Chapter Twenty Four
The Doctor glanced worriedly at Quazak as he helped him to walk to the courtyard where the TARDIS was being kept. In front of them Zargon walked and muttered curses under his breath.
"Quazak? You okay?" The Doctor asked.
"I'm fine. Don't worry about me. Just get to Rose. The storm looks like it's getting worse now." He said glancing out a window.
The Doctor nodded.
"Just hold on, I'll get you to med bay and get you stabilized." He said.
He glared at Zargon.
"As for you, I'm giving you a choice. Once we get inside the TARDIS, I'm imprisoning you in a force bubble so you can't wander off and cause trouble. Now, do you want me to drop you off on any specific planet or should I take you to Volag Nok instead?"
He narrowed his eyes.
"And believe me, I'm just itchin' to take you there." He said. "But I'm a man of my word, so talk, where am I dropping off your worthless hide?"
"I don't know." Zargon muttered.
"Well, you just think about it and let me know because otherwise you're going to Volag Nok."
Zargon went back to muttering curses under his breath.
After another couple of minutes, they reached the door to the courtyard. The Doctor grinned from ear to ear when he stepped outside and saw the TARDIS sitting there.
"There you are old girl!" he said happily.
He shoved Zargon forward and reached into his pocket for the TARDIS key. Zargon and Quazak stood quietly while he unlocked the door. He grabbed Zargon by the scruff of the neck and herded him inside.
"TARDIS, activate force bubble." He said shoving him forward.
He knocked on the top of the bubble and satisfied that Zargon was contained, he went back to help Quazak inside.
Quazak's mouth dropped open as the Doctor led him in and shut the door.
"So, this is a TARDIS." He said. "I've only heard about them in legends."
"Well, now you can say you saw one in person." The Doctor said.
He put his arm around his neck and helped him up the ramp. They paused at the force bubble.
"Make yourself at home." He said grinning at Zargon. "I would offer you a snack, but that is too much work for the likes of you, sorry."
He went past the bubble towards the back door as Zargon glared at him.
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"Where is that fool?" Myra muttered to herself. "It's been hours."
She glared at Safira lying in her cot fast asleep. She snorted.
"Forget him, I'll kill the girl myself and just tell everyone she died of her wounds."
Slowly, she walked over to Safira. She stared at her for a moment and then slowly lowered her hands to Safira's neck.
Suddenly, there was a whooshing sound and Myra spun around. She stared in awe as a blue box materialized in the corner of the room. Her eyes widened when the door opened and the Doctor stepped out.
"Well, well, just the lady I was looking for." The Doctor said.
Myra tried to run but the Doctor was on her in a heartbeat. He grabbed her by the neck and forced her left arm behind her back.
"Come this way." He said forcing her to walk to the TARDIS.
He got her inside and up the ramp and then shoved her forward.
"Another force bubble, girl." He said looking up.
Myra tried to run and grunted when she smacked into the side of the bubble.
The Doctor smirked. Whistling, he turned around and walked back out.
"Safira?" he said gently as he kneeled down next to her.
Safira opened her eyes.
"Doc…tor?" she said sleepily.
"Yes, it's me. I'm taking you away from here, Safira. I'm taking you to a new home. Would you like that?"
Safira nodded and smiled.
"Okay, I'm gonna take you in my ship and then we're gonna go get Rose and we'll be on our way."
Gently, he uncovered her and smiled when he saw her wounds had healed considerably. He reached under her and gathered her into his arms.
As he stood and turned, he noticed someone peeking in at them.
"Come here a moment." He said to the young boy. "Don't be afraid. I need you to take a message to everyone for me."
The boy entered the room.
"What's your name?" he asked.
"Drox." The boy replied.
"Drox is there a holoprojector down here?" he asked.
Drox shook his head.
"Then I want you to tell everyone that Zargon has stepped down and his regime is finished. Everyone is free. Let them know that and let them know that Myra was a spy sent to infiltrate this place. I have her on board my ship and I will deal with her, so you don't have to worry about her. I'm also taking Safira and Quazak with me, so there's no need to worry about them either."
He smiled at him.
"You're free, all of you." The Doctor said.
Drox smiled and nodded.
"Now if you'll excuse me, I have other things to take care of. Just be sure to give them the message."
"I will." Drox replied.
"Good."
The Doctor carried Safira inside and shut the door. Drox watched with wonder as the TARDIS dematerialized and then he hurried off to tell everyone the good news.
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The men in the pub lowered their glass bowls when they heard a whooshing sound and saw the TARDIS materializing outside. They hurried outside as the Doctor opened the door.
"Doctor." The bartender said as he stepped up to him.
"Hey, nice to see you again." The Doctor said cheerfully.
"Is it true? Is Zargon finished?" He asked.
"See for yourself."
The Doctor opened the TARDIS door wider and everyone gathered around. They peered inside and saw Zargon and Myra glaring back at them. The crowd let out a cheer, jumped up and down and patted the Doctor on the back as he grinned at them.
"Now, first things first, is Rose here?" he said looking around.
The crowd fell silent. The bartender stepped forward.
"Doctor…she came here earlier wanting a drink. But…at the time I refused her service because she was a rebel and I sent her out of the pub. Doctor…I'm sorry…the holoprojector said---"
"No, it's alright. You did what you felt was right." The Doctor said holding up his hand.
"Did you see where she went?"
The bartender pointed to his right.
"I saw her walk off that way, and later on she walked back the other way and about a half hour after that she walked back the way she had come."
The Doctor looked off to his right.
"Did any of you see where she went?" he asked.
The crowd glanced at each other and shook their head.
"I did, Doctor."
The Doctor turned and saw an elderly lady approaching him from the other side of the street. She pointed off into the distance.
"She walked out of the city about an hour ago." She said. "I was out shopping and watched her do it. She walked into the blizzard."
The Doctor gulped as he stared at the near-zero visibility.
"An hour? So, she didn't hear…oh no." he said as his hearts pounded with fear. "Rose, say you didn't do what I think you did. Oh please, dear Rassilon, let me be wrong."
Without another word, he hurried back into the TARDIS and closed the doors. The crowd backed up quickly and stared in silent awe as it dematerialized in front of them.