A/N: My apologies for not updating, I got the flu last week. Anyways, I'm back! J Quick note as well is that I mashed Terna and the Doctor's first person perspective chapters together into one as the following chapter NEEDS to be in third person. It's easier to write that way. Anyway, I hope you enjoy.


Chapter 9: The Mutants- The Expedition


Bad luck seems to come for me in spades as of late. Wonder what I did to piss it off so much. Well, can't think about that right now or anything really. My head hurts.

"Are you alright, Grandfather?" Susan inquired of the Doctor.

"Yes, but we must find a way out of this room," the Doctor replied, straightening up and glancing around.

I did as well. We were in a low-ceilinged space, empty except for a series of bizarre, twisted sculptures in the middle of the room. The ceiling and floors were both white like the halls, but the walls were all windows.
"Daylight!" Barbara cried, rushing up to press her face against the nearest one.

"Where are we?" Ian inquired.

"Right at the top of the building, I can just see the edge of the city," the Doctor replied, moving to stand beside Barbara and pointing out the window. "And see? There's the edge of the petrified jungle."

"Oh yeah." Ian and Susan helped me over to the window, and the latter craned his neck to see over Barbara and the Doctor. "I'm trying to remember what roads we came down."

"Yes, everything looks the same from above," Barbara agreed. "Perhaps there's-," she stopped. "Ian," she called.

"What is it?" Ian rushed over to her, sensing the urgency in her voice.

"I saw something move," Barbara whispered, pointing towards the city wall. "Over there, by that gateway. I saw someone run across that space."

"A Dalek?" the Doctor offered.

"No, it was a man," Barbara asserted.

"The Thals!" Susan exclaimed. "They've come for the food supplies."

"If that's so, then they're probably walking right into an ambush," I declared.

"We have to warn them!" Susan cried, rushing up to the window and banging vigorously on the glass.
I staggered back, left with no one to support me, and collapsed against the wall while the others gathered around Susan and pounded their hands against the window.
They hollered and cried and beat the glass, but nothing happened.

"It's no use," Ian exclaimed. "This room must be sound proof. We need to find a way down there."

"Yes, but how, dear boy?" the Doctor demanded.

I glanced down dejectedly. Wait, the wall I'm leaning against has a threshold.

"Hey, this is a door!" I cried, attempting to sit up.

"Yes, it is!" Ian exclaimed rushing to help me away from the door. Stupid legs, if only I could walk and didn't have to be carried around like a cripple. "Here. Doctor, open it."

The Doctor obliged, waving his hand over the panel beside the door. Nothing happened. He tried again.

"What's wrong with it?" Susan cried.

"Oh, they've magnetized it too!" the Doctor exclaimed. "Come on, let's try and force it open." He and Ian then threw themselves against the door, attempting to pry it apart from the wall with their fingers.

Just then, I heard a faint humming sound. Not good. "The lift's coming back up!" I cried. The Daleks were almost on us. Shit!

"Hang on, I think it's starting to move," Ian cried, shoving his shoulder against the door as it moved but a few inches. "Here, Doctor, keep trying to get it open."

As Ian spoke, he rushed over to the elevator where Barbara, Susan, and me were already crowded around in a worried huddled. He quickly tried to push the return button, but the lift only continued to steadily rise closer towards us.
"It's no good," Ian cried desperately. I threw my hands up in dismay. It was about all I was good for.

"If only we had a really heavy weight we could use to weigh it down or plug up the shaft or something," I exclaimed.
Ian whirled around; he glanced towards me and then towards the center of the room. I followed his gaze to see he was looking at the twisted sculptures that seemed to be decorating the space.

"Terna, you're a genius," Ian cried as he rushed over and attempted to drag one of the stone pieces over to the lift doorway.
"Come over here and give me a hand," he called to Susan and Barbara, who quickly obliged.
All pushing together, the three of them shoved the stone structure nearly too slowly across the tower floor and then out and over the rim of the lift shaft.

It fell in steady silence and then CRASH.
There was a sound like electrical shocks and splintering metal as well as the crumbling of stone raining down the empty space, tumbling back to the ground in a mess of rock and broken lift capsule.

"I've got the door open!" the Doctor cried, slightly strained.

"Alright, we've weighed the odds a little more in our favor. Now, let's get out of here," Ian declared, and no one needed to be told twice. Ian stepped aside and held the partially ajar door open for the Doctor, Susan, and Barbara and then braced it with his foot so as to pick me up and carry me through the tight space.

"I do hope we get back to the TARDIS soon," I grumbled as we raced down the hall, Ian jostling me about in his uneven grasp. "I'm getting sick of all of you having to lug me around."

"Yes, I'm sure it's exhausting," the Doctor called back from the head of the group.

"And besides, you're a Queen, aren't you? You should be used to this," Ian added, flashing me a cheeky grin.

I scowled in response. "I'll have you know, human, in my true form, I have strength beyond your comprehension. I did not require the aid of my subjects for something as silly as simple mobility."
Ian laughed.

We ran down the hall at a frantic pace, passing hall after hall of plain, white sameness.
I squeezed my eyes shut and rested my head in the crook of Ian's neck as I bumped along, feeling a sense of weightlessness wash over me.

This was bad, really bad. I was at my barest minimum for Force Anima, only the smallest amount was available keeping me tethered to this form. I could feel my heartbeat accelerate and my breathing hitch. If I ran out of Amina completely, then the majority of my soul I kept within it would return to the rest of my core inside the TARDIS Heart.

I'd barely survived that the first time around; I wasn't certain I'd be able to do it again.

"Stop!" Susan suddenly cried.
I reopened my eyes to see everyone had skidded to a halt at a doorway that was filled with pale daylight; the outermost workings of the city could be seen beyond the threshold. "I recognize this place," Susan explained. "This is the gate we entered when we were trying to find mercury and beyond this is the archway that leads back into the jungle."

