CHAPTER 34
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Victoria Collins in her wolf form howled inside of her specially constructed cell at UNIT HQ while Donna and Martha watched her with sadness. Both of them had been trying to find a way to help cure Victoria of being a werewolf for quite a while now, but nothing had worked so far.
UNIT's best scientists couldn't help her even though they'd tried, and the Time Lords didn't really know enough about her condition to be able to do anything. Or at least that's what they told Donna anyway. Donna didn't believe them herself. She thought that they just couldn't be bothered. She wanted to punch the whole lot of them in their sanctimonious faces for not helping Vicky.
Victoria was well over a hundred years old, but she acted so young and was so full of fears and insecurities that it was easy to forget that. Donna couldn't help but feel sorry for her and wanted to help her. She felt very protective of her now, and it affected her personally every time that she couldn't find a way to help her. She felt like she had let Vicky down.
"Our best minds can't even begin to know how to help cure her. Even if they could, the alien influence inside of her might be all that's keeping her alive. If you remove it or interfere with it in any way, then she might die instantly. I'm sure that it has been what's kept her from aging all of these years," Martha said.
"It's also making her life miserable though. She can't enjoy anything for having to worry about turning into a werewolf all of the time," Donna said.
"Don't worry about me, Donna. I'm fine," Victoria said in her gruff and bestial voice.
Donna would never get used to hearing Vicky talk in her wolf form, but she tried not to let that show to the girl herself. Vicky was her friend, and the last thing that she wanted to do was to make her feel worse than she already must.
Donna knew that Victoria was miserable. She never said anything about it because it wasn't in her nature to complain in any way, but her eyes told Donna the truth about how she really felt. Victoria's eyes had so much pain in them that Donna could barely look into them without feeling massive guilt for not finding some way to help her. Every time that she did manage to look Victoria in the eye, Donna wished that she could make that pain disappear forever after having seen it there for so long.
"You're not fine, but you will be someday I promise. I promise I'll help you, Vicky," Donna said sadly
"That's not your job, Donna. You shouldn't feel guilty about it because you can't help me. It's okay. I'm fine with living this way," Victoria said.
"Don't lie to me, Vicky. You're not fine, and you know it," Donna said.
Victoria put one of her paws through the bars of the cage and lightly patted Donna on the shoulder surprising her. Donna hadn't realized that she had gotten that close to her, and she knew that if Vicky hadn't been in control at that moment that she could have killed her.
"I know that you care about me and that you're trying to help me, Donna. You need to stop beating yourself up so much about it that you put yourself in danger by ignoring what I am though. Sometimes I'm not in charge of myself, and I could easily hurt you. I won't want to but I will. Please be more careful. I could never forgive myself if I did anything to any of you. Especially you because you remind me so much of my mother," Victoria admitted.
Donna smiled at that. She hadn't known that before. Vicky's words had touched her deeply.
"I promise that I'll be more careful in the future. I'm still going to help you somehow, Vicky," Donna said.
"It's alright even if you don't. As long as UNIT can keep me caged up when I need to be, then I'm fine with being like this. You have no idea how powerful and free that being the wolf can make you feel as long as you don't have to worry about the bloodlust that goes with it. Sometimes, I'm almost tempted to stay this way forever. I feel so much more alive this way than I ever did as nervous and timid old Alice Morgan," Victoria said.
"Alice Morgan? That's your real name?" Donna asked in surprise.
"Yes, that's who I was so long ago. Victoria Collins is just the latest in a long line of false identities that I've had to assume in order to protect my true nature. I'm sorry that I never told you before. I actually prefer the name Victoria to Alice anyway though. I like it when you call me Vicky," Victoria admitted with a low guttural noise that Donna was sure must have been Victoria's attempt at a chuckle.
"Now I know you're just humoring me. Nobody likes my nicknames. That's why I use them," Donna said laughing.
"That sounds like you," Victoria said.
The two of them stared at each other for a moment in silence, and they could both feel the bond of friendship between them strengthening in that moment as Donna's eyes silently renewed her promise to Victoria. Martha watched them for a moment and walked away in sadness. She wished that she could help Vicky too, but she had no idea how to do it.
Martha had finally decided to try something that she hadn't before in the hopes that it would work. It was a long shot but at this point she was willing to do anything to take that look off of Donna's face that she had every time that she saw Vicky now.
