Disclaimer: I own nothing. Fine, sue me if you don't believe I'm sincere. That whole dollar you'll get should take you far.
Ch. 14:
"What was that?" Mia asked.
"Doctor, we really should go." Lily said softly.
Neither one moved.
"This central." Ed called. "Bio-dome report immediately."
"Show me the bio-dome." Adelaide ordered, sitting down at the computer.
Ed scanned through the feeds until he found the bio-dome, but only static appeared when he pulled it up.
"Oh, cameras are down." He said.
"Show me the exterior." Adelaide ordered tensely.
Ed dropped into a chair and pulled up the proper feed. They watched as the dome when dark as the lights were switched off, one by one. Finally, it went dark altogether.
"I'm going over." Adelaide said, turning to Lily and the Doctor. "Doctor, Phoenix, with me!"
"Yeah, I'm sorry." The Doctor said. "Um, we-we'd love to help, but we're leaving. Right now."
He took their suits from Steffi.
"Take their space suits." Adelaide ordered. "Lock them up."
Steffi did as ordered.
"This started as soon as you arrived so you're not going anywhere except with me." Adelaide told the two Time Lords.
"Screw that, we're out of here." Lily said. "We don't need the space suits."
Lily. The Doctor said, touching her arm.
She stared at him.
You've got to be kidding! She told him.
We can't just walk out of here. he said.
Yes we can. She shot back. And that's what we're going to do!
Let's just see what's going on. He told her. Then we'll go before anything happens.
She sighed but nodded.
The others watched them, confused.
The Doctor and Lily followed Adelaide and Tarak down a dark hallway with Gadget lighting the way with flashlights.
"Gadget-gadget."
"What's so important about Mia's age?" Adelaide asked. "You said she's only 27. What does that matter? What did you mean?"
"Sometimes my brain isn't always involved in the speaking process." Lily told her dismissively. "Things just pop out. They don't mean anything."
"You're telling me." Tarak muttered.
"Thank you, doctor." The Doctor said, glaring at him.
"Anytime." The man replied. "Doctor."
"Gadget-gadget."
"I hate robots." The Doctor said. "Did I say?"
"Yeah, and he's not too fond of you!" Roman shot back through the comms. "What's wrong with robots?"
"It's not the robot; it's just the people." The Doctor told him. "Dressing them up, giving them silly voices, like you're reducing them."
"Yeah, friend of mine, she made her domestic robot look like a dog." Roman replied.
"Oh, well, dogs!" the Doctor said. "That's different."
Lily elbowed him again.
"But I adapted Gadget out of the worker drones." Roman said. "Those things are huge. They built this place when the shell was lowered down from orbit. Got a strength capacity of fifteen tons-"
"This channel is open for essential communications only." Adelaide interrupted.
"Sorry." Roman replied before adding softly, "Love those drones."
"I've read all that stuff about you, Captain Adelaide." The Doctor said. "The one thing they never said-was it worth it?"
"We've got excellent results from the soil analysis." She replied.
"No, but all of it." Lily said. "You've sacrificed everything. Devoted your whole life to get here. Do you ever think it was too much?"
"It's been chaos back home." Adelaide replied softly. "Forty long years. The climate, the ozone, the oil apocalypse. We almost reached extinction. And to fly above that…to stand on a world with no smoke…where the only straight line is the sunlight…yes, it's worth it."
"Ah, that's the Adelaide Brooke I always wanted to meet." The Doctor said, smiling. "The woman with starlight in her soul."
She didn't reply.
Suddenly, they were distracted by something on the floor ahead.
"What's that?" Adelaide asked.
They ran up to it and found that it was a body.
"It's Maggie!" Adelaide said.
"Don't touch her!" the Doctor ordered.
"I know the procedure!" Tarak shot back as he leaned over her, pulling on rubber gloves. "Maggie, can you hear me? It's Tarak. Maggie…"
He rolled her onto her back.
"It's okay." He said. "She's still breathing."
The Doctor glanced at Lily before looking along the dark hallway.
"She's alive." Tarak confirmed, pulling out his comms device.
"Yuri, I've got Margaret Caine." He called. "Head trauma. I need a full med pack."
"I've got it!" Yuri called back. "Med pack on its way."
A few minutes later, they saw Yuri and Ed running down the hallway.
"Don't touch her, use the gloves!" the Doctor ordered them.
"Do what he says." Tarak told them. "Get her to sick bay. Put her in isolation."
"We're going to the bio-dome." Adelaide told them. "Tarak, with me. Yuri can take care of her. Ed, go back. Gadget, stand guard. Keen eye on this area."
