3. Tripod Device and Saving Tari
Inside the Master’s TARDIS, the evil Time Lord was on his way. He got away by the skin of his teeth after he confronted Salvador, Jo and the Doctor. The Master laughed away, self-satisfied with himself. He eyed the tripod reality device he currently possessed.
“Oh, my dear Doctor,” he chuckled. “You really are so gullible. Whilst concerning yourself with Miss Grant and defeating Salvador, I have gained the most powerful device in the universe. I can go wherever I want.”
Stroking his dark beard, the Master soon pressed switches at his TARDIS console. He adjusted a lever slightly whilst heading for his next destination. He patted the tripod reality device nearby as he went around the console.
“Anything I want,” he uttered. “Reality at my fingertips.”
It was at that moment that a blue box appeared in his TARDIS console room, whooshing and grinding as it materialised. The Master became horror-stricken, knowing what that blue box was.
“No! He can’t have followed me! He can’t have! I just got away!”
Picking up his ray gun from his TARDIS console, the Master raised it up directly at the blue box before him.
“You can’t materialise in here, Doctor,” he called out. “You’ll cause a time ram. It will cause you much problems as well as for me.”
The Doctor’s TARDIS opened and out stepped a young man with black wavy hair and an angular face. He wore a tweed jacket and a bow tie round his neck.
“Yeah, but when did that ever stop me?” the Doctor grinned mischievously.
The Master became astonished, bewildered and baffled by the strange youngster who came into his TARDIS.
“Who in the universe are you?!” he demanded. “You’re not…?!”
Stopping in mid-sentence, the Master looked closely at the stranger. He mind-linked with him only briefly and then realised. He couldn’t believe it.
“You can’t be!” he said shocked. “It’s not possible!”
“Oh yes it is,” the Doctor replied. “Hello, you with the rubbish beard! Long time; no see.”
“You’re you from the future,” the Master declared. “A future Doctor!”
Soon, the Doctor was joined by Clara, Harry and Lady Tari coming out of the TARDIS.
The Master pointed at them. “And these are your companions, I take it?”
“Just me,” Clara waved. “I’m his companion, not these two. They’re guests.” She indicated Harry and Tari.
The Doctor did the introductions. “Clara, meet the Master. Master, meet Clara.”
“I’m not sure I really want to know him, Doctor,” Clara said disapprovingly.
“I know the feeling,” the Doctor remarked. “The Master has that effect on everybody.”
Finding all of this very incredible to take in and becoming astounded, the Master quickly regained his composure and made a threatening stance.
“What are you doing here, Doctor?” he demanded. “Come to stop me, have you? Before I have future encounters with your other future selves. I’ve seen them in your mind. Gallifrey; Traken; Sarn…”
“I’ve come for one thing, Master,” the Doctor interrupted him. “I want that tripod reality device off you please.”
The Master laughed out loud. “No chance, Doctor. It’s mine to keep.”
“I’m asking nicely, Master,” the Doctor persisted. “Hand over the tripod.”
“Is this something to do with Zorbius?”
“That’s my business, not yours.”
“It is, isn’t it? You give yourself away too easily, Doctor. Despite your lively appearance and regeneration, I can see the reason in your eyes.”
“That tripod device is part of fixed events,” the Doctor pointed directly at it. “I’m going to take it to its next destination. The planet Anothea where my fourth self is waiting.”
“Then I’m very sorry, Doctor,” the Master said chillingly. “But I think you’ll be waiting a very long time. The tripod reality device stays with me.”
“Don’t make me force you to give it to me, Master,” the Doctor calmly replied. “I’ll use whatever means necessary.”
The Master laughed again. “Violence?! I find that very hard to believe. You’re not the sort to handle in violence, Doctor. You’re my intellectual equal – almost.”
“You’ll cause a temporal nexus if you don’t hand over the tripod device to me. You know this to be true. I’m always telling the truth. Most times anyway.”
“And may I remind you, Doctor – my dear very, very young-looking Doctor – that the time ram will have caused our two TARDISes to go into limbo. You can’t escape my TARDIS without me escaping. Bit of a tangle, wouldn’t you say?”
“I don’t mind the wait.”
Clara stepped forward, nudging the Doctor. “Are you going to keep on jabbering like this? The way you’re talking to each other, we’ll be here all day.”
“My TARDIS and the Master’s TARDIS are in limbo, Clara,” the Doctor told her. “We’re perfectly safe. Nothing to worry.”
“I’d like to be sure of that,” Clara said sceptically.
Suddenly, the Master slammed his hand on his TARDIS console, pressing a switch. The Master’s TARDIS shuddered violently, causing everyone to fall over onto the floor.
“Doctor?! What’s happening?” Clara cried. “You said we’d be safe!”
The Doctor looked up from the console room floor and stared at the Master in horror.
“What have you done?!”
“It’s simple really, Doctor. If I can’t have the tripod reality device for myself, then neither will you.”
The Master’s TARDIS lurched forward again. Everybody went off balance the moment they tried to get back onto their feet. The Master’s TARDIS seemed to be juddering.
“We’re falling!” Harry cried. “We must be falling! Down, down wherever we’re going!”
