Journey Amongst the Stars
By Lumendea
Chapter Thirty-Four: Temple of Truth: Oxygen
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.
…
The Doctor kept Rose close to him as they began to descend the staircase. The sight of her sword dull and unresponsive to her wishes worried him. Only the reassurance that this had happened before was keeping him from completely panicking. As it was, his mind was foggy as he tried to sort out what was happening here.
This pyramid didn't belong in the area and clearly had been built by visitors to Earth. No civilization even today possessed this scale of telepathic technology. But so far, it was keeping them contained. It had only hurt Rose because she attacked. His grip on her hand tightened, and Rose swayed closer to him. He glanced her way, grateful that his Time Lord eyes let him see more clearly in the dark. Rose's eyes were clearing and becoming sharper. She still looked tired, and a bit sick, but at least the effect was fading fast.
"I'm fine," Rose said. Her lips quirked into a smile. "You don't have to worry so much."
"You're my companion, that means that I worry," the Doctor said. It was true, but it sounded a little cold and distant. Jo's earlier words had bothered him, but Rose shouldn't suffer his temper over it. "And I know how jeopardy friendly you are."
"Ah, of course." Rose smiled at him, her brown eyes glittering with the soft flecks of gold that he admired far too often. "Let's just ignore how often I save you Trouble Magnet."
"I'm not denying it." The Doctor looked down at the stairs. More light was coming up, but it felt like they were going down much too far. "What about the stairs?"
"I'm fine," Rose repeated. "I just wish I knew what was going on. I thought it was a defense system, but now it seems to be leading us to something."
"Good point." The Doctor stopped on the stairs and shined his light around. There was no art here, just bare stone walls. "This place is a mess."
"Yeah." Rose panted a little. The air was getting a bit thin. "It is."
"Rose?" the Doctor called. He moved closer, letting go of her hand in order to take hold of her elbow. "Are you okay?"
"Just a little…" Rose shook her head. "Just a bit out of breath."
Her phone rang, and Rose almost fell as she tried to wrestle it out. The Doctor tightened his grip on her elbow and pulled her closer, frowning down at her in the low light. She was getting pale rather than bouncing back. He sniffed the air as he dug out her phone, realizing that the air was getting thin.
"Hello," he answered gruffly, still studied Rose's pale face.
"How's it going, Doc?" Jack asked with forced cheerfulness.
"We found a way down," the Doctor said. "Light is coming up. We're going to go and check it out."
"How's Rose?"
"Fine," Rose answered.
"Oxygen is thin down here now," the Doctor said. "She's not doing well." Rose glared at him, but she couldn't even manage to look that angry. "How's Jo?"
"We've got the same problem up here," Jack admitted. His voice was tight, and the Doctor's hearts skipped their beats, thinking about Jo struggling to breathe. "We're still moving, but it's slow going. We haven't found anything do here yet."
"Jack, what about you? How are you doing?" the Doctor demanded.
"I'm okay for now. Genetic engineering for my ancestors made my body a bit more efficient," Jack said. His voice was full of false bravado. "Honestly though, I won't last much longer either."
"Understood. Stay with Jo where you are. There's likely more air up there then down here."
"This is crazy. Why build it like this?"
"There might be vents," the Doctor said. "But at this point, they're caked over with soil and growth." He should have considered that, but he hadn't expected the passage to seal behind them and block off any chance of getting oxygen. "Stop talking and breathe slowly."
"Stop talking?" Jack laughed a little. "Have you met Jo?"
There was a huff on the other end of the phone, and the Doctor heard Jo protesting the insult. That made him feel a little better, but not much. As he hung up the call and returned the phone to Rose's pocket, he started digging into his left pocket with his free hand. He and Rose returned their attention to descending the way too long staircase, but he was hoping to find something useful.
Why didn't he have something useful? An oxygen tank was probably pushing it, but he really should have a couple of the oxitablets from 2504. They wouldn't fill the pyramid, but they'd help at least. They reached the bottom and found an open doorway. The hallway was brightly lit now from small lights set into the stone. There was no mistaking this place for a native pyramid now.
Turning off the torch, the Doctor kept hold of Rose's hand. She lifted her sword, and he saw it shimmer a little in the light. That might just be a good sign, but the sword wouldn't protect her from suffocation if they didn't figure this out.
…..
Jack hated it when the call ended. It was a small thing, but hearing the Doctor's voice had calmed him. Given how little time they'd spent together, that was silly, but it was true. He turned his attention back to Jo, who was leaning heavily against the wall and taking slow measured breaths. He was a trained Time Agent, and he was closer to panicking than she was.
"The Doctor wants us to stay here," Jack said.
"Well, that's nice," Jo said. She pushed off the wall and slung an arm over Jack's shoulder. With their height differences, it wasn't much good. "But that's not going to happen."
"Jo, we're losing oxygen fast."
"I'm aware." She chuckled at him. "But either he'll sort if out soon or he won't. Trust me; he does better with his companions nearby."
"He's got Rose with him," Jack pointed out. "I don't think he needs extra motivation."
"Ah, so you've noticed?"
"I got the message pretty fast: hands off the blonde."
Jo laughed at that before panting for air. Jack tried to take her back to the wall, but she shifted all of her weight onto his foot.
"I'm an old woman," Jo said. "And if I'm going to die here, then I'm damn well going to die in action and not waiting it out."
The walls around them began to grind as stones moved. Jack pulled Jo back and swung her up into his arms, ready to run. Jo groaned and stretched out one hand, reaching for the wall. Jack didn't slow down, struggling to hold her and the torch. Jo adjusted her hand so that her torch lit the way in front of them. He didn't know what he was looking for. The Doctor and Rose had been taken down by a slide, and they were still on the main floor.
