Chapter 1

Inside the TARDIS, the Doctor and Nita were discussing Ace's disappearance.

"A transmat would leave residual ionization in the air…but the sonic readings found no trace after the incident," said the Doctor.

"People don't just appear and disappear…there has to be some way to track her."

"I've been unable to detect the signal from her mobile phone. It has either been deactivated or she's being held in a shielded location." A long beat…the Doctor was angry, deep in thought. Then, softly, he said "why…her?"

"Doctor, I believe she was the intended target of the abduction."

"Why would they want a Time Lord's companion as a hostage? Their fight doesn't involve us."

"It does now."

Inside a cavern, a perimeter of light held the darkness at bay. In some places movable screens augmented the natural stone wall which had formed to create a sense of privacy. Ace was in a secluded area with rock walls on three sides. The alcove was furnished simply – a cot, a small table and a folding chair. Ace was seated on the camp bed. Her hands and ankles had been bound and she shifted uncomfortably. She was angry and afraid and trying to hide it.

A crystalline entity entered. Ace swallowed hard, lifted her chin and tried to stare it down, but she ended up looking only anxious. The entity had an air of shyness and awkwardness which seemed out of place. In its hand, it had a plate of food.

"Are you hungry? Do you want something to eat?"

She just stared at it. Scared, doing bravado.

"It doesn't matter to me. You want to be hungry? Be hungry."

It sat in front of her, picked at the food, eating with its hands.

"What's your name?"

No response.

"You have medical training and you travel in a Time Lord ship? I always wondered what it would be like to travel across the galaxy as my ancestors did. It's not something I've exactly had time for," it said, ruefully.

Stonewalling it, Ace shrugged.

"This isn't the best way to meet new people, is it?"

It stood. "If you want something, just ask for me – Glinix. They know me."

It exited and took the plate of food with it. As it exited, it looked down, angry, helpless…

"We have no reason to believe she's been hurt in any way," said Nita.

"In fact, it's more likely that they they'll take good care of her, if they want to use her as a bargaining chip."

"A bargaining chip?"

"The innocent become pawns in a conflict like this, Nita." The Doctor thought for a beat, stood and began to move around the console toward Nita. "The Spherions are a species of sentient crystals. Their spawning grounds were destroyed when aliens colonised their home planet. As a result, they set off to find new spawning grounds. The Calaxi's physiology made them the perfect incubators for their seeding crystals, but the Spherions had no idea that they were sentient and so when the Calaxi fled Malleon, the Spherions followed. Now the Spherions have become dependent on the Calaxi for survival and want to be acknowledged as co-inhabitants of the planet. If they can get the government to even acknowledge their demands, then kidnapping Ace will have served a purpose."

He leaned on the console and continued, "That may be what they're after. It may not. Frankly, I don't care. All I care about is getting her back, Nita. In a few minutes, I'm leaving to meet with the authorities…"

"Can I go with you?" Nita interrupted.

"No. You have an important job to do here. If we are to find Ace, we must have a way to trace the movements of these entities. I want you to investigate this new technology of theirs."

"Ok."

Lumin, a striking woman in her late thirties, with the blue skin that was characteristic of her people, met with the Doctor. He recognised her from the scene of the carnage. Tall and athletic, she was a natural-born leader, having discovered the hollow planet to which they had fled after first being attacked by the Spherions on Malleon, hence why the planet was called Lumin's World. But she was also a woman under great pressure, caught up in a struggle that she was no longer sure she could win. Trying to deal with a hundred problems at once had left her preoccupied and driven and almost burned out. She was sitting down at a desk littered with isolinear reader chips. On one wall were monitors that provided a running text of current police activity. She studied the Doctor intently.

"What exactly is Spherion policy in regard to hostages?" asked the Doctor.

"I doubt they have one. They don't usually take hostages."

The implications of such a strategy were not lost on the Doctor.

Lumin turned to face him. "These aren't people we're dealing with here. They're strange beings…" her anger was rising "Fanatics, who kill without remorse or conscience…who think nothing of murdering innocent people."

"They could just as easily have killed her where she stood…"

"Don't ask me to explain them," Lumin acknowledged. "I can't. The atrocities I've seen…" Lumin forced herself to gain her composure. "And now they have this new device that makes them even more deadly. How do I combat an enemy who fails to register on any scanner until they're literally standing in front of you with a crystal phaser pointed at your head?"

"What can you tell me about this device?"

Lumin removed an armband from a drawer and tossed it onto the desk. "Not much, really."

The Doctor picked up the device and inspected it.

Lumin continued, "They first started using it two months ago. We've taken several of these off dead terrorists. Our people have looked at them. Nothing they can explain."

"You mind if I take this with me, give me a chance to study it?"

"Not at all. And I'll put you in touch with our research people, if you wish."

"I appreciate you help."

Lumin gave him a wry smile. "Perhaps if we found ourselves in possession of some of that advanced Time Lord technology of yours it would shift the balance of power back to our favour."

"That I cannot do for you." The Doctor rose. "I would like to assist in your search for Ace."

As she walked him to the door, Lumin knew it wouldn't help. "If you like."

"You don't sound very optimistic."

"I know my enemy, Doctor. They don't leave much room for optimism."

As before, Glinix entered the cavern with a plate of food. "Are you hungry? Do you want something to eat?"

Ace was feeling quite a bit more tired than before. But she was still not willing to respond, at least not on the first volley. Glinix studied her, put down the plate and moved to her. Ace couldn't control the impulse to shrink back in fear.

"Relax, I'm just going to…" indicating her bonds. He dropped to one knee and released her ankles.

Despite his good guy attitude, Ace realised there was a side of this that could be considered torture, manipulation and setting up a dependency.

"Come on, eat something. What's the point of not eating? You're the only one who suffers. Do I look like it's bothering me? Okay, it's bothering me." He picked up the plate and held it out in front of her. She finally took it and began to pick up the meat with her fingers. "No forks. Sorry." He watched her eat, pleased with this victory. "Did I mention my name is Glinix? And you're…?"

"Why have you brought me here?"

"I need medical help."

"There are doctors on Lumin's World."

"I need someone better. I heard you were here with a Time Lord and I knew you had to be…"

"How did you know that?"

"I heard. Now you'll help me. Just like you help them."

"What are you talking about?"

Glinix became angry. "Your ship carries medical supplies for them, for the other side. Why do the Time Lords ally themselves with the Calaxis?"

"They didn't. All we did was to bring…"

"Medical supplies."

"People were hurt…"

"I know. I hurt them." He grabbed the food dish out of her hands and stood. "You're finished eating. Get up."

When Ace looked up at him, hesitating with fear, he reached down and pulled her up roughly. "Get up." Glinix indicated for her to precede him out of the alcove, and she began to obey. They started out into the cave proper.

Ace suddenly paused and looked up at him. She was embarrassed by the non-sequitur, but couldn't control herself. "I miss… my friends."

"You'll be with them again. I see no reason to kill you." The inference being if he did see a reason later, he might. As he waited for her to move by him, the perfect gentleman, she looked at him and finally moved forward.