CHAPTER THREE

In his quest to repair the damage done to the TARDIS, the Doctor had taken most of the console itself apart. Sheets of paneling littered the metal-grated flooring, mixed with exposed wiring and bits of rock salt peppered metal he'd removed and discarded. Currently, he was underneath the floor.

The sound of the sonic screwdriver led Martha to the area where he worked. Once she reached him, she squatted at the edge of the open floor grating. The Doctor had a piece of wire threaded between his fingers and the screwdriver clenched between his teeth. "Make any progress?" she asked as he separated the different colored wires from one another. She scanned the mess which had grown exponentially in the three hours since she'd left the room. "It doesn't seem like it. In fact, it looks worse."

He removed the screwdriver from his mouth. "The boy made quite a mess of the insides of the old girl," he stated.

"You did make the ship move," she reminded him as he fused two wires together.

"Yes, but that isn't the point." The Doctor disappeared from her sight as he knelt down to scan the screwdriver over another piece of machinery. "How is our guest?"

Martha leaned forward and peered into the hole. "He's awake. He'll be fine physically." She pressed her lips together. "I'm not sure he believed much of what I told him about us, however."

"Oh?" The Doctor glanced up from his work. "What did you tell him?"

"We didn't kidnap him, we only meant well when we took the Colt, and ... we're aboard a spaceship."

"He'll believe soon enough."

"He said his brother would be concerned about him as well." Off of the Doctor's questioning look, she added, "The one who was with him at the motel."

"Ah, yes. Well, he shouldn't worry," he replied as he fused two more wires together. "When I return him, it will be as though he never left." One of the wires sparked and zapped his fingers. He gritted his teeth as he shook his stunned hand.

"Are you all right?"

"Minor jolt," he assured her. He flexed his fingers. "We'll keep him contained until I have this sorted." He grabbed the edge of the floor and, with Martha's help, climbed back onto the main floor.

"And when he demands the return of the key? What then?"

The Doctor paused in his button punching to look at her. "It won't matter. We'll have destroyed it."

"I don't think so."

A voice startled the both of them. They turned to find Dean leaning on the doorway between the console room and the rest of the TARDIS.

"You're not doin' a damn thing except give that gun back and let me go." He staggered towards them.

Martha rushed forward and caught him a split second before he completely lost his balance. She held onto him as she looked to the Doctor, who only went back to work on the console. "Didn't I tell you to stay in bed?" she scolded as she focused on Dean. "Come on."

Dean hobbled along, holding onto Martha as she guided him to a seat by the console. He glanced to his left and spotted his 9MM, just inches away from him on the console itself.

"Sit down, before you -" Martha was cut off by Dean pinning one of her arms behind her back. A second later, she felt the barrel of a gun press against her right temple.

"Okay, Doctor ... whoever you are," Dean started as he shoved Martha forward. "You're gonna let me go. Now."

The Doctor looked from the gun to Martha's head to Dean himself. "You shouldn't waste my time with empty threats," he simply replied. He stepped around the dismantled console and closer to them. "You and I know you aren't going to harm her."

Dean glanced from the back of Martha's head to the Doctor. "What makes you so sure? You don't know me, what I'm capable of." He tightened his grip on the woman. "Just let me go."

"I promise you, I will," the Doctor calmly said. He motioned to the console. "Once I've sorted this out, I'll gladly return you to Earth. But only after I've destroyed the key."

"We need that gun," Dean insisted.

Martha's gaze flicked from the Doctor to her right hand side. She couldn't see the gun, but she could definitely feel it. She wasn't sure what this man would do. He'd claimed he wouldn't have hurt them, but that was earlier. He was scared now. Humans did things they normally would never when scared.

"If you don't want to open the gateway," the Doctor's voice remained very soft and soothing. So much so, even Martha herself noticed it. " ... what possible use could it be to you?

"That's my business," Dean snapped. "Are you gonna do what I'm tellin' you or not?"

The Doctor pretended to ponder it before he shook his head. "No." His eyes narrowed ever so slightly as he held Dean's gaze, while he took a few steps closer. "If you would release her, I could resume my work. The sooner I do, the sooner you'll go home."

