Scouting for Aliens (Chapter 2)

Chapter 2 (The Silence of the Woods)

Graham Potter was a man in his late 40’s. He was tall, thin, but looked too big for his own body. In another world he could have been an army man. His hair-line had receded a long time ago and all that was left was shaved, grey stubble around the sides. He was recently divorced from his wife and Andy – whilst totally the opposite of Graham – enjoyed his company.

Graham was sat in the driver’s seat, both hands on the wheel and wearing an army-camouflage water-proof coat. He turned to Andy and smiled, noticing the slight concern on his face. “Alright, mate?”

“Yeah, I’m good,” said Andy.

“First time out, isn’t it?”

“Yep,” said Andy.

“So you’re not good then?” smiled Graham.

“Congratulations, you’ve seen through me,” said Andy, sarcastically.

“You’ll be fine,” said Graham. “It’ll be a laugh as well. Good skills to pass on to the kids.” Graham had been scouting longer than Andy and was quite the expert on everything. But whereas Andy was with the younger Cub Scout section, Graham was with the older Scouts. He was more attuned to this sort of thing.

“How’s Nicole taking things?” asked Graham as they pulled away from Andy’s drive. “Panicking?”

“The opposite actually,” said Andy, glancing back to his front door and watching his wife wave him off. “She’s more upbeat about this then I am.”

Graham laughed as they turned the corner and onto the main road.

Five minutes later they pulled up beside a McDonalds were a group of about a dozen people were stood around the car park. Some of them had coffees and some had McDonald’s breakfasts. A woman in her twenties with long, blue and black hair supped on a milkshake and approached Graham’s car as it pulled up.

“Alright, boys?” she said.

“Morning, Flick,” Graham and Andy said in unison.

Felicity Jenkins – or Flick - was an assistant Scout leader at Andy’s section, but because he dealt with the Cubs he didn’t see her very often. She was popular and well-liked. He didn’t really know much about her other than she was quiet, thoughtful and got on well with all the kids.

“You two all ready for this?” she asked, re-adjusting her black-rimmed spectacles.

“As ready as I’ll ever be,” said Andy.

“First time,” said Graham, thumbing towards him.

“You’ll be alright,” said Flick. “I was nervous my first time camping.”

“But this is sleeping in hammocks,” said Andy, getting out of the car and voicing his first real concerns. “Won’t they twist over or something?”

“Nah,” said Graham. “They’re tougher than they look. You’ve been watching too many cartoons.”

“Graham’s right,” said Flick. She leant against the car and looked towards the rest of the adult volunteers. “We’re all in the same boat, you know?”

“Or in the same hammock,” said Andy.

“I bloody well hope not,” said Graham with a laugh. “I can’t stand Mark’s snoring.”

“What was that?” asked a dark-haired man in his 30’s with a Scottish accent. He was quite attractive and had light blue eyes. There was obviously some kind of connection going on with Flick as she looked away from him shyly when he walked over. He was the Scout leader of Graham’s pack and, when he wasn’t volunteering at the Scouts, was a PE teacher.

“Graham was just making a joke about your snoring,” said Andy.

“I’ll try and hold off making a joke about his big feet,” said Mark. “I bet you won’t even fit in the hammock.”

The four of them laughed.

A little while later, after Andy and Graham had gotten a coffee, the group were met by a burly woman with short, brown curly hair. Joy Castle was the Group Scout Leader of Andy’s group and was incredibly loud when barking out orders.

“Attention all,” said Joy, as if speaking to the children. “Thank you,” she said, craning her neck over the group as a couple of people continue to mumble. “Thank you,” she said again as they quietened. “Now, we have a good two hour drive from here,” she said. “I hope everyone’s packed what they need because we won’t be able to come back, not unless you want to waste your petrol. Do we have everything?”

There were mumbles of acknowledgement from the crowd.

“Excellent. Lovely!” she said, smiling at everyone in turn. Everyone had arrived in their regular, civilian clothes, but Joy had turned up in full Scouting uniform even though it wasn’t needed. “If everyone is okay with their lifts then we’ll be off.”

The group dispersed and everyone headed towards their various vehicles.

“I hope she’s not gonna be like this all weekend,” said Graham, gloomily.

“Just remind me to put up my hammock far away from her,” said Andy, getting into the car.

“Mate, I don’t think anywhere is safe from her bloody voice.”

Andy laughed as Graham got in the car. The sun was beginning to peek through the grey clouds and it looked like it was going to be a beautiful day as the cavalcade of cars set off for their destination.



Flick sat in her Volkswagen Beetle watching Mark get into his Polo across on the other side of the car park. She gave him a little wave as he pulled out and made his way onto the motorway. She waited until the rest of the car park was empty of her fellow Scout Leaders and then pulled out a map from her bag. It showed the surrounding area around the 400 acre woodland and in the middle of the woodlands was a red “X”.

She closed her eyes, folded up the map and then readjusted her glasses again. She started the car, nervously blew out air from her cheeks and then nodded to herself. “Right, off we go.”



Nicole Sibley was busy folding up her ironing when she felt the baby kick again. She was eight months pregnant and she was enjoying every second of her pregnancy. She had heard stories about other expectant mothers being sick and ill throughout the entirety of it, but Nicole hadn’t felt any of this. Not yet anyway. She hoped it’d continue like this.

She looked down at her big pot-belly, her white top stretched over it and smiled down lovingly.

In reality she had a perfect life. She and Andy had met five years ago when she was working as an auditor at the factory Andy was based at. They had hit it off immediately. He had asked her out for a drink and six months later they had moved in with each other. A year after that they had married and moved into a bigger house. They had been trying for a few years to conceive and it had finally happened and the two of them couldn’t have been happier.

Nicole was distracted from her thoughts when she heard a knock on the front door. She switched off her iron, made her way downstairs and opened the door. Standing there was a tall man with receding, white hair and a white beard. His face was thin and he was wearing a tweed suit with a white shirt and tie. He looked deeply concerned, but his face turned to relief when Nicole opened the door.

“Mrs Sibley?” said the man.

“Yes?” said Nicole, making sure her foot was behind the door. Just in case. He looked...odd.

“My name is Arthur Jenkins.”

“Yes?” said Nicole again. Was she supposed to know him or something?

“I was wondering if I could come in and speak to you.”

“Can I ask who you are?” she asked, brushing her hair out of her eyes.

“Ah, yes, of course,” he said. He was very well-spoken. “I believe my daughter – Felicity – knows your husband.”

“Andy? Well, yeah I’ve heard him mention her before,” she said, suddenly putting the two names together, “She’s a Scout Leader at his section, isn’t she?”

“That is correct,” said Arthur. “They’ve just left for Grantham. I tried to get to them as soon as possible but I couldn’t. I’ve been out of town and returned home this morning. Felicity was already gone.”

“Why, what’s wrong?” asked Nicole.

“I believe that my daughter and your husband, and indeed the entire group of them, are in grave danger.”

“No, there’s just off for a survival camp weekend. They’ll be fine. They’re with a fully trained guide.”

“Please, Mrs Sibley. You have to believe me. Not all out in those woods are as they seem. They are in danger.”

“Okay, so what kind of danger?” asked Nicole, feeling her hearts start to race.

Arthur looked down, swallowed and then back at Nicole. “Danger of a supernatural type.”



Deep in the woods, amongst the foliage a small, brown rabbit hopped about, stopping on the odd occasion to snuffle around between vines and leavers.

There was a shuffle from somewhere and the rabbit froze in its tracks, its black eyes looking around fearfully. And then, like lightning, something shot up from under the ground and the rabbit was gone.

The woods were silent again.

To be continued...

