Doctor Who: The Enemy of My Enemy (IC|Closed)

[Astrolinium]

Sherri licked its lips and did not, in fact, remove the gun from Eli's head.
Eli had begun to sweat, for reference.
Instead, Sherri merely said, "The Trantulian language doesn't have gendered personal pronouns and the concept of gender is foreign to us. So it's wha..."

(S)he paused and looked curiously at the Doctor. "But you've got me off track. This is, I believe, something akin to what one might call a hostage situation. My name... my proper name... is Ba'ål-na'avz`jyiu♫♩δra M'ik'k'k'k^lun Johnson. But Sherri will do marvelously, since I doubt any of you could ever pronounce that. You cannot drop me off on Trantulia because I am, in fact, in considerable trouble with the legal system of that planet and, in fact, all planets that recognize the Shadow Proclamation. You see, I suffer from a condition that compels me to do rather awful things... and I right I'm torn between my desire to shoot this bastard (by the way, you and your man really need to learn how to fornicate a bit more quietly) and my desire to steal this very lovely ship of yours."

[Nationstatelandsville]

Sherri licked its lips and did not, in fact, remove the gun from Eli's head.
Eli had begun to sweat, for reference.
Instead, Sherri merely said, "The Trantulian language doesn't have gendered personal pronouns and the concept of gender is foreign to us. So it's wha..."

(S)he paused and looked curiously at the Doctor. "But you've got me off track. This is, I believe, something akin to what one might call a hostage situation. My name... my proper name... is Ba'ål-na'avz`jyiu♫♩δra M'ik'k'k'k^lun Johnson. But Sherri will do marvelously, since I doubt any of you could ever pronounce that. You cannot drop me off on Trantulia because I am, in fact, in considerable trouble with the legal system of that planet and, in fact, all planets that recognize the Shadow Proclamation. You see, I suffer from a condition that compels me to do rather awful things... and I right I'm torn between my desire to shoot this bastard (by the way, you and your man really need to learn how to fornicate a bit more quietly) and my desire to steal this very lovely ship of yours."

"Well," the Doctor said slowly and thoughtfully, carefully and silently placing himself between Sherri and the console, "might I suggest neither? I must remind you, my good man, that neither action would end particularly well for you. With all due respect, I do not think you know who I am. I've been to your planet before, you know - do you remember the Treaty of ba-Garathaga'jhon, between the Ta^lyak tribe and the Confederated Clans? A seventy year war between the most vitriolic of foes, seeded in a centuries-long racism and prejudice. War in such situations is inevitable, every day like throwing your hand into a campfire. Sooner or later, you shall be burned. And yet I appeared on your world and made it so the man and the flame were the best of the friends and the man could freely interact with the flame without consequences. The alliance I forged that day lasted a thousand years, only dissolving with the Confederacy on that horrible day of the Battle in the Whispering Sands. Oh yes, your legends, they have spoken of me, the diplomat who appeared in a magic machine. Do you remember hearing of how the Ta^lyak legions, once proud and invulnerable, cowered that day? They did not fear their battered and sickly foe, why would they? They feared []me[/i]. I am the diplomat and this is my magic machine. If you lay a hand upon it, or any with whom I claim brotherhood, I shall bring a storm greater down on you than that which washed away ba-Garathaga'jhon and shall scream with a fury greater than the mighty volcano of un-Shatharaid. Do I make myself clear, fair Trantulian?

I do not aim to start a fight with you, but I shall end one if I need to. Please, be rational - you are a reasonable man, I'm sure. We can work out some arrangement peacefully. There not need be any blood shed today. And if there is, I shall repay it twofold and twofold again. Am I understood?"

While he delivered his speech, he grabbed onto Eli's wrist, in order to pull him down in case Sherri did something stupid.

[Astrolinium]

Ba'ål-na'avz`jyiu♫♩δra M'ik'k'k'k^lun Johnson, aka Sherri, raised a single eyebrow. Using its considerable shapeshifting prowess, she fired a bullet.

Not from the gun, however, and not at Eli. Rather, he fired the bullet out of his ear, right at the TARDIS console. At an angle, of course. It may have hit the Doctor, but that mattered little, as the Doctor was still within the first however many hours of his regeneration cycle. The important thing, of course, was that it did hit the console. Sparks flew and there was a loud bang. The machine made an incredible wheezing noise and she quaked like a giant dog attempting to shake itself dry. Everyone was thrown to the floor, and Sherri was forced to release Eli (who screamed) from her grip. Then the machine once again began to spin around and around. Outside the window, there was a blue, whirling tempest. The Time Vortex.

The TARDIS was traveling, and it was going to be a bumpy ride.

[Nationstatelandsville]

Ba'ål-na'avz`jyiu♫♩δra M'ik'k'k'k^lun Johnson, aka Sherri, raised a single eyebrow. Using its considerable shapeshifting prowess, she fired a bullet.

