Extended author's note: When I started to write this chapter I had not yet heard anything about the episodes the Crossing, Escalation, and Vigilante. So things are going to vary in order for me to maintain my plot, I will add in the new characters at different points though. I will still be keeping with the shows main plot as well; if you do not know what the reason behind the alien's infecting people is, then go see my profile where it will be explained in further detail. Thank you so much for even reading this far.
Beta'd by Ethos. Note: I've basically just beta'd her grammar and sentence structure, so everything else will remain intact for her artistic purposes. Hope you enjoy the chapter :). It's pretty damn nice! She reveals something I had to hear about for several weeks, LOL.
Last time...
Baylock entered the room where Ramsey was manning the computer. "RAMSEY!" he roared at the top of his voice. "DID YOU LOSE TEN THOUSAND DOLLARS LAST NIGHT?"
Ramsey head shot up, his eyes full of shock. "Uh, I don't know what you mean!"
"You know exactly what I mean. If this doesn't stop soon... You're off the team; do I make myself clear!"
"So? Off the team sounds like a good thing!"
"Its not." The portly man bent over and looked the dwarf in the eye. "Every action has a reaction. A consequence, in other words. You're technically stealing from the government, and the consequence is jail time. Do I make myself clear!"
All Ramsey could do was nod; it was time to find another addiction...
----
Chapter Four: Alienville
Cavennaugh felt strange. He paused from where he was walking. It felt almost like he was going to pass out. He leaned against one of the crystalline trees. Why was he feeling this way? After days of walking alone in this endless forest, he now felt weird. Sean hadn't needed any nourishment or rest during this period; now it felt like his body was getting it's revenge. He moaned and closed his eyes for only a moment and then opened them again.
It was so bright... The light hurt so bad... His eyes adjusted suddenly, and he looked into Dr. Fenway's blue eyes.
"I see you are finally awake. How are you feeling, Cavennaugh?" The older man leaned down and looked at the agent.
"I feel like a tank ran over me. What the hell happened?"
"Ah, this is a new one for me. You almost got blew up in that greenhouse. Remember?" Fenway chuckled to himself. The annoying soldier was all his to pester for the next few days; what fun! And the best part was that Cavennaugh couldn't move just yet; this just got better and better.
He moaned. "Yeah, but what injuries do I have to be in here?"
Fenway grinned. "You won't be moving just yet! Third degree burns on your back; you're aren't going anywhere anytime soon!"
Cavennaugh glared at Nigel. It seemed the doctor was enjoying seeing him in pain. But what was new? Annoying old... "Anyways, doc. Did you sedate me!"
"Uh, yeah. Why?"
Cavennaugh made a grab for Fenway's blue lab coat. "I COULD KILL YOU!" he roared as Fenway darted out of the way. Sean lost his balance and tumbled off his bed. Fenway shook his head at the agent. This was going to be a really, really long week...
"Why would you want to kill me? Its not like you want to be awakened when you got that bad of burns on your back! Plus, I needed you perfectly still." the older man muttered, motioning for Carpenter to help him get Cavennaugh back on the bed.
"I was stuck in the dream world for what seemed forever, thanks to you! You know how boring that is!"
"Nope and I don't want to find out." Fenway and Carpenter managed to get the poor, injured man back on the bed, and laid him on his stomach. "You've got to stay still, and make sure you don't tumble off the bed again. Okay? Here, this should keep you busy." Fenway handed him the forms that they were supposed to document their dreams on. "Fill it out."
----
Fenway was now signing papers; it wasn't that often in this particular lab that he got to release a patient. Yet, today he was. Lucas was now free to leave, having successfully beaten his bout of mutation.
Rachel was there as well. The darked haired woman was looking up at her fiancee lovingly. "We're going to go ahead with the wedding in two and a half weeks, isn't that right honey?"
He nodded, looking lovingly down at his future wife.
Fenway felt like he was going to gag; why, oh why, did two love birds choose to reside in his lab for the past three days? It was bad enough that they made out when they thought no one was looking, but those loving looks were way too much. Way too over the top for his taste. Fenway thought to himself, 'Was I ever like that? I hope not. That's disgusting.'
Fenway finished the last release paper and handed it to Lucas. "There you go, you may now leave my lab, and stay forever away from spending the night here ever again."
"Happily!" the young man said rather quickly. "Ah, Fenway. Rachel and I were talking; her dad can't come. You and J.T. are the only ones that are even remotely the same age, and we asked J.T. He sorta looked at us like we insulted him..."
"Asked what?" Fenway demanded, a gnawing feeling eating away at his soul. He hated weddings, with all the white everywhere, ugly bridesmaid dresses, the tears, and the awful speeches... The only good thing about weddings was the flowing river of alcohol he indulged himself in when he was required to participate in one. He had a feeling what the kid was going to ask him...
