16. A Trap of Shansheeth
Sarah Jane wakes suddenly. "Jo? Jo, wake up."
"What?" Jo asked, wakes up as well as Sarah Jane leading them out of the room.
"Rani? Clyde?" Sarah Jane called, but no respond.
"Where is everyone?" Jo wondered.
"I think there's something wrong."
"Wrong? As in you mean just like the old days sort of wrong?"
"Exactly like the old days."
"Groovy."
"Yes," Sarah Jane agreed and both woman walk away, looking around to discover what's going on. They get cross-pass with Clyde, Rani, and Santiago, Jo's grandson. "There you are."
"Sarah Jane, it's the Shansheeth. They're lying through their beaks. They want you and Jo. This whole thing's a trap," Clyde warned.
"I knew it."
"Hold on. If they're lying, that means the Doctor's still alive," Jo concluded as she and Sarah Jane high-five together. "Yes!"
"Of course I'm still alive, Jo. I thought that was obvious. Catch up," Clyde speaked, but with different voice that belongs to another man.
"I beg your pardon?"
"Clyde, is that you?" Sarah Jane asked.
"Not really," hs replied, now with a girl's voice. "It's actually us. We're using Clyde as a receiver. The Doctor keyed into his residual artron energy so he and I can organise a very complicated and painful biological transportation 10.000 light years."
Clyde screams as blue lightning-energy spearding across his body. "That wasn't me," Clyde argued, now in his normal voice. "That wasn't me speaking. I'm getting..." then, he look at his hand that's turning white. "That's not my hand, because my hand's not white."
As the blue lightning energy spreading again, Clyde screams and completely replaced by a tall floppy-hair man with bowtie. "Sorry, Clyde!" He said, before return back to Clyde.
"But," a black-hair girl with light yellow t-shirt below crimson overall dress speaked before Clyde returns.
"This," the floppy-hair man before Clyde.
"Space," this time, the black-hair girl.
"Is," floppy-hair man again.
"Taken!" Both man and girl speaked, now appear on the same spot as Clyde.
"Good. So, gosh. That was different," the man admitted before looking at everyone who look shock. "Hello, everyone."
"Who are you?" Rani asked. "Where's Clyde?"
"Well, he moves into where we were before move here," the girl denoted before realizing. "Oopsie."
"You bring him back, whoever you are!"
"No, no, no. Rani, don't you see?" Sarah Jane calms her before looking at them. "It's you two, isn't it? You've done it again."
"Hello, Sarah Jane," they greeted and smile.
"Doctor. Tory."
Rani gasps. "That's the Doctor and the Historian?"
"What Doctor? The Doctor? My Doctor?" Jo asked.
"Yeah, well, he can change his face," Sarah Jane reminded her.
"I know, but into a baby's?"
"Oi," the Doctor argued. "Imagine it from my point of view. Last time I saw you, Jo Grant, you were, what, 21, 22? It's like someone baked you."
"Still rude," Tory shook her head.
"No, I'm not!"
"Everyone!" Santiago called, gesturing behind. "Meanwhile..."
"Ah, yes. The Claw Shansheeth of the 15th Funeral Fleet. We've been looking for you," the Doctor remarked as he and Tory step forward. "Have you been telling people we're dead?"
"I apologise. The death notice was released a little too soon. Though I can rectify this, immediately."
Tory quickly uses her power to shield themself as the Shansheeth's sending a red energy that's aiming to harm the Doctor or Tory. She's sending the shield forward, sending the Shansheeth far away, knocking them all. "Everyone okay?" She asked, looking behind everyone who just stunned before she and the Doctor send back.
"Come on, come on," he muttered hurrily, jiggles the device he and Tory had made before return back and quickly run with others.
"Faster," Sarah Jane urged others before gaping with the Time Lords already come back.
"Come along, Smith," the Doctor told her as they keep running. "In, in, in," he alluded all into the dormitory.
