Sighting the Target

Author's Note: This fic is sort of a companion piece (joke somewhat intended) to the first chapter of my Tea and Cricket fic. It takes place in the same moment of episode one of Mawdryn Undead as that fic.

Also, while this will usually be a separate series of one-shots from the Tea and Cricket series, don't be surprised if there are more crossovers between the two fics in the future.

For the most part, Turlough was surprised at how easy it had been so far.

Although he could tell that this "Guardian" had vast powers, Turlough hadn't been sure how he would get back home without involving the Trions who had exiled him on Earth. However, after being led to the transmat capsule and given what he needed to operate it, he wondered why he had been so worried. The ship he had landed on was more than sufficient to get him home.

He thought about heading for Trion then and there, but then the Guardian appeared and reminded him of their agreement. No, he would have to wait for now. It would give him time to better acquaint himself with the controls.

And time to fulfill his end of their bargain.

Turlough wandered around the ship until he found a battered police box in a corner of the ship which the Guardian had told him was the Doctor's ship. It was absurd to disguise a spacetime craft as a relic from Earth. But perhaps it was a way to fob off curious Earthlings. Sensible, really. Earthlings did have an annoying tendency to stick their noses into everything.

Although why the Doctor continued to keep it in this ridiculous disguise while out in space was a mystery to Turlough.

Turlough shook his head and took a deep breath as he approached the blue box. There was no point in trying to fathom the Doctor's motives. The Doctor was an evil creature who needed to be destroyed. At least, that was what he had been told. Truthfully, Turlough had questions about why the Guardian wanted him to be the one to destroy the Doctor, but they were easy to dismiss. Perhaps the Guardian wanted to avoid the Doctor's wrath and take advantage of the element of surprise. Or perhaps he did not want to upset any allies the Doctor may have.

Those thoughts did make Turlough more than a little worried about what might happen to him whether he succeeded in killing the Doctor or not. Then again, he figured he could still maneuver around whatever might happen. If he was successful, then the Guardian could help him sneak back home before anyone could find him. If he wasn't…he could always offer the Doctor the name of the person who hired him in the first place as a way to curb any possible retribution for his actions.

Turlough slipped inside, blinking in surprise at what he saw. The dimensions inside were much larger than he had expected. Perhaps this was also part of the camouflage of the ship.

Instead of dwelling on that thought, he headed straight for the console in the center of the room. He was able to discern some of the basic functions of the controls, but could also see that this technology was far beyond anything that had existed on Trion. Still, with some time and a little instruction, he was confident that he could work them well enough to get to where he wanted to go.

Turlough was so caught up in his study of the controls, he barely noticed a figure dashing into the room and skidding over to the controls across from him. It had to be the Doctor. The assured way this person was manipulating the buttons at his fingertips told him that.

For a moment, Turlough hesitated. This was the person he had been assigned to kill. This was the most malevolent force in the universe. And it was this person's death that would give him his freedom.

He took another deep breath and slowly lifted his head. Turlough had seen evil before. On the battlefields of Trion, in the faces of soldiers who fought and killed not for a cause, but for the thrill of it. At the school he was now forced to attend, on the faces of boys who were well on their way toward a life spent scheming and preying on others. He might have even seen a glint of it start to form in his own eyes, but Turlough tried to avoid thinking about that as much as possible.

Drawing from that experience, he steeled himself to face the Doctor…and was even more surprised than when he walked into that police box.

'Is that…a cricketer's uniform? Yes…yes, it's older…like something I'd seen in a history book…but that must be what it is. And why is he wearing celery on his lapel?'

Turlough had to struggle to keep his mouth from falling open. While the unconventional attire the man in front of him had on was a shock, it was the Doctor's eyes that truly caught Turlough's attention. They were blue, like his, albeit much darker. And where he had expected anger, annoyance or suspicion, there was only….curiosity.

"Who are you?" a calm inquisitive voice asked him.

Turlough blinked again. British, from the sound of it and with a quiet, questioning tone that was a perfect match for the look in his eyes.

Turlough was dumbfounded. The Doctor was supposed to be this terrible, destructive entity. But that's not what Turlough saw in front of him. No, this was just a harmless eccentric. An eccentric who was probably wondering by now why Turlough hadn't answered his question.

"I'm Turlough, sir," he said, making sure to smile. "I'm terribly glad to find you here. I was starting to think I was all alone."

He held out his hand which the Doctor immediately shook.

"Hello Turlough," he said with a trace of a smile. "I'm the Doctor. And don't worry. You're certainly not alone. And you're quite safe here in the TARDIS, and…. And by the way, how did you happen to end up here?"

Turlough froze. He hadn't expected the Doctor to be so warm and welcoming. He had had a set of potential lies ready to use, but none of them would work with someone who appeared to be in such a pleasant state of mind.

He would have to improvise.

"I was walking on the grounds of my school with my friend," he answered. "And then suddenly, this large, grey capsule appeared. Hippo…that's my friend….he was scared and ran off to find the Headmaster."

"But you weren't afraid?" the Doctor inquired. Turlough let out a sound that was somewhere between a chuckle and a noise of surprise.

