[FBI HEADQUARTERS, Washington, D.C.]
	Assistant Director Walter Skinner was not a man to sweat under pressure.  Yet 
for the second time that morning he reached for his handkerchief to wipe his brow, 
giving himself an excuse to break eye contact from the man who sat in the chair 
opposite him.  The man smoked a cigarette and waited patiently for Skinner to 
continue.
	"She is not an appropriate choice, sir."  Skinner hoped the conviction he felt in his 
mind would help him steady his voice.  "I don't see how she could be a viable addition to 
the expedition;  she's too great a risk."  Skinner watched as the implacable smoking 
man blew another leisurely puff of smoke from between his lips, and tried again.  "She 
knows too much, sir."
	"That is why I want her up there," the smoking man replied calmly, 
the cigarette smoke curling out of his nostrils and the slight smile cut into 
his face.  Skinner felt his insides twist as he imagined a demonic laugh rising 
out of the sinister figure before him, and wondered, briefly, just how much 
one had to pay for selling one's soul to the devil.
	Putting on his best poker face, Skinner reached for the phone and felt very, very, 
sorry for what he was about to do.

[The following day.   Thursday, 9:45AM]
	Special Agent Fox Mulder pretended to study the map spread out upon his desk.  
He traced his pencil idly over the surface, randomly connecting the dots that marked 
the locations of the recent rash of shopping cart thefts in Birmingham, Alabama.  The 
rest of the cubby-holed agents had plenty to do while he was stuck with the most 
mundane and tedious of cases in white collar crimes.   It was a peculiar side-effect of 
his recent dismissal from the X-files.  Sighing, Mulder opted to put his John Hancock on 
the case he had before him and pass it off on some other shmo, most likely the fresh-
from-the-academy Cleaning, who, with a name like that, was the only person in the 
huge office who was one rung below Mulder on the popularity ladder.
	Mulder slapped the file into the "Out" box and reached for the next file in the 
"In" box while he glanced at the clock for the fifth time in so many minutes.   I bet this 
is what half the class is doing right now,  he thought wryly, then imagined 
Scully pacing in front of a blackboard in full lecture mode, eyes flashing and 
lips curling to form those perfectly articulated sentences, with thirty or so 
testosterone-drenched trainees in the audience.  "Maybe not," he 
corrected out loud with a small laugh, drawing glances from his neighboring 
agents, and ignoring them.  Mulder heaved another sigh, opened the folder 
but did not read, and allowed himself the luxury of thinking about Dana 
Scully.
	He had been thinking of her quite often lately;  she had been assigned to the 
Academy, back to her old teaching job, which he knew she would enjoy.  It was still an 
ego boost- and a comfort- though, to hear her voice and to hear her talk about how 
she missed working on the X-files and working with him.  She never actually said so in 
so many words, of course, but Mulder knew.  As time of their separation had increased 
from days to weeks, however, the mutual bitching sessions about their predicament 
had become less frequent as the higher-ups gave them more to do.  Mulder glanced at 
the clock again like an impatient trainee;   Scully's class would be out in exactly four 
minutes and her call would be in twenty.

[10:20AM]
	The light on Mulder's phone blinked, indicating an outside connection;  Scully was 
on time as usual.
	"Hey Scully, class is no longer in session?"
	"Mulder..."  Scully hesitated and Mulder stopped nibbling on sunflower seeds. 
	"Scully, what's wrong?"  Mulder could hear a pervasive hubbub of background 
noise.  "Where are you?"
	"Nothing's wrong, I hope. I'm in the Commons at the Academy...I've been called 
into a meeting with the CIC."
	"You sound nervous."
	"Yeah," Scully replied,  "I feel like I've been caught smoking in the little girls' room 
and have been called into the principal's office for a reprimand."
	"I hope it goes okay."  Scully was silent at the other end of the line.  "What?" he 
asked.
	"I was just waiting for the witty commentary on my high school career, Mulder.  
Your desk job hasn't made you go soft on me, has it?"
	Mulder looked around the monochromatic office, at row after row of hunched-
over agents with identical expressions on their faces, and replied wearily, "You know, 
Scully, I think it has."
	Scully's voice became hushed and concerned, "Mulder, we've got to stay on our 
guard.  You know we will..."
	"I know, Scully," Mulder replied quickly. "I haven't given up. I can't-"  Mulder knew 
he was beginning to sound like a broken record and decided to switch gears.  "Scully, 
these talks with you are what keep me grounded, keep me down to earth."  He smiled 
at the irony and let his voice carry traces of his amusement, "For once your sane and 
reasoning voice is a welcome addition to my day."
	"I'm your 'one sane voice in this crazy world'?  I think you've got that backwards, 
Mulder.  You like to hear from me because for once I agree with you and now you 
aren't the only one who sounds completely nuts."  Scully was teasing him but Mulder 
was reminded of the true dire nature of their situation.  His smile faded rapidly from his 
face.
	"Oh wait, hold on."
	"Scully?"
	"I've gotta go.  I'll let you know what's up."
	Mulder hung up the phone, hoping that Scully's meeting with the commander-
in-chief would be nothing but routine.  Deep in thought, he rubbed his lower lip and his 
eyes drifted once again to the clock on his desk.

[5:22PM]	
  	Mulder had just returned from the archives, his tie dripping over the stack of 
papers he was trying to negotiate onto his small desk, when his phone buzzed for 
attention.  Hastily sliding papers across his chair Mulder reached for the phone.
	"Mulder."
	"Hi, it's me."
	Mulder took off his glasses and found an empty corner of desk to sit upon. "Did 
they give you a detention, Scully, or are you going to be valedictorian this year?"
	Scully's reply sounded stiff, forced.  "Something's happening that I had to tell you 
about."
	"What is it?"
	"I've been reassigned, Mulder, I- I can't talk about it right now."  Mulder 
distinctly heard the sound of flesh being slapped over the receiver and someone talking 
to Scully in gruff tones.  He frowned in confusion, then Scully was back on the line. 
"Mulder, I just want you to go to my apartment and lock up for me.   Could you do 
that?"
	"Scully, wait, what's going on...?"
	"Just do this for me Mulder.  I don't have time to explain.  I think I left a window 
open."
	Mulder gritted his teeth and said warningly, "Dana..."
	"A window, Mulder.  It's open.  I've got to go.   Bye."
	The line clicked dead and Mulder found himself gaping at the receiver.  Agent 
Bledsoe leaned over from his cubicle and cracked, "What's the matter, Mulder?   You 
look like you've just seen a ghost!"  A maelstrom of chuckles began to brew around him 
as he gathered his things to leave.  Stoic, he made his way out of the office as ripples 
of laughter quickly spread across his corner of the room, pushing him forward in it's 
wake.  All he could concentrate on was the fact that Scully was being reassigned and 
didn't sound the least bit pleased about it.  His mind raced over the possibilities. They 
had been working on a few side-projects together, Mulder doing most of the legwork 
while Scully made discrete inquiries from her end.  They had decided early on that what 
they needed to do to get the X-files reopened and expose those who were suppressing 
the truth was to find definitive proof that extraterrestrials existed before they could 
claim a government cover-up.  In essence, nothing much had changed;  they were still 
investigating X-file cases, but there would be no slide shows for a while.  
	Shrugging into his trenchcoat, Mulder realized that up until this moment, he had 
taken it for granted that eyes would be solely upon him.  Perhaps he had made a grave 
error?  Fool, he thought to himself angrily.  He had to find out what was 
happening to Scully and hoped that he would be in time to intervene, if 
necessary.  And if possible.

[5:53PM]
	Mulder flipped on the lights of the bathroom and scanned the room warily, but 
nothing seemed out of place.  On the contrary, the air was stale and musty and Mulder 
had been unable to find the open window that Scully had been so concerned about.  
Ever since her move to Quantico, Scully visited her D.C. apartment only on weekends, 
but still considered it her home.
	He had been to Scully's apartment many times before, but never without her 
present.  He felt uncomfortable, awkward.  Fingering the couch where he often sat for 
one of their late-night debates, he found himself bending his legs to sit.  He had a hunch 
that if she was going to contact him again, it would be here at her apartment;  she had 
made a point of drawing him here specifically.  So Mulder sat and listened to the silence 
of Scully's apartment, and wondered, worried, where she could be.