"We're almost out!" Barbara exclaimed, breathless with fatigue and relief.

"Do you see any Daleks?" I asked weakly.

Susan leaned cautiously forward on the very tips of her toes and glanced left to right. "No, it's safe."

"Alright, let's head back to the ship," the Doctor announced.

"No! We can't," Susan cried. "We have to warn the Thals."

"Now, Susan…" the Doctor started.

"They're walking right into a trap!" she interrupted.

"The Thals are no concern of ours," the Doctor replied sharply. "We cannot jeopardize our lives in an affair that's none of our business."

"Of course it's our business," Barbara asserted firmly. "It was the Thals that gave us the radiation drugs. Without that, we'd be dead."

"The Thals are walking into a massacre, ignorant and blind," I mused grimly. "But what can we do? We can't even take care of ourselves against the Daleks. How are we to aid the Thals?"

"We will do something, but there's no point in us risking our entire party," Ian declared as he abruptly passed me to the Doctor.
Again, I felt like a baby. "Here, you take Terna and get her, Susan, and Barbara out of here, Doctor. Careful, she's in real bad shape," he added as the Doctor fumbled with me.

"If you drop me, I swear to God, Time Lord…" I grumbled through clenched teeth.

"Well, it seems your mouth's still in good shape," the Doctor mused. "But what are you going to do?" he added to Ian.

"I'm going to stay here and warn the Thals," Ian replied.

"No, you can't. We're in this together; we should stick together!" Susan cried.

"Susan, you do as I say," Ian asserted sharply. "You go back to the ship with Barbara, Terna, and your Grandfather."

"No, you can't-" Susan attempted to argue further, but Barbara cut her off.

"I know what Ian is saying. He'll do much better on his own if he doesn't have us to worry about. Now, come on."
She put her arm around Susan's shoulders as the young girl's bottom lip started to tremble in a mixture of desperate anger and grief. "We'll wait for you," she added to Ian; her voice quiet as she patted his arm slightly with her free hand. Ian nodded.

"Good luck, Chesterton," the Doctor added quickly before hurrying off after Barbara and Susan, dragging me along. I glanced over the Doctor's shoulder.

"Ian!" I called as he turned to leave.
Ian whirled around, surprise evident on his face as it, I would later learn from him, was the first time I'd addressed him by name. "You come back, you hear me." I called firmly. Ian nodded; the hint of a smile on his lips before he spun on his heel and dashed back into the building.

We made it through and out of the city in pretty good time, sticking to the faded shadows the buildings cast in the hopes of giving us even a little concealment.
I rested my head on the Doctor's shoulder, my eyes no longer having the strength to remain open. I felt bone tired, like a dull throb from the pain of an old wound was pulsing throughout my body.

"T-Time Lord…" I tried to say something, but my voice was choked in my throat.

"I've had to carry you a lot, haven't I?" the Doctor grunted, and I could vaguely feel him shift my position in his grasp. "Luckily, you're not as heavy as you look."

I heard the jab and wished to respond, but I could feel myself slipping, a witty retort poised on the tip of my tongue.
"Terna…? Terna!" the Doctor cried in alarm as my body went limp in his arms. I could feel the darkness closing in around me as well as the scalding fire of the TARDIS somewhere off in the distance. I

f I returned to it, I would burn.
"Terna…Terna! Can you hear me?"
I thought the Doctor was calling my name, but he sounded really far away.

"What's wrong with her?" Was that Barbara?

"To put it simply, she's dying," the Doctor replied.

Am I? Huh, didn't think I'd ever do that. I felt faint, delirious and giddy, like my body was rocking on the waves of a calm ocean, the rippling waters creating a soft cushion underneath me.
It was nice, peaceful…cold.

()()()

A felt an icy liquid sloshing down my dry throat, some of the ocean water must have spilled into my mouth. It felt good, thick and cool as it filled my mouth with a sweet flavor, like honeysuckle nectar. I attempted to swallow, but my throat was too thick from lack of air. I choked forcefully, and some of the water came back up.
I groaned, feeling it grate across the sides of my sore mouth.
God, my head hurt. It felt like someone had tried to knock a large metal bolt into it.
My eyelids fluttered lazily, at first I caught nothing but flashes of grey through my eyelashes, and then my eyes drifted shut again.

I tried to open them more fully and succeeded this time as an image came into view.
My heart leapt into my throat.

A pale face was resting not an inch from me.
I screamed.
The face screamed back.

I sat bolt upright, still crying out in alarm as the owner of the face jumped away from me, dropping a ladle filled with a clear liquid. It splattered all over the TARDIS floor as the instrument fell with a clatter. Hang on…the TARDIS!

I stopped screaming, snapping my mouth shut as I gazed around. I was lying on the Greek sofa; the TARDIS console was pumping and whizzing beside me in a hazy flurry of lights and noise. I'd never thought I'd be happy at the sight of those polished white walls or mess of buttons.
I shifted into a sitting position, and upon doing so, I could see that the face's owner was cowering against the back wall.

Now able to examine her fully, I could see that it was a woman. She was stunningly beautiful with clear, alabaster skin and glossy white-blonde hair that fell to her shoulders. Her figure was fine and delicate, her eyes bright and shinning with a brilliant blue (not as bright as mine of course).

She was dressed in strips of worn cloth that hugged her body in all the right places. Her full lips trembled, as did the rest of her, shaking like a delicate leaf at the sight of me.
I opened my mouth, intending to demand who she was, when a second figure suddenly barreled in through the surprisingly open TARDIS doors.

"Dyoni! What's happened?" the man demanded, stopping dead at the sight of the frightened girl.

