Many of the old ruins had been studied thoroughly, and what was most interesting, was the fact that the Mayas had built over previous sites themselves, sealing up the former sites in a type of mummification process, by placing a coarse, thick, white plaster coating over the entire structure, thus ensuring the preservation of all its contents...........similar to our modern day time capsules.

This showed great forethought, as though they meant for the history of their ancestors to be documented accurately. It also meant that it made the discoveries of their ancient secrets more readily accessible, revealing a rich cultural heritage, as the layers of their history were peeled back.

One area that stood out was their fascination with the cosmos, in particular, the relationship between the sun, the moon and venus....hence the Venusian formular, which documented the annual orbits of Venus , the Moon and the Earth around the Sun, with amazing accuracy. They, along with the other pre- Columbian civilizations.....the Anasazi and the Incas.........made their own careful interpretations by mapping the cosmos. Unlike our scientific approach, today, they saw it as following the journey of the gods across the night sky, returning again and again with the morning light. Another thing these Mesoamericans shared was the belief that their ancestors emerged from the underworld via caves.

As more and more of this information was processed, the young teens began to form a very definite picture of their own journey and where it might lead them. By the time they met for their barbeque at Max and Liz's, they were bursting with enthusiasm. It was still an overwhelming task, but they couldn't help but get caught up in the whirlpool.

They had gathered outdoors on the patio, lounging in chairs, as Max worked the barbeque, flipping bugers like a pro.

" I think there's definitely something to this cave connection," Maria said. "I mean, look, we have Nasedo and his cave drawings, and then we have the grotto near Palenque. It's gotta mean something!"

"I know what you mean, Maria, but many of the ancient civilizations used caves for drawing......maybe they knew the drawings would be better preserved there, or maybe it was just a safer place to be...who knows? A lot of them lived in caves, so maybe it was just convenient to draw on the walls.....you know, an early version of wallpaper," Liz joked.

Alex spoke up. "Yeah, but wouldn't it have been easier to draw on the outside of caves....you know, more light and all."

"Well, there's not exactly a lot of wall space on the outside," Michael drolled.

"Okay, wiseguy," Alex returned, "What's your theory, then?"

"I think Maria's right. Remember, we're talking about the Alien connection, here, if one exists, and it just seems that we have two obvious places staring us in the face. Once we get some symbols matching, or at least being similar, then I think that's all the proof we need."

"Hold on Michael!" Max interrupted," We can't just go running off to Mexico with just that to go on. I admit, it's tempting, but I think we need to look at the overall picture here. Why did our grandmother point us in this direction.....she could've just as easily told us directly what was going on.....she obviously knows? I think there's a lot more to this than finding out information...maybe it's some kind of test...you know, to see if were worthy of the challenges ahead. So we can't just jump at every little clue.....anyone can find clues......but not everyone knows what to do with them."

Liz squeezed his hand in support as he looked around the group for confirmation.

"Alright, you guys," Isabel convened," Let's not get carried away here. I think you're both on the right track, and that's why it's good that there's eight of us to bounce ideas off. Look, there's no immediate rush, right? So, we'll take our time, and we'll study all the information, until we see some kind of pattern."

"I agree with Isabel," Tess spoke up. "Why are we rushing things? It's not like we have anywhere to go.......you know, like a spaceship to take us home."

"Yeah, well how are we ever gonna know that, if we don't start making a move on this now?" Michael insisted.

"Hey, Spaceboy, you got a hot date waiting for you back on planet whatever?" Maria teased. "What's your hurry, anyway?"

Michael strode away in disgust, not caring to talk about this anymore, if no one was going to take him seriously. Maria rolled her eyes and went in search of him to calm him down.

"Jeese, Michael should learn to relax!" Kyle offered. "We've been working our butts off for over a week now, and I think we're doin' real good."

"Kyle," Max responded, "You should know how Michael operates by now. As soon as he gets an idea, he wants to run with it. He's Mr. Impulsive. Don't worry, he'll be alright. I don't think he'd head to Mexico by himself.....or at least I hope he won't," he muttered under his breath.

"Okay, everybody, food's ready!" Liz called. She laid out the platter of burgers and some toasted buns, along side the condiments and salads. There was a cooler of sodas and bowls of chips, so they all helped themselves to the tempting repast. Maria returned with Michael in tow and nothing was said, as they cranked up the music and partied. They didn't have to worry about the noise level out here, so they cut loose with a vengeance.

"Only six more days to school," Maria wailed.

