Okay, I know this is completley and unbelievably stupid, but here goes...
This is a crossover between one of my original stories, The Day The World Blew Up (working title) and Doctor Who. I actually think it's rather...slightly...maybe...good. What do you think? Don't worry, I don't plan on pairing my character with the Doctor (or anyone, really) in some type of strange Mary-Sue.
Also, I'd rather not get any flames. It's just fanfiction :)
(The first part of the first chapter is basically sumarized from what I actually have, which is why it probably seems so rushed. It's not really that crucial to the plot)
-I: The Introduction
The phrase 'A shared burden' refers to something two people have in common that is usually not a pleasant thing, such as the shared burden of stepping on a Lego that you and your friend might share. You both know the pain and/or discomfort brought on by such an event, and can therefore sympathize with each other. A shared burden can be a small thing, like the shared burden of running out of running out of breath mints just when you need them most, or larger things, like two police officers who have been forced to kill someone to save others.
This is a story about a tremendous shared burden between people who could otherwise hardly be more different, and all the adventures they and their friends share as a result.
I: The Killer
Josephine Abigail Lovelace was only fourteen when she received a letter that changed her life forever. She was told in the missive to meet a stranger and a certain park that afternoon, and to bring her dog, Henry.
After debating for a time, Josephine's curiosity won out, and she decided to go. She left a note for her parents (who would likely just toss it in the bin anyway) saying she would be at the small park on Day Street.
The person Josephine met wore a black hood and did not show her face, if indeed it was a her. She handed Josephine a clear box that held a red button, and told her a story…
"Long ago, when your planet of Tareh was barely an infant, a group of beings from around the universe decided that they needed a cage."
"A cage?" asked Josephine, confused. "For what?"
"For a great Warrior," the woman said. "One so powerful it could destroy planets with the snap of its fingers. It took over a dozen different species joining together to trap it and cage it – right in the centre of Tareh."
Josephine gasped, looking down as if expecting to see it rise out of the ground right beneath her feet.
"But how could it fit?" she asked. "Tareh is small, and the core inside is large…" her voice trailed off at the look she could feel coming from the woman.
"That's right, Josephine." She said, nodding. "The Warrior is the core of your world."
"But – but–" Josephine stammered. She didn't know what to say, only that this couldn't be true! It went against everything she knew! So she blurted out the first thing that came to mind: "But our scientific tools are extremely advanced! Someone would notice! We would have seen it!"
The woman shook her head. "Not necessarily. There are powerful protections over it, not to mention perception filters by the dozens."
Josephine looked up at the dark blue sky, pulling anxiously at her long copper hair. Everything she had thought about the Tareh had suddenly been reversed. No core at the centre – ancient warrior. Perception filters. Aliens locking things up in her planet. It was a lot to take in, but Henry had not barked at the woman, which was almost a certain indicator that she could be trusted. (Which, Josephine realized, was likely the reason the letter had said to bring the dog with her.)
"Okay, I believe you." Josephine finally decided. "But why in the world are you telling me all this?"
The woman gestured with a gloved hand to the box on the park table between them.
"There are those who would come and try and steal The Warrior." She said. "They would release it, try to use it for their own gain, to bend it to their will and make it their weapon. This cannot be allowed. The result would be a Tareh torn apart. Those who want The Warrior would have no qualms with killing any Tarehens who stood in their way – and many who don't. It is my prediction that all of your race would be wiped out in the resulting – and quick – war."
"No!" gasped Josephine, tears in her eyes by the end. "W-why would anyone do that?"
The woman placed her gloved hand over Josephine's.
"Great evil exists in the universe, sweetie," she said gently. "Evil greater than you can imagine. I wish I could stop it, as do my people, but we cannot. That is why I sent you that letter, and that is why I brought you this."
She pushed the box forward.
"W-what is it?" Josephine asked.
"This button will cause the security around The Warrior to implode, destroying it and all of Tareh with it."
Josephine stared at the button, then the woman.
"But if someone pressed that," she said slowly. "Then where would we all live?"
The woman just stared at her, and Josephine chocked back a sob. She knew that the woman knew that she knew what she had meant.
"Why tell me this?" Josephine demanded again, not even able to bring himself to pat Henry on the head as he nudged her leg in concern.
"We have scanned the Tareh, and you are the best choice for this mission." She said sadly.
"No!" Josephine cried. "That's not fair! You can't – you can't ask me to do something like that!"
"I'm afraid it's the only way, my love," said the woman gently. "It's either this – the entire Tareh and all its inhabitants gone in a split second, completely painlessly, or the invaders come and take The Warrior – and Tareh will fall in fire and war."
"But – but – can't we fight them?" Josephine cried, nearly begging. "Can't your race – and – and other good races – help us?"
She shook her head.
"No, Josephine. I'm sorry. They are far too many, and far too powerful. We cannot risk The Warrior getting out. Dozens of worlds would burn if that happened – this is likely the only chance we'll ever have to rid the universe of it."