"Would you walk Rachel down the aisle? Please?" the eager young man asked him.
Fenway closed his eyes; of course Lucas would ask the old man this... "I'll think about it. Now get out of my lab, and I better not see you here again!"
Lucas nodded, ignoring the doctor's glare. Pegg got a huge smile on his face and took Rachel's hand in his leaving the lab. Before he got out the door he heard Fenway call out the words he didn't want to hear. "And keep in mind the rule we talked about a few weeks ago!"
Lucas winced; 'tis was a cruel world after all.
----
Molly was in her office shifting through the paper work the federal government made her do. She was trying to find the report that was supposed to be here! Now where was it?
She found in under her folder where she stored the original copy of her plan. She opened the report up and started to read. She had sent in a team of experts a day after the greenhouse incident, and they had finally turned up with results. Apparently the cult had abandoned the place where they lived and burned everything. It was now deemed safe to enter Apocrypha's secret city and to see what was left. It was a long shot, but it was better then nothing.
Suddenly she shivered. Kyle was now standing beside her. She glared at him, "Will I ever be able to do that?"
He shrugged. "I don't know the extent of your infection. We'll see in time." He peaked over her shoulder and looked at the papers she was holding, "You're planning on going there?"
She nodded. "We have to see if they left anything." Molly looked up at Kyle and noticed him looking uncomfortable. "Is there anything wrong?"
He shook his head. "No, there's nothing wrong, nothing wrong at all..."
Caffrey still stared at him; why should she trust this blued eyed man? She didn't know anything about him, only that his name was Kyle and he was infected. She was also unusually curious about him; it made her feel a little bit guilty... She shook her head to clear her thoughts and smiled. "Anyways Kyle, since you keep on popping up I've decided to ask you a few questions. Do you mind?"
He shook his head. "I don't mind, but I'm not necessarily giving you any answers."
"Alright then. What's your last name?" she asked.
"Smith." he simply answered.
She sighed. "Is this how it's going to be?"
He nodded. "You'll know when I tell you the truth."
"How did you get infected?"
He shrugged. "That I cannot tell you yet. You'll soon figure it out." His eyes gleamed when looking down at her with a sly smile on his face. "Good luck down there. When are you going?"
She looked back down at the forgotten report. "As soon as possible, and thanks for wishing me luck. I'm going to need it."
----
Molly walked into the med-lab. Lately she had found herself doing this often. This time she really had a legitimate reason. Fenway was sitting on his stool, peaking at his latest samples of whatever he looked at. She noticed Cavennaugh was looking a little bit pissed off, laying on his stomach writing something down.
She crossed the room to where the doctor was busy and leaned down and whispered "What's he writing down?"
"Oh, that. I made a slight mistake when I decided to sedate him." he paused, looking guilty.
"Well, what did you do?" she muttered.
"He's been stuck in that dream world ever since he went unconscious. He couldn't escape." Fenway looked back down into his microscope.
She nodded, and watched Fenway for a moment. When he was having a guilt complex, he always rubbed his hands through his hair. He was doing that now; she shook her head. "You couldn't have know Fenway, so don't blame yourself." Molly left the aging doctor to his thoughts and preceded her way to Cavennaugh.
Molly walked as quietly as she could in order not to disturb him just yet. She peered down at him; he was scribbling away, documenting the dream world. He should have found some interesting things to tell Fenway about; not that Caffrey herself always told the complete truth about that unknown world. Sean's writing was a small shorthand. It was extremely cramped on the page. He wrote quickly, trying to get the tale of his dream over as fast as possible.
She stood there watching him for several moments, waiting for him to finish. He finally laid the pen down, and raised his head to shout for Fenway. His eyes widened when he saw her there. "Hello, Molly."
She smiled and sat down on the edge of his bed. "So, Sean, Fenway told me you were stuck in-"
"Hell. Yes, I was." he said interrupting her.
"-the dream world." she continued. "So what happened?"
He grumbled. "I was stuck there, that's what happened. I spent days walking around in that damn forest, trying to find a way out. You know how boring that place can get!"
She laughed and patted his arm. "I usually do yoga or something like that while waiting to wake up. Find something constructive to do next time."
He glared at her. "The real reason why I'm here is to ask you something Sean. Do you think I should lead a team down to explore the caverns?"
He looked confused for a second, and then nodded. "That cult has abandoned their city? They left everything behind?"
She shook her head. "A couple of days ago I sent in a team of specialists that the government hires out occasionally. They have top level security clearances. They were informed what to look for. The place was burnt down, an underground fire."
He nodded. "Was there anything left at all?"
"The team said a few items escaped the fire, and recommended we come down there to see for ourselves. Who do you recommend off the red team to go down there with me?"