“You can save us, Doctor,” Tari cried. “Please tell us you can save us!”
“I’m trying, Tari,” the Doctor answered. “But readjusting a TARDIS can be very difficult.”
The Doctor struggled to get back up onto the Master’s TARDIS console. He tried to adjust certain switches and buttons. Clara came up to join him.
“Doctor, where are we going?!” Clara asked anxiously. “Where is the Master’s TARDIS taking us?!”
Looking to the TARDIS scanner instruments, the Doctor became dismayed as to what he saw.
“Oh no! We’re going to have one hell of a crash-landing. Clara, hold on tight!”
“Why?!”
“Because the Master’s TARDIS hasn’t got any seat belts! And we’re plummeting at an ferocious speed.” The Doctor called out to Clara, Harry and Tari. “Everyone! Hold onto something! We’re going down!”
Everyone held on and some screamed as the Master’s TARDIS plummeted downwards, taking them and the Doctor’s TARDIS to an alien planet nearby.
The Doctor felt bitterly cold as he slowly woke up. Clara tapped him earnestly on the cheeks to wake him up.
“Doctor?! Doctor, wake up!” she cried. “Doctor, please wake up!”
Getting up with a start and startling Clara, the Doctor soon got up to his feet. He looked around, bemused with wonder and confusion. He saw they were on the surface of a cold alien planet. He looked to Clara.
“Clara, you’re alive!” he cheered.
Both he and Clara embraced each other. The Doctor gave her an affectionate kiss on the forehead before he looked around again to check his bearings.
“What happened? What did I miss?” he asked.
“We crashed, Doctor,” Clara told him. “The Master’s TARDIS crashed to this place, wherever we are. I’ve never seen a place like before. So barren and cold. And pebbly!”
“It’s a planet that’s just started,” the Time Lord explained. “Small forms of vegetation and new plant-life have begun to grow here. This must be the start of one of Earth’s future colonies.”
“You know this place then?”
“Sort of. If I were to give a name to this place, I would call it…”
“Faslaca-Otar,” Clara finished for him.
The Doctor looked at Clara, quite annoyed but very bemused.
Clara noticed his puzzled expression. “It said so on the Master’s TARDIS scanner. I checked before we left. Faslaca-Otar this place is.”
“I see,” the Doctor said simply, astounded by Clara’s ability to check that kind of information before leaving an enemy ship.
A moment’s silence ensued. Then the Doctor smacked his head before he turned to Clara again. “The Master! And the tripod reality device!”
“The Master escaped,” Clara answered. “Taking the tripod reality device with him.”
“No, no, no!” The Doctor paced about, frustrated. “This wasn’t meant to happen. This wasn’t what I intended. We were supposed to distract the Master in his TARDIS before we got the chance to steal the tripod device away from him. He always has to ruin my plans in action.”
“Harry and Tari went off after him,” Clara told him. “They tried to stop him getting away. I stayed here with you just to make sure you were alright.”
“How long ago was that?” the Doctor asked.
“About fifteen minutes.”
“Let’s hope Harry and Tari got the device from him in time. It’s vital we have it before my future gets tangled up again.”
At that moment, Harry and Tari returned. They shouted to the Doctor and Clara. But they had no tripod reality device with them. The Doctor grew annoyed at this. He shook his fists angrily once they arrived.
“Device! Tripod reality device!” he grimaced at them. “One little thing you could’ve done was to get that device off the Master. Why didn’t you do it?!”
“We’re very sorry, Doctor,” Harry apologised, out of breath.
“We tried everything we could,” Tari said. “But it was too late.”
The Doctor tucked his cheeks in, fuming. He turned away, walking off in annoyance. Clara turned to Harry and Tari.
“Tell me what happened. How did the Master escape?”
“Oh, we didn’t see the Master escape, Clara,” Tari answered.
“Then how come you say it’s too late?” Clara wondered. “If the Master didn’t escape you two, you could’ve got the tripod device from him.”
“Because the tripod device was stolen,” Harry explained. “The Master got tripped up.”
The Doctor caught wind of this and he turned back to Harry and Tari.
“What did you say? The Master hasn’t got the tripod. Then where is it? What happened to him?”
“He got booby trapped,” Tari told him. “The tripod device fell out of his hands. We saw it happen as we came down the hill.”
“Once we arrived at the bottom of the hill, somebody else got to us first,” Harry continued. “We don’t know who he was, but once he saw the tripod reality device, he took it for himself.”
“We tried to catch him, but he got away via a teleport,” Tari elaborated. “We don’t know where he is now. He could be anywhere.”
“The infernal cheek,” Clara fumed.
“This man. What did he look like?” the Doctor demanded to know. “Tell me!”
Harry tried to think carfully. “Err…he looked rather bald. Was short and he wore round-rimmed spectacles.”
The Doctor clapped his hands in delight. He seemed rather pleased and relieved.
“Aha! I know that guy from anywhere!” he cheered. “Dr. Henry Harper!”
“Old friend of yours?” Clara enquired.
“No, rather old acquaintance,” the Doctor said. “Bit nutty and rather misguided. But this is just brilliant! Absolutely wonderful!”
