Trapped in a Lie (1/?)
Title: Trapped in a Lie (1/?)
Characters: Ten (Tardis, Jack, Rose later)
Rating: PG-13 (just to be safe)
Spoilers: Seasons 1-3 (AU after S3)
Beta: The amazing, darling danaems, who has been wonderfully quick!
Summary: After having his identity stripped from him by scientists who captured him on a faraway planet with little to no hope for a rescue, the Doctor manages to free himself and escape to the Tardis. But now that his link with the Tardis wasn't what it used to be, and he's having to rediscover what it means to be the Doctor, and the last of the Time Lords, as he goes... the Tardis takes him to the one person who just might to be able to help him... a person who's had his own memories messed with.
A/N1: I'm SO sorry this took me so long to update, but RL reared its ugly head not only in my life, but also by beta... but I got it out eventually, right? ^^;;
A/N2: This is a recent plot bunny that bit me, and then just refused to let go. I'm afraid that we're all in for a long ride, (there's lots more to come) with lots of angst... but also eventual Ten, Rose, Jack fun. With just a few surprises thrown in!
I hope you all enjoy!
Disclaimer: All belongs to the BBC, sadly enough....
Prologue
pippnfrodo.livejournal.com/22423.html#cutid1
After the Year That Never Was, and after he dropped Martha back home, the Doctor had returned to Cardiff with Jack. He had, of course, offered the option of traveling in the Tardis to his friend, but they both knew he didn’t really mean it. After that horrible year, it would be awhile before he could travel with someone again. Donna had told him that he needed someone, which he’d admit was true. But, it had been his fault for all that both Jack, and Martha’s family had been through. If she had never traveled with him....
And Jack. Poor Jack, who’d been abandoned on the Game Station for no real good reason at all. And then they’d only found each other because Jack had been searching for him for so long.
He’d abandoned his friend. As if Jack hadn’t meant anything to him, just a worthless stray. And then he had practically avoided the other man.
There was so much he needed to make up to Jack for. But, this wasn’t the time. Jack deserved many things from him, and the Doctor silently promised himself he would soon.
Right now, however, what he needed to do was to throw himself back into his old life. Traveling the universe, and helping people. That was who he was, the Doctor who helped people. He just needed to remind himself of that.
And so, he began traveling again. Visiting planets and helping where he could, or just simply enjoying the sights without having to do any running. He was tired of running for awhile.
The Tardis seemed to agree with him, since she took him to many restful places. He’d decided that in order to make it up to her for that horrible year, at least in part, he would let her choose where they went. And, maybe in the same vein, every time he left the Tardis, he could hear her singing in his mind, already eager for his return and companionship. Their separation caused by the Year had scarred them both, leaving them more reliant on each other once they were reunited.
So, each time he landed, he tried not to be gone for too long, or sent her reassurances that he was fine and safe.
That had been his plan when the Tardis landed him on Aarenthia. To go in, do whatever was needed of him, and then come back to her so they could move on, onto another adventure.
They had landed on a planet called Aarenthia, where neither of them had been before, in an old, unused cupboard.
He’d stepped out of the Tardis into the small cramped space between the open doorway of the Tardis, and the locked doors of the closet. It took him only a second with the sonic screwdriver to unlock the supposedly locked doors; and then he was off, locking the Tardis behind him, and giving her one last, final farewell.
Neither of them knew it would be the last time they’d be near each other in the long months to come.
Outside the cupboard, the Doctor found himself in an empty basement that was mostly open space. The walls were made of stone, and the floor of concrete, just like the pillars holding up the ceiling. The only things in the room other than him were the cupboards lining the entire wall behind him. All identical to the one where he’d apparently landed the Tardis.
He managed to make his way through the damp, shadowy space to the far wall where there was a door that, once he soniced it open, led into a dark corridor. The Doctor was all fit to explore, but opposite the door was a lift that’d hopefully send him to the upper levels of whatever building this was.
The lift seemed to work relatively well, and soon he was on his way upwards with fairly little sonicing involved.
