The TARDIS was for once flying through the time vortex without its usual bumps and volatile tilting dramas.
It was as though the ship could sense that they were undertaking an important journey. Giving everyone aboard queasy stomachs simply wasn't going to be tolerated today and the time machine seemed to understand this enough as it continued to provide such a smooth passage towards Valerus.
Rose had once questioned the idea of the TARDIS being capable of connecting with its passengers on a much more intimate level than any other piece of machinery ever could have. But after looking into and temporarily absorbing the power of the beating heart of the Doctor's ship, she knew that it contained something that was akin to a living consciousness.
Why else would it be making their trip today so unproblematic?
"Right, I'm all changed," She announced. "But I think we'll have to go back and return that dress, Doctor. Bou told me that it belonged to a Queen."
Travelling to another planet whilst still dressed in the traditional clothing of sixteenth-century South Korea was never going to be an option. Yet, the Time Lord had failed to provide any specific instructions as to what any of them should wear instead. The only information they had on the homeworld of the Nimarians was that the species were shapeshifting wolves and that Peter had been born there.
Any other scraps of knowledge were to be provided by the TARDIS' databanks and whatever additional tidbits the Doctor had managed to add to his universally-sized encyclopaedia of a brain.
Deciding that simplicity was best under the circumstances, Rose had chosen a plain pink t-shirt worn under her favourite brown leather jacket. Combining them with jeans and her trainers, she knew that she at least looked presentable enough not to run the risk of being called naked again.
The Doctor had reverted back to his pinstriped suit and All-Star Converses. They and his long suede overcoat looked far better on his slim figure than the ensemble the monks back at the temple had provided him with, and Rose had been fighting the urge to tell him all day that the oversized sleeves of his scarlet robe and the bamboo hat had really swamped him.
But what they were wearing wasn't a priority right now.
Looking over at Peter as she walked back into the console room, Rose wasn't surprised at all to see that he had not made any special effort in is choice of clothing. Dressed in a light-grey buttoned shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows along with jeans and black ankle boots, the Nimarian was leaning back slightly against the control console as he stood facing the TARDIS' main set of doors.
He was staring at them as though the killer from his traumatic memory was about to burst through the slender wooden doorway at any point.
Operating the time machine from the other side of the control panel, the Doctor silently continued to steer his ship on towards their destination. Without the usual bursts of energetic motion it would have been hard to tell that they were moving at all had it not been for the TARDIS' ancient engines groaning and whirring away.
When they began to quieten down, it was a minuscule tremor that was barely felt underfoot which announced that they had arrived. Pulling up the handbrake lever, the Doctor looked up from the control console.
"We're here." He announced. "Valerus."
Peter didn't move and instead continued to stare down the metal ramp towards the doorway that was now the only thing separating him from the planet of his birth. He was showing neither fear nor apprehension on his face, but rather a worryingly blank look that gave no indication as to how he was feeling.
Looking down and seeing his knuckles turn white, however, as his hands clung onto the metal ridge of the control panel, it was a small wonder to Rose that he had not yet managed to bent it out of shape given the tightness of his grip.
He was going to need one final push into taking that first step out of the TARDIS.
But this was something the Peter had to decide to do on his own terms and in his own time. Even if that meant that they stayed here for another hour or two. If they left Valerus and tried again another day… That was his planet outside of those doors and no one else had to right to see it before he did.
Just as Rose was beginning to formulate an idea of what she could say to support Peter, she heard the Doctor draw in a deep breath.
The small screen that was attached to the console had repaired itself since Lord Hasskar had done his best to smash it apart. Now, with a quick scan from the sonic screwdriver, it quickly brought up what little information the TARDIS had on the planet.
