The GateWorld Cantina Chronicles

[susanne]

Elle woke some time later on a strange bed, in a darkened room. The sheets were scratchy and unfamiliar, the shadows cast strange and disturbing shadows. Her body felt numb, perhaps it wasnt the scratchiness of the sheets that were making her uncomfortable...all her limbs seemed to have gone numb. Pins and needles snaked across her legs and arms as she lay in the dark trying to get her head into order.

What had happened? There...was.....there was....

the crash of steel as it buckled, the alarm wailing in her ear and the cold.....it was so cold....

"That double crossing cow...."

"Once Mapp wakes he can dismiss you...."

The fragment of conversation seeped through the drugs and finally registered with Elle, setting her mind on fire. Dismess her? like a servant? Not frakking likely! She thought vehemently. Im a wanted criminal now, i cant go anywhere near the Triangle. He owes me....

She remembered now. And her anger boiled away the pain of the numbness. She had tricked her. and insulted her. This....means war.

Elle slowly lifted her head, it took effort and concentration. She'd certainly dosed her up good and proper, whatever she'd fed her.

Slowly, and with some pain she sat up. Her head span, making the shadows dance. I'll get her for this.....oh yes....

[lordofseas]

Benson and Los walked through the gate, after giving orders to get the senators to another planet.

The captain hurried up. "Sirs. I will take you to the meeting spot." He said and started off, Benson and Los followed.

Los began to question him. "Have they said anything?"

"no, sir." The Captain replied "Only that they want to speak with you two. I had men try to question them but they refused to say a word to anyone but you."

"did they at least give names?" Benson spoke up.

"One did, sir. His name was Tael. He claimed to be the leader." The Captain responded.

Los walked among the ruins of the city. Broken pieces of glass and metal reflected light, giving an ethereal ambiance to the carnage. Ahead, ranks of soldiers were standing around a small, flat building. The prison? Los thought. Benson, along with their escort of only four soldiers, excluding the captain, followed. The ranks of the soldiers guarding the prison moved aside, making a small passage to the door. They walked, single file, into the box. The Captain spoke.

"The man, Tael, said he would be in the Warden's office." he said, walking towards the door at the end of the hallway. "They are keeping a few of our men prisoner, along with some civilians. We can't go in, he just asked to meet with you two."

Los nodded thanks for the information. Benson walked up to the door, while Los belted his Ion pistol, and shifting his backpack to his side.

Benson opened the door. Inside, someone sat in a chair, chair facing the window, so Los couldn't see their face. Two guards stood at the side of the chair. The person, presumably Tael, waved a long hand at them. They left, staring down Benson, and attempting to stare down Los as they left. Los snorted, then moved to take the chair at the desk. The chair turned around, and Los jumped up, startled. Benson moved back defensively at the sound of Los' hands slapping the desk.

"YOU?!" Los roared.

(AR/Greg)

[Admiral Mappalazarou]

Every last one of her muscles ached as if they’d each been pulled and pulled at tirelessly by her captors. She slipped off the bed blearily, and thumped softly down on the timber flooring. A lamp showered a hazy glow from above and immediately seized her interest, and so she looked up. A window shaped artistically in the form of a pyramid edged up out of the predominantly even wooden ceiling with four small and perfect sides of thick glass, holding back the cold.

A moon glared down like a nosy giant through a gap of a thin lavender whirl of clouds under the black night, but it wasn’t the moon she remembered. It was white, craterless and newly formed. She thought about how the lifeless seeds of rocks and debris must have gotten caught up in the planet’s celestial pull for centuries, before flowing in a shared stream of distant orbit, gradually warming to each other’s loving gravity, ultimately joining together, and even though they had each come from different parts of the universe they were able to form into a perfect skull-like globe.

But it wasn’t hers. When she had first stepped into the humid night shine of City 001, back on Earth, she had looked up to the sky and saw the moon for the first time. Scars ran over its surface, deep black gashes and wounds of rock and dust. She remembered thinking how only some of them were ancient, as most had been inflicted by the forces of the Empress of her Triangle of the Light, back when the moon hid the last rebel colony led by an anonymous wraith queen. Midna’s moon was essentially an infant moon. It hadn’t been exposed to the terrors of the universe yet, and for some reason it glittered a ray of hope over her. The kind that beckoned that a new beginning was never totally out of reach.

‘Who is he?’ demanded her captor, who was leaning by the frame of the door unexpectedly. Elle glanced down without showing her surprise.

‘He’s Mapp.’

‘Really?’ She said, annoyed.

‘...Yes.’ Elle sighed ‘I’ve seen into his head. It’s him.’

‘And how did you do that? Tell me everything,’ she continued, obviously infuriated by something.

Elle muttered something under her breath as she climbed back onto her bed and sat there, feeling her vision and mind finally melt back into focus.

‘He crash landed into the residential block in City 001 and killed many, many people in the process. I crawled into the wreckage during the panic and found him lying in there, hurt from the impact and alive. He begged me to hide him so I did, I took him to a friend of mine’s for a few days until he finally woke up and we had a little chat, and then we decided to break into the Stargate command centre, dial Midna and here we are...’

She described in a tone that was similar to a student explaining something obvious to an arrogant and senseless teacher.

That explains his underlying wounds, CJ thought.

‘So the Cantina’s on Earth. It would’ve gone into hiding I suspect, away from the forces of the empire. But Mapp, he’s human,’ she said almost tastelessly and sucked in a deep breath, now reflecting on what had happened today.

‘...You don’t like humans much, do you?’

‘You don’t get it.’

‘No, I don’t,’ confessed Elle ‘there’s a lot I don’t get. Even when I saw those images after I touched his hand...’

He opened his mind to her?! How come I never got any visions when I held his hand downstairs...?

‘And what did you see?’ CJ asked, ignoring her own emotionally paranoid thoughts.

‘I’m not telling you.’

The Soul Reaper raised her eyebrows and just stared.

‘You already know that what I saw was enough to make me hide him safely away, and enough for me to blindly trust him when he said Midna had a Stargate, even if it wasn’t officially in the imperial records.’ Elle kept her ground ‘I want to talk to him when he wakes up.’

‘Yeah, just about everyone on the colony wants to talk to him when he wakes up,’ she clarified ‘You don’t realise how important he is, do you?’

‘If I didn’t, I would never have saved his life. I know that there are things locked away in his head that link to my own past, the kind of things I never could find the answers or explanations for. Mapp knows.’ Elle replied, somewhat coldly.

‘So that’s what you saw then? I knew it. Just another human who wants to skive off his and our strengths...’ CJ moaned ‘So tell me, when you chatted what did he say?’

‘I’ll tell you when he wakes up.’

‘He may not wake up, and I need to know!’ she raised her voice.

Elle remained calm, but found that the idea of her new friend slipping away so shortly after their first meeting gave her mixed feelings. It was good because it meant that she could probably return to Earth as a refugee again and stage her social return, but it was bad because it meant that this bigger scheme of events that she had suddenly become a part of would almost certainly fade away. Mapp, whoever he truly was, was at the centre of this group and this colony and CJ’s mind...He was so important to them.

