Chapter Five
Donna grunted as she slammed down onto the floor. She grunted again when Martha and the Doctor landed on top of her. The light from the tractor beam faded and they saw they were lying on the floor in the corridor of the hotel.
"Ugh, I think every rib in my bloody body just broke." She muttered.
As they struggled to get up, the Doctor leapt off the top and ran to a nearby window. He looked out it at the sky watching with sinking hearts as the Arcadian's ship disappeared into the clouds.
"Rose." He murmured putting his hand against the glass.
He felt a hand on his shoulder and looked around at Martha.
"We'll find her." She said to him.
The Doctor stared at her. He looked at Donna who was standing behind her with a concerned look on her face. He shook his head.
"No." he said.
Donna and Martha looked at each other.
"No, what do you mean, no?" Martha asked.
"You're not going with me." The Doctor said.
"Excuse me?" Martha said.
"It's too dangerous for you. Gargumenta is war torn and both the Gargumen and the Lox are fierce fighters. If they capture you, they'll show no mercy. I can't let either of you take that risk. Just stay here and use the rooms. Enjoy yourselves and have fun and I'll be back to pick you up when I find Rose."
"P'eh, forget it, mister. I'm coming with you." Martha said.
"Martha."
"Doctor, it's a war zone, you're gonna need my medical training in case you get hurt."
"Yeah, and…well, I really don't have anything except my big mouth, but I still wanna come." Donna said.
"Guys, I appreciate the offer, but I'd feel a lot better if you both stayed here." The Doctor said. "It's gonna be bad enough going through all that fighting searching for Rose without worrying about you two every moment."
"Doctor," Martha said putting her hand on his shoulder. "I appreciate your concern. I love that you want me to be safe, but if you recall, I was the one who walked the Earth and helped save you from the Master. I had more hardship in that year than I have in a lifetime so a war zone is nothing to me now. I want to help."
"And," Donna said putting her hand on his other shoulder. "I went up against a giant spider, survived Pompeii and just helped you guys kick the Sontarans asses. I'm no pansy either. I can more than hold my own in a war. So, count me in too."
The Doctor stared at them both with unmasked pride in his eyes.
"All right, I see there's no stopping you, but I want to warn you both. We have to stick together. If we get separated out there, we might not be able to find one another so keep close to me, is that understood?"
Donna and Martha nodded.
"Okay, let's get to it then. Every second we waste means Rose is out there in jeopardy."
Donna looked at Martha as the Doctor walked over to the elevator.
"Bye bye relaxing holiday." She muttered to her.
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Rose jerked awake when she heard an explosion. She looked up and saw she was in a bombed out building. She got to her feet when the house shook from the explosion and plaster fell from the ceiling.
"Doctor?" she called out as she looked around her.
She cursed when she got no response.
"I guess I must be on Gargumenta then." She muttered to herself.
She shrieked when another explosion rocked the house and more plaster fell from the ceiling.
"Right, getting out of here now." She said running out of the room.
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The TARDIS materialized in the middle of a field. The Doctor opened the door and peeked out. He glanced around and noticed no fighting near them.
"All clear." He said looking back inside.
He walked out followed by Donna and Martha. They looked around them as the Doctor closed the door.
"I hope the TARDIS will be alright here." He muttered. "I hate to think someone will hit her with a missile or something."
He patted the side fondly.
"We'll be back soon, girl, with Rose in tow." He said to her.
He turned away and looked at their surroundings. All around them there was evidence of recent warfare. Patches of grass were blackened and burned and crater sized holes were all over the field. In the distance there were a few bombed out ruins on a hill. Far in the distance, they could hear the distant boom of explosions.
"Right, let's start walking towards those ruins." The Doctor said slapping his hands together. "With any luck, we might run into someone who has seen Rose and know where she is."
"Doctor," Donna said pulling at his sleeve.
"Hmmm?" he said looking at her.
"Um, just how big is this war?" she asked.
"Oh, the entire planet's fighting." He said.
"Then…how do you know we landed near Rose? What if she's on the other side of the planet?"
The Doctor sighed.
"I'm trying not to think of that scenario." He said grimly.
Donna coughed.
"Um, sorry then." She said sheepishly.
The Doctor smiled at her. He put his hands in his pockets and looked over at the ruins.
"Well, let's get going then." He said to them.
The three of them started walking towards the ruins.
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Rose gasped as another missile exploded near her. She was nearly out of breath, but she kept on running praying that somewhere there was a place of safety. As another missile hit, she prayed harder hoping that the Doctor was somewhere nearby. She ran up a hill and gasped when she nearly fell into a huge crater on the way down. She detoured around it and ran across the field listening to the exploding missiles and the sound of anguished screams echoing in the distance.
She ran up another hill and saw a house in the distance. She hesitated a moment wondering if she should run to it, then another missile exploded near her and she quickly made up her mind. She tore down the hill and ran like a maniac towards the house.
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The Doctor, Donna and Martha stood on the hill beside the ruins surveying the landscape. Around them was more of the same devastation along with the rotting corpses of a few bodies. Giant bird-like lizards gathered around the bodies feeding at them while several more circled overhead waiting their turn. Martha felt her stomach turning at the sight and forced herself to look away.
"Which way do we go, Doctor?" Donna asked.
The Doctor rubbed his ear as he looked far into the distance. He could see missiles exploding and calculated the fighting was about ten miles away from them.
"We go there." He said pointing to the explosions.
Both Donna and Martha's eyes bugged out.
"Oh, you have got to be kidding me." Martha said.
"No, I'm not."
"You mean, you wanna get us killed on purpose?" Donna said.
"Think about it." The Doctor said turning to them. "If the Arcadians want me dead, where are they gonna put Rose?"
Both women groaned as the Doctor nodded.
"So, we go to where the fighting is." The Doctor said pointing back to the explosions. "If Rose is anywhere near us, I'm sure that's where she'll be. So, let's get to it."
Martha and Donna glanced at each other as they followed the Doctor down the hill towards the war zone.