Slipping on his tortoiseshell rimmed glasses, it took the Time Lord less than two seconds to absorb all of it. "How about some facts before we step outside?" He suggested. "I know one or two things, and so does the TARDIS… Did you know, Valerus doesn't have different countries? It's all one big continent about the size of Russia. There's a small ocean between the eastern and western coastlines…"
"Doctor -"
"It has one moon and a very similar orbit to Earth. In fact, it almost resembles…"
"Yeah, very interesting but -"
Even as Rose tried to divert his attention away from the screen, the Doctor carried on talking about how from space Valerus looked like the Permian formation of Earth from hundreds of millions of years ago because of its almost unbroken geological layout. Said to be a startling shade of brilliant aqua from space, it was a small but bountiful world that uniquely did not have a molten core as most other worlds had.
"The structure of the planet is actually comprised of a conglomerate of large, rocky bodies that make up a network of tunnels and flooded caves." The Doctor continued. "However, the interior is rich in plasma. It's a naturally-occurring energy with the most unique electromagnetic…. What is it, Rose?"
Rose had given up vocally trying to summon the Time Lord and had instead walked over to him and begun to tug on his arm.
Finally looking up from the screen and smiling back at her in light of the slightly amused grin that was spread across his companion's face, he still failed to notice what it was she had been trying to tell him almost from the beginning of his informed announcement of Valerus' geological features.
"He's gone," Rose told him. "Don't you think we should follow him?"
She had watched Peter slip out of the TARDIS not long after the Doctor had begun to start talking and she doubted very much that he would have heard one word of what was being said even if he had stayed. The TARDIS door, however, had been left slightly ajar and the Nimarian was nowhere to be seen.
"Oh, right." The Doctor realised. "Yes, I think that would be a good idea."
The first thing that hit Peter as he stepped out of the TARDIS was the sun.
He had to remind himself that the warm and bright rays were coming from another burning star entirely than that of the one which had been shining down on the Naksan Temple. But that didn't make the weather here any less pleasant as his eyes adjusted and the smell of the air became the next thing to capture his attention.
There was nothing particularly special about it but somehow it felt… It was right to be breathing in.
Only lacking in the salty scent of a nearby ocean, it was as clean and unpolluted as the temple's had been. But as Peter felt the solid curved bumps of cobblestones beneath him as his right foot made first contact with the ground, he realised that he was in a back alley of sorts as he glanced up and saw the tall tanned walls of tenement buildings surrounding him and the TARDIS on all but one side.
Complete with balconies and overhanging lines of laundry, it instantly reminded him of an old Mediterranean town.
Seeing movement out of the corner of his eye, Peter returned his gaze back down to ground level and to where the alley connected with another narrow street that had to belong to a whole maze of interconnecting passageways. It was from here, however, that he caught his first glimpse of the inhabitants that called Valerus their home.
They were Nimarians. Just like him.
Taking a few hesitant steps forward and keeping to the shadows the building to his left was providing, Peter watched as they walked past him and the TARDIS without noticing either one of them. Some might have heard the wheezing groans of the alien ship as it had landed, but if they had then it was a curiosity not worth investigating it seemed as they all carried on with their day.
Breathing in the fleeting scents of those passing him by, something down in the pit of his stomach automatically made him form a connection to these wolves and this place. It didn't hit him like a fright-train as it had done with the werewolf back at Torchwood House, one that had created an almost desperate and overwhelming urge. No, this was a much warmer and far greater assured feeling of safety and sense of belonging.
He was home...
"Peter?"
As a hand reached out from behind and laid itself on his shoulder, Peter felt his heart skip a beat.
Jumping as the Nimarian cursed loudly and spun around on the spot, the Doctor backed away slightly and fell into step with Rose. Ordinarily, Peter's sharpened senses would have meant that he would have known they were coming even before they'd left the TARDIS, but his first few moments on Valerus had been more than enough to distracted him to the point where he'd been caught off-guard.
"Sorry," Rose apologised. "We didn't mean to frighten you."
The Doctor nodded in agreement as he lowered his hand.
"Yes, we saw that you'd gone. Are you -"
"I'm fine." Peter bit back, still clutching his chest. "Just don't do that again. I'm a little on edge."
"Really?" The Time Lord noted with a smile. "I hadn't noticed."
The look of irritation Peter shot back at him did not last long as his attention was soon drawn back towards the other Nimarians that were passing them by. They were somewhere in the heart of a large town or city, though where on the map of Valerus' singular massive continent that was had not yet revealed itself.
