UNIT: X (Chapter 12)

Chapter 12 (The Settling Dust)

The sun was rising in the morning sky as Holly sat on a bench watching the bulldozers that had moved into the town to clear away the remains of the town hall. Faith had returned to the school along with Oliver and a hand-cuffed Taggart who looked completely and utterly broken. She couldn’t help but feel sorry for her.

Beth came and sat down beside Holly on the bench.

“Why didn’t you go back with the others?” asked Holly.

“Because you didn’t go back,” said Beth. “I thought you could have done with some company.”

“Thanks, Beth,” said Holly, smiling weakly. “It’s just so unfair, isn’t it?”

“You mean what happened to your friend, Richard?” asked Beth.

Holly nodded. “His family thought he was dead, but he wasn’t. And then when he decides to come back to put things right he gets killed anyway. I mean I didn’t really know him too well, but he was a good man. A family man.”

Beth smiled sadly at her. “I never met him, but he seemed like a good guy.” She shook her head. “And how are you feeling? I still feel bad for slapping you.”

Holly laughed. “Don’t be sorry. It was my own, stupid fault. I knew that wasn’t the real Lilly, I just couldn’t stop myself. I miss her a lot.”

“But you’ll get back to her, yeah?”

“Eventually, yes, but...well, I don’t know. I was happy when it was the Doctor, Lilly and I travelling in the TARDIS. I was willing to give up everything for her. I’m worried that we won’t be the same again.”

Beth smiled. “It sounds to me like you really do care for her.”

Holly nodded. “I’ve never felt this way about anyone before. I’ve always been a bit of a loner I guess. I’ve had boyfriends, but never anything serious. And then Lilly just came along and changed how I feel about everything.”

Beth put her arm around her and gave her a comforting hug. “You need to follow your dreams, Holly. Life is too short for wasting it. If you want something you have to go for it.”

Holly nodded and smiled at Beth.

“Excuse me?” came a voice from behind them. “Hello?”

Beth and Holly turned around to see where the voice was coming from. Standing there, covered in ash and dirt and brick dust was Richard. He had a large cut on his forehead and looked disorientated, but he was alive.

“Richard!” said Holly, leaping up, vaulting over the back of the bench and giving him a hug. “We thought you were dead.”

“I don’t know what happened. I was trapped in some weird dimension and that thing was chasing me, but it was distracted and then...poof! There was a flash and I was crawling through rubble. I managed to pull myself through a door and climbed out from under the library.”

“The library?” said Beth.

Holly smiled. “During World War Two a lot of the bigger buildings in the town had linking corridors and tunnels built underneath the roads. It was somewhere for the councillors and the important people to go and meet up in case of a disaster.”

“Looks like you got out of that basement just in time,” said Beth, smiling.

“Did you see anyone else?” asked Holly, remembering the number of people that had gone missing in the town.

“No,” said Richard. “No, I’m sorry. There was nobody else.” He winced and put a hand to his cut. “Now, if you don’t mind, ladies, I’d like to get into a hot bath and finally – finally – see my family again.”



“Well,” said the Doctor, dipping a custard cream into his cup of tea, “it could have been handled better.”

“Well, unfortunately, Doctor,” said Stark, taking the packet of biscuits away from him, “we didn’t know we had a traitor in our midst.”

“My point exactly,” said the Doctor, finishing the biscuit. “You need to tighten up your operation.”

“Says the man who didn’t know he had a box containing the First Time Lord. The Time Lord Slayer!”

“Be fair. I wasn’t to know,” said the Doctor. “But, at least the situation was dealt with. Both of our situations, that is.”

“Yes,” said Stark, “Miss Taggart will be going away for a very long while.”

The Doctor looked sad. “Go easy on her, Roger. We all do things we shouldn’t. It’s a part of growing and learning. She will have to face the consequences, but she may learn from it.”

“Nobody else that went missing made it out alive from that creature, Doctor. She has those deaths on her hands. She will not see freedom for a very, very long time.”

The Doctor finished the last of his tea as Stark walked away. The school was already clearing out and people were beginning to return to the town. It would soon be time for Holly and him to depart, but first there was something else that had to be done.



Richard was standing outside his house. He’d had a shower, was clean shaven and was pacing up and down on the spot nervously. It had been a few hours since he’d crawled out of the rubble. The Doctor and Holly had filled him in on everything that had happened, but that wasn’t what he was interested in. All he wanted was to see them again. To see his family again.

“It’ll be fine, Richard,” said Holly, smiling at him.

“I just...I just don’t know what I’m gonna say.”

“It’ll come to you. Faith got in touch with them for you and broke the news. The hard part is over.”

“But that guy she was with. Toby. Toby Gilchrist.”

“Just friends,” said Holly. “Friends who both lost loved ones.”

Richard nervously blew out air and shook his head. “I’m so scared.”

“Richard,” said the Doctor, grabbing his head and looking into his eyes. “You will be fine.”

Richard smiled and then hugged the Doctor tightly. “I’m gonna miss you guys.” He broke away and hugged Holly. “As bad as it was being pretend-dead, I’m glad I got to spend it doing what I did. Flying lizard men and jungle creatures and spaceships buried under woodland. You’ve shown me some wonders, Doctor.”

“All part of the service,” smiled the Doctor.

