Chapter 30: The Traitor
A heavily armored entourage escorted Missy through the prison and out to a waiting police car. Heavy shackles chafed her wrists behind her back. Laser guns prodded into her spine, urging her forwards.
"Boys," she tsked, snarling as the muzzle of a gun tapped against her shoulder blade. "This is no way to treat your pilot."
"Shut up, Time Lord," the guard hissed through pointed teeth. "You're lucky they made this deal with you, because otherwise you'd fry tonight."
"It's Time Lady," she snipped, stressing the last word. "Seriously, why does everybody get that wrong?" she shrugged expressively. "Do I not look like a woman?"
"Move!" another guard barked, gesturing towards the black and white hovercar. "Get in!"
"Alright, alright," Missy grumbled. "You don't have to be so cross." Daintily lifting a leg, she climbed into the vehicle. A guard clambered into the seat beside her, keeping his weapon trained on her chest.
The gull-wing door slammed shut. The other officers took their seats. With a whirr, the car powered up. Shuddering, it lifted off the ground, stirring up a cloud of glittering sand in its wake. It rose into the sky and turned towards the clearing where the Tardis laid.
Missy reclined back into the seat, relaxing. Smirking, she thought about the look on the Doctor's face when she had accepted the assistant mayor's offer. His precious Tardis, repaired, and in her hands. Sure, they had said that the Doctor would be executed tonight, but she brushed it off. That was a later problem. Besides, he probably deserved it.
Without a hint of remorse, she chuckled to herself. Revenge was so sweet.
The engine of the hovercraft groaned as it decelerated. Missy looked out the window, grinning as her prize came within view. Kapponians were such idiots. They were practically handing her a loaded weapon.
With a dull hum, the craft descended. Plumes of dust scattered into the air as it was blasted aside by the powerful jets. The police car touched down with a thud, resting heavily on the grassy field.
The front doors opened, swinging out towards the sky. The two guards who were riding up front stepped out. With their weapons ready by their sides, they unlocked and opened the back door.
Cautiously, Missy poked her head outside, studying the terrain below. With her hands cuffed behind her back, she would not be able to break a fall. Luckily, the ground was flat with no rocks or roots to trip her up. Ducking under the raised door, she came into the sunlight.
Behind them, another hovercraft approached. This one was different, solid black with a sleek elegance. The double sunlight streaked across its surface in golden flashes. Kapponite-powered thrusters pulsed a beautiful azure as it touched down.
Missy raised an eyebrow. It must belong to someone important. It was an impressive vehicle, but of course, nothing compared to the Tardis.
A tall Kapponian clad in a navy blue robe emerged from the car. Embroidered golden threads snaked along the arms and chest of the outfit, sparkling brilliantly. The figure carried a pompous air about him.
Two special agents flanked his sides, fitted with earpieces and dark sunglasses. Wordlessly, the group approached her. The leader held out a scaly palm and immediately all the other Kapponians halted in their steps. Standing face-to-face with Missy, he regarded her with a carefully disguised sneer.
"Time Lady, I am Lord Trion, mayor of this city," he began in a booming voice, puffing out his chest. "I am pleased that you have accepted my offer. I believe that we could forge a valuable partnership, of sorts."
"Please," he pointed to one of the cops, "Officer Payol, remove the Time Lady's cuffs. She will need her hands."
"You don't have to keep calling me 'Time Lady,'" Missy suggested with a shrug. Behind her back, the weighty cuffs unlatched and dropped to the ground. She brought her arms around, rubbing at her wrists. "'Missy' will do."
"Missy, then," Lord Trion continued, gesturing towards the ship. "We have provided the proper Kapponite crystal for this Type-40 Tardis, an even better one than it had before. All it requires is somebody who knows how to fly it."
"Well," Missy smiled with a curtsey, "then you've come to the right person, dear."
"I am glad," the mayor rumbled in his deep voice. He gestured towards the propped-open diner door. "Shall we?"
Surrounded on all sides by armed police, Missy knew it was an order and not a request. With her head held high, she walked into the diner she had grown to resent.
All that work, all those hours, ultimately for nothing. The scent of grease and old lemonade hung in the air. At least she would never have to work there again. She was definitely going to change the exterior first chance she got.
One of the special agents darted ahead, pushing open the kitchen door for the group. The cheery painted face of Elvis Presley mocked her as she passed into the console room.
The Tardis warbled lowly, obviously not happy. The lights were dim and the roundels dotting the walls glowed an angry red instead of their usual blue and orange. Steam hissed up from the floor vents, almost like the ship was seething. The Cloister Bells tolled from deep within, causing the steel grates to vibrate beneath their feet. At the edge of her mind, Missy could feel the telepathic rage of the Old Girl spilling into her thoughts.
The mayor took a moment to admire his new possession with smug satisfaction. "Despite installing the new crystal, we cannot get the ship to fly. We fear the installation was unsuccessful."
"That's okay, darling, let me check the repair," Missy suggested, pointing downstairs.
Lord Trion nodded to his officers. "Follow her. Make sure she does not touch anything else," he warned with an upturned finger.
Feeling the poke of a muzzle into her back again, Missy scowled. She and the cadre of guards made their way down into the steaming underbelly of the ship. She coughed, waving the hot vapors away from her face. Clearing her throat, she lifted up the hood to inspect the repair job.
Clearly, whoever had attempted to install the crystal had not done their homework on Type-40 Tardises. It was a wonder the whole ship had not blown up with the messy tangle of wires criss-crossing around the crystal.
