The War

by domino84

Sequel to After the Cave, but works on its own. Future story with flashbacks to the past. M/M, M/L, A/I, K/T. College, Marriage, Babies, War...Surviving it all. COMPLETED!!!

6. Part 6

The War

by

Domino

Part 26

The sound of laughter, light giggling, happiness that was the sound that surrounded her. It was the sound that travelled with her. It was her gift to the world.

From the second of her birth and the announcement of a new, much anticipated life, her existence was celebrated and rejoiced. If the first battle the Royal Eight led was a sign to fight back, their baby was the sign to never give up, to win. She was the representation of freedom and hope and her name itself was all she was.

Ariel - a princess of mythical proportions, of happy endings and the survival of love against all odds, heir to two worlds and princess of both. And Hope - a hope, their hope, the world's hope for the future, hope for what she represented to mankind between human-alien relationships. Ariel Hope Guerin.

She was loved before she was born. The first human-alien baby - she was the link between two worlds, between two species, the representation of one of the world's most passionate love affairs. The daughter of the two of the people's most loved, most worshipped figures, leaders of what was left of the free world. That was her destiny. That was her birthright. That was her gift.

And today, that laughter surrounded the room as a beautiful Liz, dressed simply in a long white dress and radiant in her pregnancy walked down the aisle, her arm tucked in the arm of the former Sheriff of Roswell. He was filling in for her father who had not made it to see his daughter get married. Still, this was a happy occasion.

Today was the day that the Rebellion celebrated the second happy occasion in many months - the wedding of Max Evans and Elizabeth Parker.

The wedding party was small. Max stood on one end with Michael and Maria, who had just crossed the aisle, being maid of honour. In the room, with them were the other parents - Amy holding baby Ariel, Liz's mother smiling happily through her tears and Diane Evans. Kyle and Alex stood proudly next to their wives, who were unashamedly crying.

In one corner stood a small camera. It was the only concession that they made to their positions and rank as leaders - it was what enabled their people to watch the wedding.

The wedding was a beautiful, simple ceremony. Max and Liz read out vows that they had written, vows that showed their love, vows that had tears falling across the continent.

And then it was over. And the last unmarried couple in the Royal Eight were joined. The celebration was a short one, but a joyful one, before everyone, except the newly weds, returned back to their jobs. War, unfortunately didn't stop for weddings, or births.

But it was those things that made the fight worthwhile.

Two months later:

After the ruby crystal was discovered in a relatively safe area, the others couldn't help but hope that both Alex and Isabel's, or Kyle and Tess's would also fall on their lands. It wasn't to be. Their famed luck, and mixture of skill and expertise seemed to come to an end in this one retrieval mission.

In fact, the mission, in hindsight was doomed from the start.

But first - the beginning.

The meeting was running late, three members hadn't arrived yet. The group was back in one of the bases near Alberqueque in a temporary WAR room set up to deal with strategy and battle plans. After freeing The Windy City, Chicago being the latest victim of the Zarian Empire, the battlefield had shifted back to New Mexico where the skins latest attacks were being waged.

The room was similar to previous WAR rooms with the exception of one thing - the addition of a cradle for Ariel. She, part of the now Royal Nine attended all meetings even if her contributions were limited to baby talk, for which she was, to her parent's pride and joy, highly advanced considering her young age.

Just then, the door opened and they walked in. Michael had his hand resting lightly on Maria's lower back and Maria carried the newest member to their family in her arms. The baby's head rested on her shoulder and appeared to be asleep. The others smiled at the scene. It wasn't just the happiness and serenity easily evident on their faces, previously only seen when they were asleep it was more than that - the reason for their smiles lay in the tiny bundle that wrapped securely in her mother's arms.

"Sorry, we're late," Maria said as they sat down. Their was no actual assigning of seats but over the years, eating together, living together, and fighting together, a seating arrangement had been worked out, one which they always seemed to follow. Michael reached over and gently, expertly lifted his daughter from his wife's hands and placed her on his chest. It was Ariel's favourite place to sleep - they joked she had inherited that from Maria.

