Michael sucked in a deep breath. Soft light began to filter in through his half closed eyes. A vague sense of familiarity overwhelmed him, as he registered outside noises and smells. Suddenly he opened his eyes wide and muffled a surprised cry. Was he where he thought he was? The now very familiar room came into focus. Yup, he was in the trailer. His eyes widened as he heard Hank moving around in the next room over.
Michael decided that this must be hell. The last thing he remembered was Isabel lying next to him. Dead. Oh God. That was it; he died and now he was in hell. The urge to curl into a ball and start crying was surprisingly strong. At least when he was alive and living here, he had Izzy and Max to keep him going. Now there was no use.
"Michael! Get your good for nothing ass out of bed!" slurred Hank.
Michael hastily pulled himself out of bed, into some clothes and out of the trailer window. He looked around to see if he was indeed in the trailer park and not some other dimension of hell. The trailer park stood before him in all its glory. With uncertainty Michael headed out into town.
After so many years on the run, and not being sure if he was in hell or not, Michael's trip into town took him longer than usual, spending far more time on listening to the sounds around him and stealthily peering around corners and ally ways. By the time he reached the main drag of the city, he relaxed a little. Looking around, things looked the same as they had almost 10 years ago. The sign for the Crashdown loomed ahead.
Michael's heart began to race. In all the years that they had been away, he had forgotten what part the Crashdown played in their alien drama. It was where it all started; had been a place of refuge and at times the only place where he felt safe and at ease. He was now mere feet away from the entrance. To his grand surprise, he saw Max walking up to him from the opposite direction, meeting together at the front door.
"I see you were able to dodge Hank this morning," Max greeted casually.
"Hey Max," said Michael, an air of amazement about him.
Michael was stunned. Max was talking to him as if nothing had happened. As if he hadn't died. Michael was confused. If this was hell, then he wouldn't be here with Max as if nothing had ever happened. But this wasn't his idea of heaven either. He had always pictured his own personal heaven as a never ending Metallica concert with hockey. This definably wasn't heaven. Maybe he was in limbo.
Michael's thoughts halted to a stop when he caught a glimpse Maria out of the corner of his eye. There she stood in that ridiculous uniform and that pixie cut she had when he had first gotten to know her. His heart jumped into his throat when she looked his way. He had just begun his grieving for her, Liz and Kyle when they had been attacked in the warehouse. It had taken him a whole week to accept the fact that they were gone.
To Michael's astonishment Maria looked away from him with not even a hint of recognition. "This day is getting weirder and weirder. Maybe the warehouse was all a dream."
"What did you say Michael?" asked Max, a puzzled expression across his face.
"Just having a weird day."
"I can see that. Michael, what are you staring at?"
"Have you seen that couple before."
"No."
"They look really familiar."
"They're probably here for the crash festival."
"The what?!" Michael asked spitting out his drink.
"What is wrong with you Michael? The whole town has been talking about the festival for months. Tourists have been piling in all week."
"Max, you don't understand what this means. This is where it all started. This is the beginning."
Just as Michael finished his sentence the two men began to argue. Michael watched Maria scream Liz's name. He didn't even flinch when he heard the gun go off. He knew immediately what Max was going to do. This time though, the thought of stopping him didn't even cross his mind. He was right beside Max as he rushed to Liz's side.
As Max talked to Liz and prepared to heal her, Michael carefully blocked everything from view. He looked around the dinner and at the chaos. Maria was frantically trying to make her way to the back.
"Michael, it's not working!"
Michael turned around in disbelief.
"What do you mean it's not working?"
"I'm trying and I can't do it."
Michael looked at Max and saw the grief the struck his face. He had seen that exact expression only two weeks ago. He remembered thinking then that he hoped he would never see Max look that way again. It was only then that Michael remembered the searing pain that had afflicted his chest, right before he lost consciousness in the warehouse.
"Let me try."
Michael pushed Max aside and leaned over Liz.