“How is this wonderful, Doctor?” Tari asked, confused. “Who is this Dr. Harper person you mention.”
“Dr. Harper dealt with experiments on the Zorbius crystal to absorb all forms of reality into an iso-dimensional rift,” the Doctor explained. “He absorbed many enemies of mine – the Sontarans; the Daleks; the Parntroltans…”
“Parntroltans?!” Tari shuddered. “Those were the ones you, I and Donna met…”
“Yes Tari, I know,” the Doctor acknowledged. “Harper was working on these experiments with two assistants of his, Sara and Dan – who turned out to be the Zorbius creature together surprisingly. Took me by surprise at any rate.”
“Is that the next time you encounter Zorbius?” Clara asked. “The fourth one.”
“No, that was the sixth,” the Doctor said. “That was when Charoc sent her cat girls to meet up with me and Peri, her like I told her to. It’s rather complicated I know, don’t let it bother you. The important thing is, Harper passed on that research of the tripod reality device and the Zorbius crystal to Delta – your adoptive mother, Tari.”
“My mother Delta,” Tari gradually realised. “Yes, I remember now. She did take the research from Dr. Harper. She told me to tell you Doctor that she did take it from him.”
“Yes. She used Harper’s work for something she attempted to do with saving her people. And it concerned Cybermen.”
“Cybermen?!” Clara became shocked. “The Cybermen were involved?!”
“One step at a time,” the Doctor said knowingly to Clara. “First we get on with our Zorbius quest. We’ve wasted enough time already as it is.”
“We go to your next encounter,” Clara declared. “The fourth one with Zorbius.”
“No, the sixth!”
“I’m sorry?”
“Thought we’d take a side-step. That tripod reality device, like I said, is very valuable. We’ve got to make sure it’s passed on to the right next person to have it. Come on, everyone! Back to the TARDIS we go!”
Waving his hands in his air, they were about to head off before the Doctor stopped in his tracks awkwardly.
“Where’s the TARDIS?” he asked. Then he panicked. “It hasn’t been stolen too, has it?”
Clara reassured him. “It’s still in the Master’s TARDIS. Back where we left it after we came down to this planet.”
The Doctor beamed. “Ah! Then we’d better get back to the Master’s TARDIS before the Master does. Off we go then! Off to the iso-dimensional rift to steal the tripod reality device again!”
And off they went, heading up the pebbly hill.
The Doctor and Clara ran through the iso-dimensional rift in outer space. They ran along the strange stone-built bridge, trying to find the people they were looking for. They had to be somewhere. The Doctor knew that. Clara panted as they ran past clouds of energy and stars, attempting to reach the core of the vortex.
“This is all very weird,” Clara remarked. “I feel as if I’m not breathing properly.”
“Trust me, Clara,” the Doctor said reassuringly. “It’s perfectly fine. We’re running through an atmosphere of timey-wimeyness, but we should be relatively safe.”
“How reassuring,” she snorted.
“We could remain out here forever though,” he pointed out. “We have to find my sixth self and Peri pretty quickly. We need to ask them the question.”
“I’m surprised you didn’t take Harry and Tari with us.”
“They’re part of events. Part of the Zorbius timeline. My timeline. I can’t lose too many people out here in this place. They’re indispensable.”
“Whereas we’re not, I take it,” Clara said sardonically.
“Do have a little faith please, Clara,” the Doctor implored her.
As they ran, Clara saw various versions of the Doctor appearing out of thin air. They had their companions at their side.
“Doctor, we’re seeing many versions of you,” she told him. “They’re all you! Here in this iso-dimensional place whatever you call it.”
“They’re here because of me,” he explained. “And the other me being here with Peri. I remember now. We were trying to make for the beacon. The beacon to shut down Dr. Harper’s experiments. We had to shut down everything Harper did in his experiments according to Charoc’s wild girls, Miss Gibbs and Miss Lewis.”
“Some of these Doctors I’ve seen before,” Clara pointed out. “The one with Ian, Susan and Barbara. The one with Jamie and Zoe. The one with Jo…”
“Try not to think about it too much. I never do. It’s something I shouldn’t peek my nose into all the time with seeing myself.”
“But they’re all past versions of you, surely.”
“There’s also the future ones. Really, did you think that this is the last me you’re talking to? There’s bound to be more coming up. Like the Scottish chap and the blonde-haired woman we saw.”
At that moment, the Doctor and Clara saw a sight that took them by surprise. They saw a beacon of light. Already two people were there – a man in a multi-coloured coat and a young dark-haired girl.
“That’s them, isn’t it?” Clara realised. “That’s you! The sixth you and Peri.”
“Yes,” the Doctor cheered delightedly. “Now it’s vitally important we don’t hang about for too long. We need to ask them where Harper’s got the tripod reality device. Once we’ve asked them, they’ll tell us to make our way back to the TARDIS. Got that?”
“Absolutely.”
“Right. Off we go to see my sixth self!”
With that, the Doctor and Clara took each other’s hands and beamed. They ran over to meet the Sixth Doctor and Peri at the beacon.
On the scavenger space station, the TARDIS materialised in Dr. Harper’s lab. The Doctor immediately stepped out with Clara behind him.
