'To Kill a Nightingale' 10/11
By phoenix99 (xphoenix99@hotmail.com)

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Feedback? Please! 
xphoenix99@hotmail.com
*****

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CHAPTER 10

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"So take my hands and come with me,
 We will change reality.
 So take my hands and we will pray.
 They won't take you away.

 They will never make me cry, no.
 They will never make me die."

-'Animal Instinct', The Cranberries

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March 23rd

Mulder awoke to the sight of bars. Dark iron bars that
criss-crossed the front of his cell. This was the first good
look he was getting of his surroundings since he'd been
blindfolded and doped before being thrown in, and he
found they left something to be desired.

He ran his hand over the cool cement wall beside him,
just to make sure he wasn't dreaming. His mind was
muddled from the drugs he'd been given and he wasn't
sure how accurate his perception was. He noticed the
metal toilet and sink in the corner across from his cot.
He'd seen versions of all this many times before, so it
didn't distress him as much as it should. What did bother
him was that he was alone, and he had no idea what had
happened to Scully or Karen.

On unsteady legs, Mulder got up and walked to the bars,
pressing his face between them as he tried to peer out. All
he could see was the peeling grey paint on the wall across
from him.

"Hello?" he called out, his voice echoing a bit down the
hall. There was no answer; not even a guard telling him
to shut the hell up, which was strange. Where were Scully
and Karen? Where had they taken them?

"Scully?! Karen?!" he called again, sounding more
desperate than before. This time he heard a thump
followed by a soft curse from somewhere to his left.
"Scully?" he called again, a bit quieter this time, but no
less urgent. 'Please be her', he chanted in his mind.

"Yeah, Mulder it's me," she said. Her voice was close by
and Mulder guessed she was either in the cell right
beside his or the next one down. He was so relieved to
hear her familiar voice. He ran to the corner of his cell,
reaching his arm through the bars towards Scully's voice.
A few seconds later, a small cold hand grasped his and he
squeezed it. He let out a breath as he dropped his head
against the wall.

"Are you ok?" he whispered to her, wishing he could pull
her through the bars just so he could be closer to her.

"Fine.... I've got a headache though. Probably from the
drugs they gave us. You?" she asked, her voice very close
now but sounding kind of rough.

"Same," he said tiredly.

There were a few seconds of silence before Scully spoke
again. "Do you know where they took Karen?" Mulder
could hear the note of regret in her voice.

"No, I don't," he stated. She only sighed in response as
their hands dropped and he could see her hands grip the
cold bars.

All they really could do now was wait. He supposed that
a prison cell was the best place for it, since there were no
distractions or temptations, just bare walls and cold
floors.

"I think I know what she is, Mulder." Scully suddenly
whispered very quietly.

"You found something in the tests you ran?" Mulder
asked, trying to keep his voice just as low, but the
sudden curiosity he felt strained in his voice.

"She is whatever Gibson was, except she has even more
activated DNA. Her CAT scan reveal activity I have never
seen... "

"Maybe she's the next step in evolution." Mulder
interrupted.

"What?"

Their conversation was suddenly interrupted by the
sound of a grinding bolt and a large door opening,
followed by several sets of footsteps. Scully and Mulder
let go of the bars and retreated to the back of their cells as
the steps came closer. Five soldiers soon appeared in
front of them, two of them holding machine guns. "Back
away from the door," one of them barked before the
doors slid open. Mulder pulled away from them at first,
but they quickly had him pinned down and handcuffed.
They chained his feet before they yanked him out into
the hallway and he could see they did the same to Scully
when she joined them.

This was the first time he had seen her since their capture
and it alleviated his mind somewhat to see that she was
alright. She did look tired, but he attributed it to the
drugs they'd been given.

"Where are we going?" Mulder asked. The soldiers gave
him an annoyed look. "What's going on?" Mulder asked
again. He was answered with another punch in the side.
Mulder groaned, having not yet finished recovered from
the first one. He decided that silence might be his best bet
for survival.

They were led down a number of corridors and up two
flights of stairs, which were tedious in the leg restraints
they wore. Mulder could feel the bruises developing on
his knees and shins from his many falls on the hard
steps. He tried to slow down the fast clip that the soldiers
were forcing them to walk so Scully wouldn't fall as
much. But they yanked them along anyway and Scully
had continued to fall with him. After conquering the
stairs they were stopped at a large black door in a small
hallway. One of the soldiers opened the door and looked
in before pushing them inside.

The room was dimly lit except for a few fluorescent lights
patched around the ceiling. The only pieces of furniture
were two chairs sitting in the middle of the room,
separated by about ten feet, facing each other. The
soldiers sat them down and secured them to the chairs,
which Mulder noticed with a growing sense of dread
were bolted to the floor.

He looked up at Scully who was staring right back at
him. She looked fairly calm on the surface, but he
recognized by the quick darting of her blue eyes and
tightness of her jaw that she was just as terrified as he
was. To anyone who didn't know them, they probably
looked like the epitome of confidence. Fortunately--or
maybe unfortunately--they were the only ones who
recognized the other's panic face...

The soldiers who had brought them in were standing
around the room, not moving a muscle. What the hell
were they waiting for? And what did they plan on doing?
Beating them? Maybe they thought that if they tortured
Scully in front of him he'd surrender... but surrender
what? What could they possibly still want from them?
Usually they took what they wanted and then moved on.
But somehow this was different because they were still
there and Mulder didn't know why.

