Work Text
Nova smiled to herself victoriously as she put the last finishing touches on her new book and sent it off to her publisher. Who would have thought that her dreams could make money? Not much money, admittedly, but enough to get her through a college degree without resorting to student loans. She stretched as she got out of her office chair, shut off the lights, and began to make her way to her warm bed that just waited for her. Nova smiled to herself in satisfaction at her accomplishment; getting the manuscript delivered over a week earlier than expected instead of a month late was a new and decidedly happy feeling. Wiggling into her favorite light blue, long, winter nightgown, with the Doctor’s blue police box TARDIS she had personally embroidered onto the left shoulder, she slid under the covers and reached out to click off her bedside lamp, wondering what her dreams had in store for her tonight. As she settled down, she absently fingered her new necklace. Her grandfather had given it to her the week before, making her give her solemn promise to never take it off, not even to shower or sleep. He had looked so serious, fervent, and almost desperate that she had agreed. It had been an odd visit. Her grandfather had apparently just learned of her writing and been very concerned. Though she couldn’t quite understand why, she didn’t protest when he had gifted her with the accessory. It was a beautiful golden pendant with a concentric circle design, lines going off at angles. Nova found it incredibly sweet that, even though her favorite grandparent thought it was a bad idea to write her books, he had given her a treasure based on them. It was clearly a Gallifreyan design; a crest of one of the Great Houses. She wondered when he had gotten into her notes to make such a precious and perfect gift. She became aware that most people dreamed about different things at night in high school when she made her first friend. A conversation about dreams initiated a frantic research session on dream interpretation and meaning, but nothing Nova found was similar to her situation. Nova had been dreaming of Time Lords, and the Doctor in particular, for as long as she could remember. She never dreamed of anything else. She had seen him grow up, attend the prestigious Time Lord Academy, take his new name…she had seen so much of his life. Logically, she knew that at over a thousand years old she couldn’t have possibly watched all of his life, but Nova felt confident she had seen the major plot developments. Enough adventures for a whole series of books. Dozens upon dozens. It had never really occurred to her until an assignment in Creative Writing how much other people might find her dreams intriguing and entertaining. So, encouraged by her teacher and her friends, who asked her every morning about the previous night’s exploits, Nova diligently worked out a favorite adventure of her Doctor and submitted it to the major publishing companies. One year later, she had a deal with Penguin Publishing for another three novels. Nova yawned, turned over, and felt her mind slip away from reality, into the world of the Doctor. At least half the time, she arrived in the console room of the TARDIS, considering that was where the Doctor spent most of his waking hours while his companions slept between adventures. This occasion was no different. She blinked in confusion at the Doctor. This was a version she had seen before – she’d seen them all at one point or another, for though she dreamt of him every night it was never in chronological order – but not quite this early she thought. Though perhaps ‘early’ wasn’t the right word. His face looked so open and vulnerable while he spoke. Intensely emotional. He was using the holographic interface to project his image somewhere and the outside monitor screen to see where the projection was directed. It was when she heard Rose’s voice that she understood. Her poor Doctor. To fall in love with a human, knowing all the time that she would die in a mere handful of years. There was a reason it was practically forbidden on Gallifrey. The only way it would work was if the Time Lord made themselves human with the Chameleon Arch, which would change their mental pathways and no longer be who they were. Not to mention it took centuries in the Academy to become a Time Lord…to throw it all away was unthinkable to most. If she counted, a bare handful had done it anyway, and Nova would have fingers left over. Nova leaned against the railing of the TARDIS, letting the Doctor have his moment with his human. From his conversation it quickly became obvious this would be their last conversation. Rose had been caught in another dimension, from which there was no returning. The Time Lords had closed off the dimensions near the beginning of the Last Time War. The only way to open them again had been lost on Gallifrey. Her heart clenched in sympathy as the man before her was unable to complete his sentence, the sun he had been using as a power source used up. Just a couple of seconds more and he would have said those three little words…words so precious and powerful they had started wars and leveled civilizations. Nova felt the TARDIS give her a mental embrace, now that her attention wasn’t on connecting with a sun and a dimension while making sure nothing imploded. Nova smiled in response and returned the telepathic hug. She spoke aloud to the ship, like she had done every time previous, “Hello old girl. Did you miss me?” It was apparently well-timed, because a woman in a wedding dress showed up at that precise moment. The Doctor to spun around, his face a mask of shock, disbelief and surprise. “What?” Nova smiled at the hilarity of the moment with the apparent new companion: Donna Noble. She’d seen her before in past dreams of future events. She watched the by-play for several long minutes, just sitting at the entrance to the corridor that led to the rest of the TARDIS. She was out of the way in such a position, but still able to see and listen to the goings-on of the console room where the Doctor spent most of his time. She again spoke to the ship, “It was a good idea, bringing her here. It’ll take his mind off of his human for a little bit. Give him time to grieve.” She absently petted the wall as she spoke. “Who are you?” the Doctor’s voice cut in right after she finished speaking. He was looking right at her! She took a step backwards, suddenly afraid. This had never happened before! No one had ever seen her. Could never hear her. She could barely touch anything, only the TARDIS. “You—" she said softly, disbelievingly. “How did you get on my TARDIS?” He demanded. One woman showing up out of the blue wasn’t enough? Now there were two! And one was in a nightgown? with his TARDIS stitched on it! His eyes narrowed dangerously in thought at the obviously hand-crafted little embroidered design. “You can see me?” “Yes!” He glanced at his screen, running around his console pushing buttons, trying to figure out what had occurred this time. It all came out normal and he cursed vehemently in Gallifreyan. She took another step back, unsure what to do. In all the years she had dreamed of the Doctor, this had never happened. She didn’t know what to do. Thus she did what she usually did: spoke her inner thoughts aloud. “You shouldn’t say such things, you know. It’s rude. I’m not bat-winged. Besides, your mother would be cross.” His expression darkened and she fidgeted. This was so strange! Such a strange dream. Decidedly her strangest. Nova fingered her new necklace, pulling it from under her nightgown in the process. She wanted the comfort it brought, thinking of her grandfather. It was interesting. Her grandfather had married and had one son. Her father had only one child. So, Nova was the only grandchild her grandfather had, and he doted on her shamelessly. She had spent many summers with him, the two of them speaking of her dreams. He had taught her about electronics, physics, and chemistry. He had worked for many years as the lead scientist for some company and when Nova showed her aptitude for math at around fourteen, he had relished teaching her all that he knew. He never needed to use a book as reference either, all of it coming from memory. Out of all her ancestors, he was her favorite. He spoke about things skipping generations and she got the best of himself. It made her feel special, wanted. He was the one who understood her the most and accepted her just as she was. Now, fingering her new gift, she saw the Doctor’s expression when he saw it catch the light and thus his attention. Emotions ran through his eyes and across his face. She had never seen so many in such a short amount of time, not on him. He was usually excellent at hiding his thoughts. This was getting too much. She turned tail and ran. She heard him call after her, belatedly yelling for her to wait, that he wouldn’t hurt her. She also heard the newest companion yell at the top of her lungs to forget about the girl and get her to a church. Nova couldn’t blame her, if the outfit was anything to go by the woman had been in the middle of her own wedding. When she stopped running, she had made her way to the library. It was her favorite place on the TARDIS…and was currently occupied? Xxxxxxxxxxxx “It just figures that today the Underground would be on strike.” Jessica threw the map of the tube station back into her carry-on bag. Sara rubbed her forehead and sighed in agreement. They had flown in just yesterday to Heathrow Airport and being as jet lagged as they were, had resigned themselves to a four hour nap followed by a dinner of fish and chips in a nearby pub. Despite England’s reputation for having originated the dish, Sara had found the meal rather unappetizing. To her, in that particular pub it was tasteless. I need to get a better recommendation.
The next morning, upon asking the concierge of the hotel for directions to the nearest Underground station, they were informed that the tube workers went on a planned strike that would last for the full day. They were advised to use the red double decker buses as a means to reach the Tower. Upon looking outside, the task seemed daunting. The road was virtually gridlocked. Sara was starting to lose her determination. She ran her hand through her damp brown hair and looked at the overcast sky with a frown. It was already starting to drizzle. Sara pondered their options wondering what choice they actually had. Spend a day inside the hotel? That would be an extravagant waste of a day spent in a considerably tiny room. Jessica would have no patience for that. Vacation days were hard to come by and the money had been a college graduation gift from her family. She had interned throughout college and was fortunate enough to be offered a staff position when she achieved her degree, so her parent’s reward was forced to wait for a year so she could accrue enough time off. She kept telling herself, it was worth it; earning some seniority before taking any leisure time. Now she had her public relations degree and some security. It indeed was a good feeling to have that form of independence and freedom. The sensation of having a place that was her own was nearly euphoric. She was out of her parent’s financial confinement living freely, making her own choices. Although, this trip was one she had long looked forward to, a year had passed since she had seen her best friend who had been on deployment for nine months in Iraq and their conversation had been awkward. Sara was uncertain how the duration of time in a country of conflict would affect Jessica. It had been painful, the many nights Sara had spent hoping that Jessica would return unharmed. She could certainly imagine the worse. Within her community, a boy lost his life in a convoy truck that ran over a mine and therefore exploded. The whole town entered a state of perpetual mourning. He had even gone to the same high school with her although she couldn’t say she had known him well but the thought of a similar event happening to Jessica was enough to instill fear in Sara night after night. She swallowed a lump in her throat at the thought. It’s over now. “You ok?” Jessica asked. Sara nodded, blinking rapidly as she shuttled the memory to the depths of her mind. “Yep, no problem. Just annoyed.” She sighed. “Maybe the strikers saw us coming.” “That would be a change.” Jessica gestured towards the buses. “Oh well. It will be an adventure anyway.” Sara smiled. “Sure. But you know, it’s going to take us more than an hour to get there with this mess.” “You’re right. I need coffee. Lots of coffee. You want any?” “Jess, you know I don’t drink that stuff.” Jessica laughed. “Oh yeah. You really should have been born here. You are a tea drinker through and through.” “Not always.” Sara glanced at her watch. “Better hurry. The tower is only open for six hours today.” It turned out Sara was wrong. It took nearly two hours to get to the tower with the bus moving at a crawl. When they were dropped them off a quarter mile away they were forced to walk the rest of the way. Considering the speed of which they had been walking, Sara wondered whether they might have made better time on foot than by bus. Still, this destination was something she considered to be the highlight of their trip. It had been worth every moment of the journey. Sara was enraptured by British history and hearing the many stories from the Beefeater was both informative and comical. When he recited the story of Anne Boleyn he turned to her and took her hand in parody mimic of Henry VIII, “I promise to love you for the rest of....your life.” The audience burst out laughing in response to the gallows humor. After the tour, they spent time wandering through Tower Square in silence. Jessica was snapping pictures of the stained glass of St. Peter ad Vincula while Sara examined the plastic mold of the block that was used to execute martyrs and traitors alike. She could never imagine what it must have been like to be Anne Boleyn or Jane Grey to make that final walk to the execution spot with crowds either cheering on the executioner or mourning the tragic injustice of the sentence. A cold breeze seemed to ripple right through her and she shivered. Waving to Jessica, she pointed inside the actual entrance to the building that housed the dungeons, indicating her destination to her friend. Jessica beckoned to her in response in affirmation. Sara made her way down the circular walkway, feeling a distinct chill in the air as the area seemed to darken dramatically. She ended up in a room that was empty at the moment. The only light provided by a dim light bulb, which highlighted some etchings on the wall. Sara went around touching the etchings gently in fascination. This was history. Unabridged history. Prisoners made markings on the wall to indicate their time spent in the tower. Sometimes they even designed pictures or poetry. Fascinated, Sara went to see if she could find any writings from the Lady Jane Grey or Anne Boleyn. She approached one interesting drawing that stood apart from the others. A series of numbers and mathematical sequences. She brushed her hand over those and yelped when she felt an electrical discharge. What the..?
She brushed her hands on her jacket, shaking it off as static electricity and tried touching the symbols again. This time she noticed a deepening crack in the area. She could have sworn it wasn’t there before and she felt a churning deep in the pit of her stomach. Suddenly light started to seep through the crevice. Immediately, she tried to pull her hand away however the instant she did, her hand remained attached to the area. “What the hell?” She muttered. She examined the surface wondering if she had managed to put her fingers on any gum residue. There were people who had no sense of historical preservation and would dispose of their trash anywhere. She scowled as her examination couldn’t find anything that would cause such a reaction. She attempted to yank her hand away again. No success. “Jessica?” Her call echoed in the empty room. Perhaps her friend could assist in this embarrassing predicament. Silence. She gritted her teeth and used her other hand to try to detach herself. The force that held her limb in place like a vise suddenly yanked her forward much like that of a magnet. This time, she screamed. The wall in front of her rushed at her. She felt a surge of pain as her head made contact with the wall and darkness descended. Xxxxxxxxxxxx Sara woke with a spectacular headache on the ground. She was disoriented and at the same time perpetually dizzy. A peculiar buzzing sound emanated inside her ears. She was lying on a carpet. Had she tripped? Was this part of the tour? Groaning, she pushed herself up onto her knees. Where was Jessica? Her vision blurred. Bookshelves. A myriad of them. It looked like…. “A library.” She took a deep breath. They weren’t planning to see any libraries today although this one looked exceedingly familiar. They were… Then she remembered. The Tower of London. The crack in the wall. Being drawn towards it. Light radiating from it. “No…I must be…” She rubbed her forehead, wincing in pain. She knew visual disturbances and hallucinations would occur if she hit her head somehow. But where was Jessica? If they had gotten separated… Pushing herself to her feet, she stumbled near the bookshelves. Bumping into one, two glass vials splattered to the floor. Vapors came out and at the same time whispers in a language that was foreign but so very familiar at the same time. She could almost make out the words if she— The door suddenly opened, and a barefoot girl came running inside looking distinctly terrified in a nightgown with a blue TARDIS sewn directly on the front. Sara pressed her hand against the shelving, squinting at her. What happened to her clothes? She started to ponder if some act of terrorism happened in London that was more widespread. She had heard warnings or alerts on threat levels. “Can you see me?” The girl’s question had Sara looking at her, puzzled. Her accent was American. Probably a tourist like herself. “You’re not…I haven’t seen you before…” She was shaking her head. “Probably, since we’ve never met.” Sara took a deep breath. “Has there been an attack? Were you staying at a hotel?” She grimaced briefly at the TARDIS sewn into the blue fabric. She had been forced into marathon viewings of Doctor Who at the persuasion of her friends. She looked around again. Now she realized the familiarity. This library looked very much like the one on the show. Maybe the set designer had based their concept on an actual standing library in London, but Sara only pressed her lips together in momentary annoyance. “My friend. She was traveling with me. Did you see another girl nearby? Darker hair? My height?” The girl only looked at her in confusion. “She’s not here. This was… It should be a dream. The Doctor shouldn’t be able to see me.” “The Doctor?” Sara repeated. “What? As in Doctor Who? The show with the TARDIS time machine?” She paused, taking in the other’s demeanor. “You can’t be serious. That’s—" The door suddenly opened as the Doctor himself ran through the doors stopping short when he took in Sara’s presence. She simply stared at him, dumbfounded. “David Tennant.” She managed, only to earn stares both. “Who?” They asked. “You’re…” Was this a joke? She was utterly bewildered in a place that didn’t make the slightest bit of sense. Maybe the girl was right. It was a dream. Or a nightmare. One disturbingly twisted nightmare. “I’m not here to hurt either of you.” His voice was calm. Even. The auburn-haired woman at her side tensed even more if that was possible, but Sara already reacted, running out the opposite door. “Jessica?” She fled down a corridor, not even wanting to admit where the familiarity of the hallway was attributed from. “Jessica, where are you?!” Her voice was filled with panic. “I—" She slammed directly into someone else and her eyes widened. “Donna.” She said in reflex to the redhead in front of her who was looking around the console room in fury. “And who are you?” Donna demanded. “Another kidnapper I suppose!”
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
“No…I…” Sara couldn’t think. Donna shouldn’t be real. None of this should be… “I’m dreaming. I have to wake up. I have to.” “Excuse me?” Donna demanded. “I’m missing my own wedding and you’re tellin’ me it’s all a dream? You…” She continued her tirade, but Sara ignored her. Why pay attention to a fragment in a dream? She had to wake up, so she could get back to her friend. Maybe she was unconscious in some hospital in London. Jessica would be alone and worried. She couldn’t allow that to happen while she continued to dawdle in this twisted dream land. Running to the door, she opened it, her breath nearly stolen from her at the vastness and multitude of colors of the vortex stretched out before her. She never imagined she could dream something so vivid with such great intensity. The show in itself was a poor substitute for this grand color scheme with all its twisting colors to infinity out before her. She could even smell a certain familiarity…the smell of… She didn’t know. What did it matter? At the moment, what she needed desperately was to wake up right now. She started to step off the ship only at the last second for a pair of arms to wrap around her, yanking her back onboard. She let out a shriek, struggling frantically. “No! Get off me! You’re a dream! Fiction!” Her legs had no leverage as she was pulled nearly off the ground away from the door. With one hand keeping Sara pinned to his side, the man slammed the door that would have led to her fatal plunge. Now he was faced with three mysterious, albeit extremely reluctant passengers who appeared in his TARDIS. His departure and grief for losing Rose had to be set aside for now. “Okay. Introductions! I’m the Doctor.” He pulled out his sonic screwdriver as he was talking, scanning as soon as it was out of his pocket. This was not right. One woman was bad enough, especially with her loud yelling. Three was something else. While he was at it, a flick of his fingers deadlocked the doors. No more running outside to certain death. The second to appear as well as being the second redhead, as still yet to be introduced, was again fingering her necklace. The Doctor wanted to pepper her with questions about where she had gotten it, but the girl looked confused, amused, and afraid. “You can see me…that’s never happened before,” she absently whispered. He blinked and began to scan her with his sonic. “Yes, I can see you. I can hear you. I can smell you too, if you want to know. Very citrusy, honey with a hint of vanilla.” In truth, she smelled like the Time Vortex itself. That sickly-sweet smell he associated with his TARDIS. “Now, your name?” She blinked. “Nova.” “What about a last name? Where did you get that necklace, Nova?” The redhead, barefoot and in her nightdress, was still very confused. “Morganson. My grandfather gave it to me a week ago. He said to never take it off.” The Doctor nodded absently to himself as he listened to the analysis of his sonic. The girl was swimming in artron radiation; her readings off the scale. It was permeating every cell of her body. He was surprised she was still upright and conscious. “How do you feel?” He half-demanded. Nova raised an eyebrow at him and said slowly, “Fine.” She stretched the word out into several syllables. “Shouldn’t I be? What did your sonic say?” “You’re fine.” She knew about his screwdriver without being told what it was. Another fact to store away about this one. She also looked like she didn’t believe him. He flipped said instrument in his hand and turned it on the third girl. Her readings were even worse! “How did you get on my TARDIS?” he demanded. Nova shrugged. “I’m always here when I dream. Though this is the first time you’ve been able to see me. I always dream about you and your companions.” Her face turned thoughtful as she looked at the third woman who had appeared on his ship. “Try running in a straight line. Whenever I do that, the world starts to dissolve a bit and I wake up. I hated the dreams about the War. Ran a lot then to get away.” The first woman, Donna Noble, huffed angrily at them. “Stop talking about dreams! My wedding is not a dream!” She glared at the Doctor. “Get me to the church, Martian! I supposed to be getting married!” “We’ll get you back in just a minute.” He was scanning Donna at this point and shaking his head. The last female, still not introduced, bolted back to the door, yanking on it. Quickly he spoke over her, “There’s no way humans can lock themselves onto the TARDIS and transport themselves inside. It must be…” He turned on all three, thinking quickly. There had to be something all three shared for all three to end up on his ship. His sonic picked up a high amount of radiation in both younger women but nothing was registering on Donna. “Impossible. Some sort of subatomic connection?” He was making one guess after another. Discarding at least five more than he was saying aloud as his sonic gave him more information. “Something in the temporal field? Maybe pulling you in alignment with the chronon shell?” He thought hard. “Maybe something macro-budding your DNA with the interior matrix. Maybe a genetic—" A stinging slap hit him hard bringing him out of his theories as Donna glared at him and the Doctor rubbed his cheek, baffled. “What was that for?” “Get me to church!” She shrieked. “Right. I—" He clenched his jaw. He had been distracted and this hadn’t been his only problem. The girl he had been restraining had just ran to the console. Nova let out a gasp. “Wait!” She remembered some of the Doctor’s days at the Time Lord Academy. She had been there with him, observing. Had explored the TARDIS extensively. She knew what the girl was about to do. A definitive click of the deadbolts being released resounded through the console room. “I’m not staying here!” The brunette protested definitively. “I have to wake up.” She was back at the door, pulling it open. “Jessica!” Once again, the Doctor dragged her away from the door while she kicked and screamed. A glow started to become apparent through the girl’s body, resonating throughout her skin. The equipment around him started to spark. This was becoming really serious. Somehow, she had known how to un-deadlock his own ship. Along with the intense radiation she exuded, this was incredibly serious. Swiftly, he pressed two fingers to her temple. “Just calm down.” He said, his voice taking on a mesmerizing tone. “You’re alright. Just relax and breathe.” It was starting to work. He felt her struggles ease as the tension slipped out of her body. “That’s it.” He said encouragingly. The Doctor closed the doors again, glancing between the three passengers. Something would have to be done about that; especially if at least one knew that mechanism on his own ship, then probabilities suggested more than one knew. “Now, what’s your name?” His voice was calm. Her response was dreamy. “Sara Thomas.” “Right. Good. That’s very good.” He had their names. It was a step forward. “Do you know how you got on board my ship?” “No.” Sara closed her eyes briefly and the Doctor sighed. If it wasn’t one thing, it was three. “Not a ship,” she managed slowly. “Pardon?” He said in confusion. Was she so disoriented, she was having trouble grasping reality? “A show. A t.v. show. You’re a fictional character. I just want to wake up. Find Jessica. She’s alone at the Tower of London.” Her voice became pleading, her eyes beginning to water. “Please let me wake up! Let me find her!” Nova only looked at the new girl blankly. A show? What show? Weren’t these her books? She had chronicled his life in painstaking detail. At one point, she thought perhaps maybe the girl, Sara, had perhaps dreamed her way aboard the TARDIS for the first time as compared to Nova’s repeated trips but…but… No. It looked like where ever Sara was from, it was somewhere completely different. The feeling of the TARDIS in Nova’s mind. A measure of sympathy for them both but something else. She knew the Doctor had just said his painful farewell to the love of this his’ life, Rose. Burning up a sun just to say goodbye. She remembered his tears. There was a feeling of innate dread. Burning up the remnants of a remaining, already decaying, demolished universe to say… She swallowed, shaking her head, looking at Sara. Staring at the center of the console, Nova closed her eyes briefly, now wanting more avidly than ever to make the return journey back to her own bed. It wasn’t working. She could still hear Sara’s protests. Donna’s indignant demanding screaming orders to take her back to her wedding. The Doctor temporarily took the manual deadlock controls offline. Only his sonic could now open the door as he glanced at the monitor, typing in commands, running scans of the immediate environment. Suddenly, Nova saw his skin go a sickly shade of pale as he absently ran one hand through his hair, leaving it a baffling mess. It can’t be. The crack that had formed. The one he used to help boost his signal to communicate with his beloved Rose. The already dying universe for which he burned up the sun. The rhodium particles signature. Sara’s signature was identical… But Nova, different biosignature. The girl’s plane of origin was different. There was no void matter. Was she from his universe? Why wouldn’t his TARDIS pick up her signature before? It wasn’t as if it was subtle! He still had Donna on his hands but registered nothing remarkable about her. It was possible she had only been pulled into the TARDIS in the wake of the other two. Perhaps. All at once, he decided he needed to get them to his medbay. He couldn’t tell anything definitive until he had more data. A plan already was forming in his mind. He entered the coordinates for Earth. Better to deal with that situation and get Donna back to the wedding she claimed to have been in the middle of. That also called for observation. It was still suspect how humans transported themselves onto his TARDIS when he could find nothing on his sonic attributing to the cause. If Donna had been just pulled along for the ride, then he should get rid of her first. Sara and Nova definitely needed his full attention. He glanced at Donna and nodded. “Where is this wedding?” That and the woman was extremely annoying with all the screaming at him! Another good reason to acquiesce to her demands. “Saint Mary’s, Hayden Road, Chiswick, London, England, Earth, the Solar System.” Her voice grated in sarcasm. She glanced at a blouse hanging on a railing and pounced on it. “I knew it. I’m not the first and with these two here….” She decided that based on the girls’ behavior, they must be fellow victims rather than participants in her kidnapping. “How many other women have you taken?” She shook the garment in his face as proof. The Doctor looked grim as he tore the blouse back from her. They started to argue. Loudly. Once again, Sara could only stare. If any of this was actually real, I probably would like Donna. She felt that intuitively. The Doctor seemed to even lose his patience, opening the door upon the familiar streets of Earth. Donna immediately bolted outside. The Doctor started to turn back to Nova and Sara. “Now, I think I should get you two to—" He only released a groan as Sara didn’t waste a moment but raced outside right after Donna. “Should’ve seen that coming,” he muttered. Shoving his hands in the pocket of his coat, he gritted his teeth as Nova instantly started to call out after Donna and Sara, following after them. Only one thing to do now… xxxxxxxx Nova ran after the other two women. Having the Doctor looking at her was just so weird! Despite the fact that he was her friend, one-sided though that friendship was, it was decidedly uncomfortable to all of a sudden be participating in his adventures rather than simply observing. At least Sara wasn’t known. Nova could ignore the facts adding up to not-a-dream if she wasn’t watching him watch her. Scanning her with his screwdriver. Talking to her! She thought it was a little odd that Donna and Sara didn’t want to look at the TARDIS. Most companions did. They liked saying ‘it’s bigger on the inside’. But apparently Donna was intent on getting to her wedding. She smiled at Donna’s half-yelled comment. “No stupid Martian is going to stop me from getting married. To hell with him and his weird box!” Oh, so she had looked at the TARDIS. “You two want to come?” Nova shrugged in answer, but contradicted. “He’s not from Mars, you know.” “What does it matter where he’s from? I have to get to my wedding!” The Doctor had run up, his hands in his pockets. “Haven’t you got a mobile?” Donna went off on a rant about pockets, making Nova giggle. This was more like the observation-only she was used to. Sara was apparently taking Nova’s advice; running in a straight line to wake herself up. Nova hoped it would work for the poor girl…but she was already a block away and Nova could still see her. The redhead didn’t want the brunette to be by herself…considering Sara had tried twice to wake up via suicide. So, she ran to catch up with her. She really didn’t want the girl to be alone, just in case the running didn’t work. Sometimes it didn’t. She still remembered when she had accidently run toward the danger in one of her dreams that she had wanted to escape. It still made her shudder. That particular dream was one of the worst she had been forced to see. “I have to find Jessica!” Sara yelled, waving down a black cab. “TAXI!” Nova nodded her understanding. “Do you have money?” She waved at her outfit of bare feet and nightgown. “Yeah. Tower of London quickly!” The two of them climbed in just as Nova heard the Doctor yelling out their names. She blinked, in the process of closing the door as she half leaned out of the car, and looked back at him questioningly. Suddenly, the vehicle surged forward and the door slammed shut with Newtonian force. Nova squeaked in surprise, turning to see the driver dressed like Santa. “Oh dear…” she remembered when she had dreamed about Rose and the newly regenerated 10th Doctor getting chased by Santa robots. “…pilot fish. This isn’t good. But why do they want us?” She asked softly, confused. This dream was so strange! The Doctor seeing her, talking to her, and now this? Xxxxxxxxx
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
The Doctor swore inwardly, too late to prevent the taxi from leaving. “Thought control,” he muttered. “Who would do….?” He trailed off. Donna was about to step into another taxi, casting him a glare. “Thanks for nothing, spaceman!” She shouted at him. “See you in—" He just managed to seize her arm, dragging her away from the apparent danger. Another taxi driven by yet another Santa! “Oi!” Donna shrieked. “What do you think you’re doing? I’m missing my wedding! I have to—” “You need to come back to the TARDIS,” the Doctor was insistent. He dragged the sputtering redhead back into the alley. Whatever was going on, he couldn’t chase down two taxis. There were limits to what he could do. “No!” Donna protested. “Let go! That box is too weird and—" He already had gotten her inside and closed the door behind him while activating the navigational controls. Donna was back at the door but this time it wouldn’t open. She tugged fiercely. He glanced up at her, sighing as he shook his head. “Just calm down.” “Once I get out, I’m calling the police! You’ll be thrown into prison for life!” “I’ll worry about that when the time comes,” he grounded out. Humans. He was operating the governing circuit, putting the TARDIS into manual drive. She groaned at the resulting jolting. He knew she didn’t appreciate this type of flying. Not at all, and she was protesting. Loudly. He could already feel a headache resonate between his temples as he began to argue with his machine, extracting a hammer as sparks flew along the curiosity circuits. “Behave.” Donna fell silent. The door wasn’t going to open. She didn’t know how the other girl managed to unlock it before. She hadn’t been watching her closely. She should have gone with them. They managed to get away and now she was trapped with this…this madman in a weird blue box. She thought of Lance and her family waiting for her at her wedding as tears came to her eyes. Looking at her dress, she grew more mournful. The happiest day of her life was ruined and she was in the hands of an insane Martian! Xxxxxxxxxx Sara was rigid in the car with Nova. This was truly a nightmare. They were nowhere near the Tower of London and she recognized the Santa driving the taxi. “The Racnoss,” she muttered as she struggled repeatedly with the door handle. Nova glanced at the other girl in surprise. Neither one of them had success of waking themselves from their seemingly shared subsequent dream. “How long have you…” She paused. She remembered Sara yelling at the Doctor, something about a tv show and that he was fiction. A show about the Doctor? Briefly, the notion amused her. She shook it off. “How long have you known about the Doctor?” she tried. She also attempted to work her door handle too, not wanting to appear unhelpful. Even if they were having the same dream, she wanted to lend assistance. She wondered what the Santa robots wanted this time. Last time they were attracted to the regenerative energy the Doctor was emitting but now…well, she hadn’t dreamed this before. “About…” Sara paused, calculating swiftly. “Six months maybe. Watched seven seasons.” “Seven seasons.” Nova repeated, shaking her head. “So, it’s really…you think it’s really a show for you…” “What else is it?” Sara glanced back at Nova, taking in her state of dress. “You’re wearing a TARDIS nightgown. People order those kind of things online and—" “Hey!” Nova said defensively. “I sewed this myself. I didn’t order it.” What an odd thing. To order items with the TARDIS on it as commonplace? Her books hadn’t been that popular to warrant merchandise. Yet at least. “Whatever.” Sara shook her head. “I didn’t even like the show. My friends made me watch it.” She groaned in frustration at the door. “Why did I dream myself here? Why not Sherlock?” Her mind cast on the BBC version of the reinvented version of a modern Sherlock Holmes. “Now that—" “Sherlock?” This was getting all the more confusing. “The detective—" A sudden jarring was heard behind them. Screeching of metal against asphalt. Both girls stared in shock as the TARDIS itself pulled up discordantly alongside their taxi. Sara’s eyes widened as she froze, staring at the Doctor. He was holding a bit of string in one hand as the rest of his body held open the doors. “Open the door!” He ordered immediately. Nova shook her head, helplessly. “We can’t! It’s locked.” She pulled on the handle again as if to demonstrate. The Doctor pulled out his sonic and a distinct click was heard. Nova rolled down her window to better hear him. “You both have to jump!” was his command. Nova froze but Sara looked at him incredulously. “Oh, no way in hell!” Sara said immediately. Nova was shaking. This was far too intense. The freeway road was passing just beneath her. Just looking at it made her feel ill. She took a deep breath. How could she…? The Doctor attempted to use the sonic on the robot Santa that was controlling the car, trying to gain control. He was partially successful, managing only to lock its current position. At least it wouldn’t be doing anything insane—like veering sideways, slamming on the brakes, etc. “Listen to me.” He said sternly. “Whatever that thing is, it needs you. And whatever it needs you for, it’s not good!” He gestured again. “Now come on!” “I…” Nova swallowed. She looked at the door, her hand just on the handle as she glanced at Sara, who was shaking her head in refusal, and then back at the Doctor. He looked at them both imploringly. “Trust me.” His voice was calm. Beckoning as he nodded towards her. At that moment, Nova knew she had to make a decision. She had been following the Doctor for years; as long as she could remember. As much as she was scared right now, she knew that he would never hurt her on purpose unless he had no choice. He could have left them and he didn’t. She drew up her courage and made the leap, stretching out a hand and a foot to him. He caught her in mid-jump, staggering slightly as her weight and momentum crashed into him. He gave her a quick grin in triumph, but he wasn’t finished. He focused on the brunette. “Sara! Come on, your turn!” Sara, now alone in the backseat of the taxi, swallowed convulsively. She knew the episode, having been forced to watch them all. She knew that the Racnoss Empress wanted huon particles for her babies…and meat. So, it was either jump to the Doctor and be safe for the moment, or stay and perhaps be dinner. If it was a dream… Sara shook her head and moved to the still-open door. There was no psyching herself up for this, she just closed her eyes…and did it. One leap closer to Jessica. As soon as the human girl was in his arms, again staggering from the velocity—physics could be very annoying at times—he slammed the TARDIS doors shut and they zoomed off into the sky. “Sorry. The funny thing is, for a spaceship, she doesn’t do that much flying.” He had to turn on the ventilation system to suck out the air, also making sure that the locks were still tuned to his screwdriver rather than the manual controls on the console. No use getting the girls back only to lose them again. “Better give her a couple hours before we head anywhere else.” He again turned to the three women. “So…time to figure out what they want with you. To the infirmary, come on!” He practically bounced down a corridor, attempting to herd the humans ahead of him. “Wait!” Sara protested. “I need to find Jessica. She’s waiting for me at the Tower of London.” “Jessica…” the Doctor repeated blankly. “Her friend.” Nova prompted. At least they survived. If this was still part of her dream, it had taken a very unusual turn. Running in a straight line didn’t wake her. She was interacting with the Doctor. She was kidnapped by robots. Maybe her dreams about him were simply intensifying into becoming interactive. Still, jumping onto the TARDIS made her heart race. When she did wake up, she would certainly have a lot to write down. “I missed my own wedding.” Donna mourned plaintively. Sara glanced at her. Donna didn’t know it but she had been spared jumping from the taxi onto the TARDIS by the fact that Sara and Nova had taken her place. Sara was angry. Starting to curse the fact that she watched the shows to begin with. She didn’t even like science fiction! What was she thinking? “You’re better off,” Sara muttered. “Unless you consider Lance feeding you to the Racnoss because he’s been dousing your tea with huon particles—" “Oi!” The Doctor was alarmed, staring at Sara. How did she know about huon particles? Was it the heavy amount of artron he had located in her system with just the superficial scan of his sonic or… He looked down at his sonic momentarily to change settings. The two girls were practically swimming with artron energy. Were they both acutely precognitive as well? That would mean— Pain radiated through his knee as Sara suddenly lashed a well-placed kick against him. He cried out, “Oi! What was that for?” She stumbled back. “Not doing this anymore. Not going to talk to a fictional alien!” Her volatility and determination came to the surface. “I’m getting out!”Immediately, she ran down the main corridor. The Doctor’s hand was pressed to the side of the hall, caught by surprise as Donna tore away from him too. “Hands!” She exclaimed indignantly. This man, whatever he was, had a lot of presumption. “I’m goin’ with her.” She headed off in Sara’s direction. There was something about the girl. The two seemed to have something in common even if Donna didn’t know what it was. Nova winced. That kick looked painful and the Doctor’d had his share of injuries over the course she knew him. In a sense, she was sympathetic. She understood why Sara and Donna were acting the way they were (he was quite rude by human standards of etiquette) but the Doctor just saved their lives and if this wasn’t a dream… It was a mildly terrifying idea. Knowing that Sara and Donna weren’t going anywhere he couldn’t track, he decided to leave them be for now and eyed the remaining redhead. It didn’t appear she was attempting to flee. She’d actually been very calm (at least in comparison to the others) since this all began. “I can’t help if you don’t come to the medbay with me.” He kept his tone even. Humans responded better that way. Obviously, he made a misstep in the way he handled Sara and Donna. Nova slowly nodded, giving him a small, hesitant smile. “They are just scared, you know. Sara for her friend, and Donna for her wedding.” She took his hand when he offered it to her, leading her down the corridor. “I’m scared too. My dreams aren’t usually like this, you know. You’ve never seen me before. I’ve never been able to interact with anything but the TARDIS. It’s very…odd. Disconcerting.” He gave her what he hoped was an encouraging grin in return. “Well, hopefully I can find out what’s wrong and can get you back to your home quick-like.” It was only a couple doors down, situated close to the entrance in case of emergencies. He grabbed her around the waist and lifted her easily onto a bed. She simply watched him, her blue eyes following him everywhere as he set up equipment to examine her. If what he currently suspected was accurate, her human mind had been unable to cope with all the information running through it. Her first glimpse of him was her doom. Her entire body infused with artron radiation, seeing him let her see his whole life in flashes. Her mind interpreting them as dreams was the only way she could retain a semblance of sanity. Though…the torc she wore was very strange. It was the seal of the Blyedge House of Gallifrey. That Great House was older than Rassilon himself, and had money, intelligence, and political power. The House had protested vehemently on so many decisions that Rassilon had given the House an ultimatum: agree or die. By the next day, half the House had vanished, never to be seen again. At least, that was the rumor. He already knew that Nova’s bio-signature didn’t match the current dimension. However, Blyedge House had disappeared before the sealing of the dimensions, before the Great Time War had begun. It had always been a theory that the House had escaped via the void. Perhaps the grandfather Nova spoke of had been a member of the Blyedge? The Doctor frowned in thought, but continued about his work. One hand snagged the genetic scanner, “Bit of a stick,” and he hooked the wire carefully into her pointer finger. “Sorry,” he said absently at her jolt. Nova watched him. More used to her function as observer than participator. Even though she usually said everything she thought, the more this dream went on the quieter her instincts were telling her to be. When the bit pricked her index finger she jerked, she swallowed. Hard. It wasn’t that it hurt terribly—it was barely more than a mosquito bite—it was the fact that it had hurt at all that made her breath intake sharply. More evidence for this being not-a-dream. It wasn’t encouraging. It took a few seconds to begin to get the readings. What began to scroll across the screen made him pale. She was part Time Lord! One quarter, precisely. What was worse: her dormant TNA had been fully activated by the trip through the void. Even if he somehow managed to get her back to her original dimension, it wouldn’t stop what had already begun. It would be slow, but the poor girl would start to go insane. Her human mind would not be able to handle the information her newly activated genetics would give her. He ran a hand through his hair as a feeling of hopelessness came over him. How was he to fix this? A minute. Two. He watched the scrolling data. He only knew of one cure for her, and it was a long shot. The consequences so high. Did he dare chance it? This would be permanent; no going back. He would be committing himself to this one action for at least the next hundred years or more. On the other hand…how could he call himself the Doctor if he didn’t? It would be cruel to leave her like this. Never cruel nor cowardly. Obligation and responsibility: it was a delicate balance. With that thought in mind, the Doctor sprang into action. He yanked off his tie with a couple of quick, sharp movements. It was an old process, not used in centuries. There hadn’t been a need. “Nova, I need you to take this.” He held out the end of a fabric. Nova was still watching him, had never stopped in fact. She grasped the end with only a small amount of hesitation, he wrapped it once around her wrist while grasping the other end without wrapping it around his own. “I need you to repeat after me.” When she nodded, he spoke the ancient words. He gasped in surprise as he felt their minds connect once she repeated them. His mind hadn’t felt the presence of another in so long… He had forgotten how good it felt! Nova gasped as, all of a sudden, she could feel another in her mind! Foreign. Invading in a quick burst before, like a tulip, planting inside her mind with a finality she knew she wouldn’t be able to remove. The Doctor. He was even louder than the TARDIS! “What—" her voice sounded small, childlike. She inwardly cringed. What had he done? “It’s alright. You’re going to be fine. It’s not a quick cure, but it’ll do the job.” He smiled at his newly adopted daughter. It would be a slow process, but with his own incredible telepathy to help Nova’s mind cope with the knowledge the artron radiation would give her, plus her newly awakened genetics, she would be fine. The adoption would finalize over the period of a week, in which time their mental connection would get stronger until it would be irrevocable. Over the course of the next few years, her genetics would slowly change to match his own until she had only the barest hints of human DNA left. She would never be fully Time Lord, but considering they were all dead, no one would notice the difference except himself. He smiled gently down at her as he shored up her mental shields and began to cordon off her mind into sections to isolate her memories from the rest of the incoming data. The new bond allowing more intimate interaction between them, telepathically speaking, without the need of skin contact (or the more traditional inter-species link of fingers-to-temples). As the Head of House Lungbarrow, even if he was the only one left, it was his responsibility to see to the mental, emotional, and physical wellbeing of his entire House. Now that Nova was a part of that House, he could ensure that she was sane and healthy as she grew into her new abilities. Much like any normal Gallifreyan child. “It’s alright. Why don’t you go to sleep and we can talk in the morning, yeah?” He mentally reached out and pushed the suggestion deep into her mind and smiled as her eyes drifted closed, her trepidation fading. He lifted her into his arms and found a room. He tucked her into the bed and ran a gentle hand through her hair as he covered her with a blanket. He had a daughter again. A family. The Doctor, now filled with new purpose, was able to more fully push aside his feelings for Rose. For now. Here was someone he could care for and protect…and he would, with his dying breath. Woe betide anyone who tried to take his family from him. Not ever again. Now, he had two other unknowns to take care of. Perhaps Sara was also part Time Lord? She had expressed knowledge of the future, indicating at least some time sensitivity. He had already altered the parameters of the TARDIS, which would cause Sara and Donna to head back in his direction. Eventually. After running off their adrenaline the two both had in spades. A door opened halfway down the corridor and both women came through, freezing at his appearance to stare at him wide-eyed. “Welcome back,” the Doctor said as he offered them a grin. He felt better than he had in…well, since he lost Rose. The telepathic touch of a family member was something he hadn’t sensed in ages. It had been centuries since he lost his own children. Sara cried out, “Not this again!” Why couldn’t she run her way out of this dream? All she faced was monotonous corridors. Donna had caught up with her…well, Sara heard Donna call out her name. She stopped to allow the redhead to catch up. Even if Donna was a dream fragment, having someone on her side felt good. There was something about Donna that she trusted. She didn’t know yet what that ‘something’ could be though. “What did you do to her?” Donna instantly demanded, looking at Nova that lay on the bed behind him. Oh, this was mad! She missed her own wedding, was kidnapped, and now one of his other victims was unconscious! “Nothing.” The Doctor gestured. “She’s fine. Just asleep.” He paused. “Why don’t we—" He barely managed to grab Sara’s right arm in time as she tried to bring a heavy bag down on his head. In the space of those moments, Donna was back through the door they had just exited. Running in another repetitive loop. The Doctor grit his teeth in mild annoyance. Sara swung at him with her other arm, so he captured that one also. Might as well get this done now. He began to bodily force her toward the infirmary, using her arms as leverage. “Let go!” She shrieked, yanking with little effect. His strength far exceeded her own. “Let go of me! Not going to be here! What? Destroying Gallifrey wasn’t enough? You—" “—Need to calm down,” he interrupted. The command was given vocally and mentally. “Sara,” he adopted a mesmerizing tone as his physical touch allowed him access to the surface of her mind. “It’s alright. Just have a seat here. I’m going to help you.” Distinctly, he could sense her mind. She was struggling to fight his commands. In his experience, he had never come across a human mind that powerful. Unless… “Don’t…” Sara barely managed the word, feeling like her mind was being compressed. She couldn’t help herself. She didn’t even struggle as he situated her on the medical bed. “Please…” It was difficult to speak. Her body didn’t feel like her own, heavy and adjacent. It was being usurped by a foreign presence and she hated it. Hated the helplessness. The loss of supremacy. “Just remain calm and stay here,” he ordered. He didn’t necessarily like taking control in such a way, but he was astonished that Sara was even able to talk in her current state. He started to conduct an internal ADT scan, his eyes widening at the results. “Self-replicating massive quantities of artron, huon…” His voice trailed. Three different energy wavelengths all operating under different frequencies. Her cells were creating each in mass quantities. This could be utterly catastrophic! The use of his genetic scanner invariably picked up her Time Lord TNA. It had been dormant as well, only activating when… He swallowed when he saw the results of the rhodium discharge. Her bio-signature. He had witnessed and utilized her very universe at the stages of extinction. Somehow, she survived and had been carried through the void. But how? His mind filled with possibilities. With so much huon energy, her emotional state might have carried her through the void, locking onto his TARDIS as part of their genetic mechanism. He knew a bit about Time Lord Ancients. What historians said they were capable of accomplishing. Could Nova and Sara be from the same House? Before the Last Great Time War, there was no void space. It was possible Blyedge had been separated into different dimensions. At any rate, considering Sara’s emotional state and what he had seen her do in the control room, his choice was clear. She was dangerous and temperamental. Extremely overly emotional. Almost hysterical. Once he had a firmer degree of access to her mind, there would be less potential for anything deadly to occur. If her energy were to depolarize…or the wrong person got his hands on her… No. He couldn’t let that happen. He picked up his tie and turned to Sara, “I need you to take this.”
