Dominion Over My Soul - 7

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Alex glanced back over his shoulder as he reached yet another closed door blocking their path, his gaze travelling across the ragged band following. A myriad of expressions crossed those faces; fear, horror, shock - but mostly fear. He could feel it emanating from each person no matter how stoic they appeared on the outside. Langley was pushing the straggly blond hair from his face, eyes darting from side to side as if he expected the walls to ooze more of the oiliens. Scully had ceased her sobbing as the voices of her sister and daughter faded into the distance, but she still clung tightly to her partner.

My brother.

The warmth of that thought curled around him. He had spent so much of his life alone, abandoned by his mother to the equally not-so tender mercies of the Consortium, never given the opportunity to make friends, never knowing of any other family. His last few years had been a living hell, filled with anguish, pain and humiliation as he watched the oilien destroy everything around him, filling his mind with its putrescence, selling his body for its own gains.

Now, in the space of a few days, he had found not only a brother but also a lover.

His eyes met Walter's quickly, and so much was said in that brief contact; love offered and promises made. He felt the warmth of Walter's body pressing up behind him, savoured the sensation of the gentle arms moving around him, silently giving him what he had not realised he needed, the strength of this man's love to steady him. Alex glanced into the dark eyes, seeing his own reflection mirrored in the soft gaze beyond the glasses. He felt suddenly awed by the strength of this man's passion for him, awed by his own passion in response. He wished the whole world would go away, wished this was all yet another nightmare so that he could open his eyes and find himself still held in that powerful embrace as the last dizzying sensations of his climax ebbed away.

Part of Alex cried out in frustration, that he would finally be offered all the things his heart desired only so he watch it all snatched away from him again.

"It's not going to happen, Alex. We're going to beat this."

Alex swallowed hard and nodded, ashamed of his own momentary weakness. He had to believe they would get through this or everything was lost, not just the blossoming love between himself and Walter, but the newfound affection of an older brother.

Mulder. My brother.

It was still hard to believe and it was only the knowledge that the genes they shared belonged to Spender that soured the sweet taste of joy that filled him. Mulder reached out, as if he had captured the momentary bitterness, his hand resting lightly on Alex's shoulder, the hazel eyes offering acceptance and the first spark of fraternal love.

"Frohike's no longer inside the computer."

"I know."

"What's that mean?"

They both turned to face Skinner, taking in the curious expressions on the others faces but it was Mulder who answered.

"It means we have to hope he and Byers can hack into the mainframe."

"Or?"

This time Alex responded, his voice soft and husky with renewed fear.

"Without them there's a greater chance of us being detected before we get to where we need to be."

"And where is that? Where are we going?"

Alex looked deep into Scully's blue eyes then pointed to the door that lay locked ahead of them.

"In here."

Alex had already seen, in his dream, a place filled with his worst nightmares and knew that what lay beyond this set of doors would be those nightmares realised. The recently killed Oilien had brought him here on several occasions, moving through the corridors easily and without fear, but Alex had drawn back into the secret hideaway in his own mind every time. Langley brought him back from the terrible memories of those things he had glimpsed on the few occasion when he had ventured out.

"So... how do we get in, man?"

Alex placed his hand against a panel at the side, part of him hoping his bioscan was still active inside the computer, the other part dreading the journey ahead. Although he knew the computer would not be able to detect the lack of the Oilien in his body, there were other creatures beyond this door that would sense his vulnerability, his humanity. All Alex could hope was that Frohike and Byers kept the computer busy enough that it did not hamper their attempts to escape the bloodthirsty denizens of this twilight world.

The door slid open and they took a step inside. Alex heard a slight gasp from Mulder and understood his shock of recognition. Alex led the small group along the narrow corridor, ignoring the strange shapes to either side. He heard a stronger gasp followed by a blasphemous curse, turned and saw Langley with his horror-filled face staring into one of the wall alcoves.

"I-It's a man!"

Mulder's eyes met Alex then both their eyes drifted to the man's abdomen where a parasitic shape squirmed inside its human cocoon, Mulder's expression proving to Alex that he had recognised the interior of a Colonist mothership.

"How many more of these ships are there, Alex?"

"Just the three, though only two left on earth now."

Mulder nodded, suddenly aware of what they might find lurking in the corridors ahead of them. His memory flowed back to Antarctica and the terrifying chase through the narrow corridors as the creatures exploded from their human wombs, their sharp claws scrabbling along the slimy walls, skittering against the solid floor as they lunged towards him and Scully. He could remember the feel of a claw trying to wrap itself around his ankle, knew he had to escape its clutch or perish, his body slashed to pieces or carried off to host another of the greys.

His newly gained respect for Alex rose another notch as he watched his brother toughen his expression and lead them forward once more. He had only just come to realise that Alex had been living in hell these past years and yet he was stronger than ever for his experience. It humbled Mulder as he wondered if he would have been able to survive those terrible years without falling into a pit of insanity.

Strange noises set their hearts beating stronger, the humming sound increasing with every step they took. Ahead was another door, blocking their way; behind them was a scrabbling of sharp claws on slime-covered metal.

Alex placed his hand against the scanner. Nothing. He tried again, his eyes darting to Mulder then to Skinner.

"It's not opening."

The warm brown eyes held his, offering reassurance.

"Then we go back, find another route."

"We can't. They're behind us. We'll never make it through... not without sacrifices... and I'm not prepared to make any sacrifices."

Skinner could see the fear that was quickly forming on the beautiful face but he knew that this fear was not self-serving. He knew that Alex was not so much afraid for himself but for the rest of them. Despite the vaccine that coursed through Alex, Mulder and Scully's veins, none of them were safe from whatever nightmare creatures scrabbled along the corridor behind them. Skinner gave Alex a quick shake, his heart going out to the younger man who had suffered so much in his life. They had little time left to make a decision.

"Well, we can't go forward either."

Alex raised his eyes. "Then we go up... and pray Frohike and Byers can protect us."

-ooOOoo-

Frohike's fingers flew across the keyboard at a speed that had Byers head spinning. He had always known Frohike was brilliant but he had never seen him working so furiously, however, this was no normal hack. This was life and death for a group of people who had become their closest friends.

"Someone just opened a ceiling hatchway... computer's trying to send an alert.. need to stop it."

"Firewall... Going around it to locate the security protocol. Yeeesss."

Frohike spared a glance, a look of respect on his face for Byers. They each had a niche in the Lone Gunmen and hacking through protocols was one left to Langley. He knew Byers was not as comfortable with hacking, his expertise lying in the remembrance of other types of technology. Byers could tell you the names and suppliers of parts for covert prototypes, could recite the limitations of spy satellites, quote compounds and techniques used in experimental drugs... but he was most comfortable leaving the hacking to either Langley or Frohike.

The Consortium program accepted their explanation that the hatch had been moved by a maintenance crew, and it resealed the exit from the hive. Frohike had a good idea what that meant, having seen the bee that implanted the retrovirus into Scully. If the hive was opened then the instinct of the bees would be to target the invaders. Whether this particular swarm carried the retrovirus or whether their venom would kill, bringing lesions and boils breaking out over the surface of the skin while liquefying the innards, was unknown but Mulder had given Frohike a fair description of both results and neither were good.

