29
A ROSE BETWEEN TWO THORNS
The noise awoke her just one second before she was thrown out of bed. Hurled across the room by a powerful force Rose had no time to scream or even panic before she hit something soft, which prevented her from being seriously injured. It was the big white fluffy sofa on the far side of the hotel room. Knocking it right over she ended up on her back gasping for air, her whole body tingling and wits scattered. Itchy particles of salt-like powder were dribbling from the cracked sealing and going in her hair, not to mention down her neck and other unmentionable places. There was a stench of something burning and an odd metallic odour that reminded Rose of a steel works she'd visited with her school as a kid.
Explosion she thought, I've just been blown out of my bed by….
The hotel must be fire!
Climbing groggily to her feet she hung onto the overturned sofa, knowing she had to get dressed and get out of here. There had been an explosion inside the hotel, was it terrorism, did they have terrorists in 1979 because that's where she was or at least it was where the Doctor had brought her.
1979, a fabulous year. We can see Ian Dury in concert then go to Wimbledon to watch Borg. Everything is so cheap and wait until you see all the punk rockers.
It had sounded like a lot of fun and the Doctor's boyish enthusiasm had won her over. Why not visit a year before she'd even been born it might be a hoot?
She'd asked the Doctor if he'd been on earth in 1979 and he'd wrinkled his nose, saying something about an earlier self and somebody called Romana staying in Paris.
We were guests of this count, or should I say prisoners and he wasn't just a count but the last member of an alien race.
Yes that sounded about right thought Rose as she hastily pulled on her scattered clothes, all of which were coating in falling powder.
She'd just finished when the room door crashed open and there he stood in his pin striped suit, fresh faced and eager like he hadn't been asleep at all, did he ever sleep she wondered? He took the odd nap but that was all. Too much energy, he was like a huge twitching nerve.
"There was a…." she began but it was obvious from his expression that he already knew. "In the hotel," she added.
Erecting a finger the Doctor pointed directly above them, "Over it actually," he remarked and Rose didn't understand.
"You mean an airplane has exploded above the hotel," she asked but she'd been with him long enough to read that gleam in his eye that flash of excitement. Oh no not a plane a spaceship, a spaceship had exploded in the sky in 1979.
"Come on," he urged taking her by the arm. Rose resisted, this wasn't why they were here. They hadn't travelled back in time 30 years to fight aliens, this was supposed to be a vacation, some time off to lark around and have fun.
"Wait," she gulped pulling her arm back and almost unbalancing him, staggering he had to right himself. "We're on holiday, you promised," she said sullenly knowing she sounded about 13, "Anyway if it's blown up there's nothing we can do," an explosion meant no survivors ergo no risk so they could leave the authorities to clean it up and cover it up, which in the 70s they did very well.
"The blast destroyed an engine housing not the whole ship Rose," Came the slightly impatient reply.
"How do you know," she threw back wondering how he always knew.
In response he went over to her room's ponderous TV and switched it on, instead of the usual chat shows, soaps and adverts Rose found herself looking at blue sky, clouds and black smoke gushing from the back of a strangely shaped metallic object rapidly losing altitude.
"I keyed in our TVs to a small video monitor I hid on the hotel roof," the Doctor explained.
"Why did you do that," Rose began but his grin told her the answer, "You knew this was going to happen that's why you brought us here in the first place. It had nothing to do with Ian Dury or George Borg did it?"
"Bjorn," he corrected, "It's Bjorn Borg not George." He let out a sigh and it was a concession, "Okay maybe I did have a hint that something was going to happen today, a memory trace from my past self."
Rose gave him one of her mother's glares, she was getting far too good at them maybe she was in danger of turning into her mum.
"The one in France with Narnia?"
"Romana actually," Said the Doctor a bit sheepishly. "Look Rose we can't just ignore an alien ship crash landing in 1979 can we? Well we could but…"
But he wasn't going to, he was going to nose around, get involved, get into trouble and by default get her into trouble because he always did and she always let him; that was the way their crazy topsy turvy relationship always panned out.
Doctor dives in and Rose follows.
She studied the thing on screen belching out black smoke, it was clearly alien and strange and not a little menacing.
"Who are they then, these aliens?"
Dunno said his shrug I don't know every alien race on sight, "We need to find out," sonic out he began to buzz and adjust the TV, soon a street plan and map of the local area came up on a box. How on earth could this man turn a 70s TV into a modern digital interface?
A red cross began to flash, presumably where the ship was going to crash or land if they were lucky.
"Remote," said the time lord, "A disused industrial area so nobody should get hurt when our visitors touch down."
Except us thought Rose because that's where we're going right now probably at top speed.
