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Chapter 7
A helicopter whirred overhead, shining a spotlight down upon them. It was a harsh light, making her squint from the brightness that suddenly pierced the night. Police and sleek government vehicles came whizzing out of all sorts of directions, completely surrounding them. Tires squealed against the pavement as the vehicles came to a halt. Armed men and women jumped out of the cars, pointing their weapons at the four of them. Some of them had dogs on short leashes, all of which barked aggressively and bared their glistening, sharp teeth at them. A harsh command to not move and put their hands up came from the helicopter above them. In the corner of her eye, she saw Mickey bolt from the scene, taking off into the night and away from them as different men with guns gave chase. She almost went with him as everything in her screamed to run away. Out of any time period she had lived through, the government of the modern era was a terrifying entity. They knew too much and could see through all the deception. There was a reason she looked into the different agencies that knew of other species. It was so she could avoid them at all costs. It wasn't even the fact that they might kill her. It was the fact that most likely they would keep her alive and torture her with all kinds of experiments and such. Something which, to her, was far worse than death.
She felt the Doctor giving her hand a reassuring squeeze. She looked at him, seeing him nod with a calm expression on his face. Swallowing thickly, she nodded as well, knowing he was trying to tell her silently that everything was going to be alright. He would keep his promise. He would keep her safe. She only hoped that she could keep him safe as well. So, she lifted her hands as the Doctor and Rose did, holding herself as steady as possible as a few men came up and grabbed at her. When hearing shouting from a woman, Madison looked over as she, the Doctor, and Rose were escorted away, seeing Jackie there fighting against the hold of some men as the mother tried to call out to her daughter.
"Do you think Jackie called that hotline?" Madison wondered aloud. "The one that said to report any alien activity?"
"Oh, mum," Rose groaned and shook her head. "Of course, she'd call someone."
As they got closer to the sleek government vehicle they were being escorted to, Madison paused in step as she felt her heart racing. Her mind screamed at her to run as she knew getting into that car would lead her nowhere safe. She flinched as she felt someone holding onto her shoulder, but relaxed when seeing it was only the Doctor. Again, he gave her a silent message of assurance, nodding that it was okay and to get into the car. With a sigh, she climbed through the vehicle and sat by the window. The Doctor came in next, sitting beside her, followed by Rose at the other side. The door was slammed shut, making Madison feel as though her fate was now sealed. She leaned heavily back against the seat, slumping down as she just wanted to avoid this situation entirely.
"This is a bit posh," Rose mentioned as their silent driver began making them leave the area. "If I knew it was gonna be like this, being arrested, I would've done it years ago."
"It's a different era. Being arrested was a lot different in, say, the 1800s. Much more . . . roughhousing," Madison muttered as she recalled the first time she had been arrested. "Mind you, it wasn't much different just a few decades ago. Escaping from a police box was never fun."
"You've been arrested before? How many times?" Rose asked in shock, blinking in disbelief at her.
"It was only by mistake," Madison mumbled in embarrassment.
"Loved to hear those stories," the Doctor whispered to her, grinning and winking merrily. He seemed rather too cheerful for her tastes right now. She could only shake her head at him. But then, he gave both her and Rose a calm smile. "We're not being arrested. We're being escorted."
"Where to?" Rose asked.
"Not anywhere good, I think," Madison muttered.
"No, nothing like what you're thinking," the Doctor assured her, holding her hand again. "We're going to Downing Street." Now, this took Madison by surprise. She blinked. Then blinked again.
"I'm sorry, did I just hear you right? We're going to 10 Downing Street?" she blurted out. The Doctor laughed, nodding.
"You're kidding!" Rose exclaimed, looking just as shocked as Madison. Then, Rose began to laugh. "Oh, my god! I'm going to 10 Downing Street?"
"How come? I doubt this is a friendly visit," Madison said, shaking her head as the two next to her laughed. Seriously, they really were like children.
"Over the years, I've visited this planet a lot of times, and I've been, uh, noticed," the Doctor explained after his and Rose's laughter died down.
Madison shook her head, now nervous. "Please tell me you're not public enemy number one."
"Nah, nothing like that. It's more that people realised I could come in and help out when they needed me to. Like it said on the news, they're gathering experts in alien knowledge."
"And you're the biggest expert on Earth." Nodding, she realised this made sense. The Doctor has been alive for nine hundred years. If he truly visited Earth frequently, then, knowing him, he would have attracted quite a bit of notice. He also said he worked for UNIT. Who knew how many other agencies he had helped out along the way. Given the circumstances, it was only obvious that they would search for him in their time of need, begging for his knowledge. It felt odd, given that humans would be willing to go to an alien for help against other aliens. Maybe UNIT wasn't aware he wasn't human? Or maybe they were and they just simply didn't care? She would have to ask him sometime.
"Bingo," the Doctor said cheerfully, bopping her on the nose with a finger and giving an impish grin again.
"Don't bop me on the nose," she scoffed, rubbing at her nose and pouting at him.
"I can bop you all I want. See? Bop!" he replied, doing so once again. She scoffed, hitting him lightly on the arm as he chuckled. She caught Rose's eye then, seeing the way the girl smirked at them. Madison felt herself blush, but she wasn't sure why she felt embarrassed. The Doctor was merely teasing her. She and he did that. It was a normal thing . . .
Soon, they arrived at their destination, with their car pulling up alongside the Prime Minister's office. 10 Downing Street. She never would have thought she would be here one day. She usually tried to avoid places like this. If her mother was alive, she would be having a fit right now knowing Madison was being taken into such a place. Her father would probably find it an adventurous moment, knowing him. Though not without some concern, of course. Madison shook herself out of her thoughts as the car came to a stop and a wave of flashing lights hit her in the eye. All of the cameras from the media were clicking away, taking pictures of their every movement. She stepped out of the vehicle as fast as she could and ducked her head, trying to avoid looking directly at any of the cameras. She grabbed the Doctor's hand the moment he got out of the car, practically clinging to him with how anxious she felt. She knew most likely he found her behaviour silly, maybe even displeasing, but she just didn't want to be here. Being here . . . just wasn't a good thing.
She was glad that he didn't say anything about her behaviour. Merely he held her hand tightly and guided her towards the building quickly. Though he did give a little wave towards the cameras, with her behind his back as he appeared to shield her from their view. Maybe he didn't find her behaviour displeasing after all? She hoped so. She felt silly for being so anxious about everything. And it only intensified the moment the door behind them was closed. She gazed around the place, seeing so many people surrounding her. All officials or soldiers or police or anything else under the sun that she tried avoiding. A woman guided them into a room that was packed with people. Some she recognized from the news with others added into the mix. All of the experts, she assumed. A man came into the room then, beginning to instruct everyone on where they were going and of ID cards to be worn. As everyone began leaving the room to go into the next, the man came over to where the Doctor, Rose, and she stood.
"Here's your ID card," said the man, handing a laminated card over to the Doctor. The man then glanced at her and Rose. "I'm sorry, but your companions don't have clearance."
"I don't go anywhere without them," the Doctor responded immediately. She felt the grip on her hand tighten as he held onto her firmly.
"You're the Code Nine, not them. I'm sorry, Doctor. It's, uh, 'Doctor', isn't it? They'll have to stay outside," the man said, staying firm in their denied entry. Madison felt her heart picking up in pace as her fear spiked. She wasn't sure what would happen next if he was not there. But, taking in a deep breath, she got ahold of herself.
"Okay, Rose can stay behind, but Madison is staying with me," the Doctor said, putting on a dangerous smile now. His grip on her hand tightened even more.
"Doctor, it's okay," she spoke quietly, earning his attention. She gave him a smile, even if it was a nervous one. "Rose and I will be fine. We'll wait here for you, okay?"
