10. In the dark
"Lynne?!" the Doctor said surprised, "I tried to call you but-"
"I know, Doctor. I know the kids are gone. That's why I'm here." Lynne said seriously.
"Oh, of course you must have felt it. You often seem to know things will happen before they actually happen."
"I did." Lynne simply replied.
"Why didn't you come sooner then?" he asked her rather desperately.
"I couldn't." Lynne replied emotionlessly.
"What, why couldn't you come? Because of your work?" the Doctor called out at her.
"Yes, because of work." Lynne replied calmy.
"My everything! I don't get you girl! Is your work now more important than Sarah and Adrian?! What is wrong with you lately?!" he shouted in anger and disbelief.
"Look at it on the bright side Doctor, now we have a chance to find the missing children." Lynne said almost unaffected by his shouting.
"Really, I don't believe this. You think we have a better chance now Sarah and Adrian are kidnapped too?!" he said amazed by the cool reasoning of his kinswoman.
"Yes I do, now calm down, Doctor. You've said it yourself, don't get carried away." Lynne replied.
"Yeah, well I work best under pressure." he commented softly.
"Ah that must be Nick and his father now. Come on, Doctor. Let's find where the Knobagibbelers are hiding and resue the missing children." Lynne proposed as she went downstairs to let Nick and his company in.
The Doctor followed her, whilst thinking, "How did she know about the Knobagibbelers, I haven't told her?"
It had gone fully dark outside by now. The sky was clear and the stars shone like scattered diamonds. Though, none of this beautiful Januari night lifted the five's spirits. They had serious matters to attend to.
The Doctor and Lynne got in the car with Nick, his father and his police colleauge. Lynne, much to the Doctor's agitation, took the front seat, so he had to sqeeze his long legs in the back. Though, now conveniently next to Nick he could show him his theory.
He told them he had found a pendant just like Nick had drawn on a field near a forest when walking the dog. This was a good excuse, because he would not tell them the children were actually loured to the wood by some alien beings called Knobagibbelers. If he did that they would probably turn around and escort him to the funny farm straight away! He had been there once and he could safely say it was no good place to be for a sane Time Lord.
He gave directions to the field and the nearby forest where he suspected the Knobagibbelers were hiding. He had looked up the location of the schooltrip the children were on with Miss Ruby the other day, for that was where Sarah said she had the pendant from.
"Now I don't know how the kidnappers managed to get the children out of their rooms so cleanly without leaving a trace." the Doctor said.
"We-, I think, the children went out by themsleves." Lynne replied in a business like tone.
"And then they were taken into the woods here, hm? I dare not imagine what the perverts have done to them then." Nick's father said with disgust, while everyone exited the car.
"So you think there are multiple perpetrators?" Lynne asked the father.
"Yes, we think so, because last night there were four kidnappings at around the same time of night, which suggests this." the policeman said.
"Nick, you stay in the car. This is dangerous business." his father said and though Nick protested at first he remained in the car for his own good and for his father's peace of mind.
"So this is where you found the pendant, Mr Smith?" the policeman asked the Doctor as they walked across the field towards the forests edge.
"Yes, now I-" he said and was interupted by Lynne.
"Gentlemen, I suggest we split up. We'll cover a bigger area that way. Nick's father and his colleague go that way and the- John and I will look in that direction." she said, taking control of the situation quite professionally. It surprised the Doctor to say the least.
"Yes, Ma'am." the two policeman said.
"Let's exchange phonenumbers so we can call each other when we've found something." she said and took out her mobile phone. She entered Nick's father's mobile phone number and set off towards the forest edge.
"Well..." The Doctor was at a loss of words after witnessing Lynne handling the situation like an army soldier.
"Well indeed." Nick's father said and they set off in the opposite direction while the Doctor caught up with Lynne.
"Ha, it's clear which one wears the trousers in their marriage!" the police officer said to Nick's father when they were out of hearing range. Though the Doctor did catch his comment.
"Why does everybody think I am married?" he said aloud.
"Because you are a handsome looking young man traveling in the company of very attractive women." Lynne replied from a distance.
"Hmm, I must find an ugly person to travel with me next time then." he quipped.
"Ah, thinking of taking up the old way of life then are you?" Lynne said cynically.
