The Ghosts of Gallifrey
by Viv Arney
Donna frowned as she made her way down one of the seemingly endless corridors of the TARDIS. She was worried. The Doctor had been acting strangely lately - 'Well, stranger than usual,' she corrected herself.
Two days ago, they had been in the console room when the TARDIS had made a single, odd, gonging sound and the Doctor had set the TARDIS in motion, complained of a headache and gone to bed. She hadn't seen him since. She had tried taking trays of food to his room, but they were left untouched. Now, after two days, she was more than a little worried.
"Enough is enough," she muttered as she rapped smartly on his door. "Doctor?"
The answer was a weak, but insistent. "Go away!"
Donna put her hands on her hips and glared at the closed door. She rapped again. "Doctor, what's the matter with you?"
"I just need to . . . rest."
"You need to eat something," she snapped.
"Not just now, Tegan," he moaned.
Donna glared at the closed door again. Who the bloody Hell was Tegan? Something was definitely wrong. She swung the door open and stormed into the room. She hadn't been in here often, but she was unprepared for what she saw.
If anything, the Doctor's room was in more of a shambles than usual. Clothes and odd bits of debris were strewn everywhere. One look at the thin figure on the bed convinced her she'd done the right thing by bursting in. The Time Lord was huddled in the huge, canopied bed with what looked like every blanket in the TARDIS covering him. His face was pale and despite the fact that he was covered in sweat, he was shivering violently.
She gasped. "What's wrong?"
"Not sure," he mumbled. "C-can't seem to get warm. Voices . . . in my head . . . "
She moved to the bed and touched his forehead.
"You're burning up. You need a doctor," she said.
The Doctor closed his eyes. Her cool fingers felt good on his burning skin and he couldn’t suppress a disappointed groan as she pulled them away. "I suppose you're right," he admitted with a shiver. "Can't think where to go just now."
"There's got to be somewhere."
”Just let me rest a bit, Jo. I'll be fine soon," he mumbled as he drifted back into unconsciousness.
Donna cleared the seat of an odd looking chair and sat down to wait. She cursed herself for not taking that first aid course her mother had urged on her last year. Maybe then she'd have some idea how to help him, but even the doctors on Earth would have no clue what to do for an alien with two hearts.
After a while, she remembered something she'd see on some, retro, melodramatic TV show years ago and left the room. It was probably useless since she had no idea what was wrong with the Doctor, but it was something she could try. She returned with a large bowl of water from the TARDIS' galley and began to bathe his sweat soaked face, neck and chest. She couldn't really tell if it was helping the Doctor, but it made her feel better than just sitting like a lump in that funny looking chair. At least she was doing SOMETHING.
XXXXX
Moira Reilly patted the warm flank of the cow she'd just finished milking. "There ya are, my dear," she said as she stood with her milk bucket. "That'll do ya till later."
The cow let out a low moo as Moira closed the door to the stall and walked slowly back to the kitchen entrance of Vaucher Hall. Cook was already in a foul mood this morning and it was almost worth the long slog in the gleaming, ankle deep snow just to get out of her way for even a few minutes. Moira looked up. It was still dark and the morning stars shone brightly above her. She saw a shooting star tear across the sky and, with a grin, wished that Cook would be in a better mood when she got back to the kitchen.
“About time, ye got back, girl!" Cook snapped as soon as she entered the almost too warm kitchen and Moira wished she hadn't wasted her wish on the grumpy old woman.
Moira gave her the best apologetic expression she could manage. "Sorry, but the stars this morning...."
"You and your stars!" Cook shook her head and slammed a slab of dough on the worn work table. "Now, put down that pail and get to work."
Moira put a clean cloth over the pail and set it aside.
"Mind you hurry up too," Cook said and her craggy face softened.
XXXXX
"Keen to drown me, are you?"
Donna looked down to see a pair of tired, brown eyes peering up at her. "Sorry, it was the only thing I could think to do," she said quietly. "How are you feeling?"
He considered her question for a moment. "Actually, I am feeling a little better," he admitted, with a soft smile.
“Well enough to eat?"
He frowned and shook his head slightly. "Oh, no, I don't think that would be a good idea, right now."
"With no one at the controls, aren't we going to crash into something?"
"No, we're in the Vortex, it's the safest place we could be with me in this condition."
"Doctor, who are Jo and Tegan?"
His face tightened. "Where did you hear those names?"
She told him.
"Oh," he said, nodding slightly. "They were friends who traveled with me a long time ago."
"Could they help you?"
A fond smile crossed his face. "No, I'm afraid not."
She started to ask him what he meant by that, but he'd drifted off again.
XXXXX
Moira jumped as one of the stable boys burst into the kitchen.
"There's something burning in the fields!" Billy shouted then tore off farther into the house. There was a rush of people out of the Hall. Moira quickly put down the knife she'd been using and bolted out to see what the commotion was about. She arrived in time to see the men extinguishing the last of the fire and peered curiously through the smoke at a large, shining black object half buried in the ground.
"What ye suppose it is?" the stable boy asked quietly.
"It's a meteorite," Sir Douglas said, approaching the still smoking piece of land. "We'll wait until it cools down before we try to find out more."
XXXXX
Donna jumped at the sound of a ragged, pain filled scream from the Doctor. She rushed to the bed.
"No!" he shouted. "No!"
"Doctor, what . . . " He was usually so strong that it terrified her to see him in this condition.
He sat up too quickly and gasped. His face went white and he fell back onto the bed, but he didn't answer - he never had the chance - the TARDIS rocked violently and hurled them both to the floor.
XXXXX
Sir Douglas Vaucher frowned down at the now cool object that had imbedded itself in the north end of his wheat field. He'd expected it to be a rock of some kind, but it was a smooth black cylinder. It was burned and pitted, there were a long series of scored patches on the outside. Whatever had caused those score marks had not penetrated the outer casing and no tools he or his workers tried seemed to be able to make a dent in the thing. There wasn't a seam anywhere that they could find. Sir Douglas was a tall man, but even he had difficulty reaching the top of the cylinder. He'd considered sending Billy off to the local constable, but he knew they would haul it off to London and some part of him wanted to study it himself. Maybe later, he'd get a message to London.
Sir Douglas hit it with a hammer and it gave a muffled thunk - not the kind of sound he felt it should make. "Hoskins, you and Jessup haul it into the gate house yard for now.' he ordered and walked back to the house without looking back to see whether they were following his instructions
XXXXX
Donna woke to find herself face down on the cluttered floor. The Doctor was lying on his side not far away. She checked to make sure he was still breathing then stood and rushed to the console room. The six-sided console was dark. Donna had been with the Doctor long enough to know it was a bad sign. She jumped as she heard shuffling feet and a dazed Time Lord joined her.
"Oh, this isn't good," he said, patting the TARDIS console lovingly. "C'mon, old girl, don't fail me now." He clutched at the console with one hand, trying to keep his balance as he flipped one switch after another, his face growing more concerned as nothing he tried seemed to make a difference. “You haven’t been playing about with the gravity, have you?”
She gave him a puzzled frown.
“Feels like the gravity’s up to about five G’s,” he muttered.
"Are we still moving?" she asked.
He shook his head then groaned in pain. "No, we've stopped, but I can't tell where." He put a hand to his temple. “Oh, my head.”
"Did we run into something?"
