Doctor Who Fan Fiction ❯ Dr Who – Martha and Ten The Inbetweens and Backstories ❯ Chapter Eight ( Chapter 8 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Martha felt a thrill of anticipation whenever she stepped from the TARDIS. With the Doctor anything was possible, except for arriving at their destination on the first attempt. Their last stop had been bang on target, and they had managed to land on the holiday planet of Nacre.

The Doctor's description had also been bang on. The beaches had seemed endless and twin suns had warmed the clear blue water. It had been fantastic. But not, she thought, gazing down, anything like as fantastic as Earth.

The Doctor said something and, although he was standing right next to her, Martha barely heard a word. It was impossible to drag her eyes away from the globe that shone through the oblong display window stretching right the way around the curved room. For all the wonders she had seen during her travels, there really was no place like home.

`I said,' a voice murmured into her ear, `are you going to stand there gawping all day? We're not on holiday any more, you know.'

Martha sighed, remembering the tranquility of Nacre. Not to mention the attentions of the hotel's extremely handsome waiters. Pity the Doctor couldn't sit still for more than five minutes or she'd still have been there.

`And there was me thinking you knew how to show a girl a good time.'

`This is a good time.' The Doctor's reflection grinned at her in the glass. `Come on, who wants to laze around on a beach when there's a mystery to solve? Those transmissions the TARDIS intercepted. The whale song - ring any bells?'

Reality came crashing back, and Martha remembered where they were. On a space station; a big one, if the endless but eerily deserted corridors were anything to go by. The large, round room they were in reminded her of those old images of NASA mission control. Curved rows of workstations radiated from a central hub, each occupied by a man or woman peering into monitors.

Martha half-expected to see guards approaching. But she and the Doctor might have been invisible for all the attention anyone paid them. If only she knew why the TARDIS had brought them here, materialising in a storage hangar in the depths of the station. It obviously had something to do with those strange signals, which had sounded to her like whale song.

Maybe they came from the giant spacecraft she could see. There were hundreds of them, drifting across the planet so slowly they hardly seemed to be moving.

`Those ships, are they human or alien?'

`You lot don't have ships that big in 2088.' The Doctor squinted at them. `Anyway, they're not ships.'

`Then what are they?'

`No idea.'

`I thought you knew everything.' Martha peered out again and recoiled as a metallic sphere bristling with antennae rushed through space towards her. She took an involuntary step back, expecting it to smash through the glass, sighing with relief when it veered away at the last moment and disappeared. `What was that?'

`Oh, just one of the monitor probes.'

Martha jumped. It wasn't the Doctor who'd answered.

She spun round. A kindly-looking elderly man with thick glasses and receding hair smiled at her. The smile faltered slightly.

`Sorry, I don't think we've met. I take it you're one of the new arrivals. I'm Conrad Morris—'

`Professor Morris!' The Doctor grabbed the man's arm. `I'm such an admirer of your work. Martha, this is the genius who rewrote the rulebook on bioengineering. Then tore it up and wrote a completely new rulebook!'

`Oh, nonsense!' Morris protested, but he looked rather pleased.

`John Smith,' the Doctor said, flashing his psychic paper. `This is my associate Doctor Martha Jones. Sorry we're late, couldn't resist the duty free shop.'

Morris barely had time to acknowledge Martha before the Doctor was steering him away from the window. `Now where was I? Oh yes! Those huge things in the sky, the signals - don't really have to say much more, do I?'

`Indeed not. There's still a lot of data to analyse, as you can imagine, but the provisional results are extremely promising. In fact, far better than we could possibly have imagined - it seems the Benefactors were not exaggerating.'

Martha was lost. `What's going on here? And who are the Benefactors?'

`Have you been underground for the last month?' Morris asked, not unkindly.

`Actually, yeah, she has,' the Doctor said, `deep underground, testing this new theory about stalactites. Or was it stalagmites? Which are the ones that grow down? Anyway, never mind! You were going to tell Martha about the Benefactors.'

