The screen in front of the Doctor flickered for a split second, as the disc started to play the first of many entries from the personal diary of his future self. The other Doctor was standing up, facing the camera. His face showed his reluctance to say anything. It was as if he didn't really want to record his time in the other universe at all. He started his sentence with heavy sigh.
"It all started when I picked up Eva after Canary Wharf. She was so emotionally distraught. I can't say I blame her. She had so much power, but didn't know how to handle it properly. She had just lost her parents, or so she thought anyway. And like me, she was just lost. So lost."
The Doctor felt the connection between him and his future self. He had found Eva in the same shape. He had just lost Rose, whom he loved but never told her so. She had lost everything and, like him, felt totally alone.
The future Doctor continued. "She said that she had been teleported there by a man wearing a red suit, with white eyes. He dropped her off then disappeared. Once I saw what she could do, I knew I couldn't leave her on Earth. She was too dangerous. So I told her I'd help her find where she was really from, who she really was. I had no idea what I was getting myself into. Looking back, I still wonder if that was my big mistake."
He then sighed and cast his eyes downward. "No." he said, his voice filled with regret.
"That wasn't where my mistake was. When we got back to the TARDIS, I felt a sudden gust of wind rip past me as soon as I opened the door to get in. That's when I first met Wally. He just zoomed in faster than the eye could see, and stood there leaning with his back against my console. I was furious. I had no idea who this stranger was, why he was wearing such a ridiculous costume, or how he knew what the TARDIS was.
Right then and there he spilled everything. He was from another universe, presumably the same one where Eva belonged, and he was trying to save her from being erased from existence. Honestly, I didn't believe a word of it. He went on ranting about how his universe's timeline was being altered... by the way time is not a line! Oh, why am I even saying that? If I'm talking to myself I'd know that already! I mean, it's not like I haven't time traveled before, and I'm sure Wally had done his share before I met him but still! Time is not a line! It's not even a stream! It's... ugh! It's hard to explain but it's like⦠Oh wait I forgot I'm talking to myself. Well, I suppose now I'm talking to myself, while talking to myself."
The Doctor paused the disc at that location. Yep. That sounded like him.
Good grief, he never noticed how easily he could get off track in an important conversation. Not only that, but he figured it would probably be easier to listen to the disc in increments so that he could mentor Eva while learning about what happened. It wouldn't waste any time, because he knew that although Eva had improved since he first met her, there was still a long way to go. Besides, the Doctor could never pain himself to sit through who knows how many hours of talking to himself. The one thing that struck him, though, was that his life had already been altered from what his future self experienced. This time, he didn't meet Wally until they were on the moon, and Wally didn't even explain everything until now. Heck even now, Wally just ended up giving him a disc.
The Doctor started to puzzle together what that really meant. He fiddled with his controls, setting a destination while still analyzing the information in his brain. Everything that didn't match up with what his future self was telling him, so far, was evidence for one thing: This was not Wally's first attempt to change the future. He should have guessed that from what little information Wally had told him anyway.
"Doctor!" shouted Eva, as she ran up to him.
She was bubbling with excitement. That smile was such a relief from the grim dark message he had been absorbed in.
"Where are we going next, Doc?" she asked with enthusiasm.
"Oh just wonderful." The Doctor thought to himself. "Wally's got her calling me 'Doc' too."
"Well, Eva. I'll let you decide." He said to her. "Anywhere in the universe! Anywhere at all, any time!"
Eva thought hard about it. "How about California?"
The Doctor dropped his arms and raised an eyebrow. He had a vessel that could take her to any place in the universe at any point in time... and she wanted California? Earth again?
"You're sure?" he asked, underwhelmed by his companion's small thinking.
"Please?" she said. "I've always wanted to go there and see the beaches, and the zoo, and the concerts, and-"
The Doctor couldn't help but smile at her excitement for something so simple. "All right." He said with a chuckle.
"But after this, I'm taking you to a different planet! Sunny California, here we come! Allons-Y!"
And with a throw of a lever, they were off.
The TARDIS began to twirl and spin through the time vortex, carrying its passengers to its destination. Everything seemed to be going along smoothly, until the Doctor started to lean forward as if in pain.
"What's wrong?" asked Wally.
He didn't respond. Shortly after he had thrown the lever, the TARDIS came to a smooth landing, and then seemed to power down. The Doctor sprinted past them and flung open the door. They had landed on the beach, alright. In fact, they landed right in the sand. He sniffed the air. The ocean smell was gorgeous, though he couldn't help but still notice the stench of smog. Sure, the scenery was nothing short of beautiful and serene. But the Doctor's face displayed anything but that.
"Something's wrong." He said. "We're in the year 2009, but something is wrong."
"Well you are wearing a coat and suit in warm weather." Eva quipped.
"No! I mean, with time! Something changed. I can feel it."
"You can feel time?" said Eva.
"It's a Time Lord thing, Eva. You wouldn't understand."
