Doctor Who: The Gemini Paradox

Part 1: Project Gemini

Featuring the Seventh Doctor and Liz Shaw

The Omega Institute, Earth, 1974.

Professor Harold Jenkins strolled through the door of his laboratory, and gazed in wonder at what stood there: a large capsule, connected with wires to a large nuclear reactor. He had worked on Project Gemini for seven months now, and the project was almost finished.
"Sir, you're here!" welcomed his assistant, Jenny Anderson, as he saw the capsule, ready to be used.
"Yes, Jenny," he replied with a smile, "so, how's my capsule been doing overnight?"
"All going extremely well, but there has been a certain anomaly in one of the temporal energy counters."
"Really? Show me."
Jenny looked at him confusedly.
"Sir?"
"Yes? Aren't you going to show me the temporal energy counter readings?"
"Sir, it's 2am. And what do you mean? There's nothing wrong with the temporal energy counters."
"It's not 2am, Jenny, it's-"
He then looked at his watch, and to his astonishment, it showed the time as 2 o'clock in the morning.

Elizabeth Shaw had left UNIT five years ago, and she hadn't expected to see the large imposing structure that was its headquarters again. However, ever since the Doctor had gone swanning off with Sarah Jane Smith and Harry Sullivan, and UNIT's scientific advisor Elizabeth Klein had left for Germany, Liz was the only person with a good scientific knowledge left who had links with UNIT.
Captain Arnold Forrester had greeted her, as she had been driven to the large building just outside London, at the entrance to the headquarters.
"Captain Forrester," she said, with a cheerful smile as she left the car, "why exactly have you called me back?"
"Ms Shaw, we've received reports of unusual temporal activity at the Omega Institute. Usually the Doctor would be called to investigate this, but he isn't available at the moment. The last I heard, he vanished after the K-1 incident with Sarah Jane Smith and Harry Sullivan."
"And what about the other scientific advisor you have? Or maybe Jo Grant? I've met her before, during the Primord incident, and I reckon she'll be able to cope."
"Dr Klein is in Germany for the time being, and I'm not sure when she's returning. Liz, it had to be you. You'll understand why, in time."
"What do you mean by that?"
But, before he could answer, they entered the main building, and slowly walked to the Doctor's old laboratory.

Elsewhere in time and space, on the planet Himpa, the Doctor was strolling back to his TARDIS, swinging his umbrella as he walked. He had a sad frown on his face, and as he walked, he reflected on what had happened: he had stopped a war between two tribes of Himpans, but had failed to save the lives of a human research team, who had come to explore the planet. Just as the ceasefire between the Kiaman and the Hebet had been made, a Kiaman missile had been launched at the research team's rocket, where the team were about to take off.
"If only they had known," he said to himself, as he opened the door to the TARDIS and walked inside, "if only they had been told. Then none of this slaughter would have happened."
He placed his hat and umbrella on a chair near to the central console, and then examined the console itself, pulling levers and flicking switches in a logical combination that made sense to him. The time rotor soon began to rise and fall, as the ancient ship wheezed itself out of existance, and went spiralling through the time vortex.

As the ship flew, he considered where his next destination should be. He wanted to go somewhere calm, somewhere where there was no chance of slaughter.
"But where could there be no war? The universe is evolving at an extremely rapid rate. Arguments arise, then they evolve into fights, then battles and then, finally, war. It seems that I'm just an innocent victim, trying to extinguish the fire."
He sighed, just as a light began to flash red on the console, and an alarm went off, echoing all around the console room.
"Now then," he wondered, examining the scanner screen, "what could possibly be going on?"

In the Doctor's old laboratory, Liz was now sat at one of the desks, talking to Captain Forrester.
"So the Professor said that time just changed?" she asked him, having heard about what had happened at the Omega Institute, "Are you sure that he couldn't have been going mad?"
"He is definitely sure of it, Ms Shaw. When we asked his assistant, however, she didn't remember it at all. As far as she was concerned, the Professor had strolled in at 2 o'clock in the morning."
"I see."
She sighed, gazing at the spot where the Doctor's ship, the TARDIS, had once been: it was now an empty area, with no sign that a space-time ship had ever been there.
"What is it?"
"This would be a lot easier if the Doctor was here. He'd know what to do."
The doors then flung open, and a short gentleman strolled in: he wore a beige jacket, with a blue shirt and red tie. He had a face that looked comedic, but Liz could feel that this man was more serious than he looked.
"Liz!" he cried, with a smile on his face, "It's me! The Doctor! I'm back! Well, from my perspective anyway."
"Doctor?"
"Yes, you know. We saved the Earth from the Silurians, the Autons, the Great Intelligence and the Cybermen. You left me to return to Cambridge, and I visited you a few years later, with Jo Grant."
Even though what he had said was true, Liz was still doubtful.
"Okay then, Doctor: what was the name of the person who co-operated and assisted the Autons?"
"Oh Liz: it was Channing. But we defeated him: that was my first little adventure during my exile to Earth."
She smiled: the Doctor was back.