He rubbed his chin for a moment. "Take Lucas and Ramsey, if there's something to find among the ashes. They'll be the ones to find it, and take a medic in case something happens."
She nodded. "I'll think about it. Thanks Cavennaugh!" She jumped off the bed and went out the door.
Fenway looked up. "Did she say yoga?"
Sean nodded. "I think she did." He rubbed his chin again and left the doctor to ponder whatever thoughts were sailing through his head. Cavennaugh certainly wanted to be left alone while entertaining those thoughts.
----
"What do you mean that we're going into a burnt down underground city! Don't we have a choice about this!" Ramsey demanded.
"No you don't. You shouldn't worry, Ramsey. We are bringing a team of experts in with us; there's not going to be any problems." Caffrey explained.
Lucas nodded. "Can I call Rachel and tell her I might be late for dinner?" he asked.
She nodded. "Tell her you're spending the night at Threshold. This is going to take awhile boys, so bring those changes of clothes you keep here." She walked out of the room. Before she went out the door she called, "We're leaving within the hour so complete whatever you're doing at the moment!"
Ramsey let his head fall down onto his desk and let out a moan. "This is just great. We're going into a burned underground city! Who knows what booby traps lay in store for us. Charming, isn't it?"
Lucas blinked. "It could be perfectly safe, you never know!"
The dwarf just shook his head. "You actually believe that a cult that hates our guts and wants to infect the entire world wouldn't leave any booby traps in their old underground city for us to die when triggered? You've got to be kidding!"
"What is it about you, Ramsey, that you just can't wish for a happy ending?" Lucas questioned.
"Because there's no such thing as a happy ending. Hell, you'll find out soon enough." the dwarf answered him, finishing his work.
----
Fenway was now finishing up his own work for the day; he smiled. He could actually leave early! His mind went automatically to thoughts of the hotel bed he had cleansed with all sorts of antibacterial sprays; at least it was soft even if it smelt of disinfectant.
He got off his stool and walked over to the bored-looking Cavennaugh. The agent looked up at him. "What the hell do you want?"
"You're the last on my list of things to do today." Fenway started to change his bandages.
Suddenly a stab of pain went through Cavennaugh's back! "WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT!" yelled Sean, gritting his teeth.
Fenway snickered, and held up a finger. "All I did was poke you. Your pain receptors are functioning pretty good."
Sean growled,. "Don't you have to test things like that! Something more practical then poking a burn with your finger!"
Fenway nodded. "Yes, but this is much more fun." The older doctor walked away laughing to himself. Yes, it was good to be the one to do the picking... "Want the lights on?"
"YES!" shouted Cavennaugh as Fenway went out the door. The lights went off anyway. "This is how he gets me back isn't it?" he asked to the staring Libby. She just blinked and went back to rubbing her swollen belly.
----
Lucas had a new BlackBerry in his hands, checking his e-mail in the back seat. Ramsey was snoring, and Molly had the radio all the way up as they drove to PA that night.
Ramsey woke up to hear Japanese music playing in the car; it sounded pretty... But the lyrics had much to be desired for; he wondered if Molly even knew what exactly was being said.
"Can you turn that down!" he shouted over the speakers. J-rock wasn't exactly the best thing to wake up to in the middle of the night.
Molly turned the chaotic music down to a reasonable level. "Happy now!"
Ramsey shook his head. He could swear that he could hear a pout in Molly's voice. Damn, she was strange when she was away from work. "How far are we from the complex?"
She looked down at the G.P.S. she had attached to the dash. "About five minutes, the team will be there."
He nodded. He wasn't exactly looking forward to exploring an underground city. What need was there for a linguist/mathematician down there?
Ramsey closed his eyes, hoping to get a few more minutes of sleep before they arrived. He couldn't sleep though with Japanese music ringing in his ears; he kept on translating it. "Where did you get this crap?"
"HEY! I like, okay? I got introduced to it the last time I was in Tokyo."
He shook his head once more. Ramsey had thought Caffrey was strange before... He looked over at Lucas who was still messing with that damn BlackBerry. He grabbed it out of the kids hands to snap him out of his digital trance. Lucas blinked for a second, suddenly becoming aware of the world around him. "And you say I have the problem with addictions!"
----
They pulled into the parking lot and got out of the car. Molly walked across the asphalt, her heels clicking on the pavement. The boys followed her as she entered the above ground building; it hadn't been effected by the fire at all. They heard talking as they entered. There were four people wearing heavy Ops gear but with helmets.
"Uh, Molly, are we going to need armor to go in there?" muttered Lucas.
She shook her head and said, "I instructed them to keep on their helmets and not tell us their names."
"Why?" asked Ramsey.
