face
upward to him, his hand palming her cheek. Leaning in, he kissed her softly,
mindful of the pain he could cause. Maria could feel the warmth of his hand as
he healed her, their breaths mingling as their bodies tuned to the same
biorhythm.
“Thank you.” Maria’s arm went around his neck,
hugging her husband closer to her.
“God, I’m sorry he got by me!” Michael held her so
tightly, she squeaked in protest. “Sorry.”
Maria nodded, stealing time with him.
“Did he hurt you anywhere else?”
“My leg.”
Michael looked along her inner thigh, high up on her leg.
The bruising …
“Maria, did he …?” Michael choked back the nausea.
“No. Not that.” Maria quickly reassured Michael. “I
was on my way out the escape route, and he pulled me back by my leg. His grip
was painful.”
Michael placed his hand on her leg healing the bruised
flesh under his hand. He looked up at her, their eyes meeting, hers in pain and
his in remorse.
“God, Maria …”
“Don’t.” Maria kissed him. It was going to be okay.
He had gotten there in time. “Can we leave?”
“Yeah.” Michael stood, pulling her up with him, his
arms remaining around her. They gazed at the pile of ash at their feet. Another
Skin gone.
~~~
Michael and Maria sat together on the sofa as the others
discussed the events of the day. Another city, another Skin attack... It was
becoming routine. No matter how far they went, the Skins kept finding them. They
had only been in that town for three weeks, their apartment was bare. Maria and
Michael were the only ones with jobs, and it wasn’t making enough to feed
them. Liz had a job, but she was having problems with coming into contact with
people. The premonitions were increasing, and they were all bad.
“How do they keep finding
us?” Kyle complained in frustration. He had a lead on a job. It would’ve
been nice to settle down for a few months.
“I don’t care how.” Michael told them. “This time
they got too close, and Maria got hurt.”
“Michael …”
“Don’t try to pacify me, Max. It was close. He cut her!
If I hadn’t healed her, she would have a cut on her face for life. Maybe you
don’t care, but I do.”
“Oh course he cares,” Liz assured Michael. She stared
at Maria who hadn’t said much since she and Michael got home. “Are you okay,
Maria?”
Maria nodded her head. She leaned into Michael. “It was
my own fault. Michael taught me to defend myself, but I panicked. I don’t know
why.” She frowned at her own ineffectiveness. Michael had trained her to
fight, how to escape, and he made quick escape routes for her at her job
including rendezvous points for them to meet up again should they become
separated. “I panicked.”
“It’s okay, Maria.” Isabel laid a hand on Maria’s
arm. She was shocked to feel the other girl’s reaction. Maria drew away in
fear. Isabel slowly took her hand away.
“I’m sorry. I’m going to go lie down until it’s
time to pack and leave.” Maria squeezed Michael’s hand before leaving the
room. The aliens would talk amongst themselves, and that didn’t include her.
She was still human.
“Michael?” Isabel was confused by Maria reaction.
Michael shook his head, uncertain if Maria had told him the
truth about the bruises on her leg. Maria never lied to him, but then again this
was something she might not want him to have to live with.
“Look, I’m tired of this. We need a break.” Michael
was speaking loudly and angrily. He was scared. Tonight had been too close. Much
too close. If he hadn’t shown up when he did, Maria would’ve been dead.
“They’re not just targeting us. They targeted Maria, and that means they
know about her. How can they know about her unless they’re watching?”
Liz glanced at her husband. “Max? What? Should we
leave?”
“We have to since they know where we are.” Max rubbed
his tired eyes. He had just worked a double shift as an extra. They had no more
work for him, so he was unemployed again. The money helped, but things were
tough on the road. They needed a new vehicle, and a stolen one was searched for
too quickly.
Kyle paced in agitation. He could feel it inside. Rage.
Anger. Fear. Too many emotions to feel and sort out. It was hard. His pacing had
increased as they had been talking. “Run? I just got a possible job lined up.
We can’t just keep running … scurrying away like cockroaches running from
the light. We need money. We need rest. And dammit, I wanna work! Anything to
break of the monotony and give me a taste of normal.”
A lamp next to Kyle exploded. The group sat in stunned
silence, each looking at the other, uncertain about who did what. Michael shook
his head. It wasn’t him. The year and a half away from
“It wasn’t me,” Liz denied. “I only get
premonitions, not active power anymore. At least not in the last year.”