Inside Professor Jenkins's laboratory, Jenny was now connecting the final cable: it lead from the nuclear reactor to the capsule's temporal engines, and she was sure that, once connected up, the capsule would last five days, and then, because of the immense power building from the reactor, it would drag the entire institute back in time, before shunting it forwards to the end of the Earth. This meant that a pilot needed to be found. And fast.
She picked up the wire that was on the floor, and connected it to the capsule. It then lit up with a satisfying blue glow, making her grin with satisfaction.
The time machine was ready.

The Doctor, Liz and Captain Forrester were now at the Omega Institute, and were waiting at the reception desk, where a red-haired young woman called Mel was trying to handle two phone calls at once.
Thankfully, she eventually ended the calls, and noticed the group.
"Sorry about that," she said politely, before asking, "can I help?"
"Yes, I think you can help." the Doctor said, with a smile, "I'm the Doctor, this is Liz Shaw and this is Captain Arnold Forrester. We're here from UNIT, and we need to see Professor Jenkins."
"Ah, I see. Follow me."

Mel led them to a large laboratory, where a large metallic capsule stood, connected up to a small nuclear reactor by a series of cables. A young woman stood by a control console, talking to a tall brown haired man, who was dressed in what looked like a spacesuit.
"Professor Jenkins!" Mel called to him, waving her hand.
"Yes Mel, who are these people you've brought me?"
"They're from UNIT. They've come to sort out the time problems."
The Professor smiled.
"I see. Okay Mel, I think you can go now."
Mel nodded, and left.

Once Mel had gone, the Doctor strode up to the capsule, and examined it thoroughly.
"Jenkins, this is a Temporal Anomaly capsule: you do realise that, don't you?" he asked Jenkins.
"And who are you again?"
"I'm the Doctor. UNIT's helpful advisor on all things alien and unusual."
"So then, Doctor, what exactly is a Temporal Anomaly capsule?"
"Jenkins, there is a race known as the Time Lords. They govern time, and monitor it regularly. If there is instabilities, they find a way of fixing it. Since they need me around to do most of the fixing, and I can't help them all the time, they set up a group of people known as the Council of Time. They monitor time, and attempt to fix it when I'm not around."
"So? What about the capsule?"
"In order to contain some temporal anomalies, these capsules were made. They were sent out, and successfully contained the anomalies. If opened, the anomaly could escape, and invade you. You would be a living anomaly, which would give you absolute, unfettered power."
"Really? You can't contain time: it's impossible."
"And who told you that?"
The Professor sighed, knowing that he'd been won over. But he wasn't going to let the infuriating little man stop him: he walked up to the capsule's entrance, and gave a thumbs-up to Jenny, who turned the power on.
The Doctor, unable to help, watched, as the Professor entered the capsule, and stood there, looking out at them.
"Doctor," Liz questioned, "can't we stop him? Turn the power off?"
"No. It seems that we're powerless. We just have to deal with the consequences."

The capsule was now powering up: it was bathed in an eerie blue glow, as it began to flicker out of existance. But then, just before it was able to vanish, the blue energy dissipated, and the capsule became solid again. Inside, however, the Professor was now bathed in a blue glow: the temporal energy had invaded him, just as the Doctor said.
The door opened, and he emerged from the capsule, with a creepy smile on his face, and without any blue glow.
"Sir?" Jenny asked, concerned about the Professor's new appearance.
"Oh, Jenny," the Professor said, with a tone of amazement in his voice, "I have immense power, and I know what I'm going to do with it."
He raised his left hand at Jenny, and pointed a finger at her: a spike of blue energy shot out, enveloping her, before it dissipated, revealing that she had vanished.

