Child of Earth

By Lumendea

Chapter Forty-Three: Daughter of the World: Stack the Deck

Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or any of the spinoff material and I gain no income off of this story, just the satisfaction of playing with the characters.

…

With shaking movements, Rose packed Spock's interface with the backpack and carefully set his crystal form at the very top. Around her the thrum of the city was reassuring, but Rose was certain people must have heard Clem screaming. Her eyes moved over to the covered form and after a moment of hesitation Rose pulled back the blanket. They didn't need to know that a second person had been here. Clem's eyes were closed as if sleeping, but the dried blood around his ears and nose ruined the illusion. Rose stood up and almost fell over at the weight of the backpack. None the less she lingered for a moment.

"I'm so sorry Clem," she told him gently.

She didn't linger anymore. Rose rushed down the stairs and out the back, almost falling over at the additional weight. Hopefully, she wouldn't need to run. Moving quickly, Rose marched out onto the main street and headed for the red phone booth. Rose opened the phone booth with a sharp tug and stepped inside. It felt a lot like being trapped as she set the backpack on the ground and rolled her shoulders. Outside the booth, people were moving about living their lives, but several were glancing up at the sky fearfully. This was really and truly the day that human finally accepted they weren't alone. She dug into her pocket and pulled out some change and the phone number she'd gotten from Spock before packing him up.

"Canary Wharf-"

"This is Rose Tyler. I need to speak with Hartman immediately." Rose looked around outside the phone booth again nervously.

"I'm sorry but-"

"This is not the day to play this game, especially not with me," Rose growled, tightening her hold on the phone. "I need to speak with Hartman."

"One moment Miss Tyler."

There was a soft beep and then two rings. Rose exhaled slowly and rubbed her eyes for a moment. She could feel her temper beginning to fray.

"Rose this really isn't a good time," Hartman's too chipper voice greeted. "If you're like to set up an appointment-"

"Don't Hartman, not today. I need to know exactly what Torchwood did in 1965."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"That remnant that the alien was talking about was a child that they left behind. He was still connected to them. I found him and they just killed him so don't play games with me."

"You know that I couldn't possibly-"

"Damnit Hartman," Rose hissed at the woman. "Turn on the news! Look around! Torchwood caused this and I need information to fix it. Tell me what happened!"

"That's classified!"

"Hartman if you have any love for our species then tell me," Rose pressed almost frantically. "This isn't about the U.K. or even Europe. This is about aliens turning our planet into opium fields, using us and our children for a hit!"

There was a long pause on the other end of the call and then a resigned sigh. "I never told you this," Hartman answered in a long voice. There was the sound of a door being closed and keystrokes. "I'm not sure what information the Prime Minister has passed on to you and honestly it's best if you don't reveal to me how much she violates the rules." Rose barely held but a huff of frustration. "The 456 as they are known due to the frequency they first used to contact humanity came to Earth in 1965. It was probably their first visit, but I can't say that for certain. The British government at the time negotiated with the aliens through Torchwood for the anti-virus for a mutated strain of Spanish influenza."

"Negotiated in exchange for what?" Rose pressed, not liking Hartman's staling.

"The virus was projected to kill millions by the aliens and British analysts agreed so they were given twelve children."

"Twelve children?" Rose gasped. "You gave aliens you knew nothing about children!"

"I didn't," Hartman countered quickly. "The 456 assured the Torchwood team that the children would not be harmed and that they wouldn't return to Earth."

"Well they haven't kept that promise," Rose all but growled as she closed her eyes. "And the children?"

"They were delivered to the 456 by Andrew Staines, Ellen Hunt, Michael Sanders, Peter Sawyer and Maria Higgins handled the exchange."

"Have you contacted them?"

"Sawyer and Higgins killed themselves not long after," Hartman replied. "The others are also deceased."

"Do you know anything useful about them?" Rose pressed. "Any weaknesses?"

"We've never had much contact with them," Hartman reminded her shortly. "So no, we know next to nothing about them and we've been scanning the skies, but still can't find the ship." There was a long pause on the other end. "Any chance you got a message out to one of your aliens?"

"No," Rose answered honestly and bit coldly, knowing full well that Hartman was fishing for news on the Doctor. "Thanks to that attack on my home I don't have what I need for a true long distance call. This is on us."

"Well have you got a plan?"

Rose stayed silent, not wanting to admit that she didn't have anything yet. She looked down at the heavy backpack at her feet and barely held back a sigh. "I'll try to be in touch Hartman. If you really want to help then stop getting in the British government's way."

The sound of sirens made Rose tense and she looked carefully down the street. Sure enough two police cars pulled up. Someone came out of a nearby building and pointed up. Rose was certain that only the crisis with the children had kept them from getting here sooner. She opened the phone booth and hefted the backpack up onto her shoulders. Walking away from the sirens, Rose tried to get lost in the crowd and began looking around for a new location to set up Spock.

