Egyptian Tahtib: And Back Again
… Rose …
She sat bolt upright in bed, gasping out his name, startled out of a deep, exhausted sleep at the sound – she thought – of her name. "Jared?"
Her head whipped around, staring into the corners of the small, bare chamber she'd been given, expecting to see him.
Empty. Silent. Dark. No Jared.
She looked towards the door, but there was no sound from the passageway outside, either. Sobbing helplessly, she wilted back onto the paper-thin pillow, as desolation swamped her anew. She must have been dreaming.
After escaping the wild incoming tide, the group of soldiers had straggled into the town and to the large house Napoleon had taken over for his stay. He'd barely glanced at his captive, but ordered her be put under guard in this small back bedroom. She'd stripped off her wet clothes and hung them on the waiting pegs pounded into the adobe walls and simply tumbled into the cot, asleep within seconds.
Now she laid staring at the dark ceiling, her thoughts churning. Several hours had apparently passed, but it was still the middle of the night, judging by the cold, pale moonlight coming though the single small window.
What was she going to do now? She hadn't a clue. The book – still in the pack on Sandy, wherever she was – had said that after only a few days here in Suez, Napoleon would head back towards Cairo, detouring toward the north to look for the ancient canals (and eventually discovering some signs of them) along the way. Her chances of making anything happen were rapidly slipping away. A clichéd vision of the last grains of sand seeping through an hourglass flashed through her mind, and she grimaced, scrunching up her face against the threatening tears.
… Rose …
She froze, catching her breath. This time she knew she heard it, and instantly recognized it. This was just how the Doctor had called her to Darlig Ulv Stranden all those years ago for that one last holographic conversation.
Slowly she sat up again, listening as hard as she could. "Jared..." she whispered aloud, knowing he couldn't hear the sound. Then suddenly she was silently screaming his name in her mind, thinking it as hard as she could. *JARED!* She had no idea how this telepathy thingy worked, but she hoped against hope that somehow, if he could speak to her mind, then he could listen to it, as well.
She held her breath again, waiting...
… Rose …
Had it worked?
… Come back to the Portal … I'll bring you across …
She mentally screamed again. *I'M COMING!*
She waited for an endless moment. Had he heard?
Silence.
Then...
… Love you …
She couldn't have said what it was, but something faded away before she could reply, and she knew the connection had been broken. She had to assume that he'd heard.
She threw back the ragged blanket and stood up on the cold tile floor, reaching for her clothes – miraculously already bone dry in the desiccating dessert air – and slipping them quietly on again. She had sat down again to put on her boots when it hit her.
She was in Suez, miles away from the springs, without transportation – and the tide was probably still blocking the way across the channel. And there was the issue of the disappearing pyramid. Would it be there now?
She took a deep breath and blew it out, making herself go on with the boots. Cross that bridge when we get to it. If he's somewhere on the other side of the Portal and can bring me across, then he must have a way to make it appear again. She'd have to trust him, as she always had.
Standing again, she tiptoed to the door and eased it open the tiniest crack. The soldier was still there on guard, but he'd slid down the wall to sit on the floor, his legs sprawled out across the passageway. His head was lolling to one side – and even as she watched, her own breath held, he gently snored. Sound asleep. He'd be in real trouble if he was caught, but that wasn't her problem, now, was it?
Feeling as if this were the first real stroke of luck she'd had in a very long time, she eased the door open, slipped out, and softly closed it again. Thinking hard back to the previous night to remember the way, she tiptoed down the halls and around corners until she found an outer door. Peeking through again, she was astonished to find it unguarded, and let herself out, finding herself in a small alley behind the complex. Stopping a moment to get her bearings, she began to make her way through the dark, silent streets of Suez towards the port. She'd decided to see if the tide was out before setting off on the alternate route around the north end of the bay.
She was only a few blocks away when a knee-high shadow loomed up before her, and a low, pitiful whimper reached her ears. Then she was almost knocked over by the rush of black fur and frantic – silent – greeting, from the last being she'd expected to meet.
