Chapter Two

From this moment on we share the world;
The more we give, the more we love, the more we grow.

Once again, Sarah found herself in hiding. She was getting rather tired of it, actually.
This time, she was behind a large, heavy drape - one of several that decorated the Great Hall of the Panopticon.
Taking a careful look around, Sarah reflected on how the city looked almost exactly as it had in the vision the Doctor had shown her. There was the same aura of antiquity, timelessness. Or perhaps it was just the strange, dusty smell in the air that reminded her of old Libraries and Museums and gave her that feeling of dignity and quiet.
Everything seemed constructed of the same shimmering green material. Sarah couldn't decide if it were supposed to be metal, stone or crystal as it seemed to change every time she looked at it. It was beautiful, but it was a frozen, sterile beauty - held in a perpetual stasis of loveliness that she suspected the inhabitants of this world had long since stopped noticing.
Her eyes fell on the Doctor as he moved fluidly through the Hall. She couldn't help but smile at how he looked in that ridiculous Time Lord formal wear with its silly high collar. But even dressed like everyone else, something about him still seemed to stand out. It was something about the way her moved...or perhaps just the way his resonant voice carried, even when he didn't want it to. He was talking to that newsreader they had seen on the monitor earlier...what was his name? Runfeld...? No...Runcible, that was it.
Bells rang out across the room, almost deafening Sarah.
From behind another set of drapes, an old, dignified figure appeared, wearing white robes draped with a brilliant gold sash and carrying a long sceptre. From the corner of her eye she saw a flash of movement as the Doctor span and darted up towards the gallery at the top of the Hall...then one of the robed Time Lords reached inside his robes and drew some sort of weapon.
Sarah didn't even have time to scream as a bright flash blinded her for an instant...and when her vision cleared, she saw the old man in the white robes lying motionless on the floor while several of the other Time Lords fussed over his body.
"The President is dead!" One of them wailed.
There was another flurry of movement as two guards arrived, dragging an inert figure between them.
"We found him up in the Gallery." One of them said, tilting his head back to reveal his face. It was the Doctor.
"Doctor!" Sarah cried, throwing all caution to the winds as she sprinted out from her hiding place and rushed to his side.
"What is this!" One of the Time Lords exclaimed. Another Time Lord, this one dressed in the same scarlet and orange robes as the Doctor, stepped forward, his stern, haughty face set in an expression of anger.
"He killed the President, and brought and alien here against all law." He said, gesturing contemptuously at the unconscious form of the Doctor, "His trial must begin immediately."
"But, Chancellor Goth," One of the other Time Lords protested, "I need time for an investigation..."
"This is a Constitutional crisis, Spandrell." Goth cut him off, "The President died without naming a successor - the election must be held within forty-eight hours."
Spandrell sighed and gestured to one of the men behind him.
"Take the Doctor away for questioning." He ordered before turning back to Sarah, "What shall I do with the alien, Chancellor?"
Goth turned and his cold gaze raked over Sarah with the power of a laser blast. The sheer weight of his contempt almost bowled her over, and she shuddered.
"Take her to secure quarters within the Citadel. And put a guard on her at all times."
With that, the Chancellor turned and left. Spandrell took Sarah's elbow and led her from the room.
"This way please, Miss."
"My name is Sarah Jane Smith." Sarah said, primly.
"I am Castellan Spandrell. I am responsible for security here in the Capitol." He said, distantly. Sarah sniffed disdainfully.
"You didn't seem to be doing a good job back there." Sarah said with uncharacteristic sharpness. Spandrell looked at her.
"There hasn't been any real incidents on violent crime in the Capitol for centuries." He replied. "We were not expecting it."
"We have a phrase on my world - Expect the Unexpected."
"Ah...and what world is that?" He asked, actually sounding genuinely curious.
"Earth." Sarah replied, softly and an image of her home swam into view before her mind's eye.
"Sol Three? The Doctor was exiled there for a time, was he not?"
Sarah didn't bother to answer.
"What's going to happen to him?" She asked quietly. Spandrell sighed.
"He will be questioned, and then - most likely - a vaporisation chamber will be prepared for his execution."
Sarah gasped, "Doesn't he even get a trial?" She demanded, appalled that this supposedly advanced people could practice such cold brutality.
"I don't know. Usually I would say yes...but under these circumstances..."
"But he's innocent!" She cried.
"That isn't for me to decide."
Sarah looked at him, an indefinable look on her face. "Can I see him?"
Spandrell couldn't look at her. This entire situation discomforted him beyond all measure. So many things were happening so quickly. The passion in this woman's voice was both disturbing and inspiring to a Time Lord such as he, and the loyalty she showed to the Doctor was...unusual. He felt, strangely, like he owed her something.
"I'll see what I can do." He sighed.

The spirit of imagination can lead us through the dark;
The more we see, the more we try, the more we show.

Why are restraints like these always so uncomfortable...the Doctor mused to himself and he felt the manacles tear at the skin on his wrists. His gaze drifted over to Hildred, who was examining a sheet of the thin plastic used on Gallifrey for print-outs. They knew what was coming. Interrogation was a polite Time Lord euphemism for 'torture'. Pain inducers, violent mind probing...he often had trouble believing that his people, for all their assumed superiority over other being, could practice such brutality.
Without even looking up, Hildred pressed a tiny button on his belt.
Agony tore through the Doctor's nerves, screaming through every cell in his body. He gritted his teeth and closed his eyes, focussing on shielding the link he shared with Sarah to try and spare her from the pain.
Somewhere in the distance, out beyond the deafening sound of his hearts beating too fast, he could hear Hildred's bored monotone asking him a question. Something to do with the President...he mumbled some answer, not even knowing what it was he said...his mind still caught up in the place where his emotions touched Sarah's. Taking a few deep breaths, he drew strength from her warm, steady presence and opened his eyes again.
"Haven't you done yet, Hildred?" Spandrell's irritated voice came through the fog. "Ahh...here comes Tweedle Dee." The Doctor said vaguely. Spandrell gave him an annoyed glance.
"Well, Doctor, we wouldn't have to resort to such primitive measures if you would simply confess your complicity in this matter..."
The Doctor chuckled, "The hot and cold technique...oldest trick in the book. Do you really think I'd fall for that, hmm?"
"I'm not trying any 'technique' - hot or cold. I am simply here to inform you that the vapourisation chamber is being readied for your execution. You have roughly three hours left to you." Spandrell said coldly.
The Doctor's head snapped up, his eyes blazing in fury.
"Vaporization without representation is against the constitution!" He yelled.
"Doctor, the fact that you are even here on Gallifrey is extremely suspicious to many on the High Council. Most will already have their minds made up - trial or no trial."
"And you were found in the gallery with a Staser rifle..."
"I was here to save the President, not to kill him!" The Doctor snapped, "Don't you bother to read your mail, Spandrell?"
"I'd be interested to know how exactly you knew about the assassination, Doctor."
"I was in my TARDIS travelling through the Vortex when I heard the summons back to Gallifrey...then I saw a premonition of the President's assassination."
"Premonition?" Hildred gasped incredulously.
"I saw it as clear as I see you now."
Spandrell sighed, "Get him down from there, Hildred," He ordered, then glanced back up at the Doctor, "You have almost two hours before your trial, Doctor, so I've arranged for you to spend some time with your companion."

End of Chapter Two