Series 1: Episode 9: The Empty Child Part 1:
"What's the emergency?" Rose shouted as the TARDIS rocked from side to side.
"It's mauve." The Doctor replied.
"Mauve?" Rose repeated incredulously.
"Universally recognised sign for danger." He spoke and Valarie held onto the chair to speak without juddering.
"What? I thought that was red!" She shouted at him as the Doctor, seemingly unaffected ran around to the screen.
"That's just for humans!" He shouted back. "By everyone else's standards, red's camp. Oh the misunderstandings! All those red alerts, all that dancing!" He shouted joyfully. "It's got a very basic flight computer, I've hacked in, slaved the TARDIS. Wherever it goes, we go!" He spoke, explaining the bumpy ride.
"And that's safe is it?" Rose asked worriedly.
"Totally." He replied quickly when a burst of sparks came from the panel he was about to control, causing multiple screams from both Rose and Valarie who backed away. "Ok, reasonably. Should've said reasonably there." The Doctor corrected quickly. "No, no, no! It's jumping time tracks, getting away from us!" He shouted, tapping frantically into the keyboard.
"What exactly is this thing?" Valarie asked, tired of being thrown about.
"No idea." The Doctor answered, barely paying attention.
"Then why are we chasing it?" Rose asked, her voice getting louder to filter through the Doctor's large ears.
"It's mauve and dangerous and about 30 seconds from the centre of London." He spoke, turning to Rose and Valarie. He smiled gleefully and the two gave wavering ones back.
"Well here we go then!" Valarie shouted, trying to smile as they went crashing through the time vortex. The smiles turned to screams as the crashing became more and more violent. Eventually after what seemed like ages, they landed, the familiar thrumming sound of the TARDIS announcing their arrival. Valarie excused herself to go and 'freshen up' as she had put it, going to change her clothes and wash away the sleep she'd been rudely awakened from. "Hey Rose, how do I look?" Valarie asked, getting out of the TARDIS and adjusting her scarf around her neck as she did, enjoying the warmth and then fluffing up her hair as she walked, enjoying the breeze flowing through it.
It had been a while since she had worn it out with no band to tie it up. She didn't know why, it was short enough anyway. She smoothed down her vest and legging combo with her trainers. She had bought a new pair, seeing how much running was involved in the life of a time traveller. She'd also seen Rose's note, quoting her words from before in her first adventure.
"Fine, but mark my words. You will find a boyfriend if you're more free with yourself. Let the hair down, let the shirt ride up if it does. Don't always be so self-conscious. You're not perfect and neither am I. Take your own advice, if you are going to fall in love, let him fall in love with your imperfections as well as your perfections, as many as there are." She thought that maybe she was right and it was time. Time to let go of her old life and move on. She needed to be more comfortable with herself and enjoy being a civilian again. She needed to enjoy her imperfections. "Perfect." Rose deadpanned, still glaring at the door the Doctor had just gone through, trying to make him come back with the sheer power of will.
"What's wrong?" Valarie asked, walking up to her as she rubbed her arms, underestimating the cold breeze.
"The Doctor can't even do a scan for human tech. He can't give me any Spock at all. What's wrong with him? He's got the tech yet he insists on just asking around, what's he doing?" Rose protested, throwing her hands up as Valarie walked up to her sympathetically.
"Calm down Rose. The Doctor is just being himself. He likes to take in the sights, normally he likes to show you them as well but you're just standing there! Go after him!" Valarie shouted throwing her hands towards the door as Rose rolled her eyes and looked to the roof before having a double check.
"Is that a kid? Oh my God, there's a kid up there!" Rose cried out, seeing a small figure on the roof of a building. Valarie saw the child and sprang into action as well, running after Rose who had taken off, moving up the boxes and bins to get up to the roof. Valarie used her parkour and fitness training to catch up as Rose got onto a rope, testing it for security before climbing onto it.