Martha walked into Professor Malcolm Taylor's office and said, "Malcolm, do you still have that artifact that you found, the one that could cure diseases?"
"Yes, I believe I do still have it around here somewhere. I could never get it to cure anything major unfortunately. The best I ever got it to do is to cure some minor infections and a cold that I had once," Malcolm admitted.
"You cured your cold with it?" Martha asked in disbelief.
"Yes, why?" Malcolm asked curiously as he searched for the old alien tech.
"People have been trying to find a cure for the common cold forever, and you actually found one and forgot to tell anyone about it," Martha said in an incredulous voice.
"I don't think that it was that important. It was just a little cold. No big deal," Malcolm said as he continued to search for the artifact.
He finally said, "Aha!" as he found it buried under a ton of old papers. He quickly gave it to Martha and smiled at her in triumph.
"There it is. I don't know that it will do you any good with that poor wolf girl though. I think that whatever's infected her is far too powerful for this little knick knack to get rid of it. If it makes you feel any better though, go ahead and use it. It may work, and I might be proven wrong. I hope that I am wrong for once," Malcolm said.
"Thank you, Malcolm. I hope that you're wrong too. Of course you almost never are," Martha admitted.
"Well, maybe this time will be the exception. Maybe I'm not as infallible as I think I am," Malcolm said with a straight face.
Martha smiled at him and laughed while he looked at her in confusion. He hadn't been trying to be funny, and that just made Martha laugh even more as she realized that.
Minutes later, Martha came back into the room to find Victoria alone. Donna had left apparently which disappointed her. She was hoping that Donna would be here to see this. Maybe it was just as well though. If the device failed, then Donna wouldn't have to get her hopes up about nothing.
"Vicky, I have this old alien artifact here that has helped cure a few things in the past. I'm not too sure that this could help you or not, but I thought that I'd give it a try. Is it okay if I try to use it on you?" Martha asked.
Victoria looked at her with apprehension for a moment and seemed to be weighing the decision in her mind as she stared at her. Finally, she nodded her approval as best as she could in her current form as she said, "Go ahead. Maybe it will work. There's no harm in trying is there?"
Famous last words.
Martha pointed the device at Victoria and pushed a combination of buttons on it. A green light poured out of it and covered Victoria from head to toe in seconds.
At first, Victoria didn't feel any different. She sighed as she thought of this as just another cure that didn't work just like all of the others that Martha had tried in the past.
Then Victoria suddenly felt like her abdomen was on fire, and she began to scream in pain. Martha instantly turned the device off, and she pulled out a portable medical scanner that the Doctor had made for her to use on any aliens that she might come across. She used the scanner on Vicky and saw that her body had begun to start changing in some way. Exactly what kind of change that she was going through though was something that she had no idea about just yet.
"Vicky, I'm so sorry!" Martha apologized as she called in some help from her medical unit and attempted to call Donna without any response.
"Not your fault. I agreed to it," Victoria said through gritted teeth.
Martha pulled out a device based on sonic technology that she began to use on Victoria. Victoria could feel it helping to ease her pain and slow her changes down somewhat, but it wasn't stopping them. She knew that something had started that was irreversible now. She could feel that in her bones.
"I'm sorry," Martha said through tear filled eyes as she came to this conclusion as well.
"Whatever happens, I don't blame you," Victoria said.
"I do," Martha said in a voice filled with guilt.
Just as Martha's medical team and Donna all came racing in at the same time, they all got to watch in amazement as Victoria's abdomen began to swell and get bigger and bigger.
"What's happening?" Donna asked in concern.
Martha scanned Victoria and gasped in shock at what she found.
"What is it?" Donna asked.
As Martha continued to scan Victoria over and over again to make sure of what she was seeing, Donna finally lost her patience at her lack of a response to her.
"Oi! What's wrong with Vicky? Tell me now before I explode!" Donna shouted.
"She's pregnant, Donna. I don't know how, but she's suddenly pregnant," Martha said.
"What? How did that happen? I mean I know how it usually happens, but how did this particular one happen?" Donna asked.
"I just pointed this alien device at her that we found a few months ago that can cure a cold. I hoped that it might help her. Somehow, it made her pregnant instead. Don't ask me how that works," Martha said.
