Tag: fan companion

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Doctor Who: Crossings Series 5

Seeing Double: Part 2

“This is impossible!” breathed Skarla. “H-How-?! It’s…bigger on the inside!”

“It’s also red,” remarked William. The TARDIS console room had changed to have a red color with gold accents and roundels along the walls. The hexagonal console itself was red with gold trim and controls. The Time Rotor in the center of the console was still transparent, but one could see new machinery inside it. There were walkways and stairs running along the walls with different doors. The Doctor’s sky-blue coat hung outside a door on ground level. Everyone headed to the door. “Doctor?” called William.

“Come in! I need some opinions!” replied the Doctor from inside. The group entered the room to discover that it was a huge wardrobe! The shelves and open closets stretched all the way to the ceiling with a spiral staircase in the center of the room and walkways stretching out from the stairs. The Doctor then stepped out wearing a brown coat, a floppy brimmed hat, and an absurdly long, multicolored scarf.

“…Um, Doctor?” asked Amy.

“You’re right, this is just for the nostalgia,” remarked the Doctor as she tossed the hat away. She then disappeared into one of the closets and reappeared coming out onto one of the walkways above. She wore a leather jacket this time. “…No, don’t exactly sound like I’m from Northern England.” She went into another closet, then she appeared on a walkway below the group, wearing a patchwork, multi-colored coat.

“NO!” shouted the group as they averted their eyes.

“Maybe in a Pride Parade!” called William.

“…I know what the real issue is!” said the Doctor as she snapped her fingers. “I’m wearing trousers!” She disappeared into another closet, then came out onto a walkway above the group. She had a skirt on, a tweed jacket, and a bow tie and fez. “…Mmm, bow ties ARE cool and so’s the fez, but…no, not me this time.” She then disappeared into another closet. “AHA!” she called from within the closet. Her friends then heard a pop like someone finishing putting on their lipstick. The Doctor then rejoined her friends. She wore a woolly coat that obscured her features.

“…Is…that what you’re going with?” asked Lurra Rus.

“No, THIS is!” The Doctor removed the coat to reveal that she was wearing a skirt that had a dome shape stopping at her thigh and was hemmed with large roses. She had a strap top on in the same wine color as her skirt and wore a red jacket with a fur boa wrapped around her shoulders, black opera gloves, black tights, pale gold flats on her feet, red lipstick, and a pale gold headband with a rose on its left hand side. She had also pulled her hair into an updo.

“Ooh! Now THAT’S an elegant ensemble!” praised Amy.

“Yes, I think I’ll go with this one!” agreed the Doctor as she looked in the mirror. “Now, with that out of the way, there’s something else in the back of my mind. Something about …time?”

“Well, you ARE a Time Lord,” reminded Amy.

“I remember what TARDIS stands for and what it can do,” replied the Doctor. “But no, this is something else.” Just then, an energy wave washed over everyone. They seemed unaffected.

“Wh-What was that?!” yelped Amy.

“A chronal surge,” answered the Doctor. “As if time had spat someone from one time zone to ano-!” She stopped herself as she remembered something. “…The Grouping!” she gasped. She then rushed to the console! “Telepathic circuits! Telepathic circuits! Where are they?! Where are they?!” She then saw a blinking light. “…Or Gallifrey could start a Zoom call, that’s the next best thing.” The Doctor pressed the button near the light. “This is the Doctor, receiving you, Gallifrey!” A man’s face then appeared on the scanner.

“Doctor, are you all right?” asked the man.

“Stognav!” greeted the Doctor. “I’m fine, but that chronal surge-!”

“We’ve detected others, Doctor. …Did the surge-?”

“No, no, I was shot by a Skrull before that happened.”

“I see,” said Stognav. “Well, we can at least pinpoint what happened during your local chronal surge. Something from the 29th century took advantage of it and is now at your location. Good or ill, I can’t say.”

“Keep me posted if you can,” directed the Doctor.

“Naturally. Stognav out.” The call ended.

“Who was that?” asked William.

“Castellan Stognav, my granddaughter’s right-hand man,” replied the Doctor.

“I’m sorry, GRANDDAUGHTER?!” yelped William.

“We’ll explain later,” said Amy and Lurra Rus.

“Right now, we have to deal with the current Grouping Event,” muttered the Doctor.

“What IS the Grouping?” asked Skarla. The Doctor took a bit to find the right analogy.

“…The Time Vortex sort of develops…hiccups,” she said, “and catapults random people into non-native time zones. Some time travelling races can take advantage of it.”

“And not every time traveling race follows the Doctor’s example,” said Lurra Rus.

“So the Daleks could take advantage of it,” sighed William.

“They could,” remarked the Doctor as she checked her instruments. “…But we have more immediate concerns. I’m detecting that 29th century person aboard a shuttle just entering Earth’s atmosphere above New York City.”

“Veranke!” gulped Amy.

“Hoo boy, better double check my powers,” said Skarla.

The team stepped onto the smaller landing pad on the roof of Avengers’ Tower. Storm and the Black Panther had joined them and were filled in on what was happening. “Skarla and I will fly up there and reconnoiter,” said Storm.

“Be safe, my love,” warned the Black Panther.

“That goes for you too, Skarla,” directed William.

“We’ll be back, boys. Don’t fret,” soothed Skarla. “Now…how does Young Mr. Storm put it? …Ah, yes! FLAME ON!” Her whole body set itself on fire!

“WHOA!” yelped the Doctor.

“It’s all right!” replied William. “That’s just her doing a Human Torch. Or rather, a Skrull Torch. Pardon the corniness, but I always said she was hot long before I knew she was a Super Skrull!” Storm and Skarla then took off. Skarla then spotted the Skrull ship.

“That’s Veranke’s shuttle!” she gulped.

“We better get her to turn back,” replied Storm. “How long can you maintain your flame in stormy conditions.”

“Longer than Johnny Storm, but only just,” said Skarla. “We had to alter things a bit so I was a little more stable than the first Super Skrull and that meant some tradeoffs.”

“Well, you create something fiery to get her to stop,” directed Storm, “I’m gonna make it rain to get her to turn around.”

“Got it.” Skarla made a beeline towards the shuttle.

“Your Majesty-!” yelped Veranke’s aide.

“I have eyes, Brilkus!” snarled Veranke as she pressed a button for the weapons system. The shuttle fired, but Skarla dodged. The weather then turned dark as storm clouds gathered.

“Mistress, we need to-!” urged Veranke’s aide.

“Engage teleporter!” ordered Veranke. “We’ll retrieve the shuttle later!” She and her aide then hopped onto the teleporter and vanished.

Skarla saw the flash of the teleporter. “Crapbaskets!” she swore. “Storm, there was a teleporter in that shuttle!”

“Bast’s sake!” grumbled Storm, using her husband’s preferred swear. “All right, we’ll need to get this shuttle away from here!”

“Better warn the harbor!” replied Skarla. “I’ll take care of getting it away from the city!” Storm sped off and did so, then Skarla stretched her arms and wrapped around the shuttle’s wings, then used her immense strength to throw the shuttle towards the harbor. She then created an invisible force field slide so the shuttle could land on something and slide down it away from any boats or ships out there. The shuttle splashed into the water outside the harbor. Skarla and Storm then made their way back to Avengers’ Tower.

“Okay, so a teleporter was used,” muttered the Doctor when she got the news as she worked on a device.

“We’ll have to search the city for those two,” muttered Amy.

“Doctor, we’re shape-shifters!” reminded Skarla.

“Exactly, which is why I’m thinking of drawing them here,” replied the Doctor. “There we go! Finished!” The machine she made was flight capable.

“…You’ve reinvented the drone, Doctor,” remarked William.

“It’s a short-term drone, meant to be a target. And, hopefully, with good audio projection AND reception.” The Doctor pulled out her sonic screwdriver, switched the drone on with it, and the drone took off.

“Your Majesty, a drone!” called Veranke’s aide.

“What in the name of-?” muttered Veranke.

“Doctor calling Veranke!” came the Doctor’s voice, loud and clear. “Doctor calling Veranke! You have two options available to you. Either retrieve your shuttle and leave this planet or come to Avengers’ Tower to settle this and be forced to leave this planet. Speak aloud which option you pick.”

“Foolish Doctor!” laughed Veranke. “I accept your invitation to Avengers’ Tower! And I shall take care of you first before I deal with Trakis! The Time Lords will finally be extinct, as it is written!” She shot the drone. “Brilkus, with me!” she ordered her aide.

Categories
Doctor Who: Crossings Series 5

Seeing Double: Part 1

New York City, the Big Apple, a center for all sorts of weirdness, including the stuff happening today. On this particular day, a jet flew over the city to a tower with a stylized A near the roof. The less average joe would think the jet was a Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird, decommissioned in 1998. The more detail-oriented would say that it was bigger than a Blackbird, the cockpit had ruby-quartz windows, and had VTOL characteristics. The jet hovered over the tower and slowly descended to a courtyard behind the building, having been given clearance to land. The courtyard opened to reveal an underground hangar. Inside the hangar, a man in a bodysuit modeled after a panther with yellow eyes stood by. The jet switched its engines off once it had fully touched down and a landing ramp extended from the jet. A strange gaggle of people then came out. Leading the group was a woman with African features and naturally white hair and blue eyes. Following behind and pulling a stretcher with a woman on it was a small woman with pink fur and quills wearing a black dress. The woman on the stretcher had African features, but her hair was dark brown and wavy. Following the stretcher was a blue-skinned woman in a purple dress with two head tails. Bringing up the rear was an African-American man in a doctor’s coat. In order, the people that were walking were Ororo Munroe AKA Storm of the X-Men, Amy Rose the Hedgehog from the future planet of Mobius, Lurra Rus the Twi’lek, and Dr. William Davies. “Welcome!” called the man in the panther suit. This was King T’Challa of Wakanda, the Black Panther and Storm’s husband. Storm’s face lit up when she saw him.

“My King!” she said.

“Ah, my lovely Queen!” replied the Black Panther. The two embraced, then the Black Panther dismissed his mask enough to give Storm a proper kiss. “You look radiant today as you always do!” praised Black Panther.

“How fares our home?” asked Storm.

“It’s still a wonderful land!”

“Well, it has a wonderful King!” Storm then sighed. “But it’s not homesickness that brings me here today, my love.”

“I had received your message, Ororo,” said the Black Panther. “Where is this doctor I heard about?”

“Do you mean me or the alien woman on the stretcher?” asked William.

“Dr. William Davies, yes?” asked the Black Panther. “I heard much about you. You saved my aide’s life during that disastrous conference.”

“Just did my job that day, your Majesty,” replied William. “Just like I need to do now. Amy, Lurra, this way, please.” William then led Amy and Lurra Rus out of the hangar.

“…Never a dull moment, hm?” sighed the Black Panther.

“Where’s everyone else?” asked Storm.

“They’re on a mission in space with the Fantastic Four,” replied the Black Panther. “Galactus was getting too close to breaking his promise to leave us alone.”

“Of course,” sighed Storm. “And right when we may need all the Avengers.”

“Why?” asked the Black Panther.

“Veranke’s on her way here,” explained Storm. “There’s a Skrull in the Xavier Institute that has their equivalent of the X Gene. He’s a Skrull version of Colossus.”

“And Veranke’s as anti-mutant as any human,” sighed the Black Panther. He then noticed the blue box being carried out. “Erm, does that belong to the alien doctor you talked about?”

“Her friends call it the TARDIS,” replied Storm. “Apparently it’s her home. William asked for it to be brought to the commons room.”

“Right then,” declared the Black Panther.

In the medical ward, William checked his previous readings on the woman and compared them to the current ones. “…Yep, looks like that energy I first detected,” he said to Amy and Lurra Rus, “was regeneration energy. She must have recently regenerated when we first met.”

