Title: Poseidon, Chapter 11, Part 2 of 4

Author: Kendall

Website: www.geocities.com/kendallxf/index.html

Fandom: X-Files

Rating: NC-17

Pairing: S/M/K.

Archive: All requests are welcomed

Date: November 24, 2002

Category: AU

Spoilers: None specifically

Warnings: Contains scenes of m/m sex, and discipline. If this offends you please *LEAVE NOW*

Disclaimer: Skinner, Mulder, Krycek, Scully, and Doggett and the X-File all belong to Chris Carter, 1013 Productions and the Fox Network.

Series: Greek Gods

Summary: So sit right back and you'll hear a tale…

NOTE: Thanks to Ursula for her speedy and always on the money beta skills.

Poseidon (God of Water)

"It wasn't my fault," Fox Mulder said, with a pout. "Who in their right mind books a flight at seven in the morning."

"There was one at six, but I thought you would not appreciate that one," Walter said, with a little smile. "Besides I never told you we were leaving at ten."

"It just seemed a much more reasonable time than having to leave the house at three thirty in the morning."

"We have five and a half hours to Los Angeles, a two hour layover, and then another five and a half hours to Honolulu. You'll get plenty of sleep."

"You know I can't sleep on planes Walter," Fox whined, still pouting.

Walter Skinner rolled his eyes and chuckled. He glanced over to the chair his youngest lover was sitting in, and his smile grew. Alex Krycek was trying to look to all the world as if he didn't have a care in the world, but to Walter's trained eye he could see the excitement radiating from the younger man. "You know he is hoping don’t you?"

Fox leaned forward, and looked at Alex. Leaning back he smiled at Walter and said, "I know, but I don’t want to get his hopes up if we can't make it work."

Before Walter could say anything else, the announcement for their flight came on over the loudspeaker.

"Welcome to the Hilton Hawaiian Village, Mister Skinner," the pretty blond clerk behind the desk said with a welcoming grin.

"Thank you," Walter said as he signed the registration card.

"We have you in one of our Royal suites with two connectors," the clerk said, handing over the keys. "Anything we can do to make your stay everything you wish for let us know."

"Thank you," Walter said, giving her a small smile.

"What's the matter Walter," Fox asked as the older man joined them.

"Nothing," Walter said, "Just didn't like the way the clerk was looking at me."

"Could be that she thought you were hot," Alex said, grinning.

"Or that she was imagining what three men were planning on doing in that suite," Fox said, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively.

"Boys behave," Walter warned as they were joined by the bellman.

"If you would follow me, I'll show you to your suite," the young man said, as he took the luggage cart, and began walking towards the elevator.

"This is a really nice place, guys," Alex said, looking around the beautiful hotel. "What are we going to do first."

"Alex, we just got here. It's four thirty…" Walter said, smiling at his lover's eagerness.

"Yeah, but it is eleven thirty in DC," the younger man countered.

"Alex, we are here for two weeks, there will be plenty of time to do a lot of stuff," Fox said, as they entered the suite, "Hot damn, will you look at this place."

The three men stood in the entryway to their suite, and stared in wonder at the beautiful view from the floor to ceiling windows.

"One of the connecting rooms in on the other side of the living room, and the other is on the other side of the master bedroom. Is there anything you would like before I leave?" the bellman asked.

"No thank you, that'll be all," Walter said, handing him a ten-dollar tip.

"Thank you very much," the young man said, smiling, "Enjoy your stay with us."

"Hey, guys come look at this," Alex called to them from the master bedroom.

"Where are you?" Fox asked, when he didn't find the Russian in the room.

"I'm in the bathroom."

"Holy mega bathtub, Batman, that has to be the biggest freaking tub I've ever seen," Fox said, his eyes wide as he stared at the huge whirlpool bath.

"All three of us will fit there quite comfortably," Walter said, also impressed by the tub. "This is like a dream bathroom."

"Maybe we can have one built at the house just like this one," Fox said.

"Hey guys come look at this," Alex called out to them from the living room.

"How does he do that?" Walter asked, "I thought he was standing right next to me."

"He wasn't a triple agent extraordinary for nothing," Fox said with a chuckle.

