Chapter 5
Phuket, Thailand
3:17 AM
Sara Lance had lived so much of her life keeping up a brave front that the nerves rarely showed. But as she walked into what had to be the sleaziest café on a beautiful tropical beach, she let in some of the nerves that she'd been holding in the past two days.
Part of her wished she had given in to Felicity and Ray's insistence that she go to the rendezvous point with more than just a subcutaneous tracking device on her. Another part of her wished she had further had Ray give aerial surveillance to see if there was something resembling an army waiting for in the surrounding areas. For everything about the League of Assassins ability to move stealthily in the shadows, they still gave off body heat. And while she didn't think Nyssa was as ruthless as her father, she was Heir to the Demon now and there was a certain level of untrustworthiness attached.
But at the end of the day, Sara knew the only path that lay ahead of her was the one she had chosen. Nyssa might conceivably be happy to learn her lover was seeking her out again, but she was going to be royally pissed to know that she hadn't come alone. Brutal honesty was the only route that the Al Ghuls would think a moment before deciding to slit your throat, and even though she reviled it, Nyssa was her father's daughter. She had no delusions that this would be a joyful reunion…assuming of course, she even got that far.
It would have taken anyone who hadn't been a member of the League minutes to find the representative. Sara was out of practice. It took her roughly six seconds before she sensed – rather than saw – the man she was looking for. He was wearing the same casual clothing that all the other late-night revelers were and appeared to be in the same stupor that they all were. But Sara knew who he worked for even before she glimpsed the tattoo that marked him as a member of the League of Assassins.
She walked past him, pretending to brush against him in a similar stupor. "Excuse me," she said in a manufactured slur.
Even a trained observer like Oliver would have been hard pressed to notice the piece of paper that Sara had dropped into the man's pocket as she had passed by him. Ninety nine people out of hundred would have dismissed it as simple rudeness, not noting the paper being dropped in their pockets until they returned home. It appeared this man had done the same because he just kept shambling towards the exit.
However, once he was outside he casually put his hand in his pocket and removed the piece of paper. An American tourist would have dismissed it as being a few letters of an Asian alphabet. A native would have presumed to be from a foreign country. This man hesitated for the barest of a fraction of a second because he recognized the extinct dialect and the message it said:
Canary.
The man didn't move or react. He just waited until Sara appeared in front of him.
"You risk your life by coming here," the man said in that same dialect.
"I'm used to dying." Sara said back.
"Do you think this humorous, Miss Lance?" The man was speaking in English now.
"I find nothing remotely comic about this situation," Sara responded.
"She no longer wishes to see you."
"We both know that's a lie."
"Circumstances have changed immensely since your last encounter."
"Indeed they have. That is the reason I am here in the first place."
The man hesitated. "Are you alone?"
Sara hesitated. This part was by far the greatest risk. It was conceivable she would be welcomed. Even considering what Oliver had done to lead to Nyssa's ascension, Nyssa and her former husband had never gotten along to say the least. There was a chance the mere mention of his name would lead to a severe beating at best.
But there was no helping it. Oliver knew far more of the details of the conspiracy than Sara did. He could convince her of the severity of the threat in terms she could comprehend. And while she loathed him personally, Nyssa respected Oliver as a warrior. She would not dismiss his warnings even if he loathed the messenger.
"Her husband is within shouting distance," she finally said.
Only a master of this dialect would recognize the obscenity that involuntarily escaped the messenger's lips, though anyone who lived in the slums of Star City would barely have flinched at the meaning of it.
"You know how she feels about him," the messenger finally said.
"Mixed emotions, I imagine," Sara said wryly.
"Is his presence before the Heir essential to this?"
"She needs to hear what he has to tell her."
"There's no way you could come alone?"
"We both know he would not tolerate that." Sara hesitated again. "A dire threat faces the planet. One that I know she knows nothing about, but her father might well have…and deliberately withheld telling her about. In either case, it is essential both to the League and the survival of mankind that she be informed of it."
Even given the crisis' severity, Sara had chosen the order of her words deliberately. The messenger considered the weight of this.
"You will be informed of her decision shortly," he finally said.
"In the usual fashion?"
For the first time the messenger's stoic façade appeared to crack. For the briefest of moments, his vocal cords seemed to twitch. On any other person, that was hysterical laughter. "If you're lucky," was all he said before he disappeared.
5:23 AM
"How long will we have to wait?" Oliver asked.
"Well, we're still alive so probably a bit longer," Sara replied coolly.