He’d pressed the button for the fourth level, but before the lift could make it that far, the lift ground to a halt. As the doors opened, a pleasant mechanical voice informed him that this was the third level and not the fourth like he wanted.
The Doctor slid the sonic out of his pocket, and attempted to sonic the doors. But, before he could get very far, a man stepped into the lift, pushing a cart. This new person didn’t raise his head as he came in; he just pushed in the cart and leaned over to press the button for the fifth level.
The Doctor slid his hands back into his pockets, rocking back onto his heels as he waited for the lift to start moving again.
“Who’re you then? Haven’t seen you round here before,” A sharp, almost nasal voice said, breaking the silence in the lift.
The Doctor turned, getting his first real glimpse of the other man.
He looked like almost any other maintenance worker on any other planet. He even had the whole, one-colored, all-body ugly uniform that most of these people wore. It was just that this, olive green color, was worst than most.
“Hello there,” the Doctor greeted him, and then tilted his head a little in order to read the man’s nametag. “Frank.” He pulled the psychic paper out of his pocket, and raised it to flash it quickly at the other man. “I’m Dave, maintenance as well.”
The man, Frank, glared suspiciously at him. “Never seen you before…”
“Ah, well,” The Doctor replied quickly, and then fished for a believable reason. “I just started last week, haven’t met a lot of people yet,” he admitted, running his hand through his hair in his best sheepish act.
Frank seemed to buy it, since he simply nodded and then resumed his staring contest with the ground again.
Luckily, before they were forced to make any more small talk, other than the psychic paper, the lift suddenly dinged. A mechanical voice then informed them that this was the fourth level as the doors opened to reveal… a long white corridor.
“Well, this is my stop,” The Doctor announced cheerfully as he stepped out into the hall. “It was nice to meet you Frank!” He called to the other man, waving as the doors closed.
Once the lift had continued upwards, the Doctor turned to look up and down the hallway. It was mostly deserted, but there were several important looking doors with important looking numbered locks on them.
Intrigued, the Doctor moved towards the closest door, and, after checking no one was nearby, pulled out his handy sonic-screwdriver.
He had almost gotten the door unlocked, when a sharp voice spoke up from just behind him.
“Excuse me, but just what do you think you’re doing?”
The Doctor whirled around, tucking the sonic away in his pocket as he made sure his psychic paper was at the ready.
“I’m…I’m Doctor John Smith,” he introduced himself, flashing the psychic paper at the woman who was standing behind him.
She glared suspiciously at him, peering over her silver, horn-rimmed glasses. “You’re a doctor? Then, where’s your lab coat, and your ID?”
“I just showed you my ID, and I don’t really believe in the whole, ‘all doctors wear lab coats’ trend. It’s a bit ridiculous, don’t you think? I mean, is there really any need for them? They don’t really serve any purpose.” The Doctor flashed a smile at her and leaned in towards her, “Be a little adventurous, eh?”
The woman sighed, but at least she stopped glaring at him. “The lab coats are irrelevant.” She waved her hand, “Show me your ID again.”
The Doctor pulled out the psychic paper and showed it to her again, this time for several seconds longer. “See? Doctor John Smith, says it right there.”
Once she saw his supposed ID again, the woman appeared to relax, and accept his ID. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to be suspicious of you. Things are just slightly hectic in this facility at the moment. Something went very wrong with one of our patients, and no matter what any of our scientists try, nothing changes.”
“I was wondering why there was no one around. Bit odd for a medical facility, you know,” The Doctor commented, putting the paper back into his pocket.
The woman nodded, looking harried. “Yes, it is. But, everyone is gathered together in the lab at the moment, overseeing all the equipment and tests.” She looked eagerly at him. “Would you come and help us, please? I’m sure we’d benefit from your expertise.”
He blinked at her. This would be a good in for seeing how things worked around here. And, she didn’t seem to suspect him, whoever this woman was. “And, who just might you be?”
