Part VI
Alex was bored. Not that he wanted life threatening excitement, or the
kind of danger that meant the use of claws to defend himself. But it
seemed like such a long time since he had done something crazy and
totally irritating that would make Mulder laugh, once he had got over
the shock.
His partner was presently involved in the sort of paperwork that he
seemed to wrestle with most of the time. And Kulain was doing whatever
it was demons do when they need feeding and don't want to disturb the
minds and stomachs of their more sensitive partners. It had always been
an unwritten agreement between them that Kulain would shield his
partners from some parts of his life. And he so rarely needed to feed
when he was with them, as if he satisfied that need away from home. The
more Alex sat in bored silence, the more it nagged at him. What were the
contents of that closed container that Kulain kept in the kitchen? They
had long known that his tastes weren't the same as theirs, but there had
been disturbing hints that he was a carnivore.
Damn it, his curiosity was all but overwhelming.
Alex rose to his feet and moved towards the kitchen. He was probably
going to regret this. But he had to know! The first thing he noticed
when he entered the kitchen was the coppery tang of blood scenting the
air. Involuntarily, a shiver ran down his spine, as he sensed the
closeness of something otherworldly. Kulain was standing at the counter,
incongruous in his domesticity, holding a dish of something in his hand,
that looked suspiciously red. Strips of some kind of raw meat. Alex had
the irrelevant thought that maybe demons had their own kind of sushi...
Intense green eyes lifted to watch Alex as he stood hesitantly in the
doorway. Familiar lips curved in an amused smile. And the human stared
as a long talon speared a piece of the raw, bloody meat and brought it
to his mouth. Then Kulain delicately licked the talon clean. Alex
couldn't take his eyes away from the small fleck of blood on the corner
of Kulain's mouth.
"This is K'thraal, Alex. Are you hungry?" The young human flushed in
irritation at the tone of Kulain's voice, amusement tinged with
challenge. He stepped forward, coming face to face with his lover.
"Was that a dare?"
The demon's smile deepened. "Only if you want it to be, Alex."
Glaring at Kulain, the young man reached towards the pieces of meat,
like rare steak really. Well, if Scully could eat a bug.... A taloned
hand caught his wrist as he reached forward.
"No. Shift first. You really need talons for this!" Alex reluctantly
obliged, then caught a gobbet on a claw of his altered hand, and
inspected it dubiously. Then closing his eyes, he hesitantly popped it
into his mouth.
You stupid fuck. What the hell are you doing this for? Oh!
Some part of him, unguessed at, relished the taste of blood that flooded
into his mouth, luxuriated in the delectable fragrance of it. He
hungered for it, lusted for it, and lunged for the bowl, clawing chunks
into his mouth, devouring something his changed body craved with
passionate intensity. That the demon part of him needed At some point,
his lover pulled the stuff away from him, and he found himself clinging,
shuddering, to Kulain, bewildered, utterly horrified at himself, and
oddly sated.
He had stepped one pace further away from humanity.
Long fingers stroked Alex's hair, as he leaned against his lover. "And
is your curiosity satisfied, little one?" Kulain knew Alex so well. The
young man moaned. In the course of the last few minutes, he had become
fully aroused by the sensory overload he had experienced, and the
closeness of Kulain's body. All his senses seemed razor sharp. As he
leaned in to kiss, Kulain, he could taste the faint tang of blood in
Kulain's mouth, not repulsive, but stimulating. Kulain laughed at his
dazed response, and in one powerful sweep of his arms, lifted Alex onto
the kitchen counter. The younger man let his lover pull away his jeans
and shirt, and fumbled, uncoordinated, with Kulain's clothes in return.
Naked at last, Alex spread his legs as the demon moved closer to him,
then cried out as the demon began to lick at his skin. That mouth
explored across chest and flat stomach, eagerly nuzzling Alex's belly
button so that Alex giggled at the feel of it. Dimly aware that he was
becoming high, as if he had taken some kind of drug. Kulain bent to
taste the clear fluid flowing from Alex's rock hard cock. The human
pushed himself forward, against Kulain, balanced on the very edge of the
counter. But his lover refused to deep throat him, instead, he began to
dart his tongue down lower, across the sensitive skin of balls and
perineum. Kulain moved on to nibble at the surface of the smooth, wide
open thighs. Alex twisted his hand in his lover's hair, pulling his head
up for a kiss and tasting himself on those sensuous lips.
Pulling Kulain as close as possible, Alex wrapped his legs around
Kulain's waist, encircled his lover's neck with strong arms, and stared
into the slit pupilled emerald eyes. He had never noticed before, how
Kulain's pupils seemed flecked with stars, and seemed to expand slightly
when he was aroused. Alex giggled again, and began to lick the flecks of
blood from his lover's mouth. Kulain smiled indulgently at his young
lover, who was totally intoxicated by the unfamiliar chemicals that
flowed in his bloodstream. The flesh of that particular, non-terrestrial
creature, a delight to hunt, was like the flesh of a certain poisonous
Japanese fish; it could be eaten if carefully prepared. And induced a
state of euphoria for a short time.
Lifting Alex into position in immensely strong arms, Kulain let the head
of his large penis press against Alex's tight entrance. The human was so
intoxicated by this time that he barely gasped at Kulain's first
penetration into his unprepared body. And when the demon started to
thrust into the human, he heard, with amusement, the sound of Alex's
exhilarated laughter.
"There's two of you!" Another giggle, as Alex began to hallucinate.
Kulain drove himself into the welcoming body for a time, then slowed
making his thrusts longer and slower. Alex whimpered at the intensity of
the sensations, then moaned in frustration as his lover stopped moving,
just holding him still, buried to the hilt inside him. Kulain let the
human kiss him hungrily, then speared a piece of his meal and popped it
in his mouth. It would really be a shame not to derive full enjoyment
from this. Though the intoxicant didn't affect him to the same extent as
a human, it was still a pleasant stimulation during sex. Laughing, Alex
speared some with his own claw, and offered it to Kulain, who took the
morsel and licked Alex's finger clean. And reciprocated the gesture. It
was quite pleasant, fucking your lover slowly, while having him feed
you. Two of his needs being satisfied at once.
Alex began to scream, as the combination of pleasures started to
overload his system. He seemed to be surrounded by swirling bands of
light that caressed his body, stars sparkling round his head. He
exploded in orgasm. Kulain, smiling, let his body come to release,
feeling Alex claw him convulsively, as he felt Kulain's seed flood into
him. Kulain withdrew, and the human, still intoxicated, let his legs
slip to the floor. Alex clung to his lover, dizzy, not sure whether he
could stand. Kulain kissed him affectionately, then turned to clean up
the remains of their strange meal. Gripping the edge of the counter to
try and stop the world spinning, Alex made his way into the other room.
Mulder gave up on the paperwork, and leaned back in his chair with a
sigh. Normally, he would have given up much earlier, Alex had little
patience with that aspect of their job, and generally found ways to
distract him. But the younger man seemed to have disappeared. Then he
looked up as the door to the kitchen opened. Alex stood in the doorway,
beautiful and totally naked, swaying dangerously. As Mulder stared at
him, Alex hiccupped.
"I think I'm debauched!" he slurred, then burst into noisy giggles. Two
unsteady steps brought him next to his partner, and he shook his head.
"I can see three of you!" He held up three fingers in front of Mulder's
face. "Shit! Earthquake!" He fell forward into Mulder's arms, hiccupped
again, then passed out cold.
Mulder did the only thing possible in the circumstances, he half carried
and half dragged his partner into the bedroom, and lay him down on the
bed. A sound behind him made him turn. Kulain watched him, a lazy smile
on his face. He slowly licked his long fingers, talons now sheathed,
leaned against the wall, and slowly slid down it, without even seeming
to notice. "Sorry little Fox, next time!" he murmured, and closed his
eyes, resting his body.
Waking was hell, Alex decided. Someone had switched on a jackhammer
inside his head, and it was grinding away at the delicate parts of his
brain. There was a vile taste in his mouth, and a soreness between his
legs that suggested he had been pretty vigorously fucked last night. He
had confused memories of... Oh god... That was the point at which he
flung himself out of bed and fled, choking, to the bathroom, past an
annoyed looking Mulder. Alex spent the next ten minutes puking into the
toilet. Afterwards, weak and shaking, he splashed cold water on his
face.
"Feeling better?" Mulder was standing behind him. Alex glared impotently
at his partner. "What the hell were the two of you doing together last
night?" Mulder shook his head. "You both came out of the kitchen
drunk, passed out and left me to pick up the pieces."
Alex opened his mouth to reply, then stopped. How the hell did you tell
someone you'd gotten drunk on some mystery food that could have been
anything. Raw! Oh well.
"Don't try demon sushi, Mulder! Just don't!"
Mulder's delectable mouth fell open as he stared at Alex. The younger
man clamped his jaw down on the almost irresistible urge to giggle
hysterically, and slammed the bathroom door in Mulder's face. Cool
fingers closed around the agent's shoulder, and he turned to his other
partner. "Demon sushi?" he said in bewilderment. A twitch of the demon's
beautiful lips, as something close to amusement was reflected there, but
Kulain chose to remain silent.
Alex was pretty relieved to escape to work that morning, having side-
stepped all Mulder's enquiries. Alex hated to keep anything from his
inquisitive partner, but he was beginning to go into shock and denial
about what he had done last night. The hunger in him that had forced
its way out. He tried not to think about it for a while, but he kept
having flashbacks to that moment when Kulain had given him some of that
stuff. Even now he could feel that disturbing hunger lurking inside
him, and he only forced his mind back onto his latest court case with an
effort. Gradually as the day went on, he managed to put it out of his
mind, but the doubts about himself lingered.
The next incident, as it happened, was in the kitchen again that night.
Mulder had smiled in welcome at him when he had arrived home that night,
from a particularly demanding legal briefing.
"That recipe my mom gave me for her casserole." Mulder grinned at him.
"You want to help me cook it? I'm not as good as you at this sort of
thing." Mulder was trying to be extra nice to him today, as it was
pretty obvious that he was bothered about something. Mulder loved to
show his devotion for Alex these days, and they had slipped into the
sort of warm and loving relationship Alex had always dreamed about. Alex
slid both arms around Mulder's waist from behind, as the older man stood
cutting the ingredients of his stew. Mulder nestled back affectionately
in his arms. and laughed quietly. "Head feeling better?"
"Yeah." Alex said. He watched with interest as Mulder chopped the
vegetables, then began to cut the uncooked meat into chunks. Then a long
taloned hand slipped past Mulder and speared a piece of steak. Alex
popped it into his mouth and savoured the flavour. "Mmm. Pretty fresh,"
he commented absently. And glanced in surprise at Mulder, as he felt his
lover stiffen in shock.
Alex realised what he had done almost immediately.
"Oh god! What am I turning into?" The young man buried his head in his
hands, shuddering. "I have to get away from here. I need to think!"
"Without me?" A note of desolation entered Mulder's voice. "Whatever
happens to you, I told you that I love you. Forever, Alex!" Mulder drew
something out of his pocket. "It's about time I gave you this. I've been
waiting for a good moment...." He slid a wide gold band onto his lover's
ring finger, and smiled into Alex's stunned face. Then the hesitancy
appeared. "If you want it, Alex...."
"It's beautiful." A tear trickled down the young man's face. "I've never
wanted anything but you Mulder. Always." Alex pulled the older man close
to him, and rested his head on Mulder's chest. "I've just been so scared
lately about the changes I'm going through. I don't ever want to hurt
you, that's all."
Mulder held him tightly for an age, then stepped back. His face frowned
in concentration for a moment, then he shifted.
"You call this normal, Alex?" he said, displaying his changed hands.
"We're in this together, love. Whatever happens to us!" Then the two of
them were pulling each other close, bodies entwining, as they kissed in
desperate longing, seizing the moment as if trying to hold off the
future.
"You ever done it when your body was changed?" Mulder murmured in his
lover's ear, sounding both curious and apprehensive.
"Once..." Alex replied.