Scouting for Aliens (Chapter 1)

Chapter 1 (The Journey Begins)

Andrew Sibley wasn’t sure if he was doing the right thing. He had been mulling it over and over in his mind for the last few days. When he had been asked if he wanted to do it all those weeks ago he hadn’t hesitated, but now he wasn’t sure. It was typical of him anyway – always leaving things until the last moment. He often used to joke that his motto was “why worry about it today when you can worry about it tomorrow?”

“Andy, are you ready?” came his wife’s voice from upstairs. “Graham’ll be here soon.”

“Yeah, nearly got everything packed,” he said, forcing the last of his energy bars into his pack.

“Have you got enough clothes?”

“I’m probably not gonna change while I’m there,” said Andy. “We’re only going for one night.”

“But you need clean underwear!” said his wife, Nicole, as she appeared as if by magic at the top of the stairs, brushing her dark, blonde hair out of her eyes. Andy couldn’t help me smile at her. No matter what time of the day she always did her best to look as good as she could. He often wondered how he had managed to meet someone as perfect as her.

“Relax, I’ve got it,” said Andy with a nervous laugh.

There was a beep of a car horn outside.

“He’s here,” said Andy, hefting the large backpack onto his back and almost tipping back.

Nicole came down the stairs, folded her arms and then smiled at her husband. “Look at you, all ready for camping out in the woods.”

“Who would have thought it last year?” said Andy. Last November Andy had been persuaded to join the local Scout group and he had taken to it and enjoyed it. But he still hadn’t gone on his first camping trip, and this wasn’t your normal trip. This was a survival camp for the adult leaders in the hope that they might pass their gained knowledge down to the young Cubs and Scouts.

“Things change,” said Andy, putting his arms around his wife and kissing her on the forehead.

“You’ll be alright, won’t you?” asked Nicole as the car horn beeped again.

“We’re just off to some private woodlands a few hours away,” said Andy. “I’ll be absolutely fine. There’s not gonna be anything out there other than the group of us and the course leader.”

“Call me if you need to,” said Nicole as she handed him a bottle of water.

“We won’t get much of a signal in the middle of nowhere,” he said, opening the front door. He could see Graham sat behind the wheel of his car. Graham glanced across at him and gave him a thumbs up.

Andy raised his hand and waved back at him.

“Relax,” said Andy again, noticing the worry on Nicole’s face. “I’ll be back tomorrow lunch time. Nothing’s gonna go wrong.”

“It better not.” She straightened his t-shirt out and then looked at him stood there, looking every bit the camper. “No climbing trees either.”

Andy laughed and turned towards the car. “I’ll be staying firmly on the ground. There’s nothing down there that can hurt me!”



Dear Lilly,

Okay. I’ve been sat here with the nib of this pen touching the piece of paper for the last ten minutes and I can’t think of anything to say. It doesn’t seem right that I have to write you a letter, but I think it’s the only way I’m going to be able to still believe there’s contact between us.

When you come back to us (and I truly believe that you will) I’ll make sure you get all of these.

So, maybe I should start by telling you what’s been going on since you left us. The Doctor set the controls to take Reikon to UNIT: X HQ. We said our goodbyes to him and left him with Stark and then the Doctor set the controls again and we’ve been travelling in the vortex ever since. I can’t find the Doctor anywhere. He just disappeared into the corridors somewhere.

It’s been good having Richard around actually. He sympathises with me. He still thinks about Cheryl and I think you leaving has made him think about what’s important and what’s not. I think he worried that he was about to become attached to this way of life. He seems more determined than ever to get his wife back. He’s just gotta work out how to do it.

So we’re just hanging here really, waiting for the Doctor to give us some clue as to where we’re going next. He’s barely said a handful of sentences to us since you left. I find it unsettling.

I miss you Lilly.



Holly wandered into the console room. Richard was sat on the sofa with what looked like an old fashioned Gameboy. He noticed her walk in and turned to smile at Holly, switching off the device.

“Don’t stop on my account,” smiled Holly.

“I used to have one when I was a kid,” he said, putting it down on the table. “I found it in a cupboard back in the library.”

“There’s allsorts in there,” said Holly, sitting herself down next to him and sighing. “I found an original copy of the bible the other day!”

“How you doing?” asked Richard. “Still thinking of her?”

“I can’t think of anything else,” she said, staring at the glowing rods of the time rotor. “I can’t help wondering what she’s up to. If she’s safe.”

“She’s safe,” said Richard, reassuring her. “I didn’t know her for very long, but she seemed very resourceful.”

“I’m still worried about that infection she had though,” said Holly. They had never managed to get the results. The console had exploded and wiped out most of the data. Lilly had promised Holly that the infection was gone, but Holly didn’t seem convinced.

“As bad as he seems, I don’t think her father would let any harm come to her. He seems genuine on that account.”

“I don’t trust him one bit.”

“Neither do I,” came the Doctor’s voice. He strode into the console room wearing his dark blazer and dark jeans, his grey coat already on. He didn’t look at either of them and just walked straight up to the patched-up console and flicked a few controls. The glass of the time rotor had been repaired with duct tape and the rods inside vibrated uneasily.

“Are you okay, Doc?” asked Richard.

“Fine,” said the Doctor, brushing off his companions concerns. “The TARDIS isn’t so well though. We left Jacarthia a little too suddenly and we need to put her down to let her finish her self-repairs.”

“Sounds like we could all do with a holiday,” said Holly.

“Indeed,” said the Doctor, “but where?”

“How about Rio?” asked Richard, hopefully.

“Too busy. Too many people. Too much noise,” said the Doctor.

“What about that Florana planet you keep going on about?”

“Too far away,” said the Doctor. He flicked a switch and the navigation screen came on. “Ah, that’ll do.”

Holly crossed over to him and peered at the screen, frowning. “Grantham?”

“What? Grantham in England?” queried Richard, joining them. He found it silly to think there was a Grantham on any other planet.

The Doctor didn’t answer. He just nodded.

“What’s so special about Grantham?” asked Holly.

“Well nothing about the town itself,” said the Doctor, “but there’s 400 acres of private woodland just outside of it. No road noise or light pollution, 31 species of native trees and nobody and nothing for miles around.”

“So we’re off to the woods?” said Richard. “Maybe today is a good day to tell you that I don’t like camping. I can’t put up tents to save my life. More of a TV man, me. Hotels and mini bars. Hot running water.”

“We’re not putting up tents,” said the Doctor, going into a large, wooden chest beside the far wall. He pulled out three green, canvas bags and threw one to Richard and one to Holly.

“Then what’s this?” asked Richard, looking down at it worriedly.

“Hammocks,” smiled the Doctor.

“Excellent,” said Holly with a grin.

“Joy,” said Richard, looking forlorn.

To be continued...

Story 11: Scouting for Aliens

“Please, Mrs Sibley. You have to believe me. Not all out in those woods are as they seem. They are in danger.”

“Okay, so what kind of danger?” asked Nicole, feeling her hearts start to race.

Arthur looked down, swallowed his tea and then looked back at Nicole. “Danger of a supernatural type.”

Andy Sibley is spending the weekend at a survival camp with a group of Scout Leaders. It's his first time out camping and the camp site is situated within 400 acres of private woodland.

There is nothing and no-one about for miles....

Nothing Human at least.

Something is lurking under the ancient woodland ground, Andy's heavily pregnant wife tries to track him down, another Scout Leader has ulterior motives for being on the trip....and a mysterious man called the Doctor just happens to be camping out at the same time.



This is the eleventh in a series of adventures starring James McAvoy as the New Doctor, Felicity Jones as Holly Dangerfield and David Anders as Richard Hicks.