He balled up a fist and gave the console a solid whack. The TARDIS let out an insulted growl then sprang to life. "That's better," he mumbled and collapsed.
Donna ran to him, but there was nothing she could do. She briefly considered trying to put him back in bed, but he was much heavier than he looked. She couldn’t budge him. She finally ran into his room and returned with a pillow and blanket. She tucked the blanket around him, slipped the pillow under his head and left him where he was.
XXXXX
Sir Douglas looked up from the book he was reading to see the kitchen maid standing beside his chair holding a tray.
She curtsied. "Cook heard you'd not eaten your lunch so she sent me with a tray for you."
He laid down the book and indicated that she should set down the tray on a nearby table. "Thank you, Moira"
She nodded.
"I was so busy studying that...thing earlier I forgot to eat. Thank Cook for me, will you?"
She nodded again. "What is it, sir, that thing out there?"
He took a bite of food. "I don't know yet. It's badly burnt, but it's not a normal meteorite. It's a metal container of some sort. I haven't discovered how to open it just yet, but I will."
"Hoskins said it was..."
"Yes, a demon cast from Heaven," he acknowledged with a grin "Tell Hoskins he's to mind the stable."
She nodded and backed out of the room.
XXXXX
Donna saw the Doctor stir and went to him.
He took a deep breath. "Well, I can't lay about here all day," he muttered, reaching for her hand.
Donna reached down and helped him to his feet. "I wish you would tell me what is happening to you and the TARDIS."
He swayed a bit. "I would be glad to tell you, if I knew. If I didn't know better, I'd swear it was a telepathic attack from another Time Lord... but they're... all gone now." he said sadly.
"Are you sure?"
His dark eyes filled with an incredible sadness as he nodded. "I'd know." He looked down at his rumpled and sweat stained clothes. "I'll go get changed and we'll go out and have a look around." When the Doctor returned a short time later, he looked good as new - if you ignored the paleness of his face and his worried expression.
He opened the TARDIS doors and they stepped out into a snow covered landscape. There was a large mansion in the distance and various out-buildings. Donna shivered in the cold. "This looks like something out of those Victorian romances my mum likes to read. Where are we?"
The Doctor looked around and spotted an ornate sign hanging from the gate house. "Vaucher Hall, I've been here before." he announced. "Now, if we only knew WHEN we are." They heard approaching hoof beats and turned to see a well-dressed, handsome man with longish dark blond hair and pale blue eyes riding up on an enormous stallion.
"Who the blazes are you?" the man asked.
"I'm the Doctor. This is Donna."
The other man looked around them to see only the TARDIS and their footprints in the otherwise unbroken gleaming snow. "How did you get here?" he asked.
"Failed transport," the Doctor responded. "Douglas?" he asked in a puzzled voice.
The man nodded. "I'm Sir Douglas Vaucher."
The Doctor nodded. "I knew your father, Sir Douglas."
Vaucher looked at him oddly. "My father has been dead for fifteen years, sir."
The Doctor looked stricken. "I'm so sorry. Did he ever get that American wheat to grow here?"
Vaucher smiled. "No, he never did. It didn't stop him from trying every season." He dismounted and came over to shake the Doctor's hand. "Not THE Doctor?"
The Doctor grinned. "Afraid so."
Vaucher glared. "The last time you were here we nearly lost the estate."
"It was an accident, I assure you!" the Doctor said, holding up one hand as though he were taking an oath.
Suddenly the Doctor frowned as if he were hearing something he couldn't quite make out, then cried out and dropped to his knees in the snow, clutching at his head, his breath coming in long ragged gasps.
Donna dropped down beside the Doctor. She wrapped her arms around him as he shuddered and moaned in pain.
Vaucher crouched beside them. "What's wrong with your friend?"
Donna looked up. "He's... been sick," she answered.
"Well, we'd better get the both of you inside and out of this cold. Come along, Miss." Vaucher picked the Doctor up and slung him up onto the big horse as if he weighed nothing and led the horse toward the house. Vaucher half-carried the Doctor into a large sitting room and put him onto a chase lounge near the huge fireplace.
"Thank you," the Doctor sighed as the fire's warmth flowed through him. "It's good to be among friends."
Vaucher handed them each a glass of brandy. "Here, this might help."
Donna took a sniff and put hers aside. She'd never liked the taste of brandy much.
The Doctor took a sip, feeling the liquid burn in his throat, sending warmth through him. "Very nice," he said as his head stopped spinning for the first time in days.
"Now, what are you two doing out in the snow?" Vaucher asked. "Did you come to see the meteorite?"
The Doctor almost dropped the glass of brandy. "Meteorite?"
Sir Douglas nodded and told the two visitors about the huge black cylinder.
The Doctor downed the rest of the brandy in a single swallow and put the glass down on a nearby table. "May we see it?"
"If you've been ill, perhaps it should wait until you've recovered, Doctor"
The Doctor stood. "Please."
"Very well, I'll have some warmer clothing brought first.
XXXXXX
Sir Douglas lead the travelers to the gate house yard. As soon as they approached the yard, the Doctor's face paled and he grabbed at the gate for support. Donna moved toward him worriedly.
"I'm... all right, Donna," he assured her. "I.... No, it can't be."
She followed his gaze. "What is it?"
He approached the cylinder slowly. "It's a TARDIS escape pod."
She frowned. "I didn't know we had an escape pod."
He gave her a wan smile. "WE don't. The escape pod from my TARDIS is long gone. We had to jettison it at one point." He made a face. "And the Zero Room."
She reached to touch it. "No! Don't!" he shouted.
She froze. "Why not?"
"Donna, my people are all dead. This has to be a trap."
Sir Douglas walked over and placed a hand on the cylinder. "My men and I have all touched it several times today, Doctor. I even hit it with a hammer two hours ago."
Donna's eyes widened. That was about the time the TARDIS and the Doctor had had such a violent reaction.
"Oh, it wouldn't react to you, Sir Douglas," the Doctor explained. "It's only meant to be opened by a time traveler like myself, or Donna since she's with me."
"Could it be a message for you?" Donna asked.
Vaucher gave the cylinder a healthy slap and the Doctor let out a sharp cry and clutched at his head in pain.
There was a flash of anger in the Doctor's face. "Don't DO that!" he snapped as he straightened up a moment later..
"I'm sorry, Doctor, but it DOES seem to be attuned to you somehow," Vaucher said.
The Time Lord frowned. "Yes, it does, doesn't it?" he agreed. He took a deep breath. "Very well, Sir Douglas, you have a point." He approached the cylinder cautiously. "Hullo? Anybody in there? Can you hear me?" he called.
He got no response. “All right then, plan B.”
Finally, he extended a shaking hand toward the scorched metal. He pulled it back suddenly. "Donna, get well back," he warned and stood immobile until she moved back toward the gate house. He laid his hand on the side of the cylinder. There was a slight click and a piece of the cylinder fell away. It was all the Doctor and Vaucher could do to catch the body that fell from the opening.
The Doctor's eyes brimmed with tears as he took in the familiar features of the unconscious man. A deep gash ran across the right cheek and he was covered in blood, but the man was alive. The Doctor held the limp body for a long moment and wept, his thin body shaking with emotions he hadn't let himself feel in so long. Donna knelt beside him and put a hand on his shoulder.
