A/N: new chappie! enjoy!


Chapter 28: The Marauders

"Why would an entire planet population just disappear without a trace?" Olivia mused to the Doctor, sitting next to the Climate Controller, now in her own clothes but still wearing his overcoat as he paced in front of her. "You think they got crazy enough to think their world was ending and they all left in their space ships?"

"They don't have space ships," he replied, still pacing. "Too crazy."

"Maybe they had a moment of genius?" Olivia shrugged.

"Again, Liv…too crazy," he replied, then stopped and faced her, but seemed to look through her. "I've gotta talk to that mermaid."

"Alright," she nodded, struggling to stand and catching his attention as she strained, "Where can we find her?"

"Oh, no, darling," he gently argued, stepping toward her to sit her back down when she wasn't even halfway to her feet yet. "You need to stay here. You don't have the strength to go out yet. Stay here, love. This shouldn't take long."

"But Theta—"

He lifted a hand and placed a gentle finger on her lips, making her eyes meet his as he smirked, "Doctor's orders. No arguing. I'll only be a bit."

He pressed a quick kiss to her lips before standing and turning to head out of the cave, but turned when he heard her grunting in her struggle to stand and sighed in exasperation.

"Liv, I told you—"

"I know, Theta," she murmured as they met halfway and she pulled his overcoat from her shoulders to hand it to him. "You'll need this. It's a little chilly out there."

He smirked and took his coat from her to pull it on, even though he didn't mind it as much as she did, but he knew she wouldn't give up until he took it. He still smiled warmly at her as she straightened out his collar and brushed some snow from the shoulders and lapels, then wondered why she did it because he was about to go out into the snow again.

"Can't have you looking disheveled," she reasoned to him and herself as to why she brushing the snow away. "What kind of wife would I be if I sent you out of the cave looking like a hot mess?"

"Wife," he scoffed, making her smile as her hands rested on his chest, over his hearts, their eyes meeting as he smirked, "Very funny."

"Is it?" she wondered, knowingly then looked to his tie, noticing it was crooked and started straightening it, shrugging, "I think it would fit, don't you? Olivia Felton: The Doctor's Wife. Would I be Mrs. Doctor, or Mrs. Sigma?"

"Stop, Liv," he murmured, making her frown up at him in wonder and when she met his gaze she realized he was being serious. "Please…don't go there."

"It was a joke, my love," she smiled, slightly. "I was kidding."

"No you weren't," he replied, shaking his head and she swallowed before turning back to straightening his tie a bit more.

"Well, maybe I was half kidding," she admitted, not looking away from her task. "But I know better than to expect that."

"Liv—"

"No time for discussion, Doctor," she smiled at the last word, letting him know she wasn't upset. "Go find that mermaid and talk to her about…whatever it is you need to talk to her about. Just…promise me you won't linger too long. She's…really pretty."

The Doctor smirked, unable to help it as he lifted his hands to hers where they rested on his chest. Their gazes locked as he brought them both to his lips to press them to her fingers.

"Don't be jealous, Liv," he murmured through a warm smile as he lowered her hands, slowly. "The mermaids here are far too cold for my taste anyway."

Olivia smiled and nodded but he noticed the hint jealousy in her gaze before she glanced down. He took her chin into his grasp and brought her face back up to press his lips to hers in a tender kiss before pulling away and grinning as she smiled widely back at him.

"I'll be back in a bit," he winked. "Stay warm in here, yes?"

"Yes, Your Lordship," she nodded with a slight curtsey as he lowered his hands and shoved them into his pockets and she pulled her own coat tighter around her.

"Why do you call me that?" he frowned in wonder. "You called me that once before, too."

"Because you're a Time Lord," she smirked, gripping his arms and turning him around to shove him playfully toward the cave entrance. "Now go investigate!"

"Yes, Mum," he grinned as he strolled out of the cave and Olivia shook her head as she sat back down next to the Climate Controller.