"I'm still trying to figure out how seriously to take statements like that," Felicity said into her earpiece.
"You've been held prisoner by them a couple of times, I'd think you'd know by now," Oliver countered.
"Thank you for reminding me of that particular experience." Felicity hesitated.
"How many times we're you taken hostage before then?" Diggle reminded her. "It's part of the territory. We don't like but we expect it."
"Is that why you volunteered to be in the mobile unit?" Sara asked casually.
"When things go FUBAR you're going to need someone to haul your ass out of there," Diggle reminded her roughly.
Sara was pretty sure that John still had emotional scars from Oliver's tour with the League a year and a half ago. According to Felicity, it had taken Oliver and him months – and yet another threat to the world – for them to make up. She had little doubt that if the world wasn't facing a far worse crisis, he wouldn't have even volunteered to within five hundred miles of Nanda Parbat. Oliver wasn't showing it, but she knew him well enough to know he was reeling from being back here too, and it was his idea.
"How close do you think she was?" Oliver asked.
"Word that I was back in civilization must have reached the League by now," Sara said calmly.
"And the Special Relationship, you think that's still in play?" Felicity really wished she could take that back.
Sara's expression clouded. "It's not a matter of wanting to see me – I know she does," she said softly. "But she's feeling something no League member acknowledges, much less an Al Ghul."
"Love?" Felicity asked hopefully.
"Guilt."
None of them had to follow up. The wounds from Laurel's death were fresh for everyone, but at least most of them had been there to mourn. Sara hadn't learned of her sister's death until her initial return to Star City. She had been the more stoic of the Lance daughters but all of them – Oliver especially – knew how much she must be reeling.
Only Oliver had the courage to ask the question that came naturally. "Do you blame her?"
"Resurrecting me was a violation of everything the League stands for," Sara was deflecting.
"Sara, I know your voice can crush me but if you say you miss being dead I will have Ray fly me there so I can punch you in the throat," Felicity spoke with the firmness they all knew she had but covered up.
Sara smiled a little. "I missed the sound of your voice the last year." She paused. "No I won't say that. Nor will I say that I'm happy that she chose to break the rules for me but not for Laurel. That being said, I understand slightly what she's going through."
"Did she lose a sister too?" Ray asked, only half in jest.
"There is another Al Ghul daughter, actually," Sara said casually. "I never met her. Her father trusted her more, but their relationship was apparently even worse than the one he had with Nyssa. He forbade anybody to mention her name in his presence. I don't even know it."
"And I thought my father had secrets," Oliver said sadly.
"Ras was enraged that his daughter had fallen in love with a woman, but in all honesty he would have held similar attitudes if she'd fallen in love with anybody he hadn't chosen," Sara told them. "Members of the League are not allowed to form attachments. You fight together; beyond that you have no relationships. He was unhappy just by the fact I was friends with her. "
"And I thought the Bible Belt had screwed up rules," Diggle said.
"Essentially the League is just another fundamentalist cult," Sara didn't argue it. "Laurel told me that part of her wanted to hate Nyssa when she learned of her. Not just because she made me lie that I was dead for five years, but because she had a bond with me that she was jealous of, that she had a part of me that she'd never understand. She was shocked to learn that by the end of their time together, she not only respected her, and she thought they were becoming friends." She turned to Oliver. "So right now, she's not only feeling love and animal lust, she's dealing with guilt, regret and pain. All things members of the League deny the existence of."
"Does that mean she's more likely to see us or not?" Oliver asked. "I know the Al Ghuls are supposed to consider any emotion a weakness. She doesn't come; she doesn't have to acknowledge they exist."
"She doesn't come, she's giving in to fear," Sara replied. "You're supposed to have that weeded out before the League accepts you. She doesn't want to acknowledge that either."
"So what you're saying is, best case scenario, she's not going to admit she wants to see you even if she wants to see you," Felicity told her. "You know relationships in the real world are hell; I'm actually starting to feel sorry for the woman who married my boyfriend."
Oliver was stoic under all circumstances, but this was the first time since they'd broken their engagement last year that she hadn't referred to him as her ex. He was about to make a comment before he saw that the lamp in their room had momentarily flickered. "Is that the kind of signal they'd use?" he asked Sara.
"It's a little subtle." Before she'd finished getting out the 'l' sound in that word, she felt a pinprick in her neck. She suddenly felt a slight numbness. "That's more like it," she muttered as her tongue started to go numb
Oliver was about to ask what she was talking about; then he felt a similar pinprick. He whirled around, but as he was doing so, he felt two more in his lower leg.