She felt it then, something deep inside, like a valve of her heart and suddenly turned and was beating for someone other than herself. She was, for some reason, completely concerned about his health, and his state, and his location, how comfortable he was, what he was thinking about, who he was thinking about...

‘...How’s he doing?’ She requested, failing to hide the sudden anxiety in her eyes. CJ recognised it vaguely.

‘He’s human...Human’s give into trauma a lot easier than most other life forms in the universe. My medic is doing her best.’

‘Wait, stop. You keep...You keep saying he’s human, like he’s diseased or something. If you knew him before he crashed, then why is his humanity suddenly so difficult for you to acknowledge?’ Elle bawled, and watched CJ’s stare become less intimidating and much more astonished. Her eyes said everything.

‘...You really don’t know...Do you?’ CJ whispered very slowly, without blinking or sparing a glance elsewhere. It wasn’t patronising. It was pure shock ‘Tell me, what do the words Time Lord mean to you?’

Elle thought, and then shrugged. It sounded made-up. CJ finally blinked, utterly bewildered. After a moment, she simply slipped away into the shadows of the outside hallway and headed back to the medlab for another sleepless night. The doors slid shut silently, and Elle rolled herself up under the thin sheets.

This place is like a frakkin’ dojo...

[Commander Jumper]

Spoiler:

Every last one of her muscles ached as if they’d each been pulled and pulled at tirelessly by her captors. She slipped off the bed blearily, and thumped softly down on the timber flooring. A lamp showered a hazy glow from above and immediately seized her interest, and so she looked up. A window shaped artistically in the form of a pyramid edged up out of the predominantly even wooden ceiling with four small and perfect sides of thick glass, holding back the cold.

A moon glared down like a nosy giant through a gap of a thin lavender whirl of clouds under the black night, but it wasn’t the moon she remembered. It was white, craterless and newly formed. She thought about how the lifeless seeds of rocks and debris must have gotten caught up in the planet’s celestial pull for centuries, before flowing in a shared stream of distant orbit, gradually warming to each other’s loving gravity, ultimately joining together, and even though they had each come from different parts of the universe they were able to form into a perfect skull-like globe.

But it wasn’t hers. When she had first stepped into the humid night shine of City 001, back on Earth, she had looked up to the sky and saw the moon for the first time. Scars ran over its surface, deep black gashes and wounds of rock and dust. She remembered thinking how only some of them were ancient, as most had been inflicted by the forces of the Empress of her Triangle of the Light, back when the moon hid the last rebel colony led by an anonymous wraith queen. Midna’s moon was essentially an infant moon. It hadn’t been exposed to the terrors of the universe yet, and for some reason it glittered a ray of hope over her. The kind that beckoned that a new beginning was never totally out of reach.

‘Who is he?’ demanded her captor, who was leaning by the frame of the door unexpectedly. Elle glanced down without showing her surprise.

‘He’s Mapp.’

‘Really?’ She said, annoyed.

‘...Yes.’ Elle sighed ‘I’ve seen into his head. It’s him.’

‘And how did you do that? Tell me everything,’ she continued, obviously infuriated by something.

Elle muttered something under her breath as she climbed back onto her bed and sat there, feeling her vision and mind finally melt back into focus.

‘He crash landed into the residential block in City 001 and killed many, many people in the process. I crawled into the wreckage during the panic and found him lying in there, hurt from the impact and alive. He begged me to hide him so I did, I took him to a friend of mine’s for a few days until he finally woke up and we had a little chat, and then we decided to break into the Stargate command centre, dial Midna and here we are...’

She described in a tone that was similar to a student explaining something obvious to an arrogant and senseless teacher.

That explains his underlying wounds, CJ thought.

‘So the Cantina’s on Earth. It would’ve gone into hiding I suspect, away from the forces of the empire. But Mapp, he’s human,’ she said almost tastelessly and sucked in a deep breath, now reflecting on what had happened today.

‘...You don’t like humans much, do you?’

‘You don’t get it.’

‘No, I don’t,’ confessed Elle ‘there’s a lot I don’t get. Even when I saw those images after I touched his hand...’

He opened his mind to her?! How come I never got any visions when I held his hand downstairs...?

‘And what did you see?’ CJ asked, ignoring her own emotionally paranoid thoughts.

‘I’m not telling you.’

The Soul Reaper raised her eyebrows and just stared.

‘You already know that what I saw was enough to make me hide him safely away, and enough for me to blindly trust him when he said Midna had a Stargate, even if it wasn’t officially in the imperial records.’ Elle kept her ground ‘I want to talk to him when he wakes up.’

‘Yeah, just about everyone on the colony wants to talk to him when he wakes up,’ she clarified ‘You don’t realise how important he is, do you?’

‘If I didn’t, I would never have saved his life. I know that there are things locked away in his head that link to my own past, the kind of things I never could find the answers or explanations for. Mapp knows.’ Elle replied, somewhat coldly.

‘So that’s what you saw then? I knew it. Just another human who wants to skive off his and our strengths...’ CJ moaned ‘So tell me, when you chatted what did he say?’

‘I’ll tell you when he wakes up.’

‘He may not wake up, and I need to know!’ she raised her voice.

Elle remained calm, but found that the idea of her new friend slipping away so shortly after their first meeting gave her mixed feelings. It was good because it meant that she could probably return to Earth as a refugee again and stage her social return, but it was bad because it meant that this bigger scheme of events that she had suddenly become a part of would almost certainly fade away. Mapp, whoever he truly was, was at the centre of this group and this colony and CJ’s mind...He was so important to them.

She felt it then, something deep inside, like a valve of her heart and suddenly turned and was beating for someone other than herself. She was, for some reason, completely concerned about his health, and his state, and his location, how comfortable he was, what he was thinking about, who he was thinking about...

‘...How’s he doing?’ She requested, failing to hide the sudden anxiety in her eyes. CJ recognised it vaguely.

‘He’s human...Human’s give into trauma a lot easier than most other life forms in the universe. My medic is doing her best.’

‘Wait, stop. You keep...You keep saying he’s human, like he’s diseased or something. If you knew him before he crashed, then why is his humanity suddenly so difficult for you to acknowledge?’ Elle bawled, and watched CJ’s stare become less intimidating and much more astonished. Her eyes said everything.

‘...You really don’t know...Do you?’ CJ whispered very slowly, without blinking or sparing a glance elsewhere. It wasn’t patronising. It was pure shock ‘Tell me, what do the words Time Lord mean to you?’

Elle thought, and then shrugged. It sounded made-up. CJ finally blinked, utterly bewildered. After a moment, she simply slipped away into the shadows of the outside hallway and headed back to the medlab for another sleepless night. The doors slid shut silently, and Elle rolled herself up under the thin sheets.

This place is like a frakkin’ dojo...

Frail moonlight slithered its way through the worn curtains of CJ's establishment. It was late at night and already CJ was starting to feel the effects of no sleep riding on her shoulders. The only thing she could hear was the sound of her own bare feet against the tiled floor of the medlab. Silently the sound of one heart beating on the monitor grew louder the closer she got, a reminder that something was different. Something she's have to learn to cope with.

