by Kronos
kronos1@adelphia.net
 

Disclaimer:  The X-Files characters herein belong to 1013 Productions
and Fox Broadcasting.  Usage is made without authorization but with
utmost respect.  Other characters and story are mine.

Summary:  This is part of one chapter in the monumental, unfinished work
called Ascent to Hell by Kronos.  Due to other interests (mostly motherhood) Kronos
has not been able to finish this one (yet).  But this small segment, a flashback to Mulder
as a young FBI trainee in Quantico, is complete and can easily stand alone.
If you would care to read the eleven chapters of this novel, knowing it is incomplete at
this time, you can find them here:
http://www.geocities.com/kronos_xf/wip.html

This archivist just felt it was a waste to let this story languish without anyone admiring
it for the greatness already there, instead of worrying about the parts that aren't there.
                                                                                                                EnigmaticDr
********************************************************

September 3, 1986
Wednesday, 1:34 p.m.
FBI Academy , Quantico, Virginia
 

He slid to a stop at the back of the group, praying no one would notice.  No such luck.

Agent Philip Ramey yelled out gruffly, "Trainee Mulder, it's so nice of you to join us."

He groaned internally, but merely stood straighter, trying to avoid the smirks of some of
his classmates.  He was still breathing hard, having run across the complex in mere
minutes, and was trying to appear nonchalant.

Ramey had pushed his way through the group until he stood just a foot away from Fox.
The man had only an inch of height on him but was much broader and more muscular.
His hair was dark brown with just a dash of white at his temples, and he wore wire rim
glasses.  Despite the only slight advantage in height, Ramey somehow gave the
impression of looking down his nose in complete disdain.

"Since you're so full of energy this afternoon, you're going to have the pleasure of leading
the team during our little bank robbery."

He didn't know whether to be pleased or terrified.  In six weeks of play-acting, with some
sixty hours already spent in Hogan's Alley, this was his first opportunity to call any of the
shots.

"What do have to say about that, Trainee Mulder?"

He smiled tightly and said, "I look forward to the opportunity, sir."

Fox had already experienced a bomb threat in the Drugstore and a raid on the Dogwood
Inn, but today was a bank robbery and it looked like he'd be directing some of the action.
He glanced around at his thirty-one classmates, wondering who'd be on the team with
him.

Agent Ramey answered the question by yelling out eleven names and directing them all
to the left, along with Fox.  "All the rest of you are with Agent Seymour.  She'll give you
your background and positions and explain your roles.  Be prepared to be tellers and
hostages."

The day was bright and warm, and a gentle breeze blew from the west. All the team
members were dressed alike, with light windbreakers over their tee-shirts and khaki
pants. Fox knew that in mere minutes they'd be donning the heavy assault armor that he
despised so greatly.  The damned equipment made it almost impossible to move with any
ease and was so loud you could hear it clanking from thirty feet away.  What was the
worst of all, in his opinion, was that the helmet restricted head movement so that
peripheral vision was reduced.

He glanced around at his classmates to see that they were all excited, with none of them
appearing to hold his 'in charge' status against him.  They were waiting for Ramey to
come back from the other group and start filling them in.  He was filled with a nervous
energy and started tapping his hand against his leg.  He wanted to get this show on the
road.

He glanced around to see his classmates evidencing similar signs of agitation.  He caught
Shirley Kudla's eyes and smiled back at her.  She'd made it quite clear that she was a
woman who usually got what she wanted and she'd told him she wanted him.  Badly.  He
hadn't dismissed the notion.  She was nice enough.  Intelligent.  Certainly a looker.  Five
foot nine, long legged and trim.  Blonde hair with sun bleached tips, long and straight.
She always wore it pulled back in a pony tail during training exercises so it bobbed out
behind her. He could do worse -- and had on many occasions.  He winked at her before
turning his gaze back to the rest of the group.  They'd gone through this on several
occasions so the silence was comfortable.

He crossed his arms and forced his feet to stay in one spot.  When he turned his head
back to the left, he saw Jimmy looking at him in curiosity.  He raised his eyebrows and
said, "What?  What is it?"

The guy was a good five years older, some four inches taller and thin as a rail.  Fox had
tried to get him on the basketball court, but it had been a complete disaster.  The man had
a background in accounting and law and had evidently avoided team sports like the
plague while growing up.  Jimmy had a strange expression on his long face when he
answered.  "You know, I've heard they enjoy killing people in this exercise."