"I'm sorry, is there a problem?" A black woman with UNIT uniform, Tia Karem, asked.
"Hate her," Tory admitted using Gallifreyan language, before entering the room.
The Doctor enters the room, slamming the door, before opens the door again. "Sorry, I was slamming it," he reasoned before slamming it again. "Right. Now we need to lock it. Come on, use the sonic lipstick."
"Haven't you got the screwdriver?" Sarah Jane asked.
"They took it."
"They do sonic lipsticks now," Jo mused as Sarah Jane locks the door using sonic lipsticks.
"We're running out of time. I need you, Sarah, and you, Jo," the Doctor said. "Sister dear..."
"I know," Tory interjected, nods. "Keep others safe and sound."
"Need us for what?" Jo asked as the Doctor takes their hands.
"Remember the old days when we'd go zooming off to faraway worlds?" He asked before they're replaced by Clyde.
Clyde grimances. "I'm getting spacesick."
Rani, Tory, and Santiago just laughs.
Clyde looks at Tory with confusion as Rani hugs him. "Are you...?"
"Historian? Yes, I am. Hello, Clyde!" Tory greeted.
"Whoa! You look so different! And younger!"
"I know. It's getting annoying, honestly. I'm suppose to be older now."
"I'm sorry, but can I help?" Tia asked from outside. "Is there something wrong?"
"But she's on our side, isn't she?" Santiago asked, whispering.
Tory shook her head. "No. She's in league with the Shansheeth. Me and my brother saw her made an alliance with the Shansheeth when they took our TARDIS," she explained, makes a quiet gesture while leaning her ear againts the door, listening.
"Not as daft as they look, for two batty old pensioners and a bunch of ASBO kids. How on Earth did they summon the Doctor and his sister?" Tia asked.
"They have powers unforeseen," a Shansheeth reported. "Especially the girl. She's known as Themis, who massacred the entire Dalek ship and holding a terrifying power inside."
"Right. First things first. We need to clear this place, seal it off and keep that lot trapped."
"Damn, they're smart," Tory muttered.
Rani shows her a schematic of Unit Base Five on a screen. "Do you see? We're slap-bang in the middle of the base. There's got to be a way of getting help."
Then, they heard a klaxon sounds.
"What's happening?" Santiago asked, gesturing to the screen that's suddenly turns red.
"Tia's sealed off the entire base, making us trapped," Tory revealed.
From beside, they see a Groske kicks off the ventilation shaft grill. "Hurry. Follow me," he said and they all follow him. "Hurry, hurry, hurry. Come on."
"Hey, nice. You've got a little den," Clyde muttered as he looks around. "What's all the hurry for?"
Groske gives him a pizza. "Pizza go cold."
"What? I thought you had a plan."
Tory huffs as she enters the last. "Groske isn't a species know for making a plan, Cyde."
"No, we've got to do something!" Clyde insisted.
"Yeah, but hiding's not bad, because we've got to keep you safe, Clyde. Whatever the Doctor's doing, he needs you for that body switcheroo," Rani pointed out.
"Oh great, great. Stuck in Groskeville."
"I mean, at least we have a pizza," Tory addressed as they're sitting down.
"I can't believe you get to do this all the time. Like aliens and chases and stuff," Santiago confessed.
"You can talk, Santiago. You're off to Paraguay and Mount Everest," Clyde mentioned.
"Dude, you just zapped into another planet."
"Yeah, that was pretty cool."
"We've been to parallel times, dream dimensions, limbo," Rani recalled. "And then we go home for tea."
"We see all this," Clyde added, "then my mum's like, 'What did you do today?' I'm like, 'not much.'"
"Went to the library."
"Played a bit of footie."
"Stayed behind after Drama Club."
"And I fought off a platoon of Judoon in my spare time," Clyde looks at Tory. "How about you, Tory?"
"Me? Oh, I have quite a lot amazing adventures," she beamed. "Lately, I've been dealing with a giant crack that's almost erasing the Universe and reboot it again."
