The sole purpose for her creation had been the demise of Max Evans and his race. Everything about her had been designed to be impossible for him to resist. She was, in effect, the antithesis of his true mate. She was physically the polar opposite of Liz Parker, but inside was where the true difference began. She had been genetically engineered for the sole purpose of keeping Max from his Destiny. He and Michael and Isabel, on the other hand, had truly been born of real parents who sought to save the lives of their children by sending them away from their war ravaged planet. He should not have been able to resist her. He would not have been able to resist her, if he had not managed to somehow find his preordained mate. It should not have been possible . . . . Liz Parker didn't even know who she was, would have never known who she was.

But now, Max had taken his bride and there would be no way to stop them from discovering the truth . . . . . .

--------------------------------

Liz felt the rumble and vibration of the train's movement down the track under her back, but instead of fear and downright panic at the prospect of leaving her home and her family and venturing into God knows what, she felt nothing but peace and joy and a sense of belonging that far exceeded her imagination. Max's face hovered directly above her own, and she finally realized he was asking her something. His lips didn't move, but the question was in his eyes and the sound of his voice was in her head. She focused on that sound and it became louder and clearer as she concentrated. He wanted to know if she was o.k. . . .

O.k? . . . No, o.k. was definitely not a word she would use to describe her present condition. She was unbroken, undivided, unsevered, for the first time in her life. She was home. Max smiled at her and she knew in that moment that he had heard everything she had thought. Liz smiled up at him and wiggled her toes against his leg. It was such a simple pleasure, but one of many she intended to explore in every detail. Max was actually grinning now and enjoying the intimacy as much as Liz was. Liz grew serious once more as the reality of what was happening between them took hold in her mind. They were communicating without verbal speech. How was that possible?

Liz: (searching his eyes) "Max? . . . "

Max: (his voice deeper than usual) "I don't know for sure, but I know it means something. It's like I can feel it, but I can't quite remember what it means . . . "

Liz: (smile) "It's o.k. . . . No, it's incredible."

Max: (serious) "I know one thing. I love you, Liz. I'll always love you. . . . And, you are the person I was always meant to be with."

Liz: (watching the look of inward reflection sweep across his face) "What do you mean?"

Max: (closing his eyes as vague images rushed through his mind) "Max and Isabel and I were not created the way Tess said. We were born and we have parents. The only lives we've ever lived are the ones that started here on Earth when we were six years old. We do have a mission, but I know you are my Destiny, Liz."

Liz: (shocked) "What?"

Max: "I . . . knew you. The first time I ever saw you . . . I recognized you."

Liz: (quietly) "How is that possible?"

Max: "I'm not sure . . . but I knew you were the one."

Liz: (sensing he meant more than just in the usual romantic sense) "The one what?"

Max: (shaking his head) "I can't explain it, Liz. I feel it. You are my mate. The one I was always supposed to be with. My . . . bride."

Liz: (desperately trying to hang on from one thought to the next . . . his "bride?") "That's not possible, Max." "I was born here on Earth to two very human parents."

Max: "I know, but you're still you and you are the one. I know it. I mean, think about it, Liz. There must have been some reason why we were sent here to Earth and not somewhere else. There also has to be some significance to the fact that we are . . . (searching for the right word) physically compatible. It was no accident that we're here. I'm sure the crash itself was not planned, but I needed to come here to find you."

Liz: (eyes darkening in anger) "So, Tess lied about your past lives and about being . . . about being . . . me?"

Max: (watching her face carefully) "Yes. That's exactly what she did."

Liz: "But, why?"

Max: "It must've been awfully important for her to keep us apart."

Liz: "I don't understand . . . "

Max: (smiling and thinking how difficult it was for Liz not to understand something) "I know, but the question is, how do you feel about it?"

Liz: (missing the direction of his thoughts as her mind tried to sort through the various details) "Which part?"

Max: (quietly) "The bride part."

