Post by Fitz Kreiner on Jun 19, 2008 14:31:02 GMT
“A trap? But who would want to trap the TARDIS, and why?”
“Oh,” The Doctor straightened up and rubbed the back of his neck. “I can give you a very long list for whom. Why, again, it would be quite lengthy. However, once you ask who has the capability, well, that narrows it down quite a bit.”
“Ok. Who has the capability?”
The Doctor turned to look back at the console, tapping furiously at one small section of controls. “That’s somewhat more complicated. They’d need to have the level of technology to penetrate a TARDIS. Not just once, but somehow four times. The Daleks may be able to manage it once, but not to this scale.” The Doctor paused and turned round and grabbed Dodo by the shoulders, causing her to cry out slightly in surprise. “This is important. I can’t ask Sarah because I’ve sedated her, but talk to me, what have we just gone through together?”
Dodo, stammered, unsure of what to say. “Well, I woke up and to be honest, I’ve not really followed a lot of what you’re saying.”
The Doctor closed his eyes and screwed his face up, dropping his head, before slowly opening his eyes and looking back up at Dodo. “No, I meant when you were with me, the me with the white hair. What had happened before Tombstone?”
“Erm, there was the Toymaker, and the Monoids. Well, that was it really.” Dodo managed after a few seconds.
“Toymaker.” The Doctor mused as he turned back to the console and checked the readouts.
“Hey, you’re not thinking it’s him again, are you?” Dodo asked, rounding the console to look at the Doctor. “‘Cause I really don’t fancy playing all them games again.” Dodo stopped and looked at the Doctor. He was seemingly ignoring her, concentrating closely on a small section of the console.
“Hmm, sorry. What was that?” He asked, looking back up at her.
“The Toymaker?!” Dodo almost shouted back at the Doctor. “This isn’t him again, is it?”
“Oh, no. No no no no no.” The Doctor replied, looking back down to the console. “This really isn’t his style at all. If it were the Toymaker, or any of the other Great Old Ones they really wouldn’t have bothered with this charade.”
Dodo just stared at the Doctor as he stopped talking and returned his concentration fully to the console. “Well? What’s going on here?” She asked.
“Hmm, oh, I thought I told you?” The Doctor looked up. “Well, that leaves only one viable option still open.” Trailing off, the Doctor leaned closer to the console. “Now that really is odd.” He muttered.
“Doctor, you’re not making any sense at all!” Dodo cried, exasperated and fed up of trying to get through to the Time Lord.
“There’s another trace on the Time Curve Indicator and a recall signal has been sent.” The Doctor muttered. “Now this is odd. The recall signal is clearly being sent by one of my other selves as the readings match those of the TARDIS, but the readings on the Time Curve Indicator are different. That means we have someone or something else on our tail.
“Doctor!” Dodo virtually shouted standing in his way. “Will you please tell me what is happening, you lost me ages ago.”
The Doctor stopped, lightly bobbing on his feet as if anxious to continue dashing about the console. “Whoever has set this trap has caused my TARDIS, the one you’re now in, to splinter my friends throughout time and has ensnared three of my other selves. My friends, I’m hoping, are with me at other points in my life, just as you and Sarah Jane have been transported here. To work this out, the four of me are going to have to get together to try and sort this mess out. That’s what the recall signal is for.” The Doctor paused and looked at Dodo. “Still with me?”
“Erm-” She began.
“Good. Now, the trace on the time curve indicator shows that someone is following us. The last time it was my future self, but the power needed to stay was too great and he lost the trace. The readings have been stored in the TARDIS data banks, but the readings for this trace don’t match those of my TARDIS, indicating that this is someone else.” The Doctor paused and looked at the scanner screen again. “Someone else with another TARDIS.”
“But who’d have another TARDIS?” Dodo asked. She had grasped the fact that they were being followed, but all the talk of other selves had lost her.
“Now that is an incredibly long list. Any one of my people. But who would be after setting a trap like that. There are only a few that I can think of, and one of them I’d have thought would have had his fill of me for a while.” The Doctor mused, staring into the scanner. “But the question is; which do we deal with first?” Turning, the Doctor looked at Dodo, a twinkle in his eye.
“Doctor!” Dodo said.
“Yes, of course. You’re right.” The Doctor said, crossing to the flight controls. “Time to meet myself.”
Closing the TARDIS doors behind him, the Doctor threw one end of his scarf over his shoulder and looked about the pale void. Another version of his TARDIS stood nearby. Whether it was his first incarnation or another, he didn’t know yet. The sound of the door opening gave him his answer.
The central column ceased its movement as the Doctor checked the TARDIS instruments. “Well, this is where the recall signal is coming from.” He said.
“Where are we?” Steven asked.
“Hmm? Oh, it’s a region of spulled, erm, nulled space. And it’s likely to be unstable, held together by the forces acted on it by the TARDIS being here in several points of its timeline.” The Doctor replied.
“So, what do we do now?” Tom asked. “Go out there and face all this head on, or do we opt for a more subtle plan?”
