Thanks for the feedback on chapter 20, Red-rumm! As always, it's greatly appreciatred!

Sliding Into Antar

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Roswell Revisited

Chapter 21

XXI

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Jim Valenti looked up from his desk, as his office door opened and Deputy Hansen looked in…

"Uh, Sheriff, there's some people out here that say they want to talk to you… if you have time.

"Anyone I know, Hansen?"

"No, sir… I don't think so. They say they're travelers and they've got a problem that only you can help them with."

"They asked for the sheriff?"

No, sir… I mean, yes, sir… I mean they asked for you, sir… specifically… by name."

Sheriff Valenti smiled but looked amused… "Well, I never knew I had any kind of reputation outside of Roswell, but okay, show 'em in. I guess I can give 'em a few minutes."

"Yes, sir."

Hansen turned to the people waiting outside… "You folks can come in now. The sheriff will see you."

As Jim watched, three young couples, a fourth young woman, and two little girls walked into his office. Jim stood up and stepped out from behind his desk…

"How can I help you folks? Are you planning to stay with us a while or just passing through?"

"A bit of both," answered one of the young men, a handsome blond who looked amazingly like a young Robert Redford, "We came to see family, but we won't be staying."

"You have family here?" Jim asked, a bit surprised, "Do I know them?"

The young man nodded cautiously, trying to judge the sheriff's reaction as he spoke…

"Chuck and Gloria Whitman… and Philip and Diane Evans…"

Jim looked at the group again, one by one, and his face became suddenly more serious…

"Where did you folks say you're from?"

The young man took a deep breath. "I don't think we did say, and that's kind of the reason we need your help, sheriff. We're not from around here… well, not anymore anyway. It's kind of hard to explain. I'm just going to show you."

The young man motioned toward the fourth young woman, and she gave him a sort of "are-you-sure" look. He nodded again, and as he did, his entire look began to change… eyes, lips, hair… everything.

Jim instinctively reached for his gun, but he didn't pull it out of the holster. Instead, he looked back and forth several times between the young man and the young woman who had somehow changed him, then he set his jaw and looked at the young man in deadly earnestness…

"Whoever you are… I think you should know that I am rarely in a mood to play 'guess-the-alien,' and that goes double for today. You just made one very big mistake. Alex Whitman died in a car accident back about seven years ago. So you're impersonating the wrong person."

Jim walked to his office door and called for Hansen, then he looked back at the Alex look-alike, and as he did, his eyes somehow were drawn to the two little girls standing at his side.

"Sir?" Hansen asked, hurrying to the door.

Jim looked at the girls and swallowed.

"Sir?" Hansen asked again, "Did you need me?"

Jim nodded. "Yes, I did… I mean I do. Hansen…"

"Yes, sir?"

Jim looked at the young man then at the girls again…

"If anyone wants to see me for the rest of the day… I'm going to be unavailable."

"Yes, sir."

Jim closed his door and looked at each of his "guests" again… "I'm just gonna take a wild guess and say that none of you is what you appear to be… except these two little girls. I should have seen it before…"

Jim walked over to one of the little girls and put his hand under her chin, lifting her eyes up to meet his…

"I remember a little girl who came to us years ago… one who looked just like this one. Only that one had no known parents, and she was found wandering in the desert. What's your name, sweetheart?"

The little girl looked at her mother, and her mother said softly, "Chahad na-ee… sto sha dral."

The little girl smiled and looked at Jim… "Gloria Diane."

"Gloria Diane… Whitman," Jim said, adding the last name for her.

The little girl nodded.

"And what's your name," Jim asked the other little girl.

"Mali."

"Chahad dra na-ee," the mother said.

"Maria 'Lizabeth," the little girl corrected… "Mali."

"Mali," Jim nodded.

"Gidi," the little girl added, smiling and pointing at her sister.

Jim nodded. "Mali and Gidi… Maria Elizabeth and Gloria Diane. I don't consider myself a genius, but I've been told I'm pretty good at figuring out clues, and I've been putting a lot of them together here. The girl's names… You know, the disappearance of Alex's body seven years ago and of Isabel Evans and Tess Harding at the same time was a mystery in this town for a long time. Actually, people are still talking about it. I always thought foul play was involved myself. It didn't seem right that Isabel Evans would disappear like that… Tess Harding, maybe… a body, maybe… but not Isabel. I never found a shred of evidence, but my theory was that Tess stole the body to eliminate some kind of incriminating evidence, and Isabel caught her and wound up getting killed as a result… maybe they both killed each other… or maybe Tess fled afterward…

But now I've got a new theory. All of you were in on it… Max, Michael, Tess, Isabel… probably Liz and Maria, too. You stole the body, and Tess took it to the one place where they might be able to do something for him. Isabel went along… either by plan or by accident… I still don't know why she would disappear without saying a word to her parents… just leave them to suffer like that. How am I doing so far?"

