Episode 2 - Answers and Questions

The TARDIS thrummed under my control while Camilla and Janias looked on, clad as usual in their Jedi-provided vests and leggings. I checked every system yet again and ran another intensive scan on my sonic screwdriver. "You call me paranoid," I overheard Janias murmuring to Camilla, "and even I think he's overdoing it."

"He can hear you, love," Camilla responded, kissing her beloved on the cheek.

"I know."

"And yet you talk about me like I'm not even in the room." Despite the comment I was grinning. Even moreso as the scan confirmed what I knew it would probably confirm given the prior scan outcomes; my sonic screwdriver was... a sonic screwdriver. No hidden explosives, no traps, nothing but the bits that made it the greatest tool and instrument a time and space-traveling adventurer could ask for.

"Doctor, you've been doing this for days," Janias protested. "And making us search every room when you admit there can be infinite numbers of them!"

"I have to be sure," was my reply. "I told you. Someone yanked me right from my nice, boring, slightly-contented, and did I mention boring life as a Human on Earth and made me into a Time Lord. Then they plopped me onto that station with a nearby TARDIS and all of the tools of the Doctor's trade in my pockets." Note that when I was saying my old life was boring, I wasn't not complaining about that fact.

Now one might ask why I told them the truth. The fact was that we needed to trust each other and given their recent lives Janias and Camilla were understandably disinclined to full trust. Oh, they trusted me to an extent - I had gotten them off that Sith space station with their skins intact - but to trust me more, I had to show them similar trust. Nothing helps trust along like uncomfortable truths.

And it felt good to tell someone.

"I find that very hard to believe," Camilla replied.

"And you're telling us you're not really called the Doctor?", Janias added.

"Well, it's a title more than it's a name," I pointed out. "I'm a Time Lord who's traipsing across space and time in all of its glorious six dimensions doing good deeds alongside my trusty Companions. That is essentially being the Doctor." I was, of course, lying. There was so much more into actually being the Doctor. Ironically, I was actually being more like him by lying so brazenly and easily. I wasn't good at lying normally. Lying doesn't just require having a deceptive mind but the patience and skill to see the lie through.

There was a lot more to being the Doctor, truth be told. And at the time I wasn't really worthy of the title. Not yet. I hadn't earned it. You had to do a lot more than I'd done at that early point to be the Doctor.

Of course, that meant that at some point in his life even the Doctor wasn't worthy of being the Doctor, and I'm not just talking about the Last Great Time War. He had to start from somewhere.

I fully submit that these thoughts are self-serving, mind you.

"Ah." Camilla crossed her arms. "So basically you're trying to borrow off the prestige of another person's identity instead of making your own."

Did I ever mention how insightful and smart Camilla was? I mean, in addition to being beautiful. If she wasn't already deeply in love with a green-skinned alien space babe who could throw me around the room with the Force...

"In other words, he's an identity thief," Janias cackled.

...and did I mention Janias was entirely too witty for my own good sometimes?

"Oi, come on then," I said to them. "It's a name I've picked for the moment that sounds appropriate. If I come up with something better I'll use that instead. It just seemed like the right one to use when I was facing Malgus down." Truth, lie, truth. At that point, honestly at most points, I was never to consider giving up being called the Doctor. Especially when I really should have been considering it.

"I do give you credit for that, Doctor." Janias walked up beside me, a hint of amused irony in her voice as she called me by the name I'd just admitted wasn't really mine. "Nobody in the Sith Empire would ever want to confront Darth Malgus. There were Dark Council lords scared of him from what I heard."

"I can imagine." I looked over the last scan result. "Nothing. Nada. Blank. There's nothing in the systems to indicate this TARDIS is anything but a TARDIS. Well, except for me being able to use it to move across six dimensions instead of four." That, of course, left questions still to be answered. "How did it get to your galaxy? How did I, for that matter?"

"Maybe someone took you there, put you in the disposal room, and wiped your mind of the memory?", Janias proposed.

"Reasonable. I'd need another full telepath to know one way or the other. And that's assuming the change to my brain from regenerating into a Time Lord doesn't make that impossible." I drew in a breath of frustration. "There has to be answers out there somewhere."

"Perhaps the Doctor, the one you are naming yourself after, would know where to look?", Camilla suggested.

I stared ahead. Now that was a good idea, but... maybe it wasn't. How would he react? There were what, twelve versions of him out there, each with their own attitudes and behavior, and I could run into any of them. Would he help me or just as likely be distrustful of what I had become? How many of his enemies might have made something like me to get at him?

The idea of any of the Doctor's enemies being responsible for my re-creation as a Time Lord was not a comforting thought.