Suddenly the door opened and two more soldiers came
in, these dressed differently than the others. They wore
heavy clothing that looked like bomb squad gear.
Between them was Karen, looking exhausted and ill. Her
eyes were red and there was a large gash across her right
cheek, the blood starting to dry on her pale skin. It hurt
Mulder to see it and he was filled with the need to kill
every soldier in the room. But his anger soon shifted
when old Spender walked into the room behind them.

"You fucking bastard," Mulder cursed at him, giving up
on his previous plan to remain absolutely quiet.

CGB ignored Mulder's words and regarded the two
agents with little interest, lighting his cigarette before
nodding to a light haired soldier standing in the corner.

"No, don't please," Karen begged, her voice sounding
strained and unfamiliar. Her green eyes were large and
frightened and Mulder watched sadly as she tried to run
towards them, only to be quickly restrained before she
even moved two feet.

The soldier didn't seem to hear Karen's distressed voice
as he walked over to Scully, laying a hand on her head.
She jerked away, but the soldier just grabbed her harder,
seeming to enjoy his control over her. Mulder sat up
straight in his seat, feeling himself grow increasingly
furious as he watched, unable to stop the sadistic cruelty
that was being displayed before him. No one was
allowed to touch his partner that way! If he ever got loose,
that man would suffer....

He could tell something was about to happen and he
fought his restraints frantically, wanting so badly to show
the bastard hovering around Scully what he could do to
him if he had the chance, but he couldn't. He had no
control; he was helpless and that knowledge seared his
mind, feeding the fire of his rage.

Scully stared at the soldier, her eyes narrow and her
expression stoic. He knew she would say nothing to them
as she tried to hide her fear and uncertainty behind a
familiar mask of indifference.

The soldier reached into his pocket, fingering something
he hid there, some great secret that he seemed thrilled to
reveal to them. He grasped the object and pulled it out;
the razor-edged blade of a hunting knife shone in the
dim light filtering down from above them.

"No! Why are you doing this?!" Mulder yelled, yanking
hard against the restraints, watching in horror as the
soldier grabbed Scully's soft hair to hold her still. He
moved the knife in front of her face and she tracked it
with fearful eyes. Cracks began to appear in her facade,
and Mulder knew by the slight tremble of her lip that she
was barely holding onto her resolve. The blade came to
rest sideways on Scully's nose, the sharp edge facing her
eyes. Her eyes looked away from it and up at Mulder
who was still fighting and protesting as best he could.
Her eyes were wide and frightened now as she looked for
support, support Mulder wasn't sure how to give. The
soldier saw the exchange and took that moment to slide
the sharp blade across Scully's cheek and down her neck,
the same path Mulder's soft kisses had taken the night
before. She squeezed her eyes shut, holding in her cry as
bright red blood began to flow from the knife's path
down onto her white shirt. She bit her lip, trying to
control the pain and not let on how much it hurt.

Mulder couldn't say anything, the sight he had just
witnessed hurt him so much he wondered if he'd die
from it. Just the sight of her blood was making him sick,
and it was his fault this was happening, his fault that
they might not make it out alive.

"No," Karen pleaded, sobbing as she tried to reach out to
them, the heavily padded soldiers easily keeping her
back as they shoved and jostled her around.

"I am going to fucking kill you! I swear I am going to
send you straight to hell, you bastard!!" Mulder screamed
at CGB, trying to release his ire at the man standing in the
shadows of the room like the coward he was. He was
watching this sick demonstration as he sucked on his
cigarette and didn't seem affected by Mulder's strong
words.

He could feel the cuffs cutting into his wrists and the
blood flowing freely onto his hands, but he didn't care.
Every agonizing second dragged out and every moment
he felt a piece of himself die. He felt like he was going
mad and there was nothing he could do. Nothing.

He couldn't watch this, couldn't watch them slice up his
partner, the woman he loved. He couldn't take the fear
and sadness in Karen's eyes, eyes that had known none
of these horrors; eyes that had beheld a family and a life
only days before. Their tears and blood hurt him more
than the soldier's fists or their guns; it was a much deeper
hurt than just the obvious mortal wound.

He closed his eyes and shook his head, willing the
images out of his mind, but when he opened his eyes
back up, they were still displayed in front of him like
some sick painter's idea of art. This was CGB's kind of
fun, his fucking entertainment.

"I am going to slit your throat, you piece of shit, and as
you bleed to death I hope you think of all the things you
did and realize in that very instant before you die that
nobody in the world will ever care or remember you,"
Mulder threatened. All the feral wrath that was
contaminating his mind was seeping out into his words.

"Tape him. Tape them both," CGB ordered. Mulder saw
the tape as it came from someone standing behind him.
He shook his head, but in a matter of moments the tape
was on, and he fell silent when he could no longer yell. It
wasn't any good if they couldn't understand him. They
weren't interested in him or Scully anyway, he finally
realized. They were only here to hurt Karen, who must
have refused to perform for them. Now they were going
to torture her emotionally by forcing her to watch him
and Scully suffer.

Spender turned to Karen and she lashed out at him,
trying to grab anything she could get. The soldiers tried
to pull her back, but she broke free. CGB stepped out of
her reach quickly, obviously knowing the danger he'd be
in if she escaped. Her attack was short lived; soon the
soldiers had wrestled her still again and she'd stopped
fighting.

