Breaking The Circle

Summary: In the aftermath of 'Earthshock', a grieving Tegan and Nyssa find the withdrawn 5th Doctor acting secretively, resulting in a visit to Earth's distant past. Following him, Tegan finds the Doctor committing… murder? But the truth is something far deeper, and surprising, as the identity of the victim becomes clear… Please read and review!

Characters: The 5th Doctor, Tegan, Nyssa. And another established Doctor Who character…

Disclaimer: Naturally, I do not own the rights to Doctor Who. Many people were responsible for the show's creation – chief amongst them being Sydney Newman and Verity Lambert.

Tegan Jovanka was beginning to regret her decision to track down the Doctor.

The young, brash-minded, Australian lady reflected upon the situation. The fair-headed, youthful-looking Time Lord had been acting in a secretive manner of late, within the last few days. Well… Tegan had been sleeping in her bedroom in the TARDIS on three occasions since…the tragedy. So that was how she measured her 'days' within a vast machine that had no windows or portholes to look out of, when the TARDIS was travelling through the space-time vortex.

After the tragic event that was still weighing on Tegan's mind, the TARDIS had arrived at a medical facility, sometime in Earth's future – as it was run by humans on a Solar System asteroid, in 5000 AD. The strange thing was that the Doctor seemed delighted to have arrived where they were. As if he had actually managed to pilot his craft to where he wanted to be. Granted, it wasn't the first time ever in Tegan's experience, but even so…

Whilst Tegan and Nyssa had been allowed by the Doctor to explore some of the facilities on the Titan base, the Doctor had apparently acquired some equipment for his laboratory in the TARDIS after speaking to a Professor Marius – who was asking him in turn about something called 'K9' (whatever that was, Tegan reflected). But as to the nature of the equipment the Doctor wanted? He had smiled, but refused to answer Tegan's question, muttering something about 'addressing something he should have thought about, several lifetimes ago'.

Tegan had seen the regeneration of the Doctor from his tall, brown curly-haired persona to his present, younger, cricket jumper wearing incarnation. She wondered just how many faces this man of mystery had already worn in his past…

This odd behaviour from the Doctor had kicked off in the wake of…that clash with the Cybermen, a few 'days' ago. When Adric had been blown up in that freighter that had crashed into Earth, during its Cretaceous period – the catastrophic process that apparently had led to the extinction of the dinosaurs.

The Doctor, Nyssa, and herself had been unable to save Adric from his fate, as the Alzarian stayed on the freighter to use his mathematical skills to unlock the Cybermen's locks on the course controls. The TARDIS could not lock onto the freighter when it slipped back into the past. And so, Adric had died alone.

Tegan and Nyssa had been distraught – and they had drowned together in their joint grief as they fiercely hugged each other. The Doctor's reaction had been somewhat different. Tegan had seen his face as he first fell into shock. Then numbness. Followed by his physical withdrawal as he retreated into the depths of the TARDIS, to mourn in his own quiet way.

So, each 'morning' when Tegan had woken up, of late, it didn't take long for her groggy mind to remember the brutal fact that Adric was gone… They were all still coming to terms with it.

Now, they were on at a different location – the one after that medical facility. Tegan had managed to pull herself out of bed, freshen up, and have breakfast by herself. Searching around, she'd found just Nyssa working in the electronic workshop within the TARDIS, dressed in her usual velvety, plum-coloured jacket and matching trousers. The Doctor – so the Traken girl told her – had already left the ship, to do 'something' outside, where they had landed. Nyssa had told Tegan she'd been perfecting an invisibility device for the Doctor, on his request. Whilst he'd been putting together an anti-gravity gizmo.

"For the Doctor to go flying?" Tegan had ribbed her friend.

The curly-haired aristocratic girl had scowled. "No. I saw him test it on a crate. It made it float. Then he placed one of the invisibility devices I'd been making for him onto the same crate. It worked perfectly," she concluded with a smile of satisfaction.

"An invisible floating crate!? What on earth – well…, what on wherever we are – is the Doctor up to…?" Tegan had asked Nyssa.

There had been a shrug from her friend. "No idea. He left the TARDIS about one hour ago, by your reckoning – with the crate, I believe. He took the second invisibility device with him. His instructions, before he left, were for us to stay here. He gave no explanation – before you ask."

