Downfall Of The Daleks
The Doctor handled the gun as he looked around the room. The consoles all beeped and lit as normal, the lights were still running and everything seemed to be perfect. He heard a noise coming from one of the corridors leading off the control room and he hurried down it – his weapon held in front of him. He followed the noise carefully, closing doors and blast shutters as he did so. The theory, or so he hoped in both his hearts, was that the enemy wouldn't escape out of the TARDIS. For the fifth time in as many minutes, he checked his weapon's ammunition supply and walked forward – sweeping the gun from side to side as he did so as a covering motion.
Crash
"I have got you now" the Doctor cried. He hurried down the corridor towards the library and turned on the lights in the darkened room – catching a glimpse of a shadow slipping into the area about cheese making. Wishing he had his Sonic Screwdriver with him, the Time Lord was forced to walk sideways along one end of the rows of shelves so that his foe had no chance of escaping his grasp.
"I have you now, Doctor…!" a booming voice came over hidden speakers and made the Doctor jump and knock over some books. The noise had surely alerted the terrorist to his presence, so he picked up his pace and went from row to row, but it was to no avail as he spotted nothing and nobody. As despair set into both his hearts and his soul, the sound of clicking had him look up in time to get hit between the eyes – sending him to the floor in surprise. The sharp pain from the terrorist's weapon knocked him senseless for just a moment before the Doctor raised his gun and returned fire. The shot left his gun almost faster than he could track it before hitting his target dead in the chest. The terrorist screamed before falling to a graceful heap on the floor – but recovering slightly and fired at the Doctor again. The Time Lord was forced to overturn a book trolley to use as cover and shoot over the top of it so he was not hit again. The firing lasted for several minutes and was interspersed with the throwing of grenades which caused a lot of damage in the closest shelves and their contents. It took the Doctor several seconds to realise that there was no firing from the enemy, and he took a chance and peaked over the side of the upturned trolley. His foe was waving a white tablecloth as a sign of surrender and he sighed and stood up and aimed at the area around the enemy.
"Come out" he ordered sharply. "Come out with your gun pointed at the floor" he added and the terrorist stood and walked towards the Doctor with their gun pointed towards the floor. "Where is Mandy?" he asked through gritted teeth. "What have you done with her?" and the terrorist laughed.
"The girl is close to us" they said. "If you want to see her alive again, then I suggest you put down your weapon and turn control of this TARDIS to me"
"Never" the Doctor said. "If you do not want me to finish you off, tell me where you have put Mandy" and the terrorist hung their head down as if in defeat. The Doctor relaxed his attitude slightly, and was therefore shocked and horrified when the terrorist brought their gun back up and emptied the rest of their ammunition into his already hurt body. As he lay sprawled on the ground, the terrorist stood over him and removed their balaclava.
"I win again" said the terrorist.
"You little Dalek!" the Doctor cursed and finished of the rest of his own gun's supply – taking the terrorist by surprise. In moments, Mandy was soaked from head to toe like the Doctor was and both had resorted to hand to hand tickle combat.
"I give!" Mandy giggled. "I swear that I give in…!" and the Doctor stopped, jumped up and danced a little jig around the room.
"VICTORY IS MINE!" he crowed. For its part, the TARDIS just trilled a noise of bemusement as it instantly dried off the soaking books, placed them back on the shelves and removed the fragments of water bombs that Mandy had thrown.
"That was fun" said Mandy as she removed her soaking clothes and wrapped herself in the large fluffy towel that appeared out of thin air. "Thank you, Miss TARDIS" she said. "I think that we had better go and change though before the TARDIS gets upset" and the TARDIS made the same noise of bemusement again before blowing hot air around the pair. In moments, their clothes had been reduced from soaking to damp which helped matters a lot. "I'll sort out the lunch when I am changed and dried off" the girl said as she collected her clothes and headed towards the library door.
"I was thinking that we could eat in the living room if you wanted" the Doctor said as he tried to strain water out of his bowtie. "Maybe watch a bit of telly too" and Mandy's face lit up and she raced out of the room. Once she had left, he looked at the two water guns in his hands and tried not to shiver in repulsion. There was no harm in these ones, he knew, but the Doctor hated guns with a great passion. However, he could at least like these ones where the most damage that could be caused was a few soaking clothes and wet carpeting. As an additional bonus, it kept Mandy happy to act like the little girl she was – and the Doctor was a kid who never grew up. "Well perhaps these guns are not so bad" he conceded. He left them on the trolley for the TARDIS to return to the room created for all of Mandy's play toys and dressing up costumes before heading back to his room to change.
