Sorry for the wait. There's a little time jump ahead, and i had to change a bunch of things from what I had been about to post, but it shouldn't be really noticeably different. Anyway, enjoy!
Chapter 6
Virus Detection
The doors to the main court of the council opened without a sound, and no being there, save the Doctor, seemed all that surprised at the duo's entrance. Clockwork did not even pause for a word, simply marching straight towards his staff, which was floating in the center of the floor. A pair of guards shifted to wary attention as he approached, but a simple glare caused the to back off as he took back his staff. With a sigh of relief, Clockwork felt his powers return to him- and the lingering headache of the Doctor's presence returned two-fold.
With a quickly-concealed scowl, the timekeeper turned to the Council, calmly staring down the Head Observant at the front of the podium. The Doctor had leisurely looked about the room as Clockwork was preoccupied, and now stood just to his right. With his signature mischievous grin, he broke the silence. "So, you lot are the Observants, eh?" He turned a lazy circle. "Good to finally meet face-to-face- or, face-to-eyeball, as the case may be."
Clockwork couldn't help but crack a small smirk, sharing a sideways look at the Doctor. Oh, he was just digging himself a bigger hole, and the Time Lord knew it- but, he also apparently felt the need to defend Clockwork in some silly way, so he would take the consequences he got. Looking back to the Head Observant, his smirk dropped as he noticed the indignation in his...eyeball. Damnit, the Doctor's clever comebacks were going to get both of them killed if Clockwork couldn't hold back his amusement. It was one thing for an outsider to be impudent and casual, but it would be a serious sign of insolence if Clockwork so brashly dealt with the Council.
"And you are the one called 'the Doctor.'" The Head Observant said. "You have cause quite a lot of trouble."
"Oh really?" His voice hiked up an octave, brows to his raised as he glanced at Clockwork. "And it's only been a few hours! Call it a new record- give me another day and I'll see what I can do." He paused to smile, quickly noticing that nobody was taking his joke- although, he could tell the timekeeper was trying his best to keep face. Swallowing, he backed down. "But no, I really haven't meant to do anything- sorry if i have, by the way. Just stopped by to get a pass, then I'll pop off home and out of your skin." He turned to Clockwork, switching gears on a dime. "Do ghosts have skin? I mean, naturally or-"
"It depends on the ghost, but that really is not the issue you should be focusing on right now, Doctor." Clockwork quickly cut him off.
"Oh, right. What 'trouble' have I caused, exactly?" He turned back to the council, scratching the back of his head. "Like I said, I haven't been here for more than a few hours- I can't have really done all that much."
"You have disabled the view of the timeline from both the Council and Clockwork, have alerted one of the most dangerous ghost hunters to our existence, put important figures in history in unneeded danger and have disrupted our view on the timeline!" the Council broke into displease comments and angry glares.
The Doctor had been looking more and more sheepish as the list grew, but straightened and pointed the the Observant in confusion. "You said that last one twice."
"Yes, they do that a lot." Clockwork chimed in from the sidelines.
"You do not even belong in this place- you are not even a human from this timeline!" The Observant continued, without much pause. "What is your purpose here, and how did you travel between the worlds?"
"Okay, one." The Doctor put a finger up. "I am not here on purpose. Something dragged my ship off course into some sort of tear between the worlds, which really should not be there. So, really, it wasn't my intention to come here, and I had nothing to do with how I'm even here- I can't figure that part out either!" He sighed. "Accidentally falling into a different dimension once is bad enough, but this is getting a bit out of hand." He flicked back to his previous train of thought. "Two, it is not my fault that the time energy in my TARDIS tampered with the energies of this dimension. I had no way of knowing or controlling that- honestly, nothing close to that has happened before now. And four- No, wait a minute- Three, before finding this dimension, I wasn't aware that beings like you lot even existed. I can't have known of your laws before coming here- and I have to say, your first impression is not the best I have seen." He stopped, waiting for their rebuttal.
The Observant glared at the man, then looked toward Clockwork. He just raise his eyebrows slightly, as if to say "He has a good point." Which he did.
"Take the Doctor to a holding room." The ghost finally said, prompting two guards to appear at the Doctor's sides and take his arms.