"Well, there's your problem," she murmured, holding up a loose ball of wires. "Whoever you picked to install this thing was an idiot."
The gun to her back dug harder into her skin. "Just fix it, Time Lady," the officer grunted.
"Yeah, yeah, I heard you the first time," she griped, waving him off.
Sticking her hands into the fray, she carefully sorted out the lines feeding to the shining blue mineral. First, she had to undo the mess that the technician had created. Unplugging, straightening, and replugging various cables, the unruly mass finally began to look organized.
Knowing that the officers surrounding her didn't know jack about Tardises, all she had to do was act like she was only installing the crystal. Spotting a colorful bundle of wires, a ghost of a smile crossed her lips. Letting her into the Tardis was a big mistake, and Lord Trion and his men were about to pay for it.
After several more minutes, she finally made the last connection. A bright flash emanated from the faceted rock, shining brilliantly. The ship vibrated in a low pitch, trilling as it reformed itself.
Bangs and clunks rang out from within the ship. Previously deleted rooms restored themselves. The humming noise picked up in frequency as the ship regained dimensional power.
Satisfied with her work, Missy shut the hood with a clang. "Nothing to it," she cocked her head, grinning innocently. She dusted off her hands, wiping them against her orange jumpsuit.
After she was escorted back upstairs to the central column, Missy flicked switches and pressed buttons on the panels. Blips and beeps followed her movements. The rotor lights brightened and steam stopped filtering up through the vents. She reached for the video screen, bringing it around in front of her. Sprawling circular Gallifreyan words swirled on the screen.
"100% restored."
"Good." Missy grinned, proud of herself. It had not been the easiest of repairs. She turned around, facing the dignitary and his men. "Mayor Trion," she began in her best Scottish accent. "she's purrin' like a kitten, Cap'n."
"Wonderful," he clapped his hands together eagerly. "Let's take it on a test drive."
"Where and when do you want to go?" Missy asked, fingers hovering over the multicolored keyboard.
"Take me to the future," he breathed, already imagining a world where he was the ruler of all. He had kept the capture of the Tardis secret from the planetary leadership. With its power, he could overthrow them all.
"You got it, boss," Missy quipped cheerfully. Quickly, she punched in the requested time frame, along with a few other things. Resting her hand over the master lever, she hesitated. She looked back over her shoulder to the group behind her with a wicked smile.
"Ready?" she asked.
"Get on with it," Trion huffed, impatient.
Sniggering under her breath, she turned back to the console, firming her grip on the lever. "As you wish."
Suddenly, she leaped up onto the panel, sitting on it with her back to the glass column. Her feet dangled above the floor. Before the guards had a chance to react, she threw the lever down.
Bright blue electricity danced chaotically across the metal floors, shooting up the legs of everybody in the ship. The Kapponians froze in place with arched backs and silent screams. The bolts arced from person to person, snaking along the floor.
Safely perched, Missy laughed hysterically, the lightning reflecting off of her soulless eyes. Static electricity sent her hair flying in all directions, giving her the look of a mad scientist. The smell of sizzling flesh reeked. She wrinkled her nose in disgust.
"You fools!" she cackled like a witch, kicking her legs gleefully. "You should have never let me near the Tardis!"
Above her, the rotors spun and the orange rods inside the glass column pumped up and down. The Tardis wheezed and groaned as it dematerialized into the Time Vortex, leaving its unwanted occupants behind in the dirt.
Missy punched a button and the electrical surge ceased, fizzling into nothing. Her wild hair dropped back down around her shoulders. Silence fell across the ship.
After a few moments, she tapped the floor with a rubber sole. Nothing happened. The buzzing had disappeared and the crackle in the air had settled back into its usual hum.
Feeling safe to do so, Missy hopped down from the panel. Unable to contain herself, she danced and twirled around the console, free at last, with a whole Tardis to herself. She giggled, imagining all the mischief she could get up to.
"Now," she stopped with a flourish, bringing the video screen back around. She punched coordinates into the keyboard, manicured nails clacking against the plastic keys as she typed. "Let's get the hell out of here."
Data entered, she gripped the master lever and pulled. The ship groaned louder than normal, almost a growl. The rods in the column pumped and the rotors spun again. The red lights emanating from the roundels pulsed like veins. With a heavy thunk, the Tardis landed on solid ground. The entered coordinates glowed on the screen, confirming their location.
Merrily, Missy skipped through the room and up to the kitchen door, ready to see someplace other than that dreadful planet. She pushed past it nonchalantly, stepping onto the checkered tile of the diner.
The sound of half a dozen laser guns powering up entered her brain. Looking up, she froze mid-step.
"Oh shit."
Standing in front of her, were the very angry members of the entourage she had left behind, pointing their guns at her chest. Her hearts pounded erratically against her ribs, betraying her facade of control.
The Tardis had lied to her. The Old Girl had not killed her guests as intended, nor had she actually traveled anywhere in time or space. Instead, she had taken Missy right back to where she had started.
Throwing her hands up in surrender, all Missy could do was hope that they wouldn't kill her on the spot. She crooked her lip, impressed at the ship's deviousness. She didn't think the stubborn old bat had it in her. "Why, somebody's been very very naughty," she chided the walls.
There was a flash of bright blue light and Missy crumpled to the ground, motionless. The tinny sound of lasers reverberated around the diner but never reached her ears.