Doctor Who, Lost Memories: Thrill Seeker [fireandblood & Villain]

Started by fireandblood, January 07, 2013, 07:27:02 PM

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Villain

"Oh yes, she's done for," the Doctor said, with no enthusiasm. He looked up at the sky and frowned. Dark clouds had begun to gather above high above their heads and thunder began to rumble in the distance. "But that's going to be a problem," the Doctor said before bending down to pick up the remains of his sonic screwdriver. He examined the damage to the tool before putting it in his pocket and casting another glance at the clouds. "The Wire sent out her signal to her gang of criminal power bolts. They're riding a storm ship in order to get here and before you ask, yes a storm ship is a spaceship made out of thunder clouds."

He straightened his collar and wiped a bit of green foam off his shoulder. "They're going to be a bit peeved when they find out their master got destroyed. And it's going to be difficult to fight them without the algae, it can't survive in this planets the environment has too much nitrogen, carbon-dioxide and pollen in it's atmosphere. I'll need to think of something else to fight them off with."

A smile started to form on his face, he began to rummage through his pockets and pull out weird tools with glowing lights and rotating parts. Some slightly resembled tools from earth, such as spanners and wrenches, but some were beyond definition. The only thing that seemed relatively normal was a large hammer that he yanked from one pocket. It seemed that his coat contained no end of strange devices.

"Fighting a cloud isn't too difficult. Although you do get wet, but that's why I chose an anorak over umbrella. It keeps me dry, its stylish and doesn't turn me into a lightning rod," for a moment the Doctor paused and sheepishly scratched the back of his head, as if remembering some old injury. "Never going to make that mistake again."

"Doc...tor..." A crackling whisper suddenly spoke from the wreckage of the mirror. The Doctor looked at the ruins in alarm and raised one of the tools above his head, but before he could do anything a red lightning bolt shot from the mirror's surface and struck Robin in the head.

"No!" He yelled in despair, dropping everything he was carrying before racing over to Robin and grabbing her head. Red lightning arced around her forehead as what little remained of the Wire nestled inside the poor girls brain. "You get out of there!" the Doctor yelled. "You get out of her head right now!"

"If I do that Doctor then she will die screaming," the Wire spoke through Robin's lips. Her eyes were glowing with bright blue light and the veins in her face were turning a neon red. The Doctor held on to Robin's shoulder and stared into the her shining eyes helplessly. It was clear that at that moment, he had nothing. He couldn't save her.

"Whats the point of this?" The Doctor asked with outrage. "You've jumped bodies too many times anyway you'll break apart in minutes and burn up inside her!"

"And you won't be able to save her Doctor." the Wire spoke with delight, but there was an edge of pain to her words, as if speaking was causing her great pain. But, despite any discomfort she still continued to talk. "She will die Doctor and you will forever know that you couldn't save her, no matter how hard you tried. All you could do was watch. Just like last time, I will take away the girl who means so much to you."

The helpless look in his golden eyes began to fade from his face. A new fire began to burn inside them. Something fiercer than anything he had conjured so far. His hands reached up to the sides of Robin's face. Lightning stung and nipped at his fingers, but he didn't show any sign of registering the pain. Slowly, he leaned forwards and pressed his temple to Robin's head.

"Robin," he spoke slowly. "I want you to listen to me. You are a remarkable girl, do you know that?" he asked with a smile and shut his eyes. "I need you to tell me that you can hear me, because if you can hear me, then you're truly incredible, because that means your strong enough to hear what I'm saying despite how much the Wire doesn't want you to. Answer me Robin."

The wind around them had quickly picked up. The rumble of thunder was growing louder as the storm clouds grew darker and began to form a swirly mass of air currents and water vapor which spiraled down towards the earth. As the fang of storms began grew closer the rumble of the storm began to sound less like thunder and more like the roar of an engine. Rain began to fall on their heads in heavy drops.

fireandblood

Robin listened to the Doctor speak, a small smile quirking the corners of her lips. Here was this man... This strange, incredible man. She had met him only a little while ago, and already he had changed her life more than anything ever had before. Whole new worlds seemed to open before her, weird and new and exciting, and infinite. Wonders she had never imagined waited out there, and now she was experiencing just a piece of that.

It didn't seem to matter that the newest "wonder" that they were about to face was extremely deadly. The Doctor was there, and for some reason it made everything okay. He would get them out of it, Robin was sure. She watched in astonishment as he pulled out tool after tool, strange things both familiar and foreign - and some seeming to come from some distant future. Her eyes widened at some of them. They had deadly-looking barbs or spikes or some sort of reddish liquid inside them. Shaking her head, Robin turned to look at the Doctor's face.

"A ship made of clouds? That's amazing, it really is," she said with a bewildered laugh, running her hand through her curls. She noticed for the first time that she seemed to have lost her hat. "Also you'll have to tell me about becoming a lightning bolt, it sounds really - " She was cut off by the hissing of the mirror, and as she turned to look at it, a bolt of lightning hit her in the temple.

Pain course through her body, heat and cold and electricity burning her inside and out. The pain was worse than she'd ever felt. It made every cell in her body rigid and white-hot, and it caused her consciousness to recoil into her brain to hide. She felt the Wire take over her body and could do nothing to stop it. Trying to shout, she realized that she couldn't speak, or hear, or see... Nothing. She was alone in the dark.

Another casualty of the Doctor, the voice of the Wire spoke in her head. Numerous humans have come and gone with the Doctor, little girl. They've all ended up alone in the end. He destroys entire species without a second thought. And now we shall all bear witness as the Doctor comes to his end.

No, Robin thought back at it, I've seen some of his memories. He's kind and good and everyone he meets is better off having met him. He only destroys things that are evil or that want to cause the end of the world. Because he knows humans are a race worth saving. And he'll save me, you just wait and see.

Silly girl, the voice said scathingly as it receded to speak to the Doctor, nothing can save you now.

Then she truly was alone, scared and hurt and confused. And suddenly, a voice resounded through her head. The Doctor's voice. She couldn't hear it with her ears; it was as though he had a direct link with her mind and was speaking inside her very thoughts.

"Robin, I want you to listen to me. You are a remarkable girl, do you know that? I need you to tell me that you can hear me, because if you can hear me, then you're truly incredible, because that means you're strong enough to hear what I'm saying despite how much the Wire doesn't want you to. Answer me Robin."

