by Cour M.
“If they negotiate with the Ptorians, the Mecrellans are going to do it in their own interests. Mark my words, the Ptorians are going to have to pay to get their own people back.”
“Yes, but we must also make sure that the Ptorians are warned before they take back their own people,” Ten emphasized, “if we don’t inform them, then they will have revived their brethren. And you recall, Martha, that the frozen sagriens were given a last order engrained in them to kill all half-bloods. If we don’t tell the sagriens on Ptorian, there will be a danger to the people who bargained for them.”
“Purebloods?” Eight started, “So, the sagriens on the ark really are purebloods?”
“Yes, I was being coerced against my will to help revive them.”
“Who? Who forced you?!”
Ten’s tone changed at Eight’s serious and slightly intimidating demeanor.
“Weldon—”
“Jinn,” Eight said with Ten.
“Yes.”
“You fought against Weldon Jinn?”
“Yes, we did.”
Eight rushed around his consul unit and turned off the breaks.
“What are you doing?” Martha asked.
“I’m taking us back in the universe! We may be a risk, but it’s a risk I must take. Why didn’t you all tell me that you fought against him?”
“We didn’t think it mattered, because he died.”
“Did he?” Eight asked, dubious.
“Yes, we left him drifting in space when the Morning Star satellite broke apart.”
“Did you see his body?” Eight refuted. He looked between Martha and Ten, “Did either of you see all of his regenerations dying in space?”
“No, we didn’t,” Martha admitted.
Eight set the coordinates for Mecrellas.
“You fought against one of the most criminally ingenious minds in the whole universe,” he bellowed, “and what does that make him? A survivor. You let him drift in space? No, he found a way. He always finds a way. He’s in Mecrellas.”
“What?”
“Yes, where you all just were. He came with you.”
Martha’s eyes widened at the thought of it. They had taken Weldon Jinn to the place where they had been.
And the sagrien ark was there too—ready for the taking.
Chapter 13
Satsuki
“Now, my aim must be perfect,” Eight remarked as they flew the TARDIS through the vortex.
“What do you mean?” Martha asked.
“We can’t give him any real time to do much, because Weldon Jinn moves quickly. He could be there for an hour and could have found a way to arrange everything to his plans.”
“And he’s been there for over a day,” Martha said, “when we were confined in the Halls of Justice, he was running around!”
“He’s been in Mecrellas for a day?” Eight started, “stellar!”
“But I don’t understand, though,” Martha realized, “how do you know about him, but you didn’t?” she asked Ten, “you’re him, but older.”
“Like many things, much was forgotten after his regeneration perhaps,” Ten assumed.
“Great, but still, when we met Weldon Jinn, he didn’t know you that well either. Not your name, I mean. He just liked the coincidence of you being a Timelord.”
“Because I didn’t tell him my real name,” Eight replied, “I got the sense that it wasn’t the best idea to do that with him.”
“So, what does he know you as?”
The name drifted into the forefront of Eight’s mind, so Ten’s mind got the message very quickly.
“Oh!” Ten gasped, hearing it in his thoughts, “oh, clever man, you are.”
“What?” Martha asked.
“Our old name,” Ten answered for Eight, “the Professor. A companion of ours, Ace, she called us that. The Professor.”
“So, Weldon Jinn fought the same Timelord twice and didn’t know it,” Martha summed up.
“And he lost to us twice,” Ten added, “now we need him to lose to us a third time.”
“Oh yes,” Eight remarked. “Now, prepare yourselves, you both. You’re about to meet my companion.”
“Your companion?” Ten asked.
“Satsuki?” Martha recalled.
“Yes, she is vital for this. Martha, be prepared, she knows your future.”
“Of course, she does! Who doesn’t know it at this point? Oh, that’s right: me.”
“I hope she won’t be too upset with me. I have the funny feeling that I’m about to interrupt her at a bad time.”
