An Ill-Considered Wager ch.6/?
Ah, it feels so good to be posting again!
An Ill-Considered Wager ch.6/?
Title: An Ill-Considered Wager or "Dr. Fire Escape"
Characters: Read to find out! There's a lot of 'em!
Genre: Crossover, Action-Adventure
Rating: PG-13
Spoilers: This takes place in DW S4 (after "The Unicorn and the Wasp"), TW S2 (just before "Reset"), Firefly after the series but before the movie, and Farscape season 2 (right before "The Ugly Truth")
Notes: When I get bored, I make lists of characters from different fandoms and then pair characters together randomly. Except this time, the results were awesome and actually spawned a story that doesn't suck.
Summary: The Doctor is engulfed in chaos as four timelines cross and converge. He must work with his companions and new friends to set things right.
Find previous chapters here.
Jayne grumbled unhappily as Inara piloted Serenity to a stop right in front of glowing, golden anomaly in front of them. “This ain’t a good idea.”
“You had your chance to get off,” Zoe told him. “You didn’t. This is our best chance of finding the Cap’n, my husband, and the others.” She pressed a button, and Mr. Universe’s face popped up on the small screen. “You ready?”
“I’ve pushed it as far as it will go, Zoe. Better go now,” he answered.
“Understood.” She held down another button. “Brace yourselves. We’re going in.” She released the button. “All right, Inara, take her in.”
~~~
“What’s she doing?” Donna asked, as she clung onto the couch in preparation.
“Praying,” Chiana answered.
Zhaan was sitting on the floor, chanting rhythmically.
Donna looked over at Crais, who was trying to stand as nonchalantly as possible next to the kitchen. “Hold on to something, you twit!”
“This isn’t exactly how I thought life in space would be,” Gwen said holding onto a support. She turned to Tosh. “Do you think it’s safe?”
“I don’t know. But it is our only chance to get back home,” Tosh answered.
The ship began to shake and shudder.
Donna rolled her eyes as Crais tumbled to the floor. “Typical.”
After two minutes, the shuddering stopped.
A second later, Zoe’s voice came over the intercom. “All clear. I - is that … Earth-That-Was?”
~~~
Soon after the TARDIS had landed in the Hub, Crichton and the Doctor had switched places. The Doctor was running around the Hub as if it were the TARDIS console, gathering data.
Crichton was slowly exploring the inside of the TARDIS, munching on the last piece of pizza. Wash watched him in mild amusement as he kept an eye on River, who was also exploring. She started to head down one of the corridors.
“River, stay here,” Wash called. “Remember what the Doctor said?”
“She’s old,” River murmured, staying put. “Ancient … like the Doctor.”
Crichton nearly choked on his pizza. “What?! The Doctor doesn’t look any older than me!”
“Yeah, but he’s not human, so … who knows?” Wash said. “This is all insane anyway. Time travel, aliens, boxes that are bigger on the inside, people rising from the dead, parallel worlds. I’d be a lot more fascinated if I just knew where my wife was.”
Crichton seemed to come back to himself. “You’re right. I’m sorry; I should go help the Doctor.”
“Don’t need to,” River answered. “They’re coming.”
“What?! River, what do you mean?”
She smiled at him. “They’re coming.”
Crichton and Wash shared a look before leaving the TARDIS and returning to the Hub. Immediately, alarms and cell phones started going off.
Owen examined one of the monitors. “UNIT has a confirmed sighting of a ship in orbit!”
The Doctor answered his phone as he ran around, confirming the readings.
“Hello?”
“Doctor!”
“Donna! Where are you?!”
“I’m on a ship called Serenity.”
“Are you … currently orbiting the Earth?”
“Yes! Oh please, tell me we’re in the same time period.”
“That’s her! That’s Serenity!” Wash cried as Owen pulled up a satellite image. “Is my wife there?!”
Owen leapt to pick up the Torchwood phone. “What?”
“Owen!”
“Gwen! Are you on Serenity?”
“I won’t ask how you know that, but yes! I’m here with Tosh!”
“QUIET!” the Doctor shouted.
“Oi! That was right in my ear!” Donna complained. The Doctor could hear the people on her end of the line quieting as well.
“Rose, call the other side of the universe,” the Doctor ordered, still running around, observing readings.
Rose nodded and pulled out her mobile.
“Doctor, did you just say Rose? You found Rose?” Donna asked.
“Long story. Once everyone’s listening, I need you to tell me the names of everyone on Serenity right now. Got it?”
“Hang on.”
He heard a crash and some terrified screams on the other end of the line.
“Donna?! What’s going on?!”