The professor carried on walking, the Doctor at his side. Martha fell in beside them, determined not to be left behind. `The Benefactors, it appears, are the salvation of mankind,' Morris said, rather pompously. `It sounded too good to be true, at first, and there was no shortage of sceptics. But, judging by the initial results, the sceptics were wrong.'

Martha shook her head, still baffled. `Why don't you start at the beginning? I've been . . . away, don't forget.'

`I'd like to know who these Benefactors are,' the Doctor said. `I mean, don't you think it's a bit of a coincidence, being the good guys and having a name like the Benefactors? It'd be like having bad guys called the Villains.'

Morris shrugged. `It was probably just a literal translation.'

`So, those big floating things,' Martha said. `They're the Benefactors, right?'

`Hardly. The Benefactors remain many thousands of light years away. They are a solitary race. What you see is the gift they sent us.'

`I still don't get it.'

`Wait until we reach central analysis,' the professor told her. `I'll replay the broadcast for you both. Then everything will become clear.'

`Broadcast, eh?' The Doctor grinned. `Good! I haven't seen any TV in ages.'

Morris led them along an aisle that ran between the banks of monitors until they reached the central hub, a large oval desk laden with equipment. Standing around it, gazing up at screens suspended overhead, were a dozen or so people, all dressed in white coats. Martha guessed they must be the more important scientists on board.

The screens streamed lines of data that meant nothing to her but obviously spoke volumes to the scientists, scribbling away with styli on hand-held pads as they studied them. One broke off to confer quietly with a keyboard operator. Otherwise no one said a word. There were no friendly conversations, no laughter and no coffee breaks. There was a definite tension in the air.

`Not much office banter is there?' she said lightly.

Morris frowned. `Not when the future of the world is at stake, Doctor Jones. Everyone here has family and friends on Earth. People they care about.'

`Sorry, I didn't mean . . .'

`No, no, I'm sure you didn't,' the professor said, smiling to show he was not offended. `But you must understand, we are in the front line. We'll be the first to know if the Benefactors were right or, God forbid, if they were wrong and the Earth is doomed. That's a heavy burden.'

`Funny thing,' the Doctor said. `I have no idea who these Benefactors are or what they're doing, but I've already taken a dislike to them. Save the planet or don't save it, but don't keep people dangling. I hate dangling.'

A serious-looking man who had been standing at the side of the hub now approached them. He wore a dark suit and fiddled with his flashy wristwatch.

`Hello!' the Doctor said brightly. `Who're you, then?'

`Daniel Grant,' the man answered, face a granite mask. `Head of security.'

The Doctor flashed his psychic paper again and introduced them both.

`I should have guessed your people would send someone here,' Grant sneered. His eyes swept over the Doctor, taking in his shock of hair and the pinstripe suit that clashed with his trainers. `You don't look like a scientist.'

`Doctor Smith's a bit eccentric but a genius,' Martha said.

`Right on both counts,' the Doctor beamed. `Now, then, I believe Professor Morris was going to replay the Benefactors' broadcast for us.'

`Why?' Grant was openly suspicious. `Is there anyone on Earth who hasn't seen it a hundred times already?'

`Let's make it a hundred and one,' the Doctor said, putting on his glasses and peering expectantly at the screens. `Never know, could have missed something.'

Grant stared at him. `Fine, whatever, but I think you're just wasting time.'

Professor Morris stepped across to the nearest workstation and spoke quietly to the operator. `Won't be a moment,' he said as he rejoined them. `You know, I'll never forget the first time I saw it. I was filled with such hope.'

`Why?' Martha asked.

`Because the world was dying, that's why! Atmospheric pollution, global warming, it was all reaching critical point. The world's governments played it down. They didn't want mass panic on their hands. But the evidence was there for everyone to see - the icecaps melting, the floods, the air so choked with noxious gases that some days it hurt to breathe.'

