The Abyss

Author: PhileyX 
E-Mail: phileyxback@yahoo.com 
Web-site: https://www.angelfire.com/id/phileyx 
Rating: PG 
Category: UST 
Spoilers: A slight reference to Detour
Disclaimer: The characters are borrowed solely for kicks and most assuredly not a single cent is made with the production of this piece imagination. 
Intro: Okay I stole a few ideas from the Requiem, yeah the I-can-see-you-but-you-can't-see-me theme but other than that, I hope you'll enjoy a bit of the paranormal.

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The Abyss

She was unusually quiet and he wondered why. Apart from her regular objections to the case back in the basement (not within their jurisdiction, not enough evidence of the paranormal to be classified as an X-file, etcetera and etcetera) she had not said more than ten words since their departure from DC.

He wondered if she was still mad at him for ditching her to check a lead in their previous case. Thankfully he hadn't gotten into any trouble or gotten hurt in the escapade or he would be doing more penance than usual, to get back in favour with her. 

As he pulled up in front of the naval base gates, he pushed his reflections aside and concentrated on the affairs at hand. He introduced himself to the private and requested permission to see the Officer in Charge of the base. They were soon allowed to enter and given guest tags to wear.

A private John Mahoney greeted them at the Guest Relations Quarters. After introductions, Mulder was surprised when the private turned to his partner.

"Scully? That's a coincidence. Our Naval Base Officer's name is Scully too."

His partner just smiled back and he noticed, rather consciously too. His suspicions rose but he was given no chance to enquire as the younger man led them briskly to the Officer's Mess.

The moment he laid eyes on the tall, fair Scully, his uncertainties cleared. It was indeed William Scully. He tried to catch his partner's eye but she was intent on avoiding his gaze.

"Dana?" Bill smiled and rose from his seat. Taking a few strides towards her, he gave her a quick hug and a kiss on the cheek.

"Hello Bill." She greeted him softly.

He soon noticed her partner behind her and nodded at him briefly. Thinking that the only reason for their arrival was because of personal reasons, the naval officer immediately asked. "What are you doing here? Is something wrong?"

"No." Scully hurriedly assured him. "Everything is fine, Bill. We're…" She turned to look at her partner. "… on a case."

Her brother's countenance instantly changed. Taking turns to study the duo's faces, he bravely ventured to ask. "What case?"

His sister remained silent and Mulder decided to take over. "Maybe we could talk about this outside, sir." He requested, a little concerned with the number of curious glances towards them, probably the result of the Naval Base Officer hugging a pretty redhead in a power suit.

Bill jaw line visually tightened. "Actually, I rather you talk about it here."

Mulder groaned inwardly. 'Once a jerk, always a jerk.' He thought. "We understand that two privates have been reported missing from this base?"

"Yes. So?"

"We understand that they were last seen on the Island of the Abyss?"

Bill smirked, as if suddenly comprehending the direction of Mulder's queries. Glancing at his sister, he announced loudly. "And you're thinking that the two privates were ….sucked in the abyss as suggested by it's name?" He grinned. "No wait, maybe they were abducted by aliens?"

His suggestions were definitely overheard as laughter filled the Mess. Scully bit her lip and looked away as if distracted by something else. Her partner however was struggling to keep his temper in check.

"There were similar incidents of disappearances in that very island. We just want to check it out."

"Agent Mulder, I have sent three teams to search every inch of that island since the disappearance of the two men. What makes you think **you'll** be able to find anything there?"

"With all due respect sir, there's no harm in trying one more time, is there?"

Bill blinked at him. "I'm sorry, Agents. I can't allow you within that vicinity. It's a naval firing test ground. It's too dangerous for civilians." And he strode out of the Mess.

Mulder turned to go after him but his partner stopped him by touching his arm. Understanding her look, they walked out of the building.

"Why didn't you tell me, Scully?" He asked, wanting to know why she didn't prepare him for her brother.

"It's not a big deal." She answered softly.

He asked incredulously. "Not a big deal?" 

