CHAPTER 19

MEMORIES FROM LIMBO

While Jason prepared a suitable breakfast for all concerned, the Doctor and Frankie told the amazed Alex Grove how he came to be in his pseudo-hospital room. Shaking his head, the Security Chief still could not quite believe what he was hearing. "That kid…is Crystal?" he said in amazement, looking from the Doctor to Frankie and back. "It's unbelievable. I know you already told me, Doctor, but…I mean, well…he's just a kid."

Before the Doctor could inform him of the startling fact that his physician was more than a hundred years old, Frankie cut in, "Young or old, he's still the one who saved your life. So don't be so damned condescending."

"You'll forgive me, Dr. Albert," Alex said acidly. "I'm not as used to all this as you obviously are."

"Alright, enough of that," Jason snapped with the authority he rarely used. He crossed the room, glaring at the two as if they were a pair of disobedient children. "The both of you can drop the gloves and the act. I'm not buying it."

Alex and Frankie exchanged a look of mutual astonishment.

"Jason, what are you talking about?" the Doctor asked in bewilderment

His companion gave an indignant snort. "I'm talking about this pretense of hostility. Whenever they're alone, its Alex and Frankie, laughing and joking like old friends. But when they've got an audience, its Mr. Grove and Dr. Albert at each other's throats like a couple of jackals." He turned back to the astonished pair and said, "Why don't you just admit you love one another and have done with it?"

"What…? How…?" Alex breathed.

"I was wrong," Dr. Albert said guiltily. "You're not just observant, you're intelligent, too."

"As it happens, I'm very intelligent," Jason replied coolly. "And I'm considerably older than I appear. Just you remember that." With that, he returned to the cart he had abandoned by the door. Frankie helped Alex with his breakfast while the Doctor and Jason had theirs in the lounge area.

"Don't you think you were a little hard on them?" the Time Lord asked as he watched the Teggellans across the room.

Jason gave a wry smile. "I've been watching them for days, Doctor. It needed saying."

The Doctor cleared his throat. "I picked up one of the local news broadcasts last night. It seems the Cult has been exonerated in connection to the break-in and Alex is now suspected of engineering the whole thing." Pausing, he added hesitantly, "And…I seem to be wanted for questioning."

Clearly appalled, Jason shook his head in disbelief. "What a planet." After a moment, he asked, "Doctor, did you ever hear of Teggell before we came here? I'm sure I've heard or read about it before. I just can't remember where."

The Doctor gave him a mildly surprised look. "I've stopped fighting," Jason admitted, a self-conscious smile coming to his face. "It just gives me a headache and then it makes me dizzy. If I let it alone, like you told me in the first place, it just comes back on its own."

"I'm glad you finally decided to take my advice on something," the Time Lord replied. "Y'know, now that you mention it, the name does ring a bell. But I don't recall if it's in the past or future."

Jason rose to his feet. "Oh, please, don't confuse me with timelines, Doctor, I'm having enough trouble as it—" Catching his breath, he cried, "I know! It was in one of my books on ancient history." So saying, he strode from the room.

The Doctor suddenly realized what he meant and dashed to the door to stop him. It was too late. The corridor was empty. Thumping his fist on the wall in frustration, he decided it best not to follow, turning back into the room. He noticed Alex and Frankie watching him in bewilderment and threw a quick glance back to the door. "He's not going to be pleased when he sees his room," he said darkly.

This was the Doctor's second understatement of the century. As soon as Jason turned down the corridor leading to his room he stopped dead in his tracks. Ahead of him his bedroom door lay in a battered heap several feet from where it belonged. He slowly approached his room and hesitantly looked in, the devastation horrifying him. It was as if he had been transported back into a nightmare from which he could not awaken. He righted his toppled bookshelf, finding part of his herb collection in an unsalvageable pile beneath. He went over to examine the splintered remnants of his bed, finding the twisted and useless chains that had been used to manacle him.

Straightening, Jason ran a hand through his hair. So this is what the Doctor meant about my not being ready for the whole truth. He went to the sink to splash cold water in his face only to discover what was left of his newly acquired set of beakers. To his added horror, he found some of the shards had traces of the Doctor's blood on them. He lifted one to the light and for a fleeting instant the hatred and murderous rage he'd felt the day of his disappearance swept over his entire being. Jason dropped the offending glass fragment, which shattered further in the sink. Turning away only caused him to see the devastation from where he knew his friend would have been standing when attacked.

