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

[fireandblood]

As Greme spoke, Robin found herself becoming more and more repulsed by the creature. It was bad enough that he could speak of killing billions of innocent people without batting an eye, but to see him actually drool over the money he would make... It made Robin sick to her stomach. She had to brace herself on the chair to keep from falling, and she wondered if this feeling was completely due to Greme or to something else.

Images and memories were nagging at the corners of her vision, but she couldn't focus on them. It was so frustrating, to know you possess a way to see into others' minds, or perhaps even unlock memories in your own mind... But to be unable to utilize it to its full extent.

Then, however, the Doctor's words caught her attention.

"What I say next is going to stop you." She sincerely hoped that he wasn't bluffing. There was no immediate way out of their situation, and the antibodies were quick and lethal. They wouldn't last a minute.

"I'm wearing a wire." Even Robin's jaw dropped as he uttered this statement. How did he manage to be one step ahead of everyone? She had had no idea, and from the looks on Harme's and Rogan's faces, neither did they. All she could do was shake her head in amazement at the Doctor. And she thought she'd be doing that for a long, long time.

[Villain]

A brief moment of shock and fear crossed over Greme's face as he stared at the Doctor. For a moment it looked as if he was going to be sick, but then his beady eyes narrowed and he let out a mocking laugh. "Oh come on Doctor, you're obviously bluffing! This is just a lie to keep you from being slaughtered"

"No it's not. It's the truth. In fact the wires been active ever since I found out that there was a great conspiracy behind the threat on Harme's life," the Doctor said, his smile never wavering. "Villains like you can't resist reveling in their triumph. And the most fiendish ones certainly can't resist explaining everything to their victims."

"You couldn't possibly know that I would appear!" Greme yelled at him before raising a tablet computer before his face. "You're lying through your teeth! I'm looking through the data my assassin captured of you before you wandered into the trap. His data shows you came to visit a patient! You can't possibly have worn a wire and activated it just on the off chance that I would appear! That's madness!"

"Madness is a specialty of mine," the Doctor replied with a smile. "But, if you're still not convinced, then let me show you where I keep it." The Doctor said, before very slowly reaching up to his Bolo tie and pulling off the metal circle that connected the strings. He flipped the device in his hand and revealed a small microphone built into the back of it.

"It's a little gadget that was given to me by a friend of mine. A secret agent of sorts. Although he prefers the term captain," the Doctor said and rolled his eye before flipping the object in the air like a coin and catching it. "Let's have a listen to it shall we?"

There was a click as he caught the object before the sly voice of Greme began to speak through the device.

"Chemicals allow me to have my hand in a lot of businesses. Chemical weapons and planet ownership are just the higher paying products. Once I've obtained the memoirs and got all those idiots fighting each other I'll wipe the Earth clean of their presence and turn the whole world into a factory for my chemicals."

Greme's face changed quickly between shocked, afraid and angry. He pointed at the device and let a snarl as he let out an order; "TAKE THAT DEVICE FROM HIS DEAD BODY!" he screeched, his voice was so high from fright that it almost sounded like a squeak.

"Oh that won't do you any good," the Doctor said as he began to juggle the coin. "You see, the reason why I wear it is because it's activated by a number of code words that must be spoken with a certain time frame. That way I'm able to turn it on without using my hands. Once they've been said the recordings begin and won't stop until I've said the other code words."

"Doctor..." Harme's voice whispered from behind him. Her voice filled with amazement and happiness as she followed his scheme and began to put the pieces together. "Doctor, you didn't... that moment back in my chamber. The things you said about-"

"You've got it, Harme," the Doctor said before turning his head to look over at Robin and winking at her. "The code words are; Detective, Sliluthian, Moloc and Tenru."

"Those places I said Robin had made a name for herself at weren't the names of planets or locations. They're the names of three of the best, and not to mention most brutal, universal detectives. This device immediately calls them when it's activated and transmits the recording to them while it's active," the Doctor caught the ornament one last time before turning back to Greme and smirking. "And you've just given them your confession."

Greme had now turned from lime green to mint green as the Doctor's words sank in. He knew the repuation of the detective. They were fast, effective and merciless to those who were obliviously guilty. They had toppled conspiracy's far greater than the one he had set up. In mere minutes he would be arrested, tried and more than likely, executed.

As he stared into space, frozen by his defeat, he asked one final question, his voice small and timid. "You wear that thing all the time?"

"Of course I do," the Doctor said, sounding surprised by the question while he refastened the tie around his neck. "Bolo ties are cool."

[fireandblood]

Robin's mouth remained open throughout his entire speech. How was it possible for someone to be such a genius? Hiding a wire in a bolo tie... Having it be voice activated... And it automatically sent the recordings to these detectives? It was beyond her comprehension. She stared at the Doctor. He was completely unexplainable. So childish, so ridiculous, so absentminded... Was it all just a show? Or was it so terribly difficult being a genius that he had to compensate in other ways?

She shook her head, thinking back on what the Doctor had said earlier. So even when he was teasing her, he was beginning his plans, speaking the four words which would activate the wire. A laugh bubbled up in her throat at the idea of it all. It was just too much to think about, and so she simply stopped, looking at her companions. Smiling, she stood and walked to Harme.