"You sure?" the Doctor asked her, staring at her carefully.
"Yes. I'm a big girl, Doctor. I can handle myself," she said with a firm nod, growing more confident with her words by the minute. She would be fine. She had Rose with her, after all. The two of them together could handle just sticking around and waiting for the meeting to be over. She gave him another smile, this time a bit brighter. The Doctor smiled and nodded before letting go of her hand and walking off to go where the meeting was taking place. It was by then that she noticed a woman was trying to get the Doctor's attention, but the man from earlier was telling her off for something or another. Madison pondered this before the man turned to her and Rose and started to steer them away.
"It's all right, I'll look after them," spoke the woman, coming over to them. "Let me be some use." Madison took in the woman quickly, seeing how the woman was dressed nicely but humble and appeared to be in her mid-fifties. In the woman's eyes, she could see kindness. Something that made her glad to see around here. But the smile . . . it was strained. Something was wrong. Something that bothered the woman. Was it that crash that had the woman troubled?
"Walk with me," the woman said to Rose and her, waving for them to leave the room with her. Rose and Madison shared a glance, both silently agreeing that it had no harm in following the woman. So, they did, leaving the room and going down the hallway, into a section of the building that had fewer people mingling around.
"Harriet Jones, MP, Flydale North," the woman introduced herself very quickly, briefly showing them her badge that she carried in the purse she held. When they finally came into a corner section of the building, near a set of stairs that did not seem to be getting much use, Harriet had them stop. She glanced around where they stood anxiously, a troubled look in her eyes now. "This friend of yours, he's an expert, is that right? He knows about aliens?" Madison and Rose shared a glance again, this time more sceptical.
"Why do you wanna know?" Rose decided to question. It was then that Harriet's lip began to quiver before she suddenly began to sob quietly. She covered her face in shame as she cried. Madison knew immediately this was no normal crying. These were tears of someone trying to keep themselves together but finally breaking down. She had witnessed these sorts of tears before. She, herself, had cried tears like these. It made her heart go out to the woman and she didn't hesitate to give the woman a hug.
"Hey, now. It's all right," she said quietly, patting the woman's back as Harriet hugged her in return.
"Whatever it is, you can tell us," Rose said as well, going around to pat the woman's back as well. Harriet seemed to pull herself together then as she pulled away from Madison's embrace, nodding as she wiped away her tears.
"The aliens, they're here, in Downing Street. I saw them. They . . . They killed a man," Harriet whispered to them hurriedly. "They're in disguise, as people here. I can show you."
Harriet turned then, quickly going up the stairs. Rose bumped Madison in the side, giving a nod as if to ask if following the woman was a good idea. Madison sent a firm nod, knowing it was fine. Harriet, she could tell, was telling them the truth. So, she and Rose hurried off after Harriet, going to catch up. Eventually, they found themselves in the Cabinet Room. A sleek office. Very large. One where Madison knew the absolute, most important meetings and discussions involved with the UK were held. Again, she had a sense of dread yet awe in being in such a place. First Downing Street. Now the Cabinet Room. What was next? The Oval Office?
Still taking it all in, Madison's attention was drawn when seeing Harriet pull something out of the cupboard. At first, she thought it was some sort of strange clothing item. Then, she realised it was a bizarre costume of some kind. It looked just like a human, all limp and flimsy as she set it onto the massive table before them. The costume looked like a suit that someone could slip on from the top of the head, with the headpiece having a zipper and everything. It was made to look like a male in his thirties, with a built-in suit of clothing and everything. When she walked over to touch it, a shiver went through her as the skin on the costume just felt . . . too realistic. Far, far too realistic. Harriet said they had killed someone . . . Oh, god, no.
"Harriet . . . is-is this a real person?" she asked carefully, hoping with everything that she was wrong.
"I'm afraid so," Harriet said gravely. Madison jerked her hand away from the human suit, feeling her stomach churn in disgust. "They turn the body into a suit, a disguise for the thing inside." Harriet began to tear up again, giving a soft cry of dismay.
"It's all right, we believe you," Rose assured the woman quickly, going over to touch the woman kindly.
"Yeah, we do. Absolutely. So you don't have to worry there," Madison agreed with a nod. She then started to glance nervously around. Were they safe standing here, out in the open, discussing such things? "I think now we should be more worried about where these aliens in disguise are and why they . . ." Her eyes started to widen as something clicked in her mind. Distraction . . .
"They must have some serious technology behind this," Rose began saying, going around the room and tapping on different surfaces on the tables and such. "If we can find it, we could use it."
"Rose, stop, I don't think-," she started to say, but stopped when seeing what fell out of the small cupboard that Rose opened. A body, a man in a suit, fell out of the cupboard and onto the floor in a slump. The man had paperwhite pale skin and blue lips. It was immediately obvious that the man was dead. "Oh, no."
"Oh, my god," Rose breathed, stepping back from the dead man. "Is that . . ."
"Harriet! For god's sakes! This has gone beyond a joke," came a man's voice. Madison turned, seeing it was the same man as before who directed the specialists into the meeting room. "You cannot just wander . . ." The man stormed over to them, coming to an abrupt halt when seeing the dead body on the floor. The man's eyes went wide. "Oh, my god. That's the Prime Minister."
"Oh!" came a woman's voice then, making them all turn to see a woman, with short blonde hair and wearing a blue blazer over her dress suit, come into the room. "Has someone been naughty?" The woman closed the door behind her. The woman's voice was eerily cheerful. Her smile . . . was sinister. Her eyes stared at them all hungrily. Immediately, Madison's instincts kicked in, screaming at her to run. This woman was nothing but danger, and everyone needed to run. She backed herself up towards Rose and Harriet, grabbing both of their hands.
"Rose, when I say 'run', we need to run," Madison muttered, speaking out of the side of her mouth and keeping her voice as hushed as possible. She felt Rose squeeze her hand in understanding. Harriet's hand shook in hers as the woman's eyes stared in fright at the other across from them. It was obvious to Madison that this was one of the aliens Harriet had seen kill someone.
"But that's not possible. He left this afternoon. The Prime Minister left Downing Street. He was driven away!" said the man, moving towards the woman in blue to confront her.
"And who told you that? Hmm?" the woman said smoothly, setting aside the bag she had been carrying as she slowly stalked towards the man. She then smiled widely, her eyes glinting dangerously. "Me." The woman then lifted her hand towards her forehead, pushing her bangs aside to grab onto an almost invisible zipper. She slowly began unzipping her forehead, letting out an ominous bright blue light that filled the room around them. Madison didn't wait for the alien to fully appear as she spotted the top of the green head beginning to come out of the human suit.
"Run!" she shouted, yanking Rose and Harriet around the large centre table and towards the door. She glanced back over her shoulder, seeing the man still standing there in shock. "Run, now!"
This seemed to snap the man out of his shock, hurrying to run after them. But then the long, green arm with sharp claws came out of the human suit and grabbed him. Before Madison could even exclaim, the man's neck was snapped. She didn't wait to see where his body fell. Only focused on following Rose and Harriet out of the door the blonde had opened for them. She heard some sort of high-pitched squealing coming from the Cabinet Room not long after they were down the hallway. She didn't bother to look back to see what was happening. She merely caught up with Rose and Harriet, grabbing their hands and continuing to run.
"No, wait! They're still in there, the Emergency Protocols, we need them," Harriet began to say, trying to get them to stop. Madison only held onto the woman's hand tighter.
"No, we don't. Trust me, we just need to run," she said through fast breaths. She didn't care what they needed or why. All she cared about was following what her instincts were screaming at her to do and that was to run like hell.
