Chapter One

Martha Jones watched the Doctor as he ran maniacally around the T.A.R.D.I.S control panel as he held forth about the wonders of the city of Los Angeles. They had decided to go there after the near miss that they had on the space ship with the living star.

"It's a beautiful place. The music scene in the eighties. They claim they built the city on rock and roll. Of course they didn't, but you wouldn't know from all the earthquakes. It does have a tough time in the early 2000s, a localised eclipse and the destruction of much of the city. They claim it was terrorists, but others claim it was down to the dragon…"

Dragon? Martha wondered if she had heard him correctly. The Time Lord could talk a mile to a minute, yet at the same time not talk about anything in particular. She thought she was able to understand him better after their several month sojourn in 1913, but alas he was just as maddeningly unable to figure out. And she wanted to understand him better. This amazing, annoying man. Who moved on from pain, yet held on to so much of it.

"It was rebuilt though, even after the destruction caused by the aliens in 2010." The Doctor stopped abruptly as the T.A.R.D.I.S whirred pointedly. The whole ship shook as she changed the time and destination of her materialisation.

"What are you doing this time?" The Doctor yelled, as Martha found herself holding onto one of the rails.

"Where's she taken us?" Martha asked.

The Doctor's hands flashed quickly around the console as he tried to figure out the answer. "We're in Los Angeles as intended. About two years before that eclipse. We appear to be in the apartment of one Kate Lockley, a detective in the LAPD." A pensive look formed on the face of the Doctor. "Why here? Why now?" He looked inquisitively around the T.A.R.D.I.S. Half expecting the ship answer.

Martha meanwhile was near to the door. "Well we're not going to find out in here, let's go."

The Doctor grinned, the manic energy that he held had come back. "Well said," He responded. He grabbed his long brown coat and moved to the door. "Be careful. You know what the Americans are like with their guns. And how I hate them."

"Americans?"

"No, guns. Anyway let's find out why we're here. Allons-y!" The Doctor opened the T.A.R.D.I.S. door and went through. Martha followed, bracing herself as ever for the unexpected. Things had a tendency to go crazy the very moment they stepped through those doors, as if the ship lead them into crazy situations on purpose.