Liz: (immediately focused on this one perfect facet of the whole revelation) "I didn't know it was even possible to love someone as much as I love you, Max. I couldn't be happier."

Max: (smiling and then serious once more) "Isabel and Michael will have to be told about this, Liz. In every way that matters, you are my wife now, and they will need to know that in order to protect you and themselves."

Liz (struggling to keep up with the shift in reality): "Max . . . "

Max: (brushing her hair back from her face) "I'm sorry. Someday, I promise, we'll get married for real and have a wedding if that's what you want."

Liz: "It's not that. It just doesn't feel quite real to me."

Max: (thinking out loud) "Maybe I can help you to see what I saw . . . or feel what I felt . . ."

Liz: "What?"

Rather than answering her question with a verbal reply, Max placed his hands on either side of her face and looked deeply into her eyes, breathing in a careful rhythm that she soon matched . . .

*****

the Soul is infinite . . . the Spirit is eternal . . . a beautiful wilderness . . . a temple . . . an engraved wall . . . a white, long flowing dress and a girl with dark hair and eyes . . . the mirror image of herself and . . . Max . . . forever together . . . the Soul is infinite . . . the Spirit is eternal . . .

********

Liz and Max exhaled together and she felt his breath on her face as understanding unfolded in her mind. Her soul, her spirit, and his were intertwined and always would be . . . always had been. That's why, even though separated by a vast distance, they had found each other.

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Isabel stood just outside the farthest edge of the campsite and scanned the horizon . . . again. Her mind knew that it was not even possible for Max to be back this soon, but she couldn't stop herself from looking for him several times a day. Things had been so quiet, since he left. No one seemed to know how to handle the slower pace. A welcome change, but a change nonetheless. And, with that change had come more free time. Time to think. Time to wait. She was so engrossed in her thoughts that she didn't hear Michael as he walked up behind her. He placed his hand on her shoulder.

Isabel (jumping and crying out): "My God, Michael! You scared me to death. Do you have to sneak up on me like that?"

Michael (silently praying that Max would get back soon, because he didn't know how much longer Isabel's nerves would hold out): "Sorry. . . . We need to get back. It's bad enough with Max gone. They get really restless when we disappear, too."

Isabel (unmoving): "What if they all come back with him, Michael?"

Michael: (shrugging) "What if they do? Isn't that why he went?"

Isabel (turning to face Michael): "Have you stopped to think about what it will be like to see them again? How they will react . . . "

Michael (scowling): "No, honestly, I haven't. I've been to damn busy and worried to spend a whole lot of time contemplating anything past keeping us all alive."

Isabel (unrepentant): "Well, maybe we should start. It won't be easy for them here. This is who we are; what we do. They weren't meant for this kind of life."

Michael: (quietly) "Why don't you just say what you're really worried about, Isabel? You're worried about how they're gonna react to us. If they're angry, resentful . . . "

Isabel (sighing): "Wouldn't you be, if you were them?"

Michael: (ever pragmatic) "No. No. I wouldn't. I'd try to understand that we did the only thing we could under the circumstances."

Isabel (eyes filling with tears): "Somehow, Michael, I don't think they're going to see it that way."

With that, Isabel turned and walked back to camp.

-----------------------------------

Maria couldn't even feel her feet anymore. In fact, she couldn't feel anything from her knees down. This would have been alarming except for the sheer bliss of numbness that had replaced the excruciating pain. The only problem with the lack of pain was that it had served the single purpose of keeping her mind off of Michael. Now, it was much harder to force him out of her thoughts. In spite of the cool day, sweat stung her eyes when she chose to raise her head periodically and check to make sure she was still behind Liz. Once, she had actually plowed into the back of her and they'd both fallen hard to the ground, when Liz stopped unexpectedly. They were completely silent, everyone walking as fast as they possibly could. Alex trailed right behind her, as per Max's instructions, so he could watch out for them. Last night on that train had been one of the most uncomfortable experiences of her life but, this . . . this was so much worse she'd give anything to be back on that train . . .

