The Tyler Factor
By Lumendea
Chapter Twenty-Five: The Dreaming: Lights in the Sky
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.
….
Rose stuck close to the Doctor as he began his many repairs of the ship's system, even running into the TARDIS multiple times with vague descriptions of spare parts packed into one of the many storerooms. Thankfully what she was looking for always seemed to find its way to the top of a worktable when she stepped into the rooms. It was a nice distraction, she was getting an odd vibe off of Tegan and Ace and had the feeling that one of them really wanted to say something that she didn't want to hear.
Michael was staying near them, a look of intense concentration on his face as he watched how the Doctor handled each little component. Sometimes the Doctor even stopped his work to explain something to Michael directly and with much more patience than Rose had ever seen from him before. It reminded him of when he'd been her teacher when she was younger and Rose briefly wondered when the Doctor became so good at calmly explaining things. In his earlier body, he tended to rush through things, barely explaining anything at all and then acting as if the person he'd been explaining things to was an idiot. Rose wondered if it was a quirk of this body or he'd finally managed to learn realm patience.
"Nervous Michael?" the Doctor asked after he finished explaining the basics of the wiring system.
"Of course," Michael admitted with a thick swallow. "I'm still going, this is the chance of a lifetime, a chance to really make a difference."
"Do you have a family?" Rose asked softly with a small frown.
"No, it's just me. My parents died two years ago in a car crash and I was an only child. If I was married I wouldn't have volunteered, that wouldn't have been fair."
"Agreed," the Doctor said with a nod. "For what it's worth, I think you'll do an amazing job." He clapped Michael on the shoulder. "Come on, I'll show you how to access the viewing screens so that you can see what's out there as you travel." There was the sound of a few things being soniced and a laugh of triumph. "Alright," the Doctor shouted as he popped up from the lower panels. There was a smudge of something dark on his cheek that looked like oil, but Rose wasn't willing to bet on it. "That's everything, the ship can now phase out of the mountain and leave the planet."
"Michael," Tegan said gently. "You don't have to do this you know."
"I know," Michael said, inhaling deeply and giving Tegan a small smile. "But I want to, Tegan. Really I do."
"You'll regret it, you'll miss Earth and you won't have anyone around."
"I'll be alright Tegan," Michael insisted, stepping forward to hug her. "I'm going on an adventure that lets me make a difference. Please try to be happy for me."
Rose thought she heard Tegan sniff, but the woman nodded and tightened her grip on Michael for a moment. The Doctor stepped up next to them, looking unsure of what to do before he placed his and on Tegan's shoulder for a moment.
"Tegan," the Doctor called. "He'll be alright, but it's time for us to go. I need to get the TARDIS out of here before all the animals are recalled."
Tegan sniffed softly, releasing Michael and nodded. "Are the others on the TARDIS?"
"I took care of that," Ace told her, interjecting uncomfortably. "They aren't exactly comfortable, but they're inside."
"We won't be long," the Doctor said with a smile and nod, his hand still on Tegan's shoulder. "Good luck Michael."
"Thank you, Doctor," Michael replied, straightening up and looking rather proud of himself.
Rose hoped that he'd be alright, what he was about to do seemed crazy, but maybe it wasn't with the right person. She glanced at the Doctor and he smiled at her, his green eyes bright with the familiar 'I know something you don't know' energy. With a snap of the Doctor's fingers, the TARDIS doors opened. Wanting to give Tegan a moment to collect herself and finish goodbye, Rose nodded to Ace and they stepped into the TARDIS.
Stopping suddenly, Rose looked around the console room in surprise. The bright brass and glass control room was gone, replaced with a dark metal room. Above the TARDIS column were two large wheel looking things with Gallifreyan script on them. The console itself seemed much smaller and more compact, gone were the odd bits and pieces from the Ninth Doctor's TARDIS. She hoped that was a good sign, but wasn't sure. Two sleeping men were gently propped up against another panel of controls to the side of the main console.