"I see… Tegan pursed her lips. "Any idea where and when we are?"

"Well, it is Earth, as a matter of fact. The settings read 'Asia Minor'. I can't remember the exact year now. Twelve or eleven century BC – whatever that means."

"Before Christ. Before the arrival of Jesus Christ."

"Christ? Oh. I remember you telling me once. One of your many religious figures…" Nyssa returned her attention to her adjustments on the third invisibility device that she was making with the electronic tool in her hand. "The first two of these seemed to have worked perfectly. But best to test this one also…," she trailed off, looking at Tegan.

The ends of Tegan's lips slowly formed themselves into a smirk. "I could test it for you, if you like."

Nyssa paused and eyed Tegan, her expression giving nothing away. "So that you can sneak upon the Doctor, if you manage to track him down, out there?"

"Why Nyssa… Whatever made you think that?"

"My experience of you, Tegan," Nyssa replied, giving a tight-lipped smile.

*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*

And now that was exactly was Tegan was doing. She'd ventured out of the TARDIS – which had landed inside a large cave, in a rocky outcrop of hills that bordered woods, olive groves, and a village of toga and sandal-wearing men, women, and children. It was evening outside, but the air still felt warm – though tempered with a hint of a sea breeze coming from the west. So she judged by the position of the sun, which was gradually turning red as it edged towards the horizon.

Tegan had taken the time and effort to find a suitable lady's outfit for this time period, from the TARDIS wardrobes, before venturing out. But she switched on the invisibility gizmo whenever she came close to any large groups of people. Nyssa had informed her that the thingmajig had enough power to last about one Earth hour. Since Tegan had no idea where the Doctor would exactly be, she wanted to save on the power usage. Luckily, there would be no language issues. The Doctor had previously explained to her, Nyssa, and Adric about the Time Lord gift that the Doctor's companions acquired after entering the TARDIS for the first time. It effectively acted as a galactic telepathic translator.

Figuring that the Doctor would probably head for the nearest village, Tegan gauged where the toga-clad people she saw were headed towards. Following them resulted in her seeing the fires being lit with blazing torches around the village at the base of the hills. And, taking care not to bump into anybody, Tegan entered the village – her eyes on the lookout for the Doctor. Wondering if he had already deactivated his own invisibility device or not.

There was activity in the village square – music and dancing. The crowd were clapping along with the beat as drums and a lyre were played. Some of the younger villagers – men and women – were dancing. Tegan looked around at the spectators.

Nothing to note, here… Wait! That's odd…

At the edge of the crowd was an old woman – aged at least seventy. She was in conversation with a dark, hooded figure next to her. Though, due to the figure's side-on aspect and the shadows cast by the street torches, it was impossible to see the face, or if the person was talking back. Then, the figure moved towards a nearby stall that was apparently providing wine. The figure paid with money that the old woman had pressed into its hand. But only one drink was purchased.

Tegan's eyes narrowed, feeling herself becoming suspicious. Taking care not to collide with anybody, she moved in closer whilst shrouded by her invisibility device. She was just in time to see the hooded figure pull out a vial from a pocket set inside the robe. The cork stopper was removed and the powder within poured into the drink…

"Oh, god…" she muttered, fearing for the old woman. She moved again, only for a pair of running children to crash into her and cause her to lose her balance, hitting a nearby wall. The boy and girl looked startled at the impact and resulting cry, but they could not see what they had collided with. Feeling nervous, they soon ran off again.

"Aagghh! Blasted kids!" Tegan fumed as she tried to get back up. By the time the pain ebbed a little, she could see that the old woman was talking to the hooded figure again, and was drinking from the poisoned goblet…

"No!" Tegan screamed – but her voice was drowned out by the music, dancing, and clapping around her. Then the old woman walked off, escorted by the hooded one, walking along an alley. As quickly as she could, Tegan headed after them, glad that she was wearing sandals herself. She was just in time to see them entering a house in the alley – the goblet left behind in the street.

With a determined effort, Tegan raced along the alley. The door to the house did not have a lock, and she was able to enter it…

…just as the old woman slumped herself in a chair in what Tegan would call the living area. In the light of a torch set into its bracket on one wall, the hooded figure was stood next to the elder… Who was beginning to wheeze and press her hand against her chest.