"Rose! What are you doing?" She shouted after, grabbing the rope to make sure she was ok. She wrapped her hands around it as it started to move and she pulled it back, using her strength as Rose let go, dropping to the ground. Valarie faltered, sighing in relief and getting pulled away with the rope herself.
"Balloon!" The kid shouted and Valarie let out a wavering yelp as she started to move further and further, her legs useless as she floated.
"Rose? Rose!" She started to shout, getting more desperate as she was taken off the roof. Rose had been searching for the child who had disappeared and she only noticed Valarie because of her frantic shouting by which she had already gone.
"Valarie! Oh my God, wait there, I'll get the Doctor!" Rose shouted, bolting off the roof and through the door the Doctor had moments earlier. Valarie just let out a scream as she hung from her arms and tried to ignore the tingling of adrenaline surging through her about to explode. She jumped and grabbed onto a higher piece of rope letting out a huge sigh as she wrapped herself in the rope trying to keep calm as she surveyed the scene. She saw a huge landscape of London in what seemed like the 1920's, wartime. The thought terrified Valarie as she hoped it wasn't somewhere near WW2 because then they had air raids. And there that included…
"Planes!" Valarie let out, hearing the whirring of the engines. She tried to climb the rope as she dodged the bombs. Explosions went off all around her and she screamed in horror at the sight, looking all around before opting for closing her eyes and putting her head in her arm, looking away. The heat of the explosions irritated her back wounds and she writhed in pain as she kept blinking, combating the tears.
"Help." She whispered to no one in particular, pleading for someone. She felt the wind blow her hair out of her face and took a breath, hoping to calm herself. She was definitely being imperfect now, Rose was going insane if she thought a guy was going to find her attractive like this. She looked around for a way out and saw nothing as an option except for falling. She thought she was going insane when she actually the heard the idea being voice through a loudspeaker. "What?" She whispered again, looking around as she tried to locate the source.
"I said, you're going to have to let go. I'll catch you I promise but you have to let go first." The voice spoke, reassuring her as she looked in horror.
"How are you going to catch me? I can't even see you!" She asked, shouting into the air around her, hoping to find a person.
"Sorry about that, can't reveal myself just yet. But I will catch you, can't let someone like you just fall to your death can I?" He asked, flirting as she tried to comprehend what was happening.
"I'm sorry, are you asking me to trust me someone I can't even see and is still flirting with me?" She asked incredulously.
"Yep, if you want to live." The voice replied and she took a sigh, unwrapping one hand and placing it to her head as she battled with herself. "Plus, a little flirting never hurt anybody." He tried to defend, earning another sigh from the woman as she came to a shaky decision.
"You do realise how that sounds right?" She asked, breathing a sigh.
"I'm not lying, you are a catch. Literally." He joked and she swallowed nervously, letting out a breathy laugh at the bad joke.
"Ok, give me a minute." She conditioned.
"Sure, take all the time you need. Just not too long otherwise you might die." The man joked, making her let out a breathy laugh, unwrapping her leg and hanging by her hand while she replaced the other, ready to let go.
"Ok, we'll time this yeah?" Valarie asked, not bothering to wait for an answer as she carried on. "Ok, 3, 2, 1!" She shouted, her hands sliding down the rope, letting out a scream as she fell, feeling the wind try and hold her up in vain before she was stopped in a circle of light, the mere notion registering in her mind enough to take her voice away. She looked around, still breathing heavily as she looked down, laying slanted as she looked down to the source.
"Got you!" He shouted in triumph and she put her head back, trying to calm herself and not have a panic attack. "I've got to say, that was close." He spoke, probably mostly to himself but Valarie heard and almost fainted.
"Really? Not helping!" She shouted to the man as she hung in the air, flailing her arms.
"Sorry, are you alright?" He asked, gaining some tact.
"Not really. I know I'm floating in something, not sure what. Do I want to know?" She asked, relaxing slightly and gaining her feet in the air.
"Probably not. Now, I'm planning your descent pattern but something keeps scrambling my signals, do you have a phone?" He asked, still invisible. Valarie looked around, wondering where she was.