“Doctor, the ship is damaged! Earth is getting closer! We’re crashing!”
“Hang on, I’ll be right there!” He hung up the phone. “Owen, do you have a fix on the ship?”
“Yes, but -“
“Wash, you’re the pilot, right?”
“Yes, is my -“
“Good! In the TARDIS! Now!” He all but grabbed Wash and hauled him into the TARDIS that River had just vacated.
“Doctor, what’s happening?” Rose asked as the doors shut.
“He does that a lot, doesn’t he?” Book remarked as the TARDIS dematerialized.
“Oh my God,” Crichton breathed as he looked at one of the monitors. “The ship … it’s crashing.”
“What?!” Owen shouted, looking at the monitor. “Gwen, can you hear me?!”
There was only static on the line.
“He’s gone to save them,” Rose whispered.
“Hopefully, they won’t be the only ones! Right now, Serenity is over China!”
~~~
“What are we doing?” Wash asked as the Doctor frantically piloted the TARDIS. “Where are we going?”
“We’re going to Serenity, which is very tricky because it’s in mid-flight or mid-crash, depending on how you look at it. So, please shut up for a minute while I try to save everyone.”
Wash felt the color draining from his face and, for the first time, fervently hoped his wife was not on the ship. He grabbed onto the console to keep from falling.
“Got it! Wash, I need you to crash Serenity.”
“What?!”
“Right now, it’s going to crash into China and kill innocent people. You need to fly this ship, so it crashes in the ocean. “
“Is there an option that maybe DOESN’T include crashing and dying?!”
“Dying I can help with, crashing no. It’s too damaged,” the Doctor explained as he ran out the door.
“Doctor!” Donna cried. She and some of the others were in the process of evacuating to the shuttles.
“In the TARDIS! Everyone! NOW!”
“In that thing?” Chiana asked. “I’d rather go in something that can fly, thanks!”
Donna shoved her forward. “Move it, Grumpy Bear!”
“Who’s missing?” the Doctor asked.
“Zoe is still on the bridge,” Zhaan replied.
“Donna, get everyone in the TARDIS. If we’re not back in 90 seconds, flip the lever. It will take you back to Torchwood.” Without waiting for a reply, he turned to Wash. “Bridge! GO!”
~~~
Zoe pulled on the controls, desperately trying to pull the ship up. She knew it was hopeless, but she refused to give up.
“I think you’d better let me drive,” Wash said, coming up behind her.
“Baby! Where the hell -“
“No time for questions,” the Doctor interjected. “Zoe, I need you to go to the cargo bay and get in my ship. Now. We’ll take care of the rest.”
“I ain’t leavin’,” she said evenly.
The Doctor paused for a beat and then moved back to Wash, who sat down in the pilot’s chair. “Right, then.” The Doctor pointed the sonic screwdriver at one of the consoles. “New coordinates set. Can you aim the ship that way?”
“I’m trying,” Wash grunted, pulling with all his strength. “Come on baby, we don’t want to take anyone else with us.”
The Doctor watched the readout intently and ignored his ringing phone.
“I take it the idea is to run for your ship once we know we won’t land on anyone?” Zoe asked.
“Yup.” He looked back at the console. “Just a little further. Fifty seconds left.”
“Til what?” Zoe asked.
“Til my ship leaves without us, and we go down with Serenity.”
~~~
“It’s changed course,” Owen announced with relief. “It’s heading for the ocean.”
“They’re still going to die if the Doctor can’t perform a miracle!” Crichton pointed out.
Rose smiled slightly. “But he can. He will.”
They all winced as the monitor showed the ship slamming into the ocean and breaking apart.
River screamed.
As Book ran to her, Owen turned to Rose. “Where is he, then? Where are they?! Are my friends in that bloody blue box or the bottom of the ocean?!”
“Hey, easy,” Crichton said, stepping between them. “It’s a time machine. Give him a minute.”
“She’s gone, she’s gone,” River sobbed. “Serenity’s … gone!”
“I know, River, and I am so sorry,” Book murmured as he held her. “But what about the people? Did the TARDIS make it out?”
River sobbed incoherently.
Rose, Owen, and Crichton stood still, straining for the sound of the TARDIS.
“How long do we wait?” Crichton asked after a minute had passed.
“He said he was trying to stay within his own timeline,” Rose muttered. “It shouldn’t be long …“ She looked around nervously. “He’s coming back. I just found him after all this time. He’s coming back!” She felt hot tears filling her eyes.
Then the papers in the Hub began to blow around, and a heavy wheezing sound filled the air.
Rose laughed and hugged the nearest person, who happened to be Crichton. “See?! I told you he’d do it!”