"Well, it did startle me," he replied. "But it didn't seem like something that would harm me in any way, so I moved closer to get a better look at it. A door opened and I was curious so I went inside."

Turlough studied the Doctor while he talked, searching for any signs of doubt. He didn't see any, but Turlough knew that that didn't mean he could let down his guard.

"I'd never seen anything like it," he continued to lie. "I saw what looked like controls and I couldn't stop myself from trying a couple out to see what would happen. Next thing I knew, I ended up on this ship. I wandered around and found this police box. Well, you can imagine how surprised I was to find all of this in it."

"Indeed," the Doctor nodded.

Turlough's face fell slightly. He still couldn't get a definite read on this Doctor. And if it was that hard to figure out whether or not the Doctor believed his story, how would he be able to insinuate himself enough so he'd have a clear chance at killing him?

His unease only increased a moment later when the Doctor gave him another wide grin.

"Well, I'm afraid we're all in a bit of a spot right now," the Doctor told him. "And I could use your help. If you're up for it."

"Certainly," Turlough said, somewhat stunned that his story had worked. "What do you need me to do?"

The Doctor smiled again. "Well, for starters, you can…."

"Doctor? Doctor, are you in there?"

Turlough turned to see a pair of women rush into the TARDIS. The shorter one with long, curly hair took a step toward the Doctor.

"Doctor, what is….?"

The Doctor held up a hand. "Please hold that thought for just a moment, Nyssa," he said. He turned toward Turlough again. "This is Nyssa and Tegan. And…I'll be back in a second."

The Doctor sprinted out of the room while the two women moved closer to him.

"Hello, I'm Nyssa."

"And I'm Tegan Jovanka," the woman with the shorter, spikier hair said, her arms crossed over her chest.

"I'm pleased to meet you," Turlough said, once again, making sure to smile and keep his voice pleasant. He was about to introduce himself when the Doctor marched back into the room, a black and white case in his hand.

"This is Turlough," the Doctor announced with yet another smile. Turlough bowed his head slightly, but was concerned when he noticed the apprehensive looks on their faces. Their wariness did not diminish one bit even as he tried to pass himself off as a teenaged school boy who was completely bewildered by what had happened. Tegan seemed especially distrustful.

Turlough worried that they would interfere with his plan when, suddenly, the Doctor provided just the opportunity he needed by announcing that he was going back to Earth alone in the transmat capsule.

"May I come with you?" Turlough asked him.

The Doctor looked slightly confused, but not the least bit bothered by what must have seemed like a strange request. "You'd be safer in the TARDIS."

"Please!" Turlough insisted, desperate for his plan to work.

"All right. Why not?" the Doctor said breezily. He turned toward his companions. "See you on Earth."

Turlough rushed after the Doctor. He supposed that he could try killing him while they were still on the spaceship now that they were away from the women, but it still seemed too risky.

Besides, something the Doctor said was bothering him.

'Why should he care if it's safer for me on the TARDIS or not? He doesn't even know me. And, clearly, he has other important things distracting him. So why does he bother?'

Turlough felt an uncomfortable twinge deep inside. Throughout his exile on Earth, he had done everything he could to avoid being noticed. He didn't want the attention of Earthlings with their rudimentary knowledge and backward cultures. He kept to the fringes of life, only making himself noticed when he grew so bored, he could no longer stand it.

Most of all though, he was determined to avoid the pity and superficial concern he always got when they found out that he had no family and no connections to anyone other than the odd solicitor who kept track of him, a Trion agent who was in charge of monitoring his exile. They only showed care because it was their duty to or so they would be considered "good" by others in their society. It was easy to see that.

But Turlough knew that the tiny display of concern the Doctor had shown him was not that. The Doctor actually seemed to care if something untoward happened to him. And Turlough hated it. He hated that he'd been noticed. It would be so much easier to carry out this assassination if he wasn't. He hated the brief, wistful ache he had felt over the thought of someone looking after him out of compassion rather than obligation.

Far more than that though, Turlough hated the doubts that had been planted in his mind. Doubts that the Doctor was a monster who deserved to be murdered. Doubts that he'd be able to go through with killing him.

The doubts continued to worm their way into Turlough while he waited for the Doctor to send the transmat to Earth. He struggled to push them aside as he prepared himself to complete his mission. He wanted…no, needed to escape. When he had told the Guardian that he didn't entirely care if he lived if it meant staying on Earth, he had meant every word of it. If there was a chance, any chance of returning home to Trion, he had to take it. Even if he would only have a few moments to breathe its air and gaze upon the glorious sky he grew up under before he was executed for his crimes. It would still be worth it.

And that meant that the Doctor had to die.

Turlough glanced over at the energetic, friendly man who was only a couple feet away from him. He would make it quick. Quick and without warning. He didn't really know the Doctor, but Turlough was still certain that the Doctor did not deserve to suffer. Besides, he had never developed a taste for that kind of killing, not even when he was enmeshed in bitter combat with his family's enemies on Trion.

Turlough clenched his hands. He knew what he had to do. He just wasn't sure if his resolve to go through with it would last long enough to succeed.