Mulder wondered if that hand was enough to kill; if her
ability could be used to not only save lives, but
extinguish them as well. If it was, he hoped she would
never have to use it. He knew that no one was ever the
same after taking a life, and Mulder could not have borne
to know he'd caused her fall from grace.

"This doesn't have to happen. They are no use to us,"
CGB explained as he pointed over at the two agents. "If
you cooperate with us, you can heal them and we'll set
them free," he offered.

"You're a fucking liar!" she yelled as she reached out for
him again. This time one of the soldiers punched her
hard in the stomach. She sobbed and coughed as she
dropped to the floor, her arms wrapping around her
midsection. She did nothing for a moment as she tried to
calm herself before standing back up.

"You have to earn their release, Karen. All you have to do
is help us. We want the same thing you want," Spender
said with his usual smugness.

"I know what you want. You only want to use me for who
you think is worthy of being immune. You and your god
damn cohorts aren't God! You can't choose who will live
and who will die! And as soon as you're done with me,
I'll end up like the hundreds of other people you've
tortured and butchered. I won't be another of your lab
rats, so fuck you!" she screamed at him.

CGB shrugged, looking like he didn't care much about
what Karen was saying. Again he nodded to the soldier,
who seemed pleased to comply with whatever he wanted.
Mulder tried to yell through the tape, desperate to stop
this madness, but it had no effect. The soldier turned
back to Scully, quickly striking her in the thigh with the
long blade, pushing it deep until only the handle was
visible. She cried out in agony, the blow surprising her
and the pain escaping past her lips, only to be muffled by
the tape. Her head dropped down and her hair partly
covered the look of anguish etched onto her features.
Mulder cried out with her, feeling her pain as if it were
his own, fighting back the tears that threatened to
overwhelm him.

But he had to look away; the sight of the knife sticking
straight up out of his partner's flesh was just too much.
He could hear Karen screaming and Scully's distressing
sobs and he tried as hard as he could to keep control and
not react. He wouldn't let them win.

He heard another sharp cry and he squeezed his eyes
closed harder, trying not to hear Scully's pain. All he
could hear now was her labored breaths, each one ending
with the softest of whimpers. Karen was crying and he
could hear the shuffling of feet close by. When he looked
up he saw that the knife was still firmly in place, but it
had been turned ninety degrees, the blood soaking
Scully's dark pants and running onto the floor.

Scully was out cold, her body had responded to the pain,
and now she would feel nothing. He was relieved for
that, especially when the soldier pulled the knife back
out. Karen was in hysterics, still trying to break away
from the heavily padded soldiers surrounding her.

Suddenly the soldier was in front of him; Mulder
prepared himself for the pain, but there was none.
Instead the knife was used to cut off his dirty, torn shirt,
which was then tossed to the floor.

Mulder opened his eyes and stared back at the soldier;
not blinking once as the soldier tried to intimidate him
by waving the already bloodied knife in front of his face.
It was the sight of Scully's blood on the knife that threw
him, the warm, red liquid running down the cold metal
and dripping onto his leg. Just as Mulder began to lose
control, the soldier struck, using the blade to create a
large gash across his chest. The tape covering his mouth
stopped the short cry of agony that escaped him, despite
his efforts to remain silent. He was trying desperately to
control the indescribable pain as the sharp metal cut his
flesh.

"Please! Stop!" Karen was yelling, her voice raising in
desperation. Mulder tried in vain to clear his mind of any
thought so that he might spare her some of the pain. He
didn't know if she could feel it, but he prayed that she
couldn't.

"Stop this! Stop, I'll do it, I'll do it, just stop. Let 
them go,"Karen pleaded before the soldier could strike 
Mulder again. Spender nodded and she was led over to the 
two bleeding agents.

Karen kneeled in front of Scully first since she was in the
worst shape, the blood from her wound covering her
entire leg and pooling on the floor by her feet. She was
awake, though her eyes were drooping and her skin was
pale; Mulder worried that they had hit an artery. He
couldn't see what exactly was going on. Karen was saying
something, but her words were too quiet for him to hear
clearly; he could only make out her choked sobs. He soon
felt the tension in the air begin to grow as the hairs on his
arms stood up. Many of the soldiers were gathering
around Scully, looking on as the miracle unfolded before
them. When Karen stepped away, the slash on Scully's
face was gone, as were the bruises the soldiers had given
her. Her eyes were no longer pained, and the blood had
stopped seeping from her leg.

Karen turned from Scully, always accompanied by her
two 'body guards', and walked over to Mulder. She
kneeled down in front of him, tears running down her
face as her entire body shook. "I'm sorry," she whispered,
"I'm so sorry."

Mulder shook his head at her, trying to tell her not to be
sorry, that it wasn't her fault. He repeated it over and 
over in his mind, believing that she would hear his thoughts
and see the truth in them. He wanted desperately to
comfort her, but he couldn't.

When he felt her hand on his shoulder, it was
accompanied by a numbing and tingling sensation that
stemmed from her touch, making him wince. It felt so
strange and, as the pain began to dissipate, he heard
Karen's voice. He wasn't sure whether it was only in his
mind or she was whispering it in his ear. "Remember to
take care of what's important," he heard her say. It was
only another second before it was over and she pulled
away. The pain was gone and when he looked down at
himself there was no longer a five-inch gash across his
chest.

