Date: Sat, 26 Jul 1997

TITLE: "Eureka"

AUTHOR: T. Cherry

EMAIL: tcherry@ix.netcom.com

RATING: PG

CATEGORY: X / A

KEYWORDS: Mulder/Scully friendship

SUMMARY: Mulder and Scully are sent to northern California to
investigate a series of mysterious radiation burns.

SPOILER: References to "Never Again."

DISCLAIMER: Mulder, Scully, et al. are the property of Chris Carter, Ten
Thirteen Productions and Fox Broadcasting. All other characters are the
author's creation, no resemblance to anyone intended. No profit expected
from this story :(bummer).

ARCHIVE: Yes

AUTHOR'S NOTE: This is my first attempt at fanfic, let alone creative
writing in over a decade. Any constructive feedback/criticism would be
greatly appreciated (plot, people, etc.). Please let me know ahead of
time before referencing this story. This story occurs in the brief
interlude between "Never Again" and "Memento Mori." If you want to see
what this area of the world looks like, rent "Outbreak" (and read the
2nd unit credits closely :). Fortuna is about five miles from Ferndale,
the town in the movie. Hope you like this....

"Eureka"

Saturday 19 Oct 96 02:33 Fortuna Bowl-Fortuna, CA

Machinery off, lights out, lock the door. Waving goodbye to Sara and
Jimmy, Bob Utley made his way to the battered pickup and began the
drive up to his cabin. Running the Fortuna Bowl wasn't glamorous, but
it sure was entertaining after payday. You could always count on the
locals and the loggers to get into some kind of trouble. The headlights
picked out the dirt track that he called a driveway, even though it was
two miles up a ridge. Utley noticed a blue glow off to the right about
the halfway point. Damn kids messing around again. Well, that was
about to stop. The land was posted six ways from Sunday, and he was
damned if anyone else was going to piss off the landlord at his
expense. He threw the truck in park, rummaged around for a
flashlight, and headed off into the brush.

Saturday 19 Oct 96 03:47 Humboldt County Rd. N35

Couple more miles to go, then sneak in the back door and the folks
wouldn't know. Frank White resolved again not to drink this much
before driving home, even if it was down a deserted road. Still, this
was Humboldt County, and you could see some plenty weird stuff
without really trying, so he was being extra careful. Lost in this
train of thought, Frank was takencompletely by surprise when a body
loomed in the headlights. Swollen. Bloodied. Clothes in tatters. Impact.

"Shit!" as the car spun to a stop, stalled, facing back the way he
came. He watched as the shape struggled to its feet, staggered
forward a few steps and toppled over. Out of the car, rolling the body
over. Skin hanging off in sheets, the swollen mouth trying to form
words. He touched the shape again and was rewarded with a stinging
pain in his hand. A dark liquid ran out of the ruined mouth, and the
movements stopped. Frank's beer bravado collapsed and he took
off down the road, forgetting the car and whatever his dad might do to
him. Just get away...

Monday 21 Oct 96 08:43 FBI HQ

Assistant Director Skinner stared across the desk at Mulder and
Scully. Bad news always arrived on Monday, and this was no
exception.

"Budget Review Panel? Why?"

"As I've just explained, Agent Mulder, every department must
justify its expenditures in order to be funded in the next budget
cycle."

"There goes the secretary."

Scully shifted in her seat and shot Mulder her best "don't make it
worse than it is" look.

"This is not a joke, Agent Mulder."

"I guess we should get started then."

"I'll expect the report next week." The two agents stood, leaving
Skinner alone.

"It's not my vendetta," Skinner said quietly as the door swung
shut.

"Well, Mulder, I think you may have to make other plans for the
Roswell 50th Anniversary Celebration next year." Once
again, she'd given him something to smile about in the face of
overwhelming catastrophe. He was secretly grateful for that, and
reminded himself to tell her for the thousandth time.

"I'm more concerned about the trip to Graceland. I don't think I
can write it off as legitimate personal research."

Scully stared straight ahead and thought of the tattoo on her back.
That had been an eventful couple of days, while Mulder went off to
Tennessee. He still wasn't listening to her about her lack of a life,
and
how that was going to change. The pointed quips about being needled
in Philadelphia were getting old, too.

They made their way to the basement office. Mulder, preoccupied as
usual, fumbled for his keys while Scully brushed past, unlocking the
door. The phone was ringing.

"Scully."

