Chapter 5
STRUGHOLD MINING COMPANY, WEST VIRGINIA
September 13, 1994
"Déjà vu all over again," Mulder said as he looked through the screen.
"And you're positive neither one of you will show up here?" Sara asked.
Sara knew she'd made a mistake even as she finished the question.
"I know where I was," Mulder said. "And no one knows where Scully was. Not even her."
"That's the whole reason we came here, now," Scully reminded them.
The next stop on their travels had been a place Mulder and Scully were very familiar with. They'd been sent here by Victor Klemperer while both of them had been on the run from the powers that be after everything that had happened starting with the discovery of the MJ Files. They knew what was down there.
They also knew that the opportunities to get here had been limited. The two of them had returned in the spring of 1996 but now there were armed guards and cameras everywhere. Whatever answers this place might have had been permanently shut off to them – until now.
Both of them knew that there was information here that was relevant to the conspiracy. What conspiracy was a matter of debate between them even now. Both of them were in agreement that there were records of every single experiment the government had done on the population going back to at least the 1950s. They knew that Scully's name had been there and Mulder's.
Mulder also believed that there was something more significant – something that he had seen but that Scully hadn't. If you were going to get information on the Syndicate, this was the place.
So again, they'd sent two pairs on a mission. Snart and Mick were going to be doing what they did best – though Mick was somewhat annoyed that they wouldn't have to actually break anything down.
"We're being given the keys to the Kingdom, my friend, count your blessings that the old guard hasn't entered the 1980s yet," Snart had consoled him as they looked at the containers before them.
"Maybe it's just as well," Mick said as he looked at the digital pads. "I'm pretty sure neither of us trained on something this primitive when we were juvenile delinquents."
"All right, what's the password?" Snart asked.
"271828," Scully told them. "Keep in mind it only works for one of them."
"And you don't remember which one?" Snart asked.
"We were pretty much flying blind. Trust me, you'll know it when you find it." Mulder said.
Snart looked at Mick. "You start on the far right; I'll start on the far left. Hopefully before we meet in the middle, we'll find what we're looking for."
Mick agreed. "You're sure there's no cameras around here? Seems kind of primitive given what they're keeping down here."
"For all the advances the Syndicate made, they were less capable of predicting the future then they thought," Mulder said. "I don't think they could have foreseen an era when a hacker using a computer could record fifty years of government secrets on a single digital tape."
"Sure seemed like those old codgers didn't know how to use dialup when Sara and I were there," Mick said as he punched in the code.
"But that doesn't mean there isn't some kind of silent alarm that we were unaware of," Scully said. "I don't think the military showed up that quickly just because we were spotted in the area."
Snart paused after not getting a response on his latest keypad. "Perhaps you should have sent Stein or Palmer down here instead of us," he said.
"That's the other reason you were sent," Mulder said. "I don't know how much the shadow government knows about metahumans – they have to know something that they weren't telling us – but the last thing we need to do is accelerate their knowledge in any way. Besides last I checked you guys could handle yourself pretty well in a fight."
"And if things get fucked?" Mick said.
"Why do you think we stayed behind, Mr. Rory?" Stein asked.
"Yeah, someone has to restrain you two when you blow things for the rest of us," Jefferson said.
"We've been doing this for a while," Snart reminded them. "We're pretty good at evading the boys in blue, even if they are in khaki."
"Well, we better be ready for it," Mick told his friend. "I just hit the jackpot."
Snart walked over to the container. Sure enough the red lights surrounding the key pad had just turned to blue. A clicking and whirring sounded.
"Yeah, that's not ominous at all," Snart told them. "How long did it take until the military showed up?"
"We weren't exactly looking at our watches," Scully said. "Best case scenario, from the moment you go down there, you have ten minutes."
"If there's one thing we're used to working with, it's a deadline," Mick said.
XLXLXL
Leonard and Mick had heard this particular story and had read about it in the files. And they'd seen far more astonishing things in the last few years then the inside of a mine shaft. Still…
"This place is bigger than a Walmart," Mick said. "Less security then one…"
"…But no helpful aisles telling us where everything is," Snart agreed. "Good think it actually doesn't matter what we end up taking."
Mulder had suggested they come down here mainly because it offered an interesting variation on their old trade: they were here to steal something with no economic value but was of great value to everyone else it was from. Getting in was easy. The challenge would be getting out.
"Maybe the whole reason you guys never found this stuff again is they've spent the last twenty years digitizing it," Ray said as he got a look at the lots and lots of files before them.
"They may very well have been doing that already, " Scully said. "I never did find out what was on file at the Social Security Administration but it definitely could some version of what you're looking at here."
"So this is the hard copy?" Snart asked.
"Suddenly I never felt more grateful for the Kindle," Mick said. "How much do you think we can take before they miss it?"
Mulder considered it. "Considering you're looking at what may very well almost everybody in America who lived past World War II, I'd say quite a lot."
"You told us these files were sorted by year." Stein said. "Mr. Snart, take a file at random."
