A Long Way From Gallifrey By Sean Bassett: A New Habitation

Aeons ago, a bunch of reptiles ruled the land, inhabiting the surrounding environment by making use of local caves and resources. On dinosaurs, they scouted the land for food and water whilst their offspring played in the jungle. Until one day, the moon came frighteningly close to the planet Earth and they fled underground to sleep forevermore.

Now, they have awakened. Now was the time for them to face the reality of their new situation.

************************************************************************************

"So what's this all about then, Christopher?" Asked Billie.

Christopher stared blankly at her from the opposite seat on the train near the window and rested his hands on the table. How was he supposed to say this without Billie thinking he'd gone mad? He'd like to tell her. He really would. But the chances of her believing him were astronomically small.

"You really wouldn't believe me," He said after a while.

"I need to know, Chris," Billie said sternly.

Christopher took a deep breath (just as a conductor emitting a strange clockwork noise walked past) and spoke.

"Have you ever thought a work of fiction may be real in another universe?"

"...No," Billie replied, frowning.

What a strange question to ask….

"Neither did I. Until I met a character I once played," He said.

Billie rubbed Christopher's hand soothingly and said "You were dreaming, Chris. It's what every normal person does in their sleep,"

"I wasn't dreaming!" Christopher argued defensively.

"Then prove it,"

Christopher took two objects out of the pockets on his leather jacket and placed them on the table.

"These are what he gave me,"

"They're your props,"

"I thought so at first," He agreed. "But watch this,"

He picked up one of the objects, the Sonic Screwdriver, and pointed it at the window, causing it shatter and startle the other passengers on the train.

"Oh my god. That's just like in the show!" Billie exclaimed.

"Now do you believe me?" Asked Christopher.

"I suppose. But that's vandalism. We could get arrested for that,”

"Oh well,” Christopher sighed. “I guess that’s my reputation ruined. Again,”

***********************************************************************************

The Doctor awoke, took off his pyjamas and got dressed.

Now. Breakfast.

He found a packet of Bassett's All-Sorts in the cupboard and poured them into a dish. After eating the sweets with a spoon, the Doctor walked into the bathroom to clean his teeth.

Where did Christopher keep his toothbrush?

There was no sign of it near the sink. After searching for a while, the Doctor gave up and headed back into the kitchen. A spoon would have to do.

The Doctor had managed to stop the Dalek invasion yesterday using the same method of electrocution he had used for the first one he had destroyed; the pub certainly wasn’t short of beer. Now London was free of all Dalek menace and evacuees had returned to London, surprised to find it rebuilt in such a small space of time (they had the Doctor and his extraordinary alien abilities to thank for that).

He returned to the bathroom and squeezed some toothpaste onto the top of the spoon.

After he had finished brushing his teeth, the Doctor left the house and locked the front door behind him.

************************************************************************************

It was Sandy's first day as bar maid. However, the last thing she had expected on her first day was a stranger (drunk, she had guessed) to come in dressed in some striped pyjamas. She giggled and quickly turned away to hide it.

"What?" He frowned. "Oh, don't tell me these pyjamas smell too. I only changed them this morning,"

"No, it's not that. It's just that people don't really tend to turn up in public wearing their nightwear," She said.

"Why are humans so particular about clothes?" The strange man murmured.

There was something unearthly about this man. Sandy was sure he was hiding something, and she was determined to find out what.

She followed as he walked behind the counter and through the doors leading to the basement.

"Do you work here?" She asked.

He hesitated, then replied simply with the words "In a way,"

The man tapped the trolley waiting in the basement three times and a lift emerged from under the floor. Sandy stepped in after him. The man didn't seem at all bothered, much to her surprise.

The lift descended, After a few minutes, the doors opened to what Sandy could only describe as a vast area remarkably similar to the headquarters from the Men In Black films.

He wandered over to an android who looked remarkably similar to Arnold Schwarzenegger.

"How much power is left in here?" The man asked.

"Only enough to squash your brain," He replied.

"In terms of saving the world, please?" He pressed further.

"Enough to power me to blow their brainz out," Arnold answered with a strong albeit robotic Austrian accent.

"What is it with you and brains at the moment?" Said the man impatiently. "If I wanted a zombie, I'd be talking to a Vashta Nerada, not you. Now shut up and tell me something useful,"

"I is being useful," He said. "I want to punch their Nazi guts out and stuff their hideous mutants into a blender from Mars,"

"Forget it," The man sighed. "I'm sure I'll get more help from this bar maid here anyway. What's your name?"

"Sandy," She replied. "Sandy Harold,"

"Nice to meet you. I'm the Doctor," He said.

"Is that Arnold Schwarzenegger?" Sandy blurted out; she couldn’t help herself.