"He did it," she said, wrapping her arms around the cat's frail shoulders. "How does he always do it? You know him; is he always like this?" Then she laughed again, unable to fathom what it must truly be like inside the Doctor's head.

When he said "Bolo ties are cool," she got another flash of a memory from him. A man, who looked completely different, straightened a fez on top of his head, uttering the same sentence about the peculiar hat. His eyes, though... Could it be the same man? Walking to the Doctor, she planted a large (and purposefully wet) kiss on his cheek before standing back and placing her hands on her hips.

"So tell me," she said slowly, hoping not to trigger one of those bizarre painful episodes (though she doubted she would, since the memory seemed to be of another man entirely), "Are bolo ties cooler... Or are fezzes?"

[Villain]

The Doctor smiled at Robin after she kissed him on the cheek before blinking dimly as she asked the question. Confusion crossed his features for a moment before the Doctor opened his mouth to say something funny and clever, but before he could utter a word he clutched at his head and screamed as gold fire slashed across his forehead.

"Doctor!" Harme cried in alarm as she watched with horror as the golden blaze engulfed his skull.

"Greme what have you done!" Rogan roared, watching the Doctor writhe and kick from the corner of his eye.

"I haven't done anything, but if he's in pain then I wish I had!" Greme jibbed before pointing a finger. "But its just the chance I need. Kill them!"

The Antibodies resumed their march towards the Doctor and the others. Their sockets curled into a menacing shape as they edged closer and closer, preparing to rip them apart.

Rogan took this as a sign to start firing and let fourth a brilliant spread of red energy the cut through the first monster and reduced him to dust.

The creatures comrades let out a collective squeal of pain before they lunged at Rogan and began trying to wrestle the gun from his hands. He snarled and snapped at the creatures, managing to get off another shot that blew the head off one of them, but it was obvious that he was no match for their numbers.

"Doctor, whats happening to you?" Harme cried as she knelt by his side while he shrieked in pain. She had provided care for thousands of people in her long life. She knew thousands of medical techniques, cures, diseases, wounds and other injuries, but she had never seen anything like this.

The Doctor had begun to scream something as he flailed and writhed. It sounded as if he was calling out the names of people, but there were only two names that he managed to choke out clearly before the rest got lost in shrieks and gunfire; Amy and Rory.

The Docotr's head touched the floor of the corridor and the world around them jolted and shimmered as the gold fire licked at the ground. The Antibodies, that were in the process of tearing Rogan in two, suddenly let out a wail and collapsed onto the ground, their purple skin turning a nasty shade of dark red which spread along the ground, turning the tiles of the floor, walls and ceiling a bloody red color.

"What's happening to this place?" Rogan panted and winced as he got up from the ground. The Antibodies had pulled his arm out of it's socket, but he didn't let that stop him.

The Doctor had finally stopped burning. He sat on his hands and knees, panting as the excruciating pain left his body, but even though the pain had gone, he still looked as if he was in burning pain.

He took a look at what was unfolding and swallowed hard before croaking; "Allergic reaction. Regenerating energy doesn't agree with the Repicator."

"What does that mean?" Harme asked, worriedly.

"It means that the replicators going to feel very very sick," the Doctor groaned. "And that would be very bad for us, because now he can't concentrate on keeping up the illusion. We'll be absorbed into its body."

[fireandblood]

As the fire engulfed the Doctor's head, Robin's mouth popped open into an O of surprise. It seemed that she had triggered another one of his episodes. She sank to her knees, unable to move for the guilt she felt. Also, the pain had ripped through her own head at the start of his, but of course, it ended whereas the Doctor's didn't. With all of her being, she wanted to rush to the Doctor's side as Harme did, but she couldn't move.

Even when the antibodies started to attack, she remained in her position on the floor. She had likely killed them all for the sake of a stupid joke. She'd even thought about the consequences before saying it and said it anyway. Maybe it would be best if the Doctor did take her home. If she was going to cause this much pain and destruction just by bringing up his memories... Well, it meant too much.

Suddenly, the antibodies stopped and melted into the floor, turning the entire room a dark red. Half of her was listening to the Doctor speaking, and she became mildly alarmed when he said that they'd be absorbed into the creature as it had its allergic reaction.

"What do we do?" she asked, shakily getting to her feet. She kept herself away from the group, and only said things she felt were safe. "I'm very sorry. That was my fault."

[Villain]

"No, it's my fault for having a broken brain-ARGH!" The Doctor let out another scream as another flash of gold traveled down his face. He began slapping his head between his heads until eventually the fire died away. The room was now beginning to throb, the Antibodies were jerking in the air like puppets on a string. The Doctor cleared his throat before stumbling towards Rogan. "Rogan with the creature sick we may have a chance to teleport out of here."

"That would be ideal Doctor, but theres a problem with that plan," Rogan spoke before lifting his arm, revealing frayed circuits and dented metal. "The Antibodies damaged my teleportation device. I'm not sure if it's working."

The Doctor let out a groan before bending over Rogan's arm and examining the damage. The walls were now starting to bleed a disgusting orange gunk that filled the room with a putrid smell. The floor shook beneath their feet whilst a pained groan resounded through the corridors. The Doctor letting out a frustrated growl, "The teleporters stabiliser has been damaged. If we were to use the teleporter then our bodies would be ripped to shreds, theres no way we would survive the journey."

