Vienen

Rewritten by Tiffany and Jaz

Oil Exploration Rig
Beaufort Sea
Near Prudhoe Bay

Despite the cold night, Kiawak Ashoona stands on the deck of the
oil exploration rig. Wrapped in his parka, he barely feels the
biting wind whipping around the ocean surrounding him. He looks
out into the moonlit night, appreciating the view of nothingness
on all sides. Closing his eyes for a moment, he lifts his head to
the sky and opens them to take in the blanket of stars above.
Relaxed and refreshed, he turns to return below deck to sleep.

Kiawak strolls across the deck, in no hurry to leave the outdoors
and return to the stale, recycled air below. Looking to the right
as he walks, the young man sees a figure by the wellhead.
Instinctively, he ducks behind the stairs leading to the upper
deck and peers around the corner. The scrawny man is looking at
the ground right by the wellhead. He steps slowly around it,
never looking up. Kiawak covers his mouth to stifle his startled
gasp when the man jerks suddenly and falls backward onto the
floor. He crawls backward frantically, obviously terrified of
whatever he found.

The young Indian rushes out of his hiding place to help, but
stops suddenly when he takes the scene in. A pool of oil is
creeping out of the wellhead, almost as if it was alive. "It
can't be," Kiawak whispers to himself, horrified.

The oil continues moving, crawling up the man's skin now, who
Kiawak recognizes as Mike Killner. Mike scrambles to his feet and
tries to get the oil off his body, flailing his arms wildly. His
body goes completely stiff, every muscle in his body tensed, and
then suddenly relaxes.

Mike turns around and spots Kiawak, still staring at him just a
few yards away. He walks toward the frightened man stiffly. As he
gets closer, Kiawak gets a good look into the man's face. Mike's
eyes have a black cloud of oil running over them, and his
features are oddly stiff.

Killner stops for a moment, then continues moving towards Kiawak.
Turning quickly, Kiawak sprints away. His one hope is to go below
deck for help from the other men, but Mike is standing right in
his path to the stairs. He twists and turns through the deck,
hoping to pull Killner far enough away from the stairs that he
can get down there himself. At every turn, he looks over his
shoulder, checking the distance between them.

Breathing heavily, he turns a corner and runs straight into
Killner. Even though Kiawak outweighs him and is in much better
shape, the blow doesn't even seem to faze the older man. Kiawak
falls to the floor, and before he can regain his senses, Killner
is standing above him. His eyes close and he seems to be
concentrating hard. Then his entire body begins to glow brightly.
Kiawak covers his eyes against the blinding light, but pain
courses through his entire body and he lets out a blood-curdling
scream.

*	*	*

J. Edgar Hoover Building Washington, D.C.

John Doggett walks into the X-files office. It's early, but
Doggett can see signs that someone has been here for several
hours now. The entire room smells of stale coffee, and there is a
napkin with a small mound of sunflower seeds sitting on the desk.
Papers are strewn everywhere and the empty leather chair behind
the desk is pushed back and to the side.

The office is empty. As Doggett looks to the right, he feels a
tap on his left shoulder and jumps.

"Dammit!"

Doggett turns to see Mulder standing just behind him, holding a
nearly empty coffee mug. Mulder is frantically swiping at the
spreading coffee stain over the crotch and right thigh of his
pants.

"Sorry about that, Agent Mulder," Doggett says, grimacing.

Mulder slams his now nearly-empty coffee mug down on the closest
table and begins pulling tissues out of a nearby box as quickly
as possible.  He carefully sponges at his sodden crotch, wincing
slightly.  Cleaned up as best he can, Mulder tosses the tissues
into the trashcan, then gives Doggett a resentful stare before he
walks to his desk and carefully sits down in his chair. He
doesn't invite Doggett to sit.  He lifts a file from one of the
many piles on the desk and begins reading.  Mulder's body
language conveys that this is his turf and Doggett is not
welcome.

Doggett frowns slightly.  Moving towards the desk, he places his
hands on his hips as he says, "Agent Mulder, what are you doing
here?  We both know this place is off-limits to you and I don't
want my ass in a sling because you don't follow orders."

Mulder watches Doggett for a moment, not answering him.  His eyes
appear to be measuring Doggett.  Doggett doesn't look away from
his scrutiny.  Finally, he passes a folder over the table to him.
"I have something for you to see, Agent Doggett." He waits for
Doggett to open the cover.

"That is Kiawak Ashoona," Mulder says. Doggett stares at the
mutilated corpse as Mulder continues. "He was an Inupiat Eskimo
who worked at an oil exploration facility in the Beaufort Sea
near the Northern Slope region of Alaska. A fisherman found his
body three days ago. It's being shipped to the FBI and should
arrive today or tomorrow."

"I thought Eskimos didn't want oil drilling up there?" Doggett
asks.

"The Inupiats own some of the land on the Northern Slope and have
been after the government for years to let them drill.  They
don't believe it to be a threat to the land or wildlife."

"So what happened to him?"

Doggett hears rustling behind him and turns in his seat to see
Scully standing behind him, looking at the file over his
shoulder. "He appears to have burns consistent with exposure to a
very intense source of radiation."  Mulder smiles faintly but the
smile fades when Scully leans over Doggett's shoulder, her face
in close proximity to his.

"May I?" she asks Doggett, her hand on the file.  He nods and
releases the file to her.

"What's your theory?" Doggett asks.