“I think it was me,” said Kyle, confessing to something
he couldn’t understand, but just knew. “I felt this rage, and it just seemed
to jump out of me almost in a stream.”
Michael moaned. “Great. It’s not like we’re not
exposed enough, now we’ve got Kyle’s powers coming online.”
“It’s not something I asked for,” Kyle reminded him.
“Right.” Michael got up. “I’m gonna check on
Maria.”
“Michael, we haven’t finished talking about what
we’re going to do!” Max hated the way Michael found it so easy to just walk
out when he didn’t like things. He wasn’t much into resolving issues.
“What’s there to talk about? My wife almost died
tonight. We’re exposed again. Time to leave.” Michael rubbed the back of his
neck in irritation. “I had it right originally. When I left
“The question is how do they keep finding us?” Kyle
asked the others.
“That is a good question,” said Michael. He was tired.
“Look, I worked all night, killed a Skin, and I need a shower to get rid of
the smell of the bar. I’m gonna try to get some sleep before we have to leave.
You come up with anything earth shattering, wake us.”
“Michael …” Isabel called after him.
“Let him go.” Max told her. He glanced at Liz. “How
many times is this now?”
“Thirty-six in the last three months. They’re finding
us, and I don’t know how.” Liz looked at the small journal she started
keeping when they first noticed the added reports of alien sightings, and
recorded incidents of missing people. “The Skins were trapped here on Earth,
but during Isabel’s wedding Kivar had a new technology, the wormhole that
could transport her back to Antar. So even without the Granilith, they must be
able to return home if they want to.”
“Then the question should be,” said Isabel, “why are
they actively searching for us? Why are we still important? Max and Tess’s
baby was human, so it can’t be this stupid idea that we belong in pairs. So
what is it?”
Kyle tossed himself into a chair wincing as it groaned from
his weight. The furnished apartment they rented had furniture from the fifties.
“I’m more interested in why there’re so many reports of alien activity.
More people are claiming to have been taken, and the incidents of unexplained
use of power. Remember the Dupes are still out there. Something is going on.”
Max was quiet. It was true. Every newspaper was reporting
unexplained events, people missing time, and increase in violence in the
streets. The FBI was on full alert, with an increase in terrorist activities.
Most of it was being attributed to terrorists, but some of the incidents were
easily attributed to aliens.
“We need help.” Max said.
~~~
Michael stood in the doorway watching her sleep. He clad
only in a towel. He had showered before coming to bed. She looked so small.
Closing his eyes, he took deep breaths trying to clear the increased nausea. She
never laughed anymore.
Michael saw the gleam of her wedding ring where is rested
on her finger, curled in the hand she was sleeping on. Married. He had shocked
her with that request. It still bothered him that she hadn’t expected him to
want to marry her, but after eight months on the road, he needed it more than
she did. He wanted her to know that no matter what, they were together till
death do them part, and maybe even longer than that. He had stayed on Earth for
her, and she had walked away from her world, her mother and the only home she
ever had for him. It meant everything. The wedding and the ring was a symbol of
his commitment, one that he didn’t always vocalize, but one that she could see
by just looking down.
“Michael?”
He followed her soft voice as she sensed his presence. She
looked up at him, holding back the covers. He tossed the towel and climbed into
the warmth of the bed, and the comfort of her body.
“Are we leaving? Did they decide?”
“No,” Michael said bitterly. “When have they ever
decided anything without it not being some damn three day conference, followed
by a consultation of the old Parker Eight Ball?”
“Michael …”
“I know.” Michael kissed her forehead. She hated it
when there was dissension among them. In truth, he hated it too, but he was sick
of living his life based on Liz’s premonitions. “Maria, do you love me?”
Maria sat up looking down at him with a crooked smile.
“If you have to ask, then I’m definitely doing something wrong.”
“Tell me that the Skin tonight … tell me that he
didn’t rape you.”
“He didn’t. I was scrambling up the ladder to the upper
escape door you created. He grabbed my leg and brought me back down. I think he
was more set on killing me.” Maria sniffed. “The cut was my fault. I stabbed
him with the knife when he caught me. He took it out of his gut and did a
backhand slash.” Maria rubbed her forehead to relieve the tension. “I
didn’t parry correctly. I know I was supposed to weave, but I bobbed instead,
and the blade caught me.”
