Tomorrow's Yet to Come

Chapter Thirty-Eight – What Isabel Saw

Isabel walked through the city, enjoying the time away from her studies. As she walked, she hummed one of the tunes Maria played on her guitar the night before.

Being here is so strange, she thought to herself. In so many ways, it's no different than being on Earth. People work, the live, they love, they She continued walking, watching as the palace loomed higher and higher above her, the closer she got.
You know, she giggled to herself. It kind of looks a little like the Emerald City in The Wizard of Oz. Except for the green color that is.

Isabel paused to look at the list of detailed instructions she had been given.

"Go through the main gate, show your badge and wait. Somebody will escort you to the Ambassador's quarters. Do not engage the guards in any other conversation. As you know from your studies, it is considered unseemly for the Royal Guard to consort with people while on duty."

Isabel grimaced at the note and crumpled it up and stuffed it into her pocket. She wasn't stupid, and she didn't need to be reminded of the proper way to act. She glanced at a nearby store, and stopped while her brain tried to make sense of what she saw on the window. A poster with a large silver handprint was taped to the outside of the window and scrawled beneath the handprint in red was the phrase 'We can't afford to be innocent.'

The phrase tickled the back of Isabel's mind, but she wasn't able to place it. She shrugged her shoulders and continued her walk to the palace. As she walked, Isabel paid closer attention to the sites of the city that her former self had called home. It wasn't dissimilar to Roswell, in that there were residential, and commercial areas. And where Roswell had the park where she had presided over so many Christmas festivities, Antar had the central market place where people gathered.

As she walked, Isabel noticed more and more people leaving the buildings, and making there way to the central market area.

Damn, she thought to herself. I hope this isn't another protest like the one Liz got stuck in. She increased her pace, and kept close to the buildings, when she spied another sign, this one stuck to a statue of Kivar. Unwillingly, she found herself crossing the road to get a closer look at it. This sign has the orb symbol that was on the communicators, and underneath it was a message as cryptic as the one on the first sign. "Stand up and face the enemy," she read.

She quickly crossed away from the sign and continued her journey to the palace as she mulled over the two phrases.
We can't afford to be innocent. Stand up and face the enemy, went through her brain like the refrain from a song.

"A song," she said out loud. "Oh my God, that's it, it's a song. Damn it, Maria. A little warning would have been nice." She fought back a grin that threatened to spread across her face. Actually, she thought. It's a great idea. Way to go Maria!

Michael smothered a yawn as he carried his plate of food across the dining area, looking for a place to sit. He looked around and spied Kyle, sitting in a corner, a disturbed look on his face. Michael sighed to himself and walked over to where Kyle sat, wondering what had happened to put that worried expression on Kyle's face.

"Hey, man, what's up?" Michael asked, placing his plate on the table, and sitting down next to Kyle.

"Hey," Kyle responded, pushing his food around on his plate, apathetically.

"Kyle, snap out of it," said Michael. "What's wrong with you? Is breakfast that disgusting?"

"Hmm, oh, no," Kyle replied, a distractedly. "N'ah, I've got a Pop Tart in my pocket."

"So what's the problem then?" asked Michael, shoveling food into his mouth at a prodigious rate.

"God, you are disgusting, Guerin," Kyle said, watching Michael eat. "The problem, is that evil witch that is persecuting Maria.

"Yeah, what about her?" asked Michael.

"Well, she isn't just making Maria miserable, she's also making Ava miserable, and it got me thinking," Kyle explained. "Do you think she's doing it because she's on to us somehow?"

Michael stopped chewing as he pondered the ramifications of Kyle's thoughts.

"No, that can't be it," said Michael. "Think about who she is, and who her husband is. She would have done something more than just be nasty to them if she knew who they were. I guess she's just a bitch with a hair across her ass."

"Who's a bitch with a hair across their ass?" asked Alex, sitting down across from Michael.

"That teacher Maria and Ava are saddled with," said Michael. "Kyle was wondering if maybe she had an inkling of who they really were."

