The Lambs: Part 2 (18/21) by Lamia (AKA so kiss me goodbye) Rating: PG-13 (violence, strong language) Category: S Spoilers: Seasons 1-9, Fight the Future Keywords: William; Colonization Summary: Liam van de Kamp's life changes the day two FBI agents kidnap him and his parents. Author's Note: The Lambs is a three-part story (with prologue). Chapter 28 July 2012 New Mexico Charlie's family was just the first. A piece of paper crunched under Liam's foot several weeks later when he headed to the bathroom. It had been nudged under their door overnight. "What's that?" his sharp-eyed mother asked. Liam unfolded the torn notebook paper and gulped. "Nick's email address." At breakfast Ellie waved him over to her table and patted a piece of paper tucked under her tray. He felt a pit open in his stomach. "You got one too?" She nodded. "No one's seen them today." There was little point telling anyone. News traveled at light speed underground. They pocketed their messages in the places they kept their treasures. Online access was limited for the children. Liam didn't know when he'd be able to send Nick a message - or if Nick had sent one to him. There was no outburst from the Major this time, but every clandestine departure made the camp that little bit darker. Like every time someone left, a lightbulb got busted. And they were running out of spares. The defections achieved *one* thing. Withholding the vaccine was an ineffective way of forcing people to stay. It was okayed for children. Marie van de Vamp watched with other parents as Liam lined up with his friends. He didn't need his mother to hold his hand. It made it easier for Dr. Scully to give him a fake injection. He could tell she wasn't happy doing it - her nostrils had flared - but at least now neither of them had to feel as guilty about it. It was impossible for anyone (except Gibson) to know what anyone else was thinking about the vaccine, about life at the camp, or about leaving - but Gibson had reverted to his early hermit habits. He avoided venturing underground. Liam witnessed Major Drummond stomping away Gibson's hut one afternoon, a large scowl twisting his face. No one knew what their fight was about, but they could all guess. Liam struggled to understand the problem. *It's like we made a prison for ourselves.* Only, some people were happy to stay in jail, while others couldn't wait to escape it. His parents had never raised the topic of leaving again. Liam suspected they were deliberately keeping him in the dark. On the other hand, they hadn't complained about still being here. His mother even pointed out the anniversary of their arrival with a smile and a special page in her scrapbook. Summer days blended one dusty day into the next. Mostly the weather was hot and dry - until one afternoon an almighty crack popped the sky open like a peapod and a dollop of rain was dumped on them. The rainy season had arrived. Violent electrical forks raged across the horizon and laden supercells would unload water in gulps, instant streams pouring across the desert. More often than not, as soon as Liam had pulled a raincoat on, the storm would have vanished leaving nothing but dripping vegetation and a sharp, musty smell rising from the floor of the desert. Liam learned not to trust a blue sky. The rain revived the desert - and it woke a curiosity Liam hadn't felt for months. It was a whole new world out there and exploring it was a better way to spend his time than brood. After rain the first thing to hit him was the smell - sweet, tangy air filled his lungs and made his blood tingle. Dull greens exploded into emeralds. Carpets of tiny orange, white and purple flowers erupted on the desert floor. Mesquite trees with their chaotic branches put out second and third blooms. Bees, dragonflies, and beetles worked the plants and gave the land a vibrant hum. Watching the desert spring to life was a welcome distraction from life grinding away in the camp. Regular progress reports started arriving on the vaccine. The first batches were on their way to prearranged distribution centers. Sometimes the news was heartening. But often when the scientists emerged topside, the sun would beat down on glum faces. "You can't force people to take the medicine, Liam," Toby said on such an afternoon. "In most places it's being marketed as a flu vaccine. Not everyone thinks they need it. Especially not now." A day later Shu spotted some troubling news online. "Explosion Destroys Pharmaceutical Factory in Suspected Terrorist Attack. Phaizen. That's one of ours, isn't it?" Three days later security at a factory in Europe was breached. No one was hurt and the plant had only minor damage but the attacks were worrying. "Does that mean the aliens know about the vaccine?" Liam asked his father over dinner. That's what Aaron had told him. "I don't know, Lee," his father