The Time Lords worked on piloting the TARDIS while Martha clung on to the console for dear life. Finally, the lurching stopped, meaning they'd landed. "There we go." the Doctor said proudly, "Perfect landing. Which isn't easy in such a tight spot."
"You two should be used to tight spots by now." Martha laughed, "Where are we?"
"The end of the line." the Doctor replied as Martha rushed to the doors, "No place like it."
Martha stepped outside, only to find herself in her bedroom. "Home?" she questioned, disappointed, "You took me home."
"Bit of an anti-climax." the Artist remarked as she and Doctor stepped out too.
"Back to the morning after we left." the Doctor said to Martha, "So, you've only been about 12 hours. No time at all, really."
"But all the stuff we've done... Shakespeare, New New York, Old New York..."
"Yep. All in one night, relatively speaking." the Doctor replied, looking at photos of the Jones family on the wall.
"That's time travel for you, Martha." the Artist added, "You can travel about for days, weeks, even years, but still be back home just minutes after you left. If the TARDIS co-operates, of course."
"Everything should be just as it was." the Doctor continued, looking around the room, "Books, CDs..." He picked up a pair of underwear off the clothes horse. "Laundry." An embarrassed Martha promptly snatched them off him. "So, back where you were, as promised."
"This is it?" Martha frowned.
The Artist could understand the human's disappointment. She remembered what Sarah Jane had said about how difficult it was adjusting back to normal life. The Doctor on the other hand seemed completely oblivious. "Yeah, we should probably, um..." He gestured to the TARDIS.
Then the phone rang, going straight to the answering machine. "I'm sorry." Martha said to the Time Lords.
Francine's voice came over the machine; "Martha? Are you there? Pick it up, will you?"
"It's mum, it'll wait." Martha said, not really interested in listening to her mum's trademark ranting and moaning right now.
"Alright then, pretend you're out, if you like." Francine continued, "I was only calling to say that your sister is going to be on TV. On the news, of all things. Just thought you might be interested."
That piped Martha's interest and she turned the telly on to see a press conference, hosted by an elderly man. "The details are top secret." the man said.
"How could Tish end up on the news?" Martha wandered. She got her answer when she saw Tish standing behind the man, who according to the news was Professor Richard Lazarus.
"But I can tell you that tonight, I shall demonstrate a device..."
"She's got a new job, PR for some lab." Martha told the Time Lords.
"With the push of a single button, I will change what it means to be human." Lazarus said proudly.
Martha at this point decided she'd seen enough and turned the telly off. "Sorry. You were saying, you should..."
"Yes, yes. We should." the Doctor said, "One trip, that's what I said."
"Yeah, you said." the Artist muttered. She'd come to really like Martha and wanted her to become a full-time companion.
"Yeah." Martha said, "I suppose things just kinda escalated."
"Mmm, happens to us quite a lot." the Doctor replied.
"Thank you." Martha said, "For everything."
"It was my pleasure." the Doctor smiled, then he opened the TARDIS door and stepped inside.
"I'm sorry, Martha." the Artist told the human, "I'll talk to him, see if I can get him to change his mind." Then she went inside after the Doctor.
Once she was aboard, the Doctor got the box back into the Time Vortex. "We can't just leave Martha behind, just like that." the Artist told him.
"I'm sorry, I know you like Martha, but it's for the best." the Doctor replied, "Remember what happened to Rose? The more she travelled with us, the more she became like me, and we lost her because of it."
"I know." the Artist told him, "But I don't think that'll happen to Martha. Rose was just out of her teens, still impressionable. Martha's an adult. She has more common sense, and won't get careless." The Doctor seemed unconvinced, so the Artist tried a different tact. "Look, why don't we just stay a little longer, find out what that professor's doing."
The Doctor seemed to agree to that and he piloted the TARDIS back to Martha's flat, timing it to be 30 seconds after they'd left. "No, I'm sorry." he said, poking his head out of the door, "Did he say he was gonna what it means to be human?"
They were soon watching Lazarus' press conference again, getting more info. The Doctor decided it would be worth checking this demonstration and it turned out that Martha had an invite, which offered the perfect opportunity to do so.
———————————————————————————
That evening, the Doctor stood in the console room, dressed in the black tuxedo he'd obtained in Pete's World, waiting for the Artist to finish getting changed.
Soon, the Time Lady emerged from the wardrobe and the Doctor couldn't help but stare at her. She was wearing a stunning red crushed velvet dress that complimented her svelte figure and a pair of white trainers on her feet, while her wavy hair fell down her back long and silky. Jewellery was kept simple; just a pair of earrings and her usual paintbrush necklace. She'd also applied a bit of light make-up to her face, though the Doctor felt that this last detail was unnecessary.
"You look beautiful." the Doctor said, making the Artist blush, "So beautiful, in fact, that I'm gonna have to do this." He put his arm around her waist, pulled her closer to him and kissed her.
"Thanks." the Artist said when they broke apart, "You don't look too bad yourself."
"Well, I've gotta dress the part." the Doctor said, "Shall we?" He offered his arm and the Artist took it, then they stepped out to join Martha, who had changed into a nice knee-length purple dress and matching heels.
"You look lovely, Martha." the Artist told her.
"Thanks, though I don't think anyone can top you." Martha smiled.
———————————————————————————
The trio were soon walking to Lazarus Laboratories in Southwark. "Oh, black tie." the Doctor sighed as they neared their destination, "Whenever I wear this, something bad always happens."