# # # # #
As they sat eating lunch after the Battle of the TARDIS, as the Doctor had jokingly called it, the pair went over Mandy's lessons that she had been taking. She showed great talent at Mathematics, Science, History and English. Of course, Mandy was only allowed to learn at stuff suitable for her age and nothing too advanced, but she was doing about as well as could be expected.
"So…" the Doctor drew the word out, "What do you have planned for this afternoon?"
"I was going to finish that book you gave me before answering the question sheet about it. Then I thought I could try the geography and space maps again" she said.
"Sounds good" the Doctor nodded. He was pleased that Mandy took to her lessons well and was not afraid to ask for help if she was stuck. He was also proud of her for putting her fears behind her when she came to save him from the planet-being – even though she was told to stay away and out of danger. That had puzzled him for some time as most of his companions either got captured along with him or otherwise stumbled around and tripped into solutions. Mandy, on the other hand, had come up with something with the help of Merry, got the TARDIS to return for him and then defeated the planet-being with just a few simple words. The girl, he decided, would grow up to be brilliant – fantastic even – and turn out to be the best companion he'd ever hope to have. The Time Lord briefly flirted with the idea of teaching her basic TARDIS piloting but decided it would be a little too much. For now, she'd learn at a normal Human speed and be the girl she should always be.
# # # # #
"I was wondering…"
"Never wonder – I told you that back on the adventure with Merry"
"That's a different sort of wonder" Mandy giggled. "I was wondering if we could go to Earth when that Prime Minister man called. He sounded in a lot of trouble when I spoke to him on the phone"
"Winston is normally in some sort of trouble" the Doctor shook his head. "Alright, let me finish this film and then we'll set the TARDIS to Earth"
"Well of course after the movie" Mandy agreed. The pair of them were relaxing after dinner watching 'Professor What?" – a movie from late 23rd Century Earth about a time travelling person. The Doctor and Mandy had agreed it was nothing at all like how the TARDIS travelled through time. In the film, the Professor could only go to places on Earth – their ship could go through space and time at will. The TARDIS found itself bemused at how Mandy had thought of it as 'her' ship in much the same way that the ship thought of the girl as 'her' human. The girl encapsulated the youthfulness of Susan, the curiosity of Nyssa, the adventurous nature of Sarah Jane and the bravery of Ace. The capsule was proud to have been the host to the only person in recorded history to belt the hell out of a Dalek with nothing more than a baseball bat…!
"Well…" the Doctor got up from the chair and turned off the screen, "I guess we'll set the TARDIS towards 1940's Earth" but there was no reply. He turned to see Mandy with her head drooping down and to one side – clearly having gone to sleep. Chuckling to himself, he scooped the child into his arms and carried her to her room, took off her shoes and cardigan and slipped her under the covers – removing the heavy blanket from the top. He went back to the kitchen, made himself a plate of sandwiches and returned to the control room to set the destination and to make adjustments to certain parts of the TARDIS. Although the ship made most of the adjustments and repairs herself, certain things could only be controlled or worked on manually. Newer models of TARDISes had fully automated flight control, repair and maintenance systems along with advanced offensive and defensive systems. The Doctor had always opposed those being fitted to the TARDIS, so the TARDIS Engineers had retrofitted a lot of technology so that she was unlike any other Type 40 that had ever existed. Apart from the standard features, she now boasted an advanced sensory suite that was for some reason confused between Gamma Hydra Section 10 and Swansea, automated intruder defence systems, atmospheric shielding and a new lightbulb amongst other things. They had even installed tractor beams which had come in handy for towing shuttles, starships and the planet Earth. The Doctor bent to the console and entered a number of commands and looked up at the screen.
Course Set
Destination: Earth
Time Period: 1940
"I know we promised to stay away from a war, old girl, but we never turn our backs on a friend – let's see what we can do to help Winston and then we'll be gone. Maybe we could visit Terminus and spend time with Nyssa, visit Kingfisher and go swimming or we could just cruise around the Horsehead nebula" the Doctor said as he stepped down into the pit under the console and sat in the swing. "Now that I have Mandy to look after and care for, I have to make better decisions in where we go. I can't take her anywhere too dangerous, even if Human children like getting scared, but I know I can not keep her here all the time. Children should be given the freedom they need to grow, but when does freedom become dangerous? And what if she decides she wants to leave us, Old Girl? What would I do then? I have come to think of Mandy as being like the daughter I lost so many years ago… Like the granddaughter I lost so many years ago" he thought about how well Susan and Mandy would have gotten on together. "I suppose that taking her to a secured bunker deep underground is not too bad… Drift around the Vortex for a while, would you? I think that Mandy could do with some sleep"
Aye, Aye, Captain
"Little Dalek…" the Doctor muttered. The TARDIS made a noise in such a manner that the Time Lord was sure his own ship was laughing at him.
