Title: The Crucible

Disclaimer: I don't own anything

Author's note: Anything in italics is a vision, anything in bold is what is happening in the room while Tess is caught in her visions. Also, we get our first glimpse of Earth in this chapter. Some of the visions are taken directly from the show, some are partially from the show but have been changed a little bit, and some are entirely my creation.

Re: Mony: Thanks for the review. Yes, I like Larek and Sria as well. I am trying to make them the nicest and most sympathetic of the characters. And the birth of the baby will definitely increase the hope of the Resistance, but it will also make some things harder for Tess. There will be new obstacles she has to overcome.

Re: .elementbabe.: Thanks for the review, I'm glad you like the story. I was never really a Max fan either, he was such a jerk. And my view on that matter will come out quite a lot during the story, so it is probably good that you don't like him either.

crucible: an object made stronger as it is passed through fire

Chapter Six: Birth

She was unaware of anything except the pain shooting up and down through her stomach. All around her, she knew that people were running, talking, crying for help, but none of their panic reached her. She could hear them, but it was distant and muffled, as though the sound was coming to her through a thick veil of cotton. She was trapped in her own world of pain and panic as another powerful contraction ripped through her abdomen.

Someone lifted her from the floor and carried her down the hallway and into another room. She was deposited on something soft and warm, and then someone placed a cool towel on her forehead, wiping away the sweat that mattered her hair.

She thought fleetingly of Jim.

But he wasn't here. None of them were here, and she was trapped giving birth on a unknown planet in a room full of people she had known for, at most, a few days.

Her child twisted in her womb, as though caught in a net. She felt a sharp pain, sharper than the others, and bit her lip to keep from crying out. Through the fog that swirled around her vision, she could see something red and sticky spreading across the front of her shirt and pants.

The baby was in trouble.

And then, quite suddenly, she wasn't there anymore.

She was in water. It flooded over her head, soaking through her clothes and skin. She struggled for a moment, fighting against the swelling panic in her chest, and clawing at the cold water. She gasped, tears stinging her cheeks and flailed her arms around frantically. For a moment, time seemed to stand still and she wondered if she was going to die.

And then her senses kicked in.

She wasn't in the water. She was simply trapped in a vision, seeing through the eyes of someone who was swimming. She looked around through the blue-green murky depths around her and tried to figure out what was going on.

The pain in her stomach had subsided some, and she was able to think clearly. Or, more clearly than she had moments ago. She knew she was in a vision, but she was not sure how that was possible. She certainly had not made the connection with anyone, and she doubted there was anyone out there who would have made a connection with her.

So what was going on?

The answer came in the form of the doe-eyed brunette that Tess had secretly (and not so secretly) blamed for her misery on Earth.

Liz Parker.

"Max?" Liz cried out, kneeling down next to her boyfriend. She came slowly into view slowly, worry etched over her soft features. Her eyes were filled with concern, fear, and love. A set of frown lines temporarily disturbed the skin on her forehead.

It was then that Tess realized whose eyes she was looking through. She had not made this connection, but her son had. In his distress and fear, he had reached out across the great expanse of space and connected with the last person in the entire universe that Tess wanted to even think about.

But she was stuck in the vision, with no way out.

"Just tell us what happened," Michael's voice called. He was out of the range of Tess' vision, but she recognized his voice clearly. He was upset and worried, and slightly amused by the entire situation.

"Feel free to leave out the lurid details," came another voice, sarcastic and biting. Isabel.

"Look," Liz replied, turning away from Max and looking back over her shoulder. "I already told you. He was just, like, laying there in the water, and he woke up in the car. But he hasn't said a single word. You guys, isn't there some cure for this?" Her voice had reached hysteria now as she turned and glanced back at Max. "You guys are the aliens, do something here!"

Michael stepped into view, reaching over and slapping Max. Through Max's eyes, Tess could clearly see the sunken look on Michael's face. He seemed older than she remembered, as though he has suddenly aged drastically over night. His expression exuded a feeling of exhaustion and defeat.

