Categories
Doctor Who: Crossings Series 7

The Monster’s Ghosts: Part 4

The Controller led the Doctor and her group to a cave as Godzilla fought Ghost Godzilla. Inside it were piles of alien technology. The Doctor gasped softly. “This was all I could salvage from my ship,” explained the Controller.

“It’s…perfect!” whispered the Doctor.

“Doctor, what are you planning?” asked Egon.

“What good will a Class A hyperdrive,” quizzed Tysar, “and a subspace relay do for us?”

“Dr. Spengler,” said the Doctor, “I need the plans for your proton packs and the traps.”

“Hold on, Doc,” interjected Peter, “that’s proprietary secrets!”

“Peter, it’s the end of the world we’re talking about here!” protested Winston.

“He’s right,” said Egon as he pulled papers out of his pocket and handed them to the Doctor. She checked them over quickly, then looked around at the technology on display.

“…Right,” she declared. “Dr. Spengler, you, Tysar, Sty, and the Controller help me out in getting the parts we need for a little lash-up. Winston, Milla, you keep watch over Ben and Albedo’s fight. Peter, you tell us how Godzilla’s faring against Ghost Godzilla. …I’m going to need to do some calculations in my head. …Actually, have you got paper, Controller?”

“We Xiliens,” bragged the Controller, “are a paperless organization, Time Lord. We pride ourselves on-.”

“Oh, do shut up! Now’s not the time!” hissed the Doctor. She then grabbed the Controller’s arm, rolled up the sleeve, and wrote some numbers down on her skin.

“HEY!” protested the Controller.

“Once I set up the equations,” directed the Doctor, “feed these figures into the computer. They’ll work out what power we can achieve and whether or not it will be enough to ensnare Ghost Godzilla.”

“And if it isn’t?” asked Sty.

“The technology here can also be used for boosting equipment,” replied the Doctor. Everyone then got to work.


Outside, Humungousaur rolled out of the way of Negative Ultimate Humungousaur’s shots. “Give it up, Tennyson!” bellowed Negative Ultimate Humungousaur. “You cannot defeat me!”

“Where have I heard THAT before?” snarked Humungousaur. He then looked at the gauntlet. “All right, Azmuth,” he said, “how do YOU see what Ultimate Humungousaur looks like?” He then slapped on the gauntlet’s Omnitrix symbol. A light then surrounded Humungousaur. His mouth became a beak, a pair of long horns grew above his eyes and a horn grew on his nose, and stegosaur-plates grew from his back as he grew to Negative Ultimate Humungousaur’s size. He then grew a frill behind his head and his tail gained the same spikes one would see on a Stegosaurus. The light faded as he gained a toga. “ULTIMATE HUMUNGOUSAUR!” he shouted. Negative Ultimate Humungousaur laughed.

“So Azmuth thinks that the Vaxasaurians will evolve into an herbivorous species through millions of years of best-case scenarios?!” he mocked. “How about calling that form Pathetic Humungousaur?!” He opened fire and the missiles raced towards Ultimate Humungousaur…then the horn on Ultimate Humungousaur’s nose glowed and he raised his hands. The missiles stopped in their tracks! Negative Ultimate Humungousaur gasped and Ultimate Humungousaur smiled at the development.

“The Moothronians are vegetarians,” said Ultimate Humungousaur, “and look how war-like THEY are!” He thrust his hands forward and the missiles changed direction and hit Negative Ultimate Humungousaur. The worse-case evolved Vaxasaurian stumbled and shook his head, then Ultimate Humungousaur rushed at him, the impact feeling like a freight train to Negative Ultimate Humungousaur. Ultimate Humungousaur didn’t stop, his path plowed Negative Ultimate Humungousaur into several rock formations. Ultimate Humungousaur then jerked his head to the side, tossing Negative Ultimate Humungousaur aside. Negative Ultimate Humungousaur groaned and the Ultimatrix beeped for a bit until he turned back into Albedo. Albedo was unconscious for a while. Ultimate Humungousaur towered over Albedo, then he performed a victory dance. “Oh yeah!” he said. “It’s scary being this good!” The earth then shook, snapping Ultimate Humungousaur out of his celebration and reminding him of the two Godzillas fighting. “Oh, yeah. Giant lizard fight.” He picked up Albedo and rushed to the cave as the Doctor and her friends were working on the machine. “Hey, Doc!” he called. “You might wanna hurry! Godzilla’s not looking too hot!”

“Nearly there!” replied the Doctor. She then screwed in one last panel. “Right! Help me out here!” Everyone that was conscious helped the Doctor move some sort of oversized version of the Ghostbusters’ neutrino wands attached to a large control mechanism. Milla and Ultimate Humungousaur used their psychic powers to help set the machine up outside.

“Feeding the figures in,” called the Controller as she typed in what the Doctor wrote on her arm.

“Powering up,” reported the Doctor.

“…We DO need the boosters!” called Egon.

“Feeding in the boosters,” said Tysar as she and Sty flicked switches.

“Power levels achieved!” reported Ray. “We gotta aim that thing now!”

“Not while Godzilla’s still there!” argued Tysar.

“Let me try,” said Ultimate Humungousaur. “HEY! BIG GUY! GET OUT OF THE WAY!” Godzilla shoved Ghost Godzilla back and looked down to see Ultimate Humungousaur gesturing for him to get out of the way. Godzilla dove out of the way as the device was aimed at Ghost Godzilla.

“NOW!” called the Doctor. The Ghostbusters activated the machine and a large proton stream erupted from the device’s barrel, ensnaring the spectral Godzilla. The ghostly kaiju thrashed, then the device deployed another machine that opened and bathed Ghost Godzilla in light. The Ghostbusters switched off the stream and Ghost Godzilla was sucked into the new machine! The new machine closed once Ghost Godzilla was inside it and it sparked a bit…then beeped. No one dared to breathe for a few seconds, then the Doctor checked the readings. She smiled.

“Ghost Godzilla is safely contained,” she reported. “UNIT and the Plumbers will transport the giant trap to the Firehouse of this time.” The Ghostbusters then grinned at one another.

“Giant in the box!” began Peter.

“Ready to go!” continued Ray.

“We be fast,” Egon went on.

“And he be slow!” finished Winston. The Omnitrix then beeped and Ultimate Humungousaur shrank back into Humungousaur, then shrank back into Ben.

“So that’s it?” asked Ben.

“That’s it, kiddo!” replied Peter. “We’re the best, we’re the bad, we’re the beautiful, we’re the only…Ghostbusters!”

“I presume this means-?” asked the Controller. Sty then decked the Xilien with enough force to knock her unconscious.

“…I don’t think that was entirely necessary,” remarked the Doctor.

“No, but it WAS therapeutic,” replied Sty.


UNIT and the Plumbers arrived and transported the trap to the Firehouse in New York and arrested Albedo and the Xilien Controller. Meanwhile, Dr. Sato wished everyone farewell. “Come visit us!” she said.

“We will, though the order might be confusing,” remarked the Doctor as she bundled the Ghostbusters and Milla into the TARDIS. Her companions followed suit and the Doctor shut the doors, then pulled the take-off lever. “Now,” she said to the Ghostbusters and the Psychonaut, “the TARDIS has already calculated where you all came from, so we’ll start with the Ghostbusters first.”

“Are you sure I can’t get any lotto numbers?” asked Peter.

“NO!” insisted his coworkers.

“Just saying, we could-.” Ray, Egon, and Winston clapped their hands over his mouth. Peter protested at that, but all that came out were mumbles.

“Doctor, send us back, please!” begged Egon.

“Farewell!” called the Doctor as she sent the Ghostbusters back. Once they faded, Milla sighed in relief.

“I think it’s time I returned home, Darling,” she said.

“Agreed,” said the Doctor. “Raz still needs your guidance.” She then set the coordinates for Milla. “All right! Adios!”

“Adios!” replied Milla as she faded. Soon, it was just the Doctor, Tysar, and Sty.

“…Is this your life?” Sty asked the Doctor.

“As of now, yes,” replied the Doctor.

“How have you not broken from the stress?!”

“…I have,” answered the Doctor. “That’s a story for another time, though. Put simply, my fourteenth incarnation is getting some much needed therapy with Donna Noble and her family.”

“…Even you need mental help?” asked Tysar.

“Stress accumulates and can break even Time Lords,” replied the Doctor. “For a while, I kept running away, not daring to look back because it would kill me. …But now, I’m in a much better place, mentally. If the Grouping happened earlier, I would have certainly died from all the mental agony. …Speaking of which, in all that chaos, we didn’t check to see where Omega vanished to.” The Doctor ran a few readings, then spotted something. “Aha! Got it! …Inkadia!”

“Again?” asked Tysar.

“Not the Squid Kid place!” protested Sty. “That whole thing, running from the Judoon, was embarrassing for the Empire!”

“I’m sorry to say that we have to go there. We’ve got three people from three different time-zones making a beeline there.” The Doctor then set course for Inkadia, home of the Inklings and the Octarians.

Categories
Doctor Who: Crossings Series 7

The Monster’s Ghosts: Part 3

While Albedo was running, the Doctor, the Ghostbusters, and Tysar arrived at the northern shores of the island. Right now, two women were dueling. One of them was using energy blasts, the other was using psi blasts! The Doctor blinked in surprise. “The Xilien Controller?!” she yelped.

“Everyone, get ba-!” yelped the other woman. The Xilien Controller then fired an energy blast and knocked the other woman out.

“…Thank you for that opportunity, Time Lord,” she said. “You ARE the same Time Lord that foiled my original plans on this island, yes?”

“That’s me, all right,” confirmed the Doctor. “Now, perhaps an explanation as to how you survived is in order.”

“Oh?” asked the Controller.

“If I recall correctly, Godzilla fired his atomic breath at your ship and Gigan.”

“Your recollection is correct. Gigan and my ship fell into the ocean, killing the rest of my crew, but I survived. I managed to swim to the surface and, when I recovered, it was clear I was marooned on Monster Island with no functional or effective means of communication. In time, I practiced what my family usually did in secret, sorcery! After a while, my mother arrived, explaining that she was not really a Xilien, but an Anodite.”

“An Anodite? Ben’s part Anodite if I recall.”

“After more practice with her, I regained my Xilien form…and destroyed her!”

“Your own mother?!” asked the Doctor, horrified.

“She lied about her heritage! Her power is now mine! …Still, the sorcery she taught me was enough to plot my revenge. You, William, Godzilla, you will all know what true terror is!”

“So where does Albedo fit into this?” asked the Doctor.

“The former Galvan needed facilities to complete his Ultimatrix, I gave him the means to do so,” replied the Controller. “He should be dealing with that Tennyson character.”

“And the woman you’re fighting?”

“She just appeared out of nowhere, so I retaliated. …I just hadn’t expected psychic powers.”

“Yeah, well, that’s the Psychonauts for you,” remarked the Doctor. The Controller then realized something and looked to see that the woman had vanished!

“HEY!” she protested. Then she got hit by another psi-blast. The woman had recovered and was revealed to be an attractive woman with long hair and a slight psychedelic outfit.

“There ARE more constructive ways to vent your frustrations, darling,” said the woman, her Brazilian accent coming out.

“Agent Milla Vodello,” greeted the Doctor. “The Mental Minx!”

“And you’re the same Doctor that helped take care of a psychic emergency at the Motherlobe, yes?” asked Milla. “Razputin told me you changed your face after he came back from that adventure of his.”

“Doctor, there’s something wrong here!” warned Egon. “The PKE readings are spiking bad!”