"What?!" Rani and Clyde yelped.
"I know. Awesome right?"
"Way awesome," Clyde nods.
"I've not seen my mum for six months now," Santiago admitted, looking solemn.
Tory frowns. "Why?"
"She's in Japan, organising a rally. I mean, that's great, you know. It's really good work."
"Yeah, of course it is," Clyde agreed.
Before that, she was in Africa, finding shell flower plants. My father's with the Gay Dads Organisation, hiking across Antarctica. We haven't all been together since about... February?"
"When are you going to see them next?" Rani wondered.
"Soon. I don't know. Soon though," Santiago hoped before a shutter falls across the ventilation access.
"What's that? What's happening?" Clyde pondered.
"Trapped," Groske responded.
"They've found us," Tory realized as the entire place turns red and hot
"Heating. Hot, hot, hot."
"They're trying to boil us," Rani muttered.
Clyde tries to open the shutter. "It won't budge!"
"Let me!" Tory said and uses her power to crush it. But suddenly, she and others start to lose air.
"W-What's happening?!" Santiago asked, trying to breathe.
"They're... they're lowering... down... the... air!" Rani gasped.
"Great!" Tory muttered, not sure to be impress or upset now.
"Sarah Jane! Anyone!" Rani yelled.
"Oi! Where are you?" Clyde screamed.
"Don't shout!" Tory huffed. "You're losing more air!"
"Well, what else should we do? Doctor! Hurry up. We're getting boiled alive. They're roasting us."
"Let us out!" Rani shouted, getting hard to breath now.
Tory trying to stand up, focusing on opens the shutter, but with the less air, she barely can lifting her hand to uses her power.
"And release!" They heard the Doctor's voice from outside as the shutter lifts up.
"Blimey," Clyde remarked. "You really have changed faces, haven't you? I couldn't see you before, I was too busy swapping."
"Oi, we're still cooking back here," Rani reminded.
"Where's my gran?" Santiago asked.
"Right, yes, sorry, she's in danger, so, we'd better er," the Doctor looks back. "Can't turn round."
"You'll have to shuffle backwards," Tory suggested.
"Oh, yes, okay. Thank you, sister dear," he noted as he did so while others start to move forward.
"Even your eyes are different," Clyde continued. "It's weird, cos I thought the eyes would stay the same. Can you change colour or are you always white?"
"I could be anything."
"And is there a limit? How many times can you change?"
"507."
"Wow."
"What's 5 plus 7, Clyde?" Tory asked.
"12. Why?" Clyde frowns.
"That's how much we can regenerate, actually. So rude for lying, Doctor."
"Oi!" He huffed before they finally arrive in a corridor. As Santiago and Clyde help the Groske, they heard a humming of a machine.
"They've started," the Doctor and Tory muttered in unison as they all running into a chapel. He tries to open it, but nothing. He bangs it. "They've sealed it off. Jo, Sarah, can you hear me?"
"They want the key," Sarah Jane informed. "They've got the TARDIS, and a Memory Weave."
"Too late. Full activation," Tia ordered.
"Concentrate. Think of the key," a Shansheeth alluded.
"Let me!" Tory uttered, trying to break inside using her power. But alas, it won't budge. "Dang it! How strong is this door, anyway!?"
"We need a bulldozer!" Santiago said.
"I've got the original here. You can have it if you let them go," the Doctor pleaded after unable to opens the door using the control unit.
"You let the Doctor and his sister inside this room and they will destroy us. Keep going!" Tia commanded.
"Think of the TARDIS," the Shansheeth addressed. "The key. Remember the key."
"Fight it, Sarah Jane. Try to think of something else," Jo trembled.
"I can't," Sarah Jane cried.
"Neither can I."
Clyde tries hitting the steel doors with a fire extinguisher. "It's not shifting."
"The memories coalesce. The key, it takes shape," the Shansheeth revealed.
