The Four Corners Cycle Book Three - Terminus Chapter One Spookey247 Feedback- Who wouldn't love some? spookey247@msn.com http://www.geocities.com/spookey_247/ Archive - Gossamer, Ephemeral, ok. If you've archived my other story, go right ahead, anybody else, drop me a line first. Rating - NC-17 Classification - TRA, AU, Post-Colonization with MSR & MM (Mystic Mulder) Disclaimers - These characters are mine, with two notable exceptions, who belong to Chris Carter and the suits at Fox. Spoilers - Maybe some for season 8, but largely spoiler free Keywords - Post-Colonization, Mulder/Scully Romance Summary - Our friends travel. They look for lost things. Suggested Listening: Blur and the Pixies. Dead Can Dance. Orbital(the brown disc). Erykah Bahdu for the NC17 parts. Try track 11 on Mama's Gun over and over and over...you'll be glad you did. Authors notes: For the complete scoop, look at the beginning of Book One. For this story I need to add that I've borrowed some phrases from Ursula K. LeGuin's awesome translation of the Tao Te Ching. Her words, not mine, I freely admit it. On this day , My elders, Who won the holy waters Today, What's yours is here, The holy double I created The holy double in my hand I stand in your roads I give you this holy double May you hold our holy double May you offer me all your good wishes Likewise, You who I called father Yes indeed, in daylight We lived, our minds entwined You won the holy waters What's yours, I offer now to you The holy double I created To clasp To share my holy double ~Zuni Prayer, offered while grieving the death of a spouse ~~~~~ Long awaited, you were, and welcomed with joy. I invited you into my life with a heart that was open, willing, and filled with love. I prepared myself to sacrifice, give, teach, and protect, and I chose for you the most wise and dedicated father a child could ever hope to have. You didn't find me right away. I wasn't expecting you anymore by the time you came. I found out you were here the same day I lost your father. You were a rose in a war zone. I loved you fiercely, unconditionally. The way I wished I had loved him, while I still had the chance. I lay awake at night, empty and spiritless, and felt you filling me, bit by soft, rosy bit. Sometimes despair made me close my heart. I would try to tell you that it was damaged beyond repair; that what was left of it belonged only to your father. You would reach up with a tiny hand and caress the wounded places. They bled at your touch, but the blood was cleansing. I believed that in the cosmic scheme of things your place was close to his. I believed you could channel his love. You were ripped from my body. You were wiped from my mind. I never knew you. I never saw your face. ~~~~~ Morning June 5, 2036 Not Far from Tuba City, Arizona "It's here. You'll just have to give me a minute, boys. It's always a trick to find it." Dru gazes around at the undergrowth, looking for that certain bush -- there's the one, he thinks. Now, look to the left about five feet, let your eyes just skim the surface - there. There it is. "I don't see anything that looks like a tunnel around here, son." "Got it." The small metal post is marked with a faded stripe of orange paint. The door will be buried right around there somewhere. Just under the surface. Dru curses himself for being a stupid shit; drinking too much last night and getting himself put on the spot. What kind of dumbass promises to take people sight-seeing out to the Labs in the daytime, he thinks. Without women and liquor, it's no fun. But Mr. Birch was really interested when Dru started talking about the Labs last night. He wouldn't leave the subject alone. Kept asking questions. Finally Dru promised to show him the Labs just to shut him up. Dru hadn't started out to tell his new boss about the Labs, oh no way. The Labs are a non-subject as far as Dru is concerned. He's heard enough about all that at home. No, what Dru had set out to tell about was that girl from Willow Springs, Thomas' cousin, and how he got his first taste of a woman out here. How they broke in late one night, sneaking through the tunnel with a quart of 'shine. How they tested out one of those steel drawers... Sick and twisted. It's a helluva story. Dru walks over to the orange post and stamps in the dirt just to the right of it. Moving further to the right, he stamps again. The ring of metal. Hollow. That's it. "Here. Help me uncover it." Dru drops to his knees and starts clearing the rocky soil away. The other guys join him and in a minute or two a metal door shows through a thin layer of red earth. Dru hooks his fingers in a heavy metal ring and gives a heave. Dirt slides down a dark stairwell as the door bursts open. "When the Bugs still had People locked up in here, the Resistance dug this tunnel so they could go in and get them out." Dru remembers the stories his mother used to tell him by the fire. Before Maia died, Will used to stay gone for days at a time, tending folks here and there. He always took Sam with him. Sam was Will's apprentice, the Chosen Kid. Dru was his mother's right-hand-man. Her confidante. She told him everything. She would let him stay up way past his bedtime and tell him about the way things used to be, before the World was stolen. She would remember things the Bugs used to do to People, and tell him stories about all the ways the Resistance found to fight back against them. These were things Will didn't want his children to know. The Bugs had gotten all they needed from the People held prisoner in the Labs, so they stashed them away, lined up in drawers, in case they might need them later on. Slave humans took care of those People for years, like they were a bunch of used-up farm animals. At first the People from the Resistance couldn't believe how easy it was. They dug a tunnel, popped in through the ventilation system, captured the slaves, and carried the weakest prisoners out. They waited a week or more to see if the Bugs would notice what they'd done, but there were never any reprisals. So they went back and worked until the Labs were empty. To this day, everyone wonders if the Bugs just forgot the place existed. "We're going to need a lantern or something. It's dark in the tunnel and it's dark in the Labs. Even in the daytime." Dru stands with Gary Birch and the other men, staring down into the dusty hole. Birch licks his lips and opens his mouth like a dog on a hot day, his wrinkled nut-brown face spreading out into something that could be interpreted as a smile. If you were having a good day, Dru thinks. If smiling is what you were hoping to see. "Get a light," Birch orders, and one of the two men Dru met this morning heads for the van. Birch turns toward one of the others, leaning closer and speaking in a low voice. "Jonah, I need you to take care of Stephen." "Yah. I'll do it." When they've got the light, Birch hands it to Dru. "Lead on, buddy," he says. ~~~~~ Tuba City, Arizona One hour later The wind is hot against Kaya's skin. Spring was nice while it lasted, she thinks. She steals a look at her father, walking just to her left. He is lost in thought, his face drawn and dispirited. Kaya wishes he would speak. She wishes Dru had stayed home until Will was done praying. She wishes she knew what all that hollering was about this morning. Whatever it was, Will and Dana aren't talking about it, that's for sure. Kaya's glance darts to her right, where Dana keeps pace, looking grim. I wish she'd go away, Kaya thinks, stomach churning. Will hasn't been happy a single day since she came here. ~~~~ The trading post in Tuba City is one of Kaya's favorite places. A couple of times a month a truck comes from South Road. When it goes away again, it leaves bits of the outside world behind it: fruits and vegetables that won't grow in the high desert, goods salvaged from places where there aren't any People left anymore, travelers full of stories. The trading post is the heart of Tuba City. If you want to know what's going on in town or in the World all you have to do is stop there. If you don't hear enough news out front you can always go inside and check with Kevin, the proprietor. He'll fill you in on whatever you need to know. This morning there's a familiar gray pickup in the parking lot. Kaya breathes easy for what feels like the first time this morning. Thank god, she says to herself. Sane people. "Morning, Ben." Will sticks his hand out and Ben hops down off the back of the truck, returning the greeting. "Mornin', Will. Mornin' Kaya, Dana..." Dana stares at the ground, frowning. Kaya snorts in exasperation. Shit, there's nothing wrong with Ben. He's nothing to be afraid of. Completely harmless. Matt is another matter, she thinks to herself with a smile. She glances across the parking lot to find him. He is leaning against the wall of the trading post, talking to some people she knows from Rare Metals. "Ben, I need to talk to Dru," Will says. "You know where he is?" Before Ben can answer, Will slumps back against the hood of the truck, rubbing his forehead hard. He covers his eyes with his hand for a long moment. He's listening, Kaya thinks. I wonder what the spirits are telling him. She's pretty sure Will doesn't have any business being in town this morning. Really. Sam could have come to fetch Dru. "What's wrong with him?" Ben asks her, hooking his thumb in Will's direction and hoisting himself onto the hood of the truck. Will's head jerks upright. "Nothing," he snaps. "Seen Dru?" Ben doesn't answer. He's looking at Will like he suddenly sprouted an extra head. Honestly, Kaya thinks, no one can get used to it. Time was when you talked to Will he was right there with you every step of the way. He always had an answer for your troubles, something to make you feel better, a joke or a song or a story. Since Dana came he's not the same. He's sad and grouchy and doesn't have time for anybody but her. It's not her habit to question Will, but she's beginning to wonder if Dru is right. Maybe Will really doesn't care who he pisses off anymore. Maybe that's Dana's fault. Ben folds his legs crossways and adjusts his glasses. "I guess you know why Dru came into town last night, Will." "Yeah. I didn't find out he came until this morning, though." "Well listen, it's true. The Bugs are on their way here. You can ask Kevin. That fellow who was here, Gary Birch, he put me and Matt in charge of getting the word out, since we stay here and there and know lots of folks. He and his people headed out this morning, early. Dru went with them." Now it's Will's turn to give the "you've-got-two- heads" look. Unlike Ben, though, he's mad about the extra head and not afraid to show it. "Dammit, Ben. Couldn't you have talked him out of that?" "Will, this is some serious shit. They need our help. Dru's a grown man. I can't tell him what to do." Will takes a deep breath and blows the frustration out of his body. He looks up. His eyes lock onto something up in the sky. They follow the invisible object on its invisible path. His mouth drops open. Kaya sighs. Lost him, she thinks. Just like that. We can all go have breakfast, and when we come back he'll be standing right here, still as a pine tree. When Will doesn't move after a minute or so, Dana reaches over and touches his arm. "Mulder..." Her face whips toward Kaya. Explain this to me, her eyes beg. Make him stop. Kaya doesn't get why this is so hard for Dana to understand. Holy people are just...holy people. They don't act like anybody else. No one expects them to. Fortunately for Dana's nerves, Will comes back fast this time. His shoulders sag and his gaze drops a little lower in the sky. "Where'd they go, Ben?" he asks faintly. "Which way were they headed?" "They were headed for Colorado to meet up with some supplies." Will shakes his head. "No. No, that's not right..." "Well that's what they said, at least." Will pushes himself up off the hood of the truck and goes into the trading post without another word to anyone. Dana turns to Kaya. "Kaya, what was that all about?" Kaya feels sorry for her. She looks so confused and desperate. "Will's said before that sometimes the plant takes its time letting go of him. He says it's still got things to tell." Dana sits down on the tailgate of Ben's truck. Her hands are shaking. Kaya wishes she knew what all that fuss was about this morning. After a few minutes Will comes back out of the trading post, walking fast. "Kevin says they traded for gas this morning and left on South Road. White van." "Yeah, a white van," Ben says. "*South* Road?" "They never meant to go to Colorado, Ben." Suddenly Ben smacks his palm against his forehead. "I got it, Will...shit, what's wrong with me? We were drinking with those guys last night and Dru was telling Gary Birch stories about the Labs. It was noisy and they were a few feet away...I didn't hear all they said, but now I remember Dru saying he'd take them there if they wanted." Will closes his eyes and nods. "Yes. That's it. That's right. We need to catch up to them." "That's no problem, Will. I just gassed the truck." Ben shouts to Matt. "Matt! We're out of here!" Will hops in the back of the truck, pulling Dana in behind him. Matt opens the door of the cab and looks at Kaya with a wicked grin. "It's tight in here, K. You're welcome to a seat, though." ~~~~~ Late Morning Inside the Western Labs Not far from Tuba City, Arizona The dust is thick. Every time Dru moves it rises up, like a swarm of flies off a dead animal. Dru can't figure why Mr. Birch is so excited about this room full of old cabinets. There's stuff to see at the Labs that's more interesting than