"Oh, I believe they struck oil.  Just not the kind they were
looking for," Mulder answers circumspectly.

"The Black Oil," Doggett states, his face registering his
disbelief and impatience.

"You've read that file?" Mulder asks, his eyebrows lifting
slightly in feigned surprise.

"He's read all the files, Mulder," Scully answers, her voice
carrying a hint of reproach.

"Yes, I've read the file," Doggett replies, glancing at Scully.
They make eye contact for a moment, but her eyes are unreadable.
Doggett turns to look at the picture again.

"But, Agent Mulder," Doggett continues. "There is most likely
another, more reasonable, explanation for that man's condition."

"Then why are you assigned to the X-Files, Agent Doggett?
Working here requires a willingness to accept the unexplained, to
believe the unbelievable," Mulder accuses.

Scully quickly interrupts.  "Whatever either of you think the
explanation is, the fact is that this man was murdered.  And we
need to find out why, and by whom."

Mulder breaks the stare he was leveling at Doggett to turn his
attention to Scully.  She lifts her eyebrow, and Mulder
understands her unspoken message.  When he speaks again to
Doggett, his voice has tempered somewhat.

"Well, Agent Doggett, you're going to get a chance to prove your
theory because we're heading to Alaska."

"We?" Doggett repeats.  "Since I doubt Agent Scully's doctor is
too keen on her flying anywhere, I have to assume you're talking
about yourself and the mouse in your pocket, because I know I
haven't submitted a 302 for a trip to Alaska yet.  And seeing as
how you're not supposed to be working on the X-Files, the chances
of any such 302 getting approved are slim to none and slim just
left town."

"Which is why we're not submitting one," Mulder replies, smiling
slightly. Doggett glances again at Scully, seeing her frown as
Mulder continues. "Sometimes you just have to go with your gut,
Agent Doggett."

"Sounds to me like the only thing about that strategy that's
easier is the path to the unemployment line.  I don't know about
you, but seems to me Kersh doesn't really need much more of a
reason to see the X-Files shut down, and you're talking about
handing it to him on a silver platter.  You so eager to be out of
a job so soon after returning, Agent Mulder?"

Mulder's jaw tightens for just a moment, and Doggett knows he's
struck a chord.  "Sometimes that's the risk we have to take.
Welcome to life on the X-Files, Agent Doggett."

A tense silence settles between them, until Scully breaks it.

"I'll stay behind and autopsy the body when it arrives, Mulder.
That may give us a clue as to the 'why,'" Scully says.  Mulder
nods in reply.

"I'll meet you at the airport in an hour," Mulder says.

Doggett turns to leave.  Just as he's about to close the door,
Mulder calls out to him.

"Agent Doggett - "

Doggett pokes his head back in the door.

" - bring your mittens." He can see Scully hide a smile as he
turns away.

*	*	*

Oil Exploration Rig Beaufort Sea Near Prudhoe Bay

Bo Taylor stands above deck, searching the skyline for something.
He sees a black spot come over the mountains and veer towards
him. Sighing, he walks over to the landing pad to wait. As he
watches, the helicopter approaches and stops right above the mark
on the ground. Turning away from the whipping wind, he watches
out of the corner of his eye as the helicopter touches down. The
door closest to him opens and two men jump out, wearing heavy
parkas with the hoods up covering their heads. One of the men
reaches back into the cabin and pulls out two backpacks and
shoulders one, tossing the other to the ground. He then walks
over to where Bo is waiting. The second man pauses for just a
moment before reaching down and picking the bag up. He slams the
cabin door shut and follows.

Bo waits for a minute while the helicopter lifts off again and
starts to disappear over the horizon. He then turns to the two
men before him. "Agents Mulder and Doggett?" he asks, not sure
which is which.

The second man nods curtly. "I'm Agent Doggett," he clarifies.
"This is Agent Mulder. You Bo Taylor?"

Bo nods. "That's right." He shakes hands with both men. "Have a
good flight up?" At their nod, he continues. "I have to say, I'm
surprised to see the FBI taking an interest in something like
this. We're a long way from Washington, D.C."

"We understand that this is an oil exploration rig," the first
man, Mulder replies, "and that you think you may have recently
struck oil."

Bo's eyes light up at the memory. "There's no maybe about it. If
we can get the government to allow it, we're sitting on a gold
mine." He turns then and looks over his shoulder, indicating the
two FBI agents should follow him down below deck. They do so,
struggling with their bulky bags in the narrow hallway.

"Mr. Taylor, you want to tell us exactly what happened with
Kiawak Ashoona?" Doggett asks.

Bo keeps walking, but slows his pace some as he thinks. "I'm not
sure what I can tell you, Agent Doggett. Kiawak was only here for
about six months. He seemed to be working out fine. After we
found we were getting close to the oil, he started acting real
strange. One day we'd found he'd just disappeared.  We didn't
know what happened to him until we heard from you guys."

"In what way was he acting strange?" Mulder asks.

Bo stops at an intersection and turns to look at the two men. "He
started getting these crazy ideas, hallucinations almost, that
people were out to get him, things like that," he replies. "We
tried talking sense to him, but he wouldn't listen.  Next thing
we know, he's gone.  We searched this rig high and low for him -
there are a lot of places someone could stay hidden in a place
like this - but we didn't find him.  Then you guys called and
told me he was dead."