The woman started. “Hmm? Oh, I apologize.” She extended her hand to him. “I’m Loreen, Doctor Loreen Srenstell. And don’t you forget the Doctor part.”
“Only if you do the same for me,” The Doctor replied, mostly teasing, as he shook her hand. “Nice to meet you.”
“And you as well,” the woman, Loreen, replied. She then took back her hand, and turned around in the direction she’d come most likely. “Follow me, then.”
Doctor Loreen then began walking back down the hallway, striding quickly with her heels clacking on the tiles.
“Right, lead on then,” The Doctor invited, following her cheerfully with his hands in his pockets.
It was a fairly long walk, with several left turns and right turns, and many doors that looked exactly the same to him. Mostly, anyway. But Loreen just continued on.
Finally, they came to a door that looked different than all the others. A door with fancy double doors and a key pad to the side of it, with an ID reader. There was also a plate next to it that said, ‘Medical Lab’ on it.
“Here we are then,” Loreen announced, turning towards the door and walking forward until she was just in front of it. Then, as if she’d done this a million times, the woman unhooked the badge from her pocket and raised it up to run it through the machine.
A few seconds later, the machine beeped and a light flashed green. The doors then opened, each parting to one side, to reveal a rather large room full of blinking machinery and people dressed in lab coats rushing around.
“Follow me,” Loreen instructed him, going inside before he could respond. As soon as she’d gone a few steps, a lackey ran up to her and began chattering away.
“Love the door,” the Doctor commented as he walked in after her. “Very dramatic. Nice touch.”
But, unlike with the woman, no one heard him or paid any attention to him as he stood near the door, looking around.
After a few minutes of being ignored, and studying the banks of machines around the room, the Doctor slipped on his glasses and moved towards one of the more important looking machines.
But, before he was halfway across the room, a voice he didn’t recognize called, “Doctor!”
It might not even have been directed towards him, but out of force of habit, he stopped and turned.
Then, before he could react, suddenly there was a flickering funnel of blue around him, trapping him in place.
“What? What’re you doing?” The Doctor protested irritably. He had a feeling he knew what had happened, but still didn’t really want to believe he’d been caught like that. He reached out a finger to cautiously poke the wall of light, then flinched when it sparked at him just like the Tardis often did. “Holding device, just like I thought. I’ve had more than enough of these things. I always seem to get caught in them.”
The Doctor frowned, staring around him. Maybe it’d just been a mistake, as unlikely as that was. “Oi! Will someone let me out? I got trapped in this thing somehow and…”
He trailed off when no one still seemed to be taking any notice of him. Even after he’d yelled to them.
So, the Doctor began rifling through his pockets, searching for his sonic screwdriver. But, for some reason, no matter how far down he reached, there was no sign of his favorite tool.
Just as he was about to give up, the woman from earlier spoke up close behind him. “I don’t suppose you’re looking for this, are you, Doctor?”
The Doctor spun around to look at her, and his eyes landed quickly on the thin metal cylinder she was holding up in her hand.
“That’s my sonic! How’d you get my sonic screwdriver? I could’ve sworn it was in my pocket all this time!” He blurted worriedly, looking suspiciously at her.
But instead of answering, the woman just smiled at him. And as he watched, she slowly lowered her hand and slid the sonic screwdriver into her pocket. Then, just to mock him further, she tapped it with her hand.
“I’ll be keeping this safe for you, Doctor. For now,” Loreen said coldly.
The Doctor stared at her. “What do you mean keep it safe for me? I thought you brought me here to help you!”
“That was just an excuse to get you in here so I could trap you like this. It was fairly obvious you were an intruder from the moment I saw you, but I couldn’t have just trapped you out in the hall.” She shook her head at the thought. “So, instead I led you in here. This is a much more satisfactory place.”
The Doctor laughed. “Well, of course. It’s much nicer being trapped in here than out in the hall. First of all, there’s a lot more people to talk to, and, it’s a little roomier isn’t it?”
The woman gave him a look that said she clearly thought he was mad. But then, she shrugged and raised a device she’d apparently been holding this entire time.
