#tunguska

[bisexualfbiagents]

THE X FILES | Tunguska (4.08)

[mindibindi]

Gillian Anderson | On the Set of The X Files | Episode 4.08 "Tunguska"

[bakedbakermom]

txf + text posts (10/?)

[fatedtime]

Tunguska Apology Video (reupload + commentary). MERCH IN DESCRIPTION BELOW

[settle-down-frohike]

Can someone please explain to me like Im a toddler as to why these obviously intentional shots were taken during/after Mulders meeting with Marita Coverubiadjshabbsjs?

[lascitasdelashoras]

Tunguska RdM @ Flickr. As de memory of a rainy day. 2012

[brawlite]

"Don't touch me again."

[all-eyes-lead-to-the-truth]

All Eyes Lead to the Truth | Tunguska (4x08)

Rats are survivors. Natural born killers who do the work of destructors; by no means impervious, but they’ll attack the weak, anything that stands in their way. They adapt and survive.

Alex Krycek respects that. Maybe it’s why Mulder’s “insult” had felt like a compliment. 

Yeah, he’s learned to live like the rats. 

And yeah, Mulder. He’s had little trouble adapting. 

The relentless agent sits across from him now in this miserable cell, picking at the underside of his boot. Conversation doesn’t really work for them. They’ve been through enough shit together; you’d think he’s earned an iota of trust.

“So,” Alex ventures. “We gonna die here?”

Mulder glowers. “If we ever do get out, I’m gonna kill you myself, Krycek.”

Alex smirks. “I don’t think that’s true.”

“Oh, no?”

“You’ve had a hundred opportunities. You haven’t taken any of them.”

Mulder’s eyes narrow. He says nothing. Spooky Mulder would never deny the truth.

They sit, the faint scratching of roaches and vermin echoing around the cell. Perhaps silence is preferable, but Alex can’t help himself. He wants the upper hand. He needs the upper hand. 

And he knows exactly how to get it.

“Whaddya think Scully’s up to?” he asks. Mulder’s eyes dart towards him, then away again. Here we go. As expected, Agent Scully is his trigger. Adapt, Alex. 

“Scully, Scully, Scully,” he purrs. “I remember when I met her. She could barely look at me. Like our partnership personally offended her.” He looks at Mulder, trying to make eye contact. “Most agents get a partner or two in their career. Maybe it works out, maybe it doesn’t. They move on. Not you two, though.”

His cellmate remains silent, but now wears  a searing glare. 

“We’re gonna die here anyway, Mulder, so you may as well confess. What’s she like, you know… in the sack? Carpet match the drapes?”

If looks could kill, Alex would be a dead man. He thrives off this, off making Mulder squirm. It’s just so fucking easy.

Sometimes he wonders how things would be if he’d just join forces with Mulder. He’s the obvious choice for an ally, morality-wise. But morality isn’t the medium with which Alex paints. He isn’t like Mulder. And anyway, there’s something he relishes more than his admiration of the man: the power Alex wields over him. 

Like right now.

Mulder clenches his jaw and looks away, unable to meet Alex’s eye. Once again, his honesty betrays him.

“Are you serious?” Alex’s eyes go wide. He was absolutely certain they were sleeping together. Talk about an X-File. “Shit. You two really had me fooled.”

His incredulity aside, this approach isn’t working. He needs to take a different route to get a rise out of Mulder. Something worse. 

“You know,” Alex says, lowering his voice. “Back when she was abducted, I suggested just… killing her.” Mulder bristles. “They underestimated your determination, but I never did. I warned them you’d never stop. They didn’t listen.”

A loud clang comes from somewhere in the gulag. A horrific scream. 

“Guess there’s still time,” Alex shrugs. “They don’t make the same mistake twice.”

That does it. Mulder lurches across the cell and wraps his hands around Alex’s neck for the second time today. There’s rage in his eyes, a primal savagery. And Alex likes it. He isn’t even sure why he does this, why he wants it. Maybe it’s the kind of thing he needs to feel alive. To feel like he isn't alone in the dark.

Like he does on occasion, he thinks of the missile silo. Mulder would probably like that story. But he doesn’t seem to be in the mood for talk. His arm is jammed beneath Alex’s chin, pinning him against the wall. He can feel his airway closing, but he knows it won’t last. Mulder will let him go. 

“Don’t ever say her name to me again,” Mulder seethes. For a wild moment it feels like they might kiss, and it’s not the first time he’s felt that way. There's an undeniable energy between them. Maybe it’s the knowledge there’s no one on the planet he hates more. Maybe Mulder’s passion is contagious. 

Maybe they’re both just animals.

As expected, Mulder lets him go with a ceaseless penetrating glare. Their little game is over for now; at least, until they play another one. 