For some reason her dearest and most trusted friend was now human.

She took a deep breath and sat down beside him, taking his hand in hers and watching him breath in and out slowly. Her eyes scanned over his body, bandages cascaded up his form. She was amazed that he had even survived the hit. Most normal humans would have died instantly, or would have bled to death in the time it took CJ to get to him and for the transport to get him to the Medlab.

"You're lucky Midna is a fraking ice planet Mapp, other wise you would have drown in your own blood." CJ muttered, a slight laugh in her voice. A twinge of melancholy took over her heart, this was not the reunion she had wanted. She had hoped for him to come sailing on on the Cantina, step off the ship and welcome everyone with a sarcastic comment or something wildly egotistical. "You just have to make everything complicated. Its never easy with you."

He stirred slightly in his sleep, causing CJ to jump slightly. She peered past the bed to the monitor. Vitals were still stable. She sighed with relief and relaxed in the chair, letting the events of the day get to her. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, escaping to her thoughts.

"I don't want you to die." She whispered to herself. "You're all I have left in this universe."

A tear slid down her cheek and rolled down her neck. All she could think about was what the two had been through together.

She had taken up the sword for him on many occasions and he had saved her just as often. They saw the world burn so many times together. Risked everything for the safety of those who would never know they're sacrifice. Then she grew ill and withered and he once again stepped in to save her from the horrors of the universe, something she was very used to by then. Then she slept and he disappeared. She woke up and he was the only one she remembered. She sought him out and it wasn't until the war had ended and she had regained her memories that she was reunited with her only remaining friend.

In the end, they were the only remnants of a family. The last two survivors of a deadly rift that tore their once happy family apart. Everyone had changed. He had changed, and by extension so had she.

He had changed her.

She didn't want to lose him, not now. Not after everything they'd been through.

Her heart pounded painfully in her chest, the noise stirring her from her thoughts. She sat up and gripped his hand more firmly. "Please wake up Mapp. This world needs you. I need you. Human or not I know you'll be the same man you once were."

Silence echoed through the room, only the sound of the machines. She smiled sadly and brushed hair from his face. "I don't want to lose you again."

[susanne]

Spoiler:

Every last one of her muscles ached as if they’d each been pulled and pulled at tirelessly by her captors. She slipped off the bed blearily, and thumped softly down on the timber flooring. A lamp showered a hazy glow from above and immediately seized her interest, and so she looked up. A window shaped artistically in the form of a pyramid edged up out of the predominantly even wooden ceiling with four small and perfect sides of thick glass, holding back the cold.

A moon glared down like a nosy giant through a gap of a thin lavender whirl of clouds under the black night, but it wasn’t the moon she remembered. It was white, craterless and newly formed. She thought about how the lifeless seeds of rocks and debris must have gotten caught up in the planet’s celestial pull for centuries, before flowing in a shared stream of distant orbit, gradually warming to each other’s loving gravity, ultimately joining together, and even though they had each come from different parts of the universe they were able to form into a perfect skull-like globe.

But it wasn’t hers. When she had first stepped into the humid night shine of City 001, back on Earth, she had looked up to the sky and saw the moon for the first time. Scars ran over its surface, deep black gashes and wounds of rock and dust. She remembered thinking how only some of them were ancient, as most had been inflicted by the forces of the Empress of her Triangle of the Light, back when the moon hid the last rebel colony led by an anonymous wraith queen. Midna’s moon was essentially an infant moon. It hadn’t been exposed to the terrors of the universe yet, and for some reason it glittered a ray of hope over her. The kind that beckoned that a new beginning was never totally out of reach.

‘Who is he?’ demanded her captor, who was leaning by the frame of the door unexpectedly. Elle glanced down without showing her surprise.

‘He’s Mapp.’

‘Really?’ She said, annoyed.

‘...Yes.’ Elle sighed ‘I’ve seen into his head. It’s him.’

‘And how did you do that? Tell me everything,’ she continued, obviously infuriated by something.

Elle muttered something under her breath as she climbed back onto her bed and sat there, feeling her vision and mind finally melt back into focus.

‘He crash landed into the residential block in City 001 and killed many, many people in the process. I crawled into the wreckage during the panic and found him lying in there, hurt from the impact and alive. He begged me to hide him so I did, I took him to a friend of mine’s for a few days until he finally woke up and we had a little chat, and then we decided to break into the Stargate command centre, dial Midna and here we are...’

She described in a tone that was similar to a student explaining something obvious to an arrogant and senseless teacher.

That explains his underlying wounds, CJ thought.

‘So the Cantina’s on Earth. It would’ve gone into hiding I suspect, away from the forces of the empire. But Mapp, he’s human,’ she said almost tastelessly and sucked in a deep breath, now reflecting on what had happened today.

‘...You don’t like humans much, do you?’

‘You don’t get it.’

‘No, I don’t,’ confessed Elle ‘there’s a lot I don’t get. Even when I saw those images after I touched his hand...’

He opened his mind to her?! How come I never got any visions when I held his hand downstairs...?

‘And what did you see?’ CJ asked, ignoring her own emotionally paranoid thoughts.

‘I’m not telling you.’

The Soul Reaper raised her eyebrows and just stared.

‘You already know that what I saw was enough to make me hide him safely away, and enough for me to blindly trust him when he said Midna had a Stargate, even if it wasn’t officially in the imperial records.’ Elle kept her ground ‘I want to talk to him when he wakes up.’

‘Yeah, just about everyone on the colony wants to talk to him when he wakes up,’ she clarified ‘You don’t realise how important he is, do you?’

‘If I didn’t, I would never have saved his life. I know that there are things locked away in his head that link to my own past, the kind of things I never could find the answers or explanations for. Mapp knows.’ Elle replied, somewhat coldly.

‘So that’s what you saw then? I knew it. Just another human who wants to skive off his and our strengths...’ CJ moaned ‘So tell me, when you chatted what did he say?’

‘I’ll tell you when he wakes up.’

‘He may not wake up, and I need to know!’ she raised her voice.

Elle remained calm, but found that the idea of her new friend slipping away so shortly after their first meeting gave her mixed feelings. It was good because it meant that she could probably return to Earth as a refugee again and stage her social return, but it was bad because it meant that this bigger scheme of events that she had suddenly become a part of would almost certainly fade away. Mapp, whoever he truly was, was at the centre of this group and this colony and CJ’s mind...He was so important to them.

She felt it then, something deep inside, like a valve of her heart and suddenly turned and was beating for someone other than herself. She was, for some reason, completely concerned about his health, and his state, and his location, how comfortable he was, what he was thinking about, who he was thinking about...

‘...How’s he doing?’ She requested, failing to hide the sudden anxiety in her eyes. CJ recognised it vaguely.

‘He’s human...Human’s give into trauma a lot easier than most other life forms in the universe. My medic is doing her best.’

‘Wait, stop. You keep...You keep saying he’s human, like he’s diseased or something. If you knew him before he crashed, then why is his humanity suddenly so difficult for you to acknowledge?’ Elle bawled, and watched CJ’s stare become less intimidating and much more astonished. Her eyes said everything.