"Shut up, Maria," Michael laughed, as he pushed a bun into her mouth.

"Hey, we have a long weekend coming up, and I for one am not spending the last weekend of the vacation, pouring over some cruddy old documents," Kyle said. "Why don't we go camping?" he enthused.

"Well, the three of us are stuck with working on Saturday," Liz said as she pointed to Michael and Maria," but Dad is closing for Sunday and Monday, so we'll be clear by 4:00. Then we can go."

"Yeah, and I have to work until Noon," Max added," but then I'm free."

"Okay, so we should decide on a place," Alex joined in.

"Oh, camping again!" Isabel whined. "Do we have to sleep in tents?" she shuddered.

"Well, honey bun, that's what camping usually means," Alex soothed her.

"Well, what if we rent some cabins?" Tess appeased.

"That could get a little expensive, dontcha think?" Kyle replied.

"Not really," Max responded. "I heard of some really nice ones down around Carlsbad. Some tourists who were visiting the Centre the other day, mentioned them, and they're pretty reasonably priced.....and at least we'd have something to do down there. We could visit the Park and do some real cave investigating."

"How many cabins will we need?" Tess asked

"I think they're all two bedroom ones, so two should do us." he replied.

"Well, I'm not gonna be stuck sharing with you two," Kyle laughed as he pointed to Max and Liz. "I'll never get any sleep!"

"Who says you will, anyway, Buddha Boy," Tess implied, raising an eyebrow.

Kyle grinned at her as he blushed. The others started joking back and forth about sleeping arrangements and they finally decided to put Max and Liz with Michael and Maria.

"You'd better keep it down, Maxwell," Michael warned. "At least some of us might want to sleep," he said, looking pointedly at Kyle and Tess.

"Yeah, right Michael," Liz joked. "I don't know why you think Max and I will keep you up. I've heard some pretty amazing stories about your sexual prowess," she intimated.

"Huh?" He glanced at Maria, who pretended to be engrossed in a conversation with Isabel.

"Never mind," Max said. "Let's just have some fun, alright? I'll book the cabins, and tell them we'll be there around 6:30. If we leave by 4:30, that should get us there in plenty of time."

They made plans for the rest of the evening, deciding what each would bring. They decided to save time by having all the gear loaded the night before. They would use Tess's SUV and Max's jeep, using the former for the gear and supplies.

They cleared the dishes, placing them in the dishwasher, and tidied up before they left at 10:30, all arriving home at a decent hour.

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

The remainder of the week proved to be less productive, as they were preoccupied with their weekend plans. They managed to download some more information, deciding to concentrate their efforts on this aspect of their search. They'd leave the sorting for after their little trip. Thankfully, they seemed to be nearing the end of this phase, as the piles of papers starting to climb the walls in Michael's cramped space.

He didn't seem to mind, though, since he was busy working most of the time. To make the transfer task less time consuming, they had set up one of the computer's at Max and Liz's house, in the apartment. This also solved the problem of someone inadvertently walking in on Alex, and finding all this material in his room.

Thursday evening, Liz's dad asked her to pick up a delivery in the next town, about 30 minutes away. She took their van, and headed out of town, rushing so that she could get back to see what the gang was up to. She didn't notice the grey car, following at a safe distance, as she returned from her trip. It started to speed up, and overtake her, and when she glanced over, she saw a man wearing a baseball cap, pulled low over his eyes. She slowed down a little to give him room to pass, when he suddenly swerved into the van, trying to force her off the road. She held onto the wheel, as she frantically tried to get control of the vehicle, but it veered off to the side, striking the edge of the road, and causing the van to flip over. She lay unconscious, hanging upside down from the seat, held firmly in place by the seat belt. Blood dripped from a gash in her head.

The man jumped out of the car to check his handiwork, and when he looked inside, he smiled with satisfaction, but before he could make a thorough check, another vehicle came around the bend. He took off in a hurry, speeding away before the man in the pick up could stop him. The driver hopped out of his truck to investigate. He made a quick call to 911, explaining the situation and their location.

Before long, an ambulance arrived, and drove Liz to the Roswell Hospital. Luckily, she had been wearing her seatbelt and had regained consciousness, before the ambulance got there. They carefully strapped her on the stretcher and safely delivered her to the waiting Emergency team. She asked to call her parents, while she was being examined, and by the time they made it to the hospital, she was sitting up and chatting with the nurse.