"It looks big, this alien ship there might be a lot of aliens aboard it," she pointed out, "Shouldn't we call for back up, ask those military friends of yours."
The Doctor scowled, "UNIT will already be on the way but they won't get here in time, whereas we're on site so to speak."
Yes she thought and not by accident, "Right so no concert, no Wimbledon?"
"We can do them afterwards," the Doctor was ever the optimist as he made the TV zoom in on the alien ship so he could study its design and hull for any markings.
"Is it a war ship," Rose had to ask because the ship did have a sinister and aggressive look to it all pointy and bulky with thick metal plates and a dorsal fin like a shark.
"Hard to tell," he admitted, "Could be it was certainly built to withstand high pressure."
"Why did the engine blow," she asked, "I mean if it was built to last?"
"Let's ask them," the Doctor straightened up, pocketing his sonic.
Oh as easy as that she thought wryly, like they're just going to up and tell us.
Checking her trainers were tied up she flounced over to the door, "Bus or taxi," she asked amazed by how cheap everything was 30 years ago and glad they still had decimal coins and not those imperial things – shillings.
"Take too long as would walking," he responded going over to a large walk-in cupboard and pulling it open to reveal something parked inside, something wooden and blue. Rose frowned, hadn't he said that short trips were a wee bit risky?
"What if we overshoot and end up in the eighties," she enquired causing his grin to return.
"I loved the eighties," he waxed poetic, "New romantics, yuppies, filofaxes," he gave a gasp of pure joy and Rose just knew he had his own filofax hidden somewhere. Honestly for an alien who could travel to any future time the Doctor could be incredibly nostalgic.
The ship did not crash, at the last moment the retros cutting in and landing gear was deployed so touch down was relatively calm; relatively. That still left the damage to the drive system and of course casualties. The attack had come without warning, there hadn't been time to deploy the shields so they took the missile full on and the consequences were disastrous. Loss of warp power, caught in the gravitational pull of a small planet and the captain killed. Vok had no choice but to assume command, he was the most senior rank still alive and the only one of them with any experience of alien life forms. But he was young and therefore was glad of Ajna's presence, she was more seasoned more capable and yes more ruthless at times.
With the retros dying away the two of them went to inspect the damage and count the bodies, 3 of them. The auto repair circuits had kicked in but they wouldn't be taking off any time soon, this mess would take hours to fix.
"We need raw material," said Ajna indicating burnt out circuitry and melted metal plates that could not be replaced from stores. "Plus if we're going to be here any length of time we'll require nourishment. I don't know about you but I'm starving, it's been ages since my last meal."
Yes thought Vok, field rations – tasteless and unsatisfying. What Ajna meant was they'd have to venture outside and risk being exposed to this planet and its residents; they already knew it was occupied thanks to a short-range scan.
"You and I," he said thinking that the other members of the crew could occupy themselves fixing the port engine and internal systems.
"One of us should stay here to supervise," Ajna suggested.
"Kelim can do that he has the rank," yes and the fearsome reputation should anyone step out of line.
Ajna sniffed, it was no secret that she didn't like the tactical officer he was too old-school, too brutal even for her tastes and she wasn't exactly the squeamish sort.
"That lunatic," she said under her breath but Vok heard her.
"We may have need of his particular talents before we leave here Ajna, this is a primitive planet and you know what that means."
She did indeed this wasn't the first time she'd been marooned, "I'd just feel better with someone more stable in charge, we can ill afford to lose more of the crew."
Vok agreed, "I'll have a word before we go outside."
"Do a bioscan first," she advised not wanting to walk into a whole tribe of vicious meat eating throwbacks like last time.
By the time they returned to the circular, black-walled bridge an alert neon was flashing on the odd tree-like control systems, going to a root-like control nodule Vok twisted it to bring up the information, a pattern of petals on the wall blossomed outwards to reveal a display screen.
"We have a power source," he said, "Some kind of time distortion."
Joining him Ajna touched a root control of her own, "A time vessel," she gasped, "But the natives of this world are surely too primitive to have anything like that."
"Unless," said her colleague, "There is a more advanced, hidden civilisation in charge of the primitives. We have seen that before."
With a nod Ajna checked the bioscan reading, "I'm picking up two life forms, mammals; they look like natives; a male and female."
"Any weaponry," Vok asked?
Ajna shook her head, "They seem to be unarmed, perhaps they don't know of our presence."
"We must assume they do and act accordingly, these two must be dealt with."
Understanding totally Ajna went over to a large pod and touched its base, peeling open the pod yielded two devices that could be strapped to limbs, taking one for herself she handed the other to her partner knowing they would be going out together.
Strapping the device to his primary limb Vok did another sensory sweep to make sure the two locals were alone, it came up negative.