"That's not the outfit, it's just you." Martha replied.
"Yeah, and you've only worn that tux once." the Artist reminded, "Anyway, it suits you, very James Bond."
"James Bond?" the Doctor frowned, then realised that it was a compliment. "I suppose it does, my beautiful Bond girl." He kissed the blushing Time Lady on the cheek as they approached the impressive entrance to the labs.
———————————————————————————
Taking prominent place in the main reception area of Lazarus Laboratories was a large white capsule surrounded by four pillars with a slight curve at the top of each one. Well-dressed guests were mingling around the room. "Oh, look, they've got nibbles." the Doctor grinned as a waitress passed by with a tray, and he promptly helped himself. "I love nibbles." Both women couldn't help but laugh at him.
Just then, Tish came up to them and hugged her sister. "You look great." she said, "So, what d'you think? Impressive, isn't it?"
"Very." Martha replied.
"And two nights out in a row for you, that's dangerously close to a social life!"
"If I keep this up, I'll end up in all the gossip columns." Martha joked.
"You might, actually." Tish replied, "Keep an eye out for photographers. And mum. She's coming too, even dragging Leo along with her."
"Leo in black tie? That I must see!" Martha laughed, then indicated the Time Lords. "This is the Doctor and the Artist."
"Hello." the Doctor said, shaking Tish's hand.
"Nice to meet you, Tish." the Artist added, shaking her hand too.
"Are they with you?" Tish asked Martha.
"Yeah."
"But they're not on the list, how'd they get in?" Tish frowned.
"The invitation said I could bring a friend." Martha replied, "Artist's my friend, and the Doctor's her boyfriend. They're kind of a package deal, can't have one without the other."
"So, this Lazarus bloke, he's your boss?" the Doctor asked Tish.
"Professor Lazarus, yes." Tish corrected, "I'm part of his executive staff."
"She's in the PR department." Martha added.
"I'm head of the PR department, actually." Tish corrected.
"You're joking."
"I put this whole thing together."
"Well, you've done a good job, Tish." the Artist said, hoping to keep the sister civil, "Don't suppose you could give us a hint as to what the professor's gonna do tonight?"
"That looks like it be a sonic micro-field manipulator." the Doctor added, eyeing the capsule in the centre of the room.
"He's a science geek, I should've known." Tish remarked, "Gotta get back to work now. I'll catch up with you later." she said to Martha and walked away.
"Science geek, what's that mean?" the Doctor asked.
"That you're obsessively enthusiastic about it." Martha replied.
"Ah. Nice." the Doctor grunted.
"Hey, that's a good thing." the Artist reassured, "Where would we be now if you weren't?"
Just then, a voice called out; "Martha?" And Martha turned to see Francine and Leo walking up to them.
"Mum!" Martha gasped, running up to her mother and hugging her.
"Alright. What's the occasion?" Francine laughed as they pulled apart.
"What d'ya mean? I'm just pleased to see you, that's all." Martha replied.
"But you saw me last night." Francine reminded.
"I know, I just... missed ya." Martha said, then turned to her brother. "You're looking good, Leo."
"Yeah, if anyone asked me for a drink, I'll swing for 'em." Leo laughed, uncomfortable at being dressed up.
Francine then noticed the Time Lords and her manner changed. "You disappeared last night." she frowned.
"I just went home." Martha replied.
"On ya own?" Francine asked suspiciously.
"These are friends of mine, the Doctor and the Artist." Martha introduced.
"Doctor what?" Francine asked.
"Doctor John Smith." the Artist replied, knowing that the Doctor's social awkwardness could land them in a spot of bother, "And I'm Nancy Jones, but everyone calls me Artist cos' of this." She gestured to her necklace. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Mrs Jones." She shook Francine's hand. "And you, Leo." She shook his hand too.
"Heard a lot about you." the Doctor said, shaking Francine's hand.
"Have you?" Francine asked in an interrogating way, "What have you heard, then?"
"Well, ya know, that you're Martha's mother..." the Doctor answered awkwardly, "Um, no, actually, that's about it. We haven't had much time to chat, ya know. Been busy."
"Busy?" Francine asked suspiciously, "Doing what, exactly?"
"Oh, ya know, stuff."
At this point, the Artist stepped in again to save the awkward situation. "I'm sorry about my partner, Mrs Jones. He doesn't really handle social situations well. Martha's been assigned to shadow John for her studies. She's a wonderful person, you must be proud of her." Francine seemed to accept that, though she was prevented from probing further by Lazarus tapping a glass to get everyone's attention.
"Ladies and gentlemen, I am Professor Richard Lazarus, and tonight I'm going to perform a miracle." he announced, "It is, I believe, the most important advance since Rutherford split the atom. The biggest leap since Armstrong stood on the moon. Tonight, you will watch and wonder. But tomorrow, you will wake to a world which will be changed forever." He turned and entered the capsule. Some female technicians flipped switches, and an intense blue light erupted from the object, causing all the watching humans to shield their eyes. The pillars around the capsule began to rotate and oscillate, creating a force-field around it. The light died down and the pillars began to move faster.
Then, alarms started to blare.
"Something's wrong." the Doctor realised, "It's overloading."
The technicians tried to sort it out, but to no avail, so the Doctor rushed forward to intervene. He leapt over the bank of control panels, flashed his sonic screwdriver on one of them, and started inputting commands. "Somebody stop him!" Lazarus' partner, a haughty elderly woman shrieked, "Get him away from those controls."
