TITLE: The Woodsmen BY: nychen EMAIL: nychen@gatech.edu WEBSITE: http://nychen.com/xf/ CATEGORY: x-files || angst RATING: R || violence, language SUMMARY: a trip to the woods ends up costing one agent his/her life. SPOILERS: none DISCLAIMER: i don't own anything except this story. ARCHIVE: post anywhere just remember to give me credit and links. WRITTEN: 10.03.01 LAST UPDATED: 03.04.02 [ THE WOODSMEN // Part 1 of 1 ] ----Day 2, afternoon---- Their relaxing 4 hour hike somehow turned into a nightmarish 8 hour hike. The quiet hike through the woods should have been easy, but sometime inbetween their lost canteens and their reception-less cell phones, they had managed to take a wrong turn on the map. Now the morning hike had lasted into an evening hike where both agents were frustrated and exhausted. Mulder was still flipping through the map while Scully was trying to find something to satisfy her stomach. They had run out of their fruits a couple hours ago, and now all that was left was Mulder’s box of sweets. She couldn't believe he had the sense to bring candy bars along with him on a hike. But it was better than nothing. "Mulder, how many candy bars do you have left?" Scully stopped to ask as she wiped the sweat off her face and neck with her handkerchief and stuffed it back into her pocket. "Um, let me check..." he crinkled the map into one hand and opened the outer pocket of his backpack. "Okay, got one KitKat, two Snickers and one pack of M&M's. What's your pick?" "I’ll have the M&M's unless you want them?" "Nah, go ahead. Think I’ll have my break now, KitKat style!" Mulder looked around and picked a spot to sit onto of a large rock covered in moss. He toe open the candy packaging and broke off a piece of the KitKat and popped it into his mouth. He sure was hungry, and he needed the energy to keep up his positive outlook. Mulder wasn't sure how his partner was holding up. She was quite mad about the lost canteens earlier, but who could blame her. He had been careless about it. Their walk along a narrow passage off the mountainside kept them both on their toes. He had been too busy holding onto the sides of the mountain and didn't notice when the two canteen bottle straps got caught on one of the jagged rocks. Before he knew it, his steps moving along the wall scraped and tore the canteen straps, and the bottles dropped off into the unknown pit beneath. He remembered the obscenities he used, and almost dove after them except Scully just blurted out "forget it, Mulder! We can find water somewhere else." except now, three hours later they still hadn't found water or anything else to drink. "Hello? Earth to Mulder..." his partner was waving her hand in the air as he turned his head to look at her. Then something hit his head, and another thing bounced off his head. "Mulder, are you okay? I've wasted four perfectly good M&M's on you. What are you thinking about?" "Oh!" Mulder exclaimed, his thoughts jumping back to the present. He loved the smile Scully had on her face right this moment, he was glad she was still in good spirits. "I was just thinking that we should camp early tonight and make tomorrow a full day. ----Day 3, evening---- Following Mulder's lead, Scully runs behind him - both running as fast as possible from the men chasing them. The agents knew that the woodsmen had shortcuts and strange paths beyond the trees that could possibly trap them. The agents ran zigzagging through the thin bushes into the thick forest, their weapons long ago lost in the river. Their only protection and defense was each other from the woodsmen. From the rumors of past trespassers, the future would not be good if the woodsmen caught them. Mulder had discovered two historic X-Files involving several witnesses that mentioned woodsmen in their accounts in the area. The witnesses had reported being tortured and taught to obey their captors or they would be sacrificed. Sacrifice was described as being forced to go with the woodsmen somewhere and never coming back. So all the witnesses that survived were of course, victims of torture. One of them was forever handicapped - blinded and had scars disfiguring his chest. Another one was no longer able to speak; nothing physical was done to her but sometime after her return from the woods, she refused to talk about the trauma she went through. Another two witnesses, one female one male, revealed that they were forced to eat and drink each other's human waste and make love the entire time they were in captivity. The couple had been missing for four days after their hike to the woods. They had been found covered and laying in each other's blood, waste and sexual fluids. After an examination each of their bodies were scarred from whiplash cuts and bruises. The couple spoke of how the woodsmen refused to let them talk or do anything, only letting them rest to sleep for a few hours and then their lovemaking torture was continued. Now the couple had their first child together and afterwards, refused to ever speak of the tragedy again. And with all the fresh memories flying through his mind, Mulder ran crashing against tree branches and leaves slapping him in the face. He felt sweat or maybe blood run down his forehead down his face as he just kept running toward the path in which led them into this hell. Mulder looked back to see Scully running and red with energetic fury. Both needed to reach the car and just drive the hell out of there. He glanced back ever now and again to make sure his partner