"With pleasure." He looked at it. "This file is 1963. " He looked up. "I should have just looked up."
Scully paused. "Snart, I want you to look for 1959."
"Mr. Rory go with him and stop at 1952."
Mulder looked at his partner. "I know that look. You have a name in mind."
"Call it professional curiosity."
"Nothing about this is professional," Sara said.
"You know, usually when he travel this far back in time, it's less like going through a library," Mick said.
"Except if we get caught, I doubt we'll just have to pay a fine," Leonard looked up. "I think I'm here."
"Leonard I need you to look for a file dating August 15th" Scully said.
Snart didn't argue even though he wasn't quite sure what Dana was looking for. And then he saw it. "What the fuck?" he said.
There was a similar reaction from everybody on the Waverider. Even Mulder was surprised.
There was the same file with the information and data, along with the vaccination card. But the name was one that no one expected: William Scully, Jr.
"How is this possible?" Sara Lance asked.
"Part of being a navy BRAT," Scully said slowly. "You had to go through a lot of tests when you were a child. Bill was the oldest so he'd have to go through them. My father probably had no idea. For him the military was a second home."
"Seems like you're right," Snart said. "The testing took place at Annapolis." He took a look at one above it. "Wait a minute." He took a few more at random and leafed through them. "All of these files, they have the testing location as either Navy or Air Force bases."
"Of course," Mulder said. "What better way to have test subjects then by using soldiers themselves?"
"Sacrificing our soldiers for this kind of thing and then using them to clean up the mess," Sara Lance said. "Hats off to American ingenuity."
"Take three or four of those at random and leave the rest," Mulder told Snart.
"How much of a mess do you want me to leave behind?" Snart asked.
"Enough so it'll take them a while to figure out what's missing," Mulder paused. "Assuming they have that detailed a record in the first place."
"They might not know names and dates but I figure they can count," Snart said. "I'll take one from each shelf and try to be as neat as I can with the rest."
LXLXLX
"All right, I'm at 1952. Where do you want me to look?"
"See if you can find anything around April of that year."
Jefferson knew what Stein was thinking even if they didn't share a body. "You think this is possible?"
"I need to know one way or another, Jefferson," Stein said simply.
"You didn't tell me what I was looking for, but I found it anyway."
Mick Rory's gravelly tone barely hid his own surprise. "You ever have to apply for government access at one point?"
"I've worked on any number of government projects when I was coming up in the ranks," Stein said. "Check the neighboring files. See if you can find any links."
Mick Rory wasn't as clever as his partner but after looking through five files he thought he saw something. "I can't be sure but I think this group was applying for government clearance. Department of Energy, Interior, HHS."
"Say what you will, the shadow government doesn't trust the people who work for the actual government," Mulder said. "You have to figure this was an easy way to get information at first. "
"You think there's method to the madness here?" Sara said.
"Had we world enough and time we could find out," Ray said. "But I have a feeling we've run out of both."
And one second later the lights went out in the facility.
"Call it a hunch but I think they know they've been breached," Snart said. "My friend, it's time we got the hell out of here."
"That may be easier said than done," Stein said, looking out at the horizon through the binoculars they'd brought with them.
Two military trucks had just arrived on the horizon
"Normally I'd use my little friend but in this case…" Mick said.
"Short of this entire area being soaked in gasoline, I don't think you could do anything more dangerous," Snart said. "All right, Fed 1 and Fed 2. What's the quickest way out?"
"You're best bet is to keep going down," Scully told them. "There's an exit that you'll be able to find very quickly."
"In a mineshaft?" Mick said.
Then a second dimmer light went on in the shaft. That wasn't the scary part.
"You hear that?" Mick asked Snart.
"Which? The chattering or the hum?" Snart asked rhetorically. "We're not alone down here are we?"
"I was really hoping you would be," Mulder said sadly.
"How dangerous are they?" Snart asked.
"They've probably been kept underground for decades and held as prisoner; they're definitely more scared of you then you should be of them," Mulder wished he could be as certain as he sounded of that fact.
He didn't think they had much to worry about. These aliens – or whatever they were – were basically subjects of the experiments that had been going on for decades. He had no doubt that they'd been subject to truly horrifically tests over the years and were no doubt hoping to escape as much as Snart and Rory needed too.
Then it finally dawned on him. "They didn't think we came into look for the files. The military came because they thought someone came for them."
Mick and Snart were getting a hint of what them might be, though the lighting made it tough. The two of them had seen stranger things over the last few years but most of the time they were trying to kill them. And frankly given everything they'd seen in Central City over the last year, this was barely surprising.
Still it was very weird to see a group of small, almost ape-like creatures with big eyes running towards them – and sounded curious rather than angry.
"Does it make me less of a man that I think they're kinda…cute?" Mick said.
"Well by the standards of what we've had to deal with they're practically adorable," Snart said. "Shame neither one of us can understand the other."
It looked like there was a half dozen of these…beings, for lack of a better word. Mulder wondered how long it had been any of them had seen someone down here at all, and how longer it had been since they hadn't been carrying carbines.