"You have a reprieve on the Budget Panel report. You're going to
California, north coast."

"What's the problem, sir?"

"Unknown burns and a death. See the Humboldt County Sheriff,
Joe Banks." And Skinner hung up.

Anticipating the question, Scully repeated the scant details.

"We can stop in Berkeley. There's a group there that claims to
have proof that the government conducted secret tests of an unknown
nature in Eureka in the early fifties." Scully rolled her eyes in
mock exasperation.

"I'll leave it to you to find it."

Mon 21 Oct 96 21:32 Humboldt County Sheriff Office

"Sheriff, I'm Special Agent Fox Mulder, this is Special Agent
Dana Scully."

"Joe Banks. Welcome to the redwoods." Banks was 40-ish, lean
and serious. He had the look of someone who'd been up a lot of hours
on a problem that he wasn't even close to understanding.

"Here's what we've got so far. A kid hit someone on the road
outside of Fortuna last night. The kid was a little over the limit, so
he's
got that to worry about. We're not sure who he hit, but he was dead
when the medics got there. That's where it get weird. The kid, the
medics and the morgue attendant are all burned, first and second
degree."

Mulder and Scully exchanged a look.

"What kind of burns," asked Scully. Banks looked at Mulder.
Scully silently fumed. Another chauvinist. "I'm a medical doctor," she
said, "with a background in forensics."

Tired as Banks was, he didn't miss the warning tone in her voice.
Mulder just raised his eyebrows at the sheriff.

"I'll have one of the deputies take you over to the hospital." Banks
waved one of his men into the office.

"Has anyone been reported missing?" asked Mulder.

"Well, Bob Utley didn't show up at the bowling alley in Fortuna
yesterday, he's the manager there. They called me because they were
afraid that he might've rolled that old junker of his over a cliff."

"Anyone home?" asked Scully.

"No. But his truck was parked by his cabin. No signs of forced
entry, struggle, nothing. We checked it yesterday."

"Sounds like a good place to start," said Mulder.

"I'll let you know what I find," Scully said as she headed out with
the deputy.

Monday 21 Oct 96 22:20 Fortuna Bowl

The long day was taking it's toll on Mulder. He envied Scully the four
hours of sleep she'd grabbed on the flights. He was too keyed up
about the latest onslaught from above to think about sleep. How do you
justify chasing ghosts and aliens and conspiracies? He was still at a
loss for an answer. Scully had tried to talk him out of his mood, but
had eventually given up and dozed off. I shouldn't have ignored her like
that, he thought. She's put her career on the line for me enough times
not to get the silent treatment, and she's in just as deep as I am as
far as the X Files are concerned. He resolved to make it up to her,
after he got some sleep.He pulled up in front of the Fortuna Bowl,
a low, run down buildingwith a tired neon "BOWL" sign, complete with
ball and pins.

G-men aren't too popular in these parts he thought as the noise
dropped to a whisper when he flashed his ID. He talked to Jimmy
Brown, getting the same story that he had heard from the sheriff.
"Didn't come in yesterday. Dunno where he is. Some kind of trouble?"

"No trouble," Mulder said. "Can you give me Mr. Utley's phone number
and directions to his house?"

Minutes later, Mulder was back in the car driving to Utley's cabin.
After
ten rings, he figured Utley wasn't going to answer. Scully picked up on
the first ring.

"Scully."

"It's me."

"Mulder, there's something strange going on here."

"I never thought I'd hear you say that," he teased. He could hear
the glare.

"These people have what appear to be classic radiation burns,
but without any other physiological symptoms of radiation poisoning."

"Have you been to the morgue?"

"Not yet. The body has been quarantined. Apparently it exposed
every piece of x-ray and still film in the morgue."

"What? Is it still hot?"

"The coroner says no. Whatever caused the burns and ruined the
film has dissipated. I'm going there now."

"I going to visit Mr. Utley. He's at 27280 County Road N35. I'll see
you back at the hotel."

"Be careful, Mulder."

"Goodbye, Scully."

Tuesday 22 Oct 96 23:13 27280 County Road N35

Mulder almost missed the turn off. He stood on the brakes, backed up
and turned down the narrow dirt road that wound up the spine of a ridge.
Gnarled trees formed a tight, close canopy. He couldn't go more than
20 mph without running a serious risk of going over the edge. What
little he could see told him it was an increasingly long way down.