Still... I realized it was best to get it over with. I began manipulating the TARDIS controls, trying to lock onto the Doctor's cosmos - my chosen word for the "reality" of the Doctor's setting or any other around, parallel worlds included - and see if I could find a point where his TARDIS was active. I worked the controls and pulled back on the lever... and nothing. My brow furrowed and I repeated the directions. I pulled the status screen on its track over to my location. The result was an error message, informing me it could not lock onto the sixth dimensional coordinate I'd entered.

"It looks like I can't," I remarked quietly. "I'm not able to enter the Doctor's cosmos."

"So how did stuff from there get to our 'cosmos'?", Janias asked.

It was a really good question. One that I wanted answered, certainly.

If only I had answers.

"I've no clue." I input a few items to see if I could get more data, but nothing was clear from it.

This wasn't a case of curiouser and curiouser. This was a case of "Something's going on and I'm in the middle of it and it's frightening".

"Okay, I can't seek out the Doctor." I remained quiet for a moment. "There are other entities though, beings who might know something."

"And here I thought you promised to take us where we could get something new to wear," Camilla teased.

I looked back at her smirking... and then it hit me. The perfect answer. "A brilliant idea, Camilla." I went back to the controls and began operating them. "I know precisely where we need to go! I need beings with exotic knowledge of space-time and you need a good clothier..." I raised my hand and extended my finger upward. "...or should I say a good tailor?"

"Because those two things sound really alike." I suppose I could understand Janias' snarkiness on that unlikely combination.

"Ah, my dear Janias, there is one place in this wide Multiverse, one cosmos, where those two things exist together." I smiled as I finished putting in my destination. "I've always wanted to say this... Setting course for Deep Space Nine!"

Somehow I imagined plopping the TARDIS into the middle of the Promenade would not be a Bad Idea but a Worse Idea. An Infinitely Bad Idea.

The habitat ring made for more private choices.

I stepped out of the TARDIS in the middle of a vacant set of guest quarters. I brought out my sonic and went to the nearest computer, using it to access the station's systems and plant a fake quarter rental for where we were currently located. By the time I was done Janias and Camilla had exited as well. "It's almost like being back home," Camilla said in a low tone.

"The Cardassians spend a part of their history as little better than the Empire," I informed them while leading them out of the room. My sonic quickly sealed it. "No appreciation for well-lit architecture. They have to be all sharp and pointy. And don't get me started on their airlocks, I'm surprised more people don't get crushed in them."

"So why are we on a Cardassian station then?", Janias asked.

"Oh, it was built by them, but we are actually at a point in time about three years after they left. The station is currently owned by the Bajorans, the people who inhabit the solar system the station is located in, and is run on their behalf by the Federation. United Federation of Planets, that is. Very nice people, a bit too smug sometimes unfortunately, but they tend to be better run than the Republic."

"Like that's hard," Camilla said, her followup laugh harsh. I imagine that growing up in the Empire, even as a slave, didn't necessarily leave her willing to give the Galactic Republic much credit. Janias didn't seem to disagree with her either. I suppose the Republic did often come off as an edifice so bloated that it barely functioned.

"Another good thing is that Janias will not need the holographic suit again," I added. "She'll just be mistaken for an Orion. At least, so long as she doesn't use the Force. Alright ladies, this way."

I had considered warning them of the prominent mental image of Orion women - that is, the iconic Orion Slave Girl - but opted on the side of not jabbing them with their own painful history so quickly.

Deep Space Nine was abuzz with activity. Despite the Dominion trade through the Gamma Quadrant had resumed by this point in the timeline and the ships were coming and going again. We found it pleasantly active on the Promenade. The girls remained with me as I sought out a particular shop and the Cardassian entrepreneur who dwelled within: Mister Garak.

We found him idle, looking over a PADD. I briefly considered trying to scan it with my sonic to see if there was something more interesting than invoices or inventories, given what I knew of the tailor's history, but I decided that violating the man's privacy wasn't worth the possible gain. "Excuse me, Mister Garak?"

He looked up. "Ah, hello. How may I be of service?"

"My young friends would like your assistance in finding new choices for their wardrobes, I'm afraid their current fare is rather bland."

"So I see. And I certainly agree."

I reached into my suit jacket's inner pocket and removed a credit chit containing a preloaded value worth, well, more than enough in local currency. That the device would effectively electronically print money for Garak when he took his pay was perhaps not the nicest thing I've done to the local economy, but it was easier than acquiring the necessary local currency and unlikely to cause too much damage. What's a little inflation between friends? "Let them indulge themselves. They've earned it."

Camilla laughed in amusement.

"Of course, Mister..."

"Oh, my apologies, how rude of me." I smiled and nodded my head. "I'm the Doctor."

"Doctor?" Garak's eyes focused on me. "Just... Doctor?"

