Twists in Time
Chapter Twenty-Seven: The Lazarus Experiment: Mutation
By Lumendea
…
The aching chill had not left Rose since the machine switched on. She was stuck in place as she watched Professor Lazarus have his photo taken by eager reporters. Sarah Jane was with the group, a suspicious and calculating expression on her face. Rose knew that if this event reached the wider world, Sarah Jane's report would be cautious and filled with science to warn off readers.
"It can't be the same guy," Martha whispered "It's impossible. It must be a trick."
"Oh, it's not a trick," the Doctor answered. "I wish it were."
"What just happened then?"
The Doctor sighed loudly. "He just changed what it means to be human."
"Excuse me," the older woman Rose had noted earlier pushed her way forward to Lazarus. "That was the most astonishing thing I've ever seen. Look at you."
"This is only the beginning," Lazarus assured her. "We're not just making history, we're shaping the future, too."
"Think of the money we'll make," the woman gushed. Rose tensed, the flash of anger the words triggered pulling out of her cold shock. "People will sell their souls to be transformed like that. And I'll be first in line."
Suddenly Lazarus stiffened and gasped. With a sharp movement, he grabbed a tray of food from a passing waiter and began eating all of the morsels on the tray.
"Richard," the woman gasped.
"I'm famished," Lazarus managed between bites. But then the tray was empty.
The Doctor strode forward and Rose followed a few steps behind. "Energy deficit. Always happens with this kind of process."
"You speak as if you see this every day, Doctor Tyler."
"No, not every day," the Doctor replied. "But I have some experience of this kind of transformation." He said it so calmly that it helped Rose feel a little better. She almost smiled at the memory of him stumbling around and being so affectionate immediately after he regenerated.
The words did properly get Lazarus' attention. He straightened up. "That's not possible." He was smiling a little, basking in his own brilliance.
"Using hypersonic sound waves to create a state of resonance," the Doctor said. Lazarus turned towards him in surprise. "That's inspired."
"You understand the theory, then."
"Enough to know that you couldn't possibly have allowed for all the variables," the Doctor replied seriously. He didn't sound at all impressed anymore.
"No experiment is entirely without risk."
"That thing nearly exploded," the Doctor countered. "You might as well have stepped into a blender."
"You're not qualified to comment," the older woman snapped, stepping forward.
"If I hadn't stopped it, it would have exploded," the Doctor insisted.
Amusement had returned to Lazarus. "Then I thank you, Doctor. But that's a simple engineering issue. What happened inside the capsule was exactly what was supposed to happen. No more, no less."
"You've no way of knowing that until you've run proper tests," Martha countered.
"Look at me," Lazarus chuckled. He held out his arms as if showing himself off. Rose shivered as the wrong feeling grew worse. "You can see what happened. I'm all the proof you need."
"This device will be properly certified before we start to operate commercially," the woman, likely a backer, said dismissively. She sounded so confident.
"Commercially? You are joking. That'll cause chaos," Martha gasped.
"Not to mention only be available to the rich," Jack added darkly. "Might as well ask them to bring back the chopping blocks with a stunt like that."
"Really the pair of you," Lazarus laughed. "Not chaos, change. A chance for humanity to evolve, to improve."
"This isn't about improving," the Doctor said. "This is about you and your customers living a little longer."
"Not a little longer, Doctor. A lot longer. Perhaps indefinitely." Lazarus was smiling again.
"And the telomere issue?" the Doctor asked. "That device could only rewind so much. Your DNA was already damaged when you got into it. How's it looking now?"
"Richard," the backer cut in before Lazarus could respond. "We have things to discuss, upstairs."
"Of course, Lady Thaw," Lazarus answered. "Goodbye, Doctor Tyler. In a few years, you'll look back and laugh at how wrong you were."
With a smile, Lazarus kissed Martha's hand and left with Lady Thaw. Rose shifted as they moved closer to her, unwilling to be too close to that thing. She was furious. Not just about what she was feeling, but Jack's remarks about the rich benefitting nagged at her. He was right. The rich would ideally stay young forever and leave the poor scrambling to try and access that machine for themselves before they died. Chaos as Martha said, was nothing compared to what something like that machine might bring.
"Oh, he's out of his depth. No idea of the damage he might have done."
"He's wrong," Rose managed. The Doctor looked at her and Rose shivered. "I don't like even looking at him."
"That's not good," the Doctor murmured. He wrapped an arm around her as if trying to warm her up. It didn't help. "Jack?"
"I got nothing," Jack admitted. "Though, I trust Rose's senses and I know this isn't tech that is supposed to exist yet."
"So what do we do now?" Martha asked, worry filling her voice.
