Fic: Solaris
Author: bell_jar_fics
Story: Solaris
Character/Pairing: Doctor, Rose, Jack, OC, Hints of Doctor/Rose
Era: Ninth Doctor Era; Takes place between The Doctor Dances and Boomtown.
Rating: PG-13 (To be safe)
Chapter 4/? (Karnack's Task)
Summary: The Doctor, Rose, and Jack travel to an Alien city, where they must team up with a local thief to retreive a series of mysterious artifacts of unknown capacity.
Disclaimer: Obviously not the owner.
I'd really like reviews for this story. Hardly anyone has left comments, which makes me sad.
Previous Chapters
Rose was pulled out of sleep the next morning much sooner then she’d have liked when she felt something being thrown at her. Opening her eyes, she saw it was a grapefruit-sized fruit with a rind swirled with multiple shades of blue. Solaris was leaning against the wall, eating an identical piece of fruit.
“Sorry, no big breakfast,” she apologized, sounding slightly sincere. “Or, I suppose you’d call it a fry-up.” Rose took the fruit and started to eat. Whatever this fruit was, it was the strangest thing she’d ever eaten. Once second, the fruit juice had her mouth on fire, but the next, it was like biting into extremely cold sorbet. Solaris broke out laughing at the sight of Rose’s facial reaction to the fruit. “Hey, it wakes you up in the morning, doesn’t it?”
“What is this?!” Rose cried.
“Vari fruit,” Solaris replied, taking another bite from hers. “You get used to it, trust me.” Rose forced herself to take another bite, on account of her empty stomach. She had to admit it wasn’t so bad the second time around, now that she knew what to expect.
“I just realized,” Rose began. “I never told you my name. I’m Rose.”
“Don’t see why you want to tell me that,” Solaris shook her head before taking another bite of her vari fruit. “It’s not like we’ll be seeing each other after today. But in any event, I don’t think I need to tell you my name. You must have seen the multiple wanted posters for me in the city.” The alien female’s grin quickly shifted to a smugly proud one. “So, how much are they offering for my hide now?”
“Um, five thousand credits, I think.” Instantly, Solaris looked completely insulted.
“Five thousand? That’s it? After all the stuff I nicked? That’s all those gimboid patrolmen are offering?!”
“What, you want a bigger price on your head?” Rose asked, unable to help being amused at the thief’s obvious disappointment.
“Hey, if you’re going to be a thief, Rose, you gotta take a bit of pride in it. Anyway, since you’re done with your vari fruit, best try and get you back with your friends.”
Rose crawled out of the hammock and followed Solaris down to the platform beneath the hut, where Solaris held the rope steady, allowing Rose to climb to the ground safely. Once they both were on the jungle floor, they began making their way through the Black Jungle, to return to Baniru.
-----
The Doctor was hovered above the TARDIS’ console, intently studying the monitor to try and locate Rose with the TARDIS’ sensors, with Jack standing slightly to the right of him. As the Doctor made a move to one of the levers, he slightly stumbled, prompting Jack to help steady him a bit.
“Okay, seriously. You can just tell me what to do from the pilot seat.”
“No time,” the Doctor brushed off the offer. “We’ve already wasted enough time trying to find the right antidote. It’ll take longer if I feed you instructions to operate the controls. There’s no telling what sort of danger Rose has come across by now.” The Doctor moved to the side to reach a knob, but nearly lost his balance again.
“And how much time are we wasting with you stumbling around because you’re not waiting until the antidote completely gets rid of the paralysis?” Jack pointed out. The Doctor chose to ignore the former time agent’s reasoning, and continued with what he was doing. After a few moments with the two remaining silent, the Doctor thumped the console in delighted relief.
“There she is. She’s…. hold on. She’s just outside the city.”
“She is?” Jack stepped up to look at the monitor as well. “Then let’s go get her.”
“Right.” The Doctor pulled a lever, and the console’s rotor began to rise and fall.