‘...You really don’t know...Do you?’ CJ whispered very slowly, without blinking or sparing a glance elsewhere. It wasn’t patronising. It was pure shock ‘Tell me, what do the words Time Lord mean to you?’

Elle thought, and then shrugged. It sounded made-up. CJ finally blinked, utterly bewildered. After a moment, she simply slipped away into the shadows of the outside hallway and headed back to the medlab for another sleepless night. The doors slid shut silently, and Elle rolled herself up under the thin sheets.

This place is like a frakkin’ dojo...

An hour or so later the effects of the drug in her system had almost completely left her body. Elle was ready for action. Revenge was still deep in her mind, but first and formost was Mapp. She needed to know he was being well cared for, she needed to know how serious his wounds were....

A hand....extending from burning rubble, a dark and mysterious voice... "Help me...."

how long ago that had seemed now. was it only yesterday?

It was time for action. She sat up and moved stealthily towards the door, carefully opening it. The man leaning against the wall took an instant start to the creaking door and Elle scowled.

"Yeah?"

"I want to see CJ."

"She's busy."

"Then i want to be taken to Mapp."

"No."

"Then get me CJ!"

She slammed the door shut, angry at CJ for confining her stay and angry at herself for thinking she'd recieve such a warm reception with their hero.

[Commander Jumper]

Spoiler:

An hour or so later the effects of the drug in her system had almost completely left her body. Elle was ready for action. Revenge was still deep in her mind, but first and formost was Mapp. She needed to know he was being well cared for, she needed to know how serious his wounds were....

A hand....extending from burning rubble, a dark and mysterious voice... "Help me...."

how long ago that had seemed now. was it only yesterday?

It was time for action. She sat up and moved stealthily towards the door, carefully opening it. The man leaning against the wall took an instant start to the creaking door and Elle scowled.

"Yeah?"

"I want to see CJ."

"She's busy."

"Then i want to be taken to Mapp."

"No."

"Then get me CJ!"

She slammed the door shut, angry at CJ for confining her stay and angry at herself for thinking she'd recieve such a warm reception with their hero.

"CJ" a voice trickled into her mind from the blackness. "CJ?" slowly she slid her eyes open to find Ben kneeling before her, concern written on his face. CJ sat up, blinking her eyes into focus. She yawned tiredly and looked at Ben.

"Sorry.." She mumbled. "I must have dozed off." Her eyes turned over to her sleeping friend, his breathing remaining steady no other movements coming from his body aside from the occasional twitch. A strange feeling took her over as she looked at his face. Her heart sped up and something relentlessly tore at her stomach. A feeling she hadn't felt this strong in centuries. She stared in awe at her dearest friend, someone she had sworn on her life to protect. She couldn't bring herself to tear her gaze from him.

"CJ?" Ben questioned, noticing that she had gone into a world all her own.

CJ jumped. She cleared her throat and tried to contain the blush on her face. "Yes?"

"Elle wishes to speak with you." Ben stated, getting to his feet.

CJ sighed. "What does the child want now?"

Ben looked at CJ oddly and shrugged. "She just wants to speak with you. Something concerning Mapp."

CJ stood briskly, ignoring Ben's extended hand. "Get WP in here to check on his wounds." She ran her hand over her tired face. "Tell Jacen to fix a pot of tea and bring it to Elle's room. Lord knows I'll need all the energy I can get to deal with her."

Ben nodded and walked out of the medlab feeling like something akin to a slave.

CJ sighed and looked over to Mapp once more. "I can't believe it really." She muttered, hanging her head. "Swore to myself I'd never let it happen again. But every time...." She couldn't finish the sentence on her tongue, she wiped at her eyes and smiled at her friend. "Good night." She took one more moment to stare and then turned her back reluctantly. "Now to see what that troublesome kid wants."

[susanne]

Spoiler:

"CJ" a voice trickled into her mind from the blackness. "CJ?" slowly she slid her eyes open to find Ben kneeling before her, concern written on his face. CJ sat up, blinking her eyes into focus. She yawned tiredly and looked at Ben.

"Sorry.." She mumbled. "I must have dozed off." Her eyes turned over to her sleeping friend, his breathing remaining steady no other movements coming from his body aside from the occasional twitch. A strange feeling took her over as she looked at his face. Her heart sped up and something relentlessly tore at her stomach. A feeling she hadn't felt this strong in centuries. She stared in awe at her dearest friend, someone she had sworn on her life to protect. She couldn't bring herself to tear her gaze from him.

"CJ?" Ben questioned, noticing that she had gone into a world all her own.

CJ jumped. She cleared her throat and tried to contain the blush on her face. "Yes?"

"Elle wishes to speak with you." Ben stated, getting to his feet.

CJ sighed. "What does the child want now?"

Ben looked at CJ oddly and shrugged. "She just wants to speak with you. Something concerning Mapp."

CJ stood briskly, ignoring Ben's extended hand. "Get WP in here to check on his wounds." She ran her hand over her tired face. "Tell Jacen to fix a pot of tea and bring it to Elle's room. Lord knows I'll need all the energy I can get to deal with her."

Ben nodded and walked out of the medlab feeling like something akin to a slave.

CJ sighed and looked over to Mapp once more. "I can't believe it really." She muttered, hanging her head. "Swore to myself I'd never let it happen again. But every time...." She couldn't finish the sentence on her tongue, she wiped at her eyes and smiled at her friend. "Good night." She took one more moment to stare and then turned her back reluctantly. "Now to see what that troublesome kid wants."

CJ entered Elle's room to find her sitting on the bed, glaring at the door with her arms folded. The girl had obviously put two and two together. This could get pretty intense, which is what CJ wasnt really feeling up to right now.

---

While waiting for her demands to be met, Elle had some time to think. She wanted to get to Mapp, and make sure he was alright. She didnt know who these people were, what their goals were or how they planned to get to them. Mapp didnt feel evil....but did he have to be? CJ could be feeding her crew any instructions that Mapp supposedly wants them to do.Should she get involved in this? Yes. Mapp was in no state to escape the crazy lady. There'd be a certain amount of acting involved.

"What?"

Oooooh offensive... "Alright, ive had some down time. Fun trick with the tea by the way, i had a whale of a time being off my head."

CJ smirked at her, as if on command there was a knock at the door, someone else with....joy of joys....more tea. Elle watched the tray warily. What kind of horrors had she planted in the scones? What kind of corrosive was in the milk? Arsnic cyanide in the sugar?

"Thank you. Tea?"

"No."

CJ smirked and poured herself a cup, taking a scone from the top of the pile.

"So why am i here?"

"I want to talk about staying."

Cj choked on her tea before bursting into laughter.

"Is that what this is about? Save your breath."

"I have talents. Im an engineer."

Cj waved her half-bitten scone and sat down on the bare desk chair.

"I have all the engineers i need."

Elles heart sank some, but she rallied.

"I've had a taste of freedom. I dont want to go back. Dont you remember your first encounter with this guy?"

