I don't own Roswell or any of its franchise. I do however lay claim on this plot idea and will defend it religously. Seriously, I'll learn voodo and go all vengeful on you!

A/N Firstly, I'm gonna come out and say that I am a bit sad to see that my reader count is going up and up and yet the last chapter received the smallest amount of reviews this story has ever gotten. I know it's irritating to read stories where authors practically begs for reviews, but this isn't like that, honestly. I just don't understand being a somewhat regular reviewer myself, I've always considered reviews a way to let the author know that their hard work is appreciated( or not, assuming one doesn't like the story). Okay sorry about that and thanks to those who reviewed at all!

So I know I promised another memory, but after rewriting this irritating chapter three times, I finally decided to save it for the next chapter. This chapter is most definitely not my favorite one. There's a fightscene in it and I truly suck at writing action sequences, so I apologize for that:) Aside from that, I hope you enjoy.

This chapter is unbetaed, so all mistakes are mine and I'd be thankful for help if you see any glaring mistakes, I've missed!

Liz's POV

Liz had been feeling a bit antsy all afternoon; she'd fidgeted through dinner and had eventually excused herself to go do her homework to escape the questioning glances from her bewildered parents.

The peculiar feeling inside her seemed to grow the longer the day wore on and although she knew rationally that the bond between Max and she was currently closed off, she just knew that her emotional state had something to do with him.

Finally she managed to drift into an uneasy sleep. She was clutching her journal and laying on top of the covers, as though subconsciously she was waiting for something.

Suddenly, a few hours after midnight she was awakened by a repeated knock on her bedroom window. Liz sat up with a gasp, blurry images of an angry, thin and older looking Max flashing in her mind. She looked over at the window, half expecting the man himself to be there, but to her surprise it was one of the people she never expected to show up at her house. Ever.

Michael Guerin.

To top off the weirdness of that, the young man looked extremely tired and there was something about the way he held himself that told Liz that he was nothing short of desperate.

Hesitantly, she placed her journal under her pillow and walked over to the window. She swiftly opened it, and crawled out on the balcony to avoid her parents hearing her. Not that that was any real concern of hers, her dad slept like the dead and snored like a freight train. Her mom as a consequence always wore earplugs and wouldn't hear anything even if they were right next to her screaming fire.

"Michael…hey?" Liz muttered, crossing her arms over her chest to keep the cool night air away. "Not to be rude, but you do realize it's pretty late, right?"

Michael's gaze softened a fraction, and Liz had the feeling (again) that there was something big she was missing. There shouldn't be a reason for the infamous Guerin to even remotely like her, in fact he'd always gone out of his way to glare at her in the past whenever she came to close to him (and Max).

Michael spoke a second later, interrupting Liz's internal realization that the glares had stopped approximately around the time when Max had saved her when she was shot. "Yeah, sorry. I wouldn't come here if it wasn't important. And it is, really important. Grab a coat and come with me right now."

Immediately, Liz's imagination went into overdrive. She didn't get a chance to voice her concerns before Michael spoke again, leaning forward a bit with a renewed air of desperation around him, "We need your help and we need you to trust us no matter what you might see. I wouldn't ask if it wasn't necessary, Liz."

The way he's talking makes it sound like it's a matter of life or death, Liz thought with a frown, but that's preposterous. We're just kids, what can possibly be so important? It's got to be something alien related, Liz answered her own question a moment later as she walked back into her bedroom to grab a coat silently.

Before she knew it, Liz was being all but dragged with Michael to the parking lot behind the Crashdown, where she quickly spotted Max's familiar jeep. Her heart sped up at the thought of seeing Max in whatever state it was that had Michael so obviously concerned, but to her disappointment, the jeep was empty.

Michael guided her into the vehicle and simply asked her to hold on as he started the engine and drove out of the parking lot with squealing tires. It didn't take long before Liz realized that they weren't headed to the Evans' residence as she'd initially expected. Instead, Michael drove them out of the town and continued down the empty road.

The closer they got to their destination, the more Liz's insides started churning and she had to take deep breaths all of the sudden to prevent from releasing her dinner out the speeding car. She very much doubted that Michael would pull over until they reached their goal.

A little while later, Michael turned the car down a bumpy road and continued into a landscape that Liz had never seen before. "What is this place?" she asked, before she could stop herself.

Michael threw a quick glance at her, ignoring Liz's widened eyes at the thought of him not looking where he was driving in the process. They were going very fast. "It's hard to explain," he said and turned his attention back to driving.