"The Doctor," I corrected. "It's a personal name. I fancy it." I ignored the bemused looks on my companions.

"So I see. Well, Doctor, I shall gladly aid your young friends in getting rid of those horrible garments. I have several styles I think they will prefer."

"Excellent. Ladies, I'll be back soon and waiting at the Replimat."

I left them at the tailor's shop and made my way to the Bajoran temple. The prylars and acolytes there were almost painfully helpful in my inquiries as to how Bajoran faith worked and glad to inform me of whatever I asked concerning the Prophets. I was very studious in not asking about the Orbs or the Celestial Temple, of course.

There were two ways to converse with the timeless beings the Bajorans worshipped as the Prophets. The direct way was to fly into the wormhole and get their attention. I considered that and found it questionable; there was no telling how the Prophets' pocket of timeless space and the TARDIS would interact and I didn't want to risk anything happening to either. And I wasn't keen on getting in with a starship from the difficulty it could present if attempted in the short-term.

That left the other route. The Orbs provided a link to the Prophets. Usually they simply granted visions, but I was hoping I could use the enhanced senses and mental powers of my Time Lord physiology to enhance the connection and speak with them directly. Even if that failed it might grant me insights to have visions with them.

That was why, as our conversation continued, my sonic screwdriver was quietly accessing the computer systems of the Temple, pouring through Temple records to determine the location of the Orbs historically and now.

As I walked out of the Temple, I nearly walked into someone. We both mumbled apologies and continued on... but I stopped and turned as my mind made me realize I recognized the person. I turned to see a woman in a red suit who, at that moment, turned to face me. Her hair was short and red and her brown eyes stared at me.

A small smile curved across my face. "Major, my apologies," I said aloud.

Major Kira Nerys looked back at me and, for the briefest moment, I saw something approaching recognition cross her vision. Her mouth opened as if to say something. "Oh, sorry, I'm... I'm just in a hurry," she finally said, rushing inside.

"Aren't we all?", I mused, moving on before she could ask who I was.

I was no fool. It was clear she'd seen me before. It didn't really surprise me though; one of the issues with being a time traveler is that personal time streams don't always match up.

I had little idea of the role she would play, however.

When Janias and Camilla finally left Garak's, they were wearing a matching set of blue blouses and skirts with cut-off left shoulders. Each had a bag with them. I tried not to smirk as they walked up to me. "Well, it looks like you've both got shopping down. Did you take all of poor Mr. Garak's inventory?"

"I don't think you can call him poor after all the credits you gave him," Camilla retorted with a grin. "And I think we have enough. I'm not impressed by what Humans in this cosmos wear."

"Yes, they do like their jumpsuits, don't they? Ah well, fashion is in the eye of the beholder. At least they're not wearing patchwork color suits." I reminded myself I hadn't yet tossed the copy of the Sixth Doctor's suit I'd found into a star.

We walked onto a turbolift and I called out the deck where we'd left the TARDIS. Something was starting to nag on my mind as we rounded the hall. I realized what it was when we got to the door of the quarters and found a young woman standing there, in Starfleet science colors, trying to get into them through the seal I'd put on the door. I wanted to slap myself. The TARDIS had probably lit up the stations' internal sensors with chroniton radiation without buffers turned on and, well, guess what I hadn't bothered turning on.

One of those occasions where I felt like I'd leave my own head behind if it wasn't attached to my shoulders.

I brought out the psychic paper just as the woman heard us and looked up. The long dark hair and spots on her forehead immediately told me who I was dealing with. "Ah, Lieutenant Dax." She had yet to be promoted to Lieutenant Commander, I noticed. "Jolly good show, monitoring internal sensors like that."

"Who are you?", she asked, bewilderment clear on her features. I searched for the sign of recognition and didn't see it as I saw on Kira. So we hadn't met yet in her timestream... or she was better at hiding it. Either explanation works.

"Department of Temporal Investigations, I'm a covert agent for the Department, code name is the Doctor," I replied, holding open the psychic paper and hoping her symbiote didn't make her impervious to it. Thankfully it didn't seem to. "We've been tracking this errant machine. I'm going to secure it now."

"I'd like to see it for myself, if you don't mind," she answered.

"Unfortunately I must insist otherwise." I recalled, easily, that Starfleet and DTI had a traditional friction. "I hate having to pull this on you, Lieutenant, but department regulations are strict. And Agent Lucsly gets oh so tempermental when they're bent, especially if Starfleet is involved. I'll make sure Starfleet is told any necessary information."

She clearly wasn't happy, but she did start to walk off.

I brought out my sonic and quietly undid the seal I'd put. "Ah, Starfleet science officers, always so damnably curious about... everything. That'll teach me to leave the buffers off." The door opened and we approached the TARDIS. "Well, go set up your rooms. Next stop..."

