"I keep thinking.... What if this is wrong, Michael. We aren't supposed to mess with time in the first place". Maria anxiously tugged at his side. This wasn't time to start regretting, she told herself.

"If it makes you feel better, we don't even know if this works, besides, you came up with this plan, remember?" He looked at her with the same worry chagrin fixed on his face.

He kneeled in front of the granolith and placed the crystal cylinder shape in its place. "Great. What's next". He turned to Maria for assistance.

She kneeled in front of him, remembering all the times she had seen Liz do the same, all the hours she spent in this very room; studying and decoding the granolith. Then she stood up and walked towards the further end of the room. "I don't know anymore than you. If this thing comes with instructions, don't you think they'll come in your language?" she gave a frustrated sigh. "Ugh! I don't know whether to thank Liz or not for not leaving the records behind!" she murmured, and closed her eyes at the pain it brought her memory. Despite her reply, she started activating the granolith pressing some keys in her attempt to make it work."I have never done this before, so don't-"

A sudden flash appeared in from of Michael's face, making him back away form the granolith. "Woaw. Look at this."

Maria turned to him immediately. "Well, that did it!" she gave him a sad-triumphant smile. "Come on, Mickey boy, we better do this before I truly start regretting it. We don't have much time left". She tried to look away from him, not wanting to show how much this was costing her.

Michael had known her for the last twelve years, and she didn't fool him. "We don't have to, Maer." He started, his voice softening. "I... don't want this anymore than you. There's has to be another way-"

"We don't have time to search for another solution Michael. Whether this is wrong, it wasn't meant this way either. It's no longer about us, anyway. Our children depend on this."

"There won't be any children if this works!" he didn't mean to shout, but his own helplessness at their situation made him do it. "I'm sorry, Maer. But it's just-"

She rushed to him, putting her arms around his waist. "Shhh I know. I wish we didn't have to... but the first time it happened it wasn't right either. The only thing that gives me strength is that our children won't have to suffer. We are doing this for them, as absurd and illogical as it sounds". God! Horribly mind twisting it was. To anyone else, she was killing her children. It didn't matter that it was in order to save them, because if the plan worked, as they wanted, there would be no one to protect. "Michael, please, I need you to get through this."

He cuddled her in his arms, fixing his gaze on the screen before him. He had to be strong for her. She had always been there for him, all throughout the years, she had always been at his side, and how he loved her for it. "Come on, it's now or never".

* * *

The light was too bright for him to keep his eyes opened, and then he realized that his eyes were closed in the first place.

Michael bolted up from the bed with the flash still fresh in his mind. That had felt too real to be a dream, he told himself. Strange that he couldn't summon the image anymore, but then again, he hadn't seen anything except that light, the rest had all been a sensation.

And he didn't like it.

Completely awake now he decided to leave his apartment. He had felt that this had come from the granolith, and whatever it had been; he was going to find out what it was.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

He hadn't been able to sleep, and for the few minutes his mind has dozed off, he had jerked awake immediately.

Max instinctively turned towards the figure that appeared opening the door.

"Did you feel it?" Isabel was wearing her pajamas, and her eyes looked haunted.

"Yes... I did... what was it...." That had been so bizarre...

"I don't know, Max, but I think we should alert the others..."

He stopped her saying, "I don't think we need to. If you and I felt it, it's only natural that Michael and Tess did too."

Isabel hesitated. Max had been acting differently lately, she hadn't said anything, hoping he'd come and talk to her about it, but he hadn't. She ended up nodding. It was most than likely Michael and Tess had felt it too.

"We need to go to the cave. That's where it came from."

"Hurry, I'll wait for you outside".

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Michael found Tess right outside the entrance. She had an odd expression on her face.

"What is it? Did you sense anything? Do you know what it is?"

Her head shook, and her lips barely moving. "I don't know... but it feels like it's calling to us... Almost as if it's alive..."

They heard an engine approach, and they relaxed when they noticed it was Max's jeep.

Isabel got out, quickly followed by Max.

"Do you think someone activated it, or something?" Isabel asked right away, her eyes fixed on the entrance.

"The opening is hidden, someone must have been looking for something if they found it."

"This wasn't human." Tess stated looking from Michael to Max. "We can't even power it, how can anyone else... specially if they aren't..." she trailed off knowing the rest caught her drift.

"There's only one way to find out." Michael straightened and started towards the opening.

Max didn't think to stop him. "Just be careful, and be prepare."

The four of them walked carefully, and were swallowed by the shadows as they entered the cave.

* * *

Maria took a deep breath and nodded. Their hands sought each other as Michael started programming the connection.

"We hope you get this before it's too late. Our time is the year 2011. We have taken the risk of contacting you from the future with the hope that you'll be able to learn and avoid repeating our mistakes. In our world, there's a war being fought. The skins, now called Kanners, made their first move three years ago. Our world has been thoroughly destroyed. Our only request is more of a warning."

"Do you think we should tell them about future events in our lifetimes, Michael?" Maria distracted his attention, as she weighed the consequences.

"This is changing everything, so, I doubt it'll matter." Michael tried masking his fears as well as he could in order to continue. "You can't produce offspring from both species. Our race-my race cannot be mixed with humans. It has been proved, to our misfortune, that any product of this union will no doubt be our downfall."

Maria nodded, placing herself outside their situation, as she tried to explain. "There's a genetic compound that hybrids and pure humans, when they contract with each other, they form in the new fetus. This wouldn't be such bad thing-"

"-It isn't-" Michael put in.