"Incase we become infected one day, we need to protect the identity of those that help Threshold. That's why." Both men blinked, realizing that made perfect sense. They continued to walk over to the armored men. "We're from Threshold," said Molly, going up to the team.
They nodded. "Where's the proof of identity that you said you'd have over the phone?" one of the men said.
"Of course." She reached for her wrist and took off her watch and handed it to the man.
He examined it. "Is this an original 1969 Tag Heuer Monaco?"
She nodded. "Exactly as I said."
He nodded. "This is Threshold. C'mon men, let's show em' around."
----
They were now inside the cult's lair; it was immense... "So exactly how big is this city?" Molly asked, looking around at the scorched walls.
"The city is over fifteen miles long. I seriously don't know how they built the complex without any local residents noticing."
Ramsey spoke up. "Well, that's sorta easy to answer... There are no local residents within several miles of the above building. They simply chose a part of rural PA and built the complex without any interruption."
The team stopped in the middle of the hall. "Look at the char marks on this wall. We haven't been able to figure out what its built out of yet. If you look closely you can see there wasn't much structural damage; we've never seen anything like this."
Lucas ran his hand down the wall. "It feels familiar, Caffrey!"
She nodded. "So it's the aliens?"
Lucas and Ramsey froze. "Ah- are they supposed to know about that?"
"Yes, the defense department was briefed about Threshold a couple of weeks ago when the alien threat started to escalate. To prepare incase we can't stop the invasion, they choose individuals out of all the armed forces. They put them into teams to maximize their specialties. This teams specialty is underground reconnaissance."
They nodded. "We mainly hunted along the borders for tunnels that drug runners built. Now that was a fun job!"
Lucas kept on feeling the wall with his eyes closed. "I know this. It's so familiar... It's calming, serene... Its most definitely alien made."
She nodded. "Is there anything else left?"
They nodded. "Most of the furniture withstood the fire as well. We think it's made out of the same stuff; if it's those aliens, how did they bring the stuff with them?"
"They didn't." muttered Molly. "Whenever someone becomes infected, they get the alien part of them, the desire to spread the infection. Also they become fimilar with some alien technologies and methods of doing things..." Remembering Park's attempt to spread the mutation, and Libby's studio with the glass forest...
"Its all part of their plan," continued Lucas. "All of this seems familiar to me. I was almost completely infected just a few days ago... I dreamed of stuff like this..." He shuddered, remembering just a little bit of what he had been shown.
"Show us what survived."
----
They entered another room; in this area there were slightly charred chairs and desks. "I think the person who used this as an office thought that this stuff would burn. It actually protected what was inside the desk drawers; it wasn't much though." One of the team members jerked open the creaking desk and pulled out a few things. He handed them to Molly.
She started to leaf through the papers. They were mainly orders to buy certain fertilizers and plant seeds in the bulk. "Is this all there is?"
"Nope, there's a picture or two in that pile of orders."
She started to leaf through the papers faster, letting them drift to the singed floor. Finally she pulled out one of the pictures and stared at a ghost...
It was titled department heads, but the people were not actually named. There in the front, towards the left of the frame was someone so familar...
It was her.
----
The forest was especially quiet today, as Sean walked around without injuries. Why did it seem that this place got more homey feeling everytime he visited?
He touched one of the trees; the surface was so smooth. He couldn't resist it sometimes... Why was it like this?
He didn't want to stay in this place; it was completely alien to him.
It scared him that it felt like home, sometimes.
But what scared him the most was that his home felt alien...
----
Molly sat in her car, her head in her hands. Why? She shook her head frantically. It just couldn't be. The photo had to be fake, there was nothing more to it. Yet, Molly knew. She just knew that it wasn't fake...
She looked down at it again, her shoulders shaking while peering at the girl. The long waves of dark hair, dark green eyes, around the same height, with the same figure except a bit more slight. The girl even had the same skin, except she appeared to be a bit younger.
It looked like her five years ago. Molly uncleanced her fist; sweat was dripping out of it. Her breath was coming fast; it wasn't possible!
She needed to look closer. Reaching into her purse she pulled out the small magnifying glass from a small toolkit she kept nowadays. The lense of the glass was just big enough to hold in her eye; she put it there and peered down, looking for something that she wouldn't have left at home.
The clothes weren't hers; she could already tell that. She didn't dress so severely as the girl in the picture, with a long skirt that showed no skin, and a shirt that contrasted sharply. It was the wrist Molly was most interested in. There it was. The girl had the same watch, but that was impossible! Five years ago Caffrey had been touring Asia with another Bird Flu plan! She had spent the entire year over there... Was she sure it was even taken five years ago?
Molly know looked everywhere for a date. Finally in the lower right corner in extremely small font there it was... The picture wasn't even a year old...
