Shareen vs the Universe
Boom Town
Thanks to doctorwhodapol and grapejuice101 for favouriting and following this story
A First Great Western High Speed Train screamed into Cardiff Central station, completing it's long journey from London Paddington. Once the train had stopped, it's passengers began disembarking. Amongst them were Mickey Smith and Shareen Costello. They took a moment to glance at the bi-lingual signs, then left the station.
Presently, Shareen and Mickey arrived at the Roald Dahl Plass in Cardiff Bay, where they could see the TARDIS standing rather incongruously in front of the water fountain by the Millennium Centre. They went up to the box and Mickey knocked on the door. To their surprise, it wasn't the Doctor or Rose who answered, but a dark-haired American man. "Who the hell are you two?" the American asked rudely
"What d'ya mean, 'Who the hell are we?' Who the hell are you?" Mickey shot back
"Captain Jack Harkness. Whatever ya sellin', we're not buyin'."
"Get out the way!" Mickey grunted, and shoved past Jack into the TARDIS, Shareen following him.
"Don't tell me, that must be Mickey." Jack said dryly, shutting the door, then he turned to Shareen. "And you must be Shareen. Nice top." he commented, noting Shareen's Union Flag top.
"Thanks." Shareen said dryly, "Um, who are you exactly?"
"Captain Jack Harkness at your service." Jack purred, giving Shareen a dashing smile.
"Yeah, right." Shareen said uncomfortably
The TARDIS apparently seemed to be undergoing maintenance, with the Doctor currently standing on the overhead gantry doing some repair work with a flashing red miner's light on his head, while Rose was standing by the console. "Here comes trouble." the Doctor said cheerily, "How yer doin', Ricky boy?"
"It's Mickey." the person in question huffed
"Don't listen to him, he's winding you up." Rose told Mickey
"Shareen." the Doctor nodded to the other newcomer
"Doctor." Shareen acknowledged, "Nice light."
"You look fantastic." Mickey smiled at Rose, and they gave each other a big hug.
"Aww, sweet, look at those two." Jack remarked to the Doctor, "How come I never get any of that?"
"Buy me a drink first." the Doctor retorted
"You're such hard work."
"But worth it." the Doctor grinned in a self-satisfied way
"What, are you two...?" Shareen pointed between Jack and the Doctor
"What? No." the Doctor snorted, "Just a bit of banter, that's all."
"Did ya manage to find it?" Rose asked Mickey
"There ya go." Mickey answered, handing Rose a passport.
"I can go anywhere now." Rose grinned at the Doctor, brandishing the passport.
"I told yer, you don't need a passport." the Doctor replied
"It's all very well goin' to Platform One and Justicia and the Glass Pyramid of San Kaloon, but what if I end up in Brazil?" Rose retorted, "I might need it. Ya see, I'm prepared for anything." And she stuck her tongue out at the Doctor.
"Sounds like you're staying then." Mickey said glumly
An awkward silence followed, which Shareen then tried to break. "So, what're you all doin' in Cardiif, then?" she asked, changing the subject, "And who's the Yank?"
"Yeah. I mean, I don't mind you hangin' out with Big Ears up there." Mickey added
"Oi!" the Doctor huffed indignantly
"Look in the mirror, mate." Shareen chortled
"But this guy, I dunno." Mickey continued, "He's kinda..."
"Handsome?" Jack smirked
"More like cheesy." Mickey sneered
"Early 21st century slang." Jack noted, "Is cheesy good or bad?"
"It's bad."
"But bad means good, is that right?" Jack smirked
"No." Shareen snorted
"Are you saying I'm not handsome?" the Doctor pouted, tottering down the ladder, but everyone ignored him.
"We just stopped off to refuel." Rose explained to Mickey and Shareen, "The thing is, Cardiff's got this rift runnin' through the middle of the city. It's invisible, but it's like an earthquake fault between different dimensions..."
"The rift was healed back in 1869." the Doctor added
"Thanks to a girl named Gwyneth." Rose continued, "Cos' these creatures called the Gelth, they were using the rift as a gateway but she saved the world an' closed it."
"But closing a rift always leaves a scar." Jack took over, he, Rose and the Doctor completely oblivious to the fact that Mickey and Shareen were looking at them like they had no idea what they were talking about out, "And that scar generates energy, harmless to the Human race."