She sighed. "Let's just go, Mulder. They'll take care of this, it's not in our hands."

"Scully, we have files on this island dating back to the nineteen forties. This **is** an X-file. We have the jurisdiction."

"Not on Naval land, we don't." She turned to walk to the car.

"Yes, we do. This island only belonged to the Navy since four years ago." He briskly walked after her. 

"Just give it up, Mulder."

"If this were any other Naval Base, you would be demanding to see that island."

She spun to face him. "Just what do you mean by that?"

"I mean that Little Miss Dana Scully doesn't have the guts to face her big brother."

She glared at him. "This has nothing to do with my brother."

"Damn it Scully, we have a legitimate case here."

"All we've got that suggests a little out of the ordinary is a myth, a legend created by over imaginative parents who sole purpose was to keep their children from venturing out there." She argued back.

"Then how do you explain two men disappearing on a mere hundred acre island?"

"Mulder, did you ever consider that these men might not have disappeared there? They could have snuck out of the base? Or a million other things could have happened to them."

"Their inflatable boat was anchored on that island."

"So maybe they took a swim and they drowned." He gave her a look and she shrugged. "Look, it doesn't matter anymore. Bill will never allow us on the island, case closed." 

"That son of a …."

"Mulder, that would be my mom!"

He blinked. "Oh right, sorry. It's just that your brother is such an asshole!"

She rolled her eyes. This coming from Mr. Insensitive himself….. "Just let it go."

"No, I'm not going to let it go. This is my case and I'm going to get on that island even if I have to go over his head."

She grabbed him arm. "You're not going over his head."

He shook her grip off and fumed. "Whose side are you on anyway, Scully?"

Her eyes flicked in anger and he realized his mistake. Somehow, she composed herself the best she could to reply. "I've always been on your side, you know that. But this does not concern only me; it concerns my brother's future too. I'll put my job on the line any day for you, Mulder. But leave my brother out of it." 

He impulsively grabbed her hand. "Scully." He hesitated as if choosing the right words to say. "All right. We'll just do it another way." She raised an eyebrow as he continued. "I've got a friend…."

"Oh no."

"He's a part of the base…"

"No, Mulder!"

"Two hours. We'll breeze through that place and get out of there."

"I said no!"

"This will no way reflect on your brother."

She hissed at him. "If we're caught, it will!"

"How?" He demanded to know and she gave him a look. "Oh right, you're his sister…."

She rolled his eyes. "Bill may be a jerk but he certainly does not deserve the humiliation of turning in his own sister to be court marshaled."

He tried again hopefully. "We won't get caught…"

"You say that every time and every time we still get our asses dragged into a military interrogation room!"

"Listen, there's nothing there on that island that's worth guarding. You heard your brother, it's only a test firing ground."

She muttered. "And that's supposed to be comforting?"

"I heard that firing has been suspended until they recover the two missing men so we don't have to worry about shells falling on us."

"Mulder, they'll pick us up on their radar."

"I also heard that local fishermen go there all the time. The guards are so sick of clearing these harmless visitors off the island that now they just let them. As long as they clear out before dawn."

"We're going at night?"

"Yeah."

"And how do you expect us to find anybody in the dark?"

Her partner groaned in frustration. "We'll manage. I just want to take a look. We don't find anything in two hours, we're out of there, okay?"

She kicked the dirt on the ground angrily, intensely irritated that she could not think of a single reasonable basis to object to his plan.

"Okay?" He asked again, trying hard not to smile at his wavering partner.

"Fine." She reluctantly agreed.

"Thank you." This time he indulged in a grin.

XXXXXXXXX

"I still think that this is not a good idea." Scully grumbled for the fifth time.

"Shhh!" Mulder's annoyed 'friend' protested as he softly rowed the small craft.

Her partner whispered beside her. "Scully, you're making me look bad."

She snapped back softly. "At this point Mulder, I don't care how you look."

He frowned. "Must run in the family…" Mumbling to himself, he thought about how Bill embarrassed them both in the Mess, regardless of his sister.

