Doctor Who
The Brigadier's
Final March
Author's Note: The following story was written over a period of a few days, following the death of Nicholas Courtney. As a Revived Series fan, I must admit I'm not completely familiar with the Brigadier's character, but know him to be an important one in Doctor Who's history. As such, I dedicate this story to his memory and hope that you enjoy it.
The Tardis seemed to tumble through the Time Vortex, shuddering and bumping as it travelled along. Inside the control room, its Gallifreyan pilot and his Human companions struggled to stay on their feet, though you'd never have known from the smile on the Doctor's face.
"How can he possibly be enjoying this?" Amy thought
Just then, and still as bizarrely as the first time as Amy had heard it, the Tardis' phone began to ring. The Doctor reached up with one hand, whilst hanging on for dear life with the other.
"Hi, hello, bonjour and Ro Fo Ko. Judoon aren't known for saying hello, you know, so that was special" the Doctor started "ah Sarah Jane…what?"
The Doctor's voice had suddenly taken on a very serious tone and he slammed on the hand brake. Amy squealed in surprise, as both she and Rory nearly lost their balance. The Doctor, meanwhile, stood as steady as a rock.
"When did this happen?…I'll be right there" he said, hanging up the phone and immediately manoeuvred his way round the centre console, before releasing the hand brake.
"Doctor, what's happened?" Amy asked
"That was Sarah Jane, she used to travel with me, she rang to tell me one of my dearest friends has passed away" the Doctor said
"I'm sorry" Amy replied
"Yes, well, that's what humans do, isn't it?…whether you mean to or not, you can always count on humans to die" the Doctor said, so coldly that it shook Amy slightly. Suddenly, the mood in the Tardis had changed so very much.
The Doctor looked up at the central column, seeming to will the Tardis to fly faster, before pushing himself away and heading off into the Tardis, leaving Rory and Amy slightly bewildered.
In her loft in Bannerman Road, Sarah Jane Smith was waiting for him. She knew the 11th incarnation of the Doctor had some problems piloting the Tardis to precise moments in time and prayed he wouldn't turn up a month late.
Perhaps inspired by the events, however, it wasn't long before the distinctive sound of the engines permeated the attic and the Tardis slowly materialised in front of her.
The doors squeaked open slowly and the Doctor stepped out, dressed in a black suit and white shirt, his hair roughly swept back on his head as usual.
"Your carriage awaits" the Doctor smiled humourlessly, offering his hand to help Sarah Jane into his Tardis. She returned the smile and stepped inside.
Despite the sombre occasion, the sight of the inside of the Tardis seemed to bring an indefinable sparkle to Sarah Jane's eyes as she climbed the few steps to the centre console.
"You must be Amy and Rory, the Doctor mentioned you" Sarah Jane said
The greeting was more subdued that it would normally have been, under the circumstances.
"So are you coming to the funeral?"
"The Doctor didn't ask me" Amy replied
"Why not?" Sarah Jane called
"Because she didn't know him" the Doctor replied
"Oh, you have to let her go Doctor, it's what he would have wanted" Sarah Jane said
"And we know that, do we?…how do we know that?" the Doctor asked, abrasively
His tone of voice caused a silence to fall over the Tardis. The Doctor tried to ignore this, walking around the centre console, adjusting things here and there, before finally….
"Oh alright then Pond, go and get changed" the Doctor sighed
Sarah Jane gave Amy a reassuring smile and nodded, so she slowly left the room to get changed into something more appropriate for the occasion.
By the time she got back, the Tardis has long since landed at the church and both the Doctor and Sarah Jane were waiting for her. She'd changed into a black dress that stopped around the knee.
"I won't be long" Amy said, kissing Rory
"I'll just…wait here then" Rory replied, as the other three descended the steps to the doors.
They slowly approached the church. Senior officers of UNIT were standing outside and stood out like sore thumbs in the peaceful, civilian surroundings of the church, despite not displaying the distinctive red berets of lower ranks.
At the heavy, wooden doors of the church, the Doctor stopped.
"You're not coming in?" Sarah Jane asked
"No, I've never been good with churches, all that sitting very still and being very quiet" the Doctor replied
Sarah Jane smiled, placed her hand on the Doctor's forearm and then entered the church.
Amy didn't follow, instead standing just behind the Doctor.
"You can go in if you want" he said
"No, I'm fine" Amy replied
"Listen…Amelia, I'm sorry, for how I spoke to you earlier"
"It's ok"
"No, ok is what it wasn't"
"No, really, everyone is entitled to be upset when someone dies, even Time Lords in big blue boxes" Amy smiled
The Doctor couldn't help but smile back.
"So who was he?" Amy asked, as tactfully as she could
"His name was Sir Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart…the Brigadier"
"That's quite a name"
"I seem to attract people with interesting names, Amelia Pond. Anyway, the Brigadier was the head of UNIT in Britain when I first met him …many lifetimes ago. The Cybermen were trying to invade and conquer the Earth and we worked together to eventually stop them"
"Wow"
"We had quite a few adventures over the years, me and the old Brig. Oh we had our differences occasionally but he was a good man, a good friend"
"But you can travel in time, can't you just go back and see him when he was alive?"
"I could, but no. All those people sitting in there are saying a final goodbye to him, it's sad but it's so special, so human…Just because I can do something, doesn't mean I should"
Amy nodded, but didn't speak.
"It's the curse of a Time Lord. I've met so many brilliant humans in my time, always knowing they'll die and I'll live on. It's what you do, humans, you decay, you age and you wither away and then you die and I have to watch, except I don't"
"What do you mean?"
