The Invasion of Zamber Zoom
Dale tip-toed as quietly as he could through the foliage. He crept along the edge of a long, metal perimeter fence. He was about thirty Earth years old, had long hair tied back in a pony-tail, and dressed in casual, loose-fitting clothes. He crouched down and looked around. Nobody was about. And the only sounds were of small nearby birds and the gentle breeze through the trees. He took out a pocket telescope and scanned the spaceport field on the other side of the fence before him. The spaceport had several terminal buildings, hangars, conventional spacecraft… and one alien spaceship! An actual alien spaceship just sitting there out in the open, and nobody seemed to know anything about it! How blind could people be!?
He heard a distant rumbling up above! He pointed his small telescope up to the sky and saw another alien space craft! This one was gigantic! It was black, had several large projections from a central base, and had a sort of organic look to it with sweeping curves, and a strange skin-like texture to its surface. The alien craft drifted almost arrogantly down towards the space port. It slowed and slowed and then set down very softly on the surface of the planet. His planet! Zamber Zoom!
Then he heard footsteps approaching through the brush nearby. A security guard was moving in his direction! Dale was too exposed where he was. He would have to find cover! He turned and ran through the woods. It was dusk, so his vision wasn't very good. He tripped and got up again two times. There were several guards now, and not far behind. He could hear them shouting to one another, trying to head him off.
But eventually he gave them the slip by ducking down in some thick bushes and holding very still. He could hear their footfalls in the underbrush as they ran off. Trying to breath as quietly as he could, Dale almost wept from exhaustion. He didn't know what to do. He didn't know who would believe him. But he did know that nothing would ever be the same again. Zamber Zoom had been invaded!
#
"Zamber Zoom," the Doctor said to Peri. "I promise you, you'll love it. It's an idyllic little planet. Green hills, rolling countryside."
"Is it anything like the Eye of Orion?" Peri asked sarcastically.
The Doctor frowned in confusion. "Perhaps a little. Why do you ask?"
"No reason," she said sweetly.
The TARDIS's central column slowed to a rest. They had materialized. The Doctor double-checked they had arrived where and when he had intended. He was off by a few miles and a few years. But it was at least the right planet in the right century. Was there some way he could brag about that? Peri would never know. So he straightened up, stood tall and proud and announced, "Bang on target." He opened the doors and led the way outside. "Come on!"
It is idyllic, Peri thought to herself. She wore a white leotard and short wispy blue dress, and the temperature suited her just fine.
They stood in the middle of a beautiful green landscape, surrounded by trees and thick bushes in the distance. Nearby they could hear water rippling. There was a river just ahead.
The Doctor, still getting used to his new leather jacket and simple black trousers, looked around, recognizing where they were. "That would be the Nayinga River." He checked the location of the sun. "Therefore the city of Frandleton should be," he turned around to face the opposite direction, "that way."
After a moment's pause, he said, "Right! I'm going to go fishing. Feel free to come along, or explore the city or country side. Whatever you like."
Peri looked in the direction the Doctor had pointed for the city he had called Frandleton. "Maybe I'll find a library; learn something about this place. Hang on," she suddenly worried that an alien library would do her no good. "Are they even human here?"
"Oh, yes. This is a human colony. They're very friendly here. You shouldn't have any trouble at all." He walked back to the TARDIS to get his fishing rod.
"Why does that sound like famous last words?"
The Doctor, almost inside the TARDIS paused, leaned his head back and said "Because you're a pessimist, my dear!" And then he popped inside the time machine.
Peri looked around. She puffed slightly, turned and headed for the nearby town.
#
It was only a five minute walk before she was amongst several small buildings and people walking around, going about their own business. It looked like a small European town out of the 1900s more than anything else, Peri thought. The writing on the signs or shop windows was in English. There were shops, houses, cobblestone roads, bicycles, but no cars or other advanced vehicles. Everyone was dressed very casually, with loose flowing garments seeming to be in the majority: open shirts, skirts, kilts, and even kimonos and other sorts of robes. Her own very tight leotard was therefore slightly out of place. But nobody seemed concerned about it or her as they walked past. In face several people smiled at her in a polite, disinterested way.
After wandering about for a few minutes past the shops and homes, she came across a library. Hoping to find something about the local history, and went inside. It was a nice sized library. The sections were clearly labeled in English. She quickly found the history section and started exploring it. Eventually, she found a book called, "The Earth Exodus and Settlement of Zamber Zoom." In it, she discovered that this colony world had been settled in the Earth year 5315. And most of the people who chose to settle here were very environmentally conscious. That probably explained the lack of automobiles. She found a comfortable chair nearby, settled into it and continued to read the book.
#
The Doctor sat by the side of the river, waiting for a fish to interrupt his relaxation. Eventually, he heard someone psst him. He chose to ignore it. If it was important enough, then whoever was doing it could just jolly well come out and speak to him properly! But then whoever it was did it again! Psst!
