The Lost Time Lord (A Doctor Who/Tenth Doctor Fanfiction)

Chapter Seven: Join Us

"No, no, this classroom's out of bounds. You've all got to go to the south hall. Off you go! South hall."

I grabbed a loop of wires, tossing them around the Doctor's neck to get them out of the way before lifting up the cable box and scanning it with the screwdriver.

"I can't shift it." I told him. He took the screwdriver from me, scanning it himself, but nothing happened on his end either.

"I thought the sonic screwdriver could open anything." Sarah Jane stated.

"Anything except a deadlock seal. There's got to be something inside here." The Doctor replied, taking the box from me and holding it up close to his face to inspect it. "What are they teaching those kids?"

"Well, they're headed back to class now. Maybe we'll find out." I suggested, reaching up and tightening my ponytail. Just as I said this, all of the computers began displaying this strange green cube with lines of strange text scrolling down the side. "See? All the computers are on the same network, meaning whatever the kids are seeing, we see as well."

"You wanted the program," Sarah Jane added, "There it is."

"Some sort of code." The Doctor said, looking up at the wall screen, which displayed the same green display. Suddenly his eyes widened. "No...No, it can't be."

"Can't be what?" I asked, putting a hand on the Doctor's arm.

"The Skasis Paradigm." He stated. "They're trying to crack the Skasis Paradign." 

"The Skasis what?"

"The god-maker. The universal theory. Crack that equation and you've got control of the building blocks of the universe." He told us. "Time and space and matter, yours to control."

"Is that all?" I asked dryly, crossing my arms.

"What, and the kids are like a giant computer?" Rose inquired.

"Yes." My eyes widened.

"The chips," I stated, looking up at the Doctor, "Finch told us we had to try to chips, he introduced the chips. I'd bet anything that he's putting that Krillitane oil on the chips in order to accelerate their brain power. Its a conducting agent, it makes the kids smarter!"

"But if the oil's on the chips..." Rose trailed off. "I've been eating them."

"What's fifty-nine times thirty-five?"

"Two thousand sixty-five." She answered without a moments hesitation. The Doctor and I gave her identical 'See?' expressions. "Oh my gosh!" 

"But why use children," Sarah Jane asked, "Can't they use adults?"

"No, its got to be children. The god-maker needs imagination to crack it. They're not just using the children's brains to break the code...they're using their souls." I heard footsteps and looked up past the Doctor just in time to see Lassar step into the room. I grabbed a fistful of the Doctor's coat, nodding towards the door when he looked at me.

"Let the lesson begin." Lassar said, drawing his gaze. "Think of it Doctor, with the paradigm solved, reality becomes clay in our hands. We can shape the universe and improve it."

"Oh, yeah? The whole of creation with the face of Mr. Finch."

"That'd be a rather unfortunate looking creation." I added, shooting Lassar a glare.

"Call me old-fashioned," The Doctor continued, "I like things as they are."

"You act like such a radical and yet all you want to do is preserve the old order," Lassar argued, "Think of the changes that could be made if this power was used for good."

"What, by someone like you?" He responded skeptically.

"No. Someone like you." I furrowed my eyebrows, glancing at the Doctor. "The paradigm gives us power, but you could give us wisdom. Become a god at my side. Imagine what you could do; Think of the civilizations you could save. Perganon, Ascinta, your own people, Doctor, standing tall. The Time Lords...reborn." The more he spoke the closer he got to the Doctor. I was uncomfortable with his proximity, so I slid in between him and the Doctor just like I had in the pool,  the complete lack of space leaving me with my back pressed up against the Doctor's chest.

"As. If." I shot back, giving him a hard look. Lassar looked down at me in amusement.

"What about you, Mary?" He asked. "You could finally find out who or...perhaps what you truly are." My eyes widened. "All of those unanswered questions about your life...finally answered. And you," He stepped around us to Sarah Jane and Rose, causing the Doctor and I to turn around and face him. "You could be with him throughout eternity. Young, fresh. Never wither, never age, never die. Their lives are so fleeting. So many goodbyes." He looked to the Doctor again. "How lonely you must be, Doctor. Join us."

I moved to stand beside him, reaching down and grabbing his hand before turning so that I was facing him.

"Don't listen to him." I whispered. 

"I could save everyone." The Doctor stated.

"Yes."

"Doctor, no!" 

"I could stop the war..." I took my free hand, putting it on his face and turning him to face me. He jumped slightly, no doubt from the strange feeling that still filled both of our bodies upon physical contact. 

"You could save everyone," I pointed out, "You could rid the universe of loss, and sadness, and pain, but what kind of world would that be? Doctor, it hurts not knowing who I am or where I came from, it hurts so much...but that pain has made me who I am just as much as happiness or love or any other positive emotion. This isn't the answer and you know it, Doctor. I know you do."

"Everything has its time," Sarah Jane added, causing us to look at her, "And everything ends."

The Doctor paused for a moment, looking at all of us before releasing my hand and running forward past finch, grabbing a chair and smashing the wall screen, which ended up shutting down all the computer programs in the room. I shrugged.

"That's one way to do things."

"Out!" He yelled, running past again, grabbing my hand as he did so.

We took off running down the stairs, meeting Mickey and some random kid as we did so.

"What's going on?" Mickey asked. Before we could answer, we heard a familiar screech, turning our heads just as four Krillitanes came flying down the hallway towards us. We were instantly running again, entering the cafeteria to find that the door to the kitchens were locked. The Doctor reached into his jacket to grab his screwdriver, when the doors opened again and Finch entered, flanked by Krillitanes.

"Are they my teachers?" The boy asked.

"Yeah, sorry." The Doctor told him.

"We need the Doctor alive. As for the others, you can feast." Finch told them. I looked to my left, spotting an unattended mop bucket. I ran over to it, grabbing the mop and snapping the handle off over the table. I twirled it in my hands, stepping up in front of the others as the Doctor swung a chair around absently. A Krillitane swooped towards me, only to get a mop handle across the face, sending it flying a few feet to the left, running into another one.

I jumped up onto one of the tables, getting ready to swing at another one when suddenly a laser shot it out of the air, sending it falling towards me. Before it could crush me however, the Doctor's arms wrapped around my waist, pulling me out of the way and onto the floor, keeping an arm wrapped around me as we spotted the source of the blast.

"K-9!" Sarah Jane shouted. Finch let out an angry screech, beginning to stalk towards us.

"I suggest you engage running mode, Mistress." K-9 instructed.

"Come on!' The Doctor let go of me, grabbing my hand again and dragging me out of the cafeteria, the others following close behind.  "K-9, hold them back!"

"Affirmative, Master."