"If that thing blows up, it's gonna take this entire building with it, do you really want that?" the Artist asked her, rushing forward to help the Doctor. She yanked a cable out of the back of the control panel and the machine shut down.
Martha rushed forward to see if Lazarus was alright. "Get it open!" the Doctor ordered as he and the Artist joined her. Martha yanked the door open and a blonde man about the same age as the Doctor staggered out.
"Ladies and gentlemen, I am Richard Lazarus." he announced, "I am 76 years old. And I am reborn!" The Humans were delighted and began applauding, while photographers snapped photos.
The only human not celebrating was Martha, who was just looking at the man in utter disbelief. Her medical knowledge told her that what she'd just seen was impossible. The Time Lords weren't happy either, they looked at the man with worried expressions.
———————————————————————————
Lazarus was soon relishing the attention. People all crowded round him, getting photos. Martha and the Artist both stood to the side while the Doctor examined Lazarus' machine. "It can't be the same guy." Martha frowned, "It's impossible, it must be a trick."
"Oh, it's not a trick." the Doctor replied grimly, "I wish it were."
"What just happened then?" Martha asked.
"He just changed what it means to be human." the Artist replied.
They watched as the haughty woman, Lady Thaw, pulled Lazarus away from the guests and they began to talk quietly. The trio approached them and when they reached them, they saw Lazarus stuffing his face with snacks. "Richard!" Lady Thaw scolded.
"I'm famished." Lazarus defended, his mouth full.
"Energy deficit." the Doctor remarked, making their presence known, "Always happens with this kinda process."
"You talk as if you see this sort of thing every day, Mr..." Lazarus remarked.
"Doctor." the Time Lord corrected, "And no, not every day, but we have some experience with this kind of transformation."
"That's not possible."
"Using hyper-sonic sound waves to create a state of resonance? That's inspired." the Doctor retorted.
"You understand the theory, then?"
"Enough to know that you couldn't have possibly accounted for all the variables." the Artist told Lazarus.
"No experiment is entirely without risk." he waved her off.
"That thing nearly exploded." the Doctor told him seriously, "Ya might as well have stepped into a blender!"
"You're not qualified to comment." Lady Thaw cut in haughtily.
"If we hadn't have stopped it, it would have exploded." the Doctor countered.
"Then I thank you both, Doctor, Miss." Lazarus said, "But that's a simple engineering problem. What happened inside the capsule was exactly what was supposed to happen. No more, no less."
"You've no way of knowing that until you've run proper tests." Martha told him.
Lazarus laughed. "Look at me! You can see what happened. I'm all the proof you need."
"The device will be properly certified before we start to operate commercially." Lady Thaw added.
"Commercially?!" Martha spluttered, not believing what she'd just heard, "You are joking! That'll cause chaos!"
"Not chaos, change." Lazarus corrected, "A chance for humanity to evolve, improve."
"This isn't about improving." the Doctor sneered, "This is about you and your customers living a little longer."
"Not a little longer, Doctor, a lot longer." Lazarus smirked, "Perhaps indefinitely."
"Richard, we have things to discuss." Lady Thaw cut in again, "Upstairs."
"Goodbye, Doctor, ladies." Lazarus said, "In a few years, you'll all look back and laugh at how wrong you were." He extended his hand. Martha took it and he kissed it, causing her to blanch, then he strutted off after Lady Thaw.
"The arrogant fool." the Artist shook her head, "He has no idea of how much damage he might have done."
"He's out of his depth." the Doctor agreed. In his long lifetime, he'd encountered more egotistical scientists then he could count, and 9 times out of 10, their meddling had ended very badly.
"So what do we do now?" Martha asked.
"Now? Well, this building must be full of laboratories." the Doctor replied, looking around, "I say we do our own tests."
"Lucky I've just collected a DNA sample then, isn't it?" Martha smirked, holding up the hand Lazarus had kissed.
"Oh, Martha Jones, you're a star!" the Doctor grinned.
"That's what I keep telling you." the Artist smiled, linking arms with the Doctor, and the trio went off to do their tests.
——————————————————————————
The trio were soon in one of the labs looking at a computer, which was showing the results of a DNA scan. "Amazing." the Doctor breathed.
"What?" Martha asked, not quite following.
"Lazarus' DNA." the Doctor replied.
"I can't see anything different." Martha frowned.
"Watch closely." the Artist advised.
Martha did so. She watched as the DNA sample on the screen momentarily changed. "Oh, my god! Did that just change?" she stared.
"I'm afraid so." the Artist replied.
"But it can't have!" Martha stared, "It's impossible."
"And that's two impossible things we've seen so far tonight." the Doctor said, then grinned. "Don't ya love when that happens?"
"No." the Artist told him seriously.
"That means Lazarus has changed his own molecular patterns." Martha said.
"Hyper-sonic sound waves to destabilise the DNA structure." the Doctor explained, "Then a metagenic programme to manipulate the coding and the protein strands."
Martha looked completely lost so the Artist put it in a simpler way; "Basically, he hacked into his own genes and ordered them to rejuvenate."
"But they're still changing now." Martha said, looking at the DNA on the screen, which changed again.
"Cos' he missed something." the Doctor said, "Something in his DNA's been activated and won't let him stabilise."
"Something that's trying to change him." the Artist added.
"Change into what?" Martha wandered.
"I dunno, but I think we need to find out." the Doctor determined. He knew only too well what sort of terrible creature could result from such a DNA hack.