That got everyone's attention.  Fox had to admit that he'd overheard some comments here
and there that had suggested the exercise could be a difficult one.  Before he could ask,
someone else said, "What do you mean, Jim?"

"I overheard some guys from the 84-3 class talking in the library.  They didn't realize I
was there.  I couldn't hear everything, but it certainly seemed from what I did hear that
the instructors like to use this exercise to instill a little humility in the participants."

This comment sparked a flurry of discussion which Fox listened to with one ear, even
while considering what it might mean.  He remembered Clay's words from that morning,
along with the painful grins on both the NA men's faces. 'Just remember, it's never as
easy as it looks.'

He was sure that Jimmy was right.  There would be nothing straight-forward or simple
about this exercise.  They'd been challenged this morning to consider extreme
possibilities.  Now was the time to start thinking along those lines.  Avoid linear
thinking, avoid the trap of carelessness due to overconfidence.

He stuffed his hands in his pants pockets and turned to look at the little town.  They were
on the outskirts right now, but the main street was visible from their present position.
The bank was partway down the street, with an alley behind it, streets on the front and
right side, and a shared wall with the town hall to the left as you stood looking at it from
the front.  He nibbled at the inside of his cheek as he considered the implications.

Access could be gained through the front double doors and two glass windows.  To the
right of the building as you looked at it was a side street.  The bank had another two
windows on the side, the lower sills seven feet off the ground.  The top of the windows
was some six or so feet from the roof, which was flat.  He wasn't sure about the back, but
knew there was an alley that ran parallel to the main street.  What was really intriguing
was the fact that the bank was attached to the town hall, actually sharing a wall.  He knew
none of these buildings had basements, so any assault from below was out.  But that
shared wall ...

He sensed someone to his left and tore his eyes away from the Alley.  Shirley was there,
looking at him with a knowing smirk.  "You have an idea, don't you?"

He laughed a bit before replying.  "I always have ideas."

He enjoyed the look of disgust that flitted across her face.  He still wasn't sure about her,
but one thing he did know was that if they were ever going to be more than friends, she'd
better have a sense of humor, or develop one fast.

She elbowed him in the ribs and said, "Come on, Fox.  Give.  What are you thinking?"

He glanced back at the main street, imagining how to best use twelve bodies.  "I'm
thinking that it would be interesting to see what the wall between the town hall and the
bank is made of."

Shirley looked shocked for a moment and then grinned broadly.  She leaned in close so
that her hair actually tickled his chin.  "Do you think they make the trainees pay for any
damaged property?"

He laughed with her and just shrugged.  "Would be interesting to find out, don't you
think?"

She turned so she could look down the main street as well.  He could tell she was getting
into the swing of it when she said, "Would definitely be easiest to swing in those
windows from above.  And you know, now that I'm thinking about it, I bet that roof has
some access through the ventilation system."

He nodded and asked, "How strong do you think the brick is out front?  Would a car be
able to drive through it?"

Chris Hanson had overheard them at some point and now joined in.  "I got a look at the
back once.  There's an alley, and across from that is just a grassy area.  Plenty of room to
pick up some speed if necessary."

Fox had to smile at the guy.  Chris had been a cop in San Diego.  He'd managed to go to
school part-time and had received a Master's in Political Science.  "I'm not sure if the
Bureau would appreciate our wrecking their building as well as a vehicle."

Shirley quipped, "But I thought we were interested in saving lives."

He nodded and grew more serious.  He looked to Chris and asked, "Were you ever
involved in any bank robberies?"

The man paused in thought before answering.  "Yes and no.  Not in the actual assaults or
negotiations, only in the management during and the clean-up afterwards.  Keeping
people back, taking statements after it was over, that sort of thing."

Shirley asked, "What kind of negotiations were necessary and how were any negotiations
initiated?"

Fox knew they were good questions and looked to Chris for a response.  They'd had
several hours of lectures and classes on bank robberies, but there was no substitute for
first hand experience.  By now, several of the other students had made their way over to
the little group and were also listening with interest.

"It depended on the circumstances, of course.  In each case, a teller had hit the silent
alarm.  One time, the bank robbers didn't even realize the cops were there until they
started to head for the street.  Then they see all these flashing lights.  A minute later, the
phone starts to ring.  I took witness statements in that one.  One of the tellers said that the
phone caused the head guy to flip out.  She thought he was going to start firing at first,
but eventually he had someone answer it."

