𝔑𝔢𝔴 𝔑𝔢𝔴 𝔜𝔬𝔯𝔨, 𝔑𝔢𝔴 𝔈𝔞𝔯𝔱𝔥
𝔜𝔢𝔞𝔯 5,000,000,023
They stayed with the Face of Boe for twenty minutes before EJ began to worry about Rose. He knew that she could handle herself, probably better than he could cope, but it didn't change how he felt. It wasn't as if he knew where to go to start searching, so he wouldn't. The Doctor got them some water, and EJ tried to think of other things. Mainly, how would a species of heads reproduce, because no matter what he thought, there always seemed to be some sort of blockage.
After everything which came over the tannoy, the same three word phrase was spoken. In truth, it was pissing EJ off.
"Hope, harmony and health."
If it was supposed to be reassuring, it was anything but. Had it been him in one of those beds, he'd be more inclined to slice his own throat with an iv needle than sit and listen to what they had to say.
"That's very kind," Novice Hame told the Doctor as he handed her a small paper cone filled with water. "There's no need."
"You're the one working."
"Thank you." EJ smiled at him as he was given a drink as well. "Needed this."
"There's not much to do, just maintain his smoke." She told them, sitting by his tank. "And I suppose I'm company. I can hear him singing sometimes, in my mind, such ancient songs."
The Doctor asked, confused. "Am I the only visitor?"
"The rest of Boekind became extinct long ago. He's he only one left. Legend says that the Face of Boe has watched the universe grow old. There's all sorts of superstitions around him. One story says that just before his death, the Face of Boe will impart his great secret, that he will speak those words only to one like himself."
The Doctor furrowed his brows. "What does that mean?"
"It's just a story." She chuckled lightly to herself, and no one else.
Still, he insisted. "Tell me the rest."
Novice Hame did as he asked, despite her reluctance. "It's said he'll talk to a wanderer, to the man without a home, the lonely god."
Their was a look of fear on the Doctor's face, like someone had called him out. EJ took his hand, and whispered. "That sounds like you, Doctor." Perhaps, it wasn't what he wanted to hear.
They must have waited almost half an hour for Rose before really starting to wonder what had happened. Conversation had made time pass a little faster than they expected. They really should have done something sooner.
The Doctor took the number from EJ's flip phone and dialled it into the hospitals phone instead. Apparently, it would be easier for them both to hear what she said, when they got through, that was. It took five rings before she picked up, and even then, EJ wasn't convinced it would go through.
"Rose?" The Doctor hummed along the line. "Where are you?"
"Um... watcha." It was good to hear her voice to know that she was safe, though there was something to it which didn't quite match up.
"Where've you been? How long does it take to get to Ward 26?"
"Half an hour." Only after EJ replied did he realise the Doctor was being sarcastic. "Oh... right."
Rose spoke through her mobile again. "I'm on my way, guvnor. I shall proceed up the apples and pears."
He grinned into the receiver, almost childlike in his actions. "You'll never guess, I'm with the Face of Boe. Remember him?"
A hearty laugh greeted them. "Of course I do. That big old... boat race."
"I'd better go." EJ tapped his arm so he saw the sisters surrounding the Duke of Manhattan. "See you in a minute."
The Doctor hung the phone up and stalked over to the cubicle. Considering everything that the Doctor had told him, they shouldn't have seen the Duke so happy. It was as if he'd never been ill, and of course, that wasn't the case.
"Didn't think I was going to make it!" His laugh echoed, and paused as soon as he saw the Doctor and EJ. "It's those men again. They're my good luck charms. Come in, don't be shy."
As the Doctor began to pull at his ear, Frau Clovis approached them, hissing. "Any friendship expressed by the Duke of Manhattan does not constitute a form of legal contract."
"Winch me up." He commanded. His eyes excessive laughter proved that he was in good spirits. "Hup! Look at me. No sign of infection."
"Champagne, sir?"
"No, thanks."
EJ did ponder for a moment, and then decided that he preferred to be lucid for these travels. "I'm good."
The Doctor hummed. "You had petrifold regression, right?"
