Summary: Onboard the plane, it starts to become clear that someone is trying to remove Torchwood.
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Episode 2 – Miracle Day: Rendition
Getting through airport security was easy enough for Tegan, Jack, and Rex, but apparently the Doctor's 'bigger on the inside' courier bag didn't sit well with the x-ray. On the bright side, it got a good laugh out of the people who had been in line behind the Doctor, but it also left airport security scratching their heads.
Tegan knew that Harry had tried explaining Time Lord technology to people before and it left them more confused then when they'd set down with him because 'bigger on the inside' was just one of those things beyond 21st century human comprehension. For that matter, 'bigger on the inside' wasn't entirely understood by 51st century humans!
Rex kept glancing at the Doctor's eyes while the bag was being thoroughly examined - or as thoroughly as it was going to be able to be examined - and was trying to figure out why his eyes - the irises - seemed to be almost glowing. Tegan had explained about the color of regeneration energy and if he was remembering correctly, the way the Doctor's eyes glowed was the same color as the regeneration energy, but between being immortal and the simple fact that there wasn't enough energy to regenerate why were his eyes glowing? And, why was nobody else noticing that? Was it something that just sort of happened on occasion or was this new? But, if it was, why was nobody mentioning it?
Once onboard the plane, a few things became quickly apparent. The first being that besides the pilot, copilot, a couple flight attendants, and a woman named Vera Juarez who was apparently a Doctor, there wasn't really anyone else onboard. The second being that something or someone had figured out a way to remotely disable Tegan's wrist strap which shouldn't have even been possible for someone other then either Tegan, the Doctor, or Harry. The third being how quickly the Doctor fell asleep - before the plane had even gotten off the runway. The first two were disconcerting if for no other reason then because of what had happened earlier.
The plane was just starting to gain altitude when Jack looked over at the Doctor and Tegan. How someone who was over 900 could be even remotely comfortable on their left side curled into a tight ball, Jack could not figure out. Of course, he hadn't yet figured out what had made the Doctor so clingy either and that was really the only way to describe the way he'd been acting toward Tegan since the courier bag had been packed, the Doctor was not the type to be clingy! And really, with his head in Tegan's lap, was there really any other way to see it? Even if you could ignore the fact that he'd barely allowed two feet to be put between himself and Tegan except when he'd done that one trick that even Harry questioned the wisdom of - maybe not out loud but Jack had learnt to read Harry well enough to be able to tell - sometimes, when there was an obvious unasked question.
Tegan closed his eyes, letting his right hand rest on the side of the Doctor's head, and just focused on the feel of the plane. He loved flying and had learnt by feel how a plane was moving and operating, he knew part of his 'quick study' nature about planes had been an inert Time Lord sense but that's what had made him such a good pilot, but for some reason, the CIA seemed even less willing then Torchwood to let him pilot a flight! No, with the vortex manipulator, he didn't have to fly, but he enjoyed it. As his mind began to drift, Tegan couldn't help but wonder how the Doctor was going to react when he was shown just what was inside Tegan's studio apartment.
The plane had leveled out. One of the flight attendants walked over to where Rex was seated and asked, 'Can we interest you anything to eat or drink'? Rex said, 'Just water'. Looking over at Jack, the attendant asked, 'And you, sir'? Jack said, 'Coffee or tea, your choice'. Looking back at Tegan, the attendant asked, 'And you'? Tegan said, 'No'. The flight attendant walked away.
Tegan again closed his eyes and let his mind wonder. First someone - or a group - cause them to have an accident in the SUV and now, something has disabled his wrist strap on this otherwise fairly empty plane. What if - what if this was planned to again attempt to deal with Torchwood? But, then again, he could just be paranoid and reading too much into something that was otherwise innocent.
The flight attendant came back a few minutes later, handing Rex a bottle of water and Jack a cup of tea.