Not from the gun, however, and not at Eli. Rather, he fired the bullet out of his ear, right at the TARDIS console. At an angle, of course. It may have hit the Doctor, but that mattered little, as the Doctor was still within the first however many hours of his regeneration cycle. The important thing, of course, was that it did hit the console. Sparks flew and there was a loud bang. The machine made an incredible wheezing noise and she quaked like a giant dog attempting to shake itself dry. Everyone was thrown to the floor, and Sherri was forced to release Eli (who screamed) from her grip. Then the machine once again began to spin around and around. Outside the window, there was a blue, whirling tempest. The Time Vortex.

The TARDIS was traveling, and it was going to be a bumpy ride.

"You bastard!" the Doctor snapped, pouncing on Sherri and wrapping her in a headlock, displaying an enormous amount of strength, "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't hunt you down and smash your skull in with a rock, kill you and skin you like the animal you are?!"

If one were to look into the Doctor's eyes, they wouldn't recognize them. Gone was the fatherhood, the mirth, the adventurousness and the cleverness. Such things were drowned in a blind rage, the fury of a man scorned and the undying pain of loss. Susan and her mother flew into his eyes, blurring his vision. The moans of a dying TARDIS, which he had heard far too many times in the Time War, drowned out all other noise. The faces of Adric, Lytton, Jenny, and so many, uncountable others burned in his mind, heating his blood with anger. The Doctor was prepared to kill Sherri.

To kill Rose. He hardly recognized her face in his haze of wrath. Had he really changed that much that he would kill her? What would that solve? Would it make him feel better? No, it wasn't constructive to any extent. But did he even care anymore? He was in his twelfth life. He didn't have much time left. What did he care about others? He only had the TARDIS and himself. He'd tear down the universe to save the two of them, if but for a moment more.

But not Rose. Never Rose. He released Sherri and rolled over to the control panel, jumping up to his feet.

"I'll try to stabilize her!" he shouted, flipping random switches and pushing odd buttons - had he really, in so many centuries, never learned how to pilot the TARDIS?

"GERONIMO!" he cried in a vain attempt to remember who he was, pulling a lever backwards.

[Nightkill the Emperor]

Khan was in a mild conflict of interests.

He was smart enough to realise that was best to try and restrain that shapeshifting monster alien thing while the old Doctor tried to fix up the console. He was figuring out very quickly that this may not be a drug trip after all but the shock would set in later.

He was also smart enough to realise that the shapeshifter could fire bullets out of her/his/its ears, so he assumed that it could do quite a lot beyond that. He already had a bad leg and other various issues, so restraining her could be...problematic.

So he decided to look around for a weapon, didn't see any in particular, and just sighed, trying to make himself quite invisible. Whatever happened, happened and he couldn't do much about it.

Of course, the fact the ship thing was spinning around and around made this a bit difficult as he was thrown from one side of the station to the other, as well as up and down. Good thing it had been a while since he'd eaten, or he might have thrown up.

[Ende]

Sydney shrieked, and slid across the floor of the TARDIS, seeing as it was spinning, twirling, twisting, and flipping through the Time Vortex. It was tilted at about a forty-degree slant, and, so, consequently, she found herself sliding down the floor towards a very hard-looking...desk?

Yes, it was a desk. In the TARDIS control room. It probably did something important.

Other than that, though, it provided a lovely hard surface for her to smash her head on and die, but, luckily, she managed to grab onto some strange hand-held device with a cord, and she stopped before smashing into it, the thin cord quickly pulling taut. She sighed in relief - and then the TARDIS floor flipped the other direction, and then dropped fifteen feet.

Being thrown about hurt. A lot. With a crash, she slammed into the floor, and then it started tilting the other direction. In a split second, she leapt towards the central control panel, and gripped it tightly, closing her eyes and gritting her teeth. She found feel blood pouring from her nose, but that was okay, because noses weren't important. There wasn't much she could do to help the Doctor at this point. Restraining the monster...no, it was a person, and being racist towards aliens was bad...wasn't something she was able to do right now, and there weren't any weapons in here, so all she did was continue to cling to the control panel, eyes closed tightly.

She sincerely hoped that this wouldn't be a recurring thing, but, unluckily, past experience suggested that it would be.

[Astrolinium]

As Sherri was released from the Doctor's headlock grip, there was a loud bang as sparks and flame erupted from one of the roundels on the wall. The Trantulian was engulfed in fire and it screamed. Its features began to char and blacken, the skin folding into burnt wrinkles. The alien's eyes melted into its skull. As the ship continued to shake and tumble (the Doctor was having no luck at all in stabilizing it), Ba'ål-na'avz`jyiu♫♩δra M'ik'k'k'k^lun Johnson died.

The glass exterior of the Time Rotor Column shattered in a magnificent display of light and color. The rotor itself began to spark and it wheezed in a very different manner than the customary TARDIS noise. One of the interior doors was blasted open by an explosion, and water from the pool began to flood the room, causing more sparks as it poured into the machine's engines.