this. For instance, there are drawers where the Bugs kept live human beings for years on end, stacked up one on top of the other like firewood. There are laboratory rooms painted whiter than snow, loaded with fancy machinery. Then there's the basement. That's Dru's favorite part of the Labs, and now that he's here, he was kind of looking forward to going down there. That's the Party Room. When you go to that room you have to go down three flights of stairs and follow a long hallway. It's dark as hell; gives you the creeps. Then you get to the door, the one that used to be locked tight until some kids did a number on it a few years ago, playing with a stick of TNT they scored. Now it's just black and twisted off its hinges, and you can step right in, put a match to the Party Light, and enjoy. The Party Room is better than the traveling shows that pull into Tuba from South Road every couple of months or so. That guy who sits in the Rattlesnake Cage, he's nothing compared to what you can see in the basement of the Labs. You can take a light and check out the shelves. It's totally sick: pickled Bug babies with giant heads and eyes, pickled human babies with long Bug fingers and toes, pickled body parts, hearts and livers and stomachs...the brains are the coolest. It's the best, Dru thinks to himself. Kind of gets you thinking deep about life, looking at all those guts. It's even better if you've got a girl on your arm while you take it all in. They get scared to death and stick to you like glue. Will would freak if he knew I've gotten laid in the Labs, Dru thinks, grinning. Maybe if he knew how fun the place is when you've got a gut full of 'shine and some friends to hang out with, he wouldn't take the place so damn serious. Sure, the Bugs kept Will in those drawers, a long time ago. That must have sucked, Dru thinks. But shit, he got out. He's doing fine now. This is just a dusty old building with a basement full of pickled meat. What's the big deal? "Um, Mr. Birch," he says. Birch is lost back in the gloom, looking through some of the cabinets. His lantern throws shadows on the far wall and Dru can hear him muttering to himself. It's *paper*, dude, Dru thinks to himself. Won't do anybody a damn bit of good. It'd make nice tinder, he guesses. If somebody wanted to torch the place. Dru wonders briefly if Mr. Birch is on the level. What would a soldier want with a bunch of old papers in a place he just heard of last night? Pretty weird. Dru thinks about how much Will distrusts Gary Birch: enough to go on a Datura trip, trying to find out what he's up to. Dru gets to his feet, feeling tight. Shake it off, boy, he thinks to himself. Will's like an old lady these days, straight up. There's not a man in this world that's not lying about something. Can't go around freaking out about every little thing. He hears Birch's footsteps, coming back toward the front of the room. "Wallace!" he hollers, his voice echoing off through the dust and the darkness. One of the guys sticks his head in the door. "Sir?" "191. That's one-nine-one. Go down there and see what you can get." "Okay." Birch squats down and starts stuffing a bunch of papers into his backpack. "Mr. Birch." Dru stands up. He's bored stiff and edgy, ready to go somewhere else. Birch doesn't look up. "What?" "What do you want with all that shit? Let me take you down to the basement, man. It's boss." The little man closes his backpack tight. "Yeah. Take me down, there, son. I'd really like to see it." ~~~~~ Late Morning South Road Near the Western Labs The sun is getting more vicious by the minute. Dana feels stepped on; squashed; fried like a bug on a concrete sidewalk. She pulls a tarp over her head and tries to escape, but the sun reaches inside. Taunting. The blistering wind rattles in Dana's ears as the truck speeds across the mesa, wrapping her in white noise. Mulder sprawls on his back in the truck bed, surrounded by Ben and Matthew's worldly possessions, his eyes closed, brow creased, lips moving from time to time. She wonders what he is seeing. Dana's mind is rushing like the highway under the wheels of the truck. Rolling like the snake that eats its own tail. Mulder's face clenches. He draws into himself, long legs stiffening in what looks like pain. Dana moves to his side. "Mulder, tell me what's wrong." His hand flies out from his side, twisted, reaching for her. She takes it. He takes her. Darkness. Cold stone. Rotten earth. His fingers twine with hers, locking in place. She feels the pain. A stabbing feeling in her belly and back; her body, ice cold and defenseless. The bones of her pelvis, rearranging. The head, coming down. Mulder moans. Cruel hands catch the dripping bundle. Cruel hands snip the pale, yellow cord. Dana rips away from Mulder and crawls under her tarp, trying to hide, but the light reaches inside. Taunting. ~~~~ Dana feels the truck slowing, turning to the right and down a steep incline. She pushes the tarp off and looks around. They are bumping along a cast-off asphalt driveway that winds into a canyon. Matthew pushes the back window of the cab open and shouts over Kaya's shoulder, "Is Will okay back there?" Dana doesn't really feel qualified to answer that question. "I don't know. I think he's all right." "Well, tell him to wake up. We're almost there." ~~~~ They park a hundred feet or so from the white van, hiding the small gray truck behind a stand of bushes. "Shit, Will," Ben says as they disembark. "I can't see why we need to hide from them. I think we're all on the same side, here." Mulder stares at Ben fixedly. His face is mournful, profoundly shaken. Ben takes a step back. He knows he's looking at a raw nerve walking. "Kaya," Mulder says quietly. "Yeah, Will." "I want you to stay here." Kaya's mouth pops open to argue, but nothing comes out. "I'll stay with you, K," Matthew offers. "I've seen it, in there." "Will, don't you think Dana should stay here, too? Don't you think it might be a little too much for her?" Dana pins Kaya with an angry stare. "No," Mulder says, drawing a long, painful breath. "There are things she needs to see." ~~~~ The guy called Wallace catches up with Birch and Dru near the top of the stairwell that leads down to the basement. "191," he says simply, handing Birch a folder. Birch hands Dru the lantern and looks through the folder quickly. From the look on his face you would think Wallace had just handed him one of those old porno magazines. "Hey, let's go down to the basement," Dru says quickly. "Man, you're not gonna believe it." They descend, lanterns gleaming yellow on the cracked plaster of the walls. Rats scamper and scratch in dark corners on the landings. Those rats must have a helluva life, Dru laughs to himself. Living all alone in the desert with nothing but pickles to eat. The smell down in the basement has gotten worse since Dru's last visit. There's a bad chemical stink and a smell like garbage. Like dead things in garbage. It's the rats, Dru thinks. I guess I was right about the menu around here. "Watch the door," Birch tells Wallace. "Shit, Mr. Birch, nobody comes down here much. I wouldn't worry about it." Dru follows Birch down a line of shelves, holding up the lantern. Birch stares at the critters in the jars like maybe they'll sing and dance in a minute and he wouldn't want to miss it. He licks his lips and gasps now and then, fingers jumping up to touch the labels on the jars, eyes glittering in the lantern light. Shee-it, Dru thinks. I always thought this place was pretty cool, but I never got into it *this* much. He's beginning to wonder what kind of sick bastard he's gotten himself hooked up with. Book Three - Terminus Chapter Two The stainless steel compartment doors glint in the dim light cast by their lantern. "We need to get moving." Despite his words, Mulder remains motionless. He puts his hand on one of the drawers and bows his head. "Richard," he says. "Richard?" Mulder nods. "Mulder, I don't get it." "Richard. This one was his. And..." He moves to the next compartment and places his hand on the door. "...Pauline...Heather...James...Max...Billy..." Dana follows him down the line, checking the names on the file folders affixed to the front of each drawer. "My god, Mulder. How can you remember their names after all this time?" He pauses in front of a drawer and lays his finger on the number marked on its surface. 191, Dana reads. "This was mine," he says, flatly. He lays his hand on another drawer. "Wynn. She was next to me for three years." Mulder's eyes shine like spring water in the lantern glow. He lays his forehead against the drawer and closes his eyes. "We learned to recognize each other by thoughts, dreams, emotions...after a few years it was like we had always lived that way, in our heads. When someone was taken into the lab, we all went with that person. We felt what they felt." Dana wants to put her arms around him, but he shrinks from her touch, pressing his cheek against the cold steel. "We stayed human that way, Scully." Dana turns to take the files from drawer #191. She wants to see if she can tell what the colonists were trying to do. "Mulder?" "Yeah." "Your files are missing." "It's been a long time, Scully. Lots of things are probably missing by now." "No, Mulder. Look." She shines the lantern down the line. "Yours is the only set gone." "Will!" Ben hisses from the end of the hallway. "I hear 'em." Dana follows Mulder out into the dark corridor. Suddenly his face has gone totally blank; grief pushed aside with a force of will Dana has witnessed many times before. He listens. Voices sound faintly from an indeterminate direction. "They're coming up from the basement," he says, starting off into the gloom. Dana follows quickly with the lantern. Ben, carrying the second lantern, takes up the rear. Their footsteps echo down the hallways as they follow Mulder toward the source of the voices. Suddenly he stops, listening again. "Headed back to the tunnel now," he mutters, taking off again. Ahead of them they hear the voices suddenly drop to a hush as their footsteps are detected; then the clatter of boots, running on tile. The force of the explosion in the basement nearly knocks them all off their feet. Mulder reaches back and snatches the lantern out of Dana's hand. He takes off at a dead run. Dana and Ben do their best to follow. ~~~~ Dru had no idea Wallace traveled with plastic explosive and detonators in his pocket. What the fuck, he thinks as he runs. It's not his place to question, though. Mr. Birch has obviously got his reasons for blowing the place. This is the Resistance, after all. Dru's trying to be a good soldier. The tunnel is dark, starting to get smoky; it's hard to see with only one light bobbing and weaving as they run. They scramble up to the surface, squinting in the blinding light and getting their bearings as they head for the van. "Jonah, let's go!" Birch shouts. Someone is coming up out of the tunnel behind them. "Dru!" Dru stops as he nears the van. He turns. Damn. That's Will shouting. He came after us, Dru thinks. What did he find out? "Will!" he shouts back, taking a few steps toward the sound of his father's voice. Suddenly Wallace grabs Dru from behind. "Fuck you, man, that's my father..." Wallace is one helluva big guy. Before Dru knows it Wallace is throwing him into the van. "Go, go!" Birch yells. Jonah hits the gas and throws it into reverse. Dirt flies as they swing back, turning to go. Dru kicks and struggles, reaching for the door. "Goddammit, man. Let go of me..." "Shut him up." Wallace pins Dru to the seat and smacks him one, backhand. Lip split and streaming blood, Dru looks around frantically. Where's Stephen? Stephen, the injured man who Birch had tended with fatherly concern only yesterday, is nowhere to be seen. What the fuck? Dru twists to look out the window. He sees Will, running. Ben's truck. Kaya standing up in the back of it, screaming at the van as it speeds away. His family, receding. ~~~~ Dana and Ben follow Mulder out of the smoky tunnel and into the bright light of midday. They arrive at Ben's truck to find Mulder standing on the decaying asphalt in a cloud of dust. Matthew has the hood of the truck open. "It's that damn wire that comes loose," he tells Ben in a hushed voice. "They're gone, Ben." Mulder has his back to them all. He remains motionless as Dana approaches. "Do you think we can still catch them?" she asks. "I don't know which way they'll go, once they get back up to South Road." They stand together in the blistering heat. Another explosion rocks the compound at their backs. "This is happening for a reason, Scully." "How do you know?" "Because I've seen..." His voice trails off and he swallows hard. "Mulder, what? What have you seen?" "There's a place somewhere not far from here. I don't know which direction. *He's* there. God, Scully, I don't know how it's possible, but he is still alive. And he's responsible for all of this." A huge explosion shakes the ground. Clouds of black smoke rise up over the desert. "He's the one who took our daughter away from you, Scully." Dana's body stiffens. "Mulder, there was never a baby that belonged to you and me. I can't accept that." He turns to look her way. His face is terrible. His eyes are hard. "We had been trying. Don't you remember?" "We...god, I don't know. If we were trying we never succeeded." Mulder's jaw tightens. His voice rises in pitch. "I'm going to tell you what I've seen, Scully." Dana looks at the ground. "I don't know if I can trust what you *think* you've seen." The smoke in the air grows thicker. Dana feels the sullen tone in her voice; feels, inexplicably, like