The Trip of a Lifetime
Boom Town
Thanks to HBR the dark princess for favouriting this story
In Cardiff town hall, Mr Cleaver, the Welsh Assembly's nuclear safety advisor was pacing anxiously in the mayor's office. "I've checked the figures. I've checked them again and again. Always the same result. The design is not safe. It could result in the death of millions. I beg of you... stop the project right now, before it's too late." he urged the mayor, Margaret Blaine. Little did he know that Margaret was actually the last surviving member of the Slitheen family, the family of Raxicoricofallapatorians who had tried to destroy the Earth just six months ago.
"Well, goodness me. Obviously, Mr Cleaver, you're the expert." Margaret replied
"Then... you'll stop it?"
"Seems I have no choice." Margaret replied, then her stomach rumbled noisily. "Oh... do excuse me." she smiled apologetically, "Civic duties leave little time for a sandwich."
"But you promise you'll stop it today?" Mr Cleaver asked urgently
"Well, of course. Nothing is more important then Human life. What d'you take me for? Some sort of maniac?"
"Why, no." Mr Cleaver replied
"Am I right in thinking you've only shown your results to me?" Margaret asked
"Just to you. No one else."
"Wise move." Margaret smiled deviously
A relieved Mr Cleaver took off his glasses and wiped his eyes. "I can't tell you, Mrs Blaine, this is such a weight off my mind." he said, "I've barely slept. I couldn't believe my own readings." He wiped his glasses, his back to Margaret, so he didn't see her raise a hand up to her forehead. "The scale of it... destruction like the British Isles has never seen before." He squinted at a model of a nuclear power station in the outer room. "If I didn't know better, I'd almost think that someone wanted this project to go wrong. As though they intended to wipe this city off the map." He replaced his glasses. "Thank goodness we've got you, our esteemed leader."
He turned round to see Margaret standing right behind him in her true Raxicoricofallapatorian form. She roared and grabbed his neck with her huge claw, while Mr Cleaver shouted out in terror.
~8~
A First Great Western High Speed Train screamed into Cardiff Central station, completing it's long journey from London Paddington. Once the train had stopped, the passengers began to alight, amongst them was Mickey Smith. He took a moment to glance at the bi-lingual signs, then left the station.
Presently, Mickey arrived at the Roald Dahl Plass in Cardiff Bay, where he could see the TARDIS standing rather incongruously in front of the water fountain by the Millennium Centre. He went up to the box and knocked on the door. To his surprise, it was answered by a dark-haired American man. "Who the hell are you?" the American asked rudely
"What d'ya mean 'who the 'ell am I?' Who the 'ell are you?" Mickey shot back
"Captain Jack Harness. Whatever ya selling, we're not buying."
"Get out my way!" Mickey grunted and shoved past Jack into the TARDIS.
"Don't tell me, this must be Mickey." Jack said dryly, shutting the door.
The TARDIS apparently seemed to be undergoing maintenance. The Doctor was standing on the overhead gantry doing some repair work, while Rose was stood by the console. Mickey couldn't see Gazelle, but he could see her jacket slung over a railing, near an open floor grille, so he knew that the Time Lady must be working underneath.
"Here comes trouble." the Doctor said cheerily, "How yer doing, Ricky boy?"
"It's Mickey." the Human huffed
"Don't listen to 'im, he's windin' you up." Rose told Mickey
"You look fantastic." Mickey smiled at her, and they gave each other a big hug.
"Aw, sweet, look at those two." Jack remarked to the Doctor, "How come I never get any of that?"
"Buy me a drink first." the Doctor retorted
"You're such hard work."
"But worth it."
"Did ya manage to find it?" Rose asked Mickey
"There ya go." Mickey said, handing Rose a passport.
"I can go anywhere now." Rose grinned at the Doctor, brandishing the passport.
"I told yer, you don't need a passport." the Time Lord replied
"It's all very well goin' to Platform One an' Justicia an' the Glass Pyramid of San Kaloon, but what if we end up in Brazil?" Rose retorted
"She's got ya there." Gazelle remarked from under the floor.
"See, she gets it." Rose said to the Doctor, "I might need it. I'm prepared for anyfink." She stuck her tongue out at him
"Sounds like you're stayin, then." Mickey said sadly. An awkward silence followed. "So, what're ya all doin' in Cardiff?" Mickey asked, changing the subject. "An' who the hell's Jumpin' Jack Flash?" He eyed Jack disdainfully. "I mean, I don't mind you 'angin' out wiv Big Ears up there."
"Oi!" the Doctor huffed indignantly
"Look in the mirror." Mickey waved him off. The Doctor shook his head and went back to his work. "But this guy." Mickey continued, "I dunno, 'e's kinda..."
"Handsome?" Jack smirked
"More like cheesy." Mickey sneered
"Early 21st century slang." Jack noted, "Is cheesy good or bad?"
"It's bad."
"But bad means good, isn't that right?" Jack asked Gazelle
"Search me." she replied, "I don't get half these Human slang terms myself."
"Are you sayin' I'm not handsome?" the Doctor pouted, tottering down the ladder.
"I think you're handsome." Gazelle said quietly, though not quiet enough, as both the Doctor and Jack heard her, causing the Doctor to turn his head in the Time Lady's direction and Jack to smirk to himself. Ever since 1941, Jack and Rose had been conspiring to get the Time Lords together. Although they hadn't succeeded in that yet, every now and then, either the Doctor or Gazelle would let slip a comment that hinted at their true feelings for each other.
"We just stopped off to refuel." Rose explained to Mickey, "The thing is, Cardiff's got this rift runnin' through the middle of the city. It's invisible, but it's like an earthquake fault between different dimensions."
"The rift was healed back in 1869." the Doctor added
"Thanks to a girl called Gwyneth." Rose continued, "Cos' these creatures called the Gelth, they were usin' a rift as a gateway, but she saved the world an' closed it."
"But closing a rift always leaves a scar." Jack took over, "And that scar generates energy, harmless to the Human race..."
"But perfect for the TARDIS." the Doctor took over, "So, just park 'ere for a couple days right on top of the scar..."
"Open up the engines, soak up the radiation..." Jack added
"Like fillin' 'er up wiv petrol, an' off we go!" Rose cheered
"Into time!" Jack crowed, high-fiving Rose
"And space!" the Doctor, Jack and Rose finished together, all high-fiving each other.
Mickey stared at them in disbelief. "My God, 'ave you seen yourselves? You all fink you're so clever, don't you?"
"Yeah!" the Doctor said smugly
"Yeah!" Rose smirked
"Yep!" Jack finished, giving Mickey a friendly slap on the cheek.
"Well, ya not." Gazelle called up, finishing her work under the floor. "You all just sound like insufferable know-it-all's when ya do that."
The Doctor turned round to retort, only to loose his words as he watched Gazelle climb out of the hole. As she wasn't wearing her jacket, the Doctor suddenly seemed to notice just how figure-flattering her tank top and jeans were.