The door opened again. Dax had returned and now had a phaser leveled at us. A look of confusion crossed her face when she saw the TARDIS. While her eyes were focused on the TARDIS I changed my grip on my sonic and prepared to use it. "And how may I help you now, Lieutenant?"

"I don't know how you have DTI identification, 'Doctor'. I'm guessing it's part of the reason why you're at the top of their list of wanted Temporal Prime Directive violators," she answered.

Ah, the problems with time travel. Apparently I was already known, and hated, by DTI - probably and most especially by the redoubtable Agent Lucsly - and from my perspective I hadn't done anything to earn that... yet.

"I would call attention to not being a Federation citizen and having never agreed to follow Federation laws," I remarked. "And that we are currently on a Bajoran station."

"It'll get worked out." Dax touched her comm badge with her free hand. "Dax to Odo. Constable, I need a security te..."

I brought up my sonic screwdriver and activated it on a disruption setting.

To my horror, Dax fell over like a rag doll.

I hadn't had time to scan her phaser and let the screwdriver narrow down the disruption effect. I immediately realized what had happened; I'd disrupted the connection between Jadzia the host and Dax the symbiote, and that was not a good thing. I brought the screwdriver up and ran to her side. She looked up at me, barely conscious, and I thought I saw a bit of fear joining the uncertainty in her eyes. "I'm so sorry about that, Lieutenant." I began scanning her with the sonic.

"Is she going to be okay?", I heard Janias ask.

"That's what I'm finding out. Get into the TARDIS, now." I knew I only had seconds, if Ops beamed security personnel straight here, especially if it was Odo himself... I checked the readings and breathed a sigh of relief. "You'll be fine, Lieutenant. Just a temporary disruption. Take it easy for the rest of the day and I'm sure you'll be bright as rain tomorrow, ready to tackle the mysteries of the universe. I owe you a trip in the TARDIS, by the way. I'll even make it another cosmos so you're not violating that Temporal Prime Directive of your's."

As I got to the TARDIS door I heard the familiar chime of a transporter beam. I didn't look back to see who it was, knowing that by my luck it'd be a shapeshifting cop who was brought up with a Cardassian view of civil rights; that is, none. I locked the TARDIS door and scrambled up to the control panel. "Okay, we need to get out of here. And I need to turn that buffer on." I reached over and did so. The sound of someone or something trying to get into the door spurred me to hasten our exit. I quickly entered a new set of coordinates and sent the TARDIS into motion.

When the VWORPing ended I breathed a sigh of relief. "Alright, put your things up. I have some research to do."

It was time to find an Orb.

When I next stepped out of the TARDIS I was in a cavern. Only one figure was seated nearby and she was not alone, a Bajoran woman in religious robes; I found her holding a baby in her arms. She was staring at the TARDIS in wonder. "Hello," I said, trying to be as reassuring as possible. "I'm the Doctor."

"I'm... I'm Sulan," the young woman answered. "How did you appear... are you...?"

"I'm not quite the same as a Prophet, if that's what you're about to ask," I replied, trying to not scare the young lady. "Although we have some similarities. I've come because I need to consult with the Orb and talk to the Prophets. I won't take it anywhere, I promise, Miss...?"

"Opaka," she answered. "I am Opaka Sulan."

The future Kai Opaka in other words. It had been that kind of day. And undoubtedly she was holding her infant son. The one she was fated to kill when she betrayed his Resistance cell to the Cardassians to prevent the reprisal slaughtering of a thousand Bajorans. I could only imagine her suffering at that choice.

That brought a thought to mind. One of these days... I was going to have to make a few visits to Occupation-era Bajor and see just what I could do.

She was rattled and uncertain, but I'd kept my behavior low key to be reassuring. She remained seated with her sleeping son while I stepped up to the Orb ark. I put my hands on it and opened it, beholding the hourglass-shaped object within as it swirled with green light. The light engulfed me.

As it did so, I focused my mind upon it, feeling for its connection with the Prophets. I need to speak with you.

I found myself in the TARDIS, but with an amber tint to my surroundings. Janias and Camilla stood to either side. I immediately noticed neither was the actual one. I found myself both curious and grateful that they weren't using the faces of family and friends. "We see you now, a lost man seeking direction," the Prophet-Janias said. "You are linear but you are not defined by it."

"You are not like the Sisko," Prophet-Camilla added.

"You have many faces. Many natures. But always the same. The Doctor."

"I'm not the real Doctor," I admitted. "I haven't earned the right yet."

"You are always the Doctor."

"Not always."

"Always... as of now." The Prophet-Camilla screwed her face into a displeased expression. "It is difficult. You are linear."

