A/N: I'm sorry this took so long. School's been busy lately, and I won't be updating as frequently due to exams.
Coincidentially, I'm uploading this piece on Peter Davison's birthday (April 13th).
Do leave reviews, I'd love to get feedback!
"Doctor!" Elisabeth exclaimed, her face lighting up at the sight of her friend. She stopped short, noticing the cuffs and chains at the Doctor's wrists.
"What have they done to you? Who did this to you?" Elisabeth examined the cuffs, tilting her head to the side.
"Professor Astrad. You're right - turns out she's more than she seems." The Doctor sighed, recalling their encounter.
Elisabeth crossed her arms. "Have you found the TARDIS?"
The Doctor shook his head. "Not yet, it seems."
"It wasn't in the basement." Jack cut in, still searching on his device. "I'm afraid the Daleks might have taken it to their ship or something."
"We'll have to fear the worst." The Doctor said, bringing his hands together and interlocking his fingers. Was that distress showing on his face? Elisabeth thought. He must've had a special connection with his TARDIS, just like how a good captain would be willing to go down with his ship.
"So, the Dalek invasion." Elisabeth found her gaze wandering, and she ran to the window, staring right out at the disaster. The Daleks had already begun. From inside the building she could hear the blasts outside, and the blinding, sharp laser beams the Daleks fired over the city. She heard the whirring alarms, and the collective screams of horror emitted by the residents of this lovely city, the jewel of China. On a large LED screen some distance away, something caught her attention, but it was too blurry to make out. She pulled out the glasses given to her by Madam Arwen, and was reluctant to put them on. She peered out the window again, at a big screen some distance away, perched on top of a flat building. It showed the live footage of the Forbidden City, the ancient palace, being destroyed bit by bit. The image changed, showing the wreckage the Daleks had left behind at the Great Wall. They were destroying the beautiful and ancient heritage of her people, her kind. On the buildings below she could just make out red hanging lanterns. That's when it hit her. It was going to be the New Year soon. Elisabeth remembered an old story, the one about the Nian, the legendary monster that surfaced once a year, on the eve of the New Year, to eat people and destroy the fabric that held their very lives together. That's what it seemed to her at the time. The monsters, the Daleks, had come to kill, and to rip apart the very web of society.
Slowly but surely, Elisabeth felt the terror creeping up on her, a cold, icy hand reaching deep into her and squeezing her heart. Elisabeth backed away, breathing hard. She paced back and forth, trying to control her thoughts, but they were fighting as hard as her. She had always hated war, and to see it in action was probably the last thing she would ever want. She leaned against the wall, her head spinning. This all seemed so foreign, yet so familiar at the same time.
"Elisabeth?" She heard the Doctor ask. She opened her eyes, just a crack. "Are you feeling alright?"
"I'm definitely not alright, thank you very much," Elisabeth groaned, her heart pounding in her ears.
"You know, I should definitely leave you somewhere after this. I wouldn't want to risk-"
Elisabeth cut him off. "I've got no place to go. I don't know where I came from. I've no family, and I don't want to be alone...home to me seems...so far off. So far away."
"I'm sorry." The Doctor sighed, placing a hand on her shoulder, and she felt the weight of his chains. "Would you like some water?" Elisabeth opened her eyes and stepped away from the wall, taking the bottle of water the Doctor passed to her. She took a small sip, calming her nerves.
"I don't know. Maybe we'll find a solution to my, er, memory problem."
"How has it been, with the memory enhancement of yours?" The Doctor inquired, changing the subject and taking a weight off her mind.
Elisabeth took a breath. "I've been able to remember everything that happened after the enhancement clearly, but nothing of what happened before I encountered you. The memory block still sticks, for reasons I'm not sure of either. But memories seep through now and then, like my name, and the approximate time I came from. But hardly anything else. I haven't been able to recall anyone from before our travels."
"It takes courage, to accept such an enhancement, which is as much a blessing as it is a curse." The Doctor commented.
Elisabeth shook her head. "No, Doctor." She straightened herself. "We can talk later. Let's solve the problem at hand."
Jack loaded his gun and shouldered his blaster. "We need to find a way onto that ship."
