When she landed, Klary found herself in the hall of the Tardis. She crashed into the wall as the ship violently rocked. As everything calmed, she made her way to the console room. Stopped in her tracks as she saw the new desktop. Eyes wide. She had never seen this one before. The room still had the pillars but they were made of some crystal. Coloured orange and blue. The round things hexagonal. It was beautiful. Then again, Klary thought the Tardis was always beautiful. No matter her theme. Awe turned to anxiety upon the realisation that she had no idea as to what to expect. From the Doctor and the adventures. Gathering herself, she stepped into the room. Saw four people, one crouched in the middle. A blonde woman with something in her hands.
"Oh. What do you think?" She put the thing on her head-a fez- a bright smile on her face. "Still me?"
"Never could leave a fez, could you?"
Everyone whipped around to face her. Smiles on their faces. The blonde's brightest in the bunch. "Klary, love!" She bound over and took the brunette in a hug, a not-so-chaste kiss on her lips.
"Doctor." Klary placed her hands on her shoulder. Really looked at her. "You look… well you always look amazing." She reached for her hair but stopped short. The Doctor nodded and she gently touched the blonde strands.
"First time?" Klary nodded. Words refused to form as she took in the Doctor before her. She was so different, but in so many ways, still the same. "Is this all right?"
Brows furrowed. "What do you mean?"
"This regeneration."
Klary gave her a soft smile and hugged her. "Of course it is. Though, pronouns?"
"She is fine. You sure this isn't a-"
Her hands still held the Doctor's. "It's not. I promise." She gave her a quick peck and a cheeky smile. "Besides, you're still the Doctor. No matter the casing."
"It's nice to see you again, Klary," the younger man said with a smile.
Her smile dimmed just a bit as she pulled o a coily strand. "Embarrassing as this is, I haven't met any of you yet. Mind doing introductions?"
"I'm Ryan, that's Yasmin, and that is my granddad, Graham."
"Nice to meet you all. What's that in your hand, Yaz?"
"Packing slip. I was about to show it to the Doctor."
The Doctor grabbed it and read it. "Help me." She flipped it over.
"Probably someone's just bored out their mind, mucking about. Trust me, I've been there. Should have seen what we used to hide inside the trainers."
"What if it's not?" Yaz turned to the Doctor and Klary. "What if someone really is in trouble?"
"Can't hurt to check, can it, Doc?"
"Ohh, letting them call you Doc, huh?" She poked at her side but the Doctor grabbed her hand.
"Who'd you think he got it from," she quipped with a smile. The Doctor gave Klary's hand a squeeze and went to the console. "Right. Kerblam, here we come." Everyone grabbed on as she twirled the hourglass and began to move the levers. In the usual fashion, the Tardis jolted about until they landed.
The Doctor put on her jacket and the five stepped out of the Tardis. Before them were tonnes of buildings. Klary was more taken by the scenery. Pink and blue skies with what she assumed was the moon visible. "There's the planet Kandoka," the Doctor pointed to what Klary now knew was a planet, "and we're on its moon. Kerblam turned it into one massive warehouse."
"Look at the size of it!"
"There must be thousands of people in there. How are we going to find out who sent that message?"
"Halfway across the universe and I feel like I'm back at work."
"Ryan, brilliant! Come on." With Klary's hand still in hers, the Doctor started towards the entrance.
"What?"
"We're going undercover. Chop chop."
The five walked into the reception and made their way towards the desk where a woman with a pixie cut and thick cat-eye glasses stood. Tablet in hand as she looked at it. "Can you check again? We just came in from Kandoka. We must be on the list there somewhere."
"Not expecting anyone new today. Didn't even know there was a shuttle coming in."
"Do you mind if I take a look? It might just be the spelling. By the way, this is our reference." She held up the psychic paper. As the woman looked at it, the Doctor sonicked the screen. Klary bit her lip to keep from laughing.
"Oh, you're relatives of the First Lady?"
"Oh, did she put that? We asked her not to. Didn't we, gang?"
"We don't like to talk about it," Yaz piped.
"Yeah, so awkward," was Ryan's addition.
Graham also decided to add his own input. "We're very private."
"Well, there must be some m…" She glanced down back at her tablet and a moment later it dinged. "Oh, no. There you are. Got you." She chuckled. "Private shuttle landing. Sorry, person error. Me, I mean. Right, well, er, let's get you on this induction, then. Follow me, this way." An automated voice sounded, welcoming people to another shift. They headed towards an area labelled Warehouse Floor- Fulfillment sections 1-100 and Packing sections 101-200. Around them, other workers made their way to each section. Along the way, a few people greeted the woman. Seeing the bots, Klary blocked out any conversation as she focused ahead of her. Their faces creeped her out.
"Sorry, what's your name?"
"Judy Maddox. Head of People."
Klary started from her thoughts as one of the robots called out to them. "Good morning new workers."
"Is it me, or are they pretty creepy?"
