Life in the Fast Lane 5/6
“WE’VE GOT TO BACK AND GET BLAINE AND JEDDA!” Kurt screams “WE CAN’T LEAVE THEM!”
“DO YOU THINK I MEANT TO DO THIS?!” The Doctor yells back, equally as distraught.
“WHO THE HELL ELSE COULD’VE?!”
“THE TARDIS TOOK OFF ALL BY HERSELF, IF I COULD GET HER TO CHANGE COURSE I WOULD!”
“Sweetie we’ve got to go back” River says, quietly, but dead seriously “If they catch them they’ll be killed - and Jedda is linked telepathically to one of them. Without us they don’t stand a chance”
“Killed!” Kurt shrieks “But what did they do?!”
“Even the smallest crimes are met with a death sentence on Yumina, that’s how the crime rate stays so low” River says “Blaine will be charged with assisting a fugitive - he may not even get a trial”
“But that’s inhumane!” Kurt cries, his eyes welling with tears “Take me back now!”
“DO YOU THINK I DON’T KNOW ALL THIS?!” The Doctor yells, startling everyone into silence “We can’t do anything until she lands, we just have to hope Blaine and Jedda stay safe until we can find our way back to them”
---
“So, how’d you escape last time Lady Houdini?” Blaine asks Jedda, seated on the cold, dirty floor or the cell they are sharing - kept in by a force field created and maintained by the guard. Blaine hopes that at least he’s paid well because it looks like a lot of energy to maintain.
“I told you, I hitched a ride with a Time Agent - do you see any?”
“So we’re marooned with no hope of rescue?”
“Looks that way”
“Darn” Blaine says “At least we’re together - I suppose there are worse ways to die.”
“Are you for real?!” Jedda exclaims “We’re sentenced to death, being held captive for an undetermined amount of time and you are on an alien planet - you’ll never see Kurt, or your family again and you’re looking for a bright side?”
Blaine sighs “Well, when you put it like that”
“If you have any ingenious ideas - let me know” Jedda says “I can’t believe they left us”
“I’m just glad he got Kurt home safe, my Parents probably won’t even notice I’m gone. Kurt has a family who will miss him” Blaine says, and is honestly surprised how clinical his voice sounds. It doesn’t really hurt anymore it’s just fact.
“No, what?! Are you kidding? As if nobody’d miss you. Kurt and The Doctor will miss you for a start, I bet The Doctor is crying like a baby hating himself right now - and I’m positive Kurt is killing him with his almighty wrath”
Blaine can’t help but laugh “He’ll avenge my death, he’s a great boyfriend”
“He’s a catch” Jedda agrees “Blaine, your parents will miss you. They’ll realise that they should’ve told you they loved you more while you were here. They’ll realise that they shouldn’t have let what they had slip through their fingers. Your brother will feel horribly guilty. They all love you - they just don’t know how to show it.”
“How the hell do you do that?” Blaine says, frowning “Be so absolutely spot on every time - you’re better than The Doctor”
“Of course I am” Jedda says, smiling knowingly “Telepathic, psychic and telekinetic remember? Although being telekinetic isn’t necessarily relevant to this conversation - I just wanted to show off”
“The Doctor was right about you” Blaine smirks, earning a light punch on the shoulder from Jedda.
“I’m so sorry I got us into this Blaine, I wish you’d left me”
“I’d never” Blaine says.
“I know” Jedda replies pulling Blaine into a hug “You really believe me, don’t you?”
“Yes” Blaine affirms “I do.”
“Why?” Jedda asks as she releases her grip on Blaine, who does the same “Why do you believe me when not even my own family does - not even The Doctor?”
“Because travelling with The Doctor has taught me at least one thing, and that it that on the whole - people are good. And humanity is astounding, people do terrible things but there’ll always be someone good waiting in the wings. And I know you’re not a human, but you’re definitely one of the good ones Jedda. And even though your society may brand you a liar, even before you’re born I don’t believe you are one.”
“I don’t understand” Jedda says.
“People tell you you’re a liar, so you lie. But you haven’t lived among liars for a long time, have you Jedda? You’ve broken the mould”
“I-I I don’t know” Jedda says, her voice trailing off “I don’t know, I suppose not.”
“You never had to be a liar Jedda - nobody did. You’re just doing what you’re told, your planet is beautiful, but your people are being controlled by fear and propaganda. Being told who they have to be before they have a chance to decide for themselves.”
“So what you’re saying is living on Earth helped me realise how to tell the truth?”
“I think so, I don’t really know, I’m not The Doctor. But I know you aren’t lying to me. You’re innocent”
Jedda nods, a little shell shocked “I am. I was accused of murder, Blaine. I was accused because my hair turned red and then they found a body. I was locked up before they even knew what my crime was. Banished from my tribe, held captive without a trial - no visitors. If it wasn’t for Jack - I’d be... I’d be dead...”
“I know” Blaine says “I’m sorry”
“And babies are still being injected with this stuff. More kids are going to grow up and react and die innocent... and there’s nothing I can do to stop it. It’s just going to go on and on... the persecution will never end. All because people are too scared of the truth.”
“Sometimes terrible things happen to good people” Blaine whispers, feeling a pinch in his chest as he thinks of Oliver - the sparkle being beaten out of those green eyes, a smile that could never quite be able to reach them again.