The answer seems to satisfy Mulder, but when Bo turns to continue
his journey into the rig, he sees Mulder glance at Doggett and
the two exchange a meaningful look.

After navigating the men through a maze of hallways, Bo finally
stops in front of a nondescript door. He opens it and gestures
for the agents to enter.

The room is just as unremarkable as the door suggested. Compact,
it managed to hold two beds, a table, two chairs, two dressers,
and not much else. Doggett sets his bag on the bed to the left
and then shrugs his coat off. It makes it to his wrists before he
grabs it again and pulls it back around him.

"Awful cold in here - don't you guys heat this place?" he asks.

Bo looks at him for a moment. "Well, normally we do, but we've
had some problems with heat in the past few days. We're making do
until more supplies come from the mainland."

Doggett shrugs and turns to look around the room.

"So, do you guys want to rest up some? I know it was kind of a
long trip for you," Bo asks.

Both men open their mouths to speak, but Mulder gets there first.
"We're fine, Mr. Taylor. Why don't we get right to work and look
at the crew manifest? We can start by talking to the crew and
having a look around."

Taylor nods, and leads them back down the hall to another room.
This time, the room, though not much larger than the one they had
just left, was set up like an office. Taylor walks behind the
desk and looks through a few drawers before finding a stack of
papers. He hands them to Mulder over the desk. "Here you go." He
then places his hands on the desktop, leaning slightly forward.
"Just let me know if I can be of any more assistance," he adds.

Doggett nods to Bo in acknowledgement, but Mulder is already
engrossed in the manifest and doesn't seem to even notice. Taylor
watches them leave as they shut the door behind them. He blinks
twice. A black film floats over his eyes.

*	*	*

J. Edgar Hoover Building Washington D.C. Autopsy Bay 3

Clad in blue scrubs and mask, Scully leans over an autopsy table
holding the body of Kiawak Ashoona.  Making a small incision at
the scalp, she jumps backward as a black, oily substance oozes
from the cut.  She gasps in surprise and the scalpel in her hand
drops to the floor.  Backing away from the table, her eyes are
glued to the oil which continues to ooze from Ashoona.  Her back
hits the door to the room and she quickly turns the knob and
throws herself through the door, slamming it behind her.  Scully
leans heavily against the door, her breath coming in quick gasps.
Pulling the mask from her mouth, she spies the latex gloves on
her hands and, in fear, rips them from her hands.  Pulling out
her cellphone from her pocket she makes a quick call.

"This is Agent Dana Scully.  I have a quarantine situation in
Autopsy Bay 3."  She listens for a moment.

"Yes, I'll be here.  Please hurry."

*	*	*

J. Edgar Hoover Building Washington, D.C. Autopsy Bay 3

Scully turns away from the table holding the body of Kiawak
Ashoona with a heavy sigh. The body is now encased in a plastic
tent and Scully is wearing a HazMat suit.  Leaving the tent, she
heads through a set of double doors .  The two pair of latex
gloves she's wearing are tossed into a nearby hazardous materials
container.  Turning, she studies the faint outline of the body
through the plastic tent for a moment, absently rubbing the small
of her back.  Finally, she turns and heads through another pair
of doors to a lab.

Reaching over the table, she grabs two more pairs of latex gloves
and puts them on.  She takes a vial sitting on the table and
looks at it closely, inspecting the contents.  She shakes it
gently, and then  holds it to the light as the liquid settles.
The black liquid coats the glass, but slides down to join the
puddle at the bottom easily.  Scully prepares a slide, then
recaps the vial tightly. She sets the slide on the microscope and
looks at it for a moment.

After a few moments, she pulls back, a grim expression in her
eyes. Steeling herself with a deep breath, she gingerly looks
again.  This time her brow furrows in puzzlement.

Pulling away again, she grabs at her cell phone, keeping her eye
on the microscope. She dials in a number and waits.

"Hi, Mike? It's Dana Scully. I need you to patch a line from the
oil rig Agents Mulder and Doggett are investigating to my cell
phone. Would that be too much trouble?"

Agent Mike Stem's voice booms through the receiver to her. "No
problem at all, Agent Scully. It'll take a few minutes though."

"That's fine. Call me when it's ready, please." With that she
hangs up and into the microscope, then back at the body. After a
moment of uncertainty, she grabs a magnifying lens and returns to
the body. Placing a mask over her mouth, she bends close to
Kiawak's head. With a scalpel in her other hand, she gently pokes
at the brain matter, trying to find... she isn't sure what.

She makes a small incision just above the right ear, and steps
back involuntarily as a small pool of black oil spills out of the
tissue. It doesnt do anything though, and just sits on the
autopsy table, like any other liquid. Scully cautiously pokes her
scalpel into the oil, half expecting it to jump up onto her skin,
and breathes a sigh of relief when nothing happens.

The ringing of her cell jerks her upright again, and she pulls
her now-bloody gloves off before answering the phone. "Scully."

"Got that patch for you, Agent Scully," Agent Stem announces.

"Thanks. Put him through, please."

*	*	*

Oil Exploration Rig Beaufort Sea Near Prudhoe Bay

"Agent Mulder?" Taylor knocks on the open door to the room where
Mulder and Doggett sit, poring over the list manifesto.

"Yeah?" he stands.

"You got a radio call. Want to come with me?"

"Sure." Mulder looks back at Doggett, who's already returned to
the manifesto. Turning back to Taylor, Mulder follows the man
down the labyrinth of hallways to the communications room. "I
think I'm getting the layout of this place down," Mulder tells
Taylor, more to make conversation than anything else.