A flash of red in the headlights. Stopping the car, he backed up so the
thing was illuminated in the headlights. The road widened slightly here,
and he turned the car to point at the object. He got out and carefully
plucked a piece of plaid flannel from a low bush. It appeared to have
come from a shirt. Looking down, he saw the plants had been
trampled and long ruts were dug in the dirt of the steep hillside.
Someone had clawed their way up the hill in a big hurry. Suddenly,
a blue flash lit the night. Stunned by the glare, Mulder stumbled, lost
his footing and fell down the hill. After rolling painfully over the
brush,
he came to a sharp stop against a tree. Well, out one coat and two
ribs, he thought painfully, gasping for breath. He was facing a small
clearing about 10 yards away, lit by shimmering blue light. Indistinct
shapes were moving in the light. One of them stopped, turned and
pointed at him. He struggled to his feet, feeling the light burn into
him with a cold heat. Fear gave him extra strength as he turned and
struggled up the hillside.

Mulder could see the headlights of the car on the driveway. He burst
through the brush, struggled around the side of the car and threw
himself behind the wheel. Gritting his teeth at the pain in his side, he
forced he car through a complete turn and took off down the road.
Branches scraped the sides of the car while Mulder fought to keep the
car on the track. The hill flattened out and he exploded onto the main
road. He was dimly aware of a new pain in hands and face as he fumbled
for his phone and tried to stay on the road. Punching Scully's number,
he was rewarded with white noise.

Rounding a bend, a blast of white light filled the car. A logging truck
sped by, horn blaring. In that instant, Mulder could see the backs of
his hands were already starting to blister. He stared in disbelief at
his
hands as the car spun around and slid sideways off the road into a
tree. He smacked his head on the window, and everything faded to
black as he thought "the Budget Panel couldn't be this bad."

+++++ END OF PART ONE+++++

"Eureka" 2/3
by T. Cherry <tcherry@ix.netcom.com> Feedback welcomed.
Info and disclaimers in Part 1.

+++++ BEGIN PART TWO +++++

Mon Oct 21 96 23:31 Humboldt County Morgue

The morgue was a small building behind the hospital with a
single attendant to guard the dead. Banks had called ahead, so Scully
was granted access to the isolation cooler and the lab. The attendant
told her that they were still waiting on dental records and DNA
analysis, which wouldn't come in for a couple of days. The rumor
around the morgue, though, was that old Bob Utley had met his
match. After gowning in, she entered the walk-in cooler with its single
stretcher. The attendant gave her a Geiger counter, just in case.

Peeling back the cover sheet, Scully stared at the destroyed face and
body. Skin was blistered and bloody, almost as though the body had
been, well, microwaved. The only sound was the static from the
Geiger counter, ticking out normal background radiation. She took a
deep breath and began her examination.

Thirty minutes later, Scully closed the cooler door and headed for the
lab to look at the tissue slides. The body appeared to have been
burned either by chemicals or radiation. The autopsy report indicated
no chemical residues, except for the high level of radiation that
accompanied it. A sample of the ruined x-ray film was attached, but
didn't indicate anything other than complete exposure. The radiation
decayed in a matter of hours, leaving no other detectable residues.

She poured a cup of coffee, the taste keeping her more awake than
the caffeine. Settling in front of a microscope, Scully set up the first
slide. Her expression slowly changed from one of detached calm to
disbelief. She changed slides, one after another. A textbook on clinical
histopathology didn't help explain what she was seeing. The cells on
the slides showed destruction consistent with radiation exposure, but
level of damage was much too advanced for being a few hours post
exposure. It was time to call Mulder.

The phone rang five times, and then the standard "the cellular customer
you are trying to reach is beyond the service area" message. Damn. She
decided to head back to the hotel for a few hours of rest. Mulder could
finish whatever he was doing and meet her there. She was just too
tired to think straight anymore, and the things she'd just seen weren't
making any sense.

Tue 22 Oct 96 06:11 Eureka Inn-Eureka, CA

The ringing phone brought Scully out of a bad dream about a white
room.
"Yeah? Mulder?" she mumbled.

"Joe Banks. Sorry for the early call, but Agent Mulder was found
an hour ago in a ditch. He apparently drove off the road. What's strange
is, he's been burned pretty badly. I'll send someone over to take you
to the hospital."

Scully's heart rose in her throat. Mulder hurt? Again?

"How bad are his injuries?"

"Couple of cracked ribs, a nasty concussion, and the same
kind of burns that the others had. The burns seem to be getting
worse."

