Journey Amongst the Stars

By Lumendea

Chapter Thirty-Three: Temple of Truth: Deeper and Deeper

Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or any of the spinoff material and I gain no income off of this story, just the satisfaction of playing with the characters.

…

Rose's phone rang less than two minutes after she was on her feet. Pulling it out, she chuckled when she saw the name and number. The Doctor glanced her way as she brought it to her ear.

"Hello, Jo. You and Jack, okay?"

"Yes. It is amazing to be able to call someone," Jo answered. Rose hit the speaker option and held the phone between her and the Doctor. "Of course, I can only call you. Doctor, any chance I can convince you to supercharge my phone before you swan off this time? It would be very handy when I'm in less developed parts of the world."

The Doctor smiled, Jo's cheerful request reassuring him that she was fine. "We'll talk about it? What happened with you and Jack?"

"Nothing really, Doctor," Jack said. He sounded fine as well, and Rose released a small sigh of relief. "We fell to the ground at the force of everything shifted, but our biggest problem is that the exit id blocked."

"Block how? Cave in?"

"No, it's one very large stone that seems to have locked into place. We can't move it."

"I bet Rose could cut through it," Jo added.

"Probably," Rose answered. She sighed and looked around. "But we're lower in the pyramid. There was a slide or something that dumped up below."

"No sign of it now," Jack said.

"This is not the usual Mesoamerican architecture," Jo sighed. "And these traps are far more sophisticated than anything of the era."

"So the aliens helped build it," Jack said. "That makes sense if they left anything here."

"We'll look for a way up," the Doctor said. "Jack, do you think it's better or worse for you and Jo to remain in your location?"

"Worse!" Jo said quickly. Excitement colored her voice, and the Doctor groaned. "We'll look around and try to find you."

"Jack?"

"I'll keep her safe," Jack promised. "I don't think I can stop her, short of tying her up."

"You have my permission to do so," the Doctor said.

"Doctor!" Jo scolded. "What would the rest of the Companion's Club think?"

"They've all met you," the Doctor grumbled. "I bet they'd understand."

Rose couldn't help it, she giggled, and the Doctor smiled a little. An answering laugh through the phone made them all feel a bit better. Then Jack cleared his throat.

"You and Rose try to find a way up; we'll try to find a way down. What do you think, check in every fifteen minutes?"

"Yes," the Doctor answered. "Stay together."

"We will," Jack promised.

"Be careful," Jo added. "You two are more likely to find trouble than us." She almost sounded cheerful about it. The Doctor rolled his eyes.

The call ended, and Rose exhaled loudly. Even that sound echoed a bit, and she shook her head. This place was difficult to wrap her head around. It wasn't where a pyramid should be, deviated on standard pyramid architecture for the area, and served no clear purpose.

"I still don't understand why this place is here," Rose said. She shined the torch at the wall. There were more colorful paintings of animals, but nothing that seemed like a narrative. "There was a trap, but it literally brought us deeper rather than trying to kill us, so I'm not convinced that it was just a defensive measure."

"Good point," the Doctor agreed.

"Jack and Jo will be fine," Rose said. She gave the Doctor a small smile. "He'll look after her. Don't worry about them."

"I'm not worried about them," the Doctor said. His voice was a little too high pitched.

"I'm sure." Rose started to smile and raise an eyebrow.

The sound of shifting stones made Rose freeze in place. Thanks to the stones making the sounds echo, it seemed to be all around them. Summoning her sword, Rose held it at the ready and glanced around nervously for the first sign of something trying to move. The Doctor shifted closer to her.

"Not again."

They didn't have much warning. A large stone started to drop from the ceiling, other stones moving an inch to close the gap. It was dropping to block the corridor behind them, a corridor that Rose was suddenly very sure led up. Jumping forward, she slashed her sword at the stone, determined to keep the path open and give them a way out.

Her sword hit the stone. There was a flash of light. An electric shock traveled up the blade and into Rose's arm. The sword shuddered and sparked. Rose's hand lost all strength, and the sword fell from her grasp. It hit the floor with a clatter rather than returning to bracelet form.

Gripping her head, Rose stumbled to the side and groaned as the pain lanced at her temple. Her stomach turned, and she was ready to be sick. The Doctor caught her, pulling her back against his chest and keeping her steady. Sighing in relief, Rose leaned back against him and closed her eyes against the flashing lights still plaguing her.

"Rose?"

"Hurt," Rose managed.

"I've got you. I've got you," the Doctor said gently.

"Sword."

"I'll get it," the Doctor promised.

He lowered her to the floor, keeping a tight grip on her. Rose turned in arms so she could lean fully against him and rested her head against his shoulder. There was a scraping sound as the Doctor grabbed the sword and dragged it over to them. Rose didn't immediately reach for it, instead deciding to stay against the Doctor. She didn't look at the stone as she had a bad feeling that she'd accomplished nothing and gotten a migraine for it. The Doctor started rubbing her back, and Rose relaxed into the touch.

"I'm here," the Doctor said. "I've got you."