The meeting was a specific one, to deal with granolith, the crystals, a long overdue meeting especially since Alex and Kyle received their flashes. The last two visions occurred within days of each other, a shock to all concerned especially Isabel and Tess who were expecting the vision to come to them. No one had had a chance to deal with it yet, particularly since a lot of the War efforts previously handled by Michael and Maria had been turned over to others. For the first time in their lives both were delegating to make more time for their baby girl. In addition the discussion had been delayed because of a few problems Liz was having, in the middle of her 7th month of pregnancy - the same energy deficiencies experienced by Maria.

But now finally they all managed to be in the WAR room at the same time. The group decided to deal with Alex's first, mainly because it beat Kyle's flash by 36 hours. And having access to victory for the first time since the WAR began, they had to plan a complete strategy.

"Okay so we have two out of the 4 crystals already, and the position of the other 2. Maybe we should think about going ahead with the Roswell attack," Max started, going directly to the point.

"And then what. We already decided not to use the crystals until all four could be used together. We need to retrieve them all first," Kyle interjected.

"First things first," Liz was the voice of reason, "We need to make sure that Ariel is safe." Threats from Kivar about Ariel had them all worried and overly protective.

"I think Maria and Ariel should stay at the Boston home base with Liz. She'll be safe there. No one knows about it except us." Alex said.

"I'm not going to hide and neither is my child. We all knew the risks of assuming the roles as leaders of this war. While I am not willing to risk Ariel's life I won't have her brought up a prisoner." Maria had spent a lot of time thinking about this, and while her final decision was a difficult one, it was one she knew she had no choice in making.

"It's just a short time, Maria." Kyle said, trying to convince her.

"Until when? The war is over. I have responsibilities to my soldiers to lead them. I won't just leave them. Who knows how long this could continue for. Its already been over 3 years. We don't know if this is going to work or if we will get the crystals." She didn't raise her voice, or even change her tone. On the contrary, it was said in a perfectly reasonable tone, one that was difficult to argue with.

"What do you expect us to do, Maria." Max asked, wearily. He was tired, exhausted from taking part of Michael's leadership from him. He had never realised how much Michael and Maria actually did, running all the battles. And he was worried - Liz being pregnant, scared the hell out of him. He now also understood why Michael had gotten even more protective of Maria after the wedding. Being married gave him a sense of forever he never fully trusted before, one that Max, married for a couple of months was only beginning to comprehend. And then there was the baby. He adored Ariel to bits and she was just his niece - he couldn't even imagine having a baby of his own.

"I expect you to realise that it isn't possible for me, Isabel, Tess and Liz to sit this war out. And we not going to leave you."

"What do you mean - Isabel and Tess?" Alex asked.

"They're both pregnant - visions only come with a pregnancy, their kids are heirs to Antar and Earth, like Ariel. Do you think Kivar will want the babies to live? If we hide, all four of us will have to go. And earth can't afford that. You know that."

"She's right," Michael said, surprising everyone. He was usually the most protective of all of them, especially when it came to Maria and Ariel. The others were silent considering all she said.

"We won't have our little girl growing up in exile like we did. She'll be free. That's what this war is about - freedom. We will have to find another plan." He added softly.

"I don't want to hide either." Isabel said, "I did enough of that before."

"Me too." Tess added. And Liz nodded in support.

It was easy after that. With Maria, Michael, Liz, Isabel and Tess all on one side, it didn't take long for the others to agree, albeit a little reluctantly, their fear causing doubts.

"We all stay in groups of two always. One human, one alien," Max said firmly.

"Ariel must have at least two people a round her at all times" Kyle added.

"Don't worry. I am not letting either of them out of my sight. From this moment on, honey we are joined at the hip." Michael said, and gave Maria a possessive look.

"Oh, please, Michael. You barely let her out of your sight now. How is this going to be any different?" Isabel said, sarcastically.

"It just is. And besides, I let her go places without me."

"When?" Isabel asked, her tone disbelievingly.