"That's not possible..."

"I'll send a car for you. You can see for yourself."

"Thank you. Goodbye."

Scully struggled out of bed, trying not to see Mulder as the dead man
at the morgue.

Tue 22 Oct 96 07:24 Humboldt Regional Medical Ctr.-Eureka, CA

"We're keeping him in the isolation ward for now," said Dr. Lisa
Griffin. "He came in with deep shock, possible subdural hematoma
from the head wound, broken ribs and the burns. He was a little hot
when he presented, so we put him through standard radiation
decontamination. That helped. However, the burns seem to be
continuing to develop slowly. Tox screens don't reveal any of the usual
contaminants found in this area. The burn pattern indicate his clothes
stopped some of the contaminant. His feet weren't touched at all, and
his back and arms are less serious than his face, hands and legs."

Scully took it all in stoically, staring through the window at Mulder's
inert form.

"Prognosis?" she asked.

"Unknown. It really depends on stopping the burns from progressing,
and whether he gets septic. The other patients are responding to
treatment, but their injuries aren't as serious. I don't know if Agent
Mulder will live if we can't reverse the damage."

"I'd like to see Mulder and then the boy."

"Sure. Just use a gown and mask from the iso cart."

Scully pushed through the door, covered in gown, mask, cap, gloves.
Not a very pleasant way to greet your friends, she thought drily. She
could see how the burns had distorted Mulder's features. His hands
were like reddened claws, and a strip of blistered tissue covered his
chest. Must be where his coat was open, Scully thought. Oh, Mulder,
what have you gotten into now? She forced herself to be clinical.
Mulder's eyes fluttered open at the sound of her approach.

"Scully...? I feel terrible," he said weakly.

"Mulder, I..."

"I saw them up there Scully...they were moving something...it
was...ruptured."

"Who? Where?"

"The silver men...from the...the..."

"What do you mean? Men wearing contamination suits?"

"Burning...had to get away..."

Scully could see Mulder's consciousness slipping away. His eyes
rolled back and his head fell to the side. She leaned against the wall,
surrounded by the cold sounds of the medical machinery. She felt
isolated and unsure, both alien emotions. She tried to formulate a plan
of action.

He's dying, and I don't even know where to begin to help him, she
thought. I can't...no, I can. He's never given up on me. She gently
touched Mulder's forehead, hoping for a response. None came, and
she gathered her thoughts and left the room.

Tue 22 Oct 96 09:11 27280 Humboldt County Road N35

Scully's visit with Frank White wasn't much help. The fact that the FBI
was involved gave him the terminal jitters. He recounted his ill-fated
evening, and how the dead man had run out in front of his car. He
described touching the body of the burned man "like shoving your
hands in a cooler full of ice water." A strange description, but not
uncommon for someone who's been severely flash burned. Sheriff
Banks wasn't going to go after a vehicular homicide conviction, which
had calmed him down a little. Banks had been good enough to lend
her a car, too. She hadn't even begun to think of trying to explain the
wrecked car to Skinner. Scully retraced Mulder's steps from last night.
She was still lost in her thoughts of him, driving up the lonely dirt
road. She almost missed the deep semicircular rut cut across the track
in front of the car. Several saplings were knocked down at the side of
the road. She stopped the car and got out.

Scully walked along the side of the road, trying to visualize what had
happened. She came to the ruts in the hillside that Mulder had seen.
She replayed her earlier conversation with Banks while picking her
way down the hill, following the tracks.

"The land's owned by the Copper Canyon Mining Company. But
there hasn't been any active mining in these parts for decades. Maybe
they're licensing the land for logging. Bob Utley's only been renting
that cabin for a few months, according to the folks at the bowling
alley."

The hill was steep and the footing treacherous. Scully saw a small
clearing after about twenty yards. She slid more than walked down to
it. The clearing was about five yards in diameter, with another path
leading further down the hill. A concrete tunnel poked out of the
hillside. The tunnel was blocked with a steel vault door that had a
glowing keypad on one side. A plaque on the door read "Property of
Copper Canyon Mining Company. No Admittance."

Awfully modern construction for a company that hasn't done any
mining here in decades, she thought. Scully considered trying the
keypad, remembered Mulder's face, and thought better of it. The
ground leading to the door was rutted slightly, like a cart had made
many trips over it. Looking around the clearing, she saw a dark patch
of ground. She walked over and scooped up a sample in a small vial,
then headed down the path. The path led to a much larger clearing,
about fifteen yards around. A wind sock dangled from a pole. Banks
said that there was a lot of helicopter traffic through the hills,
between the logging companies, Forest Service, and DEA. It didn't
take a pilot to see that this landing pad would be hard to see, let
alone get into regardless of the conditions.