"Nourishment," Ajna sounded hungry, he was hungry himself.
"Curiosity first," Vok replied, "Then we feed."
Deserted, run down, oily, smelly and neglected the small industrial park made Rose shudder. The Doctor had told her it was a victim of the recession; to her it looked more like a battle zone as everything was dirty, rusty or broken. The buildings were no more than empty shells.
Avoiding a puddle full of brown sludge she followed the lean man, who was bounding ahead seemingly oblivious to all the pot holes and fragments of sharp metal. "It's not far away," he saying in his usual rushed, excited fashion, "Just beyond that car body repair shop."
He appeared ready to dash off at top speed but feeling more cautious Rose hung back, "We don't know who they are; shouldn't we take it nice and easy."
Not her usual style, she was a rush in fast and to hell with the consequences kind of girl, but travelling across time and space had tempered that instinct a little; you never knew what was lurking beyond car body repair shops these days.
A small device strapped to his left wrist the Doctor panned this in the air ahead of him, its circular digital display changed colour from blue to amber.
"They landed safety, that's good, the last thing we need is drive engine pollution to clear up."
"Any hint of the crew," Rose enquired hoping they were people-shaped and human-like?
"Nothing's coming up on the old bio-analysis scanner, zero on mammals, zero on reptiles; no hint of the cybernetic."
What did that leave Rose wondered – birds, fish; rocks?
"Maybe if they landed they'll be able to take off again," she mused.
This earned her a an odd lob sided look, "Don't you want to know who they are, where they came from, exchange greetings cards – that sort of thing?"
Typical Doctor humour but she wasn't in the mood at that moment, not prior to contact before they knew what awful mess they were getting into.
Lunging ahead he actually went into the repair shop, quicker than going around it he muttered, cleaner to. His trouser legs were already splattered with mud at the bottom and so, Rose noted, were hers. Terrific, her new boots were ruined to, big clunky seventies things of the type her mum might have worn.
Suspended on huge skis where the shells of long defunct cars and vans, bits of car and van interior lay scattered willy nilly across the oil stained concrete floor, presumably engine parts and fan belts although Rose was no mechanic, all she knew about cars was how to drive one, if you had a problem you called a mechanic.
Dark and shadowy the repair shop struck her as sinister, it was cool to and eerie, even the Doctor had slowed down a bit. Coming over to her he offered a smile, "Good place for a trap isn't it?"
Was that meant to make her feel better, if so it wasn't working?
Next instant she was totally still, her spine tingling. Something had moved up ahead and to the left, a shape, unknown. "I think they're in here with us," she whispered. Again the Doctor used his wrist scanner, this time it turned from amber to purple, he shrugged,
"Nothing detected."
Maybe not but Rose was sure she'd seen movement, a shape, a weird shape.
"Listen you wait here," he said and this time she was happy to do so, "I'll nip on ahead, do a bit of a recce, two ticks," he promised. Make it one tick she thought, a short tick, better still half a tick.
When he was gone she felt even worse, the shadows and the smell seemed to crowd in around her, the dead car hulks took on a menacing aspect all their own. Very soon she couldn't see the Doctor, and then she couldn't hear him either. He could move like a cat at times, hopefully these aliens didn't have better ears that her; assuming they had ears.
No Rose don't go there – they are people, humanoid, weirdly put together humanoids.
Something soft and gossamer-like brushed against her left cheek. Damn, probably a cobweb – this place was no doubt full of them.
She brushed at it, her fingers touching not silk but something denser, rougher more like a…
Jerking around in shock Rose felt a hand or something hand-shaped go over her mouth stifling a scream and it was one mother of a scream to because she could see beyond the hand to the branch-like appendage it was attached to with leaves sprouting out of it, more leaves and thistles sprouted from the shoulder and chest of the creature. There was moss and lichen on the top of the head and running down the cheeks and jaw were thorns, weeds and berries.
My god thought Rose as terror flooded her brain it's a plant, a moving plant only as big and strong as a tree. The aliens are vegetables, triffids, but triffids with faces with eyes for two slanted yellow-green eyes were glaring at her now. Under them an aperture, a slit peeled open and a female voice came from it. "Do not struggle or I will kill you," hissed Ajna.
Rose couldn't have moved even if she'd wanted to her body had gone into total shock, every muscle was locked in place as her mind reeled protesting against the impossibility of what was happening to her. She was being held by a giant hedge.
Another hedge moved passed her and from this came a male voice, could hedges have genders? This one said, "I will collect the other mammal."
Mammal?
"We do not need him we have this creature," the female hedge objected.