Dean's hold on Martha eased. His eyes never left the Doctor's. He couldn't explain why he suddenly felt so calm. These people had stolen the Colt, pretty much kidnapped him and wouldn't let him go. Why did he want to believe what this guy said? He hesitated before he lowered the gun.

Martha jerked her arm free as soon as he did and whirled around. "If that isn't a fine 'thank you' to the one who saved your life!"

"You shouldn't be so offended," the Doctor assured her. He took the gun from Dean's hand, aimed at the floor and pulled the trigger. An empty click. He grinned as he withdrew his other hand from his trouser pocket to reveal the clip and a single bullet. "Wasn't loaded."

Martha's eyes narrowed at Dean. He was embarrassed, as he bloody well should've been. She'd done nothing but help him and he tried to use her as a bargaining chip? She gave him a forceful push into the nearby chair. "If you plan on stayin' out here, sit down," she snapped.

The Doctor smiled a little. The boy seemed confused more than anything now. He'd used a bit of low-level hypnotism to settle Dean until he could deal with the ship's troubles. It would wear off after a while, so he needed to work as quickly as possible.

Martha looked to the Doctor. "Is there anything I can do to hurry this along? The sooner we're rid of him, the safer I'll feel."

He dropped back down underneath the floor. "You could hand me that bit of wire over there," he answered, motioning to his left.

Martha semi-glared at Dean as she passed him on her way to retrieve the wire for the Doctor. He avoided direct eye contact with her.

Instead, Dean sat back in the chair, uncharacteristically silent as the so-called Doctor tinkered around with his so-called spaceship. His eyes drifted away from them and to the rest of the "ship". It wasn't until then he noted how creepy the place was. Reminded him of Aliens, with the organic-ish composition of its walls, as well as the the strange console underneath which the two worked. Then another thought hit him: If this really was a spaceship, that would make them -

"No," he murmured as he shook his head.

Aliens weren't frigging real! Demons, vampires, werewolves, ghosts – these things were real. Aliens? Only on The X-Files. And he sure didn't see Mulder or Scully anywhere. What kind of aliens looked human and spoke with British accents? It wasn't possible. Even thinking about it being possible was crazy.

The sound of the console caught his attention. Below, the Doctor had done something with the wires which revived a couple of the things on the panel directly in front of him. One of which was a monitor. Slowly, with a quick glance to make sure they weren't looking, he rose to his feet. As he peered at the screen, he made out symbols scrolling across it, yet nothing about them were familiar. A visual readout of what appeared to be a planet was displayed beside them. None of the land masses resembled Earth's.

"What's this?" he asked, pointing to the screen. He lifted his head as the Doctor emerged from the floor. "This doesn't look like Earth to me."

"Because it isn't," the Doctor stated as he stepped in front of the monitor. "We're on Thoros Beta." He punched a few of the buttons as he skimmed the information before him. "Been a long while since I've visited this planet." He shook his head. "Seems as though its the same as it was then."

Dean's gaze shifted from the screen to the Doctor. "Maybe I'm still out of it from hitting my head, but are you tellin' me that -" He pointed to the monitor again "- is another planet? And we're on it?"

"Yes."

Martha leaned against the console on the other side of Dean. "As I've tried to explain to you – it's what we do." She smiled a little. "We're adventurers. We travel the stars. Meet new people and different species."

Dean sharply laughed. "You're crazy. The both of you," he added, jabbing a finger at the Doctor. "Space travelers." His gaze shifted back to Martha. "I'm supposed to believe you're aliens who fly around in a weird blue box - which is actually a spaceship - having a grand old time?"

Martha pointed to herself. "I'm not an alien, I'm human. From London, 2008."

He nodded, slowly. "Oh, I see. You're human but you're from the future."

"Only a year, but yes. The Doctor, though, he's -"

"Not from around here," he quickly cut in, to Martha's surprise. He saw the expression on Dean's face; it was one he'd encountered so many times before. It baffled him, really. In this day and age, after everything that had happened, humans still had trouble believing in the existence of other lifeforms. "I may appear human, but I most certainly am not."

"Right. And we're on another planet, and she's from the future," he finished as he jerked a thumb at Martha. He scoffed. British people were wackier than most. Probably a side-effect from drinking all of that damn tea. "Why don't you let me go and you guys can keep on runnin' from whatever psych ward you escaped from, okay?"

