Disclaimer: I don't in any way own the series Doctor Who . Those are the sole property of the BBC.
Return to Satellite 5 AU: "Bad Wolf", "The Parting of the Ways" and "Born Again".
Note 1: Once again, I want to thank everyone who has made this story a favorite or put it on a story alert and I very much appreciate the reviews.
Note 2: This chapter has not been betad'.
Chapter Eleven: Wolf Moon Rising
The earth's sun shown brightly, the rays glitters off the station's exterior appearing like a beacon of hope even through the personal loss that were felt by a few of it's occupants.
The Doctor and his two remaining companions were lead away to a little used security room for jailing dissidents. The room wasn't large only about the size of Mickey's flat, it was sparsely furnished with a single desk, a spot for photo taking and a thick wired metal cage.
The Doctor didn't flinch as his face was thrust unceremoniously into the cage's sturdy metal gate. The guard patted the unresisting Time Lord down surprisingly, the uniformed man found only the Doctor's sonic screwdriver which had been in the alien man's normally very deep pockets. "Hmm. What's this?"
Abruptly, the guard pulled the Doctor away from the cage and quickly twisted him about to once again pushed the unresponsive prisoner into the cage gate. Holding the slim device before the Doctor's blank gaze. "Sir, this instrument what is it function?"
At the blue eyed man's apparent unwillingness to cooperate the guard shoved the Time Lord to the other guards who sat the leather clad man down between the other rebels. The door of the cage was opened with one guard still pointing a large gun at the three occupants. The burly guard went in and stood in front of the group.
"Why don't you tell us how you boarded the 'Bad Wolf Corporation's' Game Station?" The guard demanded as he loomed over them in an attempt to be intimidated.
Lynda may have wanted to just go home but she didn't like the way the guards were treating the Doctor. Couldn't they tell the poor man wasn't mentally able to cope with their brusque attitude. "Hey now. Why don't you leave him be!?"
Lynda breath hitched as the guard turned his attention onto her. His rough calloused fingers pinch her chin forcing her to look up into the man's cold hard eyes.
"Be quiet, I'll get you." The guard negligently pushed the blonde woman back.
Lynda's head rapped against the back wall with a dull thud. Jack was halfway out of his seat when he slumped back after seeing Lynda give a shake of her head signaling him to not get himself hurt.
The guard was once again in the Doctor's face demanding answers to his questions. "Who are you? Are you affiliated with any groups or Cooperation's? Sir you need to answer these questions." The Doctor just stared blankly not registering that he'd heard anything the guard had said.
After a while the guards gave up on trying to get any useful information from the prisoners. The female didn't know anything as she had been there much longer than the other two. The younger male would answer the question with smart arsed remarks and sexual innuendos not useful. The older male who had been most vocal before one of them had been disintegrated now apparently had nothing to say.
The guards pulled them back out of the prison cage one by one for processing. The Doctor's lack of reaction was starting to make the guards nervous. They went through the processing as quickly as possible.
The Doctor went through the motions that the guards required. His mind was doing it's own processing he may have felt dead inside but there was a building fire growing. The flash of the camera had him automatically change sides. Rose's smiling images blazed across his mind, from Cardiff 1869 inside the TARDIS when he'd complaint her, then again in the back of a UNIT car going to 10 Downing Street, and many more until that last time in the TARDIS when the Game Station transmat had taken her from him. He would never see Rose or that infectious smile again, well he could but that wouldn't be the same and he couldn't tamper with timelines like that not any more with him being the last. The last flash of the camera made the Time Lord blink.
The Doctor knew they need to get out and find out who or what had brought them there. He was taken back to his companions and roughly pushed into the bench.
The main guard took in the three, "You realize there is no trail and or appeal, the next stop is Lunar Penal Colony."
The Doctor remained unmoved be the proclamation and Jack didn't bother with any of his normal comments. Lynda's glance from the formidable guard to her would be rescuers, she twisted her fingers and shifted uncomfortably next to the leather clad Doctor.