With quick, deft finger presses, Frohike hacked into Holmes and Kildare, hoping their quasi-intelligence would remember him and help him to continue the fight.

-ooOOoo-

One by one they hauled themselves up into the crawlspace above the ceiling.

The sticky feel of the floor beneath his finger tips gave Alex a moment of terror, but his first horrifying thought that it was oilien faded when nothing tried to crawl up his skin. Even so, he was grateful for the strong yet gentle fingers that captured his face. Skinner held his face tight in those big hands, Skinner's own face mere inches from Alex, his voice deep but reassuring.

"It's okay, Alex. Listen to me. It's okay... just dirt and slime."

Alex forced his breathing to even out, swallowing hard then drawing in deep breaths to help his labouring lungs and to slow his rapidly beating heart. He hated the dark. He hated small spaces - and he hated the oil that slithered across his skin, its diesel smell filling his senses, its sick thoughts sliding through his mind with frightening ease.

Soft lips pressed against his own for a moment, the tender gesture doing more to take away the fear than any words. All these years he had felt so alone, trapped inside his own body, watching the creature spin its inhuman plans and execute them without even a glimmer of remorse or conscience. All those years he had dreamed of someone finding him, freeing him... holding him tight and promising to help him end the nightmare.

"You're not alone any more, Alex. I'm here for you."

His dream had come true.

Walter released his face and gave him a love-filled smile, moving back to give him space to scrub the tears from his cheeks. Another hand touched him and Alex drew on the strength offered in Mulder's eyes, his hands reaching out to clasp both of these men who had become so important to him.

"Wouldn't want to spoil this emotional moment but if we have company."

Alex looked back to where a clawed hand was scrabbling at the closed but unlocked hatchway.

"We have to seal that."

He looked from side to side but there was nothing in the small crawl space that could be used. He watched as Mulder took his expensive metal NASA pen from his pocket and jammed it into the bolt slide.

"Supposed to be indestructible. Maybe it'll hold them for a while."

Alex dropped to his stomach and started to slide into the small dark tunnel that lay ahead, smiling a little when he heard Scully's soft voice thanking whatever Gods were watching over them that she had pulled on a pair of jeans and boots.

-ooOOoo-

Spender dragged deeply on his cigarette as he listened to the operator. It seemed someone had tripped the back-up alarms and was making their way through the Colonist ship. Spender had a fair idea of who that somebody was even though the bioscan failed to be recorded. There was only one living human who could get through that door without raising the computer's alarm; Alex Krycek. Spender had a strong feeling that Alex was not alone -and he was not thinking of the Oilien who had been using that body these past few years.

A small smile curled his dry, seamed lips as he contemplated the idea of his two surviving sons reunited and working together for a common goal.

Spender made all the right gestures, spoke all the right words that would placate both the concerned security staff and the Colonists but, inside, he was at odds with himself.

He had already sacrificed the lives of his wife, Cassandra, and their son to the Consortium, and he had allowed his other children to be experimented upon - knowingly in Samantha and Mulder's case, unwittingly in the case of Alex.

When the Consortium had agreed to the agenda, fifty years ago, he had been a young and single man, barely into his twenties, with no knowledge of the sacrifices he would be forced to make as the years progressed and as Colonisation drew closer. Even so, he had been proud, the same way any man is proud of the heroic sacrifice of loved ones made in the time of war.

The aim of the Consortium had been twofold; on the one side they made all the appearance of following the objectives set out by the Colonists, and on the other they had been working to find a way to stop the alien invaders. He had made his sacrifices willingly for the good of all, but some of those other old men had weakened as the years passed, their fears growing until they were firmly under the influence of the Colonists. Others, like the Englishman, had paid the price for revealing their loyalties to Earth too soon although Spender could not find any anger in that old man's loss. After all, his actions had saved the life of Spender's first born son - Fox Mulder.

His eyes widened briefly as Spender realised where his thoughts were taking him. Quickly, he concealed his expression before someone questioned his thoughts.

All these years he had been working to subvert the Colonists, secretly marring their plans, waiting for the time to strike back. The vaccine, bought with the lives of thousands of unwilling humans - merchandise - would kill the Colonists, and plans were already under way to distribute it as part of a unsuspecting vaccine program. People would merely assume their children were getting a vaccine for one of the virulent strains of Meningitis.

Spender knew that a far more powerful vaccine had already been developed and was secreted away inside one of the laboratories inside the Colonist mothership. Even now the Colonist scientists were trying to find a way to counteract it, and Spender knew the Rebel aliens would let them do all that work as this particular vaccine would kill *them* just as surely.

It was obtaining this vaccine that drew Alex and Mulder into the mothership and Spender knew he had to let them succeed even if, this time, it meant sacrificing himself.

-ooOOoo-

The humming grew louder as they slithered on their bellies along the narrow passage, the duct no longer high enough for them to crawl through. Alex hoped they would reach the end soon, praying the duct would not narrow any further as he suspected Skinner was already struggling to move his broader frame through. Part of Alex's dream came back to haunt him, memory of his broader shoulders becoming stuck as he and Mulder tried to escape from the unreal Scully and her tests, but this time was no dream and Alex felt genuine fear for his new lover.

He sighed with relief when the duct opened out into a small chamber, ignoring the increased sound of humming that echoed around them.

"What is that noise? A generator?"

Alex licked his lips and glanced at Mulder, then his eyes caught fearful recognition on Scully's face. He turned away, fingernails scraping away the slimy silt that caked the lid of the hatchway before him and let one of the others answer Langley's question.

"Bees."

Alex decided to share some knowledge, unsure whether it would be welcome or not.

"They should have swarmed through the ducts as soon as the computer registered the tampering of the other hatchway. Frohike and Byers must have somehow stopped it or we'd all be dead by now." He gazed up, his eyes earnest. "There's no guarantee they'll be able to do the same again, so when I raise this hatch we get out of here fast and reseal it from below."

"I'll go last--"

"No--"

"Alex," Skinner looked into the suddenly fierce eyes, understanding the fear that lurked behind them. "You and Mulder are the most important members of this group... you especially. I'll open the hatchway and I'll go last through the hole."

Skinner could see the indecision in his lover's face and understood the fear crowding behind the bright green eyes. He gave Alex his most implacable expression, the one that even Mulder recognised and backed away from then waited for Alex to accept the decision.

He reached out and stroked the grimy cheek when Alex lowered his eyes in acceptance.

They quickly decided on the order so there would be no time lost scrabbling for position, and Skinner found himself having to accept Alex's own decision to go last but one. Before Skinner broke the seal he leaned across and kissed the soft lips.

"Ready?"

Skinner checked each face then threw open the hatchway, his heart beating faster as he watched the others drop through the hatchway, one by one. The sound of the swarm changed, becoming louder and Skinner felt the first one of many bees brushing against his cheek and against his scalp. As soon as Alex was through he dropped down, dragging the hatch lid closed behind him. Several bees had followed them into the corridor below and Skinner quickly helped to despatch those he could see, all the time remembering from Mulder's reports how fatal even a single bee sting could prove to be. Everyone removed their loose clothing, shaking out jackets and Skinner stood still as Alex checked him over. A bee that had become caught in Langley's straggly blond hair was knocked to the ground and crushed beneath Mulder's shoe.

"That all of them?"

