Black rock cottage 7.13am.
Scully sat bolt upright, paralysing dread gripping her heart. Something was very wrong she just knew it. No sleepy awakening wrapped in the warm cocoon of her partner's arms and his gentle languid kisses that always greeted her, she felt bereft. She could still smell him, his aftershave, the way his skin felt but he was physically gone from the bed. Jolted from a dream back into cold reality, she shuffled off the bed and threw on her clothes without bothering to change into fresh.
Taking the stairs two at a time she was shaken when she almost knocked her aunt flying coming in the back door as she was trying to go out, an equally shocked look plastered on her face...not just shock, Scully's mind supplied.
Horror.
Working on the X files over the years she felt her stomach flip, she knew that look all too well.
"Dana..." Katherine had been crying, but was now out of breath, shaking a little, a sight that almost paralysed her.
Mulder.
Causeway cliffs
It took them a while to reach the cliffs overlooking the shore but both of them had a determined mission and pressed on through treacherous rocks and driving rain dragging a huge medical kit, tools,
ropes and Ned's old climbing equipment along with them. The first morning light was just a few streaks of orangey pink edging up over the horizon. It was freezing cold.
Scully's stomach flipped again When they spotted the dog sitting dutifully in place on the cliff top, they knew they had reached the right place. He turned and roused a little when he saw his mistress and her companion, he whimpered. It wasn't a nice sound. Merlin barked, as to mark where his friend had gone over the cliff so they could help him.
"Good boy Merlin, that's a good laddy eh"
The old Labrador looked at her mournfully.
Katharine didn't say much, she seemed unable somehow as if something had pierced her heart and her soul had bled out through it. She looked utterly bereft, this had to be bad. The words that spilled form her mouth had shaken scully like a small earthquake. Still shaking.
She had been on the shore watching the waves as she said she often did. Scully thought she must have had a reason but didn't press her, too preoccupied as she was with pulling air into her lungs after listening to her. Then she mentioned all her sheep were dead where they had been perfectly fine the night before. No surprise, just flat speech. Detached. She mentioned a disturbance, another loud sonic boom and what looked like arching over the causeway.
She'd made her way down over the honeycombed shaped basalt structures to see if she could find the cause. Curiosity always got to her.
Wind and rain had driven her for shelter in a cave and thats where she had heard his cries. Saw the impossible.
Scully had heard it to too, telepathically. Their trademark.
About twelve foot up an open crevice, Mulder was somehow trapped in the rocks, caught in the mouth of a hard unforgiving foe. Moaning quietly and calling for help.
Katherine hadn't known it was him at first but she was in shock when she saw him hanging upside-down, blood dripping from somewhere, maybe everywhere on him, turning the sand and the rocks red in a slippery pool by her feet.His legs seemed to be trapped but his arms hung free like a broken puppet, his eyes closed.
'Hang on please. I'll get help.'
Horrified, she ran back the house, that's when she had noticed the sheep for the first time, all lying on their backs, like white unmoving rocks in the grass to ramp up her horror even more.
No time to waste, she needed to find Dana. There was a storm coming and where Mulder was trapped the tide was coming in. Like a egg he could be dashed against the hard unyeilding stacks. He would surely drown if they couldn't free him soon and his injuries looked severe. Just how they could free him was something her mind had stalled on.
The thought that he'd been looking out for her when this happened didn't even bear thinking about. She was beyond bereft, if he died... "He was alive when I left here to fetch you Dana, alive but trapped and I think maybe unconcious. I couldn't reach him, there was no way. He was too far up. I called to tell him I was coming to get you and to hang on but I don't know if he heard me, the tide was coming in and the surf breaking up over the rocks. I dunno if he heard me." She repeated, her words all spilling out in panic.
"How bad was he?" Scully had forced herself into doctor mode to offset the shock and despair she felt right then, the immovable fist of pain in her chest tightened exponentially. Keeping herself together was the only way she could hope to get him out of this.
"I don't know dear. I swear it's my fault. I think he must have been looking for me. .
I ...should have said I go on these dawn walks... makes me feel closer to Ned... and... but now look what I've done.. I couldn't get a line to call for help.
phone..the phone seems to be out." And she dissolved into tears but Scully pulled her into a tight hug.
