Chapter ten
Scully had been looking around the lab. She found a few files, but she didn't know what they meant. It was of the experiments, but she didn't know how to rate what was being written without having the full data.
Some of it would require further analysis and a long discussion with Herbert Friedman.
Scully found a desk drawer that was locked. She figured that it must hold something important so she pried it open.
Inside was a file labeled Leonard: DEVELOPMENT.
Scully opened it and inside was a detailed report of the mutations caused by the Mortifilia done on Leonard. There were also hand drawn pictures of the measurements of what was happening to Leonard's body.
Scully began to read the file, "January 18, 1903, Leonard seems to have handled the treatment reasonably well. No special symptoms.
March 24, 1903, After a few days his skin is covered with melanoma. The tumors are not metastasizing very much, but their large number is causing a worsening in his general condition.
March 30, 1903, The hypersensitivity of the skin to UV radiation and the first lesions resulting from this are similar to Xeroderma Pigmentosum, an inherited illness. This illness is due to a mutation of the gene that protects against skin cancers. But, in theory, this illness is hereditary.
April 18, 1903, Henceforth, Leonard will protect himself from the sun, but the damage is done. The light rays have caused an acute reaction in the Mortifilia gene inserted into his system. We did not foresee this, because our previous guinea pigs remained in their cages. At present, the entire surface of Leonard's skin is suffering profound mutations.
May 25, 1903, The mutations appear to have slowed down. They are, however, spectacular, and I ask myself how he can survive in this condition. The wounds have transformed into scabs that look as though they will remain, like the bark of a tree. The damage to his skeleton and his metabolism appear irreversible. His temporal lobes and his upper members are the most affected parts.
June 30, 1904, His condition has stabilized. His mental conditionconcerns me as much as the appearance he has taken on, if human appearance can still be spoken of in his case. The only hope to cure him now is to have new guinea pigs who have suffered in the same way, in order to test a therapy aimed at eradicating the gene and returning the subject to his initial condition.
September 24, 1926, This research is very long. I will not live long enough to achieve my goal. Unless I inject myself with the treatment and remain in the shadows until the serum is discovered."
Scully couldn't believe what she had read. So he had achieved immortality, but because of it, Herbert had to remain in shadows all this time.
"Why?" Scully breathed, still looking through the file. By the way it sounded; Leonard had to have died by now.
"Like the bark of a tree" jumped out at her from the file and then she remembered Mulder pointing out that the roots seemed to be alive. She remembered the look of Leonard's face on the reel.
"Oh my god, Leonard is the tree! He's doing all this with Herbert," Scully said, "He want's to be cured."
Scully closed the file, figuring this was all the evidence she would need. She needed to find Mulder and Stan.
She took the file with her and descended the ladder.
Scully stepped onto the ground. She looked around the hallway. There was only one way to go. She headed right and was about to continue when she noticed a door.
She knew that Mulder and Stan would have already searched this room, but if they found something, they would be waiting to tell her here. Unless they were still in the room. She knew they wouldn't have continued much farther. She decided to check it out just to be safe.
Scully tried to open it, but saw that it was locked. She undid the latch and entered the room.
The room was dark but quickly lit. Scully was startled and blinded a bit. Her eyes adjusted to the brightness and she was surprised to see four people on the floor in locked cells.
Scully rushed in when she realized that it was Mulder, Stan, Shannon, and Kenny.
"Oh my god, Mulder," she said when she reached his cell.
He was lying on the stone floor unconscious.
"Mulder," she said louder, but he didn't respond.
She knew not to panic; she just needed to open the doors. Scully looked around the room. She saw that the doors were electronically locked. She found the release panel by the door.
Scully pressed the button and all the doors opened.
Scully went back to Mulder.
"Mulder," Scully said as she knelt down beside him.
Scully checked for a pulse. She assessed that he was fine. She then went to check on the other three.
Everyone was all right; they were just unconscious.
Kenny was the first to wake. Scully rushed over to him.
"Kenny, are you all right?" Scully asked as she checked him over.
He touched his head, "Yeah, just a bit of a headache," he looked at her, "Who are you?"
"I'm Dana Scully, I'm with the F.B.I," Scully said.
Kenny looked around, "Where's Shannon?" he asked alarmed.
"She's here, she's okay," Scully soothed.
He relaxed a bit, "No she's not."
Scully looked at him curiously, "What do you mean?"
"She and I are infected," Kenny said standing up.
He looked around the room. It was bright and the light was hurting him.
He doubled over in pain.
Scully didn't know what to do for him.
"We've been injected with that stuff Friedman's researching," Kenny said, "It's the light, it hurts."
Scully nodded. She looked around the room and found a long pipe. She knocked out some of the lights.
He nodded his appreciation. With the added darkness, he felt a bit better.
Kenny looked over at Shannon, but then saw Mulder and Stan.