"Tell me what it was like." Mulder whispered, beginning to lick
erotically at the side of Alex's neck. They were both naked, lying in
bed together. Somehow supper had never materialised, not when the two
lovers had been so pre-occupied with each other. Both had returned to
their human forms for an intensely loving encounter. But lying in Alex's
arms, Mulder couldn't help but wonder....
"I won't be able to tell you anything if you keep doing that!" Alex
kissed Mulder softly. He considered the question. "He liked it when he
took me, he didn't have to be gentle with me, and I don't think he gets
the chance to lose control very often. Maybe never. But it was fairly
wild..."
Mulder continued to let his tongue play lazily across Alex's skin. His
partner smelt good, clean and fresh, with a hint of maleness. "Sounds
fun, wild sex with you. Where exactly was this?"
Alex blushed, delighting his partner. "Er, on the Ferri case. In an
alley!"
Mulder burst out laughing, hugged Alex close. "Let me show you how
unrestrained I can get, love," he said huskily, and in a single lithe
movement, rolled over onto his back, pulling Alex on top of him. He
wrapped his legs around his lover, his feet pressing Alex in against
him. He saw the white flash of Alex's grin in the semi-darkness, then
the younger man stroked the side of Mulder's face with his left hand.
Mulder felt the coolness of the gold against his cheek. And Alex
revelled in the radiance of Mulder's smile.
The phone rang. "Oh fuck!" Alex moaned, trying to ignore his resurgent
erection, and he flung out his hand to pull the receiver close. "Krycek
here!" He listened, and rose from the bed, gesturing to his companion.
"We'll be there in half an hour!" He put the phone down and looked at
Mulder regretfully. "Sorry Foxy, no wild sex for you tonight!"
The crime scene was one of utter chaos when the two members of the
Occult Investigation Department arrived there. At least half a hundred
police, forensic and TV vehicles blocking the street, an indication of
how big this case was going to be. It was always going to be like this
when a leading member of the Senate, Daniel Morris, met his death in
unusual circumstances. Particularly a very juicy murder case, with
elements of the supernatural. Since his reputation was poor in the
circles of power of the F.B.I, Mulder guessed that this case must really
be alarming his superiors. If they wanted their pet demon expert to look
into it!
Mulder and Krycek flashed their badges at the entrance to the apartment
building, and a relieved looking cop who had been waiting for them, led
them upstairs. It was obvious that the senator must have been a rich
man, just observing the decor around them. Marble and expensive woods
dominated the lobby, and the elevator was plushly carpeted and had
obscure classical music playing. Which made the scene on the fourth
floor so much more surreal. The blood scent hit the two men immediately
when the elevator doors opened. "Fresh!" Alex murmured to his partner,
slightly disconcerting in his certainty, "less than an hour old." The
two of them stepped into a slaughterhouse. Blood was dripping from the
ceiling, and running in streaks down the walls of the marbled corridor.
Something red and gelatinous, that might once have been a human being
covered most of the floor, in chunks, none bigger than Mulder's fist.
The cop with them made a choking sound and turned green. "Down there...
it gets worse...." He pointed to the far end of the corridor. "This was
just his bodyguard...."
It took a lot to make Alex or Mulder feel sick these days, after some of
the sights they had seen, but picking their way through the carnage,
they came across a scene which made Mulder gasp in horror, and Alex moan
softly. The senator had not been alone when he was attacked, he had died
trying to defend his family. And the attacker hadn't killed him straight
away, but had apparently torn off his legs and made him watch while
little family were butchered. As a finishing touch, all of their heads
were set in the middle of the large, expensive dining table, in a neat
row. In diminishing size from large to pathetically small.
There were numerous shells scattered on the floor, as if one of the
victims had at least tried to get a few shots off at their attacker. And
in that room, the blood had been used to scrawl unfamiliar symbols on
the walls in great red arcs.
"Agent Mulder, there you are!" Skinner's boss was talking to the AD when
he caught sight of them. "Come here a moment, will you. I need to
discuss something with you!" Mulder picked his way across the room, and
faced the man he knew had tried to have him dismissed at least twice
that he knew about.
"Sir, I came straight away, but I'm sorry, I don't understand how this
case involves the supernatural..."
Skinner glared at his boss. "Why don't you just show him, and let him
make his own mind up!"
The look he received would have frozen an iceberg. "Just understand,
Agent Mulder, we do NOT want any publicity about this. The Bureau will
deny all knowledge of what you're about to see. And you will receive no
support from us, unless you keep us fully informed about your
investigation."
Mulder scowled. "While you're keeping me talking, the killer is getting
further away sir."
"Maybe not!" The man actually began to look scared.
"In there, Mulder." Skinner indicated the master bedroom. Curious and a
little apprehensive, Mulder gestured to Alex and the two of them went to
the door, where a couple of burly cops were standing, weapons drawn. The
older of them shook his head, paled a little.
"You really don't want to go in there!"
Alex snorted. "How do we know till we take a look?"
"Then be careful. We don't want them getting out.... They've been
quiet so far, but for fuck's sake don't risk aggravating them!"
Intrigued now, Mulder drew his gun, and carefully opened the door. He
walked into a bedroom that was straight out of a style magazine, white
and peach, very chic. However, it had some extra occupants that
certainly hadn't come with the decor. About half a dozen child sized
demons, in curiously immobile positions, resembling church gargoyles.
They were grey skinned and hideous, with wrinkled bald heads and long
pointed ears. All were winged, but had folded their wings back against
their bodies in repose. Most had blood spattered around their mouths.
Mulder and Alex had frozen in place, at the first sight of the
creatures, then had the disconcerting sight of six pairs of eyes turning
very slowly to look at them, unblinking red.
"Shit!" Alex whispered. "I think we need to call the exterminators!"
"They're quiet now." Mulder said thoughtfully, after observing the
gargoyles for a few moments.
"Well they've just been fed!" Alex retorted, more than a little nervous,
after last time.
"Maybe." Mulder said, "but they didn't do any killing." Alex looked at
him questioningly. "They wouldn't have the strength to tear the
Senator's legs off! And they have no bullet wounds. The steel should at
least have marked them!"
"So what are you saying, Foxy?"
"We know that there are lots of small demons about, that feed off the
leavings of the bigger ones, right? So I'm inclined to look for a demon
big and strong enough to open a gate, or force its way through a rift
like Ash did. These just followed the bigger one through!"
"Oh you really know how to make me feel safe, Mulder!" Alex grimaced.
"We'd better find Kulain then."
"Er, Alex... I think we'd better catch these first, before they start to
get active again!" With an expression of martyrdom, Alex pulled off his
jacket, and started to roll up his sleeves, the gargoyles were filthy
and smelt! Mulder popped back into the main room to talk to Skinner.
"We can take care of this for you, they're fairly harmless. We had a
couple of calls to deal with infestations last year." His matter of fact
tone had stunned the listening cops and agents. "Your real problem is
the one who brought them. There's a BIG demon loose in Washington
somewhere, with a taste for human blood." Inhuman shrieks and a loud
round of cursing erupted next door. "Oh, and can someone get Alex a few
sacks?"
Mulder sat as far away from Alex as he could get, as they drove back
home. The gargoyles had been found a temporary home, after much
argument, in a government disease control centre. They hadn't put up as
much resistance as before, Alex had shifted inconspicuously, and had
apparently been considered as dominant to them, by the filthy things.
That however was the problem. Gargoyles tended to defecate when they
were nervous, and boy, had they been nervous tonight. Alex sat muttering
to himself all the way home.
By the time the two men reached their apartment, it was early morning,
leaving them barely enough time to clean up and grab breakfast before
they had to report to work again. Such was the price of being on call
for twenty four hours a day, to any supernatural cases.
Mulder took the time while Alex was showering, to log on to the Internet
and do some research on the late Senator Morris. He sipped his coffee as
he examined the results of his search. He noted with slight amusement,
that his department's presence had been noted by certain of the more
paranoid groups that kept tabs on the government. Then one particular
article caught his eye. Alex came to lean against him, clean and
refreshed, and Mulder gestured to the coffee and Danish he had put aside
for his lover. Alex sank into the chair next to his and looked at him
with undisguised affection.
"Next time Foxy, it's your turn!"
Mulder motioned to the computer screen. "Interesting item here about our
late Senator Morris. He was the head of the Senate Investigative
Committee on scientific research and development. He's the one who had
the final say on whether projects run by the Government are closed down
or not. And he had a say on whether they get big bucks or not. He had a
reputation for being uncompromising about projects that were wasting
government money."
Alex was impressed. "So it might be a good idea to check out his latest
findings, if you're thinking what I'm thinking...."
"Yeah," Mulder said, "Demons don't come out of nowhere to kill one of
the most troublesome and uncompromising blocks to the Consortium and
its' secret projects. I think we're in trouble with this one Alex. If
they've learned how to summon demons and control them, they could get to
anyone!"
"I must be more pessimistic than you, Foxy, because I can think of a
worse scenario." Hazel eyes widened. "Suppose they can summon demons,
and they can't control them. Now that scares me!"
Both men turned as they heard Kulain behind them. Green eyes took in the
information on Mulder's computer screen, and Kulain frowned. "Would it
do any good to tell you not to get involved in this case?" He sounded
reproachful, and evidently knew all about the case. His partners both
looked indignant.
"A chance to disrupt the Consortium's plans!" Mulder said. "You ought to
know how important that is to us!"
"Then deal with it yourself!" Kulain's voice had gone icy cold. He
turned and walked out of the apartment, leaving both humans staring
after him.
The Cigarette Smoking Man stared coldly at his loathed opponent, across
his desk in the Pentagon.
"I will keep to our bargain. I will take no part in their investigation.
But if anyone tries to harm them, I'll protect them, and I'll destroy
whoever stands in my way!"
The Cigarette Smoking Man frowned. "You claim that they belong to you.
As a rule, possessions don't usually get a choice about what happens to
them."
There was no response for a while, then glowing green eyes assessed him.
"I didn't choose to implant control genes, I prefer them imaginative, it
makes them so much more interesting. In this I am regarded as eccentric
by my kind. But your new friends will have no such consideration for
humans. Be warned. Introduce a new predator into a closed society, and
the higher prey species will almost certainly die out. You are our
prey!"
And when Kulain left, the Cigarette Smoking Man needed a large glass of
scotch to steady his hands. Because it was already too late to heed
Kulain's warning.
A predator's typical behaviour involves a complex hierarchy of dominance
and submission, based on strength and cunning.
Mulder strolled into Kulain's small, private office that afternoon,
while Alex was busy trying to check the forensic evidence for things a
less open minded agent might have missed. Could they, for example, tell
the size of the demon from a forensic analysis of its claw marks on the
five corpses?
Kulain was seated at his quiet desk, reading something that looked
suspiciously like a copy of the National Enquirer. Not many people, even
in his department, actually chose to come and visit the demon. He had a
way of looking at humans sometimes, that made Mulder glad he was on
their side. Though the look he always gave Mulder was something else
entirely, a hot gaze that seemed to strip the clothes from Mulder's body
and make him weak at the knees. He approached his partner, and leaned
casually on the edge of the desk at Kulain's side.
"Why didn't you want us to get involved in this case Kulain? Do you know
who the demon is who killed them?"
Green eyes, unfathomably deep, regarded the agent. A cool smile. "You're
not ready to face a real demon in combat, Mulder. If you tried to fight,
you would lose. I don't want to take that chance."
"Then come with us. You can help us, like always... Alex said you loved
the time you spent with him on the Ferri case. He said you liked it
wild...."
Interest sparked in Kulain's eyes as he let his eyes travel over
Mulder's lean form so close to him. A hand reached forward to stray
across the human's firmly muscled thigh, and Mulder sighed slightly,
shifted so that the caressing hand moved between his legs, continuing
its gentle rubbing. As the strong fingers moved slowly upwards, Mulder
let his thighs fall further apart, until the fingers reached the
sensitive crease at the top of his thighs. By now, a sizeable bulge was
forming in his crotch. A talon emerged from its retractable housing in
Kulain's fingertip, and caught in the metal of Mulder's zipper,
gradually drawing it down. Mulder was wearing white silk boxers that by
now were slightly marked in one spot by the wetness at the tip of his
cock.
