Sister Star

Chapter 12: Bad Wolf

Almadynis

Disclaimer: I only own Astrid. *glomps* No takies!

AN: Beta is on vacation. All mistakes are mine.

Astrid's thoughts

Astrid knew she was lying down on what she thought was a floor. It was hard and a bit cold like a floor, and while her imagination was a little slow, her best hope at the moment was a floor. She really hoped it wasn't some examination table or a jail cell. Well, might as well find out how bad it is. She opened up her blue eyes and found that she was indeed on a floor; this one was brightly colored even as it was black. There were colored lights coming up from underneath.

She was lying on her side at the moment, laying on her left arm in a slight fetal position, the same way she fell asleep every night—except usually I have a pillow between my head and my arm. Astrid slowly got to an upright position. She looked around and realized she was on a stage. Blue lights were everywhere, almost like a Broadway production of 'Chicago' but in blue.

A redhead came over to her and helped her up with a smile. "Hello, I'm Kira." Her accent was British, like all of them, and she wore a simple white t-shirt and khaki slacks. She was quite pretty and her voice was a nice soft soprano. "Up you get." She helped pull Astrid to her feet and kept a hold of her when she tried to tip over. "It's alright, it's the transmat beam. Makes your head all fuzzy for a while. It'll wear off before you have to sing."

Astrid's eyes shot up. I may not remember how in the hell I got here, but I sure as hell know that I would never sign up to sing anything! When she had been six, before her adoption that changed her life so completely, she had a big sister who played the radio every morning getting ready to go to school. One day, Astrid had sung along. Within a minute or two, her big sister, the one she looked up to so much, had barged in with such a look of hatred she backed up. Her sister had glared and said, 'You sound terrible. Don't sing again!' And she didn't. Not until high school, when she had been forced to enter choir as an extra-curricular. She had claimed sickness for every single one of the choir's performances. Even today, at 22 years old, she never sang in front of audiences. She barely sang in front of her parents, mostly she sang in her car when she was alone.

Kira was talking again as she helped move Astrid toward a back-stage area. "So, what's your name?"

"Astrid. Where am I? What happened?"

Kira was very kind, her green eyes understood. "You were selected to sing in 'Stars in their Eyes'. It's alright; if you couldn't sing at all you wouldn't be chosen. After 'Stars in their Eyes' 207 when most were tone-deaf, they've been making a more careful selection. And don't think about not competing because after the 413 series, they've got guards with disintegrator beams everywhere. Just play and you'll live."

Astrid was not feeling so well, and she tended to get cranky when that happened. "What the heck is 'Stars in their Eyes'?"

Kira was surprised and was very quick to explain. Apparently it was a talent show. The contestant would pick a famous artist to copy, dress up like them, and then sing a song that they performed. The one who sounded the most alike to the artist they picked won.

Astrid saw the hole in the story. "What happens to the losers?"

The red head went a little ashen and her voice was shaky, but she did answer. "They get blinded."

I'm screwed.

Astrid did start to remember things. I was on the TARDIS… cooking dinner… and then there was light coming through the walls… transmat beam, Kira said… why does that sound so familiar? A lady came over and Astrid realized she was standing on the stage. She swallowed harshly in fear. The lady was a human, so that was good, and she asked "Do you know who you want to be yet?"

Astrid whimpered. "I… I… I don't usually sing in front of audiences." The lady jerked up in surprise. "But if I have to…" the lady nodded urgently. "…then can I do…" she tried to think of a singer that she could copy that was female. Most of her favorite songs were done by men, and the few that weren't, she couldn't copy them very well. "…umm…Tanya Tucker?"

The lady's eyes got confused. "Who?"

Astrid groaned and held her head in her hands in despair. "What about Jamie O'Neal?"

The woman shook her head again and Astrid began to throw out names of artists she actually knew. God knew what year it was; SOMEONE had to survive to whenever she was! "Carrie Underwood? Kelli Pickler? Taylor Swift?" Astrid threw her hands up in the air. "I don't know…Victoria Justice!"

Recognition bloomed in the woman's eyes. "That one we do have. Which song, lovey?"

"The first one. Only one I know… 'Make it Shine'. And the original recording please, the one that goes slow to begin and then speeds up." Please, Doctor. Find me fast. Don't make me sing. Please, don't make me sing.

