Month: February 2025

The alarms sounded throughout the base. Gurast and Stregg entered the laboratory “What’s happening here?!” demanded Gurast.

“It looks like the female and the Doctor’s companion escaped with the help of a green blob,” replied Strev.

“Slimer?!” protested Peter. “That spud’s here?!”

“An escape attempt?” muttered the Doctor. That was when William, Slimer, and Janine ran into the lab with angry Sontarans unleashing plasma bolts behind them!

“FOOLS! NOT IN HERE!” shouted Strev.

“CEASE FIRE, YOU FOOLS! THAT EQUIPMENT’S-!” Stregg’s order came too little, too late. Slimer flew through the temporal bombardment array, leaving slime behind. The Sontaran trooper then shot it, causing it to go haywire!

“Oh no!” gasped the Doctor. “EVERYONE OUT!” The Doctor hustled everyone, even Slimer, out of the place. As they ran through the corridors, the Sontarans started dropping like flies! The energies being released went through their probic vents! …Or rather…their SOULS!

“They’re dying?!” yelped Peter. “How?!”

“Explanations later!” answered William.

“Over there!” called the Doctor as she pointed out the door. Slimer got it open and everyone got out. By then, Gurast’s voice was laughing. Her face appeared on the surface of the Battle Sphere as it started rising in the air, crackling with energy.

“I had not expected to get my army so quickly,” she said, “but a Sontaran Battle Sphere too! Oh, this is too much! I suppose I should thank your pet ghost!”

“Okay, what’s going on?!” called Winston.

“The temporal bombardment array,” began the Doctor, “was synced with ectoplasmic energy at the ratio I recommended thanks to Slimer sliming that thing! It gave Gurast the means to channel herself into the Battle Sphere’s computer systems and bring it into a spectral state!”

“You mean it’s a ghost ship now?!” gulped William.

“With a ghost crew!” replied the Doctor.

“It’s worse than that!” interjected Egon. “The Sontarans took apart our proton packs!”

“What?!” yelped the Doctor. “How are the Neutrino Wand cartridges configured?!”

“In an Ionic transfer circuit for more power!” The Doctor rubbed her temples as a headache was coming on, thanks to the situation being worse than she thought.

“Once the cartridges are depleted,” she said, “Gurast will start drawing on the ectoplasmically and temporally charged engine core of the Battle Sphere which will cause an implosion of the Battle Sphere, causing a singularity of disastrous, nay, BIBLICAL proportions!”

“Hang on, Doctor,” said Winston. “Singularity? As in…Black Hole?!”

“With Manhattan as the epicenter!” confirmed Ray.

“But the Sontarans took all our gear!” protested Peter, once he got the translation.

“…Even the ghost traps?” asked William. The Doctor and Egon then arrived at the same conclusion.

“Yes, even the ghost traps!” confirmed Egon. “If we can remotely activate them simultaneously-!”

“Then somehow draw the Battle Sphere into the containment unit-!” continued the Doctor.

“The ectoplasmic energy within the containment unit will overpower the temporal energy and avert the implosion!” the Doctor and Egon said together.

“We’ll have to draw them towards the firehouse!” said Ray.

“Boys, girls, and ectoplasmic beings,” said the Doctor, “get into Ecto-1! Egon, the equipment on top of Ecto-1-?”

“There’s a twin barreled Mega Proton Cannon on the roof!” replied Egon. “It works like our packs!”

“That’s all I need to know!” Everyone then jumped into Ecto-1 with the Doctor riding on top behind the Proton Cannon. The Battle Sphere fired on innocent people until the Doctor fired on it with the Proton Cannon.

“ARGH!” shouted Gurast as her face appeared. “WHO DARES-!”

“COOEE!” called the Doctor. The Battle Sphere rotated so that Gurast could see the Doctor. “NICE TASTY TIME LORD HERE!” continued the Doctor.

“I’ll finish what the Daleks started and slaughter you, Doctor!” promised Gurast as the Battle Sphere brought its guns to bear.

“NOW, WINSTON!” called the Doctor. Winston gunned the engine and Ecto-1 raced down the streets with the Battle Sphere giving chase.

They arrived at the firehouse ahead of Gurast and the Doctor and Egon rushed downstairs. “We don’t have much time!” warned the Doctor. “We need to establish a remote link with the traps from here!”

“I know the frequency of the traps’ laser containment grid,” said Egon, “but using a radio link-!”

“Laser containment? That’s easier for me to work with! Give me that frequency!”

“S-Sixteen by four by eight by two!” stammered Egon as he balked at the idea. “Doctor, we can’t use a light frequency!”

“I will admit, it’s a bit advanced for this time,” replied the Doctor, “but you just wait until the advent of LIDAR!”

“Of what?!”