"Well, yes and no," The Doctor chose to reply. "He is Arnold Schwarzenegger but not this world's Arnold Schwarzenegger. The Arnold here is an android from the universe I call home,"

"You mean you don't come from here?" She replied.

"Nope," He confirmed. "Where I come from is full of dangers only you can imagine. And they're here. Right now. So that's why I need your help to return me to my universe,"

"Okay," Sandy agreed. "But only if there’s a steady paycheck,”

************************************************************************************

When Tian woke up on the floor of the undergrowth, she found to her surprise that everyone else had awoken too. Tian couldn't afford a cyro chamber. She couldn't afford anything. She had been both homeless and penniless her entire life. When the asteroid had come dangerously close to the surface, she had tried to get a cyro chamber. Nobody had took pity on here. Instead, they had demanded money. Money that Tian didn’t have.

Whilst the other Silurians had slept for a millennia, she had awoken every day, stealing food from the storage down below and using the floor as a bed when it came time to sleep. Now, the others were awake also. Tian knew they wouldn't be too pleased with her. But they weren’t starving.

They had food. They had shelter above the surface. They had somewhere to sleep.

They had everything Tian didn’t have.

***************************************************************************************************************************************

When elected leader Warsta had woken, the first thing he did was head in the direction of the storage deep below. Warsta loved food. So he was naturally upset to find half of it had disappeared.

"TIAN!" He bellowed, chasing down the tunnel and up the stairs made of thick muddy undergrowth.

A Silurian soldier was walking down the next tunnel at the top, dressed in full warrior garment. Warsta approached the soldier; his voice reverberated around the caverns of the SIlurians’ underground base.

"I want Tian killed. IMMEDIATELY!"

************************************************************************************

"So what exactly do you need, Doctor?" Sandy asked, as they walked through the double doors to the B&Q store.

The shop was relatively quiet; the Doctor deduced that it wasn’t really the right time of year for what he thought of as ‘DIY rubbish’. His point seemed to be backed up by the huge number of paint buckets and greenhouse flatpacks available for purchase.

"A transcendental power generator should do the trick," The Doctor replied.

Sandy giggled.

"We don't have transy-something's in this universe,"

"Course you do. How else do you back up your power?" Asked the Doctor.

The Doctor noticed a shop assistant who appeared to be in his early fifties walking down the next aisle. He walked towards him.

"Excuse me, do you sell transcendental power generators?" The Doctor enquired.

The assistant stared blankly back.

"STEVE!" He called.

A slightly obtuse man approached them.

"Do we have trans-erm...?" The assistant said, turning to the Doctor for help.

"Transcendental power generators," He said simply.

"Transcendental power generators," The assistant repeated. "Do we sell any of them here?"

"Ah, yeah. Samsung have just introduced them as part of a new range," Steve said.

The Doctor grinned in Sandy's direction.

"See?"

***********************************************************************************

The conductor chucked Christopher and Billie onto the harsh, cold surface of the train station platform and returned to the carriage just as the doors closed, ready for the train to leave the station. Christopher grasped his back in agony as he tried to stand up; it was a very rough fall.

With a deep chugging sound, the train left, leaving Christopher and Billie behind.

"This better be Cardiff station," Billie murmured.

"It is," Christopher confirmed. "I recognise it,"

************************************************************************************

Outside the station a large crack was starting to form in the road, leaving a big gaping hole and attracting the attention of many onlookers, who appeared to be photographing the strange occurrence on their phone.

Oblivious, Christopher and Billie carried on walking as they left the train station and found themselves falling into a huge underground lair. They landed on something in mid-air; it was though some invisible force had caught them as they fell, and then proceed to resume their fall, but at a lower pace. Christopher and Billie dusted themselves off as they hit the ground and stood up, taking in their surroundings. They were in what appeared to be some form of underground city. Buildings stood magnificently around them, with bridges overhead connecting the different areas of the vast open space, and pavements beckoning to be used.

A strange reptilian humanoid rushed past them both; she appeared rather skinny in weight, with bones noticeably showing underneath the green skin.

But what would the Doctor do?

Thinking fast, Christopher deduced he would go after her so grabbed Billie's hand and ran after the reptilian woman. Billie looked behind. There were more of them, albeit male and dressed in what looked like armour. They caught up to the woman in front.

"Hello, I'm the Doctor," He said. "And if you wouldn't mind, I'd like to know exactly what's going on here,"

"It's the leader's guards," She explained. "They want me dead. I was just trying to survive!"

"Doctor, what are they?" Billie queried.

"They're...uh..." Christopher struggled.

He took out an iPod from inside his pocket and Googled for 'Doctor Who green reptiles'.

"....Silurians," He continued, rather unconvincingly.

Billie rolled her eyes.

Why had he not bothered to research any of this?

