Part 17 - Mysteries Revealed

Silence met Dagmar's statement. He paused in his pacing. "If you'll excuse me for a moment, I'll be right back." Before anyone could say anything, he turned and left the room.

"What, the....." Michael started to go after him, but Valenti beat him to the door.

"You stay here, Michael. I'll see what's going on." Valenti followed the way Dagmar had gone.

Back in the room, Maria noticed how quiet Tess had been. "Are you okay?"

Tess looked at her in surprise. Whatever she had been thinking about, she had obviously been a million miles away from them. "What? Yeah, it's just...... never mind. It's nothing." Tess shook her head and looked away.

Well, that was informative, Maria thought. She's probably having a hard time dealing with all this. Maria looked at Isabel, her friend and possible rival. After all, I'm not having the easiest time dealing with it myself. She looked over at Michael, still standing in the doorway, looking after Valenti. It was hard to reconcile the Michael she knew and loved with this other being, this alien, Tymrath. What exactly did Dagmar mean when he said that they hadn't changed who they were deep down? And why did it seem that Michael was the one he looked at the most often while telling their story? And why did Maria have a feeling that the events in the story were going to get much, more worse?

She shivered. The tightness in her chest had started again. She looked over at Liz. Her best friend was staring at Max, who was busily looking everywhere but at her. Typical. Then she looked back at Michael. God, but he was gorgeous. He's also hurting right now. You know he is. You can feel it. He's scared to death of whatever it is that he can't quite remember yet. Maria just wanted to get up and go to him. But she couldn't do it. Not after what she had just heard. What if Michael remembered loving Isabel and decided that he felt that way about her again? For the first time, Maria could truly understand the fear that Liz had been living with ever since that day in the Pod Chamber. If they really were the same in this life as they were in the last, then how could she compete with Isabel? She looked at the beautiful blond sitting to her right. Alex and Isabel were whispering something to each other. Alex didn't seem too worried. Maybe I shouldn't be worried, either. After all, Michael loves me, not Isabel. No matter what this old alien says, I'm the one he loves. Right? Maria wrapped her arms around herself, feeling worse than ever, and very alone.

Michael kept watching to see Dagmar and Valenti come back. He needed to remember the rest of their story. What had Zandar asked of him? He knew that there had been something. Max knew it, too. He had seen it in his eyes. Something terrible had been asked, and he had done it. He was terrified of knowing what it was, but he needed to know. He couldn't go on like this. They all needed to know the truth about who they were. He was just about to go after them, when he had this sudden wave of despair wash over him. Michael turned and saw Maria huddled on the couch staring at him. Her eyes were begging him for something. Even with Liz and Tess on the couch next to her, Maria had never looked more alone.

Thoughts of Dagmar and their past lives instantly fled from Michael's mind. Before he even knew what he was doing, he had crossed the room and knelt on the floor in front of Maria. He took her hands. "I'm here, Maria. It's going to be okay."

Maria looked down into his eyes and knew that he was trying very hard to forget his own fear in order to help her. If he could do it, then so could she. She smiled down at the alien who she loved, and prayed that she wouldn't lose him to whoever he once was.

Valenti followed Dagmar to the kitchen. The alien went to the sink and poured himself a glass of water. "Would you like something to drink, Sheriff?" he asked without turning around.

"No, thanks."

"Ah, of course. You want to stay on guard. You still don't trust me, do you?" With that, Dagmar did turn around. "I'm glad, actually. With you and Tymrath both here, I feel a bit better about my charges' chances for survival."

"Michael." Dagmar raised an eyebrow questioningly. "His name is Michael. Not Tymrath. Tymrath died on your home planet over fifty years ago. This is Michael Guerin."

"Of course," Dagmar agreed again. "It's hard for me, you see. Their energies are still the same. It truly is amazing how little they've changed." He finished his drink and walked closer to Valenti. "To be quite honest, I wasn't sure this plan would work. It seemed like such a desperate idea. But then again, we were desperate, so I guess that was only fitting."

