I'm the Doctor. What's your name?

The words, repeated a thousand times, and yet they'd never held more meaning than this single time, spoken to the Digitalian girl, the Child of War.

The Doctor couldn't have known how he changed her life. How her terror in the moments that he spoke to her would bring forth a realization that could change Digitalia forever, that could change her entire race.

He couldn't have known that this Child of War could bring the human invaders to their knees. He couldn't have known that this young girl could save Digitalia.

He couldn't have known.


The TARDIS rasped into life, materializing on yet another planet that The Doctor had randomly decided to poke his nose into.

A tall, thin man with wild brown hair ran out of the TARDIS. The Doctor. A wild grin crossed his face.

But it disappeared quickly.

The planet was quiet. Still. The wind gently blew ash and dust in swirling clouds around him. It was the sight of a world hit by war.

And, standing in the ruins, was a small child.

She was about twelve years old. She had long, black hair that hung down to her waist. Brilliant blue eyes stared at him, wide with shock and fear.

And, though hidden well, a layer of hate.

The Doctor raised his hands, almost surrendering. He had no wish to frighten this young girl.

He smiled carefully as he walked slowly towards her. Her face grew more terrified with every step he took.

"Hello." He said, keeping his tone gentle. "I'm The Doctor. What's your name?"

The girl looked at him, pure terror in her eyes. She hurriedly clawed at something around her neck, and handed it to him, still attached.

The Doctor looked at the small necklace. She was holding two small, metal plates. They had some type of writing on them.

Carefully, slowly, he picked up the plates and read them out loud.

"Turquoise." He smiled. "That's a pretty name."

She shivered in response.

He continued to read. "Species: Digitalian. Number: 43821." He looked at the next tag, and his eyes hardened. "Child of the War."

She shivered again.

"OI!" A loud voice called out. The Doctor whirled around.

A tall man came up behind The Doctor. He had red hair, flecked with grey. Dark, blazing amber eyes burned as they glared at the small girl next to him.

More importantly, he was carrying a gun.

The Doctor's hearts sank as he looked at the weapon. Dark fury and hate burned in his eyes.

Then the man did something unexpected. He marched right up to the little girl and pointed his gun at her head. "Where are your tags, FREAK?"

The girl, who had already been terrified, looked about on the point of collapse. She desperately began clawing at the necklace she'd given The Doctor, this time pulling it off her neck completely and handing it to the man.

He looked at them for a while, before nodding slowly. "Child of the War…" He handed them back to her. "Get out of my sight." He spat.

The girl was more than happy to do as he'd asked. She ran away and disappeared into the shadows of the ruined buildings.

The man spat out his disgust. "Digitalians. We should've gotten rid of them all." He looked at The Doctor, and raised his gun. "And now for you."

The Doctor's eyes were cold. "There was no reason for that." His voice darkened with each word.

The man laughed. "You have no idea what you're talking about." His eyes darkened. "You haven't seen what those creatures can do. Now." The gun rose again. "Where's your identification?"

Fury darkened The Doctor's eyes like a shadow. He pulled out his Physic Paper and held it in front of the man's face. "Happy now?" He spat.

The man looked at the paper for a long time. Finally, he nodded slowly. "Sent from Earth, eh? No wonder you're so sympathetic to those freaks." He rolled his eyes, turned around, and gestured for The Doctor to follow.

The Doctor looked for the small girl, but couldn't see her. He had no other choice. With a heavy sigh, he followed the man.


In the shadow of the ruined building, the girl watched The Doctor walk away.

He was the only human who'd ever spoken to her like… like…

Like an equal.

It was unheard of. Humans and Digitalians couldn't get along. It was impossible. There had been so much fighting, so much pain, the war, the never-ending war…

Painful memories washed over her. Memories of lives lost, her family crying, the cities burning…

She tried to push away the dark memories. Remembering the past did not help with what was happening NOW.

Save me!

"No…" She whispered, her voice cracking. "NO! LEAVE ME ALONE!" She cried, her hands striking out at an invisible enemy. "Stop it, stop it!"

Tears fell down her face, and she turned, running away from the ruins. "NO!" She clutched at her head.

She could run. She could hide. But she could not fight. No matter how hard she tried, the memories always found her, always came back to poison her mind.

Two words rang out, over and over.

Save me!

The girl collapsed to her knees. "NO! Can't you see? I can't help you! Leave me alone, leave me ALONE!"

She crumpled to the floor, sobbing. "LEAVE ME ALONE!"


The Doctor couldn't have known what this Child of War was. He couldn't have known how his simple words would change this girl forever. He couldn't have known what she was meant to be.

He couldn't have known.