I wrote this short story mainly as an introduction to a charater that pops
up in another story under contruction. This dude dosen't even have a name
(and probably will not recieve one) but I do know he is one mean S.O.B.
He just appeared in my story one day and refused to depart. Hopefully,
finishing this story will help me with the impasse I seem to have come to in
the longer one.

Rated PG-13 for language and some violence. (I told you this guy was not
nice...)

The story begins during the events portrayed in "The Erlenmeyer Flask" in
season one. And now to quote my one of my favorite EMXC authors (SciNut):

This story is based on the characters and situations created by Chris Carter,
Ten Thirteen Productions and Fox Broadcasting. Used without permission and
no infringement is intended.

A Voice in the Dark
By
Lisa Schoop
(ScoopAz@aol.com)
1/16/95

  Enter on a darkened room, empty. Measured footsteps echo off stone wall
bare of adornment. Two, three, four, halt - Only the sounds of breathing
remain. And matching heartbeats almost audible in the deafening silence.
  "Can you hear me, Agent Mulder?"
  The words floated down to Mulder in the quiet room, filtering through his
semi-conscious state. Several hours had passed since anyone had bothered to
enter the room to inspect the prone agent. Mulder had used this singular
lack of interest in his person to let his mind drift, his body relax as much
as it could under the restraints placed upon it. Consequently, he had not
heard the person enter.
  He heard him now. Mulder made an attempt to focus his eyes. No luck. His
vision was still a swirl of dark unrecognizable shapes. Still, he did his
best to pay attention to every detail that the remainder of his senses fed
him. There was still a chance that Scully would find a way to get his
captors to release him.
  A swift kick to his ribs brought him to full and agonizing attention.
  "Can you hear me, Agent Mulder?"
  The voice obviously expected an answer.
  "Yes" Mulder gasped.
  That, Mulder thought, was unexpected. Throughout his captivity,the men in
black had treated him with a casual contempt, but other than the duct tape
that bound him hand and foot,they had not assaulted him in any manner. The
voice was unexpected too. This was not the man who had spoken to him at
Terrance Berube's house, right after the men in black had trussed him up
like a turkey. This voice was lower and expressionless. A dull flat
threatening monotone.
  "Good. Now listen carefully." The voice moved closer to Mulder's ear,
dropping in volume until the words were almost a whisper. "Your days of
interfering with our work are numbered, Agent Mulder. Continue to pursue
this course of action, and both you and the redheaded bitch you work with
will suffer dire consequences."
  Mulder detected no change in the tone of the voice, but the words seemed
to take on a vicious spirit, especially in reference to Scully.
  Nobody calls Dana a bitch in my presence and gets away with it, Mulder
thought angrily.
  "Wasn't very impressed by your big... guns, was she?" Mulder attempted
to inject as much sarcasm as possible into his words. "What did she do,
point and laugh?"
  He was awarded another kick in the ribcage. Fire spread across his chest,
but Mulder still managed a small smirk. Gotcha, he thought. This one had a
deep-seated aggression toward women which had manifested itself in his crude
comments. What puzzled Mulder was how it had been triggered. Despite his
remarks, he had a feeling that Scully and this voice had never laid eyes on
each other.
  Suddenly he realized what was happening.
  Scully had somehow forced them to agree to release him. That's why the
voice was so angry.
  So he couldn't resist one more crack. "I bet her gun was bigger than
yours too."
  Mulder braced himself for another assault.
  Nothing.
  The silence stretched,lingered.
  Then the voice was right in his ear, so close that he could feel the
breath on his cheek. "I'm sure when we have the occasion to be introduced,
Agent Scully will be more than impressed by my choice of weapon. Until next
time, Agent Mulder."
  Mulder felt the prick of a needle just below his shoulder and the world
faded into darkness.

Washington D.C. - FBI Building
Nine Months Later.

  "I thought we could take on a routine case once in a while." Mulder handed
Scully a manila case file. "Just to keep things fresh."
  "You mean you actually get tired of chasing mutants and UFO's?" was
Scully's cheeky response.
  Mulder just snorted. After the incident in Wisconsin, he felt that a case
without X-file overtones might be good - for the both of them. This was not
to say, however, that their newest case was completely mundane...
  "The file says the victims were scalped - you call this "routine"?"
  "C'mon Scully, you'll like this one - no alien DNA, no monsters, not even
a ghost to liven up things." Mulder grinned at Dana's dubious expression.
  "Mulder, if this is what you call routine, maybe we'd better stick to the
monsters -"
  Their banter was interrupted by a knock on the the door. A courier zipped
in, dropped a brown envelope onto Mulders desk, spared a moment to wink at
Scully (who rolled her eyes dramatically) then zipped out.
  "What is it?" Scully asked as Mulder examined the delivery tag.
  "I dunno." he untied the ribbons that sealed the envelope and shook it
downward. The contents spilled on his desk. A picture of Dana bound and
gagged in Duane Barry's trunk lay there, as well as a small card. Coils of
cold dread snaked through Mulder's gut as he read the message written on it.
  "Although our introductions were, by necessity, brief, please tell Agent
Scully I will always remember the pleasure of her company."
  Shaken, Mulder dropped photo and note into the wastebasket. A scene from
Skinner's office flashed into memory...
  "...We all know the field we play on Agent Mulder and we all know what
could happen in the course of a game. If you were unprepared for all the
potentials then you shouldn't step on the field." Skinner stood behind his
desk, expression stony.
  Mulder stared back at him, his face a mixture of sorrow and guilt. "What
if I... I knew the potential concequences,but never told her?"
  "Then you're as much to blame for her condition as the Cancerman." Skinner
stated flatly.
  He had never warned her.
  And she had paid the price...
  "Are you all right?" Mulder looked up to find Scully staring at him with
a mixture of puzzlement and concern.
  Composing his features, Mulder managed a lopsided smile. "I'm fine."
  "So what was in the envelope?"
  "It was nothing. Stupid joke, probably."
  "Then why aren't you laughing?" Dana still looked a bit worried, glancing
at the crumpled items in the garbage.
  Noting the direction Scully's eyes were taking, Mulder spoke quickly to
sidetrack her. "Not my taste. Now if it had been a picture of February's
Playmate of the Month..."  The grin he gave her was more genuine this time.
  Scully pursed her lips in reluctant amusement. "You need to get a life,
Mulder."
  The grin on his face widened. "I have a life."
  "Mulder - " Scully shook her head, laughing. "C'mon, there's a note in
the file that says one of the bodies is due to arrive today at Quantico for
autopsy. I want to see what they find."
  "Do I have to?" Mulder complained, but he was already slipping into his
suit jacket and coat. As he held the door for Scully, he glanced over his
shoulder at the wastebasket. His face tightened.
  You'll never touch her again, he thought savagely. I'll never let anyone
hurt Dana again.

End.