Everyone was listening with rapt expressions.  "It was the police of course.  Actually, it
was one of the local Bureau negotiators.  The man calmly explained that the bank was
completely surrounded and there was absolutely no way out.  Then asked what the bank
robber wanted to do about it.  The teller said that after twenty minutes on the phone, the
robber was in tears.  That one ended peacefully with the robbers giving up."

Chris looked around at the group surrounding him.  All the remaining eleven of them
were there and listening.  "The one that really stands out, though, was a case where the
bank robbers really weren't interested in the money.  They were out to make a statement
and were determined to blow the entire bank up.  They knew the teller had hit the alarm
and were just waiting for the FBI to show up."  Fox discovered he was quite interested in
how this situation had been resolved.

"The cops called first and the guy inside told them not to call back until the Bureau was
there.  When the Bureau negotiator showed up, the guy gave his demands, then calmly
hung up the phone.  He said they had a bomb and they'd take out the entire building if
they didn't meet his demands."

Fox asked the obvious.  "And what were the demands?"

Chris wore a grimace now.  "Oh, basically world peace.  The guy was an absolute kook."

There were nervous laughs around the group.  Fox was pretty sure he knew where this
was going.  He saw Ramey approaching and decided to cut to the end.  "Were there any
survivors?"

It was obvious by the confused expressions surrounding him that most of the other
students hadn't yet made this leap.  Chris shook his head slowly.  "Nope.  And we lost
five cops, too."

The story merely reinforced the morning's lesson.  Irrational people do not act rationally
or have realistic expectations.  He had this weird feeling that the lesson was about to be
driven home even  harder this afternoon.

By the time Ramey reached them, he found twelve trainees lost in thought, each with
deadly serious expressions.  The man turned to Fox and gestured toward the town.
"Trainee Mulder, bring your team along.  I'll brief you.  We have fifteen minutes."

Fox nodded and smiled back at his classmates.  They all followed along silently, eyes
glued to the bank that sat half way down the little main street that ran through the Alley.
The briefing, such as it was, lasted all of five minutes.  They sat in rows of chairs in one
of the twenty-four rooms of the no-tell motel.  It had been converted to a little classroom
for briefings just such as this.

Ramey stood in front of the room with a pad of paper in hand.  "This is what you know.
A silent alarm has been triggered.  In addition, a call to 911 some two minutes after the
alarm was triggered claimed there were gunshots and screams from inside the bank.  The
first cop car arrived three minutes after the alarm was tripped.  By seven minutes, the
bank was completely surrounded and by eight minutes, the Bureau negotiator was onsite
with an assault team ready to go, if necessary."

The man looked around the room, his gaze finally settling on Fox.  "That's you."

Fox shifted nervously, suddenly feeling as if the fate of the world was in his hands.  His
throat was uncomfortably dry and he tried to generate enough moisture so he could
actually speak when he needed to.
 
Ramey continued.  "There's been no contact whatsoever as yet.  There's no intelligence.
The cops have secured the area and are available for limited assistance."  The instructor
paused and swept his gaze around the room.  "I'll be your primary contact with the cops.
Captain Ramey at your service."  He smiled grimly.  "There'll be eight cars and sixteen
cops at your disposal.  Getting ahold of any building plans will take a minimum of an
hour."  The man looked at his watch then and said, "Technically, you have eight minutes
before you arrive on the scene.  You have typical assault gear available, as well as
equipment.  Get your butts into any necessary gear and start making decisions."

Ramey gestured towards a side room where the assault gear hung on hooks, and then
approached Fox, with another glance at his watch.  His last words were, "Trainee Mulder,
they're all yours."  The man handed Fox a slip of paper with the bank's phone number on
it, then turned and left.

Fox nodded and stood. "Let's get suited up, people."

Even as he moved towards the room and started handing gear out to 'his' people, his mind
was working.  After about a minute, while everyone was still engaged in preparation
mode, he started his own briefing.

"It's clear we need intelligence.  I want to make sure no one inside is aware of our arrival.
We stay out of sight so that the robbers don't know we're actually there.  Let them see the
cops, but none of us, is that clear?"

There were nods and curious looks, but no dispute.