Loud crashing and slams were heard coming from behind. She knew that the alien was now after them. Clearly on the hunt to get them. She picked up in speed, trying her best to keep hold of Harriet and Rose's hands. She faltered for a moment when Rose let go, but she saw that the girl was merely closing doors behind them as they ran throughout the building. Going down so many twists and turns, she felt that eventually, they would run out of space to run. The doors also seemed pointless to have between them and the alien as she could hear doors behind them being smashed to pieces. Splinters even flew by them as they ran. At one point, they ran into a door which wouldn't open, making them pause briefly. Madison swore she heard a ding of a lift and the Doctor's voice saying 'hello', but she didn't bother to look back to check. All she did was grab Rose and Harriet's hand again and rushed them off through another doorway. Before long, they found themselves at a dead-end, with no doors opening and their only exit back the way they came towards the snarling alien.
"Hide!" gasped Rose as the girl pulled Madison with her towards the back of the room. The girl tried to crouch behind a large end table, but Madison pulled her towards the very long, thick curtains by the windows. She had them each hide on either side, covered up completely by the curtains. It was there that both of them tried their best to quieten their breathing. Madison even tried holding her breath in as she heard the alien coming into the room. The woman's voice came out trilling as she spoke next.
"Ooh, such fun. Little human children, where are you," said the female alien, dangerously playful. Ever gleeful. "Sweet little humans kins, come to me. Let me kiss you better. Kiss you with my big green lips." Madison felt sickened to think of anyone finding enjoyment in hunting and killing people. This woman . . . was going to find them and kill them. She knew it. Well . . . at least, she hoped the alien would only kill her. She hoped that, somehow, she could get Harriet and Rose out of this mess. But how?
Carefully, she peeked around the curtain she hid behind, wanting to take in how the alien actually looked. From what she could see, it was massive. Entirely green in the colour of its skin, though the skin was pale as she could see veins underneath. The eyes were round and completely black, with thin eyelids that went sideways over the eyes. The female alien also had a large belly that hung down and a long neck. The arms were longer than the torse, with each practically dragging on the floor. She could see the massive claws and could tell they were deadly with just how sharp they appeared. Madison ducked back behind the curtain as the alien slowly turned to face her direction. She hoped the female alien did not see her.
"My brothers," said the female alien, making Madison grow tense. Brothers? Oh, dear. It was then she heard the shuffling of feet coming into the room.
"Happy hunting?" came another voice. This one sounded distinctly male.
She gave another quick peek around the curtain, seeing indeed another two aliens coming into the room. These two seemed to be a tad darker green in colour. She wondered if that was the difference between males and females of that species. She pulled back into the curtains, listening to the three of them speak in their taunting voices. She knew they were toying with them now. The three knew they were in here and exactly where at. Any moment, they would attack. She couldn't allow this. She needed to think of something to stop this, but . . . how? She doubted she could fight them. They were immensely strong. Could she possibly talk to them? At least long enough to distract them so the others could escape. She didn't get time to think of a plan as the curtain in front of her was pushed back by one of the aliens. She couldn't help but yelp as it startled her out of her thoughts.
"No! Leave her alone!" Rose yelled, jumping out of her own curtain to confront the alien.
"No! Take me first, take me!" Harriet screamed, jumping out from her own hiding spot and waving her hands to the three aliens.
It was during this same moment that the Doctor suddenly burst into the room. He had a large fire extinguisher in hand and sprayed down the two other male aliens that were closer to the door. The Time Lord yelled for them to run as he sprayed the aliens. Rose acted quickly, yanking down her curtain and throwing it over the female alien that had been about to attack her. It was then that Madison grabbed Rose's hand and followed after Harriet who was running over to the Doctor. Madison didn't wait to listen to the brief introductions the Doctor and Harriet were having. She merely pushed Rose out of the door, wanting the girl to keep running first, before reaching back and grabbing the Doctor and yanking him out of the room. He held onto her hand tightly as they all raced together down the hallway. She heard the Doctor directing them to the Cabinet Room. She wasn't sure why. That room didn't seem much safer than any other. But she trusted him and just went with it.
The Doctor had to unlock the back door to the room for them before they all got in. Madison locked it behind them once they all entered, though she very much doubted this would work against the aliens who hunted them. She glanced over, seeing the Doctor getting an alcohol bottle from a stash of liquor by the front entrance. He then held it up and pointed his sonic screwdriver at it as the three aliens went towards him from the other open door.
"One more move and my sonic device will triplicate the flammability of this alcohol. Woof, we all go up. So back off," the Doctor spoke rapidly to the aliens, making the three of them stop quickly in front of him. Madison went over to join him, Harriet, and Rose by the door to stare at the aliens. All three aliens seemed hesitant now to even move, just staring at the Doctor and his sonic.
"Right, then, question time," continued the Doctor, lowering the alcohol in his hand a bit. "Who exactly are the Slitheen?"
"They're aliens," said Harriet. Madison glanced over to the woman, seeing that Harriet had grabbed a large, red briefcase and was holding it close. She wondered if these were the Emergency Protocols the woman had mentioned.
"Yes, I got that, thanks," the Doctor muttered to the woman. He then grinned as he faced the aliens, the Slitheen, once more.
"Who are you, if not human?" one of the Slitheen questioned the Time Lord.
"Who's not human?" Harriet asked quietly.
"He's not human," Rose answered her.
"He's not human?" Harriet replied in shock.
"Could I have a bit of hush?" the Doctor said, throwing a sharp look at the two standing behind him. Harriet apologised quietly while the Doctor looked to the Slitheen again. "So, what's the plan?"
"But he's got a Northern accent," Harriet muttered again to Rose.
"I'm sure many planets have a north," Madison sighed, shaking her head in exasperation. Really, this was not the time.
"I said hush!" the Doctor said again, this time throwing a look at her. Madison merely shrugged, letting him know that she wasn't trying to interrupt him. He looked back to the Slitheen once more. "Come on!" He held up the bottle of alcohol and his sonic once more. "You've got a spaceship hidden in the North Sea. It's transmitting a signal. You've murdered your way to the top of government. What for? Invasion?"
"Why would we invade this godforsaken rock?" scoffed one of the Slitheen.
"Then something's brought the Slitheen race here. What is it?" the Doctor demanded from them.
"The Slitheen race?" said another Slitheen.
"Slitheen is not our species," hissed the other. "Slitheen is our surname. Jocrassa Fel Fotch Pasameer-Day Slitheen at your service." Madison was surprised that Jocrassa was decent enough to actually introduce themselves. But if Slitheen is their surname, it made her wonder what race they really are.
"So you're family?" the Doctor wondered aloud, most likely pondering the same thing she was.
"A family business," Jocrassa answered proudly.
"Then you're out to make a profit," the Doctor said as he realised what was going on. "How can you do that on a godforsaken rock?" There was no answer from the Slitheen for a moment as they all blinked.
"Uh, excuse me. Your device will do what? Triplicate the flammability?" asked one of the Slitheen.
The Doctor smiled then. "Is that what I said?"
"You're making it up," Jocrassa accused the Doctor.
"Oh, well. Nice try." The Doctor shrugged before holding the bottle off to Harriet. "Harriet, have a drink. I think you're gonna need it."
"You pass it to the left first," Harriet replied, nodding towards Madison. The Doctor then handed it over to her and she took a swig. It was bourbon. Not her favourite. But damn did she need a drink right now.
"Now we can end this hunt with a slaughter," said one of the Slitheen, clinking their long claws together eagerly.
"Don't you think we should run?" Rose questioned, slowly backing up along with Harriet.
"Run where?" Madison questioned quietly. Though, she had a feeling the Doctor had something up his sleeve based on the smirk he was slowly growing.
