"Well this is another fine mess you've gotten us into, Doctor," Windsor yelled from the back of the dirt ridden cell. "And all because you wanted to take us on a discounted trip."
"For the last time, this isn't Feudal Japan!" the Doctor stressed as he walked to the cell door and tried to open it. "Great, they've locked us in."
"Did you expect them to leave it open for us to escape?" Truman asked.
"I've been fooled before," the Doctor muttered as he pulled out his sonic screwdriver. "And its deadlock sealed. How is everything deadlock sealed?" He gave up, leaning against the wall in exasperation.
"What do you think they'll do to us?" Windsor whispered, looking somewhat frightened.
"Kazuhira is SISTERS with that woman?" Truman exclaimed, looking shocked as it sank in.
"That's really what you're worried about? Some bloody family tree?" Windsor shook his head. "You need to sort out your priorities."
"I agree with Truman, it is a strange case indeed. Oh don't give me that look, his question was much more interesting than yours," the Doctor commented after Windsor gave him an incredulous look. "Fine, fine, we'll try and come up with a plan to get out of here. Any thoughts?"
"We could try and contact Kazuhira," Truman suggested.
"She'd only show up too late to do anything," Windsor scoffed. Truman charged him, only to be tripped by the Doctor.
"Now's not the time to quarrel, my dear Truman," the Doctor said sternly. "Now is the time for affirmative action!" He thrust his sonic screwdriver into the air, and did nothing else.
"Seriously, do we have a plan to get out of here?" Windsor asked. "Because I honestly don't want to die in a Japan knockoff."
"You aren't going to die in a Japan knockoff because you aren't IN a Japan knockoff!" the Doctor persisted.
Suddenly the sound of a blaring siren filled the cell, causing the trio to clasp their hands over their ears and look around wildly. Shouts and screaming resonated through the small window from outside, prompting Truman to run to it to investigate.
"The Serpentines are attacking!" he yelled over the alarms as the building shook from an unknown impact. Truman was knocked to the ground by the force, in time to avoid being crushed by the debris caused by a second impact that opened a hole in the wall of the cell.
Through the hole was chaos. The skies were covered in Serpentines, some chasing frantic civilians while others breathed fire into the air. The trio looked on in horror as the Serpentines systematically picked up the screaming individuals and carried them out of the city.
"We have no time to waste!" the Doctor shouted, running in the direction of the kidnapped individuals. Windsor and Truman followed, narrowly avoiding blasts of fire and charging Serpentines as they made their way across the war torn town. The Doctor noticed one Serpentine flying lower to the ground, and ran up behind it to grab its tail. He ascended into the sky, leaving his companions to struggle finding their own ride.
Truman spotted a Serpentine, and exerted all of his strength to catch up to it. He grabbed for the back, feeling the rough scales of the creature as it lifted him skyward. It was all he could do to keep a grip on it, and stifled his overwhelming need to scream as the Serpentine transported him onward.
He soon found himself forcibly thrown from the back of the dragon, landing with a heavy thud on the rocky terrain below. Shaking the daze from his head, Truman surveyed his surroundings, and found that he was in a huge cavern filled with Serpentines along with their scared captives. A little ways away he spotted the Doctor, who was getting a closer look at one of the Serpentines who looked very annoyed.
"Where the hell is this place?" Windsor said from behind Truman as he dusted himself off.
"We are in the lair of the Serpentines," a cowering elderly man quivered next to them. His eyes darted around the cave, afraid to look at any of the creatures for too long. Truman felt for the old man; the Serpentines did make for some frightening nightmares, but there was one detail that he found somewhat odd. As he looked around the room, the people the Serpentines had captured weren't being eviscerated by their captors. Instead, the creatures circled the villagers in a curious, non-predator way. In fact, their eyes betrayed a sense of longing.
"Ah, so you've noticed it as well," the Doctor said knowingly, scaring Truman with his sudden appearance. "Can you guess why they look so sad?"
"I have no idea, Doctor," he admitted. The Doctor nodded, and walked towards the exit. A Serpentine headed him off, giving him a menacing look.
"I don't wish to fight, honest," he said, raising his hand in a pledge of honor. "I'm just looking for signs of a friend who should be arriving shortly." The Serpentine snarled at him, and he backed away.
"Are you waiting for Kazuhira? My Tardy Woman?" Truman asked hopefully, realizing too late that he had revealed his secret pet name for her.
"You didn't really say that, did you?" the Doctor said bemusedly, giving Truman a huge smirk. "I've come up with some bad nicknames in the past, but I think that one may take the cake."
"There's no reasoning with these beasts, Doctor," Windsor warned, drawing his hidden cricket bat from his pocket. He was immediately surrounded, and he braced himself for a fight. The Doctor ran for the circle, trying to stop Windsor. Truman breathed a sigh of relief, thankful that Windsor had not heard the embarrassing name.