The Doctor strolled toward the frozen lake that was already starting to piece itself back together after the Enurian Yeti stomped the ice apart. He stopped at the edge and licked his lips before whistling to match the tone of the wind whistling through his ears. He stopped when the mermaid slid up from between two ice blocks and slipped onto the snowy surface next to him. He knelt down next to her, a serious expression over his features as she looked back at him, her tail still in the frigid water below.

"You're the one that called me here, yes?" he asked, his brown eyes locking with her icy gaze.

Yes, she responded telepathically, her lips unmoving.

"Because the people have disappeared," he guessed.

They did not disappear, she replied, making him frown in wonder. Only the few from this small area have been taken. But you must hurry, Doctor. They will take the entire planet if they wish. And they wish it.

"Who are 'they'?" he questioned. "Do you know what they want with the Enurians?"

I do not, she answered. They dwell in the caves.

The Doctor's eyes widened as he stared at the mermaid in disbelief before he ground out, "In caves. Caves like the one you just sent me and Olivia into?!"

He didn't wait for an answer as he shot to his feet and just as he turned to run back to the cave, a scream sounded from it. Without another thought he bolted back toward the cave, only to find it empty, the only thing in view being the Climate Controller and Olivia's hat sitting next to it. His hearts pounded in his ears as he breathed hard as he leaned over to lift her hat from the ground then stared down the dark of the cave ahead of him.

"Olivia!" he called. "Can you hear me?! Olivia!"


Meanwhile...

"Don't move," the thing growled in Olivia's ear, one hand over her mouth and the other clutching her waist to pull her back against him, his own back against the stone wall of the cave. "Don't make a sound or we'll kill him and make you watch."

She stared wide eyes at the Doctor, willing him to see through the invisible shielding surrounding herself and her captor. They were right next to him! How could he not hear her heavy breathing? Her heart pounding? She heard it, why couldn't he? He looked around the cave and when he turned toward them, staring right at them, she thought for a moment that he'd seen through the illusion, but he only turned away to scan the cave again.

"Olivia!" he called again, and she wanted to kick him where he stood. He sounded far too calm if he thought she'd been kidnapped…again. "I'm coming for you!"

He turned as if to leave the cave and Olivia took in a breath when she saw him look right her. She looked into his eyes as he murmured, "I promise."

It was then that she realized he hadn't been fooled, and by the look in his eyes, it was killing him to leave her to her captors, but he was obviously outnumbered, and he had to make them think that he was clueless. That was how he did things and she knew it.

She swallowed but relaxed in her captor's arms, making him frown as the Doctor turned to run out of the cave. Once he was outside, Olivia was shoved away then spun around to face her captor's glowing red eyes.

"What did you do?!" he growled, gripping her arms painfully and shaking her slightly as he spoke. Two of his men having hid against the other side of the cave appeared seemingly out of nowhere, dropping their invisible shielding as well.

"I didn't do anything!" she snapped back, trying to free herself from his grasp. "You were right here the whole time! You saw everything!"

She still struggled to be free as her captor nodded to his men before shoving her to one of his men who threw his arms around her over her arms and lifted her as she still struggled. She kicked and thrashed, but it did no good.

"Ooh, what do we have here?" one of the men crooned, stepping toward her and pulling the stun gun from the waist band of her pants. "Pretty's got a weapon."

"There's more to you than meets the eye, isn't there?" the leader grinned at her, making the mistake of coming an inch away from her face. Without a word she spat in his face, making him cringe and jerk back. He wiped his face and glared at her triumphant smirk before backhanding her so hard she fell limp in the other's man's arms, unconscious. "Good, maybe she won't be such a pain now. Let's go."

The three men turned and headed deeper into the cave, unknowing that the Doctor was just outside the entrance, pressed against the stone and had seen the whole thing. His hands were clenched into tight fists of anger as he watched the tall, red-eyed, green-skinned aliens carry Olivia deeper into the cave.

"Cathulians," he ground out, angrily as he turned his head to lean back on the stone and think. "Marauders by the looks of them. But what are they doing here? There's no wealth on Enuria."

You are forgetting you're Enurian history, Doctor.

He looked ahead of him to see the mermaid he'd been speaking to, now standing on ice covered legs.

"I am?" he questioned with a slight frown as she approached him. He never forgot anything.