"Oliver what the hell's going on?" Diggle shouted out
Felicity hadn't felt any needles, but a similar numbness was going through her. In the detached tone she had a feeling Ollie felt when he donned the hood, she stared over the monitors, knowing exactly what was going happen before it did. She saw the monitors showing the rooms begin to flicker before showing static. She heard Diggle shouting orders to Ray to fly over there as he started to grab a weapon. And then, she found herself doing something that would have been unthinkable for her even a year ago. She put a hand on Diggle's shoulder.
"Don't waste your energy," she said in a voice she hardly recognized as her own.
"Felicity?" Diggle didn't recognize it either.
The static had by now, of course, cleared. Ray said he was thirty seconds out, but it took all Felicity's restraint for her not to shout out 'Don't bother." She knew what she was going to see before the light was restored.
"They're gone," she said tiredly.
Ray had experience with the League, of course, but even he was having trouble believing it. "What about the GPS?"
"I'm picking it up right now," she said in that same tone. "According to that, Oliver and Sara are still in the room. Apparently amongst their other skills, League members can perform surgery on the body in seconds and find electronics without knowing where to look. No doubt the security footage will show that there was no one in the halls or in the lobby or anyone else in the building and why the HELL DID WE LET SARA AND OLLIE TALK US INTO THIS MADNESS AGAIN?"
Diggle was actually relieved that Felicity was shouted by the time she got to the end of her statement. An angry Felicity was better than the one he'd dealt with a couple of seconds earlier. "Well, at least we know the League made contact."
"Yes, because having a group of psychotic killers holding on to our friends worked out so well for us the last time," Felicity was starting to ramble which was good. "Now we have to climb the mountains and look for the crevices and avoid the ninjas that are everywhere and hope that Nyssa feels happier to see her ex-girlfriend than she is angrier to see her ex-husband. Why couldn't her father just let his daughter go to college and experiment like every other normal girl?"
"Um, I've been out of touch for the last few months, just how broken up were Oliver and Felicity before I got back?" Ray found himself asking.
"I couldn't just be pissed at the woman who kidnapped Oliver instead of extending an invitation?" Felicity now seemed a little uncomfortable at this.
"Oliver gets kidnapped every week. We have contingency plans based on the type of villain who took him prisoner," Diggle was frustrated too, but at least he couldn't count himself as surprised any more. "Felicity, start plotting the last known coordinates we have for Nanda Parbat and send them to Ray. We're going to need you to start doing reconnaissance. This time, try to shrink before you do it."
Felicity sighed a little, but began to start typing into her keyboard. "Just once, couldn't somebody be happy to see us?"
"Have you forgotten what we do for a living?" Diggle reminded her. "This is usually better than we people are happy to see us."
RURAL MANITOBA
2:32 PM
"I must say Jefferson, I never expected you to be this fascinated by Canadian farmland," Stein said, only half in jest.
"I'm a city boy, Grey. The only way I could tell the difference between wheat and corn is if you added food coloring to the cereal I was eating," Jefferson said.
"Then why have you been staring out the window the last twenty minutes?"
"It's weird. All those years riding public transportation and I'd forgotten what it was like to travel like this," Jackson admitted. "Don't tell me you're not feeling the same way."
"I won't lie. It is odd that the most average thing in the world now seems more foreign then taking flight," Stein acknowledged.
"As someone who spent the better part of his life in these kinds of cars, there's never truly anything wondrous about it," Mulder said. "I sure as hell didn't feel the way you did after I…" He trailed off.
"Were abducted by aliens?" Jefferson was blunt as always.
Mulder was blunter. "Sat in a coffin for three months."
This was one of the experiences that nobody in the car wanted to dwell on. Stein and Jefferson had experience dealing with a dead leader, and everybody knew how much they might joke about it, they were never fine with the trauma. They could tell you they'd dealt with it until they were blue in the face, and you'd still know better.
Samantha chose to change the subject. "According to the coordinates, this farm is two miles out."
"Well, its going to be hard for it not to stand out," Stein reminded them. "It's been at least five miles since we saw a structure, much less a dwelling."
"It isn't the middle of nowhere, but it's as close as we can get these days," Mulder admitted. "Even if you knew where to look for it, this place wouldn't be easy to find."
They all adjusted as the car hit the third pothole in as many minutes. "I get why you wouldn't want Firestorm to make an appearance out here," Jefferson said cautiously. "But isn't a car with four people just showing up going to make whoever's here even more suspicious?"