a rebellious teenager. "Trust it or not," Mulder snaps. "I know it's true. Listen. You found out you were pregnant the day after they took me." "I don't want to hear this." She turns away. He talks to her back. "Colonization began shortly after your due date. He and his people took you, along with other women, for a purpose that I think we can both figure out. " Dana's soul fills with revulsion. "Mulder, shut up. I don't have to listen to this." He grabs her shoulders, spinning her around. "Listen, Scully. They took you somewhere dark. Somewhere underneath the ground. You went into labor soon after arriving." "Shut up." "The baby was a girl. Scully, they took the baby..." "Shut up! " Dana screams. She backs away, but he follows, reaching for her. "I've seen it, Scully. Through *your* eyes. Through *your* memory." "Get your hands off me. I want you to listen, Mulder. I...was...violated...repeatedly. And I remember *all* of it. Why would I block out only one thing? If it happened, why can't I remember?" Mulder stares at her intensely, hands clenching and unclenching. "You do remember, Scully. You just refuse to admit it." "Will!" Kaya shouts. She is standing in some bushes, not far from the truck. "Will, over here!" Ben and Matthew run to see what Kaya has found. "Holy shit." Ben says loudly. "Will!" Will and Dana are too deadlocked to answer them. Kaya runs to her father, grabbing his hand and shaking him. "Will. God, will you two stop yelling at each other and come over here? We need you." Mulder slowly transfers his gaze from Dana's face to Kaya's. "What?" "Come see." Ben and Matthew are crouched over whatever it is Kaya has found in the bushes. Dana follows Mulder to the spot. "Oh my god," she murmurs. It's Stephen, the man Mulder was taking care of two days ago, dumped in the underbrush; left for dead. ~~~~ The smoke is so thick they can barely see what they're doing as they load the man's lifeless form into the back of the truck. "Is he dead, Will?" Kaya asks, holding her scarf over her mouth and staring at the body. "He's dying," Mulder answers. "We need to know what he knows. We've got to get him somewhere fast, Ben. Somewhere I can work." "Where, Will? Back to Tuba? Second Mesa might be closer..." "Take West Road." "Oh, sure, I got it. Riverbend." ~~~~~ Early Afternoon Near Riverbend Estate Just Off West Road The engine of the old gray truck strains and whines as they fly down the ruined highway. Dana finds herself seated in the cab, crushed between Ben and Matthew. "I still can't figure it out." Ben says, completely unnerved. He keeps his charcoal-gray eyes fixed on the road, swerving every few minutes to avoid yet another of the many pot holes that dot its surface. "Damn, dude," Matt remarks, "I couldn't believe it. We heard this big bang and then they came running out and that big guy just *POW* and dragged Dru inside." "Will didn't trust 'em from the beginning," Ben says. "Who does he think they are, Dana?" Dana leans her head back against the seat, shifting uncomfortably. She feels bone-weary and unbalanced, like she's standing on a steep hillside with loose gravel under her feet. "I don't know," she sighs. "He just thinks they're not who they say they are." She looks back into the bed of the truck. Mulder is sitting with Stephen's head in his lap, slumped over so that his forehead hangs inches from that of the dying man. His eyes are closed. Kaya sits near him, holding his hand. "There's the turn-off, Ben." "Yeah, I see it." They pull down a dirt road that winds off into the desert. Within moments they pass between two weathered stone columns. One bears a rusted plaque that reads, "Riverbend Estate." They travel downhill for several minutes, dust flying back in long columns from the motion of their tires. Dana notices that their altitude is dropping; the landscape is growing greener. Tall pines rise up off in the distance. We're headed towards water, she thinks. Ben pulls the truck around some tall bushes and slows down. Several buildings come into view. A minute later, they pull up in front of an enormous house. From the front it's hard to tell exactly how big the house might be, but if the size of its facade is any indication it must sprawl over thousands of square feet. Its thick adobe walls and a red tile roof were obviously constructed before colonization, but are in remarkably good repair. The circular driveway is shaded by a stand of Ponderosa Pines. Once expensive landscaping, now gone native, threatens to take over the rest of the front yard. The sun streams down through the branches of the trees. There is no one in sight. Ben lays on the horn, once, then twice. Dana looks back over her shoulder again. Mulder gives no indication that he is aware of their having arrived at their destination; he slumps lower over Stephen's body, almost as if he has fallen asleep. Kaya lets go of his hand and moves back a few feet, perching on the edge of the truck bed, watching her father intently. "What's up, K?" Matthew asks her as he and Ben come around the back of the truck. She shakes her head almost imperceptibly, eyes locked on Mulder and the dying man. Dana gets out of the truck and joins the men as Ben lowers the tailgate. "Kaya, what's Will doing?" he asks, quietly. "Don't we need to get this guy inside?" Kaya puts her finger to her lips. They wait for a long moment. Mulder is utterly still. "This is ridiculous." Dana jumps into the bed of the truck and grabs the dying man's hand. It is cold. Her fingers wrap around his wrist. There's no pulse there, and she's certain there hasn't been for many minutes. "This man is dead," she states, flatly. "Mulder, he's dead." "Shhhh." Kaya reaches out and pulls on Dana's arm to get her attention. "Dana, stop it. Leave them alone." "Kaya, the man is dead. There's nothing we can do for him now. Mulder..." She touches the back of Mulder's hand. It is nearly as cold as Stephen's. She spins toward Kaya, face frozen in horror. "I think he's gone after him," Kaya whispers. "He wants to ask what he knows." ~~~~~ Mid-Afternoon West Road Near Desert View, Arizona The air is like a hot-oil bath. Steam flies up from the engine of the white van as the man named Jonah pops the hood. "We're gonna have to let her cool down some," he calls. Birch slams his hand down on the dash with a curse and kicks the passenger-side door open. He joins Jonah at the front of the van. "Don't move," the guy called Wallace tells Dru, punching him in the chest with a meaty finger. He slides the side door open and gets out, heading off into the bushes. Taking a leak, Dru figures. Dru leans his head against the hot metal wall next to his seat, thoughts racing in ten different directions at once. What the hell is this, he thinks. What do these motherfuckers want with me anyway. Maybe he can find something out from those papers. Birch's backpack sits between the two front seats. Dru casts a glance out the front window of the van. The open hood obscures his view, but he can see Wallace, back from the bushes now, talking to the other men in front of the steaming engine. The air inside the van is oppressively hot. Dru figures no one will want to get back in until they absolutely have to. His foot snakes toward the backpack. Within moments he has hooked his boot through a shoulder strap and is reeling it in. He is careful not to move his upper body. Slow, boy, he thinks to himself. Don't tip them. He reaches one long arm down and slides the pack partially up his leg, fumbling blindly with the clasp. Eyes front, not down. Dammit, how does this thing open? The clasp springs open. He almost drops the pack, lunging to keep it in hand. Shit. Wallace stares at Dru through the front window for a long moment. Eyes front, boy. Wallace laughs at someone's joke and bends to light a cigarette. Dru reaches inside the pack. A thick sheaf of papers is stuffed in the very top, and he rifles through them, lifting them just enough to be able to see if he peers down over his nose... Holy Shit. Will's picture's on those papers. Wallace stubs his cigarette and dips out of sight around the front of the van. Dru stuffs the papers back in the backpack, closing that damn clasp as fast as possible and flinging the pack as close to its original position as he can get it. What the hell do they want with me, he thinks desperately. What do they want with my father? Wallace slides the side door open and sticks his head in the van. "Hey, Hayseed," he says, pulling a pistol out of his belt and pointing it in Dru's direction. "Mr. Birch says you're a mechanic." ~~~~~ Mid-Afternoon Riverbend Estate "Benjamin Caldwell, as I live and breathe. Why are you honking in my yard?" A tall woman in shorts and a threadbare t-shirt is coming toward them through the front yard of the massive house. She is in her early forties, rail thin, with blonde hair, long and tangled. Her greeting is hearty and cheerful, and she is carrying a rifle, which she sets aside to give Ben a hug. "Glad I didn't shoot first and ask questions later," she laughs, wrapping her willowy arms around him. She looks over his shoulder at Matthew. "Young Matthew. It's been a long time." "We've been out North Road for a few months," Matthew says, taking his turn embracing her. "Utah. Stopped in Tuba on the way back." "Well, it's been way too long. What's up? My god, is that...look at you, Kaya, all grown up. You probably don't remember me. I'm a friend of William's." "Yeah," Ben shifts nervously, glancing into the bed of the truck. "Kaya, this is Elise. You've probably heard Will talk about her." Kaya gives a shy smile as a greeting. "Yes, ma'am. I have." "And this is Dana," Ben continues. Elise extends a hand. Dana meets it. Elise's handshake is firm and confident. She stares at Dana with open curiosity. "I don't believe I've seen you before, Dana. That's odd in these parts." "No, no you haven't," Dana answers, not sure what else to say. "She's a friend of Will's," Ben interjects, coming to Dana's rescue. Elise smiles brightly. "Well, that's good enough for me. Welcome." "Thanks." Elise turns back toward the truck, looking toward Kaya. "Where is old Doc William, anyway? What brings you folks down this way?" Elise's questions bring the conversation to an abrupt halt. She looks from face to face, expecting some sort of answer, but is met only with looks of helplessness and confusion. Kaya looks into the bed of the truck and Elise's gaze follows the girl's. She stares down at the motionless form of her old friend, which is wrapped around the body of a man who is obviously dead. "Lord," she says gently, shocked. "I *did* have to ask, didn't I." ~~~~~ A few minutes later West Road Near Desert View, Arizona The sun beats down. "Probably the thermostat's blown," Dru tells them, as the engine temperature soars into the red once again. "Or could be the distributor cap. Either way you're kind of fucked." "You're the one that's fucked, Hayseed," Wallace snaps. "Look, if you're gonna call me names can you come up with something that actually fits? I'm not a farmer and even if I was I wouldn't be growing hay. This is the desert. What are you, some kind of moron?" "Shut up," Birch orders. "Lay off him, Wallace. Jonah, how far you figure it is into Desert View?" "Ten, twelve miles." "Well, if we get walking now we'll make it just after dark. We'll spend the night there and go the rest of the way tomorrow." What the hell, Dru figures. If they're figuring on killing me they'll do it whether I ask questions or not. "The rest of the way where?" he asks. "Son, you'll find out soon enough," Birch answers, licking his lips and grinning. "You're gonna like what we've got waiting for you." "Well if I'm gonna like it so damn much, why do you have to point a gun at me?" Birch doesn't answer. He reaches in the open passenger-side door and gets out his backpack. "Lock it up, Jonah. We'll send someone back for the supplies." Dru leans against the van. "I'm not walking anywhere 'til you tell me where we're headed." Wallace points the pistol at Dru's head. "You'll walk where Wallace tells you to walk, son," Birch says smoothly. "Or we'll fix it up so you have to be carried." Book Three - Terminus Chapter Three Late Afternoon Riverbend Estate Mulder hasn't moved. Ben has pulled the truck under a stand of trees. The shade makes the heat more bearable. Dana wishes with all her heart for a breeze to come and stir the air. She would welcome any kind of motion at all right now. She sits close to Mulder in the bed of the truck. The only thing that tells her that he is alive is the faint pulse that she feels when she lays her fingers against his throat. This is something she does every five minutes or so. Because it's all she can do. Dana fears that Mulder has succumbed to the poison he put in his system two days ago. Without knowing what kind of chemical he's ingested, though, there's little she can do for him. Especially when everyone around her is convinced he's taking some sort of psychic journey. Well, she thinks with resignation, if nothing else he's certainly found a novel way to ditch me. "Dana." She looks up from her reverie to see Ben looking at her over the tailgate of the truck. Dana is beginning to find comfort in the presence of this simple, soft-spoken man. The tenderness in his manner touches her, and she feels increasingly safe when he is nearby. A friend, Dana thinks. How long has it been since I've had one of those? "Any change?" Dana rolls her head from side to side and wipes the sweat off her upper lip. "No. No change." "Kaya said to tell you she's going to come sit with him. You can take a break." Dana nods slowly, reaching out to lay her fingers against Mulder's throat. "He'll be fine, Dana." "Oh, I understand. They've already told me. 