“How do we treat her?” asked Lurra Rus.

“She’s gonna be a bit out of sorts,” replied William. “Her mind will be still busy reconstructing itself and restoring memories. When she wakes up, she’ll be looking for the TARDIS key. So we need to keep it out of her reach until the regeneration’s fully taken hold.” William checked the woman’s shoes. “…Nope, not this time.”

“Hey! Look!” called Amy as she pulled a key out of the woman’s coat pocket.

“Perfect! I’ll hold onto it until she’s fully regenerated!” said William as he took the key and put it in his pants pocket.

Lightyears from Earth, but rapidly closing in, a shuttle made its way to our planet. Inside was a green skinned woman with a bumpy chin, black hair, and pointy ears. This was Veranke, Queen of the shape-shifting Skrulls and the empire they commanded. Her aide, a male Skrull, checked the readings. “We’re thirty minutes from Earth, your Majesty.”

“Good. I look forward to tearing the Time Lord apart so they can’t interfere with the mutant’s execution!” cackled Veranke. “We’ll be the rulers of the universe as it is written!”

“As it is written,” replied the aide.

10 minutes later, the woman woke up. She groaned as she rubbed her temples. She then looked up at the ceiling, a vague memory surfacing in her still-scattered brain. “…Right, neither cruel nor cowardly. …Hope and mercy. …The mission? …Oh, yes, my mission! …Then…I’M the Doctor?” The woman sat up and saw a mirror. Her hazel eyes widened. “…Oof, that nose!” she muttered. “Way too small. …Although, the eyebrows…yes, I can communicate on Delphon!” She then looked at her clothes. “…Right, I need new clothes, then some answers.” She then got up and started looking around. “…Oddly familiar,” she muttered. She wandered Avengers’ Tower until she arrived at the commons room. “…VERY familiar,” she muttered. She then saw it. In the center of the room was a blue London 1960’s Police Box. “…Now THAT I know!” she said as she smiled. Yes, she knew it very well! It was a TARDIS in disguise! The Doctor’s TARDIS! HER TARDIS! Now she remembered! “Yes! YES! I am…the DOCTOR!” With that, her memories of her past lives came back! The Doctor…checked over her wardrobe. She was still wearing her previous incarnation’s clothes! “…Key!” she said. “Where’s my-?!”

“Looking for this?” asked a voice. The Doctor turned to see William, Amy, and Lurra Rus standing there. It took her a minute to remember who was who.

“…Dr. Davies!” said the Doctor as she shook William’s hand. “You’ve got an adopted mutant brother! And Amy Rose! You’re still going back to Mobius the long way around! And Lurra Rus! You wanted a new home outside your galaxy and time!”

“She remembers!” cheered Amy.

“Well, come on, you two!” the Doctor said to Amy and Lurra Rus. “William, you want to come again?”

“I don’t think so, Doctor,” replied William. “You’re forgetting who’s coming.”

“Yeah, that Veranke lady!” recalled Amy.

“Oh, yeah,” recalled the Doctor. “The Skrull Queen. Wants to kill Trakis for being a mutant.”

“On top of that, I don’t know your full mental condition,” said William. “So until I do…” he held up the TARDIS key, “this is staying in my pocket.”

“…I see,” mused the Doctor. “…Well, if that’s how it is, that’s how it is. Hug?”

“…Sure, why not?” chuckled William. The two hugged.

“…I missed you, you know?” said the Doctor.

“I missed you too,” replied William. “I gotta show you my girlfriend!”

“Girlfriend?” asked the Doctor.

“Yeah! Her name’s Skarla!” The Doctor’s eyes widened.

“S-Skarla?” she asked. She then stammered.

“What, you going Porky Pig on me? Yeah, Skarla the Super Skrull. Has the powers of the Fantastic Four!”

“Hang on, William,” said Amy, “you’re dating a SKRULL?!”

“She’s from the Skrull Colony here on Earth,” assured William. “She’s all right.”

“You’re sure about this?” asked Lurra Rus.

“Positive,” said William. Just then, a woman walked in. “Ah! There she is!”

“William, you weren’t at your post and-,” replied the woman. She then saw the TARDIS. “…O-Oh, I see you’re entertaining guests.”

“Skarla, it’s all right, the Doctor and her friends aren’t gonna bite,” soothed William. The woman rolled her eyes, then she turned back into her Skrull form.

“You just HAD to blab my origins to a Time Lord!” she hissed. “We’re not exactly friends!”

“That may change,” replied the Doctor. “How do you do? I’m the Doctor.”

“William told me about his travels with you, Doctor,” said Skarla.

“Ah, good! Then perhaps you’d like to step inside?” The Doctor fished out her key! William goggled and patted his pockets, then groaned.

“You sneaky-!” he grumbled.

“Wait a minute, Doctor, you can’t just fly away like that!” yelped Amy.

“Who’s flying?” asked the Doctor. “These clothes don’t fit me and I’m sure the TARDIS redecorated.” She fit the key into the lock and pushed the door open. “…Oh, you HAVE redecorated!” she whispered when she looked inside. “…I really like it!” She looked back outside. “Come on! Come see what the TARDIS looks like now!” She entered the TARDIS.

“…Well, if she’s offering,” sighed Lurra Rus.

“There’s no way it’s dimensionally transcendental as you said, William!” scoffed Skarla.

“Oh no?” asked William. “Come and see.” He pulled Skarla inside.

“Hey, don’t you 21st century Earth guys remember ‘Ladies First’?!” called Amy as she and Lurra Rus entered. Everyone gasped in amazement.

Categories
Doctor Who: Crossings Series 4

The Un-X-Pected: Part 4

Cyclops opened his visor to its fullest intensity to destroy the chunk of floor Trakis had ripped up. It destroyed the glass surrounding the control room, giving Trakis enough of an opening to leap up and confront them all directly. Wolverine and Sabretooth attacked with their claws, but Trakis dodged their blows, having heard about adamantium. “I’ll tear you apart, Doctor!” snarled Trakis. “I wonder what happens when you kill a Time Lord during their regeneration!”

“I’d rather not tell you the answer or have you find out!” replied the Doctor. She used her sonic screwdriver on a nearby console and made it explode.

“Everyone out! Lock down the Danger Room!” called Cyclops. Everyone evacuated the Danger Room and shut the doors. Amy, William, Magneto, and Storm arrived.

“What’s going on?!” asked Amy.

“Trakis is a mutant, that’s what!” replied the Doctor. “My sonic screwdriver found a Skrull version of the X Gene!” The doors then bent as if something were punching them.

“…Powers?” asked Magneto.

“He’s basically the Skrull version of Colossus,” replied Sabretooth. “No Super Skrull stuff whatsoever.”

“A mutant that had yet to come out and is lashing out because he was exposed before he was ready,” remarked Magneto. “Let’s see if his metal skin is ferrous.” The doors were then punched out of the frame. Magneto stopped their progress with his powers of magnetism, then hurled them aside to reveal Trakis in his fully metal state. Magneto raised his hand…but Trakis kept walking, undaunted. “…Non-ferrous!” whispered Magneto.

“I learned that ages ago!” snorted Trakis. Wolverine then slashed…but his claws bent! “…Well, well, well!” chuckled Trakis. “So adamantium bends against my skin! Let’s see if it can buckle and break!”

“I’M THE ONLY ONE WHO GETS TO BREAK HIM!” shouted Sabretooth. He leapt at Trakis, but Trakis punched him in the ribs, breaking a few. Sabretooth was winded! Cyclops fired his eyebeams at Trakis, but Trakis shrugged them off and knocked him aside.

“And then there was one!” snarled Trakis as he raised his fist to pulverize Professor X. Professor X then projected his thoughts into Trakis, LOUD thoughts that made the mutant Skrull clutch his head in pain! Trakis passed out and Magneto used his magnetism to tear a sliver of the door off.

“Tell me, Doctor, do you happen to know where a Skrull’s heart is?” he asked.

“That’s not necessary!” hissed the Doctor.

“This Skrull infiltrated a safe haven for mutants! He intended to kill us all just to keep his secret! He needs to die!”

“That’s for Skrull society to determine, not one single human!”

“Doctor, move aside!”

“And you think I’ll obey that, Commandant Magneto?!”

“…What did you just call me?” hissed Magneto dangerously.

“You DO recall that the Nazis said the same rhetoric about you, yes?!” replied the Doctor. Magneto rushed forward and slammed the Doctor against the wall and held the knife to her throat. “Go ahead!” hissed the Doctor. “Prove me right!”

“Magnus, please,” said Professor X. “Think of Shadowcat. You remember her, yes?” Magneto turned to Professor X, still snarling. “You thought you killed her once, remember.”

“…I thought I had killed a child, one that shared my faith,” replied Magneto as he slowly relaxed his grip on the Doctor.

“Think about what you’re doing,” urged the Doctor, catching onto Professor X’s plan. “How many more children would suffer?” Magneto glared at the Doctor, then sighed and released his magnetic hold on the knife, letting it fall to the floor.

“…Sabretooth, gather Avalanche and Mystique. We are leaving,” ordered Magneto.

“You can’t be-!” Sabretooth’s objections were interrupted when Magneto raised his hand.

“I said we’re done here,” hissed Magneto. He then floated away. Sabretooth growled, but followed.

Magneto’s group had left the Xavier Institute by the time Trakis woke up. He was staring at the ceiling of the medical ward. “You know, I’ve been to the Skrull colony,” remarked a voice. Trakis turned his head to see William washing up. “Thankfully, the only difference between you and a normal Skrull is your X Gene. The treatment is still the same as ever.”

“…You should have killed me,” replied Trakis.

“Doctors don’t do that,” dismissed William. “Not unless the patient specifically asks for medical euthanasia. By the way, that communicator of yours is beeping. Are you expecting a call?” Trakis sighed.

“Unfortunately, yes,” he sighed. “Veranke knows how I’m really a monster.”

“There’s a difference between monster and mutant,” said William. “Take it from the older brother of a mutant.”

“…Give me my communicator,” directed Trakis. William simply gave the Skrull a look. “…Please,” corrected Trakis.

“There’s the magic word,” replied William as he handed Trakis the communicator. Trakis sighed, then steeled his nerves as he pressed the button.

“Infiltrator Trakis, receiving,” he said.

“You mean TRAITOR Trakis!” hissed a cruel woman’s voice.

“Greetings, your Majesty,” said Trakis. “My infiltration mission-.”

“Has been canceled, you ugly mutant!” snarled Veranke. “You fooled the gene detectors! You’re a mutant and you didn’t tell us!”

“Your Majesty, I can explain-!”

“No, you can’t! As far as I’m concerned, your survival subverts the Prophecy and I’m going to correct that subversion personally!”

“Give me that!” snapped William. He snatched the communicator out of Trakis’ hand and took over the call. “Veranke, you could do with some queen lessons and I know a few teachers.”

“How dare you! Who is this?!” snarled Veranke.

“I am Dr. William Davies,” replied William. “I have fought Dr. Doom, Loki, a Krynoid, Xiliens, Sontarans, and Daleks! I have made friends with Ice Warriors, Sailor Senshi, Kaiju, Draconians, and Autobots! I have been to the past, the present, and the future! And it was all thanks to a Time Lord known as the Doctor!”

“You lie! The Time Lords are dead!”

“The Time Lords live, your Majesty!” insisted Trakis. “He speaks the truth!”

“I will hear no more lies, dead man walking! I’ll be on Earth to kill you personally!” Veranke ended the call.

“…Charming lady,” muttered William. “We’re gonna have to put you in a witness protection program.”

“…You would show me mercy after I shot the Time Lord when she intercepted a shot meant for you?” asked Trakis.