# # # # #
After Mandy had woken and had as much breakfast as she could hold, she took a look at what the Doctor had picked out for her. The long dress was not something she liked, but the blouse, cardigan and shoes she fell in love with and she combined it with a dark burgundy pleated skirt. Once back in the control room, she showed off her outfit to the Doctor who smiled and said she looked very nice in it. Before activating the dematerialization circuits, the Time Lord gave Mandy a quick review of the time period and reminded her to say nothing about the events of the future in case things were changed.
"I promise to try hard" she solemnly said.
"I know you will, Mandy, but I just want to make sure you don't get hurt" the Doctor replied. He gave her a hug before turning to the console and throwing a lever downwards – starting the process of landing at the designated time and location. A few seconds later, the TARDIS made a noise that the Doctor had created for Mandy's benefit to indicate they had landed on a planet, ship or space station. It could also, in extreme emergencies, also be used to tell her that dinner was ready and on the table. The girl skipped down the ramp and opened the door and peeked outside – only to have a couple of rifles pointed into her face and dragged out and pushed to the floor.
"Help!" she cried.
"MANDY!" the Doctor ran down the ramp, barged through the doors and was confronted by three soldiers holding rifles with a forth struggling to hold Mandy to the floor – face firmly implanted to the ground. "Let her go" he growled.
"Who are you? How did you get inside this building? What is that?" demanded one of the soldiers.
"I am the Doctor. None of your business. That is my ship, the TARDIS" and the ship started to make a loud humming noise as it built up with power, "And she's very upset with you for hurting my dau- my charge" he stared at the three barrels pointing at him. "If you do not want the TARDIS to kill you where you stand, I suggest you let Mandy go, get rid of those guns and get hold of Winston"
"We give the orders around here" said another of the solders. "Are you a spy for the Germans?"
"If I was, would I admit it?" the Doctor asked sarcastically.
"Ah, you men may stand at…" the new voice was cut off by a large and well rounded man pushing through the three standing soldiers. He'd caught sight of the restrained Mandy on the floor and ordered her to be released.
"But, Sir, they've broken through all our secure-" the soldier holding Mandy broke off with a pained yell as she bit him on the hand. "You little bitch" the man cursed and slapped her hard across the face. Time slowed for the Time Lord as he watched the impact and saw Mandy's head hit the concrete wall hard with a slight thudding noise. The Doctor was a man of upmost peace and hated war in most of its basic forms, even in his War incarnation his actions had brought about peace, but all that was abandoned to the vortex as he sprang forward and rained down fist after fist on the soldier. The man yelled in rage as he vented his anger and it took the combined efforts of the other three soldiers and the man to pull the Doctor off.
"You three – place this man under arrest and place him in the guardroom. General Dill will be informed of this and will decide what to do to you. Dismiss" and the three dragged their arrested comrade away. "Doctor? I regret wholeheartedly what just happened. We are fighting for our lives here, so we are on edge, but nothing can excuse attacking a small child like your friend here"
"If you hadn't dragged me off him, Winston, I would have killed him" the Doctor held the sobbing Mandy to him tightly and tried to calm her down.
"I think" Winston Churchill said, "That I would have done much the same. If you want to leave, nobody would blame you at all"
"No, I promised to help you and I will. I'll be back in a few minutes – I'm taking her back into the TARDIS to get looked after"
"Very well, Doctor. You know where to find me, I have no doubt about that" and Churchill turned around and walked back up the corridor.
#
It was not for a few hours that the Doctor emerged from the TARDIS with Mandy gripping his hand tightly and flinching in fear at some of the soldiers who looked back at her. In those two hours, she had been checked by the Doctor and the TARDIS together before sending her off for a nap – then had a cup of tea as tea solved everything.
"Ah, you are just in time" Churchill said as he noted the pair's arrival. "We have another raid coming in from the south east"
"I can't do anything to interfere" the Doctor said.
"I know that, but I thought you might like to see our newest weapons – developed by one of the best boffins I have ever met" Churchill pushed the papers he was holding away from him, rose from his chair and headed to the door – cigar gripped between two fingers. He led the way to the top of the building and onto the roof. It was ringed by a wall of sandbags three feet high, two feet thick and armed soldiers stood looking out in all directions over the city. On the upper most part of the roof stood a man in a tin hat and white lab coat and gazing into the sky with a pair of binoculars.
