Chapter Thirty-Two

Protective Custody

Turlough and Muriel ended up having a lively conversation during the Doctor's absence. The young man remembered hearing the prince apparently talking to someone in the console room and his remarks about not being called PJ, a nickname Muriel had used. She confirmed that it was she Jason had been talking too, his remarks about the nickname having been aimed at her since she was still present when he made them. When the Doctor returned, Muriel immediately stopped talking and the smile vanished from her face.

Choosing to ignore this obvious snub, he asked, "Any change yet?"

"None that you can see," his companion replied somberly. "But Muriel says his reserves have normalized."

The Time Lord nodded approving. "Amanda's asking to see you," he informed suddenly.

"Do I have to go through Tolan first?"

"Commander Tolan has gone to join the Imperial fleet. He's left Lieutenant Fane in charge while he's away."

"Great."

"I told him who our invading friends are and managed to get him to approve your seeing Amanda at the same time."

"Did you bother to tell him she's not the one who shot Jason?" the young man hissed icily.

The Doctor stiffened visibly. "Don't you take that tone with me, Turlough," he said warn­ingly. "And don't go telling Amanda about the mind link, either. Don't tell anyone."

"Why not? Do you think Muriel made it up?"

"No. I just don't think it'll help. Fane can't do anything one way or the other until Tolan con­tacts the Emperor."

His companion thought this over a moment before looking over at Muriel, who said, "The Doctor's right. Dr. Spencer already knows she's innocent. As long as you tell her you believe her, she won't feel completely isolated."

Looking from one the other, Turlough sighed. "Alright."

Following her arrest, Amanda had been confined in an isolation room, her only company having been the security guards. Lieutenant Fane had come by that morning to inform her that he would be looking after her in Tolan's absence and she was amused when he asked if she were comfort­able. It was then that she realized, to her own surprise, that she enjoyed his company. Perhaps it was because he was not nearly as stoic as his commanding officer. (He even had a sense of hu­mor!) It could also have been because she had gotten to know him so well during Jason's lengthy stay in isolation. Fane had been the only officer other than Tolan with whom she had had any prolonged contact, especially when security was tight.

Now security was tight again and there was Fane, back in charge of another isolation room.

When the door opened, Amanda assumed it to be the routine security check and was pleas­antly surprised when it turned out to be Turlough, the only person who seemed to be on her side. She would not learn until later that Roxell was also on her side, the Healer having been the one Jason had contacted to arrange for her hiding place.

When lunch arrived, Turlough made to leave only to stop when Amanda asked that he stay and join her. Unlike him, she was not a solitary person and the thought of spending most of her time, and all of her meals, alone was intolerable.

The sentry was less than cooperative, annoying the already irritated Turlough. He took the radio from the guard and called Lieutenant Fane, preparing himself for a fight. To his surprise, the request was granted without hesitation.

When Turlough returned to Jason's room he found the Doctor gone and Roxell disconnecting the prince from his life support system. "He's drawing purified energy from somewhere," the baffled Healer told him. "I don't know where it's coming from. No one else in the house is feeling it."

Throwing a meaningful look at Muriel, Turlough said, "He's not in any danger, is he?"

"Danger! Turlough, this is a miracle."

The young man smiled knowingly. "You mean a Mythrycle," he said under his breath. He watched as the equipment was taken away, sighing heavily when the staff had gone. "Where's the Doctor?" he then asked.

Muriel stiffened involuntarily before telling him the Time Lord had gone to confer with Lieu­tenant Fane. Suddenly the room seemed to sway and she grabbed the headboard, a hand going to her head.

"Are you alright?" Turlough asked concernedly.

Muriel looked up sharply, giving him a weak smile. "Just a little tired."

The young man scowled, looking down at Prince Jason. "Just how much of that energy comes from you as it's filtered?"

The Mythryn waved a hand in the air and tried to make as if there were no danger, but Turlough quickly discerned that this was not the case.

"Muriel, you can't do this to yourself. You've been at it for hours. You know Jason won't thank you for killing yourself on his account." Going over to her, Turlough was glad when he found he could touch her and pulled her from the bedside and over to one of the chairs. "You have got to rest."

"No, I can't stop. What if the Doctor comes back?"