"It's either a robbery gone bad, in which case the assailants are going to be looking for a
way out that won't involve the gas chamber, or it's something else entirely.  If they're
wanting to make a statement, we deprive them of that opportunity for as long as
possible."

Chris spoke quickly, "And if there are injured people inside?"

Fox nodded, already having thought of this.  "That's why we need intelligence ASAP.  I
want Handley on the right side on the ground.  Come up from the alley and avoid the
possibility of being seen.  I want Kudla, Hanson, and Shriver on the roof, ready to go in
the side windows and one of the front windows if necessary.  Approach from the town
hall roof."

Shirley Kudla was grinning, obviously more than ready for the challenge.  He added,
"But see if there's roof access through the ventilation system.  Quietly."

He glanced around, making sure everyone was doing what they were supposed to.  "The
rest of us will go into the town hall, right next to the bank.  We'll gather what intelligence
we can through the wall."  He looked at his watch and realized they had four minutes.
He had to relay as much of his thinking as possible.  "If there are injuries, we have to
attempt to assess the severity.  If it looks like there are serious injuries, we'll have to try
to end it quickly.  If they're not so serious, we can afford to be a little more patient.  If
there are no injuries, the plan is to never let the guys know what's going on outside and to
avoid even talking with them.  We make them wait, and try to gather more intelligence.
Delay will be the name of the game."

He glanced at his watch again and started to feel the pressure.  Two minutes.  "Those
who are with me, once we're in the town hall I want Lieber and Reed to handle sight and
sound.  Handley, you need to start reporting as soon as you're in position."

He turned to one of the older students, known affectionately as 'the Hankster'. The man
was a stocky, red-faced and red-haired thirty-four year old who'd just made Detective on
the Boston police force.  He'd dropped it all in a heartbeat when the Bureau accepted his
application.  "Hank, I want you on communications.  Make sure all intelligence is being
coordinated and distributed appropriately.  We'll use channel 3 for Hank, 6 for
emergency broadcasts to all.  Got that?"

Everyone nodded without question or comment.  They'd already heard way too many
stories about failures due solely to lack of communication.

With a last glance at his watch he said, "Time to go, folks.  We approach from the east
side down the alley.  Hank, Farrady, Lancaster, and Morrow, get the rams, tools, and
other equipment.  Everyone else, make sure you have what you'll need for your own
tasks.  Let's go, people."

In mere minutes, his entire team was in position, right on schedule.  Hank started
relaying information from those on the roof and from Handley, even as Lieber and Reed
were setting up their equipment at the common wall.  Fox worked with the rest of the
team to lay out equipment and discuss strategy.

Hank said softly, "Handley reports no visible injuries, but she does not have an
unobstructed view.  Requests verification from our team.  She has three assailants in her
sights, all with what appear to be assault rifles.  She reports leader is in middle of room,
one by wall nearest to her, one pacing near front of bank.  She counts five tellers standing
in front of counter with hands on their heads.  She counts eight people lying on the floor,
between the tellers and the leader.  No other obvious people."

Fox nodded and turned to Hank, "Report from the roof?"

The man nodded and again said in his quiet, but confident baritone, "Kudla is
investigating.  Looks promising.  Hanson in position at front, Shriver in position at side."

"Tell all to hold positions until further intelligence is gathered."

He heard the man's murmur, but tuned it out.  He closed his eyes and thought hard.
Could there be injured people that they weren't aware of?  He turned to Lieber and asked,
"Do we have sound yet?"

The man nodded and raised a hand, then reported, "Got it."  The static filled, but audible
discourse from the bank then filled the room.  It was obvious there were some problems
in the chain of command inside the bank.  They heard a voice screaming.  "This is totally
fucked up.  I can't believe I let you talk me into this.  The cops are everywhere you
asshole.  They've got us fucking surrounded!"

There were shots fired then and even though intellectually Fox knew they were blanks, it
was still shocking.  He turned to Hank and waited for the inevitable report.  It came
moments later.

"Handley reports the leader fired shots at the ground, in front of the assailant towards the
front of the bank.  She reports substantial tension."

He snorted at that and gestured to Farrady and Lancaster.  "Got the sketch ready yet?"

The two had been assigned the task of sketching out the floorplan of the bank based on
reports from Handley and Lieber.  They nodded and he walked over to them, even as
more scratchy yelling could be heard from the bank.

"If you don't shut up and stand still, the next shot will be in your worthless head, you
moron."