[DOOLITTLE AIRFIELD, Nome, Alaska]
	Russ Jarvis was annoyed.  They had been ferrying equipment, people, and 
supplies through the airfield for over two weeks now, and the last shipment had gone 
out three days ago.  He had been looking forward to returning to his regular schedule 
when they informed him that there was going to be a last-minute passenger he had to 
fly up to the cape that day.  He had protested on the grounds that the clear weather 
they had been experiencing was bound to turn bad, but how could he refuse when 
they insisted?  	
	Russ pulled out his checklist and started at the top.  He wanted his plane in peak 
condition to make this last hop.  While Alaska was officially part of the good ol' U S of A, 
Jarvis had learned from experience that there was only one law that governed this far 
north:  the law of Nature, and it just wouldn't do to be caught by a lady with his 
britches down.

[6:00PM]
	Mulder picked up a book lying on the coffee table and opened it to read.  He felt 
almost voyeuristic, violating Dana's things, but there was an overriding curiosity that 
compelled him to nose around in her belongings.  
	They had become so much less formal after their official partnership was 
dissolved.  Mulder had secretly wondered about what would happen to their 
relationship outside the X-files and was pleased to discover that they were as good at 
being friends as they were as being partners.  But they had always been friends, hadn't 
they?   You are getting soft, Mulder.  he thought with bemusement.  He 
scrunched down into the couch and began to read,  clinging to the faith 
that Scully would somehow contact him, even if it meant violating 
regulations.  Two images instantly flashed into Mulder's mind:  one was of 
Scully the day they had met and he had accused her of spying on him.  He 
would never forget the look of disbelief and cold, analytical reasoning she 
had appraised him with that first day, for he expected to never see it 
again.  
	The other image was of Scully getting into her car to leave for Quantico, 
knowing full well why the X-files were being dissolved.  Her eyes had flashed with anger 
and fiery independence.  That was the Scully who would bend the rules to 
contact him and Mulder hoped it would be soon.  He glanced at the clock on 
Scully's wall and conceded to himself that Scully wasn't the only one to 
have changed over the last year.  The lone Fox was no longer quite so 
alone.

[ICY CAPE, Alaska]
	Russ returned to his single-engine airplane, happy to be leaving the godforsaken 
place.  He had left the engines running so they wouldn't freeze in the sub-zero weather 
and also so he could make a quick getaway.  He was now two days behind his usual 
Nome-to-Anchorage supply route, but, when the Government said jump, Russ had 
asked, "How high?"  He squinted across the frigid airfield, if one could call it that, and 
tried to make out the lone figure of the passenger he had just dropped off.  The white 
snow parka blended in very well, even when the wind wasn't blowing snow in every 
direction, but on this clear day he could just make out the dark color of snow boots and 
a coppery smear of red hair contrasted against the ice.
	He got into his plane and felt truly sorry for anyone who had to be stuck on the 
icefloe.  His passenger had said very little on their flight up, perhaps already knowing 
that he wouldn't have been able to answer any questions anyway.  
	He taxied the plane down the track that had been marked with sputtering pink 
flares and marveled that the reported four-day window of clear weather had held as 
promised.  It would be clear sailing once he was off the ground.
	Russ brought his little plane around in a lazy circle, his eyes just picking out the 
solitary blob of a human being moving off towards the compound situated about a 
hundred meters to the east.  He could imagine the young woman, lost in her parka and 
shivering in the Arctic cold, and wondered who in their right mind would send anyone to 
this place.  "All in the name of science," he muttered to himself, when a light suddenly 
flashed on his control panel.  Russ reluctantly turned his eyes from the lone figure, 
which was rapidly becoming just a pinprick against the snow, and flew steady on his 
course back to Nome.

[8:55PM]
	Mulder awoke with a jerk, his body feeling sticky and his clothes wrinkled.  The 
book he had been reading had slipped from his hands and one side of his face held the 
imprint of the couch fabric he had been sleeping on.  He glanced at his watch and ran a 
hand across his face and hair.  Still no sign of Scully.
	Mulder quickly made up his mind to call Quantico and find out what they could 
tell him.  Fishing around in his pockets, he realized he had left his cellular phone in his car.  
"Damn," he muttered, then spotted a phone in the kitchen just beyond.  Mulder 
reached for the receiver when he noticed the answering machine sitting on the kitchen 
counter.  A strange feeling overcame him and he pushed the "greeting" button.  Dana's 
voice came clearly through.  
	"You have reached Dana Scully.  I'm not able to come to the phone right now, so 
please leave a message."  The answering machine beeped and Mulder felt a selfish urge 
to hear her voice once again.  His finger poised over the button when, suddenly, it all 
clicked into place.  Mulder saw that this machine had no messages;  but Scully also had 
a private machine.  He moved into the little hallway and found the second answering 
machine on the sideboard.  The red messages light was flashing, beckoning him to press 
it.  Mulder pressed it.
	It whirred and clicked until, finally, the message played.  "Mulder, when you get 
this message I will be on my way to my new assignment."  Scully sounded breathless, 
edgy.  "They haven't given me any information;  no destination, no contacts, nothing.  
They have given me orders to maintain communications silence, which I guess I've just 
breached."  There was a slight pause, then Scully continued. "I don't know how long it 
will be before I can contact you again, or when I'll know more.  Don't worry about me, 
ok?"  Mulder clenched his fists, "Take care, Mulder."  The machine clicked and hummed 
to a standstill.  Mulder wondered where this message fit into this growing mystery 
until the machine's mechanical voice intoned, "Thursday, four-oh-five, PM."  Hitting the 
machine's erase button, Mulder headed for the door.  He now had all the pieces and he 
wanted to go home to the droning of his TV set to figure out how they fit together.  
	Scully's conversation with him at the office had come after the recorded 
message;  Mulder felt sure that she had somehow conveyed to him her 
destination within those few moments.  He would check the phone records 
at the Bureau in the morning. 

