Subject: NEW STORY: A Deal With God Parts 1,2, & 3 / 3 Date: Thu, 26 Oct 1995 10:46:30 GMT You all know the drill. This story contains characters copyrighted by Chris Carter, and Ten Thirteen .... Blah, blah blah ..... No offence or copyright infringement intended. The rest of the characters and ideas are all mine and copyrighted 1995. The character of Jackie St. George, of course, belongs to Sheryl Martin and is used with her permission. And a tip of the hat to Mercedes Lackey. (If you've read any of the 'SERRAted Edge' novels, you'll know what for.) This is set just after my story 'The Vacation', and before the second season finale. Remember: while Scully knows that Will is a vampire, Mulder does not ... yet. X - Files A Deal With God - Part I. by Alasdair T. McLean The truth is out there 11:28pm. Washington D.C. Theresa Peters stood impatiently in the autoteller vestibule, waiting for the machine to give her the money she had requested. Brushing a strand of her red hair out of her eyes she became aware that she wasn't alone. A sudden rush of fear clutched at her heart as she slowly reached for the Taser that she kept hidden in her handbag in case of emergencies. The machine whirred, and she slowly and deliberately reached out and took the money she had requested, putting it into her purse just as slowly before turning round, her Taser ready to be used. "Are you alright?" the man facing her asked, his dark eyes widening slightly in alarm at the fear he saw in her face, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you." "No, it's okay, you didn't," she relaxed, not breaking eye contact as he moved slowly towards her. One step at a time until they were almost touching. She made no move to reclaim her personal space. She didn't feel threatened in any way. "I'm Theresa, and you are ...?" "My name is ......" Theresa Peters was never seen again .... alive. Her body was discovered in the autoteller vestibule the next morning. It had been almost completely drained of blood. 8:43am. F.B.I. Headquarters. Washington D.C. Dana Scully ignored the glances she received as she strolled through the J. Edgar Hoover building alongside her tall partner. She had the feeling that something ... unusual was going to happen sometime soon. Although what she would classify as unusual after working the X - Files with Fox Mulder for the past two years had changed dramatically. Most of the glances in her direction were simply because she was an attractive young woman, however, a few, and these were the few that annoyed her, were directed at the female agent who had picked up the nickname (oh, no one had dared to call it to her face) 'Mrs Spooky'. Privately, and she wouldn't admit this to anyone, not even to Mulder (especially to Mulder), she rather liked it. Mulder was telling her about a case involving a car that had shapeshifted into a horse and committed several violations of the local traffic code in Savannah. Her left eyebrow rose when she replied, laughing as much at the easy familiarity of the routine, as at the absurdity of his story, "That's impossible, Mulder, cars don't shapeshift." "Maybe it was a Transformer. You know, they're more than meets the eye," he suggested, matching her grin with one of his own as they stepped into the elevator. He pushed the button for the basement, looking down at her with his deep hazel eyes, just now sparkling with humour. His eyes could be so expressive, for a second her mind flashed back to the first time she had seen him after waking from coma in hospital: the relief and joy in his eyes had been immense, and, for the briefest of moments she thought she had seen something else there as well. "Seriously, Scully, people have said 'impossible' about a lot of things: cars travelling faster than thirty miles-an-hour, powered flight, circumnavigating the globe, men on the moon, ... microwave popcorn." They both enjoyed the laughter, after all that had happened to them, between them, it was healthy that they could still laugh like this. Even after all they had seen. The laughter died on Mulder's lips the second he noticed that the door to the office they shared was open. "I know I locked it," he muttered to himself. They pushed the door open slowly, warily. Not knowing whether to expect Assistant Director Skinner to be waiting for them or something much worse. What they found was something almost as bad as Skinner. One man, wearing a dark coloured suit, and of medium height and slender build with short, dark brown hair, and ice blue eyes that appeared older than his apparent twenty two or so years. Mulder cocked his head away from the door, indicating to Scully that they should try to flee back the way they came, "Maybe if we're quiet?" he whispered in her ear. She