"Oh Katherine...it's not your fault...it's just what Mulder sometimes does...more times than I care to count. Believe me, that man is so inquisitive. Something must have drawn him outside. Something weird was going on all last night. Cracks and bangs, lightning I think. I could only half hear it because I was so tired and worried about him being sick on this trip. I fell asleep and Mulder must have got up for something. We'll get him out eh? You and me. C'mon ...its okay."
"Thank you dear." She seemed far away for a moment before speaking again. "Check the ropes bag; I think there are some long ones in there with a second harness. Some crampons. They were Ned's. Old hobby of his but could never let the stuff go. Don't forget the tool belt either. You're going need that." And she locked eyes with Scully who nodded, breathless.
Scully peered gingerly over the edge of the cliff but couldn't see anything but jagged storm lashed rock, her heart sank right down to the frothing sea with them. Eyes scanning anything that would reward her with one little peice of hope she could latch onto she couldn't see her partner or any sign of him, just angry waves crashing and dark foreboding rock that went straight down in almost uneartly hexagonal pillars, some hollowed out that led right through to the sea like a funnel. White water hissing and blowing up through the gaps in a snarl.
Where was he?
"Mulder..." No answer. Only the waves and wind answered back like a mournful cry. Like a voice.. death song... No she mustn't think that way.
The drenched agent dumped the bag of medical equipment on the grass and went for the other bag of ropes and stuff her aunt had brought along. Pulling out a long one, she began to loop it and clip to the harness she'd thrown on abck at the cottage and doubled tie it round her waist, pulling the knots tight. Then she clipped on the tool pouch, not caring about the sheeting rain hitting her face or the cold, just focused on a one track mission getting to Mulder and getting him safely out of danger.
"You're going to be okay going down there.
if you want me to..." Katherine looked terrified, she was trying to get the dog away from the edge but Merlin steadfastly refused to budge. His miserable whimper bit right through Scully's soul.
Scully looked pointedly at her. "I have to go Katherine, I'm not ageist but I think absieling down there in this weather, well it could be a problem for you with arthritis. Its okay, I've done this before. Quantico team training.I'll be fine. Going to have to be, there's no choice. Mulder needs us. Just loop the rope and crampons over there around that big rock and then the second rope I'm going to tie around him. I'll tug on the ropes and yell when I'm ready to come up okay?" She pointed up the bank about three meters behind them. "That looks a good a place as any and gives us leverage"
Katherine complied; securing the rope Scully was attached to and the second one for Mulder.
"Be careful Dana."
She watched her niece from afar by the rock as she checked the tautness of both sets of ropes. With increasing fear her eyes were glued to Dana's rain soaked head as she vanished below the edge of the cliff. This was no weather to be even up here in, let alone the precariousness of absieling down steep stacks. She clung onto the dog for company and warmth, imploring the goddess earth to keep her sweet niece, Dana and her lovely man alive and safe.
About fifteen feet down Scully reached her partner at last. Almost fell on top of him as a gust of wind made her lose her footing. It was a laborious decent and her arms screamed in protest against the ropes, the wind and the sheer effort as if she had climbed miles down. She was out of breath and frozen to the bone but she didn't care. She thought she would never make it but looking at his limp, hanging body now she realized why she couldn't see him before. Mulder was half wedged firmly under a sharp outcrop, almost impossibly between a cleft in the precipice by both legs, while the rest of his body was hanging free in mid air.
"Oh my God Mulder,"
It was weird, almost like his legs had been fused into the narrow rock cleft itself, like the rocks were trying to devour him. There was no rational way he could've have slipped down and ended up that way naturally.
It defied all reasoning. Had the rocks shifted by themselves trapping him? No, that was impossible.
She cantilevered the rope which lowered her down a bit more past the rest of his body so she could reach his head. She maneuvered him carefully against her.All rag doll and no reaction. Feeling for and finding a pulse in his neck she almost cheered, but then felt her heart sink wondering how the hell she could release his legs.They were stuck fast. If he couldn't be freed he would die. No doubt about that.
Focus , focus. Don't lose it just ...focus.
Alive he was but his pulse was thready, his breathing very shallow. Something sticky in his hair indicated that he may have vomited at some point. Clothing torn to shreds exposing battered flesh and a big gash on the back of his head was steadily dripping blood feet below to merge with the raging sea swirl.
