They darted through the corridors as the ship prepared to take off. They did not run into any of the crew because they were preoccupied with readying the ship. A few moments later the Doctor, Annie, Mr. Anderson, and K-9 were out of the craft and stood in the woods facing the lake. The ground shook and the lake began to rise, then the Zygon starship emerged from the water. It hovered above the disturbed lake then ascended up to the sky.
"I wonder what made them leave," Annie inquired.
"I may have sent them a message from their general telling them to recall all earth units," the Doctor said.
"Will that keep them away?" asked Annie.
"For a while at least. I imagine they may try again in the future," said the Doctor.
"Can someone please explain to me what is going on?" inquired Mr. Anderson.
Annie told her boss everything that happened while he was on the Zygon ship, as they were heading to her car. Once they were heading back to the food bank, Mr. Anderson fell asleep.
"I noticed you called Mr. Anderson "dad" back in the ship," the Doctor said.
"He is my adoptive father. Many years ago he and his wife adopted me from an orphanage in California. When I was old enough, he brought me into the company to work as his secretary."
"So you're an orphan?"
"I'm not sure. I don't remember my birth mother too well; she disappeared when I was a child. This necklace is all I have to remember her by. I wear it in hope that one day I'll find her. Originally she gave it to me as bracelet, but I made it into a necklace so I wouldn't outgrow it. My biological father died not too long after my mom vanished. He never spent much time with me, instead he was almost always working on some sort of vehicle. When he had passed, two federal agents found me and put me in a decent orphanage. A few years later, Mr. Anderson and his wife adopted me. Then we moved here to Florida." There was a brief pause before Annie spoke again. "What's a Time lord?"
"A Time lord is me," the Doctor replied. "Why do you ask?"
"One of the Zygons said something about a Time lord. So what does that mean? Do you own a clock store or something?"
"It means I am a member of a high order of Gallifrey."
"Where's Gallifrey? It sounds like a place in Ireland."
"It's a planet in the constellation of Kasterborous."
"So you're from another planet. Interesting." After that they were silent, but only for a few minutes for they had arrived at the food bank.
"Thank you, Doctor," Mr. Anderson said as they walked towards the offices. "If it's anything like Annie said, you just saved the whole world."
"Well, it would not be the first time," The Doctor stated. Mr. Anderson gave him a confused look. "I must be off." he continued as he held out a small sack to Annie and Mr. Anderson, "Would you like a jelly baby?"
"So Doctor, what will you do now that the Zygons are gone?" Annie asked as she accompanied him out the building.
"Oh I'll continue traveling with K-9; exploring the universe and things of that sort. How about you?"
"I'll go back to work and search for something to do with my life."
"Would you like to travel with me?"
"That sounds fun, but I would have to clear it with Mr. Anderson first."
"My ship is a time machine. I can bring you back before anyone ever notices you're gone. I can also help you find your mother."
Annie's eyes widened and began to sparkle with hope. "All right I'll go with you."
The Doctor smiled then led Annie to the Tardis which was parked surprisingly close by.
"That's your ship? But it's a tiny old phone box," Annie pointed out.
"Looks can be deceiving. You should know that," The Doctor retorted while unlocking the phone box. He stepped aside, "Have a look inside." and gestured towards the interior.
Annie approached the box and poked her head inside. Her jaw dropped as she gawked at the interior of the ship. She slowly walked inside and took in everything she saw. The interior was white with round designs on the walls, in the center there was a control board somewhat similar to the board in the Zygon ship, there was also a corridor which seemed to lead to other rooms. There was also a lite hum that resonated throughout the ship. To Annie the hum made the ship seem alive.
"Welcome to the Tardis," said the Doctor as he and K-9 followed her in. "My granddaughter came up with that term. It stands for Time and Relative Dimensions in Space."
"This is impossible," Annie stated, "It looks like a small phone box on the outside. How is it bigger on the inside. Hold on, granddaughter?"
"Time lord technology, the interior exists in a different dimension. It's quite remarkable really. And yes, I have a granddaughter, but that's a different story." He paused as he manipulated some controls on the board. "So, where would you like to go first?"
"So it seems everything is falling into place thus far," said a woman watching the Doctor and his new companion through a screen. The woman wore a red kimono-like blouse with matching red pants and a devilish grin on her face. As she watched the two converse in the safety of the Tardis, a door had opened in her lab. A grey reptilian humanoid entered the room. The woman turned to see who had entered. "Ah, Chonotas, Are you ready for your next task?"
Thank you all for reading this story. This is my first fan-fiction that I have completed and I do plan on making sequels to this tale. I hope you all enjoyed the story. Reviews would be lovely.
On a side note, any guesses on who the woman is in the very end?
Until next time the next time... Allons-y!