"Yes…" She replied, questioning what this had to do with anything.
"Can you turn it off? It's scrambling my signals." He asked, making Valarie sigh as she took it out.
"I honestly don't know where I am right now." She murmured to herself, fiddling with her phone.
"Did your vortex manipulator malfunction?" He asked, making Valarie confused with the term as she replaced the phone in her pocket. "That's much better thanks." He spoke and Valarie rolled her eyes.
"Oh yeah, that's great. I'm somewhere in the middle of WW2, in an air raid in the middle of the sky and my life is in the hands of an invisible person. I feel so safe don't I?" She asked sarcastically, throwing her hands about. The man laughed, moving on.
"Well, I've got your descent pattern done now so get ready." He spoke, teasing the terrified woman as she tried to grab onto the blue circles on the side.
"Wait! Give me a countdown or something!" She shouted, desperately clutching to the side as she tried to move.
"Another countdown? Is this a missile launch?" He asked, teasing her again as she scrambled for some sort of safety.
"Call it military habits!" She shouted back, piquing his interest. He didn't say any more on the subject but stored it in his mind for later. Valarie pumped herself up, taking breaths and holding her hands out behind her to fall in a standing position.
"Falling in 3, 2, now!" He laughed, making her fall as she screamed, curling in on herself to soften her descent. She kept screaming the entire fall into his arms, holding her head in her hands as she tried to keep herself safe. "You're alright, you're ok. It's ok. You're safe, you're alright." He consoled as she shook in his arms. She looked up and saw him, taking deep breaths and moving her hair out of her face as she wrapped her arms around his neck to try and stabilise herself.
"Oh my God, oh my God." She kept murmuring as she composed herself.
"Hey." He greeted, now that she had actually looked at him and she looked confused as she took in the sights, her chest heaving with shock, the scarf moving with it.
"Hey." She breathed back, focusing on him as she adjusted her arms to get a better grip. What the hell was that? "Did your finger slip or something?" She asked sarcastically, referring to the fall.
"Yep, just a finger slip." He agreed, laughing as she threw him a glare. "You alright?" He asked, letting her down. She seemed shocked with the movement as he bent to let her down and she let go of his neck, moving to hold the side of the ship.
"I think so. Just my head." She breathed, using the other hand to hold her head.
"Yeah, that's the tractor beam, it can scramble your head just a little." He explained as she wobbled slightly. He leapt into action, draping one of her arms around his shoulder as he helped her stand.
"Right, and that tractor beam beamed me where exactly?" She asked, trying to get some answers.
"My ship." He replied and she rolled her eyes, the movement making her head ache.
"Oh yeah, that's real helpful…" She trailed off, fainting in the man's arms. He caught her and picked her up bridal style, just like he had caught her and put her in a bed for some rest before getting back to his ship. Valarie slept for 10 minutes, her brain catching up to everything and the shock wearing off as she woke up and remembered where she was. She took a moment to compose herself before making her consciousness aware to the man who had saved her.
She took off her scarf and wrapped it around her waist to soothe her back. It didn't do much without the right pressure but she could ignore it. "Hello?" She asked, getting out of the makeshift bed with a clicking of her fingers. The man swivelled around in his chair and smiled charmingly at her, his eyes flicking to her fingers tying something, noting the lack of scarf around the neck.
"Hey." He spoke, reminiscent of their earlier conversation. "You alright?" He asked again, turning the lights on, making her reel back and let her eyes adjust as she watched the man with interest.
"Better." She allowed, sighing tiredly, her back still stinging as a result of the heat. "So, who are you?" She asked suspiciously, eyeing him as he sighed.
"Seriously? I just saved you and you're suspicious?" He asked, bored of the suspicion, having hoped they'd be past that stage at that moment.
"Ok then, May I know the name of my saviour?" She asked, appealing to him as she warmed up to his charismatic nature. He smiled at her words and she added. "And the man who terrified me by dangling me in mid-air in an air raid." Making the man roll his eyes with a good-natured smile.
