An Assignment of a Time Traveler

The poisonous mist was swirling across the rocky battlefield with some sparse vegetation. A man with a tin helmet and a gas mask was moving forward enemy lines. He wasn't alone, there were two more soldiers with similar equipment. They were tired of this war like everyone else and yet their nationalism and pride were still alive moving them forward like the need for human flesh keeps a zombie alive. They appeared behind a ridge and were promptly shot down by machine gun fire. They found piece and were free from horrors that were to come.

Little farther away the Doctor appeared. He was looking around and trying to keep warm. There is no one to be seen. He had no idea where he was, no memory of how he got here. The air was to polluted with chemicals, slight radiation and what not. It was impossible to determent the planet by the taste or smell of the atmosphere. All the Doctor knew was that this was I very messy war. And there is a messy war in practically every planet's history.

Suddenly, a Timelord appeared, wearing some silly clothes.

„Ah. Welcome, Doctor.", he said.

„What's going on?" asked the Doctor, putting pieces together, sort of. „Don't you realise how dangerous it is to intercept a transmat beam?"

„Oh come, Doctor, not with our techniques. We Time Lords transcended such simple mechanical devices when the universe was less than half its present size.". He wasn't sure if the Doctor seeked arguments or really didn't understand some of timelord technology. He was away from Galifrey for quite a while.

„Look, whatever I've done for you in the past, I've more than made up for. I will not tolerate this continual interference in my life.", the time traveler remembered his not so happy days of being an unoficial agent for the Timelords and then being forced to regenerate and to stay on earth.

„Continual?" he started walking nervously „We pride ourselves we seldom interfere in the affairs of others."

„Except mine."

„You, Doctor, are a special case. You enjoy the freedom we allow you. In return, occasionally, not continually, we ask you to do something for us."

„I won't do it. Whatever it is, I refuse."

„Numahs."

„Numahs?" Timelords have a way of convincing people now don't they „Tell me more."

He faced the Doctor again „We foresee a time when they will have destroyed all other lifeforms and become the dominant creature in the universe."

„That's possible. Tell on."

„We'd like you to return to Earth at a point in time before the Numahs evolved."

No, he couldn't. Could he? You can't change history, not one line. And Timelords mustn't interfere. They could make a paradox machine but that's just wrong. Could the Numahs be such a threat to the oldest civilization in the universe? „Do you mean avert their creation?"

„Or affect their genetic development so that they evolve into less aggressive creatures."

„Hmm. That's feasible.", but risky, he thought.

„Alternatively, if you learn enough about their very beginnings, you might discover some inherent weakness."

„All right, just one more time."

„You'll do it?"

„Yes. If you'll let me have the space time coordinates, I'll set the TARDIS for Earth."

„There's no need for that, Doctor."

„Huh?"

„You're here. This is Earth."

„What?"

„We thought it would save time if we assumed your agreement." He held up a gold bangle with a three-ended swirl on it.

„What's this?"

„Be careful not to lose it. That Time Ring is your lifeline. Good luck, Doctor."

„Just a moment."

But he has already vanished.

„Don't just disappear! That's my thing! What about Sarah and Harry?

The Doctor put the Time Ring on his left wrist and moved on. A million questions popped up in his mind. Are his companions safe in the TARDIS or in a middle of a war. Are they worried? And what to do about the Numahs?