From: martin@abacus.mc.duke.edu (Michele Martin)
Newsgroups: alt.tv.quantum-leap.creative
Subject: XOVER: The Witness part 19/?
Date: 7 Apr 1995 03:20:42 GMT
Organization: Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
Message-Id: <3m2b2a$7i0@news.duke.edu>

scene 26
Elsewhere
2:00 am

    Scott awoke disoriented...and groggy.  He tried to piece together 
what had happened.  Oh yes...Fox.  He groaned as he sat up slowly.  He 
was on some kind of cot, not unlike the kind found in jail cells.  He 
rubbed his eyes, then tried to focus on his surroundings.  It was a very 
austere room.  Not quite a jail cell, but close.  The gray walls were 
devoid of ornamentation, except for a light switch midway up the far wall 
next to the door.  One small window or ventilation shaft...he 
wasn't sure which since it was _really_ small.  The cot in which he sat 
was against the wall which held the window/grate. No windows on the door. 
and nothing else in the room. Not even a bucket in case nature called. 
*Where am I?  Where have they taken me?  Have they got Dad?  How will he 
find me if they haven't?* Scott forced down his panic.  Without his 
sphere, his father couldn't find him.  And even if he did, _they_ would 
be waiting.  
  He cautiously approached the door and tentatively tried the knob.  It 
was, of course, locked.  Which really wasn't a problem for a person of his 
unique talents.  The million dollar question was, of course, what was 
behind door number one.  He had a suspicion it would be men with guns.  
Nasty men with big guns.  From what he'd seen when he'd been grabbed, 
before they'd sedated him, there was definite military involvement in 
this operation.  So what should he do?  He crouched down next to the 
keyhole and listened.  For a while he heard nothing.  Just as he was 
about to try his luck with the door, though, he heard a voice.  George 
Fox's voice.
  "What do you mean he doesn't have it?" Fox had that familiar 'I'm 
dealing with complete morons, aren't I' tone in his voice.  It sounded 
like he was coming out of a room nearby.
  "We searched him thoroughly as you asked, but we didn't find anything 
that matched the description of the item you gave us.  All he had on him 
was a set of keys and a wallet with some credit cards and a driver's 
license in the name of 'Scott Edwards'" replied a voice Scott didn't 
recognize.  "Perhaps he dropped it when we grabbed him."
  "He dropped it and you didn't see it?  You _idiot_!  Forrester can't 
find this place if the sphere isn't here!  This could ruin our whole 
plan!!  Why, oh why can I never get competent..."
  "Agent Fox!  Remember you are here by _my_ sufference.  I am in command 
here, not you.  Your role is to advise because you know Forrester best.  
Keep that in mind," said a new voice.  It sounded vaguely familiar.  
*Wait, that's the guy who asked me directions...I wonder who he is.  And 
who he works for.*  It didn't sound like a particularly friendly voice.  
Scott decided he'd rather be dealing with Fox alone.
  There was a brief silence before Fox replied, a bit more subdued. "Yes, 
of course.  But we do have a problem.  Without that sphere..."
  "You told us that this alien of yours is highly intelligent and that 
he's apparantly quite devoted to his offspring.  I'm sure he'll figure 
something out.  And we're ready for when he does." answered the 'man in 
charge'.  Scott heard footsteps coming his way.  He dashed back to the 
cot and lay back down as the door began to open.  He closed his eyelids 
most of the way, leaving just a slit through which he could observe what 
was going on while remaining to appear asleep.  George Fox and two other 
men entered the room.  Behind them he could see into the hallway beyond.  
A mirror on the far wall reflected two figures stationed on either side 
of the door...just as he'd suspected. He couldn't see them clearly at 
this distant, but he was sure they were armed.  The door shut firmly 
behind them as they entered.
  "Scott," Fox called softly as he approached the cot.  The other two men 
remained by the door.  The figure he recognized from the van was the 
taller of the two. He was holding a smoking cigarette in one hand. The 
shorter man was holding a gun, which was not, at the moment aimed at 
anyone in particular.  But Scott was pretty sure that any sudden moves 
would cause it to be suddenly pointing his way.
  "Scott, I know you're awake.  You might as well open your eyes," Fox 
continued.  Scott considered playing possum for a bit longer, but he had 
a feeling that those other two men were not the sort to tolerate 
uncooperativeness for very long.  He groaned and fidgetted before opening 
his eyes all the way.
  "That's better," Fox said as he motioned for Scott to sit up.  He did 
so, and glared at the men.
  "I asked for a non-smoking room," he said through gritted teeth.  That 
got no reaction, except a nervous glance from Fox towards the two men.  
  "Where's your father?" asked Fox.
  "You mean you don't know?  Good," replied Scott.
  "Answer the question," said the man with the gun.
  "I don't know. Last I saw him, he was back at the police station.  You 
could ask them.  I'm sure once you explain very carefully what you want 
him for they'll say 'Oh, certainly.  He's right over here.'"
  "Careful, Scott.  These men..._we_...mean business.  Things will go 
alot easier for you if you cooperate."
  "Ah, I see.  So you'll kill me quickly instead of slowly and painfully 
if I squeal, is that it?  Who are you trying to kid, Fox?  I know what 
you want us for.  I also know that you're way out of your jurisdiction 
and that you're not going to get answers by waving a big 'National 
Security' flag around.  Because this isn't the US.  And since I'm the 
only witness for a major homicide investigation, the Canadian authorities 
are going to be all over you when they find out you've kidnapped me."
  "And just what makes you think they're going to find out?" asked Fox 
with a devious grin.  "Even if they did, we're more than capable of 
handling a few nosy detectives."
  *Oh, if _only_ you knew* thought Scott.
  "We know your father will come after you. And when he does, we'll be 
waiting.  We were just trying to save everyone alot of trouble. In the 
end, we'll still get what we want.  And there isn't a thing you...or the 
Canadian authorities...can do about it," Fox finished smugly.
  "Well, I hate to burst your bubble, but as you probably already 
noticed, I don't have my sphere.  Therefore, Dad can't find me.  And 
therefore you're as hosed as I am," Scott retorted, with a bravado he 
didn't feel.  The thought that his father would never find him filled him 
with despair, yet also with hope. Hope that his father would escape the 
clutches of these men.
  "We'll see about that.  Your father is very resourceful, Scott.  I'm 
sure he'll come up with something.  I know him...I know what he's capable 
of.  And I'm not going to make the mistake of underestimating him."
  Scott sighed in exasperation.  "You just don't get it, do you?  You say 
you know him...know us.  But you don't. You don't have a clue.  He's not 
a threat to national or international security.  He just wants to help 
and to learn.  He's not part of some interplanetary conspiracy to take 
over the Earth.  There aren't thousands of others like him contaminating 
the genetic pool or whatever it is you think he's doing.  There's just 
him and me.  Period.  And we just want to live our lives in peace.  He's 
never hurt anyone. Man, he even saved your life when he could have let 
you die so we could finally be free of you!"  But it was obvious that 
neither Fox or the other men in the room believed him.  He wondered why 
he'd even bothered.
  "Nice try, Scott.  But don't think you can fool us.  These men know 
even better than I do the _danger_ of letting you or him go.  And once we 
have you, will have the rest of them!"
  "You know, I think you watched V entirely too many times," Scott 
answered in disgust.  He turned away to study the wall.  Fox shook his 
head, then turned to leave.  Scott didn't bother to watch them exit the 
room.  As the door shut behind him, he pondered something George Fox had 
said. 'You're father is very resourceful, Scott.  I'm sure he'll come up 
with something.'  In that respect, Fox was right.  His father _was_ very 
resourceful...and they'd encountered a rather diverse array of resources 
that night.  
  