"Gadget-gadget."
"Captain, you're going to need me." Ed said, making Adelaide sigh. "Andy's the only other crew member out here. And if that wasn't an accident, then he's gone wild."
"You've deserted your post." Adelaide told him. "Consider that an official warning. Now get back to work. Doctor!"
"What am I, chopped liver?" Lily muttered.
She glanced at Ed, raising an eyebrow, before she and the Doctor followed Adelaide.
"Captain," came Steffi's voice over the comms. "That sound we heard from the bio-dome…I've run it through diagnostics. According to the computer, it's…Andy."
The Doctor, Lily, Tarak, and Adelaide were now standing in an airlock.
"It registers as the voiceprint of Andy Stone." Steffi told them.
"Understood." Adelaide replied. "Double check thanks."
"Air-pressure stabilized." Tarak said from the computer.
The door opened and Adelaide stepped out. Lily slipped her hand into the Doctor's as they followed her and Tarak out.
"Andrew?" Adelaide called. "Andrew Stone? It's Captain Brooke. Andy report. I need to see you. Where are you?"
The Doctor squeezed Lily's hand before letting go and walking to the computer and using the sonic screwdriver on it.
The room lit up.
"There you go." He said, walking back to Lily's side.
"What's that device?" Adelaide demanded.
"Screwdriver." He replied, holding it up.
"Are you the Doctor, or the janitor?" she asked.
"I don't know, sounds like me." He said, smiling at Lily.
"Maintenance man of the universe." She agreed, smiling back.
"You stay with me." Adelaide told them. "Don't step out of my sight. Tarak, go to external door south. Make sure it's intact."
"Yes, ma'am." He replied, walking off.
"Quite an achievement." The Doctor said, walking over to the flowers. "First flower on Mars in 10,000 years. And you're growing veg!"
"It's that lot." Adelaide said dismissively. "They're already planning Christmas dinner. Last year it was dehydrated protein. This year…the real thing."
"Still, fair enough." The Doctor replied. "Christmas."
"If you must." Adelaide said.
She exchanged a smile with them.
The Doctor and Lily looked around when they heard a bird tweet.
"You've got birds!" Lily marveled, looking at the robin.
"Part of the project." Adelaide told her. "Keep the insect population down."
"Good sign." The Doctor said.
"In what way?" she asked.
"They're still alive." Lily explained.
"Captain, good news." Yuri called over the comms. "It's Maggie. She's awake. She's back with us. Hey, how are you soldier? Just take it easy. Can you remember what happened?"
"I was just…working." They heard her say. "Then I woke-woke up here."
"What about Andy?" Adelaide called. "We can't fine him. Is he all right?"
"I don't know." Maggie replied. "I just…"
"If you remember anything, let me know straight away." Adelaide told her.
"Yuri, does she know how she ended up in the tunnel?" Ed called from the control room.
"And keep the comms clear!" Adelaide ordered. "Everything goes through me. Got that?"
They continued on searching.
Suddenly, Yuri came back over the comms.
"This is sick bay." He called. "We have a situation! Maggie's condition has-I don't know! I don't know what it is! It's-it's water, just-pouring out!"
"Yuri, calm down." Adelaide ordered. "Just tell me what's happened to her."
"The skin is…sort of broken around the mouth." He replied. "And she's exuding water-like she's drowning!"
"Tarak, this area's unsafe, we're going back." Adelaide called.
There was no answer.
"Tarak!" she shouted. "Tarak!"
"Where was he?" the Doctor asked urgently.
They ran back through the bio-dome.
"Yuri, keep her contained." Ed called. "Seal the door at maximum. I'm on my way!"
Adelaide led the Doctor and Lily through the dome at a run, but she suddenly stopped, causing the Doctor and Lily to backtrack.
They saw Andy standing as Tarak kneeled in front of him, his hand pressed to the other man's forehead.
The Doctor shined a light on them and they saw that Tarak was twitching and pouring water.
"Andy?" Lily called hesitantly. "Just leave him alone."
"Step away from him officer, that's an order." Adelaide said, pulling out her gun. "As the captain of this group, I order you-don't!"
"I can help, I promise!" Lily continued at the same time, as the Doctor put a hand on Adelaide to stop her from shooting. "We can help! Just leave that man alone. Andy, please…just take your hand away from him and listen to me."
They fell silent as Andy turned towards them, his eyes wide. They were completely white and his mouth was cracked and broken. He sprayed a fine mist of water from his mouth before lifting his hand off Tarak, who slumped back.