"Don't you dare blame yourself" the Doctor said to Robin as he began looking around the room frantically as he tried to form a plan. "This would have happened anyway, we would be stuck in the belly of the beast regardless of whether my condition caused it to feel ill."

"Question is... what do we do? We have a sick alien on our hands and very little time to find an escape route. The alien creatures not going to have created working escape pods so finding those isn't an option. Perhaps we could risk the teleportation... being mildly ripped apart is better than being absorbed into its central nervous system. Who knows? Maybe we would look better with four fingers and no legs?"

The Doctor began tapping the sides of his head with his fingers. His eyes screwed up tight in concerntration, "Come on... think! Think! Think!"

"Doctor, I have an idea," Harme called before she began to slowly walk towards the red lined walls. Slowly, she raised her hand and pressed it lightly against one of the tiles. "What if...what if I let it absorb me?"

"What?" Rogan cried in outrage. "Don't be absurd mistress! It would kill you!"

"Doctor, would that work?" Harme asked, ignoring Rogan's cries of outrage.

The Doctor was quiet as he thought it over, a grim frown formed on his face. "Potentially," he muttered before shaking his head. "What am I saying. No, you can't do that Harme!"

"The Doctor is right! That would be suicide and you are needed Mistress!" Rogan roared, but despite the feral tone to his voice there was something evident mixed within it; despair.

"Rogan, my darling," Harme spoke affectionalty and smiled over her shoulder at him. "The reason why I survive the bliss virus many years ago was because of the Face of Boe. He enveloped me with lifesustaining smoke that protected me against it. I have always wondered if that was the reason why I have never fallen ill since that day. And why I have lived so long."

"If I let the creature absorb me, then perhaps what is left of my life force will heal the creature. And that will buy you the time you need to find a way out," she explained, her face not showing any hint of fear at the possibility, only resolution. "My purpose is to save lives. If I am to die then I would rather die fulfilling that purpose."

"Mistress, no..." Rogan whispered, his fierce eyes no longer full of fury and strength. Now he just looked like a sad kitten.

"I have no choice Rogan."

"Yes you do," the Doctor said softly. He was wearing a pained expression on his face. A sadness was lingering in his eyes that had surfaced too many times in his long life. These moments came much too often, the times when good people sacrificed themselves to save lives. How he wished that it hadn't come to this...

"Are you sure?" He asked, his voice no more than a whisper.

"I am," Harme replied with a nod. "But, please answer me this before I proceed..." Harme spoke, her voice pained. She turned her head to look at the Doctor before asking; "Am I...am I a good person?"

"Of course you are," the Doctor replied without hesitation. "Mistress Harme, high priest of the Sontari faith, Captain of the S. S. Nightingale, Chief Healer and Medical Supervisor. You have worked yourself to the bone to redeem your past mistakes. You helped save the residents of New Earth from total destruction and spent over twenty years alone with only the Face of Boe for company. You could have stopped at that, but you went on to rebuild the world and once you were done you helped create the Nightingale, all in the hope of helping those less fortunate. And despite all of these great things you have done, you still amaze me by wishing to prove to the world that you were not perfect, that you had secrets and that you would gladly go to your death with every single one of them exposed to the world."

The Doctor shook his head with disbelief and gave her a small smile, it was the best he could manage given the sadness in his heart.

"Mistress Harme, you are the embodiment of redemption. You are everything I aspire to be."

Harme's eyes glistened with tears. She sniffled and let out a sob before nodding to the Doctor, "Thank you so much Doctor. Farewell Robin and my dear, dear Rogan," she spoke before pressing her arm into the red walls. It slithered in slowly and effortlessly as she began to be absorbed by the creature.

"MISTRESS NO!" Rogan screamed and made a move to reach out for her, but the Doctor grabbed him and restrained him before he could make his move.

"Don't, if you touch her then you'll be absorbed as well!" The Doctor said, but Rogan didn't stop struggling against him as he watched the last of Harme vanish into the wall.

A white spot had appeared where she vanished, a clean patch amongst the red. Slowly the white began to expand to engulf the corridor, brushing away the forms of the Antibodies and the replicated image of the hospital corridors. Now the three of them were surrounded by endless white. Eternal nothingness caused by the cleansed mind of the Replicator.

[fireandblood]

Robin stood helplessly by through everything. Her eyes widened, though, when Harme suggested taking her own life to spare the others'. Her cry caught in her throat as Rogan's roared through the room. This woman, this incredible woman, was willing to let herself be absorbed by the creature in order to save the three helpless people at her side. Though she had already risked everything and defeated her enemies... She would die nonetheless.

"No, Harme," Robin whispered, her voice far overshadowed by the Doctor's and Rogan's. Robin could see Harme's feelings; she had lived a long, full life and had done what she wanted - to help others. Her memories flickered and faded from bad to good or happy to sad. Her sadness at the Face of Boe's death resonated throughout the memories, though, and she was surprised to feel that Harme was ready to go to her death. She hoped Sontari would have mercy on her and allow her to be reunited with her savior.

A sad smile touched Robin's lips as the thoughts faded to a halt. Harme had made up her mind, and was at peace. Robin simply nodded when Harme bade her goodbye. She knew that if she tried to speak, she would only cry. And as the brave woman stuck her hand to the wall, tears spilled silently down Robin's cheeks. She watched her get taken in, and watched the white spread from where her body had been.