My first thought: Why hello handsome.
This man was pale and fair like the woman with the same light eyes and flawless features; his body was chiseled and sharp, his expression calm but also with a layer of intensity and determination underneath. "Are you alright?" the man asked the girl called Dyoni, gently helping her to her feet.

He paused when his eyes fell on me. "Ah, I see you're awake."

"Evidently. Who are you?" I demanded.

"Forgive me. We must have startled you," the woman exclaimed, breaking from the man's grasp and walking back over to me. "I am Dyoni, and this is Alydon," she explained, gesturing to the man.

"Alydon?" I glanced at him. "Susan spoke of you."

"Indeed, I encountered the young Susan in the forest and sought to aid her."

"So, you're Thals?" I surmised. Dyoni nodded. "What are you doing inside the TARDIS?" I demanded

"Oh, the Doctor asked me to keep an eye on you while you were sleeping inside this tent," Dyoni quickly explained.

"We met up with your party on the edge of the petrified jungle. We set up our camp beside yours while we wait for our meeting party to return from the Dalek City. You were very ill, and we offered to care for you until you were well."

"Where are the others?" I inquired.

"Hang on, I shall fetch them," Alydon replied simply. He exited the TARDIS; Dyoni watched him go. I caught a distinguishable gleam in her eyes; it would seem pretty boy's taken.

The Thal woman turned back to me. "How are you feeling?" She regarded me with an earnest concern in her eyes that was a little off-putting, taking both my hands in her own and squeezing them firmly.

I wasn't sure how to respond to it; I licked my dry lips. "Can I have a drink of water?" I croaked.

"Of course." Dyoni quickly gathered up the fallen ladle and the clay bowl of the sweet water and handed it to me. I downed the whole thing in one gulp.

"Better?" she inquired.

I swallowed thickly. "Yes, much better."

"I'm glad. Your husband is a very loving man by the way," Dyoni added with a knowing smile.

I choked on the remainder of the sugar water. "What? Husband? What are you talking about?"

"Why the man that carried you in his arms all the way here from the Dalek City of course," Dyoni cried as though this was obvious. "A man like that, you are a lucky woman."

"What? You mean the Time Lord?" I sputtered. "You've got it wrong. Him and I…We're not."

"Terna!" Thankfully, Susan saved me from a very awkward conversation as she and the Doctor both entered the TARDIS, accompanied by Alydon. "Are you feeling any better?" the young Time Lady asked.

"Much better," I replied, slowly getting to my feet and nudging Dyoni aside. "Why don't you get away from me; you Thals are quite touchy."

"It was amazing, Terna," Susan exclaimed. "We brought you into the TARDIS, and Grandfather laid you down and then there was this burst of blue fire that consumed everything and then it all went inside you."

"That would be Force Anima," I explained, "the central force of all life."

"Indeed, it was almost as striking as your eyes," Alydon mused. Dyoni shot him a jealous glare.

"My eyes are made of it," I replied simply.

"We got here just in time too," Susan continued. "And Grandfather carried you all the way," she added.

The Doctor snorted indignantly. "Yes and my rheumatism is going to be complaining about it later. I hope you're grateful."
I laughed, more from relief than anything else.

"It's not funny!" the Doctor insisted.

"Yeah, it kinda is," I replied with a snort.

"It is not," the Doctor insisted.

"Thank you," I abruptly stopped laughing. The Doctor stared at me, taken aback, and flushed deeply.

"Yes, whatever," he turned to leave. I smiled after him, but that soon faded.

"Wait, where's Barbara…and Ian!" I cried, jumping to my feet. I remembered the state we'd left the latter in before I'd passed out.

"Barbara's just outside," Susan explained. "As for Ian, he's not back yet."

"What?" I was aghast.

"None of them are," Alydon stated grimly. "We sent our leader Temmosus and some others to meet with the Daleks about food. I understand your friend stayed behind to warn them of a possible ambush. At this moment, none have returned."

I felt my heart skip a beat, and I knew it wasn't from a loss of Anima. "That's not good."

"No, it isn't," the Doctor agreed. "In the meantime, I've been trying to figure out where we are."

I arched an eyebrow. "What? The TARDIS can't tell you?"

"No. As a matter of fact, I need your help with something, Terna." The Doctor beckoned to me as he headed out of the TARDIS.

"What? You want my help? The great and prideful Time Lord is asking aide of a Lyall?"

"Weren't you the one that just sang my praises for saving your life a moment ago?" the Doctor shot back.

"That's a bit of an exaggeration, Time Lord," I spat, quickly following him out of the TARDIS. "I said 'thank you', that's all."

The Doctor laughed. "And that was enough."

"What's that supposed to mean?" I demanded.

Alydon, Dyoni, and Susan watched us go.

"Are they always like this?" Dyoni asked the latter.

Susan nodded in dismay.

()()()

Upon exiting the TARDIS, I found myself in the same dusty, grey clearing in the middle of the petrified jungle, although now it wasn't so quiet and eerie.

At least a couple dozen Thals were scattered around the TARDIS.
Having pitched tents, many were gathered in worried groups under the leaning structures, some were pacing in agitation.
A few of the men stood guard on the edge of the clearing, peering anxiously into the darkness.

The pale sun shining through the stone branches told me it was early evening.
All of the Thals looked identical to Dyoni and Alydon: they were all fair and pale with stunningly beautiful features, and they were all scantily clad with most of the males practically bare-chested. I blushed heavily as a few men walked by.

Get a hold of yourself, Terna, I shook my head. I spied Barbara surrounded by a few male Thals; her dark hair and heavier clothing standing out like a fly in milk amongst the crowd.
She had the same mask of worry upon her face that I knew was for Ian, who had still not returned.

She feared the worst, as we all did.