"Who is it, Doctor?"
The Doctor looked up into her worried face. "His name is Vash, Donna. He's my son."
"But he's so much older..."
The Doctor looked down. "It's complicated, but this IS my son and he's alive."
"Well, he won't be if he stays in this dreadful cold much longer," Vaucher said. "I'll have my men put the cylinder inside now it's been opened."
The Doctor nodded and reluctantly allowed the other man to pick Vash up off the ground and carry him into the Hall. He followed slowly, tears still running down his face, Donna's arm around him.
XXXXX
'Vaucher certainly was efficient,' the Doctor thought hours later as he sat at Vash's bedside. Within minutes of their return to the house Vash had been stripped of his bloody clothing, his wounds treated and he’d been installed in a warm bed in a chamber on the first floor.
A pretty young girl named, Moira, had been ordered to make sure the two Gallifreyans were kept comfortable while Vaucher left them to attend to other matters on the grounds.
The moment he'd touched the cylinder, the Doctor's pain and confusion had abated a bit, but it was still there like a dull ache, oppressive and insistent. He still felt weak and shaky after two days of near constant pain, but he couldn’t give in to it now the way he had earlier while he’d been surrounded by the safety of the TARDIS.
"Doctor, can I get you anything," Moira asked in a soft voice. "Sir Douglas says you are to have whatever you want."
He smiled at the girl. "A cup of tea would be nice, Moira, thank you. Has Donna gone to bed?"
"Yes sir. She said you should go to bed as well."
"Well, she's actually right, but..." his eyes darted to the bed.
"I could sit with him for you, sir. I swear I won't take my eyes off him and come get you as soon as he even stirs," she offered.
"Thank you, Moira, but I'd rather stay here."
She nodded and left the room.
Memories swam through the Doctor's mind. He could remember the births of each of his sons and daughter and the heartbreak of losing Tula, his wife, at such a young age. As he sat in the darkened room with only the light from the fireplace and the small candle burning, he felt himself releasing all the pain and sadness he'd held in for so long. The Time War had been devastating, but if Vash had survived, surely others might have as well. After so many years of pain and sorrow, there was a glimmer of hope. He started at the touch of a gentle hand on his arm. Moira was standing beside him holding a tray with tea and a plate with some small meat pies.
"I'm sorry I woke you, sir. I’ve brought your tea. Cook thought you might be hungry," she said in a whisper.
He patted her cheek gently. "It's all right, Moira. I wasn’t sleeping - just remembering."
"Are you sure you wouldn't like me to sit with him?"
He gave the girl a penetrating look. He knew servants in this time worked hard all day long. and Moira couldn't be more than 13 years old. "How long since you got up this morning, young lady?"
"Quarter past five, sir, just like always. I help milk the cows in the morning."
He smiled at her. "Toddle off to bed then. Sleep well."
Moira nodded and gave him a shy smile as she left the room.
The Doctor hadn't realized just how hungry he'd been until he looked down at the plate and found it empty.
XXXXX
The next morning, Donna's first thoughts were of the dizzying events of the day before and she climbed out of bed to find a beautiful sapphire blue velvet dress laid out on the small loveseat with all the appropriate undergarments. Donna held the dress to her chest as she looked into the mirror. It reminded her a bit of her wedding dress, but for the color. It took her a few moments to figure out how to get into some of the garments, but she couldn't get the buttons by herself and, with a shrug, pulled the bell rope.
A pretty young woman appeared and introduced herself as Holly and soon had Donna dressed and her hair arranged.
"I could get used to this," Donna said as she stood to look at herself in the mirror.
She suddenly remembered how she had arrived and went quickly to the room where Vaucher and one of his men had put Vash to bed the evening before.
She found the Doctor sound asleep, his lanky form sprawled in a loveseat by the bed and smiled. She couldn't help thinking just how much he looked like a tired little boy with all the pain and concern wiped from his face by a peaceful sleep.
She glanced over at the figure on the bed. Vash was sleeping peacefully. He looked better this morning too. Now that he’d been cleaned up, she could sort of see a very vague resemblance to the Doctor, even though she would never be able to explain HOW they resembled each other - this man had a cloud of white hair and looked a good thirty years older than the Doctor. She shrugged it off. Maybe it was one of those mental tricks of his - like the TARDIS translating languages or something. Smiling, she left the two men and wandered off downstairs in search of breakfast. If she knew the Doctor, he would wake up ravenous. She found Sir Douglas sitting at the breakfast table despite the relatively early hour. Unlike most of the gentry of the time, Sir Douglas seemed to be a land owner active in the running of his estate.
"Good morning, Miss Noble," Sir Douglas said as she approached. "Help yourself," he nodded toward the buffet along one wall where a selection of food was kept warm by a series of small pottery jars of burning coals. "Did you sleep well?"
Donna picked up a plate and put some eggs, sausage and fresh baked biscuits onto it. "Yes, I did. I assume I have you to thank for this lovely gown?"
He nodded. "It was my late wife's," he explained. "I had Holly put it into your room this morning. It looks very nice on you. You're welcome to keep it if you like. It’s not doing anyone any good in a clothes press."
“Thank you so much. It IS beautiful.” She smiled. "I suppose I didn't look very feminine in my other clothes."
"Well, I assume they are perfectly appropriate for your time, but I prefer women not to dress as men."
"I fully understand, Sir Douglas."
"I'm assuming you've looked in on the Doctor and his son."
She nodded. "Sound asleep, the both of them. I'm glad to see it, the Doctor's been under a great deal of stress lately."
"He looked none too healthy last night,"
She nodded. “He’s been like this for two days now. I don’t have any medical training so I suppose we’ll just have to give him time to recover.” She sighed and her eyes darted in the direction of the upstairs room.
"My father said the Doctor could travel in Time.”
She nodded. “Yes.”
“If you don’t mind my curiosity... may I ask just when is your time, Miss Noble," Sir Douglas asked.
Donna frowned slightly. The Doctor had warned her about questions like this, but she saw no problem with answering the man's question since he already knew a great deal about the Time Lord. "It's 2007 where I come from." Sir Douglas' eyes widened with amazement. "Have you been traveling with him long?"
"Only a few months, but it's been... interesting."
"After what happened here 30 years ago, I can well imagine," he said. "I was away at the time, all I know is what my father told me. Quite a time."
"It usually is with the Doctor about." She finished her breakfast and, with Vaucher's help, made plates for the Doctor and his son and they carried them upstairs.
The Doctor was still asleep when they entered, but, when the aroma of bacon filled the room, he opened his eyes and looked around excitedly. "Food!"
Donna waited until he'd sat up and placed the plate in his outstretched hands with a grin. "I thought you'd be hungry."
"Starving! Thank you!" he agreed as he dug in. "Nice dress. The blue suits you."
Donna nodded in Sir Douglas's direction. "It was his idea."
"Nice choice. Looks a bit like your wedding dress."
She grinned at him. "At least it has pockets."
He returned her grin and kept eating.
Vaucher looked around. "You know, I could have had a cot brought in Doctor."
"Nonsense, I was perfectly comfortable," he said around a mouthful of sausage.
"Vash looks a bit better today," Donna said as Sir Douglas set the other plate down on the small table.
"Yes, he does."
Donna sat beside the Doctor. "Doctor, what was it that..."