'He does this all the time'." She smoothes Mulder's hair wistfully. It is thick and soft. "Or something like that," she sighs. "Well, my guess is he doesn't do this 'all the time'. It's dangerous. There aren't many who can do it." "Really," Dana says, feeling leaden, disconsolate. She cannot take her eyes from Mulder's profile. This is how he'll look when we bury him, she thinks. "I've heard of one or two Shamen in the Pueblos who can travel with the dead...." There is reverence in Ben's voice. Something like envy. "Do you really believe that's what he's doing, Ben?" Dana asks. "Traveling with the dead?" "Yeah," Ben answers. "Of course I believe it." "I don't know if I can." "I know it's not easy. But Dana, there's more to the world than you can see or touch. It's arrogant to think otherwise." They hear footsteps. Kaya approaches the truck. "Has he moved at all?" Kaya is still a child in so many ways, Dana thinks. Three days in a row of this has got to be hard on her. "I've checked his pulse," Dana tells her. "He's okay." A tear rolls unheeded down the girl's cheek. She allows Dana to grasp her hand. "What did your brother say last night? We're just going to have to trust him." Kaya nods. Dana climbs out of the back of the truck. She looks back over her shoulder, reluctantly. Ben puts his hand on her arm. "Elise and I were thinking of going down to the river. Come for a swim with us." ~~~~ Dana follows Ben down a narrow lane that skirts the house, winding through a tangle of bushes. Unforgiving air boils up from crumbling asphalt. It rushes up her skirt, searing her bare legs. It seeps through the thin leather soles of her boots, frying the bottoms of her feet. Kaya gave her the boots this morning. That seems like a hundred years ago. In the rear of the house there is a low wooden deck; here they find Matthew lounging on a bench, chatting with another young man who is transplanting tomato vines into a huge terra cotta planter. "We're going down to the river," Ben tells him. "Seen Elise?" "She's helping with supper," Matthew's companion says. "Check by the tennis court." The tennis court is nothing more than a weed covered tarmac surrounded by bare soil and pine trees. Clotheslines have been strung from its high fences; bed sheets hang toasting like slices of bread. Nearby, a cooking fire blazes. An elaborate gazebo sits off to one side, its roof sagging slightly, its wood nagged to a lifeless gray by the relentless sun. Ben's friend Elise squats near the entryway, bending over the bowl of a cast-off birdbath. She is pounding dried corn with a heavy wooden pestle. "There's no grain in the world that could stand up to you, lady," Ben jokes, as he and Dana draw near. Elise stands up, stretching her long arms toward the sky. "You're right, Benjamin," she says mildly. "My arms never get tired." "So, have you finished? Is it flour yet? Let's go to the river." "Well, let me see if my boss here will let me have a break." Elise looks into the gazebo and calls to a young woman who is chopping greens at the table. "Is there anything else you need me to do, honey?" The woman looks up from her work and smiles. "No, I have it. You go ahead." Elise waves in the young woman's direction. "This is my daughter Nina. Nina, this is Dana. She's a friend of Doc William's." Nina and Dana exchange a smile. "What about William, anyway?" Elise asks as they walk towards the pine grove behind the tennis court. Dana concentrates on the smell of the pine trees. "He's the same," Ben answers. "Well, I wish he would finish his business," Elise says wryly. "It's just not good corpse weather today." ~~~~ The river is broad and shallow, surrounded on all sides by huge boulders that catch the rushing water, forming dark, inviting pools. Ben and Elise instantly strip off their clothes and fall into the water with shouts of delight. Dana's hands creep to her belly, twisting the thin fabric of her dress. She doesn't want them to see the scars. Dana wanders upriver, circling behind a large, wedge- shaped rock, allowing her body to relax in the stream of moist air that flows around its base. She pulls her dress over her head and crouches near the coursing water, scooping it against her body with her arms. Then she stands and wades in. It's cool. She sinks slowly into the knee-deep pool, sighing as her body adjusts to the temperature. She hasn't been this comfortable for days. River water purls against her skin. Dana reaches down to balance herself on the smooth stones that line the river bottom, looking up at the wide lavender sky of late afternoon. There's an old man perched on top of the rock. She's not sure he's noticed her, though he stares in her direction. He chews absent-mindedly at the inside of his cheek. I didn't see him sitting there, she thinks, how could I have missed him? He is ancient. A shock of white hair sticks up from the top of his head, joining with his dangling white beard to give his head an elongated appearance, as if she were seeing him in a fun house mirror. His body is long and thin, and he sits with his knees drawn up, arms wrapped around them, hands trembling slightly. He is completely naked. Dana watches him, mesmerized. A little bit frightened, perhaps. Suddenly, he looks right at her. She sinks lower into the water, hiding her bare breasts from his gaze. "You've never been here before," he says, in a baritone voice that seems to float on the air, echoing softly in her ears despite the roaring water. Dana looks up at the old man, hoping her eyes aren't too wide, hoping her mouth doesn't drop open and that she will be able to speak to him in a somewhat normal voice. "No," she says, "I'm new here." He unwraps a long arm from his knees and leans toward her. Translucent fingers with twisted yellow nails beckon her up to the surface of the rock. "Come sit with me," he says. ~~~~ Dana's dress sticks to her body. She sits down gingerly on top of the wedge-shaped rock, leaving several feet between her body and that of the old gentleman. It's hard to resist the temptation to stare at his naked brown form, but with effort, Dana manages to keep her eyes on his face. She's not quite sure why she's sitting here. Watery blue eyes peer intently in her direction: inspecting her body, scrutinizing her soul. Unnerved, Dana looks down, but finds her eyes drawn to his shriveled nudity. She forces herself to look up towards his face again. The old man meets her gaze for a moment, running his tongue along blackened front teeth. He looks away abruptly, waving a hand toward the river. "Water's good, don't you think?" Dana is not sure how to answer. "It's good to have somewhere to get away from the heat," she says, finally, locking her fingers together and staring down at them. "Water doesn't compete." "Excuse me?" "It goes along its path without complaining." He fixes his pale gaze on her face again. One of his eyes drifts lazily up and out of focus. All at once a bright, energetic smile lights his face. The smile is too wide to be friendly. He reaches toward her. Dana pulls away instinctively but he grabs her by the wrist, wiry fingers locking around the fine bones with a grip that is amazingly strong. "Be empty, Dana, like the riverbed." he says, grinning wildly. "What?" "Allow yourself to be filled." Dana's heart pounds. "Please let go of me." She looks out into the river. Ben and Elise are floating not too far away. Neither seems to notice that she's being accosted by one of the estate residents. The old man's eyes stare into hers. "The things of this world *exist*, child. They *are*. You can't refuse them." Dana wrenches her arm away from the old man, struggling to her feet. "I have to go." Within moments she is pulling her boots on. As she hurries toward the path that leads to the house, she casts a glance back over her shoulder. The rock is empty. The old man is gone. ~~~~ She meets Matthew on the path. "Dana, you have to come. It's Will." "Is he all right?" "He seems fine..." "Get Ben." Dana heads for the house at a run. ~~~~ Mulder sits on the tailgate of the truck, with his arms wrapped around his daughter. Kaya clings to her father tightly, face buried against his neck. It's all too much for her, Dana thinks. It's not fair to put a child through something like this. "Mulder, god, are you all right?" Dana grasps his wrist, checking his pulse, and lays her hand against his forehead. His pulse is weak and rapid. His skin is pale and clammy and his eyes don't seem to be focusing. "You're suffering some aftereffects from the plant you took, Mulder...I'm really worried about your liver and kidneys..." "Will, you okay?" Ben and Elise arrive with Matthew, just a few steps behind her. He nods shakily. "Ben, get a piece of paper and a pencil." "Sure, Will." "Mulder, I think you ought to lie down and drink something. You're really dehydrated and we need to flush your system out..." Kaya wraps her arms more tightly around Mulder's neck. "Leave him alone, Dana." "Kaya, I'm trying to help him." Ben comes from the cab of the truck with a scrap of paper and a pencil. "Will, here's paper." "Write this down." "Okay." "West Road to Desert View. Twelve miles due north into the Canyon. Ten miles upriver to the mouth of the Little Colorado. North side of the wheel. About forty feet up the canyon wall." Mulder slumps into Kaya's arms. Silence. "Mulder..." "Scully, it's okay," he murmurs. "I'm okay." "That it, Will?" "Yeah," he whispers. "There's a cave there. That's where we need to go. Put that paper somewhere safe, Ben. Sometime you might need it." Mulder speaks low into Kaya's ear. She nods and releases him, taking a step or two back. Matthew moves behind her and shyly takes her hand. Mulder raises his eyes and looks around. "Elise, we need to take care of this man's body." "William, I swear when you come to visit it's always the damnedest thing. Of course we'll take care of his body...you can send him off later tonight." Elise runs her hand along the top of Mulder's head, letting it rest in his hair for a long moment. "Let's make things right again, William," she says, quietly. "Let's set you back the way you were." ~~~~ Mulder sits on a blanket with his legs crossed. Dana sits nearby. They listen to the rushing of the river. Elise lights a bundle of dried sage. When it is smoldering, she waves the smoke over herself with a cupped hand, and then waves it away from herself, turning slowly, offering the smoke to the north, the east, the south, and the west. To the earth. To the sky. She waves the smoke over Mulder's body. He closes his eyes and breathes. Dana watches as Elise brings water from the river in an earthen jar. She pours it over him, washing the dead man's essence away. Mulder allows her to wash his entire body clean, then sits quietly on the blanket, head bowed, eyes closed. Elise bends down and kisses the top of his head. "I don't know what I'm gonna do with you, William," she says softly, fondly. "I'll bring you some clean clothes." ~~~~ Dana presses her back against the wedge-shaped rock and watches the sunset. Purple clouds skim the top of the bluff above the river, scattering themselves across a rose-colored sky. Looking up, she wishes that she could melt into the air, become luminous, gossamer, as azure as the approaching night. She wishes she could be nothing. She wonders vaguely if that would make Mulder happy. He sits on his blanket, concentrating on the swirling water. Dana knows she has no right to disturb his observance. But she refuses to leave him alone. Darkness is falling. Dana closes her eyes. It's been a long and traumatic day and she has not slept for over thirty-six hours. It would be nice just to sleep, right here by the river, she thinks to herself... Something forces her eyes back open. There's a crawling feeling in the back of her neck; a chill stealing over her body. Breath quick and shallow. Heart pounding. He stands behind Mulder with both hands raised in the air. Dana squeezes her eyes shut, shakes her head to clear the fog... When she looks again the old man has vanished. ~~~~~ Early Evening Desert View, Arizona Dru is sick of walking. He's got a blister on his heel and he's hungry as shit. There's not very much at Desert View: just a trading post, the shell of an old watchtower, and a couple of trailers. Could be this was the middle of nowhere even before the Bugs took over, Dru figures. It sure as hell is the middle of nowhere now. The teenage kid behind the counter in the trading post is about the most ugly, hair-lipped, scrawny excuse for a human being that Dru has ever seen. He skitters off like a startled jack-rabbit when Gary tells him to go get someone called Red. While the kid is gone, Jonah lets himself into the back room of the store. He finds a stove there with a pot of sausage and beans cooking, so they all help themselves to somebody's supper. Dru has never been so hungry in his life. The stolen food goes down better than just about anything he's ever eaten. Even if he is dining with a pistol in his back. When Red, the owner of the trading post, finally shows up, he doesn't say anything about the empty pot on his stove. He acts like Birch is somebody important: says "yes sir" when Birch tells him to send such and such back for the supplies in the van; runs around getting things off the shelves when Birch points at them; sends the hair-lip kid skittering off again to find somebody called Stanley, who's supposed to have a mule. Dru figures he's not going anywhere. While they're still on West Road