"It ain't you."
"Oi, you two, that's robophobic," the Doctor said as she turned to the two men. "Some of my best friends are robots. "
"You'll be right at home here, then."
Klary chuckled at Yaz's snark and grabbed the Doctor's hand as they walked into the induction room. In the centre was a full-body scanner. Graham was the first to go.
"The system allocates work details based on fitness, stamina, dexterity, and mental assessments."
There were two bots in the room and the one closest to Judy walked forward. "Same model as the Kerblam Man. I love the Kerblam Man." It finished scanning Graham and gestured for him to leave the scanner. The Doctor went in next.
"The Team Mates are the friendly faces of the System. They're here to assist and supervise the organic workers."
"Organic?"
"Oh, sorry." Judy chuckled. "Listen to me. You get so used to the jargon. Gone native." She looked at the screen. "Oh. Two hearts?"
"Courtesy of the First Lady," the Doctor said as she left the scanner. "Very good healthcare policy. I don't like to talk about it. So, Kerblam is completely automated?" Ryan then went in.
"Er, no. Ninety per cent, as per Kandokan guidelines. Proud to be a certified Ten Per cent People-Powered Company. I know some people are against quotas, but I am all for that one. Mind you, I would say that, wouldn't I? Head of People. Self-interest." She gave another laugh. "It's funny, I don't normally talk this much." The power cut as Ryan left the scanner. "Oh. Don't worry. It'll come back online in a moment." Not a moment later, they did.
"Not paid your bills?"
"Build a warehouse on a moon, it's never going to be perfect. We get the occasional power drain, it's down to the self-optimisation systems."
"How's the morale among workers?" Yaz asked as she was scanned.
"Oh. I'd like to think very good. It… It's my job to make sure that everyone's happy. Not that it's difficult. I mean, we're all so grateful to have a job, right?" Judy chuckled again. "We all know how hard they are to come by. No, I hope that people feel it's a privilege to work at Kerblam." She walked out and Klary walked in. "That's odd."
"What is?"
"The scan. It's showing up blank."
"That is odd. Probably couldn't be here with nothing." Klary stepped out and shared a look with the Doctor. "Might be a bug."
"We'll have it looked into."
"Relax as I fix your Group Loop." The other Team Mate said as it approached. Ankle monitors with different coloured lights were placed on them.
"Are we under house arrest?"
"Oh, no. The Group Loops monitor productivity and report back to the System."
"I wore one of these at me last job."
"Oh, really? Where was that?"
"Sports Stack. People's Republic of South Yorkshire."
"Hmm. I don't know it. But it's nice to meet someone with experience. You'll feel right at home."
"Yeah."
"Right. Time for the tour."
The six walked out of the room and onto a catwalk. Below them were networks of conveyor belts moving millions of boxes. "Six hundred million products, ten thousand employees, the biggest human workforce in this galaxy." She glanced over the railing. "Welcome to Kerblam." She walked away to continue the tour.
"Ten thousand workers. One little message," Ryan scoffed in disbelief.
"Might take a while, this."
They entered fulfilment. Around them people wore orange hi-viz vests, each person putting items into trolleys. "The System instantly relays customer orders to workers in Fulfilment. They scan the product and send it down to the Packing Stations." One of the workers waved at the group.
Next, they were brought to packing where they wore purple vests. The System called out an incoming product. A small box came down a chute and was wrapped in bubble wrap and placed in a box. "Once it's packed, the customer's order goes on the conveyor. Rule number one. Keep all loose clothing, hair and body parts away from the conveyors. And never, ever climb onto the conveyors. Any person found on the conveyor faces immediate termination."
From there, they walked through a barrier of thick plastic strips and into the Final Checks area. "And this is Final Checks, where parcels are inspected, sealed and go down the hatch to Dispatch." One of the workers placed a box into the hatch. "Through this hatch beats the heart of the Kerblam operation. Hundreds of conveyors pumping parcels down to our fully-automated lower level. From Dispatch, our Postmen retrieve the parcels and teleport direct to the customers. Any questions?"
The Doctor raised her hand. "Can I do the packing slips?"
"Sorry. Only purple Group Loops work the packing stations." They each looked down to see their colours. The Doctor's was white, Graham and Ryan purple, Yaz and Klary's red.
"Oh."
"Leisure breaks in the Home Zone. Right, I'll leave you in the capable hands of the Team Mates. I'll be checking in on you, make sure you're okay. Got to keep an eye on the ten per cent. As my dad used to say, go, Organics!" Judy said with a big smile as threw a fist in the air. "He was a bit odd, my dad." Judy left.
The Doctor pulled out her sonic and bent over. "Stand still, Graham."
"What are you doing?"
She sonicked their monitors. "Switching jobs with you. I need purple. Whoever sent that message had access to the packing stations. That's where I need to be."
"And where does that leave me?"