Speaking of which…"I really wish you could enjoy this close encounter, but the two of you do need to get out of there," Mulder asked.
One of the creatures tried to tug on Snart's sleeve. "I'm not sure about this, but I think they want us to follow them," he said. "Is this a smart decision?"
"At the very least they might know a good place to hide," Mulder figured.
"All right, but if one of them says 'Take me to your leader…"
"…you might want to see where it goes," Mulder responded.
For all his bravado he thought Mick might have a point. Whatever exit these creatures might have – and he remembered what he'd seen – it might not be a friendly ride.
LXLXLX
"Jefferson our hour upon the stage has come," Stein told them.
Jefferson nodded. The two of them weren't just out here to be an early warning sign.
"Sir, the entrance was breached."
"How did they get in?"
"It looks like they just opened the door." Sergeant Cross put his hand on it.
"Sir. There's something at five o'clock." The hardened soldier's voice was a little unsteady.
"Who?"
"I'm not…sure if its human."
The Sergeant was prepared for this job but he wasn't prepared for what he saw when he looked up and saw what appeared to be a comet or an asteroid, heading towards them.
On a direct trajectory.
"Open fire," he ordered.
The soldiers did just that. Then the comet started to dodge their bullets and started moving upward.
"Bogey! Bogey!"
UNDISCLOSED LOCATION
ONE HOUR LATER
"You'd better have a good reason for not having contained the situation." A tall African-American with a dark mustache and a fringe of a beard said in a tone that brooked no debate.
"There's a possibility a recovery operation may be underway," a man with a crew-cut said.
"How certain of you are this?"
"While attempting to contain the situation at Strughold our men spotted what appeared to be an aircraft monitoring them. Attempts to fire on the object ended in failure because of the maneuvers the body took."
"What kind of craft was it?"
The man with the crew cut lowered his voice. "Early reports are that the object may have been…humanoid. I didn't believe it either but we tasked one of our JPL satellites."
The soldier handed him a picture. The man in the trench coat was used to seeing strange things and was able to keep his complexion blank. It didn't change the fact that this was new even after more than twenty years on the project.
Despite himself the closest comparison he could come up was something out of a comic book. It looked like it was a ball of fire but there seemed to be some kind of human aspect to it.
"Did you give pursuit?"
The officer nodded. "I gave instructed to both ground and aerial surveillance to that location. Then…the object began to move away from the site."
"Could you chase it down?"
"That's the thing. The closer our surveillance got, the slower it went. Then it dipped below the horizon and vanished. When our men arrived at the coordinates no one was there."
"It was bait." The man that Mulder had already met but would know only as X started walking forward. "Did you secure the facility?"
The officer nodded. "The files were disturbed but it's impossible to tell what's missing. Both the craft and the specimens were all still there and we found the intruder." He walked over to the screen. "The moment he saw us, he held up his hands and surrendered. Didn't even put up a fight."
X looked through the screen. "You searched him."
"Nothing on him. No document, no weapons, no ID. We ran his prints through the system, still no matches."
"Have you questioned him?"
"He asked for his phone call when we grabbed him. He hasn't said a word since." The soldier nodded. "And he didn't even flinch when my men were working on him. He actually smiled as we beat him down."
"Hey!" Both men looked down at the screen. "When's my pizza gonna get here? The service in these accommodations is reprehensible."
X remained steely but he couldn't help but be puzzled. This man had broken into a facility that no one knew existed, apparently by entering a code. They'd found nothing on him, not even what he was taken. He had then been taken to a secure location, given a severe beating which had left him with several outward bruises and a bloody nose. And yet he had a look on his face that was almost…serene.
"Will you brief our superiors?"
X looked at him. "I want to take a run at him first."
"You're late by the way."
This was not how X thought this was going to start. "I don't do things by your schedule."
"You do actually but I guess you don't believe that yet. Doesn't matter, I guess."
"At least you're talking now."
"I wasn't going to waste my valuable time until someone important showed up." The prisoner looked X up and down. "I guess you're good enough."
"Then I suppose you'll answer my questions."
"It's what I'm here for."
X wasn't sure whether this was going well or not. "What were you doing down there?"
"Now that's the wrong question to ask and you know it."
"All right. Who told you about this place?"
The prisoner looked him in the face. "You did."
X walked up to the prisoner and hit him across the face.
"Violence isn't going to make me change my answer."
"I don't know who you think I am—"
"I have absolutely no idea who you are. It doesn't change the fact that you told me about this place." The prisoner paused. "Well, you will."
X thought the prisoner was delusional. Now, however, he was beginning to wonder if this was a trap. "I don't know what you think I've done-"
"Have done. Will do. Are doing now."
"I don't know what games you're trying to play."
"There's a pot calling the kettle black." The prisoner said. "Anywhere you're still asking the wrong questions."
"Who are you?"
"You first," the prisoner said cheerfully. "We both know you're not going to tell me your real name. So I have no motivation to tell you mine."