“Controller, what did you do?!” demanded the Doctor.

“Did you know that those that died on this island chain during this planet’s second world war believe that the rest of the human race forgot the horrors of that conflict?” smirked the Controller. “It wasn’t that hard to convince them to go on a rampage.” Pale, cold lights then swirled around the place!


Back in his cave, Godzilla slowly woke up. He stretched as he stood up…then realized something was off. …He then heard something. It was outside his cave and…the trees were bending as if a wind was making them bend that way. Godzilla poked his head out of the cave and noticed that the wind was gathering in one spot. He followed the direction the trees were bending in and saw a pale blue light on the island’s northern shore. The light source was as big as him…and seemed to be dying down as it formed a shape. The light fully faded…to reveal that the shape was his own! Upon closer inspection, Godzilla noticed that his doppelganger had white claws and white orbs for eyes. The other Godzilla had an unsettling aura and the eyes enhanced it. Still, unsettling did not mean Godzilla was afraid. He gave off a warning roar for his twin to leave his island. The other Godzilla responded by slamming his tail in the water, causing a wave! Godzilla adopted a defensive stance and roared a challenge roar. His opponent’s acceptance roar was the same as his own!


“A few people around the planet called him Ghost Godzilla,” explained the Xilien Controller.

“You utter fool!” protested the Doctor. “You robbed those people of their rest! Imprisoned them in the shape of a living warning AGAINST atomic warfare!”

“If they want out, they’ll have to obey-!” The wave Ghost Godzilla generated knocked everyone further inland. Milla was clutching her head in pain.

“Such…such rage!” she strained. “…Focused…on…enslaver!”

“What?!” protested the Controller. “IMPOSSIBLE! I RAISED GHOST GODZILLA! HE WILL OBEY ME!”

“You intellectual dwarf!” came a child’s voice as Albedo arrived. “This was NOT what you promised! Even I wouldn’t fiddle with necromancy on that scale! …Then again, I don’t fiddle around with magic anyways.”

“Looks like all the noise attracted the real Godzilla,” remarked Ray. Just then, Sty, Dr. Sato, and Wildmutt arrived. Wildmutt recoiled in terror before slapping the Omnitrix dial and returning to Ben.

“What just happened?!” protested Ben.

“Why not ask the maker of our predicament?!” replied Albedo as he pointed at the Xilien Controller.

“Ungrateful-! I made that thing and-!” she spluttered.

“…The amateur necromancer’s gone bye-bye, Egon,” said Peter. “What’s the plan?”

“Sorry, Peter,” replied Egon. “I’m terrified beyond the capacity of rational thought.”

“You’ve faced Gozer before,” remarked the Doctor.

“We had to cross the streams from our proton packs,” replied Winston.

“…Remind me how bad that is, Dr. Spengler,” said the Doctor.

“Try to imagine all life as you know it stopping instantaneously, and every molecule in your body exploding at the speed of light,” explained Egon.

“…You just described total protonic reversal,” remarked the Doctor.

“…That sounds bad,” said Ben.

“It’s worse than it sounds,” replied the Doctor. “But we need a big enough stream to contain Ghost Godzilla!”

“…Fine, fine, you can use the tech I scavenged,” sighed the Controller.

“What?! You promised that technology to me!” protested Albedo.

“Only so you could get the parts needed to rebuild your Ultimatrix,” replied the Controller. “Now the excess can be used to make whatever machine the Doctor has planned.”

“That intellectual dwarf couldn’t hold a candle to my own intellect!”

“…This is the first time anyone’s actually accused me of being stupid,” remarked the Doctor. “In any event, needs of the many and all that. Controller, where is this tech stashed?”

“This way!” replied the Controller. She was about to lead the way, but a red light blocked her way and a Vaxasaurian with red eyes glowered over them.

“Albedo, use your head!” complained Peter.

“I AM using my head, you backwards simian!” snarled Albedo as Negative Humungousaur. “That technology is mine!”

“Albedo, come on!” complained Ben as his hand activated the selection dial hologram. “We’ve got a world to save!”

“No! For once, you are going to die along with this miserable planet!” replied Negative Humungousaur. Ben then slammed his hand down on the Omnitrix and became…

“HUMUNGOUSAUR!” he shouted. And he was.

“Pah!” scoffed Negative Humungousaur. “We’ve been here before!” He slapped on the Ultimatrix dial and grew, his hands growing claws, a metal helmet forming around his head, and an ankylosaur style backside appearing. He was now Negative Ultimate Humungousaur. “And last time I checked, a Vaxasaurian can’t compete against an Ultimate Vaxasaurian!” His hands then turned into four-barreled missile launchers! He fired, prompting Humungousaur to grow to his maximum height and shield the others with his own body. It was still painful for him, though.

“We REALLY don’t have time for this!” snarled the Controller. She then pulled a device out of her coat’s pocket. It looked like some sort of green gauntlet with the Omnitrix symbol on the back of the hand. The glove’s symbol then fired a beam of light at the Omnitrix symbol on Humungousaur’s chest.

“Hey! What-?!” spluttered Humungousaur.

“Synchronization complete,” said the Omnitrix. The light then switched off abruptly and the glove changed in size to fit Humungousaur’s left hand.

“Okay, so it’s meant to be linked to the Omnitrix,” muttered the Vaxasaurian. “What is it?”

“Device is officially classified as an Evolutionary Gauntlet,” replied the Omnitrix. “It will subject the DNA to evolutionary scenarios to change the form into what the species will perhaps look like in millions of years.”

“Hang on, you’re saying that this glove here is an Ultimatrix?” asked Humungousaur. “I thought Azmuth said that the evolutionary function is just begging for trouble.”

“Wait, Ben,” said the Doctor, “didn’t you say that Albedo’s version puts the DNA through millions of years of worse-case scenarios?” Humungousaur blinked, then his eyes widened.

“Then this thing…does the opposite?” he asked. He then put it on his left hand. “How do I use this thing anyways?”

“You won’t get the chance!” called Negative Ultimate Humungousaur as he opened fire again.

“RUN!” shouted Humungousaur. The Doctor and her group didn’t need telling twice.

Categories
Doctor Who: Crossings Series 7

The Monster’s Ghosts: Part 2

Everyone gathered at the Monster Island base and things were explained. “Not exactly how I wanted to time travel,” remarked Peter.

“This is incredible!” said Ray. “The amount of energy needed to send someone through time-!”

“It’s dangerous,” replied Egon. “Doctor, you said we’re in the future?”

“2026,” confirmed the Doctor.

“Then how can we be assured that we won’t accidentally bring something from this time back to the 1980’s?”

“The fact that you’re asking says you know already but just want confirmation. Let’s just say the Time Lords have set a law upon themselves that history cannot be changed in any way, otherwise it would cause damage to all of time and space.”

“…So no asking for lottery numbers,” grumbled Peter.

“Peter, that thing’s a scam anyways,” retorted Winston.

“Now, obviously you gentlemen need to go back to your proper time,” said the Doctor, “but we need to find the last Grouping Victim. They came from 2012, I know that much.”

“Then we gotta find them before Albedo does,” said Ben. The Doctor blinked.

“Who’s Albedo?” she asked.

“That’s what I wanted to tell you,” explained Dr. Sato. “Galvan Mark II told us that one of its renegades, a former Galvan scientist called Albedo, escaped incarceration and rebuilt something called the Ultimatrix.”

“Ultimatrix?” asked the Doctor. “Sounds like a knock-off of the Omnitrix.”

“The Omnitrix is a myth,” scoffed Sty.

“No it’s not,” said Ben as he showed off his watch. “This thing is why I was Ghostfreak when the Ghostbusters were shooting at me.” Sty blinked in surprise. “And to answer your question, Doctor, it is. Though Albedo had an Omnitrix originally.”

“Um…AN Omnitrix?” asked the Doctor. “I thought Azmuth only made one and you had the prototype for a while until Azmuth gave you the final product.”

“He did, but Albedo made another one, not realizing my own DNA would be the default.”

“Well, that makes sense. I mean, you ARE the bearer of the Omnitrix.”

“So what happened to make Albedo become an enemy of yours?” asked Tysar.

“Well, after he made his Omnitrix, he became stuck looking like me,” replied Ben. “We fought, then he turned into an albino version of me and lost his Omnitrix, then he created something called the Ultimatrix that could turn someone into aliens, but also had an evolutionary function, putting the DNA through millions of years of worst-case scenario situations.”

“That’s just begging for trouble,” said the Doctor. “Besides, if you want to make an evolutionary device, why not put the DNA through millions of years of best-case scenarios?”

“Well, I took the Ultimatrix and the transformations just felt wrong,” continued Ben, “so he was still stuck looking like me. After that, he made a device that let him change his DNA at will, but my DNA was still the default. Then he created a stabilizer and added an evolutionary function to that, effectively recreating the Ultimatrix. After a fight, he then was stuck looking like an albino 11-year-old me, then he lost his Ultimatrix and was stuck looking like me forever.”

“So he blames you for his condition?” guessed the Doctor.

“And he’s probably trying to rebuild the Ultimatrix,” replied Ben.

“Right, well, we’d better take care of him before-.” The alarms interrupted the Doctor’s declaration. “What the-?!”

“Intruder alert!” realized Dr. Sato. “Someone just broke into the base!”

“Can we get footage?!” asked Ben.

“One second!” Dr. Sato then pulled up the security footage to see a blue-furred primate with four arms, two legs, three fingers on each hand, three toes on each foot, two pairs of black orbs for eyes with a red tint, and a tail with stripes near the tip. Ben and the Doctor saw the red Omnitrix symbol.

“That must be Albedo,” guessed the Doctor. “But why an Arachnachimp?”

“Probably needs Spidermonkey’s agility to dodge the soldiers,” replied Ben.

“…Spidermonkey’s a bit on the nose, don’t you think?” snarked the Doctor.

“Oh, come on! Spidermonkey fits!”

“Activating Arachnachimp Transformation,” said the Omnitrix.

“What?! WAIT! I DIDN’T SAY TO TURN ME INTO-!” protested Ben. Too late. A green light surrounded him and he became an Arachnachimp. “…Spidermonkey!” grumbled Ben, now Spidermonkey. Unlike Albedo, his eyes and Omnitrix stayed green.

“Well, looks like we have the means to counter Albedo,” said Sty.

“Hold on a minute,” said Egon as he checked his PKE meter. “There’s something hot going on at the island’s northern shores, just on the other side of Godzilla’s cave.”

“Drat, two problems at once,” muttered the Doctor. “Right, we’ll just need to split up. Sty, you’re with Ben and Dr. Sato. Tysar, you go with me and the Ghostbusters to the north.”

“What if it’s big?” asked Spidermonkey.

“Godzilla’s not far,” replied the Doctor. “He’ll be grumpy, but he’ll help. Besides, you know Albedo better than any of us.”

“All right, fine,” muttered Spidermonkey.

“…And there’s one other thing,” said the Doctor. She then whispered in Spidermonkey’s ear. A look of horror flashed across his face as he looked at Sty. Sty guessed why Spidermonkey had that look.

“…I promise, Doctor,” said Spidermonkey. He then turned to Sty and Dr. Sato. “Come on, you two! Let’s go stop Albedo!”


Albedo as Negative Spidermonkey was causing chaos for the soldiers shooting at him. He fired webs from his tail and decked the soldiers with all four of his arms. “HEY! ALBEDO!” came another voice.

“Tennyson!” snarled Negative Spidermonkey. He turned to see Spidermonkey in a tree branch. “So, the unworthy bearer of the Omnitrix challenges me!”