He shrugged. "I'm not sure - I mean I have ideas, but..."
"You said something about a telepathic attack."
He nodded. "I'm just making a guess, but it may have been a distress call."
"But why would it make you so... sick?"
He rubbed his neck. "I don’t know, exactly. I can still feel it, it comes and goes.” He winced. “Seems to be on a three hour cycle. It was worse while we were in the TARDIS.”
"She brought us here, didn't she?" Donna asked.
He nodded. "Yes, that crash we felt was her taking us out of the Vortex and bringing us here."
Donna smiled. "She's a smart ship."
"I'll have to give her a proper tune-up one day."
The figure on the bed stirred and the Doctor moved so fast he almost knocked both plates of food onto the carpet. "Vash? Can you hear me?" The Doctor said, taking his son's hand.
The other man opened his eyes and stared up into the face of a brown-eyed stranger, but the second he felt the thin fingers clutching his own, his eyes flew open in recognition.
"Father, you're here."
"Yes, Vash, I'm here. We're among friends. You're safe."
The other man's eyes closed in relief. "The High Council... they sent me to find you."
"They're alive?" the Doctor asked in shock.
"Yes... alive."
"Gallifrey was destroyed. I SAW it... I FELT it happen."
"We had to... had to..." Vash's voice dropped to a whisper and he was still.
"Vash?" the Doctor gasped in concern.
"Let him sleep, Doctor. He needs rest and so do you," Donna advised.
"NO!" The Doctor stood and began pacing wildly around the room his face shifting from pain to sorrow to anger with each step. "You don't... can't understand.” His face contorted in anguish. “I caused it! It was my TARDIS that sent the final command, but something... went wrong.... the Dalek fleet, my planet, my people all destroyed in a ball of flame and it was all my fault. I FELT them die! It was agony! I WANTED to... I wanted to die with them, but I didn’t die, I regenerated. All this time, I've been asking why I survived when everyone... everything I knew was gone." He dropped down beside her on the loveseat and buried his face in his hands. "All this time!"
Donna put her arm across his heaving shoulders and felt hot tears running down her own face. She'd always known he'd had some kind of terrible pain hiding deep inside him, she'd seen glimpses of it, but she'd never guessed it could be something so horrible. She rubbed his back gently. She knew there was nothing she could say to comfort her friend.
Sir Douglas was at a loss for words. He hadn't understood a word spoken between the Doctor and his son, but he'd seen the pain in the Doctor's face and understood most of what he'd said to his companion.
The Doctor stood suddenly and bolted from the room. He ignored Donna's cries for him to come back and tore down the stairs two at a time. She heard the front door slam and went to the window. She saw him drop to his knees in the snow and looked away as he threw up the food he'd just eaten. Even after there was nothing left, his stomach kept heaving. He finally stumbled to his feet and started running. He didn't seem to have any direction in mind, he just ran.
She started after him, but Vaucher caught her arm. "Leave him."
"But..."
Vaucher's blue eyes were filled with concern. "I've seen this before, Miss Noble. I didn't understand everything he said, but I was a soldier myself. I know what it is to survive a battle when your comrades have died. If even half of the stories my father told me about the Doctor were true, I'm sure the battle he was in must have been indescribable. A battle across galaxies! He needs time to deal with this new revelation. I'll have my men keep an eye on him to make sure he doesn't harm himself. You and Moira can stay with Vash. After all this, we must see to his son."
XXXXX
Donna was with Vash several hours later when he woke again.
"Where is my father?" he asked weakly.
She shrugged. "I dunno. After you dropped that bombshell on him, he left."
"I have to talk to him, explain what happened."
"What DID happen?" she asked angrily.
"Who are you?"
She gave him a stern look. "Donna Noble. I'm a friend of your father's and I don't like seeing him hurt."
He looked away for a moment, then back at her. "I'm glad he has such a friend."
"Help me understand what happened."
"I'd rather tell my father."
"Well, he's not here and I don't know when he'll be back," she snapped. "I've seen him do some incredible things, but I've never seen him so upset before."
"I'd hoped I was bringing him good news."
"It may be, once he gets past the shock of it all." She sighed and patted his hand. "It's gone six o'clock. Are you up to a bite or two?"
He nodded. "Yes, I think so."
"I'll get you something."
XXXXXX
Hoskins and Jessup found the Doctor lying motionless in the snow in the farthest corner of the estate just before sunset. Sir Douglas had advised them not to approach the visitor, just follow him until he wore himself out, but make sure he didn't harm himself.
The snow had thickened during the day and it was growing steadily colder. After they'd seen him drop to the snow and lie still for a while, they picked him up and carried him back to the Hall.
Moira had seen their approach. She and Donna were waiting for them at the door. Moira rushed ahead to build up the fire in the room Sir Douglas had assigned to the Doctor while the men carried their unconscious guest up the stairs.
Donna's heart tore at her as she saw the Doctor, blue with cold, being hauled up the stairs. She rushed to the kitchen and asked Cook for hot tea or soup to be sent to the room and rushed to find the door locked.
"Let me in!" she shouted, pounding on the door. She heard a click and Jessup stared at her.
"We're just putting him to bed now, Miss." Jessup warned. "T'ain't fit for a lady." He shut the door again. After a few minutes he opened the door again. "'S all right now, Miss."
Moira appeared with a hot brick wrapped in a heavy cloth. She deftly slipped it under the covers at the Doctor's feet and left again.
XXXXX
Donna poked at the fire impatiently. "Oh, no not again," she heard a hoarse whisper from behind her.
"Yes, again. You keep this up and I'll be demanding nurse's pay."
He groaned.
"Feeling any better?"
"I’m c-cold,” he admitted with a shiver.
"You spend the day running about in the snow like a madman - without a coat - and then complain of the cold? Serves you right," she snapped. She gave him a worried look. “Can Time Lords get pneumonia?”
“No,” he assured her quietly. He couldn’t suppress a patient grin. She didn’t know that the cold really didn’t affect him as badly as it would a human, but he had to admit he still felt awful. "What time is it?"
She looked at the clock on the mantle that was out of his line of sight. "Eleven-thirty."
"Vash?"
"He's had some soup and he's been asking for you."
"I want to talk to him."
"Not if you're going to tear off into the snow again."
He sat up, swaying slightly. "I promise.”
“Good.”
He ran a hand down his face. “Donna, you can't imagine how I felt."
"No, I don't suppose I could," she agreed. "At least you know that you're not alone now. Your people ARE out there."
"Is Vash awake?"
She shrugged. "I don't know. He's probably sleeping - you need to get some food in you. You're too skinny by half and you threw up everything you ate earlier. You ran about all day in the cold. You're not going anywhere until you eat.”
He dropped back onto the bed in defeat and gave her a tired smile. "You remind me of Jackie."
"Another friend?"
"More like a mother-in-law," he said with a chuckle. "She's Rose's mother. She was forever telling me I was too skinny and trying to force me to eat."
Donna pulled the bell rope and Holly appeared. She said that Moira was still sitting with Vash. She nodded at Donna's request and returned a bit later with some hot tea and food for the Doctor. Donna refused to leave until he'd finished everything Holly had brought him. After some arguing with the Doctor, Donna finally convinced him to stay in bed while she agreed to go check in on Vash. Despite the fire, the room and especially the corridors were still cold. Vash was awake and felt up to returning with her to the Doctor's room. Vash sat heavily in the chair.