The Spires of Jacarthia (Chapter 9)

Chapter 9 (The Hardest Part)

Lilly stood beside Holly on the balcony overlooking the moat and square outside the castle. The Master had hired some outside construction crew to come into Jacarthia and slowly the buildings were being rebuilt. It would be some time before life returned to the town, and it still wasn’t considered to be under the rule of the High Council anymore, but he would make something work. The Master was already revelling in being a king in his own little kingdom.

It had been a few hours since Lilly had told of her intentions to stay and Holly was still feeling shell-shocked. For the first time in ever she had met someone who she had felt connected with. Yes, she had had friends like Roxanne and Simon, but Lilly was different. She thought she had seen a future with her.

Lilly turned to Holly and looked at her until Holly realised and looked back at her. “I am sorry, you know, Dangerfield?”

“I know,” said Holly, sniffing back the tears again.

“I’m not staying because I don’t want to be with you. You don’t think that, do you?”

Holly turned her body to face her. “No, I don’t think that. It’s just…” She shook her head and looked away.

“Tell me,” said Lilly, taking her hand.

“I left my family for you. I left them because I wanted us to be together, no matter what life that was.”

“Then stay here with me.”

“I can’t,” said Holly. Every fibre of her being ached to say those words, but she just couldn’t stay here and spend her life looking over her shoulder to check that the Master wasn’t walking with a knife behind her. “I know I left my family, but I want to see them again one day. If I stay here I worry I’ll never see the Doctor again. Never see the TARDIS again and never get home.”

“I wouldn’t let that happen,” said Lilly.

“But you don’t know,” said Holly. “You may end up staying here forever.”

Lilly looked away. There was no promising she would leave this place. She was on her true home world now. She could do anything she wanted. She could even become a Time Lady. She even felt like one now, stood in her red and gold dress.

“I’ll make you a promise then,” said Lilly.

“Don’t,” said Holly, shaking her head.

“No, Dangerfield, I will make you a promise,” said Lilly, taking her hands again and moving in closer. “This isn’t goodbye.”

“Then what is it?”

“It’s just me and you having to work away from home.” Lilly managed a half-smile.

Holly laughed through the tears. “Working away from home?”

“Yeah,” said Lilly, laughing. “Without the commutes.”

“Then if it’s not goodbye that means we’ll see each other again.”

Lilly smiled and nodded. “I promise you that, Dangerfield. When I’ve settled myself down, cleared my head, worked out who I am…then I will be with you again.”

“Why would you make a promise like that?” said Holly.

“Because I truly mean it. One day, Holly Dangerfield, you and I will be together forever and we will be happy and never have to be scared again. And I mean that, because I love you, Holly.”

Holly stopped crying for a moment and just looked at Lilly. That strange, Scottish, blonde-haired, grumpy girl she had met in the cemetery that day. The same girl who couldn’t have been more annoyed with her had she purposely started an argument with her.

Lilly smiled at her and nodded. She meant it. She truly meant it.

Holly smiled. “I love you too, Lilly.”

And then the two embraced, and for a moment- just a fleeting, magical, marvellous moment - Holly forgot about everything else in the universe of space and time.




The TARDIS was now standing in the hall. The Doctor, Holly, Richard and Reikon were stood outside the doors in a line.

A few steps away the Master, Lilly, Celestia and Craig stood.

The Master extended his hand towards the Doctor. “I promise you I’ll take good care of her.”

The Doctor stepped forward, grabbed the Masters arm and pulled him in closer so his mouth was centimetres from his ear. “I swear to you that if you harm one hair on her head you will never regenerate ever again.”

“Understood,” said the Master, allowing the Doctor to move back.

“Reikon…” said Celestia.

“Don’t worry, my love,” he said. “We will see each other again.”

“I’m sorry,” she said, her voice barely audible.

“You have to do what’s best for you and Lilly. If that means me leaving…well, that’s the way it has to be.”

The Doctor turned to Richard and Reikon and then nodded towards the Master, Celestia and Craig. “Could you leave us alone now?”

They didn’t need to be told twice as the two groups dispersed into either the TARDIS or out of the hall.

The Doctor stood there beside Holly looking straight at Lilly.

“So, this is goodbye,” she said.

“Not goodbye, remember?” said Holly, smiling sadly.

Lilly smiled at her. “Not goodbye.”

“If you ever need me, ever, you contact me and I will come straight down here, no matter what alien world I have to leave.”

“Yes, sir,” said Lilly.

“We haven’t finished what we started Lilly. Not by a long shot. The three of us will be together again, I can count on that.” He was struggling to hide his emotions.

“That we will,” said Lilly.

There was another long silence.

And then the Doctor threw his arms around Lilly, holding her tightly. Lilly could barely breathe in his embrace. And then the Doctor motioned for Holly to come forward and the three friends embraced each other for a long, long time.

Soon, after they had said their final farewells, the Doctor took Holly’s hand and guided her into the TARDIS. She took one last look at the girl she had fallen in love with and then closed the door.

Lilly watched with tears in her eyes as the blue box - her home for a long time - slowly faded from view, a gentle wind whipping through her blonde hair.

“Goodbye, Dangerfield,” she said as silence returned to the castle of Jacarthia.

Celestia walked up behind her and put her arm around her. “Come on, sweetheart, it’s time we got to know each other a little better.”

Lilly smiled as she let her new-found mother guide her away. But she couldn’t get Holly’s face out of her head. This wasn’t over just yet.




The Doctor had disappeared into the depths of the TARDIS and left Richard and Holly with Reikon, who was tending to his cuts and bruises.

“You seem okay,” said Richard.

“I’m not really,” said Reikon, “but I know this isn’t the end. I’ll be back with Celestia once this madness has ended, but I also know how independent she is. She survived a long, long time without me. We’ll be together again.”

“But Caleb-” said Holly.

Reikon held up his hand. “It’s gone.”

“So what will you do now?” asked Richard, sitting down and stretching out on the sofa.

“The Doctor is taking me to Earth. I used to work in the TARDIS construction fields in Zeeka City back on Gallifrey. He says he’s got a TARDIS stuck in siege mode and believes myself and his friends at UNIT:X may be able to crack it open.”

“Sounds like a plan,” said Richard.

“I could do with a nice warm bed at the moment,” said Reikon.

“Holly,” said Richard, leaning forward, “is he going to be okay?”

Holly looked towards the TARDIS’s interior door. “I don’t know.”

“Are you going to be okay?”

“Yeah,” lied Holly. “But only when I get back to Lilly again.”




A few corridors away the Doctor was sat on Lilly’s bed. He was holding one of her tops, his fists balled up. Not only had the Master capitalised on his failure in Jacarthia, he had now taken away someone very precious to him. How much more could he lose to that place? Atom, Louisa, both dead, and now Lilly standing between two worlds.

“You’ll get her back, uncle,” came Caleb’s voice from somewhere in the ether.

“I know I will, Caleb,” he said, his lips pursed tightly together. “I know I will.”




The End

The Spires of Jacarthia (Chapter 8)

Chapter 8 (Fractured Family Misfortunes)

“Steady,” said the Doctor, as Reikon gulped down the ice-cold water the Doctor and taken from the TARDIS. He had used his screwdriver to remove the chains and manacles and Reikon was now sitting in the corner of the cell, his head lolling from side to side.

“He’s exhausted,” said Holly, crouching down in front of him. “And you say he’s your adopted brother?”

“Long story,” said the Doctor, waving the question away.

“A very….long story,” smiled Reikon, looking a little delirious.

The Doctor smiled. “Good to see you still have a bit of spirit in there. What happened? I thought you were dead.”

Reikon shook his head. “You should know Koschei by now.”

“Who?” said Richard, confused. He hadn’t heard this particular name yet and was beginning to feel lost.

“The Master,” said the Doctor, waving away another pesky question.

“He never eliminates a resource,” said Reikon. “He kept me…alive. I don’t even know…where I am.”