"Ah, Prime Minister" he noticed the three approaching and gave a little wave before glancing back at the sky.
"This is one of our chaps, Edwin Bracewell" Churchill made the introductions. "He came out of nowhere, Doctor, and is one of the best boffins we have to fight this war. The things this man comes up with I would never have been able to dream about"
"Excuse me, Prime Minister, but the Germans are almost in range" Bracewell said.
"Ah… Observe, you two, at what we have got now to keep us safe from the German threat"
"Left a bit… Right a bit… Right, hold it there" Bracewell spoke to something just out of view of Mandy and the Doctor. "And fire!" and there was a slight whirling noise which had the Doctor frown at and then he and Mandy looked as many bolts of energy leapt into the air – hitting all of the incoming planes and destroying utterly and without mercy.
"That's not possible" the Doctor said.
"But it is" Churchill said. "Thanks to Bracewell's Ironsides, we can defend London and then the rest of the country before we go on and liberate Europe from the heel of Nazi aggression"
"Ironsides?" the Doctor's facial expressions changed so many times that Mandy was unable to understand how he was feeling.
"Are you okay, Doctor?" Mandy asked.
"No… That should never have happened – whatever it is, it was not Human technology" he looked up at Bracewell. "Show me! Show me what that was"
"Of course" and he glanced back behind him. "Advance" and slowly, Mandy saw an egg whisk come round the corner of some sandbags followed by a sink plunger. A moment later, and a machine that she had seen only in history books came to her vision.
"I AM YOUR SERVANT!" the Dalek declared loudly. "I WILL WIN THE WAR FOR THE COUNTRY!" it added.
"No…" the Doctor went as pale as a sheet as a ghost appeared before his very eyes. "You can not be here" and Mandy summed it up very well by standing in front of the Doctor and staring right back at mechanical box of death and destruction.
"What is a Dalek doing in the second world war? Get lost!"
"I AM YOUR SOLDIER! I WILL WIN THE WAR! VICTORY! VICTORY! VICTORY!"
"Like hell" the Doctor muttered. He blinked in confusion as he finally noticed that the girl had stood into danger by placing herself between the Dalek and himself. She knew as well as he did that the Dalek would not show any kind of mercy or pity, and his hearts filled him with joy and sadness that Mandy would willingly risk her life to save his.
Him – The Destroyer Of His Own Kind…
"Winston – a word, if you please. You! Come along as well" he gave Mandy a hug and bent down to whisper something to her. "I want you to go back to the TARDIS and press the large red button and state 'Arm Emergency Program One' and then come back to me"
"That means you are sending me away" Mandy glared at the Doctor. "Friends help each other – I'm staying"
"Oh… Fine then" the Doctor sighed and followed Churchill, Bracewell and one of the Daleks with Mandy right by his side.
#
"Doctor, I do not understand you at all… These are my Ironsides"
"Indeed" agreed Churchill. "I have seen the plans myself, the results of field tests, reports by London District's 22nd Armoured Brigade… Everything says that Bracewell invented them"
"Winston, these things invaded my home, killed my people and destroyed my planet. All of the Time Lords died except for me – so I know a Dalek when I see one!" he pointed at the patiently waiting machine.
"If this is the case, then how do I have memories of creating them?" asked Bracewell. "It doesn't make sense"
"Excuse me, Ironside" Mandy had been thoughtful for the entire time the adults had been discussing things and arguing.
"YES?"
"What is your name?"
"I DO NOT HAVE A NAME"
"Okay… How do we know that you are you and not another Ironside?"
"WE HAVE UNIT DESIGNATIONS!"
"And what is your designation?"
"UNIT DESIGNATION IS DALEK OMICRON DELTA THETA TWO SIX NINE OMEGA!" and there was a pause as the Doctor, Bracewell and Churchill fell silent and turned to watch the Dalek – Churchill pulling Mandy away.
"GUARDS!" he bellowed. The door to his office flew open and soldiers marched in with weapons drawn. The Dalek turned to face them and, in less than a second, had gunned down all five of them.
"Stop this… I created you to obey orders" Bracewell pleaded.
"THAT IS INCORRECT. YOU WERE CREATED BY US AS COVER FOR THE DALEK MASTER PLAN"
"What Master Plan? What are you talking about?" the Doctor frowned.
"YOU KNOW OF US?"
"I am the Doctor and you are the Daleks" and, to the surprise of everybody, the Dalek backed off two feet.
"TESTIMONY NOW BEING TRANSMITTED!"
"Testimony?" Churchill asked.
