Part 3

"Are you sure this is going to work?" Rose demanded. "I'm not going to let you do this if there's a chance you'll get stuck in the void."

Sparky rolled her eyes. "I'm just sending a projection of myself across, so honestly, it is pretty much risk free. And since I'm a Time Lady and my mental capacities are rather impressive, there's basically no chance I could get trapped in between worlds."

Still unsure, Rose just stared at her.

After about a month of configuring the technology she had access to, Sparky had created a system that would allow them to send projections of themselves across the void, so that they would be able to communicate with Jack and align the use of the rift energy. Though Sparky had assured Rose that there was no chance of harm, she was still hesitant, which lead to their current argument.

Sighing, the younger blonde patted Rose on the shoulder. "Honestly Rose, do you think I would risk my brain for fun? I'm certain that this will work, okay? I've been telling you this for days now, you really should believe me." After a long moment, Rose nodded.

Sparky pointed her finger at the appropriate button. "Press that one," she whispered, standing underneath the beam. Rose obliged, and a bright light filled Sparky's vision. Then she was observing a dark room, which almost looked like a sewer.

Sparky frowned and carefully began to walk forward mentally, knowing her body was paralyzed back on parallel earth. Hearing faint voices, she slipped through the tunnel, coming to a large room filled with odd pig-people and humans, all standing in front of large pepper-pot shaped robots.

Sparky's eyes narrowed. What were Daleks doing here, wherever here was? Looking at her harmonic shifter, she knew she was on earth, in roughly 1930. She obviously had missed the mark, and would have to return back to her body to recalibrate the coordinates. Staying near the wall she moved forward, knowing that although she was very indistinct, she was noticeable. She really didn't want to know what would happen if she was shot in this form. Hopefully her long black coat would help her blend into the shadows, though she really wasn't sure about the green converse she was sporting.

In front of her, a black Dalek was smoking profusely, while the other Daleks began to rant about the 'final experiment.' Just as a dark-toned girl began to step forward, Sparky impulsively made the first move to prevent the human from doing something stupid.

"So you combined a Dalek and a human together? Well, I'm sorry, but that seems kind of stupid. Humans adapt much more easily than Daleks do; the human nature will prevail. And don't mind me asking, but aren't you lot supposed to be in the void right now?" She stepped forward, seeing everyone swivel to see the newcomer. She saw a man behind the black girl wearing a blue suit staring at her in confusion, while everyone else seemed to regard her as a ghost.

"Explain," one Dalek droned. It moved forward, its eye stalk regarding her imperiously.

"Pretty simple question, I think. I have it on good authority that you lot were sucked into the void in, oh, seventy-six years or so in the future? 'Cause you're all part of the Cult of Skaro, right?"

"Identify yourself human," one Dalek demanded.

Another seemed to scan her. "Human appears to be hologram. Tracing source."

"Oh doubt you'll be able to do that," Sparky said pleasantly. "I mean, it took me over a month just to figure out how to project myself, and I missed! I mean, where are we anyway?"

The girl who had been about to speak earlier stepped forward. It was obvious that she wasn't from this time—she was wearing a red leather jacket and jeans. "New York City," she said uncertainly.

Sparky frowned. "Oh, I was hoping you would at least say London. Damn, I'm a whole continent off. Oh, seems like whatever's cooking in there is about done," she observed nonchalantly.

It was true. The black armor came apart, and out stepped a cross between a Dalek and a human. Sparky frowned at it, slightly disgusted at the human/Dalek.

In Dalek Sec's declaration on the supremacy of the Dalek Race, the other man carefully regarded Sparky. He held up a radio, and then pointed behind him. Sparky nodded, understanding.

After distracting the Daleks with the radio, everyone began to run. Sparky followed the two time travelers through the tunnels until they were in the streets of New York City.

"Who are you," he asked suddenly, locking his intense gaze on the young girl.

"No, who are you? I want to know who I'm following before I tell you anything about me," Sparky replied tightly.

"I'm Martha, and this is the Doctor. It's alright; we're not here to do anything bad." Martha seemed intent on not allowing a fight to occur, sensing the stubbornness of the two people beside her.

"I'm a friend of a friend. Anyway, do you know what the date is in Martha's time stream?" Sparky asked evasively.

"Who's my friend?" The Doctor asked, frustrated.

Sparky smirked. "Oh, just a faraway rose." She looked down at her harmonic shifter, before realizing she was blinking out. "Oops, powers running low. I'll have to work on that," she said, waving goodbye.

"No, wait, please!" The Doctor exclaimed desperately. But it was too late, she was gone. He stared at the place she had been in, hope warring with pain in his eyes. The strength of the emotions made Martha almost afraid to ask what the girl had meant.

"Doctor?" she asked carefully.

The Doctor snapped out of his thoughts. "Alright, we've got to get to Hooverville and warn everyone that the Daleks are coming. And then, well hopefully she was right," he muttered, racing off and leaving Martha no choice but to follow.