“I dunno,” replied Spidermonkey, “I’m still doing a better job with this thing than you! How did you escape, anyways?”

“Believe me, I had numerous plans of escape. …Though I was forced to resort to plan 27, faking illness.”

“No way would Azmuth fall for that!”

“For all his genius,” retorted Negative Spidermonkey, “he doesn’t fully study the life-forms he’s catalogued. Taking advantage of his ignorance of pre-adolescent human biology was a simple matter!”

“Then how did you get here?” asked Spidermonkey. “I mean, if you’re supposed to be stuck as a kid-.”

“I took the parts needed to make an Omnitrix,” replied Negative Spidermonkey. “But I needed transport off, as I’m sure your feeble mind can guess! I managed to sneak into a Plumber cargo container and hide there for the trip to Earth. Not exactly ideal as I risked making noise when getting food, but it served its purpose. I then found my way from the Plumber base to this island as I heard there was Xilien tech to be scavenged!”

“…And a Xilien is…?” asked Spidermonkey.

“Be patient. You may see my Xilien partner. …Or maybe not! In any event, the isolation was all I needed to recreate the Ultimatrix! Once I kill you, I’ll take your Omnitrix and cure myself of the disgusting human form!” Negative Spidermonkey then slapped the symbol on his chest and he grew into a six-armed gorilla with pale-purple skin, yellow spider fangs on each side of his mouth, a split in the middle of the lower jaw, and three pairs of red eyes.

“…And that’s Ultimate Spidermonkey,” remarked Spidermonkey. “Hey, as long as you’re still willing to talk, how about you answer one question.”

“Speak!” replied Negative Ultimate Spidermonkey.

“How come, when I had the original Ultimatrix, my Ultimate Spidermonkey was just a normal gorilla with retractable spider legs at the waist?!” Negative Ultimate Spidermonkey blinked.

“…That WOULD explain a flaw in the simulations of the original Ultimatrix,” he muttered.

“HA! Azmuth was right! The original Ultimatrix was just pathetic workmanship! No wonder it always felt weird every time I went Ultimate!” Spidermonkey’s cackling made Negative Ultimate Spidermonkey snarl.

“It was still a vast improvement over the original!” he declared. “As my own is superior to the current Omnitrix!” His lower jaw split and he spat out a giant web. Spidermonkey grabbed Sty and Dr. Sato and leapt into the branches.

“One spider against another, then!” declared Sty as she activated her PAK’s legs.

“Wait, you guys have robot legs?!” yelped Spidermonkey. Sty leapt of the branch and landed on Negative Ultimate Spidermonkey’s back.

“GET OFF!” roared Negative Ultimate Spidermonkey. Sty leapt off and Negative Ultimate Spidermonkey tried to swat her. Spidermonkey took the opportunity to shoot webbing from his tail right at Negative Ultimate Spidermonkey’s face. Negative Ultimate Spidermonkey swung wildly and tried to get the beastly stuff out of his eyes. Spidermonkey and Sty stood their ground as Negative Ultimate Spidermonkey slapped the Ultimatrix Dial on his chest. He then turned into an orange-furred creature with no eyes, three gills on each side of its neck, and long, thick arms.

“And now he’s Wildmutt,” said Spidermonkey.

“I’d hardly call a Vulpimancer a mutt,” remarked Sty. Spidermonkey slapped the Omnitrix Dial on his chest and turned into Wildmutt. Negative Wildmutt grinned before he slapped the Ultimatrix Dial. His fur then turned maroon, he grew a long tail with a stinger, dorsal spikes on his back, and sharper claws.

“So what did you call this form, Tennyson? Ultimate Wildmutt?” asked Negative Ultimate Wildmutt. Wildmutt snarled and growled. “…You’re lucky I could still understand you, at least, as much as I can understand human babble!” Negative Ultimate Wildmutt roared and charged at Wildmutt. The two wrestled and tried to bite one another. Sty tried to sneak around, but Negative Ultimate Wildmutt caught her and slammed her to the ground. “Did you seriously try to sneak up on me, you pathetic Irken?! My senses are heightened and-!” Wildmutt then slammed his fist right into the Ultimatrix Dial and turned Negative Ultimate Wildmutt back into Albedo. Albedo shook his head to clear the dizziness. “…Clearly, I need to reinforce the interface!” he grumbled. He then took off into the forest!

“HEY! COME BACK HERE!” shouted Sty. Wildmutt charged after Albedo. “Come on!” Sty grabbed Dr. Sato and followed Ben.

“H-How can-?!” stammered Dr. Sato.

“Vulpimancers perceive the world through their other senses,” explained Sty, “giving them a 360-degree awareness of their surroundings. Ben’s on the trail now!”

Categories
Doctor Who: Crossings Series 7

The Monster’s Ghosts: Part 1

The Doctor continued checking readings on the console. “…Five? …Wait a minute, it’s two chronal surges…ah! One of them took a group of four! 19…88! And the other…2012! Perfect! Now to find out who they all are! …And see if there’s a trace of Omega to follow.”

“Doctor?” asked Tysar as she and Sty entered the console room. Sty looked like she was still processing how big the TARDIS could get.

“Just double-checking the readings,” replied the Doctor. She then caught sight of a reading. “…Sty, your PAK…”

“What about it?” asked Sty.

“You’ve limited it to defensive capabilities, I see,” explained the Doctor.

“Guns didn’t exactly save Irk, so what’s the point?” asked Sty.

“…Fair enough. I personally don’t like guns anyway. In any event, we’re about to approach our destination.”


In a secluded part of an island, an 11-year-old boy was working on something. This boy…did not have the usual human features. Oh, he had the human body type, but he had natural eyebags, red eyes, white hair, and pale skin. This wasn’t a normal albino human. No, this was someone with actual sinister intentions. He slipped a device onto the back of his hand, then turned a black dial with a red hourglass on the device which activated a hologram of another life-form. He turned the dial again and another life-form appeared. The boy grinned. “Excellent!” he praised himself. “After being stuck on Galvan for so long, I’ve finally recreated the Omnitrix! No, once again, I’ve exceeded it!” The boy then looked himself over. “…Now if only it would restore me to my proper Galvan state-!”

“Trouble?” asked a voice. It sounded like a woman with vengeance on her mind and barely trying to hide it.

“…Something like that,” replied the boy. “My Ultimatrix is still synced to the original Omnitrix. The Galvan form is still a part of a mere playlist.”

“Then you’re back at square one,” said the woman as she stepped out of the shadows, revealing her burn scars underneath her leather trenchcoat.

“Only until I get my hands on the Omnitrix,” corrected the boy. “I can use it to reset my Ultimatrix, then the human form will be a mere playlist setting.”

“You speak as though that’s a simple task. Admit it, Albedo, we NEED each other.” The boy, the former Galvan scientist known as Albedo, growled.

“No, Controller! I need the Omnitrix, and you Xiliens WANT it. I suffered from an alliance like that with Vilgax before!”

“I DON’T want the Omnitrix!” snarled the woman, the Xilien Controller. “What use would that be in a war?! I want Monster Zero One’s head on a pike! And I want revenge on that Doctor!”

“…Doctor?” asked Albedo.

“A Time Lord. Travels in a blue box!” explained the Xilien Controller. Albedo then recalled something. …Back on Galvan, Azmuth DID work with someone that traveled in a blue box. He then pondered if Time Lord DNA was on any active playlists. He checked his Ultimatrix…and saw it!

“So that doctor IS a Time Lord!” he chuckled to himself. “It seems our interests align, Controller.”


In an extinct volcano, there was a huge cave. In that cave resides a huge creature. The creature is usually described as a bipedal lizard with charcoal gray scales, oak-leaf dorsal plates, and sharp teeth and talons. Right now…the creature was sleeping. His snores shook the cave. Then…he heard a noise. The creature slowly opened his amber eyes to see something fade into existence. It was a blue box…and oddly familiar. The doors of the box opened and out stepped the Doctor, Tysar, and Sty. “Let’s see, we’ll need to start wiiiiiHELLO!” The Doctor’s sudden word change was caused by looking directly at the creature. Tysar and Sty goggled as well.

“…Kaiju?!” gulped Sty. “Earth has kaiju?!”

“A wide variety of them,” confirmed the Doctor, “with this one being the King of the Monsters. His name is Godzilla.” Godzilla rumbled as he fixed his gaze on the Doctor. She seemed…yes, he remembered seeing her before. Her and that shape-shifter helped him against his clone. “Listen, Godzilla,” said the Doctor, “we’re still dealing with a mess that involves people or kaiju being taken out of time-zones and into new ones. If we could…exit your cave and investigate?” Godzilla stared a bit more…then grunted in annoyance as he shut his eyes. He was getting way too old for that nonsense. Better to let the ants deal with the mess THEY started. At least he wasn’t getting blamed for it. “You’re a diamond!” thanked the Doctor. “Come along, you two.” The group then left the cave.


Sty waited until they were a good distance away before she started shaking in terror with Tysar. “That was too close!” yelped the Irken.

“Those teeth were huge!” gulped Tysar.

“Could have landed in a better place,” muttered the Doctor. “Then again, he didn’t stomp on us. Now, let’s see…”

“Doctor?!” asked a voice. The group turned around to see a Japanese woman approaching them.

“Dr. Sato!” greeted the Doctor. “Tysar, Sty, meet Dr. Sato of UNIT’s Japanese branch!”

“Unit…unit,” muttered Sty. “…Oh! Tallest Zim once talked about UNIT when the Zygons pretty much ordered both him and Tallest Tak to wait until later to fight the Civil War!”

“That’s it!” confirmed the Doctor.

“…Don’t tell me you were there for it.”

“I played a small part in it. Now, onto business! Dr. Sato, I’m afraid my arrival on Monster Island isn’t a social call. Remember how I explained how SpaceGodzilla arrived in 2025?”

“A chronal surge, yes?” asked Dr. Sato.

“Bingo! Well, there’s two centered around here. One of them took a group from the 80’s, the other took someone from 2012.”

“We’ll take a look. Right now, though, perhaps you can settle a mystery. You see, we had recently encountered a man calling himself Omega and-.” By then, the Doctor seized Dr. Sato by the shoulders.

“Where and when did he go?!” she demanded.

“Doctor?!” gulped Dr. Sato.

“Dr. Sato, this is the same Omega that took UNIT HQ to an anti-matter universe in 1973! You must have read reports about that from the Brigadier!”

“Th-The reports said that Omega used to be a Time Lord!” confirmed Sato.

“And now he IS one again! Now where and when did he go?!”

“W-We don’t know! He left something behind that we can’t translate!”

“Lovely. We’d better find the chronal surge victims, get them home, then maybe the TARDIS translator circuits can puzzle it out! Is there still a presence on Monster Island?”

“Yes, but-!”

“Have them move my TARDIS from Godzilla’s cave! We landed there in pursuit of-!” A stream of orange light with a ribbon of blue light then whizzed over everyone’s heads, interrupting the Doctor. “…A proton stream?” asked the Doctor.

“GET AWAY FROM ME! I’M NOT A GHOST!” wailed a raspy voice. …A figure that sure looked like a ghost then flew out of the trees. It had the stereotypical ghost tail, green chains coiled around it and clasped at the neck and wrists, and a single green eye. The Doctor then saw the black circle with a green hourglass design on it.

“Ben?!” yelped the Doctor. The creature then moved its eye along one of the black lines.

“Doctor?!” rasped the ghost-creature.