The Doctor lifted an eyebrow as he shifted his curious gaze to Martha. The human ability to deny the obvious was incredible. Apparently, seeing did not equal believing with this one. Here he was, inside of a ship bigger than its outside and he insisted they were the ones who were crazy.

"Perhaps we should show you?" Martha suggested, hopeful. Not only did she want to prove she and the Doctor weren't nutters, but she'd never been to a truly alien planet yet. The exile on Varas slash three six didn't count since the atmosphere wasn't suitable for human beings, and New New York resembled her own planet too much to even feel alien. "Is it safe out there, Doctor?"

"As safe as any planet in the Malas System," he replied. "You'll be fine."

Martha grinned, giddy at the prospect of being on an alien planet which didn't mimic Earth in any respect. "Do you feel up to it?" she asked Dean.

He shrugged. "What the hell?" he non-chalantly answered. "I've never been to the Malas System. Could be fun." The mocking wasn't absent from his tone. He knew what would happen. The doors would open and they'd see whatever crazy nonsense they had in their heads. In reality, they were probably on the other side of town.

Martha resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Instead, she took him by the arm as she headed for the doors. "You'll see for yourself we're telling you the truth," she said as they walked down the ramp. Again, beneath her irritation, her excitement about what lay beyond the doors surged. "It'll be brilliant."

"Yeah, sure," Dean flatly replied as Martha unlocked the outer set of doors.

The doors opened and Martha's eyes widened in absolute awe of the incredible sight before her.

Thoros Beta did resemble Earth, but only in that it had an ocean, land masses and an expansive sky. However, it was completely different in the details. Across from where the TARDIS had landed was a pure white beach, its sand glimmered almost as brilliantly as diamonds. To the left was an equally dazzling white rock cliff which rose from the beach and up seemingly forever into a stunning blue-green shade of a cloudless sky. Beyond the cliff and beaches was a rolling expanse of reddish grass.

Her gaze shifted to Dean, who was as amazed by the sight as she, but considerably more shocked. He'd not believed them, now the proof was undeniable. Still, she couldn't help but ask, "Do you finally believe we're on another planet?"

He shook his head. Here it was, big as life, yet it was hard for him to accept. Strange for someone who readily believed in the existence of things almost everyone else considered myth. This? This was impossible. Aliens, space ships, and all of that crap. Other planets did not look like this, they were drab as hell. Like Mars.

A shimmering caught his attention and he lowered his gaze to the ground. That's when he – and Martha – realized the TARDIS hadn't settled on solid ground at all. They were more than twenty feet away from the shoreline. Instead of land underneath their feet, it was glistening, nearly neon pink-colored ocean water.

"We're not sinking," he said as he looked from the water to Martha. "How the hell are we not sinking?"

Unsure herself, Martha turned around. "Doctor," she called into the TARDIS. When he looked up, she pointed down. "We're on the surface of the ocean. How can we stand on the ocean and not sink?"

"Oh, different level of gravity, the sodium content of the water itself, things of that sort," he casually replied as he went back to the console. "Wasn't like that the last time I was here, though. Ruined a nice pair of trousers."

"Hey, Doc, is there anything on this planet?" Dean asked as a more practical concern came to mind.

Teeth slightly gritted, the Doctor answered, "The inhabitants are long gone by now. No worries."

"Uh huh." Dean wasn't too sure about "uninhabited". Better to be prepared. "All the same, I'd feel safer if you gave me my gun back, Doc."

The Doctor stood straight before he fully faced the two of them. "And I'd feel safer if I didn't," he stiffly replied. "There isn't anything left on this planet which could pose a threat to you." Then, as an afterthought, he added, "And don't refer to me as 'Doc'."

Martha's gaze flicked from the Doctor to Dean. Neither appeared as though he would back down from his argument. To break the tension, she carefully said, "We won't go any further than the beach. We couldn't run into trouble such a short distance away." She shifted her attention to Dean. "Could we?"

After an uneasy few moments of silence, he looked to her. "We'd better hope not," he muttered.

