He felt some of the tightness in his muscles ease a little. He didn't have some hideous aliens-only disease. And Ray knew exactly what was going on. He could walk Max through the whole akino deal.

"Usually it would be a cause for celebration," Ray agreed. "Like a human bar mitzvah or a wedding. But-"

"I know, I know. I live on earth. This is my home. I shouldn't waste time thinking about a place I'll never go," Max interrupted.

"That's not what I was going to say," Ray told him. "There is no question that you must join the collective consciousness. And soon. But we're too far away. You need… you need the communication crystals. And they're on the ship."

"The ship? The ship disappeared after the crash, remember? We don't know where it is," Max protested. "Michael and I have been looking for it practically our whole lives."

Ray reached across the table and grabbed Max's hand. Which was weird. Ray wasn't one of those touchy-feely guys. Max felt his muscles retighten until his entire body ached.

"Max, if you don't connect to the consciousness, you will die," Ray said slowly and clearly.

Die. The word sucked all the air out of Max's lungs and left him gasping.

No. It couldn't be. A few dizzy spells could not possibly equal a fatal disease.

"Wait," he protested. "I've lived on earth my whole life. You have no way of knowing how that's changed my body. You can't be sure I'll respond the same way I would have if I was on our home planet," Max said in a rush. He tried to pull his hand free, but Ray tightened his grip.

"You're right. I don't know how growing to maturity on this planet has affected you. But here's what I do know," Ray answered. "I know that the experiences you described to me-the painfully loud sounds and bright colors-they're almost exactly what I went through myself when it was my akino time."