UMBRA 2:ELLIPSIS
CHAPTER 9
By Dawson E. Rambo

Disclaimer: Fox Mulder, Dana Scully, Walter Skinner and
any other tangentially mentioned characters created by
Chris Carter remain his copyrighted property, the property of
1013 Productions, and the property of Fox Television, a unit
of 20th Century Fox, Inc. The author believes that the use
of copyrighted characters in the forum known as "Fan
Fiction" is protected under the "Fair Use" statutes of US
Copyright law. No infringement of any copyright is intended.

Characters created by the author remain his property.

Archive Title           : ELLIPSIS 9/?
Posting Date            : 1 August 1998
Classification          : SRA/MSR[m]
Overall STORY Rating    : NC-17 (explicit sexuality,violence)
CHAPTER Rating          : R
Keywords                : UMBRA, Mulder/Scully,Thriller
Summary                 : Withheld at author's request.
Spoilers                : Umbra.

Ye Olde Opening Notes: Once again, I am deeply indebted
to Scott Carr for his crack editing on this. Believe
you me, you didn't want to see the beta version. Ew.

Enjoy!
+=+=+=



  "Every society gets the kind of criminal it deserves.
   What is equally true is that every community gets the
   kind of law  enforcement it insists on."
     -- Robert Kennedy (1925-68), U.S. Attorney General

  "At one time my only wish was to be a police
   official. It seemed to me to be an occupation for
   my sleepless intriguing mind. I had the idea that
   there, among criminals, were people to fight:
   clever, vigorous, crafty fellows. Later I realized that
   it was good that I did not become one, for most
   police cases involve misery and wretchedness-not
   crimes and scandals."
     -- Soren Kierkegaard (1813-55), Danish philosopher.


  "Theirs not to make reply,
  Theirs not to reason why,
  Theirs but to do and die."
     Lord Tennyson (1809-92), English poet.
     The Charge of the Light Brigade (1854).


+=+=+=
Undisclosed Location

  This was where he went when he wanted to be alone.
  The Smoker sat in what he called his "office," but
what in reality was more of a dark, dank little room in
an abandoned warehouse on the outskirts of the city. It
was the only place he could find that gave him the
peace to concentrate enough to silence the constant
voices in his head.
  A phone sat on the wobbly table in front of him.
  The Smoker was battling his emotions.
  Part of him urged to call Mulder, to tell him what
was going to happen in Chicago and Hawaii. The Smoker
wanted Mulder to have every possible advantage.
  Urging him in the other direction was the knowledge
that to help Mulder in any way during this phase of his
plans would, ultimately, be a detriment.
  Mulder had to learn how to make hard decisions.
  Killing someone that was pointing a high-powered
rifle at you was one thing, even if he were a teenager.
  This was something else entirely.
  His decision made, the Smoker turned his attention to
other matters. Regardless of what Mulder might have
thought, the Smoker had other issues to deal with
besides the potential colonization of Earth.

