Chapter 20

Geoffrey remained quiet on the way home back to the colony, his thoughts coming thick and fast as he recounted everything that had happened during the last couple of days. First, his boy had vanished and been presumed dead. The grief and the worry had also taken his wife from him only a few days later and even then, Geoffrey hadn't allowed himself to grieve. He was afraid that if he started, he wouldn't be able to stop and go down to follow his wife on the same path. But then the strangers had arrived with promises of finding out what had really happened to his son, with promises to bring Michael back if it was possible and Geoffrey hadn't dared to hope. Even now, after having seen aliens and spaceships, after having heard promises of a new world, he couldn't gather up the courage to hope because he was more scared of having his hopes crushed than anything else.

Still, he couldn't help but think about it, hard as it was to wrap his mind around the concept of aliens and space travel. If what the alien had said was true, would they live happily ever after on a different planet? Or would they be tricked into something darker and more sinister? After all, why would the alien kidnap the children and not just invite them?

"You're very quiet," Clara remarked eventually and when Geoffrey looked up, he noticed her smile despite the soft moonlight. It would be morning by the time they returned to the settlement.

Geoffrey sighed. "I'm tired."

"And probably a little overwhelmed," the woman said, chuckling softly. She was kind, of that Geoffrey didn't have a single doubt. He had noticed her kindness and soft nature almost straight away because of the warmth she radiated. Suddenly, he found himself wondering whether she was aware she was doing this.

"Yes," he admitted. "It's a little… much."

"I get it," Clara replied. "When I first met the Doctor, he saved me from aliens and then immediately ushered me into his spaceship to save the world. I didn't know anything about any of that at that time. Aliens. Time travel. Space. It all seemed insane and dangerous and utterly wild."

Geoffrey raised his eyebrows. "But you stayed with him? Despite the danger?"

Clara nodded in response. "It's also pretty great," she admitted with another laugh. "Where I come from, I'm a teacher. I have an ordinary life, a family, friends. But once a week, the Doctor comes to pick me up and we go… anywhere. Yes, it's often dangerous, but he also shows me the most amazing things and, I don't know, it just seems worth the risk every single time."

There was something in Clara's voice that made Geoffrey believe her. He still didn't know whether any of it was true or not, but he could tell that Clara believed it and that she loved it. The awe and marvel with which she spoke about the Doctor and space travel was unmistakable. But what about the strange alien race that had taken his boy?

"Will it be worth the risk to go with the… the Q'Uartar?" Geoffrey wanted to know, his voice quiet and hesitant.

When Clara's head shot around, she looked a little surprised at first.

"How do you know they can be trusted?" he added.

Clara merely shrugged. "We never really know whether we can trust someone, that's why, occasionally, we have to take a leap of faith. But the Q'Uartar seemed kind, in a strange way. They could have hurt us, they could have hurt me but they didn't. I've been inside one of those stasis chambers and the Q'Uartar let me go. I think it was their way of showing us that they mean us no harm."

"Then why didn't they just ask us to come along instead of abducting the children?"

Geoffrey heard her sigh, a sound somewhere between humour and resignation and he didn't understand it. He could only imagine that it had something to do with a lifetime full of experience in dealing with aliens. "One thing I've learned is that you can't expect aliens to think and act like humans. I mean, even the Doctor doesn't get it and he's spent most of his 2000 years on this planet. But the Doctor trusts the Q'Uartar, so I will do the same."

Geoffrey nodded to himself, knowing that he didn't really have another choice.

"Alright," Clara said as they reached the damaged gates of the colony and came to a halt, "how about you talk to the men and I talk to the women? One way or another, we have to get them to pack their bags."

His shoulders sank a little when he thought about how he was going to convince the rest of the colonists, but he still nodded. One way or another.


Governor Johnson had the loudest laugh of them all, a bellowing sound bouncing back off the walls before penetrating his ear. It was a sound not of amusement but of pure ridicule, a reaction to Geoffrey's story and plea to come with him and fly away to a different planet.

"It's true," he argued meekly. "I've seen their ship with my own eyes and they have our children."