Liz bit her lip; she felt another wave of nausea wash over her and she had to fight it back before she could safely speak again, "Then at least tell me where we're going. I'm taking a lot on faith here, Michael."

Michael didn't look at her again, but after a few seconds, he muttered quietly, "I'm taking you to Max. He's…he's not doing so good."

"Is he hurt? I guess he can't really go to a normal hospital, but Michael I'm not that smart, I don't know anything about medicine or…Is he okay?" Liz's heart was almost pounding out of his chest at the mere thought of Max hurting. She didn't have time to wonder why the silent boy had somehow become as necessary to her as breathing; she just suddenly knew that he was. And the idea scared her more than she wanted to admit.

"He's not injured psychically," Michael quickly interjected before Liz could work herself up into a proper state of panic. "Like I said, I can't really explain it and you'll just have to trust me. I know that sucks, but there isn't anything I can do about that."

Liz hated not knowing what to expect; she was a very organized human being and anything that threatened to ruin her order of things set her completely out of balance. Another reason as to why she'd been so easy to snap and cancel the unpredictable bond between her and Max. She closed her eyes, trying to compose herself to the best of her abilities.

The jeep pulled to an abrupt stop in the darkness and Liz's attention snapped back to the present. Her earlier fears and worries about Max surged to the surface with a vengeance and she staggered when she got out of the car.

Michael was by her side instantly, "you okay?"

"Fine," Liz replied and took a deep breath, "I just got a bit woozy that's all. Now take me to Max, I'll be fine."

For at brief moment, Michael looked like he wanted to protest, but then his eyes sought out a side of rock behind them and his earlier determination returned. He nodded mutely and took Liz's hand, leading her through the darkness with an air about him that suggested that he'd spent many a night out here.

What would they be doing out here? It's in the middle of nowhere. Liz pondered, fumbling in the dark, but trusting the alien to lead her to Max none the less. Maybe they're out here whenever they need to have some sort of secret meetings…But I had the impression that they all lived normal lives, hiding themselves in plain sight. There shouldn't be any logical reason for their current secrecy.

Liz was brought out of her thoughts when Michael finally stopped in front of a wall of solid rock. "Michael," she began, not understanding what was happening. He cast a quick look at her, but didn't respond. Instead, he waved his hand in front of the stone and to Liz's surprise, a solid handprint like the one she'd had on her stomach after Max's healing lit up briefly before the stone started rumbling and moved to the side.

Liz stared at the revealed entrance, completely struck with confusion. She had just turned to Michael to ask more questions, when Isabel's frantic voice reached her and she remembered why she was even there in the first place.

"Liz!"

Isabel looked frenzied. The usually so perfect blonde's hair was disheveled, pulled into a messy ponytail, her clothes were rumbled and Liz was shocked to find traces of blood on Isabel's face. "Isabel? Oh my God, are you okay?"

Isabel looked at Michael, "You didn't tell her anything?"

Michael shook his head and answered, as he simultaneously closed the entrance door shut, "No, I figured it'd be best to just get her here as fast as possible. Besides, what was I supposed to say? Did she wake up?"

Isabel bit her lip briefly and shook her head, "She's still in the hidden chamber; I tied her up just in case. Other than that I haven't been able to do anything useful." Isabel sighed heavily, looking dejected and worn out, before turning her focus back on Liz, who once again was busy fighting off another bout of queasiness. "Liz, are you okay?"

"She looked a bit green outside too," Michael said, placing himself behind Liz. "I think it might be her feeding off his emotions. Or the bond that wants to be reopened or something, I don't know."

Isabel nodded. She hooked her arm through Liz's, "Liz, I'm gonna take you to Max now. I think you might be the only one to really get through to him right now. I've tried, but…Just try, I'm begging you."

Liz followed alongside Isabel, and walked a bit further into the dimly lit cave. A second later, she stopped dead. She locked eyes with a pale looking Tess, who was sitting over in the farthest away corner next to an unmoving body of a middle-aged man. She too had blood splatters on her face and clothes like Isabel. Judging from the amount of blood on the (hopefully in Liz's opinion) unconscious man, he was the reason for both Tess' and Isabel's bloodied appearance.

Liz blinked in confusion, what is she doing here? How does she know about them? Did she and that man try to hurt them? If she's laid a hand on Max, I'll…

Liz never finished her thought because a shiver of movement out of the corner of her eye caught her attention. She turned her head and gasped in shock. In the opposite corner Max was sitting. He looked horrible. He too was bloody, but more so than any of the girls. His shirt was torn and even in the darkened room, Liz could see blood dribbling down his beige shirt with horrifying clarity.