"Captain Jack Harkness, 133 Squadron, Royal Air Force, American volunteer. Nice to meet you." He introduced smugly and she smiled as he handed her a piece of ID which she inspected.
"Oh, Captain Jack right? Really? That's almost original and I might believe it." She spoke, flipping close the ID, playing with it in her hands. The 'Captain' shot her an interested look at her words. "Had I not seen psychic paper in action before, I probably wouldn't have seen it. Nice trick con man." She smiled, opening it again as she fiddled with it. The comment seemed to hit home as he swallowed slightly before answering.
"Thanks." He commended, watching her. "But how did you know?" He asked, slightly put off.
"I have a friend who showed me this when we first met. He's always using it to get into places he's not allowed." She spoke and the man let out an 'ah' at her explanation and she went on to say her next point. "And, from what I know, shouldn't a Captain be with his regiment and not in a futuristic spaceship?" She asked, making him tilt his head.
"You've got a point." He let her have that one and she smiled, raking a hand through her short hair as she moved it out of the way.
"And, just to rub it in. This says you're single and work out. Any reason for that?" She asked, tilting her head with a teasing smile.
"Tricky thing psychic paper." He excused, moving to take it back.
"I wouldn't know. Never used it before." She told him, handing it back.
"Hmm, you can't let your mind wander when you hand it over." He spoke, giving her a tip as she tried to conceal her horror at the fact without succeeding too much. Jack opened the psychic paper, glancing at it before smiling teasingly, looking back up at her. "Is that why it says on the paper that you probably work out more than me and wonder if I always flirt like this?" He asked, showing her the paper as she quickly scoffed, trying to hide her embarrassment. "And, just to rub it in." He added, mimicking her. "It also asks if you actually look that good." He raised an eyebrow at her blushing as he smiled charmingly. "The answer's yes." He flirted, pocketing the psychic paper.
"Yeah, you must flirt with a lot of people." She dismissed, turning away to look at the rest of the spaceship.
"Not what I meant." He fired back and she turned to look at him, seeing his amusement and quickly turned back, the blush burning her cheeks.
"Nice spaceship. I like the entrance on the roof, very flash." She commended, trying to move on. "What model is it?" She asked, having had a conversation about this with the Doctor. She had been so interested in all thing space and time, she'd had long conversations with the Doctor where he would explain volumes of books as she sat and listened with a cup of hot chocolate, (The TARDIS always had some on hand, with marshmallows as well) and snuggled up in a comfortably large blanket.
"Just a smaller scale warship." He shrugged off. "Gets me from place to place." He commented, coming up behind her. She saw this when she turned and moved to the other side of the ship, to the controls.
"This is armed to the teeth. Never seen a proper one. With the control pattern, it looks like it's a Chula warship. But it can't be if its small scale, this looks like the best one out there but I haven't seen the outside." She deduced, murmuring to herself as she investigated, fiddling around with the controls. "Did you make this yourself?" She asked, turning around to the stumped Captain as he wondered how a girl who seemed like she'd never seen a ship in her life, know what a Chula warship was. If it hadn't been for his next lie, she would've guessed it already.
"Yep, used spare parts from anywhere and everywhere." He spoke, throwing her off the scent as she mulled over his words.
"Hmm, that could explain it." She considered, looking around again while Jack held his breath. "It's very Spock." She commented, remembering Rose's qualms with the Doctor and his lack of Spock.
"Who's that?" He asked, confused and Valarie tilted her head at him. For someone who seemed so human he didn't know a lot about the world. Of course, Spock wasn't a thing yet but he obviously wasn't from the past, did Spock die out in the future where he's from? Rose wouldn't be happy.
"Guessing you aren't from the 2000's then." She deduced.
"A cell phone, a bracelet with jewels and fabrics made of material which won't be around for another 2 decades." He read off his scanner, impressing Valarie as she kept a poker face, still fiddling with the controls. "Guessing you aren't from the 40's then." He deduced back and she smiled at his tendency to mock her.
