Hiya guys, I'm so, so sorry about the delay, I've been forgetting about this fanfiction cause I've recently went back to college. I hope that now that I'm getting started, that there will be an update for this story once a week, but I make no promises. So here's the whole of 'The long game'.
Rose Tyler woke from her restless sleep wondering if the Doctor was alright or not. She got out of her bed and went into her bathroom, she removed her night clothes and stepped into the shower, she washed relatively quickly and got out again, wrapped herself in one of her fluffy pink towels and left the room.
She went to the chest of drawers in her bedroom that held all her own clothes and pulled out a pair of jeans, a t-shirt and a hoodie. She dried herself and then got dressed.
When she was dressed she left her bedroom and headed to the control room to find the Time Lord that was plaguing her thoughts.
The Doctor had spent the whole night in the control room, mostly staring into space, wondering why he cared for his companion so much, but he couldn't put his finger on it, so instead of musing the whole night, he decided to do something useful. He had removed a section of the grating from beside the console and climbed down into the work space that he had created and set to work on parts of the Tardis that needed to be repaired. This was how Rose found him the next morning when she entered the control room
Rose entered the control room and smiled when she found the Doctor just exactly where she had expected him to be, she walked to the console and sat down on the edge of the grating. "Morning." she said. The Doctor, who wasn't expecting his companion to be up yet jumped up so suddenly that he banged his head on the grating above him.
"Morning." he said. Just by looking at him Rose could tell that he hadn't gone back to sleep, but she couldn't ask him what was going on, because a fully dressed Adam chose that exact moment to enter the control room.
"Right." the Doctor said as he pulled himself up from under the console and started to input the next co-ordinates. "Off we go then." he pulled on a lever and the Tardis started to move. When she stopped the Doctor turned to Rose and said "Come on, Rose." he held out his hand which she took and he dragged her to the door.
"What about me?" Adam asked. Wondering why they were leaving him out.
"Just stay in here until we tell you to come out." the Doctor told him and opened the door and walked out with Rose following him, she closed the door behind her and the Doctor began to speak "So, it's 200,000. It's a spaceship...No, a space station, and, er...Try that gate over there."
"200,000?"
"200,000." the Doctor answered grinning, all traces of the night before gone from his face.
"Nice."
Rose opened the door and found Adam standing behind it "Adam!" she said enthusiastically "Out you come." She moved out of the way as the confused young man exited the Tardis, looking around.
"Oh, my God!" he said
"Don't worry." Rose said reassuringly "You'll get used to it."
"Where are we?"
"Good question." answered Rose. "Let's see. Judging by the architecture, I'd say we're the year 200,000, and if you listen..." the Doctor watched with a pride filled smile on his face as Rose told the younger man where they were. "Engines. We're in a space station. Yeah, definitely a space station." she said "It's a bit warm in here. They could turn the heating down." she looked around "Tell you what- let's try that gate. Come on." she led the way to the gate and the two men followed her.
The three of them entered what looked like an observation room. Rose climbed the stairs "Here we go." she said as she walked to the window "And this is..." she started as Adam climbed the stairs followed by the Doctor "I'll let the Doctor describe it."
"The Fourth Great and Bountiful Human Empire." he said "There it is- Planet Earth at it's height. Covered with mega-cities, five moons, population 96 billion. The hub of a galactic domain stretching across a million planets, a million species with mankind right in the middle."
Adam feinted "He's your boyfriend!" the Doctor said
"Not anymore." Rose told him
They managed to wake Adam up, the Doctor led the two of them back to where the Tardis was. "Come on, Adam." the Doctor said "Open your mind. You'll like this- fantastic period of history. The human race at it's most intelligent- art, politics, fine food, goo manners..." the Doctor stopped short as a man shouted and machines began to whirr
They watched as the sellers began to serve food "Fine cuisine?" Rose asked
"My watch must be wrong." he check his watch "No, it's fine, It's weird."
"Your history's not as good as you thought." Rose teased
"It's perfect."
"Obviously not."
"What about the millions of planets and species?" Adam asked "Where are they?"
"That is a good question." the Doctor answered wondering the exact same thing. He walked over to Adam and grabbed his shoulder "Adam, me old mate." he said "You must be starving."
"No I'm just timesick."
"You need some grub." he turned to the seller "How much is a Kronkburger?"
"Two credits twenty, sweetheart. Now join the queue!" The Doctor moved away from Adam "We need money." he said having learnt that with Rose around he would need it as she always wanted to buy some trinket or another from every planet they visited "let's use a cashpoint." he used the sonic screwdriver and got a credit stick which he took out and handed to Adam. "Pocket money." he explained "Don't spend it all on sweets."