Dagmar was walking past Valenti, when the human's next words stopped him short. "Don't you think we have something to talk about, Hank?"

Dagmar turned around slowly. "How did you know?"

"That you were the one who came to my office that day pretending to be Hank Guerin? The one who told me that he was leaving town, and that he was leaving the boy behind?" Valenti shook his head. "You were good. I'll give you that much. I never would have guessed that you weren't the real Hank Guerin. Until meeting you today, of course."

"How?" For the first time, Dagmar seemed truly off-balance.

"Dr. Margoles said something to me when he was leaving that night. He said that he was 'already gone'. I thought that was a strange choice of words. And I remembered that Hank had said those exact same words the last time I saw him. I paid attention to his sudden appearance in my office. It didn't make any sense. I was so sure he was dead. All the witnesses, the physical evidence - everything pointed in that direction. But there he was, just fine. Anyway, when I saw you change, things just clicked. If you were Dr. Margoles, then you must have been that Hank, too." He shrugged. "That meeting with Hank was rather stuck in my memory, you see. I was so sure that Michael had killed him. Back then, I really thought Michael was dangerous."

"He is." Dagmar spoke with absolute certainly. "He was then, and he is now." Dagmar leaned even closer to Valenti and spoke quickly and quietly. "You think Urza, Nasedo, was cold-blooded? He was nothing compared to his mentor. Everything Urza did, he learned how to do from Tymrath. Tymrath would have done anything for Zandar. He was unstoppable. At times, he scared even me, and I was on his side." Dagmar leaned back a bit. "And from what I've heard, Michael hasn't managed too badly, either. Like I said, their instincts and memories are coming back. I understand he's already killed once. Nice of you to help them cover that up, by the way." Dagmar looked at the other man carefully. "The only question is whether Michael will learn to control those instincts or whether he'll give in to them. His duplicate has already made his choice. Now Michael will have to make his."

"And did you learn from Tymrath's example, too? Did you kill the real Hank Guerin?" Valenti whispered angrily.

Dagmar looked tired. "Yes, I killed him. Not as efficiently as Urza or Tymrath would have, of course. As I said, killing isn't my line of work. That's the only time I've ever done it, in fact. But I simply couldn't allow him to go on hurting Michael. He had done enough damage already. And he knew about Michael then. When I confronted him, he made it clear that he was going to hurt them all even more. I needed to protect them."

Valenti nodded slowly. He might not be able to totally approve of it, but he could understand why the alien had done what he did.

"Are you going to tell Michael?" Dagmar asked.

Valenti thought for a moment. "I don't think so," he finally answered. "What good would it do? Hank's out of his life. Why bring him back?"

Dagmar nodded gratefully. "Thank you, Sheriff." He took a deep breath. "Should we go back to our charges?"

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What little conversation there was in the living room stopped as the two men returned. Michael jumped up from where he had been kneeling on the floor and walked over to stand by the windows, but otherwise, there was no movement. Everyone just watched Dagmar.

"Do you remember Aveen?" he asked Max.

Max looked deep in thought. "A little, I think. I remember her spirit, mostly. Someone who was very strong and laughed a lot, but there was sadness, too."

"Yes, that's a good description of Aveen." Liz looked at Tess, surprised to see that her rival looked upset, not pleased by the fact that Max was remembering her. Dagmar continued. "Zandar was obsessed with Aveen from the first moment he saw her. He was in love with her at first sight, and never gave up." Liz remembered how she had seen in Max's memories the way that he fell in love with her the first time he saw her. Had he felt that strongly about Tess once? "Aveen was very lovely and strong-willed, but she was also vulnerable enough to appeal to his protective instincts. Zandar liked being able to take care of her. She loved him equally in return. And Aveen was......"

"She was a Skin." Michael's voice cut Dagmar off. "Like me."