he has some hope of getting home. But Desert View is the end of West Road, as far as he knows. It's all dirt track and dead asphalt from here. Pistol in his back or not, he's not going with these guys off into the Canyon. He needs to get to Will and tell him what's going on. ~~~~ Evening drags into night and nobody can find a guy named Stanley who's supposed to have a mule. Birch and Jonah have gone outside to the parking lot with Red, where it's cooler. The air inside the trading post is hot and heavy. Dru sits on a cot in the back room, near the stove, beads of sweat standing out on his face like a bunch of blisters. Wallace sits on the other side of the room, his gun in his lap. He leans his chair back against the wall near the back door, which he's pushed open a crack to let some air in, and stares at Dru resentfully. Dru counts cracks in the floor. He traces his name in the dust on the bedside table. He watches a roach crawl across the stovetop. All of a sudden, they hear voices rise outside in the parking lot. There's a woman's voice, high-pitched and angry, and Birch talking loud but trying to sound smooth and calm. Wallace thumps his chair down to the floor, listening hard. He jumps up and throws a dirty look Dru's way, pacing back and forth in the heat like a mountain lion in a cage. Finally he sticks his head out into the store. "What's going on out there?" he asks the kid, impatiently. "It's Gina, looking for Stephen," the kid answers, his voice shaking. "She's mad." "No shit," Wallace snaps. He jerks his head back inside and glares at Dru again, then motions the kid into the room, sticking the pistol in his hand and shoving him down into the chair by the door. Wallace points a finger at Dru. "If he pulls anything, kill him." He stalks out to the parking lot. Dru smiles. This is gonna be easy, he thinks. "What's your name, kid?" The hair-lip boy doesn't answer, looking down at the gun Wallace gave him. Dru gets up from the cot. "That lady in the parking lot sounds mad as hell. Who did you say she was?" He takes a step in the kid's direction. The kid lifts the gun and points it. "Sit down." "Yeah, no big. Sure." Dru sits back down. He pretends to study the blanket that is spread out on the cot. "That's the dirtiest blanket I ever saw," he remarks. "Do you really sleep under that?" The kid just points the gun and stares. "Did you say she's looking for? That guy, Stephen?" Dru asks, standing up again. "What is she, his girlfriend or something?" No answer. "Shit, no wonder she's mad. Mr. Birch is probably having a hard time explaining what he did with Stephen's body." The kid's eyes get bigger. The hand holding the gun twitches a little. Dru takes two steps forward. The kid swallows and clears his throat. "Mr. Birch said Stephen had an accident." "Yeah, he did. His leg looked like roadkill. But he was alive 'til just this morning. Was he a friend of yours?" The kid nods. Dru takes another step forward. He spies the bean pot out of the corner of his eye, sitting empty on top of the stove. It looks heavy. It looks perfect. "Mr. Birch probably isn't telling that lady how he dumped Stephen in the desert on the way here this morning. She'd really scream if he told her that." The kid's eyes are huge now. His gun hand is shaking. "You're lying," he says, gulping a little and trying not to cry. Just then Dru grabs the bean pot by the handle and smacks the kid in the head. The kid goes down like a sack of rocks. He falls on the gun; Dru can't get to it easily. Dammit. Goddammit. Screen door slams. Someone's coming. Dru lunges out the back door, heading for the desert as fast as he can, hoping the night will hide him. Damn, no trees, no trees, no trees.. Shit oh shit, not even a bush... He breaks into a run. Stinking moon, damn, full tonight... The shot drops him in his tracks. Holy fuck, oh holy fuck... The pain in his back is unbearable. Back at the store the hair-lip kid stands holding the gun, tears streaming down his face. Book Three - Terminus Chapter Four Late Evening Riverbend Estate On the rocky shore of the river they've constructed a platform from pine saplings. They've bathed Stephen's body and wrapped it in a white sheet. It lies on the platform, cushioned with firewood, waiting to be transformed. The river rushes. There is a steady breeze. The moon lights their endeavor, casting long shadows. Dana looks around at the assembly. The estate residents number just over a dozen: Elise and her two daughters, several young men and women, a few children. She does not see a single white beard in their midst. There's something of a festival atmosphere by the river. No one knew the man on the bier, but everyone has come to observe his passing. The people seem to be enjoying this break from the routine, but Dana can sense that the gathering is more than a simple diversion. The children stand in a row, holding onto each other and staring at the bier. Adults kneel down and speak to them gently. Even though the dead man is a stranger, they're taking advantage of this chance to pass on their beliefs, this chance to teach the children about their view of death. One of the young men sits near the bier with an old wooden drum between his knees. He beats it in a steady, hypnotic rhythm, eyes blissfully closed. Dana realizes that it is the ceremony itself that is affirming, needed, and welcomed. She tries to relax, to open herself, suspecting that she might need this ritual, too. Mulder is busy with a smoldering bundle of sage. Cupping his palm, he waves smoke over Elise, beginning somewhere near her feet and slowly ascending, until the smoke curls around her head. She turns, and he repeats the ritual, beginning at her head and moving down her back. When she turns back to face him, her normally acerbic expression has been replaced by a look of quietude. Elise's daughter, Nina, steps forward. The girl smiles serenely and stretches her arms toward Mulder, gazing at him reverently as he works. When he's done, she embraces him, impulsively, kissing him on the cheek. Over the last several minutes, Dana has watched Mulder repeat this process with almost everyone in attendance. His movements are graceful and deliberate, and his face is flushed with rapture. This is something he's done many times before. He is clearly in his element. Until this moment, Dana has had no real understanding of Mulder's new life, or of the person he has become. Watching him now, she finds it easy to connect the man she knew before and the man working with the people around her. It's the most natural progression imaginable, she thinks. This is what he's always been. Ben stands next to Nina. He lowers his shoulders and inhales as the smoke circles his body. Then he folds his hands, half-seriously, in an attitude of prayer. He gives a mocking little bow. Mulder grins. Mulder pauses in front of Dana. For a moment she's afraid to meet his gaze, but then she forces herself to look at him, her heart in her mouth. Her eyes tell him yes. His face glows. He smiles. He purifies her body with consummate care, each movement slow and rich. Imitating the others, she turns her back to him, breathing deeply of the pungent smoke, feeling her spirit ignite. She turns back toward him, electrified, tears springing unbidden to her eyes. Awed, Mulder watches her for a long, long moment. Then he turns and goes back to his work. He approaches the corpse and begins sprinkling some sort of powder in a long line up the center of the body, pausing to toss some of it into the wind. Suddenly, he stops, staring down at the body. A rattlesnake is coiled, inexplicably, in the middle of Stephen's chest, the customary warning sound made by its tail lost in the noise of the river. Kaya springs up from her seat near the rock and runs toward her father; Elise stops her, taking her by the arm. The snake raises its head; it opens its mouth, long fangs glinting in the moonlight. Mulder watches it, immobile, an eerie smile lighting his face. He reaches down and picks the snake up. There is a collective gasp from the assembly, a collective surge forward, a collective repression of collective alarm. Mulder remains deadly calm, lifting the snake up until he can look it in the eye. Rattler and man regard each other, the snake's open mouth hanging inches from Mulder's nose. Dana is afraid to breathe. Mulder lowers the snake and sets it gently on the ground. It slithers off into the tinder that is piled up under the bier. The tinder bursts into flames. A sigh passes through the group of onlookers; Kaya falls into Elise's arms. Dana stares with amazement at the burgeoning fire. She falls to her knees, hands pressed to her belly. The things of this world *exist*, she thinks. They *are*. I can't refuse them. She looks up at the shaman, the man they call Will, standing before the blazing funeral pyre. His lips are moving, singing something, something she cannot hear. Dana feels herself shattering into a hundred pieces. The baby was a girl, she thinks. And Mulder and I were her parents. ~~~~ Dana lies awake on a hard, musty bed in a small, stuffy room on the top floor of the estate. Kaya lies on the other side of the bed, snoring softly. She has been freed from the traumas of the day. Dana hasn't been so lucky. She thinks about the hoary visitor, whose sometime presence she has not discussed with anyone. She sees Mulder's face as it was when he rose from his blanket by the riverside just after sunset: the preternatural flush; the look of transcendence that didn't leave his face until Stephen's body was reduced to ashes. She remembers the sudden appearance of the snake; shudders at the image of its impossibly small eyes staring into Mulder's like the two of them were long- lost comrades. She wonders at the fire that kindled itself. There are other images in her head now, too. She accepts their presence with a heavy heart but refuses to entertain them. She watches Kaya breathe as she sleeps. Why am I here, she asks herself. Why won't they let me near him? Earlier, as the funeral fire was dying, Elise had hustled them off to their rooms like a bunch of unruly children. Mulder had stayed behind, waiting, Elise said. Waiting for who knows what. Dana had asked to remain; if only to be near him, but Elise had said it wouldn't be right. So many formalities. So much ritual. They don't realize how much Dana needs him tonight. Dana rises impatiently from the bed and goes to the window, which looks out over the patio. She's hoping for a breeze. This was probably a guest room, a long time ago, she thinks. It has a nice view of the tennis court. She can see the embers of the cooking fire glowing near the silhouette of the gazebo. He is sitting by the fire, solitary, lost in thought. The house is quiet. The moon dips low in the sky. Fuck Elise and her formalities and rituals. Dana knows what she has to do. ~~~~ He looks up as she sits down next to him, a brief smile lighting his features. "Scully, shouldn't you be sleeping?" For a second he's just like the Mulder she used to know. "I could say the same to you. I probably should." He runs his hand through his hair, leaving chaos in its wake. The headband is missing tonight, and he is dressed simply in a pair of cotton drawstring pants and a thin t-shirt. "Yeah, I'm tired." He stares into the embers. "And tomorrow's going to be a long day." "What do you mean?" His lips draw together as he considers his next words. "Stephen was just a soldier. He didn't know much, but he knew enough. There's no Resistance, Scully. It was a lie. All they wanted was to get their hands on one of my sons." "Mulder, why?" Mulder presses his palms together and watches the remains of the fire over his fingertips. "Stephen didn't know why." They sit in silence for a few minutes. Dana allows her hand to find his knee. "Mulder, I want to go with you." He covers her hand with his own, nodding. Dana draws a long, deep breath. It's now or never. "Our daughter had lots of dark brown hair," she says softly. His hand tightens on hers. "Her eyes were wide open when she was born. She looked up at their faces when they were cutting the cord..." A faint moan drifts from somewhere inside him. He closes his eyes. "They didn't let me hold her, but I think she was very small. Six pounds, maybe." "Scully." "Yeah?" "I've always loved you. You know that, don't you?" "Yes." He turns towards her, his face taut and troubled. "I can't be here with you tonight. We can't talk about this tonight." "Why not?" she asks, tremulously, twining her fingers with his. His hand is warm. She needs him now. "Because of what we did tonight. The veil between the worlds is thin. I have to keep watch." He brushes his fingers across her cheek, sadly, wistfully. "It's what everyone's expecting, Scully. It's what they need." "Formalities and rituals." "In a way. I like to think of it as keeping things in balance." Dana reaches up and takes his other hand, holding it tightly. "Mulder, I remembered her. I did it by myself. You didn't have to lead me." "I knew you would, Scully." "I need you to help me find the rest. I want to remember everything." "I'll help you, Scully. It can't be tonight, though. I have to be alone tonight." "Who knows what's going to happen tomorrow? I don't want to wait another minute. I can't." His face is full of anguish, careworn and exhausted. "I know you have to make choices sometimes, Mulder," Dana whispers fiercely. "Because somehow I don't fit in with all this, but Mulder, I need you to choose *me* right now. I need you. Please help me." He cups his hands behind her head, moved by an emotion that Dana can't read: it could be