“Spoilers! Come on, Egon!” She started taking apart traps. Egon did the same, then helped her construct a machine, linking it to the containment unit with plenty of cable! Once they were done, they brought the new machine outside.

“Doctor, Gurast and her Sontarans are almost right on top of us!” warned William.

“Don’t worry, we just need to ensnare them all at once!” replied the Doctor. “Proton Cannon! NOW!”

“Got it!” called Peter as he fired Ecto-1’s Proton Cannon at the Battle Sphere. Gurast’s face appeared again.

“That tickles!” she cackled wickedly. “Look upon me, Time Lord, and know your doom!”

“More like you should know your OWN doom!” replied the Doctor as she got under the Battle Sphere.

“You cannot hide from me that way! I have control of this ship’s tractor beam!”

“I was rather hoping you’d say that!” Gurast was confused…for all of two seconds once the Doctor fired up the machine! Gurast felt everyone being pulled into the machine! Herself, her crew, her ship, everything that made her up right now!

“NO!” she wailed. “YOU…CANNOT…IMPRISON ME! …I…AM…GURAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhh!” The machine pulled the Battle Sphere into itself and everyone saw a glowing object travel down the cables and into the containment unit! The Doctor and Egon followed the glow and yanked the cables from the containment unit once the glow went inside. They then shut the unit and kept their hands on the door…then the light flashed green. Egon sighed and relaxed.

“Containment successful,” he said. “Gurast and the Sontarans are safely inside the unit.” The Doctor then relaxed as well.

“…So that’s how Gurast faded from existence,” she said. The other Ghostbusters, Janine, and William then rushed downstairs.

“EGON!” called Janine as she rushed to Egon and hugged him.

“Doctor, are you-?!” asked William.

“I’m all right,” replied the Doctor. Egon managed to wiggle out of Janine’s grip as his buddies joined him.

“This is incredible!” called Ray as he looked through some sort of viewer connected to the containment unit. “Look!” Everyone each managed to get a turn of seeing the sight of Stregg and the Sontarans fighting Gurast.

“The containment unit’s energy,” mused Egon, “must have shattered Gurast’s control over the Sontarans.”

“And their natural chauvinism is chafed thanks to being forced to take orders from a woman,” remarked the Doctor.

“…That…was intense!” breathed William.

“Feels like I’m tying up a lot of loose ends left by the Time Lords,” muttered the Doctor. “Well, William, what say we find some time to relax?”

“Which part of history or the future?” asked William.

“You’re leaving?” asked Winston.

“Mr. Zeddemore, I’m from Earth in the future,” replied William. “I stay here any longer, I might cause a paradox that would erase me from existence. Trust me, the Doctor’s right on this one.”

“But if there’s something strange in our neighborhood, well, we know who to call,” said the Doctor as she and William headed back upstairs.

The Doctor and William were back in the TARDIS. The Doctor set the controls and the console’s time rotor moved up and down, indicating that they were now in flight! “There we are! Off we go to Tolkost VII! Lovely place! Beautiful art museums, best doctors in their galaxy, the lot! …So, as long as we have time…” The Doctor leaned on the console as she arched an eyebrow at William. “You were about to say a word that started with ‘Gr’ before using Mr. Zeddemore’s name. That ‘Gr’ wouldn’t have been the start of ‘Granddad’ now, would it?”

“…Grandpa, actually, but yes,” replied William. “Winston Zeddemore is my maternal grandfather. Maybe I was being selfish in not telling him anything about the future, but I didn’t want to fade from existence like Marty from Back to the Future.”

“That’s not selfish, that’s intelligent and safe-guarding the laws of time,” corrected the Doctor. “Now, if I were to bring us to Poland in 1939, or to any point along Africa’s western coasts before the official end of the slave trade, or to a year before the Black Plague…how tempted would you be to warn them?”

“…Overly, but if a small bit of time is so fragile for myself, it would be fragile for all points in time.”

“Exactly. Much as people like us want to change history for the better, we can’t or we’d doom all of time.”

“…Doctor, there’s something else I need to know,” said William. “What Gurast said about you being the last…” The Doctor stopped, then held the console and sighed deeply. “…If that’s too personal, you don’t-.”

“Yes, I do,” replied the Doctor. “…William, it started with a war. A time war. The Last Great Time War. …My people, my entire home planet of Gallifrey, went to war against a race known as the Daleks for the sake of creation and both sides lost. Accompanied by eleven points in my past and one point in my future, I sent Gallifrey into a pocket dimension while the Dalek fleet that surrounded the planet destroyed itself in its own crossfire. For a while, I thought I destroyed Gallifrey, then found that I didn’t. …The Daleks are now remnants trying to rebuild their empire of hate while the Time Lords were hidden away. …But then another Time Lord, one I used to call friend during my childhood, discovered the truth about Time Lord society and killed all the inhabitants of Gallifrey in his rage. …They’re all gone now. My family…my friends…even that sky. …I’m not just a Time Lord, I’m not even just a Gallifreyan. …I’m the last child of Gallifrey, the last of the Time Lords.”