"Do you understand the position you're in right now?"
"I've been in worse positions. In fact, this particular situation doesn't meet the top ten of places that would be difficult to extricate myself from." The prisoner said casually. "I know. You want to kill me right now but you can't do it until you get your questions answered. You need to know how I managed to get into your top secret facility, what I found down there and who told me where it was and how to get in there. And considering the risk of exposure, there's a window on how long you can keep me here and risk attracting the wrong type of attention, either from the world at large or more critically, your superiors. That's why you haven't officially reported me to them yet."
X was now genuinely becoming uneasy. If he didn't know any better, he'd think this man had read his mind. It was more likely he'd done some variation on this before and knew what to expect.
"We both know that I could tell you the absolute truth about how I got here and how I learned about this place and you wouldn't believe me. Even if you did, it would not change my fate one way or another: you still plan to kill me once you get what you need to know from me. So from a strictly rational standpoint the longer I stall the longer I continue to breath oxygen."
"You wouldn't be enjoying it," X reminded him.
"This isn't about how much pain I can take. I know as well as you do that everybody has a breaking point." The prisoner had dropped his cheerful tone and was speaking more seriously. "It might take hours and it might take a lot of energy on both our parts but I will break. I probably won't know I'm doing it at the time, but it will happen."
"I know that."
"Then you also know that the more physical pain the body endures the more desperate the individual comes to get it to stop. He'll tell his interrogator anything at all, even lie, if that means an end to the pain." The prisoner seemed like he was discussing what he wanted for breakfast. "Consequently, even if I say I'm telling the truth you'll never know for sure that I am. And by the time you realize I've lied to you I'll be too dead to care."
"You sound like you've lived through this before," X said.
"In a manner of speaking. The point is, we're both smart enough to know that beating me to the point of compliance only has a partial chance of you getting the truth. On the other hand, I'd be willing to tell you the exact truth if you grant me one promise."
"What makes you think you're in a position to bargain?"
"I know how I got into your facility and you don't. That makes me in a perfect position to bargain," the prisoner said. "And since we both know this ends the same way regardless I'm not going to ask you for anything you can't grant without leaving this room."
X considered this. "What do you want?"
"A cigarette."
"I don't smoke."
"We both know you're carrying some anyway."
X decided to assume this was a lucky guess. He took out the pack he carried and handed his prisoner one.
"Normally I don't smoke Morleys but in this case…" the prisoner said as X put in his mouth. "You can light it when I'm done."
This was getting odder. "That's all you want?"
"I said I'd talk. You probably won't believe me anyway but that doesn't really matter."
"How did you find out about our facility?"
"From one of the men who worked there."
"Which one?"
"It doesn't matter. He's dead."
This was progress. "Did you kill him?"
"No. He was dead long before I learned about it."
X was puzzled. "Did you talk to an associate of his?"
"You and I both know none of the people who worked here either knew what was going on or would talk under penalty of death."
"So how did you find out?"
"Because that's what I do for a living." The prisoner looked at him. "I talk to the dead."
This was hardly the most impossible thing X had ever heard of but it seemed hard to believe coming from this man. "Telepathy?"
"I'm familiar with the power but that's not how I do it," the prisoner said. "It's actually easier than
you think. I'm doing it right now."
Now X was troubled. "Who are you talking too?"
The prisoner gave an honest smile. "We both know."
X knew he had no reason to be concerned; the man was still in chains. But he couldn't pretend he wasn't unsettled by this. "You plan to kill me?"
"What would the point of that be?" the prisoner said dismissively. "And don't worry. It's not going to happen tonight or even that soon. But it's inevitable. It was before you even set foot inside this room."
"What are you talking about?" X asked.
"I met a man in Minneapolis once. Insurance salesman. He had a similar gift," the prisoner said. "Well, he definitely didn't consider it one. He wished it was non-returnable. And I'm not sure I blame him. What's the point of knowing when everyone you're going to meet to die and how? I mean, it's not like you know the winning lottery numbers."
"And you have this…ability."
"It's a little more advanced than his but not much different. Or helpful really. It's not really that profitable, which makes it useless. Honestly I didn't think it was ever going to be of value until now." The prisoner smiled.
"You're lying."
"I said I'd tell you. I know how everyone in this facility is going to die. I know the exact day you're going to die. I know why, I know how, I even know what your last words will be." The prisoner smiled. "Though I have to admit I don't know what they mean. Maybe you could tell me?"
"This is bullshit."
"I'm sorry you don't believe me. Maybe some of the people in this facility will," the prisoner said. "Going in I know that you're going to kill at least three of them. Not tonight, of course but eventually."
This was impossible. How could this guy know he was one of the enforcers for the Syndicate?
"Oh and the guy who did such a number on me, the one who just screams military?" The prisoner said. "He might not want to take any trips to the Midwest anytime soon. And he should definitely stay away from rib joints for the foreseeable future."
"You don't know what the hell you're talking about."