said, "but it doesn't sound good." When a third factory was hit, Major Drummond called an emergency meeting one afternoon. It was the opportunity Liam wanted. Ellie stopped him on the stairs as he headed up. "Aaron and I have found a great place to listen in. Don't you want to come?" For once Liam had something better planned. He considered telling Ellie, but it could be useful having her report back on the meeting. "Nah. I'm supposed to be taking Sal for a run." He made his excuse vague. He didn't want to tell her about his plan - yet. As he'd hoped, few people were around outside. Despite a forecast for afternoon thunderstorms, the sky was wide and blue. Liam couldn't see a cloud anywhere - but the sharpness of the air said rain wasn't far away. He had been through many of the unused buildings before. When he and Mulder went looking for a tank for Jerry a year ago, they'd combed much of the base. Liam had some idea what to expect. Pickings were slim - but every now and then, in unexpected places, you could find useful items. He was after something specific. Something he had seen before. The base had four hangars. One housed a fleet of unused vehicles - the minivan they'd driven to Rudi's aid; other vehicles which at some stage must have been used to transport larger items into the camp. The second hangar was their classroom. Jeremiah had snuck up on Liam there all those months ago before they went to reassemble Doggett. The third and fourth hangars were the final sites on Liam's list of places to search. If he didn't find what he was looking for in either, then he doubted he would find it at all. The third was the hangar where Mulder had parked his camper. A day after he'd returned, Shu had helped him remove some computing equipment, but after that, no one seemed to go near the vehicle. He started with the fourth one since its roller door had been permanently jammed halfway open and so much dirt had blown in it was like the desert had moved indoors. But despite its size and several smaller workshops off the main building, there was little to excite him. Liam kicked a pile of leaves in a corner. The third hangar was more promising - it had an external metal staircase leading to a workshop door on the second floor. No one was around to yell at him to come down, but the trip up was a waste of time since the door was locked. Liam was about to retreat when the ledge of a window caught his eye. He leaned over the iron railing to test it. He nearly whooped and slipped when the window slid up with ease. With another hasty look to make sure no one was around, he climbed over the rail and stretched. Feet dangling over the thirty foot drop, he hoisted himself into the building. This room had probably once been an office. There was a desk along one wall. Scraps of paper, receipts by the look of it, filled one drawer, but the others were empty. A cupboard revealed coveralls slung on a hook that disintegrated in a stream of dust when he pushed them aside. The room led to a skeletal mezzanine floor which overlooked the main space of the hangar. The timber slats had been frugally laid. The gaps between each one were wide enough to poke a finger through. Yellow dashes underneath marked the camper. Liam tread gingerly across the planks to the far rail. Some of the boards groaned when he put weight on them. Liam studied the main space. The metal walls were bare and windowless. The only light streamed in from clear panels in the ceiling. The small camper - an old rust bucket really - looked comical parked in the dead center of the space. A rowboat in a dry dock. Checking it out seemed a waste of time. Foil-lined windows would thwart his attempts to peer inside. It wasn't totally sealed off. Two thick extension cords dropped from a crack in the driver's window and ran to a socket in the wall. Not to worry. He doubted what he wanted was in the RV anyway. Satisfied he wasn't going to crash through the floor and plummet to the hard concrete pad below, Liam checked out the shelving behind him. Three wide shelves ran about six feet across. Cardboard boxes big enough for Liam to hide in were pushed two deep on the bottom and middle shelves. The lowest boxes looked fresh, but when they were shoved in, they scuffed a thick layer of matted dust. He pulled one box out and found folded plastic sheeting. If he wanted to check the furthest boxes, he'd have to climb onto the shelf just to reach them. Musty dust mushroomed in his face as he crawled in. He pushed aside several boxes and felt behind one which wasn't hard against the wall. His heartbeat sped up. He touched something rough - and froze. The click of a door sounded loud even up here. He wiggled to the edge of the shelf, prepared to shout hello, but in a split second decided to stay still. If they asked him what he was doing here, he might have to explain. He