Chapter Nine
"Gotcha!" the Doctor yelled as he looked down at the ever increasing size of the once almost insignificant blip on his screen. He rounded the console flipping various switches as he flew the Tardis through space chasing Moonbase Alpha's telltale distress beacon. He'd been fooled before. He thought he was hot on Alpha's heels only to find it was an errant echo at the door of yet another black hole. But this time it was different. The closer he flew the Tardis the bigger the wayward Moon became on the scanner. He couldn't help himself as he stroked the console; a huge smile was beginning to take form on his face.
He was on the verge of an outright laugh until he realized the galaxy they were in. He looked down at the screen flashing on the console. The Tardis was warning him. Even she knew how very bad this was. They were in the Seventh Galaxy and just beyond Alpha was a planet. A planet that was designated D5-Gamma-Z-Alpha but to all that had had the displeasure of being there, it was known as Skaro. He looked down and flipped a few more switches and checked the current time period Skaro was in. 'Oh no!' he thought. "This is not good. This is a disaster!" he told the Tardis aloud. "It's only been a few months since Sarah, Harry and I left here after shaking things up a bit. I've got to get to Alpha and warn them before anyone is stupid enough to try and go down there." He circled around the console again adding in the access computer codes that Kate had given him so that he could land the Tardis without setting off too many alarms. "Here we go old girl. Let's go get Sarah." With that he pulled down on the large lever and materialized in what he hoped was a quiet section of Alpha. He gathered the folders and their contents and headed down the metal ramp and opened the door.
"Commander!" Maya called out from her desk. "We're getting a message from the surface." She'd been staring at the screen for hours, searching for any clue as to what had happened to the crew of Eagle Four.
"Is it the Eagle?" Alan asked with hopeful excitement from his seat in Command Center.
The Commander threw himself in his seat before turning to Maya and saying, "Put it through." Helena positioned herself behind John, placing a hand on his shoulder for reassurance.
"It's not coming from Eagle Four, it's coming from somewhere in a structure on the surface. Audio only Commander, putting it through now." Maya said flipping a switch. She didn't like this one bit. Whoever they were they had the technology to keep them at bay with a force field but weren't able to have a video signal? Something was wrong.
A strange grating voice came over the speakers along with some crackles and hisses. "Hello Moonbase Alpha, this is the King Sorvad of Gamma Z." 'Yes King, I like that.' Davros thought. He would tell them 'just' what he wanted them to know to get them down on the planet. "Who do I have the honor of speaking with?" The words almost made him sick. Still…they were getting low on drones. They damaged so easily. They were almost to the point of having to capture Mutos for their little cause. He needed their help to do the things his children could not. They carried out tasks so that he could further develop the Daleks transition and hopefully make them more mobile and invincible.
John Koenig looked around the room at his fellow Alphans, none believing this so called King's words. They'd been deceived so many time before that they now had a tendency to be suspicious of everyone they met in their travels. "King Sorvad this is Commander John Koenig. We were not aware your planet was inhabited."
"Inhabited yes, overly populated no. There are so few of us that remain, less than fifty." Davros lied.
"What happened to your people King?" Koenig asked wondering what he was up to.
"Illness and old age I'm afraid Commander." 'Let them believe we are few and incapable of defending ourselves.' Davros thought.
"We sent a small reconnaissance team to your planet and haven't been able to contact them since you raised your force field." John thought it best to lay everything on the line. His people may be down there injured and possibly dead. He didn't have time for niceties.
"As I said Commander, we are few. We are at the mercy of our force field. There are times that it goes in flux and we can override it for a short period of time. There are other times it goes down on its own. Our technicians are few. The ones that are left no longer understand how it works. We are in desperate need of help Commander." Davros was proud of himself; he'd made the last bit sound as if he were really pleading.
"I appreciate your problems King but right now I am more concerned about my missing flight crew." Koenig looked up at Helena with a look of determination.
The Doctor had materialized the Tardis in the far corner of the Computer Section directly off of Command Center. He waited till a computer technician had rounded a set of computers before he passed by, patting the paperwork Kate had given him, knowing they were his get out of jail free card with the Alphans. As he approached the Command Center entrance the voice he heard sent chills down his spine. He backed around the corner and listened.