nodded. "You'll have to be very quiet then, Spooky," the voice of the young man startled them both, causing them to jump slightly. His voice was smoothly accented, the accent was Scots. "Will!" neither one of the agents could believe their eyes, "What are you doing in the States?" S.I. Will McCormack stood and crossed over to the two Americans, embracing them like the good friends they were. Stepping back he grabbed a crumpled file folder from the pocket of his overcoat which hung on the coatstand by the door, "Business, I'm afraid." He reached into the folder, withdrawing a pair of 8 by 10 photographs of a man apparently in his middle-thirties, with shoulder length dark hair, and dark brown eyes. Photographs that he handed to both agents. "His name," he said seriously, "is Matthew Carter. For the past eighty-two years he has been a member of Section 10's Operations Directorate, about a year ago he left. A week ago we tracked him to New York, and from there to D.C.. He appears to have gone rogue. I've been assigned to go after him." "Eighty-two years?" it was Scully, of course, who picked up on the apparent discrepancy. How could a man who looked no more than forty have worked for the Section for so long? "How is that possible?" Will met her gaze levelly, "He's a vampire, Dana," he said softly. "Ah," Scully nodded once and waited for him to continue. Mulder looked at her, surprised, a question in his hazel eyes. He would have expected her to put up more of a fight about the existence of vampires than 'ah'. "How do you know he is a vampire?" he asked, trying not to think about his own encounter with the Undead. Kristen.... "Because that much is in his file, that he held the rank of 'Special Investigator', that he was dead for one hundred and twenty-eight years, that he was Undead," Will saw the light go on behind Mulder's eyes, and could almost hear the thoughts in his friend's head, Will is a Special Investigator too.....? So, he took a deep breath and began to explain, "There are basically two types of people who work in the Ops Directorate: Investigators, and Special Investigators. Investigators are normal people, like you, Mulder, who have been invited, for one reason or another to work for the Section. Those who hold the rank of Special Investigator are all .... Gifted in some way or other." "And what are your ... Gifts?" the only emotion in Mulder's voice and eyes was curiosity. Will glanced at Dana, who nodded slightly for him to continue. He took a deep breath before he spoke, "I'm a vampire too, Mulder." "No, you aren't," there was no uncertainty in Mulder's voice as he spoke, "For one thing, I've seen you eat, you have a shadow, and sunlight has no effect on you. I know what it does to vampires, I've seen it!" "You have never seen me eat, Spooky. You only thought you did," Will stood up, beginning to pace around the room, almost like a caged animal. Mulder was proving more difficult to convince than Scully, that was unexpected, "As for the shadow, a little magic courtesy of the people in the Training Directorate. And sunlight? Mulder, there as many different kinds of Undead as there are peoples on the Earth. We all have different abilities and powers. Not all are harmed by the Sun. Surprisingly few, in fact." "You aren't a vampire!" Mulder said with unexpected harshness. Neither Will or Dana knew that he was remembering Kristen Kilar, and her suicide to stop the Trinity Murderers, vampires all. "Yes, he is," Dana walked over to Mulder, placing a reassuring hand on his shoulder, "I've seen him recover from gunshot wounds instantly." Her voice was quiet when she added, "Including one to the head." "You knew, Scully?" he turned to look at her, the expression of betrayal in his eyes hurting her more than she would have believed possible. He saw the hurt he was causing her and softened his expression, saying softly, "Why didn't you tell me?" It was McCormack who answered, "Because I asked her to. I have to try to keep the number of people who know what I am down to a minimum, it's already a fair sized number. My old partner at the Herald; Jess Parker, Jeanette, her half-sister Diana Knight, Steve Wolfe, his grand-parents, my mother ...... Jackie. Besides," he added with a wry look at Mulder, "you'd have been insufferable." "Jackie knows, too?" Mulder spluttered, "How did she find out?" Will's eyes clouded over as he remembered the feral look in her eyes as she'd advanced on him when the fight was over, the both of them the only ones left standing in that alley in Toronto. The static that ripped through the air nearly deafening him. There had been nothing of Jackie in control then, only the Dragon. And then the relief in her eyes when she'd returned to herself and found he