"You've got that vortex manipulator of yours, don't you?" The Doctor asked, turning back to him.
"It needs to charge." Jack tapped the device on his wrist. "Blasted thing."
"There are people out there." The Doctor reminded. "I think it'd be best that we stop the conflict as fast as possible."
"But they want you, Doctor," Elisabeth protested. "You can't give yourself up. Not just like that."
"We'll find some other way to stop them." The Doctor sighed.
"What now?" Elisabeth asked.
Jack hooked his gun at his belt. "We wait for the thing to recharge. And meanwhile we try not to get ourselves killed."
The Doctor turned towards the doors. "I'm going out."
"You can't! It's not safe out there!" Elisabeth cried, stopping him in his tracks.
Jack stepped forward with the laser cutter. "At least get those cuffs off." He set to work, grinding away at the chains. "I might hit you, so I apologise for that." Elisabeth heard the Doctor wince once as the laser strayed off its path, but he motioned for Jack to continue. In a matter of minutes, the Doctor was free. He stumbled back, clutching his raw wrists. Elisabeth rushed over, taking one of his hands. "I'll help you with that, Doctor," She offered, massaging his wrist and getting the blood to flow back into his limp, cold hand.
"You're very helpful, Elisabeth." The Doctor shook his other hand, loosening his wrist. Elisabeth finished, putting his hand back at his side.
"You look like you're going to overheat, Doctor. Perhaps you should consider removing your tie." Elisabeth suggested, noticing the sweat that had started to form on his forehead.
"She is right, Doctor," Jack agreed. "If you're going out there, it'd be best if you don't have that tie to slow you down. You might need to do 'a whole lot of running' later, as you always say."
The Doctor worked his way out of his tie, his face in a confused and dazed expression. "Have we met before?"
"Uh, yes," Jack answered. "At least I've met you. Don't know if you've ever met me before. Which regeneration is this?"
"Fourth." The Doctor got rid of the tie, dropping it onto the ground. He undid the first button on his collar, allowing him space to breathe.
Jack rolled his eyes. "That explains everything."
"So I meet you again later in the future, it seems." The Doctor turned on his heel. "Meanwhile, I'll go see how the situation's like out there. If I don't come back within two hours, Jack, please go and search for me, but remember your own safety. For now, you and Elisabeth can go search for food supplies or something. We might be stuck here for a while."
Elisabeth put her hands to her head as she heard another blast nearby. "Doctor, it's not safe."
"But you'll be in Jack's safe hands, am I not right?" The Doctor shot a stern look at Jack, and Jack nodded.
"She'll be right as rain, I promise. Come on. Let's go get some supplies." Jack turned the other way and headed away from the Doctor. Elisabeth took one last worried glance at the Doctor before following Jack to the refreshment bar.
"We've got good here, that's for sure, but I'm not very sure about water. They might cut off our water supply at any time." Jack noted, picking up a half-eaten muffin someone had left.
"Where is everyone? This hall is deserted." Elisabeth looked around, and her heart almost froze when she saw a limp arm from behind the bar. She feared the absolute worst, and she got what she expected. A dead body.
"Do you think the Daleks might have killed everyone and hid the bodies?" Elisabeth suggested, her voice echoing in the empty air.
"Ssh." Jack put a finger to his lips. He stood, straightening up, his hand slipping into Elisabeth's. Silently, Elisabeth complained about the discomfort, but said nothing, to ensure their survival.
"They're here." Elisabeth realised, almost squeaking. She ducked behind the counter, under the table, pulling Jack along with her. "They won't know we're here, right? If we just keep quiet?" She shook her head. "I'm sorry. I've never fought these things before. You should know better than I did. You died fighting them, if I do recall."
"Yes," Jack equipped his blaster, slipping out from under the counter and firing a blast across the room. Elisabeth knew it had hit its mark when she heard an explosion. "They're closing in."
"Now what?" Elisabeth asked. "Do we run or do we just wait?"
"No time to wait," Jack pulled another blaster from his belt. "Just going to bend the rules of space with this little toy I have on hand." He fired it up, pointing it at the ground beneath their feet. "We're going to have a good time."