Before she could answer, a Team Mate stood before them. "Hello, co-workers. We're so thrilled to have you with us. Yasmin Khan and Klary Cedrics, please come with me. Ryan Sinclair and the Doctor - great name - with my colleague to the left."
"Hello, team."
"Meet at break time in the Home Zone?"
"Yes, ma'am."
Klary kissed the Doctor's cheek. "Don't get into too much trouble."
"Roger Wilco. Oh, did I ever tell you about a bloke I met called Roger Wilco?" She and Yaz followed after the Team Mate, only to stop when they heard Graham.
"Hey, hey, hold on. What about me? Where am I going?"
A Team Mate approached with a mop and bucket. "Graham O'Brien. A very warm welcome to Premium Maintenance."
He took the offered mop and bucket. "Not a word."
Yaz and Klary were led to fulfilment. They were both given scanners and a trolley. The man who had waved at them was there to help the during their shift. Klary took in everything as Dan and Yaz spoke. Yaz was scanning an item while Klary tossed her item into her trolley.
"Help with what?"
"I don't know. Somebody having a hard time, or got themselves into trouble."
Klary looked at Dan, eyebrows raised as he looked around. "Word of advice, the TeamMates can hear everything. If they choose."
"Everything?"
"Constant random monitoring. No such thing as privacy here."
"So one overlord for another," Klary asked as she folded her arms.
Dan shot her a worried look. "Are you from the Union? Is that it?"
"Just trying to get a sense of the place." She tossed her item into her trolley.
"Well, best way to get along. Do as you're told, try not to bump into the robots. If you can manage that, you might end up on a poster," he said as they stopped before a poster that said 'Hand-picked by Humans!'
Yaz walked up to the poster with a smile. "That's you."
"Film star looks." He posed and the pair chuckled. "I got extra credit for it. Sent a poster to my little girl for her bedroom wall."
"How old is she?"
"Six."
"Where is she?"
"She's upstairs. Just had her finals." He laughed. "No, she's back home on Kandoka. She made me this," he pulled up a heart-shaped pendant on a chain with DAD engraved in it, "lacquered with Arcadium." He placed it back down. "Outlast anything, that will. Including me. Actually, that's a bit depressing."
"Hello co-workers. Please confine social interaction to leisure breaks." The three moved and grabbed onto their trollies and rolled them down an aisle.
"How often do you see your daughter?"
"Twice a year I splurge on an economy shuttle. Rest of my wages I put away for her education. I do this job so she doesn't end up like her dad."
"Her dad's all right."
"Well… I was a rubbish husband to her mum. But I'm making up for it."
"At least you're doing that," Klary said with a small smile.
"It's tough being away from family."
"Well, at least I'm working. Unlike half the galaxy. Suppose we've only got ourselves to blame. Whilst we were busy staring at our phones, technology went and nicked our jobs."
The TeamMate returned. "Great conversation, guys, but unnecessary talking can lead to efficiency reductions. Why not pick up the pace a little?"
"Sure thing, Basil."
"Thank you." The TeamMate walked off.
"He was a pole dance till his hips gave out." Yaz laughed at his joke. "I like you, Yaz. You laugh at my jokes."
Her scanner beeped. "Hmm. Antique lamp. Section triple nine double five slash seven."
"No. Not a good idea. Not on your first day. I'll take that. You'll get lost in the Triple Nines," Dan said as he swapped scanners with her.
Klary's brows furrowed at his words. She couldn't help but wonder what was so bad about the Triple Nines. She shot a glance at Yaz but the woman was solely focused on the concerned man. "Dan, I'm perfectly capable…"
"I know you are. I'm just not sure the System is. There's barely anything down the Triple Nines any more. The last person to search for an order down there got the sack. I never saw them again. I'm not having that happen to you, not on your first day." He pushed his trolley away. The two women shared a look before they spotted a Team Mate watching them. Another glance and the pair followed after him.
Klary and Yaz slowly made their way through the aisle once they reached the Triple Nines. The vibe ominous as they looked for the man. The flickering lights did nothing to lighten the mood. Klary wondered what exactly was down there and why had someone been fired for doing their job. She couldn't help but feel as if the person had been attacked. By what, she wasn't sure.
Yaz walked ahead and called out Dan's name a few times. "You down there?" It was silent for a moment before the quiet was shattered by Dan's scream. "Dan!" The pair rushed to where they heard him. "Are you there?" They stopped when they found his trolley, damaged scanner, and his pendant. Klary turned and saw the bot behind them. Tapped Yaz. "Er... we just found these. They belong to Dan Cooper. Do you know where he is?" It approached them. They turned to see another behind them. Thinking quickly, Klary grabbed her hand and pulled her through a gap between the shelving and through the nearest door.
"Fuck," Klary groaned as they stopped to catch their breaths. "Something is definitely up with those bots. How could he just disappear?"
"Let's just find the Doctor."
"Give me a minute."