"Fascinating history, Downing Street. Two thousand years ago, this was marshland. 1730, it was occupied by a Mister Chicken. He was a nice man. 1796, this was the Cabinet Room," the Doctor rambled on quickly. "If the Cabinet's in session and in danger, these are about the four most safest walls in the whole of Great Britain." He then reached over to a small panel that was next to the door, lifting it up to reveal a button. He then grinned widely at the Slitheen. "End of lesson." Pressing the button, metal screeching was heard as very thick, grey metal panels came slamming down all around the room, covering all windows and doors. The door in front of the Doctor closed just as the Slitheen made a move to jump at him. After everything was sealed up, the Doctor turned around to face them. His grin was as wide as ever.
"Installed in 1991. Three inches of steel lining every single wall," the Doctor told them boastfully. "They'll never get in."
"And we'll never get out," Madison sighed with a shake of her head. She laughed lightly when seeing the grin fall from the Doctor's face. The look of disappointment all over him was oddly hilarious to her.
"We should call someone," Harriet spoke up, earning their attention. Rose went over to the phone that was sitting in the middle of the table, picking it up.
"It's dead," sighed the girl, setting it back down hard. Rose then pulled out her mobile, trying that. "And I can't get a signal."
"They've cut the lines," Harriet breathed in disbelief. The woman sighed, sinking down into a chair as she seemed to sag. The adrenaline was obviously wearing off now. Madison walked over, handing Harriet the bottle of liquor.
"Here. I think you need some of this," she said before turning to look around the room. The two dead bodies were still there. Both which made her wince. "We . . . should probably clean up. Put them up until we can take care of them properly later."
"There's a cupboard over here," the Doctor said, pointing to a slim door on the other side of the room. Madison nodded, going over to the dead Prime Minister first. She grunted as she lifted him up. "Here." Glancing over, she saw the Doctor come over and pick up the dead man's legs. "Who's this?"
"The missing Prime Minister," Madison told him as they carried the dead man over to the cupboard. After opening the door, she was surprised to see just how big the cupboard was. It was a small walk-in with all sorts of suits, coats, boxes of flies and other things all over. After they laid the Prime Minister down, she grabbed a nearby coat and covered the body. At least this way they could give the poor man some decency.
"How're you doing?" the Doctor asked her quietly, staying in a crouched position beside her and staring at her in concern.
"Truthfully? I feel rather useless," Madison sighed, shaking her head. "When we were trapped back there by the Slitheen, I couldn't think up a plan of action to stop them. If you hadn't shown up when you did . . ."
"Nah, don't be too hard on yourself. That was a tough situation to be in," the Doctor said gently, taking her hand and giving it a squeeze. Madison smiled softly, grateful for his comfort. She still felt rather disappointed in herself, but at least the Doctor wasn't.
"Still . . . I'm very glad I had Rose with me. She's been brilliant."
"Has she?" The Doctor hummed thoughtfully for a second before shaking his head. He jerked his head towards the door. "Come on. Let's get that other fellow in here."
After they brought the other man into the cupboard, whom even Harriet did not know his name, the Doctor started looking into any weaknesses of the metal panels around the place. Unfortunately, even his sonic screwdriver could not find a way for their escape. They were truly locked in here. Madison sat down next to Harriet, listening to the Doctor explain how the Slitheen disguised themselves. Apparently, because of their size, they had to use people who were on the rather larger size. The collars around the Slitheen's necks were a compression field, a device shrinking them down so they can fit inside human shells, though leading to a lot of 'gas exchange'. Madison found the whole thing disturbing. All those poor people who had been slaughtered just to be turned into a costume for display. Somehow, though, after the Gleth, it wasn't so surprising to run into something like this. Using the dead as a means for other uses, apparently, was something some species just liked to do.
"It's like the Gleth all over again," Madison muttered, earning herself a grunt of agreement from the Doctor.
"Wish I had a compression field. I could fit a size smaller," Rose joked half-heartedly, shaking her head at the whole thing.
"Excuse me, people are dead! This is not the time for making jokes," Harriet scolded Rose, earning herself a sheepish look from the blonde girl.
"Harriet, she's just trying to help lighten the mood. It's been a stressful day," Madison spoke up, shaking her head at the woman.
"I know. But still, those people deserve respect. Not to be paraded around like suits or jokes," Harriet said in return, glancing down at the paper documents in front of her. She had the Emergency Protocols open and was searching through everything. There didn't seem much use for them, in Madison's opinion. It was not like they could do anything from this room. Though, perhaps, just looking through them helped Harriet feel a bit more controlled over the situation they found themselves in.
"Harriet Jones. I've heard that name before," the Doctor spoke up as he walked over to the woman. "You're not famous for anything, are you?"
"Oh! Hardly," Harriet laughed, shaking her head.
"Rings a bell. Harriet Jones . . .," the Doctor said thoughtfully, staring off as though he were trying to remember the name from somewhere.
"Lifelong backbender, I'm afraid, and a fat lot of use I'm being now. The Protocols are redundant," said Harriet in frustration. "They list the people who could help and they're all dead downstairs."
"That would explain why they were all called here," said Madison. She leaned her head onto her open palm, resting her elbow on the desk in front of her. "Once the Slitheen saw who could stop them, they knew they had to bring them all here to get rid of them. Take out Earth's mighty minds against aliens."
"Earth still has me," the Doctor said, pouting at her.
Maidson smiled, nodding. "And I'm forever grateful that you're okay. How did you survive anyway? What happened?"
"Electrocution. It was in the id cards. Killed everyone almost instantly. Lucky for me, I can withstand most electricity." He grinned cheekily. "It only gave me a bit of a tingle in my arms."
"Hasn't it got, like, defence codes and things?" Rose suddenly questioned, pointing at the Protocols. "Couldn't we just launch a nuclear bomb at them?" Harriet stared at Rose in shock while Madison shook her head at the girl. That . . . was honestly a horrible option in Madison's opinion.
"Well, for one, all nuclear codes are held by the United Nations," said Madison. "Secondly, that's not an option. Even in the worst-case scenario."
"Sorry, I was just trying to suggest something," Rose sighed, sitting down and crossing her arms.
"It's fine. I know you're frustrated," said Madison as she reached over and patted the girl's arm. "But let's not go nuclear, yeah?"
"Hang on . . . launch codes . . . Why does that tell me something?" the Doctor muttered, frowning as he seemed to contemplate something.
"Is it important?" Harriet asked him.
The Doctor stared off in thought, frowning more. "Everything's important."
"If we only knew what the Slitheen wanted," Harriet said, frowning in thought herself. "Listen to me, I'm saying Slitheen as if it's normal."
"What do they want, though?" Rose wondered aloud.
"Well, they're just one family, so it's not an invasion. They don't want Slitheen world," said the Doctor as he moved around the table to stare at them all.
"They said 'family business', so obviously they want to use the Earth for profit," Madison added, frowning and shaking her head in disgust. "Of course, it's money they're after. You know this is Cassandra all over again." She sighed, sitting back in her chair.
"But what do they want? Gold? Oil? Water?" asked Harriet.
"You're very good at this," the Doctor said to Harriet, smiling at the woman. This made Harriet smile, blushing lightly from the compliment. The Doctor then went over to Rose. "You have a mobile on you?"
"Yeah, but it has no signal," the girl mumbled.
"I can fix that. Hand it over. Even if my contacts are all dead downstairs, doesn't mean we shouldn't be cut off completely," the Doctor said, waving a hand for her mobile. Once the girl handed it over, he pulled something out of his pocket. Something that looked like a battery. Then he pulled apart the phone and replaced the mobile's battery with his. Once he put it back together, he seemed to want to dial something, but the phone beeped before he could. "Look at that. You've got a message already." Blinking for a moment, the Doctor merely stared at it. But then he was grinning widely. "Ha! Looks like your boyfriend isn't as stupid as I thought he is."
