---/---
The Doctor knew that situation was more serious than Kate was prepared to admit over the phone when there were guards waiting with Kate, who looks more than a little stressed, to escort him into UNIT headquarters.
"So what do we have?" The Doctor asked, doing his best to modulate this own excitement.
For some reason most humans when faced with the unknown seemed to resent his own enthusiastic response. Clara had tried to explain it to him, something about facing the possibility of death, but if The Doctor was honest he had started to zone out when she got as far as talking about having consideration for other people's feelings. In the end she had promised to make him some cue cards to cover a range of situations and then hope for the best.
"This sphere like object appeared in the middle of UNIT around four hours ago. It teleported in and none of our scientists can get close enough to examine it, there is some sort of energy shield protecting it."
Nodding The Doctor followed her through the winding corridors taking note of the heavy guard presence. "But has it done anything?"
"No it just hovers there is hasn't moved since it arrived.
"Why so concerned?" The Doctor prompted pushing open the double doors to the UNIT hanger where a makeshift laboratory was being constructed. "Don't you think you might be overreacting a touch?" He added wincing a little as he caught sight of the large number of armed soldiers.
"Because of the rather large count down attached that has..." Kate paused waving to a technician who passed her a pad, "sixty-eight hours, twenty three minutes and fifteen seconds left on it.
"Precise." The Doctor quipped choosing to ignore the frustrated glare Kate shot him. "So where is the little beauty?"
Walking further into the hanger, there surrounded by armed guards and scientists with large scanning equipment was a hovering sphere.
Grinning like a child with a new shiny toy The Doctor pulls out his sonic screwdriver and started running a low level passive scan as he walked around it. "Definitely extra-terrestrial, the metal casing alone was from an element not even found in this galaxy."
"All very interesting Doctor but can you disarm it?"
"What makes you think it is a bomb Kate? Not everything in the universe wants to blow humanity up, have a little faith now."
"Oh well that makes me feel so much better." Kate drawled sarcastically. "I mean here I am Chief Scientist for UNIT the organisation meant to keep humanity safe from threats like this and we can't so much as scan it and you want me to have faith in the goodness of the universe?"
Smothering a smile The Doctor stepped closer encountering the field generated by the sphere. Unable to resist running his fingers across the shield he marvelled at the ripping affect...Cold but not painful...
"Doctor look." Kate's exclamation drew The Doctor's attention to the display which had changed.
"It changed the moment you touched the shield." Kate added and they both studied the new text.
What belongs to you but is used by others?
Surprised The Doctor pulled his hand back and the display returned to the familiar countdown display. Intrigued he touched the shield again and the question reappeared.
"Fascinating, it's programmed to respond to touch. Kate would you?" The Doctor prompted withdrawing his hand and gesturing for Kate to touch the shield instead.
Yet the moment the human touched the shield a charge rippled along it and Kate withdrew her hand yelping.
"Sorry." The Doctor winced as he caught sight of her burnt skin.
"Well at least we know now who this was intended for." Kate muttered in between clenched teeth as a medic rushed over to tend to her injury. "Someone out there has sent you a puzzle Doctor. One they clearly only intend you to be able to solve."
Pressing his hand back to the shield The Doctor furrowed his eyebrows as the countdown vanished once more and the message for him reappeared. "Yes...but who?"
---/---
It was times like this Osgood regretted ever leaving the Nethersphere, as she skirted large groups of armed guards, and hid her face from anyone who might look too interested. So far she has spotted several races she recognises from the UNIT archives and dozens more she has never seen before.
She followed the general direction of travel, pausing nervously in a sizeable queue before some heavily armed guards. They were subjecting everyone to a detailed scan before allowing them to pass into the central core of the station.
When it was her turn Osgood stepped up and had to resist the urge to cross her fingers. Yet despite subjecting her and her device to a thorough scan whilst grunting and glaring they did stamp, what Osgood hoped was approval to enter, on her hand before allowing her through.