Harme had died doing exactly what she had lived for.

When the healing was complete and the endless whiteness surrounded them, Robin turned to the Doctor with a curious expression on her face. Half of it seemed ripped apart by guilt. But the other half seemed lost in memory.

"What do we do now?" she whispered sadly.

[Villain]

"We wait," the Doctor replied and crossed his fingers. "Theres a chance we'll still be trapped but..." his voice trailed off. The empty void began to fill with color again. The nothing began to be filled with a metal floor and walls, which gradually began to twist into the shape of a space age cock pit.

"Come on. Come on. Just give me this," the Doctor began to whisper. One of the walls began to grow a clear glass window that looked out into open space. In the far distance they could see a large silver space craft with the words S.S Nightingale printed on the side of it.

"Doctor..." Rogan growled weakly, his claws gripping his ray gun. "If this ship doesn't kill us all in the next five minutes. I'm going to destroy you."

"That's nice, but hold off for a minute," the Doctor spoke before turning to Robin and holding up a hand. "Do you feel that Robin?" He asked, the replicator was starting to make an odd groaning noise, the entire room began to shook violently and the view of the space craft suddenly tilted as the ship leaned to the right. For a moment it seemed as if the entire ship would capsize and send them crashing into the ceiling.

But then the ship began to right itself and the groaning noise ceased. The Doctor ran up to the window and pressed his ear against it before letting out a sigh of relief. A broad grin began to sweep over his face as the ship began to move towards the Nightingale.

"Oh Harme you beauty," the Doctor spoke before turning to look at Robin and Rogan. "Do you hear it? Do you hear it?"

For a moment neither of them would know what the Doctor was talking about. Rogan clearly looked like he was more interesting in gunning the Doctor down rather than listening to whatever he had so say. But then he heard what he heard.

"I will save you..." Harme's voice whispered over the ships tannoy system. "I will save you all."

"You beauty Harme! You absolute beauty!" The Doctor cheered before punching the air. "Never underestimate the will of good people. Good people are unbreakable!"

"What's going on Doctor?" Rogan asked warily, unsure of whether to make good on his threat or not.

"Harme's alive Rogan. She's integrated with the made of the replicator," the Doctor spoke happily whilst the ship began to slide next to the Nightingale. "There was no way she could possibly be killed by some mindless creature like the replicator, so they combined, and now, Harme is the ship."

[fireandblood]

Robin gasped as the replicator began to look like a ship again. Seemingly out of nowhere, color was bleeding into the walls and floors, and then it began to mold itself into a sort of cockpit, full of blinking lights and other spaceship-like things. Hope bloomed in her chest when she thought that they might get out of this after all. Though the look in Rogan's eyes suggested otherwise...

Then, the ship began shaking and tilting, and alarm flashed over her face. She grabbed the nearest rail and held on, not wanting to be shaken off her feet. As the Doctor spoke, she was confused... She didn't hear anything. It seemed that he was hallucinating or something... but...

Another gasp escaped Robin as Harme's voice came from the replicator. Tears streamed uncontrollably down her cheeks as she stood there, watching Harme direct them back toward the true Nightingale. Slowly, she walked to a wall and pressed her hand to it before placing her cheek against it as well.

"Harme?" she said softly, hoping she could hear. "I'm so sorry. I know you're alive but... I'm so sorry."

[Villain]

Harme didn't reply, but Robin got an answer. Light flashed before their eyes and a feeling of weightlessness affected them all. When their feet returned to the ground, the Doctor, Robin and Rogan, were stood on the deck of the S S Nightingale, surrounded by doctors and nurses, that looked at them with shock.

"Don't apologise Robin," the Doctor spoke as he approached the window of the deck. Now they could see the ship that they had been on in all of its majesty. It looked like a giant featherless bird, with sleek black metallic skin and a large fat body with space age engines built into it. It floated in the depths of space with peaceful grace, staring at the ship with six pairs of calm blue eyes that sprouted from its head.

"Thank you..." the ship whispered before the bird took a sudden nose dive and soared into the open blackness of space.

"Where is she going?" Rogan asked, his voice strained against the sorrow.

"To help people Rogan," the Doctor said softly. "Harme has total control over the workings of a creature that can replicate any environment providing it has a blue print. Harme is going to become a hospital that dwarfs the S S Nightingale. She'll revolutionize modern medicine by another two hundred years."

"But...we saw her die," Rogan spoke with a growl and cast the Doctor a hateful glance.

"We saw her sacrifice herself for a good cause," the Doctor replied, not meeting Rogan's gaze. "I saw a brave woman step into the jaws of death in order to save the lives of people that meant a lot to her. Like the small cub she saved from a disease, which grew up to be her most faithful body guard."

Rogan froze on the spot. His gun slid out of his hands and landed on the ground with a heavy clang. "How did you...?" he began.

"Oh please," the Doctor replied with a shake of his head. "I noticed the picture of a young leopard cub that she hid those memoirs behind in her office. Who else would it possibly be?" The Doctor asked before turning to face Rogan. "You can believe that Harme is dead and that her death could have been prevented. And if you really want to, you can try and kill me."

"But Harme wouldn't approve. And you know that," the Doctor spoke solemnly. "So why don't we just part ways here and you can have a long think about what Harme would want you to do."

