From: "Foxfire X" Date: Fri, 18 Aug 2000 19:48:10 CDT Subject: The Game by FoxfireX Source: direct Title: The Game Author: FoxfireX Disclaimer: Anyone you know belongs to CC, Fox Television and 1013 Productions; the little devil is mine. Not doing this for money, simply to right a wrong that cc hasn't yet. Class: MSR Rating: PG Spoilers: None Summary: Would you give your life...and your soul for the one you love? Feedback: This is my first time, so be gentle with me FoxfireX@hotmail.com Prologue: Mythology is littered with stories of immortals interfering with the lives of mortals. They are said to have done this for two reasons. One, for entertainment only, as television was still thousands of years in the future, and two, to try to learn what it would be like to be mortal. Being immortal had its drawbacks, after all. They did not know what it was to have emotions or feelings as the mortals they toyed with experienced. And although many mortals would have gladly traded immortality for emotions, the grass is always greener on the other side. Even in mythological times. Eramous was bored. He spent thousands of years in the underworld. Hell, the mortals on the Earth now called it. Whatever its name was, it remained boring to him. After all, how many deals could one entity make with mortals for their eternal souls for wealth, power, etc.? Been there, done that, as they say "up top". He needed a new game, one he hadn't tried before. He spent many centuries studying the human emotion of love. He had witnessed its power. He had watched mortals do the strangest things in the name of love. He didn't get it. Not able to feel love himself, the best he could do was watch it from the top. It had been awhile, but he was ready to disguise himself in human form and take a trip. The suspect for the recent string of brutal slayings lie at the agent's feet. This was not how the case was supposed to end, but at least one more psychopath would be off the street. Washington, DC 12:30am "Jeez, Mulder, did you have to shoot him so many times? This guy's a mess. Not to mention the paperwork involved here. Most of which you'll no doubt ask me to do for you." Scully's right eyebrow threatened to disappear into her hairline it was raised so high. Mulder sighed. "He wouldn't stop coming. It was as if the adrenaline in his system wouldn't put the brakes on his body. No matter how many times we are confronted with psychotic murders, I never get used to the look in their eyes. He wouldn't have stopped, Scully. The killing would never end for him until he was dead." He slid his 9mm back into the shoulder holster under his coat. He sighed again, he needed to go home and get some sleep. Georgetown 4:03am The ringing of the phone shook her from a deep sleep. Scully rubbed her eyes as she groped in the dark for the offending object. "Scully". She cleared her throat and hoped Mulder had a really, really good reason for calling this early in the morning. It never occurred to her it would be anyone else. "Ms. Scully, I'm so sorry, did I wake you?" A deep male voice with a mocking tone she didn't recognize brought her instantly awake. "Who is this?" Ms. Scully, even if I told you, you wouldn't believe me." The tone of his voice sounded as if he was trying very hard to be polite, but not used to the effort it was causing. "You would be surprised what I believe these days. What can I do for you?" She rubbed her eyes with one hand. This had better be one hell of a bad joke. "Actually I'm more interested in what I can do for you. I seem to, shall we say, have come across someone you know, and I thought we should meet to talk about it. Say, in about 20 minutes? There are some empty warehouses on Division, south of the expressway, do you know the area? Of course you do. Look for the one that says Marnco Cold Storage. I'll be waiting. Oh, and let me assure you Ms. Scully that I am not an amateur at this game. Don't call anyone else or you'll find no one here when you arrive." He chuckled as he hung up. Scully lie in bed for a few seconds shaking her head. Of course she believed that the caller meant business. After all, this is just what she needed to top off her week. She dialed Mulder's number, and waited for the machine to pick up. It did. Of course she believed that Mulder was the someone the caller was speaking of. After all, who else in her life stayed in trouble? Well, she thought, might as well get going. You know you will. She pulled on jeans, buttoned up her shirt, hunted for her shoes, strapped on her shoulder holster, grabbed her keys and slammed out of the door. As she slammed the car door she muttered to herself "one of these days, Mulder." There warehouse was easy to find. She didn't see a car, but did see plenty of places to hide one. The front door was unlocked, as she had expected. The door closed tightly behind her of its own accord, that she did not expect. A light shone on the floor of the hallway in front of her, outlining a doorway that stood open. "Hello? Anyone home?" She obviously did not expect a kidnapper to answer her. But he did. "Down here, my dear, please come join the party." Same sarcastically genteel voice as on the phone. The doorway was on her left, she expected an office or storage room. As she crossed the threshold, the door closed behind her. This was