„Just one trip," the Doctor muttered to himself as he walked around the console "That's what I said. One trip in the Tardis and then home. Although…" He looked up at Martha with a grin "Although, I suppose we could stretch the definition. Take one trip to the past, one trip to the future. How do you fancy that?"
Martha shook her head, a big grin stealing its way onto her face "No complaints from me."
"How about a different planet?" the Doctor asked.
Tyra perked up "Ooh, we could go to…"
"Can we go to yours?" Martha cut her off, looking at the Doctor pleadingly.
Tyra bit down on her lip, glancing at the Doctor nervously, unsure of what to do. He shook his head, the sadness only visible for a split second "Ah, there's plenty of other places."
"Come on, though," Martha pleaded "I mean, planet of the Time Lords. That's got to be worth a look. What's it like?" She looked over at Tyra "Have you been there before?"
Tyra shook her head "Martha… Drop it. Please?"
"No, come on," Martha dismissed her "Is it like, you know, outer space cities, all spires and stuff?"
The Doctor shot Tyra an uncomfortable look as she walked over to him, resting her hand on his back out of Martha's view. He licked his lips "I suppose it is."
"Great big temples and cathedrals," Martha gushed, getting more and more excited.
"Yeah," he breathed.
Martha looked like she was enjoying this way too much. Not that Tyra could blame her. She was excited… And didn't realise that she was hurting the Doctor "Lots of planets in the sky?"
The Doctor's eyes unfocused as he recalled the view he had described to Tyra on occasion "The sky is a burnt orange with the Citadel enclosed in a mighty glass dome, shining under the twin suns. Beyond that, the mountains go on forever. Slopes of deep red grass, capped with snow."
"Can we go there?" Martha breathed, her eyes shining.
"Nah, the Doctor shook his head, shrugging off Tyra's hand "Where's the fun for me? I don't want to go home. Instead, this is much better." He started running around the console, flicking switched left and right "Year five billion and fifty-three, planet New Earth. Second hope of mankind. Fifty thousand light-years from your old world and we're slap bang in the middle of New New York." He paused "Although, technically speaking it's the fifteenth New York from the original, so it's New New New New New New New New New New New New New New York. One of the most dazzling cities ever built."
Martha huffed, zipping her jacket close immediately after stepping out into the rain "Oh, that's nice," she smiled sarcastically "Time Lord version of dazzling."
"Nah," the Doctor waved off "Bit of rain never hurt anyone. Come on, let's get under cover." Just before they could find over, Tyra flinched when a drop of water hit her neck, sliding down her collar.
"Well, it looks like the same old Earth to me, on a Wednesday afternoon," Martha shrugged, looking around with her nose wrinkled.
Tyra shook her head "Well, I guess there's a reason why it's called New Earth now, is there?"
The Doctor turned around to face the monitor behind him "Hold on, hold on. Let's have a look." He used his sonic to get the thing working again.
"And the driving should be clear and easy with fifteen extra lanes open for the New New Jersey expressway," a woman's voice explained as a picture of a high-tech Manhattan was shown with flying cars zooming about. It looked almost exactly like it had a year ago when they went to the hospital and met Cassandra and the Face of Boe.
"Oh, that's more like it," the Doctor exclaimed "That's the view we had last time. This must be the lower levels, down in the base of the tower. Some sort of under-city."
Martha raised her eyebrow in amused annoyance "You've brought me to the slums?"
"Martha, word of warning," Tyra told her "We're most likely always going to end up in places like this… The Doctor has a knack for landing where we don't want to be."
"That's not true," the Doctor exclaimed "It's much more interesting down here anyway. It's all cocktails and glitter up there. This is the real city."
Martha shook her head "You'd enjoy anything."
The Doctor grinned "That's me. Ah, the rain's stopping. Better and better."
"When you say last time… was that the two of you and Rose?"
"Er, yea," the Doctor nodded, causing Tyra to sigh in exasperation "Yeah, it was, yeah."
Martha sent him an indecipherable look "You're taking me to the same planets that you took her?"
"What's wrong with that?" the Doctor asked in confusion.
Tyra shook her head at him "Oh, you idiot."
"What?"