Without even turning to see who it was, he sighed in exasperation and raised his voice very loudly and clearly, "Is somebody trying to get my attention!?"
"I need your help," hissed a nearby bush.
Help? Something that even at the grumpiest of times, the Doctor never ignored. "Oh, all right!" He reeled in the empty fishing line, got up, and approached the bush, fishing rod in hand. He glanced about briefly to make sure this wasn't an ambush instead of just a regular bush (smirking to himself at the pun in his head). "Help with what, exactly?"
From his hiding place inside, Dale leaned close to the outer edge of the bush so that he and the Doctor could face one another. "They're trying to catch me. I need you to get a message to my sister. Tell her I'm alive but in hiding."
"Who? Who's after you?"
"Aliens!"
The Doctor's jaw dropped. Then a smile exploded across his face, "Is that all? You mustn't let a few aliens upset you. My friend and I are aliens here, and we're all right. Well, I am. She tends to whine a bit at times. And stutter. But you get used to it. That and her ridiculous accent!"
Dale didn't seem to know what the Doctor was talking about. "No, I mean real aliens. They're mounting a real invasion. And they look like us... but they're not."
"And just where did you see these aliens?"
"At the spaceport. They're working with our government in secret. But I was able to find out about it."
#
About an hour later, the Doctor walked into the local pub. There were three or four patrons, sitting quietly in the dark corners. He walked up to the bar, behind which sat a woman, reading a book. "Good afternoon," he said.
"Can I help you?" she said, setting her book down.
"I'm looking for Carol. Is that you?"
"Yes, I'm Carol."
"Ah. How do you do? I'm the Doctor. I have a message from your brother."
Her entire body sagged as though she had just received a substantial medical bill. "What does he want now?"
The Doctor wasn't sure how to take her attitude. "Well, he said that he's being chased by aliens, and that he's in hiding but that he's all right."
She waited a moment to see if the Doctor had anything else to tell her. And then she finally said, "Tell him thanks." And she went back to her book.
"You don't seem very worried," the Doctor said.
"I'm not really."
"May I ask why not?"
She sighed as she collected her thoughts. She set down her book again. "How can I put this? Dale isn't all there. He's been less than honest before. Tell him if he wants to see me, he knows where I am. And tell him that nobody's chasing him." She picked up her book again.
"He did seem very sincere," the Doctor said temptingly.
"I'm sure he did," Carol replied, not even looking up from her book at this point.
Finally, the Doctor bid her farewell and left the pub. He would have to look into this himself. He looked up and down, chose a direction, and then marched off. He walked up and down the cobblestone roads until he found the library and went inside. There he found Peri sitting in a large, comfortable chair near the entrance, reading a history book. She looked up and smiled.
"Ready to go?" he asked.
She put the book down. "Where are we goin'?"
"To see a man about an alien invasion. Come on." He turned and walked out, not at all concerned if Peri was ready to go or not.
#
They met up with Dale who was still hiding in the bushes by the river. After introducing Dale and Peri, the Doctor said, "Well, I delivered your message to your sister."
"Great. Thank you."
"Look… are you sure about what you've told me? These are aliens that you've seen? Actual aliens actually invading your world?"
"Absolutely!"
"Your sister didn't seem too worried."
Dale shook his head sadly, "I'm not surprised. She has the worst case of willful ignorance I've ever seen. I've tried to tell her about important things before. But unless it comes up and bites her in the backside, she refuses to see it."
Well, it was worth a look anyway, the Doctor thought. And he had to admit that people usually thought he was mad at first whenever he dealt with alien invasions. "Can you take us to this spaceport?"
Dale was clearly distressed at the idea. His breathing immediately became labored. "I don't know."
"Everything will be all right. I assure you."
Peri added, "The Doctor and I do this sort of thing all the time."
The Doctor turned to her, "Not all the time, surely?"
She nodded, "Pretty much."
#
They walked for just over an hour before they arrived at the outer perimeter fence of the spaceport. There were airplanes and spaceships here and there. "Where are these alien spaceships?" the Doctor demanded.
Dale shot his arm out straight, "There!"
And the Doctor saw it! "Zygons!"
Peri asked, "Who, who are the Zygons?"
"Shape-shifters from another world. I'd better take a closer look."
The Doctor took out his sonic lance and made a hole in the chain-link fence. They squeezed through and then walked across the airfield. There were other people here and there, but the Doctor adopted his usual policy of acting like he owned the place. They got all the way up to the Zygon ship without being stopped.
The Doctor got a good look at it up close and touched it gently with his hand. He turned to Peri and Dale and said, "It's definitely a Zygon space ship. And they are definitely not native to Zamber Zoom."
