4:37 P.M.
Sunday, July 7th, 1993
Aegean Sea, Greece

Malcolm Thaymos kept one hand on the motorboat's steer stick and the other clutched on the stone. The boat putt-putted slowly across the still water until he stopped it and cut the engine. Malcolm picked up a pair of binoculars and scanned the horizon. All around him there was nothing but the perfect, true-blue waters of the Aegean Sea. The sky was cloudless and a light shade of bright blue, so it was difficult to tell where the ocean ended and the sky began.

Jutting out of the ocean like a lonely watch tower was the island of Thera. The island was actually nothing more than a half-ring of jagged, volcanic rock sticking out of the ocean. It was pretty much uninhabited, with very little area to colonize.

Malcolm stared at the island for a moment, then back at the Aegean. There was no one else there; the sea was empty. Malcolm breathed out a sigh of either relief or worry. He grasped the strange, egg-shaped stone to his chest. One half of the stone was a blood-red color, and the other was bright emerald green.

They weren't here yet. The sailor had said it would either be today or next Saturday. He wished it would be never. But he couldn't let it happen again - not even after thousands of years. It was his sole duty to keep the secret. He didn't know how he would stop it, but he would at least try.

He started the engine again. It started up again, and then died. He tried it again. No response. He was about to try again, but then stopped and stood rigid.

A strange noise began reverberating from the air all around him. It was like a hundred jets taking off, or a million bees droning. The wind ruffled through his blond, almost white hair. His dark, forest green eyes darted left, then right, left, right, scanning. Nothing. His eyes drew up.

The blue sky had changed, like it was bleeding. A bright purple splotch of light was spreading across the sky like spilled grape juice. Malcolm began to shake uncontrollably. His eyes widened, his pupils shrank. He glanced down at the stone in his hand. It felt like a hot piece of coal in his palm. The green side was pointing up.

Could it be? Was it working? But without the pedestal, it was impossible - or was it? Malcolm shook, almost convulsed, as he held the stone. The purple spot was growing, expanding. He turned the stone over in his hand so that the red side was facing up.

He looked up. The spot had suddenly changed from purple to yellow, the brilliant yellow light shrinking back into itself. Malcolm's breath came in ragged gasps, watching, waiting. The stone smoked in his hand. The yellow and blue seemed to collide and mix. Then it all went black.

11: 21 A.M.
Monday, July 8th, 1993
apt. 402, Washington D.C.

"I don't believe this," said Scully, rolling her eyes towards the ceiling of her apartment.

"Whatever do you mean?" asked Mulder innocently. "I know you don't believe in aliens and conspiracies and paranormal experiences, but taking a vacation? I didn't know you were *that* skeptic."

Scully waved the $10,000 traveler's check tiredly in the air as she paced up and down the carpet. "That's not what I meant. I just don't understand why the F.B.I. is packing us up and sending us off on a two-week vacation with all expenses paid."

"Is there something *wrong* with taking a vacation?"

"Mulder, we've been working at the bureau for two and a half years now, and this is the first time they've given us a vacation. Doesn't it sound sort of odd?"

"Ooh, is the Skeptic Scully suddenly suggesting a government conspiracy, here?"

"Good grief, I can't even say 'I don't believe this' without you totally getting me going. Alright, I'll admit it, we need a vacation. But where are we planning to go?"

Mulder had found out yesterday from Assistant Director Skinner that the F.B.I. was giving them a two-week vacation, all expenses paid. They could travel anywhere on the planet, so long as it was within the $10,000 that had been provided. Mulder had come to tell Scully, and she had obviously taken this as a surprise.

"Oh, I don't know," said Mulder. He suddenly began to imitate a travel agent. "Perhaps Australia, the land down under. Or the wild jungles of Africa. Or better yet," he leaned in closer to Scully, giving his voice a romantic edge. "Paris, the city of lovers."

Scully cracked a half-smile and raised her eyebrows. "Actually, I was thinking of someplace in Canada. You know, fishing or skiing or something."

"Canada? What are you talking about?" said Mulder, backing away with disgust.

"What?"

"*Canada*?!" Mulder said again quizzically.

Scully smiled. "Alright. Our vacation starts this Wednesday. If you can think of a better place to go than Canada, we'll go. I just don't want you to be miserable on the only vacation we'll probably ever take. You have until tomorrow at 3:00."

"*Anywhere* but *Canada*," Mulder muttered to himself, heading for the door.

5:54 A.M.
Tuesday, July 9th, 1993
Washington D.C.

Mulder's Nikes pounded the concrete rhythmatically, his breath coming out in puffs of steam. Mulder rarely ever went jogging, but he felt like he needed the exercise. The sky above the gray government buildings was a light pink and purple from the rising sun.

Mulder suddenly felt someone else's footsteps echoing behind his own. It sounded like another jogger, trying to catch up to him. Mulder slowed and glanced behind him. He choked back a shout of loud surprise.

It was Deep Throat.

"Good morning, Agent Mulder," Deep throat said casually. "Glad to see you significant people of the bureau keeping in shape."

"Where did *you* come from?" Mulder said, his voice laden with surprise and concern.

"Oh, just around the corner. You're not the only one who needs the exercise. So, I hear that you and Agent Scully will be taking a little vacation."

"How on earth do you know about that?"

"It's all over the bureau. The hard-pressed, constantly-toiling Agents Mulder and Scully going off together on a vacation."

"Yeah, it is sort of weird," sighed Mulder. He and Deep Throat had now both slowed to a walk. "Scully wants to go to Canada, and I have until 3:00 P.M. to think of someplace better to go."

"I hear that Greece is especially nice this time of year," Deep Throat said casually.

"What exactly are you hinting at?"

"Nothing. It was just a suggestion; I'm not expecting you to go to Greece. Of course, neither is the bureau."

"You mean they sent us off on a vacation for a *purpose*?"

"Somewhat, yes. They just don't want any complications."

"Complications of *what*?"

"Go to Greece, Agent Mulder. In particular, Athens, Crete, or Thera. You and Agent Scully may find it quite intriguing."

"How do you know so much?"

"Gossip, Agent Mulder. It is literally impossible for a large group of people to keep a secret. In this case, they are trying to avoid problems. But gossip has its tricks."

Mulder stared at Deep Throat for a moment, then began to jog faster. Deep Throat stopped walking and watched him, his puffs of steamy breath marking time with his Nikes.

1:26 p.m.
Wednesday, July 9th, 1993
en route to Athens

Scully leaned her head back against the cushioned seat of the American Airlines plane. She wished desperately that she had a window seat, but Mulder convinced her it was her turn to have aisle seat. Every time a stewardess passed by with the drinks, the cabinet would ram into Scully's elbow. Her arm was already turning black-and-blue.