"But perfect for the TARDIS." the Doctor took over, "So just park her here for a couple of days right on top of the scar..."
"Open up the engines, soak up the radiation..." Jack added
"Like filling her up with petrol an' off we go!" Rose cheered
"Into time!" Jack crowed, high-fiving Rose.
"And space!" the Doctor, Jack and Rose finished together, all high-fiving each other.
Mickey and Shareen could only stare at the trio in disbelief. "My God, have you seen yourselves?" Mickey asked rhetorically, "You all think you're so clever, don't you?"
"Yeah!" the Doctor said smugly
"Yeah!" Rose smirked cockily
"Yep!" Jack finished, giving Mickey a friendly slap on the cheek.
"Yeah, well, no one likes smug know-it-alls." Shareen told them disdainfully.
~8~
Presently, the quintet were all bundled outside the TARDIS. "Should take another 24 hours." the Doctor said as he locked the doors, "Which means we've got time to kill."
"That old lady's staring." Mickey said, looking around shiftily
"Probably wandering what five people can do inside a wooden box." Jack remarked
"What are you captain of? The innuendo squad?" Mickey huffed
Jack just made a 'whatever' sign and walked off.
"What about the TARDIS?" Shareen asked, "I mean, we can't just leave it. Isn't someone gonna notice it?"
"Yeah, what's with the police box?" Jack asked, seeing that Shareen had a point, "Why's she look like that?"
"It's a cloaking device." Rose answered complacently
"It's called a chameleon circuit." the Doctor explained, "The TARDIS is meant to disguise herself wherever she lands, like if this was Ancient Rome, she'd be a statue on a plinth or something. But I landed in the 1960's, she disguised herself as a phone box, and the circuit got stuck."
"So it copied a real thing?" Mickey asked, "There actually were police boxes?"
"Yeah, on street corners." the Doctor replied, "Phone for help before they had radios and mobiles. If they arrested somebody, they could shove 'em inside until help came. Like a little prison cell."
"Why don't ya just fix the circuit?" Jack asked
"I like it." the Doctor answered simply, "Don't you?"
"I love it!" Rose said, patting the TARDIS' woodwork for emphasis.
"But there are no police boxes these days." Mickey pointed out, "So doesn't it get noticed?"
"Yeah, I mean, we can see the TARDIS, so what's stopping everyone else from seeing it?" Shareen added
"Ricky, Shareen, let me tell yer something about the Human race." the Doctor said, putting his hands on both Humans' shoulders, "You put a mysterious police box slap bang in the middle of town and what do they do? Walk past it. Now stop yer nagging, both of yer. Let's go and explore."
"I am gonna smack you one of these days." Shareen grunted
The Doctor linked his hand with Rose's and they walked off, the others following them. "What's the plan?" Rose asked
"I dunno." the Doctor shrugged, "Cardiff, early 21st century and the wind's coming from the... East. Trust me, safest place in the universe."
"And now you've gone and jinxed it." Shareen remarked.
~8~
Soon, Mickey, Shareen and the TARDIS crew were sat around a table in a bayside restaurant with Jack regaling everyone with a tale of one of his past misadventures. "I swear, six feet tall and with tusks..."
"You're lying through yer teeth." the Doctor shook his head
"I'd have gone bonkers!" Rose sniggered, "That's the word, bonkers!"
"I mean, it turns out the white things are tusks and I mean tusks!" Jack continued, "And it's woken, and it's not happy!"
"How could yer not know that it was there?" the Doctor asked
"And we're standing there, 15 of us, naked..."
"Now that's something I'd like to see." Shareen sniggered,
"And I'm like, 'Oh, no, no, it's got nothing to do with me!'" Jack continued, "And then it roars, and we are running. Oh, my God, we are running! And Brakovitch falls, so I turn to him and I say..."
"I knew we should've turned left!" Mickey cut in with the punch line, sending everyone roaring with laughter.
"That's my line!"
"I don't believe you!" Rose guffawed, "I don't believe a word you say ever, that is so brilliant!"
The Doctor glanced over at a newspaper being read by a man sitting at a nearby table. His smile instantly fell at the paper's headline and he got up to have a closer look.
"Did you ever get your clothes back?" Rose asked Jack
"No, I just picked him up and went right for the ship." Jack replied, "Full throttle, didn't stop until I hit the spacelanes. I was shaking! It was unbelievable, I was freaking out and by the time I got there, I was 15 light-years away, I was like this..."
