Health and Safety: Chapter 23 – Remember Me
For a moment Walt can't decide which cell he wants to put Ria in, holding her at arm's length as his gaze sweeps back and forth between the doors. After a few seconds hesitation, he opens my cell, and pushes her forward. His stiff movements when he unlocks the handcuffs seem to be trying to cover up the fact that he's trembling slightly. The moment he has her free, Walt retreats back out into the main part of the building, eyes fixed on his boots.
He doesn't leave the door open to watch us this time.
It takes a bit of doing to get Ria to calm down and stop pacing the front of the cell. She's worried about Émeric, how things might go if he and Walt end up in the same room among other things… Her anxiousness is making me more apprehensive too. The pacing reminds me that we can't really go that far, that we're stuck in here with nowhere to run. As much as the Doctor said this was a way to keep us safe, it's starting to feel more like being cornered.
I try to explain our… encounter… with Solland to Ria. The words he spoke to us are easy; they're hard to forget. His eyes and their effect… they are much more difficult to convey. Her expression says that I got the general feeling across at least, eyebrows rising with concern.
"What are you going to do about him when you get out?" She asks when I finish.
I look to the Doctor, hoping for an answer myself, but he stays by his window, scanning the street below. Ria sighs, and picks herself up from where she'd sat down next to me, walking forward to the front of the cell, leaning on the door and clenching her fingers around the bars. Again reminding me of just how stuck we are…
After a while of being curled up in the corner, surrounded by the thick silence, my eyes start bobbing. Afraid to sleep, I shift to shove my back into the metal more uncomfortably.
"You don't have to do that Clara. I'm still here." The Doctor murmurs, appearing beside me. He pushes a hand through to tuck away a bit of my hair, showing that he can still reach me.
"Gentle? Like this morning?" I ask uncertainly.
There can be no mistaking that as me asking him to help, as me letting him help.
He nods his agreement, and starts humming something almost inaudibly as I let my eyes stay shut.
If there was one question that Cara Winds wanted answered, it would be what on earth a daft old man was doing in the underground when a portion of it was about to be actually properly blown off the map. If she could have two questions answered, the second would be why he was wearing plaid trousers… This man seemed oblivious; he didn't even hear her calling to him! He just continued stalking towards Charing Cross. This man was going to die. And although she didn't know why, she couldn't let that happen. And she could stop it too. As loathe as Colonel Lethbridge-Stewart was to admit it, Cara was one of UNIT's preeminent specialists on explosives and remote detonation, which was why she had been called into this assignment of course. She ran, as fast as she could, desperately trying to reach the controls for the explosion she had helped rig. Dropping to her knees when she reached the device, her mind quickly came to a painful understanding: the trigger had been tampered with, and there was now no way to disable it. She pulled at wires, and checked switches, panic settling in, when she realized something… She couldn't stop the explosion, but she could still contain it, keep it away from where that man was headed. Cara fought back her fear as she stripped cables and rerouted connections, pulling tools and electrical tape from her belt. Men had always teased her that if she had to pick between fixing some complicated machine or going out with them, that she would pick the machine. Well, now she was picking to save a man and fix a machine with the same tool belt, so they could take their insults and shove it. Her work done, she sighed, sitting back to relieve the pain in her knees she hadn't noticed before. She had about eighty seconds to spare, not long enough to get clear, but she had known that would happen... Cara leaned against the wall, and despite her best efforts, a tear leaked down her cheek, hot against her clammy skin. Then something incredibly unexpected happened. The tear was gently swept away, which caused Cara to open her eyes wide with fright. In front of her was a man, who looked at her like she was something absolutely precious. "It's okay; you're going to be alright." He told her, offering her both his hands. "Who are you? How did you get down here?" She cried, getting to her feet and jabbing him in the chest. "You're going to die; I did this to stop people from dying!" She shouted to him in despair, thrusting her arm out to give him another shove, but he caught her hands and held them firmly, yet gently. "Come with me. I swear neither of us is dying today." He promised, scooping her up into his arms and striding forward. Cara was shocked by his actions, and struggled until she heard the oddly familiar sound of his twin beating hearts. She shut her eyes and lay still, trying to focus on the sound. Moments later, she felt herself being set down gently, a hard surface supporting her back. She cracked an eye open, finding herself in a forest of trees with fluttering silver leaves, the man who had come for her resting happily at her side, giving her that same look of being absolute adoration…
The man was the Doctor. How did she not know that right away? It didn't matter, she knew now, she was Clara Oswald and she knew him, her Doctor… She leaned into him, sighing happily. Clara looked at the brilliant orange sky above them and watched as one of the shimmering leaves came loose from a branch hanging above them. It danced on the breeze, eventually landing in his lap. "We can't stay here much longer Clara." He said to her, half contented, half saddened. "Why not?" She asked. "Because the world needs you too much to let you stay trapped in my memories forever." He replied seriously. "I could think of worse ways to spend forever." She hummed, before standing, offering him her hands this time. He took them, though he didn't put much weight on her as he rose. Around them the shimmering beauty faded, leaving only them…
As he promised, waking up is easy, gentle, awareness slowly taking hold instead of snapping suddenly around me. The Doctor is smiling softly through the bars, giving me that look I had hoped to wake up to see… Well, it's pretty close to that look at least; the metal between us and the paramedic uniform weren't exactly part of that mental picture…
But I'm only allowed a few seconds to enjoy the moment before a deep voice sends shivers down my spine.