didn't want to lie. "I still don't know if I trust this thing being here." Liam winced. That was Dr. Scully. Her voice bounced off the metal walls. Easing over, he peered between the planks. The flash of her hair was fire against charcoal gray concrete. From the set of her shoulders, her arms were crossed. "What's to stop it blowing this place sky high?" A figure stepped out from behind her. "Mulder said it only did that last time because he thought you were going to destroy it. This time it - they - know we're on their side." Gibson's dark head lifted in Liam's direction but his gaze passed over him. Gibson couldn't see through the mezzanine floor. Lying on the shelf, Liam was undetectable. "No one's around. It's safe to talk here. Mulder's on his way." The assurance wasn't enough to stop Dr. Scully testing the locks on the external doors or pressing her weight against the large roller doors. "If only everyone would realize we're all on the same side." "No." Gibson leaned against a workbench. "We all want the same outcome - more or less. But it's obvious we don't all agree how to go about getting it." Dr. Scully moved back to him, wiping her hands. "We had no idea what we were creating when we made this place. Even my mother's questioning why we're still here." "What have you told her?" "The truth - as I see it. At least I feel like I'm doing something." "If it makes you feel any better, Harry and Marie aren't thinking about leaving. Weirdly enough, they feel safe here." The mention of his parents shocked Liam. "They must be the only ones. I feel like target practice every time I walk outside." "You did a good job winning them over, Scully." "I'm burning through my miracle quota, Gibson." "Who said they were miracles? You're usually the first person to argue for a rational explanation." "I've gone over this so much I've run out of things to think. How did Jeremiah know? And if he knew, who else knew? But why wait to do anything? That's what I don't get. I don't care what he said. None of it makes sense." "The Grays can't have known. You got them out just in time, remember?" "But that doesn't fit either. If the Grays weren't worried, why all of a sudden send a platoon of supersoldiers after him - when they've known he was there all along?" "I don't know what to tell you, Scully. I can't answer that question other than to say some circumstance must have changed. We may never know what. All we can do is be thankful things went our way." His head swiveled. "Mulder's here." Less than a second later a door slammed and Liam recognized Mulder's familiar voice. "There's no talking sense to that man." Gibson removed his glasses, pulling up a corner of his shirt to rub the lenses. "He's not wrong in one sense. Anyone who leaves this place puts the rest of us at risk." "Yeah, but does he have to be such an ass telling people that?" Mulder joined Gibson and the doctor, each resting casually against workbench to face the camper. "Short of barricading them in, we won't stop people leaving," Dr. Scully said. "Better they leave with some sort of protection than not." Their conversation stopped, and then the doctor snorted. "Since when did saving the world require an ethics committee?" Gibson rounded on Mulder. "Speaking of ethics." "Here we go." "You've always known it would come to this, Mulder. It doesn't matter if the Grays know about the vaccine. We were never going to get adequate uptake in the time we had. We don't have any choice - we have to consider our other options." "The Trojan plan." Mulder's distaste was audible. "It's the best thing we've got, and you know it. Rudi is still keen." "There's so much we don't know about the technology. And presuming he even got on board - what then?" "Says the king of improvisation himself." Gibson didn't bother hiding his scorn. "Bet you didn't stop to ask yourself that question when you went to get Scully out of Antarctica." Mulder ignored the jibe as he so often did whenever Gibson needled him. "You're going to put the idea to the group." "You've known this would be the outcome ever since Marita contacted us." "Then you didn't ask us here to discuss the plan. You'd already made your mind up. Why bother with the charade, Gibson?" "We don't always agree, Mulder. But I've always respected you. And sometimes you surprise me ... if anyone was going to come up with a real reason why we shouldn't try this, it was going to be you." "But not today," Mulder said grimly. Gibson nodded then moved to the door. "But not today." Mulder and Dr. Scully watched the door shut. The sound of Gibson's footsteps receded. Her gaze unbroken, Dr. Scully spoke. "What if we haven't done enough, Mulder?" His arm went around her shoulder. "We'll get through this, Scully." She eased away from him, stepping into the room. Like she was pulling loneliness around her. "There are so many