"If the Doctor says there isn't anything potentially dangerous on this planet, I believe him."

"Why?"

"He hasn't been wrong before." So, she'd fibbed a bit there. She'd obviously done so convincingly enough since Dean appeared to relax, if only a little. A nervous smile appeared on her face. "All right, then?"

The Doctor peered over his shoulder and watched them make their way to the shore. Nothing could possibly harm them here, he was certain of it. And he'd never cared for people questioning his knowledge on any given subject, either. He'd managed to survive this long. Not to mention help others, past companions or not, do the same.

The chirp and beep of another system coming back online caught his attention. He focused his energy on his work. The quicker he had the TARDIS in order, the sooner he and Martha could destroy the key, drop off this troublesome human and go about their business.

On the beach, the view was even more impressive. Against the pink ocean and blue-green sky, the TARDIS seemed like an unsightly grey blotch on an artist's masterpiece. Just beyond it, hanging low on the horizon, was the silvery silhouette of a nearby planet, one with rings similar to those of Saturn.

"It's gorgeous here," Martha murmured as she stopped a few feet down the beach. A light breeze fluttered her open jacket. The slightly different smell of the sea air filled her nose. "In all of the trips we've taken, we've never been to another planet. Well, one which didn't mimic Earth so much it didn't feel like one." She shook her head, still awed. "This ... this is incredible." She turned around. "Don't you think?"

Dean was down on one knee, watching the crystalline sand glimmer as it drained through his fingers. He let his hand drop as Martha crouched beside him. "I see it, but I don't believe it," he replied as he gazed upon the equally glimmering ocean.

She nodded. "It is rather surreal the first time," she admitted as she shifted her own gaze to the TARDIS. The outer doors were still open, she could see movement inside. "I understand how difficult it must be."

He let out a long breath as he shook his head. "That's it – I shouldn't find something like this so hard to believe." He finally looked her in the eye. "I've seen a lot of stuff in my life, most of it bad, but just as unreal as this."

Her brow furrowed in curiosity. "What do you mean?"

Even though he had a feeling she would be a person more apt to believe in his work, she was still practically a stranger. And one who'd come after the Colt. He hadn't forgotten that and planned to get a real answer eventually about it. After his lengthy pause, he asked, "Where'd you meet this guy?"

She blinked. "The Doctor?" When he nodded, she went continued. "On the moon." She smiled at his reaction. "Seriously, I met him on the moon. It's a long, complicated story but it's the truth." She sighed. "Been traveling with him ever since."

"You don't have a job or a family back on Earth?" He couldn't believe he'd said that, "back on Earth". If this was the real deal or an elaborate dream, he'd have to roll with it either way. He brushed a hand over the bandage on his forehead. "I've been through enough to know a professional patch-up job. You a nurse?" He'd always had a thing for nurses ...

"No, I'm a doctor." She paused, then smiled, a bit sheepishly. "Medical student, actually. Nearly finished with my studies, though. All of it's on hold for now." She shifted her gaze to the fantastic view again. "And I do have a family. Not exactly Leave It To Beaver but they're there for me."

Dean hadn't pegged her to be doctor material. She looked like a model. A doctor with a model's looks? Maybe he was dreaming. When he realized he'd been staring at her, he flicked his attention to the TARDIS before she could notice. "What about him? What he's a doctor of?"

Martha's head tilted to one side as she gazed upon the blue box. "A bit of everything. Or so he says," she thoughtfully replied. "'Doctor' meant something else on his planet, I think."

He raised an eyebrow. "Meant?"

"Yeah." She saw he waited for some sort of elaboration. "What is it?"

"You said 'meant'. Past tense. Something happen to his planet?"

She stared at him, almost like a deer in headlights. She hadn't thought about it when she'd said it. The fact Dean even picked up on it made her reevaluate her initial assessment of him. He wasn't quite so thick, it seemed. "'Means', 'meant' – what does it matter?" she answered with a casual shrug. Though he appeared to expect an explanation, she kept quiet. It wasn't her place to discuss the fate of Gallifrey and its people with a complete stranger. Instead, she changed the subject. "What did you mean earlier, when you said you'd seen a lot of bad things?"

