5
"Eternal." The Doctor shook his head, one hand ruffling his dark hair into spikes. "Can't believe it. Eternal."
"What's an Eternal?" Jenny asked, eyeing the stranger guardedly.
"They're beings." her father replied. "Ancient beings." he turned to her. "They're so old that they may have been here before the first singularity-yes, the big bang I mean, but you know I hate it when you call it that- and they're clever like you wouldn't believe. Well, when I say clever, they're very good at manipulation of pretty much everything around them, but some of them aren't too bright when it comes with dealing with people as I remember. But I've never seen one behave like this. No wonder I didn't recognize him for what he was. This is completely against what's known about their behavior. Usually they don't exist in timespace in a truly physical form. They're…" the Doctor glanced at Mary.
I can give you the details later when we can talk properly.
"For now, I can say that this is very very very odd behavior for one of them. Usually they're not really here in the usual sense of the word. They use the ideas and thoughts of whoever they bump into to form a sort of a projection, a body for their intelligence to inhabit when they interact with this universe. They were thought to be unable to consolidate their entire beings in a four dimensional form, but that lad over there's flesh and blood. Guess we were wrong."
"Consolidate?" Jenny cocked her head. "How big are they?"
"Not big so much as spread out." the Doctor replied absently. "They're multi-dimensional creatures."
"Meaning?" his daughter asked.
"Meaning, they're about as close to gods as you get. Humans see three dimensions and manipulate them, right? We see and manipulate four. Well, these chaps live in all twelve. They don't see things, they see the building blocks of things as a rule. They manipulate the fabric of the universe pretty much any way they want. Only thing that keeps them from running amok is that…well, they've been here so long that running amok doesn't interest them any more. They don't have a consciousness like we do any more, or at least that's what I'd thought. Each Eternal exists with its intelligence, like I said, spread over the entire multidimensional spectrum. That's a lot of being, and so one particular place in timespace is like me taking interest in a particular ant. It happens occasionally, but not as a rule. It's also where they get their name: Eternal. You can't kill them. If the body's destroyed they just go somewhere else. But all that basically boils down to the fact that he" he jerked his thumb over his shoulder, " is a slap in the face to everything I know. That man ought to be…by the way, that's why he looks wrong too. His timelines have extra planes to them." he turned, staring at the sleeping stranger.
"Shit." Jenny said, brows raised. Mary shot her a shocked little glance.
"Don't curse." the Doctor said absently.
"So if he's this all powerful thing," Jenny said, taking a step towards the being that looked like a man, "Why's he passed out in the grass?"
"Good question." the Doctor murmured. "Guess we'll have to ask him."
…
It was three hours before the man sat up, shook his head, and looked at the Walker, who'd sat near him while the other members of her family had gone back to the TARDIS to get a bite. People from the town were still watching, and backed off even further when the man glanced around.
"Well met, my lady." he said quietly.
Carefully, the Walker set down her book. "Good afternoon." She replied in the same Irish that he had used. Testing a hypotheses, she asked "Are you feeling rested after your nap?" in Gallifreyan. He nodded.
"I am recovered. My apologies for my earlier confusion." he replied in the same language. "The journeying drained me." he stood, then looked around.
"Your grandfather is upon the hill. Will he return soon?"
"I believe they'll be down in a few minutes." the Walker replied, masking her surprise. She hadn't told him the Doctor was her grandfather.
Ramble cocked his head slightly. "It is not a thing that should be waited on. We will go to them." Reaching out, he touched the Walker's hand.
The Walker pulled back, and nearly knocked her head on the kitchen cabinet. She was sitting on the floor of her grandfather's kitchen. A chair clattered as Jenny leapt to her feet, hands raised in fists. The Eternal looked at her with interest, brushing a lock of dark hair out of his eyes. "Well met. This is how you take in energy in this form, am I right? Food?"
The Doctor nodded. "Most living bodies do it that way." He shot a glance at Jenny, who picked up her chair and sat. The Doctor met the Walker's eyes. You okay?
"She is well." the Eternal said quietly, looking around the TARDIS kitchen with interest. The Doctor watched him. "You mind not listening in on our heads?" he asked mildly, "You know, privacy and all that."
"Was I?" the man asked curiously. "Were you not speaking?"
"Not out loud." the Doctor replied.