"THE TESTIMONY OF A NON DALEK WAS REQUIRED"
"Why?"
"IT WAS"
"Yes, but why a non Dalek? What did you need the testimony for?"
"TO IDENTIFY OURSELVES"
"Why?"
"TO COMPLETE THE PROGENITOR" and without another word, the Dalek vanished in a beam of light – first firing a blast at Bracewell and taking his left hand off below the wrist.
"Where did it go?" asked Mandy.
"It Transmatted out… There must be a ship nearby or that would not have been possible" the Doctor's mind worked overtime. "Mandy, I know you want to go with me, but this is something that is very dangerous and has no place for a girl your age"
"I will take care of her" Churchill said. "I do not know what magic you are going to perform, my old friend, but go with my prayers and hopes"
"I will" the Doctor nodded sharply before bending to give Mandy a tight hug that the girl returned in equal strength. "I will be back as soon as I can, Amanda. I have to go and stop the Daleks from whatever it is they are going to do, and it is too dangerous for you to follow"
"I don't want to lose you" tears spilled from her eyes and down her face and off her cheeks. "What would I do without you?" she sobbed.
"Now you just see here, Amanda Tanner – I will go and kick arse and come strolling back with the t-shirt from the gift shop"
"Promise to be careful?"
"I promise"
"Special promise?" she sniffed and the Doctor rolled his eyes.
"I swear that I, The Doctor, will come home alive and well from my battle with the Daleks, and that if I lie to Mandy she may throw my supply of Fish Fingers and Custard into deep space"
"And?"
"And I have to eat three plates of Brussel Sprouts. Now, while you are down here, see if you can find anything that the Daleks might have been reading about. It will most likely be in the Skaro tongue, but it will look like technical manuals and you know what they look like"
"What about Robocop?" she glanced at Bracewell.
"I think we can leave him for tonight" the Doctor said. He said nothing else as he walked inside the TARDIS and, within second, vanished from sight.
"There goes a brave man" Churchill said.
"The bravest person I know" Mandy wiped the last tears from her face. Suddenly, the lights all came on at once and at full brightness. A man in the uniform of a Wing Commander in the RAF hurried through the doors and sought out the Prime Minister.
"What is the meaning of this?" Churchill demanded
"The generators won't switch off. The lights are on all across London, Prime Minister" he said.
"Has to be them. It has to be the Daleks" Mandy said
"The Germans can see every inch of the city. We're sitting ducks. Get those lights out before the Germans get here. I do not care if you have to smash every lightbulb in the city – just get it done!" Churchill said. "Come on, Miss Tanner… There is work to be done" and the three hurried to the plotting room.
#
On the orbiting spacecraft, the Doctor was arguing with the Daleks when they had turned on the lights in the entire city of London below.
"Turn those lights off now" he said with venom in his voice. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out the first object that he touched and pulled it out. "Turn London off or I swear I will use the TARDIS self-destruct"
"And destroy yourself? A stalemate, Doctor - Leave us and return to Earth" the gold Dalek was more softly spoken.
"If it meant saving the planet below, then yes I think I would"
"You would not use such a device"
"Try me" and one of the Daleks started to move towards him. "Ah, ah, ah, ah, ah. No scans. No nothing. One move and I'll destroy us all, you got that?"
"YES" the loud khaki coloured one spoke for the first time since the Doctor had come aboard.
"Leave this ship and we will spare the planet below" the gold one turned to look at the loud one before looking at the Doctor again.
"Oh, that's it. That's your great victory? You leave?" the Doctor was angry, confused and worried for Mandy's safety – though she was safer on Earth if something happened to him on the Dalek ship.
"Extinction is not an option. We shall return to our own time and begin again thanks to Dalek supremacy"
"No, no, no. I won't let you get away this time – I have spent too much time, spent so many lives and killed too many people to let you get away with it this time… I won't"
"But it is too late, Doctor - we have succeeded in our plans. The DNA reconstruction is complete. Observe, Doctor, a new Dalek paradigm" and the opaque covered door at the back swished open and bigger and brightly coloured Daleks came through
"The Progenitor has fulfilled our new destiny. Behold, the restoration of the Daleks. The resurrection of the master race"
"Heard that one before…" the Doctor shuddered slightly as he remembered something in a past life.
#
In the map room, there was a frenzy of activity as reports came in by telegraph, runner and telephone.
"Thousands will die if we don't get those lights out now" Mandy said.
"Five hundred German bombers sighted over the Channel, sir. ETA sixteen and a half minutes, sir" a woman said.