"Why's that?" Rose questioned, going over to stare over the Doctor's shoulder as she looked at the phone. Then, the girl gasped, her eyes going wide. "Oh, my god! It's a Slitheen! How did he get that picture though?" The girl grabbed the mobile from the Doctor, already dialling away for Mickey.
Madison watched as Rose got ahold of Mickey. There was a lot of noise and talking she could hear from the mobile as Rose appeared to be listening to Mickey rant away about whatever it was that happened. Madison had a feeling that the Slitheen must have paid Rose's flat a visit. She was just glad that Jackie was okay, as she could hear the frantic words of Jackie over the mobile from where she sat. The Doctor soon grabbed the mobile from Rose, instructing Mickey to get to his computer, telling the young man about a website he can use to hack into. Eventually, the Doctor hooked up the mobile to the centre phone on the table, putting Mickey on speaker. Everyone crowded around the table now, listening to Mickey hack into a system for the Doctor, using the password the Time Lord gave him.
"Big Ben. Why did the Slitheen go and hit Big Ben," the Doctor began to wonder while Mickey grew quiet, continuing to hack into the website.
"You said to gather the experts, to kill them," Harriet said.
"It's more than that," Madison replied, shaking her head. "Mickey said it earlier. To put the world on red alert."
"We thought it was for a distraction, at first. But now I think it was for something else," the Doctor said, nodding as he thought.
"Do you think it's something they need the world to act on?" Madison asked him. There was a spark in the Doctor's eyes as he appeared to realise something. But he never said what he was thinking because then Mickey announced that he had successfully gained full access to what the Doctor had wanted.
"Now, then. On the left, at the top, there's a tab, an icon, little concentric circles, click on that," the Doctor instructed him. There was a blipping sound beginning to come over the phone. Mickey questioned what it was, but the Doctor shushed him. "The Slitheen have got a spaceship in the North Sea and it's transmitting that signal. Now hush, let me work out what it's saying." He frowned as he listened. "It's some sort of message."
"What's it say?" Rose asked him.
"Don't know, it's on a loop, keeps repeating," muttered the Doctor. There came a buzzing of a doorbell. "Hush!"
"Doctor, I think someone's at Mickey's door," Madison muttered.
"I said 'hush'. I'm trying to work it out," the Doctor told her, frowning as he kept looking at the phone.
"But Doctor-." He shushed her again. She shook her head, grabbing his chin to make him look at her. "Doctor, someone's at their front door. At three in the morning, after Jackie had just been attacked."
Rose gasped as she realised what Madison was trying to say. "Oh, my god! Mum, don't answer the door!" It was too late, however, as they heard Jackie screaming in the background. Over the phone, they could hear the frantic panic both Jackie and Mickey went through.
"Mickey, I need that signal," said the Doctor.
"Never mind the signal," Rose scolded him. She then looked at the phone. "Get out! Mum, just get out! Get out!"
"Where can they go? Their exit is blocked," Madison said, backing away from the table as she tried thinking of what to do. She listened as Mickey told them the Slitheen was getting out of the human suit, ready to attack them. She looked at the Doctor. "There has to be something we can do. We can't just leave them to die." Harriet agreed with her, beginning to panic as well.
"You're supposed to be the expert. Think of something!" the woman said to the Doctor.
"I'm trying!" the Doctor replied sharply, still leaning over the table, his eyes focused solely on the phone. He moved away then, beginning to pace. "Right. If we're gonna find their weakness, we need to find out where they're from, which planet. So judging by their shape, that narrows it down to five thousand planets within travelling distance." He moved over, leaning over the table again back to where he had been. "What else do we know about them? Information!"
"They have excellent olfactory organs, able to smell specific scents from people," Madison said immediately, remembering all the details the female Slitheen had said when she had been mocking them while they hid.
"Narrows it down," said the Doctor briskly.
"They can smell adrenalin," said Rose, adding more to what Madison said.
"Yep, narrows it down," said the Doctor.
"They're green," the girl said.
"Narrows it down," the Doctor said with a nod.
"The female is lighter green than the males," said Madison.
"Narrows it down," said the Doctor.
"The pig technology," Harriet said quickly.
The Doctor nodded. "Narrows it down."
"Spaceship in the Thames. You said 'slipstream engine'," said Rose.
"Narrows it down," said the Doctor. They heard Mickey getting nervous over the phone. The Slitheen that was after them was almost through the door now. Madison racked her brain to think of more details.
"The way they hunt, it's more for sport," she said hurriedly.
"Like it's a ritual," Rose added in.
"Narrows it down," the Doctor said, nodding again.
"Wait a minute," Harriet spoke up, obviously remembering something. "Did you notice, when they fart, if you'll pardon the word, it doesn't just smell like a fart, if you'll pardon the word. It's something else. What is it? It's more like, um . . ."
"Bad breath," Rose said, pointing to the woman as she too had noticed it.
"That's it!" Harriet agreed with her.
"Calcium decay! Now, that narrows it down," the Doctor said excitedly, grinning like mad as he moved around to pace again, appearing to contemplate all the information given to him. Madison tensed as she heard the panicked voice of Mickey. The Slitheen was almost inside.
"Calcium phosphate. Organic calcium. Living calcium," the Doctor said hurriedly, stopping at the other end of the table to lean over it with both hands. "Creatures made out of living calcium. What else? What else?"
"If they're made out of calcium . . .," Madison mumbled. Then, she suddenly had an idea. She gasped as it hit her. "Vinegar! Could that hurt them?" She felt stupid suggesting such a thing, but would it at least deter them? The Doctor looked at her as if she had said the most wonderful thing ever. His smile was large as he laughed.
"That's it! Ha-ha! And with a hyphenated surname! Yes! That narrows it down to one planet! Raxacoricofallapatorius!" he exclaimed in triumph before rushing over to the phone on the table. He leaned over the table, getting close so Mickey could hear him. "Get into the kitchen!" They heard the shuffling of feet just as something was smashed on. They heard the screeching and growling of a Slitheen, obviously already in the flat. "Calcium weakened by the compression field. Acetic acid! Vinegar!"
"Just like Hannibal!" Harriet exclaimed.
"Just like Hannibal," the Doctor agreed with her. "Mickey, have you got any vinegar?"
"How should I know?" Mickey responded dumbly.
"It's your kitchen!" yelled the Doctor, trying to get the young man to hurry.
"Cupboard by the sink, middle shelf!" Rose ordered Mickey quickly. Obviously, she knew the man's flat better than he did. There was a noise and then Jackie's voice came over the phone.
"What do you need?" she asked breathlessly.
"Anything with vinegar," the Doctor instructed her. They heard the banging of shelves and other such things from the phone. Jackie must have been working fast as it all sounded loud and frantic. She listed off all the vinegar things she found, making sure that she was getting it right. So many pickled things. All four in the room tensed as they heard a crashing sound and a loud screeching. There was a splashing noise then, followed by silence. Madison held her breath as nothing was heard from the phone. She hoped that it worked.
"Ugh. That's disgusting," they heard Jackie say in pure disgust. Madison, as well as the others, let out a breath of relief. They had done it. Jackie and Mickey were safe. She sat down on a chair, sighing as all her tension left her.
"I need a strong drink," she muttered.
"Here, I'll pour you one," Harriet laughed, shaking her head and walking over to the table with all the liquor.
"One for me, too," Rose said, sitting next to Madison now in a heap. The girl then looked over to the Doctor. "'Hannibal'?"
"Hannibal crossed the Alps by dissolving boulders with vinegar," Harriet answered as she walked over and handed the two their drinks. Madison took a big gulp, sighing as it hit the spot. She needed something to calm her down. She couldn't get to a bath anytime soon, so she was just glad she had this. Though . . . her skin was becoming increasingly itchy and felt horribly dry. She hoped that she could get to some water soon. It wasn't good to stay out of the water for too long like this. Even a drink of water would be good right now. The others had their own drinks, giving toasts before gulping down the bourbon. She noticed in humour that the Doctor made a face of disgust, almost spitting out the drink.
