Chapter 7 – Another Day At The Office
Previously - The Doctor frowned and snatched the phone away from Clara, "We're not beaten yet Clara Oswald", she stated and placed the phone to her ear, "Kate listen to me because we're only going to get one shot at this. Find the best computer person you've got in that room and sit them behind the keyboard". She then turned towards Clara and pointed at one of the circuit boards inside the plinth, "Don't worry, I've got a plan", she smiled.
Somehow Clara wasn't fully convinced by that statement because virtually nothing The Doctor had done in the last few minutes had reassured her that the Time Lord knew what she was doing. Either this new Doctor was supremely confident or a reckless idiot who was hoping for the best. The next few minutes would answer that question for her.
The Doctor continued to inspect the tangle of wires underneath the plinth, mumbling under her breath in the process. Periodically Clara looked at her watch and counted off the seconds, they now had just three minutes until the temporal bubble closed around Earth. The school teacher kept observing the new Doctor behaviour but there was no sign of any nerves from the raven haired woman. "Is this the latest model", The Doctor waived Clara's mobile phone in her hand.
Clara frowned, "Yeah it only came out a few weeks ago", the school was confused, this hardly seemed like the time to be discussing gadgets.
"Teaching children must pay reasonably well", The Doctor replied, eying up the phone, "I know how overpriced little gadgets like this are in this time period". She began rummaging in her jacket pocket for something, "I assume it can make video calls?"
"Of course it can Grandma", Clara chuckled slightly. The Doctor held out her hand and Clara slowly handed the device to her. The Time Lady looked over the phone with a quizzical look on her face, "Do you need a few moments to get used to it?" Clara asked after a few moments.
"This primitive device", The Doctor scoffed, "I built something more advanced before I could learn to walk". Clara crossed her arms across her chest and glared at the woman, "Now when the iPhone 12 comes out in a few years time, that is the true beginning of the technological revolution". She paused and shuddered slightly, "small piece of advice though Clara, carry a towel around with you if you get one, the neural interface can get a little messy". Before the school teacher could respond, The Doctor pulled something out of her pocket, "Ah ha, I knew it was in here somewhere", in her hand was a small white cable.
"Is that a phone charger", Clara pointed at the wire, "we've got less than three minutes until the bubble closes and you're worried about my battery going flat". The brunette tried to remain calm but The Doctor's flippant attitude was getting on her nerves. The previous Doctor might have liked to ramble on but at least his banter was relevant. The actions of this Time Lady didn't seem to be making sense.
"This isn't a phone charger", The Doctor rolled her eyes, "it's a universal adapter. With this you can connect any portable device to any machine of any time period". She dangled the wire in front of her face for a few seconds before connecting one end to Clara's phone, "Apple will hail this as the next step in connectivity at their Expo in 2029. Sadly they were a little short sighted and for once they really did mean universal so suddenly everyone was connecting non Apple devices using this little beauty". The Doctor put the phone on top of the plinth and grabbed the other end of the cable, "That all led to the Android Wars of 2033, the first war to be fought in virtual reality and led to Apple dictatorship. Bit of a confusing time in history I'm afraid".
"Doctor is this all going somewhere", Clara cried in exasperation, "I don't think you're taking this seriously".
The Doctor sighed and looked Clara directly in the eye, "Trust me Clara Oswald I'm taking this very seriously and I would appreciate it if you didn't question my commitment again". Clara recoiled slightly as the Time Lady turned away sharply from the school teacher and connected the other end of the cable to the computer inside the plinth. What the school teacher couldn't see was the expression on the Time Lady's face. She had screwed up her eyes tightly in frustration and annoyance that she had spoken to Clara so harshly. The words flashed into her mind and they rolled out of her mouth before she had a chance to rein those thoughts in. Unfortunately for her companion she had been on the end of an unintentional tongue lashing. The last thing The Doctor wanted to do was upset Clara, despite the change of face she was still her friend.
Just then Clara's phone rang and the display indicted it was a video call, "Ah Kate, good to see you again", The Doctor answered the call, suppressing the anger that she felt towards herself. To her surprise it wasn't just Kate's face that appeared on the small screen. There were two smaller boxes on the right hand which contained a couple of familiar faces, "Captain Yates", she smiled, "and Sarah Jane Smith, this really is a day for reunions".
The elderly Captain stared at the woman in confusion, "I'm sorry have we met", he asked.
"Course we have Captain, I'm The Doctor", the pair looked at her in confusion but the Time Lady didn't give them a chance to answer, "sorry bit pushed for time, we'll catch up soon". She pressed her fingers against the screen and with a swiping motion, moved the smaller boxes away, "Have you found someone to help?" she asked Kate.
"Not exactly", Kate sighed, "no one that we can get here in time".