The woman nodded her head and smiled gently at her. The woman was just doing her job, and it was the only one she could get that didn't have a disintegrator beam in the show on her meager salary that could still support her children. "You have to talk to the host-droid first, wave at the cameras before descending those stairs" she pointed to the big swirly opening behind where they were standing, "it'll be closed at first, but it'll open on camera and then you can step through. Then go directly to wig and makeup. They'll have a picture to work off of to make you look like Victoria Justice. Alright? Now, don't be scared. This show doesn't disintegrate you like most of the others. You can still live blind." The woman gave Astrid a compassionate smile, but at that last sentence, the pit in her stomach tightened and Astrid had to run off stage so that she could throw up.

Astrid was standing in front of the cameras, live on air with a droid. The droid was probably designed to resemble the person who had originally hosted the show, but since Astrid was pretty sure she had never SEEN the show, she had no idea who they were supposed to be. All she knew was the 'classic' line she had to say right before stepping through the swirly door.

The droid spoke and it had a very odd electronic quality to its voice. "Tell me about yourself."

Astrid swallowed, glanced at the cameras before focusing on the droid. Don't think about the cameras. Don't think about the cameras. Don't think about the cameras. "Ummm… I've been traveling around with my friends Rose and Jack. I got a boyfriend: the Doctor."

"So, come on. Give us your clues."

"The singer was part of the Nickelodeon show 'Victorious' for seven consecutive seasons. She made over 54 albums and won 23 awards for Best Voice in the 24th century." Astrid's voice got stronger as she focused on the facts she had to memorize.

"Come on, tell us. Who are you going to be tonight?"

Astrid tightened her eyes up and said, "Tonight, Catdroid I'm going to be Victoria Justice." Now she had to walk to the swirly doors, which opened as she approached. She turned back to wave for the camera, and walked down into what they called the Wig Box.

As soon as she had cleared the doorway, the doors closed again and she was bombarded on all sides by beauticians, costume designers, and make-up artists. They had all been given a picture of what she should look like at the end and had been working to make sure they did their job. In about five minutes, she was standing in a silvery shiny dress that only came to mid-thigh. Her hair was a bit longer, but the color was the same. It had been styled to flow in waves down her shoulders—something she had never been able to do before, she had seen the industrial hair spray they had to use. She had some makeup on, which was driving her mad, and high heels. I'm going to fall on my face, I know it! She hadn't let them take her earring-filters. She had actually threatened the costume person with bodily harm if they even touched them.

Now it was time to come back onstage. She whimpered. Doctor, where are you?

The non-existent audience applauded as she came out looking like Victoria Justice. She remembered the YouTube video of the pilot episode of 'Victorious' and Victoria's performance of 'Make it Shine' very well…but actually performing it HERSELF would be a lot harder.

She swallowed hard as the music began to play, slow at first just as she had requested. She swallowed hard and began to sing. The microphone was on her head and throat. No luck that the Doctor would come in now, is there? I HATE THIS! "Here I am" She paused in her singing, her voice about to break and she saw in front of her, beyond the cameras, a star begin to appear. So that's how they are going to blind me. SHIT! "…once again / feeling lost but now and then / I breathe it in to let it go" Her voice began to get stronger as she felt the music beneath her feet. She closed her eyes so that she could focus on hearing the actual Victoria Justice in her head, and dismiss the cameras. "And you don't know where you are now / what it will come to if only somebody could hear / when you figure out how you're lost in the moment you disappeaaar / You don't have to be afraid to put your dream in action / You're never going to fade, you'll be the main attraction / Now it's fair to say, just remember me when it turns out right / 'cause you know if you live in your imagination / Tomorrow you'll be everybody's fascination / In my victory, just remember me / When I make it shine!"

Suddenly, the door off stage burst open, stopping everything in its place. Astrid suddenly got a huge grin, her entire face lit up in happiness. "Doctor!" She ran off set in mid-song with absolute joy. But as she ran toward him and him toward her, a security guard came through with guns. Before she could even reach him, a disintegrator beam hit her in the stomach and her world dissolved into blackness.