-----
While the Doctor and Jack were tracking Rose in the TARDIS, she was just emerging from the Black Jungle with Solaris. The two females made their way to the city walls, where Solaris opened the hidden door.
“You can find your way back to your friend’s ship from here?” Solaris asked.
“Yes, but what if they’re out in the Black Jungle?”
“You head back to the ship, okay?” Solaris frowned slightly. “I’ll go and comb through the jungle to see if I can find them. If I don’t see anyone, I’ll assume you met up with them first. Either way, all three of you will get back together.”
“Thanks again for your help, Solaris,” Rose smiled in appreciation.
“If you want to thank me, then you can promise me one thing. Don’t tell anyone in Baniru about the Morphs. It’s the one thing that keeps me safe from capture out in the Black Jungle.”
“I won’t,” Rose promised. But before she could enter through the hidden door, the familiar sounds of the TARDIS’ engines reached her ears. The young girl immediately turned to the direction of the sound with a large grin on her face, completely missing Solaris start at the sound of the TARDIS materializing. Barely a second after the TARDIS appeared, the doors opened and the Doctor stepped out, a large grin appearing on his face when he saw Rose was safe.
“And ‘ere I was, thinking I’d be coming to your rescue again,” he joked.
“So, you’re saying you want me to be in trouble?” Rose smirked, her tongue poking through her teeth. Chuckling to himself, the Doctor stepped out to hug Rose as Jack came out behind him and followed suit, but once the Doctor caught sight of Solaris standing a short distance away with a slight frown, his face grew stern and hard. Noticing this, Rose took the sonic screwdriver out of her pocket.
“Doctor, it’s okay. I have it, see?” The Doctor looked somewhat surprised as he took back the sonic screwdriver from Rose.
“You managed to get it back from her?”
“Actually, she gave it back.” This statement increased the Doctor and Jack’s surprise.
“She gave it back?” Jack repeated in amazement. “Since when do you steal something and just give it back?”
“Since the thief in question is unable to help being impressed with someone who marches into the Black Jungle to get back the property the thief stole, and feels that the person who walked into the jungle deserves to get back said property, as a reward for their brave insanity,” Solaris replied.
“She also helped me get back to Baniru,” Rose explained. The Doctor took a moment to digest the idea that a thief who had stolen the sonic screwdriver had returned it without fuss, and then had even brought Rose back to the city.
“I suppose I should thank you for bringing Rose back, and returning this.” He finally spoke to Solaris, returning the sonic screwdriver to its place in his leather jacket.
“Don’t mention it,” the thief shook her head. “Seriously. Don’t mention it. Ever. If people around here heard about it, they’d start thinking I’ve lost my edge. It’s not good for my reputation around here. Anyway, take care of yourself, Rose.” With that, Solaris started to crawl through the hidden door in the city wall.
“Hang on,” Rose called after her. “Don’t you want a lift somewhere in the city?” Rose glanced over at the Doctor and Jack. “It’s the least we can do, for helping me get back.” The Doctor frowned at the thought, but gave in.
“I suppose I could take you somewhere in Baniru, as a thank you,” he reluctantly agreed. “As long as you don’t touch anything.”
“Thanks, but I’ll pass,” Solaris turned down the offer as she entered Baniru through the hidden door. “I don’t want anyone to know where I go in Baniru. Besides. Isn’t it against your Laws of Time? It is forbidden to allow non-Time Lords into a TARDIS, right?” As soon as those words were said, Solaris closed the door behind her. The Doctor was just turning back to the TARDIS when he froze and spun back around, staring in shock at the section of the wall Solaris had just disappeared behind.
“Hold on,” he whispered. “I don’t remember telling her this was called a TARDIS.”
“Then how’d she know?” Jack wondered.
"And how did she know about you being a Time Lord?" Rose added.
“Let’s find out.” The Doctor strode back into the TARDIS quickly, with Jack and Rose following him, both equally stunned about Solaris’ knowledge about the TARDIS and Time Lords. “We’ll just have to find her and ask her.”