"Girl Scouts selling Thin Mints would raise these people's hackles," Mulder admitted. "Not that I would blame them. A paramilitary organization centered on adolescent eight to eleven years olds using cookies to as their chief method of finances was always one of those things I wanted to investigate but never got the funding to check out."
It was a testament to the world that they lived in that none of the passengers could tell if Mulder was kidding or even if he was whether the theory actually did have some kind of merit to it. "Are the cookies meant as mind control or do they have some kind of tracking devices in them?" Stein asked, not sure how serious he was
"Langley's theory was that the cookies contained trace amounts of addictive chemicals meant to maintain a need for the product, the same way the cigarette industry worked," Mulder said in the same deadpan tone. "But I'm pretty sure not even the most devoted capitalist or religious fanatic would travel this far out to try and find customers."
"Fox. Just what kind of friends were these Lone Gunmen if they believed these things?" Samantha asked in a worried sister tone.
"I wouldn't worry too much about their influence on me. They always said my ideas were crazier then theirs," Mulder said cheerfully.
"Considering where we are right now, I find it hard to disagree with them. And that's having proof of what we're doing," Samantha said.
"Well, we're going to find out soon who the craziest person in this car is," Jefferson said. "If I'm not mistaken I think we're just about there."
The grain elevator that had been the tallest structure in the footage the Mulder siblings had shown them a little less than twenty-four hours ago had just appeared on the horizon.
"Now that we've arrived, what is our course of action?" Stein asked.
Mulder answered by pulling over to the side of the road, even though they were still at least a mile and a half away from the collection of buildings.
"I have no idea how extensive their security grid is," he said by way of explanation. "For all we know they picked us up on sonar or aerial surveillance three or four miles back."
"They don't seem to have sent any jeeps or tanks out to hunt us down yet," Jefferson said carefully. "Of course, the key word is 'yet'."
Mulder heaved a sigh. "The farm I saw twenty years ago had no security at all. Hell, it looked like no one had made any improvements on the property for thirty years. Logic dictates that somebody somewhere was watching it; I don't think Covarrubias could have provided me with the pictures I saw if there hadn't been something like it."
"How sure were you that photograph was even authentic? You know who she worked for and how the exchange of information went with any of your sources," Samantha reminded him.
"I didn't consider that until years after the face," Fox admitted. "But even if it was a fake, the basic principle behind the idea is logical."
"The long and short of it, we could have no security coming or a truckload of armed guards," Stein summarized. "Or perhaps even just a seemingly friendly face who at a critical moment reveals how much of an enemy they are. " He paused. "That's the underlying reason you asked Jefferson and myself to come with you. You need us for protection as much as anything else we bring the table."
Mulder decided to stop dicking around. "That's fundamentally correct," he admitted.
"Then let us protect you." Jefferson said. "Tell us what you need us to do."
Mulder looked around. "It is my fundamental understanding that the two of you need only a few moments warning to become Firestorm. According to the files I have on record, no one in the government, shadow or otherwise, know that the two of you are either part of a team of heroes or are a single metahuman. At some point, I have no doubt they will become aware of this. It may even happen today. That all said I would like to keep that particular weapon in the holster for as long as possible."
"That might just be a matter of minutes by now," Stein said matter-of-factly.
Mulder nodded. "Samantha and I are going to head to what appears to be the front door. Right now, I want you and Jefferson to look around as you and Jefferson and not just because this place is a fire trap waiting to happen."
They couldn't deny that. The last five miles had shown a lot of forestry and plants that didn't look in the healthiest condition.
Jefferson handed Mulder one of the earpieces that the Legends were known for using. "You see something that gives you a bad feeling, shout out. We'll do the same on our end."
"You do know my entire job has been based on getting bad feelings and then forging on ahead anyway?" Mulder reminded them.
"And as we were told that led you to spending a significant amount of your career in the hospital," Stein reminded him. "I can assure such visits are far less fun when you get to be our age."
"It's not much fun going on normal visits, "Samantha told them. "All those questions about eating right, exercising, preparing for your colonoscopy. And that's before you tell them the lion's share of the scars on your body came from government testing as a youth."
"I tried explaining to my dentist that the scars on my soft pallet were from drilling by an alien probe," Mulder said wryly. "My cardiologist doesn't seem to understand that I never have had a real bypass. I've had to change proctologists three times in the last two years and those guys should really have seen everything."
Jefferson shook his head. "Is this what I have to look forward when I get to be your age, Gray?" he asked.