"You've got just enough of it right to have it all screwed up," one of the guests, a tall, blond, almost white-haired young man said drolly.

"Ah! And you would be… let me guess…" Jim said. "Spike, right? Spike… and Buffy."

The tall, light-haired man looked at the young woman beside him then back at Jim… "You know who Spike and Buffy are?"

Jim ran his hand through his hair in exasperation. "I may look old to you kids, but I don't live in a vacuum. You're damn lucky you didn't attract attention walking over here looking like that! That was incredibly STUPID for someone who's trying to hide."

"People come to Roswell all the time made up to look like aliens, TV stars, whatever…" the tall man said. "Nobody pays them any attention. The alien convention starts in three days. It's a 'circus' out there."

Jim nodded. "Okay, I'll drop the 'in.' It was CREDIBLY STUPID." Jim looked at the girl who had changed Alex back… "Change them back, too."

She looked at the Spike look-alike, and he nodded.

"I should have known," Jim said, "Spike and Buffy… Michael and Maria. Of course!"

Jim looked at the pretty redhead, who had already been identified as the mother of the girls…

"Isabel," he said with certainty.

Isabel nodded, as Tess changed her back.

"I wasn't quite sure who you were patterned after," Jim admitted.

"Lucille Ball," Isabel whispered, "and Willow… a little bit of each."

Jim nodded. "You were Lucy… and Alex was Robert Redford…"

"Actually, I was going for Brad Pitt with Alex," Tess said, "Not Robert Redford."

Jim walked over to the third couple and looked the young woman over. She was a dead ringer for Jessica Alba. "Liz," he said with certainty, then he turned and looked at the young man with her and grinned…

"Did you piss Tess off, Max?"

"It was Michael's idea," Max groaned. "I trusted him."

Michael snorted. "You should watch more classic TV, Max. Then you'd have known."

"You said he was a pirate," Max protested.

"He was… in one episode."

"Pirates are usually swashbuckling… action types… not this."

"I tried to tell you," Tess said.

"I know," Max sighed, "But someone had already seen us. I couldn't be changed again out in the open. I just had to go with it."

Jim nodded.

"Take the warp off," Max said. Tess grinned and complied.

"I kind of liked the whole Urkel look, Max," Jim said with a grin. "You might want to use it more often."

Jim was sure he saw Max's ears reddening.

"And Rory Gilmore over here is Tess… interesting," Jim said, raising his eyebrows. "So, Michael… what did I get wrong?"

"We weren't all in on it. We're not even who you think we are," Michael said, noticing the look of concern return to Jim's eyes.

"Oh, I'm Michael Guerin and he's Max Evans… and that's Liz… and Maria… just not the ones you know. We're from a different dimension. Alex, Isabel, and Tess here are from this dimension. The rest of us are not. We're kind of… helping them out is all. They needed a ride home. Our doubles in this dimension weren't involved in the disappearances. They don't know any more than you did."

"So… there are different dimensions, too?" Jim asked cautiously… "You mean, there could be an infinite number of Michael Guerins out there somewhere?"

Michael shrugged and smiled. "I guess so."

"Oh God!" Jim said, sitting down again.

Max chuckled and nodded. "Scary, isn't it?"

"Don't blame me because you don't know the classics, Max," Michael chided.

"All right… okay…" Jim said, "All other issues aside, why are you here? I mean… in my office? What is it that you need from me?"

"Well," Max said, "We wanted the girls to see their grandparents and Alex and Isabel to see their parents again… but there's a little problem. Alex died seven years ago, and everybody in town knows it. If he just pops back up without a really good explanation, it could be chaos. And I can't even guess what his parents would think. They don't know about us. My parents… I mean Isabel's parents… don't either, not for sure. We were hoping that you could help us come up with an official explanation for the disappearances and reappearances… like Alex wasn't really in a car wreck, he was working on a secret government coding project or something… and Isabel was helping him… and Tess went to California or something. We thought you could come up with something credible… so they can… you know… appear again."