The Doctor meanwhile had read the paper's cover story and his face became increasingly troubled. "And I was having such a nice day." he sighed, and showed the others the paper. The headline was 'New Mayor, new Cardiff', and the mayor in the photo was none other than Margaret Blaine, the Slitheen who had menaced Rose and Shareen in Downing Street six months ago.
"I knew you'd jinxed us!" Shareen groaned
"How can she be here?" Rose questioned, "I thought they were all dead."
"Obviously she survived." the Doctor replied grimly.
~8~
The quintet were soon arriving at Cardiff town hall, having briefed Jack on the incident in Downing Street. They marched purposefully up the steps and entered the hall's foyer then stopped to survey their surroundings. "According to intelligence, the target is the last surviving member of the Slitheen family, a criminal sect from the planet Raxicoricofallapatorius, masquerading as a Human being, zipped inside a skinsuit." Jack fired off, "Ok, plan of attack, we assume a basic 57/56 strategy, covering all available exits on the ground floor. Doctor, you go face-to-face, that'll designate exit one. I'll cover exit two. Rose, you and Shareen are exit three. Mickey Smith, you take exit four. Have you got that?"
While Jack had been rattling all of that off, the Doctor had been looking at him with mild annoyance at his impertinence. "Excuse me. Who's in charge?" he asked sternly
"Sorry. Awaiting orders, sir." Jack huffed
"Right." the Doctor began in an authoritive voice, "Here's the plan." He turned to the others with a cheeky smile. "Like he said, nice plan. Anything else?"
"Present arms." Jack said, pulling out a mobile phone.
The others all pulled out mobile phones of their own. "Ready." they all said
"Speed dial?" Jack checked
"Yup." the Doctor acknowledged
"Ready." Rose said
"Check." Mickey added
"Mate." Shareen finished
"See ya in hell." Jack smirked, and walked off to the right. The Doctor, Rose and Shareen headed off to different exits straight ahead while Mickey hesitated for a few moments before ambling off to the left.
Rose and Shareen had soon arrived at the exit they were assigned to cover. Now all they could do was wait. "So, how's things back home?" Rose asked
"Oh, the same old." Shareen replied, "Ya mum misses ya, though. She talks about you all the time."
"Is she alright?" Rose asked
"Yeah, she's fine. She just missed you, like I said. I pop round when I can to keep her company."
"And what about you?"
"I'm fine." Shareen said, "Everything's pretty much business as usual for me. Mind you, I'm gonna go and see nan and gramp next month."
"They still livin' in Teneriffe?" Rose asked
"Yep." Shareen answered, "So it'll be nice to have a couple of weeks in the sun."
"You spoken to ya parents?" Rose pushed
"Nope. And I don't plan to either." Shareen said firmly
"Aw, come on, 'Reen. It's been, what, two years now." Rose said, "Surely they're sorry by now and miss ya."
"Huh! Not likely!" Shareen scoffed. She had had a falling out with her parents two years ago and wasn't interested in seeing them again any time so.
~8~
Meanwhile, the Doctor strode over to the secretary outside the mayor's office. "Hello! I've come to see the Lord Mayor." he said
"Have you got an appointment?" the secretary asked
"Nope. Just an old friend passing by, bit of a surprise, can't wait to see her face." the Doctor grinned
"Well, she's just having a cup of tea." the secretary tried to fob him off
"Just go in there, and tell her the Doctor would like to see her." the Doctor told him bluntly
"Doctor who?"
"Just the Doctor. Tell her exactly that. The Doctor."
The secretary stood up resignedly. "Hold on a tick." he muttered, and entered the office.
The Doctor waited calmly, raising his eyebrow in amusement when he heard the sound of a cup smashing.
The secretary reappeared, looking slightly flustered and opening the door as little as possible before squeezing before it and shutting it behind him. "The Lord Mayor says thank you f-for stopping by..." he began, "She've love to have a chat, but, um... she's up to her eyes in paperwork. Perhaps if you could make an appointment for next week?"
"She's climbing out the window, isn't she?" the Doctor asked knowingly
"Yes, she is." the secretary said awkwardly
The Doctor promptly pushed past him and rushed into the office. He dashed across the room to the open window and hurried out onto the balcony. He was just in time to see Margaret hurrying along to some scaffolding. "Slitheen heading north." he said into his phone.
