"So where are we going?" I asked and the Doctor grinned at me from across the console.
"Somewhere new!" He cried as we landed. "Somewhere exciting." He threw on his overcoat and threw the door open for me while giving me a kiss. I smiled at him as I stepped out and did a quick twirl.
"Somewhere desolate, barren." I paused and sniffed the air. "And smelling vaguely sulfuric."
"Oh," he said disappointedly as he stepped out of the TARDIS as well and I laughed at his frown.
"You have to know that you can't always end up with amazing exotic locales when you set the TARDIS to random," I teased and looped my arms around his neck. He grinned at me crookedly as he nuzzled my nose with his. Somehow the Doctor and I had gotten even more physically affectionate since we'd gotten together, and I certainly wasn't complaining.
"I suppose so," he said with a wink. I smiled before I skipped away from him to study the ground. It looked smooth like lava had flown over it.
"Do you think there's any volcanoes here? I'd love to watch an eruption," I said, and he laughed.
"Why?" He asked and I shrugged.
"Who hasn't always wanted to watch a volcano erupt? Wait no can we go to a significant one?" I asked as I pivoted to face him properly just in time to catch his confused face.
"Significant?"
"Like Mount St Helen's or Krakatoa or well I'd say Pompeii, but you did that with Donna," I said. He laughed again.
"I've seen Krakatoa as well," he said, and I threw my hand up in mock exasperation.
"Well honestly, how am I meant to keep all the locations you've been to in nine hundred odd years straight?" I asked and his laughter overcame him as he bent over to put his hands on his knees as he laughed. I rolled my eyes while I smiled at him fondly. "Not helpful!"
Before he could say any response there was a high pitched whining noise and the mirth fell off the Doctor's face as he jerked upright with enough time to watch a brilliant green laser fly over our heads and hit the ground a few feet from us causing giant clods of dirt to fly up.
"TARDIS!" He bellowed with his hand outstretched to me even though I was already moving towards him as quickly as I could manage.
"Where the Hell did that come from?" I asked as soon as I latched hands with him and we ran towards the TARDIS, ducking into a crouch behind the opposite side. "Why didn't we go in the TARDIS?"
"Exciting," the Doctor said with a bit of a grin and I shook my head at him.
"When you're griping about danger later I'm going to remind you of this moment," I promised before I swooped in for a kiss and stuck my head out from around the TARDIS to see if I could make out where the laser had come from once I jerked away from it. My method was mostly to daze the Doctor by catching him off guard enough that I could get away with looking.
"Emma," he hissed as he pulled me back behind cover. I smiled at him innocently which he simply responded to with a raised eyebrow.
"If it makes you feel better, I didn't see anything," I said, and he rubbed a hand over his face.
"Believe it or not it doesn't. I would have preferred that that was worth something," he said, and I laughed.
"I don't think that the laser would have been specified enough to pick me off in particular. Whoever was aiming it would have just went for the TARDIS anyways," I said with a shrug. He didn't look enthused by my pointing that out, though I was pretty sure that had more to do with the fact that my logic made sense more than anything else. "I think the better question is why didn't they fire again?"
"What?" He asked.
"Wow apparently my kiss rattled your brain more than I wanted it to," I teased, and he rolled his eyes before he leaned in for another kiss. I returned it even though I swatted at him playfully. "Focus. Why didn't they fire at us again? They had every opportunity."
"I hate when you make sense like that," he said just as stomping noises arose behind us. I sighed deeply.
"Don't worry I hate it too. It's way better when you make sense," I said, and he shot me a look.
"Turn around and face us!" We both stood up and turned with our hands up in the air though the Doctor dropped his immediately in what I took to be surprise.
"What are you doing here?" He asked and I sighed.
"One day I want to bump into an alien species that you haven't met before," I said. He inclined his head towards me like I had made a really good point, so I gave myself a mental pat on the back.
"We do not answer questions," one of the men in the front barked. The Doctor rolled his eyes.
"Oh, don't start. You're Sontarans and you used this planet as a clone planet about two hundred cycles ago," he said.
"I thought you set the TARDIS to random," I said as I passed him a look, and he rubbed the back of his head guiltily.
"It wasn't quite as random as I made it out to be," he said. One of the Sontarans stepped forward and slammed his fist into his chest as his helmet peeled back and I blinked in slight shock.
"I know I say this a lot, but I was not expecting that," I said, and the Doctor hummed slightly.
"I'm just happy that you haven't gotten completely used to this yet."
"You will be silent!"
"God if I had a dollar for every time, I heard that," I muttered with an eyeroll which made the Doctor laugh.
"You are the Doctor." I couldn't tell if the Sontaran was asking a question or not, but either the Doctor could, or he couldn't pass up the opportunity to be dramatic.
