Series: True/Troubled Beauty
Series tagline: How do you love someone who believes they don't deserve your love?
Chapter: 10. The Search For K-9 Continues
Fandom: Doctor Who (10th)
Chapter Summary: Jack searches for K9 whilst the others have 1930s murder mystery party.
Rating: PG-13. Quite violent and I'm sorry because Jack's on the receiving end (again!)
Word Count: Just over 8 thousand words!
Warning: violence and unbelievable coincidences.
Disclaimer: sigh I have no claim to pretty much anything, least of all Doctor Who. sigh
AN: This is my first attempt at two stories in the same chapter. Humour contrasting the angst. I'd appreciate if you tell me how the mix turned out.
On a Personal Note: I get my A2 results tomorrow. 17.08.06. It's a crazy time for me. This fic was supposed to be over by now. It started out as an idea, but as I put pen to paper (I should just put fingers to keyboard, it's quicker that way) it just grew. I've still got several chapters and an epilogue to write. The point is, it's going to be hectic so please bear with me as I might not be able to post as often as I'd like. I'm seriously begging for your support here. I will finish the series because my mind won't relax until I have. I'm also close to losing my mind with pure terror so I'd appreciate feedback to keep me sane!
AAN: the last chapter I posted ended up being in a terrible format (It seems I can't learn from past mistakes). I've posted it again in a more legible format here
10. The Search for K9 Continues
The Doctor reads something on TARDIS' control panel that affects him deeply. He tries his best to ignore it, to forget he ever saw it. He should tell Jack. Jack would want to know. But the Doctor can't bring himself to. So he just tries to carry on as normal, ignoring the guilt because it's really not that big of a deal. It's not as though he's even lying, he's just not alerting Jack to the truth. The Doctor should have known better as Mickey strolls in and foils his plan in mere minutes.
"Er, Jack?" Mickey speaks into the comm. He knows Jack is still awake and probably in the library. "There's some readings here I think you should have a look at."
"Okay. I'll be there in five minutes." And that's all it takes for Jack to drop everything he's doing and come to the TARDIS control room. Jack switches off the comm. link, already on his way. Mickey switches it off too before turning to the Doctor curiously.
"Doctor, did you recognise these readings? Did you know what they could mean?" To be honest, the Doctor preferred Mickey the Idiot. Now Mickey can see straight through him.
"I didn't know you could." The Doctor pathetically attempts to side step the question.
"Jack taught me." Mickey explains and the Doctor should have guessed. Not that he's bitter about it, of course not! It's not funny: he can't even fool himself so he's got no chance of fooling Mickey. "And you never answered my question."
"I…" There's no point in lying. "Yeah, I understand the possibilities. But it's a long shot!" The Doctor protests. "There could be any number of reasons for the readings and…"
"I don't want him to leave either." Mickey gives a small, sad, sympathetic smile. "But he has a right to know. And knowing him, I think he'd figure it out eventually. And I don't think lying to him will score you any points. Unlike me, he wouldn't understand why you lied. And for an ex-conman Jack is surprisingly appreciative of honesty. Tell him the truth, and trust him to do the right thing."
"I wouldn't trust me to do the right thing." Jack arrives, always making a big entrance no matter how small he tries to be. "But I do admire honesty. Understand why you wouldn't want to give it to me though."
"TARDIS picked up a faint warp signal, same as the merchant ship. The trail also shows signs of having a hyper energy refining drive, like the one stolen off your ship." The Doctor informs Jack, not missing a beat, trying to prove to Jack that he does trust him. "Do you want to follow the trail?" The Doctor is asking Jack, throwing the other man completely off his guard.
"May… maybe I could … take my own ship." Jack flinches as he anticipates the severe responses he'll get from Mickey and the Doctor but he has to do this.
"No way. You know what happened last time…"
"That's exactly why I've got to do this on my own!"
"Could you even catch up with merchants in your ship?" Mickey asks.
"She's fast enough." Jack defends, even though he hasn't taken her for a test drive since she was gutted. But hypothetically, she should be. "And besides, if I our suspicions are correct and I manage to rescue K-9 I can use him to help fix the warp drive and I'm sure he wouldn't mind if I used him as a power conductor. He gets the energy he needs and I get a safe and reliable turbo for my engines."
"I don't get why you're making such a big deal about K-9! It's not as if I couldn't replace him, I've done it before. I replaced him with a better model." And Jack hates to judge the Doctor but he can't believe how dispassionate the Doctor can be about certain things. However, Jack does tries to be the same and it would make thing a whole lot easier if he was. It would make it a lot easier to leave.
"Sarah-Jane spent months with this K-9. They'd formed a bond. And I screwed that up. It's my mistake, mine alone, so it's up to me and me alone to fix it." Jack insists but Mickey sees straight through it, straight to the painful truth.
"Are you sure this isn't another one of your suicide missions?" Mickey asks, making Jack wince and look down at the floor. There's an element of truth in it. There used to be more than that but now it's just a ghost of the past. "Will you be coming back?"