"Take your clothes off Fox!" It was more of a demand than a request.
Mulder shivered in desire, and moved quickly to obey. He fumbled with
his clothes, and had managed to strip the lower half of his body and
loosen his shirt, when Kulain lost patience. Unsparingly, Fox Mulder was
rolled onto his back, over the desktop, and Kulain was on top of him.
The human had instinctively spread his legs when his lover had pushed
him down, and Kulain was now between them. Mulder could feel the heat of
his lover's cock pressing against his lower belly. He sighed again in
satisfaction, there were few things that felt as good as that powerful
body when it was about to possess him utterly. A careful hand began to
work its way inside him, readying him for the incredible feeling of his
body being used by his lover. The agent didn't have to wait long. He
lifted his legs as Kulain positioned himself, then cried out wildly as
he was penetrated fully, taken passionately. Kulain began to move in
long, sensuous strokes, grinding himself deeper into his lover's body
each time he reached the downstroke. Mulder started to scream in
pleasure, and clung to Kulain, pulling him deeper in.
"Oh my god, he's fucking Mulder, right there on the desk!" The three
watchers stared at their latest surveillance camera feed, another in a
long line of attempts to keep tabs on Kulain. After many failures, at
last this camera's latest adjustments seemed to be working, it was
Kulain proof! The two Consortium hirelings, Spender and Marita were
incredulous, and The Cigarette Smoking Man was more than a little
surprised by the unexpected show they were all watching. For one thing,
it seemed careless of Kulain to allow himself to be watched, and Mulder
didn't have the reckless reputation of someone like Alex Krycek. Now
that would have been fairly typical behaviour for the ex-assassin.
The scene on the monitor was hotting up rapidly. Mulder was arching
against the demon, clutching at him convulsively, as Kulain's thrusts
became more powerful, more vigorous. His legs were locked round Kulain,
and though the camera showed mainly a view of Kulain's back and
shoulders as he pounded into Mulder, the lens also caught the occasional
view of Mulder's head thrown back in ecstasy, lips parted, panting in
exertion, as he matched his lover's driving movements with his own
upthrusts. Neither of them kept up such a wild pace for long, Kulain
stiffened, and began to pump his seed into Mulder. The hot flood
stimulated the agent into his own satisfying release. And in the moment
of his orgasm, when he reared up against Kulain, arms tightening around
him, the watchers saw the human's eyes abruptly change from hazel to
slit pupilled green, and fingernails lengthen to talons.
"Oh dear god!" Spender whimpered in disbelief and fear, and his two
companions could only agree, as they watched Mulder bury his face in
Kulain's neck and bite down on the demon's skin. The agent lapped at the
small trickle of blood he had caused, though afterwards, he wouldn't
remember doing it. Moments later, Kulain had healed the bite mark, as if
it had never been.
Kulain lifted Mulder effortlessly into his arms, and sank down onto his
wide office chair, his lover wrapped in his embrace. Mulder rested his
head against Kulain's shoulder, letting his body gradually readjust to
human again. Mulder hadn't intended to change, but the power of his own
orgasm, and his closeness to the demon had made him lose control. He
hadn't realised how close to the surface his alter-ego lurked.
Kulain stroked Mulder's back gently, feeling the human relax, burrowing
into his arms sleepily.
"I think that's called diverting my attention from the subject we were
discussing," Mulder murmured.
Kulain breathed in the scent of his lover, the sexual hormones his body
was producing. Quite delicious. And incidentally, quite within design
specifications. "Little Fox, you're always diverting to me!" Neatly
side-stepping the question.
The Cigarette Smoking Man shivered, he hadn't really wanted to know the
intimate details of Fox Mulder's personal life quite in that fashion.
But he had learned one thing. Mulder wasn't entirely human any more,
despite appearances. Which explained a lot of odd facts about his life
recently. It was one thing to know Kulain was experimenting with his
humans, but to actually see the results....
Perhaps Kulain had wanted his rival to know this particular secret. He
had always disabled all of their cameras within minutes, before then.
Moments later, his theory was confirmed.
Kulain held the human close, as Mulder drifted in drowsy relaxation. The
demon turned his head slowly, careful not to disturb Mulder, and looked
directly into the camera lens. Then gave an utterly wicked smile at the
watchers. The screen flared, as yet another camera burned out. And the
Cigarette Smoking Man wished that he didn't know the lesson Kulain had
been trying to give him. That when Kulain said that his race could cause
the extinction of humanity, he didn't mean that they would all be
killed. Just altered....
Mulder had the sort of look on his face that Alex knew only too well. A
flushed and sated look. Mulder's moist lips were reddened and full from
Kulain's fierce kisses.
"I told you no-one ever went down into that office!" Alex said,
laughing.
"Yeah!" His partner conceded. "I guess you're right."
"Enjoy yourself?" Alex said softly. Mulder gave a knowing smile, and a
slight blush coloured his skin.
Alex reached out to grip Mulder's hand for a moment, as they both
reflected on the strangeness of their lives.
As dusk fell, she headed for the large area of vegetation in the centre
of the city. There were many small things to hunt there, and she was
seeking time to feed, and needed to find shelter. Requiring both for her
safety. This was a foul place, with concreted streets, filled with foul
smelling vehicles, and so many humans. No solitude, and little natural
life, except for small clawed hunters who watched her passing with
arched backs and curiously familiar slitted eyes.
There! Her desolation turned to hunger and the excitement of the hunt. A
wolf like animal wearing a strange band round its neck began to growl at
her, too foolish to flee. Eagerly she pounced, impossibly fast, and
ripped out its jugular, severing the collar as she did so. And she
eagerly lapped at the warm blood the prey had provided. The sound of
human screams was totally surprising. Two women stared at her, eyes
wide, one holding a dangling plastic lead, forgotten as she watched the
demon feast on her Doberman's dead body. Watcher and watched fled in
different directions, the latter in hungry despair.
Miller came in with the report just as Mulder was anticipating the
moment he would be able to go home for the night. He and Alex exchanged
rueful glances, then listened in growing disbelief to the report they
had been given.
"A dog eating demon in the park!" Mulder found that hard to believe. "If
it could take out a big dog, then a human shouldn't prove too difficult.
How big did they say it was?"
Miller frowned. "About six feet high, but quite finely built. It dropped
to all fours as it ran. The police are down there now."
"We're on it!" Mulder grabbed his jacket, and as an afterthought, pushed
his switchblade into his pocket. More reliable than a gun, where a demon
was concerned.
The place was a media circus when the two agents arrived, and trying to
remain inconspicuous was hopeless. Mulder groaned when he saw a familiar
face approaching. Rachel Nichols was one of the hottest reporters on the
evening news slot, and had tried to speak to him last night. She had
obviously done her homework, because she shouted his name, and tried to
push her way past the police cordon, at the park entrance.
"I have nothing to say to you Ms. Nichols." Mulder played it safe.
"Why has the Bureau called you out, Agent Mulder? Last night and
tonight! I know which department you work for, and I think the public
needs to know, if the F.B.I. is spending its tax dollars on stupid
occult theories. Unless you know something we don't, that is!" The
reporter's eyes sparked with interest as she saw the closed expression
descend across Mulder's face.
"No comment." Alex said quickly, and grabbed Mulder's arm, pulling him
away.
The police had begun a search of the huge park, within minutes of
receiving the hysterical womens' report. A briefing by the F.B.I. had
made certain of the city police and civilian authorities aware of a new
menace on the streets, one with teeth and claws and intelligence, but no
conscience. It had rattled a lot of cages, and Mulder was aware of an
increase in the respect that the senior officers and F.B.I. chiefs were
giving him.
"So how do we kill this thing?" The captain of the local police precinct
was in attendance.
"Guns don't work very well." Alex had taken on the role of liaison. "We
once drove one off that way, but I wouldn't recommend it if your bullets
don't have a pure steel component. Mulder managed to kill one with a
knife, but he took it by surprise, and it still managed to cut him up
before it died."
The captain looked disbelieving. "This is crap! Demons! It was probably
something escaped from a zoo!"
Mulder glanced at Alex who grimaced. Well no-one said this was going to
be easy. Mulder stepped forward and casually rolled up his sleeve. Many
of the men listening gasped as the agent revealed the little souvenir
Tiamat had left on his arm when they first met. The bite mark about nine
inches wide that had punctured its way into his forearm muscles.
"Not the biggest demon I ever met," he said softly. Maybe frightening
these men would keep them alive long enough for he and Alex to put their
own lives on the line. Alex briefly squeezed his hand as they headed
into the darkness together.
"Careful Foxy, you still owe me that wild session you promised me." But
they both knew how dangerous this was, and that their all too brief
happiness could end tonight, in a heartbeat.
Three hours had been spent searching the park, with no results beyond a
few winos and joggers who hadn't been aware of the danger. Alex was
beginning to get dispirited.
"The demon's long gone, Foxy! We may as well head back to the gates. Any
creature with sense would have been scared off by the commotion hours
ago!"
Mulder nodded. He briefly sank onto a park bench and fumbled in his
pocket for his mobile phone, intending to call up the captain and call
the search off. Alex had set off, but then, realising Mulder wasn't
immediately behind him, turned to check on him. Mulder was sitting,
messing about with his phone. And something dark and deadly reclined on
the tree branch just above his head, that watched them both with an
unblinking violet gaze. Alex didn't know of any natural creature with
eyes that glowed that colour. He could only freeze, willing Mulder to
look up, not to make any sudden moves.....
Mulder frowned in frustration at his mobile. What a time for the
batteries to go dead. He lifted his head, opening his mouth to call to
Alex. And saw his partner standing, motionless, watching him. Alex's
face had gone deathly pale. Time froze. Mulder was no fool, nothing
would make Alex look like that unless they were in deep shit. A tree
branch above Mulder's head creaked softly, and Alex's eyes widened,
though he remained utterly still. The demon moved forward slowly, edging
closer to Mulder. Alex wanted to charge at it, to rip at it with his
talons, anything to keep Mulder safe. But there was no way that he could
have reached his partner in time. He could only wait.
Mulder felt something disturb the air behind him. Beads of sweat were
beginning to form on his forehead, as he sat as still as possible. A hot
breath against his cheek, as the demon casually sniffed his scent. Then
a large head was resting on his shoulder, and he had a brief glance that
showed him the huge curving teeth of a meat eating carnivore. The demon
appeared to be covered with shaggy, patterned fur, that brushed against
his skin, leaving hairs across his jacket. A large tongue began to lap
at his cheek, and the demon hissed softly, "Kulainnnnn......."
In a single fluid motion, incredibly fast, the demon leapt past him,
landing between the two men and sitting on its haunches. It resembled
nothing so much as a Siberian tiger, except for those impossible violet
eyes. As they watched, the beast shifted and rose to stand on two
feet, inhumanly graceful, and female.
In her humanoid form, she still retained that feline grace, and subtly
different musculature, but the only sign of fur was the patterned tawny
hair that reached half way down her back. She was however, nude, and the
coloration of her fur now made a tattoo like pattern of stripes on her
bare skin
"You belong to Kulainnn." The demon purred, her voice sibilant and
curiously erotic.
"Er, yes." Mulder responded hesitantly. The demon smiled, as she turned
towards the darkness.
"Why do you observe? Do you not wish to greet me?" She addressed the
night. A watchful darkness detached itself from the side of a tree about
ten feet away, and Kulain approached the stunned humans. He gave a
knowing smile, and stopped in front of the beautiful female.
"It's been a long time Pasht. You still hunt well."
She purred in satisfaction, and one taloned hand reached out to caress
the side of the taller demon's face. "So good to see you again, dark
one. This place has a foulness to it that is not to my taste. Where lie
the hunting grounds? There is little food here."
Kulain drew the demon aside and spoke to her quietly for a while, as
Alex and Mulder exchanged glances.
"He's been following us," Alex said softly. "But I never had a clue that
he was there."