"Maybe I don't. Why don't we leave it up to your men? I'm sure they'd like to know which of them are going to be dead within the next few months under your command." The prisoner paused. "Or by your hand. But really isn't it the same thing when you come to work here?"
X was in a position he'd almost never been in before: completely baffled. He would be inclined to dismiss this man as a lunatic or someone lying to keep himself alive. Except the prisoner seemed completely serene about his fate. "Then I guess you know how you're going to die."
"I do. That's why I'm so relaxed for the record," the prisoner said. "I know it's not going to happen now and certainly not here."
"Now I know you're crazy."
"Am I though?" the prisoner said. "This is a facility that is being monitored by the United States government for purposes that can only be described as clandestine. It may be hidden in plain sight – a mine being used to store this vast amount of material – but is nevertheless using electronic locks on the doors and there's clearly a significant military presence. There was only one way in and one way out. The moment I stepped in there my chances of escape were always incredibly slim and the only thing that was keeping me alive – momentarily, I admit – was the fact that the powers that be, such as yourself, needed to know what I was looking for and how I learned of this place's existence. Once you beat that information out of me, you were going to put a bullet in my brain and bury me in either an unmarked grave or, perhaps as a tribute to efficiency, stick me in a different portion of the mine I broke into. Then you'd publish an obituary in a local paper in case my loved ones – assuming there were any – came looking for me. No loose ends."
"How does that answer my question?"
"You didn't ask a question but I'll answer it anyway. There are only two reasons why such a person would embark on what could be considered a suicide mission: either he was completely and thoroughly insane or he knew that he would manage to escape alive."
"So you're telling me that the whole reason you went on this journey is because you knew that you would get out of her intact." X looked at him. "And I suppose you also knew you'd get caught, beaten up and interrogated by me."
"I wasn't sure it would be you," the prisoner acknowledged. "There was a possibility of one of three people but you were one of them."
That was something of a non sequitur. "All right, assuming I accept this utter insanity as the truth, why don't I just kill you right now?"
"First you light my cigarette, then I'll tell you."
He'd already let this craziness go this far. He took out his lighter and held it in front of him.
The prisoner paused, then took a drag. "In about one minute, you're going to get a phone call that's going to completely and totally change the context of this entire night."
"Who's going to be calling?"
"You think I'm going to give away all my secrets? It's not relevant to me, so it doesn't matter to me. But trust me, it's going to matter a hell of a lot to you."
Almost as if on cue X's phone rang.
"You should probably get that."
X actually let the phone ring one more time before he removed it from his coat pocket.
"What?"
"Sir, the perimeter's been breached."
X looked down at his prisoner. His expression remained remarkably placid. "Do you want me to hear this call or not? Don't worry, I'm not going anywhere. Or am I?"
X opened the door and called in the two guard who were outside. "Stay here until I get back."
"You won't be coming back to this room tonight."
"Shut up!" X couldn't hide how frazzled he was now. "He so much as blinks, shoot him."
X got outside the room. "What kind of breach?"
"We're not sure, sir. Someone set a fire on the far reaches of the grid. Three men went to put it out, they haven't reported back." There was a pause. "But that's not what the real problem is sir."
"Then what the hell is it?"
"There's some kind of unidentified object circling the perimeter." The soldier on the other end sounded as frazzled as X felt. "It's too small to be any kind of military craft and too large to be a human."
"Shoot it down."
"We've been trying sir," the soldier said. "It keeps dodging our fire. And… I know this is impossible but I think it's…toying with us."
"What the hell does that mean?"
"A couple of times it came within range of our fire and just as we were about open fire, it moved beyond the range of our weapons. I think it's testing our defenses."
"Call in air support."
"We already have. It's less than two minutes out." There was a pause. "But I think it's waiting for that."
"What are you talking about?"
"Because every so often, it just hovers. Like it knows what's coming and is waiting for it to show up."
For the first time since he'd came here tonight X felt something he hadn't felt in a long time.
Fear.
XLXLXL
Leonard Snart did very much live by the code he'd boasted to Barry once:
"Make the plan. Execute the plan. Expect the plan to go off the rails. Throw away the plan!"
He'd actually thought Mulder's objective for going into the Strughold Mining Facility was a sound one: after all Mulder had in fact lived through a version of this before so he knew better than anyone what worked and what didn't. He and Scully had briefed them thoroughly on what they had found and what had happened and while they were in disagreement about what else what down there besides 'lots and lots of files', they were in accord about the almost certainty of a military response.
That said since they'd both found different ways out of the facility, neither was sure what the best exit strategy could be and they were more than willing to acknowledge their escape was far more due to pure luck than any skill on their part.
"We were trained to guard federal facilities at most, never to break into them." Scully had looked at Mulder. "Probably why he got caught so often."
"That's the reason you're sending Mick and me for this," Leonard said.
"You do have the particular set of skills that both of us lacked," Mulder said. "Nevertheless, despite your cunning, strength and weapons they have superior numbers and knowledge of the terrain that you just won't be able to match."
"Will the forces they send be human?" Leonard asked.