Martha could scarcely believe it. Everyone had been talking about global warming for as long as she could remember, but she hadn't thought too much about it. It was something to worry about in the future. Now, it seemed, was that time.

`So when the Benefactors made contact,' the professor continued, eyes far away, `it was like our prayers had been answered. But of course you know all that.'

`Course we do,' the Doctor said. `But I can never resist a good story. Go on - what happened next?'

A burst of static interrupted the data stream on the screen immediately overhead. As soon as Martha saw the creature that appeared on it she was shocked into numbness.

`People of Earth,' it said. Its voice sounded composed of liquid, like someone gargling while they talked. `We feel your planet's suffering. We feel your pain and your terror. But do not be afraid. We can help you.'

Martha barely took in the words; she was too transfixed by the alien speaking them. Its impossibly long head was like a living balloon, with tiny eyes near the top and a slit of a mouth at the other end. It was the colour of dough and did not appear to have ears or a nose. The head quivered as it spoke, as though under-filled with gas. If that was its head, Martha thought with a shudder, she was glad she couldn't see its body.

`No,' she heard, a breathy gasp that for a moment she thought was coming from the speakers. Then she realised it was the Doctor, not the alien, that had spoken. The smile had vanished from his face and he was staring at the bizarre creature with an expression somewhere between anger and loathing.

`We have the technology to scour your atmosphere, to remove the poisonous gases and give your planet the chance to breathe again.'

`No!' the Doctor repeated, so loudly that everyone turned to stare at him. `You have to stop them. If you don't, everyone will die.'

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The atmosphere in the control centre had changed. When Martha walked in, all heads turned her way and the looks she was given ranged from suspicious to downright hostile. Even Professor Morris was scowling as he marched up to them, waving a finger at Martha.

`What on earth is going on? And where's Doctor Smith?'

Martha shrugged, realising she could still help the Doctor by keeping silent.

`I have men searching for him,' Grant said. `He can't hide for ever.'

`I don't understand,' Morris said. `We're trying to save the world. What could you possibly hope to achieve with all this . . . nonsense?'

Martha looked away from him, towards the overhead screens. The Doctor looked straight back at her.

`Hello,' he said cheerfully, giving a little wave.

`What the hell?' Grant's cheeks flushed with anger when he realised the Doctor had hijacked every screen in the room. Martha saw the TARDIS console in the background and sighed with relief. She'd been worried Grant's men might have found him but behind those old doors he was safe.

`Martha, look - I'm on the telly!'

Grant rounded on Martha. `How's he doing this?'

`You tell me.'

`Now then,' the Doctor continued. `I suppose you've got a million questions but they're just going to have to wait. See, while you lot were running around like headless chickens, some of us were working.'

`Tell me,' Grant said. `Or you'll only make it worse for yourself.'

`I don't know how he's doing it, all right?' And that was the truth. The Doctor moved in mysterious ways, when he wasn't jumping about, getting all excited.

`And guess what? I worked it all out! Although to be fair, it wasn't that much of a challenge, not for me at any rate. Where was I? Oh yeah, I know.'

The Doctor's face suddenly vanished from the screen, to be replaced by a close-up shot of one of the floating bio-forms. Martha grimaced at the sight of it. The thing was a shapeless grey bubble studded with gill-like protrusions. Various parts of it bulged and then flattened out as it drew in and discharged gases. While there was nothing to provide a sense of scale, she already knew it was huge.

`Now listen,' the Doctor's voice piped up.

A high-pitched keening echoed around the control room, followed by a sonorous rumbling. Seconds later the unearthly duet replayed itself.

`Yeah, I know, it sounds like whale song. But it's not. What you're hearing are encoded signals.'

Morris frowned. `What's he talking about?'

`One signal goes out from each beastie, transmitting how much gas they've stored up. The other responds with instructions to maintain position.'

