From: "Alexa Krycek" Date: Thu, 16 Dec 1999 19:36:40 -0600 Subject: Submission: "All Hope of Salvage Now Devoid" Source: direct Title: All Hope Of Salvage Now Devoid Author: Jen Collesel E-mail addy: alexakrycek@hotmail.com Genre: Drama, slight Humor Rating: PG-13 Archive: Gossamer, yeah. Melissa's site, yeah. Same for Lisa's. Anywhere else, ASK ME FIRST! I'll say yeah, but I just like being asked. Disclaimer: I don't own them, with the exception of Alexa Krycek. She's MINE! I've let friends use her in stories, though. Summary: Max Fenig teaches Alex Krycek's wife a lesson in love that she'll never forget. Author's note: I came up with this while watching the ep where Max died. I actually wrote it in about five hours on October 9, 1998. Dedicated to: Heather Duncan. This was a gift to her. All Hope of Salvage Now Devoid Sleepily, the man raised his head and looked around the hotel room. He saw the woman on the bed, and he smiled. He got to his feet as quietly as he could. He sat on the bed next to her, watching her sleep. Something seemed off about the woman's sleep, though. She seemed...drugged. He touched her hair, gently brushing it back from her face. She had such beautiful hair. It complimented her face beautifully. "Beautiful" was the only word he could come up with to describe the woman. He put his head back and, reluctantly, fell asleep. The woman's eyes flicked open. She saw the man sleeping next to her and jumped in surprise. After she'd calmed, she studied him closely. He was thin, painfully thin almost. His reddish-brown hair hung almost to his shoulders. She had to resist the urge to touch the man's hair. With a sickening certainty, she realized what was happening to her. Sighing in frustration, she dozed off to sleep, praying that she was wrong, that it was just a nightmare. They woke at the same time, looking at each other. She asked, "Is it just me, or does something seem wrong here?" "It's not you," the man replied. The woman raked a hand through her hair. "What's your name?" she asked softly, a sad expression crossing her face. "Max Fenig. You?" "Alexa Krycek." Max grinned. "Nice to meet ya, Alexa. Wish it was under better circumstances." Alexa hopped off the bed. "The creation destroys the creator. They're destroying the destroyer's ability to destroy," she said, muttering to herself, lost in her own world. "What? I'm afraid I don't follow you," Max said in confusion. "I came up with this idea." Alexa groaned in exasperation. "That chain-smoking SOB is using my creation to destroy me." "What IS your idea?" Max asked. "Take a man and a woman, throw 'em in a hotel room alone together, and let nature run its course. If nothing happens between them, the memories are erased. If something happens, the memories are left intact so that both parties are able to fully remember everything." "Why us? I mean, why you and me?" Max asked. "It's simple. My husband, Alex, has ROYALLY pissed off a group called the Syndicate. They will do anything to hurt him, including-especially-hurting me. And what better way to hurt him and me than by leaving my memories of this occasion intact?" Alexa asked bitterly. Max crossed the room. "Alexa, we just don't do anything. It's that simple." "Why do they always say that?" Alexa asked, speaking aloud but speaking to herself. Max put a hand on Alexa's shoulder. "It's okay. We'll make it through this." "You're probably right," Alexa said doubtfully. "What do you do, Alexa?" Max asked, adjusting the NICAP hat perched atop his head as he did so. "I WAS an FBI agent." "When'd you enter Quantico?" "1993." Max sat in the chair by the window. "Wow. So, you know a guy named Agent Mulder?" "Who, Fox? Great guy. Why?" "Give him this for me. It's a letter to him that says I'm not dead after all," Max said, handing Alexa an envelope that she tucked into her jacket pocket. He continued, "I have a feeling he always thought I was nuts." "You're schizophrenic. There's a difference." "How'd you know?" "Mulder told me." "Oh." Max looked at Alexa, who was now sitting on the bed. "This is so awkward." "You're telling me." Alexa looked over. "Max, this is why they threw the two of us together. We don't know each other at all. It maximizes potential for hurting my husband and myself." Max looked at Alexa. "If we're gonna be stuck together, we should know a bit about each other, don't you think?" "Yeah." "My name's Max Fenig. I'm 33 years old. I have no brothers. I have one sister named Kelly. I'm not married. I have a thing for a friend of mine, whose name is Lori Jo. I sometimes go by the name Paul Gidney." He looked at Alexa breathlessly. "Your turn." "My name is Alexa Taiga Chekov-Krycek. My husband's name is Alex Krycek. We have two kids, Alexander Nicholas and Nikita Sitka, both six. I have a sixteen year-old daughter, Alexis, by another man." Alexa's voice was dispassionate as she stated those few precious facts. Max looked at Alexa. "How old are you?" "I'm 29, almost 30." Max hated the feeling of despair that was washing over him. "Alexa, can't we just leave?" "No. The windows don't open. The door is locked, and even if we COULD get out, the Syndicate has a shooter across the hall and at both ends of the hallway. It's an effective trap. We'd be dead before we got two feet from the room." "How do you know?" "This project of sorts was my creation. I know everything that's gonna happen to us." Alexa looked at Max sadly. "Tell me." "They'll leave us in here forever, to put it bluntly." "They gonna feed us?" Alexa gestured to the minibar and mini fridge in the room. "There's our food." Max's bluish-brown eyes filled with frustration. "Alexa..." "Yes, Max?" "I don't know." Alexa looked over at Max. "Neither do I. I want out of here, though." "Any other little surprises?" Max asked bitterly. "If you try the phone and the television, I trust we'll find that neither