Molly leaned back in her seat; how could this be? A picture of a girl in this cult, a girl that was a department head no less! A girl that looked almost exactly like her; her eyes were a bit darker though, and she was slightly smaller then Molly. She even had the same watch!
Now Molly really became afraid; what was going on here!
----
The next morning Fenway came back into his lab whistling an annoying tune. Cavennaugh looked up from the book he was reading. "Do you have to do that!" The only response he got out of Fenway was a louder whistle.
"Are you listening to me!" shouted Sean.
"Nope." said Fenway who made his way across the room to check on the bandages. "Its healing nicely. You might get away without really heavy scaring!"
Then the jolt of pain returned. Cavennaugh winced. "Why do you do that? What did I ever do to you!"
Fenway laughed. "Remember the time you shoved me against the wall? This is why you don't tick off doctors; it always comes back and bites you in the ass."He finished changing the agents bandages and looked down. "What are you reading?"
"Something Lucas left here..." He flipped the book over so the doctor could see.
"Ugh, theology." muttered Fenway, walking away shaking his head. "Not my favorite thing to read."
"Its not mine either, so could you find something a little bit more entertaining? I really don't enjoy reading something that predicts fire and brimstone for my actions!"
Fenway went into his office for a minute and riffled around for a minute. He soon came back with a few selections. "Since I've started my career, I've kept books in my office just in case I have to put up with a patient who's well enough to be up, but not out of my care." He handed them to Cavennaugh, who started to look at them. There was books on baseball, history, exc.
He choose a book on baseball, and started to read.
Meanwhile across the lab, Fenway was busy checking on his samples when Whitaker walked in.
"Fenway, do you have those results yet?"
"Which ones?" muttered the doctor, still checking samples.
"The ones on the infectee's baby." the ex-senator said, looking bored.
"The test won't be in for another week; they take awhile. That's the downside for that particular test, but it's by far the safest other then ultrasound."
"Just hurry up. I want to know if the baby is an infectee or not." The national security advisor left the lab.
Fenway rolled his eyes; the ex-senator should have known better then trying to speed up medicine. Things such as curing people and testing for results took time. Yet time was a valuable commodity; there wasn't much of it to go around now...
----
Later that afternoon Cavennaugh was sleeping peacefully, Libby was being quiet, and Gunneson wasn't stirring at usual. Fenway looked down at all the people he had to care for; for some reason he was quite fond of the job of caring for actual patients instead of cell cultures. There was some downside's to this though; namely cell cultures didn't talk back, patients did.
Right now, though, everything was nice and perfect. It was quiet and peaceful. He didn't have to put up with a grouchy, restless Cavennaugh, or a freaky infectee.
Yet, he had to put up with the woman who walked through the door. It was Caffrey, again.
Her head was hanging, and she looked like she'd been crying. "What are you doing back here early?" he asked.
She walked up to him and handed him the picture; confusion crossed the doctor's face. He turned and looked at her, "What do I do with this?"
"Just look at it. Do you see what I see?" The doctor grabbed for his glasses and peered closely at the picture. He almost stopped breathing. "Is this a joke?"
She shook her head. "I don't know how this could be... Do you think-"
"She has to be related to you. Look at me with the same expression." Fenway said, looking between the picture and Caffrey. Caffrey froze her face and appeared stoic just like the girl in the picture. Fenway's eyes darted back and forth. He opened up his desk drawer and took out a magnifying glass.
He placed it against the picture and looked even closer; the bone structure was even the same. The girl in the picture had the same delicate features, even down to the high checkbones. The eyes were slightly different though, being a darker hue of green. The hair was longer, flowing in a cascade down the girl's shoulders; it was the same, dark waves as Molly's. The girl also looked maybe a inch or two smaller, and appeared to have a more slender frame then Caffrey. She also had the same pale complexion; her lips were as almost as full as Caffrey's. It was undeniable. The person in the picture had to be related to Caffrey. Just had to! "I think we have a doppleganger on or hands, or you have a little sister."
She nodded. "I thought so..."
"Hey, this looks like your watch!" He looked up at her. There was tears falling down her face now. "Caffrey, is this why you look so upset?"
She nodded once more, sniffling. "Yeah... I am a bit upset..."
He pointed to the stool next to him. "Time to talk."
She sat down and listened. It was strange with her being quiet.
"Listen, Cavennaugh told me that your dad ran out on you. Is that true?"
"Yeah, he left when I was four. All I have is this watch." She held up her wrist.
He nodded. "It's the same watch as in the picture. I can tell because it's very distinct on such a small wrist. Listen Caffrey," he looked very serious now. "This isn't going to affect work, is it?"
"No. I'm just a bit emotional. That's all." she muttered.
