The Ego Bug - A Doctor Who Fan Fic

The Others

"Shh..." Rose takes off her jacket and wraps it around the girl's shoulders. "It's okay.  It's all over now. You're safe. I promise."

-

Moments later find all of them including the doctor and Rodgers sitting in the telescope room as the newly-found girl sips a mug of tea and tries to calm down.  The doctor sits in a chair across from her, watching her intently as Rose stands beside and lays a hand on the girl's shoulder comfortingly.

"What's the last thing you remember?" the Doctor asks.

"I-I-I..."

"Take your time..." he soothes, taking his spoon from his jacket and leaning forward to stir her tea with it, leaving the spoon spinning in the cup.

The girl glances up at Rose who nods. She then takes a deep breath, stirs the tea, and tries again.  "I'm from the planet below. I was a volunteer for the ego bug experiment, but when I took the lift down to the lab for my injection it stopped before opening and I heard screams andshrieks and blood-curdling...anyway I...I got scared...I just camehere to make my nightmares and paranoia go away and instead I hear..." She gulps, eyes wetting. "...it happening in real time."

The Doctor smiles sympathetically and scoots forward.  "What's your name?"

She sniffs. "Kyra."

"Well you're safe now Kyra," he smiles.  "As soon as this facility is up and running again you'll get your injection and everything will be okay." He touches her knee. "Can you trust me? Can you do that for me?"

She looks down and nods.

Rising slowly, the Doctor glances around the room opening his mouth, then closing it, he turns to Rodgers and crosses his arms.  "I wonder if..."

Suddenly a red light starts flashing around the room accompanied by screeches and beeping.

Mickey jumps.  "What's that?!"

Kyra ducks her head onto her knees sobbing as Rose rubs her back and takes her tea cup gently.

Rodger's registers terror.  "Impending attack!"  He runs to a control panel and punches some buttons staring at a small screen.  The doctor runs up beside him as Rodgers points to the small screen in surprise.  "It's the planet!  They're arming weapons against us!"

He grabs a microphone on the consul and pulls it up to his mouth, concern marking his face.  "This is the Yatari research facility! Why are you preparing to attack us?"

Over the speakers comes a sharp angry male voice.  "You PATHETIC EGOTISTICAL SCUM!"

The Doctor raises his eyebrows as a loud laugh cackles through the speakers.

"As if we even needed a reason to exterminate the pests that are the Yatari!  I'll give you plenty.  For one, you fired on our planet that weso graciously lent you with some widespread wave that's already sent out world into war two! The amount of gaul you have experimenting on our citizens to further your own petty!-"

The Doctor grabs the microphone from the stunned Rodgers.

"Excuse me SIR!  What do they call you?"

"Hendrick," the voice snaps.

"Well, Hendrick, for your education the Yatari are ANYTHING but egotistical scum, as a matter of fact my good friend and leader of this facility has dedicated his life to helping the universe, for TWO, Your people suffering from depression and suicidal mania volunteered to be a partof the experiment and..." He glances at Rodgers.  "We were unaware the wave had been fired, our deepest apologies, there's been a situation up here."

"A SITUATION?"

"Yes, but what-what do are you saying about the wave causing your world to war?  Didn't it harm your citizens?"

"Harm? You wish!  Ha!" the voice breaks into a hysterical laughter.

"Can I speak to someone actually in charge of something, young man?" the Doctor snaps.

"I'm the Emperor," the young voice slurs.  "And you Mr...Whoever-you-are, prepare your friend and his lab to leave our skies or be blown into inty-bity pieces because we're ticked off!"

"Are you INSANE!" the Doctor roars into the mike.  "If this lab undocks it will be flying blind!  It can't survive space!  Everyone aboard will die!"

"Tough luck." he mumbles. "You guys tick me off anyway.  Get the hell out of my space in 13 hours of say your sweet goodbyes.  Emperor Hendrick out!"

Rodgers leans on the consul and shuts his eyes.

"What the hell was that!?" the Doctor screams.  Rose shrugs.  Kyra huddles into a paranoid ball then tumbles to her feet and hurries from the room.

The Doctor paces the floor and runs a hand through his hair.  "I mean why why-why didn't the device kill them? And-and if it didn't kill them then what did it do?  Turn them into brats?"

"That's what it sounds like..." Rose's mum mutters.

"We can just use the TARDIS," Rodger suggests.

"No," The Doctor sighs.  "We CAN'T.  The TARDIS is broken."

"WHAT?"Rodger's face panics.

-

Kyra rushes down the hall, clutching her stomach, tears hovering in her eyes.  She stumbles into the "Ego Bug" room and steps over Jinken's body towards a shelf of thin syringes, each one containinga small wriggling larvae.  The stand is labeled: Ego Bug for volunteer injection.

Swallowing hard, she lifts one with a shaking hand and squirts the air out. Placing it carefully to her arm she squeezes it in and shuts her eyes. For a second something washes over her and she relaxes and a smallsmile dares to start on her face.  Suddenly her face wrinkles up and under her skin something wriggles. Choking, she covers her mouth. Suddenly she starts gagging and gasping for air, convulsing and coughing. Reeling she clutches the corner of a table, stumbling, foam dripping from her mouth.

-

Her scream echoes down the passages and The Doctor's head whips around."Where's Kyra?"

"She was just..."  Rose looks at chair where Kyra sat a moment before. It's empty.