"Had being the operative word, past tense! Completely cured!" The Duke chuckled with immense glee.
However, the Doctor's face fell. "But that's impossible."
Another one of the sisters interrupted. "Primitive species would accuse us of magic but it's merely the tender application of science."
"How on Earth did you cure him?"
EJ bit his lip. The sister didn't seem to take the Doctor seriously. "How on New Earth, you might say."
In pursuit of knowledge, the Doctor gestured to the IV drip which was still in use. "What's in that solution?"
"A simple remedy."
"Then tell me what it is."
"I'm sorry- patient confidentiality." She almost certainly not sorry, but that was the least of their worries. "I don't believe we've met. My name is Matron Casp."
"I'm the Doctor." He responded. "This is EJ."
"Hello." The boy waved awkwardly.
She lifted her nose snootily. "I think you'll find that we're the doctors here."
Sister Jatt approached them, only not for their own cause. "Matron Casp, you're needed in intensive care."
"If you'd excuse me." With a nod of her head she walked away.
The Doctor continued to walk around the ward, between short bursts of talking to Novice Hame about the Face of Boe. EJ loved to look at him, mainly because he was unlike anything else in his life. When else would he see a massive head in, what was essentially, a jar. However, he still followed the Doctor.
"They're weird." EJ sighed, uncomfortably. "The cat nuns. They're defensive."
"Yeah, you're right." The Doctor pulled at his ear before putting on his glasses. "Tell you what, when Rose gets here, we'll have a bit of a snoop around, yeah?"
"Alright."
It was another ten minutes before Rose actually joined them. The lifts must have been going crazy, otherwise she would have been with them sooner. Though, there were a few too many buttons undone on her shirt, and a lesser man would have taken advantage of that... It wasn't something she was likely to do.
Even so, EJ sprinted to Rose and wrapped his arms around her as the Doctor continued to check through the iv solutions. He only noticed that she was there when the Thompson boy abandoned him.
"I'm so glad you're back." He sighed, pulling her close, though he was a giant by comparison. "He's been talking about medicine for ages."
"Oh, I'm sure he has, my old china plate." She responded, uncomfortably, peeling herself off him. His face dropped and he stepped away, pulling his sleeves down over his hands.
The Doctor approached swiftly, taking her hand and guiding her around, oblivious to the way she'd just treated EJ. "There you are! Come and look at this patient." He was showing her a red man suspended in midair. "Marconi's disease, should take years to recover. Two days. I've never seen anything like it."
The Thompson boy had already heard it all, but even so, he found it interesting. "He loves this."
"They've invented a cell washing cascade, it's amazing." He removed his glasses. "Their medical science is way advanced. And this one, pallidome pancrosis." This man was white, skin cracked like flour. "Kills you in ten minutes, and he's fine."
The Doctor waved, so EJ followed suite. It probably wasn't right to be looking through all of this, but even so, he felt like he needed to say something. "Alright?"
"I need to find a terminal. Gotta see how they do this." He guided them both away from the cubicles, whispering as they went. "If they've got the best medicine in the world, then why's it such a secret?"
Rose hummed. "I can't Adam and Eve it."
"What... what... what's with the voice?"
"Oh, I don't know... just larking about." She replied, her voice sultry, and seductive. "New Earth... new me."
"Well, I can talk." The Doctor grinned widely like a child proud of himself. "New new Doctor."
"Mmh... aren't you just."
EJ wasn't expecting to see Rose thrust herself at the Doctor when they stepped out of the Tardis that morning. He certainly wasn't expecting to see her hands gripping tightly to his hair, pulling him as close as possible as she snogged him. The Doctor must have been taken by surprise because he hardly moved, but she was more into it than anything EJ had ever seen. It was impossible to tell whether he was enjoying himself.
When she pulled away, she hardly looked back as she wiped her lips. It was sort of impressive, really.
"Terminals this way."
The Doctor took a second before replying, his voice sort of falsetto. "Yep, still got it." He even pushed his hair back into place as a conscious effort.