“I should’ve been there.”
“You were.”
Michael pulled her back in his arms. “I was watching him
from the bar. I lost him in the smoke and dim lights for a moment. It took a few
seconds for me to realize he had gone into the back stage area … that you were
there.” Michael looked at her. “Those few moments of hesitation almost cost
me you.”
Maria put her hands on his face, resting her forehead to
his. “It wasn’t your fault. It was mine. I know how to kill a Skin, but I
felt this panic, and I ran. It was a mistake. It gave him a chance to grab
me.”
Michael quickly kissed her and then forced her to meet his
eyes. “You didn’t answer my question. Do you love me?”
“Yes.” Maria was uncertain why he felt compelled to
ask. He already knew.
“Good. I need you to keep loving me, Maria. I need it
because I’m going to ask something from you … something you might not want
to do.”
Maria held her breath. He was going to order her to leave
him … to get to safety away from him. She choked back a need to cry, to
immediately refuse. It wasn’t a test. He was in dead earnest. She knew this
was coming or something like it. Tonight, when he saw the cut on her cheek, the
emotions that moved over his face, the look in his eyes told her that he was at
the end of his endurance.
“Michael …” It slipped out. She couldn’t help it.
Leave him? She couldn’t imagine it.
“Leave with me. I want to split away from the others, go
our separate way.” Maria gave a strangled cry, her arm going fiercely around
his neck, holding him close. Together. “Yes,” she whispered against the skin
of his neck. Yes. Anything he wanted, as long as they stayed together.
~~~
Kyle tossed in his sleep, disturbed and uncomfortable. His
hand came to rest on his naked chest as he unconsciously rubbed it in his sleep.
Beneath his sleeping hand a warmth generated, illuminating the room. Moaning,
Kyle turned over, his brow furling as he dreamt of a world with three suns,
seven moons, and a red sky.
~~~
“Are they awake yet?” Max asked Liz as he poured
himself a cup of coffee.
Isabel looked over her shoulder from where she was cooking
pancakes. “Does it matter? You know he’ll be unhappy with us.”
Kyle entered into the kitchen. He looked tired. When he saw
Isabel at the stove he groaned. “God! What is Isabel doing cooking?”
“It’s her turn.” Liz informed him.
“It can’t be! My stomach is still upset from the last
time.”
“Thanks, Kyle.” Isabel said shooting him a nasty glare.
Jesse never complained. Isabel sniffed, turning back to her burning pancakes.
Some people were so ungrateful.
“So what we talking about?” Kyle asked sitting down at
the table hoping for fresh squeezed juice, but settling for the stuff
reconstituted from concentrate.
“Michael and Maria,” Liz answered.
“Oh him. Yeah, he’s gonna be pissed that we still
haven’t made a decision.”
“I don’t know that we have many options,” Max
observed. “Liz looked at our money situation last night. We barely have enough
to pay this month’s bills, and leaving would be hard with the van needing
repairs and no gas money.”
“I might have that job. It would help if there was more
money coming in than just from Michael bartending and Maria’s singing.” Kyle
was hoping the garage would call today. He’d like to have a reason to get away
from the others even for a few hours a day.
“If the Skins know where we are, how can we just stay
here?” Isabel wondered, placing a
plate of pancakes in front of Kyle. “I don’t think we have much of a choice
here, Max. They know, and that isn’t going to change.”
“No, it’s not,” said Michael as he came into the
kitchen. Maria followed him. She looked pale, and Liz frowned when she noticed a
slight tremor in her hands.
“Maria, are you okay?”
“No, she’s not.” Michael informed Liz.
“Michael, please.” Maria sat down at the table away
from the others, careful so they wouldn’t touch her. A thin layer of moisture
gathered on her upper lip as her stomach soured at the sight of the pancakes.
“Oh god!” She was out of the room.
“Maria!” Michael followed.
The room was silent. They could hear Maria being sick and
Michael talking to her in a low tone.
“What’s wrong with her?” Kyle asked the others.
Isabel sat down at the table. “Last night I touched her,
and she flinched.” Isabel bit her lip nervously. “You don’t think that
Skin … that he …” Isabel couldn’t finish the thought.
