The Thirteenth Doctor: High Voltage

Note from the head of Stories of Who: As the head of Stories of Who, I have written every story to date from the Doctor Who, Sarah Jane Adventures and Class ranges on our website, and I am delighted to introduce Thomas Beech as our first guest writer. This is a new story for the Thirteenth Doctor, and it's one I'm sure you'll love. Enjoy!

Chapter One In the vast space of the TARDIS console room the Doctor stands alone. Her back faces away from the doors as she leans forward on the console. “It was bound to happen at some point.” The Doctor blurts out, the words carrying themselves like a lost message in a bottle, rebounding off the dimly lit interior. For the first time in a long, long time the Doctor is alone. This felt strange, a sad kind of strange. Sure, the Doctor had always had at least someone by their side on their countless adventures. Toppling tyrants and freeing the freeless.

Yet, often enough the Doctor found that they could travel alone. That they were perfectly capable of fending for themselves. However, that seems to have changed with this new incarnation. Her ‘fam’ is exactly that, a family. Having companions is intrinsically linked to her. Being separated from them now seemed like a collapse of character. “Well! They said they needed a break, so I’ll give em’ that. I’ll do some quick hops. What d’ya say?” Again, her voice is carried out through the vast void of her ship’s interior. Although, the TARDIS finally responds with a gleeful bleep. “Very well,” she looks to the doors, “See you guys soon!” With that she plunges the lever down. The ancient groaning of engines and sudden rise and fall of the crystal-like time rotor shudder the machine to life. The exterior dimensions of the ship fade out, leaving an empty space outside Park Hill. ... On a stretch of grassland not a single blade of grass is stirred from its perfectly still pose. Until a harsh wind and the groaning rings out, disturbing the peaceful plant life. After some phasing the familiar sight of a blue police box is seen, standing proudly on the grassland. A ghost monument yet again. The door creaks open and the Doctor steps out backwards onto the rough grass. A chilled wind soon follows hitting the back of her neck, biting her. She licks her finger and hoists it into the air. “New York City! Sometime in nineteen forty- three… It’s winter.” She looks around for confirmation from companions but quickly sighs, remembering she’s alone again. The Doctor looks behind her. Her face is aghast... Rows of headstones stand like signposts for the dead. The Doctor stands firm. Her hands shaking as she reaches for the TARDIS door handle behind her. A particular gravestone has caught her eye. She turns to push harshly onto the heavy blue doors. The headstone is blank. It’s solid grey structure gleaming in the sun. The bodies that will occupy the empty grave will pass away in another forty or fifty years. From the corner of her eye, the Doctor swears that the headstone cracks and chips away, engraving the names: RORY ARTHUR WILLIAMS and AMELIA WILLIAMS as she dives through the TARDIS doors. Upon slamming them shut she leans back against the doors, a tear in her eye. “Why here? I can’t be here… It’s fixed no matter when I turn up!” The tear loosely spills down her cheek as she stares into the orange void of her ship. Its emptiness making the ship feel smaller on the inside now. She’s quick to wipe her cheek with her coat sleeve as the ominous ringing of the cloisters faintly ring out. A wake-up call. She plods to the central console. Her hands shake above the various dials and levers. “Perhaps... I have to make time to see old friends before I run out of it.” She holds her hands together. As if by magic, the custard cream dispenser drops a treasured biscuit, a reassuring ‘hand on her shoulder’ from the machine she loves so dearly. “Who’s in New York City that I haven’t seen in a while eh?” She drums her fingers on the console. The TARDIS hums, almost thinking itself when the Doctor claps her hands together echoing the room. “My mate Nikki Tesla! He’s bound to be up to something, and I know exactly where!” In a flurry of button presses and lever flipping the central column jolts to life, rising and falling in harmony with the Time Lord’s erratic breathing. The exterior dimension of the ship fades out of view, the light of the lamp and windows are the last to leave the haunted site as the blank gravestone stands guard; waiting for its owners...

Chapter Two The park is barren in the winter morning. The early daylight barely penetrating past the cluster of skyscrapers. It leaves patches of frosted grass everywhere. In the brightest patches of grass, flocks of pigeons graze and peck at the ground, hoping for a meal. Observing them from afar, is a lonely old man. His coat is padded for the warmth, held in his shaking hands is a crinkled paper bag of seeds and breadcrumbs. He shakes them slightly, rustling the contents. This draws the attention of the birds and they flutter to him with the grace of a hungry child. A warm smile grazes the old man’s face as he extends a hand full of seeds to the birds. They peck delightfully at his palm. Unbeknownst to him he is being observed from afar. The Doctor leans against a great oak tree and warmly smiles. “nineteen forty-three, the last year of Tesla’s life and he’s spending it feeding the pigeons. What a man.” The Doctor sighs gratefully as a pigeon hobbles to her. She kneels while stroking and petting the bird. It coos under her hand. “Poor guy, you don’t have long to live either. There’s not enough Tesla’s to go around to feed you lot.” She looks to the foggy New York skyline, “there’s other things on people’s minds now. I’m just hoping it doesn’t get to him...” She looks back at Tesla on the bench and something catches her eye. A tall gentleman approaches him, holding a carefully wrapped parcel. His hat is too low down to see his face. Tesla does not regard this man with kindness at least from his facial expression. It grows with distain as he grips the parcel. The Doctor, witnessing this asks under her breath. “What are ya playing at Nik?” She looks on, hoping that she can read their lips to discern what’s happening. She gives up within a minute. After their exchange both men stand and walk separate paths. She keeps her eyes on Tesla and the mysterious parcel gripped in his shaking hands. “Looks like I’m making a house call.” The Doctor smirks to herself as she looks down and finds that the pigeon has died suddenly below her. “Oh... That shouldn’t have happened... I’m sorry.” Her face drops, something is wrong here and Tesla is in the centre of it. After Tesla has gained some distance, the Doctor strides after him. The Doctor eventually reaches the entrance to Tesla’s ‘home’, The New Yorker hotel. It’s imposing structure doesn’t exactly scream ‘homely’ but that doesn’t bother the Doctor. She

strides in confidently, replaying the cracking gravestone in her head... She’s suddenly interrupted when she bumps into the receptionist desk. Standing behind it is a middle-aged woman, clearly there for a pay cheque and nothing more. She looks upon the Doctor with a mocking curiosity. “Can I help you ma’am?” The Doctor pats herself down and composes herself, “uhh yeah can do. I want to see my mate, Nikola Tesla. Can I have his room number please?” She gives a kindly smile. The Doctor is met with an ugly scoff as the receptionist furrows a bushy brow. “No one visits the lunatic. Not even ‘lady friends.” The inherent meaning of this flies over the Doctor’s head. She responds impatiently. “Look, I need to see Tesla. I’m an old, dear friend!” She looks down at herself. “I’m older than I look, honest!” She gives a grin at the unimpressed receptionist. “Fine.” The receptionist says coldly. “He’s In 3327. Maybe you can take him back to the circus. You certainly dress the part. The freak and the clown!” She gives a hearty laugh as the Doctor strides away.

“I’ll let you know when we need hogs for the next show...” The Doctor mutters under her breath after entering a stairwell...

Chapter Three The Doctor huffs and finally stands in front of the hotel room door. The numbers 3327 shine a warm bronze under the dim bulbs. “Just think,” the Doctor looks around her. “Each bulb here, is powered by the very man that hides himself from the world he tried to help.” She places her hand on the door but receives a strange static shock. She jumps in surprise, then presses her nose against the hard-wooden door. She gives a few short sniffs of the door before leaning back again. “Strange, so very strange. Nik’s up to something.” The Doctor mutters to herself. She reaches her hand to try the handle. Then looks to her left. Standing there is a bewildered young man sporting a chiselled chin with a suit and crumpled hat. “Ma’am? Is everything alright? Is that your room?” His voice seemed to indicate genuine concern yet there could be something more to it. “Uhh, yeah, yeah! Everything’s fine mate. I just smelled something funny. Y’know what plumbing’s like round ere’.” The Doctor awkwardly stumbles through the words. She gives a cheery grin towards the stranger. “Okay then. Have a good evening ma’am.” The stranger replies, almost disappointed. He tips his hat

down as he descends down the stairwell, leaving the Doctor alone in the corridor. “Atta girl Doctor,” she mutters under her breath as she reaches into her inner coat pocket. “Play the dumb tourist routine. It gets you everywhere, even the Vatican or Alpha Zigma Zooma...” She shakes her head, aiming to focus and she holds her sonic screwdriver towards the lock. With a quick buzz and flash of orange light the door clicks open. After pocketing the sonic she gently twists the handle after checking both sides of the corridor. She enters the room... The interior of room 3327 was standard for an ‘upstanding hotel’ in New York City. Drab wooden furniture, a discoloured carpet covers the bare flooring despite the futile attempts from the occupant to get it clean. Next to the door was a pair of worn leather shoes, perfectly aligned side by side with each other in harmony. Her observations fall short as the sound of paper ripping and incoherent scribbles fill the room. Occasionally, balled up paper impacts against the carpeted surface and roll to the Doctor’s feet. Of course, the last place the Doctor thinks to look is straight ahead of her. It’s Tesla, hunched over a makeshift desk. Makeshift in

that it’s clearly a chest of draws. Along the wall ahead of him are rough pencil sketches of equations and half-baked electrical circuits They’re barely readable in the flickering candlelight placed beside Tesla on the dresser. The Doctor finds it fascinating that the ‘master of lightning’ still jots his crazy, brilliant ideas in candlelight. As she walks cautiously towards the inventor, her boots sink into the carpet with each approaching step. The Doctor becomes easily distracted with the discarded paper, unfurling them and inspecting them curiously, she shakes and nods her head. Her eyes widen slightly as the rough marking of circular symbols seem familiar. She pockets the papers and takes care to write notes on the papers with her marker pen while walking. Not a single paper is missed as she follows the trail…