"Siluri-what?"

Again, Christopher glanced at the Google results on his iPod.

"The Silurians are a fictional-"

"We are not fictional!" The female Silurian hissed.

"We are all fiction in the end," He said wisely. "Anyway, I never caught your name. Vastra, is it?"

Billie nudged Christopher in the back.

"The Doctor shouldn't know who Vastra is yet," She whispered.

"My name is Tian," The Silurian responded. "And your companion?"

"Rose," Billie said, extending her hand.

Tian flinched.

"What is the meaning of this gesture?"

"It's a hand shake," Billie explained. "It's like a polite way of showing friendship,"

"Do you apes do this regularly on the surface?" Tian asked.

Tian shook Billie's hand. Billie drew her hand back.

"I dunno. Sometimes,"

A hand grabbed Billie's roughly and tugged her towards a metal capsule hidden inside an alcove.

"In here," He spoke, indicating that Billie and Tian should enter the capsule.

Billie and Tian both nodded and squeezed inside.

Christopher turned towards the Silurian soldiers and held up his hands in surrender.

"You can stop chasing now. I surrender,"

"Get out of the way, ape," One of the soldiers snarled. "You are not part of our orders. Give us Tian,"

Christopher stared coldly back.

"Explain why you want to kill her first,"

"Oh. You'll want to ask the leader that. Only he knows why the female must die," A soldier sneered.

The soldiers watched Christopher curiously. He didn't seem fazed by this at all.

"Lovely. Will he stick the kettle on?"

************************************************************************

"What's life on the surface like for you, Rose?"

Tian gave Billie a curious look.

The capsule was hot and stuffy. It was clear to Billie from the lack of space that it was usually meant only for one person as the space inside was very tight with no room to move.

"It's good, I suppose. I lost my job but at least I still have a roof over my head," Billie laughed.

Tian glared angrily.

"You mean to tell me that while I've been living rough down here, with no food and water until the others slept, nowhere to sleep apart from the muddy floor, no friends to help me through a difficult period of my life, that you mere apes have been living above with shelter? Do they have food also?"

Billie bit her lip.

"Well, most do. Oh my God, I'm so sorry, Tian. I didn't know,"

"Quiet, inferior ape scum," Tian snarled. "I must go the surface immediately and claim what should rightfully be mine,"

*************************************************************************

The soldiers led Christopher through an archway, built from the undergrowth surrounding the area. Sat on a large throne inside was a Silurian, dressed in rich, flamboyant red robes and strong metallic clothing that imbued a sense of importance which even the Queen of England would be unable to accomplish.

The Silurian looked furious. Christopher noted how weathered and frail he looked.

"Looks like you need a Doctor," He grinned reassuringly.

"Are you daring to criticise my weight, ape?" The Silurian boomed.

Now he mentioned it, the man was pretty fat. He didn't fancy finding out what he would do if he mentioned it to him, though.

"No, not at all. You just don't look in the best of health,"

The Silurian snorted.

"Who do you think you are? A Doctor?"

"I am," He replied, but he didn’t sound convinced.

"Why did you want to see me, ape?" The Silurian enquired.

"Do you mind calling me 'ape'?" Christopher said. "I call people 'apes' around here, thank you very much. And I would like to know why you've been sending soldiers to kill Tian,"

"So you've met Tian?" Said the Silurian in a bitter tone of voice. "That robbing little twat has been stealing from our food storage for months,"

Christopher glared furiously at the Silurian.

"That does not warrant a death sentence!"

"IT'S OUR FOOD!" The Silurian roared. " Tian did not buy any of our food storage. The others bought it with good money. It's theft,"

"SO IS MURDER!" Christopher shouted back. "I fought in the...er...thing-y...war against....the…er....thingies,"

The Silurian looked confused.

"'Thingy war? WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN DOING ON OUR PLANET, APE? What are these 'thingies'?"

"I'm not from this planet. I'm from Galli...way, I think it's called? It sort of looks like a planet on fire, only it's not. And not just because it's CGI,"

Christopher covered his mouth upon realising his mistake.

"Oh. I shouldn't have said that,"

*********************************************** **************************

The Doctor stumbled across the pavement with Sandy as he struggled to carry the metal transcendental power generator, fighting against the strong wind battling to send him back in the opposite direction.

Sandy giggled again.

"Are you sure we don't need a van, Doctor?"

"It's fine," The Doctor said. "I'm a Time Lord. I've defeated Daleks, Cybermen and Henry The Eighth. I'm sure I can carry a transcendental power generator,"

A woman walked past, wearing a peculiar sort of fake tan. The Doctor noticed and sped towards her.

"Who are you posing as? It must be someone important. Somebody in the government?"

The woman stared blankly at him.