"Doctor, what's happened to her?" Liz asked, but the Doctor had an expression of pure fear on his face.
"Liz," he explained, "Professor Jenkins has become a Paradox Warrior, and he has just propelled his assistant into an alternate timeline."
"And a Paradox Warrior is?"
"Ms Shaw, I think I can tell you what a Paradox Warrior is." Captain Forrester interrupted, walking up to the Professor with a smile on his face. Then, he grabbed the back of his neck, and pulled hard, ripping off the mask to reveal the familiar face of the Master: he had a black and grey beard, and an evil grin on his face.
"Of course," the Doctor said, "you had to be at the heart of this, didn't you?"
"Yes, Doctor. I see that your appearance has changed since the last time that we met. I don't think it suits you well."
"Well it's not up to you to decide. What are you doing here? And why have you joined forces with a being that is what our ancestors attempted to destroy long ago?"
"You're the Master?" Liz asked, interrupting the confrontation, "The evil Time Lord who was behind a lot of the alien invasions that took place throughout the 1970s?"
"Yes, Liz. He was the mastermind behind the Auton invasion, the Sea Devil attacks, and he attempted to summon Azal the Daemon. He is the definition of evil, in human form." the Doctor answered, "But now isn't the time for introductions. I want answers, and I want them now."
"Very well then, Doctor," the Master agreed, "I'll tell you why I'm here..."

I was sat, reading an Earth book called "The Time Traveller's Wife" in my TARDIS, when I received a message from the Time Lords. They told me to head to Earth, in the year of 1974, where I was to correct an anomaly in the timelines, as you had gone, and I quote, AWOL. Naturally, I had to oblige, and I arrived, albeit a few months earlier, in the year 1973. Luckily, I managed to find the real Captain Forrester, and made a mask of him. I killed the real version, and pretended to be him until you two arrived. I was the one who sent for Ms Shaw, as I had never had the pleasure of meeting her before.

"How very despicable." the Doctor remarked.
"I hope you understand, Doctor, that I had to do as the Time Lords commanded. They are our brothers in arms, in case you may have forgotten."
"I haven't forgotten that. It's just that their missions are unethical, and end in innocent slaughter."

The Professor had now had enough of the confrontation, and strolled forwards, blocking the Master.
"Doctor, I now have more power than ever before," he said, staring in awe at his hands, "and I know exactly what to do with that power."
And then, like some sort of superhero, he flew out of the lab, and vanished into the Time Vortex.
The Doctor, desperate to catch him, grabbed Liz's hand, and they sprinted out of the room, back towards the UNIT jeep parked outside.

Eventually, they were back at UNIT HQ, and the Doctor was opening the door to the TARDIS, when Liz realised that he was planning to chase the Professor across time and space.
"Liz," the Doctor asked, "I don't think that this is over, and I'm going to need someone to help me defeat this evil, this menace from the dawn of time itself. Will you help me?"
"Well, I think it's too late to say no, so yes, I'll help."
"Splendid! Welcome aboard!"
She then entered the TARDIS, closing the door behind her. Soon, the TARDIS vanished out of existence, wheezing and groaning as it went.

Inside the TARDIS, the Doctor was poised at the console, examining the temporal trail of the Professor.
"Well," Liz commented, gazing around in amazement, "this is remarkable. After all the stuff I saw with you, this is just somehow normal and yet so very remarkable."
"It's good to see that you admire the old girl."
"Is that what you call her? The 'old girl'?"
"Yes, Liz. Now, the trail's gone cold, but the Master, rather unusually, has helped me out, and left me a breadcrumb to follow."
"Oh, really? What's the breadcrumb then?"
"The Professor's first destination was one that may not be very familiar to you, but I am aware of it, for very bad reasons."
"So, what's the destination?"
"London, England, 1989. Specifically the National Gallery, as there's a painting with rather unusual temporal abilities which I helped to make."
"And what's that supposed to mean?"
"Liz, there is an object known as the Key to Time. It holds the universe together, and, if assembled, it has the power to destroy reality, and rewrite the universe to the user's design. I was tasked with finding the segments twice, in this body and an earlier one, and, the last time I assembled it, it broke the Key into its six segments, and hid them across time and space."
"That means that the Paradox Warrior is trying to assemble the Key to Time?"
"Yes. And if he succeeds, then the universe is doomed!"

TO BE CONTINUED...