She glanced over at Mulder. Her partner was wearing his headphones and watching the in-flight movie, which miraculously happened to be "Close Encounters of the Third Kind". Mulder was smiling. Scully sighed. At least going to Greece wouldn't involve any extra-terrestrials or paranormal activity.

Greece. How had Mulder ever thought up the idea? He had suggested going to Athens, and then perhaps Crete or Thera. Scully had finally agreed. She hoped that at least Mulder knew what he was talking about.

The movie ended, the seat belt sign switched on, and the plane moved in to land. Mulder stared out the window. The water of the Aegean Sea was the most perfect blue color he had ever seen, with the color fading to Aquamarine and then Green around the shore. The hills of Greece were brown and yellow from the hot summer sun, and had many patches of green. It was like some desert Mediterranean paradise.

The plane landed smoothly at the airport in the capital of Greece, Athens. The place was surrounded by olive and palm trees. Mulder and Scully found their luggage and battled their way through the crowds streaming through the glass-ceiling terminal out to the parking lot to hail a cab. Mulder could see tall skyscrapers and lots of cars and traffic outside, most of them cabs.

As Mulder waved to one of the passing cabs, Scully noticed a car parked on the curb. At first she thought it was her own car, realized it wasn't and then realized that it was a U.S. government car. Scully caught herself with surprise. A government car? *Here*?!

As Scully watched, two men approached the car. One was a large, heavyset man with dark, graying hair and dark brown eyes. The other was thin and short, with strawberry blond hair and light hazel eyes. Both were dressed in American military uniform. They both got into the car, and the vehicle was soon lost in the airport traffic.

Mulder got his cab. He and Scully loaded their suitcases into the trunk, got in, and the cab sped off.

15 minutes later, a bellboy was carrying their luggage up to their top-floor room at a fancy hotel somewhere in downtown Athens. Scully walked in ahead to inspect their new living quarters. The bellboy dropped their luggage at the door.

"Here you go sir," the bellboy said cheerfully in perfect English. "A lovely view of the Aegean Sea, air conditioning and twin king-size beds. Perfect accommodations for you and your wife."

Mulder raised an eyebrow. "She's not my wife."

"There's also a buffet hall on the bottom floor I'm sure you and your fiancee would enjoy..."

"She's not my fiancee, either," Mulder said crossly, fearing that Scully would overhear. "She's just my partner." The bellboy gave Mulder an unbelieving look and left.

Scully walked up to Mulder. "Great, so we're here. Now what?"

"What do you mean, 'now what'? There's plenty of stuff to do here. For one, next Saturday, I think we should head on over to Thera."

"May I inquire why?"

"Know what I heard? That a team of scientists and archeologists from Florida are coming to do a little underwater archeology in Thera. It seems a couple weeks ago, some lucky diver pulled up a few pieces of pottery and some coins. The coins were labeled 'Atlantica'." Mulder's faced brightened. "The team is looking for remains of the lost city of Atlantis."

Scully put on her skeptic look. "Mulder, everyone knows that the city of Atlantis was just a myth, a fantasy made up by Plato based on the downfall of the Minoans in Crete."

"Perhaps," said Mulder, shrugging.

"Mulder, are you telling me that you brought us all the way to Greece to watch some guys from Miami dig up coins and pottery?"

"You're always telling me how you want proof. Well, this may be our chance to watch people unearth actual *proof* of the city of Atlantis."

"I can hardly wait," Scully sighed. "Come on, let's do a little sightseeing before it gets dark."

7:04 P.m.
Wednesday, July 9th, 1993
Athens, Greece

Lieutenant Lucas Monroe paced the floor of his office nervously, back and forth, over and over again. He finally sat back in his chair and leaned back, slicking back his dark, graying hair. Another man, Sergeant Jakes, walked into the room. He leaned over on the desk of the office and lowered his voice to a half-whisper. "They're here. I saw them both at the airport this afternoon. They were probably on the same plane we were."

Monroe groaned. "*Here*? I thought the F.B.I. was giving them a two-week vacation!"

"They did. Apparently, this is where they chose to go."

"Do you think someone tipped them?"

No...I don't think so. It was just a coincidence. They don't know about it."

"What if they find out?"

"It's up to us to make sure they don't. The Florida Team is moving up its schedule - they're going to begin excavation Monday."

"I know. I sent the choppers and tanks up there early. Everything is in order."

"Are you sure it will happen again?" Jakes asked worriedly. "There are a million reasons why it wouldn't."

"It happened in 1840 B.C., and it will happen again. It was the Minoans who found the stone and started it in the first place, and it was the Minoans that lead to the downfall of Atlantis and themselves. The Naonims want to keep Atlantis a secret, and we'll be there when they try to stop the Florida Team."

"Let's hope so," said Jakes, and he headed for the door.

5:45 P.M.
Saturday, July 12th, 1993
en route to Thera

"*That's* Thera?" Scully said in disbelief as the tiny volcanic island came into view on the horizon. The Greek cruise ship chugged slowly towards the island of Thera, laden with tourists and the two F.B.I. agents. Thera was a small, half-ring of cliffs jutting out of the ocean. It was almost entirely unpopulated, although it made a popular tourist attraction.

So far, Mulder and Scully had spent their vacation well, spending most of their time in Athens, and visiting nearby cities like Delphi, Macedonia and most of the islands in the Aegean Sea. Scully found it hard to believe, but she finally convinced herself that Mulder had made a good choice for once. The landscape was downright gorgeous, and there were more than enough tourist sites, restaurants and places to go for anyone on a vacation. However, Mulder had kept pestering her to go to Thera, and Scully reluctantly agreed. But she told herself that she was going only to see the island on a tour.

"Yep. That's what is supposed to be left of the great city of Atlantis, sunken beneath the waves," Mulder said with awe. The two were standing on the edge of a great crowd of sightseers, leaning over the rail of the large cruise ship and watching the scenery drift by. "You know, they say that the people of Atlantis were highly civilized and greatly advanced in technology and science. Do you suppose that lead to their downfall? The story goes that the gods in the heavens became angry because the people of Atlantis became too prosperous and greedy, so they caused the island to sink into the sea."

Scully raised her eyebrows. "Mulder, you're hypothesizing again."

"It's what I do best."

Mulder had heard that the Florida Team was going to start excavation the coming Monday, and he wanted to get out to Thera on time to see it and study the island. He gazed out across the still blue waters at the approaching island.

Scully was watching the beautiful seascape when she glanced off to one side. She saw a man coming out of a trap door that lead to the engine room compartments beneath the deck. He wore worker's white overalls and a sailor's cap. He had shiny blond, almost white locks of short wavy hair and dark forest green eyes. The overalls looked baggy and oversized on his thin, lanky body. The overall pockets were stuffed with wires, pliers, screwdrivers...and sticks of dynamite!