"Maxwell," Michael ylled. "Hey, Maxwell, wake up!"

The scene lurched, and Tess realized that Max was sitting up now, and staring about the room. His gaze fell on Isabel, and Tess noted the other hybrid's shorter, darker hair with a start. She frowned slightly, thinking to herself that Isabel looked much better as a blonde.

"What the hell is going on?" Michael demanded, and Max turned to look at him. He shook his head and swallowed, and although Tess could not see the actions, she could almost feel them, as though she really was inside him.

Max turned to Liz and whispered, "Something happened." She got up shakily and continued in a soft and worried voice, "I had this vision. It was my son, he's been born."

"Max…?" Liz asked gently, reaching out and placing a hand on his shoulder.

"He was reaching out to me," Max continued. "He's in trouble…"

Michael and Isabel exchanged darkly significant looks and Isabel said, "What about Tess? Is she in trouble too?" There was real worry in her voice, and something else… Was it guilt?

Tess frowned, wondering.. Did they know what had happened to her? What had really happened to Alex?

"Ava," a voice called, bring Tess out of the vision. "Ava, can you hear me?"

Tess groaned and tried to roll to her side, but a set of hands stopped her, pushing her firmly back onto the pillows and cushions under her.

"Ava, listen to me…"

But whatever the person was going to say was lost as Tess was abruptly and unceremoniously pulled into a different vision. This time she floated to the side of the scene, seeing everything. She was no longer trapped in Max's body, no longer seeing only through his eyes.

Max ran out of the pod chamber, his face filled with rage and pain. He stumbled across the rocks, and Michael appeared behind him, shoving him forward and away from the cave.

"Max!" Isabel screamed, running towards her brother in fear. The ground began to shake around them, and then, through the ceiling of the cave, a bright light shot into the sky. A brilliant blue beam of energy that disappeared almost as soon as it had come.

The pod chamber crumbled to the ground.

Max turned and looked up at the light, his expression unreadable. He stayed like that for a moment, and the others did as well, each of them contemplating the future, and the changes it would bring.

Then Max turned and ran to Liz, pulling her into a tight embrace. "I've been really wrong about a lot," he whispered, and Tess couldn't help but laugh bitterly at the statement. "But I was right about one thing: To get you into my life, to be around you, to love you."

Liz clung to him, and Tess turned away from the scene, pain flickering through her eyes and stabbing at her heart. Pushing thoughts of Max and Liz away, she found herself staring at Michael and Maria instead.

"You opened the door and you came out-- why?" Maria asked, looking up at Michael, her eyes wide with confusion and wonder. Then realization dawned on her features, and she whispered, " You stayed for me."

Michael reached out and dragged her into a hug, saying nothing. The two stayed like that for a moment, lost in the moment. Tess smiled at the show of emotion. Although she was still currently furious at all of the pod squad and their human loves, the romantic side of her found the scene poignant and moving.

"What happens now, Max?"

Max looked at the others behind him and sighed, his expression dark and brooding. "I have to save my son…"

"Larek, if we don't do something, the Heir may be lost." The voice was sharp and worried, and Tess jolted from the vision at the words. She blinked once or twice, and her vision focused on the others in the room. They appeared as blurry shapes, without distinct features. She opened her mouth to say something, but the words froze on her dry lips as she was thrown into another vision.

"Liz, I just want to put everything behind us," Max whispered, kissing Liz softly. It was Liz' break from work, and they were standing in the back of the Crashdown, talking in hushed voices.

Liz broke the kiss and looked up at Max seriously. "Yeah, you know, I would too if I had impregnated an alien killer who murdered one of our best friends and then left the planet with my unborn child." Her voice was tinged with bitterness and hurt.

"So you're still holding on to that?" Max asked quietly, looking away guiltily.