"Understand this is the end for you lot." The guard's voice held ice. The burly man remained unsympathetic to the trio. None of the prisoners responded to the man's statement. The guard gave perceptible shake of his head as he turned away and made to leave the cage.
The Doctor waited until the guard had unlocked the cage before making his move. The first bout of any form of reaction since the loss of Rose. His eyes caught Jack's, "Time to go."
Jack sprang up tackling the guard at the cage door crash him into the steel wire face first. Before the guard could regain his balance the Captain had twisted the man around delivering two punches until finally the guard fell to the ground senseless. Just as quickly Jack used both feet to kick at the cage door where another security guard was coming to help his comrade. The second guard was propelled back several feet giving the three time to exit their prison cell.
The security guard recovered enough to head back into the fray. Jack simply rolled under the man's momentum sending the guard up and over his shoulder into the ground knock him out. The next instant Jack was punching the third guard standing in the confined space with such force that the former ex-time agent sent that man down for the count with breaking a sweat.
A fourth security guard came out and moved against the Doctor thinking he would be the easier of the two to bring down. The Doctor with surprising speed took the man's oncoming force by grabbing the man's jacket spinning them about and launched the human guard into the wall with enough force instantly cause unconsciousness.
The Doctor swiftly took back his sonic screwdriver before continuing on to find the nearest lift.
Jack picked up one of the guards bigger guns and the makeshift one he built before following after the Doctor.
Lynda wasn't very far behind having grabbed up extra ammo for the gun that Jack had commandeered. The didn't have much of a choice now, knowing that if she got caught again her sentence wouldn't be any different than what they were already planning.
The Stations alarms finally began to sound throughout the five hundred floor satellite. It was a race against the other security officials on the different floors to get to the top floor.
The brown haired tech had been watching over the processing of the prisoners since the Controller seemed to be unconcerned. As the scene unfolded in the holding cell he became anguish as the men fought escaping with little difficult. His eyes widen with the ease at which the two men dispatched the four skilled security guards.
He removed his headset, glancing over to his female associate with frightened brown eyes. "Shite. Trouble's on it's way."
The trio made it to the lift without further incident. Which didn't mean that there wouldn't be problems when they reached the five hundredth floor. When they entered the Doctor took the front position with Jack on his right side and Lynda on the left.
"Now it's time to take matters to the top." What at one time would have been a witty comment from the Doctor now was said in all seriousness. The alien man's contiguous exuberance was gone. In it's place was the somber angry expression that had made the unfeeling Dalek's quake with fear and named him the Oncoming Storm.
The tech wasted no time in hitting the secondary alarms button. The second alarm finally got the attention of the other tech staff. Frightening the 'What Not to Wear' group.
"Everyone! Leave your stations! Their in the lift and two of the individuals have guns! Big guns!" Before the man's finally words were shouted out the entire staff were frantically retreating from the lift doors and the line of fire. A few brave souls kept to their duties which happened to be directly for the Controller.
The Doctor brandished the huge modified defabractor switching off the safety as he do so. He had promised himself that he would never again handled such a weapon but that was before he'd once again had someone special taken from him.
Lynda looked apprehensive but made no remark. The dark dangerous look of the man called the Doctor terrified her. It's was like nothing she'd ever seen before. Her nervous blue eyes briefly met those of the Captain. The former 'Big Brother' contestant shivered as the pretty face of the man had a frightening beautiful angered expression. For some bizarre reason it made both men more compelling.
The blonde woman swallowed, turning her gaze back to the lift counter. It surprised her how fast it was going since before when they had been trying to rescue their friend it seemed to be going at a snails pace.
The black haired woman stood in front of the sightless Controller. Her voice was raised trying to convey to the Controller how dire the current predicament was. "Bloody hell! We're in an emergency situation! You need to close off this floor and lock the lift!"
The milky eyes of the Controller stared out into space no reaction to the scream woman or the disaster that was coming up the lift at that moment. She continued on with her work. "Once again a reminder to all personnel there will be solar flares starting in delta point two..."