"In this case almost certainly yes," Mulder said. "They're trying to keep the secrets of half a century of experiments off the grid. The last thing they'd do is sent one of their enforcers here. I'm not a hundred percent sure of this, of course. The only one of them I know about showed up in February of 1995, six full months before we're sending you there."
"And even if they do, they don't want to risk exposure any more than they have too," Scully said. "That doesn't mean they won't be very sure you and Mick don't escape. My guess is they'll send a couple of dozen troops just to secure the two of you."
Snart considered this. "Even given Mick and my skills, that's probably too many for us to face in a full-on fight. Firestar could cause them trouble but that might lead to the wrong sort of attention."
"I have to tell you even if you were spotted, this is the kind of thing they'd be trained to cover for," Mulder said. "I've no idea what these forces have seen but they have to have some kind of preparation for it. What kind I have no idea, but I don't doubt it exists."
"So you think this will go wrong," Snart said.
"No. I'm sure it will." Mulder said. "That's the other reason I'm sending you and Mick. You have the ability to improvise on short notice and that'll work to our advantage."
"So in other words, if it looks like they're going to catch us," Leonard asked.
"I want you to get caught." Mulder gave what could only be described as a big evil grin. "That's when the fun will start."
Snart had then told the other legends what the back-up plan would be. When the military arrived, they were going to do a bait and switch. They'd give all of the materials they'd stolen to Mick and he would go out into the open and let them catch him.
"They could execute you on the spot," Sara said.
"Possible, but unlikely." Snart said. "When you're caught breaking into any facility that's impenetrable the first thing the authorities want to know is how you got in. That's true in the private sector; I can't imagine it any less true for an evil government syndicate."
"And since the last thing they'll want to do is draw more attention to themselves, they'll move you somewhere off-site," Mick said.
"Past experience, Mr. Rory?" Stein asked.
"Fortunately no," Mick said. "But we knew a couple of people in the trade who'd been in military prisons before they ended up in civilian ones."
"And while things have no doubt changed in twenty years, the military rarely changes its playbook," Snart told them. "But we also have to make sure they have reason to suspect that I didn't just arrive there because I took the wrong turn on my way to Altoona. So that means we provide them with a little light show."
"You don't think they'll be expecting metahumans," Sara said.
"They don't even have a term for it yet," Jackson said. "They're trained to expect UFOs; they'll think Grey and I are one. At most, they'll think we're just a model they haven't seen yet."
"And that will make them hesitate. Not for long – at most, they'll wait a couple of hours – but that will be long enough for the next phase of the plan to go into effect." Snart clapped Mick on the back. "We're going to do what we did in Charleston."
"2012 or 2014?" Mick asked.
"May 2012." Snart elaborated.
"You think that'll play here?" Mick asked. "Back then, we knew where they'd take you afterwards. Here we're not sure."
"You plan to get caught," Ray said.
"Temporarily. I will transfer all of the contraband to Mick and surrender myself to the authorities."
"Thus giving Mr. Rory enough time to get out unscathed." Stein said. "What if they're guarding the exit? It's far more likely they have more men then with private security."
"Again, you're there to provide that distraction," Mick knew this part. "You two stay in a big enough flight pattern, that's definitely going to have them looking up when they should be looking behind them. And given the scenery I can keep hidden long enough to meet at the rendezvous point."
"That still doesn't solve Mick's original question: once they grab you how do we find you?"
"You still have one of the tags that Hunter gave us? The one that's essentially invisible?" Leonard reminded them. "The last thing they'll want to do is stay at a site that's been infiltrated longer than they have to. They'll move me to the closest secure location as quickly as possible. You'll track me until you get a fix on my location."
"You don't think they'll search you on site?" Sara asked.
Ray actually answered the question. "This is one of the occasions being in the past will work to our advantage. Whatever technology the Syndicate has, it's still not going to be advanced enough to pick up on something made in the 25th century."
"You're assuming that they'll have anything more sophisticated then a magnetic wand," Snart reminded them. "As we know very well the Syndicate is analog even by the standards of the 1990s. I could probably hide something more recent under their noses but there's no point in flaunting it. But even allowing for the possibility they find what I'm hiding, they're almost certainly not going to do a thorough search until we get to the site."
"You're sure you can handle what they throw at you?" Genuine concern seemed to be underneath Mick's gravely tone. "Based on what Mulder told us these guys can make the LAPD seem like they were playing pattycake."
"I have no doubt I'll be enduring quite a bit of pain, old friend," Snart said sympathetically. "Which I would appreciate if the rest of you could move onto the rescue phase of this as efficiently as possible."
Mick nodded. "When we played it out last time, I needed four hours to get in and get out. I don't know where they'll take you but even with all of us and the advantages we'll have…"
"Best case scenario, it's going to take ninety minutes to infiltrate. Assuming everything goes perfectly and the fact we're designing this plan means we already know how FUBAR it can go." Snart acknowledged.