Tesla, unaware of this continues to scribble and hastily draw designs for something incomprehensible. He sighs in frustration before screwing up the paper in balled fists. With a cry he throws the paper behind him, yet he does not hear it land... Confused by this irregularity he turns and is immediately met with the sight of a female figure intently reading his discarded work. Her face is obscured by the crumpled paper. But he can hear her excited gasps and whispers commenting on his work. Tesla wide-eyed, looks beyond the strange woman to find that the rest of his balled-up work has been unwrapped and left on the floor. His face shows shock, yet grateful appreciation. “Who the hell are you?!” Tesla raises his voice, catching the stranger off guard. She takes a moment to lift the paper down from her face. Upon revealing her face, she gives a gleeful smile. “Hey up Nik!” The Doctor says excitedly, she pauses for a response, but Tesla panics and reaches for a sharpened pencil. He points it towards the Doctor in a shaky grip. “I don’t know you! How did you get into my room!? What do you want? “His voice is shaky and hoarse. He stands now, his legs shake but eventually stand firm. The Doctor steps back in caution. “Okay Nik take it easy, I’m your friend. It’s me... The Doctor.” She gives a warm smile. Tesla makes a quick jab with the pencil. “I know that name! You must be an imposter, a spy! Stealing the name of my friend! Are you here to kill me!?” The Doctor gently holds on to his wrist, disarming the pencil. “Look mate, I know I might not look like how you remember me, but you have to trust me! I’m here to help you...” They tussle slightly in the hotel room, Tesla is sure to grip on to the Doctor’s arms, avoiding her hands. They push and pull on each other, nearing closer to the yellowing candlelight. In the glow the Doctor’s face is lit up. Her eyes are clear to Tesla. “My God... it’s you. Doctor... Your eyes, they betray your new appearance.” Tesla says almost breathlessly. He relents his grip slowly, feeling guilt for the confrontation. “Doctor, my friend please forgive me. It’s been so long since your last visit. So much has happened to me.” He begins to cry, yet it’s silent and understated. The Doctor pats him on the shoulder. “It’s alright Nik, I’m sorry it’s taken me a bit to see you again.” She looks around the cramped hotel room again. She shudders. “Let’s go out eh? Get some grub. An’ have a bit of a chat?” She looks to Tesla; a smile grows on his face.

Chapter Four Both the Doctor and Tesla stroll on the early evening streets of New York City, their arms linked. The Doctor leads her elderly friend to a high-end restaurant. Its bright fluorescent lighting hurt Tesla’s eyes as he cowers away. The Doctor lowers her head and leads Tesla inside the bronze double doors of the establishment. The inside of the lobby is lavishly decorated, a testament to high-class flaunting of wealth. Golden livery covers the walls of marble. As the duo gaze around they are interrupted with a rude cough. “I assume you’ve walked into the wrong building.” The voice is snobbish and way too full of himself. The Doctor meets his gaze and sees that he’s balding and sports rounded spectacles, they barely hang off his nose. “Actually, we haven’t.” The Doctor responds curtly while reaching into her coat pocket, retrieving a thin black leather rectangle. She unfolds it, revealing a blank lower page. Then holds it to the spectacled man, “There you go! We have a reservation. Silly me, always forgetting when I’m met with people who lower my IQ.” He stares intently at the pages, eventually pushing his glasses closer to his eyes. They look larger the closer the lenses of his glasses got. “Ah, my apologies, ma’am and...” he looks towards Tesla with a discerning glance. “Gentleman. He’s a proper gentleman.” The Doctor speaks up. The man turns and gestures the two to follow him. The dining table was positioned fairly off centre to the main hall. The Doctor tries her best to keep Tesla from focusing on the irregular placement of the table legs on the strange checkered carpet. “So… let’s do some catch up, yeah? When did you last see me?” She gives a kindly smile before burying her face into a pristine menu. Tesla scoffs. “Doctor, I cannot discuss this with you. You said on our multiple encounters that discussions of your past or future selves might disrupt ‘the web of time’. If such a concept exists.” “Yeah but come on. I’m the latest one! You can chat about me past…” The Doctor retorts a playful whine behind the paper menu. Tesla gives a smug grin to this reply. “You have said that before. When you had the umbrella, that awful bow tie. Even that garish coat and a pompous attitude to wear it… Who knows what you’ll appear as when you see me next!” He gives a chuckle while the Doctor’s face grows with a foreboding sadness behind the menu. She remains behind the menu; her finger scans the ridiculously fancy lettering. “Hmm there’s not many vegetarian options here is there?” She mutters to herself after laying down the menu delicately. “Vegetarian? Doctor I had no idea...” Tesla sounds intrigued as he lifts his menu up with shaky hands. His eyes slowly scan the salads on offer. “Well, I try my best. I just can’t eat anything that has a mother.” The Doctor says with a hint of guilt. Tesla nods intently after tapping his bony finger on a bowl of salad. “I’m always afraid to eat out in public.” He nervously looks at the dining guests. “They find my diet habits unworldly.” The Doctor nods her head and provides a warm smile. “Tesla, when you’re with me you can be whatever the hell you want. Who gives a damn what these ‘flappers and geezers’ think?” The Doctor’s rant has raised eyebrows of the other people dining on the tables opposite them. A slim waiter strides to them. He drums a thin pencil on his pad. “Hi, can we have two bowls of salad please?” The Doctor turns to the man with a gleeful smile. The waiter nods and strides away. She turns back to Tesla. “I know that things haven’t been great for you. I’ve managed to check in every now and then. If you want help out of that hotel you don’t even have to a...” “No Doctor, I cannot ask you that.” Tesla interrupts. He palms his face. “My life isn’t as it was, but I got here on my own volition. I’ll get myself out of it.” The Doctor frowns as their

food suddenly arrives. It’s planted on the table with little finesse. The salad looked incredibly unappetising yet the Doctor dives in anyway. Having eaten soil and currently trying to curb a jelly baby addiction, any and all food placed in front of her is usually eaten in haste. Tesla is slow to eat his meal, either out of nervousness or he wishes to savour the fine delights of cold, wet iceberg lettuce and ripened tomatoes. While this may be true in some capacity; in actuality, Tesla was distracted by two suited gentlemen walking towards him and the Doctor. Their faces are stony and determined as they zero in on Tesla. As they get closer, the leading man has a deep cut above his eyebrow. Their approach makes him drop a tomato from his grip into the bowl below. The Doctor raises her head, “Nik? Is everything okay?” Tesla gives no response as the two gentlemen stand behind the Doctor. “Yes, Mr. Tesla. Are things okay? We wouldn’t want the worst to happen to you and your friend.” The man with the eyebrow scar growls in an incoherent, broken English. He places a hand on each side of the Doctor’s chair. Their placement lifts the sleeve of his arms slightly, a CCCP tattoo is present. “Russian...” The Doctor mutters under her breath. A face bares down at her, “I’m sorry? Did you say something lady?” The stranger says with the breath of raw fish. Again, the Doctor awkwardly rambles. “I said ‘mushroom! There aren’t any in this dish. I’d like to make a complaint to your manager. Real shame, the fungi makes the wet lettuce and hardened tomatoes worth the ridiculously overpriced table booking!” The man shakes his head. Then turns to Tesla. “Is this the company you keep in your senile age?” The stranger speaks harshly. Tesla raises his head to meet the gaze of this stranger. Upon laying his hands down on the table, Tesla clears his throat. “The company I keep has nothing to do with you. Viktor… I’ll go quietly with you and stop whatever violent outcome you wish to bring.” Viktor gives a grim smile as he and the other gentleman stride past the Doctor. As they do so, underneath the table the Doctor has her sonic screwdriver poised at Tesla. She quickly activates it, shining the underside of the table in a glow of orange. The men reach Tesla and with a cast-iron grip, they lift him from his seat. Despite several people stopping their meals they carry on regardless. Both men hold Tesla between them as they escort him from the restaurant. Before they pass the table, Viktor cranks his head to the Doctor, “Don’t follow us. You got that?” They stride away through the exit. Certain that they are clear, and the droning sounds of scraping plates and useless chatter fill the room, the Doctor checks her screwdriver.

The Bio-Trace has been registered. She gives a grin before dumping a wad of random currency onto the table. Though it mostly consists of narg notes. The Doctor strides out of the restaurant to find her friend. However, she is unaware of a figure following after her as he rises from a nearby table. They also had the ‘vegetarian’ option to eat…

