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Crossovers - X-Files - Adventures
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Download Other stories by Parnell,
Tammy M.
TITLE - Passages (1/1)
AUTHOR - Tammy M. Parnell
EMAIL ADDRESS: LaLapine@aol.com
DISTRIBUTION STATEMENT: Anywhere, as long as my name's
on it
SPOILER WARNING: Pfaster, Modell, Barry all mentioned
RATING: PG
CLASSIFICATION: S, R, A
SUMMARY: Mulder/Scully romance. Mulder must find Scully,
kidnapped by a bomber in the woods
DISCLAIMER: The "X-Files" are not mine. They belong to Chris
Carter, 1013 Productions, Fox Television, and the actors who
portray them. Janis Ian's "Tenderness" and "No One Else Like
You" are used without permission.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: This is my first "X-Files" story, so be gentle!
But PLEASE send constructive feedback; all flames will be
promptly extinguished. Hope you like it!
Passages
an "X-Files" story by Tammy M. Parnell
<> Sweat
dripped from Agent Fox Mulder's brow as his distraught eyes
darted expectantly around the small clearing. He and his four-year
partner, Dana Scully, had tracked the alleged bomber William
Brody to these woods just outside of Baltimore. It had taken hours
to find the old cabin whose ownership was under the Brody name
but whose location was off the map. Research had indicated that
Brody's family had spent summers up here when he was a child.
Digging deeper, Scully discovered a well-kept government secret:
Twenty years earlier, a family out hiking in these woods had
stumbled upon something they shouldn't haveÐa secret weapons
testing facilityÐand they had paid the price. Of course, these
innocent people were unaware of this covert organization as its
location was underground to protect it from the effects of the
weapons tested above. The Brody family's timing had "stunk,"
Mulder remarked to Scully when she told him that William's family
ended up in the middle of a bomb test run. No one had seen the
adults and two children on the underground video monitors, not
until it was too late.
The aftereffects of the bomb left the badly scarred boy an
orphan. In an attempt at a cover-up, the government financed
William's education, and he received a degree in science, eventually
coming to work for the same facility which destroyed his family.
Two years ago, the organization had been permanently closed
downÐand Brody was ready to use his well-learned skills. Seeking
vengeance for his family's death, he studied further on bombs,
learned how to construct them, and began to use them with deadly
force. Searching little used computer databases, Scully had found
this important link to the recent bombings of the homes of military
officials. A composite sketch of the suspect received a positive ID
as Brody.
It was an excellent piece of research on his partner's end,
and Mulder mentally kicked himself for not complimenting her on a
job well done. Now he was afraid it might be too late.
"No!" he shouted at his own reckless thoughts. "Scully!" he
called into the wind as it wound smoothly through the darkness of
the forest beyond. Running away from the cabin and towards the
caves, Mulder prayed she was where he suspected.
A sudden, intense heat rippled over his body, which was
clad in jeans and a flannel shirt. The blinding light forced Fox to
drop to the ground, shielding his eyes.
<> he thought bitterly. <>
Mulder watched what was left of the cabin go up in flames,
the remaining pieces having been blasted to various parts of the
clearing. He had no doubt that once it cooled down the explosive
device would be found. The mystery about this bomber was that no
one could figure out how the weapons were set off. There were no
timers and no evidence of a remote control link at any of the crime
scenes. Fox had proposed it could be some sort of telepathy, mind
control at work. Scully had scoffed this idea, he remembered,
grinning in spite of himself.
But his face shifted into seriousness as the realization hit
him: What if Brody had somehow snuck Scully back to the cabin
after Mulder had exited? Dread filled his hazel eyes, an innate fear
of the flames intense with worry as to where his partner was. No
one could have survived such a blast.
Mulder jumped to his feet and began to run, refusing to
listen to his fears. Brody was nearby, he could feel it. And he was
undoubtably enjoying playing mind games with Mulder, though the
agent had no choice but to take the bait. Scully's life depended on
it.
***
Dana shifted uncomfortably against the cold, rough wall of
the cave. It was damp and musty in the lantern-lit area, and she
detected the scent of some nearby rotting animal corpse. She
prayed Brody hadn't brought her to some kind of den. But then,
Scully thought bitterly, maybe it would be a better way to die than
whatever it was Brody had in mind for her.