Feeling another presence attempting to connect with his mind, Tegan realized that the Doctor wasn't actually asleep - most likely - there had been a few times when they'd both been asleep that the Doctor's dreams/nightmares had bled into Tegan's own dreamscape but with Tegan not being asleep, that couldn't be the case now. Allowing the connection to complete, Tegan asked, 'Why are you pretending to be asleep'? The Doctor asked curiously, 'Can't you tell that something is - wrong'? Tegan asked, 'You mean, I'm not just being paranoid'? The Doctor said, 'A small group attacks the SUV that Jack's driving with us, our daughter, Rex, and the Prime Minister - Harry, in it. Now, we board a plane that can hold dozens of people but somehow there's only nine onboard. And, to top it off, your wrist strap isn't working and there is only a select few that could pull that off in this century - all of them, Time Lord's! And, since our little trio of Time Lord's isn't responsible, who is'? Tegan asked curiously, 'Do you think we're dealing with a Time Agent'? The Doctor asked curiously, 'How would another Time Agent know how to disable the wrist strap that you've modified to the point that Jack - its original owner can't even use it'? Tegan said, 'And, then there's the modifications that you've made to it and then the modification - okay, complete reconstruction of the shell - the case, to make a stronger one that Harry made. You're right, unless they knew about this exact wrist strap, there's no way it could be another Time Agent'. The Doctor said, 'And, the strap itself is made of a super-strong, odor-proof material that's unique to the 79th century - well, 79th to 84th centuries'. Tegan asked curiously, 'You haven't answered my question though, why are you pretending to be asleep'? The Doctor said, 'Surprise factor, shock factor, call it what you will. If anybody tries anything, I'll be ready'.
Tegan threaded the fingers on his right hand through the Doctor's hair and started to massage his scalp. Tegan could hear the Doctor's hum of something between contentment and pleasure in his mind.
Jack had finished half the cup of tea before he began to feel strange. He couldn't have described the feeling if he'd been asked but he knew it wasn't right. Something was wrong with him!
Rex had been watching Tegan and the Doctor since Jack had pointed out a very interesting trait that the Doctor had picked up. Tegan moved his right hand down to the Doctor's hip, threaded the fingers on his left hand through the Doctor's hair, and began massaging his scalp again. Rex wondered if Tegan or the Doctor noticed every seven to thirteen seconds that the Doctor's right foot or leg would twitch, almost like a dog getting a good belly rub and one of their feet or legs would start twitching in rhythm. Rex thought, 'What a mental image'!
The Doctor could feel as Tegan moved his right hand to where the Doctor's scar was but the feeling of regret that the Doctor could feel coming through his telepathic connection with Tegan, he wondered if there were a way to convince Tegan 'at least, you're here, now'. But, the Doctor also couldn't help wondering, if Tegan had known about the pregnancy, would he have still left? He really didn't think so.
Jack slumped to the left.
Looking over at Jack, Rex wondered how Jack had fallen asleep so easily, thinking that it might have been some Torchwood trick about taking sleep where you can get it - Rex could do something similar - just not on a plane. Returning his attention to Tegan and the Doctor, he wondered why Britain had more plans in case some kind of alien invasion happened - Dalek's, Cybermen, at this point even the 456, and even some that he wouldn't know if they came up to him and said 'hello'. Maybe that was the advantage of having a Time Lord holding a political position, they were bound to know about the threats to Earth. Even though, the more he learned about Time Lords, the more he had to wonder why they would give a fuck about Earth's political future. He understood why Tegan cared about Earth's survival, he'd grown up on Earth. And, the Doctor being half-human would care about Earth's survival because Earth is the origin of the human population - or, something like that. But, Harry is strange, he actually cares about the politics, and knowing about the Master's past, is this some sort of long-term agenda? Returning his attention to Jack, Rex wondered if Harry was just using Jack as a means to an end, or did he actually care about Jack? He couldn't - wouldn't accept the possibility that Harry - the Master actually loved Jack - Care? Yes. Love? No.
It didn't take long for Rex to notice that Jack's breathing had become erratic and he thought, 'Huh'?