"I've come with questions seeking answers," I said aloud. "Something's happened. I don't know what. All I know is that I have a TARDIS and my nature has been changed. I'm trying to find out how."

"You know."

"You mean I will know?"

"You know," Prophet-Janias repeated.

"You come with answers seeking questions," Prophet-Camilla recited. "You are the Doctor. That is your answer. You seek the right question."

"I beg your pardon?", I asked, uncertain of their meeting.

"We see you at the walls. We see the walls broken. We see the walls complete."

"But that is all. We cannot see more. The walls bar our vision."

"The walls must be defended."

I figured they were saying something important, but it wasn't what I wanted to hear. "I... see. I apologize for bothering you. I'll be going."

They said nothing as I cut the connection. I was closing the orb ark when I saw it again. I looked over to the wide-eyed Opaka Sulan. "Don't concern yourself, young Sulan. No harm, see?" Except to my hopes for finding out what's going on...

I returned to the TARDIS. It was time to leave.

Everybody knows the TARDIS doesn't always take you where you're trying to go.

I had forgotten about that. And it had decided to remind me.

"So, Kendra Province." I stepped up beside my young companions, still wearing those shoulder-bearing clothes they'd opted to keep from their purchases with Garak. "Lovely place. Hills and trees and big, beautiful mountains. And the villages, scenic little Bajoran villages as far as the eye can see!" I threw open the TARDIS door and stepped out.

Instead of soft grass, it was hard soil. I looked out at a land in dusk, a mountainous land that didn't look nearly as picturesque as I'd claimed. "Really lovely," Janias mumbled. "I see brown. And brown. And some... brown."

"I think we're in the wrong province," I mumbled. I turned to step back into the TARDIS.

That was when I saw a ragged figure running up from nearby. In the distance another crested the hill, a small cloud of dust around their feet, and silhouetted by the setting sun so that I couldn't make them out. I saw the profile of a firearm come up. "No!", I shouted, but it was too late. The weapon fired, sending a beam of yellow energy into the running figure and making them tumble.

Shouting caused the figure on the hilltop to spot us. As it turned I saw the signature curves of a Cardassian military uniform. I saw him - I was sure it was a him - raise the rifle up.

Janias acted before I could. She reached her hand out. The figure went flying as he tried to hold onto the rifle, sending more dust into the air as he rolled down the hillside.

I rushed to the side of the person who'd been shot. As expected, it was a Bajoran, a middle-aged man. He was grimacing while I ran the screwdriver over his body for a medical scan. "Oh, multiple organs damaged, not good," I mumbled.

The man grasped my forearm and pulled. I turned to face him. "Please help us," he begged. "They're going to kill us."

I could guess the who and what. "Reprisal killings," I mused aloud. "Where?"

"Singha... labor camp." The man breathed one last time. "Please," he said as he exhaled. His chest stilled afterward.

There was nothing I could do for him. I closed his lifeless green eyes and sat on my knees beside him. Shadows loomed over me. "The other one is dead. He broke his neck on a rock," Janias told me in a very soft tone.

It never occurred to me to ask if he had help in striking that rock. I trusted Janias enough to not question her account of what had happened. It was perhaps naive, especially given the look in her eyes.

Then again, I am not one to judge given the future I had ahead of me.

"What just happened?", Camilla asked.

"He escaped from a nearby Cardassian-run labor camp. They're going to begin reprisal killing sof Bajorans there." I stood. "Come along, we don't have much time. Janias, I need thar rifle."

"What are we going to do?"

"Save them," Janias answered for me, holding her beloved's hand.

"Save as many as we can," I corrected grimly.

It was one of the rules, I knew. The Doctor lies. The TARDIS doesn't always go where you want it to. And finally... the Doctor doesn't save everyone. It simply doesn't happen.

But I'd save some.

I went for shock and awe when I materialized the TARDIS right in the middle of the Singha camp. As it turned out it wasn't necessary. The orderly reprisal decimation was turning into a massacre; the Bajorans were resisting and the Cardassian commander was losing control of his troops. Screams, pleas for mercy, demands for order, it all echoed around us.

Several Cardassian troops faced us as we exited the TARDIS. They hesitated a moment before deciding I was a threat. It was a moment that they didn't have. My sonic screwdriver disabled their weapons with a single button press. Janias sent them flying with the Force. "Get as many Bajorans into the TARDIS as you can, but make sure you watch it! The last thing I need are Cardassian soldiers lost in my TARDIS!" Or Cardassian soldiers in my TARDIS period, really.

"We will," Janias responded.