worry, apprehension, even arousal is a possibility. She prays that he's not feeling pity. "I have a room on the second floor," he murmurs hoarsely. "We'll go there. I'll help you remember." ~~~~ Moon shadows spill across an antique four-poster bed, as delicate as a row of orchids. Dana looks out across the tree-tops towards the river, arms wrapped shoulder to shoulder, crossed over her chest. She squeezes tightly. Just enough pressure to keep her heart from bursting. Mulder occupies an armchair in a dark corner. His disembodied voice floats toward her through the darkness. "You've already remembered the worst part," he says, tenderly. Her face springs to life: a faltering smile. "It's a memory with no history, Mulder. It doesn't have any more power than a bad dream." "I understand. Do you want to give it a history, Scully?" Pincer-fingers, white and bloodless, digging into her shoulders. "Yes." She hears a soft rustling as he leaves his chair, feels an overpowering warmth as he comes up behind her, pressing his body against her back, gently unwrapping her arms and lowering them to her sides. He reaches around her body and she leans back into him. Brushing the hair back from her ear, he speaks to her in a voice that is almost noiseless, yet she hears him perfectly; she understands. "You know where these memories can be found. Allow yourself to go there. I'm not going to lead you, because I want you to trust what you see. I don't want you to have any doubts." "I trust you, Mulder...I want to see what you've seen." "Listen, then. Do you remember asking me to be her father? Before we were together..." She smiles. "When you said yes, I knew that a baby wasn't all I wanted from you. I just didn't know how to tell you, Mulder." "But you did tell me, Scully. After I came home from England, remember?" She relaxes back against him, enjoying the feel of his body. "Of course I remember that...how could I forget?" "I didn't think you would. We were happy, weren't we?" "God, yes. You were everything to me, Mulder." "It wasn't all happy, though, Scully," his fingers smooth her cheek, her throat... "Before that night, the IVF..." Cold walls. Cold table. Cold white sheets and feet locked in stirrups, vulnerable loins withering under the gaze of cold professionals... Her turn is coming. It's coming. It's coming. Sharp intake of breath. Her body tenses. He pulls her closer; whispers in her ear. "Let it come, Scully." The speculum, opening the way for their instruments. Welcoming him to her body for the very first time. "Oh god." Coming home to tell him the tiny life had perished. "Mulder, oh my god..." "Let it come, Scully. It's okay. It's good." Tears. She sags against him. "I can't do this, Mulder..." "You can...you have. Let's go somewhere easier. Remember that Saturday when you dragged me to the Air and Space Museum?" She wipes tears away with the back of her hand and turns towards him, laying her face against his chest. "I wanted to go to Natural History," she gulps, wrapping her arms around his waist. "You wanted to do something 'normal'." She nods, pressing against him. "Yeah. Not so much to ask." "We went to my place and ordered pizza..." Late afternoon. Exquisite kisses tasting like pepperoni and red wine. Mulder carrying her to bed. Both of them practically destroying their clothes because they could not shed them fast enough. She'd never been so happy. "We made her then, Scully," he whispers. "I'm sure of it." Grief; like a steady wind. A river of tears rushing. He holds her close and warm. Dana chokes on the words. "I wish I knew what they did with her." Silence. "I can feel her, Scully." Dana stiffens; pulls back a step. "You...you can feel..." He is reluctant to let go. His arms stretch toward her. "Yes, I can." "How?" she cries, backing away, wiping tears ferociously with both hands. "How do you feel these things when you feel them, Mulder? Is it something you see in your mind? Is it that specific? Or is it just a vague impression, something more visceral..." As she backs away he follows her, never far out of contact, fingertips brushing her forearms. Dana's voice rises. "Do you actually see her or is she just a dream you have? Can you even tell the difference?" He catches her in his arms. "She's a dream, yes. A wish. But she's more. I can't explain it. All I know is, ever since I found out about her, I feel her, Scully." He takes her hand and lays it in the center of his chest. "I feel her right here." Dana's face is wet again. She looks up into his eyes. When she knew him before she always trusted his intuition. Why can't she trust it now that he lives it? Her hand trembles against his chest. "You say she's here." "For now, yes." Dana bends down and presses her lips against the spot. She lingers there a long moment, fresh tears running down her face. His heart drums gently against her lips. Suddenly the thin cotton of his shirt seems more of a barrier than Dana can stand. *They* are there, pulsing inside him, both the man she lost and the child that was stolen. Before she knows what she is doing she finds herself tearing the shirt from his body. It lifts off effortlessly, in one smooth motion. She runs her lips across the salty expanse of warm, brown skin, returning to caress the spot where she first touched him. He lifts her face and stares down at her. "I can't," he whispers. She pulls his head down to hers. Their kiss enfolds; it devours. It is sweet and devastating. His breath is coming in short, labored gasps. "God, Scully, I can't do this tonight..." "You're already doing it." Formalities and rituals crumble to nothing. Desire runs amok in the halls of sagacity. The balanced man loses his balance completely. Mulder whisks Dana off her feet, carrying her towards the bed with swiftness and certainty. Green eyes stare into blue. Mulder, Dana thinks. Mulder is here. ~~~~ He lays Dana on the bed and covers her body with his own, mouth roaming freely between her lips and her throat. She arches her back and thrusts toward him, wrapping her hands around the hard muscles of his ass and grinding herself against him. She can almost taste the pepperoni and red wine. Scant millimeters of cotton separate their bodies. His cock is iron; it rubs maddeningly against her swollen sex. His hands are rough and hot as they travel underneath her dress; they stroke her belly urgently as they push the offending fabric aside. Dana reaches for the hem of the dress and quickly pulls it over her head; Mulder falls upon her breasts with a moan, fingertips circling, mouth warm and wet against her nipples. Dana heaves a quivering sigh, lost in the geometric motion of his lips and tongue. All mine, she thinks, feeling herself opening; feeling her juices beginning to drip. My man. Mulder rises to a kneeling position. Grinning devilishly, he hooks his fingers into the waistband of her white cotton panties, sliding them down her legs with a flourish. "Yeah," he murmurs appreciatively as he surveys her naked curves. "Beautiful." Dana enjoys the wonder in his face, locking her gaze to his as he draws his hands slowly down her body. She whimpers as he brushes his palms across her nipples; moans as he drags a single finger down the length of her wet clitoris. It's us, she thinks blissfully. The two of us. Oh, I remember this. ~~~~ Dana fumbles with the drawstring of his pants; he smiles, murmuring something about a design flaw. He unties the pants himself; she pushes the flimsy cotton away, eager to wrap her fingers around the stiff flesh it conceals. Mulder stops her hand. "I'm...god, I'm close already..." he gasps softly. Dana guides him to her entrance. A long, slow thrill ripples through her body as the thick shaft slips inside her. "Feel how much I love you, Scully?" "Ahhhh...." she opens, spreads her legs apart for him, wrapping them around his thighs to pull him deeper. He pulls back; teases her gently with the head of his cock, face blossoming in an expression of supreme rapture, his eyes rolling back in his head. Rapid, shallow thrusts, the smooth shaft massaging her clit; needing him deeper, needing him harder; needing him all the way in... "Mulder, please..." Her voice doesn't sound like her own. Suddenly he pulls all the way out. "Oh god, no, Mulder..." she reaches for him but he is gone, traveling south with amazing speed. Before she knows it she feels his tongue sliding over her clit, streaming between the folds of her flesh... Need, rising. Need, like a gathering storm. She heaves and moans; she weeps and sighs. His body glides over hers again. He lifts her legs and plunges inside her. "Ohhhhhh..." They sip each other, breathing together as he returns to deliberate, shallow thrusting. "You're driving me insane," she murmurs, brushing her lips against his. "Good." He pulls out again, bends down to consume her, in earnest this time, spreading her legs wide and sucking the stiff point of flesh with gusto. Dana can't speak anymore; Dana can't think; she writhes and wails as the spasms begin, need rising like floodwater from the depths of her body... Burying his cock deep inside her, he moans his love for her, gasps his need for her...she stiffens around him, thrusts faster and faster... He pours himself in an endless stream. She shudders and moans and welcomes him. They carry each other home. ~~~~ Ecstasy: the soothing mist of sleep. He cradles her slender form against the solid warmth of chest, belly and thigh, fingers tracing satin skin, face buried deeply in the luxury of her hair. In night, all things are possible. ~~~~ Dana stirs at first light. She listens to the absolute stillness of dawn. Every day starts in silence, she thinks dreamily. It's been this way since the beginning of time. He moves in his sleep, pulling her closer and sighing. His slumber is lush, like a nap in the sun on a spring afternoon. The things of this world *exist*, she thinks. They *are*. Thank god for that. Dana's thoughts drift back to the previous night. She remembers the feel of his lips on her body, thrills when she thinks about the way he abandoned himself to her. She understands. His need was as great as her own. Wriggling gently, Dana disentangles herself and gets out of bed. She looks back at him, smiling at the boyish look his face takes on when he's sleeping. He stirs, reaching for her. "Scully." "I'm here." "Where you going?" He rolls onto his back, peering up at her through heavy eyelids, hair tousled in a dozen directions. "I don't want to cause any trouble for you, Mulder. I think I should go back to my room." "You're so damn practical, Scully." His eyes close. Dana can tell he's not really awake. "Mulder, you're exhausted and you're still getting over the effects of that plant. I want you to sleep now." "Okay...twist my arm." He rolls back onto his side. Dana slips into her clothes. As she starts for the door he speaks again. "Scully, I have to tell you something." She turns back toward the bed. Looking desperately sleepy, he has propped himself up on the pillow and is extending a hand in her direction. "Mulder, you're supposed to be sleeping." "I know." "So can't it wait another hour?" "I don't know when we'll be alone again. Come here." She sits on the edge of the bed and he takes her hand. "Before...you know, when we went to Bellefleur, remember..." "Of course I remember." "Before that case came up I had planned to ask you something. Because of the situation I put it off and lost my chance. I want to ask you now." He falls silent, reaching up to brush his fingers across her cheek. "Mulder, what?" "I was dying, Scully." A sudden, stabbing pain in her guts. "I know. We found out after you were gone." "I didn't tell you because...god, I don't think I even know why. Things were so good between us. We'd waited so long to be together. I didn't want whatever time we had left to be painful or sad." She takes his hand. "I understand." "I thought...if I asked you...when I died, my life would still count for something. I would leave behind something important, something that really mattered..." He pauses, fully awake now, and lifts himself onto his knees, taking her hand, face brimming with emotion. "I was going to ask you to marry me, Scully." Breath quick and shallow. A rush of tears. "And I didn't get to ask you. But I'm asking you now." She lays her hand against his cheek, speechless, eyes streaming. "I know this whole world is a shock to you. Everything is ass-backwards, Scully, even me, believe me, I know. But this is one thing that hasn't changed. Will never change. My life is yours. It's our life, together, every minute from now on." Dana tries to breathe, but she is overcome. He cups his hands around her face, kissing every wet, salty inch of it. "Marry me, Scully," he murmurs fervently. "Marry me today." Book Three - Terminus Chapter Five Kaya sits by the window, watching the sun rising over the tennis court. She watches Elise's daughters feeding the cooking fire, starting to get breakfast. She knows she should get dressed and go lend them a hand, but she's not ready to be with people yet. She rubs the back of her hand across red-rimmed eyes, trying to get a decent breath. She holds her pillow on her lap. Now and then a surge of anger makes her twist it violently. She wishes this stinking pillow was Dana right now. It was hard enough, last night, to have to share a room with Dana in the first place. Kaya would have been glad to sleep in the truck, but Elise has a way of insisting about things that's hard to get around, especially when you're fifteen and you're supposed to show respect for elder People. Dana hadn't been too happy about the arrangement, either. She