Chapter Seven
"Well...um...I hope you kept the receipt." Rory remarked.
"Oy!" The Doctor protested. "It's a work in progress."
"I'm sure it will be...uh..." Amy searched for a kind word "...I've got nothing."
"You two are *such* pessimists." The Doctor grumbled. "Not every planet can be as lush and green as Earth you know, but they all have their own beauty."
Amy looked out over the desolate depressing landscape and tried to imagine how the Doctor might be seeing it differently. The only life among the craggy gray rocks were a few tufts of dry olive coloured grass that were barely clinging to life. They had landed at the top of a hill and the world stretched out in front of them completely featureless until it reached a sudden set of imposing mountains that made the horizon jagged. The dark sky was punctuated by frequent streaks of lighting. There were no stars visible through the clouds that swirled above. Amy flinched as a few stray drops of rain hit her face and seemed to burn.
"Maybe it's nicer during the day." Amy offered.
"This is daytime." The Doctor said.
"Oh."
The Doctor looked over at Amy with an amused smiled. When she saw that he was clearly having fun at her expense she just shook her head. Rory took a step back inside the TARDIS when it started to rain a little more properly. The Doctor held his hand out and caught a few drops in his palm and tasted it. Despite the fact that he wrinkled his nose distastefully he nodded in approval before spitting the taste out.
"Alright, Pond, inside. This stuff is not exactly normal rain."
"Dear Lord, Doctor." Amy muttered as she hustled inside. "Out of all the planets in the Universe why this one?"
"If I got a nice one everyone would want to live on it." The Doctor replied casually.
"He's got a point." Rory agreed.
"Don't encourage him." Amy admonished with a smile.
"Since LMC-7/11MAH-Zed, I really do need to come up with a better name," the Doctor became distracted for a moment with the unnamed planet "anyway, since my planet clearly doesn't impress you let's try something else."
"You sound like you've got something in mind." Amy said knowingly.
"Don't I always?" The Doctor asked mischievously.
"Can I make a suggestion?" Rory raised his hand.
"You can make one, I can't promise to pay attention." The Doctor teased as he made his way towards the console.
"It's a simple request." Rory promised.
"Oh?" The Doctor paused and turned around to face Rory.
"I don't want to get shot at."
"Shot at?"
"Or chased, or stabbed, or poisoned, or eaten..."
"I'm picking up on the theme, Rory." The Doctor assured. "You want to go somewhere safe."
"Proper safe." Rory corrected.
"I never purposefully put you in danger, Rory." The Doctor said apologetically.
"Right, and I know that things happen. It just seems that lately things are happening a *lot* more often. The past six worlds we went to you weren't expecting trouble, you were even expecting to be welcomed and we've been anything but that. I mean how do you forget what world a Dragon should be on?"
"I didn't forget." The Doctor said defensively. "That Dragon belonged on Gemino."
"Then what was it doing there?"
"I haven't figured that out yet." The Doctor admitted. "This next world is peaceful, has always been peaceful, it's one of the reasons I chose it. I even chose a date a thousand years after the civilization left, so there will be no one to shoot at us even if they wanted to, which they wouldn' t have."
"Why this particular spot?" Amy asked.
"Someone left me something there, I have to go get it."
"Can't you just get a post box like everyone else?" Rory asked.
The Doctor chuckled and continued to the control panel to set the TARDIS into flight. Amy had started to take notice of the fact that wherever they went since leaving Aleena the Doctor always brought something back into the TARDIS with him, sometimes two or three things. He had always picked up a trinket here or there, but now he almost seemed to be on a mission to collect. They weren't random things either, the Doctor went to great lengths to get his prizes.
Before Amy could question the Doctor further about what they were going to pick up or why the TARDIS jolted violently as it jumped into the vortex. Rory reached out to steady Amy even though she really hadn't lost her balance, she had learned long ago how to keep on her feet when the TARDIS acted up. However she gave Rory's hand an appreciative squeeze. When they landed again the Doctor bounded towards the doors.
