A/N: Okay, so this is incredibly late. BUT, for once, it wasn't my fault! If you want someone to blame, go and annoy tardis-mole in a review for her brilliant story, Abducted :D
Chapter 4 – Rebel With A Cause
"When I used to go to sleep at night, what did I dream about? I'll tell you. I dreamt about my insignificant day-to-day troubles of my stupid human life that we've all had: can I pay this month's rent? Can I get that promotion at work? Will that pretty girl next door ever look at me?" Mal paused for a moment, taking in the crowd of hundreds who stood before him, hanging onto his every word. "And the occasional sex dream about Natalie Imbruglia, but we'll skip over that for now…"
He got a laugh from the crowd, giving a small smile to himself before continuing.
"But now what do I dream? I dream of a better, brighter tomorrow, full of hope, love and freedom. A world where our children can grow up without fear, without restrictions. And I know, if we all bond together, we can make this happen. We can be free from these chains that the Overseers hold us in and once more claim the Earth back as humanity's home."
An almighty, deafening cheer erupted from the crowd before Mal continued.
"We are the Rebels, the anarchists of Overseer's law. So far we have rescued somewhere around a million people from the grip of the Kevs, and we will continue to forge forward, leadin' the way to liberty. We all regret the outcome of the mission yesterday, but though many of our family and friends were lost, two lives were saved from the clutches of the Kevs, and that is what we thrive on. You don't need to be smart or strong to join the Rebels, all you need is a dream of freedom, and the drive to eliminate the Overseers. If you don't share our dream, please leave now."
No one moved.
"Our next mission will take place tomorrow mornin'," Mal continued in his distinct London accent, his charismatic smile broadening. "It will one that is deeply personal to all our hearts. We have received intelligence of a children's work camp due west of here, and the mission is simple. We will save these children, and bring them back to safety." He paused again, and when he continued, his tone was one of sincerity. "It will be dangerous, but the reward is great; the satisfaction of children's lives saved from our alien enemy. If you wish to take part in this mission then please sign your name at the desks on the right. Thank you for listenin', and I will see you tomorrow!"
There was another almighty cheer as Mal stepped down off of the makeshift podium and disappeared. Instantly the desks Mal had indicated were heaving with people of all ages, races and genders, eager to help the rebel cause.
"Names?"
"The Doctor and Rose Tyler!" the Doctor raised his voice above the chaos to the man behind the desk, pen in hand. He hurriedly scribbled the names down; not really paying attention to the name the Doctor had given.
"Ah, Doctor!" a voice suddenly came from behind the desk, and the Doctor, Rose, Jack and Jackie looked up to see the very man who'd been preaching at them from the podium seconds earlier. "Oh, sorry!" he said, giving an attractive apologetic smile as he extended a hand to the Doctor. "I'm Mal, the Rebel leader!"
The Doctor grinned in return and took the proffered hand. "Nice to meet you!" he practically yelled over the masses of people, who were now almost crushing him against the desk in their eagerness to sign up. Mal laughed with a twinkle in his eye, gesturing for the Doctor and his group to follow him.
Once they were out of the ruckus and into the late night air, Mal properly introduced himself to each of them in turn, though he seemed to already know Jack.
"I carried ya back to the van," Mal said to the Doctor as the group took seats on an expanse of concrete. "Good to see ya lookin' better."
The Doctor smiled in return. "Thanks. Nice little group you got going here."
"Thanks, Doctor. That means a lot comin' from you."
The Doctor raised an inquisitive eyebrow. "You've heard of me, then?"
Mal inclined his head towards Jack, who gave an innocent smile. "He doesn't stop goin' on 'bout ya. And also I'm ex-UNIT, we're very fond of you, there."
"Really? Your Christmas present must've got lost in the post then," the Doctor replied, grinning widely.
Mal laughed, his eyes twinkling. "But seriously," he said, "now you're here, we can start gettin' down to business." He glanced around at the hundreds of people around them, a few waving to Mal every now and then as he waved back, before continuing. "They don't know it yet, but I want a little more than rescue missions. They're the small fry. I want freedom, Doctor. I wanna take these aliens down from the inside, in their own headquarters. I've got a plan, and now you can make it happen."
"Why'd you need me?"
Mal evaded the question, his sky blue eyes averting from the Doctor's. "Can I tell you?"
The Doctor nodded. Mal was suddenly drawing out multiple pieces of paper from his pockets, setting maps and lists down on the concrete in front of the Doctor. The Doctor slipped on his glasses, leaning forward and scrutinising them closely as Rose, Jack and Jackie peered with interest.
"The aliens made their headquarters at Buckingham Palace, probably 'cause they thought the royalty was one of the most important things on this planet. The royal family are safe, they're in a protected location," he added on the end as he saw the Doctor waver. "There're tons of forces 'round the world just like the Rebels here, all in hidin'. A lot more are better equipped than us – there are entire armies waitin' to attack."
"Why are they waitin'?" Rose asked.
"The aliens have protected their headquarters with an impenetrable forcefield," Mal explained, pointing out some photos he'd laid down with his finger. "They're all game for a fight but they don't want us touchin' their HQ. Their tech is way superior to ours, even if all the armies in waitin' attacked at once they wouldn't get past the forcefield. As I see it, there's only one-way to beat these creeps – we need to infiltrate their HQ and disable the forcefield from inside, then all the armies can attack at the same time and wipe out their HQ once and for all."