getting creepier by the moment. The room was large, not like anything she expected. The walls were white and seemed shrouded from her eyes. The lighting was dim. She could make out a table in the corner. A large wooden table with metal wrist and ankle manacles built right in. Manacles that were, of course, attached to Mulder's wrists and ankles, pulling him in a prone position. "Mulder are you all right?" She had her hand on the gun at her side. Her eyes focused on the shrouded figure in the corner. He seemed of average height, average weight. He seemed just "average" all over. He stood with his hands folded in front of him. "Um, yeah. I'm fine. I'm not real sure how I ended up here, though. Any ideas?" He looked nervous, she could see he was taking deep breaths to keep calm. "Well, I guess we're ready to begin." The shrouded man spoke and rubbed his hand together like a salesman about to unload the Brooklyn Bridge to an overseas investor. "My name is Eramous. I am conducting a kind of experiment. You see, I am studying human emotions and you two are going to help me. I've been watching you both for awhile, and I've noticed many things about your relationship. First, you are in love with each other. Second, you spend much of your time denying that you are in love with each other. Third, you spend even more of your time convincing those around you that you are not in love with each other. I find this interesting. So, I have a few questions for you." "This is ridiculous, and I'm not listening to another word. Now let my partner go." Her weapon was in her hand, she clicked the safety off and leveled it at Eramous. She moved toward the table where Mulder was being held. "Ms. Scully, I assure you I will let your partner go when we are through. Now if you will stop pointing that gun at me, we will get on with it." With a wave of his hand, Scully's gun flew from her hand and landed against a far wall. Oh, great, she thought. "Now, as I was saying, I have some questions. Mr. Mulder, lets start with you. How do you feel about your partner?" A stool appeared and Eramous sat down with an expectant look on his face. "Uhh, I respect her." Mulder's body jerked up against the metal bracelets as he screamed in pain. When the surge was over, he lie breathing heavily, sweat on his brow. "What the hell was that?" Scully shouted as she took a step toward Mulder. An invisible force stopped her. She could advance no further. "My version of truth serum, my dear. Now you were saying Mr. Mulder? I think you had better elaborate this time." Mulder looked at Scully, swallowed hard, closed his eyes and began to plan his words. He could tell the truth if he didn't have to look at her. He begged for strength from a deity he was not even sure existed, and wondered why he seemed to be the center of everything weird, evil, or unexplainable in the universe. If there were such a thing as a weird magnet, he knew he was it. The table began to hum, Mulder broke out in sweat again. He'd better start talking fast. "I trust her. I trust her with my life and I'm not a real trusting guy. I can't imagine what my life would be without her, she's become the center of my world. The search, the casefiles, I'd put away all of it if she asked me to. For her." Please, please let that appease him, Mulder couldn't take the shock treatment again. "Hmm, very enlightening. You may not be aware, but even though I can see what is occurring on the surface, in our realm we cannot read the mortal mind. This is very helpful." Eramous rubbed his hands together, smiling with apparent self satisfaction. "Let me ask another question of you, Mr. Mulder. Are you in love with Ms. Scully?" "Yes." One word, spoken without hesitation. His eyes remained closed, his breathing shallow. Scully's head quickly turned in his direction, her blue eyes wide, her full lips open in surprise. She said nothing. Although after the shock began to abate, she realized the irony that it took torture to get Mulder to voice his feelings for her. "Well, well, well, looks like your turn, Ms. Scully. A few questions if you don't mind. Now, don't worry, Mr. Mulder" Eramous' hand came up to still Mulder as he fought against his bonds in anger, "I'll use nothing so drastic for her. No pain, only the truth, isn't that right my dear?" His finger wagged back and forth as if chastising a child. She was terrified of what he would do to Mulder if she refused. "Of course. Anything, just don't hurt him again...please." She took a deep breath and waited, knowing what was coming next. "Tell me about your feelings for this man who loves you." The stool literally rocked back and forth with Eramous' anticipation. "He's the other half of me. He's the one constant in my life. I would do anything for him." The last sentence came in a rush of breath. "Well then. That's very interesting. Let's test that theory shall we? Ms. Scully, may I call you Dana? Dana you said you would do anything for him, if you mean what you said, answer this, would you give your life for him? Would you give your soul in exchange for his life?" Eramous' eyes hardened, glittered with greed and something that looked incredibly like lust. "Yes." She answered before she had time to consider the consequences. But what were the consequences? Life without him would be unthinkable. There was