“Jacarthia,” said the Doctor, a dark look playing across his face.

“Oh,” said Reikon. “I heard what happened here.”

“Not the place I really wanted to come back to. Is Celestia here too?” asked the Doctor, trying to change the subject.

“I think so,” said Reikon. “I haven’t….seen her though.” He took another gulp of water, the Doctor tipping his head back slightly.

“But you’ve seen the Master?” asked Holly. “Have you seen Lilly?”

“Who’s….Lilly?” asked Reikon. “I’ve been chained up here since we got here. He comes down here a few times a week, feeds me some weird, grainy porridge and then punches me…about a bit.”

“He sounds like a barrel of laughs,” said Richard.

“A cellars worth of barrels,” said the Doctor. He knelt down beside Reikon. “Do you feel well enough to walk?”

“It’s my arms that are hurting, brother,” said Reikon. He slapped the Doctor on his own arm. “But I’ll be…fine.” He smiled. “Strong arms.”

The Doctor nodded, smiling at him.

“Remember that day in the barn? You caught me doing those pull-ups with two of the other boys?”

“How can I forget?” laughed the Doctor. “I thought the three of you were trying to impress the girls.”

“You were never a sporty type, where you?” said Reikon, as the Doctor helped him to his feet.

“I don’t know,” he said, giving him a little more water. “I always enjoyed a good game of cricket.”

“I wish I knew what…that was,” smiled Reikon. He hugged the Doctor. “It’s good to see you again.”

“As touching as this is,” said Holly, moving towards the exit, “I hope we haven’t forgotten why we’re here. The save Lilly.”

“And Celestia,” said Reikon.

“Lilly and Celestia,” nodded the Doctor.

“Then let’s get moving,” said Holly, impatiently.




“Why can’t you be mad?” said Lilly as she sat next to her mother in the bed chamber.

After the revelation from Lilly, Celestia had remained calm. The Master had dare not speak or do anything, instead standing between them, waiting for the silence to shatter all over the flag-stoned floor, his hopes and dreams dissolving before his very eyes.

But instead Celestia had taken Lilly’s hand, excused her and her daughter to the bewildered Master and then taken her up the spiral staircase, to the bed chamber in the highest spire.

“Please answer the question,” said Lilly.

“I am mad,” said Celestia, calmly. “But what would you have me do? Would you have me turn on my own daughter?”

“I murdered your son!” said Lilly, almost getting up off the bed but restraining herself.

“But you have already said it is because of what he had done to you. What your father made you become.”

“Yes, but-”

“Do you regret it? Are you upset by it?” asked Celestia, turning to her and looking down at her hopefully, her eyes full of tears.

“Of course I regret it. It damaged me. I was already broken. It made me worse.”

“Exactly. That’s what separates you from your father. He would not bat an eyelid about what he had done. You, my daughter, are different.”

“But I still killed him.”

“The Doctor had faith in you. You said he tried to help you.”

“But I am always going to be a bad person.” The tears were beginning to fall from Lilly’s eyes.

“The Doctor is very rarely wrong,” said Celestia. She got up and crossed to the window, gazing out over the ruined city of Jacarthia. In the streets a number of newcomers were going about their daily business. Life was beginning to return to the town. “I knew him before he left Gallifrey with his granddaughter. I trusted him more than anyone in the world. He was always a good man. When I asked him to find you he didn’t question it. He just went out there and found you. If the Doctor believed he could help you then I believe he could have. He still can.”

“But Caleb-”

Celestia breathed in heavily, holding back her own tears. “My son would not have wanted you to be punished. He would have loved you as well.”

“You don’t know me.”

“But I know Caleb. I know the Doctor.” She crossed over to Lilly and took her hands. “I cannot begin to repair the damage that the Master has already done to you, but you are my daughter. Whether that means anything to you is another matter, but as much as you are a part of the Master, you are also a part of me.” She smiled at her. “And I’d like to think I’m alright.”

Lilly managed a smile through the tears. “The Doctor’s probably on his way to find me now.”

“I don’t doubt that,” said Celestia. “I look forward to seeing him again and thanking him. And maybe I can say goodbye to Caleb at last.”

“So what do we do now?” asked Lilly, getting up from the bed and looking into her mothers green eyes.

“Only you can decide that, Illithia.”




Craig was standing beside the communications table, idly tapping his fingers on the glass. The Master was standing beside the tall, glass window scratching his chin.

“What do we do?” asked Craig, a puzzled look on his face.

“You can shut yourself down,” said the Master, turning to him.

“Actually, I’d like to go and be with Lilly. She was a friend, remember?”

“You’re a robot,” said the Master. “You don’t get any requests.”

The inner door burst open and the old maid, Enis, bustled into the hall looking flustered. She raced up to the Master as fast and she could and then leaned forward, her hands on her knees trying to catch her breath.

“What is it, woman? Speak up!” The Master looked like someone had just interrupted his favourite TV programme.

“It’s the dungeons….the cell…”

“What about them?” He had a thought. “Is the prisoner still-”

“No,” said the woman, shaking her head, her podgy cheeks wobbling. “He’s been released.”

“By whom?!” said the Master.

“By me,” said the Doctor as he pushed the doors open, his arm around Reikon to support him and flanked by an angry looking Holly and an awe-inspired Richard, who was gazing around the great hall.

“I might have known,” said the Master with a smirk.

“You did invite me here,” said the Doctor, sitting Reikon down on a chair beside the communications table.

“Where’s Lilly?” asked Holly.

“Illithia is with her mother,” said the Master. “And they do not wish to be disturbed. They have a lot of catching up to do.”

“You’ve poisoned her mind, haven’t you?” said Holly, looking like she wanted to throttle the Master but holding back.

“I’ve done nothing of the kind, young lady,” said the Master. “She’s my daughter. She needs to be with her family.”

“Family means nothing to you,” said the Doctor.

“How many times do I have to say this? I have changed. That’s what regeneration is about. You’ve done it that many times you should know!”

“But you haven’t changed,” said Reikon, trying to get his breath back. “The first thing you did was try and kill me and then lock me up in that cell.”

“You are not part of this family. Your son is dead, you know?” said the Master, coldly.

Reikon looked at the Doctor who nodded sadly to him. He looked away. He had had so much taken away from him. His son, his wife…he wondered why he was still being kept alive.

“I remember you back on the early days, Reikon,” said the Master, strolling up to him. “You and the Doctor were as thick as thieves. Inseparable for a time.”

“That’s why you kept him alive, wasn’t it?” said the Doctor. “To have a hold over me.”

“But he has Lilly,” said Richard. “Surely that’s a hold enough?”

“She is my daughter,” said the Master, looking as if he was tired at saying it over and over again. “I’m not holding her to ransom.”

“She wants to be with us,” said Holly.

“Have you asked her that, Miss Dangerfield?” asked the Master.

Holly looked at the Doctor and then back to the Master. Surely Lilly wouldn’t want to stay here. They were building their relationship. It’s why she had left home after all.

“I’ll make you an offer, Doctor,” said the Master, turning away and looking towards the large window. “If you leave and let Lilly and Celestia find their own path in Jacarthia with me, I will let you leave with Reikon. And I won‘t kill your two travelling companions.” He glanced back at him and smiled.

“And if I refuse?” asked the Doctor.

“Then Reikon goes back to the cell and both of your companions will be thrown from the highest tower.”

“Does Lilly know what a piece of work her father is?” asked Holly.

“I do actually,” came Lilly’s voice as she descended the large, stone staircase in the centre of the hall. “Lilly,” said Holly, running over to her and hugging her tightly.

“I’m alright, Dangerfield,” said Lilly softly. “I really am.”

Celestia saw Reikon, who’s eyes lit up hopefully, and then she turned away from him and walked over to stand beside the Master.