Mulder watched the demon who was gesticulating at Kulain, and evidently
felt strongly about something. He shook his head at her, and said
something forcefully. Mulder only caught a couple of words that were
said. " Gate.... offworld..... humans." Kulain was up to something,
watching over them like that, and was being almost deliberately
mysterious about this case. As if he wanted Mulder to dig into it. Or as
if he was prevented from speaking about it....
Kulain brought the demon woman back over to them. "Take Pasht back to
our apartment, and make sure she gets something suitable to eat, Alex. I
have to check something out first." There was a challenge in his eyes
that made the younger man's mouth dry and his heart beat faster, and
Alex knew exactly what Kulain expected him to feed her. K'thraal....
Mulder frowned. How the hell were they going to get a demon out of the
park, through the security cordon. Couldn't Kulain even have used his
special talent to get them out of there? Obviously not. A crazy idea
began to form in his mind.
"Er, Pasht, there's a lot of security we have to get through. It'll be a
lot easier if you trust me." Violet eyes watched him with interest. "If
I can pretend you're my prisoner, then we can walk straight out of here,
if that's okay?"
"Yesss. But I am hungry....." In a pleading tone. A long tongue flicked
over sharper than human canines. Great. There were more than a few
obvious physical differences between this woman and a normal human.
"I have to handcuff you to my wrist." He showed her what he meant.
"So be it. But if you betray me, I will kill you." She let herself be
cuffed to his left wrist, while Alex shook his head at Mulder's bravado.
As a finishing touch Mulder made Alex throw his jacket over Pasht's head
to conceal her face from the onlookers.
The three of them walked together towards the line of cops. Long before
they got there, Alex could see a line of weapons trained on them. The
police captain was the first to greet them at the cordon.
"You've been out of contact for hours. Did you know your phone is
busted?" Several of the Bureau guys looked pissed as well. Then the
captain's eyes fell on their prisoner. "Who the hell is this?" In
response, Mulder drew away the concealing jacket, so that only the
closest men could see Pasht's face. Gleaming violet eyes glared at him,
and lips drew back to reveal two inch long incisors and a mouth full of
pointed teeth. She snarled at him. He and several others recoiled in
dismay. Mulder rearranged the disguising folds of cloth.
"Do you really want to know, Captain Gill?" The man shook his head
wordlessly, eyes filled with a look of terror, and Mulder grinned. "We
can probably come to some sort of arrangement about the dog. Let me know
what the owner wants. We can probably arrange to replace it." He led
Pasht towards his waiting car.
"Who's that, Agent Mulder? Is it the Senator Morris killer? Why are you
hiding her identity, was she involved with the senator?" Rachel Nichols
was ready to bombard them with questions. Alex caught Mulder's eye. It
had just occurred to them both that they might well have the killer in
custody, and they were about to take her home! So much for civil rights.
Getting Pasht home and into their apartment was a slightly stressful
exercise in diplomacy. The feline woman was evidently unnerved by many
of the sights she saw around her on the journey home. The noise and
pollution of even late night traffic seemed to make her uneasy, and the
hunger she felt made her clutch unnervingly at the head rest of the seat
in front of her, where Mulder was sitting. He looked with rueful dismay
at the rips in the leather that her claws had made, clenching
convulsively on it. They bundled her up into the apartment as quickly as
they could, and hoped no-one was watching.
Alex saw how agitated she was becoming and gestured to the kitchen.
"It's in there!" He followed her into the small room, shaking his head
at his partner, as Mulder made to follow. Pasht raised her head and
sniffed, then went unerringly to the place where the K'thraal was
stored. Alex hadn't realised how acute demon senses must be. She gave a
little trill of satisfaction, like a cat, then opened the container and
began to gorge herself on the meat. After a few minutes of this, she
slowed her rate of consumption, and began to savour the food she
evidently found highly appetising.
Demon eyes turned to look at Alex, and a hand extended the bowl towards
him. He flushed uncomfortably and shook his head. "I don't think so!"
The feline eyes turned speculative. "You have just begun to change?" she
purred. Alex nodded, despite himself. "It is necessary to replenish your
body with the right nourishment. You need the chemicals in this, or
you will become ill! Does your body not tell you this?" Slowly,
reluctantly, a talon crept forward and caught a piece of the meat , then
brought it to his mouth. Then Alex, like Pasht, was quenching the fire
in his body by feeding, feeling his teeth change to cope with the
carnivorous intake.
"Oh my god!" Mulder had entered the kitchen, and was staring at Alex in
disbelief. By now, the chemicals had entered the younger man's body
systems, and he lifted demon eyes to Mulder filled with challenge, and
something else so disturbing that Mulder found himself taking a step
backwards in apprehension. Stunningly fast, Alex moved, catching hold of
Mulder and pulling him closer. It wasn't the least of K'thraal's
properties that it was a powerful aphrodisiac.
"No Alex, damn it. Let me go!. His partner grinned, and Mulder found
himself staring at the pointed teeth his lover possessed. Mulder
whimpered, he was beginning to realise exactly how far out of his depth
he was at the moment. Desperately, he shifted, and pushed at Alex with
all his strength. But the other man was filled with incredible energy,
and held his struggling partner effortlessly.
"Please Alex. Please...." His partner grinned, and lowered his lips to
kiss Mulder. The agent gasped as he was forcibly kissed, he could smell
that stuff on Alex, and as his mouth was forced open, he could taste it
too, a flavour of blood and other things that echoed strangely inside
his head. Seductive and exciting. Quite when he began to kiss back,
hungrily pushing his tongue into Alex's mouth, answering the call of his
demon blood, he would never know. Only that when Alex finally broke away
from him, panting heavily, he could feel a fierce hunger inside him that
made him moan in frustration and want. And when Alex offered him some of
the K'thraal he too fell under its seductive spell, and fed the need
that had uncoiled within him.
Afterwards came the other need, a white hot fire of lust that scorched
him, obliterating thought or reason. He wasn't aware of Pasht watching
the two not-quite humans satisfying their lusts in front of her, as she
reclined in her tiger demon form on the warm floor. She was too tired to
indulge herself in their entertaining bout of lovemaking, but let the
comforting sounds of her own kind lull her to sleep in this alien place.
Alex and Mulder tore at each other in passion, clawing each others
clothes off, biting and scratching at each other, as they instinctively
vied for dominance, in ancient predator rituals. Then Mulder was beneath
Alex, and his lover was thrusting into him with a powerful rhythm that
made Alex climax within minutes. Alex biting Mulder's neck, in the same
place that Kulain often did, intuitively knowing that it was a sign of
his possession of the other. And Mulder taking it from him, until he too
came, howling, another subtle sign of control. Until Mulder heaved his
body unexpectedly, and Alex was given his turn at being taken, and
Mulder clawed at his back.
How many times they fucked each other in wild urgency neither would ever
remember. Only that it was an instinctive need for each other, that
blotted out all notions of humanity or tenderness, that was another kind
of hunger, in itself.
Mulder groaned, every inch of his body was aching as if he had run a
marathon, then been rolled on broken glass for a week. Especially his
head. A warmth along his side told him that he was lying next to Alex.
But naked on the couch! How the hell had he got there? He reluctantly
opened his eyes, and turned to look at Alex. Green eyes flickered open
and winced at the sunlight streaming in through the window.
"Oh shit!" Alex began to remember some of the night before. Guiltily, he
watched Mulder as the older man awkwardly pulled himself to his feet,
shaking his aching head in confusion. "Foxy? You okay?"
"I don't understand...." Mulder tried to comprehend what they had done.
"What happened to us? Why did I do those things?" His shoulders began to
shake, and Alex realised that his partner was crying softly. He reached
out and gathered his lover close. Mulder clung to him, bewildered and
miserable, and Alex couldn't reply, because there was nothing comforting
he could say. And as Mulder's arms tightened around him, he couldn't
stop the small cry of pain, where Mulder had torn at him in the heat of
his orgasm. When Mulder saw the deep scratch marks he had left, his sobs
became wild and Alex could only hold him; he too felt so lost.
Later the two of them had managed to steady themselves, and had readied
themselves for work, Alex had gone into the kitchen to check on their
guest. So much for keeping her secure, they had been so out of it last
night that she could have walked past them on her way out and neither
would have noticed! She was sitting at the table, with a cup of water.
Violet eyes gleamed with amusement and restored good humour.
"You enjoyed yourselves last night. Most entertaining." Alex blushed.
Mulder came up behind him, and rested a hand on his shoulder.
"Why did we do that? Tell us! Why did we act like a couple of wild
animals in heat?"
A puzzled look. "Did Kulain not warn you of these changes when he first
let you feed?" The question addressed to Alex. The younger man shook his
head. She sighed. "Your changed bodies have new requirements. Different
foods to keep your bodies healthy, and sex to control your violent
urges, if you cannot hunt freely. Ask Kulain about it, surely he
satisfies most of your physical needs."
"I intend to!" Mulder's eyes blazed green, and he stormed out of the
apartment, with Alex close behind him.
Rachel Nichols had scrutinised the two Bureau agents as they left the
park. Something was definitely going on, all her instincts were
screaming "STORY!!!" at her, and no-one, from the Senate down, was
talking about it. Well she would go where other reporters feared to
tread. And the first step was to log onto the Internet that night and
see what the scuttlebutt on Agents Mulder and Krycek was.
When the results of her search came back on Fox Mulder, they were
startling. Years spent chasing after UFO's and weird phenomena, then, in
the last two years a spell in an insane asylum. Believed to be the live
in partner of Alex Krycek and an Agent K. Lane. BOTH!!! Now somehow, he
hadn't seemed the decadent type....
Her search on Krycek was just as thorough, but material on the agent was
scanty. A few run ins with the law, but nothing ever officially proved.
Reported to have an amputated arm. Well that one was false!
To be thorough, she ran Lane's name through the computer. Those search
results were the oddest of all. Absolutely nothing before two years ago,
then a report of an attack on him that had resulted in four fatalities.
The autopsy reports said that they had been torn to shreds. Not a man to
annoy then. Still, if she managed to get an appointment to see him in
the Bureau building, then he wasn't going to jeopardise his job to
attack her. She rang the man's office and left a message on Lane's
rarely used answering machine, arranging to meet him there at ten the
next morning.
When she turned up, bright and early at nine fifty, she asked one of the
many secretaries in the building for directions. Skinner's secretary
Holly. The young woman looked shocked. "As a rule, we don't like to go
there! He's never hurt anyone that I know of, but he's so scary when he
looks at you." The secretary didn't know about the four burglars then!
Eventually, Rachel made her way down into the depths of the Hoover
building, and found Kulain in his office, which felt a couple of miles
underground.
The man had his back to her, doing something at his bookcase, when she
entered through the open door. Without turning, he laughed softly. "Miss
Nichols, I presume. I'm not expecting anyone else."
She looked with interest at the man Fox Mulder was sleeping with. Very
tall, and well muscled, and he moved with a dancer's grace, or should
that be panther? Lane turned, and she received her first shock.
Incredibly green eyes watched her, seeing everything. Surely no-one
could keep a secret from those eyes. And the face was as beautiful as
the rest of him. Almost inhuman. A touch of humour and an equal amount
of cruelty warred for dominance in his darkly handsome face. And a small
gold hoop hung in his left ear. Quite a fascinating face.
Oh yes, she could see how the outwardly conventional Fox Mulder could
fall for this man, he almost demanded worship, preferably on your knees.
With surprise, Rachel realised she was not exactly acting professionally
here. Damn the man, he was exerting his charm or something, trying to
quiz her! She placed her tape recorder firmly on his desk, and started
to question him.
Kulain watched the pretty t.v. reporter as she eagerly tried to question
him on the Morris killings. Forestalling her, he shook his head in
denial.
"I'm not working on the Morris case, Miss. Nichols!"
The human woman sighed. "Agent Lane, I could write a much more
interesting story on the morals and sex lives of some F.B.I. agents I've
met recently. I know you're living with two of the leading agents on the
case. You must have heard something..." She shamelessly tried blackmail.