made it very plain to everyone that what she really wanted was to be with Will. She acted like she didn't even care that he had a job to do; like she was incapable of understanding that the dead have needs, too. Kaya gets up from her chair and flings the pillow on the bed with a curse. How could anyone be so selfish, she thinks. Kaya is mad at herself. She should have told Dana the way things were. She should have delivered a warning, the very first day, along with that stupid dress. You keep your hands off my father, she should have said. He's not for you and you're not for him. It's completely against the rules. Kaya wipes a fresh round of tears off her face and paces back to the window. I can't believe it, she thinks. I can't believe that last night, when Will was supposed to be praying for that poor guy's soul, when he was supposed to be doing his duty, speaking to the spirits, showing reverence for the dead and for our ancestors, Dana had enough disrespect for him and everyone else to go to the fire and talk to him. And then, she thinks, temper surging again, *then*, Will just got up from the fire and followed Dana into the house like a pet dog. All she had to do was crook her finger and *Bam*. The dead now know how to take care of themselves. No problem. Kaya sits down on the bed, slamming her feet into her boots, jerking the laces taut with trembling fingers. She doesn't want to think about what must have happened between Dana and her father after she watched them leave the fire together. I wasn't born yesterday, she thinks, blood rushing in her head. I've been a woman three years now. From the way they were touching each other it's easy to see what they were thinking of doing. She takes her scarf from the bedside table and wraps it over her long brown hair. Moments later she is headed for the hallway. Kaya feels the weight of responsibility; it balances like a boulder on her slender shoulders. She feels her mother's hand guiding her, as she always has, ever since the day that Maia passed. If Will isn't going to do what's needed to protect the family, then she will. Kaya knows her mother would want things set straight. ~~~~ Dana closes Mulder's bedroom door behind her and collapses against the wall. She wonders when she's going to wake up from this dream. Their parting kiss was overwhelming; it filled her with joy, like a strong river current. He promised her he would sleep for at least an hour, but she doesn't believe that he actually will. Suddenly, a door opens nearby. Dana freezes, dazed and unsure. The door is just around the corner and several feet away, down a narrow hallway. "Be back in a minute, Pop." Elise. Dana presses against the wall and tries not to move. Soft footsteps echo away down the hardwood floor. Dana makes a beeline for the stairway at the end of the hall. Passing the open door of the room that Elise left earlier, she glances quickly to the right, hoping the occupant won't notice her slipping by. What she sees there stops her in her tracks. He looks smaller than he did on the rock by the river, lying half-submerged in a pile of pillows that are clearly intended to prop him up. Dana draws nearer, waiting for him to look her way, but he continues staring fixedly at the window, where a riot of morning sunbeams threatens the heavy drapes. "Morning, Dana." Dana jerks in shock, spinning around to find Elise standing behind her. Her hand flies instinctively to her chest, where her heart is frantically propelling extra blood through her body. "God, Elise, you startled me." "Sorry." Elise's expression is unreadable. She holds some folded clothes, which she sets on a chair by the bed. "I forgot my father's clothes." The old man's gaze does not stray from the window. "I see you've met." "Um, yes," Dana says, feeling slightly faint. "We've met." Elise turns back to the chair and separates a few garments from the pile. "These are for William," she says. Elise towers over Dana. She proffers the neatly folded clothes. "Maybe you'd like to take them to him," she says, evenly. Dana takes the clothes, wondering if there might be a scorpion or some other nasty surprise concealed in this stack of worn cotton and sharp creases. "Thanks," she says warily. "I think he's sleeping, but I'll leave these for him." Elise smiles politely. "I'm sure he'll appreciate that." She turns toward the bed. "Come on, Pop," she says in a cheerful, robust voice. "It's Clean Underwear Day. Time for your bath." The bowl of soapy water on the bedside table has escaped Dana's notice until this moment. Elise unbuttons the old man's pajama shirt and wrings a washcloth into the bowl. She begins swabbing the old man's body briskly, with sharp, almost casual motions, as if her father is of no more consequence than a crumb-covered table-top. The old man does not seem to notice her rough ablution. Dana waits for him to exhibit signs of consciousness, do something to convince her that he could conceivably be the man she spoke to by the river yesterday, but he continues to stare, motionless, like a mummy in a luxury crypt. "Elise..." she murmurs as Elise strips the sheet back to reveal the shriveled body. "Hmmm?" "Could your father have been down by the river yesterday afternoon?" "Dana, one of my daughters is usually here for this...could you help me roll him?" Setting Mulder's clothes aside, Dana takes hold of the bony legs and they roll the inert form to one side. She averts her gaze as Elise peels away her father's boxer shorts, like the skin from an overripe fruit. Elise matter-of-factly scrubs the mottled, hairy flesh. "I'm sorry, Dana. What was your question?" "Nevermind. It's not important." "Oh, well. So, now that you know the master of the estate's most intimate secrets, would you like to be formally introduced? This is my father, Dana, Miles Solomon. He had a lot of money before the Bugs ate everyone for breakfast. Pop, this is Dana. She's Doc William's friend." Suddenly the grizzled, elliptical head swings Dana's way. Watery blue eyes lock onto a spot somewhere just above Dana's head. "Oh look," Elise laughs. "Movement. He must be totally in your spell." ~~~~ Kaya stops at the top of the stairs as she hears Dana's footsteps ascending. The head is the first thing to surface. That's a good target, Kaya thinks, clutching the banister tightly, like she's ready to rip it loose and start smacking. When Dana sees the look on Kaya's face she starts climbing the steps more forcefully, as if she means to clear a path to the bedroom any way she can. Reaching the top step, she tries to shove her way through. Before she knows what she's doing, Kaya lunges, locking the fingers of her right hand around Dana's arm. "You're ruining my father's life." Dana stops and looks down at Kaya's hand, then lifts her face to stare defiantly. If this comes to blows, Kaya thinks, then so much the better. She knows she's stronger than Dana, taller and younger and in perfect health. She'll mop Elise's floor with all that red hair. There's something in Dana's glare that unnerves her, though. Something that saps her confidence. She prays that her voice will not shake. "There are things you need to understand." "We seem to be having our usual argument. You can let go of me now." Dana wrenches her arm loose, turning her back and stalking toward the door of their bedroom. Kaya follows, grabbing her by the shoulder and spinning her around. "I know what you made Will do last night." A sharp sound of surprise leaps from the back of Dana's throat. "*Made* him? You think I'm *making* him do things? Kaya, no one can make your father do anything he doesn't want to do." "What did you say to him last night, to make him leave the fire?" "I don't have to tell you what goes on between us. But he left the fire because he wanted to. It was his choice." "I don't believe that. Will's a good person. He cares about things. He wouldn't have done that unless you threatened him somehow. Or charmed him." Dana's hands fly into the air. "Charmed him? I don't believe this." Kaya pushes Dana against the wall, pinning her in place with both hands and spitting words into her face. "You're making him risk everything. I want to know what you did." Dana squirms under the pressure of Kaya's hands, lowering her voice. "I haven't done anything to him," she hisses. "I knew him a long time ago and we still care about each other. That's all there is to it." "You think you can have him all to yourself." "Why are you doing this, Kaya? You're acting crazy. This doesn't make any sense." "It will when you hear what I have to tell you." "Okay, look. If I listen to what you have to say will you calm down?" Kaya drops her hands to her sides, taking a deep, quivering breath. "We should go into the bedroom," she says in a low voice. Dana frowns and looks back down the stairs. "You don't want him to know that you're telling me this." "No. If he wanted you to know he'd have told you himself. But I have to make you understand. You have to leave him alone." Dana nods slowly and opens the bedroom door. ~~~~ "The land where my family lives belongs to the Hopi tribe," Kaya begins when the door has closed behind them. "I didn't know that. What has that got to do with anything?" "It's my Grandmother's place; my mother grew up there. She and Will had a house in Tuba for a while, but they moved back in with Grandmother after they had Sam, and the rest of us were all born in that trailer. We've always lived there. It's our home." "Okay, so?" "So, we're not leaving, no matter what anyone says." "Why should you have to?" Dana leans against the door and folds her arms across her chest. Kaya sits down on the edge of the bed. "Because the Hopi have rules about people like you and my father." "What do you mean, people like me and your father?" "People with the Marks." "I don't know what that means." "Will hasn't told you anything. I don't understand it." Kaya shoves herself up off the bed with a heavy sigh and paces to the window. "I would think if he loved you so much he would want you to know things." Dana sighs. "No, not necessarily." "My mother told Dru that people with the Marks aren't really human. The Bugs changed them somehow. She said that's why every year we get older but Will doesn't. She said that one day we'll be old and wrinkled and people will think Will is our son instead of the other way around." Kaya stares wistfully out at the tennis court, trailing her fingers down the smooth glass of the window. "We used to make jokes about it, but now that I'm older I know it's true. My father knows lots of people with the Marks. He was in prison with them at the Labs. He visits them and they visit him and they all talk together in their heads so no one else can hear. And years have gone by and I've become a woman, but they don't get old. They all stay the same. Will stays the same. You'll stay the same." "Your father has told me as much. I still don't see what this has to do with anything, Kaya." Kaya's head jerks toward her. "For such an old person, you're not very patient," she snaps. "Quit being stupid and listen." Dana's mouth drops open. For a minute Kaya feels guilty for talking so disrespectfully, but the feeling passes quickly. Dana's not like other old folks. Someone needs to teach her some humility. Kaya wraps her fingers around the back of a chair, massaging the upholstery to ease her vexation and trying to think what to say. This kind of talking is Will's job, she thinks. I'm not used to telling stories. But there's no going back now. This story has to be told. She stares down at the seat of the chair and begins. "My mother told Dru that when the People shut down the Labs, the Elders of the Hopi tribe heard all kinds of stories about things that had been done there. Some of them went out to see for themselves. They saw what the Bugs had done to those people, and they saw the children that had been born whose bodies were still kept there. They saw that those children weren't human. My grandmother's people are really worried about the Earth and keeping things in balance. The Elders decided that no more babies like that ought to be born. They met with the Navajo elders, and they all got together with the people who'd been saved, people like my father, and Wynn the blacksmith, because a lot of them still lived around this area. They told them that for the good of everybody it should be taboo for them to marry or breed together, and those people, including my father, agreed to that." Dana gets very quiet. Kaya can tell her words are sinking deep. "So you're saying that what your father and I are doing is..." "If anyone finds out what you and Will have done he'll lose everyone's respect. And if he pisses the wrong people off we could lose our home." Dana covers her eyes with her hand. She stays quiet for a very long time. Finally, she speaks. "Your father's not breaking the rules out of disrespect or recklessness, Kaya. I think he sees them as unnecessary. And he loves me." "You think I don't know that he loves you? That's not the point. If you were someone else I'd be happy for him, but you're not. You're like him, so you can't be with him." "I'm sure those babies at the Labs were engineered. They were the products of irresponsible experimentation. They weren't created through any natural process." "Look, I don't know anything about stuff like that," Kaya says, venomously. "It's not up to me to decide if the Elders made a right or wrong decision before I was even born. I just know how it is now." "I can't give your father up because of a rule that was made without any real evidence. Kaya, he and I have been separated a