"- because it is only fitting for me to put in my best efforts on behalf of such an admirable partner, Mrs. London has been invaluable in our negotiations with Earth governments since becoming the CEO of Étoile Energy. This… unexpected acquisition… has nothing to do with the official landing she helped negotiate; I value her efforts highly."
"I already told you: I don't want your help. Or hers." Ria returns in an agitated tone.
Moving slowly, in the unrealistic hope that he won't notice me if I make no sudden movements, my eyes confirm what my ears already knew.
Solland is standing near the door to the cell Ria and I are sharing, his posture perfect, hands resting casually behind his back. Ria for her part has backed away from the front of the cell, looking ready to jump away at a second's notice. The Doctor's bench makes a sudden squeak, which does in fact make Ria leap around to look at us, and draws Solland's attention as well.
"Awake at last, are we?" He asks, striding closer, lacing his fingers lazily around the door to our cell.
"How did you get in here?" The Doctor demands, now on his feet.
"Why Doctor, I am Victoria's counsel, which she is legally entitled to. I assure you I am more than qualified. Catherine London quite agreed with me and was greatly comforted to know I was able to provide her wayward daughter assistance."
I want to ask him what he means, and who let him in. I want to demand that he leave us alone, all of us, assert that I have no intention to go with him. But every word of question, every thought of rebuke slides back down my throat when his eyes fall on me once more.
"Victoria appears incredibly ungrateful for my offer of assistance, so perhaps for the moment, I shall give her the same chance I gave you both: to think things over properly. You two do seem to have very strange ideas on where to go to reflect on your thoughts." He muses, looking around the cells with distaste. "So, once again, I shall make you my offer, dear lady." He continues, gaze focusing on me again as his grip tightens around the bars.
A whizzing sound fills the air, growing louder by the second. The Doctor and I have just enough time to exchange horrified looks before the whole building rocks around us, throwing everyone off balance except Solland, who had anchored himself to the bars.
"What was that?" Ria asks quickly, trying to pick herself up off the floor, but she only makes it to her knees before another blast shakes the building.
"That was my offer. What is it that humans say - actions speak louder than words?"
"What did you do?" The Doctor asks, springing to his feet.
The hissing noise that starts to fill the air answers that question. It sounds just like when we were in Estevan, when Kelvia dropped the gas canisters on the Lower City.
"What did you do?" The Doctor roars again.
"That gaseous substance filling the air is a mild variant of the compound I have offered your companion as her means to immortality. This, however, is just enough to settle everyone down to a nice stasis sleep for a few hours. I had intended to sort this out much more elegantly, but you went and poised the law enforcement of this town against me. Do not think we missed your call to UNIT from Estevan's Lower City communications room either, Doctor. I do not have time to waste. It was a good thing I told the ever protective Hikaru about Victoria's arrest so that she dragged Walter away to admonish him properly. He would never have allowed me in here." Solland states plainly.
From the windows behind us, a thin purple haze starts to ooze through the bars, slinking ever closer.
"Clara, get away from it!" The Doctor cries, moving towards the front of the cell.
"Yes my dear, come this way." Solland invites.
Behind him, the door flies open, and Daniel rushes through, keys in hand as pushes his way past Solland to the door of our cell, unlocking it quickly.
"Are you all okay?"
"No!" Solland shouts in dismay as Daniel pulls the door open, racing forward and grabbing him. Daniel ducks away as a short, ornate dagger flashes before him in Solland's hands. Recovering, Daniel throws himself closer to Solland, knocking the weapon from his hand as the two fall into a scuffle.
The purple haze continues to creep forward, eventually enveloping the room, much to the Doctor's dismay. Ria tries to jump into the fray to help Daniel, but Solland skirts away from them both, rolling gracefully across the floor, snatching the long forgotten keys.
"You won't go anywhere without him." He informs me, looking to the trapped Doctor and wiping a bit of blood from a knick on his angular cheek. " I shall take my leave for now, and allow the gas to do its work . Farewell until our next meeting." He promises, sweeping back his cuff to reveal a wide band of metal, which he punches a few buttons on before disappearing.
Seconds later, Daniel gasps and crumples to the floor. Ria kneels next to him, checking him over and shaking him gently.
"Solland didn't hurt him as far as I can tell." She says to us.
" It wasn't Solland; it was the gas." The Doctor explains in a panic, pushing his hands through the bars, beckoning me closer.
"Clara, please, get to the TARDIS. She'll have something to help. A new sonic screwdriver, I hope at least..."
"I don't want to leave you!"
" Please, go! You saw what happened to Daniel… I don't know how long any of us are going to last under this." He implores, taking my hand and squeezing it as he looks me right in the eyes.
