It was a few weeks (relatively speaking) after the Doctors encounter with the Scribe.
"I will ask you to set your TARDIS to random from now on" he had said. "I will have you brought to the locations you are needed, when you are needed there."
"Thanks very much" the Doctor said, turning to leave.
"Oh, and Doctor" he said. "Take these." He handed the Doctor several sheets of psychic paper. "Give this to each hero you encounter. When the time for the war comes, I will call you all with them."
After that, the Doctor walked out of the room, and found himself back on the TARDIS, at the same instant everyone else appeared. He acted like nothing had happened.
The TARDIS appeared in Dublin, and the Doctor showed, Artemis, Butler, and Holly out, giving Artemis a sheet and telling him it was 'just in case.'
Now, however, the TARDIS had just come to one of its trademark bumpy landings.
"Where are we now?" Martha asked.
"Martha, I've told you" the Doctor said patiently, "I don't know, the controls are on random."
"So I could be about to step out into the middle of a sun and we wouldn't know?" she demanded.
"Yep, isn't it exciting?!" the Doctor said brightly, running out the doors.
"IT'S NOT THE SUN!" he called back in. Martha rolled her eyes and followed.
They were standing in a bright city. Cars rumbled past the ally the TARDIS had landed in. People flooded the streets, and judging by the smell, someone nearby was selling hot dogs.
"Well, we're definitely in America" the Doctor said. "Some kind of metropolis, it would seem."
"Cleverest being in the universe to have deduced that, you are" Martha said sarcastically.
"Let's go have a look then, shall we?" he said, ignoring the jab.
When Martha caught up with the excited alien, we was staring, transfixed at a news report showing through a shop window. There was no way, it was impossible. He had known that the Scribe could move him through dimensions, but this?
Martha arrived just a second too late to see the story however, and only caught part of the last word: "-man."
"Doctor," she asked, "what's wrong?"
"Oh, nothing" he said, snapping back to normal. "Nothing at all, everything's fine, spectacular, fantastic, amazing..."
"You can stop now."
"Sorry, got carried away."
Miles away, a bald, finely dressed, criminal mastermind was watching the newcomers on a telescreen.
"Interesting" he said. "It appears I underestimated your information." A voice behind him spoke up. It was computerized.
"We are never wrong" it said. "Mistakes are for those who have not been upgraded."
He sat back and contemplated the strangers. "If I help you take these two, I assume you'll keep up your end of the deal."
"That is correct" the voice said.
"Once we capture these aliens, you will help me bring down another."
"Of course we will, Mr. Luthor."
"Good" said Lex.