Date: Mon, 13 Dec 1999 14:00:14 EST Subject: REV: Castling (1/1) Source: revision Rating: PG Classification: V Keywords: None Spoiler: The End Summary: Castling - a movement, a sort of switching of positions under special circumstances, of the King and a Rook in a game of Chess. A series of missing scenes from the episode. Author's Note: I am very much the novice when it comes to Chess. I know the basic moves and rules but am short on strategy, which is why some of my references may be a bit weak or vague to the more experienced player. I have used a site to verify my background on the game (Chess Is Fun http://www.princeton.edu/~jedwards/cif/intro.html). Castling by Martha marthalgm@yahoo.com The shooter had been given explicit orders. Find his target. Kill his target. Escape. That he failed on the second step only meant that the third option was no longer available. Escape from the Royal Canadian Mounties figureheads that dotted General Motors Place was never in doubt. What he would never be able to escape were the men who hired him to do the job. They would not forget; they would not forgive. There would be no second chances. He knew as soon as the shot rang out that he was a dead man. == A basic opening strategy is the movement of a Pawn == x x x x x x x Office of the X-Files Washington DC Walter Skinner surveyed the office of his most troublesome subordinate. The poster, the clippings, the general untidiness. It was definitely Mulder's office. He should not have come down here, much less opened the door, without one of its regular inhabitants being present. But he couldn't take the chance of calling Mulder up to his own office. Something was going on. Exactly what that was was unknown and bothered him. That kid, Jeffrey Spender. *Agent* Jeffrey Spender, he reminded himself. How did he get picked to head up this investigation? There were much more experienced agents on the team itself; hell, Mulder could have been given this assigment - so why Spender? The word came down from high up. Who was looking after Spender? Blevins had been dead for some months now. Is there still someone inside the agency continuing his agenda? And why the specific request *not* to have Mulder on the case? Spender may not have liked how the incident with his mother turned out, but personal preferences had no place in this situation. With Scully on the team, Mulder would find out sooner or later. It may as well be sooner. If he finds out on his own, after the investigation starts, then he'll just butt in with his unerringly subtlety and make an ass out of himself. Someone's got to tell him now. He picked up a file that had been left out on the desk and began to read. The whole situation with the meeting upstairs continued to bother him. If he didn't know better, Skinner would have sworn . . . Why did this business have a smell of smoke to it? == Castling (the movement of the King and a Rook at the same time) may be used to protect the King under attack and/or to move a Rook into play == x x x x x x x x Lone Gunmen Headquarters Washington DC Frohike waited until after he secured all the locks after Dana Scully's departure to launch his attack on Byers. "Did you *have* to use that tone of voice with her?" Byers began to defend himself. "I did not do anything wrong. I merely stated some observations. How she interprets them is her business." "How could you do that to her, just blurt it out like that?" Frohike whispered, shaking his head. "What? How was I supposed to know that she'd never heard of Diana Fowley before now?" Langly joined in. "Wasn't it obvious when she asked about her?" Byers began shutting down some of the equipment that they had been using over the last hour. "Listen, if Mulder had wanted her to know about Diana, he would have told her already. Personally, I don't think that he needs to inform Scully or us about his love life." "Speak for yourself," Frohike interrupted. Byers tried to ignore the remark. "But apparently Mulder never got around to telling his current partner about a past one. That's the one thing that I find surprising." "I felt sorry for her," Langly replied. "She didn't seem to take the news well." Byers turned to leave the room. "Scully's a big girl with a lot of investigative experience. If she wanted to know more about Diana, there were other avenues that she could have explored." "Yeah, but she came to us," Frohike insisted. "She knew that we would tell her the truth." Byers turned to face them, eyeing each man for a moment. "So did we?" == A Queen should never be brought out too early; it may make her vulnerable to entrapment == x x x x x x x x Inget Murray Psychiatric Hospital Gaithersburg, MD Diana Fowley tried to concentrate on observing Gibson after Mulder left to meet with Scully. Arms folded, eyes focused, but her mind would start to wander after a few moments. It kept leading her back to one thought. Dana Scully was a fool. She was a fool not to believe. It had been played out in front of her. Experienced testers had validated Fox's assertion of Gibson's unusual talents. What was there *not* to believe? She had done more than just 'hear' some stories about the two partners over the years. Diana actively, but discretely, pursued case files and old contacts since returning to the US to gather information about them. The famous 'Scully Skepticism' was well known. If she only knew. Diana's interning with the Princeton Engineering Anomalies Research Institute and her subsequent parascience documentation had only verified everything that she would later encounter in her earliest FBI investigations. What was it going to take to make his partner see that the realm of science could encompass the previously unexplained? He needs a strong partner who will not just challenge him but encourage him also. How could they possibly have worked together for this long and still be so far apart? And he says that he's done fine without me. Then why has he not been taken seriously by the rest of the department? And why do I get the feeling that I am not here by coincidence? == A Knight is most effective in the middle of the board == x x x x x x x x FBI Headquarters Washington DC That's it, Mulder. You're finished. Finished; do you hear me? Accuse me of murder, will you? You're the one who fucked this thing up from the beginning. You drew the focus *away* from the shooter. You made this about the boy. Now both are gone, and it's all your fault. We shouldn't have gone soft on the shooter. We shouldn't have tried to make a deal for him. Making him come to our side only made him a target and made me look assailable. And even though the boy was protected, he is now lost. So much for *your* expertise, huh, Mulder? I'm not taking the blame for this. This is *still* my investigation. And I'm running it right from now on. You're finished, Mulder. I'm going to see to it personally. == With an open file (a movement lane) before him, the Rook is a powerful piece == x x x x x x x x Outside of FBI Headquarters Washington DC I have made my moves. I have made my captures. I have surveyed the field and envisioned all the angles. I do not claim to be the most powerful piece on this board, nor do I believe that I want that responsibility. But I have some freedom of movement, and I get the job done. I can protect my children. The Son has been told the rules of the game. To look at the entire board. To set his own agenda. To place himself in a position of strength. I can oversee his development and steer him towards the more aggressive stance. And pull him back when warranted, before the threats mount. The Daughter still needs my protection. Too much false information is out there, and too little of the truth still exists. But I have captured some of the past for her and squired it away under a veil of smoke. I hope that she will be pleased. I hope that both my children will appreciate the lengths to which I have gone to ensure their survival. I am in control of the board now. The more powerful pieces have been scattered opposite. If they are working alone and distrust the others, then I am ahead of the game. It is all going according to plan. == The Bishop can become a very powerful piece towards the end of the game as other pieces are removed from the board and are no longer an obstacle == x x x x x x x x Office of the X-Files Washington DC The playing board is in ashes. The King is now in Check. The Queen, the ever-present Queen, who roamed at will trying to protect her side, returns again to screen the King and offer what assistance she may. Some of the pieces have been captured. Some have gone missing. Those that remain must quickly regroup before the other side has a chance to mount its attack. The Side holds it breath. What will be the counter-move? == The King must be guarded closely; once he is lost, the game is lost == The End. Or is it? Perhaps the Endgame is not yet in play.