She knew she couldn't take control of her own voice at the present, so she focused as hard as she could and tried to send a message back to the Doctor with her mind.

I can hear you, Doctor, she thought as loudly as she could. I know I'm remarkable, but can you please just get me out of here? It's dark... And it hurts. Trying to make jokes always seemed like a good idea in a bad situation, or so Robin thought. I can't die now, you weird man. I have to hear the story about the lightning rod.

The creature inside her mind hissed, and the words it spoke next were audible to both the Doctor and Robin.

"Not possible!" It screeched, sending another jolt of pain through her head. "How can the girl hear you?"

Villain

"Stop it!" The Doctor barked at the Wire as he felt Robin jerk from another shock. His grip tightened on her head and his closed his eyes tight as he concentrated hard on what to do next. "Robin, I swear that I am going to save you."

"Do not lie to her Doctor. She is doomed, she will be destroyed and you will watch," the wire snarled and tried to fend the doctor back by sending out a few tendrils of red lightning which lashed at his shoulders and head. "You will fall! You and this weak willed girl! You will fall to the Wire! My will is strong and I will stamp her out and gobble her up!"

"Robin, you're stronger than her," the Doctor spoke softly whilst the tips of his fingers massaged the sides of her head. "You're stronger than a great deal of monsters in this universe. Compared to you the Wire is nothing but a bad dream wrapped in a triple A battery."

"She cannot hear you! I have eliminated her!" the Wire screeched. It had grown dark now. The sun had been blotted out by the clouds and rain was coming down in great sheets. Forks and spears of lightning danced in the vortex of clouds as the ship grew nearer with every passing second.

"Robin, you need to do something for me," the Doctor spoke calmly. "I want you to push her out of your head. I want you to envision shoving that annoying little spark out of your brain and into mine. I've opened a psychic link between us, this is the only way I can get her out of your body without burning you to cinders."

"If she does that then you will die too Doctor! I'll burn you up with me!" the Wire bellowed, her tendrils lashing at the ground around them, sending lines of fire running across the stone.

"Trust me Robin," the Doctor said before a warm grin slowly stretched out over his lips. "Let me at her."

fireandblood

Robin wanted to cry. She had never wanted to cry so very badly in all her life. But with this monster controlling her, she couldn't do it. Not a single tear fell from her eyes, but Robin cried on the inside. The pain was almost too much to bear; she wanted to fade away, as her mind was urging her to do, just let go and let the blackness envelope her. But The Doctor's voice rang through her head again.

I swear that I am going to save you.  With those nine words, Robin felt her will returning. She wanted this thing out of her and wanted it out at that moment. The Wire tried to push her back then, but she formed a sort of wall inside her head and it kept it at bay - at least for a moment.

Doctor, Robin thought earnestly, you are the most important man in the universe. I've seen that and I know it. I'm trusting you that you can beat this thing, but if you die, you better hope I can't get ahold of you in the afterlife because I'll kill you again. She tried to think a smile at him then.

Steeling herself, Robin pushed tentatively back at the creature. It hissed at her and sent another shock through her, but it was definitely weaker than the last. It was failing and it knew it, though there was a sort of strange satisfaction lurking behind its weakened state.

Hoping the Doctor was ready, Robin heaved with all of her might, pushing the creature through what seemed to be a sort of tunnel. Slowly, so slowly, Robin began getting her senses back. First was smell. The air smelled of ozone and electricity. It was the most wonderful smell in he world. Then came her hearing, and finally, her sight and touch and taste.

Her head was pounding even worse than before, and her whole body felt like it had been scorched. She would feel the remnants of the pain for days, but she didn't care. It was gone. That was all that mattered.

Then she remembered the Doctor. Her head snapped to look at him and she took a tentative step in his direction

"Doctor?" She asked timidly. "Are you there?"

Villain

"You flatter me," he whispered with a smile before bracing himself as Robin prepared to let the monster out. "This is your last chance wire. If I open the connection then you can pass out of her head without burning her up," he spoke softly. "I can store you in a device and save you from shorting out. You'll be imprisoned, but you'll be alive. What do you say?"

"Never!" the Wire screeched and Rose's skin began to glow blue as she summoned what little power she had left to fry the Doctor.

"So be it," he muttered back and closed his eyes to prepare himself for what was about to happen next...

Robin pushed. Slowly, a red spark began to emerge from Robin's forehead and push into the Doctor's. It didn't want to go, it writhed and snapped as it tried to break free. The screams of the Wire filled the area as she protested.

"No! I will not have this! I will not have this!" She howled, but no matter what she did, she couldn't break free. She was too weak and Robin was far too strong.

Her screams stopped. The Doctor stood with his arms by his side. Small surges of red lightning circled his head like a sloppy halo. He was quiet and still.

"Victory..." the Wire whispered before it opened the Doctors eyes, which now burned with the same light as Robin's had mere moments ago. She forced the Doctor to lift his arms and step towards Robin. Her sick grin lit up the Doctor's face. "This is even better than I could hope! I'll use your hands to kill the girl and then I will drag you with me! I will merge with your mind and sear every memory you have and replace them with pain and fire!" he took another step towards Robin. His hands were going for her throat, sparking with red lightning. "I will gobble you up little girl!" the Wire screeched before cackling loudly, her insane laugh carrying on the wind.

And then she stopped in her tracks.

"What is this?" the Wire asked uneasily, the Doctor's face contorted in confusion. "What is all this...damage?" the Wire asked with growing fear.

"You wanted in my mind," the Doctor said softly from his own lips. His eyes ceased glowing and became the soft caramel color from before. The smile returned to his face with comforting warmth. "Well here it is. Do you like the place?"

"I don't understand... what are all these cracks?" the Wire whimpered.

"That's my mind," the Doctor replied. "It didn't used to look like that. It was simpler a while ago. I can't remember when exactly, but I recall it being just the over complicated mind of a Time Lord with it's gaping view of the complexity's of time and space." The Doctor rubbed his forehead and winced as if he had touched a tender spot on a wound. "But at some point in my past my brain got smashed. And now I have this great big complicated ball of thoughts and memories with great big cracks running through it like a broken sheet of glass."

"And now I'm going to push you through the cracks like flour through a sieve," the Doctor spoke before closing his eyes and breathing in deep.