~8~
"On our way." Rose acknowledged, and she and Shareen hurried off to intercept their quarry.
They charged down a corridor and pushed past two secretaries in their rush, sending paperwork flying. "Sorry." Shareen called to as she and Rose sped off.
~8~
The Doctor was about to go in pursuit of Margaret when the secretary rushed out onto the balcony and started grappling with him. Leave the mayor alone!" the secretary fussed
While this was going on, Margaret reached the scaffolding and climbed down the ladder to the ground. The Doctor managed to overpower the secretary and hurried down the balcony.
Margaret reached the bottom of the ladder and removed her brooch as she ran towards a side alley ready to make her escape. When she reached the alley, she saw Rose and Shareen running towards her, blocking her way. Margaret growled angrily and pulled off an earring, then she turned to see Jack running towards her. Her eyes widened with shock and she ran back the way she'd came.
The Doctor climbed down the ladder and joined the chase. "Oi! Come back here, fatty!" Shareen called as they all ran after the fleeing Slitheen.
Margaret belted down the remaining side alley, pulling off her second earring. The Doctor, Rose, Shareen and Jack all converged at the end of the alley. "Who was on exit four?" Jack asked
"That was Mickey." Rose answered
At that moment, Mickey burst out of a side door, a cleaning bucket stuck to his foot. "Here I am." he wheezed
"Mickey the idiot." the Doctor grunted
"Oi! Leave him alone!" Shareen defended, "Besides, she's not exactly gonna outrun us, is she?"
No sooner had she said that, then Margaret clipped her jewellery together to form a control pad. She pressed it and vanished in a blue light.
"She's got a teleport! That's cheating!" Jack groaned, "Now we're never gonna get her!"
"Oh, the Doctor's very good at teleports." Rose said nonchalantly
The Doctor stepped forward with his sonic screwdriver at the ready. He held it in the air with a cheeky grin and switched it on. Margaret reappeared, running straight towards them with a self-satisfied grin on her face which promptly disappeared when she saw where she was. She ground to a halt and hurriedly changed direction, activating her teleport and disappearing again. The Doctor switched his sonic screwdriver on again and Margaret reappeared, much closer to them this time. She turned, teleported away again and the Doctor used his sonic screwdriver to bring her back. This time, Margaret reappeared right in front of the quintet, absolutely exhausted and gasping for breath.
"I could do this all day." the Doctor said cheerfully
"This is persecution." Margaret wheezed, "Why can't you leave me alone? What did I ever do to you?"
"You tried to kill me and destroy this entire planet." the Doctor answered bluntly
"Apart from that?" Margaret said dismissively.
~8~
The group had soon taken Margaret back into the town hall and into a presentation room, where a model of a nuclear power station was on display. They'd found out from the paper that in her guise as mayor, Margaret was planning to build one right in the heart of Cardiff under the pretence of creating employment opportunities. "So, yer a Slitheen, yer on Earth, yer trapped." the Doctor rattled off, "Your family get killed but you teleport out, just in the nick of time. You have no means of escape. What d'yer do? Yer build a nuclear power station." He gestured to the model. "But what for?"
"A philanthropic gesture." Margaret replied, "I've learned the error of my ways."
"Huh, yeah right." Shareen scoffed, not buying it one bit.
"And it just so happens to be right on top of the rift." the Doctor said knowingly
"What rift would that be?" Margaret asked innocently
"A rift in space in time." Jack replied, not believing Margaret's lies, "If this power station went into meltdown, the entire planet would go schwwwupboom!"
"This station is designed to explode the minute it reaches capacity." the Doctor noted
"Didn't anyone notice?" Rose asked, "Isn't there someone in London checking this sort of stuff?"
"She's probably killed 'em to shut 'em up." Shareen said darkly
"But why would she do that?" Mickey wandered, "A great big explosion, she'd only end up killing herself."
"She's got a name, you know." Margaret said indignantly
"She's not even a she, she's a... thing." Mickey retorted
"Yeah, a big green thing in a skinsuit." Shareen added
"Oh, but she's clever." the Doctor said, and in one swift movement, he prised off the base of the model and turned it round to reveal a giant circuit board printed on it. "Fantastic." he breathed, recognising the device.
"Is that a tribophysical waveform macro-kinetic extrapolator?" Jack asked excitedly, also recognising it.
