Chapter 20: Rescue.

POV: Mara

Date: October 10, 2011

Dad, Jenny, and I rushed out of the TARDIS the moment she landed. We were still on Earth, that much was clear, but where we were exactly was a mystery. The TARDIS had landed in a large field overlooked by a tall warehouse building.

My fingers found Mum's crystal. "Do you think she's inside?"

Dad nodded. "Can't you feel her?"

I made myself go still for a moment, and the feeling he was talking about finally registered. The air around us was unnaturally heavy. The charge of power that was far beyond anything any one of us possessed sent a static hum along my skin.

"C'mon you lot." Jenny pulled out a gun and took it off of safety. "Let's get moving."

Dad grabbed her arm and glared. "No guns."

She huffed. "What do you think they'll have waiting in there ay? A welcome party? I don't like it any more than you do, but we're gonna need it this time."

He gave her a look of disapproval. "You know that violence is never the answer. I taught you better."

"You taught me, did you?" She shoved the weapon back into her belt. "Well so did Mum."

I watched the two of them with wide eyes. I didn't know anything about the Sycorax War, other than that it had existed and all three of my family members had fought in it. Whenever I tried to ask either Dad or Jenny about it, they would go quiet and pretend they hadn't heard me. They did that a lot nowadays.

"Oi, let's go." I snapped them out of the intense stare they had fallen into, and we started for the warehouse.

We took care to stay out of the eyesight of the many guards posted around the compound as we made our approach. Jenny and I kept a sharp lookout while Dad sonicked the door to the warehouse.

"Go," he mouthed, and waved us inside.

I went first, and stopped just inside the door. The room was dark. The few lights that were operational gave off a dim glow, and flickered with age. The whole building looked rusted and abandoned, which made me wonder why someone might be holding her here. Where was the extra security? Where was the trap? They had to know we were coming for her.

Dad locked the door we had just come through, and all three of us started to venture into the room. I silently pointed out a door that was on the opposite wall. He used hand gestures to tell Jenny and me to keep our eyes moving around the room as we half ran to the door. We stopped in front of it, and tried to keep our breathing as quiet as possible while Dad placed his ear against the metal.

He nodded, and threw open the door. Jenny went first. She waved her weapon around to ward off any attackers, and I could feel Dad's displeasure at her choosing to use it. I kept my own opinions about her choice to myself by muting our link. Jenny was right. This was no time for an argument about anti-violence.

I felt something tingle at the back of my head, and silently asked Dad what it was. He gave me a shrug, and as we moved deeper into the dark warehouse, the tingling grew stronger. It took me a while, but when the feeling started giving way to a sharp pain, I finally figured out what it was. Mum. She was trying feebly to re-establish her link with me.

Tentatively, I reached out to reconnect us, and was met with absolute chaos. Her mind was everywhere. There were hundreds of thoughts whirling unchecked in her head, and each one shouted for her attention. Fear and anger were the two dominating emotions, though I almost felt as if there was something hollow about her. Something was terribly wrong.

Mara, she whispered. Help me.

I immediately spun around, and took off running in the right direction. I heard Dad call out for me, but didn't take the time to glance back as I barreled through another door into a much brighter room. I was blinded for a moment, and stopped to allow my eyes to adjust. Once they had, I saw I was in a small break room of sorts, but worse yet, I had stumbled upon a group of guards taking their morning coffee.

"Oh…" I faltered. "Um, hello. Name's Mary Smith. Sorry, I'm new here. Can you tell me where the main control room is?" I waved a hand behind me to keep Dad and Jenny hidden.

One of the guards stood. "Can I see some identification please?"

I bit my lip and reached into my pocket to curl my fingers around my sonic. "Sure…"

Both Dad and Jenny were at my side in an instant. We fired off our screwdrivers to create a loud shrieking. Their combined sound caused every glass item in the room to burst, and the guards to cry out in pain. They swatted at their ears in an attempt to escape the awful noise, and crumpled to the ground.

Dad grinned at Jenny as we slid our way past them. "See? What did I tell you? No need for guns here!"