questions. Questions I'm afraid to have answered." "Some things I don't question, Scully." "I had a nosebleed this morning. The first one in months." Mulder pushed himself off the bench. "It could be nothing -" "Before - when things seemed to be better - I almost thought Jeremiah had been back. In disguise." "Gibson would have known. Is that the only thing you can think of?" "The only thing? No. The hand of God, a wish-granting genie ..." He closed the distance between them with a single step. "Because *that* worked out well last time." She had her back to him. Mulder wouldn't have seen her smile. "Clyde Bruckman. Alfred Fellig." That made him go still. "Those names." "Not that they mean anything - not if it's back again." She wrapped herself in a hug. "How is it *we* live so close to death? Sometimes when I'm lying awake, I start counting all the near-misses ..." "Sheesh, Scully. You ever stop to think *why* you might be having trouble sleeping?" Dr. Scully stared ahead as if she never heard him. "What's it like, Mulder? Seeing the dead? Talking to them?" "*You* know," he said. "You've had a little experience of that yourself." Shadow and light flowed over Dr. Scully as cloud rolled over a skylight. The deep rumble of thunder warned of the approaching storm. "My dad?" "And your sister." "Do we have trouble letting go?" she said wistfully. "Since when have you fallen for popular therapies, Scully?" "I never saw you." "Hey?" "After we buried you. That was all I wanted. I *wanted* to see you. I saw you *before* - after they took you. I was desperate to see you *after*." He touched her. "But you didn't." "I should have." "Ah - but *I* wasn't dead." "But I *thought* you were." "And you think that means something?" "I don't know what it means. Maybe we can't get death right." "We're not overachieving, that's for sure." She folded herself in his arms, her laughter muffled against his chest until she drew back. "Do you ever allow yourself the luxury of thinking - hoping - that maybe it does mean something?" "That way lies madness, Scully." Liam flinched at a click and the crackle of a speaker. He looked around wildly. The sound of a strum started pulsating through the chamber in a watery echo. It was coming from the camper. It had to be. Dr. Scully pulled a face. "Sea shanties, Mulder? Is dancing the -" "Maybe Esther's telling us not to forget that there are other ways to cheat at death." "She would know." The music wasn't loud enough to drown them out, and they weren't really dancing - they were moving too slowly for that. Like gentle bobbing on tiny waves. Either way, Liam felt like an unwilling intruder. Overhead, clouds kept up their skittering chase across the sky. Dr. Scully rested against Mulder. "Did you arrange this?" "Maybe someone else knows how much you secretly like to dance?" She let the music go on until the melody began to soften. "Gibson says they feel safe here, but what if they decide to leave?" "They're sensible folk. We'll just talk to them." "And tell them what?" "Maybe the truth?" "Mulder ..." "I followed you in this, Scully. Even though I hated how much it tore you up. I agreed with you - at first. But the longer this goes on, the harder we make it for ourselves." "We just have to see it through to the end, Mulder. If we can get that far ... that's all I need -" "You need to know you put it right. We both need it." The clatter of rain on the roof was instant. To Liam's relief the storm had arrived - and his friends took it as a sign to be on their way. The music ended, leaving Liam more confused than ever. -o0o- Ellie found him sitting on the floor in their classroom next to Jerry's tank, Sal resting her head on his leg as he absently scratched behind her ears. Her arrival interrupted his inner turmoil. Dr. Scully was sick again; Gibson had a plan Mulder didn't like; Mulder had been buried once. *What did I miss?* It wasn't the first time Liam had heard of Mulder having a near-death experience ... but to be buried? He hadn't just been nearly dead. He didn't just wake up from a coma in a hospital. He must *really* have been dead. Liam had vague memories of Mulder mentioning it. When Jeremiah arrived. Scully had found a way to beat the virus - that was what he had said. As if that wasn't enough to take in, he now had some insight into Dr. Scully's feelings about Jeremiah. She had doubts about his story. What was it she questioned? Maybe she didn't believe Jeremiah living next door to his parents was co-incidence. What did she believe he had been doing? Spying on them? Protecting them? Ultimately that was why they were here - to protect Liam's dad. Protect him from becoming a supersoldier ... or something worse? The answer - that his dad was the commander - was so obvious, Liam decided to ignore it. Nobody who met his father would believe it. Whatever Mulder and Scully's