Chapter Four: Prisoners

Thalia lay on her back on the cold, metal floor with her hand covering her stomach. She stirred as she slowly came to her senses. She slowly rose as her vision blurred. She felt slightly nauseous. "What did I win?" she mumbled as she got on her feet. She suddenly realized that she was alone in the pitch blackness of a foreign land.

"Hello? Is anyone here?" Thalia called out. "Gus? Chloe? Tony? Where are you guys?" she called out, slowly shuffling her feet along the floor.

Suddenly, a small blue light appeared about 15 feet from Thalia. It had a dark blue ring surrounding a bright, electric blue circle. "Oh, hello there. Could you help me out? I think I'm lost," Thalia said to the strange light.

After a pause, the lights suddenly came on. The source of the light was revealed to be what looked like a large pepper shaker with large golden bumps. The light came from a large, extended, telescopic lens coming from the creature's head. The creature seemed to have a whisk-like contraption for its left arm and a plunger for its right arm. Thalia was shocked. She backed up and gasped. She had never seen or heard of anything like this before. She looked around to see that she was surrounded on all sides by these creatures. She was standing under a golden arch connecting two rooms filled with these creatures.

"You are exactly where you need to be," the creature said in an electric, staccato voice. Two lights on each side of the creature's head came on with almost every syllable the creature uttered.

"I don't understand. Where am I and what…who are you?" Thalia asked, trying her best to be polite under these circumstances.

"We are the Daleks and you are on board our ship the Crucible," the creature answered her.

"Is this really what I've won from being the Strongest Link?" Thalia asked.

"Affirmative," the creature answered.

"So is this like a trip? If so, should I have packed first? Where exactly are we going?" Thalia continued to ask.

"We are traveling throughout the galaxy across dimensions, collecting planets from each dimension as we go. Collect DNA sample from the female immediately," the Dalek ordered.

One Dalek extended his plunger arm and wrapped it around Thalia's finger, forming it to fit her finger. The Dalek then produced a loud, suctioning sound. Thalia winced and yelled out in pain. After a very long minute, the Dalek released its grasp on Thalia. Thalia held her finger, which now had a small, red scar with small beads of blood on it.

"Ow! You guys bit me!" Thalia yelled.

The Dalek, ignoring her, then extended his plunger arm across Thalia's chest and pumped his plunger. The Dalek backed up and said, "The female has a binary vascular system. Beginning DNA analysis. Processing. Processing," with several lights across its head and chest lighting up. Soon, all Daleks began chanting "Processing. Processing," with their lights blinking as well.

After several minutes the Dalek said, "DNA analysis complete. Subject is female named Thalia Andromeda Tyler, 15 years old, hazel eyes, brown hair, binary vascular system, species: unknown or possibly human-mixed. What shall we do with her?"

What do they mean, unknown or possibly human-mixed? Of course I'm human, what else would I be? Thalia thought to herself, stunned by their conclusions.

The first Dalek Thalia saw paused before saying, "Take her to the dungeon."

"What? No!" Thalia cried as the Daleks led her away. "There has to be some mistake."

"There is no mistake. You will stay on board the Crucible until further notice," the Dalek answered.

"No, no, please. You have to let me go. My mother-"

"Your mother is in a parallel dimension. You are beyond her help," the Dalek coldly interrupted Thalia.

The Daleks led Thalia to a large metal door with bars. Using their plungers, they entered a code to open the door. They led Thalia into the dimly lit room and left, locking the door behind them. Thalia fell onto her knees, buried her head in her hands, and began to cry. Why didn't I listen to my mother? She was right all along. I really need her right now and I don't know if I'll ever see her again.

"Are you okay?" a voice asked. Thalia lifted her head to notice that a young woman had taken a seat right beside her. She appeared to be at least ten years older than her. She had fair skin and hair and blue eyes. She was wearing an olive t-shirt, tight black pants, black combat boots, and a large utility belt. Her long hair was pulled back into a ponytail, with bangs falling to the left side of her face.

"No. I've been kidnapped. They took my blood and threw me in here," was all Thalia could think of to answer her.

"First day here, huh?" the woman asked. Thalia nodded.

"Well I'd be lying to you if I said it's going to be easy here. Three square meals a day, cold hard floor, the Daleks screeching all the time. But at least now we're not alone anymore. My name is Jenny, daughter of the Doctor," the woman said.

"Hello, Jenny, my name is Thalia Tyler, daughter of Rose Tyler of Torchwood," Thalia said, slightly cheered up by the woman.

"Torchwood, that's a new one. What's that planet like?" Jenny asked.

"It's not a planet. It's an organization. It studies outer space," Thalia answered.

"But what planet is it on?" Jenny asked.

"Earth. Where else would it be?" Thalia answered.

"Anywhere," Jenny simply answered.

"So you're not from Earth?" Thalia asked.

Jenny shook her head and replied, "Nope. I was created on the planet Messaline during a great war."

"But if you were conceived there, where were you born?" Thalia continued to ask.

"Messaline. My father unwillingly gave his tissue sample into a progenation machine that created me."

"So you're an alien, then?"

"To you, yes. But then again, I'm an alien to everyone and everyone's an alien to me, even you. I've never been to or even heard of Planet Earth," Jenny answered.

Thalia stared with her mouth wide open in shock at Jenny. Jenny returned the stare. "It's just, you look so much like a human. Unless you're in disguise," Thalia said, very confused by Jenny's story.

"And you look so much like a Time Lord, unless you're in disguise," Jenny retorted.

"What's a Time Lord?" Thalia asked.

"It's what I am. It's what my father was. He fought in a great war amongst the Time Lords and now Dad and I are the only two left," Jenny explained.

"That's terrible," Thalia said. Jenny nodded. After a brief pause, Thalia asked, "So how long have you been here then?"

"Well it's hard to tell, but my best guess would be about a month or two. I was on the planet Mitadel in the Bosphorus galaxy, helping their people battle the monstrous Slimeborgs. One day, one of the Slimeborgs asked to meet with me. I went to their headquarters, it asked me a couple of questions, and then it zapped me with a bright orange beam. Next thing I know, I'm waking up in this rathole."

Thalia nodded her head in understanding. "I went to compete on this quiz show and I won. The host zapped me with an orange beam, too. I thought the prize would be a car or scholarship money, not imprisonment."

"We were both duped. The Daleks obviously wanted us for some reason or another and now they have both of us," Jenny sullenly said.

"Do you think there will be others?" Thalia asked.

Jenny shook her head. "I have no idea. I don't know where we're going or where we've been or anything like that. I didn't even know they were coming to take you."

"But why us? What did we do wrong?" Thalia asked. Jenny shrugged her shoulders. Both girls leaned against the cold, metal wall of a strange area where no one knew where they were and could come save them.