“How are you going to do that?” Rose asked. You remember how it was yesterday. I only noticed her leaving Baniru for the Black Jungle by chance.”
“Right, but this time, we have something she touched.” The Doctor waved the sonic screwdriver in emphasis. “All we have to do is have the TARDIS track her genetic signature using the residual fingerprints she left on the sonic screwdriver.”
“You can do that?” Rose blinked, mentally kicking herself for the absurdity of the question as soon as she said it. After all the things she’d seen, this surprised her? However, the Doctor chose not to point out how stupid the question was.
“That’s how we tracked you down,” he explained, pointing to Rose’s hoodie, which was draped over one of the railings, as he worked at tracking Solaris down. Moments later, the TARDIS keyed in on Solaris, and the Doctor started up the engines to catch up to her.
“Hang on,” Jack spoke up. “What if she’s in the middle of a crowd somewhere? You’re just going to have the TARDIS materialize in front of everyone?”
“She’s not,” the Doctor answered. “She’s underground somewhere for some reason. Far from the inhabitants of the city. Here we go.” For the next moment, the three friends watched the rotor rising and falling. Once they came to a stop, the Doctor turned and opened the TARDIS doors, but froze the second he opened them. Rose and Jack looked over his shoulders to see why, and saw a large group of Aliens glaring back at them.
“Ah,” the Doctor nodded, an instant grin on his face. “Looks like there was a reason Solaris was underground. This must be the hideout of Baniru’s thieves.”
-----
It wasn’t long before the Doctor, Rose, and Jack were being led into a large room in the underground hideout and forced to kneel in front of a large chair that looked like a throne. One of the thieves that had brought them in turned to a thief that stood by the throne.
“Tell Karnack we found these outsiders inside the Lair,” the thief ordered. Once the second thief left with the message, Rose leaned over to have a whispered conversation with the Doctor.
“Who’s Karnack?” She asked.
“I suppose he must be the leader of the thieves.” He answered. “It’ll be all right. I’ll just explain we stumbled in by mistake.”
“And if he doesn’t go for that?”
“I’ll think of something.”
“Keep quiet!” A random thief hissed, brandishing a curved blade at them.
“Hey, no need to get annoyed,” Jack reasoned, looking the thief up and down before his tone shifted to his characteristic flirtatious manner. “By the way. I like the tunic.”
“Do you have to do that now?” The Doctor scolded.
“I can’t give out complements?” Jack fired back.
“Enough!” A new voice boomed. The three looked up at an Alien who had just appeared, immediately realizing this was Karnack. He was a fierce looking Alien, stretching up to a height of seven feet. His physical features were that of a serpent, but he had a human-like face and arms. On his finger was an impressive-looking ring that had eight jewels of various colors surrounding a jagged stone that blazed orange-red, like a fire was raging within the stone.
“So, these are the ones,” Karnack slid forward, his red-and-gold-scaled reptilian tail flexing as he moved, until he towered over them. “Tell me, then. Were you aware that the penalty of anyone outside my command entering the Guild of Thieves' Lair is death?”
“Actually, no we didn’t,” the Doctor replied casually. Karnack began to circle the captives, as if sizing them up.
“Most interesting. Not one of my thieves has any recollection of seeing any of you before, and they collectively know the faces of everyone in Baniru.”
“We’re just passing through.” Instantly, Karnack froze, glowering down at the Doctor.
“You have a lot of nerve, don’t you? You’re already facing death for intruding, and now you’re speaking without me permitting it.”
“Yeah, he’ll do that,” Rose noted with a small smile.
“It’s not something to copy, female,” a random thief barked, roughly cuffing her temple. In a flash, the Doctor had gripped the offending thief’s hand and stood to full height, giving him a piercing look that would dishearten even the bravest man.