EJ half ran after them, a scowl embedded on his face as he called to them. "Don't make me a third wheel, I'm not a bloody tricycle."
He was the last to get to the terminal, thought it was little more than a white circle with an interactive screen. The Doctor was looking at it intensely, clearly frustrated by all that occurred. He wanted an answer more than anyone else.
"Nope, nothing odd. Surgery, post-op, nanodentistry. No sign of a shop, they should have a shop."
"We'll find you somewhere with a shop." EJ promised, just like the Doctor had with the apple grass. "There'll be one somewhere."
"No, it's missing something else." Rose hummed and pushed her way in front of the screen, which was odd, because she usually knew nothing about this sort of thing. "When I was downstairs, those nurse cat nuns were talking about intensive care, but where is it?"
"You're right, well done."
"Why would they hide a whole department?"
EJ was obviously quite far behind everyone else as his comments weren't half as intelligent. "Cos they're doing something dodgy."
"It's got to be there somewhere, search the subframe." Rose continued to ignore him.
Like the Doctor was testing her, he continued to ask questions, getting increasingly harder. "What if the subframe's locked?"
She snapped. "Try the installation protocol."
"Yeah, of course, sorry. Hold on."
He moved the sonic across the screen when something seemed to click. The wall pushed away to reveal a dingy looking corridor. It was all metal, rusty, and almost like it was out of use. Something was telling EJ to stay away, but if everything else was going, then he had to go with them.
Rose smiled smugly that her idea had worked, walking on without looking back. The Doctor and EJ shared a gaze as she did, but they didn't waste much time in following her. Seeing the Thompson boy's reluctance, the Doctor took his hand, and guided him into the corridor.
"Intensive care..." He hummed. "Certainly looks intensive."
EJ almost snorted at the sight it. "It's got about as much care as my childhood."
"You're not having a great day, are you?"
"No." He shook his head. "No, I'm not."
What they found was essentially a warehouse within the hospital, hidden away from public view and prying eyes. There were iron stairs which clanked like an ogre was storming through. Green pods lined every wall. There must have been thousands of them, if not, hundreds of thousands.
Rose was leading them still, though it didn't seem right. That was, until they stopped at one of the pods. Whichever one it was happened to be her choice. The Doctor used his sonic to disable the lock, and pull open the door.
"Oh my God." EJ whispered, his body completely in shock.
"That's disgusting." Rose spat, without a thought to how harmful her words might be. "What's wrong with him?"
In front of them was a disease riddled man, but it was more than that. Pus filled boils and scarring layered every part of their skin. Just by looking at him, EJ knew that he was infectious. If that was what every pod was filled with, maybe now was the time to get out.
"I'm sorry." The Doctor whispered to him, but his eyes showed little indifference. "I'm so sorry."
Then, he did the same again. He locked the door before moving onto the next. His sonic disarmed the lock, and he pulled it open, only this time to reveal a woman. They couldn't help but stare at her, from whatever distance they were at.
Rose could hardly stand to look at her for too long, and grimaced. "What disease is that?"
"All of them." His response was bitter. There was nothing he could do to change it. "Every single disease in the galaxy. They've been infected with everything."
"What about us, are we safe?"
"The airs sterile." He promised as he closed the door again. "Just don't touch them."
The Doctor leant against the railings which overlooked many more floors of pods. Now they knew what was kept in them, it was rather depressing. An entire hidden room for diseased humans. Perhaps depressing was the wrong choice... disgusting seemed a much better fit.
Still, Rose's curiosity did not falter. "How many patients are there?"
"They're not patients."
"But they're sick." She persisted.
EJ nodded in agreement. "This is intensive care."
"They were born sick. They're meant to be sick. They exist to be sick. Lab rats. No wonder the Sisters have a cure for everything, they've built the ultimate research laboratory. A human farm!"
They were moving but it was hard to know where to. "Why don't they just die?"
"Plague carriers." It was hard to have a conversation with the Doctor when he was so furious. "The last to go."
"It's for the greater cause."
The Doctor turned his head and saw one of the sisters at the edge of the hall. There was a threatening quality to his voice as he stepped forwards. "Novice Hame. When you took your vows, did you agree to this?"