+=+=+=
The Pentagon
Arlington, VA

  The Plumber flashed his ID at the Marine guarding the
entrance to the OP-06UT offices on the A-ring of the
Pentagon and quickly walked through the door.
  Things had begun to move quickly.
  LtCmdr Watts waited in the Plumber's office, having
traveled across the country on AAAA-priority orders the
night before. The Plumber was just as eager to meet the
ultimate tool of Mulder's demise as he was sure Watts
was eager to begin.
  As the Plumber entered his office, Watts stood and
came to attention.
  "As you were," the Plumber casually ordered, moving
behind the tiny metal desk and taking his seat.
  "Lieutenant Commander Michael Watts, reporting as
ordered," Watts said. Not being under arms or outdoors,
Watts didn't salute.
  "Take your seat, Commander," the Plumber said, not
unkindly.
  Watts sat down and waited, an expectant look on his
face.
  "To use an old and trite phrase, I suppose you're
wondering why you were called here, am I right?"
  "Yes, sir."
  The Plumber fell silent, taking the opportunity to
unlock the safe in the credenza behind his desk. He
found Watts' 201 file and brought it out. He made sure
to hold it in such a way that Watts could clearly see
what it was.
  "Watts, Watts," the Plumber said, as if he handled
matters of this nature every day. "Let's see what we
have, shall we?"
  Watts remained silent, obviously curious.
  "Sir, if I may ask, what is OP-06UT?"
  "We'll get to that in a minute, Commander," the
Plumber said. Opening the 201 file, he began reading,
stroking his chin as he did, letting his eyebrows rise
and fall as he encountered "interesting" factoids about
the man before him.
  It was all an act, of course. The Plumber had
memorized Watts' file the day before.
  "You're the son of an Admiral," the Plumber offered.
  Watts' features darkened. "Yes, sir. Is that what
this is about? Again? Is the "UT" section some kind of
annex to Naval Intelligence? Is my loyalty being
questioned again? After all--"
  "AS YOU WERE!" the Plumber snapped.
  Watts fell silent, his jaw tightly clenched. Fire
burned in his eyes, eyes that were focused on the
Plumber.
  "Commander, I was merely making conversation. You
don't *know* me well enough to make such blanket
assumptions as to my intentions or beliefs." The
Plumber paused. "Am I clear?"
  "Aye, aye, sir."
  The Plumber closed the file and addressed Watts. "I
know all about your father, Commander. And I am sure
that I know more about him than you do. I served with
the Admiral. Several times. I'd even go so far as to
say that I know more about the way that he died than
you do."
  Watts said nothing.
  The Plumber closed Watts' 201 file and sat back,
folding his hands on the desk.
  "The reason you are here is that I find myself in
need of someone with your specific talents, Commander."
  "And what did you say the assignment was again, Sir?"
  "I didn't," the Plumber said flatly. "Perhaps I'd
better explain the pressure we're under here, and then
you tell me if you think you can provide your unique
services to this unit. Agreed?"
  "Aye, sir."
  The Plumber reached back into the safe and returned
with another folder. Opening it, he slid a color
photograph out. It showed a man and a woman, both
dressed in FBI raid jackets, outside an office
building. A small typewritten label affixed to the
bottom left edge of the photograph identified it as US
Navy property, and indicated that the picture had been
taken in Los Angeles, California.
  "Do you recognize either of these people?" the
Plumber asked.
  Watts took the proffered picture and studied it for a
long moment.
  "No, sir," Watts said, handing it back.
  The Plumber slowly exhaled, trying to hide the relief
he felt. That had been the moment of truth. His entire
plan hinged on the fact that Watts' wouldn't know the
two agents on sight.
  "That is Special Agent Fox Mulder and his wife,
Dana," the Plumber said, pointing to the picture. "He
is currently assigned to a classified joint FBI-
Military project."
  The Plumber paused, letting the tension build.
  "The name of that project is DEVGRU 12."
  Watts flushed. "I was turned down for that unit,
sir."
  "I'm aware of that, Commander," the Plumber smirked.
"In fact, that's one of the reasons you're here. Your
scores during the qualification phases of DEVGRU 12
were so high that you missed the cut by only a few
points."
  The Plumber hesitated, as though he wasn't sure he
was ready to share the next part of the story with
Watts.
  Appearing to plunge ahead, the Plumber continued.
"The problem is that this man Mulder has been given
command of a military unit, and a commission into the
Army with the rank of Colonel to go along with it. His
wife, Dana, was given a commission in the Navy as a
Captain. That gives both of them the legal right to
command DEVGRU 12."
  The Plumber hesitated again, letting his antagonism
towards Mulder build. "No matter what Congress might
think, Commander, giving that woman a commission
doesn't make her Navy. And the fact that Mulder
accepted his commission into the Army instead of the
Navy doesn't sit well with me personally.
Professionally, though, it's the least of my worries,
of which I have several dozen."
  Watts said nothing.
  "The problem is that intelligence...and not
necessarily Naval Intelligence in this case, has
stumbled upon a little problem with DEVGRU 12. As you
know, that sort of classified unit tends to circumvent
the normal Defense Department procurement channels when
they need certain...items. They deal in large amounts