[Commander Jumper]

Spoiler:

CJ entered Elle's room to find her sitting on the bed, glaring at the door with her arms folded. The girl had obviously put two and two together. This could get pretty intense, which is what CJ wasnt really feeling up to right now.

---

While waiting for her demands to be met, Elle had some time to think. She wanted to get to Mapp, and make sure he was alright. She didnt know who these people were, what their goals were or how they planned to get to them. Mapp didnt feel evil....but did he have to be? CJ could be feeding her crew any instructions that Mapp supposedly wants them to do.Should she get involved in this? Yes. Mapp was in no state to escape the crazy lady. There'd be a certain amount of acting involved.

"What?"

Oooooh offensive... "Alright, ive had some down time. Fun trick with the tea by the way, i had a whale of a time being off my head."

CJ smirked at her, as if on command there was a knock at the door, someone else with....joy of joys....more tea. Elle watched the tray warily. What kind of horrors had she planted in the scones? What kind of corrosive was in the milk? Arsnic cyanide in the sugar?

"Thank you. Tea?"

"No."

CJ smirked and poured herself a cup, taking a scone from the top of the pile.

"So why am i here?"

"I want to talk about staying."

Cj choked on her tea before bursting into laughter.

"Is that what this is about? Save your breath."

"I have talents. Im an engineer."

Cj waved her half-bitten scone and sat down on the bare desk chair.

"I have all the engineers i need."

Elles heart sank some, but she rallied.

"I've had a taste of freedom. I dont want to go back. Dont you remember your first encounter with this guy?"

CJ leant back in the chair, a look of nostalgia taking over her face as her mind drew the memory to the surface. She smiled gently, remembering the feel of his hand in hers as he asked her to join him. "God..." she muttered, caressing her palm, remembering the key he placed there all that time ago. "had to have been more than half a century ago."

Elle look baffeled.

"I had been in the realm of the living for centuries running from my past. One day he just showed up and I didn't have to be a fugitive anymore, didn't have to run. He took me away from that life. Reinvented me." CJ smiled, her heart pounding as all the memories rushed back. Some she hadn't even recovered till that moment.

"What if someone had tried to take that chance from you?" Elle asked, trying to get her message across.

CJ glared. "I've been around far too long to fall for a trick like that."

"Well you certainly aren't giving me many options Granny so what else can I do!?!" Elle yelled, growing frustrated with CJ.

CJ sighed wearily trying to work out what to do, what Mapp would do. She looked at Elle, her face very serious. "Here's what I'll do. WP is going to be looking after Mapp.... I won't have a barmaid for a while.... I can't afford to keep this place shut down while he recovers. Till he recovers I'll keep you as a barmaid... when he recovers... it'll be up to him whether or not we keep you. What do you say little girl?"

[susanne]

Spoiler:

CJ leant back in the chair, a look of nostalgia taking over her face as her mind drew the memory to the surface. She smiled gently, remembering the feel of his hand in hers as he asked her to join him. "God..." she muttered, caressing her palm, remembering the key he placed there all that time ago. "had to have been more than half a century ago."

Elle look baffeled.

"I had been in the realm of the living for centuries running from my past. One day he just showed up and I didn't have to be a fugitive anymore, didn't have to run. He took me away from that life. Reinvented me." CJ smiled, her heart pounding as all the memories rushed back. Some she hadn't even recovered till that moment.

"What if someone had tried to take that chance from you?" Elle asked, trying to get her message across.

CJ glared. "I've been around far too long to fall for a trick like that."

"Well you certainly aren't giving me many options Granny so what else can I do!?!" Elle yelled, growing frustrated with CJ.

CJ sighed wearily trying to work out what to do, what Mapp would do. She looked at Elle, her face very serious. "Here's what I'll do. WP is going to be looking after Mapp.... I won't have a barmaid for a while.... I can't afford to keep this place shut down while he recovers. Till he recovers I'll keep you as a barmaid... when he recovers... it'll be up to him whether or not we keep you. What do you say little girl?"

"I'd say im not a little girl."

CJ chuckled to herself, disbelieveing of Elle's gall and cheek.

"But i'll take the job."

How hard could it be? Elle thought to herself. She's not making this oppertunity easy.

"Now i'd like to check on Mapp."

"No."

Elle growled. Why wont she let me see him?

[Admiral Mappalazarou]

The weary flush of the daybreak glittered out across snow planes, over the silver solidity oceans and underlying wastelands, all devoid of anything but the frost. A ghostly wind cried down between the ice caps, howling like a hoary phantom in the arctic sterility of the ancient Midnian landscape. The breeze grew strong, and hurled up towards the clouds as they parted and fled. They only came out at night.

Below, deep within the colony, in the medlab...

WP ran the back of her fingers down her patient’s forehead. His heartbeat had stabilised. His skin was gradually getting warmer. She smiled her victorious smile and yawned, and reclaimed her mug of coffee from the desk side. She leant on the desk, noticed the man twitch a little in his sleep and sipped her morning drink. Not long now, she imagined, he’s gonna be okay.

He shuddered suddenly, and then turned the other way. She recognised what it could mean. He’s gonna break into a spasm! She considered, dropped her coffee and grabbed his wrist. He turned at her, eyes open, blaring, sirens in his head, and flung her back fiercely. She crashed into the desk, smashing through and collapsing. The coffee spilled over her like dark blood, and her muscles stiffened in the shock. Now it was she who was sleeping.

Mapp sat up, tore the needles and patches from his torso and then fell onto the weight of one arm. Everything about him was burning; his body, his mind...He couldn’t speak. That had been lost a night earlier to unwanted drugs which were still coiling through his bloodstream hungrily, burrowing deep into his veins, hiding. He merely gasped and forced himself back into control. The first thing he saw was his unconscious doctor lying a few feet away. He saw the dark spillage over her in the shadows, smelt something fiery and instinctively feared the worst. His limbs shook with anxiety. His head plagued by a senseless vertigo, and absurd flashes.

*hears engines stop and a loud thud as cantina lands somewhere*

I better go see where we've landed....*peers out of door*

He clutched his head, trying to squeeze out the damage and confusion.

Mapp!!1 are you a time lord!!!

That one...That hurt the most.

His head shook ‘NO!’, and he dropped off the bed. His mind saw the past. His eyes saw the door.

Welcome aboard the Cantina, matey. The finest pirate ship in all the land. Though we are currently stranded in space.

He was on his knees. He was crawling, and then climbing up, pushing back against the power of the ages.

Already? *notices cantina barge through Tortuga's harbour* ARRGGHHH!! HOLD ON!

He heaved through the door, breaking it, and lumbered out into a wooden hallway. Then he was crouched and running, running, running...First left, up the stairs, down the hall, voices, voices! AhHA! He clambered into an empty room and peeled the door shut.

Someone...No....Two someones....Two people walked past, oblivious. He sighed, comforted a little, as they disappeared down towards his latest incarceration, away from him. He caught his breath by the wall and let his eyes begin the exploring.