FROSTBITE - PART II

[ICY CAPE 7:00 PM]
	Dana Scully looked up into the sky and watched her only means of escape fly 
south across the white horizon.  She stifled the pointless urge to shout and call the 
small airplane back and faced facts.  She was stranded in Alaska.  They had gone to 
great pains to get her there, too.   
	In Virginia she was told she was leaving for a new assignment immediately, no 
packing, no contact with friends.  Scully knew she had to tell Mulder what was 
happening to her.  After some careful maneuvering, she had managed to find a few 
moments to use her phone.  Knowing that both their movements were being 
monitored at every turn, she couldn't risk talking to him directly at that point- instead, 
she left a hasty message on her personal answering machine.  
	Next thing she knew, she was being loaded onto an unmarked plane and was 
told her destination was Seattle.  Instead of landing in Seattle, however, the plane was 
diverted and she got word that her true destination was Alaska.  She had protested 
loudly, and was told that the secrecy was necessary because it was a highly sensitive 
mission and that word had come down from the top brass that she was to be a part 
of it- quite an honor.  She was told to make contact with those who would be worried 
by her extended absence, and, with  someone watching over her shoulder, was 
allowed to make phone calls.  The first call went to her mother...the second call went 
to Fox Mulder.
	Dana picked up the supplies she had been provided with at Nome and began the 
march towards the corrugated iron outpost.  It looked like a black beetle entrenched in 
the snow, low and hugging the ground, the snow drifts piling high along the sides.  Her 
pathway was marked by a line of pink flares, the only evidence that life existed at the 
station.  Even in the cold, the exertion was making her sweat under her parka.  As she 
trudged closer and closer to the nearest building, she also began to sweat from fear.
	Just being there made her frightened;  her last experience at the Icy Cape had 
been horrific and she never thought she'd find herself there again.  She stopped in front 
of one of the doors and hesitated.  Her official assignment was to be there as some 
sort of scientific observer- apparently the FBI wanted to know firsthand what the 
Government Advance Research Project was doing back in the Arctic.  Scully had been 
assured that this AICP team wasn't drilling into the ice as deeply as the previous team;  
just what they were doing and how much they knew, she wasn't told.  Details of her 
assignment and their project were to be provided upon her arrival, but it was obvious 
to Scully that her scientific background and first-hand experience with the Arctic Ice 
Core Project incident made her ideal for the job.
	Scully didn't care how qualified she was for this.  She had the growing suspicion 
that they hadn't told her the whole truth behind this new project.  There was talk 
about medical breakthroughs and the like, but Scully couldn't shake the feeling that 
something more was in the works.  Her feet beginning to go numb, she realized she 
couldn't stand there stalling any longer.  She reached for the doorknob when it suddenly 
turned on its own and rough hands grabbed her by the shoulders, yanking her inside.  
Scully yelped in surprise and jumped away the instant the hands let her go.   Quickly 
unzipping her jacket, she had her hand poised near her shoulder holster when she was 
greeted by friendly voices.
	"Welcome!  Don't stand outside on our account!  You must be Dr. Scully."  Dana 
looked up at a huge, towering man of obvious Nordic descent and realized that he was 
the one who dragged her in from the cold.  She brushed snow off her arms warily and 
felt her extremities begin to tingle as the warmth of the room immediately began to 
penetrate.
	"That's right.  And you are?"
	"Svenson.  I'm sorry I surprised you, but I noticed you were standing there for 
quite some time and thought you might be shy."  The blond man's laugh reverberated 
around the small room and Scully smiled weakly as he introduced the others present.
	Scully recognized the names from the file she had read on the way up:  Karen  
Frankel, neurobiologist,  who gave Scully a warm smile and a mug of hot chocolate; 
David and Joyce Brand, husband and wife team of geologists who had been researching 
Arctic geology for over thirty years;  George Tanaka, chemical engineer with an 
impressive background in both biology and toxicology;  and, of course, Theo Svenson, 
microbiologist.  One person was missing from the group, however.
	"Where's the team leader, Philip Starky?"  Scully asked.
	Svenson gestured down a corridor, "He is in the lab and regrets he couldn't meet 
you personally.  Your arrival was a bit unexpected, and he is in the middle of some tests 
and could not leave them.  He wanted to make sure that we made you as welcome as 
possible, though!  Karen?"  He gestured toward Dr. Frankel who moved to give Scully a 
hand with her bags.
	"Dr. Scully, I'll show you to your quarters so you can settle in.  You'll also find all 
the latest data on your desk so you can get up to speed before dinner."
	Scully appraised Frankel carefully and saw only honesty in her dark eyes and 
round face.  "Dana," she replied, "and thanks."
	The group dispersed as Scully and Frankel made their way to her room.  Scully 
still felt apprehensive, but less so after meeting a group of such friendly and intelligent 
people.  She began to think that her fears were unfounded when a sign caught her eye 
and Scully stopped walking.
	"Can we go in there?"  She gestured to double doors that marked the entrance 
to the labs.  
	Frankel glanced nervously at Scully and seemed uncertain how to respond.
	"I'd like to meet Philip Starky, "  Scully added smoothly, giving Frankel a warm 
and innocent smile.
	Frankel wasn't fooled and replied tentatively, "Certainly.  But we can't enter the 
clean-room."
	Scully and Frankel dropped the bags and Scully pushed through the double doors 
eagerly.  They entered a dressing area where lab scrubs were provided and a clear view 
of the inner lab was visible through glass walls.  Scully had braced herself for whatever 
she would find in the lab, but was still shocked at the sight that greeted her within.
	A man was seated at a counter at the other side of the room with his back to 
them, using a microscope and handling jars of specimens.  But he wasn't what made 
Scully gasp;  the glass case above the counter was backlit by florescent lights and filled 
the entire wall.  Inside the case, lined up on every shelf, were dozens of glass specimen 
jars.  And within each jar Scully could see the jerking, wriggling movement of a honey-
colored worm.  
	"Wha....?"  Scully managed, fear gripping her insides and making her speechless.  
"What is the meaning of this?  Who authorized these, these,"  she gestured at the far 
wall.  "I demand to know what is going on here!"
	Frankel took Scully by the arm and Scully shook her off roughly, tensed and 
ready for action.  "Dana,"  Frankel began, worry creasing her eyes, "I think you better 
read the reports we have prepared for you.  You don't understand what we are trying 
to accomplish here and I won't bother explaining it to you until you have read those 
papers."
	Dana glanced nervously at the wall of worms, edging away from it as if the jars 
were going to bound off the shelves by themselves and fly at her at any moment.  She 
knew that she was in a precarious situation and took a deep breath to steady her 
nerves.  Scully could feel Frankel studying her reaction with interest and hoped she 
sounded reasonably rational and calm.
	"All right.  I resent the fact that I have been denied adequate information on 
this assignment but I will read what you have for me."  Scully gave Frankel an icy glare.  
"And then I expect some answers from all of you."
	Frankel folded her arms and didn't seem the least bit upset by Scully's 
defensiveness.  "We'll  have a meeting tomorrow morning.  You must be exhausted and 
you'll want to get rid of your jet-lag."  Frankel raised a hand to stop Scully's protest, 
"We'll all be thinking more clearly in the morning.  Please, join us for dinner and..."
	"I'm not hungry."  Scully interrupted.  Frankel shrugged and pushed through the 
double doors.  Picking up a dufflebag, she said quietly, "We'll answer all your questions in 
the morning, if we can."  She fixed Scully with a hopeful smile, "Then perhaps you could 
answer some questions for us."
	Frankel continued down the hall as Scully followed in bitter silence.  She didn't 
know what questions she could answer for these people;  they seemed to hold all the 
cards.  Shivering at the thought of the lab filled with those terrible creatures, Scully 
prayed that she would be able to handle on her own the information she was about to 
receive.  For no matter how nice or innocent the team of scientists appeared, Scully 
wasn't prepared to trust anyone.

[Washington, D.C. 11:00PM]
	Mulder ran a hand across his eyes and used his remote to turn off the television.  
The papers in front of him told him in black and white that Scully had been sent to 
Seattle for a highly sensitive assignment.  The fact that "radio silence" was tagged on 
the file suggested undercover work, most likely in the drug market or dealing with arms 
smugglers along the border.  Not exactly Dana Scully's line of work, in Mulder's opinion, 
but the Bureau was always in need of female agents to go undercover, and any case 
where a large seizure of contraband was possible became high priority for the FBI.  But 
while this information seemed to answer the question of where Scully's new 
assignment was, something still didn't sit right in Mulder's mind.
	It was late, and any leads or inquiries that Mulder wanted to follow would have 
to wait until morning.  Mulder was sure he was beginning to make a big deal out of 
nothing, but would check up on Scully's whereabouts anyway- just in case.

[Icy Cape]
	Scully carefully removed the chair she had wedged against the door handle and 
returned it to it's proper place by the desk.  Scully pushed aside the papers she had 
been reading and flopped down on the bed, eyes burning from fatigue and her back 
aching.  She allowed herself to close her eyes and relaxed for the first time since she 
had arrived at the outpost.  She was tired and her muscles were just beginning to 
unwind, but she still could not go to sleep.  Sitting up, Scully pulled her hair into a knot 
and wearily pulled out her laptop.   She moved to sit at the desk she settled down to 
write in her field journal.  She had picked up the habit from Mulder and found it was a 
good way to help organize her thoughts.
	At the thought of Mulder, Scully felt her heart leap as she wondered if he had 
found her message.  She selfishly wanted him to be there with her, be there to help 
her get through this expedition, but more specifically, - could she even admit this to 
herself?- be there so she could draw strength from his presence.
	Pushing her thoughts of Mulder aside- his wry smile- Dana booted up her 
program and began to write- "Bring your mittens..."

*	The AICP II project has returned to the Icy Cape to further study this area, but 
was carefully warned to not drill below certain depths in the ice.  They were told that 
these precautions were necessary to avoid contamination from super-heavy 
radioactive elements that were deposited here by the meteorite they were aware had 
crashed at this site.  Following these precautions, the team was assigned to gather as 
much information as they could about the area, especially details about the size of the 
impact crater.  Research had proceeded as planned until three weeks after their arrival, 
when the outpost received a distress call originating near Point Lay, about eighty miles 
to the south.  Knowing that aid from Nome would take over three hours to reach 
them, the team voted to use their own emergency plane and launch a rescue mission.  
Svenson and Frankel were sent to try and aid the team.  They returned tot he AICP 
outpost with three bodies.  Judging from the equipment and documents found at the 
decimated drilling site, Svenson and Frankel discovered they had found a survey team 
sent by the GRPA that had been taking core samples in search of petroleum deposits.  
A classic case of the right hand not knowing what the left was doing.
	The AICP team radioed their discovery immediately and were told to hold the 
bodies in quarantine, as well as the core samples they had recovered from the drilling 
site, and that an agent would be flown up immediately.  Frankel, who took charge of 
isolating the bodies, noticed something strange protruding from the head wound of one 
of the victims.  Scientifically curious, Frankel took a sample from the body.  Starky was 
furious with Frankel for violating the quarantine, but was soon fascinated with her 
discovery.  Soon, the whole team was involved in studying their unusual find. *

Scully paused in her narrative to pick up the latest reports by Tanaka and Brand.  She 
shook her head slowly and still couldn't believe their findings.