The Doctor - through his continued connection with Tegan asked, 'Why did you become a consultant with the CIA when you left'? Tegan said, 'I figured you wouldn't try to find me in the US because you know - probably better then even papa knows or Ianto knew - how much I dislike the country'. The Doctor asked, 'Did Jack know too or just Harry - where you were, I mean'? Tegan said, 'I don't know if Harry told Jack or not but I'm not sure he would have had to tell him'. The Doctor asked curiously, 'How so'? Tegan said cautiously, 'I don't remember exactly how Harry explained it too me but it's something - it's some sort of ceremony on Gallifrey that is supposed to permanently intertwine your mind with another - they don't have to be Gallifreyan but it does require the other person to have some sort of telepathy'. The Doctor asked surprised, 'Why would he do that again'? Tegan asked confused, 'Who'? The Doctor said, 'Koschei - Harry'. Tegan asked curiously, 'Why? What's the problem'? The Doctor said, 'The ceremony is the Gallifreyan equivalent to a marriage but I think you already figured that out'. Tegan said, 'Yeah'. The Doctor said carefully, 'But, while meant to be permanent, there are ways to break it, but at great mental trauma'. Tegan asked curiously, 'Have you ever done it'? The Doctor said, 'Once - with Koschei. I never would go through that ceremony again'. Tegan asked curiously, 'Why'? The Doctor said, 'To begin with, because it's not something to be taken lightly - and no, you didn't have to be intertwined with someone to have children with them. But, the other more important reason was simply because I never found someone else I wanted to do the ceremony with'. The Doctor could feel Tegan's flinch and then Tegan asked curiously, 'What's it called - the ceremony'? The Doctor said, 'There are several ways it can be said and none of them are inaccurate. Personally, I prefer the term pair bond. Koschei preferred and probably still prefers the least intimate term telepathic bond'. Tegan asked curiously, 'Does it have anything to do with that strange ability of yours'? The Doctor said, 'No, it's fair less dangerous - well, not actually dangerous at all'.
Tegan wanted to ask 'What about me'? But, he didn't think he actually had the right to ask that. He wasn't sure he would ever have that right.
What the Doctor had omitted was that he'd never found anyone else on Gallifrey. And, whether or not he had wanted to go through with the ceremony with Tegan didn't necessarily make it a good idea.
Rex looked at Tegan and said hesitantly, 'I think, something's wrong with Jack'.
Tegan looked at Rex and asked concerned, 'What'? The Doctor sat up, looked at Rex, and asked curiously, 'What do you mean'? Rex shook his head, he didn't know. The Doctor stood up, Tegan pulled his legs up onto the seat, the Doctor walked over to where Jack and Rex were, Rex stood up and stepped out of the way. The Doctor took his sonic screwdriver out of his pocket, aimed it at Jack, moving it up and down, then looked at his sonic screwdriver, and started rattling off something that sounded like something medical that neither Tegan nor Rex understood. Doctor Juarez asked concerned, 'He's been poisoned'? The Doctor looked at Doctor Juarez and said, 'Yes'. Doctor Juarez asked, 'What with'? The Doctor said, 'A liquid form of the airborne toxin that the 456 tried to use to kill Harry, but that shouldn't even be affecting Jack - he's human'! Tegan, who had come to stand back to the Doctor's right asked, 'He's been poisoned with a toxin to kill a Time Lord - a Gallifreyan'? The Doctor asked confused, 'But how? How did they even find out about the toxin? And, why is it affecting Jack? He's not Gallifreyan'! Rex asked cautiously, 'Maybe there's a difference in the toxicity between the airborne and the liquid forms'? The Doctor shrugged and then said, 'That's the only possibility'.
The Doctor, Doctor Juarez, Tegan, and Rex were all working on finding the 'ingredients' that the Doctor said he needed to develop an antidote - why had he agreed to leave his T.A.R.D.I.S? She could have developed an antidote in seconds! - When the plane suddenly went into a nosedive.
Tegan went toward the cockpit of the plane - slid toward being more accurate to see what was going on. Opening the door and seeing neither the pilot nor copilot made Tegan wonder what the hell was going on - they hadn't left the plane! They hadn't even left the cockpit! Letting his training as a pilot take over, Tegan tried to get the plane out of the nosedive, but then shouted, 'Doctor, something's wrong, the controls aren't responding'!
The Doctor was trying to quickly mix the ingredients together and thought, 'Oh, what I wouldn't give for two of me right now'! Once he was finished, he shoved the antidote at Doctor Juarez and said, 'Make sure he drinks at least half of that'! Sliding toward the cockpit, the Doctor took his sonic screwdriver out of his pocket. He then pointed the sonic screwdriver at the controls and only a couple seconds later, Tegan was finally able to get the plane out of its nosedive.
