It was too damned cold out, even for an alien hybrid.

He shook his head slightly, trying to bring himself to concentrate on his task. It wasn't terribly easy; after all, he'd just finished a mission, and he did have a lot on his mind. Not that they cared… The bastards.

Billy Miles sighed inwardly as he walked across the dark expanse of the park. It wasn't that he was upset with the work… Just a bit distracted. That was all, and it was okay. Maybe not for the true aliens, but he could work fine with a wandering mind. He'd learned to adapt to it years ago, after he had been first taken.

He walked swiftly, a man who looked to be about twenty-four, with dark brown hair parted down the center. His eyes were a steely gray, and seemed to be dead-set and flat, yet somehow thoughtful at the same time. The expression on his face was a deadened one, but it could change at any moment to reveal any emotion… If he chose to allow it to do so.

The gray hooded sweatshirt that he wore blended into the grayness of the night, and he walked alone. He had a destination, and he intended to reach it, to finish the next assignment off. Once he finished this one, he had another to get to… And maybe, hopefully, have some time to think on things afterwards. He doubted it, but it was a possibility.

Although cold, the night air was admittedly refreshing, holding a sense of dark vitality. It was a sense that could only be found in the night, that much Billy knew. He wondered if the aliens knew this, and figured that they probably did. They knew one helluva lot about the earth.

Billy had first encountered the aliens eight years before when they had abducted him from his hometown of Bellefluer, Oregon. It had been the night of his graduation, and the aliens had given them an "offer" to be used in a new experiment. The decision had been an easy one when the aliens had showed some of their weaponry; Billy and the classmates who had been abducted with him had all agreed. You just didn't say no to technology that looked as if it could blow your brains out and still keep you alive for an hour or two.

Yes, they'd been forced into the experiment, in a way. Billy knew it, but he didn't really mind anymore. To be quite honest, he sort of enjoyed being a hybrid. While it did get a bit monotonous at times, the times were far between, and it was something new, something…

He couldn't quite describe it. It was something that was almost romantic, something to be proud of, something… Something wonderful. He'd never liked to describe his emotions towards anything, even in thoughts, and this was no exception.

So he wasn't angry. At least, not about being forced into the hybridization. There were a couple of other things, one in particular, but Billy didn't want to think about that at the moment. He had a feeling that he'd find himself in a brain lock if he did. It was a paradox, in a way, though he had a feeling that not many people would've seen it as such.

His thoughts trailed back to the aliens. After doing some initial experimentation, they had drifted away again, promising to return and commanding Billy and his classmates to wait for them. They had all waited; what good would it do to try and run from the aliens?

Besides, there had been something else keeping them there. At least, there had been something else keeping him there. He'd been casually interested in the extra terrestrial for his whole life and, anyway, he'd been curious. What would it be like?

Billy rubbed his forehead absently as he continued crossing over the trails of the park. Around him, leaves rustled in the breeze and insects called shortly. The pale, thin moon shone little light through the shadows of the trees, but Billy didn't mind. The shelter of the trees was somewhat comforting and, if he ran into the men he was supposed to meet, it'd be better.

The first man would live, the second contact would die. The first wouldn't really be a true man… Instead, he'd be another hybrid. The second knew too much, or so the aliens had told Billy. They hadn't said much, but he'd been given an order, and he intended to keep it. It was unwise to work against the aliens and, anyway, why should he? He shared many of their goals.

Goals. What were the goals? So far as Billy could tell, the goals were quite varied. For some, it was to seek the truth. To others, it was to bring order. Still others believed that it was a time of new discovery. Billy tended to side with this last one.

After all, the world had been going to seed lately. So much fighting, so much… Darkness. All of the darkness had been underneath, but it had been everywhere, in everything, corrupting, polluting, using its ugly branches to spread. Many hadn't seen it, or had overlooked it, but lately the darkness had become present in everything.