Rose wasn't sure if it was the root invading her left nostril, the stink of sap and the use of the word creature that spurred her into action. Suddenly her body became unglued; she regained enough movement to snap her head back and clear of the green mossy hand to cry out,
"Doctor they're…"
That was all she got to say before something pricked or stung her on the neck and the repair shop went out of focus, blurring and melting into a dark fog.
"Get her to the ship," Vok ordered, "The male is now alerted, I may have to kill him anyway."
Hoisting Rose onto her shoulder Ajna rose easily to cart her away; she was far stronger than any human female than most mammals. She began to retreat towards an exit as Vok advanced on the Doctor, the device strapped to his right fore-branch now activated and ready for use.
Having heard Rose cry out the Doctor had crouched down behind a truck engine, his scanner was still telling him nothing these aliens weren't mammals, reptiles, amphibians, minerals or robots so what did that leave; why wasn't he picking them up?
Taking out his sonic he adjusted it to a general setting and waited, it was not a long wait. The odour reached him first sort of mossy, bushy, pond-like with a hint of tree bark and berry. He saw an outline and it reminded him of…no his brain baulked, it couldn't be.
So he came out into the open into a shaft of light, rose to his full height and thrust out the sonic. "Okay that's close enough, let's have a gander."
Also coming into the light Vok took aim and the Doctor's eyes bugged in surprise, not a common occurrence. He took in the leaves sprouting from arms and legs, the great clunks of moss and lichen over the chest and sides, the roots instead of veins, the thorns and nettles sprouting all over the toadstools on the legs and the bark coloured skin under all the green.
No wonder his scanner hadn't picked this up, he just hadn't thought to calibrate it for…
"You're vegetoid," he laughed, "Well bless my soul I never thought of that," noting the weapon he thumbed the side of his sonic and heard it purr sharply, "What have you done to Rose," even the name made him smile, "The girl not the flower," he explained, "Although she is rather fragrant I must admit."
Vok tried to fire but for some reason his weapon failed to activate, it had power and focus but was being blocked by a sonic field. Un clipping it he let it fall to the floor and advanced, very well he would kill the old fashioned away using sting and fungus, twig and branch.
"Close enough," said the Doctor, "I'm allergic to chlorophyll."
Vok lunged at him but found himself tripping on cables that wrapped around his thick rooty legs, then bits of metal and wiring where in his leaves and vines clogging them. There was a slippery oil under foot and the Doctor had tossed something for him to catch a box with more wires jutting out of it.
One sonic note and the wires became live they hissed and sparked, power from them burned Vok, some of his leaves blackened and fell away others ignited and suddenly he was on fire. With a roar of pain he tried to back away but slipping on the oil he lost his footing and crashed to the stone floor.
Grabbing a rag the Doctor ran to him and smothered the small fires to his arms and chest, at the same time kicking the gun aside and avoiding stings and thorns. "I'm sorry," he said, "But we need to talk," the sonic was lowered, "Where is my friend what have you done with her?"
With a snarl Vok tried to regain his feet but the floor was too slippery, plus this mammal had a sonic weapon that could ignite him again. There was only one option and Vok used it.
To the Doctor's amazement the plant creature exploded, literally burst into a sea of spoors, seeds and twigs; erupting into a storm of green, yellow and brown particles that filled the air. Leaping back the time lord saw a dust sheet, taking this he draped it over his body and head so that none of the spoors or seeds could take root in his flesh.
He assumed he was under attack, but he wasn't. Vok or about two million pieces of him rose into the air and flew out of the repair shop through every crack, hole and gap they could find. Flying like a swarm of locusts the tiny pieces of wood, sap, fungus, leaf and root evacuated one location and en masse shot towards another.
Sheet tossed aside the Doctor ran wide-eyed to a dirty window and through this watched the millions of Vok-bits home in on the landed alien ship. A nozzle opened on the side of the ship and to his amazement began vacuuming up the ocean of plant particles, sucking them under high-pressure into the alien craft.
Was Vok dead had he committed suicide or was this something else, some incredible defensive manoeuvre unique to this alien species? Not knowing the Doctor ran back to where Rose had been. Of course she wasn't there, he didn't expect her to be but what he did find where some stray leaves, the odd bit of twig and some torn pieces of fungus.
DNA, he thought, a nice useful bit of forensic. Sample bag out he carefully picked up the samples careful not to touch them with his flesh. Once the stuff was bagged he adjusted his wrist scanner to vegetation, the scanner was linked to the TARDIS and could share its computer analysis systems.
Okay he thought; time to find out a bit more about the enemy – strengths, weaknesses, protein structure, sap levels and so much more. Knowledge was power, in this case it was salvation and it might just be his only way of helping Rose assuming she was still alive – and she'd better be.