She decided to check out Utley's cabin for herself. The climb up the
hill and drive to the cabin took another forty minutes. The cabin was
small and needed paint, a lonely sentinel on crest of the ridge. Utley's
battered pickup stood guard in front of the porch. A tired TV antenna
stood beside the house, the limbs of the aerial broken and twisted. A
cable ran down the tower, into a box, and into the ground. That looks
like a good place to start, she thought.

Scully pried open the box, and was rewarded with a standard cable
connection and a ground wire. She looked around and spotted a
rusted hacksaw blade. She jammed the blade into the box and popped
the video terminal plate off. Behind it was another glowing keypad.
Using the blade, Scully dug under the tower along the cable. A few
inches down, the cable turned away from the house and ran down the
hillside. Scully had seen enough. She pulled out her cell phone, dialed.
The phone gave out white noise. That's odd, she thought, no message
for "out of service."

In the distance, Scully could hear a chopper, getting closer. Instinct
told her that it wasn't from the friendly Forest Service. She jammed the
panel back in the box, closed the door, ran for the car. She just made
it under the forest canopy as a black helicopter roared over the
hilltop.
It hovered over the house for a few seconds, then shot off down the
hill toward the landing pad at treetop level. She couldn't see any
markings on the chopper.

She sat there for a moment, heart racing. Mulder, you struck it
rich this time, she thought. You should've listened to those people in
Berkeley. Taking a deep breath, she began the drive back to town.

Tue 22 Oct 96 10:33 US 101-Near Eureka, CA

Scully dug out her phone and dialed Skinner's number.

"Assistant Director Skinner."

"Agent Scully, sir. Mulder's been in a car wreck and has
suffered some serious chemical or radiation burns. There's no
contaminant residue, and the medical team here is at a loss for
treatment. The prognosis isn't good."

"How did this happen?"

"Mulder went to the dead man's cabin last night. I went there this
morning, and found what appears to be a mine shaft off the access
road. I need a trace run on the Copper Canyon Mining Company."

"I'll get someone on it. Can we evacuate Agent Mulder?"

"I don't think he's stable enough to travel yet."

Tue 22 Oct 96 10:34 EDT Unknown

"Very well. Keep me informed of your progress," Skinner says.

"Yes, sir." Scully's voice issues from a speaker surrounded by
stacks of monitoring gear. The lone figuremanning the station dials
a number on keypad. The answer comes in the middle of the second ring.

"Yes?"

"We have a situation in Copper Canyon."

"Who is involved?"

"Mulder. Scully. Skinner."

"Very well. Keep monitoring. I'll inform the Supervisor."

The line goes dead, and the figure looks back to the electronics.

+++++ END OF PART TWO +++++

"Eureka" 3/3
by T. Cherry <tcherry@ix.netcom.com> Feedback welcomed.
Disclaimers in Part 1

+++++ BEGIN PART THREE +++++

Tue 22 Oct 96 11:45 Humboldt Univ.-Environmental Science Dept.

It took most of the drive to Arcata for Scully to calm down from the
events at the cabin. She spent half an hour trying to find someone to
analyze the soil sample from the mine. She finally found Dr. David
Jenkins, an easy-going bearded man who ran the Soil Analysis Lab.

"Well, now, let's see what we can see," Jenkins said, settling behind
a microscope. "Hmmm...that's odd. This sample seems to be sterile.
Where did you say you found it?"

"A canyon south of Eureka," answered Scully.

"What you've got here is a completely abiotic bit of soil. No
bacteria, nematodes, fungi, molds, nothing. Pretty strange if you
found it on the forest floor. I mean, this should be teeming with
decomposers and that sort of thing."

"What could cause this?"

"Well, pesticides, herbicides, radiation, microwaves. I can test for
the common applied compounds, but it'll take a couple of hours. We
can also put some of your dirt through the spectrometer, see if
anything else is in there."

Jenkins stood up and moved to another piece of equipment. He
separated the soil sample into small vials.

"Doctor, are there any active mines in the area?"