"Oh, don't give me that blank look. You're clearly a plastic waxwork controlled by the Nestene Consciousness. So why don't you just tell me your plan?"

Sandy laughed.

"Doctor, it's just fake tan,"

"Yeah. She's right. Now get lost, you weirdo," The woman snapped and walked away.

Sandy dragged the Doctor in the direction of the Whetherspoons pub.

With any luck, people will think he’s drunk and not some lunatic who needs to be sent to an asylum somewhere.

"Come on. Let's get this trans-thing set up,"

*************************************************************************

Sandy sat on-top of a computer desk as the Doctor placed the transcendental power generator beside it.

"So how did this secret agency run out of power?"

"Good question," The Doctor complimented. "And one I intend to find out,"

The Doctor opened a draw near the far right of the room labelled 'files'. He took out the cardboard folder inside and rummaged through it. After a few minutes, he placed it back in the drawer.

"They haven't paid for electricity since 2007," He said. "The last electricity bill came in September of that year,"

"So they've been operating without electric?" Sandy realised. "That's a rubbish way to run a secret agency, isn't it?"

"Yep," The Doctor agreed. "They may as well set up base in the medieval times. Mind you, not a very nice period, that one. Lots of diseases about,"

"There's a lot of them around today, too," Said Sandy sadly. "Cancer, dementia, ecoli,"

The Doctor paused; a sad look crossed his face.

“What?” Asked Sandy. “What is it?”

“It doesn’t matter,” He said. “I can’t tell your future. And besides, it could be different in this universe anyway,”

“Then tell me,” Sandy insisted. “If it could be different, then it doesn’t matter,”

The Doctor hesitated, biting his lip, unsure what to say.

“Buy yourself some hand sanitizer,” He said finally. “And wear a mask. It could save your life, and God knows I have seen enough death in my lifetimes,”

They remained silent, staring at one another before Sandy ran up to the Doctor and hugged him. The Doctor stood, unsure how to react.

"Over nine hundred years of time travel and I've only been hugged five times,"

"You''ll get used to it," Sandy laughed.

“What was that for, anyway?”

“You said you’d seen death,” Said Sandy simply. “I figured you needed a hug,”

*************************************************************************

Tian climbed through the crack and onto the surface to find a small patch of grass, greener than any she had ever seen in all of her life. Inside the buildings and houses near the train station, people of all ages and sizes looked outside in horror and rushed out curiously to confront this odd reptilian creature.

"I will kill you all, apes," Tian threatened menacingly. "All apart from the little ones,"

A small figure from within the crowd, Warwick Davis, stepped protectively in front of the other people who had gathered, staring down the creature with a stern expression across his face.

"I guess that rules me out, then,"

Tian glared at him.

"No, you foolish being. I meant the children,"

Warwick stood his ground, but Tian did not care. She took out a Silurian weapon from a pocket in her ragged clothing (she had found it on the ground outside the cyro chamber) and fired at random targets from within the crowd. A number of men and women fell to the ground as the impact from her shots made impact with their chests. This was all too easy. Soon, the surface would be hers...

*************************************************************************

Billie banged loudly at the door to the capsule. Tian had locked her in. She was making a huge mistake and Billie knew that she could get through to her, if she could just escape the confines of what had quickly become her prison. Hopefully Christopher wouldn't be too much longer...

************************************************************************

"What's this CGI? Is this a weapon your people are using against us to claim our food?" The leader barked.

Christopher tried his best not to look relieved.

"I told you, they’re not my people. And anyway, I prefer to use alternate methods. I don’t do weapons The Time Lords, we had a 'force field' if you like that we used for protection during the....whatever-it's-called...war. That's what CGI is,"

Christopher could tell the leader was not buying it.

"A force field used for protection that makes the planet look like it's on fire?"

"Yep," Christopher smiled.

"How exactly does that nonsense work?"

Christopher stared blankly for a moment.

"It...er...convinces the other side that the planet is already dead?"

"Is that the best you can do?" The leader roared. "Now, leave me in peace while I decide our next move. Tian must die!"

*************************************************************************

"Billie!" Said a familiar voice.

Billie looked up and let out a sigh of relief. It was Christopher.

"God am I glad to see you," She breathed.

"Where's Tian?" He asked.

"She's gone to the surface. I think she's planning on killing the population of Cardiff," Billie explained. "She locked me in here,"

Christopher soniced at the capsule and Billie stepped out gratefully.

"Why would she do that?"

"Which one?" Billie asked. "Kill the population of Cardiff or lock me in there?"

"Killing the population of Cardiff. What’s her motive?”

"She's homeless. She sees the surface as rightfully hers. Something to do with us being apes,"

Christopher nodded.

"That makes sense. The leader referred to 'apes' too. It seems to be a nickname for our species. Wonder if they believe in evolution?"