"You've never been a test subject of an international alien conspiracy," Mulder said. "I gotta tell you all those years hearing the right wing rant and rave about government overreach is the most hilarious thing I've ever heard. There are death panels out there, but I assure you they have no interest in covering your insurance when they do it. In other words, I'm relatively sure something is going to go wrong here. I care more about seeing Scully again then how it affects my co-pay."
No wonder Cat Grant loves this guy Stein thought. "Call us when you get to the front door," he said.
Mulder nodded. "I have to say, there's a lot better tech in the private sector then in the government," he said as he put it in his ear.
"I'd expect working with Felicity and STAR Labs would tell you as much," Jefferson said.
"Still, I gotta say this is impressive. Looks years ahead of its time," he said casually before both Mulders walked away.
3:14 PM
"We make a mistake giving him something from the Waverider?" Jefferson asked as they continued their search.
"By this point Agent Mulder has seen so much futuristic tech I doubt that will make him suspicious," Stein said. "It's what he said before he left that has me concerned."
"You think he's still probing?"
"He's been trained in interviewing and interrogating suspicious characters, even ones that might be allies," Stein said slowly. "And however much he might resent them, he is in law enforcement. He's trained in asking hard questions, usually ones he already knows the answers too."
Jefferson took this in. "I've been wondering when the other shoe would drop. Kind of figured it might come when either we saved his life or he saved ours. This is where it might happen."
"The thought has occurred to me as well," Stein acknowledged.
"You know what Barry and the rest told us when we got started," Jefferson said. "Think we're there yet?"
"You know what Sara told us before she and Ray left on their trip with Team Arrow," Stein told us. "He's on the hook for anything that happens to them, and he had no problem giving them his blessing."
"Pretty loose leash compared to some of the agencies we've worked with," Jefferson admitted. "Really didn't ask a lot of questions on the flight out, either."
"He wants to know what we're about. I'm pretty sure we can agree on that." Stein said thoughtfully. "But we're still along way from him making one of his leaps. Until he stars getting more obvious with his hints, I believe the best thing to do is just focus on the mission."
"That would be easier if I knew what the hell I was looking for," Jefferson said. "I've been up and down this tract three times, and unless the crops were looking at are supposed to grow here, I can't tell if anything's out of place."
"Biology was never my specialty Jefferson," Stein said. "And even if it was, I'm relatively certain that's not what we're supposed to be looking for."
"What are we supposed to be looking for? A hatch buried in the sand?" Jefferson said.
"I actually do get that reference, and honestly, I think that's more like what Mulder has in mind," Stein replied.
"Been awhile since I saw that show, but I'm pretty sure they only found that," pause, "by accident."
Stein turned around. Jefferson was about a hundred yards away. "Don't tell me you actually found one."
"I'm hoping it's that and not a land mine. Get over her, Gray. Fast as you can without giving yourself a coronary. "Jefferson was concerned but he didn't want his friend collapsing trying to save him.
"What does it look like?" Stein was moving at a quick pace.
"I don't think it's a bomb, at least the way we're used to seeing them." Jefferson said. "That being said, you know what Mulder said about the tech being out of date. If it was one of those devices that are triggered by pressure, we may need to reveal our identity faster than Mulder wants us too."
"I think he'd understand," Stein quickened his pace slightly. "Do you think it's a bomb?"
"I know what it looks like to me, and if it is, I'm actually more concerned about that than blowing up, Grey." Jefferson was calm for him.
By now Stein had closed the distance. "What are you standing on?"
"That's just it, Grey. I'm not standing on anything. I'm standing next to something. Something that sure as hell shouldn't be in the middle of nowhere."
Stein saw it too. It was a door, but it looked like the kind you used to open a vault. And even odder, there was what looked to be a wheel that would open it on the outside.
"Now I'm not expert on the horror films of your generation, but it would take a much dumber man than me to that this isn't a trap," Stein said.
"Technically speaking, Grey, we're kind of in a horror film," Jefferson reminded him. "Middle of nowhere, mysterious door, trekking a force connected to outer space, we don't understand miles away from contact with civilization. As soon as we open this door, one of us is going to get attacked by some face-hugger, we'll feel fine…"
"And then, when we're having dinner a couple of hours later, it will burst out of their chest," Stein finished. "For all we know, there actually is a scenario like this in the X-Files that Mulder has yet to share with us."
Both men shuddered. "We're going down there, aren't we?" Jefferson asked grimly.