Keeping her head down she tried to stifle her amazement as she entered the vast hall. Arguments and bartering were going on in too many different languages at once for the Tardis to keep up. And for a moment Osgood stood still and simple absorbed the sheer brilliance of it all before the scanner in her hand beeped and reminder her of the real reason she was here.
A glance down at the scanner in her hand shows what looks like a rotating blip, yet it didn't appear to have triggered the pre-programmed search criteria. Still it would have been helpful to have more than some idea of what the hell she is supposed to be looking for. Osgood supposed there was nothing else for it but to start at the beginning and make a pass of the entire room; thankful at least that despite her many failings as a friend that Missy hadn't left her comfy boots behind on earth.
---/---
"It's a riddle."
The Doctor rolls his eyes at the somewhat inept scientist Kate had assigned to work alongside him whilst she called in the preliminary results to UNIT command.
"Congratulations Sherlock." The Doctor drawled sarcastically. "If it takes you just as long to work out the answer we might have it by Christmas."
Leaving the slightly teary eyed intern behind The Doctor walks over to the coffee percolator, pouring himself a large cup and adding an obscene amount of sugar before adding some milk.
"How on earth do you manage to stay so skinny?"
"Time Lord metabolism." The Doctor quipped turning back to meet Kate's tired gaze.
"Shame I was hoping it was some sort of super diet pill, we could patent it and split the proceeds."
"Sorry but if you like you could always extend an invitation to the Adipose first family and offer yourself up as a surrogate?"
"A tempting offer but I think I'll pass." Kate chuckled tucking the ends of her bob back behind her ears with her bandaged hand as she poured herself a black coffee.
"Made any more progress?"
"Well your team has finally cottoned on to the fact that it's a riddle." The Doctor drawled taking a sip of his coffee. "It might actually help if I had someone decent to work with, is Osgood on vacation?"
"Of a sort." Kate replied yet from the way she avoided his gaze The Doctor knew something was afoot.
"Would this be a vacation of the enforced kind?" He practically growled. "Because if I find Ms Osgood languishing in some UNIT jail somewhere Kate I will be less than impressed. I still cannot believe your people put poor Lucy Saxon in prison..."
"Sorry Doctor but I am not prepared to take penitentiary advise from a species that resurrects and arms their psychopaths."
Conceding that point reluctantly The Doctor returned to the key point at hand. "Kate where is Osgood we could use her here?"
"She is currently leading a team investigating a strange meteor shower that landed in the Sahara." Kate replied but there was still something pinched about her expression that told The Doctor there was more to the story than that.
"Well unless those meteors have a countdown I imagine she could be spared, I am requesting her assistance Kate, find a way to make it happen."
"Doctor..."
"Kate I need someone who can think outside the box, normally I would have Clara but I am not suicidal enough to drag her away from wedding plans less than seventy..." The Doctor paused his eyes shooting back to the countdown, cursing in Galifreyan under his breath.
"Doctor?" Kate prompted as The Doctor's face turned a whiter shade of pale. "Doctor what is it?"
"I think I have the answer to one question, tell me Kate have you ran through in that super computer of yours what the time would be when that countdown runs to zero?"
"You know we have, it'll turn zero at precisely 14.30 GMT on Saturday. There is nothing special about that, no known launches, no predicted end of the world...Doctor is there something you're not telling me about this Saturday?"
"No no life changing events for humanity at 14.30 GMT on Saturday 19th September 2015, nothing special in the cosmic way of things." The Doctor deadpanned before reaching into his pocket for a slightly dog-eared invitation and holding it up for Kate to read.
Clara Oswald & Danny Pink Cordially invite you to attend their wedding at
St Margaret's Church 2.30pm Saturday 19th September.
---/---
YOU ARE READING
The Forgotten
FanfictionSequel to Mindwipe & Deadlock: It's been six months of silence, six months of rebuilding, six months of hoping. Yet both Osgood and The Doctor knew it was only a matter of time before the wait was over. Missy is back, yet this time is she bringing m...
