Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

There was a stifling closeness in the old oak walls.
The light seemed almost amber in the autumn sun but the aged star’s rays were not responsible for the heat.
Mrs Henley made her cautious way towards the day room, her slippers catching on the skirting and threatening to tumble her over the bars of her walker.
A firm hand grasped her elbow and she looked up and the solid shadow of her white knight.
‘Steady on their Mrs H, can’t have you missing lunch now. What say, I get one of the nurses to lay on a chair eh?’
‘Won’t be doing me any good young man, have to keep the knees working you know.’

‘Indeed, indeed. Can’t break the habit of looking out for the troops.’ General Sir Alistair Gordon Lethbridge Stewart adjusted the cane at his side and gallantly offered his elbow to the Octogenarian ‘In which case I suggest we go together.’
A younger, strident voice broke through the everyday and crashed against Sir Alistair like a shot.
‘Still leading from the front, Granddad?’ the slim twenty year old in the ill fitting suit had a smile that bordered on a leer.
‘Gordon, Is that you? What do you want?’ At his side Mrs Henley took a firmer grip on her walker, almost prepared to throw it at the new arrival.

‘Information, that’s all.’ Gordon James Lethbridge Stewart spread his arms in mock welcome to his grandfather as the elderly general stepped protectively ahead of Mrs Henley.
‘Seems to be all I’m good for these days, war stories.’
‘I don’t want information about you, old timer’ Gordon straightened up and slicked back his hair with one hand. ‘I just want you to make a call, to Sarah Jane Smith.’
‘And just how, exactly have you come by that name?’
‘We’ve been looking for her for the longest time, granddad,’ he reached behind him and waved forward an equally thin blonde woman in the same ill fitting suit, black with white piping highlighting the edges. ‘Haven’t we?’
‘I see, what sort of trouble have you gotten yourself into now, young man? ’

The woman smiled, a genuine warm smile that reflected the autumn sun like the ornate bee shaped necklace she wore.
A smile that was utterly unlike Gordon’s. ‘Oh you are too delightful. I am The Keeper, and trouble is precisely the thing we are trying to prevent.’

Clyde Langer was feeling confident as he walked backward down Bannerman Road to number 13.
His tale of daring had young Sky Smith enthralled, his grin and storytelling so infectious that even their friend Rani didn’t seemed inclined to interrupt or correct his tale as it reached its thrilling climax. He should have found that suspicious really, there were days in which their relationship seemed to consist entirely of bickering.

‘And then there was this boiling sound, like someone left the lid off the sprouts at Christmas.’ He turned to dramatically throw up his arms to protect himself from the recalled horrors of his story.
Sky frowned at Rani and mouthed ‘what’s Christmas?’ The elder girl smiled and replied with a mouthed ‘Later’
“And they started to bubble and the smell got really bad, we should have seen it coming right...”

“Oh no, they didn’t?” Sky asked, clearly way ahead of him.
“Kabloom!” Clyde beamed, spreading his arms. Rani shook her head. “Blathereen everywhere. “
“Did they really explode?”

“Yeah, goop everywhere. Again. Took forever to get it out of my hair.” Rani sighed theatrically and flicked at the end of her ponytail with her finger.
“But the Attic! And poor Mr Smith” Sky was shocked; somehow her two older friends hadn’t given the supercomputer much thought at the time.
“Tell me about it. Sarah Jane made me clean it up afterwards.” Clyde rolled his eyes at the privations of saving the world.

“Quite right too, it was your fault we all got a soaking after all.” Interrupted the familiar warm voice of their best friend, Sky’s adoptive mum, Sarah Jane Smith.
Clyde spun on his heel, nearly colliding with her in the process and, blushing, stammered a quiet ‘hello, Sarah Jane’ before she tapped his nose with the end of her car keys.
“What have I told you about telling tales in public?”
“Whose going to believe me?” he replied as usual, only a shadow of his recent adventures passing across his face.
A hint of the terror at being hounded out of his own life.
“He does use ‘Kabloom’ as a description” Rani pointed out.
It was more of an accusation than a defence. Either way it made Sky giggle.
“So what’s going down tonight?” Clyde hurriedly changed the subject, “satellites to realign, meteor fragments to chase?” Sarah raised an eyebrow at him and turned to the boot of her trusty green Nissan. “Oh? I know, you’ve found some ancient artefact that was left on Earth by a passing invading horde of... of... Jackal headed storm troopers! ”