Panic gripped Tegan, and she disactivated her invisibility device, startling the pair.

"Who…are you?" the old woman gasped, her eyes wide.

"Never mind me! Your guest has poisoned your drink!" Tegan yelled. She turned to the mysterious figure. "Give her the antidote – now!"

The elder woman laughed and glanced at her companion. She started to say something further – but then she croaked. Her head flopped back in her seat, and her eyes closed. Her breath shuddered. And her chest fell still. Just like that, it was over.

"No!" Tegan hobbled over, directing her anger at the silent, robbed being. "Why did you kill her!?"

Quick as a flash, the robbed one intercepted her. One hand grabbed her raised fist. The palm of the other clamped over her mouth.

"Tegan… Do please be quiet. This is not what you think…," came a weary-sounding voice.

Tegan froze, shocked by what she had just heard. "You…!?" she managed to garble from behind her covered up mouth.

"Yes. ME!" The robbed figure took a step back and pulled down the hood. To reveal the exasperated face of the Doctor.

Then there was a knock on the entrance door.

"Mother? Who is that shouting in your house?" a man called out from outside. "Is it that stranger you were with?"

"Quickly! Shroud yourself, Tegan!" the Doctor hissed. He quickly activated his own device – strapped to his wrist. And so Tegan did the same. And just in time. A middle-aged man opened the unlocked door, and strode inside. He halted upon seeing the dead woman, slumped in her chair. His eyes wide, panicking as fear gripped him.

"Mother…?" He rushed over to her and examined her. Touching first her arm, then her face, then pressing his ear against her chest.

"No!" the man wailed abruptly, hugging her. After some moments, whilst Tegan and the Doctor stood still (his hand gripping Tegan's wrist to hold her in place), the son abruptly got to his feet, turned, and ran out.

And with that, the Doctor sighed and deactivated his invisibility device.

"Quickly! Help me out, Tegan. We may not have much time!" he snapped.

Tegan switched off her own device, and glared at him. "What's going on!?"

"The son is probably fetching the village doctor. With luck we can perform the swap in time," he exclaimed as he pressed another button on his wrist control. There was a brief shimmering of the air – then the crate was revealed from its hiding place in the corner of the room. The Doctor hurried over to it, and lifted the lid…

…to reveal the body of an old woman. Who looked exactly like the dead elder who was slumped just next to them. The double was even dressed in the same style of toga, including the colour. Plus sandals.

Tegan's eyes widened and she faced the Doctor.

"Hold on! That's the crate you took with you from the TARDIS? It's a casket? And we're…switching the body!?"

"Yes – and yes! Please Tegan, this needs to be done!" the Doctor urged her. "Since you're here, you can assist me. I'll explain, once we're in the clear!"

She didn't like it – but Tegan trusted the Doctor enough to know he wasn't a cold-blooded murderer. A killer of Cybermen who had invaded the TARDIS, and who would've killed him, Nyssa, and herself – yes… But that was rather different.

So, Tegan helped the Doctor lift the double out of the casket. This woman had no body heat on her – compared to the trace of warmth in the original lady who was carefully placed in the casket in turn, her head resting on the pillow fixed in place at one end.

Through the still-open door, they both heard footsteps hurrying towards the house. Quickly, the Doctor closed the lid, then activated the controls of the device strapped around his wrist. The casket promptly levitated a couple of feet into the air, then turned invisible.

"Put one hand on the casket, and your other hand in mine, Tegan. Time for us to disappear. Literally," whispered the Doctor. When we can, we'll slip out."

"Alright…," Tegan grumbled, before shrouding herself at the same time as the Doctor.

Seconds later, the son re-entered the house – hand in hand with a woman of similar age to him. Accompanying them was an older-looking man, who hurried over to the double of the elder who had been placed in the chair by the Doctor and Tegan. He examined her carefully with his hands, in the manner of a doctor. Listened to her chest.

"I am sorry. Your mother is dead," he declared to the younger man. "I did warn you that her end was nearing, after the death of your father."

"Oh, poor Cressida!" the woman lamented, bowing her head. She hugged her sobbing husband.

In the background, the Doctor led the way out through the open door, followed by Tegan, and followed up by the floating crate…

"Where to now?" Tegan whispered, as they left the alley and the village square behind.