  Scott's 'cell' was on the second floor of what was supposedly a 
deserted old house on the edge of the city.  The house had been 
commandeered a few days earlier, and with an efficiency never dreamed of 
in more mundane areas of the government, converted into a base of 
operations for the small squad of what we shall call, for lack of a 
better term, 'alienbusters' from the US.  The team had to be kept small 
in order not to arouse suspicion.  If they'd had more time, it would have 
been a different story.  But word that Agents Mulder and Scully, who of 
late had a penchant for appearing at the most awkward places at the most 
inopportune times, were in Toronto, albeit on a seemingly unrelated 
investigation, had caused the alienbusters to shift into fast gear.  
Their leader, the man one operative often referred to as Will Smoke (as 
in 'Have Cigarette, Will Smoke'), had been a bit unhappy to learn that 
Scott Hayden, aka Edwards, was a witness in the very case Mulder and 
Scully were investigating.  It seemed almost as if there was some sort of 
divine conspiracy against the arch-conspirators themselves.  
  So now they had to work fast.  As a result, the set up was sort of 
make-shift.  Of course, for these people, 'make-shift' was considerably 
more impressive than most peoples' 'carefully planned and thoroughly 
executed'.  The grounds surrounding the house were equipped with multiple 
surveillance cameras and motion sensors, which were hooked up to moniter 
screens on the first floor.  The three major entrances were all wired as 
well, so that any unauthorized entrance (or egress) from the house would 
immediately set off an alarm.  Fox had made it plain that locks were 
totally ineffective against their quarry.  There were two sentries, each 
patrolling the grounds near the streets that flanked the property on the 
front and back.  More sentries would have been optimum, but there weren't 
enough people.  Three men kept an eye on the moniters on the first floor, 
and there were armed sentries at various positions inside the house.  
They had all been thoroughly briefed on the alien--his abilities, his 
disposition, etc.  And they had all been briefed on Agents Scully and Mulder
as well, especially the latter.  They were totally prepared for 
all conceivable eventualities.  And hopelessly, hideously unprepared for the 
utterly inconceivable eventuality that would arise.