Scully sucked in her breath with anxiety. The blond man looked around worriedly at all the tourists, as if he were confused about something. Then he maneuvered his way to the captain's quarters at the front of the ship. Scully watched him until she lost sight of him in the crowd.

"Mulder..." Scully said slowly.

"Is something wrong?"

"I think we're in trouble...that man...I think he was...."

Suddenly, the captain's voice piped up over the ship's intercom. "Attention, all passengers. This is your captain speaking. We have been informed that there is a bomb aboard this vessel. We are going to follow standard evacuation procedures..."

All the tourists aboard the boat broke out in shouts and cries of dismay. "It's 'Speed 2' in the Mediterranean!" Mulder shouted. Scully glanced around anxiously at the screaming passengers. They were at the very back of the boat; there was no way they could get to a lifeboat on time.

"Mulder, I saw who planted the bomb."

"....your way to the nearest lifeboat on either side of the ship...."

People all over the ship were scrambling for life jackets and heading for the lifeboats. Mulder and Scully were caught in the melee, and unable to go anywhere. Scully suddenly spotted something out of the corner of her eye.

"Mulder, there he is! That man, the bomber!" Scully yelled, tugging Mulder along with her. The blond man was heading against the crowd, trying to get to the private speedboats that were hooked onto one side of the ship. Mulder and Scully fought against the panicked crowd to try and catch the man.

"He's heading for the speedboats!" Scully shouted. The blond man glanced behind and saw the two agents right on his tail. The man climbed the boat rail and leaped overboard. Mulder glanced down. The man had climbed down a rope and was starting the engine of one of the two speedboats. "Come on!" he shouted. He and Scully leaped over, descended down the rope and landed in the second speedboat just as the first one took off.

Mulder gunned the engine, and the two agents gave chase to the blond man. The man took another look back and kicked his engine into a higher gear.

The two speedboats raced across the Aegean Sea for five minutes before it happened. A roar and a boom came from behind them. Looking back, Mulder and Scully watched the cruise ship explode into a million pieces. A ball of fire and smoke blossomed like a flower and sent a shock wave of searing heat onto the speedboat and sent waves of the Aegean Sea splashing onto the deck. The sea was littered with lifeboats and smoking pieces of debris.

The speedboat with the blond man picked up speed and raced away over the horizon. Mulder forced their own engine to move faster. "This is our maximum speed; we're not going to get any closer than this. We'll have to wait until he lands."

"He's not heading for the mainland," Scully observed. "I wonder why?"

"Do you know where he's going?"

"The nearest island is Crete, about 70 miles south of here. He's heading in that direction."

"Looks like our pleasure cruise has just been extended."

The two speedboats sped along the quiet blue waters of the Aegean Sea. Mulder slowed their speed so that they could save gas and so it didn't look like they were still following. Mulder spied on the first speedboat with a pair of miniature binoculars while Scully kept her hand on the steer-stick. Five minutes passed, then 10, 15, 20. A large island came into view on the horizon, and the two speedboats raced towards it.

It would still be several minutes before they actually reached the island. Scully gazed up at the searing, merciless sun breaking through the cloudless sky. She wiped sweat from her brow, wishing that she had never spotted this man in the first place. "We're *supposed* to be on vacation," she groaned. "Instead, we're chasing some boat bomber halfway across Greece in a tiny speedboat."

Mulder gave her a half-smile. "Yeah, just like our other 'vacations'. Remember our small excursions in Bermuda and Central America? Or that lovely little display of radioactivity at the Enika Atoll?"

Scully groaned even louder. Mulder gazed back at the approaching island of Crete. "We're pretty far from the nearest town on this island; I don't see any roads or docking places." He let his thoughts stray a little. "You know, the ancient Minoans used to live on Crete. They were supposed to be the ones that established Atlantis. Do you suppose the bomber is heading to Crete for a reason?"

Scully looked up. "Let's just stick with catching the bad guy, okay?"

"Speaking of our blond buddy, I don't think he'll be docking at your local Fisherman's Wharf," Mulder said, pointing to where the speedboat was preparing to anchor right on the wild, overgrown shores of the island. The shores of Crete were laden with olive trees and desert shrubbery, but no signs of civilization.

...Except for the enormous city of ruins resting a little ways inward on the shore. It looked like the ruins of an ancient city with a palace. The palace was surrounded by crumbling walls of stone and mud. The palace itself, at the very back of the ruins, was a building of cracked stone walls, shattered glass windows and crumbling brick towers. There were dozens of smaller buildings, plus a place that might have been a garden or tower, and a cave that seemed to lead underground.

The currents brought them right up onto the sand. Mulder threw over the anchor, and he and Scully climbed out of the boat and onto the island. The first speedboat was already there, but the man was gone.

"Say...I know this place," Scully said with wonder. "This looks like the ruins of Cnossus, the capital city for the Minoans in Crete. I heard that the city was built right on the tip of Crete. Some archeologists from Great Britain started digging here a couple months ago."

Mulder surveyed the uninhabited scene. "Looks like they're on coffee break."

"I heard the team quit due to lack of funding. Strange, though, this is a fabulous archeological find."

Mulder gazed up at the ruins. "This is supposed to be where King Minos himself reigned over the Minoans. Where Daedalus and his son Icarus escaped a prison tower with man-made wings. And where..." Mulder stopped. "There's another legend about this place, but I can't remember what it is..."

Mulder and Scully started up the shore towards Cnossus. There was no sound except for their footsteps on the rocky ground and the ocean wind rustling through the olive trees. They reached the center of the ruins and gazed awestruck at the piles of shiny rubble.

A noise behind them caused the two agents to turn around. The blond man had tripped over a loose stone and was now heading for the entrance to the underground cave, still trying to get away from his relentless pursuers.

Scully pulled out her gun. "Stop! Federal agents! We need to talk to you!" she shouted. The man ignored her and disappeared into the darkness of the cave.

"We're in for a game of hide-and-seek in the dark," Mulder said, reaching for his own gun. They hurried after the bomber into the cave.

Mulder and Scully headed down a staircase that was cracked and split and into a dark passageway. There were no lanterns or flashlights, so they each put a hand on the wall to feel their way around. Scully continuously called out to the bomber, but there was no answer but her echoes.

The passageway went straight forward until it suddenly branched out into four new passageways, each one going a different direction.

"Should we split up?"

"No, we'll both need to be there to catch the guy. We'll just have to go on a hunch," said Mulder, heading down the far left tunnel. The passageway kept winding down and around with no sign of an exit. They came to a point where the tunnel split two, and farther down three, then two, then four again. 11 times they ran into dead ends. There was no light anywhere.