"Well, I am certainly not thinking of getting married." the Doctor said to Lynne as he came walking beside her. She laughed out loud.
"Lynne. I am worried." the Doctor said after a pause.
"You shouldn't be." Lynne replied, "We'll have found the children in no time. I can feel they are close."
"I know that. I am worried about you." the Doctor said concerned.
"Well, you shouldn't be either." Lynne replied agitatedly.
"No, seriously, Lynne." he said and stopped her in her tracks, "What is going on with you lately? You are acting strange. What is it?" He was genuinly concerned and he wished she wouldn't be to proud to tell him about it.
"Do you really want to know, Doctor? Now, here, like this in the dark?" Lynne asked when she saw the conviction in his eyes.
"Yes, Lynne, I do." he said kindly but firmly.
"Alright then." she said and took a deep breath, "I miss you."
The Doctor didn't know what to say to that, for he had been with her for some years now.
"I miss the Doctor. The real you. The man who knows everything, the man who can travel through time and space, the man with fire in his eyes and faith in his hearts. When I look at you I see so much energy and power, so much potential, but you have hidden it away. You follow a path that is not meant for you. You should run, Doctor. Run from and run to. That is who you are and every day I see you and I see it go to waste." Lynne said with tears in her eyes.
Now he understood clearly what she was trying to say. He was denying the Time Lord in him and she could no longer bear to see it. That was the reason why she stayed out to work all day and night and why she put all her energy and effort into it.
"But if you were unhappy Lynne why didn't you tell me?" he asked.
"I wanted to stay here and live a normal life like I had done all those years before. I didn't want to come with you at first. I told you to bring me home. And when you called on me that day, I was there for you. Yes.
You had your wish fulfilled and you were so happy. You didn't want to be reminded of the old times when you travelled the universe with your companions and I didn't want to bring all that hurt back into your hearts, so I remained quiet. But it ate away on me."
"Oh, Lynne." the Doctor said remorsefully.
"You don't have to say anything, I know how you feel." Lynne said, "It's okay. We must find the children now." Lynne could barely keep herself from crying and swollowed away her tears. She tried to focus her attention on the children again while the Doctor stood contemplating what he had just been told.
Lynne, with the Doctor at her side, walked into the forest and after a few minutes she stopped.
"They are around here somewhere. I can feel they are close. Can you see anything?" she said.
"Do you feel only the children or the Knobagibbelers too?" the Doctor asked her.
"I am not sure. I feel fear. Frightened beings, whether they are the children I cannot tell." L
ynne said.
"It could be that the Knoba's are frightened too. They are-" the Doctor started.
"Usually not malicious. I know." Lynne said exactly what he was about to say.
"You should stop that trick of yours. It's no fun if you already know what I am about to say, you know. I won't have anything to say, and I do like the sound of my own voice. It let's me know I am still here." the Doctor said while gazing around amongst the trees to catch a glimpse of the creatures that were eyeing them.
"And it let's others know you're here too." Lynne said as she pointed at a small shape hidden in a bush. They heard ruffling noises all around them, but the Knobagibbelers moved so quickly and stealthily that they could not see them.
"There are too many, Doctor." Lynne whispered.
"They are everywhere Lynne. Get back to the field. Run!" the Doctor said, but the little creatures came out of their hiding all around the two.
"We can't. We are surrounded!" Lynne said and they had no choice than to lift up their hands and negotiate.
"I am the Doctor. I know you mean us no harm and nor do we." he said aloud looking around but not at the creatures. He was looking for a leader, for he knew the Knobagibbelers would not do this on themselves. They were made to do this and that is why Lynne sensed that fear.
"What have you done to the children? Where are they?" he asked.
"What would you care, they are not your children. They are ours now." a voice said from the dark. The Doctor could not pinpoint where the voice came from, nor could Lynne. They kept looking around them desperately like rabbits trapped in a corner.
"Doctor. How nice to see you again. I am sure the pleasure is all mine. Haha." the voice continued and the Knobagibbelers moved in on them.
"Who is that?" Lynne asked, but the Doctor was in the dark about that too. Some of the little creatures began to extend their arms and their extremeties turned into strands of ivy which were beginning to wrap themselves around the Doctor and Lynne. It frightened Lynne and she tried to run away, but the creatures tightened their grip, toppled her over and covered her up to her neck in ivy. The Doctor thought about helping her but he was already being held by his legs and arms by the same ivy bindings inabeling him to move.