"But the Kanners have found this to their advantage. So far, there's only one hybram, as they are called. He..." Maria felt an overwhelming nod at her throat. "We are afraid he will fall under their hands... no matter how much we've tried, we... they are just too many..."

Michael tightened his hand around hers. "He must never been born. We won't be able to protect him. This is for his own safety. Our forces are incredibly weak against them."

"This is not our future. It was altered.... We don't know yet, how different it is from the other one-"

"I don't think it's our place to-" Michael interjected. One thing was telling them about their lives as they were now, another was to tell them a secret that could dramatically erase everything. They had to find out by themselves... it wasn't their time or place to uncover the truth.

"Whose then, Michael? Liz is dead and all of us will be too. If anything, Liz took all her knowledge of that future with her. This has been a secret long enough. Had we known, so many things would've been done differently. Max wouldn't be where he is, nor would the others..." She took a deep breath, just thinking about it made her blood run cold. The memory of Alex's funeral, the horrible night when Isabel and Max had fought and even turned their powers on each other. She'll never forget Max's haunted eyes as he carried Liz's lifeless body to his chamber. Maria turned her attention to the screen; not realizing everything was being projected. "To you, Liz still lives, and there's a big chance things can go different. For you and for us."

"We won't exist, damn it!" Michael exploded slapping his hand away. "This is wrong! We can't do this. We are killing our blood, Maria."

She tried to subdue her anger. "You aren't the only one! I'm erasing my own child, damn you! But if we don't do this, all we'll be lost, he'll still be gone!"

Either way he'll be losing everything, his senses screamed. He won't have Maria or their family! He had never had a real family, and he was counting Isabel and Max. Maria was the first real thing... and it had taken him so long and too much of himself, to now lose it all again...

"We aren't the first ones making this sacrifice, Michael," Maria tried to reason with him. "Liz and Max did it before us."

"It's not just us, either. We are sacrificing our son!"

Maria choked a sob. "I know. Don't you think I know.... But Michael..." Her tears were starting to blind her, and her voice was breaking. "I will always love you, Michael. No matter what time we live in, if I hate you in another; this heart will forever love you."

"Oh Maria... Please forgive me... for all the stupid things I've done and said to you, and for the ones I'll say in another future..." He felt an overwhelming tug at his chest as he saw her beautiful green eyes water.

"You silly alien... You've given me more than anything I could've expected. You gave me your love, Michael, and that for me, was the greatest thing of all... You have no idea what you mean to me, do you?"

"No Maer..." Michael shook his head as he walked towards her. "You have no idea how much you mean to me, or even how long I've loved you..." He regretted that she didn't. In that aspect he had never been very good at showing his emotions. "Ever since that first time my lips kissed yours, I knew I was doomed to love you."

She smiled so beautifully; as silly as it was, he felt his heart has skipped a beat.

"You make it sound as if it was a bad thing," She said jokingly, not knowing how to answer. "Was it?" All her life she had chased Michael Guerin, sometimes she felt she had pushed him too many times, and he had given in because it was-

"Ohh never that, you exasperating woman. I admit you almost drove me crazy, but that's one more thing I have to thank you for. You made me want to be human, Maer, and without you..." There were always times when he could read her mind without even trying. He didn't know what was the reason. But ever since she had gotten pregnant that connection strengthened. Liz hadn't been able to give much explanation, and throughout the years they had just assumed it was that. And now, she was looking at him with those green eyes that gave him that melting sensation all the way to his bones.

"You amaze me, Michael Guerin. Never in my wildest dreams would I've imagined you'd say that." Her voice held disbelief, her eyes held wonder.

He took hold of his emotions and shrugged it off with, "Do you really think I'm going to believe that, Deluca? I bet love confessions was one of the first things in your wishing-list."

Her lips curved in a semi-smile. "Most impossible dreams, Michael. Most impossible dreams..." She corrected him.

In one swift motion, he was crushing her to him. They tried not to think that they'd never hold each other again, that they would never feel the passion that bounded their hearts.

* * *

"What the hell...!" Michael backed away from the hologram, aghast at what he was seeing and hearing.

Neither of them could understand a thing that was being said.

It had to be a trap, or some sort of hoax to- to what! Michael couldn't come up with a valid explanation for what was happening in front of him. How could him and Maria be together? They could barely stand each other, much less be married...

"Michael, that's you... and Maria..." Isabel murmured as she too stared at what was in front of her.

Max's eyes were glued to the screen. "That's them... but it isn't them..."

"It's a message of some sort. They said it: a warning." Tess walked around the hologram, and even placed her hand through it.

"From the future." Max tried to analyze it in his head. "What do they mean an altered future?" His head was spinning with questions he was to eager to have answers for.

"She said someone came from the future-another future-and changed it..." Tess said unsure.

"Did you know that the granolith can do this" Max asked her.

"No I didn't. I know the same as you do."

"If someone, from another time, was able to do this, why didn't they do it again?" Isabel questioned.

Michael spoke feeling he knew the answer, even futures apart. "Because in that future," he pointed at the hologram, "they never knew time traveling was possible. I don't think they are even sure this message will reach us."

"So, you can say that that's one of the results of whoever came to this time to change the first future..."

"Has this already happened?" Isabel wasn't the only one who pondered this question.

How could they know? They weren't saying enough to give them clues!

"Wait..." Max's eyes widened. "They said Liz took whatever knowledge of that future with her-" He still couldn't believe that she was death. At least in that time. He just couldn't fathom a world without her.

"So she knows about this."

Tess interceded, "But which Liz? The one from right now, or later on..."

"There's only one way to find out-" Michael was cut off as a pair of penetrating green eyes fixed on him.

* * *