"That woman said they were going upstairs." Martha recalled.
"Then we're right behind them." the Artist said, taking the Doctor's hand and they led the way.
——————————————————————————
The trio stepped out of the lift and into Lazarus' office. "This is his office alright." Martha remarked, looking around.
"So where is he?" the Doctor wandered.
"Don't know. Let's try back at the reception." Martha replied.
"Look." the Artist said suddenly. The others followed her gaze and saw a pair of high-heeled shoes attached to skeletal legs sticking out behind the desk. The trio rushed over to see a skeleton wearing Lady Thaw's dress lying on the floor.
"Is that Lady Thaw?" Martha gasped.
"I think it was." the Artist replied, feeling sick at the sight.
"Now it's just a shell." the Doctor said gravely, "Had all her life energy drained out. Like squeezing the juice out of an orange."
"Ugh! Remind me never to drink orange juice again!" the Artist squirmed, covering her mouth.
"Lazarus!" Martha realised.
"Could be." the Doctor nodded thoughtfully.
"So he's changed already." Martha asked worriedly.
"Not necessarily." the Doctor replied, "You saw the DNA, it was fluctuating. The process must demand energy. This might not've been enough."
"So he might do this again?!" Martha gasped in horror.
"Not if we can help it." the Artist said and rushed back to the lift, the Doctor and Martha following.
——————————————————————————
The trio were soon back in the reception area. "I can't see him." Martha said, scouring the room.
"He couldn't have gone far. We've gotta keep looking." the Artist said.
Just then, Leo approached them. "Hey, you alright, Marth?" he asked his sister, "I think mum wants to talk to you."
"Have ya seen Lazarus anywhere?" Martha asked him urgently.
"Yeah, well, he was getting cosy with Tish a couple of minutes ago." Leo replied, quite amused about that.
Martha wasn't amused. "With Tish?" she stared as the Time Lords re-joined her.
"Ah, Doctor." Francine said, coming over as well.
"Where did they go?" the Doctor asked Leo urgently, ignoring Francine.
"Upstairs, I think." Leo replied, "Why?"
The Doctor didn't answer, he just grabbed the Artist's hand and they started to hurry away. "Doctor..." Francine began again as they raced past.
"Sorry, Mrs Jones, but this is an emergency." the Artist waved her off.
"I'm speaking to you!" Francine huffed.
"Not now, Mum!" Martha hissed, going after the Time Lords.
——————————————————————————
Another frantic lift ride later, they were back in Lazarus' office, but there was no sign of Lazarus and Tish. "Where are they?" Martha asked, worried for her sister.
"The fluctuating DNA'll give off an energy signature." the Doctor replied, pulling out his sonic and scanning the room with it, "I might be able to pick it up." Soon, the sonic's familiar buzzing turned to a bleeping. "Got him."
"Where?" Martha asked. The Doctor pointed the sonic at the ceiling. "But this is the top floor!" Then she realised; "The roof!" And the trio rushed off towards the stairs to the roof.
——————————————————————————
Lazarus and Tish were indeed on the roof, looking out at the London skyline. "That clock tower's beautiful, all lit up like that." Tish said.
"It's Southwark Cathedral, one of the oldest churches in London." Lazarus replied, "Been around even longer than I have."
"Ya looking pretty good for your age." Tish smirked.
"Thank you." Lazarus replied smugly.
"Can I...?" She reached a hand up to his face.
"Of course." Lazarus smirked, and Tish touched his face.
"I still can't take it in." she said.
"I'm still adjusting myself." Lazarus said, "I've been working toward it for so many years, it's hard to believe the moment's finally arrived."
"And is it like you expected?" Tish asked.
"I find that nothing is ever exactly like you expect." Lazarus replied, "There's always something to surprise you. 'Between the idea and the reality, between the motion and the act...'"
"'Falls the shadow.'" the Doctor and the Artist finished together as they and Martha stepped out onto the roof behind them.
"So, the mysterious Doctor and his beautiful lady friend know their Elliot." Lazarus remarked as he turned to face them, "I'm impressed."
"Martha, what're you doing here?!" Tish hissed.
"Tish, get away from him!" Martha urged.
"What? Don't tell me what to do!" Tish retorted indignantly.
"Wouldn't have thought you'd had time for poetry, Lazarus." the Doctor remarked, "What, with you being so busy defying the laws of nature and everything."
"You're right, Doctor." Lazarus said smugly, "One lifetime's too short for me to do everything I'd like. How much more I'll get done in two or three or four."
"It doesn't work like that." the Artist told him, "Some people achieve more in 20 years than others do in 80. It's not the time that makes the difference, it's the person who uses it."
"But if it's the right person." Lazarus countered, "What a gift that would be."
"Or what a curse." the Doctor said stoically, "Look at what you've done to yourself."
"Who are you to judge me?" Lazarus sneered.
"Over here, Tish." Martha said to her sister, who begrudgingly complied.
"You have to spoil everything, don't you?" Tish grumbled, "Every time I find someone nice, you have to find fault!"
"Tish, he's a monster!" Martha told her as Lazarus suddenly fell to the floor, convulsing.
"I know the age thing's a bit freaky, but it works for Catherine Zeta-Jones." Tish retorted, only to hear a roaring and turned to see that Lazarus was now a hideous creature that looked like a hybrid of a human skeleton and a scorpion. "What is that?" Tish gasped.