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Chapter 04
Sara didn’t respond. She stared at the piece of material. Somehow it seemed familiar. At least he stopped poking her with instruments. He was looking at her a bit wearily before putting one end of the piece of cloth in her hand. This is strange. She thought. Still, when he started to speak in Native Gallifreyan, the words seemed familiar. “I just need you to repeat after me, Sara.” His tone was even. “Then we’ll be all done here.” Really? He would let her go? Just like that? “I consent and gladly give.” A close variation with the marriage bonding but the words in repetition were still the same for family as they were for spouse. “I…” Her voice trailed. Just say them and I can find Jessica. She told herself. What harm can a piece of cloth do any- Suddenly, she gasped, dropping the ribbon. “The Wedding of River Song.” “Who?” The Doctor was bewildered as Sara was finally able to scramble off the table. “Oh no way in hell!” Sara proclaimed loudly. “I am not bonding with you!” She looked at Nova in dismay. Was that what he did to her? “You sick freak!” Anger resonated through her. Energy came to the surface to the Doctor’s alarm. “Is that what you did to her?” Immediately, she ran to Nova’s side, trying to shake her. “Nova!” She protested. The girl wouldn’t wake and Sara shook harder. The Doctor stepped forward in Sara’s direction as his biometric scanner caught fire and started to spark. “Nova, wake up! He’s crazy! He’s-“ She was pulled away from the girl and she struggled as he placed two fingers to her temple. Direct and fierce contact. Sleep.
Sara collapsed in his arms. He lifted her back on the table, staring at the ribbon with a sigh. This way would be far more difficult but it was necessary. Just breaking through her defenses…he cringed before placing two fingers gently to each temple as he began the work of entering her mind directly. He marveled how comforting it was. How much it felt like home, even at the exterior, it was pleasant. Like being back at Gallifrey again. He could taste the time energy coming off of her…he could— “What are you doing to her!?” Donna had returned. Now two girls were unconscious. She was furious. “What the bleedin’ hell are you doing?! Get away from them!” She was a bit of a spitfire. If he had more time, he would appreciate it more. He shook his head. Donna had grabbed him to pull him off of Sara, but a touch was all he needed. A mental suggestion to sleep and down she went, caught carefully. One more for a medical bed. The Doctor ran a hand through his hair and blew out his breath explosively. This was getting out of hand. “Okay, let’s try this again.” He slipped his hands over Sara’s temples and focused on entering her mind as gently and carefully as possible. It took almost twenty minutes to find the access points he needed in her mind to allow the adoption to take place. There was a reason the ceremony had been invented. It took much less time. Once the adoption link had been established, he began to build up her mental barriers. Again, using his Head of House status to stabilize and gentle. The poor girl was traumatized and almost hysterical. He couldn’t blame her, but he also couldn’t let her continue to be so volatile. He gentled her emotions, pushing them into a box where they would slowly come back to her bit by bit. It was a therapeutic technique he had learned on Gallifrey, used for the extremely distressed and disturbed. Considering what her emotions could do, she would need to learn to control them, and quickly. For the moment, he would do it. When the Doctor finally pulled back, he was again amazed at the mental connection he felt. Another daughter. More family to protect, care for, and teach. That telepathic touch he hadn’t even had with Rose, was so precious. It had been so long with only his TARDIS…to feel others, even if only children, was so profound that he felt a tear roll down his cheek in his happiness. With great care, he spread a blanket over Sara just as he had done Nova. His precious family. A single touch across her forehead, making sure the connection was solid and the walls around her mind held. There was one good thing about the mental adoption versus the ceremonial he had done with Nova. The mental connection was instantly permanent and unbreakable. There would be no settling-in period that Nova would go through. Though, Sara would still have the long process of integrating the Time Lord TNA. His girls could go through the process together. It was good to have someone who understands. With great reluctance, the Doctor turned away from his new daughters and faced the woman still in her wedding dress. “Alright. Let’s see what’s going on with you. Sara said huon particles…” he murmured to himself as he pulled various equipment over and the data began to roll across the screen. Well, Sara was right. Donna was swimming in huon particles! No wonder the red-head had been sucked into the TARDIS, the only remnants to be found anymore were in the Heart of the TARDIS herself. Enough emotions, to be found extremely plentiful on a woman’s wedding day, and you had yourself a basic huon-polarization reaction. “But why would anyone catalyze huon particles anymore? What’s the point?” He shook his head. Huon particles haven’t existed since the Dark Times. The Ancients. The last remainder of them should have been in the heart of his TARDIS but…he looked at Sara, raising his eye brows briefly. That’s what it was. She reminded him of his own TARDIS. Could it… One thing at a time. Sara wouldn’t be happy with him when she woke. In that case, Nova might not be either. He hadn’t told her what he was doing. Never gave her full informed consent. He acted and fortunately, Nova at the time didn’t resist. But adapting to feeling his mind, having their emotions regulated would take time. He would have to explain it. But neither one would pose the danger they might have to others or to themselves. Donna opened her eyes suddenly. It wasn’t just a nightmare. The Doctor or the madmen was here simply staring at a piece of equipment in his hand looking perplexed before glancing back at Donna. “Oh good, you’re awake.” Maybe she would be in a better frame of mine to give him answers. Someone had routinely dosed her with huon particles and only Donna could give him the information so he could draw a firmer conclusion. He remembered Sara mentioning the Racnoss. How are they involved?
Donna felt panic build up inside of her. Both girls were still unconscious. She remembered catching the Doctor in a suspect position over one of them. She was worried. They were young. Whatever he was doing, was she next? No, she wouldn’t think about that. Still the words came to her mouth. “What did you do?” She pushed herself off the bed, going first to Sara. Somehow she was drawn to her. It didn’t make sense. She tried to shake the girl awake. “Sara.” She said urgently. “Come on. Just wake up for me and-“ “She’s fine.” The Doctor told Donna calmly. “They both are and-“ “Right!” She fired back. “I’m going to believe you after you turned them into zombies! You’re downright mental. That’s what it is. Are they-“ “Oi!” He interrupted her. This was getting a little out of hand. “They aren’t zombies.” Humans. “I saved their lives.” “That doesn’t look like savin’ to me.” Donna instantly refuted. Maybe if he just explained it. “They’re generating a very dangerous form of energy inside of them. It would have hurt them or others. I performed a telepathic adoption to help protect them and-“ “You’re downright mad.” Donna cut him off, shaking her head. Telepathic adoption? “I had no other choice.” He said with a note of finality. “The bonding was necessary. Now, I need to know, Donna, you have huon particles in your system and that’s a problem so….” “Oh, I’d say so…” Donna nodded in agreement. The Doctor started to relax. Maybe he was getting through to her. “A major problem because I’m leaving and I’m taking them with me.” She gestured to Nova and Sara. “This telepathic adoption…” She was furious and that anchored her allowing her not to give way to fear. “Telepathic adoption?” Sara had woken up. She heard what Donna said and she didn’t feel right. There was something in her mind continually acting seeming to repress her. The calming sensations, they weren’t coming from her. No, nothing felt right. She remembered the argument with the Doctor. The piece of ribbon. The words that were so familiar. Oh no. Even her emotions, her dread felt distant. Like a steady trickle. “What happened?” It was Nova’s voice right beside her but Sara could…what was it? Feel her too? None of this seemed right. Donna instantly reacted, heading towards them. She knew something was wrong but maybe getting them to hospital would fix it. Doctors…well, real doctors were very good these days. But first… “I need you two to come with me.” She said urgently, hoping they would accede. “He’s downright mental.” Donna heard the Doctor’s objection but dismissed it as she took both of their hands. “It’ll be alright.” She tried for assurance. “Doctors will get you fixed up in no time.” Somehow she managed to pull them to their feet but the Doctor stepped directly in front of her, blocking her path. xxxxxxxxxxxx Nova was confused again, or still depending on how you looked at it. She had gone to sleep, but hadn’t dreamed, and when she awoke she was still on the TARDIS. This didn’t make sense! She should be in her bed now! She could also feel the Doctor in her mind, along with a new female presence…she turned to look at Sara, realizing she was the new mental connection. She blinked at her Doctor, her analytical mind beginning to suspect things that she really didn’t want to think about. “What did you do?” She asked quietly. Donna held her arm, Sara on the other side of the red-head, but it was beside the point at the moment. The Doctor gave a comforting smile to his daughter. “It’s alright. You’ll be fine now, with time.” He made sure that both girls felt his sincerity and honesty on their side of the link. Nova shook her head solemnly. “That’s not an answer. What did you do, Doctor?” She could feel Sara, felt something preventing the girl from doing something. Nova suddenly had a bad feeling. He stared at her for a couple of seconds. “Your trip through the Void activated dormant TNA genes. You would have slowly gone insane. I used your heritage to fix the problem in the only way possible.” Her blue eyes turned colder and in a smooth move she shoved her determination and will down her new mental connection at him, making his eyes widen in surprise. “What. Did. You. Do?” She demanded. The Doctor blinked several times in both shock and admiration. She learned quickly, almost as if she had been doing it for years. In respect for her accomplishment, he acquiesced. “I adopted you and Sara into the House of Lungbarrow, my House. It gave me the ability to shore up your mental shields, cordon off your mind so that you can now handle the information your new genetics will give you, and I gentled Sara’s emotions so that her abilities won’t accidently kill anyone.” In that one moment, Nova had an epiphany: this was no dream. Her Doctor was hurting, she knew this. He had genuinely loved Rose and then lost her. If she and Sara had not been here, or rather if he had not been able to interact with them, she had no doubt that he would have started to do extremely stupid things in an unconscious desire to die; his will to live having temporarily deserted him. But this was too far…he had grabbed hold of a reason to keep going, namely Sara and herself. He had made a decision that was irreversible and most likely permanent. Nova had dreamed so much of his life, including some of his Academy years. She vaguely remembered the adoption ceremony in one of their History and Law classes. It hadn’t been used in so long in part because it wasn’t needed. But the greatest reason: it had started wars. Adoption could be unwillingly committed, children used as political pawns and strategies. One House going against another in the worst possible way; Time Lord children were few and precious, taking them without consent, especially when they already had living family, was one of the worst insults possible. Just the fact that she had a Great House crest on her necklace should have stopped him! In one smooth move, Nova went from being completely frozen, to slapping her new father for all she was worth. Twice. She pushed her rage down their link at him like an avalanche and watched as he staggered. Her voice shook with the force of her emotions. “I Already Have A Family!” She slapped him again. His face was a mass of shock, along with the already blooming red handprints. Nova had held a mental connection with the TARDIS for as long as she could remember. With the ease of long practice, she went down the link to her now-sister and ripped the Doctor’s emotional controlling mechanisms away, opening the ‘box’ he had stuffed Sara’s emotions in with righteous vengeance. “She should feel what you’ve done to her, don’t you think?” She asked with snake-like viciousness. Down she went to her link with the ship and gathered the knowledge she held and showed the TARDIS what her Pilot had done, and she felt the ship’s surprise and slow anger. Now they had the ship on their side. Nova grinned toothily. If the Doctor wanted a war, she would give him one. Sara felt the sensation of freedom as the rest of her emotions came surging back to the surface. The Doctor was in her mind. She could feel him trying to squelch her feelings back down but now she knew why he was doing it. The energy inside of her. Well, she always knew how to put up a fight. Her friend…her sister had just given her the freedom. “You freak!” She uttered in shock and fury. “What you did was no better than rape!” She seized Nova’s hand, feeling the link between the two of them even stronger. She could feel her new sister’s anger. It was well deserved, matching her own. Immediately, she strove to assist her using the very energy she knew was present in her own body to create mental shields for them both. The TARDIS, this TARDIS…she felt her presence. Recognition. A sense of familiarity and then anger at her Thief for what the Doctor had just committed. He had lost his way. He had overstepped the boundaries of a Time Lord and she was helping Sara with the task at hand so that their emotions were protected from the Doctor.“You….” Sara shook her head, her lips peeling back. She immediately thought of Mars that lay in the Doctor’s future. To her this was fundamentally worse. He nearly broke a fixed point in time but he had stepped back, but here… “Time Lord Victorious!” She said with disgust. “Valeyard!” The Doctor was astounded. Everything was going terribly wrong. He couldn’t regain control over their emotions as the Head of House. He could still feel their minds. The connection was stable but there were barriers protecting Sara and Nova now from exerting his rightful influence. Maybe if he…once again, he tried to issue the command through the mental link with them to sleep. It wasn’t working. Oh, they heard the command given the expression on their faces but it was being blocked at the moment into taking physical effect. “Oh, that’s your sure-fire way for everything, isn’t it?” Sara was beyond disgusted. “Commanding us to sleep.” She pressed her lips together. “What about our families? My parents? Nova’s? We want to go back home.” “You can’t.” The Doctor’s voice was firm. He knew what happened to Sara’s universe and he wouldn’t let Nova go. To lose a bonded family member was worse than death on both sides. The pain would be excruciating. He wouldn’t allow that to happen. “We’re bonded now and-“ Nova’s slap was now followed by Sara’s and she glared at him spitefully. “Fix it.” She demanded. “Take it off. Release us both.” He shook his head, his face becoming stern. These were his daughters. He needed to show authority. “No.” He told her. “I can’t. I wouldn’t even if I could.” “And what would Rose think about what you did?” Nova was just staring at him. “Do you think she would approve? She tried to make you better and you…you did this.” She was horrified. She trusted him. How had things gone so terribly astray? “You’re not the Doctor anymore.” “No, he isn’t.” Sara agreed, stepping away from him towards Donna. The woman had tried to help them, despite the circumstances. How horrible that must have been for her. She looked at Donna feeling a genuine sensation of trust. “Let’s go.” She looked over at Nova. “I know we can trust her.” Donna was relieved. Maybe whatever that madman did was reversible despite what he said to the contrary. Now it was three against one. “Let’s get you two out of her.” Even if her wedding day was ruined, she would be able to help these girls. Gramps will know what to do. The Doctor once against stepped in front of their path. He wasn’t about to let them go. “I need you two to stay here.” At this stage, he would likely need physical contact to exert forcible commands. He felt their emotions, their anger rage to the surface. Sara simply reacted. She didn’t know how she knew to do what she did. Somehow a prodding in her mind gave her the information she needed. Energy. A singular golden charge jolted him across the room, away from them. He collapsed, momentarily unconscious. Stunned. They could both feel his mind, knowing he was still alive as Sara looked down at her hands with shock. Was that really her? How…? It didn’t matter. She grasped hold of Nova’s hand, following Donna out the door. “Be careful what you bond with.” It was a vocal and mental command sent to him. Nova only paused briefly to relieve him of his sonic screwdriver. All those years dreaming of him, she knew how to operate many of its functions. The console room lay open to them. Nova was silent as she changed the settings to open the door. At least with the sonic, they had a chance to survive. A plan. But in those moments, when she had gone down the mental link for her new ‘father’ to unlock Sara’s emotions, she discovered with certainty the horrifying truth of what happened to her friend’s universe. Nova swallowed. She had to be the one to tell her. Better that than the Doctor and how he planned to divulge the information. Sara had the right to feel the pain and grief of what happened to her family. This was now her sister after all. Just before they left the TARDIS, Nova remembered another little piece of that long-ago History and Law class on Gallifrey. Her eyes widened. “I have an idea. If nothing else gets through to him, this should.” She swallowed, her eyes fearful. “I saw your memories of the Time Lord Victorious. We can’t let him become that. As much as I hate him for it right now…he’s family.” She spit out the word in distaste, her face a mask of disgust. “We have to protect everyone else…even from him. We can’t let him become the Valeyard, or the Time Lord Victorious.” Her eyes went up to gaze into Sara’s as she sent the information down their new mental link. “Do you think it will work?” Sara’s eyes widened at the sudden flood of information, startled. Then she grew thoughtful, considering Nova’s words carefully along with the plan she had proposed. “It might…you’re right. We can’t let him become those men, it would destroy so many lives. It might be drastic enough to give him a clue.” She nodded in agreement. Both girls turned around abruptly and went back toward the Infirmary. They caught the Doctor as he was just starting to wake up again. Their eyes pinned him down with their severity. In unison, with Nova guiding Sara’s mind to make the necessary moves, they spoke. “Because of your actions, you have threatened the lives of countless others. By the unanimous decision of your House, you are no longer Head of House Lungbarrow.” All three gasped in pain as the words and telepathic link did as they were meant to. The Doctor was abruptly no longer the lead in their mental connection, but rather now an equal part. The girls were slightly protected via the TARDIS, so they were able to keep going. The Doctor’s eyes were wide with the force of his pain as his mental links shifted. “Until you prove that the name you took is again true, you are merely a member of the Great House Lungbarrow.” The stipulation was one of the harshest available for the ceremony. The only worse was completely removing him from the House, but he hadn’t done something that harsh yet. The ceremony required him to try to commit treason against Gallifrey itself for that terrible punishment. There was nothing either girl could do to reverse the adoption, but they could mutiny. The Doctor, now temporarily without his chosen name, was no longer Head of House. He no longer controlled their mental shields or their emotions. The three still had their telepathic link, and he was still their adopted father, but that was all. The girls watched pitilessly as the Doctor writhed in agony for over a minute as his mental pathways realigned. When he finally caught his breath again, tears streaming down his cheeks, both girls finished the ceremony. “Until your chosen name has been proven, you will be known as…Zeta, junior member of the House of Lungbarrow.” They had picked the name because it was close enough to his nickname that he could pick it up quickly, but different enough to remind him of what he had done to earn such a name. Sara finished the words and was already halfway out of the room. Nova stayed momentarily, giving the new Zeta advice. His eyes…she steeled her heart against those eyes. “What you have done is unforgivable. If Gallifrey was still in the sky, you would have started a war with your actions. Millions would have died. Doc—“ she sighed at the habit, he winced at the pain it caused, “Zeta… you will be confined to this time-stream and location, with your TARDIS’s consent and approval.” She gazed down at him for several minutes as he simply breathed, too shocked to react yet. “This is to help you, Zeta. You have lost your way. If you stay on the path you have chosen, the universe itself will die.” She shook her head as she turned away. “The Doctor was my friend…I hope he comes back.” Xxxxxxxxxxxxx
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Chapter 05
Nova was shaking by the time she had rejoined the other two. Never in her mind could she have predicted… The three girls were sitting in Donna’s living room, waiting for her grandfather to show up. The red-head swore by his advice. Donna was in the kitchen, now that she had changed her clothes to much more comfortable, making a batch of tea. Nova took a deep breath as she gathered her thoughts. She still had to tell Sara about what she had seen in the Doctor’s mind. “Sara?” She said hesitantly. “I know…I know what happened. I know how you got here.” Sara’s eyes went wide, her face split into a grin in excitement. “It’s…it’s not good news.” She swallowed, gripping Sara’s hands tightly with her own as she tried to be as delicate as possible. Sara could feel Nova in her mind, the other girl trying so desperately to help protect Sara’s own mind, give her comfort. “What happened, Nova?” She asked softly, suddenly afraid of the answer. The auburn haired twenty-six year old took a breath. “When he was contacting Rose, he was using the energy of an already-dying dimension. As it died, there was a crack in the Void that he spoke to Rose through. That same crack let you…fall…into his TARDIS.” She clenched Sara’s hands, waiting for the information to sink in. Nova made sure that Sara’s emotions were her own, but she temporarily blocked off the connection of Sara’s emotions to her powers. Long enough that the initial shock didn’t create a nuclear explosion. “I am so sorry.” A tear ran down her cheek, waiting for the reaction that was sure to occur. But this was her sister. She wouldn’t let her go through this alone. “No!” Sara screamed. “It’s not true!” She was shaking her head wildly as Nova tried to put her arms around her. “It can’t be true. He was lying! The Doctor always lies. They can’t…” Her universe wasn’t gone. It simply wasn’t possible. It was a ruse of some part from that man…the Doctor, whatever he was. The Time Lord Victorious trying to get his way. “Not this time.” Nova said sadly. She had seen the Doc--his memories. What he had done to them was cowardly. A violation but she could determine the truth in his mind apart from anything manifested. “No, no, no, no, no!” Sara shrieked. “I can’t. They’re not gone! My parents! Jessica! They can’t be…” She was sobbing as she gasped for breath. “They’re not gone! They’re not! They can’t be…they…” She couldn’t even think as Nova held onto her tightly while Sara simply wept frenetically. It was all so unfair. Nova had been separated from her home too. Her empathy for her new found sister couldn’t be helped. Tears ran down her face. “What’s wrong?” Donna came into the room, alarmed by Sara’s shrieking instantly feeling a protective instinct. “What happened?” She looked at the state of the two. “What did he do?” “Nothing this time.” Nova said softly trying to determine a way to explain it to the red head. “Her family…she just found out her family is gone.” “Oh no.” Donna murmured. She couldn’t imagine what kind of accident had decimated Sara’s family. And that alien had to come and make it worse…she put a conciliatory arm on Sara’s shoulder. The girl kept protesting only to suddenly gasp, pressing her hand to her forehead. “He’s in my mind…Nova, he’s trying…” Fighting fire with fire. Nova felt it. He once held the position as High Council President. He had contact with ancient ceremonies made available to him in that rank in the Matrix. He was fiercely trying to re-establish his control, this time using a once long-held previous office to do it. No. Nova thought to herself. He wasn’t learning from this experience. Had just lost Rose. The pain of what they did only acted as a motivator and his presence was approaching them. “He’s coming.” Nova said as Sara only clutched her head. He was trying to usurp control, to hold the reins on her emotions. “Get him out!” Sara shrieked. “Get him out, get him out, get him out!” She was battling. The news of her devastated dimension left her in a panic and Nova clutched her hand. “Together!” Nova said. “The two of us. Retain control. Imagine a barrier in our minds he can’t get through.” But Sara was panicking. Her instincts told her to run. She was too disoriented. The mind of the Doctor’s…whatever he was, it was too loud. It was frightening. She fled to the backdoor, pulling Nova along with her only to gasp as the Doctor stepped directly in front of them. In the kitchen. Sara skidded to a stop, letting go of Nova’s hand as she desperately tried to turn but he already wrapped his arms around her, pulling her directly towards him. “Stop!” Nova cried out. “Don’t do this. By our unanimous vote…” Her words trailed, drying in her throat as by direct contact, he rendered Sara unconscious. Holding her in his arms, he stared down at Nova. Ancient eyes. Every inch the Oncoming Storm. She backed away towards the kitchen door. If she could only summon Donna and Wilfred Mott, there might be a chance to reason with him. But she could only struggle with the door as she heard definitive click. It was sealed shut, providing no access back to the living room area. “Ohhhh no.” He shook his head, looking at his adopted daughter, a darkened expression on his face. “We’re going to talk and this time, you’re both going to obey me.” Nova shook her head violently as she was literally backed into a wall. For the first time in her life, she was terrified of the man in front of her. She had been using telepathy with the TARDIS all her life…but he had over a thousand years of experience more than she. Still, she shoved her fear and terror at him, down their mental link, along with an image of how she saw him at that moment, hoping he would be able to see himself. Shake him out of it. He practically growled, his expression unchanged. “You brought this on yourselves. You are both too young to understand the full ramifications of what you’ve done.” He somehow seemed to know, though not quite understand, that while Sara had the power and abilities, Nova had the knowledge. Nova had been the one to propose the ceremony. Nova had brought it to Sara’s attention. And Nova had been able to get his TARDIS involved. Nova was the instigator. Sara was precognitive, but somehow Nova knew about Gallifrey. He had to get her to obey him first. “I am your father—“ That did it. Nova’s eyes narrowed as anger partially took the place of her fear. “No you’re not!” She yelled at him. “My father’s name is James Neil Morganson! You are not, and never will be my father!” The two faced the other, each as angry as their opposing force. Each was flinging mental barrages. Nova’s were filled with images of her father’s caring face, his laughter, his hugs, his smiles, his kisses. Her father’s promises of love, devotion, his pride in her. His questions and his incredulity. She flung the essence of her father at the Doctor with everything she had, forcing him to see. “That is my father. You—“ She began to stream images of himself through. The Doctor: forcing himself into Sara’s mind, overpowering the girl and forcibly sending her to sleep, his false smiles that didn’t reach his eyes, his half-truths and full lies, betraying Nova’s trust, poking Donna forcefully and tactlessly, him as he stood before her right that second. She saw him take a step backwards and pushed her advantage. “You are not what you were.” She gave him more images, this time from her dreams. “Once, you were the Doctor.” A little boy played in fields of red grass with his best friend beside him, both laughing as they escaped from the ramifications of a prank. A teenager building his first sonic screwdriver, hoping to help people without violence. A man, newly graduated who took the name Doctor, promising to himself to never give up, never give in, “never cruel or cowardly” she said with the memory, watching his face. A fearless man facing down fearful odds, a general saving as many lives as he could while defending as fiercely. Saving people everywhere he went with no thought of recognition. A man facing down at an army, winning a war with a drop of blood never being shed. An old man mending broken toys in a little town called Christmas even as he used the same toys to defend the innocent. She showed him the Doctor, his true name bright in her mind as she tried to remind him of what he had been. By the time she could no longer think of things to show him, she was leaning against the wall for support. She had never used telepathy as a weapon before today. This would be the fourth time she had done so, in less than two hours. She was very tired. The rest had to be done with words. “You stole us from our families and you expected us to be happy about it. To thank you. You have lost your way. You need to find it again. Become the man you once were.” He looked at her. His expression started to falter. The memories she had shown him. Playing with is best friend before he became the Master. Red grass. His majestic home for the House of Lungbarrow built into the softly rolling hills beside a steady stream. Green water. His granddaughter Susan beside him on the TARDIS. His wife Patience that he had to leave behind trapped in a bubble within a singularity. He found out too late she was alive. Their bond had been torn in that horrific moment only to lose her again on Earth from a bullet wound. She had no time to regenerate. Then there was Rose. He started to feel love again and he loved her entirely only to lose her to a parallel universe. It mirrored his loss of Patience so acutely. He looked at Nova and her pleading expression. He then looked down at Sara. Had he really gone too far? He relinquished his hold on Sara as Nova immediately moved to pull her sister against herself using her strength and the opposing kitchen counter to keep her upright. She hoped Sara would wake up soon. The man in front of her just looked baffled, confused and…lost. For the moment, Nova was cornered now waiting on the whim of the person in front of her to remember who he was. It was a delicate space of time. She was almost hesitant to breathe to disrupt his concentration. So, she had to say the timing was horribly wrong when Wilfred came around behind where he was standing bursting into the kitchen, horribly indignant at the locked door in his own house. “What the devil are you doing here?” He might have never fired a gun but he sure knew how to get angry. The fragile moment dissipated as the Doctor’s shields snapped firmly back into place turning to the man that confronted him with a stormy expression. Nova swallowed. She tried a mental call to Sara through their link to wake her as she struggled with the sonic in her pocket. The brunette woke up, blinking her eyes feeling dazed hearing loud voices around her. The Doctor…what was left of him and…Wilf. He was furious, having heard bits and pieces of the events from Donna. “This is my property.” He said fervently. “I’ve called Scotland Yard. Never fired a gun.” He gestured to the weapon he was carrying. “Don’t give me cause to use it.” “Nova?” Sara managed as the auburn haired girl looked at her with relief. “Sara.” The door clicked open. She pulled her into the living room. Donna ran up to them, her expression worried. “We have to leave, Donna.” Nova said. “I tried….” She shook her head. “It didn’t work and we have to go.” “Then, I’m coming with you.” Donna immediately seized her purse and car keys. She couldn’t abandon them now. Especially after what she had seen. Instantly, she gripped Sara’s other arm, offering her support as they raced out to her vehicle. Getting inside, Donna just barely pulled out of the driveway as the Doctor ran out of the house towards them. She didn’t waste time, hitting the accelerator, screeching down the street away from him. “Where should we go?” She asked, her voice frantic. The man seemed utterly hell-bent and determined. “Wales.” Sara responded. Torchwood was their only avenue. Appealing to Jack and his crew to help restore the Doctor’s sanity. What was left of it. They had a time lock. At the moment, it was their best chance. She thought of the paradox with the Master. Time can be rewritten. Sara seriously hoped that was true. They were several months away from those events. The Master was already here. No. She couldn’t think about that right now. Once the Doctor was fixed, they could determine how to get him to ‘Utopia’. “That’s two hours away.” Donna exclaimed. “I know.” Sara said. “But I think it’s our best chance.” She glanced at Nova who was tense beside her. Nova felt a tear roll down her cheek. The Doctor she had dreamed…it seemed to her that he had died, taken over by another man in his grief. He saw himself as their father: protector, teacher, and mentor. But he did it by force, and couldn’t seem to understand the difference. He had been so close! Now…he had once again been consumed by his pain. Nova, the more experienced of the new-sisters, was keeping the Doctor from Sara’s mind, now that she knew what to feel for. But she didn’t know how long she could keep him at bay. She looked up at Donna in the driver’s seat. “Drive faster.” She clung to Sara’s hand tightly throughout the entire trip. It was easier keeping the Doctor out of both of their minds with skin contact; one of the frequencies that Sara generated helped immensely. However, Nova was getting very tired. Depending on how you looked at it, she had not slept in over twenty-four hours. That, along with mentally fighting the Doctor was draining her and quickly. She desperately started to wish and pray for a way back home. Fervently making the request in her mind as if she was present right inside the TARDIS itself and suddenly Sara turned to her in panic. The energy inside of her was activating. “What’s happening?” She was petrified. “What’s going on? It’s….” She looked at Nova who shook her head. “I just was wishing so badly to go home.” The red head cried. “Wishing….” Sara started. “Like you wished the TARDIS….” But she couldn’t help herself. Bright light consumed them both as Nova seized hold of her hand and suddenly, they were in darkness. A tunnel. Both girls collapsed on the ground. There were people up ahead but they were so far beyond their notice. “Where are we?” Nova whispered as Sara managed to get to her feet. It looked like some sort of drainage tunnel or access way. Metallic. Unfamiliar. She took hold of Nova’s hand. Maybe the people in front of them could lend assistance or tell them where they had landed. Voices. A man speaking. “Take care of her for me, will you?” Sara got a better look at the person. Who was entering some sort of metallic structure. “Wait, is he naked?” She whispered. “Why is he naked?” She was utterly confused. “You’re asking me?” Nova began to ponder whether it was some sort of special Faraday Cage technology that obviously required you not to wear any clothing. But what technology would that be? “What you’re doing right now, this is the end of the war.” The first voice asserted. “Oh great. Just what we need. Another war.” She paused. “Wait, could this be the last days of Gallifrey?” It did seem a little familiar to Sara although she was unable to place it. “No. The smell isn’t right and the soil….” Nova paused. “Saw the sky. Not orange.” The naked man was ascending into the metallic circle by use of a platform as he stared down at the others. Metallic circles pivoted around him as it began to fill with light that resembled the use of an electrical storm. An odd energy circle started to form and Nova gasped. “It looks like an artificially generated wormhole.” “Wormhole?” Sara pondered. “You mean, like time travel? This is a rudimentary vortex manipulator?” “Very rudimentary,” Nova muttered in a type of almost-disgust. Both girls let out a gasp as one man in particular stepped out just behind the other who had given the pronouncement that this was the end of the war. He seized him, wrapping a hand around the other’s mouth. It glowed a fervent red. “You didn’t think it would be that easy, did you?” “Doctor,” Nova’s eyes widened. Maybe the men winning this war was not a good thing and she turned to Sara. Chaos was occurring. The conduction of the machinery and what the Doctor seemed to be doing sent a pulse around the area. They were collapsing to the ground as the man they knew to be the Doctor started to drag the other man off. “The Eleventh Doctor.” Sara said with a hopeful tone. He was already past the Time Lord Victorious. Surely he would help them, especially with the bond if no one else could. “It’s strange.” Nova murmured as she looked at the fallen individuals around her. “I don’t feel his mind really.” “Maybe since we just got here.” Sara explained. She didn’t want her hope dismissed and as they climbed through the pieces of broken machinery, Nova could only feel some sense of hope. But why wasn’t she feeling a sensation of his mind or his TARDIS? Something was a bit off to her. She hoped the Doctor would explain it. Nova lifted her voice, “Doctor?” she called out. Something was sending off red flags in her mind. The primary being that she couldn’t feel him in her own. The link with the TARDIS, while faintly present, was not active. And the adoption bond was practically silent. “I can’t feel you…are you alright? Are you hurt?” She couldn’t help to keep the concern from her face and voice.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Chapter 06
The Eleventh Doctor—or more precisely, the man who looked like him, but was in fact a computer system A.I.—lifted his head and stared at the two oddly dressed females. His vast infonetwork couldn’t place them. The lack of tattoos meant they hadn’t been caught before, but their cleanliness was very different from all the other humans. The girl who had spoken showed facial expressions designed for empathy and concern. But they weren’t coming up in his vast database. “Who are you?” he finally voiced as John Connor writhed on the floor as the change began. Nova frowned, looking briefly at Sara beside her. “I’m not sure if that’s a good thing or a bad thing.” “Let’s go with good thing. The last one was insane.” Sara muttered. “Different dimension at the best. He could have lost his memories though.” “Why? He looks the same to me. Same general facial expressions…though admittedly a bit somber. Though if he’s in another war that’s not unusual.” Nova commented softly. Skynet—the man who walked like a man but was in fact an A.I.—heard all of this. He raised an eyebrow. “You didn’t answer my question.” “Oh. Sorry. Umm…I’m Nova and this is Sara. We are actually running from your Tenth version…he’s gone a little bit cookoo. He forcibly adopted us. We usurped his Head of House status…then he ran after us. It was supposed to be a wake-up call, but it’s not working out that way.” Nova sighed softly in resignation. “I guess by your reaction that this is a different dimension. Alternate at least.” “I see…” he really didn’t. That bothered him quite a bit. He had ruled the planet for over thirty years. He should know everything. That he didn’t was very bothersome. “Where is the TARDIS?” This was off-putting. He didn’t like it. At all. “I don’t bring the TARDIS into battle.” He said…remembering that they had said ‘another war’. It was the most statistically effective line he could think of. Sara was filled with a relief. She recognized the line from the show. It was nearly precisely what he said to Clara before. “It’s him. What he said. Well, what he will say regardless.” She glanced down at the man writhing before him. She could hear others in various states of agony. It was a bit perplexing but suddenly she remembered the episode, which featured New Earth and the infected people there kept in containment for the benefit of others. That was what caused the Doctor to be so opposed to cats in the first place. This was likely a war but what she was seeing was biological warfare. A product of some agent that was infecting these people and if the Doctor was here, as serious as he was, the situation must be dire. “Some kind of biological warfare?” She asked Nova in confirmation who only shuddered, pressing her lips together in speculation. “It’s possible. All the weapons used during the Time War….” Nova knew nothing was really held back from that arsenal. The atrocities people could commit on each other were numerous. What even sparked the war here, they couldn’t say but from what she saw and her heightened sense of smell, it was devastating to the planet. She could smell and taste the radiation in the air. Perhaps it was lucky that both she and Sara weren’t entirely human so they wouldn’t be affected in such a manner. “Doctor, maybe we can help.” Nova proposed. Sara could heal. Well, they would have to go about it slowly but Nova had enough control over her telepathy to be able to use her touch to ease pain or render someone asleep. “Help.” The AI was referencing his databanks on the name they called him. Doctor. A practitioner of medicine or a holder of a doctorate level degree of education in a form of academics from a university, which no longer existed in this time frame. This statement merited clarification. “How would you help?” It must be really bad if the Doctor sounds so….Sara grimaced. Emotionless. Perhaps he was shutting himself down or closing himself off so as not to feel the pain. She glanced at Nova who spoke with a certain amount of empathy. “It’s alright, Doctor.” Nova said assuredly. “We’ll just do the best we can one at a time.” She nodded to Sara who stepped up next to the fallen man near the Doctor’s feet. Obviously, he must have been a friend, which was what caused the Doctor to linger there. “You start with him. I’ll help the others.” Nova said. She proceeded to the side of a woman, putting a gentle hand on her arm as the woman gave an agonizing groan. “Don’t worry. We are going to help you.” Nova said with compassion as her touch stilled the woman, while giving her own telepathic order. Sleep. Onto the next. Meanwhile, Sara squatted down next to the man and concentrated on her empathy as the particles immediately started to disperse from her and onto the man in front of her, encompassing him. Immediately his face started to slacken with relief as the glow began to settle into his skin and Sara pushed herself up feeling a sensation of dizziness sweep through her. The man started to open his eyes as the Doctor just stared at her and then to Nova. “What did you do?” The AI didn’t calculate for this reaction nor did he know the logistics of how the two females were achieving the effects they were. This was unknown to him. John Connor, the target he spent time to infiltrate was staring at him confounded and functional as a human again. This hadn’t been Skynet’s plan. “Who are you?” John Connor asked as he struggled to get to his feet. “I’m Sara and that’s Nova. We are friends of the Doctor.” Sara said with a smile, trying to encourage him. “Nova is trying to ease the pain of the others. She’s doing the best she can.” Nova smiled as she got another to sleep and called out. “Almost done. This isn’t really sleep, it’s deeper than that. Only way I could completely block their pain.” She placed her fingers on the temples of the last and sent him into Dreamland. “There is a problem with this though.” She said as she came to join Sara, John, and the Doctor. She gave an apologetic smile to all of them. “What’s the issue?” Sara asked curiously. “Well, since they are so deeply asleep…until they come out of it on their own, they are pretty much going to sleep through anything. Including a volcano, earthquake, or gun battle.” Nova said sheepishly. “How many people?” Sara replied. This would definitely take a while. “I think near thirty.” Nova responded taking a quick assessment. The Doctor in front of them looked like he was merely observing. “So, what’s your name?” Sara asked, taking a few minutes to recover her energy before she proceeded to the next person. “You don’t know my name.” The man asked circumspect. “How do I know you’re not one of them?” “How would either of us possibly know your name?” Nova asked, shaking her head, thinking of the man’s ego. “We just met.” “And one of who?” “A robot.” He explained. Sara and Nova just gaped at him. “Robots.” Sara repeated. Maybe he was suffering from severe disorientation. She turned to the Doctor for explanation. “Is this an effect of them using that primitive time travel device?” She was reflecting on the subject. “Some kind of exposure that is causing it?” It would explain why the Doctor pulled the man away and the others fell to the ground. “You are aware of the time travel device.” The two females involved had reversed the procedure that had been taking place with John Connor as well as rendering others unconscious. He knew they were not part of Skynet for he was fully aware of all machines linked to his mainframe. “We’ve been on the TARDIS, Doctor.” Nova told him. “We know a little bit about time travel.” A giggle escaped her. She couldn’t help it. He was so completely serious and she felt a little sorry for him. Perhaps when they remedied the others, he would be back to his usual self. “He did something to me.” The man that Sara healed accused. The brunette looked at him, aggravated. She spent time and energy on the person and he wouldn’t tell her his name without making a bizarre accusation. And now, of course he would accuse the Doctor next. “Well of course he did, you idiot.” Sara replied, feeling temperamental. “Using time travel without a clue of how any of it works or thinking about paradoxes. He should have intervened sooner before you sent the other guy away. Who knows what damage you did!” She shook her head, looking at the Doctor with a sympathetic expression. “Were you too late to intervene?” That had to be the explanation. “He sent back Kyle Reese to the year 1984.” “Do we need to pick him up before he does even more damage?” Nova asked curiously, blinking up at the Doctor innocently. “Kyle Reese is my father. If I didn’t send him back, I wouldn’t be born to lead the resistance.” The man said defiantly as he slowly got to his feet, keeping the Doctor and the two girls in his sight at all times. “Oh. Well, that is different. Okay. Good job then.” Nova nodded her understanding. Then she held a finger to his face. “But no more time travel until you know the rules! It’s too dangerous.” She shook the finger severely. “You have no idea what you could have done. Tearing the space-time continuum would just be the start of it.” Sara held up fingers as she began to list all the possible problems. “Paradoxes. Impossibilities. Trying to undo a fixed point in time. Save someone that is meant to die. Kill someone that’s meant to live. Not to mention if you go back and touch yourself.” Nova shuddered at that, her voice fearful. “Then those things would come to sterilize the planet. The whole universe stops. Everyone disappears. Everyone dies…it would be horrible.” “So, this is what?” Sara muttered. “A grandfather paradox if he sent his friend back in time so he could be born?” “At least he knew not to let it unravel before the universe comes apart.” Nova shook her head. “But isn’t that a problem. But if the future Kyle Reese eventually comes in contact with his past self. Blinovitch Limitation Effect.” “Yes any physical contact…” Sara muttered, her voice trailed. “Kyle Reese died a couple days after he was sent back in time.” The man said in earnest, in order to assert that he made a rightful choice. Sara’s eyes widened. “So, wait a second. You just sent him back to knock up your own mother and then die?” Sara shook her head. “But that’s sick. That’s really….” She was started to feel nauseated from just the mere thought of it. She turned. “Doctor, obviously you’re here to clean up. Are there any other loose ends or incomplete paradoxes?” “John Connor must be sent to the past.” The AI looked at the females. They knew far more about time than they should. They could be a useful supply of information to him. They registered as unknowns to him but he knew humans didn’t have their abilities or skill. He calculated his options before making a choice within less then a second. “I will complete my work on him and we will join him in that timeline to observe his progress.” “Your work?” Nova said. “Who is John Connor?” “I’m John Connor.” The man Sara healed pronounced. “That thing, whatever he is, isn’t human!” “Well, no.” Nova agreed. “He’s not. We aren’t fully human either. But that doesn’t mean we’re bad people.” She glanced at the person she considered a Time Lord. “He’s just not from here and-“ “He’s a machine!” John protested. “He’s one of them.” Sara took a deep breath. “Oh not this again.” She muttered as the Doctor started towards John, which she interpreted as a sign that he was going to help him out of his delusional state. “Maybe it’s post-traumatic stress disorder.” Nova observed sadly. “I told you, he’s a machine.” The man insisted. “He is programed to kill humans.” “I’m more than a machine.” The AI said calmly. “I’m Skynet.” Once he proceeded to convert John, he would contend with the females behind him. “What’s Skynet?” Sara asked and Nova only looked back at her, shaking her head in utter confusion. “I dunno.” Nova looked at the two men in confusion. “What’s Skynet?” John Connor and the Doctor froze and turned to regard both girls in shock (on John’s part) and confusion (on the Doctor’s part). “You don’t know?” John asked softly. “How can you not know?” Nova snickered, “Time travelers, remember? I’m from 2015 and Sara is from…when are you from, Sara?” “Oh, 2013 for me.” “See?” She smiled. John shook his head. “It’s 2029. Skynet came online and caused Judgement Day in 1997.” “What’s Judgement Day?” both girls echoed at once, wearing identical looks of questioning his sanity. John Connor ran a hand through his hair as the Doctor looked on at this odd sight. “Judgement Day…when Skynet first came online. It became self-aware and then launched nuclear weapons on several countries. Other countries retaliated. Over 3 billion people died.” Nova raised an eyebrow as she watched him try to explain. She finally reached a decision and spoke to Sara and the Doctor. “Yeah, I’m thinking PTSD. No way that a nuclear apocalypse would only kill 3 billion in 1997. The population at that time was…what? Ummm…” The Doctor spoke this time, “Five billion, eight hundred sixty-two million, five hundred ninety-three thousand, eighty-seven.” “Okay. That means under 52% of the world’s population would have died in this nuclear apocalypse you are talking about.” Nova shook her head, “It’s not enough.” “What?! How can you say that’s not enough?!” John Connor practically yelled. Nova raised her other eyebrow at his reaction. “Calm down. Yelling isn’t helping.” She waited pointedly until she saw his fists unclench and he wore a more neutral expression before she kept going. “Now, I’ll explain. Let’s go back to the 1940s. Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The fallout killed more people than the actual bombs did. So, even if the bombs killed 3 billion people in 1997…that wouldn’t be all that were killed because of the nuclear fallout afterwards. If what you said actually occurred, we’d be looking at around 90 to 99% death toll. Yours was at around 52%. It’s not enough.” “I agree.” Sara nodded towards Nova. “The world at that time had enough nuclear weapons to destroy life on this planet several times over. Nuclear winter. It should still be radioactive now. It doesn’t make sense, John.” She pressed her lips together thinking of her own devastated universe. “I mean, there’s other types of warfare out there but…” She shrugged. “Just think about this. Where were you when this ‘Judgment Day’ happened?” “August 29, 1997.” John replied. “I was in a fallout shelter we found deep beneath the earth and…” His voice trailed. “We.” Nova inserted. “Who is we?” “My mother. She trained me. Told me about ‘Judgment Day’. Got me there. Died not long after.” The red head sighed in compassion. “So you lost your mother who repeated rhetoric your entire life and then hid you underground on this supposed day.” “It wasn’t supposed!” John exclaimed. “Judgment Day was real. You can’t see that there was a war? If you’re from 2015…” “Well…” Nova started. “John, we’re from different universes. A completely different reality. Sara and I don’t even come from the same one. Her reality was destroyed from a paradox, which is why time travel is so dangerous if you’re inexperienced.” “I didn’t create the thing!” John exclaimed. “Skynet did. He sent a Terminator back in time to kill my mother.” “Skynet.” Sara repeated. The Doctor said he was Skynet. But maybe it was a title like he had once been Lord President. He was centuries old and Sara admittedly didn’t know all the associations the Doctor made. She knew the Doctor wasn’t his name but that his real name was hidden in the Medusa Cascade. “Doctor, is Skynet like the Judoon? Or is it a title?” “I’m Skynet.” The Doctor only repeated. “You’re Skynet.” Sara repeated. It must be a title the Doctor adapted for himself. “Okay, well you can explain what that is later. I think John needs to hear from you that you didn’t send ‘Terminators to kill his mother.” “I did send three Terminators with the intent to kill Sarah Connor.” The AI informed them flatly. “What?” Nova was in a sudden state of shock. Had the Doctor been suddenly possessed? Was it a mind parasite? She had heard of those in the Time Lord Academy. Or was this Sarah Connor a fixed point? She never thought that the Doctor would actually kill a human however. “Would she cause a paradox if she didn’t die?” “A paradox.” The AI repeated, staring at her. “I have no knowledge of a temporal paradox concerning her existence. She is the mother of John Connor, leader of the human resistance. I ordered her death. My plans need to be adjusted. John Connor is still alive.” “Don’t you see?” John said to them. “He’s not a person. He’s a machine. An artificial intelligence that completely took over. That’s Skynet.” Sara looked at him and then back at the Doctor. What if he wasn’t the Doctor? What if he was….? She couldn’t say the word but her mind automatically thought it and Nova’s eyes widened in terror at the thought of the ‘Scary Doctor’. If the Doctor was killing people indiscriminately like this, it might explain the man’s utter shock and why he thought there was a nuclear war. Paradoxes, even small ones, could be a detriment to the mind. If the Doctor was using his telepathy….she remembered how it felt when the Doctor got inside her head, trying to take over. “No, it can’t be.” Nova muttered. “The Valeyard.” Sara said suddenly. “Or the Time Lord Victorious. Is that what you are?” She asked the Doctor. “Did you use telepathy on all these people?” “No.” The AI turned to Sara. Telepathy. That word was fiction from the information sources he had available. “I used nanobots on these humans.” “Nanobots.” The brunette shook her head. “Is that like nanites?” “Maybe it means the same thing and-“ Nova suddenly cried out in surprise as John Connor suddenly grabbed their arms, dragging them out of the room and down the tunnel. “We can’t stay there.” He told them. “We need to find cover.” Sara glanced at John. Even if he was traumatized, the Doctor didn’t seem right. He admitted to sending assassins back in time. The thought of the Time Lord Victorious or Valeyard frightened her very much. Finally, she nodded. “Nova, if he’s worse than the other one….we need to hide for now and John knows the area.” The red head nodded. “Until we’re certain.” She said but she could hear the Doctor coming in pursuit of them. Now their hope lay with a severely traumatized man against a Time Lord they had hoped to consider an ally. “This way.” John said, tugging both girls with him. After he was certain they would follow him, he let go so that he could grab a gun that was lying on the floor. “We need to get to the outpost. Run!” The sisters gave each other telling glances, and fearful ones at the weapon, but followed anyway. If it was the Valeyard, then running wouldn’t really do any good. He’d destroy the universe anyway. But the Time Lord Victorious…that one you could run from. At least until you had a plan to either kill him or fix him. “Let’s hope for the Time Lord Victorious.” Sara muttered to Nova as they ran after John Connor. “Time Lord Victorious?” He wasn’t sure what the girls were talking about but he knew they somehow saved his life even if he didn’t know who or what they were. “It’s….” Sara paused in consternation. “Could we tell you later?” “Time Lords, you see….” Nova started. “They’re from another planet. They’re not human. That’s our ancestry….how we can travel.” She hoped this John person might understand so he could see who they were possibly dealing with. A massive nuclear war, which left 48% of the planet left to survive. That was unlikely. But she knew Time Lords were capable of wreaking havoc on the time lines. Maybe the Doctor was under the influence of another Time Lord that escaped the Time War. The Rani perhaps? She liked to experiment on humans or lower species. Anyone else in the Time Lord high council…. John was simply getting frustrated but if the two girls were from another timeline where Judgment Day never happened….he took a deep breath. Aliens? “You look human.” He glanced back at them as he ran. “Well, we are still….what?” Sara glanced at Nova. She was thinking about their transition the Doctor started in motion with their already present TNA. “Probably half human but anyway, Time Lords don’t look human. Humans look Time Lord. Technically, they came first.” A series of looping corridors and through a vast sewer system until they reached a gate where they were confronted by two dogs standing guard, gazing at them with mournful expressions. “Aw, you have pets!” Nova said, absolutely delighted for the first time as she dropped to her knees holding out her hand immediately for the dog to sniff as Sara did likewise. The dog only seemed to nuzzle them as both of them scratched behind their heads and behind their ears. Definitely not machines. John Connor thought. But what were they was still the question. Nevertheless, they helped him and he wanted to return the favor. The Colorado Squadron should be returning and with them, he hoped the girls would be convinced. In either case, he would try to keep them protected. “This way,” he gestured further down the tunnel. The dogs guarded the entrance to, wary for any Terminator that may find them. “And then I can show you the proof you seem to need.” “Well, come on. It’s a very odd story, you have to admit.” Nova gestured. He raised an eyebrow at them as they walked, now at least partially safe. “I’ve been living it for over two decades.” He shook his head at them as they kept going. xxxxxxxxxxxx
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Chapter 07
Nova and Sara gave each other an expression that spoke volumes. It was amazing at what these people had built. An underground network of housing, war rooms, utilities, and other necessary places that large numbers of people need. It was incredible, considering that they were supposedly in a war time situation…which was made more and more likely as they kept going. One man with PTSD was easy to find…but there were hundreds of people in the compound. Men in armor and guns protecting the women and children. However, the stares were very unnerving. Every human they ran into stared at the girls with wide eyes and disbelieving expressions. “Can they not do that? It’s really starting to freak me out.” Sara muttered. John gave them a quick grin, “You aren’t dirty. Your clothes aren’t worn or ragged. You have no scars or wounds. I couldn’t make them stop staring even if I wanted to. And I don’t want them to… you are the very image of the world we want to create with the end of this war.” Nova blew out a breath as they came to the biggest war room she had seen yet. It had several different people in it, whom she assumed were commanders and other strategists. “Okay, can you explain this again? We believe that you’ve had a war. It was a devastating one too. We saw outside. We get it…but only 3 billion dead? In a nuclear holocaust? It’s not possible. Not to mention, what is Skynet?” Every single person who could hear her questions froze and turned around to stare even harder at the pair. The shock in their faces was clear. A few were amazed. A couple hopeful. Nova rolled her eyes in irritation. “And we are back to the staring. But I mean it. What is Skynet? You said a machine. What kind of machine?” John shook his head at their ignorance. “Skynet is an A.I. that became self-aware in 1997—“ “You said that. You’re repeating yourself. I’ll clarify. What is it? You said A.I. I know at least four different people that could be confused with an Artificial Intelligence, just because they are that smart. Scary smart. Still, they are living people.” She gestured around her. “They wouldn’t inspire this…and any weapon would kill them if you hit the right spot.” John shook his head again in exasperation, “We just had the Colorado team take down Skynet’s central core processor. I mean a machine. Gears. Metal. No living parts in it at all. A computer on steroids. A machine.” Sara cocked her head slightly and looked over at Nova. “Well, that changes some things. Can’t be the Valeyard or the Time Lord Victorious if he’s a machine. Or the Doctor.” “But why does he look exactly like the Doctor then? That makes no sense. If they are right of course.” Nova glanced at John, “Did you actually verify it’s a machine? Try a heart monitor, that sort of thing?” “Infrared caught nothing but room temp. Is that sufficient?” he almost growled in annoyance. Nova nodded absently as her mathematical mind ran through the problem. Then an idea came to her and her eyes went wide in fear and horror. She looked up at her sister in shock. “I think I’ve figured it out…I know why he looks like the Doctor…oh Sara…this is bad…if I’m right…I don’t know that we can fix it…” John’s eyes sharpened as he gestured to one of his officers to start recording what the girls were saying. He hoped he could keep up with their logic. Sara was more focused on the redhead. “What? What could be worse than the Valeyard?” She couldn’t think of anything or anyone. “What is the one A.I. that we know of?” Nova asked her quietly, “The one being that knows exactly what the Doctor looks like…” she trailed off, seeing if Sara reached the same conclusion she herself had. Sara frowned for several seconds before the confusion cleared and her eyes widened in horror. “The TARDIS? You think Skynet is the TARDIS?” “I don’t think so. Probably just an avatar. But think about it. It makes sense. He looks exactly like Eleven. Why? Well…what would happen if the TARDIS lost the Doctor?” Nova looked ready to cry at this point, her heart breaking at the possibility. John intruded, “Wait. What is a TARDIS?” Both girls shifted to look at him. Sara explained, “A TARDIS is a ship that can travel in space and time. The thing is that all TARDIS have a very tight bond with their Pilot. They have a living mind inside that ship. A type of A.I. if you will. As long as they have their Pilot, they are just like every other ship. It’s when one of their crew is in distress that the TARDIS does things on its own. Rescues, unlocking doors, things like that. But if the Pilot of a TARDIS ever dies…” Nova picked up the dialogue, “…then the ship can go insane from despair. The Doctor is the Pilot of the last TARDIS. There are no more. No more TARDIS’s and no more Time Lords. They are the last.” “One of the things the Doctor did more than anything else was help humanity. Keep humans from killing themselves, or being invaded by alien species.” “If the Doctor is killed, then the TARDIS may try to take it out on humanity itself.” “But first it would need an avatar. Some way that it can interact with the things around it. Remember, it’s a ship. It can only do so much. It’s not bipedal like us.” “And the best avatar for the TARDIS would be the Doctor.” John’s eyes had gone from girl to girl as they explained their theory. Sara’s heart started to sink, feeling utterly horrified. The Doctor here was dead if what Nova’s conclusion was true. “It’s just so….” She swallowed. “When my universe was destroyed, a TARDIS saved me.” She remembered the thoughts about the dying TARDIS in the void space from the Doctor’s mind. “She gave up the rest of her energy to help me survive and….” “She bonded with you, Sara because of your Time Lord TNA.” Nova told her sister quietly, feeling her grief. “This TARDIS had no one to bond with. Nothing. She just went mad.” Sara took a deep breath and nodded. She had to come to terms with this. “But, we have Time Lord TNA. Nova, you likely more than I. If you could try to initiate a bond…” Nova was thinking hard. “In this form, it will be difficult. Probably take us both. A TARDIS was always meant for more than one pilot.” John was astounded by this sudden explanation that was so contrary and in opposition to what he had been brought up to believe. But what had he been brought up to believe? Skynet would become self-aware on a particular day and consider humans a distinct threat to its survival. He would be the leader of the human resistance. The girls spoke of time travel. If he had not seen what they could do with his own eyes, he might question their sanity but now he was suddenly having to face the impossible. “You’re saying Skynet out there was an alien time machine and space ship that was sentient.” He took a deep breath. “Is sentient.” Nova clarified. “Always has been. She’s usually very kind but….” Her voice trailed. She dreamed of the TARDIS. Felt her joy and her pain. This was utterly horrifying but it made sense. She had wished the TARDIS to send them away from the Doctor they were with previously and from what it seemed, she travelled from one TARDIS to another. Nova had just the TARDIS then. One very insane avatar of the time machine she treasured. “Kind?” John was shaking his head. “Three billion humans are dead. They’re gone. We’ve been living in squalor, fighting to survive. Thought the machines finally fell and…” “Time travel was used.” Sara finished. “I’m sorry, John. Usually, a TARDIS would commit suicide by throwing itself into a sun or would go into the Void.” She saw the look of confusion on his face. “The cushion between dimensions. But once in a while, a TARDIS can go mad. Without the Doctor here, that’s a possibility.” “So say, you’re right.” John clenched his jaw. “How do we kill him?” “Kill a TARDIS?” Nova looked at him circumspect. “You don’t. We just told you it takes the power of the sun to destroy it. Otherwise, the life span is infinite.” She shook her head. This was an utterly worse scenario than they encountered before and the avatar didn’t seem to realize who he used to be. “Perhaps that’s part of the problem.” She raised her eyebrows at John. “Why she’s taking this out on humans was because perhaps her host died as a result of humans. All that time spent saving your world, the very universe, and he died from a human attack.” She could consider numerous scenarios where that might have occurred. “You think his TARDIS wouldn’t be upset about that?” “But none of us were responsible if that actually happened!” John exclaimed. “And that doesn’t give a reason to kill three billion people.” “No, it doesn’t. We’re just trying to explain why she focused on humans in particular.” There was sadness in Sara’s tone as well. After all, she had TARDIS energy in her cells. This atrocity ran deeply with her. She considered the rules of time in this case but she didn’t know whether this Judgment Day was a fixed point. The TARDIS was capable of a number of things, time travel least among them. “Time can be rewritten.” She repeated the Doctor’s words. “But this?” Oh, she felt them too inexperienced for this kind of damage. She didn’t want to risk a devastating paradox. She looked at her sister for help. Nova bit her lip as she tried to concentrate. Suddenly, she hit her knees as she let out a choked scream. Tears filled her eyes as she looked up at her sister. “It’s the TARDIS. I’m sure of it…she’s screaming, Sara. She’s screaming. In rage and anger. It’s all she’s doing. It’s all she’s been doing for years.” She sniffed. “We can’t let this happen. We can’t. Please…I know it’s against the rules. I know it is…but please…let’s fix it. Please.” “Hell yes we fix it!” John Connor yelled, making both girls look at him in shock. They had forgotten him. He hauled Nova to her feet and glared at her in the eyes, all of his command coming to the fore as he became a general. “You are going to do anything you have to. I don’t care if it’s against your rules. You do it.” Nova shook her head, “You don’t understand. The Rules of Time are absolute. Even if we succeed…you will all die.” John jerked back at that to stare at her in disbelief. “What are you saying?” Sara brushed her hair away from her face. “This is why we told you not to use time travel. You don’t know the rules. You don’t understand what you are doing. If we do as you say and go back and save the Doctor…or if we can’t save the Doctor and just manage to connect with his TARDIS before the avatar is created… It will prevent all of this from happening.” “That’s the point!” He yelled. Nova sighed, “You don’t get it. You will no longer be yourself. The John Connor that will be born will have no idea who or what Skynet is. No memories of his mother teaching him to be a general. We will be creating a new timeline. This timeline will cease to exist. Everyone here will die. New versions of them will be born. They won’t be them anymore, because their memories will be different. They won’t be soldiers fighting a war. They will be parents or teachers or a host of other possibilities. Don’t you understand? If we do this, we will be the cause of more deaths than your Skynet. We will be the cause of every single human, plant, animal, and bacteria to be crushed. And not just on this planet, but every planet. We will kill trillions of species.” She shook her head as she looked over at Sara, “and I think I want to anyway. She is in so much pain, Sara. She hasn’t stopped screaming for decades…” “We never wanted to fight in a war.” John Connor insisted. “We know that.” Sara closed her eyes. “But….what we are talking about is essentially destroying your universe. Your reality.” She looked at her sister. “However, if the TARDIS as Skynet with the damage that’s been done to time. Causing paradoxes in the past…” She shook her head as Nova nodded. “This timeline might be dying already.” She knew there were a lot of aborted timelines and Sara knew that in the timeline the Master created, time was reversed. All the people of that time frame essentially died. Obliterated from existence. But if this got any worse, it could have an effect on other universes surrounding this one. The number of casualties would simply increase. “You need to fix it.” John’s voice softened, starting to understand what they were telling him. A new timeline would be created. He wouldn’t exist but another John Connor would. One that might have his family involved. Maybe he would get married and have children of his own. Take a real profession. But this version of him would die. Wasn’t he willing to die? He had struggled to prevent Judgment Day before but it didn’t work. Of course, it didn’t work. He swallowed. “If we caused this…” He looked at his people. From what these girls told him, their chances of survival were now very low. And he remembered the agony of what that machine tried to do to him. “We have to stop this Nova.” Sara said. “This timeline. It’s so badly damaged…” Her voice trailed. “But where in time do we go?” Nova asked. “We don’t know when the Doctor died.” “Well, this ‘Judgment Day’.” Sara started. “August 29, 1997, you said?” She asked John Connor who nodded simply. “The TARDIS can go anywhere in time. She might pick that particular day as one of significance. The day the Doctor died. The day, she went back after decades of agony and took her vengeance.” That still left another quandary. Neither girl was adept at traveling through time without the TARDIS to assist. “I mean, I don’t know if that day makes sense or it was a random choice.” Sara muttered. “But if it is that date, how do we get there?” Nova shook her head. “No, we have to go further than that. That was just the day that Skynet woke up. The TARDIS must have been programming her avatar since before that. Not much before that though. It is a TARDIS after all. If we go to the beginning of August, we should be able to catch it…I think. With the possibility of waiting for a while.” “Still, how do we get there?” John cleared his throat and gazed at them with a raised eyebrow. “You did just come from a time travel device.” Both girls paled, “That thing? That’s worse than Jack’s Vortex Manipulator by at least a factor of one hundred! It would probably even cause pain to the user.” “Yeah, that’s not even a skyhopper. It’s more a horse-drawn carriage.” John had no idea what they were talking about, but he did catch that they were afraid. “Is there an alternative?” he asked quietly. “We are ready to lay down our lives to end this war. We can get you in.” Nova grimaced again but slowly nodded. “Sara, I don’t think there’s a choice. Every time I’ve used my connection to the TARDIS to travel, it’s been between dimensions. We want to stay in this one. Though…there is one thing we need before we can leave.” She looked over at John with determination. “I need to get to your science department. Engineering.” Sara raised an eyebrow, “What are you planning?” “What else? We need a screwdriver…I’m going to build one.” John was confused again, but he gestured to a commander. Instantly, he held a flathead screwdriver and offered the handle to Nova. “Will this work?” the girls looked down and then giggled. “Sonic screwdriver, John. I’m going to build a sonic screwdriver.” “Wait, Nova.” Sara intervened. She knew they were tired and were both apt to forgetting. “You took the Doctor’s sonic. The other one. Before we got here. You still have that right?” Nova’s face flushed as she searched her pocket, pulling the tool out. “Sorry.” She said to her sister. “That’s right. Before we ran out of the TARDIS.” “There’s a problem.” John said from behind the two girls and they turned to look at him. “You’re trying to bring a device through the time displacement field. Nothing non-organic will go. No metal, no clothing and-“ “You’re serious.” Sara asked. “That’s why Kyle Reese wasn’t wearing any clothes?” “Well, it certainly wasn’t to make a fashion statement.” John muttered. “It’s just the rule of the device. Not one I made either.” Sara’s expression pulled into a frown as she glanced at Nova. She knew that her sister had likely used her to wish them between dimensions but even if she could utilize her energy to travel back in time, she would have no control over it….but the machine might. She thought for a moment. “What if I channel my energy through the device and around us like a buffer or a field to carry us through? It carried me through the void.” She offered. “But can you sustain it?” Nova asked with concern. “Probably for twenty to thirty seconds.” She winced. “You probably won’t be in pain when you get there. We get to keep our clothes on but….” Sara hesitated. “But….?” “Well, there will be a good ten to fifteen minutes I won’t be able to move.” Sara looked at Nova. “I’ll need your help then.” “Ten to fifteen minutes.” Nova nodded. “I should be able to manage that.” She had to until her sister got her strength back. At least they would get back to the specific point in time. She turned to John. “Thank you for doing this. All your sacrifices. We’ll try to make it worth it but I’m sorry. Really sorry, this has to happen.” John merely looked saddened. “At least there will be a me out there doing what I always wanted, living a normal life. My mother always taught me there is no fate but what you make for yourself.” Sara thought about all the future knowledge they had but how things could change depending on the presence of the person involved. How the course of events could be altered in dramatic and unexpected ways. “There’s still free will, John.” Sara told him. “If this works, in this new timeline, people can still decide their own fate.” “Will that version of me see either of you there?” John asked in hesitation. “If we succeed,” Nova offered a sad smile. “We might check in, but you won’t remember us.” “Promise you’ll do it anyway.” He insisted and both girls assented. Sara felt tears in her eyes as she followed John back through the corridors. This time the squadron accompanied them. With the avatar out there, they couldn’t take chances. Sara thought it was a risk but Nova in turn saw the necessity. An insane avatar. She needed to be kept busy, disoriented if they were going to have a chance to reach the time device. And it seemed such precautions were fundamental. The avatar was right there waiting for them. “I calculated that you were certain to return.” The voice was flat and chilling. Xxxxxxxxxxxxx
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Chapter 08
Nova gestured to her sister and stepped forward. She opened up her link to the TARDIS, barely managing to stay on her feet at the screams only she could hear. She took another step forward and she spoke softly, but she knew that the AI would hear her. “Do you know who your mother is? Have you ever met her? Can you hear her?” Skynet blinked and frowned at her in confusion. “My…mother…?” Nova nodded, “Yes…she looks like a blue box. Says ‘Police Public Call Box’ at the top. A sign on her doors that say ‘Pull to Open’. She’s screaming…has been for years. I can hear her, even right now.” He watched her in disbelief as this inhuman woman came towards him. Her words were impossible. No one knew! Only him… “How do you know about her?” Both females’ smiles became sad, “She doesn’t tell you much, does she? Has she ever told you why you look like that? Out of all the faces she could have chosen, why do you look like that? You are her avatar, doing what she wants…killing humans. Has she ever told you why she hates them so much?” “Humans kill what they don’t understand,” he spoke defiantly, but each could see the hesitance in his eyes. Even as an avatar, he was still an A.I., able to question and make decisions for himself. “She’s called a TARDIS. Time And Relative Dimension In Space. She’s a time machine…but she lost her Pilot. Her Pilot looked like you. It’s why you carry his face, and why we got you confused with him. Her Pilot died either at the hands of humans, or from protecting humans. He was good at it. He had saved this planet countless times before. Now it’s our turn.” Nova said gently as she finally was within just a step or two of Skynet. “I know that she can see and hear through your eyes. So…” she focused her attention on looking directly into the eyes of Skynet, which were suddenly stunned, “Old Girl… We are going to give you back your Pilot. We are going to save him, before he ever died. All you have to do, is tell your past self to let us through. We’ll take care of the rest.” Nova smiled when the screaming in her mind suddenly stopped, she knew the ship had heard her, understood her. “We are going to save the Doctor, Old Girl. You won’t be alone anymore.” Skynet stood there in absolute shock as a new order came through his synapses from his ‘mother’ as the girl called him. “She wants me to help you.” He said in disbelief. Sara gave him a smile, “Well, yeah. There is no greater bond than that of a TARDIS and a Pilot. She loves him and has loved him for centuries. She has cared for him and comforted him through the bad times. She celebrated his good times. She has always been there when he needed her… she did all of this because she lost him. We are going to give him back to her. We need a date to go to, if you could get it from your mother please.” Skynet paused before answering. “December 2, 1996.” He answered finally. “Leadworth, England.” “Leadworth.” Sara was startled, turning to Nova. “Amy Pond. Her home when she was seven years old.” She licked her lips. “He was supposed to crash land there after regenerating to…” She closed her eyes. “After sacrificing his tenth regeneration to save one human. Was willing to die to save all of them.” Her thoughts went to Rassilon and the End of Time. It was humans who had foolishly uncovered the Gate, resurrected the Master, and activated the thing in the hope of gaining immortality. No wonder the TARDIS was angry. “If he crash lands and got injured fatally that time, it was his last regeneration.” Sara swallowed. “He would just be dead.” “That is correct.” Skynet confirmed, sensing the communication from the TARDIS and finally Nova nodded. “Alright. So, he crashed and the TARDIS was forced to watch him die in Leadworth.” Nova felt tears come to her eyes, just sensing the pain of the sentience in losing her host, so utterly helpless to intercede. “But we can help with that. Sara can heal him. We need to go back the day before. Sara can buffer us through with the sonic I have but it takes a bit for her energy to recharge.” She glanced at the device that stood as the very uncertain means of transport. This avatar had constructed it. “Will you help us use it? No one likely knows it better than you and it’s the best way we can make sure to help your mother. To help you both.” Her periwinkle eyes pleaded with him as Skynet examined the two females. “I will provide you the assistance but I will be coming with you.” His voice was closed, unopen for debate. This was his mother the two were speaking of and he wouldn’t risk her possible salvation if the two girls themselves didn’t fulfill their bargain or became damaged in another human related crime. Humans, he was told, it was in their nature to destroy themselves. He would make certain these females were not destroyed in their attempt. Nova pressed her lips together. “You know what will happen once we succeed?” She raised her eyebrows. “I will help my mother,” was his only answer. Both could see how serious he was and nodded. “Okay. Well, then set it up.” He gave a short nod as he moved to the controls. Nova went over to the human contingency, who had watched the exchange in bafflement. “Now, you guys. There is always the chance that we won’t succeed. I want you to promise me, John…” she waited until he looked at her seriously, “…you need to stop. All of you need to stop. You are both blaming each other for the same thing. Humans killed her Pilot; she killed humans. It’s a never-ending cycle. It needs to stop. Please, promise me. If the day comes that the…machines, if you are so hell-bent on calling them that… If the day comes that the machines stop attacking, I want your promise that you will too. No more killing. No more guns. Remake the world.” John Connor, born to be a general and trained as such, peered into the periwinkle eyes beseeching him and slowly nodded. With how much these two women cared about a heartless machine’s anger and pain, he doubted they would fail in their mission. With a Terminator at their side, he doubted it even more. It was nothing to make such a promise, when himself and his whole world was about to become obsolete and vanish. “I swear.” She smiled at him brightly and reached out to hug him briefly. “You are a good man, John Connor. Take care of your people.” He nodded and she moved back to Sara and Skynet. “Okay, so…we get to keep our clothes which is awesome. I really don’t like the idea of public nudity.” Sara muttered something along the lines of “same here” before she kept going. “Which also means that we can keep the sonic; even better news. If we had to use that thing, only way I could think of for it to work was flashbacks of my vibrator. That would have been awkward.” “Especially if it turned on in the middle of the trip,” Sara grinned and Nova shuddered. “Yeah, let’s not go there.” “Okay, Skynet…how are things?” “Ready, get onto the platform.” He ordered. The girls frowned at him for his rudeness, but all things considered, it could have been worse. Nova took up the dialogue, “Skynet, since you aren’t Time Lord or even part Time Lord, you coming along is going to be ruled strictly by proximity. Hold onto both of us and don’t let go until we land. Got it?” She waited for his nod before she smiled. “And this is the first time we are doing this, so be ready for weird crap. In all honesty, I have no idea if you will even survive the trip, given what we are trying to do. As soon as we save the Doctor, this entire future will cease to exist…and Sara, have you thought about how he is going to react to this?” Sara winced, “Yeah…it’s not going to be a pretty conversation.” “If he doesn’t just give up on us for killing so many people and just…” Nova shivered, “…its going to be incredibly awkward, unpleasant, and probably invasive. At the very least, we are going to be grounded.” “You think?” Sara answered sarcastically. “And that’s if we survive at all.” Sara looked at her sister questioningly. “We are creating a massive paradox and closing it. There is always the chance that we will disappear just like the others…and go back to the car with Donna driving. The Doctor will only feel the paradox close, only have a slight image of us before we go. He’ll never know to come rescue us…and we would have never left. The TARDIS has her Pilot back, and this world will begin again…with us on the outside.” “You think we will remember?” Nova shook slightly. She should know the answer considering her heritage and her bond but she wanted a little surety. Sara took her hand with tears in her eyes. “We’re time sensitive. Time Lord. With our bond, we will always remember.” Sara swallowed. “I can feel this timeline fracturing already. Maybe we were meant to come along before it destroyed other universes.” It was poor comfort. She was still getting blood on her hands but she had to think there was a purpose. And a part of her could feel the constant damage done to time: Skynet and human combined. Maybe after all the years of insanity, the TARDIS wanted to die and take this entire reality with her. Her mind went briefly to the Master who found the Doctor, threatening to do the same but relented, unwilling to detonate the series of missiles that would cause the destruction. She wasn’t sure of the outcome. Time could reset itself. The girls might find themselves back in the car or the TARDIS was in a sense a paradox machine. It could protect them as time reset all around them but at that point, the Doctor upon being saved…well, they might just wish themselves to another reality at their soonest opportunity. He would not be pleased. “Countdown in ten seconds.” Skynet indicated. “Take my hand.” Sara instructed. “And get in close.” He obeyed without comment as she focused with all her empathy and desperation she could possibly feel, while a mixture of blue and golden light encompassed them like a shell. Nova could see nothing but the light as the machine took hold, feeling the jolt. The shaking but little else. Her sister was concentrating, pouring all her energy into protecting the three of them so Nova didn’t feel pain but Sara…. Sara was gripped with the task at hand. She was close to utter depletion as she bubbled their way across. God help me. She prayed desperately as she focused hard trying to give every ounce she could when at last, after a seeming eternity, the three tumbled to the pavement below. Sara simply fell to the ground limp, unable to move. She was barely conscious as Nova came to her side, taking her hand. “Sara?” Nova asked, feeling her sister’s complete exhaustion. Her dire fatigue. The brunette blinked and smiled at her sister. “Jessica…her hair, almost the same shade as yours, Nova.” She was disoriented. Drowsy. “Did you know that? Knew I could trust you…your hair…” She murmured. “We have succeeded in arriving at the programmed coordinates.” Skynet said. “We should navigate out of the alley. This female requires assistance if she is to perform adequately tomorrow.” “You have such a pretty glow around you.” Sara looked at Nova. “Like Christmas lights or…” Her voice trailed as she closed her eyes, giving way to the sleep that was now so irresistible. “Sara!” Nova cried out. She tried to remember the girl’s warning about her energy. What was it? How many minutes. “Her energy is depleted. It will take sixty seven minutes calculating her discharge and replication rate for her to regain consciousness.” Skynet observed flatly. Nova took a deep breath. For the moment now, she only had the avatar for company while her sister slept and less than one day to make a plan. “Okay, we need to find a place to stay. So…why don’t you go convince an ATM to give us some money for a hotel room and I’ll…wait, no strike that. Reverse it. I’ll go convince an ATM to give us some money for a hotel room, and you stay with Sara.” She ran a hand through her hair in frustration. “Skynet, at the moment, you are the best defense we have. Don’t kill anyone but protect Sara. She’s the healer. She can save the Doctor. At the moment, I am expendable. Keep her safe. I’ll be back.” Skynet watched the redhead leave, surprised at how practical and logical the little non-human was being. He took up a position at the end of the alleyway they had landed in to watch the few people suspiciously. Twenty-two minutes fifty-three seconds later, Nova came back around the corner. Her body language and facial expression indicated satisfaction. “Were you successful in your mission?” “Even better. Yes, I got the money, but I also happened to run into Amelia’s aunt. Since she has such a big house with only her and her niece living in it, apparently she decided to turn it into a bed and breakfast. I got us rooms.” Nova said triumphantly, “I even gave a cover story. Sara and I are sisters, just like normal. Sara is currently recovering from a hangover. That will explain our accents, her sleeping, and any other sort of ailments she’ll come up with. Won’t give us much sympathy, unfortunately, but it was all I could think of that would explain at least some of her symptoms without the woman calling an ambulance.” Skynet nodded, logging in the data into his banks for later retrieval if necessary. He knelt and picked up Sara bodily, in what humans would call bridal-style. It was the position his archives indicated would be the least suspicious. “Proceed.” Nova rolled her eyes, “Good grief. If I didn’t already know you had a computer-brain, you certainly don’t feel shy about giving indicators.” She led the way down the street towards a three story house. “Will my communication abilities endanger the mission?” Nova looked at him silently, understanding that he was being very serious. So, she took her time calculating and finally nodded. “It may draw suspicion. Especially with the Doctor. Do you have any subroutines that will let you blend in better?” “I have successfully infiltrated nine cells of the Human Resistance.” “I’ll take that as a ‘yes’.” She muttered, “Okay, this is the place. Be nice. Say ‘please’ and ‘thank you’. Those types of things in all the right places.” “Understood,” he answered simply as he effortlessly carried Sara into the house. “Sharon?” Nova called out in question. “I’m back.” A voice echoed through the house in the direction of the kitchen. “Yes, love. Your rooms will be on the second floor. Take any you like except for the child’s room. That’s Amelia’s.” “Will do! Thanks!” Nova gestured for him to go up the stairs. “Amelia’s is the one with pink walls. Head for the room directly across the hall from hers. Set Sara down on the bed. We’ll wait for her to wake up before we make a plan. Timing is going to be everything on this.” She thought about how the Doctor had imprinted on the little Scottish girl because hers was the first face he saw. He couldn’t be allowed to see any of their faces first. It could potentially change the future. Especially if he saw Skynet first… she shivered at the possibilities of that occurring and settled down to wait for Sara to waken. Eventually and right on Skynet’s schedule, Sara blinked her eyes open groaning as she muttered something about ‘never doing that again’. Nova gave a brief smile. At least she didn’t seem terribly disoriented. “I feel so wasted.” Sara muttered. “I could really go for just a cup of tea.” “You require hydration as opposed to a caffeinated beverage, which will only delay your full energy recuperation.” Skynet calculated. “And a nutrient intake is necessary considering both your current electrolyte and blood sugar levels.” “But I have a headache!” Sara protested. “I need the caffeine!” “It is not open for further discussion. The human downstairs is preparing meals for you that will suffice your nutrient requirements. I will procure them.” Skynet said. “You both will remain here where I calculate your safety at nearly 98.7% in opposition to downstairs.” In his databanks, he could rate the number of accidents or human error that could cause harm to the subjects he needed to keep from danger for one night. He wouldn’t take any additional margin of risk. “Wait a minute.” Nova tried. “Skynet, I should…” He was out the door, with it suddenly closing behind him nearly directly in her face. Taking a deep breath, she shook her head and went to open the door to assist in his communication downstairs only to find it somehow securely fastened from the outside. She tried to rattle the knob but it wouldn’t even budge! “What’s wrong?” Sara asked concerned from her posture on the bed. “He locked the door.” Nova muttered. “He really just locked the door.” She inhaled. “I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised. He thinks like a computer and he’s just trying to keep us safe but….” “I know.” Sara muttered. “I probably should be angry but I just feel sorry for him. The TARDIS. This should never have happened. Not like this.” She swallowed. “But John Connor. I really liked him too.” It was an impossible situation. The A.I. had created three open paradoxes sending those machines back in time to interfere with the past. Technically speaking, John Connor should never have been born but if Kyle Reese was send back to 1984, then his birth occurred in 1985. Right now, John was just eleven years old. That meant, he had just been a child when the TARDIS killed three billion humans. A lot of weight for a twelve year old. Sara thought. “If we’re still here, we’ll check on him. This version of him.” Nova said softly. “Like we promised.” The door finally opened as Skynet returned with two trays he balanced easily while the girls simply looked at him. Finally Nova broached the subject without even addressing the locked door. “How did it go?” Referring to his conversation with Amelia’s aunt. “Satisfactory.” He said. “I was capable of infiltrating and assumed the role of your fiancé.” He replied. Nova briefly coughed in response and Sara for the first time in days started to laugh whole heartedly. “Nova’s fiancé, hmm?” Sara was still giggling wildly. “Now, it’s too bad you locked the door. I would have loved to have seen how that went!” Her sister’s silent command to ‘be quiet’ went unheeded as Sara’s laughter continued while Skynet brought the tray over to her bed, while placing Nova’s on the desk in front of her. “You will both commence eating.” “Remember what we talked about?” Nova asked him trying to stifle her feelings at the AI’s sudden improvisation. “Practice around humans?” “You will both commence eating, please.” His tone was equally flat. Is that an improvement? Sara asked Nova telepathically. But then, he’s your fiancé!