"Terna, this way." I was snapped out of my musings by the Doctor leading me over to a large grey chest that sat open on the grass.
The chest was old and worn with a pair of support beams attached to either side meant to hoist it up onto people's shoulders so it could be carried great distances. Judging from the weathered look of the capsule, I'd say it had seen a lot of travel.

"I'm getting an Arc of the Covenant vibe," I declared, slipping my hands into the pocket of my dress and wilting slightly when I didn't feel the comforting wood of my magnifying glass.
I remembered the Daleks had taken it. Shame, I liked that magnifying glass...

"Well, this is sort of an Arc," the Doctor explained as he picked his way through the items inside. The chest was filled to the brim with smaller capsules and boxes, pages of books and manuscripts, stone writings in some alien tongue, as well as roles of what looked like film footage.
"This chest is the most precious item of the Thal people," the Doctor explained. "It's the last of the knowledge they possessed before the great war with the Daleks. Apparently, they were once an advanced society."

"You're like a kid in a candy store," I mused with a snicker as the Doctor rifled through the ancient treasures of the Thal people.

"Would you stop condescending and help me with this?" the Doctor snapped irritably.

"Fine, fine," I sighed, dropping to my knees beside him. "What exactly do you need my help with?"

"This," the Doctor explained, pulling from the chest a series of hexagon shaped pieces. He laid them out on the dirt in front of me, and I could see that the pieces came together to form a picture of sorts. A dark backdrop speckled with dozens of stars.

"It's a map," I deduced.

"Indeed, a record of this planet's solar system that must go back at least half a million years," the Doctor explained, seemingly ecstatic at the thought. "Can you imagine the advancements these people must have made to be able to see this far into space?"

I glanced down at the map. "So, where are we?"

"Right here." The Doctor pointed to a small white speck amongst a dusty mass of a solar system.

"I see." I leaned in closer towards the spot the Doctor had indicated.
Some small increment of familiarity was certainly nagging at the back of my mind at the sight of this map. "I wish I could see this more clearly," I muttered, squinting down at the faded images.

"Do you want to borrow my glasses?" the Doctor offered.

"No, I don't want to borrow your glasses," I snapped back.
Then I saw it, nestled on the very edge. "No, it can't be!" I cried, my head snapping back up. "Is there any more of this map?"

"Yes, there are a few more pieces," the Doctor replied, reaching into the chest and pulling out a few more shards.

"Lemme see!" I cried, snatching them from the Doctor's grasp and fitting them into place, completing the map a little further.
There it was, nestled amongst a mass of dust and fire, burning as brightly as a sun, but it wasn't a sun. It was a planet, a very specific planet.
As I looked down at the map, I felt a rush of a dozen emotions at once, too many to name. My eyes prickled with tears.

"Terna?"

"That's it, isn't it?" I whispered, tenderly reaching out to touch the image. "That's Eedonya. My home planet."

"You mean the planet of the Lyall?" the Doctor cried.

"The very same," I nodded. "Which means, if we're on this planet…." I pointed to the one the Doctor had indicated. "Then we're on a planet my people used to oversee, back during the Great Lyall Empire. If my memory serves me, that space is occupied by the Planet Skaro."

The Doctor stared at me, blinking in astonishment. "So, that's where we are? A planet you once ruled? Skaro?"

"I do believe so," I agreed.

Suddenly, something snapped in the back of my mind like a rubber band.
A burst of mental pain shot down my spine and a series of images suddenly coursed before my eyes. Images of fire, screams, pain, and blood, visions of death, destruction, and terror.
Fear, unimaginable fear hung thick in the air, mixing with the smoke and the scent of death as the wounded lay screaming and flailing on the ground.

It's hard to kill a Lyall, but if you do, they die slowly.

My scream mixed with the cries in my mind as I staggered back, shrieking and beating at the air, trying to knock away the sights and sounds as they exploded out from the rip in my mind. The hole in my head, this was what I'd forgotten and now I was remembering. Fear what you know; fear what you will soon learn…

"Terna. Terna!" I felt the Doctor shaking me. As the images dissipated, I looked up to see that the Doctor, Susan, Barbara, Alydon, and Dyoni were all gathered around me; the same expression of concern and slight fear etched on their faces.
I blinked rapidly, trying to clear it, but the things I'd just seen still flashed across my vision every time I'd closed my eyes, imprinted on my eyelids like stains.

"Terna, what happened?" Barbara asked, gently helping me sit up. "You're trembling," she whispered.

"I'm fine," I insisted, staggering to my feet and stumbling a few paces away from the group.
I paused to lean against a tree. I could feel the emptiness of it pulsing under my fingers and this only made the racing of my own heart, the beating of my own blood, the rattle of my breathing in my chest all the more vibrant.
The memories coursed through me, almost crippling me again. I squeezed my eyes shut as my subconscious attempted to suppress them again, to spare me the pain and the suffering.
No. I willed myself to hold them, to grasp them firmly, to remember.

"Please, Terna, let us help you," I flinched when I felt Barbara's hand on my arm. I turned to face her and saw my fearful expression reflected in her eyes.

I took a deep breath, hoping to contain myself. "I was right. There was a war," I whispered.

"A war with the Daleks?" Susan asked.

I nodded. "Yes, my people did learn of Skaro's rebellion against us, and they attempted to quell the uprising, but we underestimated the Daleks, and they caught us off guard."

"But how could the Daleks have defeated you?" the Doctor demanded. "The Lyall are among the strongest and most powerful beings to ever exist. Nothing can withstand them, let alone combat them."

"That's what we thought," I stated, slumping down against the tree. "But Lyall are not invincible, and the Daleks learned of a way to kill us."

"How did they manage that?" the Doctor demanded.

I clenched my fists. "Think about it, Time Lord; a Dalek is the only living thing in the universe not constructed from the natural matter of creation; they are not made with souls or Force Anima. Therefore, they are opposite and equal to a Lyall. Their power is as great as ours," I paused to take a shaky breath, "And they are our greatest weakness."