"Mulder," Scully said in a slightly panicked voice, "we're in some sort of *maze*. The man could be *anywhere*."

Mulder sucked in his breath. "*Now* I remember the other legend of Cnossus: the half-man, half-bull Minotaur, the Minoans' man-eating monster that lived in the Labyrinth on Crete. The Minoans used to send young men and women from Athens into the Labyrinth to have them be devoured by the Minotaur."

Scully groaned loudly. "*Please* don't tell me we've just wondered into the Labyrinth of the Minoans."

"Bon appitit, Scully."

"Mulder, the Minotaur is just pure legend. There is absolutely no such thing as a half-man, half-bull, man-eating monster. This might have just been some decoration maze for the King's own enjoyment."

"Might have been..."

"Mulder, let's just concentrate on catching the bomber and finding our way out of this Labyrinth...I mean, maze..."

"Should've brought my magic ball of string..."

The Labyrinth seemed to wind in and out of so many passages that it was impossible to tell which direction they were going in anymore. There was no sound except for their footsteps on the dirt floor in the dark. Just then, Mulder recognized something...the sound of footsteps from behind. Only the footsteps were heavier and irregular.

"Scully...." Mulder stopped his partner and listened. There was some sort of stomping and growling coming from the passage behind them.

"Hufff..." the noise came again, like labored, heavy breathing. Mulder pulled out his own gun and switched the safety off.

"It must be the bomber. He's doubled back and is behind us..." Scully breathed. They started back down the way they had come, with Scully going first in her defensive posture. The footsteps and heavy breathing were getting closer, louder. Mulder's heart was pounding in his chest like a hammer. He hoped that this time, Scully was right....

"Hhhufff!" the breathing turned into snorting, growling, then roaring. It echoed in the passageways all around them, like a man yelling or a bull charging.

"Mulder!!!" Scully pushed Mulder aside and pointed her gun back the way they had come. It was behind them! Yellow eyes glinted the darkness; the churning dust was filling the hallway. The thing roared again and ran straight for them!

GRROOARR!

PWANG!

THWOMP!

Scully's gun rang out like a thunderbolt. Something heavy fell to the ground in front of them. In the dark, it was impossible to tell what it was. Mulder knelt down next to the still figure.

"Either the bomber suddenly grew a lot of facial hair in the last half-hour, or this isn't the bomber."

Scully felt the figure laying on the floor. The thing's hair was long and coarse. It had huge, muscular arms and what felt like...horns?

"What is it?"

The sound of footsteps was coming again from the tunnel behind them. The pace of the steps was light and quick, and it was coming in their direction. "Look's like Mr. Minotaur had a little brother," Mulder said.

Scully held her gun ready again. The footsteps were pounding closer, faster, the dust beginning to swirl. Scully pressed herself against one wall and Mulder stood against the other. The thing pounded down the hall like a track runner, it's breath coming in ragged gasps.

"Hhufff...huff...hhhuf!"

OOOFF!!!

Mulder's leg stuck out, and the thing tripped and fell sprawling head over heels to the dirt floor. Mulder jumped and pinned the thing's legs down. Scully sat on its back and pointed her gun at the back of its neck. "F.B.I.! Don't move!"

She flipped the thing over so that it was facing her. Even in the darkness she could tell it was the blond man. His forest-green eyes stared back into her blue ones with panic. His white overalls were covered in dirt and scratches, and he looked tired and worn.

"Leave me alone! I didn't do anything!"

"Yeah, you didn't do anything, just blew up a cruise boat, stole a speedboat and got on the Minotaur's menu. Come on, we're leaving," Mulder said, forcing the man to his feet.

"*Where* exactly are we going? We're in a maze with no lights and no sense of direction whatsoever!" Scully protested.

"Do you know how to get out of here?" Mulder said, grabbing the man by his white-blond hair.

"I-I don't know, I swear I don't know. If I had known what this was I wouldn't have tried to hide here in the first place!"

"Let's concentrate on getting out of here, then we'll ask questions," Scully said nervously. She grabbed the man by his collar and kept her gun at his neck.

"If we just found some light, we could follow our footprints back out of the maze," Mulder suggested.

"Here, here, I have a flashlight," said the man, digging the light out of one of his overall pockets. "I-I was afraid to use it because you would find me."

"I'd rather be arrested by F.B.I. agents than become Minotaur Meal any day..."

"Mulder..." Scully warned.

"What about that thing you shot back there? Are we just going to leave it there?"

"Mulder, whatever it is, it's not human, and it's dead. Maybe some cow from the grazing fields nearby wondered in here and became startled when we entered..."

"Maybe..."

Scully was still holding the man, who was retracing the footsteps in the dust with his flashlight. "The Minotaur? Still alive? We'd better get out of here...fast!" the man said.

"*If* that *was* a Minotaur, it's dead, now," Scully said confidently.

"No, you don't understand. I'll explain later." Surprisingly, they found their way out of the maze quickly. Once they found their footprints they were easily able to go back the way they had come. Mulder first noticed two pairs of prints, his own and Scully's, and then a third from the bomber's. Then he spotted a fourth, bare-footed prints all over the place in mix-matched directions.

The doorway filled with the bright light of the outside world met them dramatically and blinded them for a moment or two. Then all three were running for the freedom of the outdoors and getting as far away from the cave as they could.

They stood there for a moment on a broken stone staircase leading up to the palace, panting for breath, with Scully's gun still at the bomber's head. He seemed to grateful to escape the Labyrinth to notice that he was at gunpoint. The cave still yawned open, leading down to the twisted, confusing passageways of the Labyrinth.

"I hope everyone else back home is having as much fun catching criminals as we are..."

"Alright you, talk," Scully said, pulling the gun away but still keeping it in her hand. "Why did you try to blow up a cruise ship full of innocent people? I take it you're not a terrorist."

"I blew up the ship because I wasn't sure if you were them; he said they were coming early, so I..."

"We don't understand; start at the beginning," Scully interrupted.

The man cleared his throat and took several deep breaths. He gazed around at the palace ruins, the grass and the olive trees and the clear blue sky and Aegean Sea.

"My name is Malcolm Thaymos, and I'm not a criminal. But it's up to me to stop the Florida Team before they begin excavating at Thera."

"Why?"

"If I don't stop them, they'll find the ruins of Atlantis, and the gods will become angry and destroy Thera again."

Scully sighed. They were dealing with some sort of Greek end-of-the-world freak. "Gods? You mean like Zeus, Poseidon, Hera and such? Pure Greek Mythology. I thought those beliefs were out centuries ago. There's absolutely no such thing."

