A
The sun shone bright on the garden of Mr. and Mrs. John Smith at their home in the south of London. Sitting in loungers on their red-brick patio their children, Sarah Jane and Adric, playing in the grass, it was the weekend, both Smiths having the day off and choosing to spend it as a family. The weather was divine; the laughter of the children infectious, but the levity was tempered, John staring into space, his dark eyebrows shoved together in a frown, contemplating recent developments at work.
John was the lead field scientist at the Unified Intelligence Taskforce or "UNIT". He was responsible for uncovering foreign incursions in Great Britain; "foreign" meaning extraterrestrial. When he did, UNIT would spring into action and deal with any threats they found. Trouble was, everything seemed to be a threat and dealing with it always required deadly force. A normal man would not be concerned but John was not a normal man.
John, his wife Rose and their two children were aliens. He and Rose had come from another universe some years before. She was a human being from a different London on a different Earth. He was a human-Time Lord Meta-crisis; neither fully one nor the other. If UNIT ever discovered who was in their midst, the consequences would be dire.
"Earth to John, come in John."
Snapped from his mind John found Rose looking at him with that knowing smile of hers. Round faced with dimpled cheeks, gorgeous blonde hair and hypnotic baby blues, she frowned slightly seeing the concern on his face. John gave her a smile and leaned in for a kiss.
"Oi, what is it?" asked Rose. "You've been on your own world for about a half-hour."
"Ah, it's nothing," John assured. "Just…work problems is all."
Rose nodded. "I could guess that, I've been seeing the vigilance adverts on telly all month." She made her voice firm and official-sounding, "Report any and all suspicious activity to UNIT. Only you can prevent the next invasion."
John allowed himself a laugh. "They are rubbish. No it's just that things are so different. I'm not even sure when we turned into the alien Gestapo. First we were seeking alien life as a matter of not being blind-sided." His face shifted from one of contemplation to one of regret. "Then the looking became hunting." His expression changed back and he gave his wife a mirthless smile. "I don't know if I can do it anymore."
Rose leaned over and caressed his face. "Then don't. Give yourself the sack. Go in Monday and tell 'em you're through. You can find work doing something else, anything else."
"It's not that simple," John fretted.
Rose took his hands. "What would it take then?"
John looked at their hands and thought for a moment, "Well, I'd need to dismantle a few prototypes and delete a few terabytes of data so they won't be able to use them. All my research would have to go and my lab."
Rose ducked her head down so that she was looking up at him. "And how long would that take?"
"Two days." John said firmly.
"Then your last day of work is Wednesday," Rose concluded. She pointed a finger at him. "Say it."
"My last day of work is Wednesday," John recited.
Rose nuzzled his nose and smiled. She draped herself across his lap and shook his chin. "There, it's settled. It'll be good to have…a man around the house more."
John arched an eyebrow, "Oh?"
"A girl gets lonely during the day," Rose purred.
"I'll bet she does," John whispered going in for another kiss.
"Hello there, Smiths!"
John and Rose looked toward their house. The back door opened and the Samaritan appeared wearing dark knee-high boots, bronze colored trousers a red shirt and a brown leather jacket embossed with Gallifreyan on the shoulders and lapels, her hair up in a ponytail.
"Jenny!" squealed Sarah Jane and Adric sprinting toward her.
The Samaritan knelt and scooped the children into her arms hugging them tight. "Dear lord you've gotten so big!" She looked up as Rose and John moved to join them. "Hello Rose, Dad."
"We didn't hear you land," said Rose.
"I parked the TARDIS in the house," the Samaritan explained. "Your cellar has an extra closet."
"Is the Executor with you?" asked John.
The Samaritan shook her head, "Just me. I snagged the keys and got to mucking about. I figured I'd pop in." She locked eyes with John seeing skeptical assessment in his dark eyes. She tried her best to throw him off with a mischievous smirk. She hoped she had.
John clapped his hands looking down at the kids. "Well this calls for a special trip for ice cream."
Both children threw their hands in the air, "Yay!"
"I'll start lunch and have it ready for when you all get back." said Rose.
The Time Lord Merciless
Driving to the ice cream shop in John's blue MINI the children were engrossed in a DVD in the back seat. Both wore headphones cackling insanely at the antics of an animated cat and dog. John and the Samaritan sat in silence.
"Is everything all right?" asked John.
She nodded. "Everything's everything. The Executor and I are still exploring. We've seen so much and so little."