The Doctor assured them that she was fine and she could go home. He gave her some pain medication, in case she needed any, and soon she was sitting in her living room, retelling her story. Her parents were very shaken up, and had second thoughts about her weekend excursion, but she begged them to go, and they finally gave in, making her promise to call if she felt anything unusual.

Max had hurried over to her place as soon as Maria told him what happened. He was pale and trembling when Liz's dad let him in, and he ran into the living room to grab her into his arms. She assured him she felt fine, but he stayed, keeping a watchful eye over her that night until it was time for him to leave.

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

The man cursed as he watched from his car, realizing he had failed in his mission. It didn't matter.....he would continue with phase 2.

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

By Friday, they were all ready for a break. That evening, they loaded Tess's SUV, as planned, getting excited at the prospect of a couple of days just exploring and relaxing in the great outdoors.....well, almost everyone, that is, except Isabel. She, admittedly, was not exactly the outdoorsy type, but as long as it didn't mean camping, she was willing to go along with it.

On Saturday, Alex, Isabel, Kyle and Tess, picked up the perishable food items and stored them in the cooler in her vehicle. They all met for lunch at the Crashdown, to go over any last minute details, and by 4:30, they were on the road, heading for Carlsbad. They had all made the trip in Eighth Grade, on a school trip, so were not totally unprepared, but they were looking forward to it all the same.

The trip took about two hours, and they arrived at the cabins, hungry and ready to party. The first order of business was to unpack the SUV, and then get something to eat. After their long drive, they weren't in the mood to cook, so they ate at a little diner about three miles down the road. On the way, they had passed what looked to be a dance hall, so they thought they'd check it out after their meal.

The place was a licensed establishment, but they had no trouble gaining admittance, and soon were joining the other patrons on the dance floor, as the local band pumped out a mixture of old pop tunes and country classics. They laughed and danced all night, really getting a kick out of the old music, and just generally having a good time.

They left around 11:30, heading back to the cabins in a jovial mood. Even Michael seemed to have enjoyed himself, which surpised everyone, since Michael wasn't known for his partying personality. They all congregated at Max and Liz's cabin, breaking out the snack food and turning on some more current tunes. They were careful not to make too much noise, since they had noticed some families with younger children also vacationing in their vicinity.

"Max," Liz laughed," what were you doing on the dance floor, anyway?"

"I was dancing!" he replied sheepishly.

"No, I mean when that old guy came up to you, and started patting you on the back?"

"Oh, that! He asked me how I enjoyed our trip to the mountains yesterday and I said that he must have me mixed up with somebody else. He wouldn't let it go, insisting that he had shown me around on Friday. I kept telling him he was mistaken, and he finally shook his head and said I must have a twin brother, and then he just took off! Weird, huh?"

"I'll say it's weird," Michael spoke up." Maybe it's one of our enemies, Maxmillian, like a shapeshifter, pretending to be you!"

"Michael," he sighed," the place was dark, and the guy was really old......he just made a mistake, that's all. Now, forget it, alright?"

Alex changed the subject quickly by asking what their plans were for tomorrow.

"Well, I plan to sleep in," Maria piped up.

"Oh no, Maria," Liz implored. "We have to have some fun! You can sleep in anytime....we should go exploring. There's so much to do here, we can't just sleep the time away."

"Liz, sleeping in for me is fun. Look, when do I ever get to sleep in? If I'm not working, I'm in school."

"Maria, I will not let you do this to yourself this weekend. You'll regret it, so that's that. We are all going exploring."

Max watched this little exchange with great amusement, wondering when his beauty had become so bossy. Maybe it was an Alien thing, he thought. He grabbed her and sat her on his lap, tickling her to break the tension.She folded in his arms, weak from laughter. The conversation continued around them, as if nothing had happened, and Max and Liz took this opportunity to sneak into the bedroom for a quick grope.

That was the last their friends saw of them that night, as the two lovebirds fell onto the bed in a passionate embrace. They had never had to be quiet in their lovemaking before, so this was an added challenge. They never heard their friends leave, nor did they hear Michael and Maria call out goodnight, as they were so absorbed in one another. Their friends could hear the rhythmic moving of the bed, and tried desperately to ignore it, until they became wrapped up in their own passionate groping.

Michael and Maria weren't ready for the next step in their relationship, but that didn't mean they weren't above some very heavy petting, which they proceeded to do, before they drifted off to sleep. The only way Liz and Max would get any sleep, was to consummate over and over until their lust had been satisfied. Their sexual appetites were voracious, and it didn't matter how many people were in the next room, they would not be denied.