Sarah Jane’s head bobbed sharply around to him. “Who told you about them?”
“Huh? No one I was just...” Clyde’s astonishment faded as Sarah Jane’s wicked grin appeared.
“Oh right, tease Clyde, cos he’s got an imagination. I get it”
Sarah Jane straightened up and plonked a full woven shopping bag in his arms.

“Don’t worry Clyde, its only perfectly normal shopping. I thought I’d make my famous Spag bol tonight.” She collected a smaller bag and closed the boot with her elbow before striding for the front door.
“Infamous more like,” Clyde muttered. “Luke should have warned us she was in a cooking mood.”
“How’s he supposed to know?” Rani tutted.
“He’s got this sixth sense for Sarah Jane’s Spag Bol. You could see him shivering in lessons the moment she thought about making it.”
Sky stared up at him, a slew of emotions battling for control of her features.
“Oh, come on. It’s not that bad.” Rani chided. Clyde winked and led the three of them inside.

They found Sarah Jane stood in the kitchen.
Her bag was on the floor at her feet, its contents spread wide by the impact.
She was white as a sheet, her eyes wide and focussed on the envelope in her hands.
Rani deduced that she had collected the post from the matt and flicked through it on her way to the kitchen.
She was the first to reach out her hand for the older woman’s shaking wrist.

“Sarah Jane, you alright?” she whispered softly.
The eyes that turned to her chilled Rani to the bone.
She had witnessed Sarah Jane Smith face off against some of the most terrible things.
Had seen the way she had looked at the hands of the Trickster, faced her fear of clowns in the evil Mr Spellman and the terror on her face when Luke was ensnared by the creature know as ‘the nightmare man’.

But all that time Sarah Jane had been brave; she had seen the horrors of the universe and stood up to them.
The look there now was something far worse. Some primal fear had gripped her in the shape of a black envelope, edged in red and white.

All three of them saw it now, Sky moving to wraps her arms around her mother while Clyde put down his bag and collected the spilled one from the floor.
Practical and simultaneously readying himself for a fight.
“What is it?” Clyde demanded eyes on the envelope. Sarah Jane stiffened and forcefully put the envelope on the table with a shake of her head.

“It’s nothing. Why don’t you go and get on with your homework while I cook?”
“I’ll cook.” Clyde volunteered only to bow his head when the three women looked at him with identical disdain. “Ok, homework” he pointed over his shoulder and headed up to the attic.
Rani lingered at the door before following him.

“Can I help cook?” Sky asked brightly. Sarah Jane smiled at her fondly and knelt to hug her.
“Thank you for the offer, its very kind. But you have homework too, and I wouldn’t want you getting in trouble.”
“But the homework is simple, Mum.” Sky complained. Sarah Jane couldn’t help but let the pride show on her face as she stood once more.
“That’s as may be, the cooking isn’t, so you get on and leave me to concentrate?” she leant to kiss the top of Sky’s head and smiled at her until she left the room.

Sarah Jane sighed, sucked at her lower lip and sat at the table, watching the black envelope as if she expected it to scuttle across the surface.
“Why now?” she asked the empty room, dropping her head into her hands with a sob.

It was a good ten minutes before she started dinner and nearly 4 hours before she was sat by her PC in the attic with the letter in her lap.
The kids had watched her earnestly throughout the evening, not even managing to complain about the occasional burnt piece of spaghetti.

Rani could tell that they were not going to receive any answers about the mysterious envelope this evening and was the first to diplomatically suggest they leave her too it.
It had taken a good deal of persuading to shift Clyde and Sarah had diligently tucked Sky into bed before collecting the offending article and returning to the attic to ponder.
She stood and removed a scratched Polaroid from the beam above the desk.