"What you guys laughing about?" Alex asked, as the other two joined him on the balcony.

"Nothing," Walter said, "Look at this view. It's gorgeous."

"I can't wait to go swimming in that ocean," Fox said, looking out into the deep blue ocean.

The doorbell ringing interrupted any further conversation.

"Probably room service with a welcome gift," Fox said, "I always get something from the hotel, whenever I travel."

"Ooooh, will you listen to the world-famous author," Alex said, mocking Mulder.

"Brat," Fox said, as he landed a well-aimed slap to Alex's backside.

"Will you get the door, Alexei," Walter said, smiling at their antics, "Before you get into any more trouble."

"Trouble? Moi?" Alex said, with all the innocence he could muster, before heading out to open the door.

After a couple of minutes, when Alex had not returned, Fox and Walter left the balcony to see what was keeping their lover. Both men could not help the grins that split their faces at the sight before them. Alex stood at the door, with his twin brothers on either side of him.

Hearing them approach, Alex turned and said, "Why didn't you guys tell me?"

"Well we weren't certain that they were going to be able to make it in such short notice…" Fox began to explain, but was interrupted by Cooper Donovan, the first of Alex's clone brothers to have been found.

"What choice did we have," the Wyoming cowboy said, "It was either Hawaii or spending two weeks in snowbound Wyoming. Don’t have to be a genius to figure that one out."

"Then thank God for little miracles," Chris Newman, Cooper's lover said, cuffing the younger man on the head.

"Hey what's that supposed to mean," Coop asked, slightly insulted by the suggestion that he was not a genius.

"See what I had to put up with for the last six hours," Gabriel Wolff, Alex's other twin said, as he shook Walter's hand, and then did the same with Fox.

"It's so great you guys could make it," Walter said, as he ushered the group into the suite.

"Getting the flights to match so Gabriel could meet us in Los Angeles, and then getting seats next to each other, was no easy task," Chris said, "Fox, you'll have to thank your assistant for getting everything set up so quickly.

"I'll send him a lei," Fox said, "I'm sure he could use one."

"Fox, you are so bad," Alex said, chuckling at the true meaning behind Fox's words. "So what are we going to do tonight?"

"Look guys, just because we are here it doesn’t mean we have to hang around together," Chris said, "This is your vacation after all."

"The whole ideas was to rest, relax and have some fun together," Walter said, "And for Alex to be able to spend some quality time with his brothers. We have plenty of time to do things together, or as smaller groups."

"We can have dinner tonight at least, and in the morning we can decide what we want to do," Gabriel said.

"All right, that's a good idea," Walter agreed, "How about we meet in the restaurant at around seven?"

After the other three men left, Alex turned to his lovers, and kissed them each in turn.

"Not that I mind, but what was that for?" Fox said, grinning.

"You guys are so good to me," Alex said, his voice quivering slightly.

"We'd do anything for you, Little Rat," Walter said, hugging his lover close.

"Nope, no way, no how," Walter Skinner said, shaking his head vigorously.

"But you said, you'd do anything for me," Alex whined and pouted, "This is fun."

"I for one don’t want to get killed the second day we are here," Walter said.

"Come on, Alex, I'll go with you," Fox said, as he read the brochure Krycek had handed him, "It's only a ten minute ride, and we get to go up 600 feet in the air."

"Before you get any crazy ideas, I'm with Walter on this," Chris said, as Cooper opened his mouth to speak.

"You two are fuddy-duddies," Cooper said, with a pout. "We didn't come all the way to Hawaii to just lay on the beach all day."

"We haven't even been to the beach yet," Chris countered.

"How about if Fox, Alex, Coop and I go parasailing, and then join you on the beach?" Gabriel suggested. "It shouldn't be more than an hour."

"Sounds like a plan," Walter said, "We'll be laying out by the bar."

"Thanks Walter," Alex said, and because they were in a public place, squeezed his lover's arm instead of kissing him as he wanted.

Watching the four younger men rush out to make the arrangements for their adventure in parasailing, Chris turned to Walter and said, "Kids…gotta love them."