of cash. Unmarked, untraceable cash."
  Watts could see what was coming and frowned.
  "No," the Plumber said, appearing to read his mind,
"he hasn't embezzled it. At least, not for his own
personal use. We fear something worse, something much,
much worse."
  Again, Watts waited.
  "We believe that Mr. Mulder...excuse me, Colonel
Mulder, has diverted the money towards his own ends --
those ends being the purchase of certain export-
restricted items and diverting them overseas to
governments that are not friendly to this country." He
paused. "Specifically, to North Korea."
  "What items?" Watts asked. Spotting the expression on
the Plumber's face, he added, "Sir."
  "Computers, mostly. Encryption software. Design
software. Certain industrial equipment that could be
used to further North Korea's attempts to develop
offensive nuclear weapons."
  Watts frowned. "Towards what end, sir? Is this
political or financial?""
  "Financial, Commander, as well as personal. Colonel
Mulder is using US taxpayer dollars to fund the
purchase of equipment that *he* can obtain due to his
military status that would otherwise be unavailable to
the North Koreans on the open market. Since his
movements and missions are so highly classified, only
the Chief of Naval Operations and the Secretary of
Defense are even peripherally aware of his actions.
  "He requests cash from the Navy's classified
contingency fund. He buys the equipment through a
series of front companies and cutouts. He then
transfers this equipment to North Korean control, and
collects a healthy finder's fee in the process, lining
his own pockets and neatly laundering the money in the
process." The Plumber hesitated. "We believe his
actions are motivated by his newfound power. DEVGRU 12
is chartered with specific kinds of counterterrorism,
Commander. Mulder and his wife are a kingdom unto
themselves. They are an extremely small, extremely
elite unit, answerable only to the CNO, and above him,
to the President. The Secretary is kept in the loop on
administrative matters only."
  "Plausible deniability," Watts said, disgusted.
  "Exactly, Commander. Mulder likes the power he
wields, and wants to keep it. The problem is that his
unit has been too effective. They have run several
successful operations here in the United States as well
as overseas. They operated so well, in fact, that the
number of verifiable threats that justify their
existence began dropping. Dropping faster than a
politician's promises the week after Election Day.
  "So, by giving the North Koreans the materials we
discussed, he keeps a real, verifiable threat in the
world, a threat that his unit is chartered to meet,
thus extending the need for his existence."
  Watts digested this.
  "I have several questions, Sir."
  The Plumber sat back. "Please."
  "First, how did you come into possession of this
information?"
  "Various intelligence sources, but two separate,
verifiable HUMINT sources. One of them is an
administrative officer assigned to the unit. The
other...well, I can't go into that at this time. Let's
just say it's a source that I would rate as an A+."
  "Aye, sir. Now, two final questions. First, what do
you see as my part in this, and secondly, what does
this have to do with my father?"
  The Plumber nodded and leaned forward, as if he'd
expected the second question.
  He had.
  "First, your role in all this is to help us, OP-O6UT,
the US Navy, and the United States of America to bring
this turd to justice. The answer to your second
question is..."
  The Plumber stood and sat on a corner of the desk,
facing Watts. "This is hard for me to say, Commander.
It has stuck in my craw for close to ten years. Your
father did not, in fact, commit suicide over his shame
at being involved in the LIBERTY BELL conspiracy, but
was in fact murdered because he threatened to reveal
Agent Mulder's involvement in that entire mess."
  "Sir?" Watts asked, pale.
  "Your father was a patriot, Commander, not a
traitor." The Plumber reached behind his back without
looking and found a thick file.
  A file that had been specially prepared.
  "This is your father's Naval Intelligence file. Your
father was not a member of the conspiracy, as you, your
family and the public were led to believe. He was
actually a deep-cover agent for Naval Intelligence,
reporting back to the CNO on the conspiracy, on Danny
Graves, and on the entire LIBERTY BELL matter. He was
murdered, Commander.
  "Murdered because he knew too much. Because he, with
a single telephone call, could have rendered DEVGRU 12
obsolete and the need for such units moot."
  "But, DEVGRU 12 wasn't even formed at the time of my
father's murder!" Watts objected.
  Good, the Plumber thought. He said "murder" and not
"death." He took the bait.
  "Not on paper, no. But I can tell you that the leader
of what was to become DEVGRU 12 had already been
identified and was being groomed by the powers that be.
And when Mulder realized the threat your father posed
to his career, he had the Admiral killed."
  "You're *sure* of that?" Watts demanded.
  "Read the forensics report yourself, Commander. Your
father died as a result of a .45 caliber gunshot wound
to his left temple. Your father was right handed. There
was no gunshot residue on either of his hands, or on
the sleeves of the shirt he was wearing at the time of
his death. A paraffin test was performed during the
autopsy, which was also negative. Your father couldn't
have pulled that trigger, Commander. He didn't commit
suicide. He was murdered."
  "Mulder pulled the trigger?" Watts asked.