"TOCK!" She sank down to her knees and hugged the dog tightly, as he twisted around to lick her face ecstatically. "Oh my god! How did you get here? How did you find me?"
He couldn't tell her, of course, but she didn't care. He was here. He looked exhausted – he must have loped through the night around the north end. But he was unhurt.
"And now we have to get back," she whispered. Standing up, she added, "come on," and started to step towards the port again.
Started to. Utterly unexpectedly, Tock actually had taken a mouthful of her loose caftan and stopped her from leaving, then began inching backwards, whining softly again. He relaxed when she took a step that way.
It didn't take repeated experiments for her to get it. "You want me to come with you?" Instantly deciding to trust the dog – how could she not, after this? – she turned to follow him the other way, instead. Tock immediately dropped her clothes and trotted tiredly to the corner, looking back to make sure she was there.
Thus they made their way north across Suez, keeping to the shadows and easily dodging the single patrol they saw. When they reached the edge of town, Tock led her to the ruined shell of a house. And there she got the third shock of the night. Sandy was standing in the shadows next to one wall.
Rose's jaw dropped as she stared back and forth between the two animals. Tock sat on the ground, panting, looking extraordinarily pleased with himself. "We should have named you Rin-Tin-Tin!" she finally commented. His tail swept the ground as he gave her a big doggy grin, agreeing.
She greeted Sandy, who seemed happy to see her, too, and scratched the camel's head before walking slowly around and checking all the straps. Then she cooshed her down so she could climb on board. She tried to get Tock to jump up, too, to give him a rest, but he would have none of it, so she gave up and raised the camel up again.
"Shall we try the crossing?" she asked him. He seemed to have no objections this time, so she turned Sandy's head towards the port again. Somehow even the moon seemed suddenly brighter, the night warmer. They took a short detour a few blocks around where she knew a guard post was, and came to the edge of the bay at last, just as the first rays of dawn were lighting the eastern sky.
The sand was wet – but you could see it through just a couple of calm, placid inches of water. Apparently the tide was running out, and almost gone.
"Is it safe to cross?" she asked the dog, who grinned silently back. She clucked at the camel, who had refused to enter the rising waters the evening before, and this time Sandy went down the bank without hesitation, Tock splashing at their heels. It was safe.
Sudden shouts from a hundred yards away told her she'd been seen at last, but she ignored them, urging Sandy faster. When a shot rang out a moment later, she kicked the camel into high gear, snorting at the mental image of her bouncing along on the back of a running camel. The bullet must have gone wide, and no more shots came, so they must have decided she wasn't worth chasing. A few heartbeats later and the trio were way out on the sands, away and free under the moon and the stars.
^..^
A short time after sunrise found them carefully picking their way towards Ayun Musa. Rose stopped when she thought she was close and "parked" the camel in a dry wadi, then crept closer on foot, Tock at her heels. She had no desire to ride boldly into the middle of the camp if the Arabs and/or the monks were still there – and the noise suddenly coming from ahead said they were.
But they were leaving! She peeked over the top of a convenient dune in time to see both groups mounted on their horses and camels, respectively, riding out of the oasis to west and south. She grimaced as she caught a glimpse of Brownie in the monks' caravan; apparently he'd been captured and repurposed. Then she sighed and shrugged. She was sure he'd be well treated by the holy men – better than he might have been with many other groups.
Then Rose steeled herself, turned her head and looked at the stretch of sand to the north of the oasis. Of course, it was empty – the others would not be calmly leaving if the pyramid had reappeared, she was certain of that. She sighed again, then shook her head. Trust. It will happen.
When only distant dust was visible, she stood again, fetched Sandy from her hiding place, and rode her slowly into the caravanserai once more. She unloaded the camel completely this time, placing the saddle and packs in a pitifully small pile in the corner. But she didn't hobble the camel. If she did make it out of here the way she expected to, she wanted Sandy to be able to take care of herself – at least until she was caught by another traveler. Hopefully she'd be as lucky in her future owners as Brownie.
