CHAPTER THIRTY NINE

Army Base - Undisclosed Location - Private Quarters

Mulder looked at Scully with concern.

He had been sat by her bedside for at least an hour, his heart aching for her as he imagined how badly the news of Williams abduction had affected her.

It had been so heart breaking to watch her faint in shock.

He sighed heavily and ran a nervous hand through his hair. Taking hold of her small hand, he felt it was colder than his. He pulled a blanket up over her shoulders.

This would be there home for the next… however long.

However long it took to find their son..

Mulder had seen the spaceship already, and he had been amazed and totally in awe, but the fact that William was missing and in probable danger made him less excited than he would have been if the situation had been different. He remembered how shocked he had been when he had arrived here, and how long it had taken him to get used to the idea that these people were here to help him. He still didn't trust them fully, but he had to made an effort. They expected him to know everything, but he didn't know anything. He had let them down, to say the least.

"Hey, Mulder.."

The door opened slightly and Mulder turned to face a young scientist whom he had spoken to earlier. Mulder remembered that he seemed friendly.

"Dr Sharpe, Hi.." He said in a whisper, trying not to disturb Scully.

"They're asking for you out here, I just wanted to give you the heads up."

Mulder sighed heavily and looked back at Scully, his heart aching with concern.

"I don't want to leave her. I need to be here when she wakes up." Mulder said in a small voice, turning back towards the man.

"The colonel is going insane, he wants you out here ASAP."

"Tell him I'll be there in fifteen minutes." Mulder snapped angily. He was fed up with the Colonel already, how dare he tell Scully the news so bluntly? He had been a pain in the ass since he got there.

"All right. How is she?" Dr Sharpe asked, looking at Scully with worried eyes. Mulder squeezed her hand gently.

"I don't know, I just know that she will need me here when she wakes up." Mulder said sadly.

"I'm sorry man, I know how worried you were about her." Dr Sharpe said with a sympathetic smile. Mulder nodded appreciatively.

"Thank you." Mulder said quietly, then turned to him again. "Hey, have you seen Mr Skinner? The tall man, bald with glasses that came with us when we arrived?"

"I think he's out front. He knows that Scully is awake."

"Good. Thank you."

"All right, catch you later." Dr Sharpe said, then closed the door again.

Mulder sighed again with frustration, and he wondered how on earth he would get Scully to remain calm and to help these people, after all that she had gone through…

"Mulder?"

He jumped as he heard her weak voice from beside him. His heart skipped a beat as he saw her sad blue eyes looking at him, desperate for answers. She looked frightened and confused.

"Hey, it's all right." Mulder said softly.

"Oh my god.." She breathed in shock, blinking as she came to.

"It's all right." Mulder repeated gently with worry. Scully frowned in sadness as he lifted her hand to his lips and kissed it. She suddenly felt incredibly guilty.

"I'm so sorry that I said those things to you Mulder." She said sadly.

Mulder knew she was talking about her allegation that he wasn't who he said he was.

"It's all right, you were scared and confused-"

"William!" Scully blurted out, her blue eyes opening wide in panic and cutting him off as she immediately sat upright. Mulder jumped back as she moved quickly and he tried to steady her. He placed his hands on her shoulders and met her gaze.

"Scully, calm down. It's all right. Can you remember what happened?"

"Where are we Mulder? And who were all those people!?" She cried out. Mulder raised a hand to her cheek and stroked it gently, feeling her heart ache and fear.

"Scully..." He started anxiously, not wanting to scare her. "Listen to me, ten more spaceships have appeared across the world. After the spaceship came to our home and took…" He started, but then faltered before he could say anymore. Scully knew what was coming and she let out a sob. She closed her eyes and managed to pull her good arm away from him, her heart breaking into pieces. His comfort was not going to help her right now, not when her son was in danger.

Scully pushed herself out of the bed and sat upright on the edge of it. Mulder fought back his own tears as he saw sorrow in her face.

"Look Scully, a lot has happened since then. I need to explain it all to you, but you need to remain calm. I am so worried about you, please just try to remain calm." He said desperately, and she lowered her head sadly. "I believe we are going to find him, we have to." Mulder said desperately, his voice breaking with emotion.

"You don't know that.." Scully said tearfully, turning away from him.

He couldn't bear to hear her speaking like this.

Before she could resist, Mulder pulled her into an embrace and held her tight as she sobbed into his chest...

