2.
2.
The interior of the ship was like nothing The Doctor had ever shown Clara before. The machinery The Doctor had scanned was sleek, refined and constructed of a metal which irradiated a blue glow. A pulse of light flew up and down the corridor as if it were a heartbeat and the equipment seemed to ebb and flow with a surge of power the light carried with it. Upon the ceiling a fine collection of organically twined silicon cables thread themselves around curved rivulets of another blue metal. These cables pulsed with the same light as the rest of her surroundings.
It was this blue light which had calmed Clara. The soft sensation of the tidal light hypnotized the schoolteacher and as she stood in the strange craft she could feel her mind wander. A cool breeze ambled around her face and her pulse slowly joined to the beat of the ship.
A child with him – that's fate I suppose. That's it now.The breeze gently grazing Clara stopped. Well he is handsome. Smart too. Very understanding.Clara noticed a large hand clasping her waist. I wonder if he slow dances. Clara closed her eyes as thick soaring strings filled her ears rebounding across the metallic surfaces of the ship. Frank Sinatra's unmistakeably smooth voice sung into her ear and began to sway with her.
His hand on her waist and her arm raised in perfect poise the pair turned a few delicate steps out of the warmth of the ship into the rising snow. Flakes began to fall and collect on the man's hat. Clara brushed a few off and giggled for underneath the shadow of the hat's brow were two deep red pools, eyes out of darkness.
Clara smiled and danced off into the landscape with her unmistakable Frankie.
The Doctor was for once, speechless. Upon entering the main chamber of the ship he had expected a grand hall of sorts - perhaps a large table and a collection of fine art works surrounded by a few hard light holographic heads of state all soften by a blue glow. Instead the room was a pulsing cold azure and bare. The table was there as expected but was more akin to an operating table of forty foot. Resiem sat on a tall wire chair in the middle of the table and beckoned The Doctor to join her.
"Where are all your works of art? Hardlights?" The Doctor sat beside Resiem who towered above him and grabbed what looked like an apple from the solitary bowl upon the table. Before he could take a bite he noticed it's rotten and festered flesh. "Food?" The Doctor threw the apple across the room and with a hard thump it smashed across the floor. "You guys are famous for your spreads. I want a refund – This is the worst cruise I've ever been on."
"You are petulant are you not?" Resiem let out a soft laugh. "Alas you have not come at a good time. I am currently repairing this vessel for departure from this planet and as such have not prioritized holograms or sculptures."
"Oh I see, well your engine is in perfect working order – what I saw of it anyway."
"Yes I heard you scanning with that primitive sonic device." Resiem reached out a large hand and The Doctor begrudgingly placed his sonic in the palm. Resiem looked at the device, paused and threw it across the room. The Doctor stood and ran to pick his faithful tool up and save it from the rotted apple's stench. "To some souls sustenance has greater value than knowledge." Scowled Resiem.
"To some souls a rotten apple isn't known as sustenance." The Doctor pushed the sonic into his pocket and crashed his palms into the side of the table. "If you break that all I've got to hand is a lipstick. Now if you'd please tell me what happened then I may be able to help you." The Doctor relaxed and sat opposite the giant.
"There was a disagreement."
"With?"
"The Supreme Council of Andhera, the fools who made themselves responsible for my homeworld."
"Come on, you can tell me about it bud. There's no secrets between friends." The Doctor snarled.
"I did not agree that our planet's accumulated wealth be invested in 'tourism'." Resiem's voice turned bitter. "And as such I was exiled."
"Please don't get me wrong here but, you guys are famous for your leisure industry. I've been on a few tours myself." The Doctor leant forward and whispered to Resiem; "The one you do right on the gravitational wave of a white dwarf particularly amused me." Resiem leant forward an inch from The Doctor's face curving her large frame.
"And did you enjoy the frittered wealth of my people. Did you enjoy countless works of sculpture and scripture? How about a feast carved from the breast of an endangered mammalian?" Resiem's voice began to grow sharp. "My world is a victim of it's own development. I'm sure you know of our species' needs."
"Blue light – yes." The Doctor recoiled.
"Not just any blue light, Doctor. We need the pulse." Resiem relaxed in her chair. "Our planet was polluted, damaged. Repairable but damaged. The composition of our atmosphere changed and the usual supply of blue light refracted through our ionosphere deteriorate. Instead of investing in research or resolving the issue The Supreme Council elected to divert a majority of funds to establishing distinctive tourism experiences which would double as outreach missions trying to find a new source of equally powerful blue light."
"And let me guess – your senate's investment was wrong in your mind."
"Blue light had already been manufactured and generated for the masses as you can see from my ship's interior." Resiem's face trembled "However, with little to no funds left there was no way to police regulation of the light's supply on my planet. The rich gained control of the light sources and purchased the land on which the cyan shone brightest." Her fist smashed upon the table. "The poor were denied access to the light and were left to die from malnutrition in the streets."
"What did you do to get exiled?" The Doctor placed his hand softly on Resiem's clenched fist.
"I abused my position as ship's captain to sell off, piece by piece, some of the works of culture trusted into my care." Resiem stood from her chair and gestured around the room. "As you can see I was very successful. I gave the income to a few of my contacts back on Andhera who used the wealth to purchase blue light generators for public use."
"Didn't you think someone would notice they were gone?" The Doctor smirked.
"I had planned to replace them, but my forger turned out to be just as untrustworthy as The Council." Resiem rested her fist on the metallic blue wall.
"They ran off with the fee?"
"No Doctor, they turned me in."