"SHE is sitting right here," Maria cut in the middle of Isabel's and Michael's joking argument.

"Moving on, Alex what do you have? We need to plan this before Kivar starts the next phase in his attack," Tess said, reminding them of the crystal. Alex and Liz were already busy working on the location.

"I think we may have a problem," Liz said, her face bent over the map table where she was studying the maps of the former USA, trying to find a place matching Alex's description.

"She's right. Alex had his laptop open and was searching electronically. He sent his screen to the big one on the room, so they all could see.

The map was a topographical map, one just a few years ago none would be able to decipher. Those days were gone. Today, everyone in the room with the exception of the 7 month baby fast asleep on her father's chest, read the map at a glance, and immediately their faces sobered.

It was with great apprehension they noted the crystal's position, marked by an X by Alex. It was right in the middle of the war zone, in enemy hands, a highly guarded skin area.

Yet despite this rather bad news, it didn't take long for them to agree to proceed. The crystal, once recovered would bring them one step closer to total victory. It was because of this, they decided it was worth the risk - a decision they later regretted.

The plan, as most of their plans tended to be, was elegant in its simplicity. They needed a diversion - a credible diversion so while Michael, Alex, and Isabel went in to get the crystal, Maria would lead a group consisting of Tess, Kyle, Max and some soldiers to create such a diversion. Liz, due her 7 month pregnant state was staying at home with Ariel - reluctantly left by her parents, under strict guard by the two remaining Special Forces teams.

End Part 26

Part 27

The thing about diversions is that they had to be diverting. The bigger the better. And chaos was always more effective in the dark. It was with this in mind, carrying C4, and numerous other explosives, the team of 12 went in - 4 of the Royal Eight and 8 of Maria's elite.

They managed to blow up majority of the area - maximum destruction being their aim, and drawing out all the skins away from the target spot where the crystal was hidden, according to Alex.

Ignoring the large explosions and screams in the distance, three figures dressed completely in black moved along the shadows following Alex's direction. They were using the old subway tunnels to access the location they were heading to. The underground map of the tunnels and shafts had been given directly to them by one of FBI techies under Alex's command.

"Okay, this is the one," Michael said softly. He had a small flashlight focused on the map in his hands. Silently he began to climb up the half broken ladder in the old shaft, Alex behind him and Isabel bringing up the rear.

"Yeah, this looks like its right," Alex said looking around the area, once they were above ground. He led the way.

This time the crystal wasn't buried. Instead it was hidden inside a rock which could only be opened when a silver handprint key was located. Michael and Isabel were with, both as firepower and if need be to unlock the key.

It wasn't necessary. Alex went directly to the rock, using the buildings as clues to its position and waved his hand over it, per instruction in the flash. The print appeared immediately. He placed his hand on it, while Michael stood guard and Isabel waited anxiously next to him. Alex's connection to Isabel and the baby must have made his hand an acceptable DNA match because with a small sound, barely noticeable the rock split in half.

And there resting in the centre in a soft bed of velvet, so incongruous in its environment was the largest diamond crystal any of them had ever seen in their lives.

They stared at it, their mouths hanging open in bewonderment - it was their heritage, their legacy, stared at it, that is until Michael in a grim whisper told them to hurry the hell up. Moving quickly, Isabel grabbed the diamond and placed it in the small bag she carried at her waist. The rock slid close silently, no evidence of any cracks or opening visible.

As they turned they saw Michael holding his hand out, and blasting away at something around the corner away from their sight. Backing away, Isabel grabbed her brother's shirt and dragged him back with her. They ran, and immediately were surrounded by skins. Shooting there way out, Michael and Isabel blasted energy missiles while Alex led the way.

They escaped but not without a price. While running 2 skins shot at Isabel. Instinctively, Michael stepped in front of her. His shield, weak from loss of energy didn't hold and the skins blast got him directly in the chest.