I went off into the camp. I won't burden you with some of the sights I saw that night. It soured my mood considerably at seeing the suffering of the innocent here and the casual brutality of Cardassian military oppression. I met various Cardassians as I made my way. I introduced myself always and disabled their weapons with a press of the button. Few seemed willing to challenge me after realizing their phasers were useless. They ran, undoubtedly to seek new weapons or to find easier prey. I suppose the more competent would seek officers to bring order to this display. So much for superior Cardassian discipline.

The Bajorans I met were not much better off in some ways. Some were claiming weapons from dead Cardassians and using them to defend their friends and loved ones. But others were taking out petty grievances against Bajoran and Cardassian alike, convinced their lives were at an end soon anyway; I was quick to disable their weapons while leaving alone those who were defending themselves. Perhaps I was condemning the lost and crazed but I saw it as keeping deadly weapons from being used unwisely and only adding to the death count. It is a sad thing that people can be driven to such states.

Others were running frantic, not sure what to do, helpless against the first armed man they encountered. Some were praying as I found them on the verge of being butchered or worse. I must have looked like an angel to them when I intervened and directed them toward the TARDIS.

I moved into the caverns that old mining had formed in the labor camp site. There were more dead here than living, and the living were too badly wounded for me to move. Some groaned, some cried. I called to Bajorans from outside to help but none came.

I heard the weeping then. It was heart-breaking, full of the deep sadness of a child losing everything they loved. I followed the sobs into the near darkness and found a barely-lit end of the cavern. Two boys lay dead, their heads blackened by energy weapons. Laying with them, with an injured leg, was a child who couldn't have been more than six... although I supposed she could have been eight given the malnutrition. In the dim light I could see her hair was brownish or red... I couldn't tell at that time. Sad brown eyes looked at me, red with crying. "Oh, sweetheart." I got on one knee in front of her and brought the sonic up. I ran it over her leg. Nerve and tissue damage that would heal, but I knew she couldn't walk on it until it healed. Eventually some soldier would find her in here and given the current mood of the Cardassians... she would be helpless.

"I want my Dad," she wept.

"I'll take you to him," I promised. "Now up you go, and no weight on that hurt leg, okay."

She recoiled from me, full of fright. I'm sure she saw I was no Bajoran. "Who are you?", she asked, her terror evident.

I smiled at her, trying to be as re-assuring as I could. "I'm the Doctor, little one. Who are you?"

Given the day I'd been having, her answer shouldn't have surprised me as much as it did.

"I'm Nerys," the little girl answered. "Kira Nerys."

I looked at her for a moment. The smile on my face grew wider. "Nice to meet you, Nerys. Come along now. We've got to get you to your Dad."

She was reluctant and winced as I brought her to near standing, but it was only to make lifting her up with my left arm easier. I held her against that side of my torso, feeling her warm tears on the skin of my neck, while my right hand continued to hold the sonic screwdriver. Her arms wrapped arond my neck and held on tight, almost uncomfortably tight, but with the desperation of someone gripping a life preserver in a stormy sea. We emerged from the cavern and faced... what, a half-dozen Cardassians? Their weapons were leveled and I saw the fear and anger in their eyes.

I don't think it rivaled the fury in my eyes, given how they flinched.

I could hear Nerys' intake of breath and her frightened whimper at the sight of all of the Cardassians. I shifted her slightly as I brought my right hand up, my sonic already active. The whirring filled the air. Energy feedbacks crackled along the Cardassians' rifles and forced the men to drop their weapons, most holding one hand with the other and grimacing. I must admit that my choice of switching from a passive disabling to causing such a feedback was a spur of the moment decision, as angry as I was given the pile of bodies I'd seen in the cavern.

I looked at them intently. "Run," I commanded firmly.

It was possibly my voice. Or the fury in my eyes, or the simple fact that they'd just had their weapons nearly explode in their faces. But to a man... they did just that. They turned and ran.

I glanced downward to see Nerys' eyes had widened like saucers. I think this may have been the first time she ever saw Cardassians run away.

She remained quiet as I carried her back through the camp. Bajorans emerged from makeshift tents or the shadows at the sight of me and many turned to follow. And I had not one Cardassian face me again.

At the TARDIS I found Camilla and Janias standing around several fallen Cardassians with many Bajorans already inside. I carried Nerys in with me silently. She let out a gasp, a sharp intake that was undoubtedly from amazement. "Find a man with the family name Kira, tell him I have his daughter Nerys with me," I asked Janias in a gentle tone as I stepped up to the TARDIS controls. With my left arm still occupied holding up Nerys I used my right hand to shift a couple of knobs around until I had the settings right. "Get the rest inside and close the TARDIS when no one is left waiting."

Janias and Camilla went to enact my orders - and at that point I was giving orders, not making requests leaving me with an astonished, underfed little girl. I walked over and set her on one of the stairs leading toward the upper level of the control room. "We'll find your father, Nerys, don't worry about a thing."