Although I still don't want to leave him, I know that staying probably isn't going to help… Finding a spare set of keys would likely take more time than we have, so the TARDIS is my best chance to get him out. Ria takes my arm under the elbow, scanning my face with concern.
"Let's go!" I tell her urgently.
There are screams and shouting now, people trying to understand what is going on, where this gas is coming from, what those explosions were, and what exactly is going on. Ria grabs a handkerchief sitting on Walt's desk as we run by, and pushes it up to cover my face.
"I don't know if that will do any good but may as well try." She explains, fumbling with the handle of the front door.
We only make it about three steps out before colliding head on with a moving body. I stagger back a few feet, ready to hit whoever this is as they scoop Ria up into a tight hold. Luckily, I realize it's Émeric before I do anything.
"We don't have time for this." She chokes out, but he doesn't listen, keeping her there for a few seconds longer, face buried in the crook of her neck. As soon as he lets her go, she grabs us both, dragging us towards the stable where the TARDIS is hidden.
I'm not sure if it's just me, but it's getting a little harder to breathe… People are panicking all around us, collapsing, trying to flee, holding each other…
"Clara, please stay with me." Ria pleads, as Émeric pries open the stable door. I don't remember him moving away from us… As he ushers us forward again, I almost fall when I take my next step forward, but Ria catches me, throwing my arm around her shoulders as she half carries me to the TARDIS doors.
Strax's head pokes out, and he gives us all a disapproving look.
"I am under direct orders not to let you in, human male." He states, glaring at Émeric.
"Strax, this is not the time!" Ria growls, coughing lightly as she pushes right past him.
Vastra and Jenny appear likewise disinclined to have Émeric in the TARDIS, but one look at me and they seem to think better of arguing further.
"Where would I find a sonic screwdriver?" I ask them desperately, trying to shake Ria off of me, using a railing for support.
The three Victorian detectives exchange a look, none of them seeming to have an answer for me. But someone else does… A loud hum echoes out, followed by an angry whine and the sound of rotating gears. In the middle of the console, a few of the controls lift up, their panel coming free, and an almost identical copy of the Doctor's sonic screwdriver emerges. Pushing off of the rail, I race forward to grab it.
"Now back to the Doctor!"
"We're coming with you." Vastra asserts, drawing her sword and leading the others out the door. It sounds like Émeric is trying to explain about the gas to them in a hurried tone.
As I go to follow them, the ring of metal hitting metal calls out behind us, stopping me in my tracks. I swear I've heard that sound before; it's the ring of a key bouncing off the console floor…
"Clara? What's wrong?" Ria asks worriedly, reaching out to steady me again as I stumble.
I can almost feel the chill of cold hands wrenching me backwards, see the blanket of stars above me, but a clanging noise makes my head snap around, looking to see where it came from. When I do, there's a tiny object standing out against the brushed steel floor.
Carefully, I pull out of Ria's steadying hands, staggering forwards.
"Clara!" She calls after me.
It is a key, but it's not like any TARDIS key I have seen, which admittedly isn't many, but even if I'd seen them all, I think this one would still be unique. It isn't silver, or tarnished with age. It looks like it was cut from alabaster, though when I close my fingers over it, it feels like metal. Holding it up to the cool bluish light, I can see the intricate pattern on it, lines twisting this way and that, interlocking in an inexplicable complexity. It's hard to tell if it's just my eyes playing tricks on me, but the lines almost seem to move...
A whine whirrs from the pillar of the console, reminding me that we need to go.
"Did you just give me this?" I ask her; not caring if I said that talking to this box was stupid before.
The whine reverberates around the space again, sounding a little kinder, but even more urgent.
The Snogbox, the grumpy old cow - the TARDIS, has just given me the most stunning thing I have ever seen. And more than that, she's letting me in, letting me come and go as I please…
"Clara, we've gotta go, the Doctor remember?"
"Yeah, sorry, coming." I tell Ria distractedly, my eyes still fixed on the key. There isn't a chain for it, and the Doctor didn't want anyone to find his key… Thinking for a moment, I slip it into my boot, the best hiding place I can think of right now.
As I move to stand up, I can hear voices echoing around the TARDIS console. They are the Doctor's voices… and many others. Some I recognize, some I don't. Trying to focus on them just makes my head spin, but when I try to ignore them they seem to demand I listen. I can hear his voice, my Doctor's voice bouncing around, giving sound to a memory of not long ago…
The TARDIS telepathic circuits and the dimensioning forces, they're making it harder, they're waking the ideas up in your head…
Somewhere behind me, Ria is shouting to Émeric, but then everything goes dark and peacefully silent around me.
A/N: Many apologies are due once again for the long wait between chapters… Thank you so much for sticking with me! My real life is hectic at the moment, which isn't leaving me the time to work on this I'd like to have. After all the work that has gone into this story, I don't want to rush and post slapdash chapters so late in the game. On a positive note, the next chapter is almost to the point of being sent off to my lovely beta (whose help with this chapter cannot be understated, DV, you are fantastic) so the wait for the next bit *should* be much shorter!
Also, the Brigadier was a UNIT Colonel until his promotion, just as a heads up. I have tried to avoid Classic Who faux-pas!