[Nationstatelandsville]

As Sherri was released from the Doctor's headlock grip, there was a loud bang as sparks and flame erupted from one of the roundels on the wall. The Trantulian was engulfed in fire and it screamed. Its features began to char and blacken, the skin folding into burnt wrinkles. The alien's eyes melted into its skull. As the ship continued to shake and tumble (the Doctor was having no luck at all in stabilizing it), Ba'ål-na'avz`jyiu♫♩δra M'ik'k'k'k^lun Johnson died.

The glass exterior of the Time Rotor Column shattered in a magnificent display of light and color. The rotor itself began to spark and it wheezed in a very different manner than the customary TARDIS noise. One of the interior doors was blasted open by an explosion, and water from the pool began to flood the room, causing more sparks as it poured into the machine's engines.

"Sydney! Krishna!" the Doctor cried in distress, swimming to the surface and abandoning the console. He trusted the TARDIS to work it out for herself - he had to save his companions.

"Swim to me!" he shouted, "Come close and take my hands! Don't be scared - we'll be OK!"

The Doctor looked over to Sherri's corpse, which floated to the top of the water as corpses tend to do. He saw his burnt face and felt the most horrible pang of satisfaction inside. Had he always been so vindictive?

But then he saw Rose's charred features and remembered who he was. He wasn't a violent man, wasn't a wrathful creature. He was the Doctor. He was a Time Lord. Fisticuffs were beneath him, murder was below his status. He wasn't a warrior, he was a man of words. Words that killed, but words all the same. Weapons were for his lesser. But, more importantly - he was a man who defended his friends at at all costs. Rose, he'd lost her, and that hurt. But he didn't have to lose Sydney. He didn't have to lose Khan. He never had to lose anybody again, and he would live on to ensure he didn't.

"We'll get through this," the Doctor said to his companions, but mainly himself, "together."

[Astrolinium]

Suddenly, there was another bang and the TARDIS stopped. The engine, you see, had died. So the thing came to an abrupt stop. As the TARDIS was a living being, however, it had the good sense to use a wee bit of reserve power to actually land somewhere.

Now, granted, this wasn't some pleasant landing. This was a bit like if a rollercoaster had suddenly decided, 'Oh, I think I'll just give the laws of physics the middle finger and abruptly cease all forward motion without even slowing down.' The laws of physics, of course (being rather miffed at said rollercoaster), would see to it that the passengers were all flung forward, likely dying as their restraints lost a battle with the laws of physics. The laws of physics, you see, were pissed off.

Fortunately for the passengers of the TARDIS, they were not restrained by seat belts or anything quite so dangerous as all that. Rather, they were thrown through an interior door into the ball pit, which had been installed at some point during the Eleventh Doctor's tenure. Their landing, therefore, was indeed rather soft. Not to say that they were unscathed by being thrown through a hallway and into an Olympic swimming pool-sized tub of colorful plastic balls, but that they did not die and no serious injuries were sustained. Also, the main doors swung open, so the water in the console room all poured out into the exterior world, taking with it most of the debris, including the body.

As our intrepid heroes and Eli regained their senses and made their way to the surface of the ball pit, however, they would find that they were not alone. They had been, in fact, joined by a very confused old frenemy of the Doctor's - the Master.

[Nationstatelandsville]

Suddenly, there was another bang and the TARDIS stopped. The engine, you see, had died. So the thing came to an abrupt stop. As the TARDIS was a living being, however, it had the good sense to use a wee bit of reserve power to actually land somewhere.

Now, granted, this wasn't some pleasant landing. This was a bit like if a rollercoaster had suddenly decided, 'Oh, I think I'll just give the laws of physics the middle finger and abruptly cease all forward motion without even slowing down.' The laws of physics, of course (being rather miffed at said rollercoaster), would see to it that the passengers were all flung forward, likely dying as their restraints lost a battle with the laws of physics. The laws of physics, you see, were pissed off.

Fortunately for the passengers of the TARDIS, they were not restrained by seat belts or anything quite so dangerous as all that. Rather, they were thrown through an interior door into the ball pit, which had been installed at some point during the Eleventh Doctor's tenure. Their landing, therefore, was indeed rather soft. Not to say that they were unscathed by being thrown through a hallway and into an Olympic swimming pool-sized tub of colorful plastic balls, but that they did not die and no serious injuries were sustained. Also, the main doors swung open, so the water in the console room all poured out into the exterior world, taking with it most of the debris, including the body.

As our intrepid heroes and Eli regained their senses and made their way to the surface of the ball pit, however, they would find that they were not alone. They had been, in fact, joined by a very confused old frenemy of the Doctor's - the Master.

"WHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!" the Doctor laughed gleefully, juggling a few of the balls, "You know, maybe Eleven wasn't actually that bad after all. Or I'm just delirious from a head injury."