Chapter Five

The industrial docklands were a sight to behold at night. The constant steam and chugging of boats on the unrestful shore make it an ideal place for a stealth operation. An hour after Tesla was ‘escorted’ from the restaurant the Doctor has tracked her friend here. She stands on a rotten wooden pier looking out to the sea. The waves crash against the creaky, soggy wood. A heartbeat of nature. The Doctor swivels on a heel and turns her attention to an inconspicuous warehouse nearby. Its lights are dim in the odd numbered windows. “That’ll drive Nikki nuts.” The Doctor mutters to herself while jogging her way over. She approaches the door and readies her screwdriver. Then she lowers it, ‘Nah, I’ll try the roof. Get an airborne advantage.’ She thinks to herself as she scales the loose drainage pipe to the roof. Upon climbing over the mossy ledge, she crouches and approaches a thankfully open skylight. Before peering in she reaches behind her head and pulls the hood of her coat over. Shrouding her and providing better stealth than her bright, blonde hair. She looks through the skylight to see a terrible sight... Tesla is seated in an uncomfortable wooden chair. The kind Grandmas would be given on Christmas as a ‘spare chair’. Tesla’s stiff, uncomfortable movements simply prove this. The interior of the warehouse itself is standard. Boxes lay about, metal flooring, a small combat-ready group of Russians guard the entrances... The Doctor thinks on that last section a bit but shakes her head to concentrate as Viktor approaches Tesla. He wields a rusted lead pipe. The Doctor mutters to herself, “way to be original. Professor Plum had the ‘lead pipe’ skit way before you lot.” Again, she shakes her head like an etch-a-sketch to clear her mind of distractions. Viktor begins to speak but due to how high up she is and the noise of the dockland it’s barely audible. She only manages to scrape together the words, “Nineteen thirty-four, twenty-five thousand, plans, and...” The Doctor groans disappointingly while watching on as she leans her head further into the skylight a sudden click of a handgun makes her still. Her head makes no reaction. Not even to turn towards the handgun... “Mate, you don’t wanna do this.” Her voice is stern with a hint of frustration. She turns her head to face the barrel head-on. Behind it, a chisel-faced man in a crumpled hat. The stranger’s face is dimly lit from the dockland. He tries to speak with the same level of sternness, but the facade fails him. The Doctor’s eyes shine with a realisation. “Doctor, you have to come with me. I’m Agent Foxworth, Office of Alien Property, FBI.” His hands shake slightly losing his grip on the handgun. The Doctor scowls, looking over her shoulder at the interrogation below. “Office of Alien Property? For real? Neat. Also, that name is really, really familiar…” The Doctor strokes her chin thoughtfully, “well! I’m a little busy here at the minute ‘Agent Foxworth’. If ya want, you can sit with me, but you need to keep quiet.” Her flippant nature baffles Foxworth. “Wh, what are you talking about? You’re under arrest!” The Doctor shushes him as she kneels back down over the skylight. “It’s a good thing you’re here actually. I need some help. Can you grab onto my coat while I dip my head further through the skylight?” Her smile is almost childlike and infectious with glee. Foxworth shakes his head and shudders nervously. “What do you mean?! I can’t hold on to your coat Doc! It’ll rip.” “Nah! Don’t worry! It’s been finely sown by Rosa Parks herself. Nothing short of a hunter’s knife is gonna rip this bad boy!” She gives a twirl allowing the coat to swish around her gracefully. “Rosa who? Look, you’re insane lady! I’m not holding on to your coat!” Foxworth protests, his eyes are wide in disbelief… Moments later the Doctor is impossibly hanging under the skylight window. Her head is fully submerged below the frame. Allowing her to hear the full conversation. The growly tones of Victor reverb off the concrete warehouse. “We gave you funding and materials. Those funds are hard to come by especially in these troubled times.” Viktor gets no response as Tesla looks down upon the rusted metal flooring in shame. From above the Doctor scratches her chin. “Material? Funding? What are they on about?” She whispers to herself, struggling to keep her hood from covering her face. From above, Foxworth pipes up. “What’s happening Doctor?” She just shushes him as her hands gesture to lower her further down. He obliges begrudgingly, letting the Doctor descend even lower, now her neck and shoulder are visible. The interrogation is getting harsher for Tesla as a flurry of punches to his chest is administered. He coughs and splutters before looking up and spotting the Doctor dangling from the ceiling. He then gazes towards the eyes of his kidnappers. As he speaks his voice is low… “You don’t know the people I’ve been dealing with. You think you’re the only ones who want what I have to offer the world? My services are to the highest bidder…” Tesla begins to chuckle as suddenly the doors blow open. From the rising smoke a hail of gunfire rings out. Several bodies fall to the floor as Tesla is grabbed and escorted away to a back entrance. As he is pulled away, he screams, “no not them! They can’t be here!” The Doctor shouts to Foxworth, “Lift me up now! We have to get out of here!” As she’s pulled up, she spots figures in the smoke... they’re clad in black jackets and wield MP-40’s. The Doctor gasps as she is suddenly spotted by the head of the group. He’s tall built with an emotionless face. He opens fire at the skylight. The bullets gaze past the Doctor as her head slips through the frame. A member of the group approaches the leader, “Commander. What is our next move?” The Commander takes a moment as he scans the bodies surrounding him. “Track down Tesla. That woman must also be captured. Get to the roof now.” A small group of four rush out the doors and begin to climb up the ladder to the roof. Meanwhile the Commander unclips a grenade and throws it into the empty warehouse. As they turn to leave a gunshot rings out and clips the Commander on the shoulder. It pings with a thick metallic ring, Tearing a hole in his jacket. He turns as his face is lit with the warm glow of the raging fire; he smirks before his henchmen fires a clear headshot. On the roof the Doctor and Foxworth make a mad dash to the edge. The Doctor seems frazzled as she reaches the edge. “None of this is making sense! Tesla stopped building things at this point. He became an ideas man! What are all these people wanting with him now. He always kept out of the way.” She paces back and forth while Foxworth looks at the drop below. He grimaces. “Never mind Tesla Doc! What was that explosion?” He sounds rightfully panicked. “Ah, Nazis... No biggie.” She also looks over the ledge. Eyeing a flat roof across the gap. She smirks. Foxworth turns his face towards her. “Nazis?! In New York?! This is all insane.” The Doctor turns behind her, the sight of hands gripping onto the ledge frightens her into readying for a jump. “You’re not seriously suggesting we jump?!” Foxworth yells back. “Well it’s better than whatever those fine lads have planned for us!” The Doctor retorts, she looks back. The group of four are ready to fire. The clicks of their guns echo in succession. “Jump now!” They both leap off the edge as a hail of bullets follow them as the pair dive to the flat edge of the neighbouring warehouse…

Chapter Six

The two land with a harsh thud onto the flat roof. They take a moment to stand before they are fired upon again. Charging forward, the hail of bullets splinters the metal roof behind them. The Doctor gleefully smiles as she spots a descending metal staircase. She drags Foxworth’ arm to lead him down. “Quick! Just down here and round the corner!” The doctor yells as Foxworth nods fearfully as they sprint down the stairs. The group cease firing from above as the complex, narrow maze of warehouses obscure their fleeting targets. A gunman reaches for a radio. “Commander, the woman and an unidentified man have escaped. What’s our next action?” It takes a moment but through the static a harsh reply sound through. “Regroup. It’s clear the Soviets have the target close to their chest. We find them, we find Nikola Tesla.” … After making some headway, The Doctor along with a breathless Foxworth reach a clearing in the industrial estate. She stops and holds her hands to her wrinkled temple. “There’s so much to process... Russians, Nazis. Both wanting one thing: Tesla’s work. That’s the thing though,” the Doctor lectures outwardly. “Tesla is a prime humanitarian, a pacifist after my own heart. What is he doing working with these two parties? He wouldn’t get involved in the war! Unless…” Foxworth approaches the Doctor, he’s finally gained his breath. “Unless what Doctor?” He says impatiently while scanning the surrounding area. “Unless… it’s Wardenclyffe all over again…” She frowns at first then it turns into a smile. “Ah, Tricky Nik! That’s the thing with him. Always playing with people, it’ll cost him though… Maybe too much.” She turns to Foxworth, “I’ve finally got a bit of time to chat to you, ‘Agent Foxworth’. What do you lot at the FBI want with him?” Her face is stern as Foxworth straightens his tie and hat. “Since you seem to know him personally Doc, I’ll let you in on it. In nineteen thirty-four, Tesla made a wild claim that he’s gone and built a weapon. A ‘Death-Ray’ capable of destroying aircraft, artillery… Anything. The perfect peacekeeper. He opened bidding at…” “Twenty-five thousand dollars. That’s what the Russians were chatting about. Tricky Tesla, he must’ve stiffed them and now they want what they paid for.” The Doctor cuts in, her eyes widen slightly with concern. “It’s not possible though... No such weapon exists!” She cries out in disbelief. Foxworth steps up, he speaks coldly. “I’ve been sent to investigate reports of Russian interference with Tesla’s work. After that whole twenty-five-thousand-dollar skit, he’s got some eyes on him. Looks like we’ve been proven right…” The Doctor starts to storm off as she retorts. “You just want to take his work for yourselves. There’s no investigation here! You were at the New Yorker when I went to visit Tesla. You also must’ve been following me, coz how did you find me at the docklands?” Foxworth strides next to the Doctor. His breath leaves a thick fog as he goes. “Doctor, like it or not, Tesla’s work could end this war. Tesla needs to follow his duty as an ‘American’ citizen and help us. Not the Ruskies or the Krauts. We didn’t want to fight, but now that we have… We intend to win.” The Doctor sighs, “Nikola wouldn’t want to help the Nazis. That I know for certain. They’re clearly here to snap up his work. Like vultures on the carcass of genius…” She snaps her head towards Foxworth. “That kind of attitude though… That’s why none of you should get his work. Just give me a minute to get this all straight…” The Doctor gestures wildly with her hands putting the pieces together as they walk. Foxworth gets some distance from her. “So,

three individual parties are wanting this ‘Death-Ray’. It’s like the good, the bad, and the ugly!” She swiftly turns on a heel, “we need to get to the New Yorker and get his papers and plans. Stop this whole mess from going too far.” She reaches into her coat pocket and grips the screwdriver. With a quick press the yellow glow starts to dim… The Doctor gasps, “No! I need a fresh Bio-Trace of him to keep the tracking on…We have to get to the New Yorker!”

Chapter Seven

The city felt almost lifeless in the early-morning darkness. Time was of the essence as the Doctor leaps over dented, silver trashcans and damp newspapers. A front-headline reads: MYSTERIOUS FIRE AT WAREHOUSE- FIVE COMFIRMED DEAD. She makes a sharp turn around a corner. Eventually the two stop under the imposing shadow of the New Yorker hotel. Its blue neon signage flickers off and on. “Right Foxworth… Let’s get a shift on!” The Doctor says cheerily as she steps into the building. Much like the outside, the interior of the New Yorker is barren with minimal staff at the receptionist desk. The Doctor and Foxworth glide past them and head for the stairs. … After huffing it up the stairs the Doctor immediately pulls Foxworth back behind the door. “The Russians are blocking the door!” The Doctor hisses at Foxworth. In response to this, he leans his head out the double doors and eyes two Russian guards at Tesla’s door. Their faces are of stony determination and no matter how long Foxworth stares they don’t blink. The Doctor grips Foxworth’ coat collar, ripping him back to the stairwell. “Now do ya believe me?” She looks away, “I wouldn’t have this problem with the gang… Anyway, I can only hope they’ve left Tesla in there to gather the plans from his safe. So, I’ve just got to climb up to him from the outside… You up for that?” She smiles, awaiting a response. “No, I’ve got to get to the lobby. Call this all in, my handler will be going nuts, it’s been hours since I’ve updated him. I’ll meet you down there, if you haven’t fallen off the building by then.” Foxworth plods downstairs out of view. The Doctor walks down a flight of stairs, all the while muttering to herself. “Ah, fair enough, I’ve climbed higher stuff than this! It’s even been the death of me.” As she reaches a nearby window the Doctor gently opens it with enough space to squeeze through. She gives a slight chuckle while lunging for an overhanging ledge above her. After gaining grip on the brickwork she hoists herself up. The Doctor stands on the overhanging ledge, her feet are planted firmly on the solid brickwork. The one thing she seemed to have forgotten is the harsh winter winds. It rises and whips around the Doctor, her coat blows viciously. She is not deterred as she lifts and grips to the ledge above her. The cold numbs her fingers to the point they could shatter like glass. After a final heave, she has reached Tesla’s window. Straight away, her hearts fill with worry. The curtains are, uncharacteristically, open… The Doctor peers in, she is horrified to see Tesla cowering on the floor. He’s gripping his stomach while above him Viktor grips a small pile of papers. He laughs heartily as he steps out of the room. The Doctor waits a few moments to make sure that they have left before taking the sonic out and opening the window. She awkwardly squeezes in and rushes to her friend’s side. She pats him down, checking for life signs. Tesla turns his head and smiles warmly. “Doctor!” Says Tesla hoarsely. “I’m glad you’re here my friend.” The Doctor lifts Tesla up and tries to lead him to an armchair. He waves her away. After stepping away, the Doctor stares down Tesla. “I know about your death ray. The deals you’ve made. You’ve got the Russians, the Americans, and the Nazis involved! Messing with things in threes were always your forte!” She paces along the room angrily. Yet Tesla stares blankly. “What were you thinking? You stopped working on the death ray!” The Doctor yells at Tesla, her rage bubbling under the surface. Yet Tesla looks away. “I... gave it a second look. Doctor, my life now is in despair. I have nothing, nothing except my idea for world peace. With this war and the lives that have been taken...” Tesla retorts morosely, his voice soon picks up again as he