"Not to mention they'll probably be working on a timetable as well," Sara reminded them. "You're right about them needing to know how you got in, but at a certain point they're just going to lose patience and…"
"…cut their losses," Snart agreed. "So I'm going to have to find a way to keep them interested enough to hold off pulling the trigger as long as possible. I'm betting that Firestar will be more than able to do that for a bit but I'm going to need to buy at least fifteen minutes to keep them looking at me rather than you."
"And how do you plan to do that?"
"That may be the trickiest part of the whole thing," Snart admitted. "Considering how essential this location is to the Syndicate there's no way in hell they don't send someone closely associated with it to oversee the operation."
"Smoking Man." Jefferson guessed.
"Maybe. Definitely someone in the chain of command. It'll almost certainly be someone that Mulder and/or Scully met more than once." Sara agreed.
"When he gets there, based on what we know, he – and I think we all know it's going to be a he – is going to want to oversee my interrogation." Snart smiled. "That's how I'll keep them busy."
"You can't mess with the order of things," Sara reminded him.
"I have no intention of doing that. That said, these men know all about The X-Files." Snart said bluntly. "I'd like to see how they deal with something they can't explain."
PRESENT (SORT OF)
"Evacuate the building" X ordered. "I want all forces to immediately vacate the premises."
While he was giving that particular order X dialed a separate line. "How far out is air support?"
"Six minutes."
"The minute you have this place on your scope I want you to decommission it."
The man on the other end knew what that euphemism met. "Sir Wheeling is less than fifteen minutes away. This will attract attention."
"Right now our priority is to make sure that the bogey is eradicated from the radar. If that means you have to torch this entire place you follow your orders. Am I clear?"
"Regardless of casualties?"
"Am I clear?!" X was trying to make sure he projected authority rather than the terror that was coursing through his veins. He terminated the call before the other end would respond.
LXLXLX
"He's not coming back for you," Snart said cheerfully.
"Shut up," said the soldier in front of him.
"You're very loyal to the command structure and I do appreciate that, believe it or not," Snart said. "That said, I hope you have your affairs in order."
The soldier on the left blinked. "You don't know what you're talking about?"
"No, but you do." Snart said serenely. "You told me as much."
"You really think you can get in our heads?"
"It took me five minutes to get into your boss's," Snart reminded him. "And he thought I was bullshitting him. "
"Which you are."
"No. Everything I said was the absolute truth. He just doesn't know it yet." Snart said. "Including the fact that you two are going to be among the ones he kills."
"He's going to kill us." The soldier was trying to scoff.
"He already has." Snart said. "Look since time is an issue, I'm just going to tell it you straight. The perimeter has been breached and protocol dictates that the place be destroyed. Now even if I had told him nothing, his orders would be to terminate me. This will make the job simpler with the added bonus of not having to look me in the face."
Neither soldier responded to this.
"Now he needed to make sure I could not escape the facility so he needed a force that was expendable to assure that would not happen. And you two just happened to draw the short straw."
Snart could see a single drop of sweat fall off one of the soldier's faces. Even if he wasn't at least theoretically sure that they knew this, this was confirmation.
"Now the way I see it, you have two choices and not a long of time to make up your mind. The first is, you can run for your lives. You might very well be killed when your dereliction is learned of but I guarantee that's the better option compared to door number two, in which you will definitely die and in a very horrible fashion."
"And we just leave you here?"
Snart gave the semblance of a shrug. "Like I said, I don't die here today."
"If you think we're going to buy your bullshit, you're crazier than you look," the other soldier said.
Snart sighed. "All right. But remember…"
He got to his feet, having loosened the cords binding him while he was talking. Before either soldier could react, he kicked the first one's feet out from under him, knocking him to the ground. The second was quicker but by the time he raised his gun Snart had grabbed his chair and smashed him over the head with it.
"Don't say I didn't make the offer."
Mick's role the last time around had been somewhat more complicated. He'd not only had to set the fire to provide the original distraction; he'd also had to beat up seven guards to get to Leonard.
This time it was a bit easier, considering that everyone was understandably focusing their attention on the fire in the sky at the time. He'd only had to beat up two guards getting into the facility but he'd expected that things would be more difficult once he was inside.
That changed the moment he walked two feet and heard what was clearly a klaxon. For a moment he wondered if he'd triggered security getting in – far from impossible considering this was a military installation. Then he heard the sound over the sirens.
"Evacuation protocols in place! Exit the facility as quickly as possible!"
"That's never a good sign," Mick muttered.
"What's going on?" Ray demanded.
"I'm not sure but I think they may be about to activate the self-destruct button on the Enterprise," Mick told them.
"He's not far off," Sara said. "Gideon's picking up three bogeys approaching at roughly Mach 1."
Mick had never slowed down. "Hope Snart's done his part. He doesn't want to make this too difficult for us."
"I think he has." Sara sounded relieved. "The transmitter, it's on the move."
An unpleasant grin crossed Mick's face. "How far away is he?"
"Second hallway, third left."
"On my way."
He didn't have to go too far.
