Season Six:
Episode 3

Desert terrain Nevada,
USA
4:47 am

The desert before sunrise. All is quiet and serene. Suddenly, the tableau is illuminated and dominated by a bright light. Bright enough to hurt the eyes. What appear to be human figures are moving within the illuminated area; however, it is difficult to see them clearly. Several of the figures appear to be carrying another, whom they set down gently on the ground. The figure on the ground remains motionless, and the other figures retreat into the harsh light. As quickly as it appeared, the light vanishes and darkness falls again.

Agent Scully had been missing for almost a week. Skinner had been asking questions. The Lone Gunmen had called frequently for updates. What was far more disturbing was that Dana's mother had recently called. Special Agent Fox Mulder had no answers for anyone. Least of all himself.

"Fox?"

Mulder looked up quickly, frowning at the use of his much disliked given name. Diana Fowley stood in the doorway of his basement office. He still wasn't used to the new decor. Post-conflagration pseudo-1970s contemporary is what he thought of it as.

"Diana...Sorry about the other night..."

"And that you haven't called?"

"Yeah."

"Any word on Scully?" Diana didn't miss the wince that her latest question caused. Mulder was worried.

"Nothing after I spoke with her the night of the incident. Everyone is looking at me as if I can somehow conjure her up. Even her mom seems to think so."

"Feeling sorry for yourself won't help Mulder. Just start talking about what you know, suppose, guess and speculate. That's generally as good a place as any to start for you."

Mulder considered for a moment. "I'm sure she wasn't alone. I'm also fairly sure that she wasn't with someone completely unknown to her. I did get the distinct impression that she was uncertain of her companion though. She stated that she was not in immediate danger with some uncertainty. It is almost as though she is with someone she has distrusted in the past, but isn't sure now."

"Who fits that bill?"

"Many people. Too many."

"Could she still be with this person?"

"Don't know. All I do know is that I have to meet with Skinner and Spender in 10 minutes. I'll need all 600 seconds to prepare myself for the experience." Mulder put on what Diana always had thought of as his brave face and straightened his tie.

"Spender is on the way up, you know. Powerful friends, so I hear."

"I know why I've always had a soft spot for you Diana. You always know how to make me feel just that much worse." Mulder didn't know why the thought of Spender with powerful friends bothered him, but it did. It did very much.

Cigarette Smoking Man was furious. Absolutely furious. However, the only emotion that showed was mild amusement. "You brought Dimitri into this?"

The First Elder of the Consortium regarded Cigarette Smoking Man thoughtfully. "Yes, we did. You were occupied with our other runaway at the time."

"And how is Ms. Covarrubias?"

"She has learned her place, and is adjusting quite nicely." The First Elder's tone indicated that he would prefer it if all of his associates, Cigarette Smoking Man among them, would follow suit. "Krycek has a role to play, however reluctant he may be to do so, in our present engagement. Dimitri was a conveniently available means to that end."

"Did he survive?" The question was stated casually, almost offhandedly. The answer was awaited with much more intensity.

"Dimitri remains willing and able to serve. He would like to become more involved in our activities."

"I imagine Dimitri's superiors would like that as well. And Krycek?"

"Krycek's survival is irrelevant, provided he plays his role well."

Cigarette Smoking Man wondered briefly if the First Elder's use of the present tense was truly indicative of the situation. Could there be time to stop this folly? "I disagree. The direct connection to Mulder via Krycek could mean the difference between success and failure."

"I remain skeptical that Agent Mulder will have any impact with regard to success or failure. However, we will continue with our plan. I am certain you will continue with your numerous operations as well. Perhaps you will get lucky."

"Perhaps," commented Cigarette Smoking Man. At no time in the past few months had Cigarette Smoking Man wished that he still had a solid network in place to get information regarding the Consortium's activities. Direct dealings with them...with the First Elder in particular... were distasteful.

When Cigarette Smoking Man left the room, the First Elder picked up the phone and requested that Dimitri take on a new assignment.

Special Agent Dana Scully was afraid. She didn't mind admitting that, especially to herself. Self-deception would not serve her well here, particularly since her own choices had landed her in this predicament. To pass the time and deal with her fear, Scully began to review the principal events of the beginning of the week. Before Krycek and Dimitri left for points unknown.

The man Krycek called Dimitri was uninterested in her. She sensed that immediately. His focus on Alex and the "mission" he constantly referred to were evident. It was also apparent that Alex Krycek had no idea what this "mission" was. Dana had to smile slightly when she recalled her thought process at the time. Krycek always had much more information than she and Mulder. He got it somewhere. Scully was presently interested in any and all information of a certain ilk. Stick with Krycek. Get some information. It was that simple really. The flaw in her logic was apparent to her now. Krycek did not have the information he needed in this case.

"Still," Dana thought, "it was worth it for the look on his face." It was only there for the briefest of instants, but she saw it. She had surprised Alex Krycek. Completely.