“Mercy’s a pretty big thing among us doctors,” replied William. “Speaking of which, I need to check on her. You should be fine for now. Just one thing, see a therapist, huh?” William headed off, leaving a very confused Trakis alone.

William found the Doctor with Amy, Lurra Rus, Brandon, Storm, and Professor X nearby. “Ah, William, you’re here,” said Professor X.

“She still hasn’t regenerated?” asked William.

“Not until you were here,” replied the Doctor. She didn’t stop her hand from glowing. “I needed you to make sure you heard everything because I need to make sure the new Doctor gets it right. They may need your help.” The Doctor felt a pulse. “Just a second, Doctor!” she said. “I still need to give you some basic guidelines! First off, you need your friends. They hold you to the mark, make sure you remember the promise we made when we all became the Doctor. Never be cruel, never be cowardly. And, very important, remember why pears are disgusting! If you have to bite into one, well…sorry about that. Evil will always persist, but so will good. The humans got it right. Hope isn’t fragile or delicate. It’s bruised, bloodied, and always picking itself up for round 2. Hope and mercy, those are your greatest weapons, the greatest assistance to that intelligence of yours. And remember, you’re not trying to win. Don’t continue the mission because you want to beat someone or because you hate someone or because you want to blame someone. It’s not gonna be fun. God knows it’s not gonna be easy. It hardly ever does work. But you must carry on the mission because it’s right. Because it’s decent. Because it’s kind, just kind. There might be no point in it because good people still die, but it’s the best that can be done, so do it. Do it until we have our last death because we ARE going to die while doing it if we have a limit to our regenerations. …Might as well make every death we go through matter.” By then, the Doctor’s other hand and her face were glowing. “It’s your go, Doctor. How will you continue the mission of making time and space a better place?”

“Everyone, back up!” called Amy. “These things tend to have some oomph!” Everyone backed up as the Doctor stretched her arms outwards, then pillars of golden light poured forth from her hands and head, knocking her hat off! Everyone covered their eyes.

“Is this normal?!” asked Storm.

“This seems more intense than Miss Tarae regenerating into the Master!” called Lurra Rus.

“The Master didn’t hold back his regeneration! William and I saw this before with Rassilon!” replied Amy.

“I think it’s dying down!” called William. And he was right. The regeneration energy had finally dissipated. The Doctor as they knew her was gone. In her place was a woman with African features and wavy, dark-brown hair. The woman wobbled a bit, then fell with William catching her. He set her down slowly.

“Her medical history isn’t on your network,” William said to Professor X. “I need to get her to Avengers’ Tower!”

“I’ll take you there in the Blackbird,” offered Storm.

“I’ll have the TARDIS brought aboard,” said Professor X. “We’ll keep Trakis safe.”

“Thank you, Professor,” said William. “Amy, Lurra, help me out here.” Amy and Lurra Rus helped William bring the now unconscious and newly regenerated Doctor to the Blackbird Hangar.

Categories
Doctor Who: Crossings Series 4

The Un-X-Pected: Part 3

William’s shout attracted others with Wolverine and Cyclops tackling the student that shot the Doctor. The kid changed shapes for a while. Sabretooth picked up the gun and examined it. “That’s a Skrull gun all right,” he said. “But why didn’t it kill her instantly? There’s no stun setting on this thing?”

“Never mind that!” insisted Amy. “The Doctor’s hurt and-!” She stopped when she saw the exposed collar area stitch itself up in a glow. “…Oh no!”

“What’s going on?” asked Nightcrawler.

“It’s the regeneration process!” replied Amy. “It’s started.”

“D-Damned gun hit me just above the vessels between my hearts!” strained the Doctor.

“Doctor, take it easy!” insisted William. “We’ll get you to a safe room where you can regenerate and-!”

“Why are you weeping over that trash?!” scoffed the student as they exhausted themselves in the struggle.

“The Doctor’s not trash!” snarled William.

“She’s a mutie-supporter and-!” retorted the student.

“You know, you Skrulls have been classified as mutants!” remarked Wolverine.

“WHAT?!” shouted the student. He dropped the disguise. His skin turned green, his ears became pointy, his hair shortened, his chin became bumpy, and his muscle-mass increased. “Our shapeshifting is NATURAL, thank you very much!” snarled the Skrull.

“And you’ve forgotten to activate your anti-psychic technology, Infiltrator Trakis,” said Professor X calmly.

“So you’re not part of the Skrull colony here,” hissed the Doctor as she picked herself up.

“Doctor, lie still!” insisted William. “You’re already regenerating!”

“A form of accelerated healing?” scoffed Trakis.

“Bodily regeneration,” replied the Doctor. “I’m delaying the end result until this matter is resolved. The strongest of my people can do that.”

“And what kind of mutants are your people?” smirked Trakis. “They’ll be next on my list.”

“I’m an alien like you, Trakis.”

“From what planet then? Mars? Ooh! Vulcan!”

“Gallifrey, actually.” Trakis’ eyes widened.

“Impossible!” he whispered.

“Not impossible,” replied William. “I traveled in her TARDIS.”

“LIES! THE TIME LORDS WERE EXTERMINATED!” shouted Trakis in fear.

“What are you, a Dalek?” asked Amy.

“Let’s see, has a hate for people not like him,” mused Lurra Rus, “wants to kill people not like him, and the word ‘Exterminate’ is used as easily as breathing. Yeah, I’d mistake him for a Dalek.”

“I’ll rip you apart for daring to compare me to those inferior creatures!” snarled Trakis.

“What’s your mission here?” demanded Wolverine as he extended his claws.

“Fulfilling our prophecy!” replied Trakis.

“Lovely, a Veranke follower,” sighed William.

“…Creed, you wanna do bad cop, worse cop?” Wolverine asked Sabretooth.

“Sounds fun to me!” replied Sabretooth.

“Pah! Do your worst!” scoffed Trakis.

After the Doctor was taken to the mansion’s medical center, Amy peeked in to see the Doctor and William glaring at one another. “What’s going on here?” she asked.

“What’s going on here,” replied William, “is that there’s a painful buildup of energy inside the Doctor and she’s not releasing it.”

“That’s because I can’t afford to regenerate just yet!” retorted the Doctor.

“Erm, the pain Rassilon went through when she held back her regeneration until the Weeping Angel incident on Popstar says otherwise,” interjected Amy.

“Come on, what went wrong during that?!” argued the Doctor.

“Do you want the list alphabetically or in descending level of stupidity looking back?” asked William.

“Forget it! I’m not regenerating until this affair is over!” insisted the Doctor.

“William, can’t you do something?” asked Amy.

“Unfortunately, there’s not a whole lot I can do in this time zone,” replied William. “Several medical and ethical practices say I can’t do anything when the patient makes a decision like this, even when all the evidence is stacked against them. …All right, fine, Doctor. Go ahead and hold your regeneration back, but you’re signing this.” He pulled out an Against Medical Advice form.

“You’re not serious!” protested the Doctor.

“I told you the risks according to the evidence in our quest for the Key to Time,” replied William. “You wanna hold off on the regeneration? You’re signing this.”

“…Fine!” sighed the Doctor. She signed the form. “May I go now?!”

“Very well,” said William. The Doctor got up and strode off, her hand briefly glowing.

“…I don’t like this at all,” shuddered Amy. “William, are you sure the law prevents you from doing anything?”

“I’m afraid so,” sighed William. “Especially in this time and we’re in my home state. A breach of those laws would mean I lose my medical license and I can’t practice medicine without it.”

The Doctor made her way to the room where Trakis was being interrogated. The Bad Cop, Worse Cop scenario didn’t work, according to Wolverine and Sabretooth’s faces. “Little piece of-! HE BIT ME!” snarled Sabretooth.

“Why are YOU complaining?” asked Wolverine. “You should be vindicated.”

“How the hell do you figure that?!”

“Because someone from a more advanced civilization descended to your level!” Wolverine blew the smoke from his cigar into Sabretooth’s face.

“Do you really need to do that?” asked the Doctor as she approached them.

“Whatever, Doc,” replied Wolverine.

“Come on! You must know that smoking can kiiiii……” The Doctor trailed off as she remembered Wolverine and Sabretooth’s healing factor. Both men looked at her with deadpan looks.

“…No, go on,” offered Wolverine. “I believe you were about to say something funny.”

“R-Right. Never mind,” mumbled the Doctor. “Where’s Trakis?”

“In there,” replied Sabretooth. “You gonna go all Time Goddess on him or something?”

“Time Lords aren’t gods,” corrected the Doctor, “but I AM going to use a bit of Gallifreyan tech on him.” She pulled out her sonic screwdriver, then Wolverine sniffed.

“…Your scent’s changing,” he remarked.

“Regeneration,” replied the Doctor. “Gonna be a totally new person when this is over.” She entered the room and Trakis looked up.

“…Doctor, was it?” he asked. “We know you.”

“‘We’ meaning?” asked the Doctor.

“Meaning the Skrulls in general, Doctor,” explained Trakis. “You are many. The stories about you are legion.”

“I get around,” said the Doctor as she took a scan with her sonic screwdriver. Trakis arched an eyebrow.

“…A sonic probe?” he asked.

“That’s sonic SCREWDRIVER!” retorted the Doctor. “And there’s something very interesting about you, Trakis. …Wolverine, is there some sort of training area here?”

“There’s the Danger Room, why?” asked Wolverine.

“Because Trakis needs some exercise,” replied the Doctor.

The Danger Room, a training facility meant to push a mutant’s powers to their greatest capabilities. The room has been upgraded over the decades, even with alien technology. “Doc, what’s the idea?” asked Wolverine after he and Sabretooth put Trakis in the room and joined the Doctor in the control room.

“Let’s just say I want to demonstrate the anomaly I picked up,” replied the Doctor. She started the Danger Room at its lowest setting. A few flamethrower traps popped out of the walls and the floors, but Trakis rolled out of the way and fired on them.

“He’s using a gun,” remarked Sabretooth. “That’s cheating.”

“Relax,” soothed the Doctor.

“Level 1: Complete,” said the Danger Room computer. The Doctor then increased the difficulty. More traps appeared, this time adding nets. Trakis accomplished evading them. “Level 2: Complete,” said the computer. This went on and on with Trakis starting to get tired by the time level 43 rolled around. By then, Professor X and Cyclops had arrived.

“Doctor, don’t you think this is a bit much?” he asked.

“Trust me,” assured the Doctor.

“Doctor,” interjected Cyclops, “he’s tiring out! Even our strongest mutants need a break between-!” Then, it happened. A laser shot hit Trakis in the knee!

“ARGH!” Trakis grabbed his knee.

“Injury detected!” reported the Danger Room computer. “Danger Room shutting down.”

“Rgh! Dammit! It’s starting!” grunted Trakis as he clasped his knee.

“So there IS merit to that reading I took,” mused the Doctor.

“Doc?” asked Wolverine.

“When I scanned him with my sonic screwdriver,” replied the Doctor, “there was a gene that didn’t conform with the known Skrull genome.”

“A gene?” asked Sabretooth.

“Hold on a minute, you’re not serious,” remarked Cyclops.

“Well, when a bigot spews anti-gay rhetoric, what’s the conclusion some reach?” asked the Doctor.

“That the bigot is a heavily closeted gay themselves,” replied Wolverine.

“Exactly,” confirmed the Doctor. “Does the same hold true among the mutant community?”

“It does,” replied Professor X. “I’ve met bigots that spew anti-mutant rhetoric only to read their minds and find that they’re hoping no one else finds out they’re a mutant themselves.”

“Well, observe,” directed the Doctor. Metal then spread from Trakis’ knee!

“Holy crap!” said Wolverine. “That’s Colossus’ power!”

