Asgard
The TARDIS materialized on the planet before The Doctor walked out, Jack and Rose following him, Rose looking around in awe.
Asgard was, in a word, breathtaking. The skies were a deep purple while the grass, blue as far as the eye could see, seemed to shimmer with light. There was a nearby river of green water that Rose could see some fish swimming in.
"Welcome to Asgard," The Doctor said with a smile.
"It's beautiful," Rose said softly.
"Yep. I've always wanted to come here," Jack mused. "So, where to next, Doctor?"
"If I'm right, there a cave about a thirty minute walk from here," The Doctor mused. "That's where we'll find the crystals."
"Considering all the trouble The Rani went to blackmail you, something tells me that it won't be that easy," Jack noted and The Doctor grimaced.
"You're right, it won't be. Because of what they can do, the crystals are heavily guarded. There'll be at least two dozen Asgardian soldiers standing guard outside the entrance," The Doctor explained.
"And you expect us to fight our way through?" Rose asked in disbelief.
"Haven't you learned by now that there are alternatives to fighting?" The Doctor asked as he shot her a quick grin. "Trying to blast our way through two dozen Asgardian soldiers would be suicide. No, what we're going to do requires far more…finesse."
Unspecified location
Same time
Far from The Doctor's location, nine former Companions were tied up, restrained and unable to move.
"Oof! Whoever you bloody are, would you come out and tell us why we're here!" Tegan demanded angrily after trying and failing to break free of her binds.
"Tegan, calm down. Getting angry won't help," Nyssa whispered, trying to calm her frustrated friend.
"She's right. Besides, would you look around at this place? The structure of this ship is reminiscent of our planet," Jo said in fascination.
"Miss Grant, perhaps now is not the time to admire the structure of the ship where we are being held captive," Brigadier said in exasperation.
"Grant, you're Jo Grant," Sarah-Jane said, her eyes widening in recognition as Jo looked at her curiously.
"I'm sorry, have we met?" Jo asked.
"No, but he talked about you, quite a bit," Sarah-Jane explained and it only took Jo a moment to understand who 'he' was.
"Oh, you're that Sarah-Jane Smith! It's so lovely to meet you," Jo said with an excited smile.
"You as well, although I certainly wish the circumstances were better," Sarah-Jane said as she looked around uneasily.
"Why would these aliens kidnap us from Earth? There has to be a reason," Ian wondered out loud.
"I think it's obvious," Ace said grimly. "What's the one thing we all have in common?"
"I'm sorry, but what are you implying?" Barbara asked, she and Ian looking at Ace confused.
"What she's implying, Mrs. Chesterton is that whoever took us is after The Doctor," Brigadier explained, having come to the same conclusion.
"You know The Doctor?" Ian asked, he and Barbara looking startled by this information.
"We all do. We all traveled with at some point," Mel explained.
"What do they want with him though?" Nyssa wondered.
"We're all still alive, so it can't be to hurt him," Ace noted.
"It's blackmail. Whoever took us, he's using us to make The Doctor do something,' Tegan said with certainty.
"But whatever could they be forcing The Doctor to do?" Jo wondered.
"Whatever it is, it can't be good," Barbara pointed out.
"The Doctor is the smartest man I have ever met. Let us hope that, whatever he's doing, he's trying to find a way out," Brigadier said, hoping his old friend was doing just that.
Asgard
Not long after
Hidden by a large tree, The Doctor, Jack and Rose peaked out, seeing two dozen men and women with highly advanced guns guarding the entrance to the cave.
"As I thought, it's heavily guarded," The Doctor said. "You know the plan?"
"I've got it, Doctor. Leave everything to me," Jack said, The Doctor handing him his psychic paper before Jack walked down. "Hey!"
"You're sure this will work?" Rose asked once Jack had walked off, approaching the guards.
"Jack Harkness could talk his way out of a death sentence. As I recall it, he did," The Doctor pointed out.
"Halt!" One of the guards ordered as Jack neared them, all of the guards taking aim at him. "Hands in the air. State your business."
