A/N: Well, I had some free time during my revision and I've managed to cook up another chapter. Sadly, this week IS my exam week so I don't think I'll have time to write again for the rest of the week... maybe not even the week after next. I didn't want to disappoint anyone, so that's why I have this chapter. It's quite short and doesn't really do much except introduce the next 'game' of sorts, but I still hope you like it.
Also, I will be bringing Donna in shortly, but I've been wondering if any of you have any ideas about it? When she appears, a handful of things could happen. She could regain her memory and set off that 'defense' mechanism she's got going on in her head, or maybe she'll be able to have a civil conversation with the Doctor considering his change of face, maybe she could become the DoctorDonna again! Any ideas, I'd be more than happy to consider them!
Once again, thank you SO MUCH for all of your constant support. I really love you guys! I'm hoping by the end of this story I'll be able to hit 100 reviews, (we can all dream.) Anyway, enough of this, let's get on with the story!
Oh... right, I don't own Doctor Who.
Chapter 9
Martha sucked in a breath to keep from crying out loud as the lights went out throughout the console room.
"My, my, my, you've been such a helping hand for our Doctor here, haven't you?"
Martha narrowed her eyes towards the voice. Around her, everything was silent. She couldn't detect the presence of anyone else. She assumed it must have been another of the Dream Lord's tricks, however this time she was prepared. She wasn't going to go down without a fight, not when she knew the extent of the problem now. The Doctor was in no condition to be saving anyone. It was up to the companions and Martha Jones-Smith was ready.
Martha stood perfectly rigid and remained silent, clenching her fists smoothly.
"Oh, no lip? That's a pleasant change." The Dream Lord's voice was taunting and cruel as it seemed to echo all around her. Still, Martha didn't speak.
"Well, this is certainly boring." The Dream Lord chuckled with dark intent, "Luckily for you, dear Martha, I can change that with a snap."
Martha frowned, but didn't move. Instead she moved her eyes around the darkness that surrounded her, hoping to find some form of light that she could find her bearings with.
But then… before she could properly focus, a new noise bled through the darkness.
One two three four, one two three four, one two three four!
Martha couldn't help the gasp of shock that left her mouth as the Master's voice suddenly entered her mind.
"Martha Jones; long time no see."
A smile made up of malicious teeth glowed in the darkness as the Master's age-old features appeared inches before her face.
Only then did Martha scream.
"Doctor, Doctor!"
"Yes, what?"
"The lights…"
There was a congested sigh from the corner, "Yes, I think I noticed."
"This new you seems easier to agitate; I'll be having fun with that later."
The heavy sigh that followed Jack's cheeky words was enough to lift the atmosphere slightly as everyone tried to remain calm through the darkness.
"Is the Dream Lord here?" Rory asked hesitantly.
The Doctor felt exhausted and the darkness wasn't really helping his situation, but he had to keep ahead of this. The Dream Lord was part of him, and though he hadn't exactly had the time to explain this to his old companions as of yet, on some level he figured they already knew. Still, because of this connection, the Doctor was always very aware of the Dream Lord's presence, especially within his own TARDIS. The Doctor shook his head before slowly realising that no one would be able to see. He tried to clear his throat as best he could, "No."
Rory sighed out in relief as he tried to look against the darkness, "Is everyone alright?"
The Doctor closed his eyes briefly, rubbing his index finger and thumb over the bridge of his nose in an attempt to keep himself awake, "Best to do a roll call," he mumbled.
"Well, I'm here." Amy said defiantly.
"Here too." Jack added.
"So am I." Mickey said.
Rory spoke last, "Here."
Amy glanced to her side where she was sure Rose had been standing before the lights had gone out, "Rose?" she asked through the darkness.
Rose hadn't been paying attention; she'd been too busy staring at her outstretched arms, "Oh… s-sorry. Here." She stuttered over her words causing Mickey to speak up, "Rose?"
Rose shook her head, though she knew no one could see, "It's just… I know the Bad Wolf is in me still… I can feel her." Rose shuddered, she didn't like owning up to it, but though she had been doing a good job of withholding the entity, she still felt incredibly weak; "But… I was glowing, I mean she was glowing, so shouldn't that mean-"
"-The Dream Lord's in control." The Doctor said, his voice devoid of emotion, "He can make anything happen. For all we know the lights of the TARDIS are still on and the darkness is just an illusion."