“Ben Tennyson! It IS you!” cheered the Doctor. “Okay, a few questions. What are you doing here? Why are you an Ectonurite? Who was that firing that proton-?”

“OVER THERE!” called a voice. Four men then burst from the bushes, carrying large packs with rifle-like wands attached to the packs via a hose.

“Ask a silly question, get a silly answer,” sighed the Doctor. She then got between the men and the ghost creature, Ben 10 as Ghostfreak. “Gentlemen, gentlemen, believe it or not, that’s not a ghost you’re shooting at.”

“Lady, get out of the way!” protested the de-facto leader of the group.

“Dr. Venkman, if you and your fellow Ghostbusters will lower your weapons, I can explain everything.”

“The Ghostbusters?” asked Ghostfreak. “You mean they were real?”

“As real as the Omnitrix, Ben,” replied the Doctor.

“Hold on a minute, Peter,” said the Ghostbuster with the glasses. “I think there’s more to this situation than we realize.”

“Egon, you can’t be serious!” protested the one black man of the group.

“Hopefully, he’s as serious as back when we had to fight Gurast and the Sontarans, Winston,” remarked the Doctor. All four Ghostbusters goggled.

“…Madame, how do you know about that?” asked the last fellow.

“Doctor, you met these gentlemen before?” asked Sty.

“Doctor?” asked Peter Venkman. “Lady that travels through time in a blue box?”

“That same blue box is over in that cave,” replied the Doctor as she pointed out Godzilla’s cave, “but I wouldn’t go in there, not with a kaiju trying to nap in there.”

“But…HOW?!” asked Venkman.

“Remember that I’ve got alien biology?” asked the Doctor.

“I’m afraid it’s true,” said Ghostfreak. “Time Lords tend to change their face when they’re about to die.” Just then, the Omnitrix symbol beeped. “Oh, NOW you time out on me!” grumbled Ghostfreak. A green light surrounded him and he turned back into a young man with brown hair, green eyes, and what looked like a smartwatch on his left wrist. “Real funny there!” grumbled the man, Ben Tennyson. The last fellow, Ray Stanz, pulled out a PKE meter.

“Guys, the ectoplasmic reading is gone!” he said to the Ghostbusters.

“Like I was telling you, not a ghost! An alien form this watch gives me!” snapped Ben.

Categories
Doctor Who: Crossings Series 7

Hedonism’s Downfall: Part 4

The Daleks were sending death squads onto Irk’s surface. Irkens all over the planet tried to counter-attack, but the Daleks simply exterminated the Irken soldiers. All that was left was the command center. A few Martian soldiers died while trying to help the Irkens. Marvin was getting battlefield report after battlefield report. “My Queen, Irk is a lost cause!” he said. “We have to retreat!”

“…I don’t like that word, but we have no choice,” muttered Tyr’ahnee. “The Doctor said that Zim must survive. Find him and bring him aboard the ship. Order our forces to return to the ship. We are leaving.”

“At once, my Queen.”


Everything was crumbling around Zim. The Empire he once served and commanded with such zealotry was now dying around him. The screams of his soldiers and the constant casualty reports were now fading into a constant ringing noise in his head. Even the report of Gaz’s extermination was now just background noise. “…My Tallest?” he mumbled, now seeing visions of the two Tallest he once served. He then felt a hand grab his arm, snapping him out of his trance. “What in-?!”

“Zim, come on!” called Marvin.

“Unhand me! I have an empire to-!”

“Zim, we both know the Irken Empire is dead! Now come on!”

“You’re not taller than me! Let go of-!” Marvin rolled his eyes and slung Zim over his shoulder. “PUT ME DOWN!” demanded Zim.

“I’m sorry, but I’m a slave to history,” replied Marvin as he ran out with Zim. The Irkens couldn’t believe it! Someone had kidnapped the Almighty Tallest! In the middle of a war!


The Doctor and her group arrived at the TARDIS. Link wanted so desperately to swing his sword into the Daleks, but the Doctor advised against it. Ariel tried again. “Doctor, please!” begged the former mermaid.

“You know I can’t,” sighed the Doctor. “Irk is destined to die. There’s nothing we can do about it. History is on track.”

“But Doctor, can’t you save just someone?! It’s not fair!”

“Don’t you think I haven’t thought about that?!” snapped the Doctor, tired of the argument. “My own planet burned! My people were slaughtered twice over in my eyes! If I could go back in time and prevent it all, I would, but I can’t! I just can’t!”

“I’m not asking you to save every Irken! Just please!” begged Ariel. “Just save someone!” The Doctor just stared at Ariel…then a memory appeared in front of her. …She was a man at the moment. The TARDIS console room was coral themed. There was a ginger woman. Sassy, headstrong, bit loud…and she was begging the Doctor to save someone from…from Pompeii during Mt. Vesuvius’ eruption. …Donna Noble, that was her name. …Then the Doctor remembered Lobus Caecilius and his family. She remembered stretching out his hand. She remembered that…history went on with barely a feather ruffled. …She then recalled Sty, selflessly bringing the Doctor and her friends to the command center.

“…Where is she?” the Doctor muttered to herself. An Irken then passed by, gathering weapons. The Doctor grabbed the Irken. “You! Where’s Invader Sty?!”

“B-By the command center’s ruins!” replied the Irken. “But-?!”

“Everyone, in!” the Doctor ordered her friends.


Sty fired, doing what she could to push back the Daleks. All around her, the Daleks screamed their familiar battle cry of “Exterminate!” Her gun’s battery pack was then exhausted. More Daleks were coming. One of them fixed her with a stare. “You are Invader Sty!” it barked.

“That’s right!” replied Sty.

“You will be exterminated!” continued the Dalek as it aimed its gunstick. …Just then, a wind picked up and a noise filled the air.

“Alert! Alert!” warned a Dalek. “Temporal disturbance detected!”

“It is the Doctor!” realized the first Dalek. The TARDIS then appeared between Sty and the Daleks with the doors facing the Irken. The doors opened and the Doctor reached out to Sty.

“Come with me,” she directed. Sty looked all around…then reached for the Doctor’s hand!


“All weapons primed and ready!” reported the Dalek Helmsman.

“All Irken defenses destroyed!” said the Saucer Commander. “The Irkens cannot act against us!”

“Martian ship leaving Irk!” reported another Dalek.

“Pursuit of Martian ship is unnecessary!” decided the Dalek Supreme. “Order evacuation of Irk!”

“I obey!” replied the third Dalek. It passed along the orders to all Dalek Death Squads. “All Daleks returned to their ships!”

“Fire weapons!” ordered the Dalek Supreme as it shook in anticipation. “Destroy Irk!”

“I obey!” replied the Dalek Helmsman. “Firing all weapons!”


The World Smasher class saucer deployed two massive laser cannons as the other saucers began their orbital bombardments. The flagship fired and fiery cracks appeared on Irk’s surface. Just then, Irk exploded, taking all Irkens with it. The last remnant of the Irken Empire…gone in just a few minutes.


Aboard the Martian ship, Zim saw the destruction and collapsed to his knees. All of it…gone.


Sty was feeling the same feelings as Zim when she saw what happened on the TARDIS monitor. “…My world,” she mumbled. “…Destroyed.”

“…I…I’m sorry,” said the Doctor, wondering if she made a mistake. She then glanced back. “Tysar, look after Sty, will you?”

“Yes, Doctor,” replied Tysar. She sat next to the poor Irken as the Doctor worked.

“…Ariel,” said the Doctor.

“Hm?” asked Ariel.

“…In all that chaos, I had almost forgotten why I took up my title. …Like a companion before me, you held me to the mark. …Thank you.” Ariel smiled a small smile.

“…I think I need to go back home,” she said.

“I’ve got the coordinates set for you,” said the Doctor. “Goodbye, my dear.” She flicked a switch and Ariel vanished while waving goodbye.

“…I think I’ve seen enough,” said Zelda.

“Same,” agreed Link.

“Well, since you two were just seconds apart in your little vanishing acts,” replied the Doctor, “I can safely return you to the same time in Hyrule. Setting coordinates…AHA! There!”

“I just hope this doesn’t happen to me again,” said Zelda. “Once was enough.”

“True that,” agreed the Doctor. “Farewell!” She flicked a switch and the two Hylians vanished.


Back on the World Smasher Saucer, the Dalek Supreme was in communication. “Dalek Supreme in former Irken Space to Emperor on Skaro!” A Dalek with a gold sphere replacing the dome and neck section then appeared, the Emperor Dalek itself in its mobile casing!

“Report!” it commanded in a booming voice.

“Irken Homeworld destroyed! World Smasher class test run successful! Irken people now extinct!” The Dalek Supreme was twitching in what passed for happiness for Daleks.

“What of Sty?” asked the Emperor. The Dalek Supreme’s twitching stopped.

“Sty?” it asked.

“Reports coming in!” reported the Dalek that originally objected to the Doctor’s survival. “The Doctor appeared before Dalek units could exterminate Sty! She is now aboard the Doctor’s TARDIS!”

“This failure is unacceptable!” boomed the Emperor. “Who ordered the Doctor to live?!”

“The order was given by the Dalek Supreme!” replied the Dalek. “The survival of Sty has secured the Vanguard Resistance’s beginnings!”

“Correct!” agreed the Emperor. “Engage frequency 479! Apply to the Dalek Supreme! Tell it how it failed, then DESTROY IT!”

“I obey!” The Dalek sent out a frequency that jammed the Dalek Supreme’s gunstick. “The survival of Sty has caused considerable disruption of our war against the Vanguard Resistance!”

“This was a matter that was not told to me!” insisted the Dalek Supreme.

“Our orders were to exterminate all life on Irk!”

“The Irken Genocide was a fixed point in history! THE DOCTOR COULD NOT INTERFERE!” By now, the Dalek Supreme sounded panicked.

“THE RESPONSIBILITY WAS YOURS!” shrieked the Dalek ready to execute the Supreme. “YOU HAVE FAILED! THE DALEKS DO NOT ACCEPT FAILURE!” It opened fire and blew a hole into the Dalek Supreme, killing it. The Emperor watched the whole thing.

“Identify yourself!” boomed the Emperor.

“Dalek Two-Two-One-One-One-Nine-Six-Three!” replied the Supreme’s executioner.

“Dalek Two-Two-One-One-One-Nine-Six-Three, take command of the World Smasher!” ordered the Emperor. “Return to Skaro for your promotion to Dalek Supreme!”

“I obey!” replied the Dalek.


Back in the TARDIS, Sty sat in the console room as the Doctor worked to find Omega’s next stop after Irk. Tysar came in. “Well?” asked Tysar.

“…Earth,” replied the Doctor. “Omega went to a place called Monster Island. …Looks like three chronal surges are centered there. …Now, about Sty…” The Doctor headed over to the Irken. “…Sty, you’ve been through a lot,” she said. “And I know you had no choice but to come with us when you’d rather be back with your own people-.”

“Doctor, my world was torn apart!” replied Sty. “My people slaughtered!”

“I know,” soothed the Doctor. “And I see in your eyes that you want to help somehow. To do something. …Sty, we can’t go back and undo what the Daleks have done to the Irken Empire, but maybe, somehow, we can stop greater tyrants than them from ruining more worlds. …Omega was on your world and was trying to cause chaos through the Grouping. If the Grouping isn’t settled, then imagine what Omega will set his sights on next. …You don’t have to come with me though. …That goes for you too, Tysar. Omega knows I’m after him. I brought the fight to Omega, and I’ll fight him alone if need be.”

