Twists in Time

Chapter Twenty-Nine: The Lazarus Experiment: Now for a Bang

By Lumendea

AN: Hey folks, I will be taking a short break for a couple of weeks as I am moving. Look for the start of the next episode Refugees of Time with returning guest star Eve on November 11th.

…

Martha was grateful for the chance to catch her breath. She found herself scanning the UNIT soldiers as they tried to keep everyone calm and get statements. How this would be kept reasonably quiet, she had no idea, but Rose was confident that it wouldn't cause too many waves. That seemed mad, but the Doctor and Rose had just chuckled.

Then she caught sight of Mickey. He was beside one of the UNIT trucks and speaking into a radio. Martha smiled a little. Mickey looked good in his uniform. Tish made a thoughtful sound beside her, drawing Martha's attention and her sister raised an eyebrow.

"Normally I'd tell you to talk with him, but he looks busy."

"Oh, I uh know him. Sort of. We've met." Though that was in the future. Martha's head ached a little at that idea. If she walked up to him, he'd have no idea who she was. "He's a friend of Rose's."

"Your friends are weird," Tish said softly. "But good in a crisis."

"Yeah, you just summarized them." She glanced over to where Rose was standing with the Doctor and Jack. The Doctor had put his tuxedo coat around Rose who appeared distressed. Martha wasn't sure what to make of that and debated on if she should join them. They were all very friendly and had been trying to include her, but she was aware that she was a new person on the TARDIS. "But we're lucky they were here."

"No kidding." Tish laughed softly. "I can't believe…" she shook herself. "Uh no, here comes Mum."

Martha tensed, catching sight of her mum pushing her way towards them with Leo right behind her. At least he was on his feet now. Taking in a deep breath, Martha braced herself and stepped forward.

"Leo, how are you feeling?"

"Sore," he answered. "But the medic said I'll be alright. Just a concussion."

"Martha, who are those people? Why did you go with them? Have you any idea how dangerous, how foolish that was?" Francine shook her head and scowled. "You abandoned us!"

"Mum, that's not fair," Tish countered. Martha was surprised at Tish's defensive tone. "You saw that… that thing. It attacked me if Martha and her friends hadn't come…" Tish swallowed and shook her head.

"You're supposed to be training to be a doctor!"

"And I want to be a doctor," Martha said. Irritation was building in her chest. "I've just… what happened at the hospital opened my eyes to some of the potential pathways I could go that I didn't know about before."

"Martha, look," Leo said carefully with a look at their mother. "We believe you. We do."

Marhta scoffed and rolled her eyes. "Thanks, Leo. Anyway, Mum, I still very intend to finish my medical studies and take my exams. You can stop worrying on that front."

"I don't want you spending any more time with them," Francine said, scowling at the Doctor, Rose and Jack. "There's no need for distractions."

"Mum," Martha gasped. "I can't- you don't-"

"I am your mother." Her mother's face was sharp and angry before softening. "You need to focus, Martha. I don't want to see you lose everything you've worked for."

Martha swallowed. She wasn't sure how to feel about that. Ever since she was a child, her mum had supported her desire to be a doctor. Even more than that, her mum had bragged about it and spoken highly of Martha's grades and drive. Looking toward Tish, she found her sister looking at their mother with a conflicted expression.

"I think you should get Leo home," Martha suggested. "He needs rest and shouldn't be on his feet."

"We aren't done talking about this," her mum said firmly. "You need to focus."

"Mum," Tish tried. "Come on, Martha's right, you should get Leo home."

Her mum wasn't happy with the push to leave things alone. A small voice that sounded like her mother urged her to stay on Earth and not worry any longer about aliens and other planets. But, Martha didn't want to stay here and wonder. Someday, not too long in the future probably, she would stay and finish her medical exams and maybe… she wasn't too sure yet. There were more options for what to do with her medical knowledge and experience with the usual now than she'd thought back when the hospital first returned to the moon.

Then a shout drew Martha's attention. Her mother was reaching for her, but Martha pulled away and rushed toward the line of soldiers to see what had happened. She met Rose, Jack, and the Doctor on her way and felt herself relax at regrouping with them. Beyond the UNIT jeep and command truck, the containment truck was open and a body was on the ground. Martha was grateful that so many of the guests had already left. She hoped her Mum would too.

…..