"Back to the TARDIS," the Doctor whispered back. "Keep invisible until we've left the village far behind!"

*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*

Eventually, they arrived back in the TARDIS. The invisibility devices ran out of power just before they could reach the cave – but by then, there was nobody else around to challenge them. And the Doctor lit their way onwards with a pocket torch from one of his many pockets.

Once the floating crate had been lowered to the TARDIS floor, and the lid lifted, he had to face his agitated companions…

Tegan was angrily badgering the Doctor for an explanation as to why he had killed an old woman, when Nyssa screamed, pointing at the opened crate.

The old, white-haired woman had opened her eyes, and was rubbing them.

"No need to be so loud, young lady!" she scolded Nyssa. She smiled, her face crinkling with amusement. "You might wake the dead!"

"But… But… We thought you were…," Nyssa retorted.

"Can someone help me out of here?" the elderly lady croaked, lifting her hand.

The Doctor obliged. Soon their guest was out of the casket and seated in a chair that Tegan had just brought in for her. The older woman was looking around the console room with interest.

"Well, this has changed somewhat since my day…," she remarked.

"You… You've travelled with the Doctor," Nyssa deduced, regaining her composure.

"Indeed I have. And who are you ladies?"

"This is Nyssa. And the Australian, here, who charged into your house in order to stop me 'poisoning' you, is Tegan," the Doctor began, rubbing his hand with pleasure. "Nyssa, Tegan. This is…"

"Your daughter-in-law called you Cressida," Tegan remarked.

The eyes of the elder twinkled. "Cressida is the name that King Priam gave me. And I adopted it, to fit it with my new countryfolk. But the Doctor here simply knows me as…Vicki!"

*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*

A little later, the four of them were sat around a dining table, set within one of the TARDIS's seemly-countless rooms. Nyssa and Tegan had used it as their usual eating area ever since they joined the TARDIS crew – but it was new to Vicki. She glanced around at the conservatory-like setting, with the low trees and ferns beyond the eating facilities. The pool even came with a small, gushing waterfall. The lighting came from lit square panels set into the ceiling, far above.

"Oh, this is much better than that room with the vending machines, Doctor," she smiled. "But you still haven't perfected cooking for yourself?"

"Ah, no. I leave the on-board robot chief to do the work, as you've just seen," the Doctor admitted, as he began eating.

"Talking of food…it's time to spill the beans, Doc," Tegan reminded him. "So, the stuff you put into 'Cressida's' drink wasn't poison. It was…to knock her out? But her son and the village doctor…"

"It was a powerful sedative – designed to put Vicki into a brief coma, whilst her heartbeat was reduced to almost nothing," the Doctor explained. "I'm sorry for the secrecy, Tegan and Nyssa. But this mission was something I had to do myself. For Vicky's sake."

"Convincing her family that she had died – and then replacing her body with a clone – was for her sake!?" Tegan raised both her voice and an eyebrow.

"It is for the best. My husband – Troilus – died just months ago. And I feel so old and lost without him. Even though I have a son and a granddaughter. It will not be that long before my time comes, as well," Vicki declared, pausing in her meal to stare down at the table. "Only in recent years have I reflected upon the fact that, as good as my life with the refugees from Troy has been, I have placed myself in a trap of my own making, when I left the Doctor."

"I don't…"

"Let's consider the 'how', first of all," Nyssa spoke up, interrupting Tegan. She faced the Doctor. "What was it that you acquired from the medical facility on that asteroid, Doctor? That casket and cloning technology?"

The Doctor nodded as he took a bite of his pasta dish. "When I left you and Tegan in the TARDIS, I cloaked myself and the crate – floating it into the village where I knew Vicki would be."

"How did…?"

"Previous knowledge." The Doctor waved the uncompleted question aside. "Anyway, I found Vicki. Then I revealed myself to her, in order to have a long private chat. And thankfully she agreed to my plan. Hard as I knew it would be for her. Leaving her family and village behind. I took a DNA sample from her, and got the machine that operates the crate to take in that DNA and remould the organism inside into a copy of Vicki."

"…and I clothed it with a spare set of my clothes, including sandals," Vicki added, smiling.

"What about the clone? Is she…alive?" Tegan pressed the Doctor.