There is a legend of the Enurian Treasure, the mermaid reminded him.

"That's just a legend," the Doctor argued.

Most legend is based on fact, Doctor.

He looked back into the cave in thought. If that was true, and the Cathulian Marauders were here for the rumored Enurian Treasure, a chest of ice filled to the brim with Gemsytite jewels stolen by an Enurian space captain, then why kidnap Olivia, or the Enurians themselves? What good would it do them? He had to find out, and he had to rescue Olivia, but he would need help.

He turned back to the mermaid and asked, "What was your name?"

Lara.

"Right, Lara," he nodded before smirking, "Know where I can find that Yeti friend of yours?"


Deeper in the Cave...

Olivia awoke silently, remaining limp as she opened her eyes. She glanced around the surrounding darkness only being lit by torches being held by her captors as one of them still carried her. She kept quiet, the throbbing in her cheek reminding her of what happened if she was defiant to this lot. She'd known from the start they were aliens, but they weren't any that she'd encountered before with the Doctor or Torchwood. Jack hadn't even mentioned aliens with green skin and red eyes in the stories he'd told her. She somehow kept herself from gasping when she was hoisted onto a stone slab and closed her eyes again.

"For a tiny human, she sure is heavy!" one of her captors complained, and she heard the jingling of chains around her.

I am not being chained up again! she thought to herself.

Her eyes shot open and she kicked the nearest one of her captors in the gut, sending him to the ground and kicking another one before she sat up. She tried to launch herself from the slab, but screamed when something gripped her hair and pulled her back against it, making her grunt in pain when she landed. Her captor grabbed her wrists and pulled them above her head, the leader of the group hovering above her face as he held her hands with one of his.

"Well, we've got a feisty one here, don't we?" he grinned as Olivia glared at him. "Struggle again, and we'll find that handsome man you came with and kill him, got it?"

Olivia swallowed before relaxing as much as she could, but he still held her hands down.

"Good," he hummed through a smirk. "Now, what do you know about the Treasure of Enuria?"

"The Enurian Treasure?" she grumbled. "What are you talkin' about? That's just a legend."

"Oh, you would think, wouldn't you?" he smirked. "Do you know who we are, dear?"

"The ugliest aliens I've ever seen," she retorted.

"We're Cathulian Marauders," he growled. "We live for treasure."

"I love your rum," she shot back.

The Cathulian glared down at her for a moment before lifting her up with one hand then slamming her down on the slab again. She hissed at the pain that flared in her back and head

"Cooperate with us and you and your partner will get out of this with your lives…maybe," he growled into her face as she opened her eyes, having shut them against the pain. "Now…who are you?"

She groaned and adjusted on the slab as she glared up at him, gritting her teeth before she ground out, "Olivia Felton. Serial number 45309. Torchwood Three."

"That's better," he nodded, smirking down at her again. "Who's the man you came with?"

She glared up at him for a moment before repeating, "Olivia Felton. 45309. Torchwood Three."

He glared down at her before coming an inch away from her face and growling, "How did you get here?"

"Olivia Felton. 45309. Torchwood Three."

"Are you here for the treasure?!"

"Olivia Felton. 45309. Torchwood Three."

"Where is the Enurian Treasure?!"

"Olivia Felton. 45309. Torchwood Three."

"Answer my questions!"

Olivia only stared at him defiantly and he stood tall, still holding her hands above her head with one of his and her heart thumped in panic when he smirked down at her, deviously.

"Alright, then," he grinned. "We'll do this the hard way."

She gritted her teeth to keep herself looking calm, but her mind was reeling at what the 'hard way' could possibly be. The Cathulian gripped her forehead, covering her eyes and a painful presence entered her mind, making her scream and arch her back as the pain spread throughout her body. It reminded her of the Carnak-ay-a on Barcelona. She ground her teeth again and used the telepathic training Jack had given her to try pushing his presence out.

"Oh, ho! Have some training, do you?" he laughed, but frowned when he felt his invasion being pushed out and worked harder to search her mind for the information he needed.

Get out of my head, you ugly marauder! she screamed telepathically.