“And Trakis is no Super Skrull!” confirmed the Doctor. The metal had fully encased Trakis. He looked like a metal statue of himself that moved as fluidly as any living being. “Behold! A Skrull mutant!”

“…YOU SIGNED MY DEATH WARRANT, TIME LORD!” shouted Trakis as he tore a chunk of the floor out! “I’LL FLATTEN YOU FOR THAT!” He threw the floor chunk at the control room!

Categories
Doctor Who: Crossings Series 4

The Un-X-Pected: Part 2

“Magneto, Sir,” said Amy, “are there shapeshifters you know of?”

“There’s one, why?” asked Magneto.

“Because either a human snuck into the mansion and stabbed that poor kid, or a shapeshifter mutant framed a human,” replied William.

“None of my allies would dare!” insisted Magneto.

“We have to check,” countered the Doctor. “And given your history…” The Doctor let Magneto fill in the blanks.

“…Very well,” he sighed.

The person they went to was Mystique, a blue-skinned woman with yellow eyes and red hair. “You cannot be serious!” she hissed.

“Mystique, you must admit it would be your MO,” remarked William.

“That’s my PAST, you dolt!”

“Mystique, did you or did you not carry out such missions without question when I assigned them to you?” asked Magneto. Mystique glared at the Master of Magnetism, then sighed.

“I was nowhere near the area at the time of the stabbing,” she said. “I was at the west wing in the library, getting into an argument with Kurt.”

“We’ll check with him,” said the Doctor.

“I think it’s this way,” called William.

“William!” protested Lurra Rus as he made a wrong turn.

“I don’t get it!” grumbled William. “I have a better sense of direction than this!”

“Hey!” called a voice. Everyone turned to see a short man with big muscles and hair styled to look like a pair of horns with long sideburns. “What are you guys doing, wandering the place?” he asked gruffly.

“Everyone, meet Logan, better known as Wolverine,” introduced William. “And we’re trying to confirm Mystique’s story with Kurt, er, Nightcrawler.”

“She said she was busy arguing with Kurt in the library during the time of the thankfully non-fatal stabbing,” explained the Doctor.

“She’s telling the truth except for one thing,” replied Wolverine. “It was a damned shouting match, not a normal argument. Anyways, I took a sniff in the air at the scene.”

“You did?” asked the Doctor. “Do you have super senses?”

“Sure do, lady. The guy we’re looking for ain’t human in any capacity. His scent ain’t exactly like yours or your friends.”

“…I’ll ask about the Doctor’s smell later,” said William. “So it’s an alien infiltrating the place?”

“Yeah,” confirmed Wolverine.

“But which one?” muttered William. “The only ones I know about are Skrulls…” He trailed off when Wolverine nodded. “…You’re telling us-!”

“There’s a Skrull here,” replied Wolverine.

“A Skrull?” muttered the Doctor. “But why? There’s a peaceful Skrull colony here on Earth. And our Skrull apparently wanted a mutant to die.”

“What IS a Skrull, aside from being a shapeshifter?” asked Amy.

“Well, they’re humanoid,” replied the Doctor, “green-skinned, pointy ears, bumpy chins, and are engaged in a war with the Kree. They use their shapeshifting powers to infiltrate a planet and take it over, usually. At least those that follow Queen Veranke.”

“And those that don’t?” asked Amy.

“There’s a colony of Skrulls that want to live peacefully with us,” answered William. “Not exactly popular with Veranke.”

“We need to find this Skrull,” declared the Doctor. “Mr. Howlett, can you help us find a team we can trust?”

“How the hell did you-?!” spluttered Wolverine, as he didn’t reveal his surname. “…Never mind. Yeah, I can do that. Come on.”

Wolverine gathered Storm and Professor X as well as a man with a ruby red visor and a man with three fingers, digitigrade legs, blue skin, pointy ears, yellow eyes, and a tail. The blue person was Kurt Wagner, Nightcrawler, and the man with the visor was Scott Summers, Cyclops. “A Skrull?!” asked Cyclops.

“They have an anti-mutant population too?” quizzed Nightcrawler. He rolled his eyes. “Wunderbar. Such an advanced civilization.”

“Even Wakanda has its racism problems,” replied Storm. “The stories I could tell you about those who flat out said to T’Challa’s face that opening Wakanda’s borders was a mistake.”

“I’d argue Gallifrey has worse, but that’s neither here nor there,” said the Doctor.

“Why gather us specifically, Wolverine?” asked Nightcrawler. “Professor X and yourself, I can understand.”

“You’re a teleporter, so you can confuse the Skrull when it comes down to it,” replied Wolverine, “Cyke’s a tactician, and Storm can unbalance our Skrull with her weather abilities.”

“All right,” said the Doctor, “we’ll need to-.” Professor X then gasped.

“Professor X?” asked Amy.

“It’s Magneto!” replied Professor X. “He’s got the same idea!”

“But probably not as peaceful!” gasped Storm.

“We gotta stop him!” urged Cyclops as he grabbed the handles on Professor X’s wheelchair.

“Hurry, my X-Men!” called Professor X.

Magneto and Mystique were accompanied by a man with a silver helmet and a black suit as well as a muscular man with razor sharp teeth and claws. The muscular man was snarling at a poor girl. “All right, Skrully!” he said. “Drop the act and no one gets hurt!”

“I’m telling you, I’m not a Skrull!” begged the girl.

“I have no patience for games,” said Magneto. “We know there’s a Skrull impersonating a student at this school. Now, kindly tell us who you are and-.”

“MAGNETO!” called Professor X. Magneto and his group turned to see Professor X, the Doctor, and their group arriving. “What do you think you’re doing?!” demanded Magneto.

“And why’d you smuggle Sabretooth and Avalanche here?!” snarled Nightcrawler.

“These two were necessary for my search,” replied Magneto.

“Brutal interrogations aren’t the way to find the Skrull!” hissed the Doctor.

“The interrogations shall make this one more compliant,” dismissed Mystique. “Each suspect will be questioned and subjected to genetic testing.”

“Or, here’s a novel idea,” said William, “you could just let Professor Xavier here read the person’s mind!”

“Skrulls have developed anti-psychic technology,” replied Magneto.

“Do you have ANY evidence that this young lady is a Skrull?” asked Storm.

“How can we have evidence,” asked Avalanche, “until we conduct our tests?!”

“This school is supposed to be a haven for mutants!” replied Cyclops. “You’re subjecting them to what the Right would want to subject us all to!”

“We assumed you would welcome the assistance,” said Magneto.

“Magnus, you need to stop before this gets out of hand as the Skrull most likely wants!” insisted Professor X.

“I have mutants to protect, Charles. Do not interfere.” Magneto used his magnetic powers to make a knife float to his hand.

“Not a chance!” snarled Storm. She then used her own powers to create a small gale to knock Magneto and his Brotherhood off their feet. Magneto snarled when he picked himself up.

“QUEEN ORORO, THIS IS OUTRAGEOUS!” he shouted.

“I agree,” replied Storm, “but I am left with no choice. You’re attacking an innocent student for all we know. Now, once more, leave her alone!”

“We are your allies!” insisted Magneto. By then, there was a familiar “SNKT” as Wolverine extended his claws!

“My friend, you may want to stand down,” warned the Doctor.

“If you will not follow common sense,” snarled Magneto, “then I will make you understand why you’re in the wrong! ATTACK!” The Brotherhood leapt at the X-Men and team TARDIS. Avalanche put his hands to the ground and made the earth shake. Nightcrawler vanished with a “BAMF” and vanished with a smell of sulfur, then reappeared and pounded on Avalanche’s back. Cyclops raised his visor and unleashed a force beam that knocked Avalanche to the floor as Lurra Rus practiced her new telekinetic powers to throw a vase at him.

Meanwhile, Storm and Wolverine rushed at Mystique and Sabretooth. Sabretooth was grinning like a maniac. “So, Logan, you still slumming with these idiots?!” he cackled as he slashed at Wolverine with his claws. Wolverine didn’t say anything. “Aw, what’s the matter?” taunted Sabretooth. “You believe that old saying about being quiet if you can’t say anything nice? You know that’s a load of crap!” Wolverine stayed on the defensive, then rolled out of the way as Storm unleashed a lightning bolt at Sabretooth. Thanks to having a metal skeleton, Sabretooth twitched.

“That’s just a taser wound for guys like us,” remarked Wolverine.

“Oh hush,” admonished Storm. “That’s just the opening.” Amy’s hammer then carried Mystique into Sabretooth’s head and rang their bells.

“…How the hell did you knock out a guy with an adamantium skull?” Wolverine asked Amy.

“Let’s figure that out later,” replied Amy.

Magneto floated to Professor X. “I have no quarrel with you, Charles, as I know you better than any Skrull could,” said the Master of Magnetism, “but you must allow my Brotherhood to proceed.”

“Magnus, please!” begged Professor X. “This is sure to cause division in the school!”

“If the school falls apart, it will be on YOUR head, Charles,” replied Magneto. Just then, he felt himself collapsing. Someone had jabbed their pinky into his chin, targeting a pressure point.

“No, sir,” replied the paralyzer, the Doctor, “it will be on YOURS.”

“Doctor, the helmet!” called Professor X. The Doctor knocked Magneto’s helmet off and Professor X unleashed a psychic attack.

William was keeping Brandon from getting involved. “Come on, Will!” complained Brandon. “I’m an X-Man!”

“In training, from what Professor X told me!” replied William. “I’d rather NOT have to practice my medical skills on my baby brother! Saving Dad from a heart attack was bad enough.” William then noticed someone approaching. …It was the stabbed student! “Hey! What are you doing up?! Get your ass back in-!”

“DIE!” shouted the student as he pulled out an alien gun! Time slowed down for William at least. He honestly thought he was going to die. The weapon fired…then someone leapt in front of the shot! It was only when he heard a gasp thanks to the shot actually hitting his savior that he recognized who it was!

“DOCTOR!” he shouted. The fighting stopped as the Doctor hit the ground clutching her chest in pain.

Categories
Doctor Who: Crossings Series 4

The Un-X-Pected: Part 1

The TARDIS spun through the Time Vortex as the Doctor checked the console again. “Still on course, old girl,” she said to the TARDIS. “I’m surprised you didn’t want to take us back to the Motherlobe.”

“Doctor,” called Amy as she entered the console room, “you said you wanted our psychic abilities trained up.”

“That I do, only you need to check out another school,” replied the Doctor.

“There’s a Psychonauts school?” asked Amy.

“No, more like a school for gifted people,” explained the Doctor.

A bald man in a wheelchair was in his office. He did some paperwork, then he heard a noise. He looked up as the TARDIS faded into view. “Doctor?” muttered the man. The TARDIS fully materialized and the doors opened with the Doctor stepping out. She saw the man and smiled.

“Charles Xavier!” she greeted.

“Welcome back, Doctor!” replied the man, Professor Charles Xavier, AKA Professor X. He used his own mental abilities to wheel himself to the Doctor. The two shook hands. “I haven’t seen you since that business with the Silurians!” said Professor X.

“Not questioning the new face then?” asked the Doctor with a grin as her friends stepped out.

“You know me,” replied Professor X. “Who are your friends?”

“New psychics,” answered the Doctor. “Meet Amy Rose and Lurra Rus. Amy, Lurra, meet Professor Charles Xavier, founder of the Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters!”

“It’s been renamed, Doctor,” said Professor X. “Now it’s the Xavier Institute. Still a safe haven for mutants.”

“Well, as long as the mission doesn’t change,” remarked the Doctor. Someone then burst through the door.

“PROFESSOR! ARE YOU-?!” It was a young man with fingerless gloves. He blinked as he saw the scene. “…Erm, Professor…?” he asked.

“It’s quite all right, young Davies,” assured Professor X. “I’m just catching up with an old friend.”

