Max became Zan again and looked up to see a bride walking down an aisle. In his heart he pleaded, "Let it be her, please, by some miracle, let it be her." As the bride drew nearer he heard gentle sobbing and knew his wish had not come true.

Ava stood next to Zan as the two exchanged vows, vows that were each written for someone else. Both of their hearts were broken. Ava glanced over to her love, to the man she had intended to marry and he would not look at her. Her heart sank. In one day she had lost her best friend and her true love. She turned back to Zan and put a finger to his lips as he was reciting words he would never mean.

"I offer myself willingly to you Zan of Avitar. As Larissandra's Lady in Waiting it is my duty to wed you in her absence." She would not admit to Larissandra's betrayal or death, and promised in her heart that if she ever returned she would relinquish her right as Queen. She continued, "You are my beloved friend. It is an honor and a privilege to take you for my husband. I will honor you and comfort you and fulfill my duties as Queen the best I can. Will you have me Zan?"

Zan looked at Ava and tears welled in his eyes. His true love was gone; he had to face it. He knew that somehow he had to go on without her although he wasn't sure how he ever could. Words would not come as the tears spilled over and he grabbed Ava and embraced her. She was a dear friend and he vowed he would treat her with the honor she deserved. He knew he was not the only one who had suffered loss, at least they would have each other to comfort. ***

Isabel used her powers to open the door. She ran into Brody's living room with Liz close behind her. Together they rushed over to where Larissa was kneeling beside Max, holding his hand.

Isabel looked menacingly at Larissa, and demanded. "What did you do to him!"

"I'm so sorry! I had no idea he was going to kiss me!" Larissa was clearly shaken by the incident. "He was only supposed to hold my hand so we could form a connection!"

"What are you talking about?" Isabel looked down at her brother and knelt beside him, opposite Larissa. "Isabel, I'm from your planet," Larissa began to explain, "I was sent here to give Max his memories."

Max let out an audible cry and Liz rushed to kneel beside him.

Isabel, frightened by the sight of her brother's condition, grabbed Larissa by the shoulders. "What is happening to my brother!" They all looked down at Max. He was shaking violently and his eyes were moving rapidly back and forth in his head.

Suddenly there was the sound of breaking glass in the back of the house and Larissa looked around desperately and started to panic. "Oh, no! He's found me!"

Isabel wouldn't release Larissa until she gave her the information she wanted. "Larissa tell me what's going on, or I swear to God…"

"There isn't time! I have to get out of here!" Larissa tried to break free from Isabel's grasp.

"Tell me and I'll let you go!" Isabel still had a firm hold on Larissa.

Liz was holding Max's hand and trying to get him to come around. "Max? Max? Can you hear me?"

"Don't try to wake him, it will only make things worse!" Larissa turned to Isabel and said, "I told you I came here to give him his memories, or rather Zan's memories. When he kissed me he made the connection more intense. Your human bodies can't handle the rapid information transfer and it made him start to convulse." Isabel gave her a horrified look. "He'll be okay, you just need to watch him. He'll eventually come out of it once his mind has finished processing the information." Larissa was speaking rapidly now and struggling to break free from Isabel.

There was a loud crash and the sound of struggling drawing nearer. Larissa pleaded to Isabel, "Now will you please let me go?"

Isabel released her hold as Brody and Nicholas stumbled and fell into the room. Larec had taken over Brody again and yelled at Larissa, "Go! Go! I'll be ok, you must get out of here, now!"

Larissa gave Max, Isabel and Liz one last look, then ran out the front door and into the night.

Immediately after Brody & Nicholas had entered the room Liz had thrown her body over Max's to try and conceal him from Nicholas.

Nicholas angry and frustrated at losing his prey threw Brody off of him so violently that he smashed into the wall on the opposite side of the room. He looked over at Isabel and Liz, who were trying desperately to conceal Max from him, and remarked, "I'll deal with you later. First, I've got a traitor to kill." And then he was gone.

Liz and Isabel rushed over to Brody once they were sure Nicholas was gone. "He hasn't got a pulse! We need to call an ambulance!" Liz stood up to go and find a phone, but Isabel caught her hand and stopped her.

