Travels in Time and Space

By Lumendea

Chapter Twenty-Five: God of War: Portal

Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or any of the spinoff material and I gain no income off of this story, just the satisfaction of playing with the characters.

AN: Normally the characters cooperate, but not this episode! They want to talk and joke! I swear that the next chapter will finish this abnormally long episode.

…

The hidden room was still open with Rose and Alistair reached the main level of the bunker. Rose turned on her phone's light and made a not to add a small torch to her shoulder bag. She was sure that she'd had one at some point and couldn't remember taking it out. The room was just as bad as she'd imagined. It was too dark with the pods each giving off a faint light. Alistair fumbled around behind her and a moment later a series of lights came on. Turning around, Rose found Alistair holding a small round switch on the wall beside the door.

"Seemed like there should be a light."

"Good call."

Leaning forward, Rose examined the nearest pod carefully. The outer layer was transparent but took her weight without so much as a creak. It was at a slight angle, allowing the body inside to recline against what looked like a softly padded back. There were no visible tubes or any sign of life support. The man inside looked to be in his late thirties, in good shape, and in some kind of uniform though it wasn't familiar. He wasn't visibly breathing.

"Are they alive?" Alistair asked.

"I'm not sure," Rose said. She looked at the small control panel alongside the pod in the wall. "The readings make me think so. There seems to be some kind of passive life support. Something laced into the air, but they aren't breathing."

"Lovely."

"Sorry, I'm neither the Doctor or a doctor."

"How long have you been wanting to use that?" Alistair asked drily. Rose didn't answer and pulled out the phone to look at it again. "He'll be fine. Good move on giving him the phone though."

"Yeah, but last time I saw him using a phone, he turned the damn thing off. Hopefully, he'll reach the other bunker soon." Rose looked at the stairs. "I'm going to see if I can find something in the computer. Maybe the Doctor missed something in his rush."

Alistair followed Rose upstairs and she went to the nearest terminal. Thankfully, the layout of the controls was fairly similar to what she was used to. "Thank goodness to similar species," Rose muttered. There wasn't a chair for her to use, but with a few taps of the controls, she was able to access a menu.

It was old-fashioned to her. There were a few lines of code recording recent activity and a blinking cursor for her to add something. To the side, the various buttons had translated letters on them thanks to the TARDIS, but there were extras like ie, qu, and ea. Rose hesitated on what to type.

"Rose?"

"Uh, not sure what to look for," Rose answered.

"Pod people."

Rose snorted and looked back at Alistair, who was smiling slightly even as he kept an eye on the doorway. "Did you just make a joke?"

"I am very capable of humor Dame Rose."

"Oh, that I don't doubt Sir Alistair." Rose shook her head. "Let's try pod and go from there."

…..

The Doctor found the third bunker with relative ease. Using the sonic screwdriver, he opened it quickly and marched down. It was dark and cold, colder than it should have been and the Doctor frowned in worry. He listened at the base of the staircase, but there was no sound of movement. Instead, all he could hear was a strange high hum that put his nerves on edge. None the less, he walked further into the bunker and pulled out the phone Rose had given him. Using it as a light, he walked forward. There was a slight layer of dust here that made him frown. This location hadn't been used in a while, but something was still running.

A faint light came into view as he moved around a corner. It was a soft pale blue and pouring out of a side room. The Doctor stopped and listened again for any movement before stepping forward into the room. On the far side was an open portal. It was suspended off the ground and away from the wall by a series of pulleys that linked to the metallic frame containing the wormhole. The portal shimmered. It was round and small, but a strange silver sheen bubbled horizontally on the surface.

"Physical event horizon," the Doctor muttered. "That's not good."

He stepped closer and after a moment of hesitation, leaned forward so he could listen. The hum was overpowering, but there were soft voices that he could just hear. They were shouting, threatening, and making sounds of excitement. Jumping back, the Doctor sniffed at the air carefully. Then something pressed against the event horizon. It tried reaching out towards him, creating the impression of a face in the horizon. He could see an open mouth as it tried to speak and silver covered hands reached for him.

"No, not today." The Doctor moved around to the side of the portal and examined the frame. With a flick of the sonic screwdriver, he opened a small compartment. There were several tiny glowing circuits. Using his finger and the end of the sonic screwdriver, the Doctor leveraged one out. It snapped and the room went pitch black.

"That was easy," the Doctor said. He pulled the phone out again and stumbled his way back to the staircase, still holding the broken circuit. Outside wasn't much brighter at this point and the wind was getting worse. The Doctor slipped the circuitry into his pocket and after a moment of looking at the phone called Rose.

"Hello, Rose," he greeted. "Found a portal. Shut it down."

"We haven't found much," Rose said as the Doctor started walking. "I'm in the computer system, trying to find something on the pods downstairs, but no luck. Do you think the portal is the end of it?"