The boat soon bumped into a rock of some kind, causing all aboard to jerk slightly. Mulder threw his legs over the dinghy and felt for the ground. They had landed. Scully switched on her torchlight and lighted the way for him. He grabbed the ropes to the boat and carefully balanced himself on the slippery rocks that led to the beach.

After he had secured the ropes to a heavy boulder nearby, Scully and Micky as Mulder called him, descended the bobbing vessel and made their way in his direction. They gathered together and looked at their watches collectively. It was 2.29 am. 

Mulder whispered his instructions. "We stick together, understood?"

Micky and his partner nod. She couldn't help herself but add. "Two hours and not a minute longer." Mickey gave Mulder a look and rolled his eyes. The latter held back a laugh. 

They walked cautiously in a line, Mulder leading the way. The island may be small but there was a considerable amount of foliage. They struggled through the growth, wishing they had brought something to clear the branches in their way. 

It was quiet, Scully noticed. Too quiet, not even the crickets were chirping. For a second, she was reminded of the Moth men in Leon County. And her hand sought her gun, just in case.

They could see nothing to excite them and roughly covered most of the island within the intended time limit. When they stopped for a breather, Scully gave Mulder a look, which he recognized well. He ignored it and told her instead. "I've got to pee."

"We're gonna head back soon. Can't it wait?"

He shook his head. She rolled her eyes and warned. "Don't go far."

"Stop treating me like a kid, Scully." He grumbled and she rolled her eyes again.

Mickey nodded at his friend's back. "Where's he going?"

"Nature's call."

"Great!" He blinked. "Now, I have to go."

Scully groaned. "Don't you guys have any bladder control at all?"

"That whole region is beyond our control." He gripped and walked off in another direction.

She repeated her warning. "Don't go far!"

"Yes, mother goose." He called back.

Scully tapped her foot impatiently on the ground. Two minutes later, Mickey rustled into her midst. "Where's Mulder?"

"He's not back yet."

"What's taking him so long?"

She looked towards the direction that her partner had headed. "I don't know."

"I'll go take a look." He decided. A few seconds later, he called back. "He's gone!"

Scully frowned. 'Don't tell me he's run off again?' She walked and found Mickey flashing his torchlight about. "What do you mean he's gone?"

"I don't see him. Mulder?"

She helped to look as well. "Mulder?"

Silence and they both stared at each other. Once again, she was reminded of the forest creatures that once attacked them, not too long ago. "Stay close and keep calling." 

Mickey nodded his head and obeyed. "Mulder!"

"Mulder!" Still no reply and Scully began to panic.

XXXXXXXXX

Mulder gazed in awe at the sight of the blackness. It was incredible! It looked like a huge mass of nothingness in the middle of the island. A void, an emptiness, an abyss…. He smiled, here was the X-file that his partner insisted didn't exist. 'And sure enough, she's not here to see it.' Shaking his head in disgust, he turned to get her.

There seemed to be a boundary between the blackness and the island flora. It was almost a two-dimensional effect. He took a step close to it and a sudden heat wave hit him. Underestimating the danger, he thrust his hands towards the invisible line. 

The moment his skin touched the burning heat, he jumped back in pain and shock. He looked at his hands. They looked slightly scorched, red and stinging. He stared at the borderline in new-found-respect. Then he caught sight of Mickey.

"Mickey, over here!" He called out. But his friend didn't seem to hear him. He saw his partner and called her instead. "Scully!" No response. They seemed to be yelling on top of their voices but he can't seem to hear them. He called out to them again but to no avail. 

He looked at the boundary again and braved himself. This time he threw his whole body towards the line. To his dismay, he was thrown back into the blackness. Pain seared throughout his body and the burning sensations throbbed wildly.

He looked up at his companions and called out again. They seemed oblivious to his cries. He tried again, louder and desperate. No reaction. And Mulder began to panic.

XXXXXXXXX

The look Bill gave her was the very same look she got when he caught her smoking in the garage fifteen years ago. She always hated that look and glared back at him. He ignored her scowl. "I should report you to your superiors. I can't believe you sneaked onto that island."