Lazarus reared at them, ready to attack. "Run!" the Doctor hollered, grabbing the Artist's hand and making a run for it, Martha doing the same with Tish. Once they were back inside, the Doctor soniced the door locked then they all scrambled down the stairs towards the lifts.
Martha frantically jabbed the call lift button then turned to her shaken-up sister. "Are you okay?" she asked.
"I was gonna snog him!" Tish panted in shock.
Suddenly, there was a banging from the top of stairs and alarms began to blare. "Security one, security one."
"What's happening?" Martha wandered.
"An intrusion." Tish replied, "It triggers a security lockdown, kills off most of the power, stops the lifts, seals the exists."
"He must be breaking through that door." the Doctor realised. His suspicions were confirmed a moment later by another banging from upstairs.
"Stairs, quickly!" the Artist urged, leading the way and glad that she'd decided to wear trainers under her dress. As they all bolted down the stairs, they heard an almighty crash from upstairs, followed by a roaring.
"He's inside!" Martha realised.
"We haven't got much time." the Doctor said grimly and they renewed their scramble downstairs.
——————————————————————————
At last, the quartet reached the bottom and ran into the reception area. "Tish, is there another exit?" the Artist asked.
"There's one in the corner, but it'll be locked now." Tish replied, pointing to a door in the corner.
The Doctor pulled out his sonic and tossed it to Martha. "Martha, setting 54, hurry!" he instructed her, and Martha dashed off towards the door, Tish going with her while the Time Lords jumped onto the platform in front of the capsule. "Listen to me." the Doctor shouted, getting everyone's attention, "You people are in serious danger. You need to get out of here right now!"
"Don't be ridiculous." a woman replied loftily, "The biggest danger here is choking on an olive." No sooner had those words left her mouth, then the mutated Lazarus burst into the room.
"Everyone move!" the Artist hollered, seeing everyone standing there in shock, "Martha, quick!" Martha promptly began trying to unlock the door with the sonic while Lazarus leapt down and advanced on the terrified guests, who promptly ran over to the doors.
"Mum, get back!" Leo urged, pulling Francine back with him. Lazarus swatted a table with his tail which struck Leo, knocking him to the floor.
"Leo!" Francine screamed, frightened for her son.
At that moment, Martha managed to get the doors open. "Over here, this way!" she urged and people took heed, "Everyone down the stairs now, hurry!"
Lazarus advanced on the snooty woman, who was standing there frozen in shock. "Don't you dare!" the Artist roared, but it was too late. Lazarus clamped his tail on the woman and drained her, leaving just a skeleton, which fell to the floor. Both Time Lords glared at Lazarus, furious at the cold-blooded murder he'd just committed. But the woman wasn't enough for Lazarus as he then set his sights on Francine and a dazed Leo. Lazarus was about to advance on them when the Doctor intervened.
"Lazarus!" he shouted, attracting the monster's attention, "Leave them alone!"
"Yeah, pick on someone you own size!" the Artist baited. Lazarus began to advance on the Time Lords while Martha rushed over to her mother and brother.
"Come on, stay with me." she said to Leo, who was concussed. She and Francine helped him to his feet.
"What's the point? You can't control it." the Doctor baited Lazarus, "The mutation's too strong. Killing those people won't help you. You're a fool. A vain old man who thought he could defy nature. Only nature got her own back, didn't she? You're a joke, Lazarus! A footnote in the history of failure." He took the Artist's hand and they both ran for it, Lazarus hot on their tail.
"What're the Doctor and his girlfriend doing?" Tish asked as Martha examined Leo.
"They're trying to buy us some time. Let's not waste it." Martha replied, "Leo, look at me, focus on me, let's see ya eyes." She looked carefully at her brother. "He's got concussion. Mum, you'll need to help him downstairs." She grabbed some ice from a bucket and gave it to Francine. "This'll keep the swelling down." she instructed, "Go, I'll be right behind you. Tish, move! We need to get out of here." she urged her sister.
——————————————————————————
The Doctor and the Artist both ran down a corridor and into a maintenance area. The Doctor climbed some stairs to a walkway and helped the Artist up, then they began to creep quietly through the shadows. "It's no good, Doctor." Lazarus called out from somewhere, "You can't stop me."
"Is that the same arrogance you had when you swore that nothing had gone wrong with your device?" the Doctor retorted.
"The arrogance is yours." Lazarus answered back, "You can't stand in the way of progress."
"Feeding on innocent people isn't progress." the Artist said in disgust.
"It is a necessary sacrifice." Lazarus said simply.
"That's not your decision to make." the Doctor said angrily.
——————————————————————————
Downstairs, guests all fled down the stairs, only to find the front doors locked. "We can't get out. We're trapped!" Tish realised.
"There must be an override switch." Martha reasoned, "Where's the security desk? Tish!"
"There." Tish answered, pointing to it.
Martha ran over to the desk, climbed over it and began using the sonic on the control panel. To her relief, it worked. The lockdown was deactivated and the doors unlocked, allowing everyone to get to safety.
——————————————————————————
Restoring the power to the building also restored the lights to the maintenance room the Time Lords were in. "Peek a boo." Lazarus taunted from above, and they looked up to see him lurking on the ceiling. They both promptly ran for it.
——————————————————————————
"I've got to go back." Martha said to her family.
"You can't!" Francine protested, "You saw what that thing did! It'll kill you!"
"I don't care. I have to go." Martha replied determinedly.
"It's them two, isn't it?" Francine sneered.