The Doctor groaned slightly at Donna’s fussing over him, but said nothing as she propped him up on pillows and perched herself protectively on the mattress beside the Doctor with a hand on his shoulder. The Doctor's eyes never left his son's face. "Vash, what happened?"
Vash frowned and he glanced at Donna.
"VASH!"
He sighed "The Daleks were swarming about Gallifrey. We knew all was lost. Engin and Palos proposed a plan to save us. We would make the Dalek commanders believe that Gallifrey had been destroyed utterly and we'd migrate to another world far away."
"Why wasn't I told?"
"It was discussed, but it wasn't something we could broadcast. The Daleks were too close. If they'd captured you... They HAD to believe we'd all died with the planet. It was a desperate plan, but we saved almost the entire population of Gallifrey, Father. Then the firestorm destroyed everything that was left."
The Doctor nodded. "The firestorm was never meant to reach Gallifrey," he said, his voice breaking as tears rolled down his cheeks. "I've never understood how I could have miscalculated so badly."
Donna looked over at the Doctor. She hadn't known what to expect, but the expression on his face was too terrible to believe.
"Even one life was too much," he whispered.
"The people who died were volunteers. They gave their lives willingly to save the rest of us. The Thousand are revered, Father," Vash continued. "It was their deaths you felt."
The Doctor's eyes welled with tears. "How many?"
Vash gave the Doctor a puzzled look.
"How many survived?"
"Five million."
The Doctor closed his eyes and laid his head back on the pillow.
"Only five million?" Donna asked in disbelief.
The Doctor laid a hand on her arm. "Gallifrey wasn't ever as populated as the Earth," he assured her. "I don't think Gallifrey ever supported more than six million in its entire history," He explained. "When your lifetime is measured in thousands of years, overpopulation can create havoc."
She nodded.
The Doctor's eyes returned to his son. "And no-one came looking for me afterward? They let me believe I was the last Time Lord for all these years."
"There were still some Daleks in the vicinity we had to remain hidden for a time. We thought you'd been killed in the firestorm. We only recently learned you had survived, Father. Tinon spoke to the Face of Boe. He told us you were still alive and traveling."
The Doctor smiled sadly. "He told me I wasn't alone, but I didn't believe him." "
"Who's Tinon?" Donna asked.
"My other son," the Doctor whispered.
"We used our limited resources to try to track your TARDIS, but we kept missing you. Tinon and I kept up the search even after the High Council decided it was hopeless and recalled the other searchers. The Council wants you to come back with me."
"Why?"
"Don't you want to see what we've accomplished? See your old friends again? Your family?"
He nodded. "Of course. As long as they don't try to make me president again."
"The Lady Romana said you'd refuse so the matter was dropped."
"Romana's with you?" he asked in surprise.
"Yes, she came back just as the war started."
"I left her in E-space," he muttered. "How did she...?"
"If she explained, I never heard. She just came to help Gallifrey at our time of need, just as so many others did. She was the one who helped us locate our new home and showed us how to make the TARDISes invisible to the Dalek scanners. She said it was something you had taught her. During the worst of the fighting, she and Tinon and several others shuttled the people to the new world in the newly adapted TARDISes and within the last days of the war, there were only The Thousand left on Gallifrey."
"They covered your escape?"
Vash nodded. "And a few solo Time Lords like you who couldn't be told. We took all the technology we could to the new world, but it's still relatively primitive."
"You arrived in an escape pod. What happened to your TARDIS?"
"I got caught in an ion flux," Vash answered. "These new TARDISes aren't as clever as yours. It takes time for them to learn."
The Doctor nodded. "I've always said my TARDIS was special."
"Shall we go then?" Vash asked, standing.
"No, I think we'll stay a bit longer - we should both recover a bit before we go home - wherever home is now."
"But the Council..."
"They've waited this long," Donna snapped. "They'll wait a bit longer."
The Doctor gave her a grin. "That's my Donna."
"Vash, we'll go tomorrow," he promised. "Now, we'll have to do something about your escape pod - could take it aboard my TARDIS I suppose - we can't leave it lying about in Sir Douglas’ stables."
Vash nodded. "Well, if we're staying a bit longer, I think I'll go back to bed."
"I'll help you," Donna offered, standing.
"Donna, I need you here," the Doctor said softly.
"Thank you for the offer, but I believe I can make it on my own," Vash said as he slowly made his way out of the room.
As soon as the door closed, Donna turned on the Doctor. "What was that all about!"
"Keep your voice down," he snapped in a hoarse whisper.
She glared at him. "What's wrong?"
He frowned. "I don't know, not really. Something isn't right."
"He's your son! Why would he lie to you?"
"He was too insistent on my going home."
"I'd think you'd be jumping at the chance."
He sat up and slid out of bed. "We Gallifreyans can be a ruthless people, Donna."
"You think he's lying?"
"Not exactly." He reached for his clothes, lost his balance and would have fallen back onto the bed if Donna hadn’t grabbed his arm. "I want to examine that escape pod."
Something in the look he gave her told her not to argue. She helped him get dressed and even got him to put on the heavy cloak Sir Douglas had loaned him earlier. As they moved quickly but quietly down the corridor, she stopped in her room for her own warm cloak. She didn’t notice the TARDIS key as it dropped onto the floor under the loveseat.
They left the house and made their way to the stable where Sir Douglas had his men move both the escape pod and the Doctor's TARDIS.
Donna found a box of matches and lit a lantern. She held it while he examined the pod. The escape pod door stood open, there wasn't much to see inside. Unlike a TARDIS, it was actually smaller on the inside than the outside by a few inches. The Doctor pulled his sonic screwdriver from his pocket and Donna heard him mumbling and complaining as he examined the pod. Something sparked and he let out a soft cry and sucked his finger.
"What is it?"
He frowned and shrugged. "It's an escape pod, from a TARDIS."
"So we can go back inside where it's warm?"
"Not just yet, I'm afraid." He tapped out a code on the small console. "Same old codes - why do they never change the presidential codes!? Ah, that's it!" He pulled a small cube, then what looked to Donna like an orange tennis ball from beneath the console.
"What's that?"
He held up the orange ball first. "Flight recorder - your people would call it a ‘black box’ though those aren’t black either really.” He held up the cube. "Communications crystal. I'll have to take them both to my TARDIS to examine them properly."
"What are you looking for?"
He sighed. "I'll know it when I see it."
She followed him into the TARDIS. "What tipped you off?" she asked as he slipped on his glasses and inserted the cube into a receptacle on the TARDIS console.
"Hm?"
"What made you suspicious?"
He looked over his glasses at her. "A TARDIS can't be damaged by a simple ion flux, Donna. I don't understand why he would lie about something as basic as that." His fingers flew over the keyboard as he worked, his dark eyes focused on the small screen. "Ah HA!!!" he cried as he apparently found something in the data on the cube. "It WAS a telepathic attack! And a rather nasty one at that." He typed something into the keyboard, then rubbed his neck as the dull ache finally vanished. "Oh, that’s MUCH better," he sighed in relief then bent toward the console's screen again.