"You ready?" Mulder asked with concern and took her good hand in his.

Mulder had told her everything, and she was slowly taking it all in.

She was shocked and amazed, how could this be happening? She had no memory of the journey to this base, no memory of Skinner or the helicopter.

After a lot of tears, she had gathered herself together and had freshened up. With her hair tied back and the dirt and tears washed off her face, she was starting to feel better. Plus, she wanted to see the spaceship with her own eyes.

"Ready." She said, letting out a deep breath and feeling strength gain inside her as Mulder held onto her hand. Mulder opened the door to their room and they stepped out together into the busy camp.

"Agent Mulder, Agent Scully." Dr Sharpe said with a nod as they entered. Scully looked at Mulder in slight confusion and he introduced them.

"I'm so sorry about your son. I have a good feeling that we will be able to find him." Dr Sharpe said sympathetically. Scully looked at him and noticed that he must be in his early thirties. She saw that he wore a checked shirt and body warmer. "It's an honour to meet you Dr Scully." He continued, blushing slightly. Scully forced a smile.

"Thank you." She managed, not before turning to her left to see the Colonel walk up to them with two military personnel behind him. His face was stern and emotionless and he walked with purpose. Scully felt a sickening feeling in her stomach as he neared her, the memory of his blunt words hitting her hard. Mulder's body stiffened next to her and she felt that he was feeling protective towards her.

Scully thought that this was very sweet, but Mulder also knew that she could stand up for herself..

"Agent Scully, good to see you on your feet." The Colonel said shortly, then threw a glace to Mulder before looking at the nearest computer screen. "I sent for you over twenty minutes ago."

"Yes I know Sir. I was with my partner." Mulder snapped icily. Scully looked up at him with slight concern. Was it really worth it with this man?

"Forgive my lack of manners Agent Scully, but we have work to do." The Colonel snapped, giving her a sideways glance. "We have a situation. All of the spaceships have started moving."

"What?" Mulder exclaimed in confusion, and Scully frowned in surprise as they all gathered around the computer screen.

"Do you know why it would be doing this?" He asked Mulder and Scully, who were silent.

Scully gasped as she caught sight of it. It was much larger than the one that had been over the bridge and that had been over their house. She swallowed nervously as the magnitude of the situation started to hit her. She had thought that the worst was over. As she raised her eyes to the rest of the room, she saw more screens and computers, all taking data and readings from around the site and from the spaceships. She saw images of all the other spaceships, all in different parts of the world.

"My god." She said under her breath.

"The general public are in a state of panic. We have done our best to control the situation, but things aren't improving. People are scared. They want answers." The Colonel said, noticing Scully's shock.

"And the virus?" She asked.

"Most people are now cured, thanks to your efforts in Washington." Dr Sharpe spoke up from behind her. She couldn't believe how much had changed in the past few days.

"Sir, we have never encountered anything like this before." Mulder said finally. "Perhaps Scully could examine it?"

"No one is going near that thing, not after what that one did in Washington."

"I was there. I saw it with my own eyes. This is not the same design, it's different." Scully cut in, glancing at the Colonel. He was silent for a moment as he thought to himself.

"I have orders from the President." He said with a heavy sigh. Scully felt dread fill her chest. She knew what was coming. "We have twenty four hours. Then we attack." He said finally. Mulder launched towards the Colonel in shock and anger, but Scully managed to push him back before he did something stupid.

"You have no idea if this spaceship is a threat! Attacking them will just make them retaliate!" Mulder exclaimed.

"Twenty four hours Agent Mulder! You'd better get to work!" The Colonel shouted over him, then turned and stormed away.

"WHAT ABOUT OUR SON!" Mulder shouted after him. But it was too late.

The room fell silent and the professionals around them turned away in embarrassment. They slowly got back to work, trying to ignore the small outburst that had just occurred.

Mulder was fuming. He slowly saw Skinner from across the room, talking on the phone. The sight of his friend filled him with slight relief, but it didn't last.

Scully stood silently, unable to find the words to speak. She sighed heavily as Mulder glared after the Colonel. She knew that she wouldn't be able to calm him down.

Raising a hand to Mulder's arm, she managed to coax him back towards her so that they could focus. She needed to go outside and see the spaceship up close.

PLEASE REVIEW!

I know this has gone on for a long time, so I'm hoping to finish it in ten more chapters.

Thanks for all your support so far, hopefully I can write a good ending!

xxx More to come!