“Now, let’s see just exactly who you are. Shall we?” She asked him with fake cheer, and then pressed one of the larger buttons down. “Commence scan.”
For a moment there was a dramatic pause, and then a low hum began sounding from above the Doctor’s head. He looked up to see that a thin circle had appeared amongst the blue above him, and as he watched, it began moving down towards him.
“What’re you doing?” The Doctor asked her worriedly, keeping a watchful eye on the circle.
The woman sighed, “Relax, Doctor. It’s just a scan.”
He rolled his eyes at her, but did his best not to fidget as the circle slowly came down inch by inch as it scanned him. When it came to a stop at his feet, he relaxed, sure it was finished now. But then it began moving upwards again at the same painstakingly slow pace.
When it was finally done minutes later, he glared at her, crossing his arms. “Well, did you find out what you wanted? Was it worth me stuck just standing here?”
The woman shook her head, but didn’t seem to be agreeing or disagreeing with him. She was focused on her scanning device again, staring down at the screen.
Nothing happened for a few long seconds, until the device beeped again. As she read the results, her eyes widened and she let out a sharp breath. “Time Lord,” Loreen whispered.
The Doctor sighed. “Yes, Time Lord. That’s me. Now, I don’t suppose we could move on, could we? Such as you letting me out of this thing, for example?”
Loreen shook her head. “Oh no, Doctor. That won’t do at all.” Her eyes gleamed. “Now that I’ve got you, there’s no way I’m letting you go.”
“I hate to ruin the moment for you, but I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard that line before,” the Doctor told her with just a slight smirk. “And every time I’ve escaped.” He frowned. “Well, nearly every time. And usually I had my sonic with me, or a companion.” He grinned brightly at her. “But, I’m sure I’ll still find a way to escape.”
Loreen blinked at him. “Although that might be true, Doctor, you’ll find that I have several tricks up my sleeve, as they say. You’ll find that this time, it won’t be so easy for you to escape.” As she began bragging about how crafty she was, the woman began pressing different sequences of buttons into the device she was holding. In response, the cell holding the Doctor made several disconcerting noises before suddenly a thick gas began leaking into the cell from somewhere.
The Doctor easily held his breath, but Loreen just smirked. “You can hold your breath for as long as you like, Doctor. But this gas is unique, made especially by this company. It won’t dissolve until it’s breathed in.” She raised an eyebrow at him, “I suggest that it would be better for you to give in now, than to faint. It’s rather an undignified way to be captured, I’m afraid. But it does get the job done. So I would recommend breathing if I were you.”
The Doctor rolled his eyes, and then shook his head. “If you think you’re-“He blinked. “Oh,” he said weakly, not getting a chance to finish as he fell unconscious, collapsing to the floor.
Loreen waited for several seconds to make sure that he wasn’t simply tricking her. But when the limp form didn’t move at all, she pressed a button on her device to deactivate the holding cell.
“Mike! Dean! Get over here now!” Loreen ordered sharply. As she waited, she walked up to the Doctor and cautiously nudged his side with her foot. When he didn’t react at all, a cold, cruel smile formed on her face.
“Ma’am!”
She turned to see two men still in their lab coats standing at her side. “Take him to the main lab. Change him into scrubs, and confiscate his clothes as well as anything you find in the pockets. Then put him on the table and tell Charlie to start him with the first solution we prepared earlier. She’ll know what that means.”
Loreen turned a sharp eye on her lackeys. “Have you two got all that?”
“Yes, Ma’am!” They replied, saluting.
“Good, then get going already!” Loreen told them irritably, not wanting to waste any time now that she’d captured such a unique specimen.
The two men moved towards the Doctor, then stopped with one at his head and the other at his feet. One lifted him by the ankles, and the other his arms, to awkwardly lift the limp form and carry him out of the room between them.
Loreen turned, slipping the device into her pocket. “Now the fun can begin,” she said to herself, the cold smile finding its way back. “An experiment that could change the course of the future, done on a Time Lord no less. And all for me. All the credit will go to me.”