The TARDIS solidified with a thud. The door creaked open, and not unlike a clown car, people started piling out.
“Owen!” Gwen cried, rushing to him and hugging him. Tosh was just behind her.
“Are you two all right?!” Owen asked. “Is anyone hurt?”
“We’re fine,” Tosh answered with a smile.
Crichton released Rose as Chiana made a flying leap into his arms. “Pip! You’re okay!”
“Yeah! And we even get to see your home planet!” she cried happily.
Zhaan and Crais followed behind. “Everyone okay?” Crichton asked.
“We’re fine, John,” Zhaan answered with a smile. “It’s good to see you again.”
“Have you had any word from Talyn?” Crais asked.
“Nice to see you, too, and yes. We have. I’ll catch you up once things calm down a bit … if they ever do.”
Inara and Jayne stepped out of the TARDIS, looking around the Hub in wonder.
“Shepherd!” Inara cried, going to him and River. “What’s wrong?”
“Serenity’s gone,” River cried.
“I know, sweetheart, I’m sorry,” she said, stroking River’s tangled hair.
“Cap’n ain’t gonna be happy, once we find ‘im,” Jayne growled.
“We found him,” Book replied. “And no, he won’t be happy when we tell him.”
Rose held her breath, staring at the TARDIS doorway, trying to will the Doctor to appear. Instead, a tall red-headed woman stalked out of the TARDIS.
She appeared to be in mid-rant, “… and if you EVER try that again, I will make you regret being born!” Rose wondered if she was talking to the TARDIS itself until the Doctor finally emerged behind her.
His response was cut off as Rose flung herself at him. “Oof! Something tells me I miscalculated the landing slightly.”
“Oh, like that’s any different from usual!”
“I thought you were dead,” Rose said as she released the Doctor, and they moved aside so Zoe and Wash could exit the TARDIS.
“Come on, what did we say last time? Always wait five and a half hours? Anyway, Rose, I’d like you to meet Donna Noble. She’s been traveling with me. Donna, this is Rose Tyler.”
Donna’s rant died as she grinned and hugged Rose. “It’s so good to finally meet you!”
“It sounds like you’ve been trying to keep him in line,” Rose said, unable to keep the huge smile off her face.
“Right! Owen, call the other side of the universe. We should get everyone on the line and catch up,” the Doctor stated.
“Yes, sir,” Owen muttered.
The Doctor looked around at the new arrivals. “How did you get here?”
“We were able to find someone who could pinpoint some kind of … vortex that we used to travel here,” Tosh answered. “Our mobile signals tried to go through it, so we theorized that that’s where we needed to go.”
“It was a rough ride,” Zoe added, still snuggling her husband. “I guess Serenity just got hit too hard.”
“What’s your name?” the Doctor asked as he followed Tosh to her workstation.
“Toshiko Sato.”
He squinted. “Have we met?”
“I-I don’t think so …”
“I might’ve had a different face at the time. Anyway! Can you show me where you came through?”
Toshiko nodded and sat down at her computer.
“What’s with this lot?” Owen asked Gwen quietly as he contacted the others. “It’s just a ship.”
“They lost their home, Owen. They spend a lot of time in space. They loved that ship,” Gwen answered.
“Who’s going to tell the Cap’n?” Jayne asked.
“I will,” Zoe answered, pulling away from her husband slightly. “It was my choice to bring us here.”
Owen made a triumphant noise as three video screens showing the occupants of Moya, Lo’La, and Aeryn’s prowler appeared on the screen.
Tosh left the Doctor at her workstation as she joined in the second round of hellos and reunions.
“Captain, I’m ‘fraid I have some bad news,” Zoe said, quieting the whole group.
“What happened? Is anyone hurt?” Mal asked anxiously, nearly shoving D’Argo out of the way.
“Crew’s fine, sir, not a scratch. It’s Serenity, Captain. She’s gone.”
~~~
Mal stared at Zoe’s face, completely uncomprehendingly.
“What happened?” he heard Jack ask beside him.
“We had to travel through … some kind of tunnel between universes to get here,” Zoe answered. “Serenity took severe damage. I take full responsibility, sir. It was my choice to take her through.”
“It was the only way we had to get back here,” Gwen pointed out.
Mal reminded himself to breathe and tried not to press a hand to the gaping wound he could feel in his chest. “Fault’s not with you, Zoe. I would’ve made the same choice.” He looked up as Kaylee burst into tears, hiding her face against Simon’s chest.
He felt a steady hand on his shoulder but didn’t register who it belonged to.