The thing that scared the young waitress the most though, wasn't the blood or the way he sat almost immobile on the cool ground. It was the eerie way he was simply staring at the body at Tess' feet. Even from the spot where Liz was standing, she could see the cold, burning hate in Max's eyes and it was honestly a look that she didn't like. In fact, it scared her so much that she could barely breathe all of the sudden.

"Wh-What's happened?" Liz managed to squeak through her lips, she noticed that Max flinched at the sound of her voice before going impossibly still once more.

Tess had literally jumped at the tiny movement from Max and was now clutching the strange man's pants leg, looking anywhere but at Max.

Isabel stepped forward and nodded in Tess' direction, "Tess is the fourth alien. She…she is one of us and that man is her guardian, Nasedo. He's the only true alien of us all; he has no human characteristics whatsoever. He…" Isabel stopped and looked back at Michael, who took over with an exhausted voice.

"He did something he shouldn't have and Max went batshit crazy trying to make things better and then he just sat down and we haven't been able to communicate with him since. Iz even tried her dreamwalking and she was almost knocked out by the walls Max has erected around his mind."

Liz remembered hearing about the special talent that Isabel possessed, so she didn't bother asking anymore questions. Taking a deep breath and silently rejoicing in the fact that it seemed as though her nausea was slowly dwindling away, she asked quietly, "If his own sister couldn't make things better, what makes you all think I have a shot? He barely knows me…I'm just the human he saved and accidentally connected with. Compared to you guys, I'm nothing."

For the first time that night, Isabel and Michael's faces lit up with small twin smiles. Isabel placed a hand on Liz's shoulder, "don't sell yourself short, Liz. There isn't a doubt in my mind that if anyone can get through to my brother right now, it's you. Don't be scared, he won't hurt you."

Suddenly the nausea returned with a crushing vengeance and Liz's sight blurred uncomfortably, something unfamiliar, yet so familiar at the same time played out behind her eyes.

An image of an older, tired and scruffy looking Max with a soft smile looking in her direction, whispering with intensity, "I know I look bad right now, but don't be scared."

And then the ghost of her own voice, deeper and softer at the same time answered gently, "I could never be scared of you, you silly boy."

Liz fought down the dizzy spell and opened her eyes, while whispering, "I could never be scared of him…"

What is going on? I can't afford to freak out right now, Liz reprimanded herself and after receiving an encouraging and pleading look from Isabel and Michael, she walked slowly over to Max.

When she reached him, she kneeled in front of him, but he kept staring dead ahead. It was like he was looking right through her and at the unconscious Nasedo.

"Max," Liz said his name tenderly, hoping to get his attention. He didn't seem to register her voice as he'd done earlier and Liz battled with herself over what to do next.

She recalled Michael's theory about the bond acting up and finally came up with an idea. I just hope it's the right one, Liz thought grimly. She reached out and grabbed Max's face, gently turning it in her direction. "Please don't be mad at me, if this doesn't work," Liz begged before simply leaning forward, pressing her warm lips to his cold ones.

She sent all that she was through the bond like she'd done the day Topolsky had arrived; opening up the bond for the first time in weeks. She didn't feel anything in return, the lips under hers didn't respond and Liz had just about lost all hope and was in the middle of pulling back, when suddenly Max's hand landed on the back of her neck and forced her right back into a much more passionate kiss.

Liz managed to feel one brief second of fierce relief at his initiative before being literally assaulted with images and emotions that burned through her mind with an intensity that she wasn't in the least bit prepared for. Pictures of unknown constellations, battling people, scenes of Max making love to her, yet it wasn't her. Flashes of joy, love, pain, despair, hate and numbness roared through her faster and faster until she felt like she couldn't take it one second longer.

Suddenly, Liz was pushed roughly away and she tumbled backwards, landing halfway on top of Nasedo's still body. She felt something that she knew was blood trail down her chin from her nose. It was as though the mental awakening of their bond that Max had needed had been a bit too much for Liz's frailer human brain.

"Liz!" "Are you okay?" "What happened?" Isabel and Michael were already next to her, pulling her to her wobbly feet.

Everything was a blur; Liz kept blinking, trying to get the pounding in her head to go away. Her earlier nausea was back and it had brought friends. She swallowed repeatedly, hoping that it would prevent her from losing her dinner. She licked her dry lips and tasted blood.