The room was small and bare but it did at least have a huge window looking out across a storage bay. In the centre of this stood a large metal vat; like an old-fashioned bath. Suddenly a chute opened in the ceiling and from it gushed a blizzard of twig, leaf, sap and bark. This accumulated in the vat almost filling it with debris. The vat began to hum, its sides gave off a tangerine glow and to Rose's amazement the pile of debris formed itself into a body, a living creature, one of the plant aliens. Regeneration she thought as the alien climbed out of the vat; stretched its limbs and gave a sigh of satisfaction. Vok was once more whole, his tactic had worked.
Behind Rose a door opened and Ajna stood staring at her, "Who is your friend," she demanded angrily, "He isn't like the rest of your species; he has superior technology."
Rose had to smile, this was an understatement. The Doctor wasn't like anyone one on earth because he wasn't from earth.
"Maybe," Rose said playfully, "You've underestimated us."
Unlikely said the toss of Ajna's head or the tone of her voice, "Primitive mammals, on our world you are bred for food and your numbers strictly controlled by an annual cull."
Blood running cold at this heartless admission, Rose squared up to the alien. If she had learned anything on her travels it was to stand up to bullies in whatever form they took.
"If your planet is so great, what are you doing on ours?"
Ajna said, "A temporary condition I assure you, now come with me."
Rose held her ground "Is the Doctor all right?"
Grabbing her by the arm and wrenching her out of the tiny cell Ajna pulled her along a short corridor to a black-walled room lined with tree-shaped controls, the other alien Vok was waiting for them.
He turned to nod at Ajna then his gaze fell upon Rose, they were cold and lacking any degree of warmth.
"You came here in a time ship, this civilisation is not advanced enough for time travel; explain the discrepancy."
Chin up Rose threw back a defiant glare.
Rising Vok approached her, "You would be wise to cooperate with us," he warned, "The alternative could be most unfortunate."
Shaking inside Rose maintained her silence.
The next instant something sharp pricked her left wrist, it was a thorn on Ajna's middle finger and Rose felt a rush of cold sap rise up the veins of her arm. She felt dizzy, weak and slightly nauseous.
This time when Vok asked her a question she answered it, fully and honestly; she couldn't stop herself she just had to tell him everything he wanted to know.
Circling the ship cautiously, noting every detail and feature, the Doctor nodded his appreciation of design and power he also picked up on the damage. Not caused by a meteor or atmospheric burn, but a high-intensity laser cannon. These aliens, whoever they were, had enemies – they'd been shot down. Possibly some long running conflict like the Sontaran-Rutan war; he would ask them when he got the chance.
There was a jagged, brown-edged gash in the hull about a meter across, carefully he took a test tube from his jacket pocket and inserted this into the gash. The fluid inside the test tube looked like blue ink, but was far complex than that. Withdrawing his hand he backed away, time to find a way in.
Ah there it was; an entrance an airlock. Sealed of course and no doubt well defended. He gave it a rapid sonic and heard locks clunk. Adjusting the sonic he worked on any possible defence system, a series of hums and pops followed. There that should be it, time to open up. This was surprisingly easy, too easy he was being let in they wanted him inside the ship so he had two choices, run away or accommodate if he ran away that left Rose in a cleft stick. There was nothing for it but to play the game, to let himself be trapped.
As the airlock pealed open he took a deep breath, into the breach dear friends he thought. "Okay you know I'm here and what I want," he said out loud, "So let's get on with it."
The force field grabbed him five seconds later.
Vok frowned, the mammal had allowed himself to be captured, he turned to Ajna with a frown. "Unusual specimen," he remarked struck by the brash confidence of the man his total absence of fear. "He seems quite used to space ships and doesn't seem to mind being imprisoned inside one."
She nodded, "Almost as if it happens to him all the time."
Ajna eyed Rose, "Tell us more about this Doctor," she said.
The energy holding the Doctor guided him through an inner airlock and down a passageway to a holding area, the one Rose had been in some minutes early then it released him. At once he noticed the ring on the floor, Rose's ring he noted by the R-shaped stone; a cheap trinket picked up by Mickey on his travels. Giving the ring a quick sonic he pocketed it for later, the R-shaped stone glowed softly with power.
"Doctor," a voice boomed into the cell it was male but clearly not human, "We meet again."
"Ah yes the dispersal trick was very neat I must say," said the time lord with a cheeky grin, "Never seen a defensive move like that before."
Ignoring this the alien went on, "My name is Vok and I am acting commander of this vessel, I have your friend Rose with me; she is quite well and will remain so."
The Doctor sensed an 'if' coming on. If you behave yourself, if you cooperate, if you tell us about the TARDIS. He wondered which it would be, perhaps all of the above and more. He decided to be nosey,
"Acting commander, what happened to the original commander, was he killed during the attack? You were attacked in space weren't you Vok, psionic laser cannon, it could have turn you apart?"
