"Liz," he whispered. "Liz, where are you?" Suddenly, torches lit up on both sides of him, the flames crackling and spitting far into the back of the cave.

Max walked cautiously forward, following the trail of light ahead. He had no choice. The trail of lights eventually branched off, leading him to a smaller cave. Max peered into the darkness there, the empty silence filling him with dread.

Seconds ticked by...

"Liz," he whispered. The lights from behind winked out suddenly. Max crouched, ready for anything. Very slowly, a glow filled the room, illuminating a slim figure in front of him with long, silky, dark hair.

Her back was turned, but Max would know that body anywhere.

He took a step forward.

"Liz!"

The light grew, caressing the curves of her body softly. Max suddenly realized that she was only wearing panties and a tank top. He had a hard time remembering why he had been so worried about her. Liz was fine... in fact, she looked... absolutely... breath-taking as she turned to him with a sexy smile.

"Max," she said, walking slowly towards him. "I knew you'd come."

The hesitant smile on his face widened. "Liz, how did you..."

Liz stopped a few feet in front of him, her eyes daring him to drink his fill of her. And he couldn't help himself. As she lifted her arms up and rested them tantalizingly on her head, her tank drifted up high over her navel.

The smooth expanse of skin between the low rise of her bikini panties and the hem of her tank was so rounded, so perfect.

Max forced his eyes up to her face, taking in her closed eyes and rapturous expression. He hated to question her... "Liz," he breathed "I don't understand..."

She opened her eyes and stepped closer, bringing her slim arms around his neck. Max steeled himself, keeping his hands down for the moment.

Something was off...

"I want you, Max."

His mouth fell open just a little in surprise.

She brought his head down to hers and took full advantage of the opportunity to caress his mouth with her tongue.

His hands went to her waist and slid across the warm, soft skin he found there. His breathing was ragged... And as his mind opened to the sensations, they connected.

Almost immediately, Max wanted to pull back. The rush of images coming from Liz were like none that he'd ever seen before. They were disjointed, faded images of an unfamiliar childhood, one filled with loneliness and want. The little girl in the mirror looked more like... oh, god...

It was Tess!

Max felt her anguish as he saw flashes, her memories, of a strange man, a girl, a silver bracelet, a school... and then, the fire.... Oh no... She had awakened to flames burning, searing, boiling her skin.

Max felt trapped with her as the fire raged on. The pain was unbearable. But finally, the darkness came... the numb, eternal existence outside the fire. Max felt nothing but loneliness... And he knew what Tess was trying to tell him. She had come back for him. And she wanted to take him with her.

******

In the dark little corner of her mind left, Liz raged. She could feel Max against her, could taste his tongue with her own, but she had no control over her body. Tess had completely taken over. The kiss was a trap and Liz knew it; her body was being used to trap Max.

The power was building up, she could feel it. NO! Liz forced her mind to come against the strong presence.

She pushed; she beat; she screamed until she felt a... a loosening. And while Tess was focusing on the connection to Max, Liz shoved her way through the barrier and joined them.

And they were all one... all seeing images of death. Tess began to draw power from the distant orb, the guardian, using its hatred of humans to open the link.

Liz felt the familiar warmth steal through her, quickly beginning to burn as before. She heard Max cry out in pain and she pushed him away from her desperately. He must be feeling her pain. It was agonizing, fierce... deadly. She fell to the ground, all thought quickly overcome...

But the connection stayed.

******

*And now, we die. Together in life no longer, but alive in death forever.* Tess' voice echoed in Max's head, as he crouched near the ground trying to fight the energy overtaking his body.

It coursed through him, sending out waves of stunning pain.

It was coming from Liz. The connection... He couldn't think of how to save her. He couldn't even save himself.

He just... felt... pain. His... hers... Tess was killing both of them. Oh god... not Liz, too. He felt Tess' anger tremor through the connection. *Yes, her, too!*

Max clenched his teeth, and focused his energy on pushing the pain back. *Leave her alone! I'll go! I'll go! JUST STOP!*

He felt Tess' confusion, fear and rage all tangled together.

The pain screamed from Liz's body into his. *How dare you think of her! You are mine! You were made for me!*

But Max suddenly felt the power pull away, waning slowly. His head fell forward in relief. She couldn't use the orb to kill Liz if it would harm him, too. It wouldn't go through with it. The connection between them had saved them.

******

Michael reached the cave first, pausing only long enough to gauge how far behind him the others were. He frowned when he didn't see them at all. "I'm goin'in," he called out to the empty space behind him.

He strode toward the entrance, having no idea of what to find. Just as he reached the entrance, a low rumbling shook the air in front of him. Michael instinctively jumped back. He saw a flash of white teeth and a mountain of black fur.

"Michael," he heard Isabel yell behind him. Falling back in disbelief, he stumbled as her hand grabbed onto his jacket and propelled him back toward the forest.

"What's the matter with you," Isabel hissed in his ear, "I really don't think you want to tangle with a bear, Michael."

Michael pulled his arm away from her. "How else are we gonna' get in there," he gazed back at the cave long and hard.

Isabel grabbed him and made him look her in the eyes. "Michael, Max can't be in there. There's a bear in there!"

Alex and Maria ran up, breathing heavily. "Uh, did you just say a bear," Alex asked as he stopped, his eyebrows raised high.

Isabel nodded.

A low growl came from inside the cave. Michael looked into her frantic eyes and put a his hand on her arm. "He's okay, Iz. Let's just go find him. Alright?"

She nodded slowly.