Martha sighed "Nothing. Just ever heard the word rebound?" She headed off down the alley.
Tyra shot the Doctor a light glare before following her "Are you okay?"
"I just don't get it," Martha mumbled, glancing over her shoulder at the Doctor "Why…?"
"Martha, we lost Rose not too long ago," she told her "Give him a little time, alright? I swear that he's not usually like this."
Martha nodded her head, looking a little disbelieving "Right… Hey, have you really not been to his planet yet?"
"I…" Tyra broke off with a sigh "It's not for me to tell but… Could you lay off him a little?"
"Why?" Martha frowned "And what was up with him earlier?"
Tyra shook her head "It's his story, Martha. Give him time, alright? You haven't known him for long and he's…"
"I get it," Martha nodded with a small smile "I might not understand what's going on but… I can see what's in front of me. You're a good friend, you know? Both to him and to me too."
"Thanks," Tyra smiled lightly.
Martha shook her head "No, seriously. The way the two of you act… You're so close and I'm already kind of feeling like a third-wheel but…"
"You don't have to feel like you need to compete with me," Tyra pointed out "The Doctor has a huge heart. More than enough for all of his Companions. Oh… Remind me to tell you about the incident between Rose and Sarah Jane sometime. It was epic and it shows a side of Rose that the Doctor tries to forget about."
"I don't think I'm here long enough," Martha mumbled.
Tyra patted her shoulder before making her way over to the Doctor. They had kept their voices down enough that he wouldn't have heard anything "It's not all as it seems. If you ask me, you'd do well with us. And I'll put in a good word for you if that's what you want."
Just as they rejoined the Doctor, a man opened the front of his stall "Oh," he exclaimed, seeing them standing there "You should have said. How long you been there? Happy. You want happy."
"Customers," a second vendor breathed as two more stalls opened "Customers. We've got customers."
"We're in business," the third laughed "Mother, open up the Mellor and the Read."
The first man looked down at them "Happy, Happy, lovely happy Happy."
"Anger. Buy some Anger," the second pharmacist called over the other.
"Get some Mellor," the third cried out "Makes you feel all bendy and soft all day long."
The first man looked at the others "Don't go to them. They'll rip you off. Do you want some Happy?"
The Doctor shook his head and reached for Tyra's hand, intent on getting away from them "No, thanks."
Martha leaned over to them "Are they selling drugs?"
"I think they're selling moods," the Doctor pointed out.
Tyra raised her eyebrow at him "Isn't that the same thing?"
More people started to enter the area, dressed in rags. A woman walked over to the stalls, looking between the three people "I want to buy Forget," she spoke up."
The third pharmacist leaned forward, arranging her face in a worried expression even though her eyes were lit up at the prospect of a sale "I've got Forget, my darling. What strength? How much do you want forgetting?"
"It's my mother and father," the woman sniffed "They went on the motorway."
"Oh, that's a swine," the pharmacist mumbled in fake sympathy and held out a small square piece of plastic "Try this. Forget Forty-three. That's two credits."
The Doctor stepped toward them "Sorry but hold on a minute. What happened to your parents?"
"They drove off," the woman explained, not really telling them much at all.
"Yeah, but they might drive back," the Doctor pointed out, tilting his head.
The woman scoffed "Everyone goes to the motorway in the end. I've lost them."
The Doctor frowned, trying to understand what was happening here "But they can't have gone far. You could find them…" When she went to stick the Forget to her neck, he shook his head violently "No. No, no, don't."
"I'm sorry, you were saying?" the woman blinked, the tab sticking to her back.
"Your parents," the Doctor said "Your mother and father. They're on the motorway."
The woman tilted her head "Are they?" she asked airily "That's nice. I'm sorry, I won't keep you." With that said, she wandered away, still in a bit of a daze.
"So, that's the Human race five billion years in the future," Martha snorted "Off their heads on chemicals."
Tyra whirled around when she heard someone coming closer and was about to reach out to pull Martha away when a man grabbed her from behind. A woman pointed a gun at the Doctor and Tyra. The man looked at them apologetically "I'm sorry. I'm really, really sorry. We just need three, that's all."