"I…" Jack wants to say 'no', dismissing the notion straight off but he can't bring himself to do it. "I don't know." He can't look either of them in the eyes. He's hoping the distance will do him good. Make it easier for him to leave. Stay away forever. But he's not quite there yet. "If I find K-9, I'll deliver him back here personally."
"And what if you can't find him?" Mickey's tone is slightly confrontational, serious and concerned. "What if you can't save him? What if they've sold him? What if they've stripped him down and flogged the parts? What if they've abandoned him? What if they've killed him? How far are you willing to go, Jack?" It's a rhetorical question as they all know the answer. Jack plans on doing whatever it takes. Going as far as he can and then going just that little bit further.
"It isn't worth it." Mickey tells him plainly. The Doctor watches with wary eyes, not willing to interrupt because Mickey seems to be getting through where the Doctor has failed. "I know you. If you don't find K-9 you'll beat yourself up about it. You won't stop until you've got him but it's not worth it. I'd be proper gutted if you got yourself killed." Jack can't help a small smile as Mickey sulks.
"You'd be 'proper gutted'?" Jack quotes, laughing gently. "If I do get back, remind me to give you some English lessons."
"American English?" Mickey teases.
"Ach no. I can teach ye some Scottish if ye want. Or some English literature. Educate you in the language of Oscar Wilde. Shakespeare is a speciality of mine. I could teach you some Coleridge too; I actually went AWOL from the Agency to see a Restoration play from the era. It was worth it though." Jack smiles, his smile faltering as he remembers the severity of his punishment. "I've know a bit about Middle English as well, actually met Chaucer. That was fun. No where near as good looking as Paul Bettany though." The Doctor has a blank, perplexed look on his face. Mickey laughs as he gets the movie related joke.
"Middle English? That's cool!"
"I think so, Mickey. Used to get teased proper bad for thinking so. Perhaps they were right. I think I may need some English lessons from you about 21st Century slang. For a man from the 51st Century my language appears to me somewhat in the past, somewhat dated." Jack jokes, speaking in an old-fashioned clipped English accent.
"IF you come back." Mickey stresses the 'if'.
"If I come back." Jack says firmly, refusing to make any promises no matter how much he wants to.
"Well I guess that's cheerio and ta ta, old boy. Jolly good luck to you and I wish you all the best." Mickey adopts a 1940's war officer's tone to lighten the mood. The subject matter is still serious though. "Come back soon Captain. Come back in one piece." Mickey gives Jack a salute, which Jack returns before heading off.
"Wait! You're not leaving now, are you?" The Doctor hates how desperate he sounds, how desperate he IS to make Jack stay, to not let him go.
"It's best I follow the trail whilst it's hot." Jack states in way of explanation, eager to get going.
"Wh… what will I say to Rose? To Sarah?" The Doctor asks, even though it's not really about them at all.
"They'll understand. I hope you do too." and with that Jack leaves. Leaves the others behind. The Doctor is still reeling, and when Mickey offers to make him a cup of tea the Doctor requests coffee instead.
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"Okay, we're closing in on them. Just a few more miles and we'll be able to get a visual." Jack is perfectly aware he's talking to his ship but he's done it all his life, ever since he was five. His mom thought it was cute, his brother said it was just insane but that's brothers for you. Even Jack used to tease Maria when she used to speak to his ship but she always got him back for it. That's just the way things work.
Sarah-Jane's knows he talks to his ship. She caught him early on, just after he'd taken her and K-9 onboard, and when he blushed she just smiled and told him it was endearing. He never worried about being caught after that and continued to talk to his ship as normal. It was normal, Jack justified. If people talk to their plants there's no reason Jack shouldn't talk to his ship.
Mickey spent a lot of time with Jack repairing the ship so that's how Mickey found out. He teases him but there's no hostility behind it. It's like the way Jack used to tease Maria, the beaten way of friendship. It's actually quite comfortable, but Jack can't allow himself to become too comfortable.
Jack doesn't know how or when Rose found out but she does, she used it as an insult against him as Jack tried to referee and argument between her and Mickey, very recently in fact. It wasn't much of an insult but it hurt just because Rose was trying to hurt him. She was just lashing out and Jack got in the way. It hurts him Rose is unhappy.
Focussing on the job in hand Jack puts all other thoughts out of his head as he puts the pedal to the metal and really closes the distance between him and the merchant ship. He interprets the bleeps his instruments make and realises he's virtually chasing his own ship, almost all the stolen parts attached to one of his own stolen shuttlecraft. Jack shakes his head. "That's just cheeky."
He trails the shuttlecraft for several minutes and watches as it docks in an enormous space station. 2 times the size of Earth. Obviously the base for fleets of merchant ships, thousands of ships already docked and several thousands away. Scamming, stealing and killing. Jack wishes he could slip past the shields, plant a bomb and blow up the station so nobody else has to worry about the pirates. But Jack can't kill people he doesn't know. Unless it's an order.
On his view screen Jack sees a shuttle pod fleeing the station, whoever's at the helm is a good driver. The shuttle isn't all that fast but it's manoeuvrable, and that's very handy since every single ship docked in the space station is after that shuttle. Jack tries to tap into the comm. frequency of the pirates but it's too advanced and Jack has always had a problem with numbers. He recognises the shuttle pod though: a Mesturna class 6, not the best model of it's kind but the most popular. It's probably stolen.