⌛
Justice: The Magna City that neighbors Draconis
Planet: Mecrellas
Time: Ten minutes after Eight had saved Martha and Ten from being executed.
Making sure that her white makeup was not flaky, nor her red lipstick smeared, the Geisha Satsuki looked away from the mirror and began to walk out of her dressing room. Along the way, she passed other Geishas who were leaving the stage, and she smiled to some of them while being frowned at by others. This didn’t unnerve Satsuki or affect her confidence, because the average Geisha was always hated by half her contemporaries. She knew the life she chose, which was a very dog-eat-dog environment, and she had developed a thick enough skin. Then again, she had travelled with the Doctor, so that also gave her the ability to develop a backbone.
In the midst of the Magna City called Justice, there was the final Geisha performance of the year called the ‘Satsumomo’. It was a weeklong theatre presentation of the Geishas in the city, dancing, singing, fan work and plate juggling. Being raised in Tsysiki, a neighborhood of Justice, she grew up in the area of the city that imitated the Kyoto culture of Japan, Earth. Since the people of Justice had identical physical features to the Japanese Earth people, it only seemed natural for them to imitate them.
Growing up an orphan, she was bartered into a Geisha House when she was a little girl. Thus, when the Doctor dropped into her life, she viewed it as freedom from her normal life. Yet when her Geisha duties became more cumbersome, the Doctor learned that he had to fit himself around her life, so he knew to visit only on Thursdays.
Satsuki reached the wings backstage as a previous performance of Geishas dancing onstage was coming to an end. The Geishas finished their dancing, the music ended and the audience clapped for them.
As they filed offstage, one of the Geishas passed by Satsuki and sneered at her.
“You’re going to fail,” the Geisha said to her.
“Ah, you’re just saying that to hurt my feelings,” Satsuki replied casually, not affected at all.
An announcer came on the stage, spoke her name as the next performer, and Satsuki placed herself on the back of the stage. The music played, the light changed, the back curtain opened and Satsuki entered, with a parasol placed over her head. As she entered, the light beamed on her, turning from pink, to white, to blue. Rose petals fell all around her from boys in the rafters releasing them. Satsuki walked forward gracefully, making sure not to fall in her sandals. She spun around in her kimono, letting the umbrella fall to her side as the rose petals fell around her.
Then the music changed, she moved out of her sandals with quick ease, laid down the parasol, removed two fans from her sash, and then proceeded to do The Satsu, the fastest fan dance that could ever be accomplished. There were only two Geishas in the Gion District that ever attempted to do it before her, and they had dropped their fans. It was nearly impossible to attempt.
Yet with the rose petals falling around her, Satsuki kept throwing her fans, catching them, and dancing all the while. With the last toss, she caught both fans in each hand, then bowed, and was met by enormous cheering in the crowd.
As she knelt to the ground, happy that she was finished, she heard the familiar sound.
VWORP! VWORP!
⌛
All around her, the TARDIS materialized, and it was met with Satsuki groaning as she stood up.
“Doctor!” She cried.
<
br /> “Hello, my dear,” Eight replied pleasantly, “I’m home.”
“Don’t you dare dematerialize in front of all these people,” she demanded, “don’t you dare! At least let me get another bow in.”
“Of course I—,” he leaned on the TARDIS and his arm pressed against the lever. It pressed down and the TARDIS dematerialized. “Oh, oops,” he mocked.
“Unbelievable,” Satsuki sighed, “o’ impatient one.”
“I needed you.”
“You always do,” she smiled, “but seriously. Name what’s so drastic that you had to drop in on my curtain call?”
“Weldon Jinn is back.”
Satsuki’s eyes widened.
“Give me a minute to get changed,” Satsuki responded, needing no other excuse. “Are my guns still in my room?”
“Of course. Oh, and that’s my other self,” Eight said, gesturing to Ten, who was standing nearby.
“Oh, hello,” Satsuki said, “which number is it this time? I’m unfamiliar to your face.”