Oblivious to the Doctor's gaze on her, Gazelle replaced the flooring, slipped her jacket back on and let her hair down from the bun she'd pulled it into while working. "Right, that finishes that." she said, then noticed the Doctor staring at her. "What?" she asked
"Nothing." the Doctor mumbled, quickly averting his gaze.
Gazelle decided to leave it at that and went over to Mickey. "Ah, good to see ya again, Mickey." she said, "How's life treating ya?"
"Alright, thanks." Mickey replied, glad that someone had the decency to ask.
"Now that we're all here, how about we all do lunch?" Gazelle suggested
"Sounds good to me." Rose grinned.
So, the quintet all stepped outside the TARDIS. "Should take another 24 hours." the Doctor said, locking the door. "Which means we've got time to kill."
"That old lady's starin'." Mickey said, looking around shiftily.
"Probably wandering what five people could do inside a wooden box." Jack remarked, patting the Doctor and Gazelle's shoulders suggestively, causing both Time Lords to look uncomfortable.
"What're you captain of?" Mickey huffed, "The innuendo squad?" Jack just made a 'whatever' sign and walked off. "Wait, the TARDIS, we can't just leave it." Mickey pointed out, "Doesn't it get noticed?"
"Yeah, what's with the police box?" Jack asked, seeing that Mickey had a point. "Why does it look like that?"
"It's a cloaking device." Rose answered complacently
"It's called a chameleon circuit." the Doctor explained, "The TARDIS is meant to disguise herself wherever she lands, like if this was Ancient Rome, she'd be a statue on a plinth or something. But I landed in the 1960's, she disguised herself as a phone box, and the circuit got stuck."
"So it copied a real thing?" Mickey asked, "There actually were police boxes?"
"Yeah, on street corners." the Doctor replied, "Phone for 'elp before they 'ad radios and mobiles. If they arrested somebody, they could shove 'em inside until 'elp came. Like a little prison cell."
"Why don't ya just fix the circuit?" Jack asked
"He did try to once." Gazelle told him, "Still didn't work right from what I heard. And I checked the circuit when I started traveling with him. We can't fix it without replacing it, and we can't get TARDIS spares with our planet gone, so we've just had to leave it."
"Besides, I like!" the Doctor grinned, "Don't you?"
"I love it!" Rose said, patting the box.
"Me too." Gazelle said, "The police box grows on ya after a while."
"But that's what I meant." Mickey protested, "There's no police boxes anymore, so doesn't it get noticed?"
"The TARDIS has a perception filter, Mickey." Gazelle told him, "People see her in the corner of their eye and they ignore her."
"But I can still see it!"
"That's because you want to see her, Ricky." the Doctor told him, "Now stop yer nagging. Let's go an' explore." He walked off, linking hands with Gazelle. Rose, Jack and Mickey followed.
"What's the plan?" Rose asked
"Lunch, then whatever anyone wants." Gazelle replied
"Should make a nice rest stop." the Doctor agreed, "Cardiff, early 21st century. Safest place in the universe."
"Famous last words." Gazelle chuckled.
~8~
At the town hall, Margaret was hosting a press conference, highlighting her plan. "This nuclear power station in the heart of Cardiff City will bring jobs for all!" she announced, then got down from the podium and headed towards the model of the power station. "As you can see, as Lord Mayor, I've had to sanction some radical improvements..." A camera flashed and Margaret immediately threw her hand in front of her face. "No photographs! What did I say?" she spluttered, "Take pictures of the project, by all means, but not me, thank you." She addressed the room at large; "So, Cardiff Castle will be demolished allowing the Blaidd Drwg project to rise up, tall and proud. A monument to Welsh industry. And yes, some of you might shiver. The words 'nuclear power station' and 'major population centre' aren't exactly the happiest of bedfellows. But I give my personal guarantee that as long as I walk this Earth, no harm will come to any of my citizens. Now, drink up. A toast, to the future!"
She raised her glass and the press all followed suit. "To the future!" they chorused
"And believe me... it will glow." Margaret smiled, a malicious glint in her eye that no one noticed.
After a smattering of polite applause, the guests began to mingle. A young journalist approached Margaret. "Excuse me, Mrs Blaine?" she called, "My name's Cathy Salt, I represent the Cardiff Gazette."
"I'm sorry, I'm not doing interviews." Margaret waved her off, "I can't bear self-publicity."
"But are you aware of the curse?" Cathy pressed
Margaret fixed her with a fake smile. "Whatever do you mean? Cathy, wasn't it?"
"Cathy Salt. That's what some of your engineers are saying. That the Blaidd Drwg project is cursed."
"Sounds rather silly to me." Margaret scoffed
"That's what I though." Cathy said, "I was just chasing a bit of local colour. But the funny thing is, when you start piecing it all together, it does begin to look a bit odd."
"In what way?" Margaret asked coldly
"The deaths." Cathy answered, "The number of deaths associated with this project. First of all, there was the entire team of the European safety inspectors."
"But they were French. It's hardly my fault if 'danger: explosives' is only written in Welsh." Margaret waved her off, but Cathy persisted.
"And then there was that accident with the Cardiff Heritage Committee."
"The electrocution of that swimming pool was put down to natural wear and tear."
"And then, the architect?"
"It was raining. Visibility was low, my car simply couldn't stop."
"And then, just recently, Mr Cleaver, the government's nuclear advisor."
"Slipped on an icy patch."
"He was decapitated."
"It was a very icy patch." Margaret grunted, "I'm afraid these stories are nothing more than typical small town thinking. I really haven't got time. Now if you'll excuse me..."
She made to go, but Cathy still persisted and hurried in front of Margaret to block her way. "Except, before he died, Mr Cleaver posted some of his findings online."
That got Margaret's interest. "Did he now?" she frowned
"If you know where to look." Cathy said, "He was concerned about the reactor."
"Oh, all that technical stuff." Margaret attempted to laugh it off.
"Specifically, that the design of the suppression pool would cause the hydrogen recombiners to fail, precipitating in the collapse in the containment isolation system resulting in a meltdown."
"Who's being doing her homework?" Margaret remarked dryly
"That's my job." Cathy said simply
"I think, Cathy Salt... I think you and I should have a word in private." Margaret said grimly, and practically dragged Cathy out of the doors and along the corridor, still with a deadly sweet smile on her face. As they walked, Margaret's stomach rumbled loudly. "Ooh! My little tum is complaining. I think we might have to make a detour to the ladies."
"I'll wait here." Cathy offered
"Oh, come on." Margaret said, grabbing Cathy's hand and pulling her along. "All girls together!" And she pulled Cathy into the ladies' cloakroom. "So, you were saying, these outlandish theories of yours?" She hurried into the toilet cubicle and shut the door, leaving Cathy to wait outside. A wet breaking wind noise came from inside the loo.
