A/N: This is a detailed side story for my Doctor Who AU 'Verse. It's 'All About' Jamie and the Doctor. How they met, what adventures they had, and finally why they were parted. It's a prequel to Doctor Who and the Great Eclipse even though I'm writing it now, and mean it to be read in conjunction with Doctor Who and the Tangled Web. This is meant for those folks with no exposure to the second Doctor. This chapter covers the serial "The Macra Terror". Scenes that don't have either the Doctor or Jamie directly involved will not be included. Transcripts of the episodes are used as reference for dialogue, along with photonovels where the BBC has lost / destroyed them. Inspiration and Titles come from the T.a.t.u song "All About Us" that was used for the video featuring this ship. See TARDIS Parking for the links to both Transcripts and video.
Thanks to Kyer and OtherMeWriter for the lovely reviews. I went and looked at the color images of the second doctor again and am changing the eye color from 'gold-brown' to 'gray-brown'. Of all the color pictures I've found only one shows him with 'blue' eyes. All the others his eyes look light brownish to gray. Thanks for pointing that out.
Part Four
There's a thing that they can't touch
The claw on the time scanner wasn't as unreliable as the Doctor wanted to pass it off for. It really existed in an important place that it shouldn't exist at. Verity knew that it wasn't the fate of all humanity, or anything, but the threat was a real one and after saving Earth twice maybe something smaller would be restful. So she settled for this lost colony that would someday snap itself into a position of importance for at least part of its existence. Currently the planet outside the colony itself was habitable but barren. The terraforming projects had been sidetracked by the arrival of an alien invader. She materializes outside the colony and tries to give the Doctor a feeling of compassion. He gruffly brushes her off, still being touchy about the cybermen. He opens the door and heads out. Ben, Polly, and Jamie follow him with the piper choosing to carry a large stick for defense.
There's a little horsing around by Ben that The Doctor finds himself having to clamp his reactions down about. He doesn't like what Ben is doing by trying to roughhouse with his Jamie. Damn. He's becoming a jealous bastard. Fortunately Polly scolds the sailor for him. "Have you no sense? Have you forgot what we saw on that time scanner?" Jamie rants at Ben. Polly slinks back at the memory of it.
"I'm afraid you're wasting your time, Jamie," The Doctor tells him. After the lad asks why he continues, "Unless I'm very much mistaken, these creatures are so big they're going to see us long before we see them."
Suddenly someone small, dark headed, bearded, but very strong rushes out of cover right at the piper. Polly calls out a warming even as Jamie raises the stick to defend himself with. Seconds later Ben jumps in to grab the fellow. Polly even joins in, "Sit on top of him!" Guards arrive and drag the man off who struggles in their grasp. Ben is cradling his arm. Polly turns to him as she brushes some of the dust off, "Ben, are you all right?" He nods to her.
The leader of the guards, Ola, both thanks them for their help and more or less orders them to come back to the colony to 'meet the pilot'. The way that the fellow who attacked Jamie, Medok, is being treated gives the impression that this is not an optional thing. While they are binding the man Jamie looks at the Doctor and inquires, "Er, uh, any good asking where we are?"
And actually it's a good question but the Time Lord hadn't stopped to check. "Well, according to my calculations we're, er, certainly in the future and, er, on a planet very like the Earth."
"How do you know?" the Scotsman asks.
The Doctor makes a face and tilts his head toward Jamie, "I don't know. I'm guessing."
They are led/escorted/cheerfully poked back to the colony. The noise at the entrance arch is enough to make the Time Lord cringe. He looks over at Jamie who is having a similar reaction. While the music is cheerful the words strike him as being brainwashing and tedious. Ola leads them up to Pilot who in turn overly cheerfully thanks them and informs them that the music is how they regulate their day.
Ben is gun ho to check this out, as he is in most cases. The Doctor stays with him, wanting to look around but for a totally different reason. Polly still is thinking about that giant claw and hangs back. And Jamie figures his job is to watch the Doctor's back, so he needs to be in the rear of the group. The Scotsman says to Polly, "Keep your eyes skinned, they're a weird sort of folk. I don't know that I understand them." Polly nods, sensing that the colonists are all rather too the same for her tastes.
They are taken to the 'Refreshing Department' that ends up being a health spa type of thing. The music here is calming. The pilot leads them into the space and is told that 'Control' wants to welcome the guests. The Doctor notes that this 'Control' is called 'they' but once the screen it turned on a still image appears of a single man along with a message that plays, "We wish to welcome joyfully the visitors to our colony. We are very grateful to them. They have performed a valuable service. The Colony is to make our guests happy and contented during their stay. Welcome again, friends. Now, back to work, everyone!"