"They were buying us time, Martha." Tish reasoned, "Time for you to get out, too."
"I'm not leaving them." Martha said firmly. She was forming a friendship with the Artist and wasn't going to let her or the Doctor die if she could help it. So, ignoring her mother's protests, she turned and ran off to find her friends.
——————————————————————————
The Time Lords ran into a lab. The Doctor climbed up onto a bench and ripped open a light conduit on the wall so that the wires were exposed, while the Artist began turning on the gas taps in the room, filling the room with gas, then they both took cover under a desk as Lazarus broke in. "More hide and seek?" Lazarus taunted, "How disappointing. Why don't you both come out and face me?"
"Have you looked in the mirror lately?" the Doctor retorted.
"Yeah, why would we wanna face that ugly mug?" the Artist added as they came out of their hiding place.
Lazarus snarled at them so they ran to the door. On the way, the Doctor flipped the light switch on, then he and the Artist dived for cover as sparks from the exposed wires ignited the gas, triggering an explosion.
The Time Lords got to their feet and ran down the corridor, only to run into Martha. "What're you doing here?" the Artist asked her
"I'm returning this." Martha replied, giving the Doctor his sonic back, "I thought you might need it."
"How did ya..." the Doctor began.
"Heard the explosion. I guessed it would be you two."
"We blasted Lazarus." the Doctor explained.
"Did ya kill him?" Martha asked.
"No, more like ticked him off, I'd say." the Artist said, seeing Lazarus coming out of the wrecked lab. The Doctor grabbed her hand and the trio ran for it again.
They ended up back in the reception area. "What now? We've just gone round in a circle." Martha said as Lazarus burst in after them.
"We can't lead him outside. C'mon, get in!" the Doctor urged, ushering them into the capsule. It was a tight squeeze inside with the three of them.
"Are we hiding?" Martha panted.
"No, he knows we're here, but this is masterpiece." the Doctor replied, "I'm betting he won't destroy it, even to get to us."
"But we're trapped!" Martha pointed out.
"Well, yeah, that is a slight problem." the Doctor mumbled.
"So, basically, you don't have a plan." the Artist observed.
"Yes, the plan was to get inside here." the Doctor replied.
"Then what?" Martha questioned.
"Well, then I'd come up with another plan." the Doctor said sheepishly.
The Artist rolled her eyes. "Well, while your doing that, I'm gonna have a look at how this thing works and see what we can with it." she remarked and managed to squeeze her way through the others to get to the floor. "Doctor, I'm gonna have to borrow your screwdriver, if you don't mind."
"Where's yours?" the Doctor asked.
"No pockets." the Artist replied simply, so the Doctor dropped his sonic down to her and she used it to open a panel on the floor, then she started tinkering with the wires beneath.
"I still don't understand where that thing came from." Martha said as they listened to Lazarus roaring outside, "It is alien?"
"No. For once, it's strictly human in origin." the Doctor replied.
"Human? How can it be human?" Martha questioned incredulously.
"Probably from dormant genes in Lazarus' DNA. The energy field in this thing must've activated 'em. Now it looks like they're becoming dominant."
"So it's a throwback." Martha nodded.
"Some option that evolution rejected billions of years ago." the Doctor confirmed, "But the potential is still there. Locked away in your genes, forgotten about, till Lazarus unlocked 'em by mistake."
"Like Pandora's box." Martha mused.
"Spot on." the Artist praised, "Like your shoes, by the way."
"Thanks." Martha mumbled flatly, then suddenly, a blue light filled the capsule. "What's happening?" Martha asked anxiously.
"Sounds like he's switched the machine on." the Doctor realised.
"And that's not good, is it?"
"Well, I was hoping he wouldn't think to do that yet." the Artist replied.
"I don't wanna hurry you but.." Martha urged.
"I know, just give me a minute." the Artist said.
"What are you doing, anyway?" the Doctor asked her.
"Trying to set this thing to reflect energy instead of absorbing it." she replied.
"Will that kill him?" Martha asked.
"He's spreading himself thin, so it probably will." the Artist replied.
"We're gonna end up like him!" Martha shrieked as the light became more intense.
"Okay, last one now." the Artist said, yanking a wire out and the light went out.
The Doctor opened the door to see no sign of Lazarus. "I thought we were gonna through the blender then." Martha gasped in relief, stepping out of the capsule.
The Doctor helped the Artist to her feet. "You are brilliant." he smiled, giving her a kiss on the cheek, "You reversed the polarity. I shoulda thought of that before."
"I only thought to do that because you told me you used to." the Artist replied humbly.
"Look." Martha said, pointing to where Lazarus was lying dead on the floor, human again. "Oh god, he seems so... human again." Martha sighed, "It's kinda pitiful."
"Eliott saw that too." the Doctor replied wisely, "'This is the way the world ends. Not with a bang, but a whimper.'"
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Paramedics were soon on the scene. The trio watched solemnly as Lazarus' body was wheeled away into an ambulance. Tish came running over and immediately pulled her sister into a relived hug. Francine came over too, with a face like thunder. "Ah, Mrs Jones, we still haven't finished our chat." the Doctor said cheerfully, only for Francine to slap him hard across the face.
"Keep away from my daughter." she growled.
"Mum, what're you doing?" Martha demanded, surprised and appalled at her mother.
"All the mothers, every time." the Doctor grumbled, nursing his sore cheek.
"Let me look." the Artist said, and the Doctor moved his hand to allow her to examine the red mark on his cheek. "Ooh, that's a nasty one." she remarked, putting her hand on it. The Doctor felt better at her touch.
