The Doctor followed Penkh into the back of the ship, keeping an eye on the Judoon as he passed them. They walked past holding cells of several different sizes. As they walked, Penkh told him, "As you can see, everything here is in order. We have all the facilities necessary for a smooth and orderly transport for the criminal off the planet."
The Doctor nodded, brow furrowed thoughtfully. "So, tell me more about this criminal of yours," he pressed. "This Awk fellow you're after. What is he wanted for?"
"Nine years ago, Awk was one of several leaders of a terrorist organization on my planet," Penkh explained. "He's responsible for the deaths of countless Avians. We managed to stop the terrorists, but Awk escaped the planet. He's been wanted ever since."
The Time Lord raised an eyebrow. "Alright, but you said that was nine years ago," he pointed out. "Has it really taken you that long to find him?"
Penkh shook his head gravely. "No. Very recently, a new band of terrorists has formed, taking after the example of Awk and those who followed him. They know that Awk escaped last time. They see him as a sort of rallying point, like some sort of vigilante hero. If he attacked our country and got away with it, why can't they?" He lifted his muzzle sternly, eyes narrowed as he continued, "We decided to pull in every resource we could to track him down. To show the terrorists that what they are doing will not be tolerated, and that even their hero will have to face the punishments for his crimes."
So that was why Awk was suddenly being hunted. The rebellion on Iree had started up again, and they wanted to take away the hope of the rebels.
The Doctor cleared his throat. "Well, that's all well and good," he said matter-of-factly, "and normally I'd say that's quite alright. But, and this is a pretty big but, what you're doing here is illegal."
Penkh stiffened, his feathers ruffling slightly as the Doctor continued, "This is a Level Five planet. Your Judoon over there don't have the jurisdiction to be here, let alone conduct a criminal investigation. If you wanted to extract a fugitive from this planet, you needed to put a request through the Shadow Proclamation."
The admiral's gaze darted away, the feathers on the back of his neck ruffling tensely. "I was not aware of this," he said stiffly. "I apologize. Once we have Awk in out custody, we'll sort it out."
The Doctor continued on as if the admiral hadn't spoken. "And even if that was the only thing you did wrong, I still might be inclined to listen. Except, there's one teensy little mistake you made." The Time Lord's expression suddenly became serious, his voice hard as he said, "You tried to kill me when you thought I was human. You've got orders to kill any human that gets too nosy. That tells me you're worried about word getting out about the invasion of the rhino aliens, and you're willing to kill to keep it quiet. And that tells me that you're not really the kind of leader I'd want ruling me."
Penkh turned to glare at him, all pretense of being friendly gone. He seemed to realize that he was cornered."What do you want?" he snapped.
"For you to leave this planet and never come back," the Doctor replied immediately. That was the best-case scenario he could hope for. If he managed to scare the Avians away from coming back to Earth ever again, maybe Awk still had a chance at a life here.
Penkh stared coolly at the Doctor, measuring him. "You're really not going to let this go?"
"Nope."
The admiral looked past the Doctor and gave a short nod. Before the Time Lord could move, there were two Judoon pinning his arms behind his back and forcing him to his knees. He tried to pull himself loose, but the Judoon were too strong. He had to settle for glaring up at Penkh. "I guess I should have seen this coming," he said lightly. Although, to be fair, he probably should have.
Penkh ignored him. The Avian turned to the Judoon, his tone tight and anxious. "Double your patrols. I want Awk captured so we can get off this damn rock before someone realizes he's missing."
"Do you you want us to kill him, Admiral?" one of the Judoon grunted.
Penkh rubbed the back of his neck anxiously, his feathers still ruffled. "What, kill a member of the Shadow Proclamation with a Judoon weapon? There'd be a manhunt to find the culprits, and how long do you think it would take for us to be found out?" The Avian paused, his feathers starting to lie flat again. He turned to one of the Judoon. "Go to the human village. Find one of their weapons. If he's found killed by a human weapon, they'll just think he got caught on a mission here and paid the price with his life. No reason to suspect we were ever here."