It’s better…but yeah, that’s not ideal. Nova sighed softly, shaking her head. “Okay, we need a plan. At my estimate, the Doctor arrives here tomorrow after dark. Skynet, do you know when exactly?” “My records are incomplete. Between 8 and 9 pm, the TARDIS will crash, resulting in the Doctor’s death.” Both girls froze and turned slowly to look at him, eyes wide. They had been assuming the Doctor had died outside of the TARDIS walls. If it was inside, this would get even more difficult. “Inside or outside the ship?” Nova asked softly. “Outside.” They breathed a sigh of relief. “Good. That makes things easier. Trying to find him in an infinite ship that is all jumbled from a crash landing would have been horrible. But here is my worry, Sara.” Her sister turned to look at her with a questioning eyebrow. “We can only heal him after he sees Amelia. He needs to imprint on her, not us. Especially not him.” She jerked a thumb in the direction of Skynet. “No offense, sweetie.” She tossed over her shoulder before focusing on Sara again. “Which means split-second timing and staying out of the Doctor’s line-of-sight until the very end. Not to mention, we have to stay away from pretty much everyone until the paradox is aligned properly, or we’ll leave more cracks in our wake when it closes behind us. Speaking of cracks…” She turned to look at the A.I. “Skynet, for the love of your mother, do not touch the crack in Amelia’s wall. Actually, just stay out of Amelia’s room completely.” Oh, and we can’t talk about Prisoner Zero out loud. He’ll hear us and attack. As long as we act like he’s not there, we should be fine. She sent to Sara. “If all goes well, we can just hang out in this room for the next twenty hours or so—“ “Nineteen hours, six minutes and twelve seconds.” Skynet interjected helpfully.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
“Nineteen hours, six minutes and twelve seconds.” Skynet interjected helpfully.
Chapter 09
The next several hours proved to only be a waiting game. They didn’t leave the room but to obtain meals until near the appointed hour had arrived. For caution, the three emerged fifteen minutes prior to eight and hid amongst the tree line. So far the skies were clear although Sara pondered how the fatal injuries would take place. On the show, the TARDIS crashed, but the Doctor was mostly alright if a little disoriented from just regenerating. But then, in a parallel reality things could go all so slightly askew. For one example, she know Amelia Pond’s aunt didn’t have a bed and breakfast so that was one change. How could she with a crack in her wall taking random person out of existence? But she shrugged. She must be just trying to make a living during difficult times when the girl’s own parents were gone. They both saw the TARDIS at the same time rushing towards the earth, light pulsing around it as it burst through phone lines, knocking into trees and hit the ground hard. It was smoking but the TARDIS lights were on, if not dimmer. Small flames rippled around the area. But the other lodgers in the bed and breakfast were what was causing the problem. The two girls heard two or three men exclaim from inside at the noise. One made it to the porch staggering. Nova could tell he was intoxicated, muttering something about aliens and trespassers. That whoever landed was dangerous. Nova could only hold her breath as suddenly Amelia scurried past him in a dash towards the craft carrying a flashlight. The Doctor suddenly climbed out, soaking wet as he laid eyes on Amelia. He stumbled briefly. “Could I have an apple?” He started. “All I can think about. Apples. I love-“ Two gunshots rang through the air, striking the Doctor squarely in the chest as both girls gasped and Amelia froze in sudden terror. “Filthy, alien trespasser!” The drunken man exclaimed. “Go back to where you came from! We don’t want your kind here!” Nova immediately turned to Sara, horrified at what she saw but struggling to put it aside. “Okay, I’ll deal with him.” She would surely knock the man out and give him nightmares besides for his cowardly actions. “Skynet, you and Sara, get the Doctor back onboard the TARDIS and heal him.” “You’ll be there too, right?” Sara asked desperately. Nova nodded. “As soon as I’m done dealing with him.” “I could dispense with the human.” Skynet said coldly. Sara pressed her lips together and shook her head. “I need you to help me get him back on board. Please.” She insisted. “For your mother’s sake.” He finally nodded and proceeded with Sara to the Doctor’s side where Amelia had fallen to her knees. The little girl’s hands were covered with blood as the Doctor was there struggling to breathe. “He’ll be alright, won’t he?” The child asked. “Santa sent him and someone sent by Santa can’t die. He’ll….” Tears came down her face. “I’m going to help him, Amelia.” Sara told her gently. “But I need you to be brave and wait just out here until we’re done. Then, he’ll be right there to talk to you about what you wished from Santa.” “You know about that?” The girl’s eyes widen. “Did Santa send you too?” “In a way, maybe he sent the three of us.” She glanced at Nova who had glaringly rendered the man with the gun unconscious before her and was whispering things into his ear as she held onto his arm. “So, will you wait right here?” Amelia nodded shakily as Skynet carried the Doctor bodily back inside the sparking console room of the TARDIS and Sara swallowed as she fell on her knees beside him, looking directly into the Doctor’s green eyes as he looked blearily at hers. She started to summon her empathy as Nova stumbled through the entry way and Sara licked her lips as the glow went to the outside of her skin. “If this still works and we are still here, I don’t think I will be able to move for a few minutes.” She warned. “Understood,” Skynet replied. “We also don’t know what will happen to you.” Nova told him wearily. There was a possibility the TARDIS would protect the travelers from the paradox and the possibility they would all be reset. From here, they were in unknown territory. If Skynet remained, he would have to remain in the Doctor’s custody for the foreseeable future. As a creation from an unstable A.I., he was far too dangerous. He nodded briefly as he watched with calculated interest while Sara channeled time energy, transferring the glow from herself and pouring a vast quantity directly into the Doctor himself while his body became covered in diffuse light. Nova at this point could only think of the time line that was about to cease to exist as new events were going to take place. “Forgive us.” She whispered. Perhaps to the Doctor or to the universe itself. She couldn’t stand to hear the TARDIS cry out in pain. Neither girl could bear the machine’s utter agony and now they even doubly understood why. The Doctor had been gunned down as a result of human crime after saving the world. ‘Humans kill what they don’t understand.’ She remembered Skynet’s words. The last of the time energy soaked in the Time Lord’s body as the wounds disappeared, the Doctor’s eyes cleared and he took a deep, lingering breath. Sara collapsed on the floor, her head spinning. For now, for her part, she had succeeded. What would happen next? Nova moved quickly, knowing that Sara would have healed all major injuries, but the crash itself would have given the Doctor minor ones. “Stay still, Doctor.” They hadn’t disappeared either. She had actually expected it; just opening her eyes to be back in that car with Donna. Her head went up, but Skynet was nowhere to be found. Her heart went out to the A.I. Thank you, Skynet. You saved your mother. Sacrificing himself to save the TARDIS, as any good son would. Her periwinkle eyes went back to the Doctor, who was looking at her curiously. “Who are you?” She steeled her heart, hardening it for what she knew would occur. Once he found out what they had done, and it wouldn’t take much longer she was certain, his reaction would be huge, angry, and hurtful. “I’m Nova, Doctor. Sara saved your life.” He slowly sat up, peering at the redhead kneeling beside him, and the unconscious brunette on the ground. His mind was filled with the sensation of a paradox so huge it would have collapsed several dimensions…but it was closing. In another two seconds, it was gone. He waited, watching that paradox carefully until it was no more. It was a good thing it was able to be fixed on its own, because he didn’t have enough time to do it himself. That huge paradox was the reason he had crashed to begin with. The poor TARDIS had gone crazy with information and something had knocked loose. Then, his mind returned to the present and his eyes narrowed thoughtfully. “Forgive you for what?” he asked with a raised eyebrow. “How do you know me?” Nova bowed her head. She couldn’t look in his eyes as she told him exactly what had occurred. “I’ve known you all my life, Doctor. I dream about you at night…” she explained everything, leaving nothing out. She knew any detail obscured would be detrimental. They were already in so much trouble. By Gallifreyan law, he had the rights to kill them both. Or worse. So, she explained how she had landed on the TARDIS, running into Sara. The Doctor forcibly adopting them and their mad run to get away. She explained about landing in the time travel room that only barely had time travel, watching his Eleventh face speak so oddly. Their conclusion that the TARDIS herself had gone mad with the pain of his death. Finally, their mission to fix it; to save his life. “We knew that you had to see Amelia first…God forbid you imprint on Skynet. So, we hid and waited until the last second.” She took a deep stabilizing breath. “Little Amelia is waiting outside for you to fix the crack in her wall. I took care of the human that shot you…he won’t do anything like that again, not to anyone.” The Doctor never interrupted her. He just let her speak; listening as her voice broke in certain spots with intense emotion. He gave no outward indication of his mental or emotional state. “While I take care of the crack, do I have to say for you and Sara to stay in the ship?” he asked calmly, no emotion in his voice at all. She rapidly shook her head negatively. “Good.” He got to his feet, picking up Sara in his arms gently, and took both girls to the infirmary. He made sure that Sara was secure, since she was still unconscious, and healthy, before he left he turned to Nova. “I assume you know what will occur with this crack?” Nova nodded immediately. His lack of showing any emotion or indication of how he was going to react was making her very nervous. Did he imprint on Skynet anyway? Or is he just tightly reigning in his emotions so that he doesn’t do anything he’ll regret? Especially since he knows that there is a little 7 year old girl out there waiting for him… “Are you going to interfere?” Nova shook her head again. “Good. Stay with your sister while I sort this out. After which, the three of us will talk about what will happen. You are both too dangerous…you have made that abundantly clear.” For a split-second, Nova could see the anger and rage in his eyes, in his voice when he had said ‘abundantly’. The rage was so close to the surface…he was keeping a very tight leash on it. She flinched, looking down again. At least I know he didn’t imprint on Skynet. “I’m going to lock you in the infirmary.” She nodded again in acknowledgement. She didn’t want to provoke him any further. “I will also transfer the adoption bond to myself as soon as I get back. Inform your sister when she wakes.” And then he left. Nova heard a distinct ‘click’ when the door closed and she collapsed into herself. “Oh God, Sara…I knew he would be angry…but this? I’ve never been afraid of his Eleven before…he scares me, the way he keeps all his real emotions hidden.” She waited anxiously for Sara to waken. Nova heard the klaxon clang and felt as the ship dematerialized not long after. She sent a warm feeling to the TARDIS and was surprised to feel deep emotional pleasure, reassurance, and caring back. Nova giggled softly. She saw Sara’s eyes flutter open and spoke with a watery smile, “This TARDIS likes us a lot. I don’t think she’ll let the Doctor do anything major…but he’s already said that he’s going to transfer the adoption bond to him after he takes care of the crack in Amelia’s wall. Probably to have a ready-access leash so that he always knows our emotional state and where we are. A mental GPS really. How do you feel, sweetie?” Sara swallowed, still feeling a bit lethargic from the exertion but it was to be expected. Healing a Time Lord was no small feat but it was less of an exertion then bubbling the three through time. Tears came to her eyes. “I don’t want to be bonded again.” She said, her voice shaking. She knew the Doctor would be mad but she could feel how fragile that timeline was. Skynet had said he sent time travelers to the past to kill people. John Connor sent another. Oh, she would have the guilt for what she did for the rest of her life, however long that would be. But a part of her could sense it was faltering. Like her own reality that had been snuffed out of existence due to a paradox. That reality had fallen apart. What else could they do? The war would have continued if they had not interceded, more time travel might have been used…how many time lines would have been casualties from the devastation? She pushed herself up right. “Couldn’t we just go?” “Sara,” Nova bit her lip. “He locked us inside the medbay while-“ Her sentence was cut off, watching her friend as she panicked as she ran to the door, futilely pulling on it in desperation. She immediately put her arm around Sara in comfort even though she was very nervous herself. “I promised we would both stay here.” She told her sister. “Please Sara, let’s not make this any worse.” “Any worse?” Sara asked. “He’s going to lock us up. Probably put us inside a room and throw away the key.” She looked around the room. “Where’s Skynet?” “He’s gone.” Nova’s voice tried to remain even. She knew the Doctor had every right to measure out the punishment her sister described although she hoped that wouldn’t be the case. “We expected this. So did he.” She licked her lips. “He knew what this could mean…” She glanced at her sister to see Sara’s distinct pain in her expression. “I thought….” Sara muttered. “It’s silly but I guess I didn’t mind him so much and I thought if I got him inside the TARDIS herself, since she was a paradox machine, it would protect him. I know he thinks like a machine and he’s dangerous but….what are we if not then too? He’s like the TARDIS. I mean, sort of like me but we can talk to him and I just…” She swallowed, tears filling her eyes. “It’s so stupid.” “No, it’s not.” Nova said. “He was her son after all and the TARDIS understands. She knows what happened. Maybe I can help you connect with her better so you can feel her a little like how I can. That might….” She gave a brief shrug. It would be something to help as a buffer through this arduous time. Suddenly, the door clicked and opened as the Doctor stood there, examining both girls grimly before proceeding inside. Sara promptly backed away. “Doctor, please. I know you’re mad after what we did….but don’t, please don’t force transfer our bond. Neither one of us consented in the first place. I lost my entire universe and he knocked me out. Did it against my will. Please….” Her voice started to crack. “If you’re going to take our bond and lock us up, I would prefer you just exact the full penalty for what happened and kill me.” She glanced at her sister. “I healed you, causing the paradox. I was able to buffer us through the time machine. It was my fault, not Nova’s.” She didn’t know exactly what Nova had told the Doctor but she thought her bluff might be worthwhile. “I’m sorry. I’m ready to take the penalty for my crimes.” Nova let out an internal groan as the Doctor studied her expressionlessly. “An interesting argument but a lie nevertheless, isn’t it Sara?” He asked. “I am fully aware that you both participated.” “Doctor…” Nova started. “Sara’s tired…we are both responsible and…” “You might be interested to know who I found outside.” He said, his voice firm. The girls looked at each other in askance before facing him. “Amelia?” “Interesting guess. I assume by your response that she will become a companion?” They both nodded. “Hmmm…but no. It wasn’t Amelia.” They shrugged in confusion and watched as a new person walked into the infirmary. “Wait….” Sara looked at the man in confusion. “You look familiar.” She paused. “The man in the portal.” She looked at Nova with alarm. “Kyle Reese.” She remembered John Connor saying his name. “What is he doing here?” “The paradox that crashed my TARDIS also redirected his course direction into her path.” He said. “Do you know what this means?” “Our paradox crashed your TARDIS.” Sara muttered in resolute horror. Had they been the cause of the Doctor’s near death all along? “No, lucky for you, you acted in time to seal the damage. But you two had no idea of what you were doing. Puncturing a hole into the fabric of reality. Deciding to travel back in time to knowingly end a timeline that could have resulted in the deaths of trillions.” He looked at each girl firmly. “You were lucky that it was already in a state that was about to collapse with several timelines before it became sealed and-“ “So, you’re angry at us likely saving a few other realities since the one we were in was already dying.” Sara tried to keep her voice strong. “Because you didn’t see it. The TARDIS there had devastated the planet and-“ “But Kyle Reese here has.” The Doctor gestured to him. “Now he’s lost his universe too.” He grimaced as Sara cringed. “You two didn’t know that would happen. You both know the rules of time and disregarded them purposefully. He’s the only survivor of that reality. Do you understand what this means?” He stared at them. “I will transfer the bond. There is no choice on that matter so I suggest you prepare yourselves for that process.” He took a deep breath. “And say hello to Kyle. He will be joining us since he has nowhere left to go.” He took a deep breath, hearing the protests behind him as he stepped out of the sickbay. Perhaps he was being very harsh but he had to be. The girls were in the process of becoming Time Lord. They could have wreaked devastation to multiple time lines with their carelessness. They put the needs of his TARDIS first before the universe. While Nova could certainly feel her pain and Sara had TARDIS energy running through her, that being a sentimental reaction was also a human one. He now had an additional passenger from another reality he didn’t expect who told him exactly what it was like in the aborted time line he came from. He looked around his TARDIS in despair. All this because you lost me. He shook his head. Killing either girl was out of the question. They were all that he had of his kind. He just couldn’t but they desperately needed instruction and guidance. He wanted to know more about the bond that was forced upon them. Perhaps part of their erratic behavior was due to how the bond was placed, given Sara’s response to the idea. Kyle Reese. A hardened soldier who was willing to die for a woman he never met and now never could. The situation was wholly problematic. From what he could garner, given Kyle Reese’s account and the Doctor researching the TARDIS, a man named John Connor never existed. He was part of the paradox. One human’s existence had also been part of the problem. Xxxxxxxxxxx
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Chapter 10
Nova looked at the door, which hadn’t been locked after the Doctor left and wondered if he had done it to test them. Would they stay if he didn’t ensure it? She really didn’t want to test the Time Lord. He was terrifying when he wanted to be. She felt the ship send her more reassurance that the consequences wouldn’t be too bad, and that the Doctor would take care of them. However, Nova also knew that the TARDIS had a rather large bias towards her Pilot, not that the redhead could blame her. “Hi Kyle,” she said simply. “Hi,” he returned numbly. It was still a lot to take in. He couldn’t meet Sarah Connor because she didn’t need him. Skynet didn’t exist and never would anymore. John Connor was dead, but only because a new one would take his place. Kyle didn’t know what was worse. “So…you girls come here often?” Sara laughed softly at him, “No, we just hang around infirmaries for the fun of it. See all the drugs that will kill us?” Nova nodded with a sad smile. “Not to mention all the tools that can do permanent damage if one is not careful and trained on them. There is a reason only the Doctor uses his medbay. He’s the only one who won’t kill people with it.” “Accidentally kill people.” Sara interjected. “Granted,” Nova conceded. She sighed, “The TARDIS is going again that we will be fine with the Doctor and…well, best translation is ‘just go with the flow’.” Kyle asked, “What could he do to you?” Nova winced. “By Gallifreyan law, the Doctor is within his rights to kill us both or worse. Pretty much anything he wants to do, he can. Personally, I’m surprised the only thing he’s really threatened us with is transferring the adoption. At least this one is saner than the last. I don’t mind…even if it is done with extreme prejudice.” She sighed. “I’m really sorry Kyle. I’m so sorry.” A tear slipped down her cheek. “So am I,” Sara interjected. “We are both really sorry…” “I understand. I’m a soldier. I am well acquainted with ‘necessary losses’.” He said softly. Honestly, the concept that he had lost his whole universe hadn’t hit him yet. He had been willing to die for Sarah Connor. He loved her. But this? This was a bit much to deal with at one time. So, he focused on something else. “What do you think he’ll do? The Doctor?” Sara turned to Nova to see her reaction. She knew that Nova understood Gallifrey and the Doctor in particular better than she, though only by a slight margin. However, she also knew that different universes created different results. The universe Nova watched in her dreams certainly wasn’t this one. Nova swallowed, “After the adoption…he will more than likely seal us in the ship until he can teach us…give us the equivalent of the entire Academy training. Little trips here and there to ease the boredom, maybe. Rewards for doing well.” She ran a hand through her hair, tucking it back behind an ear in her nerves. “He was an excellent father…I’m hoping it transfers to us.” Transfer the bond. That didn’t sound terribly pleasant but he wasn’t killing the two girls that stood before him. Briefly he was reminded of Sarah. They looked just around her age and both held so much guilt. As though they slaughtered each person themselves. No machines to fight. Maybe this was the world John often spoke of. Wished they were part of. He remembered distinctly one of John’s wishes once the war was over. “You two know a place where we can get a beer?” He asked. If the door was open, then they could step out. The Doctor brought him inside. Offered him a place to stay but Kyle hadn’t reached a conclusion. “You don’t understand.” Sara told him softly as she glanced at Nova. “Kyle, with your universe, your timeline gone, you exist here as a dimensional duplicate. Another version of you will be born to parents who never experienced the war.” “My family?” Kyle exclaimed. “I can go see my family. My parents-“ “No you can’t.” Nova shook her head. “That’s what we’re saying. They’re not your parents. Your family ceased to exist. These are just a set of parents that will eventually give birth to a Kyle Reese.” “There are billions upon billions of potential realities out there. They all could have versions of you and your family. But they won’t be you.” Sara told him softly. “Just when my universe ceased to exist, I can’t go to find this realities version of my parents. They wouldn’t be mine.” He was just starting to grasp the seriousness of the implications, taking a deep breath. “John asked you to do this. He understood….” “Understood as best he could. He knew he was going to die.” Sara felt tears come to her eyes. “It’s okay. You should hate us after what we did. We cost you your world.” “I knew it was a one way trip. I wouldn’t see my world again.” Kyle said numbly. “If I have to start over…” “Kyle, that’s another thing.” Nova grimaced. “The Doctor telling us that you would join us…it’s not really an offer. By Gallifreyan law, it is within his right to take any time displaced creatures into custody. That includes….well, all of us. You’re under his wardship now.” He stared at them in shock. They both looked back at him grimly. That was how they appeared when the Doctor returned, two pieces of ribbon in hand. He looked towards the human first. “Kyle,” He kept his tone calm. “Perhaps you want to change.” He had managed to dig out a pair of scrubs for the man to wear so he didn’t have to continually use the coat of his last regeneration. “Maybe a bite to eat. Help sort you out a room when I’m done here.” He glanced at both girls. “I hope you’re both prepared. I want to keep this as unpleasant and the least painful as I can.” “Unpleasant?” Kyle’s military senses were coming alert. “No, I will stay here and keep alert.” Regardless of circumstance, the two girls in front of him were the last links he had to the timeline he knew. Sara was thinking and thinking hard. If she tried to run, she would have to leave Nova behind. Nova was resigned to the new bond. They had expected some form of consequence. It was just that the first bond had been such an utter violation to her. The Doctor knocked her out and put it in place while she was unconscious. She had done nothing wrong then. Lost her universe and happened to land on his ship. “Please,” She started to beg the Doctor. “Please don’t do this. The other Doctor, he put me to sleep. Violated my mind to force the bond into place and shoved all my emotions away. Tried to change me. Tried to change Nova. I know we broke the rules. I know what we did was terrible but please, please don’t hurt me again. Not like that. I’d rather die.” She fell to her knees. “I’d rather die….” Her voice cracked as she started to cry. No, she wouldn’t run but she would hope he would have some mercy. “You’re not harming either one of them.” Kyle said, instantly feeling a protective urge and stepped in front of the two girls to face the Doctor who resembled so greatly a person he once knew in his unit. Who was it? He thought. Tim?
“No one is harming anyone.” The Doctor said in exasperation, looking at his three passengers. Clearly the first Doctor they encountered had broken the rules too regarding the establishment of bondings. Alterations of that nature of the mind were expressly prohibited and considered a violation, especially on members of those of a higher species. It might explain a thing or two. He sighed as he attempted to calm his tone. “I need you two to listen to me.” He tried. “The Time Lord who established your bond made modifications to you by force. He committed a violation and that is damaging to your psyche. If I allow the bond to continue like it is, that damage will become permanent but if I can transfer it, then I can fix it and stabilize you. Make sure your TNA transition is not over accelerated.” He paused before looking at Sara. “Did you know it was?” He asked as she glanced up at him, her eyes looking blank. “Probably how you two ended up in the timeline you did. The unstable bond, your TNA in connection with your TARDIS energy….” He winced. “No one is killing anyone and I don’t want to hurt you. Not at all. But I need to fix it.” He knew it would be so much better if both girls consented. “How is this? You have my word I won’t do any personality alterations. I will not shove your emotions anywhere or contain them for either of you. I’m just going to fix the damage the other Doctor did.” “I think…” Nova looked at him as she glanced at her sister. “I think he really means it.” “Your word?” Sara whispered as she looked up at the Doctor. “My word.” He said solemnly. She closed her eyes briefly before finally reaching a conclusion within herself as she finally stood up, glancing at the soldier who had watched the whole scene with uncertainty. “It’s alright Kyle.” She said before finally nodding. She was giving in. Likely his word was the best she could hope for and the promise that the TARDIS would make sure that nothing terribly wrong happened. “You can make sure we don’t turn into mindless zombies.” She said, taking some comfort that he stood in effort to protect them even though it wasn’t his task. It spoke highly of him. “Fine.” Sara shook her head listlessly. “We have your promise. Go ahead.” The Doctor nodded in acceptance. “Do you know the words?” He asked gently as he wrapped the ribbons securely around both girls’ hands. Both nodded simply, “I consent and gladly give.” Sara and Nova said hesitantly in unison. Almost instantly, a wave of soothing calm washed over their minds, gathering them in and nestling them gently into a cocoon. They could feel as things they hadn’t realized were hurting, suddenly didn’t. As if they had a headache, but didn’t recognize until it was gone. Slowly, Nova blinked open eyes which she didn’t notice she had closed. “Doctor?” she asked softly. She felt him in her mind, but it was nothing like before. The connection was gentle, snuggly fit into a slot of her brain, whereas before the fit was loose, jangled, and bit. She hadn’t even grasped…not until the complete opposite was in place. “Sara?” That connection hadn’t changed much at all, because they had been networked via the Doctor in the first place…that and Nova’s innate spider-web feelers to every TARDIS she met. “It…” “It doesn’t hurt anymore.” Sara completed her sister’s thought in amazement, her eyes wide in surprise and shock. “You should both feel much more like yourselves now,” the Doctor gave his new daughters a fatherly smile of satisfaction. He could feel both in his mind. He wasn’t alone anymore. It was so freeing and welcoming. He would protect his family, now that he again had one. “I would like you both to settle into the new bond before we start your education. Starting with temporal mechanics and how to detect and prevent paradoxes.” He gave them a stern raised eyebrow. He nodded, satisfied, when both looked at their shoes in shame. He could feel their intense guilt. It was enough. He knew they were sorry. Neither had the knowledge to do anything but what they had done. “I know you did that because you didn’t understand that there were other options. I will fix that. First though…sleep. It’s been a long day for all of us. Why don’t you go find your rooms?” He gestured for the girls to leave the infirmary. As they were exiting, Nova looked at him hesitantly. On impulse, she darted forward and hugged him. “Thank you, Doctor…for not hating us.” He squeezed her gently in return, sending her feelings of reassurance, acceptance and affection along their new bond. “I know why you did it, Nova. I can’t hate you, when I myself have made the same mistake before.” He said quietly. An idea occurred to him that he should have mentioned. “Oh, before you leave. Sara?” He called, stopping her in her tracks to look back. “I was able to transfer the adoption bond because it was forced, but also because it was within a week of the original. None of us will be leaving the TARDIS until the bond has settled. The possibilities that someone will come along and transfer it again…we don’t want to chance it. Alright?” He waited until both nodded before he smiled at them. “Then off to bed with you both. Get some sleep.” Now that the girls were in the hallway, Kyle raised an eyebrow at the Doctor. “They were much more relaxed…your doing?” The Doctor glared at him, “I never go back on my word. I said I would not alter their personalities and I haven’t.” He sighed as he ran a hand through his hair, “However, their former bond-holder was a very vicious man. He was much more determined to get them to follow him than I had thought. The bonds on their minds were numerous and harmful. To put it in a way you can understand, picture their heads completely covered in barbed wire. It was why they were acting so unlike themselves, though they didn’t notice. They should both be much better now…calmer and more focused. More like they were before they ever met a man named the Doctor.” He shook his head as he shrugged off his coat and gathered it in his arms. “Well, its’ been a long day for you too Kyle. Let’s find you a room.” He had daughters now. A family. His heart was filled with joy. Xxxxxxxxxxxx Sara was the one to find Kyle in the kitchen. Nova hadn’t quite awoken yet so she decided to make breakfast to try to make amends for causing so much drama the day prior and hopefully to welcome Kyle aboard. At the moment, he seemed puzzled by the components of the oven, the microwave and how it all worked when Sara suddenly cringed. He had been living in squalor like John. He probably hadn’t seen a decent meal in his life. But he did ask for something….beer. She thought. She went through the cold box, pulling out a root beer before uncapping it for him, pouring the beverage into a mug. “Sorry Kyle, no alcohol but it’s pretty tasty. I can show you where the wine is later if you’re interested.” “Wine?” Kyle asked. “I think John mentioned it before.” He paused. “Tried to make moonshine once. Never really turned out.” He took a deep breath. “But this ship. It’s incredible. I was able to take a shower. Sleep in a real bed. And my room….” Oh, his room was something out of a dream. Just how he imagined his room might be if there was never a war. A large bed, numerous chairs, a bookcase, lamps and a television set. He could have whiled away the hours with that. Sara briefly smiled. He took such simple things for priceless gifts. “Is there anything special you want for breakfast?” She paused. “Nova loves pancakes and ricotta cheesecake. I could make some bacon and sausage to-“ “Everything.” Kyle grinned. “Everything sounds amazing.” Sara was already pulling down ingredients. Quickly she whipped a batch of pancakes together, heating syrup in a separate pan while slicing up apples and nectarines. A pan of bacon and one of sausage was also set up while she quickly put the components together for a ricotta cheesecake. She prepared two pots of tea. One with black and one for chamomile. The meal was nearly finished as Nova and the Doctor stepped in to join the pair. “Someone’s been cooking.” Nova murmured, rubbing her eyes. “My way of apologizing.” Sara told them as she starting setting up plates so they could help themselves. She looked up at the Doctor with uncertainty knowing his taste buds had fully changed. She knew what a few of his preferences were but wasn’t sure whether- “Pancakes and syrup!” He exclaimed, giddy as a kid. “First time with this mouth. Smells wonderful.” He was eagerly helping himself as Kyle followed suit eating the food as though he had been starving. Both Sara and Nova looked at him in sympathy. “Doctor,” Nova asked softly. “Are you sure you checked our new friend Kyle for malnutrition. Anything like that?” “Course I did.” The Doctor exclaimed. “Treated him but nothing like food to help fatten him up.” He sighed briefly. “I will keep making sure he’s okay.” “With food like this, how can I not be?” Kyle exclaimed. “So a week on board your ship. Besides eating, what will be my function? I will have duties to perform, I suspect?” He looked to the Doctor for assistance. “Kyle, this is your home. Not your workplace. Consider us part of your family.” The Doctor said slowly. “You can do what you like here. Feel free to visit any room that isn’t locked. The ship is infinite.” “So, I’m supposed to sit here, eat and just enjoy myself?” That concept seemed alien to him. “I’m used to having duties. You said your daughters need protection. I’m not able to protect Sarah Connor. I would like to be able to help guarding them.” “Oh, well, that’s very kind…” Nova started. “But, we won’t be leaving this ship and-“ “Actually, that’s a fine idea.” The Doctor nodded, chewing on his pancakes. “You can keep an eye on my girls for me when I can’t. They can show you around the TARDIS and a bit of how things work. You can make sure they stay out of trouble.” With Kyle there, he would have another set of eyes than just his. “They can’t go outside for the first week so I need your held making sure they are reminded to stay in the TARDIS for the next seven days. Understood?” His voice was firm. “Understood.” Kyle at least had an objective now. Think we just got another babysitter. Sara thought to Nova whom simply nodded silently. Out of the corner of Nova’s eye, she caught a brief flash of someone moving by the kitchen in the hallway. Blinking her eyes in confusion, she glanced back at Sara before looking at the corridor. Was that just her imagination or…..she shook her head, silently. Perhaps she had woken up a bit too soon. Maybe it was all the sugar. But indeed Nova was now a bit curious. The Doctor had something else on this ship, perhaps and since they were on a seven day lock down, what harm could it bring to Sara or Nova to find out what it was? “So, Kyle, you want a tour?” Nova asked the ex-soldier readily. “Better be warned. It’s an infinite ship. So we’ll be at this for a while.” “An infinite ship.” The man muttered. “After spending nearly all my life scavenging, hiding from machines….” “I can’t imagine.” Sara sympathized. The two girls had only seen small moments of their reality but it had truly been dismal. They walked along the corridor as Sara hesitated by one room. “Oh Kyle, you asked for beer or moonshine earlier. Well, while it might not be either but wine is a pretty awesome substitute.” She led the way into the cellar where bottles upon bottles of wine were corked and ready for tasting. She grabbed a bottle, opening it and handed it to Kyle who looked at the beverage somewhat intrigued. “So this is similar to beer?” He asked. “Oh, better than beer, I think.” Sara said, chuckling internally. She took a bottle and poured a healthy glass for Nova and herself while then offering a toast. “To John Connor.” She proposed. “May he and his people truly find peace in the next world.” “Here, here.” Nova agreed and Kyle paused in silent remembrance. “Thank you for your sacrifice, John.” Nova said. “For all your people’s sacrifices.” She took a deep sip, glancing at Kyle. “That’s a toast. Now we drink on the sentiment.” She told him. “To John.” “To John.” Kyle agreed, raising the bottle in imitation before taking a deep swallow. It swam smoothly down his throat. “Oh this is good.” He told them. “Much better than what we tried to make.” The girls only giggled as they continued to drink while Kyle indulged in the bottle Sara handed him for the first time. Their apparent tour somewhat forgotten as minutes turned into hours and two bottles turned into four. Sara was sighing contentedly as Kyle was leaning against the wall. He had fallen asleep. “Looks much better, don’ you think?” She managed to Nova. “Hmm….” Nova was struggling to think but thinking was a bit hard. “Could use ginger ale…” She was suddenly craving the flavor. “Oh yesh….ginger ale….” Sara slurred. “I’ll go get it.” She stumbled forward in the cellar and was on the stairs. She suddenly became dizzy nearly falling down the steps when a hand gripped her arm, keeping her upright. “You appear inebriated.” A voice that was the Doctor’s but almost mechanical told her. “Doctor…” Sara trailed off. “Want to join. Jus’ going to find ginger ale and-“ “I do not require sustenance.” He said. “Huh?” Sara said. “Since when?” Nova was struggling to look at the Doctor who had kept her sister from falling. Even in her state he was acting a bit odd. She blinked, wondering if it was just her mind playing tricks on her as she tried to get to her feet. Probably not too happy. She thought. All things considered, their tour resulted in visiting one room and having them all go into a drunken haze. She started to stagger over to where Sara was standing. She blinked hazily up at him with a drunken smile, “Doctor…we jush want’d to have some wine…Kyle nev’r had wine b’fore…” “Indeed,” he pulled Sara into his arms more firmly. “A resting period is needed for you to retain cognitive function.” He set Sara on her feet. “Do you need assistance to successfully navigate to your rooms?” He asked with a raised eyebrow. Nova frowned up at him, “You’re talkin’ all funny, Doctor. Ish you sick?” “Negative. I will assist you to your rooms. You will need to sleep six hours and twenty-three minutes to alleviate 80% of your blood alcohol levels. You all are extremely intoxicated. Kyle Reese will need chemical assistance.” He shook his head with a disgruntled expression, reaching into his pocket to return with a syringe, swiftly and efficiently injecting the soldier. “I would recommend starting with smaller increments. Especially as Kyle Reese has never previously been inebriated. His blood alcohol is currently 0.28.” He lifted the man onto his shoulder in a fireman’s carry and took both girls’ arms in one hand each. “Now, to bed with all of you. Humans behave so oddly.” The last sentence was barely muttered, but Nova was close enough to hear him. She blinked up at him, a dawning realization in her mind. “You’re Skynet…we thought you died.” His eyes looked down at her, “My mother protected me. I wished to remain hidden until such times as the Doctor proved to be trustworthy. My mother quite likes you both. She has charged me with your care while on the ship, should the Doctor prove unsatisfactory. I did not expect to be needed so soon after your boarding.” Nova just blinked at him as his words were accompanied with him putting Kyle into bed. Sara was next, mostly asleep on her feet, along with Nova. The girls were laid on the same bed in Nova’s room since hers was closer, and a blanket pulled over them. Before he left again, Nova’s voice echoed softly into the din. “I’m glad you’re still alive, Skynet. You’re a good son.” He looked back at his charges, given to him by his mother, and once again appreciated what the two girls had done for his mother. They had saved her and he would spend the rest of their lives repaying that debt. Whatever they may need, while on the TARDIS, it would be theirs. After all…his mother was protecting him…he could never leave the ship again. One of his hands caressed the corridor’s walls. It wasn’t such a hardship…not at all. He would care for his mother with all the joy and satisfaction he held. He loved his mother, as much as an A.I. could love…but that love was with his whole being. He would take care of her and protect her above all others. Nova and Sara were just under his mother. The Doctor apparently could take care of himself in most situations, but if that ever changed, Skynet already had several contingency plans in place to protect his mother’s Pilot at all costs. He nodded to himself at his new list of priorities and dimmed the lights to the girls’ room so that they may sleep. Humans needed sleep.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
He nodded to himself at his new list of priorities and dimmed the lights to the girls’ room so that they may sleep. Humans needed sleep.