Alex closed his eyes, letting his mind drift, then nodded and Skinner noticed Mulder doing the same before nodding his own agreement. Above them they could hear the sound of the angry bees battering against the ceiling, their aggressive programming forcing them to try and reach the vulnerable humans below.

"Then let's get moving."

"The laboratories are just ahead."

They came to the end of the passageway and came to a halt.

"Oh my!"

Alex and Mulder exchanged glances as they watched Scully's awe-filled face take in the cavernous room laying before them. Skinner came up behind her, an expletive falling from his lips while Langley stared wide-eyed, totally lost for words. From here they could see thousands of incubation chambers radiating out like spokes of a wheel from a central complex and Alex's stomach churned as he wondered how many were filled with unfortunate humans, some of their bodies prepared and waiting to host the parasitic larvae of the alien grays, others already lost, their innards fuelling the growing aliens.

The laboratory complex looked so tiny from this vantage point but both Alex and Mulder knew that size was deceptive. This room had to be almost a mile wide and half a mile deep. Light poured through the domed ceiling, illuminating the massive room but leaving the long passageways lost in deep shadows, illuminated only by the strange phosphorescent slime.

Alex pointed out the central complex lying far below at the centre of the massive wheel.

"That's where we're headed."

-ooOOoo-

Frohike breathed a sigh of relief as first Holmes then Kildare awoke to his call, their quasi-intelligent programs stretching out to wrestle with the Colonist/Consortium hybrid program. Kildare reached deep inside, sifting through the medical jargon on inhuman experiments with the ease of a hot knife through butter, snatching the data and placing it into the Lone Gunman's massive filestore. Holmes targeted the security systems, seeking out all the diverse locations for Consortium and Colonist experimental laboratories. Holmes was going to make sure this information reached his own masters, his justice programs demanding he did something to end the heinous crimes occurring in those laboratories. Frohike could see Holmes multi-tasking, making sweeps through the list of names of merchandise and comparing them to the lists in the Missing Person's databases stretched across the globe.

The Consortium machine was slowly being driven to its knees, its circuitry overloading as it tried to deal with the invaders on all levels, its resources stretched to the limit allowing Frohike and Byers even easier access to its security protocols.

Frohike swore profusely when he realised he had missed the second hatch opening. The computer had reacted instantly, the guardian bees swarming from their hive. Frohike managed to seal the hive but thousands of bees had already erupted into the duct in the meantime. He saw there was more movement in the ducts but the bees seemed uninterested in these new arrivals. These creatures were crawling along the narrow ducts, moving swiftly as they followed the path taken by Mulder's group and Frohike realised his friends were now being hunted.

-ooOOoo-

It took another 35 minutes to negotiate the long passageways to the central complex, ominous echoes of claws scrabbling on metal following close behind them. His heart was pounding by the time they reached the door to the complex and Alex could swear he could hear the racing hearts of the others too. He pressed his hand against the sensor pad and waited, hoping Frohike had reaffirmed his bioscan with the central computer and he breathed a sigh of relief when the door slid open.

Langley yelled as a monstrous shape slammed into him, sharp claws ripping towards his chest, raking through his t-shirt and drawing blood. The gun in Skinner's hand jumped as he pumped bullets into the fearsome creature, hearing its howl of rage before it fell back. Strong hands dragged Skinner through the doorway and he sank to his haunches in relief as the door slid closed swiftly, leaving the creature banging in futile upon the other side.

Scully was kneeling down over Langley, her hands pulling apart the t-shirt and checking the long gouge. She pulled the small medikit from her inside jacket pocket and swabbed the blood away with an antiseptic wipe.

"Not deep, just a surface laceration--"

"Stings like hell. Man, what was that thing?"

Mulder placed a hand on Langley's shoulder.

"You just had your first close encounter of the third kind."

"Damn! Whatever happened to 'we come I peace', or 'take me to your leader'."

Skinner gave a small smile and turned away from the huddled group to the silent figure staring along the pristine, white-walled corridor. He moved up behind Alex and waited until the quiet man acknowledged his presence.

Alex turned, staring into his eyes, and Walter felt the strongest desire to drown himself in those deep green pools. Over this journey he had come to realise that the vulnerable child he had fallen in love with was still there, reflected back during fearful moments, but he had also come to realise that there was so much more to this complex man. Walter felt a surge of pride and respect fill him, wondering at the incredible strength it took to come back fighting each time. A lesser man would have faltered at any one of the terrible trials of fire that Alex had been through, driven insane or become embittered but it seemed as if every ordeal just made Alex stronger. He smiled gently, a hand reaching out to stroke one finger along the slightly stubbled jaw line. Walter knew that this was a man he could love, freely, with all his heart... with all his soul; a man who would love him back with equal passion. A paternal instinct towards the little boy inside Alex was still strong but Walter had come to recognise that this was just one small aspect of the all-consuming love he felt towards Alex.

Dominion over my Soul.

This line from a half-remembered poem came back to haunt him and he finally understood its meaning. Loving Alex would be placing not just his heart but his very soul into this man's hands, to love or abuse as he saw fit, but Walter felt no fear. His heart told him that only love would come of this union; the serenity in Alex's eyes making him realise that Alex had already given his own heart and soul into his safekeeping.

He sighed deeply as Alex slipped into his arms, the strong arms wrapping around him tightly, the dark head resting upon his shoulder. Walter closed his eyes, blotting out the world around him, letting all his senses wrap themselves around this beautiful man held in his arms. He breathed in the scent of his lover, his lips nuzzling aside the mahogany hair, grazing the temple and tasting the salty sweat of soft skin.

All too soon he felt another touch and, reluctantly, he broke away from the warm embrace. Mulder gave them a soft smile, one full of understanding.

"Time to move on."

Alex took deep breath, feeling immeasurably better for that brief moment of calm in Walter's arms. It had helped re-focus his mind on the task still ahead of them; to find the vaccine and to discover why it was so important for Mulder and himself to be the ones to wield this weapon. First, though, they had to find where the vaccine was stored. Almost closing his eyes, he concentrated on the times when he'd been here before, trying to bring the precise layout of the central complex to his mind's eye.

The others remained silent, recognizing the look of intense concentration on Alex's face for what it was; and not wanting to disturb his train of thought.

Hesitantly at first, Alex started along the totally white corridor, he paused outside one door, then shook his head slightly and moved on. He took the first corridor on the left, which looked exactly like the one they had turned out of, and stopped outside the second door on the right. Putting his hand on the plate beside the lock, he waited for the computer to open the door for him. With a slight swish, it slid aside and they walked though into an anteroom, lined with cupboards. When they were all inside, Alex touched an identical plate on the wall and the door slid closed again.

"This is where they keep their version of the biohazard suits. My rider-" His voice cracked and he swallowed hard before trying again. "My rider would change here before going inside the lab."

"Should we do the same?" Mulder asked Scully, deferring to her greater knowledge of things medical.

When she'd got over the shock of Mulder actually asking her opinion, she considered the question. After carefully examining one of the suits, and finding that they were little different from those she'd worn during her visit to the NASA labs a couple of years before, she told them that it would probably be preferable to wear them until they were sure that no substances in the lab would be able to harm them.

