From: dryad Date: Sat, 10 Dec 2005 20:47:37 GMT Subject: Hot Rain 1/1 by Dryad Source: atxc Disclaimer: Alas, alack, they are not mine. Yadda yadda yadda. Title: Hot Rain Author: Dryad Rating: not tellin' Summary: not tellin' here either. Note: Written for the Lyric Wheel (see, no spoilers there neither, ha!) Further notes at end. http://www.hegalplace.com/xflyricwheel/ Scully flung herself over the barricade, pumped madly around the corner, ricocheting off the corridor walls as she raced towards the terrified, sweaty Rangers who were slowly pushing the door shut. The cries of humans being broken and the shrieks of...things... echoed down the hall. Her heart stopped in her chest when she was jerked to a halt just on the other side of the door, then someone shoved her and she was sent sprawling on the floor, gasping for breath. There was the screech of protesting metal and rolling over, she saw the Rangers, a SEAL, and a civilian pushing a heavy metal desk with a metal cabinet on top in front of the closed door. "Sorry, Ma'am," said the SEAL, his arms supporting him against the desk. "Your backpack was caught." She nodded wearily, looking around the room, eyes straining in the dim emergency lighting. Not many were there. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ "We hole up in Medical," Landau said, wiping his brow. "There are limited exits and we've got a choice of two floors plus a surgical suite." He looked at Scully and she shook her head. "The only people I operate on are dead. I'll be there in a pinch, but don't rely on me for anything else." "We don't have that option," he answered. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Abby stared at him, tempted to let loose a verbal 'squee' and clap her hands together in her excitement. "Me? They want me? Gibbs, that's awesome!" He didn't even crack a hint of a smile, although she thought she saw one of his eyebrows twitch. "They didn't ask, Abby. I want one of our people in there before any more Marines get shafted. DiNozzo'll escort you to Peterson Air Force Base - " Standing behind Gibbs, DiNozzo grinned and mouthed, 'sweet'. " - and then he's headed to McMurdo." "Aw, Boss, it's cold down there!" "Then don't forget your thermals," replied Gibbs. "Kate, you're going to Vieques and then Maracaibo." Abby hid a smirk when Kate smiled beatifically at DiNozzo. "What about me, boss?" piped McGee, adorable as usual, not that she would ever tell him so. Gibbs removed his gun from his desk drawer and slipped it into his belt holster. "You stay here and follow the information, see where it goes and who calls who. Ducky, you're coming with me to Quantico," He glanced around. "C'mon people, let's move!" ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Skinner prowled around the room, an itch between Scully's shoulderblades, an itch she couldn't scratch, not in front of these spooks. He stopped and stared at the man behind the desk, arms folded tightly across his chest. "Why not the whole goddamned Army?" Roth rocketed out of his chair. "Now listen, you little pissant, this is neither the time nor the place - " "Yes, it is the time and the place," said the man leaning against the wall. "And I don't think Assistant Director Skinner appreciates being called a 'pissant', Admiral." Scully noted once again his casual attire of sturdy boots, jeans, fitted jacket, plaid shirt. Salt and pepper hair complimented bright blue eyes, eyes that judged and got what they expected. She was far past asking how high when someone said 'jump', yet if he asked, she'd do her best. Her desire to please made her nervous. Roth took a deep breath and slowly sat back down. "Fine," he said flatly. "We've tried the Army. We've tried the Navy. We tried bombing the fuckers but they're smarter than that. If we would nuke 'em we could, but given the location that might be a little difficult, never mind explaining to the American people and the world why we bombed the shit out of Colorado Springs!" "Which doesn't answer the question," said the other man. "For godsakes, Gibbs, you want it spelled out?" "Why don't you spell it out for me," Scully said sharply. "Because in nineteen ninety-five you fought it and beat it," Roth answered. He clasped his hands together so tightly his knuckles turned white. "You survived when Navy SEALS didn't." She felt the blood drain from her fingers, and then her toes. Acid roiled in her belly and the thought occurred to her that if she could just pass out for a moment or two, maybe a different reality would appear when she regained consciousness. Scully blew out a long, shaky breath. "They're back?" Gibbs pushed off the wall. "Who's back?" "Whatever killed your Marines," said Roth. He opened a side drawer and tossed a red folder labeled CLASSIFIED EYES ONLY onto the edge of the desk closest to Gibbs. "Agent Scully, we don't think they ever left. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Bullets ripped the creature apart and she leapt back to avoid its body fluids. Drops of blood, or what passed for blood, ate through the floor and plastic computer housings, the acrid smoke adding another tang to air already reeking of fear, sweat, and death. "Fall back!" screamed Woo, ripping something off of his belt. Scully turned and raced for the double doors leading from the cafeteria into the hallway. She hurtled over a chair, touched down on something squishy and slammed down on her left side. Flash-bangs went off and everything happened in static black and white snaps: A body in midair, arms windmilling as a clawed hand pulled him into the kitchen - Alcott lifting a rifle up to her shoulder - the splatter of arterial spray hitting the wall over the coffee urns - the warm slickness of freshly spilled intestines under her hands as she pushed herself back onto her feet. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ "It's like nothing I've seen before," enthused Abby, laser pointer spotting the screen red. "It looks like a cross between a spider crab and a scorpion, but with a soft shell and a prehensile tail, like a monkey. And then there's the mouth here. There aren't any teeth, so I don't think it operates like a lamprey or remora," She looked eagerly at her audience, but no one appeared to be excited. "Guys," she said, "this is the find of the century!" ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ McGee adjusted his headset, tapped his keyboard and watched the screen split into four. "Okay, you're good to go." "I found -" "Boss, I've got - " "Gibbs!" Gibbs made one of his 'I'm frowning even though my face isn't moving' expressions and everyone shut up. McGee really needed to learn how to do that. "Kate," Gibbs said, "you first." The former Secret Service Agent nodded, her normal wardrobe accented by a brightly colored floral scarf artfully tied around her neck. "Groenewald-Alvarez are keeping very hush-hush, but they've lost at least one oil rig and possibly a gas platform. The official line are gas leaks, bad weather, and employee error, but rumors abound of creatures with acid for blood." Acid for blood? "I've heard the same thing up here, boss," broke in DiNozzo. "Although, obviously, not with an oil rig." He'd taken Gibbs' words about thermals to heart, along with a ridiculous amount of puffy jackets, McGee noted. Surely he couldn't have gotten them at the PX? "Nice jacket, Tony," Kate said. DiNozzo twitched one Barbie Pink shoulder. "It was the last one they had," he growled. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ "Ma'am, pardon my French, but what the fuck are these things?" Scully shrugged and continued tying tiny, neat stitches into the trooper's lacerated scalp. "I don't know, but they're not from around here." "So what do we do now?" asked Woo, cradling his weapon like it was a newborn babe. Scully tied the last knot and almost tossed her instruments into the pan. Controlling herself, she gently placed them into the pan instead, just barely able to hear the clink of steel against steel over the ringing in her ears. "We've got to get to the Combat Operations Center," said Weyland. "I've got access to all the facilities there, we can hole up until we're rescued." Alcott, who slumped against the water cooler, barked out a laugh. "Rescue? This is Cheyenne Mountain, probably the one place in the entire goddamned world where the whole point is not letting people in. You really think there's a rescue on the way? You're out of your goddamned mind." "So what's your solution?" shouted Scully, throwing her gloves at the red CONTAMINATED WASTE bucket. "How the hell are we going to get out here? They've turned off the air, they've turned off the power!" Alcott held up one hand. "Okay, okay, I know where we're going. I've been herding us that way all along." "Thanks for sharing," muttered the trooper. "Hey, no one's supposed to know about this!" "If we all die here, no one will," said Woo. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ "Two scientists fell into an unknown crevasse," DiNozzo said. "When they were recovered, one had one of those crab things over his face. The crevasse eventually lead to the Canadian Pollard-Douglas site, where they found a whole cave filled with pods underneath the power plant. Each pod had a crab thing inside it, but all were dead apart from the one on the scientist, and that one eventually died and fell off." "And that's it?" asked McGee. "Not quite..." ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Scully pulled the pin and hurled the hand grenade down the stairwell, then ducked into the hallway, pulling the emergency door shut behind her. Inhuman cries were drowned out by the following blast and rumble of shattered concrete. Heat, wind, and dust squeezed around the doorframe, burning what skin wasn't covered and making them all sneeze. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ "Gibbs, this is Special Agent Mulder with the FBI," said Abby, motioning towards tall, dark, and handsome just over her left shoulder. McGee figured there was a good thousand bucks in the tailoring of the feeb's suit. "What can I do for you, Agent Mulder?" asked Gibbs in his usual inter Agency 'doesn't play well with others' tone. "I'm think that we could help each other out, Agent Gibbs, an exchange of information." ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Dust didn't obscure the brightness of her hair in the afternoon sunshine. Mulder trotted up and took her by the arm, pulling her over to the nearest ambulance. Military paramedics promptly tried to shoo him out of the way, but he wasn't letting her get out of his sight, at least not anytime soon. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Gibbs said, "Assistant Director, Agent Scully, Mulder." "You heard what they're doing, Gibbs?" Agent Mulder was plainly outraged, and while McGee couldn't blame him, personally he thought the Military was making the right call where Cheyenne Mountain was concerned. "I know," Gibbs answered. "They're sealing it up, closing it off, making a mockery of every single man and woman who died there. It's not right, but I don't see what choice we have." Agent Mulder spoke again but the feed was abruptly filled with static, then it cleared back to normal. Agent Scully shifted. She looked exhausted, one side of her face still red from some kind of fire. "Do you really think it's best that these creatures are contained in the highest level, most secure place in the entire world? Can we even be sure they are contained?" "I'm sure the Air Force is doing their best." McGee could see Kate and DiNozzo glance at one another from the corner of his eye. Gibbs. Praising another section of the Armed Forces. Talk about your big ball of wrong. "Did you know that Cheyenne Mountain is served by four resevoirs, Agent Gibbs?" continued Agent Scully. "Not only does it have its own power plant and ventilation system, but it is actively linked to strategic commands all over the globe as well as satellite systems. These creatures are obviously not of Earth origin. How long do you think it will be before more of them come from the bright blue skies?" ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Abby finished her soda and nibbled on another piece of popcorn. She wasn't ordinarily averse to contemplating her future, but after the events of the past few days, she was having serious thoughts about not only becoming a survivalist, but investing wisely, if such a thing could be considered, in commercial space projects. A girl never knew when leaving the planet might be required. McGee paused the movie - Angeliena Jolie's pout filling the screen - and said, "Did you get a copy of some conspiracy mag called The Lone Gunmen in your mail today?" She snagged the remote and pressed play. "Oh yeah, great stuff." Notes: Haha! I never thought I'd be writing something like this, but just being a huge fan of Navy: NCIS, recently having bought Alien Quadrilogy and rereading Sean Smith's Etched, and *then* getting the crossover theme from the Lyric Wheel - I thought, why the hell not! I'm telling you, my fangirl's heart is squeeing prettly loudly over here. I only hope I've done justice not only to the lyrics, but to Sean's fantastic solo effort. Until I started doing research about Cheyenne Mountain, I had no idea that it was bi-national, with Canadian forces based there as well as American. I also don't have a clue as to which forces are there, so I'm winging it. Alas, I totally messed up the timing of this story, so it's basically just snippetfic. I don't know if I'll ever flush it out more than this, but hey, ya never know. Lyrics courtesy of Marcia Elena - unfortunately I just wasn't able to work them in without it sounding forced, so I left them out instead. I Miss My Sky (Heather Nova) I bury myself in the leaves to sleep The sun so strong and rage so deep I keep waking to find I've been dreaming again And the sound of the ocean is not a plane And far away they talk about me In newspaper columns they write about me round dinner tables and cocktail parties I'm a heroine and a tragic figure I'm a heroine as I'm lying here Beneath my sky And sometimes Sometimes I cry Sometimes Sometimes I wonder Why we're always coming down And why we need to touch the ground And why I didn't keep on heading right on up to heaven I miss my sky Here from below the clouds are shadows Not the golden mountains I used to fly through Here from below the sky's a painting In a child's room with the future waiting But not for me I look up at the birds flying overhead My sentinel's true but the signals dead It's been 500 days of hope and sorrow 500 nights with no tomorrow And the poetry and the best of me And the heart and the spirit and the sex of me All fell into the azure sea In the tailspin with the last of me And my wings, and my song, all that I knew is dead and gone I'm weak and tired but my will is strong And my hope lives on, my hope lives on... But sometimes, Sometimes I cry Sometimes Sometimes I wonder Why we're always coming down Why we need to touch the ground Why I didn't keep on heading Right on up to heaven I miss my sky I miss my sky