Karen stood up, her head bowed and her eyes cast down
at the floor. He shook his head, not understanding what
she had said to him, asking in his mind for her to explain.
She only looked at him sadly, her expression defeated
and spiritless. The soldiers quickly took her arms and
roughly shoved her to the door. She let them take her and
didn't fight back.

As Mulder watched her leave, he tried one last time to get
Their attention. Maybe they could work out a deal... but
in reality he knew he was in no position to bargain. It
probably wouldn't have mattered though; they just didn't
care. When he yelled at them, they didn't even twitch, his
voice was too muffled to hear and his lips stung from the
tape. When Karen was gone, he and Scully were left with
the three soldiers who had brought them there in the first
place. Their eyes and expressions were empty as they
made quick work of dragging the agents back to their
cells. There they were drugged once again, and it was
only seconds before the world faded out around them.

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March 24th 
Early morning

The soldiers were rough and treated her with no mercy.
Her legs and arms ached and fresh bruises were
appearing all over her body from the beating she'd taken.
Whenever she could she'd fought against them, but they
were much stronger and much more ruthless. She had felt
their malice like a cold wind  in her mind and it
frightened her.

She had been locked away in a room for hours, a small
cell with no windows and only a mattress on the floor.
They had drugged her; she had tried to resist it but it had
done nothing to stop them. This hadn't changed her
attitude though. She knew they hadn't released Mulder
or Scully, and she would not deal until they did. So she'd
tried to rest in her intoxicated state, regaining her 
strength and her resolve. She would fight them and their
murderous, selfish intentions.

They were leading her down a new hallway now; the
white-washed walls and bright lights betrayed the deep
sense of foreboding Karen could feel around her. The
walls seemed coated with the agony of people who had
walked these same steps before her. The echoes of their
cries were in her ears and mind, warning her and
tormenting her.

They stopped at a large white door. Karen immediately
shrunk away from it. She knew what was behind that
door and she was not going in. She could hear their pleas
as their minds wailed; they prayed for their suffering to
end, to see their families, their wives and husbands, their
children. The sound in her mind was killing her, and she
withered to the floor, grabbing her head and curling up
into a tiny ball.

"Get up!" one of the soldiers yelled at her, but she shook
her head. She just couldn't move, frozen by the haunted
voices she heard. She tried to push them away, but they
kept punching little holes in the wall she tried to build
around her mind, slipping through the small cracks.

"No!" she yelled. "No! Please!!" She fought as hard as she
could against the men holding her, again with no success
as they dragged her already weakened body into the
room.

Inside was a lab, surrounded by smaller rooms which
could be seen through the large glass windows between
them. To her horror they held people; young and old,
women and men, all of them wearing white robes. Some
were pacing nervously, others were curled up in corners
shaking or chanting to themselves.

"Here," someone said, and she turned blindly in the
direction they were pointing. There were three people
dressed in lab coats standing before her. They were all
dead souls, the life shaken out of them by years of
merciless, heartless murdering in the name of science.
They looked at her with sick interest, the same way they
would look at a mouse with four heads.

Beside them was a metal slab with some poor young man
strapped to its surface. He was squirming slightly, but he
was heavily drugged and not sure what was happening.
He was frightened, so terribly frightened that Karen was
beginning to shake with him. He had been there for
months, his wife and daughter the only thoughts that
gave him hope.

She cried for him, for his misery and pain. She cried for
the other tortured people surrounding her, the tears
running down her already red and stinging face as she
hurt with them.

One of the 'doctors' picked up a syringe from a small
table nearby. It was filled with a strange black liquid,
which Karen recognized immediately, even though this
was the first time she had ever seen it. She watched
mutely as its contents were injected into the victim laying
on the table. He began to squirm, moaning and shaking
his head back and forth before his eyes came open and
he went still. The distinct colored surface of his eyes
disappeared beneath a coating of black and he went
quiet.

"Cure him and make him immune," one of the white-
coated men ordered.

Karen carefully approached the helpless man on the slab.
His mind seemed dead but his body lived, as evidenced
by the rise and fall of his chest with every breath he took.
She frowned as she placed her hand on his chest.

Immediately she sensed it; the quiet murmurs of
something else, a different being whispering its thoughts
in her mind. She was disgusted by it and its viral nature,
its love for destruction and killing.

She fought it off, silencing its voice and attacking its life.
It seemed to know her intentions and began to fight
back, its long tentacle-like thoughts stinging her. She
quickly destroyed it, killing all that was left of it,
listening as the thoughts of the man returned. She began
to focus on his body now, willing it to recreate itself. She
focused all her energy on what was needed, using all the
strength she could muster. She could feel the DNA
changing beneath her, the tiny unseen chemicals
regrouping as she concentrated. When the change was
complete she pulled away.

She opened her eyes to find that everything was slightly
blurry. She gasped for air, trying to clear her mind, which
was distorted with dizziness. When she had regained
control she turned to the 'doctors' beside her. They were
examining the poor man, looking at his eyes and
listening to his heart before one of them picked up
another syringe filled with black oil.