"Ouch." Wally muttered under his breath.
"Did you say something, Wally?" said the Doctor.
Wally sped outside and stopped next to the Doctor. Eva followed behind at normal speed, and closed the door behind them. She took off her shoes, and felt the warm sand between her toes, and marveled at the blue ocean waves ahead of her. The sun felt revitalizing to her skin. Eva drew in a deep breath and exhaled in relaxation.
"You sure picked a nice place to land, didn't you?" said Eva.
The Doctor was not in the mood. "Not now, Eva."
Eva grabbed the Doctor's coat to get his attention. "Doctor! Look, up in the sky!"
Everyone looked upward to see what looked like a giant flame free falling to the ground below. Eva squinted to get a clearer look. She was shocked to find that her eyes began to act as if they were like telescopes. She could zoom in, and see that it was a jet. What was worse, was that there was a pilot inside!
"Wally! There's a man in there!" she shouted in alarm. "We gotta save him!"
"But how?" she thought to herself. The jet was crashing into the ocean. She couldn't run on water, nor could she fly! There were only seconds to react. No time to think. She ran ahead of the Doctor and Wally, and crouched down near the shoreline to prepare for a leap.
"Eva wait!" cried the Doctor.
It was too late. Eva leapt high in the air, causing the sand to blow forcefully against her friends below. The Doctor used his arms to shield his face from the blast, while Wally used his arms to direct the sand elsewhere. By the time the Doctor could see again, Eva was already in the sky, heading right into the heart of the flaming jet. He felt a strange pull in his chest, and a churning feeling in his stomach as he watched her.
Eva was still rising, and soon grabbed onto the falling jet. She pressed her fingers through the canopy and ripped it off in one motion. She tossed it aside, tore off the pilot's harness, and grabbed him. Her right arm held the man securely, and for a moment Eva felt proud of herself. That is, until another problem immediately presented itself. Now she was falling out of control, and fast.
"Oh crap." she thought. "Oh crap oh crap oh crap oh crap!"
The Doctor hadn't taken his eyes off of her. That tension in his chest was getting stronger, as was the sick feeling in his stomach. Wally was also getting worried, but still held off from doing anything just yet.
Eva that knew she could probably withstand the impact of the ocean below, but this guy probably couldn't. He was the number one priority. She needed to keep him safe.
"Wally!"
He always knew what to do. She needed to get to him, but to do so she would have to turn herself around. The beach was behind her. Eva had an idea. It was crazy, but it was the only thing she could think of in that split second. She swung her body around, and used her free arm to steer herself toward the beach. To everyone's surprise, it worked. She had gained control of her descent!
Wally gave a relieved chuckle and tapped the Doctor's shoulder.
"Doctor, look!" He said with excitement.
The Doctor saw it too. Eva wasn't falling towards them anymore. She was gliding!
Wally rushed to the shore and spun his arms around in circles, to slow her down. Eva turned and landed on her back with a simple thud. The pilot threw her arm off of him and stumbled away from them without a word.
Eva sprang to her feet.
"Hey wait!" she yelled. "Where are you going?"
"None of your business!" The pilot shouted back, throwing his helmet to the ground. His brown hair was soaked with sweat.
The Doctor yelled at him. "Oi, She just saved your life! Get back here!"
The man fell to the ground, then forced himself back on his feet. Everybody ran up to him and had him surrounded.
"Are you alright?" asked the Doctor. "Do you need medical attention?"
"No, I need another jet!"
The Doctor did catch a glimpse of that vehicle. For the year 2009, that was an unusually advanced looking aircraft. In fact, it looked too advanced. Not only that, but he wondered how this pilot didn't burn with the rest of the jet. What material was in that suit and helmet was he wearing?
"So, what went wrong then?" he asked the pilot. "Testing didn't go quite as planned obviously, but that jet... That's pretty fancy for this day and age, wouldn't you agree?"
The pilot shoved the Doctor aside. "That's classified, 'Doctor'."
"'Classified?'"
Oh, now he was curious. He read the name on the pilot's uniform. His name was Jordan.
"Alright then. Tell you what, Jordan. How about we give you a free ride home, courtesy of my own 'classified' vehicle?"
The pilot scoffed. "Please."
Eva grabbed Jordan's hand and ran to the TARDIS doors. The poor man was being pulled along against his will, unable to break free from her rather impressive iron grip.
"See?" she said excitedly as she swung the doors open.
Jordan blinked a few times to make sure he wasn't hallucinating. The inside of the TARDIS was amazing to say the least. He darted inside and out multiple times, confused by the size of the strange craft and its interior.
"Come on, Mr. Jordan!" said Eva. "Let's go in!"
Jordan was pulled inside, with the Doctor and Wally following suit. The Doctor couldn't help but remain curious about this "classified" jet. He knew the smell of the material that was burning inside that jet. Although he couldn't prove anything just yet, there was one thing that was for certain: That material wasn't from Earth.