Liz opened her to reply, but the door swung open and Kyle walked into the room. He nodded to them briefly, but did not say anything, instead just pushing past them and walking on. He did not want to see them, did not want to face them. Too much had happened for him to welcome the aliens into his life.

Before Tess had come, he and his father had been…well, whatever they had been, it wasn't a family. Then Tess came, and she had turned their lives upside down. But she brought with her a sense of family that Kyle had not felt since his mother left. And now that she had betrayed them and left, it felt even worse than before. His father was suddenly so far away from him, lost in his own pain and confusion, and he himself was filled with a sense of emptiness and despair that refused to leave.

"Kyle?" Liz asked, feeling her heart breaking as she stared at the boy who had once been her boyfriend. "How are you?"

Kyle laughed bitterly at the question and replied, "Oh, I'm just great, Liz." He rolled his eyes sarcastically and continued, " How are you on this fine day?"

"I'm sorry. I know that you aren't okay. None of us are, not since Tess…" Liz broke off, unsure of what to say. Kyle stared at her blankly for a moment, then shook his head and turned away.

Tess watched him, wishing she could tell him the truth, wishing she could tell him that she would never have hurt him like that. She loved him, he was her family. Couldn't he see that? She reached her hand out towards him, as though hoping that, even though it was only a vision, he would sense her presence.

He sensed nothing.

"Well, with any luck Khivar is currently torturing that traitor to death," a angry and vengeful voice stated. Maria had joined the discussion.

"Maria!" Liz said sharply.

"What? Like you aren't thinking exactly the same thing?" Maria shot back. "She killed Alex, she killed our best friend! There is nothing Khivar or anyone else could do to her that would make me actually shed a tear. She deserves whatever she gets."

"Don't say that," Kyle said softly, quietly, his voice barely above a whisper. "I don't want her to…just don't say that." He turned to go, his eyes downcast and haunted.

"Why do you care about her?" Max asked angrily, staring at the tense back of the football jock. "She's a traitor, a murderer!"

Kyle swung around, his face white, his eyes wide. He slammed his fist into the wall and hissed, "Don't you think I know that, Max? She mind-warped me into carrying Alex's dead body. We took her in, we made her family and she…" He stopped and swallowed back his angry words. In a calmer voice, he continued, "She betrayed us all, and it kills me to think of that. And I hate the fact that I don't want her dead, that no matter how much I hate her, I can't want that. But, damn it, Max, murderer or not, she still feels like my sister."

"Larek, what is happening to her? Why is she shaking like that?"

"I don't know, but I can feel energy leaving her. She is fading."

"What do we do? How can we help her?"

"Ava? Ava, can you hear me? Ava!"

A violent wave of pain rushed through Tess' body and another contraction made her curl into a fetal position. Her eyes filled with tears as she struggled to remain conscious, but once again, she was torn away from her body and thrown into a vision.

Max and Isabel were standing at the back door of the Crashdown, staring out at the alley behind the restaurant. Isabel's eyes were filled with hidden tears and her mouth had dropped open. Max's hands were clenched in fists by his side, and his entire body was shaking with anger.

Tess turned and looked down the alley to see what they were looking at, and her eyes went wide in surprise.

She was staring at herself.

'Tess' walked towards the others, seemingly unaware of their anger and fury. She paused by Max and smiled softly, giving him a brief, "Hello," before turning to push past him onto the street.

Max caught her hand and swung her sharply around, his eyes cold. "What are you doing here, Tess?" he snarled, unable to comprehend what he was seeing.

Before 'Tess' could respond, the door behind Max opened, and Maria, Michael, and Liz all stepped out into the alley. They froze at the scene before them, Liz let out a strangled sob, and Maria ran forward and slapped the blonde alien with all her strength.

'Tess' stumbled backwards in surprise, falling out of Max's grip and turning wide eyes to Maria. She reached up and touched her cheek gingerly, and asked in a confused and angry voice, "What the hell is your problem?"