Rose's eyes dropped the corpse on the pavement in a UNIT uniform that looked more like a mummy than anything else. Her heart clenched as she took in their name tag. It wasn't anyone she knew, but still, it seemed like a brutal and unnecessary death. Jack was helping another injured soldier to his feet while the Doctor asked about Lazarus.

"I don't know sir," the soldier answered. "We were guarding him and moving him into the containment truck. He didn't move at all until his whole body suddenly… exploded. He ripped through the restraints we were using and grabbed…." They trailed off and swallowed.

"Right, okay, well we need to find him immediately. He's loose in the city." The Doctor looked around the streets urgently. "Where would he go?"

Movement to Rose's right made her turn. Martha was beside her and Tish had just joined them. Tish's eyes widened at the sight of the open truck and the body. For a moment, Rose feared that the woman was going to slip into shock.

"Cathedral. It's Southwark Cathedral," Tish said suddenly. She shivered and nodded in the distance. "He told me."

"Right. Jack, rally UNIT," the Doctor said quickly. "Let's hope he retreated to an old stomping ground."

"I think she's right," Rose said. "I feel him in that direction."

Martha looked thoughtful at her words and nodded while Tish frowned in confusion and unease. Rose didn't blame her for that and as Jack dashed back to UNIT to get them moving in the right direction, the Doctor grabbed Rose's hand and they started running.

There were signs here and there in the street that a large creature had moved through the area, but they faded quickly. Rose was guessing that he had shifted back into human form. Her stomach turned and the itch under her skin grew worse as they got closer and closer to the cathedral. Tish was right, he'd gone there. Rose wondered what was so special about it.

"Do you think he's in here?" Martha asked as they slowed upon reaching the stairs of the Cathedral.

"Where would you go if you were looking for sanctuary?" the Doctor asked.

The doors had been wretched open by something with unusual strength and they slowly stepped into the empty Cathedral. Light from the city around it was spilling in through the windows. They approached the altar and there was Lazarus, sitting on the floor and wrapped in a red medical blanket in the centre of a pool of light. It was almost beautiful. And heartbreaking.

Her jaw tightened as if she was about to be ill. Studying him, Rose saw a shimmer of energy under his skin. He would change soon. His body was burning through the life force he'd already drained from the soldier at a fast pace. It was going faster and faster. Much longer and his body would need fresh energy every few minutes.

"His body isn't producing his own life force," Rose whispered to the Doctor as that fact settled in her mind.

Lazarus shouldn't be alive. That quirk of matter to keep meat fresh as the Doctor had once described it, wasn't working in his body any longer. The young-old man turned slightly but still didn't look at them. Rose had no doubt that he knew they were here.

"I came here before, a lifetime ago. I thought I was going to die then. In fact, I was sure of it. I sat here, just a child, the sound of planes and bombs outside." Lazarus looked up at the vaulted ceiling above.

"The Blitz," the Doctor said softly.

"You've read about it." Lazarus's tone was almost mocking, nearly angry.

"I was there," the Doctor explained.

Lazarus turned to them now, staring at the Doctor. Rose wondered if his senses were changing. If they would change. Would he be able to see that the Doctor wasn't human?

"You're too young."

"So are you."

Lazarus laughed a brittle and surprised sound. But then there was a crack of bones as his flesh shimmered. The professor shuddered and shifted his position, but only slightly. Still clutching at the red medical blanket.

"In the morning, the fires had died, and I was still alive. I swore I'd never face death like that again. So defenceless. I would arm myself, fight back, defeat it."

Lazarus' words hit Rose hard. That part was human. So human. Rage against the night. Don't go quietly. Fight for another breath. And yet- and yet. Her skin itched. She could feel something growing hot in her chest. He was becoming too dangerous. What had been wrong was becoming a threat. How long until her powers activated without her even having to try?

"That's what you were trying to do today?" the Doctor asked. He took a step towards Lazarus. Rose wanted to pull him back.

"That's what I did today."

"What about the other people who died?" The Doctor's tone was becoming more harsh, carrying more judgement, but was still conversational.

"They were nothing," Lazarus insisted. He was sitting straighter now. "I changed the course of history."

"Any of them might have done too," the Doctor replied. He was softer now. "You think history's only made with equations?" The Doctor shook his head a little. "Facing death is part of being human. You can't change that."