She rolled her eyes in frustration. "Damn it Bill, will you leave the formalities for later and send a search party out to find him!"

He sighed loudly. "That man is nothing but trouble!"

"Bill!"

"All right!" He picked up the phone and barked an order to his subordinate on the other side. "A party will be out in fifteen minutes."

"Thank you." She sighed in relief. "And I'm going with them."

His eyes widened. "Oh no, you're not!"

"Oh yes, I am." She declared haughtily and turned to leave. 

He grabbed her arm firmly and turned her around. "You are not going on that island, Dana. Three men are missing and that's plenty enough to look for!"

She frowned at him in surprise. "I thought you didn't believe in the abyss?"

He looked caught. "I don't." Her look intensified and he flustered. "I just…" He groaned and finally pleaded instead. "Dana please, just let **us** find him."

"He's my partner. I'm going whether you like it or not." She told him firmly.

He glared at her for a few seconds before giving up. "Well then, I'm going too." She blinked in surprise but he strode out of the office before she could say anything.

The party was assembled and ready to go in fifteen minutes. This time thoroughly prepared with navigation tools and bush knives, they headed out for the island. In the daytime, the island looked smaller and even harmless. As they landed on the beach, they quickly divided themselves into groups and paired with a partner. Of course, Bill was determined to remain at his sister's side.

They started their line of walk through the forest. Although both yelling Mulder's name, there was a clear edginess in her brother's voice that was beginning to get on her nerves. Rationally deciding that this was no time to start a picking a fight, she began imagining Mulder in horrifying conditions to distract herself.

They covered the whole island thrice with the collective effort of the party but Mulder was still not found. And when it began to get dark, Scully refused to leave the island without her partner. Reluctantly, her brother sent most of the men back and assigned four men with them to stay, in case Mulder mysteriously appeared.

"The things I do for my sister…" He grumbled to himself as he helped to set up camp for the night in a clearing in the middle of the island.

His sister, oblivious to his complaints, was staring absently out into the dark forest of greenery. She was worried. No, make that terrified. What if the abyss really did exist? How does one escape from it? 

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Mulder's body ached and throbbed. Refusing to give up, he had hurled himself to torture repeatedly and now he was paying dearly for it. He could not even stand, much less walk. His only comfort was the sight of Scully and her search party combing through the forest, looking for him. 'She'll find me, somehow she will.' He thought and curled himself up into a ball in an effort to lessen the pain.

Nightfall arrived too quickly and he began to shiver violently. He looked up at the campsite nearby and caught sight of his partner sitting on a rock at the edge of the clearing, only two meters away from the abyss boundary. Mulder suddenly felt revived. Pushing himself up, he crawled slowly towards her. "Scully!" He called. She just stared straight past him. He growled loudly in disappointment. "Why can't she hear me?" 

Then, tired, hungry, thirsty and mentally drained, he finally laid his head down to rest. Though the heat from the boundary helped to warm him, the thought that Scully was nearby helped more.

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Scully still stared out into the nothingness. It still amazed her how the island was so quiet. It was so unnatural, considering she was in the wild. She closed her eyes and tried to think of the facts Mulder had briefed her.

The legend of the Abyss Island. Six reported cases of disappearances within the period of nineteen forty-six to forty-nine. The island originally belonged to an English Duke, who abandoned it after toiling on it for two years. Some people say his son vanished into the abyss and thus causing him to give up the land entirely. Remaining unclaimed for years, the American Navy began building a base on the mainland and requested the land for training purposes. An intense search for the surviving heir of the island went into play and to their surprise, the inheritance happily handed over the land to the Navy on a silver plate, free of charge, no conditions attached. The question was, why?

The abyss…. What was it? A hole, a void, nothingness…. She bit her lip and tried to think of anything that could give her a clue on how to even begin deriving Mulder's whereabouts. As peered she into the night, something caught her eye. She stared and stared.