I laughed as a door slid close in front of us. "That was brilliant!"

"Lucky maybe, but brilliant? I dunno about brilliant." Jenny sighed, and tucked her sonic away. "Let's keep moving."

I shot a worried glance to Dad, but he shook his head at me. I wanted to ask my sister what was wrong, but instead we stayed silent as we snuck through the building. I took the lead, and followed the emotions I could still feel pouring out of Mum. Part of me wondered why we hadn't seen more security yet. She was the Bad Wolf, after all. Shouldn't she be more heavily guarded?

I tried to shrug the feeling off and stopped us outside of a simple metal door. It was locked with a keypad, but one wave of Dad's sonic took care of that problem easily. Well, I say easily, but as soon as the keys sparked, alarms started going off.

Our hands flew to our ears, and I squinted against the harsh sound. "Brilliant!"

Doors began to open, and I could hear many pairs of boots starting for our direction. Jenny threw open the door. "Go. I can hold them off for a while. Go!"

"Oh no." Dad yanked on her arm to pull her inside with us, and locked the door as soon as it was closed. We had stopped to catch our breath, when someone started pounding against the door in an attempt to break it down.

"What was that?" Jenny shouted as she snatched her arm away from him.

"What do you think you're going to do against that many ay? You're just one person, Jenny. You wouldn't last three seconds!" He rose to his full height to try to make my sister back down. I saw the storm in his eyes, and shrank back myself.

"I can fend for myself better than that!" Jenny shouted back. "I've done a pretty good job of it for sixteen years!"

Mara.

I turned away from their argument slowly, and my eyes fell to the only objects in the room. My mother, strapped down to a hospital gurney, with more bruises and cuts than I liked. Her eyes were closed and she was attached to a monitor that seemed to be reading out her vital signs.

"Dad." My voice got locked in my throat, and I took a moment to clear it. "Look."

Besides the sound of the soldiers pounding against the door, the room fell silent. Dad went to her side first. He took each step as if it pained him. I closed off our link to try to give him the privacy I knew he needed. Inside, he held on to a numb kind of shock, horror, and tightly coiled anger that was visible in his shoulders.

He brushed Mum's cheek with his fingers, and leaned down to whisper something in her ear. It was low enough that not even my superior Time Lord ears could pick it up. I cautiously came to stand right behind him. I hesitantly reached out to touch his shoulder, but thought better of it at the last moment.

I bit my lip. "Dad, we need to get her out of here."

"She's in a coma." His voice was rough. "If we move her, she might die."

His words were accented by another pound of the door. "If we stay here, we all will," Jenny stated flatly. "If we take her, we might be able to make it to the TARDIS. She'll have a better chance there."

Dad stared down at Mum with an expression twisted in torment. "Okay. Let's go."

I quickly unhooked her from the machines and ripped the straps from her wrists and ankles. As soon as they were off, Dad leaned down and swept her up into his arms. He pressed a kiss to her forehead, and whispered something else into her ear, before he turned to Jenny.

"Is there another way out?" he asked.

Jenny ran to the windows. "There's a fire escape." She started to wrench one of the boards away from our escape route, and I ran to help her.

We let Dad go out first. The two of us held onto Mum while he climbed out of the window. I could hear the lock on the door between us and the soldiers start to break as I carefully pulled myself out next. Jenny hesitated, but finally shoved the gun into her waistband before she tossed herself over the sill. The fire escape rattled under our weight, but held as we ran down the steps. I heard the soldiers shouting to each other as Jenny threw down the last ladder. Dad somehow managed to hang onto Mum as he climbed down to the ground.

We all ducked as shots were fired, and I covered my head as Jenny fired back.

"Go!" She shoved me down the ladder.

I rushed towards the ground. My sister took time to shoot off another round before she followed me.

As soon as her feet touched the ground, the three of us were off running. Shouts and doors being thrown open echoed out behind us as we fought through the tall grasses in the field. I could see the TARDIS not too far away now. She was close enough that I could make out the bulb on top.