Jack knows from scans he took of the space station that there were over 5 thousand aliens, now all after that Mesturna. He does a quick scan of the Mesturna to find there's only one person onboard. That hardly seems fair. Jack doesn't like those odds one bit.
Hundreds of various stolen ships, with stolen arsenal throwing everything they have at the Mesturna shuttle pod, determined to destroy it. They'd rather kill their ex-partner than let him go. Jack has had experience with such clans before. Once you're in, you are never allowed out. Jack knows that the alien in the Mesturna class 6 ship might be a traitor to the clan, but Jack can't bring himself to believe it. The Mesturna shuttle pod hasn't had that many adaptations to it. Jack doesn't believe the person stole anything from the fleet, except from the shuttle pod of course. Jack can't help but sympathise.
Just as a sonicumelectro pulse threatens to blow up the shuttle, Jack feels a wave of guilt as that used to be the weapon on his ship, he uses the matter transporter to absorb the life sign just before the Mesturna shuttle pod explodes. An explosion in zero gravity in is a really spectacular sight. A fire rages through the ship, tearing it apart from the inside but as the ship fractures on the outside the fires are stilted by the lack of oxygen. There's no sound. Even if people are in there you can't hear them dying. It's actually kind of peaceful, kind of beautiful. Jack has always been one to see an awe-full truth in pain and death and destruction, and it scares him. He's mesmerised by the sight before him and it isn't until he's fired upon and almost destroyed that he's able to come out of his trance and fly the ship with skill until he finally thinks he's safe.
Jack isn't even aware of the deep gash on his forehead, which he gained during the assault after hitting it against the console. Jack should really invest in some seatbelts but they're not his number one priority and he hasn't even noticed the blood leaking from the wound. He's also oblivious the bruises on his chest, which he got from the impact too.
His attention now turns to the matter pattern in his databanks. It indicates the species as Paffandian, and Jack has to repress a shudder as he recalls that is was a Paffandian who attacked him whilst the other pirates stripped his ship. Jack momentarily considers deleting the pattern before shaking his head, disgusted with himself. He uses the matter reintegrater to transfer the alien to the medical room, making sure he has a force field surrounding the room.
Just one look and Jack realises it is the very same Paffandian who attacked him before. Oh, the irony! Oh, the odds! But Jack doesn't question it. He doesn't judge the unconscious alien and regrets he doesn't know even about Paffandian physiology to help heal him. He doesn't appear to be injured though so Jack waits for the alien to wake up naturally. In the mean time, instead of attending to his own wounds, he repairs the damage the pirates have done to his ship.
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"Doctor, what are you doing?" Mickey pokes his head around the library door. "I've warned you about this before. It's not good for you."
"Go away!" Is the Doctor's childish and sulky reply.
"What am I going to do with you, eh?" Mickey's tone is soft and fond. The Doctor almost doesn't recognise it for a moment.
"Nothing. Leave me alone!" You can almost hear the pout but Mickey pays no attention and strolls straight in.
"Drinking Jack's favourite coffee and listening to this type of music is not going to help. You're such an Emo!" Mickey smirks. The Doctor is listening to Michael Ball (one of Jack's favourite singers) doing a cover of Phil Collins' 'Against All Odds.' He's got the song on repeat. It really sums up how he's feeling. "Is that Mr. Snuggles you're holding!" Mickey's eyes widen.
"So what if it is?" The Doctor pulls the teddy bear closer, defensively. The music skips a few tracks to Michael Ball's cover of the ABBA original 'The Winner Takes It All.'
"I've even told Jack off for listening to this kind of music." Mickey scolds the Doctor. "I made him switch from ABBA to Greenday. From depression to aggression."
"Greenday is not aggressive." The Doctor just has to blurt out. "Not compared to other bands." The Doctor cringes as he tries to prevent any heavy punk songs from becoming stuck in his mind.
"I know. But it's aggressive enough for Jack. He likes them but he prefers easy listening. Music you can relax to. And besides, he gets migraines. He thinks I don't know but I do. It actually helps him if he sings or listens to some soft music, lets him concentrate on something else so it don't hurt as much. But Rose tends to drag him off to those raves she has. He's the only one who'll go but it proper does his head in. He'll do ought to make Rose happy. She don't even know." Mickey realises he's drifted off the point. "You should never listen to Emo music when you're in a mood!"
"I am not in a mood!" the Doctor settles Mr. Snuggles on his lap so he can drink his coffee with both hands. Mickey shakes his head before turning off the music. "Oi! I was listening to that."
"You weren't listening to it. You were moping to it."
"I was not moping, Mickey. I do not mope."
"Fine." Mickey lets the Doctor think he's won before he continues. "Angsting, sulking, brooding, fretting. Whatever you want to call it." The Doctor narrowly resists the urge to stick out his tongue.
"So what if I am?" He can't believe he's actually admitted it. But at least acting more like a 6 year old and less like 900 year old kind of distracts him from the pain he's feeling. Although, not really. Barely, in fact. Actually, not at all and it's even worse now because he's managed to get Mickey angry.