For just a moment, Elisabeth thought that she could fall forever.
Her stomach leapt as they disappeared through the floor, where a hole had been skilfully crafted by Jack and his marvellous blaster of his. Jack sealed the hole just as he opened it - with a push of the trigger. Elisabeth grasped hold of his coat just before they landed, just a few stories down. They landed in a messy heap in an abandoned pile of newspapers, but neither was hurt. They got to their feet, brushing themselves off.
"I'm never doing that again," Elisabeth muttered, as Jack brushed a clump of dust from her hair. "Hey! Didn't I-" She stopped, taking a breath. "Sorry."
"For what? You don't need to apologise. You're fine." Jack said, looking around in the darkness. It seemed that there were tunnels running under this former-stadium. But for what purpose? Were they there when the building was first constructed? Or were they dug later, for some underground organisation?
Elisabeth kept quiet, listening out for the sounds around her. She pointed down a tunnel. "I hear something. A Dalek, perhaps." She suggested, trying not to shake. The corridors were dark and dusty, and she couldn't help but remember the Underground. No, not now, She thought, trying to keep her thoughts at bay. She stiffened, looking back at Jack. "Got a flashlight?"
She heard a metal clang, and Jack cursed under his breath as he tried to pick up the flashlight, turning it on, producing a single white beam of light. "Let's hope they haven't heard us. But at this rate, I'm not sure whether they can even hear anything. The tunnels are amplifying their shouting. I hope they've confused themselves."
Elisabeth held her breath and crept along the side of the wall, pressing her heels to the edge of the wall as she did. Jack moved along quicker, surpassing her with quiet, almost-silent steps, but not quite. After a few minutes of inching around in complete fear, they reached a chamber, just lit up barely with the lights on the machinery. A computer console lay to the side, the massive screen showing lines of calculation which Elisabeth couldn't understand, and something familiar at the other end of the room - one of the teleporter pods she had seen upstairs. Elisabeth thought it was safe to move forward, as there wasn't a soul in sight, but Jack stopped her, barring her with his arm. "I think we should wait." He paused, looking far down the corridor. They heard a scream of a man some distance down - a maintance worker perhaps? A silver android appeared from the gloom, its LED eyes glowing a bright red. "Isn't that the android from the lodging upstairs?"
"Why did you think they'd have the curfew? To refuse crime rates? No, Professor Astrad wanted to keep us all trapped and under the control of these monsters she created. I think she would have wanted to carry out the attack at night, but since you and the Doctor arrived...she wants both of you."
"For what? I've got no real value," Grumbled Elisabeth, and she leaned back against the wall, crossing her arms. Her fingers tapped a rhythm against the rough fabric of her blazer as she did, distracting her mind. No, she didn't want to think about home now. It wasn't an option. Nobody was going to welcome her back. She wasn't welcome anywhere. She just wanted to run forever, alongside the Doctor, which she had taken a liking to recently. There was something in him that she saw, that allowed her to put her trust in him. He had plagued her thoughts recently, and Elisabeth didn't know whether that was a good or a bad thing.
Elisabeth sucked in a breath when the zap came. Elisabeth averted her eyes, turning away from the bright flash. When the light receded, a Dalek now remained in the teleporter chamber. It rolled out, blinking and screaming. Then it went down a separate tunnel, to join its brethen to roam under the jewel of China.
"Does it lead to the Dalek ship?" Elisabeth asked, raising an eyebrow.
Jack nodded. "It seems so." He paused, thinking. "Tell you what. We'll use that to get up to the surface and then we'll meet up with the Doctor again. We haven't passed the TARDIS on the way here - I'm almost certain it'll be on their ship. They're using it as bait." Jack started to make a move towards the chamber, but the Dalek turned back, firing back, noticing the presence of someone else in the room. It hit the teleport chamber, and the duo were both astounded at the durability of the materials used, for the chamber continued to stand, tall and proud, unscathed.
"How are we going to get up to the surface?"