"Couldn't have put it better myself." the Doctor confirmed
"Ooh, genius." Jack said, taking the extrapolator off the Doctor for a better look.
"Sorry, what is that thing exactly?" Shareen asked
The Doctor didn't answer, for his attention had been caught by the banners on the far wall. He went over to look at them closely.
"You didn't build this." Jack said to Margaret
"I have my hobbies." she waved him off, "A little tinkering."
"No, no, no, I mean, you really didn't build this. Way beyond you."
"I bet she stole it." Mickey accused
"It fell into my hands." Margaret retorted
"Is it a weapon?" Rose asked
"It's a weapon." Jack explained, putting the extrapolator on the floor, "Ya see, the reactor blows, the rift opens, phenomenal cosmic disaster, but this thing surrounds in a forcefield. You have this energy bubble, zzhum, so you're safe. Then you feed it coordinates, stand on top, and ride the concussion all the way out of the solar system."
"It's a surfboard." Mickey realised
"A pan-dimensional surfboard, yeah." Jack confirmed
"And it would've worked." Margaret said bitterly, "I would've surfed away from this dead end dump and back to civilisation."
"You'd blow up an entire planet just to get a lift?" Shareen asked incredulously
"Like stepping on an anthill." Margaret retorted
"How'd yer think of the name?" the Doctor spoke up, attracting the others' attention.
"What, Blaidd Drwg? It's Welsh." Margaret replied
"I know, but how'd you think of it?" the Doctor asked
"Chose it at random, that's all." Margaret shrugged, "Just sounded good. Does it matter?"
The Doctor turned round, a serious expression on his face. "Blaidd Drwg." he murmured thoughtfully
"What's it mean?" Rose asked
"Bad Wolf." the Doctor replied
"Hey, that's the name of our team." Shareen said to Mickey
"But I've heard it elsewhere, Bad Wolf." Rose realised, "I've that lots of times..."
"Everywhere we go. Two words. Following us. Bad Wolf." the Doctor murmured
"How can they be following us?" Rose asked, feeling haunted.
The Doctor stared into space for a few seconds then...
"Nah, just a coincidence." he said cheerfully, "Like hearing a word on the radio and then hearing it all day. Never mind. Things to do." He clapped his hands briskly. "Margaret, we're gonna take you home."
"Isn't that the easy option, like letting her go?" Jack asked
"I don't believe it!" Rose said gleefully, "We actually get to go to Raxa... Wait a minute. Raxacor..."
"Raxicoricofallapatorious." the Doctor told her quickly
"Raxacorico..." Rose began
"...fallapatorious." the Doctor finished for her.
"Raxacoricofallapatorious!" Rose screeched in delight
"That's it!" the Doctor yelled joyfully, and he and Rose threw their arms around each other.
"I did it!" Rose squeaked happily
"Now try sayin' it six times fast." Shareen teased
"They have the death penalty." Margaret said seriously, wiping the smiles off everyone's faces, "The family Slitheen was tried in it's absence many years ago and found guilty. With no chance of appeal. According to the statutes of government, the moment I return, I am to be executed. What do you make of that, Doctor?" She held the Time Lord's cold stare. "Take me home and you take me to my death."
"Not my problem." the Doctor told her indifferently.
~8~
That evening, the group were all gathered in the TARDIS. "This ship is impossible!" Margaret said in wonder, "It's superb! How'd you get the outside around the inside?"
"Like I'd give you the secret, yeah." the Doctor retorted
"I almost feel better about being defeated." Margaret continued, "I never stood a chance. This is the technology of the gods."
"Don't worship me, I'd make a very bad god." the Doctor said, "Yer wouldn't get a day off for starters."
"Just as well you ain't a god, then." Shareen commented
"Jack, how we doing, big fella?" the Doctor asked Jack, who was on the floor tinkering with the extrapolator.
"This extrapolator's top of the range." Jack replied, then peered round at Margaret. "Where'd you get it?"
"Oh, I don't know. Some airlock sale?" Margaret shrugged indifferently
"Must've been a great big heist." Jack remarked, "It's stacked with power."
"But we can use it for fuel?" the Doctor asked
"It's not compatible... but it should knock off about 12 hours." Jack answered, "We'll be ready to go by morning."
"Then we're stuck here overnight." the Doctor stated
"I'm in no hurry." Margaret grunted
"We've got a prisoner!" Rose said excitedly, "The police box is really... a police box."