“That wasn’t a wise move, mate,” he growled, shoving the thief away forcefully. Taking this as his signal, Jack leapt to his feet and wrestled his blaster away from the thief that had taken it upon their capture. For a very tense moment, the three friends were surrounded by the thieves, who were fully prepared to strike at the word from Karnack. Jack held his blaster at the ready while the Doctor stood protectively in front of Rose.
“Stand down!” Karnack ordered. Instantly, the thieves stepped back, obeying their leader. For a long moment, he studied the trio appraisingly before turning to face the Doctor. “You. What exactly are you called?”
“I’m the Doctor.”
“Very well, Doctor. I have a proposition for you. I will let you and your human friends leave with your lives, if you agree to do a little task for me.”
“And if I refuse?” Karnack smiled cruelly, and motioned to one of the thieves that were standing by. In a flash, the thief had drawn a lethal blade and held it threateningly to Rose’s throat. The Doctor took an instinctive step toward Rose but stopped when the blade scraped her skin, letting out a single drop of blood. Frowning in disgust at the underhanded tactic to force him into obedience, he turned to Karnack. “What sort of task?”
“You see this ring?” The leader of the Den of Thieves flaunted the ornament on his finger. “This is actually one of five pieces. Out there, scattered across the galactic reaches of space, are other artifacts. You’ll know them from the identical assembly of the nine jewels that appear on each artifact. I will let you and your friends go free if you agree to find the other four pieces: the knife, the belt, the pendant, and the coronet.” The Doctor took a moment to answer, casting a concerned eye over at Rose, who was still being held at knifepoint.
“I’ll do it,” he agreed.
“I thought you would.” Karnack grinned in a gloating manner as he gestured to the thief to release Rose. But as the Doctor strode forward to hug her in reassurance, the thief’s leader spoke up again. “However, I will need a little security, to ensure you won’t just swan off without returning with what I need.
“Our word isn’t good enough, apparently,” jack glared.
“A true thief never trusts any outsider,” Karnack replied. “Therefore, one of my thieves will accompany you, to make sure you deliver. Where’s Solaris?” The final question was called out throughout the room, directed at everyone present.
“What!?” Solaris, who had been watching the whole exchange from a spot across the room, instantly spoke up. “What are you picking on me for? I didn’t do anything!”
“As I recall, you are my most cunning thief,” Karnack cast the blue-haired Alien female a look that appeared to say 'do not refuse my order'. “If anyone can ensure these three can collect the four items I require, it is you.” Solaris’ face scrunched up, showing her displeasure at the turn of events.
“Very well, Karnack,” she agreed finally.
-----
When morning came, a small group of Karnack’s thieves were flanking the Doctor, Rose, and Jack outside the TARDIS, making sure they didn’t try to leave without Solaris.
“And what are we supposed to do if she doesn’t show?” Jack questioned.
“Are you suggesting Solaris would refuse an order from Karnack?” One of the thieves snapped.
“She didn’t exactly appear thrilled to be chosen to ‘chaperone’ us,” the Doctor pointed out.
“You’re right about that,” Solaris replied as she entered the room, pulling her haversack up higher on her shoulder. “But when Karnack gives you an order, you better follow through on it. Only thing I had to do was make a quick stop at my hut; gather some things.” Solaris begrudgingly handed the Doctor a device. “I was told to give you this. It has the coordinates of the four artifacts Karnack wants.”
“In that case, we best be on our way,” the Doctor turned to unlock the TARDIS doors so he could enter with the rest of the group.
“Solaris?” Rose spoke up as the other thieves left. “Actually, there was a reason we came after you. How’d you know about the TARDIS, and...?”
“It’s not important,” Solaris insisted in a tone that clearly stated Rose shouldn’t pry. As Solaris started to trudge into the TARDIS after Jack and the Doctor, she caught Rose’s cheeky grin, with her tongue slightly sticking through her teeth.
“In any event, it looks like we are going to see more of each other after all,” Rose teased.
“Yeah, very funny,” Solaris mumbled in response before walking past her. But Rose could have sworn she saw a hint of a grin on the Alien thief’s face as they entered the TARDIS, which dematerialized soon afterwards.
