Chapter Four
There was a ding and the elevator door slid open.
"This way, sir." Rudolk said looking back at the others.
"Finally, some relaxation!" Donna said as they stepped out into the corridor.
Suddenly, there was a blinding flash of light. The Doctor, Donna and Martha reeled back, blinded.
"What's going on?" Martha said. "Doctor, what is this?"
Suddenly, she felt herself being lifted off the ground. She screamed along with the others as they were pulled out of the building and up into the air.
A few minutes later, the bright light faded and they were in a pitch-black room.
"What the hell was that?" Donna said feeling the air around her. "Are we in our rooms now?"
"Somehow, I doubt it." She heard the Doctor say.
She felt around and finally felt his back.
"What is this? Where are we?" she asked him.
"I don't know, but I'm sure we're gonna find out very soon." The Doctor replied.
Donna jumped when she felt someone touch her.
"It's alright, it's me." Martha said.
Donna let out a sigh of relief.
Suddenly a light switched on. The three of them blinked and walked around in a circle. When their eyes adjusted to the light, they noticed seven purple skinned reptiles sitting in chairs in a semi-circle in front of them.
"Okay, who are these guys?" Donna said gesturing to them.
The Doctor swallowed hard.
"Arcadians." He said grimly.
Martha looked at him.
"Is that bad?" she asked.
"It might be for me." The Doctor replied.
"What does that mean?" Donna said. "Are they evil? Are they gonna hurt us?"
"Silence, human!"
The three of them watched as the Arcadian in the middle stood up.
"My name is Triton." He said. "We have summoned you here, Doctor, to this hearing to stand trial for the crime of planetary devastation and homicide."
Martha and Donna looked at the Doctor who was now white as a sheet.
"Doctor, what does he mean?" Martha asked him.
"I said, silence, human!" Triton roared. "You lesser beings will not speak during this hearing. Only the Doctor is allowed to speak in his defense."
"Oi! You just can't kidnap us and stick us in a room and tell us to be quiet!" Donna said. "I wanna know what's going---"
"Donna, be quiet," the Doctor hissed at her. "before they throw you out of the ship!"
Donna fell silent as the Doctor sighed and stepped forward.
"Doctor, you are charged with homicide and planetary devastation. How do you plead?" Triton said.
"Look, you don't understand---" the Doctor said.
"How do you plead?" Triton repeated.
"I did what I had to do to----"
"HOW DO YOU PLEAD?" Triton roared at him.
The Doctor sighed.
"Guilty." He said sadly.
Donna and Martha looked at each other.
"You admit you did murder my people and destroyed my planet?" Triton said.
"I admit that deaths occurred and the planet was ruined. But, please, let me explain." The Doctor said holding his hands out. "I didn't mean for it to happen. The Daleks would have overrun your planet if I hadn't stopped them. I did what I had to do to protect the universe."
"You killed us, Doctor. You and your little war nearly caused our extinction. There are only a handful of us left now and we are adrift without a home. You are the reason we are homeless now."
"I know and I'm sorry, I'm so sorry." The Doctor said dully. "You are not the only ones who suffered. I too lost my planet and my people. I lost everyone I cared about and every day I suffer for it. But, if I hadn't fought the Daleks, the entire universe would be devastated now. Don't think for one moment I don't regret what happened to your world, I do, but there is nothing I can do about it now. If I had the power to bring back your families and friends I would. All I can say is I'm sorry and please forgive me for what I had to do."
"There is no forgiveness here, Doctor." Triton said as the others nodded in agreement. "What you have done is beyond forgiveness. All that we can offer you is death."
Martha and Donna gasped and came to the Doctor's side. Triton looked at them.
"I assume these are your current companions then." He said.
He extended his arm and Martha and Donna's eyes widened as all three of them began to glow.
"Yes, they possess the artron energy signature. That is why they were pulled in with you." he muttered
He lowered his hand and the glow faded.
"If you travel with these two, you are no longer interested in Rose Tyler?" Triton asked him.
Martha and Donna looked at each other. They looked at the Doctor who was now staring at Triton with steely eyes and a clenched jaw.
"Oh boy, I think lizard boy just said the wrong thing." Donna muttered to Martha.
"That is not your concern." The Doctor said coldly to Triton.
"You have no feelings for Rose Tyler anymore?" Triton asked.
"I said…that is not your concern!" the Doctor said angrily.
They watched as Triton walked over to a door. He opened it and whispered to someone outside. The Doctor glanced at Donna and Martha.
"Are they gonna let us go?" Martha asked him.
"Dunno. But, trust me. I'm gonna do my best to talk them out of killing us." The Doctor replied. "Just keep quiet and---"
He stopped talking when someone was pulled into the room. Martha and Donna watched as they dragged a blonde haired woman over to Triton's chair and made her kneel in front of it. She was groggy and dazed. There was a gag over her mouth and her hands were tied behind her back.
"No, it can't be."
Donna and Martha looked up at the Doctor and saw that his skin was now beyond white. They stared at him, confused, as he swallowed hard and his eyes misted over.
"It can't be you, it can't be. It's impossible." He murmured.