Walter glanced at his friend and chuckled, "At least they keep us young."

Snorting a laugh, Chris said, "Speak for yourself, I think I've aged ten years since I took up with that little whirlwind."

"Oh come on, Chris," Walter said, putting his arm around the other man's shoulders, "You know you love it."

"Yeah, but don’t tell Coop that, or he will be impossible to live with," Chris said.

"You have a good day, my loves?" Walter asked, as the three men climbed into bed.

"It was amazing Walter," Alex said, snuggling closer to the bigger man, "You could see so much from up there. If you closed your eyes, you could swear you were flying."

"There is so much to do here, it's incredible," Fox said, "Do you think we could go swim with the dolphins one day, and maybe some diving?"

"I don’t see why not," Walter said, "But now, how about a little diving of our own right here?"

"Whatever do you have in mind, Mister Skinner," Alex asked, grinning.

"Oh I don’t know, I feel like plunging into certain depths," Walter said, dipping his head down to kiss the upturned lips.

"Good thing we didn't sunbathe nude, or this would be a lot more painful," Fox said, as he handed Walter the lube.

"We are not sunbathing nude anywhere, young man," Walter said, giving Fox a mock glare, "How do we want to do it tonight?"

"You are the one wanting to plunge into the depth, Captain Costeau, so why don’t you do the honors, and then we'll go on from there," Fox said, settling himself comfortably against the pillows. "I'll just play with myself a while."

After living as a threesome for over eight months, both Alex and Walter had come to realize that although Fox loved to bottom to both of them, he often was just as happy playing voyeur. Walter figured it had something to do with Fox's inquisitive nature, and his innate desire to observe things.

While Walter busied himself stretching Alex's hole, Fox took care of the other orifice they cherished, as he kissed the Russian passionately.

"I feel so relaxed, I feel like my bones are made of butter," Alex said as Fox released his lips. "After two weeks of this, you'll have to pour me into a bottle to take me home."

"You can be our green-eyed Genie," Walter said, leaning forward to kiss Alex's left nipple.

"He already makes all our wishes come true," Fox said, kissing the top of Alex's nose.

"You aren't too bad in that department either, Fox," Walter said, putting a hand behind Mulder's neck to pull him in for a kiss.

Fox's response was to melt into the kiss, and to let out a moan of pleasure. He smiled as Walter pulled away, Fox's lower lip still gently trapped between his teeth. Mulder couldn't understand his lover's fascination with his lower lip, he didn't see it as one of his best features.

"Love you, Fox," Walter whispered huskily.

"Love you more," Fox said, "And I can't wait to see you in that present we bought you."

Walter groaned, and shook his head as he said, "I can't believe you two crazies bought me that…that…I don’t know if there is a word for it."

"It's a thong, Big Guy," Alex said, smiling up at them.

"No, it's a triangle with dental floss hanging from it. No way I'm going out in public with my ass hanging out, and hardly anything covering my…uhm…equipment."

"Speaking of equipment," Alex said, glancing down, "You gonna put it to use, or you just gonna let it stand up, and wave at me the rest of the night."

"Brat," Walter said, with a huge grin, "You ready, 'cause here I come."

"Dive right…oh good God," Alex said, gasping as Walter plunged, deep within him. Alex was amazed at the accuracy of his lover's aim, in reaching that particular spot inside him that made him see stars. Krycek raised his hips in synchronicity to Walter's thrusts, and their groans of effort matched the rhythm to perfection.

The moonlight streaming through the open window bounced off the sheen of perspiration that covered the two naked bodies on the bed, giving them an otherworldly appearance. Fox watched his lovers, and could have almost sworn that they were glowing.

His hand, which had been tightly grasping his own cock, was soon filled with cum as his orgasm exploded. Fox cursed himself silently, for not being able to hold off longer, but the sight on the bed next to him, was just too erotic to not have affected him. He stared in wonder at how perfectly shaped Walter's muscled back was, and how long Alex's neck seemed as he tossed his head back in ecstasy.

When Walter came, it was with a loud roar, and with every muscle on his arms shaking under the strain of keeping his body off Alex. Alex's orgasm triggered seconds after Walter's, and his semen coated both their chests.