"Now? Well, this building must be full of laboratories. I say we do our own tests."
"Lucky I've just collected a DNA sample then, isn't it?" Martha held up her hand, now smiling.
"Oh, Martha Jones, you're a star," the Doctor said with a growing smile.
"I'll stay here," Jack said softly. "Keep an eye on Sarah Jane and make sure no one else gets in that thing." Jack nodded at the still slightly smoking capsule with a frown. "Sadly, I think some idiot would."
"Being young again is an attractive notion," Martha said softly. Then she waved her hand. "We'd better get on this, Doctor."
"Right you are, Martha Jones." The Doctor glanced around and gestured Rose and Martha forward. "Jack, try to keep things under control. If you can."
"Fine," Jack answered. But he was frowning. "But hurry. I don't like that Lazarus has gone off and left the crowd."
The Doctor nodded his agreement and Rose stayed close to him and they hurried out of the room.
…..
Jack stayed near the front of the room with the capsule. The technicians seemed to be trying to fix it up half-heartedly and were speaking frantically with each other. None of them were old, but he supposed this was exciting for them as well. The people of this era had the spectre of dying hanging over them in multiple ways. But death would never go away. Not really. Even the future technology for "stopping the clock" didn't really manage that. Not forever. Sooner or later, the body just couldn't keep working.
Except Rose and maybe him. Jack couldn't help but think about his own immortality in that moment and wondered if he was being a hypocrite. Then again, maybe the Doctor was being one. They had very long lives ahead of them and yet were in a situation where they needed to step in. At least they had Rose's authority over life behind them. Jack had come from an era with telomere treatments that lengthened youth by over a century and could be started as soon as you reached full maturity.
He supposed there was never a perfect answer. The people of this era, in general, lived longer than humans had before. Future generations would live longer than them. Progress and all that sort of thing. Movement drew his attention and Jack inwardly sighed as Martha's mother came stalking up to him with her son following behind.
"What's going on?" Francine demanded. "Where did Martha go with those people?"
"Those two people are representatives of UNIT," Jack explained. "As I said, Martha was impressive on the moon-"
"She's going to be a doctor!"
"And it is her medical knowledge that they are seeking," Jack said smoothly. "This is a highly unusual situation and they want someone who was on site and witnessed it with them."
"I don't like it."
"Respectfully, ma'am, that isn't my concern. Martha is an adult. A well-educated and capable adult. If she's helping, it is because she agrees that this needs investigation to make sure things are safe before it hits the papers tomorrow."
"Oh, I agree," Sarah Jane's voice said cheerfully. Francine turned and frowned at her. "Sarah Jane Smith, I'm a reporter. I must say that I'm a touch nervous about writing on this. It'll be chaos when the news breaks." She shook her head. "Best to at least have some immediate data about safety before further testing starts under the intense public interest something like this will get." Sarah Jane was watching Jack carefully and he had to wonder if they'd met already in her timeline or not. He wasn't sure and wasn't going to ask Francine right there. "Anyway, I don't suppose you could direct me to the UNIT reps?" Sarah Jane asked Jack. "I would love a word with them."
"Better not, Miss," Jack replied. He couldn't help but smile a little. "They're a bit busy at the moment. I don't think they can give a comment yet."
"And you're what?" Sarah Jane eyed the capsule. "Making sure no one else tries anything foolish."
"That's the general idea."
Sarah Jane nodded though her eyes moved over to the stairs that led up to the labs. He wondered if she'd go to the join the others.
"Well, I suppose I should check in with my fellow members of the press," Sarah Jane replied with a slight smile. "Make sure that no one is getting ahead of themselves just yet." Jack nodded his understanding and gratitude. "And update Benton."
"That's a great idea," Jack agreed. Personally, he would like to have UNIT on site just in case everything was about to start blowing up. There was, after all, a high likelihood of that.
….
The labs were impressive. The Doctor glanced over everything and immediately went to work. He found a cotton swab and gathered a sample from Martha's hand. She looked relieved to be getting it cleaned off but held off washing her hands until the Doctor had inserted the sample and assured her they had a working sample. The machine needed a bit of a boost from the sonic screwdriver while Rose kept an eye on the door.
Things were strangely quiet. Rose was unsettled by the lack of guards or even a roving patrols. Maybe Lazarus really did believe the most valuable assets were downstairs in the form of his capsule and the guests. She would have hired extra security for the event and kept the normal crew upstairs.
"Here we go," the Doctor murmured. Rose shifted back from the door so she could take a look. There was a display of DNA on the screen. It was impressive technology to be sure even with some help from the Doctor. "Amazing."