The Wire began to scream, but not in pain or anger, this time it was fear. "No! No Doctor! Don't do this! Please, I beg you! Don't do this!" She shrieked.

"The people you killed didn't have time to beg for their lives. Why should I listen to you?" The Doctor asked coldly. Small red sparks had begun to slowly push out from different sides of the Doctor's head, like pasta out of a machine. Cries of pain echoed through the area as the Doctor began to shred the Wire to pieces.

"Please Doctor, I'll do anything! I beg of you!" The Wire wailed as more strands of power sprouted from his head. "Please... please have mercy on me!"

"I offered you mercy. You turned it down," the Doctor replied, his eyes opened and fists clenched. "Now, I'm going to break you." he snarled before punching his arms out to his sides.

Red lightning shot from his body in every direction and instantly vanished into the air. The blue flickering image of a shrieking woman flashed over the Doctor's face, before it too cracked and shattered and followed the path of the lightning. The Wire screamed the entire time as her whole essence was ripped to shreds and flung into the atmosphere leaving nothing behind.

When he was done the Doctor staggered forwards, his body smoking with every step, but he did not fall.

fireandblood

Robin didn't even have time to contemplate her pain; the Wire had begun to take over the Doctor's body as it had hers. His eyes went red and glowy, and Robin wondered with a shudder if hers had looked the same. She supposed they had. Then the creature started speaking with the Doctor's lips, threatening to take Robin's life... As it staggered toward her using the Doctor's legs, she moved backward at the same pace. Then, however, it stopped.

The Doctor's mind... damaged? Robin could see now; the broken memories, the distorted thoughts, the pains in his head... It all made sense. But she stopped short when the Doctor's eyes closed and opened again - but this time his normal golden color. He even smiled, and Robin had to return the gesture; she had been very worried that he wouldn't make it out.

At some point in my past my brain got smashed. This made no sense; if someone's brain had been smashed, how would they be able to survive and talk about it? He did say he was something called a Time Lord (another rather grandiose title in Robin's opinion), and perhaps they could survive more damage than a human. But a brain completely smashed...

Her thoughts were interrupted. A cold light seemed to have taken over the Doctor's eyes. He was going to destroy the creature, though something told Robin that despite the fact it had killed so many people, he was sad about taking its life. It was begging with him, pleading, but he was all fire and ice. Terrifying and beautiful. The oncoming storm; the destroyer of worlds.

Then lightning pulsed from him, snapping out into the air so close to Robin's face that she had to jump back. A form hovered in front of the Doctor, emitting a terrible scream before it completely vanished, leaving only smoke and a scent of burnt hair behind. A moment of silence passed as Robin looked at the smoking Doctor, in awe of him and horrified by him at the same time. How many times had he done things like this?

Steel coursed through her veins, however, and she straightened. Even in her immense state of pain, she walked to the Doctor and looked up into his face. All of the cold had gone, leaving only weariness and age in its place. Again, she wrapped her arms around his waist and squeezed him tight.

"Thank you for saving my life," she whispered, standing on tiptoe to peck his cheek, "And I would love for us to take a victory break right now, since I can hardly move and you seem in about the same shape as me, but um... There's that to worry about." She pointed up to the sky, which had grown ever darker. Lightning was crackling madly through the clouds, and the rain came in drenching sheets.

Villain

The Doctor's eyes fluttered open as Robin embraced him. Another day he would have probably made some smart comment or done something goofy to break the seriousness of the moment, but getting fried on the inside had taken its toll on him. Breaking apart a soul by slamming it through his mind had made his broken memories tingle. He could hear the voices of faces he had forgotten and see shapes of people he didn't remember the name of...and it hurt.

"Well... that's unfortunate," the Doctor groaned as he watched the vortex of clouds open above them and begin to churn a bolt of lightning within its winds. "I had hopped to prepare for their arrival. It was going to be genius. You would have been really impressed and probably fallen in love with me. It's ok, that happens a lot." He laughed wearily before turning to gather the tools he had dropped from earlier.

There was a great bang as the clouds above them shot out several bolts of lightning, which struck the ground around them in a circle. In the areas where the lightning struck, stood men and woman, all covered in rags and armor, carrying guns that were oddly shaped and contained glowing blue orbs. They looked reasonably human, except beneath their skin lay glowing red veins and instead of eyes they possessed balls of pure menacing light. The moment they saw the Doctor and Robin, they aimed.

"I wouldn't," the Doctor called over his shoulder whilst picking up a tool that slightly resembled an electronic drill. "If you attempt to attack us in any way then I'm going to have to treat you like an enemy. You wouldn't want that." He pocketed another tool before standing up and facing their new foes. "You've come to serve your boss, the Wire, well I have bad news for you. She's a bit in pieces, she had an awful shock."

The Doctor laughed lamely at his own joke. The invaders didn't find it funny. "You're thinking; 'Is this guy with the bad jokes a lunatic? Why don't we just gang up on him?'" The Doctor said, continuing to chuckle despite the glares. "Well the answer to that question is that you just felt what happened to your boss. Before you landed you heard her death scream and experienced the same terror that she felt through her signal beacon. You could have come down in the form of pure energy and fried me and my friend, but instead you armed yourselves because you don't like your odds."

The Doctor had stopped chuckling and was now walking from alien to alien as he talked. He stared deep into their eyes, the humor in them vanishing to show that same cold expression that he had shown the Wire before her death. "And right you are to doubt your chances. The Wire was ten times more powerful than you, even in her weakest state. She had an iron will allowed her to survive total annihilation, an armada of electric soldiers and horrifying powers that could have chopped me to pieces....and she still couldn't beat me."

"And to make matters worse, before you landed you no doubt heard all the tales about this planet, this simple, harmless looking planet, and heard the horror stories," the Doctor spoke darkly and for a moment a shudder rippled through the circle of enemies, some began holding their guns a little closer to their chest. "Stories of creatures attempting to take it for their own. You heard how waves of powerful beings, numbering in the millions, swarmed it's skies in an all out war to take the world and they were stopped...by a mad man, the last of his kind."

"They all stepped up and every single one of them fell. So will you be next?" The aliens were silent. All of them had become rooted to the spot. Their guns pointed at him, but they shook in their grip as fear took a hold of them. After a moments silence one of the aliens asked; "Who are you?"