Kulain felt amusement at her amateurish efforts to scare him. But there
was a way to turn this to his advantage. "All I've heard is that it's
connected with a research facility about fifty miles north of here.
You'd have to ask Agent Mulder more about that."
"What exactly do you do anyway?" Nichols was curious about this
enigmatic man. "Are you on the Spook Squad?"
"You could say that." Kulain smiled. "I'm more of a technical advisor
for them." He lifted his eyes from his meditative trance. Rachel Nichols
gasped as the eyes of the man in front of her changed from humanity, to
slit pupilled malice. She flung herself backwards, shrinking away from
the inhuman creature who sat quietly watching her.
When he didn't immediately move to attack her, Rachel's natural
reporters' curiosity got the better of her. "What are you?" she
whispered.
Kulain felt satisfaction. His little display was having the right
effect. "An ally, if you want me to be.... Go and ask Mulder about that
research facility, if you want a real story...." She stared at him, head
on one side for a moment. "I'd guess you pull on a lot of strings round
here?"
"Oh yes!" And his smile finally made Rachel's nerve break, and she all
but ran from the office.
Rachel Nichols was just hurrying out of the Hoover building when Mulder
and Alex arrived at their workplace. The three of them met in the foyer
of the main entrance. Rachel stared at the two agents. The two handsome
men she had met yesterday had changed somehow. In some subtle way, there
was a strength and grace about them that she had not noticed yesterday.
A sense of danger and a heightened beauty about them, that didn't seem
quite natural for a human. Alex Krycek in particular, seemed to have a
luminosity to his skin, and an inner fire that flamed in those intense
eyes. He was one of the most attractive men she had ever seen, except
for a certain dark being who had been facing her minutes before. She
wondered about the connection between the two men.
"Agent Mulder, Agent Krycek, can I have a minute?" Mulder looked about
to refuse, but Alex Krycek caught his arm and said something softly to
him. Mulder turned to her.
"Yes Ms. Nichols? Can I help you?"
"It's about the Morris case. I know you can't discuss the case, but I'm
told you have evidence of a government conspiracy in the killings."
Mulder felt astonishment, and temporarily forgot about his anger at
Kulain. "How the hell did you know that?"
"Your er.... partner Agent Lane told me." The two men exchanged
surprised glances. From the way she had said it, Rachel obviously knew
about them. The reporter went on, oblivious to their dismay. "He told me
about the government research facility fifty miles north of here, the
one responsible for the deaths somehow. If you have any information like
that, I'd like to cut a deal. You may find my help useful."
"Ms. Nichols, if we find out anything, you'll be the first to know."
Alex promised. Smiling, she left, only later cursing herself for not
asking more about Kulain.
The two agents ran down to Kulain's office, but their partner had
disappeared. "Shit!" Alex cursed his dark lover. "Why couldn't he tell
us if he knew what was going on?"
Mulder laughed in reluctant amusement. "I don't think honesty comes
naturally to demons, Alex." He sighed. "Do you know something. Despite
everything, I still love him so much. Trust though, I'm not so sure of
any more."
"Yeah! Lets go kick some North of Washington butt! It'll make you
feel better!"
So far, Kulain had kept his promise not to get involved directly in the
Morris case. But if his two troublesome lovers were going to get
themselves in hot water, which he knew they would, they would need back
up. Since he had created the problem at the Bradewood Facility himself,
he knew exactly what the trouble was going to be. And the sort of power
it would take to solve the problem. He opened a gate and stepped through
it, reappearing at Quantico, in another small office where a petite
woman was sitting, reading. Amara scrutinised her son, and smiled. It
was obvious he wanted something.
"There's a problem at the Bradewood installation." Kulain spoke
cautiously. When dealing with someone as powerful as the Destroyer, it
paid to be prudent.
"What of it?" Amara seemed amused. "You gave the humans that particular
toy. If they misuse it, they may even forward our own plans. If it
worries you, take care of it yourself."
"I want you to help my humans take care of it. I can offer you something
you want very much." Kulain closed his eyes for a moment in unhappy
resignation, the bargain he was about to offer had not been part of his
original plans. And in many ways it was a betrayal of his relationship
with his humans. Specifically Mulder. Amara's face brightened.
"There's only one thing you have that I want, Kulain!"
"I know.....Take it!" He flung the vial of DNA at her. Her expression
reflected her satisfaction, viable reproductive materials had always
been a sort of currency among their kind.
Predators have a heightened awareness of their surroundings, and are
sensitive to small variations in the environment.
Fox Mulder and Alex Krycek had been given two possible locations for the
alleged Consortium base, by the Lone Gunmen, after a couple of long
phone calls. The first location they had checked out was an abandoned
Centre for Disease Control facility, that obviously hadn't been
operational for months. They even broke in to check the place, in case
it was carefully disguised. So it made the Bradewood Lightning Research
facility the most likely place for them to find what they were looking
for.
"What exactly are these things?" Alex gestured at the forest of
conductive rods surrounding the installation.
"They try to generate lightning and conduct it down these poles, so they
can measure it." Mulder grinned. "I once had an x-file centred on a
place like this."
"So they have a lot of available power?" Alex said thoughtfully. "That
could be useful!"
Alex sensed it first, a low subsonic hum that seemed to resonate deep
inside him, touched with something other Even as he opened his mouth
to ask Mulder if he felt it too, the noise intensified a thousandfold.
With painful intensity, it exploded into both their minds. Lights flared
as the lightning rods they had been looking at flared with a red glow,
that shifted to white, and then blue. Incredibly hot, the metal of the
rods was almost at melting point. Both agents clapped their hands to
their heads in agony, as the otherness flared outwards, and lightning
bridged the distance between Earth and sky. Coming UP from the ground,
product of some unimaginable power surge in the installation. But the
two men didn't see it, both lay deeply unconscious where they had
fallen. Neither was in a position to escape the security patrol when it
found them twenty minutes later.
The Cigarette Smoking Man stared at the images of the two men on a
surveillance monitor. "Keep them there, Doctor Bradshaw, I'll send my
operatives to take care of it. But make sure they come to no harm,
they're both useful bargaining tools. You'd be better off keeping them
separate though." As an afterthought he added, "Try the new demon
restraints on them, you may find it interesting!"
Mulder came slowly to consciousness. Dizzily, he tried to sit up, and
almost immediately realised that he was handcuffed, his wrists fastened
securely behind his back. He was alone in a small cell, and he wanted to
die. He felt an intense desire to vomit, and his balance centres felt
noticeably askew. When he finally managed to sit upright, the world
swirled around him for long minutes before it eventually steadied. All
accompanied by waves of nausea. He tried to breathe deeply and slowly,
and managed to push the feeling away.
He closed his eyes and tried to shift, needing the demon strength
desperately. And white hot pain exploded in his wrists, driving away all
thought, bringing darkness in its wake.
Doctor Bradshaw watched the video screen with sharpening interest. The
men they had taken into custody seemed to be inordinately sensitive to
the energies his experiment had produced. Most people just felt a little
dizzy around the installation. As he watched, Agent Mulder, whoever he
was, started to return to consciousness, and feebly pushed himself
upwards. The Cigarette Smoking Man had, for some reason, suggested they
use the demon restraints on the two F.B.I. agents. Then incredibly, the
things activated. The agent's eyes blazed green, and he struggled
against the shackles. They flared with blue power and the man's body
convulsed in agony. So he was a demon then! Bradshaw smiled maliciously
at the hapless agent. He had a little experiment in mind. It wouldn't
harm the vile creature. Much. The other man, he noted in passing, was
still deeply unconscious and didn't even move as the two Consortium
agents began to load his limp body into the trunk of their car.
The leader of the security detail chose that moment to interrupt his
chain of thought.
"We've found another intruder sir, a young woman who was hiking. She
tried to run but we caught her easily!"
"Bring her to the main chamber. Oh, and bring him too." He gestured at
Mulder on the screen. "We can use them both in my latest experiment."
He HURT
That was Mulder's first thought this time round. The second thing he was
aware of was a gentle touch against his forehead, fingers trailing
across his skin, soothing the pain.
"Shhh Fox. I'll look after you. Don't be afraid." Eventually, he managed
to pull enough strength together to open his eyes again. His head was
resting on Amara's lap but his wrists were still bound. She helped him
to sit up, concern in her eyes.
"What....?" He stumbled over the words, his speech uncoordinated. "Why'r
you here?"
She brushed her lips close to his cheek so that she could speak to him
without being overheard. "A certain person was worried about you." She
glanced at the guard, who held an automatic weapon casually pointed in
their direction. "He may well have been right."
Mulder tried to focus. "Why can't you burn your way out, like you did
before?" Her closeness was vaguely disturbing, something about her was
so reminiscent of his beautiful, sensual Kulain.
"That would be one way to destroy your world, Fox. To create an energy
tap so close to an open gate!"
He gaped at her in astonishment.
"Can you not feel it? Your scientists have been experimenting with it
for many months. They have learned much. But not enough!"
Mulder could sense it, that distant pulsing nausea again. He reached
out, intending to try and shift again.
"No!" Her command stopped him. "Near the gate, the energies can be drawn
upon in some devices. If you try to use demon powers, those things round
your wrists will deliver enough energy to disable you."
"Where did they get the gate?" Mulder shivered. The thought of that much
power in the hands of the Consortium was terrifying.
"You'd have to ask Kulain about that." She sounded disapproving, as if
he was a naughty child. "I suspect their experiments have caused your
recent demon problems. I felt at least two major incursions from as far
away as Quantico."
"Does that mean that two big demons came through?" A nod. "Then if we
have Pasht, the other demon must still be on the loose!"
Doctor Bradshaw had motioned to the guards. "Take them into the gate
room." Then to his assistants, "We're ready to try varying the energy
input again. I think we'll increase power by a factor of 1000 this
time."
One of his assistants quailed. "Isn't that a little excessive sir?"
"The gate shield we were given, supposedly can stand a million times
that power input. We were assured that it would give sufficient
protection for our experiments."
The guards arrived, bringing Amara and a still unsteady Mulder.
"Take them in there and wait for instructions" The doctor indicated the
area inside the shield. The shields were put in place around the room
"Now the theories we've formed say there should be a time anomaly, if we
activate the gate now......"
Mulder felt the low hum of power deep in his bones. This wasn't the
small gates Kulain used to move about, but something more mechanical,
less familiar. Blue light flared, illuminating the room, a shimmering
sphere about three metres in diameter. Its colour intensified to
midnight blue as he watched.
"No, you fools!" Amara was uncharacteristically yelling the words. Then
the two guards next to her screamed. As Mulder watched, their skin was
shrivelling, hair whitening. Both men fell, withering and diminishing to
dust before Mulder's eyes. Did he really imagine the concern in Amara's
eyes, that turned to relief when he didn't immediately collapse in the
merciless light from the gate.
"What just happened?" he whispered. She leaned forward and patted his
cheek in amused condescension.
"I didn't know he had done that..... You just aged about a thousand
years. Useful things, immortality genes." Fingers caught his arm. "If
you have courage, we can leave this place." Her eyes flickered to the
blue sphere. Then she led the stunned agent through the gate.
It was night when the two of them emerged into a howling wind and
torrential rain. At Quantico. Mulder swayed with exhaustion. His mind
had found Amara's revelations hard to grasp. He tried to focus his
thoughts...... Alex! He turned desperately to Amara.
"We have to go back! Alex is still there, we have to get him out."
She looked regretful. "I checked the installation for him before I
arranged for them to capture me. He wasn't there any more Fox." Then
Mulder felt the tears come. Amara gathered the sobbing man into her
arms, feeling his warmth and the endearing vulnerability. He was a
pleasing choice to further her plans. "Kulain can track him." Her tone
reflected her certainty.
Alex had been more severely affected by the initial gate experiment than
his partner. He had been deeply unconscious for many hours. So much so
that he had been unaware of his removal from the gate installation, or
the journey back to Washington. And when he was finally half carried,
half dragged by the Consortium soldiers into a building on the southern
side of the city, he didn't even feel the kicks that Agent Spender gave
his limp body.