She tried finally speaking over Isabel's continuing fussing, "I don't feel so good, guys." And then Liz's legs gave out and she tumbled towards the ground. Only to be caught by two strong arms just as blissful blackness overcame her completely.

Max's POV

Several hours earlier:

It was lunch time when Max for the first time realized that Tess' arrival in their "new" life wasn't an entirely bad thing, that he'd spoken a truth when he predicted that they'd eventually need her help.

He had just sat down next to Isabel, who was berating Michael for his lack of achievement in class, despite having already lived through it once. Max even managed to let slip a teasing remark of his own, just as Tess arrived, looking slightly uncomfortable.

She placed her tray of food on the table, glanced around and the moment her eyes met Max's, he noticed that she looked a lot more emotional than he ever recalled seeing her in his earlier life. Then she spoke, and all thoughts of her state of mind and the thoughts of new Tess versus the other Tess flew out of his mind.

"I'm sorry to do this, but I thought you should all know that Nasedo is taking Topolsky out to dinner tonight."

Max could literally feel his blood drain from his face; all his muscles tensed and he was suddenly right back into his old mindset of, "kill or be killed." By the looks of it, Tess' words had had similar effects on his fellow time travelers.

Michael was gripping his Tabasco spiked soda so hard that his fingertips were white and his eyes had darkened ominously. Isabel was as frozen as Max, but her eyes portrayed her feelings quite clearly. The Ice Princess was back.

For a fleeting second, Max felt sorry that his sister and brother in all things but blood had to go back to those dark places inside themselves, but then his own growing rage got the better of him. "I told him to stay away from her; from all the humans."

Tess visibly flinched at his admittedly hard tone, but Max couldn't find it in him to care. "I-I know. I don't know how he…I don't know why he would even…I might not like the choices you've made, but I would never," Tess look around to make sure no one was listening, "never actually kill someone."

Not yet, Max couldn't keep the nasty thought entirely at bay and judging by the muffled scoff that Isabel couldn't quite keep in she had the same control issues as he did.

The look Tess sent Isabel told Max that she'd seen it too and was clearly offended by it and he spoke before she could focus in on it, "I need you to give me the time and place this is going to take place. Iz you go make sure the others are safe; if he can go after Topolsky, who's to say he won't try anything with our, "Max edited his words at the last minute, "our friends."

Isabel nodded mutely and immediately stood up and walked towards the corner of the quad where Alex and his bandmates were playing some casual guitar and having fun. Max turned to Michael, "You-"

Michael nodded, "Go try stalling Topolsky with something. Got it." He got to his feet and quickly disappeared inside the school without another word. Max watched him leave with a wry smile. He'd forgotten how well Michael and he worked together during times of crisis. We should, Max thought, running a hand through his hair with a sigh, we've been through tough situations since we were this age the first time.

After another sigh, Max stood up to go do his part. He had some training to do, he might know extremely much about battle, but the truth of the matter was that his current body might not be ready for such strenuous exercise without proper preparation. And I'll kill him twenty times over before he even comes close to Liz or the others even if it takes my life to do it.

"Max?" Tess' voice brought him back from his planning and he looked down at the admittedly pretty blonde, who'd married him in his original life. "I don't wanna sound pathetic, but I really don't like the idea of…well, violence, really. I mean, Nasedo's trained me my whole life, so I know I'm probably more prepared than you guys in most aspects, but I've never actually hurt any living creature. I-"

"Look, Tess." Max interrupted, he tried his hardest to give her a sort of smile to set her mind at ease, "We all appreciate what you've just done. I promise that we won't hurt your guardian unless he takes things too far. Now, excuse me, I have to go."

He was stopped by her hand on his arm. She looked serious as she stated quietly, "If things go too far, I will have to choose a side."

The two hybrids stared into each other's eyes for a long moment, before Max ended the stare down with a mute nod of understanding and walked away towards the parking lot. He had some training to do.

o0o0o

Some hours later, the trio of time travelling hybrids and Tess were waiting for Nasedo and Topolsky to exit the local restaurant that their so called date was taking place in. Max took it as a personal offence that the scheming Nasedo had chosen one of the few restaurants that Max had actually managed to take Liz to before their lives went to hell.

It was dark outside when Nasedo led Topolsky out to his car, chatting amiably with the slightly dazed looking agent. Isabel had used her powers and changed the green jeep to a black one, but that was about all the visible preparation that had been done to make sure they wouldn't be discovered prematurely. Max started the engine and followed Nasedo from a safe distance.