was keeping up. He would not dare leave her behind. All the running was making her muscles ache and burn. Scully was not in the best physical shape after the past two years of undergoing treatments at the hospital for drawing her blood, testing and chemotherapy. Now she was given a clean bill of health from cancer, but she was still struggling to be at the top of her physical stamina. She had tried picking up jogging daily each morning, but sometimes she just did not have the strength or the will. Her thoughts would meander to thoughts of death and how close she was to seeing her father and sister, and she would surrender to self-pity and vow to exercise the next day. But the next day became a whole year later, and now she was making up the all the running she had missed. "We’re...almost...there...Scully." Mulder gasped as he ran faster now the adrenaline pumping more and faster into him. A smile almost flowed across his face before he turned to see Scully behind him. But she wasn't there. Panic. That was the only thing in the world around him. Panic and Scully. His thoughts turned morbid as he stopped and looked around the forest. The trees and branches and leaves all blending together into a brown and green blur. He was sweating profusely now, the sweat and tears mixing and getting into his vision. Mulder raised his arm and wiped the wetness off onto his shirt sleeve. He hadn't noticed the reddish of the stain and he didn't care if he saw, he needed to find his partner. He would not leave her behind. Seconds turned into minutes as Mulder took his time to carefully retrace his steps and find Scully. He could feel the pressure building, hearing the woodsmen hollering and their wild voices echoing all around them. "Concentrate" Mulder said to him out loud over and over. The voices seem to get louder around him as he ran back on the trail. Heading back was a death wish but one Mulder was willing to sacrifice himself for to save Scully. Voices whispered around him and the soft murmurs of laughing was crawling on Mulder's skin as he finally paused his frantic running and saw his partner. ----Minutes ago---- Scully ran like she was back in those high school sprints. Her legs moving forth instinctually, without thinking, her only focus was on keeping up with Mulder. She could hear the sounds of nature breaking beneath her feet, the sounds of branches breaking, leaves crunching and her breath gasping for air as she just kept running. A sudden needle pinch in her arm went unnoticed as Scully was starting to feel the growing pain in her lungs. Her muscles felt like they were cramping, her body overheating with tension and keeping up behind her partner. She heard him say they were almost there. She was almost smiling to herself but there was a throbbing dullness growing from inside her arm, something wasn't right. Scully called out to Mulder. "Wait.." She huffed and puffed and her cry out seemed loud to her ears, but the whisper barely pierced the air around her. The dullness now pulling at her heart, Scully kept running but somehow her steps remained slow and she was slipping behind. The small arms-reach distance between herself and Mulder gradually grew into almost an impossible hundred feet. She tried to call out again, but her words stifled into a small painful shriek as she felt a pinch behind her neck. Her breathing was growing troubled and her vision blurred from clear to cloudy as she reached her hand to grasp the skin behind her neck. She felt something thin and narrow, pulling it out revealed a needle-like dart. By now she couldn't even see her partner. Her worries and fears of being left behind caught up to her. The dullness and throbbing now invaded her entire body and affecting her breathing. Poison. Poison darts. The sweat poured down her body as Scully struggled to run, to make her body listen to her commands, but her thoughts could not focus. Her legs felt rubbery and she was running at a lost pace of hurried walking now. Her breathing becoming increasingly difficult, and she was walking side to side. Her body succumbing to the unknown toxin forces her behind. "Oh..god...." Scully sighed as she walked into a tree, gripping onto anything she could to keep her balance. "Please..walk...Mulder..help." Her own voice seemed strange to her, her mouth moving in patterns and silent pleadings into the air. The voices around her closing in, and Scully pushed herself off the tree to continue her escape. Walking and swaying in her steps, she didn't know what direction she was headed, just anywhere away from where she was. Not to be left behind. The air around her suddenly becomes cold, her body heating up and throbbing still. Visions of shadows moved surrounding her, her eyes darting and trying to keep herself on the defense. But she was not ready to hear the laughs around her. Tricking her, pushing her mentally to run away but without the physical energy to do so. She was so tired. The throbbing now in her head, the dullness eating her energy up and she just could not keep up anymore. One hand gripped the side of her head, and the other reached out and brushed against a rough tree branch and collapsed her body against the body of the tree. The world swirled around her, and Scully slipped limply to the ground. Then the woodsmen gathered around her, and their hands reached towards her. ----x---- Mulder runs toward his fallen partner's body beside the tree. His concern for her is thwarted suddenly as he feels himself being