"Sounds like we got here just in time." Cathy commented
"Continue."
"Well, I don't know much about nuclear physics." Cathy admitted, "But from what I could make out, Cleaver was saying that the whole project could go up..."
Inside the cubicle, Margaret began to unzip her forehead with an evil smile on her face.
"... worse than Chernobyl." Cathy continued, then noticed the flickering blue light from under the door. "Is there something wrong with the lights?"
"Oh, they're always on the blink." Margaret waved her off, "I can't tell you how many memos I've sent. So, Chernobyl?"
"Apparently. But a thousand times worse." Cathy replied
Margaret began to shed her skin-suit
"I know it sounds absurd, there must be so many safety regulations." Cathy continued, blissfully unaware of this, "But Mr Cleaver seemed to be talking about a nuclear holocaust. He almost made it sound deliberate. I mean, we're hardly the Sunday Times, it's the only the Cardiff Gazette, but we have a duty to report the facts."
Margaret had now fully unmasked. "And you're going to print this information?" she rasped
"Are you alright?" Cathy asked, noticing that Margaret sounded different. "You sound a bit..."
"Sore throat." Margaret answered, and did an affected cough. "Just a little tickle. But tell me, do you intend to make this information public?"
"I have to."
"So be it." Margaret said menacingly, raising her claw ready to strike.
"Mind you, my boyfriend thinks I'm mad." Cathy said, walking to the sink.
Margaret lowered her claw, listening.
"We're getting married next month." Cathy continued, checking her reflection. "And he says if I cause a fuss, I could loose my job. Just when we need the money..."
"Boyfriend?" Margaret questioned
"Jeffery, civil servant. He's nothing exciting, but he's mine."
"When's the wedding?"
"The 19th. It's really just to stop my mother from nagging, but the baby sort of clinched it, I suppose."
Margaret slowly sat down on the loo. "You're with... child?"
"Three months. It's not showing yet. Wasn't planned. It was an accident. Nice accident, though."
"Congratulations."
"Thank you. How about you? You got any kids?"
"No."
"Is there a Mr Blaine?"
"Not anymore." Margaret answered, her voice trembling, "I'm all on my own. I had quite a sizeable family, once upon a time, wonderful brothers. Oh, they were so bold. But all of them gone now. Maybe you're right. Maybe I'm cursed."
"No, no... I don't think so." Cathy counselled "Not really."
"You're very kind. If you don't mind, I might be a while. You run along. Perhaps we could do this another day."
"Are you alright?"
"Fine!"
"Ok, I'll tell you what, uh, I'll leave my details with your office. Thanks for talking."
"Thank you." Margaret said sadly
Cathy left the cloakroom. When the Human was gone, Margaret gave a quiet moan of sorrow, lowering her head and closing her eyes with misery.
~8~
Meanwhile, Mickey and the TARDIS crew were all sitting around a table in a bay side restaurant, enjoying a nice lunch. Jack was regaling everyone with a tale of one of his past misadventures; "I swear, six feet tall with tusks..."
"Yer lying through yer teeth." the Doctor shook his head
"I'd 'ave gone bonkers!" Rose sniggered, "That's the word, bonkers!"
"I mean, it turns out the white things are tusks and I mean tusks!" Jack continued, "And it's woken, and it's not happy..."
"How could ya not see it in the first place?" Gazelle asked, "Those things are pretty hard to miss!"
"And we're standing there, fifteen of us, naked..."
"Naked?!" Rose gasped
"And I'm like, oh, no, no, it's got nothing to do with me! And then it roars, and we are running. Oh, my God, we are running! And Brakovitch falls, so I turn to him and I say..."
"I knew we should've turned left!" Mickey cut in with the punchline, sending them all roaring with laughter.
"That's my line!"
"I don't believe you." Rose guffawed, "I don't believe a word you say ever, that is so brilliant!"
The Doctor glanced over at a newspaper being read by a man sitting at a nearby table. His smile instantly fell at the paper's headline. Unnoticed by the others, he got up.
"Did ya ever get ya clothes back?" Rose asked Jack
"No, I just picked him up and went right for the ship." Jack replied, "Full throttle, didn't stop till I hit the space lanes. I was shaking! It was unbelievable, I'm freaking out and by the time I got there..."
"Trouble?" Gazelle asked the Doctor suddenly, noticing him looking at the front page of the paper with a troubled expression.
"And I was 'aving such a nice day." the Doctor sighed, and showed the others the paper. The headline was 'New mayor, new Cardiff' complete with a photo of Margaret Blaine as she objected to the photographer taking her picture.
"I knew you'd jinxed us." Gazelle groaned
"How can she be 'ere?" Rose asked, "I fought they were all dead."
"Obviously she survived." the Doctor replied grimly.
~8~
The quintet were soon arriving at the town hall, having briefed Jack about the incident in Downing Street. They marched purposefully up the steps and entered the hall's foyer, then they stopped to survey their surroundings. "According to intelligence, the target is the last surviving member of the Slitheen family, a criminal sect from the planet Raxicoricofallapatorius, masquerading as a Human being, zipped inside a skin-suit." Jack fired off, "Ok, plan of attack, we assume a basic 57/56 strategy, covering all available exits on the ground floor. Doctor, Gazelle, you two go face-to-face, that'll designate exit one. I'll cover exit two. Rose, you're exit three. Mickey Smith, you take exit four. Have you got that?"
While Jack had been rattled all that off, the Doctor had been looking at him with mild annoyance at his impertinence. "Excuse me, who's in charge?" he asked sternly
"Sorry. Awaiting orders, sir." Jack huffed.
"Right." the Doctor began in an authoritative voice, "Here's the plan." He turned to the others with a cheeky smile. "Like he said, nice plan."
Gazelle rolled her eyes at that. "Anything else?" she asked Jack
"Present arms." Jack said, pulling out a mobile phone.
The Doctor, Rose and Mickey all produced mobile phones of their own. "Ready!" they all said.
"Speed dial?" Jack checked
"Yup." the Doctor said
"Ready." Rose acknowledged
"Check." Mickey finished
"See ya in hell!" Jack smirked and walked off to the right. Rose and the Time Lords headed off to different exits straight ahead, while Mickey hesitated in confusion for a few moments before ambling off to the left.
~8~
The Doctor and Gazelle strode over to the secretary outside the mayor's office. "Hello! We've come to see the Lord Mayor." the Doctor said
"Have you got an appointment?" the secretary asked
"I'm afraid not. We're just old friends passing by." Gazelle said, "We thought we'd pop in and surprise her."
"Can't wait to see 'er face." the Doctor chuckled
"Well, she's just having a cup of tea." the secretary tired to fob them off.
"Well, just go in there and tell her the Doctor would like to see her." the Doctor told him bluntly
"Doctor who?"
"Just the Doctor. Tell 'er exactly that. The Doctor."