“…I’m sorry,” said William. “I shouldn’t have pried.”

“No, no, you needed to know,” assured the Doctor.

“…I hope you had other companions before me,” remarked William.

“Oh, I’ve had companions long before the Time War,” replied the Doctor. “I initially left Gallifrey because, for all our brilliance, us Time Lords were too complacent and stuffy!”

“So you ran away?”

“Stole the TARDIS for good measure!” The Doctor’s face brightened, now focused on happier parts of her past. “And I’ve never regretted it to this day!” Her fingers were now a happy blur as she fiddled with the controls!

The Doctor and the Ghostbusters were taken to the Sontaran Battle Sphere. Outside, the Doctor spotted William and Janine. “William!” she called. The Sontarans allowed her to join with him.

“Doctor!” replied William. The two hugged. “Doctor, what’s going on?! These creeps know you and apparently Gurast-!”

“These creeps, as you so put it,” explained the Doctor, “are called the Sontarans, a belligerent clone species dedicated to war. These particular Sontarans are the 13^th Sontaran Space Brigade. …Or rather, that’s their official name. Those that probed deeper into Sontaran Intelligence would know it as the First Sontaran Temporal Operations Brigade. They’re time travelers from the 51^st century. …Which begs the question of why you lot would free Gurast at this time in the first place.”

“The preservation of history, Doctor,” replied Stregg. “You of all people should know that if certain events didn’t happen, the web of time would unravel.”

“What bargain did you strike with Gurast anyways?”

“Come now, Doctor. Your people’s Cardinal Ollistra didn’t tell the Daleks her strategies and neither did the Dalek Time Strategist tell the Time Lords his own.”

“Enough prattle!” hissed Gurast. “Doctor, was it?”

“That’s me,” replied the Doctor. Gurast scoffed.

“Why you Time Lords insist on being addressed by titles, I’ll never understand. …I HAD hoped to destroy you all myself, but I heard rumors that Gallifrey already fell.”

“…I hate to have to confirm those rumors.” Gurast laughed at the Doctor’s admission.

“Then the Sontarans spoke true! You ARE the last of the Time Lords!”

“The last?” asked William. “Doctor, what’s-?!”

“When we’re safer, William,” replied the Doctor. “Gurast, what can the Sontarans offer you?”

“Oh, come, come, Doctor,” chuckled Gurast. “Surely you, of all people, know how warlike the Sontarans are! Their war with the Rutans is so delicious!”

“100,000 years, from Stregg’s standpoint. One hundred thousand years of bloodshed and for what?!”

“For victory!” replied Stregg. “Sontar HA! Sontar HA! Sontar HA!” The Sontarans took up the chant. The Doctor rolled her eyes at that.

“Tell me, what’s the point?” she asked. The Sontarans stopped as Stregg looked at her like she sprouted another head.

“…You’re a veteran of the greatest war in all of time and space,” he said, “and you seriously ask what the point of war is?”

“You’re talking as if war is all you guys know!” protested William.

“Silence, prisoner!” barked Stregg.

“Silence yourself!” retorted William. “I’ve never met a more useless society! Everything wrong with my own gender’s cultural expectations across the planet, that’s what you guys personify!”

“BE QUIET!” shouted Gurast. The air chilled. Gurast then drew in a breath to calm herself. “…Stregg, you said that your temporal expertise is good, but not at the level of a Time Lord’s, yes?”

“That is correct,” replied Stregg. “…Perhaps the Doctor CAN prove useful!”

“In what way?” asked the Doctor.

“A little experiment we’re running,” answered Gurast. “We’re trying to genetically alter a person to be immune to the ravages of time and the warping effects of spectral energy.”

“What?!” yelped Egon after a while. “Madam, you can’t do that! The body would detonate if too much spectral stress is on it!”

“And all things need to decompose,” said the Doctor. “This is inhuman!”

“The only humans here are the Ghostbusters, their receptionist, and your pet human, Doctor,” chuckled Gurast. “And thank you for volunteering your team, Dr. Spengler. I could use some help from spectral specialists.”

“Well, I won’t do it!” declared the Doctor. “So there!”

“…Very well,” mused Stregg as he aimed his rifle at William and Janine.

“WAIT!” yelped the Doctor and the Ghostbusters.

“It’s a simple choice, Doctor,” remarked Gurast. “You and the Ghostbusters assist us in our experiment, or people start dying, starting with William and Janine.”