Something twisted in Rose's chest. That was right. Except for her. She pushed that thought down. There was no point. There was some irony to it, but that was how the universe worked. Even Jack did technically die before her power pulled him back. Yet… the Doctor wasn't completely right. There was an element of survival in all of it.

"No, Doctor," Lazarus hissed. "Avoiding death, that's being human. It's our strongest impulse, to cling to life with every fibre of our being." Lazarus smiled smugly. All of this suffering and the pain that had to be wracking his body and Rose knew that he had no regrets. He still wanted to make it work. "I'm only doing what everyone before me has tried to do. I've simply been more successful."

"Look at yourself. You're mutating!" the Doctor insisted. Rose almost smiled. Even now, after all of the bodies, he was trying to make Lazarus understand. She thought he was hoping that Lazarus would ask for help. The Doctor might be able to help him, but Rose wasn't sure. Even if her powers activated, she wasn't sure that she could help me. "You've no control over it. You call that a success?"

"I call it progress. I'm more now than I was. More than just an ordinary human." There was that smug pride again.

"There's no such thing as an ordinary human."

Lazarus convulsed, hissing in pain as his back began to arch beyond the natural limit. Martha stepped closer to the Doctor.

"He's going to change again any minute," Martha whispered.

"I know," the Doctor replied softly. Rose could barely hear him and took a step closer to them despite the instinct to stay away from Lazarus. "If I can get him up into the bell tower somehow, I have an idea that might work."

"Up there?" Martha nodded to a staircase in the shadows. Rose tried to make herself move.

"You're so sentimental, Doctor," Lazarus observed. "Maybe you are older than you look."

"I'm old enough to know that a longer life isn't always a better one," the Doctor said wearily. "In the end, you just get tired. Tired of the struggle, tired of losing everyone that matters to you, tired of watching everything turn to dust. If you live long enough, Lazarus, the only certainty left is that you'll end up alone."

Rose wondered if he was still talking about himself. She hoped not. But… then again, she knew that while he loved her and was happy with her, the Doctor didn't really trust that they could last. He expected her to leave him someday willingly for something else. Or maybe he was thinking about her potentially outliving him. Her fear and worry made her body move. She came closer to him but still felt repelled by Lazarus.

"That's a price worth paying." Lazarus wasn't looking at her. His attention was fixed on the Doctor.

"Is it?"

"I will feed soon," Lazarus said. There was a warning in his voice. Rose wondered if he liked the Doctor enough to want him to run. Or was he hoping to see fear? She couldn't tell. The rapid shifts of his body had stretched his skin just enough that his facial features were now a little too distorted.

"I'm not going to let that happen," the Doctor vowed.

Lazarus smirked. "You've not been able to stop me so far."

"Leave him, Lazarus!" Martha snapped. She shifted forward. "He's old and bitter. I thought you had a taste for fresher meat."

"Martha, no," the Doctor hissed.

But Lazarus moved, lunging for Martha who spun on her heel and bolted for the corner. Rose gasped, her brain trying to catch up with what had just happened. Tish was immediately after her sister and Rose heard them shout at each other. The Doctor glanced at her before he bolted toward the organ. Rose urged her body to move. She needed to move, needed to help.

Rose took off after Martha and Tish, marvelling at their friend's courage. Behind her, the doors of the Cathedral swung open and Rose glanced back as UNIT forces surged in. But Lazarus was already at a staircase and slipping out of sight. The Doctor shouted something. Rose hoped that his plan wasn't already ruined by the presence of UNIT.

But shooting him wouldn't help. His body was twisting and healing too quickly. Maybe, just maybe, if they shot him and immediately got him into a furnace and burned him away completely…. Rose just wasn't sure. The twisted mass of life energy and agony ahead of her made her skin crawl and she did her best to focus on climbing. Lazarus was focused on Martha and Tish as they scurried up the stairs ahead of her. Summoning her sword, Rose followed, determined to be of some use despite the terrible cold in her bones.

At the top, Martha and Tish were at the far side of the tower with Lazarus' now fully transformed body looming over them. He was too close. Rose slashed her sword forward, aiming for a leg rather than the torso. It healed too quickly. She had to have faith in the Doctor's plan and try to keep Lazarus busy. He howled as the blade sliced through the bone and twisted away.

That gave her a path to the sisters. Rose hurried to them, planting herself firmly between Lazarus and Martha. His leg was regrowing. She couldn't see where the severed limb was and feared it had fallen down the hole in the centre of the bell tower. Lazarus lunged again and Rose swung her sword despite the heaviness in her limbs.