"Oh no," he groaned, "They've been infected."
Scully looked at him startled, "What!?"
"Friedman came back when they found us; he knocked us out with some kind of gas," Kenny said, "He would have infected them."
Scully and Kenny walked over to check Mulder and Stan. Kenny looked over Stan.
"Check his arm," Kenny said to Scully.
Scully knelt by Mulder again. She was hesitant. She didn't want to know and she didn't want to believe, especially with what she read about Leonard and seeing all the other test subjects.
Scully lifted Mulder's right sleeve and saw that his arm was clean. She was almost relived. She prayed that the other arm would be clean.
She slowly lifted his left arm sleeve. Her heart sank at seeing the bruising of an unmistakable injection site.
"No, Mulder," she said pained.
"Stan's been infected, we need to keep them in darkness," Kenny said, "I've been exposed to some light, so has Shannon,"
"Wh-what do we do, how do we help them and you?" Scully asked feeling overwhelmed.
"Light causes the transformation and mutations, we need to limit their light exposure," Kenny said, "But by morning…the sunlight won't mutate us, it will kill us."
Scully nodded as she remembered what Denny had told her and Mulder about the monsters, and of the boy that died in the classroom earlier.
"Isn't there a way…?" Scully didn't even know what she was supposed to ask.
She hadn't read anything about an antidote being accomplished.
"The nurse, or Walden, have you found either of them?" Kenny asked.
"Wickson is in the Infirmary, and Walden, well we run into him once in a while," Scully said, "He's looking for Herbert."
"Herbert's trying to avoid him," Kenny said, "I have no idea why, but we have to get to Wickson, she might be able to help us."
"She's working with them. What makes you thinks she will?" Scully said.
"She's afraid of Leonard and Herbert, I heard them talking the last few weeks," Kenny said, "But first we have to wake them, I don't really want to leave them here," he said indicating the Stan, Mulder, and Shannon.
Scully and Kenny set to waking them.
Mulder woke groggy.
"Scully?" Mulder asked, trying to focus on her face.
"Yeah," Scully said.
He then sat up quickly, "The other's…Herbert!"
"Herbert's not here and the others are fine, relatively speaking," Scully said, "Although I'm surprised to see Shannon."
"Yeah, I was too, she never got to tell us how she ended up here," Mulder said standing up.
Scully supported him until he got his bearings.
"You didn't run into Friedman did you?" Mulder asked worriedly.
Always thinking of me, she thought sadly, "No, I didn't, I just found you four," she said, trying to act unruffled.
"I'm glad, I was afraid that he would…" Mulder said looking at her searchingly, "You've got that look on your face. What's wrong?"
"What look?" Scully asked trying to look impassive.
"The look that says you know something I don't, but something you don't want to know yourself," Mulder said suspiciously.
Scully sighed, "I don't know how long you were out, but…," she said and took his left arm and raised the sleeve.
He looked at his arm appalled.
"That son-of-a-bitch," Mulder said angrily, "Stan too?"
"Yes," she said, "We'll fix this, Mulder," Scully said firmly.
Mulder nodded, "So did you find anything in the lab?"
"Yes. Leonard's alive, and he's the tree," Scully said.
Mulder stared at her blankly for a moment.
"Now, I've heard weirder things before, but can you run that by me one more time," Mulder said incredulously.
"You know the roots you saw coming out of the walls, well it's Leonard, he's a tree apparently," Scully said seriously.
"Well, this just gets stranger and stranger," Mulder said in disbelief.
"I know. So you ready to get moving?" Scully said.
Mulder started patting himself, "Yeah, as soon as I find my weapon," he said and looked around his cell.
"It's probably in that iron cabinet near the door," Kenny said, "Friedman puts everything that comes with a subject in there."
Mulder nodded and walked over to it.
Scully followed him.
"It's locked," Scully stated as she touched the padlock and chain.
Mulder glared at her a bit, "I can see that, now, how can I open it," he said looking around the ground.
He picked up a bolt cutter from inside a toolbox.
"I think this can work," he said as he cut the padlock off the chain.
Mulder opened the cabinet and took out his shotgun and Stan's pistol.
He checked both of the guns; they were still loaded.
"Where's Stan?" Mulder asked looking around the cells, "And why is it so dark?"
"Stan's in the last cell, and I broke some of the lights," Scully answered, "The lights were hurting Kenny, and it was best to limit yours and Stan's exposure too,"
"Sure," Mulder said looking up when Kenny, Shannon, and Stan walked over to them.
"So should we get going?" Kenny asked.
"Yeah," Mulder said handing Stan back his pistol.
Stan took it and pocketed it. He hadn't said anything yet.
"And I think I found a way into the teacher's dormitories," he said showing Stan the bolt cutter.
Stan nodded his approval.
The five exited the Prison room and walked down the rest of the hall. The corridor ended with a ladder leading up.
They began their climb up the ladder.