It was definitely that second one, as he was soon healed in a burst of regenerative energy. When he saw what he was doing, he dropped the balls and looked rather unamused.

"Well, uh, as I was saying..." he said, clearing his throat, "we ought to get to back to London and restore you two to your lives. Or, at least I think I was saying tha-"

The Doctor finally came back to his senses, which promptly exploded into terror, pain, and the vaguest feeling of green, but mainly terror and pain. There was only one thing that could invoke such a feeling; a Time Lord. His people, back from the dead - the death he had placed them in. Oh, how they despised him. In private, he reveled in their hatred and took it as nothing but a compliment. Their hatred was no different than that of the Daleks or Cybermen when he was alone. But before them? When staring in the face of a friend? He could not rejoice then. He could only grieve and hate himself.

And then he realized exactly which Time Lord it was.

"You!" he exclaimed in both horror and relief, "What damned fool let you escape?!"

[Len Hyet]

Pain. It was his friend now. His companion. His unceasing neighbor. The pain went away for a moment as… what was his name again? The Master. It came in a flash. He was the Master and he would not be treated like some slave! The pain came again, and the Master felt himself slipping away, felt himself losing his grip on life.

“Oh no you don’t” Came the voice, a small island of pain in a larger sea, followed by a firmer grip on life.

The voice. The only one he had heard since… since a long time ago. The Master struggled to remember, but the pain was always there, blocking his ability to think. No… have to fight through it… I am the Master! He broke through the searing arms of the pain, broke through to his memories. He remembered being thrust into the Void… he remembered an eternity that took but a second, and he remembered exiting the Void.

After that, there was just the pain… nothing but the pain. The voice spoke.

“Almost there… it’s almost time to die.”

Death He thought. The very concept was distasteful to the Master, the closeness of it now burned at him, ate at his soul.
“No.” He was surprised. A new voice. His voice. Was it the first time he had spoken? He thought so. The Master took a deep breath, and felt the pain. The constant pain.

“So you speak! Good! Still, time to die.”

The Master thrashed… and his weak muscles strained against whatever it was that was holding him. He couldn’t say, all he could see was a haze. It might be something holding him, but the Master thought it was the pain. He could see the pain as well as feel it.

“I’m afraid not old chap.” The Master continued speaking, but it wasn’t him speaking. The Master was crippled with agony, incapable of coherent thought, much less speaking. What was speaking was a memory, a memory of what the Master used to be. The Memory had a pleasing voice.

“Kill him now.”

Another new voice, not the Master’s voice, and not the voice. A new voice. A harsh voice. Not as harsh as the Master’s voice when he was angry though.

The Master felt a small prick on his arm, another spot of pain. A needle he dimly recognized. It was a needle he was feeling. The Memory of the Master managed to piece together that the needle was giving him a lethal injection.
The Memory recognized this was bad, but the Master couldn’t do anything about it. He felt his first heart stop beating, then the second. Fourteen seconds He knew. A Time Lord lived for fourteen seconds after his second heart stopped beating, much as a human lived for seven seconds after their puny and inefficient heart ceased its movement. The Memory nudged the Master, telling him what to do. The Master began to regenerate. The second voice, the new voice, spoke.

“Are the energy feeders ready?”

The old voice spoke.

“Yes, they’re going to start as soon as he regenerates.”

The Memory stopped the regeneration process. The Master wanted to weep, it had felt so good, so cleansing. For a moment the pain had stopped.

No. They will take the Regeneration energy. I have to use it, in a way they can’t harvest. The thought was from the Master, and he felt the Memory’s approval. The Master let the regeneration energy flow through him, but put it towards regenerating, then, he let it build up, let it grow in him, let it explode outward, overwhelming the energy feeders, and he felt, far away in the darkest depths of space, the Master felt another presence. A TARDIS, and another Time Lord. The Memory seemed happy, then the Memory died as the Master let the energy take him to the other. To the TARDIS.

The Master sat up with a gasp, free of the pain for the first time. He spoke in rapid fire.

“THE MEMORY IS GONE!”

Then a blast of regenerative energy spilled from his limbs, and the Master succumbed to the regeneration process.

[Nationstatelandsville]

Pain. It was his friend now. His companion. His unceasing neighbor. The pain went away for a moment as… what was his name again? The Master. It came in a flash. He was the Master and he would not be treated like some slave! The pain came again, and the Master felt himself slipping away, felt himself losing his grip on life.

“Oh no you don’t” Came the voice, a small island of pain in a larger sea, followed by a firmer grip on life.

The voice. The only one he had heard since… since a long time ago. The Master struggled to remember, but the pain was always there, blocking his ability to think. No… have to fight through it… I am the Master! He broke through the searing arms of the pain, broke through to his memories. He remembered being thrust into the Void… he remembered an eternity that took but a second, and he remembered exiting the Void.