Astrid began to move. This is becoming a pattern. I don't like it. The orangey room done in an inordinate amount of hexagons—which looks so much better when Lexi does it—she got to her feet and only had one other occupant, Rose, unconscious on the floor not two feet from her. With a cry of joy, she ran to her sister and hugged her tightly. "Rose! Come on, Rose. Wake up!" After only a couple of seconds shaking her shoulders, the blond stirred.

Rose opened her eyes and focused on something that Astrid had missed. A Dalek, coming right at them. Astrid whimpered again and moved them back, hands clasped tightly. Rose couldn't believe what she saw. "No. It can't be…"

When they reached a wall, they tried to move sideways but a toilet plunger that very was threatening stopped them on the left. They both froze.

They were sitting on the floor, waiting. Several Daleks had joined the first. There were about six in the room now. Four were operating a screen and controls while two were on them, guarding them. They had been recognized as time travelers easily and the guard had doubled.

One Dalek came through from a hallway to the right. "Alert. Alert. We are detected!"

Every one of them had the exact same voice, same tone, and still they weren't as scary as the Master. Does that mean I have an irrational fear, or that after being kidnapped at laser screwdriver point and having to start over with no support except a dog and a bag that they just aren't as scary? Probably the first one. "It is the Doctor! He had located us. Open communications channel."

Astrid kept her arm tightly around Rose, just as Rose had an arm around her. Sisters until death.

One Dalek shouted at them. "The females will stand. Stand!"

They both got to their feet even as a holographic screen image appeared in mid-air with the Doctor and Jack. There were other people there, but Astrid only had eyes for her boyfriend. He's safe!

The Dalek standing beside them on their left spoke first. "I will talk to the Doctor."

The Doctor smiled in derision at the lot of them. "Oh, will you? That's nice. Hello!" He waved at them mockingly and his smile vanished almost instantly afterward.

"The Dalek Stratagem nears completion. The Fleet is almost ready. You will not intervene."

"Oh really? Why's that then?" The Doctor's voice was almost curious, but Astrid could tell that he was forcing himself not to be angry, to focus on the facts. He needed information before launching a rescue attempt.

"We have your associates. You will obey or they will be exterminated."

"No." Astrid smiled at him encouragingly, though she knew her eyes were filled with fear. She tightened her grip on Rose and the blond shook in terror.

As one, Jack and all of the other people on the screen jerked their heads to look at the Doctor in shock. Rose's mouth dropped open.

The same Dalek didn't understand either, just like the rest of them. "Explain yourself."

His answer was firm, hard and unyielding. "I said 'no'."

"What is the meaning of this negative?" The Dalek almost sounded hysterical.

"It means 'no'." The Doctor didn't retract his statement.

"But they will be destroyed!"

Now that provoked a reaction. A bad one. Well, bad if you are a Dalek. Good if you're us. The Doctor shot up out of his chair and said with passion. "No! 'Cause this is what I'm gonna do. I'm gonna rescue them." Astrid listened, the pride evident in her eyes and body language. She wanted to hug him. The others glanced at him in awe. He was on a roll, his tone changed to one of fiery passion. "I'm gonna save Astrid and Rose Tyler from the middle of the Dalek Fleet. And then I'm gonna save the Earth. And then, just to finish off, I'm gonna wipe every STINKING Dalek out of the sky!"

The Dalek actually sounded a little bit scared. "But you have no weapons! No defenses! No plan!"

The Doctor ginned. "Yeah. And doesn't that scare you to death?" His eyes focused on the two girls. "Star?"

Astrid smiled at him and eagerly said, "Yes, Doctor?"

"I'm coming to get you." He pointed his sonic screwdriver at the screen and it shut down.

The Daleks all went a little nuts. They were now ignoring the two girls, who scrambled to get out of the way. "The Doctor is initiating hostile action!"

"The Stratagem must advance. Begin the invasion of Earth!"

They spun around wildly. Rose gasped but they took no notice of her, and she stepped out of their way.

"The Doctor will be exterminated!"

"Exterminate!"

The entire ship was filled with thousands of Daleks crying 'exterminate!' as one. Rose looked around in terror at the huge, insane army. Astrid squeezed her hand in reassurance that she didn't feel.

[to be continued…]

Well, what do you think? I wanted to do a different game show…which actually caused me to research British game shows. Only one more chapter to go. Reviews are love!