"I am concerned about your missing crewmembers myself Commander but as I said we are few. Perhaps you could send several of your ships here to search for them. I will do all that I can to keep the force field down so that you may land on Gamma Z. Perhaps you could come as well Commander. We could discuss moving your colony here. You would be most welcome. The planet is large and perhaps you could teach us. Most of the machinery has survived the ages. We simply don't know how to operate it."
What was Davros trying to pull? From what he'd read this Commander might be savvy but he wasn't used to dealing with Daleks and if he had people missing on the surface… The signal wasn't visual and the Alphans had to be warned, so he took a chance. He walked through the doors of Command Center like he owned it and walked up to the Commander and put his finger against his lips and pointed to the screen.
Security at once ran forward, their guns trained on the Doctor. The Doctor mimed that he needed a pen and paper. The Commander looked into the Doctor's eyes and found sincerity in them. The Doctor held up one hand with his pointer finger in the air. He handed the stack of papers that Kate had given him to the Commander.
Maya was watching the exchange and instantly liked the Doctor. There was no real reason behind the action. Maybe it was part of her Psychon instincts. She wasn't sure why she trusted him but he wasn't carrying a gun, he was asking for something to write with and paper. What could he do with that? She grabbed a pad and pen from her desk and quickly handed them to him.
The Doctor smiled at Maya and silently mimed thanks. He quickly scribbled, 'Don't trust him. Things aren't as he says they are. Tell him you'll contact him in a few minutes that you need to decide what to do.'
John read the note as did Helena over his shoulder. They exchanged a glance that the Doctor recognized as one that he and Sarah used to exchange. "King Sorvad we're having some technical difficulties on our end. I will contact you in a few minutes."
"Moonbase Alpha calling Gamma Z." At the sound of Gamma Z, the Doctor rolled his eyes.
"This is Gamma Z. This is King Sorvad. When can I expect you Commander?" Davros added matter of factly. This was going so well.
"King Sorvad, I need to meet with my staff, we're still experiencing technical difficulties." John answered as he looked up at the Doctor. "I can't give you an answer till I've talked to them. We are anxious to get our crew members back and we will contact you shortly."
Davros frowned. He knew they wouldn't abandon their people; it was simply a matter of time. In the meantime he would prepare for their arrival. "As you wish Commander. I will await your decision." Davros snickered to himself. Their lives were already over; they just didn't realize it yet. But where was the Doctor? Could the girl and the others be right? Maybe he wasn't with her. Had they separated? Still…there was the whole issue with her absence of memory. After consideration, it seemed real. And what of her DNA? So many questions. But he would get the answers, one way or another, one way or another. He smiled a crooked smile to himself.
"Hello," the Doctor began looking at the Commander with his hand extended, "I'm the Doctor."
"Doctor…?" Helena Russell began.
"Just Doctor, that's all. If you'll look through the papers I've given you Commander you'll find verification that I'm here to help you. And believe me when I say that you've never been in need of help more than you are now." The Doctor looked at the security guards and added, "Guns really make me nervous. Is that necessary?"
Tony Verdeschi came forward and stood next to the Doctor. "It's necessary, till we determine if you're carrying a weapon." he said as he raised his eyebrows.
The Doctor raised his eyes to the ceiling telling himself they had been through a lot and didn't know him and above all they had Sarah. He leaned forward on the Commander's desk and spread his legs, assuming position. Both security guards kept their guns trained on the Doctor while Tony patted him down.
"He's clean." stated Tony simply. "Now do you want to tell us exactly who you are and how you came to be here?" Tony looked past the Doctor, at the Commander and Helena reading the papers the strange arrival had given them.
The Commander held up a hand with an envelope in it to Tony. On the front of the envelope was Tony's full name written in a feminine hand. He handed Helena an envelope next and a third to Alan. The Doctor remained silent as he watched the trio read the letters and tears form in each of their eyes. Each in turn silently looked to the Doctor, their faces a mixture of awe and trepidation.
"Okay," the Doctor began as he clapped his hands together, "long story short, my name is the Doctor." He looked around the room meeting each of their eyes. I am a Time Lord from the planet Gallifrey." At the mention of Gallifrey, he seemed to darken.
"I have heard of the Time Lords. They are a…noble race." Maya volunteered. From what she knew of them, the Time Lords were a very aristocratic race that rarely involved themselves in the lives of other races. But this one seemed to go against all she'd heard of their self-imposed rules.