Fifteen minutes later, the women found the Doctor, Ryan, and Graham in the Home Zone. As they approached, Yaz began to tell the Doctor what had happened down in the Triple Nines. Klary stood off to the side. She had nothing to add to Yaz's explanation. Instead, she observed her surroundings. At least until the Doctor pulled Klary beside her.
"So, just to be clear, you found Dan's scanner, crushed?"
"We heard him yell and now there's no sign of him anywhere. We have to find him."
"These were Delivery Bots like the Kerblam Man? Not the TeamMates? You three stay with me." She turned to Graham. "I need you to find out the history of the company and try and get some plans of the complex."
"How am I going to do that?"
"You have unrestricted access. You're a cleaner."
"No one questions a cleaner."
"Yeah, and chronic skin irritation."
Klary chuckled and gave him a look. She went to speak but was interrupted when a young man with curly hair called out from a few feet away. "Graham, did you sort that spill?"
"It's all right. All taken care of. Don't worry." Graham went to stand by them. "Everyone, this is Charlie."
"Hi, Charlie," a young woman with shoulder-length brown hair said with a big smile. Not a second later she dropped her tray. Charlie rushed over to her and began to clean up her mess.
Everyone watched their interaction. "Aww."
"Workplace crush."
"Reminds me of you when you were younger. When I say younger, I mean last month," Graham poked at Ryan.
"Ha, ha, ha. Funny."
The Doctor grabbed Klary's hand. "Come on. We're going to file a complaint."
The four we in the office in a few minutes. Before them were Judy and a man they learned was Slade, the Warehouse Executive. Yaz and Ryan sat in the two seats while Klary leaned against the wall and watched the two heads. "Dan Cooper has vanished. Maybe you should call the police."
"There are no police here."
"The authorities then," was her exasperated reply.
"We are the authorities," Judy stated. "Kerblam is its own jurisdiction. We have responsibility for all employee welfare."
"Then you'd better be worthy of the jobs you're holding because a man is missing and I don't think he's the first, not if this is any indicator." She placed the packing slip on Slade's desk. "This came to me in a delivery."
Slade looked at it for a moment before he showed it to Judy. "What do you think it means?"
"It's not exactly cryptic."
"Someone was worried about their own safety, and now we're finding that other people are going missing."
The Doctor walked away and instantly turned around. "Who has access to the printing system for those packing slips?"
"Nobody. They're auto-generated during the order process. But they're placed in boxes by the workers in Fulfilment." Slade looked up at the Doctor and Ryan. "Your section."
"Have you tried working down there? There's no time to add stuff to slips. This was done somewhere else before it gets to Fulfilment."
"Something is very wrong here at Kerblam. And if you two don't do something about it, I might start to suspect that you're responsible."
"We'll look into it. You have my word."
"Mine too."
"Those words better be worth something. And if anything happens to us, or our new friends, or anyone else here," in sync Ryan and Yaz stood. Backing the Doctor. Klary watched with a smirk as she walked over, "you'll have me to answer to." She took back the packing slip and turned to leave, hand in Klary's once again. She turned to the companions. "Too bombastic?"
"Felt about right."
"I kinda liked it."
"Thanks. Laters!" She made a face. "Oh, I'm not doing that again. Sticking with bye."
"I thought it was cute." The Doctor faced her, a cheeky smile on her lips. "I did," Klary pouted as they walked the corridor.
"Catch me up with this. We storm into Management, cause a fight. Whatever happened to being undercover?"
"That was before I knew people were disappearing. I'm stepping it up a gear, going straight to the top."
"Oh, I bet you were the sort of kid who liked poking a stick in a wasps' nest just to see what happened." The two chuckled.
"Don't like bullies, don't like conspiracies, don't like people being in danger. And there's a flavour of all three here." She pushed open a panel. "Now, ever hidden in a panelled alcove?"
"No," both Ryan and Yaz said.
Klary raised a hand. "Does going into a cupboard to help a little boy get over his fears count?"
"I suppose. You spent a lot of that one scolding me."
"You were being an idiot."
"Oi."
"Though I wonder how much of that translated over."
"Rude."
"Not ginger."
"Are you always going to bring that up?"
"Always." Unbeknownst to them, they had gotten closer, a hair's breadth from touching.
"Before you two start making out…" Yaz started. The interruption enough to have them realise just how close they were. With warm cheeks, Klary took a step back.
"Why are we doing this, exactly?" Ryan asked once he and Yaz were inside.
"We wait until Slade leaves, then we break back into his office, obviously. Oh, talking of wasps. Did I ever tell you about me and Agatha Christie? Have you done that one yet, love?"
"Nope. Not looking forward to the killer wasp. Even if I know why he's like that."
The four remained in the closet until Slade left, long after the building had gone into night mode. Most of the time was spent with the Doctor telling Yaz and Ryan about some of the adventures they'd been on. It mostly kept their thoughts off of the cramped space.
"I thought Slade'd never leave," Yaz said as they walked into the man's office.