"And what about you?" the secretary asked Gazelle
"Ah, she'll recognise me when she sees me." the Time Lady brushed him off
"Hold on a tick." the secretary muttered resignedly and entered the office.
The Time Lords calmly waited. They barely raised their brows when they heard the sound of a cup smashing.
The secretary reappeared, slightly flustered and opening the door as little as possible, before he squeezed through it and shut it behind him. "The Lord Mayor says thank you for popping by." he began, "She'd love to have a chat, but, um... she's up to her eyes in paperwork. Perhaps if you two could make an appointment for next week...?"
"She's climbing out the window, isn't she?" the Doctor asked calmly
"Yes, she is." the secretary said awkwardly
The Time Lords promptly pushed past him and entered the office. They dashed across the room to the open window and hurried out onto the balcony, emerging in time to see Margaret scrambling along to some scaffolding. "Slitheen 'eading north." the Doctor said into his phone
"On my way." Rose acknowledged
"Over and out." Jack said
The Time Lords were about to go in pursuit of Margaret when the secretary rushed out onto the balcony and started grappling with the Doctor. "Leave the mayor alone!" he fussed
Gazelle promptly put her hands on his temples and his eyes rolled into his head and he fell unconscious to the floor. "Sorry about that." she said to his prone form, "But we don't have time for this." And with that, she and Doctor hurried down the balcony.
Margaret had by now reached the ground and removed her brooch as she ran towards a side alley. However, when she reached the alley, she saw Rose running towards her, blocking the way. Margaret growled angrily and pulled off an earring, then she turned to see Jack running towards her. Her eyes widened in shock and she ran back the way she'd came.
The Doctor began to climb down the scaffolding, while Gazelle athletically jumped off the balcony, landing on her feet. "Oi, Margaret!" she called, running after the Slitheen.
Margaret belted down the remaining side alley, pulling off her second earring. Jack, Rose and the Time Lords converged at the end of the alley. "Who was on exit four?" Jack asked
"Mickey was." Gazelle answered
Mickey burst out of a side door, a cleaning bucket stuck to his foot. "Here I am." he wheezed.
"Mickey the idiot." the Doctor grunted
"Oh, be fair, she's not exactly gonna outrun us, is she?" Rose defended
No sooner had she said that, then Margaret clipped her earrings and brooch together to form a control pad. She pressed it and disappeared in a blue light.
"She's got a teleport! That's cheating!" Jack groaned, "Now we're never gonna get her!"
"Oh, don't worry, they're good at teleports." Rose replied, gesturing to the Time Lords, who both calmly stepped forward, their sonic screwdrivers in hand.
"Ladies first." the Doctor said to Gazelle, who clicked her sonic on.
Margaret reappeared, running straight towards them with a self-satisfied smile on her face, which promptly vanished when she realised where she was. She ground to a halt and hurriedly changed direction, activating her teleport. She vanished again, and the Doctor clicked his sonic on. Margaret reappeared, again running towards them. She turned round, vanished again, and Gazelle used her sonic to bring her back. Margaret teleported herself away again, but once again, the Doctor used his sonic to bring her back. This time, she appeared right in front of the group, absolutely exhausted and gasping for breath.
"We could do this all day." Gazelle said cheerfully, waggling her sonic in the Slitheen's face.
"This is persecution." Margaret wheezed, "Why can't you leave me alone? What did I ever do to you?"
"You tried to kill us and destroy this entire planet." the Doctor replied bluntly
"Apart from that." Margaret said dismissively.
~8~
The quintet took Margaret back inside the town hall and into the presentation room. "So, yer a Slitheen, yer on Earth, yer trapped." the Doctor rattled off, "Your family get killed but you teleport out, just in the nick of time. You have no means of escape. What d'yer do? You build a nuclear power station." He gestured to the model in the middle of the room. "But what for?"
"A philanthropic gesture." Margaret replied, "I've learned the error of my ways."
"And it just so happens to be on top of the rift." Gazelle retorted, not buying it one bit.
"What rift would that be?" Margaret tried to be innocent
"A rift in space and time." Jack retorted, also not believing her lies, "If this power station went into meltdown, the entire planet would go schwwwupboom!"
"This station is designed to explode the minute it reaches capacity." the Doctor noted
"Didn't anyone notice?" Rose asked, "Isn't there someone in London checkin' this sorta stuff?"
"We're in Cardiff. London doesn't care." Margaret scoffed, "The South Wales coast could fall into the sea and they wouldn't notice... Oh, I sound like a Welshman. God help me, I've gone native."
"But why would she do that?" Mickey frowned, "A great big explosion, she'd only end killin' 'erself."
"She's got a name, you know." Margaret said indignantly
"She's not even a she, she's a... thing." Mickey retorted
"But she's clever." Gazelle said, and pulled out the base of the power station model, then she turned it over to reveal a giant circuit board underneath.
"Fantastic." the Doctor breathed, recognising the device.
"Is that a tribophysical waveform macro-kinetic extrapolator?" Jack asked excitedly, also recognising it.
"Couldn't have put it better myself." the Doctor confirmed
Jack took the extrapolator from Gazelle and examined it closely. "Ooh, genius!" he said.
The Doctor's attention was suddenly caught by the banners for the project. He went over to look at them closely
"You didn't build this." Jack said to Margaret
"I have my hobbies." she waved him off, "A little tinkering."
"No, no, no, I mean, you really didn't build this. Way beyond you."
"I bet she stole it." Mickey accused
"It fell into my hands." Margaret retorted
"Is it a weapon?" Rose asked Gazelle, but the Time Lady had gone over to see what had caught the Doctor's attention, so Jack answered instead.
"It's a transport." he explained, putting the extrapolator on the floor. "Ya see, the reactor blows, the rift opens, phenomenal cosmic disaster, but this thing surrounds in a forcefield. You have this energy bubble, zzhum, so you're safe. Then you feed it coordinates, stand on top, and ride the concussion all the way out of the solar system."
"It's a surfboard." Mickey realised
"A pan-dimensional surfboard, yeah." Jack confirmed
"And it would've worked." Margaret said bitterly, "I would've surfed away from this dead end dump and back to civilisation."
"You'd blow up an entire planet just to get a lift?" Mickey asked incredulously
"Like stepping on an anthill." she retorted
"How'd yer think of the name?" the Doctor spoke up, attracting the others' attention.
"What, Blaidd Drwg? It's Welsh." Margaret replied
"We know, but how did ya think of it?" Gazelle asked
"Chose it at random, that's all. Just sounded good. Does it matter?"
The Time Lords turned around, their faces serious. "Blaidd Drwg." the Doctor muttered thoughtfully.
"What's it mean?" Rose asked
"Bad Wolf." Gazelle replied
"But I've 'eard that before, Bad Wolf." Rose realised, "I've that lots of times..."