"If this affects work, I'm going to have to put you on medical leave."
She looked shocked. "Why?"
"It's in your protocols, remember?"
Caffrey blinked. "You read them finally!"
"Too far Caffrey."
She smiled before leaving. Cavennaugh propped himself up on his elbows. "You just made her happy, Fenway. Did you tell her that on purpose?"
"Too far goes for you too," the doctor growled.
"Hell, you are a nice guy. Aren't you!"
"Don't make me sedate you again."
----
"Lucas, what do you make of this?" Ramsey called out.
Lucas walked over to where the dwarf was standing, and looked at the wall closer. "Its a mural. That's all Ramsey."
"Look closer, dumbass." the dwarf muttered. "Isn't that the fractual pattern?"
The young man peered at the mural that depicted the world; standing in front of the circular globe was a person with his hand streched out. In the palm of his hand was painted the fractual pattern. Lucas stared at the man. The man had the crazed look of one of the infectees. Instead of a serene expression one would expect, it was a violent look he wore. His lips were cruelly twisted, his face was contorted as well. He wore clothes of a blood color, and around his neck was a charm shaped like a triskele.
Ramsey and Lucas both tilted their heads and looked at the mural from that way. "It seems like it changes everytime we view it different..."
Now they saw the face looked fierce, snarling mad.
"They seem to almost worship this man," muttered Ramsey.
"Why do you say that?"
"His face is painted all over everything... That's why."
"I wonder who he is. The way he's painted; it's almost as if he's a religious symbol..."
----
Fenway was sipping on yet another cup of joe when he walked into his lab. He heard a voice; Nigel peeked quietly around the corner. Cavennaugh was there, propped up on his elbows talking on the phone; the agent laughed.
"Cynthia! You shouldn't have done that to the poor man! You could give him a heart attack!"
Fenway got a puzzled look on his face and thought. 'Who the hell is Cynthia!'
Cavennaugh chuckled again. "Alright, see you later, honey." He hung up the phone.
The doctors eyes widened; 'honey?' he thought. Then another realization struck him. Caffrey had seen infatuated with the agent as of later... Poor Molly.
He shook his head and left the room. He couldn't be in the same room as someone who lead on a woman...
The older man walked down the hall, a familar corridor now. The break room was too quiet to reside in when Lucas and Ramsey were not around so he didn't go there. Actually he didn't know where to go. He walked further down the hall to where some more offices were. Nigel thought about going and talking with Molly. Of course he wouldn't mention Sean's phone call; that was in bad taste. It would be nice though, to have an actual human conversation with someone. He went towards the office, but he heard a male voice coming from it.
Fenway stopped in his tracks, and listened for a moment. Were they both playing each other!
Then it hit him. He didn't recognize the voice. An overwhelming sense of curiosity took him over, and he peered around the corner into the office. There was no one there, except Caffrey; the phone wasn't in her hand either. Was he going crazy finally?
"Hi Caffrey." he sat down and took another sip out of his coffee.
"You didn't bring me any!" she said indignantly.
A few minutes into their usual banter, she started to notice that he kept on looking at her funny. "What's wrong, Fenway?"
He shook his head. "Nothing. Nothing at all."
----
Molly was now stirring the cup of tea Fenway had actually fetched for her before he had headed back to his lab; that man was sure acting strange lately. She wondered what was up with him; hell, he wasn't even being his old sarcastic self.
Once more she took out the charred photo and looked down at the girl. It was strange how the past always came back to haunt her.
The woman looked almost exactly like her. It was almost as if this was planned from the very beginning. The woman couldn't be anything but either a clone, relative, or a freaky case of a doppleganger.
If it was a clone, which it couldn't possibly be, then they would have had to get her genetic material somehow. She could safely rule this out, because they would have had to create the clone years before. Surely, the infectees hadn't came up with a way to speed up the aging process! But of course, the aliens were so advanced that they could do the "supernatural."
If the woman was a relative, then she had to be the daughter of her renegade father. No one else could look so much like her, any other way.
If the woman was a doppleganger, Molly didn't know what to say. What was the chances that a woman would be born into something Molly was going to one day oppose? Plus, they had identical watches! There was no way this could possible!
Yet, it was.
The girl hadn't faded from the picture; she was still there staring back at her. This mystery girl seemed familar, so similar...
Molly shook her head violently, stirring herself from her thoughts. She had better things to do after all! Lucas and Ramsey were supposed to soon come back here. That's when she made her decision...
----
Lucas propped his feet up on the lab desk, laughing at a joke Ramsey was telling when Fenway and Caffrey walked in. "What did you guys find?" Molly asked.
"Oh we found plenty!" said Lucas, pointing at a screen. It lit up, and there was the mural.