“Right!” the Doctor cheered. “Now we’ve got to find the tripod device. It should be around here somewhere in this lab. Let’s hope it’s in the place where my sixth self said it would be.”
“He wasn’t particularly happy, was he?” Clara remarked. “When we popped in and interrupted him and Peri at the beacon.”
“I never usually am,” the Doctor replied. “I don’t like seeing myself. But he’ll thank me later for it.”
“Really? When?”
“Right now.” The Doctor then mimicked the sixth Doctor’s voice with his left hand. “Hello, Doctor. Thanks for popping up when you did to save myself being erased from existence.” He then mimicked himself with his right hand. “Oh not at all Doctor, only too happy to help.” Back as the sixth Doctor with his left hand, “You know you may look young, but you’re certainly full of vibe.” And back as himself with the right hand. “Yes, I’d like to think so too…”
“Doctor, please. Can we concentrate?” Clara interupted him. “Tripod reality device. Where is it?”
“Oh yes!” the Doctor snapped back into it. “It should be around here somewhere. Just keep looking.”
The Doctor and Clara searched all over for a bit in the lab.
“If Harper comes in here, won’t he be rather cross?” Clara asked whilst searching.
“Should imagine so,” the Doctor replied. “Probably be fuming. Probably be deadly boiling hot angry, I should say.”
“Where is he now? How come he’s not here?”
“Oh ducking underneath chairs and tables at Androgum restaurants,” the Doctor presumed. “There’s a battle going on between the Sontarans; Daleks and Parntroltans, remember? They’re just arrived. Aha!”
The Doctor’s “Aha!” meant to Clara that he struck luck. She came over to see as the Doctor held something in his hands. She recognised it instantly, seeing the cheerful look on the Doctor’s face.
“You found it!”
“Tripod reality device!” the Doctor cheered. “Safe and sound. Now we go home!”
Suddenly, a red alarm blared off out loud in the lab. The Doctor and Clara were quite startled once they saw the room filled with red light.
“Red alarm! I take it that’s for us?” Clara queried.
“Oh no!” the Doctor groaned. “Security cameras spotting our presence. Should’ve anticipated that would happen.”
“So that means they’ll be coming for us. Daleks; Sontarans; Parntroltans; Dr. Harper…”
“Yup! Very possibly!”
“We’ve got to get back inside the TARDIS.”
“Oh! Nice plan, Clara,” the Doctor said sarcastically. “I really like it when you state the ‘bleeding obvious’ statements of life.”
“Where to next?” Clara asked. “Where do we take that tripod thing to?”
“Anothea,” the Doctor answered. “We give the device to the dirty dealers Borack and Meesley. They’re bad pennies but they soon work out good in the end. I’ll have to give them a phone call first.”
“Why give them a phone call?” Clara wondered.
“Cos I’ve got a special delivery!”
At that moment, the lab doors opened. Monsters started coming in – Daleks, Sontarans and Parntroltans.
“Doctor, the monsters,” Clara cried. “They’re coming for us!”
“TARDIS! In we go, Clara!” the Doctor yelled.
Taking her by the hand, the Doctor and Clara ran inside the blue box. They soon made a departure for Anothea.
Elsewhere in time and space, Borack and Meesley walked on the beach, making their way to the Moriston Hotel in the north continent of the planet Anothea. They walked a fair way.
“So, when are we going to be receiving this package we’re supposed to get then?” Meesley asked.
“Soon,” Borack told her. “Very soon, Meesley. And I hope it’s just for what we need in our pact with Sharic Par.”
“I’m not sure about that creep,” she said. “He doesn’t seem the right sort to be making trades with. He’ll backstab us.”
“Don’t start, Meelsey!” he told her off. “You always have to be so doubting when it comes to our clients.”
“Well, you can’t blame a girl,” Meesley said. “I mean, look where we are! On a beach, walking at late evening time and I see two ridiculous people up ahead. One with a long scarf and the other looking like Tarzan Jane. I think they have a tin dog with them too.”
“Yeah,” Borack acknowledged. “Just look at them! Holiday makers, I shouldn’t wonder.”
“I can do with a holiday. A really good holiday!”
“Well, you can’t. You have to live the hard work. We haven’t got far to this hotel, so stop jabbering and…”
At that moment, they were stopped in their tracks. A strange-looking young man with a bow tie met up with them as well as a pretty dark-haired young girl.
“Hello there!” the man said cheerily. “Borack and Meesley, good to see you again.”
The young man raised a hand to shake hands with, but Borack dismissed him.
“Get out of our way, you idiot! We’ve got a business transaction to attend to.”
“So have I,” the young man said. “Though I never like to make business transactions. They’re not so cool unless you have cake. Make rather nice cakes myself. Though the fish was slightly sticking out and the custard oozed a lot.”
“If you don’t mind,” said Borack irritably, “there’s a hotel up ahead we’ve got to get to.”
“Trust us, you two,” the young girl reassured them. “It won’t take a mo.”
“I’ve come to give you a package,” the young man said.
“What package?” Meesley enquired.
“If you want to do business with us,” Borack interjected sharply, “you’ll have to meet us in the morning. We haven’t got time…”
“Oy! Didn’t you get my message?” the young man said, annoyed. “I’d be delivering my package to you this evening. Well this is this evening!”