The Judoon nodded, turning and exiting the room. The Doctor watched all this with vague concern. He wasn't too worried about actually being killed. If anything, the reformation energy might be enough to knock them down long enough for him to escape. But he didn't really feel like regenerating today. Donna would definitely kill him if he showed up with a new face without warning. Besides, he rather liked this regeneration. It would be a shame to lose it so soon.
He'd just have to figure out another way out of here.
SCENEBREAK
"That friend of yours has been gone way too long."
Molly turned to look anxiously at the stairs. Hugo was right. It had been a couple hours since the Doctor had left, and he still wasn't back. "It shouldn't have taken him this long to question the Judoon," Donna said.
"Which probably means he's been captured," Molly said grimly.
Awk's expression was tight with concern. "If he's been taken by the Judoon, we don't have very long. They'll kill him if they think he'll talk."
Molly and the others looked at him in alarm. "You really think they'll kill him?" Greg asked.
"If they were hired by the Kyterian government?" Awk said softly. "Definitely. They wouldn't want anyone who might try and stop them from finding me. I already told you they're not shy about killing people to get what they want."
Molly and Donna exchanged a worried glance. They had to get the Doctor out of there. The companion stood. "I'll go look for him. Greg, you coming?" If the Doctor had gotten nabbed for being out alone at night, maybe a young couple out for a midnight stroll might escape their notice. Even if they were in period-inappropriate clothing.
Greg nodded, rising out of his chair. "Of course." The two of them made their way up the stairs, the floorboards sliding shut behind them.
Once they were outside, Molly and Greg began searching the town. They walked through the cobblestone streets, her hand in his, him walking slightly behind her to her right. It was a small adjustment that neither even had to think about anymore, left over from the Year. Molly was the leader, so she walked at the front. Greg walked at her right side, and Sherlock hung farther behind to her left, because he was the best at spotting anyone who might be following them. The hand- holding was new, but they were posing as a couple after all - and now, they kinda were one.
Right now, walking with Greg in an abandoned town in the dead of night, it felt like the Year again. Like Sherlock was just a few steps behind them, and they'd have to be ready to teleport at any moment in case there were wild dogs or Toclafane about. But somehow, it didn't bother her now as much as it would have. She felt a strange, quiet sort of confidence. Greg was backing her, she had Donna and the Doctor to support her when she needed it, and she was doing what she was good at; saving the people she cared about.
"Where do you think the Judoon are keeping the Doctor?" Greg asked in a low voice. "They've got to have a ship around here somewhere."
Molly gave a quiet hum of agreement, keeping an eye on the cobblestone streets and dark alleyways around them. "They'll have it somewhere out of sight, where humans wouldn't stumble over it accidentally. We should –"
She fell silent as Greg held up a hand in warning. After a moment, she could hear it too; heavy footfalls. The travelers drew closer to the buildings, edging to the corner of the street. Around the corner, Molly could see the dark outline of a Judoon. As it stepped into the light of a streetlamp, she could see a pistol in his hand. Her eyes narrowed. "What are you doing with a human gun?" she mused in a low voice.
The Judoon tried to stuff the pistol in its holster, but with his own gun there, there wasn't enough room. The rhino-like creature settled for shoving his gun into his belt and putting the pistol in the holster. The Judoon's gun didn't appear to be in the most stable position. When he started walking away, the gun slipped loose and fell to the ground. The Judoon walked on, not seeming to realize what had happened. Molly crept forward, waiting until the Judoon was far enough away before trying to grab the gun. She wasn't planning on shooting on anyone with it, but it could be useful for something.