There was a moments silence as everyone considered this.
"Wait… Martha!" Mickey suddenly said, his mind sparking back to roll call, "She never said anything."
The Doctor's eyes opened in response. Even though his body was weak, his senses were still much more improved than the humans he had surrounded himself with. He could feel Martha's presence just as she had been before the lights had gone out. But she was silent, rigid.
"Martha?" The Doctor managed to rasp, "Are you with us?"
This was confirmed with a sudden ear-splitting scream.
"No! No! Get back!" As Martha screamed, the lights turned on once more, revealing the wide-eyed young woman in question. Martha had her arms outstretched in a defensive fashion, as if she expected at any moment to be attacked.
"Martha!" Mickey ran towards her on instinct, "Martha it's okay, you're fine!"
But Martha reacted as if she hadn't even heard Mickey, in fact suddenly she was directing her defences against her husband, "Get back you bastard!"
Mickey recoiled on instinct, "M-martha…?"
"Don't provoke her." The Doctor ordered calmly as he glanced, half-lidded to where Martha was stood in horror, "The Dream Lord has got to her, he'll get to you all if you don't-" the Doctor was cut off by another coughing fit. Amy and Rose moved at the same instant towards the Doctor, but Amy got there just a little faster. Rose stopped to watch as Amy expertly patted and rubbed the Doctor's back in a rhythm that seemed to calm his fit almost instantly. She couldn't help but smile. This girl was impressive.
"Don't what?" Jack asked once the Doctor looked as though he had recovered enough.
The Doctor looked to Jack tiredly, but carried on, "Don't give in. Always be aware of your surroundings, the Dream Lord can make you see anything, this is his world after all, but he can't kill you. Not yet. Not unless you give in."
"Oh, well done you old slob!"
Everyone stiffened as the Dream Lord appeared at the top of the staircase, leaning against the railings as he looked down at the console with a sick smile spread across his lips, "I might not be able to kill anyone just yet, but that doesn't mean I can't influence it."
The Dream Lord snapped his fingers and in a flash, Martha was standing in the same position as she was before, except now she was holding a gun, perfectly poised into the face of her husband.
Mickey raised his arms on instinct, "Martha, it's me, Mickey, your husband!"
"Husband?" Rose blurted out as she stared at the pair.
Jack rolled his eyes, "Honestly, Rose, this is hardly the time to be jealous."
"I am not jealous!"
"Guys! Shouldn't we be focusing?" Rory called out.
"You can't reason with her, not like this, am I right?" The Doctor asked warily to his other half. The Dream Lord looked towards the Doctor in pure disgust, but still nodded rigidly, "Of course."
"Then what do we do?" Amy demanded.
"The only thing we can do." The Doctor said, looking warily to Mickey, Jack, Amy, Rory and then finally, to Rose. Rose didn't look as eager as she may have done the years ago when she had been the Doctor's companion. Now she was tired and clearly in pain, though she hid it well. The Bad Wolf was eating away inside her, though it couldn't kill her, being a weaker manifestation of the Dream Lord's doing… it could still damage her, and the Doctor wouldn't let that happen.
Ironically, Rose looked to the Doctor in the same way. He had neglected to mention why he was suffering in the first place and she knew that he knew, he just wasn't sharing. He was – if possible – paler than he had been before and was shaking with the simple effort of sitting upright. This wasn't going to work. How could this possibly work?
And yet that mad man still managed a smile as his eyes glinted to each of his companions, "Just like old times, eh?" He muttered as Amy nodded in understanding, taking his hand in hers.
He grinned in response; "Run."
And just like that, everyone did. It wasn't timed and definitely wasn't co-ordinated in the slightest, but everyone managed to find their way down the same main hallway where corridors upon corridors of both locked and wide opened doors came to their assistance. And as they ran, Martha kept screaming, still completely sure that she was facing off against one of the Doctor's most feared enemies. Mickey had tried to console her, tried to take her with him, but it only resulted in a warning shot being fired from the barrel of the gun. In complete distress, Mickey had to leave Martha as she ran from him, disappearing into the shadows.