`He's insane,' Grant hissed. `He can't prove anything.'

`Until, that is,' the Doctor said, `I do this.'

The signal changed. The whale song became a harsh trilling. Immediately the creature ceased undulating. Gasps of horror filled the room as it began to sink, slowly spiralling down with its lethal cargo towards Earth.

`My God,' Morris gasped, staring through the window.

Martha looked out and immediately saw something was wrong. The creatures' movements were no longer random. Instead they were drifting in formation across the globe.

`What are they doing?' she asked, not expecting an answer.

`Taking up position,' the Doctor said, striding into the room, sonic screwdriver in his hand. `They know we're on to them.'

Grant made a move towards him.

The Doctor shook his head sharply. `Remember what happened the last time you tried?' Grant eyed the screwdriver and backed off.

`I don't understand,' Martha said, eyes flicking from the Doctor to the screen. It had frozen, and his unmoving face stared back at her.

`That? I recorded it before I left the TARDIS - just added a simple time delay.'

`Yeah, but why?'

`I had to get everyone's attention or Mr Grouch here wouldn't have given me the chance to prove my point.'

`You've doomed everyone,' Grant scowled.

The Doctor rolled his eyes. `Don't be so dramatic. I just hacked the signal and made one of them think it had been ordered to drop.'

`You killed it?' Martha asked.

`They're not sentient beings, Martha, just big windbags with tiny nervous systems that can only respond to basic commands.' He brushed past them to the nearest workstation. `That one will come down smack in the middle of the Atlantic. No one gets hurt. Oh, and the creature itself will probably survive, if that makes you feel any better.'

`What about the rest?' Morris was staring anxiously at the creatures. `It wouldn't take many to wipe out a city.'

`So you do believe me! Brilliant!'

`He might, but I don't,' Grant said through gritted teeth.

`That thing only went down because you interfered. Now you've set the rest of them off.'

`You still don't get it, do you?'

`Doctor!' Martha cried. The creatures had suddenly picked up speed and were now racing across the globe.

`All right, keep your shirt on. Those things don't exactly rush.'

`They're rushing now.'

The Doctor glanced out and frowned. `Clever . . . they're

using the gas to propel themselves,' he muttered, and then started flashing the sonic across the workstation.

Martha said nothing, not wanting to break his concentration. Morris joined her. The professor flinched as the swarming creatures broke up into clusters of swirling patterns, high above the continents. Martha looked anxiously at the Doctor. Whatever he was doing, she wished he would hurry up and get on with it. Time was running out.

`They'll hit the cities first,' the Doctor called, eyes fixed on the workstation. `Kill billions at a stroke and then wait for the gas cloud to finish the rest.'

`Can't the military take them out with missiles?' Martha asked.

`Yeah, except you'd have a massive explosion instead of a burst of lethal gas - not much of an improvement.' He waved his free hand dismissively, obviously trying to focus on what he was doing. From the grim expression on his face it wasn't going well. `Frequency's constantly changing . . . can't lock it down . . .'

Martha chewed on a nail. The creatures were slowing, which had to mean they were getting ready to drop. Far below she could see a shadow over London; her own family would be gone, but she'd have descendants living in the city and she couldn't bear the thought of anything happening to them, or to anyone else, come to that. She stared at the Doctor but his face was unreadable. He was sonicking like crazy but nothing was happening. Martha felt like screaming.

`Isn't there anything we can do?' Morris pleaded.

The Doctor suddenly smiled. `You could just ask them to stop.'

`We can communicate with those creatures?'

`Not them! Blimey, for a clever man you aren't half dense at times. I meant those Benefactors of yours.'

`We told you,' Grant barked. `They're light years away.'

`Are they really?' Now the Doctor was playing the sonic flamboyantly across the work station. `Thing is,' he said. `I'd already cracked the code so I only had to lock the signal. Then I could hack into their system. Like so.'