Clara knelt down next to her phone, keeping a gap between herself and the Time Lady. She still reeling from the verbal assault from The Doctor, "What about you Osgood?" she asked, "you were pretty good the last time we met".
"I'm already helping", Osgood answered, adjusting her glasses nervously, "but to get this done in the timeframe we have, I need a second person to help".
"I'll do it", another voice called out from UNIT Headquarters. Everyone turned their attention to Winifred McQueen who was standing timidly in the background, "I don't have much experience with this system but I programmed in DOS during my University days".
Kate shook her head, "Winifred how did you even get in here", she scolded the woman, "you don't have the required security clearance".
"T-The door was open", Winifred stammered, "I-I thought I could help".
"You snuck into a top secret room in a UNIT base?" The Doctor asked and Winifred nodded gingerly, "my kind of person, you've got the job".
"Doctor!" Kate cried.
"Under two minutes", Osgood called out and turned to Winifred, "I'll do the heavy lifting but be prepared to interlock my code lines". Winifred nodded slowly before focusing on the screen. From what they could see on the tiny screen, Osgood's fingers were a blur on her keyboard. In the background they could see Kate, Jack and Martha watching on nervously. Every few seconds, Osgood nodded at her computer companion and Winifred would take over for a couple of moments.
"Something's happening", Clara pointed at the coloured tubes, they were turning from a dull green colour to a bright shade of red.
"What's happening Doc", Jack called out, "less than sixty seconds".
"If my calculations are correct then we're slowly reversing the polarity of the temporal bubble", The Doctor recoiled slightly at her own words, "reverse the polarity", she shuddered, "sounds stupid, now I know why I haven't said that in a while but I really don't have time to explain what's actually happening". By now the tubes were a vibrant shade of red and pulsating rapidly, "Clara, we might want to take a couple of steps back".
The Doctor followed her own advice and pulled a reluctant Clara along with her. The computer emitted a loud bang, followed by a shower of sparks. Moments later a column of red light flew up into the sky and out into space. A violent wind was whipped up by the energy beam, forcing the pair to drop down low to the ground to protect themselves from flying objects, "Is it meant to do that?" Clara shouted over the wind.
"I think so", The Doctor replied, "it's a little bit more violent than I expected", she added with a manic grin. For a brief moment, Clara thought she could see The Doctor she knew in the woman as the same child like joy was plastered on her face. It was a fleeting moment as she remembered the other times the Time Lady was less than pleasant and a deep frown formed on her face. Seconds later The Doctor's eye widened and pulled Clara's head down as a flying piece of metal nearly took both of their heads off. The school teacher looked up gingerly and muttered her appreciation to the Time Lady.
Out in space a small amber coloured vortex had opened just above the Earth. The red energy beam crashed into the vortex and began to slowly pull the Dalek, Cybermen and Sontaran fleets into the swirling energy portal. A couple of ships broke apart as they got caught in the violent energy, spreading debris out into space.
Just as quickly as it had started, the wind stopped and the computer sparked again, turning the internal components into ash. Seeing that it was safe to stand up, The Doctor did just that and helped Clara to her feet. The Time Lady adjusted her jacket and walked towards the plinth, "Well the planet's still here, so that's a good sign", she said, looking up to the sky.
"No rampaging Daleks either", Clara added. She reached the plinth and saw a burned out metal shell sitting where her phone had been, "Is that my phone?" she asked the Time Lady.
The Doctor picked up the twisted pile of metal, glass and plastic, "Ah, yes I think so", she replied and the remains of the phone crumbled into dust. She ignored Clara's protest and crouched down in front of the computer, "Looks like this thing is burned out as well", she added, "I would say that the safety of humanity is more important than your phone".
Clara looked at the remains of her phone and then at the Time Lady. She was still conflicted about the new Doctor, she wasn't always the easiest person to get along with but she had pulled through for the planet when it mattered. Sadly her brand new phone had taken the brunt of her heroic actions but she did make a good point, "I suppose so", she said with a small smile, "I guess we've got to walk back".
The moment Clara said this, a black van pulled up and several UNIT troopers jumped out, "Secure the area boys", The Doctor called out before turning to Clara, "looks like we've got a ride back to the Tower". As the pair jumped into the van, The Doctor paused to look at the plinth. Someone had installed thirty first century technology and used it to create a potentially devastating temporal bubble. The question was, who had the capability to do something like this and what was their purpose?
The Doctor silently contemplated this during their journey back to UNIT Headquarters but no answers came to her. There was no obvious design signature that linked it to a particular species which made her deliberation even harder. She was a little distracted by Clara though, who was staring out the window and chewing her nails at the same time. The Time Lady knew she hadn't been particularly kind towards her companion but she wasn't sure how to make things right. She desperately needed to talk with her companion to and that scared her more than any invading alien fleet.