of them work." Max stood, pacing. "What about the radio?" he asked thoughtfully. "Luckily, THAT works." Alexa attempted a smile, but it was shaky. Max sat on the bed next to Alexa. "Ssh. It's okay," he whispered soothingly in Alexa's ear as he pulled her to him, holding her gently. Alexa felt a wetness on her cheeks, and she realized that she was crying. "I'm sorry, Max." "Don't be. You're scared. It's a normal human emotion," Max soothed. Alexa's head snapped up. "Are you saying that I'm not human?" she demanded. "No. I'm only saying that you just need to stop being afraid to show your emotions." Max kissed the top of Alexa's head gently. "I'm not afraid." "Then do something for me." "What?" "Tell me about yourself." "What do you want to know?" "What were you like when you were in Quantico?" "I was a hellion. There were three of us. Myself, Anne Rabb, and Alessandro Nivola. We used to get in all sorts of trouble, and, of course, we could sweet-talk our way out of it every single time." Alexa smiled in remembrance. "Oh?" "Yeah." Alexa grinned. "But we also got the others in a lot of trouble sometimes. We were in teams of three, and we had to write a paper. Al, Anne, and I chose to write about a serial killer named Luther Lee Boggs, but that's not the point. The point is that the three of us found out that all the others were planning to get ahold of older papers, rewrite the wording slightly, and hand them in as their own. We went to the Director of the Bureau, and we wound up getting everyone in our class-all but the three of us-in major trouble." Max laughed. "You sound like someone I would have had a major crush on in high school." Alexa looked up at Max. "I'm scared," she whispered. "I'm here for you," Max said simply. Alexa pushed away from Max, jumping off the bed. She was starting to feel something for Max, and she couldn't allow herself to. She wouldn't let the Syndicate win. Max stood, brushing down the front of his flannel shirt. He reached over and turned on the radio. "Care to dance?" he asked, holding out a hand to Alexa. Hating herself for wanting Max like she did, Alexa put her hand in Max's. Max put his other hand on Alexa's waist. "Don't fight it," he whispered. "We can't do anything." "I mean, stop fighting that instinct. You're trying so hard to NOT do anything that you can't see how badly you want it." Alexa looked at Max in astonishment. Even as her mouth opened in protest, she knew that Max was right. "All hope of salvage now devoid," she whispered. Max kissed Alexa gently, just brushing his lips against hers. "Don't fight it anymore," he told Alexa. "Just let it happen." "Okay," Alexa whispered, resting her head on Max's shoulder. A few minutes later, the song on the radio was "Seduces Me" by Celine Dion. "I swear, they're doing this on purpose," Alexa complained. "Probably are," Max agreed softly. "Max, you're being so understanding." Alexa smiled. "We seem to get along." "Promise me we'll remain friends, even if our memories are erased." "I promise." The songs that followed included "Two Hearts" by Phil Collins, "You Can Close Your Eyes" by James Taylor, "All For You" by Sister Hazel, "Hold Me Now" by The Thompson Twins, and "Do You Really Want To Hurt Me?" by Culture Club. As Max and Alexa danced in each other's arms, Alexa became increasingly aware of just how aroused Max was. "Max..." "Can't help it, Alexa. I want you." "This is just a physical attraction, right?" "Right," Max agreed. Alexa stepped back slightly. She reached for Max, unbuttoning his shirt even as her hands trembled. Max pulled Alexa's leather jacket off, tossing it aside. A few seconds later, her T-shirt joined the jacket. Alexa bent her head forward slightly, kissing the hollow of Max's neck, then licking it, and finally nibbling at it. Max let out a pained moan as he pulled Alexa to the bed with him. "Max, please, make love to me," she asked as they undressed. "Believe me, I want to." "Then why don't you?" "You're married." "So?" "I-" Max began, looking at the now-naked Alexa that was now looking at him uncomfortably. "All right," he agreed, moving forward. Alexa gasped. Max had entered her faster than Krycek, Byers, or Spender ever had. "That feels good," she told him as he thrust gently. "Too slow, though." The couple made love passionately, attempting things that they'd never dreamed of-well, that Max had never dreamed of. Finally, they lay under the covers in each other's arms. "Wonderful," Max murmured. "We're weak, Max. The spirit was willing, but the flesh was weak." "Willing indeed," Max whispered. "Oh, you know what I mean," Alexa said, hitting Max's arm. "They broke us, Max. We'll have to live with the memories of our deed forever." Silently, they slipped from the bed and dressed. Dismally, Alexa observed that they'd been "broken" faster than anyone else ever had. She didn't feel broken, though. She felt more whole than she'd ever been. Max was the first to speak. "I love you, Alexa." "I love you, too, Max." The entire incident had made no sense to either of them, but it had brought an odd sense of peace to the both of them. They'd also learned a lesson about love-that you had to truly touch someone's soul before you had true love. Alexa had it twice, with Krycek, and now with Max. Alexa heard the door buzz, and knew what it meant. "We can go now, Max." They silently left, going their separate ways. CSM stopped Alexa in the hallway. "Pathetic, Mrs. Krycek. Pathetic to the core. We expected more from you." "Expect this!" Alexa snarled as she pushed past CSM. ************ You guys want the sequel? The opinions expressed in this story are not necessarily the opinions of the Evil Shadow Syndicate. Alexa is entirely fictitious and bears no intended resemblance to any person living, dead, or in cryogenic suspension. No Canadians were injured during the writing of this story.