"No," the Doctor hissed, holding out his hand "Let her go. I'm warning you, let her go. Whatever you want, I can help. The three of us, we can help. But first, you've got to let her go."
Tyra narrowed her eyes at the two "You're bluffing," she said, walking toward them.
The Doctor reached out to pull her back, out of the way of the gun "What the hell are you doing, Ty?" he whispered.
Before the man could disappear through the door with Martha, Tyra sped forward, slamming it closed. In one quick movement, she threw the gun away and pressed the man against a wall, freeing Martha in the process "Now," she started, staring into his eyes "You will tell me what this was about."
"The Motorway," he said "We need three people."
Tyra looked over her shoulder at the Doctor. He stepped forward at her nod "Why?"
"It's car-sharing policy. You get special access to the fast lane if you're carrying three adults," the man replied.
"What are you doing to him?" the woman demanded, her voice shaking in fear.
Tyra looked over at her and let the man go "We just want to know what's going on," she told her, her hands raised a little "You did try to kidnap one of us, after all."
"I – I'm sorry," the woman sobbed, wrapping her arms around her stomach "We just…"
"What's your name?" Martha asked.
"C – Cheen and this is Milo," she looked at them pleadingly "I'm sorry, really sorry. We just needed access to the fast lane."
The Doctor tilted his head "Why did you need access to the fast lane?"
"We wanted to go out to Brooklyn. I'm pregnant. We only found out last week…" Cheen explained
Milo blinked a couple of times, shaking his head "What happened? Cheen?"
Cheen threw herself at him, hiding her face in his shoulder "Milo."
"What have you done to her?" Milo demanded.
Tyra rolled her eyes and sighed "Nothing. You're the people who tried to kidnap our friend. Now tell us more about the motorway."
"Tyra," the Doctor warned, placing his hand on her shoulder.
Tyra's shoulders slumped "Right."
"We need to go if we want to make it," Cheen shook her head.
"Make it how?" the Doctor asked "What is the deal with the fast lane? Why did that woman earlier wanted to forget that her parents were on the motorway?"
Milo frowned "You don't know?"
"Would we be asking if we did?" the Doctor shook his head.
Tyra took a deep breath and looked into their eyes "Tell us the truth."
"You go to the motorway and you never come back," Milo explained "Every exit is closed and it has been for years. That's why we want to go onto the fast lane. We want to reach Brooklyn within the next six years."
"Six years?" Martha exclaimed "How far is it?"
"Ten miles."
The Doctor raised his eyebrows "Ten miles in six years? And that's the fast lane?"
Milo shrugged "That's the way it is."
"Something is wrong here," the Doctor shook his head, running a hand through his hair "Come on. I think I know where to go."
"Where are we going?" Martha asked, rushing after him, leaving Cheen and Milo standing there. Tyra looked between them and the Doctor before quickly compelling them to go back home, to wait.
The Doctor stopped at the stalls, hammering on the closed hatch "Thought you'd come back," the third pharmacist spoke up before her eyes fell on Martha "Oh, you got her back."
"Word of advice," the Doctor hissed, his eyes narrowing "All of you. Cash up, close down and pack your bags."
"Why's that, then?" the pharmacist laughed nervously.
"Because as soon as I've found out what's going on here," the Doctor started "Then I'm coming back, and this street closes tonight." With that, he looked back at Tyra and Martha, running further into the city.
"Where are we going?" Martha called out, trying to keep up with the Doctor and Tyra.
The Doctor stopped at a crossroads and looked around "The Senate. We need to find out what's happening here."
"How are we getting there?" Tyra asked, looking around "Do you even know where it is?"
"Yeah, about that…" the Doctor grinned sheepishly.
Tyra groaned "Great."
"Doctor," a voice called out as a figure hurried closer "You're a hard man to find."
The Doctor frowned at the figure, taking her in "Do I know you?"
"Is that a cat?" Martha whispered to Tyra.
"Cat, nun, nurse… Take your pick," Tyra replied, crossing her arms as she looked at Novice Hame.
Novice Hame looked from the Doctor to Tyra "You haven't aged at all. Time has been less kind to me."
"Novice Hame," the Doctor realised, pulling her into a hug before jumping back "No, hold on, get off. Last time we met, you were breeding Humans for experimentation."