Hearing Isabel's cry of panic, Alex stopped and not thinking about it, in a move that surprised even him, grabbed Michael and threw him over his shoulder and began to move, trusting Isabel to shoot clear the way for them. Afterwards, he swore it was the adrenaline that kept him going.

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On the other side, things were even worse. The skins seemed to be expecting an attack, and the diversion quickly spiralled out of control. Maria ordered a retreat, and began backing away. Max had one man on his shoulder and two others were being carried as well. Three men were dead, their injuries too severe to fix, even by Max and in a decision he took no pleasure in, he gave the order to leave them.

The task force headed out, upon Maria receiving news from Michael that the crystal had been found. Tess and Kyle led the way, blasting non stop at the skins clearing a path for them. Max, and the soldiers carrying their fallen comrades ran in between. The rear was covered by Maria's second in command, Commander Reese, being the only soldier with his hands still free, and Maria.

They were almost out when all hell broke loose. In a sudden move, about 50 skins poured in from various entrances, led by a teenage boy - whom they recognised as Nicholas .

At the same time, Maria cried out Michael's name, and stumbled. The soldier with her grabbed her arm and started to drag her almost limp body out. But it was too late. Knowing she was costing him, with the last coherent part of her brain, Maria pushed him away but the Commander refused to leave.

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The skins, seemed to be multiplying in front of her but Isabel didn't have time to consider her actions. Her thoughts were on an unconscious Michael, she refused to believe it was too late already. It was an old reflex, or maybe a hidden memory of a previous life that had her reaching for the crystal. Without removing it from the bag, her fist curled around it and instantly felt her energy restored. When asked to describe it at a later date, she said that it was like a current flowing through her.

Isabel's eyes shut for a fraction of a second of a second before opening and one hand still curled around the diamond, she raised the other and sent a blast at the Zarians in pursuit.

It was a massive blast, bigger than any she had ever tried before, bigger than even one of Michael's and in seconds all that was left was the familiar sight of dust particles floating in the air. Isabel didn't wait for any of it, she didn't even see it, taking off behind her husband and unconscious brother.

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Max, a few feet in front turned around to see his best friend surrounded on the floor, her soldier standing protectively over her. He began to move back to get her and over the skins rushing forward towards her, his eyes met hers.

Her mouth moved slightly and through all the noise he heard her say, "Go. Save Michael."

Max shook his head in denial. He, of all people knew Michael would kill him if he left Maria here. But she was insistent. Her eyes yelled the order he couldn't refuse, and with a heavy heart he ran out, the soldier on his back seemingly heavier than before.

His last words to her, over the backs of the enemy was a promise. An oath that he would return, that he would come back for her.

As for Maria, despite her appalling circumstances, which she ignored, her thoughts were only on her husband. She smiled in relief that Max got away. He was Michael's only hope and she knew that better than anyone, his body almost more well known to her than her own.

With great dignity, and a refusal to bow down to the enemy, she stood and faced them with regal bearing like the princess/general/mother she had become, her faithful soldier at her side. Her face held only pride - none of the fear she felt for her soulmate's life, worry for her daughter or anxiousness over her own fate showed in her expression.

While her stomach was tied in knots, and her head trying to connect with her husband she kept her face blank as she was led to Nicholas amidst jarring cheers from the Zarians as they celebrated her capture.

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They were maintaining a radio silence for safety and to keep the skins in the dark. Despite knowing that, Liz was waiting in the communications room with Ariel for news, when the 7month old baby daughter, her goddaughter burst into tears. Nothing Liz did or tried seemed to calm her down, and although Ariel could talk and was extremely advanced for her age, she wouldn't say anything apart from pitiful cried for her "Mama" and "Daddy."

Because of the Royal Eight's unusual connections and the alien heritage involved, particularly strong in Michael and Maria's case, Liz began to panic. Granted it was a slow and controlled panic, as was Liz's style, but it was panic nonetheless. She was 7 months pregnant, and while she knew she couldn't risk her baby, waiting in the dark was killing her. Having a baby with a telepathic connection to her parents cry continuously didn't help. She was still pacing with Ariel, normally a happy baby, when Isabel, Alex and Michael arrived.