"You don't have sole sulkage rights here, y'know! He's my best friend! And I've just had a MASSIVE row with Rose. I usually turn to him to fix things, and cheer me up. He cheers Rose up too, which is something I can't seem to do anymore. But now he's gone, and Rose still hates me, and I feel like… crap. I could easy wallow in self-pity but nope, not me. I've organised some stupid 1930's murder mystery party. That's why I came round in the first place, to see if you want a part in it. Well, do you?" Mickey's voice is so full of heat and anger, even to the last word, even to the invitation. The Doctor fails in suppressing his laughter and Mickey's fury soon dissolves. He rolls his eyes and shakes his head but he can't quite deny the smile, which has forced its way onto his lips.
"A 1930's murder mystery?" The Doctor eventually manages to ask in between several sniggers. Mickey ignores the laughter.
"Yeah. It's probably full of anachronisms, though. Jack had started to reprogram the hyperholographical people from the dance club. But with the skills he taught me, I've been slaving away and it's a bit dodgy but I have managed to finish it." Mickey beams with pride.
"Jack." The Doctor repeats; the name stuck in his head. Mickey's right, this isn't helping him. "You've learned a lot from him, haven't you? It's not like you to use a word like 'anachronism'. And he taught you how to adapt hyperholographical programmes? You're becoming a right teacher's pet, aren't you?"
"You're just jealous." Mickey bites back.
"No I'm not!" Is the Doctor's automatic reply but when he thinks about it, he's not too sure. "Am I?" Mickey just glares at him. The Doctor is jealous of anybody Jack even talks to. Mickey smirks as he realises that, under that criterion, the Doctor is jealous of Jack's ship. The sad thing is, the Doctor actually is though.
"Do you want to be part of the murder mystery party or not? I could have your character replaced by a hyperholographical being if you want. Jack wrote a script for you, the real you, as a dashing prince but then he threw it away as he thought you wouldn't want to play."
"He's right." The Doctor finishes off his coffee and wraps himself tightly around Mr. Snuggles. The teddy bear still has Jack's faint scent on it.
"Well now you're stuck with the character I wrote for you." Mickey laughs under his breath before changing the subject. "Jack created the programme for Sarah-Jay. To give her a chance to use her investigative skills. He feels they've been going to waste lately and that he's been neglecting her. Or, at least that's his excuse. I think he's just been reading too much Agatha Christie." Mickey jokes, even though he's missing Jack too. "It'll be a good distraction." The Doctor thinks about it for several moments.
"Can I bring Mr. Snuggles?" The Doctor clings to Jack's teddy bear.
"You'll have to bring him." Mickey smirks as the Doctor scoops up Mr. Snuggles and waits for Mickey to lead the way. "He's the murder victim."
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"Ah, you're awake!" Jack addresses his blue-skinned guest on the other side of the force field. He's not sure if he's not going to run into some communication barriers as his language decipherer, top of the range, was stolen and he's still to replace it. He wasn't as well prepared as he should have been but then again, Jack never is. He's got a problem thinking about consequences. He's too busy living in the past, surviving in the present, to worry about the future. "Are you alright? I mean, you're not hurt are you? My medical supplies are sadly lacking."
"I'm fine." The alien grunts. His head hurts and he's not in the mood to hear a human rambling on. Jack is happy that TARDIS is still in his head and still translating, and Jack has a habit of rambling on when he's happy.
"Are you hungry? Thirsty? I'm not actually sure what your species consumes but I'm sure I could rustle up something."
"I'm fine." The blue Paffandian growls, before grudgingly admitting, "I could do with a drink of water. Salted."
"Salt water I can do." Jack grins. With just a few taps on the nearest console a jug of saltwater and an empty cup materialises on the table next to the Paffandian, who gulps it down thirstily. "That's good. Thanks."
"It's a pleasure." Jack smiles but then kicks himself because he really shouldn't trust this guy. It's the same alien who almost killed him. He should feel some resentment at least. He should hate him, but he can't. He only hates himself instead.
"What am I doing here?" The blue alien recognises the force field. "Am I a prisoner?"
"No!" Jack blurts out, horrified at the thought. He didn't need to let the alien know that though. "I'm just being cautious. Your spikes look kind of dangerous." Jack has first-hand experience of how dangerous those spikes can be. He's determined to keep the force field up, even though he's already feeling a bond with the alien.
"Wait! I remember you!" The alien recalls. "You're the guy who bested me. You beat me up trying to get that robot dog thing."
"Yeah, I'm sorry about that but you did stab me and poison me and break my bones and leave me for dead."
"Yeah." The Paffandian admits, not looking Jack in the eyes until he asks "Truce?"
"Truce." Without thinking, Jack lowers the force field to shake hands with the man who almost killed him.
"You're so easy!" The alien laughs, but there's no malice behind it.
"That's always been one of my faults." Jack concedes.
