19 Fixed Points
"Run, Jack! Hurry it the bloody hell up!" she cries over her shoulder. Rose is running as fast as she can, which is considerably faster than Jack. They've got less than an hour, and she isn't taking any chances.
"Right behind ya! Get to the TARDIS, and get the door open," he calls to her back. Space suits are not designed for fast get aways. They had taken more than an hour to amble toward that ridge, so it would take much less time to get back at what qualifies as an all out run in an orange space suit. This would be funny if he wasn't so worried about what was about to happen behind them, but Rose said they have at least an hour before the situation heats up—literally.
Almost two hours prior they had walked away from the TARDIS looking around them in wonder. Jack had been to Mars before, but it had already been a huge sprawling colony, and mostly terraformed. This was a younger, raw Mars, before humans had made their mark on it. It was beautiful in a terribly arid way. It wasn't too much past dawn, and the small pale sun did little to warm the thin air around them. Luckily the bright orange suits kept them comfortable. Finally bored tossing rocks as far they as they could in the reduced gravity, they had struck out toward a likely ridge. It looked to be high enough they would see for quite a distance.
Reaching the ridge; the view was as expected, long and breathtaking, but nestled on the plain below them was a small outpost. Very small, with just a few domes, and the landing ship synced to the colony as its power source. This was a very outdated method. In future colonies, the ship was reassembled into the first domes. Jack has a tickle of recognition in the back of his mind, as if he's trying to remember something important.
"Hey Rosie, hold up a moment," he says through their comm as she's about to head off down the ridge. "This reminds me of something. Some piece of history I should know. I don't like this."
"Truthfully, me either; something feels off, almost wrong. I think something big happens here."
"Can you sense anything special, with that superior Time Lord-y biology of yours?" Jack asks teasingly.
"Jack, you're brilliant! It's so new to me, that I'm not in the habit of using all these new abilities." With a grin she looks out toward the colony and allows her other sight to slide forward, looking for timelines, traces, anything that might give her a clue to what's causing the tension.
She sees the colony as a writhing knot of oncoming fact. There are several timelines wrapped up in the angry wad, but none of them extend out of the knot. Thinking this is strange Rose reaches out, sliding her senses over the strands and into the knot. She's about to reach out mentally and touch the juncture of change when Jack grabs her shoulder snapping her back to herself. Staggering from the abrupt change, Jack steadies her.
"Rose! We have to go," he says emphatically.
"What? Jack, what are you going on about? Something big happens there. I was just about to see if I…"
"No, Rose I remember. I know exactly where we are, and I bet I know when, too.
"Okaaay, so help a girl out," Rose says resting fists on her hips as she glares at him. The abrupt change of perception is definitely going to give her a headache.
"That, Rose Tyler, is the first human outpost on Mars, Bowie Base One, and if I'm right it's going to explode sometime soon," Jack says with a sweep of his arm. "No one knows exactly what happened. There are plenty of theories—gas leaks, environmental failure, you know; the usual. But the last message that got out was something about the water, and then—Boom!"
"Bloody hell, that's awful!" Rose can't imagine how terrifying it would be, out here alone with no possibility of help. With a shudder of realisation she turns to Jack. "That's why the event is so knotted, and all the individual timelines just end. That's what I saw. This is a…'fixed point'. Dammit, that's what it said on the view screen. Bugger it all. How could I be so stupid? What the hell else would 'fixed point' mean?" With clinched fists, she turns back to look at the Base sitting on its plain; its inhabitants serenely unaware of what was about to happen.
"We can't stay," Jack says softly, laying his gloved hand on Rose's shoulder. "We can't help them. This has to happen for humans to make that greater leap into space. This terrible, terrible event is the catalyst. I remember it now; had to write a report even. My pictures were from a different angle though; from the plain over there," he says pointing to the flat land past the outpost.
"I know, Jack. It just hurts, you know? How do you just let those people die? I sometimes wonder what the point is of all these superior Time Lord powers are when you can't use them without making things worse."
"With great power…"
"Comes great responsibility. Ya, ya, I know! That doesn't mean I have to like it. Alright, let's get the hell out of here, before I think of something stupid and dangerous to try." Taking one last look at Bowie Base One, they see one of the domes, crack and start to shatter; air escaping explosively with bits and pieces that are obviously parts of trees.
"Uh-oh! I think we are closer to that 'go Boom' part than we want to be. That ship nuclear?" Rose asks eyes going wide. She forces herself to look at the timelines again, trying to get a sense of how much time they have. The knot is screwing itself tight, but she guesses that they have about an hour.
"Yeah, we'd better run! We do not want to be here when it blows. The crater was…well let's just say it was big."
Turning away from the base and the cliff edge, both Jack and Rose take off across the barren landscape, not stopping for fun on this return trip. "I give us about an hour," she calls to Jack over the comm. "Great. Hope the TARDIS is fixed enough, or we'd better pray the doors can keep out a multi-megaton nuclear blast!"