  "No," the Plumber admitted. "But he ordered the hit."
  "Who pulled the trigger?"
  "Danny Graves," the Plumber said.
  "W-what?"
  "Graves and Mulder were...sort of in on it together.
Graves was running the LIBERTY BELL conspiracy. Mulder,
while investigating some murders that occurred as a
result of the larger conspiracy, stumbled across your
father's role in the affair. Mulder decided to double-
cross everyone."
  The Plumber took a breath, paused, and then
continued.
  "Mulder realized pretty quickly what was going on. He
was being tested, groomed for the top job at what
eventually came to be DEVGRU 12. But your father was
poised to undo the entire LIBERTY BELL conspiracy. He
had the names, the dates, the places. Everything Naval
Intelligence needed to roll the entire thing up in a
nice, neat little package."
  "Mulder realized that one of two possible outcomes
existed. Either Graves' LIBERTY BELL conspiracy would
manage to decapitate the leadership of this country,
resulting in the "New World Order" that Graves in his
madness envisioned. Or, Mulder would triumph, and be
hailed as a hero, and given all kinds of power and
authority to make sure that something like LIBERTY BELL
never happened again. Quite simply, he couldn't afford
the risk of your father stealing all the glory and
removing the need for DEVGRU 12 to be created."
  "He had a message sent to Graves through intelligence
channels that your father, Admiral Watts, was about to
confess all to the FBI and provide information on the
conspiracy to the Navy and the Justice Department. The
message indicated that the US Attorney had already
worked out a plea agreement, as well as places for your
father, your mother, yourself and your sister in the
Federal Witness Security Program. Your father, of
course, had planned nothing of the sort. But Graves
believed the message because it was so carefully
constructed. It fit in with some other things your
father was doing at the time for Naval Intelligence,
things unrelated to the Graves case or the LIBERTY BELL
conspiracy. And so..." The Plumber shrugged, made a gun
with his thumb and forefinger and pointed it as his own
temple.
  "Bang."
  Watts gasped. "And this Mulder...that FBI agent...
he's now diverting money and restricted export
materials to the North Koreans?"
  "Yes, Commander. The man who had your father murdered
is a traitor and is actively engaged in furnishing our
enemies with strategic materials that could later be
used against us if the balloon went up." He paused.
"You've certainly read the latest intelligence
estimates from that part of the world. The North
Koreans are getting antsy. No one doubts that. The
sheer number of North Korean agents that are attempting
to infiltrate the South is increasing daily. You're
aware of the Seawolf incident?"
  Watts nodded. He was. The USS Seawolf and a small
North Korean submarine designed to insert spies into
the South from the water had brushed against each other
in the South China Sea. Fingers had been pointed,
apologies demanded by both sides, and tensions had
increased another notch.
  Watts stood in the cramped office and began pacing.
"Sir, if you don't mind, I think better on my feet."
  "By all means, Commander," the Plumber said.
  "Sir, if I may speak freely?"
  "Please."
  "Sir, I have been in Naval Special Warfare for most
of my Navy career. I am aware of our capabilities
to...remove problems."
  The Plumber nodded, pleased. Watts had immediately
seen the obvious flaw.
  "Why don't we just...perform an executive action?"
  "That is a fair question, as illegal as such an
operation would be. The answer is that Mulder is a
close, personal friend of the President's, and has been
for close to fifteen years. The potential damage to the
Navy, to Naval Special Warfare, to this office is
incredible. We just can't risk...direct action."
  "Is there any connection to the President in
this...conspiracy?" Watts asked, eyes wide.
  "No," the Plumber said, shaking his head. "None that
we can ascertain."
  "So what choices are we left with? If he's as close
to the President as you say..."
  "I'm glad to see that my choice was well-founded,
Commander. You show an unusual grasp of such matters
for someone with your length of service."
  A left-handed compliment if ever I've heard one,
Watts thought.
  "The task you and I face is not insurmountable. We
have several options open to us to neutralize Mulder
and his DEVGRU 12."
  "Are the other team members in on it?" Watts asked,
shocked.
  "We think one or two might be. His wife, for sure.
She travels with him everywhere. Rumor has it that they
haven't spent a night apart since they were married,
but that's unconfirmed."
  "That still doesn't-"
  "Let me finish, Commander. As I said before, there
are several ways to get to *Colonel* Mulder. His
godson, for one."
  "Sir?"
  "Colonel Mulder and his wife are good friends with
Admiral Karn's chief of staff, Admiral Maggie King.
Maggie has a son." The Plumber paused. "A son by
Commander Matthew Stone."
  Watts paled even more and retook his seat.
  He knew that name.
  "Are you suggesting that we...kidnap the son?"
  "No, Commander," the Plumber said. "I am not
suggesting we commit a federal crime in the furtherance
of our obvious duty. There are some things we cannot
to."
  But not many, the Plumber thought, hiding a smile.
  "I merely used the example of the godson being one of
Mulder's vulnerabilities to illustrate a point."
  The Plumber's next words were cold and hard.
  "Anyone can be gotten."

