Chapter Ten
Thirty-five minutes after they had left the mansion and broken more speed limits than Rose could count, she stopped with squealing tyres in front of Albion Hospital. Jackie's gynaecologist, a nurse and two medics were already waiting for them.
During the last few minutes of the drive the contractions had come quicker and with higher intensity, and Jackie was still bleeding. Rose was worried, although she tried her best to keep her voice even while she gave the doctor an update on Jackie's condition.
The medics helped Jackie out of the car and onto a gurney, then rushed her into the building. On their way to the labour ward Rose held Jackie's hand, too worried about her mum to wonder why the layout of the corridors seemed familiar. "Come on, Mum. We're almost there. Everything's gonna be alright," she said, not really certain who she wanted to convince more. She had never seen her mum like this, so frightened, and it was scaring her more than she wanted to admit.
Having reached their destination, the gynaecologist performed a thorough examination, occasionally exchanging glances with the nurse. Something was wrong, Rose was certain of it, but the doctor and the midwife were trying to keep it to themselves. Since panicking wasn't going to help, Rose refrained from asking questions that would only worry her mum, and kept murmuring reassurances to her.
Eventually the doctor seemed to have reached a conclusion. "Mrs Tyler, you will need a C-section," the woman said matter-of-factly.
"Is... the baby...?" Jackie managed before another contraction hit her. She groaned and gripped Rose's hand so hard that it felt like her fingers were going to break. Rose could barely suppress a scream.
"His heart rate is slowing. It's possible that he is reacting to the new medication we gave you last week. This is completely unprecedented. I've never heard of a case like this," the gynaecologist explained. "I don't even know what exactly is happening, but a C-section is the only way to save his life."
"But he's still so small…"
The doctor took her other hand. "Mrs Tyler, I'm not going to lie to you. It's risky. I would be much more optimistic if he was three weeks older. But he will at least have a chance."
Jackie still didn't look convinced. "What if we wait? Just until Pete is here…"
The gynaecologist shook her head. "If we wait much longer, his heart will no longer be able to bear the stress. We don't have a choice."
"But…"
"Do it, Mum. Everything will be fine," Rose interrupted her, squeezing her hand. "Believe me, I know." And somehow she did. Something deep inside that had just woken up told her that it was going to be alright. She didn't even know where this certainty came from, but she knew that she was telling the truth.
Jackie looked at her, taking in her expression, then nodded slowly. "Do it."
The gynaecologist spun into action, giving commands to organise an operating room and to prepare Jackie for the surgery. Five minutes later Rose found herself alone in a waiting area, staring at the doors that had closed behind the gurney with her mum, wondering what was happening.
Eventually the doors opened again and the gynaecologist reappeared. Rose was completely unable to tell how much time had passed. She looked at the woman standing in the door, waiting for her to answer a question she didn't want to ask.
"Ms Tyler, your mother and your little brother are both fighters. They are fine, but only because you got them here so fast. Do you want to see them?"
A smile slowly spread on Rose's face. "Please."
~o~o~o~
He will come. He has to.
Giving out soup to almost starved children.
He will come. He has to.
Watching them walk into the mines and wondering if all of them would return.
He will come. He has to.
Holding a boy while he cried himself into sleep.
He will come. He has to.
Donna leant heavily against the counter, thoroughly exhausted. She had been here for four days now. Every day Serra and she had gathered more information about where they were, what was going on, the schedule of the guards, but everything they heard made it abundantly clear that it was next to impossible to escape on their own. Oh, they could try, of course, but that would end at an electrical fence or in front of a Dalek death ray faster than she could type 'bad idea' on a mechanical typewriter.
Four days. Four days without a sign of the Doctor. She didn't know how much longer she could bear this. The mantra that kept repeating itself in her head was about the only thing keeping her upright. Because it was true. He would come. Despite his off-putting demeanour he wouldn't just leave her behind. He would grumble and call her stupid for getting herself into this situation, but he would come. Until then she would do everything in her power to help.