"What happened?" Rose finally managed. While leaning against the Doctor was nice, the floor beneath them wasn't. It had a strong chill to it, and the stale air wasn't helping her headache.

"Something overwhelmed the bracelet," the Doctor said. "It has telepathic qualities."

"Yeah," Rose groaned. She snuggled even closer to the Doctor and smiled when he tightened his arms around her. That was nice. "This happened before," she managed. It was hard to focus. "In New York City. At the Met. There were telepathic mummies. Apep's mummies," she amended. "Sword stopped working for a bit. I think…" Rose struggled to remember. "It's fuzzy."

"Even with your shields, you still got hit with the backlash." The Doctor shifted slightly, and Rose knew that he had to be looking around. "That's not good."

"So, I need better shields." Rose was keeping her eyes stubbornly closed.

"Eventually, yes, but that doesn't help us today." The Doctor reached down and touched her cheek. "You've got a slight fever. Your body doesn't know how to interpret what just happened, but you'll be okay."

"I know," Rose sighed. She leaned into his hand. "You're here."

The Doctor's ears reddened, but he didn't pull away. "You know I can't fix everything, Rose."

"I know that." Rose chuckled. "But between us, we do okay." She furrowed her brow and pushed her way through the haze. "This will pass. It did in New York."

"Just… just be careful," the Doctor pleaded. When Rose nodded, he gently pulled his hand away and stood up. "But this does tell us something. The sword could only have suffered a backlash if these stones were telepathic." The Doctor shook his head. "Of course, they can't be themselves, but under the surface, there must be some kind of telepathic mechanism." He reached out and touched the nearest wall. "But why? If that's true then this whole complex is designed to read minds or at least some part of them."

"Why is it here?" Rose asked. "Back to that question."

"Maybe it's to protect something deeper inside," the Doctor said. "Activating to scare off people looking for it."

Rose frowned. Something seemed off about that. She tried to think back to what had been going on when they were separated from Jo and Jack. They had been bantering and teasing each other. If the temple had telepathic defenses, then why trap them inside the temple and not outside. That just seemed weird.

"Maybe a test," Rose said. "Trying to determine worthiness to find whatever is here?"

"Maybe." The Doctor huffed and glared at the walls. "Still seems a lot of trouble."

"It is." Rose sighed and leaned back a little from the Doctor. His sharp blue eyes checked over her face. "Still, we can't just stay here. But clearly I can't be cutting walls."

"You're in pain," the Doctor said darkly.

"Headache," Rose sighed. "I'll be fine."

"Rose-"

"No, really, I'll be okay," Rose promised. She reached towards her sword without hesitation. "Last time I went through this, I was dealing with an angry Osirian. This is much easier by comparison."

"That does not make me feel better." The Doctor shook his head. "What the hell triggered it?"

"Don't know." Rose's fingers closed around the hilt of her sword. It was cold to her touch, and she sighed. "It can't reset yet. I wonder how long it will take."

"We'll be fine," the Doctor assured her. He kissed her forehead softly. "I'm sorry you're in pain."

"I guess it did tell us something," Rose said. "But it limits our options for getting out."

Her phone rang, the sound sharp and piercing to Rose's ears. The Doctor grabbed the phone as she groaned and answered it gruffly.

"We're find," he said in response to something before putting the call on speaker. "Bad news is that Rose can't use her sword here to get out."

"What?" Jo cried. "How? Why?"

"The walls have some sort of telepathic field. Not sure how yet, but they caused an overload to the sword," the Doctor explained. His tone was calming. "She's alright."

"Just a headache," Rose said.

"Are you sure?" Jack pressed. "Telepathic backlash isn't fun." There was something uncertain in his voice, and Rose didn't like that. "So, the sword is telepathic? What is it?"

"Old artifact," the Doctor explained. "It's telepathic nature helps it chose its wielder."

"And gave me the knowledge to use it," Rose added. The Doctor glanced at her, and she shrugged. "It's not like I had fencing lessons as a kid, Doctor."

"I'm glad you're alright," Jo said. "So, if the sword can't cut us out of here, how can we get out?"

"There has to be a way out," Jack said firmly. "Maybe higher up?"

"Maybe, it's possible that there are openings higher up that we didn't see," the Doctor said.

"Openings at the top is much more common in Mesoamerican pyramids," Jo added helpfully. "Not that we've found any staircases yet."

"We did something to trigger the lockdown," the Doctor said. "I'm sure of that, but what it was is still unknown. If you're not in danger than keep looking around, carefully. We'll keep going once Rose is on her feet. With luck, we'll find something."

"Will do," Jack said. "Take care of Rose."

"I always do." The Doctor almost sounded offended by Jack even saying that. Judging from how Jack chuckled, he caught that too. "Check in again soon."

"Yes, sir." Jack ended the call.

Rose sighed and leaned against the Doctor again. She needed to get up and start moving again. The Doctor slipped her phone back into her bag and wrapped his arms around her. It was a much nicer idea to just stay here, leaning against him until she felt better, but Rose knew that sooner or later fresh air was going to become a real issue. Thanks to the thick layer of earth over the pyramid, it wasn't exactly getting air circulation.