Maybe that was crazy, but Billy didn't think so. He thought that this was a chance to renew it, to bring sense into the world. To find sanity. Because the world was crazy. The whole damned world was stark raving mad.

Crazy thoughts, people would've said, but they were crazy. They were too firm in what they saw, too unwilling to believe. And that would help the aliens. The less people who knew initially, the better. That was why they were working so hard to keep it a secret at the present. That was why he had been given the assignments he had been given.

Shaking his head, Billy sighed again. He needed sleep. If there was one thing he had learned from being a hybrid, it was that even alien hybrids needed sleep. His mind felt semi-cloudy, as if he were in a daze… How much sleep had he gotten in the last few days, anyway? He didn't know. Not enough. Probably not…

Suddenly, he stopped short as he realized that he had just come upon his first contact. The man who stood in front of him was taller and more strongly built, with a knowing expression that the shadows didn't quite conceal. He wore a sweatshirt like Billy's, only his was navy blue instead of dark gray.

"Knowle?" Billy asked, though it was barely a question as he was sure of who it was.

"Billy," Knowle replied, nodding, not bothering to question.

Knowle Rhrore was another hybrid… Not from Bellefluer, but another of the earlier ones all the same. He worked deep inside the government, mostly finding information for the aliens and giving out false information. The government didn't know either; that was the kicker.

"I take it you have something for me?" Billy got right to the business. He didn't want to drag this out, much as he wouldn't have minded talking to Knowle. He was a good guy, funny, but Billy was too damn tired to find much of anything amusing.

Knowle nodded. "Information, mostly. For your next assignment," he said, and then grinned slightly. "Sounds like fun. Getting hit by a car?"

Billy cringed slightly. While he couldn't really feel any hurt from pain, it still wasn't exactly pleasant. A car hits you and you're going to feel something. "So I've been told," he nodded in affirmation.

"They want you to head over to the FBI building afterward. They said to give it a few minutes, then get over and enter the building. Follow Dana Scully around, end up on the roof of the building. Once you're up there… they just said that you'll see," Knowle shrugged. "Sounds like a good time."

"Sure," Billy said dryly. So he wasn't going to have time after the next task. He'd have yet another task, something that would invariably end unpleasantly. You'll see. Of course they'd say that. Make it easier to ask. "So I'm going after Scully's kid again."

"Yeah," Knowle nodded again. "Can't say I envy you."

"Right…" Billy trailed off. He didn't want to think about the next task yet. He'd been working on the same thing, the charade, for nearly all of his assignments as of yet. In a minute he'd have to start to it again, then go on to more, but he had a few minutes. "Almost done in the Bureau?"

"I think so, but I really can't be sure," the taller man looked up at the sky. "They're ambiguous about everything, you know."

"Yeah... Ambiguous is the right word."

They played their cards close until they could be sure of you; that was certain. Billy wished that they'd hurry up and trust him more strongly. It'd give him a better idea of what he was getting into.

Oh, well. At least this way he could be surprised. Some excitement, and all of that. That was one of the parts of being a hybrid he did enjoy… The mystique, the unknown, the mysterious, the hidden. It was really quite fascinating.

"I'll be seeing you soon," Knowle extended his hand, and Billy shook it, then released.

"You playing a role in this?" The 'this' he referred to was what the aliens seemed to be calling the final stage of the charade with the government, and the chasing of Dana Scully and her unborn child. The aliens weren't quite sure if the kid was what they thought, and they wanted to be sure. If it was, there'd be some serious shit. If it wasn't, they'd be all right.

"Uh-huh," Rhrore nodded. "Eventually. Sooner than later."

"Isn't it always," Billy shook his head. "I've got someone to meet."

"More work?"

"You know it," Billy waved, and then started off. "See you around, Knowle."

Without looking back, he headed down the path. Pretty soon he was a fair ways away from where Knowle had been… And that was sort of depressing. He didn't mind talking. Working as a hybrid could get lonely, and half the time he didn't care who he talked to as long as it was someone.

