Since we’ve had so much going on in the main X-Files plot as of late, it’s time to break away from the mainstream and reveal the truth about one of Mulder’s long time, trusted aids – the Lone gunmen.

This episode is set back in 1989, before the X-Files, before Scully, at a time when Mulder worked on the violent crime unit and before Byers, Frohinkie and Langley had ever met. It all started with Susanne Modeski. The three Lone gunmen were at the same electronics\technology convention together, Byers was working for the FCC, and Frohinkie and Langley were working on their own amateur television systems stalls. It seems the latter two of the trio may have known each other slightly longer then when Byers came into the group, but it was he who ultimately started the thing up.

During the convention, Byers falls for a pretty face, gets to know a woman and learns she’s not interested in electronics at all – but finding her daughter. He helps her with a lead she has which point to the Arpanet. Naturally Byers finds himself on a DOD site (the GUI Byers is using, and the term ‘site’ he uses are technically incorrect – Arpanet didn’t have any URL’s), but in true ‘nark’ style, he hacks into the system for a pretty face and pulls out an encrypted file. It’s when it comes to this encrypted file that Frohinkie gets involved, since his Kung Fu is the best at decryption. However before they get that far – Susanne spots the man who took her daughter away, and evil vicious man – who identifies himself as Mulder.

Mulder informs the 3 nerds that he’s from the FBI, and looking for this woman. Confused, the guys decide there’s an easier way to find out what’s going on – hack into the FBI and see what’s going on – this is where Langley comes in – they learn of the woman’s involvement in a research part of the DOD. Long story short – she’s been set up. The DOD plan to release an evil drug on the unsuspecting public, just to test its effects. She knows about this and is being bugged – via her teeth (thanks to her dentist), and Byers friend is shortly taken away because he was near the computer used to break into the DOD – conspiracies are growing, and the 3 men are starting to wonder just how much they don’t know. They manage to decrypt the message – which reveals the location of the drug. They break in only to find Mulder on their tail.

Bad timing next as Mulder then gets shot at by two unknown men who attempt to kidnap the woman. After all this, the lone gunmen are standing in a warehouse – which Mulder half naked, suffering from the effects of the drug he got exposed to during the shoot out, and all of a sudden who should appear to clean up but…. Mr X! Mr X begins the clean up operation and Byers questions him, stating that everything, including JFK was all the governments work.. Mr X turns and says “I heard it was a lone gunman”. They don’t see him again until Susanne is kidnapped again, never to be seen. After this interesting series of events, Mulder goes back to the 3 men to ask what happened… he asks for the truth, since the FBI file has been closed suspiciously.

The 4 of them share their knowledge and that my friends… is how the Lone Gunmen, and Mulder became good friends.