"Ah." the dark head nodded. "I am still poor at discerning the difference." He glanced around the room. "Where does the food come from?"
"The cupboards, mostly." the Doctor said in his most airy tone, "You hungry?"
"I need energy. I am still somewhat..." a tide of weariness washed through the Time Lord's mind, so heavy that his bones ached. It was gone just as quickly.
"Right." the Doctor said, "The word for that is 'tired'. Little food will fix you up. Course, I didn't know the A Danu ate anything."
Ramble looked up, his eyes brightening. "You know the Kin?"
"I know about them." the Doctor replied. "Though it would've been a treat if you'd just told me your species name instead of leaving it to me to sort out."
Ramble gave a small shrug. "I did not think you would know the word. It is one of ours, and few know it. Strange. You say only half the word. Where did you learn it?" he asked.
"My species-my people-had some contact with yours." the Doctor said quietly.
"And what people are you of?" Ramble asked, turning to look the Doctor in the eye.
"Time Lord." the Doctor stated.
"Time Lord." Ramble repeated slowly. He looked from the Doctor, to the Walker, to Jenny.
"Lords of Time." he nodded, as if deciding he understood.
"You are not as men are." he said slowly. "You are somewhat…greater. You may be of use."
"Oh?" said the Doctor, leaning back in his chair. "Of use in what, exactly?"
Ramble shrugged. He was getting better at it. "May I have the food?"
"Turkey sandwich and chips." the Doctor said after a moment, "Plenty of protein and carbohydrates to fuel cellular regeneration. Jenny, you mind getting out the mayonnaise?"
Jenny stood quickly, and moved to the refrigerator, her eyes never quite leaving the stranger.
Ramble studied the plate set in front of him. He picked the sandwich up slowly, then took a careful bite. His green eyes widened, then he bit down again with gusto. The Doctor shot Jenny a glance. Apparently turkey is a big hit with our guest.
In no time at all, the food was gone. Ramble smiled. "My thanks. And I must thank you, as well, for the help you gave me in my arrival here."
"The help we gave?" Jenny said sharply.
"Yes." the man said, his tone hinting at surprise. "I could not find my way here. I had lost the road. Then I saw your beacon. There was strength, and I drew upon it. It let me find my way, led me on."
"Well that explains a few things." the Doctor muttered. "That beacon you saw was our ships." he said to the man, "'Fraid that your pulling on them drained them of most of their energy." he let a little annoyance into his tone. "You know, that ought to have given me a clue. The last time my TARDIS got drained of power it was one of you lot."
"I will return the energy." Ramble said distantly. "When there is time." he drew a breath, standing.
"And now we must go. I must act."
They were standing on the shore of a lake where hills rose blue in the distance. Then they were facing a low, wide stone structure roofed over with grass. A stone with swirling carvings barred the door.
"Hold up!" the Doctor called, "What's all the jumping about for?"
Ramble looked over his shoulder, curious. "We must find the place."
"The place for what?"
"For…I must find the proper place. Will you not aid me?"
"Maybe if you tell us what you're doing, we can. We can't help unless we understand, so do me a favor and explain a little before we go haring off, all right?"
Ramble turned. "Very well." He sat in the kitchen chair. The Doctor resisted the urge to glance around at his own kitchen, and suppressed a frustrated sigh.
I forgot how much I disliked Eternals. I really hate being tossed about like this.
"Are there any more chips?" Ramble asked. "Or water? I believe the water balance is low in my blood. Strange."
"Water we've got." the Doctor said, "And do you mind giving us an explanation? What kind of help do you need?
Ramble turned to look at the Doctor.
It felt for a moment as if he was drowning in images. Blinding light, faces, stars, continents moving, faces painted with spirals, faces crowned with silver, swords. The Doctor calmed himself in the center of the tempest.
Slow down. He tried to call out. I can't understand what you're trying to say. You've got to go slower. The images flashed by; human and inhuman faces in rage, in joy and in sorrow, children in mother's arms, a gateway of stones, a pool of water that rippled like pure light, a spear. Words flowed by, and each word had volumes of meaning.
You've got to slow down, this isn't making sense. He shouted into the maelstrom.
Then he heard another shout.
STOP IT!