"That's just incredible! BLOODY BRILLIANT!" he said excitedly. "Hide the signal under a distress call generated by the life pod - loop it into the bio communications circuits in the TARDIS. Bounce it off the cerebral cortex of the victim - in this case ME - create just enough of a "hum" to cause a near post regenerative trauma - without an actual regeneration, you understand - just enough to cause pain and disorientation - oh, somebody REALLY knew what they were doing!" he said, then went off into a ramble that Donna couldn't for the life of her begin to understand. When he finished, he turned to her with an expectant smile. At her blank look his smile faded. "You didn't understand a word of that, did you?"
She shook her head. "No, not really."
He took a deep breath and ran a hand through his hair. "Okay, let's try this. Have you ever had a radio tuned just enough off station that it gave you a headache or a toothache?"
She nodded. "Yes. God, but that's annoying."
"Take that and magnify it into the hypersonic... very high frequencies. Just high enough that you can only just perceive it - not necessarily actually hear it - just know it's there. then amplify it through the TARDIS."
"Like a dog whistle?"
He snapped his fingers "Exactly!"
"Why didn't it affect me?"
He grinned. "Because the human brain is too primitive."
"Too stupid?" she asked, not sure whether she should be insulted.
He couldn't help but laugh. "No. In this case the Time Lords are too evolved. Even the TARDIS couldn't find the signal or she'd have stopped it. That gong was the Cloister Bell. She must have picked up the initial transmission, but there's an all clear signal buried in there to stop the TARDIS interfering. Oh, this is absolutely fantastic!"
She frowned at him. "You're excited? Somebody tried to kill you and you're excited?"
"Oh, they weren't trying to kill me. They wanted to immobilize me. They were trying to keep me just enough off my feet so they could control the TARDIS by remote control to leave the Vortex and land on Earth."
"But why?"
"Vash said they tried to find me, but kept missing me. I think they got impatient and wanted to speed things up. Lucky for me, I had you here. They didn't anticipate that."
She smiled and shrugged.
He tapped more keys and a figure began to take shape above the TARDIS console. After a moment, it became more focused. Donna stared as the image of a blonde woman in pale robes seemed to be hovering above the TARDIS console.
"Who's that?"
He smiled fondly up at the image. "Romana." He touched more controls. "I knew she'd find a way to embed a message inside one of the transmissions from Gallifrey."
The figure looked out at them and a woman's voice came from the speakers. "Doctor, if you're receiving this message, Vash has found you, you MUST not come to New Gallifrey. The story he tells is only partly true. Some of the members of the High Council are trying to brand you a deserter. I'm working to stop them. I swear I will contact you when it's safe." The hovering image sighed. "But, as I know you won't listen to a word I'm saying, the coordinates are being transmitted to your TARDIS. Please be careful, Doctor.”
His hands started flying above the console, grinning broadly. "Very clever, Romana! Donna, New Gallifrey is slightly out of phase with this universe. Just enough to hide it from any remaining Daleks and only approachable by TARDIS."
"Where are you going, Father?" Vash asked.
The Doctor turned to stare at his son. "How did you get in?"
Vash threw a bundle in Donna's direction. "Your friend left her key in her room. I heard the message from Romana. What are you going to do."
"I'm going to New Gallifrey to clear my name." The Doctor said quietly with pain in his voice. "I didn't desert my people. I never left them!"
"Our records show differently, Father," Vash said quietly. "The council knew you wouldn't be brought back easily, so they sent me."
"How could you believe... believe I would desert them?"
"I tried not to, but the evidence was indisputable." He raised a small weapon and pointed it at the Doctor. "Now, step away from the console, Father. Don't make me hurt you."
Donna walked over and gave Vash a solid kick to the groin that knocked him to the TARDIS floor.
The Doctor couldn't help but wince. "Ooh," the Doctor said. "How'd you know that would work?" She grinned. "He may have two hearts, but he's still a man, isn't he?"
"But... that's... ooo... that's just not nice."
Donna came over, pulled the tie from the Doctor's neck and used it to bind Vash's hands to the nearest railing. She tore the pillow case into strips and used them to tie his legs and after a glare at him, gagged him as well. "That should keep him quiet."
The Doctor handed her a note thanking Sir Douglas for his hospitality and apologizing for their abrupt departure. He had Donna fasten it to one of the walls of the stable.
"Doctor, what will they do to you?" she asked, sometime later after they'd pulled the escape pod into the TARDIS and tucked it in the far corner of the control room. "If you can't clear your name, I mean."
He looked away. "I'll make sure you get taken back home."
"You didn't answer my question."
He turned to look at her and sighed. "If I can't prove my innocence, they'll execute me. It will be very civilized, of course, and quite painless."
"Then why go? They think you're a traitor, why go back?"
He turned back to the controls, his face tight. "I have to go back."
"You said that, but why?"
He ran a hand through his hair. "The lure of the forbidden, I suppose. When I knew I could always go back to Gallifrey, it didn't bother me as much." He chuckled. "Me, the runaway President of Gallifrey."
"Why didn't you stay then?"
"After everything you've seen since you’ve met me, you can ask me that question, Donna? I didn't want to be just another stodgy, moldy old President of Gallifrey and the harder I tried to fight it, the more insistent the High Council became that I accept the presidency. So, I left." He chuckled. "Of course, I didn't count on my granddaughter, Susan, stowing away on the TARDIS and once we got away, well, I couldn't take her back." He swallowed. "I've been away too long, Donna. I WANT to be able to go home. Especially after all the isolation since the Time War." He sighed. "I have to clear my name. Whatever it takes."
"Even if they kill you?"
"Oh, they'd never dare. I have some secret weapons."
"What are they?"
"I have you and Romana on my side. I know neither of you will let me down."
She sniffed. "So, are you going to New Gallifreyt?"
He slapped the TARDIS console. "Yes, Donna Noble, I'm going home."
XXXXXX
The TARDIS hovered over a planet while the Doctor scanned the surface. "Nice place Romana found for them," he muttered, as Donna came to look at the screen. "Good land to water ratio, no pollution, no other intelligent life for the High Council to take advantage of, plenty of animals. Great eco-system. It's wonderful!"
"There are no people here - aside from yours?" she asked.
He shook his head. "Not all planets develop intelligent life. As they say "it's a "crapshoot." Some worlds develop only insect life."
"Like the Rachnos?"
"Exactly," he agreed. "Others develop two different species like the Thalls and the Kaleds. The universe is incredible."
"Time we landed." He worked the controls and the TARDIS stopped with a shudder and the Doctor bent to untie Vash. He hauled the other man to his feet without a word and shoved him toward the doors.
Donna followed the men silently. It was cold and Donna was glad she'd decided to wear the cloak she'd brought from Vaucher Hall. She looked around. They were in the middle of a large sunlit courtyard.
Tall buildings rose all around them. A pylon with strange writing stood in the center. An icy wind tore through the courtyard. 'Why is it always winter?' she thought. She looked over at the Doctor and Vash.
Vash looked entirely too pleased with himself, the Doctor's face was set with grim determination.
"Which way to the council chambers, Vash?"
The other man pointed. "That way, if you're in such a hurry to die."
"And he's YOUR son?" Donna asked, glaring at Vash.
"I told you I'd been away too long."
They climbed a wide flight of steps to an ornate building. Donna recognized a symbol she'd seen in the TARDIS, a circle with a multi-layered figure eight inside it. Guards appeared as they reached the top of the steps.