Jim let out a long breath. "You don't ask for miracles, do you, Max? Let me think about it. I'll see what I can come up with." Jim looked at Mali and Gidi and winked. "We all want these girls to see their grandparents after all."

"Thank you," Max said softly.

"How did you get here," Jim asked, his mind already going to work on a plan… "Do you have a space ship or something hidden out there in the desert?"

Max smiled. "It's hidden… but not in the desert."

"Where is it?"

Max pointed upward and grinned.

Jim walked to the window and looked up, but he saw nothing but a blue sky and a few clouds.

"You won't see it," Max said, "It's enveloped in an invisibility shield. But it's there… directly above us."

"How big of a ship are we talking about," Jim asked.

"Big," Max replied. "If it weren't encased in the invisibility shield, a quarter of Roswell would have the sun blocked out right now."

"That's… big," Jim agreed.

Max nodded.

"I think I may be able to solve your problem," Jim said. "Go back to your ship and wait for me to contact you. Uh… how do I do that, by the way?"

Michael reached into his pocket and took out a small item that looked like a tie clip, then he handed it to Jim.

"What's this?"

"It's a communication device. You press it here then speak into it. We'll get the message. It's not two-way, so we can't answer back… but we'll get back to you."

Jim nodded. "Okay. Can I offer some advice?"

Max nodded.

"Don't use the disguises you used when you came here. They're bound to draw attention, convention or no convention coming up. People expect to see masks, paint, fake antennae, all that stuff… not the real items… and not something that looks like the real items. Attention is something you want to avoid, even in disguise."

Michael nodded then took out another small device and passed his right hand over it. Suddenly, part of the room was flooded in an odd soft light…

"We won't need the disguises. We'll wait for you to call."

Michael stepped into the light and disappeared, then each of the others did the same, leaving Jim standing in the room alone. For a moment, Jim wondered if what had just happened had really happened, then he noticed the communication pin in his hand. He clipped it onto the underside of his collar, out of sight, and opened the door of his office.

Hansen was sitting at a desk in the lobby, his head resting on his hands, and he jumped up when Jim walked in.

"Sorry, sir… I was just resting. I've been working late hours recently."

"It's okay," Jim said. "Go ahead and relax. I know I've been working you pretty hard."

"Did you leave those people in your office alone, sir?"

"They left already. Didn't you see them?"

"N- No, sir. I… I didn't."

Jim nodded. "Watch the office for me, okay, Hansen? I've got to go see someone. I expect to be back before closing time."

"Yes, sir."

Jim left the building, closing the door behind him. Hansen sat at his desk for several moments, with a puzzled look on his face, then he got up and walked into Jim's office. The people were gone. Hansen looked out the window and shook his head, then he sat down on Jim's chair…

"The only other way they could have got out of here is if they climbed out the window and down the wall. I've got to be working too hard… They walked right past me, and I slept through it. It's the only possibility. Hansen… note to self: Get a full night's sleep tonight. You're starting to zombie out."

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The group of friends on the New Granolith didn't have to wait long to hear from Jim. A little over three hours after they returned to the ship, the communicator light came on.

"Sheriff Valenti is trying to contact us," Liz said.

Varec handed Max something he had hurriedly improvised that looked vaguely like a cell phone, but instead of keys for all the numbers from 0 to 9 it had a single button in the middle.

"What do I do with it," Max asked.

"Just press the button. It's cross-linked with the earth system and calibrated to the number in the sheriff's personal office."

"You tapped into his phone?"

Varec nodded.

Max smiled and pressed the button. As he did, the phone in Jim's office began to ring, and Jim picked it up…

"Roswell Sheriff's Office… Jim Valenti speaking. How can I help you?"

"We're returning your call, Sheriff."

"Max?"

"Did you come up with a plan, sheriff?"

"Max, how did you…? If you have a phone up there, why didn't you just give me the number?"

"It's unlisted."

Jim removed the receiver from his ear and looked at it as though it had malfunctioned, then he put it back to his ear again…

"You tapped into my line."

"Yes."

Jim shook his head. "I solved your problem. Shine that light thing down here in my office again so I can come up there, and we'll discuss it."

There was a short pause, then Max came back on the line. "Okay. Be ready."

"I'm ready now," Jim said.

A moment later, a part of the room was awash in a soft, almost invisible light that was, in reality, composed of magnetic ions rather than light as we know it. Jim turned to Chuck and Gloria Whitman then to Philip and Diane Evans and held out his hand…

"I'll go first if you'd like."

"We'll all go together," Philip said.