“Sometimes they do unforgivable things, all you can do is hope that people will evolve - learn to change. You didn’t always have these injection things right?”
“No” Jedda says “We weren’t allowed to trade with other planets because of our reputation, so the medicine men developed it. To weed out the criminals.”
“Maybe that story you heard when you were a child - that one about people reacting to the injections, maybe that’ll spread until it becomes fact. Maybe people won’t stop whispering until you’re forced to do tests. You never know Jedda” Blaine says “Maybe the future will be a lot brighter than you predicted. We won’t be around to see it, but maybe we can die hopeful. I haven’t lost faith in humanity yet, I’m sure you haven’t lost all faith in Yumina yet either”
“I loved growing up on the Niramal Plain, the weather was fantastic, children were always laughing and playing. It was peaceful, and crime-free for the most part. I don’t know who murdered Yamon, I don’t know how or if they got away with it either - as I’m sure their hair must’ve gone red too but that was the first time there’d been a crime in the entire Niramal District in my entire lifetime and I was forty-eight in human years by then.”
“What?!” Blaine exclaims “No way! You look like, twenty-one, tops. How old are you now?”
“Fifty-seven” Jedda says, laughing “Yuminans live for hundreds of years, by Yuminan standards I’m barely an adult.”
“I’m going to think of you as early twenties” Blaine says through his laughter.
“Well, that’s what my facebook profile says” Jedda says with a wink.
“Jedda” Blaine says “Don’t forget the bad parts of Yumina, use them to make you stronger. But keep the good parts closest to your heart - they’ll stop you from turning bitter”
“Why do I have a feeling you’re not just talking about Yumina”
“You must be psychic” Blaine replies and they once again burst into fits of laughter until tears are streaming down their faces, until suddenly they are startled out of their laughing fit by the familiar whoosh as a sudden wind blows around them - the TARDIS.
“Shit” is all Blaine can say.
“Oh no!” Jedda exclaims “Oh no! They’ve gotta go back! They’ll be killed!”
“Jedda, are you underestimating me?” The Doctor says “Oh, hello!” he turns to the Yuminan guard and waves.
“AHHHH!” someone screams and they literally come out of nowhere smacking what looks like a thick metal scrap over the guards head - knocking him out cold and breaking the telepathic force field.
“Wow” Kurt says “Never thought I’d ever be doing that”
“KURT!” Blaine exclaims as he runs into Kurt’s arms “I thought I’d never see you again!”
“I was scared you might be dead” Kurt says simultaneously to Blaine.
“You guys are cute and all, but MOVE!” Jedda yells.
“Into the TARDIS, COME ON” River calls beckoning them from the doorframe.
“Hold up” Blaine says as he shuts the door behind him “River can fly the TARDIS?”
“Nice to meet you too, Blaine Anderson” River says as she mans the controls.
“Somebody had to” The Doctor says “Our rescue plan was a two man job, and Kurt really wanted me to be the distraction, he says I have a distracting face.”
Kurt wraps his arm around Blaine’s waist and presses a quick kiss to Blaine’s temple “I just wanted to be the hero” he whispers.
“We’re still screwed” Jedda says.
“What now?” Kurt groans.
“Blaine’s gonna be okay” Jedda says her voice wavering slightly “but they implanted a tracking device on me when they caught us, they tried to put one on Blaine too, but his biology’s wrong - it failed.”
“So” The Doctor says “I’ll take you back in time, they won’t be able to follow the signal. Yuminans don’t have time travel.”
“Our allies are The Reginann. I’m probably the most wanted criminal in Yumina, they aren’t going to let me go again. The Reginann have teleports that can pluck me from any point in the universe. As long as I have this on my neck they can get me - and as long as I’m with you they can get you too. We haven’t got long, just drop me off anywhere and save yourselves”
“Oh...” The Doctor says “I forgot about The Reginann...”
“We can’t!” Blaine says “I’m not leaving her!”
“Blaine...” River says.
“You can’t expect us to just lead Jedda to her death” Kurt says “I can’t do that”
“We’ve got to fight” Blaine added.
“You can’t ever win” Jedda says “Two whole civilizations against the four of us? We’ll all die. I’ve caused enough trouble - it’s time I just accepted my fate. I’m one of the innocent who has to die in order for change to be brought about in the future. Like you said Blaine.”
“No” The Doctor says.
“What?”
“No, I’ve got a better idea Jedda Yotha. We’re going to feed you to The Angels!”
“What?!” River exclaims “How is that better?!”
“You can’t do that!” yells Blaine “She’ll be killed!”
“No” Jedda says “That could work, I’ve never actually seen a Weeping Angel before - like I said, they’re only stories on Yumina”
“Trust me” River says “They are very real”
“They are terrifying” Blaine says “We found one in my backyard once”
“You’re lucky it was just one” River says.
“Jedda won’t be killed Blaine, she’s not a human, she’s a Yuminan at the beginning of her life. All the angel will do is send her back in time, she’ll get to live out her next four hundred years or so in peace. But the energy The Angels use to send her back, the stuff they feed off - there’s a good chance that’ll short circuit the tracking device, stopping the signal. If we’re quick Jedda can escape!” The Doctor says, his eyes widening with excitement.
“Where do we find an Angel?” Blaine asks “And how do we stop it from getting us”
The Doctor turns to look at River “We know a place that is full of Angels.”
---
Part 6: http://bemyparamore.livejournal.com/97880.html