tackled to the ground. Mulder catches his breath enough to throw a couple of strong punches at one of the three woodsmen attacking him. He hears the first injured woodsman grunt and aims his kick at the second one's ribs, but misses when a terrible crunch sounds breaks across his back. Mulder screams from the sudden impact of the large tree branch snapping in half across his back. He falls to his knees on the ground, as the third woodsman grabs hold of his head and head-bangs their foreheads together. Mulder screams again from the pain and starts to fall backward but his suffering continues as he feels hands catch him on the shoulders. The first woodsman's hands pull him up to stand, he hears some shouts coming from another direction and distressing thoughts of Scully reenter his mind. He struggles and breaks free for a second, enough to catch a glimpse of a figure squatting by his partner, a hand reaching out to harm her. "Nooo!! You touch her and-" Mulder yells at the man in the dark tan-colored overcoat. His threat gets cut short as a knee makes contact with his groin. Mulder moans childishly and bends over in extreme agony, a hand grabs him by the hair and lifts his head up to spit in his face. The third woodsman's rough voice laughs mocking at the man in front of him. The hands of the first woodsman was still holding Mulder partially up by the shoulders as the third woodsman's hand holding Mulder's hair let go and gradually lingered down to Mulder's belly. The hand pulled Mulder's shirt loose from his pant waist and slipped beneath to touch the man's skin. The touch awakened Mulder from his pain. He started to yell again. "What the- you son of a bitch! Don't you dare!" The hand continued to slip up Mulder's shirt as the first woodsman behind him now overpowered Mulder to keep him from struggling. The third woodsman's hand curled up Mulder's shirt and stopped to caress the exposed skin. By now the shirt was up to where Mulder's midchest was exposed naked down to his belly. Mulder kept his watch on what was happening to Scully in the background. The man in tan had managed to drag her away from where he was being held. She seemed completely put of it, unconscious, as she was being dragged further and further away. "Hey! Where are you bastards taking her?" Mulder demanded. His skin grows cold from being exposed in the air. Still suspicious of his situation and the men around him, he tried again to escape. The third woodsman in front of him slammed his left fist into Mulder's exposed stomach, then his right fist. And then repeatedly until Mulder was no longer groaning, motionless and nearly hunched over to puke. The second woodsman now came into view from where he was helping to drag the female away, and stepped in front of Mulder. In his hand was a small hollowed tree branch much like a cup. The first woodsman reacted automatically and lifted up the weakened body of Mulder and waited until the cup was placed under his mouth. The second woodsman nodded and motioned to the third woodsman to come forth. The second held the cup in place with one hand and used the other to punch Mulder's stomach, as the third kneed Mulder in the groin over and over. The tan coated man hovered over the female trespasser who was still unconscious, and he watched his fellow members torture the male trespasser and collect the blood that poured from hiss mouth into the cup. There was only a little Mulder knew about the rituals involving blood. It was done to the females, always the female who were believed to be able to possess certain energies after tasting the blood of another, a male whom she trusted. This energy, some believed would allow them certain freedoms and rights. The men who then drank the woman's blood would receive those freedoms and rights, and be given an immortal soul that savaged the world spiritually after their physical body was no longer. The three woodsmen in the distance freed the tortured man who crumpled weakly to the ground. The cup of blood was filled and ready, and now they needed to prepare the woman. Mulder lay on the wet ground, his body torn by pain and aching. He could barely breathe without wincing from the deep bruises on his stomach. But he managed to gather the energy to look up as blood choked and burned his throat. He saw the last dark shadow disappear into the forest, as his last image of Scully was her body being dragged half exposed into the dark unknown. Mulder cried out, but only the hot boil of liquid blood gurgled in his throat, and he fainted. ----Day 3, night---- The wind blew its constant cold breathe on the man's back, the hairs on his back standing up from the chill. The man on the ground had not moved since his hours before, and now found it harder to move an inch of his body. Even thinking was almost too much of an effort. "Scully?" those were the first words out of his mouth, Mulder repeated them until he willed his aching muscles to push himself into a sitting position. He hurt everywhere, from the pounding pain in his lower abdominal region to his groin and thighs. He could barely move his legs without registering pain in his brain. Mulder looked around, scanning what he could see around him. It was night now, the blackness enveloped the life around him, hiding the trees and enhancing the noises around him. The feeling of paranoia would soon creep in if he didn’t find a safe spot to rest, he needed to get out of here...he needed to find help for Scully. He knew he didn’t have the strength