Emma felt her heart beating against her chest, the four-part rhythm drowning out her surroundings. After her father had taken the TARDIS back to Earth, the Broker's ship had taken her away from it. She didn't know where she was going, but she knew that her father would come for her. She had to believe in him. For whatever else he was, he was a hero, and he wouldn't let any harm come to her. "Where are we headed, Broker?" she asked.
"You will soon see."
The time stretched on, and the steady rhythm of the ship's engine and her heartbeat faded away into the background, and suddenly Emma realized just how alone she was, for the first time in her life. Her parents and siblings were far back on Earth, as was her biological father, and there was nobody here to look out for her. She was only a child-in Time Lord development, truly still very young-and she was out on her own in the depths of space, with only a disembodied robotic voice to keep her company. It was terrifying. But it was also an adventure, and some small, small part of her was excited. She was going to see another world. And yes, she was in danger, but it was only temporary. The Doctor was going to save her.
The ship came to a halt. "Where are we?
Instead of replying, the Broker entered the chamber she was in. He was somewhat round shaped, with silvery skin. She hadn't been expecting that. "Come with me, girl."
She followed him out the door of the ship and into a garden that made her gape. There were tall stalks of purple and black plants, shiny and metallic-looking, with lime green tufts interspersed throughout. Despite the circumstances, Emma found this incredible. There was a narrow wooden path, and at the end of it a large building made of black stone. The Broker headed down the path, and Emma followed. When they reached the door of the building, the Broker lifted a large, ornate knocker and announced their presence.
A tall woman came down to greet them. She looked humanoid, except her skin was blue. "Good. You have brought the girl. Go to the office for your payment. Girl, come with me."
"Can you tell me where I am, first?'' she asked.
The woman rolled her eyes. "The name of this planet is Xisoria. But that doesn't matter. You'll be meeting with the council of this entire star system."
"I'll be... what? Why?"
"We need your assistance."
"For what?"
"What does anybody want a Time Lord for?"
"How the hell would I know?"
"Don't worry, love. You will soon find out."
She followed the woman down a long hallway. As she walked, she called out in her mind for her father.
"Emma," came a voice inside her head. "I need you to broadcast the name of the planet you're on. Think about it. And then keep doing so until I've arrived. The stronger the signal, the better chance I have of getting to you."
"Xisoria," she said in her mind.
She repeated it as the woman led her into a large chamber. A group of the blue people sat, watching her. "This is the Time Lord child?" asked one old man in the front.
"Yes," the woman replied. "The spawn of The Doctor himself."
"Did you just call me spawn?" Emma asked indignantly.
"How old are you, child?" asked one of them.
"Seventeen."
"Oh. Close enough to adulthood, then."
"Not for a Time Lord. What do you want with me? What was so important that you would have the Broker threaten to burn my world if I didn't come with you?"
"You really don't know? You're dense for a Time Lady, aren't you?"
"Excuse me?" She felt herself heating up.
"We need you to win a war, Time Lady," said one voice somewhere near the middle.
"Me? You want me to fight a war?"
"Yes. Against the Time Lords' greatest enemies."
The Time Lords' greatest enemies? What the hell were they talking about? The only Time Lord she knew of was her father; did they mean his greatest enemy? They couldn't mean... "The Daleks?"
"Oh good, you're less stupid than we thought."
"I don't understand. How did you know who I was? How did the Broker send a transmission in Gallifreyan? You had to have had a Time Lord working for you."
"Oh. Well, we didn't have one working for us, but we did receive an anonymous tip about you."
"What?"
"Along with the message came a very helpful translator. From Gallifrey."
"Who could have given you that?"
"We don't know."
"Well, I'm not going to fight your war for you."
"Only a Time Lord can defeat a Dalek."
"Wait. Did you say Dalek, as in singular? You're fighting a war against a single Dalek?"
"A lone survivor. And that's all it takes."
"I can't stop a Dalek. I'm just a child."
"You're just the bait."
"Wait, what?"
"You messed up our plans before. The Broker was never meant to actually bring you here, your father was supposed to volunteer himself in your place. But then you had to be all noble and self-sacrificing, like him, and here we are. And now he'll come here and solve our problem for us."
"So I messed up your plans by being too much like my father?"
"I suppose so."
Emma couldn't help but feel a rush of pride. Then she returned to business. "You didn't need to kidnap anyone. My father would have fought off the Dalek anyway, it's what he does. All you've done is make him your enemy."
"He'll still do it, though. To rescue you."
"You're so certain he's coming for me."
"They're not wrong," came a voice from behind her.
Whipping around, she smiled at her father. "Hello, Father."
"Hello, Emma. I believe there's a Dalek to fight?"