Pulling out her phone, Rose scrolled down the list. Suddenly she was angry herself for having no way to contact the Durmino Empire or the Orthans. With Spock disconnected from his main interface, they had no way to reach out far enough. Then the name Eve came up and Rose froze. She pressed the call button before she could change her mind, but when she brought the phone to her ear there was nothing but static. Apparently, the TARDIS not taking her calls also meant that the Old Girl wouldn't direct them either.

Sighing in frustration, Rose put her phone away and gripped tightly at the backpack strap. She could still hear sirens behind her and grimaced at the idea of them finding Clem all alone with no explanations. When this was all over she'd step in. She kept moving, staying on foot for over an hour until she felt she'd put enough distance that it wouldn't be too easy to find her. Rose pulled out the sonic pen and began zapping the cameras around her and scanned nearby buildings.

She found one on the third side street she checked: an empty office space up on the third floor of a nearby building with a sign marking it available for rent in the window. Unlike the other, it lacked a decent washroom, but beggars couldn't be choosers and Rose once again had to wager her safety on everyone being distracted by the aliens. The sonic pen, however, wasn't able to do anything with the simple lock and Rose was forced to take the fire escape. She made a mental note to pull out her old lock picks. It wouldn't be too hard to stash at least a few of the tools in her boots.

The office space was small, barely more than a closet in a rather dirty and poorly maintained building, but there was an internet signal at the pub down the street. It didn't take long this time to get Spock set up. With all the pieces she needed in her possession, Rose unfolded the metal frame and snapped the various components into place. She plugged in the power cord before gently lowering Spock into the centre. The lights began to flash and blinked in an unfamiliar pattern before the speakers came online.

"Systems are functioning, Rose," Spock announced.

"Good, I think we'll be okay here for awhile. I got some information from Torchwood, but sadly I trust that it isn't Hartman hunting us, though I'm sure she'd love to get her hands on you. But right now, she's got bigger problems."

"And we have a deadline."

The reminded made Rose's whole body tense. Harriet had only been able to get them a few extra hours and they still had no plan.

"Okay conventional weapons aren't much good here. The Qreiz'elt in Thames House is probably only one of several so an attack there won't achieve much." Rose sighed and rubbed her neck. "So far they'd hidden their ship from all our sensors and Enterprise so they do have fairly advanced tech and know all about us since they've had children to… study." Rose swallowed at the bitter reminder of why they wanted the children. "I'm half tempted to go back to Sarah Jane's and see if your interface is intact. If we could call help that might scare them off."

"But they have the planet hostage," Spock countered. "By the time anyone arrived the Qreiz'elt would certainly know about their approach. At this point, I doubt they would stand down even for the Shadow Proclamation. Seeding a planet like Earth is illegal and using it an opium field is even worse. The longer this goes on the more I am inclined to believe these may be members of the deposed government."

"And they're taking the children for what? Personal use or to sell to their home planet's dark underside."

"Give the number they are demanding the second seems more likely."

"Okay so a direct attack and calling for help are both out. They must have some weakness. We know they are at least a little telepathic. We know what they need in an atmosphere, but what else is there?" Rose hummed thoughtfully and glanced towards Spock. "Anything new?"

"I am reviewing communications. Now that the negotiations are over various governments are taking stock of the children they have. I'm afraid that there is debate in how to select the 10%. Reports on the status of children are being uploaded."

Rose nodded. She wanted to ask more, demand more, but she knew that Spock needed time. While his fantastic crystal structure could process information at a terrifying rate it all still had to be mentally sorted and understood. Sitting down, Rose leaned back against the wall and closed her eyes. Outside she could hear the thrum of London and tapped her fingers nervously.

Eclipse was out there somewhere. Her mum was with UNIT, for now at least and hopefully, Benton would keep the protective custody quiet for now. She didn't need pressure from the United Nations to throw them out. Then again, she mentally conceded, that might show their hand more than they wanted to. Rose bumped her head back against the wall. Why did humans in search of power have to be so crazy? She hated having no idea of what to expect.

They weren't the biggest danger though, no they were just positioning themselves to take advantage of the chaos. Hartman's horror at the demand had shaken her normal resolve and she wondered if Eclipse's leadership would be similarly affected. That was probably too much to hope for. She couldn't mount a frontal assault on the Qreiz'elt by herself and it probably wouldn't lead to anything except injury and death for her. Enterprise couldn't find their ship and honestly it was probably further out in the solar system then they could reach, plus the ship had no weapons systems. She desperately needed something clever and very quickly.

"Rose," Spock called gently, pulling Rose from her musings. "It may not be anything, but I've found something odd."

"Odd? Right now?" Rose asked sarcastically before sighing and giving herself a shake. "Sorry, yeah what is it?"

"Cities and countries are currently reporting numbers of children affected by the aliens to the United Nations," Spock explained in something of a rush to her. "I've been examining these numbers in hopes of finding an area where the influence is weaker. While I can confirm that the signal is affecting children all over the world, I've also found that some numbers aren't what they should be. When cross referencing the numbers coming out of Berlin with the population statistics I found that even allowing for families who are not reporting affected children that Berlin is at least one thousand children short."