"What do you mean by using some space toy on Vicky? You could have killed her!" Donna shouted with concern.
"I'm sorry," Martha said guiltily.
Donna could see that what had just happened had really upset Martha so she let it go. The two of them looked at the scanner again as Martha read Victoria's life signs for the billionth time.
"Well, is she going to be okay besides the whole pregnancy thing?" Donna asked.
"Everything else is fine. The only difference in her now from five minutes ago is that she's nine months pregnant all of a sudden. She could literally give birth at any moment," Martha said.
"Vicky, are you feeling alright?" Donna asked as she suddenly realized that Victoria hadn't spoken since she had gotten here.
Victoria's eyes glowed red as she looked at her, and she snarled. What sounded like laughter came out of her mouth as she said, "I'm perfect. The process of maturation was accelerated by a few years ahead of schedule by the human's captured alien device, but it has done no lasting damage to my new form. Soon I will be born, and I will lead my people to their destiny. Soon we will achieve complete and total domination of this galaxy."
"Who are you?" Donna asked as she now knew that she was no longer talking to Vicky.
"I am the future Queen of my people, what you would refer to as the Lupine Wavelength Haemovariforms. I was placed within the woman you call Victoria's body long ago through the bite of he who had been the King so that I could grow to full term within her in safety. No one would ever think to look for me within her. I kept her alive and unchanging through the decades since then until I was ready to emerge. I even granted her some of my power once she came up against various superhuman threats so that she could protect me better and keep me safe. Your device has completed my maturation ahead of schedule, Martha Jones. For that, I thank you. When I am born in a matter of moments and escape from here, I will show my appreciation by not killing you when I do everyone else here," the alien child inside of Victoria said.
"What about Vicky? What happens to her when you come out?" Donna asked.
"The female will no longer be necessary at that point. She will begin to instantly age as soon as I am born as time reclaims her. She will die in moments I'm sure," the Queen said with no emotion as if she were talking about squashing a bug.
"She's protected you and taken care of you for over a hundred years even if she didn't realize that she was doing it, and that's how you treat her?" Donna asked in outrage.
"Her usefulness has come to an end now. This was always going to happen, Donna Noble. The schedule was merely accelerated by a couple of years. Once I was born, she would have died anyway. She should be thankful. I gave her a much, much longer lifespan than any normal human being has ever had, and I never asked for anything from her or harmed her in any way. Now that her usefulness has ended, I will withdraw my protection and let time finally have her. This is how it must be. The natural balance must be restored," the Queen said with no trace of emotion or compassion in her voice whatsoever.
"You can't do this. I won't let you. She's my friend," Donna protested.
"If it makes you feel any better, I can tell you that she loves you, Donna Noble. She loves all of you in the Bad Wolves. I have explained the situation to her, and she is at peace. She will be free at last soon," the Queen said.
"How could she be at peace? You're going to kill all of us and who knows how many other people once you're born. I don't believe you. I bet you didn't tell her anything about your future plans, did you? You're a liar," Donna challenged her.
"You can do this peacefully and without protest, or we can do this the hard way. I would prefer to end your lives quickly and with little pain, but if you insist on fighting with me then I have no qualms whatsoever about ripping all of you apart in order to protect the future of my people," the Queen said.
"I'm afraid that's not going to happen," Ileana said as she came into the room with the rest of the Wolves.
"It doesn't matter how many of you there are, I will still win. I will be born in a matter of moments now, and I will have power such as you have never dreamed of. Prepare yourselves for the end now. I will give you time to say your good byes to those you love before I destroy all life on this planet," the Queen said as the bulge in Victoria's abdomen began to get even bigger.
Donna began to weep uncontrollably as she knew that Victoria was about to give birth at any moment now. This seemed to be a no win scenario. As soon as the Queen was born, Victoria was finished; and a terrible monster would be endangering the entire world.
Even if they did somehow manage to beat the Queen, Victoria would still die. No matter what would happen in the next few moments, they would lose. This time, the Bad Wolves couldn't win no matter what. One of their own who they had all loved like a sister would soon be gone forever.
Next: I wouldn't really kill Victoria, would I? It seems as if I've given myself no choice this time around, doesn't it? I may have to actually go through with this. I mean there's just no way to save Vicky now, right? Come back next time and find out.