She paused momentarily. "The Sisterhood has sworn to help."
"What, by killing?" EJ didn't like it when he shouted... it was... it was like being ten all over again.
Novice Hame countered. "But they're not real people. They're specially grown. They have no proper existence."
The black haired boy spat back. "They have no proper existence because you don't allow it!"
"What's the turnover? Mmh? A thousand a day? Thousand the next? Thousand the next? How many thousands? For how many years? HOW MANY?"
"Mankind needed us. They came to this planet with so many illnesses, we couldn't cope. We did try, we tried everything. We tried using clone-meat and biocattle. The results were too slow. So the Sisterhood grew its own flesh. That's all they are; flesh."
The Doctor gestured to the pods all around them. "These people are alive."
"But think of those humans out there," The Sister sighed. "Healthy and happy because of us."
"If they live because of this, then life is worthless."
Novice Hame looked down on him. "But who are you to decide that?"
"I'm the Doctor." He stepped forwards with a jabbing finger. "And if you don't like it, if you want to take it to a higher authority, there isn't one. It stops with me."
"Just to confirm." Rose peaked her head around their friend. "None of the humans in the city actually know about this."
"We thought it best not."
"Hold on," The Doctor sighed, reluctantly. "I can understand the bodies."
EJ raised his brows. "You can?"
"I can understand your vows, but the one thing I can't understand- what have you done to Rose?"
"I don't know what you mean." It was the reaction on Novice Hame's face which confirmed to EJ that she didn't know a thing; but at least now he knew he wasn't going crazy.
"And I am being very, very calm- you want to be aware of that- very, very calm. And the only reason I'm being so very, very calm is that the brain is a delicate thing. Whatever you've done to Rose's head, I want it reversed!"
She insisted. "We haven't done anything."
"I'm perfectly fine." Rose answered, her voice still sultry. Still wrong.
"These people are dying." The Doctor countered, angrily. "And Rose would care."
"Oh, alright cleverclogs..." The blonde spun him around to face her, so EJ did too, tilting his head as he began to loosen his tie. "Smartypants... lady killer."
"What's happened to you?"
She hummed. "I knew something was going on in this hospital but I needed this body and your mind to find it out."
The Doctor just looked at her, blankly. "Who are you?"
The reply was whispered into his ear. "The last human."
"Cassandra?"
His confusion only lasted a second or so before Rose, or Cassandra, pulled out a small spray bottle. "Wake up and smell the perfume!" The Doctor dropped to the corrugated iron flooring, unconscious, and before EJ could protest, she sprayed him too.
It was impossible to know how much time had passed. Passing out wasn't something that he liked to make an event of. He'd only experienced it once before, and even then, it was hazy.
However, when EJ awoke, he was startled by the green light. When he went to push himself up, he found his wrists locked into place against a chair. His wasn't a voluntary reaction, but his breaths came quickly, hardly allowing him to take everything in. His eyes moved rapidly, but all he could see was the shackles. Far too familiar.
He wouldn't have been surprised to see his father looming over him. It felt the same. When he was trapped, his body was not his own. It was the conscious reification which EJ noticed. Maybe, it wouldn't have been so bad if he could move, or maybe that would be worse.
"Let me out!" He could hear the Doctor cry, from presumably another pod, but EJ could hardly muster the strength to do the same. He was far too busy regulating his breaths. "Let me out!"
Though his door wasn't open, EJ presumed that the Doctor's was as he heard Rose speak with Cassandra's words. She'd given up the act. "Aren't you lucky there was a spare, or in fact, two. Standing room only."
"You've stolen Rose's body."
"Over the years, I've thought of a thousand ways to kill you, Doctor, and now that's exactly what I've got: one thousand diseases. They pump the patients with a top-up every ten minutes, you've got about three minutes left. It's a shame your little friend has to be collateral damage, he really is quite the looker, but that's the price of travelling with you. Enjoy."
"Just let Rose go, Cassandra."
"I will." She promised. "As soon as I find someone younger, and... less common. Then I'll junk her with the waste. Now, hush-a-bye. It's showtime!"