"Hw does it work?" Adam asked as the Doctor walked away.
"Go and find out." the Doctor said "Stop nagging me! Time travel's like visiting Paris. Don't just read a guidebook. Throw yourself in- eat the food, get charged double and kiss complete strangers..." Rose smiled almost laughing "Or is that just me? Stop asking questions. Go and do it." Adam walked off in the opposite direction. "Off you go." the Doctor said to Rose with a cheeky grin. "Your first date!"
"You're gonna get a smack, you are!" Rose said in the same teasing tone that the Doctor had been using but she followed Adam anyway.
The Doctor walked over to two women and stopped them "This is gonna sound daft, but can you tell me where I am?" he asked
"Floor 139." said one
"Could they write it any bigger?" said the other
"Floor 139 of what?" the Doctor asked
"Must have been some party!" said the first
"You're on satellite five." answered the other
"What's that?" the Doctor asked.
"How could you not know where you are?" asked the first
"I'm stupid."
"Wait a minute." said the second "Are you a test? Some sort of management test kind of thing?"
The Doctor took out the pshycic paper "You've got me." he said "You're too clever for me." he held up the paper.
"We were warned about this in basic training." she told her companion "Workers have to be versed in company promotion."
"Right. Fire away. If it gets me to Floor 500, I'll do anything."
"What happens on Floor 500?"
"The walls are made of gold!" she said "And you should know, Mr Management!" she moved away "So this is what we do." she led him to some screens "Latest news- sandstorms in the New Venus Archipelago, 200 dead. The Glasgow water riots into their third day. Space lane 77 closed by sunsoit activity. And the Face of Boe has jut announced he's pregnant."
"You broadcast the news."
"We are the news. We're the journalists." she said "We write it, we package it and sell it. 600 channels broadcasting out of Satellite Five
Rose was with Adam, trying to get him to eat something. "Try this." she told him "It's called Zaffic. It's like a slush puppy."
"What flavour?" Adam asked, hoping that it was something that he was familiar with. Rose took a sip "Some sort of beef." she answered
"Oh, my God" he said Rose laughed "It's like everything's gone- home, family- everything."
"This helps." Rose said as she took out her mobile phone "The Doctor gave it a top-up. Who's back at home? Your mum and dad?"
"Yeah."
Rose held out her phone. "Phone 'em up." she said
"But that's 198,000 years ago."
"Honestly." Rose said "Try it. Go on."
"Is there a code for Planet Earth?" he asked
"Just dial!" Adam did as she asked and was surprised when he heard the phone ring and his mother's voice on the answering machine. Rose listened as he left his message "That is so..." he said when he hung up the phone. A klaxon rang twice
"Oi, Mutt and Jeff!" the Doctor shouted "Over here."
Rose joined him and the women and Adam followed. They were led into a room and they stood at the side and watched. "Now everybody behave. We have a management inspection. How do you want it, by the book?"
"Right from scratch, thanks." the Doctor answered
"Ok, so, ladies, gentlemen, multisex, undecided or robot, my name is Cathica Santini Khadeni. That's Cathica with a C, in case you want to write to Floor 500 praising me- please do! Feel free to ask questions. The process of news-gathering must be open, honest and beyond bias. That's company policy."
"Actually, it's the law."
"Thank you, Suki." said Cathica "Ok, keep it calm. Don's show off for the guests. Here we go." she sat down in the chair that was in the middle of the room "And... engage safety." she snapped her fingers and her forehead opened "And three...two...and spike."
"Compressed information, streaming into her. Reports from every city, every country, every planet, and they all get packaged inside her head. She becomes part of the software. Her brain is the computer."
"If it goes through her, she must be a genius." Rosa said
"She wouldn't remember it." the Doctor explained "There's too much. Her head would blow up." walked around the room and Rose followed "The brain's the processor. As soon as it closes, she forgets."
"What about all these people?" Rose asked pointing at the people who were sitting round the chair.
"They've got tiny chips in their head, connecting them to her. They transmit 600 channels. Every single fact in the empire beams out of this place. Now that's what I call power."
"Do you want to get out?" Rose asked Adam
"No. This technology, it's amazing."
"This technology's wrong."
"Trouble?" asked Rose
"Oh, yeah." said the grinning Doctor
Suki was shocked and she removed her hands and everything switched off and Cathica was woken from her state of unconciousness "Suki!" she exclaimed "I wasn't even halfway. What was that for?"
"Sorry. It must have been a glitch."
"Oh"
There was a chiming sound "Promotion."
The Doctor and Rose watched as Cathica prayed that she would get the promotion "Promotion for Suki Macrae Cantrell."