"But if beings as powerful as you were defeated by the Daleks than there's no hope for us," Barbara cried.

"Not necessarily," the Doctor asserted. "The Lyall may have been forced to retreat, but they have left the Daleks weakened and exposed in their wake. They are not as strong as they were and they are fewer in number. We must harness their weaknesses and use them to our advantage. Tell me, Terna, how did the war end?"

I glanced up. "I…I don't remember. I don't think I have everything back yet. The first round was such a painful rush, I think my mind may have locked some of it back up again."

"Oh, do try to remember," the Doctor exclaimed. "The information you manage to retain could be vital."

"You're right," I uncurled my fists and slowly rose to my feet. "I need not just to remember, but I need to prepare."

"Prepare? What do you mean?" Alydon asked.

"I need to find a Gyrum*."

()()()

"What exactly are you going to do with this 'Gyrum', Terna?" Susan inquired as she and the others followed me away from the clearing and off into the dense and silent jungle.

"I'm going to stick my fingers in it and drain it for all its worth," I declared. "Hopefully it will give me the power I need as well as enough of an electrical pulse to jog my memory fully."

"What exactly is a Gyrum?" Dyoni inquired in a small voice.

"It's like a bank vault," I explained, but stopped when I saw Dyoni's confused expression. Right, she lives in the woods; I doubt she knows what a vault or a bank is. Silly me. "A Gyrum is an underground temple of sorts which Lyall had their subjects construct."

"You mean like…slavery?" I could hear the judgment in Barbara's voice before I turned to face her and see that her expression was covered in it.

"We paid them…sort of." My voice trailed off. "Whatever, that doesn't matter now. Anyway, Gyrums were used to store extra recesses of Psychic and Force Amina. A kind of back-up power supply in case we were ever in a pinch and had need of it. It came in handy, especially during wartime, which is why I'm pretty certain there'd be one nearby as we are on Skaro."

"Do you really think it wise to venture away from the clearing?" Alydon interrupted me, casting a weary glace over his shoulder as the thick trees closed in around us."

"I didn't ask you to come with me," I reminded him. "You can return to the clearing whenever you want."

"Alydon does have a point though," the Doctor interjected. "It would be wise not to remain in the forest too long. What if Ian and the others return while we are gone?
Therefore, I think it best we do not spend too much time stumbling about in the brush searching for this thing. Tell me, Terna; is there some kind of specific sign or marking that could direct you to the location of this Gyrum?"

"Of course there is," I replied, slightly miffed. "Look for a symbol carved into a tree that looks like an upside down upper case L," I explained.

"Where would that be carved?" Alydon asked.

"I dunno, anywhere, I guess," I replied.

"Oh, that's comforting," the Doctor grumbled as he and Alydon headed off towards a cluster of dense foliage, Dyoni trailing silently behind them.

"Terna, look at this!" Susan suddenly cried. I glanced her way to see she was crouched in the ashy dirt, her small fingers pawing after a small object glittering amongst the pale dust.

"What is it, Susan?" Barbara asked at the same time I demanded: "How the hell did you spot that?"

"I don't know," Susan straightened up, the small object poised in her palm. It gleamed faintly in the pale light, coated thickly in grey dust.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" she asked Barbara as the human woman leaned forward so as to examine it closer.

"Why, it's a ring," she exclaimed, plucking the object from Susan's palm and gently blowing away the ashy particles.

I eyed the object keenly, the familiar gleam of the metal and stone that looped together into a circular band. I drew in a sharp breath. "That's mine," I whispered.

Barbara and Susan glanced up in surprise. "What? It's yours?" Barbara cried.

"Lemme see," I whispered. Gingerly, Susan passed the ring to me.

I fought to keep my fingers from shaking as I clasped the small object in my fingers. "Yes…Yes, this is definitely mine," I confirmed.

"How can you tell?" Susan asked.

"See, the E carved on the side?" I gestured to a small letter carved faintly into the side of the band. "E for Eternal, that's how you can tell this is a royal ring. Also, the ring is set with sapphire stones. Those were my chosen gemstones. Therefore, you could distinguish my ring from my sisters' and brothers'."

"It really is beautiful, Terna," Susan declared.

"Yeah, it really is," I whispered, turning the ring through my fingers. What a lucky find. I couldn't believe we had landed the TARDIS so near to the place where I'd lost my ring. Where….I felt my body go cold as the memories stirred within the depths of my mind.

"It's the infinity symbol," Barbara observed. "I thought it was an eight, but when you turn it a certain way…"

"Hey, you're right," Susan agreed.

I glanced at Barbara. "You know of this symbol?"

"Yes, of course. It's used on Earth to represent eternity, endless," Barbara explained.

"Well, that's rather fitting," I declared.

"How do you mean?" Susan inquired.

I smiled. "Eternal is more than a name, Susan." Susan and Barbara regarded me with looks of confusion.

"Terna, Terna!" Dyoni's voice rang out through the thicket before I could explain further. "Alydon found the symbol you were looking for."

"Really? Great," I cried, quickly tucking the ring into the pocket of my dress before racing off after the young Thal, Susan and Barbara close behind.

The Doctor and Alydon were gathered around a low rock that was half set into the thin earth, creating an overhang of sorts into a ditch that dropped down sharply into a craggy tunnel below. Carved above the entrance, into the rock, was the upside down L I had indicated.

"But that's Gamma*!" Barbara cried.

"Gamma? What's that?" Dyoni inquired.

"Gamma's a letter in the Greek Alphabet if I'm not mistaken," the Doctor mused.

"Yes, it is," Barbara confirmed.

"It also means photon, as in light," I explained. "Therefore, it was like a lantern of sorts, used to guide us to the Gyrum."