"Tell that to that rabid bull with the human feet back there..."

"Mulder, I'll handle this," Scully warned. She turned back to Malcolm. "What makes you so sure that these 'gods' will destroy Thera again if the Florida Team digs up some lost city?"

"Because," said Malcolm, with pride, "I am a direct descendant of King Minos himself."

"Oooh, can I have your autograph?" asked Mulder.

Scully seemed not to pay attention. "Minos...in Greek Mythology, was the king dictator over the Minoans, the lord over Crete. This was his palace, and supposedly his Labyrinth with the Minotaur. Is that why you came here?"

"Partially, yes."

"But why the sudden interest in Thera?"

"Because Thera is connected to Atlantis, and Atlantis is connected to the Minoans, and the Minoans are connected to King Minos, and King Minos is connected to the Minotaur, and the Minotaur," Malcolm pointed to the sky. "Is connected to the Naonims."

Scully turned the word over in her head. "Naonim...that's 'Minoan' spelled backwards."

"The Americans call them the Naonims out of fun," Malcolm continued. "But they are actually the gods; the great masters of power from the heavens. My ancestors named them all and said they did specific things for the Earth. It was the gods that gave us the Minotaur, and the gods that destroyed Atlantis, because the people of the city had become too greedy."

"The people of Atlantis and the Minoans were supposed to be greatly advanced in science and technology..." Mulder mused to himself.

Scully decided to push her luck. "But how did these 'gods' give the Minoans all these things in the first place?"

"Because of *this*," Malcolm reached into his other pocket and pulled out what looked like a small toddler's toy. It was a large, perfectly-formed, egg-shaped stone. One half was a blood red color, the other was emerald green. The two colors were so different and so separate that the stone didn't look natural. Mulder took the stone and inspected it, turning it this way and that. It was perfectly smooth; free of the tiniest scratch or mark. "What does it do?"

"The story goes that the Minoans, my ancestors, found the stone while digging foundations for a temple. They thought that it was so beautiful that they built a pedestal for it and placed it in the center of the temple.

Almost immediately, the stone began to glow like a star. Then the gods came out of the heavens in a black stormcloud. They were pleased at how the Minoans had offered the stone, and they presented the Minotaur as a peace gift. However, one of the gods was not pleased with the Minoans, so he made the Minotaur's heart be filled with evil.

When my ancestor, Minos, became King, he built the Labyrinth and housed the Minotaur there. The gods taught the Minoans all they knew, and they prospered from this new knowledge. The Minoans began to build a flourishing, growing civilization, with its capital being the King's palace, Cnossus.

The most prosperous city of all was Atlantis, built on the island of Thera. It was a wondrous city, with high glass buildings, lush vegetation all around, and statues made of gold and silver. All the other peoples envied the Minoans for Atlantis.

However, the Minoans grew greedy. King Minos began to collect young men and women from Athens and send them into the Labyrinth, only to have them be devoured by the ever-hungry Minotaur. The Minoans used their new knowledge to build up their cities and wealth, with Atlantis being the biggest and richest of all.

And worse, some of the other civilizations, like the Athenians, wanted to find out how the Minoans got their new power. So the gods caused a mountain on Atlantis to explode like a volcano and sink the city. The people tried to get away from the volcano, but almost all of them perished with Atlantis.

The gods wanted to do the same thing to Cnossus, but King Minos found a way to stop them. He climbed up to the pedestal and turned the stone over so that the red side was pointing to the sky," he took the stone from Mulder to demonstrate. "As soon as he did this, the gods left and returned to the heavens, never to be seen by the Minoans again.

Without Atlantis, and without the knowledge from the gods, the Minoans lost all their power. Their empire decreased and slowly died. King Minos took the stone and gave it to his son, telling him to never let the secret of the gods get out or point the stone with the green side facing to the sky. The stone has been passed down from generation to generation ever since. You see, the Naonims, the gods, still don't want people to find the ruins of Atlantis and expose their secrets. So I am going to try and stop the Florida Team from excavating at all. If I can't," he held up the stone,"I will show the gods that they cannot come by pointing the red stone at the sky. It may not stop the Florida Team from finding Atlantis, but it will at least stop the gods from destroying Thera again."

Scully stared at Malcolm thoughtfully for several minutes after he finished his tale. Mulder kept glancing all around them at the ruins of Cnossus, trying to picture the city in its greatest years thousands of years ago.

"So, I thought the cruise boat was the Florida Team's boat, which is why I planted a bomb on it. When I realized it was a cruise boat, I told the captain to evacuate the ship, and I tried to get away in the speedboat. I was coming here to the ruins of Cnossus on Crete because I needed to get the pedestal for the stone. It's somewhere in these ruins."

"I understand your predicament, Malcolm, but I'm afraid we're still going to have to turn you in for attempted murder and destruction of private property."

"Go ahead, arrest me," Malcolm pleaded. "But only if you'll do two things for me: get me off Crete. That Minotaur may be dead now, but he'll come back. That is why he is alive today even after the Athenian Thesus slew him thousands of years ago.

And the other thing," he opened Mulder's hand and placed the stone in it. Go to Thera when the Florida Team begins digging. The Naonims will come, and you will use the stone to send them back. You can keep Thera from being destroyed again."

Mulder stared at the stone for a moment, then stuck it in his pocket. "Come on," Scully said. "I've had enough chasing for one day. We're going back to Athens."

Mulder and Scully lead Malcolm out of the ruins and down to the speedboats. They chose the one with the most gas left, then climbed in and took off into the Aegean Sea. Mulder steered the vessel and Scully kept an eye on the horizon and Malcolm at the same time. After about five minutes, Malcolm crawled to the front of the boat and fell asleep, obviously exhausted by the ordeal. Scully climbed to the back of the boat with Mulder.

"So...what do you think?" asked Mulder.

"I think we're dealing with a nutcase, a lunatic, a completely superstitious freak."

"I like him."

"Mulder, his story makes no sense whatsoever. The Minotaur, the gods, Atlantis...it's all Greek Mythology."

"But *this* isn't," Mulder said, pulling out the stone. "You can see that this isn't a myth. But it's not like any stone I've ever seen before."

Scully was about to protest when Mulder continued. "What if Malcolm is right? What if this stone worked like a traffic signal for the gods? Red means stop, green means go?"

"Mulder, the gods are just legends..."

"What if," Mulder persisted, "the Minotaur was some sort of...peace offering to the Minoans when the gods landed?"

"*Landed*? Mulder, you're starting to sound..."

