Chapter Ten: Minefield Mind field:
Stephan came awake with a start; he had tried to stay awake and thought as cold and wet as he had been he would. He was now dry so he had to have been asleep for hours. He stood as lord Finch-Fletchley came into the room, he no longer looked an angry at him so somehow the blood work had come back not showing who he had been. Another man came in, strongly built with strong jaw and short brown hair. He was clad in a suit like the well-manicured man but was far more emotionless than the noble. Stephan was wary of him and wanted to back to the wall, however he did not and stood quietly waiting his fate.
"You owe me an apology." Stephan said coldly, "Though I do understand your anger, no one should have been hunted as your son was."
"Yes, well are you not curious as to how the alien got into you?" The well-manicured man asked.
"Not really."
"I can help you." The Bounty Hunter said, "I know their kind well, I am not human but this will not harm you want I do."
"If you do I will knock you down." Stephan said, "So a mind meld of sorts?"
"Yes, you can trust me, I mean you no harm." The bounty hunter said putting a hand on the side of his head.
Stephan had no choice and really, he knew that this was probably a way to trap him somehow. He looked into the eyes of the Bounty Hunter and was surprised the creature, for creature he was let him look at his mind. He knew exactly whom Stephan was but was not going to tell the man before him, this surprised Stephan and he opened up and shared with the Bounty Hunter. He learned about the Jeremiah Smiths and how the one that had "healed" had only made things worse. His touch was not of healing but death as the young man had died a year later of cancer.
He had learned of the war against the Purity and the syndicate this brave hunter was doing and how the syndicate believed he was on their side. The Bounty hunter and the faceless rebels were on the same side. In turn, he gave his life story as it were and felt the bounty hunter was impressed and would not betray him. Finally, he saw the thing take him over and use his body to end up hundreds of miles away from his hotel. It was disturbing to watch the entity leave his body and flow to the ship hidden here. Finally, he felt the bound break and they were back in the cell.
"It is as I feared, but the creature will not get far." The bounty hunter said, "the ship used was broken and none died under its control."
"Anything else?" The well-manicured man asked.
"No, he is who he says he is and his DNA says." The bounty hunter replied.
"Very well." The well-manicured man said just as his phone rang, he took the call and after a moment gave an answer and looked to where Stephan was standing, "there is to be a prisoner exchange."
"I will take him." The bounty hunter said.
"No, you wish her dead, I will go." The well-manicured man said, "I have my reasons as you know."
"Very well, she should be dead, you do not know her mind."
"Yet she is valuable." The well-manicured man said.
Stephan found himself taken out of the cell and back to a helicopter. There he was flown back to the DC area where the chopper landed in a field. Stephan was taken out of the chopper and led to the middle of the field. He saw Mulder, Doggett, Skinner and Scully and a blond woman who had to be Covarrubias. Doggett led her to the center and the exchange was made. Once Stephan was with the FBI, he was given a warm blanket and led to a van.
"Are you okay?" Mulder asked.
"Just fine, never better, my favorite way to spend an evening off." Stephen said sarcastically. "I am sorry I lost you an asset."
"Not your fault, the black oil is not something anyone wants to mess with." Scully replied, "I will need to check you out."
"Buy me dinner first." Stephan replied.
"She can slice and dice nicely." Mulder said, "very handy with a knife and gun, she shot me once."
"And it was well deserved I am sure." Stephan replied.
"It was." Skinner said, "look not all is lost, what was the bounty hunter doing there?"
"Being helpful, he did help me out, you know why he was after the Jeremiah Smiths, right?" Stephan asked.
"We do now, the young man, that was a horrible way to go." Scully replied and she was driving.
"By their fruits ye shall know them." Mulder said, "his so called healing made things worse. Wish I had known that, what did he want with you."
"To make sure I was not someone who is dead." Stephan replied, "Which I am not."
He settled back in his seat trying to stay awake but he found himself shaken awake, as the van had stopped. He got out and headed into the building and into a medical suite. There was a shower and he was able to shower first and then come out wrapped in a towel to see Scully there. He knew better than to joke with her, she would turn it right back on him. He let her check him over to make sure he was fine, she took some blood, and did a few tests. Then she took out a needle to give him and gave him a shot.
"Your third shot for Hepatitis B." Scully said. "It will become standard in a few years for all children."
"Any faster and the syndicate will catch on to what is going on." Melissa said walking into the room, as this was a medical room there was only audio back to the syndicate, and right now, the syndicate was getting a very different conversation. "Soon the majority of the world will be vaccinated which was what the scientists in the crash were trying to do."
"You mean Roswell." Stephan replied.
"I do, you need to go home, get some rest, and tomorrow is going to be a big day." Melissa said.
"Tomorrow, oh right, marriage, yes I mean you still do, right?" Stephan said.
