There's Something Coming

The lights were rendered unavailable. The halls were dark and dreary. It was clear no one had walked the platform in decades. Until the simple little girl in the blue nightgown rushed forward, tripping over her own feet as she attempted to pace herself. It wouldn't work and she'd somehow fall again. And behind her, a few meters down, a man stood. He didn't move nor blink an eye. His hands were tied together behind his back by thick yarn. His mouth twitched with the anger of a thousand warriors preparing for battle. The yarn would eventually do nothing and fall to the ground.

But the girl kept running. Her eyes were set on a silhouette in the distance. It was of a tall, thin box. She paused once it was in touching distance. She turned towards the man. "You can't be like this. You... You're not like this." She yelled across the shortening distance between herself and him. "You think the rules don't apply to you because you disagree with them." Her voice was shaking. "You think your world in that cell is safe? It's an illusion. A comforting lie to protect you. To protect us." The girl was slowly becoming more graceful with her language. She was becoming stronger in her choices. The man lowered his eyes, staying silent. "I came to get you out."

The man grimaced, staring hard at the dirty shoes on his feet. He wasn't human, nor did the tendencies of one still exist in his mind. He had been locked away for as long as he could remember. With four walls continuing to surround him everyday, it was impossible to remember who you were before it. But he knew. He knew and it was hard to come to terms with after seeing the door creak open and someone confirm it for you. "Who are you?" He asked, his voice rough and husky. He hadn't used it for years. "Help." The girl was gone. Her fiery red hair falling around the blue fabric had faded into the air. She looked as if she were nearing twelve.

The Doctor was left alone on the platform. He kicked his shoes off and let them fall off the edge into the water below. He stared at the TARDIS doors, suddenly glowing with a faint energy. Something blew up behind him but he didn't turn. This was the planet of prisoners. He had been here for forty years at the most, but in his mind it was over a hundred. Same as the others who were suddenly running at his sides, searching for a way out. The Judoon chased after them.

A shimmer rippled over the sky before a previously invisible air craft came into view. The veil shuddered as it fell away to reveal the slick, black ship. The air turbines beat against the rough currents of the planet in order to keep hovering. A figure stood at the window, peering down at the escaping prisoners with a small quirk to her lips. Good, it made it easier to herd and collect them if there was chaos to draw the attention away from her actions. "No one will miss them." The woman said absently to herself before pulling on her pair of black gloves. Turning to the crew who were standing at attention, she offered them a pleasant smile before commanding cheerfully, "Alright, boys, round them up!"

They nodded and scattered, going to their respective areas on the control panel and typing away. They shouted at each other, figuring out coordinates and locking onto certain lifeforms. The ship started to hum as it powered up, the floor underfoot rattled with the force. At the final command from their chief the beam shot out from the bottom of the craft and to the planet underneath, spotlighting the selected prisoners and beaming them onto the ship. Each person transported was placed within a glass cell in the back of the ship, guarded by several other soldiers.

After the desired amount of people were harvested, the woman smiled to herself and waved her hand in the air, "Time to move out, my dears. These subjects aren't going to test themselves." She laughed at that, threw back her head and laughed until a young woman cleared her throat.

"Uh.. miss?"

Striding over, the woman hovered over the analyst with a frown. "It can't be... no... how? Oh, bullocks." She leaned back, staring vacantly outside the air craft as her mind buzzed with thoughts. "Well, Mal..." She said to herself, "time to do a little research of your own." Why was it here, the TARDIS? That could only mean one man she very much wanted to avoid was here. But why would he come here? Unless he got himself arrested again. It happened at least twice while she was around.

Mal rolled her eyes as she walked over to the back, plugging in coordinates to the vortex manipulator strapped to her wrist. She also, for safe measures, strapped one of the guns to her belt and pulled her long coat over top to conceal the weapon. "Carpe diem!" She sang to her audience as she pushed the button and shot through the vortex. The blue box was the first thing she saw once she landed and took this time to look around, tilting her head curiously at the man on the platform. "Well, well, well, I know they say parting is such sweet sorrow.. but what about hellos? I'd say this is bitterly pleasant. Doctor." It wasn't the one she was hoping to run into, but any incarnation would do. All she needed was to bat her eyelashes, work her magic, twist the strings, and part of the TARDIS would become hers. All the needed was the smallest of nicks from the coral and her research could begin...

The Doctor blinked, letting his hands fall limply at his sides. He was jacketless, and his hair felt less than clean. His vest was unbuttoned, his bow tie undone and hanging around his neck in a line of fabric. And of course, he now had no shoes. Stupid decision. He wanted them back.