After that, there was just the pain… nothing but the pain. The voice spoke.

“Almost there… it’s almost time to die.”

Death He thought. The very concept was distasteful to the Master, the closeness of it now burned at him, ate at his soul.
“No.” He was surprised. A new voice. His voice. Was it the first time he had spoken? He thought so. The Master took a deep breath, and felt the pain. The constant pain.

“So you speak! Good! Still, time to die.”

The Master thrashed… and his weak muscles strained against whatever it was that was holding him. He couldn’t say, all he could see was a haze. It might be something holding him, but the Master thought it was the pain. He could see the pain as well as feel it.

“I’m afraid not old chap.” The Master continued speaking, but it wasn’t him speaking. The Master was crippled with agony, incapable of coherent thought, much less speaking. What was speaking was a memory, a memory of what the Master used to be. The Memory had a pleasing voice.

“Kill him now.”

Another new voice, not the Master’s voice, and not the voice. A new voice. A harsh voice. Not as harsh as the Master’s voice when he was angry though.

The Master felt a small prick on his arm, another spot of pain. A needle he dimly recognized. It was a needle he was feeling. The Memory of the Master managed to piece together that the needle was giving him a lethal injection.
The Memory recognized this was bad, but the Master couldn’t do anything about it. He felt his first heart stop beating, then the second. Fourteen seconds He knew. A Time Lord lived for fourteen seconds after his second heart stopped beating, much as a human lived for seven seconds after their puny and inefficient heart ceased its movement. The Memory nudged the Master, telling him what to do. The Master began to regenerate. The second voice, the new voice, spoke.

“Are the energy feeders ready?”

The old voice spoke.

“Yes, they’re going to start as soon as he regenerates.”

The Memory stopped the regeneration process. The Master wanted to weep, it had felt so good, so cleansing. For a moment the pain had stopped.

No. They will take the Regeneration energy. I have to use it, in a way they can’t harvest. The thought was from the Master, and he felt the Memory’s approval. The Master let the regeneration energy flow through him, but put it towards regenerating, then, he let it build up, let it grow in him, let it explode outward, overwhelming the energy feeders, and he felt, far away in the darkest depths of space, the Master felt another presence. A TARDIS, and another Time Lord. The Memory seemed happy, then the Memory died as the Master let the energy take him to the other. To the TARDIS.

The Master sat up with a gasp, free of the pain for the first time. He spoke in rapid fire.

“THE MEMORY IS GONE!”

Then a blast of regenerative energy spilled from his limbs, and the Master succumbed to the regeneration process.

"Oh, lovely, he's being camp!" the Doctor spat, "That's never good."

The Doctor rushed to his oldest friend and bitterest foe, wrapping his arms around him so as to support him through his regeneration. He did not need to worry about the ill effects and dangerous waste of the regeneration, given his own recent death and rebirth.

"Hello, Koschei," the Doctor said with a warm smile, though his eyes were ice and fire at once, "It's been a very long time. I have a new face now. You missed the last guy, you would've liked him."

He turned to Sydney and Khan.

"Sydney," he said in an authoritative tone, "please come here and help me carry him to the Zero Room. Mr. Khan, stay here with E- scratch that, you'll likely traumatize him further. Sydney, dear, please stay here with Eli while Mr. Khan and I take my friend here into the innards of the TARDIS to heal."

[Nightkill the Emperor]

Khan fell in the pit. He found this feeling underwhelming, stupid and degrading to the intellect of even a child. Only a stupid American four year old would ever enjoy this. But he was still shaken and shocked from the whole incident with the TARDIS and he held the Master without a question, helping out the Doctor. Right now was not the time to debate with the mysterious man.

[Ende]

Sydney was slightly confused.

One moment, she was swimming. Inside the TARDIS. The control room was filled with water, and she quickly swam up towards the Doctor. He was crying about something, and then...she was in a pit full of colorful spheres? This was absurd. Despite the ridiculous events of the last few days...well, suddenly being in a pit full of colorful spheres was still absolutely ridiculous. She crawled out of the colored-sphere-pit, sopping wet. The Doctor was saying something or other, but she couldn't really hear him very well, because her ears were clogged with water. She made out something along the lines of "help me carry Mr. Khan", but that didn't quite seem right. She tilted her head to the side, de-clogging her ear.

"-dear, please stay here with Eli while Mr. Khan and I take my friend here into the innards of the TARDIS to heal."

She nodded and turned away from the Doctor, and, then, a split second later, her head whirled around to stare at him. Wait, what? There was another man in here? How could he have possibly gotten in?

Ah, it didn't matter. She'd find out eventually. Asking the Doctor questions was rather odd - most of the time, they weren't answered, and, when they were, they didn't even make sense. So, she turned to Eli, motioning for him to come sit beside her, and then sat down at the edge of the pit filled with spheres, still rather confused about the fact that...well, there was a room filled with colorful spheres.