"Added to which, they will be protective camouflage," the AD said when Scully had finished speaking. "If they normally wear these inside, if there any of them in the lab, we won't look out of place until we get close enough for them to identify us, then, hopefully, it will be too late for them to do anything about our presence. Though I'm not sure how we can overcome any of them."

Mulder looked at the leather jacket Alex was wearing and realised it was his own. He grinned and reached into the pocket, ignoring Alex's startled jump, and pulled out a slim cylinder.

"Stab this into the bundle of nerves the back of their neck and it kills them."

Krycek smiled grimly. "And I know just how to use it." he stated. "I've seen it used, by my rider, a few times; it doesn't need a lot of strength, just accuracy. If you miss the nerves then, after a few minutes of paralysis, the victim can get up and move again. For some reason, taking out these nerves also seems to neutralize the toxicity of their blood. Of course, shooting them in the back of the neck works the same way... but is somewhat noisier."

His graveyard humour brought wry grins to the faces of the three FBI agents, but made Langly look a little green around the gills.

"Being serious for a moment," Alex went on, "As I'm not sure how the fabric of these suits would affect the stiletto, it would be better to use a bullet on anyone wearing one."

Mulder thought about it for a moment and nodded.

"Perhaps you'd best hold onto it then, Alex."

Finding suits to fit them didn't take long as Alex was able to translate some of the hieroglyphics on the cupboard doors. When they were all kitted out, Alex flipped the switch beside the inner door to enable them to pass into the laboratory.

As Alex closed the door behind them, Scully looked about her, some of the equipment wouldn't have looked out of place in the FBI labs she so often frequented, other pieces were so different in shape that she had absolutely no idea what purpose they served.

Fortunately, apart from themselves, the room was empty. They followed Alex almost to the opposite end from the door, where he stopped in front of a tall metal cylinder with a narrow glass window set into the side through which they could see that the container was about three-quarters full of a dark amber liquid.

Mulder cleared his throat to break the silence that none of them realized has fallen over the group. "I can remember... that weird shared dream we had, I suppose, I don't know... I saw one of them take some oil samples from the cupboards over to our left, add a sample of whatever they were working on and put them in the chamber. Then they let a few drops of liquid out of the cylinder, and the oil shrivelled up and they were angry...

While his brother was speaking, Alex walked over to the cupboard and discovered row upon row of test-tubes each containing a little drop of a dark oily substance. He picked one up, "Do you think..." his voice wobbled a little, so he took a deep breath and started again, "Do you think they take samples of themselves, just as we take blood samples to test?"

Langly backed away from him as he approached the group with the test-tube still in his hand. "What are you going to do with that?"

A look of fierce determination crossed Krycek's face. "I'm going to test my theory," he stated. "It should be easy enough to set up an experiment. We know that my blood has the current vaccine in it. Therefore, we should put some of my blood into a shallow dish; put a drop of this oil nearby, and if the oil is viable then it will move towards the blood - which should then kill it. If this works, then we use another drop of the same oil and test the contents of the cylinder."

Scully nodded. "Yes, that would fulfil the criteria for our purposes. We would have to test every sample we used in the same manner to make sure that it's live."

"But how are we going to get at Alex's blood bundled up in suits?" Skinner asked mildly. "We put them on because of the risk of contamination."

Nonplussed, no-one spoke or moved while they tried to think of a solution to their dilemma.

Suddenly, without a word of warning, Langly started taking his suit off, only speaking once he'd removed the helmet. "I'm the most expendable," he said, "If this air's contaminated then we'll soon know... and if we don't solve this vaccine problem it's gonna come back and bite us in the ass."

They waited five minutes, then Scully checked Langly over, after which she removed her own suit. "Walter, keep your suit on and go stand guard by the door, in case anyone comes in while we're playing with syringes. Mulder, keep your suit on for the time being too, again in case of visitors. We three can duck down while you deal with them."

Alex took off his suit, and he and Scully rummaged through cupboards and drawers until they had all the equipment they needed. Then, after drawing a syringe full of blood from Alex, Scully ran the first test that he had suggested. Into one of the wells on what was obviously specially designed ceramic plate, she placed a few drops of Alex's blood. Into another well on the opposite side of the plate she placed about half of the oil from the test-tube.

They stood back and watched in fascinated horror as the oil oozed out of the depression, and across the middle of the plate to drop into the puddle of blood. Even as the two met, they saw a desperate attempt to retreat, but it was too late, the black worm crumbled to dust in moments to leave what looked like blobs of soot floating on the surface.

"Well, that's proved two things," Alex stated with satisfaction. "It is live oil, and my blood is still lethal."

Scully smiled grimly. "Yes, it has, now let's try this new vaccine."

She consigned the test plate to the sterilizer, and selected another one from the pile. This time she used the other half of the tube of oil and added a minute drop of what they had presumed to be the vaccine. This time the oil shrivelled up to a black sludge, which ignored the siren call of fresh blood when Scully put a small sample onto the middle of the plate.

Sounding pleased, Scully said, "O-kay. Now we need to know how this new vaccine interacts with human blood. Langly is the only one amongst us that has uncontaminated blood."

Rather hesitantly Langly came forward to offer his arm. Scully drew some of his blood and looked at a sample under a microscope before adding a drop of the vaccine. Staring intently, she watched and waited... eventually breathing a sigh of relief when it behaved exactly the way it should have done.

"So far so good," she murmured more to herself than to her audience. "Time for another test. Alex, pick me another sample of oil please."

Taking another plate, she put the vaccinated sample of Langly's blood in one well, and half the tube of alien oil in another. Exactly as had happened before, the oil made a bee-line for the blood and shrivelled to dust on contact.

Looking much happier now that they had proved the vaccine worked, she said, "Mulder, I will need blood samples from both you and Walter, and as none of us has suffered any ill effects I think you can both safely remove your suits.

Mulder and Skinner stripped off the cumbersome clothing with almost identical sighs of relief, getting the chance to cool down while baring their arms for Scully to draw the blood she needed.

She then ran the same tests on the samples taken from Mulder, Skinner and herself, proving, as far as she could, that it wouldn't have any adverse effect on them.

"Now what? We have a stronger vaccine, but what good is it going to do us? We still have the same logistical problem of getting it out of here, finding a way to replicate it and then distribute it."

"There has to be some reason why Alex and I were sent to find it."

"My brother and I are supposed to be some kind of catalyst." Alex spoke almost at the same time. "That's why we both had to be here."

Mulder nodded slowly, "Yes, I remember...." He frowned trying hard to catch the thoughts dancing just out of reach.

The two half-brothers stood in almost identical postures, their foreheads almost touching, staring at the floor trying to recall their half remembered dreams.

-oo00oo-

Noticing that the frantic typing had let up a little, Byers asked, "How are they doing?"

Frohike took a deep breath. "They're inside the main complex, the heart of the ship, in one of the laboratories as far as I can tell. While they're in there I can keep them safe, but I haven't been able to find a way to get the bees under control. There are still thousands of them flying around after their release from their hives. Also, they will still have to contend with some of the aliens when they try to make their way out. I haven't been able to find anything that would nullify their threat without putting Mulder and the others at risk, if not actually killing them."

-oo00oo-

Spender, suddenly tired of the conference which was getting nowhere, stood up and told the startled Colonists, and the security staff, "There is no need for any of you to do anything. I'll handle it, as I've always done in the past. The situation will be contained."