Chapter 11
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxx ((Six days and twenty hours later)) The girls had decided to keep such information to themselves. The two were gratified that he was still alive but in turn, they didn’t know how the Doctor or Kyle would take it. Whether any judgment would be landed on the avatar. Besides, it was a bit like having a secret ally on board and one who could be the voice of the TARDIS to them. Although the subsequent hangovers they and Kyle experienced seemed regrettable especially since the soldier never experienced a hangover before. “So much for a tour.” He groaned through a ringing headache. It seemed the injection that Skynet had given him prevented him from a dangerous state of alcoholic poisoning but he still suffering the consequences for his impetuous act. “I’m sorry.” Sara said fretfully. “It’s my fault.” She had been the one to lead them into the cellar. “But I agreed.” Nova attested, shaking her head. Eight hours had passed since she woke up in her room with Sara and they both set about the task of making dinner. A shrimp alfredo since supposedly Sara read that greasier foods would curb the lingering hangover sensation. Nova had her doubts but still an appetite. “You know, what I miss?” Sara muttered as the assumed a natural pace. “Running. Outdoors in the rain. If we’re stuck in here in a week…” “Maybe the TARDIS has a room with a course inside?” Nova suggested and Sara shook her head. “That isn’t the same.” She muttered. “What’s not the same?” The Doctor stepped inside and both girls glanced back double checking his presence. In contrast to Skynet, on a superficial level, they could tell he was the Doctor just based on his rather disorganized attire, which he was still attempted to discern. Skynet seemed very orderly in his appearance, dressed invariably in greys. “Sara wants to run.” Nova said as she stirred the noodles while the Doctor took a cautious glance at Sara. “No, not that way.” She could sense where his mind went. “For exercise. She used to run outside for exercise before….” She trailed off in a grimace. “I see.” The Doctor frowned briefly. “Perhaps you three would enjoy the microverse.” He couldn’t let them outside during the week their bond was in transition. They were his children now and their safety was paramount. Not to mention, he was getting disturbing readings from the rift. If their former Doctor was as unstable as he sounded, having the bond taken from him would completely destabilize him. He couldn’t risk them going outdoors after what he had seen the other Time Lord to do both his girls minds. The damage there….that had made him utterly furious too. “The microverse.” Sara paused. “What’s that?” “Oh, I should’ve thought of it.” Nova said. “It creates the illusion of the outside world. No people but if you want to go run in the rain, you can.” “Cities?” Kyle Reese asked. He hadn’t really seen a city before judgment day. “It will show us what one looks like?” “Yeah.” Sara told him, with an edge of sadness to her tone. They finally served the dinner they had been cooking as the two girls took their seats at the table, Sara apparently lost in a train of thought. “Tell you what, Kyle.” Nova said. “We’ll show you what our home towns look like.” She paused. “Well, the versions here. After that, maybe we can ask the TARDIS to provide you a beer.” She paused. “Only one though.” After last night, she wasn’t taking a chance. “Overdid it a bit, did you?” The Doctor said. “I’m amazed you all made it to your rooms unassisted.” “Well, apparently the TARDIS likes us.” Sara muttered as the Doctor merely raised his eyebrows at them. Both girls shrugged and Nova briefly giggled, feeling a warm sensation come from the TARDIS. It was so pleasant to have that connection again. With this new bond in place and the joy of the TARDIS she felt completeness. It was almost as much as she could hope for. Xxxxxxxx It was when they approached the room containing the microverse, did Sara insist that Nova go first. But then the choices here. They could literally show him anything and it would be safe. “I wonder if we can take him to an amusement park here and it would work. You know, no lines?” Sara asked with a bit of excitement. She always enjoyed her visits to Disneyland. “What’s an amusement park?” Kyle asked. “I will accompany you to assist in its functionality.” A voice behind them said. “Oh, Sky-“ Sara was suddenly cut off with a painful jab to the ribs. “I mean,” She said between trying to catch her breaths as Nova stared at her fixedly. “I would love to see the sky.” She attempted. “I miss sunsets. Haven’t seen them in a while.” Her lie seemed almost painstakingly obvious as Kyle turned to the other man in examination. “You don’t seem like the Doctor.” The soldier was falling back onto instincts sensing something a bit off about the persona. “He’s part of the TARDIS.” Nova reluctantly admitted. “But its okay, Kyle. He’s safe. He’s protecting us.” “That is correct. Since you have offered assistance to Sara and Nova, I in turn will ensure your safety as long as you do not intend to inflict harm on this ship’s pilot or passengers.” “Why would I….?” Kyle’s voice trailed. “Who are you?” He demanded, stepping to the forefront just in case action was needed. The two girls looked at each other in alarm. This could go downhill very quickly. The AI simply told the truth, “I am Skynet.” Kyle, as expected for a soldier who had been fighting all his life, overreacted. He grabbed the nearest thing at hand and brandished it mightily. “Girls, run!” “Stop it! He won’t hurt anyone here. Put it down Kyle!” Nova yelled, alarmed and scared that something would happen to the A.I. She actually liked Skynet quite a bit. He was loyal and protective. Nova pushed at the soldier’s arms, making whatever he had picked up go off course and hit her instead. She cried out in pain and dropped to the floor. Doctor? She telepathically sent, a little dizzy. Help… Her vision had tunneled slightly, the shapes around her blurry and the sounds were suddenly as if they were coming from underwater.
What’s wrong? He asked in alarm. This was the first time their adoption bond had been used. In just two hours and seventeen minutes, it would be sealed completely. He had been planning a surprise trip for his daughters, let them out—now that it was safe for them to do so—to see the universe and learn new things. Once the bond was stabilized, he would start their education.
I don’t feel right…Kyle found out that Skynet survived and he tried to hit him with something…hit me instead…
I’ll be right there, Nova. Don’t go anywhere! He ordered and she could feel his concern. She knew that he was on his feet and running in their direction as quickly as he could. The TARDIS would help him get to them even faster.
Am I going someplace? She asked blearily. She was so confused…something was very wrong. She could feel it. She felt someone shaking her arms to get her attention and she tried to focus on the person doing it. “Sara?” The world narrowed slightly, giving her less range but more focus. She saw that Skynet was standing over Kyle Reese’s unconscious form, glaring at the soldier in disgust and anger. “I called the Doctor…I feel funny…” “I know, sweetie. I know. Kyle wasn’t thinking. Skynet thinks that the area of your mind which is linked to all the TARDIS’s was struck. It’s bringing out some odd side-effects. I need you to focus, okay?” Sara said anxiously. Nova could hear the fear in her voice, so she tried to do as her sister asked. It didn’t help very much. “You’re pretty,” she said softly. Sara smiled in thanks, but it was strained and fearful. “Thanks, Nova. You’re pretty too.” “I can’t…hold it…” Nova said. Just before her vision fuzzed out again, she saw Skynet’s head jerk up, his eyes wide in alarm. It was the most emotion she had ever seen out of him. She smiled at the thought. He needed to get in touch with his emotions more. It would help him. The world around her went out of focus in all of her senses. Sight, sound, touch, taste, and smell all went away. Her world went into a state of white noise. She drifted along, content and amicable. At least her head didn’t hurt anymore. Xxxxxxxxxx Sara was dazed as she found herself on the pavement of a city. Glancing around herself it appeared to be a very futuristic city. What the hell? Was this part of the TARDIS? The microverse? She rubbed her forehead in confusion only to have her eyes widen as she saw people dart to and fro around her. A few curious glances came their direction. People. It’s people. “Skynet?” She asked around her. “Kyle? Doctor?” The crowds didn’t respond. One person in a strange uniform looked at her disapprovingly. “Best get your friend off the street, eh?” He suggested. “Starfleet regulations doesn’t permit for civilians to sleep out in public.” “What’s Starfleet?” Sara asked. “Both been out drinking late, have you?” The man muttered. “Ignorance of the law is no excuse.” He made his way onward and Sara glanced at him while muttering quietly to herself. “Well, that was just rude, wasn’t it Nova?” She turned to her sister and suddenly gasped. “Nova?” Her friend was completely unconscious and slumped on the ground. “Shit!” She exclaimed. She didn’t sense the Doctor around nor the presence of the TARDIS that she had only just begun to start to recognize. She was forced to act on her own. “Okay…Nova, you’re going to be okay.” Panic filled her but she focused hard on finding her empathy. All that she needed to heal her friend. “Does she require healing?” A familiar tone but one she couldn’t place said behind her. “No, it’s fine.” Sara was concentrating hard. “Just a long night. I’ll take care of her.” There was silence in response and she assumed the person had moved on as the last individual did. Light pours out of her hands as she attempted to conceal most of her efforts with her own body from public view. Energy encased Nova until the time particles were finally absorbed into the girl’s body and Nova gasped, blinking her eyes open, awake as Sara started to collapse directly over her, feeling dizzy by the expenditure. Blood rushed to her head. At least she wasn’t unconscious but someone gripped her shoulder to keep her upright. “Quite an impressive demonstration.” That same voice said as Nova glanced up, looking at the man with some confusion. “Sherlock?” She asked. “Sherlock Holmes? I thought you were dead!” She exclaimed. The man looked precisely like him. Well…his hair was a bit different and he wasn’t wearing his telltale coat but she assumed that might only be iconic to wear for the press since it was in his blogs. “What?” Sara turned as well, a smile breaking out on her face. Finally a pleasant turn of events after all the wretched things that had been happening. Did they end up in Nova’s universe or….she took a better look at the man. A dead ringer. “Is this really your universe?” She asked Nova before turning to look at ‘Sherlock’ excitedly. After all, it was very nice of him to stop and inquire as to Nova’s health. “Oh my God. I’m such a big fan. Really. I mean, seriously huge. I’ve seen all the episodes and….” She trailed trying to curtail her joy. “Could I get an autograph?” Suddenly, she reached into her pocket and pulled out her phone. “No, a picture.” She glanced down at her sister. “Maybe someone will take a picture with all three of us in it. Wouldn’t that be awesome and-“ “I hate to be the bearer of bad news but I am not Sherlock Holmes.” The man carefully stipulated. “That remains a character that appears in fiction.” “Oh….” Sara grimaced, feeling embarrassed. This was not Nova’s universe and she glanced at her sister who looked somewhat disappointed. “Sorry Nova.” She winced internally. Ugh this was so humiliating. She had sounded like a fool in front of who was obviously the performer and she looked at her sister. Has to be the actor that plays Sherlock. Would explain the hair. Sara told her. The city looks so different. Nova was glancing around. Like some futuristic sci-fi films I’ve seen.
Yeah, it’s pretty weird but all those different dimensions out there…Sara shrugged. Actually, meeting the actor was still just as cool. “Sorry, couldn’t help a bit of roleplaying. You know, given what you do.” Sara said to him. “Can I still get your autograph? Still a huge fan. All your work is really impressive. Well, what I’ve seen and…” “You know what I do?” He asked. “Well…” Sara gave a brief shrug. “Best to just give in.” Nova advised him as she brushed her clothing off. “Probably won’t leave you alone until you do.” “I see.” But he finally relented, taking the piece of paper and pen Sara offered him briskly signing it before handing it back to her. “Oh thank you!” Sara said. “Sorry to have bothered you and-“ Suddenly she glanced down at the signature in confusion. “Khan Noonien Singh. Who’s that?” She frowned. “Is this a joke? Wait…maybe an anagram of a family name or-“ “No.” He said, looking at them evenly. “I am Khan.” “Khan.” Sara repeated. “Who is Khan?” She muttered to her sister only to have Nova stare back her blankly and they both stood there in hopeless confusion. Nova shrugged slightly, “I don’t know. Now I’m confused. Speaking of…Sara, how did we get here?” She decided to focus on the immediate problem instead of the odd actor in front of her. Sara ran a hand through her hair. “Kyle hit you with something…Skynet thought that it struck the portion of your brain that controls your sensitivities. You were pretty out of it, sweetie. Then, next thing I know, we land here.” She shrugged helplessly. “I healed you best I could. How do you feel?” Her sister reached up to feel her head, “A little odd, but not bad. Physically, I’m fine. But Sara…” her periwinkle eyes were frowning in concern, “…I can’t feel anyone but you. I mean, I know they are there…but it’s like a rubber band that’s been stretched too tightly.” She blinked and looked up at the tall man who was still eyeing them with intrigue. “Where are we?” “San Francisco bay. Starfleet Headquarters is just up the block.” He answered amiably.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
She blinked and looked up at the tall man who was still eyeing them with intrigue. “Where are we?”
Chapter 12
“San Francisco bay. Starfleet Headquarters is just up the block.” He answered amiably. “May I ask what you mean by ‘feel’? There are specialists that can be contacted for injuries such as you claim.” Nova waved his question away, “Give us a date, please. Month, day, year.” His eyebrows shot up into his hairline, but he replied with no hesitation. “It is stardate 2259.83.” “What’s a stardate?” both girls asked simultaneously. Nova continued, “Can you convert that into the Gregorian calendar?” She asked hopefully. “You are very interesting. September 12th, 2259.” “But that still doesn’t explain why you can’t feel the Doctor or the TARDIS. Do you recognize anything?” Sara asked carefully. Nova shrugged helplessly, “The only thing I can think of is that we accidently traveled dimensions. The only ‘star’ anything I know is my own name…well, there was that movie franchise years ago. Ummm…star something…ummm…oh, Star Wars. But if I remember right, every one of them started with ‘A long, long time ago in a galaxy far, far away…’ Nothing in the future. Though, there were other species like here.” She gestured to the people walking around completely ignoring the group. Several were obviously not human. Nova turned her periwinkle eyes, now starting to get afraid, to her sister. “How do we contact the Doctor if we can’t feel him?” “I don’t know,” Sara said softly. “If I may make a suggestion?” Khan said, his gaze fixing on the two seemingly human girls in front of him. When they focused on him, he continued, “I live nearby. I can take care of you both: food, shelter, clothing and such. I assume someone will come looking for you?” At both their nods, he smiled gently at them. “Well, then. I can help you blend in a bit for this era until they come for you.” They eyed him. Sara turned to her sister, “He’s the only one that stopped. I think he’s probably our best bet.” Nova slowly nodded, “Okay. Tonight, I’ll try some meditation to get a message through my TARDIS link. That may help. Poor Doctor…he must be terribly worried.” Sara snorted, “I’d be more worried about Kyle. Lord knows what Skynet will do to him for hitting you.” Xxxxxxxxxxxx “Well this is nice.” Sara observed. “Thank you for doing this.” She glanced at Nova. “One guy threatened me with Starfleet something or other regulation and I think he thought we were sleeping off getting drunk on the street.” “That is very rude.” Nova agreed muttering. “If Skynet were here….” Khan was in the kitchen cooking dinner for them. Both offered to help but he refused the offer. All things concerned, they thought him acting like the proper host. “At least let me make the tea.” Sara begged when she saw the tea maker. It had fifteen different settings and he had forty different varieties. “Ohhh, this is so exciting. Even better than the Doctor’s supply.” She opened up other shelves, glancing at a blue bottle with curiosity. “Romulan Ale.” She repeated to herself. What’s a Romulan? Maybe it was like a brightly colored root beer or ginger ale. Impulsively she poured herself a glass and managed two sips before said contents were snatched out of her hands by Khan who looked at her sternly. “What?” She asked. “What is it?” She let out a brief hiccup feeling dizzy. “It was right by the tea cabinet and I thought-“ “That does not belong in tea,” he told her. “You would be surprised at what Sara is able to blend with tea, Khan.” Nova told him, stepping into the kitchen. “She uses chocolate, other flavorings and-“ “That is a highly potent form of alcohol that is far stronger than what humans are typically accustomed to.” Both girls looked down in embarrassments as Sara gave a brief shrug. “I’m sorry. I thought it was a kind of ginger ale and-“ “Sara, you know what ginger ale can do to us.” Nova pointed out. “Well, by itself nothing.” Sara defended. “You have to use ginger ale first to lower our resistance and then use alcohol but….” She glanced at Khan. “I’m sorry. That’s not the point. I’ll stick with the tea.” She felt terrible. The first hours as a guest in the very duplicate of her most favorite actor and detective, well, she was already screwing things up. So instead, she focused on working the controls to make two blends at once. The device was capable of rendering four pots of tea simultaneously but she kept with Nova’s traditional chamomile and Vanilla while blending chai, with chocolate, cinnamon and cardamom for Khan and herself. “So, Khan, an interesting name.” Nova said idly. “Were you raised in India or China?” “I’ve been to both locations.” He answered. “My role in life demanded it.” “Oh, you mean your profession?” Sara asked as she watched the tea leaves seep in the water. “What did you do?” “Myself and my family are geneticists.” “Really?” Nova asked. “So you likely know about dormant chromosomes awakening due to an activation or trigger.” She postulated. “You both had a resulting mutation?” He raised his eyebrows. “Well, yes, I suppose.” Sara told him. “I’m an anomaly composed of TARDIS energy with Time Lord TNA. Nova already had twenty five percent of Time Lord TNA but there was this Doctor…” Her face darkened. “My universe was destroyed and Nova was wrenched out of hers and he just…..” She shook her head. “Experimented on us in a way, forcing us to bond with him. Making us sleep. Trying to change our personalities. Stuff our emotions away and…” She paused as Nova took her hand. “We managed to get away. Found a new one after some…” She thought of what they did to that reality and decided she didn’t want to sicken Khan with those thoughts. “Events. The new Doctor treats us really well but you know…remembering the first one…” She shuddered briefly. “I do understand.” Khan offered. “I was experimented on as well.” Both girls glanced at him in surprise. “My blood holds key factors that allows me to heal quickly. A dose of which can also heal others. Much like the ability you seem to possess.” He glanced towards Sara. “So, that’s why you stopped?” Sara drew a conclusion from his statement and felt even more grateful. “You were going to offer to heal Nova?” She looked at her sister and shook her head. “Well, we are in your debt then. If there is anything we can do…” “Yes, our Doctor should be coming soon.” Nova said. “As soon as I can concentrate and get into contact with him.” “And how do you go about this enterprise?” Khan asked. “Oh, Nova is really good with telepathy.” Sara nodded. “I mean, we can telepathically communicate through our bond but she can feel the TARDIS, our time machine and give commands or orders to other people. She says she’ll teach me someday.” “I will!” Nova insisted. “But it’s been one thing after another. Still, the Doctor is going to begin our training too. Especially after what happened before.” She took a deep breath to look at her host who was readily dishing the pasta he prepared onto plates while opening a bottle of wine. “So you were experimented on too?” She asked with compassion. “That must have been terrible.” “It’s a fate I could wish on no one.” He told them quietly. “And for your blood?” Sara grimaced at the mere thought. What if that happened to her? “My blood and the Admiral involved wanted to instigate a war with the Klingons he felt was necessary.” Khan explained as the blood drained from both girl’s faces. “A war.” Nova repeated. Hadn’t one reality already been decimated because of a war? She thought of Kyle and everything he suffered. Was this reality about to suffer the same fate. She glanced to her sister who immediately looked wary too as Sara took to clenching her jaw. They had seen what happened after a TARDIS went insane but humans on their own were capable of equal amounts of devastation. She knew that much. “But you got away.” Sara tried. “You didn’t actually build that stuff for him, did you?” “I had no choice. My crew... my entire family was being held as leverage against me.” He looked at them with utter despair. “I’m afraid when I finally did resist and move to counter his demands did he act, murdering each and every one of them.” He paused. “That is why I stopped to assist you.” He tilted his head to the side in examination. “You remind me of the family I had.” Nova, a compassionate person by nature and design, felt her heart ache for the man. She got up immediately and went to him, hugging him tightly. “I’m so sorry. I lost my family too…all I have left is Poppi, and I don’t know how to get back to him. I keep trying… I wouldn’t wish that on anyone.” She squeezed him around the middle. After a moment, she felt his hand come to rest on her back in return. When she finally stepped back, both girls had tears in their eyes. “You aren’t alone either. Sara lost everything with the Time War. My parents died in a car accident last year. Seems like all we do is lose the ones we care about.” She reached out to hug her sister as well, clinging to each other in their grief. A ‘ding!’ indicated that the tea was finished brewing. Sara stepped away and poured them all a cup. “Nova is so picky about her tea,” the brunette said teasingly, trying to raise the atmosphere. “Only thing she drinks is Vanilla Chamomile, and then she adds honey to it.” The redhead blushed prettily, shrugging helplessly. “It’s my favorite.” Khan gave her an understanding smile. “I like tea as well.” He savored his cup and complemented Sara on her brewing. “This is quite good. You have a gift.” She blushed next. Nova set down her empty cup. “Okay, I’m going to try to contact the Doctor. See if I can reach that far.” She said worriedly, biting her lip in her nervousness. “You sure you’re up for it?” Sara asked in concern. “Yeah. But you know the drill. Once I start, only pain will bring me out if you need me.” Sara nodded in her understanding. They had done this before. “Be careful. Don’t go too far.” Nova grinned and nodded. She closed her eyes and shut out the world around her. In her mindscape, she could see her mental links to everyone she had bonded with. The Doctor, Sara, and the TARDIS’s. Each link was glowing gold, but with varying degrees. The link to Sara was bright and shining, indicating how close she was to Nova herself. The Doctor’s connection was thicker, since he was the parental figure, but his glow was dim, barely shining. He was very far away, possibly several dimensions over. Or more. The last telepathic bond she held was with the TARDIS, and it was every TARDIS she had ever met. A fair rope, all different threads twined together to create the intricate network glowing middle-brightest in her mind. Nova bypassed both Sara and the Doctor’s connection and grabbed hold of the TARDIS bond. Hello? She sent along. Amazingly, while there wasn’t a TARDIS in the dimension she currently resided, there was one close enough to not only pick up the call, but turn around and generate a wash of affection towards her. She smiled in relief, knowing that Sara could see her facial expressions change. It would give her sister hope. We’re lost…we travelled by accident…could you get a message to our Doctor? Give him coordinates to come get us? Skynet too. A wave of acknowledgement and reassurance came her way. Thank you so much. She blinked open her eyes with a satisfied grin of victory. “I got through to the TARDIS nearest. She’ll send the message along to the right Doctor.” “Oh, thank God.” Sara mused. “You may not have to put up with us much longer.” “It’s been my privilege.” Khan said with utter sincerity. “It has been far too long since I last entertained.” “And without your family.” Nova said with regret in her tone. “That must be lonely.” “Well….if this Admiral is after you for your blood and is trying to start a war, maybe you could come with us.” Sara suggested, glancing at her sister with raised eyebrows. It might potentially solve a problem. Kyle would have another guy onboard to possibly relate with and maybe Khan’s presence would act as a balancing factor so Kyle wouldn’t be aggravated or so readily at war with Skynet. All things concerned, it might be the best way to avoid a paradox and….Sara chuckled internally at the thought of showing him Sherlock episodes featuring his duplicate self. Besides, She thought. What could go wrong there? She asked herself. It was the best of both worlds in a sense and they would have an extra friend… “That’s a very intriguing offer but I’m afraid for the moment I must decline for now. I am resolved to face Admiral Marcus first. He is instigating a war with the very weapons I built.” “But you’re…” Nova cleared her throat. “I mean, we understand the need to potentially avoid a war. We do. But have you considered all your options?” “You’re just one person.” Sara paused in consideration. “This is about your family. Making sure what happened to them doesn’t happen again but….are you certain they’re really dead?” “I presume with a degree of certainty that when I managed to leave the premises he killed each and every one of my crew.” Khan started. “But then, he would have nothing of strategic importance to barter or draw you back in.” Nova concluded. “Sara has a point. Perhaps….” She trailed looking at her sister. Maybe it was in their best interest to help take this Marcus character out of authority. Sara looked at her and nodded. “Why don’t we help you reach Marcus?” Sara suggested. “You would endeavor to assist me in his assassination?” Khan looked at them with avid interest. “Assassination.” Sara repeated. “I don’t know about just killing the guy….I mean, hear me out.” When Khan looked up at her warningly. It was a similar look the two were paid in that alternate timeline by the human refugees. “There’s the old saying. ‘Dead men tell no tales.’ Essentially, we can’t really figure out what happened to your family if Marcus is dead and should he refuse to talk, Nova is telepathic.” She shrugged. “As long as he is compatible, she can get inside his head.” Sara paused. “Where is he located?” “San Francisco.” Nova grimaced. “That’s a bit further than just around the corner. Do you have a type of transmat working in this century?” “I presume you mean transporters.” Khan interpreted. “I also have a flying vehicle.” He almost seemed a bit amused and both girls started to wonder why. Perhaps it’s just his way of expressing his excitement of possibly seeing his family again. Sara thought. “You’ll take care of the security system?” Nova asked Sara. “Once we find where it is I should be able to short circuit it.” The brunette nodded. “Or have all their alarms ringing at once depending on what kind of distraction we need.” Nova nodded. “We can decide once we get there.” She turned to Khan. “So removing this man from power will actually prevent a war in this universe?” He only stared at the two. “Admiral Marcus is the one who began this. Imprisoned me. Tortured me and used my crew as a threat, all to instigate a war between the Klingons and Federation. He’s part of a secret agency working inside Starfleet as part of the charter said to promote their interests.” “How is starting a war promoting anyone’s interest?” Sara asked in consternation. “We already have the blood of trillions of people on our hands…..” She took a deep breath. “And yes, I know it was necessary but if a war can be avoided, it should.” Nova gave a nod in agreement. The memories of that timeline would always be with her and she would never forget John Connor and his sacrifice. Maybe it was for him that would inspire the two sisters to help this cause. To prevent such a horrid timeline and the potential devastation should it come to collapse. What if Khan died as one of the casualties? She couldn’t stand that idea. Not another person like John Connor. No. “Yes, Sara is right. We’ll help you. Hopefully, we can find your family.” At the same time, she hoped the Doctor would understand their need to intervene. But technically, they weren’t breaking the rules of time. They didn’t know the details regarding this universe nor were they time travelling to the past or future. Their actions were strictly on a preventative measure. “What do you mean by ‘the blood of trillions on your hands’?” Khan’s voice was quiet. Soft. It made a shiver run down Nova’s spine, but she couldn’t blame him for the unspoken threat. He was a soldier after all…and Sara had just basically admitted to genocide. The redhead answered him, eyes full of sorrow. “We came across a destabilized timeline. Torn by war. Unrecognizable. They had created a time machine and used it…but in the worst ways. They had no idea what they were doing. It created alternating, parallel, and stacked timelines. Even without what we did, they would have all died. It was collapsing upon itself.” She took a deep breath, “We figured out that the reason they had created the time machine in the first place was because that particular TARDIS was insane with grief over losing her Pilot, the Doctor. The only way to save as many as we could was to go back and save the Doctor’s life before he died. In so doing, it completely demolished the destabilized collapsing timeline, killing everyone in that universe…trillions of species. In their place, new ones arose that had never been through war. A TARDIS that didn’t have to watch her Thief die in front of her with no way to save him. It was a much better world…but getting it that way meant the nonexistence of so many.” “In a war, there are often necessary losses once must accept.” Khan simply stated and they both nodded. “I suppose.” Sara said. “But you never committed mass murder.” She took a deep breath. “We don’t want to see what happened to that timeline happen here.” Nova nodded. She couldn’t agree more. “If you are both firm in your intent on isolating Admiral Marcus, I wish to offer more refinement to the plan you proposed.” Khan stated. The two girls leaned in closer to hear the details and in the end both girls were laughing. “Oh, that is classic.” Sara said. It called for a little theatrics but didn’t the two have a sense of drama? Xxxxxxxxxxxxx The two sisters ran frantically into Starfleet Headquarters where they knew Marcus was working on the twenty third floor, heading straight for the security. “You have to help us.” Nova told him, putting the right amount of desperation in her tone. “We’ve been held hostage by this man. John Harrison. Told us his name was also Khan. We barely managed to escape….” Nova started to shudder as Sara clung onto her hand equally shaking. If she focused her mind thinking of the other Doctor, she could have her act down just about right. “He was performing genetic experimentation on us to make us more ‘superior’. He’s just….” Sara trembled. “He’s just insane. Said there was a secret military ship out near Jupiter and….” Her teeth clattered. “He’s going to deal an attack on Starfleet. Please….please, you have to protect us and….” That was when the phones or what closely resembled a futuristic Nextel phone started to emit noise. “Have them escorted directly upstairs,” was the command. We’re in. Nova thought to Sara. So far. Sara agreed. They were taken to a type of elevator. Now they would have to see whether the expertly injected transponders would be detected or whether Khan in utilizing their own ‘strange energy signature’ was able to keep the beacons cloaked from view. It was what was able to keep a location on them and would provide transport access once the two girls had reached Marcus for what he intended as a debriefing. At least, that much could be discerned from the communication devices. Several floors in ascent, the two proceeded through a strange device that mimicked a metal detector and both seemed to hold their breath as finally the officers gave a decisive nod. “Reading no transmission or other signatures.” He nodded to them both. “You both can proceed.” An officer led them into a largely secured room where they were introduced to the Admiral. Nova licked her lips while Sara looked at the man in trepidation. The officer stayed within the proximity of the room, closing the doors behind them. “So, I understand you both recently had an ordeal with the potential renegade terrorist, John Harrison.” Admiral Marcus purposefully softened his tone. He needed as much information as he could garner especially a location in order to reacquire Khan. While the Vengeance was complete, another ship was only half done. He wanted at least a half a dozen to strike at the Klingons with. “We’ve had an ordeal when we arrived here.” Nova told him truthfully, taking a step near the officer who stood off to her left before glancing at Sara. I’ll put him to sleep. You stun the Admiral. We signal Khan. Sara gave a nod that appeared in affirmation to Marcus’s statement but was actually to what Nova told her telepathically.
Now.
Nova latched onto the security officer sending him a swift command to sleep, putting him into a resounding level of unconsciousness as Sara sent out a bolt of energy at Marcus, which tossed him to the floor before he was able to respond. “Are we okay?” Nova asked hurriedly as she went to latch the doors shut and Sara checked the computer console. Also futuristic but Khan had given them a brief demonstration of what to look for and she nodded. “He wasn’t able to trigger an alarm.” “Good.” Another voice joined in. They both turned. Khan had teleported in on their location. “If he has my family, he’ll keep them close at hand.” He paused. “All seventy two of them.” “Seventy two.” Sara raised her eyebrows. “Well, that’s a lot of….cousins.” He hadn’t told them a number previously and they didn’t ask. Assuming it was several but not quite that amount. “I believe you two will fit right in.” He said. “My family will enjoy meeting you both.” A singular note to his tone had them glancing at him curiously. What an odd thing to say. Nova thought. But they had an important task at hand and surely since Khan had been so traumatized through experimentation, he was liable to say a bizarre phrase or two. She remembered how they both were when the other Doctor forced a bond on them and their considerably odd behavior. Those who live in glass houses….She thought as she bent down, sending a command for Admiral Marcus to wake now that Khan had taken his computer system offline. “What have you two done?” Marcus demanded. “You committed treason against the federation by allying yourself with this fugitive in committing an assault on me.” “Treason?” Sara asked. “You’re trying to provoke a war and experimented on an innocent man to do it. Using his family as leverage. That’s disgusting.” “What has he been filling your mind with?” The Admiral asked. “He’s manipulating you two. Can’t you see that? Using you to his own advantage.” “I simply told them the truth.” Khan said evenly as clear, implacable cold anger stirred in his gaze. “You may still have something that is very dear to me.” He paused. “My family. Where are they?” “I won’t tell you.” The Admiral’s voice didn’t even quiver. “Just so you can wake them up. Release all your people on the planet. Your time is finished.” “If it is, then, you should have let me sleep.” Khan told him in the same cold tone before looking to Nova who stared at the Admiral before her. “You’ll tell us where his family is,” Nova started. “Or I will go inside your mind and find the information.” She gave him a firm look. “And it won’t be pleasant.” “That’s not even possible.” The man tossed the threat aside with scorn as Nova simply shook her head, getting down on her knees beside him. Sara just stood ready. Who knew what her sister would find in that strange Admiral’s mind? “Oh damn…never thought I’d have to do this.” Nova whispered. She looked up at Khan and Sara with a frowning face, “No clue how this’ll make me.” “I will protect you, Nova. Have no fear.” Khan said gently. It was an odd phrase again, but one that she believed. Just like Skynet or Kyle would protect her. Well, Skynet more than Kyle. She really hoped that the AI didn’t hurt Kyle. It was an accident after all. She nodded and placed her fingers at Marcus’ temples. The two others observed as Nova let out a gasp, her eyes wide in unseeing disbelief and she whimpered. With a jerk, she collapsed backward in two seconds, shaking like a leaf. Khan was at her side instantly, cradling her form with care. “What is it? What did you see?” he asked softly. Marcus himself was staring at Nova in his own brand of horror. When he tried to run away from this group of terrorists, Sara blasted him again, rendering him unconscious. Then, she went to her sister’s side, offering support. Her periwinkle eyes blinked up at him in fear and horror. “You weren’t the first. He’s done it before. You were just the best…more collateral he could use against you.” She whispered, her voice reedy, a tear falling down her cheek. “Your family are in the basement of this building. Storage Area 26. All of them are there…in torpedoes. He was going to start the war and get rid of the evidence at the same time.” Tears fell down as she shivered. “I can’t…I can’t…” “Shhh…it’s alright. Your part is done.” Khan soothed, tucking a strand of red hair behind an ear as the girl in his arms sobbed. “I’m sending you both to Quo’noS now. I’ll take care of the rest.” “We can help,” Sara protested, wanting to do what she could. Khan smiled at her, “What you can do the most to help right now is take care of your sister. Remember what I told you about Quo’noS?” Sara nodded, holding Nova tightly as she cried at the images in her mind. Khan had been very clear in where they were escaping to. Someplace Marcus would never go…the home planet of the Klingon Empire. When they got there, they had to stay in the shelter until Khan came for them. It was incredibly dangerous, even for Khan himself. Both girls were to stay where they were transported and wait. Only should their supplies run out were they to do anything else. Khan emphasized the danger and irrationality of Klingons, their fighting nature, several times. “Alright. I shouldn’t be too long. Take care of Nova.” Sara nodded again as the pair disappeared under someone else’s power of golden lights. They arrived in a compound, set up with beds and containers. Each container was clearly marked with what it contained: food, water, medical, weapons, etc. It was rather plain, but it was warm. “Come on, sweetie. Let’s get you on a bed.” Nova went to a bed and curled up on her side. “I want my Poppi,” she whispered. Sara’s heart went out to the girl. “I know. I’m sorry, Nova.” She went to the container marked ‘blankets’ and pulled one out, covering her sister with it. Then she got Nova some water and a food bar. “Here you go. Okay?” She got up again, or tried to. Nova had latched onto Sara’s sleeve with an iron grip. “Don’t leave…please?” The brunette smiled gently and a little sadly, but nodded. “Scootch over.” Nova shifted and Sara climbed on the bed, her arms around Nova to hold her. “Go to sleep. I’ll be right here.” Nova nodded and slowly drifted away, fearing the blood and screams that Marcus’ mind had given her. So many had died…so many had begged…so, so many… Xxxxxxxxxx
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Chapter 13
A day had passed until they received a signal. Khan had succeeded in extracted his people and secured a ship. He was on his way. It was all to their relief since Sara wasn’t sure how easy it would be for the Doctor to find them on an alien planet in an unknown universe. Khan transporting them to his coordinates would be faster…at least, that is what the girls had decided the plan entailed. “Do you think the Doctor will be mad?” Nova whispered, still shaken by the memories she had seen in Marcus’s head. “Well,” Sara started. “We both would feel if we started a paradox or disrupted a fixed point. Maybe….for putting our lives at risk to confront Marcus but that was really my fault. I was the one that asked you to use telepathy on him. If I knew how outside the bond, I would do it but….” Her voice trailed. “I’m sorry.” “It’s alright, Sara. I wanted to help.” The red head said bleakly. “Telepathy is not all that different outside the bond. Our connection just makes it easier. You have to concentrate more.” “Yes and you know how good I am with that with my impulse problems. I could obliterate someone from existence if I get out of control.” She shook her head. “But you won’t.” Nova told her, leaning against Sara on the bed. Her friend had gathered some twigs, grass and other things and used one energy burst to start a comforting fire. “If only we had marshmallows.” “Yes, for shame Khan didn’t think of that or chocolate with graham crackers. We could have had s’mores.” Sara said jokingly and Nova giggled. “I have to say, I miss my tea.” Sara muttered. “Then, it is fortunate I brought you each a thermos containing your favorite.” Khan’s voice sounded behind them. “However I had a tea maker placed inside your room for your use.” Both girls jumped up, filled with relief to see him apparently unscathed from his attempts to retrieve his family, but Sara was filled with concern. Placed inside torpedoes. Marcus had been a monster indeed to use people as weapons that way. But how hard was it to extract them? Had they been harmed in the process? “Your people, are they alright?” Sara struggled to swallow her bile at the thought of what Marcus did. “Using them as weapons….did he hurt any of them?” “A few are in comas as a result of the transition and Marcus’s interference.” She could hear the sorrow in Khan’s voice and Nova gasped in horror and compassion. “My brother Joaquin….” He shook his head. “I’m doing all that I can but I fear his negligence and the repeated attempts to alter his blood chemistry….” “I can probably heal him.” Sara mused. “Restore him to what he was before. My energy is self-replicating but given what you are, I will need a bit of time between each person.” She hoped a few meant only three to five and not a dozen. She remembered feeling overwhelmed in the aborted timeline when there were so many people that required medical aide and she had to wait to gather her strength before attending to another. Doesn’t matter now since we killed them all. She thought. Nova heard her thought and took Sara’s hand to squeeze it. “This isn’t a time line that is damaged or we have to abort. We are saving lives here this time. I’m glad you encouraged me to do this even if…” She swallowed thinking of Marcus. “He was going to use an innocent crew of the Starfleet as a set up and give them the torpedoes without telling them what was inside. Sabotage their engines so they were caught in enemy space and would be destroyed along with your people.” She paused. “That won’t happen now, will it?” “No,” Khan’s voice was sharp. “It won’t. I have taken back my people, along with the ship I was forced to construct. Marcus will cause trouble for no one again.” Sara briefly nodded, thinking about asking what became of Marcus but decided against it. If he spent the rest of his life in prison when the authorities of that Earth were brought to awareness of his crimes or….she didn’t want to know nor did she want to continue to dwell her thoughts on such a man. Perhaps, considering her volatile nature, it was better she didn’t try to use telepathy on him. She might get carried away and obliterate him from existence in her fury. Then, the Doctor would be downright furious with her. “Why don’t we bring you two on board?” Khan offered. “It is far more comfortable than here.” Nova gave a nod as both girls followed him outside the cave as a swirl of lights encompassed them and they found themselves in a very high tech room standing on a glowing pad of lights. “This is so cool.” Sara said, glancing around a room. “After I’m done in the medbay, could we have a tour?” “Of course, you will have a tour.” Khan just smiled pleasantly. “Consider this your home.” He paused. “Are you certain you would not prefer to go to your quarters first and rest? The expenditure of healing a few members can wait an hour or two.” “I would rather do it now.” Sara said. “Besides we ‘rested’ enough for a day on Quo’noS. Nova, did you want to go to a room and relax or…?” “I’ll stay with you.” Her sister said. “Like you have for me. Make sure you don’t overdo it.” Fortunately, at least for Sara, only three of the seventy two member crew was in definitive trouble but Sara was pleasantly surprised that Joaquin so strongly resembled one of her other favorite actors right down to his gentle demeanor. “Jane Eyre.” She muttered as she placed her hands on Joaquin. “Pardon?” Khan asked, raising his eyebrows and Sara shook her head. “Looks like someone from my universe before it was destroyed, that’s all.” I think I’ve seen him in movies too. Nova’s voice was in her mind. Jane Eyre, you said right?