Part Two
Characters: Ten (Tardis, Jack, Rose later)
Rating: PG-13 (just to be safe)
Spoilers: Seasons 1-3 (AU after S3)
Beta: The amazing, darling danaems, who has been wonderfully quick!
Summary: After having his identity stripped from him by scientists who captured him on a faraway planet with little to no hope for a rescue, the Doctor manages to free himself and escape to the Tardis. But now that his link with the Tardis wasn't what it used to be, and he's having to rediscover what it means to be the Doctor, and the last of the Time Lords, as he goes... the Tardis takes him to the one person who just might to be able to help him... a person who's had his own memories messed with.
A/N1: I'm SO sorry this took me so long to update, but RL reared its ugly head not only in my life, but also by beta... but I got it out eventually, right? ^^;;
A/N2: This is a recent plot bunny that bit me, and then just refused to let go. I'm afraid that we're all in for a long ride, (there's lots more to come) with lots of angst... but also eventual Ten, Rose, Jack fun. With just a few surprises thrown in!
I hope you all enjoy!
Disclaimer: All belongs to the BBC, sadly enough....
Prologue
pippnfrodo.livejournal.com/22423.html#cutid1
After the Year That Never Was, and after he dropped Martha back home, the Doctor had returned to Cardiff with Jack. He had, of course, offered the option of traveling in the Tardis to his friend, but they both knew he didn’t really mean it. After that horrible year, it would be awhile before he could travel with someone again. Donna had told him that he needed someone, which he’d admit was true. But, it had been his fault for all that both Jack, and Martha’s family had been through. If she had never traveled with him....
And Jack. Poor Jack, who’d been abandoned on the Game Station for no real good reason at all. And then they’d only found each other because Jack had been searching for him for so long.
He’d abandoned his friend. As if Jack hadn’t meant anything to him, just a worthless stray. And then he had practically avoided the other man.
There was so much he needed to make up to Jack for. But, this wasn’t the time. Jack deserved many things from him, and the Doctor silently promised himself he would soon.
Right now, however, what he needed to do was to throw himself back into his old life. Traveling the universe, and helping people. That was who he was, the Doctor who helped people. He just needed to remind himself of that.
And so, he began traveling again. Visiting planets and helping where he could, or just simply enjoying the sights without having to do any running. He was tired of running for awhile.
The Tardis seemed to agree with him, since she took him to many restful places. He’d decided that in order to make it up to her for that horrible year, at least in part, he would let her choose where they went. And, maybe in the same vein, every time he left the Tardis, he could hear her singing in his mind, already eager for his return and companionship. Their separation caused by the Year had scarred them both, leaving them more reliant on each other once they were reunited.
So, each time he landed, he tried not to be gone for too long, or sent her reassurances that he was fine and safe.
That had been his plan when the Tardis landed him on Aarenthia. To go in, do whatever was needed of him, and then come back to her so they could move on, onto another adventure.
They had landed on a planet called Aarenthia, where neither of them had been before, in an old, unused cupboard.
He’d stepped out of the Tardis into the small cramped space between the open doorway of the Tardis, and the locked doors of the closet. It took him only a second with the sonic screwdriver to unlock the supposedly locked doors; and then he was off, locking the Tardis behind him, and giving her one last, final farewell.
Neither of them knew it would be the last time they’d be near each other in the long months to come.
Outside the cupboard, the Doctor found himself in an empty basement that was mostly open space. The walls were made of stone, and the floor of concrete, just like the pillars holding up the ceiling. The only things in the room other than him were the cupboards lining the entire wall behind him. All identical to the one where he’d apparently landed the Tardis.
He managed to make his way through the damp, shadowy space to the far wall where there was a door that, once he soniced it open, led into a dark corridor. The Doctor was all fit to explore, but opposite the door was a lift that’d hopefully send him to the upper levels of whatever building this was.
The lift seemed to work relatively well, and soon he was on his way upwards with fairly little sonicing involved.