"Faster!" Jenny urged, and the three of us kicked it into breakneck speeds. We hurtled over rocks and hills as we charged for the ship. I glanced back, and propelled myself even faster when my eyes caught sight of the jeeps headed right for us.

Jenny skidded to a halt, and turned to aim her weapon at the forces behind us.

"What do you think you're doing?" Dad bellowed. "Get to the TARDIS!"

She shook her head. "You need time! you won't make it." She took a well-aimed shot at one of the closer jeeps, and the driver went down. "Go!" She fired two more shots, both of which missed their marks.

My eyes widened. I had never seen this side of my sister before. I had known she was a soldier once, but I'd never even seen her hold a gun before today.

I quickly shook off my shock when more jeeps headed for us, and grabbed her arm. "This is ridiculous!" I dragged her along as we turned back for the TARDIS.

"Mara!" She tried to wriggle free from my grip on her arm, but I refused to let go.

I shoved her in the direction of the ship as the jeeps roared behind us. Dad reached the ship first. He carefully set Mum down to fumble with his keys. Jenny and I picked her up as he jammed the right one into the lock. "Hurry up!" I shouted

We ducked when a few bullets ricocheted off the TARDIS. One smashed the light bulb, which caused us all to jump.

"Oh c'mon, I just changed that!" Dad whined as the doors opened.

"Yeah, well, send them the bill!" Jenny snapped as we collapsed on the grating. The doors shut behind us, and Dad ran for the controls.

Jenny and I sat and tried to catch our breath as he guided the TARDIS into the vortex. I glanced down at Mum. Her skin was still a sickly shade of grey and her hair limp against her forehead. The sight sent a cold shiver down my spine.

With a loud groan, I hauled myself to my feet with her in my arms. Dad rushed over and took her from me before he turned and left the console room in long strides.

"I'll be in the infirmary!" he called over his shoulder. "Watch the TARDIS!"

I swallowed, and glanced over at Jenny. "Is she going to be okay?"

My sister was staring at the space where our dad had just disappeared. She shook herself, and her eyes flickered to me. I saw it when my fear registered with her, and she came over to wrap her arms around my shoulders.

I clung to her as she rocked us. "I don't know."

POV: Rose

Date: October 10, 2011

I had heard them when they entered the room. Mara was so full of horror when she saw me that for a moment I was almost tempted to pull myself out of the induced coma. I was only in deep enough that I appeared to be in critical condition. It was like a perception filter, really.

I'd heard him when he came to my bedside. I felt it when he had leaned down to touch me. "I promised to find you, didn't I?" he'd whispered.

I had forced myself to drift away when his words caused a sharp pain to form behind my eyes. I'd clamped down on the emotions that threatened to ruin my mission. I instead focused on keeping myself still and my breathing even. I had heard it when shots were fired, and I'd felt it when they dragged me over rough terrain, but I did nothing.

"I love you," he'd whispered. Or at least, I thought he had. Somewhere between the sounds of a conflict and someone picking me up, he had taken the time to whisper in my ear again. Hadn't he? I didn't know anymore. The time had started to blur together.

I'd felt myself get dumped on rough grating. The jolt of cold metal connecting with my cheek had almost shaken me back into full consciousness, but the training I had received from Kovarian overrode every other instinct.

I'd let myself sink down farther into oblivion when I felt the TARDIS greet me. I quickly had checked my mental barriers to make sure she wouldn't see any of the secrets I carried. Then, I had carefully shaped my mind so that they wouldn't suspect me. My reactions had to be as real as possible, which meant I wouldn't be allowed to remember much when they were around. That would make this difficult, but not impossible. I was the Bad Wolf. Shaping my mind was nothing compared to some of the things I had already done.

I had heaved a mental sigh, and got to work.

It was a long time before I started to pull myself back up into a fully conscious state. Once I had, the first thing I was aware of was just how bright the room around me was.

"Ah," I moaned when the lights struck against my eyes.

"Rose?" Someone reached out and grabbed onto my hand.

