Chapter 21

Nanoneurosurgery

Rose was asleep in bed, feeling wonderfully drowsy and all "fluffy". John was by her side, calling her name. Was it time to wake up already, or did he want to do that thing they did before they had to get out of bed she wondered. She hoped it was the latter. She reached her arms around his neck and pulled him into a glorious snog. Hmm, that was unusual. It felt like he was wearing his long coat. In bed? Mmmm, why not? He was always sexy in that coat, the way it wrapped around his fit body.

'Blimey, is it hot in 'ere, or is it just me?' She heard Donna the House ask. That computer was getting far too cheeky. She'd have to have a word with John about that.

'Rose?' She heard John say again.

'Hmmm?' She opened her eyes and saw the lopsided grin on his face. Behind his really great hair, she was expecting to see the high ceiling of their bedroom, with its coving and cornice. Instead, she saw white painted wooden planks and cross beams, with fluorescent lighting strips.

'Hello.'

John chuckled. 'Hello.'

She turned her head, and saw a hall full of people, with two people nearby, grinning at her. She sat up suddenly. 'Donna! Good to see you . . . I think.'

'It's never dull with you two around, is it?' Donna said with a smirk.

Rose frowned and looked at her husband. 'John. What happened?'

'Cup of tea?' Hubert Leebody asked from above her, holding out a cup on a saucer. 'I've put two sugars in it. I thought you might need a boost.'

'Er, yeah. Thank you,' She replied and took the offered beverage.

'What's the last thing you remember?' John asked her.

'Well. Zoriel made me take the helmet off your head, and I was thinkin' you were a right numpty for not fastenin' the chin strap.' Donna chuckled at that comment. It was just like watching an episode of the show.

'Oh John. Where is Zoriel? Is he all right?' Rose asked.

Donna and Shaun stepped apart, to reveal Zoriel lying fast asleep on the floor. 'He's fine now . . . thanks to you,' John told her.

'Eh?'

'What do you remember after you took the helmet off me?'

'I remember screamin' at Zoriel to stop. I didn't want to lose you. I was thinking about the kids, and how they needed their father,' Rose remembered.

'Ah. Maternal instincts. I bet that's what did it,' John said cryptically. He had to be careful, because Donna and Shaun were listening.

'Did wha . . .' And then she picked up John's thoughts. 'Oh God. Did I have the Bad Wolf vibe goin' on again?'

'Bad Wolf?' Donna asked, but they didn't respond.

John laughed and nodded, and then put two fingers on each of her temples. She was no longer sitting on the stage, holding a cup of tea. She was standing in the middle of the hall, looking past Zoriel to where she stood on the stage, holding the crash helmet.

['I'm sorry Rose. For what it's worth, I really liked you. You showed me kindness,'] she heard Zoriel say. She remembered that.

['ZORIEL,'] she screamed at him from the stage, as he turned back to face her as John. ['Don't do this. I won't let you! Do you hear me?']

And then her voice became calm and emotionless, with an ethereal, almost ghostly quality. ['I forbid it,'] she said, her eyes blazing with golden starlight. Zoriel's own golden eyes paled in comparison.

Bad Wolf waved her hand, and a golden haze drifted through the hall. ['I halt time.'] Zoriel was frozen to the spot, as he himself had frozen the villager's limbs. ['Greater beings than you have tried to take my love from me and failed. For I am the Bad Wolf, and I command all of time and space.']

She held her palm out towards Zoriel and formed a fist. She turned it over and pulled it to her chest. Zoriel turned on the spot and was pulled towards Bad Wolf. As John, Rose followed him towards the stage.

['Your mind is weak. You listen to the paranoid ramblings of others and take them as truth. You use your power without thought, consideration, or wisdom. With power comes responsibility, and you have shirked your responsibility. Therefore, I take that power from you.'] Bad Wolf held her palm out again and it glowed with golden light.

