Prologue
The child blinked in the sunshine as he staggered along the shoreline, not knowing which way he should go.
He cried softly; confused, and with no-one to comfort him.
The blue water that lapped up the sandy beach looked so inviting and the child became calmer as he watched the waves gently break over the shore. He suddenly realised that he was ravenously hungry and licked his dry lips. Was there food in the water or should he return the way he had come?
He turned to look at the softly swaying trees at the far end of the beach. He couldn't remember anything before he had woken – just darkness and warmth. Perhaps he had better return there? But the water that rushed and ebbed over his legs felt wonderful.
With an effort, the child reluctantly left the water, starting across the beach towards the jungle. His hunger was gnawing at him now and something nagged at his mind.
He staggered and crashed through the trees, retracing his steps as far as he could remember. The homing instinct was getting stronger now as he approached the nest. But the sight that greeted him made him cry out with fear and pain.
The other eggs had been smashed and the children within butchered.
A group of creatures with pink skin and dressed in pieces of cloth of various colours surrounded the nest, brandishing long pieces of sharp metal. The child turned and started to run back towards the shore, desperate now to return to the sea.
One of the creatures behind him gave a yell and the child glanced back to see the creatures start to give chase.
The child stumbled and fell. He scrabbled to his feet but suddenly a huge net was flung over him and he crashed to the ground. The child mewed pitifully as the creatures surrounded him, laughing and jeering.
One of them raised a piece of wood high in the air and the child screamed.
********************
The child's eyelids fluttered as he regained consciousness. Then, as he remembered what had happened, he looked around in fear. There were more of the pink-skinned creatures that surrounded him. They had shut him in a metal cage. The child's green hands pulled and clawed uselessly at the metal bars.
Another pink-skinned creature, this one fat with white fur on its head and dressed in red and white cloth pushed its way past the others and leered over it.
"My, my," it gloated, "now you are an unusual one, aren't you my pretty?"
1.
Katherine stood on the balcony and searched the ocean with her eyes like she had every morning for the last two weeks. And today, like every morning, her heart sank just a little bit lower. There was no hope now – the Doctor was truly dead.
Katherine screamed as she saw the Doctor being dragged under the ocean by the sea creatures.
From her vantage point on the balcony, Katherine watched the small port of Kingston start to wake. The streets began to fill with sailors and market traders, most on their way to or from the harbour.
With a boom, the 'Spaniard' had leased another cannonball that was heading straight towards them. Roberto shouted commands to all his men that were still on the 'Bloody Mary' to return to their ship. He ran across the deck to where Katherine was gripping onto the side rail and staring into the ocean. Without waiting for an argument, Roberto grabbed Katherine around the waist and picked her up. She struggled and twisted, but Roberto's hold was firm as he carried her towards the 'Sea Stallion'.
Katherine walked from the balcony back inside the room of the inn. Roberto had purchased a room for her to stay while the 'Sea Stallion' was being patched up in the harbour.
The fight aboard the 'Sea Stallion' had been fierce and brutal. After pummelling it with cannonballs, the 'Spaniard' had swept alongside it and pirates had swung across on ropes. With some boarding planks still connecting it to the 'Bloody Mary', Roberto's ship was a sitting target. Katherine ran across the deck to get into cover as Roberto dropped her and drew his cutlass. A pirate charged towards him.
Katherine crossed to the table in her quarters. On it lay a cutlass and a small flintlock pistol. Her hand ran gently along the cutlass before she picked it up and tested its balance.
Roberto dispatched his attacker with a flick of his cutlass. Before the dying pirate had even sunk to the deck, Roberto as shouting orders to release the boarding planks and move away. The crew of the 'Sea Stallion' responded quickly and Katherine heard the tear of some of the planks as the ship pulled off, the deck swaying beneath her feet.
Katherine turned and flicked the cutlass up, dropping into the stance that Roberto had taught her. She thrust forwards and then danced sideways, parrying an imaginary blow.
The pirate just appeared from nowhere, his face twisted with anger and aggression. Katherine's eyes widened as he leapt towards her.
2.
Katherine screamed and dodged to the left as the cutlass sliced down. Missing her head by inches, it hit a wooden barrel and embedded itself in it. With a curse, the pirate grabbed a dagger from his belt and started towards Katherine again. It was then that she saw another discarded cutlass on the deck
Ruffling up her hair, Katherine stepped from behind the screen where she had changed from her long dress into more practical clothes. She now wore a full white blouse, over which she had a crimson stitched waistcoat, dark trousers and black high leather boots.
The pirate twitched on the deck, the cutlass shuddering in his chest. Katherine looked down in horror as his eyes finally closed. She felt cold and the bile rose in her throat, but she knew that she never had a choice. If she had paused, she would've been killed.