“How do you do, young man?” asked the Doctor. “I’m the Doctor. That’s Amy Rose. And that’s Lurra Rus.”

“Doctor?” asked the kid. “…Did you take a guy called William Davies on a journey?”

“Why yes!” replied the Doctor. “Do you know him?”

“That’s my big brother! I’m Brandon!” He stuck out his hand for a handshake.

“Good to meet you!” greeted the Doctor. “…You know, he mentioned that…”

“I was adopted?” finished Brandon. “I think you can guess why. Professor, could I open your window, please?”

“Of course,” replied Professor X. Brandon opened the window, then pointed his palms outside. He used his thumbs to press a button on each glove and force beams fired from his palms.

“HEY!” called a voice.

“Oh, shoot!” he yelped as he pressed the buttons on his gloves again and cut off the force beams. “S-Sorry, Mrs. LeBeau!” A woman with brown hair that was white in the middle glared at the office before storming off. “…I’m getting extra homework for that.”

“Your blood parents didn’t!” hissed the Doctor.

“They did,” replied Brandon. “Their child was born a mutant and they didn’t want that, so they just dumped me in an orphanage. Then Mr and Mrs. Davies adopted me and tried to help me cope with my powers, then the X-Men found me and gave me a chance for a normal life here. They still visit from time to time. In fact, William’s here as well.”

“William?!” asked the Doctor. “Think he has time for an old friend?”

“Let’s all see him,” suggested Professor X. Brandon helped Professor X move around the mansion as various mutants walked around, talking about classes, their love lives, current events, all that stuff.

“…Is Brandon’s treatment from his old family the norm against mutants?” asked Lurra Rus. “Why?”

“They’re declared not normal, thus they’re not human,” replied the Doctor. “Same as any minority group. Blacks, Asians, Pakistanis, Native Americans, Indians, Hispanics, LGBTQIA, and Mutants, they’re all beaten down when they just want to live life and be comfortable. That’s why safe places need to be made, such as Xavier’s school.”

“Here we are!” called Brandon. “Hey, Bro! You-!”

“Investigating a scene right now!” replied a familiar voice.

“Sir, you were out cold!” protested a second voice.

“No, I wasn’t!” said a third. The team rounded a corner to see someone covered in spikes sitting on the stairs with Dr. William Davies and a tall black woman with white hair in her X-Man outfit. The woman was Ororo Munroe, wife to King T’Challa of Wakanda and the X-Man known as Storm.

“So, what’s going on here, Ororo?” asked William.

“I called the medical staff,” explained Storm, “because this young man passed out and he’s refusing to get checked out!”

“That’s because I didn’t pass out!” insisted the kid.

“Yes, you did!” replied Storm. “And then you fell down the stairs!”

“No, I didn’t!” argued the kid.

“And human bowling-balled into that lamp!”

“No, I didn’t!”

“And then you peed your pants!”

“No, I…” The kid then looked down and…he couldn’t deny it; he peed his pants. “…You know, on second thought, I might need to see the school medical staff.”

“Wise choice, young man,” replied William.

“Still putting your degree into action, hm?” asked the Doctor.

“That voice!” whispered William. He looked behind him to see her! “DOCTOR! Hey, give me a minute to finish up here! We’ll catch up after this!”

“Sounds great, William!”

After taking care of the kid, William rejoined the Doctor and her team. “So, checking up on things, Doctor?” he asked.

“Well, yes and no,” replied the Doctor. “I think I had better put you in the picture. Amy and I traveled a bit, then we picked up Lurra Rus here.”

“So they’re real?” asked William as she pointed to Lurra Rus. “The Twi’leks?”

“Well, they WERE real at one point,” said the Doctor. “They’re gone by this time. But all that stuff in her galaxy DID happen.”

“Yikes, caught up in Skywalker family drama!” winced William.

“Yes, I learned about who Vader used to be and what happened to that…Death Star above Yavin,” said Lurra Rus.

“Then we had an adventure on Gallifrey that brought back the Time Lords,” continued Amy.

“So they’re back! Congrats, Doctor!” praised William.

“And then we stumbled across a truth from Batman during an adventure with the Justice League,” the Doctor went on. “There’s an event coming called the Grouping where various points in time blend together.”

“…That’s alarming,” remarked William. “What started it?”

“We don’t know. We’re trying to make it manageable, but certain races intend to capitalize on it.”

“The Daleks leap readily to mind,” shuddered William.

“Don’t remind me of those monsters,” grumbled Lurra Rus.

“So why are you guys here?” asked William.

“Lurra Rus and I have some small measure of psychic powers,” replied Amy, “but we want to learn from other psychics outside the Psychonauts.”

“They’re real too?” quizzed William.

“Oh yeah,” answered the Doctor.

“Why not learn from the Psychonauts?”

“Because right now, an Empath is still working on his mental state after someone went after their Nona’s life.”

“Well, there’s plenty of psychics here,” said William. “Let’s see if Professor X can get Amy and Lurra Rus into some classes. I can cover the bill.” As the Doctor was about to object, someone screamed. “That’s never a good sign!” yelped William as he rushed to the source of the scream. Someone was kneeling over a person bleeding out with a stab wound in the knee. “Okay, step back, everyone!” called William. He then approached the stabbed guy. “Please tell me this was an accident!” he said as he opened his medical bag.

“I can’t say that!” replied the poor guy. “A guy shouted ‘Die, Mutie!’ and stabbed me in the leg only because I moved too fast for him to get my heart!”

“Well, I’m gonna need to apply a tourniquet to stop the bleeding,” advised William. “But I have to warn you, it’s gonna hurt.”

“I don’t care, man! Do it!” the patient insisted. William applied the tourniquet and tightened it. The patient DID feel pain from how tight it was, but he was glad he was okay.

“All right, that should stabilize you until the hospital can take care of your leg.”

“Ambulance and police are on their way,” called another student.

“Good to know,” said William. “Now…we’ve got a little whodunnit on our hands!”

“Not exactly how I wanted to spend seeing you again,” sighed the Doctor.

“The real question is this,” remarked William, “is it a human? An Inhuman? A mutant with shapeshifter powers? A Skrull?”

“Why a mutant with shapeshifter powers?” asked Amy.

“Because, since they’re as human as William deep down, not all mutants share the same goals,” replied the Doctor.

“…Oh no, don’t tell me!” sighed Amy. “One bad apple?”

“Yep,” replied William. “And the most infamous bad apple among mutants is Professor X’s friend/enemy, has a few names. Max Eisenhardt, Erik Lehnsherr, Magnus, but among the X-Men, he’s…right there.” An old man was walking up to them. “Mr. Eisenhardt, we were just talking about you.”

“I heard a student here was attacked,” replied the man.

“And there’s a few possibilities that leap to mind, some of them being a mutant framing people like me,” said William.

“Sir, I’m the Doctor, an old friend of Charles Xavier,” introduced the Doctor.

“I’ve heard about you, Doctor, and your many faces,” said Max.

“William was about to tell me what the X-Men call you.”

“It’s a name I picked. I am power, men call me Magneto.”

Categories
Doctor Who: Crossings Series 4

Domination of the Daleks: Part 4

Wander dodged the Dalek Supreme’s shot and it destroyed the cell door instead. Wander then ran out of the room, still strumming his banjo and singing at a faster pace now with the Dalek Supreme chasing him! “Sure seems like we’re becoming friends!

Buddies!”

“EXTERMINATE!” Wander dodged another shot.

“And buddies stay buddies ‘til the very end!”

“HALT! HALT!! HALT!!!” Hater, Peepers, and Sylvia then took advantage of the situation and began freeing the prisoners! During the confusion, both parties crashed into each other. Wander then realized Sylvia was free like him!

“BUDDY!” he cheered as he hugged her.

“BUDDY!” replied Sylvia. The two then sang!

“Oh, I thought I’d never be free again!”

“Um…buddies?” asked Hater.

“BUDDIES!” replied Wander and Sylvia.

“Dominator’s gonna know we’re free any second now!” warned Hater.

“Wander keeps saying we’re friends!” barked the Dalek Supreme.

“And he keeps trying to deny it!” sang Wander.

“Listen, buddies or not, I’m not ready to die yet!” replied Peepers. “So let’s go!”

“Agreed!” said the Dalek Supreme. “We must destroy any production plants on this ship related to the infected Daleks!”

“Let’s see here,” muttered Peepers as he accessed a computer console. “…AHA! Lord Dominator’s running on low power to account for genetic engineering! Any more and the production lines would blow!”

“…So I just need to give her too much of a good thing, huh?” asked Hater as a wicked grin crossed his face.

“What about that cure the Doctor’s making?” asked Wander.

“We will be buying the Doctor time to complete her task!” replied the Dalek Supreme. “All Daleks to battle conditions!”

“We obey!” replied the Daleks.

Back on Draykor and Demurra’s planet, the Doctor poured a solution into a container the size of her palm. She locked the container and shook it. “There,” she said. “That ought to do it.”

“Is it finished?” asked Lurra Rus.

“Ready and waiting for lunch,” replied the Doctor. She then checked her sonic screwdriver. “Good, it’s still there. Come on, you two. Back to the TARDIS. You’re about to know what it’s like to travel down a time corridor.”

“Wait, we’re going BACK to Hater’s ship?!” yelped Amy. “But Dominator has it!”

“And that’s where our new friend needs to be,” said the Doctor, “on Dominator’s ship. Come along, now!” The Doctor led Amy and Lurra Rus back to the TARDIS. Demurra was there.

“Doctor, you’re not leaving, surely?!” she asked.

“Right now, you should be safe,” assured the Doctor. “We’ll take care of Dominator and her forces as well as the Daleks.”

“But you’re unarmed!” protested Demurra.

“That’s the Doctor for you,” replied Lurra Rus. “The only arms she has are the one in her sleeves, where she keeps her surprises.”

“Precisely,” agreed the Doctor as she opened the TARDIS. “So, farewell!” She and her friends then entered the TARDIS. It then took off.

Inside the TARDIS, the time machine shook. “WHOA!” yelped Amy.

“It’s all right!” assured the Doctor. “The time corridor net has ensnared us and is bringing us to Hater’s ship. …Huh, it’s collapsing behind us.”

“Isn’t that bad?!” asked Lurra Rus.

“No worries, we’ll be there long before the time corridors collapse!” soothed the Doctor. The TARDIS then made its arrival noise, finishing with its usual thud. “Now, to make sure it worked…” she activated the scanner. “Aha! The interior of Lord Hater’s ship!”

“And Dominator’s forces just spotted us!” gulped Amy.

“Perfect!” said the Doctor as she headed to the doors.

“DOCTOR, WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!” yelped Amy as the Doctor opened the door.

“Excuse me!” she called to the bots. “Can you lead me to your master? We’re rather cold here!”

The bots brought the Doctor and her friends to the bridge. Lord Dominator was giving commands to her bots. “Stop chasing that stupid spoon and kill him already!” she shouted.

“Lord Dominator, is it?” asked the Doctor. Dominator turned to see her new prisoners. A wicked grin then crossed her face.

“So, the infamous Doctor graces my ship with her presence!” she purred. “Gotta admit, you Time Lords are a hardy bunch if you’re still alive.”

“Thank you,” replied the Doctor. “I must confess, I’m curious as to why you needed mutated Daleks.”

“Well, this ship WAS built by them,” answered Dominator.

“Ah, a slave labor force.”

“Bingo. But Daleks by themselves don’t make for good slaves. They’re too intelligent and too sure of their own superiority. So I had to figure out how to dumb down that intelligence. That’s when I stumbled across a Movellan ship from after the war. It carried samples of the Movellan virus and I had a theory that, with a bit of alterations, it could turn the Daleks into mindless slaves. With a bit of lava tech, I attacked not only Dalek tissue, but their casing’s tech as well, making them perfect berserkers! After attacking that reproduction plant and getting it to produce enough slaves to build me a ship, I transferred the production plant over to my ship. And now, here we are! Round 2 and this time, I WILL destroy the galaxy!”