"Would you forget about the solar flares a tic! Those people... That man is going to execute you!" The brown haired man shouted at the unfazed pale skinned woman.
With woosh the lift doors open revealing two pissed off men and one hesitant blonde woman. A hushed silence fallen as the staff got their first in person look at the people had caused a day worth of intrigue. The Doctor was the first to exit the confined space, he was closely followed by his companions.
"All right, everyone get away from the terminals! I don't suggest anybody trying to be clever. Is that understood!?" Jack followed behind the Doctor with two medium sized guns pointed into the air. The ex-time agent wasn't at all surprised at the speed of the staff abandoning their posts.
The cold look in the Doctor's blue eyes also helped in speeding those remaining personnel away from their desks. The Time Lord strode with long purposeful steps to the blind woman up on the platform. He could sense that she was the subject of his ire and his eyes didn't deviate from his target.
Lynda trailed behind the Doctor and Jack not wanting to get in the way. She was positive that neither would be distracted by her but she knew enough not to get close to those that they were holding hostage.
Jack continued to issue orders letting Lynda stick behind and allowing the Doctor to deal with the who was behind highjacking them from the TARDIS and killing Rose. "You lot keep away from the terminals. Yeah over there to the side. Now don't move an inch."
The Doctor point Jack's modified gun menacingly at the Controller, "Who or what is running the Game Station formerly known as Satellite Five?"
The Controller stood, blankly looking out, ignoring the Time Lord. She didn't let on how joyful she was that the Doctor had finally arrived. "Thirty... thirty-one... thirty-two... thirty-three..."
"This Satellite's more than what it seems. It's not just a Game Station is it?" The Doctor demanded he was fast losing his patience.
The Controller had so much she wanted to tell the alien man before her but it wasn't time yet. She continued on with her primary function. "Zero... one..."
The Doctor was bordering on that slippery slope of letting the dark core of his soul loose. "Was it you who murdered Rose?"
The blind woman want to flinch away from the hostel waves of anger and sadness that emitted from the Doctor. She couldn't deviate from the plan. In the long run it would all work out. "Once again, all staff you are reminded that solar flares..."
"You are going to answer!" The Doctor lost that last bit of restraint as shouted over the pale sightless woman.
"... in delta point one." The Controller rattled off in her raspy voice.
The brown haired tech stepped bravely forward not wanting the leather clad man to start shooting at the Controller in a fit of rage. "The Controller's not gonna reply to you."
The Doctor immediately turned to the man with his weapon still at the ready. The group of people shifted uneasily now that the large gun was pointed in their direction.
"Don't shoot!" The tech's brave face only went so far, he stepped back as the gun looked even bigger now that that it was directed at him.
The Doctor lowered the muzzle of the gun down. "Don't be daft. I wasn't gonna shoot you." With both hands turned the remodeled defabricator sideways then tossed it into the tech's surprised arms.
The Doctor gave the abandoned monitors a quick glance. He spotted that the other security guards had finally coming enforce. "Well Captain, we'll be having company soon. Better make sure the exits are squared away."
"You betcha Doc!" The former time agent gave the alien man a smart salute before taking charge of sealing the doors shut. Lynda followed just on the off chance that Jack might need her assistant.
Turning back to the male tech, the Doctor gave him an appraising look before beginning his questions. "You there. Could you repeat what you just said?"
The man's brown eyes nervously went from the gun in his hands to the man who had readily given it up. "Um... You gave me your gun?"
"Yeah, so. If you're not gonna shoot me, answer my question. Why won't she talk to me?" The Time Lord demanded as he managed to contain his impatience at the man's slow witted answer.
The male tech continued to the hold the gun awkwardly not really knowing what to do with it. Seeing as it was the first time he'd ever held one. "The Controller is... well she's... ah... Any chance I can get rid of this?"
The Doctor rolled his eyes no longer able to hide his exasperation of the gormless humans he was dealing with. "Go ahead, just be quick about it."