The plane had just leveled out again when Tegan said frightened, 'Doctor'! The Doctor who was sitting sideways in the co-pilots seat - for all he or Tegan knew it might have been the pilots but with Tegan acting as the pilot, it was safely referred as co-pilot - glanced out the window and thought, 'Aw shit'! They both knew a rocket on a collision course with the plane was not a good sign. Tegan making a snap decision to try to turn the plane caused the rocket to miss a direct shot to the front of the plane but it became quickly obvious that it hadn't entirely missed the plane. Tegan said as soon as he noticed the smoke coming from the left wing and checked the controls said, 'Engine two's down'! As the plane again started to lose altitude and as the water they were flying over came closer and closer, both Tegan and the Doctor abandoned the cockpit, and the Doctor shouted, 'Back of the plane, now'!
Back in London, Harry's standing in his office and thought, 'What the hell? Who is Oswald Danes? What was he apologizing for? Whoever he is, I don't fucking like or trust him'!
The plane having crashed at the angle it did, did not 'disintegrate on impact' but broke into two pieces - the break happening just behind the wings. The front taking the brunt of the impact and the back hitting the water almost like a tailfin, quite hard. Having quickly escaped the broken plane, Rex asked sarcastically, 'Is working for Torchwood always this exciting'? Tegan said, 'Yup'. The Doctor said, 'Pretty much'. Doctor Juarez just laughed. And, Jack - while still feeling some of the effects of the poison asked, 'To much, Agent Matheson'? Rex looked at Tegan asked, 'Does your vortex manipulator work again yet? I just want to go home and get dry'! Tegan checked his wrist strap and then said, 'Yes'.
Ninety minutes later, Harry is sitting in his office, trying to find as much information of the man known as Oswald Danes as he could when the woman he thinks of as his secretary but probably has a different rank said concerned, 'Prime Minister Saxon, we have a problem'. Harry snapped, 'Of course we have a fucking problem! With everybody on this fucking planet unable to die -' The woman - Dana said carefully, 'We just received word and thought it'd be best for you to know before it gets plastered all over the telly'. Harry asked intrigued, 'What'? Dana said sadly, 'The plane that Jack and his group were on crashed into the ocean'. Harry asked surprised, 'What'? Well, that was an octave his voice didn't hit very often.
Jack, having gone with Rex and Doctor Juarez was met by a colleague of Rex's from the CIA named Esther who told Rex that they both had been framed as traitors. Rex asked surprised, 'What'? Esther then added, 'They've also reneged their protection of Tegan meaning that the military is going to be able to go after him again'. Esther then looked at Jack and said, 'How they plan on deporting you and the Doctor when neither of you came through the airport, I don't know, but that's their plan - either that or kill you'. Jack said, 'I think they just want me dead. And, killing the Doctor would be just as impossible as humanity, right now'. Doctor Juarez and asked cautiously, 'What about me'? Esther said, 'There was no mention of you'.
Tegan having changed into some dry clothes and then packed his stockpile of flavored coffee into the Doctor's courier bag - which the Doctor hadn't even bothered to take off when they were on the plane - asked curiously, 'Do you want to see something, Doctor'? The Doctor asked curiously, 'What'? The Doctor followed Tegan around the wall that blocked the view of the bed and immediately took a step back. The Doctor asked surprised and a bit angry, 'What the fuck'? Tegan looked at the Doctor and said, 'He's harmless, trust me'. The Doctor said angrily, 'There is no such thing as a harmless Dalek'! Tegan said, 'Not unless their programming gets damaged and this one is quite - well, he's harmless'. Tegan put his left hand on the rounded 'head' of the Dalek suit/case/armor/shell and it opened revealing a type of Dalek that the Doctor had only rarely seen. Tegan turned his back to the Dalek and said, 'He's a recon-scout. Apparently, he's supposed to be able to control the people he attaches too but -' The Dalek wrapped his tentacles loosely around Tegan's waist and shoulders and Tegan continued, 'But, apparently that only works with those who are weak-minded and being a strong telepath to boot - well, he can't control me. But, while we're not exactly friends, I do keep him hidden from the CIA - God only knows what they'd do if they got hold of him'.