"Us too." Gazelle agreed
"Everywhere we go. Two words. Following us. Bad Wolf." the Doctor murmured
"How can they be followin' us?" Rose asked, feeling haunted.
The Time Lords looked at each other for a moment then...
"Nah, just a coincidence." the Doctor said cheerfully
"Yeah, like hearing a word on the radio and then hearing it all day." Gazelle agreed
Neither Time Lord were convinced that this was the case at all, though they both agreed that there were more important things to focus on at the moment.
"Never mind, things to do." the Doctor said, clapping his hands briskly. "Margaret, we're gonna take yer home."
"Isn't that the easy option, like letting her go?" Jack asked
"I don't believe it!" Rose said gleefully, "We actually get to go to Raxa... Wait a minute! Raxa cor..."
"Raxicoricofallapatorius." the Doctor told her quickly
"Raxicorico..." Rose began
"Fallapatorius." Gazelle finished for her
"Raxicoricofallapatorius!" Rose screeched in delight
"You got it." Gazelle gave her a thumbs up
"I did it!" Rose squeaked happily
"They have the death penalty." Margaret said seriously, wiping the smiles off everyone else's faces. "The family Slitheen was tried in it's absence many years ago and found guilty. With no chance of appeal. According to the statutes of government, the moment I return, I am to be executed. What do you make of that, Doctor?" She held the Time Lord's cold stare. "Take me home and you take me to my death."
"Not my problem." the Doctor told her indifferently.
~8~
That evening, they were all gathered in the TARDIS. "This ship is impossible!" Margaret said in wonder, "It's superb! How'd you get the outside around the inside?"
"Like I'd give you the secret, yeah." the Doctor retorted
"I almost feel better about being defeated." Margaret continued, "I never stood a chance. This is the technology of the Gods."
"You wouldn't wanna worship us." Gazelle remarked from where she and Jack were tinkering with the extrapolator on the floor next to the console, "We'd make terrible gods."
"Yeah, yer wouldn't get a day off for starters." the Doctor agreed, "Jack, how we doing, big fella?"
"This extrapolator's top of the range." Jack replied, then peered round at Margaret. "Where did you get it?"
"Oh, I don't know. Some airlock sale." Margaret shrugged
"Must've been a great big heist." Jack remarked, "It's stacked with power."
"But we can use it for fuel?" the Doctor asked
"Yeah, it should knock 12 hours off." Gazelle told him, "So we should be able to go by the morning."
"Then we're stuck here overnight." the Doctor stated
"I'm in no hurry." Margaret grunted
"We've got a prisoner!" Rose said excitedly, "The police box is really... a police box."
"You're not just police, though." Margaret scorned, "Since you're taking me to my death, that makes you my executioners. Each and every one of you."
"Well, you deserve it." Mickey said coldly
"You're very quick to say so." Margaret rounded on him, "You're very quick to soak your hands in my blood. Which makes you better than me how exactly?" Mickey had no answer for that. "Long night." Margaret smirked and sat down on the jump seat. "Let's see who can look me in the eye."
She fixed Mickey with a calm, collected gaze. He managed to hold it for a few seconds before averting his eyes uncomfortably. Next, Margaret looked at Rose, who glanced guiltily at the Doctor, who glanced up only for a second as he was still working busily, but still very aware of the situation. Gazelle and Jack were too busy with their work to look at Margaret.
~8~
Presently, Mickey stepped outside and stood looking at the water fountain. Rose stepped out and joined him. "S'freezin' out 'ere!" she remarked, regretting her decision to wear a mini-skirt today.
"Better than in there." Mickey replied, nodding towards the TARDIS, "She does deserve it. She's a Slitheen. I don't care. It's... it's just... weird in that box."
"I didn't really need my passport." Rose admitted, grinning tentatively.
Mickey realised that Rose wanted to see him, so he smiled, pleased at that. Although he was on better terms with Jackie these days, he still felt somewhat unwanted by everyone. "I've been finkin', ya know." he began, "We could... go an' 'ave a drink. Have a pizza or somefink. Just you an' me."
"That'd be nice." Rose nodded
"An' I mean if the TARDIS can't leave till morning, we could..." He looked slightly bashful. "Go to a hotel? Spend the night? I mean, if you want to. I... I've got some money."
"Ok, yeah." Rose smiled
"Is that alright?"
"Yeah!"
"Cool." a very pleased Mickey said, "There's a couple of bars around 'ere, we should give 'em a go. Do ya 'ave to go an' tell them?" He indicated the TARDIS
"Gazelle's been tellin' me to spend some more time wiv you, so she'd be alright wiv it." Rose replied.
~8~
Inside the TARDIS, Gazelle watched Rose and Mickey walk away hand-in-hand on the monitor. She was glad that Rose was taking her advice and spending more time with her supposed boyfriend. The Time Lady quite liked Mickey and felt that Rose wasn't treating him with the respect that he deserved.
"So, what's on?" Jack asked, joining her by the monitor.
"Nothing that's any of our business." Gazelle replied and shut the monitor off.
"I gather it's not always like this." Margaret spoke up from where she was sitting on the floor with her back to the console, "Having to wait. I bet you two are always the first to leave, Doctor, Gazelle. Never mind the consequences, off you both go. You butchered my family and then ran for the stars, am I right? But not this time. At last, you have consequences... how does it feel?"
"We didn't butcher them." the Doctor replied. He hadn't wanted to kill the Slitheen family, but they'd left him with no choice.
"Don't answer back. That's what she wants." Jack advised
"We know, she's just trying to guilt us into letting her go." Gazelle said, then turned to Margaret. "But it's not gonna work. And on that subject, you had an emergency teleport, you didn't take 'em with you, did ya?"
"It only carries one." Margaret replied, "I had to fly without coordinates. I ended up in a skip on the Isle of Dogs." The three time travellers sniggered "It wasn't funny." Margaret said sharply, turning to them.
"Sorry." the Doctor said sheepishly, but none of the trio could stifle their laughter for long. "It is a bit funny!" And they all started laughing again, Margaret joining in this time.
"Do I get a last request?" she asked
The Doctor turned serious. "Depends what it is."
"I grew quite fond of my little Human life. All those little rituals, the brushing of the teeth and the complicated way they cook things. There's a little restaurant just around the bay. It became quite a favourite of mine."
The Doctor walked over to her. "Is that what yer want, a last meal?"
"Don't I have rights?" Margaret said defiantly
"Oh, like she's never gonna escape." Jack scoffed
"Except I can never escape the Doctor, so where's the danger?" Margaret shot back bitterly, then considered the Doctor. "But I wonder if you could do it? To sit with a creature you're about to kill and take supper. How strong is your stomach?"
"Strong enough." the Doctor replied
"I wonder. I've seen you fight your enemies... now dine with them."
"You won't change my mind." the Doctor said defiantly
"Prove it." Margaret challenged
"There are people out there." the Doctor countered, "If you slip away for just one second, they'll be in danger."