continues. “Just think Doctor! With a single press of a button... We can stop the fighting, the bloodshed, the endless screaming!” “No.” The Doctor says cold and unnerved. Her stance is straight as she stares Tesla down. “What makes you so adamant that it wouldn’t work?” Tesla barked, slightly shaken by his friend. “Because many lifetimes ago... I had that choice. To push a button and stop everything, the fighting, bloodshed, the screaming... And in that lifetime so long ago I pushed that button.” Tesla’s eyes widen with shock. His friend of peace and non-confrontation had at last, revealed the violent, inner turmoil behind her eyes. The Doctor continues, realising that she has Tesla’s full attention. “It all stopped when I pressed it. But, only for a moment so they could look in awe at what I had done that day.” The Doctor tears up, but lets it show. “No matter how many more times I’ll die and burn my body up to regenerate. It’ll never compare to the pain I felt all that time ago when I pressed that button and ended everything. When my friends and family all burnt together in an inferno.” The Doctor’s voice seems dry, almost exhausted of emotion. “All because I pushed a button to stop the fighting, the bloodshed... The never-ending screaming. Now you’ve given that button to men that will hold no guilt in their heart when they press it. Where did they go Nikola?” Tesla balls his fist and stands firm, ready to interrupt a final verbal challenge. “Tell me Doctor. Is it better to die in infamy than to have lived in obscurity? The men… ‘Friends’ I have trusted through my life have buried my legacy. Both Edison and Morgan suffocated my work. They used my discoveries to kill animals and prisoners! I sacrificed my wealth and safe health for Westinghouse. They all turned their backs on me when I was the one to face forward into the future! Now they won’t see me coming when the tides of war are changed with my engineered mutually assured destruction.” He holds a pause while struggling to breathe, trying not to break his resolve. The Doctor however speaks unflinchingly. “It’s up to you to answer that question Nikola. Where did Viktor and his men go? Tell me so we can move a step closer to answering that question together.” She extends a hand hoping to salvage any sense of friendship. Tesla looks upon the hand and turns away. looking out into the night. He responds sorrowfully. “They’ve got a ship ready on the Hudson river. You can’t reach them in time. I’m sorry Doctor.” The Doctor gives no response as she bounds out of the room into the hotel corridor. Tesla meanwhile stands in his hotel room alone, looking upon his safe, it’s still locked.

Chapter Eight

Along the shoreline of the turbulent tides of the Hudson river Viktor boards a corroded steel ship. In his cast-iron grip is the bundle of plans taken from Tesla’s room. As he walks the barren steel corridors Viktor absentmindedly flicks and scans through the blueprints. He sighs and closes the papers upon reaching a makeshift office. Viktor seats himself after laying the plans squarely on the desk and looks through a porthole window to the city at night beside them. He smiles gratefully as the ship pulls away from the shoreline. The engines cause a sharp pull which nearly knock the papers off the desk. With a singular finger, Viktor holds them down. Preventing them from sliding out of his gaze. His smile is unfazed… … The Doctor sprints down the spiralling New Yorker hotel stairs. Eventually dashing into the empty lobby. Foxworth is stood, arms crossed and waiting for her. As she stops dead in her tracks Foxworth holds a deadpan expression, “I made some calls around the FBI and beyond.” He says with a hit of disbelief. “I had to make sure that I was ‘working’ with the real deal. Hoover himself said he knew of a ‘Doctor’.” “Uh huh...” The Doctor nods her head while winding her hand gesturing him to get to the point. “Hoover then called your homeland...” Foxworth continued, “It’s clear that they have their faith in you over there. Cause Winston Churchill himself says you have full derestriction, no matter your appearance.” “Aw! Good ol’ Winnie! Well then Foxworth. We have some work to do!” The Doctor sprints away through the New Yorker doors. A bewildered Agent Foxworth follows suit. ... The park was silent and still in the cover of a night-time with no stars. The grass is undisturbed until the rushed stamping of feet trample it. It’s the Doctor and Foxworth running side-by side as they finally hit their destination... The TARDIS. It’s lit windows and dim but pulsating roof lamp stick out like a sore thumb. The Doctor is almost entirely distracted by the friendly sight until she stumbles over the rotting carcass of the pigeon from earlier that day. The Doctor looks horrified as she kneels to take a closer look, giving a quick examination with her sonic screwdriver. Meanwhile, Foxworth stands in awe under the yellowing window lights. “What’s a ‘Police Public Call Box’?” He painstakingly reads the signage out loud and slowly. The Doctor pays no heed as she stares deeply into the sonic. Her eyes widen even more. She rises to her feet after pocketing the sonic. “It’s my preferred mode of transport! It’s best that we get inside, Y’know... To stop the Russians and to fix whatever’s happening to the wildlife here.” “The wildlife? Doctor, it’s a pigeon... they don’t last very long!” Foxworth says disingenuously. “Well obviously!” The Doctor hisses back while fumbling in her inner coat pocket. “But the thing is... That pigeon has been decomposing for ten years! It died this morning... whatever Tesla has done or will do with this ‘Death Ray’... It has worse and longer lasting effects than this war ever will.” With a harsh push of the key the doors are opened, and a flood of warm orange light pours through. Bathing the pair in an overpowering light. “Come on in Foxworth. Let’s see what an agent of the ‘Office of Alien Property’ thinks of this!” She chuckles to herself after striding in. “It’s not about... Those kinds of aliens... Never mind.” Foxworth says defeated as he takes a plunge into the strange woman’s ‘police box’. It takes him a mere five seconds to be overwhelmed with awe by the interior dimension of the police box.

The dark, atmospheric lighting makes the corners of the room seem infinite. The warm glow of the crystalline pillars focuses on the centre console of which the Doctor is currently dashing around. Foxworth’s mouth is agape as he takes several cautious steps. He nearly stumbles on the elevated steps before staring in disbelief at the golden circular symbols embossed into the step. He raises his brow, realising something familiar. “D, Doctor?” His voice nervously rings out among the organic humming and erroneous button pushing. The Doctor stops and stands ahead of Foxworth. “You feelin’ alright mate? I know what it’s like... Ya think you’ve got all your chips outta the bag. Then you look into the bag after your meal and you find more chips in the bottom... bag chips! It’s an extension to how you see the world... The TARDIS, my home.” She smiles gleefully as she kneels to meet Foxworth’s gaze. He’s sweating profusely with his lips quivering. “Doc, these symbols here... I’ve seen them before. What are they?” He stammers nervously while tracing his finger across the symbols. The Doctor looks dumbfounded, “it’s Gallifreyan. My language. It won’t translate for you coz it’s where the TARDIS came from.” She quickly shakes her head remembering what Foxworth said. “Hold up! You’ve seen this before?! How av’ ya?” Her voice rings of concern as she moves closer to Foxworth. “They were on Tesla’s blueprints and his patents. He’s had these symbols for years. No one knew what they were for or what they meant. But they’re your... Language?” The Doctor quickly dives her hand into her coat and plucks crumpled papers. She hastily unfurls them in front of Foxworth. “Where did you get them?” Foxworth asks confused as she traces her finger across the scribbled circular symbols. Her eyes widen in shock… “From Tesla’s room. He was scribbling and working on this before we went out and he got taken. Oh… Oh no. You’re right Foxworth, it’s the same typography, his grammar is off but the concept is there…” She suddenly rises up and sprints to the console. “It’s my fault... I’m so sorry. Somehow, Tesla has received knowledge... Forbidden knowledge from my people. Thankfully, He was using it for peace and energy generation. He’s nice like that... But he’s just handed over this knowledge to people that will reap havoc on this planet....” She hurriedly pulls down the lever on the central console. The ship, sensing its pilot’s distress hastily dematerialises from the parkland. Under the fading light, the pigeon’s corpse shifts and twitches on the brink of life and death. ... The rusted deck of the ship provided an unobstructed view of the calm Hudson water. Its tranquil nature is observed by several crew members. Their breath foggs the air in the frozen chill. Their peaceful rest is quickly disturbed by an unnatural groaning and wheezing. The crew panic, flailing their heads all around. Some are knocked down by the sudden uprush of wind. Then, almost instantaneously, the TARDIS has materialised. It blocks the tranquil view, prompting some annoyed grunts and sighs as they Ready their weapons. The doors of the strange blue box open, the Doctor and a timid Foxworth exit them. Upon being greeted with guns and snarling, annoyed faces they raise their hands. “Take us to your leader!” The Doctor yells, trying to overcome the vicious chugging of the steam powered engine as well as the clashing waves against the ship’s hull. The two are quickly grabbed and forcefully bound