Hank's voice drifted quietly, "Handley reports assailant in front of bank has stopped
directly in front of doors, eight feet away."

Fox nodded and said, "Morrow and Ellicott, I want you out front, ready to take someone
out or to enter through the doors if necessary.  Stay out of sight."  He said to Hank,
"Coordinate with cops, let them know they are NOT to give away the fact that we are
here."

He glanced at his watch and knew that decision time was coming.  Couldn't delay the call
much longer.  Or could he?  What would happen if no one called.  If they just let the guys
inside sit.  They might just kill each other.  Of course, they could also flip out and start
killing the hostages.  He was pretty sure that would be the result, in fact.

He licked his lips and listened to the ranting, even as he looked at the sketch.  It was a
new voice, the third guy.  "Jack, we have to get out of here.  We need to give it up.
Harry's right.  This is crazy."

There was some loud noise then.  A crash which shook them all.  He stared at Hank,
waiting for the report from Handley, when Reed said, "I got pictures over here."

Fox walked the few feet necessary to bring him to the little monitor and watched, even as
Reed moved the little camera from one angle to another.  It was a bad view in that they
couldn't really see any of the hostages on the ground.  They could see the back of the
tellers who stood against the counter and they could also see the leader and the assailant
who stood at the far wall, near where Handley was.

He had Reed swivel the little camera from left to right and then back again.  What looked
like the remains of a display case lie on the ground in pieces, evidently the source of the
crash they'd heard earlier.  He wasn't about to trust anything though, so had Reed do it
again.  He saw it on the second pass.  A suitcase, some four feet from where the leader
stood.  At first he'd assumed it was someone's briefcase, but knew now that it was
nothing of the sort.  Without even realizing it, he whispered, "Holy Christ."

He sensed the halt of all movement in the room and glanced around.  He backed up and
said, "Reed, Hank, Lancaster, take a look at the suitcase four feet to the right of the
leader.  What do you make of it?"

He could tell by their expressions that they knew, also.  Hank said quietly, "Boom."

During their exchange, the yelling next door had quieted.  The leader spoke now in a
confident monotone.  "We knew what could happen when we decided to do this.  We
came prepared.  We will ultimately prevail.  We'll relay our message soon.  I know we'll
win this."

With the knowledge of what was in the suitcase, the words took on a completely different
meaning.  He looked over at the phone and thought hard.  There had to be a way to delay
long enough to come up with a workable plan.

His eyes rested on Gloria Lancaster.  There was something about her.  Something was
niggling at the back of his mind.  He just needed to bring it to the forefront.  What was
it??

She must have noticed him staring at her, because she said, "Fox, you okay?"

And when she spoke, it came to him.  Her voice sounded like those recordings you hear
when you can't get through on a phone line.  He grinned at her and grabbed at a piece of
paper, writing carefully.  At the same time he said, "Hank, let the cops know that any call
out from the bank is to be routed here directly -- immediately.  They are NOT to answer
it.  Let them know quickly please."

He glanced over what he'd written and gestured Gloria closer.  He handed her the slip of
paper and said, "Think you can say this as if it were a recording?"

She read quickly, then looked up and smiled at him in understanding.  He grinned back
and turned to Lieber and Hank.  "We need to tape something and have it ready to play by
phone if they call out.  Can we do that quickly?"

Hank nodded and said, "Affirmative."

He watched the two men scramble to get equipment ready and walked over with
Lancaster.  Hank nodded and said, "On three.  Three, two, ..."  He held his finger up on
one and then pointed to Gloria.  She read in a nasally voice, "I'm sorry.  We are
experiencing difficulties.  This line will be out of service while repairs are implemented.
Please try again later.  Thank you."

Hank made a cutting gesture at his throat, then smiled.  "Nice."

Fox patted Gloria on the arm and said, "Can you have it ready to go fast?  Might be any
second."

They both nodded and were working quickly with the equipment.  He saw Hank pause
and put a hand to his ear.  Then the man said, "Shit.  Handley reports the leader's gone for
the phone.  Come on, Lieber, we gotta work fast."

Thirty seconds later the phone rang.  Fox stared at Hank and watched the man move a
plug from one location to another in a piece of communications equipment.  Then Hank
signaled to Lieber who threw a switch.  They all sighed when Gloria's recorded voice
repeated her message.  After the message, they could hear the bank robber say, both over
the phone and through their sound hook-up, "What the fuck?"  There were a few seconds
of silence and then Gloria's message started repeating.  Then there was a loud click.