Silent for a moment Vok gave a low chuckle, "You are not of this world Doctor."
"No," there was little point denying it, "We're both alien here, the difference being I've settled in and grown rather fond of the place. It's not a jump I think you're prepared to make."
"You fear that now we know of earth that we'll come back here in force to colonize, militarize and use the population as food?" Vok asked.
"Well you do feed on animal tissue don't you," said the Doctor, "Of which there is an abundance here."
Not answering this Vok returned to Rose, "My priority is to get off this planet in tact and return to my fleet, I have made no short or long-term assessments of earth. Ms Tyler has told me all she knows about you and your remarkable craft. Of the two assets I think the TARDIS will be of more interest to my superiors than earth."
The Doctor nodded, "Then let her go if it's me you want, Rose can't control the TARDIS."
"So we understand," Vok replied, "I think it would be prudent to hang onto both of you. Rose has strategic value as a hostage."
The Doctor understood, do what we want or Rose gets hurt. "Okay Vok what's the next step," he asked?
"Simple Doctor I shall arrange for your ship to be brought aboard this one."
Time to try for a concession, "I'd like to see Rose, if I may."
"Naturally, she will be with you very soon."
Moments later the cell door opened and another of the vegetiods stood there, the voice that came from this one was female. "Step away from the door," said Ajna. She held Rose by the wrist with a thick vine, Rose's face looked rather blank her gaze fixed. Ajna threw her into the cell and stepped back, but before she could close the door the Doctor said.
"What have you done to Rose, she's in some kind of hypnopompic state."
Raising a thorn Ajna replied, "We can secrete a strong neuotropic chemical, it has powerful mind altering properties. Don't worry Doctor, the effect will pass."
Finding the injection point the Doctor noticed that it was slightly swollen and quite red with a mild infection. The effect had better pass he thought angrily,
"What has she told you about me? Did she tell you how dangerous I can be, how I don't like being pushed around and how jealously I guard the secrets of my ship?"
Ajna gave a low depreciative laugh, "You are a lone mammal and unarmed, how can you possibly resist us?"
"You'd be surprised," came the low but menacing tone and Ajna's smile faded.
"Your box will be brought here, by the time it arrives our repairs should be complete and we will leave."
"To return to the war," the Doctor enquired, "How's going by the way? Based on the shot you took I'd say rather badly for your side, losing are you?"
Pride stiffened Ajna's bark, she seemed to grow taller and her limbs rustled their leaves it was like she was caught in a strong wind.
"We will never be defeated, the tide will turn and we will crush our enemies."
A mock yawn greeted this outburst as though the Doctor didn't believe any of it. Furiously Ajna entered the cell, extending a thorny limb. "Don't mock us Doctor, we will prevail especially once your craft has been stripped down and its secrets revealed to us."
"Supposing you do win this war, there will always be other opponents; other wars to fight. Where will it end? War is pointless, it's futile."
Ajna was now positively vibrating with emotion but before she could launch a counter argument the voice of Vok echoed around the cell, "Ajna, return to the bridge. The Doctor is just trying to provoke you into revealing more about us, he is clearly a pacifist, a conscientious objector just like the peaceful coexistence movement on home world. Ignore him as you would ignore their cowardice."
With a great effort it seemed Ajna lowered her branch and eased back of the two vegetiods she seemed more highly strung, perhaps more of a zealot.
"So," said the Doctor, "Not everyone back home agrees with military expansion, there maybe hope for you lot after all. Where is home world by the way, what is it called?"
The cell door slammed shut and locked but he could still hear Ajna outside tapping her tendrils and leaves against it in agitation.
"Are some friends of yours believers in peaceful coexistence Ajna, are they under arrest because of their convictions?"
A branch slapped the door furiously then the alien moved away.
"Has it ever occurred to you that they may be right," the Doctor shouted? He waited, Ajna did not return so he looked at Rose whose features were still frozen and unresponsive.
Taking out her ring, he lifted a hand and slid this onto her middle finger. The R-shaped stone glowed even brighter and in Rose's big blue eyes there was another glow, "Come on Rose," whispered the Doctor, "You can fight their control, come back to me."
The girl blinked, she began to move her head slowly to one side then her chin sank; she let out a sigh or was it a moan before the muscles of her arms bunched.
"Can't resist," she muttered, "Have to tell them everything," she clutched at the tiny puncture wound, "injected me with something."
The Doctor said, "It's being cleared from your bloodstream right now by the harmonic resonance energy from your ring. Remember, the one I gave you?"