Story: Solaris
Character/Pairing: Doctor, Rose, Jack, OC, Hints of Doctor/Rose
Era: Ninth Doctor Era; Takes place between The Doctor Dances and Boomtown.
Rating: PG-13 (To be safe)
Chapter 4/? (Karnack's Task)
Summary: The Doctor, Rose, and Jack travel to an Alien city, where they must team up with a local thief to retreive a series of mysterious artifacts of unknown capacity.
Disclaimer: Obviously not the owner.
I'd really like reviews for this story. Hardly anyone has left comments, which makes me sad.
Previous Chapters
Rose was pulled out of sleep the next morning much sooner then she’d have liked when she felt something being thrown at her. Opening her eyes, she saw it was a grapefruit-sized fruit with a rind swirled with multiple shades of blue. Solaris was leaning against the wall, eating an identical piece of fruit.
“Sorry, no big breakfast,” she apologized, sounding slightly sincere. “Or, I suppose you’d call it a fry-up.” Rose took the fruit and started to eat. Whatever this fruit was, it was the strangest thing she’d ever eaten. Once second, the fruit juice had her mouth on fire, but the next, it was like biting into extremely cold sorbet. Solaris broke out laughing at the sight of Rose’s facial reaction to the fruit. “Hey, it wakes you up in the morning, doesn’t it?”
“What is this?!” Rose cried.
“Vari fruit,” Solaris replied, taking another bite from hers. “You get used to it, trust me.” Rose forced herself to take another bite, on account of her empty stomach. She had to admit it wasn’t so bad the second time around, now that she knew what to expect.
“I just realized,” Rose began. “I never told you my name. I’m Rose.”
“Don’t see why you want to tell me that,” Solaris shook her head before taking another bite of her vari fruit. “It’s not like we’ll be seeing each other after today. But in any event, I don’t think I need to tell you my name. You must have seen the multiple wanted posters for me in the city.” The alien female’s grin quickly shifted to a smugly proud one. “So, how much are they offering for my hide now?”
“Um, five thousand credits, I think.” Instantly, Solaris looked completely insulted.
“Five thousand? That’s it? After all the stuff I nicked? That’s all those gimboid patrolmen are offering?!”
“What, you want a bigger price on your head?” Rose asked, unable to help being amused at the thief’s obvious disappointment.
“Hey, if you’re going to be a thief, Rose, you gotta take a bit of pride in it. Anyway, since you’re done with your vari fruit, best try and get you back with your friends.”
Rose crawled out of the hammock and followed Solaris down to the platform beneath the hut, where Solaris held the rope steady, allowing Rose to climb to the ground safely. Once they both were on the jungle floor, they began making their way through the Black Jungle, to return to Baniru.
-----
The Doctor was hovered above the TARDIS’ console, intently studying the monitor to try and locate Rose with the TARDIS’ sensors, with Jack standing slightly to the right of him. As the Doctor made a move to one of the levers, he slightly stumbled, prompting Jack to help steady him a bit.
“Okay, seriously. You can just tell me what to do from the pilot seat.”
“No time,” the Doctor brushed off the offer. “We’ve already wasted enough time trying to find the right antidote. It’ll take longer if I feed you instructions to operate the controls. There’s no telling what sort of danger Rose has come across by now.” The Doctor moved to the side to reach a knob, but nearly lost his balance again.
“And how much time are we wasting with you stumbling around because you’re not waiting until the antidote completely gets rid of the paralysis?” Jack pointed out. The Doctor chose to ignore the former time agent’s reasoning, and continued with what he was doing. After a few moments with the two remaining silent, the Doctor thumped the console in delighted relief.
“There she is. She’s…. hold on. She’s just outside the city.”
“She is?” Jack stepped up to look at the monitor as well. “Then let’s go get her.”
“Right.” The Doctor pulled a lever, and the console’s rotor began to rise and fall.