secrets - and they had many - it was clear: they cared for his parents. Looking up, he saw Ellie at the door. "I can't believe you missed it," she said. "They don't know what to do about the factories. They're worried the date for colonization will be brought forward." Liam shrugged. "There's not much they *can* do. Not here. They've got something else planned, haven't they?" She made her way to him and peered into Jerry's tank. "Gibson says they can get on a ship and infect it. Shu's worked out how to control the nanobots. Did you also know Gibson thinks there are more supersoldiers than ever not far from here?" "We're still safe, though, aren't we?" "No one can say. Gibson says they've been here for a year. He doesn't think they know we're here. Either this is the safest place in the world ... or it isn't." "That's a relief." He jumped up, earning a yelp from Sal. "You know what? Who cares? Nothing changes here. I know a better way to spend our time." He took delight in pulling Ellie along to the third hangar, using a ground floor entrance this time. "Wait here." Liam raced up to the mezzanine floor. "Liam?" "Look out below." The rope uncoiled over the edge like a strand of spaghetti. Ellie's jaw dropped and she picked up the bottom end. "It's perfect." "Almost like fate." It was the rope Jeremiah had carried to the pit. Liam had no idea how it ended up on the shelf. He didn't intend to question it. All they needed now was time. They waited for a cloudy day when the heat wasn't so oppressive. It wasn't too hot and there was no wind, but it was sticky when they slipped away after lunch. Liam could feel the sweat soaking his back where his straps dug in. He was carrying the rope, while Ellie had snacks and water. The rope was heavier than he expected. As they passed the headless horseman, Liam remembered the first time they had come this way. "What do you reckon Charlie and Nick are doing?" Ellie blew strands of hair off her blotchy cheeks. "Swimming. Eating ice cream. Not worrying about curfew. Nick's probably singing." This time they had no problem finding the hole. It was still concealed, but Liam remembered several landmark bushes. Once again the cover was too hard to fully remove, but they managed to move it enough to create a narrow gap. They anchored the rope around a creosote bush which had gnarly roots extending in every direction. When they pulled on it, the bush strained but stayed stubbornly in place. "I'll go first to test it." Liam squeezed his eyes shut as he lowered himself and felt the rope go taut. Unlike the pit where Doggett was being kept, the shaft on this hole started smooth, but it wasn't straight. There was a slight incline which would make it easier to ascend. "Liam?" "Still here." Gooseflesh popped on his skin as he got lower. What little sunlight filtered down did little to reveal anything beyond a rocky ledge. He sensed rather than saw the bottom. While the rope didn't quite reach, there were enough cracks and fissures to scramble down unaided. "There's a small drop at the bottom. Maybe a few feet. I'm going to jump." The slant on the hole down meant he couldn't see Ellie. Only a weak stream of sunlight marked the exit. Ellie sounded far away. "Okay." He landed with a thud, thankful for the solid ground, and grabbed his flashlight. And found himself in a new world. Light turned the shadows of needle thin stalactites into ferocious teeth hanging from the ceiling of a large cavern. "You should see this! It's amazing." His voice echoed back on him. As his eyes adjusted to the darkness, he discovered he was on a natural path smoothed into the rock floor. The path went in two directions. The first way came to an abrupt stop at the base of a column which rose all the way up. Though he could see space on the other side, he would never squeeze through the rocky spikes that surrounded it - not without destroying the delicate bars. The opposite direction was more promising. A long time ago water must have worn a course into the rock. It wasn't straight - it meandered around rock formations both massive and small - and narrowed and widened at points. A couple of times Liam found it easier to clamber over smooth rock mounds rising like islands in the path. He checked his watch. He would give himself five minutes to explore. After that Ellie would complain. When he looked closely at them, the rocks were a pale clay color. Some columns were lumpy, others pitted. One he passed made his heart jump - it was like thousands of tiny finger bones fluting from the ceiling. Further along the rock changed colour in places. Around him the cavern had opened but he was confined to the path by thousands of stalagmites rising from the ground like archaic organ pipes. He was ready to turn back when the beam of his flashlight landed on something unusual. -o0o "We aren't the only ones