Yes, somehow, she was speaking the same language as aliens and 20th century humans. Yes, she had time travelled. Yes, the room was just filled with water, less than five minutes ago. Yes, the Doctor was an Apalapucian, who had two hearts, and rarely left their home planet. Yes, the Doctor had switched faces, and, yes, he had let Khan on his spaceship.

But, despite how ridiculous those things seemed, at least those things probably had a reasonable explanation.

The sphere-pit was just absurd. She looked at Eli.

"Do you have any idea why there's a pit filled with spheres here? I don't get it." she muttered, kicking a few of the multi-colored plastic-alloy spheres away.

[Astrolinium]

Sydney was slightly confused.

One moment, she was swimming. Inside the TARDIS. The control room was filled with water, and she quickly swam up towards the Doctor. He was crying about something, and then...she was in a pit full of colorful spheres? This was absurd. Despite the ridiculous events of the last few days...well, suddenly being in a pit full of colorful spheres was still absolutely ridiculous. She crawled out of the colored-sphere-pit, sopping wet. The Doctor was saying something or other, but she couldn't really hear him very well, because her ears were clogged with water. She made out something along the lines of "help me carry Mr. Khan", but that didn't quite seem right. She tilted her head to the side, de-clogging her ear.

"-dear, please stay here with Eli while Mr. Khan and I take my friend here into the innards of the TARDIS to heal."

She nodded and turned away from the Doctor, and, then, a split second later, her head whirled around to stare at him. Wait, what? There was another man in here? How could he have possibly gotten in?

Ah, it didn't matter. She'd find out eventually. Asking the Doctor questions was rather odd - most of the time, they weren't answered, and, when they were, they didn't even make sense. So, she turned to Eli, motioning for him to come sit beside her, and then sat down at the edge of the pit filled with spheres, still rather confused about the fact that...well, there was a room filled with colorful spheres.

Yes, somehow, she was speaking the same language as aliens and 20th century humans. Yes, she had time travelled. Yes, the room was just filled with water, less than five minutes ago. Yes, the Doctor was an Apalapucian, who had two hearts, and rarely left their home planet. Yes, the Doctor had switched faces, and, yes, he had let Khan on his spaceship.

But, despite how ridiculous those things seemed, at least those things probably had a reasonable explanation.

The sphere-pit was just absurd. She looked at Eli.

"Do you have any idea why there's a pit filled with spheres here? I don't get it." she muttered, kicking a few of the multi-colored plastic-alloy spheres away.

Eli came and sat down next to Sydney. He said, "It's called a ball pit. Small children play in them as a source of recreation. I guess because they like bright colors. I mean, it's sort of fun... it's a bit like swimming, and you can throw the balls at other people." He absentmindedly picked up a ball and tossed it lightly towards the other end of the room.
As the ball pit was roughly the size of an Olympic swimming pool, the projectile barely made it a quarter of the way to the other side.

[Nationstatelandsville]

Khan fell in the pit. He found this feeling underwhelming, stupid and degrading to the intellect of even a child. Only a stupid American four year old would ever enjoy this. But he was still shaken and shocked from the whole incident with the TARDIS and he held the Master without a question, helping out the Doctor. Right now was not the time to debate with the mysterious man.

The Doctor hoisted the Master up a few inches off the ground by his shoulders, Khan (presumably) taking the feet. The Time Lord and his companion - though, if you asked the Time Lord, he'd disagree - dragged the dead man away from the ball-pit and threw a hallway or two, before finally entering the console room. They still had a long way to go, but the Master was heavy and the Doctor liked to know where he was when it was possible, so he stopped suddenly and placed his friend of sorts gently on the ground, rushing up to the console.

To say it was in bad shape would be insulting to bad shapes (like icosahedra - the Doctor wasn't fond of those at all). It fizzled and crackled in a dying defiance, entire panels missing and buttons long gone. The monitor hung limply from the broken corridor, displaying nothing but enraged static. The sides were dented and warped beyond recognition, the whole thing beyond repair.

In a daze, the Doctor approached his wife and gently patted her, mournful tears flowing down his cheek. It was his TARDIS and some C-list fugitive got lucky and killed her. He'd never see her again, or, at least, not easily.

But it was a Time Lord machine, and Time Lord machines are very much like Time Lords themselves. Already, the Doctor could feel the warm hum of renewed life begin to purr in the TARDIS' heart. A smile came to his face.

"Make it something good, dear," he requested in a whisper, "No more orange. I'm beginning to get nauseated with orange."

He then whipped around to address Khan, giving a cursory glance outside and a tentative sniff.

"Raxacoricofallapatorius!" the Doctor noted, "Or very nearly. We are actually on its moon Naxalene, an almost inhabitable little rock that bears the inexplicable scent of cinnamon, which you have surely noted by now. The Raxacoricofallapatorians aren't fond of it for that very reason, and are a sensible people to begin with, so we should be safe here. At least until the fireworks begin.

