Email: PaceysLilMcPhee@aol.com
Author's Note: Been awhile huh? It's been a crazy couple of months for me. I went through some things but I'm back now and I hope some of you will continue reading ;) Anyway, here's chapter 5 and I hope to have more time to write since school is out now and I don't have much else to do. Enjoy!
Author's Note 2: R/R please! Pretty please with a cherry on top!
Chapter 5
Michael looked at Maria as she lay on his bed, seemingly trying to muster her thoughts and courage to say what she needed to say.
"Spit it out Maria," Michael said. He had never been too good at the comforting thing.
Maria looked up into Michael's eyes. "I don't think," she began, "that this was done by anyone human."
Maria allowed Michael to let that sink in. Then he asked, "What would make you think that?"
"My dreams," she said quietly.
After another pause Michael said, "I think we should get the others in here. I have a feeling we're gonna need all the input we can get."
Maria nodded and Michael stepped out of the room and made his way to where Max and Liz were pacing, and Isabel and Kyle were sitting. None of them were saying a word anymore, they just all looked to Michael.
"You guys need to get in here," he said as he looked to each of them.
"Michael?" Isabel questioned. Michael was obviously concerned, more concerned then he had been earlier.
"We've got a situation. Maria thinks that who's done this to her wasn't human."
It was almost completely silent in Michael's apartment as everyone in the room traded looks.
"I think we all better go back in there," Michael continued. Then he turned and led the way back to his bedroom where Maria still lay.
They all filed in one by one. Michael resumed his place by Maria's side while Isabel sat at the foot of the bed and Kyle had a seat backwards in a chair. Max and Liz stood together, leaning against the wall. Everyone looked to Maria waiting for her to say something.
"How'd this happen Maria?" Liz asked in a quiet voice.
Maria sighed softly and glanced from Michael to Liz who was on the other side of the room. "I discovered the bruises, there weren't very many the first time I noticed them, one morning when I woke up."
"What, did someone show up that night or something?" Kyle asked bluntly.
Maria shook her head. "It took me a few days of this happening to figure it out. I think it's happening while I sleeping…through these dreams."
"What kind of dreams?" Max asked.
"They're hard to explain," Maria told him. "I thought they'd go away at first…I figured they were from stress and my subconscious. So I drank a special tea but it didn't help," Maria remembered. "Anyway, they didn't go away. It's kinda like soaring through space," she said, with her own spacey look in those dark green pools of hers. Michael reached for her hand and gripped it to bring her out of her trance.
"What about symbols, Maria?" Max asked. "Anything like that to help us out."
"I don't think so. There were things, stars they must have been. Sometimes they made up patterns."
"What kind of patterns?" Max said, urging her to give them more information.
"They're not patterns you could describe."
"Could you draw them out for us?" Michael asked her.
Maria nodded in response. "Yeah, I think so."
"What else Maria?" Max asked. He was desperate for answers. If this had to do with aliens and they were after one of them in the group who knew how long it would be before they got to others. Maybe even Liz…
"I saw sparks. Like bright flashes of light. I don't know what it might have to do with but…"
"That's okay. We can work with that," Michael interrupted to reassure her that any information was useful.
"And after I woke up from these dreams, I'd get dizzy…like the room was spinning. And I'd see large dots while I was dizzy…"
"What do you mean large dots?" This time it was Max who interrupted Maria.
"Look, you two tough men better stop interrupting me," she said while trying to smile. "The two large dots…I don't know…they were orange like. Kinda like planets," she guessed.
"Planets?" Liz said, the sound of surprise in her voice.
"Yeah. Large orange planets. Oh and the stars. The star pattern would get closer every time I'd dream. Like I told you, it was like I was flying through space and I'd get closer every time."
"And you got more bruised up every time too it seems," Michael noted gruffly.
"I don't know if that was sarcastic or not Michael, but that's a good point," Isabel said, finally speaking up. She didn't like that this was happening. After Alex was killed, by Tess nonetheless, she was nervous that other one of the people Max, Michael, and herself brought into all this mess was going to be killed. She had no idea if it would go that far but if it was one of their enemies then she wouldn't put it past them. Actually she was pretty sure that was their goal. Or to at least hurt their friends to get close enough to the pod squad to kill them.
"Okay, well Michael, why don't you help Maria draw out the pattern of stars as well as she knows it. And anything else, maybe even those orange planets if she knows any of the details. The four of us will go find Valenti and let him know what's going on. Maybe he can help too, we can use all the people we can get because everyone's gonna have different ideas. And then we'll all take one of the drawings and see what we can find," Max announced. The rest nodded. They didn't argue like some of them might have in normal circumstances but no one wanted to waste any time with the way Maria was looking. Who knew what was going on and they wanted to find out as soon as possible. They all filed out the door, Isabel first, then Kyle and Liz. Max was about to follow the other three out the door when he turned back to Michael and Maria.
"I didn't think about it until right now, sorry, but do you want me to go ahead and heal you?"
Michael spoke up, "She doesn't think you'll be able to. I tried and I thought we should ask you because we all know you're better at it then me but she said she didn't think it would work."
"Oh…well if you want I can still try."
Maria shrugged and Michael looked from Maria to Max. "Yeah, I think that'd be a good idea. Just to make sure."
Max walked over to the opposite side of the bed Michael was on and placed his hands on Maria's arm. It was a good enough place to start as any. "Look at me Maria," he said.
Michael watched as Max worked to form a connection. It burned him inside to think that he couldn't even heal his own girlfriend and it would really bother him if Max, the almighty King and the 'perfect' member of their little group was able to. He wanted to be able to protect Maria and if Max could do it and he couldn't he'd resent himself and Max forever. He wasn't about to let Maria suffer though just because he couldn't suck up his pride. It didn't look like he'd have to worry about that anyway though because moment s later Max stood up with a disappointed look.
"Maria's right. For some reason…I can't. I can make the connection but I just can't reach that next step."
Although Michael was partly relieved even more he was angry and disappointed. Angry at whoever was doing this to Maria and disappointed that no one was able to help Maria at this particular moment. But Michael wasn't planning on standing around for long. He was going to put a stop to whatever or whoever it was that was hurting Maria.