“…Very well,” grunted the Doctor.

“Thanks a heap, Egon,” snarked Peter.

The Doctor and the Ghostbusters were taken to the lab while William and Janine were taken to the holding cells. The Doctor looked over the equipment. “Very intricate,” she said.

“My batch brother, Strev,” said Stregg, “will welcome the assistance.” His batch brother then entered the lab. “Ah, here he is!”

“Which one is the Doctor?” asked the new arrival, Strev.

“That would be me,” replied the Doctor. “Am I correct in assuming you’re Strev the Knowledge Bringer? The greatest mind Sontar has ever produced?”

“You would be correct,” confirmed Strev. “And these are…?” he gestured to the Ghostbusters.

“I’m Dr. Egon Spengler,” introduced Egon. “And this is Dr. Ray Stanz, Dr. Peter Venkman, and Mr. Winston Zeddemore.”

“Ah! A plethora of scientists! …But what does Mr. Zeddemore do?”

“I’m the mechanic for the Ghostbusters,” replied Winston.

“An engineer! The best friend of a scientist! Perfect!”

“I’m not exactly looking to be YOUR best friend!”

“Ah, you wound me, Mr. Zeddemore!” exaggerated Strev. “But you shall appreciate all that we’re doing here…in time!” He chuckled. “Just a little time travel humor.” The Doctor looked over the notes and recordings Strev made. She had to admit, they were detailed, despite using live, unwilling subjects. Egon and Ray looked over the notes and recordings as well, wincing all the while.

“So we know that temporal and spectral immunity,” remarked the Doctor, “can only be produced by an atypical spatio-temporal reaction?”

“Empirical evidence,” replied Strev, “indicates that the subject would need to be genetically programmed to be able to naturally produce that effect.”

“Double blind analysis?” asked Egon.

“Naturally,” confirmed Strev. “The results thus far are proving, however, that I don’t exactly know the correct reaction. My initial theory was disproven after a few experiments, so I ran the others to see if I can find a way to reproduce such an effect.”

“But the latest attempt resulted in immediate decomposition after the bombardment of temporal and spectral energy,” remarked the Doctor.

“Regrettably, yes,” sighed Strev. “Perhaps I need a way to introduce the energies at different times.”

“Judging by the way you’ve been using the spectral and temporal energies,” said Ray, “it looks like you’re trying for a balance between the two.”

“A balance? Therein lies the problem,” realized the Doctor. “Temporal energy is naturally imbalanced against spectral energy 52 to 1 against in order to make sure that things pass into the afterlife naturally.”

“So you’re saying that my experiments need to account for that?” asked Strev. He stroked his chin. “…It will require rewiring and recalibration, but it could be possible. I’ll just need help on flux comparative maintenance.”

“Yeah, sure, we can do that,” replied Peter.

“The DOCTOR can do that,” snapped Strev. “You lot calibrate the ectoplasmic relays!”

“…Well, you gotta admit, he knows our scientific strengths,” remarked Ray as everyone got to work.

In the holding cells, William’s mind raced. He couldn’t depend on the Doctor for a rescue attempt. He examined the cell walls for any sort of access point. A grate, a hidden switch, maybe even wiring so he could mess with it. …No dice, Sontaran cells were too well made against escape attempts. …He couldn’t believe he was gonna try this, but he had no choice. He collapsed and clutched his stomach. “ERGH! MY STOMACH!” he called. Janine rolled her eyes, but played along.

“Guard!” she called. “Help! My friend’s sick!” The guard pulled out his comms unit.

“Medical team to Cell Block A, Section 4, Cell 2,” he said. “Medical emergency-.”

“Never mind!” complained William as he dropped the act.

“Belay that. Just a pathetic escape attempt,” said the guard.

“So how often did that happen?” asked Janine as the guard hung up.

“Let’s just say the number of times a prisoner DIDN’T try what you two did is more easier to compre…” The guard stopped when he saw something. He pulled out his comms again. “Security Chief, come in,” he said.

“Trooper!” replied another voice. “Be advised! A Focused, Non-Terminal Repeating Phantasm has entered the battle sphere!”

“You mean the Class 5 Full Roaming Vapor?” asked the guard. “It’s right here, Sir. It’s looking at me.”

“Class 5…Slimer!” whispered Janine.

“So you can see how ugly it is, Trooper?” asked the Security Chief.

“He heard that, Sir,” replied the guard.

“Stand your ground, Trooper!” ordered the Security Chief. “It won’t hurt you!” William and Janine couldn’t see Slimer, but they could hear him shouting his usual noises as he flew towards the screaming guard. The guard fired, but Slimer went right through him, knocking him over and leaving slime all over him. Slimer doubled-back to the cell and saw Janine and William.