['Rose, be careful. He's part of a whole. He needs to be able to link with the minds of his siblings,'] She heard John call out from where she was standing. He had been silent up to now, wanting to see how it all panned out.

Bad Wolf looked in her direction and smiled at John. And in that smile, she felt such incredible warmth, compassion, and love, that it brought tears to her eyes. ['Fear not my Love. I release him from his burden of responsibility only, not his ability to commune with his kin.']

['Fair enough,'] she heard John say. ['Go for it Sweetheart.']

The golden energy left Bad Wolf's hand and encircled Zoriel's head. His knees gave way, and he crumpled the the floor. ['It is done, and now I return to my rest. I restore time.']

She watched Bad Wolf wave her arm again, and saw herself collapse in a faint. The people in the hall, were either standing or sitting in a fog of confusion. They were convinced that they had been watching John lead the alien boy down the hall towards the doors. But the evidence of their eyes told a different story, because John was now on the stage kneeling next to his wife. They presumed that she must have fainted. Well, she had been quite upset that her husband was leaving her behind. That strange alien boy who they thought had caused all the commotion, was lying on the floor in front of the stage, apparently fast asleep.

'You okay?' John asked, taking the cup and saucer off her and helping her up. Less than a second had passed.

'Yeah. Fine thanks.' She took the tea and had a sip. It was a bit too sweet, but reckoned that the Reverend was right.

'So is anyone gonna explain what just happened here?' Donna asked with her hands on her hips.

John turned towards her and gave her a big, open mouthed grin. 'Donna. There you are. Come here.' He grabbed her into a big, long hug. 'Oh I've missed you.'

'Eh? Missed me when?' Donna asked. She looked over his shoulder at Rose. 'Is he all right?'

Rose laughed. 'He's fine. We both are . . . And this must be Shaun. Pleased to meet you,' she said, holding out her free hand to shake.

John released Donna from the hug and turned to Shaun. 'Ah yes Shaun. Sorry about that. Pleased to meet the man who can keep Donna in check,' he said shaking his hand.

'Oi!' Donna said, and John just grinned at her and winked. A smile spread across her face. 'I can't believe I'm here talkin' to you two. You're just like you are on the telly. I'm SO excited.'

'Me too,' John said in an excited tone of voice. 'It's like you've swallowed a hamster, isn't it?'

Donna stopped. That was the exact phrase she was thinking of. 'Yeah. That's exactly how it feels.'

Behind them, they heard Zoriel start to wake up.

'Look out. Brain boy's wakin' up,' Donna said. 'Shouldn't someone stick the helmet on his head?'

'No need,' John told her. 'He's been fixed. And if I can do another 3D scan of his brain, I can see what changes have been made and duplicate the process.' He went over and helped Zoriel to his feet. 'How are you feeling?'

'Different. Like a weight's been lifted off my shoulders,' Zoriel said with a smile. 'But shouldn't you put the helmet on me? I don't want to cause you any trouble. I . . . I like you and Rose. You have been so kind to me.'

'What do your brothers and sisters think about that?' John asked.

'I don't know. I . . .' It was then that he realised he could feel his siblings in his mind. ['Maltar? Are you there?']

['Zoriel! We thought you had been subdued again. Are you on your way back to us?']

['Soon sister. There is something I must do for Doctor Smith first.']

['What is he forcing you to do now?'] Maltar asked angrily.

['He does not force or coerce as we do, Maltar. You were wrong about him. He has been true to his word. What happened before was an accident, and he has put that right. The people of this world no longer need to fear me, to fear us.']

['And how do we defend ourselves?']

['If we should ever have to, then we will use words and reason, and wisdom, as Doctor Smith does.']

['He seems to have made quite an impression on you, this Doctor Smith.']

['He is wise beyond his years, Maltar. He has much to teach us, and then you will see. I will be with you soon.']

John looked around the hall and found Alice DiMaggio. 'Alice. How's it going? We're going to the TARDIS to do another scan on Zoriel's brain. My job's just got a hell of a lot easier.'