"I'm the Doctor. Welcome to Earth." The Doctor spoke with the friendliest of smiles. "Now...leave."

Light flashed before their eyes as the aliens fled without a seconds hesitation. They twisted into their plasmic forms and leaped at their storm ship, burying themselves within the clouds. Some were so desperate to get away that they forgot to transform and flailed helplessly in the air before finally kicking off and shooting up at their ship. Once all of them were inside the clouds rapidly dispersed, revealing sunny skies once more once they had made their rapid exit and escaped the terror that they had left behind.

fireandblood

Robin simply laughed at his comments about her falling in love with him. Was it even possible to fall for someone like him? Someone who cared so much and yet could kill with such ease? Someone who seemed to be a child, but had wiped out entire races with a flick of his wrist? Someone who looked so young, but had eyes of an impossible age? Robin shivered. He had meant his question to be lighthearted, but it made her think of the humans who had come before her. Had they found a way to love this terrifying, breathtaking man?

A thrill of fear passed through Robin's body as the clouds above opened and warriors rained down upon them, surrounding them with their horrible eyes and their glowing weapons. She was afraid... However, not as afraid as before. She had seen what this strange Doctor could do, and she knew he would protect her. And if she did die here, she would have died with more of a life than she'd have thought possible.

Then the Doctor began to speak. Though she was on his side, the words still sent goosebumps up and down her arms.

And to make matters worse, before you landed you heard all the stories about this planet. Robin's hand fluttered to her mouth as more images sped through her mind. Nearly a thousand years worth of pictures, names, thoughts...

This simple, harmless looking planet, and heard of the horror stories. She saw the human faces, young women and men, all ready to fight for their planet and for their Doctor.

Stories of creatures attempt to take it for their own. You heard how waves of powerful beings, numbering in the millions, swarmed its skies in an all out war to take the world and they were stopped...by a mad man, the last of his kind. A single tear dripped down Robin's cheek as she saw the Doctor being locked into a huge box. In her mind, a single word was whispered. Pandorica.

They all stepped up and every single one of them fell. So will you be next? This time it was a face she couldn't remember. She had seen it before but when it faded all she knew was that she was scared.

I'm the Doctor. Welcome to Earth. Now...leave. And leave they did. They took off so fast that some of them hit each other on the way up in their frantic escape, trying to get away from this old, strange, sad man. The Earth's loneliest guardian. Robin sank to the ground, sobs pouring uncontrollably from her, tears making tracks down her cheeks.

"I'm sorry," she said in a choked voice, "I don't know what's wrong with me. I never cry."

Villain

"My dear you almost got killed four times in the last hour and twenty minutes," the Doctor said cheerfully. "If you didn't cry that would just be weird. It's nice to see someone acting normal for a change." He walked over to Robin and pulled out a string of handkerchiefs from his trouser pocket. He knelt down and offered them to the girl with a smile, trying his best not to look too guilty while he helped wipe the tears from her face.

"It's not a bad thing to cry. Heck, I cried when Bambi's mother got shot, I wept at the end of ET and I was completely inconsolable when Dumbledore died," he grinned at her in an attempt to try and make her smile. "People cry. It's a good thing, even in the worst of times. It shows you care about things. About the people we loose, the gestures that make us happy, the enemies that scare us and the moments when you're so very glad that you got out alive when all seemed hopeless"

The Doctor could hear the sound of crowds in the distance. The police were finally arriving, after no doubt being held back by protocol as they watched a miniature storm break out in the middle of a theme park. The Doctor could have stuck around to soak up some glory and show off, any other day he felt that might be something he would do, but Robin's tears inspired him to take a different action.

"Robin. Follow me. I have something to show you," the Doctor spoke before taking her hand and helping her to her feet. "I promise that it'll bring a smile to your face."

fireandblood

A sad smile creased Robin's face through her tears. This man, this wonderful man, had gone from being the savior of the world to trying to cheer up a normal human, all within the matter of a few seconds. When he mentioned Dumbledore, a strangled laugh bubbled from her and she smiled more widely at him.

"You big baby," she said, elbowing him in his shin, her voice still wavering. "'The Oncoming Storm,' they call you, and you can't even handle the deaths of fictional characters?" She accepted his hand as he offered it and stood slowly to her feet, wincing as her sore joints protested. "This hurts a lot. I'm going to do my best never to get possessed by a plasmic being again, okay?"

Her eyes shifted to his face for a second before falling again to look at the ground.

"You scare me," she whispered quietly, not wanting him to hear her. More loudly, she added, "So, where are we headed?"

Villain

"Oi! Fictional or not they greatly inspired me," the Doctor protested with a cheeky grin. "Why I practically model myself after Dumbledore. Except where he was wise, responsible and modest, I'm wacky, reckless and a gigantic showoff."

The Doctor's eyes ran over her injured body as he helped her stand. He made a few mental notes to give her proper medical attention once he had the right equipment. Although that would be something he would have to take great care with, he didn't want her to freak when he offered to patch up her wounds with squiggly liquids and odd do-hickeys.

If the Doctor heard her admit that he scared her, he didn't show it. Instead he just grinned with that same mischievous pearly grin that he had shown her so many times that day and began to lead her away from the ruins of Hogwarts and the black ashes of the dead. He took one last look over his shoulder at the scene before turning back to her and chuckling.

"Wherever you like."

----

It was beautiful, foreboding, simple, ridiculous and a great many other things that could not be described, only felt.

The TARDIS stood proud, bold and blue within the car park of Universal Studios. A gleaming blue police box that looked as if it had been pulled straight from the streets of England from the 1990's. It was a bizarre thing to behold, especially in America, and not one person would be able to make sense of it when they saw it, so instead they steered clear of it. After all, who on earth would want to go near something so weird?

At least, that was what the Doctor had always believed people thought.

"I don't believe it!" the Doctor cried as he rushed over to the blue police box and tore several pieces of paper from its doors. He stared at them with dismay before turning to Robin and waggling them in front of her face. "They gave me a ticket! No wait... they gave me four tickets! Four parking tickets! I wasn't even late! How could they do such a thing?!"

The Doctor frowned before crumpling up the tickets and shoving them into his pocket, grumbling under his breath about how it was the four hundredth he had received and felt it was hardly justified, but soon his complaining ceased and he walked up to his beloved ship with a smile on his face.