He shouted in pain when his hand suddenly began burning and he yanked it away as Olivia fell back on the stone slab beneath her, panting from her efforts to push him from her mind. He looked down at her incredulously before his hand came back down on her, this time clamping around her throat, making her eyes shoot open as he brought his face an inch from hers.

"Who trained you?" he growled as she choked, feeling her lungs starting to burn from lack of air. "I've only seen that kind of telepathic training from a Time Agent. Are you a Time Agent?"

She gave out a choked sound as if she were going to respond and he loosened his grip just a bit so that she could choke out, "Olivia Felton. 45309. Torchwood Three."

He growled and shoved away from her to let her wheeze in a breath and cough from being choked.

"Take her to the cells!" he ordered and two of his men pulled her off the slab by her arms. "If she's that important to this guy she showed up with, let him come! We'll pick his brain for information!"

"You have no idea who you're dealing with," Olivia growled, her voice raw as she was dragged past him, struggling against her captors. "You're playing with fire, here!"

"Don't you know Cathulians are Pyromaniacs?!" he shot back, his men roaring with laughter as they dragged her away to shut her up in a jail cell.


One Hour Later...

Olivia shivered as she sat in her cell in the cave, shouting and wailing all around her, but she kept silent. She judged from the cells and the amount of Enurians in them, that the Cathulians had been here for some time. She was surprised to find that the Enurians looked very human, except their eyes were completely white, as if they were blind, and she could see why the Doctor didn't want to come back here. The constant wailing and yelling of nonsense was starting to drive her crazy.

"Alright," she shivered, scooting herself toward the bars of her cell. "I've waited long enough. Gotta meet him halfway."

She leaned back on the frozen floor and started kicking at the base of one of the bars. She hit it hard and winced with every kick she gave it, the cold and the metal of the bar sending shockwaves up her leg, but she ignored it. She had been in worse situations when she was at Torchwood, and she guessed that was the only reason she wasn't panicking the way she was sure she would if it had been four years ago. Her foot starting to feel numb, she quickly rolled onto her other side to pound her other foot into the bar, starting to feel it give way.

"Not…giving…up!" she ground out with each kick she gave the bar.

Just when she thought it would give way, she heard a roar from the end of the hall, making her freeze in her place. She stared wide eyes at the hall, instantly backpedaling on the frozen floor when it shook below her, following the sounds of thumping footsteps.

"Olivia?!"

"Doctor!" she called, attempting to scramble to her feet. She tumbled to the floor again with a shout at the strain on her legs from kicking at the bars. "Dammit! I'm in here, Doctor!"

"Olivia!" she heard him call again, and tried standing again as he slid into view on the other side of the bars and he gripped them to look at her. "What happened?! Are you alright?!"

"Yeah," she grumbled, trying to stand. "I was kicking at the bars trying to—Doctor! Look out!"

The Doctor spun around to see the Cathulian leader raising a weapon to hit him with it, but before the weapon came back down, a huge white, furry paw smacked him away and the Cathulian slammed into the icy wall across the isle of cells. The Doctor spun around and grinned at a wide-eyed and shocked Olivia.

"Look, Liv!" he grinned, pointing behind him. "I've got a Yeti!"

"Yeah, I see that," she nodded, trying to stand again, but finding her legs still numb from kicking the bars, she fell back again. "Dammit!"

"Hang on, Liv," he urged. "Don't move."

He turned and nodded to the Yeti, "Mind gettin' the door for me, Reggie?"

"No, you did not name him," she groaned as the Doctor stepped aside to let the Yeti step in front of the cell. "You're not keeping him."

"He's not my Yeti," he retorted as Reggie pulled the icy bars from their places so that the Doctor could squeeze past him and into the cell to kneel next to Olivia, pulling her hat from the pocket of his over coat and placing her hat on her head and making her giggle up at him. "You said you kicked at the bars?"

"Yeah," she groaned, trying to move her legs. "My legs feel numb."

"Alright, just relax then," he nodded before his eyes landed on her face and she looked up at him with a frown. He lifted a hand to gently grasp her chin, lifting her head to get a better look at the bruises on her neck then lowering it to examine the bruise on her face. "He choked you?"