-----
While the Doctor and Jack were tracking Rose in the TARDIS, she was just emerging from the Black Jungle with Solaris. The two females made their way to the city walls, where Solaris opened the hidden door.
“You can find your way back to your friend’s ship from here?” Solaris asked.
“Yes, but what if they’re out in the Black Jungle?”
“You head back to the ship, okay?” Solaris frowned slightly. “I’ll go and comb through the jungle to see if I can find them. If I don’t see anyone, I’ll assume you met up with them first. Either way, all three of you will get back together.”
“Thanks again for your help, Solaris,” Rose smiled in appreciation.
“If you want to thank me, then you can promise me one thing. Don’t tell anyone in Baniru about the Morphs. It’s the one thing that keeps me safe from capture out in the Black Jungle.”
“I won’t,” Rose promised. But before she could enter through the hidden door, the familiar sounds of the TARDIS’ engines reached her ears. The young girl immediately turned to the direction of the sound with a large grin on her face, completely missing Solaris start at the sound of the TARDIS materializing. Barely a second after the TARDIS appeared, the doors opened and the Doctor stepped out, a large grin appearing on his face when he saw Rose was safe.
“And ‘ere I was, thinking I’d be coming to your rescue again,” he joked.
“So, you’re saying you want me to be in trouble?” Rose smirked, her tongue poking through her teeth. Chuckling to himself, the Doctor stepped out to hug Rose as Jack came out behind him and followed suit, but once the Doctor caught sight of Solaris standing a short distance away with a slight frown, his face grew stern and hard. Noticing this, Rose took the sonic screwdriver out of her pocket.
“Doctor, it’s okay. I have it, see?” The Doctor looked somewhat surprised as he took back the sonic screwdriver from Rose.
“You managed to get it back from her?”
“Actually, she gave it back.” This statement increased the Doctor and Jack’s surprise.
“She gave it back?” Jack repeated in amazement. “Since when do you steal something and just give it back?”
“Since the thief in question is unable to help being impressed with someone who marches into the Black Jungle to get back the property the thief stole, and feels that the person who walked into the jungle deserves to get back said property, as a reward for their brave insanity,” Solaris replied.
“She also helped me get back to Baniru,” Rose explained. The Doctor took a moment to digest the idea that a thief who had stolen the sonic screwdriver had returned it without fuss, and then had even brought Rose back to the city.
“I suppose I should thank you for bringing Rose back, and returning this.” He finally spoke to Solaris, returning the sonic screwdriver to its place in his leather jacket.
“Don’t mention it,” the thief shook her head. “Seriously. Don’t mention it. Ever. If people around here heard about it, they’d start thinking I’ve lost my edge. It’s not good for my reputation around here. Anyway, take care of yourself, Rose.” With that, Solaris started to crawl through the hidden door in the city wall.
“Hang on,” Rose called after her. “Don’t you want a lift somewhere in the city?” Rose glanced over at the Doctor and Jack. “It’s the least we can do, for helping me get back.” The Doctor frowned at the thought, but gave in.
“I suppose I could take you somewhere in Baniru, as a thank you,” he reluctantly agreed. “As long as you don’t touch anything.”
“Thanks, but I’ll pass,” Solaris turned down the offer as she entered Baniru through the hidden door. “I don’t want anyone to know where I go in Baniru. Besides. Isn’t it against your Laws of Time? It is forbidden to allow non-Time Lords into a TARDIS, right?” As soon as those words were said, Solaris closed the door behind her. The Doctor was just turning back to the TARDIS when he froze and spun back around, staring in shock at the section of the wall Solaris had just disappeared behind.
“Hold on,” he whispered. “I don’t remember telling her this was called a TARDIS.”
“Then how’d she know?” Jack wondered.
"And how did she know about you being a Time Lord?" Rose added.
“Let’s find out.” The Doctor strode back into the TARDIS quickly, with Jack and Rose following him, both equally stunned about Solaris’ knowledge about the TARDIS and Time Lords. “We’ll just have to find her and ask her.”