"Damn…that was great," the young Russian managed to croak, before letting his body go limp.

"I wish you could see how hot you both look right now," Fox said, appraisingly.

"You do enjoy watching don’t you?" Walter said, with a sigh as he gently pulled out of Alex, which caused the younger man to moan at the loss.

"You betcha," Fox said, smiling. "Even though I know you know I'm watching, it's really like, I'm not even in the room, and am watching you fuck through a hole in the wall."

Walter rolled off the bed and stood. "How do you mean?" he asked, as he walked to the bathroom.

"Everything around the both of you goes black, like I'm looking through a tunnel," Fox said, trying to explain. "There is this kind of a glow all around you and…I'm not sure how to explain it."

"Wow…two X-files," Alex mumbled sleepily.

Walter came back to the bed with a damp washcloth, and began wiping the semen off Alex's chest. "Two X-files?"

"Yeah. One, this tunnel vision he gets when he sees us making love, and him not being able to explain it. I though by now Fox had an answer for everything."

"You are such a brat, Alexei," Fox said, poking him in the side.

"And you are a Peeping Fox," Alex said, grabbing the poking finger, and pulling Fox forward.

"Hey," Mulder said, loosing his balance, and landing awkwardly on Alex's midriff.

"And you know what happens to Peeping Foxes don’t you," Krycek said, as he raised his left hand, and landed a solid slap to Fox's behind.

"Ouch, Alex!" Mulder said, in surprise.

"Boys behave," Walter said, and tried to pull his lovers apart, as they mock wrestled, "Hey!" he added, as he was pulled into the melee.

Minutes later, three very sweaty, but still giggling men lay wrapped in each other's arms, cuddling.

"What are we gonna do tomorrow," Alex asked, around a huge yawn.

"How about we alternate," Walter suggested, "Today we were on the beach, so tomorrow we go sightseeing. There are lots of beautiful things to see in Hawaii."

"I'm looking at two now," Fox said.

"Such a romantic," Alex said, smiling at him across Walter's chest.

"He is very romantic," Walter agreed, hugging them both. "But now we better get some sleep. We are going to have some fun filled days, and I, for one, want to be awake to enjoy them.

"You all right, Walter?" Chris Newman asked as he sat next to his friend on the beach. They were sitting beneath a large umbrella, watching the four younger men swim.

Walter put down his book, and looked at him over the rim of his sunglasses. "Yeah. Why wouldn't I be?"

"Alex told Coop that you guys went to the Arizona Memorial yesterday, and that you were kind of down after you got back."

"I have to admit, it was a more impactful than I expected. Although it was a different war…it brought back a lot of memories."

"That's understandable."

"Have you guys been having a good time?" Walter asked.

"He asks, trying to change the subject," Chris said, smiling.

"That obvious, huh?" Walter said, smiling back. "I just don’t want to put a damper on this trip for the guys. It's been really terrific so far, we've seen more in a week than most people probably see in a month."

"How about doing something all together tomorrow?" Chris suggested. He, Cooper and Gabriel had been good about leaving the three lovers to do their own thing. They had met as a group for dinner twice, and spent time on the beach together, but other than that they hadn't seen much of each other.

"What do you have in mind?"

"How about some deep sea fishing," Chris suggested, "I saw some brochures in the lobby. I've done some lake fishing, but never deep sea."

"I've done some, with my Dad and brothers. It's fun, but I'm not sure how the kids would take to the idea."

"You know they hate being called 'the kids' don’t you?"

"Why do you think I do it?" Walter said, with a sly grin. "Look at them. Tell me they don't look like children."

Fox, who Walter thought, should have been called Fish instead, by the way the man took to water, had Cooper on his shoulders, and they were facing Gabriel who had Alex in his. Each team was trying to dunk the other, and the foursome was squealing like three-year olds. Suddenly, Fox seemed to loose his balance and toppled backwards, taking Cooper with him. When the two men came up sputtering, Fox gave Gabriel a glare, as the younger man stood there grinning.

"Gabriel seems to be fitting in quite well isn't he," Chris said smiling.

"You noticed did you," Walter said grinning.