"You murderer!" Maria snarled. "I'll kill you, I'll kill you!" She hit 'Tess' again, knocking her to the ground, then snapped, "Get up!" 'Tess' made no move to obey the command, so Maria stepped forward and grabbed her by the shoulders, yanking her to her feet. "I said Get Up!"

Maria's angry outburst brought Michael to his senses, and he hurried over to her, grabbing her wrists and dragging her away from the others girl. "Don't," he whispered soothingly, holding her tightly against his chest. "She's not worth it."

"I trusted you," Isabel hissed, tears falling rapidly from her eyes. "And if Kyle hadn't seen you kill Alex, if he hadn't broken out of the mind-warp, you would have just sold us out to Khivar."

"What are you doing here?" Max demanded, raising his hand and preparing to attack. "I sent you to Antar so our son could live, you come back here and endanger him? Does he mean so little to you that you would sacrifice his life just to torment us?"

'Tess' looked at them, her eyes wide, and then comprehension dawned on her features. They had sent the real Tess away, thinking she was the murderer. They had sent her back to Khivar. They had betrayed her.

She laughed.

Tess cried out, more in fury than in pain, and struggled to push herself out of the vision. She didn't want to see this shape-shifter, this woman who had stolen her life. She didn't want to watch the others realize the truth. She didn't want to know what had happened, what they thought, how they felt.

She just wanted to forget.

For a moment, she saw the room around her quite clearly. Larek was leaning over her, his face filled with concern and fear. Khai stood stiffly behind, his eyes slightly averted from Tess' prone form. Sria hovered in the back ground, anxious.

Then the vision continued.

She was in the alley again, and everyone was still there, but it looked as though some time had passed. The rage that had been on the faces of her former friends was now replaced by what she could only assume was guilt. Liz was staring down at her hands nervously, Maria was shaking her head in denial, Michael had sunk onto one of the steps and was staring blankly into the distance, Isabel was sobbing, and Max just looked numb.

And the shape-shifter was laughing at them.

"But…she admitted to it," Max whispered. "She told me…she said…she admitted! Why would she admit to something she didn't do?" He was clutching at straws, begging for a way out of the mess he suddenly found himself in.

"Would you have believed her if she had denied it?" the shape-shifter replied coldly, her words harsh, but true. "You would have sent her away no matter what. Admit it, she never mattered to you." Her eyes glittered with malicious mirth.

Max swallowed and looked away from the shape-shifter, his eyes filled with horror at what they had done. "No…that's not…it isn't…possible…"

"You really are a fool," the shape-shifter snarled, laughing cruelly. "You sent your wife and son into an unknown danger without a second thought." She smiled with mocking amusement.

"We didn't know," Michael spoke up, his voice hoarse and unnaturally subdued. "We didn't…"

"Of course not," the shape-shifter sneered. She pushed a blonde strand of hair out of her face and switched her piercing gaze from Max to Michael. "You never bothered to question it." Only that…human," the word came out contemptuous and full of disdainful loathing, "Kyle, actually thought to question what he had seen. And he was the one who had seen it with his own eyes. If anything, he should have been the one to believe, and you should have been the one to question."

"Where is she?" Isabel asked, stepping forward threateningly, her eyes narrowing into dangerous slits. "Where is Tess?"

The shape-shifter shrugged carelessly and replied, "Hell if I know."

Isabel lifted a hand and threw the shape-shifter against the wall of the Crashdown. "Tell me!" she snarled. Her fury and self-reproach were so great that she did not even stop to worry about anyone seeing her use her powers. "Tell us where Tess is. Now!"

The shape-shifter picked herself up off the floor and touched her bruised side gingerly. "Hmm," she murmured, as though contemplating her choices. "Tell them where she is or remain silent and let them suffer. Which should I do…?"

Max raised his hand threateningly, but the shape-shifter just smiled serenely.

"Go ahead and kill me. It won't do you much good, now, will it?" She grinned again, then yawned and said, "I honestly don't know where she is. I haven't been in touch with Khivar since the Queen left, so I have no way of knowing."