Not that he'd tell people things. He'd say what he wanted to say. Even telling a bunch of bullshit was better than complete solitude, though. Billy had never been one for a 24-hour bubble, though he did enjoy time by himself.

The darkness was still everywhere around him, enveloping him in the protective cloud of deep, heavy gray. How far to the next contact? He wasn't sure. All he knew was that the trail was pretty damned long, possibly one that the hiker-type would normally travel over. Billy wouldn't have been surprised to find out that it was indeed a hiking trail.

Even if it was a hiking trail, the contact couldn't be too far away. The aliens had given him more work to do, and they wouldn't give him a twenty-mile hike if they wanted him to get to the next assignment in time. Not that he would mind a twenty-mile hike. He enjoyed walking and, even more, running.

That didn't matter, though. Enjoyment didn't mean anything to the aliens. They wanted the job done well, correctly, and in good time. He didn't blame them. After all, it kept their whole organization running smoothly.

His next assignment. It crept back into his mind, and he sighed heavily. He really didn't want to follow Scully around anymore… He saw the point, and he wasn't going to argue, but he wanted something different. Granted, the assignment he was currently on was different, but it was short.

Didn't matter, though. There was no complaining… At least, not out loud. To complain out loud was stupid, because while the aliens couldn't kill hybrids, they could do… things… to them.

In spite of himself, Billy shivered slightly. He'd seen one of his fellow hybrids go crazy after she had tried to attack the aliens and been taken for 'treatment'. Theresa had chosen a bad time to attack… The aliens had been in a bad mood for some reason or other and, obviously, didn't ever approve of disloyalty.

It was almost funny, really. The aliens would force people to join them, and then they would punish disloyalty. Last time Billy had checked, Theresa had been in a 'special' ward on the ship that had been set up for insanity and its treatment. For all he knew, she was still there.

Foolish. She shouldn't have done that. Even so, he understood why she had. She'd done it because of Ray, her late husband and both Theresa Billy's fellow classmate and abductee. The aliens had murdered Ray because he'd been 'unsuitable' for the tests… That in itself had nearly driven Theresa mad.

Why had she attacked the aliens, though? It wouldn't do any good; they couldn't be harmed. At least, not by any means that Billy could see.

It was strange, to work for someone, a group, that he hated so badly at times. Most of the hybrids feared the aliens to an extent, though Billy didn't share this fear. The fear had left him a little while ago… Shortly after his own hybridization, in fact.

Yes, he had stopped fearing them because… Well, because of something he'd seen. Something he would always hate them for. He'd never be able to be completely loyal because of what he'd seen, because of what they'd told him.

The lairs. The bastards. His blood boiled as the anger ran through him and he gritted his teeth together noisily. The aliens… What they'd done… They'd told him…

A soft splash resounded as Billy stepped in a puddle, and he withdrew from his anger immediately. What good would the anger do him out there? It meant nothing in the direct face of the aliens. If he was ever going to do something about it, it'd have to be a surprise.

Was he seriously thinking about doing something? Maybe. Maybe he'd find a way to teach the bastards that they couldn't screw with everyone's life, that they didn't own everything or everyone. Give them the hint.

Crazy as the idea was, he knew that he wanted to embrace it, wanted to carry it and run with it. Most of all, he wanted to put it to action. He wanted to see them brought down. He wanted them to see things more… Clearly.

Billy was once again shaken from his thoughts by a looming shape in the darkness. It was undoubtedly the contact… Who else would be out here at this time?

"Hello?" a woman's voice came from up ahead.

The aliens had said that he would be meeting this woman, and as he drew nearer he knew that she was the correct one. She was somewhere around middle aged, with a wiry figure and an intense expression on her face. Dressed in a suit as she was, she looked to be a government official… She was a government official, yes, but why the hell would she be so stupid as to where a suit in the middle of the forest at night? Not very inconspicuous.