with rough and frayed rope. The TARDIS is left at the front of the ship. It still blocks the view... ... A lot of activities can be accomplished within ten minutes. One such activity being the incarceration of a particular Time Lord and a plucky companion. They’re strapped together in a cliché manner: Back to back. The Doctor faces forward towards the corroded steel door. She grimaces at the irregular patterns of the swirling rust. Her trance is disrupted as her forehead is dripped on from above by rust-coloured water. In between the seconds that the droplet falls the Doctor tilts her head to survey the ceiling. “This ship’s rubbish innit?” She twists her head to just over her shoulder. Foxworth is bent over and clearly sniffling. “Come on mate! We’ll be fine. It’s all going according to plan. You know, I used to achieve six impossible things before breakfast.” She pauses waiting for Foxworth to respond. “H, how? Isn’t that in Alice in wonderland?” Foxworth mumbles. The Doctor smirks, now sure that Foxworth is alright. “Not quite, it’s actually Though the Looking Glass. Yeah, not as ‘iconic’ as the first. Anyway!” The Doctor continues, “the way to achieve six impossible things before breakfast... Is to have no breakfast.” The resounding silence in the room after the Doctor’s jive spoke louder than any word could. “Okay, point being that Viktor bloke won’t understand the plans. But he knows that I’m close to Nik. Therefore, assuming that I can translate what ‘mad scribbling’ he has written. So, when he rocks up with the papers, we can overpower him, grab the papers and bish bash bosh! The temporal structure of World War Two is saved.” As if by magic, the corroded door is swung open. It harshly clangs against the steel wall causing the Doctor and Foxworth to flinch. From the dim lighting of the ship’s corridor Viktor steps into the chamber. With a smirk he strides towards the Doctor, gripped in his hands are a few rough pages of Tesla’s work. He leans over the Doctor, casting an imposing shadow. “You were told not to follow us.” Viktor says gruffly. “But since you’ve decided to stowaway on my vessel you can help me with this.” He slams the papers on the Doctor’s lap. Immediately the Doctor eyes the striking circular symbols. It’s just as she feared… Ancient Gallifreyan It’s been mangled and messily drawn but the principle is there. “I don’t have a clue about any of this… Looks like someone’s put their mug all over the paper…” She’s suddenly slapped across the face by Viktor. “Now isn’t the time for jokes. These papers and designs ae vital to winning this war and the secure future of the Motherland.” Viktor hisses. Finally, Foxworth turns his head to respond. His voice is shrill but it’s finding footing. “You shouldn’t hit a lady. It’ll get you nowhere.” “Ah, but she’s no ‘Lady’. This is ‘The Doctor’. A fable among men, women, and children. I did some research into our operations history. A foreign agent known as ‘The Doctor’ has interfered on numerous occasions. Most recently, ‘The Doctor’ had obstructed an operation to retrieve an English code-breaking machine in Northumberland.” The Doctor shakes her head, “nah, I don’t think that’s right. It’s way too early and besides, I had the wrong clothes on. There’s no way you can know about that now!” “Ah but I do Doctor. Your name is a stain on the history of our world. Rest assured, if it is future knowledge as you claim it is… Then I will ensure it is changed when I return to the Motherland.” He snatches the papers from the Doctor and leaves the chamber. Slamming the door behind him. “What did he mean that it’s future knowledge? What’s going on here?” Foxworth says bemused.

“Okay, I’ll admit. I’ve fluffed things up a bit.” The Doctor begins as she struggles against the rope, “I’m a time traveller. The TARDIS does it. It means that I’ve cropped up here and there. Including what Viktor chatted about. But that happens in October this year! It hasn’t happened yet so there can’t be any reports on it. Whatever this distortion is it’s now advanced further than that pigeon.” The Doctor hastily struggles with the rope. Just as it gets loose the ship is suddenly hit with an explosion and the pair are blown over… … Above deck the ship is bombarded with bullets and explosions. Shrapnel rips through the crew and rusted walls. Tearing the ship to pieces. Across from the ship is a smaller boat filled with the Commander’s crew. They fire harpoons and throw grenades. They impact the deck, splintering and cracking it. The ship is falling apart. In the chamber, The Doctor now freed from the rope brings Foxworth to his feet. “Come on mate! This ship is going down. We need to get to the TARDIS.” They make their way out as they wade through sudden rushing water and twisted metal corridors. Ascending metal staircases avoiding bodies as they go. They finally reach the top deck and witness the carnage. “Yeah, this ship is going down fast. We have to move fast, or the TARDIS will leave soon. It’s a safety mechanism type thing. Come on!” The Doctor darts away, leaping of the splintered and fiery mess. Yet, Foxworth does not follow. He turns his head towards an opened door and enters it. It’s Viktor’s office and it’s in disarray. Chairs and papers are strewn about and the slowly rising water makes sure to erase any salvageable information. He gets ready to leave when he eyes a pile of papers on the desk. Foxworth gasps and sprints making sure to gather the pile with shaky hands. Upon collecting the last piece, a bloodied hand slams down on the table. It makes Foxworth jump as he pounds on the hand, forcing it to relent and slink under the desk. Foxworth leans his head over the desk and sees that Viktor is clutching his chest. He heaves heavily, his eyes are wide with fear. “I don’t care if we’re on the same side. When this is over there will be a bigger fight. The likes of which we won’t comprehend. Especially in your lifetime.” Foxworth coldly states as he clutches the papers while reaching into his coat pocket. With a sly smirk he unsheathes his handgun. His hand is still as he fires point-blank at Viktor’s head, instantly killing him… … The Doctor finally reaches the TARDIS. It stands proud despite being surrounded by debris and raging fire. It’s a beacon of safety but it’s fading fast. The Doctor turns frantically, “Foxworth? Where have you gone? FOXWORTH?!” She tries to run back but finds the passageway is engulfed in a harsh flame. She twists her head back to the TARDIS, then to the fire, then back to the TARDIS, then the fire again. Before she finally makes a choice Foxworth leaps from the fire and collides with the Doctor. “Foxworth!” The Doctor yells, patting down small flickers of flame on his coat. “Where did you go? We need to get inside now before it dematerialises.” “I found Viktor Doc, he’s dead. Guess he won’t be spilling any ‘future knowledge’?” Foxworth says between harsh breaths. The Doctor looks sheepishly at Foxworth before locking her key into the TARDIS door. In a short glance she spots loose papers underneath his coat. She sighs before turning the key slowly. “Doc? Come on open the door we’ve got to go!” A sudden explosion rips the ship from underneath the Doctor and Foxworth. They are plunged below the decks. Foxworth grips onto a charred piece of steel preventing himself

from falling. While the Doctor tumbles and plummets the sharpened, torn metal rips and stabs into her before she impacts the water… … Foxworth, still clinging onto the steel eyes a small ship approaching. Its searchlights fly by the rapidly sinking wreckage. It eventually rests on the dangling form of the FBI agent. Over a bullhorn a gruff American voice rings out. “Agent Foxworth? We answered your call from the New Yorker. Guess we came in time. What the hell happened? Hang tight, we’ll pick you up.” The ship navigates through the floating debris to dock below Foxworth. He’s safely recovered and upon reaching the deck he collapses. “I’ve acquired Tesla’s work. It must be valuable as there was Russian and Nazi interference.” After breathing heavily, Foxworth is surprised by the Doctor rising from the river. She gasps for air and struggles to grip onto floating debris. “Foxworth! You made it. You brought some mates round too!” She struggles to stay afloat as the debris sinks deeper under her weight. “Care to give me a lift?” She smiles hopefully. On the boat, the crew turn their head towards Foxworth. They await his response. “We have to go. Leave her, she’s against the ‘American interest’.” The crew nod their heads and move to the front of the ship. “Foxworth! Don’t leave me… You’ll regret it! Seriously!” The Doctor screams from the top of her lungs as the ship pulls away. Just before it leaves her view down the river the Doctor unsheathes the sonic screwdriver and triggers it. It buzzes furiously, focusing on a Bio-Trace of Foxworth. “I’ll get him later.” The Doctor mutters as she is swept away by the turbulent tide of the river… Moments later the Doctor’s exhausted body is tossed onto the muddied riverbed. Her coat is in disrepair with large gashes on its sleeves and along the back. She splutters and claws at the mud, dragging herself away from the river. After gaining some distance she stops at a set of leather shoed feet, “get up my friend.” A warm Serbian accent rings out as a hand is reached out towards the Doctor. She smiles and grips it tentatively, “Nikki! What are you doing out here?!” She struggles to stand and holds her arms to her chest, trying to warm herself. “I had to think on what you said. I’m sorry Doctor. I let my pride get in the way of what’s right. I just wanted to prove that my mind was worth something.” Tesla’s voice croaks as he is gripped suddenly and surrounded by men in black, leather jackets. They tighten their hold on the elderly man’s shoulders. “I had to tell them where you were going… So I could help you.” The Doctor sprints towards them, “Let my mate go!” The Doctor roars before she is bashed from behind. She yelps in pain as she impacts the mud embankment heavily. A heavy gloved hand is laid on the Doctor’s back. It’s the Commander, “Mr Tesla, your mind is worth a lot, especially to the Reich. It will end the war with our total victory. The voice echoes from behind the wounded Doctor. “You can’t do anything mate,” the Doctor laughs as she looks up at her captor. “The plans got nicked. You ain’t building nothing”. After a moment of calm the winter wind picks up speed. Something is wrong... “Doctor, you are a fool. If you truly knew your ‘friend’ you would know that he’s a creator as much as he is a thinker.” He looks upon Tesla, his frail form shudders in the cold. The Commander asks, “we have saved your ‘friend’ now you answer us… Where is it?” Tesla stays silent, his face is dour looking down at the Doctor. She winces in pain as she speaks, “Don’t tell them ought Nik!” The Commander nods at the surrounding soldiers. They forcefully punch Tesla in the chest, winding him as he collapses on the muddied

embankment. “It’s in my lab! My old lab… I have a working prototype! Please stop this…” Tesla cries out in pain as they drag him up from the ground. “There’s no need for this!” The Doctor cries out, helpless as her friend is beaten. “We are aware of you, Doctor” The Commander snaps back, “despite your change of appearance, your interference is well documented. This will be prevented.” With that, he procures a set of silver handcuffs and attaches them roughly to her wrists. In a last-ditch effort, the Doctor grips the Commander’s leg in a Venusian Aikido grip. She smiles, “There we go, your leader is paralysed! Surrender now and leave this country. There’s nothing for you here!” She turns to speak to the Commander, “geez mate, your legs are freezing!” The Commander responds by elbowing the Doctor’s head. The impact causes a harsh metallic clang. After finally handcuffing the Doctor he stands before her and removes his jacket. His arms are pure steel from the shoulder to his gloved hands. “I lost all of my limbs in the ‘Great War’ Doctor. Your martial arts have no effect. Now, you must be disposed of…” The Commander leans over and grips the Doctor’s striped shirt and lifts her clear off the ground. She struggles violently as she is carried to the edge of the embankment. He gives a discerning snarl to the woman in his grasp as he throws her into the river. Her body flails violently in the tide as it constantly washes over her submerging her deeper and deeper…