Katherine picked up the cutlass from the table and thrust it through her wide belt. Then she reached for the flintlock and stowed it away inside her waistcoat. As she turned, she glanced at her reflection in a long mirror that stood in the corner of her room. She took a deep breath and stared at the woman in the mirror. It felt like she had changed more than just her clothes.
With the full sails billowing, the 'Sea Stallion' sped away from the 'Spaniard' and the ghost ship of the 'Bloody Mary'. Roberto had taken the wheel and steered his craft with experience as the rest of the crew mopped up Castro's remaining pirates from the attack and threw the bodies overboard. It was a pity that he had to leave all of the booty aboard Jonas' ship behind, but he knew that if they had stayed then Castro would have beaten them.
There was a knock on the door of Katherine's room and she jumped, turning away from the mirror. "Come in," she called.
Roberto del Guisa opened the door and stepped into the room. He grinned appreciatively at Katherine's new clothes and bowed graciously. "Santa Maria!" he exclaimed, with only a hint of mockery in his voice. "Now you look like a pirate queen and no mistake Katherine!"
Katherine rolled her eyes, but smiled back at the buccaneer. Roberto had been nothing but kind to her since she had lost the Doctor two weeks ago and she had enjoyed talking to him about her adventures, often late into the night. "How's the 'Sea Stallion'?" she asked.
3.
Roberto laughed, walking across the room to the table. He poured a goblet of wine from jug and took a swig before pointing back to Katherine. "I know what you're thinking milady Katherine. You want to go back, don't you?"
"Yes – absolutely," nodded Katherine. There was no point in hiding it.
"Well," continued Roberto, taking another swig and leaning against the table. "The 'Stallion' should be seaworthy later today. Trent is getting supplies onboard so we can sail before the evening tide, but the dockworkers here are not as quick as those in Port Royal…."
"No, but it's much safer," interrupted Katherine, "and Johnson's not here either."
Roberto nodded. "True enough." He paused. "Why do you want to return there Katherine?" he asked. "You know the Doctor must be dead –those sea devil creatures would have killed him."
"I know it sounds mad, but the Doctor has escaped death so many times before." Katherine shrugged. "I must be sure – I can't just abandon him without trying."
Roberto looked into her eyes for a moment and then nodded. "Alright, I admire your loyalty and courage Katherine. You're a remarkable woman."
Katherine raised her eyebrows, a smile playing about her lips at the compliment.
"Anyway," continued Roberto gruffly, clearly a little embarrassed at his own admission, "that treasure on the 'Bloody Mary' could still be there. Treasure like that could make me rich – and it would prove to that dog Johnson that Pryce is really dead."
"Oh so that's it!" said Katherine, slightly put out, and placing her hands on her hips, "you're going back for the treasure?"
Roberto put down the goblet of wine and stood up. He took a step towards Katherine and then gently put his hands on either side of her face. "No, not for the treasure - for you." He leant down and kissed her softly on the lips.
Katherine started to pull back with surprise, but as his lips touched hers she suddenly realised how wonderful it felt. She kissed him back, closing her eyes and draping her hands around the back of his neck.
Suddenly there came a knock on the door. Katherine's eyes snapped open and she jumped away from Roberto guiltily. Roberto swallowed a curse as the door opened to reveal Trent.
"Captain," he said a little breathlessly, completely unaware of what he had just interrupted. "The supplies are loading now and all the damage is repaired. We can set sail on your order!"
4.
The Doctor yawned and stretched as he swung his legs off the shelf that served as his bed in the little room that the Sea Devils had assigned him. He pulled back the blanket of moss and got to his feet. The door to the room (much better to call it a room rather than a cell, thought the Doctor) opened and a Sea Devil stepped inside. It carried a tray with a pitcher and a bowl on it, setting it down on a small green cube that seemed to grow directly out of the floor.
"Ah, room service," beamed the Doctor, scratching the back of his neck. Then he peered into the bowl to see some kind of fish stew. "I ordered the full English though?" he said reproachfully.
The Sea Devil ignored him completely and stepped back through the doorway, swinging the door closed behind it.
The Doctor sighed and sat down cross-legged on the floor next to his 'table'. He picked up a spoon from the tray and sniffed at the soup. "Mm, smells a bit like lobster bisque." He dipped his spoon in to the stew and tasted a mouthful. "Yeugh!" His face twisted and his eyes closed in disgust. The Doctor licked his lips. "Doesn't exactly taste like it though!"
With a sigh, he put down the spoon and bowl and got to his feet. He fumbled in his coat pocket before bringing out his sonic screwdriver. It looked corroded and tarnished. "Next time I make one of you," said the Doctor sadly, looking down at his trusty friend, "I need to make you a bit more waterproof!" He put the screwdriver away and tested the door to the room. It was, as usual, locked.