to go after her himself. The woods were too grande a place for one man to search through. He needed to find a way out and contact skinner. Mulder remembered telling Skinner there would be no problems if he and Scully went by themselves, after all, they were trained FBI agents. But that was the point; FBI agents didn't know anything about the woods. Mulder could see his breathe in the wind now, the temperatures dropping lower as the night hours progressed. He noticed his shirt was still curled tight around his pecs, and Mulder looked down to see the damage the woodsmen had done to his body. The area around his ribs were slightly darkened, but the entire area around his stomach was patched of bruising, round and scattered up and down his chest. He flexed his stomach muscles to test the pain; it didn't really hurt as bad as it looked. His groin ached and pounded against the tightness of his jeans. The swelling was growing and he felt a tingling sensation tickle through his groin, an uncontrollable response to the cold weather. He hadn't realized he was shivering. The shivers tingled his skin and sent nervous sensations down to every nerve. The pain pounded in his body. Mulder knew all the bruising and swelling was temporary, nothing. Permanent compared to what could be happening to his partner. Mulder sat up more against a tree trunk, his back rubbing against the rough textured bark. It felt good on his back, something different than just pain. He had to think of a plan. ----x---- The woodsmen didn’t keep track of time around themselves; they had no use for it. The sun and moon provided all the light they needed to survive, it told them when to wake and when to sleep. And inbetween, when to search out and hunt down their next victims. It wasn't just an activity for the whole day, but a primitive desire for the hunting. Trespassers were not welcomed and the woodsmen needed to protect their natural land. They depended on instinct to protect what they owned, and to punish all who trespassed. They didn't like strangers; they did not tolerate anything or anyone who trampled onto their land. In the past it had been only a few strangers, but recently there had been an increased amount of traffic to their part of the woods. This didn't stop them from defending their land, instead it aroused a darker desire within them: the hunt for flesh. The woodsmen had been in that land for hundreds if not thousands of years, and unbeknownst to them, their land had become part of a local park. A park with fresh inlaid trails for more and more strangers to invade their space. After the struggle with the last male stranger, they had captured a woman. What luck they had this time, with the escalation of their violence and darkened desires, they craved for a woman who fit their needs. A woman with small stature but of red descent, to them this was a sign she was sent to them. The woodsmen were lucky to have captured her pure, without harming her in the process. The last time they attacked a couple they had found they were impure. The couple's physical lust for each other disgusted them and they tortured the couple endlessly. This time they were lucky. The woman with red hair was carried by two of the woodsmen and lowered into a large hollowed out ditch in the ground. The ditch was several feet deep, as one of the larger woodsmen stood inside to lower the woman's body down; the sidewall of the ditch came up to his waist. As the woman was placed onto the flat of the ditch, the large woodsmen remained inside with her. Several of the woodsmen gathered around the ditch and looked down. There were six men standing on the edge of the ditch, and five more standing behind them. The six woodsmen in front and one inside the ditch, they were of large muscular build and dressed minimally, most of their attire was made up of animal flesh and skin, and covering their genitalia. The seven had tousled hair, long and wild: some had beards covering the lower half of their faces, while others had shorter somewhat trimmed beards. The five woodsmen behind them were dressed less primitively. Although they all bared their chests, all of them had kilt-like dresses wrapped around their waists. Around the waists were attached weaponry, some short spears and daggers. One had something shining tucked partially hidden by his kilt, it could be seen as the handle of a gun. They seemed pleased. Their capture was still unmoving. They all stood quietly murmuring among themselves until the woman began to awaken and move. It was a hushed silence as Scully awoke, and her body jerked back to reality as portions of her felt the chilled air around her. Her throat constricted for a second as she inhaled a gush of cool air to freshen her lungs. It was dark around her and her body was shivering as she felt goosebumps start to form on her skin. She twisted on the ground to a hovered crouching position, not wanting to feel too light-headed by standing up too fast. She reached her hand to examine her body for physical damage but was glad to find nothing harmed...yet. The air was strangely quiet around her. She wondered about her nakedness, where the rest of her clothes were. She didn't see them lying around her. She gasped and stepped back was she was shocked to see a shadow figure looming just a few feet beyond where she just awakened. In automatic response her defenses went up, and her arms wrapped around her chest in protection. "St-stay back!" Scully demanded. "Who-who are you?" she