“Good work, Slimer!” said Janine. “Now see if you can open the door!” Slimer looked at the door lock and babbled in a panic. He pointed to his hand and the door lock.

“…Wait a minute,” guessed William, “it’s based on three fingered hands?” Slimer nodded. “Can’t you do like this?” He made a basic Sontaran shaped hand with his own fingers by keeping his pointer and middle finger together as well as his ring and pinky in their own group. Slimer blinked, then face-palmed because the idea was so obvious. He then shaped his hand like a Sontaran’s and put it to the door lock. The door opened! “Good job, Slimer!” praised William. “Now let’s get out of here before-!” The alarm then sounded.

“Prisoner escape!” warned the guard into his comms. “Prisoner-!” The guard had his back to the prisoners, so William could see the probic vent on the back of the guard’s neck. He saw a mallet and hit it onto the vent, knocking the Sontaran out. Unfortunately, Sontarans of the 51^st century are quicker to respond to prisoner escape attempts than those of the 20^th Century! Laser fire erupted from one end of the corridor.

“This way!” called William. He, Janine, and Slimer ran from the guards.

“Everything’s in order here,” muttered the Doctor as she and Egon finished checking over the containment unit. “Though, I have to admit, I’m a little surprised New York City’s power grid can handle this kind of technology, even if it’s in its infancy in this time.”

“That’s one of the reasons our prices are the way they are,” replied Egon.

“Ah, yes, funds. The bane and greatest gift for all scientists,” agreed the Doctor. “All scientists want it, but not all scientists get it.”

“Sounds like you’ve had some experience,” observed Egon.

“Let’s just say I was in a similar situation to yours in the 70’s, all the way across the pond whilst working for UNIT. I was working as their scientific advisor. …Still haven’t retired from that position yet.”

“Too good a job to-?”

“WE GOT ONE!” called Janine as she rang the alarm.

“Excuse me, Doctor. Duty calls,” said Egon.

The Ghostbusters got the details of their new job and were loading up into Ecto-1 by the time the Doctor and William reunited. “Ah! William!” greeted the Doctor. “How did the tour go?”

“Gr-Winston led me around the more public areas, not wanting to give away proprietary secrets,” replied William.

“…Gr?” repeated the Doctor. “You know what, you can explain later. Ms. Melnitz, can you tell me what the boys are up to?”

“It’s a job in central park,” replied Janine. “They got a call saying that a ghost calling herself Gurast is terrorizing the place.” The Doctor’s eyes widened.

“Gurast?!” she said. “She’s loose?!”

“Doctor?”

“That must have been the cause of the dimensional disturbance we felt that forced the TARDIS to land here!” the Doctor said to herself. “But how?! Why?!” She dashed towards the Ecto-1, trying to open the door.

“Lady!” protested Peter. “Back off! We’re scientists!”

“Dr. Venkman, you don’t know the kind of danger you’re walking into!” argued the Doctor. “It’s Gurast the Star Breaker over in Central Park!”

“…She’s coming with us, Peter,” decided Egon.

“What?!” argued Peter.

“She’s done enough paranormal research to be scared,” replied Ray. “Egon’s right.”

“William, stay at the firehouse,” directed the Doctor.

“What?! Doctor-!”

“Don’t argue! Gurast is too dangerous for the inexperienced!” She then jumped into Ecto-1. Winston then switched the sirens on, and the Ghostbusters and their partner sped out!

“…What is it about Gurast that has the Doctor in a tizzy?” muttered William. He then heard someone pulling a book out. He turned to see Janine flipping through a big book called “Tobin’s Spirit Guide”.

“Let’s see…Garraka…” she muttered as she thumbed through the book. “…Ghostmaster…Goblin…Gozer…Grendel…Grundel…aha, here it is! Gurast the Star Breaker. Millions of years ago, Gurast was born obsessed with war. She spread the gospel of war throughout the cosmos, but she became dissatisfied with just bringing war through space. She then set her sights on making perpetual war across space AND time. It was said that mysterious people that could walk throughout time like a human walks through a city street rallied together and used what is believed to be superior magic to seal away Gurast. It is said that whoever breaks the seal condemns all of time and space to eternal war, now that the time walkers are gone.” William looked on to see the image of Gurast and a picture of the seal. William blinked.

“…I’ve seen that seal before,” he said.

“Déjà vu?” asked Janine.

“No, in the Doctor’s home. …I think she said that’s a symbol of HER people, the Time Lords.”

Over in Ecto-1, the Doctor and the Ghostbusters were also discussing Gurast and Egon showed her a picture of the seal. “…That’s the Seal of Rassilon all right,” she said.

“Rassilon?” asked Peter.

“One of the founders of Time Lord society,” replied the Doctor. “And also, the most power mad of my people.”