"I thought priests were supposed to be above doing sneaky things like that," a dripping Mulder said, as he plopped down on the towel next to Walter.

"Yeah, he sure got the better of you," Skinner said, as he looked appreciatively at the long, lean and very wet body next to him. He glanced at the shore, and sucked in a breath at the sight of Alex and his twins stepping out of the water.

Both Chris and Fox followed his gaze, and they too took a deep breath in appreciation at the sight.

Alex stood between Cooper and Gabriel, his black tee shirt clinging to his body. He was not self-conscious about his missing arm, but he didn't want to burn, and his skin was fairer than that of his twins. Both Coop and Gabriel had spent a lot of time in the outdoors, so their skin was less prone to burning, so both wore nothing but their swim trunks.

"Do they even have a clue how gorgeous they are?" Fox asked.

"No, I don’t think they really do," Chris said, "But how they can miss how people look at them is beyond me. Look at those girls, ogling them."

"You sound a might jealous there, Mister Newman," Walter said, teasingly.

Before Chris could reply, the threesome walked up to them.

"What you guys doing?" Cooper asked.

"Just admiring the view," his lover said, giving him a wink.

"Boys, Chris and I were thinking that maybe tomorrow we could all go deep sea fishing. What do you think?" Walter asked, as the trio took seats around him.

"I've never been fishing," Alex said, looking doubtful. "I've been on a boat before, so I know I don’t get seasick, but I'm not sure how good I'd be at fishing with one arm."

"Sorry Alex, I guess we didn't really think it through," Chris said, apologetically.

"It's just that we never think about you only having one arm sweetheart," Walter said. "You can do just about everything else, so we didn't think…"

"That's all right," Alex said, smiling. "I think, I'd like to try it. Who knows, maybe I'll catch the biggest fish."

"What about you Gabriel? You game?" Walter asked, the quietest of the triplets. He had always thought Alex was quiet, but in a more brooding sort of way. Gabriel was quiet, in a more reflective way. He seemed to enjoy just being, and taking in the world around him. Walter appreciated the calming influence Gabriel brought to the trio of brothers.

"Sure," the former priest said, "Someone has to keep these two from falling overboard."

Everyone laughed as both Cooper and Alex rolled their eyes. "He is such a mother hen," Cooper said.

"So what are we going to do this afternoon?" Fox asked. "I heard there was a sand castle building contest the hotel is sponsoring."

"Sand castles? Aren't you a little too old to play in the sand, Fox?" Walter asked.

"Just a minute ago you were calling them kids, Walter," Chris reminded his friend.

"You were, were you," Fox said, with a mock growl.

"Yes," Walter said, crossing his arms over his ample chest. "You got a problem with that, kid."

Fox made a show of swallowing visibly as he said, "No sir. No problem sir, no problem in the absolute."

"Glad to hear it," Walter said, now smiling. "Why don’t you guys go see what this contest is all about, and maybe Chris and I will join you."

"Okay," Fox said, and stood. Putting out his hand for Alex to grab and said, "Come on Little Rat, maybe we can be on the same team this time. I bet we can beat the old fogies."

"I'll give you old fogies," Walter growled as he made to stand up, but stopped when he saw his two lovers had taken off running down the beach.

"You have anything to say, boy?" Chris asked his lover.

"I'm too smart for that," Cooper said, and stood, Gabriel joining him. "Well at least smart enough not to say anything until I'm on my feet. Old fogies," and with that he took off running.

Giving them a shrug and a smile, Gabriel took off right after him.

"Didn't I tell you?" Walter said, looking at Chris. "Kids."

"Well this is certainly an aptly named boat," Gabriel said, as they approached the vessel they had chartered for their excursion.

"The Wild Bunch…yup, that's us alright," Cooper said, using his best cowboy drawl.

"Welcome aboard. My name is Ted Ellis, Captain of the Bunch," a tall, sun-bronzed man said, as he stepped out off the boat to greet them.

"Walter Skinner," Walter said, taking the extended hand. He quickly introduced the rest of the group, and then said, "Are we still able to go? The sky looks a little dark."