was still alive and apparently unhurt, and then the curiosity as to how he had survived. "An accident," he said finally, "I forgot to duck when I made the mistake of saying that it didn't look like the Jays were going to get anywhere that year." "That isn't what happened," Mulder said. "No, it isn't," although Will agreed readily enough, it was obvious that he wasn't going to say any more about that particular subject. He held up the pictures once more, "As I've said, Matt Carter is one hundred and twenty-eight years old, and he's gone rogue. He's older than me, more powerful, but I've had to deal with older than him. He's in D.C., and he's killed recently, Will held up another photo'. This one showing Theresa Peters lying on the floor of the autoteller vestibule, her throat torn out and Carter leaning over her ruined throat, his face covered in her blood. Without really being aware of what he was doing, Mulder moved himself between Scully and Will, his hand going to the Sig Sauer holstered at his waist. McCormack saw what his friend was doing and shook his head sadly. Only three people had ever accepted him, once they knew what he was, without that initial fear: Jeanette, the woman he loved; Steve Wolfe, his best friend and closer to him than any brother; and Jackie St. George. Of course, the Canadian had curses of her own to deal with. "I know Carter," Will looked at them both, neither could recall him ever looking more serious, "he's going to kill again, and soon. Probably tonight. Unless we stop him." Mulder looked at him, his expression unreadable. Finally he spoke, one word, "How?" To be continued.......... You all know the drill. This story contains characters copyrighted by Chris Carter, and Ten Thirteen .... Blah, blah blah ..... No offence or copyright infringement intended. The rest of the characters and ideas are all mine and copyrighted 1995. The character of Jackie St. George, of course, belongs to Sheryl Martin. This is set just after my story 'Conversations', and before the second season finale. X - Files A Deal With God - Part II. by Alasdair T. McLean The truth is out there 9:56am. F.B.I. Headquarters. "How?" Mulder asked, finally, after debating how much he could trust the vampire across from him. He didn't wonder for long. Evidently Will had been a vampire for, if not all, then most of the time they had known each other. During that time Will had done all he could to help them whenever he could, never once stopping to think about the cost. He looked at Scully. She was standing next to Will, one hand on his shoulder. She trusted him. Even if Will hadn't saved his own life several times that fact alone would have been enough. Scully trusted him. "How do we track him?" Mulder thought for a moment, "do we have any leads from the Peters murder?" "No," Will sighed, "we don't. What we do have is a list of Carter's aliases, and a lot of property records to go through. He probably maintains a lair somewhere in D.C.." "On the Section's salary?" "Nope, he was a self-made man. His century's equivalent of Richard Branson," he dipped into his pocket and pulled out a small bottle of sea-sickness pills, tossing them to Mulder, "Let's hit the records." It did not go well. Carter was not fool enough to have revealed to Section 10 all of his secrets. After all, despite having it's origins in what was once known as the Sacred Knighthood, the Section was still a government organisation, and few of the Gifted held a great deal of trust in the government. And so, tired and frustrated, they went to their respective homes. 8:45pm. Dana Scully's Apartment. Will was staying at Mulder's, making use of the sofa. Since the Scot seemed to spend a large percentage of his time in Washington, working with them on X-Files that concerned Section 10, it made sense for him to stay there rather than pay out for a hotel room. Sometimes Dana didn't know what to make of him. Like Mulder he was far more open to the paranormal than she was. Probably due to his very nature as a vampire. It had surprised her to learn that when he was younger, and mortal, he had been as sceptical as she was now. It surprised her even more that she had no problems accepting him as a vampire. Maybe not so surprising considering some of the things she had seen since she had been assigned to the X - Files. Vampire or not, he was still a very good friend. Also like Mulder, he had lost someone he had loved to the paranormal. With Mulder it had been his younger sister, Samantha, apparently abducted by aliens when he was eleven years old. In Will's case it had been Erica Bennett, she had been one of his closest friends when he was at school in Crieff. The three of them - Will, Steve Wolfe, and Erica - had been like brothers and