"Mining? Around here? Not for fifty years or more. When the Gold
Rush was on, a few folks thought they'd try they're luck along the Eel
River, but it didn't pan out," Jenkins said, chuckling at his own joke.
"Back in WW2, the government reopened a few mines, but they went
away after war was over. Why?"

"Oh, nothing, just curious," Scully said, hoping the lie wasn't too
obvious. Change the subject quick, she thought. "How long until the
tests are complete?"

"Call me about 4 PM. I'll have something by then."

"Thanks again for your help," Scully said, leaving him to his work.
Time to work on another lead.

Tue 22 Oct 96 14:17 Humboldt County Recorder's Office

Scully checked with Dr. Griffin on the ride back to Eureka. Mulder's
condition was stable, at least. His periods of consciousness were
getting shorter and more widely spaced. Griffin was at a loss to explain
this, since an MRI hadn't showed any serious brain injury. Scully
resolved not to dwell on this subject, thinking of the deteriorated
tissue
samples from last night. Not yet.

The clerk at the recorder's office was a plump woman named Sally.

"The property you're interested in is owned by the Copper
Canyon Mining Company. They bought the parcel from a tract of
federal land on...July 1, 1947."

Mulder wouldn't leave this coincidence alone, Scully thought,
imagining how that discussion would go.

"Do you have any information on what Copper Canyon is mining?"

"No, but..." Sally thumbed through the file. "Here we go. The
company reorganized in 1949 to provide secure document storage for
the US government."

Interesting, Scully thought. Time to call Skinner. She waited until
she got to the car.

"Assistant Director Skinner."

"Scully, sir. The Copper Canyon Mining Company was established in
1947 and now provides 'secure document storage' for federal agencies."

"You've gotten a lot farther than we have, Agent Scully. Danny tried
some computer traces, but stopped when he alerted some kind of watchdog
program. How is Mulder?"

"Not good, sir."

"Be careful, Agent Scully." That's what I said to Mulder last night,
she thought, and he didn't listen either.

Tue 22 Oct 96 15:22 EDT Unknown

One ring. Another. Pick up in the middle of the second ring.
"Yes?"

"The Copper Canyon problem is escalating."

"Oh?"

"Mulder has been exposed. Scully and Skinner are making
inquiries."

"The solution is simple. Close off access, and let nature
take it's course. An elegant, simple solution. If he's been exposed
directly, then you know the case is terminal. Nothing more can be
done."

"Mulder is too valuable to the enterprise to lose him at this
juncture. This is your responsibility. You know what needs to be done,
so find an agreeable solution." Irritation creeps into the voice on the
line. There is silence, except for some faint harmonics in the
scrambler.

The line disconnects.

The man slowly replaces the handset in the cradle. He doesn't move for
a long time. Then, the flare of a match. Inhale. Exhale. The orange eye
of a single coal burns in the darkened room.

Tue 22 Oct 96 15:45 PDT 27280 Humboldt County Road N35

Scully played a hunch on the way back to the hospital. She drove past
the road to Utley's cabin, even though it was out of her way. She found
the dirt road blocked with a suitably aged gate complete with a
hand-lettered sign: "Keep Out." They don't waste any time, she
thought. She turned around, stopping across from the driveway. She
was considering another visit to the mine and cabin when a black
sport utility descended the driveway and stopped at the gate. Bad idea,
she thought. Time to check Dr. Jenkins.

"Agent Scully, hi. I gave the results and the rest of the sample to
your partner a few minutes ago."

Scully felt the hair on the back of her neck rise.

"I won't see him for another couple of hours. Could you
summarize the results for me?"

"Sure. The sample didn't contain any pesticide or herbicide
residue. The only thing that can achieve that level of sterility is
radiation or heat treatment, like for food products. Here's an
interesting
thing. I found trace amounts of a very heavy element on the
spectrometer,
atomic weight over 100."

"That's impossible, those elements only occur in the laboratory
under specific conditions, and they have extremely short half lives.
Are you sure it wasn't a molecule?"

"Positive. I ran the test three times. A molecule would read out as
it's component elements, anyway."

"True. Thanks for the help, sir. I'll contact you I have any more
questions."

"My pleasure."

She regretted the side trip to Fortuna and sped back toward Eureka,
hoping no one had gotten to Mulder. She called Skinner to relay the
latest information. He had reached a brick wall as well. Whatever the
Copper Canyon Mining Company was, no one was going to find out
more about it through any channels. Skinner was even more unhappy
about the sample and results being lost, since that closed off their
only
other avenue of investigation. Scully was beginning to take Mulder's
conspiracy theories a little more seriously this time.