“I hate to the bearer of further bad news, but putting it off won’t solve anything,” the Doctor said, coming into view on the Torchwood screen. “I just finished scanning the hole that Serenity came through. It’s closed. I’m so sorry. There’s no way to get back.”
“What?!” he heard Wash start yelling, as he was the closest. “You know, you started all this with the Master! You just cost us our home AND our universe!”
That started off a whole new round of accusations and attempted explanations; Mal tuned it out. His home, his haven was gone, and he hadn’t even been there.
“SHUT UP! All of you!” Rose shouted. “If anyone knows about losing their home and their whole world, it’s me!” The group was startled into silence. “I know what you all feel like right now, because it happened to me. You will learn to cope with the loss. You will survive, even if that means searching for a way back. And I’m sorry that you don’t have time to grieve right now, because there’s still danger out there, but believe me, the Doctor would never purposefully wish this fate on anyone. Whatever happened in the past, if he’d had any idea what it would cause, he never would have done it.”
“If I may interrupt, Moya has intercepted news that may be useful to us,” Pilot announced.
“Go ahead, Pilot,” Martha said.
“There are ships fleeing from the region where Hyneria is located. They are spreading word of revolt and destruction on the planet.”
“He’s doing it,” Crichton said softly. “The Master is trying to put Rygel back on the throne.”
“Aeryn and crew of Lo’La, I’m going ahead. I’m going to take the TARDIS straight to Hyneria,” the Doctor announced.
“Doctor, we’ll never catch up with you in time,” Aeryn pointed out. “The Master must have used starburst to get there so quickly.”
“Then I’ll go alone. It’s my fault anyway,” the Doctor stated, striding towards the TARDIS.
Cries of shock, outrage, agreement, and dissent were abruptly cut off as the Doctor stopped in front of the TARDIS. River was blocking the doorway.
“She’s right, Doctor, you’re not going alone. We’re all this together,” Donna stated.
“River, please move,” the Doctor said.
Rose stepped forward and grabbed his hand. “You’re not leaving here alone. We’re coming with you.”
“We need to come, too,” Crichton stated. “You’re going back to our neck of the woods, and we can help deal with Rygel.”
Owen raised an eyebrow. “Sorry, mate, but isn’t this your neck of the woods?”
“Yeah, Crichton, you’re back home,” Chiana added. “You can just stay here.”
Crichton looked up at Aeryn’s face on the screen. “I can’t just leave them now. Not when Talyn is being controlled by a crazy person.”
“What? Who has Talyn?” Crais demanded.
“All right. All of you, in the TARDIS,” the Doctor consented.
“We’re going with the Doctor,” Crichton spoke to the viewscreens. “We’ll stop whatever’s happening. Catch up when you can.”
“What about Scorpius?” Aeryn asked.
“He’s here?” Chiana asked, looking around suspiciously.
“He’s locked down, don’t worry,” Crichton told her.
“Then we should leave him here,” Crais stated.
“Oi! He’s your problem, not ours!” Owen cried.
“RIGHT!” the Doctor shouted, cutting everyone off. “Crichton, is Scorpius involved at all with the situation we’re about to deal with? With Rygel?”
“No. He just wants me,” Crichton answered.
“Then he stays here for now, with our thanks to Torchwood, and we will come back and deal with him once we take care of things over there. Now! Since we’re going to be making a return trip, I suggest that all non-essential personnel stay behind, again, thank you, Torchwood.”
Owen rolled his eyes. “And suddenly, we’ve become intergalactic babysitters.”
“Check the attitude, Owen,” Jack snapped.
“Chiana, stay here,” Crichton told her.
“In the same building as Scorpius? No way!”
“We will be able to help, John. We need to come with you,” Zhaan stated calmly.
Crichton sighed and rubbed his eyes. “Fine. Let’s go. Everybody in.”
The Doctor and Rose flanked the door as Crichton, Crais, Zhaan, Chiana, and Donna filed in. Jayne looked around and then headed after them.
“Jayne, where do you think you’re going?” Zoe asked.
The former mercenary turned and faced her. “I’m goin’ where there’s a fight. I ain’t just gonna sit around here.”
“Well, if we’re lucky, there won’t be a fight, but it’s up to you,” the Doctor told him.
Jayne grunted and entered the TARDIS. Zoe looked like she was contemplating following him, but Wash insistently tightened his arms around her waist.
Gwen looked up at the screens. “Jack? Should we -”
“No. Stay there. Keep an eye on Scorpius and take care of our guests,” Jack replied.
“We’re off,” the Doctor informed everyone. “We’ll keep in touch as much as possible.” He then ducked inside the crowded TARDIS.