"No, it's nice to meet someone so trusting. It's not a bad character flaw. It's not you who's screwed up, it's the rest of the Universe." Who knew you could catch 'rambling on' from humans? Jack just kind of has a way of inspiring passion in people. "It's hard to find such a good guy in such a cruel universe, in such a corrupt one. For the obvious reason, I guess. I'm surprised you're still alive." The Paffandian offers a guilt-ridden smile in the way of an apology. "And not just because I left you for dead."
"I'm not a good guy." Jack insists. "I've done bad things. I've lied. I've cheated. I've stolen. I've conned. I've killed." Jack admits, breaking out in a cold sweat. The prickly fingers of guilt are all over his body, with a particular grip on his heart.
"You may have done bad things but you're still a good person." The Paffandian stresses but Jack can't comprehend that. He doesn't understand it and he refuses to accept it. Well, Jack refuses to accept that about himself, not about others. "My name's Fralisamunido, by the way."
"Oh." Jack pauses. "can I call you Sam?"
"You just saved my life, you can call me anything you like!" Sam remembers the events clearer now. "What should I call you?"
"I don't know." Jack realises. "No. Actually, I do. I chose the name Jack for a very good reason. It isn't mine but it means a lot to me. Same with Harkness. So I tell most people to call me Jack Harkness. Or Captain. It's just a title though, no real authority behind it but it has sentimental value." Sam realises this human tends to babble on a lot. Only, somehow, it isn't as irritating now. It's actually quite amusing.
"It's good to meet you Captain Jack Harkness."
"You too, Sam." Jack's grin falters as his ship is hit again and he's sent flying to the ground, bashing his chest and stomach into a table on the way down though. Sam helps him up. Jack thanks him before running off to the cockpit, gesturing for Sam to follow. As soon as he arrives, Jack checks the view-screen. "You must have really pissed off your old friends."
"I'm sorry. I don't want them to destroy your ship. We've already done enough damage to it. It's me they want. You should just give me to them. Save yourself." Sam offers.
"You've developed a conscience." Jack acknowledges. "That's why they want you dead. They won't let you leave. They don't trust you not to sell them out, because that's exactly what they'd do. But you won't because they used to be your friends, you know them, you still care for them. Your conscience is what sets you apart from them but they don't know how that works. That's why they want to kill you. And that's why you're so eager to let them."
"You sound like you've lived it yourself." Sam notes.
"I used to work for the Time Agency." Jack doesn't elaborate, trying to forget. Or remember. He's not sure which. "I won't let them kill you." Sam knows Jack is making a promise that is out of his depth. He also sees how much it would hurt him if he couldn't keep it, but Sam can't bring himself to refute the pledge.
"You're a good man, Jack."
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"You're supposed to mingle, find out more about the guests at the party, create your own thoughts about who would want to kill Mr. Snuggles." The Doctor wants to protest but no words come out as he's astounded by the details of the holographic set. "But to save time, I'll give you the run-down on the characters instead." The Doctor closes his mouth and nods silently.
"Okay, first we'll start downstairs. Yeah, I know. Very 1930's. Downstairs Upstairs. What can I say? Jack's a geek!" Mickey shrugs and the Doctor opens his mouth to speak but then Mickey flicks a switch and the room changes from upstairs to downstairs. Geez, Jack's a real whiz when it comes to hyperholographical programmes. "We'll start with the maids:
"Alice is the youngest one, brunette and pretty. She's very timid. She's the last person you'd suspect of murder so, of course, that makes me very suspicious of her.
"Beatrice is the mousy one. Five foot tall. Very eager and sweet. Shy too but also very clumsy. She's already cost Mr. Snuggles £1 in damage this week and he's threatening to dismiss her. I think Jack's sister was the inspiration for this one
"Maggie is the oldest of the female servants, in her late forties. She's very protective of the other girls and although she can appear very cold and severe, she's actually very gentle and caring once you're on her good side. Imagine her being played by Maggie Smith when she was that age, you'll get the idea." The Doctor didn't.
"Helen is the blond one, blue eyed, six foot. If she wasn't a maid she could be an actress. She's gorgeous and she knows it. She's very flirty but she goes no further. She's the character Rose and I argued about. Jack has adapted the hyperholograms so they're solid to the touch but that don't mean I ever touched her! If I wanted to I could've but Rose don't see it like that." Mickey sulks and sighs before continuing. "Anyway, those are the downstairs women. Now on to the manservants.
"Charles is the eldest, the grey-haired gentleman. The perfect Jeeves. In fact, I think Jack modelled him on Martin Jarvis. You know, the musical?" The Doctor just stares at Mickey. "Erm, anyway, Charles has been here since forever. He sees and knows everything but he's not the kind of chap to be involved in a scandal himself. Or at least, I don't think.
"Stephen is the younger one, black hair. Kind of looks like a young Stephen Fry. The Cambridge years. But he can't use language as elegantly as Mr. Fry can. A regular Mr. Malapropos, this one is. He tries his hardest to be the perfect Jeeves but he always messes up. He worships Charles and hopes Charles can train him to be as efficient. Stephen's one of Jack's favourite characters.