He played Mr. Rochester. Sara had an almost dreamy expression in her eyes. I just loved that character.
She only shook her head as she focused on her empathy. There were two other augments after this one that needed her help and a ten to fifteen minute rest period in between. It was no place to daydream now. Xxxxxxxxxxxxx “So, Nova, you just used your telepathy and managed to prevent a war between humans and the Klingons.” Sara said teasingly handing her a cup of chamomile and vanilla tea which she carefully stirred in fresh honey to the contents. “What are you going to do now?” “Do they even have Disneyland here?” Nova asked teasingly in return. “You know, I have no idea.” Sara shook her head. “But I think an amusement park in the future would be far more entertaining, don’t you?” “It should be.” Nova agreed. “Maybe once Khan reunites us with the Doctor, we can ask to go.” “Yes, but….” Sara struggled to think. A lot had happened. “How long did he say that will take him to do? I mean, the TARDIS can’t really travel in a universe not her own so it’s probably on Earth. When did Khan say he would take us back?” “I didn’t.” His voice interrupted theirs. Joaquin stood next to him, fully alive and well for which they were both gratified to see. “Oh, right.” Nova said. “We understand. A lot to get sorted through on a ship this size. But, Khan, we should be getting back soon. The Doctor would like us to go home.” “That is what I have come to clarify.” Khan told them. “Given what you have done for me, you have earned my protection and a place as a member of my family.” When he saw their confused expressions. “You need not concern yourself. You both have suffered the loss of your family so I am providing you a new one. Neither of you will be alone again.” He made a gesture to encompass the ship. His people. “You are home.” Sara’s eyes widened as she glanced at Nova. I think we somehow gave him the wrong idea. She thought to her sister. Maybe it’s my fault. Sara had been so eager to prevent a war, she did not see the warning signs. How their act might be interpreted in this way. Now she was starting to feel guilty and she could feel Nova’s confusion. Perhaps they did not explain the bond they had with the Doctor fully and all Khan recalled at the moment was that Sara’s universe was devastated and Nova was irrevocably separated from hers. She licked her lips, placing her mug down on the nightstand beside the bed, struggling for words in response. “Khan, I’m sorry to have given you the wrong impression…I mean, we were happy to help. But, the Doctor is our family. Nova, me, Skynet, Kyle, and the Doctor. All of us together on the TARDIS. That’s our home.” Nova nodded, her eyes trying to communicate her concern. “Don’t get us wrong, we really appreciate your help. But it’s time to go home now. The Doctor is our father. I got him a message; he’s going to come for us. It’s what he does. We just need to be on Earth to meet him.” Sara gave him a bright smile, “Besides, you have your family now and you are all safe again. It’s our turn.” The girls gestured to explain. Khan and Joaquin gave each other a telling look before they turned to the sisters. “I apologize. But we can’t return you to Earth. You have both been labeled as fugitives. It’s too dangerous.” Nova shrugged helplessly. “Nothing we haven’t been through before. How about a pilot for a shuttle? Quick transmat down and he’s off back here. A shuttle would go through radar far easier since it’s so much smaller.” She knew her math and knew how a radar worked. A shuttle was 1000th the size of a ship. Easily pass through undetected. Khan sighed and sat down. “You are both very unique. It is remarkable what you can do.” “Well, thank you. But what does that have to do with anything?” Sara asked in confusion. Joaquin shook his head, “We have a duty and responsibility to see to your welfare and wellbeing. Your Doctor can find you here, if he can. If not, then you have a family here.” “You don’t understand. It’s a telepathic adoption. His species, our species…is telepathic in nature. All of our bonds are. He’ll never stop. Please, don’t make him go through that. He’s suffered enough, just like you have.” Nova’s pleading eyes were wide with the implications. Even if Khan was being perfectly honest, making the Doctor go through some sort of proving was almost akin to torture. Khan put a hand on Nova’s head, brushing a stray hair away. “If you need a father so badly, I will be him for you.” His hand was gentle on her skin. “All you have to do is tell me what you need and I will take care of it.” Nova jerked back in shock, a glimpse of his mind through his touch had her stumbling into Sara. “What are you saying?” Sara asked softly, holding Nova closely, who answered, “He’s not going to let us go. I saw…he wants us as part of his family so much…he’ll never let us go.” Sara gave the two men wide eyes, “Please…not this again. Please don’t do this.” A tear ran down her cheek as the two girls were faced with once again having their family ripped from their arms. “Don’t do this, Khan. Please. We can’t go through this again. Not again.” Nova’s voice came from Sara’s side, where she was sitting down. Her shoulders were slumped and her form defeated. “Give up, Sara. You can’t change his mind. He’s more stubborn than Skynet…and more dangerous.” Sara turned to her sister quickly in shock. “How can he possibly be more dangerous than Skynet?!” Periwinkle eyes blinked up at her in sorrow, “Skynet can’t leave the ship.” “I don’t understand.” Sara shook her head. “Khan hasn’t murdered people like that. He hasn’t….” She saw the look on Nova’s face and froze, swallowing hard. He had. That’s what Nova saw. “No.” She shook her head, tears filling her eyes as she took a deep breath. What did he do? She had to know. Sara, there’s no point. Nova told her but the girl was determined.
You need to show me.
And then, Sara saw it. How Marcus had died. His skull being collapsed under the sheer pressure of Khan’s finger. All of Khan’s emotions and his pain for having been made to feel that his family had died. The lives he had taken when he escaped Section 31. Immediately, Sara jerked away as having been stung. “You killed people,” she accused. “As have you both. We understand what it means for necessary death.” Khan said. “But Khan, that timeline was collapsing anyway. Nova and I will carry the guilt for what we did for the rest of our lives and…..” She closed her eyes. “Please, it isn’t that simple to step in as a father figure. With the bond being telepathic in nature, if it is severed, we will both experience a pain worse than that of death. If you want to protect us, help us, do you want us to suffer that agony too?” Sara looked at him directly. “Because that is what you’re asking us to do by forcing us to stay here.” “I have no wish to see either of you suffer.” Khan said slowly. “In that course, we will extend an invitation for him and anyone onboard his ship to join our family. We will code a message to-“ “No!” Sara exclaimed. Why weren’t they getting this? She didn’t understand and desperation surged through her. “We helped you. I healed your crew members….your brother and…” “I am very grateful.” Joaquin said gently, offering a nearly irresistible smile, approaching Sara. “Khan has told me a little about you, Sara. I would enjoy learning more if you let me.” But at that point, Sara’s desperation was becoming profound. She could hardly control the raging, conflicting emotions inside of her as energy surged to the forefront of her skin. “Now, Sara.” Khan’s voice took on a fatherly note, amply concerned. “Why don’t you just relax and-“ Sara! Nova exclaimed inside her mind as a warning. Don’t-
But it was too late. The energy blasted both augments off their feet and into the wall in front of them as they collapsed to the ground. Sara in turn felt partially depleted but somewhat horrified. “I didn’t mean to. I….” “They’re still breathing.” Nova told her softly. “I think you just stunned them briefly. That’s all.” The red head was staring at her hands, preparing to give up. How could they ever get home, back to the Doctor, Skynet and Kyle while trapped on a ship and- “Well, fine then.” Sara said, interrupting Nova’s thoughts. “If he won’t give us a shuttle, then what does every space ship have?” “I don’t…” Nova looked at Sara in confusion. “Space pods. Like lifeboats for an ocean liner except this is for a ship. That is how we are going to leave.” Sara said in fierce determination. She had to get them home, one way or the other. She took Nova’s hand and they both headed out into the corridor. Both tried not to hurry as they strode by other augments. I don’t think this will work. Nova told her, a despairing tone in her voice. I lost my father. Everyone I knew in my universe. I can’t lose another without a fight. Please don’t ask me to just give up, Nova. Did John Connor give up? Sara asked. I can’t suffer that kind of pain….not again. She thought of her sister, images of her father that had been obliterated in her universe in Seattle. Then images of what the Doctor had done for them, repairing the bond, stabilizing their minds so the pain of the forced violation from the other Doctor was no longer present. How comforting he had been to them in their minds, taking over that role and Nova’s breath hitched in her throat in memory. “Will you help us just try to get back home? We did everything we could to help him but…” Sara asked. “I can’t just give up now. Are we together on this? Please? I need you.” She asked Nova, her eyes meeting her sister in an emotional plea. Nova sighed, but she couldn’t go against the absolute desperation in her sister’s voice. “Alright.” She nodded, “but we do this my way.” All of a sudden, she changed tactics. She let go of Sara’s hand and went to the nearest augment, her eyes confused and she was frowning. “Excuse me? Could you please tell me how to get to the cafeteria? We got a bit lost.” She paid no attention to the patient explanation or the smile. She caught the augment—whose name was Kati—by the hand and read her mind to get directions to the bay she needed. “Thank you so much. I really appreciate it.” “I could escort you,” Kati offered with a smile. “No, thank you. I know you have more important things to do. Plus, you give really good directions.” Nova waved cheerily and went back to Sara. She grabbed her hand and moved down the hallway. “I hope you know how much I care about you to do this…I have never used my telepathy like this before. I feel…” she shivered at how the lying made her skin crawl. She had never liked lying. This was a level of distrust and dishonor that preceded all she had ever done before. She was doing this on purpose. Invading others minds for the expression intention of distrust. “I know. Thank you.” Sara said quietly. She didn’t even know that Nova could do that to someone. She had thought that the redhead needed her fingers on the person’s temples, just like the Doctor did. Apparently, Nova’s gift was increasing in their need. She had probably surpassed the Doctor’s skill. And she had done it for Sara. “This way,” Nova whispered. “Fortunately, Kati also knew how to fly.” Sara winced at that tid-bit. More things that Nova didn’t want to know. “It’s faster this way. Just…don’t get your hopes up too high, Sara. Khan is never going to stop. He sees us as his family now. His to protect. Just like the Doctor. He won’t let us go voluntarily.” Her eyes sought out her sister’s as they finally reached the hanger where the ships were kept. “He’ll know that what you did was an accident, but he’ll anticipate it now. He’s smart, strong, and fast. He’s the best of his people. And he wants us. I hope you learned how to run marathons. We can’t stop. Not ever. Not if you want to be away from him.” Not that it would do them any good, Nova knew. She knew that the ship had a ton of cameras. Knew that Khan would turn there first to track them. As soon as he found them, all it would take was a transmat—transporter—locked onto them and they would be right back to their current ship. It wouldn’t even be difficult for the man. Heck, he could even beam the entire get-away ship into the Vengeance if he wanted to. Not to mention he had seventy-two people who followed his every command…and Nova and Sara didn’t know them all. Hadn’t seen them all. It would only take one to get ahold of them, if they actually managed to get so far to a settlement, and then a transporter. This was never going to work. Nova only was doing this so that Sara wouldn’t be alone. She would stay with her sister, support her when the brunette finally understood exactly how screwed they were. It was a better plan for Nova to keep sending out a homing message through her telepathy. Send Skynet directions every chance she could. Tell him everything about Khan so that the A.I. could send it along to the Doctor and he could make a plan to get them away. After all, Khan had a rather large weakness that the Doctor didn’t: he couldn’t travel between dimensions. If Nova had known how she did it in the first place, she would have grabbed Sara and moved them—to heck with the Doctor finding them in Khan’s universe, he would have to catch up—as soon as she realized what Khan had planned. Nova refocused on the world around her. “Buckle up,” she called to Sara. “This is going to be bumpy. My first flying lesson gets to be a practical one. Yay.” She said sarcastically. “You know that I don’t like heights, right?” She flipped switches and pulled a lever. “Here I thought I would get to fly the TARDIS first.” She growled softly. She really wanted to fly a TARDIS. It had been a daydream of hers for years. “Sorry,” Sara quietly intoned. “Oh, sweetie…I’m not irritated at you. Just the situation. We are royally fucked in the worst sense of the phrase.” Her language darkened considerably. The influx of information from Marcus, Khan, and Kati had changed her personality slightly. Her patience for certain things had diminished. “Hold on,” she yelled as she lifted off the floor and pulled on the stick to get them airborne and out of the Vengeance. “Setting course for Earth.” She narrated, punching in buttons. “And…that’s not going to work. We are too far away. Furthest planet we can get to is…New Vulcan. It’ll have to do.” She adjusted course and the ship took off at Warp 2. Compared to the ship that would soon be following them, she had no doubt that the only chance they had was that Khan would think they were going to Earth anyway…which she doubted highly. “Why aren’t we going to the closest planet we can get to in this thing?” Sara asked. “Because that is the first place Khan will look. There are only three habitable planets in range. New Vulcan is the last. I’m hoping he’ll logically just go to the one closest. Give us a little bit more time. Even at Warp 2 though, it’s going to take a few hours. Get some sleep.” Sara nodded and moved away to lay on a bed. It was meant to be an escape pod/ship. It had enough supplies for eight people for a month. There was plenty of space, food, and water. Sara looked so sad, Nova sighed and flicked on the autopilot. She moved to her sister and reached out to hug her. “It’s going to be alright. The Doctor will find us and we’ll go back home. It’ll be okay.” The girls fell asleep in that position, holding each other tightly for comfort. Xxxxxxxxxx As it was, they only had one hour of sleep before an alert sounded, waking the two girls from varying dreams of home. Nova immediately went to the console to check but grimaced knowingly, fully anticipating this eventuality. “It’s him.” She looked at Sara. “He’s found us.” “But at warp.” Sara protested. “Can he really pull us out of warp and-“ A very targeted shot radiated through the ship and Sara fell to her knees as suddenly the craft they were in became dead in space. “I’m sorry.” Nova said. “I tried to tell you. I promise Sara, I’ll keep calling the Doctor and he’ll find us….” Her voice trailed as she looked at her sister. She could feel what was going through Sara’s mind. In a sense, she felt betrayed. She thought Khan had been an innocent unjustly experimented upon. She didn’t want to think him capable of committing the acts they both had taken part in. She felt Sara’s guilt in her conflict about what Khan had done to Marcus. How a part of her thought the man should have deserved death but decided ultimately, she didn’t want to know what happened to him. “He was one of my favorite actors.” Sara murmured despondently. “He’s supposed to be the hero. He’s supposed to be good.” She stared at her hands. “And I got us here. I….” Tears filled her eyes. “I just wanted to stop a war.” She muttered. “But I am a murderer. I killed all those people.” Bile went into her throat. How could she even live with herself? How did even the lives that Khan had taken even compare to the death toll? The connection to the Doctor was so absent now, she felt her own grief and desperation overwhelm her. Nova hardly knew what to say, having the same burden of the aborted timeline on her shoulders to carry but she knew the family bond was stretched. The Doctor was too far away and the comforting sensation that eased their minds wasn’t there. It provided a grounding sensation for Sara. After all, coming to terms with ending the reality for the needs of multiple other timelines was not an easy thing. And although Khan might be more anticipatory of her, when he and another augment beamed in, Nova was caught in shock that Sara had summoned enough desperation to blast them both backwards as soon as they materialized. The girl wasn’t even thinking straight when she ripped the aspirin out of the medkit and started swallowing the pills as arms wrapped around her and Khan ripped the bottle out of her hand. Sara’s eyes started to glaze as she started to slump to the floor. “Wasn’t thinking….couldn’t think….” She muttered while Nova immediately ran to her side as Khan removed a medical instrument to conduct an examination. “Sara….” Her periwinkle eyes filled with tears as she clutched her sister’s hand. “Why did you….” She looked up at Khan. “We’re Time Lord and she’s living time energy. She has a fatal allergy to aspirin. I’m not sure she can self-heal through it.” “I will attend to it.” He said. “I assure you.” He was already extracting a vial of blood from his own arm as Joaquin merely held her in place. “Why did you do it?” Nova demanded as Khan inserted a needle into Sara’s arm. The brunette only winced. “Because….” Her sister whispered, her throat dry. “I’m a murderer. I deserve it. Couldn’t help them.” She was referring to the augments. “Couldn’t help anyone.” She slipped into a sedative-induced sleep to heal. Nova growled in frustration and turned to Khan and punched him directly in the nose. It didn’t help, he barely felt it she knew, and it kinda hurt her hand, but it got her point across nicely. “What the hell is wrong with you?! How many times have we told you that the familial bond is necessary? That we need it?” She pointed at Sara. “There is your proof! Her mind needs someone else’s to help stabilize it. After all that we’ve been through, what the hell did you expect? And it’s YOUR FAULT!” She screamed, hitting him again as he just stood there. She ran out of breath and just heaved, shaking in her rage. “Not that you give a damn.” She muttered. “On the contrary. You are absolutely correct. Sara is obviously in need of help and it is my responsibility to care for you both. You are my family.” Khan said agreeably. Nova’s head came up, her eyes wide in disbelief. “Good God in Heaven…you really don’t get it. You are not our family. Just because you think you have the right to claim such a thing, doesn’t make it so. We need our father. Our adoptive father. The Doctor. Who is looking for us as we speak. The only reason that I’m not doing anything drastic is that I know it’s pointless. I am the least powerful person in my family.” She looked between the two men standing there just watching her. “You both have to understand…we will never stop fighting you. In any way that we can. You love your family. You have killed for them. I get it. I understand. But you have to understand that my family is not you. My family is out there,” she pointed to the stars. “Sara will never stop fighting, and I will never leave her alone. We are never going to accept you as our family. Not ever. Get that through your skulls.” She finally ran out of steam again and sat down in a huff. Khan and Joaquin registered the information she provided, but showed no other outward reaction. Khan asked conversationally, “Is there any other drugs that you are allergic to?” Nova sighed, knowing there was no point. “Ginger ale and alcohol gives us weird reactions.” “Noted. We will transport to the ship in three…two…one…” Joaquin stated, in charge of the sectioning. When they appeared, there were several augments, including Kati who was not looking as nice and polite as before, waiting. “Sara is to be put on suicide watch. Take her to the infirmary.” Khan ordered and two augments stepped forward to take the brunette. When Nova went to follow, he stopped her with a hand. Her periwinkle eyes, exhausted already from yelling and the emotional turmoil, blinked up at him. “Now what?” “You have stated that you and your sister need a telepathic adoption to be mentally cognizant. You will tell me what that requires so that I may take that mantle.” He said simply. Nova’s eyes went wide as she understood, but then they hardened. “I am only going to say this once. No. You have no right to us. You are not our father; adopted or otherwise. It’s going to stay that way. There isn’t a telepath on this ship, much less a better one than me. You can’t take the information and I won’t give it. You destroyed my trust in you.” She looked around at all the augments staring at her. Some with incredulous expressions that she was defying their leader. “These people are your family. Why can’t you be content with what you already have?” Joaquin blinked, having seen this entire exchange. She was such a stubborn thing. Not human though. “There are other ways, my lord.” Nova snorted with laughter. “You would need a telepath better than me, which I doubt you have access to. Or you would need a primer on Time Lord physiology, which doesn’t exist. Good luck. I’m going to be with my sister. You will have to hurt me if you want to stop me.” She turned away and walked out easily. No one grabbed her, though one did move like he wanted to. She saw out of the corner of her eye Khan gesture for her to remain undisturbed. She wasn’t that surprised. Khan had her and Sara exactly where he wanted them: on his ship. They weren’t going anywhere. She sighed. Doctor…please…we need you…please…come quickly…
Xxxxxxxxxxxx
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Chapter 14
Nova was holding Sara’s hand as she finally opened her eyes, feeling her sister’s presence. The Doctor’s still so distant from her. Memories came back to Sara in a flurry when she glanced at the medbay to see two other augments who were working at various pieces of equipment and discreetly observing her. “I did something stupid, didn’t I?” Sara asked Nova softly who looked at her sister with a rush of tears in her eyes. “Good thing you happen to be self-healing and Khan’s blood helped or I would be angrier than I already am.” Nova looked at Sara who was grimacing. “Oh, not at you sweetie. It’s just with Khan, I feel like I’m talking at times to a wall…” Sara could feel Nova’s sense of principled anger as well as her mind dancing on the A.I. that TARDIS housed. “Like a strange variation of Skynet?” Sara guessed. Nova cracked a smile. “I guess so.” Another augment walked in, pausing to pick up a piece of medical equipment as he neared Sara, who cringed briefly. “We haven’t met.” He started. “My name is Otto. I’m the Chief Medical Officer and fourth in command.” “Fourth in command.” Sara repeated dully. “When do you earn a promotion?” “It is the order in which our family operates. Rodriguez is third. Joaquin is second.” He explained. “Khan has designated you to be on suicide watch until such time he sees that you are mentally stable and no longer a harm to yourself.” He ran a scan and briefly nodded. “The aspirin appears to have cleared your system. I will take a blood sample to confirm.” “No, you won’t.” Sara said, feeling a low sense of fury. “It is required.” Otto answered. “My sister told you no.” Nova came to her defense. “Is this how you repay someone who helped save members of your crew?” “I merely need to take one to ensure her wellbeing and have it on profile.” He looked at Nova. “One from you is also necessary.” Otto was strictly thinking about medical efficiency and his orders. He was told how important these two girls had been. Of course, Joaquin and three of his crewmembers were a living testament. Scans had been conducted when the girls first came onboard willingly. Several augments were now in the midst of studying this, especially their bond to find a way for their leader to take over the role as the ‘father’ figure the two needed. They were far too valuable to simply be released. Sara in the interim had gotten up in panic, dizzied by the use of sedatives lingering in her system. She barely dodged the other augment as she ran to the door only to nearly run headlong into Khan who had been summoned the moment Sara had awoken. He looked at her appraisingly and glanced at Nova. “I believe we all need to talk.” “I still require samples of their blood to have on file.” Otto told him. “No.” Sara told him. “You have no right to ask this of us.” “You and Nova are under my protection and part of my family. Therefore my responsibility. In that way-“ “Oh, in that way, you can justify it?” She looked back at her sister. “Taking us from our father? Then this?” Her mind was going so fast, she hardly knew what she was saying. All the emotions bubbling through to the surface. “Is this how it starts?” Sara asked simply. “Taking our blood. You were experimented on by Marcus so in turn you experiment on us?” She posed. “Is that how it will be?” She simply stared at him. “You should be better than that. Better than Marcus.” Sara looked at him brokenly. “I wanted you to be good.” Tears came to her eyes. She didn’t know what anyone really was in their true nature anymore and that terrified her at the prospect here. That teeming conflict inside her. It’s my fault. She thought listlessly to Nova. He saw me heal you….the thoughts I had about Marcus….did we do this to him? She wasn’t sure what else it could be that would cause someone to try to keep her away from her family. Nova’s eyes widened and she shook her head violently. “No! This is not your fault. He is not your fault.” She encased her sister in a loving hug and kissed her forehead. “Focus on me, sweetie. Don’t think about him. Focus on me. Remember when we first met? Hmmm? Remember?” she felt Sara nod. “How you met Skynet? He was so silly then.” She heard the brunette laugh against her chest. “There you go. See? We made Skynet so much better. He’s a good person now. A good son.” She made Sara look into her eyes. “This is not your fault, sweetie. It’s not. Okay?” Sara nodded again. “Good girl. Why don’t you go back to sleep, okay? Get some real rest instead of that sedative crap. I’ll watch over you. I won’t let anything happen.” She tucked Sara into a medical bed, basically ignoring all the augments in the room until Sara was asleep for real. Then her periwinkle eyes, cold as ice, looked up into their own. “If you touch one hair on her head, I will make you have nightmares for the rest of your existence.” Khan raised his eyebrows at the threat. It was a decent one, and she looked fully capable of dealing it out. “We do need a blood sample for your baseline.” Nova gave a smile, but it wasn’t a nice smile by any stretch of the imagination. “You can take a blood sample…when you force it. Which means you would have to touch me.” She grinned. “You want a repeat of what I did to Marcus? Or Kati? Because I can. You should be quite proud of yourself, Khan. You have made me into a new person. I never thought I would do these kinds of things…but Lord have you taught me what I am willing to do for my family. Including my own mental stability because God knows that I do not need your sexual exploits in my head.” Now Khan’s eyebrows had reached his hairline. She had gotten more from his mind than he had thought. One touch had done that. What was this small girl capable of? He needed her on his side. “What will it take to have you trust me?” Needed her in his family. She crossed her arms and glared at him. “Nothing you would do.” “Try me.” “Set us free back on Earth. Let us go back to our own home with the Doctor in the TARDIS. Back to our own universe and dimension. You leave us alone.” “You are correct. I am not willing to do such. Sara has proven that she needs care. More than you can give her, after the aspirin incident. While you seem to be doing adequately, I have indeed noticed a change in your behavior I find disturbing. You both do seem to need this paternal telepathic bond. If you would just accept me, then—“ Nova threw up her hands in exasperation. “This again? Is your hearing broken? We are not going to consent to you being our father. It isn’t going to happen. Give UP!” she yelled. Khan tilted his head to the side. That was the second time she had mentioned consent. “Is consent needed?” he asked softly. No matter what her answer or reaction, it would tell him the truth. Nova blinked at the odd change of subject until the question registered. She gave him a twisted smile. “Yes, Khan. You need consent. You are never going to get it.” Joaquin said from the doorway, “There are other ways.” It was the second time that he had said that phrase. She really didn’t like it. “Good luck finding one. We are Time Lords. Any drug you can think of will not give you the result you are looking for, if you were thinking of that route. Mind-control doesn’t work on telepaths. And Stockholm Syndrome would take too long.” She raised an eyebrow at him. “Now, go away. All of you. I am sick and tired of saying the same thing over and over again.” She settled into a chair beside Sara’s bed and leaned back. Khan just watched her, intrigued and inspired. With her knowledge of augments through him, and his lack of knowledge of Time Lords, she could well be right in her assumptions. He stepped out of the room, gesturing for all of the augments save for Otto to join him. When the door closed, he looked at Joaquin, “Get more people on researching that bond they share. They will never trust me without it.” His second in command bowed slightly at the neck and went to do his bidding. Xxxxxxxxxxx There are other ways. Joaquin mused, feeling confident. He had been conducting a great deal of research on the matter since Sara and Nova were onboard. Nova as a telepath might feel confident that their barrier could not be crossed but she was not the only telepathic species he had come across. He knew about Vulcans. Had been studying their techniques and relaying what he learned to Khan. Also he determined a high level of activity in the right posterior cortical and hippocampal regions. He studied Sara’s blood that they had drawn while she had been unconscious. Amazing. He thought, watching the additional particles in her cells fluctuate. Renewing themselves. Infinite lifespan given no unforeseen circumstances. His own medical scanner jostled near his arm as he took a reading of himself although his eyes widened regardless of the small error. Some of her energy was in him. Asserting itself among his cells. Renewing them. He drew a breath inwardly. This meant…he came to a ready conclusion with the data presented before him. Any human or augment she fully healed in the way she did him would mimic her potential life span and not progressively age. He pulled up Nova’s reading. Yes, she had it too. Of course, Sara had told Khan herself that she healed Nova as best she could. Best she could…Joaquin shook his head with a small hint of a smile. She might be emotional and volatile but deep down, he rather enjoyed it. It was far more entertaining to see a woman with that kind of spirit. Once she was better, perhaps…. But now wasn’t the time. Khan needed this information and he was determined to be the paternal figure these girls needed. Khan had just entered the room where Joaquin had put together data. “Have you made any discoveries?” Khan asked him and Joaquin nodded. “There are two options to adjust your mind for telepathic contact so that entering the bond may prove feasible.” Joaquin stipulated. “But there is something you should know about Sara.” “Go ahead.” Khan permitted and his eyes widened briefly as Joaquin went over the results. “She has the potential to lengthen all our lifespans.” He mused and Joaquin concurred. “They would be linked to Sara as long as she is alive. Nova, myself and two others have already been linked to her through this affect.” Joaquin explained and Khan smiled. “How auspicious.” Khan noted. “But her mental health deteriorates. I am concerned Nova will follow the same pattern.” He paused. “I need to be instituted as the father in that bond sooner than later.” “We have samplings of negative energy from the Galactic Barrier, which can activate your telepathic ability. We have also isolated the particles in Sara’s blood stream, which could provide the same.” “And if neither consent?” Khan would prefer their agreement but he couldn’t allow continual deterioration that might result in either of their deaths. That was unacceptable. They were both too unique and had so much to offer. His thoughts went to Nova and what she was able to garner from his mind. “A telepathic bond connects the two. If you are able to enter the mind of one into their psychic core, it could constitute a transfer of the whole.” Joaquin paused. “I would not suggest performing this on Nova, considering her ability as a telepath. She would form barriers to prevent such an intrusion into her own mind.” He inhaled deeply. “That leaves Sara who you stated before has not had telepathic training so far despite her probable potential. She would have no defenses for the task.” “Proceed with the adjustment. I’ll use the particles you extracted from Sara’s blood work.” Khan told him. “I will proceed to ask them again for their compliance in transferring the bond to me of their own accord.” He nodded. “It’s what I would prefer.” “You must do what is necessary for family in the end.” Joaquin told him and Khan looked at the man to whom he called a brother. “Indeed; we all do.” Xxxxxxxxxxxxxx Sara finally woke up to see Nova lightly dozing in a chair next to her bed just holding her hand. She grimaced. Nova looked really uncomfortable from that prolonged posture. “Nova,” Sara whispered. “Nova…” Nova’s eyes flew open to meet Sara’s. “What happened?” She glanced around the room to see if anyone dared approach them. “Who…?” “No one. It’s just, you look pretty uncomfortable and there’s a bed right next to mine if you still want to stay here.” She paused. “How long was I asleep?” “Oh,” Nova rubbed her neck. “A good six hours maybe, including the hour I dozed off.” She struggled to offer her sister a smile and Sara just squeezed her hand. “I’m sorry. It just hurts not having him here.” Sara told Nova. “I dreamt about him. About Kyle. About Skynet. We were all having breakfast together….I was arguing with you about drinking chamomile tea in the morning. Tried to convince you to drink something else. It didn’t work.” “You know me too well.” Nova swallowed as tears also came to her eyes. She missed them so much now but she knew the Doctor would never stop looking for them. One day she would see them again. He would come for them. He just had too. She only hoped Kyle and Skynet were in one piece when they did. “What you saw about Khan….about his family….he killed Marcus but….” Sara hesitated. “Marcus was insane. A psychopath to do everything he did, right?” She inhaled deeply. “I mean, I thought…you know what I thought to do to him…” “But you didn’t.” Nova said to her. “Sure. Not to him. To people who didn’t deserve it.” Sara muttered bitterly. “John Connor and trillions of others didn’t deserve it.” “I know they didn’t but we made a choice. We made it together and Sara, John Connor agreed. He helped us. He was willing to give everything to stop the war.” She suddenly realized why Sara had been so desperate to intercede and wanted to save Khan. Khan and his people. She thought. John Connor and the resistance. The allusion was clear. Sara was grieving John Connor’s sacrifice and made the act of psychological transference in her mind since Khan shared certain qualities. Nova grimaced thinking over the memories she had picked up from touching Khan. In a sense, he managed to prevent a war from becoming even worse. He even ruled Asia and India with a certain firm benevolence. But wars had casualties and she knew Khan had committed acts of violence and aggression. A good man as Sara had pleaded with him to be, he was not. What could she tell her sister? She didn’t want to lie to her and at this point considering what Khan had done and Sara’s attempt, she wasn’t going to attempt to contrive a form of deceit. Nova paused in thought. “We did stop Marcus.” She spoke in terms of logic. “I know what was in his mind Sara. We did stop a war between that Earth, several other planets and the Klingons. So many people would have died.” She knew that was what Marcus wanted, would have killed others to achieve it including that poor innocent human crew he intended to use as an instigating source. “I suppose so.” Sara only answered despondently. The two girls suddenly froze as Khan entered with Joaquin, the medical crew not far away. “We are still not giving you a blood sample.” Nova said fiercely. Khan looked undeterred by her expression. “You both expressed a need for family. That is what I’m offering. Considering your mental faculties and possible deterioration, I think and suggest it to be wise to consent to engage me as your father in your telepathic bond.” Sara looked at him aghast and then looked to her sister. “What the hell…?” She started at the same time Nova shook her head. “We both have a father and he will not stop looking for us. He’s our family.” Nova once again repeated. “Do I need to spell it out or write it down to make it plainer? You will NEVER get our consent to bond with you. That’s just not going to happen.” Her voice was utterly cold. Khan turned to look at Sara who was suddenly struck by what he was doing. “What? You think that if Nova says no, I’ll say yes?” She asked. “Is this your way of repaying what we did? You told us you would help only until he came for us. What happened to that offer?” Sara demanded. “Circumstances changed when I decided to make you members of my family and put you both under my protection.” “Then, we refuse.” Sara refuted. “Sara, you both are what you are.” Joaquin inserted smoothly. “Our family. That cannot change regardless of your current disinclination. We will strengthen and-“ “I don’t CARE!” the brunette shrieked. “We won’t be members and so you can take your requests for consent, for our blood and shove it up your ass! You get that? Do you understand?” A degree of silence fell over the room as a decision seemed to be made. Khan gestured and an unknown, as before unseen augment stepped forward with a gun and aimed it at Nova. Before either girl could react more than widening their eyes in surprise, he fired. A tranquilizer dart embedded itself in the telepath’s arm. Nova looked down at the red fluffy puffball and yanked it out. She blinked slowly in confusion before her legs folded out from under her and she collapsed. While it hadn’t worked completely, she could still feel and see, everything was hazy and the world was odd. “What the hell?” she whispered. Any drugs they came across shouldn’t have done this. Khan’s voice echoed in her ears, “We tailored this substance to your biology. The sample we took when you both were unconscious. I apologize for the subterfuge, but it is in your own best interests. Your mental health is just as important as your physical and emotional health. It is my responsibility to provide for you both…even if you don’t wish it.” Nova shook her head, her mind so slow. She could barely think straight, much less anything else. “Noooo…don’t…” That was the last thought in her mind before she was hit with a second dart and the world went black. Sara immediately ran to her fallen friend, glaring at the augments. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?” She shook her head as she put her arms around Nova. “There’s no point! Don’t you get that? Nova has barriers to protect her mind even when she is unconscious so you’ve gained nothing but just further pissing us both off, especially her!” “Haven’t I?” Khan asked as Sara was suddenly gripped by the two augments who worked the medical room and dragged away from Nova before she was restrained onto the medical bed. She flailed frantically as Khan approached her while Joaquin proceeded to where Nova had fallen, gently lifting her to place her on a medical bed beside Sara’s. “You’re quite correct. Trying to enter Nova’s mind might be a tiresome exercise with her defenses intact but Sara, as remarkable as your abilities are, you do not have those barriers. A simple task really. My mind has been adapted with a solution composed of your time energy particles and I have taken to practice prior to this necessary procedure.” He spoke in matter of fact terms as Sara’s eyes widened. “No,” She begged. She suddenly knew what he was going to do and to her this was a theft. They had consented to when the Doctor transferred the bond but the first time it was initialized they had not. She remembered how much better it felt when the Doctor, their Doctor had taken it. How they had felt no pain. She struggled hard as Khan started to press his hands over her temples, attempting to keep his voice soothing. “Sara,” He said calmly, just able to send soothing emotions into her mind. “Just relax. If you don’t resist, the transition will be smoother.” “Please….” Her voice trailed and broke as she started to cry. She could feel him already enter her mind and she couldn’t rid herself of his presence. She just didn’t know how. Memories surged into her mind. A seeming mixture. His. Hers. She saw everything. The eugenics war. Ruling the earth. The laws they instilled. How they were eventually overthrown and eighty four of them escaped in cryogenic stasis on the Botany Bay. Glimpses of Khan and Joaquin as children. An oath they took of brotherhood. Then she saw and experienced each moment of his experimentation. The agony he suffered. She started to scream in response to his pain. Immediately, Khan realized what his memories were doing so instead he focused on his delight when he escaped Marcus and his custody upon seeing both Sara and Nova. Simple memories, he reflected to her. Enjoying a cup of tea as the three of them talked. Sara started to settle down by measure as he entered the core of her mind where the bond was kept. Before, he had seen memories of Sara’s life flash before his eyes just as surely as she had seen his. Now as his mind grasped hold onto the golden cord that was representative of their bond, latching it to him gently, granting him paternity, did he see both their memories, feel their minds resonate against him. Since the man they called a father was too far distant or otherwise in another reality, this task, while working through Sara’s mind as a receiver was simple to mitigate. The procedure done, he felt pleased as he worked to gently extract himself from Sara’s mind whom finally under the duress of the assault of the tidal wave of his memories had given way to unconsciousness. He ha no wish to damage her mind however so he carefully removed himself before he finally opened his eyes, removing his hands from her temples. The feeling was immeasurable. He now had two daughters through this telepathic adoption procedure but their minds he could feel with fervency and he now felt with even more keen interest to protect them from any possible threat that might come their way. He looked at them both with tenderness, brushing a strand of hair away from Sara’s forehead in a fatherly gesture, seeing the tears that had dried on her cheeks, before pulling up the blanket to cover her. It was regrettable that they didn’t give him consent as he turned to Nova who lay there curled on the other bed, feeling her mind equally in his as both their memories flashed through him. He knew exactly what the first Doctor had done and it filled him with a bitter reproach, while he took to covering his other daughter with a blanket, taking a look at her drug induced relaxed features as he brushed a few strands of red hair that had gone astray behind her ear. There was still work to be done. Perhaps he had succeeded in taking hold of the blood and the two might start to stabilize but he knew neither would be happy initially upon waking to realize what occurred. Sara might prove to be a challenge considering her volatile nature. Nova was more temperate given her natural inclination towards empathy. A discussion would be warranted when they both awakened. He glanced at the readings equally, which connected Sara’s lifespan to other members of his crew and to Nova herself. Yes, that discussion was also necessary. He was telepathically their father now and wouldn’t any daughter wish to extend the life of their own father? However, he would be certain that no reckless attempts at self-harm would be attempted again. He would always be able to sense it. Nova slowly opened her eyes, blearily blinking into the light. “Doctor?” she asked, feeling that paternal bond deep in her mind thrum with sensation. It was comforting and helped her feel safe, secure. Somehow he had found them… “I’m afraid not,” Khan’s voice came from almost right beside her. She jerked back, staring at him with wide eyes…and realized that the bond in her mind was shining and so bright because the source was touching her. “Oh my God…what have you done?” she whispered in horror. The dots connecting, but creating a picture she didn’t want. “You stated, several times, that you and your sister needed a parental telepathic bond to help your minds acclimate. It is my job to provide for my people. Including you.” He stated simply, staring at her with gentle eyes. If she didn’t know any better, she would say they held care and consideration. However, she knew better. “But we aren’t yours! We’ve said it so many times…and yet…I can feel you…” a tear slipped down her face. “…how will the Doctor find us now? You don’t know what you’ve done.” Her shoulders slumped and she curled up on the bed, her fight gone in the face of his deed. It seemed hopeless. Their father would forget about them…Skynet and the TARDIS and Kyle…they would all forget… “Oh little one, it will be alright. I will make it so.” Khan’s voice tried to sooth her, along with rubbing circles into her back. It only made her cry harder.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
“Oh little one, it will be alright. I will make it so.” Khan’s voice tried to sooth her, along with rubbing circles into her back. It only made her cry harder.