A translucent door opened and two women came out. One was small and blonde, the woman she'd seen in the message earlier. and a taller woman with dark hair. She had a knife in a sheath belted to her hip.
"Leela!!" The Doctor beamed in delight and rushed forward.
The guards stiffened, but a look from Romana was all it took to make them stand down.
The woman smiled at him. "I'm sorry, Doctor, but my grandmother died many years ago. I'm Asha."
He looked her up and down and shook his head, smiling as he hugged her. "You look so much like her. She was an incredible woman."
"Thank you, Doctor."
"Are we going to stand around talking all day?"
The Doctor released Asha and turned on his son. "You mind your manners, or shall I have Donna kick you again? I'm sure she wouldn't mind."
Donna took up a threatening pose and Vash backed away.
Romana smiled. "Your newest companion?"
The Doctor shot her a grin. "Yes. Lady Romanadvoratrelundar - this is Donna Noble."
"From Earth I assume," Romana said with a twinkle in her blue eyes.
"Oh yes." Donna was glad she hadn't changed from the blue velvet dress. This Lady Romana was wearing long gold robes that looked very formal.
"It's good to meet you, Donna. Please call me Romana. As you may have guessed Asha's grandmother and I both traveled with the Doctor in our own times."
The Doctor took Romana's hands and smiled at her fondly. "Romana, you can't imagine how I've missed you," he said and pulled her to him. "I've missed you too, Doctor," she said. "I'm so glad we finally found you," She pulled away. "Come see what we've done."
The Doctor's sneakers squeaked as he turned to look around him - his dark eyes were taking in the details as they walked down the long, stone corridors. It was all vaguely familiar, but still different.
"Vash said you saved five million?"
Romana nodded. "All except The Thousand. If it had been up to me, we'd have saved them as well."
"And Tinon?"
A tall man with a mop of curly brown hair and blue eyes appeared. "Here, Father."
"Tinon! I thought I'd never see you again," the Doctor whispered.
Donna watched as the Doctor hugged the other man tightly then turned to introduce Tinon to her.
A tall, striking blonde woman hurried out into the corridor. “Father?”
The Doctor beamed. “Olatha!” he cried and ran to his daughter. “You look well.”
Her blue eyes twinkled. “I am, Father.” She peered at him with concern. “You look tired.”
He hugged her. “It’s all much better now that I’ve found you.” he whispered. He couldn’t take his eyes off the daughter he hadn’t seen in so long.
"I hate to interrupt, Father, but the High Council is waiting," Vash said.
The Doctor glared at his son, but said nothing.
"I'm afraid he's right, Doctor," Romana said, laying a hand gently on his arm. "The sooner we get this settled, the sooner it's done and we can all have a visit."
The Doctor's face tightened, but he nodded. He stepped toward her and said something quietly.
Romana looked shocked. "No! It's too dangerous! I won't let you..."
Donna watched as the Doctor took Romana's arm and moved farther away and they had a heated though almost silent argument. Romana appeared very upset, but she finally nodded and motioned to a nearby guard. She gave him a quiet command, he nodded and left.
The Doctor turned to Donna. He put his hands on her shoulders and his eyes bored into hers intently. "Donna, you must listen to me. Whatever happens, you mustn't interfere. Do you understand? You mustn't say or do anything. You're here as a .... character witness. I'm the one on trial, but your behavior CAN harm me. You must remain calm. They'd never hurt you, but if anything happens to me, Asha and Romana will make sure you're returned home safely."
"But...."
He shook his head. "Once the trial begins, you mustn't speak, mustn't move. Can you promise to do that? If you don't think you can, I'll have Romana take you back to my TARDIS to wait until the trial is over."
She swallowed. "I'm not leaving you."
The Doctor smiled. "I'm counting on you."
Romana led them into a huge room that reminded Donna of an ancient stadium - people in different colored robes sat in tiers on three sides of the room and a dais held others seated on thrones behind a large table. A green chair that reminded Donna vaguely, and uncomfortably, of a dentist's chair stood off to the side.
The Doctor barely glanced in her direction as Asha and Romana took seats on either side of Donna. He approached the dais and handed a guard a crystal cube.
An imperious woman looked down at him from the dais. "Doctor, it has been a long time."
"Yes, Chancellor Flavia. A very long time."
She glanced down at the parchment she held. "You stand accused of desertion in time of war, Doctor."
"Chancellor Flavia, you have known me for most of your life. Do YOU believe the charges against me?"
"My opinion carries no weight in this instance, Doctor. Unfortunately, your long history of being a renegade does not speak well for you."
"I have never done anything to harm Gallifrey."
She nodded. "The records indicate that you sent the final signal for the firestorm that destroyed the Dalek fleet and Gallifrey."
The Doctor swallowed, but said nothing.
"You are here to dispute the record?"
"Yes."
"You have chosen the Kim-la-har?"
"Yes."
"You know, of course, that very few survive."
"I do."
Donna turned to Romana. "What the Hell is he doing?"
Romana shushed her. "The Kim-la-har is a part of the Matrix - a repository of every Time Lord who's ever lived," she whispered. "It requires total truth. The Doctor thinks it's the only way to prove his story."
"If he lies?"
Romana gave her a sad look. "It will kill him."
Donna started to stand, but Asha and Romana held her arms.
"He meant what he said," Romana warned. "You must stay calm. He needs your support more now than he ever has before."
Donna sighed in defeat.
Romana took Donna's hand. "I know this is difficult for you," she said sincerely. "Can you remain calm? If not, we need to leave now, before they begin. I wish we'd had more time to prepare you for this, but it couldn't be helped." She squeezed Donna's hand.
"I'll try."
Asha glared at her. "You cannot just TRY, Donna. It means the Doctor's life."
Donna watched as the Doctor perched himself to the edge of the chair and looked up at her. She could see the fear in his dark eyes, but there was confidence there.
She took a deep breath and nodded to him. He gave her a relieved smile and leaned back into the chair. A guard came forward and moved a set of disks on a bracket down so they were on either side of the Doctor's head and another guard fastened restraints around his chest, wrists and ankles.
Donna looked shocked. “He surrendered. Why are they tying him down?”
“There are sensors in the restraints,” Romana explained in a whisper. “If he moves about, it could kill him.”
Donna lowered her head.
Chancellor Flavia glared up at the people in the courtroom.
"Guards, clear the room. Leave only the High Council and the Doctor's protectors."
Donna could see the Doctor settling into the chair, speaking quietly to the guards on either side of him, but she couldn't hear what he was saying.
"Donna, this is your last chance. Yes, or no?" Romana asked.
"Yes," Donna answered.
Romana smiled at her. "He's picked a good companion in you. With three of us here, I'm sure he'll be fine."
Chancellor Flavia inserted the crystal cube the Doctor had given her into a receptacle and the back wall lit like a movie screen. She glanced over at the man in the scarlet robes who stood beside the Doctor's chair. "Physician, are you prepared?"
The old man nodded.
"Are the protectors ready? You have explained to the Doctor's companion that she must not move or speak once we have begun?"
Romana nodded. "We have. She understands."
Chancellor Flavia glanced at the Doctor. "Doctor?"
He took a resigned breath and closed his eyes. "I'm ready."
Chancellor Flavia grimly pressed a button on her console. The disks on either side of the Doctor's head flared to life.