"What?" Martha asked.
"Lazarus's DNA," the Doctor replied.
"I can't see anything different," Martha said.
"Look at it," the Doctor encouraged.
As if summoned by his words, the DNA twisted on the screen. Rose hissed in alarm. Too much, too fast.
"Oh, my God. Did that just change?" Martha gasped. "But it can't have."
"It did," Rose said. Her voice was too loud in the room. "Too much, too fast."
"Yes," the Doctor said softly, his excitement faded at Rose's distress. "Hypersonic sound waves to destabilise the cell structure, then a metagenic programme to manipulate the coding in the protein strands. Basically, he hacked into his own genes and instructed them to rejuvenate. But without healthy telomeres, his body is cutting up his DNA and causing more and more mutations."
"So he's not human anymore?" Martha asked.
"No, it's still human," the Doctor said firmly. "But what he's done has jumbled it up." His eyebrows almost vanished into his hairline as he watched the DNA keep flashing and shifting. "And everything has been switched on."
"Switched on?" Martha repeated before Rose could ask. "What do you mean?"
"Human DNA, a massive amount of it is really just the recipe. Start growing arms now, stop growing arms now. Start growing legs, stop growing legs." The Doctor searched the screen and pointed at a section. "See that, that part is the remarkable bit of 'bad DNA' that you all are carrying that shifted your earlier massive ape jaw muscles to the weak little things. But those old powerful jaws of yours wrapped around the back of your skulls and compressed them, limiting the size that your brains could go to. All of humanity, what made you shift to being the bigger-brained ape versions of yourselves came from that bit of DNA that is basically carrying a deformity. Course it helped you survive so nature has never tried to correct it. Honestly, Rassilon is probably the cause of that when he decided most of the universe should look Time Lord." Then the Doctor shook himself. "But Lazarus' DNA seems to be set to on. Things are going to be growing wildly without anything telling them to stop. And with the complete lack of telomeres, the rate of mutation is going to be insanely high. It's all human, but it's human in a way that shouldn't exist."
The chill ran down Rose's spine again. Possibility. Rejected possibilities. Yes, Rassilon had a hand in it, but the universe had stabilized around that. You couldn't- shouldn't just flip a switch.
"He's wrong," Rose admitted. "I can tell. Something about him is wrong." She nodded at the screen. "And it makes sense. If he's causing this kind of mutation to himself… and he's being disrespectful of the natural order. There's danger there." The words slipped out. They were true, but they were also strange to hear in her own voice.
"I know, darling," the Doctor said softly. "We have to find a way to stabilize him or…" the Doctor trailed off. Rose knew he didn't like entertaining killing Lazarus, but part of Rose was sure that it would be necessary. "This technology is unstable and dangerous."
"Too bad," Martha murmured. "If used properly it could have helped with degenerative diseases."
"There's a lot of work humans need to do on repairing damaged DNA first," the Doctor said gently. "Otherwise, your efforts will only make things worse."
"He's dangerous," Rose said suddenly. "The amount of calories he'll need to keep his body functioning is devastating."
"Right." The Doctor nodded. "You saw him earlier with the food. And that won't be nearly enough. The easiest source would be-" the Doctor froze and paled. "Come on, we need to find him and we need to find him now!"
They hurried to his office with the help of a directory only to find it empty. Rose shuddered again. There was something in the air. Not a smell exactly, but a lingering aftertaste almost. Martha and the Doctor didn't seem to notice. Then they found the skeletal Lady Thaw and Rose almost threw up. Lazarus was, somehow, draining life force to feed his body. Now, it had the energy to grow and change again. Like feeding a growth spurt and they all recognized that he was likely on the hunt again already.
The party was still going on when they reached the reception hall. Even with Lazarus gone and out of sight, people were still buzzing about what they'd seen and wondering how soon they could get the procedure done. The sick feeling in Rose grew worse at those words. She wondered if the original Gold Guardian had felt this way with regeneration experiments started.
"I can't see him," Martha said.
"Jack!" Rose called sharply.
Their friend hurried over to join them. "What's wrong?"
"Where is Lazarus?" the Doctor asked.
"He came down here briefly and was speaking with Martha's sister," Jack replied. Then he looked around. "Someone was poking at the machine so I stepped in so I didn't see them leave."
"He's with Tish?" Martha asked, her eyes widening.
Then Leo walked over. "Hey, you all right, Marth? I think Mum wants to talk to you."
"Leo, did Tish leave with Lazarus?" Martha demanded.
"Upstairs, I think. Why?"
Francine had joined them and was frowning at Rose and the Doctor. "I want to speak with the pair of you."