Rose nodded sleepily, "They want you Doctor, they want the…"
He touched her on the left temple, "I know what they want," he said lightly before cupping her chin and lifting her face to his, the features were less blank more animated. He smiled and kissed her on the nose, good old Rose she was coming back to him; a born fighter.
Suddenly, galvanically she snapped out of her trance and was wide awake, "Oh my god giant talking plants," she clung to him trembling, "They took over my mind."
He hushed her quiet; that was all over and done with they wouldn't be able to do it again.
"We're getting out of here," he whispered, "Right now."
Rose peered at the cell door it looked pretty tough, "Sonic," she asked? He patted his pockets, no sonic they must have taken it off him while he was under the influence of the force field.
"With any luck," he said, "The door will open itself."
Unable to see how this could happen Rose frowned.
Ajna held the sonic in her left hand, such a simple looking thing almost primitive how could it do so much? She twisted the case and a signal was transmitted into the air, some distance away a tiny test tube shattered releasing its liquid contents, when this mixed with oxygen it volatised into a gas which seeped through the fabric of the ship and expanded. Moments later auto repair circuits closed and sealed the rupture in the ship's hull.
"We can take of," Vok announced proudly, "The Doctor's blue box is aboard and he is our prisoner, there is nothing to stay here for."
Moving over to the appropriate control tree Ajna began to twist its root controls, power throbbed through the entire ship making it vibrate and shudder. Lift off would be in one minute as soon as the main thrusters were on line. Then to her left a scream erupted from the wall and a patch of fungus burst open spraying her with its dying spores.
Around them vines twitched and roots contracted, colour faded totally or was replaced by black necrotising matter.
"Systems failing," Ajna cried, "There is some kind of contamination infiltrating the central root system."
Vok turned stunned, "Contamination," he repeated.
"Poison," Ajna replied, "Toxic matter."
"From where?"
"Checking now," Ajna focused in on the source of the attack, "The rupture to our hull, our enemies must have done it when they attacked us."
But Vok knew better than this, there was only one enemy and he was onboard, "You stay here, try to extrude the poison."
"Where are you going Vok?"
Eyes burning Vok did not answer.
The whole ship shuddered as if having a fit but Rose hung onto the Doctor and he held her tightly. Then as he had predicted the door opened itself, it creaked and limped halfway open then froze but the gap was enough. Quickly he pushed her through then squeezed through himself. When she asked him what was happening he gave her one of his little-boy grins; all mischief and malice.
"What have you done now," she chuckled?
"Weed killer," he shot back, "Super concentrated and genetically enhanced."
"Where did you get that from?"
"Bits of vegetiod plus a few odds and ends in the TARDIS botanical section."
Rose had never even heard of this but then she knew so little about the ship, maybe it was time she had a guided tour – later; first order of business was to get away.
That was when the vine wrapped around her throat and squeezed tight, another larger vine encircled her waist pulling her towards Vok and a huge thorn, the biggest she'd ever seen was levelled against her jugular vein. She didn't have to cry out and Vok didn't have to speak because the Doctor sensed something was wrong and spun around with a scowl.
"Let her go now," he ordered with a pointing finger.
"You have poisoned my ship Doctor, I require the anti-toxin."
There isn't one said the time lord's face and even if there was I wouldn't give it to you, "If you want to leave earth we can go in the TARDIS, but there are conditions."
Vok snarled, "Save my ship."
"No can do, it's finished but you and your crew will be safe if you abandon it now."
The massive thorn nudged Rose, "I to have toxins Doctor and if I inject this one into Rose her death will be agonizing."
"Don't do that," the Doctor pleaded.
"Save my ship," Vok repeated. The thin man let out an anguished sigh.
"And be your prisoner, get carted off back to your home world; not a very appealing future."
Vok said, "Rose has no future, one prick one scratch and her life is over right now."
In response the time lord touched his left hand - its middle finger, he made sure Rose saw this and when she did she understood; he was indicating her ring the one he fashioned for her with its unique R-shaped stone cut from a very rare crystal.
Rose flexed the fingers of her hand and focused on the ring help me she cried mentally and the stone began to pulse.
"We're going to your blue box," Vok rasped, "For the anti-toxin."
"What if I didn't make one?"
"Then you have work to do."
The ship gave a mighty lurched but Vok held Rose too tightly for her to slip from his grasp.
"Where is the TARDIS," The Doctor asked? Vok's response was to wave a branch up the corridor and they set off, the time lord's step surprisingly jaunty as he ran a hand over the dark interior of the wall feeling fibrous material. The ship interior was coated with vegetation, even the floor under foot felt springy with some kind of fungal growth.
But the organic part of the ship was dying and if it perished so would the crew.
"You can let me go," Rose protested finding it hard to breathe so tight was Vok's grip." There was no slackening in that grip nor in the pressure of the thorn at her neck.