"I believe we've been doing this long enough to recognize a rhetorical question when you hear one," Stein got on the speaker. "Agent Mulder, I believe we may have found a way in."
4:32 PM
"Explain to me again why I have to do this."
"Because you're the only one who's a federal agent," Samantha told her brother with a trace of smugness. "And the only one authorized to be here."
Mulder had spent the last ten minutes trying to get the wheel that was locking the door to open. Stein had begged off, saying that he had never been good at manual labor and that Firestorm wouldn't be able to do this on his own.
"Please don't tell me you're playing the girl card," Mulder said dryly. "Because Scully would tell you what a horrible precedent you're setting."
"You're the big brother, Fox," Samantha said. "It is your fraternal job to get things on the shelf I can't reach, open locks I can't open, and go ahead of any marauding aliens that might want to kill me. And since you were somewhat relapse in the latter, I feel I do have an obligation to play the little sister card."
For a moment Stein and Jefferson wondered if Samantha had pushed her brother too far. Mulder just shook his head. "I let you get abducted by a global alien conspiracy one time and I have to pay for it the rest of my life," he said with his typical dry tone.
"Just feel grateful I'm not having you pay for all the clones of me that you let escape," Samantha said playfully.
"Couldn't I just let you win at Stratego for the rest of your life?" Mulder said as he continued to twist the knob fruitlessly.
"Hang on, Mulder," Jefferson said with a smile.
"And you couldn't have allowed for your availability earlier?" Mulder sounded just the slightest bit exasperated.
"I'm a black man in 21st Century America," Jefferson said. "Forgive me if for five minutes, I wanted to have The Man working for me."
"It's been ten," Mulder said as he walked away, wiping away sweat.
"Don't blame me, blame me the 13th Amendment," Jefferson said as he got a grip on it.
Mulder smirked as Jefferson struggled…for twenty seconds after which they heard the distinct sound of the door beginning to unlatch.
"If you say I loosened it for you, remember Grey and I can set you on fire," Jefferson said cheerfully.
"I would dignify that with an answer, if I wasn't out of breath," Mulder gasped out. "I am not too old for this shit. Manual labor; that is a different story."
None of them were entirely surprised to see that there was a ladder leading only into pitch blackness. "Please don't tell me that we're going to find a bunch of computers from the 1970s and a button that we have to push every 108 minutes," Jefferson said.
"That would've actually been one of the most normal things that Scully and I ever encountered when traveling into these dark tunnels. Speaking of which, who wants to hold this?"
"Ah, the famous X-Files flashlight," Samantha said.
"Annoyed auditors to the contrary, I'm relatively certain our greatest collective expense were lost flashlights and replacement batteries," Mulder said slowly. "By the way Jefferson, you're going first."
"This is for the remark I made about the Man, isn't it?" Jefferson asked warily.
"Technically, it's because you're the youngest and strongest of us," Mulder said. "Unofficially, there are still consequences to mouthing off in front of a federal agent. Though honestly, considering my history at the Bureau, I'm not sure if anyone ever suffered them until now."
Jefferson shook his head. "Grey, I think we both know you're coming next."
Mulder handed Stein a bigger flashlight. "One of you needs to be sure where we're all going." He handed his to Samantha. "Hopefully we only lose one of them going down."
Jefferson looked down, and then reluctantly began heading underground.
"You know, it is just as likely we set off some kind of alarm opening this," Stein said as he followed him down.
"As someone who has been doing this far longer than both of you, I have little doubt we've set off half a dozen alarms in the last half hour that none of us were aware of," Mulder said almost cheerfully. "We were usually lucky that the Syndicate relied primarily on armed sentinels to secure its secrets back in the day. Those I think we have a chance against. If we're lucky, we'll only be facing a small platoon."
"And if we're unlucky?" Jefferson asked.
"You've read the files. You know what our government is capable of using under the guise of national security," Samantha said grimly.
"On the plus side, I have escaped from my share of military bases," Mulder said as they continued carefully downward. "You have any idea how far down were going yet?"
Jefferson looked down. "Far enough that I'm not crazy about making one giant leap. How many secret underground lairs did you and Scully check out when you were on your first gig?
"Fewer than you'd think," Mulder admitted. "Considering that most of their secrets were in buildings you couldn't access, they had the luxury of hiding in plain sight. When the bureaucracy is your cover, you don't need a hiding place. That said there was one place that we found possibly the greatest source of data. One that very much reminds me of this."
"And that would be?" Stein asked.
"The Strughold Mining Company in Virginia. At least a dozen doors locked with a security pad. "
"And someone gave you to the password."
