The Overlords
DISCLAIMER: I am not connected to Doctor Who and its characters, which belong to the BBC.
-O-
Chapter 2 – Faith of the Timelords
The members of the High Council sat; listening intently to the Doctor's description of events in the Tomb of Rassilon. Those with strong religious beliefs were visibly shocked by the strange appearance of a figure claiming to be an Overlord, whilst others more inclined towards scientific studies were fascinated by the story. After delivering his speech, the Doctor, along with Jade and Orleo, left the chamber to allow the High Council to deliberate on the situation in private.
"Doctor," Orleo looked puzzled, "who are these Overlords, exactly?"
"Ah! The Overlords! Well, to put it in the simplest terms, they are the creators of all living things."
"Like Gods, you mean?" Jade chipped in.
"Yes, well, the closest thing we have to a God. That's why some of the more religious of the Timelords looked so amazed by the story! In many civilisations, it would be like coming face to face with your maker! We all have certain beliefs, but our 'Gods' usually remain concealed!"
"Do YOU think that whatever we saw was really a God?" asked Orleo.
"Well, I like to keep an open mind in most situations, but, let's say I've yet to be convinced!"
Just then, Savin entered the room after leaving the chamber of the High Council. He looked at the Doctor and then at Jade and Orleo, "All three of you saw this vision?"
The Doctor looked him in the eye, "Yes, just as we told the council; and it's the truth."
"Then, as it is written; you are the chosen ones! The ancient texts speak of three travellers, one a Timelord and, when the time is right, the Overlords will appear to them!"
Savin fell on his knees before the three of them! "Oh, Lord of the Faith! I am your humble servant! What is your command?"
"Wait just a moment!" The Doctor looked shocked, "I don't know what sort of ideas have got into your head, Savin, but I'm no different to before; none of us are! Get up, man!"
Savin rose to his feet just as Olin, a member of the High Council, walked in, "What's going on? Savin? What have you been saying?"
"The Doctor and his friends are the chosen ones, can't you see?" answered Savin, with a look of awe.
"Leave us!" commanded Olin, impatiently, "We have things to discuss!"
After Savin left the room, Olin gestured to the Doctor and his companions to sit down.
"You must excuse Savin," Olin began, "I happen to know that he takes his faith very seriously, but I think that he has allowed his beliefs to cloud his judgement! Now, the High Council has come to a decision. If you are agreeable, Doctor, we'd like to get to the bottom of this matter, once and for all."
"Of course," replied the Doctor, "what would you like me to do?"
"We want to find out whether these beings are really Overlords; as they claim. As you've already seen; those who are deeply religious are heralding a new age of the Timelords before we've seen any evidence! I, like you, am a scientist; I need facts before reaching a conclusion."
Suddenly, a high-pitched noise filled the air and interrupted them and they hurried out towards the High Council chamber. As they entered, the place was alive with excited Timelords. The animated babble of the assembled people stopped immediately as a voice replaced the shrill sound of the signal, "This is the voice of the Overlords! I must warn you, my children, you must prepare for the invasion of the enemy! Otherwise, it will be the end of life as you know it! Now, listen carefully, you must seek the answers you need in the Matrix, ask for information about the Eye of Destiny."
Without another word, the voice stopped and there was a deathly hush.
"The Eye of Destiny?" the Doctor looked perplexed, "Surely he meant the Eye of Harmony. Why would we need to seek the help of the Matrix about that?"
"The Eye of Destiny!" said Savin, as if he had found the answer to a riddle, "Yes, of course; that's the reason why the Overlords have come!"
"What are you talking about, Savin?" asked the Doctor.
"The time of the Eye of Destiny has come," Savin had a slightly crazed look about him, "It is written that the Overlords will return when the Eye has been opened!"
"Let's go and consult the Matrix," said Olin, dismissively, "I've heard enough about Overlords and Eyes of Destiny to last me a lifetime!"
Olin lead the Doctor and his two companions to the Matrix. Once there, he put the helmet on to access the giant databank. After a few minutes, he removed the headgear and looked at his comrades.
"Have you managed to find any information?" asked the Doctor.
"Yes," replied Olin, "Savin is right about one thing, the Eye of Destiny is mentioned in the ancient teachings of Gallifrey, but those are just fables and legends. Most Timelords, at least, those with a high scientific intellect, treat such stories as fiction."
"Well," the Doctor fiddled with his lapel, "Even fiction can have a basis in fact. So, where is this Eye supposed to be found?"
"Beneath the Temple of Kings; beyond the Tomb of Rassilon."
"But," the Doctor looked astonished, "that Temple pre-dates the tomb itself, surely there can't be anything there?"