'I'm glad someone's has,' Alice replied.

'What's wrong?' John asked.

'After that little display of Zoriel's talents, the women want nothing to do with these babies. They're all asking for terminations.'

'What? All of them? But I can fix it so that they are normal babies,' said John.

'I've tried to convince them of that, but actions speak louder than words John. They simply don't believe you. And it is their right to make that choice.'

'Damn it. Look, try and convince them to hold off doing anything rash for a couple of days. Give me chance to come up with something.'

'I'll do my best John. Some of them could have conceived naturally, so I'll recommend in vitro DNA tests.'

'Brilliant.' He went back to Rose, Donna and Shaun, and mentally gave Rose the lowdown on the conversation he'd just had with Alice.

'We'd better get a move on then,' Rose said. 'Donna, Shaun. Can I give you a call in a couple of days to come over for dinner?'

Donna beamed a smile. 'Of course Rose. I'll have my phone with me all the time.'

'Don't be surprised if she picks up on the first ring,' Shaun said with a grin. Donna slapped his chest.

'So what are we gonna do about the Dunwich babies John?' Rose asked as he finished the scan on Zoriels brain.

'I'll think of something,' John said. 'Alice is asking them to hold off taking any action for a few days until I can come up with a solution . . . But one problem at a time, eh. Let's sort out the brains first, and then we can worry about the genocide.'

'Is my brain okay?' Zoriel asked.

'Your brain is perfect me old mate, and a perfect template for these,' John said, holding up a rectangular instrument with a keypad and LCD screen on the handle.

'What is that?' Zoriel asked.

'It contains nanogenes,' Rose told him. 'Little molecular robots which can repair or modify individual cells.'

'So they can perform surgery on our brains without the need for operating theatres, anaesthetics or scalpels?' Zoriel asked in wonder.

'You betcha,' John said with a smile, and then became serious. 'You know we have to do this, don't you Zoriel?'

'Yes John, I know.'

Rose put a comforting hand on Zoriel's shoulder. 'And that you won't be safe on that planet once the deed is done?'

Zoriel lowered his head in shame. 'We have done terrible things, and by our inaction, have allowed terrible things to happen. We do not deserve any mercy or compassion from the people we have wronged. I suppose we deserve to stand trial for our crimes and deserve the punishment they will inflict.

John and Rose looked at each other in amazement. 'I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't heard it with my own ears,' John said.

'What?' Zoriel asked.

'It has been just over an hour since you lost your psionic power, and already it's altered your thinking,' John told him. 'You are learning wisdom my young friend. There's hope for you all yet.'

John contacted the Shadow Proclamation, and asked for asylum for the sixty two children once they had been changed. The Shadow Architect agreed, and arranged to send a Judoon ship to the planet to protect and collect the children. Once the children were safe, the Architect would ask for volunteer civilisations to foster or adopt the refugees. The planet left behind would be helped to rebuild itself to its former glory.

'Well, let's do this then. Allons-y!'

John landed the TARDIS in the same huge, sparsely populated public square, surrounded by the enormous municipal buildings.

'Right. Here you are Rose.' He handed her a pink crash helmet which brought back all sorts of memories which made her smile. John put his silver helmet on and they both locked the chinstraps. He'd learned his lesson on that one. They stepped out of the TARDIS with Zoriel and the nanogene applicator.

'Are they coming?' John asked.

'Yes. They are over there,' Zoriel said, pointing across the square. Four boys and five girls walked towards them. They all had the same silver hair and wore grey, roll neck sweaters, black trousers or skirts, and black leather jackets.

John pressed the release button on the handset, and a near invisible mist of golden nanogenes drifted in the air in front of them. The children were unaware of them and walk right into them.

'Is one of you Maltar?' John asked cheerfully.

'I am Maltar, Doctor Smith. Your helmets will not protect you. We can have them removed,' she said menacingly, and some heavies started to move towards them.