“Wait…that was you?” Meesley realised. “You sent us the message. You’d be sending a package to us.”
“And here it is! Voila!”
With that, the young man showed the tripod reality device to them. Borack and Meesley became astonished and bewildered.
“What’s this?” Borack asked.
“Tripod reality device,” the young man said. “Trust me. Study it well. You need to use it for this business transaction you’ve got with Sharic Par. Doing a trade with him, right?”
Borack and Meesley became even more astonished by the young stranger.
“How did you know that?” Borack demanded to know.
“No one’s meant to know about our business transaction with Sharic Par,” Meesley said.
“Oh please, please, please!” the young man said annoyed. “I don’t have the time to explain it now. Just take it from me, will you? I’ve got too many problems to sort out. One in particular.”
“Doctor!” the young girl nudged him.
“I’ve got to save myself – another me that is – with Leela and K-9 from the Skeletrons which could happen at anytime.”
“Doctor?!”
“You wouldn’t have seen them, would you? Big man in a long scarf; savage girl and a robot dog…”
“DOCTOR?!!!”
“What is it, Clara?!”
“The Skeletrons!” Clara pointed. “They’re going for you!”
The Doctor looked to see where Clara was pointing. They saw a patrol of Skeletrons marching behind the Fourth Doctor, Leela and K-9 who were making for the Moriston Hotel and unaware that they were being stalked on the beach.
Starting to get panicky and clasping his face in his hands, the Doctor reeled with anxiety and terror as he shouted, “Quick, Clara! Onto them! STOP THEM!!!!”
With that, the Doctor and Clara ran forward, chasing after the Skeletrons. They left a bemused Borack and Meesley behind. Borack studied the tripod reality device whilst Meesley watched the two strangers go.
“Who were those nutters then?” Meesley asked.
“I’ve no idea,” Borack answered. “But this technology they gave us is quite fascinating, isn’t it?”
The Skeletrons drew their swords as they made to advance upon the Fourth Doctor, Leela and K-9. They didn’t get their chance as they were zapped to the ground by a sonic screwdriver. The Skeletrons were disabled just as the Doctor and Clara arrived. Once collapsed to the ground, the Doctor and Clara looked the Skeletrons over.
“Got you!” the Doctor cheered. “There we are. Everything’s safe and sound. My fourth self, Leela and K-9 can enjoy their holiday on Anothea! Mind you, they’ll be facing doom with the enemy they’ve got to fight against on this planet. Never can say the right words, can I?”
The Skeletron Leader gasped and rasped as he uttered his final words of defiance against the Doctor. “Zorbius will win, Doctor! You cannot stop us! We will change your future and alter every victory you’ve ever won! Zorbius shall be the winner! The horror of time shall come…”
“And before you get your chance,” the Doctor interrupted, “I’ll shut you down in an instant, shall I?”
With that, the Doctor buzzed his sonic screwdriver at the Skeletron leader’s wires and circuitry. Soon, it and the rest of the Skeletrons slowly died off of power. They became crumbled husks in dead robotic suits. Clara and the Doctor breathed a sigh of relief.
“You did it then,” Clara cheered. “You saved yourself again.”
“And I stopped the Skeletrons from teleporting out this time,” the Doctor added. “Hopefully that’ll be the last we’ll have trouble from Zorbius and its minions.”
“And the other Doctor with your friends, Leela and K-9,” Clara pointed out. “They haven’t spotted us, have they?”
“Na,” the Doctor assured her. “Probably too distant to think about us. That’s who I was back in the day with the long scarf. Always aloof, but never selfish.”
The Doctor soon got back up onto his feet, taking Clara with him.
“Come on! Back to the TARDIS. See how Harry and Tari are getting on.”
“How come they didn’t want to come with us?” Clara asked. “They weren’t in danger on coming out here, were they?”
“Probably just tired,” the Doctor suggested. “Or finding this a little too much. You can’t blame them.”
Very soon, the Doctor and Clara ran off, heading up the beach and making their way back to the TARDIS where they parked it.
Back inside the TARDIS, the Doctor and Clara were at the console. The ship juddered, travelling through the time tunnel at an infinite rate. The Doctor fiddled about with the controls at the console, typing away at the keyboard with Clara watching him.
“So Doctor, fill me in,” Clara said. “What was all that about with the tripod device? Taking a side trip to meet 6 before meeting 4.”
“Ah yes!” the Doctor realised Clara’s point. “Well you see, in order to maintain certain events – fixed points in time, if you will – you have to make sure one thing does another thing for everyone. The tripod reality device for example.”
“It was stolen by the Master from your third encounter,” Clara recalled. “But you encountered Zorbius next with that tripod in your fourth encounter.”
“But the tripod wouldn’t have got to my fourth encounter if I hadn’t seen to it that it got to my sixth encounter first with Dr. Harper.”
“Right. Starting to get a headache, but go on.”
“Don’t you see?” the Doctor stressed. “The tripod device wouldn’t have been sent to my fourth encounter if I hadn’t stolen it from Harper during my sixth encounter. Giving it to the traders – Borack and Meesley – during my fourth.”