The Doctor knew that reconnaissance scout Dalek's could survive even if they were cut into pieces, they were probably one of the most terrifying types of Dalek's because of how difficult they were to destroy - even though after the recent news that he and Tegan had received about somebody - somehow having put them, alongside Jack and Rex, and a colleague of Rex's named Esther all on what he could best describe as being a hit-list - yeah, maybe having a defective Dalek on their side wasn't the worst thing that could happen. Even though, if somebody had told him prior to today that he'd be carrying the shell of a Dalek in his courier bag, he would've have laughed at them.
The Doctor asked, 'Do you have a name or are you just one of the innumerable number of Dalek's that doesn't'? Tegan said, 'Dalek Epsilon'. The Doctor asked surprised, 'What'? Tegan said, 'His name is -' The Doctor interrupted by saying slightly irritated, 'I know what you said'! The Doctor then asked, 'Epsilon'? Dalek Epsilon's voice sounded different then most Dalek's do as he asked, 'Who are you'? The Doctor said carefully, 'Since I graduated from the Time Lord Academy, I've been known as the Doctor, but my Academy name was Theta Sigma'.
Tegan thought it was strange that the Doctor would introduce himself like that but Dalek Epsilon's response was even stranger, as he asked, 'Theta'? The Doctor laughed and then asked, 'Were you not in the Time War'? Dalek Epsilon said, 'No. Not all of us were. There were some from Skaro that had nothing to do with the conflict'. The Doctor asked curiously, 'And, you had no interest in getting into a conflict with the Time Lord's'? Dalek Epsilon said, 'I had no interest in getting into a conflict with Theta Sigma'. Tegan asked confused, 'You two know each other'? The Doctor said, 'In a matter of speaking, the first time I borrowed a T.A.R.D.I.S. after everything fell apart with Koschei, I ended up on a deserted planet and found a damaged Dalek. I was going to leave it be but when it started saying a word that wasn't even in the Dalek vocabulary - mercy, I decided to try to fix it. Obviously, I didn't do a very good job but at least it could move again. It was odd for me when he asked me to name him. I didn't realize until after I had named him Epsilon that he was a recon-scout. We would encounter each other again on several other occasions while I was still Theta Sigma and even a couple times after I'd become the Doctor but I've always been Theta to him'.
As Tegan and the Doctor met up with Jack, Rex, and Esther, the Doctor couldn't help but wonder at the timing of meeting Epsilon again. Even though, he had to admit that Epsilon had concealed himself well under Tegan's greatcoat. Tegan had been surprised that the Doctor and Dalek Epsilon knew each other but perhaps he shouldn't have been - Time Lord's seemed to have a thing for the Greek language.
Tegan, the Doctor, Jack, Rex, and Esther knew they were on the run now but not knowing from who made things a lot more difficult.
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Author's Note 1: First of all, I have exactly zero ideas what Oswald Danes was on television apologizing for or how Jack got poisoned. As I've said before, I've never seen Miracle Day so there are things that I just do not know. Second, I don't know if the way I wrote the plane crash happening would be possible or not - you'll have to forgive me if I'm not entirely enthusiastic about looking up the dynamics behind plane crashes.
Author's Note 2: If you don't know what a recon-scout Dalek is then you haven't seen the 2019 New Year's episode of Doctor Who, that thing was cool! Of course, I can't say I knew much about the Dalek race either until I actually looked them up and saw all these different shells (bodies - whatever) and then how they hadn't always been Dalek's but some other green octopus looking race that I cannot recall the name of - well, the Dalek's have pretty much always been around in Doctor Who but apparently the original series gave more of a background for them - at least, I think it was the original series - for all I know it could've been one of their audio stories or books or comics!
Author's Note 3: One thing they never did explain about Miracle Day and what I'm sure a lot of people who watches or watched Doctor Who and Torchwood noticed is they'd never really separated the Torchwood 'universe' from the Doctor Who 'universe' but with Amy and Rory being from around the time that Miracle Day would have occurred and there being exactly no mention - ever by them about this 'inability to die', that's exactly what they did or somebody fucked up! And, if Torchwood was still supposed to be set in the same 'universe' as Doctor Who then how did Miracle Day happen? Because it wasn't a single day, it was months!
Reviews/Comments/Critiques welcome!