"What do we think, then?"
"If this is Slade's office, and everything in this company is automated, why does he need a clipboard?"
"Or a filing cabinet?"
"Khan and Sinclair, the greatest detectives in the galaxy."
Yasmin tried to open the cabinet. "Locked."
The Doctor sonicked it open. "You think you're so impressive."
"I am impressive."
"And you never let anyone forget it."
The Doctor winked at her. "Ooo, paperwork. Very retro. Now, what sort of paperwork does Slade keep locked away?" She pulled out a few sheets and laid them on the desk with a gasp.
"What is it?"
"Oh, my God."
Judy stormed into the room. "You'd better have a very good excuse for breaking in here. Your Group Loops told me you were back here."
"Oh. I knew that, but I forgot that. That's the problem with conspiracies, there's so much to think about. What if I said we'd got lost, ended up in here by accident, just as the filing cabinet weirdly fell open? How would that play?"
"There were no shuttled from Kandoka today. I checked. Who are you? Industrial spies?"
"I was being honest with you earlier. We got a message that someone needed help, and we came. People are vanishing, and Mister Slade is keeping a running tally." She led the woman to the papers. On them was a handwritten list of names and numbers as well as copies of photo IDs. "Seven people so far. According to these notes, it started four months ago with two workers. The next month, another. This month, four. The disappearances are on the increase. No wonder people are sending out cries for help. And as Head of People for Kerblam, I'd suggest you're guilty of some serious negligence."
The lights flickered and turned to red emergency lighting. "Another power drain?" Yaz assumed.
"That's not a power drain. That's a total system blackout." She went to the computer terminal. "Power's drained right down to the Foundation levels."
"What's down in the Foundation levels?"
"I can help with that," Graham said as he and Charlie walked in.
Judy turned to the young man in disbelief. "Charlie, what are you doing up here?"
"Sorry, Judy."
"He's with me."
"And he's with us."
He held up a book and handed it to the Doctor. "And they are the original plans for Kerblam."
"What are you doing with those? Those are company artefacts. Was this down to you?"
"More urgent question. If everything's automated and all the power's shut down, why is that robot still active?" Ryan pointed out. The group turned to see a Team Mate with glowing eyes stood in the hallway.
"Oh, good question. Back behind me, everyone."
"Error reported. Error reported."
"Hey, Charlie, don't, mate."
The young man placated Graham. "I can, er, I can look at it." Walked towards the TeamMate.
"Error reported. Error reported." As Charlie grabbed its ear, the Team Mate swung its fist. The man ducked and the bot punched a hole in the wall. When it removed its hand, it picked Charlie up by the throat.
"Charlie!"
"Investigating. Investigating."
"Doctor, do something." She sonicked it but nothing happened. "I'm trying. The receptor codes are fluctuating."
Judy rushed over and pulled the head off the Team Mate. Charlie fell to the ground as he was released. The bot collapsed onto the floor in a sparking heap. "Are you all right? Deep breaths now. You're safe. This has never happened before with any of the robots." The Doctor grabbed the head from where Judy dropped it and began to scan it.
"You're wrong. When Dan Cooper went missing, there were three of those, dressed in those Postmen uniforms, walking the shelving. They came after us," Yaz said as she pointed between Klary and herself.
"That's not possible. The Delivery Bots never leave Dispatch. We'd know. The System would tell us."
"It doesn't really look like you can trust the System," Klary snarked as the lights came back on.
"And we're back online. But the receptor cells on this one are all blown out." The head sparked as she placed it on the desk.
"Hey, Doctor, be careful."
It sparked again as she scanned it. She pulled away and scanned the computer terminal. "Oh, it's as if the System suddenly channelled all its energy into this one single Team Mate."
"The System's attacking us?"
"It's like the System's gone rogue."
"Of course, it's gone rogue. Nobody would do any of this deliberately."
"If I ever find out that you're lying…"
"I have worked for years to make Kerblam more of a People-Powered Company. My career has been about bringing people like Charlie here. People who need a second chance. Haven't I?"
Klary couldn't help but wonder what counted as a second chance and why someone would need it. She understood that most jobs had been automated, but she wanted to know if the second chances were due to the lack of jobs or an event in the person's life.
"It's true. She's the reason most of us are here. She selects all the workers. We owe her a lot," Charlie vouched.
Judy had returned to the desk, eyes on the list of the missing. "I've never seen these papers of Slade's before now. Those names, Zaff, Jax, Chinello, the others, they're active on the System. According to the System, they're still alive and working! There are 10,000 people here. I can't keep track of them all."
"So what do we do, Doctor?"
"If I could get a copy of the original code, I could hack in, isolate the upgrades and see what it's up to."
"So you need Kerblam version 1.0."
"That'd be hundreds of years old, wouldn't it?"
"And I think we can help with that."
The group made their way to the reception. In a few moments they were in front of a display case. "Kerblam Delivery Bot version 1.0. Also known as Twirly." The display case held a device with a dome-shaped top that rotated and three short legs. In the centre was a camera lens.