"Not just someone. Victor Klemperer."
Stein nearly lost his grip when he heard that name. "Klemperer. One of the most notorious Nazis to survive the War."
"Immigrated to America as part of Operation Paper Clip." Mulder acknowledged. "He was in his greenhouse when Scully and I found him. Even now, I don't know why he decided to give us a clue in our quest. I don't think even then he – or any of them – was capable of guilt or remorse."
Jefferson, who will concentrating on making his way down, asked the next question. "What was behind the door?"
"Lots and lots of files," Mulder said. "In which appeared to be names of everyone in America, or at least those who had been given the smallpox vaccination since the 1950s."
"For what purpose?" Stein asked.
"We still don't have a clear answer, but not to send us reminders of our yearly checkup," Mulder paused. "Scully was one of the names there. So was I."
Now Samantha was thrown. "You mean me."
Mulder looked up and shook his head. "Your name was on the file, but it was labeled over mine."
Samantha nearly lost her footing. "I don't understand."
"The only time I ever tried to force the issue with Mom was that day," Mulder said softly. "I asked her if Dad had ever forced her to make a choice. She told me that Dad had made it. And that she never forgave him."
Samantha looked shaken. "Fox, I never knew. I swear."
"It's water under the bridge. Besides, what difference did it make in the long run?" Mulder said in his detached tone. "They got me anyway."
"Well, whether it's a filing system, an underground farm or an alien army, we're about to find out," Jefferson had finally found solid ground. "We're here."
"You left out bees," Mulder said as they hit the ground.
"Seriously? That's how they're going to infect the planet?" Stein said. "Bees."
"Trust me," Mulder said grimly. "Never underestimate the bee."
Once they were on the ground, they tried to get a clear sense of their surroundings. Realistically speaking, this was the best way to hide something – underground in the middle of nowhere. Of course, they still had to figure out what was being hidden down here.
By Mulder's estimation, they had covered a few hundred yards down a darkened hallway before they got the first sign that this was not just a chamber in the middle of nowhere. "I really hope Bob Saget is on the other end of one of those," Jefferson said as he pointed to a video camera.
"I doubt they'll be shenanigans involved when people see this," Stein said. "I'm guessing we keep going."
"They already know we're here," Mulder said. "Before we run for the exit, I'd like to have an idea as to what they're hiding."
"Exactly the same thing they were keeping above ground," Samantha said slowly. "Only apparently, they've expanded their growth."
It didn't take long for them to see what she was talking about. It was apparent they were standing on what amounted to be a causeway. Approximately twenty feet below them was what had to be at least a square mile of cropland. On either side of the perimeter were searchlights that you usually only saw in stadiums.
They were lighting up an entire field of crops. Stein had done a study in biology but he had no idea from this distance what it was they were growing. He had a feeling even if he took a sample; the best scientists in the world would not be able to identify it. Since several of them were working with them, he thought it might well be in their interest to try an early harvest.
"Okay," Jefferson said carefully. "I'm officially weirded out."
Stein had been so focused on the field before them that he had only tangentially noticed that there were people working it. Now he took another look, and silently seconded Jefferson's statement.
There were anywhere from three to four dozen people working in the field. The reason that Stein couldn't come up with an exact number was obvious – there were many workers, but only two faces. All the male workers and the female workers – children essentially – were identical. And they were working without making a single sound.
Mulder very carefully looked at his sister. "You okay?"
"You spend your life knowing that you've been made unwillingly part of the Project," Samantha said slowly. "You accept that at some point you were violated and that your genetic offspring are being used to carry out the work. I've seen evidence of places like this; I've even seen a couple of my own duplicates. But this…"
Samantha looked like she might faint. None of the men blamed her; Jefferson had seen a lot of strange things in the last year and part of him desperately wanted to vomit. "Do you know who the guy is?" he said as much as a distraction.
"I think I do," Mulder said slowly. "I met the adult version of him. They used the name Kurt Crawford. I know they had a connection to those women in Allentown who were abducted."
"You have any idea who his – I can't believe I'm saying this – father might be?" Stein asked.
"Never saw any of them again, grown or as a child. Admittedly I was focused on other things at the time," Mulder shook his head. "I still dropped the ball."
"Well, now that we've found them, what do we do now?" Jefferson said slowly. "And I do mean 'now', because I think best case scenario, we have five minutes before whatever security they've got here comes lumbering down to politely tell us we're trespassing before asking us to leave."
Everybody looked at Jefferson. "Hope springs eternal," he said with a shrug.