"Where are we going?" Amy asked as she and Rory helped the Doctor keep a steady pace, keeping him as far away from the Dream Lord as possible.
The Doctor shrugged half-heartedly, "Not sure."
"Seriously?" Jack asked in despair, "Y'know, just once it'd be nice if you actually came up with a plan before-"
"Take a look around," the Doctor said bitterly. The Time Lord's tone was enough to keep Jack's eyes on him. Even though his hair clung unevenly over most of his eyes, Jack knew the Time Lord was giving him one Hell of a death glare from underneath. It almost made him grin. Almost.
"The Dream Lord is in full control, these doors could lead anywhere, there is no limit to what he can make happen." The Doctor never raised his voice, in fact it was reasonably controlled for his condition, which made it all the more menacing; "That is why there is no plan, because nothing we do will make any difference."
Amy shook her head, "No, we beat him before, we can do it again."
"Oh, I wouldn't be too sure of that."
The Dream Lord was suddenly stood in the hallway, looking at his fingernails inconspicuously with a sly smile. He sighed and rubbed his knuckles against his tweed jacket, "Honestly, did you really think you could lose me by running down one hallway?"
"Why are you doing this?" Mickey demanded, stepping forward, "What do you want?"
The Dream Lord actually looked slightly taken aback. He smiled thickly and shrugged with the whole intentions of seeming innocent, "Why, to watch you suffer of course."
"But why?" Mickey demanded, now so close to the faceless being, that their noses were almost touching.
"Mickey don't-" Rose warned, but she was cut off by the Doctor.
"I'm the one you want to hurt, why don't you leave them out of it?"
The Dream Lord laughed aloud at this weak plea, "Oh please, you should know better than anyone." He raised his arms in a questioning gesture, placing a finger to his lips in mocked thought, "Hm, what's the best way to hurt the Doctor?" He winked darkly before continuing, "Hurting the ones he loves, of course!"
"But you're hurting him too!"
Everyone turned around to Rose who had been silent up until that moment. She was at the back of the group, leaning heavily against the walls of the TARDIS. She was tired, too tired to care about what this puny man had to say about anything. She wanted answers and she was willing to get them no matter what the cost.
"The Doctor may be unwilling to talk about this whole sickness thing, but we know better, don't we?" Rose – with a little force – pushed herself onto two slightly unsteady legs, "You're doing something to him, you want to hurt him. Physically."
The Dream Lord's smile turned from dark to almost light hearted at Roses' sudden outburst. He grinned widely, looking towards each of the Doctor's companions in turn. They all seemed to wear the same mask, understanding clouded by confusion. They agreed with Rose. Oh, what perfect idiots!
"You didn't tell them, did you?" The Dream Lord asked, looking towards the Doctor who was now leaning quite heavily against Amy and Rory. The Doctor gritted his teeth, but forced himself to look into the eyes of the darkness that lingered inside of him. Carefully, he shook his head.
"Hah!" the Dream Lord clapped his hands together as he spun on his heels, "Oh what fun!" He fizzled out, only to reappear directly in front of Rose who only barely remained standing with the shock. "You see, Rose, your precious Doctor isn't the man you kid yourself into believing he is." He turned to the rest of his companions, "That goes for all of you." He then reappeared back where he had started, looking at everyone expectantly, "You see, your Doctor has made a name for himself in all these years. He's a warrior, though he hates to admit it. The oncoming storm."
Rose shuddered at the use of that name. It reminded her of the times when she had seen the true danger in the Doctor's eyes. The irreversible rage that she feared would consume him. Each time, he had recovered though. Each time, he'd been strong.
"Your Doctor was tainted by the scars of war, the scars of losing people, of having to run from tragedies that he himself caused in the aftermath." The Dream Lord looked towards the Doctor, grabbing his chin and lifting his face up to meet his gaze. The Doctor's eyes were laced with exhaustion, but he didn't break eye contact. Not once.