“How are you going to do that?” Rose asked. You remember how it was yesterday. I only noticed her leaving Baniru for the Black Jungle by chance.”
“Right, but this time, we have something she touched.” The Doctor waved the sonic screwdriver in emphasis. “All we have to do is have the TARDIS track her genetic signature using the residual fingerprints she left on the sonic screwdriver.”
“You can do that?” Rose blinked, mentally kicking herself for the absurdity of the question as soon as she said it. After all the things she’d seen, this surprised her? However, the Doctor chose not to point out how stupid the question was.
“That’s how we tracked you down,” he explained, pointing to Rose’s hoodie, which was draped over one of the railings, as he worked at tracking Solaris down. Moments later, the TARDIS keyed in on Solaris, and the Doctor started up the engines to catch up to her.
“Hang on,” Jack spoke up. “What if she’s in the middle of a crowd somewhere? You’re just going to have the TARDIS materialize in front of everyone?”
“She’s not,” the Doctor answered. “She’s underground somewhere for some reason. Far from the inhabitants of the city. Here we go.” For the next moment, the three friends watched the rotor rising and falling. Once they came to a stop, the Doctor turned and opened the TARDIS doors, but froze the second he opened them. Rose and Jack looked over his shoulders to see why, and saw a large group of Aliens glaring back at them.
“Ah,” the Doctor nodded, an instant grin on his face. “Looks like there was a reason Solaris was underground. This must be the hideout of Baniru’s thieves.”
-----
It wasn’t long before the Doctor, Rose, and Jack were being led into a large room in the underground hideout and forced to kneel in front of a large chair that looked like a throne. One of the thieves that had brought them in turned to a thief that stood by the throne.
“Tell Karnack we found these outsiders inside the Lair,” the thief ordered. Once the second thief left with the message, Rose leaned over to have a whispered conversation with the Doctor.
“Who’s Karnack?” She asked.
“I suppose he must be the leader of the thieves.” He answered. “It’ll be all right. I’ll just explain we stumbled in by mistake.”
“And if he doesn’t go for that?”
“I’ll think of something.”
“Keep quiet!” A random thief hissed, brandishing a curved blade at them.
“Hey, no need to get annoyed,” Jack reasoned, looking the thief up and down before his tone shifted to his characteristic flirtatious manner. “By the way. I like the tunic.”
“Do you have to do that now?” The Doctor scolded.
“I can’t give out complements?” Jack fired back.
“Enough!” A new voice boomed. The three looked up at an Alien who had just appeared, immediately realizing this was Karnack. He was a fierce looking Alien, stretching up to a height of seven feet. His physical features were that of a serpent, but he had a human-like face and arms. On his finger was an impressive-looking ring that had eight jewels of various colors surrounding a jagged stone that blazed orange-red, like a fire was raging within the stone.
“So, these are the ones,” Karnack slid forward, his red-and-gold-scaled reptilian tail flexing as he moved, until he towered over them. “Tell me, then. Were you aware that the penalty of anyone outside my command entering the Guild of Thieves' Lair is death?”
“Actually, no we didn’t,” the Doctor replied casually. Karnack began to circle the captives, as if sizing them up.
“Most interesting. Not one of my thieves has any recollection of seeing any of you before, and they collectively know the faces of everyone in Baniru.”
“We’re just passing through.” Instantly, Karnack froze, glowering down at the Doctor.
“You have a lot of nerve, don’t you? You’re already facing death for intruding, and now you’re speaking without me permitting it.”
“Yeah, he’ll do that,” Rose noted with a small smile.
“It’s not something to copy, female,” a random thief barked, roughly cuffing her temple. In a flash, the Doctor had gripped the offending thief’s hand and stood to full height, giving him a piercing look that would dishearten even the bravest man.
“That wasn’t a wise move, mate,” he growled, shoving the thief away forcefully. Taking this as his signal, Jack leapt to his feet and wrestled his blaster away from the thief that had taken it upon their capture. For a very tense moment, the three friends were surrounded by the thieves, who were fully prepared to strike at the word from Karnack. Jack held his blaster at the ready while the Doctor stood protectively in front of Rose.