"Extra-terrestrials," Mulder said. "This stone is some sort of signal, and the Minotaur must be some alien sub-species, or slave alien that the...Naonims gave as a gift. The Minoans learned and used the extra-terrestrials' technology and knowledge to build up their empire. And Atlantis was a paradise, a city highly advanced, beautifully built and completely civilized."

"Mulder, you're sounding even worse than Malcolm. You think extra-terrestrials came to the Minoans when they found the stone and pointed it to the sky green-side-up, gave them the Minotaur and taught them their culture?"

Mulder smiled. "And when Atlantis became too prosperous, they destroyed the city and ruined the Minoans. And now that the Florida Team wants to dig up Atlantis, Malcolm knows that the Naonims, the extra-terrestrials, will come back to stop them from finding Atlantis and rediscovering their advanced technology."

Scully leaned her head back on the boat rail and groaned. "I should've known we'd find *something* paranormal about coming to Greece..."

"We've got a busy Monday coming up."

10:39 P.M.
Sunday, July 13th, 1993
Thera, Greece

Lieutenant Monroe stood on the cliffs of Thera, watching the moon reflect on the Aegean Sea. Four American military tankers pulled away from the island to hide behind the nearby reefs until the next day.

He turned around to face the island again. For as far as he could see, there were his men, his machines and his weapons. Four black helicopters and five tanks were positioned all around on the island, all manned and supported by about 200 men. Each soldier carried some sort of weaponry. Some had flamethrowers, others had machine guns, and a few had a primitive sort of laser guns. The choppers and tanks were all loaded down with equally destructive artillery. All the men wore gas masks and specially-tailored military uniforms.

Sergeant Jakes walked up to Monroe and shook ocean mist from his strawberry-blond hair. "Everything's set. The men, tanks and choppers are ordered to open fire the moment the Naonims are spotted. All the equipment is completely concealed; no one will know we're here."

Monroe nodded his acknowledgment. "What about the two agents? Any news on them?"

"I had some men keep a close watch on them. The last they were seen was on a cruise ship yesterday, heading out to Thera. There was a bomb aboard the ship. Everyone was said to have got off safely, but the agents weren't in any of the lifeboats. A few planes and boats went out to search; they didn't find a thing. I think they were killed in the explosion."

Monroe swore under his breath. He squinted his eyes shut and clenched his fists. "This ruins everything. The F.B.I. is going to be all over the place here, and they may find out something about our project. Those two shouldn't have come here."

"If we don't report this to the bureau, though, they'll become suspicious," Jakes said.

"Right. Call the F.B.I., tell them that agents Mulder and Scully are dead; killed in an explosion on a cruise ship. Tell them that we're down here now to investigate the bombing. Don't say a word about the operation."

"Yes, sir," Jakes pulled out a cell phone and punched in a number. "F.B.I. headquarters - I wish to speak to Assistant Director Skinner...yes, sir. This is Sergeant Aaron Jakes, calling from Athens, Greece. Yes, sir. I regret to report the loss of two of your agents..."

Lieutenant Monroe gazed back at the sea, its waters now a dark indigo blue. He was glad that at least those two agents were no longer a problem. So far, everything was going according to plan.

6:22 A.M.
Monday, July 14th, 1993
Athens, Greece

Scully paced up and down the carpet of their hotel, gazed out the window at the skyscrapers and the Aegean Sea, and resumed pacing. "The team starts digging at 9:00 this morning. We leave in half an hour."

Mulder was flipping though a dictionary on Greek Mythology. "I wish we hadn't turned Malcolm in so soon. I wanted to ask him a few more things, and he wasn't exactly a terrorist or a bomber, anyway."

Scully turned to her partner. "Mulder, the only reason why we're going to Thera is because this is a vacation, and we haven't had a chance to visit the island yet. We're not going to stop some extra-terrestrials from frying some Miami scientists or watch them raise the city of Atlantis."

"Even so," said Mulder, holding up the stone, "I'm taking a little universal currency in case we decide to go shopping."

"Very funny, Mulder. Why are you looking through that book, anyway?"

"Been seeing what they have on Atlantis, King Minos, the Minoans, Cnossus and the Minotaur."

"You would."

"Everything on Atlantis and the Minoans seems to follow the pattern Malcolm described: highly civilized, greatly advanced in science and technology, owners of great wealth and power, all provided by the gods.

It also says that the Greek's mythical creatures, such as the Hydra, Pegasus and Minotaur, were said to have magical powers, amazing abilities and lives thousands of years long. That would explain why the Minotaur is still alive, and how it seemed to be behind us and in front of us at the same time when we were in the Labyrinth."

"There's no such thing as a Minotaur."

"You wouldn't be saying that if you were in his stomach right now."

"You're delusional, Mulder."

"Do you think we'll see a Pegasus on the flight home?"

9:18 A.M.
Monday, July 14th, 1993
Thera, Greece

The sea was crowded with ships and equipment when Mulder and Scully's rental boat pulled up and docked at Thera. There was a large tanker-driller resting on supporting posts that were set up in the still water. Dozens of smaller boats filled with scientists and archeologists sped in and out through the waves. The area they were going to start digging was roped off with nets and buoys.

"It looks like we're going to be the only ones enjoying the show," Mulder said as their boat pulled up to dock. There were some of the Florida Team's boats already there, but besides that, the dock was empty. There was a road that lead up the hill to an interesting tourist site on the cliffs, and Mulder and Scully followed that.

The path wound up the island through thick desert vegetation until it gave way to the open cliffs looking over the Aegean Sea. The Florida team's ships and digging equipment sat in a ring inside the half-ring of volcanic cliffs.

There was a loud, continuous roar as one of the drills began to dig into the mud beneath the sea. The blue ocean was stained brown from the sand and mud as it was drilled through and pushed out of the way. It took several minutes, but finally the sound of the drill died and the water became still again. Mulder thought he could make out some sort of strange shape beneath the clear blue water.

A dozen divers leaped into the waves, loaded down with archeological tools specifically designed for underwater research. "They're not going to come back out for an hour or so," Mulder said sadly. "Hopefully they'll bring some artifacts or pieces of the city with them."

"Mulder..." Scully pointed to something on the ground behind them. "Tank tracks. Someone drove a tank over here recently, and I doubt it was the Florida Team."

"Then who did?"

Scully studied the tracks. "I'm going to find out. Mulder, you stay here and keep an eye on the Florida Team. I'll follow these tracks and be back in about 45 minutes."

Before Mulder could respond, Scully disappeared down the hill and off into the rocky landscape. "Watch out for Hydras," Mulder called after her. Then he turned his attention back to the excavation.

The ocean wind whipped through Scully's dark red hair as she began to descend back down the hill in the direction of the tank tracks. The grass and juniper bushes were all smashed and trampled flat in large areas around the tank tracks. The island was unusually quiet. What was going on here? Why was it so quiet and still? Was Mulder right about the Naonims?