"Those scars aren't always easy to hide." The Dream Lord carried on, letting go of the Doctor's face rather harshly, causing Amy to gasp out. "Take me for example."
"You're his darkness." Rory said quietly, thinking back to their first encounter.
I thought it was obvious.
The Dream Lord snapped his fingers towards Rory, "Well done big nose, gold star!" He rolled his eyes before continuing, "What if your Time Lord was to get sick… just something small at first, a few germs in the system. But what if during this time, he'd also been going through an event that had brought on the oncoming storm?" The Dream Lord's smile faltered as he once again returned his gaze to the Doctor, "All that psychic energy building up with no output… except for me. The faceless fiend that had already showed themselves once in the past. It's much easier to get back out when a Time Lord's defences are down." The Dream Lord sighed heavily as he took in the blank expressions of the Doctor's companions. He believed that the message was received so with a nod, he lifted his arms in the air, "Well, enough chit chat, I almost forgot, the game's still going on and I do believe there's still a very fearful Martha Jones-Smith out there with a gun." He looked towards the Doctor knowingly, "Fear keeps you fast after all."
That made Amy shudder and Rory looked to her unsurely. She didn't look at him though; she was too absorbed in the words that the Dream Lord had spoken.
Back when the Doctor had been in bed… he'd warned her, he'd known why the Dream Lord was stronger.
He's feeding off of me.
Now she understood. The Dream Lord was feeding off the Doctor's darkness. All those moments where he'd shown his anger had only made the Dream Lord stronger and the Doctor weaker. The Dream Lord was effectively making the Doctor sicker by draining him of all the scars of his past to use as fuel for his own sick games.
Amy looked to the Dream Lord with pure hatred in her eyes. She couldn't believe that this thing was a part of the Doctor in any way… but then again, everyone had their darkness and, like the Doctor had said so very long ago, he had a lot of it.
"What did you do to her?"
It took a moment for Amy to register what Mickey was talking about. Of course – Martha.
The Dream Lord laughed, "Oh, I wouldn't worry about her. At least she's armed against her hallucinations;" he grinned all knowingly to the other companions, "I couldn't say the same for the likes of you."
"I think I know where this is going." Jack said bitterly as he looked to the Doctor. The defeat in his eyes only backed up his theory. This wasn't good, but then again, Jack had both seen and done a Hell of a lot worse.
"Well… I think it's best to let you know that the next part of my little game involves a test, and you're all taking it." The Dream Lord laughed aloud and snapped his fingers; in an instant he was wearing an old styled teacher's cap.
"Well, as long as there's no algebra." Rose said sarcastically, which forced a few grim smiles around the group. The Dream Lord only grinned further, "No math." He conceded, "But I must warn you it's very hard to pass."
There was silence for a moment until Mickey bucked up the courage to speak, "Well?" he demanded, "Tell us this 'test' of yours."
"Oh, I'll let you work it out for yourselves," the Dream Lord said with a careless wave of his hand, "But first, let's divide the group up into teams, shall we?"
Before anyone could object, the deed was done. The Doctor almost toppled onto his side as Rory disappeared out from under his arm along with Jack, Mickey and Rose. This only left him with Amy who was struggling with the bulk of her raggedy man.
"Pass and I'll be lenient." The Dream Lord said, clasping his hands together as he moved closer to the Doctor, "Fail and I'll become more powerful than ever." He winked, "I think you know the outcome already." And with that, the Dream Lord vanished.
The Doctor groaned as he lifted himself up against the wall, letting his face fall into his hands as he coughed pitifully for a few short moments. His head was hammering, he couldn't concentrate, how in the Hell was he supposed to save everyone this time?
It took him a few moments to realise that Amy was talking to him.
"Doctor, Doctor?"
"Hn?" Was all he could manage as he looked blearily into Amy's wide emerald orbs.
"What did he mean by more powerful, how could he even get more powerful?"
The Doctor's hearts sank. Yes, he had said that hadn't he? He sighed and cleared his throat, forcing himself into a very unsteady standing position; "If he gets any more powerful than he already is…" the Doctor drew in a deep breath and took Amy's hand, looking at her sternly, "He'll be able to kill."