sister. Even going to the same University when they left school. She was lost when a two thousand year old vampire had taken control of her, making her nothing more than his slave. To save the lives of Steve, and one of the vampire's victims, Will had been left no choice but to kill her. It was an act that had left scars on his very soul. Scars that he did his best to hide. Only three people knew all that happened that night in the catacombs beneath the Glasgow Necropolis, the forbidding graveyard just behind the Cathedral. Cassandra, the Oathsworn vampire who had embraced him, Steve Wolfe, and herself. She remembered the anguish in his eyes as he had told her what he had done, "Dana, I failed a friend once. Because of that she fell under the control of a powerful vampire, over two thousand years old. To save the lives of Steve Wolfe and Lorna Harker, I had to kill her - there was no other option. God knows I looked for one! There was no time!" A single bloody tear began to track down his face, as behind his eyes she could see the fire raging as he mentally relived that one dreadful moment when he had squeezed the trigger on the crossbow. And the diamond hard certainty in his voice and eyes when he continued, "After that I decided that if ever a friend of mine needed help, I'd give it without hesitation." That was one trait that Will shared with Jackie and Mulder, his unshakeable loyalty to those people he called his friends. They would all willingly put their own lives at risk to keep a friend from harm. And, she knew, were, by their very natures, dangerous people to have as enemies. But, on the other hand, Will and Jackie also shared a somewhat misguided affection for the Toronto Blue Jays. Nowadays, because of what she'd seen, and what had happened to her, the people outside her family who Scully felt she could trust were few. Will McCormack, Jackie St. George, and, of course, Fox Mulder. Mulder, she mused, she never had decided what to do about her feelings for him. She loved him, and he loved her, that much was certain, but .... There was a knock at the door, "Can I come in?" Mulder's voice reached her, slightly muffled by the door. "Sure, hang on, I'll be there in a sec," she called back, pulling herself up from the sofa where she'd been sitting, and walking over to the door, pulling it open. It was not Mulder who stood waiting for her. It was Matthew Carter. She didn't have time to think before he moved into the apartment, closing the door gently, silently behind him. To be continued............ You all know the drill. This story contains characters copyrighted by Chris Carter, and Ten Thirteen .... Blah, blah blah ..... No offence or copyright infringement intended. The rest of the characters and ideas are all mine and copyrighted 1995. The character of Jackie St. George, of course, belongs to Sheryl Martin and is used with her permission. The Romany words used are from 'A World of Darkness: Gypsies', published by White Wolf. What can I say, I'm a lazy researcher. This is set just after my story 'Conversations', and before the second season finale. Music credits: 'Running up That Hill' sung by Kate Bush. X - Files A Deal With God - Part III. by Alasdair T. McLean The truth is out there 8:35pm. Fox Mulder's Apartment. "Will?" Mulder's voice was hesitant, unsure as he addressed his friend, "uh, how did you become a vampire?" "You sure you want to hear this?" McCormack asked, sipping an iced tea that Mulder had given him, "Thanks." "How long?" Mulder leaned forward, an eager look in his eyes. "You see, Spooky, this was why I asked Dana not to tell you," Will laughed lightly before he finally nodded, "Okay, you want to hear this?" Mulder nodded, leaning forward in his chair, not bothering to hide his curiosity, "The story really starts just after my sixteenth birthday. My father had died of a heart attack a couple of weeks after my birthday. My Mum came back from Toronto for the funeral, only to be called back when a big story broke. Anyway, I didn't want to leave all my friends in Crieff, and my schooling was at a pretty important period, so Steve's grand-parents agreed to let me stay with them on the farm. That Summer I spent over in Toronto with my mother. "While I was away Steve saved the life of a woman he called Cassandra, he and the Wolfe's gave her sanctuary from the hunters who were after her, helping her back to health. She was over three hundred years old, they never told me that she was a vampire. They never told me anything about her. The first time I met her was when we were in our second year of university in Glasgow. I ......" Dana, opening a door. Her door. Willingly inviting Death inside. She doesn't scream. All is darkness. "Will? Are you okay?" Mulder leaned