The UNIT van reached it's destination, she noticed that Winifred was surrounded by several UNIT troopers and scientists. She had an embarrassed expression on her face and as The Doctor got closer, she could hear them praising her actions, "Nice job Winnie", she called out to the scientist, "couldn't have done it any better myself".
"Surely that's not true Doctor", Winifred blushed.
"No its not but then again, you are only human", The Doctor joked, "I'm sure your boss will reward you for your actions", by now Kate and Osgood were coming into view, "isn't that right boss?"
"Funny, I never imagined you calling me boss", Kate smiled, "the alien fleet has gone Doctor".
"Right back where they came from", The Doctor added, "by redirecting the energy they got sucked back through the very time portal they came from". The Doctor walked away from the other UNIT scientists to join up with the approaching Jack and Martha.
"The team at the scene say that the device you found has been burned beyond recognition", Kate called out, "we'll probably never find out who planted it".
The Doctor nodded sadly, she had come to the same conclusion herself, "Hopefully they'll have got the message that this planet is protected again. If not", The Doctor smiled, "then you know where to find me". The Doctor felt something warm up inside her pocket, she pulled it out to reveal a small key, "Ah, the TARDIS is finished", she bounced on the balls of her feet, "who wants to take a look?"
The Time Lady didn't wait for a response and walked briskly towards her TARDIS, leaving Jack, Clara, Martha, Kate and Osgood in her wake. She unlocked the door and slowly stepped inside, taking in every aspect of the TARDIS' new look. A narrow metal walkway lead up to the central console but either side of the structure was nothing but a dark chasm. It was like a drawbridge over a moat, except instead of water there was infinite nothingness. The central console looked like it had been cobbled together from various piece of bronze metal piping, giving it a steampunk look. The walls were a metallic silver colour with bronze coloured rondels, "Not bad old girl", The Doctor caressed the console, "I hope you've sealed off the sides though", she added, looking over the walkway and into the vast expanse of nothingness below.
"Wow that's a long way down", Jack whistled as he looked over the edge, "it's like the console is suspended over nothing", he added as he bent two to get a closer look at the console.
"The old girl's clever like that", The Doctor smiled. There were two scanners attached to the central console, one looked like a 1950s style TV complete with glass valves on top. The other was a more modern flat screen that was on a movable stand. The Time Lady flicked a couple of switches randomly and a few other glass valves on the console surface lit up.
"It really is bigger on the inside", Osgood gasped but she made a mistake of looking down, "much, much bigger".
"Don't worry, the TARDIS won't let anyone fall", The Doctor replied, "assuming she likes you that is".
"Does she like me", Clara asked nervously, remembering her patchy track record with the time capsule.
The Doctor laughed, "Yes she likes you Clara", the Time Lady took off her coat and hung it over one of the railing, "I know this hasn't been the smoothest introduction", she continued, "but thank you for sticking with me". She kept her gaze on the school teacher, hoping that she would believe the sincerity behind her words.
"Just glad to have you back Doctor", Kate replied, "now I've got a tremendous amount of paperwork to do. I will assume that you don't want to help us with that".
"Oh Kate", The Doctor laughed, "I haven't changed that much".
"I thought so", Kate turned around and headed out of the TARDIS, "come on Osgood, you're not getting out of this". The bespectacled UNIT member, still stunned by the TARDIS slowly backed away from the central console. She bumped into a railing and leapt backwards in shock. Her inhaler flew out of her hand, over the railing and into the abyss below. Moments later the same inhaler landed with a clang at her feet, surprising the woman even more. She grabbed it and scrambled out of the TARDIS as quickly as she could.
"Guess that answers the safety aspect of the TARDIS", Jack chuckled, "I should get back to Cardiff, I've left Gwen alone for too long". He opened his arms and wrapped The Doctor up in a firm hug, "Don't be a stranger", he whispered.
"Wouldn't dream of it Captain", The Doctor answered. The Time Lady turned to Martha, "You probably should check on Mickey, make sure he hasn't destroyed anything".
"He's not that bad Doctor", Martha smiled and hugged the Time Lady, "this is still weird by the way".
"Try living it", The Doctor smiled and let go of the woman. With Jack and Martha gone, that left The Doctor and Clara alone inside the TARDIS, "I guess it's time for us to talk", she sighed, "let's try and find somewhere more comfortable, hopefully the TARDIS kept the old relaxation room intact". The Doctor headed down one of the walkways and into the living quarters of the TARDIS with Clara close behind. This wouldn't be an easy conversation for either of them.
A/N - The steampunk console room seems like something right up The Doctor's alley, surprised it hasn't really been used yet. Two chapters to go of this story so thank you to everyone who's read/reviewed and favourited so far.