“You will not!” protested Tysar. “I have something to say to the man myself! And Doctor, I think Ariel is proof that your judgement is…a bit flawed when you’re alone.”

“…Ariel…that was…the red-headed woman, yes?” asked Sty.

“Yes,” confirmed the Doctor. “She asked me to save someone even if I couldn’t save the entire Irken race.”

“…Then I’d best make sure her pleas were not in vain,” decided Sty. “We must pursue Omega!”

“…Thank you. Both of you.” The Doctor then set the coordinates. “2026, Island off the coast of Japan, here we go!” The TARDIS then spun through the Time Vortex with purpose.

Categories
Doctor Who: Crossings Series 7

Hedonism’s Downfall: Part 3

“SHE IS AN ENEMY OF THE DALEKS!” reminded another Dalek aboard the Saucer.

“SHE MUST BE EXTERMINATED!” urged the Saucer Commander.

“NO!” argued the Dalek Supreme.

“…No?!” asked the Saucer Commander. “She is our greatest enemy! She must be exterminated before she sabotages the operation!”

“The Doctor cannot interfere in the destruction of Irk!” replied the Dalek Supreme. “The Laws of Time she upholds forbid her from interfering in fixed points in time! History indicates that only Tallest Zim survives! All other Irkens are exterminated! Her presence does not change things!”

“But the Doctor will urge the Martians to take Zim away!”

“Then so be it! This will be a victory over the Doctor! Alert Dalek Spearhead! The Doctor is not to be exterminated! Obey! OBEY!!”

“I…obey!” replied the Saucer Commander.


The transport continued on its way rapidly through the capital city of Irk. “Of all the things to spawn from there, why did Skaro have to produce the Daleks?”

“Skaro? Is that their home planet?” asked Sty.

“That’s correct,” replied the Doctor. “The same ancestral home world as Tysar’s people, the Thals.”

“The Daleks are our ancient enemies,” explained Tysar. “We’ve opposed even their humanoid ancestors, the Kaleds.”

“The Thals’ war against the Kaleds went nuclear,” continued the Doctor, “then a lunatic Kaled scientist called Davros mutated his people into the Daleks.”

“Y-You mean there’s…something alive in those things?!” shuddered Ariel.

“Imagine those polyps of Ursula’s had become so warped by hate and that she slapped them into a tank that’s powered by psychokinetic energy from the polyp,” said the Doctor.

“They’re the scourge of the universe,” said Sty, “and we have to resist them!” The Doctor placed her hand on her face in thought.

“…We have to get Zim off this planet,” she said.

“Yes. The Tallest must survive…even though Tallest Tak proved to be better at…sorry. Bit sore about Tak’s loss in the Irken Civil War.”

“What happened to her after the war?” asked the Doctor.

“She was subjected to an Existence Evaluation,” replied Sty. “She failed it somehow and she was killed while her PAK’s data was erased.”

“But the Control Brains weren’t operating at full capacity during the Civil War,” recalled the Doctor.

“That’s why I say the judgement was flawed. But anyone that looks too deeply is reassigned to degrading positions.” The transport then arrived. “Come on!” Everyone left the transport.


“Naturally, we wouldn’t dream of encroaching on Irken Territory,” Tyr’ahnee said to Zim, “but we WOULD prefer to know when you intend to conquer a planet.”

“Of course, the same will apply to you,” said Zim. “That just leaves settling disputes on if we intend to conquer the same planet.”

“…Perhaps a joint conquest and the conquered chooses who will be their tyrant?” suggested Tyr’ahnee.

“That actually sounds fun!” purred Zim. “But how to-?” The Doctor and her group then burst into the room. “What the-?! SECURITY!” shouted Zim. “DO WE NO LONGER HAVE IT?!”

“My Tallest-!” urged Sty.

“SILENCE!” shouted Zim.

“With respect, I need to-!”

“You DARE disobey your Almighty Tallest?! You know, Invader Sty, perhaps I should reassign you to-!”

“THE DALEKS ARE ON IRK!” Sty finally said. Everyone turned to Sty. “…Sizz-Lorr was nothing but a Dalek Duplicate that set up a transmat so its masters could just stroll onto Irk and begin their campaign! It’s likely THEY are the ones behind the destruction of the Empire!”

“LIES!” shouted Zim.

“Truth, I can assure you, Zim,” said the Doctor. “You and the Martians need to evacuate Irk!”

“Doctor, why should I believe an enemy?! You have thwarted me twice over and will NOT get the opportunity to thwart me a-!”

“My Tallest!” called an Irken running communications.

“CAN I GET A WORD IN EDGEWISE?!” shouted Zim as he pointed his gun at the offending Irken.

“Forgive me,” said the Irken, “but our outposts have reported that saucer-shaped ships are entering our space! The design of the ships matches Dalek aesthetics!”

“What?! They wouldn’t dare!” protested Zim.

“They would and they will,” sighed the Doctor.

“My Tallest, the Doctor insists that you evacuate Irk,” said Sty. “Why, I don’t know.”

“I’m not leaving until I get answers!” snarled Zim. “Send a message to the Dalek fleet!”

“The Daleks are sparing us the effort,” replied the Communications Irken. “THEY are contacting US.”

“They can’t resist a gloat,” sighed Tysar.

“Open a channel!” ordered Zim. A screen lowered itself into position and footage of the bridge of a Dalek Saucer appeared with the Dalek Supreme in the center.

“Attention, Irk!” it barked. “This is the Dalek Supreme aboard the Flagship of the Dalek Fleet approaching your world! Resistance is useless! Your time has come!”

“You’ve called to gloat,” called the Doctor. “Make it quick and be done with your mission here!”

“Doctor!” barked the Dalek Supreme.

“Dalek Supreme!” replied the Doctor. “If a member of the Dalek Supreme Council is here, your mission against the Irken Empire must be high on your Emperor’s list of priorities.”

“The new World Smasher class of vessel needs to be tested! You cannot prevent what is coming!”

“So that’s why you’re doing what history says you do, just to test out your new toy!”

“Pah! Inferior technology compared to the Irken Empire’s!” boasted Zim.

“If your superiority were true, you would have withstood our assault!” retorted the Dalek Supreme.

“You cannot destroy the Irken Empire! The Lords commanding those planets will prepare the counter-offensive and reclaim our territory-!”

“Duplicates of those under your command, Zim, have ensured that retaliation will be at its least effective! They served the Daleks in the purpose assigned to them, just as the duplicate of Sizz-Lorr did!”

“You’re lying!” insisted Zim.

“WE are responsible for the destruction of the planets of the Irken Empire! WE are responsible for the massacre of your people and vassals!”

“MORE FILTHY-!”

“They’re not lying, Zim!” interrupted the Doctor. “…The Daleks have been shrinking your empire and history didn’t know until I stumbled across this time to rescue Link, Zelda, and Ariel!”

“Doctor, you are permitted to rescue the victims of the Grouping!” barked the Dalek Supreme. “But you must hurry! The Dalek Death Squad that used the transmat the Sizz-Lorr duplicate built before its self-extermination is 500 rels from the main command center!”

“Doctor, if you value your life, you will assist us against the Daleks!” ordered Zim.

“I…I can’t,” sighed the Doctor.

“You will obey!”

“She cannot!” gloated the Dalek Supreme. “Before this day ends, Irk will be destroyed and your people will ALL be exterminated! The Irken Genocide is a fixed point in time! The Doctor cannot prevent this! All life is to bow down to the Daleks or else be exterminated!”

“Now I know you’re lying-!” snarled Zim.

“It’s not a lie!” called the Doctor. “…Zim, I’m sorry, but you MUST go with Tyr’ahnee and Marvin. The Irken races dies today with you being the only survivor and there’s nothing I can do to prevent it without breaking the laws of time.” Zim stared at the Doctor in horror.

“You…You have to be lying!” he insisted.

“Time Lords cannot lie about the Laws of Time they hold dear,” remarked Tyr’ahnee. Zim…stumbled. His whole empire…destined to fall?

“Now you understand!” barked the Dalek Supreme. “Fight or surrender, it makes no difference! You will be exterminated! Doctor, 400 rels remain!” The call then ended. Zim thought for just a second.

“…Ready all weapons!” he ordered. “We’re at war!”


“Irken Defenses are being raised!” reported a Dalek to the Supreme.

“That does not matter!” replied the Dalek Supreme. “Quantum fluctuations in this time period still indicate Dalek victory!”

“Dalek Spearhead reports that Tallest Consort is approaching!”

“Her survival is unimportant! Exterminate!”


Gaz Membrane had an Irken blaster in her hands and her PAK’s legs were fully extended, making her look like an unholy demon of flesh and steel. No sooner did she round a corner than the Dalek Spearhead arrived. “HALT!” shouted the Battle Commander. Gaz aimed her gun fired right at the eyestalk, taking the dome clean off!

“ALERT! ALERT! SPEARHEAD LEADER DESTROYED! EXTERMINATE! EXTERMINATE!!” shrieked the Battle Commander’s subordinate. The Daleks fired, but the legs from Gaz’s PAK kept her out of the line of fire. Another Dalek was shot in the dome, giving the thing a terminal headache. Then…Gaz noticed something.

“Wait, I shot two and you guys were six,” she said. “There’s only three of you left though. Where’s the fourth?”

“EXTERMINATE!” One of the Daleks had engaged its flight mode and snuck behind her, striking her right in the PAK and bathing her in the usual cold cyan light as her skeleton was briefly illuminated. She screamed in agony and her PAK’s legs gave out, causing her to collapse in an undignified heap. “Tallest Consort exterminated!” reported the flying Dalek as it set itself back onto the ground.

“Satisfactory!” replied the new Spearhead Leader. “Proceed! The Doctor is not to be harmed! Exterminate all others!”

“We obey!” replied its subordinates.

Categories
Doctor Who: Crossings Series 7

Hedonism’s Downfall: Part 2

The prisoners were brought to Zim and Tyr’ahnee. “You caused quite a lot of noise, Doctor!” hissed Zim.

“So the rumors of Time Lords changing their faces are true, then?” asked Marvin.

“Well, I seem to recall you falling for Bugs Bunny’s disguise as Tyr’ahnee over there,” replied the Doctor, “so-.”

“Bunny?!” asked Tyr’ahnee. She turned on Marvin. “Our exile from Mars was because of a BUNNY?!”

“That rabbit’s clever, Your Majesty!” protested Marvin as he blushed, remembering the incident with the Ice Warriors. “…All right, so that IS the Doctor. What happened to the pink hedgehog?”

“She’s back in her home time,” replied the Doctor. “I think the real question is what are you lot doing on Irk? When did you make an alliance with the Irken Empire?”

“Desperate times forge strange alliances, Time Lord,” replied Tyr’ahnee.

“Well, take it from someone who’s been in your future, you should abandon the idea and get off of Irk as quickly as possible.”

“You should be familiar with the human expression ‘fat chance’, given your reputation of defending them, Doctor.”

“Let’s just say that-,” said Tysar. The Doctor clamped a hand over her companion’s mouth.

“Just trust us, all right?” asked the Doctor.

“I’m going to need more than the word of an enemy,” said Zim, “to convince me that sending the Martians away is a good idea.”

“My Tallest!” called an Irken. “A ship from Foodcourtia has arrived! It is heavily damaged and its pilot is asking to speak with you about the destruction of Foodcourtia!”

“What?! Bring the pilot here!” ordered Zim. He growled as the Irken obeyed. “Foodcourtia! Of all planets!”