“Right. Sorry, headache’s got a little worse.”
“Oh really, Clara,” the Doctor became annoyed. “Do try and keep up! We got time restored!” He raised his hands about in the air, emphasising the point to Clara. “And I added a little of my own meddling to Zorbius’ hardship and turmoil in the process.”
“Sorry?”
“Well, that scavenger station in the iso-dimensional rift. It contained all sorts of monstrous beings: Daleks; Sontarans; Cybermen; Parntroltans. I released some of them back into their own reality for pity’s sake. Some of them would have gone on to meet Zorbius during between meet me 3 and me 4. They would become his greatest enemies – Quarks; Judoon; Nimon; Androgums and Monoids. All thanks to me.”
“But that’s not really fair,” Clara stated. “Making Zorbius face his enemies because you sent them to him.”
“Look at me!” the Doctor patted his chest. “I don’t do fair. Besides, time has to work like that. And I’ve made sure the Zorbius encounters have more meaning by adding to their events. Rather cool that, isn’t it? Me doing the puppeteering in the universe.”
Clara then realised something. “Doctor, where’s Harry and Tari?”
The Doctor looked around the console room to find them not in sight. “Dunno. I thought you’d gone to see how they were.”
“I didn’t,” Clara protested. “I thought you did.”
“No I didn’t.”
“Then who did?”
“No-one it seems,” the Doctor gradually realised. “Oh, that’s rather rubbish! So, where are they then?”
At that moment, Harry appeared in the console room, looking rather dismayed and flustered as he approached Clara and the Doctor.
“Doctor; Clara! Thank goodness you’re back!”
“Harry, good to see you,” the Doctor cheered. “We wondered where you were.”
“Where’s Tari?” Clara began to feel anxious. “What’s happened to her?”
“She’s sick!” Harry answered. “Far worse than sick! She’s fading!”
“What?!” the Doctor exclaimed.
At that moment, Tari entered. She clung to the TARDIS walls, phasing in and out as she did so.
“Doctor,” she said weakly. “Please, help me!”
Harry went over to her side at the TARDIS walls.
“Tari, I told you to stay in bed,” he said. “You’re not well.”
“I’ll be alright, Harry,” Tari weakly assured him. “Don’t worry about me.”
“You’re not alright,” Harry told her before he turned to the Doctor. Clara came by to support Tari too. “Doctor, what’s the matter with her?”
The Doctor had a sullen look on his face as he became distraught.
“Oh no. Oh dear. I just made a big boo-boo. In fact a real ouchie.”
“Doctor, tell us what’s going on,” Clara demanded, as she gradually got Tari to sit down on the TARDIS floor against the walls. “What’s become of Tari?”
“Her existence is being affected the same way as Harry’s was,” the Doctor explained. “She’s being erased from history due to her connection with the Zorbius crystal.”
The Doctor then groped in pain as he fell to the floor again. Clara soon came over beside him, seeing him in pain, whilst Harry continued to look after Tari.
“Doctor,” Clara panicked. “If Tari’s timeline’s being altered…”
“It means either I would never have met her,” the Doctor interjected, “or worse still, she wouldn’t have met me.”
“It’s the same thing,” Clara pointed out.
“No, it isn’t,” the Doctor said. “Don’t you see? Tari met me when I was number 10 on Migra-Minor.”
“But you should still be alive,” Clara said. “We’ve sorted out your first four selves and the sixth. You can’t die now, can you?”
“Tari was later adopted by Delta,” the Doctor reminded her. “I met Delta during my seventh encounter with Zorbius. What would happen if Delta never met me in my seventh encounter? What if I got killed before I reached her?”
“Then Tari would never have been adopted,” Clara realised. “Because of what the Skeletrons and the Zorbius creature are still currently doing to alter your timeline.”
The Doctor soon howled in pain again before he climbed up back to the console unit, trying to pull a switch.
He called out to Harry. “Harry, you look after Tari for me, won’t you? Cos she needs you more than ever. She’s weak but she’ll become strong again.”
“You are going to save her, aren’t you, Doctor?” Harry enquired. “You will save Tari, won’t you?”
“Just you watch me!” the Doctor cheered. “I’ll save Tari and the whole universe yet!”
Pulling a lever, the TARDIS jolted forward. The Doctor and Clara held on tight whilst Harry cradled Tari in his arms. The TARDIS was soon heading off for its next destination to save Tari’s life.
In Maputo City, Mozambique in the summer of 2013, Clara and the Doctor explored the place to find it so busy and full of life. Clara was right to bring sunglasses along to wear. The sun brought on a real heat wave.
“So, how are we going to find her?” Clara asked. “How will we find Tari’s mum?”
“We don’t find her,” the Doctor said. “We send a message to her to tell her what’s going on and to tell her to meet me – my seventh self – and my friend Ace in Mozambique.”
“Why couldn’t we send the message to her via the TARDIS?”
The Doctor became annoyed. “Because we need to find my seventh self and Ace in order to rescue them from Zorbius and the Skeletrons. Do try and keep up!”
“Alright. Don’t get so tetchy about it!”