"Yeah, bourbon isn't my favourite, either," she said with a laugh. She then leaned forward, growing more serious. "Do you think they'll send more after Jackie and Mickey? Should we get them to leave?"
"No. I think only that one had their scent, and I have a feeling all the rest are here at Downing Street," the Doctor assured her. He sat down his unfinished drink, leaning over the table. "Mickey, I need to listen to that signal again."
"Let us get cleaned up at least. It's a mess in here," Jackie said over the phone. There was a clunk sound, indicating that the mother had put the mobile down. The Doctor sat down on the other side of Madison, staring at her in thought now.
"How'd you know about vinegar? You had to use vinegar a lot?" he questioned her curiously.
"In the midwest of the States, we'd have to use vinegar on the pipes to clear out the calcium build up because of all the limestone in the area," she explained. "There's so much calcium that it floats around like large flakes in the water. It covers up showerheads and sinks and drains and pretty much anything the water from the tap touches. So I always had to keep lots of vinegar handy."
"That sounds annoying," said Rose, shaking her head as Madison told her story.
"It was, though the water was very healthy as it comes from natural springs in the midwest. Lots of minerals in it," Madison explained, grinning slightly as she remembered the natural springs of the area. There had been so many in secluded areas. Great places to sneak in a brief swim or two. She and the others looked over when they heard a noise coming from the phone.
"Listen to this," they heard Mickey saying before he seemed to have the phone next to the tv. They could hear a broadcast being done, with a man speaking gravely.
"Our inspectors have searched the sky above our heads," spoke a man through the tv. "And they have found massive weapons of destruction capable of being deployed within forty-five seconds." The Doctor gave a mutter of disbelief, shaking his head as he listened carefully. Madison felt just as confused. Why were the Slitheen telling everyone this?
"Our technicians can baffle the alien probes," continued the man, who sounded similar to Jocrassa, "but not for long. We are facing extinction unless we strike first! The United Kingdom stands directly beneath the belly of the mothership. I beg of the United Nations. Pass an emergency resolution. Give us the access codes. A nuclear strike at the heart of the beast is our only chance of survival, because, from this moment on, it is my solemn duty to inform you planet Earth is at war."
"He's just making it up. There's no weapons up there," the Doctor said, having heard enough and standing up from the table. "There's no threat. He just invented it."
"They want the access codes. But why?" Madison wondered, getting up as well.
"Do you think they'll believe him?" asked Harriet.
"Well, they did last time," muttered the Doctor, shaking his head as he stared hard at the table. He then started walking towards the door with the button for the panels. "That's why the Slitheen went for spectacle. They want the whole world panicking 'cause you lot, you get scared, you lash out."
"They release the defence codes . . .," said Rose, beginning to realise what horrors could happen. Madison followed after the Doctor towards the door, standing just off to the side of him. She felt the other two come up from behind her.
"And the Slitheen go nuclear," finished the Doctor, slamming his hand on the button. The panel was removed from the door, opening up to reveal three Slitheen standing there. The Doctor kept a hard stare on them. "You get the codes, release the missiles. But not into space, 'cause there's nothing there. You attack every other country on Earth, they retaliate, fight back. World War Three. Whole planet gets nuked."
Madison's eyes went wide as she heard him say this. No . . . they wouldn't . . . But seeing the blonde woman with blue blazer coming forward from behind the three Slitheen, her cold gaze and heartless smirk, Madison knew it was true. They were going to slowly wipe out the human race, the entire planet, in a very painful and destructive way. Out of all the weapons mankind had created, the nuclear option had always sent a horrible twist in her heart and stomach when thinking about it. It was something so sinister, so horrendous, that it was hard for her to even imagine the outcome of such a thing. She could never stomach the documentaries that went over what would and had happened with nuclear weapons. And the Slitheen were going to do this for profit? Madison felt even more disgusted. Angry, even.
"And we sit through it, safe in our spaceship, waiting in the Thames. Not crashed, just parked. Barely two minutes away," the woman in front of them said smugly.
"But you'll destroy the planet. This beautiful place. What for?" Harriet said, questioning the very sanity of this plan. Madison knew the woman just could not wrap her head around it all. It appeared as though it were beyond imagining to the woman for someone to destroy an entire planet like it were nothing.
"Profit," the Doctor said, glaring hard at the woman with the blue blazer. "That's what the signal is, beaming into space. An advert."
"Sale of the century," said the woman, smirking away proudly. "We reduce the Earth to molten slag, then sell it. Piece by piece. Radioactive chunks capable of powering every cut-price starliner and budget cargo ship. There's a recession out there, Doctor. People are buying cheap. This rock becomes raw fuel."
"At the cost of five billion lives," the Doctor said, his voice hard in tone. Madison glanced at him, seeing the dark glare he was sending the woman standing before him.
"Bargain," the woman said snidely, still smirking as though it were all too funny to her.
There was a moment of silence as the Doctor continued to stare darkly at the woman. Then, he spoke and his words were cold. "I give you a choice. Leave this planet, or I'll stop you."
The woman began laughing loudly like the Doctor just told the funniest joke. The other Slitheen laughed along with her. "What? You? Trapped in your box?"
Again, there was just a second of silence. A pause from the Doctor. The stare the Doctor gave all of the Slitheen . . . Madison could feel the coldness from it. "Yes. Me," he said all too calmly. He then slowly reached over, pressing the button again by the door. The woman and Slitheen started laughing again as the panel went to shut. Though Madison saw a brief moment of nervousness coming from the woman before the metal plates snapped shut.
When Madison saw the expression on the Doctor's face as he turned around and stomped back into the room . . . she knew it would be wise for the Slitheen to be worried.
XxXxXxXxXx
The hours seemed to tick by slowly as all of them waited for an update on what was happening in the outside world. Trapped inside the metal box of theirs . . . it was rather alarming in just how cramped it felt to Madison. She was not claustrophobic. But not being able to know what was going outside on her own felt very off-putting. At one point, Rose and Harriet decided to take naps, wanting to stay alert for later as the next day would come soon. Madison didn't feel comfortable with the idea of sleeping outside of water. She rarely did it, and it was not entirely healthy for a Mer, either. But the Doctor persuaded her. Encouraging her to at least get some rest. So, rather reluctantly, she undid her braid and let her auburn hair flow around her shoulders before laying down on the ground and curling up into herself. She must have been tired because the next thing she knew, she was being woken up by the sound of talking. Scrunching up her face, she peeked open her eyes, seeing Rose and Harriet were already awake and debating on what they thought the Slitheen were doing next.
"Sorry. I told them to be quieter," came the soft voice of the Doctor beside her. She glanced up, realising with a start that he had placed her head into his lap and was stroking her hair gently. When had he done this? Since she fell asleep? She blushed but didn't make a move to leave him. It . . . felt nice. No one had done something like this since she had been together with David. The Doctor seemed to think her stiffening was a bad sign for he slowly removed his hand from her hair. "Sorry," he muttered.
"No, it's okay. I . . . like it. It's nice," she told him quietly. Seeing the way he smiled, so gentle and sweet, made her heart flutter dramatically and made her feel rather warm. The feelings only intensified as he started up again, threading his fingers through her hair in slow motions. She couldn't help but close her eyes as she enjoyed it. "You didn't have to do this."
"You looked uncomfortable. So, I thought my lap would make a nice pillow," he said. "You sleep really curled up, you know. You look like a little ball."
"It's an old habit. Besides, for someone who hates sleep, you sure do seem interested in my own. Makes me think you're jealous that you can't sleep." She smiled as she heard the Doctor grumble under his breath.