They let him go then, assured that he would report back to them, once he was successful.

Leaving them behind both metaphorically and physically, he hurried to the labs. He had another way of getting into the part he needed to access, without having to alert the computer to his presence.

Even as he moved through the corridors he was aware that he had almost let things progress too far, and he quickened his stride determined not to fail his sons for lack of effort.

-oo00oo-

After a few minutes of looking at Mulder and Krycek, Langly looked at Skinner, then at Scully. "What, exactly, is a catalyst?"

Scully shrugged. "A catalyst is a substance which causes catalysis."

"Meaning?"

Scully sighed. "If I remember correctly; catalysis is 'the facilitation of a chemical reaction by the presence of an added substance which is itself not consumed'. You can put two chemicals together and nothing happens, add a third substance and you get a reaction, which leaves the third substance unchanged." She shook her head in frustration. "Though I'm not sure I can see how that can be relevant to the current situation."

Skinner cleared his throat. "Should we leave with what we have while we still can?" he asked. "We need to get the vaccine out of here so that the task of replicating and distributing it can begin." When he wasn't answered he walked over to the cylinder of vaccine to see if there were some way to remove it from it's position.

"Substances!" Krycek and Mulder spoke together, then looked at Scully.

"I think we're trying too hard Scully," Mulder stated.

"Yeah," Krycek continued. "We do have different substances. My blood has the vaccine from the version given to Skinner. Mulder has an older one that he was given in Tunguska, the same one that I gave to the Brit, which he later gave to Mulder to give to you, Scully. We have the new vaccine and samples of the Oiliens."

"What would happen if we put them all together?" Mulder asked, his eyes alight with excitement.

Scully looked at them with a skeptical expression on her face, then sighed at the almost identical pouts she received from the two men. "We've nothing to lose at this point." she admitted. "But how do we know how much of each to use?"

"Take an equal amount from both of us, add a reduced dose of vaccine and some oil and see what happens," Krycek replied, holding his bared arm out towards her.

Scully looked at Mulder and he too held out an arm. Faced with their insistence, she decided that now was not the time to argue, and did as they asked.

Carefully measuring the blood she took, and calculating the dose of vaccine, then Alex bought another sample of the Oilien and unceremoniously tipped it into the mixture. As before black motes drifted on the surface of the red, viscous liquid.

Before anyone could say anything, Alex got another sample of Oilien and tipped it in after the first.

This time there was a slightly different reaction; a tendril of what looked for all the world like steam arose from the surface. They looked at one another, was this the reaction they had been looking for?

Nodding to herself, Scully fetched another sample and tipped it in; another curl of 'steam' thicker this time. Four more times they added the contents of an Oilien tube, the smoke thicker each time. Alex went to add another, and stopped in the act of tipping, a small puff of steam coming from the newly opened tube.

He held it up and shook it, there was just dust in the bottom. "I was sure this was liquid," he muttered. Laying it down he went to fetch another, making sure that it was liquid before be opened it.

The same thing happened again, and he stared at the tube in his hand looking very puzzled.

Scully who had been scowling at the flask on the table, suddenly laughed at Alex's expression, then went to fetch a tube for herself. When she was near the flask she very gingerly opened the top and shut it again almost immediately. The tube filled with smoke and she popped it under the microscope to have a closer look at the contents. After a few moments she motioned the men to take a look for themselves.

"We're making micro-organisms. Singly they are too small to be seen by the naked eye, which is why we see what looks like steam before they disperse."

When they had each taken a look, she opened the tube and the 'smoke' disappeared.

"Aren't you afraid they might be harmful to us?" Skinner enquired.

She shook her head. "No, it's something in the Oilien that is interacting with the mixture in the flask. Since both Alex and Mulder have carried an Oilien, and the population as a whole has had no ill effects from breathing the same air as they have, I'd say it was pretty conclusive that it won't affect us. However, judging from the results here it could have a devastating effect on an Oilien."

"The only way to find out is to test it, and since we have to get out of here, I suggest we do our field trials on the way." The Ad's voice stated from behind them.

Krycek, Mulder and Scully turned round to find Skinner and Langly had managed to get the cylinder of vaccine off the wall and were in the act of lowering it on to the bottom shelf a high-sided lab trolley.

"I agree," Scully stated. "We'll take the flask and as many of the Oilien tubes as we can manage."

"Should we prime some more of our blood, in case what we have gets spilt?" Mulder asked, acutely aware that things had gone wrong in the past due to not having a backup plan.

Scully nodded. "Yes, I'll make up another batch in case of emergencies. Once I've taken another sample from you and Alex, you can both help load the trolley with supplies. Make sure you have at least two of any of the implements we've used, just to be on the safe side.

Alex looked from one partner to the other, then rolled up his sleeve with a sigh, beginning to feel like a pin cushion.

-oo00oo-

Spender reached the auxiliary control centre after managing to avoid contact with any of the colonists. The existence of this area was known only to a select few. It's entrance, and the doors within it, were controlled by a completely self-contained system and not by the central computer. However, once he initiated the commands to power up the command console, he would be vulnerable to any defence mechanisms unless, or until, he could override them.

He let himself in and issued a command to the computer not to open the door to anyone for any reason, and signed the order with his thumbprint. His privacy assured, for a time at least, he went into the control room and powered up the console. Putting blocks in place to guard his access as well as he could.

For a while he monitored the computer activity, and identified the lines through which the hacking attack was being launched, and by manipulating some internal programs he gave the line unrestricted access.

His next act of sabotage was to attack the hives, releasing chemicals that would destroy the bees. The distressed insects, converged on the combs, and those roaming outside made their way through the shafts which would take them back to their hives. These shafts had angled fibres inside them which would only allow them to fly one way, in the same manner as in nature some plants trapped insects.

He relaxed a little then, although of course there was no guarantee, all the bees should be dead very soon, removing one obstacle from his sons' escape route. Smiling to himself, he lit a cigarette, and starting tapping in the commands to make sure that if any of the insects did survive the computer would not be able to release them should any of the alarms be tripped.

-oo00oo-

Frohike stopped typing, a look of surprise crossing his face.

"What's up?" Byres asked worriedly, noticing the sudden silence.

"Someone, with very high clearance, has started helping me from the inside. All of a sudden I've got a secure line access so, unless I make a total ass of myself, the computer can't shut me out, and they now seem to be disabling some of the alarm triggers."

"Don't look a gift horse in the mouth," Byers reminded him. "I'll keep an eye on what they're doing, and watch out for spikes coming our way, but it for the moment it looks like we have a secret ally."

"Thanks." Frohike started typing again, probing deeper into the vast computer.

-oo00oo-

When the trolley was loaded, Alex opened the inner door of the laboratory, then went to work on the outer one, keying in a code to override the normal release mechanism that demanded the inner door be closed before the other would open.

The all tensed as the door started to slide back, wondering if their presence in the laboratory had been detected, and the sound of Alex activating the alien stiletto startled them. There was a collective sigh of relief, and embarrassed grins were exchanged, when the corridor was found to be empty.

Mulder and Krycek led off, then a few paces behind them came Scully, guiding the trolley that Langly was pushing, and Skinner brought up the rear, carrying their discarded biohazard suits in case they should need them. At the junction to the main corridor, the men in the lead edged up to the corner, one looking left, the other right. When that proved to be empty too, they motioned the others forward.