The Doctor blew out a breath and then crossed the room to where he had chalked a complex grid of hexagons on the wall. Each small hexagon contained a tiny Gallifreyan symbol. "Ah well," mused the Doctor, "another round of 'Sudoku' I suppose!"
****************
The undersea cavern was enormous, and lit by murky green phosphorescence that emanated from the rock itself. As the water levels dropped and the water gushed into metal grates set into the base of the walls, the door slid back to reveal two Sea Devils standing in the dark corridor beyond.
They stepped slowly into the chamber, their huge webbed feet splashing in the wet pools on the rock floor, and slowly surveyed the lines of motionless reptiles within.
"This chamber is now ready," whispered one Sea Devil to its' companion. "Bring the Doctor."
5.
Hopeful seagulls wheeled on the air behind the 'Sea Stallion' as it left the port of Kingston. On the prow of the ship, the wind blew through Katherine's hair. The sea in front of them looked choppy and ominous black clouds drifted in the sky overhead and she held tightly onto the rigging. Katherine stared out onto the horizon - trying, as she had done for the last two weeks, to decide whether in her heart she thought the Doctor was dead.
She took a breath and then turned and walked back along the deck to the wheel. Roberto stood behind it and smiled as she approached. Without a word he stepped back and gestured for her to take the wheel.
Katherine shrugged a little nervously and then grasped it. She had to stretch her arms out fully and was taken by surprise at how much strength was needed to keep it steady. She gritted her teeth, pushing it back into place as it started to drift. But then Roberto's rough hands closed over hers and together they steered the ship back on course.
"To Michael's Point milady?" whispered Roberto in her ear.
Katherine nodded, a little surprised and flustered at his closeness. Her heart thumped in her chest. "And the Doctor!" she replied huskily after what seemed like an age.
Roberto just grinned. "Aye milady!"
The 'Sea Stallion' sailed across the ocean and into the gathering clouds.
*********************
The Doctor wasn't surprised when the door to his room slid back for the second time in less than an hour and a Sea Devil entered. He got to his feet from where he had been crouched on the floor, chalking symbols on the wall. "Time for a shift is it?" he asked lightly.
The Sea Devils had questioned the Doctor extensively when they had brought him to their undersea base. As soon as they realised (along with some discreet bragging from the Doctor – who knew he had to give them a reason to keep him alive) that he could help them repair malfunctioning hibernation mechanisms, the Sea Devils had put him to work almost every day of the two weeks he had been their prisoner. Each shift was long and was under close supervision with no immediate avenue of escape.
The marine reptile stood to the side of the door and pointed at the Doctor. "You are required."
The Doctor clicked his tongue as he walked through the door. "I think it's a Sunday y'know – I'm going to have to charge you double time!"
6.
The Sea Devil led the Doctor through the now familiar rocky corridors of the undersea base. The green light of the phosphorescence cast long shadows, occasionally interrupted by murky light from huge windows that were set into the rock walls. As the Doctor and his reptile escort reached one such window, an enormous Myrka creature swam past, another Sea Devil astride its back.
After a few minutes they had reached a large circular chamber with several hatches that led off from it at regular intervals. In the centre of the room were banks of complex equipment, half electronic and half organic. The control banks were clearly under repair with some panels missing and showing a mixture of wire and ganglion within. Some lights flashed whilst others remained dark. The Doctor knew the chamber and its equipment well – it was here that he had spent most of his time.
In front of the control banks were three Sea Devils. One was a huge hulking warrior and another was slightly smaller than a normal Sea Devil – this was Kaulix, a Sea Devil technician that had been assisting the Doctor and supervising the repair work. Standing between these two was a Sea Devil that wore a long moss-green cloak over the usual netting. Its' green skin was mottled with orange – a sign that the Doctor had learnt denoted greater age – and the large eyes were rimmed with red veins.
The Doctor nodded respectfully to the Sea Devil leader. "Morning, Tarthor." He strolled across to the control banks. "Emptied another hibernation chamber have we?"
Tarthor inclined his head. "Yes Doctor – it is time for you to repair the revival system once again."
The Doctor counted the hatches around the chamber. "That's the fourth one now. You really have been busy haven't you? How many of your people in this one?"
"A hundred - like the others," Tarthor whispered.
The Doctor scratched his neck. "That's three hundred. I hope you lot have enough food – you might have to send out for takeaways at this rate!"
"Not all of my people survive the revival process Doctor, you know that."
"I know; I'm sorry." The Doctor paused. He had helped the Sea Devils up to this point and avoided a confrontation earlier because he knew that if he didn't co-operate, they would have no hesitation in killing him. "Look Tarthor, I think it's about time you told me what you intend to do when all your people are awake."
The Sea Devil leader regarded him coldly.
"We intend to destroy the human port so they drown in a sea of their own blood!"