They all waited then for a report from Handley.  Fox was looking over Reed's shoulder at
the little camera monitor and could see the leader standing in the middle of the room.  All
the man needed to do to complete the picture of utter confusion was to scratch his head.

One of the other assailants said, "What?  What's wrong?"

The leader replied, "There's something wrong with the damned phone.  I can't fucking
believe this."

Fox wasn't sure if this was a true reaction of the agent or whether the man was still in
character.  He found out by the man's next words.

"Well, shit!  What the hell are we supposed to do now?  Send a goddam telegraph?"

One of the other bank robbers asked, "Should we call a halt to this?  Let Ramey know?"

Fox had to smile.  They'd managed to throw the instructors for a loop.  The agents really
thought there was something wrong with the phone.  He glanced around and saw grins on
everyone's faces.  He realized, though, that they could still continue, even if those inside
had stopped playing their parts.  The grin left his face as he considered it, even while the
prattle continued in the background.

The first assailant who'd been stationed by Handley's wall said, "Try again, Farley.
Maybe it was just a temporary thing."

They were completely out of character now.  One of the supposed hostages said, "We're
still gonna get paid, aren't we?" To which the lead assailant replied, "Everyone stay
where you are.  We need to decide whether we're continuing with this or not.  Just give us
five."

Hank said, "Handley reports they're going for the phone again."  Sure enough, a few
seconds later it started ringing.  Fox cued Hank who again signaled Lieber and the same
switch was thrown.  They listened to the recording intently and heard the lead bank
robber, evidently an agent named Farley, say, "Same damned thing.  I can't believe this.
Now what?"

Fox turned to Hank and said, "Get a report from Handley."  He moved over to the
monitor even while he was saying it.  He wanted two views on what was happening
inside.  From the monitor he saw the three 'robbers' all in a cluster, guns draped over their
shoulders.  They were obviously trying to decide what to do.

Hank's voice reported on Handley's view from the other side of the building.  "All
assailants together in a cluster.  Hostages relaxed."

"Any idea of where the trigger to the bomb might be?"

He couldn't tell from the image he was seeing.  It had to be on the leader's body
somewhere.  There had to be a trigger or a remote control.

Reed shook his head.  He turned to Hank who said, "Handley hasn't seen anything."

"Find out from Kudla if she's got a way inside from the roof."

He propped his hands on his hips and chewed at the inside of his lip.  Hank nodded,
saying, "She's in the ventilation system.  She'll come through at the north side, along the
back wall."

He turned to those in the room and switched on the channel 6 so that the entire team
could hear him.  "Folks, those inside think the game's over.  They've stopped playing
their parts but we're going to finish ours.  We're moving in approximately one minute.
On three we'll be going in - wait for my mark. Morrow and Ellicott from the front
through the glass doors.  Hanson and Shriver from the side through the window.  Kudla
through the ventilation system.  We're coming through the wall."

He waved a couple of the heftier men towards the ram while still relaying orders.
"Handley, you stay where you are to give us intelligence up to the last second on channel
6.  First one in and stable MUST make sure the three assailants can not reach anything
that might trigger the bomb.  Shoot them if you have to but just make sure the bomb
doesn't blow.  Also make sure we're not in each others' crossfire.  Adjust quickly as soon
as you're in and stable."

He got his own team ready and nodded to them.  Reed said, "They're straight in front of
us, twenty feet in.  All of them still in a cluster and approximately six feet from the
bomb."

He nodded and stepped back, saying, "Get us in on the first try, boys.  Three, two, one -
go!"

And in a cacophony of shattering glass, collapsing ceiling, splintering wall board and
screams all around, they made their entrance.  Fox was first through the opening in the
wall with the others right behind him.  He saw Hanson, Shriver, Morrow, Ellicott, and
Kudla surrounding the assailants on the other side.  The robbers were frozen in surprise
and shock, but Fox could see it was fading fast, to be replaced with embarrassment.

He strode towards the three assailants and stated clearly, "Federal Officers.  Raise your
hands slowly.  Do not make any sudden moves."

He jerked his weapon upwards, making it clear that he meant business.  He saw the three
men look at one another and decided to help convince them.  He raised his weapon so it
was trained on the leader's head.  His voice was hard and allowed no room for
misunderstanding when he spoke. "Raise your hands now."