~o~o~o~
When the door to the barrack opened in the afternoon of the sixth day, it came almost as a shock. Apart from the time during the mornings and the evening shift changes the doors were always closed. For once the dark room was lit by sunlight that fell through the entrance, leaving a bright rectangle on the floor. A few seconds nothing else happened. Donna and Serra exchanged glances, not entirely certain what to make of this. Then the perfect rectangle was destroyed by the appearance of the distinctive shadow of a Dalek.
The alien entered the building without a sound, accompanied by four Kaled soldiers. It slowly rolled towards the counter, stopping in front of Donna. It seemed every single person in the entire building was holding their breath.
"You will follow!" the Dalek commanded, for the first time breaking the silence that had descended on the room.
Donna winced, but she didn't move. Enough was enough. This had been going on for far too long. She just couldn't bear it anymore. If the Daleks killed her, then so be it, but she was not going to die like a coward in the dark. "And why would I want to do that?" she asked sarcastically.
"You will obey or you will be exterminated."
She crossed her arms. "And how exactly is that different from what you're planning anyway?"
The Dalek ignored her comment and turned its eyestalk to Serra. "You will follow, too."
Donna exchanged another glance with Serra. She had no idea what was going on, but whatever it was, it was not good. This would be the perfect time for the Doctor to show up.
Unfortunately they were fresh out of miracles. Instead of the Doctor appearing in the door frame, one of the Kaleds grabbed her and Serra and dragged them out of the building.
When the sunlight hit her, Donna squinted briefly, but despite the ruthless grip of the soldier she turned towards the glaring sun, enjoying the warmth. She hadn't seen so much light in days.
After a few seconds she tugged at the arm that was pulling her along. "Oi! You! Leave me alone! I can walk on my own, you know!"
The soldier shot her a look of complete disinterest. "You will be silent."
"Or else you'll exterminate me. Yeah, heard that one before," Donna said with as much sarcasm as she could muster. "Your threats would be much more impressive if they were more believable."
The guard raised an eyebrow. "No, we'll shoot your friend," he gave back coolly and waved at the soldier who was holding Serra.
The other man raised his weapon, and Donna relented.
Minutes later the two women found themselves in a prison cell in one of the very few stone buildings. Donna collapsed on the small bed and looked at Serra. "Any idea what's going on?"
The other woman shook her head and opened her mouth to answer, only to be interrupted by a distant scream. After a few seconds the noise repeated itself, and a shiver ran down Donna's spine. She had the dim feeling that they were going to find out what exactly 'special treatment' meant.
~o~o~o~
The Doctor closed the last panel on the console, got up and typed a few commands. Within seconds the last three status lights on the console changed from blue to green. He released a breath and his shoulders sagged in relief. The dematerialisation circuit and the temporal stabilisers were working again, even if it only was for a few short jumps. Then he would need to send them into the Vortex and stay there until his ship had healed completely.
He flipped a few switches, turned a dial and pulled a lever, his face expressionless while the TARDIS dematerialised for the first time in two weeks. For now his course of action was clear. Free Donna and end this. For good.
~o~o~o~
Donna heard the signal that announced the change of shift twice before the door to their cell opened again. Doctor Gorran appeared in the doorframe, accompanied by two soldiers.
"Miss Noble, if you would be so kind to follow us," he said. "There are some questions concerning the Doctor that need answering." He paused briefly. "Yes, Miss Noble, we know you travelled with the Doctor. Thanks to your little friend over there."
Donna looked at Serra who met her gaze without hesitation, then she crossed her arms and turned her attention back to the scientist, staring at him with contempt. "Do you really think I'd fall for that? One of the little wimps in the barrack must have overheard something and told you."
The Kaled feigned surprise. "Oh, very good. But I should have known. The Doctor doesn't travel with fools."
"And you can drop that 'proud teacher' attitude, too. So, get on with it. We wouldn't want your torturer to get bored, would we, Serra?"
"Of course not," the other woman said with cutting irony. "He might actually do something useful and throw himself from the nearest cliff."
"No need for sarcasm, Thal!" The scientist spit out the last word. "Remember, we have your daughter, and we could always leave her to the hunters."