He remained standing while he faced the one who spoke to them from the dark appearing from behind the trees.
11. What's in a name
"Rose? Ruby?" the Doctor didn't know who the blond haired woman was anymore. At first he had mistaken her for his former companion and now she turned out to be the evil mind behind this!
"Ah, Doctor. What's in a name." the woman said, "But Ruby will do, I have gotten used to it now."
"Who- What are you? And what do you want?!" the Doctor said in his panicking demanding manner as he always does when he is facing and enemy outnumbered.
"Me and you. Oh, and her too." the woman said. Answering both his questions consecutively.
"What do you want us for? And what have you done with the children?" the Doctor demanded more information.
"All those questions Doctor. And I thought you had all the answers. You do have a lot to answer for." she spoke in riddles, but it was no less true.
"Now we have you, we don't need the children anymore." the woman said with an evil smile on her face.
"No!" the Doctor protested and tugged his constraints.
"What? You don't agree?" the woman asked him. "Their parents aren't going to like you for that." she added.
"Do you suggest we take the children with us?" the woman asked cynically.
"Take us where?" the Doctor saw an opportunity to get more information about what he found himself in the middle of.
"You really have no clue, do you, Doctor?!" the woman said angrily. "They said you would pleat innocent. And I suppose you lady friend there has nothing to do with it either. Ha! You cannot fool me. You are to be taken to trial!"
"Again." the Doctor mumbeled.
"What?!" Lynne exclaimed, "You weren't after the children. You were after us?"
"Doctor, what are we on trial for?" Lynne asked him in a frightened and panicking voice.
"Oh, I don't know. It could be anything really. From inappropriately parking the TARDIS to entangling timelines and messing with the fabric of time and space or wiping out entire civilisations or even preventing their wipe out. I get blamed for just about everything." he taunted.
"You may speak your whitty words Doctor, but they will not change your fate." the woman said, "Or that of your companion."
"She is not my companion. She has not travelled with me. She lives here on Earth. She has nothing to do with this. Please, you have me now, let her go." the Doctor tried to reason Lynne free.
"Do not mock me Doctor!" the woman called out in a powerful voice, "We all know very well she is a Time Lord too. My assignment was to find and retrieve the last of the Time Lords. So you two are my prisoners now." The woman waved her arm and the Knobagibbelers holding Lynne dragged her off whilst she was still bound by strands of ivy.
"Lynne!" the Doctor called out for her but she had soon disappeared into the dark innards of the wood. The vines of ivy bagan to pull at the Doctor's arms and legs and he was forced towards the ground.
"She is not a Time Lord, she is a Daughter! I am the last of the Time Lords." he said angrily as he fought the advancing ivy vines.
"And are you proud of that?" the woman asked him condemningly.
"I am just asking you; set Lynne and the children free. You have what you want now, you don't need them anymore." the Doctor still pleated for the childrens lives. He would sacrifice his own if it meant the zeven children and Lynne would be returned home safely.
"Take them to the ship." the woman said to her little smelly subjects and walked away. The Knobagibbelers beagan to tug on the Doctor's ivy constraints and dragged him off in the same direction Lynne was taken.
Then against the light of the moon, the Doctor saw a sight he will never forget. It was the dog Laika. She barked a few times and came running towards him, but what could the dog do against all these creatures. The dog had no hands to free the Doctor from hind binds, the poor thing could only bark as his new found master was being taken captive. But bark she did, continuously, until something approached from the shrubs.
The Doctor could hardly see who it was because of all the dirt that got in his eyes. It was a tall human figure, with...with an axe. The weapon shone in the bleak moonight as it soured down towards the bound captive. The Knobagibbelers shrieked as their ivy limbs were cut off by the axe. They tried to attack the axeman, but the dog fended them off as best she could. When Laika had scared off all the wounded and angry creatures, the axeman approached the still bound Doctor.
"Are you okay, Mr Smith?" Nick whispered to him.
"Nick, well done!" the Doctor said as he was helped out of his ivy binds and got back on his feet.
"You were supposed to wait in the car! It is dangerous out here." the Doctor then told him off.
"I saw that, Sir. But I do believe I have the upper hand." Nick said and laughed.