The three of them turned their heads as a taxi pulled around the corner and turned into the street.

“Oh, God,” said Richard, fidgeting with the sleeves of his jumper.

“We’ll see you around, Richard,” said the Doctor, clapping him on his back.

But Richard wasn’t listening now. All he could focus on was the taxi as it came closer and closer. The Doctor took Holly’s hand and guided her away as she wiped away a tear, smiling at the reunion that was about to happen.

The taxi pulled up and the door opened. Cheryl Hicks stepped out and stared at Richard, her face a look of disbelief. Richard’s eyes welled up and he smiled as his two children clambered out of the taxi.

And then, without another word, Cheryl threw her arms around her long-lost husband, and they embraced and hugged for what seemed like an eternity. And then his children ran to him and hugged him around his waist. Richard picked up Mollie and kissed her on the top of her head.

He turned to look at the Doctor at the end of the street. “Thank you,” he said.

The Doctor smiled, gave a very slight salute and then turned the corner with Holly.

Richard continued to hold his wife for a long, long time. It was over. He had his life back, and he’d never let go of it again.



Claire Taggart was sat behind the glass screen in blue overalls. Either side of her were two armed guards. Faith was sat down at the table on the other side of the glass.

“Hi, Faith,” said Taggart, weakly.

“I came to say goodbye,” said Faith. “You won’t be seeing any of us again.”

“Faith, you have to understand why I did it,” said Taggart, tears in her eyes.

“I can understand why you would want to do it. What I can’t understand how you could do it. You betrayed all of us. You got over two dozen people killed. I can’t forgive you for that. We’re meant to be a team.”

“We were a team,” said Taggart, “but family comes first.”

“Yeah,” said Faith, getting up from the table. “I thought we were a family as well.”

“I’m sorry,” said Taggart as Faith walked out of the room. “I truly am.”



The Doctor and Holly were standing at the exit to the school car park. The rest of the UNIT vehicles had moved out already and all that was left was the core of the team.

“What next for you then, Mrs Crossland?” asked the Doctor, as she finished loading up the landrover.

“A bit of leave I think,” said Faith, hands in her pockets. “I fancy going back to Australia for a bit. See my daughter. Try and make things work.”

“Sounds like a good idea,” said Holly.

“And don’t forget – there’s a spot for you on the TARDIS.”

Faith smiled. “It’s a lovely offer, Doctor, but I’ve seen how much family means to people. I need to concentrate on that right now. My little girl, my family here. And my team.”

The Doctor nodded. “Can’t argue with that.”

The rest of the team emerged from the building and Holly said her goodbyes to each of them. “Thanks for everything, Beth,” she said to the young woman.

“It’s a pleasure, Holly,” said Beth. “Live for the moment.” She smiled and then had a thought and turned to Alistair. “Fancy going for a drink when we get back to HQ?”

“Um,” said Alistair, feeling flustered.

“Just say yes, Mr Benton,” smiled the Doctor.

“Yes,” said Alistair.

“Great,” said Beth. “Live for the moment.”

Osborne gave the Doctor and Holly a wave as they loaded up the last of the equipment. Then they watched as Faith clambered into the drivers since, blew the Doctor a kiss and then drove out of the car park.

“Off they go,” said the Doctor. “Off to save the world. It couldn’t be in safer hands.”

“Doctor,” said Holly, as they walked arm in arm away from the school. “I was wondering – could we go back and see Lilly.”

“So soon?” asked the Doctor, frowning.

“I really need to, Doctor.” She looked up at him. “I need her. More than I can even explain.”

The Doctor nodded. “Come on then, Dangerfield, let’s get your girl back.”



Later



“I beg your pardon?” asked Stark, as he supped from his whiskey glass.

“I want to look more into this Time Lord Slayer legend,” said Reikon, his arms folded. “Please.”

“But the siege mode TARDIS is with the Doctor.”

“The casket isn’t though,” said Reikon, raising his eyebrows.

“I beg your pardon?”

“When he was finalising his passkey and putting in security measures I had the casket removed. Relax. It’s in storage. It’s secure.”

“So he’s just carrying around an empty siege-mode TARDIS?”

Reikon nodded.

“He’ll go bananas at you.”

“He may well do, but I have to get some answers. I need to know more about it.”

Stark breathed out heavily and reclined in his chair. “Very well, Reikon. Purely for research sake I’ll give you the funding, but the moment anything goes wrong I pull the plug.”

“Agreed,” said Reikon, smiling and helping himself to a drink.

There was a knock on the door and a UNIT soldier entered with a dark-skinned man in a long, black coat.

“Can I help you, Private?”

“Sir, this gentleman says he was sent by the Doctor. Said there might be a job opportunity opening up?”

“We are a person down,” said Stark. “And the Doctor sent you?”

“Yeah,” he said. He had a deep London accent. “I went travelling for a bit and then thought I better get myself together. I used to travel with the Doc for a bit so I know about how the universe works.” He smiled nervously.

“Hmm,” said Stark, getting up from his seat. “And your name is?”

“Maxus. Quinn Maxus.”

“Well, it may be early days, Mr Maxus, but I think we may have a place for you. Welcome to UNIT:X”



The End

THE UNIT: X TEAM WILL RETURN IN "THE FIRST TIME LORD".