Maria came back into the room. She wiped a hand over her
forehead. Smiling sheepishly at the others she took a seat again. As she passed
Liz’s chair, she cringed from Liz’s hand reaching out to her.
“I’m sorry! It’s not …” Maria started, then
quickly stopped. “I’m sorry,” she whispered.
“Maria, what is wrong?” Liz asked hating to see her
friend’s drawn face.
“Panic,” Michael told them. “She’s still panicked
from last night.”
“I can’t help it.” Maria looked at her shaking hands
in anger, hating how weak she was, how afraid. “The same thing that made me
panic when I saw the Skin is making me panic now. I can’t shake the
feeling.” She tried to explain, looking at Liz because it was easier to talk
to one person, and not the group of them. “You know that dream you used to get
when you were a kid? The one where you’re being chased and you’re running
upstairs. You know that you won’t be fast enough, that he’ll get you. You
wait for the hand on your leg, and …”
Maria didn’t finish. She was out the door again. Michael
went to follow.
“Michael...,” Max called to him. “What can we do?”
“Nothing. How do you take away fear?” Michael asked
them. “Maria and I are leaving the group. We can’t be here right now. You
wanna wait, but I can’t wait anymore. The Skins know we’re here, and they
know Maria … enough to attack her. This place isn’t safe, and she won’t
calm down until she feels safe again.”
The group was taken aback. Michael and Maria were leaving?
“Where will you go?” Isabel asked. God. Where could be
safe?
“Kal Langley. We’re going to find the other
Shapeshifter.”
Max stood up. “Why Kal?” The alien had told Max to
leave him alone, and Max had promised to do so. He had ruined Kal’s life, and
it was a promise he meant to keep.
“Why do you think?” Michael shook his head. No way they
could be that dense. “Dammit, did you not notice the increase in aliens
lately? They’re coming for us, and why is a mystery, but I’ll bet you my
next paycheck that
“War?” Kyle stood up. “What war?”
“Tell them, Liz!” Michael said angrily at Liz. “Tell
them how Future Max tried to change events to stop the world from ending. Tell
them about Tess!”
Liz jumped at Michael’s angry tone. She cleared her
throat. “Max, when your future self came back from the future you told me that
our being together caused the world to end. Tess left
“Tess is gone now, too.” Kyle said.
Liz shook her head. “No, that’s not right! We changed
the events. Future Max and I. That was why we convinced Max that I slept with
you, so he and I wouldn’t get together, and Tess would stay …” Liz
stopped. She and Max were together,
and Tess was gone. She kept shaking her head. “No. We changed everything. Tess
was there. She killed the Skins, and …”
“The Skins are still here, Liz.” Michael told her.
“Tess made it look like she killed them, just like she got away from Lonnie
and Rath. It made us trust her, so she could dupe Max into following Destiny. It
was all about having a child and bringing us home to Antar to be killed. That
was Destiny. All the rest was crap! The danger Future Max was talking about was
in the future so many years, and it’s still coming. It’s coming and we have
no Tess, and no Granilith to reset the past.”
“Michael, you don’t know that. Alex died, and he
didn’t do that in the other timeline.” Max said supporting Liz.
“And how do you know that, Max? Did Future Max mention
Alex?” Liz shook her head. “No. He mentioned Isabel and me. No mention of
Maria. No mention of Alex or Kyle, Valenti … or anyone else. Nothing. They
could’ve been dead already, and he didn’t bother to mention your two best
friends, Liz. Just me and Isabel. His people.”
Michael went to check on Maria but stopped at the door.
“We’re leaving in two hours. She’s panicked because she knows what all of
you should know, or at least be honest enough to admit. You didn’t change
anything, Liz. The future is set. The world will end. She’s panicked because
she feels the end of days are near. The end of all things.”
They didn’t try to stop him as he left the room. Isabel
sank down, her hands gripped together in fear. It wasn’t just about them any
longer. Her parents. Jesse. All of them. She stood up resolutely. “I’m going
with them.”
Kyle nodded. “Me, too.” He left the room, his breakfast
uneaten.
Max looked at Liz whose eyes were full of tears. It was
happening again, and nothing would change it. Tess was gone.
“We better get packed.” Max told her.
Two hours later, the phone in the apartment rang. The
garage finally gave up. Guess Kyle didn’t want the job.