"No time for frivolities, Nick. There are many more of these things in this wood. They have taken Lynne to their-" he said.
"What? Their mothership?" Nick added.
"Well- yes." the Doctor affirmed.
"Oh cool!" the boy exclaimed.
"Ha ha, yes, very cool!" the Doctor laughed as his tide had turned, "Tell me how did you two get here?"
"Well, I got fed up with waiting in the car. After all it was our plan to save Amelia. I wanted to help too. Then the dog came barking at me. I followed her, just like in the movies, and there I saw you and your-"
"my friend, Lynne"
"You and Lynne being surrounded by these woody things with ivy arms! So I went back to the car and got the axe. The rest, is history..."
"History. Oh you are brilliant, Nick. Just brilliant!" the Doctor said as they jogged in the direction Lynne had been taken. The dragmarks were easily visible o
n the forest floor.
"Hang on." the Doctor said and stopped in his tracks.
"What?" Nick said, thinking there was something amiss.
"What does your father have an axe in his car for?" he asked seriously.
"He is a police officer."
"Oh okay." the Doctor replied and resumed the chase to the Knobagibbelers' ship.
As they approached a clearing, they saw the ship in its full height.
"Wait, Mr Smith. Do we have a plan?"
"Mwah, I use a standard plan that usually works quite well." the Doctor said somewhat unsure. While he observed the tall ship and the ceatures flocking from it's hatch towards them.
"If you care to share it with me, Sir?" Nick asked concerned.
"Run, Nick. Just, run!" the Doctor told him. Nick began running back towards the open field, but the Doctor didn't follow. He didn't run, instead he strolled straight to the ship.
When Nick turned to see if his teacher was behind him, he couldn't believe his eyes. With his hands in his pockets the Doctor just strolled defiantly straight towards danger. Nick wanted to go back and help, but he felt betrayed, after having gone through all that trouble of freeing his teacher, he now walked straight back into the hands of his captors. He ran off through the wood to the open field and back to the car.
"I see...now I know who you are." the Doctor smiled and started to whistle a song. The Knobagibbelers became subdued and didn't attack him any longer. They parted to let him pass and gathered behind him in a docile flock.
He began to sing the words to the song:
I have roamed about this Earth,
with just a suitcase in my hand.
And I've met some bug-eyed joe's,
I've met the blessed I've met the damned.
But of all the strange, strange creatures,
in the sea, in air, on land.
Oh, my girl, my girl, my prescious girl,
I love you, you understand.
So reel me in my prescious girl,
Come on take me home,
'Cause my body is tired of travelling
and my heart don't wish to roam.
Thus, the Doctor entered the evil woman's ship, pushed some buttons and pulled some levers on the way and came face to face with her.
"I am the Doctor and I have come to stop you." he said determinately.
"What?" the woman exclaimed, "What have you done?"
"Ah, they were so frightened. You should have treated them better. Maybe sing a song for the little ones every now and then." he said with a big smile across his face now he had the upper hand.
"A song?!" the woman asked puzzled.
"Yes, you know. Singing, whistling, humming. To utter words or sounds in musical tones." the Doctor explained with jest.
"I know what singing means. Do not make me angry Doctor!" the woman said apalled.
"Or what? What are you going to to?" he tempted her.
"Get him!" she called at the Knoba's around them, but the little creatures didn't respond to her order.
"You seem to have lost control over your little helpers." the Doctor said and he moved to a controlpanel and started punching keys.
"Stop that! Stop him! Do something you little stinking...things!" the woman shrieked in terror while the Doctor gained acces to unlock the doors to the chambers where the children and Lynne were held captive. On a screen in the wall he made a message appear to Lynne; You're welcome. Sing a song.
"Ha ha, way to go, Doctor!" Lynne laughed and assembeled the children leading them out of the ship, singing merrily together as instructed, back to the field where they were awaited by Nick, his father and the policeman.
Meanwhile, back in the ship, the woman became evermore angry with the Doctor, but as he had pointed out before, What was she going to do about it. She still stood shrieking orders at the little creatures who were now on the Doctor's side and obeyed to none of what she said.
"Actually, Ruby. It seems you have no control over anything." the Doctor added to his earlier remark.
"How?" the woman uttered as she began to realise she was defeated.