The crystal never occurred to her when she saw a limp and unconscious Michael over Alex's soldier.

"Daddy!" Ariel cried and pushed her way out of Liz's arms and stumbled to him. No one stopped her. Alex placed Michael gently on the floor and Liz rushed to his side. In great trepidation, they checked his pulse. It was faint, but it was there.

The doctors came running in, Isabel in front of them. She had gone to get them until Max came in.

"I tried to keep him stable. My powers in healing aren't that advanced," Isabel said tearfully to Liz and Liz pulled her into her arms. Alex picked Ariel up and joined them on the sidelines as they waited for the verdict.

"Why isn't Daddy answering me, Unca Alex? Did the bad man get him like they got Mama?" Ariel said, her usually smiling face filled with tears.

Alex jumped. "What? What did you see, Ariel, honey?"

"Who took Mama, baby?" Liz asked.

"The bad men, Auntie Lizzie." And there hearts sunk. They didn't doubt.

All thoughts left them at that point when a doctor yelled, "We're losing him." And in a flurry of motion, the doctors sprang into action, beginning CPR.

And all they had left was fear.

End Part 27

Part 28

"Well, well, well. Look at who we have here, men. If it isn't the Princess General herself," Nicholas said smugly.

"It seems your precious people left you behind," he stated mockingly when she didn't answer.

"Don't speak to her. You're not worthy of addressing her," Reese said hotly.

"You know, Maria - I can call you Maria, can't I? Of course, I can," he continued without waiting for a response from her, "It seems that we finally caught one of the Royal Eight. Oh, Kivar is going to be pleased. Very pleased."

Maria still didn't say anything. She was concentrating inward on her husband and much to Nicholas's anger totally ignoring him. Her soldier stood guard next to her, his stance protective. The man kept his face clear of the worry, being a seasoned soldier but he couldn't help feel fear, for his commanding officer particularly. Seeing Nicholas's smug expression made it worse. This was not a good situation. He glanced at his princess, and looked straight at the enemy again. She appeared to be in some sort of trance, and only peripherally aware of what was going on. He hoped she did what ever she was doing fast, because Nicholas was not a patient man and being ignored activated the child like temper tantrum in him to match his teenage appearance.

Maria hadn't shut down or anything drastic. She was only trying to keep her husband alive long enough for Max to reach him. It wasn't easy - he was slipping away and it took all her strength just to hold on to those last few strands of life. Around her, Maria could hear her soldier yell at the enemy and Nicholas's annoying voice chirping in the background. She paid no attention.

Nicholas annoyed at being totally ignored suddenly shoved her. Her light figure fell to the ground, and the impact caused her concentration to slip. Maria scrambled to reconnect, not noticing Reese pushing Nicholas or all the skins leaping to attention.

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At that second, Max came tearing into the room, Tess and Kyle on his heels. He came to stop in front of Michael's prone body on the floor and shoved the doctors away. Liz, Alex and Isabel looked beyond them worriedly, hoping beyond hope that Maria would show up, even if in their hearts of hearts they knew that if Maria was fine, she would be the first one in the room.

Isabel and Tess laid a hand on Max's shoulder, both for support and to give what little strength they had left. Alex still holding Ariel in his arms, held one hand to his wife while Liz walked behind her husband to give him the comfort of her presence and take comfort from his. Throughout it all, she felt his frustration, his guilt and an overwhelming fear. They all prayed.

"It's not working," Max said desperately, almost in total defeat. And he sat back, burying his face in his arms. Ariel wriggled out of Alex's arms and crawled towards him. She stood next to Max and reached up with her tiny hands, and wiped away the tears that fell unnoticed from his eyes.

Without saying a word, she picked up his hand and reached down to hold her father's, bringing them together, and in seconds the link Max couldn't form on his own leapt to life, through tiny perfect fingers of a little girl whose love was their strength.

"Maria?" Michael moaned softly and they all crowded around him. With great difficulty he sat up and immediately a missile launched herself into his arms as Ariel yelled, "Daddy."