"No, IT isn't," the Doctor answered. "But the machine moulding the clone needed some time to capture Vicki's likeness after I had given it a sample of her DNA. When it was ready, I took Vicki to see her village one last time – then I put the sedative into the drink I got for her."

"Easier for me to sleep and be floated in that crate, rather than me hobbling out of the village on foot, trying not to look back and cry," Vicki added, her expression serious, but calm.

"I see…" Tegan nodded. She waited until everyone finished their main courses. Then she spoke again. "So, that's the 'how' explained. Now for the 'why'. Vicki here was once a companion of yours. Let's hear it out!"

"Let Vicki tell her backstory first," the Doctor suggested.

"Gladly," Vicki replied. And so, she preceded to tell the other women present about how she had left the Doctor – when he had been a stern old Edwardian-like man. He, she, and a young man named Steven, had arrived in Asia Minor during one of the Greek sieges of Troy. Just in time for them to become embroiled in the legend of the Trojan Horse. By the end of their adventure, Vicki had realised she had feelings for one of the locals, Troilus – and so she opted to remain behind.

"So when the Doctor introduced himself to you, today, how did you know it was still him, given his change of appearance?" Nyssa asked her.

Vicki nodded "A good question, Nyssa. The truth is that I have met this…incarnation of the Doctor once before – when the Meddling Monk somehow caused 'my Doctor' to be replaced by the one you know, here. When he became a locum Doctor. So I knew this younger man already."

"Locum Doctor…? And who's the Meddling…?" Tegan piped up.

"Never mind that. Or HIM," the Doctor cut in. "The short version of what you want to know about tonight is that after Adric's death, I did a lot of brooding whilst I tried to come to terms with our loss. So… I switched off the Randomiser, and used the telepathic circuits to tell the TARDIS what was on my mind, and where and when I needed to go, once I had devised my plan. That's how I got to the Bi-Al Foundation and met Professor Marius again – before landing in ancient Asia Minor, in time to catch Vicki towards the end of her natural life there."

"I'm still not getting why you've gone to all this trouble to remove an old woman from her family and her home," Tegan grumbled.

"Let me put this way. Another past companion of mine – Victoria. She was born in Victorian England, in the 1850s. When she left me and Jamie, and was adopted by a new family, it was in 1960s Britain. Think about that," the Doctor put to Nyssa and Tegan. "From the viewpoint of the time we're currently in, Victoria will die way over a century after her birth. I left her as a woman out of time, having to cover up when she was really born."

"Okay…," Tegan conceded. "And how does that tie in with Adric and Vicki?"

"I cannot be sure WHEN Adric was born – but he died at the Cretaceous era of Earth's history. Likely to be long before he was even a baby," the Doctor rested his hands on the table before him. "His…spirit…if you like, is going to eventually found itself born again and come to meet my previous self, Romana, and K9. He'll stow away onboard the TARDIS just before it leaves Alzarius, in E-Space. The TARDIS will then break back into N-space and reach Traken, then later Earth. Eventually…"

"…eventually he will repeat his attempt to unlock the bombs on that freighter – and he will die again. And the pattern will potentially continue forever," Nyssa solemnly concluded, her mind carefully digesting the scenario.

Tegan sucked in her breath, holding her hand against her mouth as she trembled, as her mind grappled with the implications.

The Doctor nodded. "And because we're an established part of Adric's own full circle, I cannot break the loop. The laws of my own race bind me. By dying in a time before he was born, Adric has effectively proven the theory of reincarnation. At least that he can be born again, as himself." He paused, then continued, his sad eyes looking into the distance. "And, searching my memory, I've seen this happen before. During my third incarnation, on Earth. A guerilla fighter named Shura from that planet's 22nd century. He bravely blew himself up in a house with Daleks. By doing so, he prevented the Dalek occupation that he'd experienced in his timeline – but he still died before he was born. His life, too, is stuck in a loop of dying, being born – and then travelling back in time, before killing himself. An unending cycle."

"So that's why you're pulling Vicki out of this time – to prevent her dying before she was born…" Tegan whispered.

"Yes," the Doctor admitted. "I failed Adric. But his death has made me realise that another companion of old need not be caught in a trap of her own making. A trap that I failed to consider when Vicki left Steven and I…" He glanced across to Vicki, smiling fondly. "This time, I am breaking the circle, to save a friend."