The Doctor watched as Cathica argued with Suki and Rose turned to him and asked "What's Floor 500?"
"The walls are made of gold."
They went with Suki to the lift "Cathica, I'm going to miss you. Floor 500, thank you." she said to the Doctor
"I didn't do anything."
"Well, you're my lucky charm!"
"All right." the Doctor said "I'll hug anyone." he hugged Suki. Rose went to Adam
"Come on. It's not that bad." she said
"What with the head thing?"
"Well, she's closed it now."
"Yeah, but it..." he paused "It's everything. It freaks me out." he admitted "I just need to... If I could just... cool down. Sort of acclimatise."
"How do you mean?"
"Maybe I could sit on the observation deck." he suggested "Would that be alright? Soak it in, you know. Pretend I'm a citizen if the year 200,000."
"Do you want me to come with you?" Rose asked.
"No, no." Adam said "You stick with the Doctor. You'd rather be with him. It's gonna take a better man than me to get between you two. Anyway, I'll be on the deck."
"Here you go." said Rose reaching into her pocket "Take the Tardis key, just in case it gets a bit too much."
"Yeah, like it's not weird in there!" Rose gave him the key anyway and he left.
Rose went to join the Doctor
"I've got to go." said Suki as she picked up her bag "I can't keep them waiting. I'm sorry!" she ran into the lift "Say goodbye to Steve for me. Bye!" she shouted as the doors closed
"Good riddance" Cathica said
"You're talking like you won't see her again" Rose said
"We won't. Once you go to Floor 500, you never come back."
"Have you ever been up there?" the Doctor asked
"I can't." Cathica told him "The kep for the lift only comes with promotion. No one gets to 500 except the chosen few.
The Doctor wondered what the heck was going on in this place and where Adam was, but he was happier that he had Rose with him, they walked side by side and the Doctor was still trying to figure out what his feelings for the blonde were, he knew that he cared for her, but then again, he had cared for all his other companions, but he had never once had dreams about them like the one he had had about Rose the night before. He knew he was attracted to her, but that wasn't what caused the dream, was he woried about her safety because he had promised Jackie, he didn't know, but all that he did know what that he needed to figure out what his feelings were. Rose on the other hand was watching him with a worried look on her face, she knew that he was trying to figure out what was going on, but there was something else that he was trying to work out.
They followed Cathica back to the room where they had watched what happened "We only get 20 minutes for maintenance." she said "Give it a rest."
The Doctor sat on the chair and Rose stood behind him with her arm on the back of the chair. "You've never been to another floor?" he asked "not even one floor down?
She told them that she went to Floor 16 when she first arrived, which is medical and that was where she got her head done.
"You're not management are you?" Cathica asked
"At last!" the Doctor said "She's clever!"
Rose listened as the Doctor asked Cathica questions.
--
The Doctor and Rose found themselves on Floor 500 with a mad man called the editor and the Jagrafess that he likes to call Max. Cathica came up to Floor 500 and saved Adam from an information overload and to stop the Editor getting any more information on the Doctor and Rose. She channelled the heat back upto Floor five hundred and the Jagrafess exploded from the heat overload.
They went back down to Floor 139 after they had collected Cathica and then found Adam "Easy, Doctor." Rose said as the Time Lord advanced on her friend, who of course blamed the Time Lord for everything that had happened.
--
The Tardis landed in Adam's house and they dropped him off. The Doctor deleted the phone message that Adam had left and then said "Right, see ya."
"What do you mean see ya?"
"See ya, as in good bye!" the Doctor said
"But you can't leave me here. What about my head? It opens."
"What do you mean like this?" the Doctor snapped his fingers and Adam's head opened. Adam snapped his fingers and it closed the Doctor did it again
"Doctor, that's enough, now stop it!" Rose said she then snapped her fingers "Sorry, I couldn't resist."
"Take me with you." Adam said
"I only take the best and I've got Rose." the Doctor said as he entered the Tardis, having just realised something.
Adam tried to beg Rose to take them, but she turned around and went into the Tardis, disappearing from his life forever.
--
Once back inside the Tardis Rose joined the Doctor at the controls and stayed quiet whilst he put the Tardis into the Time Vortex. "I'm sorry." she said
"It's fine, why don't you go, get some rest, you're knackered." the Time Lord told her. She left the room, knowing better than to argue with him and went to her room to figure out what she felt for him as he tried to do some more work on the Tardis.
I know there wasn't much difference between the episode and this chapter, but the difference will be bigger during Father's day, which will be up next Thursday. I hope, it might even be before that, but I'm gonna update one of my other stories now.
TTFN
Julie20007