"No! Liz we can't! They'll see Max and try to take him too! We can't risk it! This happened once before and Max did CPR on him and he was okay. Let's try that first." Isabel began to breathe for Brody. Liz looked from Max to Brody and then went over and assisted Isabel with the CPR.

After a minute or two with no response from Brody, Liz stopped.

"Liz! What are you doing? You can't stop!" Isabel said between breaths.

"It's not working Isabel. We have to call an ambulance now, or he will die! Look, we can take Max back to Brody's room and close the door; they will never see him, okay? Okay?" Liz anxiously awaited her reply.

Isabel looked over at Max. His condition hadn't changed, but he didn't appear to be in any real danger that she could determine, so she nodded and Liz ran to the phone and dialed 911.

After Liz told the operator the address she and Isabel each took one of Max's arms and dragged him back to Brody's room. They pulled him up onto the bed. Liz paused to run a hand down his cheek and softly said, "Come back to us Max." Then she and Isabel ran back to where Brody was and began CPR again. ***

Back inside Max's head the visions continued. Max was no longer able to separate himself from Zan. The two melted into one person.

"Where's Vilandra?" Zan shouted at Rath unable to control his temper any longer. "Why isn't she here?"

Rath looked around nervously; he didn't want to tell Zan what he had discovered.

Zan noticed his nervousness and grabbed Rath's arm and swung him around to face him. "What are you not telling me Rath? I need to know! Now is not the time to be keeping secrets!"

Reluctantly Rath answered him; "One of the guards saw her leave… with Kivar."

Shock and then realization struck Zan all at once and he swayed on his feet. For a long time he couldn't speak as her betrayal began to unravel itself in his mind. Finally he spoke, choking on words he never thought could be true. "Then it was her, all along. She had father assassinated for Kivar; she kidnapped Larissandra because she knew it would undo me."

Zan found a chair to collapse in. They were alone in the Great Hall where his father always conducted his political affairs. He put his head in his hands. Anguish overcame him as he thought about Larissandra and what must've become of her. "I will kill her. If I ever find my sister I will kill her myself." Anguish was replaced with rage; Zan stood up, capsizing the chair and turned on his heel to leave.

Rath grabbed Zan's arm and tried to reason with him. He knew Zan's emotions were out of control and that was exactly what Kivar was banking on. "Zan, we will find her, and she will be punished. On that you have my word. You have to stop and gather yourself. Kivar undoubtedly made sure we saw Vilandra leave with him, just to ensure you would act rashly and make yourself vulnerable. We must think this through or we are all dead."

Zan calmed somewhat at Rath's words. He knew his trusted second in command was right. But how could he be rational. His own sister had betrayed him to the enemy. She had taken away his one true love and, for that alone, he would never forgive her.

At that moment Larec entered the room. He marched straight up to Zan with a fierce expression on his face. "Is it true Zan? Is it true that Vilandra has betrayed us into the hands of Kivar?"

"Yes," Zan replied with dismay and disgust, "it is true."

"Then I must return to my home planet and help my father prepare for war. This is a grave day for the Colonies, you realize that don't you Zan?"

Zan nodded. He had been unable to face Larec, his longtime friend, ever since Larissandra had disappeared, and now with this new discovery he was even more ashamed. "I must also tell you my friend, I fear Vilandra has had a part in the disappearance of your sister."

Larec softened a bit. He knew how much Zan loved his sister. "When I heard about Vilandra's betrayal I suspected as much. Maybe Larissandra is still alive. We can always hope, and pray." Larec turned at that and left.

"If she is alive, then I will find her," Zan said softly to himself as he watched Larec leave.

* Max was given a bird's-eye view of Zan's city. One by one the blue domes were destroyed. Large lightning charges ate away at the surface of the domes until they collapsed. Buildings disappeared completely in yellow bubble-like explosions, leaving no trace of rubble, or people. The city was under siege and they didn't appear to be taking any prisoners.

