Redemption
Prologue
Disclaimer: I don't own anything from The X-Files, and I'm not making any money from this fic. The aliens Alex Krycek meets do belong to me, though
Summary: After Walter Skinner shoots him, Alex Krycek appears to have died. However, he is taken and healed by a group of aliens who are studying Earth for reasons unknown
Warning(s): Swearing; violence; slight possible ooc:ness; possible mistakes in the canon; original characters; spoilers
Author's Note: I admit it – although I have watched a few of The X-Files episodes, I haven't actually seen any with Alex Krycek in. However, before you all run away screaming, I have been doing research, and lots of it. Please let me know if I get anything wrong – I'm open to constructive criticism.
The first sense that returned to him was touch.
In hindsight, although he was happy not to be dead, he would have preferred not to suddenly become aware of the fact that he was immersed in something very wet.
Water? Perhaps, but the substance felt thicker than water, and, besides, how could he breathe underwater anyway? He couldn't feel anything on or around his mouth.
Unless he was dead, and this was the afterlife? But that thought didn't make a great deal of sense.
Sight was returning gradually, although everything was blurred – a result of the liquid he was immersed in, he supposed. Still, he could make out the fact that he appeared to be in some kind of medical laboratory, although it was unlike any he had seen before. It appeared to be more… advanced, in a way. There was a large screen on the far wall that was showing the image of a forest.
The whole room was neat and tidy, with no papers spread around, and there were at least three computers he could see in various corners. He would have assumed that no one had used the room, only then his eyes fell on the two figures standing in front of his prison.
He assumed that they were old people, since both had silver hair, although he could only see their backs. One of them had hair down to the waist, and he assumed it was female – though, of course, he couldn't tell for sure. Both of them seemed to be robed in cream-coloured gowns.
How did I get here?
What was the first thing he remembered? Oh, yes – being shot by Skinner, even though he was already down and had pushed away his gun. Wouldn't have thought Skinner of all people would shoot a man when he was down. Then again, given all that he had done to the man, he was surprised that Skinner hadn't made him suffer any more, although being shot multiple times had been pretty painful.
A semi-hysterical laugh bubbled up from his lips, and he squashed it with some difficulty. However, he must have made some kind of sound, or signal, since the two figures turned, and the long-haired one – who was definitely female – moved forward and pressed her face to the wall of his prison.
He quickly checked his first impression of her. The woman's face was neither young nor old, somehow appearing almost ageless. Her eyes were set too wide in a pale face, and wee all blue with no whites. Her hair was loose, and framed her face at the front. A hand with six digits lifted to press lightly against the surface of his prison.
Six digits?
No, he wasn't mistaken. Both hands had five fingers and one thumb. No sign that they had been artificially modified, but…
The alternative was not something he wanted to think about.
Alex Krycek.
Krycek jerked. Not at the fact that the woman clearly knew his name, but at the fact that she had spoken – and he hadn't seen her lips move. At least, he assumed it was her. She was staring straight at him, after all, and the tone had sounded distinctly feminine.
Alex Krycek, the voice said again.
His mouth opened, but no sound came out, and he almost choked as the liquid seeped into his mouth. It tasted foul…
What he wanted to know was why he was alive. His eyes locked on the woman's. The man was at one of the computers, ignoring Krycek for the time being. The woman was his only clue to what was going on here, to why he was alive when he distinctly remembered being shot in the head.
The woman stared back at him for a long moment without a word, and Krycek wondered if she had even understood him. Then, the reply came – just two words.
For redemption.
He wanted to scream curses at her, to demand what sort of ideas were going through her head, to ask why she or anyone else had the right to play God with his life. But he felt so tired… as helpless as a small child.
Their eyes remained locked for a few moments more, and then Alex Krycek simply lost the battle to stay awake and alert…
I apologise for the shortness of this. Hopefully, now that I've written the prologue, this fic will stop nagging at me so much to be written.
As always, any and all feedback is welcome and greatly appreciated.