"Psychon right?" the Doctor smiled. He'd made a little trip there centuries before. It was a beautiful planet but on his return, the planet had gone acrid and he hadn't investigated any further.
Maya watched as the trips played across the Doctor's face. "My planet was destroyed and the Alphans took me in. They are good people." Maya said with pride.
The Doctor was feeling better about Sarah's chances of survival with these people. "I know we have an immediate problem with…" the Doctor motioned at the screen, "but the reason that I went looking for you is the woman I plan to marry, Sarah Jane Smith. Thankfully for you, she got caught up in your…journey." the Doctor finished, unsure how to delicately say that the human race basically did this to themselves.
"Doctor, my name is Dr. Helena Russell. I'm the chief medical officer on Moonbase Alpha. I know everyone on Moonbase Alpha and I can promise you that no one by that name has ever been on Alpha." Helena finished as she looked down at the letter in her hands and met John's eyes with a smile.
"We don't have a lot of time, so here's everything in a nutshell. My people, the Time Lords were not happy that Sarah and I were together. So to protect her till I could come back for her, I gave her a new identity and hid her on Earth." Learning this, everyone looked shocked. The Doctor did his best to explain concisely. "My people were intensely xenophobic. No one was above or even equal to them. I on the other hand have never held such a belief. So needless to say they weren't always thrilled with me or my actions. They threatened Sarah. They wanted to wipe her memory of me or..." The Doctor decided not to mention the other alternative they had given him. "I convinced them to let me do it. I knew it was only a matter of time before they needed me to do something that I could either bargain to get Sarah back with, or I hoped another opportunity would present itself to get her back."
The Doctor drew a breath before continuing; knowing this part of the story would be a tougher pill to swallow. Turning to the only one in the room that might possibly understand, he turned to Maya. "How much do you know about Time Lords, their life cycle?"
"I have heard of regeneration. Is that what you're wondering about?" Maya enquired.
"Regeneration?" Helena looked puzzled.
"Regeneration is a way the Time Lords have of sidestepping death…for a while anyway." He stretched and rubbed his hands across his short cropped dark hair. "When a Time Lord reaches the end of their life cycle, be it by old age, disease or accident we regenerate. Time Lords produce a whole new body. The last time I saw Sarah, I was in my fourth regeneration."
"And now?" Maya enquired.
"I'm currently in my ninth regeneration."
"And are your regenerations infinite?" Helena asked, her arms crossed, her medical curiosity getting the better of her.
"No, I only have twelve. At least that's what I've been told." He looked around the group with aggravation. He was having a hard time controlling the myriad of emotions going through his mind. This was always the most difficult part for him. Some of his regenerations had the patience to answer every question that was asked of him in what he liked to think of as the proverbial 'meet and greet'. However, this regeneration was slightly impatient, something he tried to remind himself of. So he did what he thought was best and slapped a big grin on his face and hoped that it would help put the group at ease.
The Doctor began, "Whether you agree with what Sarah and I did or not…well, it was what we knew we had to do. You see my ship, the Tardis, is a time machine. But I can't cross my own timeline…apparently." He blew out a long breath knowing what he was about to say would definitely shock them. "So I've tried to be very careful on when I came and went on Earth, but I could do nothing about when my past regenerations had visited. So it's not as if I could simply go back the moment I left her and pick her up." He looked around the group and with the exception of Maya there were looks of confusion on their faces.
"For me, it's been 900 years since I left Sarah. For Sarah, it's been roughly 31 years. Add to that the fact we'd been traveling together for five years. That would make her real age about 55. Yea, that's about right." he said as he looked up, lost in thought.
"Doctor? Doctor?" John tried to bring the Doctor back to the present. He was obviously trying to ease them into something but what?
"Yes, sorry." Looking back at Helena, since this was her field of expertise he began again, "We weren't sure how long it would take before I could come back for her." He waved his hands about. "You humans have such fleeting life spans. So I did the only thing I could think of to guarantee that Sarah would survive long enough for me to return." The Doctor hesitated and looked Helena in the eyes. "After consultation with one of my mentors, another Time Lord who specialized in the field of Gallifreyan medicine and sympathized with my situation, he gave me the answer to our problems. I took this information and I explained everything to Sarah and she was completely onboard." He took a deep breath. 'Here goes nothing', he thought. "I then started giving her transfusions of my blood." He paused, giving the information a chance to sink in.