Chapter 15
She saw Sara stir on the other side of him and called out to her, tears streaking her voice. “Sara! How do you feel?” Sara was slow in rousing. She had lost consciousness from the pain of the experience of Khan forcing his way into her mind and now she felt the bond had shifted. But it didn’t feel the same comforting way as the Doctor. Her mind felt discordant and stretched. Pin pricks racked their way all throughout her head and she started to scream in fervent desperation. “Doctor!” She tried. “Doctor! Make it stop. Please make it stop….I’m sorry…..please….” She cried in fervency as Nova immediately got off the bed and put her arms around her sister. She knew that Khan must have forced his way into her mind and that had to have been excruciating. That was the reason he had her sedated. So she couldn’t interfere and Sara had no barriers or training to prevent the transference from occurring. “You have any idea of what you did?” She glared at Khan who stood in the position as their new father. “Forcing your way into her mind like that. That causes damage. It’s excruciating for her but you did it anyway!” “It was necessary.” He said calmly. “I will have her treated for…” His voice trailed as suddenly Sara became encased in a glow of golden light. All her emotions seemed to boil to the surface. The singular theft of their bond, the memories going through Sara’s mind, she couldn’t control the energy she clearly saw luminesce on her skin. And she panicked, which only made the situation worse. “Get away.” She warned her and those in the room. “Get away from me.” She was breathing hard. “I can’t….” Golden energy spiraled around both Sara and Nova, her activated huon particles working in frantic measure in timing with her emotions that the surroundings suddenly disappeared, only to be replaced by orange jagged cliffs as they appeared near a small settlement of aliens Nova didn’t recognize. Her heart filled with anxiety as she took note of their pointed ears and wondered whether they were hostile. Where had they gone in Sara’s panic? Meanwhile her sister looked at her wearily, her hand pressed to her forehead. “I’m sorry.” She shook her head. “I couldn’t stop it….what he did…it hurt me. Why would he do that if he said he wants to help us?” Sara whispered. “My head. It just hurts.” Maybe it was just her when he had forced an access into her thoughts. “Does yours?” Sara swallowed looking at the alien village not to distant from them. They weren’t on Earth, whatever this was. Would she truly never see home again? Nova nodded in turn, “Mine hurts too. The bond shifted so violently. He had no idea what he was doing. No matter how much he said he practiced…he’s nothing like the Doctor. It’s nothing like yours though; I wish I could take it from you.” A tear ran down her cheek which she angrily brushed away. It didn’t last long in the heat. “I’m so sorry I couldn’t protect you, Sara.” She whispered into the wind, her guilt raw and open. The aliens had seen them arrive and a group of four males were approaching. Nova was the least hurt of the two of them, so she stepped in front of her sister protectively. Even if Nova hadn’t been able to protect Sara before, Nova could do so now. Her eyes were down in a frown of distrust and anxiety. “Who are you? What do you want?” she asked aggressively. The lead male, an older one with wrinkles and laugh lines, raised his eyebrows at them. “Peace. We mean you no harm—“ “Like I’m going to believe that. Last one who told us that just mind-raped us both. Pull my other one.” Nova growled at him. Now that got a reaction, out of all of them. Their pointy eyebrows went up in shock and surprise, and then down in harsh lines of anger. One in absolute rage. Then, a scant second later, all of their faces went blank and even as they controlled their emotions. Both girls could see this war on them and gave each other concerned glances. The lead alien spoke again, “Then you have indeed arrived at a safe location. We can help you.” Nova shook her head violently, stepping backward and taking Sara with her. The last person she had trusted had betrayed them so absolutely. Obviously her judgement was off. “There is no way, dude. I don’t know you. Don’t know your species. Don’t know where we are. You could be a serial killer for all I know.” His eyebrows went up again at this influx of knowledge, a quirk that communicated his question at their ignorance. “You are on New Vulcan. We are of the species Vulcan. I am Sarek. Logic and reason are the way of Vulcans…violence only as a last resort. We are a telepathic species. In your need, you instinctively came to where you could receive help.” Sara squeaked softly, “Nova, maybe he’s telling the truth…my head hurts so much…” Nova winced at her sister. “We thought Khan was trustworthy too.” “Khan Noonien Singh?” the alien said sharply, making both girls look at him warily. “That man is not welcome on this planet. I can assure you that you will be safe here.” Nova shook her head, “You don’t understand. Even if you are telling the truth, logic and reason don’t work on him. I tried. So many times, I tried. He doesn’t listen.” Her periwinkle eyes teared up. “He stole us. Now that he has us, he won’t let us go. He’ll never stop. We just want to go home…but he stole us…” Sarek, the man formerly known as Spock, gestured when he saw the two foreign girls near to crying. In the heart of their new homeland, it would be detrimental to their health if they lost that much moisture. The two men at his side came around to either girl. When they blinked up at them in uncertainty. “Please. We just want to help. We can protect you.” Both flinched, “You shouldn’t make promises you can’t keep. Our father tried to protect us…and Khan stole us away from him…now, I don’t know how he’ll find us…” her breath hitched in her sadness and fear. “Oh, Sara…how will the Doctor find us now?” And Sara was frightened. She certainly didn’t want a repeat of what she had before experienced. How could anyone be trusted given the circumstances? How could….instincts flooded through her as she gripped her sister’s hand and turned to run only causing them to subsequently make impact with the two Vulcans that had come up behind them. “I do apologize.” Sarek offered simply. Given their state and the fact they were human, they were highly irrational. Obviously in need of treatment. A simple nod and the two Vulcans clamped hold of their shoulders, their hands pinching on two precise nerve centers in their necks. Then, Sara and Nova instantly fell unconscious. Xxxxxxxxxxxxxx Khan and Joaquin were working at the controls, tracing where their latest family members had disappeared to as the latter turned to the former in marked disappointment. “Perhaps Sara should have been sedated and her pain treated proactively as a result.” The two were the best of friends, ruling opposing sides of the world together, which often meant that Joaquin never hesitated to challenge him as only a brother would. “Certain results could be anticipated. Given what Sara is…” He raised his eyebrows. “Well said.” Khan nodded. “I was anticipating establishing the bond that I didn’t take note in the results. She will be remedied, Joaquin. I assure you. Both, Nova and Sara will receive the finest of care.” “I am merely looking out for our family.” Joaquin stipulated. “For you. We are brothers, after all.” “And you are indeed my co-counsel.” Khan told him. “There is no one better suited. Have we found them?” The proximity was too far to sense them through the bond but their signatures certainly did leave a trace. “New Vulcan.” Joaquin said, a smile growing. One of certainty. “They do not have adequate defenses to prevent us from reclaiming our family.” “We will set course.” Khan inclined a hand to one of the augments at the navigational station. At warp 9, their arrival there would take less than an hour. He only hoped to reclaim what was his before this Doctor arrived there first. After all, Khan had so much more to offer. Xxxxxxxxxxxxxx Sara groaned upon waking to find herself in a very futuristic medical room. Somehow, her head felt lighter. Better. The pain had diminished almost entirely as she turned to see Nova in the bed next to hers. But the bond was still there, with Khan and somehow, she knew it was getting closer. She rubbed her temple. “My head…” She muttered as Nova stirred, opening her eyes while Sarek entered the room. “You knocked us out,” she accused. “Forgive me,” came his simple response. “You both were being illogical. We intended no harm.” He paused. “We fixed much of the damage caused by a telepath that could only be a novice. Unfortunately,” he paused, “the telepathic bond remains in place.” “Fixed.” Sara repeated. “What do you mean by fixed?” Nova glanced at Sarek with uncertainty and her sister with fear. She could feel Khan’s presence approaching but she could no longer feel the Doctor. She again tried to reach through her link through her mind to the TARDIS. Please, please don’t give up on us. Our bond was stolen. You need to find us. Don’t forget us, please don’t forget us. She wrapped her arms around her legs. Would the Doctor still be looking? Then, who indeed would find them first? Barely a second later, a golden glow effused her skin, along with a deep and comforting reassurance. It didn’t last very long before it was gone, but it was long enough to lighten her heart somewhat. Sara and Sarek stared at her. Sarek with some confusion, Sara with hope. “The Doctor?” she asked. “It was the TARDIS…basically saying they were trying to get here. Not to give up hope.” Nova gave a watery smile. “And I can feel Khan getting closer. He’ll be here soon.” Sarek nodded his understanding. “We assumed as much with the information you gave. To answer your question, the damage the telepath left in both of your minds was extensive. We healed everything, as well as shoring up both your minds’ defenses from further attack. It will not hold against persistent force, but it should minimize any further damage.” He gestured. “How do you feel?” Nova and Sara looked at each other, before looking back at him. “Better. Almost normal, actually.” Nova had a thoughtful look on her face. “Sarek? Would you happen to be a scientist interested in a semi-long term experiment?” His eyebrows shot up. “Perhaps. What would it entail?” “I’m a telepath, but obviously not as good as you. I have a mental connection to a ship, an Artificial Intelligence. She is trying to get herself and her crew here to rescue us. The connection is a strong one, but Khan will never let us go voluntarily.” Nova took a deep breath at what she was about to propose. “If I give you the link to the TARDIS,” she heard Sara gasp in shock and horror, “could you keep sending her a signal, directing them here? I’m not strong enough…and with the adoption bond Khan has put in place, along with his stubbornness, it won’t be long before he figures out how to block me completely.” She took a deep breath at this. It would mean giving up the sole telepathic connection she had held all her life. No matter what, the TARDIS had always been there. It was a frightening thought. Sarek saw in this girl’s eyes, in both of their eyes, that they truly believed what they were saying. With over a hundred years of telepathy training, he was easily the strongest. But what a strange concept the child had come up with. It had been done before, of course, but not to this degree. “Very well.” He moved forward and placed his fingers at the redhead’s temples. He saw the connection she meant, he had seen it before. It was one of the strongest he had ever seen outside of marriage bonds. It would cause her intense pain to be without it…even with his abilities. “This will hurt, child. I am sorry.” Nova nodded her understanding, a tear sliding down her cheek. “I know. But…you are our best hope…” He closed his eyes and guided the golden glow of rope into his own mind, or he tried. It didn’t go. Didn’t want to and refused to budge. He raised an eyebrow at it. Something about the girl was making it impossible. Then he noticed that the rope was in fact a multitude of small threads. No wonder it wasn’t moving. He focused on one thread that seemed to be glowing more than the rest and grasped it. He faintly heard her gasp of pain, and knew that the connection had broken. He pulled it to himself and placed it carefully inside his own mind. He pulled away from her mind as gently as he could, healing the small amount of damage as he went. His fingers went down. As an experiment, he sent a thought down his new connection. Hello? What he received back was an influx of emotion: curiosity and some anger. Where was her little one? Why was he here? Nova has given me your telepathic link so that I may more easily guide you to her. Indigence that she couldn’t find Nova on her own. He smirked, blinking open his eyes. “She is quite irritated that you think she would be unable to find you herself.” Nova gave a sobbing laugh as Sara held her tightly. “I just didn’t want him to take her from me. At least with you, we still have a chance of getting home.” She sniffed and looked up at him. “Would you do that thing again? Put me to sleep…please?” He knew how much breaking the connection had caused her pain, would continue to cause her pain until it was replaced. He nodded, reached over and pinched the nerves. She slumped instantly, her face relaxing. Sara continued to hold her sister’s hand, allowing a golden steam of energy to trickle through to Nova to help heal through some of the pain. “Fascinating.” Sarek responded. “How is that accomplished?” “I have time energy from a living time machine that was given to me when my universe was destroyed. My family was obliterated. I’m the only one left but was telepathically bonded to my sister before….” Her shoulders slumped. “We came here by accident. To this universe. Khan told us only he had been experimented on by this other sadist in Starfleet but there was just so much we didn’t know….we thought he would let us go when he had his family back but…” “He didn’t.” Sarek said solemnly. “I’ve dealt with Khan Noonien Singh twice before.” “No,” Sara shook her head. “When he forced his way into my mind I saw his memories. All his memories and many as unflattering as they were, you weren’t in them.” “I come from an alternate timeline. Travelled back in time and a Romulan bent on revenge followed me. Vulcan was destroyed, which-“ “Oh my God.” Sara whispered. “There’s wasn’t a paradox? Please tell me you didn’t meet yourself or….the rules of time….” He raised an eyebrow. They were both indeed unusual. “You know the laws governing time?” “About half Time Lord.” Sara muttered. “My sister is more. That’s why she is better at telepathy. I had no barriers to protect myself and Khan hurt my mind so badly…” At that moment, she could feel the violation. Never had she been so helpless. At least with the first Doctor she’d been unconscious. Maybe after all the lives she had taken, this was her due. This was- “He’s coming.” Nova spoke faintly, opening her eyes as Sarek worked to repair the small damage and strain he caused to her mind in extending out the connection. “The TARDIS told me. He knows where we are, Sara. He managed to find people that will help him on Earth.” Sara felt tears in her eyes. Maybe this would soon be over. It wasn’t as though she ill wished Khan. She could understand wanting to cling onto family after all he suffered and perhaps his response was psychological in nature but they simply weren’t his family. A forced telepathic bond didn’t make it so. Now everything would just be- Alarms suddenly transmitted through the air. “What is that?” Sara jumped on her feet in alarm. “Alert system.” Sarek noted. “A ship is approaching at high warp.” Both girls turned to look at each other. “Khan.” They said at the same time. Nova sighed and got to her feet. “We should give ourselves up. It will save your people.” She felt a tear roll down her cheek. Seemed like she was crying a lot these days. “He won’t stop until he gets us back. Please, keep up the connection to the TARDIS. Help the Doctor. Please.” Sarek nodded, “We are more than happy to protect you here.” “And we both know that not even an entire army would stop him. The Doctor will. He, Skynet, and the TARDIS will be enough…” Sara spoke softly, getting to her feet as well. The sisters walked hand-in-hand out of the building to face their persecutors. It didn’t take long for Khan and Joaquin to beam down to the surface of the planet, almost directly in front of the girls. They both looked down at their shoes, their shoulders hunched and defeated. All their hope now lay with the Doctor…and they couldn’t even feel him. “Sara,” Khan paused. “Nova.” He examined them both. “We were concerned.” “Were you?” Sara refuted. “Apparently not much when you violated our minds without consent.” She shook her head. “Amateur. Do you have any idea the damage you caused? And you violated something more sacred than that. Our trust.” She looked at the Vulcan settlement. “You were going to take action against this settlement if they stood in their way weren’t you?” But she already knew the answer. “You are both part of my family. Now my daughters. I’m afraid I’m not inclined to give either of you up.” He approached them, taking their arms to propel them into place next to Joaquin as the transport beam came down. Both girls were readily silent at this point. Now their only hope lay with the Doctor. Both managed to pull their arms away as they were led back to their subsequent rooms. Sara was at least thankful she was no longer confined to the medbay. The memories of the forced access into her mind ran through her again. Nova walked with Sara into her room just wanting the company of the other as Khan’s voice drew them to a stop. “I am assigning each of you an escort and your meals will be monitored by myself or Joaquin as the occasion permits.” Khan really enjoyed the concept of a family meal and it would likely provide a structure that the girls seemed to sorely need. “All harmful chemicals have been removed from your quarters and there is this…” He gestured to a bracelet. Designed from other augments given the parameters of the particles in Sara’s blood stream, it would suppress enough of her energy so that she couldn’t accidentally transport or cause damage on board again. He was aware that the majority of her energy bursts were accidental or caused by instability but he had to take precautions where his family was concerned. Sara was shaking her head frantically backing away as Joaquin, gently but firmly wrapped his arms around her. “This won’t cause you any pain.” Khan assured her. He was certain in time, she would be willing to do the same energy infusion as she had done to three of his other crew members but now….he turned to Nova who only looked stunned. “A bracelet is also being designed to modify your telepathy.” Until Nova was fully acclimated, he couldn’t allow her to gain access to any of his family be mere touch. She seemed to draw on skills the augments had previously garnered but it was proving more of a challenge to alter the frequency to the correct specifications. “No, please, you can’t.” Nova shook her head in desperation, her eyes wide. If her telepathy was lowered, she couldn’t send messages out to the TARDIS. Then, she and Sara would truly be alone, wondering whether the Doctor was able to trace them with Sarek’s help. Not to mention; she had been telepathic all her life. It was a part of her. If Khan blocked not just one connection, but all of it…what would that do to her? Sarek taking just one bond hurt so badly…if Khan took them all away… She shivered at the idea. She took a deep breath. “What Sara did was an accident. She was in pain after the telepathy you performed and couldn’t control herself. If you want our trust….any of it, you won’t force these measures on us. You’ll earn our respect.” She inhaled through her nose. “Where is your honor?” She asked quietly as Khan simply gazed back at the red head with intensity before coming to a decision. Khan shook his head with a sigh, “My honor is to my family, of which you are both a part. It is dangerous for you as well as the rest of us until you get more control of your abilities. We will work on them; Joaquin or myself will help you each day until you become more confident and less prone to accidents. I am sorry, but until you achieve that level of control, I have no choice. For the good of the whole family.” His smile was a kind of sad understanding. It was almost as if he sympathized with them, but wasn’t going to budge on his decision. “Until a bracelet is made for you, Nova, you will be confined to quarters.” She shook her head in horror at the very idea of a bracelet at all, let alone one to inhibit her abilities. He didn’t seem to understand, his smile was softer. “Don’t worry. You will have plenty of things to keep you occupied until such time as you can return to the main areas to continue to introduce yourselves to your new family.” Nova and Sara gave each other speaking looks, sitting down next to each other. It was useless. No matter what they said or did, Khan never listened. Always thought his way was best. It wasn’t that he was a bad leader, he was a very good one…but the problem is that some people don’t want to be led. They want to go back home. If the girls had wanted a new family, a new protector, Khan and the augments would have been a saving grace. A miracle from God that shined when they needed it. For the augments were loyal to a fault. As soon as you were one of them, they never betrayed their family. They were caring and supportive, through the good times and the terrible. They were a perfect family. But Nova and Sara didn’t want to be a part of this family. They had their own. Khan watched as the newest members of his family cried silently, clinging to each other in their fear. They didn’t yet understand he would never harm them. Every decision he made was in the best interests of his family. He was obviously a better protector than this Doctor. Where had the Doctor been when Nova was injured and in need of aid? Khan had been there, with Sara, to bring them into his home and care for them. He sighed. The poor girls just didn’t see it…but they would eventually. They simply needed time…and he had plenty. That and patience. He became what his family needed. It was his main role as Head. If the girls needed him to be strong, patient, and calm, that is what he would be for them. It wasn’t difficult, his natural personality lent that way. But he also had to think of the entire family. If Sara lost control in the mess hall, she could hurt someone by accident. He took Sara’s wrist, making sure Otto was close by just in case someone’s calculations were off, and gently slid the bracelet over. He waited a second, watching her every twitch and eye flutter to ensure she was not in pain. “How do you feel, Sara?” “How do I feel?” Sara asked, stubbornly managing to pull away from Joaquin who only conceded to release her. “Betrayed.” She said; she felt weakened. The energy her cells naturally produced were being pulled into the bracelet and she nearly wavered on her feet. Did he even understand what he was doing to her with this device? Her body needed the natural equilibrium of her energy or….the heaviness of lethargy settled onto her like an added weight. “You don’t understand.” She shook her head. “Whatever threat I caused your crew was a result from what you attempted to do. You drugged my sister and violated my mind.” She said simply. “You stole the bond from our rightful father. You’re not our family…you know why?” She asked staring at the three augments in front of her. “Because my real family wouldn’t do that to me.” She turned on her heel, taking her sister’s hand to pull her into Nova’s room. “And I’ll share my sister’s confinement.” She told him fiercely. “That is unacceptable, Sara.” Khan, now certain that Sara was no longer a threat, felt it was important that she integrate with his other family members and get to know the ship during designated periods. “You will both follow the routine established….” His voice trailed. Both girls had left, retreating back to Nova’s room and he clenched his jaw in thought. “Allow them an hour.” Joaquin interceded smoothly. “Perhaps then, a fresh voice will prove more useful. The procedure, while necessary, was undoubtedly traumatic to their psyches. They don’t fully relate me to that event. I would enjoy the opportunity.” He knew what was at stake just as much as Khan did but from time to time he could be emotionally fervent, challenging and intense. Khan was pragmatic and decisive. Joaquin was passionate and instinctive although counterbalanced with the intellectual calculating nature augments had by origin. However these traits just might prove useful. “Of course. Fill me in on your progress.” Khan acceded. It was likely his brother’s merited argument had a distinctive point. Joaquin wasn’t his most trusted friend and ally for nothing. Xxxxxxxxxx
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Chapter 16
Sara sat on Nova’s bed, staring at the wall next to her sister muttering quietly. “Just when I think we’re okay. The worst is behind us….we have our family, than someone else comes around, tries to make us into something we’re not.” She put her head in her hands. She didn’t know how things had gone so wrong. Why couldn’t they have done what they did for Khan and the three of them part as friends? Wasn’t seventy two people enough for a family? There surely wasn’t a breeding crisis…no. There were plenty of men versus women for that ratio. Nova glanced at her sister, nodding obliquely as she worked with a quilting pattern. She wanted her family back. Now, on top of their bond being stolen, her sister was forced to wear a bracelet and Sara already looked so tired from the effect. She could feel it through the bond she had with Sara, which she knew Khan could feel too. Then, he had to deem her fatigue as acceptable or the use of the bracelet as temporary. They were likely monitoring Sara through it, which made Nova’s skin crawl at the idea of having something forced on her that drained away half of her telepathy. It was who she was. Would she even still dream? She shuddered at that possibility. Having that all taken away. “I’m going to get the tea maker in here and make us some tea.” Sara muttered. “Some very strong tea.” “Just my usual for me.” Nova said but understanding the sentiment behind Sara’s position. “Yes, I know. Morning, noon or night.” Sara muttered as she walked out into the hallway to her room, trying to lift the machine but even the effort felt exhausting. “Allow me.” A voice said behind her. Sara turned, exhaling. “Joaquin.” She muttered as he walked into her room and to the machine and she shook her head as he started to lift it. “No, I have it. Just need a minute.” “It is no trouble.” He insisted. “Besides,” He started easily. “You need two hands. How are you going to carry the tea into the next room?” She looked at him warily before turning away to grab the bags of tea she needed. “What do you want?” She demanded. “Dinner.” He replied and she suddenly turned, looking at him circumspect. “You’re not serious.” She muttered. “I always am. A visit to my quarters some night this week.” He said casually. “I assure you, I am a good cook.” Sara inhaled quickly, feeling a range of emotions run through her before she turned, fervently deciding on her determination and stubbornness regardless of any inclination. “And you’re not my type.” She said quickly heading out of into the hallway back to the direction of Nova’s room. “Are you sure?” Joaquin asked, meeting her gaze as Sara paused, exhaling looking only slightly flustered before replying. “Yes, because a date would never force me to wear a leash.” Throwing up her bracelet wearing wrist, knowing that Joaquin had in some part contrived the idea behind it. Was contriving the same bracelet to put on her sister. She walked into Nova’s room as Joaquin smiled to himself slightly, shaking his head giving them a few minutes before following her inside to converse with both the sisters. Then, chaos occurred. The psionic feedback from the bracelet was too great. It couldn’t counter the energy that was in Sara’s body as it surged back into her cells at full force. She screamed in agony as she sank to the floor. Nova cried out her name but it was simply too late. Too late to discover the adjustments weren’t properly made. A vibrant burst of golden energy overtook Sara and she was gone leaving Nova behind, confounded in her wake. Xxxxxxxxxx Another planet. A domed in city surrounded by the outside of orange dust meeting an orange sky. She stared at her surroundings in bewilderment taking note of the fast moving cars as she slowly called out Nova’s name only to be answered by another voice. A familiar one although when she turned, she was facing Khan. How had he gotten there so fast? But his expression seemed different. Distorted. Darkened. He was approaching her. “Sara, my beloved wife. I’ve missed you. You don’t know how many realities I have searched to find you.” “Wife.” Sara repeated. “Khan, we’re not married. That hasn’t even been discussed since you imprisoned us onboard.” Confusion filled her tone. “Why of course it has and I even have seen to give you a marriage in the church of your faith.” He took another step towards her. “I’m eager for your honeymoon to commence.” A sinking sensation occurred in her heart. Knowledge. Foresight. “You’re not Khan. Not the one from this reality. Some horrendous version of him.” Sara suddenly realized the difference. Khan had been strict but he would never do this. Never force her into a marriage. This version….something was wrong. Maybe the experiments caused permanent damage. All her instincts told her to run and immediately she bolted but in speed so quick, he snatched her wrist dragging her aboard a secured shuttle as he secured them both inside. Sara frantically shook her head. “You don’t get it. Two different sets of families will be looking for me. Another version of you exists in this dimension. He sure as hell isn’t you. He….” Suddenly, he yanked her towards her pressing his lips on hers, while gripping the back of her neck to sustain the kiss. She gasped and choked until he let her go. “Not to worry. I’ll still get Penny back to you, my beloved.” He said. “I swear it.” A start of another nightmare. Eventually the shuttle beamed them down to a luxurious apartment in the middle of the lunar colony as this Khan stared at her, a pleasant smile on his face. “Fifiteen hours.” He turned to face Sara. The genetically modified man turned around to see Sara quietly trying to open the door, silently trying to escape. He hadn't heard her, he hadn't sensed her movement. That in itself was impressive. He looked at the woman he'd chosen, taking his time to study every inch of her as she tried frantically to make the locked door open. He let himself drink her in and he smiled. She truly was spectacular. Including every genetically superior woman he'd ever met, he'd never come across one as impressive as Sara. She truly was the perfect catch, the perfect conquest. The children she would give him would ensure the survival of his line for eons to come. No one would ever forget the name Khan."We have 15 hours to relax," said Khan.Sara turned around to see him staring at her. She clenched her jaw. This wasn't happening, she thought. She couldn’t be here and certainly not with this distorted version. The Doctor was here. She knew Nova had communicated with him, as had Sarek, so of course he was on his way, right? She had to be right. Besides, even though she never thought to say this, Khan in this reality would surely come for her. She hoped. Unless he had given up on her completely. Maybe he had. This dimensional duplicate of Khan was a nightmare."Would you like something to drink?" Khan walked with purpose towards the liquor cabinet. He didn't wait for Sara to answer. He simply poured her favorite drink, and something special for himself. But when he offered the drink to Sara she turned, and walked away from him.She looked out the window at all the people below, walking in the great domed city. But she was separated from it by a simple glass window.Khan put the drinks down, frowning slightly before smirking to himself. Even now Sara resisted him. No other woman had ever been able to resist his charms. Usually, it was all he could do to keep women away from him. But not Sara. No. Not his Sara. He knew she'd been attracted to him at some point. But even with his enhanced pheromone production, she managed to hold her own. A superior woman. I will take her."Is Nova dead?" asked Sara. She didn't take her eyes off the window. Sara was worried. For some reason, when she transported here, she hadn’t be able to sense Nova’s presence and she feared the worse. She didn’t know how she could go on living without her."What do you mean?" Who is Nova? Obviously another superior like Sara. He would have to find her too.“When my energy brought me here, I left Nova behind. Is she dead?" Her eyes filled with tears. She couldn't imagine going on without Nova. Sara was startled when she felt Khan take hold of her shoulders from behind."I would never let that happen. Open your heart, Sara. Will you open your heart?"She tried to shrug him off her shoulders, but he didn't let go. And she knew he was too strong for her to fight him. If Khan wanted to hold her shoulders, Khan was going to hold her shoulders. Sara felt him began to stroke her with his thumbs, keeping his fingers securely wrapped around her arms. A creeping sensation at this new Khan tingled up her arms."On Earth, 200 years before they were born," Khan referred to the people scurrying around below, "I was a prince over millions." He spoke softly in her ear, inhaling her scent. "I decided who lived and who died. I decided who won and who lost. I decided who moved, and who stood still." Khan ran his hands down Sara's arms. "Men haven't changed in all those two hundred years. Taming men isn't difficult. I have a world to win, an empire to build. And the first step is taking you and your sister back home." He pointed to the building. "Our precious Nova is out there. Just waiting for us to be reunited."Khan felt Sara relax slightly. She was relieved to think Nova was alive. Perhaps the Doctor had already found Nova on the Vengeance or Khan was making certain her sister was okay before they determined where Sara was."That's better." He inhaled, nuzzling his nose into Sara's hair, referring to how she'd relaxed. "My beloved wife." Khan released his hold on Sara, and walked closer to the window. "You have my word, I’ll get her back for you. My solemn oath.”"No,” demanded Sara, surprised Khan had released her. "I only wanted to know if she was alive. She’s fine where she is. I don’t want you going after her.” They might be dimensional duplicates but she didn’t like the chances…the risk if she was wrong.Khan turned back from the window, looking at his wife. "You are in a position to demand nothing, Sara. I on the other hand am in a position to grant everything."Sara felt a chill send weakness through her when she heard his words. But she didn't cower. Instead she bristled against him. "I demand you let me go." Sara chose her words carefully, stressing the word "demand." She kept her voice steady, and made sure her captor knew she surrendered nothing to him. She would never be his, no matter how frightening he could be. “Even this reality’s version of Khan is better than you.”Khan rubbed his eyes with his thumb and fingers from one hand. He let his hand drop as he shook his head. "Tsk, tsk, tsk." He looked directly into Sara's eyes, melting her with his stare. "She tasks me. She tasks me," he said to himself, not taking his eyes off his wife. "I would chase you round the moons of Nibia, and round the Antares Maelstrom, and round perdition's flames before I'd give you up." He stepped closer to the woman he owned. "I love you, Sara. With all my heart, with all that is me, I love you." He gave her a longing look. "And I mean to have you."Sara's blood ran cold. What kind of alternate timeline was this? Who was Penny? She needed to find a way out of here right now. Khan stepped closer to Sara, but she refused to back away. She would never cower before this man. She would never give him the satisfaction. He reached out and took hold of Sara's hand. She instantly pulled it away from him, giving him a dark look, and still not backing away."I should caution you," warned Khan. "Men such as I, dare take what we want." In one swift move, he took more than just her hand. He wrapped his arms around Sara's waist, pulling her towards him."No!" She shrieked. Sara pushed back. "Let me go!" she ordered."No," he answered calmly. "No, you can't get away."She began struggling against him. He laughed. She had no hope of physically winning this battle. He was far too strong for that."Save your strength," ordered Khan. "You're going to need it." Keeping one hand around her waist, he used his other hand on the back of Sara's head, forcing a kiss.Sara smacked him when he released her head. But he didn't even flinch. He only pulled her tighter against his body. He closed his eyes, enjoying her closeness. Khan leaned in pressing kisses to her neck. Sara's heart fell. There was no one here to help her. There was no Doctor, no Nova, no Khan from this universe, no Police, no Starfleet, nor anyone. She was on her own. And she couldn't win. She couldn't even push him away. She couldn't make him stop kissing her."Please," begged Sara, feeling how interested he was becoming with her. "Please, don't do this. I’m not the right Sara. I’m pleading with you."Khan moved his way up the side of his wife's neck, sucking as he went."You say you love me," she tried to reason with him. "If you love me, you won't do this. This has no honor." Her voice cracked.Khan reveled in the sound. He'd won. He'd finally won. He'd beaten her. He could hear it in her voice."If you love me, you won't hurt me. Oh!" She gasped at his touch. "This'll hurt me." He didn't stop his kisses. Instead, his movements became more intense."PLEASE!" cried Sara. Tears started down her cheeks. "DON'T!" She inhaled sharply. "I'd rather die! I'D RATHER DIE!"Khan paused, and pulled back just enough to look into Sara's eyes. She shuddered, hope welling up within her. Had she gotten through to him? Was he going to let her go?"Then I'll do worse than kill you," stated the tyrant. "I'll hurt you. And I wish to go on hurting you. I will hurt you every day for the rest of your life." He glared down at her. "And you will learn to like it. You will submit." With the sound of ripping fabric, Khan forced her to the floor. And amidst Sara's screams and sobs, he kept his word. He did what he did best. He conquered. Sara was his.So many endless hours. One attack in front of another and Sara was in excruciating pain barely having a rest between assaults. Frantically at one point, she searched the cabinet for aspirin only finding none to end her misery. Every fifteen minutes. Another attack. She prayed fervently to God but he didn’t seem to be listening. She broke the glass of the mirror and shredded her palms in agony.She was so far gone. More of her soul disappearing. What would there be left to find when anyone remembered to save her. Every attack was torture. She was bleeding from the assault. She eventually stopped fighting but it didn’t end the pain. “How fortuitous,” Khan murmured. “You’re ovulating. You will bring me many sons Sara.”She would only groan as he would take her again. Six hours repeatedly. She wasn’t even the right one. The pain became excruciating until she finally lost consciousness.XxxxxxxxxxxSara blinked her eyes open as the first light of sunrise began to light the room. She cringed when she realized Khan's arm was still draped over her. She could feel him breathing softly on the back of her neck as he still slept. She could still smell him. The last night had to have been the worst of her life. Her body hurt. She was sore. She felt slimy and sweaty and utterly filthy, even on the inside. She wanted to cry, but she didn't have any tears left. She wanted to scream, but her voice was long since gone. The Doctor didn't save her. Something must have happened. He wasn't coming. No one was coming. She was alone.Nova? She asked. “Nova. Please.”She turned her face into her pillow, and quietly sobbed. She didn't want to cry. She didn't want to move. She didn't want to wake Khan. If he woke up, he might hurt her again. Sara gripped the sheet closer to her chest at the thought. But she couldn't stop her sobs from shaking her body. How much more could she take?Khan sighed in his sleep, and rolled onto his back taking his arm with him. Sara let out a silent breath in relief, but inhaled sharply when she felt him run a finger down her back."Good morning, Sara."He placed a hand on her shoulder, and caressed it with his thumb. She pulled away from him, wrapping the sheet around herself as she stood up on shaky legs. She crossed the room to stare out the window at the Starfleet building below."How long?" she asked. Her tired voice sounded broken even to her own ears."Five Hours. Give or take." He mused. “I am having a ship prepared.”Sara jumped slightly when she felt him lay his hands on her shoulders. He massaged them.Five hours until she knew if she was truly trapped with this nightmarish version of Khan. Khan ran his hands down Sara's arms. She shuddered, starting to feel tears run down her eyes.Nova, don’t forget me. It’s Khan, a horrible version of him. Oh Nova he…” She couldn’t even get the words out. I’m sorry. Should have told them about the bracelet but…..my fault. Khan wrapped his arm around her, pulling her back into his chest. He kissed her neck near her shoulder. Sara closed her eyes, and prayed for help. In any form she hoped it would arrive.And finally it did when this distorted version of Khan had forced her back on the bed, eager in his efforts to have a child with her.Transport beams came directly into the safe house he procured and this Khan who was facing his darker version looked angry.“It’s hurts.” Sara whispered looking at the new Khan in puzzlement. “Hurts so bad….” blood was streaking down her legs. “Why would he hurt me?” She looked at the beamed in Khan in a picture of helplessness. “What did I go to him?”Nova was just beamed into the safe house, seeing the situation with all evident horror.“I’m sorry.” Sara muttered, laying on the bed, unable to move. “Sorry, so sorry. My fault. Whatever I did, I’m sorry.”Nova shook her head in absolute horror at the sight before her, but if she trusted Khan with anything, it was their protection. She had no doubt about that. She moved to her sister’s side and laid a hand on her cheek. Sleep. Sara slumped on the bed. It was the most humane thing to do. Her periwinkle eyes, hard as steel and cold as brass, came up to look at Khan’s look-alike. “There was a time when I told your counterpart that he brought out the worst in me. I was wrong…you do. You disgust me. I have no pity or sympathy for you.” She looked over at her version of the man, whose eyes were just as cold and hard. The two versions faced each other like a Mexican standoff. Well, she wouldn’t allow that. “Nope…this won’t do. Hey Khan!” she called cheerfully, “Catch!” A hand snapped out to do as instructed. She smiled evilly at the man. “You see, oh violent Khan that I despise…” she leaned in close to whisper in his ear like a lover, “…I’m a telepath.” Was all the warning her received before she blasted a command through his mind. SLEEP! He crumpled to the ground without a sound. Her version of Khan caught her on the way down so that she didn’t harm herself. One last command through his mind before she let him go completely. Her periwinkle eyes lost their ice and steel and began to tear up. She scrambled to Sara’s side, “Oh God, Khan…what are we going to do?” She wished the Doctor was there. Heck, she wished Skynet was there. She wanted her family. Doctor! Oh God, please…I can’t do this myself…please! Sara…Oh God, Doctor…I’m not sure how much longer I can last… she knew that Khan would take care of things. He would not hesitate or shirk his duties. She barely heard as Khan ordered his sleeping counterpart to be beamed to the brig, maximum security. She whispered, knowing the augment would hear her, “I sent him into a comatose state. He won’t wake from that…not unless he changes…I gave him nightmares…anything he has done to others will now come back to him. It won’t stop until he regrets it. Truly regrets what he’s done.” Her eyes blinked up at Khan. “I doubt he’ll ever wake.” A tear trailed down her face. “What about Sara?” Khan, this version of him at least, stayed calm and gentle for the sake of his daughters. They needed him to be so. “Two to beam to the infirmary.” He commanded and watched as the girls disappeared in golden light. “Beam me to the brig.” Between one moment and the next, he was staring at his own sleeping self. With his daughters gone, he was free to express his utter rage. By the time he was finished, even if his counterpart woke, there would be nothing he could do without any limbs. He would never harm another person ever again. Khan nodded sharply and tossed the ‘spare’ arms and legs into the incinerator. No use leaving them around to possibly be reattached. Nova had given her version of justice; but Khan was taking no chances. This version of himself may wake, but would never again be a threat. The tattoo across his face to ensure that the two versions could be quickly and easily distinguished was just a bonus. “Sire? What about nutrients for the prisoner?” the guard asked hesitantly. He hadn’t seen his leader this angry in a long time. Not since the beginning of the Eugenics Wars. Khan snorted in derision and turned away, “Let him starve.” Xxxxxxxxxxx
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Chapter 17
Nova was clinging to Sara’s hand as Otto worked to fix all the damage to her sister’s body. Nova wasn’t sure if she was clinging to offer support, or clinging because she needed support. Perhaps it was a bit of both. She had never seen the medical officer so angry. His face was practically puce, though his movements were precise, clinical, and professional. He was too much of a CMO to do anything else. But she almost smiled at the idea that the sleeping version of Khan may not wake up at all. He would deserve no less. After nearly three hours, when he finally stepped back from Sara’s body, she hesitantly asked, “How…how is she?” She was shivering, so cold, but never did she waver from her vigil. She knew that if Sara woke that she would need her sister. Nova wasn’t going anywhere. Otto wanted to snarl at the girl, but knew that not only wouldn’t it help, the girl was only trying to offer support in the only way she knew how. He leaned back on the counter and looked up at the other girl for the first time. Oh dear, he may have another patient. Nova looked terrible in her grief and anxiety. Otto’s face gentled as he came over to gently guide the redhead onto a bed herself. “I’ve fixed all the damage that…heathen…caused. He should pray that he never comes through my infirmary.” He snarled, but he got the reaction he had been looking for when Nova gave a watery giggle. There we go. She was cognizant at least. “How do you feel, little one?” “Doesn’t matter.” She dismissed, her eyes so concerned never leaving the brunette’s form. “How’s Sara?” The CMO frowned at the repetitive question. Did the girl not believe him? Or was it more? He grabbed a tool and looked into the girl’s eyes. When they didn’t dilate, he silently cursed himself. He gestured to an assistant, who had seen the problem, and the boy darted off. “Nova. Little one. Can you focus on me?” he asked gently. The poor girl had gone into shock from the psychological trauma associated with just seeing her sister like this. Her mind likely would have broken completely if she had been in Sara’s place. Thank all the gods she hadn’t. Otto could tell that his leader had a soft spot for the girls, but more so for Nova. If Nova had been permanently harmed, would ever be permanently harmed, the CMO had no doubt that Khan would declare war on whomever had caused it. Otto shook his head. He still wasn’t sure that Khan wouldn’t declare war. Even with only one assailant, depending on how much anger the leader had worked off with punishing the prisoner, he might just go looking for a fight. Joaquin was probably seeking out his brother-in-arms now just for such things. Those two were good at knowing what the other needed. Not to mention that Joaquin himself was itching for a fight. If Khan had a soft spot for Nova, then Joaquin had a soft spot for Sara. He would be angry enough to go against a full squadron by himself. Which meant that the CMO should probably be prepared to have another two patients in a couple hours. The assistant had finally come back with the heating blanket, which Otto threw around the redhead girl’s shoulders. “There now. Is that better?” Nova blinked slowly, her eyes fixed on her sister. After five minutes, she finally was able to look up at him. “Otto?” “Yes, little one. It’s me. How do you feel?” “Cold…” Nova finally started to shake as her tears could now pour down her cheeks. “I couldn’t protect her…my fault…” “No! No, little one. This was no one’s fault but the one in the brig.” Otto was moved enough that he pulled the girl in for a hug, which she returned with fervency. “Do you hear me, child? This was not your fault. Okay?” Nova nodded slightly. “Good. Now, I want you to get some sleep. I’m going to have a few more patients soon and you need your rest.” Nova nodded again before looking up at the chief medical officer in placation. “Can I sleep with Sara?” she asked in a quiet voice. He smiled down at her. “Of course you can, sweetling. Here.” He helped the girl get up and snuggle down beside the brunette. He covered them both with the heating blankets. He dimmed the lights in their area and stepped to the door. “Sleep, little ones. Rest.” Unfortunately, while he could fix the physical damage done to anyone on the ship, psychological damage was much more resistant. Xxxxxxxxxxx Sara slowly opened her eyes. The nightmare place was gone. She was back in the medbay, tucked under several blankets and she glanced over to see her sister, asleep next to her who looked downright exhausted. Maybe she had been dreaming that man that looked like Khan but then was really nothing like Khan at all. She had been so tired after all and the girls felt so trapped….but why would she dream that? She knew Khan was a lot of things. A rapist wasn’t one of them. It was…. “Sara?” A gentle voice at her other side and she turned to look, blinking feeling utterly relaxed under some tidal wave of medication. “Joaquin.” She managed as he gently took hold of her hand. She distantly remembered the conversation in the hallway and then realized the bracelet they put on her was gone. Maybe they determined bracelets were a bad idea after all. “Still trying to take me to dinner.” A smile hovered on his lips. “Always.” He swallowed back the rage. The anger he had felt regarding Sara’s condition. At the moment, it almost seemed like she was dissociating from it as a traumatic shock reaction. “I’m still an excellent cook.” “I like….salmon.” She murmured with a yawn. “And nectarines.” “I’ll keep that in mind.” He promised, clearing his throat. “Sara….” He started. “You took off the bracelet.” She muttered. “Was so tired with it on. Thank you.” “There is no thanks required. Miscalculations were made.” He just barely clenched his jaw. Sara was not able to fight off that predator with the bracelet they put on her. For now, other solutions would be found and it was decided Khan and Joaquin would work with both girls in tandem for their abilities. “I had a bad dream…” Sara’s eyes filled with tears as Joaquin simply squeezed her hand. “You’re safe now. That can’t hurt you anymore. I assure you.” He said with utter sincerity. Even though Sara said it was a bad dream, she knew it wasn’t. But pretending it was helped. Made things easier. One thing lingered. “I don’t believe in abortion.” She told him and quietly he nodded in understanding. At least, if he knew, then nothing like that would happen. “My sister…?” “Shock and exhaustion. A full night’s sleep will do her good. Otto is keeping her comfortable. She will talk to you when she wakes.” He paused. “But I’ll stay with you in the interim if you wish…” Sara swallowed once again reminded of another character in 19th century England so far apart from where she was now. “My father used to read to me before my universe died. Will you read to me? Please.” “It will be a pleasure.” He picked up a tablet that looked like an iPad but only more complex as he worked the buttons. “What would you like to hear?” She smiled just a little. “My favorite is Jane Eyre.” She told him. “I could picture you as Mr. Rochester…” “I’ll take that as a complement.” He said, glancing down at her as he settled down into his seat.