"I don't think we should do this. If Mister Slade finds out…"
"Leave Slade to me" Judy interrupted. "Let's hurry up before the Team Mates come on their patrol."
The Doctor sonicked the case open and activated Twirly. "Here we go, Twirly. Nice to meet you."
"Quite cute, isn't it?"
"It's kind of retro."
"Well, he is getting on a bit. I love a bit of retro."
"Customers who selected these items also bought ear mufflers, pencil sharpeners and cola bottles. Say yes now to order these three for the price of the cheapest two…"
"No."
"Thank you. I have stored your preferences. And remember, if you want it, Kerblaaa..." It ran out of power.
"It's out of juice. It needs a big recharge before I can access the code."
"Maintenance store. There's everything there."
"That's not a good idea."
"Why's that?" Klary asked. The entire time he'd been with them, he'd been trying to get them from moving forward. She wasn't sure if it was because he was scared or something else. Even without her foreknowledge, Klary prided herself on sensing something fishy.
"Doctor, I've just had a notification that one of the workers from Packing has gone missing. Her Group Loop's disappeared right off the System. Name of Kira Arlo."
"What? Kira?"
"We have to find her!"
"I thought you said the System didn't notify you when someone went missing."
"Well, it didn't until now. It's like it's sending us a deliberate message."
"It knows we're onto it."
"Where was her signal last recorded?" Charlie asked.
"Er… Dispatch."
"That's not possible. No people are allowed down there."
"Dispatch? Foundation levels, right? Where the power's drained down to."
"How do we get to her?"
"You can't. It's fully automated. There's not even a route down."
"But she got down there somehow."
"You get what you need from that robot. Yaz, Charlie, come with me. We'll find Kira."
"Hang on, how are you going to get down there?"
"I know how these places work," Ryan replied as he and the others ran out of the room.
Down in the maintenance store, the Doctor plugged Twirly into the banks. "Right, Twirly, all charged up." She sonicked it on.
"Alert. You may also like to know we have a one-hour offer on cushions! Cushions liven up the grimmest workplace, like this one."
"Twirly, hi. I'm the Doctor, she's Klary, and this is Graham, and this is Judy. And can you pause all sales protocols for a bit?"
"Even the upselling?"
"Even the upselling. You've just had a nap of about two hundred years, so your offers are out of date anyway."
"Without upselling, my only purpose is delivery."
"We don't need you to do that either, mate."
"The future is very confusing for my protocols." Klary chuckled at the robot's words. "I serve Kerblam, and Kerblam serves the people."
"Which is why we need your help." Judy took point and held up her clipboard. "These are my Kerblam credentials, my own executive read-code. We need you to carry out a task which may fundamentally save Kerblam."
Twirly began to spin. "I am only a delivery bot."
"See, now you've made it nervous."
"Don't panic, Twirly. You can do this. It's possible that Kerblam has been compromised. I'm going to patch you into the System. I need you to look far and wide, past new upgrades and firewalls and security patches, into the base code that only you can recognise, and then you can tell us what's going on and deliver the information to us."
"Retrieve and deliver. I understand."
"This might tickle." She plugged in a DIN connector which had the Kerblam computer terminal on the other end. The moment of connection, sparks flew.
"Help me, help me, help me!"
The Doctor unplugged Twirly. The bot's voice changed from what it was to that of the System. "What happened?"
"Help me. Help me."
"Why are you saying that?"
"Not Twirly speaking. The System. Kerblam. Help me, Doctor. Help me. Help me, Doctor. Help me."
"Oh! The System sent the message. It printed the slip. It sent it out."
"But why would the System need help?"
"Twirly, what do you mean? What sort of help? How can we help?"
"Help required in Dispatch. Help in Dispatch. Urgent help."
"Doc, they've all just gone down there."
"I'm stupid, really stupid. Can you believe how stupid I am?"
Graham had Twirly in his hands. "Is that a rhetorical question?" The four were back in reception and walking towards one of the Delivery Bots.
"I can't believe I didn't think of it sooner. There's too many things going on. Too many variables. My brain's too crowded."
"What's she talking about?"
"No idea. Klary is the only one who really understands," he shrugged. "You get used to it. She normally explains in the end." Still, the woman looked at the coily-haired girl.
"The System asked for help. Someone is doing something to cause that. She's also just figured out-"
"These delivery bots. They've got teleport circuits."
"See?"
"We don't have to go on the conveyor down to Dispatch. If I can hijack their circuit for one moment..." She sonicked the Delivery Bot, its eyes lighting up.
Out of nowhere, Slade approached them, a gun in hand and pointed at the Doctor's head. "Move away from the delivery bot."
"No, Slade, don't-" The five vanished. When they landed, the Doctor paralysed Slade with Venusian Aikido and disarmed him. "Very bad manners to point guns at people. I've never warmed to you." She released him and separated the weapon... "So, tell us what you've done." She tossed the gun aside. "We saw the list, the names of the victims you've targeted."
