The Doctor slotted the key into the Tardis door & was pleased to hear it unlock. The little piece of vandalism had disappeared with the defeat of it's etcher & the Tardis was now accessible.
"Do you really travel in that?" asked Martin.
The Doctor turned to look at the man. The graveyard looked much different in daylight, though the last time he had not much chance to observe it. The skies were not clear, snow clouds hovering nearby, but a weak beam of sunlight brightened the area wonderfully.
"Yes. She's been my home now for...oh a long time." he said, wistfully. "How about you come with me, see for yourself?"
The hunter stood for a time, ruffling his black beard. Eventually, he came to a decision.
"I think one grand adventure is enough for me." he said. "But I shall always remember you Doctor, for what you've done, even if others won't."
The Doctor, smiling sadly, was touched by Martin's words.
"There is one thing I'd like to ask, Doctor. Is Gor-Crow dead, truly?"
A dark look came over the Doctor's face, wiping the smile away in an instant.
"I'm afraid not. He was able to do as he did when Bedwagyr first defeated him, as he did when he escaped Zalasenda's destruction. He abandoned the body he created & escaped via spores. Oh, you needn't worry, he won't be back here. Even if he is, it won't be for a long time."
"So, he's still out there, trying to find ways to unleash the Giant Lords?"
"Yes." said the Doctor, his expression unreadable. "And I expect I'll run into him again."
Turning, the Doctor made to go into the Tardis, before stopping & turning back to Martin.
"I hate goodbyes." he said, tipping the front of his panama hat. "So how about I say, until our next meeting."
"Until we meet again, my friend, hopefully under more peaceful circumstances." replied the hunter.
The Doctor chuckled softly as he disappeared into the confines of the Tardis, gently shutting the door with a few parting words.
"You'll like this next bit."
Martin stood for a full minute. Just as he was beginning to wonder, a whooshing sound filled the graveyard. Soon, it was accompanied by the sound of groaning & wheezing as the lamp on top began to brighten & dim in time with the noise. Slowly, the box began to fade out of existence, the sound growing even louder.
And then it was gone.
For some time, Martin could here the wheezing & groaning fading, this time accompanied by a beeping sound. Once it faded away entirely, he stepped, wide-eyed, into the spot where the blue box had been & turned about. Returning to his original spot, Martin looked to the sky & spoke in wonder.
"Clever little man!"
Inside the Tardis, the Doctor finished the take-off & wandered over to the hat-stand. Placing his hat & umbrella atop it, he took note of his brown duffle coat before returning to the console.
He was in a predicament. His memory had still not returned & the events he had involved himself with had nothing to do with their loss. He would have to search, to seek out what had happened, but where could he start?
The Doctor became lost in thought as he reached into his coat pocket. Suddenly, a perplexed look fell over the Timelords face as he pulled something from it.
"The Solapulkara seed." he said, staring at dumbfounded.
A smile slowly spread across his face as he came to a decision. He'd plant the seed in one of the Cloister Rooms, give himself a little break & then return. As he made way to the interior connecting door, the Doctor looked back at the console, his eyes lingering on the Telepathic Circuits.
"I wonder..."
The golden orbs bounced & drifted through the cold depths of space. Quickly, they raced past the Moon, then Mars & soon they were floating gently passed Jupiter & it's many satellites. The mind that these orbs contained, however, could see & feel all. As the celestial bodies that made up Earth's solar system whizzed by, the mind within raged.
Centuries of planning, centuries spent building the army he needed to break the first seal, all for not. Because of the happenstance of a wandering Timelord!
His pride had been his undoing, Gor-Crow knew that, he had played with the Doctor, believing him a fool like the others. But he had not been, he had been anything but.
"I shall reclaim my power, I shall recover my strength & return to my quest to unleash the Giant Lords of old upon the Universe. But you Doctor, you I swear eternal enmity with! Never again shall you rest when our paths cross, never again shall you stand victorious. The next we meet, Doctor, Timelord of Gallifrey, I shall destroy you!"
2025, the Chapel near Singur
Alexander cleaned the pew sitting nearest the altar. As he did, volumes of dust puffed out & into the cold air of the chapel. He had little to do this day & was not looking forward to the prospect of a proper spring clean when he heard the foyer doors open. Looking up, an older woman stood marvelling at the interior of the building.
"A foreigner." he thought to himself. "Don't get many in these parts."
The woman in question was indeed as such & Alexander found himself trying to place her features. There was an odd mixture of Asian & Caucasian in her face that he decided she was of mixed-race. Her age was difficult to discern, she was certainly older than him, but knew from experience that people from the far east tended to age slower. He had once met a Japanese woman he thought to be in her late thirties & was astounded when she had laughingly informed him that she was over sixty.
The woman at the end of the aisle looked forty, but he would make no assumptions. Striding toward her, Alexander took note of the woman's beauty.
"Good afternoon." he said in his best English. "I'm Father Alexander of this little parish."
"Good afternoon, Yumiko Pollington." replied the woman, a soft smile on her lips as she extended her hand. "I was wondering if you could help me. I'm on something of a touring holiday, for an old friend, and I'd heard tell of a strange stained glass window you had here."
"Oh, yes, of course." said Father Alexander. "This way."
The Father led Yumiko to the left of the aisle & behind a pillar. The sight that met Yumiko's eyes made her beam with joy.
"It was commissioned in 1821 by a local hunter, a relative of mine actually, called Martin Dragos. He said it was to honour an old friend who helped the region. That said, the records of that time are woeful. A fire destroyed the local castle & the village was reportedly attacked by monsters. It was accepted by the new priest to fix over an older stained glass window that had been broken."
Yumiko "hmmed" her acknowledgement as she took in the sight before her. She had been travelling to various places in search of evidence of the Doctor's passing & had found many, but this was the first she had found of her Doctor.
He stood beaming out from the myriad of colours that made up the window, his question mark umbrella held near his stomach, his had perched atop his head. Above him, within a circle, was the familiar shape of the Tardis, seemingly in mid-flight.
"Hello, Doctor." she said, wistfully. "I always find you in the funniest places."
To be continued in
The Priests of Desire
A Doctor Who/Hellraiser Crossover