Billie laughed.

"I bet they evolved from snakes!"

Christopher smiled.

"Or reptiles. Perhaps the Chewitt Monster is a ancestor of theirs?"

"And their 'Eve' is Godzilla?" Billie quipped back.

"This undergrowth must be their garden of Eden!" Christopher said jokingly.

He offered Billie his hand.

"Come on. Let's talk some sense into Godzilla's great grandson,"

*************************************************************************

Meanwhile, Warsta was sat on his throne, staring intensely at the soldiers before him.

"Don't just stand there," Warsta bellowed. "What is it, your favourite hobby or something? What's so fun about standing still? You may as well be a bunch of bloody meerkats! GO FIND TIAN!"

The soldiers turned and ran out the door, as if running from a monstrous creature about to claw at its terrified prey. Warsta was glad to see the back of their scaly skin. They were a useless bunch but they were the only soldiers they had.

Warsta had always loved to eat. When he was little, he stole all the food he could gather and sent his parents, who ran the local grocery shop in the underground city, spiralling into debt. There were also a lot of problems with Silurian society at the time.

The apes were causing a lot of headaches for their species. They were invading the Silurian caves and stealing all that they could find. Food shortage was running low and more and more of their species were becoming homeless as a result. The apes were taking their water supply and their medicines. By the time talk from other Silurian groups spread about what appeared to be another planet coming dangerously close to the atmosphere, there were worries that the apes would take their homes too. The Silurians had never seen what had happened; they were already asleep by the time the asteroid that killed the dinosaurs had struck the Earth.

A soldier ran back in.

Warsta glared.

"What are you doing? You're supposed to be trying to find Tian!"

"But sir," The soldier spoke nervously. "It's the apes. They've claimed the surface!"

*************************************************************************

Warsta surveyed the landscape above the undergrowth furiously, the soldier stood closely behind.

"I want every soldier gathered for a emergency meeting!"

*************************************************************************

Once the soldiers were all gathered, Warsta cleared his throat and turned to face them all across the wooden conference table. The table creaked in protest as Warsta placed his fists on the surface in anger; Warsta wasn’t sure how much longer it would last but he hoped it would hold for at least the entire meeting.

"As you can see, we have a urgent situation occurring upon the surface regarding these apes who have stolen our home. They have claimed our space. Space that should rightfully be ours,"

One of the soldiers opened his mouth to speak.

"Perhaps we could negotiate with them? Perhaps they will agree to share the land with us?"

"NO! We need the land for ourselves. This land is ours!" Warsta shouted back, as if the very idea repulsed him.

"But we could bargain with them. Maybe they would be willing to pay so much for it?" The soldier reasoned.

Warsta thought for a moment.

"Not a bad idea. Not a bad idea indeed. But we can't do it with money. We have no means of converting it into the Third Eye currency,"

The 'Third Eye' currency was named after a myth that their ancestors had possessed a mysterious 'third eye'. Since, according to the myth, they had evolved to the point where the third eye had disappeared. Some believed the story of who they used to be and wanted to keep the third eye a constant presence in their species. Warsta was one of these believers. His parents had been too. It was his Dad (who had once been elected as leader, after losing his grocery store due to his money problems) who had named the currency Third Eye.

Warsta lay in thought for a while, then made to address the soldier again.

"We could, however, ask for food,"

*************************************************************************

At the same time Warsta had returned to the surface, Christopher and Billie had emerged back onto the streets of Cardiff.

They spotted Tian firing at the window of a small semi-attached home, just across the road from where they were stood. Christopher and Billie chased towards her, failing to notice Warsta following behind them.

"TIan!" Billie called. "You don't have to do this,"

"YOU SHOULDN'T BE DOING THIS!" Warsta shouted from behind. "The apes can live among us,"

Christopher turned around in surprise.

"And what happens if they steal your food?"

Warsta glared.

"Who says they will? We'll discuss this beneath the surface in an hour...if Tian gives up this foolish tirade,"

"I've been homeless all my life, Warsta. Why should these apes deny me a home? They're little more than vermin!" Tian snarled, climbing into the window as a startled family watched in horror.

"We have to go after her," Billie urged to Christopher.

Christopher took hold of her hand and together they jumped through the broken window and into the living room on the other side. The television in the corner was showing ‘The Chase’; Bradley Walsh had got the giggles again.

Warsta leapt through the window behind them. Tian had the family held captive against the radiator at the other end of the room; she was hissing and aiming her weapon at the father, a man with stark round glasses and a goatee that made him look like a Seventies sci-fi villain.

"Go back to where you deserve!" Tian spat. "The wilderness!"

Nervously, the parents made to leave with their kids. Tian stared in guilt at the children, who were looking terrified by the situation unfolding in front of them.

