Treasure Hunters: Rose Tyler, Jane Smith, and The Mayan Totem
Rating: General Audiences
Pairing: Thirteen/Rose
Other tags: Treasure Hunters AU, Human AU, WWII AU, Inspired by Indiana Jones, Established Relationship
Warnings: None
Summary: Sometimes they traveled with a goal in mind. Sometimes they just stumbled along and made it up as they went. This particular adventure was a little bit of both. Oh, and of course the was the plus of sticking it to the Nazis.
Alright, Day 16! More than halfway done. Wow, that went by both super quickly and super slowly.
The title for this one took forever to come up with for some reason.
Word Count: 941
Rose Tyler couldn't help but laugh as she felt the wind on her face. She heard Jane's whoop of joy from next her and turned to see her partner (both in business and in life) grinning right back at her. The two of them urged their horses forward as they raced across the Guatemalan landscape. Underneath the sounds of their laughter, the wind, and the horses' hooves and breathing, they could hear the military truck and gunfire behind them.
Rose knew that they couldn't let the Nazis get their hands on this Mayan totem. For that matter, they couldn't let the Nazis get their hands on the two of them. Their relationship was no secret, and the Nazis would be sure to make examples of them. Unfortunately, the rainforest made it hard to navigate via horse. Fortunately, it was much harder to navigate with a military vehicle. They guided the horses into the trees, using them for cover and to confuse their pursuers. Knowing the Nazis would probably be back with dogs, they traveled with the current through the water of streams and rivers four times. The sounds of shouting and gunfire gradually became quieter until they disappeared altogether.
When they hadn't heard anything for almost half an hour, they gave themselves and the horses a much needed and well-deserved break near a stream. By nightfall, they'd set up camp in a mostly hidden area and settled in for the night. They didn't dare light a fire but held each other tight for warmth. As they lay on their sides facing each other, Rose couldn't help but bring up questions she'd been asking herself for days.
"What are we doing here, Jane? We have the totem but no clue where it's supposed to be returned to. We don't even know what the bloody thing does. We're on the run, and given our relationship we have no real place to go. It's only a matter of time before we get caught. And we both know what'll happen to us when we do." Jane reaches up to brush hair out of Rose's eyes.
"Darling, when do we ever know anything? Nothing is for certain, it's all just most likely's and probably not's. And this war won't last forever. And no matter how it ends, no matter which side comes out on top, I won't regret doing this. And I certainly won't regret doing it with you. If I'm to go down, I'm going down with a fight." Even in the dim light, Jane's eyes shone with the fierceness that arose fell in love with.
"We have the totem, which is the most important part. We can figure out the rest. We have that map we found in Villa Nueva, and it led us this far. We know the temple is in the area. And when this totem is in its proper place, we'll burn the map. We've got enough supplies for half a month. Hopefully that's enough time." Rose nodded, but still remained doubtful as they fell asleep. Fourteen days was not that long.
As it turned out, Rose needn't have worried as much as she had. They found the temple with no real difficulties at the end of the first week. Jane, the language genius that she was, figured out within two hours how to get inside based off the glyphs on the outside. While her partner was translating and decoding, Rose was setting surprises for any potential guests.
Getting in the temple was easy. Getting through the temple was another story. Despite their best efforts, they triggered several traps and puzzles, including poison darts, a false floor, and one very strange room that held nothing but a stone table measuring one-foot square with a wooden three-inch cube on it.
But they were no ordinary adventurers. They were Jane Smith and Rose Tyler, known in rumor as The Doctor and The Bad Wolf. Between Jane's archeological knowledge and Rose's expertise with puzzles, they got through the temple without major incident. It wasn't until they reached the inner sanctum that they learned what the totem was for. Rose stood by as Jane read the glyphs on the side of the altar. Rose jumped when she suddenly doubled over in laughter. She raised an eyebrow at her partner.
"Um, what exactly are you laughing about? We could have Nazis after us at any minute. We need to replace the totem and get out of here before sealing this temple again." Jane wiped the tears from her eyes before standing up straight.
"This totem wasn't used for success in war. It was for rain! Whoever had translated the glyphs last time must've done it wrong. Understandable, since the glyphs for spear and sun are very similar. We've been fighting for the past month over something that brings rain." Rose couldn't help but join her in laughter. The two of them replaced the totem, taking a moment to marvel at its beauty.
Jane and Rose left quickly after that, not wanting to disturb the temple any more than they already had. However, they stayed and watched their pursuers catch up to them. They knew that they should've been getting as far away as possible, but they couldn't help themselves. It was too tempting to watch Nazi officers in prestige uniforms be covered in mud from Rose's booby traps.
As soon as they saw the traps work, they knew they had to get away before they were discovered. As their horses galloped through the rainforest, Rose realized that Jane was (as usual) right. No matter how the war ended, they were going to give the Nazis hell.