Archive of Our Own

A mistake had been made with Agent Dana Scully. On paper, she’d seemed like the perfect foil for Mulder: rational, by-the-book, with a background in hard science. A navy brat, her time at the FBI Academy had demonstrated that she was competent, reliable, and had the utmost respect for authority. Her personal history seemed to confirm this, her past relationships painting the picture of someone who not only respected authority, but was drawn to it. All of this to say, she was chosen, not only because of her supposed rationality, but because, on paper, Dana Scully was not the type to step out of line.

Of course, now he realizes his error. After all, what kind of by-the-book, rational woman with the utmost respect for the rules would sleep with her married professor? Or her instructor? People can say what they like about Spooky Mulder, but there’s no denying he’s an attractive man. An attractive, passionate man with a tragic past. Hell, Dana Scully wasn’t the first woman to throw away a promising career for him, though at least Diana had eventually come around. Oh well. Hindsight is twenty-twenty.

When God closes a door, he opens a window. From what he’s observed of their interactions, the Smoking Man is reasonably sure they’re sleeping together—or, if not, that it’s only a matter of time. Closing the X-Files only proved that separating them at work isn’t enough. Fine, then. Drastic measures must be taken.

There had been some pushback when he had pitched his solution to the Scully problem. Some of his colleagues were concerned about the logistics. The Englishman thought it “inelegant”, though he argued it was quite the opposite.

“Think of it as striking two birds with one stone,” he had told them. Of course, it meant potentially losing Krycek—green as he was, there was some doubt as to whether he could pull off the extraction without giving away his position—but this would be no great loss. There were a thousand Alex Kryecks, small men vying for their place in the new world. If he gave himself away, he could be quickly eliminated. Hell, Mulder would probably save them the job, and if they could slap Mulder with a nice, juicy murder charge, all the better. After some reluctant mumbling, the group had come to an agreement, and he had made the call.

Of course, they couldn’t have predicted Duane Barry. But this in itself offered an opportunity. Barry could be easily maneuvered, and had already proven he had no qualms about harming others if it meant saving his own skin. By pointing Duane Barry at Agent Scully, Krycek was free to remain at Mulder’s side, the spy Scully was supposed to have been. It was actually rather perfect.

Now, he sits and waits in an empty office. Outside, the sky is dark and blank, starlight dampened by a thousand streetlamps. The Smoking Man watches through the glass, his gaze lingering upward.

The phone rings three times before he picks it up, taking a long drag from his cigarette in lieu of a greeting.

“It’s done,” Krycek says. The Smoking Man exhales slowly, letting out a plume of silver smoke that twists and curls around him like a snake. “Mulder tried, but he didn’t make it in time. Crazy son of a bitch nearly fell from a moving sky tram -”

There’s something else, something he’s not saying. Alex Krycek has only been in his employ for a short time, but already he has come to recognize the change in his voice when he is trying to gather the courage to admit some failure. The Smoking Man clears his throat, and Krycek abruptly stops talking.

“What are you leaving out, Alex?”

There is silence, and the Smoking Man pictures Krycek’s Adam’s apple bobbing pathetically, sweat beading across his forehead.

“Duane Barry’s in custody,” he says. “Mulder caught up with him right after he made the hand-off.”

Not ideal. The Smoking Man mulls this over, letting Krycek sweat. Duane Barry is broken, his mind rent in two from repeated abductions and experimentation. Anybody hearing his ranting would chalk it up to insanity and throw him back behind bars. Anybody but Mulder. Perhaps they’ll need to start looking for Krycek’s replacement after all.

“This cannot come back to us” he says, breaking the silence. “This changes nothing.”

“Sir?”

“Your orders were to eliminate Barry once he’d handed over Dana Scully, were they not?”

“Well, yes, but -”

“But nothing. Make it happen.”