Nyssa gave a relieved smile. "Well then… Welcome to TARDIS once more, Vicki!"

Vicki grinned back. "Thank you, Nyssa. It is good see the old ship again. Despite the changes."

"Wh… WHEN are you from, Vicki?" Tegan asked her.

"The 25th century. I first met the Doctor in 2493 AD."

Tegan whistled. "Strewth! Well… Welcome back to the TARDIS, then Vicki," Tegan said to her. "So… What happens next? You're travelling with us?"

Vicki smiled. "First of all, I'd like to hear more from the Doctor here, about what's happened to him since we parted the first-time round. And about yourselves, of course. And yes, it would be good to see some fabulous worlds. Hopefully peaceful worlds. The TARDIS did have a habit of steering the Doctor and me into dangerous adventures…"

"Some things never change, then," Tegan muttered darkly.

"I do not have what my history records as a 'bucket list' of places to go. I'll try to think of some suggestions that our pilot here could take us to. Before it's my time to go…" Vicki bowed her head.

Tegan felt a lump in her throat. Despite not knowing the older woman for long, Tegan felt sorry for her – and she reached out her hand to briefly squeeze Vicki's.

"Don't leave us anytime soon," she whispered.

"Quite," the Doctor agreed. "Well, it's good to have you back, my friend. Considering that I've taken you away from the remains of your family. Now that the TARDIS is under my control… Well, more or less… I'll give you the best final holiday that you could wish for, my dear Vicki."

Vicki looked at him, her eyes twinkling with mirth. "Address me as you used to, Doctor. Just this once."

The Doctor looked embarrassed. He cleared his throat and gripped the labels of his coat with his hands. His voice came out as that of a fussy, aging man "Well, then. It's time that you had a holiday after all you've been through, my dear child. Wouldn't you agree? Hm? Hm?"

Vicki laughed aloud, and reached across the table to squeeze his hand.

Tegan snorted with her own laughter, feeling some of the weight upon her mind lifting, as she exchanged smiles with Nyssa.

*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*

That holiday lasted for a little while, taking in a few TARDIS stops.

Vicki had considered seeing Ian and Barbara for one final time. But she was wary of presenting herself to them, now that she was aged and lined. And she was uncertain of visiting them on 20th century Earth. No, she told the Doctor – who had anticipated her thoughts about the fellow companions she had known. She wanted Ian and Barbara to remember her as the plucky young woman they had left to keep the Doctor company, whilst they had used the Dalek time machine to get back to their correct time on Earth.

But she did request to see Steven again, on the planet of the Savages, towards the end of his own life. Realising that the Doctor, Vicki, and Steven would need some time by themselves, Nyssa and Tegan kept each other company by exploring the city where Steven was living now.

Then, it was onto other sights. The four travellers admired a nebula up close, whilst the TARDIS was landed on a small asteroid – looking out of the front doors, whilst protected by the raised shields. Vicki didn't want to go outside – she still had her fear of heights. But she loved the awesome view.

Later, they visited a paradise planet – with warm lagoons and white sands and gentle breezes from the neighbouring azure sea, underneath twin yellow suns. The four of them sunbathed and explored. Vicki even got to befriend the dolphin-like creatures they came across.

There were other worlds, as well. Ones where the skies were burning, where the sea was asleep and the rivers dream. Places where were people made of smoke, and cities made of song…

And there were a few adventures too. Some brushes with danger. An encounter with the Great Intelligence and the Yeti, for example. Another landing took them to a colony world of the Thals, where the Voord were invading the waterways. But in the end peace was restored, justice was done, and all of the TARDIS crew survived. And when they did, Vicki told the others that it was actually good to feel the old emotions she experienced during her past travels with the Doctor. Worry and fear again being replaced in the end by relief and appreciation at being alive.

But of course, the holiday eventually had to come to an end.

And so, one 'morning'. After she, Tegan, Nyssa, and the Doctor had breakfast together, Vicki told them all that she felt that her time to go was approaching. That it was time for her to see the planet Dido again.

The Doctor found the TARDIS to be compliant once more – as if acting on Vicki's behalf. It landed in the same area that it had previously. A long time before in the Doctor's timeline. The four of them ventured onto the still, barren, lifeless landscape where the crashed rocket Vicki had travelled in still lay, now gradually falling apart as it rusted. They found the spot where Vicki had marked a grave for her pet creature, Sandy. Then Vicki located where her father was buried.

