Age of the Matrix [The Matrix: Book 2]

The Sontaran Stratagem [5]

"It's not safe! I'm gonna get it off the street!" Wilf proclaimed as he began climbing into the car.

The car doors suddenly slammed shut and the locks all clicked into place. The car turned on and began to pour from the exhaust pipe.

"Hold on!" Donna rushed to the car. "Turn it off! Granddad, get out of there!"

"I can't! It's not locked! It's them, aliens, again!" Wilf cried out.

Donna pulled at the car door, growing more frantic as fumes began to seep into the car.

Donna's mom stopped outside the front door and turned back in horror "What's he doing? What's he done?"

Donna frantically pulled at the car door again as Wilf gasped and choked. "There's gas inside the car! He's gonna choke!"

The Doctor rushed around and tried to sonic open the door, to no avail "It won't open!" He looked into the car only to see it empty "Where's he gone?"

Matrix cleared her throat causing the redhead and Time Lord to turn around and face her, to see Wilf standing next to her.

"Gramps!" Donna cried as she ran into Wilf's arms.

Matrix's eyes glowed golden as she looked at her father "Vortex manipulation...remember?"

The Doctor gave a brief smile before turning and looking at the street around, every car spitting the poisonous fumes into the atmosphere. "They've activated it!" The Doctor realized.

"Get inside the house," Matrix ordered Wilf and Donna's mother. "Just try and close off the doors and windows," She opened up a golden portal back to the UNIT base. Matrix glanced back at the redhead "Donna, you coming?"

"Yeah!" Donna said.

"Donna! Don't go! Look what happens every time that Doctor and Matrix appear! Stay with us, please," Donna's mother pleaded.

"You go my darling!" Wilf cheered.

"Dad!"

"Don't listen to her. You go with the Doctor. That's my girl,"

Donna hurried through the portal.

Matrix glanced over and saw Jack driving a cab "Oi! Forget the cab, let's get a move on!"

"I liked it better when you weren't so bossy," Jack teased.

"Just shift!" Matrix nodded into the portal.

"Bye," Wilf waved.

Once Matrix stepped through the portal and arrived outside the ATMOS factory, Jack held up his vortex manipulator.

"Greyhound 40 to Trap 1, I have just returned the Doctor and Matrix to base safe and sound, over," Jack reported.

"Trap One. Received. Over," General Mace's voice echoed.

"The air is disgusting!" Donna gagged.

"It's not so bad for me, why don't you and Matrix get inside the TARDIS."

Matrix raised an eyebrow at her father telling her to head into the TARDIS.

"Oh, never given you a key!" The Doctor pulled out a key and handed it to Donna "Keep that! Go on, that's yours! Quite a big moment really!"

"Yeah, maybe we can get sentimental after the world's finished choking to death!" Donna reminded.

"Good idea!"

Matrix noticed her father begin to walk off "Where are you going?"

"Stop a war!" The Doctor said.

"Without me?!"

"TARDIS. Now,"

Matrix huffed "This wouldn't happen to be punishment for the stunt I pulled with the Sontarans earlier, would it?"

"TARDIS,"

Matrix groaned and looked over at Jack "Keep him out of trouble,"

"You got grounded," Jack laughed in realization.

"Shut it!" Matrix shouted as she followed Donna to the TARDIS.

***

Matrix paced anxiously around the TARDIS, the TARDIS humming to try and calm the young Time Lady.

"I'm sure he'll be alright," Donna assured.

Matrix looked over at Donna "You've been with us for a while Donna, surely by now you understand that if there's one thing my father does constantly is run into danger, and usually I'm there to help out...but this time I'm stuck in here!" She kicked the console and felt the TARDIS shudder. "That's not good,"

"What you do?"

"It wasn't me..." Matrix headed towards the TARDIS doors "Stay there," she peeked out of the TARDIS door, then quickly closed it as she glimpsed the Sontarans. "Well if I wasn't grounded before, I will most certainly be now,"