With that, the Doctor turned to Robin and beamed at her. "Shall we go Robin?" He asked before striding out of the room, past the shocked staff and leaving Rogan behind, staring at the spot where the Doctor had once been with bitter confusion.

[fireandblood]

The tears never stopped, even when the three of them were transported to the Nightingale. Robin simply stood, crying, as the doctors and nurses looked on in shock and confusion. She listened in silence as the Doctor and Rogan spoke, now and then wiping her hand across her face. It seemed impossible that someone could be that sincerely good.... So good that she had willingly sacrificed her life, only to go on helping people.

She gasped again at the Doctor's revelation about Rogan. The picture surfaced in her memory - a small, lonely cub, smiling tentatively into the camera. A smile broke through her tears at the thought, and she felt very sad when the Doctor suggested that they leave. He walked off, but she stayed a moment and looked at Rogan.

Slowly, she walked to the fierce soldier who was standing and looking with reproach at the Doctor's former spot. She smiled at him sadly before she wrapped her arms around his waist and hugged him for a moment.

"Thank you for saving us," she whispered. "I'll never forget you. You're amazing." Standing on her tiptoes, she kissed him on the cheek, and then ran after the Doctor. When she caught up, she grabbed his hand and held it tightly.

"Where to now, Doctor?" she asked, still crying.

[Villain]

"Where to now..?" The Doctor asked, his tone friendly, but his face hard set. Now he didn't look like the mischievous man that had thwarted an evil person and saved innocent lives, he just looked angry, and it was clear why. He hadn't saved them, he had very nearly got them killed. If it hadn't been for the Doctor's condition, then Harme would not have needed to sacrifice herself, she would have been able to die peacefully.

"First of all, we get some clothes for you," the Doctor spoke before steering Robin straight into the open door way of a room full to the brim with stuff, clothes, food, pictures, tools, plants, pets, furniture, an uncountable amount of treasures of all different shapes and sizes. And of course, standing in the corner of the room, was the TARDIS. "The S S Nightingales lost property. Seemed a fitting place to park and look! There's my anorak!"

The Doctor cheered before picking up the blue anorak and slipping it over his shoulders. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his sonic screwdriver before flipping it into the air and catching it, grinning like a kid at his success.

"Go find something to wear, there's got to be some stuff that will catch your eye," the Doctor said before gesturing to the room. "Once your done, meet me in the TARDIS," the Doctor spoke before crossing over to the blue box and stepping inside. "Then I can take you home," he spoke quietly before the door slammed shut.

[fireandblood]

As the Doctor disappeared into the TARDIS, Robin rolled her eyes and wiped the tears from her face. It seemed she had stopped crying, which made her feel better, and she began to rummage around in the piles of stuff that filled the room. There were familiar things - flashlights, Ramones t-shirts, lone socks - but there were also things that were so strange she wasn't even sure what she was looking at. Slithery things that seemed to constantly change consistency, a ball of pulsing blue light...

She picked up a little golden pin off the top of an old wooden desk. Fascinated, she looked closely at it. It was intricately carved with little circles, all intertwined together almost like some sort of writing. Another image of a woman's face floated in her mind, a lost memory that Robin so badly wanted to remember... Shivering, she set the pin down and tugged on her locket nervously.

As she reached the corner, she found a pair of bright blue leather pants that seemed to be about her size. With a little smile, she pulled them on under the hospital gown and the Doctor's shirt. They were tight, but fit her well, tapering at the bottom a little. Then she found a simple white t-shirt. Sliding out of the shirt and gown, she slid the shirt on. It was an almost perfect fit, if a little tight as well. Her face brightened as she found a pair of plain silver flip flops in exactly her size, which she put on eagerly.

On a whim, she looked around for a mirror, just to see how she looked. It wasn't a pretty sight when she found one. All she could look at was the scar. It was a puckered, angry line that reached all the way from her hairline to her jaw. The color was bright red and ugly - almost angry-looking. Another tear streamed down her cheek and she wiped it angrily. Straightening and pulling at her locket again, she fluffed up her blonde curls a little and walked into the TARDIS.

"I know it's a little disco," she said as she closed the door behind her, "But they were the only pants I could find that fit me. Oh, and also, there is no way in hell that you're taking me home now."

[Villain]

The Doctor had been checking over his tools whilst Robin dressed. More than ten glittering objects lay on a slide out table that was built into the seemingly wooden frame of the TARDIS's control pad. He gazed over them, tenderly fiddling with the tools whilst programing co-ordinates into the TARDIS with his free hand.

"Lets see... Sonic Screwdriver, Laser Spanner, Psychic Wrench, Special Straw, Quantum Drill, Ganymede Driver, Mergin Nut, Opra Glasses, Psychic Paper, really big hammer..." He rattled off as he counted the tools.

He didn't look up as Robin entered, he just continued to organise the bizarre collection before gradually pocketing them one by one.

"You look lovely," the Doctor spoke softly, even though he wasn't looking. "And I am taking you home. Ever since you met me you've almost been killed, you've been scarred, tortured, frightened to your core and to top it all off you're now going to blame yourself for something that was entirely my fault."

He shook his head before turning to the TARDIS console and violently bashing down on a few of the buttons. "I should have left you alone. I should have stayed by myself the moment I woke up in the TARDIS with no memory. I shouldn't have poisoned your life."