"There now, that's better, hmm?" the Doctor said, looking between Andy and Adelaide. "So, you must be Andy. Hello."
Tarak straightened and turned towards them. His mouth and eyes now looked like Andy's.
"We've got to go." The Doctor whispered.
They ran and Andy and Tarak chased them. Finally they reached the air lock and opened it.
"Set the seal to maximum!" the Doctor shouted.
Just as the Doctor pulled the door shut, Andy raised his arm and shot a stream of water at the sealed door.
Lily pulled the Doctor back, both of them almost colliding with Adelaide.
They stared as Andy approached the door and slammed his face against the widow.
"Captain, we need you back here." Steffi called over comms.
"Just tell me that Maggie is contained." Adelaide told her. "Can you confirm it?"
"Confirmed." Ed replied. "She's locked in."
"Keep surveillance 'till I get back." Adelaide ordered. "And close down all water supplies. All pipes and outlets. Don't consume anything. Have you got that-everyone? That's an order. Don't drink the water. Don't even touch it. Not one drop."
Lily and the Doctor were watching Andy, who was staring through the window as if trying to find a way inside.
"Can you talk?" the Doctor asked. "Human beings are sixty percent water, which makes them the perfect host."
"What for?" Adelaide demanded.
"Don't know." Lily replied. "And we never will. Doctor, we need to leave. Now. Whatever's started here, we can't see it to the end. We can't."
Andy slammed himself against the door and the Doctor and Lily jumped back. Tarak joined him and they began spraying water against the seal.
"This thing's airtight, yeah?" the Doctor asked.
"And therefore watertight." Adelaide confirmed.
"Depends how clever the water is." Lily said darkly.
The lock suddenly sparked.
"It's fusing the system." Adelaide told them.
"Abandon ship!" the Doctor declared.
They dashed to the door and ran into the hallway. Andy and Tarak managed to fuse the lock and they continued chasing them.
The Doctor suddenly stopped beside Gadget and pulled out the sonic screwdriver.
"Doctor, we haven't got time!" Adelaide told him.
"Lily!" he called.
"Got it." She replied.
She knelt down and slammed her hand down on the ground. A gold barrier rose up spanning the width of the hallway.
"They can run faster than us." The Doctor told Adelaide as she stared at Lily. "We need a lift."
"Gadget-gadget."
"Get on behind me." The Doctor ordered, standing on the robot.
"That thing goes at two miles an hour!" Adelaide protested.
"Not anymore." He replied, looking at her. "Trust me."
She got up behind him and he looked at Lily.
"Are you going to be alright?" he asked.
"Please." She said dismissively. "I'll beat you there."
He nodded and turned back, pointing the sonic screwdriver.
"Ready gadget?" he asked.
"Gadget-gadget."
Flames poured out of the back of the robot as it shot down the hallway. Tarak and Andy ran up to the barrier and glared at Lily. She smiled and gave a little wave before disappearing in a flash of gold, the shield dropping the moment she was gone.
They ran after the robot, but they were too far gone.
The Doctor and Adelaide saw a bright flash at the end of the tunnel.
"The central dome airlocks have got Hardinger seals." Adelaide told the Doctor when they reached Lily standing next to the door. "There's no way they can get in."
She quickly unlocked the door and the Doctor held it open for Gadget.
"Come on, come on!" he told it.
"Gadget-gadget."
"Come on, come on, come on." He repeated.
Gadget began clumsily moving towards the door.
"I thought you hated robots!" Adelaide shouted at him.
"I do!" he replied.
Gadget slid into the sealed room right ahead of Andy and Tarak. The Doctor slammed the door shut and Lily moved towards it.
"No." he told her, stopping her.
"Are you kidding me?" she demanded. "We're about to die and you're preventing me from protecting us!"
"We're safe." Adelaide said. "It's hermetically sealed; they can't get in."
"See?" the Doctor shot back at Lily. "I don't want you risking it!"
"You're insane!" she shouted at him, throwing up her hands. "Water is patient. Water just waits. It wears down the cliff tops, the mountains, the whole of the world. Water always wins."
"Look, you would have to stay here to keep the barrier up." The Doctor told her, taking her hands in his and making her look at him. "I won't leave you here. So, come on."
"The bio-dome is out of bounds." Adelaide called as he led them out of the room. "Andy and Tarak are infected. Repeat, infected. Make no contact. And if they make the slightest move, tell me. I'm going to the medical dome."
A/N: Second chapter down. So, JustAPoisonApple gets a cookie this time for being the only one to comment on yesterday's chapter. The rest of you, NO SOUP FOR YOU!
Thank you,
Abbey