IV: The greatest battles are fought with words
Throughout the rest of the battle The Doctor paced between two baby trees. His mind pulsed with strategies and ideas. The hardest parts during his travels were the ones that didn't require any scientific explanation. His problem here did not involve physics or genetics, no, instead he was dealing with sibling rivalry. If only Hrothger could realize that Jio had no control over his animal. Maybe things would be different between them. As The Doctor was just about to give up he felt a small hand tentatively touch his back.
"It'll be all right Doctor." Turning around, he looked down at his freckled friend. Never had five words made him so at ease. There was just something about her attitude that made him feel positive that her words were true. Smirking slightly, he nodded and rested his arm around her shoulders.
"Indeed it will Lou. Indeed it will," he sighed.
"I only wish I could talk to Hrothger," Lou continued. "I understand what he's going through," she murmured.
"How's that?"
"Well, I don't know..maybe I just like to think I know." Just like that, Lou slipped out from under The Doctor's arm and sunk back into her solitude. At the same moment, Jio dropped from the sky and landed in one of the saplings.
"All is well Doctor, for now anyway." Then he was gone again, screeching his victory all the way back to the village.
Instead of celebration, the night was spent in a hollow sadness. The Namalia shut themselves up, tended to their wounded, and tried to restock in case the Trylons came again. Lou found herself tied up in a single hut bandaging warrior after warrior. She was no doctor but she knew the basics of disinfecting and wrapping. She applied some of the traditional remedies from home as well as a few new ones she had learned in this world. It was only a few hours from dawn when The Doctor snuck into the hut and found her barely awake and still wrapping a form of gauze around a man's arm. With ease, The Doctor took her arms, hoisted her up, and led her to the same straw bed she had occupied earlier.
His night however, continued into the wee hours of the morning. Jio and him mulled over different ways to get through to Hrothger. By dawn though, there wasn't much settled upon. Both wanted to avoid death and violence, but nothing else seemed to work when it came to the hard headed enemy.
"Get some rest Jio, we will talk later." The Doctor got to his feet and went to retire in Lou's hut. When he entered though, the only sign of Lou was her impression left on the hay.
"Lou?" His eyes scanned the small hut and concluded she had moved. Running outside he searched for Selnom. Upon finding the man version of Selnom he was discouraged to find him Lou-less. He searched the village until the sun was high in the sky, and still could not find her or anyone who had seen her. At last, he returned to Jio's hut. "It's been all day, I can't find her."
Before Jio could even begin to send out search parties a tiny rat scuttled into the room. Like all the others, he morphed into his natural form and handed Jio a note.
"Master Hrothger would like you to know that the girl is with him. If you would like to see her again he demands that you and the man called The Doctor come to meet him tonight."
"Where?" Jio asked, his body trembling with anger.
"The burial ground." After a chilling cackle, the man fell to the ground and scurried away once more.
Jio's back faced The Doctor, his head hung, and his fist clenched around the piece of paper. "I will not allow this," he yelled. "It is one thing to attack my people, but I will not have him hurt my guests." Without another word Jio was out of the hut and in the air. "Selnom, you will take The Doctor with me."
Obedient to his leader, Slenom morphed and beckoned The Doctor onto his back. Once he was settled into the gentle curve of the horse's back, Selnom took off after the beating wings of Jio. The Doctor curled his fingers in his steed's mane and leaned forward. It was all he could do so that his head avoided hitting any of the lower branches of the trees. Minutes went by, then an hour, and eventually he felt they would never arrive. When the trees lessened and were instead replaced by rocks he knew they were close. He saw Jio swoop down and stop. The Doctor dismounted from Selnom's back, thanked him, then ran ahead to what he assumed was the burial ground. When he got there he knew there was no mistaking that this was indeed where the Namalia and the Trylons buried their dead. There were hundreds of mounds some old some fresh, and tiny trinkets placed here and there as gifts.
