Title: Manipulation of the Mind
Author: Trustno1
Disclaimer: Doctor Who is still not mine, but again, Newtonia and all related persons etc, are figments of my imagination, and therefore cannot be taken. :-p Also, the names of galaxies mentioned don't belong to me, except Othello, which I renamed coz the original was just boring.
Rating: K+
Chapter I
They picked their way cautiously through dense green foliage on the humid little planet. Rose Tyler –19-year-old human companion on so many different levels, to the Doctor, a 900-year-old Time Lord, last of his species – was making her way with a little more caution than he, who was crashing through with his usual exuberance. It looked very much like an Earth jungle, and what did you find in the jungle? Bloody great big spiders, is what, as she had none too delicately pointed out to him as the emerged from the TARDIS. The Doctor however, flashed his usual grin and swore to protect her. The slight hint of sarcasm was not lost on Rose.
"So, is this whole planet a jungle then?" Rose asked, neatly sidestepping a liana that was growing a little too fast for her liking.
"No, there're lots of different natural environments like on Earth. In fact all the environments you'd find there are here – rainforest, desert, tropical, tundra, Mediterranean, temperate… plus a few others like one from another planet in the Andromeda Galaxy, where this planet is, that's a cross between a desert and something from Scotland." The Doctor held up a large green leaf for Rose to pass under and into a clearing. With no more fighting through vegetation, he took hold of her hand and lead her onto a paved – albeit small – path.
"You see," the Doctor continued to Rose, who was attempting to observe all of her surroundings; watch out for anything deadly; listen to the Doctor and have a small internal battle over whether she should enjoy holding the Doctor's hand this much. "There are essentially two halves to this planet – Darwin and Einstein. At the moment we're in sector Darwin-Romeo, and we're going to sector Einstein-Tango. Einstein or Darwin refers to the area – physics area and biology area in layman's terms."
"These guys either really like Earth's scientific history or they're a bunch of scientists." Rose remarked, raising her eyebrows at the Doctor.
"The latter. And the former." He grinned at her perplexed look. "This planet is dedicated entirely to the scientific research that will enable mankind to make great leaps forward in terms of further knowledge of the Universe. Humans are about three centuries into space exploration now. And I mean the proper stuff, inter-galactic travel to Andromeda, Dwingeloo, M33 Galaxy, which was renamed Othello incidentally, its discoverer was a bit of a Shakespeare buff. No quick journeys around the Solar System, or the Milky Way and back in time for tea for this lot. Anyway, top scientists from the entire Empire decided to get together on an uninhabited planet and carry out a lot more research and in a lot more space. Because they're all concentrated together, they can discuss their findings with greater ease than if they were spread out over the four galaxies of the Empire." He grinned enthusiastically, clearly loving this.
"So, this whole planet is kinda like a giant science project?" Rose asked finally.
"Erm, yeah I suppose it is." The Doctor couldn't help but smile at Rose's ability to make something so… fantastic, sound as mundane as something out of high school. Still, she looked suitably awestruck, as usual, and this made him smile even more.
"So, what's the planet's name?"
"Newtonia."
"Newtonia." Rose repeated thoughtfully, with only the barest hint of a question. "Imaginative bunch aren't they?" she mused with a grin. The Doctor just shrugged.
"They are pretty busy inventing ways to increase the life span of you puny humans so they can travel further, but whatever. If you think it doesn't take us scientists imagination to think of ways to prevent the immediate disintegration of a spacecraft travelling atfivetimesthe speed of light, that's fine by me." The Doctor gave a fake humph and attempted to storm off dramatically. This would have been pulled off perfectly had it not been for the fact that Rose still had a hold of his hand, and jerked it back as he strode off, forcing him to turn around to face her.
"You just ruined a perfectly good sulk, y'know that?"
"Ah, you weren't that mad at me were you?" Rose smiled. The Doctor's face broke into another grin.
"Nah, course not." He pulled her along again, this time towards a large silver booth, sticking out in the jungle like a sore thumb. This futuristic phone-booth-looking box could have been a phone booth for all Rose knew. It consisted of three sides of glass framed with the silver metal and an open front, with a small keyboard instead of a receiver inside. "To the teleporter!" the Doctor exclaimed, much to Rose's unguarded dislike.
"Fantastic." She muttered.
End Chapter I