"They are dangerous." Francine told Martha, "I've been told things."
"What're you talking about?" Martha frowned.
"Look around you. Nothing but death and destruction."
"This isn't their fault." Martha defended, "They saved us! All of us!"
"And it was Tish who invited everyone to this thing in the first place." Leo added, "So I'd say, technically, it was her fault." he smirked, earning himself an annoyed nudge from his sister.
Suddenly, there was a crash from somewhere nearby, and the Time Lords instinctively rushed off to investigate. Martha went to follow, but her mother held her back. "Leave them." she ordered, but Martha shook her off and went running after her friends.
"Martha?" Tish called, then decided to go after her.
"Not you too?" Francine groaned.
"I'm sorry." Tish called, speeding off after Martha.
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The humans soon caught up to the Time Lords, who were looking at a crashed Ambulance, the very same Ambulance that had taken Lazarus away. The paramedics had been drained and Lazarus had disappeared. "Lazarus, back from the dead." the Doctor realised.
"Just like his namesake." the Artist agreed.
"Where's he gone?" Martha wandered.
The Doctor scanned the area with his sonic. "That way." he said, "The church."
"Cathedral." Tish corrected, "It's Southwark Cathedral. He told me."
The Doctor began to move towards the cathedral, the others following. They entered the building cautiously and the Doctor continued to scan with his sonic. "Do you think he's in here?" Martha asked.
"Where would you go if you were looking for sanctuary?" the Doctor answered. They ventured further in, until they saw a figure huddled in a red blanket behind the altar. It was Lazarus.
"I came here before." he said, "A lifetime ago. I thought I was going to die then. In fact, I was sure of it. I sat here, just a child. The sound of planes and bombs outside."
"The Blitz." the Doctor noted.
"You've read about it?"
"We saw it, actually." the Artist said.
"You're too young." Lazarus scoffed.
"So are you." she answered back.
Lazarus laughed, then winced in pain, before recovering. "In the morning, the fires had died, but I was still alive." he continued, not noticing the Doctor glancing up towards the cathedral's tower and Martha following his gaze. "I swore I'd never face death like that again. So defenceless. I would arm myself, fight back. Defeat it."
"That's what you were trying to do today?" the Doctor questioned.
"That's what I did today."
"What about those people you killed?" the Artist challenged.
"They were nothing." Lazarus sneered, "I changed the course of history."
"They could've too, had you given them the chance." the Artist retorted, "There's more to making history than science and equations."
"Facing death is part of being human." the Doctor said wisely, "You can't change that."
"No, Doctor, avoiding death, that's being human." Lazarus snarled, "It's our strongest impulse, to cling to life with every fibre of being. I'm only doing what everyone before me has tried to do. I've simply been more successful." He winced in pain again.
"Look at yourself, you're mutating." The Doctor shook his head. "You've no control over it. You call that a success?"
"I call it progress." Lazarus retorted, "I'm more now than I was. More than just an ordinary human."
"There's no such thing as an ordinary human." the Artist said.
"He's gonna change again in any minute." Martha whispered to the Time Lords as Lazarus convulsed again.
"We know." the Doctor said, "If we could get him up into the bell tower somehow, I've got an idea that might work."
"Up there?" Martha questioned, looking up at the bell tower, and the Doctor nodded.
"You're both so sentimental." Lazarus said to the Time Lords, "Maybe you are both older than you look."
"We're old enough to know that a longer life isn't always a better one." the Doctor replied sombrely, "In the end, you just get tired. Tired of the struggle. Tired of loosing everyone who mattered to you. Tired of watching everything turn to dust."
"If you live too long, Lazarus, the only thing that's certain is that you'll end up alone." the Artist added.
"That's a price worth paying." Lazarus said arrogantly.
"No, it isn't." the Artist countered.
Lazarus began to convulse again. "I will fed soon." he said as he recovered.
"We're not gonna let that happen." the Doctor told him.
"You've not been able to stop me so far." Lazarus smirked.
"Leave them, Lazarus." Martha cut in, "They're old and bitter, I thought you had a taste for fresher meat."
"Martha, don't!" the Artist warned, but it was too late.
Lazarus lunged at Martha, so she ran for it, Tish going with her. "What're you doing?" Martha asked her sister.
"Keeping you out of trouble." Tish answered.
"Doctor, Artist, the tower!" Martha called over her shoulder as they ran towards the stairs.
"Right, we've gotta be quick." the Doctor said to the Artist, taking her hand and leading her away to put his idea into practice.
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Martha and Tish sprinted up the stairs when suddenly, they heard a noise behind them. "D'ya hear that?" Tish breathed in fright.
"He's changed again." Martha realised, "Keep moving. We've gotta lead him up." And they renewed their ascent.
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The Doctor and the Artist reached the centre of the cathedral. "Where are they?" the Artist wandered, unable to see them anywhere. "Martha?" she called.
"Artist?" Martha called back, peering down from an upper level.
"Take him to the top, the very top of the bell tower. D'ya hear me?" the Doctor instructed.
"Up to the top?" Martha called back down, "And then what?" But before she could get an answer, Tish tapped her on the shoulder and she turned to see Lazarus advancing on them, fully transformed.
"Martha, come on!" Tish urged, pulling her away.
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The Doctor and the Artist hurried upstairs to the cathedral's huge pipe organ. "Oh, that is brilliant!" the Artist breathed, realising what the Doctor's plan was.