Pilot turns them over to another fellow. Polly seems charmed by the still image they were shown. Jamie folds his arms across his chest and glowers. The Doctor is smiling and acting like he buys this hook line and sinker, but then Jamie notes his eyes are not smiling at all. In fact the Doctor has a cunning look in them that makes the piper want some time alone with him so that they can talk about this. While Ben and Polly both seem to see nothing wrong with taking advantage of the services being offered, neither the Doctor nor Jamie is over thrilled with being forced to conform no matter how nicely the attendants go about it. In fact the Doctor rather quickly undoes the neatly groomed look that he's given, much to Jamie's relief. Now if he could just get his kilt back…
Polly is brought back to them with a much-changed look, her long blond hair cropped off shorter than Ben's. Jamie thinks she looks like a bairn but for the paint on her face. The three of them are given clothes that match what the colonists are wearing, and he suspects that the Doctor is too but that the canny fellow refuses to wear them. "Oh, you look smashing. You really do. You look like a prince. Jamie that's super. It really is," Polly assures him of his new groomed look when he finally manages to get away from the lassies. The only one he wants touching him is the Doctor, and he doesn't like the new uniforms.
The Time Lord and his friends are left for a bit, having assured the leader of this department that they at least mostly look like they belong. The Doctor puts his hand on Jamie's and tries to assure him that things are under control. The piper steps closer and attempts to store up on the contact as discretely as possible. A nice quiet room where they can be alone would be good, but he's guessing that they are not going to get it. Then the Doctor spots Medok being dragged through by Ola and the guards. This place isn't a spa but a holding area, and the other man is being locked into a room. He squeezes Jamie's hand then moves off to intercept. While he's trying to talk to Medok, Ola tells him not to, and Medok reveals that he doesn't believe either of them belong there. As soon as the guards have moved away the Doctor sets to picking the lock.
Once he's accomplished this, in spite the interruption by one of the attendants, he slips inside the room and tries to talk to Medok again. The fellow is alarmed at the fact that the Doctor has come into his room. "Shh, I'm going to set you free," the rumpled Time Lord sets to undoing the man's bonds. "Just hold still a minute. There we are. One more." The ropes come away, "Don't bother to say thank you. Now, tell me something about these things that you see, hmm? Do they, for instance, appear to crawl slowly over the ground?"
"How do you know?" Medok asks.
The Doctor tries to reassure him, "Oh, just wondered that's all." But the man is jumpy and flees at the first noise outside his door, "It's all right, I won't let them hurt you. Why don't you listen to me?"
"Get out of my way! I am not being caught!" Medok says as he pushes past and out into the hall beyond. He takes off in a run as an alarm sounds. The door shuts, cutting off the rest of the noise, and as there's no handle on the inside, the Doctor sighs and sits down to wait. Shortly thereafter Pilot, Ola, and the Doctor's companions open the door.
Pilot demands to know what happened. The Doctor explains that he tried to explain to Medok that he wouldn't get hurt and that the man took off anyhow. He denies that he was deliberately setting the man free. Ola wants to arrest him for it, but Polly and the Doctor manage to convince Pilot to not let him. Night will be falling soon and Ola insists that the entire colony is scared of Medok. The Doctor says, "He can run you know. He's got legs. He doesn't have to crawl over the ground." This agitates the chief of the police who threatens the Doctor with a correction treatment for spreading rumors. Pilot steps in and orders Ola to let the strangers visit the 'labor center' so that they learn to understand why Medok is so dangerous.
The Doctor knows however, that the situation is not what it seems. Medok is not the enemy here. But what is? He suspects after his visit to the labor center that it's some sort of parasite. The Controller strikes him a blatantly fake. And why are the laboring workers so intent on mining a gas with no value to humans? He stands there with a clinched jaw and a hard look as the workers act like mind washed zombies, coming and going in unison. These colonists are happily kept slaves. With great sarcasm Jamie leans over and says, "That's a nice wee tune Doctor," when the shift change occurs. The work shifts seem to be constant, never stopping. The Doctor nods about the observation, and Jamie asks, "Uh, what do ye do then? Farming or fishing?"
"We work very hard here," the shift leader responds.
"Yes, but what do you do?" The Doctor presses.
The shift leader blinks, "We tap and refine gas." Polly asks if it is used for heating and is told, "No, we use it for many things. The Colony depends on it. It's absolutely essen..." the man is cut off as an alarm blares and some workers stagger into the room. Their fellows rush over to help them. In the chaos that follows the Doctor taps Jamie, Keep an eye on Ben and Polly. I've got to try to talk to Medok.
Aye. I don't like this.