"What? I'm not targeting people. I'm recording the missing!"
"Oh. So it's not you?"
"No. Something's wrong with the System, but I don't know what. That's why I had to make sure my notes were analogue. I thought it was you. I've been tracking you since you arrived."
"We're trying to help!"
"So am I, but what am I supposed to do? There's no one to report this to, no one to stop it. There's only the System."
"There's me. I'm responsible for every person here. You could have told me."
"I didn't know whether I could trust you. I still don't."
"Hey Doc, come here and have a look at this." Everyone turned to see Graham peering into a round concrete tank. "Some kind of goo and Group Loops." He pulled one of the Group Loops out.
The Doctor scanned the goo. "I think these are the remnants of the missing workers. We're under a vast liquidisation tank."
"Of what? You mean, the robots are kidnapping the workers then liquidising them?"
"What I don't understand is why."
"Anyone got a tissue?"
The Doctor and Klary walked over to the opening. "Whoa!" Below them were ranks of Delivery Bots. All of them with parcels in hand. There seemed to be no end of them.
"Looks like an army."
The group walked down to the bots. "Complaints have been coming in about delayed deliveries. This must be why. Everything's stuck here. Nothing's going out. What's happened?"
"They're being held back. Oh, the power drains. The Doctor scanned the ceiling. "Vast teleportation hardware, with huge reserves of power building up. What if the power's been drained to be stored for one huge simultaneous teleport? All these deliveries, all at once."
"To do what?"
"You said it looked like an army. What do armies carry?"
"Weapons?"
The Doctor opened one of the nearest boxes and pulled out what looked to be a stuffed animal. "But that's not a weapon, it's a toy."
"And every parcel's got something different."
A lightbulb seemed to go off for Klary. "But every box has one thing in common."
The Doctor looked at her and placed the box on the floor and scanned the bubble wrap. "Deadly bubble wrap. Totally innocuous, apart from when it's intercepted here and weaponised! Sheets of tiny little bombs, ready to explode and kill. Every parcel, a death-trap. The workers aren't the targets. It's the customers."
"Kerblam's trying to kill their own customers? That's the worst business plan I've ever heard."
Klary went to reply to Graham but Yaz, interrupted as she, Ryan, and Charlie approached them. "Doctor, we've found you!"
"Kira's dead, and Charlie has something to do with it."
"What?"
"Not Kira! It wasn't met for her. The System took her. It's been fighting back against me." Charlie held up a circular device.
"Because it knew what you were planning. The maintenance man! Access to everywhere, noticed by hardly anyone."
"You've been killing other workers?"
"I needed test subjects to be sure the detonation force would work in such a small concentration."
"Wha… What? Charlie, how could you know all this stuff?"
"I lied on my application. Gave you a sob story, so you'd let me in, and you bought it. I've studied cybernetics, explosives, teleportation. I have worked for this."
"I don't understand."
"Ten per cent. They want us to be grateful that ten per cent of people get to work. What about the other ninety per cent? What about our futures? Because without action, next time it will be seven per cent, then five, then one. I am stronger than you. I am not going to stand by and accept it. People like me, my generation, we change things. We make things happen."
"Even if it costs people's lives? You kill a load of customers at Kerblam, let the systems take the fall for it, erode people's trust in automation, make people angry."
"Imperfect technology without a conscious. Machines malfunction, that's what they do."
"No, mate, that's what you're doing. Seriously malfunctioning."
"I'm not your mate!"
"Don't yell at Graham," Klary snapped. Finger pointed at the delusional younger male. Disgust marred her features.
"Except Kerblam's System does have a conscience. It's been fighting you, Charlie. It knew it. It sent a message across the galaxy, begging for help. That TeamMate in Slade's office, it was coming for you!" The Doctor yelled. "And then Kira, it took her, knowing how you felt about her, to show you how it would feel. Because how you feel right now about Kira is how all those families and friends will feel if your plan goes off."
"I don't care."
"Stop lying to yourself, mate," Klary sneered.
"I think you do. I think you came here with a plan, but you didn't expect to fall in love. But that's what happens. Use it, Charlie, learn from it, please."
"No! No. If that's the price to change how everyone on Kandoka sees technology, then it is worth it, for the cause."
"This isn't a cause. You're not an activist. This is cold-blooded murder."
"We can't let the systems take control!"
"The systems aren't the problem. How people use and exploit the system, that's the problem. People like you."
"I don't care what you think… The delivery goes ahead." He activated the device and the Delivery Bots went online.
"Mass delivery procedures initiating."
"Someone grab that controller!" Before anyone could, Charlie threw it onto the floor with all his might and stomped on it. Further breaking the controller into bits.
"Mass delivery procedures initiating."
Yaz grabbed onto Charlie while the Doctor gathered up the bits. "What have you done?"