"Yes of course, and you are so worth it." Melissa said, "Bill even likes you."
"He never liked any of my boyfriends." Scully said, "but Fox here is alright in his books."
"He was upset last year, said things he regrets to Fox, but he thought he would loose Dana." Melissa replied, "How are you really Stephan?"
"I will live, but I don't want to go through that again." Stephan said, "the bounty hunter knows what we are doing but does not care, he has bigger things to worry about."
"I still don't like him." Mulder said.
Later, at Stephan's house as they sat before a fire in the fireplace Stephan thought back on what had happened. He worried, the bounty hunter was honest and truthful with him but he could not help but have questions. Melissa was seated covered in a light blanket going over his now vast movie collection before she settled on The Rope By Alfred Hitchcock. Stephan looked up from where he was laying petting the newest addition to the family, a shelter rescue they had named Maggie. She was roughly fifty pounds of black shaggy fur with mismatched eyes and a goofy grin and she was settling in well. She was claiming part of the couch Stephan was on and he did not mind at all.
"So you are worried." Melissa said looking at Stephan.
"Yes, the syndicate is going to keep a close eye on me, or as close as they can and MACUSA is not going to be very happy with me." Stephan replied, "I was careless."
"They don't see it that way." Melissa said, "don't worry, and Ilvermorny, yes or no."
"You did not go, you went to the camps." Stephan replied, "I want any children we have to be able to go between worlds."
"They have to, the law passed that not only will magical culture be taught at magical schools and camps but no-maj culture too. It is only a matter of time before we are all exposed to the rest of the world, I for one want it to go smoothly."
"What of the alien threat?" Stephan asked.
"That is not what will bring us down, we need to take care of the syndicate, and they are the true threat."
"Agreed, what we found in the mine, impressive and illegal." Stephan added, "Hiding things in a mine like Strughold was not the smartest thing to do, to keep them there when your sister found them, pure folly."
"Or they could not move them." Melissa said, "we cannot publically take down the syndicate but we can make moves to do so in the future, this is going to take years though."
"Well, Dana and Fox have it, we on the other hand have a wedding to plan." Stephan said.
"Yes, a simple one, you wear a suit, I wear a white dress and everyone else is dressed in suit and dresses, no fuss no frills." Melissa said, "The marriage is the more important part."
"I love you." Stephan said.
"And I love you." Melissa said, "I am glad I found you in the shack, I think it might have been like at first sight."
"Even covered as I was in blood?" Stephan asked.
"Well that part was scary, but you are fine now, the Unspeakables made sure you could have a new life." At a look from Melissa, "they are made to swear to protect and never harm, they cannot and would not betray you, not when you are a hero."
"Potter is a hero, not me." Stephan said.
"Well, you are my hero." Melissa replied.
Stephan drew her close and kissed her, the movie forgotten for the time being. It was only a few minutes later they felt a pair of eyes on them and saw Maggie looking at them wondering what they were doing. Something was bothering Melissa though and she turned to Stephan worry on her face.
"The alien bounty hunter was there, what did he want?" Melissa asked.
"To share the truth." Stephan said, "I know what face they present to the syndicate and I know that the syndicate bought it. The clones were not created by the alien bounty hunters, they are spies, much as I was."
"Spies, so there is no gray alien race?"
"Oh there is, but nothing like what the syndicate believes them to be. Stephan said, the bounty hunters are slowly drawing the syndicate into a trap and soon they hope to have full control on the hybrid virus the syndicate has created."
"They are not trying for world domination, but galactic?" Melissa said looking horrified, "that is madness, we could all be dead!"
"No the bounty hunters are the only thing keeping us from being destroyed as they have proof that mankind has no idea this is going on." Stephan said, "the syndicate wants to make a master race and to protect the rest of the world the bounty hunters have to do things they way they do and they don't trust Fox, at all."
"Why?"
"His father and uncle were and are part of the syndicate." Stephan replied, "I thought Voldemort was bad, but this is worse."
"We have strong allies it seems, I will trust them." Melissa said, "or you could see how well Vertaserum works on them."
Stephan smiled and put the movie in. He had time to see what he needed to do in all of this but for now, he was going to enjoy being with Melissa. Let the world wait he wanted to enjoy his bride-to-be's company and enjoy the evening as he had been through a few harrowing days. His life was good, he had a good home, good family and there was nothing that was going to get in the way of that.
O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O
So a lot of information here. I went with the route that the alien bounty hunters are more than just killers of unwanted alien clones but rather spies of a sort. They are on earth to clean up the clones, but those clones were not made by aliens but the syndicate. The bounty hunters say the things they do so that the syndicate can continue what they are doing. So smoke and mirrors and spying, in this story the bounty hunters are part of the good guys. As for the dog, I have a rescue they are the best, I highly recommend adopting a pet not shopping at a pet store for one.
Anyway, do review please!