Giant claws, poison gas… mental brainwashing… The Doctor is piecing together who the enemy is, if only he could get a good look at them. He slips away to where he spotted Medok hiding. Once he reaches where the man is he tries to talk to him. "Shh! I saw you."
Medok is nervous and suspicious. "Get out!"
"Oh, that's not very polite. I was interested in what you were saying," the Doctor tells him. The fellow demands to know who the Time Lord has told about his hiding spot. "No one. Why should I tell them? Now these creatures - have you seen them clearly? What do they look like?" It takes some coaxing and the Doctor informing Medok, "I'm interested. What do they look like?"
But eventually the man says, "If you really want to know. It's hard to say. They move at night, in the dark. And look horrible. Creatures...like giant insects."
"With big claws?"
"Yes, that's it." Then Medok says that he's seen them in the colony and that anyone else that has seen them is taken to the hospital for correction and locked up there. The alarm sounding prompts him to say, "And they'll put you back there for helping me. Go on! Quickly! They're looking for you!" He says as the sounds of Ben's, Polly's, and Jamie's voices call out for the Doctor. The alarm continues to sound the entire time.
The voices fade and the Doctor assures Medok that everything will work out. He slips away back to the refreshing department to hear Jamie doing his best to keep Polly and Ben from going back out to look again. He pulls his recorder and plays it as he approaches the chamber. His companions are in there along with the chief of police and some guards. He stops playing as they turn to look at him, "Were you looking for me?"
"Where have you been?" Polly demands to know.
"Just looking around, that's all." He smiles at her
Ola steps in, "It's dangerous to go off on your own after dark, and we're confined to rest cubicles at night by order of Control. Anyone who wanders around the Colony at night... may be killed."
At that moment there's fanfare followed by, "Curfew time. All personnel not on duty must retire to quarters. Emergency patrols two and three to remain on duty. Work shifts to remain at their posts until dawn. Visitors to retire for the night to the refreshing department."
"Do you hear that? You're confined here," Ola states before he walks out of the room.
Jamie moves over to the Doctor, "Like Inverness, this is, only without the sea seepin' in."
"Very astute of you, Jamie."
The head of the refreshing department appears up to show them to their rooms. Quite frankly Jamie doesn't want to go into the room he's supposed to share with Ben. Ben and Polly don't want him there either. The Doctor opens his door and looks out to see Jamie being urged into the hallway by the blonde woman who is looking for some time alone with Ben. This suits Jamie fine, but he puts up a token resistance to hide how thrilled he is about her giving him an excuse to head across the hall. "Fine! I'll just head over and keep the Doctor company! Maybe we'll play our pipes." Ben groans and closes the door. Polly's laugh faintly comes through it. Jamie turns and looks at the dark haired man who is watching him. "'Tis Ok with you, isn't it?"
The Doctor motions him over, "I suspect that Ben and Polly need a few hours of not being threatened by anything. Come on in, Jamie."
Jamie steps into the cubical and begins removing the button-up double-breasted uniform like shirt. He hates the thing, honestly. "You intend on sleeping?"
"No. I don't need as much rest as you do." He watches the Scotsman strip down to his tee and pants.
"Don't like the clothes. I want my kilt back. Too much cloth against my parts for my comfort." He digs at the form-fitting undergarment.
The doctor picks the sheet off the bed and moves over to the piper, "I'll try to find it for you." He steps up and drapes the sheet around Jamie's waist, "Go on. Take the pants off if they bother you." Jamie catches his hands before the Doctor can step away, feeling the tingle through the fabric where the Doctor's hand is resting as it holds the bunched cloth. "This is another one of those moments isn't it?" The lad nods. The pants are becoming very much too tight. The Doctor surprises him by putting his other hand right over the problem, resting a cool, firm, electrifying hand over throbbing heat. Jamie tightens his grip as the Doctor steps in even closer behind him. "Is it more intense being so confined?"
Jamie swallows, "Aye."
"I've a confession to make, Jamie." The lad turned his head to look at the older man; "I've no idea what I'm doing where you are concerned. You completely remove me from my element. And I love it. I love how you make me feel."
"Kiss me like I kissed you on the moon."
Jamie finds himself against the wall, pinned. The Doctor can kiss. He's fairly good at it, and getting better with practice. Jamie circles his arms around the fellow and digs his fingers into the thick dark hair, responding to the attention in kind. The connection snaps back into place, and the Scotsman can feel cool fingers slide under the sheet, and past the bands marking the top if the underpants, and down, taking the annoying garment with them, leaving trails of sparks across his buttocks. He shifts to help get the annoying things completely off his legs.