Zan placed his mother and her attendants on the space shuttle Larec was taking back to his planet. Larec assured him he would see to it that Kivar would not find them. Zan had tried to make Ava leave with them, but she had insisted she would remain by his side no matter what. The two friends embraced one last time. Then Zan and Ava watched in silence as the shuttle lifted away into the night. Zan wondered if he would ever see his mother or his friend again.

The next day, Zan, Rath and Ava led an army of soldiers to the epicenter of the battle. There they faced off with Kivar and his second in command, Nicholas. Zan thought he saw Vilandra somewhere in the crowd on Kivar's side and pain stabbed at his heart. All around them explosions could be heard as one by one Kivar was destroying the buildings that made up the Royal Palace.

Zan called out across the distance between them. "Stop this madness Kivar! You are shedding innocent blood! Let us put down our weapons and go back to the Palace to talk about our differences reasonably!"

Kivar's laughter rang mockingly in the air. He stepped forward arrogantly to face Zan and his army. "The time for talk has come and gone! I will stop only when you and your sorry excuse for Royalty are dead! Oh! But with one exception!" The crowd behind Kivar parted; Vilandra stepped forward and took her place beside the enemy leader.

Zan braced himself. He knew this moment was inevitable, but he never anticipated the pain it would cause him. He tried to shake off his emotions. He could feel Rath beside him tensing. In one swift motion he raised his arm and bellowed, "Then the time has come to rid ourselves of this evil!" In one swift movement he lowered his arm and yelled, "Attack!"

The two armies converged with Zan and Rath in the lead and Ava close behind. Kivar and Vilandra slowly backed away allowing Kivar's men to take the front. Zan saw this and marveled at his opponent's cowardice. Laser weapons of every variety were deflected with protective fields of energy raised with the wave of a hand as the battle commenced. Small explosive devices concealed in the hand were placed on unsuspecting victims. In one movement the device was attached and activated. The victim would then find himself engulfed in an electrical field that evaporated him instantaneously. This form of attack was most effective with those who did not have the ability to raise a protective shield around themselves. Only certain lasers were able to penetrate the protective shield and only high-ranking officers had them.

Zan and Rath tried to break through the barrier of men protecting their leader. One by one they attached the explosive devices onto the approaching enemy soldiers and one by one they disappeared. Nicholas confronted Rath and the two of them faced off.

Zan continued to push his way forward deflecting laser and energy blasts until he spotted Kivar and Vilandra a little distance away. He caught Vilandra's eye and a look of fear spread across her face. Zan raised his hand to blast her, but something stopped him. Even with all the hate he felt for her, he knew he couldn't kill her. Something inside him wouldn't let him. He lowered his hand and she smiled triumphantly. She knew her brother well after all. Kivar took advantage of this opportunity and blasted Zan with his laser.

"No!" Vilandra caught herself yelling. Without really knowing why, she grabbed Kivar's hand and jerked it up in the air.

The special-made laser hit Zan in the shoulder and it slammed him to the ground. When he looked up he saw Vilandra holding off Kivar. He picked himself up and put his shield back up immediately. He retreated a little ways to recover from the blast. He wondered why she had saved him, but didn't stop to analyze it. A sound in the distance caught his attention and he ran toward it. It was Ava.

She was screaming as she held her hand out trying to keep her protective shield intact. Soldiers surrounded her with lasers, They were firing on her all at once to try and weaken her shield. Zan ran toward her to help, but just as he got within reach she collapsed and withdrew her hand. Her eyes looked up in time to see Zan running towards her. Once her shield came down the soldiers shot her over and over, her small body jerking with each blast.

"No!" Zan screamed as he ran to attack her executioners. He threw up his hand and blasted them with his own energy, sending their bodies flying in every direction. Energy blasts weren't generally strong enough to kill someone, but this blast would take several hours to recover from.

Zan reached Ava and expanded his protective shield to incorporate her. He reached down and gently picked her up in his arms. With her last breath she looked into his eyes and said, "I'm sorry." Her body went limp in his arms and he pulled her closer to him and kissed her forehead. He found some bushes and tried to hide her body in them. He vowed he would give her a proper burial and not let them disintegrate her.