Subconsciously they slowed as they neared the entrance to the complex. Though none of them had voiced their fears, there were two thoughts which lurked at the back of their minds... would the horror that had attacked and injured Langly on their way in, still be waiting for them... and, would the organisms they had wrought be strong enough to combat it.

As Alex reached out to place his hand on the bioscan, Mulder caught hold of his arm.

"Before we open the door, I think we ought to prime a couple of the tubes, so if that... thing is waiting for us, we can chuck them outside and close the door. Even if it isn't, maybe we ought to release some outside, since we don't know if the air here is on a separate system from out there. It would give it a chance to get circulating before we encounter any of them. After all, we have no way of knowing how long these organisms are going to take to work..." He didn't have to had *if* they are going to work, but it was something they were all thinking.

"That's a good idea, Mulder," Scully said approvingly, picking up a tube. "I'll prime a few for you."

A couple of minutes later, they put Mulder's plan into action, Alex opened the door, Mulder and Scully each flung a tube outside, then Alex closed the door again.

They grinned at one another, then turned, their eyes widening in shock as a door behind Skinner opened and an alien came out into the hallway. There was a moment when no-one moved, then as Alex started forward, the alien whirled and retreated back the way it had come.

Mulder snatched up the last of the primed tubes and ran after Alex. Scully quickly primed another tube, then she too ran after Alex. Skinner desperately wanted to do the same, to make sure his lover was okay, but his sense of duty prevented him from abandoning Langly. He did, however, follow Scully's example and prime one of the tubes ready for use.

Mulder paused on the threshold seeing Alex struggling with the alien, trying to prevent it from reaching a desk at the far end. Carefully, so as not to upset Alex's balance, Mulder moved between the struggling pair and the alien's objective, then he opened the tube in front of the alien's face.

Scully skidded to a halt and watched the drama unfolding, and as Mulder released the micro-organism, willing it to work.

A minute went by, then two and Alex was panting and sweating badly. Mulder looked at Scully with that lost, hurt look, that brought out the mothering instinct in her, wanting reassurance that this was going to work.

Suddenly Alex staggered back, he crashed into the wall, and the alien's limp form fell from his grasp.

Mulder leapt forward and helped Alex to a chair, for once more concerned about the health of his brother than watching to see if an alien was going to die. When he was reassured that Alex hadn't suffered any ill effects, he demanded, "Why on earth didn't you use the stiletto?"

Alex grinned, then gestured tiredly towards the alien. "We needed a test subject and this seemed like the ideal opportunity."

Mulder shook his head in disbelief, then looked at Scully expecting her to say something about Alex's foolhardiness, and was surprised to see that she was trying hard not to laugh.

"What?" he asked.

Scully only shook her head and moved towards the door to call the others inside. She had to get away before she lost control completely, for Mulder's reaction to Alex's impulsiveness, was exactly the same as her usual reaction to her partner's. Those boys were definitely two of a kind...

 

 

Out in the corridor she told Skinner and Langly what had happened, and smothered a grin at the groan that her boss gave when she described Krycek holding the alien for Mulder to experiment on.

Skinner groaned again when they reached the doorway, for there were the two men crouched down beside the alien with almost identical looks of absorbed fascination on their faces.

Langly pushed the trolley inside the door then abandoned it to go have a really close look at the alien.

Scully and Skinner looked at on another, shrugged, and walked over to join the group just in time to hear Langly ask, "Is it dead?"

"That's what we were trying to decide when you came in," Mulder replied, flicking his eyes at his watch then returning them to the body.

"How long since..." Alex asked.

"Six minutes, forty-eight seconds since we administered the dose; four minutes, seventeen seconds since it collapsed," Mulder replied immediately.

"Look, I hate to say this guys, but we're wasting valuable time here," Langly butted in. "We don't know how soon any more of these doors might open, or how long Frohike and Byers are going to be able to protect us, we owe it to them to move on." He paused and looked at the famous Mulder pout, then went on, "Okay, okay... we'll take the damn thing with us, but we have to move on."

"I agree, we can't wait," Skinner stated, "If we really must take it with us we'll have to find something to carry it on."

"No need, look..." Alex cried out excitedly, pointing his finger at the alien's face.

They all crowded round the body again. Alex was pointing at a small curl of 'smoke' coming from the alien's open mouth.

"Eight minutes, six seconds," Mulder intoned.

"In that case, let's go people," Skinner urged.

Scully and Krycek each grabbed hold of one of Mulder's arms and pulled him away.

"C'mon, Fox," Alex whispered in his ear. "We've got more work to do. A whole world to save."

Mulder took a deep breath and gave a lopsided grin. "Sorry," he murmured as he took his place with Alex at the front of their cavalcade, and led the way to the main door.

Weapon at the ready, Alex touched his palm to the bioscan and as the door slid aside they cautiously started on their journey back to the open air.

-oo00oo-

"They've left the central complex," Frohike broke the silence. "Alex has just opened its outer door."

"I wonder if they've been successful," Byres said, not taking his eyes from the screen he was watching.

"I wish we knew..."

-oo00oo-

In the auxiliary control centre, Spender was wishing exactly the same thing. He, too, had detected Alex using the bioscan at the exit, and he was worried about the amount of time they had spent inside the laboratory. Surely, if they had found the vaccine, they would have left before now.

He really needed to *see* what was going on, having no security cameras in a situation like this was both a blessing and a curse. However, he'd not been idle during the enforced wait and, with luck, one of the maintenance robots he had manoeuvred into position would soon pick them up on its tiny camera.... Yes... there they were, hurrying along one of the walkways that led to the outer rings of the ship. Five scurrying figures guiding a trolley piled with what looked like lab equipment... and the reason for their haste was swiftly closing the gap behind them.

One of the 'new borns' was gaining on them rapidly.

As he watched, the fugitives reached the end of the walkway and made for a corner of the elevator lobby. Before they could use it, they would need to deal with their pursuer.

-oo00oo-

Pushing Scully, Langly and the trolley into the corner, the others took up guard with some metal struts they had found where some repairs were being carried out.

The creature slowed, uncertain what to do about the sharp metal points being jabbed in its direction.

Working quickly, Scully primed one of the tubes. "Ready," she panted.

Without taking his eyes off the creature, Mulder stretched his right hand back and she placed the test-tube safely in his palm. With a swift movement, Mulder pitched it at the shiny black body of the creature, who batted the missile downwards to shatter at its feet.

"Just exactly what I thought you'd do," the agent murmured with a satisfied smile.

"How long do you think it will take to work?" Langly asked, pushing his glasses up his nose.

Scully shrugged. "The delivery isn't as close, however, because it's what Krycek and Mulder call a 'new born', it could be more susceptible. On the other hand...."

The creature hissed and darted forward as Scully started speaking. Mulder and Krycek both angled their poles towards its head, and as the alien brought its arms up to defend its eyes, Skinner aimed his blow towards its midriff and knocked it backwards.

It came forward again, one hand held ready to guard its face, the other holding the place where the AD's blow had landed.

"Mulder, head, Alex, middle," Skinner commanded. "I'll go for its legs."

Again their combined strategy forced the creature to stagger away. It limped back towards them again and stopped just outside the range of their defence.