He was back in the kitchen, breathing hard. Jenny was on her feet, her hands balled into fists, holding a battle pose. Ramble held a hand over his shoulder, his eyes wide, shocked and hurt. He looked down at the dusty boot print marking the fabric over his shoulder, then up at Jenny. She was breathing hard.
"Stay out of my head, you got that? Whatever the hell you were trying to do-"
"You asked what help I needed." Ramble said, his tone injured. "I was showing you. Why did you give me pain?"
"Sorry," the Doctor interrupted, "My daughter didn't understand what you were doing. We don't usually speak in pure images, and I'm not sure we'll understand you that way. Any chance you can explain in words?"
The Eternal paused, then nodded, his face thoughtful. "I can try." he said slowly. "It has been long and long since I made use of many words. I have little skill with them. This may be…difficult."
"Take your time." the Doctor said, sitting back. Ramble nodded.
"I am Ramble." in the Doctor's head the word was an entire paragraph: one who can find a trail and make one where none can be found. A walker of every world. One who travels every distance and never tires. Forever travelling, forever finding new things. Ramble continued. "I was asked to find us a road back into this world. The others have grown desperate to prove their point, and blocked the roads to prove the weakness of our dependence on this type of existence for our energy. But they did not block every way. If I can open this road wider, my kin can gain strength once more." he turned to the Doctor. "Is that enough?"
"Ummmm…no." the Doctor said decisively. "In fact I think I'm more confused than I was before. It's probably an annoyance for you, but how about you start back at the beginning. Why exactly do your people need this little planet? And what exactly are you doing here? Is this a game? I know you lot like playing games when you get bored."
Ramble sighed. "It is true. My elders do become…bored. And if you must have the start, it is in that." He nodded to himself, closing his eyes for a moment.
"It was long ago, and my elders had found little to amuse them. There was no challenge to be had, no interest in existence. My elders left their kinsmen in search of…diversion. Interest. They observed, and wondered at how it would be to live tied to a limited range of being as other creatures did. So my elders decided to…experiment. To try. They chose a planet with a most simple kind of life, to take the joy of watching it change. They formed Home; a place that lies upon this like a second skin, tied tight to it, so that they could observe and yet keep some comfort. And then…" Ramble stared at his hands, shrugged.
"Then my elders became."
"Became what, exactly?" the Doctor asked. Ramble thought this over.
"They gave themselves form suitable to this existence. They surrendered-no-they gave away some of their ability in order to make themselves mesh with this world. They became a part of the lower planes. In doing so, they forgot much. Then they settled in Home. The laws of that place are…not as binding as those here. Energy is available, and the shape of things is less…solid. Less entrapping. So my people were. The Elders formed gateways that gave free access to the ephemeral lands. In time they watched men come. In time they wished to experience rearing young as men did, and so I and others like me were created. Each of us has…talents, abilities. And at times we are…but that is not important. Now there is…division. Strife. Trouble. There are those among my elders who grow tired of this experiment and wish to return to their former being. There are those among my kin who would join them. They have been stating this for some time, since…"
An image appeared of a man striding to the prow of a wooden ship that rode on grey waves. The Doctor nodded.
"Since Strongbow got to Ireland. Right. That's a hell of a family argument, five hundred years, give or take, if you stuck to linear time at all."
Ramble held his hand out in a 'what do expect?' gesture.
"It is as it is. But some among us are no longer content to discuss. They wish to break loose, to regain their power. But they have forgotten the way it is done. It would require all the elders working as one to do such a thing. To force the agreement, they have been…blocking paths. Closing the roads between Home and the ephemeral lands. Draining us."
"Draining you how?" Jenny asked. She eyed the man warily. He turned to her, then looked away.
"They are…" he sighed, pulling at the cuffs of his sleeves in an almost human gesture.
"We take energy from the ephemeral lands. Your…dreams. Hopes. Creations. Ideas. Thoughts. The dreams of a people have power. We draw it. There is form in those thoughts that we use. Some peoples among men are more…creative than others. The people of this island are among them. Their dreams, their hopes, their stories are strong. But at this place…" he sighed, searching for words.
"There are no dreams in this place. There is only hunger. Pain. Fear. The men here do not dream."
"You mean in this time?"