Johnson's laugh continued for a moment longer until he collapsed, exhausted, into his chair. A tear was streaming from his eye. He didn't believe him. "And what? The green creatures have offered us passage on their ship out of the kindness of their heart?" he asked, the amusement now audible in his voice. The rest of the group joined in his laughter.

"First of all, they're not green," Geoffrey argued, a trace of anger flaring up in him. He had known that it wouldn't be easy to convince the colonists to come along, but now, he realised that he should have seen the disbelief coming. Had someone told him the same thing a few days ago, Geoffrey wouldn't have believed it for a second. They needed to see it with their own eyes. "And you know that this land is cursed. The people who came before us all starved and died and the same thing is going to happen to us if we don't resettle."

"The savages have lived on this land forever," the governor argued and finally rose back to his feet, towering over Geoffrey without even making an effort. "I don't see why we shouldn't. We're more advanced than they are. The only advantage they have is that they've had time to get to know their land. And you know what I'm thinking right now?"

Geoffrey stood as tall as he could, defying Johnson with his gaze, but he didn't know what to say.

"I think this is a great ruse to drive us from what they think is their land," the governor said.

"That's not what's happening," Geoffrey argued instantly. "Some of the Croatoans' children were on board of the ship as well."

"That just makes it an even cleverer ruse," the tall man countered and took a step closer, his head so high over Geoffrey's own that it seemed almost menacing. "I won't fall for it."

The blacksmith took a deep breath, gathering his thoughts, trying to rack his brain for an argument that might win them over, no matter how slim his chances were. All he wanted was to have his son back and if it took a journey across the universe to be with him and to know that he was safe, then he would undertake that journey despite his fears. But how was he going to motivate the others? How?

"The Q'Uartar have made us a generous offer," Geoffrey tried to explain to them. "We would have a fresh start on a new planet that is untouched by humans. We would be the first to go there. All the land we can dream of is just waiting for us out there. And we would have help because the Q'Uartar are more advanced than we are, they will know better methods for building shelter and farming and, well, everything. We could achieve so much more than we can achieve here."

Governor Johnson stared at him for a long moment and Geoffrey dearly hoped that he was at least considering his proposal, but when he spoke, he realised that he had hoped in vain. "What makes you think they can be trusted? What makes you think that any of this is even true?" Johnson wanted to know, his voice harsh and cold. "You have to admit how insane it all sounds. I know how badly you want your boy back, but I'm not going to let you endanger us all for your false hope."

His words stung and not because the governor was deliberately trying to hurt him or discredit him. No, they hit hard because deep inside his heart, there was the seed of doubt that Geoffrey hadn't been able to kill ever since he had left the spaceship. What if it was all a lie? The aliens were real, he knew that much, but even Clara hadn't been able to convince him that their offer was actually sincere. She believed it and he wanted to, but a part of him just thought that it was all too incredible to really be true.

"You want your son back," Governor Johnson said and this time, his voice sounded almost kind until he continued, "so take him back."

Without saying another word, the governor pushed a pistol into his hand and smiled. "Whether your aliens are real or a trick played by the savages, we can beat them. You said that there are only two and we have an army of strong men. We can get your son back."

Geoffrey swallowed hard and let the words flow through his mind for a few seconds, turning them over in his head until they took shape. They probably could take his son back if they all worked together, but he didn't want it to be this way. He didn't want violence. It felt like he was betraying Clara and the Doctor and even that strange creature that called itself Q'Uartar. It didn't feel right.

When Johnson's broad hand landed on his shoulder, Geoffrey finally woke up from his daydream and he knew what he wanted to tell him, but the words just didn't come out. Above everything else, he wanted his son back, no matter the cost. "Will you lead us to the alien's lair?"

Geoffrey's body moved on his own accord, nodding slowly without him wanting to and when the roaring and cheering broke out among the men, he knew that it was too late to stop or talk sense into them. In a way, the Q'Uartar had had it coming. They had abducted their children and now, they were going to pay the price while Geoffrey was powerless to stop it.