The first thing Alex registered, in fact, was a slender ankle and
elegant shoe inches away from his face, as he lay on his side on a
concrete floor. His arms were twisted painfully behind him. Marita
leaned over and seized his hair, yanking his head up painfully.
"Payback time Alex. I've been waiting a long time to show you how much I
appreciated your little trick with the alien virus two years ago...."
"Not so fast my dear." The Cigarette Smoking Man shook his head. "He's
too useful at the moment for you to kill him. He's quite a useful
bargaining tool to use on our friend Kulain. And I have the perfect
plan." He nudged Alex with one foot. "You're out of your depth with that
one, Krycek, you don't know half of the things he's been involved in.
And dealing with us never bothered him for one second."
"No!" Alex tried to sit up, but Marita pressed him down again, grinding
his cheek into the floor with her heel on his cheek. "He'll find me,
he'll kill you." The Cigarette Smoking Man took a pocket tape recorder
out of his pocket, and placed it on the floor next to Alex's head,
pressing the play button.
Kulain's voice.
I propose a deal. Stay away from me and my property, and I'll not
interfere with your dealings."
The Cigarette Smoking Man smiled in satisfaction at the look of shock
and horror on Krycek's face. "Your friend prefers to make deals Alex. He
understands that it's more convenient for everyone. Did you think he
really cares about you? You're a possession Alex. That's all. A kind of
trophy to be flaunted in public.
With a scream of anguished denial, Alex started to shift, intending to
rip out The Cigarette Smoking Man's throat, no matter what. The
Cigarette Smoking Man watched as his former assassin began to convulse
on the floor. He noted with grim satisfaction, that the new type of
restraint they had developed was operating quite efficiently. Marita
kicked the semi-conscious man's body, then followed her boss out of the
door.
And when Alex could finally move without agony searing his body, he wept
softly as something inside him crumpled.
Mulder and Amara gated to Washington as soon as the wild energy
fluctuations in the area had died down. Obviously, the experiments were
over for the moment, though the storms that the energy discharge had
created would linger for a while. Pale and fatigued, Mulder felt shaky
by the time he had entered his apartment with her. She pushed Mulder
into a chair, and went to talk to Kulain. The demon approached his
lover. Mulder stared up at him silently, his brown eyes begging for
reassurance. Even now, stronger and more confident than he had ever been
before, Mulder still had a frailty about his mind when his relationships
were under stress.
Kulain smiled, and without hesitation, gathered his Fox into his arms.
Mulder wrapped his arms around the familiar body and leaned against his
beloved partner. He had thought he wouldn't trust Kulain again, but his
love was too strong for doubts when he was held like this.
"Alex! We have to find Alex!" Mulder tried to explain what had happened.
"I know where he is!" Kulain soothed his lover. "But you need to rest
before we can go there. I'll need you with me."
"You're making another deal, aren't you?"
"We do what we must, Fox. Sometimes we aren't given a choice."
Then Kulain gave one of the most malicious and evil smiles Mulder had
ever seen. "My Fox, do you really think they're going to get the better
of me in the long run?" Mulder found himself returning his lover's
amused gaze. He shook his head. Kulain's tone softened. "Never doubt
that I love you Fox." He drew he exhausted man into his arms, and within
minutes, Mulder was sleeping in the safest place on Earth.
Alex had a restless and uncomfortable night. He was aching and cold by
the time morning came. And who should come to see him but that bitch
Marita. He was sitting propped up against the wall, looking dispirited.
Marita smiled. "It's been a long time Alex. It's sad to see you like
this, you and I were once so close, do you remember?" She reached out
and took Alex's chin in her fingers, tilting his head so he had to look
at her. "I sometimes wish we could be close again." Alex closed his eyes
and tried to ignore her, he had a good idea of what she could be like
and he didn't want to provoke her. Then abruptly, she pushed him onto
his back and straddled his hips. She leaned in and kissed him hungrily,
grinding her body against his.
It was like kissing a statue.
Then Alex twisted his head away in disgust. Marita's eyes blazed in
renewed hatred and humiliation. She climbed off his body, and pulled
something out of her pocket.
"You had your chance Alex! I enjoyed the last night we spent together,
you could have had all that again. Pity you're so spineless you can't
even get it up for a woman any more, can you!" She jammed the stun gun
into his ribs, and triggered it. She rather enjoyed the look of agony on
his face, so she did it again.
The Cigarette Smoking Man stared coldly at his two unwelcome visitors.
He had known that Kulain wouldn't take long to track Krycek down, but he
hadn't expected the demon to bring Fox Mulder along. It was a little
disconcerting. The agent sat next to his lover, watching the old bastard
with bitter hostility. There was a disturbing hint of green to his eyes.
"I want Alex!" Kulain was blunt.
"If you can't keep your property under control, these things are
inevitable." The Cigarette Smoking Man matched Kulain for icy control.
"You didn't exactly keep your gate under control." Kulain responded.
"You've let at least two demons loose in the last 72 hours. I warned you
how dangerous it was to try and alter its settings, but you did it
anyway."
"We don't need your help any more, Agent Lane. Krycek will be kept as a
hostage for your good behaviour.
A white hot flash of light, searing as the sun, flared through the
office windows, and there was a deep subterranean rumble as the ground
trembled.
"You don't have a gate any more!" Kulain said malevolently. "My leader
deemed it too dangerous for you to keep. But if you do want to continue
supplies to your secret base, then I can arrange for delivery by one
of MY gates. You can guess my price of course."
Hatred and defeat warred on the Cigarette Smoking Man's face, then he
pressed his intercom button. "Marita, arrange for our guest to be
brought to my office!"
The only response was a smothered giggle. With a curse, the Cigarette
Smoking Man rose from his seat, a little more rapidly than was casual,
and indicated the way to the holding area.
The first thing Mulder saw when the door to Alex's cell opened, was his
lover's body, sprawled bonelessly on the floor, a thin trickle of blood
coming from the side of his mouth. Marita was kneeling beside him,
tugging on the band of gold that Alex wore, as she tried to take a
souvenir of her latest victim. Mulder saw red. He lunged at her, his
protective instincts coming to life, clawing at her mercilessly. And a
strong arm wrapped itself round his waist, holding him back from her.
Only Kulain could have the power to hold him like that. A voice filled
with understanding. "No Fox. You didn't look first." And he realised
Marita was holding something else in her other hand, a gun that was
pressed against Alex Krycek's head. The Consortium woman's expression
showed a mixture of fear and triumph.
"So you're the mighty Kulain that everyone is so nervous of! Well, I
have something you want very much. Turn me into a demon like your pet
F.B.I. agents and I'll let Alex go." Mulder hissed his shock.
Kulain tilted his head on one side, considering her request. "Why do you
want this?"
"I want to be a power in the brave new world you're making, not a slave.
Now, are you going to do what I want, or do I kill him?"
Kulain nodded slowly. "As you wish." He moved slowly towards her, took
her free hand and kissed it. And let his teeth sink into her skin,
drawing blood. He casually licked the wound.
"That's all it takes to become a demon?" Kulain nodded, and smiled at an
astonished Mulder. She rose to her feet and walked over to join the
Cigarette Smoking Man. Kulain lifted the unconscious Alex in his arms
and a gate flickered into existence in front of him. Both he and Mulder
stepped through it, and it vanished. The two members of the Consortium
gazed with awe at the space where Kulain had been.
"How does he do that?" Marita said. "I thought it needed all sorts of
machinery and a million watts of power!" Her boss could only shrug.
Kulain was unique. Thank goodness.
Kulain sank down onto the couch in their apartment, cradling Alex
carefully in his arms. Mulder came to sit next to him. Kulain knew why
he was wearing the sad expression on his face.
"You always planned to do this to us, didn't you?" He flicked one talon
in Kulain's direction.
"It was inevitable from the first time I took you, Mulder. Though I
tried to make it easier for you." Alex moaned, and Kulain tenderly
stroked the sweat streaked hair. He gently kissed the young man's
forehead. "I don't need or expect your trust now, but I would never act
to harm you."
Mulder bowed his head. The truth hurt. But what he had said to Alex
still held true. He loved this being so much. So he reached out, seized
Kulain's collar and pulled him in for a kiss.
"Help me to work this out Kulain. It would hurt most of all if I lost
you."
Alex whimpered softly, and shifted in Kulain's arms, starting to come
round after his ordeal. "It's alright Alex." Kulain kissed the younger
man's forehead again with surprising tenderness. Some sense of Kulain's
presence must have penetrated the young man's mind, because he half
turned to bury his head in Kulain's shoulder, and hands went up to cling
more closely to his protector.
Mulder sighed. "Kulain, answer me one question. Do you love me?" A
deeply amusing question apparently, from his lover's reaction.
"Not what am I doing to you? or What are my secret plans for world
domination? Why that one Fox?"
"It's the only one that's important to me any more. I need you so
much...." A hand was stretched out towards him in a gesture Kulain had
never made before. Trembling slightly, Mulder took hold of it. Fingers
closed around his, and he felt his hand squeezed in reassurance.
"You needn't ever fear that I'll abandon you, little Fox."
"Very touching!" Alex whispered hoarsely. then pushed himself away from
Kulain unsteadily. He half stumbled as he forced himself to his feet,
and clutched at the edge of the couch to stop himself falling. His
movements were jerky and uncoordinated.
"You've been dealing with those bastards for months now, haven't you?"
"Yes!" Kulain was unrepentant. "How do you think you were cleared of
murder in New York, Alex?"
The younger man glared at him. "Damn you! Just stay away from me.
Everything you say is a lie or a half truth!" His face was cold and hard
as marble, but the effect was spoiled by the single tear running down
his face.
"Mulder, come with me, please," Alex whispered. He also held out his
hand to his lover. For a moment, Mulder's hand stretched towards him, as
if he wanted to go with Alex, then it dropped to his side.
"I can't!" He saw the flash of pain in Alex's eyes. Then the young man
turned on his heel and walked out.
"So volatile," Kulain murmured into Mulder's hair as his arms went
around his lover. "But that's why we love him!"
Marita glared at the seventeen hundredth doctor to take a blood sample
from her, and yanked her arm away from him. "Keep your fucking hands off
me, you leech!"
"Hmmm." The doctor made a note on his clipboard. "Marked aggressiveness
at this point." He looked over at his patient and felt a little frisson
of terror at the progress of the infection. From an entry wound on her
hand, the unknown toxin had rapidly progressed up her arm and had begun
to alter the appearance of her neck and chest. The skin was turning an
odd shade of grey, and though he might be imagining it, he could swear
that her eyes had begun to take on a red glow in the past half hour. As
for behaviour, it was difficult to tell how much she had changed, she
had always been duplicitous and slightly unbalanced. The toxin seemed to
have increased her susceptibility to wild mood swings though. He went to
report to his boss, the Cigarette Smoking Man.
"So Marita isn't making very good progress?" The Smoker frowned. "I'm
sorry sir, I made a study of all the information we had on Mulder and
Krycek, including those blood samples we hold. I don't think her change
is the same as theirs. The two of them certainly don't show any marked
aggression, and I'd have to say, they look a whole lot healthier than
her. There's only one thing her metamorphosis brings to mind.... but it
has to be impossible..."
"Tell me!" the Cigarette Smoking Man said coldly.
"You know those gargoyles Mulder and Krycek captured the other day....
Well I've been doing some blood and toxicology studies and.....well.....
I think our demon friend may have tricked us."
The Cigarette Smoking Man realised, not for the first time, that Kulain
had a way of making his best laid plans come to nothing. It had seemed
so foolproof, setting Alex Krycek up like that. Still, she might still
have her uses.
Rachel Nichols was still fuming, several hours after being roundly
reprimanded by her boss, for losing the hottest story of the year. A
mysterious explosion north of Washington that had made the sky light up
like a Christmas tree. No radiation was detectable, and it was all being
passed off as an accident at a lightning research facility. Which
incidentally, had been melted so far into the bedrock that there was a
crater fifty metres deep on the site of the main installation. No
scientist she had spoken to could think of power that could produce
these effects but wasn't nuclear. And she had been tipped off about it
by her friendly neighbourhood monster, but had not followed the lead.
