The Professor darted around the control room, flipping switches hastily. "Alright," he said, checking the monitors quickly. "Earth, North America, 2013. This signal is something big."
"How big," asked Athena, trying to keep her balance as the ship rocked. The Time Lord glanced back at her.
"Big enough that I went and snatched a man from Egypt and took him home so we could leave," he said, exasperated. "Hole in the fabric of reality big." The Professor pulled a lever, checking the monitor once more.
"I'm reactivating the chameleon circuit, so don't forget what we parked as," said the Time Lord as the engines stopped their moaning.
Sara Akira McNeil, better known to the world as Sam, was at her usual game; hacking into the city's stoplight cameras. It wasn't a difficult thing to do and, in fact, it was fairly amusing to watch the people carry on with their lives from the safety of her home. Not that she was afraid of going outside. Quite the opposite, in fact; she found it boring.
She flipped between the cameras, occasionally saving a frame onto her hard drive. She did this for nearly an hour until something caught her eye; a red phone booth, its windows frosted, fading slowly into sight.
Sam stared as it finally stayed solid, its door opening and a tall blonde man stepping out into the street. He was followed by three girls and another man wearing all black and finally, a giant in what looked like armor.
She followed the group through the cameras into a building bearing the mark of the UN intelligence taskforce.
Hacking into UNIT was child's play for her. She'd written security programs for her own network that were stronger; it took her less than three minutes to be looking through the cameras in the UNIT base. The major upside to this was that the base's camera system came with sound.
The blonde man strode down several hallways, leading both his group and several soldiers toward a heavy looking metal door. One of the soldiers stepped forward and pressed a series of numbers on the keypad beside the door, which gave a loud buzz before swinging open. The group entered the room, the soldiers staying outside as the door shut. Several clicks later, Sam was looking down from the camera in the sealed room.
"So," said Drake, looking at what looked like a burned and beat up oil drum. "Thing thing is giving off a signal? Doesn't look very techy."
The Professor ran the sonic screwdriver over the outside of the drum, glancing at the readings the device gathered. "Looks can be deceiving," he said, dusting off the side of the canister. He stared at the circular script he'd uncovered. "I know these characters," he said, scraping off more dirt. He stopped short, staring at the circles in careful concentration.
"Ark of what," he muttered. Rosie stooped down next to him, staring at the circles.
"I thought the TARDIS was supposed to translate written languages," she said, looking to the Time Lord. "Why can't I read that?"
"Gallifreyan doesn't translate. The Time Lords didn't think anyone would need it to be translated."
"Well," said Rosie. "What does it say then?" The professor looked over at her.
"I'm not sure," he said. "This last character could be anything. It's too corroded for me to tell. But it's the ark of something."
"If it's from Gallifrey, couldn't it be something good? Like a message from another Time Lord," asked Billie. The Professor looked back at her.
"Or," he said. "It could be a weapon. I'd rather not take the chance." He looked to the keyblade wielder. "Rosie," he said. "Can you seal this thing for good?" the girl nodded, summoning her keyblade.
"I think so," she said. The Professor nodded, stepping away from the cylinder.
"Good," said the Time Lord, looking at the ceiling. "Now I have one question. Who is watching us?"
"Who is watching us?" Sam nearly fell out of her chair. The blonde man was staring straight into the camera. He pointed a strange device at the camera which made a noise through her computer speakers. The light on her webcam turned on and the man stared at the monitor installed in the wall of the room, where she could see herself.
The Professor looked at the dark haired, bespectacled girl in the monitor. "How'd you do that," she said. The Professor smirked.
"I've hacked more complex things in less time," chuckled the Professor, watching the girl. "Now who are you?" The girl smiled, pushing buttons on her keyboard.
"This is who I am," she said, striking a final key. The screen went dark, emblazoned with only the letters 'SAM.' The Professor pointed the sonic screwdriver at the camera again, and the screen burst once again into life.
"Oh no you don't," said the Time Lord, looking to the girl on the monitor. "Athena," he said. "She's about two miles east, second floor of the house." The witch nodded once, turned on the spot and disapparated.
There was a knock on the door behind the girl on the screen. She jumped out of view of the camera as Athena opened the door, striding over to the girl and grabbing her arm. There was a crack as they vanished from the room and reappeared seconds later.
Sam coughed as they reappeared. She looked around at the group of people surrounding her. "How," she sputtered, glaring at the blonde man.
"You wouldn't believe me if I told you," he said , smirking. "Sorry about the rough landing but we can't really take the chance of you messing the systems here up until after we're done."
Sam glared at the blonde. "Who are you, how did you get me here and what is going on," she demanded.
The blonde sighed. "The Professor, magic, and unless Rosie can get things figured out, an alien invasion on this planet."
Sam stared at the man. "Magic," she asked. "Are you insane?"
The Professor smiled at her. "Well, some people think so," he said. "Quite a few people, actually." Sam glared at him.
"There's no such thing as magic," she said. The girl who had barged into her house chuckled.
"Just what you'd expect from a muggle," she said. "Throw real magic in their face and watch them deny it all day." Sam looked at the green robed girl, making it obvious that she didn't approve of being called a 'muggle.'
"I only believe in what I can see and touch," said Sam, crossing her arms. "For that matter, I don't believe in aliens."