Blue Roses
Part Three: Fire and Ice
It was an odd time to meet. Midnight. The magical hour. But tonight, it was not magical, it was horrible, cold, and evil because Liz, the one Max loved beyond all else and the one who hurt him most, was gone. It wasn't really fair to Max, being in love with Liz so violently. He missed her when she was away, but the site of her only brought him pain and the image of her and Kyle in bed together. Now, she was gone, and Max felt horrible. Max knew that he had wanted her to feel the same pain he had felt. In truth, Liz had felt that pain, though Max didn't know. He didn't know that Liz had given up everything for him. Everything. She had given up her hopes, she had given up her dreams, she had given up her future for Max. She wanted to make him happy more then anything else in the world, so when he came to her, she obeyed. But Max didn't know that. All he knew was the pain he felt. And so he wished his selfish wish. Now, he wished he could take it back.
"What are we going to do," Maria asked. There were silent tears streaming down her face. Maria was Liz's best friend. They were inseparable, and couldn't even imagine what life would be like apart. Max couldn't bare to look at Maria, because he had no idea what to do next.
"We find, Helen," Michael said. "We find her, bring her here, tie her up to a chair, and question her till she cracks. Then we knock her over the head, make her forget, and put her back were she came from." Isabel sighed.
"We don't know where she lives," Max's sister pointed out.
"I thought you had figured that out," said Michael.
"I tried," Isabel said, "but I failed. Whenever I asked she'd just say 'Oh, my place is a total wreak, why don't we meat at yours' or 'I can get a ride myself, no need to pick me up'. I didn't get a number either. She said her Mom was online all day, so we wouldn't be able to get through."
"I'm sure there's another way of finding her," Tess said in an attempt to cheer everyone up.
"You're right. There is."
Everyone jumped. The voice was new and unrecognizable. But, as the figure descended the stairs of the UFO center where they had met, Max saw that the body wasn't. Max didn't need to worry about finding Helen, she was already here.
Michael put up his hand, ready to attack. Helen looked at him. "I will not hurt you," she said in a fluid-like voice with an accent Max had only heard before on TV, when a deaf person spoke on a talk show. "I am here to help."
"Really?" said Max suddenly. "Well, if you're here to help then why did you take Liz?"
"I did not take Liz," Helen said. "True, she was taken from you, but that crime is not mine." Max studied Helen, to see if she was lying. He couldn't really tell. Her appearance was different then it was during school. She was warring long pants, a long sleeved shirt, and gloves.
"Your eyes," Tess said. "They don't move." Helen sigh, sorta.
"I came here in a hurry," she said. "I did not have time to put on my full make-up, so I don't look, or sound," she added in after thought, completely human. But then again, why should I? I'm not human."
"I know," said Tess. "But why don't your eyes move.
"Because I have none." Tess gasped. "These are only an illusion. They are not real. My people have no eyes. We are-how would you say it?-blind." Max shock his head. There wasn't time for questions like this.
"Where's Liz?" he asked.
"With the others," said Helen. "I am afraid we cannot go to her now. We must wait."
"Why?" Max insisted.
"Because my mother expects you to come now," Helen said. "She expects you to play king and save the maiden. But you cannot do that. Not now. You must wait. When they stop expecting you, we will go."
"How do you know they're expecting me now?" Max demanded.
"I know."
"And how will you know when they're not expecting me?"
"I will know." Max felt like punching her. She didn't know anything, but she knew more then he did.
"Why did you destroy Liz's room?" Max asked.
"I do not know," Helen said. "That is not my business. I don't know why we're here, or why we're attacking you. Last my father told me, we were on good terms with the fire people....."
"Fire people?" Isabel interjected.
"Fire people. That is what my father called you. I couldn't pronounce the real name of your people or your planet, so we called you the fire people because you come from a desert planet." Isabel nodded.
"You realize that there are only four of us, right? Not five Liz is not an alien," Isabel said. "You hung five aliens from the wall. There should have only been four." Helen looked at Isabel in disbelief. Then she shock her head.
"There are five. Of that I am sure."
"Isabel's right, there are only four of us. There were only four pods. Just four nor five," Max said. Helen nodded.
"The fifth did not come from a pod," Helen said, "she came from a human who...who was taken for the..um..sake of science. The woman carried a child. When some of the scientist ruined the baby's DNA my father interjected some that he had into it to save it."
"That woman was Mrs.Parker?" Maria asked. Helen nodded.
"She does not remember," the alien added.
"So Liz is like you?" Max asked.
"No, she is like you." Helen looked around. "I need to leave."
"No, not until you explain," Max said. He grabbed her arm.
"You do not understand," she said. "I must leave. I must leave now. This.....," she searched for a word, "human make up....I put it on too quickly. It hurts."