"That's great. It just takes a little bit of time. Would you like
me to wait you, to make sure you don't get lost on your way
back?" Taylor aks as they reach the room.

Mulder shakes his head, "No, I think I've got it, thanks," then
pushes into the room.

It is another bare, windowless room, with two tables full of
radio equipment and a rickety looking chair sitting in front of
them. Mulder sits down and grabs the radio receiver towards him.
Pushing down on the transmission button, he calls out, "Hello?"

"Mulder?" Scully's voice responds back to him.

"Scully, glad you called," he smiles. "I'm freezing up here."

"Well, what I have to tell you isn't likely to make the situation
any better, Mulder."

A knock behind him makes him turn back to the door. Doggett is
standing at the threshold. Mulder acknowledges his presence, then
turns back to the radio. Behind him, he hears Doggett step into
the room and come up behind him.

"You were right, Mulder. Ashoona was infected with the same virus
we saw in Texas," Scully tells him.

Mulder's lips press together in a grim line as he absorbs this
information. Doggett taps him on the shoulder and Mulder turns
around for a second to see the confused look in the agents eyes.
Ignoring it, he grabs the microphone again.

"Are you all right?"

"Yes.  It gave us a scare for a while, but there's been no
contamination."

Mulder closes his eyes briefly in relief.  When he opens them, he
asks, "How is that possible?"

"That's the intriguing part, Mulder.  The virus was no longer
viable. It was dead."

"Dead? Are you sure?"

"Postive, Mulder. But I haven't yet been able to determine what
killed it. I think you should evacuate the rig and quarantine the
workers. Some or all of the workers may be infected."

Mulder shakes his head. "If we leave the rig, we may never know
what theyve found or what they intend to do with the oil."

"Its not worth the risk." Scullys frustration can be heard
through the static on the radio. "We know what it does."

"Which is exactly why I need to find out what's going on up here.
Find out what killed that virus, Scully."

"Mulder, please," Scully says softly, her voice conveying  what
she cannot say over the open line.

Mulder's silence speaks volumes to Scully.

"Mulder - "

He interrupts Scully, his eyes on Doggett.

"Gotta go, Scully.  Let me know when you find something."  He
ends the connection. Doggett is impatiently waiting for answers
from Mulder.

"The virus in Texas?" questions Doggett.  "The one Agent Scully
was infected with?"

"The very one," replies Mulder.

"And this is the virus that's supposed to turn people into alien
monsters."  Doggett's derision is evident.

"No," replies Mulder with exaggerated patience, "it gestates an
alien monster, it doesn't turn you into one.  Very important
difference there, Doggett."

"Whatever. If Agent Scully says that people on this rig are
infected, then we need to quarantine them."

"If we do that, we may never find out where the oil is or who
wants it."

"We need to get these people someplace they can be treated,"
Doggett bites out angrily, "If we wait, they might not be able to
recover."

Mulder shakes his head.  "There's only one cure we know of, Agent
Doggett, and we don't have it.  I'm not writing off these men but
if we just leave and don't find out what they're planning to do
with the oil, more than just these men on this rig will lose
their lives."

The men face off in the small room. The only sound is the static
from the forgotten radio next to them. Finally, Doggett breaks
the silence. "We'll make a compromise, Agent Mulder," he says,
"we'll quarantine the rig but we'll hold off evacuating until we
hear back from Agent Scully.  That a deal?"

Mulder nods.

Doggett hands Mulder the crew manifest he'd been holding.  "From
what I've seen, everyone on the list appears to be accounted for
- except this guy."  He points to a name on the list - Toonoo
Sharky.  "I asked the crew about him and no one's seen him for
days.  He was good friends with Ashoona.  The crew says they're
from the same tribe."

"Then let's go find him."

Outside the room, Taylor is listening intently to the
conversation.  Now he gives two sharp raps on the door before
entering.

"I was just thinking you boys might want some chow," Taylor says.

Doggett and Mulder exchange a glance.  "Uh, sure.  Yeah, okay,"
Doggett replies.  "I'm hungry.  What about you, Agent Mulder?"

Mulder's eyes are narrowed slightly as he studies Taylor.  He
looks towards the open door for a moment before replying, "Sounds
good."

Taylor turns to lead them from the room.  "Follow me."

Doggett steps close to Mulder and says in a low voice, "You
wonderin' how long he's been standing out there?"  Mulder nods.
"Me, too," replies Doggett.

They turn and leave the room.

*	*	*

J. Edgar Hoover Building Washington, D.C. Autopsy Bay 3

Scully hangs up her cell phone and rubs her forehead in
frustration. She stands up again and slowly makes her way back to
the body. There has to be some sort of clue in there.

She decides that the brain is the place to start, considering the
large collection of the dead virus she found in there. Grabbing
her scalpel once again, she makes a small incision in the tissue
and lets the oil spill out before continuing on.

*	*	*

Oil Exploration Rig Beaufort Sea Near Prudhoe Bay

Doggett pushes his tasteless meal around on his tray and looks at
Mulder. Theyre the only two men left in the mess hall, and it
affords them more privacy than theyd had all day.

"So what are you thinking, Agent Mulder?" Doggett asks.

"Im wondering where this other crew member is, Agent Doggett."
Mulder responds. "Toonoo Sharky. He was friends with Kiawak, and
Im guessing hes the key to all of this."