Jack raced to the console, hitting a few controls. "There. I've now locked the teleporters, and these Daleks won't be using this portal at least, to teleport from the Dalek ship to here. Jack pulled a lever, quite satisfied. Then he rushed over to Elisabeth and pushed her into the teleport chamber, closing the glass door behind them.
"What have you done?" Elisabeth choked, struggling to breathe.
"Set the timer for teleportation." Jack got out, also squashed on his side of the cramped glass tube. "It'll be just a while, but I honestly don't mind being squeezed into here with you. You're quite a delightful girl. I do enjoy your company, if it makes you feel better."
"I mind!" Elisabeth protested, but before either of them could squeeze out another word, the teleported did its magic, sending the two of them hurtling across the void in their journey to the surface.
Elisabeth counted the number of seconds it took to reach the surface. Around a second and a half. It was fast, in her opinion. She pushed her way past Jack and out of the chamber, collapsing on the floor. She sat with her back against the chamber, her head between her knees. She held her breath as the world spun, the lights dancing in her eyes.
"That's something I'm never doing again," Elisabeth grumbled, getting to her feet. Jack shook his head, blinking hard. He took a quick glance at his watch.
"It's nearly sunset. I hope the Doctor'll be back soon. Or the curfew..."
"Is there anyone left out there?" Elisabeth asked, staring out the window at the smoking remains of the city. Her heart fell - could there have been another way out? Perhaps she should ask the Doctor, when all this was over, to go back and change some events, so that the massacre would have never happened.
"He's back," Called Jack, as he squinted into the distance. Elisabeth ran to the front doors of the building, pulling on her glasses. There he was - a blonde figure in the distance, in a black formal suit. He was making his way back at top speed. "Come on," Elisabeth muttered, tapping on the glass doors. "Almost sundown, you said?" Elisabeth asked, turning to Jack.
"Yes, in exactly-" Jack stopped short, as the day turned to night, almost with a flick of a switch. Above, the lights on the bottom of the ship glimmered in the sky, almost like stars, but unlike stars they weren't beacons of hope. The Doctor drew closer, and he seemed to be in a terrible rush. Elisabeth squinted, trying to make out the figures in the night. She could see blinking lights, those of the Daleks. They seemed to be confused, at least after the lights had gone out, but they were astoundingly good at following the Doctor's footsteps. The Doctor reached the building, and Elisabeth pulled the door open, letting him in.
"Where have you been? I think it's been far too long!" Elisabeth asked, and the Doctor stopped to take a breath. He paused, looking back at the glass doors. The Daleks were even closer now.
"They'll break through the doors. We'll have to run." The Doctor panted, drawing his sleeve across his face, messing his hair.
"To where, Doctor?" Elisabeth waited for his instruction.
The Doctor looked back once again. "To the convention hall. Hurry!" He grabbed Elisabeth, shaking her out of her shock. The group turned just in time, as the Daleks smashed the glass panels into pieces. They reached the convention hall just with seconds to spare. The Doctor ran to the console of the teleporter, pressing buttons and pulling levers. "You two," He motioned to Jack and Elisabeth, and looked back at the teleport chamber. "Get in!"
"There's no way I'm going to-" Elisabeth gasped, out of breath, clearly reluctant to suffer another trip in the teleporter.
"You go, Doctor." Jack offered. "I'm fine here, I promise."
"No," The Doctor gave him a stern look. "I don't want to-"
Jack raised a hand, stopping him. "Look, I've got weapons, and you don't. I'll be able to hold them off for long enough. I know how to work this thing, and I will join you soon. Meet you at the ship."
"Are you sure?" The Doctor asked, almost wanting to plead with him, giving him a concerned look. Elisabeth watched their exchange, stepping inside the chamber. The Doctor clearly didn't want to leave Jack behind, and would rather put himself at risk. Elisabeth glanced towards the doors of the hall, where she could see the Daleks approaching. It was do or die, and there was no time to debate.