The man was now fully awake and he fought his
restraints when he saw the syringe. Karen tried to soothe
him with her mind, but it did little to squelch his fears.
When the injection was finished everyone watched with
great interest except Karen, who already knew the
impending result. The inky liquid that had been injected
began to come up to the surface of the skin, leaking out
through the pores and onto the metal slab. The man was
immune.

Suddenly, as quickly as Karen heard the thought, one of
the 'doctors' pulled out a gun. The man gave short cry of
alarm before he was shot at point blank range. His body
went still and his thoughts ended abruptly.

"No!" Karen screamed, becoming mad with anger and
horror. The feeling of the man dying before her, his last
fleeting thoughts before death stirred her psyche. "Why
did you do that! I saved him!" She reached forward to the
bloodied man, but the soldiers were prepared and had
her arms in their tight grips. There was nothing she could
have possibly done.

One of the 'doctors' pulled out a cell phone and dialed a
number, ignoring Karen's erratic behavior. The other
men began to clean up, not bothered at all by what had
just happened. The two soldiers pushed Karen toward
the door; she tried to fight against them, wanting to get to
the doctors so she could hurt them. Their inhumanity and
casual attitude was inexcusable and had her enraged, but
she was just too tired, finally starting to black out as she
overexerted herself. The soldiers continued to hold her
firmly as they dragged her from the room.

She wouldn't have it, she just couldn't see that again, she
couldn't go on in this way. She wasn't going to let them
rule her, tell her who would live and die, and they would
never get the opportunity to dissect her. As much as they
wanted to, she was not going to give them the chance.

Relaxing all her muscles, Karen went limp and dropped
to the hall floor. The soldiers yelled at her before kicking
her a few times and she tried as best she could not to
react. After a while, one of them reluctantly picked her up
and tossed her over their shoulder. As they began to walk
again, Karen waited until the soldier's mind relaxed and
began to wander before she slowly inched her hand up to
his neck where his bare flesh lay waiting for her deadly
touch.

Like a snake she struck him, fast and without warning.
He flipped his head forwards and reached his hands up
to his neck, tossing Karen to the ground. The other
soldier was so stunned by what had happened that she
had time to grab the fallen man's gun and get back to her
feet.

"Put down your gun and get on the floor!" she told him
and he slowly but reluctantly complied. She picked up
his gun and slipped it into the large pocket of her pants
before grabbing him by the neck as well, rendering him
unconscious like the first soldier.

She took off quickly, running down the hall as fast as she
could manage. Where she was going wasn't that far away.

X<>X<>X<>X<>X<>X

Mulder awoke with a start. He was covered with sweat
and his head was pounding. He looked around at his
surroundings wearily. The images of what had happened
behind the gray door were coming back to him with a
vengeance. The blood and the screaming... but he
couldn't remember if it had actually happened or if it was
only part of a dream that had snuck in and tainted his
memories. His head ached so much, he couldn't
concentrate, couldn't think or even try to remember. Still
confused, he stood up and rubbed his eyes tiredly.

He listened to the silence for any sign of Scully, and
when he heard nothing he called out to her.

"Scully?"

There was no answer.

"Scully?!" he yelled louder this time. When he listened he
heard the squeak of springs in the cell beside him and
breathed a sigh of relief. Scully probably hadn't
recovered from the drugs; since she was so much smaller
then he, it took her body longer to recover.

He turned back around and began to pace restlessly back
and forth in his cell. It was the only way he could expel
some of the nervous energy building up inside him, but
it only made him dizzy and caused his head to ache more,
if that were possible.

He stepped back until he leaned heavily against the
chalky wall and looked up at the ceiling with glassy eyes.
The only bit of light reaching into their dungeon was
from the small, barred window high above his head. It
cast a patchwork of little squares of moonlight on the
white ceiling above him.

He turned to the wall, laying the side of his face against
the cold cement. He closed his eyes and listened. The
silence was oppressive and it only made Mulder more
despondent. Reaching a hand up as high as he could, he
ran his fingers along the smooth edge of the window
ledge. His only contact with the world outside was barely
within his grasp.

He and Scully had never had a chance. This time they
actually thought they'd get away, but it was only a ploy to
renew their determination. Was it bad luck or was Fate
playing with them again?

What if they died in here? Would he ever see Scully's
radiant face again? Would they ever swim in each other's
passion, or share a quiet moment under the stars? There
were so many things they hadn't experienced, so many
places they hadn't been. They'd been given another
chance and they had blown it.

He turned back to face the emptiness of his cell, the drab
and dirty conditions familiar and almost comforting. He
ached too much to care; whatever they had given him was
making him feel horrible. They hadn't given them any
food yet either, but the drugs seemed to keep his appetite
away... or maybe it was the blood and the torture.

Slowly he slid down the wall until he reached the cool
damp floor, where he laid down on his stomach. The low
temperature of the floor was making his head feel better,
the pounding lessening to a dull throb. He closed his
eyes and felt himself begin to drift to sleep until he heard
the sound of the door opening at the end of the hall.
Immediately he jumped to his feet, throwing his
whacked sense of balance off and making him fall back
against the wall. He took a deep breath and stood up
straight, waiting and ready for the soldiers to show their
devilish faces.

But there was a long delay of silence; no running feet or
shouting. Suddenly his cell door began to slide open and
Mulder stepped up and looked down the hall. There was
a figure jogging down the hall towards him, and as it
passed through a beam of moonlight he saw their face.

"Karen!" he whispered to her.