"Except... I've got these." Jack said, holding up a pair of metal bracelets. "You both wear one. If she moves more than ten feet away..." He made a loud buzzing noise, mimicking an electric shock. "She gets zapped by 10,000 volts."
The Doctor turned back to the Slitheen. "Margaret, would yer like to come out to dinner? My treat."
"Dinner in bondage." Margaret said with a sickly smile, "Works for me."
"You'd better go with 'em, Gaz." Jack said to Gazelle, "I can handle things here."
"Yeah, suppose I'd better." Gazelle said. She didn't trust Margaret at all and was sure she was up to something, so felt that it would be best if both she and the Doctor went with the Slitheen. What the Time Lady didn't know was that Jack had a very different reason for suggesting she dine with them.
~8~
And so, Margaret and the Time Lords were soon sat at a table in a bay side bistro. "Here we are, out on a date, and you haven't even asked my proper name." Margaret remarked to the Doctor, who was sat at the opposite side of the table.
"It's not a date!" the Doctor retorted. "At least not with YOU" he thought, then shifted his gaze to Gazelle, who was sat next to him reading her menu. Lately, he found himself noticing more and more just how attractive the Time Lady was, and he had to admit, she looked particularly lovely right now, with her hazel eyes sparkling in the restaurant's dim lighting, while her long wavy brown locks cascaded down her back like a chocolate waterfall. Realising that he was ogling her again, he turned back to Margaret; "What's yer name?"
"Blon." the Slitheen answered, "I am Blon Fel-Fotch Passameer-Day Slitheen. That's what it'll say on my death certificate."
"Nice to meet ya, Blon." Gazelle said, not looking up from her menu.
"I'm sure." Blon Fel-Fotch sneered, then put down her menu and looked out of the window. "Look... that's where I was living at Margaret." The Doctor turned round to follow her gaze, looking at a block of flats in the distance. "Nice little flat. Over there. On the top. Next to the one with the light on." Behind the Doctor's back, she opened her ring and emptied a white powder into his wine glass. "Two bedrooms, bay side view. I was rather content. Don't suppose I'll see it again."
"Probably not." Gazelle said, swapping the Doctor and Margaret's glasses around, having seen the Slitheen's little stunt.
"Thank you." Blon Fel-Fotch said sarcastically
"Don't mention it." the Time Lady retorted in a matching tone, then took a sip of her pint of lager and returned to her menu.
"Tell me then, you two." Blon Fel-Fotch said, "What do you know of my species?"
"Only what we've seen." the Doctor replied, looking at his menu.
"Did you know for example... in extreme cases... when her life is in danger... a female Raxicoricofallapatorian can manufacture poison darts within her own fingers?!" She promptly fired a pair of darts out of her finger tips and straight at the Time Lords.
Gazelle casually leaned back in her chair and held her menu up to swat one dart away, while the Doctor simply caught the other one in mid-air without even looking up from his menu. "Yes, we did." he said calmly.
"Just checking." Blon Fel-Fotch said nonchalantly, "And one more thing... between you and me..." She casted a furtive look around the restaurant, and she and the Doctor leaned in as if she wanted to tell him a secret. "As a final resort..." she whispered, "The excess poison can be exhaled through the lungs."
She began to exhale a green gas out of her mouth, but the Doctor, without even flinching, whipped out a breath freshener and gave the Slitheen's open mouth a squirt. "That's better." he said casually and leaned back in his chair, "Now then, what d'yer think?" he asked Gazelle.
"The beef burger sounds very tempting." she replied, "I think I'll have the beef burger and chips. What about you?"
"Mmm, steak looks nice." the Doctor replied, "Steak and chips!"
Blon Fel-Fotch scowled at them and opened her menu.
~8~
Meanwhile, Rose and Mickey were walking around the bay area. Rose was chatting away enthusiastically, but although he was trying to appear so, Mickey really didn't seem interested.
"The Doctor an' Gazelle took me to this planet a while back." Rose said, "It was much colder than this. They called it 'Woman Wept'. The planet was actually called Woman Wept. Cos' if ya looked at it, right, from above, there's like this huge continent, like all curved round... sort of looked like a woman, ya know... lamenting. Oh, my God, an' we went to this beach, right, no people, no buildings, just this beach like, a thousand miles across! An' somefink 'ad 'appened, somefink to do wiv the sun, I dunno, but the sea 'ad just frozen! Like, in a split second in the middle of a storm, right, waves an' foam, just frozen! All the way out to the horizon. Midnight, right, we walk underneath these waves a 'undred feet tall, made of ice."
Mickey had long since given up trying to look interested. He had some news of his own and decided that it was now or never; "I'm goin' out wiv Trisha Delaney."
Rose stared at him, wrong-footed. "Oh, right." she said slowly, "That's nice... Trisha from the shop?"
"Yeah, Rob Delaney's sister."
"Well, she's nice... she's a bit big..."
"She lost weight." Mickey said, then they were silent for a moment. "You've been away." Mickey spoke up again, trying to justify himself.
"Well, good for you. She's nice." Rose said, though she wasn't happy about this news at all. She wanted to have her cake and eat it too. The fact that Mickey had moved on didn't please her one bit.
"So, tell us more about this planet, then." Mickey said, more relaxed.
"That was it, really..." Rose mumbled, and they walked on in silence, worlds apart.
~8~
Back at the restaurant, Blon Fel-Fotch was trying to guilt the Time Lords into letting her go. "Public execution is a slow death." she said, "They prepare a thin acetic acid... lower me into the cauldron... and boil me. The acidity is perfectly gauged to strip away the skin. Internal organs fall out into the liquid and I become soup. And still alive. Still screaming."
"We don't make the law." the Doctor reasoned
"But you deliver it." Blon Fel-Fotch argued, "Will you both stay to watch?"
"What else can we do?" the Doctor said resignedly
"The Slitheen family's huge. There's a lot more of us, all scattered off-world. Take me to them. Take me somewhere safe."
"But then you'll just start again." Gazelle countered. She and the Doctor knew that most Raxicoricofallapatorians were nice, decent people, but the Slitheen family were an exception. They were all bad eggs, as were their related family, the Blatheen.
"I promise I won't." Blon Fel-Fotch whispered
"You've been in that skin-suit too long." the Doctor said, "You've forgotten. There used to be a real Margaret Blaine. You killed 'er and stripped 'er and used the skin. Yer pleading for mercy out of a dead woman's lips."
"Perhaps I have got used to it." Blon Fel-Fotch retorted, "A Human life. An ordinary life. That's all I'm asking. Give me a chance, please. I can change."
"We don't believe you." the Doctor answered. After the Gelth, he'd learned not to be so trusting and gullible.
~8~
Meanwhile, Rose was standing by some railings looking out across the water, while Mickey was sat with his back to her on a bench. "So, what d'ya wanna do now?" he asked
"Don't mind." Rose mumbled
"We could ask about 'otels." Mickey suggested
"What would Trisha Delaney say?"