The others retreated a little – to give her space to mourn and reflect.

"Thank you, Doctor." Vicky hugged him when she had come away, drying her tears.

"Do you…wish to be buried here, too?" he gently asked her. "This is a few years after you left with myself, Ian, and Barbara. It looks as if Dido is still uninhabited by sentient beings. Still a backwater world. Forgotten about by almost everyone on Earth."

Vicki considered that, and then shook her head. "And if anyone from Earth does come back here again, and discovers my aged body? Even if it was in the ground. They would ask 'How did Vicki Pallister survive to such an age, on this desolate world?'. No, Doctor… Do… Do you have a means of cremation onboard the TARDIS?"

"Yes… I do," he admitted.

"When the time comes…," Vicky placed her lined hand upon the Doctor's. "Just give me a short service. Remember me for the good times, Doctor. Then scatter the ashes somewhere where new life will grow." She beamed and kissed him on the cheek. "Thank you for breaking my circle. And for allowing me to see some of the beauty of the university before I go on another journey. One that I must take alone. And when I have gone, be good to Tegan and Nyssa. And to all of the companions to come."

"I will certainly try," the Doctor pleaded to her, feeling it hard to say the words.

And whilst Nyssa and Tegan watched from a short distance away, Vicki and the Doctor hugged each other – both of them trying to not to cry in the presence of the other…

*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*

With no specific destination in mind anymore, the Doctor was trying to refit the Randomiser. Or so he told Nyssa and Tegan. Tegan didn't know what that meant. But in response to her questioning, he had briefly stuck out his head from underneath the TARDIS console (where he had one of the base panels open for his repairs) and muttered something about '…preventing the Black Guardian from finding me again'.

The 'evening' dinner saw the Doctor, Nyssa, Tegan, and Vicki eating together in the same garden room. Vicki told the others of her life after the siege of Troy that she and Troilus had fled from, and then travelling to find a new home, including living in Carthage for a time, before settling down in the village where the Doctor had found her. During the course of her life, Vicki and Troilus had become olive farmers and started a family. Vicki spoke of her favourite things in her home within Ancient Asia Minor. Clothes, scents, foods, and songs. She spoke of her family – as well as her parents. Wondering where their souls would be now, in the present year of 2493 AD. And if any of them were alive, would they even be human? Or were any of them reincarnated as another life form?

The Doctor had admitted that reincarnation was not a topic he had studied. He knew of infections that could turn an affected person into an alien lifeform – such as Varga plants, Wirrn, and the Krynoid. But given the increase in the Earth's population over several centuries – and the loss of life on certain other planets – the Doctor admitted that if souls were reincarnated, there was the possibility that deceased humans could be reborn as aliens. And vice versa.

"Maybe some of my family are waiting for me," Vicki mused, as she finished the last mouthful of her rhubarb pudding. In the next world, I mean. Where not even the TARDIS can venture. And where I must go alone…"

Having talked animatedly for a while, she now seemed tired, Tegan noticed.

Everyone else had reached the end of their last courses. She reached out a hand to briefly touch Vicki's.

"It's been good to know you, Vicki," she managed to say, feeling a lump in her throat.

"I was just going to say the say," Nyssa added, her lips twitching.

"Thank you. It's been wonderful to meet you all, as well." Vicki beamed. She then sighed. "I think I will have an early night. Will you help me to my room, please, Doctor?"

The Doctor forced a smile to hide the concern in his eyes. "Of course, Vicki." He rose and took her hand as she stood up from her seat, trembling a little.

"I'll assist, as well," Nyssa offered, taking Vicki's other hand. She opened the door to the corridor as they approached it.

Tegan sighed as she took in the sight of the plates and bowls on the table.

"Guess it's up to me to deal with the washing up, then…," she muttered.

*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*

After Tegan woke the next 'morning', she noticed that the TARDIS had the same stillness as before she retired to bed. No subtle throb of the engines – which was something she'd picked up upon after a while as a passenger.

That meant they were still on Dido.

After having washed and dressed, Tegan got to the eating room. There to find Nyssa sat at the table, tears on her face.

