Disclaimer: Roswell, and its characters do not belong to me. Melinda Metz, Jason Katims and 20th Century Fox have that particular pleasure. I'm simply borrowing them until the Season 2 DVD's get released.

Tomorrow's Yet to Come

Chapter Twenty – Two – Settling Down and Settling In

They ate silently, and moved to the cots to try and get some rest. Both Liz and Ava's outbursts shook everyone. It was rare to see either one of them react in such a manner. Usually they were the ones to react calmly to any given situation.

Liz was unable to sleep. She sat up, and swung her legs over the side of the cot and stood up. She waited for a moment until her eyes adjusted to the dim lighting, then made her way over to Che'koth. She tapped him lightly on the shoulder and he jumped up.

"What is wrong. Are there intruders?" he whispered.

"No," said Liz. "I need to speak with you."

Che'koth stood, and led Liz across the room and though a small door into a private chamber. He pointed to one of the chairs, and waited until Liz took her seat before he sat down himself.
"Yes, Majesty, what troubles you?" he asked.

"A lot of things," said Liz. "Che'koth, we don't belong here. This isn't our battle. I never wanted to come to Antar. There was a reason why Max and I never went back to the Granolith you know."

"Yes, I do know," answered Che'koth. "To go to the place where you lost your child would cause you too much pain. You have been in pain for a long time now, haven't you Liz?" asked Che'koth dropping the formal title.

"No, not for a long time. It's only been recently that I've started to not hurt so much," she answered.

"And when you entered the Granolith, did it hurt?"

"No, I didn't really have time to think about it because everything happened so fast."

"And what does that tell you?" asked Che'koth.

"Maybe that I should face my pain, or that I should keep busy with something else instead of dwelling on it? But Che'koth, wouldn't that just be avoiding the issue and not dealing with it?"

"I think, you've come to terms with what has happened Liz. Now it is time for you to move on. And while I understand that you don't wish to be here, perhaps this is what you need. Something to focus on. Something other than the pain that consumed you."

"Are you telling me I've been wallowing?" asked Liz, the surprise apparent on he face. "I've gotten on with my life. I graduated high school, and left for college. I have not been wallowing."

"You misunderstand me Liz. Yes, you have done these things," said Che'koth. He sighed, stood up, and paced around the small room. "How can I make you understand? These things that you have done, did they present a challenge to you? Did you have to fight and struggle to achieve them, or did they come to you with ease."

"I think I get it," said Liz, settling into her chair. "I've kind of been coasting along, with no real effort involved. But Che'koth, this? I know Max, he's not going to be happy just getting rid of those assassins. He won't be satisfied until Kivar is destroyed."

"He speaks of this to you?" asked Che'koth in surprise.

"No, it's because he doesn't speak of it, but he does dream of it. His sleep is punctuated by dreams of Kivar's reign on Antar. I don't know if he's remembering his life as Zan, or he's Max, but he frequently dreams, no, has nightmares about the tyranny of Kivar's rule, and that it's his fault."

"I can see that Max will need a history lesson or two, along with Zan," said Che'koth. "He worries me, Liz. He is hot headed, much like King Zan was when he was younger. Max is far more even tempered."

"He hasn't had a wonderful life, Che'koth," said Liz. "His sister and his best friend tried to kill him, and he thought the only person he could ever really trust decided to join them. I'm not excusing his behavior, but it does explain it."

"Yes, but we're not here to discuss him, or even Max, we're here to discus you, young queen. Do you wish to be sent back?"

Liz thought about returning home, and leaving her friends on Antar. Try as she might, she couldn't see herself alone on Earth, while her friends were here, fighting. "No, Che'koth, I can't do that, but you already knew that, didn't you." Che'koth smiled slightly, and Liz kept speaking. "But, I'd like you to make the same offer to everyone, including Zan. They all deserve to make this choice. And, if everybody chooses to stay, I want you to send somebody back to Roswell. They need to find Kyle's dad and tell him what's going on. He can tell our parents."

"Agreed," said Che'koth. He was pleased with the decisions Liz had made. He could understand her sadness and loss. He had known such sadness and loss in his own life, and he knew the benefits of an all consuming task to help reduce the sadness. "Remind me, Liz to introduce you to a very dear friend of mine. She lost not one, but two children when they were quite young, and went through a period of incredible sadness much like you did."

"Did she ever get over it?" Liz asked.