"Well, you're right. Why bother denying it? Look at me, if anyone from the 40's saw this, I'd be arrested." She joked, gesturing to her leggings and bare arms, only having a bracelet adorning it before stopping at her short, bob-cut hair. She let out a little laugh before turning to the material on the ship. The Doctor had told her exactly what she needed to check out to understand a spaceship and material was a big one. But when she put her hands on it, she pulled back with a hiss. She's already been ignoring her back but the hands as well made her hiss in pain.
"Burn your hands on the rope?" He asked as she looked at the burn marks.
"Yeah, must've." She concluded, using her fingers to caress the broken skin as the Captain came forwards, cornering her. She kept her eyes down, trying to look away as he took off his ascot. She tried to remain calm in the corner, ready to bolt to the other side as he moved towards her. She looked out of the window, seeing the air raid still going on. "Do you have the invisibility shields up?" She asked, noting how nothing was trying to kill them.
"Yep." He replied shortly as she kept watching, her eyes transfixed as her breathing became more and more ragged and short, the sight reminding her of her days in the army, before Van Statten. "Can I have a look at your hands for a moment?" He asked, looking down at her hands.
"What are you going to do to them?" She asked suspiciously, holding them close as she turned around from the window, looking at his sigh.
"Please?" He asked, tired again of the mistrust. She conceded, holding her hands out to him, knowing she had no other choice as this man had saved her life despite the attempted lie with the psychic paper. He took them in his hands, his touch surprisingly gentle and pulled out what looked like a sonic screwdriver and ran it over them, checking it over, the buzzing blue light soothing and familiar of the Doctor.
"Is that a sonic-" She began before being interrupted by the Captain.
"You can stop acting now." He told her as he worked, making her worried for her safety. "I know exactly who you are." He revealed, making her realise she'd never told him her name. "I can spot a Time Agent a mile away." He bragged slightly as Valarie tilted her head confusedly. The term sounded familiar, she knew she and the Doctor had had small conversations about it but never too long for every time they broached the subject, the Doctor would change it.
"A Time Agent?" She asked, more to herself than the Captain.
"Mmm, I've been expecting one of you guys to show up. Though not, I must say by barrage balloon. Often travel that way?" He asked and Valarie breathed a small laugh. She realised she'd have to act like one, go along with it until she could get back to the Doctor and Rose.
"Sometimes time doesn't like to be kind. Shows us different ways of getting to places." She spoke, uncharacteristically philosophical. She snapped out of her thoughts to see Captain Jack looking at her, almost studying her. "Sometimes by spaceship, sometimes by barrage balloon." She joked, trying to lighten the mood. "What are you doing?" She asked as he tied his ascot around her hands, binding them together.
"Try to keep still." He instructed, ignoring her question.
"You do realise what this seems like right?" She asked, smiling as she kept her hands together curling them as if holding something invisible. The Captain just laughed, finishing the knot.
"Well, someone's got their mind on other things, I'm just trying to help." He flirted and Valarie laughed, going to nudge him with her shoulder as her hands were tied up. She fell onto him instead, shuffling to move away and ignore the blush staining her cheeks and his teasing smile.
"Shut up." She smiled, rolling her eyes as she looked away. She turned back and he had moved closer to reach a switch behind her and inadvertently sucked in a breath to make herself smaller. She stayed in the same place as she knew she would, flicking her eyes past him and looking out of the window to try to avoid his gaze.
"Nanogenes. Sub-atomic robots. The air in here is full of them." He explained as tiny lights filled her palms, working as one mind to stay in a ball, close to her skin. She watched in awe, smiling at the small bots as they glowed. "They're just repairing 3 layers of your skin." He told her. She giggled as a small light stopped, moving upwards and moved around her, thinking it was part of the show. "Why is it doing that?" He asked, watching confusedly, never having seen this before. With his concern, Valarie stopped laughed, moving her head with it, terrified.