"What?" Martha exclaimed.
Tyra waved her off "I'll explain later."
Hame looked down "I've sought forgiveness, Doctor, for so many years, under his guidance. And if you come with me, I might finally be able to redeem myself."
The Doctor shook his head "I'm not going anywhere. Except for maybe the Senate."
"The situation is even worse than you might imagine," Novice Hame sighed, reaching out to grab ahold of the three of them.
"What are you…?" Martha started before they were beamed away.
"Ouch," Tyra cursed under her breath as she landed on the ground with Martha on top of her. She got up, glaring at Novice Hame "A little warning would have been nice," she grumbled "Like… How hard can it be to say 'Oh, careful. I'm going to use a teleport in a minute'."
"Are you done?" an amused voice questioned, reverberating inside her head. Tyra looked around in confusion, glancing at the other three who apparently hadn't heard anything. It was the Face of Boe. Without a doubt. Tyra looked around in confusion "Over here."
The Doctor looked at Tyra in confusion "What's wrong?"
"Doctor," Novice Hame spoke up, drawing the Doctor and Martha's attention away from Tyra's weird behaviour.
Tyra ignored them, walking into the direction she guessed he was in and smiled when her eyes fell on the glass container with the giant head inside "Hello again."
"Hello, Valkyrie."
"You… But…" Tyra stuttered, shaking her head "Jack?"
"I would have thought that you would've figured it out the last time we spoke," he chuckled, eyes lighting up in amusement "Then again. You were somewhat preoccupied with everything going on."
"Hm," she hummed with a small grin, placing her hand on the glass gently "Being possessed can take a lot out of you… Jack? How are you alive? I – The Doctor never told me what happened. He just said that you stayed behind but… I could have sworn that you died."
The Face of Boe moved his head as much as he could, looking at her "I can't tell you that. I'm sorry, Valkyrie. This is something you'll find out in time."
"In time?" she repeated, looking over her shoulder to listen to the Doctor, Novice Hame and Martha for a moment "Jack… What is that supposed to mean?"
"I really can't tell you. Timelines and all that," Jack told her, his eyes sad "So, how have you been since we last saw each other?"
Tyra raised her eyebrow "Do you mean New Earth or the Game Station?"
"Isn't that almost the same thing?"
"True," Tyra shrugged "It's – I don't know. It's better now that Rose isn't here, I guess. She was getting a bit annoying and… Well…"
Jack chuckled "Let me guess. The Doctor didn't notice a thing."
"Surprisingly, he did. She went off on me a couple of times because the Doctor talked to her about her behaviour."
"I'm surprised," Jack laughed lightly "So, has he confessed yet?"
Tyra blinked "Wait… What? How do you know about… Oh, right."
"So, he did?" Jack asked, his eyes gleaming "Come on, don't leave me hanging here."
"No," Tyra shook her head "We're not talking about this now. I think I would love to know how you've turned into a giant head. Then again…" She shrugged with an unrepentant grin "I always did say that your ego was too big."
"Doctor," Jack greeted.
"The Face of Boe," the Doctor exclaimed, coming up behind Tyra.
Jack shot Tyra a quick warning before turning to talk to the Doctor "I knew you would come."
"Back in the old days, I was made his nurse as penance for my sin," Hame murmured, taking a seat next to the tank.
Martha was staring at the tank as Tyra walked up next to her "That… Is a…?"
"Meet the Face of Boe," Tyra whispered "He's an old friend of ours."
"But he's a… head," Martha breathed, staring at the Face of Boe incredulously.
Tyra grinned "I know. He won't tell me exactly how that happened… Oh well, maybe someday."
The Doctor knelt down in front of the tank "Old friend, what happened to you?"
"Failing," the Face of Boe rasped.
"He protected me from the virus by shrouding me in his smoke. But with no one to maintain it, the City's power died. The under-city would have fallen into the sea."
The Doctor nodded "So he saved them."
"The Face of Boe wired himself into the mainframe. He's giving his life force just to keep things running," Hame explained.
Tyra smiled lightly "I'm not surprised. You were always someone who wanted to save people." She switched to speaking to the Face of Boe mentally "Weren't you, Jackie?"