<> she scolded herself. <>
A lump formed unwillingly in her throat as her chest
tightened with worry. She had heard the explosion. Brody told her
the cabin was rigged and that her partner was in it. She didn't
believe himÐshe couldn't. Mulder had to still be out there. He just
had to be, and he would find her.
Setting her mind on this faith, Dana let out a breath she
didn't know she had been holding, and Brody glanced sharply in her
direction. His six foot and bulky frame had overpowered her back
at the cabin as both agents were caught by surprise when Brody
jumped out from behind a shelf, pinning Scully to him with his gun.
The pained look on Mulder's face when she was grabbed
had reminded Scully of that of a beaten dog, and she had chided
herself for not being more aware of her surroundings. Mulder was
yet again going to blame himself, no matter how much she insisted
it was not his fault. She hated that he did that to himself, and she
knew that thoughts of her abduction and subsequent disappearance
would be playing through his mind right now due to what he called
his curse of a photographic memory. And there was the cancer...
Scully's mind was harshly brought back to her present
dilemma with a sharp blow to her ribs by Brody's heavily booted
foot. She gasped for air as his shaggy face leaned down, an inch
from her pale one. He roughly grasped her jaw, and she tried not to
be sick from the fetid breath against her face. Though her hands
were bound in front of her and not behind, she dared not try
anything. Revenge was the only thing on this madman's mind, and
killing as many people as he could nourished his perverse soul.
Scully tried not to contemplate why she was, so far, spared.
Feeling his steel grip on her cheeks made her wish a wild animal
would indeed appear from a nearby den. Brody reveled in his power
and position of absolute control, perhaps because he had been
helpless as a child to save his family, Scully reflected.
"Missing pretty boy?" Brody asked tauntingly, a growl
seeming to emanate from the back of his throat. "Just keep on
missing him. He's never coming to get you. It's just the two of us
now, sweetheart."
Scully braced herself, trying to breathe evenly. "Killing
other people won't bring back your family."
"What do you know about it?" Brody spat out. "The only
thing you've ever known taken from you for no reason!" His
subsequent grin sent a shiver through Scully. "But you will know.
Yes you will."
"He's not dead," Scully asserted, understanding his
insinuation, her voice straining to sound unemotional.
"Oh yeah?" Brody laughed loudly. "Just wait and see." He
shoved her roughly against the wall, and she winced as her head hit
hard. But at least it was over for now.
***
Mulder ran blindly through the trees, ignoring the bark and
branches that tore at his exposed face and arms. It was his warped
way of punishing himself, and he relished in the pain. How could he
have been so helpless? Scully had counted on him, and once again
she'd been met with disappointment.
Mulder ran faster as the painful images flashed through his
acute mind: Scully's uncharacteristic loss of control after the Pfaster
case, her expression of hurt during Modell's mind games, the
photograph's depiction of her terror when Duane Barry had her in
the trunk, her comatose form stretched out lifelessly on the hospital
bed, and now this: her shock and helplessness when Brody had
jumped out and grabbed her, successfully aiming a large, rough
stone that hit Mulder dead on, causing him to sink into
unconsciousness.
Mulder winced slightly as he reminded himself of the ever
growing purplish lump on his forehead. He hoped Brody had
expected him to still be at the cabin during the explosion. With any
luck, he'd presume the agent dead, and then get sloppy. Mulder
clung to the hope that his partner was still alive as a lost boy holds
on to his battered teddy bear.
<> he rationalized, urging his legs to keep
going. <> But as he wished this, he
tried to ignore the growing concern in the back of his mind over the
reason that Brody would want her alive.
Just when it seemed his lungs would burst from the cruelty
of the run, Mulder spied the entrance to the caves.
***
Scully observed Brody pacing back and forth before her. He
seemed confused; she guessed her earlier comment had disturbed
him.
<> she thought bitterly. <>
She closed her eyes and tried not to think about her past
abductions. When Duane Barry had crashed through her window
and threw her in the car trunk, she thought not much else could
happen to equal the fear she had felt. But then Donnie Pfaster had
come along with his gruesome fetish. She had been afraid from the
start, an unfamiliar panic gripping her senses. Shuddering at the
memory, Dana realized her nightmare had nearly come true.