Michael wrapped his arms around her tightly and for a few seconds just rocked back and forth. Then he looked into Max's tear filled gaze, "Maria?" he asked more insistently this time, although he already knew.

"I am so sorry, Michael. So very sorry. I didn't know what to do. I"

Michael stood up, still holding his little girl in his arms. He didn't look at the others, not able to see their faces right then.

"Gonna get Mama now, Daddy."

"Yeah, baby. We're gonna get your Mama now." And he walked away, Ariel clutched tightly in his arms.

To think. To grieve. To plan.

To get his wife back.

End Part 28

Part 29

Ten people sat in the WAR room. Amy and Jim insisted on joining them. Around the base, soldiers began to prepare. This was it. Time to go to war.

"Okay, we have 3 crystals already hidden in the granolith chamber," Kyle said, his voice quiet and controlled - holding the fear back. After Michael had left, Kyle, Alex and Isabel had taken the three crystals they did have and in three different groups consisting of 2 soldiers and themselves made trips to the granolith chamber to hide the crystals, ready for use of the weapon.

"What's the word on her position," Max asked, and his voice broke slightly as he battled to keep it level. He hadn't yet forgiven himself for what happened, even though he knew despite Michael's lack of words on the matter that Michael didn't blame him - he let him carry Ariel, and Max knew Michael, if Michael didn't trust him anymore he wouldn't let him go near the one of only two people that Michael's world revolved around.

"Using the information Michael gave me," Alex tapped a few commands into his keyboard and they all turned to face the large screen at the front of the room. The screen gave the room a view of the smaller screen of Alex's laptop and right now was displaying a large map.

As Alex keyed in more commands, the cursor narrowed in to a smaller section and enlarged it, focusing on a town.

"Roswell," Tess said flatly. No one was surprised. It started there and it would end there. The final confrontation, "I have Recon. already in place," she continued and looked at Michael for acknowledgement. He nodded, not saying anything. He hadn't said much since he gained consciousness.

"We have already activated her tracker, but we have been having trouble locating a spot. The closer we get to her, the more clearer it will be," Alex continued. All of them wore trackers all the time. The General that began all this - Chief of Armed Forces - insisted. A stream of real time data constantly came through the state of art system Alex had set up, feeding new information on each of their whereabouts.

"All we have now is Michael Radar," Alex said.

Suddenly the door opened and they all jumped, except for Michael. He hadn't said a word since the meeting started. In fact he barely moved a muscle.

The 5 commanders, leading the troops saluted first and then walked in.

They looked at Michael and one stepped forward, "Sir, we are ready," the soldier stated, still in correct military attention position.

And it seemed to reach him. Automatically he snapped back into the General he was, that he had become.

"She's my wife. I have to go on this mission. You don't. It's obviously a trap, and likely a suicide mission," he started. Protecting people was ingrained. Leading them to their deaths was not.

"She's our princess, Sir," the soldier insisted firmly, "We are all prepared to go."

Michael opened his mouth to speak but another soldier interrupted, unusual, particularly for military personnel who didn't speak unless spoken to, "We realise the risk, Sir. We are willing to die for her. She would for us."

For a second there, the audience didn't think he would agree. They all waited for his decision but it seemed he didn't have the strength to argue, and because it was Maria and he would do anything for her, he looked his soldiers in the eye and said quietly, "Thank you." And they smiled. Not for him, but for her. And for Ariel.

They turned and left, trusting him to plan a mission that would let them live, and rescue her. And the rest turned to him as well. Michael didn't waste time, that was not him. But he did plan. And he didn't rush - this was too important.

If it was to be the final battle, if it was to come down to this, he was going to make sure that they won. That they all came through safely. That Kivar was defeated, because this time, he had gone too far. He went after Maria. And there wasn't a single person at the base that wasn't prepared to die for her.