“So, you’re from the same race that sealed away Gurast?” asked Egon.

“And Mr. Tobin was quite right to mention how her release would wreak havoc across time and space!”

“So, let’s call the other Time Lords,” suggested Winston.

“There aren’t any more Time Lords,” replied the Doctor. “Though, good thinking. Their knowledge would have helped us.”

“What do you mean?” asked Ray. The Doctor sighed.

“I’m not just a Time Lord. …I’m the last of the Time Lords,” she explained. “After a great war, the Last Great Time War, my home planet had to hide away from our foes. Unfortunately, one of my people found out the true history of my world and killed them all. We’re on our own against Gurast.” That brought down the mood. Winston then saw something in the road and hit the brakes! Everyone jolted. “What on earth-?!” Winston honked the horn.

“GET OUT OF THE WAY!” he shouted. The Doctor looked out the window and goggled. There was a short person in space armor with a domed helmet!

“…What is a-?!” The Doctor then got out of the car and strode towards the person. “You! Yes, you! The Sontaran wearing 51^st century gear!” The person looked directly at the Doctor in surprise. “Under Jurisdiction 14 of the Shadow Proclamation, I order you and any party you brought with you to cease all activities, retrieve all your technology, and return forthwith to your spatio-temporal origin!” Now the person, the Sontaran, was REALLY perplexed!

“You are a human,” he growled. “And a FEMALE human at that! What do you humans know of the Shadow Proclamation? This planet is a Class-C civilization! Undeveloped!”

“Wouldn’t YOU like to know?!” snarked the Doctor.

Back at the firehouse, Janine was being shown the TARDIS. “You’re telling me that that thing,” she said, “is bigger on the inside?”

“Yep, just like the containment unit,” replied William.

“Where’d the Doctor find that kind of tech?” asked Janine.

“…You know, the Doctor says she’s a Time Lord, so…” William was interrupted when he heard the stomping of boots. “…Army?” he muttered. He looked around the corner to see more Sontarans arriving. “Hey, Janine?” he called. Janine looked around the corner.

“That doesn’t look like a ghost army,” she said. The Sontarans were approaching the firehouse!

“Come on! Into the TARDIS!” urged William. He had never seen a Sontaran until today, but he had a nasty suspicion they weren’t friendly!

“William Davies…” whispered a woman’s voice. William gulped, then he and Janine turned to see Gurast right behind them. “Welcome to a new war!” whispered Gurast.

“Hold on a minute! You already have an army with those trolls there!” argued William.

“What’s wrong with adding more?” purred Gurast. The Sontarans then arrived. Two of them then saw the TARDIS!

“Sir! Permission to scan these humans!” said one as he pointed out the TARDIS.

“Checking to see if one of them is the Doctor, eh?” remarked his superior. “Permission granted, Corporal Tren.” The Sontaran, Tren, then pulled out a scanner and checked William and Janine.

“…My mistake, Sir,” he said. “They’re both human.”

“How do you know the Doctor?” asked William.

“Ah, the newest companion!” cackled the superior.

“What is the significance of this…Doctor?” asked Gurast.

“That particular Time Lord is an ancient enemy of the Sontaran Empire,” explained the lead Sontaran. “They have-.”

“Time Lord?! There’s a Time Lord alive?!” The air around Gurast turned very, VERY cold. “This Time Lord could undo everything! We must destroy them!”

“And we shall,” replied the lead Sontaran. He took off his helmet and gave a wicked grin. “And I know how to draw them to their destruction. I’m sure Stregg would love to see the Doctor with his own eyes!” His troops aimed their guns at William and Janine as he made a call. “Commander Draj to General Stregg!”

The Doctor’s Sontaran picked up his comms unit. “What is it, Draj?” he asked.

“Did that person call you-?!” gulped the Doctor.

“Silence, female!”

“Sir,” said Draj, “my unit has located the Doctor’s TARDIS and Gurast knows the existence of the Doctor. We have the Doctor’s companion and the Ghostbusters’ female as prisoners.”

“William!” whispered the Doctor. The Sontaran, Stregg, caught notice of that.

“…Standby, Draj,” he ordered. He approached the Doctor with a scanner and waved it over her.

“So, you’re Stregg the Indomitable,” muttered the Doctor. Stregg’s scanner beeped. He checked the readings and grinned.

“…I see my reputation precedes me, Doctor!” he chuckled. He called Draj back. “Stregg to Draj, I have the Doctor right here! Now, Doctor, unless you wish for your companion and the Ghostbusters’ female to die, I suggest you and the Ghostbusters surrender! You have five seconds to comply! Five!”

“Doctor, how bad is this guy?!” asked Ray.

“Four!”

“I’ll explain later,” replied the Doctor.