"You never 'get over it,' Liz. But as time goes by, the pain does lessen, and you go on living. We can't live in the past, we must think of the Tomorrows yet to come," answered Che'koth. A soft knock on the door interrupted him. Che'koth jumped up and stood in front of Liz, his had raised protectively. He reached out with his other hand and opened the door cautiously.

"Max, it's you," he said with relief. "Please, join us." He stepped aside to allow Max passage into the chamber. Max walked into the room and looked around. The walls were covered in a dark wood, and a carpet of dark red covered the floor. Liz sat on a chair covered in a dark blue material, her face a white mask.

"Liz, what's wrong?" he asked, his face worried.

"Nothing, I'm fine, it's just the way Che'koth stepped in front of me like that. I had forgotten for a second about assassins and all of that."

"I got worried," said Max. I saw you leave, but you never came back. But since everything is okay I'll leave you two to finish whatever you were talking about."

"No, Max, stay," Liz said, quickly jumping up. "Stay, please. I want to talk to you about something. I had an idea earlier. I was just about to tell Che'koth about it."

"Sure, Liz, what's up?" Max asked. He sat on the arm of the chair his wife was ensconced in and smiled at her.

"Well, first, I had just suggested to Che'koth that he send somebody back to let Jim know what's going on. He can tell our parents. They need to be aware of the dangers," said Liz.

"That makes sense," said Max. "Did you want to go back? I mean, did you really want to be on Antar? We should check with the others too," Max continued. "Anyone that doesn't want to be here should get sent back. They don't need to stay and fight this war."

"I said the same thing to Che'koth," said Liz.

"It is always beneficial when our ruling heads are of like mind," said Che'koth.

"I'm not your ruling head," said Max and Liz together. They both laughed, and Liz felt more of the sadness that had filled her soul drain away.

"Okay, here's what I was thinking," she said. "We can't do anything until we become familiar with the culture and the language here. Basically, what we need is a crash course. You know like Antar 101 or something."

"Intro to Antar 101?" said Che'koth, clearly puzzled. "Some times, Your Majesty, your Earth references allude me."

"My name is Liz. Damn it Che'koth, I'm going to make Max bestow some totally stupid royal title on you and call you by it for the rest of your life." Max smiled, relieved to see his way so cheerful and playful, he was so focused on her smile and her laughter, that he missed the beginning of her explanation to Che'koth. "And so in our academic system, classes that introduce students to a subject are usually called Intro courses. Make sense?"

"Yes, your Majesty," said Che'koth. "Please continue."

"Certainly, your Royal Keeper of the garbage dump. Nah, I don't like that one. But don't worry, I'll find the perfect title for you. So, anyhow, I was thinking, we need a crash course in Antar, and we need a purpose, a reason for being here. Jobs or something."

"Right," said Max, picking up the thread of the conversation. We can't just all of a sudden show up and hang around all the time, can we? We need to be doing something."

"I believe I can help on both counts," said Che'koth. "All of you are of the age when young Antarians enter the Training Academy, and begin to study for their chosen paths. We can create false identities for you, and implant you in the Training Academy."

"But what about the language and culture issues?" asked Liz. "There is no way we can fake all of that."

"You may not have to," said Che'koth. "Our technology will allow us to implant the knowledge you need, if you are willing to undergo the procedure."

"How dangerous is it?" asked Max. "I don't want Liz put in any jeopardy."

"It's extremely safe," said Che'koth. "It utilizes a procedure similar to what you call mind warping."

"We can tell the others in the morning and see what they think," said Max. "This has to be a strictly voluntary operation."

"What sort of careers would we train in?" asked Liz.

"Well, the Training Academy only accepts the elite students from the gretkla's," said Che'koth. "Gretkla's are similar to your high schools. Students entering the Training Academy may study medicines, science, diplomacy, technology, and of course there is the branch that trains our soldiers."

"I'd love to study science," said Liz. "And I bet you anything, Alex would love the technology, if he stays that is."

"I bet Michael and Kyle would want to go do the warrior thing," said Max. "And so would I for that matter."

"That leaves Ava, Isabel, Maria, and Zan," said Liz. "What about them?"

"We can't decide for anyone," said Max. "Now I have a suggestion of my own to make. Why don't we grab a few more hours sleep, and we can discuss this later with everyone." Max stood, and held out his hand to Liz. He helped her up, and walked to the door with her, hand in hand. Che'koth opened the door and stepped out into the hall to make certain it was secure. As the walked passed him, Liz smiled and whispered a soft thank you to him.