"Where are we?" Rose asked. "It looks like a busy place."
Looking above her at the gap between the densely constructed terracotta rooftop buildings, the sky was the lightest shade of blue. Judging by the pleasantly warm temperature that was already making Rose regret wearing her leather jacket, it felt as though they had landed sometime in the early afternoon of a cloudless spring day.
"We're in Algero." The Doctor announced. "Largest and capital city of Valerus. So, shall we go and take a look around?"
Peter watched at the Time Lord looked his way expectantly.
Both the Doctor and Rose were being so patient and understanding of his nervousness to proceed. The whole build-up of coming here had been horrific and he could still feel his heart hammering away against his chest. But now that they had arrived, it was as though the plaster had been pulled off. It still stung a little bit, but the worst part of deciding to come here was over now.
"Yeah, I'd like that." He replied. "I'd like that very much."
Smiling with delight, the Doctor took the lead in emerging out of the alleyway and chose to turn left down the adjacent street. Ensuring that he did not stride too far ahead as Peter and Rose followed after him, he made sure to give both his companions time to absorb the bustling surroundings of the city before anything else was said about it.
There were less than two dozen people walking down the same street they were on, but Rose was already beginning to notice certain similarities between them and Peter. All of the Nimarians she could see were dark-haired and had olive-toned skin. It was hard to tell with such brief glances but she was sure they all had identical reflective flecks in their eyes too, though none of them so far matched the silvery shade of Peter's impressive gaze.
Already feeling somewhat out of place with her platinum blonde hair and untanned complexion, she could tell that some of the Nimarians were giving her a second glance in passing curiosity. But this paled in comparison to the mistake that she had made in her choice of clothing.
Every single one of the women was wearing a dress that looked as though it had come straight off the page of a couture fashion magazine.
There was an essence of the forties and early fifties style to them as they were all knee-length or just above, with most of the garments having soft flowing skirts and defined necklines of various stylings. But there were no polka-dots or granny curtain floral patterns in sight. Instead, the dazzling array of naturally pretty shades ranged from the lightest of pastel tones to the richest of bejewelling colours.
It wasn't fashionable to have logos or patterns here, but shimmering stitches and the most delicate trimmings of metalwork instead adorned the stunning designs. It was a finishing touch that completed outfits that were worthy of being sold in the most exclusive of designer boutiques and fashion houses had they been available back on Earth.
Even so, Rose winced at the idea of walking around in such high heeled shoes on these sun-kissed cobbles. But every single one of their tall and graceful figures glided effortlessly past without hindrance as though they had been born to wear them. These stilettoed shoes were clearly the first choice of footwear for Algero's female residents even if they were sometimes painful and practically useless.
The men were not far behind them in terms of style either, and even the Doctor's beloved pinstriped suit was easily being put to shame in comparison.
Each jacket was just as tailored and handsomely coloured as the ladies dresses were. Rather uniquely, none of them had distinguishable lapels but rather curved edges that were trimmed with gilded metallic shades of thread or patches of velvet. Regardless of age, whether young boys or older gentlemen, the grander of their attire did not appear to get more casual that substituting the embroidered jackets for a waistcoat of a similar design.
Plain, high necked shirts the same colour as their upper garments were worn underneath with smart trousers as the entire enable was paired off with smart ankle boots.
"Guess we missed the memo about Algero's fashion week." Rose pointed out. "These outfits are all amazing!"
"Well, you don't need to travel long into Earth's past before they're all suited and booted." The Doctor replied with a smile. "Wait until you see what they wear round here for a party, Rose."
Glancing over his shoulder, the Time Lord's eyes couldn't help but glance over towards Peter to see how he was doing.
So far they had only passed more tenement buildings like the ones the TARDIS had landed next to. But even this anonymous street and the thinly spread stream of passersby were enough to make him gaze around with wonder at every balcony and brightly painted window frame.
"It's weird but…" He volunteered. "But everything smells so clean and… There's hardly any loud noises.
Just like any other wolf, Peter was always going to evaluate this place on more than sight alone.