"Let's split up - it'll go faster," Doggett suggests.  The
somewhat antagonistic look he and Mulder exchange suggest there
may be more reasons to split up than just speed.

"Well, then, theres our plan," Mulder declares, standing up from
the table.

Doggett looks at Mulders back for a second before following.

"Ill start from here and go up, you go down." Mulder heads
towards the door.

"Wait..." Doggett calls out.  Mulder turns around.  "You know
where you're going?"

Mulder nods.  "Don't you?" he asks in feigned concern.

Doggett hesitates briefly before nodding.  "Yeah.  No problem,
Agent Mulder."

Mulder turns and leaves the room.

Doggett stands, bewildered for a few seconds, in the empty room,
then turns and exits out the other door.

"Well, I guess I'd better find some stairs," he says softly aloud
to himself as he leaves the mess hall.

*	*	*

Mulder walks out of the mess hall and starts walking down the
halls. He has no idea where he's going but didn't want to let
Doggett know that.  After several fruitless turns, he spots a
faded map of the rig taped to a wall.

"Yessss..." he says, inspecting and memorizing the map.  He turns
and heads back the way he came.  At the end of a hallway, he sees
a room marked for "Authorized Personnel Only." After a cursory
look around, he cautiously turns the door handle and steps
inside.

The room is devoid of people.  Computers and electronic equipment
cover a few scattered tables.  Mulder looks at one machine, then
another, slowly making a pass of the room. Some papers are
stacked beside a computer.  Mulder picks up the small stack and
begins leafing through it.  He stops at a printout of a long list
of numbers.  Mulder quickly leafs through other papers on the
table until he comes across a map.  He studies it, comparing the
numbers with the map.

Mulder sucks in a breath as he realizes the enormity of the
situation.

The map in front of him shows the Northern Alaskan shoreline. The
location of the rig is marked with a red "X". In his hands, he
holds a printout with several latitude and longitudinal points.
Following them on the map, he traces a large oval onto the paper.
The points surround the rigs location.

Folding both papers tightly in his hands, Mulder leaves the room
and rushes for the stairs.

*	*	*

Doggett is searching dark hallways and empty rooms when he sees a
door marked "Boiler Room."  The door is unlocked, but the room is
completely dark. Doggett pulls out his penlight and switches it
on before he enters. It is eerily quiet inside and Doggett steps
cautiously further into the room. Even as he tries to be silent,
the sound of his feet stepping on the floor seems obnoxiously
loud.

Doggett shines his light around the room and realizes Bo Taylor
had been lying to them - the boiler room was completely
destroyed. There was no way, with the resources on board, that
this room could become operational again. The control board had
been smashed beyond recognition, and the boilers themselves had
been damaged in ways Doggett couldnt even comprehend.

Pulling his jacket tighter around his body, Doggett continues his
tour of the destroyed room. He turns a corner to face back
towards the entrance and starts moving towards the light that
trickles into the room from the open door. As he passes one of
the white boilers, he sees his shadow pass across it. Then, a
flicker of a shadow next to his. As he turns to see where it is
coming from, something heavy hits him from behind and he
collapses to the deckplate, unconscious.

*	*	*

Mulder stands outside the communications room anxiously waiting
for the officer to finish his daily call so he can use the radio.
Standing still takes too much energy so he begins pacing the
hallway. Eight steps one way, turn, sixteen steps the other, turn
sixteen steps back the first way, turn, repeat.

After an eternity, the door opens and the comunications officer
steps into the hallway. "Shes all yours, son," the grizzled old
man mutters, pulling a pack of cigarettes out of his parka
pocket. "Get your kicks while you can, though. Storms coming in
and thatll mess with the communication lines like you wouldnt
believe."

Mulder nods his thanks, and then steps into the room. He waits as
he gets patched to Scullys cell phone.

"Mulder, is that you?"

"Scully, something huge is going on here."

"Listen to what I have to say first." Her voice leaves no room
for argument. "I think that Kiawak had some sort of immunity to
the oil. He had it in his body for who knows how long, but he
never showed any signs of infection. And the fact that the oil
didnt show any of the normal signs that we see - I dont know
exactly how that is, but its the only explanation I have for
it."

"It makes sense, Scully. Why would the infected workers want to
kill him? Because he was the only way to kill them. Their
kryptonite, so to speak."

"So the other workers tried to infect him and when they figured
out that they couldnt, and also that HE could kill THEM, they
decided to take the offensive and kill him first?"

"Exactly, Scully. Heres the other thing. Theres one man on
board whos as yet unaccounted for. Hes from the same tribe as
Kiawak. Ill bet hes also immune to this virus."

"What makes - think that?" A burst of static cuts through the
line.

"Because of the other thing I found, Scully. This rig is sitting
on a huge oil deposit. What if all of this oil was infected? It
would make sense that the Eskimos from this area would have a
built-in immunity to the biggest threat to their tribe. Id bet
that this oil surfaced several times in the past, and each time,
the Eskimos survived because of their immunity."

"Makes sense, Mulder. But what - going to do about this rig? We
cant let - bring up all of - crude oil if theres - slightest
risk of - containing the virus. - one infected person on - got
out into the population - "  Static is continually cutting into
the line and appears to be getting worse.