Zan turned back to the battle. It seemed so surreal; he was having trouble grasping what was happening around him. Then something overtook him-rage. His emotions rose violently to the surface; he could no longer keep them down. He let out a battle cry that came from the very pit of his soul and charged into the middle of the battle, slaying soldiers on every side of him. His energy blasts took on a deadly force and those who witnessed it first hand did not rise again.

The battlefield was strewn with the bodies of victims blasted with lasers. Those who had been disintegrated would never be seen again. The crowd of soldiers on both sides had diminished rapidly. And then he saw them.

Nicholas was standing triumphantly over the body of Rath. Zan ran toward them in hopes of arriving in time to aid his friend. Nicholas looked up and saw him approaching. An evil smile spread across his face and he aimed his special laser right at Rath's heart. Before Zan could get close enough he blasted. Nicholas then turned and sneered at Zan.

His sneer quickly faded when Zan did not stop his advance. Zan plowed into Nicholas sending them both crashing to the ground. Before Nicholas could react, Zan wrenched the laser gun from his hand and pointed it at Nicholas' head. Zan looked Nicholas in the eyes and spit out the words, " Go now and spend eternity with all the evil that has gone before you." And with that Zan shot a hole through Nicholas' head.

Zan picked himself up and turned to see Vilandra standing a short distance away. She beckoned him over to her with her hand. Hesitantly he made his way closer to her. As he got closer, he noticed a strange expression on her face. Her eyes were unfocused and she appeared to be levitating slightly off the ground. He came within feet of her when the realization struck him too late. She was already dead. Her body slumped to the ground, a laser hole right through her middle, and there behind her stood Kivar with his laser gun pointed at Zan. Kivar saw Zan hesitate and opened fire on him.

Zan never felt the blast. It ripped through him so quickly he never had a chance to feel it. Another one hit him and then another until he finally fell to the ground. The world around him quickly faded. Tiny lights flickered in front of his eyes like fireflies; he felt himself drifting away as though he were floating off into space. *

Max and Zan separated. Max was trying desperately to break free from the spell he was under. He tried to force himself to wake up. The pain of these memories was more than he could bear. He struggled but soon he was aware of a new vision opening up before him. He heard a familiar voice and allowed himself to be taken in by it. "Larissandra! You are alive!" Max thought as he drifted toward the sound.

"Oh Zan, how I miss you. When this nightmare is over we will be together again." Larissandra was gently weeping to herself. As the vision sharpened, Max could see her sitting in a large room encased in an eerie blue light. Vertical beams of light, about 7 feet in diameter encircled her. She sat with her chin resting on her knees and her arms wrapped around her legs. Gone were her beautiful clothes; replaced with a simple straight gown that came just below her knees.

Max realized these must be Larissandra's memories he was seeing. Larissa must have transferred them with Zan's to him when he kissed her. Max felt himself being pulled closer to her. In an instant he was inside her, seeing what she saw and feeling what she felt. He tried to distance himself a little in his mind and keep his perspective. Her feelings for Zan rushed over him and he felt them as though he was still Zan. He tried in his mind to reassure her he was there, to somehow send out a message to her, but he felt nothing in return, no connection. He could not ease her pain, he could only watch.

A second voice was heard laughing from across the room. Max recognized the laugh; it was Kivar's. "Well, well, little princess. Are we sad because we miss our love? Isn't that sweet." Kivar came closer to the cell she was in and continued to mock her. "I fear I have some bad news for you princess."

Larissandra rose to her feet and Max could feel her dread. She stared icily at Kivar and raised her chin in defiance. She knew in her heart what he was going to tell her, but she was not about to let him know how it was destroying her inside.

"It seems my dear that you will never be Queen." Kivar looked at her to see her reaction. Her features never betrayed her true feelings. "An Avitarian Queen that is. The once and future king is dead." He paused to let these words take their effect.

Larissandra did not react. She continued to stare at Kivar with a fixed expression. Only Max knew the internal anguish she was feeling.