It didn’t take him long to learn that this currently empty cabin belonged to someone, even when his exhausted feet slogged his weight over to a desk of oak, past a broad bed of grey sheets, beside a set of shelves which held strange alien artefacts. His sight channelled its focus, and he felt himself balance quite quicker than he expected. Maybe it was from what he saw...

Photos...All showing the same people, eight or nine of them, sometimes inside a ship, sometimes beside it, most times in a large warehouse of a cargo-hold...Four girls, young. Five guys, some slightly older. The man in the middle he recognised...That man...That man in the brown coat.

....First regeneration...

The other photos showed the eight crewmembers again, but the ninth, the first regeneration had been replaced...the brown coat stayed.

...Looked a little different back then...Older...

That voice in his head...But it wasn’t his voice, nor was it just one voice. It was a series of voices. A series of men, different but the same...He picked up one photo, his hand gripped it tightly, so tightly that the glass started to crack.

Every last one of them.

‘How can they be the same?!’ he said in a soft, drugged-up voice. His eyes clenched shut again as a horde of remembrance battled the remnants of his subconscious. He felt it slip out of his grasp, heard it smash, and slowly looked down over the shards of broken memories...Then he was lightheaded again.

Wait, just a second, another look...Hurry, before your mind conks out again!

He tossed a final glance over the glass, and caught a glimpse of the only crewmember who was unscathed by the fall...

He’s the one.

‘P90...’ he said, realising that he was swaying like a drunk customer at the bar.

And just like a drunk customer at the bar, moments later and he was lying beside the something he just accidentally broke, waiting for the someone to pull him back to reality.

That someone was CJ.

[Commander Jumper]

Spoiler:

The weary flush of the daybreak glittered out across snow planes, over the silver solidity oceans and underlying wastelands, all devoid of anything but the frost. A ghostly wind cried down between the ice caps, howling like a hoary phantom in the arctic sterility of the ancient Midnian landscape. The breeze grew strong, and hurled up towards the clouds as they parted and fled. They only came out at night.

Below, deep within the colony, in the medlab...

WP ran the back of her fingers down her patient’s forehead. His heartbeat had stabilised. His skin was gradually getting warmer. She smiled her victorious smile and yawned, and reclaimed her mug of coffee from the desk side. She leant on the desk, noticed the man twitch a little in his sleep and sipped her morning drink. Not long now, she imagined, he’s gonna be okay.

He shuddered suddenly, and then turned the other way. She recognised what it could mean. He’s gonna break into a spasm! She considered, dropped her coffee and grabbed his wrist. He turned at her, eyes open, blaring, sirens in his head, and flung her back fiercely. She crashed into the desk, smashing through and collapsing. The coffee spilled over her like dark blood, and her muscles stiffened in the shock. Now it was she who was sleeping.

Mapp sat up, tore the needles and patches from his torso and then fell onto the weight of one arm. Everything about him was burning; his body, his mind...He couldn’t speak. That had been lost a night earlier to unwanted drugs which were still coiling through his bloodstream hungrily, burrowing deep into his veins, hiding. He merely gasped and forced himself back into control. The first thing he saw was his unconscious doctor lying a few feet away. He saw the dark spillage over her in the shadows, smelt something fiery and instinctively feared the worst. His limbs shook with anxiety. His head plagued by a senseless vertigo, and absurd flashes.



He clutched his head, trying to squeeze out the damage and confusion.



That one...That hurt the most.

His head shook ‘NO!’, and he dropped off the bed. His mind saw the past. His eyes saw the door.



He was on his knees. He was crawling, and then climbing up, pushing back against the power of the ages.



He heaved through the door, breaking it, and lumbered out into a wooden hallway. Then he was crouched and running, running, running...First left, up the stairs, down the hall, voices, voices! AhHA! He clambered into an empty room and peeled the door shut.

Someone...No....Two someones....Two people walked past, oblivious. He sighed, comforted a little, as they disappeared down towards his latest incarceration, away from him. He caught his breath by the wall and let his eyes begin the exploring.

It didn’t take him long to learn that this currently empty cabin belonged to someone, even when his exhausted feet slogged his weight over to a desk of oak, past a broad bed of grey sheets, beside a set of shelves which held strange alien artefacts. His sight channelled its focus, and he felt himself balance quite quicker than he expected. Maybe it was from what he saw...

Photos...All showing the same people, eight or nine of them, sometimes inside a ship, sometimes beside it, most times in a large warehouse of a cargo-hold...Four girls, young. Five guys, some slightly older. The man in the middle he recognised...That man...That man in the brown coat.

....First regeneration...

The other photos showed the eight crewmembers again, but the ninth, the first regeneration had been replaced...the brown coat stayed.

...Looked a little different back then...Older...

That voice in his head...But it wasn’t his voice, nor was it just one voice. It was a series of voices. A series of men, different but the same...He picked up one photo, his hand gripped it tightly, so tightly that the glass started to crack.

Every last one of them.

‘How can they be the same?!’ he said in a soft, drugged-up voice. His eyes clenched shut again as a horde of remembrance battled the remnants of his subconscious. He felt it slip out of his grasp, heard it smash, and slowly looked down over the shards of broken memories...Then he was lightheaded again.

Wait, just a second, another look...Hurry, before your mind conks out again!

He tossed a final glance over the glass, and caught a glimpse of the only crewmember who was unscathed by the fall...

He’s the one.

‘P90...’ he said, realising that he was swaying like a drunk customer at the bar.

And just like a drunk customer at the bar, moments later and he was lying beside the something he just accidentally broke, waiting for the someone to pull him back to reality.

That someone was CJ.

CJ sighed deeply as she shut the door to Elle's room. she was so tired from the events of the past day. Her eyelids were lazily sliding down as she attempted to navigate the halls back to the medlab. She couldn't sleep when Mapp was just lying there. She wanted to be there when he woke, welcome him with a friendly smile and then promptly beat answers out of him.

She chuckled lightly.

She was pulled from her stupor as the sound of a flat-line echoed through the halls of the medlab. Her heart pounded loudly in her ears as she picked up her drunken pace to a fast trot, her tired eyes not relenting on their hold over here. The doors slid open and CJ was shocked at what she saw. The bed empty and WP lying on the floor unconscious.

She ran over to WP's prone figure and felt for a pulse. "Good... he didn't kill her." CJ muttered, running away from the scene. She pulled the com to her mouth as she began accessing doors down the halls of her establishment. "Jacen, emergency in the Medlab. WP's been hurt."

'Ma'am' Jacen's voice echoed through the empty room she was searching. 'I'll be there promptly.'

CJ left it at that and continued opening doors. "Mapp, always causing problems." She finally made her way to the last room in that hall. She impatiently opened the door and was stunned to find her room wrecked and at the epicentre was Mapp, a picture of the crew lying beside him.

She rushed to his side, pulling him to her lap. "Mapp?"

[Admiral Mappalazarou]

She felt his mystification like a presence floating over her, heard his heart beating for two, and as soon as she touched his hand his secrets exploded open. And when an electric shock sizzled up her arm and into her head, she saw...

‘....Lord Mappalazarou. You have been found guilty on all the charges put forward to you….’