Michael glanced over at Max. "If she doesn't know anything, she is of no more use to us," he said coldly, angrily. His rage was barely kept under control.

Isabel turned and looked at Michael. She licked her dry lips and rubbed her red rimmed eyes. "He's right, Max. We aren't going to get any more information out of her."

"Oh, so you are going to kill me now?" the shape-shifter asked, raising an eyebrow at Michael. "Well, that is very thrilling and all, but I don't actually plan on dying today. I have a few too many other things to do." She lifted a single strand of dark hair and held it between her fingers, eyeing it appraisingly. "I must admit, I've always wondered what it would be like to be the king."

Isabel prepared to attack the shape-shifter, but she was too slow. In one fluid movement, the shape-shifter morphed into Max, and raised her hand, using Max's powers to conjure a force-field.

"What the…" Max started, staring at the reflection of himself. "Change back!" he spat. "Get out my shape!"

The shape-shifter laughed and shook her head. "Do you really think that three clueless teenagers could overpower a trained assassin? I am the best of the best, and you are nothing compared to me." She flicked her wrist, causing a pulse of energy to fly from her fingertips and strike Max, Michael, and Isabel in the chest. The three cried out and fell back, momentarily stunned.

Maria and Liz jumped to their feet, reading to attack the shape-shifter, but they were too slow. A wave of energy hit them both in the chest, and they too crumpled to the ground.

The shape-shifter closed her eyes for a moment, concentrating, then morphed into her natural shape. She was a tall woman, with long black hair and bright green eyes. Her skin was pale, so pale it was almost translucent. She was thin and elegant, and carried herself with regal poise.

She nodded to herself, pleased that her task was done. Unfortunately, she did not have the Granolith anymore, which meant that it would take her at least two weeks to get back to Antar. But that was of no consequence, because she had other information for Khivar, information that was so much better.

She turned and walked away.

"She's lost a lot of blood. What do we do?" someone asked, worried.

"Have you called for a healer?" another voice demanded anxiously.

"One is on the way. But there is not much a healer will be able to do if she continues to be stuck in these fits," the first voice said again.

"What are the fits? I've never seen anything like it. She's shaking and trembling, and her eyes are all glazed over…it is as though she is stuck in a nightmare. Larek, what is happening to her?" The third voice was high pitched and full of panic.

"I have no idea, Sria," came the heavy reply.

"So…we sent Tess…she's now…and she didn't…Alex wasn't…what I saw…?" Kyle stammered, his voice cracking as he tried to form words.

Max and Isabel both looked at the floor and nodded. They were sitting in the Valenti's living room, having just repeated everything they had found out from the shape-shifter. Kyle had grown increasingly more pale during the explanation, and Jim had, at some point, stood up and walked over to the window. He was standing there now, staring silently out at the sky.

"We have to save her," Michael said determinedly. He entered the room from the kitchen, followed by Liz and Maria. Liz walked over at sat down next to Max, her face pale and drawn. Maria perched on one of the armchairs, and Michael stood behind her.

Kyle buried his face in his hands.

"How?" Isabel demanded. "We don't even know where she is."

"Can you dream-walk her?" Liz suggested quietly, glancing over at the hybrid princess.

Isabel frowned slightly and shrugged. "I doubt it. I mean, she is on the other side of the universe. But maybe…maybe if I had Michael and Max to help me, and maybe with those orbs…if I had enough power…"

"What if she doesn't want to talk to you?" Jim pointed out, speaking for the first time since Max had revealed the truth. He turned from the window and looked at the others in the room. "What if she doesn't want to be saved?"

"Of course she wants to be saved," Maria replied, shocked at the comment. "Why would she want to stay with her enemy?"

"Maybe she doesn't want to be saved by us," Kyle spoke up, glancing at his father. "Maybe she doesn't want to see us again…"

"We were tricked," Michael replied. "We were lead to believe it was her… she'll forgive us. She has to." He sounded much more confident than he felt.