"Die already," Alex ground out, feeling the strain burn across his shoulders from wielding the heavy strut.

"I'm giving it another thirty seconds, then I'm shooting it through the throat," Scully muttered, surreptitiously drawing her weapon. "And started counting... twenty-nine... twenty-eight..."

The creature took one step forward, a second, then collapsed in a pile almost touching the ends of the poles as they had followed its movement towards the floor.

They waited to make sure that the collapse wasn't a ruse, then edged themselves around it and took the elevator up to the next level, praying that they wouldn't meet any more of these horrors on their way out.

-oo00oo-

As soon as the elevator started climbing the wall, Spender activated another of the robots and guided it towards the remains of the defeated alien... he wanted a much closer look at the dead creature. He also wanted to know what had been in the test-tube, it hadn't been the vaccine, that much was certain because for it do have done any good... harm rather... it would have to have been injected.

Shelving that thought for later consideration, he concentrated on getting the robot into a position where he could get a good look at the corpse. Maybe that would give him some answers, or at least give him some ideas on how to help them further. For the first time in many, many years, he felt invigorated, that his life did indeed have a purpose again....

His brow furrowed as the robot rolled off the end of the walkway. Smoke seemed to be rising from the corpse. The robot stopped with its wheels touching the chitinous remains. He adjusted the lens for macro vision and looked into the smoke.

"Microbes! Could it be that simple?"

Directing the robot to take one of the 'smoking' limbs, he guided it back along the walkway to the first junction, then manoeuvred it along a corridor and into a computer filled room where two of the aliens were working. They took the proffered limb from the robot, peering at it intently, and less than ten minutes later there were two smoking bodies crumpled on the floor.

Working quickly he rerouted airflows, making sure that the contaminated air would flow into every compartment of the ship, and to the buildings above. He smiled grimly, as more compartments were affected, and more of the aliens died, the number of microbes in the air would grow exponentially before being vented to the outside world. Whether that would make it impossible for him to escape, only time would tell.

Satisfied that he had done all that he could for the moment, he sat back in the command chair and lit a cigarette. He kept an eye the monitors and watched as the ship became a tomb, and his sons escaped the vessel.

-oo00oo-

They arrived back at the beach house tired and triumphant. On the way back, Skinner had arranged for Alex's borrowed Bugatti to be returned to its rightful owner, and ensuring that it was completely sanitized before the handover.

They'd stopped off and picked up the other two Gunmen, and their van. Frohike was crowing about the gigabytes of data that he'd managed to download from the mainframe, while the raiding party told how they had found not only the vaccine, but a weapon to use against the aliens.

Far into the night they discussed the microbe, and how it might replicate itself, naturally Scully wanted to start work on that as soon as practicable, and ways and means of distributing the weapon around the world as quickly as possible, rather than rely on the vagaries of the weather patterns. Until, finally, Skinner called a halt and packed everyone off to bed, declaring they would all think clearer in the morning.

Alex was so tired when they reached their bedroom that he could hardly find enough energy to undress, not that Skinner was much less tired. Promising themselves more time for each other in the morning, they tumbled into bed and fell asleep wrapped in each others arms.

The rapid spread of the microbes was what woke them the next morning, though it was actually Skinner's cell phone that did the deed. It was the Director's secretary, who said the Director wanted to speak to him immediately, and put him through.

Alex watched thoughtfully as he listened to Skinner's side of the conversation which consisted of mainly 'yes sir', and eventually, 'I can be there in about two hours, sir', before thumbing the off button, and getting hastily out of bed.

"Walter, what's wrong?"

Skinner leaned down, took Alex's face between his hands and gave him a loving kiss. When at last he drew back, he said, "I may be wrong, but I think our microbes may have been at work already. Go wake up the others and put the coffee on. I'll get a shower, then tell all of you about it at the same time to save repeating myself."

Much as he wanted to pull Walter back into bed and devour him, Alex reluctantly accepted this wasn't the right time. Turning his head slightly he kiss the palm of Walter's left palm, the said, "Okay."

Loath to let go, Walter gave him a quick hug, then strode to the bathroom, cursing all and sundry under his breath for dragging him away from his lover.

Alex slid out of bed, pulled on a pair of sweats and padded out to the kitchen to put the coffee on first. The he went from room to room, waking the others, with the same message: The FBI Director had phoned, and Walter wanted to talk to them all.

Once they were all sitting round the table with helpings of toast, scrambled eggs, bacon and tomatoes, Walter said, "I expect Alex has told you that I had a call from the Director this morning. Apparently, Senator Henderson has disappeared. It would seem that when his staff went to wake him this morning, his pyjamas were I the bed coated with a black dust. Now I could be wrong, but I think out microbes have been at work. Naturally we must respond as if this could be a trick to disguise a kidnapping... When I leave here I'll go to my apartment, get changed and go meet the Director at Henderson's home. Scully, please do the same. Mulder, I want you to take Alex, get his a suit, get changed yourself, then meet us there."

He looked at three gunmen. "I know you downloaded a lot of data yesterday. See if you can find any clues as the to identity of the consortium, who may have alien riders, or who may have been replaced by aliens. We need to do a clean up operation. If I am right about Henderson, we could find a lot more people have disappeared in a puff of smoke."

"We could posit 'spontaneous human combustion'," Mulder deadpanned. "After a thorough investigation, of course."

"Erm - I haven't got a badge..." Alex reminded his lover hesitantly.

The AD waived the objection aside. "Mulder will get you both in. We'll have to fix up something permanent afterwards. I want you there to see if you recognize Henderson, there are bound to be pictures of him, and more importantly we need to find out if any of his staff in the pay of the consortium. Mulder, make sure Alex stays with you and try not to let him out of your sight."

He drank his cup of coffee, then started for the door. "I'll see you later." he went out, then poked his head back round the door, "Oh, and Alex, sunglasses might be a good idea." Then he was gone.

-oo00oo-

One hour and fifty-eight minutes after being phoned, Walter Skinner parked his car in the drive of Senator Henderson's home. He showed his badge to the cop on duty and was waved inside where the Director was waiting for him.

"Morning, Walter. I'm sorry to call you while you are on vacation." he said. "But I think this may well come into your jurisdiction."

Skinner nodded. "Good morning. Yes, I thought so too, and I've notified my X-File team. They are on their way here now."

"Good. Good." the Director looked at his watch, then grimaced. "Now you're here, I'd better go to the White House, they are understandably concerned. Let me know if your people find anything, as, so far, the locals haven't come up with anything."

"You will be the first to know, after me," the AD assured him.

The Director introduced him to Lt. Porter, their liaison with the local police, then left.

Porter asked if the AD would like to view the scene, which Skinner politely declined, telling the Lieutenant that he would be waiting for his agents to arrive, before doing so.

As the Director's car drew out of the drive, Scully's car drew in. They formally said 'good morning' in front of the locals, then drew aside.

When she was sure that no-one could overhear them, she grinned up at her former lover, and said, "Mulder was already on the phone to his tailor before he left the house, and got in the back seat without a quibble. I dropped them off at a cab rank, at his request, he said they'd probably come here by cab too, to save time."

Skinner's lips twitched, and his eyes sparkled appreciatively. "I gave him a challenge, Scully. To outfit his brother and get here in about two hours."

"Do we wait for them?"