   Some time after Fox and his cohorts had left, Scott rose out of his 
bunk and paced the room, wondering what to do.  The worse thing, besides 
being captured, was that there wasn't anything to _do_.  Nothing to look 
at, not even ceiling tiles to count.  He doubted the room would be any 
less interesting if he turned off the light.  He was way too nervous to 
sleep, and the drugs they'd given him had worn off long ago.  He wondered 
if he'd be able to see out the tiny window...if it was a window.  He was 
looking speculatively at the aperture when he heard a sound behind him.  
He whirled as a familiar voice said, "Thank God I found you!  Are you 
okay, kid?"
  "Al!  What are you doing here?  How did you find me?" Scott said in a 
hushed voice, not wanting to alert the guards outside his door.
  "One of the benefits of being a hologram with a connection to an AI 
computer from the future.  Listen, I don't have that much time to 
explain.  Sam has a plan to get you out of here, but you need to help us 
out a little.  First off, we need to figure out how to get everyone here?"
  "Can't you just go back and tell them where I am?"
  "It's not that easy.  I'd have to walk out of here and find the mailbox 
and read the street address.  And if there's no light nearby, well, I 
can't see in the dark. Besides which, I don't know if I can move that 
far...it's kind of hard to explain."
  "Okay.  So what's the plan?"
  Al took a deep breath.  Scott could tell by his expression that he was 
going to tell Scott something that made him nervous.  "Well, your mom 
recovered that silver ball thingie you dropped when those nozzles grabbed 
you.  Your dad says he can track it with his own silver ball thingie..."
  "Sphere."
  "Whatever.  Now, since you don't have the sphere, we needed to give the 
sphere to someone who has the ability to find out where you are.  I don't 
count because I can't touch anything.  However, Detective Knight has a 
few talents that prove useful in this situation."
  "You know he's a vampire?"
  "Um, yes.  We found all alot of interesting information about alot of 
interesting people not too long ago.  Which I don't want to go into 
because it gives me the screaming heebie-jeebies.  Suffice it to say that 
Knight has _very_ good hearing. And, as you probably already knew, he can 
fly.  So what we need for you to do is basically make noise."
  "Make noise?"
  "Talk, yell, sing, whatever.  So that Knight can hear you.  He'll be 
able to find you, and since he's got your sphere...."
  "Dad will be able to find him!  Wait...he can't come here.  It's a..."
  "Trap.  Yeah, I know.  I'm on surveillance duty to try and figure out 
what these yahoos have got planned.  Sam figures that they're going to be 
expecting an alien and perhaps even the FBI or police, but not what we've 
got on our team.  Don't worry kid.  These guys won't know what hit them.  
It'll be a real kick in the butt...on so many levels." Al grinned 
conspiratorily.  Scott grinned back.  He climbed up on the cot.  Standing 
up on it, he could just reach the mystery opening.  What luck, it _was_ a 
window.  An round, ornamental stain glassed window, he guessed.  He could 
feel the iron tracings.
  "Do you think he'll still hear me even though this is shut?"
  "It's worth a try.  At least you're in an outside room.  I'm gonna go 
let Sam and your father know you're alright and that we're ready to roll."
  "Okay.  Tell Dad I'm gonna sing his favorite song...that'll give Nick 
an idea of what to keep an ear out for.  Thanks, Al."
  "See ya soon, kid."  With that, Al punched a few buttons on his 
handlink and disappeared.  Scott waited for a few minutes, giving Al time 
to report back.  Then he began to sing.
  
  The guards outside the door moved very little, except to shift their 
weight.  They'd been trained for guard duty, so the hours of standing 
relatively still didn't faze them.  Their automatic rifles were held in 
what looked like a relaxed manner, but in a split second they could be 
aimed and fired.  Like everyone else in the alienbusters, they'd been 
handpicked and specially trained for missions such as this one.  They'd 
seen alot of strange things in their day, and very little fazed them.
  Even though, they exchanged somewhat curious glances when they heard 
the sound of Scott Hayden's voice singing what sounded like "Bop 
shewanny, wanny, shoobop, shewanny, wanny...."