"Well, hurry up and gather whatever it is you need in there," Alydon urged me, once again glancing around. "I do not like the feel of these woods; they grow far too close to the Dalek City."

I pursed my lips.
Nodding, I quickly ducked down under the rocky outcropping and slipped down into the cool, damp tunnel it shielded.

"What's it like down there, Terna?" Susan called after me.

"Musty," I replied with a sneeze.

"Do you see the Gyrum?"
I glanced back to see the Doctor was crouched at the mouth of the cave, leaning precariously over the side, so I almost thought he'd fall in after me. I smiled.

"If you want to come along, you can, Time Lord."

The Doctor snorted. "Do not mock my curiosity for a potentially fascinating scientific venture," he snapped before sliding down into the cave with Susan close behind, the latter's fairy-like features pale in the dim light. "Also, I do not require your permission to accompany you, Terna," the Doctor added.

"As a matter of fact you do," I asserted as Barbara staggered down the rugged slope after Susan, stumbling slightly on her worn heels. "You are about to enter sacred ground, after all," I reminded him.

"Alydon, are you coming?" Susan called back up.

"No, Dyoni and I shall remain here. We will keep watch."

"Suit yourself," I murmured before turning and slowly making my way along the narrow, sloping path. The others followed close behind me.

It wasn't long before the walls around us narrowed and the ceiling sloped drastically downward. The ground dipped as well, so I practically had to slide on my butt in order to avoid tripping and falling forward. The air around us was stale, dark, and seemed to press forcefully on us the deeper we went.

"How much further?" Barbara called from the back of the group, seemingly with great difficulty as she urged herself along the uneven ground.

"Not much further. I believe….AUGH!" I screamed as the ground suddenly fell away from under me, morphing into the lip of a slight cliff.

"Terna!" Susan cried in alarm, rushing towards me as I fell, crashing down hard on my back in a rather unceremonious manner. "Are you alright?" she inquired, peering cautiously over the side of the outcropping.

"Never better," I grumbled, coughing thickly, taking a moment to let the ache of the fall run from my limbs

Sitting up, I glanced around to find that I had fallen into a kind of low cavern with craggy walls speckled with thick stalagmites and stalactites.
They protruded from the walls, floors, and ceiling like jagged teeth and dotted around the edge of a dense, deep pool that spawned from the center of the floor.
Within the pool was not water, instead quenched a thirst deep within my soul that traced back to the very conception of life, the very matter of my being. Force and Psychic Anima swirled together in a vibrant and frantic dance, mixed with the deep, sapphire blue depth of Force and the thin, bright pale aqua of Psychic. The surged together in a storm of light and energy.

"Hey, I think I found the Gyrum," I announced.

"That's the understatement of the century. We can see the light from here," the Doctor called back.

"I was being facetious, you moron. Get a sense of sarcasm," I shot back as I hastily got to my feet and picked my way across the uneven ground towards the Amina pool.

"Be careful, Terna," Susan urged.

"Please," I scoffed. "I know exactly what I'm doing."

"Perhaps you ought to take my granddaughter's advice," the Doctor mused. "Who knows? The Daleks may have found this place and tampered with the Anima."

I paused, my fingers outstretched, hovering over the iridescent waters.

A seed of doubt was planted in my mind, but I stiffened my resolve before it could germinate properly.
Taking a deep breath, I plunged my hands up to the elbows in the Anima.
An electric feeling shot up my limbs, sparking within every pore of my skin as it seeped into my skin, hot and cold at the same time.

My body locked itself up into a state of paralysis, shock at the sensations of the Anima pouring and pooling beneath my flesh, running thick and fast through my blood. I sucked in a sharp breath as a rush of emotions surged through me, felt all at once and then replaced by a sudden emptiness as the tides within me quelled.

Slowly, and without opening my eyes, I straightened up and brought my arms down to my sides. The tips of my fingers brushed the edge of polished wood projecting from my pocket.

Surprised, I opened my eyes and glanced down. My expression brightened. My magnifying glass…

()()()

"Terna!" Susan screamed in a mixture of alarm and fear as the Lyall plunged her arms into the depths of the Gyrum. There was a blinding flash of light that unfolded out like the petals of a photonic flower from the center of the caver; it spread out to ricochet off the walls of the space and send them hurtling back towards us with greater intensity. "Terna!" Susan repeated.

"Stay where you are, child," I ordered, holding her back against my chest as I shielded both her and myself from the light's glare. "Terna knows what she's doing."
I hope.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, the blue light dissipated and left nothing but the speckled ghost of its glare splattered across my vision.
Blinking rapidly, I released a struggling Susan from my grasp, and the young girl quickly scrambled down the slope and into the cavern after Terna, Barbara close behind.

They worry too much.

All the same, and despite the fact that my exhausted limbs protested, I followed them down the uneven outcropping, and I hastily made my way over to the edge of the Amina pool, who's light had diminished somewhat, to where Terna was standing in a kind of daze.

"Terna?" Susan asked cautiously, taking a step towards her. Her back was to us, so I couldn't see her expression.

"Terna, are you alright?" Barbara inquired.

Terna turned to face us and her expression unfolded into a grin almost as blinding as the light from the Amina pool as she'd absorbed it. "Never better," she declared.

"Did you get all of your memories back?" I inquired.

"Yep," she replied, reaching into her pocket. "I also found my magnifying glass."
Was it my imagination or did the light of Terna's smile seem almost too bright? Shining like plastic, as though it was vibrant and fake?

True, Terna always had a kind of unnatural glow about her pale skin, but now it seemed almost like an opaque covering to shield some kind of darkness. It was that same darkness that sometimes flashed somewhere in the corner of her intense eyes.

"It was in your pocket the whole time?" Susan exclaimed of the magnifying glass. "I thought the Daleks took it from you?"