"How is it so big?", she asked. "It's just a small box."

"Oh, yes, my box." I smiled at her and touched her on the cheek. "It's magic, you see. Bigger on the inside than it is on the outside."

"Did the Prophets give it to you?"

"No. They're rather nice chaps, I suppose, but they didn't give me my magic box." I patted her on the shoulder. "I need you to sit here, Nerys, and don't stand on your leg."

"What if the Cardassians come?"

I smiled at her. "Then I'll tell them to run away again. You are perfectly safe here, Nerys. I promise."

I received a nod in return. This freed me to go to my control station and check on things. "These are the last," I heard Camilla call out. "I'm closing the door."

"Good." I waited until she'd shut the TARDIS and reached for the lever. "Alright everyone, please be calm when you hear my TARDIS engine, it's really a most beautiful sound when you get used to it." I pulled the lever.

There was the proper VWORP VWORP VWORP from the TARDIS engine as we escaped that horrible night. I didn't count how many we saved, although I'm sure it must have been in the hundreds at least. There were only about fifteen hundred survivors in the records, I'd later discover.

I wish I could have saved more. I wish I could have saved them all. But, sadly, the Doctor almost never saves them all. There is only so much even one adventurous and brilliant Time Lord can do, after all.

I shifted the TARDIS a week ahead in time and about twenty kilometers away. This was farming country and the people I'd rescued wouldn't starve before they got back to civilzation. If I could have gotten away with bringing them ahead to a time period after the Occupation I would have... but that would have altered the timeline too greatly and I didn't want to risk unraveling a part of reality.

It took some doing to get all the Bajorans out. During this time I was delighted to see Nerys reunited with her father. Kira Taban was staying back with his daughter in his arms, letting the others file out first while Janias and Camilla made sure to prevent stowaways.

When it was only the Kiras left, I saw a sad look in little Nerys' eyes. "I want to stay," she asked.

If it had been my choice, I would have said yes. But it was too late. I knew Kira Nerys' future. I knew all of the pain and anguish and violence that lay ahead for this poor little girl, and how a damaged soul who would come out of those experiences, a woman angry at the world in general and the Cardassian race in particular.

And, perhaps, well-deserved anger at one mysterious man for not letting her live in his magic box to protect her from the horrors of the Occupation.

Of course, I also knew about what would become of that damaged soul, of her destiny on Deep Space Nine and the key role she was to play in the future of her people. I knew of the potential end-points of her timeline. Interfering with that destiny would be as cruel as making her live the life to come.

"I wish you could," I answered her. "But you have a future, Nerys. It won't be easy to get to. It's going to take you into dark places. But the end of it will be worth it. In the end, you'll be far more happier than growing up in a box." I leaned in toward her. "We'll see each other again. Don't doubt that. And everything will be alright." I gave her a final pat on the head and tried not to look too deeply into her sad eyes. She clearly wasn't convinced. "Kira Taban, the best of luck to you," I said, offering a hand. He freed his right hand and shook mine.

"Thank you, Doctor," was his response, his eyes bright with tears. Grief for his murdererd sons and relief for his daughter's survival clearly warred inside of him. "Thank you for saving her."

"Don't mention it. And..." I leaned close and lowered my voice. "Please, when the day comes... forgive Nerys if she is too wrapped up in her problems or scared of what's coming. She still loves you and she always will."

Taban nodded. I knew it wouldn't change anything. He would die calling her name and she wouldn't be there; she'd be off fighting the Cardassians who were responsible for his mortal wound, unable to face his death. I hoped my words would stand in her place to reassure him of his daughter's love.

They left the TARDIS behind, Nerys looking longingly back over her father's shoulder. My companions and I waved at her until they disappeared over a nearby hill. We stepped in and closed the door. It was still hard for me to accept what I felt compelled to do. To send that little girl back out into such a horrible world seemed cruel, and the Doctor must never be cruel.

"Doctor, if you know her future, you did the right thing," Camilla said, taking my hand and trying to reassure me. "I may not be a Time Lord, but the idea of changing someone's entire life... you don't know what consequences could result. This is for the best."

"I know. But it doesn't mean I have to like it." I stepped past them and toward the TARDIS control panel. I had considered pointing out the obvious; would she object if I had gone back to her as a little girl and freed her from slavery in the Empire?

Given how much she loves Janias... quite possibly yes, she would reject that, wouldn't she?

I forced myself to move on. "Well, this has been an unexpected excursion. Still, perhaps I can get us locked onto Kendra Province after all."

"If it's all the same to you, Doctor..." Janias lowered her eyes. "I've had enough of Bajor for now."