"No, they're not," said the security guard behind them. "Can I help you?"
Before they could answer, another security guard showed up, "What you got here, Brian?"
And then another, "Problem, you guys?"
Three minutes later, the Doctor, Peri and Dale were locked up in a single small room with four chairs and a table.
Peri said, "Doctor, I'm confused. Why exactly are we worried about these aliens? Have they done something wrong? They're just refugees. And everyone knows about them anyway."
"How do you know all that?"
"I was talking to the librarian about the history book I was reading. And when I said that I was interested because I was from another planet, she just said, 'Oh, you're one of the aliens!' She seemed okay with it."
"Why didn't you tell me this?"
"You didn't ask. And you always act like I don't know anything and you're already on top of it. Anyway, I don't know what's normal around here. And like I said, the librarian didn't seem concerned about it."
Dale said challengingly, "So why are we being held here?"
Peri rolled her eyes, "Because we were in a restricted area without permission."
And after waiting a further twenty minutes, a man entered the small room. He sat down in the available chair and folded his arms on top of the table.
"Good afternoon. I'm Mr. Filip. I need to ask you a few questions."
"Yes?" the Doctor said.
"What were you three doing in the off-limits section?"
"Why don't you tell me what is going on in the off-limits section of yours? Those are Zygons!"
"What, are you racist?"
"No! I'm probably one of the least racist people you'll ever meet."
"I'm glad to hear it. To answer your question, we are allowing them refugee status. They lost their planet some time ago. It's legal and it's moral." The man took a computer pad from his pocket. It was somewhere between a smart phone and an ipad. On the screen was a document explaining their treaty with the Zygons. It was indeed a legal document. And they had indeed been granted refugee status.
The Doctor smiled a very false and embarrassed smile. He turned to Dale and said, "So this isn't an invasion?"
"No," said Mr. Filip. "Where did you get that idea?"
The Doctor kept his eyes on Dale and raised his eyebrows as he waited.
Dale shook his head, "I'm sorry, why would you believe him!? He's with the government! Of course he's lying! Come on! This is an invasion!" he shouted. "They're going to take over our world and replace our brains with their brain-replacement drones! Then they're going to eat us! Don't you understand!? How blind are you!?"
Finally, the Doctor turned back to Mr. Filip, "We're not with him."
Mr. Flip nodded. "I think I understand." He got to his feet, shook the Doctor's and Peri's hands, then offered to shake Dale's. Dale, however, just glared at the proffered hand. "Someone will be re-joining you in a few minutes."
He left the room. Nobody knew what to say. A few minutes later another man came in and then promptly morphed into a penguin. "Tada!" They looked blankly at him. "It's me! Frobisher!"
The Doctor had never seen this man or indeed, this penguin before. But clearly the man/penguin knew them. Obviously, the Doctor deduced, they were dealing with a temporal anachronism. "Frobisher! Yes, of course! How are you?"
They greeted each other warmly. Peri shot a questioning glance at the Doctor over the penguin's head. The Doctor fired back with a shrug. So Peri shrugged back and shook the flipper of the amphibious, flightless bird.
"How ya' been?" Frobisher asked them both.
"Oh, busy," said the Doctor. "Very busy. So tell me what you know of the Zygon situation."
"Sure. They contacted us about a year ago. We negotiated. We let 'em land and live here. Mostly they stick to human form so as not to freak anyone out. Well, so do I, as a matter of fact! Anyway, it's all been kind of dull, really."
"I see. So, now the big question… can you get us out of here?"
"You guys didn't do anything except trespassing. They're all set to let you go anyway. But they gotta fill out the right form first. You know humans."
Frobisher morphed back into a human shape and left the room. Then when they were released twenty minutes later, he escorted the three of them to the perimeter gate. "Listen," he said to the Doctor. "If you wanna learn more about them, you can go to their weekly meeting tonight in the school auditorium. They get together once a week to talk about anything that's bothering them. Everyone's welcome."
"Brilliant. Thank you very much, Frobisher."
"No problem, Doc. Anyway, I gotta get back to work. If you stick around, come and see me. We'll do lunch. Otherwise, it was really good seein' you again."
Frobisher took Peri's hand and shook it firmly, "I'm glad you and the Doc patched things up. You really shouldn't let things, you know, get in the way of real friendship."
Peri bobbed her head vaguely, "Well, you know me and the Doctor."
Frobisher turned to Dale and stuck out a hand. Dale slapped it away, "I know what you are! You're a Zygon too! You're a shape-shifter!"
The Doctor grabbed Dale by the shoulders and steered him away. "Sorry about that," he said to Frobisher over his shoulder as he and Peri marched Dale away.
#
That night, they attended the Zygon meeting in the school's auditorium. As they came into the room, they were in human form, but once inside, they each reverted to their natural Zygon bodies. The Doctor and Peri and about three other humans were the only non-Zygons in attendance.