"You seem to be feeling better." Amy noted.
"I wanted to go to Gemina for a few reasons, one of them was I had a feeling that one of the fungi species might have some medicinal properties. The aqua strain has produced an extract that numbs the area a bit."
"Treating the symptoms is not the same as a cure." Rory pointed out.
"No, but it's a start."
Rory nodded in agreement. The Doctor opened the doors to reveal that they were inside what had once been a Great Hall caved of iridescent gray marble with shimmering blue veins running through it. The vaulted ceiling arched high above them and was held up with a network of carved arches. The dust and cobweb covered floor held a time and moth eaten remains of a rich carpeting. The large pane-less windows looked out over sheer mountain range of the same gray and blue stone.
"This is a palace..." Amy said in awe.
"Yes, and once it was home to the some of the wisest Kings and Queens to ever rule. Beautiful creatures, their skin looked like it was coated in diamond dust."
"What happened to them?"
"No one knows. They just vanished. I like to think that they evolved."
"Evolved?"
"Beyond the need for their bodies, beyond the need for their planet." The Doctor clarified. "Come on, this way."
Amy and Rory glanced at one another before following the Doctor through the abandoned castle. As they walked Amy felt like something was out of place, it took her a while to realize that not only was there silence, but that the Doctor was allowing it. Usually when the environment was quiet the Doctor filled it with talk about places he'd been or bizarre creatures he'd seen. However he seemed very content as they walked.
"This place creeps me out." Rory broke the silence.
"It's peaceful, Rory." The Doctor pointed out. "You said you didn't want to be shot at. Well, here we are. No one is going to harm you on Nezrine. Even after they are gone this place remains untouched. Nezrine is one of the few planets that never saw war."
"What was their secret?" Amy asked.
"Honestly? Nothing worth fighting over. They gained their nutrition from touching the rock itself, which is everywhere. So there was no need to fight for food. They reproduced very slowly, so they did not need to battle for space. There is nothing of value here."
"That's cheating." Rory said. "It's easy to get along when there's nothing to squabble over."
"I don't know, I have found that no matter how much a group of humans has they will find a reason to squabble."
Rory rolled his eyes at the Doctor and Amy chuckled. The Doctor smiled as well and lead them into the Throne Room. The room was not as large or ostentatious as the Grand Hall had been. It had a much more intimate feel about it, with darkened alcoves that lined the far left wall. In the middle of the room up on a small round dais about ten feet around was a simple throne with a tall back made of the same stone that everything else was. Sitting on the throne was a black box about a foot wide and long and six inches high. The Doctor was about to head up the couple of steps towards the throne when he sudden froze in his tracks.
"Doctor? What's wrong?"
"I don't know, something feels out of pla..."
"DOC-TOR!"
The sudden mechanical screech of the Dalek voice cut through Amy like a knife. A cobweb encrusted Dalek that had been hiding in on of the alcoves jerked forward awkwardly. Dust fell from its armour as it rotated in the trio's direction. Stunned to be face to face with the deadly creature on the peaceful planet it took the Doctor a second to react. When the Dalek fired Rory was first in its line of sight.
"Rory!" The Doctor cried in alarm.
Grabbing Rory by the back of the shirt the Doctor yanked them both to the ground. The laser pulse sailed over them a little too close for comfort and slammed into the stone stairs. As the Dalek fired again the Doctor hauled Rory to his feet, grabbed Amy's wrist and dragged them both with him up the three steps. Dodging the laser blasts they ran back behind the small throne, across the room, and over to the furthest alcove. Pressed against the side wall of the deep alcove they took a moment to catch their breath.
"EX-TER-MIN-ATE! EX-TER-MIN-ATE!"