Chapter Nine

The winds along the embankment harshen against the skin of Tesla as he looks morosely towards the horizon of the river. As Tesla shivers and breaths restrictively, the Commander stands, his limbs shine a ghostly white under the clear moonlight. “You sound cold. Let’s get you inside. We haven’t got time to waste.” In a single nod of his head Tesla is dragged further across the embankment, his leather shoes slosh against the mud, leaving a distinctive dragged track. Meanwhile, under the surface of the river the Doctor struggles against the handcuffs. As she relaxes herself, she goes over the events in her head: ‘Right, Tesla has been building the Death-Ray, that’s a bummer.’ She begins after loosening her left hand from a cuff. ‘This is child’s play, there’s one thing that ‘Commander’ didn’t think of, that I’d get my hands dirty.’ With that her left hand slides out of the cuff, the mud now more liquid than sludge allows her to slide it out. With her left hand she paddles and rises above the water. After holding her breath, she struggles and splutters for air. “It tells you something when seventeenth century paranoid witch hunters can dunk a woman better than you!” The Doctor yells out loud as she dives towards the embankment. Instead of crawling she strides along the embankment to a clearing. “Yep this looks like a good place for it…” She grips the sonic screwdriver from a rip in her coat. The Doctor holds it aloft and triggers it, the crystalline edge glows a brilliant yellow in the ever-expanding night. After some moments of waiting, the wondrous, hopeful ancient groaning and wheezing rings out. A warm stormy wind blows the Doctor’s ragged coat behind her. The Doctor’s gleeful smile glows in the pulsing lights of the TARDIS as it materialises in front of her. The doors click open and loosely swing inside allowing the Doctor to limp inside. “Cheers, it’s been a hell of a night so far.” She grips her leg in pain after reaching the console. The TARDIS plays an ominous, deep tone. The Doctor flips a switch and sighs in response, “I know! It looks bad, I’ll heal though. I’m currently on three things at once… It’s like a task manager on overdrive! In fact, here!” The Doctor plugs her screwdriver into the console and the room pulses with dimming light. “Be a dear and track down Foxworth for me… I’m not done with him yet…” The TARDIS responds with a happy trill as the engines begin to roar and the crystalline pillar rises and falls like an overworked piston… … At a secluded dockland, Foxworth continues to grip to the ill-gotten papers. The boat docks unsteadily to the wet wooden pier. He takes tentative steps off the boat and onto the pier. As he plods on flashes of Viktor’s battered body appear in the forefront of his mind. His handgun feels heavy in his coat as he grips and ungrasps it sorrowfully. His deep though is suddenly interrupted by a sudden cold wind blowing against him. His face is fearful as he eyes his surroundings. He begins to run along the pier not taking notice of the splintered, uneven wood. His feet catch a crater, he stumbles and slams harshly onto the boardwalk. He winces as he lifts his head up. Standing before him the ragged, stern form of the Doctor and behind her, The TARDIS stands fiercely. She stretches out a hand. “We’re not finished Foxworth. The Nazis have Tesla and he’s leading them to a working Death Ray. I need you to come with me.” Her voice is cold with hidden layers of wrath. “I can’t… I have what I came for, you can handle them on your own.” Foxworth groans while gripping to his coat. The Doctor leans down and grasps the papers from his coat. “What these?” She lofts them above Foxworth. Shaking them flippantly. “These are useless! You can’t read them or understand them. I told ya before, it’s my language. Plus, it’s only a shopping list!” She chuckles while she throws the papers off the pier. They flutter and dive

into the murky water. Foxworth leans up, his hand is in the inside of his coat. “A, a shopping list? I don’t understand…” The Doctor leans over and helps Foxworth up. “Simple!” She begins as they hobble to the TARDIS. “Years ago, Tesla intercepted loose signals from space at his Colorado Springs laboratory. Unfortunately, he picked up some ‘junk mail’ from me. They’re signals that I’ve let loose from the TARDIS. It’s like when you have your radio on full blast and your neighbours complain they can hear it through the walls! It must have drove him nutty. Bottom line Foxworth, Tesla has been trying to build a death ray from discarded formulas and bits and pieces of science mumbo jumbo. Ordinarily, with stuff like this you could make a potato battery… With Tesla, he can see something more dangerous. So, in ya get. We can chat on the way!” The Doctor pats Foxworth on the back, shoving him into the darkened interior. The Doctor looks out towards the horizon, the sky is ablaze with lighting and stormy clouds. Time is of the essence as she strides in and closes the door behind her. The TARDIS soon fades out, its groaning is distressed as it stutters and struggles to depart. … Tesla and the Commander are marching across a mountainous landscape under the stormy sky. Tesla is dragged forward as their steps sink into the damp grassland. “Is this not the site of Wardenclyffe?” The Commander asks with genuine intrigue. Tesla shoots him a disgusted glance, prompting the Commander to speak again. “I’m not just a ‘Nazi’. I had talents in the pursuit of science. It’s what cost me my limbs. We were experimenting with explosive capabilities in the Great War. I introduced an experimental chemical element… The resulting explosion killed all of my team. I was left alive; my limbs were as good as dead. When I was found I was abandoned and strapped to a table. I was used for my mind. My knowledge was abused. We have solidarity Tesla.” “I have no solidarity with a man that chooses war over peace.” Tesla’s voice is soft but carries the weight of sorrow. “You’ve forced me to dig up my buried past. I’m an old man, my dreams of stopping the war are just that, dreams. You don’t want to stop it. You revel in the subjugation, the destruction.” Tesla struggles against the men that grip his shoulders in place. “Very well, but we are men that can transform dreams into reality.” The Commander says with a smirk as they stop at a warehouse. It’s rusted and practically derelict. He lays his gloved hand upon the sheet metal door. It falls off its hinges from his touch, it lands on the floor with an ear-shattering clang. As they enter the metallic ‘belly of the beast’ the Commander’s eyes light up. Standing before them is a twenty-foot mangled form of metal. It flows with wires and sports a spiked spiral top. Yet again Tesla is dragged forward the towering structure dwarfs his frail body. He struggles to look upon his creation but with a harsh hand placed behind his neck he is forced to look at it. The Commander snarls at him, “You have ten minutes to have it operational. I want it ready to fire on my command.” … In the TARDIS, Foxworth sheepishly looks around, the hue of the console room seems to be a shade darker on his side. His hands twitch as he observes the Doctor, aggressively flipping switches and turning dials. They only glance at each other occasionally. “You betrayed me Foxworth. Left me for dead on that ship. I know that winning this war means a lot for you.”

She sighs, lightly pulling down a lever. “There are better ways than stabbing your allies in the back.” The Doctor spins the hourglass apparatus, it spins fiercely keeping the grains of sand in a perpetual motion. “Allies?” Foxworth snaps back, “You were under arrest. I was forced to come along with you. My mission was to intercept Tesla from meeting with foreign powers. I didn’t think aliens would be involved!” The Doctor hasn’t been listening, instead she’s tilted a dial and with a sudden shake of turbulence Foxworth is knocked over. “Soz! Bit of turbulence, I’ve made so many short hops in this thing it must be fuming with me.” She awkwardly leans over the console and holds two buttons at once while peddling a lever below. Her movements coincide with the turbulent flight of a TARDIS that’s being pushed to the edge. “At least tell me where we are going Doctor!” Foxworth leans up against a glowing pillar. He struggles to find a grip on the uneven surface. The Doctor looks deeply into a silver surface on the console. It pulsates with co-ordinates and a flurry of hieroglyph Gallifreyans. “Shoreham, New York. About seventy miles from the city. The original site of Tesla’s Wardenclyffe Tower. Why go there though? The whole site got demolished in nineteen seventeen. Unless he managed to save some of his research. It was his greatest achievement and biggest failure.” Foxworth strides up to the console and grips it. “Sorry for not learning the history Doc, but what was Wardenclyffe all about? Was it his death-ray all along?” The Doctor gives a glare. “No! I’ve told you this time and time again. Nikola Tesla is a pacifist. The tower was meant to send wireless signals through the earth, a way to transmit electrical energy. The bloke who funded it, J.P Morgan… Wasn’t impressed as he wanted a radio station. But as you’ve already seen with Nikki, he likes to play people…” … Tesla is crouched on the dirtied steel floor of the warehouse workshop. His hands fumble with the loose wiring under the gargantuan steel structure. He mutters to himself, “Tesla you idiot. This wire is meant to go here and vice-versa!” He smirks to himself, “all my life I went and corrected other’s work. Yet didn’t think to look at my own work…” A metallic bang makes him jump and shock his hands with the wires. “You talk too much Mr. Tesla. Your time is fleeting. We have much to prepare before the Doctor arrives to save you.” Tesla sighs and continues to rewire the machine. He intentionally mismatches the wiring and mutters for the Doctor under his breath… … The TARDIS continues to struggle in its turbulent flight. The interior console room sparks and shudders. Both the Doctor and Foxworth hold on tightly to the console. “Doc! What’s happening?” Foxworth yells through gritted teeth as his fingers ache from gripping tight. The Doctor yet again turns a dial but immediately regrets it as the console room spins with the intense force of an out of control teacup fairground ride. “Don’t worry! I do this all of the time, disruptions in the vortex you know how it is... Whatever the metal bloke has forced Tesla to do it’s already started to rip apart the fabric of reality. Actually, we should be there already!” With that, she slams the lever hard causing the TARDIS to break suddenly. It sends Foxworth tumbling towards the doors, while the Doctor grips on to a pillar behind her. For a moment, the TARDIS is still and silent. Foxworth struggles to stand as he leans against the wooden doors. The Doctor loosens her grip on the pillar and leans on the console, looking deeply into the silvery panel she grins… They’ve arrived and somehow in one piece. “Right,