"Oh, come on, you don't have to carry me there- I can walk, you know." The Doctor complained, giving the masked ghosts a tired look. They ignored him, and led him to the door. Just before the door closed, the Time Lord locked eyes with Clockwork and smirked.
The doors shut with a loud slam, and the Council erupted into noise.
"He's a mad man!"
"-has no idea what he's doing!"
"-imprison him-"
"-arrogant mortal-
Individuals couldn't be pointed out for each outburst, and they all slurred together in a thick roar. Clockwork, quite used to such insane shouting matches, stood silently to wait until the commotion settled.
"He speaks nothing but lies, I'm sure!"
Or until they pushed him too far.
"Be silent!" His outburst carried over the monotonous din, and the room was shocked into a hush stillness. Clockwork glared around the gathered ghosts, stepping forward. "Are you even hearing yourselves right now!? This man has done nothing but get out of our way. he knows he does not belong here, and has tried to cause as little trouble as possible when he found out what he had already set in motion. If I am sure of anything, it is that the Doctor has not lied- not of his intentions, of his arrival, nor of his apologies. He might be arrogant-" There was a general murmur of irritated consent that quickly quieted before he continued. "-but he does not wish to make waves or upset situations where he knows he has no right. He is an honest, good man."
The Council talked among themselves for a moment before one spoke. "You are vouching for this outsider, Clockwork?"
"Yes." He spoke without hesitation.
"And what do you suggest we do with him?"
There was a general quiet, all eyes on Clockwork. He let the silence set for a moment.
"Send him home."
The room exploded again, btu Clockwork didn't flinch. He just held his stare with the Head Observant, the picture of determination and calm, sure that he would get his way.
"And what of your own offences?" The room went silent. Clockwork frowned, not breaking eye contact.
"I'm sorry?"
"You went against the Council's wishes, and our direct orders not to directly interfere. By doing so, you have also broken the terms of the Contract."
None of them moved. The air felt like glass that would shatter at any moment, and yet Clockwork and the Observant never broke their gaze. After an almost endless moment, the Observant glanced at eh guards, whom shifted, but still hesitated to move into actions. No one wanted to face down the Master of Time.
"Technically," Attention snapped back to Clockwork. "The Contract was not broken."
"How do you see that?" He asked.
"Simple. The Contract was fool-proof- when it came to the laws of this dimension. It is a catch-all for nearly any situation that could ever possibly exist."
"And you blatantly ignored the law of interference."
"But the Doctor is not from this dimension." Clockwork continued, as if the Observant had not spoken. "He is neither human, nor ghost, and so no rule that would have involved him in those cases is null. Any rule of his own interference in the time stream is also null since this is not his time stream. He has found the single possible loophole that could exist in the Contract- he is a previously unknown creature from another dimension, and so holds to none of your laws." Clockwork stared straight into the Observant's eye, and allowed himself a small smile. "Any and all rules or clauses broke when dealing with the Doctor are null in reference to this fact. Therefore, I have done nothing to break the Contract. And the Council has no authority to place punishment on the Doctor."
The Council was quiet; not silent, but not shouting or yelling objections out loud any more. They discussed quietly, and Clockwork was once again left to wait patiently for theri reply.
"The Doctor is a being called a Time Lord. He holds much power over his own time stream and possesses his own means to travel through time, correct?"
Clockwork nodded slowly. "As far as I have been told, yes."
"Then we cannot allow him to go off scot free. He has disrupted the time stream and outsider or not, that cannot be ignored. He has too much potential to be a threat to the entire time stream."
"He will not be any sort of threat if we send him back to his home dimension." Clockwork argued.
"And he will have no chance of returning to cause trouble if the Doctor no longer exists."
"What?"
The Observant floated up, declaring loudly, "By the order of the High Council, the one known as the Doctor shall be executed immediately." The others yelled in agreement.
"You can't!" Clockwork shouted, losing his cool mask.
"The Council has spoken!" He roared. "We can and will!"
Clockwork slammed the butt of his staff to the ground, his eyes glowing bright crimson. "No!" He growled. "I won't allow it!"
The Observant flew down to him. "The execution should already be under way. The Council has made its decision and there is no stopping it, Clockwork. The Doctor dies today."