After a few miles, it became obvious to them all that Nasedo had no plans on driving Topolsky back to her apartment; instead he kept driving past the city limits. "I guess Tess was right," Michael muttered at one point and Max grunted in agreement, but that was all that was spoken during the tense ride out of town.

Finally, Nasedo took a turn down an old abandoned road and disappeared from sight. Max pulled into the side of the road and quickly jumped out. He looked back at his sister, whose attention was both on him and on Tess as well, just in case. Until she's chosen a side, we can't afford to let her out of our sights.

Michael walked ahead and came back a few minutes later in a run. "He got out of the car and Topolsky seemed really out of it, he's in the middle of digging a hole; I think he's gonna bury her alive."

"It makes sense," Max stated calmly, he could feel his old self trying to take over, but he pushed it aside. I won't be that guy again; I can't be with Liz if I'm that guy.

"Sense?" Tess hissed, gesturing in the direction that Michael had just come from. "We don't have time to think about that, we need to figure out what to do."

"He's gonna bury her alive because as long as she's alive when he left that means he hasn't really violated my order." Max continued as though the blonde hadn't spoken. He looked over at Michael, "lead the way. This has to stop now."

A few moments later, Max came to a stop and he gritted his teeth at the sight before him. Topolsky was lying immobile on the hood of the car; from the way her eyes darted around it was clear to see that Nasedo had somehow drugged the special agent with something that left her unable to move, but otherwise alert.

Nasedo himself didn't seem to care that pure terror was practically oozing off his frozen victim behind him. Instead, he calmly continued digging a hole in the ground while humming along to a song that played on the car radio. The whole scene freaked even the war weary Max out. I always knew he took our "protection" to the extreme, but this is just morbid.

Tess stood next to him, flanked by Isabel and Michael. She didn't seem to notice that she was essentially caged in, should she choose to reveal herself to her guardian. Her eyes lingered on Topolsky with a horrified expression on her face.

The moment Topolsky spotted them, her eyes widened even more and Max was close enough to see the tears trailing silently down her face, smearing her carefully laid makeup. The sight of the petrified woman and the sound of Nasedo's quiet humming caused something within Max to awaken and he snapped.

"Nasedo!"

The older alien spun around, automatically mimicking Max's battle stance. "Oh, hello Max. I certainly was not expecting your presence here tonight." His eyes rammed into Tess with silent authority and it was a look filled with disapproval over her evident betrayal of him, instinctively Max stepped in front of the now trembling Tess, taking the heat off of her.

"Whether you expected me or not, this ends now!" Max said, clenching his fists.

Nasedo sent him a patronizing smile. "Max, I know you do not approve of my methods so this is just my way of honoring your command. She is a danger to you all and must be removed before disaster strikes."

"She's nowhere near the danger to us that you are," Isabel sneered from her place at Tess' side, her brown eyes practically gleaming with hatred.

Nasedo didn't respond to that. He looked over at Topolsky and then suddenly lunged towards her. Apparently, he wanted to use her as a shield in case things got physical.

What Nasedo hadn't counted on was Max's abilities that went way above those that his own charge possessed. Max raised his hand and within a second a human sized shield shimmered around Topolsky, glowing green.

"You will follow my orders!" Max roared, he could feel himself becoming that harsh leader he'd been after Liz's death back in his original timeline and although he hated it, he needed that strength for what he just knew would be a fight for his life.

"You idiot child," Nasedo yelled and suddenly the air shimmered with invisible balls of electricity that was definitely meant to do harm. "I will not be commanded by a weakling!"

"Watch out," Michael jumped into Max, getting the enraged hybrid out of the way, while Isabel dragged Tess to safety behind some large rocks.

Max nodded his thanks to his friend and got to his feet, tensing all his muscles. He lifted a hand and a big gash opened up on Nasedo's chest and the older alien staggered back with surprise etched on his features.

Max hardheartedly repeated the action a few times until Nasedo got his wits back and started reciprocating. Max gestured to a rock and it quickly surged forward, taking the hit that Nasedo had sent his way. Soon the two men were engaged in a fierce fight that left the spectators completely speechless by its sheer speed and power.

The longer Max stood his ground with Nasedo, the more frantic the older alien seemed to become. After a particular nasty near hit, Max finally figured out why Nasedo's fighting style seemed so familiar.

"How long did you work for Khivar before leaving for Earth with our pods?" Max asked, panting a bit as he rolled out of the way of an attack that Max had witnessed Khivar's men use all the time. He used the counter attack that Serena had painstakingly taught him so long ago and escaped relatively unhurt.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Nasedo sneered, heaving after breath a lot more than Max did. "I am hired as your protector and will kill anyone getting in the way of that; even your pathetic humans!"