"I'm sorry, Mrs. Jones, we can't right now," Rose replied quickly. "Lazarus is unstable and dangerous!"
"What?" Francine demanded, but the Doctor had grabbed Rose's hand and they were dashing for the stairs. "What do you mean by that!?"
Rose glanced back to find Sarah Jane hurrying over while Jack joined them in their hurry upstairs. But the office was empty. He hadn't double-backed. Rose wondered if he could smell them now that his body was changing.
"Where are they?" Martha asked a frantic and scared note in her voice.
"Fluctuating DNA will give off an energy signature," the Doctor said as he pulled out his sonic screwdriver. "I might be able to pick it up." The sonic beeped and Rose wasn't even in the mood to tease him about scanning. "The roof!"
Hurrying up the stairs, Rose could feel the panic radiating off Martha and couldn't blame her. She pushed through the ice gathering on her bones and kept running. Rose quickly became aware of Lazarus. He was a ball of wrong just beyond the door as they reached the top level. Much more of this and they wouldn't need the sonic for her to be able to find him.
Tish was standing very close to Lazarus, touching his face with an awed expression on hers. "And is it like you expected?" she asked.
"I find that nothing's ever exactly like you expect," Lazarus answered. "There's always something to surprise you. Between the idea and the reality, between the motion and the act-"
"Falls the Shadow," the Doctor said as they stepped out onto the roof.
"So the mysterious Doctor Tyler knows his Eliot. I'm impressed." Lazarus was smiling as he turned to him.
"Martha, what are you doing here?" Tish said with a very forced smile.
"Tish, get away from him," Martha said urgently.
"What? Don't tell me what to do!"
The Doctor stepped forward while the two sisters hissed at each other. "I wouldn't have thought you had time for poetry, Lazarus, what with you being busy defying the laws of nature and all."
"You're right, Doctor Tyler. One lifetime's been too short for me to do everything I'd like. How much more I'll get done in two or three or four."
"Doesn't work like that. Some people live more in twenty years than others do in eighty. It's not the time that matters, it's the person."
"But if it's the right person, what a gift that would be," Lazarus replied airily.
He wasn't bothered by it. Not really. Rose held back her gasp at the realization. He knew. He was aware of the change and his hunger. Lazarus was probably very aware that he'd killed Lady Thaw. Tish was probably his next meal. And he wasn't worried. If it was a desperation to survive or arrogance, she wasn't sure. Rose could almost forgive the first one. Living things were born to live and programmed to hold onto that life. But this… oh what he had now wasn't life. It was death. It would never stop and the life force he took from others would never be enough. Jack was slowly shifting forward towards Lazarus and the Doctor.
"Or what a curse," the Doctor sighed. "Look at what you've done to yourself."
"Who are you to judge me?" Lazarus sneered.
"Over here, Tish," Martha pleaded.
This time Tish moved, stalking towards Martha with a scowl. "You have to spoil everything, don't you? Every time I find someone nice, you have to go and find fault."
Behind Tish's back, Lazarus spasmed and fell to the ground. Jack immediately shifted in front of Rose and started to reach for the Doctor.
"Tish, he's a monster!" Martha cried.
"I know the age thing's a bit freaky, but it works for Catherine Zeta-Jones."
The sound of cracking bones echoed across the rooftop. Tish's eyes widened slightly and she slowly looked over her shoulder. Lazarus was transforming in a violent surge of flesh and simmering life energy. His skin stretched to keep covering limbs that were suddenly too long with too many joints. Human in origin, but Rose could almost see the fluctuating DNA taking him further and further from the pattern of humanity. He was now more like a mammal scorpion with lingering human facial features.
"What's that?" Tish asked, her voice soft and frightened.
"Run!" the Doctor shouted.
This time, Tish didn't argue. They all piled through the door with Jack at the back. He shifted to let the Doctor sonic the electric lock on the door. Rose doubted that it would stop him for long. They rushed down the stairs and the moment they reached a landing, Martha spun to grip her sister's arms.
"Are you okay?"
"I was going to snog him," Tish answered as shock crept in.
But there was no time for that. The lights flickered and a bang from up the stairs confirmed that the creature was trying to break in. At least, Rose couldn't help but think, he was trying to get inside rather than throwing himself to the street below. At this point, it might not kill him.
"Security one. Security one. Security one," a voice said, echoing around them.
"What's happening?" Martha asked Tish.
"An intrusion," Tish answered. She shook herself and took a deep breath. "It triggers a security lockdown. Kills most of the power. Stops the lifts, seals the exits."
"He must be breaking through that door. The stairs, come on!"
Another crash made Rose flinch. Martha looked up in alarm. "He's inside!"