"I feel like I'm missing something," the Doctor mumbled, looking from the Face of Boe to her and back before he shook his head.
Martha snorted "Yeah? At least I'm not the only one."
The Doctor smiled at her for a moment before getting back on track "But there are planets out there," the Doctor pointed out "You could have called for help."
Hame shook her head "The last act of the Senate was to declare New Earth unsafe. The automatic quarantine lasts one hundred years."
"So, the two of you stayed here, on your own for all these years," the Doctor whispered, quietly impressed with both of them.
"We had no choice," Hame shrugged.
"Yes, you did."
The Face of Boe looked at the Doctor with his old eyes "Save them, Doctor. Save them."
The Doctor got working, occasionally telling Hame or me to do something or fetch him another thing. Eventually, he got a computer working "Novice Hame, hold that in place. Think, think, think, think. Take the residual energy, invert it, feed it through the electricity grid."
"There isn't enough power," Hame pointed out.
"Oh, you've got power," the Doctor shot back "You've got me. I'm brilliant with computers, just you watch. Hame, every switch on that bank up to maximum. I can't power up the city, but all the city needs is people."
Hame licked her lips "So what are you going to do?"
"This." The Doctor threw a big switch, causing all the lights to go out "No, no, no, no, no, no. The transformers are blocked. The signal can't get through."
"Doctor," the Face of Boe rasped out.
Tyra looked at him, kneeling down in front of the tank with Martha by her side "Are you alright?"
"Yes," Jack nodded "Doctor, I give you my last…" He breathed out and the power came back online.
"Jack," she called out inside her head.
The Doctor glanced over his shoulder "Hame, help Ty and Martha to look after him. Don't you go dying on me, you big old face. You've got to see this. The open road. Ha!" He worked some more, causing the roof hatches to open. He jumped onto a platform and grabbed the mic "Sorry, no Sally Calypso. She was just a hologram. My name's the Doctor and this is an order. Everyone drive up. Right now." He paused and when no one moved, he continued "I opened the roof of the motorway. Come on. Throttle those engines. Drive up. All of you. The whole under-city. Drive up, drive up, drive up! Fast. We've got to clear that fast lane. Drive up and get out of the way."
Tyra looked back to Jack and leaned her head against the glass, trying to keep the tears from falling. He was as good as her brother and she really hated seeing him like this "Please don't die."
"You keep driving," the Doctor exclaimed "All the way up. Because it's here, just waiting for you. The city of New New York and it's yours."
"Try not to be too cliché in your enthusiasm, Doc," Tyra called out.
The Doctor huffed "I'm not. I'm just glad it worked. Although… Why wouldn't it have? I'm brilliant."
Tyra snorted "Sure, you are. Still can't drive the Tardis worth a damn, though."
"Shut up," he mumbled.
A chuckle sounded through my head "You two get along better than you and Big Ears did. No, that's wrong… But you squabble more."
"I like it," Tyra shrugged.
"He does too," Jack explained.
The Doctor was still focussed on the screen when both Martha and Tyra jumped back in shock when a crack started spreading across Boe's tank "Oh, no, you don't," the Doctor huffed, running over to them. He fell to his knees, staring at the giant head on the ground by the now broken tank.
"Doctor?" Martha breathed in shock, watching the scene worriedly "What's happening?"
The Doctor glanced over his shoulder, while Tyra knelt back down next to Jack "Don't worry about him. He'll be fine."
"My lord gave his life to save the city," Hame whispered "And now he's dying."
"No," the Doctor snapped "Don't say that. Not old Boe. Plenty of life left."
Tyra let out a shaky breath "Doctor… Please don't."
"Don't tell me you gave up as well," he hissed at her.
Tyra's hand was resting on Jack's cheek as he mentally warned her not to tell the Time Lord anything "You'll understand someday. Let him go?"
"What are you keeping from me, Ty?" he asked with narrowed eyes "Boe?"
Jack inhaled "It's good to breathe the air once more," he rasped.
"Who is he, really?" Martha questioned, kneeling down between Tyra and the Doctor.