"Don't! Don't!" Jo yelped.
"I can't... stop," Sarah Jane agonized.
"What do we do, Doctor, Tory? What do we do?" Clyde asked them.
"Because the Shansheeth are making them remember..." the Doctor muttered.
"Then we make them remember more!" Tory finished, then getting closer to the control unit to open a communication. "Sarah Jane, Jo, can you hear us?"
"The key, Tory, it's almost ready," Sarah Jane noted.
"Listen to me, both of you. I want you to remember," the Doctor instructed.
"We are doing. That's the trouble," Jo commented.
"No, no, no, no. I want you to remember everything. Every single day with me. Every single second."
"What's he doing?" Tia demanded.
"Stopping your plan, of course. What else?" Tory grins before adding. "Because your memories are more powerful than anything else on this planet. You two are my brother's companions! Just think of it. Remember all those amazing adventures!"
"But properly. Properly," the Doctor emphasized. "Give the Memory Weave everything. Every planet, every face, every madman, every loss, every sunset, every scent, every terror, every joy, every Doctor, every Historian... every us."
"I remember," Sarah Jane recalled.
"No!" Tia shouted.
"Memory Weave overloading," a computer voice announced.
"I remember," Jo remembered.
"We need that key. What is happening?" Tia demanded. "What's happening?"
"Initial target lost."
"The device is overloading. Too many memories. Too many," the Shansheeth stated.
"Reverse it. Bring that key back," Tia insisted.
"Everyone, tell them!" Tory encouraged others as they all come closer to the door.
"Think of us, Sarah Jane," Clyde remarked. "Remember Maria and her dad, and all the stuff we did, like the Gorgon."
"And the clowns, and the zodiac. And the Mona Lisa," Rani added.
"All of it. All of it," Sarah Jane happily said.
"Just think, Gran. All the countries you've been to," Santiago noted.
"Every country in the world," Jo alluded.
"Weave starting to self-destruct."
"It's blown a circuit," Sarah Jane denoted.
"I can't get out," Jo imparted.
"I've got you."
"Now we're in trouble," the Doctor realized. "The Weave's going to blow up... and we can't get them out."
"What?" Rani gaped.
"Can't escape. I need the key," the Shansheeth insisted.
"Weave now entering detonation phase."
"I can't unseal the doors," Tia stated. "The power line is gone. Argh!"
"We've drained it," Sarah Jane informed. "Doctor, Tory, I can't get out."
"We can't open the door, Sarah Jane," Tory denoted.
"No sonic screwdriver? Or your power?"
"Still inside the old girl. My power won't cause any damage as well."
"And we can't get in, because guess what? We stopped ourselves getting the key. Oh, that was clever."
"I just want to say, I'm so glad I saw you again and met your sister," Jo confessed. "I waited all this time, and it was worth it. Every second. Funny thing is though, your funeral turns out to be ours instead."
"Our funeral?" The Doctor frowns.
"Doctor, Tory, all of you, you'll look after Luke for me, please," Sarah Jane begged.
"No, no, no, no, but listen. Our funeral. Don't you see? It's our funeral."
"With a lead-lined coffin!" Both woman realized.
"How much time have they got?" Tory asked Groske.
"Big bang, 10 seconds," he informed.
"Okay, now it's our turn we run!"
"10... 9... 8... 7... 6...
"Hurry up, mate," Santiago called as they're hiding.
"5... 4... 3... 2..." the Groske quicklt run to other side as the room gets explode, causing the doors blow off. All of them get cough from the gas.
"What do you mean, the Mona Lisa?" The Doctor wondered before they all enter the chapel.
"Smells like roast chicken," Groske denoted.
"Now then. Smith and Jones," he called as Tory rolls her eyes, cannot help but to think their first encounter with Martha a long time ago. Both Time Lords open the coffin lid, finding Sarah Jane and Jo inside, hugging and then laughing. "The coffin was the trap. The coffin was the solution. That's so neat, I could write a thesis. Come on then, you two. Out you get."