At that moment, a swarm of bees appeared in the air before them. Clara staggered once she saw them. She tugged the Doctor’s sleeve.
“Bees!” she cried. “A great swarm of bees. I hate them. Mum always told me to keep away from them.”
The Doctor however was delighted to see the bees. He made his way over to them.
“Oh hello there!” he cheered. “I recognise you lot! Good to see you. Long time, no see. Well, it has for me. Like hundreds of years since I last saw you. But you haven’t changed a bit. Relatively, obviously.”
“Doctor, you’re talking to bees,” Clara pointed out.
“I know!”
“People don’t talk to bees. That’s silly.”
“What’s wrong with ‘silly’?” the Doctor asked. “And I’m not people, I’m the Doctor. And these aren’t your ordinary bees.”
“They’re not?”
“Nope! These are Melissa Majorian bees! They’ve come all the way from Chumeria to guide Delta whilst she’s here in Mozambique. At least…they would be if Delta was here. Which begs the question, where is she?”
“Doctor, they’re still bees,” Clara told him. “You shouldn’t get too close.”
“Or perhaps it’s yet to happen,” the Doctor said more to himself, “and I have to send a message to Delta through these bees in order to get her to come here to Mozambique. What a concept?!”
“Do you think that’s possible then?” Clara asked.
“Do I think that’s possible?!” echoed the Doctor. “Clara Oswald, I have to make it happen! You just watch this! Watch and learn!”
With that, the Doctor faced the bees and he began to talk to them in bee language.
“Bzz! Bzz, bzz, bzz! BZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ, BZZ, BZZ! Bzz! Bzz, bzz! Bzz, bzz, bzz, bzz, BZZZZ!!! Bzz, bzz…”
Clara tugged at the Doctor’s shoulder, feeling rather annoyed. “Doctor?! Concentrate, will you?!”
“Don’t interrupt, Clara!” the Doctor told her off. “I’m sending my message to Delta through the bee!”
“You’re talking rubbish,” she told him. “Making buzzing sounds like that!”
“Exactly, I talk bees!”
“No, you don’t.”
“Yes, I do. I speak every language including baby talk and buzzing bee talk. Now shut up a minute!”
Turning back to the bees, he continued his message in buzzing sounds. Once he finished, Clara saw that the bees were going off and flying off into the air. The Doctor turned back to Clara, rather pleased with himself.
“What was all that about?” Clara asked, befuddled. “What did you say to them?”
“Oh I gave them my message,” the Doctor replied. “A message to Delta. She’s still on Chumeria apparently.”
“What was the message?”
“Oh straight forward enough. I told them to ask Delta to pick up Tari from Migra-Minor where I would later meet her. I asked her to adopt Tari as her daughter. She’ll find her at the orphanage on Migra-Minor. Told her not to worry about the Cybermen invading and that it’ll all work out fine in the end. I said I’ll rescue Chumeria’s children; her daughter Beta and her husband Billy as soon as possible before the Cybermen get to them.”
“She’s got a husband,” Clara reacted, surprised.
“Yes, didn’t I mention that? I also asked Delta if she could let me know by confirming to me that she’s got Dr. Harper’s research on what to do regarding the Cybermen and the Zorbius crystal.”
“Will the bees send that message then?”
“Are you kidding?!” the Doctor exclaimed. “It’s already been sent! Tari told us that her mum got Harper’s research as she was meant to tell us.”
“Oh yeah, that’s right!” Clara recalled. “Oh my stars! You do speak bee language!”
“Talking another language is cool!” said the Doctor cheerily. “That is so cool, isn’t it?”
“So, Delta will come here and meet you and Ace. Safe and sound again.”
“Not quite,” the Doctor disappointed Clara. “We still have to find Seven and Ace first before we leave. They’re still in danger and we’ve got to be sure they’re safe.”
“Is that them over there?!” Clara pointed.
“Where?”
“Over there! The little umbrella man with the panama hat. As well as her friend – the young girl wearing the ACE jacket written all over it.”
“Oh yes!” the Doctor cheered delightedly. “That’s them! Good old Ace and me! Sailing the universe together.”
“And those are Skeletrons coming up behind them, aren’t they?” she warned him.
“Those are Skeletrons coming up behind them!” the Doctor gradually realised as he shouted, “Oh no! Why am I wasting time like a talking busy bee?!”
“Because you did,” Clara said ruefully.
“Shut up!” the Doctor told her off. “We’ve got to get over there and rescue them! Doctor and Clara to the rescue!”
“And off to save Delta’s family?” she added.
“And off to save Delta’s family,” echoed the Doctor. “Off we go!”
Taking each other’s hands, the Doctor and Clara ran off over to where the Skeletrons were and made to stop them in time in order to rescue the Seventh Doctor and Ace.
Pretty soon, the Doctor and Clara were back travelling in the TARDIS in the time vortex again. They dealt with the crisis in Maputo city, Mozambique 2013 and the TARDIS was zooming along down the time tunnel. Inside, the Doctor and Clara attended to the Chimeron children they’d picked up from Chumeria as promised. Delta’s family including her husband Billy and her daughter Beta were settling into rooms aboard the TARDIS. The Doctor wooed the baby he was holding in his arms, making bubbly sounds to speak. Clara cradled a baby in her arms too, gently swaying it to and fro .