Tue 22 Oct 96 17:01 Humboldt Regional Medical Ctr.

Scully was clambering into the isolation garb outside of Mulder's room,
conferring with Dr. Griffin. No visitors for Mulder so far.

"He's deteriorating. We can't find any real reason for it, he's not
septic and the head trauma wasn't as severe as we thought. The
tissue destruction around the burns is progressing rapidly. He's
fighting, though, I have to give him that."

"Terminal?"

"Yes, in 24 to 36 hours, at this rate."

"Thank you." Scully looked away. The words hit her like a hammer.

"I'm sorry," Griffin said, resting a hand on Scully's shoulder, then
leaving her alone.

She wasn't sure if Mulder was sleeping or comatose. The setting sun
painted the room in soft orange light where it streamed in through a
small window. She gently brushed a strand of hair away from his face.
His eyes opened with her touch.

"Scully, it's you..."

"What do you remember from last night?"

"The hill...a bright light...burning. Trying to get away...then being
here."

More for her own sanity, she recounted the day's events to him. If she
could just concentrate on the minutiae then she could avoid...what?
Mulder
was dying, she was a witness, and that was something she wasn't ready
to accept.

Mulder fought to stay awake, concentrating on her voice, letting the
sound
carry him away from some of the pain.

"You've got to get back to that mine. The answers are there."

"Mulder, the place is sealed up. There is some other agency
involved. The answers we need to find are here because you're..." she
suddenly stopped.

"...dying?"

He could see the answer in her eyes. He looked away, trying to hide
his own mortality. This was different from dying alone in the desert.
More personal, intimate. He didn't want to share, even with her. Scully
waited for him to look back, but he continued to stare at the wall. She
didn't expect it to go like this.

"No, Mulder, you're not..." Fighting the sudden stinging in her
eyes.

He looked back to her. Seeing her struggle, he tried to reach out
to her. The effort overcame him, and he sank back onto the pillow,
eyes half closed. She couldn't tell if he was conscious or not.

A maze of emotions played across Scully's face, each fighting for
supremacy. Sadness, rage, loss, love. She didn't want to admit to any
of them. I've gotten so used to being clinical, to finding a rational
explanation, that I'm afraid to feel anymore. She was ashamed of this
realization, seeing the depth of her loss. She couldn't decide whether
to blame herself, Mulder, her mother, an endless list of suspects. I've
become a party to the obsession, just like you. Standing there looking
at Mulder's inert form, she slowly realized that she had chosen her own
path, and now she was seeing the consequences of a lifetime's decisions
with a new clarity.

She walked to the window, watching the sun drop beneath the horizon.
Stars appeared as the twilight dimmed. She could see the room
reflected in the window, but she found herself looking through it, to
the
glowing horizon. More denial. She began to speak, more for herself
than anything.

"When I was little, I always wanted to be taken seriously, to be the
best. And as I got older, my means to that end was academics, med
school, and the Bureau. I thought I could prove myself that way, and
be recognized for my achievements. But I was dismissed as an
oddity. You know, 'hey, look at the nerd, there goes the ice queen.' But
when I came to work with you on the X Files you..." She stopped,
turned. "You gave me your trust. I know how hard that was for you to
do, that I earned it. That's the first time anyone's ever done that with
me. And I guess I had to wait until now to tell you how much that's
meant to me."

She took a deep breath, trying to get the quaver out her voice, and
reached out to touch his face again. She stopped, unsure of herself,
afraid of the contact.

"I know we see the world differently, and disagree about most of
what we perceive. There are a lot of times I've felt that you've gone
beyond just trying to convince me of some fact, that you've made it a
personal attack because I didn't agree with you. But, you've given me
something to hang on to, and this quest of yours is now a part of my
life, whether I like it or not. Sometimes I hate you for that. Now I
realize that the choice was mine all along."

Mulder didn't move and Scully suddenly felt silly, like she'd been
caught talking to herself. She sat down in the room's only chair,
watching Mulder and the night. She wasn't sure how long she sat
there, keeping vigil. The passivity of waiting drained her, and she grew
annoyed with herself for giving up so easily. Time to check Mulder's
records. Something must have been overlooked.

She walked down the corridor to the nurse's station, asked for
Mulder's chart. She opened it, turning to lean against the counter. She
missed the two black coated figures entering Mulder's room.