Then he turns attention to the Doctor's clothes, thinking that perhaps the man has too much on. He was pleased to note that the Doctor seems to share his impression at this point, quickly shedding much of his layers as Jamie focuses on getting his hands in contact with skin. It's nice to feel how his touch ripples across the cool flesh, the heat of his fingers sinking into the layers of the Doctor's being, fading into sparking tingles. He begins kissing across the other man's jaw toward his ear, taking a thrilling joy out of the feel if the stubble under his lips and the taste of honey that seems to sweeten the Doctor's skin. He reaches the earlobe and suckles on it, making the Time Lord gasp and tremble. "I want to taste you all over…" he whispers, "I want to crawl inside and become part of you."
"Ah-- Believe me – you are. Um." Jamie strokes his fingers down the Doctor's spine, much as had been done to him. It draws out a musical groan. Jamie wonders how the dark haired man would react if he licked him that way. The thought makes the Doctor moan, "Oh… Such thoughts."
"Only because of you. And you like it." He begins kissing and licking down the throat, across the shoulder, onto the shoulder blade, as he moves behind the Doctor, letting his fingers wander over the rest of the cool exposed skin. Jamie's touch leaves the sensation of cooling embers across his skin that fade into sparks of psychic energy. The lad's quickly learning how to tap into his nervous system to get him to react the way he wants him to. Trembling, he sinks to his knees. Jamie follows, smoothly, not missing anything. The lad's erotic ideas about touching him, tasting him, feeling him, spark off his own thoughts about wanting and needing... Jamie strokes his chest, reaching around from behind. His breath ghosts over the Doctor's left clavicle as he moves to that side. "Sensitive there?" The entire left side of his body becomes hyper aware as Jamie's lips brush over the spot. "Oh," Jamie exclaims as the sensation flows into him. He attacks the spot with renewed fervor, suckling on it and licking and biting, marking this man as his.
He's building, climbing higher and higher… what is this that the lad's found? Oh by Rassilon! He feels hollow on the inside, like something is missing. "Jamie…"
The Doctor is flushed, nerves firing off like they are overloaded. The Scottish piper looks at him. He did this. He made this wonderful being feel this way. "Tell me what ye want, Doctor."
"More-- please."
Jamie smiles and begins exploring again, working his way down, looking for other areas that are sensitive and not the same as his own body. He's figured out something interesting. He can build the Doctor up higher and higher, more and more tightly strung, and as long as he himself doesn't fall off the edge they won't reach climax. The Scotsman is not sure of the why of this, but it is fun to play with at the moment. He knows the teasing he's doing makes it all the more of an explosion when it does finally occur. He's serious about wanting to be totally inside, completely together. And the Doctor is almost at that point too. He can feel the need building. Jamie doesn't leave even a centimeter of skin untouched, un-tasted, un-nibbled. He goes all the way to the Doctor's toes then back up again, pulling off the undershirt, leaving them both completely nude. They pause as Jamie realigns his body with the Doctor's. "If you want me to stop--" Jamie finds himself cut off by a kiss that would steal his breath away but for the fact that the Doctor is breathing for him.
I'll never want you to stop, silly boy.
Oh, good. Then I won't. He maneuvers a bit and slides himself flush so that they are making as much skin contact as possible. He feels cool legs circle his waist to keep him there, still for a moment. Then the Doctor's inner mental walls come down. They connect, flesh to flesh, mind to mind, soul to soul. Jamie is inside him, outside him, through him, mingled… impossible to tell where one ends and the other begins. Slowly, they begin to move creating trails of sparks across their combined awareness. And like this they climb up to the peak and crash into thousands of glittering pieces…
After a long, long point of blankness Jamie feels fingers in his hair and lips against his neck. "My Jamie. My beautiful Jamie…" He smiles at the words and turns to kiss the arm that he's resting on. He smells of salt and honey and he knows he never wants to wash that away. They are tangled in the sheet on the floor and neither of them cares much. He's sated, although not completely comfortable. The floor is hard. Jamie slowly stretches. The link between them crackles with lazy energy, comforting in its flow.
"Now, that… I wanna do that as often as we can." He sits up, "Maybe even on a bed, eh?"
"Next time, my Jamie, I believe a bed would be splendid." The Doctor gets to his feet and helps the piper up and over to the bed where they both sit. "But I think… screaming 'Doctor' might not be the best thing when we're doing it. Would you like to know one of my names that you can pronounce, Jamie?"
Jamie blushes, "Did I scream?"
"Yes. I'm fairly sure that Ben and Polly were far too busy to hear you. How about you call me Thete in private?"
"Thete – I like that." Jamie chews on his lip and flirts with him, "So you're my Thete then, ya?"
The Doctor's eyes get a look of deep affection, "Always. Jamie." The piper smiles and brushes his thumb over the mark on the Doctor's left clavicle. The energy spikes a bit. Thete puts his hand over the Scotsman's.
