Connections 17
Kareena watched as the young couple kissed each other. She smiled as she remembered her brother. Restain. The man had married his true love, Nicette. Their only son had grown up to be a strong man, and their leader's second in command. Now Kareena watched her brother's son as he followed his father's footsteps and stayed with the woman he loved.
Kareena knew that she needed to tell the young aliens about their families, their planet, and their pasts, but right then, they were busy worrying about one of their own.
'There will be time later for that, ' Kareena thought as she watched her son hold his own love close to him. Max looked up to Kareena and spoke, still holding Liz to him gently.
"If we are going to the station, should we contact Nasedo?" he asked. Liz turned in Max's embrace and watched Kareena as they awaited her answer.
"Nasedo is here?" Kareena asked, concern filling her voice. "No, no, no, Nasedo is here, you're sure? Where is he?"
Alex stepped forward, Isabel holding his hand beside him. "He is in Agent Pierce's form, covering for Max, Isabel, and Michael. Why?"
Kareena sat down in a nearby chair and sighed. "Nasedo was once the guard to you, my son, your sister, and your second in command as well. He protected you from our enemies for years. He was a loyal guard and friend.
"Until the revolution began. He started working with the rebellion that was working to put our enemies, the skins, on the throne. He believed that great things were to come. The rebellion instructed him to kill you all, but he did not. He saw the importance of keeping you all alive. He knew that if he were to kill you, the rebellion and the skins would fail because our people would fight back. The rebellion would be over before it could truly take control.
"So Nasedo continued to play the role of loyal subject. He advised you to victory several times in order to gain your full trust. He began to feed you false information about the skins and the rebellion. He also gave them top-secret information about our defenses and such. We began losing to the skins and our planet became engaged in an all out war against our enemies.
"Nasedo's son was having an affair with Tess and the two of them worked together with Nasedo to bring uprisal to our world. Tess and her lover did not see the importance of your lives as Nasedo did.
"She and Nasedo's son, Shawn, planned your deaths perfectly. What they did not expect, however, was the people's reaction to the event. Our people began to fight the skins and the rebellion on their own, without the military. This lead to the deaths of both Shawn and Tess as well. We were, as you know, able to clone your essences and you were born again, here, on earth. The rebellion stole the technology and used it to do the same thing to Tess and Shawn. They placed Tess in the same pod set as the three of you so that she would be able to convince you, with the help of Nasedo, of a destiny that was not true. In this way, they planned on keeping you here on earth, so that you could not lead your people in the organized way that you once did.
"All of this is an important part of your pasts and there is more, too. Such as all of your families. My husband, Isabel and Max, your father. And my brother, Restain, and his wife, Nicette, Michael's parents. However, if Nasedo is here, or nearby, we need to find him, though I doubt it will be hard. My guess is that he is close, waiting to find a way to keep you here, for as long as you are not on the station, your armies are under very fragile and inexperienced leaders. They are not able to command like you were, with a balance of being humane and taking control. Therefore, as long as you remain here, the skins and the rebellion continue to wear our forces down.
"You need to be careful. You are the royal leaders of our people and your well-being is important to the survival of our race. We will be able to leave for the ship tomorrow. I will send them a communication tonight. But right now it is late, and you all will need your sleep. The situation on the station is not dire at the moment, so it is not imperative that we leave tomorrow. You may take all the time you need to get ready and to tell those whom you need to speak to about this.
"Once again be careful and watch out for Nasedo. I will see each of you tomorrow I am sure, and we can talk more. For now, goodnight."
Max and Liz got into Max's jeep and headed down the road. They were silent, but each knew what the other was thinking about. The new information was overwhelming and confusing. It reiterated how close they had been to death and danger only a few days earlier. Had they followed what Tess and Nasedo had said was the aliens' destinies, they would all be dead right then. Tess had betrayed them before and had done the same thing for a second time now.
Max pulled up to the Crashdown and looked over at Liz. She was staring out the window up at the stars. Max reached over gently and placed his hand on her shoulder. She smiled and turned her head to face him.
"Come on, I'd better get you inside before your dad comes to get me." Liz grinned as he walked to her door and opened it for her. She stepped out and into Max's arms.
Max kissed her gently, and then turned towards the cafe's door. They walked through it as they held hands and stood close to each other. Liz smiled at her father, who was doing some paperwork behind the counter.
"Hey Lizzie, Hey Max. How are you kids doing tonight? I see you got my daughter home before her curfew. Thank you Max."
Max smiled, "Thank you sir. We're doing pretty well."
"Lizzie, there was something your mother and I needed to talk to you about, so if you don't mind Max, could Liz just go ahead and see you tomorrow at school?"
"Oh, of course sir. I'll just see you tomorrow then. I'll come pick you up." Max leaned down and held Liz to him as he kissed her. Then he whispered in her ear, "I love you."
Liz kissed his ear and whispered back, "I love you too Max."
Max turned away and addressed Jeff Parker again. "Goodnight sir." Mr. Parker waved at him and Max left with a smile at his fiancée.
Liz turned and smiled at her father. "Hey dad. What did you need to talk about?"
"Come here Lizzie, I need you to follow me over here." Liz's eyebrows crinkled in curiosity and doubt. Her father was acting strangely. He was never this secretive or serious.
"Is something wrong dad? Is mom okay?"
"No, nothing is wrong. For now, your mother is fine. Follow me Liz." His tone was annoyed and forceful at the end and Liz paused as they entered the back room. Her father took her arm and led her farther into the room with a strength Liz was sure that her father did not possess.
"What's going on? Dad???"