Lilly took Holly’s hand and walked across to the Doctor and Richard.

“Are you okay?” asked the Doctor.

“Of course I am,” said Lilly.

“He hasn’t done anything to you? You know, mentally?”

She smiled and shook her head. “No. Nothing at all. He just wants to be a father to me.” She laughed at the thought.

“And what do you want?”

Lilly looked across to her mother. Celestia smiled back sadly at her.

“I want to get to know my mother.”

“She can come with us. We all can,” said the Doctor, looking down at her and speaking in a hushed voice. “You, Holly, Richard, your mother and Reikon. We can get away from here and never look back.”

“We can’t come with you,” said Celestia from across the room, almost as if she’d heard the Doctor. “I can’t risk Reikon’s life. I can’t risk any of your lives.”

“But we can stop him,” said the Doctor, pointing towards the Master.

“Listen to yourself, Doctor. Can’t you see the ladies have made their choice.”

“Let me get one thing straight, Koschei,” said Celestia, rounding on the Master. “I am only willing to stay here to get to know my daughter and to ensure my husbands safety. That is the only reason. Not because I want to play happy families with you.”

“Lilly, you can’t do this,” said Holly, taking her hands. “What about us?”

Lilly looked away from Holly and pulled free. She walked to the centre of the hall and looked around her. “There are a few things I need to get clear here. Firstly, my father - the Master or Koschei or whatever he calls himself - has done terrible, terrible things. Those things are always going o be a part of him.” She looked at the Doctor and then at Reikon. “I’ve done terrible things too and they’re always going to be a part of me. But I have changed and I believe that my father deserves the opportunity to change.”

“The Master will never change,” said the Doctor, almost pleadingly.

“But he has to be given that opportunity,” said Lilly. “Secondly, I want to get to know my mother.” She looked back at her and smiled. “The both of us have been apart for so long. We need to learn to know each other.”

Celestia nodded, stepping away a little from the Master.

“And thirdly - this place could be my home. Back in West Pilton I lived in an ongoing, constant nightmare.” She looked at Craig who smiled back at her sadly. “It was never a home for me.”

“But the TARDIS is your home,” said the Doctor.

“And as good as that was it still brings back bad memories. Here, in Jacarthia, I have the opportunity to find myself. I have the opportunity to try and live a peaceful, normal life.”

“But it’s the Master!” said the Doctor, raising his voice a little higher than he had intended.

“And he is my father,” said Lilly. “I don’t like the guy,” she said, looking back at him, “but he’s going to keep me safe. He’s going to provide a home for myself until I am ready to make my mind up on where I go for my future.”

“Thank you, Illithia,” said the Master.

“And for the last bloody time,” she said, turning back to him. “My name is Lilly.”

“So you’re staying?” said Holly, trying to hold back her emotions.

Lilly took Holly’s hands and looked deep into her eyes, the tears making her eyes look glassy. “I’m staying, Dangerfield.”

To be concluded...

The Spires of Jacarthia (Chapter 7)

Chapter 7 (Regrets, I've Had a Few)

Now…




The Doctor, Richard and Holly were sat on a park bench watching the geese swim in the pond across the pathway. Children were playing nearby and the TARDIS was parked under a large, willow tree.

“Life goes on, I suppose,” said the Doctor.

“I’m sorry,” said Holly, putting her hand on his.

“It was a long time ago now. Several lifetimes ago, actually. I never get over these things, but I learn to live with them.”

“It must have been difficult to lose Caleb as well after all that,” said Holly.

The Doctor didn’t respond.

“So Stakran changed his name to Stark and came here? To Earth?” asked Richard.

The Doctor nodded. “Dropped his precious councillors off throughout the galaxy and then settled here and formed UNIT: X.”

“But his team…I mean, Faith and her lot…”

“Humans,” said the Doctor with a smile. “Good old Humans.” He stretched out his legs in front of him. “After I regenerated I had a private burial for Louisa and Atom and then went on my way.”

“On your own?” asked Richard.

“On my own. Until I met a young Irish girl and life just had to move on again. She needed help. I helped her.”

“But I don’t quite get what the Master is doing,” said Holly. “I mean, all the people in Jacarthia are dead, aren’t they?”

“Well, I had heard a few outsiders had moved in, but I haven’t been back to Gallifrey since then so I don’t know.”

“He’s taunting you, isn’t he?” asked Richard. “I mean I don’t know this bloke, but it sounds to me like he’s using a tragedy you were involved in to his advantage.”

“As always,” said the Doctor. “He’s establishing himself. He’s taken Lilly and…well, goodness knows.”

“You know we have to go back there,” said Holly.

The Doctor blew the air out of his cheeks and closed his eyes. “I know.”

“Should we though? I mean he was pretty determined to get Lilly even if it meant risking killing her in the TARDIS.”

“We can’t just leave her!” said Holly, turning to look at Richard, mystified.

“I’m not saying we should leave her, but should we really just walk in there and take her? Shouldn’t we have a plan.”

“I have no plan,” said the Doctor, folding his arms and looking glum. “All we can do is walk in there and - at least try - to take her.” The Doctor turned to Richard and then to Holly. “You can both stay here if you want. It’s likely going to be very dangerous.”

“No,” said Holly. “There’s no chance you’re going in there without me.”

“She means a lot to you, I know that,” said the Doctor, smiling and gently rubbing her hand.

Richard got up off the bench. “I’m off.”

“I understand, Mr Hicks,” said the Doctor, nodding at him.

“I mean get your skates on,” said Richard, striding off towards the TARDIS. “I’m coming with you.”

The Doctor smiled as he and Holly got up off the bench. The Doctor shook Richard’s hands. “Thank you. Thank you both. I’m lucky to have such good friends.”

“Let’s just hope she hasn’t had her mind poisoned by him already,” said Holly, worriedly.

As they headed towards the TARDIS the Doctor’s memories flashed back to Louisa and Atom. Was this all about to happen again?




She was standing in the great hall of the castle when she heard the footsteps from behind her. It made her hearts leap. She wasn’t sure if she was ready for this. No, of course she was ready for this. She’d had such a long time to prepare for it. Since that day she had found out her daughter was still alive - that she hadn’t died just after she had been born.

The Master - Koschei - had used it to force her to do his bidding, but now…now he seemed different. He seemed to be bringing Illithia to her because he wanted her to be here. Because he wanted them to be together.

To be together as a family.

That actually frightened her.

The footsteps became louder. There were two distinct types. A clumping, heavy-booted and rhythmic walking and a lighter, almost unwilling set.

Her footsteps.

She dared to turn and face her.

Light was streaming through the high-arched window casting an orange glow across the glass communications console that was long dormant. She looked on as the tall, thin figure of her former lover walked into the hall, his black suit looking pristine. He almost looked handsome. He wasn’t the same man she had briefly fallen in love with all of those years ago, but she knew he was in there somewhere. Not the Master. Not the cruel, murderous Time Lord he had become.

Koschei.

But it wasn’t Koschei she was interested in.

“Celestia,” he said, bowing his head slightly. He extended an arm towards the entrance archway. “Allow me to introduce to you your daughter, Illithia.”

With gentle footsteps a small, blonde-haired girl stepped from around the side of the archway, her hands clasped nervously in front of her. She wore some strangely designed blue top and a red and black skirt. Her dark eyes scanned the room with curiosity before they fall on hers.

Celestia gasped, her hands cupping over her mouth. She could feels the tears in her eyes but held them back. For now.

The girl - Illithia - didn’t react. Not really. She walked forward a little, the Master standing just behind her.

He cleared his throat. “Illithia, this is your mother, Celestia.”

“Hello,” managed Celestia.

The girl managed a weak, but nervous smile. “Hello,” she managed.