"Right ta." The man set the large weapon on the desk beside him. Turning back to the Doctor the man spoke quick so as not to anger him. "Well. The Controller's connected to all the interchange communications. She's the entire sender and receiver for the Game Station, her brain is the circuit. Only member's of the staff are programmed in for recognition. Anybody who isn't on file doesn't exist."
"She have a name?" The Doctor asked looking at the blind woman and trying to understand what her role was in getting him to the Game Station.
"I'm not sure. She might've had at one time. The Controller was integrated into the system when she was five. This place and the data in the computers is all she's known." The male tech face twitched into a grin hoping it would help ease the tension in the room.
Jack made quick work of the incredible lack of security. The doors were locked but it wouldn't take a very skilled tech to be able to get through. He pushed back and bumped into Lynda who had been standing right behind him. "Sorry."
"No, Sorry." She smiled backing up.
It took Jack a moment to get back on track, not that he mind the blonde distraction. "We're set Doc. Unfortunately, we only have about ten minutes of safety."
The Doctor kept watching the Controller as she just stood murmuring numbers that eventually recycled over. "Great Jack, keep a close watch on 'em."
The brown haired tech couldn't help being impressed by the man in front of him. The leather clad man was listening to him and taking what he said seriously. "All the things you were talking about, in the 'Big Brother House', with the Game Station not being normal and unusual things happening. You popping up wasn't a first time thing. The unauthorized transmats have been happening for years. Perhaps since, right after the refurbishment."
"Really, you have proof." The Doctor was eager to see what the human had since he'd turned out to be somewhat knowledgeable.
Jack was again distracted from the monitor as his wrist device sounded off. He looked over the readings finding that it had zeroed in on the TARDIS's energy signature. "Lynda, watch this right and yell if you see any movement."
"Ah, alright Jack." The blonde woman went to stand if the Captain's place. "What are you doing?"
"Me. You'll find out." The blue eyed man said as he followed the directions from his wrist device straight to the door of Archive Six. Jack tried out the hand plate to see if he can get in.
"Hey, only authorized personnel can go in there! Archive Six is a restricted section!" The black haired tech shouted at Jack. The ex-con man jerked back in surprise at being addressed so loudly.
Jack couldn't help but tease the woman by holding up the two guns. "Really, Does this look like I have a problem with restricted section?" Placing his hand back on the plate the door opened immediately not having the same problem the Hindi woman had before they arrived.
Upon enter the room of archive six, Jack couldn't contain his joy at seeing the beautiful blue police box that rest in the middle of the sterile white room. He rushed over to unlock the TARDIS door.
Rushing into the TARDIS, Jack felt a wave of comfort as the humming of the time and space ship filled his ears. "It's nice to see you again old girl. Don't worry about the Doctor we'll take care of him."
Striding up the ramp to the console, Jack spotted Rose's denim jacket. It was where she'd left when they had come back from visiting Kyoto, Japan. It just laid casually over the handrail as if just waiting for her to come in to either put on or take back to her room. He couldn't help but taking a moment to brush his hand over it mournfully.
Pushing away the despair he felt; Jack continued to the TARDIS console. Since he'd joined the Doctor and Rose, the TARDIS had made an exception for him by putting some of the writing on her screen in basic. The 51st century man checked over the screen seeing what kind of calculation the sentient alien ship had found while they'd been stuck in warped versions of 21st century reality games.
What Jack saw through him for a loop. At first he didn't quite know what to make of it. He hoped the TARDIS wasn't having a glitch but everything was in order. "Well I'll be damned!"
"Solar-flare activity at delta point zero..." The Controller continued on with her tasks, but she was also counting down to the time she could speak with the Doctor.
The black haired tech wasn't happy, they were trapped with people who were crazy. "You're scaring the personnel. So, If we're not hostages why not let us go?'
"Oh, you want to be released. After only having a few minutes of being scared. What about all those contestants who were frightened and executed by the hundreds by them." The Doctor returned without any sympathy. The Time Lord had little compassion see as these were the people who had just watched as people were murder before them on a daily bases. Rose might have able to deter him but she had been a victim.