"Leave the little ones,"

Warsta shot a look at Tian.

"LEAVE THEM ALL, TIAN!"

"Like you left me, Dad?"

Christopher and Billie exchanged looks.

"Did she just say 'Dad'?" Billie asked.

"Tell them, Dad," Spoke Tian coldly. "Tell them what you did to me,"

Warsta sighed.

"I threw my daughter out,"

"For what? So you could have more food?" Christopher raged.

"No," He replied. "Not that time. I was having some serioys financial issues. I didn't have the money to raise my child,"

Christopher snorted

"And that makes it alright, does it?"

"What else was I supposed to do? I barely had enough money for myself. This was before I became leader, of course. Those were dark times. My dark times,"

That's no excuse to chuck your daughter out!" Billie couldn’t hide the disgust in her voice. "How old were you when he did that?"

"I was only seven,"

"Of course!" Christopher exclaimed. "That's why she's letting the children stay. They remind her of herself. Come on, Rose. Let's go,"

"But we can't leave her," She protested. "What if she kills someone?"

The father of the family stepped protectively in front of his wife and kids, staring intensely at the humanoid reptile before him.

“She’s not killing my family!”

“Your family’s existence will be ensured if you leave immediately,” Tian said.

“NO!” The father cried.

Bad move.

“We’re not going anywhere, you vile creature,”

Almost immediately, Tian fired at the father, who stared in shock as he fell to the ground lifeless. Her attentions turned to the mother, who attempted to flee before she too befell the same fate.

The children were startled. They sat in the corner, shaking and sobbing behind their parents’ bodies.

Billie approached the kids and stretched a comforting arm around them. Her attention, however, quickly turned to Tian.

“You monster!” She screeched.

“Oh god, what have I done?” Tian whimpered. “I was trying to spare those kids…”

“Well, good move there, Tian,” Christopher replied sarcastically. “You’ve just traumatised them for life. But hey, at least they have one!”

Tian glanced at the children and dropped a single tear.

“Do they?”

She turned to face her father.

“I need to stop this happening in future. I need to stop others making the same mistake,”

Christopher stepped forward.

“If you want to make it up to these children, then I suggest you help your father negotiate peace with the apes of this planet,”

Warsta turned to Christopher.

“Do you have any contact with the leaders of this world?”

“Nope,” Christopher shrugged.

“THEN FIND A WAY! You’re a Time Lord, are you not?” Warsta roared. “If you have machines capable of time travel, then I’m sure you can find a way to contact these primitive apes. I expect to see you and the apes’ leaders underground in a hour,”

He turned away and disappeared back down the crack.

Christopher and Billie exchanged looks.

“How are we supposed to contact the various presidents and prime ministers from around the world? We have less than a hour,” He panicked.

“The Doctor would know…” Billie murmured.

Christopher frowned.

“He didn’t give me a contact number,”

“Fat lot of use that is,” Billie murmured. “Wait a minute, Warsta doesn’t seem to know much about what goes on above the surface, does he?”

“What do you mean?” Christopher asked, puzzled.

“He referred to ‘the leaders of this world’. We don’t refer to them as ‘leaders’. Rather ‘presidents’ or ‘prime ministers’,” Billie said.

Christopher wasn’t entirely sure what Billie was getting at.

“Yeah. So?”

Billie gave Christopher an ‘Oh-come-on’ look.

“So all we need is people to pretend to be the ‘leaders’,”

Christopher grinned.

“Oh, Billie. You’re just as bright as Rose! Fantastic!”

“Wish I could say the same about you,” She muttered. “So, shall we start the auditions?”

*******************************************************************************************

Sandy handed the Doctor a cup of tea.

“Thanks,” The Doctor smiled. “The transcendental power generator is up and running,”

“So is there anything else you need?” Sandy asked.

The Doctor shrugged.

“Just a few parts. Not sure where I’m going to find them,”

“What sort of parts?” Sandy said curiously.

The Doctor thought for a moment, then replied.

“The kind your race would class as ‘hardware’,”

“There’s a technology shop five minutes from here,”

The Doctor jumped up.

“Good! I’ll be off, then,”

Sandy giggled. The Doctor was starting to get fed up of that habit of hers.

“I’m coming with you,” She said.

“No, I need you to keep a eye on the computers. Wait for them to power up. I won’t be long. See yah!” He said as he bounded back towards the lift.

*******************************************************************************************

The technology shop was a fairly small affair. A sign on the front of the door stated it was ‘Under new management’. The Doctor strolled inside.

The shop was cramped and dingy, many of the shelves falling from their hinges at the strain of the many things piled on top of them. The Doctor was not impressed.

He demanded to see the manager. A man emerged sporting a beard and a rather stern expression.