Dagmar nodded. "That wasn't a problem, in and of itself, of course. Tymrath's example had shown that some of the Skins wanted peace and could be trusted. No, the problem was that Aveen was Kivar's sister." At the mention of Kivar's name, Isabel sat up straighter. She wasn't sure whether she wanted to know more about this man, this supposed great love of hers, or not. "Kivar wanted to take Zandar's throne. Zandar was so in love, and so arrogant, that he ignored this complication. He wanted Aveen and ignored everything else around him. Tymrath tried to convince him of the dangers involved in this relationship, but he wouldn't listen. He was willing to risk everything to be with the woman he loved."

"You're right. Some things really don't change, do they, Maxwell?" Michael asked. Max ignored him. All his attention was focused on Dagmar.

"Tymrath and Vilandra had to take up the slack in rulership, but they didn't mind. They were happy to see Zandar happy. After awhile, even Tymrath let down his guard a bit and accepted Aveen into the family.

"Then scout ships discovered this planet, Earth. With some modifications, easily accomplished with the use of the Granolith, this planet could be made suitable for our species to live on. This was rapidly becoming important. Does anyone know why?" For a moment, Dagmar sounded exactly like the teacher he claimed to have been.

"Because our sun was about to go nova," Isabel answered.

"Very good!" Dagmar beamed at his prize student. "Our world was going to die, and we needed to relocate. However, Earth was already populated, and Zandar was reluctant to conquer and modify the planet, as those modifications would probably kill all native life. Kivar, of course, wonderful chap that he is, didn't see the problem. Tensions between the two groups continued to escalate.

"Kivar locked Aveen away in a fortress to keep her from his enemy. Zandar did not allow a little thing like a heavily fortified castle and hundreds of fully trained Skin guards to stop him. He ordered Tymath to bring back his love. As always, Tymrath did as his king asked. By himself, he snuck in, killed scores of Skins, rescued Aveen, and brought her back to Zandar. They had a joyful reunion."

Michael could remember that. He had thought Zandar was crazy, but he was willing to do what he was asked. Zandar had been so desperate to get Aveen back. He remembered how excited he had been, sneaking in through the nearby trees and trying to avoid Skin patrols as he crawled towards the castle. And he remembered the rush of power he had always felt in battle. What had Rath said? We never feel as alive as when we're the only ones standing. He remembered the feeling. He also remembered that he had known some of the ones he killed, that they had been friends once. Not that he allowed that to matter - they were between him and his objective.

Maria watched Michael's face. He's doing it again, she thought. He was getting that closed-off stonewall look on his face. Whatever he was thinking, it was something he didn't want to get too emotional about.

"What happened after Aveen was reunited with Zandar?" Alex asked. Maria couldn't believe how calm and rational he seemed to be staying. "Did they get married right away?"

"Very shortly afterwards," Dagmar agreed. "However, Aveen's imprisonment had been a diversion. Kivar had the strongest mental powers on the planet. While Zandar and Tymrath were focused on rescuing Aveen, Kivar was able to get close to Vilandra. He used his powers and Vilandra's own telepathic sensitivity to gain access to her thoughts, to control her and make her believe that she loved him, not Tymrath."

Isabel gasped and stood up suddenly. "Oh, no. No," she cried, turning to Max. "I am so sorry, Max. You have no idea how sorry. I remember. I remember." She turned to Michael then. "Please, you have to forgive me. You have to. I never meant it, Tym. I swear." Isabel seemed to realize what she had just said, what she had called Michael, and she fell to the ground crying. Michael and Max stayed where they were, perfectly still, just looking at the crying girl on the floor.

Finally, Alex got up from where he had been sitting and gathered her in his arms. He looked at Dagmar angrily. "How much more of this does she had to listen to?"