Max had moved before even realizing it. In the background he heard his family scream his name, but by then a red fog of rage had settled down upon him and he wanted nothing more than to see that mocking, superior smirk vaporized from Nasedo's face.

The moment he reached the other man, he erected another shield around them and punched Nasedo so hard in the face that he could hear the alien's jaw break with a brutal and very satisfying crack. Nasedo stumbled backwards and didn't get a chance to counter Max's very human style of attack before the hybrid king continued his merciless assault.

"Don't. Ever. Disobey. Me. Again!" Max demanded; slamming his bloodied fists into Nasedo's face over and over again. Max was so engrossed in his rage and his memories of all the harmful things the alien underneath him had set in motion by his deviousness that he never saw his shield shimmer away. He never heard Nasedo's pleading whimper for mercy; Max was completely blind to all but the beating he was delivering. For the first time since arriving in this timeline, Max was truly enjoying himself and he couldn't stop.

Suddenly, he felt the telltale signs of someone's powers trying to push him away from his victim and he looked up with a feral growl of rage, his eyes locking on Tess. She looked absolutely terrified, but her hands were steady as they kept pointing at him, keeping him away from the now unconscious Nasedo. "Max, please don't do this. I owe him my existence; I can't stand by and watch you kill him like this…Please stop."

Deaf to her pleas, Max held out a hand and a moment later, Tess was the one flying backwards, slamming into a tree that was already filled with long marks and broken branches from the earlier fight. She groaned in pain as she sat up a few moments later.

"Max, stop, this isn't you!" Isabel yelled and Max's attention turned to her. At that moment, it wasn't his sister he was looking at. It was another obstacle in his way that needed to be removed. Slowly, he reached out his hand but right before he would have hit her, Michael put up a shield of his own. It was a weaker version than Max's and it fell away the moment it had absorbed Max's strike.

"Dude, come back to your senses, man!" Michael sent out a pulse wave and the rock next to Max exploded into million pieces of dust. "You won't forgive yourself when you come back," Michael stated, dodging Max's continued assaults.

Max was now so absorbed in his clash with Michael that he didn't realize that Isabel was right behind him until she wrapped her arms around him. Her warm breath tickled the back of his neck and something softened within him, but it wasn't enough. "Get the hell off of me."

"Think of Liz, seeing you like this would scare her," Isabel whispered in his ear and suddenly Max's mind returned to him. It took a few, never ending seconds and Max realized that he had actually raised his hands against his family; the only two people alive that knew even remotely what he was going through.

He let out a moan a pure despair and leaned forward, ignoring the sting of the wounds on his back. He would take it as a well deserved punishment. I could have killed Isabel; I almost killed them all in my anger. I…Liz would never come near me again if she saw me like this…I can't…I'm…

A soothing numbness settled over him and Max retreated into himself. The last thing he remembered hearing was Michael telling Tess to stop complaining and grab hold of Nasedo so they could load him into the Jeep before taking care of Topolsky.

o0o0o

The next thing Max remembered was the feeling of being mentally cleansed as Liz's presence washed over him. The bond he'd so forcefully kept closed was bursting open and he took in everything she seemed so willing to give all of the sudden like a man dying of thirst. The fact that he could feel her lips on his was actually just an extra piece of luxury.

He was virtually drowning in happy images, that one memory of her hated cookie dress, the day they'd first been paired up in biology class, the shooting, the night at her balcony and oh my God, Max just realized that if he was receiving so easily from Liz, she was most definitely getting something in return from him and he pushed her away before he even finished thinking about it.

"Liz!" "Are you okay?" "What happened?"

She's never gonna feel the same way about me now. She's gonna be scared of me! Shit, I can't live without her again. Why can't anything ever go as we planned it? Why-

"I don't feel so good, guys."

He had Liz in his arms the second her words registered inside him. He held her close to him and took a deep, calming breath of relief when he realized that she somehow instinctively recognized him and was turning towards him for comfort with a tiny smile on her lips. She didn't seem to fear him at all.

Max frowned when he spotted the blood on her face and placed a hand on her face and quickly healed the arteries that had busted during the reopening of their bond.

Isabel's POV

About fifteen minutes after Liz had passed out, she opened her eyes again and Isabel thought that no matter how much this night had sucked, maybe it had been worth it just to see the look in the brunette's eyes as she locked eyes with Max.

There was some awkwardness in Max's posture and it was clear to them all that he still hadn't forgiven himself for his loss of control, but that he was willing to work on it instead of bottling everything up as he used to do.

