"Come and let me have a look at you. My, haven't you grown? You want a story don't you? Did I ever tell you about the time I was your age and Velacon Prime was being attacked? As I said, I was only young back then, certainly too young to know what was really going on. I can remember the adults were shouting a lot and some of them seemed very sad. The teachers at my school bundled me and my friends into a big rocket and said we were going on a big adventure. They told us it was going to be difficult and we all had to be on our best behaviour. The rocket made a very loud noise and my ears hurt a lot. Later I found out it was due to air pressure but at the time we were so terrified."


"Delta Sigma Five requesting flight clearance." The pilot shouted into his microphone. He was answered in loud static. "To hell with orders, I'm going now." He pressed the launch button and entered his authorisation code. "Easy now big girl." He patted the chair arm as the automatic systems put his ship into orbit. He took this opportunity to glance out of a side portal and for the first time he saw the devastation being wrought upon his world. There were craters where there had once been homes. Flames where there had once been forests. Bodies where there had once been people. A small ship veered off and turned directly towards him. The pilot tried to override the automatics but the system was locked. "Mayday mayday! This is Delta Sigma Five. We have priority clearance. We have over four hundred children on board, for gods sake! Someone help us before it's too late."
"Roger that Delta Sigma Five, this is Kappa Ro Two. Stay tight."
The pilot watched on as a small cargo freighter turned sharply into the path of the attacking ship allowing it to ram into it. The pilot muttered a prayer of thanks as his ship eased into orbit for the second stage. It was then that a stray energy bolt caught his ship in the aft drive section.


"I can still remember seeing the blue box appear as clear as I can see the trees over there or the birds circling in the sky. At first we thought it was something bad but a nice lady stepped out of it and smiled at us, at me. She told us we would be quite safe and that she was here to fix our ship. She had two friends with her a boy and a girl. They took care of us and played games with us while the lady talked to the man who flew the rocket."


"Hello, I'm the Doctor. I believe I can help you repair the ship." The Doctor extended an expertly manicured hand.
"Who are you? How did you get on my ship?"
"I'm the Doctor and there isn't time to play interrogation. You're leaking drive fuel and unless you can steer this antiquated crate and carry out the repair, I suggest you thank me for my assistance and tell me where the space suits are."
The pilot stared at the strange woman for a second before giving her the benefit of the doubt. "The suits are in the storage locker over there." He pointed at a slender steel cabinet. "There may be one that'll fit you."
"Not a problem, I'm sorry I didn't get your name." The Doctor took out the space suit that was nearest her size.
"Ferriu, Kol Ferriu." Ferriu turned away for a second to check the orbital compensators.
"Well Captain Ferriu I'd better get busy." The Doctor checked the seals on her space suit.
"How did you get dressed so fast?" Ferriu gasped. Normally it took a trained pilot two to three minutes.
"Practice." The Doctor left to get on with the repairs.


"When I next saw the lady she was wearing different clothes and a helmet. The helmet hid her pretty hair, which didn't seem right somehow. I liked it better when she had her hair on display. She talked to the others for a few minutes. They seemed upset about something but didn't say anything and we returned to our games."


The pilot watched the Doctor at work. True she seemed to know what she was doing, although some of the repairs seemed a little unfamiliar. "You've bypassed the coolant circuit Doctor." He spoke into her suit's intercom.
"I've had to improvise a bit and I'm upgrading the whole thing on the fly but I think we'll have something pretty special by the time this is through."
"Okay Doctor, just say if you need anything." Ferriu switched the intercom off. He checked the proximity scanner, there was another ship bearing down on them.


"I remember screaming very loudly when the rockets lights went out. It was so sudden but then some different lights come on and these ones were red, my favourite colour back then."


"Doctor, we've been hit. Shrapnel has struck me. The whole cabin has been depressurised. I'm in the other suit but it's been holed and there's blood, my blood everywhere. I, I can't think straight. I've set the navigation computer to take us to the rendezvous point but we can't go anywhere until you've completed the repairs." Ferriu felt faint and his fingers slipped off the intercom button.
"Hello? Hello? I'll be there as soon as I can." The Doctor made the final connection to the
Ships drive and patted it. "I just hope it works."


"Well when the lady returned from the back of the rocket she was covered in dirt. We all laughed at how mucky she was and she smiled a very nice smile. Then she went to see the rockets pilot. I felt uneasy as she closed our door first. Of course later I discovered it was an airlock but at the time I felt something wasn't quite right. We continued to play games and sing songs for hours; we had great fun."


"Hello, hello. This is the Doctor. I'm on a ship full of children. The pilot is dead and the drive has been patched up after some severe damage."
"Hello Doctor, this is Guifold Base. We have you on our sensors. We have accessed your ships flight recorder and are aware of your situation."
"Do you know who attacked your planet? I was passing by the area when I saw it happen. I'm sorry I couldn't do anymore to help."
"Thank you for your help Doctor. All we have is a name, the Hacx."
"The Hacx? I've encountered them before in several of my pervious lives. Very nasty people. They're totally xenophobic you know. Well as much as I would like to chat I have a ship to land, the automatics are out you see."
"We are aware of that. You are cleared for bay seven. We will have full A and E teams standing by. Guifold Base out."


"I felt a slight jolt and a few seconds later the nice lady returned. She told us that the rocket had landed and some people would be here shortly to make sure we are seen to. Then she went into her box again with her friends and the box vanished. We were upset at first but then some nice people came in and gave us sweets. Later on I was reunited with one of my aunts and she told me that my parents and brother had been killed in the attacks. I told a government lady about the box and the people who lived in it, we all did I guess. She smiled and said that I should try and forget all the bad things that had happened. I still remember the nice lady or the Doctor as she came to be known. Every year we get together and toast her memory and the memory of her two friends. One day we hope she will return and visit us. Yes you sleep now little one it's been a long day. Dream now of simple fun and never know the tears of sadness in my eyes."