“Stand down!” Karnack ordered. Instantly, the thieves stepped back, obeying their leader. For a long moment, he studied the trio appraisingly before turning to face the Doctor. “You. What exactly are you called?”
“I’m the Doctor.”
“Very well, Doctor. I have a proposition for you. I will let you and your human friends leave with your lives, if you agree to do a little task for me.”
“And if I refuse?” Karnack smiled cruelly, and motioned to one of the thieves that were standing by. In a flash, the thief had drawn a lethal blade and held it threateningly to Rose’s throat. The Doctor took an instinctive step toward Rose but stopped when the blade scraped her skin, letting out a single drop of blood. Frowning in disgust at the underhanded tactic to force him into obedience, he turned to Karnack. “What sort of task?”
“You see this ring?” The leader of the Den of Thieves flaunted the ornament on his finger. “This is actually one of five pieces. Out there, scattered across the galactic reaches of space, are other artifacts. You’ll know them from the identical assembly of the nine jewels that appear on each artifact. I will let you and your friends go free if you agree to find the other four pieces: the knife, the belt, the pendant, and the coronet.” The Doctor took a moment to answer, casting a concerned eye over at Rose, who was still being held at knifepoint.
“I’ll do it,” he agreed.
“I thought you would.” Karnack grinned in a gloating manner as he gestured to the thief to release Rose. But as the Doctor strode forward to hug her in reassurance, the thief’s leader spoke up again. “However, I will need a little security, to ensure you won’t just swan off without returning with what I need.
“Our word isn’t good enough, apparently,” jack glared.
“A true thief never trusts any outsider,” Karnack replied. “Therefore, one of my thieves will accompany you, to make sure you deliver. Where’s Solaris?” The final question was called out throughout the room, directed at everyone present.
“What!?” Solaris, who had been watching the whole exchange from a spot across the room, instantly spoke up. “What are you picking on me for? I didn’t do anything!”
“As I recall, you are my most cunning thief,” Karnack cast the blue-haired Alien female a look that appeared to say 'do not refuse my order'. “If anyone can ensure these three can collect the four items I require, it is you.” Solaris’ face scrunched up, showing her displeasure at the turn of events.
“Very well, Karnack,” she agreed finally.
-----
When morning came, a small group of Karnack’s thieves were flanking the Doctor, Rose, and Jack outside the TARDIS, making sure they didn’t try to leave without Solaris.
“And what are we supposed to do if she doesn’t show?” Jack questioned.
“Are you suggesting Solaris would refuse an order from Karnack?” One of the thieves snapped.
“She didn’t exactly appear thrilled to be chosen to ‘chaperone’ us,” the Doctor pointed out.
“You’re right about that,” Solaris replied as she entered the room, pulling her haversack up higher on her shoulder. “But when Karnack gives you an order, you better follow through on it. Only thing I had to do was make a quick stop at my hut; gather some things.” Solaris begrudgingly handed the Doctor a device. “I was told to give you this. It has the coordinates of the four artifacts Karnack wants.”
“In that case, we best be on our way,” the Doctor turned to unlock the TARDIS doors so he could enter with the rest of the group.
“Solaris?” Rose spoke up as the other thieves left. “Actually, there was a reason we came after you. How’d you know about the TARDIS, and...?”
“It’s not important,” Solaris insisted in a tone that clearly stated Rose shouldn’t pry. As Solaris started to trudge into the TARDIS after Jack and the Doctor, she caught Rose’s cheeky grin, with her tongue slightly sticking through her teeth.
“In any event, it looks like we are going to see more of each other after all,” Rose teased.
“Yeah, very funny,” Solaris mumbled in response before walking past her. But Rose could have sworn she saw a hint of a grin on the Alien thief’s face as they entered the TARDIS, which dematerialized soon afterwards.