“I’m the Tenth Doctor,” Ten smiled, “and I am very happy to meet you.”
“You better be,” Satsuki smirked, “nice to meet you, Ten.”
“Oh, and Martha Jones is behind you,” Eight replied, offhandedly.
“What?” Satsuki responded, her jaw dropping. She turned around and faced Martha.
“Satsuki,” Martha Jones began, “nice to meet you. Wow, you look amazing.”
“It’s you,” Satsuki gasped, “I thought we’d never see you again.”
“Oh,” Martha nodded, “yeah, sorry about that. My future self really needs to be chastised for messing up with your timelines.”
“It’s fine, we were prepared for it.”
“When we met, was I nice?”
“You saved my life. That’s how we met.”
“I did?” Martha grinned.
“Yes, you did.”
“Hang on a mo’,” she then turned to Ten, giving him a teasing look, “I totally saved her life too.”
“Oh, stop bragging!”
“That’s all you ever do!”
“So,” Satsuki said to Eight, pinching his chin, “what’s the situation?”
“Weldon Jinn has most likely been in Draconis for a day.”
“A full day?!”
“Yes. You have fifteen minutes to get ready.”
“Right.”
Satsuki grabbed Martha’s hand and pulled her along.
“Come along Martha, I need help getting out of my kimono.”
“No problem,” Martha agreed, letting Satsuki drag her along. “I’m not gonna lie, I’ve always wanted to see how large a kimono was when a Geisha hangs it up.”
“Amazing,” she remarked, “for you told me that you would say something like that. And here you are.”
“Did I possibly tell you what to do if we did run into Weldon Jinn?”
“No, you didn’t.”
“Well, Satsuki, if you ever run into my future self again, can you please tell her to sort out her priorities of the information she finds important to hand out to you?”
“Will do. Thanks.”
⌛
They rushed to Satsuki’s room, Martha quickly helped her out of her sash and kimono.
“My goodness, how many layers do they make you girls wear?” Martha remarked as she found three more layers’ underneath.
“At least four,” Satsuki replied, “now reach into my dresser and pull out a pair of black pants, a green thermal shirt, and my black jacket from the closet.”
Martha retrieved the items as Satsuki removed her makeup, and washed her face. Martha then helped her take down her hair as well as pull out all the trinkets. Satsuki got on her average clothes, pulled on her boots and looked like she could be ready for combat. She then went below her bed, pulled out a chest, opened it and it contained a small arsenal of guns.
She placed her gun holster around her waist and thigh, then placed her gun in it. As she prepared, Martha looked over the guns.
“Is that a .22LR Pistol?” Martha asked.
“Yeah, you want to borrow it?”
“The Doctor would be angry with me.”
“So?” Satsuki shrugged, “would it make you feel comfortable? And do you know how to fire a gun yet?”
“Are you kidding?” Martha picked up the pistol and began to load it, “I spent the last year walking around the Earth. You better believe that I learned a thing or two.”
“There you go.”
Satsuki handed Martha a holster for her to wrap around her waist as well. Martha adjusted it perfectly as Satsuki also took a sword from out of her closet and wrapped it around her back.
“You have a sword too?” Martha asked.
“Oh yeah.”
“That is so wicked!”
They both walked back to the command room.
⌛
When both women entered, Satsuki was pulling her hair into a ponytail, and without her makeup on, she looked quite lovely.
Of course, Ten didn’t notice that, but only what Martha had around her waist.
“Martha Jones,” he started, “what are you doing with that?”
“Oh,” Martha tapped the gun, “isn’t it pretty?”
“Martha, don’t you dare keep that on!”
“Hey!” Satsuki interrupted, snapping her fingers at Ten, “What? She can’t have an independent thought? Mind your manners!”
Ten blinked.
“Did you just—”
“Yes, I did,” Satsuki smirked and Eight pinched her cheek out of affection.