"Go on," he called to Robin from over his shoulder. "Ask the questions you are dieing to ask."


fireandblood

When the blue box came into view, Robin froze. The Doctor hadn't seemed to notice; he was caught up in the tickets that had been posted on the sides of the box. Robin, however, could feel... something. Something that seemed to be calling her from inside that box. It had been in her mind now for so long... At this moment, looking at the box, it felt as though she'd dreamed of this moment since she could remember.

And that blue. It was the richest, most beautiful blue she had ever seen. The blue of the universe. Another tear leaked from her eye and she wiped it hurriedly from her cheek.

Then the Doctor walked up to stand beside it proudly, telling her to ask her questions. Slowly, silently, she approached the box and placed a hand on its side, gasping. She could feel a powerful, sentient hum coursing through the contraption, and after a moment she had to pull back from it. Turning to the Doctor, her face split in a sunny smile.

"Doctor, I've seen this," she said, hugging him excitedly again, "It is so beautiful. It's some sort of ship, right? Like a space ship? And the inside is huge! It's amazing, it's wonderful... It's the best thing I've seen in my entire life. Can I go in?"

Villain

The Doctor's jaw dropped the moment she began spilling all that she knew. For a moment he looked like he had swallowed an ice cube whole or been struck by lightning. Two things that very nearly happened that day. He seemed to make a gulping sound and crossed his arms across his chest, as if trying to hold something in, but whatever he held in he couldn't keep it at bay.

"Awww Robin, why did you have to be so psychic? I love the bit where they see my spaceship. It's the best part!" he whined and ruffled her hair before kicking the door open with the back of his foot and rolling his eyes. "I suppose you may as well go on in," he muttered childishly, "Didn't even get the goldfish bowl shocked look and the whole breathy amazed, 'It's bigger on the inside!' line."

The inside of the TARDIS was beyond incredible. The amount of space available inside the big blue box was impossible and had been decorated to look like an odd cross between the cockpit of a space shuttle and the cabin of a pirate ship. Although the floor was made of wood the entire deck was suspended on a bronze metal platform which carried multiple computer consoles, which lay on top of brass pips and pillars of varnished wood.

In the very centre of the deck lay a giant glass cylinder that went through the floor and reached up to the ceiling above. Inside of it dipped and bobbed glass spirals that were illuminated with yellow light which shined over every inch of the gigantic room. Around its base lay a great console of keyboards, television screens, buttons, levers, switches, cranks, pipes, triggers, wires and many other important looking switches, and hanging down beside it was a rope ladder and a periscope of all things.

All of this had been crammed into one room, yet it was clear from the ladders hung off the sides of the platform and stairs that curled around its base, that this was only one of many.

"It's called the TARDIS," the Doctor said with admiration as he stepped past Robin to get into his ship. "She is a ship that can travel through time and space and can do many other wonderful things." He ran and leaped at the console, grabbing hold of the ladder that hung next to it and cheering as he spun round the glowing tube and came swinging to a halt before Robin.

"And she is absolutely perfect."

fireandblood

When the Doctor started whining, Robin had to giggle. Playfully, she ducked away from him when he ruffled her hair. She walked past him confidently and into the box, though her eyes did widen along with her smile.

"Firstly, don't touch my hair. Don't you know how many hours of sweat and humidity it took to make it look this way?" she teased, walking slowly inward a little more. "And secondly, wow. Just wow." Then the Doctor ran in past her, swinging around on the ladder, and Robin smiled yet again. The inside of this place was amazing, impossible, beautiful, and so alien. She ran her hand over the railing next to her, wondering if the material was anything from Earth.

Slowly, she walked toward the glass cylinder in the middle of the ship. When she reached the edge of the stand that held all the knobs, levers, and buttons, she stopped and contemplated the yellow light coming from within it. Very tentatively, she placed her hand on the outside of the glass. The strange humming started up again, but grew louder and louder, filling up the room with an ancient voice. Then, something even more astonishing happened.

"ROBIN," the voice boomed, before the humming grew silent and the Doctor and Robin were left to themselves again. Stepping back, Robin put her hands on her hips and faced the Doctor with a smirk.

"Your TARDIS just spoke to me," she said. Then, she made her eyes go wide in a feigned expression of shock, and raised her hand to cover her mouth. "And oh, look, it's bigger on the inside!" After her little joke, though, she realized something the Doctor had said.

"It can travel... in time?" she asked, genuinely astonished.

Villain

For the second time that day the Doctor looked at Robin like a miserable kid. A frown like no other hung off his mouth as he looked back and fourth between Robin and the console of the TARDIS.

"Oh come on girl, that is not fair!" the Doctor quietly whined and ran his hands over the console, flipping switches as if trying to figure out just what had caused such a thing to be possible. "I give you love and affection and you pick her to talk to? She's a yank!"

The Doctor turned to watch her make her joke and rolled his eyes at her impression. He had now kicked off his shoes and perched onto the console, letting his feet flick at odd nubs and buttons as he listened to Robin ask her question.

"Guess you don't know everything about the girl after all. My secrets are still safe." the Doctor said before grinning and cart wheeling off the console. He began to tug on chords and press giant buttons, he flipped levers and typed in codes on the keyboards before kicking a steering wheel built into the board, causing it to spin.

"I can take you anywhere Robin," the Doctor said as the room began to shake. "I can show you how the Tudors lived, I can introduce you to Elvis, I can let you see the wonders that await you in the far distant future and the ground breaking events of the past which shaped it all. I can give you a window into the life of your past presidents, I can take you to see Queen before they lost Freddy or take you to an old fashioned yule ball and you can strut around in a big ridiculous dress and impress all the young gentlemen."

He stopped flicking switches and leaned on the console before shrugging his shoulders with a smile, "Or if you really wanted to, I can take you to Boston last Tuesday. The weather was nice."

fireandblood

Robin watched the Doctor tinkering with the controls for a moment, his deft hands flipping switched and turning knobs and pressing buttons seemingly at random. She contemplated what he was saying. Anywhere, any time she wished to go... A wide grin once again appeared on her face as thousands of scenarios raced through her head.

Then the smile faded. What was she thinking? She had a life, and friends, and school... Family... She couldn't just go running off with some mad alien when she had a completely normal life to get back to. Everyone would be worried, and she would ruin her entire career at the University of Florida - something she had striven for since grade school.