Jim nodded and stepped into the ion field, and the others did the same. Then they all disappeared.

On the New Granolith, five new "guests" appeared. The door of the transference chamber opened, and Jim stepped out into the ship followed by Chuck and Gloria Whitman then Philip and Diane Evans. Max, Michael, and the others were all there, waiting. But this time, the surprise was on them… They had only expected to see Jim.

Diane spotted Isabel immediately and rushed past the others, with Philip right behind her, to hug her daughter. She tried to speak but found the words too hard, and both of them wound up just holding each other and sobbing. Chuck and Gloria Whitman rushed to Alex's side, huge smiles on both of their faces and tears of joy in their eyes.

"Jim… what did you tell them," Max asked in a whisper. "We need to get our stories coordinated."

"The truth," Jim said.

Max looked at Jim, incredulous.

"You've got this whole big spaceship floating up here invisibly, Max. I thought about that and realized that you could all get together here and not have to worry about what anyone else knew or didn't know… You've got total privacy here. I told them the simple, unvarnished truth, Max. Trust them a little bit. Those of us who are in the next generation up from you aren't totally incapable of understanding or accepting the truth… even when it's as bizarre as this is right now. We just need logical… or at least reasonable… explanations. That's what I tried to give them."

"And they believed you?"

Jim shrugged. "They're here, aren't they?"

Diane knelt down in front of Mali and Gidi and looked into their faces. "This one looks just like you, Isabel, when you were her age."

Isabel nodded and wiped her still-tear-filled eyes… "Gidi… Mali… Myy'la t'l alad na Grandma Evans."

"Grandma Evans," Gidi repeated, throwing her arms around Diane and hugging her tightly, as Mali threw her arms around her, too. Diane hugged Gidi and Mali to her and found her tears starting to flow again. If Diane had had her way, she probably would have held the girls until they had to beg to be let go, but Gloria and Chuck Whitman were already anxiously waiting to meet them, too.

"Gidi… Mali… Myy'la t'l alad na Grandma Whitman, Grandpa Whitman."

Both girls threw their arms around Alex's parents -their grandparents- and hugged them tightly.

"Grandma… Grandpa…" Mali said softly, enjoying the sound of the alien words that felt somehow so right.

"Ta myy'la t'l alad na Grandpa Evans," Isabel said, as Philip held out his arms to the girls. Both Gidi and Mali climbed into Philip's arms, and he picked them both up and held them, kissing them each on the cheek and smiling from ear to ear…

"I never thought this day would come," Chuck Whitman said, as he stood with his arm around Alex's shoulders, his own eyes brimming with tears in spite of the enormous smile on his face. "It's a miracle!"

Gloria put one hand on each side of her son's face and kissed him yet again, then she looked at him and smiled. "It IS a miracle, you know, Alex."

Alex nodded. "I know, Mom. I've wanted to share it with you and Dad for the last seven years, but I had to wait for these guys to come along and make it happen. I didn't have a spaceship that could make it back to earth again. We're building one now."

Charles nodded understandingly… "Are you happy, Alex? Jim said you would be going back. Is that because of the girls?"

"Well, yeah, Dad… it's the girls… but there's more than that that you don't know yet. Sheriff Valenti doesn't know either. I kind of have to go back. I have a… a job."

Gloria laughed. "Oh, Alex! I think they would understand if you quit your job. It's not like you don't have a good reason. Are they treating you well? Do you have everything you need? Do they pay you enough to live on… comfortably, I mean?"

Alex shook his head and smiled, then he looked at his dad. "I don't have you and Dad, Mom. But except for that… yeah… they treat me well. I have everything else I need."

"Just stay here for a while, Alex…" Gloria said, "A few months… a year. I'm sure you'll change your mind and stay with us if you just give it a chance. You're feeling grateful because they saved your life. That's understandable. But you belong here with us. Please stay, Alex."

Alex shook his head again… "I can't, Mom. I would dearly love to be near you and Dad, but I have a job… an… important job. I can't just walk away from it. Too many people depend on me now."

"Your dad could get you a job at the mill, Alex. It doesn't pay much to start, but they advance good workers there quickly. You could bring your family and live with us until you're able to save up and get a place of your own. If the mill doesn't suit you, there are other jobs… you could even find something in another city. Finish your senior year of high school… or take the GED. Go to college. Then you can get a real job… a good job. Alex, anything would be closer than where you are!"

"I can't, Mom. Believe me when I tell you this, I love you… and Dad, too… with all my heart, but I can't. I… I belong there now. They need me."