Alex stared straight ahead and tried to concentrate on making sure that Maria and Liz were doing all right, but every few minutes Isabel's face appeared as if by magic across his mind's eye. What would happen now? What did he even want to happen now? The scariest part was not knowing. It had been torture to say goodbye to her and the thought of ever having to do it again was debilitating. He didn't know if he could bear to take the risk . . .

All of a sudden Max veered off and led them into a grassy, shady area that you would've never suspected was even there from the roadway. They could only travel along the road when it was fairly deserted, but at the first hint of a car, they had to take cover and wait, because the four of them together were so conspicuous. Max had thought it was difficult going to get them but alone he had found it easier to travel without drawing suspicion. He looked first at Alex and noted that he was holding up better than expected. Maria, on the other hand, was miserable but keeping it to herself. He waited until last to look at Liz, because he wanted to take the time to assure himself that she was o.k. She looked remarkably well, except for the obvious signs of fatigue. She actually smiled at him when she noticed his close inspection of her. How could she still smile at him even now, when she was obviously tired, hungry, and he was taking her away from every shred of security she had ever known?

Liz: (walking up close to him) "You're doing it again."

Max: "What?"

Liz: "You have that, 'what have I done', look on your face again."

Max: (smiling in spite of his concerns) "I do, huh?"

Liz: "Yep."

Max: "I'll make an effort."

Maria: (voice strained from long hours of silence) "Wanna fill us in on what's so damn funny?"

Max (immediately drawn back to the reality of their circumstances): "Nothing. We'll rest here for a while and eat."

Liz: (concerned about her best friend) "Maria, are you o.k.?"

Maria: (looking at her askance) "Oh sure. Why wouldn't I be? Excuse me, while I go find out if it's possible to pee when you can't feel your legs."

Liz gave her a silent, deeply felt sympathetic look, and Maria smiled even though she felt like crying. Liz was suffering just as much as she was. She just had Max and that made all the difference. She always had Max . . . even when he had been gone . . .

Maria: "C'mon, babe. Let's go see if we can defy the physical laws of nature."

Liz: (smiling and glancing back quickly at Max) "O.k. Let's go."

Alex and Max watched the girls disappear behind some shrubs.

Alex: (too tired to be anything except direct) "How is she?"

Max: (feeling more sorry for Maria and Alex than he had already) "She's fine, Alex. I won't lie to you, it's been really hard, but she's fine."

Alex: "And Michael, are they . . . ?"

Max: "No. They're not. We discovered pretty quickly that the whole thing had been a set up from the start. Isabel and Michael and Tess and I were never meant to be together."

Alex: "Oh. . . . And, you and Liz?"

Max: (gauging what exactly Alex was asking him) "Are you by any chance asking me what my intentions are?"

Alex: (scowling) "You didn't see her after you left, Max. You can't blame me for trying to protect her."

Max: "No. I don't blame you at all. If anything, I appreciate it. You don't have to worry, Alex. I'll never let her go again."

Alex: "I'm having a hard time understanding that, Max. I would've never thought you'd have let her go before, but you did."

Max: (eyes darkening in remembered pain) "Things are different now, Alex."

Alex: (confused) "How? What's to stop Tess from lying again, or something else from happening?"

Max: (choosing his words carefully) "It wouldn't matter now. Everything that Tess told us was a lie, except the part about my predestined mate. That part was true."

Alex: (trying to follow) "But, it wasn't Tess? . . . Then, who . . . ?"

Max waited quietly for Alex to put it together.

Alex: "Liz?!?! . . . That's not possible, Max."

Max: "I know what you're thinking, but it is not just possible, it is a fact. I'm certain of it."

Alex (shaking his head and wondering if he would ever understand anything again): "I guess I'll just have to take your word for it."

Max: "Not just mine. Liz knows it, too."

Alex: (blowing out his breath) "Should've expected that, I suppose."

Max: "Here come the girls. Let's eat and get some rest. We don't have much time."

Alex: (still trying to make sense out of it all) "O.k."