"Thomas is the middle-aged one. Stubble. A thick Lancashire accent I can barely understand but Jack loves it. I think he stole the accent from Ian McKellan but don't quote me on that." Mickey grins. "Well, that's downstairs. Are you ready to go upstairs now?"
"My head is still reeling, just slightly though. If you wait a few seconds it should stop."
"Upstairs is easier." Mickey informs.
"Why so many characters?"
"I told you. He's been reading too much Agatha Christie. He'd figured out the style. At the most the human brain normally remembers 9 things at a time. According to Jack, Agatha must have used more than 9 characters to send her readers into some kind of trance. To entertain them, to confuse them, keep them reading for hours at a time and never even realise there's an outside world. Jack was just trying to be faithful to the style." There's a long, long silence.
"You're right. Jack is a geek." And for some reason, admitting that makes the Doctor smile. "We'll I suppose we best see 'upstairs'. But we've already seen 7 characters. And although I'm not human, I'm still not sure I can take much more."
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"We can't take much more!" Jack screams through the smoke whilst Sam is busy putting out the fires, which have sprouted up all over the very large vessel. "Shields are down to 15. They're using my own weapons against me! That's the only thing that could've worked, dammit! And I don't have the firepower to defeat them. This ship relies on speed and shields and some very careful driving. I know she's big but she's also very beautiful. That's usually enough but if they don't ease up soon they're going to blow her to smithereens and you along with it." Jack isn't worried about his own safety, only that of his ship and his passenger.
"We're coming up to a planet." Sam interprets the readings of a console right next to where he's poured the sand to stop the fire. "If we land and head out on foot it'll be easier for us to hide. They won't attack your ship if they know I'm not there. The planet's a ghost planet but they won't destroy it without exploring it first. Hopefully they'll be too busy pilfering and it'll give us a chance to come up with an escape plan."
"But we're outnumbered by hundreds, thousands, Sam. I'm not sure I could protect you."
"It's the only way of protecting your ship." Sam insists. "And once we land we can divide and conquer. They hunt in packs of between 4 and 8. I'm sure we could tackle that number. Together." Another shot hits the ship, doing serious damage this time. Sam is injury free thanks to his thick skin but Jack has snapped his right arm on the sharp edge of the console. Thankfully, he's ambidextrous and can use his left had to tap in the controls.
"We're going to have to land." Jack states firmly, gritting his teeth through the pain. "That last shot ripped a hole in the dilithium matrix. We're running out of fuel. We're going to have to crash-land on the planet you mentioned. Sam, tap the co-ordinates into your keypad. And hold on tight. It's going to be a bumpy ride." That's no problem for Sam, but Jack only has one working arm.
As the ship enters the atmosphere of the planet the shields fail completely, causing the shuttle to burn up. The metal is melting on the outside, glowing white with the heat. Jack's legs brush against the metal of his seat-base. The material of his jeans melts into his skin, burns into the flesh of his calves and as he tries to move his legs he leaves layers of skin and fabric behind. It hurts like hell but he can take it. He deserves it.
The ship finally lands, the metal so malleable it folds into the rocky ground. Jack is thrown over his left arm, the one he was clinging to the ship with. He twists his shoulder loose and can feel several ribs break in the impact. He cries out in pain. Using all his strength he finds a syringe and fills it with the strongest liquid painkiller he can find, as best as he can with his shoulder so close to dislocating. He feels as though he's cheating but he knows he can't protect Sam and fight the pirates if he's in too much pain to move. He finds Sam, and they venture off into the rocky planet together.
"We're upstairs. The living room. It's Mr. Snuggles' house. The Bear Estate. Mr. Snuggles is a very wealthy teddy. So money would be the obvious motive for killing him. That means it probably isn't.
"See that humanoid version of a black bear?" It's kind of hard to miss. The Doctor is rather startled by the creature's appearance, and size, and very female accent. It sounds like Helena Bonham Carter. "She's Mr. Snuggle's wife."
"Mr. Snuggles has a wife!" The Doctor can't help but exclaim, his voice outrageously high but he's too shocked to notice.
"Of course. Jack's always wanted to get Mr. Snuggles a mate but he's only now gained enough of an excuse to. Every murder victim has to have a partner, 'cos they stand to inherit the estate. But that's just the excuse. Jack don't want Mr. Snuggles to be lonely." Mickey pauses at that. "He's the kind of man who worries about a stuffed teddy bear. Is he insane?" Mickey's only now beginning to realise how absurd it sounds. When Jack explained it to him it sounded perfectly reasonable.
"No, not insane. Just child-like. But he's not a child. I don't want him to be a child! I want him to be himself!" The Doctor screams.
"Yeah, but to him childhood represents everything he wants to be. Innocent, enthusiastic, imaginative. I kind of think that pretty much is him. He's not a child but I don't think he knows any other way to express it." Mickey lets out a breath, not really understanding how this murder mystery party has turned into Jack!Psyche 101. Mind you, he is talking to the Doctor so he shouldn't be that surprised. "Yeah, so that's Mr. Snuggles apparently loving wife.
"Over there is Flash Dan…"
"Mickey, he's wearing a wrist watch. And he's got a cell phone, I mean a mobile!" Just another example of Jack's effect on him and the TARDIS and TARDIS' crew. Mickey doesn't even blink, cos he's used to it.