~~~
To be continued ...
An Ill-Considered Wager ch.6/?
Title: An Ill-Considered Wager or "Dr. Fire Escape"
Characters: Read to find out! There's a lot of 'em!
Genre: Crossover, Action-Adventure
Rating: PG-13
Spoilers: This takes place in DW S4 (after "The Unicorn and the Wasp"), TW S2 (just before "Reset"), Firefly after the series but before the movie, and Farscape season 2 (right before "The Ugly Truth")
Notes: When I get bored, I make lists of characters from different fandoms and then pair characters together randomly. Except this time, the results were awesome and actually spawned a story that doesn't suck.
Summary: The Doctor is engulfed in chaos as four timelines cross and converge. He must work with his companions and new friends to set things right.
Find previous chapters here.
Jayne grumbled unhappily as Inara piloted Serenity to a stop right in front of glowing, golden anomaly in front of them. “This ain’t a good idea.”
“You had your chance to get off,” Zoe told him. “You didn’t. This is our best chance of finding the Cap’n, my husband, and the others.” She pressed a button, and Mr. Universe’s face popped up on the small screen. “You ready?”
“I’ve pushed it as far as it will go, Zoe. Better go now,” he answered.
“Understood.” She held down another button. “Brace yourselves. We’re going in.” She released the button. “All right, Inara, take her in.”
~~~
“What’s she doing?” Donna asked, as she clung onto the couch in preparation.
“Praying,” Chiana answered.
Zhaan was sitting on the floor, chanting rhythmically.
Donna looked over at Crais, who was trying to stand as nonchalantly as possible next to the kitchen. “Hold on to something, you twit!”
“This isn’t exactly how I thought life in space would be,” Gwen said holding onto a support. She turned to Tosh. “Do you think it’s safe?”
“I don’t know. But it is our only chance to get back home,” Tosh answered.
The ship began to shake and shudder.
Donna rolled her eyes as Crais tumbled to the floor. “Typical.”
After two minutes, the shuddering stopped.
A second later, Zoe’s voice came over the intercom. “All clear. I - is that … Earth-That-Was?”
~~~
Soon after the TARDIS had landed in the Hub, Crichton and the Doctor had switched places. The Doctor was running around the Hub as if it were the TARDIS console, gathering data.
Crichton was slowly exploring the inside of the TARDIS, munching on the last piece of pizza. Wash watched him in mild amusement as he kept an eye on River, who was also exploring. She started to head down one of the corridors.
“River, stay here,” Wash called. “Remember what the Doctor said?”
“She’s old,” River murmured, staying put. “Ancient … like the Doctor.”
Crichton nearly choked on his pizza. “What?! The Doctor doesn’t look any older than me!”
“Yeah, but he’s not human, so … who knows?” Wash said. “This is all insane anyway. Time travel, aliens, boxes that are bigger on the inside, people rising from the dead, parallel worlds. I’d be a lot more fascinated if I just knew where my wife was.”
Crichton seemed to come back to himself. “You’re right. I’m sorry; I should go help the Doctor.”
“Don’t need to,” River answered. “They’re coming.”
“What?! River, what do you mean?”
She smiled at him. “They’re coming.”
Crichton and Wash shared a look before leaving the TARDIS and returning to the Hub. Immediately, alarms and cell phones started going off.
Owen examined one of the monitors. “UNIT has a confirmed sighting of a ship in orbit!”
The Doctor answered his phone as he ran around, confirming the readings.
“Hello?”
“Doctor!”
“Donna! Where are you?!”
“I’m on a ship called Serenity.”
“Are you … currently orbiting the Earth?”
“Yes! Oh please, tell me we’re in the same time period.”
“That’s her! That’s Serenity!” Wash cried as Owen pulled up a satellite image. “Is my wife there?!”
Owen leapt to pick up the Torchwood phone. “What?”
“Owen!”
“Gwen! Are you on Serenity?”
“I won’t ask how you know that, but yes! I’m here with Tosh!”
“QUIET!” the Doctor shouted.
“Oi! That was right in my ear!” Donna complained. The Doctor could hear the people on her end of the line quieting as well.
“Rose, call the other side of the universe,” the Doctor ordered, still running around, observing readings.
Rose nodded and pulled out her mobile.
“Doctor, did you just say Rose? You found Rose?” Donna asked.
“Long story. Once everyone’s listening, I need you to tell me the names of everyone on Serenity right now. Got it?”
“Hang on.”
He heard a crash and some terrified screams on the other end of the line.
“Donna?! What’s going on?!”
“Doctor, the ship is damaged! Earth is getting closer! We’re crashing!”