"It's changed again," Rose remarked softly. It was attractive she supposed, but she knew that she'd miss the brass design. Of course, she'd miss the coral too.
"I'm surprised that the TARDIS still smells the same," Ace remarked softly, walking over to the sleeping men and gently checking on them.
"How are they?" Rose asked, moving to join her.
"Still asleep, but their breathing is normal. I just don't know what the ship used. I'm a bit worried."
"I'm sure they'll be okay," Rose assured her. "The Doctor can be a little…. Distracted at times, but he values life too much not to be worried if they weren't okay."
The conversation was cut short by the Doctor and Tegan coming into the TARDIS. Tegan lingered by the door as it closed while the Doctor strode over to the console. He glanced Rose's way, his eyes taking the two extra passengers as Tegan walked over to join them. After a few moments of the Doctor pressing buttons and pulling levels the familiar grinding sound of the TARDIS rumbled in the console room.
The TARDIS shook as they moved and Rose gripped the railing tighter. The Doctor didn't seem concerned by it and jumped over the prone forms of the two men who were shifting across the floor. Lunging forward, Rose grabbed one of them, almost falling on her face and tugged him back towards the rail where she could keep hold of him. Nearby Tegan did the same with Ace's help.
"Bit bumpier than usual," the Doctor called as he threw a large switch. "But we're almost done."
"What's going on Doctor?!" Tegan shouted.
"Like I said, there's some issues between the TARDIS and the animals' energy. We're passing through the same space as them right now." The Doctor shook his head, "Probably should have gone all the way into the vortex, but didn't want to risk arriving too much later!"
Then the rumbling stopped and Rose heard the normal wheezing of the TARDIS for a moment before everything settled into place.
"Okay, we're back outside the mountain," the Doctor called, looking over at them. "It should be quite a show ladies."
Rose was first to the door and threw it open. They were in the car park and a quick glance around assured her that Tegan's SUV was still there. Above her head, the night sky was starting to flicker with light. Stepping out of the TARDIS, Rose grinned and looked straight up into the night sky. Behind her, she heard Tegan and Ace step outside with small sounds of awe and excitement.
Pulling out her phone, Rose raised it up and quickly started recording the flashing colours in the sky. Around them, a strong wind was blowing and Rose could barely keep her hair out of her face. The Doctor was laughing with excitement and Rose couldn't help but let a little laugh escape her.
Across the dark sky, brilliant animals made of different coloured lights were appearing, lighting up the night sky. They were running, jumping, swimming and flying through the air, all of them headed towards the Uluru. The shimmering figures circled Uluru, the glow becoming brighter and brighter until all of a sudden all of the animals cried out as one. It was a blend of birds chirping, eagles crying, lions roaring and hundreds of other sounds all blending together into a noisy symphony.
The lights swirled together, forming an eddy of light right above the mountain. It was so intense and bright that Rose had trouble even looking at the blending of reds, golds, blues and violets. The ground rumbled beneath their feet and Rose couldn't breathe. In one blast of light, like a surge of water, the swirl of light shot down into the mountain. The pillar of light was too bright, forcing Rose to shield her eyes. There was a loud humming sound coming from within the mountain and for a terrible moment, Rose was terrified that Uluru was about to fall apart.
There was a charge of energy in the air for a moment, so strong that it was hard to breathe, but a moment later a large shimmering shape rose up from the mountain like a ghost. It was barely visible, just a shimmer of pale light surrounded by the brilliant shades, but Rose did her best to focus on it. The ship rose slowly through the air, the creatures vanishing inside of it in brilliant flashes of colour. In a swirl of colour everything collided and for a moment Rose was able to see the ship clearly, its large almond shape gleaming in the night sky. There was a loud thrum and the ship blasted up and out of site. Then everything went silent and still as the night sky returned to normal, leaving Rose looking up at many constellations she'd never seen before.