EJ only noticed the tears rolling down his cheeks when they ran over his nose, and down into his lips. They were salty. It wasn't pleasant. He was doing his best to stay silent but it was proving more difficult than he'd imagined.
"Anything we can do to help?" Matron Casp asked her, there must've been a few of them there now.
"Straight to the point, Whiskers." She snapped. "I want money."
"The Sisterhood is a charity. We don't give money, we only accept."
"The humans across the water pay you a fortune and that's exactly what I need. A one off payment, that's all I want. Oh, and perhaps a yacht. In return for which, I will tell the city nothing of your institutional murder. Is that a deal?"
It must have been a tempting offer, or at least, EJ might have been tempted by it. "I'm afraid not."
"I'd really advice you to think about this."
"Oh, there's no need." He wondered if the Doctor was listening too. "I have to decline."
"I'll tell them." Rose, Cassandra, continued to threaten, sounding more desperate with every word. "And you've got no way of stopping me. You're not exactly nuns with guns. You're not even armed."
"Who needs arms when we have claws?"
"Oh, well. Nice try... Chip! Plan B!"
There were a lot of muffled sounds which resulted in a lever cracking. Then, the door opened in front of him, and the shackles disabled. Finally, he was able to move. It was like a breath of fresh air, only, he was unable to stand. His body was still shaking as he sobbed.
The Doctor stood first, and peaked around the pod beside him to find EJ. He saw the tear-stained pale face. It didn't take a genius to know he was traumatised by his past, and that this was only reminiscent of that. The Doctor took his hands and pulled him out, holding him tightly for only a moment.
"What have you done?" It was partly genuine, and partly anger. That was when EJ noticed that the other pods in their row had opened. The flesh had escaped.
"Gave the system a shot of adrenaline just to wake 'em up." Rose shrugged before taking off in the opposite direction. "See ya."
"Don't touch them!" The Doctor called to the Sisters, racing after Rose, dragging EJ along behind him. "What ever you do, don't touch!"
As they ran, more and more of the doors sparked, and opened of their own volition. She didn't seem to thrilled about the matter. "Oh my God!"
"What the hell have you done?"
"It wasn't me!"
"One touch and you get every disease in the world!" Each word was laced with venom. "And I want that body safe, Cassandra! We've got to go down."
She only kept complaining like a petulant child. "But there's thousands of them!"
"Run!" He commanded, seeing that they were chasing after them. "Down, down, go down! Keep going down!"
Cassandra screamed like a little girl, making sure that she was the one to go first so she would be the last infected. Chip, a blue, tattooed human-like creature, fell close after. EJ refused to be left with the two of them, so his movement were dictated by how close by the Doctor was.
They ended up in a tunnel system which lead into intensive care. There were a series of lifts in there, and that was where they ran to. However, the Doctor stopped them once more.
"No, the lifts have closed down. That's the quarantine- nothings moving."
"Quarantine?" EJ mumbled. "No one mentioned anything about quarantine."
Rose took off in another direction, and called after them. "This way!"
They went to run, only to be cut off by a series of flesh. Chip wailed as he was left alone, and the Doctor wanted to save him.
"Someone will touch him!"
"Leave him." Rose grabbed onto the Doctor and pulled him away. "He's a clone thing. He's only got a half life, come on!"
Chip as quite clearly distressed. "Mistress!"
The Doctor pushed EJ along the corridor and followed suite, apology written all over his face. "I'm sorry, I can't let her escape!"
"My mistress!"
Life with the Doctor was predominantly running as they were chased by their various monstrosities, all shapes and sizes there to destroy them. For once, it might have been nice to be on the other side of it all.
As of now, all they could do was keep going. If they wanted to survive, then all they could do was run. EJ didn't have time for dying, not when he had a son at home waiting for him. There were more important things to do today than die. They had to escape.
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Disclaimer!!!
I do not own Doctor Who, it's characters and original storylines. The only things I do own are my own characters, my addition to the series and my own storylines. Any similarities to real life are purely coincidental.