"But, Doctor," Jade interrupted, "If the Eye is an ancient thing, then surely it would be found in an ancient place!"
"I suppose you could have a point there, Jade! Well, we won't find anything standing here; we'd better start searching!"
Savin had been eavesdropping outside the door. On hearing the location of the Eye of Destiny, he quietly crept away to tell his friends in the Holy Order.
Olin, with two other Timelords, took the Doctor and his companions to a Tardis so that they could go to the Temple of Kings. It took only seconds to re-materialise near the Temple and all six travellers disembarked. The Temple was a dark and forbidding place, made of ancient stone and set in the barren wastelands of Gallifrey. They walked towards the Temple cautiously, all the time looking around them.
"Why couldn't we materialise inside the temple?" asked Jade.
"It's difficult to get an exact fix on the co-ordinates," replied the Doctor, "and we don't want to risk landing inside a block of stone! These walls are very thick and we don't know what's inside until we get in there!"
They approached a huge metal door set into an arched entrance to the Temple. The Doctor reached the door first and used his sonic screwdriver to unlock it. He pushed against the great weight of the thing but it would not budge.
"Here, Doctor," said Orleo, "Let me give you a hand!"
All six of them pitched in and, after much effort on their part, they managed to push the door open enough to allow them to squeeze past into the Temple. The interior was very dark but, fortunately, they had taken the precaution of bringing torches with them. The walls were decorated with strange inscriptions, carvings and pictures.
"These must have been created by the ancestors of the Timelords!" said the Doctor, "I imagine we're the first people to set eyes on them for centuries!"
Suddenly, a voice from the darkness made them all turn to face in its direction.
"No, Doctor!" Savin's tones were unmistakable, "You are not the first; we are!"
The six of them directed their torches towards Savin's voice and illuminated both him and two of his companions from the Holy Order.
"Savin!" cried Olin, in surprise, "How did you get here?"
"The same way as you! We were braver though, we materialised our Tardis inside the Temple. We knew that you'd come here to desecrate this place. I'm sorry, but we cannot allow you to do this; you must turn back now!"
"Don't be ridiculous, man!" countered the Doctor, "You know that we need to get to the bottom of this situation. Why are you behaving like this?"
"There are powers that we do not understand...that we are not meant to understand. We thought that you were the chosen one, but your actions have convinced us that you are not a servant of the Overlords. If you begin meddling with mysterious forces, you will unleash a great evil upon our people!"
"This is all superstitious mumbo-jumbo," snorted the Doctor, "you are men of science! These fables and legends have no place in our society."
"Men of science we may be," Savin answered, "But we still have our beliefs! If you persist in trying to go deeper into the Temple, then we will do everything we can to stop you!"
The Doctor turned to his companions, "It seems that Savin is deadly serious in his intentions; I recommend that we play along for the time being. Maybe we can think of another way to get around this."
Before anyone could answer, a bright light suddenly illuminated the interior of the Temple and the apparition that the Doctor had first seen in the Tomb of Rassilon appeared at the far end of the great hall. Savin and the members of the Holy Order fell on their knees.
The ghostly figure spoke without moving his lips, "So, you have come in search of the Eye of Destiny! Listen well, my children, you must go down beneath this place; into the catacombs, to seek the answers to your questions. There, you will be given the secrets of the Overlords."
The apparition vanished again, leaving the members of the Holy Order speechless.
"Well," remarked the Doctor, "It looks like we will need to go exploring underground; coming?" He looked at his friends.
"I'm game!" answered Orleo, anxious for some action, but as he went to move, Savin jumped up and blocked his way.
"Let us pass!" Orleo shouted angrily.
"No!" replied Savin, "You must not enter the catacombs of the Kings, it is sacrilege; you will die an agonising death; it is written!"
"But," the Doctor reasoned, "if the Overlords have decreed it, surely you would be disobeying their orders if you do not carry out their wishes?"
"I know this must sound strange to you, Doctor," Savin continued, "but I know now that; whatever that creature was, it wasn't an Overlord! The one belief which is held sacred above all others is that a Timelord must never enter the catacombs of the Kings! A genuine Overlord would never issue an order to do this; we have been the victims of an elaborate hoax!"
"Well, we've discovered one thing today," said the Doctor, thoughtfully, "no matter how strong a Timelord's faith is; we cannot be fooled by false Gods!"
"I'm sorry that we have caused you so much trouble," said Savin, "now that we know that we are not dealing with the Overlords, we can concentrate on using science once again to overcome our problems!"
"Now that's what I like to hear!" replied the Doctor, with relief in his voice.
...next chapter: The Dangerous Mirror