The woman glared at him flushing at the moral reminded. "This is our job. We're not the ones who made the rules."
"Don't talk to me, it's that kind of attitude that gets you human's into these types of messes. Now shoo." The Doctor voice took on an edge of disgusted as well as contempt for the easy dismissal of life without questioning why.
Lynda couldn't help the involuntary cringe at the blue eyed man's unkind words.
The Hindi woman could only stare in shocked bewilderment as the man looked away from like she wasn't there.
All the monitors in the vast room of floor five hundred went fuzzy with static. A second later they flicker briefly before going black. The systems all whirred slightly before cutting out completely.
"The solar-flares interfere with the Satellite's communications. The Game Station goes to auto shutdown. The planet side has a few rounds of reruns until everything's back to normal." The male tech explained as the terminal he was working with went blank.
The Doctor sighed in frustration as one issue after another came up. He knew it wasn't anyone's fault but the Time Lord had an uneasy feeling that gnawing at his mind and stomach.
From where the Controller stood prop up like a human puppet, the woman whispered out as if someone outside of the room would be able to hear. "Doctor."
The female tech heard the softly spoken word. Turning to the Time Lord, she attempted to get the alien man's attention. "Doctor?"
"You'll need to take a number. I'm a bit busy at the mo." The Doctor wasn't in the mood to hear anymore of the human woman's babble.
She didn't let his rudeness intimidate her. "Doctor, the Controller's asking for you."
The Doctor spun shifting his gaze up to the pale woman. The unease he been feeling went up a notch.
"Doctor." The Controller said louder but still so quietly as if someone was eavesdropping.
The Doctor rushed over to stand within speaking distance. He wasn't going to waste the opportunity to talk to the one person on the station that knew everything that going on there.
Her milky eyes stayed steady staring out ahead toward nothing that the average person could see. Her voice held an edge of urgency. "Doctor? The Doctor is here?"
The Doctor spoke quickly to reassure the blind woman. "Yes, I'm right here."
"Always blind. The entirety of my life has be numbers. Never ending numbers, blind to the world around me. Then you appeared through the dark and all the numbers." The Controller spoke of herself as if to explain why she'd brought the alien man to the Game Station.
The Doctor couldn't help feeling some pity for the woman who never been given a chance to live. "Why did you bring us here? For what purpose?"
The Controller continued as if the Doctor hadn't spoken. "It was the only way. It had to be the right time solar-flares they hide me from them. Always listening they are... the lords and masters... my lords and masters, They are listening but not now... Oh no not now. The flare of the sun so bright it blocks them from hearing me."
"Lords and master who are they?" The Time Lord demanded not liking the sound of what might be behind all the carnage.
The Controller smiled as she relayed the clever plan she'd hatched. "Can't not say they've forbidden it... painful to know... My lords... my masters their in my mind controlling all, but I was careful oh so careful. The transmission they watched but not the shows... oh not the shows... foolish beneath them. So found you and brought into the games hide you away." Everyone in the room was enraptured by the story enfolding by a woman who'd very rarely interacted before.
"Oi, my friend, she's dead because of you putting her in one of those games." The Doctor 's northern accent was was thick and filled with ice.
"She's not important." The blind woman said matter of factly, not realizing what those three words would do to the man stand before her.
The alien man's belly was filled with fire all the while his two hearts turned stone cold. The brief amount of empathy he had felt vanished at those careless words. "Not important! Rose Tyler not important! How dare you say that to me!"
The Controller continued on unfazed by the Doctor's ire. "My lords and masters have hidden away. In the dark of space they plot and planned... they've pushed and prodded the planet below into what they wanted. So long it's been so long... hundreds and hundreds of years they've guided humanity like sheep for the slaughter."
"Who are your lords and masters?" The Doctor badgered, wishing that the woman would just tell him what he wanted to know.
The Controller stalled answering the alien man's question as it terrified her. For the terrible beings would know as soon as the solar-flares were gone. She would have nowhere to hide then. "They've waited so long. Increasing their numbers for the day that all their plans would come to bare. Strength in vast amounts of their numbers..."