It showed herself, a beaming young man with long hair in a ponytail and beautiful young woman in a wheelchair.
The tiniest ghost of the same smile from the photo stole across her lips at the memory of the moment this picture was taken, at the thought of who was behind the camera and the idea that they all had so much ahead of them.
Sarah Jane swapped the photograph for the envelope, almost prepared to tear it up then and there.
Instead she tapped it against her thigh before coming to a decision.
“Mr Smith, I need you.”

Rani lent against her window frame and watched the steady light from Sarah Jane’s attic.
Her own room was lit by the screen of her computer where Clyde and Luke were arguing by video message.
“It’s not much to go on, an envelope. Honestly Clyde, if I could tell what was inside an envelope I’ve never seen don’t you think I’d be on ‘Deal or no Deal’ by now?”
“You’d solve that with statistics anyway. What about K9, what does he know about weird envelopes?” there was a whirr of motors as the metal dog rolled into view behind Luke’s shoulder.

“That data is not currently available.” He reported.
“Some help you two are.” Clyde muttered “hey Rani, you saw what she was like, tell Luke.”
“Tell him what? That Sarah Jane got a shock from a hand written envelope? We’ve got nothing to go on Clyde. Maybe she recognised the handwriting, or the postmark?”

A look of concern fell over Clyde’s face so quickly that Luke was prompted to ask if he was ok.
“There wasn’t one.”
“One what?” Rani frowned.
“Postmark, I took a look at it, thought it was a bit artistic. There wasn’t a stamp or a postmark. It was hand delivered.”

“So?” it was Luke’s turn to frown.
“So whoever sent it, and upset her, knows where she lives!”
“Even if it had a stamp they’d know where she lived, to put the address on it”
“No, you don’t get it, maybe that’s what she’s afraid of, someone finding her?”
“She’s not exactly a recluse, Clyde” Rani pointed out. “No, I think we’ve all missed something important.”
“Like? It’s not as though she talked about it.” Clyde sighed and lifted his sketch pad up to the camera to reveal an accurate recreation of the cause of the problem.
“No...” Rani pouted as something came to her. ”Hang on, what did K9 just say?”

“He said he didn’t know” Clyde complained at the ignoring of his effort.
“No he didn’t...” Luke realised where Rani was going with her train of thought. “He said the information was currently unavailable.”
“Which means he knows, but he’s not telling?” Her features hardened and she minimised the window to call up the internet. “Time to do some digging of our own.”

The fanfare of the supercomputer’s entrance into the Attic seemed subdued, as if sensitive to the sleeping Sky on the floor below.
Sarah Jane ignored his bluster of steam and slapped the envelope down on the scanning plinth in front of him.
“Good evening Sarah Jane, how may I be of assistance?” Mr Smith enquired amiably.
“Deep scan this, tell me everything you can.” Sarah Jane paced between the plinth and her telescope, tapping her fingertips together impatiently.

“Very well, Sarah Jane. The Envelope and sheet of paper inside are man made. The paper itself was manufactured in Amalfi, Italy in the late fifteenth century. The inks are of a modern synthetic manufacture and can be dated to sometime within the last nine years.”
“So it’s just a letter?”
“There are no unusual chemical or physical attributes beyond the age of the paper involved. The distribution of ink on the internal sheets suggests a fine tip or quill nib pen and separate inkwell rather than a modern cartridge holding ink pen. Certain microscopic fibres suggest that the work surface upon which the letter was written had previously contained a mug off fresh ground coffee and a variety of chemicals associated with the aerospace industry but not in sufficient quantity to identify the geographical nature of the...”

“Alright, thank you.” Sarah Jane snapped.
“Is everything alright, Sarah Jane?” Mr Smith asked in his most concerned voice.
“Yes, yes, sorry. It’s probably only me.”
“Would you like me to read you the contents of the letter?”