"I do sleep. I just don't need as much as the rest of you do."
"And if you wanted an excuse to get close to me, using your lap for a pillow was a pretty lame one."
The Doctor scoffed. "It's not like I didn't have anything else to use."
"Could have used a coat from the cupboard." She smirked as she opened her eyes and saw the blinking bit of shock on his face. Then, she giggled as he blushed.
"I didn't think of that," he mumbled. He then frowned at her. "Look, if my lap isn't good enough-."
"Doctor, I'm just teasing you." She smiled at him as she grabbed the hand that was still stroking her hair, holding it gently. "I really appreciate you wanting to comfort me. Thank you."
"We had a rough day yesterday. We all need some comfort," he said softly, sighing as he sank back into the wall behind him. His head tilted upwards to stare at the ceiling, lost in thought.
Madison began stroking the top of his hand with her thumb, staring at him. "Has anything else happened?"
"No. We're just waiting for the United Nations to release the codes now."
"Do you think they will?"
"Knowing this lot, yeah, they will." He looked down at her, his expression troubled. He glanced towards Rose and Harriet, checking on them to make sure they weren't listening in. "Madison . . . for once, I'm not sure of what we can do. Not . . . not without making a sacrifice. Because there is one thing I can do . . ." His brow furrowed, his eyes swirling with uncertainty, maybe even fear, she could see a turmoil happening inside of him.
She sat up then, scooting to sit beside him, facing him. She took his hand again, holding it and caressing his skin with her thumb. "What's wrong, Doctor?" Seeing how he hesitated to talk, she gave his hand a small squeeze. "You can tell me."
He glanced towards Rose and Harriet, who had answered the mobile that started to ring and was speaking with Mickey and Jackie again. Apparently, they were getting an update about the United Nations. Nothing so far, but still . . . He looked back at her. "There's always been a way out of this, but . . ." He swallowed heavily then. His blue eyes stared deeply into her own. There was such sadness behind those old eyes of his. "But I'll lose you." He brought up a hand, holding her face. "I could save the world, but lose you."
Madison kept her eyes steady on his, overwhelmed by the emotions that were swarming through her at the moment. Not because of what he said . . . but because of what his expression was saying just looking at her. It . . . made everything around her freeze in time. Her whole body felt a fluttering sensation as she gulped. Where his hand touched her . . . it felt hot. Like it was burning her skin, but, somehow, in a pleasant way. Slowly, she got a hold of herself, pulling back into reality.
"If you're asking me if I'm okay with dying to save the world, then the answer is yes. Without hesitation, I would gladly give my life for others," she said softly, squeezing the hand she still held. She looked away from him then, feeling her heart tear as she realised what it meant for him, however. "But I suppose . . . this means you'll die, too. Not something I want, either." She then glanced over to the two others in her room. Her heart sank even more. "And . . . it's not only my own decision that needs to be made." Poor Rose. She was so young. And Harriet . . . she still had her mother to look after. The woman was so worried about her mum. What would happen to the elderly woman if Harriet was gone?
". . . You don't want them to die," spoke the Doctor quietly. She looked back at him again, smiling sadly.
"I don't want anyone to die. But . . . I know, from experience, when the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few," she said.
The Doctor gave a small chuckle, shaking his head in amusement. "You're quoting Star Trek now?"
"Hey now, it's a good line." She laughed, smiling as she was glad she could bring some humour to him. "But it's true. You and I both know that."
He nodded, looking grave now. Slowly, carefully, he leaned forward and pressed his lips to her forehead. She stiffened, surprised by this gesture. Her heart swelled, feeling light. Her eyes fell close as a part of her, oddly, wished his lips were kissing her own. But before she could understand why she wanted this, he was moving away from her and standing up. He helped her to her feet, holding onto her hand for a moment more before letting go.
"There's a way out," the Doctor said, looking at Rose and Harriet now. He walked over to the table, getting closer to them. The two had halted in their discussion, giving the Time Lord their attention. "And I'm sorry . . . but it means that I can't protect either of you."
"What is it?" Harriet asked.
"What'll happen?" Rose questioned.
"I can't guarantee your safety. Either of you," the Doctor said, not answering their questions. His sombre expression remained as he stared at them.
"Don't you dare! Whatever it is, don't you dare!" came the sudden angry response from Jackie over the speakerphone. The Doctor looked at the phone then.
"That's the thing. If I don't dare, everyone dies," he told the mother gravely.
"Do it," Rose said, her face set in full resolve. The girl didn't even hesitate, just wanted to follow the Doctor's lead. The Time Lord was seen giving her a shocked expression. It was clear her comment took him back for a moment.
"You don't even know what it is. You'd just let me?" he asked her, seeming to still try to understand if the girl realised what he was saying.
"Yeah," the girl replied as if it were obvious. Rose's expression was so full of determination that Madison could not help but feel admiration towards the girl.
"Please, Doctor, please! She's my daughter, she's just a kid," Jackie begged over the phone.
"Do you think I don't know that?" the Doctor responded, finally looking away from Rose. "'Cause this is my life, Jackie. It's not fun, it's not smart. It's standing up and making a decision because nobody else will."
Madison's heart wept at the desolate voice the Doctor had. Oh, Doctor. Just how long he had to keep fighting against the darkness, she wondered. How many times did he have to make terrible decisions like this? She knew how lonely of a life that could be. Just how alone he must have been . . . for so long. She couldn't keep herself back from him. She reached over, taking his hand and, without being able to help herself, she brushed her mind gently against his. His eyes whipped towards her. Startled by what she did. She backed away immediately from his mind, letting go of his hand, afraid she had made him upset. He just stared at her . . . clearly at a loss of words or what to say to her. He swallowed heavily, his blue eyes wavering. She mentally scolded herself. Now was not the time to try to comfort him in such a way. He needed to focus.
"Then what are you waiting for?" Rose spoke up, earning both of their attention now. Still, that look of resolve the blonde had. Rose, in that one moment, seemed to grow ten years older, understanding what it took to save people's lives. Maybe she always understood. She just never had a moment like this to shine so brightly.
"Because . . . I need to make sure you know what you're deciding," the Doctor said, his eyes darting to Rose, but looking back to Madison. She knew then that he was still asking her if this was okay. She nodded, already knowing that it had to be.
"Except, Doctor, this isn't her decision to make," said Harriet Jones, her voice firm, her tone calm, rigid and powerful. She walked around the table, to face the Time Lord fully. "It's mine."
"And who the hell are you?" Jackie demanded over the phone, sounding angry now. Madison knew how upset the mother must be. After all, her daughter was deciding to die for the sake of the world.
"Harriet Jones, MP for Flydale North. The only elected representative in this room, chosen by the people for the people," said Harriet, her voice just as strong as before. "And on behalf of the people, I command you. Do it." The Doctor could only seem to stare at the woman for a moment before he looked at Rose and Madison and slowly smiled.
The decision had been made.
The Doctor acted fast then, grabbing the Emergency Protocols and beginning his work. Madison stayed beside him while Harriet and Rose got closer, ready for what must be done.
"How do we get out?" Rose asked him, curious about what he needed and had planned for them.
"We don't. We stay here," the Doctor told them, opening the Protocols and flipping through the papers in the red folder at lightning speed. His eyes moved so quickly that Madison had a hard time believing that he was actually reading the papers. But she knew that he was. It must be a gift of his. That, or maybe Time Lords just processed information faster than any other species. He then seemed to finish and set some of the papers down. He leaned close to the phone on the table. "Use the 'buffalo' password, it overrides everything," he instructed Mickey.
They heard a brief argument between Jackie and Mickey, but it appeared that the young man had won and gotten the phone away from the frantic mother. There was fast typing heard from their end as Mickey did as instructed. The Doctor kept telling him where to go, specifically for navy vessels. Then, Mickey was in, hacking into the Royal Navy. Mickey told them how there was a submarine off the coast of Plymouth.