"So this Sarah," Helena began, still unsure who this woman was, "isn't human anymore."
"Her DNA on the surface would read human. For her protection, I made sure of that." How could he admit to them that one of his biggest fears was her own people would find out what they'd done and take advantage of her? Humans were so warlike, more so than any of them would honestly admit. "But if one would look further, just below the surface, they would see that her DNA was much more Gallifreyan than human. We did this to slow down her aging process."
"So if she's on Alpha, she won't look like a 55 year old woman?" Alan asked. This was incredulous. Did he know her? He liked to think he was well acquainted with everyone on Moonbase Alpha.
"She's here and no, she will probably look more like she's 25 years old." the Doctor turned to the Australian and replied.
Helena was intrigued. "What you've done…" The thought was fascinating, amazing and at the same time horrifying.
Maya interrupted with a question of her own. "Can she regenerate?"
"If she were to die, I hope so. Though what kind of regeneration cycle she would have is anyone's guess." The Doctor didn't like to let his mind go to that dark place. Sarah 'was' alive and waiting for him.
"Doctor, I understand why the pair of you felt you needed to do this but…" Helena began.
"But what?" the Doctor was starting to get agitated. These people had been through a lot but they didn't know him and they didn't know Sarah. How dare they decide what was right and what was wrong. He could see all of time ahead of him, something their little minds could barely fathom. And granted, he 'was' breaking a few rules by bringing them all back to Earth, but he wasn't like the other Time Lords. He couldn't just swoop in and save Sarah and leave them to fend for themselves, especially with the Daleks. Besides, this stupid mistake the humans made wasn't part of any timeline he was aware of. They had embraced her and kept her safe. So for that act alone they deserved his respect.
He took a deep breath, smiled and began again. "My Tardis is sentient. While Sarah slept, I hooked the Tardis up to Sarah. She started feeding Sarah the memory of a new identity, an identity with a limited background and a skill. You see, Sarah's a journalist, a very good one." he said with pride. "But that would have drawn too much attention to her. She needed something that allowed her to live a quiet and ordinary life. A life where she could be watched over by our friends yet have fulfillment. She was always interested in astronomy, so we decided that would be her new occupation. She would be an astronomy teacher at a local college. When the time came to leave her on Earth…" He stopped after he saw the look on everyone's face as the penny dropped. "What?" he asked, worry now evident on his face.
"It's Elisabeth." Alan said looking at the group surrounding him.
"Yes, the name we gave her was Elisabeth…" the Doctor began only to be interrupted.
"Baker." John Koenig finished for the Doctor. He exchanged a quick look of dread with Helena. This was not something he was looking forward to telling the Doctor. "Doctor on Moonbase Alpha we had a number of visitors here when the Moon broke away from Earth orbit. Most of their regular jobs were not transferable so they had to be retrained. Elisabeth tried several things but they weren't a good fit for her." He looked over at Alan hoping he would take over.
Alan knew what he had to do. It was his fault Elisabeth was on that planet and his fault that she was a pilot to begin with. "Doctor…I met Elisabeth the day she arrived. She tried really hard to fit in. Everyone loves her." He paused. He was staling. He knew it as did everyone in the room.
"She is alive?" the Doctor asked. He wished they would just say what they had to say and quit beating around the bush.
"She is alive…we believe." Seeing the aggravation building on the Doctor's face, he continued, "You see Doctor, with her knowledge of the stars…it turns out she was great at reading telemetry. She took to flying faster than anything I've ever seen. I'm so proud of her." He was gushing now and he knew it. But everything he'd said was true. She was a great pilot, a real natural. That's the reason she'd risen through the ranks as quickly as she had. He trusted her more than pilots that had trained as pilots from the beginning of their careers. She had a real intuitive feel for flying. He had the same gift and it was wonderful to share that with someone, especially someone as nice as Elisabeth. "She's one of our top pilots. She's also one of the pilots that took Eagle Four to D5-Gamma-Z-Alpha. That was what one of Earth's long range probes designated it as anyway. But as you heard, we were just informed it is actually called Gamma Z." Alan watched as the Doctor began pacing.