Isabel looked over at Tess, who was staring at the couple with a mixture of fear and longing in her eyes. She still hadn't moved from Nasedo's side over in the corner. It was obvious that seeing Max like that had freaked her out more than she could express and she seemed unsure if her presence was even wanted.

Biting her lip, Isabel walked over to her. This is not the girl that killed Alex and manipulated us all. This is the girl, who helped protect a human and ended up watching the man she grew up with almost killed before her very eyes. Unlike the rest of us, she's never been to war.

"Tess," Isabel said with far more warmth in her tone than she'd ever expected to use around the curly haired hybrid.

Tess' gaze snapped away from Max and Liz and she tried making herself even smaller, "I'm sorry; I wasn't doing anything."

"Are you okay?" Isabel ignored the incredulous look she received from the girl in front of her and continued, "Because I think Max should take a look at your back. You hit that tree pretty hard."

"That's okay, I'm totally fine. I don't want to bother him," Tess started to say, but then she stiffened and Isabel saw Max approach out of the corner of her eye.

"Isabel is right, I should take a look at you," he said. Isabel watched him with a small smile on her lips. He too ignored, with a little less success, Tess' fear around him and gently took her hands and helped her to her feet. "I'm sorry for doing this to you." His voice was soft and Tess' visible fear seemed to fade a bit, which pleased Isabel for some reason.

A few moments later, Tess was healed and the strained look around her eyes had disappeared. She even managed to send Max a half-hearted smile.

Isabel swallowed a smile when she saw Liz glance a bit confused between them; we should be careful about jealousy and misunderstandings this time around. We don't need another future Max to come snooping around and messing things up even more.

"Not to be a total buzz kill," Michael's voice sounded from the background and they all turned towards him. He shrugged and pointed at Nasedo's prone form on the floor. "What are we gonna do about that one?"

Isabel fully expected Max to wash his hands of the older alien, but to her surprise he turned towards Tess. "What do you think?"

"You can't heal him," Tess said in a small tone, her eyes glued to the ground, "He said something once that if he was ever severely injured, we'd need some sort of stones…Even your powers won't be enough, Max. Besides, it's not like he deserves your kindness after what he did to that poor woman…"

"We have the stones." Isabel heard herself confess. She would never understand what made her say that, but something had begun to shift inside her that night. Tess might be more than the bitch that had killed Alex. Maybe. "I'll help heal him if we all agree."

Isabel looked at Max, who looked at Michael, who simply shrugged again. "As long as he gets it into his skull that he's not the boss around here, I don't care."

Out of habit, Isabel looked over at Liz for her vote before remembering that the girl in front of her wasn't the Liz that had come up with a sneaky plan to get Sheriff Valenti off their back once upon a time.

Liz licked her lips nervously and then said quietly, "I'm still not completely sure what happened, but it's really your decision, not mine."

Isabel looked at them all one last time, before walking over to the pod where she'd originated from and took out the bag of healing stones that they'd hit there during their last visit. She turned to Max and saw that he had already directed Tess to sit next to Nasedo and that Michael was quickly explaining what was about to take place. A few moments later, the large hybrid placed himself next to Tess.

Isabel walked over and sat next to the waiting Max and they each took a stone, ignoring the confused, yet very interested look that Tess sent them all. We've got to come up with some kind of reason to give her for all our knowledge, Isabel thought, centering her powers like she remembered having done once before.

It didn't take long before the healing was complete and Nasedo's eyes snapped open. His eyes landed on Tess first, looking the girl over closely and for the first time ever, Isabel thought she saw some inkling of genuine affection in the older alien's face. Then his eyes turned to Michael, then her before settling on Max.

Isabel watched in amazement as Nasedo only briefly met Max's eyes before looking at the ground as he slowly sat up. He folded his hands and remained seated without a word. He looked nothing short of submissive, Isabel concluded. It's like the fight was nothing but a dominance fight between alpha males and now that he's lost, he's gonna fall in line. This has got to be one of the weirdest things I've ever seen.

The look of bewilderment that her brother sent her, told Isabel that Max hadn't quite connected the dots yet, so she reached out and touched his wrist with her finger, 'You won, Max and he's submitting to you, so say something.'

"Did our healing work successfully?" Was all Max eventually asked after a few more minutes of tense silence.

Apparently, that wasn't exactly what Nasedo had expected and he looked up with a small frown. Isabel rolled her eyes inwardly when the older male didn't answer, but just continued to stare at Max. "Did we somehow make your tongue vanish? It's not a hard question."