“Hang on, I’ll be right there!” He hung up the phone. “Owen, do you have a fix on the ship?”
“Yes, but -“
“Wash, you’re the pilot, right?”
“Yes, is my -“
“Good! In the TARDIS! Now!” He all but grabbed Wash and hauled him into the TARDIS that River had just vacated.
“Doctor, what’s happening?” Rose asked as the doors shut.
“He does that a lot, doesn’t he?” Book remarked as the TARDIS dematerialized.
“Oh my God,” Crichton breathed as he looked at one of the monitors. “The ship … it’s crashing.”
“What?!” Owen shouted, looking at the monitor. “Gwen, can you hear me?!”
There was only static on the line.
“He’s gone to save them,” Rose whispered.
“Hopefully, they won’t be the only ones! Right now, Serenity is over China!”
~~~
“What are we doing?” Wash asked as the Doctor frantically piloted the TARDIS. “Where are we going?”
“We’re going to Serenity, which is very tricky because it’s in mid-flight or mid-crash, depending on how you look at it. So, please shut up for a minute while I try to save everyone.”
Wash felt the color draining from his face and, for the first time, fervently hoped his wife was not on the ship. He grabbed onto the console to keep from falling.
“Got it! Wash, I need you to crash Serenity.”
“What?!”
“Right now, it’s going to crash into China and kill innocent people. You need to fly this ship, so it crashes in the ocean. “
“Is there an option that maybe DOESN’T include crashing and dying?!”
“Dying I can help with, crashing no. It’s too damaged,” the Doctor explained as he ran out the door.
“Doctor!” Donna cried. She and some of the others were in the process of evacuating to the shuttles.
“In the TARDIS! Everyone! NOW!”
“In that thing?” Chiana asked. “I’d rather go in something that can fly, thanks!”
Donna shoved her forward. “Move it, Grumpy Bear!”
“Who’s missing?” the Doctor asked.
“Zoe is still on the bridge,” Zhaan replied.
“Donna, get everyone in the TARDIS. If we’re not back in 90 seconds, flip the lever. It will take you back to Torchwood.” Without waiting for a reply, he turned to Wash. “Bridge! GO!”
~~~
Zoe pulled on the controls, desperately trying to pull the ship up. She knew it was hopeless, but she refused to give up.
“I think you’d better let me drive,” Wash said, coming up behind her.
“Baby! Where the hell -“
“No time for questions,” the Doctor interjected. “Zoe, I need you to go to the cargo bay and get in my ship. Now. We’ll take care of the rest.”
“I ain’t leavin’,” she said evenly.
The Doctor paused for a beat and then moved back to Wash, who sat down in the pilot’s chair. “Right, then.” The Doctor pointed the sonic screwdriver at one of the consoles. “New coordinates set. Can you aim the ship that way?”
“I’m trying,” Wash grunted, pulling with all his strength. “Come on baby, we don’t want to take anyone else with us.”
The Doctor watched the readout intently and ignored his ringing phone.
“I take it the idea is to run for your ship once we know we won’t land on anyone?” Zoe asked.
“Yup.” He looked back at the console. “Just a little further. Fifty seconds left.”
“Til what?” Zoe asked.
“Til my ship leaves without us, and we go down with Serenity.”
~~~
“It’s changed course,” Owen announced with relief. “It’s heading for the ocean.”
“They’re still going to die if the Doctor can’t perform a miracle!” Crichton pointed out.
Rose smiled slightly. “But he can. He will.”
They all winced as the monitor showed the ship slamming into the ocean and breaking apart.
River screamed.
As Book ran to her, Owen turned to Rose. “Where is he, then? Where are they?! Are my friends in that bloody blue box or the bottom of the ocean?!”
“Hey, easy,” Crichton said, stepping between them. “It’s a time machine. Give him a minute.”
“She’s gone, she’s gone,” River sobbed. “Serenity’s … gone!”
“I know, River, and I am so sorry,” Book murmured as he held her. “But what about the people? Did the TARDIS make it out?”
River sobbed incoherently.
Rose, Owen, and Crichton stood still, straining for the sound of the TARDIS.
“How long do we wait?” Crichton asked after a minute had passed.
“He said he was trying to stay within his own timeline,” Rose muttered. “It shouldn’t be long …“ She looked around nervously. “He’s coming back. I just found him after all this time. He’s coming back!” She felt hot tears filling her eyes.
Then the papers in the Hub began to blow around, and a heavy wheezing sound filled the air.
Rose laughed and hugged the nearest person, who happened to be Crichton. “See?! I told you he’d do it!”