"Stop," Jo said.
He obeyed, and the woman frowned at a nearby wall. Her fingers stretched out once again, and Jo pressed her hand against the wall. Jack frowned, unsure of what she was doing, but not daring to interrupt. There were more small paintings on the wall, but nothing that stood out to him.
"I never regretted leaving the Doctor," Jo said out loud.
Her voice echoed around them. Jack glanced around nervously, wondering what she was doing. The wall shifted. Jack heard more stones moving and grimaced, bracing himself for what would come next.
"What did you do?" Jack hissed.
"I lied." Jo laughed softly before gasping for air.
The ground under Jack's feet shifted. Jo held on tighter just before the ground vanished and they slid into Darkness.
…..
The lit room was small. There was no treasure chest or glowing orb in the center of it. There was a large black cube with softly glowing green lines crisscrossing it. The hum from it echoed off the walls and Rose reached out to touch it despite the Doctor hissing in warning. It was warm, but not hot. A machine of some kind.
"It's an engine," the Doctor said. "Probably the heart of this telepathic prison."
"Is it the controls?" Rose asked.
"I doubt the controls are accessible since it led us down here." The Doctor glared at it. "And I'm not sure what will happen if we destroy it."
Rose nodded, but her head lolled against her will. Not waiting for her to protest, the Doctor led her to the wall and gently set her down. Suddenly, Rose's sword changed back to bracelet form, and Rose let out a soft sound of relief.
"Don't use it," the Doctor said firmly. "It won't help."
"No, it won't," Rose muttered. She lifted her head and frowned at the engine. "I think…"
"Rose?"
"You lied," Rose said softly. "Earlier when we were with the others. You lied and triggered the pyramid's systems. And before the stone fell and blocked us… you lied again."
"I didn't-" The Doctor froze, his eyes widening in alarm as he remembered. Rose almost smiled, slumping against the wall. "Oh…"
"Yeah," Rose breathed. "Oh."
He swallowed, unable to look at Rose and feeling his cheeks and ears heat up. The lie replayed in his head. It had been a simple denial, something he'd done in his own head and out loud a thousand times before. Beside him, the strange engine hummed and his mind whirled. Was it really that simple? Was that really the purpose of this place? That seemed impossible.
"I love you," the Doctor whispered. He couldn't look at her. Something both crushed him and lifted off of him at the words. "Jo was right. I love you."
"I love you too," Rose sighed. His heart jumped. He'd known, or at least he'd thought she might, but- "And that's okay. I don't need anything more from you." Those words shocked him, but the temple didn't move. No stones shifted to cut them off. Everything was still and quiet. "I know you aren't ready for that kind of relationship, and I am happy with what we have now."
The Doctor dared to look at Rose. She was smiling at him. Her eyes were a bit glazed over, but they were still focused on him. "I am very happy traveling with you. Even when we wind up in strange telepathic pyramids."
"That's not fair to you." He lowered his gaze, guilt twisting in his chest. "Rose, I'm not… you shouldn't waste your life waiting for me."
"One, that's for me to decide, not you and two, in what way is traveling through time and space with my best friend a waste of my life?" Rose shook her head fondly, her eyes finally clearing a little. "That's a great life. A bit dangerous at times, but we help so many people and see so many wonders. I love it. Traveling with you, I love it."
"Me too." The Doctor swallowed. "Rose, I'm not sure how to fix this."
"You really need a remote for the TARDIS," Rose muttered. She leaned forward, slumping against his shoulder.
"Doesn't work that way. And stop talking." The Doctor touched her back of Rose's neck gently and closed his eyes. "You need to conserve air, and I need to sort out-"
Jack came stumbling into the room, carrying Jo and panting. "Made it!"
"Jack?" the Doctor blinked in surprise.
"Jo?" Jack called, ignoring the Doctor. "Jo found them."
Jo raised her head, blinking dull eyes, and the Doctor's hearts stopped for an instant. She looked even worse than Rose. Both of them were trying to slip away, and Jack wasn't looking much better. With great effort, he eased Rose's head off his shoulder and rested it against the wall. Then he jumped up and rushed back to the engine. There was no obvious access panel.
"Is that what's causing this?" Jack asked.
"I think so." The Doctor ran a hand over it uselessly. "It has a telepathic hub. I can feel it, but I can't influence it."
"Oh," Jo whispered. "We're here." She blinked and looked at the Doctor. "I think you have to tell the truth."
"Uh… we uh figured that out, but it hasn't let us go-"
"I missed it?" Jo frowned, almost pouting and the Doctor stared at her in stunned shock. "Pity, but I lied to get us down here." She took a deep breath, struggling to get air. "I do regret leaving you sometimes," Jo sighed. "Not so much now, but years ago, I regretted it sometimes. Every time Clifford and I had a fight or sometimes when life was too quiet."
The Doctor blinked at her and Jo smiled at him. Then she slumped against Jack. The Doctor had only a moment to panic before the engine hummed. Grinding echoed through the room. He heard stones moving and tensed.
"Doctor?" Jack asked.
"Not sure." The Doctor turned and scooped up Rose, noting with terror that she was barely breathing and her eyes were closed. "Just-"
The ceiling over their head shifted, unfolding the stones to form an open square. More stones above it shifted and then more and more beyond what the Doctor could see in the low light. Except then, sunlight spilled down the tall opening and fresh air flooded down to them. A sigh of relief escaped the Doctor, and he looked down at Rose as she shifted, well aware that his ears were trying red. Thank Rassilon, Jo hadn't been in the room.