Martha hurried away from the window as the space outside distorted. `Cloaking device,' the Doctor grinned. `And - oops, guess who broke it.'

The stars disappeared as a gigantic shape shimmered into existence alongside the station. It was a spaceship, but unlike any Martha had seen before - a conical mound of bone-like structures, held together by what looked like a dull greyish resin and dotted with pinpricks of light.

There were no engines that she could see. Perhaps they were there but she just didn't recognise them. The ship was big enough to dwarf the station and so utterly alien her mind struggled to comprehend it.

`There you go,' the Doctor said, rubbing his hands together gleefully.

Grant stared slack-jawed at the Benefactor ship. Even Morris, eminent scientist as he was, was having trouble accepting the proof his own eyes presented. `B-b-but . . .' he stammered.

`My thoughts exactly!' the Doctor said, putting one hand on the professor's shoulder and the other on Grant's.

`Every tracking station on Earth will have picked that up. Every nuclear missile you've got will be aimed right at it.'

`What about the gas bombs?' Martha asked. `Blowing up the ship won't be enough to stop them.'

`It won't get that far - look.' The grey creatures were moving away from the Earth, floating harmlessly into space. `The Cineraria know they've been spotted. They'll already have detected Earth's defences. Like I told you, they don't do explosions. They do stealth. And I blew their cover. If just one nuke hits them, it's goodnight. So they've admitted defeat.'

Grant was still staring out of the window. `They're going,' he breathed.

Martha looked. The Cineraria ship was sliding out of orbit.

`What's to say they won't return?' Morris had snapped out of his stupor.

`They don't know about me. As far as they're concerned, it was the human race that beat them. That little mouse has roared. So, no, they won't be back.'

`We were wrong,' Morris said, eyeing Martha and the Doctor. `Thank you.'

`Just doing my job,' the Doctor said in a bad cowboy accent. Then he turned serious. `But if you want to thank me, save your planet the hard way.'

`What do you mean?'

`No short cuts, no quick fixes. You don't need anyone's help. The Cineraria think you lot are clever but I know you are. You're really quite amazing.'

Martha smiled. She loved it when the Doctor got excited and now he was positively bouncing, hands flying all over the place.

`I mean, you can be stupid and careless,' he went on.

`Look at what you did to the Earth. And yet - and yet - there was Newton and Einstein and Hawking and all the others, all those great minds. And all the beauty - oh, don't get me started on that! The Sistine Chapel, the Eiffel Tower, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon—'

`Doctor,' Martha interrupted. Sometimes he needed reining in.

`What? Oh, yeah, sorry. Anyway, my point is, you have the brains and the strength to solve your own problems. The Cineraria didn't completely clear the atmosphere. But they bought you plenty of breathing space. So use it! Finish the job. You're smart enough. And, besides, if you find that gas bag floating somewhere in the Atlantic you can nick their technology.'

`Yes,' Morris said, eyes widening as he considered the possibilities. `I don't pretend we'll understand it all but I am sure we can extrapolate . . .'

He was still babbling on when the Doctor took Martha's hand and led her quietly out through the doors. `Saved the world in less than an hour,' the Doctor said as they headed for the lift. `I think that's a record.'

`Full of ourselves, aren't we?'

`Yeah, well, you can't blame me. Sometimes I'm so clever I even surprise myself. And it takes a lot to surprise me, I can tell you.'

`Well, you can use some of that genius of yours to take me to Earth.'

The Doctor raised an eyebrow. `Well, you did it. Surprised me. We've got the whole of time and space to explore and you want to go home?'

`I don't want to go home,' Martha said. `I want you to show me the world ten years from now so I can see how it all works out.'

`Then Earth ten years from now it is. But don't you worry. They manage to sort themselves out, just like I said. Everything's brilliant!'

Martha laughed and slipped her arm through his. As long as the Doctor was around, everything really was brilliant.