"Here they come" Churchill said quietly to Mandy and gave one of her hands a squeeze in support. "Get a message to Mister Attlee. War Cabinet meeting at oh three hundred hours. If we're all still here, that is…" he added darkly.
"Sir!" the Wing Commander came back up to Churchill. "Twenty Six, Forty One, Fifty Six, Two Four Four and Six Oh Four are airborne and flying here as fast as they can manage. 10 Group is sending whatever they can spare, but that will not be for at least half an hour"
"We're playing for time… We are playing for time, Miss Tanner, and it is running out" Churchill looked at the map of London before him.
"We can't just sit here. We've got to take the fight to the Daleks" Mandy said.
"But how? None of our weapons are a match for theirs. And we need to find their ship anyway"
"We must have something"
"Nothing that would even work against their technology" the Prime Minister replied. "We can only trust that the Doctor will be able to shut down whatever is causing the lights to come on"
"Can we shoot them with a rocket?"
"Nothing that we have could reach into space. And, Miss Tanner, even if we did then it would be so very little. If only the Doctor gave us some of that advanced technology from his ship, we might actually stand a chance"
"Is there anything that I can…" Mandy stopped talking as her mind began to turn in strange ways.
"Are you alright, my dear?" Churchill asked as he saw Mandy's face screwed up hard in concentration.
"We don't need the Doctor this time" she said with a massive smile on her face.
"We don't?"
"We've got Dalek technology"
"But they went up to their ship"
"Yeah – but they left Robocop"
"Bracewell?"
"They built him so they could disguise themselves and hide. But they also gave him a lot of their smartness to come up with all those ideas…"
"Bracewell would help us?"
"Worth a try" Mandy said as she took a look at the mass of German planes coming towards London.
"Sir?"
"Yes? What is it, young woman?" Churchill demanded of a young woman.
"Aircraft report the inclusion of transport planes in the bomber formation"
"My god… We're being invaded. Time until they can reach London?"
"Eight minutes flying time, Sir"
"Group Captain – do we have anything at all that can be added to shoot them down?"
"Only bombers, Prime Minister"
"Then send them up at once. Come, Miss Tanner, we've got to find Bracewell"
#
"Ah, I thought you might be here" said Mandy as she and Churchill rushed into the workshop. The newly revealed robot was sat on a stool and was holding a revolver to his head.
"Put down the gun" the Prime Minister ordered.
"My life is a lie, and I choose to end it" Bracewell replied.
"Would you mind doing that in your own time, please? You see, we really right now we need your help"
"But those creatures, my Ironsides, they made me? I can remember things. So many things. The last war. The squalor and the mud and the awful, awful misery of it all. What am I? What am I?" he asked with an all too human expression of anguish.
"What you are, sir" Churchill said, "Is either on our side or theirs. Now, I don't give a damn if you're a machine, Bracewell. Are you a man?
"Listen to me. I understand. Really, I do. I've lost my entire family and everything I held precious… Look, there is a spaceship up there lighting up London like a Christmas tree. Thousands of people will die tonight if we don't stop it, and you are the only one who can help me take it down"
"I am?"
"Of course you are - you're alien technology. The Daleks built and put their technology into your mind. What about rockets? You got rockets? Because you said gravity whatsits thingiemabobs, hypersonic flight, some kind of missile"
"It isn't a fireworks party, Miss Tanner" Churchill said, "We need proper tactical. Oh… A missile. Or…"
"Or what?"
"We could send something up there, you say?"
"Yes, well, with a gravity bubble, yes" Bracewell picked up a large drawing pad of paper that had figures and diagrams and notes that neither Mandy or the older and wiser Chruchill could make sense of. "Theoretically it's possible that we could actually send something into space"
"How long would it take for you to get one of these made?" Churchill asked.
"Well I already made some of them" admitted Bracewell. He gestured with his remaining hand towards three sets of odd looking equipment that sat in a corner of the room.
"This is the PM" Churchill spoke after dialing in a number. "I want a car at the surface ready to take some equipment to Croydon – as fast as you can make it. Miss Tanner, I think we might just make it" and Mandy smiled warmly and Churchill got the impression that he would live to see another day.
#
The fighters and bombers managed to stem the tide of the advance of the Germans, and news came through that a reply to the Dalek aggression was ready and waiting.
"Tell me, Miss Tanner" Churchill rumbled quietly with some trepidation evident in his tone, "Is this going to work?"
"Well…" Mandy frowned as she thought about how to reply. "I don't know if I am supposed to say this, but in the history that I knew about this never ever happened. Might work, or it might not…"
"In other words 'KBO'?"
"KBO?"
"Keep Buggering On" and Mandy giggled.