forward, his hand on Will's shoulder, concern in his hazel eyes. McCormack blinked once, the fear in his eyes shocking Mulder. "Dana," he whispered. Mulder pulled him upright, fairly dragging him towards the door, "Let's go." He tried to ignore the fear that began to clutch at his heart at the mere thought of Scully being in danger. If she died...... 9:03pm. Scully's Apartment. "He's been here," Will said, no trace of doubt in his voice as he sniffed at the air, easily identifying the scent of the other vampire, "recently. Scully apparently left with him." They walked slowly up the corridor towards Scully's door. Mulder had his weapon drawn and at the ready. Will had left his in his holster. Against another vampire it would be useless. The door was still open, only slightly ajar. Mulder pushed it open, peering inside. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that there was no damage, he had half expected a repeat of the wreckage that Duane Barry had left. I'll find you, Scully, he thought, I have to. "I know," Will whispered, as he gently laid a hand on Mulder's shoulder, reminding him, that, this time he wasn't alone, "we'll find her." "How?" Mulder growled, allowing a trace of his anger to slip through, "How?" Will reached up, tapping his nose, "We can track him. I can follow him." "Right," he looked at Will, the determination to find her burning bright in his eyes, "Do it!" Scully's 'phone rang, startling them both. Hesitantly, Mulder picked it up, listening quietly for a moment, before he exploded, "WHERE IS SHE? If you've harmed her, I swear, I'll hunt you down and kill you, you bastard!" Abruptly he stopped, becoming aware that he was listening to a dial tone. Forcing his breathing down to a reasonable rate, he spoke, "He wants to talk ..." "Holy Ground? The Cathedral?" Will asked, already knowing what the answer would be. "Yes." The car journey to the Cathedral passed with an agonising slowness, despite the speed that Will was forcing the car through the maze of D.C.'s roads. The radio played in the background. Neither man spoke, both found their thoughts echoing the words of the song that was playing over the speakers. One for friendship, the other for love. And if I only could I'd make a deal with God And I'd get him to swap our places Be running up that road Be running up that hill Be running up that building If I only could oh ... Scully ......, Mulder thought as Will finally pulled up in front of the Cathedral. 11:21pm. Washington National Cathedral. "Where's Scully?" Outwardly Mulder looked to be calm, and in control of himself, only someone who knew him very well would know how fragile that control was. And how dangerous that lack of control could be. "Right here, mortal," Carter stepped into the light. As he was he did not look dangerous. Will recognised the flickering of insanity in his eyes, something that happened to all vampires sooner or later, the passing centuries grinding down a person's mind until only the bloodlust remained. Those were the vampires of legend. One day, he knew, that same insanity would probably claim him. Beside Carter was Scully, her hands restrained behind her back somehow. She gave no sign of being aware of anything, standing straight, her eyes fixed on the wall straight ahead. She was pale, but healthy. Her scent was human. Will breathed out once slowly in relief, "You wanted to talk?" "Yes," Carter's voice was barely loud enough to be heard, "I want you to tell the mortals that the Cullings will begin again. I want you to tell them that soon we will rule over the mortal cattle once again." Shit, Will thought, he's gone. "Been reading too many horror novels lately, Matt?" "We can do that, we can tell them," Mulder agreed, taking a slow step forward, his hands held up to show he was unthreatening, "Just let Scully go." "Very well, mortal," Carter lessened his grip on Scully, who began to walk slowly forward, no emotion on her face at all. She was still under his control, that much was obvious. This is too easy, Will thought as he watched Mulder go to her. All the time keeping his hands clear of the reflex crossbow holstered in place of his usual .45 auto. In slow motion he saw her hands move from behind her back, saw the crossbow she was holding, saw the expression of horror on Mulder's face as she brought the weapon to bear on him, her finger tightening on the trigger. Will lunged for Mulder, putting all his strength into that one leap. He hit Mulder at the same instant the bolt was launched from the crossbow. They fell to the floor, among the wooden benches where the church goers would sit. "Bugger, bugger, bugger," Will swore, as he grasped the wooden bolt that was buried deep in his left arm and pulled it free, bloody