Without either suggesting it, Molly and Greg followed the Judoon. They kept a good several feet behind him, staying in the shadows as much as they could. The Judoon didn't seem to notice them. He led them away from the town, towards the beaches and the cliffs. As he took a trail down to the bottom of the cliffs, Molly and Greg stayed in the shadow of the cliff. They watched as the Judoon approached a sleek, black spaceship. There were Judoon milling around the entrance, standing guard. Molly was ready to bet there were even more inside. The Doctor was almost definitely in there
Greg let out a low whistle. "Doesn't look like it'll be easy to get in there. What do you think?" He glanced at her, waiting silently. It truly felt like the Year, like she was the woman who walked the earth again, and he was part of her Hooper Army, letting her lead and waiting for her command.
She frowned. "You're right. We're going to have to draw them away from the entrance." An idea suddenly came to her. Molly pulled out the Judoon gun, looking thoughtful at it. She remembered that first trip, the hospital on the moon, when the Judoon had used these to blast the plasmavore away to nothing. In a low voice, she told Greg, "When this fires, run for those bushes there. We'll wait 'til the entrance is clear, then we'll make a run for it." He nodded in confirmation.
As she pulled the trigger, firing into the distance away from the ship, there was a red beam of heat and a loud boom rang out.
SCENEBREAK
The Doctor had been transferred to one of the holding cells. His sonic screwdriver had been confiscated, transferred to a lockbox near the door of the room outside the cells. The Doctor glanced at it, feeling a pang of frustration. He was starting to miss the days when aliens weren't smart enough to take his sonic screwdriver.
Penkh was in the room outside, just audible through the door. "Good, you have it. Kill the Doctor and bury him deep, then get a group together to go back into the town. I want Awk found."
The Time Lord stiffened. He backed up, edging against the back wall, facing the door of the cell. Maybe if he was quick enough, he'd be able to push past the Judoon when he opened the door.
A few seconds later, a loud boom echoed outside the ship. The Doctor turned to look in that direction in surprise. It sounded like a gun of some sort firing, sort of like the Judoon weapons he'd seen before. There were some murmurs from the other room, then Penkh spoke again. "You three, go see what that was." He didn't sound too concerned. Probably thought it was one of his guards shooting at something in the dark.
There was some shuffling about as the Judoon left to investigate, then fading footsteps. The Doctor crossed over to the door of his cell, peering out of the barred window curiously. Had another human stumbled across the ship, or was something else at play here?
He got his answer several moments later, when the door to the cell-room opened. Molly and Lestrade made their way inside, a Judoon gun in Molly's hand. She glanced around the room, gaze locking on the Time Lord's cell. "Doctor!" She and Lestrade made their way over to the cell, glancing around nervously.
The Doctor grinned out at his companions. "How'd you get in here?"
Molly held up the gun. "Used this to distract them, get them away from the entrance. We didn't run into anybody on the ship."
"Penkh must have moved," the Doctor realized.
Lestrade's brow furrowed. "Who?"
The Doctor shook his head. "It doesn't matter. Listen, we need to move quickly, they'll be back soon. My sonic screwdriver's in the box." He nodded toward the lockbox. "Think you can get it out?"
"I'm on it," Molly promised with a small grin. She turned to the lockbox, raising the gun toward it. When it fired, a beam of red heat fired out from it, as loud as last time, melting away the corner of the lockbox. Eventually, the entire lid melted away, leaving the sonic screwdriver exposed. Lestrade plucked it from the scorched remains of the box and handed it to Molly, swapping it for the gun. As they worked, Molly warned the Doctor, "They'll have heard that. Is there another way off this ship?"
The companion switched the Sonic Screwdriver on, pointing it at the lock on the door. The Doctor had shown her how to use some of the settings over the years, so it didn't take long for her to get the door open. The Doctor stepped out of the cell. "Yeah, I saw another exit down this hallway. Come on."
The three travelers hurried down the hallway, conscious of the sound of footsteps getting closer outside. The Doctor took them through a door down the opposite end of the hallway. They took a few more turns before reaching the door he'd seen outside the ship before. They managed to slip outside the door and creep over to the shade of some nearby trees, but there were Judoon nearby, scouting out the passage by the cliff. That was the only way away from the beach, and they were blocking it.