A heat wave? She frowned. At least it looked like one. It was more like a ripple in air. She looked intently at the imperfection in the scenery before her. 'There was something there.' She finally decided. Keeping her eye on the slight wrinkle in case it decided to vanish, she slowly got up from the rock and walked towards it.

Soon, she found herself staring face to face with it. The line was hardly noticeable but it was there, right in front of her. More astounded than afraid, she held out her hand to touch it, her hand went right through it and she thought the ripple were just her eyes playing tricks on her.

XXXXXXXXX

Mulder felt as if something was hovering above his head. He gathered his strength and looked up. His breath was caught as he saw Scully reaching out her hand over him. She seemed to not see him and yet her hand was clearly inside the abyss. 

'She found me!' He wanted to yell for joy but his parched throat could not say a word. So he stretched out his hand and touched her.

XXXXXXXXX

Scully jumped and pulled back her hand. She stared in front of her in surprise. She could see nothing there and yet she felt something touch her. 

'What the hell is going on?' She wondered. Then braving herself, she nervously held out her hand again. And again, something grabbed on to her hand but this time she did not pull back.

She looked at her hand fiercely. She could not see anything but she could feel it. It was another hand holding hers. The hand was large, strong, persistently squeezing hers gently. "Mulder?" 

Before she could react further, an incredible impact suddenly threw her onto the ground. It was as if a bomb blasted behind her. Dust, twigs, leaves and sand flew everywhere. Scully coughed and cowered her face. 

"Dana, are you all right?" Her brother shouted from the fog of dust, near the campsite.

"Yeah." She answered, still coughing.

When the dirt settled, she turned to see the extent of the damage. The tents were completely blown off from their pegs, lying untidily like rags on the ground. Bill appeared. "Dana?"

"I'm okay. What happened?"

"I think a dud shell just went off."

"What?"

"Keaton! What's going on?"

"I'm trying to find out sir!" The private called back beyond the dusty mist.

Bill turned back and inspected his sister. Then something else caught his eye behind her and he gasped. "Dana…"

She saw his face and turned to see what he was looking at. "Oh my God, Mulder!" Her partner was lying behind her and he looked hurt, very hurt. "Get help!" She ordered her brother. 

"He looks… burnt."

"Bill, I said go get help!" She yelled at him again frantically and he hastily left to obey her. Leaning down beside her partner, she gently inspected his wounds. Her brother was right, he was burnt. "Mulder? Can you hear me?"

He could and he smiled. "Scully?"

Despite the circumstances, she smiled at the sound of his soft voice. "Yes it's me. It's all right now."

He seemed delirious as he tried to explain. "It's the abyss, Scully. I tried to get out but I couldn't. I could see you. You were just there in front of me. But you couldn't hear me…."

"Shhh, Mulder. It's okay now." She tried to calm him down.

"You couldn't hear me, Scully. I thought you would never find me…."

Help finally came with a first aid kit and a stretcher. "We got to get him to a hospital immediately."

"How bad are the burns?"

"It doesn't look too bad but I can't really be sure in this dark."

"Scully?" Her partner called out.

She held his forehead gently and whispered in his ear. "Shhh… Tell me later."

"'Kay" He replied and settled quietly.

"Come on, let's get him to the boat."

As they hauled Mulder away, Bill caught his sister's arm. She glanced at his face and turned to see what he was staring at. A hundred meters away lay two charred bodies. And Scully had a feeling they were looking at the two missing privates.

XXXXXXXXX

The sound of the door being opened roused her from her seat beside her patient. She looked up and smiled at her brother. "Bill, didn't expect to see you here."

"You can say that again." Mulder grunted in agreement.

Bill gave him a look and explained smilingly. "My superior is coming by to thank you for your services rendered in finding the bodies of our naval men. Naturally I have to be here to give support."

Mulder rolled his eyes. "Ah, of course."

Dana laughed and stood beside her partner's bed. Her hand gently tapped his, as if warning him to behave. He returned the tap and gave a cherry-sweet fake smile to the elder man. Bill caught the intimate gestures exchanged between them and resisted the urge to roll his eyes. 