"I am in working order," Nasedo quickly replied and returned to stare at the floor. "I am just waiting for my punishment. I disobeyed my king's orders."

"I thought you'd think the ass kicking he gave you would be punishment enough," Michael said and got to his feet.

Nasedo's lip twisted upwards in a small attempt at a smile, "I'd absolutely prefer for that to be the case, General, but experiences has taught me to always be prepared for more in these cases."

General? How did he know that's what Michael was called in our first timeline? Isabel panicked before she remembered that in Nasedo's world, Michael had indeed been a general too and was thus worthy of the title.

"Will you follow your orders from now on?" Max spoke again and this time, his voice seemed sterner and Nasedo's reaction was promptly. He straightened up and folded his hands over his chest so that his fingers touched his shoulders. From Isabel's memories of Serena's countless etiquette lectures, she knew that that position indicated complete obedience and respect.

"I will do as my King commands." Nasedo glanced over at Michael and Isabel and added, "and his royal family as well."

Liz moved in the background and Nasedo's eyes landed on her. Immediately, Isabel wanted to jump in front of the brunette, just in case Nasedo's submissiveness had been a big act. To her surprise, Nasedo simply nodded once in Liz's direction before settling his eyes back on the silently observing Tess. "I think we have to make a new destiny for you. There is no longer a chance of reuniting you with your king."

"I'm glad you've come to your senses," Isabel couldn't quite resist saying and she shrugged off the mild glare that Tess sent her way and got to her feet. "I'll go check on Topolsky."

Hearing the name of the woman he'd intended to murder in cold blood, interrupted Nasedo's silent stare at Tess (she seemed like she couldn't quite make up her mind whether to look relieved that he was okay, or lash out now that he'd witnesses his heartlessness first hand) and he turned his head in Isabel's direction. "She's here?"

"Yes," Max answered as he made his way back over to Liz. It was like he couldn't keep himself away from her now that he'd been allowed to bond himself to her again. "I hope you do not have a problem with that."

Nasedo averted his eyes at the almost reprimand and replied, "I honestly thought that you'd have used Tess' gift and made the human woman forget this night had ever happened."

"We are not big fans of mindwarping," Isabel said heatedly and fought back her old resentment for Tess again. She reminded herself off the thoughts she'd had about Tess just minutes before and calmed down. "We took her into the granolith chamber to wait for whatever drug you gave her to wear off. Also, we didn't want to make a decision until Max was ready again. So what do you think we should do?" Isabel directed her last question at Max.

"Wait, you know about the granolith?" Nasedo asked with widened eyes, his eyes darting from each of them with growing confusion on his face. "How is it that you know all of these things? The message in Antarian script to get us here in the first place, the advanced combat skills that Max showed off in our battle, the knowledge about me having to follow your orders? I would appreciate an answer."

Isabel fidgeted, waiting for one of the others to answer Nasedo's questions. On the inside she was cursing herself for forgetting that Nasedo was an extremely intelligent man and that she really should have expected his questions.

"We know things and let's leave it at that," Max said a few seconds later. He looked Nasedo straight in the eyes, reminding the other of his place without directly saying it. "Isabel, go check on Topolsky, please. I want to know if she require medical help after everything."

Isabel nodded and walked over to the pod that led into the granolith chamber. She ignored the feeling of disgust that she always got whenever her hands touched the goo that she'd been preserved in and finally entered the chamber. Her eyes met a pair of petrified blue ones a moment later. "What are you gonna do to me? I swear I won't say anything to my boss; I'll go away, I promise…"

Apparently, Kathleen Topolsky was now fully awake and in deep panic mode. Not that I blame her after the night she's had, Isabel thought with a sigh. She held up a hand, hoping to calm the blonde agent, as she turned her head and yelled through the passageway, "She's up."

Isabel turned her attention back at the now gasping Topolsky, she was one breath away from hyperventilating and Isabel quickly reached her side. "Relax, we're not gonna hurt you. Take a deep breath, that's right. Relax."

Isabel had just managed to somewhat calm the trembling woman before Nasedo appeared, quickly followed by Max and the others. The moment Topolsky laid eyes on her would be killer; she did the only thing any sensible person would do. She opened her mouth and screamed.

TBC…

A/N So, like I said, not my favorite chapter, but I hope it will still entertain you all. Next time on TAT: Expect the memory I didn't deliver this time and a whole bunch of other stuff as well:) Thanks for reading!

Until Next Time

Ditte Mai