InsaneJournal

dusty (dustandroses) wrote in dustyrydersrecs, @ 2006-01-28 05:35:00

Current mood:	contemplative
Current music:	Victim of Love - Erasure

X-Files

Fandom: X-Files 
Title: The Adversary
Author: Xanthe (xanthelj)
Genre: Slash, Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Drama, AU, Novel Length 
Pairing: Mulder/OMC, Mulder/Others, Mulder/Skinner
Rating: NC17
Warnings: NonCon, Rape, Torture - Physical and Psychological, BDSM, Bondage, Extreme Violence
Spoilers: Don't remember any.

Notes:  This is an extremely intense story. It was the first fic I'd read by Xanthe, and one of the earliest X-Files stories I'd ever read.  It pretty much defined Mulder Bashing for me. But as hard as it was to read, I couldn't stop.  I'd pretty much figured out the whole deal about Mulder's lover from grad school, so that wasn't a big deal to reveal, but hey.  What's just one more step on the way to Mulder's eventual capitulation.  And from the way he was treated, I couldn't see it going down any other way. 

Even so, I kept telling myself how smart Mulder was, and how he could manage to keep his sanity throughout this whole breaking down process; and the fact that he managed to continue to work his way into his Adversary's mind at the same time gave me hope...albeit a very small amount.  By the time it's over, you'll be blinking your eyes and shaking your head, too.  I know I was.  It's the case of the car accident that you just can't look away from as you drive past.  So you back up and park, get out of the car and go poking around.  You just can't help yourself.

About the AU.  Something in Mulder's past is changed, but it does not effect the present day of the fic.  Mulder still works for Skinner and his partner is still Scully.  The Cigarette Smoking Man is there turning the screws as usual, and the Rat Bastard is hanging out, being totally unpredictable - also as usual.   If you don't mind a bit of torture, you've got a solid stomach, and you like a lot of Mulder Torture - this is the fic for you.  And no, I don't know what it says about me, that I've read this one more than once...well, more than twice, okay?

Excerpt:


He had to accept, for now at least, that he was at someone else’s mercy, and that his future was not in his own control. He had to accept that, and remain vigilant, waiting for a hint of weakness, or a chance of escape. He concentrated on his breathing again, dozens of images running through his mind. He could see Scully, smiling at him from the doorway of his office, and Skinner, standing in the cold directing an operation, holding a cell phone to his ear, a distracted look on his face, his warm breath steaming the air. They would find him. They would save him. He would be rescued. They were the only two people in the world that he trusted…and they had sent him on vacation. They had sent him to this…

"No!" He took a deep breath and for the first time struggled against the cuffs that were keeping him bound. A wave of panic overtook him, and he writhed helplessly, his wrists and ankles chafing against their bonds.

"Agent Mulder." A voice beside him made him jump, but there was nobody there. He knew there was nobody there! He could sense no body heat, could hear no breathing, and there had been no sound of footsteps. Damn this blindfold! "Agent Mulder, please calm down. You’ve shown admirable restraint so far. Struggling is pointless."

"Then untie me," he replied quickly. He heard a wry chuckle in his ear, but he could swear there was nobody there. He moved his head, trying to sense another body nearby.

"You don’t give the orders here, Agent Mulder. On the contrary, you obey them."

"You haven’t given me any orders. I’ll do whatever you want, just untie me," he replied.

"Not yet."

"What do you want from me?" He asked. "Why did you abduct me like this? I’ll be missed…" His voice hitched as he said that, none too sure that it was true.

"Will you?" That calm, detached voice questioned.

"I’ll be missed when I don’t show up at work," Mulder argued.

"You're on vacation. You withdrew a sum of money from an ATM earlier this afternoon. You have a history of running off without leaving notes or even informing your partner of your whereabouts. Why should you be missed? They won’t even begin looking for you for a week."

The word 'begin' chilled Mulder to his soul, and another wave of terrified sweat broke out on his naked body. It was true. He had to endure a week before anybody would even know he was missing. And a week of what?

"What do you want?" he asked, his voice croaking in his dry throat.

"Ah, it would be easier if I wanted something tangible, like information, wouldn’t it?" That maddeningly calm voice chuckled. "I’m afraid I don’t want information, Agent Mulder. What I want is you."


I rate this fic:  Pretty Damn Good