It was silent for a minute. There was no other way – no other way that was fair to her people and the rest of the universe. Josephine knew that. Quick and painless – that was best. None of them would even know it had happened. It would be selfish of her to refuse just to protect her own soul. After all, if someone else was in her place, Josephine knew what she would want them to do.
"Why me?" she finally whispered, tears now flowing freely down her light bronze face.
The woman reached out a finger and gently tilted Josephine's head up.
"Because, my dear, you are the only one on Tareh who is strong enough."
The woman went on to tell Josephine that, if she was willing to do it, the button needed to be pressed by midnight three days later. She gave her instructions to a hidden space pod not far from Josephine's house that she could use to escape the planet. The woman emphasized that it was imperative that Josephine escape the planet alive. Josephine, obviously, felt terribly guilty about this – how could she possibly live with herself if she killed her entire race but escaped with her own life? – but the woman insisted that it was very important, and Josephine agreed…on the condition that she could take Henry. Her parents didn't care for her much, and Josephine didn't have any close friends. The only being on the Tareh that she would pick – could she only pick one to save – would be Henry. The woman agreed.
The night of, Josephine and Henry both took a long walk around the neighbouring streets. Josephine took in the dark blue sky, the dark green and occasionally blue grass, the barely-visible swirling winds, the trees of all different colours…how she would miss it all! You never really thought about a thing like that until it was about to happen.
Josephine had wanted to be an archaeologist. She wanted to adopt a baby and be the parent to him or her that her parents had never been to her. She wanted to go out and explore the universe – see all the other planets like Gallifrey, Earth (very similar to Tareh, from what Josephine had heard), and Jupiter.
Now Josephine may get that chance to see these planets, but she would never be able to come home.
"Okay, Henry, time to go." Said Josephine sadly, glancing at her watch. It was six o'clock in the afternoon, and she just wanted to get this over with. On her back Josephine carried a backpack filled with clothes water, food, mementoes, and photographs for her and Henry. The woman had told her that there would be twenty minute delay on the button, and that she should be inside the space pod with at least ten minutes to spare.
She and Henry walked in silence for a few minutes, then Josephine said, "Oh, there's the marker. We're almost there, boy."
The last house on the street before the small stretch of wood where the pod was hidden belonged to Mrs. Hatchet, a crotchety old woman whom Josephine didn't particularly like. Said woman was outside pruning some of her Bsevenyeas. Suddenly struck by the thought that this woman would likely be the last Tarehen Josephine would ever see, she ran forward with Henry on her heels and hugged Mrs. Hatchet.
"I love you, you old bat, and I'm sorry." She said with feeling. The woman was obviously in shock; she stared at Josephine, mouth open and her watering can pouring onto her feet, but Josephine didn't wait for a response. She whistled for Henry and they both bolted off into the woods.
"Alright, so, ten meters forward," Josephine said, wiping away tears on her sleeve. "And then – what was that?"
She had heard something – a soft mewling, like distant crying or the sound of a kitten mewling. Henry had heard it too – his ears perked straight up.
"What is it, boy?" asked Josephine. "Should we look? We have plenty of time…"
She knew she was stalling, but she couldn't help it. Henry jumped up and immediately raced off into the woods, Josephine close behind him.
"It's getting louder…" the fourteen-year-old observed a moment later. "I wonder – Oh no!"
On the forest floor, crying, lay a small child of around eight months, Josephine guessed. She was wearing only orange sweat pants and an orange and pink beanie hat, and was quite dirty. As she noticed Josephine and Henry – who immediately pranced over and began to lick her – she held her arms up, sniffing pitifully. Josephine, who frequently volunteered in the local nursery, immediately picked her up on instinct.
"Shhh, it's okay," she cooed, bouncing her. "Er – what's your name?"
"You knee!" the girl announced, seeming a bit happier, though her eyes were red-rimmed and she sniffed a bit. She pulled on one of Josephine's corkscrew curls and giggled when it bounced back up.
"You knee?" asked Josephine, trying to decipher that. "You knee…Yuki?" the baby shook her head. "Julie? Unique?" Two more head-shakes. "Um…Junie?"
The baby nodded. "You knee!"
Josephine laughed. "Alright then, Junie…where's your mummy?"
"Mummy?" the baby repeated, looking confused.
"You don't have a mum?" asked Josephine, confused as well. Even if the child only was able to speak her own name and a few other words, she should recognize 'mummy'. Junie simply stared at Josephine.
Then the girl's watch beeped.
"Oh, I've got to hurry!" she said, glancing down at the baby. She couldn't very well leave her…and after all, if she saved Junie, she wouldn't be the only Tarehen in the universe.
"Would you like to come with me, sweetie?" asked Josephine. "We can go on adventures – see the universe!"
Junie laughed, though of course she couldn't possibly know what Josephine meant. The girl's mind was made up, however, and she smiled and said, "Come along then, Henry, Junie. We'll be the only three survivors of Tareh."