But being locked up in Pfaster's house had only reminded
her of her previous abduction, intensifying her fear. It had been a
hell of a struggle, one perhaps she would not have won had Mulder
not come in when he did. Seeing him flooded her with relief, but
guilt as well. He had tried to get her to talk to him about her fear,
but she had insisted she was fine. He didn't pressure, but when he
found her pinned beneath Pfaster, he wouldn't accept her lie, nor
had he ever again mentioned her breakdown when he made her
look him in the eyes, causing her to collapse against him, sobbing
her frustrations. He never viewed her as less of a person. Nor had
she him, when she had repaid the favor at his mother's bedside.
Dana thought back to a song, "Tenderness" by Janis Ian,
which was on a CD her sister had given to her:
"Everybody needs somebody they love best...
"Every heart is searching for a place to rest...
"Everybody shares a secret loneliness...
"The secret lies in learning how to share..."
<> Dana admitted thoughtfully to herself. It was
hard for her to share her feelings, especially with Mulder. Funny, as
he was closer to her than anyone, and she admitted to herself he
was the one she "loved best." But she was afraid of him being hurt.
<> she
told herself.
"I used to be an island in stormy sea...
"Miles from the harbor of your company...
"I was locked on the rocks/I could not get free...
"ÔTil I felt the waves of kindness/washing over me..."
Her mind drifted back to Donnie Pfaster. She had indeed
felt like an island, her fears surrounding her. But Mulder had been
patient, and his tenderness had helped her through it.
<> Dana analyzed, thinking of her
abductions. <>
Taking a deep breath, she knew it would do no good to
break down now. Brody was watching her intently, sizing her up.
She held his gaze as he spoke.
"You think you're pretty smart, don't you? You think you
can be my shrink, we'll all live happily ever after. But like I said,
little lady, it isn't going to happen." Brody approached her,
revealing a razor in his right hand. Scully inhaled sharply at her
sense of deja-vu.
Brody knelt before her, and she held her head as far back as
she could. The razor pressed lightly against the smooth skin of her
neck, a trickle of blood running slowly from the fresh wound. He
whispered evilly, "You want to see what they did to me?" She
remained still, but jumped slightly when he yanked out a pair of
scissors from his heavy jacket and began to savagely cut away at his
unruly beard. The strands of dirty hair fell away on to Scully's lap.
She swallowed hard as the razor flashed over the remaining stubble.
"See this?!" He yelled into her face, her nose crinkling at the
foul odor of his breath. "Look at what they did to me! Just look!"
His rough voice pierced her ears at its proximity.
Scully spoke evenly as she observed the terrible scaring
covering Brody's face. "It was wrong what they did to you. It was
wrong for them to cover it up."
"You're one of them."
"No, I'm not. My partner's not. We'd like to help you."
"That's what THEY said!" he jumped up and paced
hurriedly in front of her. "They said they wanted to help me. They
said I could be somebody. It was an accident, they told me. No one
had to know." Scully felt the pain radiating from the memories and
was sorry for the young boy who'd lost so much. If only he had
dealt with it a different way. If only they had gotten him the help he
really needed.
Scully spoke again. "We want to help you now, William."
"No. NO! You want to lock me up." He again pushed his
face against the agent's. "I won't let you. I'm not leaving here, and
neither are you."
"You've already killed ten times as many people as
necessary to avenge your family. Innocent people, William. The
killing has to stop somewhere."
"It will," he shook his head and laughed, a hollow, painful
sound that bounced off the walls, echoing through the tunnels of
the cave. "First you. Then me. I'm the last to survive and the last to
die."
Fear visible in her pale blue eyes, Scully watched him
remove a small device from his pocket. It appeared to be an
explosive, and he stared at it in concentration.
"Wait," she said, breaking the eerie spell. He glanced at her,
blood in his eyes. "If we're going to die anyway, I want to know
something."
His expression turned curious. "What?"
"How do you do it?" They both knew what she meant.