long time. We need to be together." "You haven't heard a word I've said. None of that matters. You can't be with him." "But I'm going to be with him anyway." "What's going to happen if you have a baby, Dana? You don't know what kind of monster is going to come out. Do you want to die having his children? My mother did." "Kaya, tragic as it is, sometimes women die in childbirth." "No shit, of course they do." Kaya falls silent, petrified by the memory. "They don't die like my mother did, though," she whispers. Dana moves nearer. Her face is on fire. "Wait a minute. There's something about the twins, isn't there? Something that's not quite right..." Kaya feels her lips beginning to tremble. "There's nothing wrong with my brothers." "Tell me what you know, Kaya. Tell me the truth." "I don't want to talk about it." Kaya wishes she could lay down and die. She had planned to tell Dana the truth, but not all truths. Not this truth. "Some people in Tuba say Will and Maia just got lucky with the rest of us," she whispers hoarsely. "Some people say her belly burst open because it was worn out with having his babies." ~~~~ Dana and Kaya approach the gazebo together. Will and Elise are poring over an old map at the breakfast table. "So we're going to need packs, rope, blankets, food and water..." "What about guns, William?" "Yeah, I suppose you've got a point. Guns. Got any spares?" "I'll see what I can scare up." "I don't know exactly how long this will take us," Will says. "Stephen showed me the trail, but it's hard to remember exactly what the terrain was like." He turns to Ben, who sits to his right, eating a bowl of rice. "We're going to need a ride up to Desert View, Ben." "Of course. You sound like you think you're going without us." "I can't ask you two to go into the Canyon, Ben." "I know," Ben says, chewing calmly. "But I'm going." "Me, too," Matthew says. Will puts his hand on Ben's arm. "These people are dangerous." "Yeah, and they suckered us," Matthew says. "We're coming, Will." Everyone looks up as Dana and Kaya come into the gazebo. Will's eyes go straight to Dana; his face lights. "Good morning," he tells her, extending a hand. Dana takes his hand, but her eyes dart to Kaya's before she returns his greeting. "Good Morning." Kaya can feel the air thicken. Everyone knows what happened last night. She sends a prayer of gratitude skyward; silent thanks that everyone here is a dear friend. They'll forgive him because they love him. She knows they'll never tell. "Good Morning, Kaya," Will says, getting up from the table and giving her a quick kiss on the cheek. "Morning, Will," she mumbles, turning abruptly. She's never felt like slapping her father before, but the urge is so strong she can barely suppress it. Now would be a good time to go help Nina at the fire, she thinks. When Kaya comes back to the gazebo with a stack of fry bread on a plate, Dana is snuggled down cozily in a chair at the corner of the table, right between Will and Ben. They are all staring down at the same old map, trying to make sense of color-coded canyons and drainages, trying to find the trail that will take them to Dru. "See, this bluff here comes right up to the river," Will is saying. "The trail must go up into the cliffs. We're going to be doing some climbing." Kaya sets the plate down in the middle of the table with a resounding thump. She watches Will's fingers trailing absently up and down Dana's forearm as he studies the map. Dana's eyes meet hers with a soft, sympathetic expression. Will looks up, grabbing a piece of bread off the plate. "Thanks, daughter," he tells her. Kaya stands by the table, not sure what to do next. She feels someone touching the back of her hand. Matthew looks up at her shyly. "Hey," he says. "Eat something." ~~~~ Dana and Kaya are alone in the gazebo, washing breakfast dishes. "Kaya, I've been thinking about what you said to me this morning," Dana says. "That's good." "I don't know what to tell you. But I want you to know that I *do* care about you and your brothers. There's got to be a way that this can work out for all of us. Can we call a truce while we find it?" Kaya doesn't see where there's any room to compromise. But she's tired. Anger has been sapping her energy and draining her soul for days. She's ready to rest. "Okay. Time out for now, I guess. But only until we find Dru." "Okay. Deal." "What kind of deals are you two making out here?" Both women freeze. "Hey, Will," Kaya says casually, ignoring her father's question. "When are we leaving?" "Well, that depends," he answers, stepping into the gazebo and wrapping his hands immodestly around Dana's waist. "On when someone decides to answer my question." Dana gives him the strangest smile. Shit, Kaya thinks, what are they up to now? Ben and Matthew aren't far behind Will, and Kaya can see Elise crossing the yard with some blankets. Dana pulls away from Will gently as the gazebo fills with people. "I think we're good with supplies, Will," Ben reports. "We need water." "Here you go, folks," Elise says, setting the blankets on the table. "One for William and one for Dana. I put two rifles in the truck. They're old as hell and there's not much ammo, but it's better than nothing, I guess." "We need another blanket," Matthew says, sullenly. Will shoots him a dirty look. Then he glances at Kaya and frowns. Kaya feels her blood pressure rising back into the red zone. "Will?" His face goes blank. "You're staying here. Elise is going to have someone take you home." Everyone gets really quiet. They all knew, Kaya thinks, he's been talking about this to everyone but me. "You're sending me home? After everything that's happened?" "Yes. Sam doesn't know what's going on. Someone needs to tell him. And the twins need you." "Sam can take care of them and you can send someone to tell him what's happened. I'm going with you." "No." "I'm going, Will." "No, you're not." "I'm old enough to decide and I want to go." "It's not safe for you. I can't allow it." "It's my decision." "It's not up to you. I'm not taking you and that's the end of it." "But you're taking Dana." "Yes." Kaya slaps her father as hard as she can. There is a long silence. Will's raises his hand to his jaw, blood rushing to his face. "Get out of my sight," he whispers. ~~~~ She sits by the riverside, watching the water that rushes like her tears. When Kaya was eight years old she stood with her brothers near the door of her mother's bedroom. In her arms was a slippery bundle that sucked its fist and screamed while her mother writhed and bled to death on the bed before their eyes. Sam had his own bundle to tend. Grandmother and Will didn't know how to save Maia that night. It all happened too fast, they said later. Will and Grandmother's uncle, Edward, performed the funeral rites together. Folks came from far-off places like Coal Mine Mesa and Sand Springs. With so many members of Maia's family present, Kaya really should have stayed with Grandmother and not bothered her father during the ritual, but she needed him that day. As she always has, every day since then. When the funeral fire began to blaze, Kaya broke free from her Grandmother's embrace and ran to her father's side. He picked her up, even though he had told her just a few days earlier that she was too big to be carried anymore, and held her against his chest. They watched together as the fire transformed Maia's body and released her soul. Kaya claimed her father that day. Grandmother took care of them for a few years after that. When her health began to fail, Kaya became the woman of the house. She tended her father's fire. She raised his children. Now she knows she's lost him. He'll never be hers again. ~~~~ Will settles himself on the rocks. His energy is so familiar that she doesn't even have to turn her head to know that he's sitting beside her. "I'm sorry," he says softly. "I'm sorry, too." "You're not a child." "No, I'm not." He stares out at the river. "I don't want to lose anyone else," he says, sounding choked. "I know." She lays her hand on the ground next to his. He takes it. "Seems like I've been outvoted, daughter. Everyone thinks I should let you come to the Canyon." ~~~~ Dana passes Kaya on the path to the river. She slows her pace as Kaya approaches and offers a hand. "Did your father find you?" Kaya stops. "Yes," she says calmly. "He found me." "Are you coming?" A quick nod. "I'm glad." "Why?" Dana grabs hold of Kaya's hand. "Because we're all in this together." ~~~~ Dana picks her way down the rocky riverbank, looking for Mulder. He left everyone behind at the house over an hour ago, presumably to locate Kaya and tell her about his change of heart. Dana met Kaya on the path some thirty-odd minutes ago, then came down to the river to find Mulder, just to check on him. But Mulder is nowhere to be found. A huge outcropping of rocks interrupts her northward path along the bank. The river looks too deep to cross. No choice but to turn back. Coming back upriver, she catches sight of him. She's not sure how she missed him before. He is standing chest deep in swirling water somewhere near the center of the riverbed. When he sees her, he beckons for her to join him. "We'll be in the desert the rest of the day," he calls. "Enjoy it while you can." Dana notices his clothes and specs, stashed in a neat little heap under a ledge near the bottom of the wedge-shaped rock. She adds her garments to the pile and wades toward him, picking her way gingerly across the treacherous river bottom until she's close enough to fall into his arms. The water swells up and over her breasts, threatening to lift her off her feet. He pulls her against his body. Rushing water and passionate kisses. She feels she could drown in both. "Okay, Miss Scully," he says softly in her ear. "What's it going to be?" "Mulder, you already know what my answer is." "Yeah, but humor me. I want to hear it. Mulder, yes, I'll marry you." "Mulder, yes, I'll marry you..." "God, Scully," he murmurs, bending to kiss her again. "I like the way that sounds." She laughs. It would be easy right now, she thinks, so easy, to pretend this is all there is. "I'll tell Elise," Mulder says, tracing the curve of her cheek. "We can get everybody together and do it before we leave." "Mulder, listen." "Uh-oh. Here it comes." "I think we should wait." He heaves a deep sigh but doesn't seem surprised. "Killjoy." "I know. It's just...I think you know how hard this has been on Kaya. We need to include your children in the planning of the wedding, if this is going to work long-term." His eyes flit skyward. "You're right. I'm not thinking straight." She reaches up to run her fingers through his wet hair. He pulls her closer. "And this is the reason why," he growls. "When we've found Dru," she murmurs. "When we go back home. I know we'll work everything out." Cool water slips between their bodies. Suddenly, Mulder's face grows deadly serious. "You know what?" "What?" "I can't wait, Scully. I waited once and look how it turned out. Who was it that said 'we have no idea what will happen tomorrow'? I think that was you, wasn't it?" "Yes," she answers sadly, "It was me." He lifts her off her feet, one hand holding her tightly to protect her from the current while the other caresses her face. "We'll have a ceremony for the family when we get home. But I want you to marry me. Right now." "You mean, right now? Right here?" "I've been waiting thirty years for you to be my wife. I'm not going to lose my chance again." ~~~~ "Tunatya," he murmurs tenderly. "That means 'hoping', Scully. You are every hope I've ever had." Dana breathes in. She fills herself with his essence. What an amazing gift you are, she tells him silently. He draws her slowly through the water, until they both face downriver. "North," he whispers into her ear. "White Mountain Standing. The place where we purify ourselves." To have and to hold, Dana thinks. A slow quarter-turn in the rushing water. "East. Star Before the Light of Morning. The place where our spirits are joined to our bodies." Dana exhales slowly. Forsaking all others. From this day forward. A delicious glow is building at the center of her soul. "Let me be inside you, Scully." Oh, Mulder. Yes. Please. He enters her from behind. She gasps as he slips inside her. Somehow the river no longer seems cold. They flow through the water together, inseparable. Another quarter-turn. "South," he whispers. "The Ancient Red Pathway. The place where we surrender." In sickness and in health, she thinks. He thrusts into her smoothly. Another quarter turn. "West. The Terminus. The place where the sun lies down to die." Until we are parted by death, Mulder. But we've proven that death cannot part us. "Oh my god," she gasps, as he pulls out of her body. He turns her to face him. She wraps her legs around his back and he drives into her with a soft cry. "Tunatyava," he whispers, closing his eyes in ecstasy. "That means 'coming true'." They dance together in the coursing water. "I will always be true to you, Dana Scully." "I will always be true." Dana feels herself tighten around him. Swept up by currents moving faster than sound. "Oh my god." Eyes burst open. She is flying. Flying. Flying. Impossibly fast over pine forest and red earth. Streaking like a comet over majestic buttes and rose- colored canyons. She sees with the eye of a bird of prey. Suddenly she understands how to navigate the air currents that rise off the hot earth and finds herself soaring effortlessly over two rivers that flow together. An eerie song echoes in her head. You'll find her here. You'll find her here. The Terminus. The End of Seeking.