"Im working on that, Scully," Mulder tries to reassure her,
hoping the static isnt as bad on her end. "The biggest thing
right now is that a storms coming up here. Im not sure how long
we have until communications are going to be down completely. As
it is, youre breaking up right now."

"So - Mulder," comes the reply.

"Scully!" Mulder calls into the microphone. "Scully, do you
copy?"

Through the buzz of static, Mulder hears bits of Scullys voice
coming through the receiver, but he cant understand a word shes
saying. He wonders how much of what he said got through to
Washington.

He bangs the microphone down on the table in frustration and then
goes to tell Bo that communications are down.

*	*	*

An exploding pain wakes Doggett from his comfortable slumber.
Squeezing his eyes shut against the pain, he realizes he is lying
on the cold metal floor, and the memory of the attack rushes back
to him. He pulls himself to his knees before bending over at the
waist, laying his throbbing head on the cool floor.

He reaches back with one hand to rub the already appearing bump
on his head. A voice to his right calls out timidly, "Youre
awake?"

Doggett sits up cautiously and looks towards the direction of the
voice. "Yeah, Im up. Youre the guy who hit me?"

"Im very sorry." The man crawls out from the shadows, and stands
in the sliver of light from the door. Hes a short man, with dark
hair and frightened eyes. He looks as though he hasnt showered
or shaved in days.

"Let me guess. Toonoo." Its not a question.

"Yes."

The younger man nods in reply and then steps close to Doggett,
who sees a razor glint in the small shaft of light. Before
Doggett knows what's going on, Toonoo reaches out and grabs
Doggett's hand, makes a shallow cut, and watches as blood oozes
out. Doggett pulls his hand away and presses his mouth against
the wound, trying to staunch the blood flow.

"Im sorry," the Eskimo murmurs again. "I just had to be sure-"

"Of what?" Doggett lets his hand of his mouth long enough to ask
angrily.

"Please," Toonoo begs. "You need to help me. Ive been hiding
like this ever since I found out- ever since Kiawak was-"

"Why?" Doggett is confused.

"I was sure theyre going to get me next. When I was growing up,
there was a legend that my family told me of a demon that came in
the form of a black oil. It would come up from the earth and
invade the intruder, possessing him and turning him into a
monster."

"Weve heard of this oil," Doggett reassures him. "Its not just
from here."

Toonoo continues as if he hadnt even heard Doggett. "We believed
that the oil was trapped far below the ground many years ago,
because of the cold. It needs heat to survive, and its too cold
above ground for it to prosper. So we were safe. After I was ten
or so, I never believed that story, but then, I started working
here. And ever since we hit oil, thats when these things have
started happening."

"Whos infected?" Doggett asks.

"Everyone. Everyone except Kiawak and me. We dont know why. But
now, Kiawak is dead, and I-" Toonoo bows his head for a moment,
and then lifts it back up to face Doggett. "Thats why I ruined
the boiler room. I needed to make the rig cold, so that this,
this thing, could be controlled. I didnt know what else to do."

Doggett is silent, thinking things through. "They killed him
because he had immunity to this virus?" At Toonoos nod, he
continues. "Its probable that if he had immunity, then he had
the means for killing it. Which means you do too."

"Which is why they want to kill me. Please, please sir, you have
to get me off this rig. I need to get to the mainland, back home.
Its the only place Im safe. If I stay here much longer, theyll
be sure to find me, and then Im dead. Please, I have a wife and
three children."

Doggett looks into the other mans eyes and only hesitates for a
moment. "Yeah, come on. Lets go find my partner and then well
get the hell out of here."

*	*	*

J. Edgar Hoover Building Washington D.C.

"I dont care what the weather report says," Scully declares
angrily to her cell phone and everyone else in the crowded
hallway. "There are two Federal Agents who need an airlift out of
the Beaufort Sea as soon as possible... Well, there has to be a
break in the storm soon... Dammit... Just get them out as soon as
possible." She breaks the connection with disgust and continues
down the hallway.

She strides into Skinner's outer office and passes the
secretarys desk. The blonde woman looks up from her paperwork
with an impersonal smile. It quickly disappears when she realizes
that the agent is completely ignoring her.

"Agent Scully, AD Skinner is in a meeting. He asked not to be
disturbed. You cant go in-"

Scully continues to ignore her and barrels into the inner office.
"Sir, I need to speak with you..." She trails off as she sees two
senior agents sitting at the table with the AD, interrupted from
what seemed to be an important meeting.

Skinner looks at her and then back at the two men. "Agents, lets
take a short break for lunch and get back to this later." With
that, he turns away from the table and dismisses them. They
gather their papers and leave the room quickly.

"What is it, Scully?" Skinner asks as the door shuts. He walks
back over to his desk and stands beside it.

"I have reason to believe that Agents Doggett and Mulder are in
trouble, Sir," she informs him. "Theyre on a rig in the Arctic
that has several members infected with a virus caused by-" she
looks at him for a moment then stops her sentence. "A storm is
coming in, and the Coast Guard is refusing to send a helicopter
in because of the risk it runs of getting hit on the return trip.
They wont go in until the first clearing, and that wont be at
least for another 24 hours. Thatll be too late, Sir." Her plea
is more of a demand than a request.

Skinner nods, then punches the intercom. "Kimberly, can you get
me Tom Barrett on the phone, please? Thanks." He looks at Scully,
then clears his throat. "Im pretty sure well be able to work
something out, Agent Scully. Relax."