“Oh, I knew it. ‘Under new management’! Did you really think I’d fall for that?”

The manager stared.

“I’m sorry…?”

“Don’t play stupid with me. I know who you are,” the Doctor snarled.

The manager laughed.

“Who am I, then?”

The Doctor glared.

“You don’t fool me for a second. The beard gives it away. You’re the Master,”

“Yes, I’m the Master….of this shop. Now, what exactly is the problem?” The manager chuckled.

Christopher couldn’t believe the Master’s cheek.

‘What exactly is the problem?’ What a stupid thing to ask after all the time he’d known him. All the times the Master had tried to take over the world and the Doctor was forced to stop him. All the times the Master had threatened to kill his companions.

Yet he had the cheek to think he could convince him there was nothing wrong and he was just some manager of an electronics shop.

Absolute cheek.

“The problem?” The Doctor finally asked. “The ‘problem’ has quickly become ‘you’,”

*******************************************************************************************

“You’re barred!” The manager shouted from the shop doors as the Doctor landed roughly on the street.

He quickly dusted his leather jacket as he stood up and made his way back to the Whetherspoon’s pub.

*******************************************************************************************

Sandy watched as the Doctor entered the headquarters looking rather bruised and defeated, his leather jacket covered in dirt.

“What happened?” She inquired.

“I was barred from the shop,” He murmured quietly.

Sandy laughed.

“By who?”

The Doctor stared into the distance. All of a sudden his eyes became very ancient, like those of a god who had seen both the destruction and creation of the universe, as we know it.

Finally, he spoke.

“A old friend of mine. The Master,”

“ ‘The Master’? You don’t mean the manager, do you?” said Sandy.

“Yep, he’s the manager,” The Doctor said.

Sandy roared in laughter.

“Oh, Doctor. He’s not this Master guy. His name is Jeff Baldwin. He’s an old friend of mine. I’ll go talk to him,”

*******************************************************************************************

Jeff stood behind the counter next to one of his employees. He was still reeling from his encounter with Christopher Eccleston.

So many flipping hooligans around…

He turned to face his employee; a young girl in her 20’s, her long blonde hair almost touching the shop floor.

“Make sure Mr Eccleston doesn’t come back in,” He said. “He’s banned, got it?”

The young girl nodded.

Jeff was about to leave her to it when an old friend of his entered.

It was Sandy. And she was more than an old friend.

Sandy had been Jeff’s former employee. Jeff had developed a crush on her. One day, he had come to the wrong decision that Sandy also had feelings for him. Suffice to say, it didn’t end well for him. Sandy had decided to quit her job and work at the Whetherspoons’ Pub instead.

They remained friends, of course. Good friends.

Jeff would do anything for her.

“Morning,” Sandy said.

“Hello, Sandy,” Jeff smiled.

Sandy smiled back.

“You didn’t have to ban my friend, you know. He’s just misunderstood,”

Jeff looked startled.

“Y-y-your friend?” He stuttered. “Sorry, I didn’t realise,”

“It’s fine, Jeff,” She said.

Sandy took a list out of her pocket and handed it over to Jeff.

“I need these items. I’m sure you can provide them for me?”

Jeff nodded.

“Yes, of course!”

******************************************************************************************

“Your leaders…are kids?”

Warsta stared across the wooden table at the kids he’d seen only an hour ago in Cardiff.

“Yep!” Replied Christopher, who was sat at the far end of the table.

“Oh god, what have I done?” Tian whispered quietly, wiping tears away with her rags.

Billie turned to face Tian.

“It’s alright. Just help us put things right now, okay?”

“Yes,” Agreed Warsta. “We must reach a agreement,”

“Alright then. Shall we begin?” Christopher beamed.

“Let’s begin. Now, as we know, these apes have been living above the surface whilst we remain underground,” said Warsta.

Warsta offered his hand to the children.

“I am Warsta, leader of the Silurians,”

“Your name is kinda funny,” Giggled the youngest of the kids.

“Why…er…thank you,” Warsta blushed. “Now I’ve introduced myself, who are you?”

“My name is Ben and this is Jo,” One of the kids replied.

Warsta shook the kid’s hands.

“Nice to meet you, Ben. Jo. Now, the first and only agenda of the meeting: shall we allow the apes to live among us above the surface?”

“We were here first!” Billie burst out, before quickly covering her mouth and apologising quietly.

“I cannot believe the arrogance of these apes,” Tian murmured. “First, they take our homes. Now they proclaim this nonsense,”

“QUIET, TIAN!” Warsta bellowed. “I am more than happy to come to a agreement, however I will not tolerate such complaints,”

“Look, why can’t you live among us?” Billie said. “There’s nothing stopping you. We’re all equal, are we not?”

Christopher grinned in her direction.