The TARDIS solidified with a thud. The door creaked open, and not unlike a clown car, people started piling out.
“Owen!” Gwen cried, rushing to him and hugging him. Tosh was just behind her.
“Are you two all right?!” Owen asked. “Is anyone hurt?”
“We’re fine,” Tosh answered with a smile.
Crichton released Rose as Chiana made a flying leap into his arms. “Pip! You’re okay!”
“Yeah! And we even get to see your home planet!” she cried happily.
Zhaan and Crais followed behind. “Everyone okay?” Crichton asked.
“We’re fine, John,” Zhaan answered with a smile. “It’s good to see you again.”
“Have you had any word from Talyn?” Crais asked.
“Nice to see you, too, and yes. We have. I’ll catch you up once things calm down a bit … if they ever do.”
Inara and Jayne stepped out of the TARDIS, looking around the Hub in wonder.
“Shepherd!” Inara cried, going to him and River. “What’s wrong?”
“Serenity’s gone,” River cried.
“I know, sweetheart, I’m sorry,” she said, stroking River’s tangled hair.
“Cap’n ain’t gonna be happy, once we find ‘im,” Jayne growled.
“We found him,” Book replied. “And no, he won’t be happy when we tell him.”
Rose held her breath, staring at the TARDIS doorway, trying to will the Doctor to appear. Instead, a tall red-headed woman stalked out of the TARDIS.
She appeared to be in mid-rant, “… and if you EVER try that again, I will make you regret being born!” Rose wondered if she was talking to the TARDIS itself until the Doctor finally emerged behind her.
His response was cut off as Rose flung herself at him. “Oof! Something tells me I miscalculated the landing slightly.”
“Oh, like that’s any different from usual!”
“I thought you were dead,” Rose said as she released the Doctor, and they moved aside so Zoe and Wash could exit the TARDIS.
“Come on, what did we say last time? Always wait five and a half hours? Anyway, Rose, I’d like you to meet Donna Noble. She’s been traveling with me. Donna, this is Rose Tyler.”
Donna’s rant died as she grinned and hugged Rose. “It’s so good to finally meet you!”
“It sounds like you’ve been trying to keep him in line,” Rose said, unable to keep the huge smile off her face.
“Right! Owen, call the other side of the universe. We should get everyone on the line and catch up,” the Doctor stated.
“Yes, sir,” Owen muttered.
The Doctor looked around at the new arrivals. “How did you get here?”
“We were able to find someone who could pinpoint some kind of … vortex that we used to travel here,” Tosh answered. “Our mobile signals tried to go through it, so we theorized that that’s where we needed to go.”
“It was a rough ride,” Zoe added, still snuggling her husband. “I guess Serenity just got hit too hard.”
“What’s your name?” the Doctor asked as he followed Tosh to her workstation.
“Toshiko Sato.”
He squinted. “Have we met?”
“I-I don’t think so …”
“I might’ve had a different face at the time. Anyway! Can you show me where you came through?”
Toshiko nodded and sat down at her computer.
“What’s with this lot?” Owen asked Gwen quietly as he contacted the others. “It’s just a ship.”
“They lost their home, Owen. They spend a lot of time in space. They loved that ship,” Gwen answered.
“Who’s going to tell the Cap’n?” Jayne asked.
“I will,” Zoe answered, pulling away from her husband slightly. “It was my choice to bring us here.”
Owen made a triumphant noise as three video screens showing the occupants of Moya, Lo’La, and Aeryn’s prowler appeared on the screen.
Tosh left the Doctor at her workstation as she joined in the second round of hellos and reunions.
“Captain, I’m ‘fraid I have some bad news,” Zoe said, quieting the whole group.
“What happened? Is anyone hurt?” Mal asked anxiously, nearly shoving D’Argo out of the way.
“Crew’s fine, sir, not a scratch. It’s Serenity, Captain. She’s gone.”
~~~
Mal stared at Zoe’s face, completely uncomprehendingly.
“What happened?” he heard Jack ask beside him.
“We had to travel through … some kind of tunnel between universes to get here,” Zoe answered. “Serenity took severe damage. I take full responsibility, sir. It was my choice to take her through.”
“It was the only way we had to get back here,” Gwen pointed out.
Mal reminded himself to breathe and tried not to press a hand to the gaping wound he could feel in his chest. “Fault’s not with you, Zoe. I would’ve made the same choice.” He looked up as Kaylee burst into tears, hiding her face against Simon’s chest.
He felt a steady hand on his shoulder but didn’t register who it belonged to.