"One thousand?" Rose repeated in confusion. "Berlin?" She straightened up in surprise and gasped softly. "Berlin!"

"Rose?"

"The aliens, the Bardonians! They were making the kids telepathic to harvest the energy, but these aliens are affecting all the kids regardless of if they're telepathic!"

"I do not-"

"What if being telepathic actually protects you from this signal?" Rose suggested, jumping to her feet and wringing her hands together. "Or at least having been telepathically affected in the past. This signal has to be general and targeted at brain chemistry. Maybe once a person is affected by telepathy, especially at a young age when their brain is still developing, it alters the brain chemistry just enough. Or what if…" she paused and breathed out slowly. "What if the telepathic system Alistair and Adam created is still having a lingering protective effect on them."

"Who are Alistair and Adam?" Spock questioned, but Rose was too excited to answer him.

"It's a long shot, but actually Alistair seemed to be answering my questions and explaining telepathy really carefully. And they left the device on Earth, why would they do that unless they knew that I'd need it in only a couple of months!?" She tugged on her TARDIS key and grinned. "I might have to play this hand myself, but Time Lords can still stack the deck! Of course, they would do that, they're Time Lords!"

"I'm not certain what you are talking about, but how can I help?"

Rose laughed out loud, some of the tension finally released. She leaned against the wall and gasped for air, feeling a flare of hope and excitement. Turning her head back towards Spock she grinned. She wanted to caution herself not to get too excited in case it didn't work, but her instincts were screaming she was right about this. It was just the sort of thing that a child of her and the Doctor would do. Exactly the sort of thing she and the Doctor would do.

"This falls under 'do not talk about' orders," Rose told him as she knelt down. "Alistair is my future son with the Doctor and Adam is his son. In Berlin when that telepathic attack was happening they build a telepathic hub and left it on Earth. Alistair mentioned that it was genetically locked. At the time I assumed that meant only he and Adam could use it-"

"But as your son you would also have genetic similarity with this Alistair," Spock finished. "It does sound promising Rose, but an item like that if left on Earth would be in the hands of UNIT. Most likely in the Black Archives. And UNIT is not permitted to interfere in the 456 Crisis anymore."

"Right… bugger." Rose refused to give up. "Well I can't promise anything, but I'm pretty sure I know a man who could help us. He retired not too long ago. Sorry Spock, but change of plans we're packing up and moving again!"

…..

Rose eased the back door open and glanced around. The back alley was empty and there was only the low rumble of London around her. She stepped outside and let the door click behind her as she adjusted the straps of the backpack. First things first she needed transportation. The Lethbridge-Stewart house was a good ways outside of London and going on foot wasn't an option. Hopefully, Harriet would help her later avoid any legal entanglements. It wouldn't be the first time she'd stolen a car in the line of duty.

The sound of heavy footfalls made Rose tense. "Spread out," a male voice ordered. "Cameras saw her in this area before she used her sonic probe. This is the last sector to search."

"What if we don't find her?"

"Then you get to explain to the Council how we missed our chance to quietly get rid of Tyler and after the failure at Bannerman Road to even get a hostage they're already angry."

Rose froze in place, her heart beginning to race in her chest. She didn't know the voice, but the tone was low and dangerous. Kneeling down in the doorway, Rose held her breath and listened to the footfalls and voices as more orders were given. They were spreading out and dividing out who would check which blocks.

Carefully, Rose peered out from around the corner and swallowed. Two black SUVs were parked nearby and a group of rough looking humans in long coats were disassembling. They weren't in tactical gear this time, but Rose was certain that there were weapons beneath those coats. Bracing herself against the wall, Rose began to move slowly in the opposite direction. There was another side street leading out of the area and she just needed to get there without too much noise.

She was almost there when the footfalls came closer. Rose put on a burst of speed, but the weight of the backpack threw her off balance and she stumbled into a bin.

"Got her!"

Rose dove to the side, almost falling over thanks to the backpack as the sound of a gun firing behind her made her flinch. A sharp pain in her arm made Rose squeak in pain, but she kept moving despite the weight on her back. Behind her, there was another burst of gunfire and the people in the street started to scattered. Rose ducked into another side street and kept running. Up ahead were a couple of cars parked on the side of the street and a motorcycle.

Rose swung her leg over the motorcycle, ignoring a nearby shout of protest. Pulling out the sonic pen, she started the bike up with a quick flick. The engine sputtered slightly, warning Rose that the sonic start wouldn't last long. Behind her, the shouting was louder, but she roared away from the curb on the bike with Spock's weight pressing her forward.

Turning sharply on the next two corners, Rose tried to keep an eye out for more cameras, but it proved to be too difficult while racing through traffic. The wind whipped through her hair and she had to squint against the sun. Unwilling to stop, Rose weaved between cars and started her way out of London. Her best chance, her only chance was to get to the General before anyone else did.