"I know but I created him." Mickey shrugs in way of explanation. It's enough for the Doctor. "I know I've kind of ignored the era but I still made him. He a gangster, the head honcho, the main man. I don't see a motive for him killing Mr. Snuggles. He's loyal to his friends." You can tell in more ways than one that Flash Dan is Mickey's creation.
"And you see the bespectacled man over there, that's the character Jack was supposed to play if he was here but he programmed the character just in case he… wasn't. His name is Jonathon Jameson and he's an anthropologist. He actually discovered the Snuggle species so he knows the bears before they came to the UK." Mickey then talks into the comm. system. "Mrs. Smith. Miss Taylor, the party is about to begin."
"Sarah-Jay is Sarah." Mickey explains helpfully. "She's a journalist. She's a genius. But in her spare time she sometimes works as a receptionist for you. It gives her a chance to talk to the people and keep your business afloat. You'd be lost without her."
"I'm sure I would be." The Doctor admits. "Who am I?" Mickey bites back his initial response.
"You are Doctor John Smith, of course. The local GP, General Practitioner. You're married to Sarah, Jack insisted on that. You used to be a great Doctor. You still are but now you're somewhat distracted. You're preoccupied and neglecting things a lot but you've got your friends looking out for you, forcing you to focus. You're making it awfully difficult for us, Sir." Mickey shakes his head, feigning disapproval when he actually feels amused.
"Right. Yes. Sorry about that." The Doctor apologises. Distractedly. "Let me get this straight. I'm John? Jack's character, which is actually being played by a hologram not even half as good looking as the real thing, is called Jonathon? And Sarah is my wife?"
"Hello husband." Sarah-Jane smirks as she enters. She kisses the Doctor on his cheek and acknowledges Mickey. "Hello Michael." He bows to her.
"I am your servant, Sir." Mickey explains. "To both you and your wife, sir. Jack's suggestion. It's only slightly than being a tin dog but as it was Jack's request…" Mickey trails off. "I should be going downstairs now."
"Nonsense, Michael." Sarah-Jane dismisses the idea. "I believe you would be most beneficial if you remained by the Doctor's side."
"Agreed Ma'am." Mickey and Sarah-Jane share a smirk at the Doctor's bewildered look. Then Rose enters, and it's Mickey's turn to be bewildered.
"That is Rosemary Tyler, sir." Mickey informs the Doctor, his voice full of awe. "One of the most beautiful actresses in the world. And she has people telling her that all the time." Rose is indeed surrounded by hyperholographical admirers as well as a hyperholographical entourage. "She has people giving her diamonds, giving her everything. I can't compete with that." Mickey sighs. Once again, the Doctor finds himself wishing Jack was here. But it isn't for a selfish reason this time.
Suddenly, an inhuman scream rips them all from their melancholy moods. It's coming from Mrs. Snuggles. Her husband, resting in a chair by the fire, won't wake up.
"Let the fun begin."
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"This isn't a child's game anymore." Sam is busy dragging a semi-conscious Jack, the gash on his forehead bleeding all over Sam's shoulder, talking to him in an effort to keep him awake. "I never meant to be this much trouble for you. Captain?" Jack is now fully unconscious.
Sam knows they're still about a mile away from the ghost town where there's an old, abandoned hospital. Jack needs all the medical attention he can get so Sam takes a calculated risk, throws Jack carefully over his shoulder and starts running off in the direction of the town.
It's not long until they're confronted. By four other very familiar aliens: Sam's ex-colleagues. The clan who acted as his family for as long as Sam can remember. The same family who tortured and stripped and raped Jack's ship. They're not his family, or friends, or colleagues, anymore.
"Wait!" Sam pleads, lowering Jack gently to the ground. "He had no part in this. There's no reason for you to kill him. Please, let me help him."
"Erm…" the leader of the pack pretends to think about it. "…No!" He then shoots Sam with an electrical-tasar. It doesn't do any external damage. It just inflicts internal pain. "There was a time when you killed men like him."
"Only on your orders!" Sam shouts. "You have already damaged him enough. You've already caused him enough pain. Leave him alone. It's me you want. Leave him out of it."
"You seem protective of this human."
"He's my friend." Sam states, sincerely. "And he's a good man. You know nothing about either of them things." That gains him another tasar shot, so strong he buckles at the knees.
"I say we torture the human. Make him scream. And make Fralisamunido watch." Sam goes pale blue at the thought and, although he manages not to say anything, he is physically shaking. "Your sympathy for this man is sickening!"
"No! You're the ones who are sickening!" Sam finally voices his conscience. "You are ruled by greed. You find pleasure by causing others pain! You steal and kill and destroy and for no other reason except for your own enjoyment. It's acceptable to kill a member of your own clan but it is punishable by death to have a friend outside your clan. You are barbarians. Afraid of feeling, afraid of emotion! You care about nothing but yourselves. You're the disgusting ones!" Sam's has a sudden feeling of freedom he's never known before.