"You should go find Medok, Doctor," Jamie says.
They hear Polly heading back to her own room. "Keep an eye on Ben, Jamie. I have a funny feeling about how this place keeps everyone so cheerful." The lad nods. He quite shares that odd feeling. They redress and part, Jamie heading back to his room with Ben and the Doctor quietly slipping out to find Medok.
Although he's warned by the controller to not leave the refreshing department, the Doctor heads back to the last location he saw Medok at dodging patrols as he makes his way from shadow to shadow. He finds the fellow and cautions him to not move. The guards are searching and it takes a bit to convince him to stay put. Finally the Doctor says, "Wait! If he comes in this way, we'll go out the back. If he comes in the back, we'll go out here." But Ola heard them talking and is getting closer. He calls for his men to come search around where he is and the Doctor motions, "All right. Go back."
"You can't stay here," Medok protests.
"I'll try to create a diversion."
Medok clutches his arm, "No, they'll kill you!"
"Do as I tell you." The fellow looks grateful. "Go on. Go on." The Doctor pushes him back, following him into the shadows toward the back. "All right, we'll go through this opening when I give the word." He checks then orders, "Right. Now!"
Medok yanks him back, "No, look. Out there. In that patch of moonlight. I told you I'd seen them!" The man is pointing and the Doctor has to scan the night twice to spot it, like the creature has already begun it's mind control process to make people not see it. But there is no mistaking it. It's a sentient Macra, large and crab-like with glowing eyes. He blinks as he shakes off the subconscious suggestion that he saw nothing. The Macra has slipped into the darkness. "Ah! That proves it! I wasn't seeing things!"
"Medok - the guards. They'll hear you."
"It doesn't matter. They can't lock me up again. Now I can prove it. We know they're real." He calls out; "It's the Macra, Ola! They are real! Ask the Doctor. He'll tell you."
Ola says, "We don't want to know what the strangers think. Stay where you are. Guards - search him. You're going before the Pilot. You are in the company of an escaped criminal. And you were out in the Colony at night."
Medok looks like he's about to cry, "I'm sorry, Doctor. I thought he'd listen to reason. You're going to be in trouble, and it's my fault."
The Doctor pats Medok on the arm. They are marched off to see Pilot. It's quickly explained where they were found and Medok steps in and claims that the Doctor was out there trying to get him to turn himself in. Feeling sad, the Doctor lets the fellow divert the colony leader's ire off him and is sent back to the refreshing department. He does discover that Pilot can track everyone in the colony from his office, and that individuals who believed in the virtues of 'healthy happiness' founded the colony many centuries ago. It seems that any method necessary to reach that uniformity was thought totally proper. He's then escorted back to his room.
0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0
Ben was sound asleep when Jamie came back into the cubicle they shared. He couldn't complain about the faint smell of sex in the room, considering what he'd been doing across the hall. Jamie removes his shoes again, having never put the jacket back on to begin with and settles down. He's not really tired, and his link with the Doc – Thete – is giving him the feeling of restlessness.
Then he hears a soft, calm voice, "The sleeper must relax and believe. Everything in the Colony is good and beautiful. You must accept it without question. You must obey orders. The leaders of the Colony know what is best. In the morning when you wake up you will be given some work. You will be glad to obey. You will question nothing in the Colony."
He sits up and listens, "Ben? Ben?" he whispers as he shakes his friend by the shoulder.
"Huh? What is it?"
"I heard something."
"You're always hearing something," Ben mumbles, "I'm asleep."
"It was evil, Ben - an evil voice. An evil that spoke so gently and yet... yet I almost believed what it said."
"Oh, look, mate. Get some sleep. We got a hard day's work ahead of us tomorrow. We've got to do something to help in the Colony. We can't just eat their nosh without helping out. It won't be too bad to work here."
"You sound just like that voice, Ben. I never heard you talk that way before," Jamie gets up. Ben rolls over and goes back to sleep.
A sickly sweet smell begins to fill the cubical, "You will not resist the sleeping gas. Breathe deeply. In the morning, when you wake, you will obey." Jamie sways as he tries to move to the door. He gets it open just in time to see the Doctor open up Polly's door. He follows him in, noticing that Polly is fast asleep. The Doctor heads right over to the wall above her head and shorts out something causing a small fizzling explosion.
"Wake up, Polly. You've been listening to some very bad advice. I want you to forget everything that you've been dreaming."
She sits up and blinks at him in confusion, "Why do you say that?"
"Well, it's just possible that you've been given a series of orders while you've been asleep. You know, do this, do that, do the other thing. My advice to you is don't do anything of the sort. Don't just be obedient. Always make up your own mind. What am I thinking of? Ben!"