"You can't stop it now."
"Make it stop! We are not going to let you kill all those innocent people."
"Destination coordinates locked. Preparing teleport."
"Doc, I hope you've got an idea on how to fix that."
"Not enough time to fix it. Wait. New idea. Oh, not enough time for that either. Maybe worth a go."
"Maybe?"
"I mean definitely. Grab the postman's head."
"What?"
"Just like Judy did in the office, do it! Now!" Judy rushed over to the Delivery Bot. "I need to stop this."
Judy pulled the head off and handed it to the Doctor. Yasmin had Charlie in a chokehold. Slade watched everything for a moment before looking at Ryan and Graham. "Does she know what she's doing?"
"Some of the time, definitely." As she said that, Charlie broke free and ran down the steps into the army. Yaz pushed into Slade. "Oi! Get back here! Stop him."
"Charlie!"
He stopped a few steps down. Looked up at Graham. "She can't stop it now. Those deliveries are going to be teleported out. I'm sorry." He rushed down the remaining stairs and into the army of Delivery Bots.
"Twirly, I need your help," the Doctor said as she sonicked the spherical bot.
"Safe mode off. Hello again. Customers with your current medical symptoms browsed blood pressure medication."
"This is important. I've linked you into the new System, to all the delivery bots, and I have a request."
"How may we help?"
Klary shuddered at the bots speaking at the same time. "Eerie."
She placed Twirly back on the ground. "Change of delivery address. For every order about to teleport, new address, right here. This hangar, right where we're standing. I want every Kerblam man to deliver to themselves."
"Delivery orders accepted."
"I want every Kerblam man to open the order they've just delivered to themselves, making sure they do what everybody does with bubble wrap."
Orders confirmed."
"Charlie! Get back up here, please."
"Delivery in process." The bots opened the boxes.
"What's going on?"
"Delivery received."
The Doctor returned Twirly to Graham and took the Bot's head from Judy. "Doctor, they're about to detonate!"
"Charlie, last chance. Get out of there now!"
The boxes were dropped onto the floor. Items still within them but bubble wrap in the Delivery Bots' hands." Opening delivery. Activating bubble wrap."
"Doc, get us out of here."
"And remember, if you want it, Kerblam it."
The Doctor sonicked the head and they were teleported away just as the Delivery Bots popped the bubble wrap. She heaved a sigh as everyone stood in reception. Klary's hand on her back. "If you want it, Kerblam it."
"Kerblam is experiencing a momentary technical difficulty. Our expert engineers are already working to get the systems up and running again as quickly and safely as possible. In the meantime, why not consider a personal mindful moment?"
Back in the Home Zone, Judy and Slade stood opposite the Doctor and companions. "We're suspending all operations for a month, pending review. And while the Team Mates are rebuilding Dispatch..."
"All our workers have been given two weeks paid leave. Free return shuttle transport. And I'm going to propose that Kerblam becomes a people-led company in future. Majority organics… People, I mean." Judy awkwardly chuckled and looked at the five hopefully. "We're always looking for good workers to join our management team."
"Er, thanks. We're strictly freelance," the Doctor replied before they walked off.
Back in the Tardis, everyone stood around the console. Helping the Doctor begin the takeoff process. Klary leaned against one of the beams. Arms crossed as her mind wandered.
"Doctor, can I make a request?"
"Always."
"If Dan hadn't switched scanners, it would have been me in that test room. He saved my life. I want to take this to his daughter. Tell her how much he loved it." Yaz held up the Dad pendent. Showed it to the Doctor. "How much he loved her."
"It's the least we can do."
There was a rustle behind them and everyone turned to see Graham with bubble wrap in his hands. "Put it down. It's Kerblam bubble wrap."
"You sure you want to pop it?" Graham put the bubble wrap back in the box and joined everyone at the console.
I meant to have this out days ago but living with chronic illness sucks everything out of me. Anyways, Hope you enjoyed.
savethemadscientist: Right! I was on the fence about 12 allowing it, but decided it would be an excellent show of how different he was with Klary and the companions. Rose is definitely going to be a prat for the most part. No matter what Klary does. She has nowhere else to go so the Tardis has to be her home. Granted, Klary is on the path to accepting everything that's happened thus far. As for the episode, she can hear the song thanks to her connection with the Tardis. I'm glad you liked that Donna and Klary clashed a bit. I always wondered how it would have been with a third person there to actually bring those points up as it seemed to always be glossed over in the show. I'm also happy that I was able to get you excited about the upcoming chapters. I hope you liked Klary meeting 13. The gender change isn't something Klary cares about as she said in the beginning and I wanted to make sure that translated. Anywho, I'll shut up. Hope you enjoyed.
Ezras Writing: I'm so glad you enjoyed it! And I hope you liked her meeting 13 and the crew. Also, I can't wait to read your story. I plan on officially reading it once I get the next few chapters of my book done. Bit of a reward lol.