"Yes" and then frowned once again. "I wish the Daleks were here"
"Why?" Churchill was startled by the comment.
"I was promised tea…"
"Somebody get the girl some tea" Churchill ordered. "Are our planes ready and waiting?"
"Just set for your orders, Prime Minister" Bracewell said. He carried some equipment into the room and was helped to set it up. "If Dalek communications are anything like radio waves, we should be able to pick them up using this" he said. A few wires plugged in, and the screen on a display unit lit up and showed a video image of the Doctor being faced by newer and bigger versions of what they had already seen. The other ones were not in range of the camera, and they wondered why this was.
"Question is, what do we do now? Either you turn off your clever machine or I'll blow you and your new paradigm into eternity" the Doctor held something in front of him.
"What is he holding?" asked one of the women quietly.
"I think… I do not believe it" Mandy smiled despite the situation and shook her head.
"What is it, Miss Tanner?"
"The Doctor is holding off an alien invasion with a Jammie Dodger"
"Are you sure he isn't British?" chuckled Churchill.
"And yourself"
"Occupational hazard" the Doctor said after a moment's thought.
"Scan reveals nothing. TARDIS self destruct device non-existent"
"All right, it's a Jammy Dodger, but I was promised tea!" the Doctor stuffed the biscuit into his mouth as an alarm could be held.
"Alert. Unidentified projectile approaching. Correction, multiple projectiles" one of the Daleks announced.
"What have the humans done?" asked the one that seemed to be in charge.
"I don't know" the Doctor replied honestly as he looked at a Dalek display screen. At the exact same instant, the bunker's speakers crackled into life.
"Top Hat Control to Black Hawk leader"
"Go ahead"
"Vector Two Three Zero and engage enemy bogey"
"Bogey in sight, Control. Black Hawk leader to A and B flights – turn to port and steer Two Three Zero. Engage enemy aircraft and destroy"
"Wilco, leader"
"Orange section, follow me and make a pass topside" and, in space, an entire squadron of Supermarine Spitfires peeled off into several groups to attack from different points.
"Top Hat Control from Velvet Leader, am closing in to the attack – intend to engage" a squadron of Hawker Hurricanes rose from the planet to join in the attack.
"Roger" came the almost cheerful reply. Over the next few minutes, reports came in from the pilots as the pilots were blown up by the Daleks weaponry.
"Black Hawk leader to the Doctor. Are you receiving me, over?"
"Loud and clear"
"If it is not too much trouble, Sir, could you do something about the shield?"
"I can disrupt them, but only for a minute or so. You will have maybe one or two tries at it"
"Good show, Doctor. Right, chaps… Form in–" the pilot was cut off as the Dalek weaponry targeted his plane and blew him apart.
"Top Hat control, Red Three – I'm afraid that leader's bought it"
"Roger"
"All aircraft, this is Red Three. I am assuming command. Form up in a wedge and target the dish on the side of the ship. Good luck, everybody… We're going in – TALLY HO!" and the surviving Spitfires and Hurricanes bunched together for maximum effect and made two passes at the dish – knocking it out on the second pass. "Red Three to the Doctor"
"Yes?"
"Orders?"
"Destroy this ship"
"Nooooooooooooo" Mandy gasped as she heard the Doctor give the order.
"What about you, Sir?"
"I'll be alright… Got a little trick up my sleeve to keep the shield down before getting back down to Earth"
"Black Hawk Red Three and Velvet Squadron, this is Top Hat Control – order is confirmed. You are ordered to fire on the ship and destroy it utterly"
"Roger" Red Three said, and led the survivors of the two squadrons in multiple attacks against the Dalek vessel – finally sending it up in a ball of flame that was quickly extinguished.
"Velvet Green Two here. I have two small objects shooting at me from the debris"
"Top Hat Control here – engage and destroy"
"Wilco" and Velvet Green Three swung round and blasted both Daleks with its enhanced weaponry – ironically derived from their own guns. "Target destroyed"
"Top Hat Control to all planes – vector zero five zero and return to base"
"Roger that, Top Hat Control. Lets go home, chaps, and down some beers" and, after performing a victory roll, they turned their tiny craft back towards the planet to return to base.
#
Mandy looked at the cheering group of people in the room and gripped her teacup tightly.
"Whatever is the matter?" asked Churchill.
"The Doctor was still on that ship when it blew up" she trembled. "Do you think he got off it in time?"