The meeting came to order and they began addressing their grievances. There were a few personal problems with the locals; nothing major. But the main problem brewing with them was that there was a group of them who had never wanted to come to this planet and wanted to go and find another home. The trouble was that those in charge didn't want to spare one of their two ships. It was apparently an old argument, and one that the minority group felt was still unresolved, and those in the majority were tired of hearing and didn't want to go into again. And that's when tempers started to flare.
"You cannot simply dictate to us!"
"We are not dictating anything. We are simply telling you that those ships can only be used a by majority consent! And the majority wants to stay here and keep our ships here too!"
"So you are dictating to us!"
"No! We are denying ridiculous demands! We decided on majority rule. And the majority has ruled!"
"Who!? Who decided that!?"
"The majority!" And round and round they went.
Then the shoving started! It was about to become a full-scale riot when the Doctor shouted, "STOP!" Everyone in the room froze. "There is no need for violence! Look, if all you want to do is go and settle on another planet, I can take you there! As many as you like."
There were puzzled glances as they all calmed down and caught their breath. "You can?"
"Yes."
"How do we know we can trust you?"
The Doctor didn't quite know how to respond, except the truth, "Because I never lie."
"And just who are you?"
"I am the Doctor. I'm a visitor here as well. And my ship is more than capable of taking as many of you who want to go, to anywhere you want to go."
"You betrayed me, Doctor!" shouted a voice. Everyone turned. It was Dale… standing in the doorway, holding a pistol.
And the of course the Zygons got upset again, "You see!? The humans cannot be trusted!"
The Doctor cautiously stepped in between Dale and the Zygons. He looked deeply into Dale's eyes. He tried very hard to avoid looking deeply into the barrel of the gun.
"Doctor, don't!" Peri shouted.
"Listen to me, Dale," the Doctor said soothingly yet forcefully. "You don't want to do this. Just give me the gun."
"No!"
"You'll only make this worse. And you know that. You know that. Hand me the gun…"
Dale stared back, all anger seeping out of his face like a slow leak. He didn't know it, but the Doctor was a master hypnotist. And before he realized it, the Doctor had a hold of his gun.
Then of course the Doctor had to stop the angry Zygon crowd from hurting Dale. "Stop! Stop! He's no longer a threat to you!"
They were on the verge of lynching the man.
"I have his gun! He's not going to hurt you now!"
Peri too stepped between the Zygons and Dale, shaking, but still side by side with the Doctor who hopefully knew what he was doing.
It became a staring contest for a good few seconds between the Doctor and Peri on one side, and a room full of angry Zygons on the other. There was a lot of heavy breathing, during which time the Doctor realized that Zygons had some of the worst breath he had ever smelled. But in the end, they calmed down again.
"Somebody, go and fetch the authorities," the Doctor ordered. One of the humans ran out to get help. And a few minutes later, the local knight was on the scene. He had come across Dale and his wild theories before, and understood the situation perfectly. He took Dale and the gun, and the meeting quieted down again.
With this show of assistance on their behalf, the Zygons realized they could trust the Doctor after all. And they accepted his offer.
#
The next day, the Doctor took 72 Zygons out of 400 and ushered them and their belongings into his TARDIS. They stretched back and back deep into the time machine's corridors. Some of them even found the swimming pool and dove in! In the console room, the Doctor activated the library computer and tied it into the main screen. He showed their representatives several examples of different planets that were uninhabited, and finally found them one that was much more swamp-like and colder than Zamber Zoom. Perfect! They seemed quite happy with that choice.
The TARDIS materialized in the middle of a beautiful bog. The Doctor opened the doors and the Zygons began filing out, footsteps squelching as they went. It took several minutes for them to all file out. But finally, they all vacated the time machine.
The Doctor and Peri watched them leaving on the scanner screen. And just when the Doctor thought he might go outside and join them and offer advice as they began the task of settling on a whole new world, he heard one of the Zygons say, "Who picked this planet!? You cannot make me live here!" The Doctor eyed Peri, who drooped her head in exasperation. Knowing he was not alone in his feelings, he quickly shut the door and dematerialized the TARDIS. The Zygons would just have to work this one out on their own.
When they were in flight again, Peri turned to the Doctor and asked, "What did Frobisher mean when he said he was happy we patched things up?"
"Peri, it's something that is going to happen in our future. And you have to trust me on this; it's best not to know your own future. Just trust in yourself to make the right decision when you get there."
"I do, but… I don't want to lose you as a friend. You're kind of a jerk sometimes, but I know you don't mean it."
The Doctor was almost lost for words, "Well… you're a far more understanding person than I am."
"I know," she said.
He stuck out a hand and Peri shook it. "Friends," he said.
"Friends," she confirmed.