The damage to the TARDIS is much worse than I anticipated. We'll need to evacuate for a moment. Please take the Master outside while I find our other companions."

He then bolted back down the hall, alternating cries of "SYDNEY!", "ELI!" and "RUN!"

[Ende]

Sydney absentmindedly tossed a few spheres across the pit, attempting to reach the other side of the room. Of course, seeing as the room was the size of an Olympic swimming pool, the spheres were nowhere close to reaching it, landing rather near Eli's.

"Strange, but rather interesting. Small children, you say? I'd wonder why the Doctor would have...well, the other Doctor would have loved it. Do you know that he changed faces? Don't look at me like that - it's true. There was another him. I only knew him for a day or two, maybe three, but there was another Doctor, and...well, he would have loved this."

She looked backwards, down the hallway where the Doctor and Khan had gone.

"I honestly wonder what happened to him, or if they're really even the same person, but they're a bit similar in some ways, and, really..."

And then the Doctor came bolting down the hallway, yelling at the top of his lungs.

Sydney jolted in surprise, and then leapt to her feet, roughly yanking Eli up with her. She looked around, and then grabbed the Doctor's hand.

"Alright, running? I'm up for that." she said, and she grabbed Eli's hand, preparing to lead him down the hallway with her, because he looked incredibly confused, and, obviously, something dangerous was about to happen, so she needed to bring him along.

[Nightkill the Emperor]

Khan slung the Master over his back, running down after the Doctor in some confusion. In a brief second he realised the old man had deliberately spoken calmly to him because he wouldn't mind Khan dying. This actually rather pissed Khan off and he was almost ready to drop the Master to the ground, but refrained. He had some small morals, and letting an innocent man die because of spite violated a few.

So he was right behind the Doctor. "Where the hell are we going?" he barked out in Hindi, under some stress. The TARDIS would generally translate for everyone, but who knew how damaged that was. To Khan's probable surprise, the Doctor spoke all languages anyway so it was a moot point.

Khan's leg was burning with pain now that it had been a while since he had had his medication and he had been put through a lot of physical stress lately. But he kept himself together and contented himself with a death glare toward the Doctor's back.

[Astrolinium]

Eli was indeed very confused. Naturally, he let Syndey lead him on this run down the hallway of the TARDIS, because she clearly knew more about what was going on than he did. Also, the ship had begun to groan, and the walls virtually seemed to glow with a sort of... strange golden energy. Something was about to happen, he surmised, and it would be a bad idea to be inside the ship when it did.

[Nationstatelandsville]

Khan slung the Master over his back, running down after the Doctor in some confusion. In a brief second he realised the old man had deliberately spoken calmly to him because he wouldn't mind Khan dying. This actually rather pissed Khan off and he was almost ready to drop the Master to the ground, but refrained. He had some small morals, and letting an innocent man die because of spite violated a few.

So he was right behind the Doctor. "Where the hell are we going?" he barked out in Hindi, under some stress. The TARDIS would generally translate for everyone, but who knew how damaged that was. To Khan's probable surprise, the Doctor spoke all languages anyway so it was a moot point.

Khan's leg was burning with pain now that it had been a while since he had had his medication and he had been put through a lot of physical stress lately. But he kept himself together and contented himself with a death glare toward the Doctor's back.

"Just run, you bachencod!" the Doctor snapped, "Run for your miserable life!"

The Doctor grabbed Khan's hand with his free one, giving him a genuine look of concern. This likely surprised Khan - this was hardly an affectionate feeling, of course, but one of a genuine concern for all humanity, if not all living things. It was the look of a grandfather to all, not a grandfather to Khan. That didn't change anything, of course; he'd help Khan along with the same worry that he would Stalin, but it was help all the same.

"Trust me," he pleaded, "I'm a doctor."

And then he ran.

[Nightkill the Emperor]

Khan slung the Master over his back, running down after the Doctor in some confusion. In a brief second he realised the old man had deliberately spoken calmly to him because he wouldn't mind Khan dying. This actually rather pissed Khan off and he was almost ready to drop the Master to the ground, but refrained. He had some small morals, and letting an innocent man die because of spite violated a few.

So he was right behind the Doctor. "Where the hell are we going?" he barked out in Hindi, under some stress. The TARDIS would generally translate for everyone, but who knew how damaged that was. To Khan's probable surprise, the Doctor spoke all languages anyway so it was a moot point.

Khan's leg was burning with pain now that it had been a while since he had had his medication and he had been put through a lot of physical stress lately. But he kept himself together and contented himself with a death glare toward the Doctor's back.

"Just run, you bachencod!" the Doctor snapped, "Run for your miserable life!"