Looking up at Mal, he grinded his teeth together. There were certain things in his memory bank that he couldn't restore. One being Mal's sudden transformation. He bowed his head again, not making eye contact. Eye contact would be pointless. Especially with her. "You don't sound very cheerful either. Guess it's mutual." His throat was starting to hurt. Mal was standing in his path, there was no way to get to the TARDIS. Even if he did, he couldn't remember what happened to the key.

But by now, he just wanted something familiar. The TARDIS hardly looked blue anymore. The Doctor combed hair out of his face, scrunching up his nose as he glanced quickly at Mal. "Permission to ask what you're doing here? And what I've missed? How long's it been? I'm shoeless, by the way." He said lightly, his chest feeling as if it were on fire from the pressure of speaking. The pain traveled down into his stomach, jabbing at anything seemingly important. This was becoming ridiculous. He had to get around Mal. And get shoes. Shoes were good.

The Doctor took a shaky step forward. Walking seemed like a new experience all together. A Judoon shoved at his shoulder but continued down the hall absentmindedly. "I'll be needing to get through," the Doctor whispered, all together giving up on the idea of raising his voice. He surprisingly wanted that hologram back. It reminded him of Amy Pond. That felt familiar.

The Doctor's current physical state sparked Mal's interest, pleased her even to see him in such disarray. The raggedy man seemed like a better title for the Time Lord in this current time then any other. But now the question that really had her going was why was he here? What had he done or what did someone do to him to make him turn up in this planet of scum? Prisoner. The label was slapped onto the Doctor quite evidently in her eyes, his exterior stating how it was not cared for in several weeks, months, years even. The Doctor never was one to let how he felt show through his appearance. He always kept clean and proper just to fool the people he was around. Bundle up all these facts into a nice little package and you had the conclusion... he was a resident of one of the many cages meant for brutes.

"You're seeking permission from me? Oh, I quite like that. But it's good to get into the habit while it's still your choice to make, honey." She leaned against the door, giving no indication that she planned to move away from the double doors of the time machine. Her eyebrows lifted up in surprise at his questions. Did he not know? How did a Time Lord not know how much time he had been in a certain location? It concerned her as well as cause her to smile. She had discovered when people are vulnerable such as the Doctor was in his current state they were easier to manipulate, to cling on to any false facts you feed.

"I'm here to visit an old friend, I suppose. You. What you've done was just, oh, so terrible. You've missed loads, having been here for several years. Don't ask me the date, sweetheart, timelines hate me. But now that we're reunited, we can head out again? You promised to teach me a thing or two about the TARDIS."

At that she sidestepped away, giving the Doctor a path to enter his TARDIS but had no intention on letting him get away. She would follow along, see how far she could get him to unknowingly give her more than he ever would in a state of remembrance. Things could get tricky, possibly dangerous. There were times, more than once, she had seen this man betrayed, angered, hurt, and the storm those emotions had summoned were not pretty. They were very ugly and dangerous and if Mal was caught up in one such as that... well, she just hoped her vortex manipulator didn't feel like malfunctioning any time soon.

Mal's sudden behavior change lit curiosity inside the Doctor. It nearly became amusement. He began to step cautiously towards the TARDIS. The hologram was coming into view again. He winced at the familiarity. It reminded him of Amelia Pond because it was Amelia Pond. The little girl stood there, her eyes narrowed at the Doctor. He glanced quickly at Mal before taking two large steps towards the wooden doors.

Then came the new problem: finding the key. He patted the pockets of his pants, finding them seemingly emptied. They used to contain so many things, now they held nothing. He poked at the pockets on his vest, nothing was there either. He stood silently for a moment longer, expecting something to happen when he knew it wouldn't. Until the door began to shift on it's own. The Amelia hologram stood near his side, staring up at him with a fraction of a smile. Even for a hologram, it seemed forced.

Quick enough, the doors to the TARDIS pushed open. The key was no longer needed. The Doctor leaped in, not waiting to see if Mal would follow. He knew she would. And he should trust her, shouldn't he? They had a history. They had some stories to tell, but he couldn't shake the uneasy feeling. He didn't want someone with him for the reunion with his box. He wanted to be alone. That's new.

The Doctor wandered towards the console, the shadows of the structure falling over his face. He scratched his cheek. Levers and lights came to attention once the Doctor's presence was clarified. This was the man the box had waited so long for. The TARDIS let the right one in. A few groans emanated from the time rotor. "Yes, fine. Keep an eye on her." He muttered under his breath, clearly referring to Mal and hoping she hadn't heard. It wasn't to keep her safe. It was to keep his curiosity and alarm fed. With the TARDIS watching her, the Doctor felt calm enough to take the time to change. He rushed out of the controls room, down a long corridor, and into a room you wouldn't be able to find unless you knew it was there.

