AN: I posted this a little earlier than I had planned to, you know just to make up for not updating the last chapter for ages...Ok so this chapter was slightly awkward to write, because I didn't know how to get the right balance between Martha and Rose interacting. Hopefully I got it right...anyway on with the story.
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The ride to Adipose industries had been awkward. At lest for the two female companions sitting between a third unconscious companion and one dead Doctor.
"You know he always spoke about you." Martha said, breaking the silence, "I felt like I was second best most of the time."
Rose looked up from her thoughts, unsure of how to answer. In fact she was unsure of how to act around Martha Jones, because everytime she looked at her she knew that she had been replaced and despite it all, that hurt more than she had expected. She had knew that he would find someone else. The Doctor could never travel the universe on his own. Not forever at least, but she had always hoped that when she found a way back to him that he...
"Actually if I'm truthful, it was all of the time." Martha continued, suddenly finding her footwear more interesting. All the times she felt threatened by the mention of her name, all the pangs of jealousy because of a former companion to the Doctor and here was the source of it right in front of her.
Rose Tyler, it seemed hard to believe she was actually here it all. In Martha's mind she was a myth, a legend and most definitely, not someone she had ever expected to see in her lifetime. Yet here she was, ignoring the impossible.
No wonder he liked her.
"I don't know what you want me to say to that." Rose began, shifting slightly in her seat, "Sorry that I was there in the first place? Sorry that I made you feel insecure?" She looked down, taking a breath before she continued, "You replaced me. the Doctor moved on. He got someone new and that was you and the only reason he probably talked about me is because I gave him an earful after we met Sarah Jane..."
Martha raised an eyebrow, "Whose's Sarah Jane?"
"She was an old companion of his."
"Well, he never mentioned her. Or anyone else apart from you." She said, sighing. It was unfair. When she left the Tardis, the Doctor talked about her to Donna. Unfortunately it was only so he could mention the great big fact she had been in love with him. And everytime he talked about Rose, it was...different. There was always that look he had in his eyes, a mixture of emotions - sadness, grief, pride, a twinge of happiness and, no matter how much she wished that it wasn't true, there was love in his eyes. Love for Rose Tyler, "He only mentioned you..."
Rose breath caught in her throat. He had talked about her...kept her memory alive in the Tardis. She looked over to the Doctor. From this angle, it only looked like he was sleeping so she let herself imagine that he was and smiled. He had talked about her.
Even after she was gone, he had talked about her.
Rose turned back, her mouth on the verge of forming something - anything to say when a groan suddenly broke the silence that had formed between them. They looked towards each other, surprised before promptly looking down at the now conscious Donna.
"Oh my head..." Donna brought a hand up to her head as she slowly sat up, "Is bloody killing me."
"Good to see you awake!" said Rose smiling. Donna's eyes locked on to hers, fear registering in them before she quickly turned her head, bringing a hand up in the process to search her back, "It's gone. I got rid of it. Told you I was good."
Donna smiled as Rose grinned at her, "Well as long as their ain't a big old alien - thing - on my back then I'm happy." She looked around, "Where am I?"
"We're in a van." answered Martha.
"I can see that."
Martha smiled at her response. It was good to see Donna awake again. It meant that she and Rose didn't have to engage on one-to-one conversation and that was definitely a good thing as far as Martha was concerned,"We're going towards Adipose industries. Rose here has a plan."
"Wait a second...Adipose Industries?" Martha nodded. Donna turned to Rose, "Why we going there?"
"It's where I can end it..."
"But how?" interrupted Martha, frustrated by the blonde's lack of a plan. She was all for playing it by ear, at least when the Doctor was involved, but he wasn't. Rose was and she said she had a plan, but she wouldn't say a thing about what her plan involved, "You just tell Jack to drive us there and then what? We wait in a van while you try and save the world?"
"You wouldn't understand." replied Rose, trying to ignore Martha's tone of voice which was surprisingly harder than she thought.
"Oh I bet you i would. I've seen plenty of things travelling with the Doctor."
"We all have, but you wouldn't understand this."
"And who are you to judge that?" Martha's voice rose in anger. She didn't have to be treated like this, especially by some dyed blonde wannabe "Do I look like an idiot to you?"
"I never said that. All i said was that you wouldn't understand this. It's too complicated. There's just too much to explain and you wouldn't get it if I did manage to get it all out. You may have seen aliens, you maybe have been to other worlds, but this, Martha, this is something that I just wouldn't be able to get you to comprehend."
Martha made to retort but was cut short by Donna once more entering the conversation, "Oi! you two! Button it!" The other two females quietened immediately. Rose couldn't help but wonder how many times Donna had been able to shut the Doctor up. Especially if she gave that look, "Right then, that's better. Why are we going to Adipose industries in particular? What's so special about that place?"
"Well, the Torchwood in my universe has been sort of keeping an eye on the other parallel worlds. Well, ever since we've been able to get across the threshold between worlds - the void."
"And what's the void?"
"It's like the dead space between world. There's just nothing there. Nothing at all. You might call it hell."
"Wouldn't like get to stuck there." quipped Donna.
"God no, it would drive you insane. That is if anything can live in it. We're not sure..." Rose trailed away, letting her mind wander back to the day she almost got trapped there. What if Pete hadn't bee there to save her? What would have happened to her?
"So you were saying?"
Martha's voice interrupted Rose's wanderings and she looked up, slightly dazed, "What?"
"What's the void got to do with Adipose industries?"
"Nothing, but the Torchwood on the parallel planet I've been living on, well, when the walls began to break down we tried to find out why? We started using a dimension cannon to travel across to other worlds to try and find the root of the problem. A lot of our operatives ended up appearing in the vicinity of Adipose industries. We didn't know why. We didn't really pay attention to it at first. It wasn't until earlier when it broguht me there that I understood. There's something about that place. It's drawing in energy from all the worlds and focusing it on there. It's as if it's waiting for something..."
A shiver ran down Martha's spine as she quietly asked, "Waiting for what?"
"Something to stop the darkness."
"Rose!" called Jack from in the front, "We're here!"
"Right then..." Rose gave the other two females a smile, "As the Doctor would say, Allonsy!"
To be continued...
AN: Review if you enjoyed...