"If it had been you in her place, how forgiving would you be?" Kyle asked, his voice thick with guilt and pain.

A dismal silence fell over the group at those words.

"The healer's here, Larek," a voice whispered. Tess writhed in agony and tried to open her eyes against the harsh light, but she was so tired she could barely flutter her eyelashes.

"Good, show him in," Larek's voice ordered gruffly.

"Sir," a new voice said, "I am Korbi. The Lady Arya said you needed a healer?"

"Over here, Healer Korbi."

There was the sound of footsteps on the carpet, then a sharp in take of breath and the healer said, "That's…that's the hybrid of the Queen. I sense Ava in her." There was another pause, then the voice continued, "Is she…with child?"

"Yes. Can you heal her?"

Isabel gasped in pain and doubled over, yanking her hand away from the picture of Tess she had been using to dream-walk. Both Michael and Max moved to her side instantly, worried.

"Are you alright?" Max breathed, glancing appraisingly over his sister. "Should we take a break?"

Tess looked around the room. She was in Isabel's room, and the three aliens were all crammed together on Isabel's bed. Max and Michael were holding the healing stones, and Isabel was running her finger around a picture of Tess. She looked pale and worn out, and her breath was coming in uneven gasps.

"I couldn't reach her, Max. There was just too much…space…in between us. I can't get through to her," Isabel whispered. Her eyes were filled with unshed tears. "I'm sorry."

"We have to keep trying!" Max said desperately.

"We've tried everything, Maxwell," Michael replied stoically, although he too wanted to keep trying. But they were running out of options…

"My wife and son are somewhere out there," Max snapped, jumping off the bed and pacing across the floor. "They are in danger. They need me."

Tess stiffened at that and narrowed her eyes. Like hell they needed him.

"Max…"

"I have to find them, Izzy. I have to…" Max sunk into a sitting position on the floor and wrapped his arms around his legs, lowering his head to his knees. His entire posture was defeated, and he looked for all the world like a man on death row. "I don't know what to do anymore. I knew before…everything was so clear before, but now…How am I suppose to do this? How am I suppose to be a king?"

A warm glow spread through Tess' stomach, and her pain subsided slightly. She managed to open her eyes and stare up into the warm brown eyes of the healer who was bending over her. He had both his hands out over her body, and his eyebrows were knit together in concentration.

"Hold on, Ava," a voice whispered near her head. "Just hold on."

She was drowning. The water closed up over her head and no matter how hard she struggled, how loud she wanted to scream, she couldn't keep from sinking further away. The surface seemed so far above her, she couldn't reach it. Through the murky water, she could see the form of Liz, standing above her and on the shore. There were rows of trees behind the human girl, and the dark night sky shone with stars overhead.

Her lungs ached.

Her chest burned.

Her head pounded.

Her eyes stung.

Her abdomen contracted.

And then she was abruptly awake. The water disappeared, and she was lying on the sofa in a room in Larek's palace. She was dry, but her clothes were covered in a sticky red substance. Larek was standing next to her, Sria was kneeling at her side. Khai stood a few steps behind Sria, his arms folded over his chest. The healer sat by her knees, one glowing hand extended over her stomach, the other clutching something small.

It was then that she realized the pain in her stomach had stopped.

She heard a tiny wail, and managed to catch sight of the tiny bundle in the healer's hands, saw a tuft of dark hair and a set of wide blue eyes staring back at her, heard Sria's soothing voice whisper, "That's your son, Ava, isn't he a wonder?" before the darkness slipped around her and fell into a peaceful slumber.

Next Chapter: This Little Light of Mine

Due: Thursday 12/2

Just to remind you all, the shape-shifter can assume any shape and use that person's powers if she has a sample of their DNA. So the "single strand ofdark hair" that she had was Max's, and she used it to morph into him.