"Damn," said Alex. "I never thought of that. I bet if you had told Maria that, she would have been more than willing to go back home."

"You told Maria to go back home?" Kyle asked, incredulously. "Are you insane."

"No," Michael said, self-righteously. "I didn't"

"He didn't, because he was afraid to," Alex interjected. "He tried to get one of us to do it for him, but he soon found out, none of us, including Zan were that stupid."

"Listen, I was wondering if anybody knew what this is," said Alex. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a folded piece of paper and passed it to Kyle and Michael.

"We can't afford to be innocent," read Michael from the paper. "Stand up and face the enemy." He looked up at Alex and over to Kyle. "Never saw it before in my life. Why?"

"They're up all over school. I was wondering if either one of you did it," said Alex.

"Did it, did what?" asked Michael, clearly frustrated. "None of us have done anything since we put those banners up in the market place."

"Well, one of us has done something, and I'll give you three guess who it is," said Alex, a knowing smirk on his face.

"Don't tell me," said Michael, rubbing his forehead.

"It's Maria," said Kyle, with a smile. "Guess she's not letting the evil teacher get to her too much, after all."

"No way," Michael said, emphatically. "Maria wouldn't do something like this without talking to somebody first."

Alex and Kyle both stared at Michael, looking at him like he had grown horns, or was speaking in a foreign language.

"Ah, this is Maria we're talking about, right?" asked Alex. "Maria who totally took over my band, Maria of the world famous Aqua bra. That Maria?"

"Yeah," added Kyle. "The Maria who put not one, not two, but three giant wads of chewed up bubble gum in Pam Troy's hair. The one who drove to Texas with you, rather than let you take her mother's care. Remember her?"

"Damn," said Michael, his voice coming out with a whoosh. "Okay, Mister Know – it – alls, what is this all about?"

"Actually, it should be Misters Know – it – all," said Alex. And you know, I think I'm just going to let Maria tell you about it herself." He got up and left the table quickly.

"What the hell is his problem?" Michael asked, angrily. As he spoke, the contents of his plate splattered up to hit him in the face.

"Looks like you need to work on the control, bud," said Kyle. "If you want to borrow any of my books on Eastern Philosophy, let me know. I'll have my dad send them up." He stood up, ready to beat a hasty retreat.

"I do not need any of your stupid Buddha books," snapped Michael.

"Right," said Kyle with a pointed glance. Michael looked down at his plate, where Kyle was staring and saw that his eating utensils had fused themselves to his plate.

Isabel sat in the diplomatic waiting area, and surveyed her surroundings from her seat. Nothing in the room looked familiar to her. She was slightly disappointed that nothing she had seen since she entered the palace stirred even the smallest memory. She toyed with the idea of tapping into Vilondra's memories, but she still resisted. That was one Pandora's box she did not want to open.

"Come!" said the Ambassador, entering the room. "We are to meet with a party from a neighboring planet, immediately. They are waiting for us in the Great Hall."

"Certainly," said Isabel, rising gracefully from her chair. "Is there anything you wish me to attend to during the meeting?"

"No, no, not today," said Ambassador Gara. For now you observe, soon though, we will make you work." He paused to smile at Isabel. "Do not worry, you will be fine. I was very impressed during your interview. You possess a maturity that few people your age possess."

"Thank you," said Isabel. She followed him through the numerous hallways, do the arched doorway that lead to the Great Hall. She waited, and allowed the Ambassador to enter first, and then followed close behind. Ambassador Gara introduced himself to the visiting dignitaries, and was about to introduce Isabel, when a fanfare signaled the arrival of Kivar. Isabel turned expectantly, anxious to see the man who stole her brother's throne in person.

There was a flurry of activity on the throne, and Isabel looked in the direction of the throne to see Kivar, and another person, a woman, seated side by side. She moved slightly, anxious to get a better look. The people in front of her shifted, and Isabel looked, and quickly put her hand to her mouth in an effort to stifle the scream that threatened to explode. There, sitting on the throne, next to Kivar, was a replica of Vilondra, complete with long flowing hair.