"Windsor, put down your bat immediately!" the Doctor yelled, and Windsor begrudgingly complied. The Serpentines resumed their studies, and the Doctor grabbed Windsor's arm.
"We'll discuss the matter of your thievery of my wardrobe later," he whispered in a terse tone.
"SO THAT'S HOW HE CARRIES THAT CRICKET BAT AROUND!" Truman yelled, excited to learn the truth and also to get the attention off of him. "The pockets are bigger on the inside, aren't they?"
"Speaking of which," the Doctor began as he fished in his pockets to grab a strange looking device. The instrument warbled and whined as flashing lights blinked across it. "I've been wondering why this has been going off. I forgot I put it in my pocket in the first place, but it may hold a clue as to what's going on here."
"What is that thing? Some science project of yours?" Windsor asked.
"Well, in the past I've described it as a wibbly wobbly timey wimey detector, as its real name would have baffled the minds of the people I was talking to. However, since I'm in the presence of such brilliant minds, I will continue to call it that."
"You don't have a name for it, do you?" Truman guessed.
"Not at all," the Doctor replied. "HOWEVER! This device detects temporal anomalies in the area, which is why it's dinging. Meaning that there is some strange disturbance in time around here that's causing these Serpentines to appear." Before he could explain more, a loud thud sounded behind them.
Kazuhira rose from the ground, an angry look on her face as she did so.
"I apologize for my tardiness, but I am here. Shall we begin the negotiations?" Truman rushed to help her up until he realized she was already standing.
"Are you hurt? WE NEED A BANDAID, STAT!" yelled Truman before a hand on his shoulder from Kazuhira silenced him.
"I appreciate your concern for my well-being, my friend, but we must make haste with our peace. Ken'i has gathered the army and is on her way here right now. We must stop the violence before it comes to fruition." They nodded and walked toward the center of the cavern.
"Will the leader of the Serpentines come forward?" the Doctor yelled, causing everyone in the cavern, Serpentine and civilian alike to look at him in bewilderment. After a moment's silence, a great scarlet Serpentine came forward and presented itself before the group.
"Hello there," the Doctor said cheerily as he crossed his arm across his face in respect. "I'm the Doctor, and this is Truman, Windsor and Kazuhira. We're here to prevent war."
The Serpentine nodded, and slashed his tail in front of his face in respect.
"He understands the Doctor," Truman whispered to Kazuhira, who shushed him.
"There is something familiar about this Serpentine," she said quietly. "I do not know why, but I feel connected with it."
"I'm sure that's just the fall talking," Windsor replied. The Doctor looked back at them to quiet them down.
"There is currently an army headed this way with aims to destroy you. We don't want that to happen," he continued. "My friends and I believe there is peace to be found between the Serpentines and the Senzi people. I also noticed on your recent visit to the town you didn't kill anybody, nor are you planning to." The Serpentine nodded, and sighs of relief filled the cavern from the villagers.
"Well that's a plus," the Doctor said. "However, we need to know how you got here. What happened that caused you to appear?" The Serpentine bowed his head, and the Doctor stepped forward. Placing his hands on the Serpentine Lord's head, he began to extract the memories from the creature.
"What is happening?" Kazuhira demanded, her voice dripping with concern. For which party, Truman could not tell.
"I think he's extracting the memories from the creature," Truman reasoned, and Windsor slapped him upside the head.
"That's utterly impossible," he replied. Truman rubbed his head as the Doctor came out of his trance.
"I am so sorry," he forlornly said to the Serpentine, whose eyes were windows of sadness that reflected the Doctor clearly. "The pain you've gone through, the absolute pain…"
"Where did they come from, Doctor? How did they suddenly appear?" Truman queried, and the Doctor regarded him sadly.
"They've always been here," he said. Truman and Windsor looked at him blankly, but Kazuhira's face showed understanding and then sadness. "They are the Senzi people."
Shouts began to echo in the cavern as the sound of marching became clear. The group turned toward the entrance to see Ken'i leading an army into the cave, a gleaming sword pointed forward towards the Serpentine Lord.
"The time of your reckoning has come, Serpentines," she shouted, her words echoed by cheers from her army. The villagers cowered behind the wall of Serpentines that had formed to face the threat.
"Ken'i, stop! You don't know what you're doing," the Doctor shouted above the roar of the Serpentines.
"I have heard enough of your silver tongue, Doctor!" she spat, her sword now facing the Time Lord. "If you stand in our way you will also be destroyed."
"Sister, his words ring true," Kazuhira said calmly as she slowly approached her sister. The blade now pointed at her, a hand of a clock pointing the hour of destruction. "These creatures are not what you think!"
"Lies!" she yelled as she lunged forward with her sword. The blade pierced Kazuhira's chest, a look of love and betrayal on her face. She shuddered and fell; the blade sliding out of her as Ken'i maliciously gripped it. Truman shouted and rushed to her, only to be held back by the Doctor. Although time seemed to stand still for him, he was still too late to save the person he loved.