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A light shining, bright, piercing. A voice whispering. The pain
gone, the agony no more. A question needing to be asked. WHO AM I?
"How are you Doctor?" David looked concerned
at the Doctor, her mascara still streaking her cheeks.
"Better; thanks for asking. I knew for several lifetimes but seeing
it like that, it was so personal and intense."
"Drink this." Claire passed a cup of tea to her friend. "I made it myself
so don't expect too much from it."
"Mmmm, delicious Claire. Thank you."
"Where to now? Disneyworld?"
"Somewhere better,
Dizneyplanet, used to be called Strawberry Fields until it was taken over by the Dizney Empire."
"A whole planet of entertainment?"
David's jaw would have hit the floor if it weren't biologically impossible.
Something metal came into view. What
was it? Red lights burned into eyes. More voices whispering, muffled, distant.
The Doctor locked the TARDIS doors
once they had emerged. "Don't wander off, here's some money to buy some treats." Ten seconds later they had vanished from
her view.
"How quickly they grow; like flames, short lived but burning so brightly. Hmmm how much for the pink rabbit?"
She fancied her chances, three darts to score only one hundred and one. Two seconds later she was carrying the five-foot high
rabbit back to the TARDIS to keep it safe.
Sounds pulsed, high, low, lower, and painfully high. More whispers,
louder this time. Almost make the words out.
"Come on Claire, let's try this one." David pointed towards the largest
roller coaster. "The maximum looks pretty cool."
Claire looked up at the large ride. "Some of those loops go outside the
atmosphere."
"Yeah, cool eh? Pressurised capsules of course, imagine how it must feel." His grin was so wide it was in
need of a danger sign.
"We don't have to, lets get the tickets. I have some spare tokens."
"Cool, did I ever mention
you're my favourite sister?"
"No, but you can appreciate and worship me afterwards."
Strange thoughts, impulses.
Aggression, hate, power. Must fight them, stop them somehow.
Wherever she wandered to the Doctor kept finding herself
drawn to the same small red and white stripy hut. "I really don't need my palm reading. If anyone knows about the future,
it's me. Oh it can't hurt though. Hello, anyone in here?"
"Come in, Doctor."
As she entered a thought suddenly struck
her. "How do you know my name?" She was inside someone else's TARDIS. "Anyone I know?"
"I doubt it Doctor. My name is unimportant."
"Hello
Unimportant, I'm the Doctor but you seem to know that already."
"They said you could be difficult."
"Well They say a
lot of things don't They?"
"They do indeed. However They also said to say it was necessary."
"What was necessary?"
"The
trauma they had to put you through, the death of your friend."
"The Brigadier? They caused that?"
"Calm down Doctor,
anger doesn't become this incarnation of yourself."
"Anger? I'll show you anger. They had no right, no right at all." She
slammed her fists down on the console. "Damn now I've broken a nail. He was my friend damn you, one of the few really close
friends I've ever made in my lives. Why did they condemn him to death?"
"There was an incident, he was infected by a potent
and powerful entity. They're trying to analyse it now."
"They've taken his body? Desecrated it? This has to stop, now.
Take me to Them; if you don't then I'll destroy this TARDIS and you along with it. It won't be pretty and it won't be instant."
"Okay,
okay. They anticipated your reaction. The co-ordinates are all keyed in, just dematerialise."
She was about to press the
relevant buttons when she had an idea. "Is this a trap?" She took out a small length of plastic from her left boot and used
it to press the final button, the end of it melted. "Very sloppy, but we're going somewhere."
"They said you were clever,
perhaps too clever."
"Flattery will buy you a few more minutes."
The hijacked TARDIS materialised in the form
of a dark green column set into one of the Panopticon's walls.
The Doctor emerged cautiously and looked around. "Back home
so soon, well I suppose they'll have nice reception arranged for me." Ten Chancellery Guards entered the Panopticon with their
stasers drawn. "Or maybe not." She put her hands up.
"Put those stasers away. The Doctor is always welcome here." Cardinal
Dynami rushed over.
"Dynami, you look well."
"I've just been informed by the High Council. I'm so sorry. If you follow
me, I'll take you to him."
There was a new pain, not the old burning in the chest. Something moving, squirming
inside. Teeth, claws, spines. It was of the body but not part of the body. Then there was a face, long blonde hair, smile,
and those eyes. Familiar, different, memories…Doctor!
"I just can't let you out of my sight can I Alistair?"
"How
did I get here?"
"They transported your body after you died. Our medical technology specialises in tissue regeneration,
even though we can change ourselves we cling to our lives like limpets on a rock. I thought it was a heart attack, but there's
something, something growing inside of you. A parasite of some sort."
"Oh well, you'd better tell Doris. Don't want her to be upset if I'm going to make it."
"That's the problem, this is a new species. We don't know
what it is never mind knowing how to remove it."
"Oh, well I've faced worse."
"Stop being so bloody brave about it Alistair.
This is serious."
"I know Doctor but I expect you to sort the problem out by tea time."
"I'll do my best, I promise."
"Well
then there's no reason to worry is there?"
"Of course not, oh it's moving again."
"Something's wrong, your stomach is
swelling up."
"Probably gas, Doctor."
The Brigadier's primordial yell of pain shocked the Doctor. "It's emerging! Grab
it."
A Chancellery guard grabbed the purple and green creature in his gloved hands. "Got it."
It was mainly a worm-like
creature but with two small arms tipped with three-inch talons. It opened its mouth and screamed. Its mouth was full of serrated
teeth, which it used to bite the guard.
The guard yelled and threw the creature to the floor. He drew his staser and fired
a stun blast at it. "This will calm you down."
Checking over the Brigadier the Doctor tried frantically to staunch the
bleeding. "Help me please, I think he's dying."
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