*	While an agent was scrambled to make contact with the AICP team, the team 
was making their own progress.  Tanaka was interested in the worm' biochemistry and 
their possible application in medicine while David Brand had begun analyzing the core 
samples recovered from the Point Lay site.  Their findings have been radioed to 
headquarters and they were awaiting an answer at the time of my arrival on the 
scene. *

Scully looked again at her closed door, now unbarricaded, and listened for any sounds 
within the compound.  Except for the humming of the heating system, all was quiet.

*	My instructions are to survey and advise the scientific team for the worms' 
possible commercial value- or else, find a way to exterminate them.  Either outcome 
would involve determining the creature's range, living requirements, and behavior.  *

Scully licked her lips slowly and continued.

*	However, no mention was made in any of the files I have read as to 
determining the organism's origin or ancestry.  I do not believe that headquarters is 
unaware of the possible connection between these creatures and the meteorite that 
crashed here years ago.  And yet, no suggestion has even been made that they may 
be extraterrestrial in origin- which would be more significant scientific discovery in itself 
than anything else they may acquire from their research.  I believe the scientists 
themselves are not blind to the fact that they are dealing with something 
extraordinary here, no matter what their orders are.  *

Scully again found herself wishing Mulder was there, knowing that the research being 
done could possibly five them the answers they'd been looking for.

*	Tomorrow morning I will investigate how much the AICP team has discovered.  
We will also be receiving instructions via satellite hook-up.  *

Scully's fingers paused over the keys, then she typed rapidly.

*	I also must find a way to contact Mulder, though, at this point, contact seems 
improbable.  *

Scully hit a button and let her computer save her journal under a coded file.  The irony 
of her situation felt like a weight upon her shoulders.  Mulder was the one who had 
insisted these creatures be studied and Scully had persuaded him to forget it.  If she 
hadn't stopped him, perhaps the existence of E.B.E.'s  would've been established and 
the events leading to the shut-down of the X-files would never have occurred.  Mulder 
was the one who had wanted to return to the Icy Cape, yet she was the one to be 
placed in the midst of the research.  It made her feel terribly sad and even guilty;  Dana 
found herself fighting back tears that suddenly came to her eyes.
	She curled up into a ball on the small bed and wept quietly, angry with herself 
for coming so undone.  As she drifted off into welcome sleep, Scully swore to herself 
that she would make the most of what she found here in the Arctic;  for her own sake 
and for Mulder's, for Mulder's...

FROSTBITE- PART III

[FBI HEADQUARTERS, Washington, D.C.  5:00 AM]

Mulder fished a pen out of his desk, hit "play" on the small tape recorder in his palm, and 
listened again to the recording as he continued to write in his field journal.

*	Listening to the recording of yesterday's conversation, I am reminded that 
Scully was being very careful with her words and that possibly someone was 
monitoring her call.  I also can't rule out the possibility that Scully was trying to avoid 
Bureau surveillance.  
In any case, her "open window" ploy did succeed in drawing me to her apartment 
where I received her other message.*

Mulder fingered a file that Danny had provided him with and frowned.

*	Her last call had originated from Seattle, Washington, and checking up on her 
reassignment, I have been able to find confirmation that she had been sent there for 
an undercover operation.  This explains the Bureau's desire for "radio silence" and also 
corresponds with the information Quantico received about Scully's transfer.  *

	Mulder still wasn't satisfied.  There was something here that he just wasn't 
seeing;  Scully should've known that he would be able to get information on her re-
assignment as soon as he heard about it, so why the messages?  Unless she had 
suspicions that any 
information he'd receive would be false.
	"Good morning, Agent Mulder.  You're up early."
	Chris Cleaning, starched and coifed to the hilt, eagerly passed by his cubicle to 
join Mulder.  His soft brown eyes and baby-fine hair only emphasized his young age, no 
matter how polished he tried to get himself to look.  Pelted with the usual affection 
given 
recent Academy graduates, Cleaning was awarded such nicknames as "Cleaning Agent" 
and "Chris Kringle", among others.  His pariah status had instantly bonded him to 
"Spooky" Mulder, although Mulder still hadn't made up his mind about him.
	"Agent Cleaning.  You're up early as well, I see.  Be careful, or people might think 
you're trying to get ahead around here."
	Cleaning blushed and put his hands in his pockets.  Mulder decided to give the kid 
a break.
	"While you're here, Cleaning, do you think you could help me out?"
	Cleaning brightened up considerably and replied,  "Sure, Agent Mulder.  Need a 
cup of coffee?"
	Mulder lowered his voice confidentially and Cleaning was forced to lean in closer, 
"I think you are ready to move up from being gopher, Cleaning.  I have a job for you."  
Mulder could see the light in Cleaning's eyes spark as he asked quietly,
	"What do you need me to do?"
	Mulder hoped he was making the right decision in trusting this bumbling, but 
seemingly competent, young agent.  "There's a sting operation going down in Seattle, 
and I want you to find out just what it's all about."
	Cleaning's face registered puzzlement, and he asked slowly, "I don't 
understand..."
	Mulder hesitated for only a second, then plowed ahead, "I think there may be 
more going on up there than the Bureau might think."  He waggled his eyebrows for 
emphasis and was rewarded with a start from Cleaning.
	"You mean...?  FBI agents?  A conspiracy?"  Mulder was nodding to all of the 
above, "I don't believe it," Cleaning breathed.
	"Believe it," Mulder replied. 