"Hello?" she said again, looking at Billy. She could see him, but she didn't know him. As he took another step, Billy saw that the woman held a gun in her hands.

"Annabeth White?" he asked casually, pausing when he was only a couple of feet from her.

The woman relaxed almost immediately. Stupid thing to do… It was unwise to relax if someone simply said your name, for God's sake. Didn't matter, though. Her problem, not his and, anyway, she wouldn't be seeing anyone anymore, so she couldn't make the mistake again.

"Are you with them?" she asked suspiciously, raising the gun slightly as her voice rose in question.

"Not at the moment… I'm right here," Billy said softly, and he could see her start. "I was sent by the aliens, if that's what you mean."

"Them…" she nodded, satisfied, and put the gun away.

That was stupid. The thought flashed through Billy's mind swiftly, and he grinned internally. It was an even bigger mistake than lowering her gun had been… Obviously. Foolish. It was just plain foolish.

"Them. The aliens," Billy restated.

Annabeth nodded, bobbing her head strangely. "I have something to say about the government. Something they might be interested in hearing."

Billy would've rolled his eyes if it weren't for his self-control. This woman knew very little about the government, especially compared to others such as Knowle Rhrore who had become hybrids and held inner-government jobs. Billy had been told to expect bull from the woman. She'd found out about the aliens, and seemed to want to sell information. She was the type who would sell everything she knew to one side, then expect the side she had betrayed to continue to welcome and maybe adore her. Billy didn't mind self-preservation, but believing that others would still accept her after complete betrayal was ridiculous.

"Do you, now?" Billy asked, allowing the woman a couple more minutes of life.

The woman nodded vigorously. "I know locations of laboratories, and I know what the government knows about what they've," she said the "they've" in a way that indicated that she was referring to the aliens, "been doing."

Amusing. Knowle had already told them all of that… In fact, he'd told them a while ago. The government knew very little about the aliens, and what they did know was wearing thinner every day. As the charade played itself out, the aliens pushed further and further out of the government's reach.

"That's interesting," Billy's voice sounded bored, and Annabeth seemed to react to that.

"Believe me, it really is. They could definitely use it," she said hurriedly.

"Annabeth…"

"My friends call me Anna, or Ann," the woman said quickly, trying to win him over. It was one hell of a shitty try.

"I'm not your friend," Billy said sharply, breaking Anna's pleasant mood and shattering the hope on her face, "and I won't call you Anna or Ann. I might call you Annabeth, I might call you Ms. White, or I might call you bitch, but as I said, I'm not your friend."

"Look, we can work this out Mister…?" It was a last-ditch attempt by Annabeth to break the ice. Too bad for her, the ice had been ten feet thick before she'd even set foot on it. The aliens didn't warm up to those who tried to sell them what they knew.

Instead of replying verbally, Billy lashed out swiftly. Annabeth hadn't seen it coming, and she screamed for only an instant before her head fell to the ground, dripping of blood. By the time the body hit the ground, which was maybe half a second after the head fell, the ground around the severed neck was soaked a deep scarlet.

Looking down at the head, which looked decidedly small now that it was disconnected from the body, Billy put the blade back into his pocket. It was an alien weapon; one that he worked well with. Usually he didn't overly enjoy the alien weapons, but The Blade, as he called it, worked efficiently and well. It was almost a normal knife, but made out of a different substance than any found on earth, and cut differently. Using it was almost like using a high-powered jackknife… It was difficult to describe. Alien weapons were all difficult to describe, at least for Billy.

After throwing one last distasteful look at the dead body of Annabeth White, Billy started back the way he had come. The body of the woman would lay on the trail until some hiker spotted it. There was no need to worry; even once they found the body, the police couldn't get the murderer, or even identify the murder weapon.

That was one of the other pluses of working with the aliens. Being untraceable. Being anonymous to the department.

As Billy strode down the path, he thought about the next assignment. The next assignment, and the assignment after that, and the assignment after that…

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