"Keeps out the Vortex, and bullets, and Mongol hordes; so she should be fine, but how about we don't test it." Rose says this into the comm. Looking over her shoulder, she sees Jack some thirty steps behind her. They have at least two kilometres of rocky, sandy, and generally uneven ground between them and the TARDIS.
Jack can't believe he actually saw Bowie Base One. He'd been fascinated as a kid with the disaster. It was all so mysterious; here he was, and he would still never know. Putting his head down and running harder, he focuses on just getting to the TARDIS.
Rose already has her key in hand as she bounces off the TARDIS using Her to stop her momentum. Getting the door unlocked is only a couple more seconds. Opening it and stepping inside she continues up the ramp at a jog, taking the helmet off as she goes, dropping it on the jumpseat. Jack is about 45 seconds behind her slamming the door shut and locking it before he joins her at the Console. Turning the screen to Jack with a look of sadness, she shows Jack the date: 21November 2059 .
"Is that what you remember?"
"Yes," Jack gasps out, nodding. Taking deep breaths to calm his heart, he runs a hand through his sweaty hair. "How's the TARDIS feeling? Can we leave?"
"Oh, sorry I hadn't checked yet. I feel so bad for those people dying out there, and here I stand safe in my magic box. It's unfair."
"Yes, it is. But the Universe isn't worried about fair Rose, it's worried about balance, and this has to happen to maintain balance. You saw what happened at Chelsea 426. How things would get worse as the Universe fought for balance, even to its own destruction. It wasn't fair that all those Sontarans died, but they did and we did it; you, and me, and Bad Wolf, to reestablish the balance. It can't be different just because they're human. And remember Rosie, you're not," he says this last as gently as he can. He has more practise at this, having been a Time Agent for many more years than she's been a Time Lord. He's dealt with these thoughts many, many times through unnumbered sleepless nights. The right thing is usually not the easy thing.
Rose flinches away from Jack, turning the screen back to face her. She doesn't have time now to grieve; it will have to wait. Her Doctor makes these difficult kinds of decisions every day as well, and she will have to learn. Like Jack just said, the Universe isn't about fairness. A few tears manage to work their way out anyway, and she scrubs them away with the back of her hand.
Jack takes both their helmets and locks them in a storage closet off the side of the Console. Taking his station across from her, he waits for Rose to tell him what to do. He knows she's hurting. His sympathetic look says it all, but she needs the space, and she's glad he picked up on that. Leaning against the Console, she reaches for Darling.
/Darling? Are we ready? Are you okay?/
~No, my Wolf. I am not okay. I am dangerously low on energy. Fighting the Vortex…is difficult. I can get us back into it, but I must go to the Rift./
Rose can feel the TARDIS' distress. She had not noticed it before. It is deep enough that Darling must have been shielding her from it. Rose senses that she isn't being told everything, and she probes a little deeper.
/It's more than that, isn't it. Is it the Doctor? Is it me? Can I give you any Bad Wolf, or… the Tears! Would the Tears help?/
~You are so perceptive, my Wolf. It is partly my Thief. We are bonded, and he is in distress. It is…taxing. No, I cannot take Bad Wolf from you at this point; you are too deeply interwoven, and the Tears are meant for larger needs than mine~
Rose wants to argue that Her needs are just as important, but the vision of the TARDIS exploding that Darling sends her gives her chills and she understands. The Tears are too powerful for even Her to assimilate.
/Okay, Cardiff it is. Can we maintain in the Vortex until Jack goes to sleep? Can't have him meeting himself even by accident./ Visions of Reapers fill Rose's head, and she shudders at the memory.
~Yes, I can wait that long, but I will need to condense all remaining unnecessary rooms for the power. I will leave the Library, Kitchen and your rooms. I am sorry.~
/Oh Darling, you don't have to apologise, it's okay. We'll do what we can to make it better./
~We are here because I could not maintain the necessary power to pinpoint the correct time. I…fell. I am sorry, my Wolf. We should never have been here. I will only need a few hours at the Rift. Hopefully our Jack will be busy. I will land at night.~
Sending her love, concern, and support to Darling, Rose looks up at Jack, "Okay we're good to get into the Vortex. Then we'll need to stay there awhile. She needs to hang out for a bit; let things settle." She hates lying to him, but events are already weird enough without two Jacks in the TARDIS, and Cardiff Jack is immortal now. She hasn't found a way to deal with that yet. Like Darling said she'll just hope future Jack's asleep.
Rose had the benefit of sleeping for 3 days straight on top of her superior biology, so she doesn't need any more rest. She does however, take a long bath after all that running and emotional stress; it feels like floating in heaven. After dinner with Jack, a movie and some reading, he has finally gone off to bed. Once she's sure he is soundly asleep, she changes clothes and is back in the Console room.
/Alright Darling, let's not wake Sleeping Beauty. Take what you need, even if it's my room, so we can land smoothly,/she thinks with a smile.