"Right, we need to select a missile," said the Doctor.
"We can't go nuclear. We don't have the defence codes," Mickey told him.
"We don't need it. All we need is an ordinary missile. What's the first category?"
"Sub harpoon, UGM-84A."
"That's the one! Select!" After some pause from Mickey's end, the Doctor asked if the man was truly ready. Mickey gave a firm answer, sounding ready for anything now. "Mickey the idiot, the world is in your hands. Fire."
It was a tense moment as they knew Mickey had done it. He had sent a missile, a very powerful one, straight for them. It would stop the Slitheen. Most definitely. But . . . it would kill them as well. Madison looked around the room, wishing she knew what to say to them all. Apologise to Rose for not being a good enough friend. To tell Harriet how glad she was to know the woman. And the Doctor . . . there was so much she wanted to say, but not enough time in the world to convey how . . . wonderful it had been to know him.
"How solid are these?" Harriet questioned suddenly, quickly going over to a panel on the window and knocking on it.
"Not solid enough. Built for short-range attack. Nothing big," the Doctor told her, his shoulders sinking as he knew it was pointless. Madison glanced over towards Rose as the girl began looking around the room. Again, that very determined expression was on her face.
"All right. Now I'm making a decision," Rose told them all, her resolve as strong as ever. "I'm not gonna die. We're gonna ride this one out." She pointed to the cupboard, going over to it. "It's like what they say about earthquakes. You can survive them by standing under a doorframe. Now, this cupboard's small, so it's strong. Come and help me. Come!" Madison raised her brow, shocked by the strong demeanour of the girl. Then, taken back by what Rose had suggested. No . . . But, yes. Yes, that could work. The girl was brilliant! That could work!
"That's perfect! Good thinking, Rose!" Madison praised the blonde, rushing over to begin helping.
They all got to work then. Though the Doctor seemed hesitant at first, seeming to think it was pointless, he still helped to gather things out of the cupboard and set them around the room. The two bodies of the dead men were rested off in a corner. Madison folded their hands together over their stomachs, regretting that they would have to leave them out of there to meet a terrible fate. Though they were already long gone, she wished that their last resting place could be better than this. She shook away her regret for the lost men, turning around to finish what she had started. Eventually, they got everything out and the Doctor pulled Rose's mobile off of the speaker, bringing it with him into the cupboard. They all got onto the floor in the small room, getting under a shelf. Madison was in between the Doctor and Rose, holding onto their hands tightly as each one of them said their goodbyes. She closed her eyes tightly, hearing a deafening whistle sound coming from outside the room. Then . . .
The entire place erupted around them. They heard an ear-piercing explosion. Papers went flying around them. The building shook as everything was shattered into pieces. Madison felt their small room beginning to tilt, making them all go tumbling until the entire thing began to turn. She felt herself slamming into different shelves in the room as she and the others screamed. It felt like it would never stop until, finally, everything came to a rest. Madison lay there where she landed, stunned as papers slowly floated down around her.
"Is-Is everyone all right?" she asked weakly. There was a series of groans given. She laughed weakly. "Guess that means 'yes'." She sat up, feeling her hair was a nest on her head with how wild it had become from the tumble. Rose was by her feet, curled up into a ball and holding her side. "You okay, Rose?"
"Yeah, just hit my side on a shelf," the girl groaned, rubbing at her side as she sat up.
"Doctor?" Madison asked, looking over to see the Doctor was by her head. He was sprawled out, blinking as he stared at the ceiling. A small laugh let him before he burst out into a fit. He shook his head, still laughing as he sat up.
"I can't believe it worked!" he exclaimed merrily as he helped her up. He patted Rose's shoulder, making the girl wince slightly. "You are absolutely brilliant!" The girl smiled weakly, appearing just glad to be alive. The Doctor went over to the door, kicking it open. It fell with a thunk onto the ruins of Downing Street. There was hardly anything left of the building. Just a back frame, one section of the wall that still stood, while the rest was nothing but broken brick, glass, metal, and wood. There was an alarm bell sounding off somewhere in the distance while small fires were burning sporadically in the area.
"Made in Britain," Harriet said fondly as she patted the thick metal of the cupboard they had stepped out of.
"Oh, my god! Are you alright?" came a voice. They looked over, seeing one of the guards that had been in Downing Street coming towards them. He stared at them in utter amazement. Harriet flipped out her ID for the man to see.
"Harriet Jones, MP, Flydale North," she introduced herself briskly. "I want you to contact the UN immediately. Tell the ambassadors the crisis is over. They can step down." The man continued to just stare dumbly at them. "Go on. Tell the news."
"Yes, ma'am," said the man, rushing off to do as told.
Harriet put her id away, turning around to look at them. "Someone's got a hell of a job sorting this lot out," she said. Then she seemed to realize something. "Oh, Lord! We haven't even got a Prime Minister!"
"Maybe you should have a go," the Doctor offered in thought, grinning knowingly at the woman.
"Me! I'm only a backbencher," she scoffed, laughing lightly, clearly thinking he was joking with her.
"I'd vote for ya," Rose said, grinning brightly at the woman.
"Same here. That's two down," Madison said, winking at Harriet. The woman seemed flustered by all the praise, blushing slightly.
"Now, don't be silly," she said before she turned and started to walk away. "Look, I'd better go and see if I can help." She yelled to the crowd that was gathering off past the destruction of the building. She made her way through the rumble, going to address all of the people. The others started to walk away as well, more slowly making their way out of the rumble.
"I thought I knew the name," the Doctor told them as they started walking down the street, past all of the emergency vehicles and people. "Harriet Jones. Future Prime Minister. Elected for three successful terms. The architect of Britain's Golden Age."
"Really? Oh, that is great," Madison said happily, grinning now. She looked towards the distant figure of Harriet as she addressed the reporters, speaking to the world through all of the cameras. "She really earned it." Madison then looked to the Doctor and Rose. "Do you think that today was the day that set her route to becoming Prime Minister?"
"Probably," the Doctor laughed, grinning as he beamed merrily. She knew that he was excited to think he had been a part of history in the making. Seeing a future famous figure at their beginning must be a wonderful thing for him to be able to witness. She knew she felt that way.
Madison sighed, stretching her arms out before she threw them over both the Doctor and Rose's shoulders. "I don't know about you two . . . but I could really go for some chips and a bath." The Doctor and Rose burst out in laughter, nodding as well.
"Oh, god, yes," Rose said, wincing as she gave herself a sniff. "Really need that bath badly. Ugh."
"Tell you what . . . how about after you get that bath in . . . why don't you join us in the TARDIS?" the Doctor asked the girl, grinning at Rose brightly. Rose blinked, clearly taken back as her jaw dropped. Then, slowly, a brilliant smile appeared on the girl's face. Her expression alight with glee.
"Really? You mean it?" she questioned in disbelief.
"Really. Because you were brilliant back there, never giving up hope while the rest of us did. You think outside the box. Literally. I need someone like that around. Besides, there's plenty of room on the TARDIS. Why not have more people on board?"
Rose let out a sound of joy, leaping forward to hug the Doctor. He laughed, hugging her back. Madison could not stop the massive smile from appearing on her face, glad to have the girl on board with them. From here on out, she could just tell things were going to be great.
For those who have wondered and asked, yes, the story will have the Tenth Doctor. Even the Eleventh eventually. This beginning part will just be Nine for a while, with almost all of his episodes. Most which will be canon. Farther down the line, things will start to differ from canon somewhat.
If anyone has an episode or an idea they really want to see, leave a review and let me know. I love to see what everyone would like to happen in the story. Give me all your wonderful ideas!