The Doctor risked peeking around the corner to see what the Dalek was doing. Spinning in a tight circle the Dalek was firing randomly in every direction. The Doctor furrowed his brow as he continued to watch the Dalek's erratic behaviour. The Dalek's manipulator arm was broken off and several of the round detonator pieces were missing. The Doctor picked up a broken chunk of stone off the floor and threw it into the far corner. The Dalek instantly started to fire in that direction before going back to random fire.
"DOC-TOR!" The Dalek screamed. "DOC-TOR!"
"Why isn't..."
Rory was cut off as the Doctor clamped his hand down over his mouth.
"It's blind." The Doctor whispered.
"Blind?" Amy repeated in shock.
"Yes, as in 'can't see'." The Doctor clarified very quietly. "But as in 'can still hear'."
"What are we going to do?"
"I think I'm going to play a game of Blind Man's Bluff with a Dalek." The Doctor replied apprehensively. "Luckily I'm very good, Queen Victoria and I used to play out in the wood all the time. Mind you I was the blind one, and she didn't really seem to mind getting caught despite her reputa..."
"Doctor," Amy hissed "focus."
"Right, I'll...uh...I'll draw it off then and when it comes for me, you two run."
"We're not leaving you here." Amy said firmly.
"I'll be right behind you."
"Doctor, no..."
It was too late for any argument the Doctor kissed Amy's forehead and dashed out from their hiding space. Amy automatically went to follow him but Rory held her back. The Doctor had chosen his time to run carefully and the crazed Dalek was firing in the other direction for the moment. He made it to the far side of the throne room, but there was no cover or any place to hide.
"Marco!" The Doctor cried.
"EX-TER-MIN-ATE!" The Dalek replied as it turned towards the Doctor's voice.
"Right, mixing up my games, sorry." The Doctor admitted as he signaled Amy and Rory to run. "Well come on, come get me!"
The Dalek fired in the Doctor's direction as it began to advance slowly towards him. The Dalek fired his first few shots wide so the Doctor just stayed where he was. Rory and Amy went to run but the Dalek picked up on the sound and fired at them. Amy yelped as they narrowly escaped the beam.
"Oy!" The Doctor barked. "I'm over here!"
"DOC-TOR!"
"That's right, if you think you're going to get me firing from the hip you'd better keep focused."
The Doctor was forced to dive out of the way as the Dalek fired in his direction with new purpose. Getting to the dais in the centre of the room with the stairs the Dalek bumped into them and was unable to proceed. Too damaged to fly it was forced to go around the circular dais while still trying to fire on it prey. The Doctor urged Amy and Rory to use the distraction to run and they got back to their feet.
"Supreme Race and you're still mastering stairs?" The Doctor mocked.
The Dalek honed in on his voice just like he planed and began firing towards the back of the throne room. The Doctor carefully and quietly started to make his way around the far side of the dais while the blind Dalek banged his way around the other side. The Doctor was almost around when he caught sight of the black box that River had left him sitting on the throne.
Calculating the risks of any action was not really the Doctor's style, but particular chance gave him pause. With the Dalek facing the wrong way he decided to take the chance and crept up the few stairs and towards the throne. Amy looked back over her shoulder and yanked Rory to a stop when she saw what the Doctor was doing. Amy tried to turn back but Rory forced her into the relative safety of the doorway. They didn't leave, but at the same time there was little they could do other than watch, any sound would only make things worse.
Completely focused on the task at hand the Doctor put each foot down as silently as possible as he made the five foot journey to the throne. He kept his eyes glued on the Dalek that was just a few feet away as he carefully put his hands on the box. He froze when the Dalek suddenly stopped firing. Until that point the laser pulse had hidden most of the noise of what he was up to. For a moment everyone and everything was perfectly still and silent. Not daring to breath or even blink the Doctor stared at the Dalek while his hearts slammed nosily against his ribs. The Dalek slowly turned its cloudy blue eye stalk to face him before it brought around its weapon into position.
"Your hearts be-tray you, DOC-TOR!"
The Doctor turned to look at Amy with a silent plea for her forgiveness as the Dalek laser pulse lanced through his chest.