He grinned a bit ruefully. "I'm not sure. I knew I could do it,
though. Ever since that bomb went off... It's like it gave me some of
its power. I could make things explode with my mind. All I had to
do was think." He laughed now, a memory recalled. "That stupid
teacher never did find out what blew up his lab."
"So all you have to do is find an incendiary device and
concentrate?" If she could just keep him talking! Maybe that would
give Mulder time to find them.
He nodded. "Somehow I could make the molecules change,
trigger a reaction." Then suddenly it was as if cold water had been
sprayed in his face, the realization of where he was and what he was
doing brought to the forefront of his brain. "Nice try," he remarked
harshly. "For that, I may let you live after all."
He walked away, but Scully was far from letting her guard
down. As he left the area for one of the passages, she managed to
scoot up against the wall to a standing position. She heard an eerie
echo coming from the next cave over. "I will die and be rid of this
monster face. It's your turn to be the freak next door."
The comment barely had time for Scully to register before
the walls exploded around her.
***
"NO!" Mulder yelled as the ground rumbled beneath him.
Debris flew out of the cave, and the entrance began to crumble. The
explosion was contained within the stone walls, but now Mulder
was sure Scully was inside.
With no regard to his own safetyÐafter all, he told himself,
what was he without Scully?Ðhe dove through the crumbling dirt
and tried to dodge stones beneath his feet.
<> his heart screamed. <>
He came to a standstill where the tunnel divided into three
passages. The intense heat came from the one furthest left. He
paused only long enough to dislodge a small boulder blocking the
entrance, noting the odor of gasoline mingling with the smoke.
"I'm coming, Scully!" he yelled into the thick air, trying his
best not to cough. But what he saw next stopped him in his tracks.
The only visible entrance to another passage of the tunnel was red
with flames. He could see them clearly from where he stood, and
his heart tightened painfully.
<> he thought
angrily. <>
Mulder stared blankly into the flames, tears beginning to
fall, as he realized just how easy it would be to let the smoke
overcome him.
***
Scully spit dirt from her mouth as she painfully came to a
sitting position. The explosion had knocked her quickly to the
ground, causing her to land hard on her knees and arms, lightly
hitting her head on the rocky floor. But she was alive.
She tentatively moved her fingers and other joints before
spying the metal reflecting against the lantern light. One of the
lanterns had miraculously remained standing, and Scully used her
advantage to investigate the metal. It was Brody's razor, lying right
where he had dropped it. Grateful, Scully used it to unbind her
hands, realizing that the entrance to her portion of the cave had
been blocked by heavy boulders.
From the smoke beginning to curl passed the rocks, and
from the deafening explosion she had heard, Scully knew Brody had
been successful in his quest at self-destruction. But she was grateful
that he had underestimated the thickness of the cave's walls. The
ensuing flames had not touched her closed-in area.
Nearing where the entrance had been, Scully knew she had
to somehow move the boulders and get out. Bracing herself, she
clawed away at some of the lose rocks before she heard it: It
sounded like a man's voice.
"Mulder!" she cried out as loud as her raspy voice would
allow. "Mulder, I'm in here!"
Down the passageway, lost in his twisted desire to become
one with the flames, Mulder imagined he was hallucinating.
Somewhere beyond the haze of his distant mind, someone was
calling him. The next note snapped him out of his reverie. Scully
was alive!
He turned and ran towards her voice. "Scully!" he yelled.
"In here!" she called from behind her rock wall. "Mulder!"
Stopping before the passage entrance he had presumed to
be a dead end, he noticed now as he examined it more carefully,
that there had been a cave-in. There was another entrance, after all.
Brody had spared her for some reason. Or had he?
"Scully! Is Brody with you?"
Tears of relief came to her eyes to hear Mulder so close.
"No, he was in the explosion."
Mulder's thankful sigh turned into a cough, and he realized
they would have to move fast before their oxygen ran out. "Are you
hurt?"
"No, I'm fine." She grinned in spite of herself. "REALLY,
Mulder, I promise. What about you?"
"The smoke's getting worse. A lot of the passages are
coming down. Let's start with the big rock."
And so they cooperated, Scully pushing from within,
Mulder trying to pull, until the giant rock gave way. Two rocks
later, and the unstable pile collapsed, the rest of the stones tumbling
down.