As Jared had initially divided the food and other gear fairly evenly across the two camels, she found herself once more in possession of the cooking pot as well as the matches, so she lit another fire in the still-warm ashes the Arabs had left and cooked some of the rice and dried meat while she waited, feeding both herself and Tock.
Just as she was cleaning up, Tock suddenly began barking excitedly. She knew before she looked up what had happened, but her heart still caught in her throat at the sight.
The black pyramid was slowly swimming into view, mirage-like, on the white Sinai sands.
… Rose …
His mental voice sounded stronger now, closer. But also very, very tired.
*I'm here!* she thought back. *At the spring!*
… Come to the Portal …
"Tock!" she called the dog, and ran out of the oasis without a backward glance. The pyramid solidified as she approached, and she ran around to the north side. The entrance was there. This time Tock didn't hesitate, but sprang right up the steps alongside his mistress. Through the outer room and, hesitating only for a moment, into what Jared had named the freeze-frame chamber. Nothing seemed to happen; she moved freely, Tock didn't disappear, and the room was empty. So she walked towards the far wall, where the carved doorway framed black, lightless emptiness.
*I'm here!* She mentally called, then said it aloud. "Jared, I'm here!"
*Wait!* Suddenly his mental voice sounded plain as day. She almost wasn't sure whether it was mental or physical for a moment, then it came again. *Don't step through yet!*
She waited. He seemed to be fiddling with something, making last-minute adjustments. Then, *OK, listen. I'm going to count down from three. When I say Go, you'll only have a split-second to make it through. Ready?*
*Hang on!* she thought back, then called the dog over to her side. She grabbed his collar, but then leaned over and picked right him up. He was a bit too big for her to carry far or for long, especially if she had to duck down under the low frame, but she wasn't sure she'd be able to drag him through if the timing really was that close. *OK, I've got Tock!*
*Brilliant!* came Jared's reply, and she grinned. That was so like him. Then, *OK! Three... Two... One... GO!*
As the word reached her brain, she hunched over and stepped forward into the black. Last time there had been no transition at all, but this time... She was in the freezing, absolute dark long enough to feel her heart lurch against her ribs. Then her foot hit solid rock again, and she was through!
"ROSE!" She barely had time to register her name before he was there, his arms around her and the dog both, squeezing them so tightly that Tock yelped in protest. Jared relaxed his hug just enough for the dog to squirm out of her arms and leap down to the ground, then he scooped her up again, kissing her soundly, holding on for dear life – and now that her arms were free, she him as well.
"Oh, thank the stars," he murmured desperately. "I thought... " He didn't have to finish that sentence.
"Where have you been?" she demanded when she could think again. "I waited... I waited five and a half hours..."
Neither of them could muster a smile for that bit of nonsense. Jared raised his eyebrows at her. "I've been a little busy..." he told her, as if that explained everything.
She didn't hear him, steeped suddenly in her own shortcomings. "Jared, I failed!" she blurted out. "I tried, but I couldn't do it. I couldn't do anything! And now he's back on his way to Cairo, and the split wasn't made..."
His hands had moved to hold her head, tenderly smoothing back her hair on either side of her face. "No-no-no-no-no-no-no-no-no-no, Rose, it's all right! You didn't fail! I mean... you did, but you were supposed to fail. You weren't supposed to make the split there. The split's already been made! This is Beta!"
Rose gaped at him. "The split's been made?" She spluttered. "W.. when? How?"
Jared looked unaccountably sheepish. "I think I did it. When I unlocked the freeze-frame chamber. 'Cause it let them through."
Something about the way he had said the word stopped her cold. I'm not going to like this, she thought.
"Them...?" she repeated carefully. "Them... who?"
He paused, biting his lip, and looked downright apprehensive. Then he slowly tipped his head behind her and to one side. "Them."
Unwillingly, she inched her head around and peeked sideways at the corner of the floor behind her. There, piled in an ungainly heap, were what looked like metal body parts. And on top of the pile, dismembered, staring lifelessly – yet malevolently – up at her...
… was the head of a Cyberman.