A blue-tinted visual display entered his brain directly. He realized he was looking down at a control panel. He then heard a voice, slightly distorted by electronics, but recognizable. \u201cDavros? \u2026Davros? Can you hear me?\u201d \u2026Yes, that was his name. Davros! And the woman in front of him was the\u2026what in\u2026?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThat\u2026smell\u2026\u201d whispered Davros through his new throat microphone implant. \u201cI\u2026I can smell\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cDon\u2019t exert yourself,\u201d urged the woman.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026Doctor,\u201d he hissed. He then realized something. \u201c\u2026What\u2026is wrong with my voice?!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYour voice box was damaged in the explosion,\u201d replied the Doctor. \u201cI had to replace it.\u201d Memories then flooded Davros\u2019 mind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026Ah. \u2026I remember the explosion. \u2026I remember the source of the detonation!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe Daleks exterminated Anacassandra,\u201d confirmed the Doctor. \u201cYou were at ground zero.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI raised my hands to shield myself from the blast,\u201d recalled Davros. \u201cFoolish instinct! The light\u2026was so intense! \u2026I saw the bones in my hands! And as the explosion hit me\u2026I flexed my fingers\u2026just to see my skeleton moving!\u201d Davros then flinched. \u201cWhat\u2026is that smell?! I-I feel-!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou\u2019re back in the Serpentian Capital Citadel, Davros,\u201d soothed the Doctor. \u201cWe\u2019ve given you the most powerful sedatives Ssylphiel could procure.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI don\u2019t think they\u2019re working, Doctor!\u201d Panic was rising in Davros\u2019 voice. \u201cWHAT IS THAT SMELL?!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt\u2019s your skin,\u201d replied the Doctor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026My\u2026skin?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI can\u2019t sugar-coat it; you\u2019re back at square one. I salvaged the Dalek Sorcerer\u2019s old casing and made it into your new chair, even going so far as to add the instruments that helped you navigate the world when we first met. It took a great deal of healing magic to keep you alive long enough and-.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHistory\u2026repeats itself?\u201d asked Davros.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026Yes, it looks like,\u201d sighed the Doctor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026Show me my face.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI\u2019m not sure that\u2019s a good idea.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cShow me! Show me!!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cDavros, you are in the best hands now. The most skilled healers are tending to you and-!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYOU WILL SHOW ME!\u201d By now, Davros was pointing a commanding finger at the Doctor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAll right! You chose this!\u201d grumbled the Doctor. \u201cWe\u2019ll be mourning whatever sanity you had in there!\u201d She pulled out a mirror.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026I can\u2019t see,\u201d remarked Davros. \u201cMove it down.\u201d The Doctor lowered the mirror. \u201cThere!\u201d Davros then gasped when he saw what happened to him. Staring back at him\u2026was the face he had when he first met the Doctor during the creation of the Daleks. \u201c\u2026That is why I cannot open my eyes,\u201d he whispered. \u201c\u2026The pain of doing so\u2026\u201d a crooked smile crossed Davros\u2019 blackened lips, revealing equally blackened teeth. \u201cFascinating!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOh, I always hate it when you smile like that!\u201d complained the Doctor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOh, I mourn my humanoid form, I\u2019ll freely admit that,\u201d interjected Davros. \u201cIt was nice to be able to taste things and feel as others do\u2026but I must admit, I almost forgot your weakness! Good thing the Daleks did not! It served as a crucial step in their getaway!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYes, I DID figure that they dumped you onto an operating table, knowing my compassion wouldn\u2019t allow me to leave someone to die willingly, even if they were my greatest enemy.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cProving my own point that compassion is your greatest weakness! That my Daleks only need to understand its military value!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAnd YOU\u2019RE proving the old adage of how a Dalek can\u2019t change its bumps-!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI AM NOT A DALEK!\u201d insisted Davros. \u201cEven in this state, I am not-!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cDavros, you\u2019re the prototype Dalek!\u201d retorted the Doctor. \u201cYou speak of killing and destruction as if that\u2019s the only way the universe moves on, ignoring that there are MULTIPLE ways!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOnly because their united fear of the Daleks makes them adopt such ways! But the central way is still that of conquest and war! It\u2019s kill or be killed, Doctor!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAll the times the Daleks betrayed you, failed you, lost territory, all the times your schemes went belly-up, and you still believe you\u2019re doing the right thing, that you were right in creating the Daleks and that they will accept you as the ruler of the universe.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThey WILL accept me, one way or another!\u201d Before the Doctor could say anything more, Ssylphiel entered the room, looking fierce.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026Your Majesty?\u201d asked the Doctor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026I overheard the conversation,\u201d said Ssylphiel. \u201cDavros, you created a monster that would destroy any life that isn\u2019t like itself.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe Unlike cannot be tolerated!\u201d replied Davros.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou sound like Anacassandra did. \u2026I more than tolerate the Unlike, because the Gods themselves are unlike each other. If they can tolerate\u2026no, if they can love each other and their differences, it really shouldn\u2019t be that hard for people like us to do the same.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThen your gods deny what is real!