They sit on opposite sides of the cell for hours until dinner is served. He and Mulder spit out the roach-infested soup in temporary camaraderie, but then a guard makes his way inside, and Alex takes his shot. He’s got one play left and he’s going to use it, no matter the cost.

The guard hesitates. Mulder asks for a translation, understandably concerned. Alex replies honestly: “That I want to see his supervisor.”

If he doesn’t want to see you, you’ll be accountable, the guard replies in Russian. He appears taken aback, unaccustomed to a prisoner's authoritative tone. 

I’ll be accountable, Alex insists. Mulder dumbly looks back and forth between them. 

The guard acquiesces, and opens the door. Freedom lies ahead if he can play this correctly, if he can just find one more dark pipeline to squeeze through. Maybe he’ll get out of this shithole alive after all. 

He’s brought before the head honcho and sings like a canary. The Americans are working on their own vaccine; he’s even got the name of the head doctor. He mentions an old comrade, Vasily Peskow. That gets their attention. 

Alex Krycek has been no stranger to loyalty. But as he betrays the country he genuinely loves, he realizes the truth: his loyalty is only to himself. 

As he’s escorted from the gulag, he’s taken past Mulder’s cell again. He peers inside where his adversary awaits whatever fate Alex’s defection has unleashed. There’s a slight twinge of regret inside him, but it quickly passes. 

He steps outside as the chilled air of Tunguska slaps him in the face. Beneath him, a rat scampers by, disappearing into the woodwork.

Read the rest of All Eyes Lead to the Truth on Archive of Our Own

@admiralty-xfd

[deathsbestgirl]

is there a timeline out there for tunguska/terma? like how long was scully held in contempt? how long was mulder stuck in the russian prison? mostly i want to know how long mulder & scully were apart lol

[randomfoggytiger]

Chariots of Fire

(S4, Tunguska)

Tagging @today-in-fic

*****

Alex Krycek had upheld his end of the bargain: dangle the promise of a greater conspiracy in front of Fox Mulder, wheedle him from New York to Washington D.C. to Russia without exposing the dupe, and let his unwitting captive walk straight into the hands of his new countermeasure cohorts. The simplest way of accomplishing those instructions had not, of course, included a sneak-in from the gulag’s backdoor; but Krycek had ulterior motives of his own, and was never one to pass up an opportunity.

Two years ago, he’d been sham-partnered. Two years ago, Mulder’d taken off after a suspect, leaving Alex no choice but to follow. Two years ago, Krycek had eaten Mulder’s dust and embarrassingly pulled a hamstring. Two years ago, he'd been simultaneously angry and impressed enough to note that Fox Mulder ran and ran fast; and that one day he’d find out how fast that fast was.

Two years later, Alex watched, spellbound, as his former partner raced down the hill like an erratic Arabian, mounted militia yelling fruitless commands while their horses panted and slowed in his wake. Not only did Mulder maintain his lead, but he effortlessly lengthened it. 

5 feet, 10 feet, 15--

Above the thundering chaos, Krycek could have sworn he heard an angel jamming "Chariots of Fire" on his harp.

*****

Thank you for reading~

Enjoy!

[agent-troi]

the bailing mulder out of jail to going to jail to protect mulder pipeline

[lilydalexf]

👽 Random X-Files Fic Rec

This story hurts so good. If you're not typically a reader of /Other stories, you might want to give his one a try because it's not just MSR at its core, it's a seamless weaving into the emotions and plot at this point in season 4. Title: Cashmere and Whiskey Author: @kateyes Summary: Missing scene for Tunguska Length: ~2,600 words Classification: This is a /Other story, but at its core is MSR. Rating: NC-17 Spoilers: Tunguska Favorite line: The line where he turns his head away. Read the story!

[fiannalover]

[alionnamedcobra]

This was the funniest part of the episode for me

[ratfink-kryptonite]

The X-Files 4x8 Tunguska and 4x9 Terma

I think about these 2 episodes so frequently! I think about the dynamic of Mulder and Krycek's relationship specifically in these episodes. I know people never want to believe there's something between them but come on!

In Terma the prisoner in the cell next to Mulder gives him a shiv he's been working on for weeks so he can kill Krycek and escape. Mulder takes it and has it in his hand when he sees Krycek talking to the prison commandant in the prison yard. He looks like a jilted lover! He rushes him and you're thinking, "This is it, he's about to kill Krycek!" What does our favorite FBI agent do?

He punches Alex in the face knocking him unconscious with the hand holding the make-shift weapon!!!!!! (I can't find a screen cap for this!) If that doesn't show Mulder has feelings for Krycek I don't know what does! Then, Mulder drives them both away in a truck! This is just one of the many examples they both have to kill each other and they never do!