"I must have called it back somehow," Terna mused, gently turning the magnifying glass over in her fingers.
As she did so, flashes of Anima curled up from the hilt of the object and spread their way across the surface of the glass.

Terna arched an eyebrow in surprise at the sight of the yellow flames, and I also caught a glimpse of something else, that same dark and foreboding expression cross her face. But it was gone in a moment, swallowed by the light.
In fact, she seemed to be glowing both metaphorically and quite literally, even a few of the lines seemed to have vanished from her face.

"What are you looking at?" Terna's question snapped me out of my musings.

"Nothing," I replied, quickly averting my eyes. "Now, come on. If you're quite finished, let's get back to camp."

"Yes, I agree," Barbara added, and I could see in her eyes that she was still worried about Ian. I found myself having a smidgen of concern for the brave young man as well.

"Right, let's go," Terna agreed, quickly slipping the magnifying glass back into her pocket so as to douse the flames. Reaching into her other pocket, she pulled out the ring Susan had found in the woods. Kissing it deeply, she slipped it onto her finger.

Alydon and Dyoni were anxiously waiting for us when we returned from the Gyrum. Terna seemed to be in rather high spirits despite the dark things she'd remembered from the Anima absorption.
However, as much as I wanted to, I would not press her further until we had returned to the others.

"Did you find what you were looking for?" Alydon inquired once we'd resurfaced.

"Yep," Terna replied. She faltered slightly when she caught sight of Alydon's eyes quickly drift further into the trees, just beyond the Gyrum entrance, his pale gaze thick with worry.

"What is it?" I asked.

"Forgive me. I am a little concerned that we are so close to the marsh," Alydon admitted.

"The marsh? What do you mean?" Susan inquired.

"The marsh used to be a resort before the war. It was a forest-like haven that grew out of the back of the city that the Daleks now occupy."

Terna arched an eyebrow. "It leads into the city?"

"Yes, but it is heavily toxic now; the waters are polluted," Alydon explained.

"Then I can see the cause for your concern. Come, let us head back to the camp," I urged the others.

No one needed to be told twice as we all headed back into the jungle towards the Thal encampment. Terna went last, and I caught a brief glimpse of her pausing to glance over her shoulder towards the direction of the marsh.

When we returned to the clearing:

"Ian!"
It didn't seem that Barbara could get across the clearing fast enough.
Tottering along on her heels, she threw herself into Ian's arms.

Ian hugged her back, slightly taken aback at her forcefulness at first. He looked pale and exhausted, but seemed to perk up slightly at the sight of Barbara. The Thals that were with him, however, looked very grim.

"Temmosus is dead," one of them informed Alydon.

"I got to the hall where the Daleks and the Thals were set to meet, but I was too late and their leader was killed," Ian explained

"You managed to get the others out, though," Barbara stated. "And that is an accomplishment. Oh, we were so worried you'd been killed."

"Yes, we had a hell of a time trying to get out of the city," Ian replied.

"And if it hadn't been for your valor in warning my people, we all would have perished at the hands of the Daleks," Alydon commended, his light eyes dark with grief as Dyoni sobbed into his shoulder. "As I am now leader of this tribe, I can congratulate you with the highest honor of the Thal people."

"Thank you," Ian nodded his head solemnly.

"What are we to do now, Alydon?" Dyoni asked as she and the other Thals all looked to their new leader.

Alydon paused. "If only I knew why the Daleks hated us; I could change our approach towards them."

"Your leader, Temmosus, appealed to the Daleks very sensibly, any reasonable creature would have complied, but the Daleks had the intent of slaughtering you from the start," Ian stated grimly.

"Why? Why kill without any thought or reason?" Dyoni cried through her tears.

"The Daleks are made without Anima, they are devoid of all emotion and compassion," Terna declared. "Like living machines if that oxymoron makes any sense."

Once again, I could see that same darkness in Terna's eyes.
"But I remember during the war, the Daleks fought brutally against all life that was not like their own; either you joined forces with them, or you were brutally destroyed."

"A dislike for the unlike," Ian mused.

Alydon glanced from Terna to Ian, "I don't follow you."

"The Daleks are hostile towards you because you are different from them," Terna explained. "No matter what you do, they will not comply with your wishes. No compromise can be made if you do not wish to become Daleks yourselves."

The air around the clearing seemed to become very cold; it hung thick with a dense quiet upon Terna's revelation.

"Then what would you have us do?" Dyoni whispered, wiping her eyes.

"We will build a mourning pyre for Temmosus," Alydon announced. "Our brave leader shall not have died without honor."

"I wouldn't recommend that," Terna piped up. "The smoke for the fire will alert the Daleks of your position. The last thing you need is for your position to be given away. You have the element of surprise on your side after all; it's best you keep it."

Alydon raised a brow. "You speak as though we intend to fight."

"Don't you?" Terna cried.

"Do not be hasty, Terna," Ian insisted. "War should be a last resort. However, for the moment, I think it best for the Thals to at least get the Daleks to respect them, to show some strength against them."

"But you think we ought to fight as well." Dyoni saw through Ian.

"I think it may come to that."

"You know less about our people than the Daleks do!" Dyoni cried, her pretty face flushing with rage.
Ah, pacifists. That could be a problem.

"For now, the Daleks cannot leave their city, but suppose they could," Ian mused. "What would you do then?"

"We would return to our plateau where we came from," Alydon calmly replied.

"You'd simply run away?" Barbara exclaimed.

"What? Are you insane?" Terna cried. "The Daleks tried to have your people exterminated; they led you into a trap that could have been a slaughter. They brutally murdered your chief. And you choose not to retaliate?"

"There are things that are worth preserving," Alydon insisted. "The war has destroyed our planet, crippled our civilization. What would another do with so few of us left? We could face extinction."