"You're not just police, though." Margaret scorned, "Since you're taking me to my death, that makes you my executioners. Each and every one of you."
"Well, you deserve it." Mickey said coldly
"You're very quick to say so." Margaret rounded on him, "You're very quick to soak your hands in my blood. Which makes you better than me how exactly?"
"Easy. We don't around killing people and trying to destroy planets for money." Shareen retorted, "That's what makes us beter than you."
"You think so?" Margaret snarled, sitting back on the jump seat, "Well, let's see who can look me in the eye."
She fixed Mickey with a calm, collected gaze. He managed to hold it for a few seconds before averting his eyes uncomfortably. Margaret looked at Rose next, who glanced guiltily at the Doctor, who glanced up only briefly as he was busy working at the console, but still very aware of the atmosphere. Jack was too busy working on the extrapolator to bother with Margaret, so she turned her sights on Shareen instead. Shareen was able to stand her ground and fixed Margaret with a death glare until the Slitheen backed down, unable to stand the cold look in Shareen's brown eyes.
~8~
Presently, Mickey was standing outside the TARDIS and staring at the water fountain when Rose and Shareen joined him. "S'freezing out here." Rose commented, regretting her decision to wear a mini-skirt today.
"Well, it is September, Rose." Shareen remarked dryly. Both she and Mickey were more sensibly dressed in warm coats and jeans.
"Better than in there." Mickey said, nodding towards the TARDIS, "She does deserve it. She's a Slitheen. I don't care. It's... it's just... weird in that box."
"I didn't really need my passport." Rose admitted, grinning tentatively
Mickey realised that Rose wanted to see him, so he smiled, pleased at that. "I've been thinking, you know." he began, "We could go an' have a drink. Have a pizza or something. Just you and me."
"That'd be nice." Rose nodded
"And, I mean, if the TARDIS can't leave till morning, we could... go to a hotel?" Mickey continued, looking slightly bashful, "Spend the night? I mean, if you want to. I've got some money."
"Ok, yeah." Rose smiled
"Is that alright?"
"Yeah!"
"Cool." a very pleased Mickey said, "There's a couple of bars round here, we should give 'em a go. Do ya have to go an' tell him?" he asked, indicating the TARDIS.
"It's none of his business." Rose replied, then remembered that Shareen was standing right next to them. "Um, ya don't mind do ya, Reen, if Mickey an' me...?"
"No, no. Go right ahead." Shareen replied, happy that Rose and Mickey were finally getting some time together after all these months apart, "You two go an' have fun. I'm gonna see if there's a chippy or something around here, get some grub. Think I'll get some vinegar while I'm at it and see if I can Umbridge the alien in there shut up!"
The three Humans all shared a laugh at this, then they all went their separate ways, with Rose and Mickey going off hand-in-hand to explore the bay and Shareen going off to get something to eat.
~8~
15 minutes later, Shareen returned to the Plass munching on a bag of chips and washing it down with a can of Tango apple. She'd brought a bottle of vinegar while she was there so that she could threaten Margaret with it if the Slitheen continued with her dirty tricks. She entered the TARDIS to find only Jack inside, lounging on the jump seat with a beer in his hand. "Oh, where're the Doctor and Margaret?" Shareen asked
"Went out for dinner." Jack replied
"What, the Doctor's actually having dinner with that thing?!" Shareen stared
"Her idea." Jack replied, "I think she'd just tryin' to guilt him into letting her go. Won't work, though. I gave the Doctor some bracelets that'll electrocute her if she tries anything."
"Good." Shareen said, "I don't care what she says, she deserves everything she's gonna get." She then decided to change the subject. "What about that surfboard thing? How's it going?"
"All finished." Jack replied, gesturing to where the extrapolator was now fully wired up to the TARDIS console.
"Right." Shareen nodded, "So, um, how'd ya meet the Doctor and Rose?"
"1941, in the London Blitz." Jack replied
"What, you're from 1941?" Shareen stared
"Nope, 51st century, me." Jack laughed, "The Doctor's not the only one who can time travel." And he began telling Shareen about the adventure with the Chula ambulance and the nanogenes, then he told her about some of the adventure he, Rose and the Doctor had had subsequently.
By the time Jack had finished, both he and Shareen were having a good laugh about things. "They actually had to hop for their lives?" Shareen chortled, "Man, I wish I could've seen that!"