John smiled, remembering. "That was always the fun part. Take a look and then look away. When you look back it's all brand new."
"Like your clean-shaven face," the Samaritan said. "I liked the goatee."
John rubbed his chin. "I had it for nearly five years. It was time for a change. Plus the gray was starting to annoy me. I don't like to be reminded that I age."
"Getting vain, Dad?"
John held up a hand, his thumb and forefinger barely an inch apart. He ran his hand through his dark hair, "Kept the spikes though."
"Rose will never let you get rid of them," the Samaritan said. "What about you? How are you?"
"Going through a professional crisis," John said. "The world has changed so much. Humanity clings to its fears of the unknown and is reacting in typical fashion. The Earth is not a safe place for outsiders."
"And here I am," the Samaritan said.
"Here we all are," said John.
The Time Lord Merciless
After grabbing cones for everyone, the Samaritan and the others returned to Rose and a lunch of homemade club sandwiches with chips and juice. The Samaritan regaled the children with stories of her travels throughout time and space. She told them of worlds where gravity allowed people to fly and where there were creatures made of light. The children listened rapt with attention awestruck by the wonders and tickled by their strange sibling's occasional misfortune. John and Rose listened as well reminded of their time spent traveling when the universe was theirs and John was only one man.
The Samaritan finished telling how the Executor had once stepped out of the TARDIS falling into a swamp made of living water who he had to convince not to eat him. Sarah Jane and Adric laughed and asked to be shown the magical place. The Samaritan promised they would see it one day. Looking at a nearby clock her expression lost most of its cheer.
"You two should wash up," she said.
"Oi, that's usually my line," Rose joked with a gesture, "but she's right you two, get with it."
Adric took off running. Sarah Jane went to follow but the Samaritan stopped her. She shrugged out of her jacket and draped it over the child's shoulders. "You are the closest thing I have to a younger sister. I want you to have this. It's my special coat. It's been everywhere with me. I want it to go everywhere with you."
"Cool!" Sarah Jane said. She fingered the leather. "Thanks Jenny." She scampered off.
John frowned. "What was that?"
The Samaritan's face was sad as she closed her eyes. "I'm sorry Dad. I'm so, so sorry."
The front door exploded inward along with the front window and the back door. Masked soldiers dressed in black wielding large weapons filled the home. They trained their rifles directly on the trio standing together. More soldiers grabbed them forcing them to the floor and securing their hands with plastic ties.
"UNIT Special Forces!" someone shouted.
"What the hell is this?" roared John.
Rose tried to turn her head but it was forced to the floor. She cried out in pain.
"Hey!" John attempted to get to his feet but was roughly put down. "Get off me! Rose!"
"The children," Rose fretted.
From upstairs Sarah Jane and Adric were screaming.
John surged to his feet rushing for the stairs, "Adric! Sarah Jane!" A soldier stepped in front of him and struck him in the gut with the butt of his rifle. John crumpled to the floor, winded.
"Sorry about that, sir."
"Liam?" Rose asked, moving her head as much as she could to see the apologizing soldier. "Liam what is this? What are you doing?"
The soldier removed his mask revealing a young freckled man underneath, his face riddled with guilt and compassion. "I'm sorry Rose. I…"
"He was following orders like a good soldier."
John looked up as a gray-haired bear of a man sporting a beret and military dress marched through his ruined front door. The newcomer stared around the room; his hands clasped behind his back and nodded sharply, pleased with his men. Taking two steps he knelt in front of John and took the other man's chin in a leather-gloved hand. "Doctor Smith. I was told that all this would not be necessary. You'd likely just taken some of your work home with you and a simple phone call would rectify the situation." His gloves creaking, he squeezed John's jaw. "You and I both know that's bollocks." With a shove he forced John onto his back.
Rising he stepped over John and moved to the center of the room. "We are here because our sensors detected an energy signature foreign to this planet. In short there is something alien here." He looked down at the blonde on the floor next to Rose. To his men he said, "Get her up."
The Samaritan was hauled to her feet. The newcomer stood nose to nose with her. "I remember you. You are called 'the Samaritan'."
"You are Colonel Montague Barnes," said the Samaritan.
Barnes gave her a smug smile. "I've been promoted. It's General Barnes." He reached into a pocket producing a small box. He waved it over the Samaritan's chest. A light on the box turned red, "As I suspected." Barnes turned crisply. "Bring her and Smith. Watch the others."