"I am most certain, my dear" the Prime Minister replied, only half hearing a report that the lights had all gone out and the incoming planes had been destroyed utterly at the cost of a number of their own crews. "One of the things you can expect of the Doctor is that that man will almost always end up doing the unexpected"
"Mmm…" Mandy glanced at the map that still showed the positions of the various squadrons and flights. "Do you think he made it off?" she looked at Churchill.
"I can say without a doubt" he replied as a familiar sound drifted through the office, "That I do believe he did" and the TARDIS shimmered into existence.
"Miss me?" the Doctor said as the door opened.
"Daddy!" Mandy dropped her tea over plans to invade parts of Africa and rushed over and gripped the Time Lord in as tight a hug as she could manage. "I thought you had died"
"Been there – done that" the Doctor returned the hug. "Got the t-shirt. Speaking of which…" he reached into his pocket and pulled out a t-shirt in her size. In the front of which bore the legend
I BATTLED THE DALEKS
AND ALL I GOT WAS
THIS LOUSY T-SHIRT
"Oh you…" and she hugged him once again. "I really thought that I had lost you" she broke down into tears.
"Exploding Dalek ships killing me and my TARDIS? Bah…" he waved his hand dismissively. "I have been through worse as it happens. It takes a lot to kill me off, and believe me when I say that a lot of people, creatures and machines have tried. Tell me" he settled into the only other armchair that was in Churchill's office, "How did you manage to get fighter planes up there?"
"Ah, Doctor" Churchill puffed on the cigar some more and put it down in an ashtray, "That was young Miss Tanner here. She realised that that Bracewell fellow had to have the same intelligence as the Daleks. After a bit of persuasion, we managed to get some of those wonders of his into some fighters and direct them up to you"
"You do know that I have to take that lot away, Winston" and the Prime Minister nodded.
"I would like to keep them, but I know that that is not the way of things" he said. "I have, however, given orders it is to be placed under guard should this sort of menace ever happen again"
"Alright" the Doctor replied. "Now then…" he glanced at Mandy and then back again "Any chance of meeting Clemmie? Last time we met up was just after your…"
"My what?"
"Your funeral" he finished quietly.
"So I die"
"Everybody dies, Winston?"
"Not you"
"Oh, I will die one day when all of my lives are spent up"
"Not for a long time, I hope"
"A very long time"
"What say you, Doctor, to meeting my wife and then taking in a show at the Palladium before a late dinner?"
"Sounds great" the Doctor nodded. "We'll get into something a bit more fitting for the times" and they made a few more arrangements before leaving the office and entering the TARDIS. Mandy skipped up the slight ramp before looking back at the Doctor who was leaning on the door with merriment on his face.
"What?" she asked.
"Daddy?" he asked with an amused look and tone.
It didn't help when the TARDIS herself decided to laugh
A/N:
Okay, yes, I know the episode didn't go this way, but what I say goes! Not much really to say other then I hope you like the chapter and will review it.
Okay, for those that didn't know... The callsigns for the two squadrons and the control point are from the film 'The Battle of Britain' – a masterpiece of cinematic history. I made the decision to include a squadron of Hurricanes as one can not have the Spitfires without the Hurricanes in such a big fight. The way they spoke is also taken from lines in the film. Incidentally, the line about sending bombers up to deal with an incoming wave is not that outlandish as it did happen on occasions in Scotland. Also, in the episode this chapter is based on, "Victory of the Daleks" a comment is made about "604 Squadron" being airborne – in 1940 604 was a squadron of Blenheim Bombers…
The mention of General Dill by Churchill is correct as that officer was Chief of the Imperial General Staff and would have been in the bunker at some point in 1940 time. Also, London District's 22nd Armored Brigade comment is quite correct according to the list of garrisons listed for 1939/1940.
Also, changed the soldiers from Marines to regular army soldiers after paying close attention to the shoulder flashes and the webbing.
You have to admit, folks, that I make sure the details are as accurate as possible…
Once again, Mandy has used the term 'Daddy' but this is not what you might think. She just went through more stress then a preteen should ever have to go through, and trust me when I say *I* am the expert in that. She's just seen the only real person she can stay with come back out of an exploding spaceship and automatically used that word for the Doctor. The good Time Lord and the TARDIS are both somewhat amused by it. Also, I hope the opening made you wonder – shortly before we got Mandy randomly taking off her clothes in front of the Doctor!
Next up will be the fan favourite 'The Doctor's Wife' although it may be anything up to two or three weeks before this gets started on. This is due to the fact that I will be writing for other fics that I have neglected to write for – for information on what stories are due up in the next month or so, please check my homepage
Anyway – I hope you will review the story if you've enjoyed it. If you have a problem with it, then also review and I will try to read your problems and all that…
Pixel and Stephanie