It took 24 hours to prepare. Twenty four hours of nail biting waiting and planning. Michael didn't sleep. He walked around, always holding his baby daughter, and looked over everyone's shoulder. And for once no one minded. It was almost a relief. As long as he did, they all knew that she was alright. That she fine, and they all desperately needed to belief that.

No one saw his total and complete, almost paralysing fear. He hid that. He hid the anger that consumed him. They didn't see him destroy their room, hitting the walls so hard that holes formed or him falling to his feet and begging, and praying for her life. He hid all that, from everyone - except Ariel. She saw, and she waited. And then she climbed into his lap and wiped his tears, like her mother had so long ago. And like it did then, the fear resided and the anger left. And he calmed down, totally and completely. Enough to win, enough to lead.

Because, it was time.

The final battle began now.

End Part 29

Part 30

The mission had been split in 4 parts. The first was for earth, the recovery of the final crystal. Like the first crystal this one was hidden in the desert around Roswell. It was a simple mission objective. Get the crystal, head for the granolith and activate the weapon.

The second part of the plan was the phase one of the battle. Alex would control and command it. The planes would hit Roswell first. It was a quick, fast attack - the bombing of 5 skin targets in the Roswell, mostly command posts according to Tess's Intel. Enough to throw the skins out, to panic. And immediately after, phase 2 would begin. Three different fronts would move in. Two to surround the Roswell Area and one to get Maria.

Max led the one front - with all the tanks, jeeps and various other army trucks and vehicles. He came in from the east. On the other side, Isabel led the second front - equally large - and entered in from the west. Four smaller groups sneaked in after Max and Isabel had the guarded entry points destroyed. Their mission was simple - to get as many humans, civilians out of the line of fire as possible.

And last but not least, Michael and Jim took their troop in. To the final show down. Kivar's Earth Headquarters. Jim was officially leading the troop, or more accurately he was clearing the way for Michael to go in and get Maria. The soldiers in this last, final front were the best there was. All of them were volunteers, all of them knew the risk. The plan while risky, was a battle strategy that was approved by the highest levels. Three fronts, one rescue and the end of a war. All that remained was the decision of victory or defeat - and that was in the hands of a much higher power.

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Phase One was almost a total and complete success. It achieved its aim, and while dogfights in the air over the deserts of New Mexico were still going on, the skins had been caught by surprise and since the first target was the destruction of the Zarian airbase, there wasn't much left to fight with. The second the last target had been acquired, Alex gave notice for Max and Isabel to move in. And Phase 2 began.

Fire began immediately as Max directed his troops. It would have been a scene out a movieBraveheart, the Mummy Returnswould have, except those weren't extras. The blood - it wasn't fake, and the death, the smell of it, the overpowering sense of it - it was real.

And the weapons of death, that was real too. They were half equipped already with Liz's latest weapon technology. Only half because of the limited 24 hour window with which they had been given to prepare. It was going to be their secret weapon, instead of metal bullets, which were totally useless against the skins - the weapon shot a different type of bullet. One that once it entered the body of a skin burst into flames, destroying the skin along with it. A miniature bomb, shot from a special gun would be a more accurate description. It had taken Liz three years to perfect it, to prevent the flames from spreading to others around the victim, to get the bullet to explode inside the skins body, but finally she had it perfected, and if sometimes a part of her cringed at the thought of her using her science to create weapons of destruction, another part of her recognised the necessity of it all.

The weapons had been in preparation for a while now, yet despite beginning manufacture early, they had created nowhere near enough for this last battle. What stock they did have, was given to Jim's troop and the remainder split equally between Max and Isabel's soldiers. It was the first, and hopefully the last battle that they were going to use them. And more importantly, it helped even out the sides on the front, because now while still being below skins in power, they at least had a more efficient manner of killing the enemy this time.

Opposite, on the west side of Roswell Isabel shouted similar orders to her troops as they went in.

It had begun.

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Kyle and Tess had taken two soldiers with them to recover the crystal. It was simple getting in - the desert in Roswell was home, they knew it like the back of their hands. And less 10 miles away, a battle was raging drawing all attention away from them. Still, experience had taught them that never to underestimate the skins. Kivar had certain rules regarding guard and patrol, put into place after losing Maria the last time in the desert and the Sentries on duty knew better than to leave their designated areas, despite the battle being waged.