"Oh. Well." I drew in a sigh. "Somewhere else then. But if it's okay with you two, I have somewhere to go first. A quick stop."

They answered with nods.

"First things first then. I'm double-checking our buffer system."

I didn't wait for long in the hall on Deep Space Nine, right outside the door to quarters belonging to, well, I'm sure you realize who I went to see.

Major Kira rounded the corner, undoubtedly on her way to a well-deserved rest. She stopped in her tracks the moment her eyes tracked over to see me. "Hello, Doctor," she said.

"Hello Nerys." I nodded slightly. "I was just in Singha, by the way. So this is our third meeting. The joy of personal timestreams."

She nodded and stepped closer. "I couldn't believe it was you earlier today at the Temple. It's been so many years."

"I get the feeling fewer years than the time from Singha," I remarked. I brought up a hand before she could speak further. "Don't tell me. I can't stand spoilers."

She smiled softly at that. "So what happened between you and Jadzia?"

"It turns out that I have made adversaries out of the Federation's Department of Temporal Investigations," I answered. "I suppose I can't be surprised. They're rather unhappy with the idea of anyone playing with the timeline."

"Yeah, I got the whole warning about them years ago. You might want to stay away for a while, Commander Sisko wasn't too happy with what happened."

I winced. "Now that is one man I know I can't chase off with a word." That made her laugh softly and I had to laugh too. "I came to say I'm sorry, Nerys. I'm sorry for not bringing you with me in the TARDIS."

For a moment I watched to see what her reaction would be. Anger? Resentment? Bewilderment? "I understand now," she said, her voice soft with pain and, perhaps, a little understanding. "You knew I'd end up on Deep Space Nine serving with the Emissary of the Prophets. You couldn't take that away from me."

"If I could have made both outcomes work I would have." I lowered my eyes. "It broke my heart. And I know how little that compares to what you've gone through."

She said nothing immediately, walking up to me in silence. When she was close her arms came up and wrapped around me. I returned the hug. "I remember everything about that night," she said. I could sense the tears welling in her eyes. "I would have died if you hadn't come. And then you took me in your arm and you made a dozen Cardassians run in terror. I'd never seen that before. It was like the Prophets had sent you to rescue me."

"Come now, Nerys, it was only a half-dozen at most," I insisted.

"The survivors still tell stories about you," she continued. "You're a legend on Bajor. We spread word far and wide about the Doctor, who can make Cardassians run in fear with just a word. You inspired a lot of people to fight for the Resistance."

"Did I now?" The corrollary, of course, was that I inspired a lot of people to die in battles they weren't prepared to fight. That was the problem with symbols sometimes; they made people stop thinking. "That wasn't my intention."

"I know." She nodded. "If you want anything for dinner..."

"Oh, no, I've taken enough of your time, Nerys. Besides, I don't imagine Commander Sisko would be very happy if he found out I was lingering. Best not to risk it. Maybe some other time... and on Bajor, where we won't have angry Starfleet officers complicating things."

"Well, I'll have to make a trip to Bajor soon," she replied.

I laughed at that and, reminded by what she'd just suggested, pulled a silver object out of my pocket. "Aside from your gracious offer of dinner... If you ever have the need, use this. It's a temporal beacon, trigger it and I'll be there. I do recommend you keep it hidden from your comrades, though. I don't think Starfleet will appreciate you having this."

"I'll keep that in mind." She accepted the beacon and smiled at me. "Thank you. I hope you'll come by sometime soon."

"I'll be coming and going as always," I promised.

I stepped back and let Nerys enter her quarters. I walked the other way and returned to the invisible door of the TARDIS from where I'd left it in an adjacent hall. Janias and Camilla were both standing near the controls, Janias in a bright blue sleeveless vest and white pants while Camilla was in a dark green sleeveless blouse and blue skirt. "Is she okay?", Camilla asked.

"She's fine," I replied. My hand went to the controls. My mind was thinking about other possibilities. Who else could I approach for any relevant data?

"So, where do we go next?", Janias asked.

"Hrm. A good question." I put my hands together. "Well, let me move some switches and we'll see where we head off to, hmm?"

"Just as long as it's better than what we just saw," Janias mumbled.

"Oh, I'm sure it will be." I pulled back on the lever, triggering the TARDIS to dematerialize and begin shifting.

In case you're wondering, no, the story of my involvement with Kira Nerys is not over. I haven't yet to scratch the importance she held in what was to transpire. But I will get to that eventually. I am not eager to, but I will. At that moment my focus was on where to take my traveling companions next. Provided my TARDIS cooperated after all.

If only I'd understood what the Prophets were warning me about then. I would have been better prepared. We would not have come so close to destruction.

But that is a story for another day.