"I've checked the weather not fifteen minutes ago, and we have nothing to worry about, sir," Ted said. "I have to admit this is a bit unusual for this time of year, but it should clear by the time we get to the fishing spot I have picked out for you."

"Well boys, let's get going then," Walter said, and watched his friends and lovers climb aboard the forty footer.

"Don’t pout, Walter, it really doesn't become you," Fox said grinning smugly.

"Fox, I'm not pouting," Skinner said, doing just that. The bigger man sat, Kimura rod held tightly between his hands, trying to catch his first fish of the day. All the others, including Alex, had already landed at least one fish.

"Fox, stop teasing, or your backside will end up the color of your nose," Alex whispered in his lovers ear, making sure the captain did not overhear them.

"Sorry, Walter," Fox said apologetically, "Can I help?"

"No…uhg…I've got it," Walter said, grunting under the strain of fighting the giant Marlin at the end of the line.

The sextet had paired off, and a bet had begun as to which team would catch the highest combined poundage. Chris and Cooper were ahead with three fish totaling eleven-hundred pounds, Fox and Gabriel were right behind them with nine-hundred, and Alex had so far caught one five-hundred pound Marlin. Walter had been struggling with his fish for nearly thirty minutes, and was starting to feel the burn of his muscles, but didn't want to disappoint Alex by letting go.

"Lean forward, and then pull back, Walt," Chris said. "We are ready."

Walter did as suggested, and gave a mighty tug. Suddenly a giant Marlin leapt out of the water towards the boat. Ted expertly maneuvered the boat to help Walter get a better angle. Two more tugs and the fish was neatly landed.

"Wow Walt, that has to be at least eight-hundred right there," Chris said.

Walter's grin lit up his face. "Not bad for an old foggie…uh Fox?"

Mulder gave him a big smile in return. He was extremely competitive, and hated to loose, but the look of pure satisfaction on Walter's face drove all thoughts of having lost the bet right out of his mind.

"We can mount this beauty for you Mister Skinner. It's one of the services we offer." Ted said.

"Yeah Walter…that's a great idea," Alex said, enthusiastically. "We can hang it over the fireplace."

"I'll think about it Ted," Walter said, "I'm not sure how I feel about having a dead fish in the house."

"Damn, I think it's starting to rain," Cooper said, looking up at the quickly darkening sky.

"It's probably just a scattered shower," Ted said, "I'll check the weather scope."

"I think we've had a long enough day don’t you," Walter said, "We should be getting back to land anyway."

"If you say so Mister Skinner," Ted said, disappointed. "There was this spot I wanted to take you guys to. Best Mahi Mahi in all of Oahu. We prepare anything you catch, and then set up a dinner on a little island between Oahu and Molokai."

"Sounds romantic," Fox said, giving Walter a pleading look.

"Please, Walter?" Alex said, adding his own puppy look to the cause.

"Are the three of you also going to give me pathetic little looks too," Skinner asked the other three members of the group.

"Not me," Chris said, "I'm not the googlie-eyed kind."

"I am," Cooper said, grinning.

"You are shameless," Gabriel said, rolling his eyes. "But then so am I," and with that gave Walter what had to be the prize-winning pitiable look ever given.

Walter couldn't help but laugh, and put up his hands in defeat, "Okay, I know when I'm outnumbered. A romantic dinner it is."

"I don't feel so good Chris," Cooper said, looking decidedly green.

"I know babe," Chris said, "We'll be back on land soon."

"I think…I think I'm gonna be sick," Cooper said, and rushed to the bathroom.

"I'm sorry, Mister Skinner," Ted said, apologetically, "This storm just came out of nowhere."

"How far from land are we?" Walter asked, his arm wrapped around a pale looking Alex, and his hand on Fox's knee, tapping it reassuringly.

"We should be back in less than an hour," Ted said, "I think it might be a good idea if you all put on your vests. It's going to get a bit choppy."

"Walter?" Alex asked worriedly.

"It'll be all right, Alex," Walter said, "You doing okay, Gabriel?" The third brother had been sitting by himself, his back against the side of the cabin, trying to look calm but failing miserably. "Gabriel, it'll be okay. It's just a little wind, and a lot of rain. Nothing to worry about."