"You couldn't have left me one or two of them to wail on?" Mick said in his gravelly tone as he saw Snart standing over a man in khaki.
"This was business. Pleasure can come at another time," Snart said matter-of-factly.
"Ahh, and after I brought you a present," Mick said, handing Snart his ray. "And we'd better hurry cause I'm not sure even that has enough power to handle whatever they're sending at us."
"Air support?" Mick nodded. "I owe you ten dollars, old friend. I was sure the place would be wired with C-4."
"I think Gray and Jefferson threw the fear of whatever passes for God into these people," Mick said as they started heading towards the exit. "Apparently they haven't invented the drone yet."
"Well, let's not give them enough time to practice." Snart nodded. "Would you mind telling our friends to throw these men into a panic?"
"They're not already there?" Mick said with a raised eyebrow.
"Hey, we're not going to be around to see them react to what happens next. Might as well leave them wanting as little as possible."
STRATEGIC AIR COMMAND
"Ninety second out on target. Range twenty-five miles and closing."
""Roger, target is still stationary…Strike that. Target is moving north by northwest away from site."
"Should we pursue?"
"Yes. Continue on course. Target moving north by northwest roughly five miles per…"
There was a pause.
"Target has disappeared. Repeat, radar has lost target!"
Two military figures ran over. "What are you talking about?"
"Switching to infrared, satellites." The controller looked up. "Sir, it's gone."
"Sir should we continue on target?"
The soldiers looked to a man no one had seen before – someone in his mid-sixties in a trench-coat.
"Abort the mission," he said reluctantly. "Send our men back on site."
He took out the pack of Morleys he always had on hand.
"Not that it matters. By the time they get back the prisoner will be gone. Have the men debriefed thoroughly. I want to know everything that the prisoner said and did during his time with us."
"Should we inform the others?"
"About what?" the Smoking Man sneered. "We have no evidence anything was taken and we don't know what he was looking for. We have enough problems with everything going on with the Bureau, the last thing we need is to worry about whatever this threat is."
"And if there's any inquiry from the Elders?"
He took a puff of smoke. "Our usual position. Deny everything."
AUTHOR'S NOTES
This is going to mostly help interpret X-Files references:
We learned of the Strughold Mining Company and it's 'lots and lots of files' in the classic episode 'Paper Clip'. All the details about from the code to get in and what was found inside are more or less from that episode. As to the discrepancy Scully saw what might have been aliens but ending up being soldiers sent in. Mulder saw what appeared to be a UFO but we never got confirmation. (At that time Carter was leaning hard on the possibility the conspiracy involves experiments on humans so it might have been a military aircraft.) I leaned on the possibility of aliens being down there mainly to give a possibility for Mick to get out.
I had this idea in mind almost from the start of the concept of this story: I wanted Mick and Snart to break into a facility with the sole purpose of stealing something that was of no monetary value but great significance to the people looking for it. The great mystery writer Donald Westlake actually had a series based around a thief named Parker who did this exact thing and I thought it would be neat to try it out. I considered having one of the characters make a reference to it but I figured that would be too obscure even for Mulder.
It was never clear whose names were in the tiles beyond Dana Scully and Samantha Mulder's. They were sorting chronologically so I decided to add the twist that the shadow government was collecting the kind of material they needed from the people who worked for the actual government. Part of the old concept of "who will guard the guards?"
The reason Mulder and Scully weren't going to be here was in August of 1994 Dana Scully was kidnapped by Duane Barry and disappeared for three months before reappearing mysteriously in One Breath. It's not clear where Mulder was during that three month period but considering he doesn't return to the X-Files office until November (this is revealed in the episode '3') it's safe to say he was nowhere near West Virgnia. Sara knows this but momentarily forgot the significance of the date.
X was Mulder's second informant played brilliantly by Steven Williams from 1994 to 1996. Little was known about X even after he died, while we did learn more about Deep Throat and Covarrubias's connection to the conspiracy in years after. There was always a threat of violence around him every time he appeared on the show and over the years he got into scraps with Mulder, Skinner and Scully held a gun on him. He is responsible for the execution of at least five members of the conspiracy, so I believe he had the position of an enforcer as much as an authority figure, though it's never been clear where he ranked on the totem pole (we never saw him with the Consortium for example, so its possible he was never party to so many decision the way, say, Deep Throat was). I wanted to put him back in the action and if you're going to travel through time…
I wanted the confrontation between X and Snart partly because Mulder bore a particular grudge against him because of his action and I suspect he would love to settle some scores. Mulder no doubt thought it likely that either Smoking Man or Krycek might show up, those are the other two he thought possible. He fed Snart information about what happened to X because he knows the day X will die, by what means and what his last words are: (he writes them in blood with his last bit of energy) He also threw in the reference to at least two other X-Files characters, neither of whom I'll reveal here. (If you're a fan of the show, there's a good chance you got them both, and if you're not, there's no point in overworking it.)
And what would an encounter with an UFO be without a cameo from our favorite Smoking man flaunting authority and claiming plausible deniability?
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