It was precisely because of this that while finding the crystal didn't take long, even the digging it out of the ground occurred in record time with Tess's powers and the soldiers and Kyle's muscle, they still didn't quite manage to avoid the Zarian Sentry. It wasn't an in and out like hiding the other 3 crystals in the cave had been - this time they were standing in one spot for an extended period of time, and that gave them time to get caught.

So however prepared they were for that eventuality, it did happen a lot sooner than they expected, and amidst admiring the newly uncovered sapphire crystal - the last one needed, they were forced to run. Tess mindwarped the Skins, but with the numbers involved she couldn't maintain it for long, and as the skins snapped out the mindwarp that covered their presence, they were spotted and a chase began. That's what it would come down to - a high speed race through the desert to get to the granolith before they were killed.

The skins had faster vehicles and greater numbers. Despite splitting up into two groups, one with Tess and Kyle and the other with the two soldiers accompanying them, and despite trying every trick, alien and human to lose them - they couldn't shake them. The granolith was still 8 miles away, and it didn't look very good for the future of mankind, or the future of two worlds.

But they had come too far to give up. Kyle drove, sand spraying everywhere as his 4 wheel fought to move in the desert and Tess held her balance precariously as she leaned out to shoot those that sought to destroy them. They were 5miles away when one of the Zarians managed to hit the SUV they were driving. Kyle battled to control the car, to stop its wild curves but it all they could do to stay upright.

"Jump," he yelled to his wife.

She didn't need to be told twice. Giving her husband one last look, and clutching the crystal tightly in one hand and the gun in the other - Tess jumped, rolling for what seemed to be an inordinately long time before stopping. Immediately, Tess sat up, wincing slightly as her body protested and searched for Kyle. He lay unmoving a few metres away. Ignoring her own pain, Tess ran towards him, screaming his name in panic.

She dropped to his side, letting all fall to the ground and grabbed his hand to see for a pulse, using the other hand to slap his face, screaming at him to wake up. He did. And wasn't too happy to being slapped. Reaching out his free hand, he grabbed her to stop it from making contact with his face again.

But they didn't have time to argue or celebrate, or do much of anything. The Zarians could be heard in the distance as they caught up. Standing up, Kyle and Tess exchanged one last glance before starting to run.

It was almost over. They could see the rock face of the granolith chamber, but it was already too late. Just as they prepared to be shot, still running almost futilely towards the Cave, they heard weapon fire.

And then there was silence for few seconds before the sounds of gunfire filled the air. They turned around cautiously, to see why they were not dead.

A voice solved the mystery for them.

"Thought I would come by and help," Alex said, pulling up next to them in a jeep.

They jumped in quickly, and with a squeal of tires, Alex pulled away before the skins could catch them again.

"I could just kiss you," Tess shouted in relief. And to prove it, she leaned over the seat and did.

"Me, too," Kyle added.

And before he could say anything else, Alex cut him off, "You STAY there," he said, firmly.

And all three of them laughed. It was habit now, to joke when things were bad. And right now they were as bad as they could get. Despite being saved from immediate death, the skins were still in hot pursuit and they still had to activate a weapon they didn't know quite how to use.

Alex braked suddenly directly in front of the chamber. And coming around the side, the other jeep stopped and the two soldiers came running. They were beyond hiding it's position by this point. Tess jumped almost before the car had come to a complete stop, and while Kyle covered them shooting wildly at the Zarians that were almost there, Tess used her handprint to open the Cave.

"Open Sesame," Alex murmured softly as the entrance slid open. Not wasting anytime he slid in behind Tess, the soldiers pushing their way in after him, and while Alex took over covering them, Kyle backed into the cave. And with a sigh, almost denoting relief the cave slid close silently.

It had started here. And it would end here. In Roswell. In the Cave.

End Part 30

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