As before, the marquises guided Donna through the now eerily empty halls of Lanassa Colony. In minutes she had made her way through the abandoned half of the station and back to the biolock atrium. The door slid open before her. Her wrist buzzed.
You might want to pull one of those sofas into the lock, the Doctor advised. You'll need to get up to that vent again.
Donna groaned.
"I thought you said they'd be distracted!"
They're not that distracted.
"But they are getting the patients out?"
Joanna is still hoping to save the station, but she's ordered the evacuation as a precautionary measure. They'll get everyone out in time.
Placated, Donna picked the smallest and lightest of the sofas and set to work dragging it into the biolock. It was still fairly heavy, but fortunately it slid fairly easily on the colony's tiled floors. She had to tip it on end to get it through the doorway, but once it was inside the lock and Donna could see the vent again she had to admit that there was no way she would have been able to reach it without something to climb on. Shoving the sofa into place, she stepped up onto the seat, then to the back, then squeezed her way around the lose grating and back into the vent. Blue arrows lit up on the floor to guide her way.
"So, I take it they didn't think to try the tunnels, then?" Donna said.
There was no answer.
Right, Donna thought. No security cameras up here. She didn't think the question was important enough to take the time to type while she was supposed to be crawling.
For a time the arrows had her retrace the path she had followed previously. When she reached the first of the gates the Doctor had sealed behind her it slid open to let her pass, then closed back up as soon as she was through. Donna felt her nerves begin to rise again. There was the undeniable sense that she was infiltrating enemy territory.
Eventually her path branched off from the old route, and after a few more endless minutes of crawling Donna reached a grating in the floor of the tunnel where the arrows stopped. Reaching out with her hand, she carefully tested it. It was held in place far more loosely than the one back in the biolock and swung open easily with a firm push. Donna poked her head through and scanned the hall, then pulled her head back up, got her feet into the opening and dropped down. She glanced around again and found a marquis pointing her up the hall.
Donna followed the marquises down two more hallways before she heard footsteps in the hall and was instructed to duck into a nearby doorway, which turned out to be a linen closet. Pressed between the stacks of linen sheets and the door, Donna began to feel very warm. The footsteps grew louder and Donna could tell that it was a sizable group passing by.
"…can't believe that he'd just let us through now."
"They'd almost finished burning through anyway. Probably decided it wasn't worth the effort."
"Yeah, because there's no one over there anymore."
"He's still got his girl running around…"
The argument was lost as the group passed by.
You opened the biolock? Donna typed.
Yes, the Doctor replied. The more of them that head over there now, the fewer you'll have to deal with here.
Donna heard a creak, and the roof seemed to shudder a bit.
What was that? She typed.
The outer plating on the station's hull is starting to break up a little. That was probably a panel coming free.
How much time do we have?
Two hours, eleven minutes, twenty three seconds. Get moving, it's safe.
Donna stepped back into the hall, welcoming the breath of fresh air – well, as fresh as recycled space station air could be, she supposed. The marquises led her on, and she soon reached a lift. She stepped inside and the lift started moving down. Her wrist buzzed.
Things are going to get tricky now, the Doctor warned.
"Oh, lovely," Donna said. "It's been such a breeze so far."
Joanna has had her people destroying the security cameras and even some of the bioscanners on the lower level of the station, trying to blind me.
"She knows what you're doing, then?"
Oh, yes. It didn't take them long to figure it out once the biolock wouldn't let them through. They've been trying to reach me for the past four hours, but I've been making things rather difficult for them.
The lift stopped and Donna stepped out cautiously. The marquis in the hall instructed her to wait. A moment later the lift door opened again, this time revealing an empty shaft. Blue arrows on the wall pointed to a ladder built into the side of the shaft.
"What."
I haven't been letting any of the lifts down to the bottom floor for hours now. If one comes down now they're bound to figure out it's you. It's better if you climb down.
Donna sighed.
Now, there are going to be people at the bottom of this shaft. I can't help that. But they won't be expecting you, so you'll have a couple seconds of surprise to work with. There will be a hall leading straight on from the shaft, one to the left, and one to the right. Run to whichever one looks safest. I'll give you ten seconds before I seal the doors.
"You had better not slam one of them on me."
Really, Donna, doors have had sensors for these things since the twentieth century. If you're in the way it won't close on you. You'll just get caught by security, so you'd better not let that happen.