"Not much." Slowly, Isabel's sobs grew quieter, although they didn't stop altogether. Maria couldn't believe what she had just witnessed. She had never imagined that Isabel Evans, the Ice Queen, could fall apart so completely. She had never heard anyone sound so beyond hope in her life. And Michael and Max hadn't even seemed to care. They were still staring at Isabel without expression. It was like her begging for forgiveness meant nothing to them. Thanks goodness Alex was there. He was rocking her in his arms as if she was a frightened child.

Dagmar paused. "Maybe we should stop for now."

"No." Max got up and walked over to him. He stood right in Dagmar's face. "You brought us this far. Now finish it."

"I'm really not sure you're ready for this."

Michael joined Max. "You tell us now. Do you understand? I need to know what's behind that door. I need to know exactly whose blood is on my hands." Then he smiled at Dagmar, but it wasn't a happy smile. It wasn't even the usual grimace Michael wore. This was hard and had nothing of warmth in it. "Do you really want to say no to me?"

Dagmar took a step back from Michael. It was obvious to everyone that he was frightened. Alex had stopped rocking Isabel and was watching the confrontation. On the couch, the girls were holding their breath. Valenti seemed ready to spring forward and grab Michael if necessary. Everyone understood the threat behind Michael's words.

What worried Liz the most was the fact that Max was doing nothing. Usually, he was the one to reign Michael in when he was acting at his most impulsive. But not now. He just stood there, watching Dagmar and waiting. Somehow Liz knew that if Michael followed through on his threat, and forced Dagmar to finish his story, Max wouldn't do a thing to stop him.

Finally, Dagmar asked, "Is it your command as my king that I finish the story?"

"It is."

"Then I will do so."

Michael gave a little laugh. "How nice of you." Then he walked back over to the window, passing by Isabel without a look. Max nodded and went back to his place alongside the wall with Valenti.

Maria leaned over and whispered, "Liz." When her friend didn't respond, she whispered again, "Liz!" This time the other girl looked over. "Do you notice something?"

Liz nodded. "They aren't looking at each other." Max and Michael didn't even glance at each other, or at Isabel. "It's like they can't bear to see each other's faces at the moment."

Maria nodded. Whatever it was they were seeing, it wasn't each other, at least not the way they were now. She glanced past Liz to Tess. She wondered why the fourth alien was being so quiet through all this. Then she turned her full attention back to Dagmar as he continued.

Part 17c

"Vilandra was just as passionate in her love for Kivar as she had been in her love for Tymrath. She was willing to turn her back on everything she loved and believed in, all for Kivar. Nobody suspected anything was wrong."

"She always has been a good actress." Michael said bitterly. Alex could feel Isabel flinch, as if she had been hit. He looked up angrily at Michael, but the alien wasn't even looking at them. He was still staring out the window.

"The day of Zandar's wedding to Aveen approached. They were wed, to the joy of most of their subjects. After the ceremony, Tymrath saw Vilandra sneak off. He knew that she had been preoccupied that day."

"I thought she was thinking about the plans for our wedding," Michael said, still staring out the window.

"Tymrath hesitated to follow Vilandra, because his duty was to guard Aveen until her husband came for her. That was the tradition. Then he heard Vilandra call for him in his mind. Ignoring the cautious part of his mind that told him to stay with Aveen, Tymrath left her in order to help his love. When he found Vilandra," Dagmar broke off, shaking his head as if he couldn't continue.

"When I found her, she was alone in the chamber. As I entered, terrified something was wrong with her, I was attacked from behind." Michael continued in an even, unemotional voice. "I was stupid, careless. I knew better than to rush into a room without checking it out, but all I could think of was Vilandra." He turned and looked down at Isabel with contempt. "Remember, Vilandra? As I fell, I could hear you laughing and I knew that you had betrayed us. I knew it was a trap." He turned back to the window. "It was easy enough to kill the Skin who attacked me. I couldn't bring myself to kill her though. I still loved her too much. Instead, I left and went back to Aveen."

"Michael," Valenti started to say, but he broke off as the other turned to look at him.

