Chapter 58

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Spaceship - Central Control 

Not far from the door leading to the spaceship's central command center, Skinner, Grant and Sam waited patiently to see if anyone entered or exited the restricted area. While they knew Musgrave could access the center remotely, they didn't know if anyone actually manned the center. They would soon find out. 

Approaching the door, Skinner took point, his M16 at the ready. Thinking they'd have to somehow break through it, they were surprised when the door slid open. Cautiously, he moved forward, fully believing he was walking into a trap. But once he poked his head through the door, he realized the center was empty. Straightening up, he signaled the others to follow. When all three entered the room, the door slid quietly shut behind them. 

Looking about, they were struck by the enormity of the room. The spacious center encompassed the entire top portion of the spaceship - one huge room where all of the controls were spaced evenly about its circumference, lining the walls with a variety of consoles and terminals. None of it looked even remotely familiar to Skinner and Grant. The technology was obviously alien. What they found most odd was that there was no seating of any kind, leaving them to wonder how the craft was piloted. 

Moving into the room a bit further, Skinner shouldered his weapon. Nothing spoke a warning to him. In fact, the bluish light cast a warm aura over the entire room unlike the green glow from the incubation pods which lent a certain amount of eeriness to each walkway. 

"Blue and green must be the popular colors back home," Grant said. 

"They do seem to dominate," Skinner agreed. 

"It's because of the pigmentation in our eyes," Sam informed them. 'In our true form, our eyes are so large, and the subdued colors are less abrasive. They actually assist in our visual acuity. It's harder for us to see in the daylight. It's why most abductions take place at night or in the early morning before sun up." 

"Remind me to stay in after dark." 

"Where do we start?" Skinner asked. 

"I think a little alien ingenuity is in order," Sam reached into his large BDU pockets along the outside of his leg and retrieved a handful of tiny metal sphere's, each one no bigger than a marble. 

As soon as he held them out, palm open, the same blue aura filled the space around them. 

"Be careful," Sam advised, handing them out. They are now activated." 

"Good to know, but what are they?" Grant asked, bringing the sphere's before him where his face took on the blue glow and reflected the same in his eyes. 

"It's easier to show you," Sam said, leading them to the first console where he carefully pressed a sphere into a small indentation just to the right of the console. Once inserted, the sphere immediately fused with the metal around it. 

"What do yeah know... perfect fit," Grant grew uneasy. 

"Not so strange," Sam answered. "These are standard devices where I come from. What you humans refer to as plug and play, only these are designed to destroy the controls should anyone try to tamper with them. You see, most aliens would rather destroy technology than share it. Go now," he ordered them, hurrying away towards the center of the room where he seemed to fixate on the floor beneath him. 

Skinner was concerned about Sam's sudden change in attitude, but he kept it to himself. He didn't want to cause alarm if it wasn't justified. Sam had been invaluable at guiding them to the command center. In a ship this size, Skinner knew there was no way they would have found it on their own if they were faced with navigating the endless maze of walkways that encompassed the ship beneath the central command. 

So what was it that suddenly held Sam's interest in the middle of the room? Was it simply that this was more or less his turf, or was there more to it? After all, he was one of the twelve. An unwelcomed thought came to him. So wasn't Judas. 

Underground Tunnel 

In the main tunnel, Jeremiah paused, holding his chest. 

"What's up?' Langly asked. 

"It's nothing." 

"You look like you've lost your best friend. That's not nothing." 

"We're running out of time. We must hurry." 

"Yeah, well, this is the last one for us. Frohike! Byers!" he called out. "You ready?" 

Up the tunnel, Frohike motioned Langly to wait a minute. 

"They're almost done." 

"You three are... unique," Jeremiah settled on. "I would not have thought..." he stopped. 

"Thought what?" 

"That you three would have been called." 

"Called? You mean, like by these seals?" 

"Yes." 

"Yeah, well. We may be different from most folks, but we're loyal, you know... like the family dog." 

"Faithful and true." 

"Yeah," Langly smiled. "That's us. I mean, look at what you chose to look like - a Bassett hound. That's a pretty faithful mutt. But tell me something because... I really gotta know." 

"Tell you what?" 

"What's it like walking around on four legs?" 

Jeremiah laughed. 

"You are a strange character, Langly." 

"Thank you," he said, taking Jeremiah's remark as a compliment. "So, what's it like?" 

"It's... different." 

"I bet. Laying in a corner all day, licking your... never mind." 

Frohike and Byers approached them. 

"What?" Frohike knew Langly had said something stupid. 

"Nothing," Langly said too quickly. "Jeremiah was just explaining the finer points of... of a dog's life. Nothing we want to revisit. Can we get the hell out of here now?" 

They headed to the truck, climbed in and started towards the main transport area. When they were within a quarter mile of reaching the entrance, several military vehicles came through the exit towards them. 

"This doesn't look good," Byers said. 

"I don't know about you, Frohike, but now that chowder's calling me out," Langly swallowed hard, a sick feeling coming over him. 

"Enough with the oyster chowder already," Frohike commented. 