"I'm okay, Walter," the former priest said, "Don’t worry about me."

"I worry about all my family," the older man said, "Why don’t you help Alex with his vest?"

Chris and Cooper rejoined the group in the main cabin, and they sat huddled closely, Chris' arm wrapped tightly around Cooper's shoulders. "What's happening, Walt?"

"Ted thinks we need to get our life-vests on. Also put all your things in your packs and tie them to you in someway, that way nothing will fly out if it gets rougher."

"It could get rougher than this?" Cooper said, with panic in his voice.

"Ted is going to do the best he can to get us to land as soon as possible," Walter said, trying to reassure himself as much as he was trying to comfort his lovers. "He's got state of the art navigating system on board, he'll get us home in no time."

Two hours later they were no closer to land than they had been when he had made that statement. The boat was being tossed mercilessly by large waves, the rain pounding on the roof of the cabin was almost deafening.

"I've sent a mayday signal," Ted shouted, trying to be heard over the roar of the engine and the weather.

"Mayday signal," Fox said, "Are we going to sink?"

"No. It's just as a safety precaution," Ted hastened to explain, "So if we are blown off course, they'll have a place to look for us."

Suddenly the boat was tossed violently on its side as an impossibly high wave hit it. Ted, who has been standing by the door to the cabin, disappeared from sight as he was washed off the deck.

"TED!" Walter and Chris yelled in unison as they stood to try and help the captain. They didn’t get far, as another wave hit, and they lost their footing.

The next few minutes were chaotic as the men struggled to remain on their feet, or at least seated.

Walter made his way to where Fox, Alex and Gabriel were seated, and shouted to be heard, "I don’t think we are going to stay afloat much longer. If the boat capsizes, we'll drown. We might need to jump."

"But Walter, we'll drown for sure if we do that," Fox shouted back.

"We'll wait to the last possible minute, Fox," Walter said. "But I don’t think we stand a chance if we stay on this boat."

"We'll do whatever you decide, Walter," Gabriel said.

"Okay," Walter said, taking charge of the precarious situation. "I think we should pair off, try to keep as close together as possible. We should be able to float with the vests until we are rescued…"

"Do…do you think someone will come?" Cooper asked, worry evident in his voice.

"Ted sent the distress signal," Chris said, "They'll come, Spud, they'll come."

"All right, Chris you've got Coop," Walter said, and then turned to look at his two lovers. Suddenly he realized he had a choice to make. Both Alex and Fox were looking at him expectantly. He had never expected to have to make a choice like the one was facing at the moment. How to choose which man to be paired with, without making the other feel abandoned in a moment of crisis. He made the decision based on the strength of each man. "Fox, you are the stronger swimmer. I'll take Alex, and you'll help Gabriel."

Fox gave a short nod, and moved toward Gabriel. Walter's hand on his shoulder made him pause. He looked into the worried brown eyes, and instantly understood what was going through Skinner's mind. "You made the only choice you could Walter." Glancing down at Alex, who was staring at both of them in disbelief, he added, "Take care of our Little Rat."

"Fox?" Alex asked, "Fox…I…you should…"

"Alex, someone has to keep Gabriel safe," Fox said reassuringly, "Walter will keep you safe, and you have to promise to keep him safe for me. You can do that right?"

"Sure, Fox," Alex said, knowing he would not win the argument when both his lovers had made up their minds.

"Let's get to the railing," Walter ordered.

Several minutes later the six men had managed to crawl out of the rapidly filling cabin, and grabbed on to the railing, which surrounded the boat. They held on for several minutes more before they saw what they knew was going to be the wave that would finally capsize the boat.

"Get ready," Walter yelled. He looked into the terror filled eyes of the young Russian next to him. He turned to look at Fox, but the wave hit at that moment, and his scream was drowned by the horrendous noise of water cascading over them. When next he was able to see anything, his heart sank. Where Fox and Gabriel had been a second before, now there was just an empty space.

'God, Fox, what have I done,' was the last conscious thought Walter Skinner had before another waved crashed against the boat, tossing him, Alex, and hopefully Chris and Cooper off the boat.