"Good grief, what am I thinking?" Scully said to herself. Although she was doubtful about Atlantis and extra-terrestrials, she was still curious about the tank tracks. The tank tracks went straight into a thick grove of olive trees, then disappeared. Scully pushed aside the branches and ferns, and gasped at the sight that lay before her.

It looked like a scene from one of those old WWII movies. There were two black helicopters, each loaded with what looked like twin laser cannons from a chopper on the SCI-FI channel. There were two tanks, also armed with large cannons. Finally, there were about 100 men swarmed around the four huge vehicles. All wore gas masks and military uniforms, and all were carrying some sort of deadly weapon. Most of them were just sitting there, gazing up at the sky or out at the ocean.

Scully fumbled around in her handbag and pulled out a camera and a pair of binoculars. She crouched down in the grass and instantly began snapping photos. This was definitely no tourist attraction; the F.B.I. would want to know about this.

Two men walked away from the crowd and stopped just a few feet from Scully's hiding place. They were dressed in American military uniform, one showing the rank of a Sergeant and the other a Lieutenant. Scully recognized them both: they were the two men who owned the government car she had seen at the airport. She instantly became suspicious.

"The Florida Team is down. It should be any moment now," the strawberry-blond Sergeant said.

"Good. All the men are ready and in position."

"Are you sure you have everyone? I thought you said you sent out some to trail the agents."

"Now that they're dead, I've called back in everyone. The entire regiment of 200 men is here."

Scully sucked in her breath. More men? Two agents? Did he mean...herself and Mulder? That meant someone had been following them! Her thoughts strayed to Malcolm Thaymos. He must have been one of their men, trying to keep tabs on them and collect information on her and Mulder! Scully grew hot with anger and frustration. That Malcolm character was just a fraud. Mulder would be upset when he found out.

The two men appeared to be finished with their conversation, and turned to leave. Scully wanted to get a shot of them before they left. She pressed the button - and the camera began to make a loud, whirling sound as it rewound the film. The two officers turned around with surprise.

"Shoot," Scully breathed. She darted out of her hiding place in the juniper bushes and ran down the hill. The sounds of scuffling came from behind her.

"Stop her! Jakes, call some men!"

"Stop!!"

Scully ran doggedly through the trees, trying to get away from her pursuers. Bullets from rapidly-firing machine guns ripped through the trees like deadly insects. Scully had no idea where she was running. Shouts in English and Greek and the stomping of boots created a chorus with the machine-gun bullets.

"WHOOAH!"

Scully tripped on a tree root and fell forward onto a pile of grass and weeds. She landed hard on her back, knocking the wind out of her. She lay there for a minute coughing, unable to get up. When she looked up again, she saw half a dozen soldiers standing around her, all pointing a loaded machine gun directly at her.

Mulder thought he heard strange sounds coming back down the hill, in the direction that Scully had gone. Then they died away. He shrugged it off and looked back at the archeologists. One of the divers had come up, telling one of the large tankers to get the crane ready. Mulder was getting more excited with every moment. He couldn't wait to see the ruins of Atlantis, extra-terrestrials or no extra-terrestrials.

An immense, three-hooked crane was lowered half into the water. Half of the divers swam up to the surface, all carrying what looked like a huge piece of a wall. Floatation devices had been attached to the structure to help bring it up to the surface. Mulder watched on with eagerness. Some of the divers encased the structure in a fishing net. The three-hooked crane picked up the fishing net, and began to slowly rise out of the water. A steady stream of water and algae dripped from the thing as it rose into the air like a ghost. The divers, archeologists and scientists broke out in shouts and cheers as the wall was lifted from the water to be placed on the flatbed tanker. Mulder gazed awestruck at the designs and structure of the wall.

As far as Scully was concerned, Lieutenant Monroe had absolutely foul breath. Scully stared into his angry dark brown eyes as he looked her up and down. Two soldiers kept their machine gun barrels at her neck. She was a ragged mess from all her running and dodging trees and rocks. She glared at her captors and breathed heavily.

Monroe stared at Scully, then back at Jakes, and then at Scully again. "You are supposed to be dead, Agent Scully."

"I've heard that one a few times."

Monroe glared back at Jakes. "A fine mess you've made of this one, Jakes. You get to be the one to tell Skinner your little mistake." Jakes looked at his shoes. Monroe turned back to Scully. "Where is your partner?"

'I can't let them know that Mulder is on the island', Scully thought. "I got off the cruise ship safely. My partner was killed from the explosion and debris," she said steadily.

Monroe studied her for a moment. "Very well. You're coming with us."

"Now, just a minute! I'm not going with you anywhere until you tell me what you're doing here!"

"What are *you* doing here?"

"I was on a vacation with my partner. The F.B.I. gave us a two-week vacation, and this is where we are."

"May I ask why you chose Greece?"

"My partner suggested it."

"Where did he get the idea?"

"I don't know. Now tell me what you're doing here!"

"Lieutenant! Sergeant! Over here!" shouts from several different men from the helicopters reached Scully's ears. The soldiers were running all over the place, switching the safety off their guns and climbing into the tanks and helicopters. Monroe and Jakes looked around with surprise.

Then, a new sound could be heard. It was like a distant humming, or droning. The sound seemed to fill the entire air. The men were setting up cannons; the helicopters were lifting off the ground. Scully glanced up. The sky seemed to be filling up with a bright purple light, like an expanding liquid. Panic filled the island. Scully tried to take advantage of the confusion and run for it. She felt a sharp pain in the back of her head, and then everything went black.

The shouts of joy from the archeologists changed to screams of panic. Mulder heard the distant, constant droning. Waves began to build up and crash into the cliffs. The boats on the water rocked in the wake of the waves. The entire island seemed to be quaking, falling to pieces. Mulder grabbed onto a nearby tree and held on for dear life!

The crane with the wall swayed back and forth like a pendulum. The wall of the ancient temple of Atlantis displayed painted scenes of gods, monsters, dolphins, heroes and gigantic cities. The ancient wall cracked and shattered like a great glass mural. It was then Mulder realized that it was glass.

The earthquake split the rocks of the cliffs like butter, and the trees toppled over like matchsticks. Three of the Florida Team's boats had tipped over.

"Scully!!!" Mulder called her name aloud. But his answer wasn't from Scully. Instead, a new sound mixed with the droning. It was the sound of gunfire! Four black helicopters appeared out of nowhere from all sides of the island. The chopper's razor-sharp blades cut the air almost as cleanly as their cannon fire did. The sound of hundreds of machine guns being fired at once filled the air and almost drowned out the droning.