The thought of inflicting so much physical injury on his best friend finally broke Jason's spirit and he slid down to the floor, curling up in the corner. He was convinced he was slowing going mad, and was unable to do anything to stop it. He covered his face and wept bitterly.

When his companion did not return after more than an hour, the Doctor was about to go looking for him when he appeared in the doorway, visibly shaken. "I shouldn't've gone," he said dazedly.

"I tried to stop you," the Doctor said gently as he guided him to the sofa. "You were too quick for me."

Jason smiled halfheartedly. "The story of my life."

"I take it you found what you were looking for," the Time Lord observed, looking pointedly at the book in his companion's hand.

"Yeah. I haven't looked up the passages yet. I just picked up the book and came back."

Frankie had been sitting with the Doctor when Jason returned, and was about to remark on the young man's statement when she received a stern look. It was obvious from the Time Lord's expression that he did not want her to say anything and she wisely remained silent.

"I remembered," Jason said quietly, his eyes on the unopened book, "that Teggell had something to do with the pre-Alliance era. I think that's the right time. I'm not sure." Running his fingers through his hair, he looked up. "Is this what it's like to have a normal memory? How do you stand it? I hate not being able to remember."

The Doctor chose not to respond directly. "You'll have plenty of time to read up on everything, now that Alex will be with us for a while."

Jason gave him a puzzled look and it was Frankie who replied to his unspoken question. "The Doctor told us about the news broadcast while you were gone."

Once he'd pulled himself together Jason went to the sickbay to correlate all the data on Alex Grove's injuries, recording everything in a notebook. With this done, he finally felt ready to read his book on ancient history. What he hadn't told the Doctor was he had already remembered the planet's significance, verifying it by rereading the text.

The Alterran put the book aside and sat staring into space, the swirling images from his nightmare world returning to mind with renewed clarity. Once again there was the burning hatred, the all-consuming desire for power, and the overwhelming rage that was still so inexplicably aimed at the Doctor.

Slamming his fist on the table, Jason got to his feet, pacing back and forth like a caged lion. No! He would not let it happen again, he swore to himself. He was not mad, and would not let his temper rule him.

The Healer strode out the door and headed back to Alex's room, unexpectedly meeting the Doctor in the corridor. The Time Lord's face was grave and, for a split second, the young man feared he suspected the true cause of his inner turmoil.

"Jason, is Alex well enough for you to leave altogether?" the Doctor asked suddenly. His companion was puzzled. "Leave? You mean, leave the TARDIS?"

"Yes."

The Healer considered a moment. "Yes, I suppose so. He's not in danger anymore. He's just got to take it easy and let his body heal. Why? Are we going somewhere?"

"Yes. I'd like you to come with me to put a stop to this Cult. Expose it for what it really is."

The Alterran was silent, uncertain as to whether he was ready for this. Suddenly he heard himself saying, "I'll need to make doubly sure Alex is fit enough for me to leave. And then I'll have to brief Frankie on what to do while we're gone. That'll probably take about an hour."

"Good. I'll be in the console room."

Alex was dozing when Jason took Frankie aside to tell her he and the Doctor would be leaving for a while. He gave her a run down on what to do for Alex and the medication she could give him for pain. He then drew a map indicating the location of the nearest kitchen area as well as the route back to the console room. Jason sketched the control console, circling the door lever so she would know how to get out, putting the notebook with Alex's medical data under the map.

"If I don't come back, you'll probably need to get Alex to a hospital. I've put everything they'll need to know in this, not that they'll understand some of it."

Frankie was stunned by the finality of his tone. "What do you mean, if you don't come back?"

The young man met her gaze steadily. "Frankie, two men have already been murdered, Alex almost died, and you and the Doctor were left for dead. I'm just considering the odds."

Frankie nodded. It was all so horribly true. She studied his set expression and felt a pang of grief when she realized all the fear and anxiety she had once seen there was gone. "You're so different now. So confident and unafraid. You're not Chris anymore, are you?" she observed mournfully.

Jason was taken aback by this unexpected remark. If you only knew, he thought. Looking deep into her eyes, he threw caution to the wind and did what he'd wanted to do for two days. Pulling her close, he kissed her gently, yet passionately on the mouth. Frankie was so astonished she gave no resistance, not sure she even wanted to.

Stroking her cheek with his hand, Jason said calmly, "That was from Chris." He then turned and strode from the room leaving the dazzled woman staring after him.