“You know, if you didn’t smile, I would assume you were a Dalek,” remarked the Doctor as she slowly opened the capsule.

Back with Hater and his group, they found the reproduction plant. “Okay, sir!” said Peepers. “It looks like Lord Dominator transferred all reproduction plant functions from the one she attacked to right here!”

“You mean she doesn’t have more on other planets?” asked Hater.

“Well, her ultimate goal IS the galaxy’s destruction,” reminded Sylvia. She then spotted something. “All of you, get back! Guards!” she hissed. Bots and Dominator’s infected Daleks entered the area.

“Production of berserkers will increase by 15%,” droned a bot.

“That’s too much!” hissed Peepers. “We need to thin them out!”

“…There is…one advantage to utilize!” replied the Dalek Supreme. “The camera eye at the top of the dome for the mutant creatures!”

“We need to give Lord Hater enough time to overcharge the ship,” said Peepers. “So, Sylvi-I mean, Zbornak, you take those men and Daleks across the left, I’ll take my men and Daleks across the center, and Dalek Supreme-.”

“I will lead the remainder of our forces across the right!” finished the Dalek Supreme. “Lord Hater, you will deal with the ship when the enemy is sufficiently low!”

“And me?” asked Wander.

“You get to the bridge, see if you can distract Dominator,” said Hater.

“Gotcha! See y’all later!” Wander ran off.

“Now, as you Daleks put it…EXTERMINATE!” called Hater as he pointed forward.

“ATTACK! ATTACK!” shouted the Dalek Supreme. “CRUSH ALL RESISTANCE!” Dominator’s forces were quickly attacked.

“HATER?!” yelped Dominator as she got the security alert.

“Well, well!” chuckled the Doctor. Dominator’s jaw dropped as her berserkers did!

“How are those nerds doing this?!” she snarled as she typed in commands for her bots. “The Daleks don’t have any physical weaknesses!”

“You haven’t done a lot of studying, have you?” asked Amy. “The eyestalk’s a pretty glaring weakness.”

“…You!” Lord Dominator activated her suit and lowered her helmet’s mask. “You’re gonna die for this!”

“I wouldn’t try it!” called the Doctor as she let the capsule drop with a clatter.

“Berserkers, destroy them!” ordered Dominator. Dominator’s berserkers entered the bridge, weapons ready. They made their usual noises, then…screeched in pain as orange foam spewed from their casings. “WHAT THE-?!”

“You’re not the only one that can alter the Movellan virus to her own ends,” said the Doctor. “And it won’t affect just your berserkers.”

Back with Hater’s group, the two factions were evenly matched, then…the berserkers started screeching in pain. The Daleks then twitched, then orange foam spewed from the berserkers’ casings as white foam spewed from the Daleks! “MALFUNCTION! MALFUNCTION!” screamed one.

“EMERGENCY!” shouted another.

“MY VISION IS IMPAIRED!” wailed the Dalek Supreme. “I CANNOT SEE!”

“What’s wrong with them?!” yelped Sylvia.

“Who cares?! Now’s my chance!” replied Hater. He fired a massive stream of lightning into the production lines and the ship rocked as explosions went off on every deck!

“NO! NOT AGAIN!” shouted Dominator as she tried to regain control of the ship. It was no good, the ship was crashing onto a nearby planet.

“We’ll see ourselves out,” called the Doctor. Dominator didn’t hear her as she and her friends left.

The TARDIS crew met up with Hater’s team and Wander at the skullship. “Guys, what’s going on?!” asked Wander. “I couldn’t get to the bridge to-!”

“Later, Wander!” replied Sylvia as she threw the nomad onto her saddle.

“Watchdogs, lay in an escape route the instant we get out of here!” ordered Hater.

“Way ahead of you, Sir!” replied a Watchdog as everyone boarded the skullship. The hangar doors exploded and the skullship quickly took off, leaving Dominator’s ship to crash.

Once they were a safe enough distance away, the Watchdog running the helm got a readout. “…Lord Dominator’s ship has crashed into Aquanitar II, Sir,” he reported. “The GVA got wind of your second victory over her and are declaring today Lord Hater Day.”

“As they should!” cackled Hater. “Once again, I’ve proved that I’m the greatest in the galaxy!”

“HATE’S GREAT! BEST VILLAIN! HATE’S GREAT! BEST VILLAIN!” cheered the Watchdogs.

“He couldn’t have done that without your help, Doctor!” scoffed Amy as they headed back to the TARDIS with Wander, Sylvia, and Peepers following.

“Get used to it, Pinky,” retorted Peepers. “Lord Hater is destined to rule this galaxy!”

“…Doc,” said Wander, “I’ve…heard ugly rumors about you.”

“Hm?” asked the Doctor.

“I heard that, wherever you find yourself, something ain’t right. Like trouble follows you like a bad rash.”

“It’s not something I make a habit of, I assure you!”

“I ain’t blaming you for that, Doc,” assured Wander, “but…it’s just so much! No matter what story I heard about you, death seems to be a big thing and, at least what I saw today, you just seem to be so used to it! People died today and…I know you’re a Time Lord, but I don’t want you to lose sight of life! You made a deadlier version of a virus that already killed Daleks, and you just casually used it! I can’t really believe you look at people dying and just take it as it is!”

“That’s not fair, Wander!” hissed Lurra Rus. “The Doctor-!”

“Lurra Rus, please,” interrupted the Doctor. “Wander needs to hear directly from me. Wander, we may look like we’re used to it, but I can assure you, death still affects me and my companions in just the same way as you. I may have appeared cold and heartless, but if I didn’t, many more would have died. Not just here, not just us, but the entire galaxy would have been consumed in a futile war between Daleks. A wise man once said that the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few.”

“Who?” asked Sylvia.

“Mr. Spock, but that’s not the point,” replied the Doctor. “What I’m trying to get across is that despite all of the problems that crop up that need me to solve them, no matter how alien I may seem, I still care. That’s why I do what I do; to help others. That’s not to say there isn’t anywhere peaceful in the universe. It’s always more enjoyable when you have someone by your side, so I’m not some lonely old woman in a police box or you’re not some weirdo in a hat. Now, let’s be on our way to find someplace peaceful. We’ll rest at our respective spots, kick our feet up, relax, and this will all seem like a bad dream. Goodbye, everyone.” The Doctor and her friends entered the TARDIS and it took off.

“…How long until the next bad dream for you, Doctor?” sighed Wander.

“Come on, Buddy, she IS right,” said Sylvia. “Let’s get out of here and find a nice, quiet world.” She then pulled out a bottle of what looked like bubble solution, dipped the wand, waved it over her and Wander, and the two were encased in a bubble. Sylvia then began walking as Wander rode on her back, the bubble protecting them from the dangers of space. Peepers just stared at the spot where everyone was.

“…Interesting philosophies, but-,” he said.

“PEEPERS!” shouted Hater over the comms. Peepers sighed as he picked up.

Categories
Doctor Who: Crossings Series 4

Domination of the Daleks: Part 3

Lord Dominator’s ship fired on the skullship as they fled! The smaller ship didn’t have the firepower to take on something so heavily armed, the insurance wouldn’t cover it! Lord Dominator’s ship then shot the skullship’s engines and halted it! Inside the skullship was pandemonium as Watchdogs and Daleks prepared for a potential boarding scenario. The ship rocked as a docking tube clamped onto it. The Watchdogs and Daleks were pointing their guns down the corridor leading to the skullship’s tongue, the blast doors sealing the way off. The Watchdogs gripped their weapons as the Daleks’ limbs and eyestalks twitched. Sparks then flew from the blast doors as if someone on the other side was cutting through them! The doors then exploded and infected Daleks swarmed in, along with various robots of different types. The robots and infected Daleks were the better shots, sadly, as many Watchdogs and Daleks fell to their firepower. “WITHDRAW!” called a Dalek.

“REGROUP!” shouted another.

“YOU HEARD THEM! FALL BACK!” shouted a Watchdog. It became a running firefight as Dominator’s forces swarmed the hall.

“There isn’t going to be enough time to process all this data!” wailed Peepers.

“We must move all data onto an external drive!” replied the Dalek.

“Way ahead of you!” called the Doctor as she held the sonic screwdriver to the computer console. “There!”

“All data is downloaded onto your sonic probe?” asked the Dalek.

“All of it!” confirmed the Doctor. “And it’s a sonic screwdriver, thank you.”

“Doctor, here!” called Peepers as he handed the Doctor a set of keys.

“What-?!”

“Commander Peepers is correct! Your survival is paramount!” barked the Dalek. “You must leave this ship! Take all research with you!”

“But my friends-!”

“Peepers, where’s the Doctor?!” called Hater over the comms.

“With me, Sir!” replied Peepers.

“I’ve got her friends waiting at my van! Wander and Sylvia are staying with us to hold Dominator off!”

“Understood, Sir! I’m bringing the Doctor now!” Peepers ended the call.

“I will give covering fire!” barked the Dalek.

“Thank you, that would be appreciated,” replied the Doctor. “Peepers, the van, please?”

“This way!” called Peepers. As he led everyone out, the Dalek turned and shot the computers in order to slow down any attempts by Dominator to hack it.

Lord Dominator, a terrifying figure, both in the suit, and showing off her real body. Lord Dominator had activated her suit and had torn a Dalek’s limbs off, scaring the creature. One of her bots then arrived. “Search of main computer core: complete. No anti-viral research detected.”

“Where is your friend?!” demanded Lord Dominator, her helmet’s voice modulator making her sound masculine. “What have you done with the Time Lord?!”

“Daleks are not friends with any Time Lord!” replied her prisoner. “We are in a temporary alliance with Lord Hater to discuss trade!”

“If you’re here to discuss trade, then where’s your ambassador?!” Lord Dominator punched through the Dalek’s midsection, then pulled her hand out, tearing the Dalek out of its casing. The sudden shock of being disconnected from its nutrient feed killed the creature. Lord Dominator tossed it aside. She then deactivated her suit and revealed her lime green skin and black dress with a thigh slit. “Tear this monument to tackiness apart until you find the Time Lord and all the research they’ve conducted!” she ordered her bots in her natural voice. “And bring me the passengers! I want them ALIVE!”

Peepers and the Dalek brought the Doctor to the hangar where Hater’s van was parked. Hater was there with Amy, Lurra Rus, Draykor, and Demurra. “DOCTOR!” called Amy.

“Can anyone drive a van?!” called the Doctor as she flashed the keys.

“Gimme!” replied Demurra.

“Doctor, you’re our last hope!” said Hater. “We’ll delay Dominator as long as we can! GO!” Everyone piled into the van and Demurra started the engine.

“Opening hangar doors!” reported the Dalek. The hangar opened and the van flew off into space! Just in time too! Dominator’s forces attacked! They destroyed the Dalek and stunned Hater and Peepers.

“Their condition is non-fatal,” said a bot. “Inform Lord Dominator that we have prisoners.”

Hater and Peepers were brought to the bridge. Hater looked to his left to see… “Lord Dominator!” he hissed. “Only you would be so bold! The Galactic Villain Alliance will not sit still for this! When they realize that you attacked me for no-!”

“Don’t act so surprised, bone-breath!” replied Dominator. “There IS a reason for my attack and you know it! You brought a Time Lord aboard this janky ship! I want to know what research they’ve conducted against my virus!”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about!” snarled Hater. “I’m busy conducting trade negotiations with the Da-!”

“You and the Daleks are trying to find a cure for my virus and roped the Time Lord into helping you! Bots, take them away!” The bots escorted Hater and Peepers to Dominator’s ship. One of the bots stayed behind.