Grumbling, Donna clambered onto the ladder and began to make her way down the shaft. She could see only darkness in the shaft below her. The Doctor had not turned on any more arrows for her, doubtless to avoid alerting whoever might be waiting below. But without any light to see by, she couldn't tell how far down the bottom level might be.
It turned out that the Doctor had kicked her out of the lift about three levels up from the bottom. After passing two closed doors in the side of the shaft, Donna could begin to see a faint light below her, and as she approached, she could tell it was coming from an open door in the shaft. When she was just a few feet above the opening, she could tell that the door had been wedged open with some sort of metal pole. There were also voices at the base of the shaft.
"How long does it take to cut through a door?" A bored voice demanded lazily.
"Shh!" Hissed an angry reply. "If we missed any cameras in the area, you'll tell him exactly where we're working!"
A derisive snort.
"Who cares? Joanna says E7 is much closer than we are. If anyone is getting through, it's them."
Donna held her breath, clinging to the ladder with one hand, and slowly typing out a message with the other.
It sounds like they're trying to cut through a door here, Donna said. And they say that E7 is close to breaking through.
Thank you, Donna. Get ready to run when you hear yelling, it'll be your best chance.
Donna climbed as low on the ladder as she dared, her feet now just above the opening. She scrutinized the floor below her. It looked fairly flat. She should be able to drop from this height. Suddenly, she heard an electric hum and a series of loud pops. The voices at the end of the hall yelled and cursed. Donna dropped off the ladder and hit the floor in a crouch.
There were two men on either side of the door, still shielding their eyes from a bright light down the hall. Straight ahead from the lift, Donna could see a series of those large, metal doors, each with a man sized hole cut out of the middle, the edges appearing burned and twisted. But the last door in line, though already scored by whatever torch had been used to cut the others, was now coursing with electric blue light, and sparks arched out from the surface again and again to strike any object that came too close. A small group of workers was already scurrying back from the electrified door in alarm.
Not wasting another moment, Donna leapt through the opening and spun left, relieved to see that the hall there was empty and safe. The men guarding the lift cried out again in surprise and Donna bolted for the hall, trying to claim the small lead she would need for the Doctor to cut off her pursuit. How much of her ten seconds was left? She had no idea.
Blessedly, there was a pause of just a second or two before Donna heard the pounding of running feet behind her. She had her lead, if she could only keep it. Pushing her legs as hard as she could, she sped down the hall at speeds she probably hadn't attempted since childhood.
She was already several yards down the hall when she heard the metallic slam, just a few feet behind her. It was immediately followed by a pair of much fleshier thumps and a renewed bought of cursing. Donna cast a glance over her shoulder and found the hallway clear behind her. Her wrist buzzed.
Tell me you made it.
Donna stopped, panting.
I made it. I went left.
Instantly a marquis up the hall lit up with an arrow pointing the way.
Keep moving. They've got people all over this area and I've only the faintest notion of where. I'm sending you to the nearest door in the perimeter that I think is clear. I'll only be able to open it up for a few seconds. Run.
Donna ran, eyes up, constantly scanning for the next marquis. Right. Straight. Straight. Left. Right. She flew around corners, heedless of who might be watching. For a time, the halls were blessedly clear. Then she heard footsteps in a side hall as she sped past it. The sound of her running feet on the floor suddenly seemed tremendous to her ears. What would they think when they heard it?
Raised voices. An avalanche of running feet rose up behind her in answer to her own. Distant, but gaining. Donna pushed herself harder, gasping for breath, feeling the ragged air tearing at her burning throat. Straight. Straight. The avalanche was gaining on her. She could make out words in the shouts now. Some calling for her to stop, some urging the others onward, one making a hasty report into his pager. Left.
Donna spun around the corner and nearly pulled up short. At the other end of the hall, a surprised group of security personnel did a double take at the sight of her spinning around the corner. She spotted the marquis on the ceiling. Right.
Pushing herself back to her top speed, she closed the distance to the turn ahead of the new group and spun around the corner, just as her original pursuers were entering the hall. Ahead of her, Donna saw a closed door, its surface already scarred from a failed attempt to burn through that seemed to have been abandoned. She ran for it, not slowing…
And slammed into the unyielding metal at top speed. Dazed, she looked over her shoulder to see her pursuers rapidly closing the remaining distance.
"Doctor!" She yelled, frantic.
The door slid open and she tumbled into the hall beyond. It slammed shut behind her. Donna lay on the floor, panting. Her wrist buzzed.
You're safe now. You and I are the only ones in here.
Donna made no reply. The pager buzzed again.
You were faster than I expected. Good running.
