CHAPTER FOUR

BACK AGAIN

The Doctor and Jason gave Ace and Juris a quick run down on their previous visit to Teggell, which they felt certain had triggered the current crisis. Jason had suffered a bout of Draconian Flu during which he hijacked the TARDIS and then literally jumped ship in his true form. Those who found him mistook him for a form of marine life. Later he was proclaimed to be a mythical creature called the Guardian by a fanatical religious cult. It was due to the actions of this cult that the Epsilon Projector was activated and ultimately destroyed.

For the Doctor and Jason, several centuries had passed since their adventure on Teggell, but as they suspected, this was not the case on the planet itself. For those they had left behind only a few weeks had passed, and the media frenzy that had followed the total disappearance of the fanatical Cult of Jaka was only just winding down. The cult had been operating out of a Temple set atop a sheer cliff, which was, in reality, the disguised Projector.

The TARDIS materialized in a wooded area just off of a long stretch of beach. The Doctor looked around and smiled, taking a deep breath of fresh air. "What a beautiful day," he remarked as the others came out to join him.

Jason looked around, seeing the cliff rising from the beach further on. At its summit was their objective, the Temple of Jaka. He felt a chill run down his spine as he recalled the events that had taken place there, the majority of which he had not shared with his son and Ace.

"Which way?" Ace asked.

The Doctor pointed to the Temple. "Up there."

"You couldn't've landed us further away, could you?" she asked frostily, receiving an indignant snort in reply.

Jason conferred with his son a moment. "Not a problem," he chirped brightly and immediately transmuted into a horse fitted with full riding tack.

"I hope you can ride," Juris remarked before changing into a similar beast.

"Ace!" the young woman cried in delight, climbing onto the Prince's back.

The Doctor grinned and then mounted the steed that moved up beside him. "Now take it easy, Jason," he cautioned. "It's been awhile since I was on horseback."

The sound the horse made in reply seemed more like a laugh rather than a whiny before it set off towards the Temple.

When the time travelers arrived at their destination, it was immediately obvious the panic had been for nothing, the gaping hole in the Temple roof being verification enough that their former selves had come and gone.

"Okay," Juris said as soon as he returned to his human form. "If the Projector is inoperative, where's the signal coming from?" He turned to the Doctor, who pulled a small tracking device from his pocket.

The Time Lord moved the device back and forth, following the blips as they led him past the Temple, to the far side and back into the woods. Suddenly he knew where the signal was coming from. "Of course, the alter!" he gasped, turning to his former traveling companion. "Jason, we left that intact!"

"Of course! The Temple Shrine was part of the triangulating compass!" Jason cried, striking his forehead. "No wonder it kept operating."

"I don't think all of us need go," the Doctor said quickly. "I'll be there and back before you know I'm gone." So saying, he continued on toward the Temple Shrine.

Jason snorted. "That's usually when you get into trouble!" he called after him.

Before the grinning Ace could respond, Juris was calling from near the edge of the cliff. "Father, take a look out there!" He stood pointing out at the inlet near the base of the cliff.

His father went to see what he was looking at, a smile coming to his face when he saw two boats bearing the insignia of the Freeland Oceanographic Center, the very place he had been taken when he was suffering from Draconian Flu.

Jason watched for several minutes as he thought back on the events of so long ago. Suddenly he noticed the actions of those on the boats did not seem right and he scowled. "Something's wrong," he said quietly, squinting down at the men below. "They look in a panic."

His son nodded. "There're some divers trapped in a cave."

Jason looked at him in surprise, then noticed he seemed to be listening. He looked back over the water, turning his own acute hearing in the direction of the boats, hearing what his son also heard. "What was that they just said? A rock fall?"

"Caused by a tremor, I think. There must've been an earthquake."

Jason was already moving swiftly towards the cliff edge. "Come on, then."

His son looked at him in horror. "What?"

"I said come on. That Coral Basin is incredibly unstable. If there's another tremor, the whole thing could come down on them." Turning to Ace, the Alterran monarch said, "I'm going to see if we can help. Let the Doctor know if he gets back first—Come on, Juris."