"Scully!" Mulder shouted again. All of the gunfire seemed to be aimed at the expanding purple spot in the sky. The shaking was so drastic that Mulder couldn't tell the water from the sky anymore. He suddenly felt very unsafe on the edge of the cliff. Pieces of the volcanic rock broke off and tumbled into the water dozens of feet down. Mulder reached into his pocket with a trembling hand and drew out the strange stone. He didn't have any pedestal, anything to put the stone on. The sky seemed to grow purple itself.

Mulder began to climb up a shaking olive tree. He got about three or four branches up and steadied himself against the shaking and the wind. The gunfire drowned out any sound he could hear of Scully. Dark purple stormclouds began to swirl; lightning flashed in the darkened sky.

One of the helicopters let loose what looked like a volley of laser fire from one of its cannons. A piece of the purple sky seemed to collapse back into itself. Lightning bunched up in a ball of fire, and then hurtled towards earth. The lightning ball landed in the Aegean Sea, right where the Florida Team had been digging. It sent up a massive tidal wave of water, collapsing over the boats, and heading straight for the cliff!

Mulder thrust his hand towards the angry sky, the red side of the stone pointing upwards. He shouted something to the heavens, and the stone felt hot and began to glow in his hand. It was as if the sky obeyed the tiny individual. The purple light suddenly changed to yellow, and began to shrink back into itself. Then everything seemed to g-o i-n s-l-o-w m-o-t-i-o-n, the wave against the cliff, the lightning flashes in the sky. The helicopter falling like a stone into the black water, the branches giving way beneath Mulder, falling...falling...

Scully's eyes snapped open. Grass and weeds were the first thing that met her groggy vision. She coughed wearily and stood up, wiping mud from her khakis.

It was quiet. The men, the tanks, the helicopters, were all nowhere in sight. Mulder was laying on the ground next to her, still unconscious. She stared dumbfounded at her partner, then at everything else around her. The grass, bushes and trees were uprooted. The once-healthy soil was now dry and cracked. Pieces of volcanic rock from the cliff were still crumbling off the edge. The water was still. The boats from the Florida Team were still overturned in the water, but it didn't look like anyone was hurt. The sky was once again its perfect shade of light blue.

"Mulder, get up," Scully whispered, shaking his shoulder gently. Mulder squinted his eyes, groaned, and coughed half-heartedly. He got to his knees and blinked around wearily at the tranquil scene.

"Where did they go?" "What are you talking about, Mulder?" Scully asked. Without waiting for a response, she continued. "Mulder, someone knew we were here the entire time. That Malcolm friend of yours was just a fake, a spy. Some American military men were here. They tried to ambush the Florida Team. They captured me, but I don't know what happened to them now..."

"I hope next time I go on a hike I can learn such valuable information..."

"Mulder, come on. We have to go. The authorities will take care of the Florida Team."

Mulder looked over at the red-and-green stone still resting in his hand. "Scully, Malcolm was right! The moment the archeologists brought up pieces of Atlantis, the sky turned purple, and those military guys began firing, and the entire island began to shake, and..." he held up the stone in his hand. "And when I held this up to the sky, it stopped! Like it had never happened! And the tanks, helicopters and men are gone, too!"

Scully brought Mulder to his feet. "Come on, Mulder. We're going home."

3:45 P.M.
Thursday, July 17th, 1993
F.B.I. Headquarters, Washington D.C.

"Of course, I am very glad to see you both here alive, Agents Mulder and Scully."

Skinner leaned back in his chair uneasily as the two agents handed them their report. Although Skinner and Mulder had insisted to Scully that this was supposed to be a vacation, Scully concluded that since they had left early and because of the events that took place in Greece, that she should write up a report on what happened.

The Cigarette-smoking Man stayed in the corner, slowly puffing on another light, listening innocently in on the conversation. Skinner seemed not to notice him. Mulder had to keep telling himself not to glance in that direction.

"It is now clear that an army of trained soldiers from the U.S. military service commanded by Lieutenant Lucas Monroe and Sergeant Aaron Jakes set up an ambush for the archeological team from Florida without permission from the department of defense or the department of war of the U.S. government. The reason why such an ambush was staged is yet to be determined. There are proper officials in Greece now, helping to pack up the Florida Team's equipment and questioning the Lieutenant and the Sergeant," Scully told Skinner.

"The man responsible for bombing the Greek cruise boat was arrested in Athens. So far, I have not been able to determine any connection between the bombing and the ambush on the Florida Team. Malcolm Thaymos has never had any connection or relation with the United States government in any way whatsoever."

Skinner stared at the folder Scully had given him. So far, neither Mulder nor the Cigarette-smoking Man had made a comment. "Thank you, Agent Scully. I'll go over the details you've given me here. In the meanwhile, I'm sure you and Agent Mulder have business to attend to."

Scully took the hint. She and Mulder stood up and left Scully's office. The Cigarette-smoking Man watched them leave and let out a sigh.

"Funny," Mulder said to Scully when they were out in the hall. "That you didn't mention our little encounter at Cnossus when we chased Malcolm. Or what you saw at Thera with all the purple lights and earthquakes."

"I told him the truth, Mulder."

"But not the *whole* truth."

"Mulder...."

"You and I both know what *really* happened. Those men weren't there to ambush the Florida Team. They were there to ambush the *Naonims*. They wanted to bring down one of those ships, to learn their science and technology, just like the Minoans and the people of Atlantis did. We know why the F.B.I. sent us off on a vacation in the first place - to throw us off the trail. So we wouldn't go to Greece in the first place. They knew that if something happened to the Florida Team down there, or those military men, that we'd find some way to make it 'official business', and then we'd go down there to investigate. They thought that by sending us off on a vacation, we wouldn't be able to go to Greece and find out what really happened."

"Then why," asked Scully, turning irritably to Mulder, "did you suggest that we go to Greece in the first place? It seems to be more than just a coincidence."

"Let's just say a little bird told me."

"One of your 'friends' from the bureau? That guy who meets with you at night, giving you little hints on secrets the government doesn't want us to discover?"

"Perhaps. But the thing is, is that we've lost it again. When you called the officials, they took that stone from me, and I haven't gotten it back since. It will fall into the wrong hands sometime. You didn't see anything because you had blacked out."

"So did you. You were hallucinating from the fall, dreaming."

"I know what I saw. You saw something to, but you just don't want to admit it."

"I did see something. But that doesn't mean that it was paranormal, or extra-terrestrial. Even if something did happen down there, they're not going to let us go back and find out what it was. Our part in this is over."

Scully walked into the elevator at the end of the hall. Mulder just stood there for a moment, then stepped into the elevator with her. The elevator closed, and started down to the lower floors.

THE END