Scully nods her head and lets out a pent-up breath, but she cant
seem to let the tension go. When the phone rings, she starts a
tiny bit before composing herself again.

"Skinner... Tom! Howve you been! Yeah its been a while now.
Ive been well here, yeah. Yeah. Listen, I had a favor to ask
you. Yeah I know itll cost me... how does dinner sound next time
youre in town? Great!"

Scully watches her boss talk to his old friend with a bit of
incredulity.

"Are you still the commander of the 17th Coast Guard District?
Wonderful. Listen, I have a bit of a situation on my hands that
could use your help. I have two agents up in the Arctic, on an
oil rig..."

Scully closes her eyes and breathes a sigh of relief.

*	*	*

Oil Exploration Rig Beaufort Sea Near Prudhoe Bay

Mulder strides through the corridors, searching for Doggett, but
trying to appear as inconspicuous as possible. Its not
difficult. The halls are deserted and he feels as though he is
the only person left on this rig.

"Agent Mulder!" a voice hisses behind him.

He turns to see Agent Doggett hurrying to him with a dark haired
man following. "Ive been looking for you," Mulder whispers. "Is
this Toonoo?" Doggett nods. "Lets go to our room so we can get
some privacy."

Doggett and Toonoo follow Mulder down the hallways back to a
bedroom. They reach the cramped room, and Mulder motions for
Toonoo to have a seat in the chair. "Youre immune to the virus,
arent you, Toonoo?"

He nods. "Yes. And I need to get off this rig. My lifes in
danger here."

"Theres another good reason to get you out of here. We have
never seen a natural immunity to this virus. We need to get you
to the mainland and figure out how your immunity works."

"Agent Mulder, what about the men who are already infected? What
are we going to do about them?" Doggett asks.

Mulder looks away for a moment, biting his lip in concentration.
He then turns back to the Indian. "Toonoo, do you know of a way
to blow this rig up?"

"Blow it up? Are you nuts?" Doggett is incredulous.

"Its the only thing we can do," Mulder remains calm. "We need to
blow this rig up or risk infecting the entire population."
Reaching into his jacket, he pulls out the map and printouts he
had taken earlier.  Shoving them into Doggetts hands, he says,
"Look.  Look at the size of it.  If we allow this rig to stand,
chances are someone is going to show up here to get that oil out.
We can't let that happen."

Doggett's eyes widen in amazement as he looks at the size of the
deposit.  After a moment, he again looks to Mulder.  "What about
the vaccine?" he asks, desperate for another chance to save the
crew.

"I wish I had it, Agent Dogget, but all we have is Toonoo's
immunity.  We have to get him off this rig alive."

"We cant blow it up! All those men will die!" Doggett points
towards the door for emphasis.

Mulder's face is deathly serious and old beyond his years as he
replies, "Agent Doggett, I've seen what this virus does - it
perverts and destroys.  Those men are already dead."

A silence falls over the room as Doggett measures the truth of
Mulder's words.  Mulder does not shrink from his scrutiny.

Finally, Doggett speaks, "What do we do?"

*	*	*

Boiler room

"If you tie these wires together, and then rig them to the wires
that Agent Doggett has in his hand, well be able to have a
connection to the onboard gas supply station. Once I strip these
wires and connect them to the rest, well have it set and ready
to go."

"I still think this is crazy," Doggett says, but he holds still
as Mulder connects their four wires together.

"Welcome to my world, Agent Doggett," Mulder mutters as he
concentrates on the bomb he is making.

"What the hell is going on in here?" Bo Taylor enters the room
with a yell. He shoves the door wide open, illuminating the
boiler room with light from the hallway. In his right hand,
Doggett can see a knife glinting against the light. He advances
on the group.

Doggett gets to his feet, ready to attack, but before he can step
forward, Toonoo rushes past him and barrels into Taylor. The two
men tumble to the ground and roll into the dark. Doggett runs
over to help Toonoo.

Mulder is still kneeling by the wires, now holding the ones
Toonoo had indicated earlier. He uses his penknife to strip the
wires, then wraps them around each other. Grabbing the next set
of wires, he repeats the process, moving as quickly as he can.

Toonoo is kneeling above Taylor, trying to get rid of the knife
in Taylors hand. Suddenly, Toonoo gasps and falls backward into
the light. Doggett steps forward to see him holding the knife,
now embedded in his chest. Taylor steps over his body, and moves
toward Doggett. Doggett throws the first punch, but Taylor
quickly moves away and kicks him in the stomach. Taylor gains the
advantage in the fight and Doggett crashes to the ground.  Taylor
presses his shoulders on top of him, black oil begins to well in
his eyes and drip from his mouth and nose.

Suddenly, Mulder, wielding a pipe, slams it into the side of
Taylor's head, knocking him off Doggett.  He lies on the floor
motionless.  Doggett, breathing hard, scrambles off the floor,
away from the black oil spattered by Taylor's head.  Mulder
doesn't say anything as Doggett meets his eyes, but they seem to
have reached a new understanding.

"We don't have much time," Mulder says, "the charges are ready to
blow."

"Then lets get out of here," Doggett replies.

They head for the door, Doggett casting one last amazed look at
the man on the floor behind them, a growing pool of oil now
surrounding him.

An explosion sounds behind them as they hit the door and they
both duck.  Outside the door in the hallway, a group of crewmen
are coming from the left.  When they see Mulder and Doggett, they
begin shouting and running toward them.