"Hey Fenway! You're into the whole cult thing, what do you make out of this!" Ramsey said.
Fenway looked closely at the painting. "The earth," he muttered. "Did you guys notice something about it?"
"Yeah, what's that ring around it?" asked Lucas.
"You of all people should know it." Fenway said.
"Uh, why?" the young man asked.
"The limited confines of our world, in your particular religion, Lucas. It's an Ouroboros, the dragon that's always swallowing his tail..." The doctor shuddered.
Then they all turned and looked at him. "Exactly how do you know about symbol's like this, and cults?" Ramsey inquired.
The doctor blinked for a second before he smiled a little. "One of my wives... Let's not go there. It's old history." He looked back at the screen. "He's wearing red... It could mean God, war, even luck. Red is universal in it's meanings." He looked closer, "The fact that when you tilt your head, you see another facial expression. The fact that the expression is always violent means trouble for us. That rules luck out for the meaning of the robe. He's holding the fractual pattern, which reminds me of a triskele. And here he stands in front of the Earth. The meaning is clear, even though the Ouroboros represents both sides of nature but not those forces in conflict. The whole thing though shows that their intentions are not friendly."
"Why aren't you one of those freaks that haunt old bookstores, living solely on Starbucks?" asked Ramsey.
Fenway glared at the dwarf. "Because of the draft. That's why. Either I went to college and do what I knew best, or I got sent to 'nam. I chose the one that I didn't get shot at. Not true now..."
"Well, I think it's time that we all go home and get some rest." Molly said.
----
Molly was walking through the forest of glass, her nightgown flowing behind her. Gunneson was standing before her in the clearing, seemingly waiting for her nightly appearence.
"Do you wait here every night?" she asked, now standing beside him.
He ignored her for a moment, looking up at the alien sky. "It used to scare me as well, Molly. I promise you, though, that these skies will become familar one day."
"I doubt that," she muttered, peering up at the stars. They seemed more clear here, above this forest. "Why don't they twinkle?"
He laughed. "Who said this place was even real? This is just a representation of the world that your's will become."
She stared at him. "Why would I want Earth to become even more soiled then it already is!"
He shook his head. "Does this place look like it's been wasted? Look around you. This is true nature! A nature not created by the universe, or God, as you would put it!" He raised his hands to the heaven. "This a world made by us! Not decided by cosmic happenings, but by living, sentient creatures! Don't you see the beauty in it!"
"No it isn't!" she whispered, backing away from him.
"Are you afraid of progress, of change? So afraid that you deny yourself the real truth?" he said, following her.
She backed further away shaking her head at him. "You call changing what is meant to be a truth? I don't see it that way!"
"You're denying yourself the greatest gift man has ever been given. You do realize that, don't you? Do you know how many doors it would open up for you? How far mankind can go with the knowledge, this mutation would provide you? Molly, you are undeniably one of the smartest people I've have ever had the chance to speak with." He looked into her wide eyes. "But you are nothing compared to the most stupid of them. This is your one chance."
"A chance? What do you mean?" she asked.
"A chance to better yourself, to become more then a mere human." He reached out his hand.
Molly looked down at the outstretched hand; in its palm appeared the fractual pattern. It glowed errily there in the dark; it was tempting... So very tempting... She started to reach,-
----
The phone was ringing. She made a grab for it. "Hello?" she whispered hoarsely into it.
"Molly, its Kyle. Sorry to interupt your dream. Thought you might appreciate it." he said, laughing.
She blinked, and ran a hand through her hair. Rubbing her eyes she answered, "Yeah, I do. I want to go back to the place. It doesn't have guard there at the moment."
"Why do you want to go to the cult's home?"
"I need to look at something closer."
"Alright, I'll come and pick you up. See you in a hour."
----
Lucas kissed Rachel gently; screw Fenway's rules. Fenway wasn't here at the moment, he would never know. Would he?
It had been over a month since he'd last gotten to be with Rachel for any meaningful length of time! It was his right, wasn't it?
She looked up at him with those mischievous, dark eyes. "Why have you been avoiding me since you came here, Lucas?" she whispered in his ear.
"I was under orders. I still am..." he muttered, starting to kiss her again.
"You don't have to follow orders all of time..." she managed to get out.
"MM-hhhmmm... I don't." When tempted by the devil with such strong force, it's best to give in to human frailties and emotion...
----
They walked quietly through the dark halls. The light from the flashlights casted weird shadows on the strange walls. It was creepy. Molly shivered, feeling goose bumps rise up on her skin. She hated places like this... They reminded her of- she shook her head. Best not to remember that sort of thing in a place like this. Why had she even came down here anyways!
Kyle grabbed her arm. "Molly, if you don't like this place we can go back to the surface. Your team went over every bit of this place!"