"S'pose." Mickey conceded, "There's a bar down there wiv a Spanish name or somefink..."
Rose swung round suddenly. "You don't even like Trisha Delaney!" she burst out.
"Oh, is that right? What the 'ell do you know?"
"I know you. An' I know 'er, an' I know that's never gonna appen. So who do you fink you're kiddin'?!"
"At least I know where she is!"
"There we are, then." Rose rolled her eyes, "It's got nothing to do wiv Trisha. This is all about me, isn't it..."
"You left me!" Mickey snapped, standing up with sudden fury. "We were nice, we were 'appy. An' then what? You give me a kiss an' you run off wiv them an' you make me feel like nothing, Rose. I was nothing!" He began to tear up as over a year's worth of bottled up emotions came flooding out. "I can't even go out wiv a stupid girl from a shop cos' you pick up the phone an' I comes running. I mean, is that what I am, Rose? Standby? Am I supposed to sit 'ere for the rest of my life, waitin' for you? Because I will."
"I'm sorry." Rose whispered, feeling ashamed. Truth be told, she hadn't really spared much thought to Mickey during her travels. She'd flirted with Adam and Jack, and had basically ignored the fact that she and Mickey were technically still together, and the fact that he'd been ostracised by everyone for a while year because of her. The Doctor didn't help with his constant put-downs and deliberately getting his name wrong. Gazelle was more considerate of Mickey, and Rose wished that the Time Lady was here now, maybe she could've smoothed things over between them.
~8~
Said Time Lady was still in the restaurant with the Doctor listening to Blon Fel-Fotch's pleas. "I promise you, I've changed since we last met, Doctor, Gazelle." the Slitheen said, "There was this girl, just today, young thing. Something of a danger. She was getting too close. I felt the blood lust rising, just as the family taught me, I was going to kill her without a thought. And then... I stopped. She's alive somewhere right now, she's walking around this city because I can change, I did change. I know I can't prove it..."
"I believe you." the Doctor said calmly
"Then you know I'm capable of better."
"That was a good thing to do, but it doesn't mean anything." Gazelle said
"I spared her life!" Blon Fel-Fotch protested
"You let one of them go, but that's nothing new." the Doctor said, "Every now and then, a little victim's spared. Because she smiled... because he's got freckles... cos' they've begged... and that's how yer live with yerself. That's how you slaughter millions. Because once in a while, on a whim, if the wind's in the right direction... you 'appen to be kind."
"Only a killer would know that." Blon Fel-Fotch said coldly. Both Time Lords were thrown at that. Blon Fel-Fotch continued; "Is that right? From what I've seen your happy-go-lucky little live leaves devastation in it's wake." she said to the Doctor, "Playing with so many people's lives, you might as well be a God."
The Doctor lost eye contact with the Slitheen, slightly hurt. Gazelle squeezed his hand reassuringly, reminding him that she was here for him and to not Blon Fel-Fotch's words to hearts.
"And you're right, Doctor." Blon Fel-Fotch continued, "Sometimes... you let one go. Let me go."
"We can't." Gazelle told her empathically, "I am sorry about what will happen to you, but there's a wise saying on this planet; 'If ya can't do the time, don't do the crime.' And we're sorry about your family, but we gave you all a chance to end it all without any more bloodshed, but you didn't take it. You left us no choice."
~8~
Meanwhile, Mickey had calmed down and was talking more calmly to Rose. "I'm not askin' you to leave 'em cos I know that's not fair." he said, "They're ya friends, an' Gazelle's alright. But I just need somefink, yeah? Some sorta promise that when you do come back, Ya comin' back for me."
Rose spun around as she heard a low rumbling in the distance. "Is that thunder?" she frowned
"Does it matter?" Mickey waved her off, hurt that he was pouring his heart out to her and trying to rebuild their relationship, yet she was more interested in the weather.
"That's not thunder." Rose stated.
~8~
In the restaurant, Blon Fel-Fotch was still begging to be let go. "In the family Slitheen, we had no choice." she said quickly, her desperation growing. "I was made to carry out my first kill at 13. If I'd refused, my father would've fed me to the venom grubs."
Neither Time Lord were listening, their attention had been caught by the same low rumbling that Rose had heard.
"If I'm a killer, it's because I was born to kill, it's all I know!" Blon Fel-Fotch continued, then noticed that her pleas were falling on deaf ears. "Are either of you even listening to me?!"
"Can you 'ear that?" the Doctor frowned, furrowing his brow.
"I'm begging for my life!"
"No, listen." Gazelle urged
The rumbling came again. The Doctor peered at the glasses on the table, which were beginning to shake slightly. Then suddenly, the glass windows of the restaurant shattered, causing patrons to scream.
~8~
At the bay side, street lights blew out, sending passers-by screaming. A baffled Mickey looked around for Rose and saw her running off in the direction of the TARDIS. "Oh, go on then, run!" he shouted bitterly after her, "It's 'im again, innit? It's the Doctor! It's always the Doctor! It's always gonna be the Doctor an' it's never me!"
~8~
The Doctor, Gazelle and Blon Fel-Fotch hurried down a flight of stairs, the sounds of screaming echoing around them. Blon Fel-Fotch was falling behind. "The handcuffs!"
The Time Lords waited for her at the bottom of the stairs and the Doctor pulled the Slitheen's handcuffs off. "Don't think yer running away." he said, he and Gazelle grabbing a wrist each.
"Oh, I'm sticking with you two." Blon Fel-Fotch said fearfully, and they hurried off in the direction of the TARDIS. "Some date this turned out to be!"
They reached the Roald Dahl Plass to see a huge bolt of lightening-like energy shooting out of the TARDIS and into the sky. "It's the rift." the Doctor realised, "The rift's opening!" They hurried across the square, the concrete cracking all around them. The Doctor managed to unlock the door and they hurried inside the box.
The console room was in chaos, with warning lights on the console blinking away like mad. Jack was frantically ripping wires out of the extrapolator. "What the hell are yer doing?!" the Doctor demanded as he and Gazelle both ran to the console.
"It just went crazy!" Jack called back
"It's the rift." Gazelle said, checking the console. "It's opening and time and space are ripping themselves apart. The whole city's gonna disappear!" She and the Doctor both jumped back as the console sparked.
"It's the extrapolator!" Jack said as he and the Time Lords worked furiously to try and sort things out, "I've disconnected it but it's still feeding off the engines! It's using the TARDIS, I can't stop it!"
"Never mind Cardiff, it's gonna rip open the planet!" the Doctor realised
Rose burst in. "What is it?" she panted, "What's 'appenin'?!"
"Oh, just little me!" Blon Fel-Fotch cackled gleefully, and before anyone could do something, she ripped off the arm of her skin-suit, revealing her claw. She grabbed Rose and held her in a neck hold. The others all rushed forward to intervene. "One wrong move and she snaps like a promise!" Blon Fel-Fotch threatened.