“I hate to the bearer of further bad news, but putting it off won’t solve anything,” the Doctor said, coming into view on the Torchwood screen. “I just finished scanning the hole that Serenity came through. It’s closed. I’m so sorry. There’s no way to get back.”
“What?!” he heard Wash start yelling, as he was the closest. “You know, you started all this with the Master! You just cost us our home AND our universe!”
That started off a whole new round of accusations and attempted explanations; Mal tuned it out. His home, his haven was gone, and he hadn’t even been there.
“SHUT UP! All of you!” Rose shouted. “If anyone knows about losing their home and their whole world, it’s me!” The group was startled into silence. “I know what you all feel like right now, because it happened to me. You will learn to cope with the loss. You will survive, even if that means searching for a way back. And I’m sorry that you don’t have time to grieve right now, because there’s still danger out there, but believe me, the Doctor would never purposefully wish this fate on anyone. Whatever happened in the past, if he’d had any idea what it would cause, he never would have done it.”
“If I may interrupt, Moya has intercepted news that may be useful to us,” Pilot announced.
“Go ahead, Pilot,” Martha said.
“There are ships fleeing from the region where Hyneria is located. They are spreading word of revolt and destruction on the planet.”
“He’s doing it,” Crichton said softly. “The Master is trying to put Rygel back on the throne.”
“Aeryn and crew of Lo’La, I’m going ahead. I’m going to take the TARDIS straight to Hyneria,” the Doctor announced.
“Doctor, we’ll never catch up with you in time,” Aeryn pointed out. “The Master must have used starburst to get there so quickly.”
“Then I’ll go alone. It’s my fault anyway,” the Doctor stated, striding towards the TARDIS.
Cries of shock, outrage, agreement, and dissent were abruptly cut off as the Doctor stopped in front of the TARDIS. River was blocking the doorway.
“She’s right, Doctor, you’re not going alone. We’re all this together,” Donna stated.
“River, please move,” the Doctor said.
Rose stepped forward and grabbed his hand. “You’re not leaving here alone. We’re coming with you.”
“We need to come, too,” Crichton stated. “You’re going back to our neck of the woods, and we can help deal with Rygel.”
Owen raised an eyebrow. “Sorry, mate, but isn’t this your neck of the woods?”
“Yeah, Crichton, you’re back home,” Chiana added. “You can just stay here.”
Crichton looked up at Aeryn’s face on the screen. “I can’t just leave them now. Not when Talyn is being controlled by a crazy person.”
“What? Who has Talyn?” Crais demanded.
“All right. All of you, in the TARDIS,” the Doctor consented.
“We’re going with the Doctor,” Crichton spoke to the viewscreens. “We’ll stop whatever’s happening. Catch up when you can.”
“What about Scorpius?” Aeryn asked.
“He’s here?” Chiana asked, looking around suspiciously.
“He’s locked down, don’t worry,” Crichton told her.
“Then we should leave him here,” Crais stated.
“Oi! He’s your problem, not ours!” Owen cried.
“RIGHT!” the Doctor shouted, cutting everyone off. “Crichton, is Scorpius involved at all with the situation we’re about to deal with? With Rygel?”
“No. He just wants me,” Crichton answered.
“Then he stays here for now, with our thanks to Torchwood, and we will come back and deal with him once we take care of things over there. Now! Since we’re going to be making a return trip, I suggest that all non-essential personnel stay behind, again, thank you, Torchwood.”
Owen rolled his eyes. “And suddenly, we’ve become intergalactic babysitters.”
“Check the attitude, Owen,” Jack snapped.
“Chiana, stay here,” Crichton told her.
“In the same building as Scorpius? No way!”
“We will be able to help, John. We need to come with you,” Zhaan stated calmly.
Crichton sighed and rubbed his eyes. “Fine. Let’s go. Everybody in.”
The Doctor and Rose flanked the door as Crichton, Crais, Zhaan, Chiana, and Donna filed in. Jayne looked around and then headed after them.
“Jayne, where do you think you’re going?” Zoe asked.
The former mercenary turned and faced her. “I’m goin’ where there’s a fight. I ain’t just gonna sit around here.”
“Well, if we’re lucky, there won’t be a fight, but it’s up to you,” the Doctor told him.
Jayne grunted and entered the TARDIS. Zoe looked like she was contemplating following him, but Wash insistently tightened his arms around her waist.
Gwen looked up at the screens. “Jack? Should we -”
“No. Stay there. Keep an eye on Scorpius and take care of our guests,” Jack replied.
“We’re off,” the Doctor informed everyone. “We’ll keep in touch as much as possible.” He then ducked inside the crowded TARDIS.
~~~
To be continued ...