--------------------------------------

After they ate, Alex and Maria wandered a little ways a way, sensing that Max and Liz needed some time alone. The food hadn't been that bad, or they were just so hungry a piece of tree bark would have tasted good. Alex and Maria settled down and stretched out on their backs staring up at the clouds as they drifted across the clear, blue sky. Maria was so tired she couldn't sleep, and after fighting it for a while, she finally spoke.

Maria: "So, did you hear?"

Alex: "About Max and Liz? Yeah, I heard."

Maria: "What do you think?"

Alex: "I think that I don't know what to think, and the scariest part is, I'm getting used to it."

Maria: "Could it be possible, Alex?" "Could Liz actually be his pre-ordained-destined-whatever-you-want-to-call-it bride?"

Alex: (shrugging) "They certainly seem convinced."

Maria: (quietly) "Do me a favor."

Alex: "What?"

Maria: "If you see me heading in that direction with a certain other male alien that shall remain nameless, find a truck and run over me."

Alex: (chuckling) "That's a little extreme don't you think?"

Maria: "No. I do not think it's extreme. Do you plan on just picking up where you left off with Isabel even after they walked away from us the way they did?"

Alex: "I don't think it was as simple as that."

Maria: "Fine. You give them the benefit of the doubt, but not me, dude. I've had enough."

Alex: "What makes you think they even want to pick up where we left off?"

Maria: (more disheartened than she cared to admit) "Well, that would be just fine by me, buddy!"

Alex smiled even though his heart was heavy at the prospect of having to see Isabel every day and not be able to hold her . . . touch her . . . love her . . .

Maria still couldn't sleep and thoughts of Michael now ran rampant through her tired brain. What if he didn't even want to try . . . now that it might be possible . . . what if he still didn't want to try . . . Maria felt her breath leave her body and had to remind herself to draw more in . . . Why did it still hurt this bad? Would it never get better . . . ?

-----------------------------

At that particular moment, Michael scanned the horizon himself, from his position inside the camp. For the first time since they left, he opened the door and let the memories out. The possibility of seeing her again made it hard to breathe. Worse still was the realization that she would probably never forgive him . . . and he loved her as much today as he had the day he'd walked away . . .

----------------------

Max watched Liz as she napped. He was so grateful to see her resting. They hadn't ended up getting much sleep last night. He couldn't help smiling at the memory of why that was exactly. With his next thought, that smile faded. What was Tess up to? How had she connected with Liz? Did she know where they were now? The very idea that she might know where they were made him want to jump up right now and start moving again. The sooner they got where they were going the better he would feel about everything. As he stared at Liz's peaceful, sleeping face, he couldn't believe how completely Tess had misled them. Her lies had been intricate and premeditated. He only hoped the others would be able to get beyond all the pain they had been through and start over building new relationships with each another. Alex seemed willing enough and he was pretty sure he knew where Isabel stood, but Michael . . . and Maria . . . That was a different thing entirely. They were both so stubborn. Time would tell . . . .

Max was pulled from his restless thoughts by a soft whimper from Liz. He felt the tension in her body as she unconsciously fought an unseen foe. This time would be different. This time he knew what to expect. Max held tightly to Liz's hand and quickly matched her breathing, creating the connection between them that was now becoming so familiar. He saw her immediately and was not the least bit surprised to see that Tess was here, too. This time Max didn't hesitate. He noted with some satisfaction the look of stunned surprise and then flushed anger on Tess's face, as he quickly brought Liz to his side, effectively blocking her path. Whatever she was up to, she wasn't going to get it this way. Tess backed up a few steps as she realized she would not be able to plant anymore seeds of doubt in Liz's mind. She looked at the two of them standing there together and felt physically ill for the first time in her life. It was a new and peculiar sensation and it fed the bitterness that was growing stronger in her soul, like a wildfire out of control. She left as quickly as she had come, because there was nothing more to be accomplished here. She knew where they were and that had been the primary goal.