“How did it get destroyed?” muttered Tyr’ahnee. “I heard the gravity field increases thanks to so many customers that it creates a time dilation.”

“Some master of time, perhaps?” guessed Marvin. Zim’s antennae twitched.

“…You know, you’re not the first Time Lord to visit the Empire recently,” he remarked to the Doctor.

“You make it sound like Gallifrey is responsible for its destruction,” replied the Doctor.

“Why not? Your TARDIS’s can handle the effects of the Great Foodening Queen Tyr’ahnee was talking about.”

“Tallest Zim, I can assure you, we are NOT responsible for the shrinking of your empire. We’re still in a state of reconstruction.”

“Then why would this Omega character be on Foodcourtia?” The Doctor’s gaze darkened.

“Omega is a renegade,” she explained. “He’s behind the Grouping, yes, but not behind your current problem. Let me send Ariel, Zelda, and Link back to their proper points in space-time, then give me any information you have on Omega and I’ll stop him from messing up your empire’s timeline.”

“Doctor, a word,” said Tysar. The Doctor and Tysar went to a corner to whisper to each other. “Are you sure Omega’s not behind this?”

“The Irken Genocide had evidence of conventional weaponry, not Gallifreyan,” replied the Doctor. “Something else will be behind what’s coming.” Just then, the door opened. The Irkens were helping a tall and fat Irken in a fry cook’s uniform with an apron and hat walk into the room, thanks to all the battle damage he sustained.

“Fry Lord Sizz-Lorr,” greeted Zim.

“M-My Tallest!” gasped Sizz-Lorr. “T-Terror is…is coming! F-Foodcourtia…destroyed! Gravity…resulted in…black hole! I was…only survivor!”

“Sizz-Lorr, who would destroy Foodcourtia?” asked the Doctor.

“D…D…D…the sauce…!” Sizz-Lorr collapsed before he could reveal anything.

“Get him to the medical center!” ordered Zim. “He can explain himself when he’s awake!” Tysar, having overheard everything like the others, had a nasty theory in her head.

“…God, I hope not,” she muttered.


The Doctor and her group were locked up in a cell with the TARDIS being taken away. “Drat,” muttered the Doctor. “Now we’re in for it. History says that only the Irken race dies today. If Tyr’ahnee and Marvin die, time is fractured!”

“Doctor, are you absolutely sure that-?!” urged Ariel.

“I can’t…interfere with history like that. …Not again.” The Time Lord Victorious went to the forefront of the Doctor’s mind.

“Can’t you save SOMEONE?!” asked Link.

“…All I can safely save is Zim,” sighed the Doctor. “And you lot. Everyone else, I’m…I’m bound by the laws of time not to.”

“That’s not fair!” protested Ariel.

“In an ideal world, I wouldn’t give a second thought to saving them!” snapped the Doctor. “…But tragedies need to happen! Ursula and Morgana’s respective schemes are a part of YOUR history! Zelda’s kidnappings are a part of her history, no matter how many times the timeline is reset! Power and heroism being forced on Link when he’d rather have a simple life is a part of his history! Tysar landing in Gotham is a part of her history! My stumbling on Skaro and giving my greatest enemies a shot at becoming a temporal power is a part of my history! Ariel, we can’t undo the tragedies of our lives, otherwise we fail to learn the lessons from them and something worse will taint our world-view! Maybe…somehow…we can prevent future tragedies like what’s coming from happening. …You all should be safe in the TARDIS when we get out. I brought this mystery to Irk…and I’ll solve it alone if I have to.”

“You will not!” protested Zelda. “You’ll probably make a beastly mess of things.”

“And you’ll need me around to tidy that mess up!” urged Tysar.

“…Looks like we have to solve the mystery before things get out of hand,” decided Link.

“…We’d better get on with it then,” sighed Ariel, feeling helpless. “And we better figure it out quickly before our names are added to the list of casualties.”

“…Thank you. All of you,” said the Doctor. “…Come on!” She then pulled out her sonic screwdriver.

“…They didn’t take it?” asked Tysar.

“Well, they didn’t take my shield and the Master Sword,” replied Link as he drew his sword.

“Their arrogance is usually their undoing,” remarked the Doctor. She buzzed the lock again and the door opened. “There we go! Come along! We’ve got work to…” She trailed off when she saw Sizz-Lorr walking down the hall, seemingly without pain despite all the scarring. “…Shouldn’t he be laid up in the medical lab?” pondered the Doctor aloud.

“Something’s not right with that man,” remarked Zelda.

“Come along. We’ll follow him.” The group cautiously followed Sizz-Lorr until he arrived at a storage barn. There was a hissing sound and his belly opened up!

“That’s not the real Sizz-Lorr?” asked Ariel.

“No,” confirmed the Doctor. “Some robotic duplicate? …Hang on. …That word he used just before he collapsed. …Something about sauce…and he was trying to say something that started with the letter D.” The Doctor then saw Sizz-Lorr take parts for something out of his belly and assemble something. Her eyes widened. “A transmat!”

“A what?” asked Ariel.

“Matter transmission, teleportation,” explained Tysar. “But from wh-?”

“Your people’s ancestral home-world!” replied the Doctor. “Sizz-Lorr’s a duplicate! The real one must have been killed during the destruction of Foodcourtia!”

“Doctor, you don’t mean-!” protested Tysar.

“Transmat complete, Masters,” droned Sizz-Lorr. He then stood silently as he received orders. “…I obey. Termination in three…two…one.” He then sparked and collapsed as the transmat warmed up!

“I obey!” shuddered Tysar. “The words of their slaves and what they say to their superiors!”

“Who?!” asked Link. “Who’s got you so spooked?!” Link got his answer as several shapes appeared on the transmat. The shapes solidified into a foe the Doctor and Tysar know all too well.

“Transmat transference complete!” barked the Battle Commander. “All Duplicates have reported successful sabotage of Irken Homeworld Defense Network! Proceed! Crush all resistance! Exterminate all life-forms! EXTERMINATE!”

“We obey!” replied the subordinates. They all then chanted “SEEK! LOCATE! EXTERMINATE! SEEK! LOCATE! EXTERMINATE!”

“Daleks!” hissed the Doctor. “We have to get out of here!”

“They’re just machines!” protested Link. “I can-!”

“Link, the Daleks have the superior weaponry and strategic advantage!” protested Tysar. “We have to go!”

“There’s a transport over there!” called Zelda as she pointed out an Irken supply vehicle.

“Everybody, to the transport! NOW!” ordered the Doctor. Everyone ran towards the transport.

“Life-forms detected!” called a Dalek.

“Halt! HALT!” shouted the Battle Commander. “EXTERMINATE!”

“EXTERMINATE! ANNIHILATE! DESTROY!” chanted the Daleks as they opened fire! Unfortunately, a few Irkens got caught in the crossfire!

“What’s all the rack-?!” Sty demanded as she arrived. One look at the invading force answered her question! “DALEKS!”

“Listen, Invader…!” called the Doctor.

“Invader Sty!”

“Invader Sty, we need to evacuate Zim from Irk! And the Martians too!”

“…Ordinarily, I’d throw you back into your cells and do what the guards should have done,” said Sty, “but we’re all united against the Daleks! Get on that transport!” Sty bundled them all onto the transport.


“Biological reports compiled!” reported a Dalek aboard one of the Daleks’ Saucers. The commanding Dalek was the Black and Gold Dalek Supreme.

“Summarize!” barked the Dalek Supreme.

“Non-Irkens were detected! Martians were the primary discovery as they were in the process of forming a mutual defense compact with the Irken Empire! Five other humanoids were detected! Pathweb has discovered a familiarity of one of the humanoids!”

“Display humanoid!” The Doctor’s image appeared via hologram. “Identify!” Just then, holograms of the Doctor’s previous incarnations appeared, along with all the titles the Daleks gave her.

“IT IS THE DOCTOR!” shrieked a Dalek.

Categories
Doctor Who: Crossings Series 7

Hedonism’s Downfall: Part 1

Irk, the homeworld of the Irken Race and capital planet of their empire, an empire of hedonism that serves only the rulers instead of the people and those they’ve conquered. Right now, though, there was trouble in the empire and their ruler, the Almighty Tallest Zim, was going through reports to try and figure out why the empire was shrinking! His ally, the Tallest Consort, the human known as Gaz Membrane, stormed into his office. “Zim, you have GOT to figure this crap out!” she snarled.

“I’m aware of Videogamia being destroyed,” replied Zim. “We’re still looking for a pattern.”

“We need MORE than a pattern! We need new planets! Zim, the empire is shrinking by the day!”

“You think I don’t know that?!” snapped Zim.

“Did you also know that there’s an alien vessel in geostationary orbit?!” demanded Gaz.

“Has it been identified?” asked Zim.

“The translators are saying it’s called the Martian Maggot,” replied Gaz.

“A Martian ship?” Zim then stood up. “Let them land. I’m expecting them.”

“Zim?” asked Gaz.

“Queen Tyr’ahnee Mirkin,” explained Zim, “has also reported that her empire is shrinking, so we’re entering into a mutual defense compact.”

“We don’t need help from outsi-!”

“This coming from the HUMAN, need I remind you?” interrupted Zim. Gaz zipped it. “Come on. We must greet them.”


Tyr’ahnee and her faithful commander, Marvin, stepped off the ship once Zim and Gaz arrived. “Welcome, Queen Tyr’ahnee,” greeted Zim.

“So, this is the center of the Irken Empire,” remarked Tyr’ahnee. “Is that a human by your side?”

“This is the Tallest Consort, Gaz Membrane,” replied Zim.

“Definitely a human name,” said Tyr’ahnee. “Now, perhaps we should begin discussions on what could cause our empires to shrink.”

“Indeed,” agreed Zim. “Your commander will need to understand the layout of the empire as it stands, of course.” He turned to an Irken. “You! Give the Martian Queen’s commander full access.”

“At once, my Tallest,” replied the Irken. He turned to Marvin. “This way, please.”

“Very touching,” replied Marvin as he followed the Irken. Just then, another Irken, slightly shorter than the one leading Marvin, approached Zim.

“My Tallest, I have news!” she said.

“Not now, Invader Sty!” hissed Zim.

“But it concerns unauthorized life-forms on Irk-!” Zim grabbed the shorter Irken.

“Not! In front! Of the Martians!” he hissed. “Deal with the problem!” He then tossed the Irken aside. The Irken picked herself up.

“A-As you command, My Tallest,” she said. She then headed off.

“…Perhaps a robot force could quell any dissent, once this affair is over,” offered Tyr’ahnee.

“That…actually sounds like a good idea,” remarked Zim.


The Irken, Invader Sty, approached the troops under her command. “We’re dealing with the intruders ourselves,” she said.

“But Ma’am-!” protested one of her troops.

“Orders from Zim,” she said. “Nothing we can do. Arm weapons.” The Irkens obeyed.

“What was that?!” yelped a voice.

“It…sounds like those firearms I saw on Kamino,” said another.

“Stay behind me, you two!” finished a third.

“Link, that shield-!” The second speaker couldn’t finish as a man in a green tunic and pointed hat with pointy ears, a sword, and a shield rounded the corner.

“Stun blasts only! FIRE!” ordered Sty. The man raised his shield, but the weapons fire knocked it off his arm and another shot hit him in the chest, stunning him.

“LINK!” called the second speaker. This one was a woman with pointy ears like the man and wore a blue dress. The last person, the first speaker, was a woman with blood-red hair in a pink dress. The two women were hit with the Irkens’ stun weapons.

“Now what?” asked an Irken.