He sighed, if his sister was happy then he should let things be. "You know, Mulder. For a grown man, you sure whine a lot when you're hurt."

"Well, it's the only time your sister pays attention to me." Mulder grinned. "And luckily for me, it wasn't my fault I'm in this bed. All I did was go pee. If it was really my doing, you should hear her nag…."

"Oh shut up, Mulder." She playfully told him.

"See? Get a little bit better and the love's gone."

She was about to retort something even nastier when the door opened again and General Clayton entered. Bill gave his salute and introduced his sister.

"Your sister? Well this is certainly a surprise, Scully."

"Yes sir."

"You must be very proud of her."

Bill glanced at his sister and smiled. "Yes, I am."

She blushed slightly at her brother's rare compliment and hastily introduced her poor, burnt partner to the general.

"Agent Mulder, it's a pleasure to meet you."

"The pleasure's all mine, sir."

"Well I have no doubt that you know that the families of the two poor boys are truly grateful for all that you have done. And you can be rest assured that that island will be declared off limits until it is certain that every shell on that island has been cleared."

"Shells, sir?" Mulder asked in surprise. 'What the about the abyss?' He thought.

"Yes, the bomb shells. Those blasted duds are the ones that killed those boys and wounded you."

Scully bit her lip to hide her feelings as Mulder openly stared at Bill. "What exactly did your report say, Bill?"

He replied, looking straight in his eyes. "The truth, Agent Mulder."

"Yes." The general continued. "I can't believe that it's our very own fault that those boys died. But it's our responsibility and we'll have to take it."

Scully looked at her partner's purple face and grimaced. 'Great, here we go again, another Mulder outburst coming up. He'll probably begin by accusing Bill for the lies in his report, rant on like a madman about the great big hole on the island and top it all off with a good-old-fashioned giant, naval cover up.' She thought and waited in suspense. But to her surprise, he just looked away, studying his sheets fiercely as if they were the most interesting things in the world. She frowned, not believing what she was seeing.

The general however, misunderstood the silence. "Well I guess I shouldn't trespass on the patient's rest time any longer. Thank you once again, agents. You can be sure that your superiors will hear nothing but the best from me."

Mulder only managed to splutter a thank you as he watched the general and Bill walk out of the room. When the door closed, he stared at his partner in amazement. "Can you believe that? This will probably be the first time we're commended by an American military uniform body."

She smiled. "Probably."

He was silent for a while and she waited for him to begin his tirade, knowing he had to get it out of his system before it killed him. It didn't take him long. "They blamed it on the shells. But it's not the shells."

"I know." She agreed softly.

"They combed the island three times and then according to you another three times that day. It was impossible not to find them, they were just lying there."

"I know."

His agitation increased. "I saw you, Scully. You were right in front of me and yet you didn't see me."

"I know."

"I was **in** it. I was in the abyss." She touched his hand lightly to calm him down. He looked at her for a while and grinned weakly. "Aren't you going to say 'I know'?"

She smiled back. "Sorry Mulder, **that** I don't know."

He groaned but not angrily. "Oh come on, you felt me. I held your hand."

She hesitated. "Mulder, I was tired...." He gave her a look and she sighed. "Look, let's not get into a fight okay?" She patted his arm and told him softly. "You need to rest. I'll come by tomorrow."

He looked disappointed but nodded anyway. She was about to go when she remembered something. "Mulder?" He looked at her. "Thank you for not saying anything in front of the general. I know … it must have been difficult not to."

He smirked. "You have no idea…."

She grinned. "Oh, I think I do." Reaching for the door, she turned the doorknob.

"Hey Scully?" She stopped and turned. He beamed shyly. "Thanks for finding me."

She smiled. "Sleep tight, Mulder."

XXXXXXXXX
End of The Abyss 

All feedback will be answered lovingly with many, many thanks to last you a lifetime. Muah!!! (in advance)
E-Mail: phileyxback@yahoo.com 
Web-site: https://www.angelfire.com/id/phileyx