“Warning,” it advised, “holding Hater and Peepers is dangerous. Their victory thanks to Wander has made them the leader of an alliance of villains that will obey Hater.”

“I have traced the origin of the time corridor net to this ship,” replied Dominator. “Now they remain my only link to the Time Lord they tried to ensnare.”

“They will die before they tell you anything.”

“Leave that to me. Send a distress signal and then inform the GVA that all aboard were killed.” Another bot then approached Dominator. This one was one of the bots that stormed the hangar.

“Lord Dominator, there were five passengers of this ship that did not stay. All likely evidence is that they used Lord Hater’s tacky van to escape. The missing passengers are King Draykor, Princess Demurra, Lurra Rus, Amy Rose, and the Doctor.”

“The Doctor?!” asked Lord Dominator. “So, my virus forced them to work with their greatest enemy! They must have taken that van to escape. Send a detachment to find them, Command Bot 43. See to it personally. There’ll be no one to stop me this time!”

The van made its way back to Draykor’s castle. Everyone got out and entered the castle. “We have to save them!” urged Draykor.

“And we will, but I need to get started!” replied the Doctor.

“There’s a lab in the basement!” offered Demurra.

“Perfect! Now, let’s get going! I’ll explain what I learned as I go!” Everyone then went into the lab. “Now, Lord Dominator managed to get ahold of a virus that the Daleks encountered before. A while ago, the Daleks were at war with the Movellans, a race of humanoid robots. Both sides were so reliant on logic that the war was a deadlock. Each time one side attempted a stratagem, it was instantly anticipated and countered by the other’s battle computer. The Daleks brought back Davros to try and reintroduce some illogical thinking, but my first encounter with the Movellans resulted in them discovering the Daleks’ true nature as biological organisms in tanks. The Movellans developed a virus which exclusively attacked Dalek tissue. The Dalek fleet was destroyed and those who survived went to separate parts of the universe to avoid further infection and work on a cure. After a period of factionalism, the Daleks found a cure and fought against the Movellans again, winning their new war. Lord Dominator must have stumbled across a sample of the Movellan Virus and mutated it with Volcanium X, making a new strain that the Daleks hadn’t accounted for.”

“And you’re making a cure for them?” asked Lurra Rus. “What happens after that? Do you think they’ll leave us alone?”

“I doubt it, and I’m not creating a cure for the Daleks, per se.” The Doctor’s friends looked at each other, wondering what was going on in her head.

On Lord Dominator’s ship, Wander, Hater, Peepers, Sylvia, and the Dalek Supreme were in a cell. The Dalek Supreme looked outside the cell bars. “…My Daleks…corrupted!” it said.

“Lord Dominator’s really lost it!” shuddered Peepers. “What if she makes a virus that infects US?!”

“Don’t,” muttered Hater. “I’m depressed enough as it is.” Wander looked at the sorry state of affairs, then pulled a banjo out of his hat somehow. He then began strumming.

“Wander, is now really the time?” asked Sylvia.

“My fair Hatey, pick your chin up,” sang Wander.

“Things are bound to get better.

Yeah, the gal of your dreams,

Is still deadly it seems,

And it’s still good you didn’t wind up together.”

“Cease singing!” ordered the Dalek Supreme.

“My Fair Dalley, don’t you give up.” The Dalek Supreme looked at Wander in confusion. “Dalley” wasn’t a word usually used by non-Daleks.

“It ain’t a total disaster.

Hey, it’s still the Doctor’s go,

She’ll put on a show,

And do a lot of fun stuff we’ll get to laugh at after.

Seems like you’re becoming,

Becoming people a little less full of hate!” Peepers and Sylvia looked at each other in disbelief.

“Sure, Dominator’s got an unstoppable army,

And a…maniacaldeterminationtodestroyourwholegalaxy,

But you know what I think is great?”

“Please listen to the Dalek!” Hater begged quietly.

“I’m talking about buddies!

Sure seems like we’re becoming friends!

Buddies!”

“We are not ‘buddies’!” insisted the Dalek Supreme.

“And buddies stay buddies ‘til the very end!”

“Silence!”

“I know you’ll try to deny it!”

“I speak the truth!”

“Chase me round the galaxy and try to hide it!”

“You will be silent!”

“We’re buddies.”

“EXTERMINATE!”

Categories
Doctor Who: Crossings Series 4

Domination of the Daleks: Part 2

“…Oh, I get it! She’s one of THOSE heroes!” chuckled Hater. “You heard them, Doctor!”

“Hater, you’re making the mistake of thinking they’re bluffing!” called Amy. “They WILL kill those people!”

“Five rels have passed! Exterminate the Binglebop prisoner!” ordered the Dalek Supreme.

“Exterminate!” replied a Dalek as it shot a Binglebop. The Binglebop screamed as it died painfully. Peepers went to check on the Binglebop and his eye widened.

“…S-Sir!” he gulped. “The Daleks AREN’T bluffing! The Binglebop is dead!”

“WHAT?!” shouted Hater. “WAIT A MINUTE, HAVEN’T YOU TIN CANS HEARD OF A BLUFF?!”

“Daleks do not bluff!” replied the Dalek Supreme. “It is an inferior tactic, especially against the Doctor! Five rels have passed! Exterminate the-!”

“WAIT!” called the Doctor. Everyone turned to look at her. “…If I come aboard the skullship, I want your word that my companions will be unharmed!”

“Your companions will be guarded! Any attempt to undermine the Daleks will result in their extermination! You, your companions, Wander, the Zbornak, and the owners of the castle will exit immediately! Move! Move! MOVE!”

“We obey!” called the Doctor.

“Doctor-!” protested Sylvia.

“Sylvia, those monsters are as dangerous as Dominator,” replied Draykor. “Our people fear them for a good reason.” He turned to his gate guard. “Open the gates. Demurra and I will be back when we can.” His guard nodded solemnly and dutifully obeyed.

“Come on, everyone,” directed the Doctor. She led everyone to the invading army. As they approached the tip of the skullship’s tongue, a Dalek looked at the prisoners from the Torture Room.

“These prisoners are surplus to requirements!” it reported to the Dalek Supreme. “Their survival was not part of the deal!”

“Agreed!” replied the Dalek Supreme. “Exterminate!” It then fired on all the Torture Room victims, killing them.

“That wasn’t necessary!” snapped Peepers.

“Silence!” barked the Dalek Supreme.

“Lord Hater, Commander Peepers,” hissed the Doctor, “you better hope YOU don’t become surplus to requirements!”

“Doc, are these Daleks ALWAYS so cold-blooded?!” shuddered Sylvia.

“Unerringly,” replied the Doctor.

“Doctor, what about the TARDIS?!” asked Amy.

“We can’t escape with the Daleks’ time corridor net,” reminded Lurra Rus.

“We’ll just have to go back for it when this adventure is done,” muttered the Doctor.

“My guards will keep watch over your ship,” said Draykor.

“Thank you, Your Majesty,” bid the Doctor.

“We will depart this planet!” ordered the Dalek Supreme.

“We obey!” replied the other Daleks. …One of them dragged its words out and everyone noticed it twitching more than usual.

“Are you experiencing a system’s malfunction?” asked the Dalek Supreme.

“I…I-I-I-I…ah…Ah! AHhh! AHHH! AARRRRGGHHGHGHGHG!” The Dalek was screaming in pain and firing wildly. “OUT OF CONTROL! OUT OF CONTROL! ALERT! PAAAAIIIINNN! ALERT! SYSTEMS! UNBALANCED! CONTROL LOST! WEAPONRY! DISCHARGING! ABOVE! SAFETY TOLERANCES! I! AM! OVERHEATING!”

“Lord Hater, LOOK!” called Peepers. He pointed at the neck section of the unbalanced Dalek as it took on a black shape with glowing yellow lines!

“Oh no!” whispered Hater. “It’s a sickness!”

“DOMINATOR’S INFLUENCE! DOMINATOR’S INFLUENCE!” shrieked the Dalek Supreme as the coloration spread across the unbalanced Dalek while its speech devolved into beastly sounds. “ALERT! ALERT! MOVE AWAY FROM THIS UNIT!”

“WATCHDOGS, EYES UP!” called Hater.

“What do you intend to do?!” asked Lurra Rus.

“MOVE AWAY!” shouted another Dalek. “IT MUST BE EXTERMINATED!”

“NO! WAIT!” called Peepers. “Don’t you see?! This is our best opportunity-!”

“SILENCE! SILENCE!” ordered the Dalek Supreme. “THERE MUST BE NO IMPURITIES IN THE DALEK RACE! THIS CREATURE MUST BE-!”

“Creature?!” repeated Demurra in disbelief. “You’re talking about one of your own kind here!”

“NO! NO! IT IS NO LONGER A DALEK! DOMINATOR HAS INFECTED IT!”

“But if we can study a living specimen-!” argued Peepers.

“THAT IS NOT POSSIBLE!” replied the other Dalek. “ALL INFECTED DALEKS MUST BE EXTERMINATED!” By now, the infected Dalek was fully black with glowing yellow light escaping cracks in its new casing.

“I’m siding with the Daleks on this one, Peepers!” declared Hater as he summoned green lightning from his hands.

“EXTERMINATE! EXTERMINATE! EXTERMINATE!”

“NO!” shouted the Doctor and Commander Peepers as they shielded the infected Dalek.

“PEEPERS, WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!” demanded Hater.

“MOVE OUT OF THE WAY, DOCTOR AND COMMANDER PEEPERS, OR WE WILL EXTERMINATE YOU AS WELL!” ordered the Dalek Supreme.

“I don’t think so!” replied the Doctor. “You went to a lot of trouble to get me and if that infection’s the reason why we’re all here now, I need it alive to conduct my research!”

“ALL INFECTED DALEKS-!”

“JUST LISTEN, YOU IDIOT!” shouted Peepers. “We never captured one of these things and we have no clue how this infection spreads! This thing could be the vital part we need to making a cure!” By now, the infected Dalek had stopped moving and all its limbs drooped. “Just look! Now is the best time to drag it into whatever isolation ward you have on your ship!”

“Lord Hater, Dalek Supreme, we REALLY need samples of the casing and the internal creature to fix this!” urged the Doctor.

“…Flab-drassit, FINE!” grumbled Hater.

“This creature-!” protested the Dalek Supreme.

“There’s no point arguing with the nerdy science types!” replied Hater. “Not if they’re gonna put their lives on the line like that for experiments! Watchdogs, bring the infected Dalek aboard and get it in a room AWAY from our Dalek friends!”

“YES, SIR!” replied the Watchdogs.

The infected Dalek was sealed in a room aboard the skullship. “All seals functioning,” said Peepers.

“Good,” replied the Doctor. “Now would someone tell me what’s going on here?!” Peepers and the single Dalek in the science lab looked at each other. “…Well?!”

“Lord Dominator is making a new breed of Daleks,” replied Peepers.

“There is only one breed of Dalek!” insisted the Dalek.

“Lord Dominator’s mutating you guys and you know it!” retorted Peepers. The Dalek backed up at that. “What’s the matter? The truth’s too much for you?!”

“This Lord Dominator…is changing the Daleks on a genetic level as well?” asked the Doctor.

“Lord Dominator conquered a Dalek reproduction plant,” explained Peepers. “As of yet, we don’t know how. The infection removes all higher brain functions. They’re reduced to mindless beasts. From what we’ve seen, the attack was recent. Here.” Peepers pulled up some computer files.

“Outsiders are not permitted to look at those files!” insisted the Dalek.

“Well, I never,” mused the Doctor. “Cell donation records. This is a first for me. And I can see that there haven’t been any incidents of mutation until three days ago.”