“Take them to the cells,” ordered Sty. “The Almighty Tallest will deal with them later.”


The red-head was the first to wake up. “Oof!” she groaned. “What was that shark’s name?!” Her vision cleared to see the two pointy-eared people lying unconscious next to her. “Oh my fins!” she yelped. She then lightly slapped the cheek of the woman. “Hey, are you all right?!” The woman groaned and opened her eyes. She looked up…then her memory slowly came back to her!

“…Another chronal surge!” she said. “And this time, Link was-! LINK!” She sat up and rushed to the man in the green tunic. “Link, are you all right?!” The man…snored. “…Of course you’d take a nap,” sighed the pointy-eared woman. She then seized the man’s ear. “GET UP, LINK!” she shouted, startling the man awake.

“YOW! HEY! EASY!” protested the man. “Sheesh, my ears are ringing, Princess!”

“Link, we need to get out of here!” insisted the woman. “We-!”

“Where IS here?” asked the red-head. “And who ARE you two? Are you elves?”

“…Why does everyone ask that?” sighed the man. “No, we’re Hylians from the Kingdom of Hyrule. I’m Link, the Hero of Hyrule.”

“And I’m Zelda, Hyrule’s Princess,” introduced the woman.

“Another Princess?!” gasped the red-head. “Nice to meet you! I’m Ariel, Princess of Atlantica!”

“A pleasure to meet you, Princess Ariel,” greeted Zelda. “Now, were you just minding your own business at home when an energy wave suddenly washed over you and pulled you through a vortex until you found yourself here with us?”

“…Y-Yes, that’s exactly what happened,” said Ariel. “But…how did you-?”

“A friend called the Doctor called it a Chronal Surge,” explained Zelda. “That energy wave takes you out of your usual point in space and time and plops you somewhere and somewhen else. I went through that once before and ended up on Kamino during the Clone Wars.”

“…You went to the Star Wars galaxy?” asked Ariel. “I think Disney’s lawyers would have something to say about tha…anyone else hear that?”

“Hey, isn’t that the-?” asked Link. A blue box then appeared in the hall.

“The TARDIS!” confirmed Zelda. “Excellent! The Doctor’s still on the case!” Speaking of whom, the Doctor stepped out with Tysar.

“All right, the TARDIS said those Chronal Surges brought their victims here, so-.” The Doctor then looked into the cell to see Zelda, Link, and Ariel. “…Well, that makes the job easier.”

“Hey, I remember you!” gasped Ariel. “You hosted that impromptu Whose Line is it Anyway show in the Magic Kingdom!”

“That I did!” replied the Doctor. She then saw Zelda and Link. “Zelda! Link! Hello again!”

“…Lady, I don’t remember seeing you before,” replied Link.

“No, no, Link, that’s the Doctor that helped me get back from Kamino!” explained Zelda.

“Hang on, THAT’S the Doctor?!” yelped Link.

“You snogged Zelda after she became the last segment of the Key to Time, yes?” quizzed the Doctor. “Right in my TARDIS after she came back and she mentioned an outfit you have? A cute one?”

“My Gerudo Vai outfit, yeah!” replied Link. “It IS you! But how-?!”

“No time to explain regenerations,” interrupted the Doctor as she pulled out the Sonic Screwdriver.

“You’re in the wrong place at the wrong time, to put it lightly,” explained Tysar as the Doctor worked on the cell doors. “This world…is about to die. So are its people.”

“What?!” asked Zelda. By then, the door was unlocked.

“This is the Irken Homeworld,” explained the Doctor, “the capital of those little green men you doubtlessly saw when you were thrown in there, and around this time, a horrible force kills the entire Irken Empire, all but one, Zim, the current leader.” Everyone stepped out of the cell and Link drew the Master Sword.

“Well, his people treated us roughly,” he said, “but that’s no excuse.”

“Pardon?” asked the Doctor.

“Link’s right,” agreed Zelda. “We can’t let innocents suffer.”

“Then let’s get them the help they need and-!” cheered Ariel.

“What ARE you talking about?’ asked the Doctor.

“…Th…The evacuation,” replied Ariel. “We have to save those people! Make it so that there’s no genocide!”

“Except we CAN’T do that!” urged the Doctor as she turned to the TARDIS. “Come on! Into the TARDIS, all of you!”

“Now wait a minute!” argued Link. “What in Hylia’s name are you trying to pull here?!”

“Doctor, we HAVE to help the Irkens!” pleaded Zelda.

“Not this time!” replied the Doctor. “Link, Ariel, Zelda, I’m sorry, but the Irken Genocide is a fixed point in time! What happens, happens! There is NO stopping it!” The Doctor turned back to the TARDIS again, but was yanked back by Ariel.

“Says who?!” she demanded.

“Says me!” retorted the Doctor.

“What, and you’re in charge?!”

“TARDIS, Time Lord, YEAH!”

“Ariel, Mermaid turned human, NO!” That’s TWO red-heads the Doctor had that argument with. “I don’t need your permission! I’ll tell the Irkens myself!”

“You try it, they’ll just dismiss you out of hand and vaporize you for telling primitive lies!” retorted the Doctor. “Now come on! TARDIS! We’re getting out of here!”

“I’ve got something to say about that, Time Girl!” snarled Link.

“Oh, I bet you do!”

“GUYS!” shouted Tysar.

“WHAT?!” asked everyone. Then they saw the Irkens and Marvin.

“…Martians?!” gasped the Doctor. “…Damn, now I NEED to stay on Irk!”

Categories
Doctor Who: Crossings Series 7

Painting Chaos: Part 4

Loki pulled back a bit of the cover on one of the paintings, then slowly covered it back up. “…I thought you said that you had examples of the Old Masters, Joker,” he hissed.

“I do!” protested the Joker.

“Then which of the Old Masters is J. Todd?” Loki yanked the cover off to reveal that it was a relatively recently-done abstract painting with the artist’s name on the lower right corner! The Joker had a horrible thought and pulled back the covers to reveal more abstract paintings with artists like D. Grayson, B. Gordon, A. Pennyworth, D. Wayne, and so on! The Joker returned his attention to the phone call.

“YOU CAPED CREEP!” he shouted. “YOU SWITCHED PAINTINGS ON ME! THESE ARE NOTHING MORE THAN KINDERGARTEN DRAWINGS!”

“I’ll have you know,” replied Batman, “those people worked hard on those paintings. Besides, a Kindergartener’s mind could have anticipated you and Loki’s every move. This caper was more obvious than any I’ve had to solve.” Loki overheard that and grabbed the phone.

“You can say that over the phone, Mortal!” snarled the ticked-off Asgardian. “If you weren’t hiding behind this thing, you’d know the wrath of Loki!”

“Then demonstrate it to us!” challenged Batman as he and his group crashed through the window or burst from the door!

“Stay where you are!” called the Doctor. “We have you covered!”

“Lights out!” called the Joker as he hit the light switch, plunging the room into darkness.

“Activate infra-red!” Iron Man called. His suit’s eyes turned red. Batman tapped the side of his cowl and activated night vision. Wolverine had all of his senses enhanced, so his hearing and smell helped him in the darkened fight. Iron Man then deployed drones that shone a light for the Doctor, Tysar, and Wonder Woman. The Joker tried to whack a frying pan on Wolverine’s skull, but it snapped at the handle and only gave Wolverine a minor headache.

“…Huh, you really DO have a hard head,” remarked the Joker.

“Damn straight, bub!” Wolverine decked the Joker with enough force to knock him into Loki. That gave the Doctor enough to jab her pinky finger under Loki’s chin and paralyze him long enough for Batman to deck him! Both tricksters were now in a heap, groaning in pain.

“…That was…remarkably simplistic,” said the Doctor.


The Joker and Loki were handcuffed. Normal handcuffs for the Joker and special Asgardian handcuffs for Loki that Thor had commissioned the Asgardian smiths to make for the Avengers to use on their most powerful villains. “Thor will be coming to take you away and hide the Time Stone,” Iron Man explained to Loki.

“Why you let a lunatic like the Joker learn about the Infinity Stones,” growled Woman, “I’ll never understand. You realize he was going to betray you, yes?”

“How?” asked Loki. “His attempt at betrayal wouldn’t have compared to mine.”

“I don’t know,” remarked the Doctor. “Jokerized Daleks would certainly do it.”

“…I’m sorry, did you say Jokerized DALEKS?” asked Loki.

“He’d snatch them from my time, if you’d care to know,” explained Wonder Woman. Loki then turned on the Joker.

“Then what was the point of the painting theft?!” he shouted.

“A rough idea on where and when to send my Jokerized Daleks to,” replied the Joker. “You have to admit, having cackling squids in tanks causing terror during the Renaissance would have been funny!”

“That’s too severe of a breach of the laws of time!” protested Loki. “And it would make it hard for you to gloat after the event, even with the Time Stone! With Omega running around, I wouldn’t do something that insane!”

“Perhaps you can tell me where you heard about Omega returning,” said the Doctor. “You know that if he regains his full might, he’ll take over all of time and space.”

“I only saw him once as he fled his then-hiding place on Karn,” revealed Loki. “Not out of fear of the Sisterhood, but with intent to go elsewhere to conduct his plans. All the Time Stone could tell me as I retrieved it from Karn was that he went in the direction of Irk. When during its history, I cannot say.”

“The Irken Homeworld, hm?” quizzed the Doctor. “You realize I’ll have to confirm your words.”

“Pah! You’re too wound tight, Doctor!” scoffed the Joker. Batman then approached.

“A SHIELD helicarrier’s coming to collect Loki,” he said. “You, Joker, are going back to Arkham.”

“Yeah, sure, put me in the looney bin like always!” cackled the Joker. “You’ve heard of the definition of insanity, right Bats? Ah, what am I saying?! We’re two of a kind! Of course, you have!” Commissioner Gordon then approached the group.

“The paintings are back in the museum,” he said to Batman. “Though I gotta admit, the bait paintings might have a place in a museum of modern art.”

“Thank you, Commissioner,” replied Batman.


The heroes returned to the Batcave once Loki and the Joker were sent to their respective destinations. The Doctor led Iron Man, Wolverine, and Wonder Woman into the TARDIS. “Well, this HAS been fun!” said the Doctor. “Time to send you all home. …Diana…”

“Save it, Doctor,” replied Wonder Woman. “I’m going to do what I do best and the Daleks can’t take that from me.” She drew her sword and adopted a warrior’s stance. “Send me back.”

“Coordinates confirmed,” said the Doctor. “Away you go. Good luck.”

“For Themyscira!” called Wonder Woman as she faded.

“As for you boys, you two ready?” asked Tysar.

“Just cut to the chase so I can get back to teaching those brats!” grumbled Wolverine.

“What, no beer waiting for you?” asked Iron Man.

“Mr. Stark, an alcoholic like you has no room to talk,” remarked the Doctor as she started the return process.

“Hey! I’m a RECOVERING alcoholic, thank-!” Iron Man’s protests were cut off as he and Wolverine faded. By then, Batman and Alfred entered the TARDIS.

“They’re gone, then,” stated Batman.

“Yes, back to their times,” said the Doctor. She looked up Wonder Woman’s history. “…She’s helped people escape the concentration camps the Daleks set up, but in the final day of the Daleks’ Occupation, roughly about when their plans went belly-up, she dueled a Dalek and was exterminated just as her sword went through the Dalek’s squishy interior, killing it.”

“…She dies in battle, then,” sighed Batman.