I’ve landed as close as I can to the nexus point, I.E: the death ray. I’m guessing that we only have a couple of minutes before Tesla has it ready to fire and history is changed and fixed that way forever. Believe me, I’ve dealt with enough fixed points in my lifetimes.” The Doctor strides towards the wooden doors, Foxworth stands aside with the Doctor. “You sure you know what you are doing? I mean, it sounds like you do… You can promise that you’ll sort this right?” The Doctor provides no response as she turns to look at him. Her eyes tell of a thousand storms and a multitude of lifetimes where that very question has been asked. Foxworth nods in acceptance, “I’m sorry for leaving you for dead. I had my duty and put it before everything else… Let’s sort this mess out once and for all.” They both place a hand on the doors and pull. Revealing that they have landed somewhere within the derelict warehouse. They both step out cautiously and crouch around to reach the singular source of light ahead of them. The Doctor views the atrocious display ahead of her, Tesla is yet again being held in place as the Commander holds a switch. “Doctor… Show yourself. We know you would come. It’s just me and Tesla here. I have an ultimatum to propose.” His sly words ring out in the dark warehouse. The Doctor begins to rise to challenge him but is pulled down by Foxworth. “Are you crazy? He’ll kill you and Tesla. Let me go up. My life ain’t as important.” “Don’t be stupid!” The Doctor hisses, “of course you matter, that’s what all of this is about. Every life means something. Even despicable men like him and Viktor.” She looks across to the Commander, he holds a gun to Tesla’s head, she sighs and shakes her head. “Right, you confront him, I’ll get behind him and disarm the ray or something like that.” “How?” Foxworth asks disingenuously. He nervously rubs his hands together… “I dunno, it’s nineteen forty-three! I’ll just pull a load of wires out or summat. Big scary death machines usually fall apart when you do that. You just chat to him and distract him; I’ll go behind ere’ and dismantle the ray.” They both nod in unison as Foxworth stands and heads towards the Commander. His steps are cautious, yet he strides with confidence. “Hey!” Foxworth falls out into the warehouse. It’s sudden nature makes the Commander swiftly turn. His forehead burrows. “It’s you... where’s the Doctor?” “She couldn’t make it. Y’know after throwin’ her into the river. Do you think that’ll stop her? She’ll come here soon and stop this whole thing. It’s a shame cause as an American, there would be nothing I want more than to turn this weapon on you and end the war... Save my brother. He’s out there you know? Fighting your guys, the Japs. Sure, they might not have followed your orders when they bombed Pearl Harbour. When they did though, they sided with you and everything you stand for. I lost friends in that attack.” Foxworth moves closer into the harsh light, fully bathing him in a pure white from above. “This ‘sob’ story? You think it’ll save you? Or Tesla?” The Commander presses the barrel of his handgun closer to Tesla’s forehead. Under the pressure the scientist winces in pain. “No... But there’s someone that will! Now Doc!” Foxworth yells as he ducks behind some metal crates. The Commander turns to find that the Doctor has her screwdriver aimed at the death ray contraption. “Hold it right there mate! Any sudden moves and this warehouse along with us and your guys outside get fried.” The Commander attempts a step forward, “uh uh!” The Doctor tightens her grip on the sonic. “This won’t accomplish anything. More of us will come for Tesla and his research.” The Commander says with a hint of nervousness.

“Wanna put that to the test!” The Doctor grins while wiggling the screwdriver in her fingers. “Now let me speak to Nik...” The Commander twists Tesla to face the Doctor. “Doctor! What are you doing?! You can’t trigger the weapon. It’ll kill us all!” He starts to tear up as the Doctor holds her screwdriver and loose wires together. “Trust me Nik. This’ll be a blast!” Just as the Doctor yells The Commander lunges towards her but she rolls out of the way just in time as he plies into the exposed machinery. The Doctor spins on a heel and triggers the screwdriver... activating the dormant energy within it. The machine grinds to life with a shrill, scraping. As the Commander tried to free himself from the contraption... his limbs begin to buckle and crumpled under the immense magnetic force... “What did you do?! Let me go right now!” The Commander screams over the intense whirring and crunch of steel as it starts to rip away from the Commander. “It was already on... I went around the back and fiddled with it. Instead of firing its energy outwards... I reversed the polarity. Its magnetic force is latching on to the closest element. Your unfortunately shiny limbs. If you struggle anymore, you’ll lose em!” The Doctor responds, while she gently reassures Tesla by escorting him out the warehouse. However, from behind a primal scream rings out... The Commander is pulling himself free, detaching himself from his steel limbs. After a final lunge he rips himself free, his arms are only semi-detached as they leave his arms as jagged shards. He stares down at the fleeting pair with a sinister smirk. The Doctor smirks in return. “I told ya not to move... now you’ve triggered the self- implosion.” The Doctor says coldly. She leads Tesla out of the door while she stands. The Commander releases a guttural hell as he charges towards the exit and the Doctor, his sharpened arms outstretched... Just as he reaches her, she extends a finger to his neck. In a swift move, he’s paralysed. “There’s no running away from this... No final move that results in you winning. Today... History takes its course. You will lose the war and yet again in my lifetimes it’s taken a huge explosion to set it right.” The Doctor looks over his shoulder at the sparking machinery and closes her eyes as it implodes. The shockwave destroys the warehouse as the roof collapses, spilling intense moonlight onto the machinery. The Doctor is blown away, rolling harshly on the rough grassland... The Commander is pulled inwards by the magnetising force. His body melts away as it is disintegrated within the machinery. All that remains is a sliver shard of his metal arms. It glistens under the moonlight... The Doctor yet again struggles to stand as her legs buckle in pain. “This has been one tough day on the job…” She mutters to herself she scans her surroundings and spies Foxworth in the distance. He nods and escapes into the forested area behind the now destroyed warehouse. “He’ll come back. His work with Tesla isn’t finished… I remember now. He gets a load of his stuff from his safe… Not before I can get there first!” She smirks playfully before dropping it. “No… That can wait, It’s January seventh now… Tesla is going to die soon. I have to be there for him…” She wanders around the derelict site, “Nik?! Are you alright? Where are you?” Her voice carries itself across the wasteland before a sudden reply is heard. “Doctor, I’m… I’m here. Beyond the tree.” The Doctor makes a mad dash to Tesla’s side. “It’s all right mate I’m here. I’ll get you to the TARDIS. Have you been in before? I can’t remember.” Tesla holds on to the Doctor’s arm. He shuffles along with his friend towards the charred blue police box standing on the ashes of the death ray. “You would never let me in on your previous visits… You were concerned that I’d get ideas.” They both chuckle as they

reach the doors, the Doctor gives a look of warmth to her friend before lightly pushing on the doors to open them. The sudden glow of orange light makes Tesla squint. They both make a step inside the impossible interior. Tesla takes several steps inside… His eyes widen with the impossible dimensions. He begins to laugh uncontrollably… “All those times they called me mad for believing the impossible… Yet you’ve sailed across the stars and the winds of time in this…” Tesla finds himself speechless as the Doctor skips past him. “It’s proper mint innit? It can take me anywhere, anywhen. I’ve always wanted to take a trip with you my friend. So that starts now!” With a flurry of button presses and a harsh flick of the hourglass the TARDIS begins to groan back to life. The crystalline time rotor rises and falls peacefully. Despite the little turbulence, Tesla grips onto the console. His hands feeling the controls and marvelling at the mismatched madness of such ‘controls’… Both the Doctor and Nikola Tesla laugh warmly as the TARDIS dematerialises, the generated wind swirls the ashes from the death ray, burying the terrible contraption for good…