scene 27
Parking lot, Coroner's building
2:30 am
{due to the nature of the upcoming sequences, the following scenes will 
be told in third person omnicient, instead of third person 
[alternating] major character}
  The group was gathered in the parking lot outside the Coroner's 
building.  They'd managed to sneak out without being noticed or asked any 
difficult questions, such as why a dead suspect was walking out with 
them.  It had been decided that they would split up into several 
parties.  In the agents' rental car would ride Mulder, Paul, Scully, and 
Jenny.  Paul would use the sphere to track Nick, while Mulder drove.  
Sam and the MacLeods would follow at a distance in Nick's car.(guided by the 
use of Mulder and Scully's cellular phones--Scully relay directions to 
Duncan, who'd in turn relay them to Sam who was driving).  Considering 
that one of their opponents was apparantly an Immortal, with the ability 
to sense other Immortals, it was decided to keep the MacLeods at a 
distance until they could use the Immortal sense to their advantage.  
Natalie would go to Nick's home, which they'd decided to use as their 
rendezvous point after the 'mission', after getting some groceries.  
Nick's place wasn't the most well stocked, and they'd probably all be 
very hungry afterwords.
  So now they were waiting for word from Al.  Sam had sent him off to 
locate Scott and let him know of their plan.  And, of course, to make 
sure he was alright and could help them find him.  Sam was aware of the 
possible weak point in his plan at this juncture--if Scott was 
unconscious, Al would have to find some other distinctive noise for Nick 
to home in on.  
  "I must say, I really like your car," Mulder was saying to Nick.
  "It has the most trunk space then any other car built in the last 30 
years," Nick replied.
  "Ah, and that's important...I take it because you have to move around 
alot?"
  "No, actually, it's in case I get caught...out."
  "Out?"
  "At sunrise."
  Mulder nodded in understanding.
  At that moment, Al appeared.  Of course, only Paul and Sam noticed, but 
everyone noticed them noticing.  
  "What's the word, Al?" Sam asked.
  "Scott's awake and more than ready to help. He said he'd be singing 
your favorite song..." Al replied, looking at Paul.
  A slow smile crept across Pauls' lips.  Then he demonstrated, to the 
confusion and amusement of Mulder, Scully, Jenny, Nick, and the MacLeods.
  Sam turned to Nick. "Okay, that's the song you're listening for." He 
turned back to Al. "Let Scott know we're on our way.  Then see what you 
can find out about the opposition."
  Al nodded.  Before he disappeared again, Paul added, "And tell Scott 
not to worry.  I'm coming...we're _all_ coming."
  Al gave Paul the thumbs up before disappearing.  Sam turned to the rest 
of them.
  "Okay, Al says we're all set.  Let's roll!"  
  As everyone else headed for their cars, Nick glanced around to make 
sure there was no unwanted attention.  He gripped the silver sphere Paul 
had handed to him tightly in one hand as he rose up into the air.  As he 
did so, he felt the sphere become warm.  He glanced down at it.  It was 
beginning to glow faintly.  He hoped it wouldn't burn.  He glanced back 
towards his companions.  He could see Paul looking up at him, his own 
sphere glowing as well.  Paul gave him a thumbs up as he got into the 
front passenger seat of the rental car.  Scully and Mulder were also 
looking up at him in amazement.  He grinned back at them, then headed off 
into the night.
  "So, Dr. Scully, what is your explanation for that?" asked Mulder as he 
turned over the engine of the car.  
  "Ask me when we get where we're going.  I'm sure I'll have thought of a 
snappy comeback by then," she replied from the back seat as she dialed 
the number to Mulder's phone. "Are you guys ready?" she asked when Duncan 
answered.
  "We're ready. Let's just hope _they're_ not," Duncan replied.  
Beside him, Sam settled into the driver's seat.  
  "Okay, Paul.  Which way do we go?" Mulder asked as he pulled  out of 
the parking lot.
  Paul paused for a second, deciphering the messages he was getting from 
his sphere. He pointed right.  "Nick went that way."

  Paul wasn't the only one aware of where Nick had gone.  On top of a 
nearby building, LaCroix watched Nick fly off into the night.  He also 
noticed the faint blue glow in Nick's hand.  For once he was almost glad 
that Nick's tendency to neglect most of his vampiric abilities made him 
somewhat insensitive to LaCroix's presence.  Especially when LaCroix 
didn't want to be noticed.  He watched first one car leave, then, five 
minutes later, the second. He waited until the tail lights of the trailing car 
were almost gone, then he, too, took to the air.  To follow and see what 
amusements awaited.
  

--
Michele Martin
martin@abacus.mc.duke.edu
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Evil Guest Immortal: "I have you now, MacLeod." <clang, clang>
Duncan MacLeod: "I admit it.  You're better than I am." <clang, clang>
EGI: "Then why are you smiling?" <clang, clang>
MacLeod: "Because I know something you don't know..." <clang, clang> 
"..._I_ am the star of this show." <clang, slash, whap!, thud, cool fx>
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