He’d pressed the button for the fourth level, but before the lift could make it that far, the lift ground to a halt. As the doors opened, a pleasant mechanical voice informed him that this was the third level and not the fourth like he wanted.
The Doctor slid the sonic out of his pocket, and attempted to sonic the doors. But, before he could get very far, a man stepped into the lift, pushing a cart. This new person didn’t raise his head as he came in; he just pushed in the cart and leaned over to press the button for the fifth level.
The Doctor slid his hands back into his pockets, rocking back onto his heels as he waited for the lift to start moving again.
“Who’re you then? Haven’t seen you round here before,” A sharp, almost nasal voice said, breaking the silence in the lift.
The Doctor turned, getting his first real glimpse of the other man.
He looked like almost any other maintenance worker on any other planet. He even had the whole, one-colored, all-body ugly uniform that most of these people wore. It was just that this, olive green color, was worst than most.
“Hello there,” the Doctor greeted him, and then tilted his head a little in order to read the man’s nametag. “Frank.” He pulled the psychic paper out of his pocket, and raised it to flash it quickly at the other man. “I’m Dave, maintenance as well.”
The man, Frank, glared suspiciously at him. “Never seen you before…”
“Ah, well,” The Doctor replied quickly, and then fished for a believable reason. “I just started last week, haven’t met a lot of people yet,” he admitted, running his hand through his hair in his best sheepish act.
Frank seemed to buy it, since he simply nodded and then resumed his staring contest with the ground again.
Luckily, before they were forced to make any more small talk, other than the psychic paper, the lift suddenly dinged. A mechanical voice then informed them that this was the fourth level as the doors opened to reveal… a long white corridor.
“Well, this is my stop,” The Doctor announced cheerfully as he stepped out into the hall. “It was nice to meet you Frank!” He called to the other man, waving as the doors closed.
Once the lift had continued upwards, the Doctor turned to look up and down the hallway. It was mostly deserted, but there were several important looking doors with important looking numbered locks on them.
Intrigued, the Doctor moved towards the closest door, and, after checking no one was nearby, pulled out his handy sonic-screwdriver.
He had almost gotten the door unlocked, when a sharp voice spoke up from just behind him.
“Excuse me, but just what do you think you’re doing?”
The Doctor whirled around, tucking the sonic away in his pocket as he made sure his psychic paper was at the ready.
“I’m…I’m Doctor John Smith,” he introduced himself, flashing the psychic paper at the woman who was standing behind him.
She glared suspiciously at him, peering over her silver, horn-rimmed glasses. “You’re a doctor? Then, where’s your lab coat, and your ID?”
“I just showed you my ID, and I don’t really believe in the whole, ‘all doctors wear lab coats’ trend. It’s a bit ridiculous, don’t you think? I mean, is there really any need for them? They don’t really serve any purpose.” The Doctor flashed a smile at her and leaned in towards her, “Be a little adventurous, eh?”
The woman sighed, but at least she stopped glaring at him. “The lab coats are irrelevant.” She waved her hand, “Show me your ID again.”
The Doctor pulled out the psychic paper and showed it to her again, this time for several seconds longer. “See? Doctor John Smith, says it right there.”
Once she saw his supposed ID again, the woman appeared to relax, and accept his ID. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to be suspicious of you. Things are just slightly hectic in this facility at the moment. Something went very wrong with one of our patients, and no matter what any of our scientists try, nothing changes.”
“I was wondering why there was no one around. Bit odd for a medical facility, you know,” The Doctor commented, putting the paper back into his pocket.
The woman nodded, looking harried. “Yes, it is. But, everyone is gathered together in the lab at the moment, overseeing all the equipment and tests.” She looked eagerly at him. “Would you come and help us, please? I’m sure we’d benefit from your expertise.”
He blinked at her. This would be a good in for seeing how things worked around here. And, she didn’t seem to suspect him, whoever this woman was. “And, who just might you be?”
The woman started. “Hmm? Oh, I apologize.” She extended her hand to him. “I’m Loreen, Doctor Loreen Srenstell. And don’t you forget the Doctor part.”