"I might've known." the Doctor scowled
"We should've guessed." Gazelle realised, "You distract us while the extrapolator hijacks the TARDIS."
"And I've had you two bleating all night." Blon Fel-Fotch crowed, "Poor babies. Now shut it!" She turned to Jack. "You, fly boy, put the extrapolator at my feet."
Jack hesitated. Blon Fel-Fotch tightened her grip on Rose's neck. Jack looked at the Time Lords for help, who both nodded to indicate that he should co-operate, so he did as he was told.
"Thank you." Blon Fel-Fotch said in a mock sweet voice, "Just as I planned."
"I fought you needed to blow up the nuclear power station." Rose choked out
"Falling that, if I were to be... arrested... then anyone capable of tracking me down would have considerable technology of their own." Blon Fel-Fotch explained smugly, "Therefore, they would be captivated by the extrapolator. Especially a magpie mind like yours, Doctor. So the extrapolator was programmed to go to plan B. To lock onto the nearest alien power source and open the rift." She looked around the TARDIS in awe. "And what a power source it found... I'm back on schedule... thanks to you."
"The rift's gonna convulse. " Jack warned, "She'll destroy the planet."
"And you with it!" Blon Fel-Fotch crowed in triumph, and pushed Rose aside so that she could stand on the extrapolator, but still kept a hold of the blonde's neck. "While I ride this board over the crest of the inferno all the way to freedom. Stand back boys and girls... surf's up."
Suddenly, a panel on the console directly in front of Blon Fel-Fotch burst open, and a blinding golden-white light flooded out. Blon Fel-Fotch looked at it in surprise, then up at the Time Lords on the other side of the console. "Of course, opening the rift means you'll pull this ship apart." the Doctor said calmly.
"So sue me." Blon Fel-Fotch sneered
"It's not just any old power source." the Doctor continued, "It's the TARDIS. Our TARDIS. The best ship in the universe."
"It'll make wonderful scrap." Blon Fel-Fotch said nastily
"What's that light?" Rose asked, squinting through the light.
"The heart of the TARDIS." Gazelle answered
"This ship's alive." the Doctor told Blon Fel-Fotch, "Yer've opened her soul."
Breathing heavily, Blon Fel-Fotch stared into the light, as if forgetting everything else. "It's... so bright." she said in a vague and dreamy voice.
"Look at it, Margaret." the Doctor said
"Beautiful..."
"Look inside, Blon Fel-Fotch. Look at the light."
Blon Fel-Fotch stared at the light, completely transfixed by it. Her grip on Rose slackened, allowing the Human to stumble out of the way. Blon Fel-Fotch continued to state into the light, a blissful smile spreading across her face. Then, she looked up at the Doctor, who smiled slightly. "Thank you..." Blon Fel-Fotch said genuinely.
There was a blinding flash, completely engulfing the Slitheen. When it cleared, her empty skin-suit flopped to the floor on top of the extrapolator.
The Time Lords sprang into action. "Don't look at that light!" Gazelle warned the Humans, "Look away or close ya eyes if ya have to, just don't look at it." She and the Doctor slammed down levers and the panel on the console closed, shutting off the light.
"Now, Jack, come on!" the Doctor called, "Shut it all down. Shut down!" Jack rushed over to help them.
"Rose, turn all the switches on that panel there to the right." Gazelle instructed, and Rose rushed to do so.
The quartet all worked fast. Finally, the lightning shooting out of the TARDIS stopped, as did the warning lights, everything back to normal.
"Nicely done, thank you all." the Doctor said, stepping back from the console.
"What 'appened to Margaret?" Rose asked
"Must've got burned up." Jack guessed, "Carried out her own death sentence."
"No, I don't think she's dead." Gazelle said, she and the Doctor walking over to examine the empty skin-suit.
"Then, where'd she go?" Rose asked
"She looked into the 'eart of the TARDIS, and even I don't know how strong that is." the Doctor replied, "And the ship's telepathic, like I told yer, Rose. Gets inside yer head, translates alien languages. Maybe the raw energy can translate all sorts of thoughts." He kneeled down next to the skin-suit for a closer look. The others followed suit, so all four of them were huddle around. The Doctor fished about inside the skin-suit and pulled out an egg with a few tentacles on top. "Here she is!" he said.
"She's an egg?" Rose asked incredulously
"Regressed to 'er childhood." the Doctor nodded
"She's an egg?" Jack stared
"She can start again." Gazelle said, "A clean slate. If we take her home, give her to a different family, tell 'em to bring her up properly, then she might grow up to be a better person."
"Or she might be worse." Jack remarked
"That's her choice." the Doctor replied
"She's an egg." Rose repeated
"She's an egg." the Doctor smiled
Then, Gazelle noticed that someone was missing. "Where's Mickey?" she asked
"Oh, my God!" Rose gasped and rushed out of the TARDIS.
~8~
Outside, things had calmed down. Police and paramedics had arrived at the scene and were busy cleaning up the mess and helping the injured. Rose asked around, but no one had seen Mickey.
What Rose didn't know was that Mickey was standing in the shadows watching her, not wanting to be found. After watching Rose for a moment, he turned and walked off into the night.
~8~
Rose returned to the TARDIS, where the Time Lords were fiddling with the console, Jack standing on the other side. "We're all powered up, we can leave." the Doctor said, "Opening the rift filled us up with energy. We can go. If that's all right."
"Yeah, fine." Rose said, her tone light, but traces of tears on her cheeks.
"Is Mickey alright?" Gazelle asked carefully
"He's ok. He's gone."
"We can wait if ya wanna go back out and find him." Gazelle offered
"No need." Rose shook her head, "He deserves better."
"Off we go, then." the Doctor said briskly, "Always movin' on." He pulled a lever.
"Next stop, Raxicoricofallapatorius." Jack remarked, "Now, ya don't often get to say that."
"We'll just stop by and pop 'er in the 'atchery." the Doctor said, gesturing to the egg, which was now placed on the console. "Margaret the Slitheen can live her life again! A second chance."
"That'd be nice." Rose murmured
The TARDIS' engines wheezed and groaned into life and the box dematerialised away from Cardiff and back into time and space.
Author's notes: And that's Boom Town revisited. As I said in V1, this episode is bit of a guilty pleasure of mine, as it's a nice look at the consequences of the Doctor and companion's lifestyles and actions. One of the many things that makes the RTD-era superior in my opinion is that it explored consequences. Note that I added all of Margaret's scenes this time. This is because I quite like all of her scenes, and it makes sense since I included all Slitheen scenes in Aliens of London/World War Three. That bit where Margaret is giving excuses for the deaths is a funny one in my opinion. Some of those excuses! Anyway, this is a nice last bit of fun before the serious stuff of the finale. Hope you all like this V2. See ya next time!