managed to stutter. She was trying to keep her teeth from chattering and the cold her body felt. The large figure in front of her stepped forward and the woman backed away quickly in return. The figure muttered something calmingly but the woman didn't understand. The woodsman could tell the woman was in a panicked state. He stepped closer hoping to grab her, instead he was rewarded with a kick in the skin and forceful punch in the face. He growled and turned around to where the woman now stood. The woodsmen hovered around the ditch guffawed at the events below. They didn't think their capture was so lively; it was better than expected. She would be exciting to take down. Scully had used most of her energy to attack the large man and get away from the man trying to grab her. Her ears heard the loud laughter emitting from above her, and she cowered lower from threats above. A look at what was the source of the sound frightened her to the very soul inside her. She saw more shadow figures lit by the moonlight standing above her. They loomed large and their gurgled laughter scared her hopes of escaping. She didn't have time to react as her eyes were transfixed on the danger above, and the danger of the woodsman beside her jumped her. Heavy pressure thrust forth at her ribs and arms encircled her body, gripping tight around her arms. Her body impacted with the dirt floor and for moments, Scully lost the power to breathe. Her vision swirled and she heard the rough voice behind her head yell something to the figures above. She screamed and thrashed in the tight arms of her capturer, kicking her legs but her fight did not prevail. Soon she felt stung by water. Tons of cold wet water splashing all over her. Soaking into her hair and skin and freezing her body. The water was everywhere, all at once, going into her eyes and into her mouth as she kept screaming. The grip around her tightened even more, catching her breathes and her screams were almost muffled by the water. She soon realized the water wasn't just being splash but poured all over her, drowning her. The woodsman's weight was keeping them both down at the bottom of the ditch, and she could not break free. Scully's struggles soon turned frantic, her lungs needing air to survive underwater. Opening her eyes meant feeling the sting of the dirty mud mixed with freezing water. She couldn't see clearly anyhow, her entire vision brown and cloudy. Her screaming gurgled and bubbled in the water and nothing was audible or sensical. The woman's movements were dying off and become sluggish as she lost more oxygen and was leaning towards unconsciousness. The woodsmen finally used his legs and straightened them to push off the ditch floor and floated to the top of the water. His head was behind the woman's and he could hear and feel her deep gasps for air. She was panting laboriously and coughing and spouting excess water from her mouth and nose. Her struggles were no longer for awhile, until she slightly began to regain her composure. But before Scully knew what was happening, she was dragged underwater again. This time she had no chance of getting a full breath and fought hard against the man keeping her down. She was starting to black out until as sudden as she was below the water, she was soon above it swallowing the precious much needed air into her lungs. But then she was pulled under again. This time the woodsman, who held her, shook the woman's body and waited until the bubbles escaping from her mouth and nose were almost too small to see then let her above water. This game of life and death drowning was wearing her out and tiring her entire body. By the fourth time, she was blacking out seconds at times not able to regain the strength to catch her breath. But somehow, deep inside the woman's throat a loud tearful yell pierced the air screaming "STOP!" as her body tensed against the bonds of the man imprisoning her in his arms in the water. The woodsman did not sympathize and pulled Scully into the beckoning cold water, which silenced her cries for help once and for all. He saw the bubbles subside and the woman blacked out. As he came up for air, he dragged the woman's limp body along the side wall of the ditch and with one big swift move, he lifted her small form to a height where the observing woodsmen by the ditch edge grabbed the woman and lifted her up and put her on the ground. The large woodsman inside the ditch climbed out and grumbled something to the men around him. A few of them replied back with grunts and growls, another just nodded. The wet woodsman wore a large animal skin tied around his waist that covered most of his pelvic region. His entire body was wet, but the cool wind was drying him off fast. His body didn't seem to mind the cold night weather. The seven large woodsmen now surrounded the small woman on the ground, but moved to one side as the five small woodsmen approached the body. The woman was lying on her side, clearly still wet from her cleansing but unconscious now. Two of the kilt-wearing woodsmen kneeled down and each grabbed one of the woman's arms as a third woodsman grabbed her legs. Together, they marched off into a denser part of the forest. The woman's head hung loose as she was carried along a hidden path into the forest. Her head swung back and forth as the shadows on the ground blurred into the night. She didn't awaken until hours later. When they needed her awake. …to be continued… [ THE WOODSMEN // Part 1 of 1 ] Please send feedback!