DISCLAIMER: I should be ashamed of this. I really, really should. But I'm 
not. :-)

Anyway, as you all know, Richie and the Immortals don't belong to me, even if 
they're happier here. (Especially Richie. <weg>) And the Forever Knight group 
are also someone else's. They just like playing with me because I tend to use 
minor characters. Special guest appearance is with full consent, but you have 
to find the being. Elaine, Eddy and Co are mine, at least in name. As for the 
rest.... You decide. 


                      The Truth is .... Out There

By Elizabeth M. Lawrence (luckyliz@mindspring.com) 

Comments always welcome. (This is a hint, people <G>) Other stories in the 
Elaine Saga can be found at http://www.mindspring.com/~luckyliz.


Richie pulled up outside Elaine's apartment and hopped off, grabbing his bag 
before going inside.

"Hey, Ed," he greeted the security guard. "'Laine up?"

"This early? Yeah, right," the guard snorted. "Why? Something come up?"

"No," Richie assured him. "A tape just arrived in the mail and I wanted her 
opinion on it."

"Sex tape, huh?" Ed guessed. "Go on up. And let me know if she tells you 
anything I can try on Judy."

"Sure thing." Richie laughed and headed for the elevator.



Elaine was stretched out on the bed in the exact same position Richie had 
left her in. She didn't even appear to be breathing. Probably wasn't.

But at least Richie knew how to wake her up without risking her ripping out 
his throat. After stripping off all his clothes, no sense in getting them 
torn to pieces, he found Elaine's knife and used it to cut open the palm of 
his hand.

"Mmmm." Without opening her eyes, Elaine reached out and brought the hand to 
her lips, lapping up the blood.

By the time the wound had closed, her eyes were open and Elaine was awake.

Somewhat, anyway.

"Richay, what time is it?" she asked groggily.

"Two in the afternoon," Richie admitted. "But I got this tape in the mail and 
since you're a doctor, I was hopping you'd watch it with me."

"Shoah," she agreed, wrapping an arm around Richie's neck and pulling his 
head down for a kiss. "Befoah oh aftah?"

Richie was about to ask before or after what when her free hand gave him the 
answer.

The hell with the tape, he decided. It could wait.

"After. Definitely after."



"Sah what's on the videah?" Elaine asked as she folded the butter into the 
popcorn.

"It's supposed to be an autopsy of an alien being," Richie told her. "That's 
why I wanted you to see it with me. I figure you'll know if anything's 
funny."

Elaine froze just long enough for Richie to notice. "An alien autopsay?" she 
repeated. "Yah been watchin' the S-Files again?"

"It's the X-Files, and so what if I have?" Richie answered. "Vampires and 
Immortals exist, so why not aliens?"

"Vampiahs an' Immah'als ahriginated on ahth an' ah completelay nat'ral," 
Elaine answered, picking up the bowl and her usual glass and moving to the 
couch. "Well, vampiahs ah, anayway. Haven' decided abou' Immahtals."

"But you do admit there could be life out there?" Richie persisted. He 
finished setting up the VCR and joined Elaine.

"Yes, theah's life on othah planets. Theah's life heah. Doesn' make sense if 
weh'ah all alone in the univahse," the blonde admitted. "Ah jus' don' see why 
they have tah come heah."

"Uh huh." Richie picked up the remote and turned on the tape.



The tape turned out to be a disappointment, at least in Richie's opinion. 

It was too grainy to make out any real details, and when he could, Richie 
learned that despite all the heads he'd taken, cutting into a body still 
grossed him out. About half-way through the tape, Richie was still watching 
it, but his eyes were on everything _except_ the actual autopsy.

That was when he noticed one of the doctors was familiar.

"That's the bartender at Alma's," Richie realized. "And you just walked 
across the back."

"Ah was wondahrin' when yah'd figah it out," Elaine smiled. "Yes, that's meh. 
An' Mikay. In fac', the onlay one on the whole set who wasn' a vampiah was 
that dummay Ah whipped up."

"You whipped up?" Richie turned off the tape and looked at Elaine, giving her 
his full attention. "You mean this whole conspiracy thing was invented by 
_vampires_?!"

"Sahprise!" she laughed. "Did a pahday good job, didn' weh?"

"A great job," he agreed. "I would never have thought.... Why?"

"Not shoah exactly," Elaine answered. "Ah was brough' in aftah mos' of the 
wahk was alreaday done, but from what Ah undahstand, a group of acciden's 
from Wahld Wah Two had gone tah one of theah home towns an' wah crea'in' 
enough of a fuss weh risked bein' exposed. Not a good thin' in the Fahtays. 
By the time the Enfahcahs found out abou' it, it was too late tah jus' make 
ev'rythin' disappeah. Too manay mah'als involved tah make them all fahget oh 
kill them all without crea'in' moah problems. Sah they decided tah go fah a 
covah up instead."

Okay. That made sense to Richie. Except for one thing. "Aliens?"

Elaine leaned in conspiratorially. "Don' tell anyone Ah tol' yah this, but 
one of the Enfahcahs is a _huge_ comic book fan. Owns ev'ry single one evah 
published. He _says_ it's jus' fah resahch, tah keep track of what mah'als 
think of us, but that doesn' explain all the Disnay comics he owns. Oh the 
one time onlays he's commissioned."

It was a funny image, Richie agreed. He still hadn't met an Enforcer, but he 
had met LaCroix, and anyone who could intimidate LaCroix had to be something. 
So the idea of one of them reading Mickey Mouse was....

"So you guys created this whole alien conspiracy thing?" he asked.

"Not all of it," Elaine admitted. "Weh jus' plan'ed the seed an' tol' a few 
mah'als what tah say an' the human imagination did the res'. That's the thin' 
abou' conspiracays. People jus' love tah think theah govahmen's lyin' tah 
them. An' the moah they denay it, the moah people believe it."

"What about those cows that were supposedly killed by aliens?" Richie asked.

"Damn cahrouche," the blonde answered. "Verrah sloppay, but as long as 
noboday connec's the cows with vampiahs, he's free tah kill as he pleases. 
Even helps us, in a way"

"What about crop circles?"

"Not shoah," Elaine admitted. "Ah've hahd some rumahs, but nothin' Ah feel 
like passin' on."

Damn. "Alien kidnapping?"

"State of consciousness right befoah fallin' asleep," she explained. "Been 
goin' on fah thousan's of yeahs, onlay now it's aliens instead of gods an' 
demons. Weh don' have a thin' tah do with it."

"Then why do all the victims come up with the same image?" Richie thought he 
had her that time.

He should have known better. 

"Repressed mem'rays from bein' bahn. Evah thought what all those doctahs in 
masks an' bonnets mus' look like tah a babay?" Elaine pointed out.

Good point. "Area 51?"

Elaine pursed her lips. "Ah could tell yah, but then Ah'd have tah kill yah. 
Pahmanen'lay."

"So there is something?" Richie noted.

"Yes, theah is something," she admitted. "Ah'm jus' not at lib'ratay tah 
say."

"Please?" he pouted.

"Not without cleahrance," Elaine said. "But if yah run the tape back an' 
staht ovah, Ah'll give yah a runnin' commentahrah. How's that?"

"Sure." Richie picked up the remote and hit rewind.

THE END