A/N: So I have been totally neglecting this story, but I lost my inspiration for awhile, so while I wait for SVU to come on I'm going to start a new chapter.

I've also decided that this story is going to be far shorter then my story The Meaning Of Family. Offhand, I'm not sure how long it'll be, but about 10 chapters sounds about right.

But is anyone else still hating the new ADA? I think we've given her a fair chance and for her snarky comment about Casey, I think I can safely say that Casey was 100000x more dedicated to the job.....

Spoilers: General X-Files spoilers, small Fight The Future, Vienen

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The next few days were a challenge. They had made almost no breaks in the case, even thought the agents had sent the black oil off to the Lone Gunmen, they hadn't gotten back to them. They followed a few leads, but ended up at dead ends, and the information they did have was not telling them anything new.

Tensions were mounting in the SVU squad room on the sunny Friday when they finally did get a call back from the Gunmen, telling them they were in New York for a Dungeons and Dragons convention (the squad tried admirably hard not to laugh at this), and they would stop by to give their thoughts on the black oil. Mulder let out a sigh of relief at this news. He and Elliot had been making a decent effort to get along since their near bar brawl earlier, but they were most certainly not friends. In fact, Elliot still noticed Mulder step protectively closer to his partner whenever Elliot came close, as if he was afraid Elliot might hurt her, whether it be physically or emotionally.

The agents, almost imperceptively, had blended so well into the squad, that sometimes it felt as if they had been there much longer. Munch and Mulder bonded over conspiracy theories, but Mulder still laughed and rolled his eyes with Fin when Munch went off on one if his tirades about black helicopters or another one of his endless theories.

Olivia and Scully were becoming fast friends, to the surprise of most. At first glance, they didn't seem to have much in common, this refined FBI agent and this tough New York detective. But they had started meeting after work for drinks, talking animatedly amongst themselves. Olivia found Dana very easy to like, and since Casey left she hadn't had anyone to talk to. Olivia hadn't realized how much she had missed having someone to talk to, not about work, but just normal stuff between friends. They had a lot in common, including knowing what it was like to be a woman in a male dominated business.

They were going to miss the agents when they left, but they still had a case to solve.

The squad had called Jennifer down to their squad room after she revealed that she actually had caught a glimpse of their attacker, after assuring her again and again that she would not get into trouble with them for lying, but they had been able to get little other details besides brown hair and a black liquid in his eyes. Jennifer had said he never spoke to her so there was no way she could identify his voice. He had left no other evidence, either. Jennifer's hospital examination had shown nothing except for much higher levels of radiation in her system, which they still didn't have an explanation to, but it was just one more mystery to add to the growing list.

The mood was broken when suddenly three men appeared in the door. They looked ridiculously out of place in the dreary bullpen, one with long blond hair and a Ramones t-shirt, one short man with a leather coat and hair pulled into a ponytail, and one with a suit and neatly trimmed hair. Mulder and Scully, however, recognized them immediately. Mulder jumped up from his desk and greeted them enthusiastically.

"Got something for us, guys?" he asked.

The Lone Gunmen hesitated.

"...Maybe it would be better if we could just speak with Mulder and Scully," the neatly dressed one finally replied.
Mulder looked around as if considering it, but Cragen gave him a look, and he reluctantly conceded

"It's their case too. Just tell all of us. Although some may believe it more than others," Mulder replied, adding the last sentence under his breath.

Looking doubtfully at each other, the Gunmen shrugged.

"We did an analysis on the black oil you sent us," Byers, the neatly trimmed man began. "Actually, we did many tests on it. And...it seems to be what you thought it was, Mulder."

"And what is that?" Cragen asked impatiently.

Now it was Mulder's turn to hesitate.

"The black oil is something Scully and I discovered three years ago. It's said to have existed before the dinosaurs even walked the earth. It's what's known as an alien virus. It absorbs into its host, pooling in the third ventricle of the brain, until it takes control and allows...a gray alien being to gestate, eventually killing the host."

There was silence in the squad room for what felt like hours, until the man with the long blond hair, Langley, cut in.

"We did a ton of tests before we came to this, we analysed the biological structure, the components, everything. This is one secret the Syndicate's really trying to keep under wraps."

"...Syndicate?" Olivia asked.

Later, Scully mouthed and Olivia fell silent. Mulder turned to the Lone Gunmen again, looking like his head was spinning.

"There could be thousands of people infected with the black oil...how are we supposed to narrow it down to one rapist?" Mulder grumbled, putting his head in his hands.

"Hey man, narrowing down until the freak is caught is something we do every day," said Fin. "We'll catch this guy. At least now we have something to go on."

Thus slightly cheered, the group returned to work.

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He sat in his dark office, puffing nervously, one cigarette after the other. This wasn't good. How could the idiot leave the oil at the scene? He had hired them to clean it of any traces. He made a mental note to get his men to take care of the "cleaner".

They were getting too close. Too close to the truth about this case. To close to the truth that could expose them, expose their work and their goal. This couldn't carry on. But who to take care of first.

He pondered this for awhile, then, out of nowhere, Strughold's words rang in his head.

"Kill him, we risk turning one man's quest into a crusade."

"Then you must take away what he holds most valuable. That with which he can't live without."

A thin smile curved on his lips. Yes. This would work. They must proceed with caution, however. After all, the most dangerous thing to them would be someone who has nothing left to lose. It must be quick, clean and contained.

He nodded resolutely. Soon. They had to protect themselves. A few days, a week perhaps, and this would all be just a bad dream.

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A/N: And that's it! I'm getting a great response to this story, please keep up the reviews! They make me very happy, and let's review:

Many reviews= happy author. Happy author=more updates. More updates= MSR cuteness!