Later, when they returned to the Tardis, Martha decided to breach the subject again. Any information she could glean from this man, she would take. She walked over to him as he set the coordinates.

"Okay, London, earth, 2007," he said, running around the console.

Ignoring the fact that he was taking her home, she questioned the Doctor. "Who did she mean by Rose? Your Rose?"

The Doctor closed his eyes. "It would seem so. Somehow, that girl knows Rose, and it seems that she found a way to send a hologram across from the parallel universe."

Back at her Torchwood, Sparky gasped as she returned to her body. "A bit moody, your Doctor," she gasped, tumbling forward. Rose caught her and helped her into a seat.

"You saw the Doctor?" she questioned. Her eyes were staring intently at Sparky, who was just trying to keep her eyes open.

"Yeah, we were off by a bit. Landed in New York City, 1930. He was there with this other girl, Martha. They were trying to get away from the Daleks."

Rose hissed "There were Daleks in New York? How?"

Sparky understood her anger. How did the Daleks always survive, when she was trapped in a parallel world? Sparky shared the sentiments. The Daleks lived on while she had lost her most of her family, her planet, her inheritance. In her mind, they should have been long-since gone, a legend alongside the Time Lords. But she also knew that they were still around for a reason—something was going to happen that they were involved in that would change the universe. She didn't know what, but she felt it every time she thought of them.

"Emergency temporal shift...the same way they escaped the time war. They left Torchwood tower and got stuck in 1930, in New York City. They were trying some sort of experiment...splicing human and Dalek DNA together." Sparky looked thoughtful. "You know, I hope it actually works out. Dalek Sec looked more human than Dalek, and the human genes would have likely overridden the Dalek ones."

"Well, that's an experiment I won't be helpin' you one," Rose said darkly. "But what were you sayin' about the Doctor?"

"Well he seemed in a right state. Not sure if I've ever seen anyone so grumpy, though Owen Harper could give him a run for his money," Sparky said contemplatively. "But yeah, he was really moody. Even for a British person..." she added with a smirk, ducking as Rose went to swipe her head.

"Well yeah, the Doctor could be a little moody sometimes. But he never was that bad...he always had a light in his eyes, at least in this regeneration," Rose said nostalgically.

"Well then maybe you should go get your eyes checked. 'Cause all I saw there was a grumpy dude in a blue suit and brown coat that really didn't match. I mean, yeah, it's an improvement from all the cloaks and neck pieces that the Time Lords normally wore, but still. And he had on red converses! Red!" Sparky rolled her eyes. "Nobody does that except the people trying to get attention."

Rose smirked a little. "Well, it's not like the Doctor tried to blend in. Always getting' right into the middle of things. And what exactly are you talking about, wearing those shoes?"

Sparky laughed, wiggling her bright green shoes. "You can't judge my shoe choice, seeing as how these are the only ones I have. As for the Doctor, I would say that it's a Time Lord thing, except they always learned on Gallifrey to not interfere. It really was only the rogues who were ever curious and wanted to be involved...though most, from what little I know, usually weren't acting on the best of intention."

Rose frowned. "Really? I mean, I know you said that the Time Lords weren't as great as they seemed, but I can't imagine anyone like the Doctor out to really cause harm."

Sparky frowned at her. "The Doctor was considered an oddity, Rose, not the norm. The only reason he first went to earth was because he stole the TARDIS and was exiled there, and later he was exiled again for interfering with the events of other species and forced to regenerate. But at least he was good, compared to the Rani, or the Master, or Morbius or Borusa," she said contemplatively. "A lot of the rebel Time Lords decided to take advantage of their status and wreak havoc on the rest of the universe."

Rose stared at her. "That's sounds kind of like the Daleks."

Sparky shot her a cold smile. "When you have as much power as the Time Lords did, imagine what that would do to some of them. You humans created the atomic bomb, so you had to use it against an enemy who couldn't hope to match it, just to show your strength and end a war on your terms. You have the internet, and online accounts, and so some humans take advantage of their ability to steal other's money. Some countries have so much wealth, and resources and medicine, and yet you don't share much of it other than to send 'relief' to nations who have nothing compared to yours. You give out power, and no matter what, there will be some who clamor to abuse it, and some who refuse to share it." There was something bitter in her voice that told Rose that there was more to Sparky's words than she was letting on.

"What happened?" Rose asked gently. Sparky looked up at her, her exhausted eyes filled with some unknown emotion.

"I'm just so tired Rose, so tired. Even when I was human, I saw the greed of so many people. I mean, I was a total history geek back then, but the one thing that always disturbed me was that some people have power who shouldn't. When I went back to being a time lord, I thought I would see a better history, but instead, I saw one almost the same." Sparky sighed a little. "I guess I saw the world for what it was, a little too soon. But we all have to grow up eventually." Rose stared at her for a long moment. Then she bent down to look her in the eyes, and gave her a wide grin.

"Never."