Gloria sighed. "You always were a diligent son, Alex. If I can't convince you to stay here with us now that you're back, I hope they at least appreciate you up there."

"They do," Isabel said, walking over and putting an arm around her husband, "They made him the king… of the planet."

For several long moments, nobody spoke. It seemed like longer than it actually was, especially to Alex. He had actually wanted to tell his parents this small detail, but somehow he hadn't been able to figure out how to do it in a way that would not seem, at least to him, immodest.

At this moment, a part of Alex wanted to run and hide under a table. It wasn't that he was shy. He wasn't. In fact, Mister "I-The-Stud," Mister "Spank-the cop," could be quite outgoing, even dicey, at times, but there was also this odd streak of modesty, and right now, it was in full bloom.

Isabel, on the other hand, was enjoying the Whitmans', her own parents', and Jim's reactions immensely. Her eyes seemed to dance when she said that Alex was the king. It embarrassed Alex, but he had to admit to himself that he loved it. He would probably never understand what Isabel, who in his eyes was simply born beautiful, and a princess by all rights, actually saw in him. But he loved it when Isabel lavished praise on him. Isabel could have told everyone that she was the queen, but her first thought… her only thought… had been for him. It gave her an almost child-like joy to say, "Alex is the king… my Alex!"

"King?" Chuck asked, finally breaking the silence… "As in… castle and all that?"

"It's more like a palace, Dad."

"Oh." Chuck nodded. "I guess you won't be needing that recommendation at the mill then."

Alex shook his head. "No, Dad."

"I'd love to hear how this all came about," Chuck said. Mrs. Whitman nodded… "So would I!"

Alex smiled… "It's a long story, Dad… and boring. The gist of it is that their king… the legitimate one… was killed by a bad dude named Kivar, and his DNA was secretly preserved so that he could be regrown from a baby and brought back, but with his former memories intact. That's the way it was supposed to be. But when it was time for him to come back, he had fallen in love and didn't want to be the king anymore or come back to his planet. He was happy where he was with his new bride. After Tess took me to Antar with her to be healed, she tricked Kivar into annihilating himself, and Iz and I got the planet's government back on an even keel. The people there got to know us and… well, they just decided that Iz and I would be a good king and queen. And we took the job."

"That's it?" Gloria asked.

Alex shrugged. "I told you it was boring."

"Well, I don't think it was boring at all," Gloria said. "I can't wait to tell everyone."

"No, Mom! You can't! I'm sorry… but you can't tell anyone about this, Mom… You either, Dad. There's someone whose life could be in serious danger if certain people found out where he is…"

"The former king… he's here… on earth," Chuck surmised.

Alex nodded. "Your own lives could be in danger, too… from the same people."

"What people?" Chuck asked.

"Certain elements in the FBI… and in the army… and former followers of Kivar called 'skins.' They could be dangerous to you… if they had any idea that you had anything to do with the… you know… the 'aliens.'"

Chuck nodded. "I think I understand. Did you know about all this Jim?"

Sheriff Valenti shook his head. "Apparently not everything. Alex neglected to tell me that he and Isabel were the king and queen now."

"Did you know about this other alien king among us, Jim… the real one?"

"I heard… things… you know how it is in Roswell, Chuck. You hear all kinds of talk. You don't pay much attention to most of it… at least not where aliens are concerned."

"Jim… why do I think you know more than you're admitting?"

Jim smiled. "If I do, Chuck, it might be because I've told you all I can. You wouldn't want me to say anything that would endanger any citizens… or break any confidences… I'm sure."

Chuck nodded. "Fair enough."

"Whoever he is," Gloria said softly, "His people returned Alex to us, Charles. They must be good."

"Yeah…" Chuck nodded… "Yeah, they did, didn't they. You're right, Gloria. We owe them a huge debt.

Besides…" Chuck leaned over and picked up Mali… "In a way, we're related to them now. Our granddaughters were born on their planet. They're Antarians. They don't even speak our language."

Gloria knelt down in front of Gidi… "Gidi, how do you say 'I love you' in Antarian?"

Gidi smiled and threw her arms around her grandmother, hugging her tightly and kissing her.

Gloria looked at Chuck and grinned. "They speak my language, Chuck. I understand them just fine."

Chuck nodded and kissed Mali on the cheek, and she smiled and hugged him. He wiped his eyes with his free hand and smiled back at her. "We do speak the same language after all, don't we."

tbc