John went to scratch the back of his head and realised he was wearing the helmet. He looked at his fingers in confusion. 'Welll, you could do, yes. But by the time you've managed to get through the lock, we won't need them.'

They heard a roar from above them, and a columnar, Judoon ship descended vertically to land in the square. They watched as a ramp descended to the flagstones, and a platoon of Judoon marched into the square. Rose hoped John hadn't noticed it was a platoon of Judoon, she'd never hear the end of it.

'They will not be able to save you,' Maltar told them with a smug smile.

'They're not here to save us,' Rose explained. 'They're here to save you.'

'What?'

'Try and stop them,' John instructed.

The children turned and stared at the Judoon. The Judoon kept marching towards them.

'Stop!' Maltar called out. The Judoon still kept marching until they stood in front of the group.

'Form-a-defensive-perimeter,' the Judoon commander barked in his clipped, guttural speech.

'I-want-no-injuries,' John barked.

'We-know. We-have-strict-instructions.'

'Good,' John barked. He turned to the children and pressed the recall button on the nanogene container. The hazy cloud returned to the oblong unit. 'Right you lot. You need to go into the ship. We will then gather up all your other siblings and take you all to a place of safety.'

'What have you done to us?' Maltar asked.

'Something very clever which will mean you can live your lives like normal people. Trust me, being normal is very underrated.'

Rose went over to Zoriel and gave him a hug. 'Good luck Sweetheart. Try to put the past behind you and make amends by being the best you can possibly be.'

'You and John shall be my . . . What are they called? Ah, yes, role models. If I can be half as good as you, then I will be twice as good as I am now.'

'That's it Lad,' John said, slapping him on the shoulder. 'Aim high. I'm always striving to be as good as my wife.' He pulled Zoriel into a hug and rubbed his back. 'Now go on or you'll miss your ride.'

Zoriel ran to catch up with his siblings and followed them up the ramp. The ship slowly rose into the air, and headed for the next continent to be liberated.

'Excuse me?' one of the heavies said who'd been summoned to remove their helmets. John and Rose turned to face them. 'What's happening?'

'It's over is what's happening,' John told him. 'I would take a few weeks off to have one HELL of a party, and then you can start to rebuild your society. Some people will be along later to help you.'

John and Rose followed the Judoon around the planet, stopping on each continent and performing the same procedure. Eventually, there were sixty two frightened children on the Judoon ship heading for the Shadow Proclamation and a new life.

The Time Rotor pumped up and down, as they orbited the console and adjusted controls.

'Did you notice, back there on the planet, Rose?' John asked.

'Notice what?'

'That the Shadow Proclamation sent a platoon of Judoon.' Rose looked up from the console and rolled her eyes. 'You thought I hadn't noticed, didn't you?'

'Shut up,' she said playfully, and changed the subject. 'So, it's about seven weeks before a human brain starts to develop in the womb,' she said, gleaning the knowledge from her link with John. 'So we've got about a month before we can use the nanogenes on the Dunwich foetuses.'

'That's if they survive that long,' John said sadly. 'The women of Dunwich seem to be hell bent on killing them.'

'Yeah, but you can't really blame them. I mean, they have been violated, and technically, the foetuses are parasites. You wouldn't think twice about gettin' rid of a tapeworm, would ya?' Rose said.

'Ah, but give a tapeworm a typewriter and he's never going to produce the works of Shakespeare, is he?'

'That was monkeys,' Rose corrected him. 'You're mixin' your metaphors again.'

'But you see my point. These parasites are sentient beings. They just need to be given a chance to grow up.' John then raised his eyebrows in surprise. 'Oh. Oh. Of course . . . I've just had an idea, and if I'm right . . . Rose. I might have just saved a species from extinction.'

Rose picked up his idea and her mouth fell open. 'No! Do you think it will work?'

'Let's go and find out,' he said with a open mouthed smile. He pushed some buttons excitedly, and Rose twiddled some knobs enthusiastically, and they set course for the Shadow Proclamation.