"Couldn't you have towed the thing?" Tegan asked with a soft sigh of regret. "So Michael didn't have to go?"
"Yeah I probably could have towed it from a distance, the TARDIS is stronger than she looks," the Doctor admitted, "But your friend Michael is going to be needed on that ship. Trust me Tegan he's where he should be."
"But he'll be dead before they even reach the planet!" Tegan shouted, looking at the Doctor with a hurt and betrayed expression that made Rose flinch.
"No they won't," the Doctor assured her in a rush. "I gave the engines a little boost and I may have slipped some special medicine into the system that feeds the pilot."
"What did you slip in?" Rose asked with a soft smile, coming up to stand next to the Doctor.
"Oh, just a little something to boost his health and slow down his ageing a bit."
"That might just confuse him," Rose remarked.
"You said that he'd be old when he got there!" Tegan snapped, glaring at the Doctor.
"He needed to know the worst case scenario," the Doctor told Tegan firmly. "He needed to understand what he was giving up before he made the choice. If anything goes wrong then he will be old by the time they get there."
"You were testing him," Ace huffed, a hint of disapproval in her voice. "He's still stuck on that ship alone for decades."
"Hey, I thought I was quite nice!" The Doctor protested with a pout. "I boosted the engines for him, I gave him medicine to keep him healthy enough to enjoy the new planet once he gets there and I copied the TARDIS media library into the ship's databanks."
"You did what?" Rose asked, slightly stunned. "Copied everything?"
"Yeah, all the movies, television shows and digital books that we've collected."
"That's a lot then?"
"Well, he'll know how the next set of Star Wards movies are before you lot will."
"There's going to be a new set of Star Wars movies?" Ace repeated. "Really? After the last set?"
"Yep, but Disney will own the rights then."
Ace and Tegan were now looking rather confused but recovered quickly enough to glare at the Doctor.
"And why couldn't you just tow the ship Doctor?"
"Because your friend Michael is going to be talking to more than a few aliens on his way there, he builds the relationship foundations that will protect that new planet. Plus, he's also due to cross paths and save a young space explorer who will join him in about two years if I remember my history correctly. They settle down together and protect the world until they're old and are successful in establishing it as a special designation wildlife reserve. Their kids are just as active in protecting the animals."
"So he's making real history," Rose said as she looked up into the dark night sky. "Fixed point?"
"No, but a nice enough story that I didn't want to change anything. Two hundred years from now in that part of the galaxy he's considered an inspiring figure. Has a few schools named after him and a holiday." The Doctor turned to look at Tegan with a soft smile. "I know you'll miss him Tegan, but really he's going to be just fine."
She sighed softly but then nodded. Rose thought she still looked angry and Rose decided that she couldn't blame Tegan for that. The Doctor hadn't shared any of that earlier and had purposefully frightened Michael to test him. Wrapping her arm around the Doctor's, Rose shook her head slightly. He would never be completely human, always a little strange to them.
With the Doctor's help, they carried the two still unconscious men to Tegan's SUV and got them belted in. While Tegan made worried noises, the Doctor assured her that they were going to be just fine and would wake up within two hours. Rose just wondered how weird it was going to be to get them into a hospital or at least the local clinic. She glanced at Ace who was eyeing them with a similarly irritated expression.
"We'll just say that we found them near the car park after the weird lights vanished," Rose suggested with a small shrug. "The clinic shouldn't ask too many questions."
"That light show would have been visible for miles," Ace remarked, looking back into the sky. "I suspect there's going to be a lot of questions about it, probably won't be too many about a pair of unconscious men."
"And if there is then Tegan can handle it," Rose offered with a little smile.
"Well ladies," the Doctor said dramatically, "It's time for me to be off." He spun on his heel and swept Tegan up in a warm hug. After a moment of surprise, Tegan smiled and returned the hug.
"I'd tell you to stay out of trouble Doctor, but really what's the point," Tegan said as the Doctor set her back on her feet. She didn't look happy with him, but there was an expression of resignation on her face.