He looked exactly as he did on the day he was summoned; only he was on his knees and invisibly contained. He struggled as expected, but to no avail. The memory was vague; everything else was so hidden by shadow, but not the hand...The hand of metal which hovered over the captain’s head, fuelled by the power of impossible ghosts...

Mapp, he saw it too...

His eyes broadened; having caught its hungry stare from the corner of his eye...He stared up at someone else, someone in front under the shadow, with his silent and pleading gaze, to some kind of speaker. Someone was reading out a quick, merciless testimony and someone else was voicing their decision. He was about to be condemned.

‘....The punishment for these charges is to have your DNA reconfigured to that of a lesser known race, and your mind whipped of all technical knowledge of your TARDIS capsule, while your TARDIS itself will be prevented from travelling through time....’

He closed his eyes and understood as the darkness tipped over him, and something cold and soulless gripped his head. It was pain at a height he had never before experienced...It was like the 50 years of torture by the Chosen shoved into several seconds and more...A level of agony without screaming, a level of agony simply beyond description.

As he fell the entire chamber melted back into wood...

She rocked him, cradled him, traumatised, having felt the pain he felt...Someone had tricked him, killed him and forced him to regenerate so that he would stay hidden and useless to the universe. That was when she knew that he hadn’t just gone missing...Something terrible was approaching, something unlike anything they had ever fought against before.

She slowly reached down, scavenged the remains of the picture and shook the glass away. P90 was the only clear face that remained on it.

‘I wish you were still with us, P90,’ she said, remembering how she had not seen Mapp’s fellow Time Lord for almost 5 years ‘You’d know what to do.’

But she felt it deep inside...P90 was gone, and the rest of her old crew had died so very long ago. She squeezed Mapp tightly as she listened to his breath and his heart. A single tear dropped out and landed on his cheek.

Ben peeled back the door and peered in curiously.

‘CJ?’

‘Something...Something is coming.’

[P-90_177]

"So where are we going?" She asked as she struggled to keep up with P-90's particularly fast gait.

"My new private lab." P-90 explained, "I asked Greg to grant me the use of one of the Academy labs in order for me to work on some research."

"What kind of research?"

"What did I say I was going to teach you last night?"

"How to fight Timelords."

"Precisely......."

As they entered the lab Dray was struck by the sudden change in atmosphere. No longer were they in the pleasantly cool and fresh air of the citadel, instead there was a definate smell of various chemicals and electrical ionisation in the air. It was warmer and dryer, almost like a window hadn't been opened in a long time.

The room was set out much more like that of a scientist than Earths 19th century than of an advanced civilisation of Timelords. The walls were covered with oak panneling, with bookshelves running up the back wall and reaching the ceiling. Various wooden benches were scattered around the room, each with a different piece of antiquated looking science apparatus. The only seemingly advanced piece of equipment in the room was a central console which had all the trappings of a Tardis console, apart from a distinct lack of a coloumn rising out of it, yet even this looked old as it was adourned with even more wooden panels and antiquated switches, valves and dials.

"What do you think?"

"Well it's erm...." Dray began awkwardly, "...Old"

"Old?!" P-90 exclaimed "This is some of the most advanced technology in the entire universe!"

"If you say so......"

The Timelord sighed. It wasn't her fault of course. She simply didn't know. Still this was as good a place to start their lessons as anywhere.

"Ok then........first thing to learn about Timelords then I guess." he started, "This room is merely a image."

he walked over to the cntral console and flipped a number of switches, causing the room to morph all around them and transform into a chamber that Dray had never seen the likes of before. Each bench melted into the metalic form of a advanced computer terminal, and the walls turned into a curved, platinum; while the book cases on the far side remained as they were but in differently styled bookcases. Leaving the central console looking much the same as it did before but with a similar platinum shine as the walls.

"This is what the room really looks like. It is merely a use of matter transfiguration."

"Like the chameleon circuit in a TARDIS?" she asked, as if with some pre-informed knowledge.

"It is similar." he continued, "It disguises the internal structure and creates a tactile environment to go with it. It's the same thing as the inside of a TARDIS as well. But of course this isn't a TARDIS. We use this technology with all our rooms to allow them to be customised as a Timelord sees fit."

"Then why do most of the rooms here look the same?"

"Because at the end of the day Timelords aren't that imaginative." P-90 shrugged, "To gain imagination a person must travel and experience and see new things....Timelords abandoned that a long time ago."

"Because of the Timewar?"

"No.....I wish that were the only reason;" he sighed in bitterness, "The Timelords since their beginning swore never to interefere in the goings on of the universe. Only to watch. And learn. And guard. They observed yet didn't help with anything for millions of years and any Timelord that did try to interfere was brought to justice, even if they were trying to do good."

"Well that's good."

"Is it?....."

"Well of course. I mean if one person was allowed to change the destinies of worlds around the universe then who knows what they might have changed."

P-90 sighed once more. Frustrated at the young hybrids attitude.

"And that is exactly what they thought. But think about it......Would you want to save entire civilisations under threat. Whole species? All those lives that end in just one second. Billions upon Billions just snuffed out."

"But you can't change those things though."

"Generally no..........but what about the ones who die needlessly?" he said as a dark shadow creeped along his face, "Who face death from those who don't care about the universe. Who gain their own power over time?"

"Surely if that's what destiny has in store for them then that is their fate...it isn't the Timelords right to change it......"

"Ahhh............now you're thinking like a Timelord...........detached...........uncaring...............souless............ ....."

[Commander Jumper]

Spoiler:

She felt his mystification like a presence floating over her, heard his heart beating for two, and as soon as she touched his hand his secrets exploded open. And when an electric shock sizzled up her arm and into her head, she saw...

‘....Lord Mappalazarou. You have been found guilty on all the charges put forward to you….’

He looked exactly as he did on the day he was summoned; only he was on his knees and invisibly contained. He struggled as expected, but to no avail. The memory was vague; everything else was so hidden by shadow, but not the hand...The hand of metal which hovered over the captain’s head, fuelled by the power of impossible ghosts...

Mapp, he saw it too...

His eyes broadened; having caught its hungry stare from the corner of his eye...He stared up at someone else, someone in front under the shadow, with his silent and pleading gaze, to some kind of speaker. Someone was reading out a quick, merciless testimony and someone else was voicing their decision. He was about to be condemned.

‘....The punishment for these charges is to have your DNA reconfigured to that of a lesser known race, and your mind whipped of all technical knowledge of your TARDIS capsule, while your TARDIS itself will be prevented from travelling through time....’

He closed his eyes and understood as the darkness tipped over him, and something cold and soulless gripped his head. It was pain at a height he had never before experienced...It was like the 50 years of torture by the Chosen shoved into several seconds and more...A level of agony without screaming, a level of agony simply beyond description.

As he fell the entire chamber melted back into wood...

She rocked him, cradled him, traumatised, having felt the pain he felt...Someone had tricked him, killed him and forced him to regenerate so that he would stay hidden and useless to the universe. That was when she knew that he hadn’t just gone missing...Something terrible was approaching, something unlike anything they had ever fought against before.

She slowly reached down, scavenged the remains of the picture and shook the glass away. P90 was the only clear face that remained on it.