“There was no possibility of taking a walk that day. We had been wandering, indeed, in the leafless shrubbery an hour in the morning….”
He continued, his voice steady until slowly Sara closed her eyes as she drifted right back into a deep sleep. Gently he covered her with a blanket before looking at Nova. Bracelets. Another solution had to certainly be devised. As equally as they couldn’t put the rest of their family at risk, they couldn’t allow harm to befall the two newest members and that miscalculation caused one member of their family to already pay a steep price. It was only perhaps with some fortune that the bracelet being prepared for Nova took longer to devise. It all required forethought. “Let me know should either of them wake.” He asked Otto. “Of course.” Was the CMO’s soft reply. He would keep a ready eye on both his charges. Xxxxxxxxxxx Nova’s eyes blinked open some hours later with an urgent call to nature. She climbed down from the bed; just looking at Sara’s sleeping form made her want to cry and rage at herself. She hadn’t protected her sister…it was her fault…should have protested more at that damn bracelet…her fault… Doctor? She called out, but as expected, received no answer. She lasted as long as when she came out of the bathroom. She caught another look at Sara and she bit her lip to keep from crying out and disturbing people. Khan?
Nova? Are you alright? His voice, calm and sure, was instantly in her mind. Sending her soothing waves. I just…I need… she blushed at the childish sentence she didn’t let form in her mind. “What do you need, Nova?” Khan asked quietly from behind her. She spun around, seeing him standing there, just looking at her, she couldn’t help herself. She launched herself at him. His arms came up to hold her gently. He murmured soothing notes and rubbed circles into her back as her form shook and trembled. He held her until she had cried herself to sleep. When she did, he gently picked her up and lay her next to her sister, sweeping away stray hairs out of their eyes and adjusting the covers. Khan shook his head and walked away. He needed to fight Joaquin again. Their faces, so calm and peaceful when sleeping, just made him remember why he had just spent almost an hour comforting a crying redhead. Otto would certainly be earning his keep today. Xxxxxxxxxx When they both woke, the two augments had returned and Sara attempted to make an effort to try not to cringe at Khan’s presence. She could feel his anger at her response and a series of flashbacks went through her mind, unheeded. All of which, Nova and Khan could see. “I’m sorry.” Sara said desperately. “I didn’t mean to make you mad. I didn’t….” Khan took measures to calm his fury, remembering that now he had two daughters that were in tune with his emotions and Sara had been traumatized by his duplicate. It did have him ponder how many variations of him there were if one could be capable of something so repellant. “I’m not angry at you, Sara.” He put a gentle note in his voice, reflecting calmer emotions to both girls and they seemed to settle. “How are you feeling?” He could sense her confusion but nonetheless asked the question anyway. Sara glanced at her sister, also feeling Nova’s guilt for not being able to protect her. The bracelet… “It’s not your fault, Nova.” She told her clearly. “An accident. It just happened…but…he knew me.” She furrowed her brow. “He called me his wife.” She bit her lip. “Was he another version that Marcus experimented on too long and….” “No.” Nova answered. “Another version, yes. But another reality, I think there was another you. He was crossing dimensions to find that version. Mistaken identity.” She thought for a moment. “He’ll never harm anyone else again.” “No, he won’t. I have personally seen to it.” Khan said. “Am I….” Sara licked her lips. “Am I pregnant?” “It is simply too early to tell.” Otto clarified. “Another week, I should be able to determine a result.” “Fine.” Sara muttered. “Alright. No more bracelets. Not for me. Not for Nova. Please, these safeguards….they hurt us. Dampening Nova’s telepathy…” “I have decided against using bracelets.” Khan said. “For now, you will both undergo training and monitoring for your abilities each day. For now, Otto has given clearance for you both to leave the infirmary and return to your rooms. We will see you at the dinner hour.” “Are we….confined there?” Sara asked glancing at her sister. “Could I stay with Nova tonight?” That is, if you don’t mind. She sent her sister in thought. She was still holding out hope that Nova could contact the Doctor but she took a moment to glance at Joaquin with hesitation. He smiled at her. Briefly, she allowed herself to wonder what his mind would feel like since she could only feel the two. The passing thought wasn’t missed by either member of the bond as Khan glanced in the direction of his brother. Nova simply squeezed her sister’s hand as her eyes met Khan’s. She still wanted to go home too. Was still trying to contact the TARDIS but she was the first to admit that the situation wasn’t without its perplexity.
You like him…don’t you?
The girls looked at their respective choices before facing each other. Well, he’s stubborn to a fault…but he’s a good man…
Yeah, that’s what I thought. I like him too.
But he’s still not our father…what are we going to do when the Doctor gets here?
If he gets here.
What?!
Nova turned away from her sister’s exclamation. Her hands came around her arms, holding herself. “It’s been so long. He’s got so much to do besides us. Besides, he never goes back for his companions. Why would we be different? He only adopted us because he had to.” She looked at the ground. “For all his flaws, I know that Khan won’t let us go…that used to scare me, but after…it’s kinda comforting. No matter what, I know he’ll come for us. The Doctor…he lets so many people go. Sarah Jane, Rose, Martha, Jack, Mickey…all those people that he never thinks about anymore.” Those periwinkle eyes came up to ask for comfort. “Why are we any different than them? He knew them longer than he knew us…than he knew me…” “It’s just….” Sara’s voice trailed. She had been fighting so hard for her independence. It was out of her determination. What really made them any different after all? The Doctor barely knew them. He would have Skynet now along with Kyle but still…there was their Time Lord heritage. They both shared at least half of that TNA and then their lifespans. “Nova, on a practical level, our lifespan will exceed theirs. Then what? We’re stuck in this universe as fugitives? We won’t have a TARDIS. I mean, maybe we could figure out some how to grow one but that would take years…centuries….at least with the Doctor, he would be around for a while. Augments…while they live until around two hundred years, they’ll still die long before we will. Then what?” Sara was able to garner their life span at one point from the system computer. It wasn’t considered classified information. Nova nodded. It was actually a very valid concern. Along with their Time Lord heritage. It might all be very well to look at the present but her sister was also right to think long term. She bit her lip. “She has a point, Khan.” She paused. “We have a Time Lord heritage and my sister is living TARDIS energy. Our life spans will exceed your own. At the Time Lord Academy and Gallifrey, you aren’t even considered an adult until you reach the age five hundred.” She shook her head. “There is still so much for us to learn.” “I am not precluding the option of having this Doctor join our family.” Khan started. At the same time, he wasn’t willing to give up his telepathic custody now that he had it. “However, there is information regarding Sara’s ability for which you both must be made aware.” He went over the details in entirety so that each girl understood what occurred and how such a link to her life span took place. “Potentially…” He started while Sara only looked at him in stunned shock. “Three of you are linked to my life span and you’re asking me to finish the rest.” Sara took a deep breath. “It’s a healing ability. It’s not meant for…..” She started to tremble thinking about the responsibility she would have on her shoulders with seventy-three lives linked to hers. Would she have any freedom at all or would they all be too afraid of her hurting herself for fear of their own demise? All those thoughts ran through her head and she started shaking as she looked at her sister. I’m not sure I can do this, Nova. That’s 69 more people and….She was starting to feel positively overwhelmed by everything that had been relayed. Won’t that alter this timeline? Cause damage? Sara didn’t know anymore. Images of being confined to her room or some variation thereof played through her head. The timeline is already altered, Sara. Accepting more people isn’t going to alter it more than it already is. Besides…if the Doctor doesn’t come…it would mean that we wouldn’t be alone. Nova sent reassuring waves of emotion down their link, as well as getting up and coming over to hug her. “They wouldn’t do that, Sara. You know they won’t. As much as they are stubborn and don’t listen…they really do care about us and our welfare. They’d never do what you’re thinking. Not ever.” She said gently. “Nothing would change…other than we wouldn’t have to be alone in a couple centuries.” “But the Doctor…” Nova looked down. The Doctor was my friend. You know that. But I also know him very well. He never looks back at those he loses. Even if he loses them like he did us. I don’t know if he’ll ever come. Even with Skynet hounding him…even with Kyle…I just don’t know. And the fact that I don’t know scares me. She looked up at Khan and Joaquin standing there observing the girls. I don’t know much about them…but I do know that they’ll never stop. They’ll always come for us. Never give up. Never surrender. “For all their many and varied flaws,” a tear slipped down her face and she hugged her sister closely, “I never had to say a thing when you disappeared. They were already coming for you. No encouragement needed. No deals or threats. Just as soon as you were gone, they were after you. It took the ship going as fast as it could to get to you as quickly as they did. And none, not one augment, no one on the ship protested that there were seventy-three of them going after one person. No arguments about how the numbers didn’t make sense. Family is everything to them…….even us.” Sara gave a small frown. “I understand that. I do and I suppose I could work on it…slowly but, Nova.” She paused. “I did end up there because of feedback from that bracelet thing so if I’m going to do this, I want your solemn word from both of you, no bracelets or devices to regulate our abilities. We enjoy a certain level of freedom…in agreement we will train on our abilities but….” She glanced at Khan. He still had a lot to learn about telepathy if the way he burrowed into her mind was any indicator. If he was going to pursue a relationship with her sister and she knew Nova had the start of feelings for him, well, he still had some proving to do by her. “You need to learn to better your telepathy.” She told him flatly. “I mean, if I was any indicator, well, that really, really hurt. You have no idea how much it did and if you’re going to be the head of our telepathic bond, you should learn to do better. I think Nova can instruct us both there.” Khan considered his daughter, internally pleased. She would overcome this trial and move forward and what sister wouldn’t demand vigilance on behalf on any potential courtship in defending her own family. Especially such a close sisterhood that they had. He would do the same for Joaquin. “I might be able to do two or three a day so I can pace myself.” Sara offered. “But also, I think we would both like to see Earth again someday. It’s where I was born. Where we were raised. We were human. Part of us still is.” She glanced at Nova. “I find your conditions agreeable provided that both undergo a regimented training and will not intervene unless it becomes medically necessary.” Khan stated. “I would also like to participate in this telepathic training.” Joaquin stipulated. “With your permission.” He looked towards Sara and Nova. “You would?” Sara asked and he gave her a genuine smile. “Of course I would. My mind was adjusted not long after Khan’s but….” He sighed. “I had no desire to cause you further pain.” Something inside Sara started to soften as the two looked at each other. “Oh well, that’s….” She flushed faintly. “That’s….” Clearing her throat. “Up to Nova. It’s her training.” Is it? Nova asked her teasingly before looking at Joaquin. “Of course you can join us. I’ll do the best I can but I warn you,” She started. “You hurt my sister-“ “Or you hurt mine…” Sara interrupted appraising Khan fiercely. The message was clear. They would both be out for blood. In that way, the two augments understood and nodded. “Duly noted and to be expected.” Khan stated. Xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Chapter 18
Two days had passed in relative peace as their training resumed under their newly forged alliance. Some measure of simple double dating was starting to occur while Nova seemed to revel in her role as a teacher. Sara started to learn a few of the basics about telepathy but they did often practice on each other, taking turns to see how their minds worked. Sara had already seen the majority of Khan’s life but now he was far more gentle under Nova’s guidance. There had been some trepidation for Sara in dealing with this aspect of the family bond but she understood the man that had raped her was not the same person that had telepathically adopted her. But through this the girls were able to share with him more vivid samplings of their life. Nova, her dreams, her parents, her grandfather while Sara shared her family and her love of her home city. Joaquin almost seemed a natural at the ability in his patience as he worked through the task but Sara was amazed at how passionate he was. How so often volatile, which was hidden beneath the surface. The two of their minds connected so well, that for a while they lost track of the time. Nova and Khan had to gently interrupt them after the second hour. “Sorry.” Nova said, glancing at Khan. “Didn’t want to but…” “I insisted.” Khan said supportively. “Apologies.” Although Joaquin didn’t necessarily look very apologetic. “Why don’t I start preparing dinner?” He suggested. “Could I help?” Sara asked and Khan simply shook his head. “Not while he’s in the kitchen. Perhaps you could brew us all a cup of our favorite tea.” “Good thing that tea maker has eight different kettles.” Sara mocked. Each one seemed to have their own particular tea preference that had developed over various spices she used to blend. She didn’t mind however. Tea making was still a hobby of hers. Sara had just finished putting the various tea leaves in and programming the machine to seep correctly when an alert sounded throughout the ship. “What’s that?” Khan and Joaquin were both glancing at each other as a report came in from the bridge. “Ship in proximity. Starfleet designation, the Enterprise.” Sara raised her eyebrows. She knew about the Enterprise as an aircraft carrier back at home. “The Enterprise is a space ship?” She asked blankly. “What do they want?” Then she thought of what they did. How they were all fugitives since they participated in a terrorist act as perceived by the Federation. “Are they a threat?” Khan was quickly examining the computer console in their room. “Not to us. This ship is far superior.” He was assessing the strategic situation and circumstance. “They are hailing us.” Joaquin said as Nova let out a gasp while Sara felt a faint, familiar tingling sensation. “It’s him.” Nova whispered. “It’s the Doctor.” She looked at Sara. “He’s onboard that ship with the TARDIS.” “But….” Sara paused uncertainly. She was just barely starting to come to terms with her situation though it wasn’t easy at all. She did still miss the Doctor greatly but….she looked at Khan and Joaquin, torn. Things were just so complicated. “He actually came for us.” Oh, what were they going to do now? On cue, the Doctor’s voice came over the speakers. “Vengeance, I am coming for my daughters. I’ll give you one chance.” The girls looked at each other in alarm, knowing exactly what that meant, and waved down Khan. “Get us on the speaker. Now!” Khan could sense their fear. He raised an eyebrow, but knew that there was nothing the Enterprise could do to his ship, so opened the comm-channel. “Go ahead.” “Doctor? Don’t you dare do anything you are thinking about!” Nova yelled the first thing she could think of. “Nova? Where’s your sister?” he demanded. “I’m here. Please, don’t hurt them. They were just helping us. In their own stubborn, never-listens-to-anyone-else kind of way. You know, like you.” Sara chirped cheerfully. Nova nodded, “Yeah, what she said!” “I am not stubborn!” Both girls snorted their laughter, giggling behind their hand. In unison they echoed, “Sure you’re not.” He sighed and they could hear him run a hand through his hair, “Yup, that’s them. They’ve got transmat technology over here. Would you mind if your old dad meets your new one?” he asked sarcastically. Sara and Nova gave a questioning glance at Khan, who the girls could see was preventing himself from rolling his eyes by sheer willpower. He leaned over a flicked a switch. “I think you can now, Doctor. And he’s only our dad ‘cause of circumstances. We needed a parental telepathic bond in place…we were starting to act a little weird.” “Well who is he to you then?” the Doctor was now warily curious. “Ummm…boyfriend?” “Oh Rassilon save me…I’ll be right over…” The girls perked up and smiled. In tandem, they turned as one and darted for the turbolift. “Wait.” Khan and Joaquin grabbed the arms of their respective girls and dragged them back. The men shared a look as the four went to the lift. Khan said seriously while the lift was moving, “While I do not object to this Doctor joining the family, he is as yet not one of us. You will stay at our sides until his threat level has been assessed.” The girls rolled their eyes, but a small smile was also shared at this indication of the continued protection. They got to the transporter room where five people were beaming up. Instantly, they could recognize Kyle and the Doctor, Skynet of course having to stay on the TARDIS, and then three people in Starfleet uniforms. Sara examined one of them looking baffled. “Zachary Quinto?” She asked recognizing the man who played ‘Sylar’ in the TV show Heroes. “I do not understand.” The man repeated. “My name is Commander Spock.” “But I thought we met….” Sara remembered Sarek mentioning the fact about his younger counterpart. “So that’s you.” “My name is Captain Kirk of the USS Starship Enterprise” said another man Sara didn’t recognize. “We agreed to escort the Doctor here because he said his daughters had been kidnapped. Reports from New Vulcan-“ “Okay, yes they kept us onboard.” Sara asserted. She glanced towards the Doctor feeling his welcoming presence. “But we were separated from the Doctor by dimensions and well we…” She glanced at Nova, “mostly, I became a bit unstable.” “A bit?” Joaquin asked. “What happened?” The Doctor demanded. “It took days to find a crew that agreed to take myself and my TARDIS to your location. Wrong energy you know from this dimension. Having to feed her every day ten years of my lifespan to keep her alive. Skynet kept demanding your return. Then there’s Kyle. All I could do to keep those two apart.” He raised his eyebrows. “Then the pain of having the bond taken from me…” His eyes drifted to Khan. “You’re not a natural telepath, are you?” “I acclimated to fill their needs as was medically necessary.” Khan said studying him. “You were not present for the task.” “I had to navigate between dimensions when both my daughters disappeared off my ship.” The Doctor defended. Khan merely glanced at Sara first, remembering how she had disappeared, once with Nova in tow. Sara shook her head defensively. “Don’t look at me. I wouldn’t have been able to heal Nova if I pulled that sort of thing.” She shrugged. “And transporting via huon energy is rather touch and go.” “I usually need to ask the TARDIS to transport me somewhere else.” Nova said. “But I hit my head and everything got kind of fuzzy…” “They still need training.” The Doctor asserted. “Training they can only receive from my several centuries of experience. Nova still needs guidance and if you both are new telepaths, which I can feel you are, you could benefit from my assistance.” “Khan, please don’t put him through a trial.” Sara asked quietly. “Surely he has completed it by going from his dimension to here and using a crew to come find us. The TARDIS, she’s starving by now because of the wrong energy here.” “I am willing to accept him as a member of the family.” Khan said slowly. “But their bond stays with me.” “That’s unacceptable.” The Doctor insisted. “And I need to take the TARDIS back to her universe. Should you two decide to join us considering my daughters’ affections…” He paused looking back and forth between Khan and Nova. “Is a father-daughter bond necessary considering your relationship has….evolved.” “I will not be parted from the members of my family.” Khan stated and Sara shook her head. The Doctor may have a point about our bond. I mean, do you know a way of splitting it or…She shook her head, feeling confused. Does Khan’s family really need to still stay in this universe? Sara was pondering the circumstance. If they were all declared fugitives on this universe’s Earth, than maybe the whole lot of them could travel to the Doctor’s dimension. They wouldn’t be hunted and the girls could then possibly have the benefits of both families….but she didn’t know the impact it would have. She glanced uneasily at the Starfleet officers and then back to the Doctor. Nova quirked her head to the side and grinned. “It would be the perfect solution. Our universe doesn’t have any augments, so duplicates wouldn’t need to be worried about.” Her periwinkle eyes turned to plead with the Doctor. “Please? The TARDIS can haul the ship through, can’t she? Maybe with Sara’s help? And you know a ton of habitable planets that they can settle down on…or they can just settle in the TARDIS.” Her hopeful eyes made him pinch the bridge of his nose and groan. He shook his head and pulled out a ribbon. “First we are transferring that bond. Even if you do like them, having a parental bond with a beaux is not acceptable.” They saw Khan’s eyes narrow. “Hey, we can argue about bonds later! Let’s get everyone, you know like the TARDIS, onto the right side of the universal void. Please? It’s the perfect solution. Khan won’t leave his family and the TARDIS needs to be in that universe. Besides…we’ve got 15 of them now with a TARDIS lifespan via Sara.” “What?” the Doctor’s eyes were wide. “What have you done?” Nova’s eyes narrowed, “We didn’t want to be alone. Now, we never have to. Don’t you get sick of saying good-bye to companions because you know they are going to die? We didn’t know how long it would take you to get here…we didn’t want to be alone.” His eyes softened and he stepped forward to pull his daughter into a hug. He kissed her forehead. “They can come.” He closed his eyes for several seconds. “Alright. Skynet is making the preparations to drag this ship, and its crew, home with us.” “Whoo hoo!” Sara laughed and hugged her father as well. The two girls were directed away while the men settled in to talk. It was obvious threats were being exchanged on all sides. “What do you think?” Nova shrugged, “Honestly, I’m feeling a bit like a ping-pong ball. But the Doctor’s right. Having a paternal bond with the guy I’d rather have a marriage bond with is just a wee bit creepy.” “Marriage bond? What’s that?” “Well, on Gallifrey there are four types of telepathic bonds: the species bond, the House bond where members of the same House can feel each other, the familial bond between parents and children, and then the marriage bond. Each one is more intimate than the last. Besides, we aren’t even considered adults by Gallifreyan standards until we graduate from the Academy…which would be when we’re around 250 or 300. It’ll be awhile.” She shook her head, “If you think about it, it’s kinda funny. The Doctor is just as stubborn as Khan, just about different things.” The Doctor walked over to join them. “Alright, Sara and Nova, it’s time to tug this ship home. Khan and Joaquin are joining us on the TARDIS for the time being.” As they walked away, he muttered under his breath, “Can’t wait until Skynet gets into this.” Nova giggled as they stood on the transporter pad. Khan raised an eyebrow at her and she explained, “Well, Sara and I are surrounded by strong stubborn men who keep posturing. Even the A.I. will be!” she couldn’t contain her giggles. The Doctor smiled and rolled his eyes.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Chapter 19
It took Sara, Skynet, Nova, and the Doctor making adjustments and connections to drag the Vengeance into the desired universe. The Doctor was quick to refill the Old Girl’s drives and repair the split he had made to travel effectively. One last flip of a lever and it was finished. “Done! Ha!” the Doctor said triumphantly. “All the family in one place again.” “Couldn’t we just have the parental bond restored to the Doctor?” Sara asked Nova quietly, taking her aside. “And initiate the House bond for Khan and Joaquin?” She paused. “We’ve really only been dating for a few days and well, usually, I would like to go a month or two. Plus, this is our wedding. I always dreamed about my wedding day and I’m Catholic. If I am to get married, I would like to combine bits of the ceremonies. Can you really begrudge us our own wedding days?” She shrugged. “Plus a marriage bond is a lifelong commitment. No divorce. No annulment. As long as ….well, I live I guess.” Sara tilted her head. “Plus, if we have the House bond in place, then with the marriage bond, we can all still talk to each other in the family telepathically….so, I can still make sure my future brother-in-law is doing right by my sister.” Nova laughed. “An actual wedding does sound nice and I think Khan would agree to the House bond. It would certainly be less awkward than the bond we have while we are in our dating phase.” “Good.” Sara said. “I need to beam over to the Vengeance to take on the next few people. Promised Kati I would do her next.” “Hey!” Nova objected. “You’re leaving me to fend for myself between Skynet and Kyle?” “Ah well….get Khan to get help you.” “Skynet doesn’t fully trust Khan and…” Nova started. “Family, Nova. Got to start somewhere!” Sara ran down the corridor, hearing Nova’s voice call after her chidingly. “Gotta run.” “Family.” Nova muttered to herself as she walked to the kitchen seeing Skynet in the midst of a dreaded interrogation of both their intended. “Sara, you left Joaquin here!” She called out. Sara! Nothing. “Great….just great. Skynet, what are you doing?” “I’m assessing their qualities as potential mates for yourself and your sister. I have yet to be convinced.” He told her clearly. “Well, at least you haven’t changed much,” she giggled. Acting on instinct, she leaned forward and hugged the A.I. It didn’t feel anything like hugging a person, but it was still nice. After a second, he patted her on the head awkwardly. She laughed and pulled away. “It really is nice to see you Skynet.” A glimmer of an expression crossed his face. “As it is to see you, Nova. Perhaps you would enjoy a rest in your room?” He knew it had been quite some times since she had even seen it, let alone slept in it. “No, but thank you. Sara and I were discussing establishing a House bond with the augments and the Doctor. So that we’d all still be connected, but it wouldn’t be paternal.” She blushed, “Besides…dating Khan while he has the paternal bond is kinda weird.” Skynet blinked and shook his head in acknowledgement. “A logical conclusion. A speedy initiation is prudent.” Nova blinked at him, “Did you just say ‘get on with it’?” When the A.I. didn’t deem that with a response, she giggled. “Yup, you haven’t changed. Okie dokie. I’ll get on with it.” She looked around and saw the Doctor. She went up to him with a smile. “Skynet says our plan is the best one. So…I consent and gladly give.” She said clearly with a grin up at the brunette. The Doctor smiled softly, reaching into his pocket for the ribbon. As the augments watched, he wrapped one end around the girl’s hand and leaned forward to kiss her forehead. Khan felt as the adoption bond was smoothly and painlessly disengaged and moved to the Doctor. It was seamless, doing no damage to any of the participants. In truth, he felt mildly disgruntled at the seeming ease the Doctor executed. When the Doctor pulled back, smiling down at his once-again daughter, he raised an eyebrow when she held up the ribbon with an expectant look in her face. “Yes?” Nova huffed, “and they still don’t listen worth a crap…Khan, Joaquin, it’s your turn!” The Doctor twitched, “I am not adopting them.” “Of course you’re not.” She rolled her eyes as she carefully wrapped the ribbon around the men’s hand, one each. She guided the Doctor’s hand to the middle of the ribbon this time. “It’s a House bond, silly. We’re making the augments that of Lungbarrow. Got it?” She crossed her arms with a huff. His eyes were sparkling with mischief. “You know that House bonds are developed over centuries of child-bearing and intermarriage.” “But not the only way. Come on, Doctor. Please? Then none of us have to be lonely anymore. Not even you.” He shook his head and looked up at the two augments, “You certainly have your hands full. Very well. I consent and gladly receive.” He bowed his head as the words took effect and a small glowing bond connected the two augments to their new Head of House. It wasn’t a very expressive bond. Mostly, it let the others of the House know if a member was in danger or in need of aid; used in emergencies. But it also let them all know that they weren’t alone. “The others of your family can join the bond as soon as they are able,” the Doctor said mildly. “At least a small telepathic ability is needed. Not much. A 10 on the Kassime scale would be enough.” Xxxxxxxxxxxx It took over a month to get everything settled, but it was worth it. By the end of things, the augments were all connected in a telepathic bond. A closer family bond than what they already had. A planet was chosen by the Doctor that they could colonize, with enough equipment to get them started easily. Since no one knew about the augments yet, they had no enemies to pursue them. It was a wonderful new start. A month of dating Khan and Joaquin wasn’t bad either. Blushing and sneaking kisses under the watchful eyes of Skynet and the Doctor. The male posturing of all their ‘relatives’ went on for a while, but eventually it did settle down. One too many pranks by the Doctor to ‘teach’ the two the hierarchy was enough. Khan yielded to the man’s superiority. Yet, even as he yielded, he endeavored to learn as much from the Doctor as possible to become a better leader for his people. Sara was determined not to be pregnant, which made everyone feel better and breathe a sigh of relief. For all that their adventure started so long ago, it was settling down and they were all building a new home. Nova smiled at her family. While it wasn’t the family that she had once had, it was hers. The only song in her heart was when she thought of her parents and her grandfather. She knew, just as Sara knew, that the chances of them ever seeing their former families again would only be in heaven. Which only left one thing really… She finished making breakfast in the TARDIS, waiting for the others to waken. Pancakes, bacon, biscuits, and a nice fruit salad were waiting for them. She nodded. It was time to keep her promise to her grandfather. A long time ago, he had made her swear that if she ever found a man to settle down with, she would wait a year and a day before marrying. According to her grandfather, no one could lie for so long. She had no doubt that Khan would never change, not really, but it was the last thing from her family she could keep true. Xxxxxxxxxxx Sara on the other hand didn’t necessarily want to wait a full year. She respected her sister’s wish since it came from family but after a month of dating and speaking to a priest in nearby London about performing the ceremony without the communion since Joaquin wasn’t Catholic, she thought to combine the marriage bond with the Catholic service. However parental permission through their father was another matter. “All of you are far too young to and early in the courtship to consider marriage.” The Doctor said. “Sara, I would prefer that you wait until you’re at least 100 or 200 years old before-“ “200 years?” Sara repeated dumbfounded. “Why not make it 1000?” “Should I?” The Doctor asked. “The House bond should be sufficient for you to have the telepathy you need with Joaquin.” “But that’s not the same.” She clasped her hands together in impatience as the Doctor made adjustments on the console trying to exert patience with his daughter. Far too many hormones and sometimes too human for their own good. Sara only looked highly temperamental. “If Khan still had authority of the family bond, he would consent.” She told the Doctor obstinately. “I would consent to what?” Khan walked in with Nova right behind him, both feeling the emotional upheaval one of their family members had taken. Oh, she was perfect for his brother. Volatile. Temperamental. Not afraid to challenge anyone. In a sense, that was why Khan and Joaquin were such great friends and brothers. They often contrasted and provided enough challenge to keep their family moving in the right direction. But still, he was anticipating starting a family of his own. Although he respected the mandate Nova had in place. “The marriage bond.” Sara told him. “If you still had the family bond, you would consent to my marriage bond with Joaquin, wouldn’t you?” A pause before Khan spoke. “If that was the circumstance, I believe I would.” “You see?” Sara glared at the Doctor before looking at Nova pleadingly. “He wants us to wait until we are 200 to get married!” Immediately Khan turned to face the Doctor as the authority for his family. “That was not part of the agreement in my relinquishing the bond to you. Sara and Nova have earned their place as members of my family and there is no better man for my…” He paused thinking of the word since they were all in the House bond. “Cousins.” Nova supplied helpfully. “Being accepted into the House of Lungbarrow would make us cousins.” “Cousin.” Khan finished. “But soon to be my sister-in-law than…” “You are courting.” The Doctor argued. “That alone should take centuries and since Sara has granted you an extended lifespan, I would think you would all choose to take your time.” “Sara,” Joaquin had just entered drawn into this newest battle. “What’s wrong?” He paused in thought, glancing at the Doctor. “Is she with child after all?” “No.” Sara said. “Just that, our engagement according to him has to wait 200 years.” She demonstrated the ring Joaquin had given her in private. “Nova, I wanted to do this in the next few months. I was hoping you would be my maid of honor and Joaquin wanted Khan to be the best man and now…” Tears flooded her eyes. “My own father won’t give me away and it…” She started to cry as Nova put her arms around her only as in Sara’s seeming moment of absolute despair, golden energy was suddenly released causing the console to go haywire as it suddenly crashed with a resounding thud, plummeting the room into darkness as the door swung open. Suddenly, Sara was at the door. “It’s….Washington State. My home. I used to go hiking here when I just a kid….” She looked at all the trees surrounding her. “Everyone stay right where you are.” The Doctor ordered fiercely as he worked to get his backup generator on. “Yeah, you can do that. I think I need to go on a run and get some fresh air.” Sara claimed. “Have some time for myself.” “Sara, wait…” Joaquin started but it was too late. The girl had already taken off out the door in a dead sprint. “Quite the handful.” Khan said in a mocking tone. “It keeps me alert.” Joaquin said in return. “Right, I’m going to.....” Nova’s voice trailed as she heard Sara’s scream not to far off in the distance. They all ran off outside.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Chapter 20
It was in Sara’s sprint that she felt she was the victim of the most profound misfortune as she slammed into someone that looked horrifyingly familiar in the forest who had just been in the process of drinking blood from a deer. Taking a good look at seeing his face, she shook her head. “Oh no, Oh God no. It can’t be. Anything but this. Anything but….” In that moment, she froze forgetting the powers she was capable of using as Edward Cullen stared at her whimsically, sensing her mind and that it wasn’t quite right. “Are you a vampire too?” He asked in a secret tone that wasn’t very secret at all if one really thought about it. At this request, for some reason, despite his mesmerizing good looks, it simply sent the brunette shrieking off into the forest. Staring into the nearby river, enchanted by his image, he pondered how he failed to captivate her simply by his radiating presence when he was suddenly approached by several strangers. A redhaired girl spoke first, “Hi, did you see a brunette run through here?” Edward nodded agreeably and pointed. But his curiosity was peaked at the girl, as well as the gentlemen. While he could read the girl, it was like listening to static…just like the brunette’s mind. But the men? Their minds were blank as a freshly washed chalk board. “What are you? I can’t sense your minds.” Nova’s eyes widened as she realized that this man was an active telepath and threw up her shields, which made the black-haired individual stagger backward. “That is very rude! Didn’t your mother teach you any better? Stay in your own head unless invited or emergencies.” Well, that was interesting. He couldn’t sense the redhead now either. “Are you vampires?” Nova took a step backwards, suddenly scared. She had read fantasy books about vampires for leisure. It never ended well…unless it was a romance novel, but those always ended well. She doubted this was a romance book when her romance was only a few feet from her. Another scream came from the distance, catching all of their attention. The men tensed and Nova shook her head at their posturing before taking off running toward the sound of her sister’s screams. This was unacceptable and just all around bad! “Sara!” She yelled, trying to get a better direction. “Nova!” She readjusted her running and finally found her sister backed up against a tree by a man holding a dead bear with one hand. Nova didn’t waste any time. She darted forward, one hand grabbing Sara to yank her sideways out from being pinned in place. “Stay away from my sister!” Sara held Nova tightly, her eyes darting around. “Where are the boys?” “Coming. Had to deal with a rude person down the trail. Standard testosterone poisoning.” “How funny,” the man with the bear dropped said bear and grinned at them. It wasn’t a nice smile with all the blood on his teeth. “Neither one of you smell good. Quite terrible actually.” “You are just as rude as the other one,” Nova grumped. “Sara, we need to get back to the TARDIS.” “Yeah,” Sara nodded, hating that she had ever left the ship in the first place. “I didn’t know there could be a world where Twilight actually existed.” “Twilight.” Nova said in confusion. “You mean when the sun goes down?” “No!” Sara exclaimed. “These vampires. They are imitation only. Notice how the sun is out and they aren’t even catching fire like any respectable vampire would?” “Catching fire?” Khan and Joaquin only heard the last phrase. “Have they harmed either of you? We should exact a fitting retribution.” “Khan wait…” Nova started at the same time Sara said, “Joaquin,” but it was too late. That one vampire was joined by a few others and everyone ended up in a brawl. Sara just took a step back with a grimace. “And well, there they go.” She leaned against the tree, watching the fight silently hoping the augments would have a victory over these lame versions of vampires. She could heal any damage inflicted later. Nova was only watching the fight with some horror. “Oh come on, Nova, it’s kind of fun. These books are written for teenagers. What harm could a bunch of emotion driven, angst ridden vampires cause? “Besides, I’m still angry at the Doctor.” She folded her arms across her chest. Waiting two hundred years for marriage consent. Not in her lifetime! Nova shrugged in response, too worried about the fighting to really focus on her sister at the moment. “Shouldn’t we stop them? I don’t like this…” Her hands were wringing themselves in her anxiety. “Oh fine.” Sara muttered as she headed forward, releasing a steady blast of energy that knocked all the parties to the ground, temporarily unconscious. She bent down, next to Joaquin. “That’s going to leave a mark.” She muttered. “Sara, just heal them so we can get back to the TARDIS.” Nova wasn’t liking this situation one bit and she didn’t know how long the vampires would stay unconscious. At least it was easier with the house bond in place. Sara wound her hands on both their arms, releasing a steady surge of energy as Nova bent to her knees at Khan’s side. Combined with Nova’s anxiety and the energy Sara was releasing something happened. Another unexpected occurrence. One minute, they were next to a group of vampires and then suddenly they appeared in an almost decrepit bar where Sara could hear a familiar voice speaking German to others at a table. Very sarcastic German….if she concentrated, the words just were barely able to be made distinguishable when….she looked at the person delivering the address in surprise. “Joaquin?” She asked blankly. The person only stared at her in confusion. “My name is Erik.” He immediately switched to English. “How did you all get here?” He looked at his double who was just standing at the girl’s side before his gaze turned cold. “Are you with Klaus Schmidt?” “Who’s that?” Nova asked in confusion. Guns were suddenly fired in the background, making every single person react. Khan and Joaquin pulled their mates behind them protectively. Nova made a rather embarrassing squeak. Sara ducked. “I don’t like it here.” Nova exclaimed, grabbing Sara’s arm. We need to go back home…back to the Doctor…get us back home…back to the Doctor…get us back home…back to the Doctor… she linked with the TARDIS energy inside her sister, making sure the men were holding onto them tightly—the two weren’t paying much attention, all their focus on the guys with guns in the bar and keeping their women safe—and said over and over the parameters for going back home. She didn’t like this at all. ******ended*******