Martha stared at him for a moment. Then suddenly she had an idea who the woman might be. Her suspicions were confirmed when he heard the Doctor murmur.
"My Rose, it's you. Oh, Rassilon, it's really you."
Donna glanced at him and looked at Rose.
"I thought she was stuck in another dimension." She whispered to Martha.
"I thought she was too." Martha whispered back.
They watched as Rose raised her head and saw the Doctor. Tears came to her eyes as she stared at him sadly. They looked over at the Doctor as he started to walk towards Rose.
"Stay there or she dies." Triton said whipping a knife out of his robe.
The Doctor paused. Donna and Martha looked at him and both of them were taken aback at the look in his eyes. Both his eyes were coal black and murderous. His fists clenched and his body shook with barely contained rage. Both Martha and Donna backed up at the sight of it.
"Let her go." He said between clenched teeth.
"Do you still care for her, Doctor?" Triton asked dispassionately.
At that, Rose looked at him. Martha and Donna looked at the Doctor and saw him looking back at her with complete love in his eyes.
"Yes, I love her." He said.
They looked over at Rose who now had tears streaming down her face. Martha put her hand over her mouth, anguished at the sight of the Doctor's pain at seeing Rose in tears. She saw now why she never stood a chance with the Doctor, the look of love and devotion he was giving her was something she had only seen in romantic movies. Martha looked at Triton who was staring at the Doctor's anguish with amusement and rage flooded her mind as she longed to wipe the smile off his face.
She and Donna glanced over at the Doctor as he began to move towards Rose.
"Rose." He murmured as he held out a hand to her.
"Stop, Doctor, I am warning you!" Triton said. "Rose Tyler will die if you take another step."
The Doctor froze in his tracks.
"Please, let me hold her." He said to him.
Triton smirked. He ran his clawed finger down Rose's left cheek.
"How does it feel, Doctor, having the one you love near you and not being able to touch her? Do you long to hold her close and kiss her face? Now you know the pain that we feel whenever we long to hold the ones you killed."
"I told you, I'm sorry for what's happened. I can't undo what has been done, no matter how much I want to. I understand your pain and suffering, but revenge is not the answer. Killing me or Rose or my friends will not bring back the ones you lost."
"No, it will not bring them back. But, knowing that the destroyer of our world is dead will bring us the justice that we crave."
"Then, let Rose go. Let her go with Martha and Donna. Send them back to the resort and do what you want to me."
Rose let out a muffled cry. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she shook her head furiously. The Doctor looked at her and started to move towards her before he caught himself. Martha had to restrain herself when she saw the heartbreaking look of anguish in his eyes. She knew he wanted more than anything to go to Rose and comfort her and the fact that he couldn't was torturing him more deeply than any device could. This fact was not lost on Triton who was shaking with barely contained laughter.
"On the contrary, I have a much better idea. A little game of sorts." Triton said gleefully.
The Doctor's face instantly became hard and his eyes became cold.
"What kind of game?" He growled.
"Have you heard of Gargumenta?" Triton asked him.
"Yes." The Doctor replied.
"Are you aware of the war going on then between the Gargumens and their sworn enemies, the Lox?"
"Yes, the war has been going on for some time now." The Doctor replied.
"That it has. Death and devastation reign over the planet and there isn't a single family that hasn't had someone die fighting the Lox. Much the same scenario as Arcadia, which makes it fitting that your punishment for destroying our world is having to search for Rose in the middle of all that fighting."
The color drained from the Doctor's face.
"No." he said in a hushed voice.
"Yes, Rose will be sent to that war torn planet while you and your friends will be sent back to your TARDIS. After which, you can use it to fly there and search for her. I warn you though; we will put a collar on her, which will hide her artron energy signature from your scanners. Don't want to make it too easy to find her."
"Please, I'm begging you, don't do this. Rose is innocent. She's done nothing to you."
"Exactly, just like our families and friends did nothing to you, but that didn't stop you from killing them." Triton said.
The Doctor stared at him with utter hate.
"I'm warning you, don't do this." He growled at them. "If Rose dies, you'll live to regret it!"
Triton said nothing. He grabbed Rose by her arms and forced her to her feet. He quickly grabbed her around the middle when she tried to run to the Doctor.
"Sorry, Rose Tyler, I'm afraid you'll have to wait till the Doctor gets through the war zone and finds you before you can feel his arms around you." He hissed in her ear. "If…he gets through the war zone, that is."
"Rose!" the Doctor said as Triton started to pull her away from him.
He started to run towards her and gasped when two other members of the hearing grabbed him by the arms and pulled him away. The last three members grabbed Martha and Donna and pulled them away with him.
"Rose! I'll find you, I swear! Just trust in me! I won't let you die!" the Doctor screamed at her as he was dragged from the room.
Rose tried to wiggle free from Triton's grasp as he opened the door. She stared at the Doctor with longing as he was pulled from the room kicking and screaming her name. Then, suddenly, she felt something hard come down on the top of her head and the Doctor's anguished scream was the last thing she heard as she slipped into unconsciousness.