Celestia could feel her hearts beating faster and faster. “I…I’ve waited a long time for this.”

Illithia smiled again and looked away. She turned back to the Master who nodded for her to continue. “I’m sorry, Celestia, but my name isn’t Illithia. It’s Lilly.”

“Your Earthen name,” said the Master quickly.

“It’s my name,” said Lilly a little more forcefully. “It’s the name you forced me to take.”

Celestia looked flustered. “You have to believe me, Illi….Lilly…that I didn’t know what he had done. I didn’t know you were even alive.”

“I don’t blame you,” said Lilly, stepping a little more towards her estranged mother. “I only blame him. But this isn’t me. This isn’t my life.”

“Your life is with the Doctor, I know that,” said Celestia, choking back her emotions. “And I would never stop you from living that life.”

“With the Doctor you have experienced pain. Things you should never have had to go through,” said the Master.

“That was because of the life you forced me to lead,” said Lily, the bitterness in her voice.

“I sent the Doctor to come and find you,” said Celestia. “He was the best person to keep you safe from him.”

“But none of that matters now,” said the Master, stepping between Celestia and Lilly. “We can be together at last.”

“No,” said Lilly. “That’s not the path I’m taking.” She shook her head. “Only I can choose that.”

“Of course,” said Celestia. “Neither of us have been a part of your life for such a long time.”

“At all,” said Lilly, sharply. “At. All.”

“But all that pain is over now,” said the Master.

“Koschei, let her make her own mind up,” said Celestia.

“What do you want?” asked Lilly.

“Me?” Celestia looked away, laughing at the absurdity of it all. “My life is over. It was over the day my husband and son disappeared into that lost dimension.”

Lilly looked uncomfortable. The mention of Caleb was a factor she hadn’t touched upon yet.

“Your husband was returned to you,” said the Master.

“And then you took Reikon away and my son was forced to flee with the Doctor,” snapped Celestia. “As I said, my life ended the day they disappeared.”

“But now we can forge a new life. A better life,” said the Master, hope in his eyes.

“Why?!” asked Lilly, shaking her head and laughing at him. “I don’t know you. I don’t know either of you. Why should I want to be here? Why should you both want to be together?”

“I don’t want to be with him,” said Celestia, looking down her nose at him as if he were a piece of Skarosian dirt on her heel. “He is a murderer.”

“The old me,” said the Master. “That me is gone. He died when he regenerated into what I am now.” The Master crossed to Lilly and placed his hands on her shoulders, looking down at her with hope in his eyes. “Each incarnation of a Time Lord is different. The ones before me were misguided. Evil even. I am not. I am different.”

“But the core remains,” said Celestia from behind him. “It’s like a cancer. You can cut away the tissue, but the tumour remains as bad and as malignant as ever. If you cut away your cancer then nothing remains of you.”

The Master looked pained, but refused to look away from his daughter. He wouldn’t be swayed.

A smirk played on Lilly’s face. Not because of the memory she was having, but the only way she could see herself escaping the Master’s weird family planning.

“Celestia,” said Lilly. “Your son was Caleb, yeah?”

“That’s correct,” she said. “I trust you’ve met him. He’s a wonderful boy.”

“He was,” said Lilly. She swallowed hard. “Until I killed him.”

“I beg your pardon?” said Celestia, her eyes wide.

The Master stared straight ahead at her. He looked like he was almost willing her to stop.

She pushed past him and walked up to her mother, the smirk still on her face. “I killed him. I attacked him. Stabbed him through both of his hearts. I let his blood soak through his ever so white shirt until it was a lovely, pink colour, and then I just got up and left. And do you know what the Doctor did? Nothing. He did absolutely nothing. He thought he could help me. Fix me. But he couldn’t. And why couldn’t he? Because he,” she pointed to the Master, “made me this way. I am from him. I am evil. That is why we will never be a family. Because I am a murderer!”




“Gloomy,” said Richard, poking his head outside of the TARDIS.

“How’d we get in here undetected?” asked Holly, pushing her way past Richard and into the dimly-lit, cobwebbed covered dungeon.

“Jacarthia hasn’t been guarded since it fell,” said the Doctor, locking up the TARDIS and glancing around the small corridor. There were iron doors at regular intervals either side, but no sign of life from any of them.

“I thought your Time Lords were civilised,” said Holly, peering into a darkened. “There are manacles and chains in here.”

“This castle dates back to the Old Times. From before I was even born. You have castles with dungeons on Earth, don’t you? But your species don’t use them for that reason anymore.”

“I guess so,” said Holly.

“We’re right underneath the white palace where Stark used to live.” He glanced up at the ceiling. “And judging by the time tracers in the TARDIS it’s where the Masters TARDIS is too.”

“I thought you said your people didn’t use these cells anymore,” said Richard, standing beside a cell to the right.

“They don’t,” said the Doctor.

“Then why is there someone chained up in this one?”

“What?” said the Doctor, rushing over to the cell door and peering inside.

What looked like a man was stood up, his arms raised above him, hanging from chains. He wore a grey shirt and dark trousers and had a bag over his head.

“Hello?” said the Doctor.

The man’s head moved a little.

“He’s alive,” said Holly.

The Doctor whipped out his sonic screwdriver, aimed it at the lock - there was a clunk - and he opened the cell door. He grabbed the bag and pulled it off the mans head. Underneath was a thin-looking, bald-headed man with nearly a fully grown beard, black with soot, his face bruised with a cut down one side.

“Oh my,” said the Doctor.

“Do you know him?” asked Richard.

“It’s my brother. It’s Reikon!”

To be continued...

The Spires of Jacarthia (Chapter 6)

Chapter 7 (Dead Men, Daleks and Cupcakes)

“Caleb?” said the Doctor, frowning at him. “How-”

“How do you think?” asked Caleb, looking around him.

The Doctor followed his gaze and almost jumped from his seat. Beside the kitchen counter was a blue and silver Dalek carrying a tray of tea being followed by a Cyberman dressed in a tuxedo.

“I’m dreaming,” said the Doctor, nodding.

“Sadly, yes,” said Caleb.

“I miss you,” said the Doctor.

“I miss you too.”

“You’re just a dream,” said the Doctor. “A construct in my head.”

“You should know not to dismiss dreams so easily.”

The Doctor arched his eyebrows.

“Where’s my little sister then?”

“I think you know the answer to that one.”

“She’s with her father - the Master.”

Caleb nodded. “You know what he’s planning for her, don’t you?” The Doctor didn’t answer. He just continued to stare at him. “He’s taking her to Jacarthia.”

“But why?”

“Why not?” said Caleb. He smiled as a nun with a cats face walked past and handed him a cupcake. “What do you think he’s doing?”

“Taking advantage of Jacarthia’s downfall,” said the Doctor.

Caleb nodded again as he tucked into the cupcake. “Taking advantage. But I think there’s something more dangerous at work here.” He offered a bite of cake to the Doctor who declined. “I think he genuinely cares for Illithia.”

“Don’t be daft, Caleb.”

“Is it so hard to believe?”

“He’s had children before,” said the Doctor, leaning back in his chair. “What makes Illithia so special?”

“Because he failed all of the others. Have you never had a moment in your life where you’ve changed? Where you tried to do things differently?”

The Doctor raised his eyebrows. “Many times.”

“I believe he has reached that point in his life. The point where world-domination isn’t the be all and end all.”

“You really believe he cares for Lilly that much?”

Caleb finished off the cake and nodded. “You do.”

“I don’t.”

“Of course you do. Because none of this is real. It’s all in your head and I’m just a mouthpiece for your subconscious.” He smiled and got up from the chair just as the Dalek trundled towards the table.

“WAKE UP!” screamed the Dalek.