"Yeah, we all had a good laugh about it afterwards." Jack laughed, "I tell ya, it's never a dull moment with those two!" And as if to prove his point, the extrapolator suddenly went haywire. "What the hell?!" Jack stared, jumping to his feet and rushing over to the extrapolator.
"What's happening?" Shareen asked as warning lights on the TARDIS console began blinking away like mad.
"I dunno." Jack answered, hurriedly messing about with the extrapolator.
Just then, the Doctor and Margaret burst in. "What the hell are yer doing?!" the Doctor demanded as he rushed to the console.
"It just went crazy!" Jack answered, frantically ripping the wires out of the extrapolator.
"It's the rift." the Doctor said, checking the monitor, "Time and space are ripping apart. The whole city's gonna disappear!"
"What?! Can't you stop it?" Shareen asked anxiously
"I'm trying!" the Doctor shot back, then jumped as the console sparked
"It's the extrapolator!" Jack said as he and the Doctor began working furiously to try and sort things out, "I've disconnected it but it's still feeding off the engines! It's using the TARDIS, I can't stop it!"
"Never mind Cardiff, it's gonna rip open the planet!" the Doctor realised
Just then, Rose burst in. "What is it?" she panted, "What's happening?!"
"Oh, just little me!" Margaret cackled gleefully, and before anyone could do anything, she ripped off the arm of her skinsuit to reveal her claw and she grabbed Rose and held her in a neck hold. Shareen immediately went to grab the vinegar bottle but Margaret saw the action. "Ah-ah, one wrong move and she snaps like a promise." she threatened
"I might've known." the Doctor scowled
"And I've had you bleating all night, poor baby." Margaret crowed, stepping closer with Rose still held in her grip, "Now shut it!" She turned to Jack. "You, fly boy, put the extrapolator at my feet."
Jack hesitated. Margaret tightened her grip on Rose's neck to show that she meant business. Jack looked at the Doctor for help, who nodded, and Jack did what he was told.
"Thank you." Margaret said in a mock-sweet voice, "Just as I planned."
"I thought you needed to blow up the nuclear power station." Rose choked out
"Falling that, if I were to be... arrested... then anyone capable of tracking me down would have considerable technology of their own." Margaret explained smugly, "Therefore, they would be captivated by the extrapolator. Especially a magpie mind like yours, Doctor. So the extrapolator was programmed to go to plan B. To lock onto the nearest alien power source and open the rift." She looked around the TARDIS in awe. "And what a power source it found... I'm back on schedule... thanks to you."
"The rift's gonna convulse. " Jack warned, "She'll destroy the planet."
"And you with it!" Margaret crowed in triumph, and pushed Rose aside so that she could stand on the extrapolator, but still kept a hold of the blonde's neck, "While I ride this board over the crest of the inferno all the way to freedom. Stand back boys and girls... surf's up."
Suddenly, a panel on the console directly in front of Margaret burst open and a blinding white-gold light flooded out of it. Margaret looked at the light in surprise, then up at the Doctor on the other side of the console. "Of course, opening the rift means you'll pull this ship apart." the Time Lord said calmly
"So sue me." Margaret sneered
"It's not just any old power source." the Doctor continued, "It's the TARDIS. My TARDIS. The best ship in the universe."
"It'll make wonderful scrap." Margaret said nastily
"What's that light?" Rose asked, squinting through the light.
"The heart of the TARDIS." the Doctor replied, "This ship's alive. Yer've opened her soul." he told Margaret
Breathing heavily, Margaret stared into the light, seemingly forgetting everything else. "It's... so bright." she said in a vague and dreamy voice.
"Look at it, Margaret." the Doctor coaxed
"Beautiful..."
"Look inside, Blon Fel-Fotch. Look at the light.
Margaret stared at the light, completely transfixed by it. Her grip on Rose slackened, allowing the Human to stumble out of the way. Margaret continued to stare into the light, a blissful smile spreading across her face. Then she looked up at the Doctor, who smiled slightly. "Thank you..." Margaret said genuinely
There was a blinding flash, completely engulfing the Slitheen. When it cleared, her empty skin-suit flopped to the floor on top of the extrapolator.
The Doctor sprang into action. "Don't look, stay there!" he warned the Humans as he rushed around the console slamming down levers. The panel on the console closed, shutting off the light. "Now, Jack, come on, shut it all down." the Doctor instructed, "Rose, that panel over there, turn all the switches to the right."