"Sounds like a plan," the Doctor said with a note of approval in his voice. "So, how you planning to get in their HQ?"
Mal pulled a face. "That bit I'm workin' on. But we'll get there. Here." He delved into his pocket and drew out a key and a slip of paper, handing them to the Doctor. "Take these. I got a special room with communications across the world, you'll find it useful." The Doctor shoved the paper and key into his inside jacket pocket as they all got to their feet, before Mal collected up the lists and maps from the floor. After a moment's pause he held them out for the Doctor to take. "Maybe you can find the loophole," he explained at the Doctor's bemusement upon taking them. "I'll check you later," he said, before giving a salute to the Doctor. "Sir."
The Doctor winced. "Oh, please don't."
Mal laughed. "Good luck," he said, before turning on his heel and disappearing into the darkness of the night before any of them could say a word.
By the Doctor's reckoning as a Time Lord, it had gone way past midnight. It was beginning to show too, as Rose and Jackie yawned and stretched widely, rubbing their eyes every so often as the group tried to find a place of reasonable comfort to rest for the night. So far they had failed – houses were full to bursting point, and even the scarcely available pieces of grass were all jammed full of people. The TARDIS was probably still on that street, or maybe even stolen by the Kevs or the Overseers. Either way, it was far too late to go looking for her and the Doctor could sense she wasn't close. The Rebels hadn't bought her back with them.
Rose yawned again, Jackie not far behind. "Doctor…"
"Yeah I know," he said softly, exchanging a glance with Jack. "We just need to find a place to sleep."
"Concrete looks pretty good righ' now," Rose muttered, her arms wrapped around his torso inside his coat with her head resting on his chest as they walked, seeking his body warmth in the cold air. They could only be thankful that it wasn't raining. The Doctor sighed, coming to a stop next to the ruins of what once had been a house, now just broken walls set in the concrete. There were still tens of people seeking refuge in it, but the Doctor could make out a small space big enough for four people in amongst the debris.
"Okay, this'll have to do," the Doctor said as they all nodded, even Jackie too tired to make an argument about the discomfort of sleeping on concrete under no shelter. He started to walk forward…
Suddenly an arm grabbed him from behind, wrenching him roughly out of Rose's grip. He cried out in alarm before a dirty hand clamped over his mouth, something cold and sharp resting against his throat.
"Doctor!" he heard Rose cry as the attacker continued to drag him backwards until he was standing at least five metres from his friends in the grip of an unknown attacker.
"Scream and he dies!" a male voice grated, the cold something pressing a little harder into the Doctor's neck. "I want your food! All of it! Or I will kill him!"
The Doctor tried to speak, but the hand still over his mouth clamped harder, the knife at his throat now perilously close to cutting the skin…
"We don't 'ave any food!" Jackie said in a panicked frenzy, her eyes wide in alarm at the situation in front of her. "Let 'im go!"
"You're lying!" the man hissed. "Give me all your food or I will slit his throat!"
Rose's eyes connected with the Doctor's, reassured to find they looked perfectly calm, almost bored. Jack made to step forward to handle it but she quickly rested a hand on his chest, holding him back as she stepped forward, much to the man's shock.
"We don't have any food," she explained, truthfully. "Sorry but you're askin' the wrong people."
"I'll kill him!" the man threatened, "don't take another step!"
"I don't think you will. You couldn't kill another man." She stepped forward, suppressing a yawn as he visibly flinched, though the knife didn't move. "In fact, I know you couldn't. So why don't you put down that knife? 'Cause you're terrified of it."
The man stared at her in confusion, but all the same, he pulled the knife away from the Doctor's neck and dropped it on the floor, releasing the Time Lord back to his friends. Rose smiled at him with her tongue between her teeth and he grinned back, taking her tired body into a hug of praise for her actions.
"Please," the man suddenly said and the Doctor and Rose turned back to him, feeling slightly sorry for him and what he'd been forced to do. "I'm sorry, but my daughter, she's dying, we've got no food… You look clean, I thought you'd have some…"
"There's a soup kitchen," Jackie suddenly said, managing to calm herself down from what had just happened – clearly she was not as adapted to the dangerous lifestyle as Jack, Rose and the Doctor.
Jack nodded, continuing, "it's a couple of miles north, in the Green Zone. They'll give you food, any time of day."
The relief on the man's face was so big it was indescribable. He looked at them all with gratitude beyond measure, his eyes shining with a renewed hope. "Thank you!" he gasped, turning on his heel and running off down the street.
The Doctor drew a breath in through gritted teeth, automatically scratching behind his left ear. "This is even more serious than I thought…" he trailed off, glancing around at his group. "We've got a planet to save…" He looked at Rose and Jackie in turn, observing the severe symptoms of fatigue setting in once more now the excitement was over. "… But first, we sleep."
The Doctor removed his coat, dropping to sit down against the wall with his legs outstretched. He gestured for Rose to lay down on him. She hesitated for a moment, but was far too exhausted to protest. She dropped down to lay against him and rested her head against his chest as he threw his coat over her, wrapping his arms around her body protectively.
"Thanks," she mumbled into his chest, closing her eyes to sleep.
Jack grinned at the sight of the Doctor and Rose, before Jackie suddenly prodded him in the shoulder and he turned to find her tired, but flirtatious smile.
"I need a mattress too!" she said.