“Three!”

“But right now, William and Janine aren’t safe!”

“Two!”

“…Fine, you win,” muttered Peter. He and the rest of the Ghostbusters stepped out of Ecto-1

“One!”

“We surrender, Stregg,” said the Doctor as she and the Ghostbusters raised their hands in surrender.

“…A pity,” mused Stregg. “I was hoping you’d put up more of a fight. Draj, take the Doctor’s companion and the Ghostbusters’ female to base! Bring the TARDIS too!”

“Yes, Sir!” replied Draj. Stregg ended the call.

“Doctor, you are now a prisoner of the Sontaran Empire, however brief I deem fit your survival!”

“How very astute,” muttered the Doctor.

Manhattan, 1987. A woman was walking down the streets on an errand for her boss. And, of course, she HAD to do it in company-approved heels. Why couldn’t that jerk of a boss just let her and other women wear comfortable shoes? Ballet flats are fine enough, but NO! He just HAD to say that these damn ankle-killers were good enough! She rounded a corner and someone stepped out of an alley. The person was short, wore some sort of black and silver armor, and had a domed helmet. “Hey! I’m walking here!” barked the woman. “Get outta here!” The figure didn’t move. “…Hey! Didn’t you hear me?! I said-!”

“Katharine Benson…” whispered a woman’s voice.

“…H-Hello?” asked the woman.

“Welcome…to a new war!” continued the woman’s voice. Something then rushed at her from the alley, causing her to scream in terror! The short person watched on.

Outside a firehouse, a familiar blue box faded into view with a familiar Vworp Vworp. The door swung into the box as the Doctor and William stumbled out with smoke joining them! “What kind of repairs do you call that?!” he gagged as he tried to get the smoke out of his lungs.

“That wasn’t me!” protested the Doctor. “That was a dimensional disturbance, disrupting repairs!”

“Dimensional disturbance?! What’s that supposed to mean?!” said William as he shut the TARDIS door.

“It means, William, that something very large came from outside our reality and entered this one, choosing this specific time.

“And what time IS it?”

“Judging by the air, I’d say late 1980’s. Manhattan, if you want to be precise in spatial terms.”

“Manhattan?” repeated William. “We’re back in New York?”

“Yes. We went forwards in time, now backwards,” replied the Doctor.

“And staying just outside of New England,” remarked William. “So, whatever made the TARDIS go haywire has picked this point for some reason. But why?”

“No idea,” mused the Doctor. She looked up to see that the TARDIS landed outside a firehouse with a sign out front. It looked like a ghost trying to get through a red no symbol. William looked up and gasped when he saw the sign.

“I know that business!” he said.

“Business?” asked the Doctor.

“Yeah! My grandfather used to work here! Doctor, we’re in front of Ghostbusters HQ!”

“Ghostbusters? Now they might help figure out that dimensional disturbance, given that they’ve dealt with plenty of extra-dimensional entities. Let’s go see if they’re here.” The Doctor and William then entered the firehouse and looked around. There was a redhead sitting at a desk, looking like the stereotypical bored secretary.

“Huh, no Ecto-1,” remarked William. The secretary heard that.

“Dr. Venkman and his team,” she explained in a bored Brooklyn accent, like she was just reading a script, “are currently out on a call and they’ll be back as soon as possible. In the meantime, do you have any job details you want me to pass on to them?”

“Actually, I think there’s something they can help me with,” replied the Doctor. “My friend and I encountered a dimensional disturbance and we want to make sure it isn’t anything to do with the containment system. Of course, we wouldn’t dream of checking without your employers’ permission.”

“…You must be a scientist if you’re gonna mention their equipment like that,” remarked the secretary as she wrote down the details. “Name?”

“The Doctor and Dr. William Davies,” answered the Doctor.

“…Doctor who?”

“Just the Doctor.”

“Seriously, that’s all she calls herself,” muttered William.

“Well, I gotta have a first and last name here,” said the secretary.

“…How about Joan Smith?” suggested the Doctor.

“Doctor…Joan…Smith…” repeated the secretary as she wrote it down. “And do you have a phone number so we can contact you later about further details and billing?”

“…Well, the number isn’t exactly an American phone,” replied the Doctor. Just then, everyone heard a car come into the firehouse. It was a white Cadillac Miller-Meteor Sentinel limo-style endloader combination car with all sorts of gadgets and sirens on its roof and the Ghostbusters logo on its sides. The doors opened as the Ghostbusters stepped out…as well as a flying green blob with a huge mouth, eyes, and arms.

“SLIMER, YOU GET BACK HERE!” shouted one of the Ghostbusters, Peter Venkman, as he chased the ghost, Slimer.