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026If it were up to me, I\u2019d have you executed for blasphemy. But there are gods higher than those I worship and they gave the Doctor a mission that required your survival. I will not interfere in that. But I must ask you one question, if you really had the power to destroy everything\u2026would you use that power?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI DO have that power!\u201d insisted Davros. \u201cThe power of life\u2026and death! My Daleks are the culmination of that power! That power sets me up above the gods! AND THROUGH THE DALEKS, I SHALL EXERCISE THAT POWER!\u201d The Doctor then grabbed Davros\u2019 hand. \u201cLET GO!\u201d ordered Davros.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cEven you\u2019ve heard of \u2018fat chance\u2019,\u201d replied the Doctor as her hand hovered over a button. Davros smiled wickedly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve been here before,\u201d he recalled. \u201cOur first encounter! You couldn\u2019t press that switch before!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI pressed it before and you know it!\u201d hissed the Doctor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhat does that switch do?\u201d asked Ssylphiel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt controls my life support systems,\u201d explained Davros. \u201cI could not survive less than thirty seconds without them.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBack then, I ordered him to destroy the incubation section that was keeping the Daleks alive and pressed the switch to show him how serious I was,\u201d continued the Doctor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBut you didn\u2019t follow through with my execution!\u201d chuckled Davros.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThere\u2019s no Nyder to knock me unconscious, Davros! Now, you WILL be leaving this universe!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAnd miss the chance to create a new race of Daleks that will be utterly loyal to me?! NEVER!\u201d The Doctor then pressed the switch! \u201c\u2026My life support\u2019s still on, Doctor.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou\u2019re right in that I\u2019m not naturally a killer, so that switch DOESN\u2019T control your life support systems,\u201d she admitted as she released Davros, \u201cbut I gave you the option to leave this universe willingly. You should have taken it before I made the choice for you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWait! What is that buildup of energy?!\u201d yelped Davros as his chair\u2019s readings flashed over his camera eye.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThat, Davros, would be the one-way dimensional engine building up the charge for the trip you\u2019re about to take,\u201d replied the Doctor. \u201cStole the designs from the Saucer you arrived in.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou haven\u2019t won, Doctor!\u201d insisted Davros. \u201cI cannot be defeated! I CANNOT BE KILLED! I! AM! DAVROOOS!\u201d By now, the dimensional engine finished its charge and switched on. Davros was surrounded by a flash of light, causing Ssylphiel and the Doctor to shield their eyes. The light died down and the Doctor and Ssylphiel lowered their hands to see that Davros had gone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026He\u2019ll be on a planet by himself,\u201d said the Doctor. \u201cI made sure that the planet will have just enough technology for him to survive there.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAnd you\u2019ll meet him again and again and again,\u201d mused Ssylphiel. \u201c\u2026Sounds a lot like my relationship with Anacassandra.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026How will her death affect things anyways?\u201d asked the Doctor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBy removing a Divine Folk\u2019s life, the Daleks have made it so that answering prayers on the Gods\u2019 behalf is a little harder, so many more will have to take her place. \u2026I only pray that those that do will actually fulfill that duty.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cShe forgot it when she was alive, didn\u2019t she?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cShe told me at one point that the Gods should not concern themselves with the wishes of lesser beings. \u2026For one thing, just because they\u2019re not Divine doesn\u2019t mean they\u2019re lesser. For another, they put in the work, so they SHOULD be rewarded before they die. And for one last thing, they\u2019re the reason I have any form of real life at all. If they didn\u2019t exist, I don\u2019t think I\u2019d personally enjoy life. I\u2019d be stagnant and unchanging\u2026a being like Anacassandra. So I try and help the non-Divine Folk where I can. I DO pray to the Gods that I\u2019m successful, though.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cGiven that people genuinely love you,\u201d said the Doctor with a smile, \u201cI think your prayers are answered. I once said that hatred is always foolish and love is always wise. I think you\u2019ve understood that a long time before I was even born in my original universe.\u201d Ssylphiel smiled back.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026Come along, Doctor,\u201d said Ssylphiel. \u201cSerpentia has just overcome a severe hardship and we NEED to celebrate it!\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A blue-tinted visual display entered his brain directly. He realized he was looking down at a control panel. He then heard a voice, slightly distorted by electronics, but recognizable. \u201cDavros? \u2026Davros? Can you hear me?\u201d \u2026Yes, that was his name. Davros! And the woman in front of him was the\u2026what in\u2026? \u201cThat\u2026smell\u2026\u201d whispered Davros through […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":6809,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_bbp_topic_count":0,"_bbp_reply_count":0,"_bbp_total_topic_count":0,"_bbp_total_reply_count":0,"_bbp_voice_count":0,"_bbp_anonymous_reply_count":0,"_bbp_topic_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_reply_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_forum_subforum_count":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[959,1067],"tags":[35,963,962,482],"class_list":["post-7903","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-doctor-who-crossings","category-the-specials","tag-doctor-who","tag-fan-companion","tag-fan-doctor","tag-fantasy"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7903","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7903"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7903\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7904,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7903\/revisions\/7904"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6809"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7903"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7903"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7903"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}