Donna felt sick. She had learned fast that being left for the hunters was just an euphemism for being Dalek bait.
The other woman blanched and was silent for a while. "Whatever I do, you're going to kill her anyway, one way or the other," she said eventually, her entire body trembling.
"Serra…" Donna began, but her friend interrupted her, this time sounding stronger. "No. They'd try to use her against me no matter what. They always do this, whenever they find a weakness. And if you give in once…" She straightened. "It doesn't matter. They'll kill us anyway. All of us." She gave the scientist a hard look.
Doctor Gorran met her gaze, then gestured at the guards. "Take them to the interview room."
~o~o~o~
The interview room looked nothing like the one Donna had seen in a police station once or the ones they showed on the telly. It was rather large, with sophisticated electronic equipment lining the greyish walls. Two gurneys were standing in the middle of the room, wires connecting them to the equipment. At the end of each wire was something that looked suspiciously like electrodes. A man in a lab coat was adjusting some settings on the equipment, every once in a while looking something up in a manual. What was missing in the room was a table with chairs. The sick feeling in Donna's gut grew stronger.
"Secure them," Doctor Gorran ordered, and one of the guards dragged Donna over to the left gurney, while the other pulled Serra to the one on the right. Donna struggled against the grip of the soldiers, but to no avail. Within two minutes she was secured on the gurney, and the scientist fastened the electrodes around her head and body.
"So, Miss Noble. Let's talk a bit, shall we?" He smiled at her like a greedy hyena, and Donna had never been so frightened before. "Let's begin with something simple. What are you?" His face conveyed genuine curiosity.
"What do you mean, 'What are you?'" Donna asked, confusion written over her face.
"You travelled with the Doctor but you aren't his species. We have seen your species before, but we weren't able to identify your origin. So, what are you?" he repeated.
After a few seconds of consideration she snapped, "Human." It couldn't hurt to tell him, could it? Without the intergalactic coordinates (or whatever they were called) he could search the entire galaxy for her home planet without ever finding it.
"Very good, Miss Noble. That was easy, wasn't it? And now tell me about the Doctor." He looked her in the eyes.
Donna stared back, not even blinking. "No."
"Let me tell you, Miss Noble, that it is a really bad idea not to answer my questions. Things might get a lot less pleasant than they are now."
Looking down at the belts securing her body and casting a glance towards Serra who was in a similar condition, Donna snorted, but didn't answer.
"As you wish." The scientist nodded at the other man in the lab coat who switched a lever on one of the consoles.
A tingle began to wander over Donna's skin, like crawling ants, and quickly became more and more irritating. She tried to remove the imaginary insects, but she couldn't move a single limb.
"I'm waiting, Miss Noble."
"I said no," Donna gave back. The tingling feeling got stronger, even more unpleasant.
The scientist looked at her as if she was one of the imaginary insects crawling over her skin. "I'm a patient man. You will tell me. Sooner or later. You see, the tingle will increase until it becomes unbearable. And then you'll beg me to listen to everything you've got to tell me, or you'll go insane."
Doctor Gorran turned towards the man standing by the console, and he adjusted one of the controls. Then the scientist turned back to Donna. "Let's try again. Tell me about the Doctor."
"He's an alien," she snapped.
"Thank you, but we already knew that," Doctor Gorran commented sarcastically. "Tell me what he is doing here."
"I don't know!" Donna said, her voice getting louder in an effort to stifle a groan. The tingling was becoming more and more painful.
"Don't lie to me, Miss Noble. You'll regret it!" the scientist threatened.
"But I don't know. He just said that we were going to crash."
At another nod the man in the lab coat adjusted another control, and the tingle changed into the feeling of thousands of needles piercing Donna's skin. It was excruciating, and she could barely suppress a scream.
"I ask you again, why did you come here? The Doctor always has a plan. We know that. So don't think you can fool me into believing you came here without a reason!" he said, his voice rising with every word.