“Only if you do the same for me,” The Doctor replied, mostly teasing, as he shook her hand. “Nice to meet you.”
“And you as well,” the woman, Loreen, replied. She then took back her hand, and turned around in the direction she’d come most likely. “Follow me, then.”
Doctor Loreen then began walking back down the hallway, striding quickly with her heels clacking on the tiles.
“Right, lead on then,” The Doctor invited, following her cheerfully with his hands in his pockets.
It was a fairly long walk, with several left turns and right turns, and many doors that looked exactly the same to him. Mostly, anyway. But Loreen just continued on.
Finally, they came to a door that looked different than all the others. A door with fancy double doors and a key pad to the side of it, with an ID reader. There was also a plate next to it that said, ‘Medical Lab’ on it.
“Here we are then,” Loreen announced, turning towards the door and walking forward until she was just in front of it. Then, as if she’d done this a million times, the woman unhooked the badge from her pocket and raised it up to run it through the machine.
A few seconds later, the machine beeped and a light flashed green. The doors then opened, each parting to one side, to reveal a rather large room full of blinking machinery and people dressed in lab coats rushing around.
“Follow me,” Loreen instructed him, going inside before he could respond. As soon as she’d gone a few steps, a lackey ran up to her and began chattering away.
“Love the door,” the Doctor commented as he walked in after her. “Very dramatic. Nice touch.”
But, unlike with the woman, no one heard him or paid any attention to him as he stood near the door, looking around.
After a few minutes of being ignored, and studying the banks of machines around the room, the Doctor slipped on his glasses and moved towards one of the more important looking machines.
But, before he was halfway across the room, a voice he didn’t recognize called, “Doctor!”
It might not even have been directed towards him, but out of force of habit, he stopped and turned.
Then, before he could react, suddenly there was a flickering funnel of blue around him, trapping him in place.
“What? What’re you doing?” The Doctor protested irritably. He had a feeling he knew what had happened, but still didn’t really want to believe he’d been caught like that. He reached out a finger to cautiously poke the wall of light, then flinched when it sparked at him just like the Tardis often did. “Holding device, just like I thought. I’ve had more than enough of these things. I always seem to get caught in them.”
The Doctor frowned, staring around him. Maybe it’d just been a mistake, as unlikely as that was. “Oi! Will someone let me out? I got trapped in this thing somehow and…”
He trailed off when no one still seemed to be taking any notice of him. Even after he’d yelled to them.
So, the Doctor began rifling through his pockets, searching for his sonic screwdriver. But, for some reason, no matter how far down he reached, there was no sign of his favorite tool.
Just as he was about to give up, the woman from earlier spoke up close behind him. “I don’t suppose you’re looking for this, are you, Doctor?”
The Doctor spun around to look at her, and his eyes landed quickly on the thin metal cylinder she was holding up in her hand.
“That’s my sonic! How’d you get my sonic screwdriver? I could’ve sworn it was in my pocket all this time!” He blurted worriedly, looking suspiciously at her.
But instead of answering, the woman just smiled at him. And as he watched, she slowly lowered her hand and slid the sonic screwdriver into her pocket. Then, just to mock him further, she tapped it with her hand.
“I’ll be keeping this safe for you, Doctor. For now,” Loreen said coldly.
The Doctor stared at her. “What do you mean keep it safe for me? I thought you brought me here to help you!”
“That was just an excuse to get you in here so I could trap you like this. It was fairly obvious you were an intruder from the moment I saw you, but I couldn’t have just trapped you out in the hall.” She shook her head at the thought. “So, instead I led you in here. This is a much more satisfactory place.”
The Doctor laughed. “Well, of course. It’s much nicer being trapped in here than out in the hall. First of all, there’s a lot more people to talk to, and, it’s a little roomier isn’t it?”
The woman gave him a look that said she clearly thought he was mad. But then, she shrugged and raised a device she’d apparently been holding this entire time.