Jeremiah brought the truck to a stop, unable to go through the barricade the other vehicles had created. Slowly the men climbed out of truck, moving around in front of it. 

Two dozen super-soldiers emerged from the military vehicles, fully armed - their weapons trained on the small group. From out of the lead truck, an older man emerged. 

"Who the hell is that?" Frohike questioned. 

The man reached back in the truck and pulled a woman out, nearly dragging her beside him. 

"Scully!" Frohike called out and started forward. 

"Down boy," Langly ordered, grabbing Frohike's shoulder. "Ball's in their court." 

"Oh no," Byers muttered. 

"It's that the cigarette smoking SOB," Frohike said, his senses on full alert now. 

"Isn't that Mulder's old man? I thought he died," Langly said. 

"He did," Byers confirmed. 

"Boys!" Smoking Man called out and gestured. "Join us, won't you," he said as Gibson and BJ were also pulled from another truck and pushed forward by the super-soldiers. 

"His kind doesn't die so easily," Jeremiah said. 

"What's that supposed to mean?" Langly asked but by this time, they were standing in front of Smoking Man, and Jeremiah said nothing. 

"Dana? You alright?" Frohike asked, concerned for her safety. 

She shook her head, confirming she was fine. 

"Where's Mulder and William?" Byers questioned. 

"You three are so damn predictable. Still asking the same questions they taught you to ask in grade school. Who, what, when, where, why. You should throw how in there every once in a while, so you don't bore yourselves to death," Smoking Man insulted them. "And Jeremiah Smith. So good to see you again. I'm glad you could join us although I thought we eliminated you some time ago." 

"That's what you get for thinking, you slime ball," Langly smarted off. 

"I'll see to it we don't make the same mistake twice. Well now, we're missing a few," Smoking Man looked around. "Ah yes, Doggett. Now wherever could he be?" he laughed. "Oh, that's right. Dead." 

Scully shot him a hard look. 

"Sorry to break the news to you like that my dear, but... I cannot tell a lie." 

"You are the master of lies!" Jeremiah shouted above Smoking Man's laughter. 

"Care to be next, Smith? It can be arranged right here and now... though I'd much rather take you with me... take all of you with me." 

"They're sealed. You can't have them. The choice was theirs," Jeremiah defended. 

"Oh, the precious seals, yes. I'd forgotten. How stupid of me." 

"You think you're smart," BJ said from behind Smoking Man. "But you will come to realize your place in the realms."  

Smoking Man motioned with his head. The super-soldiers brought Gibson and BJ forward and pushed them towards Jeremiah and the Gunmen. He kept a tight hold on Scully's arm however, keeping her for himself. 

"I know where I belong, and I know who will join me," Smoking Man grinned. "It's just a matter of time. I have... ways of persuasion that have influenced many. This pitiful little group is but one small interruption in all of my plans." 

"This group is more than that, and you know it," Jeremiah said. "This group scares you because within it, there's hope." 

"I know it, but they don't," he laughed. "That's the beauty of it! They think this is some puny little disruption in their lives! They have no idea who they are dealing with!" 

"They will," BJ said. "They will see soon enough and know who you are?" 

"Isn't he Mulder's father?" Langly whispered to those standing around him. 

"You see!" Smoking Man countered. "A perfect example of their intelligence level. Why they were chosen, I will never understand. This will be far too easy. A pity really... no challenge in it whatsoever." 

"The challenge awaits you," Jeremiah said. "It will be good to watch you fall... again." 

Smoking Man looked down, shaking his head back and forth. When he raised it, they all saw it - the hint of red in his dark, black eyes. Scully struggled to free herself, but his grip was like an iron vice. 

"You anger me, Smith," he said. "Will He save you from my anger?" 

"My life is of no consequence. I will serve no other." 

A huge grin formed across Smoking Man's lips. He pushed Scully to her knees. 

"Stay there, bitch." 

Though he'd released her, Scully could still feel his hand holding her in place. She looked up at him, his eyes casting a glance downward in her direction. The darkness had been completely erased by flames as red as hell itself. It paralyzed her. She couldn't pull herself away from his stare. She felt herself being drawn into his eyes just as she'd helplessly watched Mulder being drawn to them. She sank deeper into their depths. Their lies called to her, urging her to join with him. She touched her chest, realizing the cross was gone. It had always awarded her a sense of security, but had that security been simply in the physical aspect of it alone? No, she knew what it represented, but fear was trying to make her doubt, reaching out to her and pulling her towards it. She struggled to resist it. 

"No!" Jeremiah screamed, racing forward, leaping towards Scully to block the penetrating stare from Smoking Man. 

Scully went down hard when Jeremiah hit her, but she came back to herself the instant she was free from the eyes. Jeremiah on the other hand didn't move. Scully crawled to him, but there was nothing she could do. Two holes were burned right through him at the base of his neck, killing him instantly. As the green blood began to seep out of the wounds, she quickly backed away. 

"You bastard," she came up swinging at Smoking Man but before he could react, Gibson and Frohike grabbed her and pulled her back into the group's fold. 

"All too easy," Smoking Man said, his eyes returning to the cold, black pits. "Now, let me ask you all one last time. Who will you serve?"

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