[fireandblood]

As he spoke, Robin placed her hands on her hips and listened. Her lips were a thin line, and she rolled her eyes on more than one occasion. When he finished, she stood for a moment more before speaking up.

"You done?" she asked sarcastically. Then, with a decisive stride, she walked up to the Doctor and turned him to face her. Looking up into his ageless face, she poked a finger, hard, into his chest. "Listen here you big, stupid, amazing alien. You think you have the right to tell me what to do? Yeah, I've been nearly killed and tortured and scared. So doesn't that give me my own choice?" Her eyes narrowed.

"I don't care about any of that. No matter what's happened, or what will happen in the future, I will never wish that you would have just 'left me alone.' You are the most extraordinary thing that's ever happened to me. And I'm greedy, so I want to stick around. So you just hear what I'm saying, Doctor, because I'm not leaving. You don't make decisions for me. I left you once and immediately regretted it. Now, I'm not giving you up."

With that, she turned and strode to a rail that stuck out from the control panel and sat on it with determination. She crossed her legs and looked at him expectantly.

[Villain]

The Doctor stood by the TARDIS's control panel with one hand on a button. He had been intending on pressing the button and sending the machine back to Robin's time, but when she finished lecturing him he instead lifted his hand off the button and pulled down on a large lever, bringing the TARDIS to a sudden halt.

"Why have you got to be so stubborn Robin?" The Doctor asked with a frustrated groan and ran a hand through his blond mop. "You don't even know me! Heck, I don't even know me! How can you be so determined to stay by my side?" The Doctor asked before crossing over to her and sitting down in front of her.

"Your mind has managed to get some sneak peaks at mine, but do you really know who I am? What I am?" The Doctor asked as his caramel eyes gazed at hers. "You say I'm amazing, incredible, handsome, brilliant, fantastic and all those other wonderful things... but I'm not any of those things Robin. I'm a destroyer."

The Doctor looked up at the ceiling of the TARDIS. His hands began to clutch at his elbows as a pained look crossed his face. "I wreck things. I ruin people. I reduce everything to rubble....even my own race."

[fireandblood]

Again, Robin simply listened with visible irritation as the Doctor went on and on. As she looked at him, his words seemed to fade away and all she saw was him. Then, even he faded away, and she was plunged into his memories almost as though she had gone down a slide. As the images raced past, his words drifted through her through a fog.

She saw people and aliens, some looking at the Doctor with awe, others with fear, and a few with pure love. She saw things he had done, good and bad, wonderful and horrifying. Here he was cradling an alien as she breathed her last; there, he was sending hundreds of thousands of creatures into the void of space, never to be seen or heard from again. It made her tremble with fear... But also served to harden her resolve.

As the images faded away, she looked at the Doctor, tears threatening to spill again. Slowly, she stood and walked to him. She took his hand and looked at it as she spoke.

"You're right," she said, her voice quiet but sincere. "I don't know you. I know you're dangerous. And frankly, you terrify me. You're big and powerful and you live for... well, a long time, I think. You destroy things and places and people, and you are the scariest person I've ever met in my life." At this, she inhaled deeply, and then looked up into his eyes. A fire seemed to have been lit inside her, and her voice became impassioned as she spoke again.

"But I know something. I know that you are wonderful. And beautiful, and good. You don't do anything you don't have to... And after who knows how many years, the fact that you are even saying how sorry you are is amazing. I'm sure that anyone else with your life span would forget what even the definition of remorse is. You are incredible, Doctor. You defy everything I think I know about how things work." Her voice broke with the emotional strain, and she cleared her throat before continuing.

"Also, since you are so destructive... You need someone with you. That's why you invited me in the first place. You need someone with you, to keep you company and keep you from doing something you know you'll regret. You need a friend and a partner. And I'm not any normal person. I've got something weird with my brain that can help you sort out yours." Nervously, she tugged at her locket again, fingering the delicate gold chain.

"Now," she said, giving him a feeble smile and smoothing his anorak down over his arms, "stop arguing, because you know I'm right." A single tear rolled down her cheek, and she let it go, smiling up at the Doctor with more conviction.

"Also, self-deprecation is not a very attractive quality. But I guess you have so many of those you've got to have one thing wrong with you."

[Villain]

The Doctor didn't make a move while Robin spoke to him. He simply stared at the ceiling, silent and still, like a statue. His ancient eyes gazing into nothingness as he absorbed the words.

His mind wandered a little. It reached out to the darkest, most solid, memories that he could recall. The pictures of a beautiful planet with a sweet orange sky and silver forests that glowed like jewellery in the sun. Golden fields nestled around snow capped mountains and scarlet deserts and in the centre of it all stood a city, glorious and proud, contained in a glass sphere. A world of pure majesty and beauty...and it had all burned, because of him.

The details were rough of how he had done it. He knew that he was the last of the Time Lords, he knew they were all gone, but their enemy varied. No matter how hard he tried the Doctor just couldn't pull the parts of the image together. All he could see was a single eye, staring at
him with cold malice, uttering a single word that bared so much hate and anger. Yet, despite how much the enemy spoke the word, he just couldn't make sense of it. He couldn't recall the word that he hated so much.

E...X...T...E...R...M...

His gaze dropped to Robin. She spoke of his power, his age, his destructive streak that had branded him as a vengeful god in some parts of history. She talked of all the reasons why she should be afraid of him...and then went on to speak of every reason why he kept going. And why she would be beside him.