Donna watched in horror as the Doctor cried out in pain and convulsed on the chair. On either side of her Romana and Asha squeezed her hands tightly in reassurance.
The Doctor let out a final moan and lay still on the chair his eyes closed. The man in the scarlet robes ran some kind of device along the Doctor's body and nodded to Flavia.
Images formed on the screen. They were just blurs of colors at first, but after a moment, Donna saw a control room form on the screen. It looked like the TARDIS, but different somehow. A man with shoulder length dark hair and blue eyes stood working the controls. The TARDIS shuddered and it was all the man could do to hold his position. She suddenly heard the Doctor's voice in her mind. "This was the last hour of the Time War."
Then she found herself standing beside the man as he fought the controls of the TARDIS. She could feel the TARDIS shaking around her, but she could feel Romana's and Asha's hands holding hers as well.
"Engie, I'm in position," the man said.
"Ready here, Doctor," a voice that sounded like an elderly man came over the speakers.
Donna realized the man beside her had to be the Doctor, but he looked so different. She'd ask him about it later - if he survived.
"Preparing firestorm pod," the Doctor said, then flicked a switch. There was an explosion in the TARDIS - a piece of the console flew off and buried itself in the far wall.
"Are you all right, Doctor," Engin's voice called in concern.
"Yes, I'm fine. Preparing for stage two." The Doctor flicked a switch. "Hold on, girl!" he pleaded. "It'll be all over soon." He patted the TARDIS console fondly.
Donna bit her lip as the time rotor burst into a million pieces. He screamed as a burst of glass and fire slammed into the Doctor's face and chest. Blood streamed from multiple cuts as he fought the controls. A roaring sound filled the TARDIS. "Firestorm pod launched!" The Doctor wiped blood from his face. A deep cut on his forehead was bleeding profusely, but he did nothing to stop it. His blue eyes were focused on the screen before him.
Donna heard a grating voice over the speakers. "Divert! Divert!"
The Doctor's eyes widened in shock. "NO!!" he yelled as he stared at the viewer in horror.
Donna saw a massive explosion on the screen and the TARDIS spun around her. It was all she could do to remember that she was in no danger. The images she saw were the Doctor's memories. She glanced to where he lay on the chair. He was moving weakly, gasping for air, but the physician didn't seem concerned. She was suddenly back in the Doctor's TARDIS - lightning and flames shot from one side of the control room to the other. A stroke of lightning struck the Doctor as he lay sprawled on the floor, tears streamed down his face washing away some of the blood. How could he have lost so much blood? Her throat tightened. He seemed utterly defeated.
Suddenly a bright light surrounded him and his face was peaceful. As she watched in amazement, the face changed, became thinner, more angular than it had been, the hair shortened to a close burr. It was another, completely different man, but again, Donna understood that, however it had happened, it was still the Doctor.
Gradually, the fires went out as the Doctor lay unconscious on the floor. He would occasionally cry out or mumble, but was otherwise motionless. Finally, his eyes opened. He looked around him, confusion in his face. He sat up and groaned as his hand came down on a piece of glass. He winced as he plucked it out and watched as the glow returned for a moment and the cut was gone. He sat staring at the spot where the cut had been and ran a finger over it. He stood and looked around the wreck of the console room. He touched the darkened panel lovingly. "Not you too, girl," he pleaded. “I can’t lose you too.”
Donna's heart lurched at the intensity of the emotions she saw on the Doctor's face as he activated one control after another - testing circuits - taking scans. "All gone then. All dead. The final battle of the final war." he whispered. "Just me now. I wish I'd gone with them." He dropped into a chair against the far railing. "All gone."
The images on the screen slowly faded as Chancellor Flavia touched another control and motioned to the physician. He ran another scan of the Doctor's limp body and shook his head.
Chancellor Flavia looked sadly down from her seat with the High Council. "Child, I am so sorry."
Donna broke away from Romana and Asha with a shriek and they didn't try to hold her back this time. They followed her to the green chair.
"Doctor!" Donna cried. She glared up at the guards. "Get these things off him!" she ordered.
A tall guard with curly dark blond hair moved to obey.
"Doctor, don't leave me!" she cried.
Romana took his hand. It was too cold. "Doctor, you must come back to us," she said. There was no response.
Donna stood and glared at Chancellor Flavia and the rest of the High Council. "I hope you're happy!" she shouted angrily. She heard a low groan behind her.
"I've always said you had a voice fit to raise the dead."
She turned. The Doctor was looking up at her. He looked exhausted.
"You're not dead!"
He shook his head then touched his temples. "Oh, too soon for that," he winced. "No, I'm not dead. I have a hangover fit to kill a Sycorax, but I'm not dead." He looked over at Chancellor Flavia and the rest of the High Council. "And I'm not a deserter either," he said proudly.
Chancellor Flavia smiled at him. "I knew it was impossible, Doctor."
Romana and Donna helped him to his feet and he allowed himself to lean against them.
"I don't understand, who diverted the charges?" Donna asked.
The Doctor rubbed his eyes. He was extremely tired. It was all he could do to stand, let alone answer questions. "A Dalek commander. After the time rotor exploded, I couldn't hear anything. I didn't hear the order the first time."
"So you wanted to go back and see it through the Kim-la-har?" Romana asked. "Doctor, there are other ways...."
He nodded and winced again. "I know, but none that would have settled the matter forever." He looked at Donna. "I'm sorry I had to put you through that. I needed a focus... a lifeline... for the Kim-la-har to work. I had to know you were there waiting for me. It wasn't fair for me to not explain earlier - your reactions had to be genuine. Asha has never traveled with me and Romana and I were together so long ago... it wouldn't have worked. I might have died."
She smiled up at him. "Thank you for trusting me."
"I never had any doubts."
Vash looked suitably ashamed as he approached with his brother, Tonin. "Father, I'm sorry I...."
The Doctor gave his son a tired look. "If I had seen the evidence Councilor Rocos had collected, I'd have hall-believed it myself." He leaned across Donna's shoulder heavily. "Now, I'm afraid family reunions will have to wait. I need a very long nap."
Romana led them to a room in another building and she and Donna sat with him until he slept then they left quietly.
XXXXX
Several days later, the TARDIS had been repaired and restocked with spare parts, the Doctor and Donna prepared to leave.
"I wish you'd stay," Romana said as she, Asha and his sons stood in the courtyard to see them off.
The Doctor looked around. "You've done a marvelous job here, Romana." he grinned. "Madam President," he said with a courtly bow. "You don't need me. Besides, now that I know what happened... know it wasn't my fault... there's a part of me at peace now. And there's so much still to see."
Romana smiled at him. "I know. Come back again... soon."
He nodded. "I will."
He turned to his sons. "Forty five great grandchildren, twenty two great, great grandchildren. You've all been busy." he said with a mischievous grin. "Leave home for a few years and half the population is made up of my relatives. Keep an eye on that Trovin. He's going to be trouble."
Vash nodded. "He's been reading about his great grandfather."
He glanced over at Donna. "Time we were going." She nodded and slipped inside the TARDIS while he hugged his family, Romana and Asha. He couldn't resist a last grin as he shut the doors. "At least, I'm not on the run now."
"What, Doctor?"
He walked to the TARDIS console and started working the controls. "Nothing. Just feeling my age."
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