"No! I got to do this without them; it's something from the dream... They- no I missed it." She continued on walking.
Her footsteps echoed in these hollowed unnatural halls. She cringed at the noise her heels made in this place. Molly moved the flashlight everywhere she could. She had to find it! Then she saw it; she went over to the mural on the wall.
It was partway covered in ash. She remembered vaguely Lucas saying the military had sent in a couple of art experts to look at it... They had said to leave it alone while they removed the ash and cinders in order to better preserve the art.
She thought otherwise. Molly put her hand onto the gritty surface and started to wipe away the smokey-smelling material. She wiped around where that dragon thing Fenway had told her about, that dragon that was eating its own tale or whatever Fenway had said about it. Slowly she noticed something now that the ash was better cleared away. Caffrey tilted her head. It seemed like it was losing it's grip on it's tail. The confines of the world were opening up...
Then she heard it. Footsteps! Kyle and her both grabbed ahold of their guns. He put a finger to his lips, signaling for her to be quiet.
He walked quietly towards the sound. He froze when he noticed light coming from around the corner. It was a floating globe, shining brightly in the darkness like a minature sun. Both of them cringed at the brightness of it; temporarily, they were blinded. They heard the footsteps stop. Molly squinted her eyes and saw a cloaked figure standing there.
It then ran, faster then Molly had ever seen anyone run. Molly and Kyle tore after the person, knowing... Knowing if they caught the person, it would be a great find for Threshold. It could possibly give them the upperhand!
Molly became winded quickly, but forced herself to run. Her legs hurt so bad; it was like needles were being forcefully stabbed into her skin over and over again. She struggled to keep up with the speedy Kyle; she managed to look up for a moment and noticed the figure was losing speed.
Then the person stumbled. Kyle was upon the person in a minute. He jerked the person off the ground, and pushed it into the wall. The figure let out a gasp. Kyle ripped the hood of the cloak off and stared. Dark locks had fallen and were now hanging around the person's face. The woman lifted her dark emerald eyes and stared at him. He stepped backwards, letting her go and threw a look at Molly who took a step forward.
The woman started to turn towards the hallway again, but Molly reached out and grabbed her arm. "Who are you?" she asked the dark haired woman.
The woman looked down at her booted feet. "I could ask the same of you."
"My name is Molly Caffrey. Now will you please tell me your name!" Molly sounded desperate; she needed to know this. It didn't matter if this was the enemy or not...
The girls head turned quickly around and stared at Molly. The orb came floating back towards them. It lit both of their faces. "My name is Ravenese Caffrey..." she whispered, her similar eyes wide in shock. "I- I got to leave now!" She turned and fled. Kyle made like he was going to chase after her, but Molly grabbed his arm.
"Leave her be. Let her go this time..."
"Why? She's a memeber of the cult." he muttered.
"I think she's my sister... I'll let her be for now." Molly whispered, watching the light fade...
----
Ramsey walked into the bar. Sure he wasn't supposed to be here. But who ever would find out?
He entered the establishment. It was a nice, smoked filled room. Just like he liked it. He headed over to the bar and asked for a beer. The bartender blinked, surprised to see a dwarf in his establishment, but still served him. Ramsey hated it when people did that; did everyone have problems with small people in this town!
He sat there, just drinking his beer, lost in his thoughts. It was strange how things happened... First he was abducted from the strip club he frequented often, then he was whisked off to this city, then taken aboard the USS Bighorn... Then everything else happened; he shivered and pondered some more on the question he'd been dying to ask. Why me?
He heard a rustle as someone settled on to the stool next to him. He looked up and his eyes widened in shock. "What the hell are you doing here!"
"An old man can't have a drink?" Fenway muttered as he settled in his seat.
Ramsey started to get uncomfortable. He had a bad feeling Fenway was going to play with his head. "I thought you didn't drink, Fenway."
Nigel laughed, and ordered a beer. "Who says I can't indulge myself sometimes? The question is Ramsey, what are you doing here?"
"Uh... I can't have a drink at all now?" The dwarf was feeling really uncomfortable now.
"You can drink, just drink maturely."
"How did you find me in the first place?" Ramsey demanded.
"I didn't. I came in for a drink. You were here though, so I decided to come and talk." Fenway took a large gulp of his beer. "I've heard from a little bird that you've got a few problems. Wanna talk about them?"
"I don't have any problems. So I don't want to talk about problems." muttered Ramsey.
Fenway rose his eyebrows. "You don't call losing ten grand a problem?"
"That's none of your business. I don't want to talk about it."
Fenway sat quietly for a few minutes, finishing up his beer. He threw a few bucks down and started to get up. "Ramsey, we all have to face our demons sometimes. It's better to face them when you can break them, not when they'll break you."
----
to be continued...