no choice as far as she was concerned. "Scully no! Take it back, tell him you won't!" Mulder was screaming, his body thrashing against his metal bonds. "Scully please, please don't do this to me." Tears streamed from the corners of his eyes. The force that held her was gone, she walked over to him, lying helpless on the table. "Mulder, I'm not sure what's going on here. I'm not convinced that this `person' has the power to take my soul. But if he wants my life to save yours, he'll have it. You have work to do here, you have to go on. I'm here to support you, but I can't do what you do. You have to finish." She was stroking his hair, wiping his tears away. Her own vision blurred to see his pain. "It's no use Dana" the sound of her given name from his lips startled her, then made her smile. She liked the sound of it. "If you go, I'll follow. I can't be without you. I won't. If he takes you to hell, I'll be there as soon as I can. You can't leave me. You can't force me to live without you. Don't be noble, Dana, it won't stop me from dying. Please listen to me, don't make me watch you die." His voice broke, his shoulders shook with the force of his sobs. "Fox listen to me. Your asking the impossible, don't you see that? You don't want to watch me die, how can you ask me to watch you? I can't refuse this. No matter the outcome, I can't survive at the expense of your existence." She leaned down and pressed her lips to his. She tasted of the promise of a love that would never be. Grazing his ear with her mouth she whispered "I love you, Fox, never doubt that." She straightened and turned to face Eramous. "Dana, will you die for him?" Eramous stood and extended his hand. The wall behind him seemed to fall away, giving rise to an endless darkness and whispered voices. Mulder screamed with fear, with rage, with everything inside of him in an attempt to stop her. She never turned back. If she did she feared she might waver. "You'll let him go unharmed?" "Take my hand and he will be released." She put her hand in his. Her body crumpled to the ground without a sound. In the stunned silence it took a second for Mulder to realize Eramous was no longer in the room. The locks on the table released and he lunged for Scully's lifeless body on the floor, knowing it was too late. The table disappeared from behind him when his body left it, the walls returned to normal. There was no sign that Eramous was ever there. "Oh God, no, please, no, don't take her." He pulled her into his arms, her neck arching back over his arm, her skin cool and pale. Nothing. No sign of life. He laid his head against her breast, chanting a prayer to the deity he knew she believed in. His heart was gone, she took everything with her. He knew he would not survive long without her. He didn't want to. His gun, where was his gun? "Fox." His head snapped up at the sound of his name. Before him stood a woman, smiling and comforting. Where had she come from? The door was behind him, he was pretty sure she didn't just pass by him. "I am here to right a wrong, Fox. It is not Dana's time. The being that took her had no right to her." The woman looked so real to him. Maybe his mind just gave up the sanity charade now that Scully was gone. Surely she could not mean what he hoped. "I...don't know if I believe.." "It does not matter, Fox, she believes. And she believes in you. Cherish the gift that she has given you, remember it always Fox." She disappeared before his eyes. No ray of light, no smoke, no sound. Just gone. Scully gasped in his arms, her eyes wide open. His mind delayed a few seconds as he stared at her in wonder, she was breathing, her color coming back to her cheeks, her skin warm beneath his hands. She was given back to him. "Mulder? What happened? She attempted to sit up, his grip on her became fierce. His arms encircled her, clutched her to his chest. Tears streaming down his face, he murmured her name over and over again. "An angel gave you back to me." His voice was thick with emotion and tears. He loved this woman so much, how could he not have told her long ago? "An angel? Mulder do you realize what you're saying? What you're admitting?" She pushed back from him enough to look into his eyes. The raw emotion she saw there took her breath away. "You died in front of me, Scully, don't you remember? I held your lifeless body in my arms, I pressed my face against your still heart. Now you've been returned to me. I don't care what I'm admitting, you're here and I love you and I'm never letting you go again." "I remember putting my hand in his, then I was in your arms. I don't remember anything else. Let's go home, Mulder. I think we need to sort through this." He rose pulling her with him. He kept her close to his side, she didn't protest. "I love you too, by the way. But I guess I already told you that." "I'll never forget it. I made a promise." He closed his eyes, and said a prayer of thanks. Author's note: Ok, so it's not a great piece of fiction, but the basis of the story came to me in a dream. It took a few days to make myself sit down and put the pieces together. Thanks to my husband who encouraged me to "finish one of those things already", as he's been there through the months of agonizing over my WIP's, that are still only WIP's. But, hey, fluff is easy, casefile is killing me!