The Doctor needed to know who he was dealing with, knowing your enemy was important in being able to defeat them. "But who are they?" He insisted again.
The blind woman surprisingly focus her milky eyes down as if she was able to see the Doctor. "My lords and masters fear you. The Doctor they speak of you and are afraid."
"You have to tell me who they are!?" The Doctor shouted.
The Controller scared started to speak, but the current of energy and the endless numbers were back. She gave a gasp of pain retreating back letting only the numbers show in her mind, she once again hide away all knowledge of the Doctor. "Fifteen... sixteen... seventeen..."
The terminals flashed and came back to life all across the floor. The Doctor turned to the brown haired tech, "The next solar-flare when is it?"
"That won't be for another two years." The male tech answered mournfully.
He would have liked at least one thing to go right. "Oh that's fantastic that is."
The Doctor wanted to thrash something maybe after he would feel better. The shock of losing Rose coupled with the pure adrenaline he'd been using for the escape, up until now had effectively blocked his mind returning to complete silence. Their adventure on Sarkios had left a fragile link between him and Rose. He had tried burying it along with Rose's memories of that day.
"Hey Doc I found the TARDIS!" Jack shouted as he came back into the room snapping the Doctor away from painful memories.
The Doctor wanted to leave these people to their own devices but that wasn't his way. "Jack we can't leave yet."
"Good. Have I got a surprise for you." Jack pulled the brown haired tech out of the chair at the closest terminal. "The old girl figured out what's going on."
"Well, isn't the saying seeing is believing, so let me demonstrate." Jack tapped a few keys on the terminal desk then walked over to where Lynda stood.
The Doctor waited and watched Jack as he set about showing him the TARDIS's explanation as what was going on. At the moment he still didn't have all the information he needed.
Lynda who had been standing monitoring the guards progress jumped as Jack ushered her away. "I'll need you to help. So Lynda just stand over in the middle of the room for a second. I promise I'll make repay you later."
"Yeah, alright but Jack. It's not gonna hurt is it?" Lynda wasn't very enthusiastic about the little bit of show and tell the Captain was about to do. "What kinda repayment?"
Jack gave Lynda a wicked smile, "Don't worry it's not gonna hurt. Repayment I'm open for negotiation."
The Doctor sighed, "Jack."
"Fine Doctor, I'm getting on with it. Okay now everyone pay attention. And in... three, two one..." Standing back at the terminal Jack pressed a couple of buttons.
A red-gold beam shot down from the ceiling right into the top of Lynda's head. The energy dispersed around her for a moment then she was gone leaving behind a pile of ash and a puff of smoke.
The Doctor stared at the spot where Lynda had just been. His minded was a buzz trying to piece the puzzle together. "You didn't just kill her!? Jack?"
"Huh. That's what they want you to think." Jack shook his head. He pressed the same buttons and the air was filled with same energy and the beam appeared next to the Doctor. A second after Lynda was once again standing before everyone. The only obvious effects anyone could see was she appeared dazed but otherwise she was fine.
"Jack, What the bloody hell?" She gripped onto the nearest desk so as not to fall down. "You are so going to owe me."
Jack and the Doctor, both ignored the blonde woman's pique. The Doctor's face wasn't confused but he didn't want to get his hopes up not without Jack full explaining first.
"It's a secondary transmat system. Whoever behind this is transporting the contestant away. Nobody's died." The Captain was giddy as he watched the Time Lord's face slowly transform back from the doomed expression to his normal manic one.
The Doctor let Jack continue even as he realized that it meant Rose was alive somewhere. The silence wasn't caused by her death but a form of shielding.
Jack couldn't contain the happiness he felt, as shouted out the last. "Doctor, our Rose is alive just across space waiting for us to get her!"
The Doctor laughed along with Jack. Rose Tyler was alive. He throw his arms around the over flirty man giving him a hug relief. Both mad men were so happy at that moment.
TBC...