to explore down there - I found this." Liam showed Ellie a dirty candy wrapper. The muddy imprint of a boot on it suggested it had been trampled into the ground in the cave. "We knew that anyway. What else did you see?" "It's amazing. You have to see it for yourself. I think there might even be ruins." "No way." "Well, maybe not ruins - more like carvings in a rock wall." Ellie sipped water from her bottle. "Like ancient carvings? Maybe it was an ancient burial site?" For all her bravado, she was cautious climbing into the hole. She hugged the side before Liam convinced her to push herself out and brace herself against it for more control. When he heard a thud, he guessed she'd reached the bottom. "You okay?" "Yeah." Her voice bouncing off the rock sounded close. After several minutes he heard her call. "I found it." He leaned into the hole. "What do you think?" "I don't know. They seem smooth - like they're old. Yuck!" "What?" "It's wet down here. Something dripped on me." "At least it's cool ..." Her scream rent the tunnel, then she went silent. The mouth of the hole was dark and mute. "Ellie? Ellie!" Liam grabbed the rope and took a flying leap over the edge. "Hold on." His palms burned as he slid and shimmied down the rock wall. He let go well before the bottom, landing in a jarring heap. He vaulted the larger boulders, stubbing his toes as he dashed up the path. He could make out a glow up the tunnel. Liam slowed when Ellie - and her long ponytail - came into sight. She stretched, pressed against the rock, running her hands over the carved lines. He didn't keep the accusatory tone from his voice. "You're alright." She couldn't have missed the noise of his panicked charge. She bit her lip when she turned his way. "Sorry." "You could have told me." "This goo dripped on me." She wiped her forehead, extending her hand which was coated in a greasy, transparent fluid. "I think it came off the rock. It must have been dripping for a bit. There's a pool of it." The beam from her flashlight reflected off the puddle she was standing in. "*That* made you scream?" "Sort of." She ducked her head. "Don't laugh. I thought slugs were falling on me. Like they dropped on my head and started crawling down." Liam had to swallow his smirk. "Slugs?" "Liam -" Ellie stamped her foot, splashing them both. They watched as blobs rolled down their legs. "They look like they're -" Liam bent closer. What trick of nature was he seeing? "Alive." He stuck a finger in the middle of one on his ankle. A black donut formed around his fingertip. When he pulled back, the slug reformed and rolled off. "Weird. It's like my finger was a magnet repelling it." His legs felt coated in a sticky residue and when he ran his fingers over them, the same oily substance Ellie had wiped off her head came away. He crouched to study the puddle. "Look. It's seeping into the rock." A minute later the black pool had drained away. Only a faint watermark was left on the porous rock. "What do you think it is?" He was stumped. "I don't know. Aren't caves formed by underground streams and lakes?" "It came from about there - where that squiggly carving is." Ellie pointed about halfway up the face. Liam was just tall enough to run his hand over the squiggly spiral groove. "I can't feel anything. There's no crack where it could have come from." "I know what I saw, Liam." "I'm not doubting you." He studied the rock. It formed part of the wall which jutted out as it went up. The carvings - curves and circles mainly - ran in a band across the rock face above them and were too perfect to be natural. It could have been a trick of light but a slimy trail traveling down the rock seemed to be drying before his eyes. "Maybe it dripped from higher up - like from that fissure." Ellie shone her flashlight at the hairline crack. "I guess." With nothing further to go on, the mystery of the black puddle stayed that - a mystery. They ventured deeper into the tunnel, but after no more than six feet they rounded a sharp corner and hit another dead end. They found no more traces of human activity - ancient or recent - and there seemed little point staying any longer. Liam hauled himself out of the hole with a dissatisfied heave, then pulled on the rope to give Ellie a hand on her way up. When she scrambled over the edge, they sprawled at a safe distance, chests heaving. Ellie sat up first. "Do you think someone from camp was down there?" "Would almost have to be," Liam said, pulling on his cap in a futile effort to escape the heat. "They keep an eye out for hikers, and there haven't been many." "What do you think that slime was?" Liam wished he had an answer. "Maybe Dr. Scully or one of the scientists can tell us." Ellie glared at him. "Are you mad? No way. I'm not telling anyone where we've been. They'll never let us get after if we do." He supposed she was right.