"Scully!" Mulder called in concern, afraid she had been hit
by the rocks.
"I'm fine! Here I come." She carefully placed her foot on
one of the bottom rocks, her hand reaching over the top. Mulder
was ready, and he clasped her hand tightly, helping her to his side.
He glanced her over worriedly as she did him, but there was
no time for greetings. Hands still clutched together, they raced
towards the entrance of the caves with a prayer that the opening
would not be sealed.
They made their way through the thickening smoke and
intense heat into clearer, cooler air. As they left the passage and
entered into the main portion of the cave, they came to a standstill.
The opening had been rather wide, but dirt was continuing to
crumble from the ceiling, and they had had several near misses with
falling rock. The entrance was now minuscule, rocks having
tumbled into place. Miraculously, the light was emanating from a
hole dead center of the boulders. Somehow, the rocks had lodged
together, creating a precarious escape tunnel.
"Mulder..." Scully began hesitantly, knowing full well the
likelihood of the top rocks crashing down on anyone who tried to
get out.
"Come on, Scully. It's the only way." His stubborn hazel
eyes pleaded with her. If they didn't get out now...
She nodded, knowing her partner was right. "I'll go first,"
she volunteered.
"No," Mulder shook his head. Before she could protest, he
continued. "You've been in here longer, you were here for the
explosion... Scully you're weakerÐ" "Mulder, you are just as tired
as I am. And I'll be damned if I have to be stuck here any longer
than I have to."
Mulder grinned in spite of himself as he let go of her hand
and stood before the opening. "I have the car keys."
Scully rolled her eyes, accepting defeat, but concerned
nonetheless. She was smaller, lighter. She could have tested it...
<> she
thought glumly. "Be careful," she instructed.
"Who me?" His lopsided grin smoothed out as he looked at
her, wanting to say so much, but knowing time was too precious to
waste. "I'll see you in minute, partner."
She nodded, keeping back, aware that rocks could come
down on her as well. "Don't make an ass out of yourself, Mulder."
"Too late," was the muffled reply as he hoisted himself into
the opening.
Scully mentally kicked herself. <> But she
knew the answer to that. Sighing heavily she watched as Mulder's
feet disappeared.
Only a moment later, she heard his voice. "Come on, Scully!
I made it. It seems pretty stable."
Looking through the hole, she saw his smiling face peering
in at her. He held his hand out, and she boosted herself up,
grimacing as her bruised ribs touched the rough edges. That's when
the second explosion hit.
"Scully!" Mulder's expression twisted with pain at the shock
on his partner's face. "Hurry!"
Dana glanced behind her nervously. <>
"Scully!" Mulder's voice shook her back to her current
predicament.
"I'm coming," she assured him quickly as she scooted
forward, barely missing a rock coming down on her. The opening
was caving in from the power of the second blast. She felt the dirt
raining on her coppery hair as someone grabbed her hand.
Mulder had seen her uncertainty and had climbed back in
from the other end. Gripping her hand tightly, he pulled her
through, and they landed together on the leaf littered floor of the
clearing, the forest only inches away. Mulder was thankful that the
explosion was contained.
"Gasoline," Scully remembered suddenly as she slowly came
to standing. "He must have put gasoline in there. How else would
the fire spread? I thought I smelled something funny. There's
nothing else in there but rock and old bones."
Mulder shook his head, his arms on Scully's shoulders. "I
don't care." Scully looked at him in surprise as his right hand gently
caressed her dirty face. "As long as you're all right."
"I'm fine, Mulder." But as Scully looked into his hazel eyes,
both of them knew she was lying. "I'll be okay," she assured him
softly, noticing the moisture beginning to form in his own eyes.
"I thought I lost you again, Scully. I don't know what I
would have done." He wrapped his arms gently around her
disheveled form, and she didn't hesitate this time to return the
gesture. It was a rare luxury for them to share such a comforting
embrace, and Scully relished in the closeness. She never felt safer or
more loved than when Fox Mulder held her in his strong, tender
arms.