"How I knew? Well, as you said yourself; What's in a name. A great deal in fact. One can only fight if one knows what one is up against, and a name provides this knowledge.
You are a Shimmer, I knew as soon as I came near and I saw the ship and felt your mental control over the Knobagibbeler's. And a Shimmer as the name suggests is nothing more than a trick of the light. A nonreal manifestation, and a very special one at that, taking on the form of Rose was your first mistake. As a mere being of light and shadows you have no means of controlling the ship, or anything material for that matter. You can only control living creatures by ways of the mind in which I will not deferr now. The poor frightened creatures became your puppets, your servants in this quest for greed. I know you don't care about the trial or whatever it is that the Last of the Time Lords is wanted for. You are only interested in the reward! Well, let the knowledge that I am still standing be your reward.
You saw a moment of weakness and tried to better from it, well I can assure you, you have achieved quite the opposite from your goal to rid the universe of the Last of my kind.
The Time Lord has awoken again. Take that message and pass it on." the Doctor said in a speech which showed the Lord-like nature in him profoundly. It was the energy and potential Lynne saw dorment in him, hidden away for those last few years. It had replenished and resurfaced with greater splendour than ever before.
"What will you do with us now, Doctor?" the woman asked almost ashamed, yet defiant.
"I will tell you now to leave. And you better do it without making a fuss. A quiet retreat. Take the Knobagibbelers back to were they belong and do not come back." the Doctor said and walked to the exit hatch.
"That's all?" the woman said saddened as if she was saying goodbye to a good friend. She was thankful and astounded that the powerful Time Lord didn't condemn her and let her go free.
"That's all." the Doctor said sternly and left the ship.
12. Reversion
The two policemen and Nick were immensely happy to see the children approach them across the field. Lynne was in the middle of the group of seven and they all held hands while they sang. It was a most amazing and overwhelming sight. Nick's father began to cry as he saw his daughter Amelia was unharmed. He ran towards her and held her in his arms. Nick joined their embrace for a while until his curiosity got the better of him.
"Where is Mr Smith?" he asked Lynne. "If you got out safely, what happened to him?" he wondered as the most horrible of possibilities passed through his mind. Captured, or worse...
Then it struck Lynne that he had not joined them yet. She had expected him to be right behind her, but truth be told she did not know what happened. She just assumed the Doctor was alright when she took the children out to safety. She felt guilty for her ignorance. She should have checked on him. Would it be too late to go back?, she wondered.
"I don't know Nick. I just assumed he was alright.", she told the boy with profound saddness in her voice.
Nick was horrified; Did his teacher sacrifice himself, to save eight people. And then to think that when he had looked over his shoulder and saw him walk up to the ship, he'd just ran away and left him alone.
"I am so sorry, but I have to ask. Did you see who the kidnapper was?" the policeman asked them.
"Yes." Nick said, "It was the school teacher, Miss Ruby!"
"Well, we'd better do a better background check on our teachers in the future!" a man said who approached them from behind.
"Mr Smith!" "Doctor!" Nick and Lynne exclaimed joyiously.
"We were worried about you." Lynne said.
"So was I." the Doctor laughed.
"Where is Miss Ruby, Sir? The kidnapper." the policeman asked him.
"Oh, she- She's made a runner. Yep, she's left in quite a hurry and I think she will not show herself around here anymore." he said confidently.
> "You'd better get a search order out on her, Paul." Nick's father said who had finally finished hugging his daughter.
"Okay. Can you make a description on how she looked like, Sir." the policeman asked the Doctor.
"Oh yes I can. I shall never forget her face." the Doctor said melancholically.
"Where is Laika?" Lynne asked suddenly.
"Wasn't she with you Nick?" the Doctor asked him.
"No, I thought she went with you." the boy asnwered.
The Doctor didn't look very worried about it. He kneeled and softly spoke to Sarah.
"Will you call her for me, Sarah?"
"Okay" the little girl said and she closed her eyes. A soft breeze stroked their cheeks.
"Right, off you go. Back home everyone." he said and let a sigh of relief that the whole affair had ended well.
The others were somewhat hesitant, but when Laika came running from the shrubary, they too felt relieved.
The Doctor, Lynne, Sarah, Adrian and Laika walked home and Nick's father took the remainder of the children by car to their families, who were overjoyed in their reunion.