“Good point, Rose. This shouldn’t even be up for debate,”

“Are you alright with us living among you?” Warsta asked the kids.

“Yeah, you’re kinda cool,” Jo said, although the tone of her voice suggested she couldn’t care less.

“Way cool!” Ben agreed.

Warsta chuckled. Everything was going according to plan.

“Of course, you cannot however expect to live with us for free,”

“YOU CAN’T CHARGE THEM!” Shouted Tian. “They’re just kids,”

“JUST SHUT IT, TIAN. I am the leader, not you,” Warsta growled.

“What do you want, Warsta?” Raged Christopher.

Warsta turned to the kids.

“Food. I want food,”

The Doctor stood up.

“Oh, I should have known. It’s always about food with you, isn’t it?”

The leader engaged Christopher with a threatening glance.

“I need food,”

“No, your daughter needs food!” Christropher protested. “So what’s it going to be, Warsta? Food for yourself or help your daughter survive?”

Warsta glanced at Tian then back to Christopher.

“I’d rather my daughter starved to death. She betrayed me,”

Christopher snorted.

“Yeah. And whose fault was that?”

Warsta frowned.

“What do you mean?”

“It was yours, Warsta. Your daughter only stole the food because she was starving thanks to you,”

“Then she can starve some more!” Warsta declared. “Give me the food, kids and you can live above the surface with us,”

“I won’t let you!” Christopher snarled. “Let’s see how you manage without food,”

Christopher dragged Billie (who in turn grabbed Tian’s hand) and the kids out of the room and ran down the corridor, sonicing at all of the cyro chambers along the way. Once they reached the surface, he soniced at the crack and it closed behind them, disappearing as though it had never existed.

*******************************************************************************************

Below the surface, Warsta ran towards the ladder leading to the surface. The way up had disappeared.

“NO!” He screamed, before dropping to his knees and sobbing.

“I shall kill you, Doctor. If it’s the last thing I do. I shall kill you,”

*******************************************************************************************

“Now, what shall we do about you, Tian?” Christopher wondered out loud.

They were stood on a grass bank somewhere on the outskirts of Cardiff. Cars rushed past on the motorway as Christopher, Tian and Billie stared into the distance. They had dropped the kids back off home and decided to go somewhere devoid of pedestrians. After all, the last thing they needed was for a passer-by to see a strange reptilian creature and kill it out of fear of the unknown (such was the world full of such idiots out there).

“What do you mean?” Asked Tian.

“Well, you need a home, don’t you?” Said Christopher.

Tian could hardly believe what Christopher was suggesting.

“You mean, after all I’ve done…you’re going to help me find a home?”

Billie squeezed her hand.

“Of course we are,”

Christopher passed her a strange thin tube.

“Here, take this. It’s a perception filter. It’ll help you appear human,”

“Thank you, Doctor,” Tian smiled. “I hope you can find me a home soon. It’s freezing out here,”

*******************************************************************************************

Christopher and Billie watched as Tian entered her new semi-detached country house in the middle of the Welsh countryside.

“So, where next?” Billie asked Christopher.

Christopher shrugged.

“I don’t know. Depends what’s happening around the world, I guess,”

Billie smiled.

“You mean ‘wherever there’s danger’. That’s where the Doctor would go, right?”

Christopher nodded.

“Yes, that seems to make sense,”

“Are you two apes coming in?” Tian called from the living room window.

Christopher gripped Billie’s hand tightly.

“Come on. Let’s go in,”

*******************************************************************************************

Sandy and the Doctor watched as the headquarters around them shook with extreme force.

“It’s working!” The Doctor yelled triumphantly. “The worlds are separating,”

“How long will it take?” Sandy asked.

“A good few hours. Still some work to be done, although I have…a friend working on that at the moment,” The Doctor responded.

Sandy ran towards the lift.

“I think I’m going to throw up,”

As the lift transported Sandy back to the pub, the Doctor gripped tightly onto the desk for support.

Something blurry began to fade into view. Something blue. It was the TARDIS.

*******************************************************************************************

When Sandy made her way back to the basement, she heard a strange screeching sound from below. Puzzled, Sandy tried tapping the trolley three times.

Nothing happened.

*******************************************************************************************

The Doctor had missed the materialisation sound. It had only been over a week living in the real world but to him it had felt like years.

It felt good to be exploring again.

The sound stopped and the Doctor hummed cheerfully down to the TARDIS doors.

The last thing he expected to see on the other side was Cardinal Richelieu, his eyebrows staring piercingly into the Doctor’s eyes as if they held the kind of darkness that cannot be seen by the naked eye.

“Ah, Doctor,” He sneered. “I had hoped you could make it,”

*******************************************************************************************

The Doctor and Christopher will return in Part Three ‘The Musketeers Of Gallifrey’.