Algero's unpolluted air would help him breath easier and there was no risk here of being overwhelmed by something which did not agree with his fine-tuned ability to pick up on the tiniest of sensations. The noisy chatter of people and the city would be nothing compared to the dreadful din on any passing traffic or high-pitched hum of electricity that humans now so heavily upon.
"Well, I should hope so." He told him. "Nobody would be able to live here if there was."
Leaving the narrow street they arrived on behind them as they wandered on into the bustling midst of a much busier road, the Doctor hung back for a moment so that he could fall back into step with his companions and be in a much better position to point out to Peter the finer details of what they were passing, regardless of how trivial it might seem to be.
As beautiful and fashion-forward as it was, Algero was thus far just like any other city.
It had shops with large windows full of merchandise for sale and there were even small wooden signs hanging on the wall above to advertise the owner's trade. The impeccably dressed population were going about their business as anyone else might do at this time of the day, either by grabbing a late lunch or running errands. Soon the delicious wafting smell of freshly baked bread was making Rose's stomach rumble loudly.
"Oh, that smells amazing!"
"You see, Peter." The Doctor said, pointing. "There are bakeries here too."
"Yes, Doctor," Peter replied as he rolled his eyes. "I can see that it's a bakery. I can smell that it's a bakery."
But he didn't really mind too much that the Time Lord was making sure he didn't miss a single detail of his planet's capital city. It was reassuring to finding it so normal and identifiable to Earth. The bakery was only a few doors down from what looked like a clothes shop, and right next door to that was a trendy looking restaurant that could have easily been found on the streets of somewhere in the heart of the French Rivera.
There were streetlights, even though everyone here could see in the dark. Flowers of all different colours were growing from hanging baskets on the balconies above them and it was giving the fresh air a pleasantly sweet scent. They even passed by a crowd of young children who were all dressed in identical dark blue jackets that could have been school uniform as they were escorted by two smartly attired women.
Smiling back as one little girl with freckles and deep hazelnut eyes looked up at her curiously, Rose reached out and linked her arm around the Doctor's.
"You know," she said purposefully. "I think this is one of the nicest places I've ever seen."
"Isn't it just?" The Doctor replied, beaming back at her. "Not bad at all, is it?"
Looking over at Peter, he was pleased to see the corners of his mouth twitch up into a smile in response. Though he was clinging onto his reservations for the moment, it was becoming harder and harder for his to avoid admitting that Valerus wasn't as bad as might have dared to imagine it to be.
Without being able to conjure an image as to what life here was like, Peter found himself thinking that this part of it at least was certainly exceeding his exceptions.
"Yeah, it's pretty good." He agreed. "Though I'm pretty sure this is the better part of town."
Ahead of them, the street ended in a very large square with a statue in the middle of it.
Colossal buildings were looming above the residential areas now, including one very impressive structure which had a magnificent domed roof much like that of St Paul's Cathedral in London. Craning his neck up to catch a glance of the very top of it, Peter could just make out a blue flag waving away atop a pole. It had a silver symbol on it that he couldn't quite make out…
"Watch where you're walking!"
The harried yells of the carriage driver were barely legible over the snorting whinnies of the large chestnut horse which was harnessed up to the burgundy coloured varnished wooden contraption. With a cushioned seat big enough for two under a canopy roof, the reins attached to the horse's bridle threaded through a metal hoop atop it to where the man was sitting on a raised platform at the back. It was from here that he shouted down as Peter unintentionally stepped out into his path without looking.
"Sorry!" The Doctor called back cheerfully. "Yeah, you carry on."
The driver hadn't even slowed down and he avoided hitting Peter by centimetres.
Distracted by the flag fluttering at the top of the domed building, he hadn't realised that he'd stepped into any traffic until he caught a feeling glimpse of the horse cantering straight towards him. Had the Doctor not yanked him back in the nick of time then his first day back on Valerus would not have ended well at all.
"Did you see the speed he was going at!?" Rose gasped. "He's no better than the taxies back home."
"That's because he is a taxi, Rose." The Doctor informed her. "Burgundy carriages are taxies. Are you alright, Peter?"