She came up to him, breathing hard and sweating a great
deal. She looked into Scully's cell and back at him
without saying anything. She turned away from him and
went to Scully, so he followed. Scully was still
unconscious from the drugs and Karen shook her head
impatiently.

"We don't have much time," she gasped, trying to calm
her quick breaths before laying her hands on Scully's
stomach. She paused for a second, looking up at the bare
wall in front of her. Her gaze seemed to go beyond the
wall and the building itself.

"What's wrong?" Mulder asked, becoming very worried
and anxious. She turned to look at him, her eyes
questioning and uncertain. He didn't know what the
question was, how could he answer it for her?

"What is it, Karen?" Mulder asked again, hoping that
she'd tell him what was wrong. She said nothing, her
eyes staring deep into his, as if they were looking for
something. She looked back down at Scully and took a
deep breath as she seemed to make up her mind about
something, though Mulder had no idea what.

She closed her eyes and began. She was longer in waking
Scully than Mulder had expected and his previous
worries were only magnified. When Scully's eyes came
open he released a sigh of relief as he took her hand and
helped her to her feet, hugging her fondly.

"Mulder?" she murmured as she realized the company
they were in.

"They aren't going to release you," Karen explained to
them. "You need to get out, you have to escape. There are
others I need to help, come on." She grabbed Mulder's
hand and began tugging them down the hall towards the
open door. Mulder could hear shouting and suddenly the
air was filled with the sound of an alarm which wailed as
it announced their flight.

"Down this hall, there should be a door leading to storage
and a truck depot," Karen explained as they left the cell
area and started down the corridor. Mulder noticed the
man usually sitting by the door to the cell- block was
slumped over in his chair, his clipboard on the floor.

Their running brought them to a juncture and Karen
stopped suddenly, pointing down one of the halls
towards two large doors.

"Down there, that should be the storage depot. You have
to hurry." Her voice was rushed and she pushed them
towards the door. They were beginning to hear shouts
from down the halls and the noise of running soldiers
coming closer to where they stood.

Mulder shook his head, turning around to face her. "You
have to come with us Karen, we can't leave you here," he
said desperately.

The shouting grew louder and Karen began to look up
and down the halls nervously.

"You have no choice, Mulder. You have to get out--now,"
she said to him as she handed him and Scully the two
automatics she had stolen. "Please, go!" she cried.

Mulder was about to protest but what she was saying
began to make some sense. They had to get out, there
really was no other way....

Just as they started running for the door, Mulder heard
gunshots all around them. He heard a short cry from
behind him and when he looked back he saw three
soldiers running towards Karen, who was still standing
in the hall. She was slumped against the wall, her one
hand gripping her arm, which was soaked in blood.
Mulder was about to stop and go back, but something in
his head told him to keep going; the impulse was so
strong that he didn't even slow down.

There were more shots and Mulder heard one whiz by
his head and ricochet off the wall beside him. Bits of
concrete from the walls were being blown off by the
shower of bullets, chipping and flying off in every
direction. He and Scully raised their arms to their faces,
trying to defend themselves from the assault.

They finally reached the door, which they rushed
through and quickly closed behind them. On the other
side was a large room filled with boxes and containers.
There were three large doors along one side, with large,
black vans parked in front.

They only had a moment to look before the sound of
gunfire came from beside them. Instinctively he and
Scully dropped to the floor and began to fire back. In a
few seconds the silence had returned and the two soldiers
laid bloodied and motionless on the floor.

Mulder ran to the door, jamming it shut with his gun and
flipped the dead bolt, hoping that it would slow down
the soldiers he could hear approaching on the other side.
Meanwhile Scully had scavenged some keys and was
starting up one of the vans. He hurried to one of the large
garage doors, pulling it open before running back to the
van and getting in beside Scully, who was already
anxious to get away.

She pushed hard on the gas and the van jerked forward
into the lit-up yard of the military base that surrounded
them. There were soldiers running in every direction and
Scully had to swerve to miss them. They were coming up
to the closest exit, but they soon saw that the gate was
closed and the men in the booth were stepping out and
holding up their guns as they watched the approaching
van.

"Down, Scully!" Mulder yelled, pulling her down flat to
the seat as their van plowed through the chain link gate.
There was a series of loud 'pop's as they drove over the
spikes on the road, along with the sound of gunfire all
around them. The windshield shattered above them,
showering bits of glass over them and the inside of the
van.

Mulder grabbed the wheel and tried to steer the van as
best he could until Scully recovered. She quickly took it
from him, struggling to compensate for the blown tires so
that she could keep them on the road. She turned the van
into the next driveway and parked, trying to hide
amongst as many trees as possible. Frantically they got
out of the van and ran into the dark woods.

In front of them was a large embankment and they
stumbled down it as fast as they could, the still frozen
ground making them slide dangerously on already
unsteady legs. Soon they both began to slow down and
when they reached the bottom they stopped, panting and
gasping for breath. Both of them felt ready to pass out;
the drugs still in their systems wreaking havoc on their
bodies. It was freezing out, but they felt boiling from the
adrenaline still pumping through their veins.

Scully leaned up against the closest tree, her eyes closing
and chest heaving. Mulder came up beside her, his legs
beginning to stiffen from the cold temperature.
Unfortunately for him, he had no shirt since it had been
cut off him, and he was starting to feel the effects of the
cold.