I flinched, and scrambled away from the unknown figure as my eyes adjusted to the room. I was in the TARDIS infirmary. A few bandages covered my body and an IV was plugged into my arm. My first instinct was to escape, and my eyes frantically ranked across the horrid white room that was causing me to panic. For a moment, I forgot that someone was with me, but then I blinked as the Doctor's face registered with my brain. His hand had fallen to the bed sheets and his face looked crestfallen. I could feel his hurt over being rejected.

I opened my mouth. "Doctor?"

He gave me a hesitant smile. "That's me. Hello."

I stared at him with wide eyes. For a moment, I had to contemplate if he was real or not. It wouldn't be the first time Dr. Aliah's machine of pain had induced hallucinations. "Can I—?"

He nodded, took my hand, and pressed it to his face. "See? Real."

I felt the tears well up in my eyes when the warmth from his cheek flooded into my hand. "It's you."

The Doctor let out a small laugh, and carefully reached out to brush my cheek with the back of his hand. "I promised you we'd find each other again didn't I?"

I swallowed, and glanced over at the IV. "What's this for?"

His eyes darkened. "You were in a coma, Rose. You're lucky you didn't die on the trip here. You'll be fine now, though, thanks to me an' the TARDIS."

I bit my lip, and pulled my hand away so I could curl up into a ball. We fell into a silence for a long moment, and I kept my eyes firmly on the sheet I had twisted up in my hand. "Doctor? Um, I don't mean to be a bother but…can I stay in a room less…well…a room painted a different color?"

He nodded, and went to take my hand. I flinched away from him, and tried to ignore the flashes of hurt and guilt that crossed his mind.

"It's alright," he murmured. "I just want to take the IV out."

I swallowed. "I can do that." I yanked out the needle, and ignored the slight sting as I tossed it aside.

The Doctor stared at me for a moment before he offered me his hand. "Shall we?"

I stood on my own, but took his hand once I was back on my feet to keep him from feeling that hurt again. "Lead on."

"Jenny and Mara are in the console room," he informed me as we went out into the long corridor. "But I can make sure the TARDIS keeps them away for a while if you want."

I nodded. "Thank you." As much as I longed to see my girls, I knew I couldn't face them just yet.

We stopped in front of what I remembered to be the door that led our room. He opened the faded blue door and led me inside. He closed it behind us quietly, and watched me cautious eyes.

I looked around the room. It appeared as though no one had really slept in here since I'd been gone.

I rounded to face him. "Have you been sleeping?"

He wouldn't meet my eyes. "I get a few hours in on the library couch, yeah." The Doctor pulled me over to the bed then, and made me sit down.

I captured his hands before he could turn to find me some better clothes. He looked down at me, so torn inside over feeling worry and relief. I stood, and kissed his cheek. "Thank you. Really."

He swallowed, and reached around to grab a loose shirt and sweatpants. "You're welcome."

I went under the covers to change and he turned away. I felt the hurt again, but didn't say anything about it. I tossed the hospital gown aside and carefully sat up. I was starting to feel the soreness in my muscles, and briefly wondered if he had any pain medication.

The Doctor turned back to face me again. His face was carefully neutral. "Do you…do you want me to stay?"

I swallowed, but pulled back the covers. "Just…careful, yeah? I'm still sore."

He nodded, and kicked off his shoes while undoing his tie. The suit jacket got tossed aside with the tie as he crawled in beside me. He was careful to keep himself from touching me. I appreciated the effort, and took one of his hands.

"Rose…" he whispered after a few minutes of silence. "What did they do to you?"

I clenched my teeth and stared down at our hands. "Not tonight, Doctor. I need to sleep."

He nodded, and rubbed my hand with his thumb. "Rose…may I just…can I kiss your forehead?"

I gave him a soft smile, and nodded. He leaned in cautiously, and I closed my eyes. His lips pressed against my bruised forehead, and I let out a soft sigh. The Doctor settled back against the pillows as I curled up into a ball.

"I love you," I heard him murmur.

I let sleep claim me once again.