The leader closed his eyes and shook his head, but raised his hands.  The three were
quickly disarmed and cuffed.  Fox assigned Hank to watch over the suitcase until they
could alert the bomb squad, then gestured for Kudla and Hanson to escort the hostages
out of the bank.

Everything seemed to happen quickly then.  The trigger for the bomb was found in the
leader's jacket pocket.  It was placed on the counter with utmost care.  Fox directed his
people to secure the area and then called for the police to come in.  The first one in the
door was Ramey.

The man strode in the front door and stopped six feet in to survey the damage.  The scowl
on his face was almost frightening.

Fox was still coming down from his adrenaline rush now and he was completely soaked
with sweat. He was just now starting to realize how uncomfortable he was.  He removed
his helmet and wiped at his face, then tried to dry his hand on his pants.  Ramey came
over to him and stopped just a foot or so away.  The scowl was even worse now.

"Trainee Mulder, were you or were you not aware that Agent Farley and his team were
under the impression there were mechanical problems that were impacting the
continuation of this exercise?"

"I was indeed aware of that fact, sir."

"And yet you continued with the assault anyway?"

"Yes, sir."

The man seemed to be grinding his teeth in frustration or anger.  Fox wondered briefly
whether the instructor expected him to answer in more detail.

"And why would you do that, Trainee Mulder?"

Fox thought about it for a moment and bit his lower lip nervously before answering.  "We
were instructed to bring the encounter to a peaceful conclusion and rescue the hostages.
Just because there was some momentary confusion inside, this did not change our own
objectives.  Sir."

He must have answered correctly because he could sense a slight smile playing at the
older man's lips.

"Do you have any idea how much damage you've caused here, Trainee Mulder, and how
long it will take to rebuild?"

He glanced around the bank and took in the completely shattered windows, the destroyed
doors, the hole in the ceiling and the collapsed wall.  He looked back to Ramey and said,
"Not really, sir."

The man leaned forward and Fox felt as if he were absolutely entranced.  He couldn't
look away from the instructor's eyes.  Ramey got to within mere inches before speaking.
"Congratulations, Trainee Mulder.  I do believe you've managed to set a record."

Ramey pulled back, a big smile on his face now.  The man looked around at those agents
still in the bank before saying, "You not only created the most wreckage in Alley history,
you've also managed to actually beat the bank robbers.  Never been done before without
loss of life.  Congratulations, everyone."

There were whistles and claps all around.  Ramey gestured towards the door.  "Let's meet
up in the motel classroom.  We need to discuss what happened.  Five minutes, everyone."

Fox turned to head out when he felt a hand on his arm.  He turned back to Ramey, trying
hard to fight the pride and excitement. "Yes, sir?"

Ramey looked around, obviously waiting for the others to clear out.  He was thoughtful
when he looked back to the trainee.  "Did someone tell you what was going to happen
here, Trainee Mulder?"

Fox was actually shocked by the question.  And then he started to become angry.  He
shifted a bit, anchoring his feet solidly.  "No, sir."

It was obvious that his anger got through to the older man.  Ramey was immediately
defensive.  "Look, Fox, I was just asking.  I didn't mean any offense."

His tone was friendly and it put Fox at ease.  Enough so that he nodded, accepting the
apology for what it was.

"You all did good.  Real good.  Get your butt over to the classroom and I'll be there in a
couple minutes."

"Yes, sir."

He made his way out the front doors, careful to avoid as much glass and debris as
possible.  The sun was still shining brightly and he had to squint for a bit until he could
see clearly.  A few of his team members had waited for him outside and greeted him with
smiles.

Chris whacked him on the arm and said, "Good job, boss."

The others laughed and made similar comments.  Fox felt as if he were floating by the
time they got to the little motel.  He was grinning so broadly his jaw hurt, but damned if
it didn't feel fantastic.  His entry into the motel classroom was met with clapping and
hoots, whistles and stomping feet.

It made him feel good.  More than good.  Euphoric.  He knew, down to the depths of his
soul, that this was what he'd been intended for.  He was meant to be an FBI agent.  He
knew the Bureau would be like family to him for the rest of his life.  He was so damned
happy at that moment that his eyes actually teared up a bit.  He sat down with his
classmates, secure in the knowledge that his future would be filled with success and the
camaraderie of his colleagues.  Life was just about perfect.

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