"Yes, I think so.... Ah, here they are now," he replied as a cab drew up outside the house."

They watched the two elegantly dressed men, both wearing dark glasses, get out of the cab. Mulder paid the driver, waved his badge under the guard's nose, then with Alex at his side, came into the house.

"Good morning, sir," they chorused, as they came to a halt in front of the AD.

Skinner acknowledged their greeting, then introduced Porter, before requesting the Lieutenant to take them to Henderson's bedroom.

After inspecting the bedroom and touring the house, the rest of the morning was taken up with interviewing Henderson's staff, while Scully returned to the Hoover building to oversee the forensic team, and do some tests of her own on the black dust.

When the interviews were over, Skinner thanked the Lieutenant, told Mulder and Krycek to get into the back of his car, then drove away. When they had been travelling for a while, the AD asked, "Had you seen Henderson before, Alex?

Krycek nodded. "Yes, I didn't know his name though, and I've seen his secretary before, but I don't remember seeing anyone else from the household."

Mulder's cell phone rang, he listened for a few minutes, then turning to Alex he said, "It's Langly, they've got back to their HQ and have made quite a lot of progress with the data, but a few of the passwords are giving them a problem. He wants to know if you might know any of them."

Alex held out his hand for the phone, and had a long conversation with the Gunman before handing the instrument back. Later, as they approached the Hoover building, he nervously cleared his throat. "I... I can't go in, I don't have a badge..."

Skinner looked into the rearview mirror and grinned. "Don't worry about it... an appropriate badge will be waiting for you."

Totally bemused, Alex followed them out of the car and into the building. He clipped on the badge he was given, and trailed along in the wake of the other two men....

-oo00oo-

 

3 months later

Alex swung his car into the driveway of their home, and switched off the engine. He let his body relax in the seat, just glad not to be moving any more. Shaking his head, he reached for the remote to open the garage door and caught sight of the clock on the dash. He left the remote alone, opening their stubbornly squeaking door at 2am on a Sunday morning was not a good idea.

As quietly as he could, he got his bag from the trunk and let himself into the two story house, smiling when he found that Walter had left some of the wall lights on in case he had managed to get home.

Leaving his bag in the hall, he climbed the stairs and slipped into their bedroom, briefly illuminating the bed with the dim light. Alex smiled, Walter was lying in his usual position, facing the empty half of the bed where he usually slept, partly on his side and partly on his back, just waiting for him to slip into his arms.

Tempting though those arms were, he needed to get rid of the stale smell of sweat and smoke; of travelling back to Washington by plane, after hanging about an overheated airport for hours.

Stripping off his clothes, he went into the bathroom along the hall, so as not to wake his lover. Quickly scraped a razor over his beard, then adjusted the water temperature to the comfortable side of warm, before stepping under the spray. While washing, he couldn't help contemplating how drastically his life had changed in the last few months. From alien slave, to respected "hero". He snickered quietly, remembering the Director's face when they had marched into his office with the decrypted data and proof of aliens and Walter had asked him, "How open are you to the paranormal, and to the existence of alien life?" Events had moved so fast, some changes were hard to assimilate, he almost felt as if he were dreaming the whole thing.

When he'd realized that he was wearing his original FBI badge it had almost unnerved him, but Walter, and his brother, had met all enquiries with a bland expression and murmurings of 'working undercover'.

He switched off the water and wrapped himself in a bath sheet, and stood looking at his clear, green eyes in the mirror. For so long he had looked at the world from a distance, unable to help those his rider had oppressed, unable to express anything of himself... no will... no thoughts... no wishes... It was only the loving support he had received from Mulder and Dana, and more especially Walter, that had got him through the bad patches, the nightmares that he still, sometimes, experienced. He grinned into the mirror, sharing a bedroom with Mulder the insomniac while out on a case, did have it's advantages, as his brother had woken him from one more than once.

Drying himself off, he went back to the bedroom and climbed into bed, snuggling up to Walter and smiling dreamily when the older man's arms automatically wrapped themselves around him. He was still smiling when he drifted off to sleep.

-oo00oo-

Five hours later, Walter slowly came awake, and aware that a warm body was snuggled against him.

He had been disappointed when Alex had phoned to say that they had been diverted to Chicago, and delayed by a snow storm on their return from the assignment in Hawaii, and warned that unless there was a break in the weather they might not be able to get a flight until the next day.

It was the first time that Alex, and the others, had gone very far away since his realization of just what had been controlling Alex, and enlisting Dana's aid to combat it.

He tightened his arms and kissed the sable head on his shoulder, Alex took and deep breath, but otherwise didn't stir. Heaven alone knows what time his lover had arrived, but he was so glad to have him in his arms... in his bed... at the beginning of a short vacation... He now had a much larger staff to oversee, a direct result of the downfall of the consortium and the negation of the threat of alien invasion.

He sighed, overcoming the initial resistance of the top floor had been the worst part, but once they were presented with irrefutable proof, not only of the aliens, but also the 50 years of collaboration of members of Government departments, all over the world, they had cleaned house with a dogged determination. More encouraging still, was that the World Health Organization would make sure that everyone was vaccinated - so there would be no way back for the Oiliens... ever.

Alex stirred and snuffled, breaking into his thoughts. He kissed the top of his lover's head and Alex snuffled again, before rubbing his head under Walter's chin.

"'Morning." Alex's husky voice murmured.

"Morning, beautiful," Walter replied, and felt Alex laugh against his chest, little puffs of air blowing across an exposed nipple.

Alex moved his head and his tongue rasped across the nipple, sending a shiver down Walter's spine, and an unmistakable message to his cock.

It was the work of moments to flip Alex on to his back and claim his oh so tempting mouth in a deep kiss.

When they drew apart, Alex said breathlessly, "Anyone would think you'd missed me, Walter." He arched his body upwards and rubbed their engorged cocks together, making Walter growl - it was a sound he loved.

Before Alex could do it again, Walter started a determined assault on the younger man's sensitive nipples, making him squirm and whimper, his hands massaging erogenous spots all over his lover's body, until Alex's cries turned to just one word, repeated over and over again, "Please... please...."

Not that Alex's hands had been still, his own nipples were so sensitized, that finally Walter had to hold them away otherwise this was going to be over too soon. Holding the wrists trapped together he leaned over and reached into the nightstand's drawer for the lube, pausing to lap at the pool of pre-cum which had collected in Alex's navel on the way.

Alex's whimpers had now become non-verbal, arousing Walter to the point that he desperately needed to be inside the delectable body laid out beneath him. With his own orgasm building, he knew that they had both reached the point where they could not wait much longer. So, with practised ease, he prepared Alex and started to thrust inside; working himself ever deeper, aiming for that spot which would give his lover the most pleasure. As he reached it, Alex arched up, his hips pumping air, and Walter took the straining erection in hand and stroked it in time with the movement of his hips.

As he started to come, he felt Alex tighten around him, and his hand was covered with his lover's seed.

Breathing heavily, they stayed more or less in the same positions, until Walter gently withdrew and sat back on his heels. Taking one of the towels they kept for these times from the beside cupboard, he wiped them both clean, then nestled down beside Alex, pulling the bedclothes back over them both.

He gathered Alex into his arms, and they snuggled together in post-coital bliss, content to let the future take care of itself....

THE END.