The Doctor grabbed Khan's hand with his free one, giving him a genuine look of concern. This likely surprised Khan - this was hardly an affectionate feeling, of course, but one of a genuine concern for all humanity, if not all living things. It was the look of a grandfather to all, not a grandfather to Khan. That didn't change anything, of course; he'd help Khan along with the same worry that he would Stalin, but it was help all the same.

"Trust me," he pleaded, "I'm a doctor."

And then he ran.

Khan paused for just a second, things running through his head. Contempt, anger, hatred...and ultimately hope and some trust. He sighed. "Alright."

And then he ran.

[Astrolinium]

They ran. The groan turned into a hum and the whole TARDIS began to vibrate. There was a definite golden glow emanating from the walls - it was especially prevalent around the time rotor in the console room. The ship shook as our heroes made it out of the door just in time. As the last one out - Eli, of course - stepped onto the spongy surface of Naxalene, the doors slammed shut and the ship glowed gold. A roaring sound like that of heavy machinery being run through a blender - no, that's a rubbish metaphor for the sound.

Picture, if you will, a giant, mechanical blue whale, suspended in midair. Picture it landing on top of a wet cat.
Now picture, at the very instant it hits the cat/ground, Mount Rushmore appearing in thin air above it and crushing it just as it crushes the cat. That is something like the noise the TARDIS made.

Except, of course, that the doors were closed, and therefore the noise was muffled considerably.

---

Thus, the heroes found themselves on the surface of Naxalene. First and foremost, the ground was squishy and blue. A small yellow stream ran between the Fru-Fracca trees (which had green trunks and brown leaves) over to the left. It was the large red fruits of the ubiquitous Fru-Fracca trees (which covered the land surface area of the planet) that gave Naxelene its characteristic smell of cinnamon apple pie. Over to the right, the Nysadric Mountains jutted ten thousand feet into the air. They were also covered with Fru-Fracca trees.

Up in the sky, which was the deep purple of midnight, Raxicoricofallipatorious loomed large and green, the light of a million cities shining forth from its surface.

[Len Hyet]

The Master's eyes snapped open, and he promptly twisted until he fell off of the back of Mister Khan. He shook his head and looked at the odd group, before raising a single eyebrow and dusting off his clothes, or what were left of them after the torture. His right hand shook slightly at the thought, something that would never leave him.

"Well Doctor, It would appear you have assembled a rather motley crew. Tell me.. no wait I don't want to know." He sniffed the air.

"Naxalene?" He guessed.

"Which would mean..." He pivoted slightly and looked up.

"Raxicoricofallipatorious."

He nodded.

"Now Doctor, be a dear and catch me."

The Master's legs crumpled as he fell towards the ground.

[Nationstatelandsville]

The Master's eyes snapped open, and he promptly twisted until he fell off of the back of Mister Khan. He shook his head and looked at the odd group, before raising a single eyebrow and dusting off his clothes, or what were left of them after the torture. His right hand shook slightly at the thought, something that would never leave him.

"Well Doctor, It would appear you have assembled a rather motley crew. Tell me.. no wait I don't want to know." He sniffed the air.

"Naxalene?" He guessed.

"Which would mean..." He pivoted slightly and looked up.

"Raxicoricofallipatorious."

He nodded.

"Now Doctor, be a dear and catch me."

The Master's legs crumpled as he fell towards the ground.

The Doctor did so, stepping in front of Khan to catch the genocidal maniac, which should tell you a great deal about his priorities.

"Correct," the Doctor said, "at least, as far as I can tell. Could be an illusion, could be anywhere, we did just crash the TARDIS. But I doubt it - even I couldn't tell where the old girl would land, I certainly doubt anyone else would. Except you, evidently, though honestly I'm not surprised. It was only a matter of time. How did you get on board? Or, perhaps, more relevantly, what killed you? Did you get caught up in the damage the Trantulian caused? Actually, how I do know you aren't the Trantulian?"

He pulled out his sonic screwdriver and shone the bright light in the Master's eye, which disturbed the Master considerably.

"Well, you're blinking," the Doctor observed, "though I can't honestly remember why that's useful to me."

[Len Hyet]

The Master's brow furrowed.

"Well... now you'll excuse me but I can't for the life of me tell you. All I remember is the pain... so much pain... they wanted me to regenerate for them, to capture the energy."

His right fist clenched and shook slightly.

"This will sound strange... but I wasn't in control of my own body. The pain drove me away, it wouldn't let me control myself. But a memory, very faint, from the War, it took control of me. My own memories were stronger than I was. I'll need to do some research into that mind you, but the memory kept me alive, it wouldn't let me die. They tried bringing me within a hair of death, tried to start the regeneration process without actually killing me. Needless to say, it didn't work. Then a new one came, he had me killed. They were going to capture the energy, but the Memory wouldn't let me give it to them. It made me, well the best word for it is teleport into the TARDIS. Speaking of which, did you say you had crashed the old girl?! In the name of all that is wibbley and wobbley, yes I heard your infamous quote, how the devil did you manage it this time?!"