[ICY CAPE]
	Scully was greeted the next morning by a steaming mug of coffee, murmured 
"good morning's" and six expectant faces.  They had all gathered in the central portion 
of the main building and everyone looked ready for answers.  Scully opted to speak first.
	"As you all are aware, I am Special Agent Dana Scully and I was sent here by 
the FBI to investigate what you have discovered here at the Icy Cape.  I have read all 
of your reports so," she looked at each face one by one, "I know what you know." 
	Philip Starky, a slim man in his fifties with features chapped and weathered and 
hair white as snow, folded his arms and asked, "Where would you like to begin, Agent 
Scully?"
	"Where are the bodies?"  Scully asked coolly.
	"In the cold storage room adjacent to this building."  Frankel replied.
	"Good.  I'll begin there.  Frankel, you reported that you believed the men were 
infected by these parasites through...?"
	"The ice core samples they had recovered while drilling.  When examined, they 
contained the worms in some sort of larval stage.  Agent Scully,"  Frankel paused, and 
Scully could feel all eyes in the room upon her, "what exactly do you know about this?  
They won't tell us anything.  Have- have you seen these creatures before?"
	Scully couldn't read the variety of emotions that were playing across everyone's 
faces and wondered how truthful she should be.  "Ye-es. Yes.  I've seen these parasites 
before," a collective breath was released by all, and the questions began in a 
rush.
	"How much do we know about them?"
	"Where were they discovered?"
	"Who documented this find?"
	"Why haven't we heard about this?"
	Scully waited patiently for them to stop when one voice made itself clear from 
the rest of the barrage.
	"How many have died?"  The crowd fell silent and everyone turned to Tanaka, 
who cleared his throat and asked again, "How many, Agent Scully?"
	Scully lowered her eyes and said quietly, "Last year- the previous AICP team.  
Four people- plus others."  She looked up and fixed Svenson and Frankel with her gaze, 
"Like the survey team you found at Point Lay."
	"How much do you know?"  Starky asked, and Scully began to explain the events 
that occurred during her investigation of the other AICP team, keeping it as brief as 
possible- and omitting certain details.
	When she was finished, Starky stepped away from the group and everyone 
demurred to his leadership, "What do you plan to do with them, Agent Scully?"
	"I've been assigned to find out whether or not they have any commercial value- 
if not, find ways to exterminate them."
	Tanaka spoke up immediately, "We've been studying them for three days now.  
They are about as useful as a tapeworm, Agent Scully, and obviously more deadly.  And 
now that I know what they could do to a population, I say we do what we can to 
eradicate 
them, then get the hell out of here.  We aren't even sure how one gets infected!"
	A chorus of voices rose up again as Scully felt panic begin to take hold of the 
group.
	"Wait a minute.  WAIT A MINUTE!"  She could feel their growing hostility but also 
noticed that Starky was standing next to her and helping her settle them down by 
gesturing with his hands.  She was instantly grateful.  "Now, I agree with all of you 
that this thing cannot leave this outpost.  What it could do to a population is too 
horrible to imagine.  But I ask you all if you are aware that this outpost, built directly 
over the remains of the previous AICP site, is also part of a meteor crater?  And that 
these organisms may have been carried here by that same meteor?"  Scully's unsaid 
questions hung heavily in the air until Joyce Brand spoke up excitedly, 
	"That would explain the depth of the ice sheet in this area.  And the high levels 
of ammonia in the core samples, of course!  Agent Scully, you don't think..."
	"I don't know what to think.  I want you people to help me find out."
	Svenson raised a hand, "But what about the survey team?  Point Lay is not 
within the crater radius."
	"What if,"  Joyce Brand said, snapping her fingers, "before settling here at Icy 
Cape, the meteor slid and dug a trench along the surface, depositing these organisms 
along the way.  The ice sheet is not nearly as deep at Point Lay, which is why the 
survey team was drilling for petroleum there.  Ancient crash sites all over the world 
show evidence that great swaths of land were often affected by a meteorite's 
trajectory before impact."
	The room was again abuzz with voices as the scientists began digesting this 
new idea, until Starky spoke up and addressed Scully squarely.
	"Agent Scully, is it the governments intention to discover whether or not these 
organisms are extraterrestrial?  That is what you are hinting at, isn't it?  The 
government knew about their existence from the incident last year- they 
gave us strict orders to not drill below certain depths in the ice- what are 
they planning to do now?  This kind of investigation can only be done 
properly in a high-tech facility, not in some Arctic pup-tent such as this.  
Just what is the government asking us to do?"  Starky took a step closer 
to Scully and looked her full in the face, "Just what are you asking us to do?"
	Scully did not let her gaze falter as she thought of Mulder and replied, "I'm asking 
you to find the truth."
	The nearby radio crackled and Svenson moved to answer.  
"Yes, hold a moment.  Agent Scully?  It's Doolittle Airfield with the satellite hook-up."
	Scully grabbed the receiver, very aware that everyone would hear the 
transmission.
	"Scully here, Doolittle."
	"Patching you through,"  an anonymous controller informed her.  There was a 
hiss of static and then a new voice crackled over the airwaves.
	"Results of last reports.  Core samples indicate a large deposit of petroleum AV3 
and rare earth metals at Point Lay drill site and Icy Cape margin.  AICP team is ordered 
to destroy all organism samples and proceed with all due caution to immediately 
exterminate the threat to future drilling parties.  You have 72 hours to complete 
procedures, then a plane will arrive at your location to remove data and the bodies, do 
you copy?"
	Scully felt numb and drained;  she should have expected something like this, but 
what could she do?  "AICP copies.  Over."
	Scully bent her head in defeat;  when she looked up at everyone, her eyes were 
weary, "Well.  You heard?  They are going to destroy this site.  Again."
	"Petroleum AV3 is a highly volatile, extremely high-grade crude.  Labs have 
been unable to synthesize a suitable substitute.  If this area actually contains a large 
deposit of this material, it's a coup for the U.S. to acquire it."  David Brand explained to 
the puzzled group.  "There's sure to be a lot of profit in it."
	Scully was barely listening and turned to address Svenson, "Do you have a way 
to kill them?"
	"Not yet, but soon."
	Scully put her head in her hands and felt her opportunity slipping away- she was 
between a rock and a hard place.  On one hand, Scully believed these creatures should 
be destroyed- on the other, she and Mulder could use these creatures to prove the 
existence of E.B.E.'s and get the X-files reinstated...but what were she and Mulder 
compared to the welfare of humanity?  Scully pushed herself off of the radio bench and 
moved towards the lab.  If the government wanted these things exterminated, at 
least she could make sure that it was done properly so they would never have to deal 
with them again.  Philip Starky grabbed her arm as she moved.	
	"Where are you going?"  he asked, alarmed.
	"I'm going to start by destroying those specimens in the lab.  This all stops right 
here...right now,"  Scully replied, defeated.
	"You can't!"  Frankel exclaimed, as the AICP team gathered around Dana.  
"We've got a lot of work to do and we don't have much time."
	Scully looked at the faces surrounding her and couldn't believe her ears.  Philip 
Starky spoke quietly and released her arm.
	"If we only have 72 hours to study these things, we're going to learn as much 
as we can in that time.  We find the truth.  Right here, right now."  Heads nodded in 
silent agreement and Dana felt a small smile creep to her lips.
	"You got it," she said, "let's get to work."

[FBI Headquarters 4:00 PM]
	Mulder could feel his wheels spinning in place as he tossed a fax from Quantico 
into his briefcase.  He'd spent all day chasing down papers, being put on hold, and 
learning little.  The file open on his desk outlined the various cases the Seattle office 
was working on at the moment, but the list was marked "Incomplete" and Scully's 
name wasn't on it.
	Cleaning sidled up to Mulder's side and asked as casually as he could manage, 
"Find what you needed, Agent Mulder?"
	Mulder smiled encouragingly at the young man and lied, "Yes. You did a good job, 
Cleaning."  The young man beamed and ran a hand through his sandy-blond hair.  
Mulder decided that Cleaning was all right.  If he had been a plant, Mulder would've had 
a detailed profile- a doctored one- on the case Scully was working on by now.  They 
were patient, but not that patient.
	"I need you to do me one more favor, Cleaning."  Mulder pushed a wad of bills in 
Cleaning's direction and watched with amusement as he saw the man's eyes widen.  "I 
need a plane ticket.  One way, to Seattle."

[ICY CAPE 10:45 PM]
	Scully put away her laptop, turned out her light, and sank gratefully into the 
crisp, cold sheets.  The team had been working hard all day in hopes of unlocking the 
mystery surrounding the parasitic creatures.  Gene maps were going to be run the next 
day, and the cultures the scientists had been working on before Scully had even arrived 
would be ready for analysis.
	A thought stabbed at her before she drifted off to sleep- she hadn't gotten 
around to completing the autopsies on the bodies they had in storage.  Scully wondered 
what prolonged exposure to the parasite might cause, even if it was only present in a 
dead body. The cold storage would effectively keep the corpses in suspended 
animation, but if the worms natural environment was one of sub-zero 
temperatures...she made a mental note to check it out first thing the next morning.  
With a yawn and a secret hope that the fine weather they had been having would turn 
bad to give them more time to gather data, Scully slipped quietly into a deep sleep.

[The following day - 9:00 AM]
	Mulder found Scrantons, Sculley, and a Skully, but no Dana Scully within the 
Seattle office records.  The Section Chief had had no explanation for the missing record, 
except that perhaps a delay of the transfer report had occurred, and that Mulder 
should ask the Washington office for details.  Mulder was now positive that Washington 
the last place he could look for answers.