And together the three retraced Henry's and Josephine's previous steps to start over. They soon found the pod, and it was a rather large hexagonal shaped thing about two metres or so tall, with glass over the top half, but walled off in white on the bottom. Josephine repeated what the woman had told her to.
"Ave Dulcis!" she said, and snapped her fingers soundly.
A door popped open seamlessly from the pod, and Henry raced in, followed by Josephine and Junie. Josephine snapped her fingers again, and the door closed.
Inside it was white and dark gray, with a very soft-looking sofa edging the walls and a panel of complicated-looking buttons on the wall where the door had opened. Luckily for Josephine, who couldn't even roll down the window on her dad's expensive car, the woman had told her to press the bright yellow and blue buttons simultaneously, which would activate the autopilot. The carpet was bright white and very soft, so Josephine set Junie down and pulled out her favourite toy from her childhood (which had been packed away with other mementos in Josephine's backpack). It was a small homemade doll made by Josephine's grandmother that she called Baeleef. Junie shrieked happily and hugged it. Henry licked her again.
"Okay you guys," Josephine said shakily, taking out the clear box. "Here it goes. Say goodbye to Tareh."
She opened the box, and all three of them held their breath.
"Goodbye." Josephine whispered, and pressed the button.
Nothing happened of course – the twenty minute delay, and all that. Sniffing heavily, Josephine walked over to the control panel and pressed the blue and yellow buttons.
"Autopilot: activated." Said a clear computer voice. "My name is Auto, and I will be taking you into space today."
"Right." Said Josephine shakily.
"Computer recognizes three life forms on board," it continued. "One: canine. One: Tarehen. One…Unknown."
"Unknown?" asked Josephine, confused. "Which one of us is that?"
Auto ignored her. "We will be taking off in thirty seconds. Please fasten your safety belts."
Gray straps shot out of the seats, one set smaller and obviously meant for Junie.
"Alright." agreed Josephine, picking up Junie and buckling her belt, then doing the same for Henry.
"We're ready." She told Auto.
"Acknowledged." It replied. "Ten seconds remain. Ten, nine, eight…"
Josephine, Junie, and Henry all had looks of extreme seriousness on their faces as the computer counted down. Josephine was starting to think that she had picked the perfect companions to rescue, even though she had only known Junie for a few minutes. There was something about the two of them – they weren't a normal dog and baby, just like Josephine wasn't a normal girl…at least not any more.
"Five, four, three, two, one. We are now ascending."
Josephine had to glance out of the glass to confirm this, because the pod didn't seem to move a bit. Indeed, they were rising slowly but surely off the ground, even without the fire or engines Josephine had expected to see. They were by no means going very fast, but they weren't going slow either.
"Please remain in your seats until we have exited the atmosphere." Auto said.
"Okay." Josephine said, still looking out the window. They had risen past the trees now – the lovely pink and yellow and bright green and blue trees. The winds were more visible now than they had been on the ground, and the blue, white, and blue-white swirls brushed against the pod almost lovingly. Josephine thought it was a way of Tareh saying goodbye.
"Fly!" cried Junie happily, looking out as well. Henry was barking at several birds in the distance.
After almost fifteen minutes of them enjoying the scenery, Auto said, "We will now prepare to exit the atmosphere. Please secure all belongings and prepare for some slight turbulence."
Before any of the occupants could reply, the pod suddenly began to lurch, shake, and vibrate violently. Henry whimpered and covered his eyes with his paw, and Junie followed suit, covering her eyes with her tiny hands. Josephine was tempted to do the same, especially as the outside shell (or at least, she presumed and hoped it was the outside shell) was burned away in the speed of their ascension, but at the same time…she wanted to watch. After all, how many times would she be able to do something like this? (Little did she know…)
"We have exited the atmosphere of Tareh." Announced Auto. "We will move to a safe orbit in time for the destruction of Tareh."
Josephine let out a strangled sound between a sob and a scream. She had managed to forget, for the last eighteen or so minutes, that her home was about to explode all because of her.
Two minutes had never moved so fast to a person in the history of all Time. It seemed to Josephine like she simply blinked, and suddenly Tareh was glowing yellow – then orange – then red. Flames erupted from it; it seemed to swell to three times it size and then –
Everything froze for a second. The flames, the pod, the very air around them. Then the planet shrunk in on itself and burst forward in white-hot fire. The force of the blast sent the pod rocking and flipping. Josephine and Junie both screamed, and Henry yowled.
Then it was over. Josephine was crying without realising it, simply staring in shock at where her home had been. There was no trace of it now, not even shrapnel or dust. Junie was blinking wildly, eyes wide as teacups.
Josephine Abigail Lovelace knew at that moment that she would never again go by the name past down to her from her grandmother, which she had loved since childhood. Josephine was a shy and unpopular but kind and creative nobody girl from Tareh. Jo, however…Jo was suddenly a mum to a baby who was the only other of her kind. Jo was the next-to-last Tarehen. Jo was a space traveller. Jo was a destroyer. A destroyer.
And most of all, Jo was something Josephine never had to be: a killer.