Thanks I guess, Donna typed.
I can hear you again now, you know; my eyes are intact here.
Well that's just brilliant then, Donna typed, breathing heavily. When I can talk again maybe I'll make use of that.
[][][][][][][][][]
What on earth was that supposed to be?
Sorry – that was laughter.
Have you considering trying "Hahaha" or "LOL"?
Yes. Right. Of course. LOL!
Donna's breathing had finally slowed to something approximating normal, so she sat up and then pulled herself to her feet. The hallway shuddered, more violently than before, and Donna stumbled a little.
"How much time is left?" She asked the empty hall.
One hour, forty seven minutes, ten seconds.
"Do they know that?"
I've put it up on the marquises for them. The evacuation is proceeding well.
Donna walked down the hall at a much slower pace than before, nursing an awful side stitch.
"How much farther?"
I'm at the end of the next hall.
"Thank goodness."
She made her way down the hall to the next turn. At the end of this new hall was a doorway much like the one to the Memory room the Doctor had taken her to before. The marquis above this door read "Central Computer".
"What, they locked you in the central computer room?" Donna said incredulously. "Did they really expect you to just sit there and not touch any of their important buttons?"
The Doctor made no reply. When Donna reached the door, it did not open immediately. Instead, Donna felt the pager buzz.
Ah, before I open this door, I just want to reiterate that I am fine, okay? There is absolutely no cause for alarm.
"Then why do you feel the need to tell me that?"
Well it just… might look a little unsettling, is all. But really. I'm fine. Got it?
"Got it."
Okay.
The door slid open, and there he was. Donna's breath caught. He was lying on a metal bed, not unlike the one in the Memory room, only tilted up at a slight angle. He was facing the door, but he was not looking at Donna, and his face betrayed no sign of joy at seeing her. Unsurprising, as Donna was fairly certain that he wasn't seeing her at all. His eyes were staring off into space, flickering rapidly back and forth, as if constantly looking from one thing to the next, and all the while his mouth moved as he muttered ceaselessly to himself. She could see some kind of wiring nestled against his cheeks and temples and slinking back around behind his head.
Donna took a few slow steps into the room, staring uncomprehendingly at the Doctor. A host of monitors surrounded him, filled with incomprehensible displays. She sped up until she was running to his side.
"Doctor?" she said, uncertainly. "Doctor, can you hear me?"
"Four six seven eight nine seven two seven seven seven eight one one," he muttered, the numbers coming in rapid succession. "Sixty two, sixty two, eighty nine…"
Her wrist buzzed, but it didn't even register.
"Doctor? Doctor come on, snap out of it, we have to go!"
Her wrist buzzed again. The room shook as the station shuddered, the atmosphere still striving to pull it apart. Donna laid a hand on the Doctor's arm. He gave no reaction. She gently touched the side of his face, feeling the wiring that snaked around his ear toward his temple. He continued to stare at something that only he could see.
"One five nine eleven eleven thirty thirty-nine ten…"
"Oh," Donna moaned, "what have they done to you?"
A sudden, loud noise right behind her made Donna jump and shriek, spinning around to see what was there. The display on the monitor next to her had changed, and after a moment in which she could register only the sound of her heart pounding in her ears Donna recognized the same chat program the Doctor had originally used to contact her. There was a line of messages waiting on the screen:
Donna
Donna, over here
Donna.
Look.
Over.
Here!
Donna.
Donna Noble.
Then, finally, in large font and flashing letters:
DONNA NOBLE, OVER. HERE!
As she watched, another message appeared on the screen.
There now, that's better.
Donna's mind stalled, unable to reconcile the things she was seeing. Numbly, she put her hands on the keyboard.
Who are you? She typed.
It's still me, came the reply.
No it isn't! Donna typed angrily. You're lying on a bed behind me in a coma or something! WHO IS THIS?
Donna, I swear to you, it's me. A pause. Remember when you found me again? When we met the second time? We were both investigating Adipose. I wanted to know what they were up to; you were just looking for me. We had that mimed conversation between two doors across the room?
Donna's thoughts whirled. She did remember. No one else here would know about that, would they?
How? She typed.
They're using me as the CPU for the central computer. Basically my brain is controlling the computer instead of my body right now. So I can type, I can open doors, fire thrusters, what have you. But I can't move, and I can't speak.
"Twenty-six, eight, eight, thirteen, forty-nine…"
Well, apart from the random bits of data that are leaking out.
Donna's mind still felt like it was plodding along through concrete. But slowly, she began to remember.