"She made us leave," he whispered as he shook his head,
his hot breath fogging in the air. "She knew we wouldn't
have left her." He looked at Scully who just nodded her
head, obviously having come to the same conclusion.

He took a step back in the direction they had come, and
Scully immediately grabbed his wrist, holding him back.

"We can't go back, Mulder. Not yet; we're in no
condition." He shook her off and took a few more steps
back up the side of the ravine before stopping and
dropping his head.

"We failed her, Scully. We told her we could protect her."
He shook his head; his voice sounded defeated and tired.
They could hear the sounds of large vehicles--possibly
army trucks--driving on the road nearby, but it wasn't
enough to move either of them. "But we couldn't.... We
couldn't save her, Scully."

She dropped her head sadly, acknowledging this truth.

"We can't stay here. It's cold and we're still under the
influence of the drugs they gave us," Scully told him as
she came up behind him and laid a cold hand on his bare
arm. He was beginning to shake, the effects of his
adrenaline rush wearing off and the cold starting to cause
goosebumps all over him.

"Come on, Mulder, we have to start walking. We have to
get someplace warm." He nodded, his mind numbing
much sooner than his flesh.

They started trudging through the frozen undergrowth,
Scully with her arms around Mulder's midsection, trying
to keep him warm. The sound of the vehicles on the road
had disappeared and the quiet of the night was only
filled by the chattering of Mulder's teeth and the
crunching of the frozen ground under their feet.

"Hang in there, Mulder, there are some lights up ahead,"
Scully told him encouragingly. Mulder looked up in the
direction they were walking but couldn't see anything.

"Where?" he mumbled. "I don't see them." His voice
began to drift off and he stumbled. He knew he had to
keep walking because if he passed out or fell, Scully
wouldn't be able to carry him... or even drag him.

"Mulder?" Scully's voice sounded urgent, but he was
tired, and he didn't want to walk anymore... maybe he'd
have a little rest. "Mulder! We're almost there, just a little
farther."

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Scully struggled with him, trying to keep him upright
and walking. The frozen leaves on the forest floor
crinkled loudly under their shuffling feet as they pushed
forward. Their pace was becoming exceedingly slower
with every passing minute.

Despite her encouragement, Mulder was becoming
almost lethargic in his movements, shaking his head
dispiritedly at her words. "Come on Mulder, just a little
farther," she told him, but Mulder didn't seem to hear
her. His eyes were starting to droop and his skin was icy
beneath her hands.

"Remember what we did the other night, Mulder?" she
asked him. "Do you remember the warm fire and how
you held me in your arms?"

He glanced over at her, not speaking but thankfully
listening to her voice.

"I want to be able to do that again, Mulder. You can't let it
end like this. I want to be able to feel you, Mulder, to
love you when ever I want. I can't do that if you don't
walk with me. Please walk with me, Mulder," she said to
him, praying in her mind that he would stay with her.

The forest seemed to clear before them and Scully could
see the faint glow of passing lights flickering between the
tree trunks, she was sure of it. She soon found herself
standing at the side of a highway which cut through the
thick forest around them. She had to take action. She
would have to sit Mulder down if she wanted to stop a
vehicle, so she helped him over to a large maple tree,
murmuring words of reassurance that they'd be home
soon. He didn't answer her as he sat down on the frost
covered ground, curling up into a ball so he could
conserve as much heat as possible.

"I've got to..." he stuttered through chattering teeth, "I
want to show you..."

"We'll have lots of time Mulder, we just need to get warm,
then we'll have lots of time." She whispered to him.

Scully hesitantly turned away from him, stumbling out
onto the wet pavement. There were headlights
approaching and she began to yell and wave her arms,
desperately trying to wave down the vehicle. The car
slowed down to a stop and Scully ran over to the driver's
side. The window came down and the woman inside
looked at Scully doubtfully.

"Please, my friend is hurt and needs to get to a hospital,"
Scully begged, her breath hitching from the cold and fear
that were quickly taking over her body.

The driver looked over to the side of the road where
Mulder was sitting, then back at Scully. Her expression
was unsure and she shook her head before putting her
window back up, ignoring Scully as she yelled and
pounded on the car as it sped away.

The red lights faded into the distance and Scully turned
to face the next set of lights. Again she waved her arms,
calling at the car, but they weren't stopping and they
honked their horn at her to get out of the way. She didn't
move from her spot, unable to accurately tell how far
away the speeding car was. The car honked again and
Scully had to jump away to avoid being hit.

She swore angrily, tears rolling down her cheeks. She
looked back at Mulder who was still shaking in his
rolled-up position on the ground. There was silence on
the road, so Scully went to him, wrapping her small arms
around his cold body.

"You've gotta stay with me, Mulder, just keep moving,"
she told him, but he didn't say anything, not even a nod.
She had to get him warm before he went into
hypothermia.

Suddenly, Scully heard the sound of an engine
approaching and the road began to shine from the
headlights of another vehicle. Reluctantly she left
Mulder's side and ran onto the road again, telling herself
that she'd be damned if she was going to let anyone by.
The lights were bright and she couldn't see what was
coming towards her, but it didn't matter. She wasn't
going to move, they would just have to hit her.

She heard the loud rush and hiss of the air brakes of a
large truck as it came to jolting halt before her. She ran to
the side of the truck as the driver rolled down his
window.