"Michael," he said, almost as if it was a new word to him. Then he laughed and turned to Dagmar. "Michael Guerin. Tymrath. It doesn't really matter what name I use, does it? Rath knew that. That's what he meant. We are who we've always been." His voice hardened even more. "I was too late."

"You couldn't have known," Dagmar offered, but Michael cut him off with a wave of his hand.

"I should have known. Like you said, I was supposed to be the cautious one. It was my job to take care of them. Aveen trusted me to protect her, but when I came back she was dead." He thought of her, lying there on the ground. "I might as well have killed her myself. I let her die. And then, I did kill her, didn't I? Just last week."

"Okay, that's enough," Maria stood up and walked over to him. "Rath killed Ava. You didn't do anything."

"Same difference. Rath and I are the same person. Same soul, different body. He knew it. So did I. I just didn't want to admit it. We let Aveen die on our world, and then we killed her on this one." Michael looked her straight in the eye as he spoke. It was obvious that he believed every word he said. Then he turned to Max. "Do you remember her, my king? Do you remember her death?"

Max looked up at Michael. Everybody was stunned to see the amount of anger and hate in both Michael and Max's eyes as they looked at each other. Maria took an instinctive step back and slowly returned to her seat, not taking her eyes off the two. "I remember." Max took a deep breath. "I remember feeling a pain piercing through my heart. I went instantly to our chambers. I remember seeing you, holding Aveen's dead body in your arms."

Michael nodded. "You grabbed her from me. You just sat there on the floor, holding her tight. I remember that you didn't cry. Oh, no. The great king never cried. You didn't cry for your father and you didn't cry for Aveen."

"SHUT UP!" Max yelled. "How dare you? You have no idea what I felt when I held her!"

"Like hell I don't!" Michael responded. "I remember what came next! Don't you?"

Max backed away and returned to the wall. Michael nodded like he expected this, and went back to the windows.

"Well, we don't," Maria broke in. "Does anyone plan on filling us in?"

"Zandar went crazy." Michael said, again in that emotionless voice. "I had never been afraid in my life until then. Can you imagine? I've been afraid ever since, but not then. That was the first moment. When he looked at me, there was nothing in his eyes but fury and madness." He took a deep sigh. "I should have stopped you then."

"How? By killing me, too?" Max asked with a bitter laugh. "You would never have been able to do it."

"But I should have."

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"Is this little trip down memory lane actually supposed to be helping anyone?" Maria asked angrily. "Because I've gotta tell you, it doesn't seem to be doing an awful lot of good."

Dagmar seemed to feel that things between Michael and Max had calmed down enough to continue. The two were back to ignoring each other's eyes as they waited calmly for the rest of the story to continue. "Things on that fateful day moved quickly after that. Kivar's forces were attacking the castle, but Zandar was too overcome by Aveen's death and Vilandra's betrayal to deal with it. Vilandra helped them gain access to the castle.

"A group of Skins approached Tymrath. They encouraged him to take control of the government, deal with Kivar and restore order."

"I wouldn't do it," Michael offered. "I had already betrayed Zandar enough by letting Aveen die. I couldn't do it again."

"Exactly. At any rate, Vilandra was captured while trying to escape the castle and go to Kivar. She was unrepentant. She laughed at her captors, and said she would do it again. Even news of Aveen's death didn't bother her."

Max turned suddenly and hit the wall behind him. Plaster went flying everywhere as the others jumped. Max pulled back his fist and looked at it.

"Does it hurt?" Michael asked from where he stood. He hadn't even bothered to turn around.

Max ignored him and looked at Isabel for the first time in a while. "Do you remember what came next?"

Isabel just turned her head to Alex and continued to cry. She obviously wasn't going to be adding much to the discussion.

Dagmar went on. "Then the Skins captured the castle. The three of you were killed, and we came up with the plan to send you to Earth."