Perhaps another visit to Lane's office? No. Not ever again if she could
help it. Story or no story!
The phone rang, and she found herself talking to Jimmy, her friendly
contact in the police department. "Rachel, it's happened again!" The cop
was almost incoherent with excitement and something else she didn't hear
in a hardened street cop's voice very often. Fear!
"Slow down Jimmy. What are you talking about?"
"The Morris murders! The killer's struck again! Oh god, I thought last
time was bad! This is worse, much, much worse!" To her surprise, he
choked back a sob.
"Where, Jimmy? I can be with you within fifteen minutes."
"The Memorial Hospital. The intensive care unit! The bastard chose
victims who couldn't fight back this time. And what he did to them....
I'll see them in my nightmares for the rest of my life."
"I'm coming right over." Then as an afterthought. "Tell them to call in
Agent Lane of the F.B.I. I'm sure he knows more than he's saying about
this case!"
"You mean the damn Feds have been holding out on us. I'll make sure
Captain Gill hears that!"
Many predators indulge in pack behaviour. Strategies include stalking
the prey, and defending the territory from intruders. There is a well
developed survival instinct.
Mulder had spent the night in Kulain's arms, but surprisingly, his lover
hadn't made any sexual demands on him. In fact, Kulain had been
remarkably celibate lately. He hadn't been with either of his two humans
since they had heard about the Morris killings.
Mulder had woken and stretched langourously that morning, then slid his
hand across Kulain's well muscled chest. He had enthusiastically begun
to kiss his way down the powerful torso, then Kulain had caught his
shoulders and gently but firmly, pushed him away. He looked regretfully
into the agent's slightly hurt eyes.
"Sorry, little Fox, it seems I might have to fight soon." Mulder found
this incomprehensible, and his uncertainty must have shown itself. "I
need aggression, little one, and being with you always did take that
away from me."
The phone rang just as Mulder was on his way out of the door, heading
for the office. He grabbed the receiver and immediately heard Alex's
familiar voice.
"Foxy? Please! You've got to come to the Memorial Hospital!" Mulder
couldn't remember ever hearing Alex so faltering and apprehensive.
"Alex, are you okay?"
"Yeah. But we've got another murder...." A momentary pause, then Alex
unexpectedly said in an undertone, "Bring Kulain! It's that bad..."
Pulling up outside the hospital, the first thing Mulder noticed was the
unexpected hush that had settled over the scene. Dozens of cops, federal
agents, hospital personnel and the media were standing around, strangely
silent, many staring at the hospital building in dread.
Alex was there, waiting for his partners, leaning against his black car,
head bowed. Despite his tension about the case, Mulder caught his breath
at the sight of that familiar profile. The expensive suit Alex had taken
to wearing accentuated the long lean legs with their muscular thighs,
the firm ass and the narrow waist sweeping to broad shoulders. He was
beautiful, and Mulder could have stood staring at that supple body all
day. Then Alex lifted his head and saw his lover. Green eyes flickered
in welcome, and the trace of a tired smile registered for a moment.
Mulder felt a lump in his throat, their lives were so crazy, but still
they had both managed to find and hold onto each other, despite the
odds. Then Alex turned to look at his more formidable partner, Kulain.
Alex looked briefly uncertain and hesitant; only a few hours ago he had
rejected Kulain, and he was having to deal with his own needs now.
"It's upstairs, in one of the wards. I don't know how to describe it.
You'll just have to see for yourselves. But I can tell you now, that
whatever did that isn't from our world!"
Alex led the way past the groups of cops, into the hospital. Mulder
noticed that many of the people around him were white faced and some
were even vomiting. They entered the stairwell, and headed up to the
first floor. Skinner was just coming down, and even he seemed more than
a little disturbed by this killing. He was accompanied by Captain Gill.
"There they are! The two officers who captured that creature in the
park! I want them put under arrest. The suspect they caught the other
day hasn't been registered in any federal or state facility! I want her
brought in for questioning about this atrocity! And I want charges
brought against these men for interfering in a homicide inquiry!"
Skinner did his best to calm the man. But a fresh tirade came. "And what
about this Agent Lane who works for the same department! I'm reliably
informed that he knows a lot more about this than he's admitting!"
"This is Agent Lane." Skinner gestured at the taller of the three men in
front of him. Gill lunged forward, remarkably agile for an older man and
grabbed hold of Kulain's arm.
"Tell me who's responsible for THAT upstairs, or I'll kick you down
these stairs, you son of a bitch!"
Mulder, Skinner and Alex Krycek all froze, knowing how dangerous it was
to bait the demon like that. But he didn't strike out, merely sighed
slightly. "I believe the demon to be of the Shadow faction. And your
weapons are useless against him." Green eyes abruptly shifted to a
disturbing, slightly reptilian, slit pupilled gaze. Gill gasped, and
shrank back in sudden fear. Kulain merely pushed the Captain gently out
of his way and lifted his head to look up into the dimly lit reaches of
the stairwell. He drew in a deep breath, and Alex realised that Kulain
was sampling the scents around him, like a wild animal scenting danger.
"He is close, and he watches your men. He will strike again tonight.
They should not approach him if they wish to live." He continued up the
stairs, leaving the humans staring after him. Mulder rushed to catch up,
but the demon was just entering a room on the first floor by the time
Mulder reached him. Not thinking of the case, Mulder rushed in, after
him. And stopped, shaken to his core. The murder scene, if it could be
called that. Mulder could see why no cop was outside the door, he
wouldn't want to be close to this! Kulain just stood and looked at the
bodies, five of them, while Mulder fought to breath again. His head
began to spin, and he slammed his fist into the wall, needing the pain
to keep himself from fainting.
There had originally been five patients in adjacent rooms, all helpless,
kept alive by modern technology. The strangest aspect of this case was
that their bodies were still functioning, after what had been done to
them. But they weren't exactly living, not in any human sense. Their
remains had all been carefully dismembered, and put together again in a
different configuration. A single giant entity, that moaned and shivered
and quaked, as evidence that its component parts still lived. No human
technology could fuse flesh like that, not that the maddest scientist
would have wanted to create such a monstrosity. The way the heads were
juxtaposed like a set of eyes across the top of it..... Then a set of
eyes opened and the mouth began to shriek. A wave of heat swept over
Mulder, then he was lurching out of the door, clinging to the door jamb,
fighting vainly for control. The world began to go grey.
When his head finally cleared, he was propped up against the wall, his
head resting against a well known warm shoulder, and Alex was holding
him steady. "Shhh baby, I know." Long fingers stroked his back in
reassurance. Mulder let himself be held, not having to think, letting
his partner soothe the shudders that were racking his body. Finally, he
managed to lift his head and drew a long shaky breath.
"Alex.... What the hell have we got ourselves into?" He didn't know at
that moment, whether he was talking about the two of them, or humanity.
"I think we're in trouble." Alex whispered. "I recognised what it
was....."
"A hunter," Kulain said softly from the doorway. "But not finished yet!
He'll come back to animate it, when he has the requisite parts."
"How do we kill it?" Mulder gestured to the room where the obscenity
sat.
Kulain studied his lover for a moment. "Doing that will enrage our
opponent. But fire will be enough at this moment if you wish to take
that chance."
Mulder could still hear the inhuman moans and whimpers the thing was
making, as if all of the demon's victims were still aware, and in
terrible suffering. Despite his own demon blood, he felt reassuringly
human then, because he still had a sense of compassion and outrage when
he looked on an atrocity like that.
"We can't burn it here!" Alex said quietly, like Mulder, accepting the
need to do this thing. "There are too many flammable substances round
here. All those oxygen tanks...."
"We're going to have to take it outside!" Mulder's face twisted in
revulsion. The thought of going into that room again made him break into
a cold sweat. "We'll have to get some of the cops to help us."
"No!" Kulain instructed them. "If an ordinary human tries to touch it,
it will absorb them in its present state. You'll have to do it
yourselves. And you must shift so that only demon flesh comes into
contact with it."
"We'll never move that by ourselves!" Alex protested. "It's far too
big!"
Kulain smiled, and with a shiver, Alex realised that Kulain wasn't as
bothered as his lovers by the horrific creature. "At the moment it is
malleable. It can be shaped easily into whatever form you find most
convenient."
Mulder made a choking sound and barely made it to the men's room before
he lost the contents of his stomach. Alex followed him, to check if he
was okay. Besides which, his instincts were beginning to scream at him
not to go anywhere alone in this place. It felt like a death trap.
"Convenient isn't a word I would have used." Mulder said hoarsely. "You
know. I'm beginning to understand demons better now. They seem to be
able to manipulate matter and energy on the smallest scales. It's an
instinct they have." He held up his hands and shifted them. His
profiler's intuition chose to work at the oddest moments. "When we
shift, we actually change reality on some level!"
"Mulder, you idiot!" Alex said affectionately, then pulled him into a
brief hug, and Mulder returned it fervently.
"I knew when you didn't take your leather jacket yesterday, that you
hadn't walked out on me. But I wish we could work things out."
Alex sighed. "Tonight, Fox. C'mon, we can't put off this dirty job any
longer. Ever wish you did something quiet for a living, like bomb
disposal?"
The police captain cleared the plaza outside of all spectators, and gave
them unrestricted control of the crime scene. Like all of the humans
that night, he wanted the demonic creation destroyed, and was willing to
let Mulder and Krycek do the dirty work. Kulain had disappeared, by the
time the two agents had, with much cursing and struggling, managed to
drag the filthy thing down the stairs and out of the main doors. Most
police and F.B.I. personnel had made themselves scarce. There was one
unpleasant moment, in the stairwell, when the bulk of the thing had
trapped Mulder against the wall, but he had just pushed at it, and the
proto-flesh had slowly yielded to his prodding.
Alex grinned savagely, when they finally dragged it into the plaza.
"This is it Foxy!" He glanced at the waiting petrol cans. "Ever feel
like you had a target on your back?"
Mulder grabbed a can, and began to pour it over the monstrosity, which
slowly began to writhe and moan dissonantly. "Calling for help from its
master!" Alex hissed. Mulder shivered, but completed the task. He
stepped back to a safer distance, and lit a flame, tossing it towards
the thing. And something black as night dived through the air, fast as
thought, and caught the fiery kindling, as it reached the apex of its
arc.
A new monstrosity hovered in the air before Mulder, a huge demon with
flaming red eyes, a bald head with long bat like ears, and massive
wings. Then they moved in a downstroke, and the blast of air knocked
Mulder off his feet. He saw clawed feet, like an eagles, reaching for
him, and instinctively rolled away. One massive talon scored along his
hip. opening a cut inches deep. He screamed!
Alex lunged, his own talons outstretched, and landed on the demon's
back. With a howl, it launched itself into the air, twisting impossibly
through a flight path of 180 degrees, so that Alex found himself hanging
on by his claws alone, which had sunk deep into the demon's back. The
agile demon flew incredibly close to the front wall of the hospital, and
forced Alex to twist his body, so that he wouldn't be dashed against it.
And in that moment of imbalance, one wing snapped backwards, colliding
with his face, as it caught a hold against the wall. With a yelp of
pain, Alex fell.
Though he had survived falls before, one hundred feet was too much even
for demon instincts to correct for. There was a shocking moment of pain,
then he found himself sprawled, helpless on the cold concrete, his leg
twisted so that it was obviously broken. With a cackle of glee, the
demon dived towards him, intending to rip his heart out. A semi-
conscious Mulder was in no position to help him, and where was Kulain?
A volley of shots rang out, then a figure was kneeling next to him,
taking careful aim with what, incredibly, appeared to be a crossbow.
Though the demon didn't seem to be damaged by the bullets, they plainly
stung it, and it hesitated before following up the attack on Krycek. It
was enough. Skinner launched a crossbow bolt at the thing, and hit it
squarely in the chest. With a blood curdling shriek, the flying demon
crashed to the ground and lay still. Skinner gave a slightly cynical
smile.