The TARDIS stood in an alcove held by some large roots that climbed up its sides; some of the roots formed a barrier over the door. This drew back and receded in Vok's presence allowing the Doctor to insert his key and open the door; in fact he opened both doors to create enough room for Vok to enter.
Before he could Ajna appeared, she was breathing with difficultly and many of her leaves were badly withered.
"What are you doing Vok," she demanded her voice hoarse and strained?
"There must be a cure for the poison destroying our ship; this man is going to produce it."
Shaking her head Ajna cast a snow storm of dead leaves and twigs on the floor, "It is too late for that, our craft has passed beyond the point of viability."
Vok took the news surprisingly well, "Then we must abandon ship."
"But we die with our ships," Ajna objected.
Vok snarled, "I am not going to die on this planet of mongrels, not when there is a way back to our fleet."
Rose noted that the Doctor had slipped inside the TARDIS; she wondered what he was up to; something effective she hoped that would salvage the situation. When he emerged he was holding a jug with a floral pattern, liquid sloshed around inside it sort of greenish and foul smelling.
"Vok," he called, "Ajna," they both looked at him, bodies pale and withering like weeds denied water for too long. Vok was actually shaking and his grip on Rose had begun to weaken, he seemed to be finding it hard to stay on his feet or where they roots?
"I can take you somewhere safe but I'm not taking you to your fleet," announced the Doctor. "Rose and I have no future as prisoners, given your low opinion of animal life forms and I for one don't fancy ending up on a dinner plate." The jug was hoisted.
"Is that the anti toxin," Ajna demanded?
"Not as such," said the Doctor, "In fact you may find you have a nasty reaction to this stuff, it's more of my fast acting super concentrate. Now let Rose go." he ordered.
"Never," snarled Vok but Ajna moved towards him.
"Do it," she said, "We've lost Vok, there's no point in harming this girl."
To Rose's surprise Vok let her go, she thought he'd seen sense and given up that is until he exploded into a cloud of spores, twigs, seeds and leaf fragments.
"Oh no you don't," said the Doctor putting the jug down and picking something else up, it was a nozzle on the end of a long flexible tube that led to a fat metal container with the word SUPAVAC on the side of it.
As the billions of particles swirled around him the Doctor switched on his SUPAVAC and it roared to life emitting a powerful suction force. At once a chunk of Vok was drawn into the nozzle followed by several more fragments. Increasing power the Doctor waved for Rose to join him, and then he thrust the nozzle deeper into the angry buzzing cloud.
"Stop," Ajna roared, "You cannot treat one of us like this."
"I've no choice," cried the Doctor over the din, "Vok won't cooperate."
The female alien reared up angrily, "Neither will I Doctor, not on these terms."
Turning to Rose the Doctor nodded his head and she saw something leaning against the door jarm, picking it up she frowned - what was this for?
"Get ready," he told her cocking a thumb at Ajna who had extended some tubes from her bark, long hollow things like timber straws.
Continuing to hoover up fragments of Vok the time lord moved around weaving from side to side, dipping low then rising up onto the tips of his toes. Curiously Ajna followed his movements, she was up to something and this was confirmed when she began spurting at him, gushing jets of dark green fluid from the extended tubes.
"Toxic," the Doctor shouted and it was Rose's cue to raise the large metal fire bucket in front of them. SUPAVAC off the Doctor crouched behind the bucket with her and the jets of ichor roared into the bucket beginning to fill it. With a snarl of frustration Ajna moved closer but no matter what she did, she couldn't catch her targets, the TARDIS entrance was just too narrow.
Finally – her poison sacs spent – she sagged against the side of the wooden box, "We will come with you," she gasped, "In your ship. Vok will agree."
Will he said the bulge of the Doctor's eyes as he hoisted the nozzle again, about a third of Vok was in the SUPAVAC the rest of him stopped buzzing about and formed a column.
"I'll take you somewhere safe I promise," Said the time lord, "And inform your people about where you are," he added while Rose struggled with the now heavy bucket trust her to end up with the dirty job. "We just don't want any part of your conflict."
Ajna sighed, "What of our ship?"
The Doctor said that being organic it was biodegradable so they could leave it where it was; Rose wasn't sure if he was serious or not supposing somebody came across it? Trust me said his boyish eyes. As if said her scowl but it was a plan and she couldn't think of anything better.
"Now," he said some time later when their passengers had been dropped off somewhere rather nicer than they deserved; a holiday planet of all places that Rose had rather fancied herself. "Ian Dury and the Blockheads live in concert at the London Hammersmith."
"Just make sure we end up in 1979 and not say 1879," said Rose distrustfully, "I don't fancy bumping into Queen Victoria."
He gave her such a funny look.