~Thank you, my Wolf. I can feel the Rift from here, it should be an easy trip.~
And for once, it is. They land without a thump right where they had the day they'd stopped Blon Slitheen from murdering the Earth…again. Caught up in the memory, she can almost smell her first Doctor's unique scent. The same spice of time, mixed with a bit of TARDIS grease, leather, and something primal— an edge that was just a little dangerous. She had never caught all these nuances before, but now reliving the memory with a whole new set of senses, it feels fresh and new. It also makes her miss both her Doctors tremendously. Scrubbing her face with her palms, Rose pushes the memory away. No point dwelling on what has happened. She needs to focus on what needs to happen now.
Darling has helpfully added a charging bar on the view screen that looks just like the one on a cell phone except it's TARDIS shaped. Laughing softly at the blinking green lights, and the humour of this magnificent creature she calls friend, Rose looks around for something to do. She doesn't really know how to fix anything. They hadn't needed to do any of that before all hell broke loose, and she lost the Doctor. She's too keyed up to read, so the Library wouldn't suit. Feeling an insistent poke from Darling, Rose looks back at the screen to see an image of future Jack sneaking up on the TARDIS. Really…sneaking.
Sighing to herself at their luck, Rose grabs her long leather coat and heads for the door. She had been looking for something to do; careful what you wish for.
Stepping out of the TARDIS into the chilly Welsh night, Rose is glad of the coat and her new Time Lord temperature regulation. Locking the door behind her, she already feels Jack across the Plaz from her. As she felt in the Doctor's memory, he's heavy, and she can sense his energy pulling at her. Adding more layers to her telepathic shielding helps a little, but doesn't do anything for the teeth itching buzz of wrong that fills the air around him. It's as if he walks in a forcefield that isn't harmonising correctly.
Stopping herself, she quickly moves to the opposite side of the TARDIS from Jack and leans against Her, thinking hard.
/That's it! Harmonising. I need the Doctor to create a device that harmonises at a frequency opposite of Jack's to cancel out the wrongness. Rose Tyler, you're brilliant! Oh I can't wait to tell the Doctor!/
She's so pleased with herself that she almost misses Jack getting closer to the TARDIS. Rose can feel Darling cringing, but refusing to move. She won't leave her Wolf behind no matter how annoying the Lover feels. Not wanting to distress poor Darling further, Rose takes a fortifying breath and comes around the side of the TARDIS to face Jack, who is half-way across the Plaz.
At seeing her, he stops dead. With her enhanced vision, she can see his eyes go wide, and he mouths 'Rose.' She can tell he's about to run to her, but she holds up a hand, silently asking him to wait as she moves towards him. It hurts her hearts to see the look of confusion and pain flash across his features. He hasn't seen her or the TARDIS since the Game Station, and she has no idea how long it's been for him. He died thinking she was safe. He probably has no idea what all took place. This was not going to be fun.
Reaching him finally, Rose forces herself to go as near to him as possible. She will not let what she did to him, affect her…much. With her hand still up, asking him to stay in place, Rose comes to stand in front of him and smiles sadly.
"Jack, long time no see." She can see she's causing him pain by maintaining her distance.
"Rosie?" he questions, her name a strangled syllable in his throat.
From within, Rose feels a stirring; an uncoiling of Bad Wolf energy. Suddenly, she has an idea, and she knows it isn't hers, but still she likes it. Wrapping herself in the warm golden energy, Rose starts to sing.
Jack's eyes get huge and he takes a couple of steps away from her as her eyes glow gold. He also thinks he can see a slight mist of golden particles seep from her skin. She raises her hand again, and he stills; afraid of what might happen if he moves. She isn't singing words, just formless sounds, and he gets the impression she's looking for something.
The music is beautiful. Ethereal in a way that's hard for him to focus on, and she's making chords that should be impossible for a human throat to make. After a few moments, she finds a chord, that makes him feel very strange, almost like it pulls his breath away. Smiling broadly in what Jack can only think is triumph, she hums the chord one more time, and then seems to swallow the sound. A few more seconds pass, the glow fades from her eyes, and his Rosie is grinning back at him with that damn tongue of hers caught in her teeth. Before he can think twice about anything that just happened or the hurt he'd been feeling, he sweeps Rose up into a bone cracking hug.
She returns it with one of her own, and giggles wildly as he spins her around.
"Oh, Rosie! I missed you so much!"
"Jack Harkness! It's definitely mutual, and before you ask about the Doctor; I'll tell you anything you want to know, but there'll be conditions, and there had better be chips."
"Rose Tyler, and her chips. Now I know, all is more or less well with the Universe."
Slapping him on the arm before she takes it, they head off to find a late night chippy. The TARDIS sighs to herself in relief. Settling in, Darling rests and recharges.
A/N: We're movin' now! More action to come. :-) Monday's chapter...Captain Jack.
As an aside, I updated the description to make it more obvious that this is part of a series. If you didn't read Songs of the Spheres yet, please do. It explains how we got to where we are now. How Rose got back, and who helped out. Thanks so much, and keep the reviews coming. Nothing like the support to keep a girl writing! :-D