Ramble nodded. "This place is…it is like a dark spot in the fabric of the island. And the others use it to their…advantage. They make the loss, the dream-less, the dark spread in the minds of men, out from this point. Without the energy, we cannot come here. We are not sustained. We are in pain. They say 'see what is happening? See how this feels? If we were as we should be we would never feel this again. If we were as we should be we could draw energy from anything.' There are other bright places for us, on this planet and others. But if we give them this island and find another place, they will only do the same there. We cannot let them have this victory." For the first time, a flicker of genuine emotion shone in his eyes."This is as much home for some of us as Home itself. We will not give it up."
He sat back in his chair, looking at the Time Lords. "That is my tale. Will you help me?"
"That depends." the Doctor said, "If your people get back here, will they repair the damage their counterparts did? Will they help mankind, or at least leave it alone?"
"We will go on as we always have." Ramble said. "It is we they tell their stories of. We have always helped men. It is we who give them good crops when they call us, healthy children, healing. They call on us as…friends. Hill folk, they call, and we answer. They give us dreams. We give them hopes. But we must have a road." he said, looking the Doctor in the eye. "Will you help?"
The Doctor sat back, crossing his arms. "Don't see how we couldn't." he said, his face blank.
….
Ramble had said that he needed a place that many people had invested emotion in. So now the Doctor and his daughter were flicking through the databanks, trying to find anything that might be relevant.
"Wish he'd drop the act and give us some technical details." Jenny muttered, flipping through the images. "Listening to him is like talking to a Tolkien character."
"No need to be judgmental." the Doctor chided lightly, pushing his glasses up his nose with a forefinger. "Besides, I don't think that's an act. His native language depends on a degree of telepathic interaction that's astounding, and waaay too intimate for my comfort level, not to mention yours. But he's struggling, communicating without it. I'd bet that he's pretty much unable to describe a lot of things. He's doing his best, from the look of it."
"Maybe." Jenny said. She flipped through several images, then turned to face her father, crossing her arms over her chest. "But what about some of that other stuff?"
"Which stuff?" the Doctor asked, peering at an image of Newgrange. So that was where they'd been.
"He talks about getting energy from emotions. But there isn't energy in an emotion. It's a series of neurochemical reactions in a section of the brain."
"Really." the Doctor said, turning to his daughter. He looked at her over the top of his glasses. "Funny, b'cause as I remember you couldn't stay anywhere near that Ketsa when it got its dander up. It bounced you off a wall."
"Well, yeah." Jenny said carefully.
"And there are creatures that feed on fear, right?"
"I guess."
"So you see that, and then you have trouble believing him?"
"Well yes. There's a reason for that stuff. It's the chemicals produced by fear that some parasites feed on, and a Ketsa's anger sets off the psychokinetic section of his, her or its mind, and…"
"There's a reason for everything." the Doctor said knowingly, "You just don't always know it. Remember that." He glanced at the images, talking as he did. "Every species has bio-electrical energy of some sort, telekinetic or psychokinetic or something. It's not much by itself, but get enough people believing the same thing, and you've got power. Besides, it's not just energy that the Eternals need. It's ideas. Eternals are powerful. They're as close to gods as you're ever going to get. But they've been at the top of the food chain for so long that they've forgotten how to innovate. They can't create. They can't get an idea for themselves. That's what they need ephemerals—us-what they need us and the rest of the universe for. The stronger someone thinks of something, the clearer they see it, and the more real it looks—the more real it is- when they're done taking the idea and copying it. Without us, they haven't got form or much to form their creations with." He shrugged. "I'd think you'd be pretty miserable with an existence like that, but there you go."
"Okay." Jenny said, nodding slowly, "But the stuff about roads…that's bollocks. He's talking about some kind of parasite universe, but you don't have to walk along a road to get through from a parasite universe to its parent. You can either get through, or you can't."
"I 'spect it's more like a pocket universe, from the sound of it." the Doctor said, his eyes focused on the flickering images on the screen. "And I 'spect you're not thinking it through. He's using an allegory that will translate all right. If I'm right, the opposite side on their little civil war just sealed their universe, and our friend had to go along the interface between his universe and this one to find a spot weak enough for him to break through. Surprised he didn't end up in Cardiff or Bermuda. And…" he paused, and studied the screen. "Hello…this might just do."
…..