Kivar seeing that his words did not have the effect he was hoping for continued, "I killed him myself. Poor, naïve Zan. His own sister betrayed him to me, but when she stopped me from killing him the first time, I had to dispose of her." Kivar was walking back and forth in front of the cell, stopping occasionally to gaze at his fingers or pick some small bit of fluff off his clothing. "Of course I didn't do it myself; that would've been beneath my station to have to kill a traitor, so I had one of my soldiers do it for me."

Max felt his rage rising again, feeling sure he could leap out from inside Larissandra and murder this villain himself.

"You should've seen their faces," Kivar laughed. He mimicked a look of shock and disbelief and then laughed again. He pretended to wipe away a tear. "Tragic really isn't it? Vilandra could've been such an asset to my royal court; after all she is beautiful. Oops, I'm sorry… was beautiful." Kivar stopped as if he were remembering her. "But she can be replaced easily enough. Which is the only reason you, my dear, are still alive."

Kivar came closer to the cell and inspected Larissandra. His eyes slid over her body. His inspection made her feel as though insects were crawling all over her. She recoiled and Max tried desperately to lunge himself at Kivar, forgetting for a moment that these were memories that could not be changed.

"What? No response? Don't you want to be Queen, princess?" Kivar pretended to look astonished.

"I would rather die," Larissandra slowly replied; her jaw clenched in fury.

"My, my, such passion!" Kivar responded sarcastically. "Oh yes, that's right, you and Zan formed a 'Lifebond' didn't you? How quaint the old traditions still exist in some places. Well, it seems the old traditions are about to change, permanently. Out with the old and in with the new, I say!" Kivar strolled arrogantly around the cell. "That ancient relic, the Granolith, didn't help you and your people this time did it? All that power and no one to properly channel it. What a shame. I guess I will have to find a better way to put it to use, won't I?"

"Oh, and your death has already been arranged. I just wanted to give you one last chance to see things my way, but I guess the old ways die hard don't they? Yes, well… they will certainly die, one way or another." With that Kivar left and Larissandra was left alone to grieve.

Max felt her grief over losing Zan and it tore at his heart.

Before she could indulge herself in tears a new figure entered the room. Larissandra, having slumped to the ground, rose and steadied herself for what she thought was the end. A cloaked figure approached her cell. Larissandra's heart began to pound as she anticipated what was to come. Max found himself in a panic; he had to stop this somehow, but he had no idea how. He was as trapped as she was.

The cloaked figure waved its hand over a panel in the floor and the beams surrounding Larissandra retracted. The person ran over to her and took her hand. She could finally see the figure's face and recognized her as one of Zan's mother's attendants. Her look of bewilderment soon faded as the attendant spoke.

"I haven't got much time." She looked around her anxiously. "Here take this and store it in your memory." With that she pressed a small round disc into Larissandra's hand. "It's too risky to rescue you now, but we will come back for you soon. I must go." She hugged Larissandra briefly and turned to leave reinstating the beams around her. "Don't lose hope my Queen. There is still a way to bring peace back to our planets." And she was gone.

Larissandra sat on the floor again with her back to the entryway and tilted the disc in her hand. A holographic image appeared and she opened her mind to it, not only seeing it, but also storing it securely in her memory. Max saw what she saw as the hologram played out before them.

It was the battlefield. The fighting had just begun and Max saw himself again as Zan but from a new perspective. He saw four cloaked figures like the one that just came, and all were in various hiding places around the field. He saw Ava fighting desperately for her life and he saw Zan run to save her too late. He saw Zan place her body in the bushes and then once Zan was gone he saw one of the figures go over to her and kneel beside her. The figure took out a vial and placed some of Ava's tissue into it.

Then one by one, as each of the Royal four were slain; these cloaked figures went over to them and took similar tissue samples. They went unnoticed by Kivar and his men and stole quietly away when they were finished. Max and Larissandra watched as they headed back to the Royal Palace. Inside the bombed out building they carefully picked their way over to a secret panel still intact. A sliding door was revealed in the wall and once a code was entered it rose to allow them passage.

The four descended deep into the ground in a compartment similar to an elevator. The door opened into a large room with control panels and what appeared to be a command center. The four went over to it and began to rapidly enter information into the system. Another door slid open and the four entered a smaller chamber housing a large, black, inverted conical shape. Max recognized it immediately. It was the Granolith Chamber.