E...X...t...e....r....

The word seemed to loose it's power. It faded away and joined the rest of the rabble that made up the Doctor's jumbled mind. He could wait a while longer to find out what the word meant. He could hold on until the end of time. The word wasn't important.

He smiled at Robin before taking her hand and pulling her to her feet. "That was a test, and you passed" he said before taking off his anorak and pulling on his shirt. "I don't know what I was thinking, getting all mopey. I'm supposed to be jolly and bright, like Father Christmas, not down in the dumps like Edward Cullen."

He took a moment to flash her that cheeky pearly grin of his and squeezed her hand in his. This girl was just what he needed. A bizarre yet wonderfully stubborn human. Someone who could fill up his life and push away the darkness that resided in his foggy mind. He would take her to worlds she had never seen, dressed in his silly anorak and armed to the brim with space age tools, and she would follow him in her disco dress with that strange necklace around her neck.

That strange... strange necklace....

The Doctor shook his head as something pulled at his brain. A niggling feeling that resembled the one that the bad word brought on. Except this didn't make him feel afraid or angry, instead it mean him feel strangely impatient, as if there was something he wasn't understanding even though the clues were right in front of him.

Beware...

"Now!" The Doctor cheered, ignoring the shiver that scuttled down his spine. He jumped onto the TARDIS's console and kicked off his sandals before fiddling at the controls with his hands and feet. It seemed reckless and hardly a safe way of working an advanced machine like the TARDIS, but the Doctor carried on none the less. "We've had an adventure in the present and the future. So why don't we go to the past next? We could go see Elvis live!"

[fireandblood]

Robin had to laugh at his comparison of himself to the two famous figures. Her eyes were red from weeping, and she felt a strange sense of dread and excitement, but she was happy nonetheless. As he busied himself pulling on his anorak and jumping about the TARDIS, she sat back on the little rail, just watching him punching buttons with his toes. It made her giggle. Though he was an ancient, advanced alien, he really seemed like a little kid.

"You're nothing like Santa," she said conversationally. "But you're more nothing like Edward Cullen. I mean, hopefully. If you want to drink my blood, the deal's off." It was nice, teasing him again instead of trying to cheer him up. But being with the Doctor was proving to be an emotional roller coaster, all really intense ups and downs, seemingly from one second to the next. If she wasn't careful, she'd need to find a prescription for lithium to help with the bipolar disorder that was sure to result.

She thought for a moment at his suggestion of going to the past, and then she shrugged. Smiling at him and scratching at her scar, she said, "I'll go wherever you want to go. Elvis? Sure. Just take me and I'll go willingly."

[Villain]

"Tried blood once. It really wasn't my thing. I'll stick to cola and tea," the Doctor said before slamming down a lever and laughing as the TARDIS began to make that magical sound. "Elvis Presley, January 1956, we're going to see his first single get released to the adoring fans, but you best not say 'Just take me and I'll go willing' around him. That Elvis plays the field."

The Doctor laughed loudly as the TARDIS rocked violently. The control panels were sparking, the bronze pipes in the walls and floor were bursting with steam and the screens amongst the controls were flashing with various warning signs, but the Doctor didn't seem to care about any of that. To him this seemed like just a wacky wild ride.

Eventually the TARDIS grew to a stop and the Doctor hopped down off the console.

"Robin you're about to see one of the most wondrous stars of music that ever lived. In the centuries that follow Elvis Presley still remains amongst the stars. His songs get remixed and redone by aliens from all over the universe. He's the very embodiment of a legend," the Doctor said as he strode over to the door of the TARDIS and held onto the handle. He grinned broadly at Robin and waggled his eyebrows as he prepared her for the treat. "And this is one of the moments that put him amongst the greats," he said before pulling the door open.

Just in time for an axe to fly through the open door and shoot past the Doctor, narrowly avoiding cutting off his head.

"What the...?" The Doctor began and rushed over to pick up the axe that had very nearly killed him. It was a dark grey steel axe with blood splattering half the blade. The handle had leather wrapped around it that looked worn and smelled utterly terrible. "No way," the Doctor spoke before rushing over to the doors and sticking his head out of the TARDIS for a few seconds.

"Robin, bit of bad news. Elvis is canceled," the Doctor spoke before kicking open the doors to reveal a vast forest dripping with rain drops. Amongst the clearing were several bulky men, dressed in ancient viking armor, wielding axes and spears that were drenched with blood. "Welcome to Northern Europe and the great age of vikings."

[fireandblood]

"Well maybe I want Elvis to play my field," Robin said, sticking her tongue out at the Doctor. But she was suddenly almost thrown to the ground as the TARDIS rocked, hard, side to side. Quickly, she grabbed onto the rail and held on until her knuckles turned white.

"I'm glad you're having such a wonderful time," she muttered as her teeth rattled in her skull. As the sparks started flying out from the console, she flinched and shrank away, but when she saw the Doctor still wasn't worried, she relaxed a little and gave a shaky laugh.

When everything stopped and it seemed they had arrived at their destination, she hopped down and listened to the Doctor talk. Her smile widened as he walked to the door, but it was replaced with shock when the axe nearly missed his shaggy head. A feeble shout came from her as he opened the doors to reveal a forest and several big, strangely dressed men wielding frighteningly bloody weapons

"Um, hello Vikings," she said, her voice quiet with shock.