"Father!"

Taking hold of his son's arm, Jason said, "Now is not the time to be cautious. Men's lives are at stake. You know how to fly. Now, fly!" With that, he pulled the young man over the side of the cliff with him. The King transmuted into a seagull, his son following suit a few heart stopping seconds later. The two swooped low over the water and then Jason dove in, changing to his true form the instant he entered the water.

Juris hesitated and then followed his father in, where he too changed to his true form.

"There. Do you see them?" Jason asked, startling his son by using the Alterran mother tongue.

Juris followed him to where several divers were frantically trying to pull rocks away from a collapsed coral reef.

"Remember, they already know this form here," Jason informed as he moved closer. "So don't be afraid of them seeing you. And if you use the mother tongue, they won't understand us." So saying, the King made straight for the divers. They reacted with astonishment as the creature they had known as Crystal suddenly appeared out of the ocean depths—and this time not alone.

Jason began pulling the heavy coral encrusted rocks away. Hesitantly, his son moved in to help. Between the two of them, they managed to make an opening large enough for one of them to squeeze through. Jason did not even hesitate and dove through the opening, finding the divers unconscious within.

"They're alive," Jason called relievedly. "Juris, I can hand them out as soon as the opening is large enough."

His son pulled and a large chunk of rock and coral suddenly split and tumbled from the opening, allowing Jason to freely pass his unconscious charges to the waiting hands on the other side.

The last man had no sooner been passed through when there was another earth tremor. Again the coral reef was shaken and again it came apart. Only this time, the whole roof crashed in on Jason.

"No! Father, get out of there!" Juris screamed, flying at the mountain of debris. "Somebody help me!"

Behind him, the divers had ideas other than helping him. He felt a sting in one of his tendrils and looked back to see one of the men had a dart gun. "No, no…" he moaned, before slipping into unconsciousness.

Ace stood watching the activity on the boats at the top of the cliff and almost jumped out of her skin when the Doctor suddenly came up beside her.

"What's going on down there that has so captivated your attention?" he asked playfully.

"Some divers were trapped in a rock fall or something and Jason and Juris went to help," she informed.

The Doctor moaned and rolled his eyes. "Oh no."

"Look, Doctor," Ace pointed down below, "they're bringing one of them up."

The Time Lord watched as the injured men were brought up, the first boat speeding away. Then the unconscious Alterran was removed from the water and the Doctor's eyes grew wide as he was placed on the second boat, which then sped off in the opposite direction.

"Where's Jason?" the Doctor said softly.

"Sorry?"

"Where's Jason?" the Time Lord repeated.

"He's down there with Juris," Ace replied, pointing to the water. "I've just told you."

Shaking his head, the Doctor turned on his heel. "Juris, I have no doubt, is on his way to the Freeland Center. He's the creature you just saw removed from the water."

"How do you know that?"

"Because that's his true form," the Doctor replied impatiently. "The question is, where's Jason. He never would've allowed them to just take him. And from the look of him, Juris didn't go willingly." Looking his companion in the eye, he added gravely, "I've a nasty suspicion something dreadful happened down there." He turned and made for the TARDIS, walking straight into a police patrol along the way.

"May I ask what you and the young lady are doing up here, sir?" the officer asked politely.

"We're out for a stroll," the Time Lord snapped impatiently.

"In a posted area?"

"We didn't see any signs," Ace injected quickly.

The officer smiled with effort. "Oh, come on, you can do better than that. You're souvenir hunting, aren't you?"

"Yeah, we want souvenirs of trees."

"Actually, Officer," the Doctor cut in, "we're looking for a friend. He's the souvenir hunter, you see, and we didn't want him getting into trouble."

"That's more like it," the policeman replied. "Thing is, I'm gonna have to take you in. Trespassing. Sorry."

Ace started to protest; the Doctor merely sighed heavily. Ever since his arrival on Gallifrey, he had a feeling that something nasty was lurking just under the surface. Something evil and foreboding. Perhaps this was the beginning of it. Or perhaps he was letting his imagination run away with him and it was just bad luck.