The Doctor opened his eyes and sat bolt upright. The waitress was stood next to his table. She wore a blue, ill-fitting dress with silver piping and smiled down at him. “Wake up, mate. Can’t have people dossing about in here, you know?”

“Thank you, Charlene,” he said, noting the name tag. “I was just resting my eyes.” He looked to the empty seat in front of him and frowned. “What do I do, Caleb? What do I do?”

“Go to Jacarthia,” he heard a voice say somewhere deep in his head. “Go and save her before it’s too late.”




The room was quite possibly the nicest she had ever seen. Even better than the rooms in her own home. The bed had the softest mattress and the fluffiest pillows. The four-poster bed towered over her and the stone walls glittered in the evening sunlight.

She crossed over to the chair where her blue and white dress was draped. She picked it up and smiled at it and then immediately thought better of it and threw the dress back down.

She’d stay in the black one for now. She wouldn’t accept any gifts off him. Not yet.

She crossed to the window and looked out at the view. The whole town looked still and sleepy, but she knew that it would only be a matter of time before the riots would flare up again. That’s if the rioters even had the energy to carry on.

There came a knock at the door. She turned as an old woman with her white hair tied into a bun walked in.

“Are you okay, my Lady?”

“Please, don’t call me that. I’m not a lady here.”

“But the Lord Koschei.”

“He’s not a Lord either.” She realised she had sounded harsher than she attended and smiled softly at the woman. “I realise he has helped you though.”

“He has,” said the old woman. “He found me in the gutter. My husband was a farmer, you know?”

“He died, didn’t he?”

She looked down at the ground. “He did.”

“My husband-” she stopped herself. “Well, perhaps best not to talk about that.”

“He still asks for you,” said the old lady.

“Can I see him.”

“The Master forbids it,” said the old woman. She looked genuinely upset. “I wish I could help.”

“So do I.” She suddenly realised that the old woman hadn’t bustled in with her usual tray of drinks and supper. “What can I do for you, Enis?”

“Oh, yes,” said Enis, smiling widely. “I almost forgot to tell you.” She straightened herself up. “Lord Koschei - the Master -” She looked sorry, “- is on his way back.”

“Oh, joy,” she said, folding her arms and turning away.

“It is great joy,” said Enis, smiling even more widely.

“And why is that?”

“Because, Lady Celestia, he has your daughter with him.”

Celestia turned to the old lady. She wasn’t sure what she felt. Joy, fear, nervousness. He had done it. He had actually done it.

She was going to meet Illithia for the first time.




Many, many years ago…



The Doctor had persuaded - nearly pleaded - for Takmos to let him go and speak to Stakran. Takmos was determined to start shepherding the people into the TARDIS, but the Doctor wasn’t ready to accept that that was the final solution.

A temporary bridge had been constructed allowing people to cross the lake, which Takmos directed the Doctor to. He reluctantly agreed to let the Doctor have a couple of hours to speak to the mayor on the understanding that Louisa and Atom stay with the guard.

“As a hostage?” asked the Doctor, as he tied his shoe-laces up.

“As insurance that you’ll do your best to help us.”

“We’ll be fine,” said Louisa, smiling at him.

“No harm will come to Miss Louisa whilst I function,” said Atom, standing next to her protectively.

“If you even harm a hair on her head…” said the Doctor pointing a finger at Takmos.

“They won’t be harmed, but I seriously doubt you can fix this. Jacarthia is doomed. The only option is for us to leave.”

After saying their goodbyes the Doctor had journeyed around the lake to the rickety wooden bridge. He crossed it gingerly, but it was sturdy enough to take his weight.

He reached the other side and made his way through the narrow streets lined with dull brown and cream buildings that towered over him.

There was another explosion - close this time. He heard the sound of running footsteps and yells and ducked into a small, arched doorway as a gang of people in scruffy clothes ran past the junction in the street.

He finally reached the market square. The stalls were empty. Some of them were burnt and the fountain in the centre had long been switched off, the water in the pond below gathering ash, debris and leaves from the row of silver trees that towered over the market place.

There was another explosion. This time towards the palace. The Doctor looked from left to right, looking for some cover as he heard another load of running footsteps.

“We have him! We have him!” yelled a voice from not too far away.

The Doctor was too exposed here. He tried to run back for the street he’d come from, but instead the previous gang were running down it towards him.

“Now listen, everyone-” said the Doctor, his arms outstretched.

But they weren’t bothered with him. One of them grunted “move” to him and barged past, heading up the long, cobbled, sloping street that led towards the white palace.

The Doctor frowned, waited until they were further away and then followed at a discreet distance.

There were cries of joy the further he got up to the palace. Finally the street opened out in front of him. In front of a clearing of flagstones was a moat with a draw bridge across it which led to the huge archway at the entrance of the white palace. On the flag-stoned expanse a crowd were gathered and at the entrance to the drawbridge was a man with a beard and long, scraggly hair. He wore dark, ripped clothes and his face was grubby. Knelt at his feet was Stakran - his head lowered, he looked completely defeated. He looked up at the crowd gathered in front of him, his face solemn.

“Not so special now, are you?” said the man, tightening his grip around the scruff of his neck.

“I’m sorry,” said Stakran, shaking his head.

“Sorry isn’t good enough,” said the man, his muscles flexing.

“Your name’s Farrow, isn’t it?” asked Stakran, looking up at his captor. “You were one of the city guards.”

“Until you brought this all crashing down at our feet,” said Farrow, shaking Stakran ever so slightly.

“You’re not helping Jacarthia,” said Stakran. “You’re a rioter. You’re causing the people of this good town more harm than good.”

“We loot because we have to,” said Farrow. He could sense discontent among the already dejected onlookers. “You were the one that got us into this situation.”

“So you steal from your own,” said Stakran. He laughed at the absurdity of it all.

“We do it to survive,” said Farrow. He pushed Stakran down further to the ground. “But now we have you.”

“And what are you going to do with me?” asked Stakran, attempting to stand but finding Farrow’s boot pressing down against the back of his neck.

“Kill you,” said Farrow, pulling out a long, carving knife from under his belt.

“Wait!” said the Doctor, pushing himself through the crowd and making his way to the front. “What on Gallifrey are you doing?”

“And who are you?” asked Farrow, removing his boot from Stakran and stepping forward to confront the Doctor.

“Someone who can help you.”

“It’s him,” came a voice from the crowd. “It’s the Doctor.”

Farrow broke into a toothy smile and grabbed the Doctor around his throat. “Oh, this is fantastic. Both of you here at the same time.”

“He conspired with the mayor,” came an old woman’s voice from the crowd.

“It wasn’t a conspiracy,” coughed the Doctor. “We did it for Jacarthia.”

“But you made a mistake, didn’t you?” said Farrow, closing his large, fat fingers around the Doctor’s neck.

“I admit, it backfired,” said the Doctor, barely able to talk now.

“Please, let him go,” said Stakran. “Let him talk.”

“Why should I?” asked Farrow, turning back towards the former mayor. “Why should I let either of you continue to bleat and plead for forgiveness?”

“I’m not asking for forgiveness,” gasped the Doctor.

Farrow closed his eyes and released the Doctor. He fell to the ground, coughing and rubbing at his throat. He looked at the crowd in front of him. This wasn’t going to be a simple do-over and put-things-right-again. He didn’t even know if he could get out of this.

“I’m not asking for forgiveness,” he said, getting to his feet. “I’m just asking for a chance to help put things right.”

“After the mess you caused!?” shouted the toothless old lady.

“Yes, after the mess I - we - caused.” He looked at Stakran. “Everything we did we did for the good of Jacarthia. You have to believe me that nobody could have predicted this.” He looked at Farrow and then back to the crowd. “But why are you following this man? He has broken into your homes. He has stolen your property and your possessions.”

“Because we had to.”