"Easy. We're on the same side," Jack said as he raised his hand. "I'm going to reach into my pocket and pull something out. Don't shoot me."
Jack slowly reached into his shirt pocket as the guards watched and pulled out The Doctor's psychic paper. Jack slowly walked over, handing it to the lead guard, who looked at it for a moment.
"Forgive me, Sir. I had no idea the King had commissioned a new Minster of War," the head guard said as they all lowered their guns. "What happened to Minster Thorne?"
"He took a leave of absence, some family emergency. But that's not important right now. By order of the King, all of you are to report to Sector 5A for emergency orders," Jack lied through his teeth.
"Why did he not alert us over the Comms?" one of the guards asked suspiciously.
"You'll be informed why once we get there. But if you don't feel like complying, I'll just explain to the King that you don't feel like obeying his orders. I think defying a direct order from the King is punishable by execution, isn't it? What was your name again?" Jack asked and the guard paled at the veiled threat.
"Never mind, lead the way Minister," the guard said quickly, all of them suddenly very eager to obey Jack.
"See," The Doctor said smugly as they watched Jack lead away the two dozen guards.
Rose rolled her eyes in annoyance but didn't otherwise respond. Once Jack had led the guards a safe distance away, the two emerged from their hiding spot and entered the cave. As she followed The Doctor into the cave, Rose looked around, once more in awe.
Imagine the most beautiful crystal you'd ever seen. Then think of something ten times more beautiful. It still wouldn't be enough to describe the beauty of the crystals in the cave. Rose followed The Doctor, looking around at the pink, blue and turquoise crystals they passed on their way.
"Here we are," The Doctor muttered, pulling out a small knife and using it to start cutting away at one of the blue crystals. "This won't take long."
"You're sure this is a good idea? Giving one of these crystals to The Rani?" Rose asked after a moment.
"It's a terrible idea," The Doctor said bluntly, his gaze never moving from the crystal as he cut it free from the wall. "But like I told Jack, she has my friends. What would you do if she had your mother? Or Mickey?"
Rose's lips tightened, understanding his position. But the reminder that The Doctor had traveled with other people in the TARDIS before, that he had people he cared about caused a feeling like a foot was pressing down on her chest.
"They are in this position because of me, because The Rani wants to use me like she uses everyone else," The Doctor said, seemingly not noticing Rose's distress. "I have to save them, Rose. Ian helped me become the man I am today. Barbara is the most compassionate woman I've ever met. The Brigadier has risked his life, his military career to help me more times than I can count. Jo was there for me, helped me though one of the lowest times in my life. Sarah-Jane, my Sarah-Jane…she's my best friend in the whole universe. Nyssa is good, perhaps too good for this universe. She doesn't deserve this. Neither does Tegan, who put up with all my recklessness until I drove her away. Mel was always trying to help me, even before I knew her. And Ace, Ace was like a daughter to me. In a way, I helped raise her into the woman she's become. They never turned their backs on me, so I can't turn my backs on them now. I couldn't save my world, my family there…but I can save my family on Earth."
Rose was silent as The Doctor finished cutting the crystal out of the wall, picking it up and admired it.
"Ah! There we go. Now-" The Doctor turned back, handing it to Rose. "Hold that."
Rose watched bewildered as The Doctor walked a few paced away, taking off his jacket. Then, unexpectedly, he whirled around, wrapping his jacket around something and yanking it away unexpectedly. It was a gun, Rose realized as another guard rushed forward, trying to strike The Doctor.
But The Doctor side stepped them, grabbing his neck and the guard went limp.
"Sorry about this," The Doctor apologized as he lowered the guard to the ground.
"Where did he come from?" Rose asked bewildered as The Doctor picked his jacket back up off the floor.
"Oh, he's been here the whole time. One guard is always inside. We're not the first people to try this strategy, so the King always has one more guard inside the caves, just in case," The Doctor explained as he put his jacket back on. "Now, we have what we need. Time to get back to the TARDIS…and then contact The Rani to make the exchange."
The Doctor got the crystal, but as we all know, it's never that easy for The Doctor. So buckle up everyone.