With each crash of the waves against the rocks it deepened her chill and her resolve, one-handedly lifting a harness over his head and securing it around his torso, clipping it to her own and attaching that to a second rope around his middle as a raft of white water shot up the gap and soaked them with icy spray. Scully gasped. It was as though they were reaching up to claim them, drag them into the swirling angry sea to their deaths.
Craning her neck up, she noticed the storm clouds blustering fiercely across the sky far above, heavy pendulous omens of doom from her perspective.
"Hi Scully. ..When did ...you drop in," Mulder's voice was a complete shock that almost stilled her heart. Weak, barely a whisper and she felt the effort it cost him as his chest heaved against her as she held onto him for dear life. Bless him though, she felt like crying, his sense of humor was still intact even if his bones weren't. There appeared no way to get his legs loose.Pulling was a non option. She swallowed her panic, both tibia were probably broken or crushed, he must be in incredible pain.
"Mulder...take it easy love, going to get you of here."
"Good luck Scully," he coughed a little before continuing and she worried to hear the worsening congestion in his lungs. " It's a nice idea... but I seem to be stuck in ..the...rocks like the meat in a ...sandwich."
"Sucky question I know but... How the hell did you end up like this?"
"I don't know," he tried to laugh, " My earth moves whenever ...I'm on top of you Scully.
this must be an aftershock. But I ...now know what fish bait feels like...and its killing my back. Ahhh."
"And your legs I bet." She grimaced at the sight of his squashed limbs trapped in the dark rock like they'd become one with the formations.
"I ..er..can't feel my legs... May just be because I'm so fucking cold, just hanging around. Scully, what you doing?"
His partner was pulling something out of the big pouch she had clipped to her belt with one hand, while she hung onto him with the other.
"Hammer. Going to try and break the rock and try ease your legs out." Mulder looked sceptical for once but Scully was undeterred and started attacking the rock around his legs. One leg was trapped right in up to his thigh. She had to get him out soon before he went into shock. He was already shivering and his teeth were constantly chattering. His eyes fixated on her bottom lip, her teeth as they bit down on the plump flesh as she worked to free him.
Mulder stared miserably down at the ocean swirling around the bottom of the stack, hoping like hell if by some divine intervention she did get him free he was securely tied. Being thethered to the woman he loved made him feel marginally better, trying to ignore the pain, the cold,the feeling like he had finally used up all his nine lives.
Very slowly, he tried to move his arm to latch onto Scully's but it was too numb with cold. Gritting his teeth he tried to tune everything out, he was fading fast and each time Scully diligently chipped away at the rock he felt excruciating pain lance through his lower body. There was nothing he wanted more than to let go let everything fade to black, his breathing was becoming more difficult with every breath but he owed it to his partner to stay awake, to try and hold on for her. But given her small frame there was no way she could haul him up to the top if she did manage to free him. Was there? He knew she'd give it her best shot.
After several fruitless minutes Scully stopped hammering. It was no good, the little she'd chipped away wasn't enough to allow her to loosen his legs or even get her fingers around to prize them out and she was exhausted.Moreover she was causing him more pain. She felt the first sting of tears in her eyes as she realised it was impossible to move him.
"Scully."
"What..?" She turned her face to the rock; she didn't want him to see her tears or the defeat etched on her face.
"Soo,no rational... theory how I did the impossible and got stuck in the rocks, Agent Scully?"
"No ... It can't happen but it has," she sniffed. "Right now I don't care, I just want to get you out. My aunt is up top,
she's fine, going to help us get out and then she'll go for the paramedics. The power is out again at the farmhouse so we couldn't get through. Internet is down too this time. Whatever that was ...it fritzed everything like a magnetic pulse. Right now I need to get you out of here.
by any means necessary."
"I know, its okay...you tried." Mulder's words chattered through his teeth, every part of him trying not to look at the hacksaw she was holding in one hand. Where had that come from? He bit his lip, afraid, and proud of his strong partner who never ceased to amaze him. When the chips were down that courage just roared out of her. Just where she pulled it from such a small beautiful person he could only wonder.Right then she was a giant in his eyes.
Her eyes were full of apology as she finaly looked at him, tears slipping down her face.
"I'm not giving up.. dammit!" Not able to nod he blinked his eyes at her, hardly able to see for the driving rain now cascading down the funnel stack.