“They’re very sweet, aren’t they,” Clara commented. “Chimeron babies are very sweet.”
“You’re really good at being a mother, aren’t you?” the Doctor observed.
Clara shrugged. “Nanny experience taught me. And I’m proving my nanny skills here. I never realised how I enjoyed tending a baby so much.”
“You got the knack,” complimented the Doctor. “I hadn’t realised that about you, Clara, until now.”
“You’re not so bad being a father yourself,” she commented.
“Oh I’ve been a father before, remember? And a grandfather. I’d like to think I still have those qualities and experience left in me.”
“So what do we do when we’ve finished looking after them?” Clara asked. “Take them back to Chumeria?”
“The TARDIS is on its way to Chumeria following the events of Delta’s game with the Cybermen,” the Doctor told her. “She’ll be back on Chumeria soon. We’ll pop back to return the Chimeron babies as well as her husband Billy and her daughter Beta like they’ve never been away.”
“These babies, Billy; Delta’s own daughter Beta and Delta herself. They’ll all go back to their home once everything’s safe,” Clara stated.
“Certainly how I’d like it to be safe,” the Doctor said. “Delta’s still got to look after Tari and bring her up. She’ll be a great mother to her, that I’m sure.”
At that moment, Harry entered the room. The Doctor looked up at Harry brightly.
“Ah Harry! Are Mr. Billy Delta and daughter Beta settling into their rooms?”
“They’re settling fine, Doctor,” Harry answered. “No need to worry about them.”
“Then what’s to worry about?” Clara asked, noticing the anxious look on Harry’s face.
“It’s Tari,” Harry said. “She’s still fading in and out of existence. It looks like there’s nothing left of her.”
“That doesn’t sound good, does it?” Clara said. “We must be missing something.”
“Something obvious,” the Doctor muttered. “Something staring at us in the face.”
“Would you like me to hold the baby you’re holding for you, Doctor, before you get another heart attack?” Clara asked.
Ignoring Clara, the Doctor thought to himself as he carried a baby in his arms.
He then realised and declared, “Ah! Of course!”
“What? What is it?” Clara wanted to know.
The Doctor passed the baby in his arms over to Harry. Harry became startled as he took the baby from the Time Lord.
“Look after her, will you, Harry?” the Doctor said. “Her name’s Sally. Be gentle with her. I like Sally so much!”
The Doctor soon went over to the console and began to set a new destination. Clara came beside him as he explained..
“The message sent to Delta via the bees by me was success, yes. She picked up Harper’s research for the Cybermen and yes, she went to meet up with Lucky Seven and Ace to deal with the Cybermen in Maputo, Mozambique.”
“But there’s a big ‘but’ in this, I can tell,” Clara said.
“But the thing is,” the Doctor went on, “she’s got to pick up Tari. Tari has to wait in the orphanage to meet her future adoptive mother after she’s been in the forest of magicians on Migra-Minor. And who did she meet on Migra-Minor in the forest of magicians?”
“You!” Clara answered. “She met you and your friend Donna. Tari said so.”
“We have to go to Migra-Minor to save little Tari as my myself and Donna from the Skeletrons and Zorbius,” declared the Doctor.
“Hadn’t we better take these children back to Chumeria first?” Clara asked. “Where everything’s safe.”
“But everything’s not safe, Clara,” the Doctor told her. “We’ve got to sort out this business with Tari as a little girl in order to save the woman she becomes later on. Before any more complications are raised. I won’t have Delta’s family caught in a tangle of tumultuous causality. They’ll be safe in the TARDIS provided they stay inside.”
“Can I come with you?” Harry asked, still cradling little Sally in his arms. “I’d like to help out if I can to save Tari.”
“You can look after Tari by staying here in the TARDIS,” the Doctor told him. “That’s something you can do to save her.”
“That husband of Delta’s,” Harry pointed out. “He can look after Tari as well as his daughter and these babies inside the TARDIS. I can tell him to do so. I feel so useless not being able to do anything whilst cooped up in here.”
The Doctor was about to protest before Clara interrupted him.
“We could use a little help, Doctor,” she said. “Three heads are better than two.”
The Doctor sulked momentarily as he gave Harry an annoyed look. Eventually, he gave in and said, “Oh, very well. You can come along. But stick with us, Harry! Don’t go wandering off. We need to save Tari’s life and avoid any complications whilst on Migra-Minor. It’s a mine-field we’re walking into! We have to tread carefully!”
“I understand,” Harry said. “Tari means a lot to me. I want to save her.”
The Doctor turned to Clara. “Is that clear, Clara? What I’ve told Harry here applies to you too.”
“Absolutely,” Clara said. “You can rely on me, Doctor.”
The Doctor smiled as he said. “I hope so.” He then beamed as he said, “Right, off we go! Next stop: Migra-Minor in the year 200!”
Pulling a lever, the TARDIS soon jerked. The Doctor held onto the console whilst Clara and Harry held onto the babies they were carrying. The time ship went on its way through the time vortex to reach its destination.
© Tim Bradley, 2020
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