"I run Amelia, I abandon you so I don't have to see it, I jump in the Tardis and I fly to the ends of time and space with a smile on my face and I try and forget you, because even if you make it to a hundred and twenty, even then…in the eyes of a Time Lord, humans die as children"
"Wow" Amy breathed, this time for an altogether different reason.
The Doctor and Amy finally decided to step inside the church and listen to the rest of the service, albeit while stood inconspicuously at the back.
After the service, the mourners, the representatives of UNIT, Sarah Jane, Amy and the Doctor proceeded outside and stood around the Brigadier's grave.
"You ok Doctor?" Amy asked
"I'm always ok" the Doctor attempted to smile, but only half succeeded
"Doctor?…it's an honour to meet you Sir" one of the UNIT representatives said, turning towards him and instantly saluting, something the other UNIT personnel repeated.
"Oh stop it!" the Doctor said, raising his voice in irritation "don't salute me, if you should be saluting anyone, it should be him" he added, pointing at the Brigadier's grave.
"Of course Sir" the UNIT rep replied, before each of them turned on the spot and raised a salute to the Brigadier.
Shaking his head, the Doctor lead Amy and Sarah Jane back to the Tardis. Birds in the trees surrounding the church flew from their perches as the sound of the Tardis engines cried out, temporarily disturbing the peace before all fell silent again.
Minutes later, Mr. Smith announced the Tardis' arrival as it began to materialise in Sarah Jane's attic.
"Tardis materialising"
When the doors finally squeaked open, Sarah Jane and the Doctor stepped out. The service and funeral had affected her and tears dripped intermittently from her eyes.
"Oh, look at me, being silly"
The Doctor smiled and pulled a tissue from his jacket pocket.
"No, you're being Sarah Jane"
Sarah Jane smiled and wiped her tears away.
"So you're off then, back to the stars?"
"Eventually, I have one more trip to make. Amelia made a good point back at the church, she has an irritating way of doing that"
Sarah Jane laughed, as the Doctor stepped back inside the Tardis.
"Until next time, Sarah Jane Smith"
"Until next time, Doctor"
The Doctor closed the door and the Tardis engines sounded, as the large blue box faded out of the room.
"So…where are we off to next?" Amy asked brightly
"We have to make a slight detour, I hear an old friend of mine is in need of a Doctor" the Doctor replied, provoking a knowing smile from Amy.
Only minutes later, the Tardis materialised somewhere in Peru, outside a large, whitewashed house.
Instinctively knowing he was in the right place, the Doctor hurried out of the Tardis, Amy hot on his heels as Rory stood at the door, confused.
Using his Sonic Screwdriver to unlock the front door before he reached it, the Doctor ploughed through and up the stairs.
A Carer was just coming out of the Brigadier's room, carefully closing the door as the Doctor and Amy approached them.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, who are you?" the Carer asked
"I'm the Doctor, this is Amy" the Doctor replied
"I'm sorry young man, but I think it's too late for a doctor to be of any help"
"He hasn't seen me yet" the Doctor winked, gently pushing past her
"Sorry" Amy said, passing her as the Carer went to protest
The Doctor sat down on a wooden chair next to the old man's bed. Inside, the urge to turn straight back round and run was strong. The man in the bed was not the strong, determined man he'd known, rather he was a man rapidly reaching the end of his life.
"Brigadier" the Doctor said
The Brigadier seemed to stir slightly
"Brigadier, it's the Doctor"
"Doctor?"
"Hello old friend" the Doctor smiled
Some semblance of a smile appeared on the old man's lips.
"I'd hoped I'd get to see you once more before the end"
"I have been having a bit of trouble with lateness actually"
The Brigadier managed a small laugh
"The Time Lord that can't keep the time"
"I didn't say I couldn't, it's a Type 40 Tardis, you have to allow for mistakes"
Things began to take a much more serious tone.
"Doctor, you've seen time and space, tens of thousands of worlds, answer me this…is this all there is?"
"I don't know"
"You can be honest with me, Doctor, I've never managed to stop you before"
"Honestly, I don't know. I used to be certain this was it, that there was no after life, but after everything I've seen…I've cheated death so many times, Brigadier, but it's always been at a price and the one thing I'm certain of, the one thing I'm absolutely sure of, is that if there is the kind of afterlife that some humans believe in, they'll all be there waiting for you"
The Doctor looked down and held the Brigadier's hand as he slipped away.
"I promise, I'll be there" the Doctor said quietly, as the Brigadier finally passed away.
Stood behind him, Amy was silently in tears.
The Doctor got up and took her into a cuddle. There were those that said the Doctor cared, but cared distantly, that he was compassionate but compassionate at a distance and maybe that was true once, but maybe it was also true that he was mellowing slightly in his old age, allowing his empathetic nature to show through.
When they finally split, the Doctor reached into his pocket and gave her some tissues from the same pocket from which he'd taken Sarah Jane's.
"Come along Pond" the Doctor said finally, leading her out of the room and back to the Tardis.
The Doctor knew there and then that he'd seen the last of the Brigadier. Humans had said goodbye in their own special way and so now had the Lord of Time.
Rest In Peace, Brigadier
Dedicated To The Memory
Of
Nicholas Courtney
(16 December 1929 – 22 February 2011)
THE END
This story is the property of JW2006. Doctor Who, UNIT, The Characters Mentioned, The Tardis and Tardis Interior/Exterior are (c) BBC.