"Come on," Mulder says, as he turns to the right and begins
running.

Doggett follows as more explosions rock the rig behind them.
Mulder leads the way through the twisting hallways and decks of
the rig.  Doggett glances back occassionally at the men still
chasing them and gaining ground.

Finally, they reach the outer deck.  More explosions cause flames
to leap up into the night air.  The snow is swirling in the wind,
making Mulder and Doggett shout to be heard over the noise.

"Now what?" Doggett shouts.

"Now, we jump."  Mulder responds.

Doggett glances down into the dark water below them then back
behind them.  He looks at Mulder.

"Been nice knowin' ya, Agent Mulder," he shouts, half serious,
half sarcastic.

"Don't worry, Agent Doggett," Mulder responds caustically, "I've
got nine lives and I've only used eight."

With a slight grin, Doggett says, "On the count of three?"

Mulder nods.

"One..." Doggett shouts.  He glances down at the swirling water
below in trepidation.

"Two..."  He looks back up at Mulder who nods.  On the unspoken
"three", they leap from the rig into the water.  The rig explodes
behind them, fire enveloping the place they had just stood.

Through the snow, a helicopter banks to the right and follows
Mulder and Doggett down to the water.  They are pulled to safety
inside the helicopter.  Dripping wet, both Mulder and Doggett are
cocooned in blankets.

"Anyone else alive on that rig?" the pilot questions Mulder, his
voice raised to be heard over the sound of the blades.

Mulder locks eyes with Doggett.

"No one," replies Doggett.

The helicopter turns and heads away from the rig.

*	*	*

Washington D.C. J. Edgar Hoover Building

Mulder is sitting in Kersh's office.  His mouth is drawn into a
tight, angry line.  He and Kersh are the only ones in the room.

"Twenty-four men are dead, Agent Mulder," Kersh spits out, his
voice harsh and grating. "Men you were sent to help.  Can you
explain yourself?  Can you tell me how two Federal Agents allowed
a $125 million dollar rig to blow up?"  He pauses, waiting for an
answer.

"Agent Doggett had nothing to do with it," Mulder responds.  "I
made the call."

"YOU made the call," Kersh interrupts, even more livid at this
than he had been previously. He stops for a moment, seeming to
get himself under control.  When he speaks again, it is in a very
quiet, dangerous tone.  "It was never your 'call' to make."

Mulder doesn't speak.  They stare each other down in silence.
Kersh leans forward, placing his elbows on the desk, and finally
speaks.  "You are hereby indefinitely suspended from duty,
without pay, pending what I assure you will be a most thorough
and, more importantly, very long investigation, Agent Mulder."
Kersh's lips curl around Mulder's name as if it were profane.

Mulder quietly gets to his feet.  He reaches into his pocket and
pulls out his badge and a folded envelope.  Then he unclips his
gun from his belt and lays all three objects on Kersh's desk.

"What's this?" Kersh demands, gesturing to the envelope.

"My letter of resignation.  Effective immediately."

He turns his back and leaves the office, the quiet *snick* of the
door closing behind him somehow more final than if he had slammed
it.  Kersh stares at the badge and gun, his expression
unreadable.

*	*	*

J. Edgar Hoover Building Basement Office

Mulder is sitting at his desk, reading a newspaper.  Doggett
walks in the office.  Mulder tosses a newspaper to him.  "Read
the paper this morning?"

Doggett shakes his head as he glances at the page the paper is
folded to - A12.

"It seems the government has decided to expand the Arctic
National Wildlife Reserve," Mulder says.  He looks meaningfully
at Doggett.  "Right into the Beaufort Sea."

Comprehension dawns on Doggett's face.  "You're kidding," he says
as he quickly opens the newspaper and begins to scan the small
article.

"Whoever did this," Doggett says, "knows what's up there."

"Yep."

"The government is trying to cover it up."

"Bingo."

Doggett appears horrifed, yet resigned.  "We've got to find out
who."

"Not 'we', you, Agent Doggett.  I'm finished."

Doggett appears taken aback by Mulder's response.  "What do you
mean 'finished'?" Doggett says in disbelief.

"I'm out of the FBI.  I just quit."

"You quit?" asks a stunned Doggett.

"It was either suspension without pay while the FBI conducts what
I was assured would be a very extensive investigation or quit.  I
chose to quit.  I've done my part to save the world, now it's
your turn."

"But Agent Mulder, the X-Files are your life!" Doggett says,
still trying to understand what Mulder is telling him.

"Not anymore, Agent Doggett, not anymore."  Mulder smiles
slightly, his gaze shifting to behind Doggett.  Doggett hears the
now quite audible clicking of high heels walking towards the
office.  Doggett turns to see Scully coming in the open office
door.  Scully smiles at Doggett briefly before looking at Mulder.

"Ready to go, Mulder?" Mulder nods and picks up his coat.

He clasps Doggett'shand as he passes by him on the way to the
door. "Extreme possibilities, Doggett. Remember that."

The door shuts behind Mulder and Scully and Doggett opens his
hand.  Mulder had surruptitiously passed him something during
their handshake.  Resting in Doggett's palm is a silver cylindar
the size of a large pen.  Curious, Doggett turns it over,
discovering a small nearly-hidden button on one side.  He presses
the button and starts when a long, pointed spike slides out with
a small hiss.  Depressing the button again, the blade retracts
into the handle.  Doggett turns a confused gaze to the closed
door.


End.