“Rubbish!” spat the Doctor. “You’re no better than the forces out there stopping the Jacarthians from leaving this town.”

“Takmos is going to help us. He has a plan,” said a male voice from the crowd.

“Takomos’s plan won’t work,” said Stakran. “You can’t move an entire community in a TARDIS.”

Farrow shook his head. “On this I agree. We need to stay and fight for our town.” He grabbed the Doctor and forced him to his knees. “And it starts with the death of these two traitors.”

The Doctor turned to Stakran and shook his head. “I’m so sorry.”

“Don’t be, Doctor. We made the mistake. We pay the price.”

“WAIT!” came a shout from the back of the crowd.

Everybody turned. Standing at the back of the crowd was Takmos with Atom and Louisa in tow. The crowd parted and let him walk to the front.

“We can’t run from this,” said Farrow.

“You used to be one of my officers,” said Takmos. “You were a good man once.”

“I still am a good man.”

Takmos shook his head. “If you do this - if you kill those two - you will lose any shred of decency you once had.”

“They must pay. It’s the only way to repair the damage. To start the healing process.”

“Please, Farrow, listen to your commander,” said the Doctor.

“He’s not my commander anymore,” said Farrow.

He grabbed Stakran’s hair and lifted his head up. He drew his knife again and made a motion towards his neck.

There were gasps from the crowd.

And then chaos erupted. Takmos barked out an order and the Doctor couldn’t quite tell what was going on. He saw Farrow release Stakran and yell, running towards Takmos. From the back of the crowd a number of soldiers emerged, firing towards the rioters leader.

From behind them followers of Farrow emerged from the confines of the palace courtyard.

Stakran was knocked to the floor as people trampled over him. He managed to roll onto his back and move out of the way just as another wave of rioters emerged from the palace.

There were cries and screams and the sounds of laser fire and metal on metal.

The Doctor looked up to see if he could see Atom and Louisa, but it was like a huge, mass brawl with civilians trapped in the middle.

“We need to help them,” said the Doctor.

Stakran got to his feet. “We need to get out of here. Now! This place is lost.”

“We can’t just leave them. We did this. We need to put it right.”

“Something’s you can’t put right, Doctor,” said Stakran. “Jacarthia has fallen.”

The Doctor thought he caught a glimpse of Louisa’s hair somewhere in the crowd, his eyes frantically looking for her.

“Come on, Doctor,” said Stakran, heading to the crowd.

The Doctor made for the crowd, still searching for his two companions as a rioter landed next to him - dead. His eyes blank and unmoving.

Other people were falling now and somewhere outside of the town they could hear a low-pitched, ominous siren.

“Please don’t tell me that’s what I think it is,” said the Doctor, as they pushed past one of the town’s guards.

“It is,” said Stakran. “I had a feeling it’d come to this.”

“We need to find Louisa and Atom.”

“We need to get back to your TARDIS and get out of here before this town is sterilised.” Stakran pushed past and made for a stone building on the edge of the clearing.

“What are you doing?” asked the Doctor.

“Rescuing my councillors.”

“You have to be joking?” said the Doctor.

“They are innocents in all of this,” said Stakran, forcing a wooden door open and letting a number of older men and women out.

“So are the Jacarthians.”

“But they are a lost cause!” growled Stakran, pointing towards them.

It was as the Doctor followed Stakran’s finger to the crowd he caught a glimpse of Atom. He was being hoisted up by a group of rioters. If he hadn’t know better it would have looked like they were about to give him the birthday bumps.

The Doctor could hear Louisa from somewhere in the crowd screaming for them to stop.

Stakran held him back. “We need to go.”

“No!” said the Doctor, trying to break free. He needed to get to them. He would do anything to rescue them, even if it meant risking his own life.

“Please, Doctor,” said Stakran. “You’re the only one who can steer your ship. We need to leave before the sterilisation begins!”

“NO!” screamed the Doctor as he broke away and ran to the crowd.

He disappeared into the brawl just as he saw Atom’s chest ripped open by one of the rioters, wires and circuits pulled from his insides. He barged into the rioters and Atom fell to the ground with a thud. The Doctor dropped to his knees and knelt over Atom. His silver eyes looked up at the Doctor. He looked almost sad.

“Atom…”

“Save…Louisa…” said Atom, reaching a hand to the Doctor’s face and touching his cheek.

But it was too late. He saw Farrow above him and then felt something strike the top of his head. His vision turned blurry and he tipped and fell to his side.

The last thing he saw was an out of focus Louisa running towards him and the sky lighting up with bright, green light as the sirens continued to blare out…




He opened his eyes. It was quiet. It was almost peaceful. But something sounded wrong. There were no birds. No insects chirruping away.

Just the sound of deathly silence.

He felt his head. It was pounding and dried blood had trickled from the cut on his forehead onto the flagstones underneath him.

He felt weak. He felt dead himself.

He became aware of somebody standing behind him. He turned quickly and regretted it, his vision spinning before settling on Stakran, who stood over him, sadness on his face.

“What happened?” asked the Doctor, putting a hand to his cut.

“Jacarthia was sterilised,” said Stakran. “I managed to get myself and the councillors to your TARDIS just in time, but you weren’t so lucky.”

The Doctor suddenly realised what Stakran was saying and looked at his hands. They were glowing orange, splits of light threatening to erupt from them at any moment. He looked around him, there were bodies everywhere. Men, woman, children, rioters, guards, Farrow, Takmos…the ripped and dismantled body of Atom…

“You’re lucky you’re going to regenerate,” said Stakran. “The others weren’t so lucky. None of them were Time Lords.”

The Doctor closed his eyes. “I don’t want this. I don’t want to regenerate.”

“You have to,” said Stakran. “Life has to go on.”

His eyes continued to scan the bodies until they fixed on a white-dressed-figure. A beautiful, blonde girl, her hair dirty with mud and blood.

“Louisa,” he said, crawling over to her. He knelt over her and lifted her head.

“She’s gone, Doctor,” said Stakran. “If Gallifreyan’s couldn’t survive then there was no chance she would.”

“She should have been safe with me,” said the Doctor, cradling her head and closing her eyes. “This wasn’t what was supposed to have happened.”

“As I keep saying,” said Stakran. “We made the mistake. We have to accept it and move on.”

“I can’t move on from this,” said the Doctor. “She was supposed to be safe. We were so happy…”

“You have to.” Stakran knelt down beside him and put a hand on his arm. “We need to leave here. You’re going to regenerate and you need to be in the TARDIS when that happens.”

“Help me carry Louisa and Atom.”

“Doctor-”

“HELP ME!” he said, struggling to get to his feet.

“Okay,” said Stakran, nodding slowly. “Okay. Don’t worry. I’ll help.”

The two Time Lords made their way through the dead city, bodies strewn all over in the baking, afternoon sun, the Doctor carrying Louisa and Stakran carrying the remains of Atom. As they reached the friendly blue box of the TARDIS the Doctor turned to take one more look at the town, the white palace standing proud over the fallen city of Jacarthia, smoke rising from somewhere in it’s vicinity.

“I never should have come here,” said the Doctor. He looked back down at his hands. The regeneration was coming. He would be a new man. He would change.

“At least we’ll never come back again,” said Stakran.

“No,” said the Doctor. “I can never come back here - to Gallifrey - ever again.”

“What are you talking about, man?” said Stakran as he helped him through the doors.

“This town. This planet. These people. Gallifrey. The Time Lords. They’re dead to me. This place is just…nothing.” He looked down at Louisa again and leaned in to touch her cold forehead. “I’m so sorry, Louisa.” He leant forward and kissed her forehead. “Sleep well.”




A little while later the Doctor changed and he made himself forget and blocked out the pain.




But you can’t control the nightmares…

To be continued...