“You, young man, and you Mr. Taylor are going to stay here.” The Doctor said. “Like I said, nulled space can be very unstable, so I will be going out alone.”
“Are you sure that’s a good idea, Doctor?” Steven asked.
“Quite sure, my boy, quite sure.” The Doctor said, picking up his walking stick and walking to the now open door. Pausing at the doors, he looked back at Steven and Tom. “Whatever you may see on the scanner screen, stay in the ship.” Turning back, he walked from the TARDIS.
Stepping out of the TARDIS and closing the door behind him, he saw that one of his other selves was already there; the bohemian. He was stood, his hands deep in his pockets, scarf wrapped about his neck and a green felt hat crammed over his dark curls.
“Hello again.” He waved.
“Now then, young man.” The Doctor said, walking over. “What’s all this about, hm?”
“I don’t know.” The Fourth Doctor said, as the wheezing and groaning heralded the arrival of the TARDIS for the third time.
“Now.” The Doctor said, opening the door and rounding on Dodo. “You should probably stay here. Nulled space isn’t the most stable of regions at the best of times.”
“But-” Dodo began before getting silenced by the Doctor holding his hand up.
“I’ll be back as soon as I’ve spoken to myself.” He said. “Hopefully, it will shed some light as to why I don’t remember this happening and who has engineered this elaborate charade.” The Doctor paused as he made his way to the doors and turned back to Dodo, his hand raised. “Oh yes, and allow me to get you and Sarah Jane back to your proper times and places and get Jess, Tom and Tifa back.”
Pulling his green frock coat from the hat stand as he passed, the Doctor left the TARDIS to meet his past selves.
A violent and deep trembling spin had taken hold of the TARDIS as the recall signal weaved through the barriers of the vortex. The centrifugal force that the TARDIS exerted had pushed the Doctor and Tifa back against the rails that surrounded part of the console as alarm bells and sirens sounded, interspersed with peals from the cloister bell. Pulling against the forces exerted against him, the Doctor fought his way to the console.
“What’s causing all this?” Tifa shouted over the clamour of sirens.
“The TARDIS is reacting against going into her own past.” The Doctor shouted back. “A lot has happened in the past few years. Stuff I shouldn’t really talk about, and stuff that’s making this not so easy.”
Tifa could feel the railings digging into her back as she fought against the pressures forcing her back. “Should it be like this?”
“There were, I mean, are strict laws governing travelling into your own time line.” The Doctor shouted as he made it to the console. “And if I can’t reconnect the TARDIS force fields and stabilise her then the forces of the vortex could rip through the console and then rip us apart.”
“Oh,” The Doctor straightened up and rubbed the back of his neck. “I can give you a very long list for whom. Why, again, it would be quite lengthy. However, once you ask who has the capability, well, that narrows it down quite a bit.”
“Ok. Who has the capability?”
The Doctor turned to look back at the console, tapping furiously at one small section of controls. “That’s somewhat more complicated. They’d need to have the level of technology to penetrate a TARDIS. Not just once, but somehow four times. The Daleks may be able to manage it once, but not to this scale.” The Doctor paused and turned round and grabbed Dodo by the shoulders, causing her to cry out slightly in surprise. “This is important. I can’t ask Sarah because I’ve sedated her, but talk to me, what have we just gone through together?”
Dodo, stammered, unsure of what to say. “Well, I woke up and to be honest, I’ve not really followed a lot of what you’re saying.”
The Doctor closed his eyes and screwed his face up, dropping his head, before slowly opening his eyes and looking back up at Dodo. “No, I meant when you were with me, the me with the white hair. What had happened before Tombstone?”
“Erm, there was the Toymaker, and the Monoids. Well, that was it really.” Dodo managed after a few seconds.
“Toymaker.” The Doctor mused as he turned back to the console and checked the readouts.
“Hey, you’re not thinking it’s him again, are you?” Dodo asked, rounding the console to look at the Doctor. “‘Cause I really don’t fancy playing all them games again.” Dodo stopped and looked at the Doctor. He was seemingly ignoring her, concentrating closely on a small section of the console.
“Hmm, sorry. What was that?” He asked, looking back up at her.
“The Toymaker?!” Dodo almost shouted back at the Doctor. “This isn’t him again, is it?”
“Oh, no. No no no no no.” The Doctor replied, looking back down to the console. “This really isn’t his style at all. If it were the Toymaker, or any of the other Great Old Ones they really wouldn’t have bothered with this charade.”
Dodo just stared at the Doctor as he stopped talking and returned his concentration fully to the console. “Well? What’s going on here?” She asked.
“Hmm, oh, I thought I told you?” The Doctor looked up. “Well, that leaves only one viable option still open.” Trailing off, the Doctor leaned closer to the console. “Now that really is odd.” He muttered.
“Doctor, you’re not making any sense at all!” Dodo cried, exasperated and fed up of trying to get through to the Time Lord.