"And they all lived happily ever after," Michael said bitterly. "Nope, don't think so, teach. Seeing as how King Maximillian and I remember what really happened after that, don't you think we ought to share all the glory details?"

Valenti interrupted at that point. "I don't think we all need to know anymore, Michael."

Michael sighed. "That name again. Yes, Sheriff, we do need to know more. You all have a right to the truth. Don't you agree?"

Max gave a little laugh. "All right." Looking Michael right in the eyes, he went on. "What really happened was that I sent you to capture Vilandra, dead or alive. Preferably dead."

By this point, Tess was crying, too, just quieter than Isabel. Liz and Maria were too stunned by this revelation to say anything, but Alex wasn't. "You did what?" he yelled at Max.

"Ordered me to hunt down the lying traitor," Michael repeated. "After all, why not? Sure, she was your sister and my teela-mei, but she had also betrayed us. Her execution was only fair and appropriate. But why me for her executioner? Answer us that if you will, please."

"Why ask questions you already know the answer to?" Max asked.

"Because I never had the chance to hear you say it back then. Oh, never mind. I'll answer my own question." Michael started walking around the room himself, then. Maria noticed two things. One, Dagmar very carefully got out of Michael's way and kept his distance. And two, Michael was walking differently than he usually did. She couldn't quite figure out what it was. Maybe it was just that it was more like prowling than walking. "You wanted me to kill her so that you could punish us both. She would be dead, and I would have to kill my teela-mei. You could destroy us both with one move. Am I right?"

Max didn't answer. He just watched Michael warily.

"Did......" Liz's voice broke off. She cleared her throat and tried again. "Did you do it? I mean, you didn't kill her, did you?"

Michael gave that bitter laugh again. "Haven't you been listening, Liz? Solon Zamaran Eith. The only time I didn't keep that oath, Aveen died. Of course I killed her."

There was total silence in the room. Maria realized that Tess and Isabel had stopped crying. Everyone was sitting in stunned silence once more.

Michael went on calmly. That calmness terrified Maria more than anything else. "It wasn't too hard to hunt her down before she could exit the castle. She attacked first. Even got in a few lucky blows before I was able to stop her." He grimaced. "If I had lived long enough, I would have had some nasty scars. Then I killed her." He turned to Max again. "You were there. You saw it."

Max kept his eyes level with Michael's. Neither of them spoke for a minute.

Dagmar finally broke the silence. "Right before Tymrath's blast reached her, Kivar released his control on Vilandra. I'm sure he thought it would be fun to let her know what she had done. Vilandra died, begging for their forgiveness, and swearing her love for them both."

"I couldn't believe what I had done," Isabel whispered. "You both were looking at me with so much hate." She looked up at them. "Like you are now. And I deserved it. And poor Aveen." She stopped and pulled herself together. "I didn't blame you for what you did, Tym. I deserved to have you both hate me. But I loved you both, and I was so very sorry for what I did."

Michael just nodded, still looking at Max. "You watched the whole thing, the fight, her death. You didn't even flinch when I killed her."

"I had seen you kill before," Max observed.

"This was different!" Michael burst out angrily. Then he seemed to control himself again. "Finish the story," he said to Dagmar.

"Vilandra was the last being Tymrath killed with his energy blast. He led the defense of the castle that night, but those he killed died of more conventional weapons. At the end, when the castle was breached, he ran through the halls to reach Zandar."

"There were bodies everywhere," Michael said musingly. "That's what Maria saw in the connection. Bodies everywhere. Some of them had died fighting against me, some had died fighting alongside me. But they were all dead. And it didn't matter. All that mattered was reaching my king, my brother," this last was said in a tone of irony, "in time. But I knew I was going to be too late again, just as I had been too late for Aveen." Michael stopped and shrugged. "Then everything went black."

"You were killed as you reached the door of the throneroom. From what I was able to gather later, Zandar was sitting on his throne, staring at Vilandra's body when Kivar entered. He put up no fight as Kivar killed him."

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