‘I wish you were still with us, P90,’ she said, remembering how she had not seen Mapp’s fellow Time Lord for almost 5 years ‘You’d know what to do.’

But she felt it deep inside...P90 was gone, and the rest of her old crew had died so very long ago. She squeezed Mapp tightly as she listened to his breath and his heart. A single tear dropped out and landed on his cheek.

Ben peeled back the door and peered in curiously.

‘CJ?’

‘Something...Something is coming.’

She peered beyond the structure of the half open door that lead to his room. Her eyes transfixes on his form. His breathing was shallow and deep, heart beating quickly, eyes moving rapidly behind the lids. He was dreaming now. in the stage of REM. He would wake up eventually, that was enough for CJ at that point. Still it took all her strength to pull away, knowing that she needed to address her crew and their many questions about what had happened only an hour earlier.

She pulled away from the door and made her way down the halls of her establushment. The first signs of morning trickled in through the window panes, filling the hallways with a sense of wonder, a future that was coming and coming fast. She took a deep breath as she ran down the stairs and into the pub.

Everyone was wide awake and looking at her with questioning eyes. Today she was their captain, it was her responsibility to tell them what to do. Though that had been her job everyday for nearly five years, today was different.

"So." She stated, trying her hardest to remain calm and collected as the images of what she had seen replayed in her mind. "I'm not sure what I saw..."

Everyone sighed, as if letting out all the tension in the room her arrival had caused. Elle was seated on a stool, a cup of coffee hanging limply from her hand. WP stood behind the bar, her arm in a sling, pain written on her face, no matter how hard she tried to hide it. Jacen was already filling a small cup with tea for CJ. Ben was staring her down, face concerned with what he had witnessed and heard spill from CJ's lips only an hour before.

"He's asleep now." CJ muttered, "He'll be better in a matter of days, but beyond that I'm not sure if he'll remember what he's seen, let alone who he is. As owner of this establishment It will be my job to instruct you on how to carry yourselves around him when he wakes."

"And how would that be?" Elle asked, standing.

"Elle, you'll be handling the bar. WP will be keeping an eye on Mapp's vitals.... even if he wakes up monitoring him will be key until we're sure he's fine. Jacen I'm putting you on guard duty, after last night's events people will start asking questions... I need someone who can look out for us." She nodded, thinking she had made the right decision. "Ben, you'll be on clean up and kitchen duty."

"And what will you be doing your majesty?" Elle asked, moving to behind the bar.

CJ smiled, "I'll be the boss, anymore questions?"

"When he wakes up..." Elle stated, her face more serious. "What then?"

CJ laughed, "We let him do what he wants in order to remember. If he wants to order you around, let him. After all he was WP and My boss for years. If it helps him remember what he needs to.. then let it be. Its very important for him to remember so we can figure out what to do from that point and more importantly understand the threat in time."

"What if there is no threat?" Ben asked, his turn to speak.

CJ smiled, "Remember the other day when you showed up? How I told you there would always be another war...? There will always be another war Ben, always be something ominous on the horizon... there is never any rest for us wicked souls."

WP grinned knowingly, having had her share of adventures.

"If you think that whats about to happen will be something you've seen before... forget that. Unimaginable horrors await us in the future... Anyone who isn't prepared to die.... leave now." She stated, "I've seen things that you could never imagine."

The crew remained in their places, ready for what was to come in the near future. None would ever consider how severe the horrors and hardships that would lie in wait for them would be.

(Mapp Susie )

[Draygon]

Spoiler:

"Well it's erm...." Dray began awkwardly, "...Old"

"Old?!" P-90 exclaimed "This is some of the most advanced technology in the entire universe!"

"If you say so......"

The Timelord sighed. It wasn't her fault of course. She simply didn't know. Still this was as good a place to start their lessons as anywhere.

"Ok then........first thing to learn about Timelords then I guess." he started, "This room is merely a image."

he walked over to the cntral console and flipped a number of switches, causing the room to morph all around them and transform into a chamber that Dray had never seen the likes of before. Each bench melted into the metalic form of a advanced computer terminal, and the walls turned into a curved, platinum; while the book cases on the far side remained as they were but in differently styled bookcases. Leaving the central console looking much the same as it did before but with a similar platinum shine as the walls.

"This is what the room really looks like. It is merely a use of matter transfiguration."

"Like the chameleon circuit in a TARDIS?" she asked, as if with some pre-informed knowledge.

"It is similar." he continued, "It disguises the internal structure and creates a tactile environment to go with it. It's the same thing as the inside of a TARDIS as well. But of course this isn't a TARDIS. We use this technology with all our rooms to allow them to be customised as a Timelord sees fit."

"Then why do most of the rooms here look the same?"

"Because at the end of the day Timelords aren't that imaginative." P-90 shrugged, "To gain imagination a person must travel and experience and see new things....Timelords abandoned that a long time ago."

"Because of the Timewar?"

"No.....I wish that were the only reason;" he sighed in bitterness, "The Timelords since their beginning swore never to interefere in the goings on of the universe. Only to watch. And learn. And guard. They observed yet didn't help with anything for millions of years and any Timelord that did try to interfere was brought to justice, even if they were trying to do good."

"Well that's good."

"Is it?....."

"Well of course. I mean if one person was allowed to change the destinies of worlds around the universe then who knows what they might have changed."

P-90 sighed once more. Frustrated at the young hybrids attitude.

"And that is exactly what they thought. But think about it......Would you want to save entire civilisations under threat. Whole species? All those lives that end in just one second. Billions upon Billions just snuffed out."

"But you can't change those things though."

"Generally no..........but what about the ones who die needlessly?" he said as a dark shadow creeped along his face, "Who face death from those who don't care about the universe. Who gain their own power over time?"

"Surely if that's what destiny has in store for them then that is their fate...it isn't the Timelords right to change it......"

"Ahhh............now you're thinking like a Timelord...........detached...........uncaring...............souless............ ....."

“What are you implying?” demanded Dray cautiously.

“Do you remember after we escaped the Gauntlett’s attack on the rebel fleet, you begged me and to save someone, anybody. You hated the fact nothing could be done to save even one life. And now, you turn your back to it, like ignoring it will make it go away.”

“I know better now…”

“You don’t know any more than you did then, you just process to information differently,” said P-90 patiently. Teaching Dray was like trying to get through to a stubborn child, which he supposed she was in a way. When she still looked at him as if he had suddenly decided to wear a tea cosy on his head, he sighed. Perhaps Greg was punishing him by suggesting he teach Dray. If she was going to be of any help though, she needed to learn the basics.

Draygon watched P-90 with caution. What he accused her of cut her deep, especially after witnessing the murders of the rebel leaders. Was that really what it meant to be a Timelord? To not care when ‘lower beings’ died? She felt uncomfortable. She had strived to be like the Timelords, even before the metacrisis. But the all beings craved power and idolised those that seemed to posses it. She wouldn’t let P-90 know how much his words had hurt her, though he probably already knew exactly how much they had.

"What do you mean by that? Nothing's changed so why would I think any differntly?"