“There’s another trace on the Time Curve Indicator and a recall signal has been sent.” The Doctor muttered. “Now this is odd. The recall signal is clearly being sent by one of my other selves as the readings match those of the TARDIS, but the readings on the Time Curve Indicator are different. That means we have someone or something else on our tail.
“Doctor!” Dodo virtually shouted standing in his way. “Will you please tell me what is happening, you lost me ages ago.”
The Doctor stopped, lightly bobbing on his feet as if anxious to continue dashing about the console. “Whoever has set this trap has caused my TARDIS, the one you’re now in, to splinter my friends throughout time and has ensnared three of my other selves. My friends, I’m hoping, are with me at other points in my life, just as you and Sarah Jane have been transported here. To work this out, the four of me are going to have to get together to try and sort this mess out. That’s what the recall signal is for.” The Doctor paused and looked at Dodo. “Still with me?”
“Erm-” She began.
“Good. Now, the trace on the time curve indicator shows that someone is following us. The last time it was my future self, but the power needed to stay was too great and he lost the trace. The readings have been stored in the TARDIS data banks, but the readings for this trace don’t match those of my TARDIS, indicating that this is someone else.” The Doctor paused and looked at the scanner screen again. “Someone else with another TARDIS.”
“But who’d have another TARDIS?” Dodo asked. She had grasped the fact that they were being followed, but all the talk of other selves had lost her.
“Now that is an incredibly long list. Any one of my people. But who would be after setting a trap like that. There are only a few that I can think of, and one of them I’d have thought would have had his fill of me for a while.” The Doctor mused, staring into the scanner. “But the question is; which do we deal with first?” Turning, the Doctor looked at Dodo, a twinkle in his eye.
“Doctor!” Dodo said.
“Yes, of course. You’re right.” The Doctor said, crossing to the flight controls. “Time to meet myself.”
*
Closing the TARDIS doors behind him, the Doctor threw one end of his scarf over his shoulder and looked about the pale void. Another version of his TARDIS stood nearby. Whether it was his first incarnation or another, he didn’t know yet. The sound of the door opening gave him his answer.
*
The central column ceased its movement as the Doctor checked the TARDIS instruments. “Well, this is where the recall signal is coming from.” He said.
“Where are we?” Steven asked.
“Hmm? Oh, it’s a region of spulled, erm, nulled space. And it’s likely to be unstable, held together by the forces acted on it by the TARDIS being here in several points of its timeline.” The Doctor replied.
“So, what do we do now?” Tom asked. “Go out there and face all this head on, or do we opt for a more subtle plan?”
“You, young man, and you Mr. Taylor are going to stay here.” The Doctor said. “Like I said, nulled space can be very unstable, so I will be going out alone.”
“Are you sure that’s a good idea, Doctor?” Steven asked.
“Quite sure, my boy, quite sure.” The Doctor said, picking up his walking stick and walking to the now open door. Pausing at the doors, he looked back at Steven and Tom. “Whatever you may see on the scanner screen, stay in the ship.” Turning back, he walked from the TARDIS.
Stepping out of the TARDIS and closing the door behind him, he saw that one of his other selves was already there; the bohemian. He was stood, his hands deep in his pockets, scarf wrapped about his neck and a green felt hat crammed over his dark curls.
“Hello again.” He waved.
“Now then, young man.” The Doctor said, walking over. “What’s all this about, hm?”
“I don’t know.” The Fourth Doctor said, as the wheezing and groaning heralded the arrival of the TARDIS for the third time.
*
“Now.” The Doctor said, opening the door and rounding on Dodo. “You should probably stay here. Nulled space isn’t the most stable of regions at the best of times.”
“But-” Dodo began before getting silenced by the Doctor holding his hand up.
“I’ll be back as soon as I’ve spoken to myself.” He said. “Hopefully, it will shed some light as to why I don’t remember this happening and who has engineered this elaborate charade.” The Doctor paused as he made his way to the doors and turned back to Dodo, his hand raised. “Oh yes, and allow me to get you and Sarah Jane back to your proper times and places and get Jess, Tom and Tifa back.”
Pulling his green frock coat from the hat stand as he passed, the Doctor left the TARDIS to meet his past selves.
*
A violent and deep trembling spin had taken hold of the TARDIS as the recall signal weaved through the barriers of the vortex. The centrifugal force that the TARDIS exerted had pushed the Doctor and Tifa back against the rails that surrounded part of the console as alarm bells and sirens sounded, interspersed with peals from the cloister bell. Pulling against the forces exerted against him, the Doctor fought his way to the console.
“What’s causing all this?” Tifa shouted over the clamour of sirens.
“The TARDIS is reacting against going into her own past.” The Doctor shouted back. “A lot has happened in the past few years. Stuff I shouldn’t really talk about, and stuff that’s making this not so easy.”
Tifa could feel the railings digging into her back as she fought against the pressures forcing her back. “Should it be like this?”
“There were, I mean, are strict laws governing travelling into your own time line.” The Doctor shouted as he made it to the console. “And if I can’t reconnect the TARDIS force fields and stabilise her then the forces of the vortex could rip through the console and then rip us apart.”