"Thank you for the offer, Doctor," she said, her voice stiff and a little sad, though she hid it well. "It was an honor meeting you and your TARDIS, she really is lovely. But I have a lot to do here. People to take care of, an education to get... How am I supposed to just leave it all behind?" She turned her eyes away from him, hoping he wouldn't see her sadness. "People have gone with you before and sometimes... They don't come back. And eventually you have to leave them. And I don't know if I can handle that."

Villain

"I think you can," the Doctor replied softly. "In fact, I think you want to handle that." the Doctor said before sliding across the console and perching next to her. His golden eyes meeting hers while his hand took a hold of her own.

"You have a powerful ability Robin. You can see into minds and hear the thoughts that run through people's heads. Including mine and that's no small feat," the Doctor said and gave her hand a squeeze. "Don't you realise how amazing that is? You've known me for only a few hours, yet you've seen sides to me that takes those who travel with me weeks to discover. You can see parts to me that I've forgotten ever since my brain went..." he mimed a hammer hitting something and blew a raspberry, but didn't let his foolishness stop his speech.

"You've seen the terrible and the frightening, the hardships and the tears, and yet you don't want it to end." The Doctor stepped out in front of her and took both of her hands, keeping his gaze locked on hers. "A door opens both ways Robin. When we fought the wire and you pushed her into my mind I saw into your head. I saw the desperation you felt. Knowing that you have this gift that you don't fully understand it, along with the strange set of visions that hint at a destiny."

"Now I'm not sure if I believe in destiny (seriously, I've forgotten) but if I've ever been sure of anything it's that we are meant to fly together Robin. You're meant to be my companion on this journey and perhaps help me put the pieces of my mind back together while I help you understand yours."

"You're meant to be my companion. My sidekick," he grinned and began to gesture back and fourth between the two of them. "I'm Sherlock Holmes and you're Watson. I'm Frodo and you're Sam. I'm Peter Pan and you're Tinkerbell. I'm Batman and you're..." he paused as he realised the hole he had just dug himself into, "...you're....Alfred?"

fireandblood

She knew that everything he was saying was true. In her heart, she yearned to see everything he had to offer. New planets, times far in the future or long forgotten, beautiful, dazzling sights that most humans would never get to see. She could almost picture it: The Doctor and Robin, characters written about in legend or folklore, hurtling through the stars together and making sense of each other.

She wanted it so badly. It scared her.

At his mention of sidekicks, she barked a laugh. Of course he'd had to change Batman and Robin, but she felt she could get one more jab at him.

"Yeah, obviously, you'd always be the shining hero, so... That makes me the bumbling sidekick, silly and stupid and always getting into trouble." Her sadness seeped into her smile despite her best efforts this time.

"I do want it, Doctor," she whispered, hugging her arms around her body tightly as if trying to hold herself together, "I want to travel with you, and help you, and see things... But I'm too scared. I'm getting this horrible feeling, like I'm almost sick or something. I can't pull myself between the worlds, but I can't completely separate myself from this one. I have a normal life!" At this, her voice had risen to almost a shout, though she still could not bring herself to look at the Doctor.

"You... All of this... You're terrifying! And you're spectacular! And I'll never be able to get it out of my head. But that will have to be enough, because I just can't come with you, Doctor. I can't. It's too much for me."

Villain

The Doctor had turned away from her half way through her speech. He leaned over the control pad of the TARDIS and began to fiddle with the buttons and switches in total silence. Evidently his newest form handled bad news by giving it the silent treatment.

The TARDIS began to make a strange noise and it's floor rumbled and shook. An odd but yet strangely soothing siren that was difficult to describe was echoing through the room. It was a simple repetitive sound, yet every note sounded like a wonderful intergalactic song. A melody of the universe.

"I understand," the Doctor spoke to the controls, before turning to look at her over his shoulder. "I understand completely Robin. And the last thing I would want is to force you into something that you don't want to do," he said understandingly, but it was evident from how quietly he said it that he was disappointed.

He slammed down on a lever and turned to face her. His grin wide and cheeky again, "I'll just have to find some other little lady to seduce and lead off the path. Perhaps someone with longer legs and bigger hips?" he teased before pushing down another lever. The TARDIS let out a clunk before he stopped shaking.

"You've arrived home Robin," the Doctor said pleasantly before gesturing to the door. "So long and farewell, go in peace, live long and prosper and...oh what the heck, may the force be with you"

fireandblood

As soon as she had finished talking, Robin felt horrible. She saw the sad look in the Doctor's eyes before he could turn away, and she hated the fact that she was the one who had caused it. However, in her heart, she knew she was making the right decision. All the same, it made her grim and upset to know that she had given up the chance to see the stars, and maybe to make sense of her life.

When he commented on having to seduce another lady, she had to smile.

"Yeah, and maybe one whose head isn't so, you know... messed up," she said trying to make a joke of it. Tears were streaming down her cheeks again, but this time they were silent. It was a confusing mixture of grief and joy that caused them. Grief at the fact that she was leaving this place, and joy at the man, the strange man before her, and his wonderful machine. The sound coming from the TARDIS filled her heart with longing. It was the sound of sights unseen and times yet to come.

When he told her she was home, Robin sighed and walked toward the door. Before she opened it, she looked back at him, stooped over the controls. A soft smile touched her lips and she turned and walked toward him. At the last minute, she jumped at him, knowing he would catch her, and planted a kiss squarely on his nose.

"Good bye, Doctor, and thank you for everything," She said softly as he set her down. "Feel free to come by sometime. I'm a pretty good cook." And with that, she turned again and strode out the door, not looking back again.

***

Three days later, life had returned to its usual normal state. Well, beside the fact that half of Universal was blown up and that, therefore, Robin no longer had a job. So there she was, alone in her Orlando apartment, unable to leave until the lease was up in a week. Sighing, she looked out the window. The stars twinkled in their places, inviting and beautiful in the sky. She found herself wondering if the Doctor was out there somewhere, destroying worlds or seducing young women. She had to smile, as it seemed so likely.

Then a knock came at her door and her head whipped around, wondering who it could be. Her smile grew wider as the absurd thought of the Doctor erupted in her mind, and she nearly ran to the door. Then she flung it open, beaming, to see the most horrifying sight in her life.