[ICY CAPE 9:40 AM]
	Scully was putting together a medical bag for the autopsies when David and 
Joyce Brand entered the room.
	"Agent Scully, we just wanted to let you know that we're going to be setting 
off some explosive charges- it's part of a geological experiment, so don't think it's an 
earthquake!" Joyce smiled.
	Scully smiled thinly and replied, "Thanks for the warning.  What exactly are you 
doing?"
	"We're making more accurate assessments of the crater's size and depth.  We'll 
be using the holes we have from the removed cores to deposit the explosives.  We've 
got to be extra careful because of the petroleum AV3.  The incorrect charge, and 
BLAM.  The whole deposit could vaporize this entire area."  David Brand waved a slim 
canister in the air, "Which is why we have a specially designed charge.  You can adjust 
the amount of detonation by just a twist, here."  Brand demonstrated the device to 
Scully, who began to back out of the room.  Joyce Brand just watched her husband and 
whispered to Scully, "You know men and their toys."
	"Uh, right.  Let me know what you find."
	Scully left the geologists to continue their experiments, shaking her head.  
Everyone was being extremely productive, but there still was quite a bit to get 
accomplished before the next morning.  She wanted to go do the autopsies at that 
moment, but knew that Frankel and Svenson would be looking at the gene maps soon.  
She also had to talk to Tanaka about how to destroy these things, if that was even 
possible.  Looking down the long, cold corridor to the storage shed, Scully sighed and 
tucked the black bag under her arm.  The autopsies would just have to wait.

[Seattle, Washington]

	After wandering the streets of Seattle for over an hour, Mulder parked himself 
at a small, anonymous cafe and opened his field journal.

*	Still no sign of Dana.  The Seattle office was notified of the transfer, but no 
record can be found detailing her assignment here.  I have come to the conclusion that 
if Scully was ever in Seattle, it was for a brief amount of time.  Her current 
whereabouts?  Unknown.  *

Mulder's hand was shaking as he tried to write legibly.  He felt his fears as a cold lump in 
his stomach and clenched his jaw, determined to go over the facts in his mind clearly 
and rationally before making his next move.

*	1)  the message on Scully's answering machine had been from Virginia.
	2)  her second call was made in Seattle and her call was being monitored by 
parties 	     unknown.
	3)  Scully is not in Seattle.    *
	
	Mulder's thoughts turned once again to their last conversation.  He felt that the 
key was there, that, somehow, Scully had managed to tell him what was happening to 
her.  A surly voice broke into his thoughts.
	"Hey you, could you close that window?"
	Mulder looked up, confused, "Excuse me?"
	A plaid-clad boy with a ring through his nose snarled at Mulder, "The WINDOW, 
hotshot.  Close it."
	Mulder smirked at the jerk and reached over to the window next to him to pull 
it shut, when a thought began to tickle the back of his mind...
	Windows.  He could hear Dana's voice saying, "A window, Mulder.  It's open."  
Certainly Scully meant that a window was open in her apartment, or else she could 
have been referring to...?  
	Mulder bolted to his feet.  He needed to get back to the Seattle office to 
confirm his theory;  then he'd have another plane to catch.

FROSTBITE- PART IV

[At 30,000 feet.  12:40 PM]
	Mulder leaned back in his uncomfortable airplane seat and tried to relax.
	His hunch had paid off;  making some discrete inquiries at the Seattle office, 
Mulder discovered that there was indeed a new AICP team stationed at the Icy Cape.  
That in fact, the outpost had been experiencing some difficulties and an agent was 
supposedly sent out there to see what was going on.  
	Danny also had come up with some information about Scully's last phone call.  
Apparently, she had been on a plane to Seattle.  After landing for a refueling, 
it made a last-minute flight plan and was last seen crossing into Canadian 
airspace.
	Mulder listened to the droning of the light aircraft and speculated on what 
probably happened to Dana;  the AICP II must have stumbled upon something the FBI 
knew Scully would recognize- and would agree to destroy.  Unless, of course, it 
destroyed her first.
	Mulder glanced out his window and fancied he could see against the whiteness 
the dark shadow that would be Nome.  The four-day window of weather- the 
"window" that Scully had been referring to in her phone call- was going to be closing 
within a day and Mulder wondered if he'd be able to find a pilot willing to fly him up to 
the Cape.  It really didn't matter because Mulder would drive a dog team if that's what 
he had to do to find out if Scully was alive and well.  He looked out again at the vast 
whiteness of ice and felt some part of him, some part of his soul, call out to Dana 
across that great void.

[Icy Cape.  1:00 PM]
	Scully had a light lunch and prepared to finally do that autopsy.  Karen Frankel 
had only done a cursory examination of the bodies when she had noticed the parasite in 
the body of Chuck Sierra.  She did a complete autopsy on Sierra, but hadn't gotten 
around to working on Arthur Conley or Matt Spiner.  While Sierra died from massive 
head trauma, Spiner had died from strangulation and Conley from internal 
hemorrhaging.  According to Svenson and Frankel, it seemed that Conley and Sierra had 
fought to the death, while Spiner had been the first to be killed.
	Scully glanced around the room and asked Tanaka, who was sitting analyzing 
something under a microscope, "Have you seen Karen?"
	"Yeah, she went ahead to prep the bodies for your dissection."  Tanaka replied.
	"Thanks."  Scully rubbed her eyes and headed down the corridor.  So far, the 
team hadn't come up with any conclusive evidence about whether or not the parasites 
were actually extraterrestrial in origin;  they were certainly different from anything 
anyone had seen before, but the Brands reminded everyone that the Icy Cape was a 
whole different environment two hundred thousand years ago, and that a meteorite 
that contained rare earth metals could possibly have mutated some pre-existing 
microbes from that era.  At any rate, their data still looked promising.
	Scully could feel the temperature drop as she neared the shed doors.   The 
storage room was purposefully placed far from the main building so they could cut it off 
from the central heating system and allow it to remain at freezing temperatures.  
Amongst the food and supplies usually stored in the shed would be three corpses in 
body bags.  Scully yanked open the heavy door and noticed immediately that 
something was very very wrong;  there were only two black body bags lying on the 
floor and Frankel was nowhere in sight.
	"Karen?"  Scully called, dropping her med kit and drawing her weapon.  She 
flexed her hands to warm them up and glanced cautiously around the shed.  Noticing 
vapors rising from behind a pile of crates, Scully edged closer and peered over them.
	"Oh my God!"  Karen Frankel lay behind those crates, disemboweled, steam 
rising from her opened body.  In the distance, Scully could hear George Tanaka calling her 
name and moved her lips to respond when she sensed something behind her.
	Turning quickly, Scully saw from the corner of her eye her black medical bag 
rushing towards her head with deadly force.

[Doolittle Airfield. Nome, Alaska.  1:23 PM]
	Mulder had no problem finding out who was making the flights to Icy Cape.   So 
far, a simple flash of his ID had given him enough leverage to wander around the airport 
freely.   As long as no one checked up on his story, Mulder would be using every 
advantage he had to get to the truth.  Walking into hangar five, he approached the 
grizzled pilot and pulled out his ID.
	"Russ Jarvis?  I'm Special Agent Fox Mulder and I'll be accompanying you on your 
next flight to the Icy Cape.  This afternoon, if possible."
	"What?  I wasn't told that I'd have a passenger this time!  Who do you people 
think you are, anyways, switching your schedules, ordering me around."   The wiry man 
narrowed his eyes at Mulder. "My flight wasn't supposed to be until tomorrow 
morning.  What's your hurry?"
	Mulder opened his mouth and shut it, then replied evenly, "I want to take 
advantage of the clear weather."
	Jarvis rubbed his chin and found it hard to argue with that logic.  "I guess it 
would be ok.  You people do what you like anyways.  When do you want to go?"
	"As soon as you're ready,"  Mulder replied.
	"Give me twenty minutes to prep the plane."
	Mulder breathed a sigh of relief and watched the old man begin puttering 
around his plane.  He now had twenty minutes to see if he could pull the same trick on 
the radio tower operator and somehow get his hands on the AICP transmissions.  It 
was worth a try.