Once inside they began to work. Quickly they took the four vials and deposited them in cylinder shaped holes around the base of the Granolith. Hidden panels in the walls of the chamber opened to reveal more controls. Swiftly they made their way to them and started entering codes. The Granolith began to rotate, at first gradually and then faster. Once the Granolith had reached a certain speed, one of the figures reached over to the control panel and placed his hand over a glowing square. His handprint left a silver impression. Then four large lightning bolts shot out from the top of the Granolith and into the four vials at the base. Once the lightning disappeared, the Granolith slowed its rotation and came to a complete stop.

The four figures each took one of the vials and carried them into the previous room. They split the contents into four other vials and then deposited them into eight smaller containers. The containers were clear and round in shape. Once inside them the vials seemed to melt away causing the contents to be exposed to the ball-like container. Quickly they placed these balls into eight larger containers. With the wave of their hands they sealed the containers with a thick translucent membrane.

Max watched in awe as the two sets of containers were then hung on the walls in the control room. Max recognized them; these were Max, Isabel, Michael and Tess' pods, as well as Zan, Lonnie, Rath and Ava's. Understanding began to dawn on him.

He watched as the four attendants began to strip their clothing and discard it. One by one they entered the Granolith chamber and took a position around the massive cone shaped structure. Each of them placed a hand onto the large black inverted cone and with the other placed a cylindrical shaped crystal into a shaft at the base. When all of the crystals were in place a greenish light began to envelop the four figures. Their features began to change. Their bodies started to shrink in size as if all the fluid in them was being sucked out. Their heads appeared to increase and dark almond shaped lenses grew over their eyes. Their skin took on a greenish cast and appeared tough and leathery. "This was to protect them during space travel!" Max thought as he watched with fascination. Once the transformation was complete the four figures left the Granolith chamber and went back into the control room. They emitted a soft white glow as they went about the room to their various tasks. Max knew one of these figures must be Nasedo, but he had no way of knowing which one.

A low humming sound could be heard and the control room began to vibrate. It was then Max realized that this was not just a room buried in the ground; it was a spaceship! Their spaceship! With a loud ominous sound, the ground above them separated as the spaceship rose out of its secure hiding place. In the blink of an eye it vanished carrying with it the future hope for peace on Avitar and its surrounding colonies.

The hologram faded as Larissandra wiped tears away. The thought entered her mind, "There is hope for us as well my love." Max wanted desperately to hold her and comfort her and tell her that all would be well, but his thoughts were interrupted by another presence in the room.

Kivar strode up to Larissandra's cell and sneered at her. It was obvious he was agitated as he began to pace back and forth in front of her. He took in a deep breath and pulled himself together. He turned to face her and said, "Well, well, well, it seems my adversary is more clever than I thought. A ship was detected leaving the atmosphere just a little while ago. It seems some of your people have escaped." He looked at Larissandra for a sign that she had any previous knowledge of this information.

Larissandra knew she had to guard the information she had just received. "I'm glad they escaped!" she said defiantly. "I hope they get as far away from here as they can!" Then as pathetically and innocently as she could she asked, "Who got away? Was my mother on the ship?" She thought that if she feigned ignorance it would throw Kivar off.

It worked. Kivar laughed loudly. "Wouldn't you like to know little princess! What's the matter? Do you miss your mommy?" Kivar strolled in a circle around her cell. "There, there, don't fret dear. You and your mother will soon be reunited," Kivar said with mock sympathy. I have promised to return you to her as a peace offering. Of course you'll be dead, but she doesn't know that yet. My only regret is that I won't get to see you disintegrated. As far as the ship is concerned, once we have located the whereabouts of the Granolith, we will have no problem destroying it and all that are on it. And that my dear is simply a matter of time."

Kivar waved his hand over the control panel in the floor, lowering the beams to half their previous height. Larissandra squeezed the disc into her hand. She knew its discovery would be detrimental so she dug it deep into her skin. Pain seared through her hand, but it never showed on her face. She knew her blood would damage the disc and the information would be destroyed.