Chapter 6
It had been over a week since the incident, and in that time Tecteun had not left her home once. As soon as she had got the child home after the fall, the very first thing she did was run tests to check for injuries. But once it appeared that whatever damage caused by the fall was healed, Tecteun then moved on to the same tests she ran when she first brought the girl home. And like before, the tests revealed nothing. She kept a constant watch on the child, worried that she might get hurt again. The child's change in appearance was taking some time to get used to. But the child had not been a bother. In fact, she seemed to enjoy the isolation of the lab. It was as if the change in the child's appearance was not only physical, but also behavioral as well. Some of her old interests did not seem as important to her. She had developed a new love of science, where as before she seemed almost scared by it. It scared Tecteun just how much had changed, and yet also how little had changed.
A chime of the doorbell pulled Tecteun from her thoughts. Her first instinct was to hide the child, to keep her away from the front door. She wondered if it was the boy's parents, come to check on her. If it was, she was scared of what the boy might have said to them. Did they know of her child's change? Did they punish him? Did the boy lie and tell them that she had attacked him? If so, were they here to punish her child? Or was it someone else?
She decided she couldn't hide forever. She answered the door.
"Good evening, ma'am," said the stranger. "Are you Tecteun?"
The Doctor, despite looking at different angles, could not make out the stranger's appearance. She knew it was a man, but the features were completely blurred.
"I am." answered Tecteun. "What do you want?"
"I am here on behalf of my masters. They wish to speak with you."
Tecteun's heart stopped.
"About what?"
The Stranger shrugged.
"I cannot say, ma'am. They merely told me to invite you over."
Three days later, Tecteun found herself in a large room with a long table in the middle. On the opposite end of the table stood two men.
The one on the left was a tall, clean shaven man with slicked-back dark hair. He had pale grey eyes that seemed to gaze into Tecteun's soul. He wore a deep crimson robe. The man on the right seemed to wear an almost constant scowl. He was a bit shorter than his partner, had a barely kept head of brown hair, complete with a full beard. He wore a pale green robe.
"Ah, welcome." said the man on the left, shaking her hand. "You must be Tecteun. We've heard much. Come, sit. We have much to discuss."
"Thank you, sir." said Tecteun.
The three of them talked for hours, mostly about Tecteun's exploits. Her achievements seemed to be of great interest for them, particularly her visits to other worlds, her findings on those worlds, until finally, the topic of her child.
"And so I took her home and did a full medical scan. Nothing seemed strange about her. The only abnormal thing was her extra heart, but I didn't think much about it until…"
"Until what?" asked the man in green.
Tecteun hesitated.
"It's alright." said the man in red. "We have heard you out this far. You can tell us anything."
"Until over a week ago. When she fell off a cliff."
This startled the men. They asked what had happened. Tecteun told them. How the child had fallen, her death, and then her impossible revival.
"So the child healed herself?" asked the man in red. "No injuries remained?"
"None." replied Tecteun.
"Have you determined how?" asked the man in green.
"No." Tecteun answered truthfully. "I haven't the proper equipment. I have tried what I could with what I have but my lab is mostly used for engineering, not biochemistry."
"So, if you had the proper equipment" asked the man in red. "Do you think you could?"
"Possibly." she answered. "Why?"
The man in red got up.
"Tecteun, your child fell from a great height, proceeded to heal her body down to the cellular level, then walked away as if it was nothing. This is an incredible discovery for the Shobogans. As a scientist, you must have questions. How did she do this? What does this mean? Was it a one time thing or is it part of her biology? Our laboratories have far more advanced equipment than yours, with access to them you might be able to find out faster. We invited you here to make you an offer. You see, we wish to unite Gallifrey under one banner. But it is difficult to have something to rally behind. Your achievements are extraordinary, you have traveled to the far reaches of space. If you help us, we will grant you access to our labs, and we will ensure that you are remembered as a hero of Gallifrey."
Tecteun was shocked. This was it, this was her chance. A chance to be properly recognized by the people of Gallifrey. Even though she had developed space travel, very few jumped at the opportunity to travel to other worlds. If she could find out the secret of her child maybe, just maybe, everyone would recognize her.
"I accept." she said. "Thank you, sirs."
The men smiled.
"If we are to be working together" said the man in green. "Then it is only fitting that you should know our names. I am Omega, and this is my longtime friend and lab partner, Rassilon."