[Icy Cape.  1:23PM]
	Scully was freezing.  She tried to move her head but it was stuck to the floor.  
She cracked open her eyes and licked her lips, tasting blood at one corner of her mouth.  
As she regained consciousness, Scully realized with horror that her own blood had 
frozen her face to the floor.
	Moving her hands to cup her cheek, Scully breathed to defrost her skin.  Her gun 
still lay within reach, but her position didn't allow her to see the door to the shed.  
Straining to hear above the sound of her breaths, Scully could not make out anything.
	At last her cheek painfully peeled away from the floor and  Scully picked up her 
gun.  Turning to the doorway, Scully found the body of George Tanaka.  He had been hit 
on the head, a look of horror and surprise literally frozen on his face.  Scully reeled but 
managed to wedge herself alongside the door and stop to take some deep breaths.  
Looking back around the shed, Scully noticed the third body bag crumpled in a far 
corner.  Her mind raced to understand what was happening.  She glanced at the name 
tags on the black bags-  Sierra, Conley.  Spiner's was the body missing.  Spiner, Scully 
recalled, was the victim who had died from strangulation.  Could it be that he wasn't 
really dead?
	"He was dead, Scully, dead." she murmured to herself, grateful for the feeling of 
movement in her cold features.  The bodies had been in the shed for over five days 
now;  how could anyone survive?  Unless...Scully remembered the autopsies of Richter 
and the previous AICP members.  All the worms but one had been dead- and the worm 
that had been alive was found in the hypothalamus.  Those bodies hadn't been there 
for much longer than these, so perhaps there were worms still alive in Spiner and 
Conley as well.  They really didn't know what would happen to a parasite once lodged 
deep in the brain.  Perhaps in the brain it pupated into another form, a form that could 
take more direct control over its host.  Spiner had received the least amount of injury 
to his body and the extreme cold would've prevented any extensive tissue damage due 
to decay.  Scully felt dizzy as she came to the conclusion that Spiner, somehow, had 
risen from the dead- to kill.  
	The tinkle of breaking glass and a muffled scream brought Scully back into focus.  
Gripping her gun tightly between her hands, Scully swung out from the protection of 
the shed walls and moved out down the corridor in the direction of the sounds.

[En route to Icy Cape]
	Mulder crunched on sunflower seeds and couldn't believe what he was reading.  
Authority obviously went a long way out here in the Arctic.  Once Mulder had flashed 
his ID, the radio operator at Doolittle had been more than helpful in providing Mulder 
with the transcripts of the transmissions between the airfield and Icy Cape.
	As he expected, the AICP II team hadn't intentionally unearthed the parasite;  
the government hadn't any plans for research, especially considering they had torched 
the same facility only a year ago.  The survey team stumbling on the creatures by 
accident was certainly unfortunate, but was bound to happen, in Mulder's opinion.  He 
now could guess why the Bureau had sent Scully;  with her previous experience at the 
Icy Cape and her scientific background, she would be well prepared to handle what she 
would find.  Also, Mulder was sure that this time the government would go in and 
exterminate the creatures, and Scully had gone on record a year ago stating that she 
agreed with that policy. Many things had happened to them since then, but that didn't 
make these creatures any less deadly, or any less dangerous, to society.
	Mulder noticed with interest that there was a vast petroleum AV3 deposit 
directly underneath the meteor impact site.  And, as usual, the government had made 
the recovery of that precious natural resource their top priority.  Even if it meant 
extermination of a new life form, possibly an alien life form.
	"How much longer?" he bellowed at Jarvis over the noise of the airplane.
	"About twenty five minutes, not including landing,"  he yelled back.  "I've never 
seen anyone so eager to reach the Icy Cape before.  Won't they be surprised?" he 
added, sarcastically.
	Mulder thought of Scully, the look on her face when he'd step out of the plane, 
and wished they could get there faster. 

[Icy Cape]
	The sounds were coming from the direction of the lab.  
	She found the double doors propped open with the body of Svenson, his throat 
roughly gashed.  Careful not to slip in the blood, Scully eased her way into the scrub 
room, then peered through the glass walls.
	Inside the lab, David Brand lay slung over a chair.  Joyce Brand had stopped her 
screaming and was held in the clutches of an unfamiliar form;  Scully assumed it had to 
be Spiner.  Ugly purple bruises stained his neck but otherwise his skin looked like cream 
and his movements were fairly coordinated for a man who had been dead and frozen 
for five days.
	Spiner had taken the specimen jars off the shelves and had smashed them 
open;  golden worms writhed all over the lab floor.  Spiner stepped on worms with his 
feet but also held one in his hands with a pair of forceps.  He was preparing to drop 
that worm into Joyce Brand's ear when Scully opened fire.
	The safety glass shattered all around Scully and she ducked and rolled into the 
lab room, bringing up her gun to bear on Spiner.  The noise had startled him into 
dropping the forceps, but he now held Joyce Brand closely to his chest.
	"FBI!  Release your hostage at once!"  Scully yelled, not caring whether or not 
Spiner could understand her.  "I'm armed!"
	Spiner stared at her dumbly, his eyes glassy and his features flaccid.  Then his 
lips curled into an open-mouthed gape, and he bent his head towards Joyce's neck...
	Scully was ready to fire when David Brand suddenly leaped up from his chair to 
grapple with Spiner.
	"Get down!"  Scully yelled, getting up from her crouched position, but it was too 
late.  Spiner deftly twisted Joyce's neck with a sickening pop, then reached for a heavy 
drill bit he must have recovered from the storage shed to strike at David.  
	David Brand was dead before he hit the ground and Scully opened fire.  She 
squeezed off three shots as Spiner rushed her when somebody tackled her from behind.  
Spiner, his wounds only oozing a dark black substance, barreled past them and kept on 
going through the doors.  Scully looked down to find Philip Starky, gasping and terrified.
	"Are you ok?"  she asked, struggling to get up.
	"Yes.  No."  Starky stood, backed against a wall, and promptly vomited.  
"Everyone?" he asked after the heaving was over.
	Scully nodded.  "It's just you and me."
	"That was Spiner, wasn't it?  How could that be?"
	Scully shook her head, "I don't know, Starky.   This didn't happen last time.  
Perhaps the worms have some sort of more advanced stage, a stage that we hadn't 
seen."
	"Until now."
	"We've got to destroy it."
	Starky shrugged.  "You have the gun, Agent Scully!"
	"I mean all of it, Starky.  This whole site.  And I know how."

[Icy Cape. 2:15 PM]
	Mulder jumped out of the plane and Jarvis threw his pack down after him.
	"Agent Mulder, I'm going to take care of my plane first.   I don't trust this nice 
weather."
	Mulder waved an affirmative and headed towards the main building.  It looked 
exactly like the previous outpost and Mulder had a strange sense of deja vu.  
	As he entered the building, the first thing he noticed was the sharp smell of 
ammonia and alarms began to go off in his head.
	"Scully?"  he called.  "It's Mulder!"  Slinging his backpack around his shoulders, 
Mulder unholstered his gun and made a quick decision.  Choosing a hallway, Mulder 
hoped he was heading towards the laboratory.  He had only taken a few strides when 
he saw feet protruding from a doorway just ahead.  Mulder broke into a run down the 
corridor.

	Scully and Starky ran down the hallway toward the back of the main building.
	"Are you sure they're here?"  Scully asked breathlessly as Starky bent to fiddle 
with a padlocked cabinet.
	"Yes.  The sheds which cover the drill sites are just beyond this wing of the 
building."
	Scully squinted through a window to see four wooden sheds about twenty-five 
meters from their position.  Glancing down at Starky, she pushed him aside by the 
shoulder.
	"Let me," she said, and fired at the lock.
	
	Mulder heard the gunshot and sprang up from where he was examining David 
Brand's body.  After listening for a beat, he yelled, "Scully!"   but there was no reply.   
	Mulder stepped over Svenson's body and headed down the corridor in the 
direction of the storage room when a voice behind him called out, "Agent Mulder!"
	Russ Jarvis stood in the outer doorway, his mouth agape and his eyes wide with 
terror.  "What's going on?"  he wailed.
	"Stay with the plane!"  Mulder ordered, and watched as Jarvis turned to go.  
Just as Mulder turned to proceed back down the hall, he heard a muffled cry and 
whipped around in time to see Jarvis crumple to the floor.  Racing to his side, Mulder 
cursed and felt for a pulse.  
	Lifting his hand away from the dead body, Mulder saw a figure retreating down 
a second corridor and got up to follow, wondering if there was anyone left at this 
outpost who was who they were.

	Starky held an armful of geological charges as Scully piled them up like kindling, 
pausing occasionally to glance down the corridor.
	"How much time will we have?"
	"We can set the timers at twenty minutes.  I need time to prep the plane and 
we've got to taxi before we take off."
	"Ok."  Scully tried to give Starky a smile of encouragement.  "We're going to 
make it."
	They both jumped as they heard sounds coming from down the hall and moved 
together to the door.  
	"Are you ready?"  Scully asked, and Starky nodded anxiously.  "Go!"  Scully 
pushed Starky out ahead of her as she covered the rear and the two of them headed 
over the ice to the first shed.