As The Doctor stood next to Jio he saw for the first time, Hrothger. He was shorter than his brother, lighter skinned and thin. There was almost a frailty to him that no doubt haunted Hrothger everyday when he looked at his firmly muscled brother.
"Hello brother," he snarled.
"You have crossed a line, we do not drag others into our affairs."
"Oh really? Like you dragged her to war? Where I believe she killed one of my men."
"She wasn't meant to be there, they didn't realize,"
"Yes well now she is part of our affairs!"
"When did you take her?"
"Take her?" Hrothger let out a hearty laugh, "Oh brother, she came to me! She babbled on and on about peace and uniting with my blood family. It was very…cute," he chuckled. "I think after a while she realized that I had no patience for her modernized views, I would never come crawling back to you like some subservient dog."
"Where is she?" The Doctor butted in.
"Oh and this must be the gallant Doctor she speaks so highly of. Have you come to save her?"
"All I wanted was to show her a world unlike hers, I never meant for it to go this far. Please just give her back and you can all go on killing each other for the rest of eternity."
"If only it were so easy Doctor."
From behind Hrothger, several of his men brought out a squirming Lou. Her hands were bound and her mouth covered by a tight cloth. She shot The Doctor an apologetic look who in return tried to smile.
"I want your village to surrender so that we may combine under the Trylon flag. Your land will become mine, and you will have no power. You will be my personal slave, and you will never be permitted to morph. In exchange you can have this human back, why you would want her is beyond me. She only has one form!"
Jio was silent for a long time, he looked at The Doctor, then the ground. His shoulders heaved with breath as he nodded. "I will accept these terms."
"No!" All heads shot up to see Lou working her gag off. "I'm definitely not worth it. It isn't fair! All those rules for what? So I can go free? No Jio, don't waste your time." She looked at Hrothger. "Listen I know that it must suck for you being the youngest, but I know how that is!"
"Oh great," Hrothger rolled his eyes.
"No really, I have an older sister. To me it looks like she has everything the looks, the personality, the clothes, the job. She is so much…cooler than me. I envy her so much, my parents love her more than they love me. At least I'm pretty sure. Look, all I'm saying is, is look at your brother. Yeah, he's big, he's an eagle and a very successful leader. But do you really want all that responsibility? People always expecting you to be good, to be the best. That's got to be tiring. My sister may be better than me, but I don't care. I get to be me without anyone else's thoughts or opinions because no one cares!" Lou giggled softly. "I don't have anyone telling me what to do, and wouldn't it be better if that's how it were for you?"
For a moment Hrothger contemplated this. His eyes shifted between his brother and Lou as his mind wrestled with this new concept. A world without responsibility did sound appealing, and who wants people constantly expecting the best out of you? The only reason the Trylons followed him was that they knew no better. Hrothger wasn't so stupid as to think that his followers were bright. They were simple minded killers who didn't care about his actions either way. It was like being leader over a herd of sheep. That wasn't real power.
"Let her go." Lou stepped out of grasp and ran to her friends. She smashed her body against The Doctor's and shut her eyes against his chest.
"I'm so sorry Doctor,"
"Don't be, you were brilliant," he smiled in her hair.
"Our time of war is over Jio…let our villages live together in peace. I have no desire to be under the scrutiny of your people. May you have a long and happy reign."
"Brother, although I am leader of both tribes, you will always have a seat in my council." The brothers touched hands and then embraced.
The Doctor and Lou stayed long enough to see the tribes merge and begin their lives peacefully under Jio. He remained a fair and just ruler, and Hrothger continued to live his life the way he pleased without any criticism.
"Looks like we're done here," The Doctor sighed.
"Mhm," Lou agreed.
After a joyous goodbye, the two found the TARDIS nestled in the grass where they left it. Upon entering Lou sat down where The Doctor usually puts his coat and let out a deep breath.
"What an exciting place," she hummed. The Doctor smiled and laid his coat over her lap,
"And now a peaceful one because of you." Lou blushed bashfully as The Doctor tapped her chin then leapt over to the controls.
"Well, where to now?!"