Jamie nods from behind him, "I kept hearing wee voices."
"That's a good sign. That means they haven't been able to get very deeply into your brain." The Doctor passes him as he heads back into the room where Ben is still deep asleep. He shorts out the circuit over Jamie's bed.
Ben wakes up, "Hello, Doctor. Is it morning?"
"No, not yet. Nearly so."
"What are you up to?"
"Well, by my calculations, there should be a thin strand of wire in the wall here, like a nerve tapping the subconscious of the human brain." He searches until he finds the wire. Ben protests. "Better some damage than loss of will power," the Doctor tells him as he shorts the wire.
"What are you on about? Look, get out of it. It's against the law. Don't do that!" Ben says.
Polly stands there gaping at her boyfriend, "What's the matter with you, Ben? Since when did you start to worry?"
"He thinks he knows best all the time, but this time he's wrong." Ben points at the Doctor, "Control knows what's best for us. They want us to cooperate. We should be helping. We should learn to obey. The Doctor's causing trouble. I'm going to turn him in."
"What's the matter with you Ben? This doesn't sound like you at all," Polly looks distraught.
Jamie looks pissed, "You don't know what you're doing, Ben."
"I'm very much afraid I'm too late," the Doctor said with a pout, "No, it's no use, Jamie. Violence will get you nowhere."
Ben rushes out of the room, "Guards!"
"Doctor, he's going to go and tell the guards. We've got to get you out of here," Polly says.
Stunned, Jamie adds, "He betrayed you."
"No, no. Not Ben. He's not in control of his actions. He's been given a series of instructions and he can't help himself."
Ben storms back in with Ola, "That's Him! He prodded about in the wall and smashed up our equipment."
Ola gloats, "This time we've got the evidence, and from one of your own friends. Come on, Doctor."
The Scotsman steps in front of the Doctor, "Leave him alone."
"Out of my way. That's an order."
"I take orders from no one but the Doctor." Jamie says. He feels his Thete put his hand on his shoulder and squeeze. Thank you, Jamie.
"All right, you're coming too," Ola says.
He marches them out. They head back to Pilot's office. Once there they are standing in front of Pilot the colony leader says, "You have destroyed three nerve circuits, Doctor. You have burned them out. What have you to say?"
"Rather neat, don't you think? And so simple. I did it with this," He holds up the spare bit that he used to short out the wires.
"You admit it?"
The Doctor rocks on the balls of his feet, "I'm proud of it." Then he looks at the wall behind Pilot and cocks his head, "My dear Pilot, your wall? Even you were subjected to this form of subconscious control?"
"Leave that alone," Pilot orders.
The Doctor ignores him and shorts out the wire, "That's better."
"You will be punished for this."
"The least you can do is to say thank you."
Ola comes into the room, announces that Ben has another report and is told to bring them in. Ben and Polly enter as Ola leaves. Polly is clearly upset.
"Who are you stabbing in the back this time?" Jamie says to Ben.
"Polly? Polly? What's the matter?" The Doctor moves over to her.
"Doctor, it was horrible. A great insect, like... like a crab. It got hold of me. Ben got me free, and he was nearly killed himself." Ben denies having seen the Macra, much to Polly's distress. The Doctor reminds them that Ben is not himself and has come under the control of the evil forces at the heart of the colony. Pilot defends the control and the Doctor and Jamie trick him into showing them the real individual behind the image. He's a frail old man, not even mentally aware enough to speak when given a chance. Because of his poor performance he's dragged away by a large brownish claw. "Doctor, that was it - that thing in the picture! That was the claw! They're in control. Macra! They're in control!" Polly screams.
"Take them out of here. They are condemned to the pits!" The Pilot orders. "Take them away!"
"Come on. Get out, all of you. Out! Get out!" Ola ushers the three strangers out under guard, leaving Ben behind. They are taken to the gas centre, a room off the pits that is part of the gas refinery. Music blares the normal preppy tune, grating in its cheerfulness.
The doctor groans and says, "Dreadful. Did you hear that rhyme? The man who wrote that ought to be sent to the Danger Gang - not us."
Ola tells him to be quiet and takes up the three of them to the plant leader. They discover that their shift leader is an old friend.
Jamie says, "I thought this was a mine. You know, where you dig up coal?"
The plant leader says, "Ah, yes. But here, you see, the rock foundation is a type of salt. Now, at depths it generates gases over the years, and these gases are extremely valuable."
"Aye. Well, you don't send a lassie and an old man down to dig," the Scotsman says. He sees the hurt look on the Doctor's face and sends him a comforting thought along with an apology. I don't mean it, Thete, I know you are not old. Then Medok appears, "Medok. How did you get here?