Apparently he wasn't getting an answer to his question. He stared at the TARDIS as memories of the things that happened nearly a week ago flashed through his mind. Sam's death, his deal with the demon to bring him back, the opening of the Gate, the escape of who knew how many demons ... "It's part of my job," he quietly replied. He rose to his feet. "That's it."

Martha stood as well. "For which you need those things in your boot?"

Despite being fairly certain neither Martha nor this Doctor character were mixed up in the same business as he and Sam, he didn't want to get into it. Weird as they were, it was a different kind of weird. "That thing really travels through space, huh?" he said as he motioned to the box.

Martha followed his gaze to the TARDIS. Whatever his line of work, he didn't want to discuss it. He would have to eventually, if he expected the Doctor to relinquish the Colt to him. Even though she knew he never would. Deciding not to press the issue, she replied, "Not only through space, but it also travels in time."

He laughed. "Sure it does. How else would you get here from the future?" He looked to her. "How is 2008, anyway?" It'd be nice to know if his last year on Earth would be a shitty one. Beyond the every day shitty the Winchesters experienced.

"It isn't much different from 2007."

He eyed her. "All right, the space stuff I can believe." He made a grand sweeping motion to their surroundings. "A time machine? That's pushin' it."

"It's all in the name: TARDIS. Time and Relative Dimensions in Space."

"If it's a time and space ship, why the hell does it look like a Johnny-On-The-Spot? What, he doesn't like the design of the DeLorean?"

She smiled. "The ship is supposed to blend into its surroundings after it lands by means of a chameleon circuit. Unfortunately, the one in the Doctor's TARDIS is damaged. He landed on Earth in 1963 London, the ship took on the form of a police call box. Been like that ever since. Years, he says."

"That's gotta suck," he said with a laugh. He shook his head as he studied the ship again. "What is a 'Police Box', anyway?"

"In earlier years, police used them to keep in contact with their main station. They also doubled as a temporary holding cell for a lone beat officer, until someone could arrive to take the person under arrest away. They aren't very common these days, not even in England."

"And no one notices it? It was sitting in the middle of a field behind the motel. That's something you don't miss."

"Strange as it is, hardly anyone does." She'd never inquired how that was possible. She made a mental note to do so once this was all over. "At any rate, the Doctor doesn't seem to mind it's like that. In fact, I think he fancies the way it looks." Her mouth quirked as she shook her head. "Actually, he fancies the whole ship more than is normal."

"Ah, it's a guy thing," he said as he waved a hand in a dismissive manner. "It's more than just transportation. Chicks don't get that. She takes care of you, makes sure you get back in one piece." His eyes narrowed slightly. "Even if someone rams a Mack truck into you."

Her head shook from side to side, slowly, as she stared at him. "It's disturbing how much you sound like him. Really."

"Like I said, it's a guy thing."

Inside the TARDIS, one of the panels on the console sparked. The Doctor waited before he attempted his reroute again. Once he'd connected the two wires, the entirety of the TARDIS's console chirped and flashed with life. He'd finally managed to get the ship repaired. Or repaired enough to leave Thoros Beta and accomplish his main mission, at the very least.

"Brilliant!" he exclaimed as he patted the console. "Absolutely brilliant!"

After he finished fusing the wires, he hauled himself from the hole in the floor and replaced the grating. His grin widened as he walked around the console. The old girl was ready for action once more. After they left Thoros Beta, he would dispose of the key, return the boy to Earth, then forget about the entire mishap. He'd need a holiday at the Eye of Orion now. Glorious peace and quiet!

Still grinning, he drummed his fingers on the monitor which displayed readouts of Thoros Beta itself. "It'll take more than that to put us down," he murmured as he stroked a hand down the screen. "More than 900 years we've been together and we're -" He stopped as the monitor began to flash red. The Doctor clicked a few keys. As the new information scrolled down the screen, his joy was replaced by alarm. "No ..." he whispered.

He shook his head as the TARDIS reached the same conclusion he had mere seconds before. His hands slipped out of his hair as his gaze shifted to the open doors. Martha and the boy were still on the beach, chatting.

The console beeped, insistent on the Doctor's attention. The imminent danger was closer than he thought. He had to do something. Now.

"MARTHA!"

End Chapter Three