"I'm fine," Rose said. "Let's keep moving."

The Doctor helped her up with careful movements. Rose stowed her torch in her bag. Soreness lingered in Rose's limbs, but she was strong enough to support her own weight. Keeping a tight hold of her left hand, the Doctor glanced at the sword that Rose was carrying in her right hand. It was cold to her touch, and Rose hated it, but she gave the Doctor a tiny smile in an attempt to reassure him.

"Okay," he said. "Let's keep moving. So far, we seem to be getting forced deeper."

Rose nodded in agreement, and they kept walking with the Doctor carrying their remaining torch. There were more paintings, but there still didn't seem to be a narrative. It was almost like a recording of the animals of the area. There was nothing about the aliens or the ship or the pyramid itself which was very strange. If aliens had helped the locals build it, she would have expected them to be shown on more than just the outer wall.

Up ahead the corridor turned. They crept forward and peeked around the corner. There was a staircase leading down and a faint light just visible below. In the low light of their torch, Rose and the Doctor shared a look before they headed for the staircase.

….

"So this really is normal for them," Jack said. "Somehow, even after meeting them, I didn't quite believe it."

"Believe it," Jo said. "I'm glad he was with Rose. Ace told me about New York and how dazed Rose was, but she recovered quickly then so I'm sure she'll be fine."

Jack opened his mouth only to close it and shake his head a little. He shined the torch on another series of painting. "This is about the area vegetation."

"Well, this pyramid has a marvelous local ecology record," Jo said pleasantly. "And calling can wait a few more minutes. We won't get anywhere if we keep calling them all the time."

"Aren't you worried?"

"A bit, but not as much as you." Jo chuckled and shined her light towards Jack. "Stay calm."

"Nothing fazes any of you." Jack shook his head. "And I thought being a Time Agent made a person immune to surprise."

"So, what is a Time Agent?" Jo asked.

"The Time Agency is future organization that monitors Time Travel." Jack snorted. "Or tries to, at least. Given the way the Doctor bounces around without me ever hearing about him, I'm doubting the agency's abilities. Agents are often at historical events to make sure things go as recorded. I had a few missions where I retrieved information or historical objects." Jack shrugged. "All sorts of things on a sliding scale of morality."

"You left?"

"Woke up one day with two years of my memory gone and no information about what had happened. I got the cold shoulder when I tried to figure it out." A sigh escaped Jack, and he shook his head. "Doesn't really matter now, I suppose. I like the TARDIS."

"Still, that's a big violation," Jo said kindly. "I can understand why it upset you."

"It's not that," Jack said. He shuddered a little. "I wasn't… I didn't take the worst missions. There were things I didn't do for the agency, but the loss of my memory makes me worry that maybe I did do the dirty work. Or something even worse. Or I tried to leave, and that was there way to keeping me."

"I'm sorry." Jo stepped closer and hugged him. For a moment, Jack was a stunned. It was a flirty hug like he was used to. This was a mom hug, and Jo was patting his back gently. "You're out now. You'll be okay."

"Uh…"

Jo let go of him and gave him a smile. "And you might find out what happened someday. In the meantime, take heart that Rose knows you're a good person, and you seem to be winning the Doctor over."

"Thanks."

"One more thing." Jo turned her torch back to the dark passage before them. "Be careful talking about the Time Lords around the Doctor right now. Take you cues from Rose; she's attuned to the Doctor's moods."

"So if they grounded the TARDIS, he must have history with them." Jack moved up beside Jo, his body language changing. "You knew him back then. Did you ever see one yourself?"

Jo couldn't help it, she laughed, and the sound echoed around them. "I did. Several times. There was one who was a right bastard called the Master."

"The Master?"

"He kept coming to Earth back then to annoy the Doctor."

"Really? When I was with the Time Agency, we could never get proof about them. They're considered legends."

"Well, in general the Time Lords didn't interfere in the affairs of other species. Not unless it suited them of course," Jo muttered. "It's one the reasons the Doctor chose exile. None of that 'we're superior to all others' stuff ever appealed to him."

"Wait, wait, exile?" Jack stumbled and stared at Jo in shock. "He's a Time Lord."

"He is indeed." Jo's cheerfulness faded a little. "The last, at least for now."

"What?" Jack was confused again. "What does that mean?"

"It's not my place to say," Jo said. She shook her head and patted Jack's arm. "I'm a gossip, but I have limits. For now, you don't need to know. Maybe someday the Doctor will be ready to tell you, or Rose will decide that you need to know."

"I… okay." Jack swallowed back his questions. Something in Jo's voice warned him to be careful and told him that she was serious. "Still, that explains a lot about the TARDIS."

"I rather imagine it does. I never lived in her, but I've heard a lot of interesting stories from the others," Jo said. "Have you got a phone yet? If you have, I've got to give you a bunch of numbers. Rose isn't as good at calling as she should be so maybe you'd be willing to us updated."

Jack had a bad feeling about the sweet note in Jo's tone now, but he smiled anyway. He rather liked this insane woman. The Doctor knew the best people it seemed if she and Rose were any indication.