The Doctor shrugged "I don't even know but apparently Tyra does and won't tell me. Legend says the Face of Boe has lived for billions of years. Isn't that right? And you're not about to give up now."
"Everything has its time," Boe said "You know that, old friend, better than most."
Hame looked up at the Time Lord "The legend says more."
"Don't," the Doctor shook his head "There's no need for that."
"It says that the Face of Boe will speak his final secret to a traveller and his warrior," Hame continued.
The Time Lord closed his eyes "Yeah, but not yet. Who needs secrets, eh?"
Tyra rubbed Boe's cheek gently "As much as I hate to keep you here… I don't want you to die."
"I have seen so much," he murmured "Perhaps too much. I am the last of my kind, as you are the last of yours, Doctor."
"That's why we have to survive," the Doctor whispered "Both of us. Don't go."
Jack looked up at us "I must. But know this, Time Lord. You are not alone. And keep your warrior close. There will be hard times coming. Be there for each other." With that, he let out one last breath before his eyes closed.
Tyra hid my face in her hands as Hame started weeping across from her.
By the time they got back to Pharmacy Town, Tyra was trailing behind the other two quietly, her arms wrapped around her stomach. The Doctor looked around the closed shops with faked happiness "All closed down."
Martha smiled "Happy?" She had given up on talking to Tyra about what the Face of Boe had meant a while back.
"Happy Happy," the Doctor nodded "New New York can start again. And they've got Novice Hame. Just what every city needs. Cats in charge. Come on, time we were off."
"But what did he mean?" Martha questioned "The Face of Boe? You're not alone."
The Doctor looked over at her "I don't know."
"You've got us," Martha said, pointing to herself and Tyra "Is that what he meant?"
"I don't think so. Sorry."
Martha crossed her arms "Then what?"
"Doesn't matter," the Doctor shrugged off "Back to the Tardis, off we go." He blinked for a moment when Martha grabbed a chair, sitting down in protest "Alright, are you staying?"
Tyra walked over to the Tardis, turning around when Martha spoke up "Till you talk to me properly, yes. He said last of your kind. What does that mean? Why did Tyra stop me from asking about seeing your planet?"
"It really doesn't matter," the Doctor shrugged.
Martha groaned "You don't talk. I know more about Tyra than I know about you. You never say. Why not?"
"Fast falls the eventide."
"It's the city," Martha breathed, looking to the sky.
"The darkness deepens…"
Marth smiled and continued "They're singing."
"Lord, with me abide. When other helpers fail…"
"I lied to you because I like it," the Doctor sighed, grabbing a second chair. He waved Tyra over to him and pulled her onto his lap "I could pretend. Just for a bit, I could imagine they were still alive, underneath a burnt orange sky. I'm not just a Time Lord. I'm the last of the Time Lords." He squeezed Tyra's middle tightly, burying his face in her shoulder "The Face of Boe was wrong. There's no one else."
Martha's gaze turned sad "What happened?"
"Swift to its close ebbs out life's little day."
"There was a war," the Doctor whispered into Tyra's shoulder "A Time War. The Last Great Time War. My people fought a race called the Daleks, for the sake of all creation. And they lost. They lost." He looked up with sorrow in his eyes "Everyone lost. They're all gone now. My family, my friends, even that sky. Oh, you should have seen it, that old planet. The second sun would rise in the south and the mountains would shine. The leaves on the trees were silver and when they caught the light every morning, it looked like a forest on fire. When the autumn came, the breeze would blow through the branches like a song."
"The darkness deepens. Lord, with me abide."
Martha went back to her room, while Tyra was curled up on the upper landing of the console room, staring at the wall blankly.
"What are you doing here? I thought you went to your room?" the Doctor murmured, sitting down next to her.
"Do you think he's in a better place?" Tyra asked "Do you think there's something after you die?"
The Doctor laid down behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist, resting his chin on her shoulder "I don't know, Ty. The only thing we can do is hope." He sighed before a pout stole its way across his face "Do you really not want to tell me who he was? Because I know that he told you something."
"I promised," Tyra shrugged "But I'm sure you'll find out soon."
"Why can't you tell me now? That's unfair."
Tyra turned around and grinned at the Doctor's pout "Sorry, Doc. I promised."