Tue 22 Oct 96 18:04 Humboldt Regional Medical Center

Two men stand on either side of Fox Mulder.

"I must know why this is necessary."

"Mulder is a vital link to the success of our endeavors."

"He has caused much damage. What is his significance?"

"He believes, and that is the key."

One man removes his gloves, regards Mulder, then he reaches out
and touches Mulder's head and chest. His eyes close, and he seems
to concentrate for a moment. The Bounty Hunter removes his hands from
Mulder, puts on the gloves and leaves the room. The Cigarette
Smoking Man lingers, studying Mulder. He reaches out as if to caress
the inert form. Instead, his hand forms a fist, and he turns for the
door.

Tue 22 Oct 96 18:07 Humboldt Regional Medical Center

Scully turned around just in time to see someone leave Mulder's room
and cross the hall into the stairway. She dropped the chart, sprinted
down the hall. The biomonitor showed he was alive. As she watched, it
seemed like the skin on his face was healing itself. She watched in
amazement for a few seconds. Knowing the answer was escaping,
she sprang for the door.

She could hear someone two flights below her. Drawing her gun and
carefully making her way down the stairs, she heard the outside
stairwell door close and latch. She ran down the rest of the stairs and
out the door. A pair of headlights pinned her against the building and
she
aimed her weapon into the glare.

"Freeze, FBI!"

The car screeches to a stop, inches from her knees. She hears
the passenger window hiss down. She edges around the car, keeping
the gun aimed at the windshield. She can't see the driver. A cloud of
tobacco smoke greets her. Her stomach tightens in recognition.

"What did you do to him?" she growls.

"You're looking at it from the wrong perspective, Agent Scully.
You should ask yourself why I've bothered to save his life." The
Cigarette Smoking Man inhales. "I wonder if I should do the same for
you."

The car drives away. Knowing that was the only answer she will find, she
lets her gun drop. The car turns a corner and disappears into the
night.

Tue 22 Oct 96 18:15 Humboldt Regional Medical Center

Mulder was awake when Scully made it back to the ICU floor. The
burns were gone.

"Scully, what happened? I had the strangest dream..."

"Mulder...I don't know. Cancer Man was here, with you."

He wasn't prepared for that, and looked violated. It was like having
someone spit on your grave. It took him a while to formulate a reply.

"What did he say?"

"He said I should ask myself why he saved your life."

Mulder and Scully held a look, a frozen moment hanging between
them. Scully looked away.

"Dana..." Her head snapped up. He never called her that.
"I...uhh..." he fumbled for words, not knowing how to verbalize his
feelings. I just want you to know how much you've meant to me the
past four years. Nobody's ever taken me seriously, either. Trusted me.
Certainly not since I've worked on the X Files. It's very tiring to
always
fight your battles alone. I trust you with my life, Scully, and I...

The moment passed, a chance wasted. He met her eyes again,
smiled. For a moment, there was an openness, a vulnerability, that
she'd never seen before.

She smiled back, understanding.

* * *

25 Oct 96 Dana Scully, personal case report

The machinery of the Cancer Man's organization worked quickly. Mr.
Utley's death was ruled suicide by self-immolation. He had been
despondent for several months, according to sworn statements from
his coworkers. Frank White was not charged with any crime, and
admitted to finding Utley's body in the road that night. The body was
claimed by an out-of-town relative, cremated and the ashes scattered
immediately. No record of this relative exists. I went to the cabin and
mineshaft at daybreak. The structure near Utley's cabin was a
boarded up mine shaft that had collapsed fifteen feet in from the
entrance. The landing pad was overgrown, apparently abandoned by
the Forest Service. Local records show that the mine site has been
abandoned for twenty years.

Mulder recovered from his injuries. The doctors couldn't explain
his recovery, and neither can I. For them, miracles still occur. For me,
they do not. I'm sure Mulder is aware of my opinions and impressions
of this case, having read my formal report. The rest of it will wait
for
the proper time.

The Cancer Man said he wondered if he should save my life. These
words were carefully chosen and fill me with a profound sense of
unease for the future. I will not spend my life second-guessing this
meaning. I will meet whatever the future brings with my eyes open.
Nietschke wrote that fear is the will to power. I am not afraid of what
lies ahead, because the power to control one's destiny lies within each
of us. To relinquish this belief is to grant the unknown victory even
before the battle is joined.

-- end

+++++ END OF PART THREE ++++