"Huh! They threw me out of the correction hospital. Apparently I'm a hopeless case. This one remaining punishment they could think of - to work in the Danger Gang for life," he says.
"For life?"
Medok shrugs, "Oh, don't worry. You don't survive long in this atmosphere. It's the gas. It gets everywhere. It creeps into your lungs. And when you're down there, you're right in the thick of it." The plant leader makes sounds like he is going to call guards, "We're going. But, we are entitled to a supervisor on this shift. So… Yes. Well, I'm leaving this man." He indicates the Doctor.
The Doctor tries to pass the job to Polly and then Jamie says, "Do you not think you might make better use of the opportunity, Doctor?" Jamie takes the moment to put a hand on the Doctor's arm. The faith he has that Thete can find a solution to the problem from here makes him nod. Of course, I understand Jamie.
"Oh, yes. Oh, yes. Yes. I'll be supervisor." Medok makes sure that Polly and Jamie have masks for the work in the pit, The Doctor is given a checklist. The plant leader moves off to his own work, while the Doctor sets to studying the machinery in the room. He's mumbling to himself when he spots Ben. "Hello, Ben. Don't go. Come in. Don't be afraid. It wasn't your fault you betrayed your friends. I warn you, if you spy on the others, watch out Jamie doesn't catch you. He's not so tolerant as I am."
Down in the mine Jamie and Polly end up helping contain a gas strike. The are told that it's a poisonous gas that is being tapped from the bowels of the planet. It kills humans if they breathe and none of the miners know what it's used for.
The Doctor first off figures out the relationship between the various readings on the dials. And even though he's ordered to wipe it off it is fixed in his brain now and he can work on it still from this point without having it in front of him.
Jamie spots a very strong door, and Polly agrees that it is strange. When the plant leader shows up to inspect the work with Ben at his side both of them keep a close eye on him. But the chance to get the keys and check out that door falls right into their laps and Jamie snags it, catching the man as he faints away and lifting his keys. "He's fainted," says Polly as Ben walks over.
"Aye. He must have," Jamie agrees. Medok plugs the leak.
Ben looks at them, "What's the matter? What has happened to him?"
"He's had a wee whiff of the gas."
Ben takes him away from Jamie; "I'll look after him." then he turns his attention to the plant leader, "Yeah. It's all right, mate. Hang on." Ben helps the man off, heading back up to fresh air.
"Do you think he saw you take the keys?" Polly asks.
"Well, if he did, we're in trouble. It just means we'll have to make use of them quick as we can. Let's try that wee door first. Come on." They step over to the new-ish door. Polly plays lookout until Jamie finds the right key. He sets off down the tunnel. Behind him an alarm sounds. Shortly thereafter Medok sets down the path behind him only to find his doom at the claws of a Macra.
The Doctor hears Control banning the guards from going down the Old shaft saying it is forbidden ground. He asks who has escaped. The Plant leader says he doesn't know. After he leaves, Ben walks up and tells the Doctor that the escapee is Jamie and that the Scottish piper lifted the keys. The Doctor takes this as a sign that Ben is starting to throw off the mind control. Ben rushes out to report Jamie. The Doctor returns to his analysis of the gas as Polly joins him.
Jamie meanwhile doubles back and finds Medok dead. Then he finds the cause. There's a Macra right there. But the creature isn't moving… He pitches a rock at it. Nothing After a pause he starts to become less defensive. Then its eyes open…. They stare at each other. Jamie can't help but to send a wave of alarm down the connection he shares with his Thete. He feels mixed concern and a sensation like the Doctor is working on the situation as fast as he can. The Macra slowly moves toward Jamie and he backs away, keeping his distance.
Polly and the Doctor overhear Control ordering the diversion of gas into the old shaft. She points out that Jamie is in there. He asks her what she makes of that. She assumes that they mean to kill Jamie, but he assures her that the gas is too valuable for them to waste it. He suspects that the Old Shaft has another use, and that Jamie opening the door has contaminated the air in there for whatever purpose that might be. And he suspects that there's a queen or egg chamber down that shaft. They are running out of time… The colonists turn on the gas to the tunnel and the Doctor can feel Jamie struggling to breathe. Then the sensation of alarm spikes. The solution is to reverse the flow of the gas and to do it quickly. He has Polly check the dials on the control desk as he moves to tap the pipes of system seven. The station leader comes over to find out what he's doing and to make him stop. The Doctor tells him, "But, uh, I think you're going to run into trouble."
"Why? What's the matter?"
The Doctor looks at him, "Well, according to my calculations, the pressure gauges are wrong.
"Don't be ridiculous."