A huge green monster (alien, she told herself) stood outside her door, its bulging black eyes staring at her from above the doorframe. It wore a belt around its middle. She had seen this before... In the Doctor's memories... Suddenly, the thing grabbed her and lifted her. It held some sort of scanner in front of her face until it beeped. Then, a garbled voice came from it, and she wondered how she could understand it.

"Human female. Robin Alice Baker, aged twenty-one Earth years, known companion of the Doctor." It began to carry her, and she screamed, but it plunged a syringe into her leg as it hauled her away. She felt herself fading, fading fast, and in her last moments of consciousness, she focused all of her energy and sent out a message.

Doctor. Help.

Villain

The Doctor had many important women in his life, as far as he could remember. Although the amnesia had taken away most of their names and faces, there seemed to be one name that stuck around no matter how much he tried to get rid of. One face that kept showing up, just to torment him.

"It's rare for you to ask me out on a date Sweetie," River Song spoke in her sly sweet voice. Her ruby lips fixed in that smile that just screamed that she was up to no good. This woman was too special to forget, despite everything that had happened to his head. It seemed that he would always remember the mischevious archeologist that had caused him so much trouble.

Other girls before her had met the Doctor and then somewhere down the line left him or been lost to unfortunate events. River was different, he had met her right after she had experienced a life time of adventures by the side of his future forms. In a way, he lived through her adventure in the opposite order to her.

"So what do I owe this genuine pleasure?" She asked, brushing strands fo blonde frizzy hair from her face as she sipped her coffee, freshly prepared from Caffe Quadri, a pleasant little place in Venice that had presumably been serving coffee since the 1600s. Which turned out to be quite accurate seeing as how the Doctor had taken her to its first opening. "Have you really missed me that much?"

"Of course I have. There's been no one in the TARDIS telling me I'm flying it wrong," the Doctor said with a grunt before picking up his own coffee and sipping it, before immediately pulling a face. "Knew I should have asked for tea. This new tongue of mine hates coffee."

"You're avoiding my question Doctor," River said pointedly, stroking up his leg with the tip of her high heel.

"There's no mystery to it River," the Doctor replied, shuffling back to avoid her man hungry leg. "I said to a friend of mine that I would find someone to hang around with that had longer legs and bigger hips than her and I immediately thought of you."

"And there I thought all you noticed were my eyes," River tittered before putting down her coffee and leaning forward on her elbows. "But, it isn't me you really want to hang about with, is it Doctor?"

"I don't know," he replied with a shrug before pouring the rest of his coffee on the ground, earning a few stares from some of the other customers. "I'm not too sure of anything any more," he admitted with a look of helplessness. "I've forgotten all the important bits that made me what I am. Every time I regenerate I always feel like I loose a part of myself, but this time I feel more empty than I ever have."

"It's not like you to sound so defeated."

"River, after over one thousand years of dying of old age, being ordered to die, getting irradiated, falling off satellite dishes, being poisoned, having my head bashed in, getting shot then cut open and goodness knows what else, you grow to see being killed not as a defeat but as a pit stop," the Doctor stared into the bottom of his empty mug with a frown. "But this time someone or something sucker punched me. They took from me what I always thought I would keep. I've lost and I don't know how," he muttered before frowning.

"Oh do stop moaning, you're not handsome when you're glum" River groaned, rolling her eyes. "Why don't you just pick up some pretty thing and take them on a journey? Have them follow you around with puppy dog eyes and make you feel like you're not an old man anymore?"

"I tried that. I got rejected," the Doctor replied.

"And I'm your rebound girl?" River asked sharply.

"Oh don't start I've seen enough angry women these last few weeks," the Doctor sighed before looking to his left as a waiter approached their table.

"Excuse me sir, it is time that you paid for your beverages," the waiter spoke, looking at the unusual couple as if unsure whether to call the city guard on them or run in terror.

The Doctor merely sighed and pulled out his psychic paper but frusting it in the poor mans face. "I'm sorry my good man but I am the King of Italy and these drinks are on the house"

The waiter stared at the papaer with a baffled expression and then cleared his throat before saying; "Sir, that paper says, help me Doctor"

The Doctor's face changed several times between fear, alarm, joy, anger and excitement. He jumped to his feet and cluched the psychic paper like a golden ticket. "I've got to go"

"I know," River said with a smile before waving him away. "Go be brave and dashing"

"I am rather brave and dashing, aren't I?" He laughed, his attitude rapidly improving by the second. "Do you want me to take you back now or pick you up later?" he asked, but River shook her head.

"I'll get a lift from someone. I've heard there's a very interesting soldier in town whose willing to show a girl good time," River spoke before winking at the Doctor. "And I do like a daredevil, especially if they're dressed in a nice coat."

"Are you trying to make me jealous?" he asked, tearing his eyes away from the paper for just a second to glance at her.

"Is it working?" She asked with a grin.

"Goodbye River," he spoke before rushing out of the cafe, nearly bowling over the waiter and anyone unfortunate enough to get in the way of the strange man holding a piece of paper in front of his face as he ran full pelt down the road.

"Message recieved Robin," the Doctor said as he skidded down an alley way and crashed into the doors of the TARDIS to force them open. "I'm on my way."

fireandblood

When Robin woke up, she found herself strapped to a chair and unable to move. She yanked her arms against the restraints, shouting and pulling with all of her might.

"Hello!" She yelled, her voice cracking with strain. "Where am I? Who are you? Hello!" As though summoned by her racket, six of the hideous green creatures walked, single-file, into the room. They stood anywhere between seven and nine feet tall, their green skin looked wet, and their black eyes had some sort of mad evil glinting in them.

After the monsters came an obese human, who came to stand in front of Robin with a smile on his face. She allowed herself to be relieved at this; surely a human meant no harm to her. Maybe they just needed the Doctor's help and knew she could call him.

"Hello, Robin," the man said before letting out a powerful burp. "Oh, excuse me," he laughed, "That happens a lot."

"Um, hello," Robin said, looking at him warily. Something was off; she just couldn't put her finger on it. "Why do you have me tied up? You're human... You aren't going to hurt me, are you?"

The creatures shared an uproarious laugh, and the human man joined in.