Mulder wished he could touch her then but he was almost spent. The wind buffeted them both as they hung there in the ropes facing each other sadly. What else could she do? It was impossible. Something beyond comprehension had put him here; he still remembered that sound like a siren song scraping against his skull. Whatever it was had been his death knell. He didn't want it to be Scully's as well. He wanted her to go back up to the top, to be safe. They were both going to get killed if the rocks shifted again.
And he was as good as done for.
Dangling there, his mind wrestled trying to work out what happened and as weird and inexplicable as it seemed, that was the only answer he'd come up with. This coast was steeped in lore and legend and maybe there was something in the wrath of the two giants that shaped the Causeway on this coast, maybe a sense memory that re-enacted every now and then and he'd been unfortunate enough to get caught it its deadly thrall. Maybe he could open an X file on it, if by some slim chance he could get out alive.
Mulder turned his head slowly towards Scully only meet the despair and fear in her eyes as she contemplated perhaps the only way she could free him alive. Okay so be it, he thought, knowing she wouldn't leave him down here. The thunderclouds above were grumbling angrily across the coast, augmenting the almost subsonic buzz he was feeling within his legs where they were jammed into the rocks. Something was building up to happen again and he wanted like crazy to grab at his skull as the eerie cacophony started up again. He needed her to do whatever and get up off this cliff face to safety.
His heart started to race, chest hitching painfully, eyes imporing her, imbueing the last bit of strength, encouragement and love-- whatever she needed to get through this. And she started to cry again.
"I...I can't do this Mulder.."
"Yes...yes you can... go for it."
"I... don't know if I can.."
"Yes you must... we don't have a choice .
It's okay ...I'll be alive...with you...I can deal with the rest..." he gulped down his own tears and the sickening dread that gripped his heart. "..later... Scully please."
His partner leaned down and kissed him, awkward and strange because he was upside down facing her. He felt her warm lips against the wet chilled skin of his throat, her fingers stroking his cheek, and he was buoyed by her courage when she whispered "Okay," against his ear, no more than a quiet shaky breath.
"I love you Mulder," her fingers smoothed the clumps of drenched hair out of his eyes, then travelled down his cheek and wiped moisture and blood from his lips where he must have bitten down on them. She crushed his body against her for what seemed a long time but in reality was just a few beats.Not wanting to relinquish that precious contact with him.
There was a roaring in his ears now, like bees on the warpath and his head was the hive. An unrelenting noise that twisted into an almost faraway lilting voice, transporting him into the abyss, pulling him down further as he watched her eyes bleed water all over him as she faded from view.
"I love ...you too..." Scully made sure his body was secure in the ropes, anything but look at his huge scared puppy eyes which slipped closed when he suddenly went limp.
"Mulder.. no ..." she cried in alarm. Panicked, she hoisted herself up a touch fumbling for his pulse. It was still there but weakening and his lips were blue. Fumbling with the saw, she picked a spot about an inch from where his legs were trapped, cut away his Jeans there, pulled some twine from her pouch. Holding it between her teeth while she tied it tight around the area she planned to cut with one hand, pulling it tight with her teeth, finally taking a deep breath, telling herself this was the only way.
It was better to have her lover alive even if disabled, as opposed to letting him die here like this. He'd still be Mulder they could have a life together and she would care for him -- whatever it took. The lesser of the two evils. He'd given her permission ...that wonderful brave love of her life.
As the saw blade hovered over his bruised and battered flesh a huge lightning bolt struck the rock above startling her, and another ...and another until it sounded like an air raid going on overheard,a final shattering flash making her drop the saw...
"NO...!!" she shrieked at the top of her lungs as she watched, horrified as it clattered off the rocks into the swirling eddies of water below, greedily swallowing her only means of freeing her partner from certain death. "Katherine.
help...", Holding Mulder against her with one arm, Scully yanked on her rope as hard as she could muster to try and alert her aunt. She had other tools up there...if only...
But she never finished that thought. A blinding flash enveloped her as she clung fast to her partner suspended in the tangle of ropes like helpless marionettes as a maelstrom of sounds, a thousand sirens and the deep rumbling roar and cracking of age old rock, like the earth was furious at the gods, splitting them into a million shards, exploding all around them and then darkness.
Continued in the Epilogue