"Trauma, brother dear?" Tory teased, recalling the exact same thing happen with Sarah Jane and Rose.
"Haha," the Doctor laughed playfully. "Very funny."
"Whoa. It's Bannerman Road," Clyde muttered as the TARDIS materialized inside the attic. "It's like everything moved. I'm never getting used to that."
"Mister Smith, you're in big trouble. Those Shansheeth were bad," Rani lightly scolded him.
"It transpires that you encountered a rogue element, and the Wide Wing of the High Shansheeth Nest sends apologies," Mr. Smith informed.
"No way. On top of everything else, you've got a talking computer?" Santiago gaped. "That is it. I'm giving up."
"Oh, wait until you hear about a shape-shifting alien, vampires, humanoid-repltile, Big Bang II," Tory shared with a wink.
Inside the TARDIS, Jo looks with marvelous eyes. "Still the same old TARDIS. It doesn't matter what's changed, it still smells the same," she recalled and takes a breath. "No. I've got to say goodbye, or else I'd stay with you forever. Besides, I probably couldn't keep up any more. Get you into trouble with the Time Lords."
"Hmm. Yeah, I'd probably better go. You know me, stuff to do," he replied.
"It's daft, though, because... we were both saying, we had this theory that... if you ever died, we'd feel it, somehow... we'd just know," Sarah Jane mentioned. "But that's just silly, isn't it?"
"I don't know. Maybe not. Because between you and me, if that day ever comes... I think the whole universe might just shiver," he said, before giving them a suprise, causing Sarah Jane and Jo shock and they all laugh.
"Doctor, do you remember our last conversation before?" Sarah Jane reminded him, looking serious now.
"You told me you can't answer my question until you meet me and Historian again," he recalled. "I guess she's meant this encounter."
"She?" Jo frowns.
"Nia, Jo," Sarah Jane revealed. "Remember our discussion? Auburn hair with scholar outfit?"
Jo gasps. "Oh, of course! What about her?"
"The thing is, Doctor, Jo... I met her before, during one of my previous adventures while Luke still around. And she wanted me to inform you about something."
The Doctor tenses up. He remembered bits about that girl he met years ago. "What did she said?"
Sarah Jane sighs, like she's going to reveal something's big. "Everything, Doctor. And it's all tied in with... with your sister, Tory."
"See you guys soon!" Tory waves them all and enter thr TARDIS. "That was a nice trip!"
The Doctor nods, but still focusing his eyes at the console.
"Hey, what's wrong?" Tory asked, frowns.
"Oh, nothing, just some good old talks with my old companions," he shared, thought Tory can tell there's more to see with that statement he said.
The Time Lady wants to know, but she decided not to pride him more. Perhaps it's something way personal for him to speak. "If you say so," she shrugged.
As the girl playfully look into the console, the Doctor quietly sighs, recalling what Sarah Jane had said before... and what he must do from now on.
Note: TO BE CONTINUED IN DEATH LURKING!
Hoo boy. The title itself isn't reassuring, is it? But it also perfect for next series, as it involves with the Silence and fix-point death in Utah. But part of me also tinsy bit excited, as Tory's gonna into more deep lore with the Doctor when the Silence come. Suffice to say, the Doctor isn't going to be happy when he finds out.
We're also get into more info regarding Nia, the mysterious girl that apparently the Doctor, Sarah Jane, and Jo met before in their early days. Question is, who is she? And what her relation with Tory? It will be quite some time until we reach the answer, but it will be interesting when you guys find out.
And lastly, does anyone hear the recent news about RTD comes back as DW showrunner?! How's everybody's feeling regarding the news? I'll admit, I'm SUPER HAPPY + EXCITED to hear about it. I intend to write Histories up until series 13 (12th book), since I'm not 100% sure if I can write Tory more after that. But recent news definitely makes me going to write her ;)