Through their discussion, the clones gave no indication that they had noticed the intruders. Mulder was reminded of Jeremiah Smith's terminology twenty years ago. He'd called them drones. Apparently they were not only incapable of language but perhaps by this point, they no longer had the capacity to notice anything but the task at hand.
"We need to get down there," he said finally. They all looked at him. "A place like this, they have to have an elevator or stairway somewhere."
"We understand the concept of 'down', Agent Mulder," Stein said. "I think what we need to know; once we're there, what exactly do you want us to do?"
"Twenty years ago I tried to get back to DC with Smith and one of those…Samanthas," he said slowly. "Despite my best efforts, the Bounty Hunter killed them both before I could get them to safety. Well, here I am again. And this time, I can't leave without getting one of them out of here."
"There wasn't any security then. You really expect to just walk out the front door with one of them?" Samantha said doubtfully.
"No, this time I'm betting that they'll be too distracted by everybody running for the hills," Mulder said with more certainty.
"I don't follow."
"It's very simple." A small smile was now crossing Mulder's face. "We're in the middle of what amounts to an illegal forced labor camp. So we are going to stage a prison break."
7:31 AM
There were more unpleasant ways to be awakened, but Oliver Queen had never been particularly partially to it being down with a bucket of below-freezing water in his face. The shout that emerged from his mouth was involuntary.
"For someone who was supposed to be worthy of the Al Ghul name, you seem to have weakened perceptibly the last year."
Despite the fact that he had came here for the sole purpose of hearing this very voice, Nyssa's tone still sent a chill down his spine. "Considering everything that's gone on between us, I expected just the slightest bit more gratitude," he found himself growling.
Nyssa hesitated – something the old Nyssa would never have done before. "I am not used to being taken by surprise," she said slowly. "And given my last exchange with your father, you had every reason to hate me. "
Oliver's eyes had gotten used to the darkness and saw that Nyssa was talking to Sara, who was upright and dry. "I guess that you didn't have to undergo the Ice Bucket challenge," he said softly. "How long have you been awake?"
"I'd built up a tolerance to these drugs as part of the League," Sara said. "I told Nyssa that even without one, you'd be up in less than an hour anyway, but…"
"My beloved told me that you had something of dire import to relay. So I decided to accelerate the process." Nyssa said.
"So it wasn't personal," Oliver said.
"The Heir to the Demon hold a grudge? You should know we're above these petty emotions," Nyssa's tone was as flat as ever, but Oliver could swear he could see one of the corners of her mouth twitch for a millisecond.
"Anyway, you've rested enough," Nyssa said. "Tell me why you've come to visit, husband."
AUTHOR'S NOTES
For those playing at home:
The first formal acknowledgement of Talia, who as we learned in Season 5 of Arrowgave Oliver his formal training to become the Arrow. Since she was never mentioned prior to that season and Oliver didn't know she was Ras' daughter until Prometheus came along, I'm operating on the hypothesis that she was similarly in bad grace with her father. Trust me, Oliver's going to make the connection a lot sooner in this story, though I'm not sure how big a role she'll play yet.
Yes I know how silly the Girl Scouts story is, but it does sound like the kind of thing Mulder or The Lone Gunmen might believe. And for the record, there's a certain foreshadowing by my mentioning them officially. Say no more.
Lost references. I write Lost stories. This scenario cried out for it. I'll try not to do it again.
Yes Fox and Samantha are at the point where they can make fun of their horrible traumas. I guess it's a Mulder family trait.
Oh those bees. Twenty years after the fact, quite a few of us never really understood why bees were written into the conspiracy. Some of us actually think that the writers took a joke from a Darin Morgan episode as a valid idea and made it canon. Naturally Mulder doesn't like bees (neither do shippers, if you saw the movie.) And frankly I don't much either. I'm going to try and use them as little as possible, but they're going to show up at some point (sigh)
Everything involving the Mining Company and the files is from the X-Files episode 'Paper Clip' Including the fact that Fox Mulder seems to have been the one who was going to chosen instead of Samantha. Somehow I have a feeling Mulder would keep them to himself as long as possible.
The Kurt Crawford clones were revealed in Memento Mori and never appeared again. The boy clones we saw in Herrenvolk, also in Season 4 were never identified (and we may never even know the actor who played them) Based on what little the series told us about the clones, I don't think I'm talking out of school on that one.
So which cliffhanger will I resolve first? And will a superhero end up being called in? Stay tuned, true believers. And read and review.