A military jeep was making a solitary, but rapid, journey through the desert. There had been a report of some sort of disturbance in Section 17D. "Investigate with utmost discretion...possible injuries" had read the encrypted orders. That is why the base commander himself and his highest ranking medical personnel were out here at 5:30 am. Everyone who inquired at the base would be told of an early morning tee time.

As the jeep approached the coordinates that had been provided, the base commander stopped and surveyed the area with high-powered binoculars. As far as he could tell, there was nothing out of the ordinary. The desert looked the same as it always did. On his second visual inspection, he saw the man. He was lying on his left side, facing away from the jeep. "There's our patient," he commented to the doctor as he restarted the jeep's engine.

"Or our body," muttered the medic." "I wonder how the hell he got out here."

Mulder entered Skinner's office at 9:33 am. He had decided that an extra 180 seconds were required. Spender was, of course, already there. What was more disturbing was that everything from Jeffrey Spender's expression to his body language spoke of extreme confidence. In Fox Mulder's estimation, confidence in Spender was not necessarily a good thing.

Assistant Director Skinner looked troubled. He did not meet Mulder's eye immediately, which was highly unusual. "Agent Mulder, we believe that we have come into possession of information regarding Agent Scully. Agent Spender received these videotapes from an anonymous source. We are all concerned about Agent Scully, but I must admit that I am at a loss to explain the content of these videotapes. I was hoping that you might be able to ..."

"Why didn't you let me know you had these?" Mulder shouted. "Agent Scully is my partner, and I ..."

Skinner held up his hand to forestall more invective from Mulder. "Just watch and explain, if at all possible."

Skinner gestured for Spender to begin. "There are two tapes Agent Mulder. We aren't sure which one is first in time yet, but we are going to show them to you in the order we believe is correct." After this brief explanation, Spender pressed the play button on the VCR.

Immediately the camera focused on Scully's face. She appeared to be sleeping peacefully. A wider and wider angle finally revealed that she was not alone. A different angle identified her companion (and confirmed the presence of multiple cameras). "That's not possible," Mulder whispered.

"There's nothing more on this one than the two of the them sleeping," Skinner commented and began the process of switching tapes. He felt that he owed Agent Mulder the simple courtesy of sparing him the rest of the sequence.

"That could have been staged," Agent Spender offered tentatively, surprising both of the other men. "There is no clear evidence of ... well, anything really."

"Let's reserve our comments until after this segment," Skinner suggested. He then stepped behind Mulder and put his hand on Mulder's shoulder. Mulder glanced up at Skinner and was both surprised and unnerved by the concern he saw on Skinner's face. Mulder's attention was quickly drawn back to the videotape by the sound of Alex Krycek's voice.

"What exactly do you want Dimitri?" Mulder recognized that tone of voice immediately. Light, amused, almost but not quite sarcastic. "I don't have time for your games."

"But you made the time for hers - yes?" Dimitri commented with a smile as he stepped closer to Scully and raised his hand toward her cheek. "I can see why ..." The movement of Dimitri's hand and whatever comment he had been in the process of making were interrupted as Krycek's fist made solid contact with the side of his face. Another blow sent Dimitri to one knee and brought in the cavalry, three young men with handguns drawn and aimed at Krycek's chest.

"Alex...Alex... A simple "no" would have sufficed. You know how Katarina feels about unnecessary violence. Now, you will come with me, and undertake an assignment on behalf of a group of men with whom you are familiar. Your companion may go where she wills." At that, Dimitri looked from Krycek to Scully as if everything was settled.

Krycek turned toward Scully, and looked to Mulder to be uncertain or confused about something. Probably something Dimitri had said. Scully sauntered toward Krycek and asked. "Who... is Katarina?"

"A former colleague," was the quick, yet still somewhat distracted, response.

"Come now, Alex. There was a bit more to it than that, or so I've heard."

Alex Krycek's response to Dimitri was interrupted before it started, as Dana Scully chose that moment to pull Alex's head down to her level and kiss him with some enthusiasm.

Skinner's hand tightened on Mulder's shoulder. That indicated to Mulder that Skinner either didn't see or didn't appreciate the significance of the half step backward that Krycek took before realizing it. He also had tried to pull his head back, but Scully had a good grip. Krycek recovered quickly, Mulder had to admit. He turned the step backward into a mere shift of position to make kissing the much shorter woman more comfortable.

Scully broke the kiss, and placed her finger on Krycek's lips, presumably to keep him quiet. The look in Krycek's eyes made a stated "What the hell are you doing?" redundant anyway. "Where you go, I go," she said with a rather mischievous smile. The tape ended.

Both Skinner and Spender were surprised at the lack of an immediate reaction from Mulder. They were even more surprised at the laughter that followed the silence. "Scully is after information, sir," Mulder explained, "and she appears to have some level of cooperation from Krycek. I hope that's enough. If you get any more of these videotapes, especially ones from a different location, I'd like to see them immediately. That is likely to be the only way to get a hint as to her location."