“And that reproduction plant is pumping out legions!” said Peepers. “Look!” Peepers pulled up the figures.

“…Five full invasion forces in just three days. That IS alarming.”

“Which makes me wonder where she’s getting the Volcanium X,” muttered Peepers.

“Volcanium X?” asked the Doctor.

“A substance found deep in planet cores,” replied the Dalek, “with properties similar to magma! It is primarily used for lava-tech!”

“Then there must be this Volcanium X stuff in the infected Dalek’s casing,” mused the Doctor.

“Possibly,” said Peepers. “We need a scan to confirm.”

“Beginning scans!” reported the Dalek. A progress bar then appeared, slowly going across the screen…then stopping.

“Oh, come on! What are you Watchdogs using, Windows NT?!” complained the Doctor. “Looks like I need to defrag the-!” The progress bar then shot forward to 100%. “…I guess it doesn’t like that.”

“Scan results on screen!” reported the Dalek.

“Aha! Knew it! There IS Volcanium X in that Dalek!” cheered Peepers.

“No, no, hang on,” replied the Doctor. “Look. The Volcanium X was introduced into it thanks to a virus. Can we get a genome map of the virus?”

“Conducting virus genome mapping!” replied the Dalek. The progress bar appeared, going faster now. “Genome mapping complete!” reported the Dalek. “Genetic similarities detected! Displaying nearest genome match!” A screen with two virus cells appeared. One looked organic, the other had Volcanium X veins running through its cell membrane.

“We need to run a mutation simulation,” mused the Doctor. She programmed a simulation of what the unaltered virus would look like if Volcanium X was introduced. The virus went through several changes until it matched the initial Volcanium X virus. “Well, that does tell us something,” said the Doctor.

“What?” asked Peepers.

“That the virus is artificial in origin,” explained the Doctor.

“Unaltered virus has been identified!” said the Dalek. “Allowing access to entry in Dalek Contagion Catalogue!” The Dalek pulled it up onscreen. The Doctor goggled as she processed the information.

“Well!” she said. “The Movellan Virus rears its ugly head! The Volcanium X must have circumvented the cure you Daleks created!”

“Erm, what IS the Mo-?” Before Peepers could finish his question, the ship rocked!

“Alert! Alert! Bridge reports that we are under attack!” warned the Dalek. The Doctor called the bridge.

“Lord Hater, what’s going on?!” she asked.

“Doctor, it’s Lurra Rus!” replied the person on the other end. “Some red and black Star Destroyer just appeared and started shooting at us!”

“Lurra Rus, does the bridge tower look like an evil face?!” asked Peepers, a nasty theory forming in his head.

“Yes, why?” asked Lurra Rus.

“Dominator!” gulped Peepers. “She’s got her ship back and is after us!”

Categories
Doctor Who: Crossings Series 4

Domination of the Daleks: Part 1

Sleeping in his room, a strange creature snored. He was a diminutive creature with only an eyeball for a head. On his nightstand was his helmet with an oversized lightning bolt protruding from the top. As he snoozed…a comms unit crackled to life with a bellowing voice shouting his name. “PEEEEPEEEERS!” The eyeball person, Commander Peepers of the Watchdogs of Lord Hater, woke up with a groan. He rubbed his eye and picked up the comms unit.

“Commander Peepers here, sir,” he grumbled.

“Peepers, we just arrived at Flurpak V and there’s no life on it!” barked his master, Lord Hater. “I need you up here.”

“No life…?” repeated Peepers. “I’m on my way!” As he put on his helmet, one would swear they heard a military chorus sing “Commander Peepers!”

Peepers arrived on the bride of the skull-shaped ship and dutifully marched up to his master, the skeleton in the red and black robes with green eyes and lightning bolts on his hood, Lord Hater, the current number 1 villain on the Galactic Villain Leaderboard. “Are we sure there’s no one down there?” asked Commander Peepers.

“That’s what scanner readouts are telling us,” replied Hater. “But that doesn’t make sense! I mean, look at the planet’s north pole!” Commander Peepers checked the readings and got a visual image of a giant pole sticking out of the planet’s north pole. Surrounding it was a factory.

“…I’d say our sensors were faulty, Sir,” remarked Peepers. “I’ll have maintenance look at them.”

“I already had them check the sensors out, Peepers,” dismissed Hater.

“Sirs!” called a Watchdog. “We’re getting a tech match concerning the factory!”

“Onscreen!” ordered Hater. The instant the tech match readings appeared, the alarms sounded with all screens displaying one single word. Peepers’ eye went wider than usual.

“Oh…Grop!” he whispered. “Sir, do you recognize that word?”

“…It…seems familiar,” muttered Hater.

“Sirs! Something’s coming out of the factory! …Backwards, it looks like.”

“Zoom in on the thing!” ordered Peepers. The screens zoomed in…and everyone gasped. Even Hater knew what that was.

“Now I remember!” he whispered. “Skaro, homeworld of the Daleks!”

“Why are they retreating from their own factory?” asked a Watchdog.

“Wait, something’s coming out in pursuit of the Daleks!” said another Watchdog. The screens displayed a creature that was black with glowing yellow lines, like it was made of lava!

“DOMINATOR!” everyone yelped.

“She’s obviously done something to set back the Daleks!” said Hater. “Peepers, get me the Dalek in charge! They want a method to take that thing down, they’ll need our help!”

“Sir, you can’t be serious!” protested Peepers. “These are DALEKS we’re talking about!”

“My decision’s been made, Peepers! Open a channel to the Daleks!” The comms officer thought his master was clearly nuttier than usual, but there was nothing for it.

“Channel open to Dalek Supreme, Sir,” he said.

“Dalek Supreme, this is Lord Hater!” A black Dalek with gold trim then appeared on the screen.

“I have no time to talk with you, Lord Hater!” it barked.

“You’re facing an enemy we faced before!” replied Hater. “You want to take Lord Dominator down, yeah?!”

“…We will discuss terms on your ship!” decided the Dalek Supreme.

On another planet, the TARDIS arrived in a dark, spooky castle. Lurra Rus stepped out first and looked around. “What is this, an amusement park ride?” she asked. Amy then poked her head out.

“Doctor, did you get off track again?” she asked.

“I assure you, I didn’t,” replied the Doctor as she stepped out of the TARDIS. “There was a network of time corridors, almost like a net. If we drifted into one of them, we would have been caught in one and couldn’t break free.”

“Didn’t the Cybermen use a time corridor?” asked Amy. “In Crystal Tokyo?”

“That was thanks to them scavenging from a race that’s infamous with the usage of time corridors,” reminded the Doctor. “No, this was straight from-.”

“You sure you heard it over here?” asked another woman’s voice.

“Positive, Syl!” replied a country man’s voice.

“I know that voice,” remarked the Doctor.

“I find it hard to believe,” rumbled a third voice, “that you actually found a TARDIS. The Time Lords vanished with the Daleks, remember?” Four people rounded a corner. One looked like the classic fairytale princess complete with blonde hair and a huge, pink dress. The second looked like a terrifying dragon with a crown on his head. The third looked like some alien dinosaur with a bridle and saddle. The last could only be described as a furry orange spoon with arms, legs, and a green hat with a star on the front. The Doctor’s eyes lit up.

“AMBLER!” she called.

“Ambler?” asked the dino. “Who’s Ambler?”

“I used to be Ambler before I came to this galaxy, Syl,” replied the furry spoon. “And if I’m guessing right, this lady’s the Doctor!”

“That’s right!” confirmed the Doctor. “So, you’re not Ambler these days? What are you called now?”

“Just call me Wander!” answered the furry spoon. “The Zbornak’s called Sylvia.”

“Hey,” replied the alien dino.

“And those are King Draykor and his wife, Princess Demurra!”

“Hello,” greeted the princess.

“Draykor and Demurra!” chuckled the Doctor. “I had heard about your plight with Sir Brad Starlight. …And I thought you had triplets.”

“My father’s babysitting them,” replied the dragon, King Draykor. “Both our parents are CRAZY about the kids, even sharing a day to do that.”

“Ah, the in-laws get along, hm?” mused the Doctor. “Well, I’m the Doctor. That’s Amy Rose.”

“Hello!” called Amy.

“And that’s Lurra Rus.”

“Pleased to meet you,” greeted Lurra Rus.

“What brings you to our planet, Doctor?” asked Demurra.

“Well, someone’s set up a series of time corridors like a net,” replied the Doctor. “And I fear it might be my greatest enemies.”

“Oh no!” complained Amy. “Don’t say it!”

“Say what?” asked Sylvia.

“What she’s about to say,” muttered Amy.

“The Daleks,” answered the Doctor.

“The Daleks?” asked Draykor. “They haven’t been sighted in this galaxy since most of recorded history.”

“Well, they may be here now,” replied the Doctor. Just then, a knight approached the group.

“Your Majesties!” he panted. “Dreadful news! Lord Hater’s skull ship has been spotted coming here!”

“What?!” yelped Draykor. “Prepare all defenses!”

“Lord Hater’s coming?!” asked Wander with childish glee.

“Erm, should I-?” asked the Doctor.

“Wander’s just excited that he gets another chance to show Hater a better path,” explained Sylvia. “He did it before on numerous occasions. That’s why Hater’s so focused on beating him senseless and why I still have to drag his furry butt out of so many sticky situations.”

“I suppose we’d better meet Lord Hater,” remarked Amy.

“And see if he’s connected to the Daleks at all,” mused Lurra Rus.

“The coincidence IS rather stark, isn’t it?” agreed the Doctor.

Outside the castle, Lord Hater’s ship landed. To put it bluntly, it’s Lord Hater’s head with hot-rod decorations, complete with large exhaust pipes. The ship opened its mouth and unfurled a tongue. The Watchdogs then marched out of the ship, chanting “HATE’S GREAT! BEST VILLAIN!” over and over. Lord Hater and Commander Peepers arrived. “Attention, King Draykor!” Lord Hater called. “Come out with your hands above your head and all weapons at the door! Your planet-!”

“HEY, HATEY-HATEY-BO-BATEY!” called Wander.

“YOU!” shouted Hater. “What are YOU doing here, Wander!? Can’t you see I’m trying to conquer this-?!” Hater stopped as he recalled something. “…Wait a minute, what am I saying? I mean, good to see you again, Wander!”

“Sir, you can’t be serious?!” complained Peepers.

“Well, he helped me defeat Lord Dominator, so why not bring him along with the Doctor?!” demanded Hater. Peepers raised his finger to argue…then realized that his master, in his own, deluded way, was right.

“Fair enough, Sir,” he said.

“Why are y’all talking about Lord Dominator?” asked Wander.

“She’s involved in this new mess popping up!” replied Hater. “And we need the Doctor here! So if she would help our Dalek friends, that would be-!”

“Well, well, well!” called the Doctor. “So the Hater Empire has sold out to the Daleks. You’re seriously asking me to help them? You don’t know me very well.”

“We know you better than you think, Doctor!” replied Peepers. “There’s no way your TARDIS can get you out of this situation, not with the Daleks’ time corridor net ready to catapult you to wherever they want you!”

“I knew it!” hissed the Doctor. “I don’t deny the fact that trying to escape would ensnare me like a fly in a spiderweb. So why don’t you all tell me the situation that requires me and Wander from right there at your leisure? You seem to be so sure of your argument.”

“Time’s against us, Doctor!” insisted Peepers. “We’re ordering you to step onto the skullship and-!”

“That is not how you force the Doctor to cooperate!” barked the Dalek Supreme as it and its retinue of Daleks glided down the tongue with a cadre of prisoners.

“Hey! Those are from my Torture Room!” protested Hater.

“Doctor!” called the Dalek Supreme. “You will exit the castle and bring Wander aboard the skullship or we will exterminate these prisoners one at a time every five rels!”