Chapter 10
Donna sat in her cell listening to the Alunae prisoners' conversations. So far she had learned that the man in the cell across from hers was named Castor and that he was the ringleader of the prisoners. Every so often Castor would throw a question in her direction, usually about the Doctor. Questions like, why is the Luminos army putting so much faith in one man or what kinds of things is he capable of?
Her only answer was, "The Doctor will find a way to fix this, I promise. And he'll do it without harming anyone unlike what General Ivor wants."
The Alunae laughed at her response, they couldn't see how their problem could be solved without violence. Eventually Donna got tired of their chatting and decided to try to get some sleep; grabbing her coat she bunched it up to form a pillow and laid down. She was slowly drifting off when a thunderous crash shook the building. The Alunae had gone quiet. Donna got up and looked out her cell window. She saw that Castor was looking up at the ceiling.
"What the hell was that?" Donna shrieked. The building trembled again. Castor's icy blue eyes found Donna's. The look he gave her made her skin crawl.
"Our plan has been set in motion. The battle is just beginning."
The sound of footsteps suddenly filled the corridor. Donna prayed that it was the Luminos guards but to her disappointment, it wasn't.
"We've taken control of the prison and are freeing them now." One of the men reported into a com unit. He turned to Donna's cell and unsealed the door. Donna froze and stared at the Alunae officer in front of her.
"She's not one of ours. What should we do with her?" He directed his query to another officer nearby who poked his head around the corner to study Donna. "Leave her here. The building will soon be destroyed along with this entire base, no need to waste the ammunition."
Her jaw dropped as she let out of a squeal of alarm. Donna wasn't sure which sounded worse, being shot or being trapped in an exploding building, probably the latter. She attempted to protest but the men were already walking away.
Before the soldiers could lock Donna in again Castor came forward and stopped them. "Wait, she can be of some use to us."
The Doctor raced back into the hangar and over to the TARDIS. He was about to enter his ship when General Ivor caught hold of his arm.
"Doctor what is going on?"
"There is a solar eclipse happening right now and I think the Alunae are taking advantage of it." He broke free of Ivor's grip and bounded into the consol room. Ivor followed behind seeking more of an explanation.
The Time Lord pulled up the astronomical data on the monitor. "Aahh! How could I have missed this! I'm so thick!" The Doctor exclaimed, tugging at his spiky hair. "And that is no any ordinary eclipse either. It will last three times longer because the Earth and Moon are fixed in one spot. The Alunae are using the eclipse for artificial darkness."
General Ivor also began putting the pieces together, "They have been gaining more ground in the last few weeks. The Alunae must have known the eclipse was coming. They were preparing for this!"
Another thought struck the Doctor. "They were attacking the east side of the base." Dread flashed across both men's faces simultaneously. They both knew exactly what the Alunae were up to.
"The prison."
"Donna."
Ivor quickly retrieved his com unit from his belt and began barking orders to Captain Striker on the other end. The Doctor began firing up the TARDIS' engines and inputting the coordinates for the prison.
"Your men'll never get there in time General. But we might!" The TARDIS dematerialized from the hangar.
The General hadn't even realized they had moved until the Doctor ran past him and through the doors. They had landed in the corridor a few feet from where Donna's cell was located. Not sure which one belonged to her, the Doctor tried the nearest one. The door was open, not a good sign he thought as he entered cautiously not knowing what he might find. The cell was poorly lit but as he scanned the cramped space he discovered a dark mass lying on the concrete bunk. Yes, this was definitely Donna's cell. Slowly the Doctor approached the stone slab and picked up Donna's jumper.
The Doctor crouched down and gently lifted the material to his freckled cheek, he could still feel the warmth against his cool skin and a trace of Donna's jasmine perfume still lingered on it. He had just missed her. Again he inhaled her scent, breathing in the familiar smell hoping that it would make him feel better, but only made his hearts ache more.
Ivor entered the cell, "All the prisoners are gone, seems we just missed them. What about your lady friend?"
The Doctor stood with a flourish of fabric as the tails of his trench coat whipped about him. With a haunted look in his deep brown eyes, he informed the General about Donna. "She's gone. They've taken her." The Time Lord had been keeping his temper in check but now it was getting the better of him. "Donna should never've been sent down here! She wasn't one of your prisoners and she was never a threat to you!"
"I thought she would be safe here!" Ivor bellowed in return.
"Yes, because locking Donna up with your enemy just screams safe!" The Doctor retorted sarcastically.
He stormed out of the cell and back into the TARDIS where he gently placed the jumper over the safety railing where it hung limply. Ivor came shuffling in after him. "I know." The Doctor lifted his head at the General's words. He realized that Ivor was attempting to apologize.
As he studied the Doctor's tired face from across the room, Ivor saw the Time Lord's true age behind his youthful façade. "I want to help you find Donna." The Doctor could only nod in response as he returned them to the hangar.
Both men stepped out of the police box to find a very anxious looking Captain Striker waiting. He held out a message to Ivor who took and read it aloud.
"Bring the Doctor to the airfield before the eclipse ends or his friend will be the first casualty."
Snatching the note from the General, the Doctor read it several times. "Well what are we waiting for? Allons-y!" He shouted over his shoulder as he sprinted in the direction of the airfield.