“Peter, you really shouldn’t have taunted Slimer,” remarked the driver, Winston Zeddemore. Ray Stanz and Egon Spengler then removed the traps from the back.

“Erm, excuse me,” called the Doctor. Ray and Egon looked to her.

“Another customer!” said Ray. “So!” he pulled out a notebook. “What’s the spook?”

“Erm, no spook, Dr…Stanz, was it?” replied the Doctor. “My friend and I encountered a dimensional disturbance and arrived here thanks to it. Could it be possible your containment system is causing it?”

“So you’re extradimensional beings yourself?” asked Egon.

“Time travelers, actually.” Egon stroked his chin.

“I have to admit, this is a new one. I don’t think our containment unit should be able to interfere with temporal travel, unless your vehicle is dimensionally transcendental like the containment unit is.”

“Dimensionally transcendental?” asked William.

“It’s bigger on the inside,” replied the Doctor. “And yes, Dr. Spengler, my ship is dimensionally transcendental.

“That would cause problems if a ghost was trying to break out,” said Egon. “Maybe we should check.”

“May I help?” offered the Doctor.

“If you’re interested,” replied Egon.

“What about me?” asked William.

“I can give you a tour of the place,” offered Winston once he closed the hood on the Ecto-1.

“…Might as well. The science I studied is how to keep a body alive, not whatever this ghost science is.”

Katherine was terrified out of her mind! First an alien, now a ghost?! This is a nightmare! She was stuck on the alien ship, languishing in a cell. She was getting hungry now. Her cell’s door opened to reveal an alien guard. “You!” barked the alien. “Follow!” Kathrine stood up and followed the alien. Maybe this was all a misunderstanding? Maybe she was gonna be freed after pleading her case to the alien commander? …No dice. She was led to what looked like a laboratory with two aliens standing by. Both aliens were helmetless, so Katherine could see their potato-shaped heads and identical faces.

“Sir, please!” begged Katherine. “Whoever you’re looking for, I’m not her!”

“Who said we’re looking for a specific individual, woman?” replied one of the helmetless aliens.

“Sit on that bench,” directed the other. He then waved the guard away. The guard left and Katherine sat on the bench.

“D-Don’t hurt me!” begged Katherine.

“We make no promises,” remarked the second alien.

“My batch brother and I,” said the first alien, “have been wondering if it’s possible to genetically program troops against the effects of temporal and spectral energies.”

“I don’t understand!” cried Katherine.

“Of course, you don’t,” scoffed the first alien. “Shut up.”

“Just lie still,” directed the second alien, “while the array is moved into position.” Said array lowered over Katherine.

“My brother, our ally, and I,” explained the first alien, “have been working on a genetic restructure that, in theory, should negate the natural propensity for entropy.”

“Of course,” remarked the second alien as he fiddled with the controls, “such an idea goes against the very laws of life and the afterlife…but what’s the point in dreaming small?”

“This WILL hurt,” said the first alien.

“Is the subject ready?” asked a new woman’s voice in a whisper.

“We’re all ready here,” replied the first alien. A transparent woman with mist rolling out of her waist where legs should be then came forth. She raised a clawed hand.

“…Now,” she said. The aliens then fired up their machine and bombarded Katherine with something painful! Katherine screamed in absolute agony for what felt like an eternity to her.

“A little pain is only to be expected,” said the second alien. “After all, I can hardly rewrite your entire genetic code without SOME discomfort.” The aliens then powered their machine down.

“And there we are,” chuckled the first alien as he switched on a recording device. “All done. Now, be honest with us. How do you feel?”

“B-Burns!” wheezed Katherine. “Everything…burns!”

“Pathetic!” scoffed the woman in her usual whisper. “Such a low pain threshold. You should try fighting the Time Lords!”

“Let us see how you deal with the combined bombardment of temporal and spectral energy,” said the first alien. “In theory, you should now be impervious to both.” Another machine lowered as the woman pointed a finger at Katherine. Light then spilled forth from both the machine and the woman’s finger, striking Katherine.

“Just imagine!” called the second alien. “All the ravages of time! The warping of your body’s cells when exposed to spectral radiation! Might they, with our assistance, have become nothing but the brush of a gentle breeze? A thing of…inconsequence?” Unfortunately, Katherine proved them wrong through her screams as her body warped and contorted before aging rapidly to dust along with her clothes. “…Or,” sighed the second alien as he turned off the machine and the woman ceased her treatment, “will you simply mutate then decompose to dust like the other test subjects? Shame.”

“No matter,” replied the woman. “We learn.”

“Yes,” agreed the first alien. “We learn.” He then switched on a comms unit. “Stregg to scouting unit. Gurast and I need a fresh specimen. And have maintenance brought down here.”

“Yes, Sir!” replied the person on the other end. “Sontar HA!”