"No, no just stay completely still, it won't hurt you." Captain Jack reassured, watching carefully as Valarie closed her eyes, staying completely still and looking forwards, swallowing slightly. The light circled her before returning back to its friends and all of them left her palms. As she felt the tingling stop, she opened her eyes to find the nanogenes going to her back. She stayed completely still as Jack had instructed before feeling a tingling start on her wounds as the nanogenes passed through her clothing as if it wasn't even there. Jack followed, moving around as Valarie took the hint to get up. She moved her head, not bothering to be worried about staying still anymore. Jack looked to her back and looked back up at her.
"May I?" He asked, gesturing to her shirt and she nodded slightly as he lifted the layer of her vest, looking under to see the nanogenes working away under the scarf. He flipped the switch and they dispersed in the middle of their work. Valarie gasped as they left, the stinging coming back. "What happened?" Jack asked as Valarie undid the knot on the scarf and removed it, showing the stinging burns. He lightly rubbed his thumb over the wounds. She gasped again, the area still being tender and Jack apologised. "Sorry." He spoke, retracting his thumb but moving to a kneeling position to investigate further. Valarie stayed standing, trying to think of an excuse. "But what happened?" He asked again in horror, his voice low as he looked the wound over.
"Almost got caught with a laser beam, it just scratched me though. Nothing too bad." She spoke, trying to make her voice cheery and nonchalant.
"Are you sure about that?" He asked putting his hand to it again to caress it. Valarie didn't gasp this time, for some reason letting the heat of his fingers sink in as he brushed over it.
"Is it really that bad?" She asked, worried. She hadn't been able to see it very well in the mirror as it was on her back and didn't dare talk to the Doctor or Rose. She could handle it herself.
"Yeah." Jack answered with a breath, waiting for her reply.
"I'll have to ask the Doctor about this." She murmured to herself, resigning herself to the fact she needed help.
"You do know I have nanogenes? You don't need a doctor." He smiled, getting up again. Valarie turned around at his words, looking at him carefully.
"Are you sure, I mean they are yours. I don't want to use them all." She made excuses, not knowing too much about them. She remembered her and the Doctor talking about them but he had told her to get some sleep as she was dozing off in her chair. They had never gotten round to finishing the topic because this had come up.
"It's fine. They are just robots, I can charge them up. Plus, you leave that any longer and you risk an infection." He spoke, having analysed the wound. "Why didn't you talk to a doctor earlier?" He asked, flipping the switch and the nanogenes got to work, their light filling the room.
"I didn't want to. I hoped it would be ok." She excused herself, telling the truth.
"You thought it would be ok? You were shot by a laser beam and you just thought it would be ok?" He asked incredulously. "You're something else." He chuckled, kneeling down again and Valarie blushed again. He switches the nanogenes back on and then wrapped the scarf around her waist again while she waited, the scarf trapping the light of the nanogenes. He got up again, replacing the vest he had peeled upwards to cover the bare skin. She swallowed as the scarf trailed behind her. When she had tied it, she had stuffed the rest of it up her back, but he had left it trailing and she worried over stepping on it. "Well, the nanogenes will get to work on that, you'll barely feel it but for now, shall we get down to business?" He asked, moving away. She placed her newly repaired hands together, enjoying the softness of the skin and watched as he moved to get the champagne.
"Business?" She asked, watching as he set everything up on the 'shelf', putting the glasses and holding the bottle.
"Shall we have a drink on the balcony?" He asked, pressing a button on his remote control, making the top of the spaceship come down, the metal turning into a smooth ramp for her to walk up. "Bring up the glasses." He spoke, running up there himself, leaving Valarie to follow. She walked up to the aforementioned glasses, holding the two, one in each hand and walking up shakily after him. She saw the scenery around them, watching as the bombs fell miles below them. The explosions weren't so loud from up there but the whistling was unmistakable. She swallowed, looking around and taking a breath before walking up to the Captain who was fiddling with the bottle.
9