Mulder let the tears fall silently, pressing her body close
against his own. His heart raced from the effort of finding her and
the overwhelming emotion he felt for this incredible woman. Gently
pulling back, he tenderly brushed a loose strand of hair back from
her face. His hand remained on her cheek as he whispered, "I love
you, Scully."
The words barely registered to Dana as Mulder leaned in to
her face, his breath sweet and distinctly Mulder, so unlike that of
Brody. Her eyes glistened at the admission, her heart ready to burst
with the tide of emotion within. When his lips touched her own, it
was the sweetest kiss she had ever experienced, and she knew they
had come to a new passage in their relationship, one that would be
a hard road to travel, but one they would take out of their hearts'
necessity.
Mulder pulled slowly away to look into the pools of her
pale blue eyes. He had that scared dog look about him again, and
Dana quickly put his fears to rest.
"I love you, too, Mulder." At his incredulous smile, she
leaned in to him this time, and their kiss was one of a long denied
passion, of an internal heat so intense it rivaled the glowing fire
within the caves.
EPILOGUE
After an overnight hospital stay, the agents were given a
clean bill of health, and Scully invited Mulder over for a "dinner
celebration," as she had called it.
He had grinned at this as he whispered devilishly into her
ear, "What are we celebrating?"
"You'll have to wait and see," she'd replied with a wink.
Now they were settling in as the pasta finished cooking,
Mulder pouring the champagne. He held his glass up for a toast.
"To us," he said simply.
"To us," she agreed with a smile. After a sip, she broached
the subject on her troubled mind. "It's not going to be easy."
"No," Mulder acknowledged. "But has anything ever been
easy for us?"
She had to admit with a laugh that Mulder was right. "Okay,
okay. Let's not talk about it. This is our night, not the Bureau's.
And," she continued in a quiet voice, "not my cancer's, either."
"Agreed," Mulder replied softly, his hand instantly covering
hers as if to protect her from the disease hidden within her. "How
Ôbout some music?"
"Sure." Scully got up and smiled to herself, determined not
to let their demons interrupt this night. She chose her sister's CD
and skipped to track three. "Missy gave me this one," she told him
softly.
Mulder nodded, knowing it must have a lot of personal
meaning for his partner. She went into the kitchen to check on the
pasta. He followed.
"Let me help, Scully."
"It's okay. The table's already set, I just need to serve us."
"I'll do it," he insisted, but Dana stopped him with a finger
to his chest.
"When you cook for me, you can serve the food. But this is
my dinner. You're my guest. So go sit down."
"Yes, ma'am," he joked as he watched her fill the plates.
"But I hate brussel sprouts," knowing full well she had not fixed
any.
She laughed, and Mulder relished in her smile. It was so rare
for her to be completely happy, he reflected sadly. His ears took
note of the song ending on the CD and the next one beginning. He
listened to the haunting melody of Janis Ian's "No One Else Like
You."
"I have spent a lifetime learning how to cry
"And how to make the most of every sad goodbye
"I thought forever would never be mine
"And I'd be lonely Ôtil the end of time
"So baby I'm amazed that it can feel like this
"From coffee in the morning to a good night kiss
"You're really making up for all the love I missed
"I put it all behind Ôcause I know you're mine
"Now that you are mine..."
He looked up at Scully who'd been watching his face change
as he listened to the lyrics. "My God, ScullyÐthis is us," he said
simply.
Dana's eyes misted up at this comment. Temporarily
forgetting the dinner, she went to him, and he held her close against
his heart, dancing to the words that touched their souls.
"There's no one else like you
"No one like you
"No one that loved me the way you do
"Through all the darkness
"I've always known this
"One thing is true
"There's no one else like you."
She looked up briefly, her voice filled with emotion. "I love
you, Mulder." He tightened his embrace, kissing the top of her
head.
"How can I imagine life without your love
"Living on a memory wouldn't be enough
"Who could I turn to when times were tough
"I'd be standing in the shadow/going on without you
"I really wouldn't want to
"I never want to..."
Mulder listened to the last haunting words of the song as he
looked down at his partner. "I love you, too, Scully. More than
you'll ever know."
She reached up to kiss him then, and he returned her
embrace as they lost themselves in each other, dinner completely
forgotten.
THE END
So, whatta ya think?
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