	Mulder rounded the bend, gun ready, only to see swirling snow as whoever he 
was following exited the building.  At the end of the hall, Mulder noticed that a supply 
cabinet was open and funny looking canisters marked "Explosive charges: Caution" 
littered the floor around it.  Finding a padlock with a clear bullet hole through the 
middle, Mulder murmured, "Scully," then threw himself out into the cold.

	Scully and Starky worked frantically, Scully keeping watch while Starky set the 
charges to detonate at maximum charge and at the proper depth.   They had already 
loaded one of the core sites and, after this one, would go do one more just to be sure 
the chain reaction would propagate and vaporize the entire impact site.
	"How far away do we need to be when this goes off?"  Scully asked as she 
attempted to see through a crack in the shed doors.
	"Just off the ground.  The petroleum will ignite and superheat the surrounding 
ice or soil layers, and the steam produced will crack or even melt the top crust of ice.  It 
all depends on how much fuel is underground.  There.  Now just one more should do 
it..."
	Scully backed quickly away from the door and Starky fell silent instantly.  She 
pushed him behind her and they backed into the far corner of the shed.
	The flimsy wooden doors gave way with a thump and Scully drew a bead on 
the movement when a voice called out, "Scully!"
	Scully dropped her hands and couldn't believe her eyes.  "Mulder?!"
	Mulder got up from the ground, rushed up to her and grabbed her elbows, his 
eyes all fire and intensity.  "Scully, are you okay?  What's going on here?"	 
	Scully drank him in with her eyes and smiled up at him, a dozen questions 
forming in her mind.  "Mulder, you have the most incredible sense of timing..."
	"Look out!"  Starky shouted, and Mulder tossed Scully to one side as he was 
pounded from behind.  
	Mulder and Spiner rolled on the ground until they bumped into one of the walls, 
a struggling mass of arms and legs.  Scully brought up her weapon but couldn't fire;  
they were too close together.  Mulder did something to Spiner she couldn't see, then 
he was up and grabbing her by the hand.  "Run!" he said, then yanked her along.
	"Starky!"  Scully yelled, as she saw Philip pause to pick up one of the explosive 
charges, "Come on!"
	Scully, Mulder ran out of the shed, Starky a few strides behind.  Scully now 
pulled Mulder's hand, toward the runway where Jarvis' plane was visible.  
	"We've got to get out of here, now!"  she yelled.  "We've set these explosive 
charges to detonate petroleum underneath the ice!"
	Mulder looked at her in shock, then looked over her shoulder and stopped 
running.  "Hey!" he shouted, as Scully turned to see Starky get enveloped in a bear-hug 
by Spiner a few strides behind them.  There was a flash of silver in Starky's hands and 
Mulder moved to help him but Scully held him back, leaning against his weight with all 
her might. 
	"No!"  she cried, "We've got to go NOW!"
	The two of them were blasted off their feet as the entwined Spiner and Starky 
blew up in a dirty gray cloud of smoke and ash.  They lay stunned in the snow until 
Mulder scrambled to his feet and scooped up Scully with both hands.  He looked deeply 
into her startled eyes and said firmly,  "We're going.  NOW."
	They stumbled towards the airplane, the howling of the Arctic winds taunting 
them as they struggled through snow drifts and finally made it to the smooth runway.  
As they paused to take a breath, Scully gasped,
	"Mulder.  The research, the data.  I have material all prepared..."
	"Forget it, Scully."  Mulder grabbed her hand again and pulled her towards the 
waiting plane, his face as icy as the ground they stood upon.
		
FROSTBITE- PART V

	The two piled into the airplane just as they heard a deep rumbling come from 
the bowels of the earth.  They looked at each other for a moment;  Scully, her eyes 
wide, Mulder giving her a lopsided smile, then they both found a seat and began 
scanning the dials and buttons in the cockpit.
	"Here it is,"  Scully said, pushing a button, and the idling engines sprang into high 
gear.  The ground beneath the plane shook and heaved, and Mulder saw the outpost 
begin to topple.
	"Can you fly this thing?"  
	"Nope.  But I watched my father fly."  Scully was calm and cool as she closed her 
eyes and tried to visualize exactly what had to be done.
	"Dana..."
	"Hold on, Mulder."  Dana grasped a lever and began pushing it forward, goading 
the plane to taxi down the runway.  The ice pitched and rolled and cracked beneath the 
plane and steam began venting from the openings in the runway.  A sharp crag of ice 
split directly in front of them and there was no way to avoid it.  They both winced at 
the sound of the wing fabric being torn, but after they passed over the obstacle, the 
plane had sufficient speed to take off.
	Scully struggled with the controls, "Mulder...I-can't..."
	"Scully... aim for that rise just ahead."  He placed his hands on hers and helped 
her maintain control of the tilting plane while underneath them, the ice began to 
liquefy.
	They reached the top of the rise, the plane's landing gear just catching the icy 
ridge.  The plane pitched and staggered, throwing Mulder and Scully in and out of their 
seats.  The torn wing snapped off, tilting the plane to a twenty dgree angle until it 
skidded into soft snow and plowed roughly to a halt.  
	Scully eased herself out of her seat.  She had piled sideways against her door, 
which was now blocked by snow.  Checking her body for injury and finding none, she 
reached over to Mulder and checked him for broken bones.
	"Ugh."  he mumbled as her hands explored his prone body, then opened his eyes.  
Seeing her close, he managed to murmur with a twinkle in his eyes, "Scully.  I was 
having to most interesting dream..."
	Scully swatted him with her gloves and smiled at him, too exhausted to 
formulate a proper retort.  Looking out the plane window, Scully could see a surging 
aqua-blue river flowing past the embankment they had landed on.
	"Do you think we're safe up here Mulder?"  she asked, worried that the rise they 
were resting on would soon get washed away.
	"It doesn't matter, Scully.  Look!"  Scully followed Mulder's pointing finger and 
could just make out the small black forms of helicopters on the horizon.
	"Amazing.  How did they know?"	
	"They're probably after me.  I didn't exactly 'go by the book' to find you."  Mulder 
replied, reaching for the radio as it crackled to life.  "This is Special Agent Mulder and 
Special Agent Scully issuing a general distress call, over?"
	The radio buzzed and a voice replied, "We have you sighted, Agent Mulder, 
Agent Scully.  Please exit the airplane and be prepared for evac."
	"We're pretty happy to see you guys.  How did you know we'd be out here?"
	"Agent Mulder, we were scrambled to intercept you as soon as we discovered 
your arrival at Doolittle.  Now we have just witnessed the destruction of a massive 
area of government property.  Someone has to be held accountable, over."
	Mulder just gaped in astonishment as Scully took the handset from him.  "We 
copy that, out."   She placed a hand on his shoulder and sighed.  "Don't worry Mulder.  
We'll work this out somehow."   Shrugging slightly, Dana added bitterly, "They don't 
even care about the loss of life, the loss of a scientific discovery of phenomenal 
proportions.  All they are upset about is the loss of some valuable petroleum deposit."
	Mulder nodded slowly, then turned to Scully and stated without irony, without 
bitterness, just stating a simple fact,  "We finally hit them where it hurts."  Then his 
eyes softened and he smiled at her gently, a look that Scully knew well.  "This brings to 
mind the great words of Ripley..."
	" 'Believe it, or not' ?"  Scully interrupted with an arched brow.
	"Nooo.  Wrong Ripley."  Mulder reached into a jacket pocket and pulled out a 
small vial that contained an obviously dead and pristine sample of the parasitic worm, 
and bobbed it up and down in his hand.  " 'At least you don't see them screwing 
each other over for a damned percentage.'"
	Mulder opened the door on his side, climbed out of the plane, then held his arms 
out to help Scully down.  She sat for a minute, looking at him with a mixture of awe 
and annoyance, and something more, then jumped out and promptly knocked him into 
the snow.  "Incredible," she breathed close to his startled face, smiling wickedly, "they 
haven't got us yet, have they Mulder."
	They could hear the sounds of the approaching choppers, but Mulder made no 
attempt to get up.  "Believe it or not, Dana," he said quietly, his eyes glimmering with a 
new hope, "we're not finished yet."

the end.