With his hand still resting on Peter's shoulders, he watched at the younger man stared after the speeding taxi before turning his attention towards the other carriages that could be seen pulled along around the square. Each of them had horses harnessed up to them and there were more of the tall and muscular creatures being ridden too, all of them with flowing manes and glistening coats that shimmered in the sunlight.
"Horses?" He managed to ask. "They use horses here?"
The Doctor shrugged back nonchalantly as he lifted his hands away.
"You said the air smelt cleaner and this is why. There aren't any cars or lorries polluting the atmosphere." He told him. "You and all the other Nimarians wouldn't appreciate living on a planet that stunk of exhaust fumes and carbon monoxide, would you?"
"I lived on Earth just fine." Peter tutted. "My bike never gave me any trouble."
But he couldn't help but secretly agree with the Doctor in that the pungent smell of exhaust fumes was something that he'd never gotten used to on Earth. Every time he had ridden his motorbike, the lingering stench of petrol had always managing to make its way in through the minute gaps of his helmet and irritate his nostrils.
Even so, that did not make the alternative and much slower form of transport in the form of horses any more desirable. "Seems like they're a bit behind the times, Doctor." He remarked. "What else, gaslights and top hats?"
The Doctor frowned back at him back as though it was his own planet's technological advances that were being insulted.
As they crossed the road and headed over towards the centre of the square where the statue had been erected, the Time Lord was quick to provide a brief but thoroughly well-detailed explanation of where Valerus was in terms of its discoveries and capabilities.
"As I was trying to tell you in the TARDIS, Peter." He began. "The plasma at the heart of the planet provides power to the planet and the underground network of tunnels makes mining it possible. Okay, they might not have phones and televisions here, but I've told you before it is a highly cultured society built on -"
"Yes, I understand that, Doctor." Peter cut in. "But can hardly blame me for comparing it to Earth?"
The statue they had stopped in the shadow off was not made of stone, Rose noticed. Instead, it was constructed from a brilliant silver coloured metal that shone in the light of the afternoon sun. It was of a man striking a regal pose, complete with a wolf that was stood proudly at his side. Given the Nimarian's ability to transform into such a creature, she couldn't help but wonder if the subject of the statue and the wolf next to him were in fact one and the same person. Sat atop a marble pillar, there was a small carving of words to explain who the piece of artwork had been dedicated to.
"Here stands Tiberus Lorcan…"
"Why would you presume that I know how to ride a horse, Doctor?"
The ensuing debate taking place between Peter and the Time Lord distracted Rose's attention away from the dedication before she could finish reading it. Still, on the subject of Valerus' four-legged mode of transport, the question had now arisen as to how comfortable the Nimarian might be in learning how to ride one of the magnificent animals the rest of his people used to get around.
"Well… You live in the countryside." The Doctor began. "I just thought that -"
"What, that we all go on grouse shoots and hunt foxes at the weekend?"
Peter wasn't going to choose this moment to tell the Doctor that his dad had taken him on his first shoot at fourteen years old. Milstead village had its own club and it was traditional to head out on Boxing Day into the surrounding country to flush out a game bird for a special dinner. He also wasn't about to admit that a childhood friend of his had owned two of her own ponies.
He had, however, always refused to mount the animals when offered a ride from Sarah Pascall.
"What, so you don't own a flat cap, Peter?" Rose teased, joining in. "No green wellies or a tweed jacket?"
Having grown up on the Powell Estate, the only time Rose had seen horses at home was at a football game on the rare occasion Mickey had splashed out on tickets to watch it live in the stadium rather than in a nearby pub. She had also caught a fleeting glimpse of the Household Cavalry as they had passed her by in Hyde Park in all their splendid regalia, much to the delight of the surrounding tourists.
In stark contrast, Peter had been raised in the sprawling Kent countryside and even the limited glimpse of the idyllic woodland setting of his house via the screen in the TARDIS had been enough to paint a picture of his childhood. Whilst he was in no way malicious about it, and bore no great arrogance, it was obvious that he came from a more privileged background than her. Speaking five languages and ending up in a prestigious military school was something not many people she knew back home would be able to aspire to achieve.