He snarled and shifted back. She caught one of his… arms? Blood spilt forward, but the flesh immediately started knitting back together. That poor UNIT soldier had been enough to give him a little too much life energy. Rose couldn't help but be angry at herself for that. She should have stayed with the body herself, ready to kill him again the instant he twitched.

The tower shuddered. Every note the Doctor played rattled against her skull. Behind her, she could hear Martha and Tish shouting something, but it was too difficult to hear. Her head was pounding. Her heart was racing. There were too many horrible sensations crawling over her skin with Lazarus this close.

His head tilted as he drew back and hissed. Curiosity shined in his eyes. Rose was suddenly very concerned that his senses were shifting enough that he knew her as something more Alive than most. The noise was worse now. Rose grit her teeth.

Sound waves… sonic… that had to be it. The Doctor was turning the tower into another sonic chamber. Tish and Martha were screaming behind her as Lazarus lashed out with his tail. Rose dodged it and sliced into the flesh and bone mess. Then Lazarus reared back. His body was shifting, the flesh rippling. He fell. Rose exhaled and the music stopped. Silence rang for a moment before there was a rush of feet.

"Are you alright?" Rose asked, turning toward Martha and Tish.

"Fine." Martha nodded and breathed slowly. "I'm fine. Tish?"

"I'm alright. That was…" Tish shook her head. "Is he really…?"

"Probably." Rose swallowed and closed her eyes for a moment. She immediately realized that she felt right again. The strange cold was fading.

"ROSE!" Jack rushed into the bell tower and glanced her over before looking at Martha and Tish. "You're alright. Good." Shaking his head, Rose stepped forward and hugged Rose, being mindful of the hole under the bell now that the railing had been destroyed. "Martha, Tish?"

"We're alright." Martha was on her feet again and dusted off her dress. "What now?"

"Well, I'm going to keep watch while UNIT deals with the body," Jack said shortly. Rose chuckled at his frustration. She leaned up and kissed his cheek.

"We're fine," she assured him. "You do what you need to do."

Grumbling, Jack grabbed her hand and escorted them down. The Doctor was beside the body with an odd expression on his face and watching as UNIT personnel in heavy protective gear used what looked like a small forklift to shift the body. He moved back and grinned when he caught sight of them coming down the stairs. Rushing over to them, he grabbed Martha in a quick hug from her place at the front.

"Blimey, that was bold of you," the Doctor laughed.

"Well, needed to do something. I doubted it would be good to have him try to drain you, given…" Martha trailed off and the Doctor shrugged. "But I didn't know you could play."

"Oh, well, you know, if you hang around with Beethoven, you're bound to pick a few things up."

"Hmm. Especially about playing loud," Martha countered with a smirk.

"Sorry?" the Doctor winked at her and stepped over to Rose, cupping her cheek. "How are you feeling?"

"Better now," she admitted. Rose looked past him at the body. "Grateful it's over and he didn't break anything."

"He didn't?" the Doctor asked softly as if searching for confirmation.

"No. Bent a little, but nothing broke."

"Good." The Doctor exhaled and nodded, pulling her into a hug. "Good."

"Doctor," Benton called. He walked over to them as the body was wheeled out. "We have a furnace ready. Anything else?"

"Just the usual cleanup," the Doctor answered. He nodded towards Rose, keeping an arm around her. "And keep her younger self from poking around."

Benton nodded with a small smile as he looked at them. The Doctor suddenly dropped his arm and rubbed the back of his neck. The smile on Benton's face shifted closer to a smirk, but he turned his attention to Martha. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a business card and handed it to her.

"He is the contact information for UNIT, Miss Jones. Just in case you come across something or need anything."

"Seriously?" Martha asked as she studied the card. "If I need anything?"

"Travelling with him and saving the world does occasionally have some perks," Benton offered. "We're always happy to help out the Doctor's companions when we can."

Martha's smile widened and there was a glint of excitement in her eyes. Rose almost asked, but she was very tired.

"They try to stay on my good side," the Doctor said with a grin. He looked around the Cathedral and reached to take Rose's hand. "Come on," he said softly. The Doctor squeezed her hand as Rose stepped closer to him. "Let's go home. Lots to see and do!"

"Yeah," Martha agreed with a spring in her step. "Sounds great!"