"Ridiculous? Well, that's as may be. But, after all, three times three is nine, and if you divide by half of its own cubic capacity to the formula, Pi over four squared, I think you'll have to agree with me."
"Don't touch that. That's the... That controls the inflow system."
The Doctor gives him a cheerful grin, "Oh. So these are the inflow pipes, are they? That's all I wanted to know." He begins turning taps. "Inflow. Inflow. Outflow. Inflow. High pressure. Low pressure and O-U-T spells out. Confusion is best left to the experts."
"But... Stop it! You've no idea what you're doing."
"Oh, yes I have. I can stand an operation on its head quicker than anyone. There! I think you'll find I've revolutionized the entire gas flow of the Colony. There'll be a fine old gale of fresh air blowing along the old shaft any time now. "
The man leaves to call the guard. The Doctor reveals after the man has left that he's lifted his second set of keys and orders Polly to lock the door in an effort to give Jamie more time. Then they flee into another locked room, fighting to get the doors closed and locked against the incoming guards. Jamie sends him a feeling of relief as he finds an old grating that he uses to escape the old shaft. The Doctor and Polly begin following the pipes to figure out where they lead. After a while Jamie sends him a feeling of being let down and the image of Ben. The Doctor tries to assure him that it's going to work out. They have discovered that the gas is going to keep the Macra alive, and the location of the main control room. They decide to go to Pilot and show him this in person.
The Doctor and Polly walk into Pilot's office interrupting an argument over who is loyal to Control. "Good morning. Good morning. Good morning. Well, everyone is up bright and early. And the last two strangers are not missing after all. Oh, come now. You can't have bad temper and differences of opinion in this happy type colony. Say you're sorry, Ola. Say you're sorry, Pilot."
Jamie looks at him, "Doctor, what did ye come here for? You've walked into a trap."
"Good morning, Jamie. Nice to see you so well cared for."
"Yes, but Doctor..." he protests.
"Oh, it's all right. I've just come in to have a word with my old friend, the Pilot. Good morning, Ben. I hope you're feeling more your old self?" Ben answers that yes he is. Then the Doctor tells Pilot that he needs him to come with him right away.
The Macra try to stop Pilot from following, but Polly convinces him to go with the Doctor and see what he needs to show him before deciding what to do. Pilot decides to do just that and orders everyone else to stay there. The Doctor leads him through the gas center and into the pipe room with the pilot telling him that this is forbidden territory. The Macra try to strip Pilot of his power to get him to back away but he follows the Doctor right up to the view port. "There you are. That's what's taken over this colony. You haven't been in touch with Control, but with these. They've used this colony for their own ends, destroying you to live themselves."
"Why they're horrible. No, Doctor. It is they who must be destroyed. We must kill them," says Pilot. They move back to the gas center where Ola is with his guards. "Ola, the Colony is in the hands of grotesque insects! They're in there. The Macra!"
They are ordered to be locked into the pipe room. They are four minutes away from doom. Well the Doctor might last longer… a bit. But same difference in the long run. Gas begins flooding the room. There is a knock on the door. "Hello in there."
"Ben? Is that you? Are you all right?" Ben asks if they can open the door which they can't of course. The Doctor has to chance it. "Ben, listen. We've got very little time. It's all up to you."
"Go ahead Doctor. Tell me what to do."
"Go to the control desk, and you'll see two switches, one marked outflow and one marked inflow. You see a lever in front of them?"
"Yeah."
The Control/Macra starts to pitch a fit, "It is forbidden to touch that instrument! You must not obey the Doctor! You will kill us all! He intends to create an explosion! Come away from those instruments! You will destroy the Colony! Guards! Stop the stranger!"
"Switch on both inflow and outflow. Then stand by to throw the lever." After a few moments he orders, "Throw the lever away from you." Ben does so, causing the pressure in the system to build up and pipes begin to burst and explode.
After their release Jamie gets his wish to repeat the previous experience on a bed. They waste little time with it, and Ben and Polly are to enthralled with each other now that Ben is himself again to notice. In fact it is the other couple's retreat into a sleep cubical that inspires the Doctor to drag Jamie into one. The only major change from the last time besides the bed is that Thete doesn't keep his hands or lips to himself, giving the Scotsman the same treatment he received before. And the sponge bath before... Because, frankly, they both need it. While Jamie is passed out in the afterglow the Doctor finds the lad his kilt. He's sure that Jamie will want it.
They stay for the party. Or at least the beginning of it. Being thanked for saving the place is nice. Watching Jamie dance is nice. The feast is nice. Real music and happiness is nice. Being told that they want him as the next leader – not so nice. They end up dancing themselves right out of the party and then running for the TARDIS.