When the hologram appeared, Mal furrowed her brows. What in god's name was that? She faintly recalled the voice interface option but figured it only worked in the TARDIS' interior. But it was no concern of hers, really. Mal wasn't started or threatened by just a mere image and instead watched as the Doctor rummaged for the key. Of course he wouldn't have it, or his screwdriver, he had been in prison for a long time. One of the first things the Judoon do is strip you clean and do a thorough frisking. It was beyond interesting where some species kept what where.

Shaking her head to clear the wondering thoughts, she gave a small tilt to her head as the TARDIS opened its doors for the Time Lord. Did it recognize him? She didn't think she ever saw the TARDIS simply open her doors for anyone, including her thieving pilot. Mal shrugged and walked in, shutting the door behind her and looking around the interior. This version of the TARDIS was loads different from the ninth and tenth's. It made it hard to gage what was what, where this was and that. The diagrams and information she had available on this complicated ship was calibrated to the older interior. This would be frustrating to figure out...

Mal tilted her head upwards as the Doctor muttered a few words to the console, causing her to squint in concentration. She couldn't pick up the words but it didn't matter, she was too relieved he was leaving her alone. It was easier to make observations when you weren't too busy trying to be subtle. As soon as he was out of site, Mal approached the console and brushed her hands over the levers and buttons, trying to pinpoint what did what but finding that near impossible. Reaching into the depths of her jacket she retrieved a notepad and pencil, flipped open a page, and began to sketch. It was crude and only captured the general shape of it but soon she was slipping it back in her pocket.

"Damn it all.." She hissed under her breath, eyes flickering over the control room as she searched for any telltale sign of the coral. Oh well, she would squeeze that information out of the Doctor soon enough. Opting to look laid back, Mal flopped on the jumper seat and awaited his return. While she plotted her choice of words she also thought of questions to ask and try and find out why the Doctor was here.

The Doctor had given himself the privilege of wandering the racks. He already had a jacket hanging over his shoulder, a crisp new shirt on, and a fresh vest already buttoned. He pulled the coat on and went to get pants. Once he had those and shoes, he gave himself quite some time to search for a bow tie. It took longer than anything else had.

When he was fresh and clean, the Doctor slowly made his way back to the console room. He knew he had to go back in and he knew he could question things he hadn't thought twice about. Like the hologram outside the TARDIS doors, as well as the doors opening only by recognition. He didn't like the idea of it. And the controls room was all too quiet. He stood in the entrance to the corridor, intently watching Mal as she flopped down on one of the chairs. Did she expect him to give answers? Explain why he was on this planet to begin with? He didn't have those answers, not yet. And it wasn't something he had the means to reflect on, even it the memories were accessible. So he walked to the console silently, tapping at a lever, but not pushing it up or down. It stayed where it was.

The Doctor twisted his wrists around themselves. He avoided looking in Mal's direction. There wasn't anything to be said, though he knew what he wanted to say. And he knew that he wouldn't. Instead, he kept his eyes transfixed on the console. It felt familiar under his fingers, but all the same hated being there. The cell was slowly becoming comforting. This was what the hologram attempted to accuse the cell of: a safe illusion. He loathed it by the end of his thoughts.

He ran a finger over the side of the monitor. It roared to attention as he turned to look at Mal finally. He leaned up against the console, absentmindedly straightening his bow tie. He cleared his throat. "Ah. Okay. Mal," he muttered softly, crossing his arms as his eyes roamed away from her to focus on just about everything else beside her.

Mal heard the tap of boots meeting metal and looked up to watch the Doctor walk towards the console. If she had to admit anything it was that the man cleaned up nice. The only indication he was unkept for so long was the heavy look in and under his eyes. Well, it wasn't like she hadn't seen that look before in his very eyes. He was a very haunted man but that would make tearing him down easier. Though now was not the time. Now was the time to be his pleasant little companion who was here to help and get some form of education. Tangent... another tangent. She really had to keep on track when the time called for it.

"Doctor?" Her innocent answer came out as he finally faced her. What was on his mind? It was curious. Mal's hazel eyes drilled into him though he couldn't seem to make eye contact. That wasn't like him at all. Something was definitely plaguing the Time Lord and it may not even be consciously known what it is. "Do you even remember why you were here? This planet? And why the heck is your TARDIS acting the way it is? Normally you need a key or a snap of your fingers. And that hologram... who or what was that? Sorry, you just look a bit vacant.."