"I am," he said as he adjusted his tie and smoothed down his jacket before he stuck his hands in his pockets and rocked on his feet.
"You are the enemy of the Sontarans! Sontar Ha!" The last statement was echoed by the rest of the party as they slammed their fists into their free hands.
"Weird and yet intimidating all at the same time," I said as I slid closer to the Doctor and wrapped my hand around his arm, mostly so that if we had to make a break for it I would be ready. To my surprise none of the Sontarans protested my movement. "Would I know the Sontarans for anything?"
"Remember ATMOS?" He asked and I shivered. I definitely remembered nearly choking on the gas that had filled the atmosphere very well and I honestly tried not to think about it. It had been terrifying, in a way that the Cybermen and the Daleks hadn't quite matched. The Doctor pulled his hand out of his pocket, linked hands with mine and stroked his thumb over my hand soothingly.
"That was awful," I said simply. The Doctor leaned in to press his cheek against mine for a few moments before he pulled away and turned to the Sontarans.
"So here I am enemy of the Sontarans, cornered, weaponless and all you're doing is standing there chanting at me?" He asked and I sighed. If I had said something like that, I would have gotten a comment about not antagonizing the people threatening us.
"You are going to help us," the Sontaran said and the Doctor and I gaped at him for several minutes before the Doctor finally responded.
"What?!"
"You will help us."
"Why the Hell would I help you?" The Doctor asked incredulously. The lead Sontaran waved his hand and two others stepped forward out of the group and placed a very big looking bomb directly outside the TARDIS doors and armed it.
"Oh, see that's some good threatening right there," I said, and the Doctor passed me an exasperated look. "Hey at least it's not me for once."
"I love you," he said with a chuckle and a soft smile, and I gave him a confused look. "You always somehow see positives."
"Time and a place Doctor," I muttered even as I felt my cheeks heat in delight. I still hadn't gotten used to hearing him say it. "Love you too though."
"You will help us," the Sontaran repeated and the Doctor threw his hand up in the air.
"Yes, alright fine we'll help but I would like to know what I am helping with," the Doctor said.
"You will be helping us with the war." With that all the Sontarans fell into step behind and beside us and started leading us away from the TARDIS.
"What war?" I asked, trying to keep the excited bounce out of my step.
"The Sontarans and the Rutans have been at war with each other for centuries. I don't even know how it started and I've never heard of either side trying to end the war," The Doctor said.
"What's a Rutan?"
"Shapeshifting species."
"Huh. That's cool," I said before I carefully eyed the Sontaran closer to me and leaned next to the Doctor. "Have I mentioned how nice it is to be taller than an alien for once?"
"You were taller than the Gnomads," he said, and I waved my hand.
"The Gnomads were not an enemy which makes them on a totally different standard. Usually your enemies either tower over me or are creepy murder robots," I said which made him laugh.
"Are you referring to the Daleks or the Quarks?" He teased and I rolled my eyes.
"The Daleks obviously who do you take me for?' I asked. "The Quarks don't really have the whole 'if you breathe wrong you die' thing nailed down."
"I didn't realize that was one of the important factors for a murder robot," he said with faux seriousness. I nodded primly.
"It is if the murder robot wants to top the list," I said, and he hummed in understanding. "The Sontarans are offering us many nice changes of pace today."
"What are you referring to now?"
"Usually by now we would have been rudely ordered to stop talking to each other. It's lovely to have the chance to talk instead," I said. He tilted his head towards me with a smile tugging at his lips.
"I'm sure they're listening to our conversation for mentions of a plan or escape." He paused pointedly and the Sontaran who had taken off his helmet spoke.
"Silence!" The Doctor gave me a pointed look and I burst into laughter even though we had just been told to be silent, but the comedic timing on that was too good to contain. He grinned at me goofily and reached over to grab my hand so that he could kiss the back of it.
"Oh, I have another question!" I said after he had released my hand. He made a noise and a gesture for me to continue. "Why are the Sontarans only walking behind us?"
"The Sontaran's only weakness is a vent at the base of their necks." He swept my hair to the side with one hand and tapped the vertebrae at the base of my neck. "So, they can never turn their backs on an enemy. Hence why they're all walking behind us."
"Interesting," I said as I leaned back awkwardly to try and get a glimpse of the back of one of the Sontaran's necks. The Doctor moved his hand from my neck to the middle of my back to make sure I didn't fall over. "Why don't the Sontarans like you?"
"Well pacifism and militarism don't mix very well," he said as he rubbed the back of his head. "I've caused more than one of their plans to further the war to fail spectacularly."
"I really should have known, but it's always good to know for sure." He gave me a teasing smile.
"Maybe you really should write that guidebook." I whacked him gently and teasingly on the upper arm.
"You joke, but I consider it more everyday."
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Welcome back everyone to the final installment of Prolonged Promises!