She had no idea how she'd ended up keeping an eye on him. The Walker sat with teacup in hand, while the Eternal sat across from her, his eyes half closed. He looked up, and glanced around the room. He turned his green eyes on her inquiringly for a moment. They weren't quite green, she noticed. The centers of his eyes, around the pupils, were amber, with thick circles of green ringing the gold. It was easier to look at his eyes than to deal with his mind. It was a wild, churning swirl of complex patterns. Time was there, but it there was so much more. Too much. If she had her choice, she'd never make contact with such a mind again.
"This place is...it is…in its own place." Ramble said, glancing from the ceiling to the walls. "What place did you make it from?"
"The interiors of our ships exist in a spatial pocket of the ninth plane." the Walker replied.
"Ah." he said, looking at the ceiling as if reading it. Then he looked at her, and smiled. "Fine work. Simple, but fine."
"Thank you, I suppose." the Walker said coolly. The man glanced at her, his brow creasing for a moment. "I am sorry. You are…annoyed. That was not my intent."
The Walker sighed, and calmed her mind. "No, I'm simply preoccupied. I'm sure you'll be as happy when this is all over as we will be."
He nodded. "It will be good to see my kinsmen strong again. This has been too much a trial for us. Even the Lady has been strained of late."
"The Lady?"
"Our…highest elder. Queen? No. Advisor…she is…" he sighed, and waved one hand. "She is the Lady. She cares for my kindred."
"Oh. Then she'll be very pleased, I'm sure."
Ramble nodded, and closed his eyes.
Eternals. She had learned a few lessons about Eternals in her Secondary years. They were the greatest beings in the galaxy, but they were great the way that the Medusa Cascade or Mount Cadon was great. It was there and awesome, but it affected very little most of the time. They occasionally-very occasionally-came into the normal world of existence. But they belonged to the world of books. They didn't sit in your grandfather's kitchen enjoying the taste of tea and asking questions on quantum mechanics rather awkwardly. At least, not according to what they had said the schoolrooms.
Of course, he might not be quite an Eternal. From the description he'd given, he was something like a demigod. Like a handsome Celtic Peruses. Or perhaps one of the Hebridean heroes, she mused. Such as Chuchlainn.
"I am thinner than Chuchlainn was." Ramble said calmly, his eyes closed. "And taller. That man was built like a bull."
The Walker blinked. He'd heard all that. Wonderful.
"I didn't say that out loud."
Ramble opened his green-flamed eyes. "You did not?"
"No."
"Oh." the man stared at her, his head canting to the side, then looked away.
There was a knock on the kitchen doorway. The Doctor poked his head in. "Um…right, think we've found what you need." he said.
…..
The pool didn't look like much. Jenny studied it carefully, one eye out for possible threats. The pool was wide and shallow, enclosed in a low stone wall. A few sets of wide, low stone stairs led down into the water. Nearest to where she stood, a low arch of stones rose over the spring that fed the pool through two stone tubes, half-submerged. Grass grew between the chinks in the stones
"It's called Saint Brigid's Well." the Doctor said behind her. "Long history of belief here. This do?"
Ramble looked around, then nodded slowly. "This place... many men have put hopes into this place. It will serve."
The Eternal began to walk slowly around the perimeter of the water, looking from the earth, to the trees, to the sky, to the water. He paused, then turned around, his head tilting. After a moment, he strode to the steps leading down into the water. He stepped down into the pool, bending to run his fingers through the water. He smiled slightly.
Ramble's eyes closed, his face losing expression. Time seemed to twist around him, losing some of its usual cohesion. The air grew thick and heavy, and Jenny instinctively drew a deep breath, trying to get enough air. The sound of birdsong and wind faded into a tight silence.
There was a sense that the world was stretching. The ground seemed to flex, making Jenny sway on her feet, working to keep her balance. Her skin prickled. She didn't like this. She really didn't like this. The last time she'd felt anything like this timespace had been unraveling at the seams. How could one man have power like that?
There were words being said. Or not said. She could barely hear them, and her ears strained for that sound in the silence.
In the water, the man's hands flew up. There was a flare of light and heat. And then there was only Ramble, breathing hard, standing in water that steamed slightly. A tall woman stood in front of him, the hem of her dress floating on the water. She smiled, laying a hand on his shoulder.
"Ramble." The woman said, her voice low and soft. "You did well."
"My Lady." Ramble bowed. At least, Jenny had thought he was bowing. But the bow went on and on, and Ramble fell forward, collapsing in the water.