“The last of the Justice League,” said the Doctor. “But she was buried with honor when her body was found a few minutes later. The mourners used the funerary rites of Ancient Greece, even burying her with two drachmas.”

“…Knowing her and the other Amazons, she’s probably in the Isles of the Blessed,” mused Batman.

“Knowing her valor and that of her sisters and mother, most likely,” agreed the Doctor. “Now, we must depart. Loki said that Omega was on the Irken Homeworld and there are signs of chronal surges centered around that planet.”

“Before you go, Doctor,” said Batman as he took off the cowl and revealed his face as Bruce Wayne, “can I have my desk back?”

“Oh, it’ll be back in its proper place once we leave,” assured the Doctor. “I mean, you have to admit,” she pointed at the desk currently in the far corner of the console room, “it doesn’t exactly match the décor.”

“True, it doesn’t,” agreed Bruce.

“All right, unless you wanna take the desk’s place,” said the Doctor, “and subsequently help me and Tysar with the Grouping, you may wish to exit the TARDIS.”

“…I think I’ll pass on a trip,” replied Bruce. “See you sometime.”

“See you sometime, Bruce!” returned the Doctor. Bruce then left the TARDIS. The Doctor pulled the take-off lever and the desk vanished. “There we go!” she said to Tysar.

“…Doctor, concerning what Loki said,” said Tysar, “do you think that he’s lying?”

“…Possible,” replied the Doctor. “But we have to see. I’m having the TARDIS check for any chronal surges and-.” She was interrupted by a beeping noise from the console. “There we go!” She checked the readings. “…Okay, as I said, there ARE three chronal surges centered around Irk,” she reported. “Let’s see…ah, two are from Hyrule, one is from Disney Castle, and the time period on Irk they’re being sent to is…oh.” The Doctor’s face fell. “…Oh dear.”

“Doctor?”

“…Tysar, I need you to promise that you can’t change history,” said the Doctor.

“Doctor, you’re scaring me,” replied Tysar. “What’s so dangerous about that time?”

“…That time period is when Tallest Zim becomes the last Irken alive,” explained the Doctor. “A mighty enemy attacks and slaughters every single Irken, save for Zim. Who that enemy is, I don’t know.”

“…That’s not…a fixed point in time, is it?” asked Tysar. The Doctor sighed and could only nod. “…Then there’s nothing we can do for the Irkens?”

“…Not without breaking time,” sighed the Doctor. Tysar thought for a while.

“…That’s…that’s going to be difficult to promise,” she finally said. “…But I will not interfere.”

“Good. Because we can’t rewrite history, not one line.”

“So we find our Grouping Victims, get them back to their homes, and get out of there before the Irken Genocide.”

“That’s the plan.” The Doctor set the coordinates and the TARDIS spun through the Time Vortex.

Categories
Doctor Who: Crossings Series 7

Painting Chaos: Part 3

“Well, that complicates things!” grumbled Tysar as the Batmobile sped away. She then took in her surroundings. “…Did you upgrade this thing?” she asked Batman.

“Of course,” replied Batman. “Now, my knowledge on the time stone is limited. What is it?”

“One of the six Infinity Stones, Bats,” replied Iron Man. “As advertised, it can control time for the user. Bring it and the other five Infinity Stones together, the whole universe is your playground. That’s what a guy called Thanos wants them for.”

“Thanos didn’t last long against the Daleks,” remarked Wonder Woman.

“I take it I was gunned down by them,” said Batman.

“No, thankfully,” replied Wonder Woman. “It was just old age that took you and our friends.”

“Yes, the invasion that Wonder Woman’s talking about,” said the Doctor, “started in 2157 and lasted a decade. The Daleks used a plague of their own design.”

“A breach of the Geneva Conventions, huh?” remarked Wolverine.

“They don’t consider any laws made by non-Daleks to be superior to their own. …Now what would the Joker want with an Infinity Stone? I mean, aside from the obvious ‘nothing good’, why should that anarchist want the time stone?”

“And how will his deal with the Joker help him fight this Omega guy?” asked Iron Man.

“Questions, questions,” muttered the Doctor. “…Though, admittedly, one of them is minor.”

“Doctor?” asked Tysar.

“How did Loki recognize me? I met him in a previous incarnation. …Then again, the Asgardians know about how Time Lords regenerate, so he probably picked up on context clues.”

“What do we do, then?” asked Wolverine. “We can’t exactly waltz up to them with the time stone.”

“Oracle’s looking into that right now,” replied Batman.

“Oracle? Who’s that?” asked Iron Man.

“My tech person. She can look things up with ease. Perhaps the Joker’s men got sloppy when they had to move.” The console of the Batmobile beeped. Batman pressed a button. “Go ahead.”

“Batman, your hunch was right,” said a woman’s voice. “The Joker’s got his own plans for the time stone.”

“Hey, lady, how do you know about the time stone?!” snarled Wolverine.

“I can hear everything, Logan,” replied Oracle. Wolverine snarled and was ready to unsheathe his claws. “In any event, the Joker’s planning on taking over the plan. That’s why he went after the Gotham City Renaissance Art Collection. He’s using the art pieces as a sort of temporal map and intends to use the time stone to send Daleks into those eras. Before that, though, he intends to inject them with his Joker Venom.”

“I know he’s mad,” said the Doctor, “but Dalek casings have all sorts of defenses to protect the internal creature. He’d need to dissect one in order to figure out how to infect one with his Joker Venom and he’ll lose a lot of men in the attempt.”

“He won’t care,” replied Batman. “All just to build up to the sick punchline.”

“He’s just doing this because he can? That’s his justification?” asked Tysar.

“That’s his justification for anything,” answered Batman.

“Well, even if he succeeds, I’m positive I don’t want to see the results of a Jokerized Dalek,” remarked the Doctor. She then noticed something. “Um, we’re going to-.”

“Yes,” said Batman. They then went through a waterfall beneath Wayne Manor.

“Batman, are you sure-?” asked Wonder Woman as she pointed to Iron Man and Wolverine.

“Oh, we already know each other’s identities,” replied Iron Man. “Tends to happen when you’re genius billionaire playboy philanthropists.” Batman then parked the Batmobile in its usual place in the Batcave. “So, Brucie, what’s the plan?” asked Iron Man.

“Well, Stark Naked,” replied Batman, “there’s another reason why the Joker stole those paintings. Unlike us, money isn’t easy to come by for him, and he needs it until he fulfills his grand design.”

“So he’s gonna sell renaissance art off when he’s done with that map of his?” asked Wolverine.

“It won’t do him any good,” replied the Doctor. “If he sends a Jokerized Dalek into the time period the painting was born in, it will vanish.”

“Well, that WOULD make my part harder,” said Batman as he took off the cowl. Alfred then arrived.

“Master Bruce, I-.” He stopped when he saw the guests. “…Mr. Stark,” he began. “Mr. Howlett. Your Highness. And welcome back, Doctor and Miss Tysar. I would have thought you’d be back home.”

“Not until the Grouping is settled, Alfred,” replied Tysar.

“As a matter of fact, that’s why these three are here,” said the Doctor as she gestured to Iron Man, Wolverine, and Wonder Woman. “The boys are from 2027 while Wonder Woman’s from 2167. It’s a ghastly future, but it’s a future humanity will overcome.”

“So you can see why we need to find the Doctor’s TARDIS as well as stop the Joker and Loki,” said Wonder Woman.

“Oh, I can easily tell you where the TARDIS is, Doctor,” said Alfred. “It is currently in Master Bruce’s office, but it materialized around his desk whilst I was dusting it. I took the liberty of dusting the console room before I left.”

“Oh, thank you very much!” bid the Doctor. “I’ve been trying to dust it myself, but in my life, one thing leads to another and it’s been two centuries before you finally do it!”

“My pleasure, Ma’am. Now, what’s this about the Joker and the Norse god of fire and mischief?”

“The Joker’s trying to get the time stone from Loki, Alfred,” explained Batman. “One of the six Infinity Stones that can make its user do anything with a literal snap of their fingers if they’re wearing the proper gauntlet.”

“…I’m guessing the time stone is called as such because it controls time,” said Alfred.

“That’s correct, old friend,” replied Diana. “The Joker plans to use it to swipe aliens that invaded at least ten years ago in my time and inject them with Joker Venom, then send them into different points in the Renaissance.”

“Good grief! Send lunatics into a period of rediscovery?! Have them wreak havoc in that period?! Possibly kill the Old Masters?! That would explain why he stole those paintings! You were right to enact that plan, Sir!”

“Plan?” asked the Doctor.

“Over there,” replied Bruce as he pointed at a room adjacent to the main Batcave. Everyone looked inside to paintings with cloths draped over them.

“…The Gotham City Renaissance Art Collection?” asked Wonder Woman.

“Wait, if the Old Masters’ work is here,” said the Doctor, “…then what does the Joker have?”

“Batman, the Joker and Loki have been spotted in a hotel room,” warned Oracle.

“They’re playing chicken with their alliance,” remarked the Doctor.

“Oracle, does your dad know?” asked Bruce.

“He’s ready for the Joker’s inevitable call. Sending you the address and room.” The address and room showed up on the Batcomputer’s screen.

“Perfect,” said Bruce as he lowered the cowl over his eyes. “Let’s go, everyone. The Joker’s got a nasty surprise waiting for him.”


The Joker and Loki arrived in their hotel room, littered with paintings covered by cloths. “I still say we need to get my spear back!” urged Loki.

“In time, my friend. In time,” soothed the Joker. “For now, I have a call to make.” He then dialed a number. The person picked up.

“Commissioner Gordon here.”

“Working late nights, Commissioner?” asked the Joker.

“JOKER!” snarled Commissioner Gordon.

“I thought I’d present you something for all the years we’ve had our relationship!” cackled the Joker.

“If you’re trying to bribe me-!”

“A bribe? Don’t be so gauche! I intend to present you with the entire Gotham City Renaissance Art Collection as a gift!”

“Renaissance Art Collection, huh? I thought it was your calling card at the museum!”

“Well, I can safely say that they’re all safe and sound,” continued the Joker, “so I’ll be giving them back! Now isn’t that nice of me? Of course, there’s a slight delivery charge of 22 million dollars! I’d ordinarily ask for 10 million, but I have a lawyer on retainer. So pay up before 6 AM, or I burn the entire collection!”

“You DO know that Batman’s after you, yeah?” asked Commissioner Gordon.

“Batman! HAH!” laughed the Joker. “That Kooky Kleptomaniac stole a spear from my friend and scurried away to his Batcave, afraid of the power Loki has!”

“Loki? Who’s that?” asked Commissioner Gordon.

“Why, Commissioner! Aren’t you familiar with Norse Mythology?!” At that point, a new voice entered the call.

“Lots of people call themselves Loki,” said the new and familiar raspy voice. “Mainly people Commissioner Gordon’s keeping locked up.”

“Batman! You’re on the line too!” cackled the Joker. “Hiding out in the Commissioner’s office, are we?”

“My friends and I hope you don’t mind,” replied Batman.

“So, that Doctor and the other members of the cape and costume crowd are with you too!” The Joker allowed himself a giggle. “Well, you all had better stay there! Because if I catch any single one of you outside, I’m going to personally pin your pointed ears back, you hear?!”

“Of course,” answered Batman. “So, you have paintings, I hear.”

“Oh, I have dozens of them!” confirmed the Joker. “And each one, an Old Master!”

“You don’t say,” said Batman.

“…Yes, I DO say,” replied the Joker, now concerned about the tone in Batman’s voice. Loki got suspicious and went to remove the cover of one of the paintings.