Before the Doctor could suggest anything, Lestrade took the Judoon gun and lobbed it as hard as he could away from them, towards a clump of bushes away from the passage. The Judoon looked around in alarm, heading to the bushes to investigate. In a few moments, the passage was clear.
"Now!" Molly ordered. All three bolted for the passage, just managing to dodge the onslaught of gunfire once the Judoon noticed them. They took off towards the town, the Judoon hard on their heels, but slowly falling farther and farther behind. The rhino-like creatures couldn't keep up with the lighter, more agile humans. By the time they reached the town, they had lost their pursuers.
The Doctor took over then, leading them quickly through the town until they reached Awk's house. They hurried inside, knocking on the floorboards so Awk would know to let them in. After a few moments, the floorbloads pulled back, letting them in. One by one, they slipped inside, the Doctor heading last. Only when the floorboards slid shut behind them did he being to relax, the adrenaline that had helped him escape fading.
Awk, Hugo, and Donna were all on their feet, looking anxiously at the three new arrivals. "What happened? Were you followed?" Hugo demanded.
"For a bit, but we lost them," Lestrade explained.
"Tell us what happened," Awk said. His voice was quiet, but there was a tinge of fear in it, as much as he tried to cover it up. The Doctor could tell that he was truly afraid of being found and killed after all this time.
The three of them explained what had happened, starting with how the Doctor had been caught, and what he had found out from Penkh, ending in how they had escaped. Awk listened, the furrow in his brow increasing as he continued. However, when the Doctor mentioned the new rebellion on Iree, his expression turned lighter, something like hope lighting in his eyes. "They're fighting again?" His voice was very vulnerable and hopeful when he said this.
The Doctor nodded. "That's what Penkh said, anyway."
Awk turned away, hands crossed behind his back and posture pensive. No one spoke, waiting to see what the Avian was thinking. Finally, he turned back to them, his expression decisive. "Do you know if there's any point when the Judoon won't be in town?"
The Time Lord thought about it. "They're pretty desperate to find you quickly. But now that I've escaped, they probably think the Shadow Proclamation will be looking for them. They'll probably keep low during the day, when it would be easier to find them. Why?"
"And you said you had a spaceship, right?" Awk asked, not bothering to answer his question. The Doctor nodded quietly in response. He had a feeling he knew where this was going.
Hugo did as well. "You're going back," he realized quietly.
The Avian nodded. "I have to. If there's a chance, if there's even a chance of beating them, I have to help. Earth has been wonderful, but Iree is my home. And this is the only way to draw the Judoon away from Earth. If I don't leave, they'll keep coming back until they find me." He turned to the Doctor. "When the sun rises, take me to your spaceship. I want to go home to Iree."
The Doctor grinned. "Alright." They finally had a plan, and a way to draw the Judoon away from Earth. "But we need to do this publicly. The Judoon have to know that you've left Earth."
Awk grinned for the first time, a bit of that rebellious spirit burning in his eyes. "Excellent."
I'm almost done with this episode. There should only be one more part after this.
And here we are, at chapter 50 of The Soldier Who Stayed, the same number of chapters that The Woman Who Counted had total. And I'm just a bit over halfway done. Heh. Oops. I really didn't mean for TSWS to be so much longer than TWWC, but that's how it happened. Ah well.
Thank you all so much for sticking with this story for so long. I truly appreciate all the comments and reviews and watches and kudos and subscriptions. They make me feel so appreciated. :) Here's hoping you all stick around for the rest of the story, and that you enjoy it right up to the end.
BloodLily16: Haha, no problem. I loved the movie. :) I've seen the movie, the musical live, and I've read the book.
Sam Fraser: Haha, maybe, dunno. ^^ Oh really? That would be interested. Dunno if I'm all that interested in season 8 though. I'm a bit tired of Moffat's writing.
Kent Rigel: Ooo, that would have been interesting. Although, Nine wasn't actually on the Titanic, was he? I thought he just convinced a family not to board it.