"Are you finished now? Good, because those are gonna be your last words." The leader sets the tasar to release a fatal amount of electricity, but before he has a chance to shoot, four bullets are fired from a gun behind him. Each bullet enters the back of the aliens' head, killing all four instantly.
"Nice speech. They would have been good last words. But they're not going to be." Jack quips. Sam grins.
"Thanks." Sam pauses, wondering whether he should tell Jack the next bit. "But I think you can take credit for most of it." Jack scoffs and shakes his head. Sam notes that this guy really needs to learn how to take a compliment. Especially when it's true. Sam tries to help Jack up off the ground but Jack shrugs him off.
"I'm fine. I can stand."
"Are you sure?" Sam's concern is genuine.
"Sure I'm sure." Jack insists. Then he tries. "Actually, I might need to lean on you, just a little bit."
"What are friends for?" Sam smiles, helping Jack up and looping an arm around Jack's waist to keep him standing, careful his spikes don't dig into him.
Together they make it to the city, dodging the missiles fired at them from the shuttles in the sky and avoiding foot patrols. They finally get to the hospital, unseen. Jack has trouble with the stairs but eventually Sam is able to carry him up them.
"I hate to be a burden." Jack whispers weakly.
"You're not a burden." Sam stresses. "You saved my life. A lot of other people wouldn't have bothered." Jack doesn't respond, he's now completely unconscious. As Sam patches Jack up as best he can, he's no Doctor and the medical supplies are meagre, he realises this is all his fault. It's his mess and he must fix it. He starts by writing Jack a letter.
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When Jack wakes, he doesn't know how long he's been asleep, he feels marginally better. Until he realises that Sam is gone. He spies a folded letter on the table, addressed to him. Jack doesn't open it, he doesn't have to. He knows what Sam has done, but he can't bring himself to accept it. He breaks down into tears. He feels more alone than ever and he's surprised by how much it hurts. Not the physical pain, but another kind. And maybe he's not strong enough to do this on his own.
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"I have never seen one place so ripe with scandal." Sarah-Jane is really getting into her characters. "And if Mr. Snuggles knew, you would all have a reason to kill him. To keep him quiet. And it would have been so easy, to acquire a kitchen knife and stab the master of the house, who was already so drunk he would not have felt any pain." Everybody is gathered in the one room, servants and masters alike, awaiting the conclusion.
"I strongly doubt my servant, Michael, to be the murderer. He was too preoccupied trying to gain the attentions and affections of a certain actress. However, he does have a severe temper. And if Mr. Snuggles teased him about his unrequited love, Michael may have snapped.
"My husband," she smirks at the word, "Can not possibly be the murderer. He's too soft." The Doctor wants to argue that point, but realises he's too busy thinking about Jack to even bother. He smiles as he realises Sarah-Jane doesn't dare accuse Rose.
"Flash Dan, I doubt to be a murderer because although he's a notorious gangster and highly respected criminal, he's never actually killed anyone before. It's a fact that could ruin Flash Dan if it got out. There is always a first time for everything though and if Mr. Snuggles knew Dan, sorry, Flash Dan may have gone to extreme lengths to silence him.
"With Mrs. Snuggles the motive is obvious. As next of kin you'd assume she stands to inherit the Bear Estate but there is a clause in his will. If he's murdered the estate goes to his illegitimate children." 'Mr. Snuggles had children?' the Doctor questions only to shake his head at how absurd all of this is. And how he's kind of enjoying it.
"The servants are also equally as scandalous. Let's begin with the not so platonic nature of the relationship between Beatrice and Helen." Mickey's eyes open as wide as saucers. If a five foot, shy mousy girl like Beatrice can get a six-foot blonde bombshell like Helen he's obviously been going wrong somewhere. "And with the fear of Beatrice's threatened dismissal due to her clumsiness, you both would do anything to stay together." They do look like they'd do anything for each other. And Mickey's getting jealous of a hyperhologram. "That is a very strong motive.
"And there is also another scandal Mr. Snuggles discovered concerning Alice and Maggie. Alice is Maggie's illegitimate daughter and if this information was made public, both mother and daughter would be outcasts. Maggie has lived in fear all her life. She may be capable of murder.
"And Thomas is an ex-convict. Convicted of murder, he escaped from the gallows and has been on the run ever since. I question Thomas' guilt of the murder for which he was convicted but if Mr. Snuggles threatened to expose him, the fear of the gallows may drive a man to kill.
"Stephen is Charles' nephew but Stephen has been bullied and teased all his life. He's been polishing silver all his life but as soon as he speaks he is mocked and ridiculed. Either Charles or Stephen may have snapped if Mr. Snuggles began to make a joke about Stephen.
"You've all got motives but by using my investigative skills I have determined the murderer to be…" Sarah-Jane leaves a pregnant pause in which the Doctor shatters by rushing out. The telepathic TARDIS explains to them all that Jack's sent a distress message and she's picking him up now.
The murder mystery game is forgotten, much to Rose's frustration but she has Flash Dan to comfort her. Sarah-Jane and Mickey buzz with anticipation and relief but nothing can compare with the overwhelming wave of emotions the Doctor feels. Jack is coming home.
TBC