[Villain]

The viking warriors turned to face the Doctor and Robin, their furious faces giving way to confusion as they stared at the two strangers gawking at them from out of a blue box. Then, after spitting out blood and broken teeth, the warriors let out a roar and charged at them.

"Bye Vikings!" The Doctor called as he pulled Robin into the box and ran at the TARDIS console. He flipped a few switches once he reached it and turned a cog like device causing the TARDIS to let out it's musical groan and begin to rattle and shake.

"Phew, that was close. Vikings are a fierce bunch of warriors. Wouldn't want to get stuck here with th-" the Doctor was flung off his feet as the TARDIS ground to a halt and sent the two of them sprawling to the ground.

For a moment the Doctor lay on his back, staring at the ceiling of the TARDIS with bewilderment, before he sprang to his feet and began to frantically mess with the controls.

"No, no, no, no..." He muttered, aggravated before grabbing the periscope that hung from the ceiling and looking through it. "Oh, now that is interesting," he spoke before taking a step back and scratching his chin. "We're stranded."

He let the word sink in before he flung himself at one of the TARDIS's screens and gazed into it with confusion. "I just tried to fling us ahead a couple of years and the TARDIS was knocked back down like a bat hitting a tennis ball. Something is sealing off the TARDIS's path through the time vortex. The only place we can travel in is right here and right now."

The Doctor stared at the screen for a long time. He was clearly confused by the predicament, but yet something in his eyes seemed to spark with interest. Even though the prospect of being stranded here was terrifying the Doctor was clearly fascinated by the turn of events.

"What on earth could possibly be able to interfere with the TARDIS's journey?" The Doctor asked allowed before turning his head to face Robin. "What are the Vikings up to?"

[fireandblood]

Robin felt a surge of relief as the Doctor closed the doors of the TARDIS. those Vikings had been terrifying and disgusting, and she doubted that she wanted to have any sort of interaction with them at all. She resumed her former seat on the rail, watching the Doctor flip switches and do other strange things, smiling at the almost routine feel of it.

The smile vanished as Robin and the Doctor were thrown to the ground violently. For a moment, she could only lie there stunned, feeling an ache already beginning in her elbow. Getting up more slowly than the Soctor, she felt confused and bewildered. Could something actually stop the TARDIS?

After the Doctor had spoken, Robin was silent for a moment. He looked intrigued, an she couldn't help feeling kind of the same way. Automatically, her ham reached up and toyed with the chain of her locket. A strange beeping noise faintly prodded at the back of her mind. Beep... Beep... Beep...

"Doctor," she said, tugging on the little heart on the chain. "Can they do that? Can they stop the TARDIS? What is that beeping noise? And why do you look so excited?"

[Villain]

"They shouldn't be able to, the Vikings are hardly advanced. They know how to forge the odd weapon, but particle fusion and argon lasers are beyond them," the Doctor spoke whilst carefully examining the controls of the TARDIS. "In order to block the path of the TARDIS there would need to be some serious time manipulation. The time vortex for this period would need to be blocked up like a intercity traffic jam. The TARDIS can't possibly fly if there's so much traffic clogging everything up."

"So... since the Vikings can't possibly pull off such a stunt, the question is, what can and why is it doing it?" The Doctor asked before beaming at Robin. "And isn't that amazing? We're in a time before blue ray DVDs and yet we're being locked in by some unknown force?" The Doctor grinned and rubbed his hands together, "I can hardly wait to find out what's causing this and why."

The Doctor skipped to the door of the TARDIS, straightening his bolo tie while he moved, and put his hand on the doors. He flashed a grin at Robin before pushing the door open. He didn't pause to wonder if it was dangerous or if it were wise to step outside when they were clearly in peril.

And most of all, he didn't pause to ask what the beeping that Robin heard was.

He stepped out onto wet grass and looked around at the scenery. They were stood in the middle of what appeared to be a village. Their houses were constructed with wood and stone, their roofs slanted thatch and their walls arranged in a neat box shape. Around the houses were boxed off fields of cows, sheep and other livestock and patches of vegetables that grew from rough soil.

It looked a reasonably normal scene, but that didn't stop the Doctor from leaping onto the ground and planting his ear against the wet grassy floor.

"Fascinating..." the Doctor mumbled, whilst stroking blades of grass with his fingers.

[fireandblood]

Robin had learned by this point to just nod while the Doctor was talking. It was not very often that she understood anything he was saying, but nodding and smiling had worked fairly well so far. That, and running after him when he took off. She cocked her head to the side, wondering about this. There seemed to be a lot of running involved in traveling with the Doctor.

The beeping noise continued in her head as he spoke, and she was distracted. Soon, the face of the woman was floating behind her eyes, kind and sad... and scared. Robin shook her head, trying to clear it. The woman disappeared, but the beeping continued. As she opened her eyes again, she noticed that the Doctor was no longer in the TARDIS. With a gasp, she ran out and closed the door carefully behind her.

When she turned, the scene astounded her. It looked so quaint, and peaceful. Little houses, green grass, little pens full of animals. A smile spread slowly on her face. It reminded her of home, for some reason. Then, she saw the Doctor, and she laughed incredulously.

"Is it legal to fondle grass like that? Shall I give you two some space?"