"Mulder...would you care to elaborate?" Skinner asked in a measured tone. When Mulder recapped his observations, Skinner was at least willing to consider the possibility that he was right. Spender appeared completely unconvinced.

Dana Scully noted that there appeared to be an increased level of activity in the compound, but had no idea what it meant. "Perhaps the "mission" is accomplished," she mused. Rather than dwelling on what she did not know, Scully tried to concentrate on analyzing the data she did have. She, thus, continued her review of events of early in the week.

When Alex Krycek had returned from meeting with person or persons unknown to be briefed on Dimitri's "mission," Scully had been asleep. When she awoke, she saw that Krycek was staring out the only window of the stark room where they were being held. The expression on his face was difficult to read, but the level of tension in his body was not. Tension was running extremely high.

"I think you made a mistake Dana," he told her softly. "They don't anticipate that I'll be coming back and, quite frankly, I don't either. If I had more time, I'd try to arrange a way out for you."

"I'll manage."

A slight smile preceded, "You just might."

"Anything you'd like to tell me before you go?"

"Confession is good for the soul?"

"Something like that."

Krycek looked at Scully, as if evaluating her on some level. Perhaps he was assessing her right or qualifications to receive some sort of confession, Dana didn't know. Then he sighed and started to talk. "I believe what I'm working for now is right. I don't know if the end justifies the means. It probably doesn't. I accept that the choice to get involved in this was mine. The responsibility for that choice is mine. In my defense, I submit that I was perhaps too young to fully appreciate the situation. I didn't know I was giving up any chance to live a "normal" life. I didn't know what would be required. I didn't know that mere survival would be the primary goal of years of my life. If I regret anything, I regret that absence of normalcy. Well, that and subjecting you to this monologue."

Scully had to smile at his concluding remark, but before she could reply the door opened.

"Agent Mulder, we have received another videotape, and contacted you immediately," Skinner informed Mulder as the Special Agent took a seat in Skinner's office. Agent Spender was manning the VCR. "Neither Agent Spender nor I have watched it."

The tape began. "Well, that and subjecting you to this monologue," a subdued Alex Krycek stated. Scully smiled and the door opened.

"Let's go Alex," Dimitri ordered, tossing a backpack at Krycek who caught it easily.

Krycek took two steps toward the door and stopped. He glanced back at Scully. Seemed to hesitate, thinking, before making a decision. Mulder had always considered decisiveness under pressure to be one of Krycek's strong suits, although admitting that to the man himself had never been in the cards. Krycek retraced his steps. He tilted Scully's chin up with the index finger of his right hand. When she was looking at him, he let her (and the camera, although he didn't know that) see the fear and uncertainty as well as the resignation to what he believed to be his fate. Then he kissed her on the cheek and turned away. "He has got that move down pat," thought Mulder. "He uses it very effectively."

"Be careful Alex." Very effectively indeed.

"I'm always careful, but if things don't work out tell Mulder I'll see him in hell." The remark was glib, but the tone simply couldn't match it. Krycek was worried.

When Krycek walked out the door with Dimitri, he didn't see the tears well up in Scully's eyes. The camera did though.

Mulder, Skinner and Spender simply looked at each other. Then Mulder presented his analysis. "He really thinks he is going to die. That tells us quite a bit. Alex is generally reasonably optimistic about his chances for survival. He generally has some bit of information or something else that he can rely on, if things go badly. The part of this scenario that wasn't emotional manipulation indicates to me that Alex has nothing up his sleeve this time. We may finally get to see how lucky he is."

"I'll take the videotape down for analysis," Spender offered and exited the office quickly.

"At the least, Agent Scully will have to undergo a psyche evaluation when we get her back. You know that Mulder. Also, I'm not sure we can keep this material out of her permanent record."

"Yes sir," Mulder said aloud. "Krycek you're a real bastard," he thought to himself.

Cigarette Smoking Man was waiting. He was waiting at the side of the road in the middle of nowhere. A helicopter had landed near the road, and the medical unit that had been transported here was awaiting their assignment. Despite the scathing look he received from one of the medics (who would be remembered with something other than fondness), Cigarette Smoking Man lit another cigarette. In his life, Cigarette Smoking Man had made a fine art of waiting. He was in the game for the long haul...for the culmination of the intricate strategy that became evident only in the fullness of time. Now, however, he was not in the mood for delay.

Finally, the jeep appeared in the distance. As it approached, so did another helicopter. This one was full of men armed with semi-automatic weapons. This jeep was to be stopped, using force if need be. Cigarette Smoking Man needn't have insisted on this extra precaution. The base commander and his medical team had followed orders to the letter. They had no problem surrendering their find.

"Is he alive?" Cigarette Smoking Man inquired.

"Yes, but he'll need careful care and tending for awhile. Seems like he's been though a lot of trauma, although that isn't consistent with a hike in the desert gone wrong."

"Strange things happen in the desert," Cigarette Smoking Man commented as he looked down at the stretcher. Alex Krycek was extremely pale and drawn.