tears running from his eyes as he tried to ignore the pain that ran through his body like liquid fire, "Oh fuck, that hurts." "You okay?" Mulder asked, somewhat stupidly. McCormack resisted the temptation to shoot him. "No," he snarled, "I am not. Wood, it bloody well had to be wood!" "What now?" Mulder asked, as he watched Scully reload. He drew his gun, aiming it at her, even as she sighted on him. The hand that was holding the Sig Sauer was shaking. Her hand holding the crossbow was rock steady. Oh, Scully, he thought, tears threatening to burst from his eyes as he saw her begin to squeeze the trigger. He couldn't ..... It's happening again, Will's mind flashed back to the catacombs beneath the Necropolis, the ancient graveyard just behind Glasgow Cathedral, only weeks after Cassandra had embraced him. A vampire lord well over two thousand years old had been stalking the city. The police were doing their best to find the 'Slasher' who had so far killed at least eight young girls in the city. Three others were missing. Among those missing was Lorna Harker, the daughter of the chairman of the InterChem corporation And a student at the University of Glasgow named Erica Bennett. She was like a sister to Will. But the police were looking for a human. Besides even if they found him, they would not stand a chance against his power. That left Cassandra, Oathsworn Vampire and Special Investigator with Section 10, Will McCormack, then a student at the University, and Steve Wolfe, Will's best friend. Eventually they tracked him to his lair. They were in time to save Lorna. For Erica it was too late. She was already under Heimat's control, nothing more than a servitor with orders to protect her master and to destroy any intruders. They had gotten separated from Cassandra who had gone after Heimat himself. Once they found Lorna they headed for the surface in an attempt to get her to safety. Only to find their way blocked by two of Heimat's servitors. One of whom was once Erica Bennett. She attacked them savagely, with no trace of the young woman she had once been remaining. There had been no other option. Nothing of her remained. Erica!!! his mind had cried out as the bloody tears flowed freely. That was the night that he took the Oath. I won't let this happen again. Will McCormack closed his eyes, trying to focus past the pain both physical and emotional that was clouding his mind making it hard to even think. Ignoring the pain, he reached out towards a mind that he had only touched once before. Telepathy wasn't his strong suit at the best of times, and these were definately not those. :Let me in,: he thought when he encountered the shields that hadn't been there before, :It's safe, now. Let me in, please, Dana.: Then he saw the illusion that she saw in place of him and Mulder, Duane Barry and Pfaster. He sensed her resolution, as she made the decision to kill. He saw the part of her mind that Carter had chained, and suddenly he knew how to save them, :Dana, Mulder needs you. Mulder needs your help!: Mulder saw the crossbow begin to shake slightly, he sensed the battle that was going on in her mind, "Scully ..... Dana, come back to me," he whispered. :Yes, Dana, go to him.: With her fighting the illusion from the inside the outcome was never in doubt. "Mulder?" She dropped the crossbow, and ran to them, giving Mulder a hug that spoke volumes for what she was feeling, before turning her attention to Will, "My God, Will, I'm sorry," she whispered, and then, louder, "we've got to get you to a hospital." Her hands went to his arm, pulling off his jacket and then ripping open his shirt sleeve, exposing the wound to the air, "Clean, entry and exit," she muttered to herself as she went to work. "No ... hospitals," he gasped, resisting the urge to throw them both to the ground and take their blood by force, "Stop Carter!" he growled. "Right," Mulder was up like a shot, grabbing the fallen crossbow from the ground beside them, and taking off after the fleeing vampire. Aiming, Mulder found it hard to look at him, hard to keep Carter in focus. Only one shot. He fired, the bolt leaping after Carter, imbedding itself in the wooden doors at the head of the Cathedral, missing Carter by a couple of metres. "A useful defence, eh, mortal?" Carter spun, stalking forwards towards Mulder angrily, his eyes flaring red in the darkness. Drawing his gun, Mulder aimed and fired. Once, twice, three times. Each round falling neatly in the centre of Carter's chest. Other than a slight shudder as each bullet hit, the vampire showed no signs of slowing down. Trying to move, Mulder found he could not, his feet seemed to be rooted to the spot. Carter smiled, revealing gleaming white fangs, "Normally, I prefer the blood of