"So just take it off," Alex said. Helen looked at him.
"You want to see me as I am?" she questioned. No one moved. "Very well. Let go of me Max." She turned around, pulling off her long sleeved shirt. Underneath was rich blue-green skin cover in an iridescent tube top. She took of her pants to reveal the same skin and some white shorts. She took a wig off her head and let silver-green hair fall free. Then, in an odd display, she took off a mask covering her face and turned around, revealing a head with full, green lips, a small nose, and no eyes. Max noticed that on her chest were gills, like fish.
"So, Liz is, is one of us?" Tess asked.
"Yes," Helen said. "I suppose I should tell you what I have been told." Helen took a deep breath. "My father told of these things when I was little. He said that once the planet of the fire people prospered under the rule of a mighty king and queen, Batrane and Evangeline, and that they had two children, Zahndrian and Vellandra, who lived with them. In a forced marriage, Zahndrian married Aurieleah, while Vellandra married a handsome solider named Coyteredo. Both the princess and her husband where unfaithful, but neither cared.
"One a race who you refer to as the skins came to the planet. They asked for something called the Granelyth, which the king would not give him. The skins killed the king and was killed the instant they refused the request, leaving Zahndrain as the king. He wasn't ready to be king, especially not in a time of war. Things continued one like that for years. The royal four became divided. Aurieleah left the throne with a boy many years younger then she named Promachek. This crusted Zahndrian, until he found Jubelous.
"While the personal battle went of the war continued. Because of Zahndrian's inexperience and Coyteredo's rash advice, the skins were winning. Vellandra was becoming desperate. Her husband nearly died in a battle. Though they were both unfaithful to eachother, they were in an odd kind of love that, and Vellandra couldn't imagine life without him. She decided that the only way to end the war would be to let the skins win.
"Vellandra traveled to the skin's camp and helped them get access to the Granelyth. The skins were able to use access the Granelyth's power, and prepared to drop and bomb on the fire people's planet, to destroy them for all the pain the they caused the skins. They were successful. Nearly the whole planet was destroyed. Only a handful survived, including the royal five
"Aurieleah returned to Zahndrian, and as a promise to his dying mother, Zahndrian dismissed Jubelous, braking her heart, but not her love. As she traveled, she passed by the Granelyth, and saw skins there. In a bold battle, she was able to keep them from getting the Granelyth by hiding it in a pit of sand. But Jubelous had been injured by the skins when she took the Granelyth away, and because there was no doctor with her, she died.
"Within a few days, everyone was dead because of the bombs effects, and the skins themselves were forced to flea without the Granelyth. A space craft of fire people and," Helen looked for a word that the others could understand, "....and my people, we shall call them the ice people for know, landed on the fire planet. With the help of the ice people's advanced science, they were able to reincarnate the royal four into pods. But the first pods failed, they could tell that their personalities had been lost, as well as their good will. So they tried again, this time getting it perfectly. In desperation, they sent both pods down to Earth, a planet they found similar to their own in many ways. Three alien were left with the pods, two of whom died quickly.
"There was a fourth fire person who survived, Promachek, Aurieleah's lover. He knew of Jubelous, and her contributions to the throne, and told my father about it. Together they found the body of Jubelous and the Granelyth, which was sent to earth. Because no one knew of Jubelous, they refused to give her a pod, but father kept her DNA. So, sixteen years ago, when my people nearly destroyed Mrs.Parker's baby, he injected the fetus with Jubelous's DNA to keep it alive." Helen took a deep breath. "It's time to go know."
Helen rose from her seat and walked up the stairs, slowly, everyone else folllowed. They were still stunned by what they heard. They had never known the whole story. If this truely was teh whole story.
"Helen," Max asked as they walked, "do you think we could talk to your father? He saw it first hand and......it would just be nice to hear what he knows." Helen smiled sadly.
"My father's not here Max," she said. "When my people found out about what he had done with Jubelous's DNA they decided to punish him. He's....actually, I haven't a clue where he is, but I know he's not dead. I believe he's not dead....."
"What about your mother?" Max asked for a quick chang of subject. "Could she tell us something?"
"I'm afraid not," Helen said. "It was her idea that we come here in the first place, sixteen earth years ago, eight years ago when using our time. She is the one who is agienst you. She'd kill you if she saw you, Max. And if she saw us together, she would kill me, too."
"So how do we get past her?" Micheal, who had appearently been listening, asked. Helen shrugged.
"I don't know," she said. "Maybe we can hide your scent. You don't smell strongly, after all. Then we can smuggle you in somehow, I guess."
"You don't have a plan," Tess said.
"Nope."
"Then what are we waiting for?"
to be continued.........