The trio worked fast, while Shareen stood in a corner out of the way. The warning lights stopped blinking and everything calmed down.
"Nicely done." the Doctor said, stepping back from the console, "Thank you all."
"What happened to Margaret?" Rose asked
"Must've got burned up." Jack guessed, "Carried out her own death sentence."
"No, I don't think she's dead." the Doctor said, going over to examine the skinsuit.
"Then, where'd she go?" Rose asked
"She looked into the heart of the TARDIS, and even I don't know how strong that is." the Doctor replied, "And the ship's telepathic, like I told yer, Rose. Gets inside yer head, translates alien languages. Maybe the raw energy can translate all sorts of thoughts." He kneeled down next to the skin-suit for a closer look. The others followed suit, so all four fo them were huddled around. The Doctor fished about inside the skin-suit and pulled out an egg with a few tentacles on top. "Here she is!" he said
"She's an egg?" Rose asked incredulously
"Regressed to her childhood." the Doctor nodded
"She's an egg?" Jack stared
"This is just weird." Shareen muttered
"She can start again! Live her life from scratch." the Doctor said, "If we take her home, give her to a different family, tell 'em to bring her up properly, she might be alright!"
"Or she might be worse." Jack remarked
"That's her choice." the Doctor replied
"She's an egg." Rose repeated
"She's an egg." the Doctor smiled
Shareen suddenly realised that someone was missing. "Hey, where's Mickey?" she asked
"Oh, my God!" Rose gasped, and rushed out of the TARDIS, Shareen following her.
~8~
Outside the TARDIS, Shareen could see that Cardiff Bay was in a state of disarray. The pavement was cracked, windows were shattered and emergency services were on the scene, all busy cleaning up the mess and tending to the injured. "How could ya forget about Mickey?" Shareen asked Rose, "He was right with you!"
"I-I got distracted." Rose said weakly, knowing that it was no excuse.
"I don't believe you, Rose." Shareen sighed, "First ya swan off and leave him for an entire year, then ya do it again and leave him in the middle of a disaster!"
"I know, I know. I feel terrible." Rose sighed guiltily. She then rushed off to ask some paramedics if they'd seen Mickey.
Shareen looked around and saw Mickey standing in the shadows nearby, watching Rose and clearly not wanting to be found. After watching Rose for a moment, he turned and began to walk away. Shareen hurried after him. "Hey, Mickey, where're ya going?" she asked him
"Home." Mickey replied simply
"I'm come with ya then." Shareen said, and pulled out her phone and called Rose. "Rose? Yeah, I've found Mickey. He's just going home. I'm gonna go with him. See ya soon, I hope. Bye!" She hung up and she and Mickey set off back towards the station.
~8~
Rose returned to the TARDIS to find the Doctor and Jack tinkering at the console. "We're all powered up." the Doctor said, "We can leave. Opening the rift filled us up with energy. We can go. If that's all right..."
"Yeah, fine." Rose said, her voice light but traces of tears in her eyes.
"How's Mickey?" the Doctor asked tactfully
"He's ok. He's gone." Rose replied, "Shareen went with him."
"D'yer wanna go and find 'em?" the Doctor offered, "We'll wait."
"No need." Rose shook her head, "Mickey deserves better."
"Off we go, then." the Doctor said briskly, "Always movin' on."
"Next stop: Raxicoricofallapatorious." Jack said as the Doctor pulled a lever to set them off, "Now, ya don't often get to say that."
"We'll just stop by and pop her in the hatchery." the Doctor said, gesturing to the egg, which had now been placed on the console. "Margaret the Slitheen can live her life again. A second chance."
"That'd be nice." Rose murmured
The TARDIS' engines wheezed into life and the box dematerialised away from Cardiff, back into time and space.
Author's notes: And so we have another outing with the Doctor and Co. Unfortunately, this is the last chapter to feature the 9th Doctor, as we'll be moving onto the 10th Doctor's rein next time. Hope I managed to incorporate Shareen into this episode satisfactory enough. I've characterised Shareen as being somewhat similar to Mickey, I.E a normal person swept up in all this madness. There's still some way to go before she becomes a TARDIS regular, but she'll be getting better at dealing with alien threats in the meantime. So, hope you enjoy this chapter and hope to see ya next time!