None of this had prepared him, however, for the splendour of Algero.
Regardless of his upbringing, there were too many questions left unanswered and the truth of it was that they had no real foundation to begin their search with. Only Peter's newly discover memory of a murder that had taken place here connected them to the planet itself.
"Where are we going, Doctor?" Peter questioned. "I mean… It's all well and good wandering around. But where do we even start looking?"
He didn't even have a name to go off, and sadly doubted that this crime was unique. No matter how functional and peaceful a civilisation looked, there was always a grim underbelly that sometimes crept out of the shadows and claimed any life unfortunate enough to cross into its path.
Perhaps there was a record of it somewhere, a cold case that had remained unsolved until now.
There was also the whole situation revolving around his journey on an airship that had ended up with him being on Earth. The Doctor had said it was an impossible feat, and looking up at the crystal blue sky Peter couldn't see any of the vessels floating around. He remembered the Time Lord telling him that such craft had ended up being banned, but that didn't mean there weren't those around who remembered a time when they were not.
"Why Algero, Doctor?" Rose questioned. "Its the capital city, but why come here?"
She had a point. Why, out of the entire planet, had the Doctor decided it was best to come here. For all any of them knew, Peter could have been born and raised on a farm somewhere out in the middle of nowhere. A country boy through and through as much as his upbringing had been.
"Yes, I thought it was a safe bet." The Time Lord replied, nodding. "Now, I think we should try and find a Guardsman station. They're like the police around here…"
Peter hadn't seen any form of authority as of yet, but seeking out whoever was in charge around here actually wasn't the worst idea in the world. Surely someone would know something about what had happened all those years ago? Someone had taken the effort to write down his name and leave it with him along with his ring in that escape pod right before he'd left here. Twenty-three years was a long time, but there was every chance those involved in the case of his absence were still around to question.
Glancing around the square and taking in everything from the elegant domed building to the statue and the sweeping stretch of a wide river that was cutting through the city like a gigantic shimmering snake, it suddenly dawned upon Peter, however, that a whole planet might have to be explored before he could get any answers.
"The size of Russia." He recalled. "I heard that bit Doctor. We're supposed to search all of that?"
Slipping his hands into the pockets of his trousers, the Time Lord smiled back at him kindly.
"If that's what it takes." He assured. "We aren't about to give up now. Are we, Rose?"
"Not at all," Rose added with a confident nod. "Whatever you need, Peter. We'll find out what happened."
He had gotten them both so wrong, Peter thought.
The first impression he'd had of the Doctor had not been a good one. Returning to his base camp in the New Forest, covered in mud and soaking wet, he had been on the wrong side of a foul mood even with a promising new lead on their operation. With the appalling weather almost deliberately hampering their efforts, all Peter had initially seen was a liability sitting at his desk with his muddied feet stretched out across his piles of paperwork.
Granted UNIT had been set up in part because of the Time Lord, but his blasé attitude towards what he and his team were capable of hadn't helped change his mind.
He had cast Rose Tyler off even before giving her a second look. She was just another name on the list of the Doctor's travelling associates, a human girl who might end up traumatised or even dead as a result of her being swept off her feet by the mad man in a blue wooden police box.
Within the space of two weeks, however, whatever reservations or doubts over their capabilities had flooded out of Peter just as quickly as they had appeared. Both of them were more capable than so many of the highly trained operatives he'd worked with before, and more importantly, they had the spirit and compassion required to do some real good wherever it was they ended up.
"Thank you." He told them sincerely. "Look, I know I haven't really said it before, but…"
A minuscule shift in the direction of the wind changed everything.
The foul smell of something burning alerted Peter to a section of the city just a few streets away from the square. Gazing over the nearest of the tiled rooftops, his eyes went wide as he saw a great plumage of thick black smoke rising up into the otherwise unpolluted air.
Several of the other Nimarians had caught hold of the scent too and were pointing in the direction of what looked to be a raging fire that was burning away right in the heart of their capital city.