"You need some help, miss?" he said to her.

"Yes, my friend is hurt and needs to be taken to the
nearest hospital. Please, he doesn't have much time," she
pleaded desperately.

The truck driver was already getting out of his truck, his
expression compassionate but also wary.

"He's over here," she said as she took his hand and pulled
him over to where Mulder lay.

Immediately the truck driver took off his jacket and
wrapped it around Mulder's freezing body. He and
Scully struggled to drag him to the truck and hoist him
into the cab. When he was finally in the truck, Scully
climbed in beside Mulder, holding him tightly as she
tried to replace at least some of the heat he had lost.

"You don't look so good yourself, miss" she heard the
truck driver say, but his voice sounded kind of muffled
to her ears. She was okay; she was just a little dizzy....

"We have to get him to the hospital..." she mumbled
before everything went black.

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It was quiet when Mulder awoke. The room was dark
except for a few lit-up machines beside his bed. There
was an IV in his arm and he was wearing a light blue
hospital gown. He sat up and looked around. To his right
was another bed where his sleeping partner lay facing
him. He released a breath of relief in knowing that Scully
was safe and that she was with him.

The mattress squeaked as he swung his legs over the side
and slipped off the bed. He had no idea what day it was,
or how long he and Scully had been in the hospital. The
last thing he could remember was their escape from the
base and the cold forest.

He unhooked hi IV and awkwardly carried it with him as
he stepped quietly over to the side of Scully's bed,
kneeling down so that his face was even with hers. The
dim moonlight seeping in through the blinds covering
the window gave her complexion an eerie glow. He
looked at her tenderly, listening to her soft breaths and
watching her eyes move underneath her lids. He
wondered if her dreams were still full of demons, or if
she was dreaming one of his memories. Did she dream of
things she had done or things she wanted to do? Was he
in her dreams? She was always in his.

Carefully, with all the gentleness he could muster,
Mulder brushed away a few strands of red hair that had
fallen over her face and she gave an almost inaudible
sigh.

She was perfect to him. The most beautiful example of
femininity and humanity that he had ever known. He
was biased of course, but that meant nothing to him. He
regarded her with all the love and compassion he rarely
let her see when she was awake. He ran his hand over her
cheek a few centimeters above her skin, not actually
touching her for fear of waking her from her deep sleep.

The light on her face suddenly dulled and distorted for
second, making Mulder turn to the window to see what
had caused it. There was nothing there except an empty
chair. He stared at the corner for a few moments, a strange
atmosphere filling the room like an invisible fog. He
shrugged, mostly for his own benefit, telling himself that
it was just his imagination.

When Mulder finally looked away from the window his
breath caught in his throat. Across from Scully's bed
stood someone he'd doubted he would ever see again.
But she was an apparition, pale and slightly translucent;
Mulder could see his bed and the wall behind her.

Karen was looking at Scully fondly, running her hand
over her hair before bending over and whispering
something in her ear. She smiled, a wonderful smile that
showed no signs of the tragedy of her life. When she
looked back up at Mulder, her eyes were no longer sad
and haunted, but relaxed and content. Mulder's lips
parted as he searched for words, something he could say
to her before she disappeared, but she placed a slim
finger over her lips to quiet him.

He dropped his eyes to the floor, his feelings of guilt and
sadness rekindled at the sight of her. He hoped he was
dreaming; he didn't want to believe he was seeing this
because if he was it meant that she was gone. Though
maybe it was a fate kinder than she would have known
in life, and he found some comfort in that thought.

When he looked back up she was still there, standing
solemnly in the moonlight. She reached out and laid her
hand on his. Mulder's eyes widened as he felt her soft
touch, but it didn't have the same charged feeling he
remembered. It was like a light breeze, or the faint flutter
of butterfly wings along his bare skin.

Her lips began to move as she spoke, but there was no
sound. She repeated her words again and Mulder
watched her carefully, trying to decipher them.

She began to step away from him, her form beginning to
flicker and fade. Mulder could only watch in awe as she
disappeared through the wall in front of him.

"Thank you" he whispered, but she was gone.

There was movement from the bed beside him, and
Mulder looked down to see Scully looking up at him,
bleary-eyed and confused.

"Mulder?" she said sleepily, her voice rough and
unfamiliar in the silence. He said nothing at first, still
absorbing the sight he had just seen.

She sat up, looking around the room and at the IV in her
wrist.

"There will be another," he whispered softly, repeating
the words he had seen on Karen's lips.

"What?" Scully asked as she placed her hand on his arm.

"She's gone, Scully," he said slowly.

There was a long pause. "She's gone? What do you
mean?" she asked in disbelief.

Mulder was quiet as he studied the small folds in the
blanket on Scully's bed.

"Mulder, what's happened?" Scully asked again, her
voice more urgent.

He shook his head as if he didn't want to believe what he
was about to say. "She's gone. Just like Amber Lynn La
Pierre; like my sister...." He took a deep breath as he tried
to control his emotions.

"How do you know she's gone?" Scully asked him, an
unwanted note of skepticism entering her voice.

"I saw her," Mulder told her, looking off into the distance
sadly. "I saw her," he said again, whispering it to himself
as if not sure of his own words.

He looked back at Scully, his eyes filled with tears but
his face calm. "She's safe now. No one can hurt her."

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END OF CHAPTER 10

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