"Vicki…?" Tegan started to ask, knowing the answer already.

Her friend nodded and wiped a handkerchief across her face. "She slipped quietly away in her sleep, Tegan. I found her in her bed, when I entered to check upon her. About one or two of your Earth hours ago. The Doctor… Well, we all sensed it coming, when we last had dinner, didn't we? But the Doctor has retreated to his own room, to grieve. I think he just needs a little time. He knew her for far longer than we did, after all."

"You could've knocked on my door…," Tegan voiced.

"…and ruined your sleep?" Nyssa flashed Tegan a weak smile. "What would've been the point? After I got over the initial horror, I checked over…the body. It was definitely old age. She passed away with… With a look of contentment on her face, Tegan. I can only hope that my own end will be as peaceful…"

"Me too, I guess…" Tegan paused, and then moved in – embracing Nyssa as they sobbed and mourned together, once more.

*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*

The service, just as Vicki had requested, was a short one.

It was held in a quiet room that vaguely resembled a grand church vault, filled with stained-glass windows that glowed with yellow and white light from an unseen source on the other side. The people portrayed in the glasswork, Tegan guessed, were of the Doctor's race. They showed both men and women with ridiculously-elaborate, arched collars and robes – but also people in simpler, medieval Earth-like garb. Some were dressed as though they were hunters or outlaws.

Vicki, dressed in her toga and other clothes, was laid in a coffin – before the lid was shut to. The Doctor gave a short eulogy without any notes. And the Doctor, Nyssa, and Tegan then bade Vicki goodbye and a happy journey for her next adventure.

And with that, the Doctor operated the controls on a console pillar for the coffin to descend into the floor, on the panel it rested on. To enter the furnace set close by.

After a minute, Tegan broke the silence. "Where will you scatter her ashes, Doc?" she put to him.

"I've had a think about that. I'm considering the Eye of Harmony. A lovely, peaceful, green world," the Doctor answered. "If I can get there."

"If?" Nyssa raised an eyebrow.

"The Randomiser is working again. And I've now got the TARDIS in flight. But…"

"But…?" Tegan pressed him.

"I've just got this feeling that I had it switched off for too long," the Doctor admitted, looking sheepish. "That there will be consequences."

"That Black Guardian you mentioned?" Tegan asked.

"Yes. He could cause real trouble for us. He will be after me, for revenge. I denied him the Key to Time."

"Then we'd better stick together – and you'd better prepare us for what could come our way," Tegan told him firmly.

"You would all be better off without me…" The Doctor trailed off as he saw Nyssa stand closer to Tegan and cross her arms.

"We are staying together, Doctor," she stated. Firmly.

The Doctor stuck his fingers in his trouser pockets, and stood there for a moment, rocking briefly on his heels. Then he nodded.

"Onwards we go, then. Together," he agreed.

He allowed Nyssa and Tegan to leave the chamber first. Then he gave the stained-glass room a final look, before he started to close the double doors. He paused with his hands on the handles, suddenly remembering another farewell to a young companion – a long time ago. Shortly before he first met Vicki, in fact. He then gave a sad little smile and spoke his last words, before shutting the doors to.

"Goodbye Vicki. Goodbye, my dear," he declared.

THE END

Author's Note: I don't know when 'The Secret History' audio story takes place within the 5th Doctor's timeline (when Vicki first met the 5th Doctor). For the purpose of my story, it takes place before 'Earthshock'.

'There were other worlds, as well. Ones where the skies were burning, where the sea was asleep and the rivers dream. Places where were people made of smoke, and cities made of song…' This is based on the 7th Doctor's closing speech in 'Survival' – the last televised story during the 1963-1989 run.

The idea for 'Breaking The Circle' has been in my mind for some years. On page 227 of the book 'Doctor Who: The Key To Time. A Year-by-Year Record' a lady writing to The Radio Times points out that Adric dies before he is born. Since reading that, I thought about the fates of Shura in 'Day Of The Daleks', and then Vicki... So, the genesis of this story was planted. I asked myself what if, just after 'Earthshock', the Doctor reflected on WHEN he had left Vicki – and what would that would lead to? He couldn't save Adric or Shura, but he could change Vicki's fate…

Anyway, hope that you enjoyed this little tale. Please be nice, and review this (and my other stories)!