“Bear in mind that we are about to perhaps encounter a sagrien with telekinetic abilities and can snap their necks,” Eight intoned to Ten, “so, in regards to weapons, this is a judge-free zone.”
Martha taunted Ten by giving him a look as Eight landed the TARDIS.
“Perfect timing,” Eight said, looking at the monitor, “Oh, I am so good.”
“Stop patting yourself on the back, or you’ll be labelled as vain,” Ten scoffed, “what’s our time and place?”
“We have just landed in the execution room of the Halls of Justice,” he was interrupted when the sound of gunfire got louder, “and that is the sound of the guards that had lined up to shoot you both.”
“You brought us to the exact moment that we were being executed?” Martha confirmed.
“Yup, am I good or what?”
The sound of gunfire ended.
“And now they’ve stopped.”
“Well, ready to take a step outside?” Ten grinned.
“With pleasure,” Satsuki agreed, removing her gun. Martha echoed the action and they walked together as the Doctors came behind them.
“Don’t they look adorable with their guns and acting all overprotective?” Eight asked. “It’s truly lovely.”
Ten gave him a look of disdain.
“I don’t know who you are anymore,” Ten asserted as they both walked up to the TARDIS doors.
“Remove your amnesty papers,” Ten informed, “Martha and Satsuki remain behind us.”
“If we get shot,” Eight advised, “don’t be heroes. Just drag our bodies back in and drive the TARDIS away while we regenerate.”
“Oh, just taking all the fun out of it, aren’t you?” Satsuki grinned.
“I’ll let you have all the fun in the world tomorrow, I promise you, duckie.”
Ten and Eight opened the doors of the TARDIS and they were before the firing squad, in front of the Mecrellan council. Martha was amazed once more how all the time in the world could be fit within a matter of minutes. They had visited the Shadow Proclamation, two Doctors got acquainted, stole an Eye of Harmony connection from Gallifrey and rested out of the universe. All in a matter of a few seconds.
“Sorry to put a damper on the situation,” Eight announced, “but I believe that I am the man you were looking for.”
“Doctor!” General Vander cried, “you’ve come back to Mecrellas!”
�
�Oh, you know me,” Eight continued, “when I shut down an institution, almost get killed many times in the process, I can’t help but come back and get more of that sunshine.”
“But one was not enough this time,” Ten came forward and smirked, “I personally came back for the view I got from my prison cell. Lovely spot.”
Both Doctors presented their papers from the Shadow Proclamation.
“And though we know that you wanted to kill us,” Ten continued.
“It shall hurt you tremendously to discover that you can’t,” Eight added.
General Vander stood up, enraged.
⌛
“This is meaningless,” General Vander replied, looking over the papers. They were all now in the interrogation room, so that they could have some privacy and away from the council. Eight and Ten were sitting on the other side of the desk of General Vander, with Martha and Satsuki behind them with their hands holding onto their guns. “Mecrellas has broken away from the Galactic Alliance, and therefore it holds no jurisdiction over us.”
“I think this is where he pretends like he has the right to rip up the papers,” Ten said to Eight.
“Yes, it is, and here is when we hurt his pride.”
“Yes, it is.” Eight leaned forward at General Vander.
“You just tried to kill my future incarnation and his companion, when they were ignorant of my history. Without trial, and no appeal. That is already enough to put you into a legal quagmire, but here is the thing: you may not be a part of the Galactic Alliance, but I am. And what is also known is that the Shadow Proclamation has copies of our amnesty, and if we are killed or harmed in any way, then they will have no choice but to interfere, now won’t they?”
“As a matter of fact,” Ten requested, “I invite you to shoot me. If you do, then the authorities of the entire universe might respond to it, and that is the last thing that you wish, isn’t it?”
“The Proclamation won’t do anything. We have an understanding with them.”
“Yes, you do. You’ve bribed then with universal window-bridge creation, but they are still the law. So, go ahead, shoot me, and let’s find out.”