"I think we've stopped the main plan, at least for now," the Doctor said.

"It's that easy?"

"Oi, I just had to walk across a post-apocalyptic landscape!"

"It was only two miles, Doctor."

"Two miles in a nasty wind!"

"Are you coming back now?" Rose asked. "We still have War prowling around somewhere and the pods to deal with."

"I'm on my way," the Doctor promised. "Just keep an eye on Alistair."

"I will."

The call ended the Doctor shoved the phone back into his pocket. Then he started walking through the ruins of the old city. Something golden sparkled at the edge of his vision, making him blink and look around sharply. There was nothing around him, just a dead world. Shaking his head, he started running towards the bunker as a feeling of unease gathered in his gut.

…

"Anything yet?" Alistair asked.

Rose rolled her eyes as the latest search came up with nothing. Alistair was pacing behind her like a caged lion. "No, nothing yet."

"So if the Doctor closed this portal then what do we do now?"

"Well, I'm guessing the next step will be to deal with those bodies downstairs if they are still really alive. Then we still have War to worry about."

"Blast it," Alistair grumbled. "I was retired, Rose. You remember that. I was retired before I met you."

"I remember. It's not my fault UNIT asked you to come back, but in light of traitors surely you can understand that."

"Rose!"

The sudden alarm made Rose spin around to find Alistair pointing his firearm at a shimmering area of light. War flickered before them and took a step towards Alistair. Rose jumped in front of Alistair, pushing him back before the general could do more than sputter in protest. Summoning her sword, she brought it up at the ready.

"Give it up, War," Rose said. She straightened up and lifted her chin. "You can't beat a Star Knight. This sword can kill you. Leave."

"I can't leave," War said. His voice echoed in the room. He moved over to the nearest pod and Rose had the sense that he was studying the body inside of it. "It took all I had to break back into the universe once more. But I opened a way. There are other Eternals who will not be content to remain. They will come. Their ally will help them find the way."

"Ally?" Rose stopped herself and shook off her curiosity. "What did you do to these people? What are they here for?"

"Empty vessels," War said. "Waiting to be filled."

"By Eternals?" Rose asked. At least that saved her sorting through files. "Or something else?"

"Stopping me won't stop their return. The way is open. I tore it open, I ripped apart the seal and dragged myself through. It proves that we can return. They will return." A strange chuckle filled the room. Rose took a step back and War looked at Alistair once again, its features flickering into view for a split second. "I was your best chance. I would have contained them. If you stop me and the Monk finds a way to open the breach wider then they will all return in their true forms."

"Who is the Monk?"

War didn't answer. Instead, the form shimmered and zapped through the air like lightning towards Alistair. On impulse, Rose threw herself forward and brought her sword up. There was a shriek and the beam of light shifted direction. It bounced off a wall and zipped down the staircase towards the pods.

Rose and Alistair rushed down the stairs. The lights were flickering and a pod on the far side of the room was glowing. Alistair began to move forward, but Rose grabbed his arm and pulled him back. Summoning her sword, she placed herself between Alistair and the pod, moving forward slowly. Then the pod opened with a hiss.

A body stepped out, its uniform slightly moist and made of dark material that stretched over broad shoulders. The body stumbled into the wall before War straightened up. The Eternal made a small sound of pain and looked down at his hands. "Flesh… amazing." War rubbed his fingers together thoughtfully. "Remarkable." War turned and looked over at them with a smug smile.

The body was taller than most humans on Earth, standing about 6'8". It had pale green eyes and dark hair with pale skin though Rose didn't know if that was natural or not. Alistair gripped Rose's arm and pulled her back.

"If you had so many bodies, why did you even need me?"

War's smile vanished and his eyes jumped over to Rose's sword. She brought it up and glanced over at Alistair in concern. War didn't move closer to them. Instead, he rolled his shoulders and inhaled slowly.

"So," Rose said. "What now?"

It said nothing. It lunged for them. Rose swung the sword. War's eyes widened with a flicker of panic, but he raised a hand to protect himself. The air shimmered and the sword collided with a field of energy. A shock ran up the blade and through Rose's arm, causing a jolt of pain. She gasped and noted that even War looked surprised.

"Well," War said. "It seems that this new form has some tricks."

The eyes began to glow a dull red color. Waves of air rippled out around him, pushing Rose back and changing the pressure in the room. Rose's ears popped and she tried attacking again, but once again, she hit some kind of shield. Spinning around, Rose grabbed Alistair's arm as he started firing at War. None of the small bolts of energy impacted. Rose pulled Alistair up the stairs, shouting for him to run. He resisted for a moment, still firing the firearm and stumbling behind her. Then thankfully, he turned and began to move.