Chapter Ten

The TARDIS finally flies smoothly through the vortex… This pleases the Doctor as she looks over the silvery console unit, “Yep, that’s cleared up nicely… Although, there’s something that needs sorting out.” The Doctor gently brakes causing the TARDIS to dematerialise. She looks across at a bewildered Tesla, “just a quick stop. Nik… I promise. I’ve just got to step outside for a bit.” The Doctor wanders towards the doors of the TARDIS. She bows her head before pulling the doors gently and stepping out of the TARDIS. Closing the doors behind her gently. Curiously, Tesla stumbles to the doors and pries them gently. Through the seam of the double doors he can see that they have miraculously landed on a grassy field. The shining sun in the sky surprises him greatly. “She wasn’t lying then! Remarkable…” Tesla shakes his head in disbelief as he looks on. His smile soon fades slightly as he spots the assembled headstones ahead of him. He looks up to see that the Doctor is in conversation with a rather plump looking groundskeeper. His head is slightly shaved which shines under the rays of the sun. The groundskeeper nods his head intently at the Doctor. Tesla marvelled at the Doctor’s ability to turn strangers into close, lifelong friends from some smiles and handshakes. While Tesla can’t hear the two over the organic hum of the TARDIS and the wintery breeze; he assumes it’s something bittersweet. After a final handshake and a leap of joy from the groundskeeper he gives a friendly wave as the Doctor turns and heads back to the TARDIS. Behind her is a solid, blank, gravestone. Tesla makes his way to the console as the Doctor bounds back in. “There! All sorted.” She leaps at the controls, turning dials etc. “Doctor, what was that for? Was he a friend?” Tesla inquired. The Doctor bows her head towards the console but smiles warmly… “Oh, that was Terrence. He’s a right storyteller. I’d be there forever listening to his tall and inspiring tales… I’ve just paid his rent for a lifetime. He’ll be able to tell his stories full time now, rather than burying folk. I needed to buy a headstone and burial plot from him…” Her smile fades as she looks towards the time rotor. “A series of events had to be set in motion. A long time ago. I had two very dear friends. They’re currently living in the city right now. They’re going to die in forty- or fifty-years’ time. They need to be buried there. So that one of my darkest reminders can exist in my past but their future…” “A reminder?” Tesla looks up in surprise. The Doctor responds, “to keep my friends close and never take them for granted. I tend to get attached to people easily. It’s more than being sociable though, for those special people in my lives... it’s so much more.” She pulls the lever down and the TARDIS groans again as the engines fire up. “I’ve got to show you something Nik, it’s time for your reminder…” … The landscape is dark, yet the air is filled with anticipated breaths. In the darkness people stand ahead of a stage and look to the silhouettes around them. Their clothes are certainly of a higher class the closer to the stage they are. In the distance, a small light flickers and dims intermittently before finally stopping. The TARDIS stands amongst a large fountain overlooking the entire landscape. The door is slightly ajar as Tesla steps out into the darkness. “Where have you taken me? The darkness scares me so much.” He takes some tentative steps and bumps into the walled border of the fountain he grips it and seats himself down on the solid stone. Finally, the Doctor exits from the warm glow into the dark. “Ah! We haven’t missed it! Tesla, you about?” She wanders forward and is gripped by the arm by Tesla. “Oh, there you are, are you okay?” She sits next to her friend as he shivers against the night-time chill. “Where have you brought us Doctor, you said this was to be a ‘reminder’ for me. As the headstone was to you. Am I to receive a dark reminder too?” Tesla nervously stammers and grips against the Doctor’s arm. She responds by patting Tesla’s arm, hoping to soothe her worried friend. “No, Nik. You deserve the brightest of reminders… To remind you that you are the light in the darkness of humanity!” The Doctor announces as a young, black haired man steps onto the stage ahead of them. He’s lit with a singular spotlight. It shines against his black tailored suit. Next to him stands a rotund, balding man in a similar black suit. He grips a large, metal switch. They stand on the centre of the stage… “Doctor, I know what this is… This is 1893… The Chicago World’s Fair! I’m about to…” The Doctor grips her friend tentatively as through the stunned silence the rotund man announces… “People of the World’s Columbian Exposition! I bring to you… The City of Light!” With that, the switch is thrown… Yet nothing happens. There are gasps of disappointment. A rumble of grumbling ensures their expectations are suddenly dashed. Tesla frets, “no! this isn’t what happens… The lights! Where are the lights? Doctor please… Where are the lights?” The Doctor smirks as she holds her screwdriver up to the air. In a flash of brilliant yellow the fair suddenly explodes with light. Along the fountain rows and chains of lightbulbs shine everlastingly against the white stone of the surrounding buildings. Below them, the water feature reflects brilliantly the majestic lights of the fair… Above them, spotlights light up the sky in a range of fantastical colours. Amongst the amazed spectators Tesla stands, staring into the sky… His lights stand with the stars. The Doctor strides up to Tesla, her hands in her coat pocket. “You messed up a little bit of the wiring. It just needed a bit ‘sonicing’ to get it working’ properly.” Tesla turns and embraces the Doctor in a hug. He holds her tightly with tears in his eyes. She pats him on the back thoughtfully. “Come on… There’s the electric hall to see!” They both stride side by side moving through the bemused spectators into the east side of the fair… … The hall was packed with eager and excitable spectators. They crowd around the various stalls displaying the wonders of electricity. The walls were lit with fluorescent neon lights, as fluorescent as 1893 could muster. They dimly flicker as the Doctor and Tesla wander through the crowds. “It was much better being behind the stall then being amongst the people.” Tesla remarks as he awkwardly squeezes past a small crowd. After taking a few steps he stops before a stone monument. He gazes in bittersweet awe as it displays: WESTINGHOUSE ELECTRIC & MANUFACTURING CO. below it, the chiselled lettering reflects a sense of pride in his eyes: & TESLA POLYPHASE SYSTEM. “My life’s work laid before me… It’s remarkable.” Tesla mutters to himself as he turns to the Doctor who had been quietly observing him. “You’ve done so much in your life that pinning it down to one reminder was really, really hard. I mean, harnessing Niagara Falls? When you first received the signals from space. The trials and tribulations you went through. You’re an inspiration to every man, woman and child in this building and beyond.” The Doctor holds onto his shoulder and guides him towards a smaller wooden stage. A metal platform is stood in the centre. It’s surrounded with motors and interconnected wires… “Oh, Doctor don’t show me the egg. It was a silly idea…” Tesla bemoans but it’s too late as the younger man from the lighting ceremony steps on. Now at a closer distance, Tesla gasps, it’s him. The showman gestures wildly with his hands and speaks with a confident, warm Serbian accent… “For months, the ‘Great’ Thomas Edison has lied about the dangers of alternating current. Going as far as to provide barbaric demonstrations to the public…” Like an overdramatic showman, the younger Tesla holds a pause. Looking on, the elderly Tesla palms his head in embarrassment but smirks all the same. The showman continues… “In front of you, I present… The Egg of Columbus!” Within his grip the showman holds a golden egg and places it gently onto the metal surface. “With the power of my alternating current, watch as the Egg dances!” True to his word, the Egg, upon being placed on the table began to spin wildly across the metal surface. Tesla looked among the crowd at the faces in awe of the delightful trick. The younger Tesla steps away from the metal table and behind a curtain. The crowd begins to murmur and whisper amongst themselves. The Doctor leans and whispers into her friend’s ear… “This is my favourite bit…” With that, the youthful Tesla yet again steps out, his clothes have changed. He wears a more fancy-dress tuxedo with a top hat. “Behold! As I bathe myself in the power of alternative current!” The lights suddenly shut off, much to the surprise of the spectators then suddenly… A singular glowing form shines ahead of them. It’s Tesla, standing proudly on the stage his suit pulses and flickers with light. Like a man cast into a raging, burning flame. After several moments the building’s lights are returned and Tesla bows to the crowd. Before he leaves, he catches sight of the Doctor and unbeknownst to him, his older self. He politely nods and smiles to the two before departing through the curtain. As the two head back to the TARDIS, they continue to marvel at the fanciful tube lights and expansive spotlights… “Despite all the brilliant colours and lights of the universe… There’s not many that compares to this night. What d’ya reckon Nik?” She turns to look at her friend but sees that he is struggling as he clutches his chest and begins to collapse into her arms. “Oh no! Hang on Nik, let me get you home!” They enter the TARDIS hastily and moments later it begins to depart. The younger Tesla catches sight of this and smiles warmly. … The early morning sunrise shines along the skyscrapers of New York City. The noise from below them begins to rise as commuters make their way. The New Yorker hotel is now beginning to fill with people as they enter and leave the hotel with bags and assorted items… However, life was beginning to slow down in room 3327. The wheezing and groaning flood the cramped room as the TARDIS struggles to materialise but manages to slot into place across from the inventor’s bed. The door creaks open, the orange hue of the TARDIS interior casts a warm light in the hotel room. The Doctor holds a struggling Tesla in her arms. She guides them to the bed; it’s neatly made and features no evidence that it has been slept in. The Doctor turns her head, “Nik, I can take you to the hospital! You don’t have to die like this. In here...” She gestures around to the hotel room, it’s perhaps the most claustrophobic place in the universe!” Tesla lays himself down, patting his chest he solemnly replies, “Doctor, my friend. With your marvellous machine you reignited the brightest spark in my lifetime.” The Doctor kneels behind the aged man, gripping his hand warmly. “Nikola, through your genius and generosity. History will smile kindly upon you.” Tesla firmly holds her hand, a nonverbal appreciation. “Doctor, I can feel the end. Just, before my light is snuffed out, answer me this. You told me earlier tonight that you had committed

genocide with a machine similar to mine. Was this true? I must know, did my friend who preaches love and peace, commit the ultimate sin of character?” His eyes water as he turns to the Doctor. He grips her hand. “Yes, I did Nik. But I changed my mind, it just wasn’t me. It wasn’t what being ‘The Doctor’ meant. To me, to you, to my many mates. I had to honour that name.” Tesla smiles proudly before gripping her hand again. “Before you go… I want to thank you, even in my darkest hours… You believed in my humanity. You’ve stood by me throughout my life and here you are at its end. I am honoured to call you… My best ‘mate’ Doctor.” The both begin to giggle as Tesla coughs violently and with a final, hoarse cough… The air from his lungs escapes him. His eyes dim as they stare everlastingly at the warmth of the glowing sun. The Doctor gives a final grip of her friend’s hand and lays it across his chest. Standing over him, she delicately lays her fingers and closes his eyelids. She takes several steps back and looks over his work on the makeshift desk. She smirks as yet again they’re covered in Ancient Gallifreyan symbols. She tuts and shakes her head as she begins to bundle up the work and take it into the TARDIS. She departs soon after… Leaving Tesla to rest. … In the murky afternoon outside Park Hill, Graham, Yaz, and Ryan are stood outside. They await the wheezing, groaning. They look at each other nervously, when Ryan speaks up, “do you think she’s alright? She’s been gone ages… Could’a been eaten or summat.” “The Doctor? Eaten? Don’t be daft. That woman has leaped from the jaws of death more times than I’ve made pickle sarnies.” Graham pipes up, trying to defuse the nervous atmosphere. “She’ll come. I know it” Yaz cuts in, “remember that day with the giant spiders? She couldn’t bring herself to leave. She also can’t drive to save her life,” Yaz is suddenly cut off by a sudden gust of wind as it swirls around the trio. Ahead of them on the raised stone step the TARDIS flashes into view. Their smiles grow as they eagerly step inside the oddly unlocked door. Upon crossing the dimensional threshold their faces are lit with the familiar orange hue of the interior dimension. “I’m back!” The Doctor gleefully leaps from behind the console, scaring the daylights out of Graham as he leaps back. The room fills with laughter as they hug and gather around the console. The festivities soon end when Yaz notices the Doctor’s torn coat and ragged hair. “Doctor? Are you alright? Your coat and face…” “I knew it! Ya got eaten didn’t ya!?” Ryan jumps excitedly but his celebration is cut short when he is stared down by the gang. “No Ryan. I Didn’t get eaten… I lost a good friend today. He was a real bright spark.” The Doctor explains slowly as the others stand silent and in awe. The others pat her on the shoulder and nod. “We can wait for a bit Doc? You can get some new clothes and clean yourself up a bit?” Graham chimes in with a warm smile. The Doctor turns away and flicks some switches on the console. “Yeah, I’d like that. Thanks guys… I’m gonna put her in flight while I get sorted…” She lifts her hands from the console and wanders down a lonely corridor, leaving the gang to look on. They turn to look amongst themselves then smile. “She’ll be alright, the Doctor has us.” Yaz says confidently. They’re suddenly hugged from behind by the Doctor, she’s returned with a new shirt and coat. Her face is still bruised from the previous day’s events. She strides to the console and begins to twist the hourglass. It spins with immensity as she spins on her heels. “Thought about where you want to go yet?” Her smile is gleeful as her friends shake their heads with a resounding

no. She turns to the rising time rotor… “Very well… Pilot’s choice!” The Doctor slams the lever down and the interior dimension begins to rumble. The exterior blue box fades from its stone plinth outside Park Hill. Taking the Doctor and her friends to adventures new…

END.