“Now, let’s see just exactly who you are. Shall we?” She asked him with fake cheer, and then pressed one of the larger buttons down. “Commence scan.”
For a moment there was a dramatic pause, and then a low hum began sounding from above the Doctor’s head. He looked up to see that a thin circle had appeared amongst the blue above him, and as he watched, it began moving down towards him.
“What’re you doing?” The Doctor asked her worriedly, keeping a watchful eye on the circle.
The woman sighed, “Relax, Doctor. It’s just a scan.”
He rolled his eyes at her, but did his best not to fidget as the circle slowly came down inch by inch as it scanned him. When it came to a stop at his feet, he relaxed, sure it was finished now. But then it began moving upwards again at the same painstakingly slow pace.
When it was finally done minutes later, he glared at her, crossing his arms. “Well, did you find out what you wanted? Was it worth me stuck just standing here?”
The woman shook her head, but didn’t seem to be agreeing or disagreeing with him. She was focused on her scanning device again, staring down at the screen.
Nothing happened for a few long seconds, until the device beeped again. As she read the results, her eyes widened and she let out a sharp breath. “Time Lord,” Loreen whispered.
The Doctor sighed. “Yes, Time Lord. That’s me. Now, I don’t suppose we could move on, could we? Such as you letting me out of this thing, for example?”
Loreen shook her head. “Oh no, Doctor. That won’t do at all.” Her eyes gleamed. “Now that I’ve got you, there’s no way I’m letting you go.”
“I hate to ruin the moment for you, but I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard that line before,” the Doctor told her with just a slight smirk. “And every time I’ve escaped.” He frowned. “Well, nearly every time. And usually I had my sonic with me, or a companion.” He grinned brightly at her. “But, I’m sure I’ll still find a way to escape.”
Loreen blinked at him. “Although that might be true, Doctor, you’ll find that I have several tricks up my sleeve, as they say. You’ll find that this time, it won’t be so easy for you to escape.” As she began bragging about how crafty she was, the woman began pressing different sequences of buttons into the device she was holding. In response, the cell holding the Doctor made several disconcerting noises before suddenly a thick gas began leaking into the cell from somewhere.
The Doctor easily held his breath, but Loreen just smirked. “You can hold your breath for as long as you like, Doctor. But this gas is unique, made especially by this company. It won’t dissolve until it’s breathed in.” She raised an eyebrow at him, “I suggest that it would be better for you to give in now, than to faint. It’s rather an undignified way to be captured, I’m afraid. But it does get the job done. So I would recommend breathing if I were you.”
The Doctor rolled his eyes, and then shook his head. “If you think you’re-“He blinked. “Oh,” he said weakly, not getting a chance to finish as he fell unconscious, collapsing to the floor.
Loreen waited for several seconds to make sure that he wasn’t simply tricking her. But when the limp form didn’t move at all, she pressed a button on her device to deactivate the holding cell.
“Mike! Dean! Get over here now!” Loreen ordered sharply. As she waited, she walked up to the Doctor and cautiously nudged his side with her foot. When he didn’t react at all, a cold, cruel smile formed on her face.
“Ma’am!”
She turned to see two men still in their lab coats standing at her side. “Take him to the main lab. Change him into scrubs, and confiscate his clothes as well as anything you find in the pockets. Then put him on the table and tell Charlie to start him with the first solution we prepared earlier. She’ll know what that means.”
Loreen turned a sharp eye on her lackeys. “Have you two got all that?”
“Yes, Ma’am!” They replied, saluting.
“Good, then get going already!” Loreen told them irritably, not wanting to waste any time now that she’d captured such a unique specimen.
The two men moved towards the Doctor, then stopped with one at his head and the other at his feet. One lifted him by the ankles, and the other his arms, to awkwardly lift the limp form and carry him out of the room between them.
Loreen turned, slipping the device into her pocket. “Now the fun can begin,” she said to herself, the cold smile finding its way back. “An experiment that could change the course of the future, done on a Time Lord no less. And all for me. All the credit will go to me.”
Part Two