"I already told you, I don't know!" Donna yelled back, unable to hold back longer. The pain was increasing by the second. She writhed against the restraints but still couldn't move.
"Oh, but I think you do," the scientist said, suddenly calm again, and turned to the man in the lab coat. "Turn the machine off and leave us alone."
The man typed a few commands, and the immediate pain stopped, only to be replaced by shaking muscles. Without another word the man left the room. As soon as the door had closed, Doctor Gorran faced Donna with a hard look. "What you've experienced now was only a fraction of the pain this machine can cause. You'll tell me everything you know. Sooner or later. And believe me, we've got time."
With an effort Donna kept her face straight. Even if the pain had stopped she was fairly certain that things would only get worse, and she didn't know how much longer she could bear it.
Then he turned to pull another lever on the console, but his fingers had only just touched the metal when a voice with a distinctive Northern accent said, "I really wouldn't do that if I were you."
"Doctor!" The relief in her voice was evident, but even so Donna would never admit to anybody how close she had come to giving up.
He sent a reassuring glance in her direction but ignored her otherwise, his eyes fixed on the man who was about to pull the lever. "Really, I wouldn't."
The scientist turned his attention towards him. "Doctor! Finally we meet each other. I'd like to say that the pleasure is all mine, but as you can see the moment is most inconvenient." He gestured at Donna and Serra who were still fixed on the gurneys.
The Doctor leant against the wall and crossed his arms. "Admittedly I've got a history when it comes to awful timing, but this I'd call 'just in time'."
The scientist smiled like a hyena once more. "Well, I'd say that's a question of perspective." He moved slowly towards the console, until he could almost touch the metal. "Anyway, why wouldn't I pull the lever?"
"Oh, mostly because the lever will explode a rather impressive amount of Nitro Nine I connected to the life support system in your breeding room." The Doctor was a picture of nonchalance. "Even if Nitro Nine is not the most reliable of explosives, do you really wanna take the risk of destroying an entire generation of your precious Daleks?"
Doctor Gorran looked at the man in leather, and whatever he saw in the Doctor's face seemed to persuade him that he wasn't bluffing. He stepped back from the console. "You know that calling for help is all I have to do to get you arrested, don't you?" he asked casually.
The Doctor raised an eyebrow. "Do you take me for an idiot? Do you really think I'd leave you the opportunity to call one of your little Dalek friends?"
Until now he hadn't even moved, but the power he suddenly exuded and the hatred in his voice made Donna shiver involuntarily. Then he pushed himself away from the wall, crossed the room with three long steps and pointed his sonic screwdriver at the bonds holding Donna.
The shackles released and Donna slowly sat up, rubbing her wrists. Angry red welts were slowly developing on her arms, and she had the feeling they'd hurt like hell later. Right now she was just too angry to feel anything else. Angry at the Daleks, the scientists, the Doctor, herself.
She turned her attention back to the scientist. For more than a minute the sheer presence of the Doctor had been enough to freeze him, but now he tried to move towards the console once more, while the Doctor was releasing Serra from her shackles.
Donna jumped from the gurney, bit back a scream when her aching muscles announced contact with the hard concrete and mounted herself directly in front of the man in the lab coat. "I really wouldn't do this if I were you, sunshine. After the last few days you're not rating high on my personal list of favourite life forms, and you don't want to find out what I do to people I despise."
"I'd listen to her if I were you," the Doctor said from behind, his words accompanied by the clunk of metal on concrete. "She slaps."
Then Serra appeared next to her, her own shackles in her hands. "Let's see how these look on him, shall we, Donna?"
"Sure."
The two women grabbed the man, while the Doctor rewired the console. To what purpose, Donna had no idea. Three minutes later Doctor Gorran was secured on Donna's gurney and the Time Lord reset the last connections. Then the group left the room, leaving the scientist behind without a second glance.
Outside, the Doctor turned to Serra. "In about half an hour I'll start a diversion that'll get the guards away from the barracks. Do you think you can get the children out on your own?"
She nodded. "But what about the children in the mines?"
The Doctor grinned suddenly. "What do you think is the diversion?"