+=+=+=

  Watts gulped.
  "What are you saying, exactly?"
  "Commander, as I said a moment ago, we cannot
authorize a sanctioning action. As attractive an option
as that is, and as clean as it would be, we just can't
risk the political fallout the resultant investigation
would be almost sure to cause."
  "That still leaves us with a few options. I have just
verified that the computers in question, some of the
encryption software, and most of the industrial
equipment Mulder has diverted are classified as
Critical Nuclear Weapon Design Items. CNWDI. Are you
aware of the implications regarding CNWDI items?"
  "Yes," Watts nodded. "Deadly force is authorized."
  "Correct," the Plumber said smugly. "So here is the
plan. You are now assigned to this unit. Our charter
from the Chief of Naval Operations is to prove that
Agent Mulder and his wife are transferring CNWDI
materials to the North Koreans. To catch them in the
act, as a matter of fact. The CNO also made it clear to
me that if Agent Mulder and his wife were to perish
during the arrest, there would be no Article 32 Board
convened in the matter. He also gave me this."
  The Plumber found the last piece of bait and offered
it to Watts, who took it and began reading.
  It was written on the personal stationary of the
Chief of Naval Operations. It was short and to the
point. It clearly stated that the man designated as
Commanding Officer, Plans and Policy Branch, Unusual
Tasks Section, Office of the Chief of Naval Operations,
and any designated officers or enlisted personnel under
him were operating under the direct orders of the Chief
of Naval Operations, and that they were to be given the
full and complete cooperation of any unit in the Navy,
worldwide, without question or delay.
  "I'm impressed," Watts said. "CNO gave you a hunting
license."
  The Plumber nodded. "You got it, Commander. And you
are the tool I am going to use to prove that Mulder and
his wife are traitors."
  "Where do I sign?" Watts asked, grinning.

+=+=
UMBRA Headquarters

  "So who the hell are we going to assign?" Mulder
asked.
  The job before them was to pick one of the six
members of the UMBRA team to go undercover on the
subway train.
  "Nelson is the best shot," Scully said.
  "Yes, but he'll think I'm trying to get him killed,"
Mulder observed dryly. "After all, he just admitted --"
  "Mulder," Scully warned.
  "Fine. Whatever. Nelson is the best shot, you're
right. Vance would blend in a little better, though.
For that matter, so would Cruz."
  "Vance is from New York. We can't risk the chance,
however small, that someone else might recognize him on
the train."
  "Scully, there are *eleven million* people in New
York City. The chances--"
  "You know how our luck runs," Scully smiled. "And the
risk isn't just that someone might recognize him on the
train. There's sure to be some kind of press coverage,
and all we need is some cameraman putting his face on
the Six O'clock News and having someone recognize him.
Vance is out, as far as I'm concerned."
  The decision was made.
  "Get Nelson in here," Mulder ordered.

+=+=

  "You wanted to see me, sir?" Nelson asked formally,
stiffly.
  "Pete," Mulder said gently, "have a seat. We need to
talk."
  The look on Nelson's face was priceless.
  "Sir?"
  "We have an assignment we think you might be
interested in."
  Nelson took the seat Mulder indicated.
  "In three days, Shawn Hopkins, 16, will board the
Downtown Number 3 train at Grand Central Terminal in
New York City. When it gets to Bowling Green Station,
he will take the last car hostage and make the usual
demands."
  "Because the NYPD will refuse to yield control of the
situation to either the FBI or the UMBRA unit, we're
going to have to go in undercover and take care of the
situation. Frankly, that means you."
  "But, sir, if I take this kid out--"
  "Pete, please let Mulder finish," Scully said gently.
  "Yes, Ma'am."
  "Pete, we're going to provide you with an airtight
legend. You're going to be Edward "Bud" Farrell, a
bonded courier specializing in diamonds and negotiable
instruments. That gives you the probable cause to
posses a concealed weapons permit in New York City. You
will have a standard civilian handgun on that train,
with standard ammunition. You cannot take any military
hardware or ammunition with you on this one. When
Hopkins makes his move, you will make yours and remove
the threat. The NYPD will storm the train, and you will
put your hands up and surrender gracefully. The NYPD
will interrogate you for several hours, and then
announce to the press that you are not being charged,
but are being released. The FBI has secured the
cooperation of two companies in the city that will
vouch for you, that will say you've been employed as a
courier for them for several years."
  Mulder stopped.
  "Do you have any questions?" Scully asked.
  "Why me?" Pete asked.
  "Because you're the best man for the job," Mulder
said immediately. "Without question. I want you on this
one."
  "Can I wear a vest?"
  "Draw a SecondChance level II from the armory,"
Mulder said. "Nothing any stronger."
  "What's this kid going to be packing?"
  "AK47, maybe a CAR-15."
  Nelson sighed. "Do I try and take him alive?"
  "No," Scully said. "We're writing this one off, Pete.
Hopkins just gets...handled. We're not going to worry
about samples or anything else."
  Nelson thought about it for all of three seconds and
then nodded. "I'm in," he said.

+=+=+=
END CHAPTER 9