"So what if he does?"

Unbeknownst to either of them, the Doctor had already come back and was standing on the other side of the door that had been left ajar by the departing staff. He was about to announce his presence when he heard Turlough say in an astonished voice, "You're not afraid of him, are you?"

"Aren't you?" the Mythryn asked shakily.

The Doctor's companion almost laughed out loud. "No."

"Well, he scares me," Muriel said, hugging herself. "I've never faced a Time Lord before. I never realized—" She broke off and shuddered. "He's so powerful."

Turlough stared open mouthed at her. Were they talking about the same person? He heard himself asking, "He didn't hurt you, did he?"

"No," came the meek reply.

"What then?"

"I made a terrible mistake. I thought when he learned the truth—" Shivering again, she said, "PJ trusts him implicitly. That's why I agreed to give him control." Seeing the young man's blank expression, Muriel cried, "Don't you understand? I'm under his control. If I don't do as he says, he…he…" Burying her face in her hands, she moaned, "I don't have the power to fight him. I'm a prisoner here."

Turlough was appalled. "I don't believe it!"

"It's quite true, actually," came the Doctor's calm voice from the door. Muriel gasped and tried to rise only to be prevented by Turlough, who insisted she stay right where she was until he knew what was going on.

With raised eyebrows, the Time Lord remarked, "You'd better be careful, Turlough. You're starting to act like a hero." He received an appalled look from his companion. He then turned to Muriel, who shrank back. "Muriel, I relinquished control before I went to see Tolan," he in­formed calmly.

Muriel blinked. "But… I don't…" she stammered. "Why didn't I feel it?"

"I don't know. Perhaps I frightened you more than I realized. If that's so, then I apologize. I never meant to frighten you. Nor did I intend for you to endanger yourself. My only concern was protecting Jason."

The Mythryn looked from the Doctor to Turlough and back. "You mean…I'm free to go?"

"Yes. You always have been." Looking at the unconscious Alterran, the Doctor said mildly, "Although, I would appreciate your further assistance, if you still want to give it."

Following his gaze, Muriel jumped to her feet. "Of course!"

"There's no need for you to tire yourself further," the Doctor said quickly. "Jason appears strong enough to come back on his own."

"What would you have me do, then?"

"Find out who hired Legrand," came the startling reply. "I've been thinking about what your sister Mythryn said. About her master knowing the extracts were untranslatable. When you think about it, it doesn't make sense. Two of the attempts on Jason's life didn't just frame Amanda, they were direct attempts by someone trying to find the translation key."

"That's a tall order, Doctor, but I'll do my best." Muriel hesitated before saying, "But… be­fore I do anything, I must—"

"Clear it with your people, yes, I know," the Time Lord completed for her. "You might men­tion that I'm Lord President of the High Council. It may speed things along."

The Mythryn gave him an astonished look. "Lord President," she breathed in awe. "No won­der I couldn't fight you." With that, she promptly vanished.

The Doctor saw the look of disapproval on his companion's face and responded with a weak smile. He knew exactly what he was thinking and was not about to get into it.

Suddenly Muriel reappeared, saying, "I've just remembered. The purified energy might give PJ some problems." Seeing the Time Lord's face cloud over, she held up her hands. "You're fa­miliar with the after effects of an extended energy conversion, aren't you, Doctor? The disorien­tation, heightened emotional state, and so on?"

The Doctor nodded, immediately seeing where this was going. "You're telling me he'll have much the same symptoms?"

"No, actually, he'll have almost none of the usual symptoms. I'm not sure how you'll be able to gauge it. That's why I wanted to warn you. His brain is out of whack again because of that re­turn trip into the computer. It may be the last thing to start functioning properly."

The Doctor drew a deep breath, looking to the ceiling in dismay. "Alright," he sighed, "we'll be prepared for anything."

The Mythryn had her doubts about this but kept this thought to herself. Unable to help her­self, she looked him up and down and giggled, "Lord President," before vanishing yet again.

"Is there anything else that can go wrong?" the exasperated Time Lord moaned.

As if in answer to his question, there was a quiet knock at the door. The Doctor exchanged glances with his companion and then turned, his mouth dropping open when Jason's wife stepped through the door.