They scrambled out onto the surface. Behind them, War was lamenting not using a new body right away. In the distance, Rose could see the figure of the Doctor working his way towards them. They both broke into dead runs, Alistair making an odd sound of pleasure at his renewed physical ability. Rose's lungs were burning by the time she could see the Doctor's wide blue eyes. She risked a glance behind her. War was marching behind them, a veil of reddish energy surrounding him and a wide grin on his face.

The Doctor grabbed her hand as soon as she was close enough. "Rose?"

"War, he took over a body and now has some kind of force field! My sword couldn't connect."

"Firearm didn't work either," Alistair said.

"That's not supposed to happen," the Doctor said. Then he pulled on Rose's hand. "Come on. It's probably the effect of the quantum field he went through."

"What do we do?"

"Well… if I can quickly fix a portal, we can try sending him back."

They were running again, Rose holding onto the Doctor's hand as he guided her and Alistair towards the entrance to the third bunker. He hadn't bothered to close the door and Rose pulled out her phone as they descended the staircase. They made it into the portal room and the Doctor released Rose's hand and dashed over to the corner where he pulled out the broken circuit and the phone to light his way.

"How will it pull him in?" Alistair demanded.

"I'll have to adjust the power, you two have to keep him busy."

"Will it suck us in to?"

"Not unless either of you have passed through a very specific quantum field without my knowing."

The Doctor didn't look over at the pair. He was fitting the circuit back into place and cursing himself for breaking it in the first place. It had been a daft move and now as he used the sonic screwdriver to carefully reconnect every tiny metallic wire, he was paying for it. A low laugh echoed down into the room. The Doctor hissed as the circuit finally connected to the rest of the machine. He flicked the sonic screwdriver and the portal began to hum. Rose summoned her sword and he glanced worriedly towards her.

"Why did he want my body then?" Alistair asked.

"Maybe to keep me from fighting him, maybe for information on me that you know or maybe he was hoping your exposure to artron radiation would be useful." The Doctor used the sonic screwdriver to adjust the internal settings of the portal. "He's war, he wanted a great warrior and you're high on the list."

"Not sure that's flattering."

"That's how it goes sometimes."

War stormed into the room, his eyes jumping to the portal as he smiled. The red glow around him illuminated the room and Rose raised her sword on instinct. War eyed it and outright laughed. The Doctor tore his eyes away and fumbled with another wire, the hum of the sonic screwdriver echoing in the room with War's laughter.

"I have transformed, Star Knight!" War shouted at Rose. "I have no fear of your blade or of the Guardians!"

"You're in a mortal form," Alistair snapped. "That has its limitations."

"Look at yourself General," War replied. "Do you think age will matter. The War Lords did that and I can do more."

"Really cocky for a being that only just got that body," Rose retorted. "It might collapse on you, it might fall apart, or that energy field you're generating might burn it up!"

The Doctor couldn't help but smile despite the urgency of the situation. Then the red glow in the room intensified. Rose jumped forward, swinging her sword at War. It easily dodged the strike and waved his hand. The red field expanded, colliding with Rose and sending her falling to the floor. The Doctor's body tensed. His fingers tightened around the sonic screwdriver. He forced himself to focus on the settings. The hum of the portal machine shifted, it was a tiny chance, but it made his hearts beat a little faster. The portal machine blasted on, bathing the room in pale blue light that contrasted with War's red.

Alistair lunged to block War as he reached for Rose. He fired the firearm, distracting War for a moment as he looked at Alistair. With a growl, War grabbed Alistair around the neck and lifted him off of the ground. The red field rippled over Alistair's skin and the Doctor's old friend grunted in pain, gritting his teeth.

Rose was on her feet and lashed forward with her left fist. The red field rippled around her, holding her back. Adjusting the sonic screwdriver, the Doctor used his thumb to change the setting and the portal machine began to shake. War stopped and the field around him flickered. The Doctor glanced between War and the portal as he changed the frequency. A sharp sound filled the room and War dropped Alistair as his feet began to slid across the room. Panic filled the Eternals face and he tried to grab Rose. She ducked out of the way and knelt down next to Alistair. The portal kept pulling and the Doctor grinned.

"Say hi to the other Eternals," the Doctor said cheerfully.

War glared at him. He grasped frantically at the edges of the portal machine, but the pull was too strong. Screaming, War's feet were pulled out from under him and sucked through the portal. The machine began to shake, but the Doctor kept the sonic screwdriver linked to the controls. War body convulsed, fighting frantically even as inch by inch he vanished. The field of red energy was dimming. War lost his grip and fell through the port. The red glow vanished through the portal which sputtered.

Jumping back from the metal frame, the Doctor grabbed Rose and pulled her against his chest while Alistair dove for the door. Sparks flew through the room. With a sharp metallic squeal, the frame collapsed. The chains holding it up snapped and it crashed to the floor, closing the portal and plunging the room into darkness.