"The lucky beggar." said the Doctor, watching as the Dalek was led back to the Shuttle craft by the Supreme. "I'm surprised they aren't trying to get in here."

"Shouldn't we be getting out of here?" said Nyssa.

As if only just remembering, the Doctor began to dash & dart about the Console. Slowly, the Tardis grinding & groaning filled the room & the image on the scanner screen changed.

"Hovering just over the planet." answered the Doctor.

As they watched, a mushroom cloud burst & bloomed on a particular part of the celestial body & the planet began to fade. Suddenly, the Dalek Shuttle-Craft zoomed past the screen before disappearing into a time-vortex opening.

"I was hoping that they'd get caught in all that." the Doctor said, gesturing to the still fading planet. "I shall have to keep a watch out for that Dalek. Too clever, much too clever...and a determined one."

Crossing her arms on the console & bowing her head, Nyssa let out a long sigh. Speaking from her bowed position, her voice was a little muffled.

"What were we doing before all this started again?" she asked. "Feels like a week or more since we arrived on that planet."

The Doctor stood thumbing his lapels, a quizzical expression on his face.

"You know, I don't-aha, wait, Euphrosyne, the Arcade-Leisure World!" he said, suddenly snapping his fingers. "But, I think I may have a better idea, there's supposed to be some trouble with Drashigs in the future, knowing our luck right now we'd probably end up smack-dab in the middle of it all."

Fiddling with the console, the Tardis had only just started it's cycle of groans & wheezes when it halted. Opening the scanner again, Nyssa joined the Doctor & stared out onto a large, daylight field. Green grass stretched out as far as she could see.

"I took Jamie & Zoe here a long time ago, that is to say, the Tardis let me take Jamie & Zoe here, she's very free-willed. Zoe enjoyed it, Jamie was a little put out until we met the local population."

To Nyssa's astonishment, large golden furred creatures sauntered into view. Their antlers were larger than on Traken, but they were unmistakable. The dark golden mane stretching over their necks contrasting beautifully with the lighter gold of their pelts.

"Valan!" Nyssa cried, her voice full of emotion. She was surprised that the Doctor had even remembered that conversation.

"Here they're called Uaeslids, but they're very similar, I think, to what you were talking about in that rust bucket we took to the Temple." Saying this, the Doctor offered Nyssa his arm & smiled.

"Shall we go & have a look?"

"Perhaps whilst we're out their, you can tell me what happened in that pit & a little about the Daleks?" Nyssa asked, tentatively."

"Of course, talking about these things does tend to help."

"I forgot, here." said Nyssa, handing the Doctor back his pocket watch.

"Thank you." he said, replacing it in his inside pocket.

Smiling from ear to ear, Nyssa took the Doctors arm & they walked toward the Tardis door.

Drills whirred & saws buzzed as the mutant sat weakly inside it's shell. The repair work would take several hours & it would have to be inoculated for any unknown pathogens or viruses. Such was a Dalek's lot if it survived being outside it's shell, or in this Daleks case, the outside had gotten in.
There had been talk of promotion due to the time experiments success & the raft of data it had accrued on the planet. From it's position inside the shell, the mutant could see it's repaired dome being sprayed black. Around it, the whirring of drills indicated that the armour panels, ordered by the Supreme itself, had been installed. The various tasks of repair work were being aided by it's Slave Units, dutifully busying themselves with tasks.
Despite the success of the time-experiment, the Dalek could not help feeling that it had lost in some way. Despite it's determination, it had failed to kill the Doctor. It's studies into the creatures were simply a matter for archives now that the planet had disappeared. As it pondered, one of the smaller screens lit up. Twitching it's cyclopean eye over the screen lazily, it's eye lid shot open in surprise when it read the screen.

"Scans finished: Alien Lifeform Detected."

Hurriedly tapping the screen, the mutant analysed the information. Aboard that colonists ship, the Warrior had left a solitary egg. The Queen had anticipated the humans flight and acted accordingly. The creatures still existed in this universe!
Tapping a tentacle thoughtfully, sleep was creeping over it & yet it had so much to think about. Above all else, the mutant thought of the day it would meet the Doctor again & finish what it had started.

The Queen lay in the circle of dead trees at Dead Point Hollow. Above, the black sky whirled & glittering with a myriad of colours & sights as they passed from one Universe into another. Curled up, she wept for the loss of her children & her siblings, for the escape of those that had destroyed them & for the burns & wounds she now nursed from her battle with the Silver One's fellows. Calmly, the Voice began to soothe her once more as sleep claimed her.

"Hush now, my child. We will return again...one day.

Fin