"Hyper-sonic soundwaves. Inspired." the Doctor nodded, pulling out his sonic and sticking it into a slot in the organ, then he and the Artist both began to pull the stops out.
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Martha and Tish reached a circular walkway at the top of the bell tower. "There's nowhere else to go, we're trapped!" Tish panicked.
"This is where he said to bring him." Martha told her.
"Alright, so we're not trapped, we're bait!"
"They know what they're doing. We have to trust them." Martha said.
"Ladies!" a voice snarled, and the humans turned to see Lazarus lurking in the doorway.
"Stay behind me." Martha told her sister, "If he takes me, make a run for it. Head back down the stairs. You should have enough time."
"But..."
"JUST DO IT, TISH!"
Lazarus swung at them with his tail, but they both ducked and the blow hit the wall.
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Downstairs, the Time Lords heard the noise. "I hope there's a good accustic in here." the Doctor muttered, cracking his knuckles, then he started to play.
————————————————————————————
Upstairs, Lazarus continued to swipe at the women with his tail. One blow clipped Martha, knocking her over and leaving her hanging precariously over the edge.
————————————————————————————
The Artist saw what had happened. "We need to take Spinal Tap's advice." she said and pulled the sonic out, then used it to turn up the organ's volume to very high levels.
————————————————————————————
Upstairs, Tish was forced to cover her ears as the music became deafening, while Martha could only squirm. Lazarus began to convulse in agony from the sound, before falling from the tower to the ground floor.
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Hearing the crash, the Doctor stopped playing and he and the Artist both looked over the edge to see Lazarus lying dead on the floor in human form again, permanently this time.
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In the tower, Martha lost her grip, but Tish was able to grab her in time. "I've got you! Hold on!" Tish urged and managed to pull her sister to safety.
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"Martha!" the Artist called "Are you both okay?"
"Yeah, we're fine." Martha called down, now safe and sound, "Both of us."
The Artist breathed a sigh of relief and turned to the Doctor. "You are brilliant." she smiled, then threw her arms around him and kissed him.
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"Thanks." Martha said to her sister.
"It's your friends you should be thanking." Tish laughed.
"I told ya they'd think of something."
"Cut it a bit fine, though, didn't they?"
"They always do, it's more fun that way." Martha laughed.
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The Doctor and the Artist walked over to Lazarus' body, which had reverted back to that of an elderly man and knelt down beside it, then the Doctor closed the dead professor's eyes. With that done, they both went over to join Martha. The Artist immediately hugged the human. "Next time, Martha, leave the running to the ones wearing running shoes." the Time Lady laughed.
"Fair enough." Martha replied and turned to the Doctor. "I didn't know you could play." she said to him.
"Oh, well, ya know, if ya hang around with Beethoven, ya bound to pick a few things up." the Doctor replied nonchalantly.
"Especially about playing loud." Martha chuckled.
"Sorry?" the Doctor asked, both he and the Artist rubbing their ears, pretending they'd gone deaf. Martha just laughed.
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As soon as the trio had returned to Martha's flat, the Artist unlocked the TARDIS and rushed off to the wardrobe, keen to get out of her now torn and dirty dress. The Doctor leaned against the box to talk to Martha. "Something else that just kinda escalated, then." he said.
"I can see a pattern developing." Martha replied, "You should take more care in the future. And the past, and whatever other time period you two find yourselves in."
"It's been fun though, hasn't it?"
"Yeah."
Just then, the Artist came back out of the TARDIS, now back in one of her usual t-shirts and jeans. "Ah, that's better." she said, "I remember now why I don't like dressing up! Anyway, the Doctor has something to ask you, Martha, don't you, Doctor?" She gave him a pointed look. He knew what she was talking about.
"Yeah, um, d'ya fancy one more trip?" the Doctor asked Martha.
"No." Martha replied, "Sorry."
"What d'ya mean? I fought you liked it." the Doctor frowned.
"I do, but I can't go on like this." Martha said, "'One more trip'. It's not fair."
"What're you talking about?" the Doctor asked, still confused.
"She's saying that she doesn't just want to be a passenger anymore." the Artist told him, "She wants to be a companion."
"Oh, right." the Doctor nodded, "Well..."
"If ya don't think I'm good enough, then I'd rather just stay here." Martha said.
"Okay then, if that's what you want." the Doctor shrugged.
"Right." Martha glared, thinking that the Doctor meant they were actually going to leave her, "Well, we've already said goodbye once today, so it's best if you both probably just go." She began to walk away, but neither Time Lord moved. "What is it?"
"I said okay." the Doctor said simply.
"Sorry?"
"He said it's okay for you to be a companion." the Artist smiled.
Martha's eyes widened. "Oh, thank you! Thank you!" she grinned, hugging them both.
"Told you I'd talk to him." the Artist winked at her.
"Well, you were never really just a passenger, were you?" the Doctor said to Martha.
He'd come to see the Artist's point. Martha was not like Rose, he could rest assured that Martha wouldn't get cocky and complacent.
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Martha was soon packed and she joined the Time Lords in the TARDIS, then they set off on their next adventure.
The second after the box had dematerialised, the phone rang and went to the answering machine. "Martha? It's your mother." Francine's voice said, "Please phone me back, I'm begging you. I know who this Doctor and that Artist girl really are. I know they're dangerous. You're gonna get yourself killed. Please, trust me. This information comes from Harold Saxon himself. You're not safe!"