"I've been through worse," she replied, trying to keep him from becoming angry.

"He hit you and choked you, Liv," he growled, lowly and she realized it was too late. "Stay here."

She said nothing as he stood and marched out of the cell, Reggie catching the Cathulian leader and shoving him up against the wall, a huge paw pressing against his chest as he roared in his face. The Cathulian squirmed as the Doctor stepped next to Reggie, the Yeti unmoving from cornering his prey as the Doctor glared down at the Cathulian leader.

"I'm going to release all these Enurians you've imprisoned," the Doctor reported with a dark glare at the Cathulian Marauder. "While I do that, you will pack up your men and leave."

"Or what, Slim?" the Cathulian choked, still squirming, but managing to smirk.

The Doctor glared down at him before stepping closer and bowing at the waist to meet his red eyes, an inch from the leader's face to growl, "You've already hurt my companion. You don't want to try my patience any more than you have, and you certainly don't want to find out what I'll do if you don't leave, as I've instructed you to. You've tortured these people, and now that I'm here, I won't have it. There is no treasure. Move on."

The Cathulian glared at him, gritting his teeth as he nodded and the Doctor stood tall to turn to head back toward the cell, stepping toward Olivia and kneeling down to pull her into his arms. She threw her arms around his neck as he carried her out of the dungeon, leaving Reggie to release the Enurians in the cells.

"Theta?" she murmured.

"Yes, Liv?" he smiled down at her.

"What the hell took you so long?"

The Doctor gave her a comical glare as she giggled before he threw her over his shoulder, making her give a shout of surprise and laugh as he strolled through the cave. Without missing a beat, she gave a playful slap to his rear, making him jump in surprise which in turn made her bounce on his shoulder and she gave a grunt at her stomach hitting his shoulder.

"Put me down!" she laughed as he stopped.

"But you can't walk," he recalled, and she could hear the smirk in his voice before he snapped his fingers.

"What are you doing?" she frowned in wonder, trying to look around his legs.

He said nothing as he adjusted her on his shoulder again, making her grunt as he stepped forward and she looked up to see the door of the TARDIS shutting behind them. The console also passed her before the Doctor knelt down and sat her in the jump seat then stepping toward the console to flip switches and press buttons, making her frown in wonder.

"So you made a surprise attack in the TARDIS?" she guessed.

"Yup," he replied, popping the 'P' and making Olivia giggle as he still operated the console of the TARDIS.

"Where are we going now?"

"Back outside."

"Really?"

"You didn't think we were leaving yet, did you?" the Doctor grinned at her before slapping a lever into place and the engines made their beautiful sound. "We're not finished here yet. We need to speak to Lara."

"Who's Lara?" Olivia frowned before realization hit her and she breathed, "The mermaid?"

"Right you are," he replied, running around the console before the engines stopped and he looked to her in wonder to find her twiddling her thumbs in her lap. "Liv?"

"You call her Lara?" she mumbled, not looking at him.

He smirked and strolled toward her to sit next to her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders to pull her close and press a kiss to her temple.

"How're your legs?" he wondered and when she only shrugged he leaned his head over to catch her gaze. Her bruised cheek was facing him and the sight pained his hearts. "Does your face hurt? Or your neck?"

"It stings a bit," she murmured, making his hearts clench so tightly he almost couldn't breathe. "My legs don't feel so numb now, though. I think I can walk."

"I should've let Reggie pound that Cathulian into pulp," he growled.

"That's not how you do things, Theta," she murmured, finally looking up at him with a warm smile that made him smile. "Now, why do we need to speak to Lara again?"

"Because she's gonna show us where the treasure is," he grinned, standing to help her stand as she frowned at him, but concentrated on standing.

"I thought there was no treasure," she wondered, stumbling slightly as her legs tried to support her and the Doctor wrapped his arms around her to steady her.

"That's what I told him," he grinned down at her as she gripped his arms to steady herself and he leaned next to her ear to whisper, "The treasure is real, Liv."


A/N: reviews?