the Gifted, but in this case ...." He was very close now, within touching distance. Carter reached out, grasping Mulder's shoulders in impossibly strong hands. Mulder could feel the deathly cold breath on his neck. Still, he could not move. "Mulder...." "What?" Scully looked up from bandaging Will's arm, her eyes searching the darkness for her partner, and when they found him .... her heart stopped. Mulder, no .... She reached for her gun, a weapon that wasn't there, it was still in her apartment. Her hand shot to the holster at Will's waist, drawing the crossbow there, only to find that Carter had positioned himself so Mulder's body was between them, blocking her aim. There would not be enough time for her to get in position for a better shot. Suddenly Carter gasped, staggering back from Mulder. He was clutching at his face, which was bleeding badly. A small wooden staff about a foot long clattered to the ground at his feet. "Who dares?" Carter raged, his eyes scanning the cathedral for whoever threw the staff. In front of the slightly open front doors, backlit by the street lights, stood one man. He spoke one word in a smooth, unworried voice. One word, his name, "Wolfe." When he stepped slowly forward, Scully saw, for a second time, the pilot who had once smuggled herself and Mulder over to Canada. His Romany heritage was obvious from his appearance: the dusky skin, the raven black hair, the dark brown eyes that usually contained a hint of mischief. He wore a leather jacket, on one arm was the badge of the Glasgow University Air Squadron, where he and Will had been trained as pilots while at University. One hand held a long wooden staff. Another step forward. He was moving slowly, deliberately. Giving Scully the impression that he had done his sort of thing before. "You will die for that, mortal," Carter shouted, "For attacking from behind like a coward you will die like an animal." "On Holy ground," Wolfe reminded them. He balanced himself, ready for whatever was going to happen next. "Besides, you aren't the first to make that threat." "What do I care for the Traditions?" Carter took a step forwards, away from Mulder, who was still under his control, unmoving. It was what Scully had been waiting for. She aimed and, focusing through the blurring that surrounded the vampire, fired. Her aim was true. The bolt penetrated Carter's heart, and he fell to the ground, truly dead. Mulder blinked, once. "What?" he said, glancing around, confused. 00:34am. Scully's Apartment. "Can I get you anything for the pain?" Scully asked, checking the dressing, "The bleeding's stopped, finally." "No," Will laughed humourlessly, with only a slight edge from the pain, "Drugs won't effect me. I'll be okay, Dana," he winced when she tightened the dressing a little, "I've had worse." He reached over with his good arm to grab his shirt, a nasty looking, and long-healed scar on the right side of his chest, just at the shoulder, was visible to all. "What will help?" Mulder asked pointedly. Will said nothing, the look he shot Mulder was enough. "Blood," It was Steve Wolfe who answered, "Nice place, by the way, Scully. Nice shot, too." "Thanks," she responded absentmindedly as she tried to figure out what they could say to get access to a blood bank. "I thought you were in Canada?" McCormack asked, "Not that I'm not grateful for your timely arrival, but ....?" Wolfe shrugged expressively, "I had to fly a couple of execs into Washington. Gran called the motel I was staying at and said that you needed me - that you were at the Cathedral, and in trouble. Imagine my surprise, Prala, at what I found." "I used to hate it when she did that," Will murmured, smiling at the memories. Mira Wolfe always seemed to know what they'd been up to, even when it was obvious that there was no way she could have found out. It was almost like she was psychic. Now he was starting to wonder about that. Scully started, remembering something Mira Wolfe had said to her when they'd met, "Steve, could you tell me what 'drabarni' means?" Wolfe looked at her, his dark eyes widening, "It's a Romany word. It's the word for someone who is magically gifted. A mage." Mulder nearly choked on a sunflower seed he'd just popped into his mouth. "Oh," Dana's eyes widened as she realised what it was he had said. What Mira had said. She had called her drabarni! "But that's absurd. I don't even believe in magic!" "My Gran isn't wrong often, Scully." "I guess that makes you the White Witch of the East, Scully," Mulder teased her, his hazel eyes laughing. "Mulder," she mock glowered at him, and the laughter in his eyes died ... only to be replaced with something else. Something, she knew that was mirrored in her own eyes. But what to do about it? The end.