"As I once told my mother in law, trouble is just the bits in between," the Doctor replied before spinning to hug Ace.
Rose had to bite back a laugh at the very idea of her mother being the Doctor's mother-in-law. It was just so ridiculous and oh guardians of the universe she hoped they would get along. She had trouble envisioning the leather wearing Doctor and her mum getting along, but hoped that pinstriped Doctor and Jackie would.
"Mother-in-law," Ace laughed as she hugged the Doctor. "Now that's a strange concept for you." Ace smiled up at the Doctor before her expression turned serious. "I'm happy for you Doctor, don't doubt that but be careful cause if you hurt Rose I'll have to kill you."
"There'd be a line, trust me on that," the Doctor told her honestly with a soft smile. "But understood Ace, you take care of yourself."
Rose smiled as the Doctor turned to her and stepped forward. As his arms wrapped around her, she whispered, "I love you, but next time just tell us what's going on before you cause a nervous breakdown."
He didn't reply, just hugged her a little tighter, maybe as a silent apology. As he pulled back, the Doctor kissed her quickly and squeezed her hand.
"Stay out of trouble," he told Rose with a grin.
"I make no promises," Rose answered with a shake of her head. "Get going Trouble."
The Doctor laughed and stepped back into the TARDIS, the doors closing behind him a moment later. Rose sighed softly and stayed still as the TARDIS vanished into the night. The three of them were left standing alone in the quiet car park, but in the distance, Rose thought she could hear more vehicles, probably people speeding towards the mountain to find out what had just happened.
"So did you record the whole thing?" Tegan asked as they slowly started walking back to her SUV.
"Most of it," Rose replied. "Thought I'd send it out to the club."
"Ah, a guess what we did today video," Ace laughed, glancing towards Tegan.
"Oh stop that," Tegan snapped, giving them both a look. "I'm fine, I'm irritated with that blasted alien of yours Rose, but I'm fine. Michael will be okay, that's good to know and regardless of my feeling on the matter I know that he'll be happy making a difference."
Still, Rose paused and reached over to give Tegan a one armed hug. On the other side, Ace did the same and they nearly fell over as they kept trying to walk to the SUV. Tegan laughed and shrugged off their arms when they all nearly tripped on a speed bump.
"So what now?" Ace asked, looking over at Rose. "I'm not due back in New York for a few more days. I thought this would take longer."
"Me too," Rose agreed with a small smile and nod. "But we should go and meet Tegan's kids!"
"Very true," Ace replied with a widening, almost evil smile. "They should have a chance to meet Mummy's friends."
"I agree, we have all sorts of stories we can tell them," Rose added, looking at Tegan who was turning an interesting shade of red with wide eyes "But right now we should probably get out of here before UNIT Australia descends on us," Rose added a bit more seriously.
"Doesn't UNIT like you?" Tegan asked, snapping out of her stunned silence.
"Yeah, but I want to meet you kids and then maybe spend a few days in Sydney to see the sights and spend some time on the beach. It's winter right now in England after all. I'd rather not be stuck making statements."
"So you won't be telling them?" Ace asked with a slight frown.
"Oh no, I'll tell them once I'm ready to go home. I'll fill out all the reports and submit a full written statement that will largely consist of: the Doctor did it," Rose assured them with a giggle. "I wouldn't get paid otherwise."
"There are moments I sort of hate you," Ace remarked, shaking her head and climbing into the passenger seat. "Though your plan for Sydney sounds good, want some company?"
"Of course Ace," Rose agreed with smile as she carefully climbed in next to the two unconscious men. "Wouldn't be half as much fun without you."
"Okay you two that's enough," Tegan cut in, shaking her head, but she couldn't hide her small smile of amusement. She climbed into the front seat and started the SUV. "You can meet my kids, but then I'm kicking you to the curb. I'll have a lot to do in helping the locals deal with this mess."