"Well, this body is human, but I'm afraid I've... borrowed it," he said with a wink. "My name is Korst Gogg Thek Lutiven-Day Slitheen, and these are some of my brothers and sisters," he added, gesturing to the huge monsters. "I thought that perhaps you would be more willing to talk to a more... familiar form. And no, we do not intend to harm you, unless you won't cooperate. Then I'm sorry to say it may get a little messy."

Robin had to stare for a moment. How could something so huge fit inside a human body - even one as big as the one the creature had "borrowed?" And she shivered to think about what had happened to the body's former occupant...

"We seek the location of the Doctor," he went on, studying his fingernails pompously. "We know you are a companion of his. Just tell us where he is and you can be on your way."

"I'm not his companion," Robin said stubbornly. "He asked me to be, but I told him no. I have no idea where he is. And even if I did I wouldn't tell you." The thing gave her a grim look, and then gestured to one of his "family" members, who promptly left the room.

"Ah, another loyal subject of the Doctor's," he said, almost sadly. "Don't you know what happens to his companions? They get hurt. Or they die. Or he leaves them. It never ends well, girl. And I'm afraid that your story will be ending now should you continue not telling us what you know."

The Slitheen that had left the room now reentered, carrying some strange metal device. It was wishbone-shaped, with two bulbous green orbs on the ends. The thing brought it to its brother in the human body, who took it carefully into his hands. He saw Robin's curious, fearful look and smiled widely.

"This is a memory extractor," he said, placing the green orbs on her temples. "It's quite painful, and a side effect is leaving a permanent scar diagonally across the face. It's unfortunate, really, but we can't seem to find away to get rid of that. At any rate, I doubt you'll be worrying about forever, since I don't see your life lasting too much longer. But before we dispatch you, we'll get the Doctor's location out of you by force."

Robin's breathing grew fast as he placed his fingers on a button on the side and grinned at her. Then he pressed it, and Robin screamed so loudly that she couldn't scream again; only a raspy moan could be heard as the electricity coursed through her. She thought it had hurt when the Wire had been inside her, but it was nothing compared to this. Her brain felt as though it was being turned to mush, and she could feel the white-hot line traveling down her face at a slant.

"Ah, there's the scar," the thing said in a voice that seemed very faint. "A pity on such a nice human face."

Villain

The Slitheen chuckled maliciously at the poor girls agony. They jeered and applauded their work with the same enthusiasm that a group of businessmen would have over securing a deal. Their vile attitude would disgust anyone, human or alien....but it didn't last.

That wonderful sound began to fill the room, the musical roar of the TARDIS. The Slitheen's laughter died and they let out a cry of alarm as the only doorway out of the room suddenly became blocked by the big blue police box that gradually materialized out of nothing. The door of the TARDIS flung open and from out of it appeared the rough grinning face of the blonde haired Time Lord known as the Doctor.

He flashed his smile at every Slitheen in the room before asking cheekily, "Did someone call for a Doctor?"

There was silence as the terrible line sank in. The Doctor seemed to rock back fourth awkwardly on his heels for a moment before he sighed and shook his head, "Okay, that was awful. Let me try that again."

He closed the door and left them standing in silence for a few seconds before opening the door again and darting out wit his coat held up to his face like a cape, "I am the night, beware villains for the time of reckoning has- I'll come in again."

The door closed and opened again after a few more seconds of awkward and bewildered silence. The Doctor strolled in with a cocky strut, looking from one Slitheen to the other as he made his entrance. He put his hands on his hips, turned to the crowd and with as much pride as he could muster said, "I can't think of anything."

He let out a roar of frustration before darting back into the TARDIS. Not even a second past before he jumped out with his sonic screwdriver raised, "Hello I'm the Doctor basically run and if we're on Earth then leave because it's defended. I don't know why I'm having trouble with this entrance because usually I'm amazing at them, but if we could just move along to the bit where you surrender that would be fantastic."

The Doctor smiled hopefully at the aliens and for a moment was tempted to make another joke... but then his eyes eyes landed on Robin and the scar that ran across her face.

The smile evaporated.

"How dare you," he whispered. Every word laced with violence as he stared at the scar that had sliced across the unblemished face of the girl he had wanted to share the universe with.

fireandblood

The pain had completely knocked Robin unconscious. And as she slept, she got no reprieve from the pain. It was total agony, even in her sleeping mind. Weeping as she tried to run away from it, she traveled down seldom-used corridors in her brain, almost as if she was in a large building filled with unopened, dusty rooms. But try as she might, she couldn't wrench the doors open.

And the pain found her no matter which way she ran.

Suddenly, though, it vanished, and Robin found herself coughing her way back into consciousness. Her eyes flew open and immediately locked onto the Doctor. She tried her hardest to smile at him - she really wanted to - but her face felt as though it was on fire and movement was too painful to bear. A moan came from her, soft and low and hoarse.

On top of the pain in her face, her head felt like it was going to explode. With every heartbeat it pounded mercilessly, the pain never dulling. She wondered if she would ever stop feeling this way.

"How dare you," the Doctor whispered, and through her pain, Robin almost felt sorry for the Slitheen. They probably had no idea what they were in for. They were all hissing at him, their horrible faces contorted in anger and fear. The man who had been speaking to Robin lifted a hand to his forehead and began to... unzip his skin. He then pushed it down and kicked it off like a pair of pants.

"Doctor," he growled, standing at a good nine and a half feet tall, "We were looking for you. This girl would not tell us where you went, so we extracted her memories. She is interesting, I will give her that. But now that we have you, we have no more need for her. You've come to your death, Time Lord." The Slitheen pulled out guns and other weapons of various sizes, shapes, and materials.

And they were all pointing them at the Doctor.

Villain

"Who gave you permission to speak," the Doctor growled through gritted teeth, his fists clenched as cold fury pumped through his veins. He had never looked so angry, his body shook with rage, his nose wrinkle in a feral snarl, his eyes were burning with fury and his face was red from the anger shooting through him.

The guns didn't matter. Being out numbered didn't matter. Being faced with humongous green aliens didn't matter. All that mattered was what was going to happen next.

He slowly reached into the inside pockets of his anorak. One hand pulled out a bottle of dark liquid, the other pulled out what looked like a packet of mints.

"I'm going to give you one chance to let me have Robin and take her to the TARDIS," the Doctor spoke slowly. "You're not going to survive the next few minutes. If you let me take her to the TARDIS, I'll make it seconds."