"You go look for your TARDIS, Doctor," Jack nodded, stepping aside to let the Doctor enter the chamber. Once the Doctor was safely inside, Jack swung the door closed, and headed to the console. Jack checked his device, keying in the coordinates of the Dalek ship. Elisabeth held her breath as the Daleks broke through the glass doors. She felt her heart race, and almost stumbled over the Doctor. Not that there was any space for her to stumble over, anyway. She was pressed tight against the Doctor, with little space left to move. She hoped that it would be quicker than when she was stuck in the capsule with Jack - the amount of physical contact was making shivers run up and down her spine. She looked up, at the cap of the tube quite some distance up. The machine whirred, preparing for the teleport.
But it never came.
All of a sudden the power shut down, the lights blinking off with a touch of finality. Jack looked up, pressing his lips together. "I'm trying the best I can, but-" He cut himself off, ducking behind the console as a Dalek fired over his head. Beams were flying everywhere, left right and centre. Elisabeth winced as a beam bounced off the indestructable glass of the chamber. It had been designed so, but why?
"You're standing on my toes, Elise," The Doctor muttered, and Elisabeth stood on her tiptoes, trying to alleviate the pressure she exerted with her feet.
"I think you should turn around. It'd be better that way, standing back to back. I don't want to get in your way or obscure your vision." Elisabeth suggested, daring to turn her head around only slightly. The Doctor complied, his back brushing against Elisabeth's as he faced the other way. But the Doctor seemed to be interested in something on the inner surface of the cap of the tube - a red button.
"Do you think that could be the emergency release button, Elise?" The Doctor asked. An explosion rang out on the Doctor's side - it seemed that Jack was attempting to fight back. It was a small ambush, only five of them in total, and Jack was standing his ground against them.
"It might as well be." Elisabeth answered, feeling the air become denser as they used up the oxygen in the chamber. "Doctor, I think it's best we get out of here. The oxygen's getting thin."
"I can store oxygen in my respiratory bypass for a few minutes. Then you'll have more of it to yourself." The Doctor answered. "But how on earth would we be able to reach that button up there?"
The thought suddenly hit Elisabeth. "Professor Astrad's body-modification experiment. It worked, didn't it? People on the streets altered their bodies to move faster, so that they could get to their destinations in a shorter period of time. This chamber was meant for their use."
"There's no way I can reach that." The Doctor sighed, and Elisabeth knew how true it was. He was only three-quarters of a foot taller than her, and there was probably a margin of another foot between the height he could reach and the button at the top of the tube. "Do you think I could carry you, and-" The Doctor was cut off by a cry of pain, and Elisabeth saw it happen out of the corner of her eye. Jack gave a yell as the electricity ripped through his body, and he fell limp onto the ground. Elisabeth winced. Poor, poor, Jack. But there were other things to worry about- her survival.
"Is he still alive, Doctor?" Elisabeth asked, looking in Jack's direction.
The Doctor seemed deep in thought. "I don't know, Elise."
Alas, dear Androdosa, trapped by the Daleks.
"No! Go away!" Elisabeth covered her ears, blocking out the voice inside.
You really don't know what this means, don't you? You are thick. Useless girl.
"I refuse to surrender myself!" Elisabeth yelled, much to the Doctor's confusion.
"Is there something wrong, Elisabeth?" The Doctor tapped her on the hand, and Elisabeth leaned into his back, breathing hard.
I didn't train you to be such a weakling. You know what you were supposed to do.
"I...I don't know! It's just-" Elisabeth stopped, taking her head in her hands as something started to buzz. A low, mechanical sound. Turns out the power wasn't completely off. "Are we finally getting out of here? Please say we are, Doctor."
"I don't think that's the transporter." The Doctor said, looking up at the top of the chamber. Elisabeth nearly wanted to slap herself when she understood the Doctor's words. She glanced slightly off to the left, where a brass tube was attached, for the purposes of demonstrating what this chamber could really do.
Elisabeth ducked, knowing her efforts were futile, as the dark water started to stream in. She shivered, grabbing onto the nearest object she could, which happened to be the Doctor's sleeve. It was soaked already, the water soaking through the garment, and it chilled her to the bone. The water level rose sharply. In the last seconds, the water had climbed almost half a metre. Without thinking, Elisabeth snatched up her left shoe (which was already soggy, mind you), and smashed the heel of the shoe into the glass, not expecting such a reaction force as it rebounded. "Ow," Elisabeth cried, dropping her shoe, and she heard it splash into the water, which was at her waist already. "Do you have a plan, Doctor?"