"You are a fool," Terna snapped, getting up in Alydon's face. "You already face extinction. If you do not gain access to the Dalek's food and resources, your people shall all perish, and it is pretty clear the Daleks will not give it up without a fight."

"I will not jeopardize the safety of the Thal people at the behest of a stranger," Alydon shot back.

"The Daleks destroyed my people, you pacifist fool!" Terna exclaimed. "And they will destroy yours if you just sit idly by. You think you're safe in the jungle? The Daleks must have a means of leaving the city and if not, believe me, they will find a way."

"We shall not risk our lives," Alydon declared. "We are not afraid to die; Temmosus proved that, but we shall not throw our lives away needlessly."

"She's not talking about dying," Ian insisted. "And you can't just hand yourselves over to the Daleks; they will find a way to destroy you."

"I can see that you want to help us, but, as Dyoni said, you simply do not understand our ways. There can be no question of the Thals fighting the Daleks," Alydon stated; his voice was calm but cold, shutting Terna down with the ferocity of his gaze.
However, she did not wilt under the look he gave her. She remained poised and firm with the resolve of a Queen.

Well, she's a good arguer, I'll give her that. However, on the subject of our fate, now that Chesterton had returned, and Terna's got the energy from the Gyrum, I see little reason for us to remain on Skaro.

"Chesterton, I do believe we have overstayed our welcome, and I think it's high time we return to the ship," I declared.

"Grandfather, we could stay a little longer," Susan protested. "The Thals are such nice people."

"And the Daleks are not," I reminded her. "Which is why I think we better go."

"What?" Terna cried. "We can't just leave them all here to die!"

"Our fates do not rest with the Thals, Terna," I retorted sharply. "We have ourselves to worry about."

"Time Lord, you cannot ask me to simply walk away." I was startled by the barely masked anguish I detected in Terna's voice. "I have a chance to avenge my people, and you expect me to just drop that and leave?"

"Terna, be reasonable…"

"Do not speak to me of reason," Terna cried. "I remember…The Daleks forced us to retreat, they destroyed our planet and left us to the Wastes at the edge of reality. Somehow, I escaped and crashed into the TARDIS"

"Then you ought not to risk your life when you got so lucky the first time. Now come along," I declared.
As I spoke, I headed off towards where we'd parked the TARDIS. Obediently, Susan followed close behind me.

At first, Ian and Barbara lingered. They watched as a few of the male Thals brought Temmosus's body forward.
The air was soon alive with the sounds of weeping as they heaved the body towards a collection of ash they'd gathered together. As the Thals laid the body of their fallen leader upon the pyre, the two humans exchanged a glance.

"Perhaps its best to leave well enough alone," Ian reluctantly stated. "It would seem pacifism has become a survival instinct for the Thals."

"Yes, all those centuries of fighting…I suppose it's understandable," Barbara mused. "Well, then let us get back to the ship and get as far away from here as possible."

Good woman, I always knew she was the one with more sense.

I smiled to myself as I fiddled with the lock on the TARDIS. It was about time we'd left, even if the reason we'd lingered in the first place was because of my curiosity. Not that I was about to bring that up.

"Alright," I announced, thrusting the door open. "Chesterton, would you hand me the fluid link? You had it last."

Behind me, Ian froze. "Fluid link…" He swallowed hard.

"Yes, the one we went into the city to fill with mercury even though it didn't really need it," I exclaimed, my patience thinning. "Come now, dear boy; I can't start the ship without it," I declared.

"I…I don't…" Ian's voice trailed off.

Susan paled. "You lost it!"

"Oh, Ian, you can't have," Barbara cried.

"No, the Daleks took it from me," Ian asserted. "When they searched us…The link is down in the city somewhere."

Oh, how things come full circle.
There's some irony in this somewhere, but I'm far too distressed at the moment to figure out where exactly.
The fluid link, the central key to the TARDIS engine, is stranded down in the middle of a city full of murderous Daleks, and all we got is a bunch of pretty pacifists to show for it.

How could things possibly get any worse?

"Hey, maybe Terna can call it back," Susan suddenly piped up. "She did it with her magnifying glass. Terna, do you think you could…Terna?"

Susan glanced around, as did the other two, but Terna did not respond.

Worse, oh much worse. I should have noticed; the woman is never that quiet for so long….

Terna was gone.

()()()

My heart pounded in my head as I sprinted full force along the forest floor; the grey trees loomed around me on all sides.
I moved as quietly and as quickly as possible, trying to retain my frantic breathing.

My eyes scanned the surrounding forest scape. There! I spotted the rock with Gamma carved in the side.

My pace never slackening, I changed direction and skidded around the rock and further into the denser parts of the forest.
The branches stretched out into the path, reaching and clawing at me like long, spindly arms. They snagged at my dress and hair, slackening my procession, and I was forced to rip and tug them forcefully from my body as I stumbled about, half blind in the waning light.

At one point, my sight left me completely, so dense was the jungle, and the shadowed darkness of the trees closed in around me, like a blanket suddenly being thrown over my head.
Dazed and disoriented, I stumbled and tripped, falling on my face in the dirt. I sat up with a groan, spitting ash from my mouth.
I would not stop.

I quickly staggered back to my feet. Alydon said that the marsh was just a few yards beyond the Gyrum, and beyond that was the entrance to the city.

Barely pausing to draw breath, I took off towards the city and the Daleks within it.
If the Doctor and the others wouldn't stay and fight, than I certainly would. I wasn't going to run from the Daleks. Not this time.


Translation:

Gamma- in science it is used to represent light

Gyrum- Latin for 'vault'

Anima- I forgot to mention this earlier, but Anima means 'soul' in Latin


A/N: Another cliff hanger, sorry. And I promise the Dalek Arc will be concluded in the next chapter. Also, we shall learn a little more about Terna's past. Stay tuned…