"I do read your reports occasionally, Krycek!" Skinner was one of the
few law enforcement officers who had not disappeared when the attack had
begun. And he had just saved Alex's life!
"Where's your pet demon, Alex?" The A.D.'s voice sounded cynical. "I
thought that he would at least protect his investments!"
So even Skinner thought he was Kulain's property! Alex swore softly, and
tried to sit up. A white hot stabbing pain in his lower leg warned him
to keep still. He was aware Skinner taking in his altered eyes and
talons, and with a blush, shifted to conceal them. "You'd better burn
that monstrosity, he said, and the A.D. went to finish the job.
Where was Kulain? He wouldn't abandon them. Despite his annoyance, and
the pain that was throbbing in his leg, Alex knew it with a certainty.
Even when Alex tried to reject him, Kulain had come here to help him
tonight. Alex felt his unease turn into something stronger. Something
had happened to his lover, and the young man wouldn't rest until he had
discovered the cause. Pulling his battered mobile phone out of his
pocket, he called a certain Quantico number.
When Mulder came out of his pain filled stupor, he found himself gazing
into a pair of grey eyes close to his own. Amara's fingers were straying
down his naked hip in a half caress, and he was lying in a hospital bed,
wearing a gown and not much else. The Destroyer finished her healing,
then turned to the neighbouring bed and began to tend Alex.
"What happened?" Mulder said. Alex moaned softly, as fingers touched his
injured leg, then green eyes were looking in worry at him. "Kulain's
disappeared. I had to call in reinforcements!"
"There is a possible explanation...." Grey eyes flashed in satisfaction
as their owner completed her healing. "Sometimes demons travel in
packs....." Then with a shimmer of light, she gated, leaving the two
humans staring after her in horror.
"Not much mothering instinct then." Alex said wryly.
Rachel Nichols was more than a little frustrated by her lack of success
at the Hospital. She had threatened and wheedled, but there was no way
she was going to get access to the murder scene, or even talk to the
detectives in charge of the case. Even her friendly contact couldn't
help her, he was incommunicado, like the rest of them. In fact, anyone
who had the slightest idea what was going on seemed to have disappeared.
The atmosphere around the hospital was more frightening and unnerving
than any case she could remember in the last few years.
Finally Rachel decided that the only way she was going to find out
anything, was to try and sneak into the hospital and see for herself.
She obviously couldn't get in the front entrance, and checking the
emergency ambulance accessway was also futile. But finally, she met with
some success. Round the side of the oldest building, she found an
unguarded and obscure entrance to the laundry, and shouldering the stiff
door open, she pushed her way in. She found herself in a dimly lit and
rather steamy corridor, adjacent to the room housing the big industrial
washing machines, and tried the left hand passage, which seemed to lead
in the right direction, towards the main wards, carrying her video
camera for any quick shots.
Kulain had left his humans when a trace of a familiar smell had reached
him, down one of the corridors. Moving at a quick pace, he tracked the
scent to a stairwell that led downwards into the darkness of the
basement. Perhaps he would find the opponent who challenged his
territory. But he planned to return to his pair quickly, as he knew they
would draw out the enemy. He found himself on a metal walkway over a
maintenance area filled with numerous thick pipes filled with hot water
and steam, that supplied the heating and laundry systems. On a blast of
hot air that came from the depths below, he smelt the musky odour of his
enemy. He settled in silence in his vantage point, to await
developments, his cautious instincts telling him it would be better to
wait and watch until he could gauge his opponents strength.
Soon his vigilance was rewarded, as it became evident that there were
not one, but three demons below him. It was also obvious that they had
fed recently, on at least one maintenance worker, so had the energy
spare to create the hunter. It was then that he heard a human
approaching, and saw Rachel Nichols familiar profile.
The reporter's approach made the three red eyed demons freeze into
immobility, and with their grey coloration, they blended into the
background perfectly. She would not know they were there until they
sprung their trap. Damn the woman. Though he admired her resourcefulness
and courage, which were rare in the humans he had met, her timing was
execrable. His plans would have to change. In a single fluid movement,
he leapt over the rail of the walkway, over the heads of the trio below,
and landed between Rachel and his enemies. A single shove propelled her
backwards away from danger, and he turned to face his furious enemies.
For Rachel, an interesting adventure in the depths of the hospital had
rapidly turned into a nightmare. Lane landed in front of her and pushed
her violently away, and even as she started to protest, she saw what had
appeared behind that disturbing being, and her cry froze within her. If
Lane was a frightening individual, then these were utterly terrifying.
They circled the two warily, keeping their distance from Lane. Then one
lunged at her. Lane instantly blocked its path, his hand coming up to
rake across its face with what she saw were long talons. Then all three
attacked at once, and all but overwhelmed her defender. She backed as
far into a corner as she could, but a filthy talon scraped her from
shoulder to waist, and she sagged towards the floor as dizziness swept
over her. As darkness descended, she saw Lane throw off the demons and
then he was protectively standing over her, long talons raised
defensively.
"If I were a demon.... I'd want to go somewhere like home!" Alex said to
his partner. That comment made Mulder raise his eyebrows.
"Like our apartment, you mean?"
Alex glared. "You know that's not what I was talking about. You remember
better than me, what it's like on the other side. You spent weeks there.
Now where in the hospital is it going to be warm and dimly lit, with not
many people around to spot anything odd?"
They both realised in the same instant.
"The basement!"
The two agents crept along, almost soundless, in their altered forms.
Somehow, being shifted in the darkness was different from other times.
Mulder found his senses heightened so that it seemed almost as bright as
daylight. And the warmth of the pipes, rather than being unpleasantly
humid, made him feel at home and oddly comfortable. He found himself
grinning at Alex, as he wondered what it would be like to strip off his
clothes and pounce on the younger man, fucking him until he yowled in
fulfilment. He shook his head dizzily. It wasn't the first time that
being shifted had put odd thoughts into his head, but now wasn't the
time to indulge himself.
As they went further into the twisting tunnels, Alex began to smell
something odd, acrid and slightly repugnant. Some instinct inside him
screamed danger, and he began to proceed more cautiously, signalling
to Mulder, who squeezed his shoulder in silent acknowledgement. Then
they saw Kulain. He stood over something huddled on the floor, and
periodically repelled the attacks of the three demons. Both he and his
opponents were cut and bleeding from dozens of small wounds. The two
humans instinctively circled round their enemies. Alex held three of his
fingers up, indicating to Mulder when he would attack. Then
simultaneously, the two of them threw themselves at the demons. Even as
their opponents turned to deal with this new threat, Kulain pounced on
the demon who was left in the middle, and used his claws to great
effect, splitting its belly open like a rotten fruit. Then he spun to
deal with Mulder's demon, spearing through its back with a long taloned
thrust. Together, he and his lover fell on Alex's adversary, and the
three finished the demon together.
Mulder found himself grinning. It felt so GOOD to hunt with Kulain.
Maybe something like male bonding, but at a far more instinctive level.
Alex felt it too, Mulder saw the corresponding expression on his lover's
face. Then, relaxing, he let himself sink back into his human form. And
felt distantly appalled at his own temerity, the signs that he wasn't as
human as he liked to pretend.
Rachel moaned, and Kulain reached down to lift the unconscious and
wounded woman into his arms. He smiled ruefully at his lovers. "This
woman has the worst timing of any human I've ever met!" He headed off
towards the Emergency room, his humans in tow.
Alex felt indecisive, as he was debriefed by the senior members of the
F.B.I. response team who had been in attendance at the scene. Some
things they heard were plainly not to their liking, and they were
sceptical. At least, those who hadn't seen the remains of the hunter or
the demons.
He faced a big problem. He just didn't trust Kulain any more, and the
more he thought about it, the worse he felt. He felt so humiliated by
calling for his lover so soon after rejecting him. And Mulder plainly
disagreed with him, preferring the uncertainties of life with Kulain.
Damn him anyway, what right had he to use them like that. He would go to
the apartment that night and bring his grievances out into the open.
Why, even today, his inhuman reactions during the fight had been
disquieting.
Rachel watched her video footage in silent scrutiny. It showed Kulain
fighting the demons quite plainly, and it was obvious what he was. She
could have the biggest scoop of her career if she had this broadcast.
But the demon had saved her life, and she wasn't quite as contemptible
as her opponents would have people believe. Sighing, she locked the tape
away in her safe, and settled back to continue her convalescence.
Alex stared at Kulain. This discussion had been a bad idea, and Mulder
had been all too happy to leave them in private. Alex felt like a damned
soul. There was a lost, desperate expression on his face. "I hate you!"
he whispered, dropping his head so he wouldn't have to look at Kulain.
"Alex."
There was such gentle reproach and absolution in that one word. The
young man was only half aware that he was crying, sobs catching in his
throat. "You called me property.... They said I was nothing to you, just
another possession."
"Do you doubt that you belong to me Alex?"
The agent shook his head. He looked at his protector in desperate
misery, as the hot tears ran down his cheeks. "You're changing us! Using
us! What we want doesn't matter to you!"
Green demon eyes, so like his own, stared into space for long minutes.
Alex caught his breath as the demon turned his face towards his lover. A
tear tracked its way down the inhumanly beautiful face, belying Alex's
accusation.
"Life will never be easy for us, Alex."
With a sad little smile, Kulain stood, and turned to face Alex. He
slowly held out his arms towards the younger man. Alex didn't remember
flinging himself forward, only that Kulain's protective arms closed
around him, and he was held so closely that he could feel the tension in
his lover's body.
"I love you Alex!" Kulain sounded so fierce.
Alex knew now what he wanted from Kulain.
"It's enough. I can live with that!" Alex whispered.
For now
Mulder peered in a few minutes later. Alex had been known to start
throwing things when he was in a temper, and the thought of Kulain
getting angry was too frightening to consider. Alex and Kulain were
wrapped in each others' arms, and Kulain was murmuring endearments to
the other man. Mulder started to withdraw, not wanting to interfere in
their reconciliation. But Kulain's sharp eyes missed nothing, and he
called out Mulder's name. Alex watched him as he approached. His eyes
were red rimmed from crying, and Mulder felt his protective instincts
come to the fore.
"Tell Alex what we've been discussing, my Fox."
Mulder slipped an arm around Alex's waist, and felt the younger man
shift against him, leaning closer in trusting intimacy.
"We've been talking about my apartment. Do you think it's a little
cramped?" Alex made a noise somewhere between a snort and a laugh, but
didn't lift his head off Kulain's shoulder.
"I take it that means yes. Kulain wants us to get a bigger place.
Believe it or not, he's been house hunting. He's seen a house he wants
to buy. It'll give us a bit more space and privacy, so we're not always
living in each other's back pockets. There's even room for a certain
feline in the basement, if we want to keep an eye on her."
"It's up to you Alex," Kulain said softly.
"Sounds good to me!" Alex said, finally lifting his head. Then he
grinned wickedly. "But I get to do the interior design!"
"You did it then!" Kulain studied the not-reflection in his mirror.
Talking this way to Amara was always preferable to being face to face
with her. Already, Kulain could see that indefinable glow in her face
that gave a clue to her condition. Humans and his kind were disturbingly
alike in some ways. Her fingers crept down to rest on her abdomen, as
yet, perfectly flat. She smiled in satisfaction.
"Did you think I wouldn't, Kulain? You knew what you were doing when you
chose him. Genetically perfect in every way. It must have taken a lot of
research to find him."
Rage simmered in her son's green eyes.
"And would you turn me away, while I carry his child?" she purred.
"If he finds out the truth, I'll kill you!" There was something in the
quiet words that turned the threat into a promise. She gave an
acknowledgement.
"Admit it! You're as curious as I am, to see what his genes are like in
combination with our own!" He responded with a glare.
"You will have a safe place ready for me soon?" She knew she had won
this round. "I would not choose to be helpless among humans."
He nodded, then with a wordless growl broke the connection between them.
Dark Angel's Fire
by Megaera
Predators
Definition of a predator : one who preys. One who occupies the highest
position in the web of life. A carnivore.