"I think we've got no choice. We've got to use the water to help us get to the top." The Doctor planned, looking to Elisabeth for confirmation. Elisabeth nodded, knowing that this was the difference between their life and their death. She heard another explosion as another Dalek blew up, sending the room into a fiery rage. Then a familiar voice, which she wasn't expecting.
"Doctor! Elisabeth!" Jack yelled, clutching his pistol firmly, dropping to a knee to stablise his posture. "I'm back from the dead, so don't you worry." Jack hit the last Dalek in the room, and went back to working on the console. "It's not turning on, Doctor." He looked up, alarmed by how fast the water was rising. Neither of them stopped to consider how Jack had seemingly come back from the dead, but Elisabeth now knew he perhaps wasn't lying about dying at the hands of the Daleks earlier in his timeline.
You'll be dead soon, child, don't you worry. But wasn't there something you had to do for me first?
"Shut up!" Elisabeth yelled, slamming her fists into the water, which had risen to her neck. She started to kick, and every move felt like stepping on soggy, wet quicksand. It dragged her down, sending her further into the darkness. "Doctor, are we going to get out of here anytime soon?"
The Doctor snatched her up, a arm slung across her back and under her arm, dragging her from the water. "I'll keep us afloat. At least until we get to the top," The Doctor explained, straining with the effort. "Are you sure you're alright, Elisabeth? I think something's messing with your mind. I hope we'll get it fixed soon, well, after this!"
"I'm fine! Just focus on staying alive!" Elisabeth kicked, relieved to find that it propelled herself up, towards the cap of the chamber. Almost there. Just a few inches to go. She looked out, where Jack turned a gun on the capsule, and he fired. The bullet just bounced off harmlessly, flying back in Jack's direction. He ducked behind the console, and the bullet smacked through the wall behind him.
The Doctor squinted. "We're almost there. But just in case, do get ready to hold your breath. Can you stay afloat on your own?"
"I don't know, but I'll try!" Elisabeth said, untangling herself from the Doctor, leaving him with both hands free. She continued to kick, but it becamse progressivel y more difficult to stay up. The water had an interesting quality. Deeper down, below her feet, the water had seemed to solidify, but it liquified again with just a slight disturbance. The opposite of oobleck, it seemed. She remembered something distant, an image of a young child playing with this appaling mixture of flour and water. The mixture had the properties of a liquid while stagnant, and the qualities of a solid when disturbed. This was the opposite.
You'll never escape my trap, girl. You know I'll find you one day. But I'll give you one more chance to do what I told you to.
"Doctor!" Elisabeth yelled, with the all the force she could muster, dragging her out of the voices that shrieked in her head. She had no clue what was going on. She didn't know who was speaking to her. It sounded like Madam Arwen, maybe? Or even Professor Astrad? She kicked once more, trying to raise herself above the water, but slipped. She felt herself being dragged down. In a state of clueless panic she took a big gulp of breath before she went under. She closed her eyes, careful with the limited oxygen she had. She raised her hands above her head, hoping to reach the surface, but no such luck. The water had probably filled the entire capsule now. She felt herself slip down as her heart raced, her body screaming for oxygen. She was barely aware of her head coming into contact with something firm, but not hard when she went down - it could only be the Doctor. That would probably give her an indication of how far she had sunk down into the water, and how far the Doctor was above her. She sealed her lips, not wanting to let the precious oxygen escape. Next to her she felt the Doctor kick down into the water. Straining, and knowing it would probably aid him, she positioned herself, a knee on the ground, and took hold of the Doctor's foot. She felt the other one kick, and ignoring the ripples in the water, she pushed herself up, pushing the Doctor up towards the top and their only method of escape. Exhaused, she almost gasped, but held on, for just a bit longer. She could hear her heart roaring in her ears now, a great beating she knew she couldn't run from.
You told me you would, Androdosa. No, Caroline. Or whatever name you take on now.
Elisabeth struggled against the voice, but that was the last thing she could remember before her lungs gave way, and she slipped into a dreamless sleep.