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 Fifty - The Secret is Out

The Aberjani training room slowly filled as the soldiers and the trainee's filed in, one by one. There were no chairs in the dimly lit room, and the Aberjani lined up in rows, facing the darkened podium.

Max stood quietly, feeling the waves of nervousness pouring off the soldiers around him.

If I can feel this, he thought to himself. What's happening to poor Kyle?

He leaned forward slightly and looked down the line, trying to focus until Kyle came into vision. Even in the dim light, Max could see Kyle shaking slightly, and his lips were moving as he formed silent words. Max shifted a bit more, and he saw Michael step out of line and shove himself in beside Kyle. Michael leaned down and whispered something to Kyle, and Max could see some of the tension leave his body. Max stepped back into position, smiling to himself. Who'd have thought Michael would ever be the one to give Kyle comfort.

A movement at the front of the room grabbed his attention, and Max focused on the shadowy figures that were standing on the raised platform. Two pencil thin lights came on, focusing down on the platform, bringing General Kobodi into view, and next to him was Kivar! Max stared at him, and feelings of hatred rose up inside of him, threatening to spill out. Stealing a page from Kyle's book, Max forced himself to focus on a stream he camped at once with his father. In his mind, he watched a small golden leaf float down the stream, and his feelings of rage subsided, slightly.

"Soldiers of Lord Kivar!" shouted General Kobodi. "It is time for you to move forward to the next stage of your training. Soon you will swear complete and total allegiance to Lord Kivar. You will protect and defend him with your life. All hail Lord Kivar!"

"All hail Lord Kivar!" came the shout from many of the Aberjani, but Max noticed that most of the students looked confused and said nothing.

The trideka, he thought. It's working, but it's going to get them killed unless they play along.

"Say it," he hissed to the Aberjani trainees on either side of him. "Even if you don't mean it, just say it. Get the word out."

Max felt his body sag in relief as the Aberjani on either side of him realized what he said made sense, and passed the word on. A swift perusal of the room showed him that Michael, Kyle and Zan had all realized the same thing, and were spreading the word as well. Suddenly a low chanting filled the room; growing louder and louder.

"All hail Lord Kivar, all hail Lord Kivar!"

"Lord Kivar has come here today to see if you are worthy to serve him, and this is how you react?" screamed General Kobodi. "You are not fit to wipe his boots! You will be lucky to be chosen to serve Lord Kivar."

"All hail Lord Kivar, All hail Lord Kivar!" The chants filled the room growing louder and louder.

"Silence!" roared General Kobodi. He and Kivar walked off of the platform, and exited the room, followed by the other Aberjani, leaving only the trainees in the room. As soon as the door closed, flashing lights filled the room, highlighting pictures of Kivar, and a piercing whistle began, causing many of the Aberjani, as well as most of the trainees to cover their ears and fall to their knees screaming.

A movement up near the ceiling caught Max's eye, and he realized there was a small observation window, looking down on all of them. Squinting, he was able to make out the figures of Kivar and Kobodi, staring down at them. He felt a pushing at his mind, felt a voice telling him to stand up and show his support of Kivar.

Max forced himself to ignore the lights, and the noise, and stood up.

"Long live Lord Kivar! Kivar forever!" he shouted.

One by one, the other Aberjani trainees dragged themselves to their feet, following Max's example. As soon as they all stood and were chanting, the lights dimmed, and the incessant screaming of the whistle ended, leaving the room in silence. The door opened, and Kobodi and Kivar walked back in.

"That is better," said Kobodi. "What do you have to say for yourselves?"

"We follow Lord Kivar," the trainees intoned. "We live and die for Kivar. All hail Lord Kivar."

"We will meet again tomorrow at this time," said Kobodi. He turned and followed Kivar from the room, slamming the door behind them.

"What the hell was that?" one of the trainees asked Max. Max said nothing, only giving a small shake of his head to indicate that this was neither the time, nor the place for that particular conversation.

One by one, the trainees filed out of the room, and made their way to the student common area. After making sure that they were unobserved, the trainee who had spoken to Max earlier, grabbed him and shoved him against the wall.

"Are you going to tell me now, what that was all about?" he yelled.

"Are you going to keep your voice down?" said Max, "Or are you trying to get us all killed?"

"I want some answers," said the trainee.

"And you're assuming that I have them?" asked Max, stalling for time.

"Didn't you feel it?" asked Zan, moving to stand beside Max. "They were mind warping us, but I guess we were powerful enough to throw it off."

"They weren't mind warping us," said the trainee, who's name was Quortoth. "Mind warping is illegal. Lord Kivar declared it. He said it was a tool used only by the royal family to guarantee our submission." He stopped, and Max could see the memories rushing back to him. "But that's not right. The royal family were the ones who declared that the use of mind control was to be seriously monitored. It was one of the things King Daronian, and later his son, King Zan both felt very strongly about. It wasn't the royal family that used mind control to rule is. It's Lord Kivar!"

"Keep your voice down," said Zan. "Do you want them to know that we've figured that out?"

"No," said Quortoth."

"It's probably not safe for us to talk here. We should probably head outside if we're going to keep discussing this," added Michael, as he and Kyle moved forward to stand beside Max and Zan.

"The courtyard of the Training Academy?" suggested another student. "If anybody asks, we can act like we're out there to train."

"Good idea," said Max. "Let's go now, and we'll see what we can figure out."

The Aberjani trainees moved outside to the courtyard, and lined up as if they were working out. As they moved, they discussed what had happened in the room with Kobodi."

"I think you're all wrong," said one. "I didn't feel anything. Kivar is our true leader, and the royal family tried to oppress us."

Kyle slid over next to the trainee and quickly checked to see if he was wearing any of the jewelry from Me'noyith's cart. His neck, ears, wrists and fingers were bare. Thinking fast, Kyle removed a platinum band he wore around his wrist. He grabbed the other trainee's hand and quickly shoved it onto his wrist."

"Hey, what the hell are you doing?" the student shouted. Kyle quickly shifted his weight, and knocked the student's leg out from under him, causing him to fall.

"A new fighting technique," Kyle explained.

"Oh, it's," began the student. Kyle watched as the mind warps became clear in the student's mind and stepped back.

"Do you see it now?" he asked.

"What did you do?" the student asked. "How did you do that?"

"There is a property in this metal that blocks the energy waves used in the mind control. I don't know how it works, but it does."

"How do we know this isn't just another form of mind control?" asked another of the trainees. "How can we be certain you aren't trying to mind warp us."

"You felt what Kobodi was trying to do to you. You could feel it pushing on your mind," explained Max. "Does it feel like that now?"

"No," said Quortoth. "In fact, my mind feels clearer than it ever has before."

"We need you to swear that you won't reveal this to anyone," said Michael. "We need to know we can trust you.

"We can't afford to be innocent," said Quortoth. "Stand up and face the enemy. Kivar is our enemy!"

"Do you all agree?" Max asked.

One by one, the students agreed to keep the secrets revealed to them by Max and the others. They were all anxious to help, and wanted to know what they could do.

"Right now, nothing," said Max. "Continue as if nothing has happened, and don't tell anybody. You'll know when things start to happen, I promise you, and you'll know exactly what to do."