“No. That’s fine, I’ll do it, thank you Mr Smith.” She snatched the envelope back into her hands and returned to her seat by the PC and grabbed a letter opener from the desk drawer.
“Will that be all, Sarah Jane?” Mr Smith intoned. She turned to him, noticing the whitening of her knuckles at the strength of her grip on the opener and bit her lip as she made up her mind.
“Not yet, Mr Smith.” She sat back, eyes on the pulsing background of his screen. “Put your medical scan online, I want a constant check on the room.”
The supercomputer replied with something almost like weariness. “Very well, Sarah Jane.” If one of the kids had been there, he would have been accused of having hurt feelings that his scan of the envelope was being doubted.
Fortunately Sarah Jane Smith had other things on her mind as she slid the stainless steel edge of the letter opener into the top of the envelope.

In her room below, Sky Smith stared at the ceiling and pretended that everything was fine.
Attuned to the slightest variation of electrical energy around her she was aware that Mr Smith had been activated, and had first scanned then begun a monitoring pattern, simply from the flow of energy around her.

She wasn’t certain why this should worry her; it had happened enough that she was able to identify the changes after all.
It was the way everyone else had acted after finding that envelope, as if something fragile had just broken.
She was frustrated not to know, partly her own curiosity but mostly a frustration with herself for not having the experience.

It was a frustration she lived with everyday, she knew that too. Maybe it was because it was Sarah Jane, Mum, who had been upset.
She wanted to ask someone if that was the right sort response, to be worried about your Mother.
But she didn’t feel able to ask Clyde, he never seemed to worry about anyone.
And Rani had already told her that everything was fine.
So here she was, coming to the steady realisation that fine in Bannerman Road meant terrible danger, everywhere else.

She rolled over, towards the window, and a new sense washed over her.
A power source she was unfamiliar with was nearby. She climbed from the bed and followed it cautiously to the window.
Bannerman Road was flatly lit by the new streetlamps. Sky could make out familiar corners and even tell where some of the shadows led.
There were some cars she did not recognise parked in the street, a hulking van and a large, expensive looking car so dark the street lamps almost failed to light it at all.
She scratched at the back of her neck as the hairs there stood up.
Then the unusual energy faded.
Nothing changed in the street and Sky returned to bed, chiding herself for letting her imagination run away with her.

The envelope tore cleanly away from the blade, a sprinkling of fibres swirling into the air that made Sarah Jane hold her breath.
With no word of warning from Mr Smith she reached inside the envelope and withdrew a single, neatly folded sheet of the same paper.
The handwriting was studious but not ostentatious, despite the flow of the ink. It reminded her of her old headmaster.

Dear Miss Smith,
I have no doubt that my envelope will have already identified my organisation to you. Please do not be alarmed.
I write to you, asking for your help. A situation has arisen of global importance, one with which it is my firm belief you will be vital in resolving.
My representative will be contacting you this evening to make a personal plea for your aid.
If there were any other means of resolving this issue, please believe we would have taken it.
Hoping to hear from you soon,
Julia May,
Keeper of the Crimson Chapter, Order of the Orphans of the Future.

Sarah Jane Smith stared at the letter.
It was not at all what she had been expecting.
Yet at the same time, perhaps it was. She was just about to throw the letter away when her mobile rang.

She paused just long enough to admit she was being silly before picking up.
“Who is this?” She demanded, avoiding any form of pleasantry.
“Miss Smith?” The mellow voice at the other end was instantly recognisable and she allowed herself to relax.
“Sir Alistair! Oh you have no idea how good it is to hear your voice, I was expecting someone else.”

“Ah.” The old soldier’s single syllable disturbed Sarah Jane more than she had words to describe. “Would this someone be a blonde female in her mid twenties by any chance? Answers to the name of Julia?”
“Oh, Sir Alistair, not you too. Please tell me you aren’t one of them.”

“Now, now Miss Smith. I have no idea what ‘they’ are, but I would have thought you knew me better than all that. Apparently I’m some sort of mediator. This pair here claims to represent The Orphans of the Future. Wasn’t that the outfit Sullivan’s brother got involved with?”
“If you don’t mind, I’d rather not talk about it. It was a long time ago and I was under the impression that it was a chapter I had long since closed.”
“I’m afraid they do seem a little insistent...” She could hear the pain in his tone as his voice lowered to a whisper “they have Gordy, Miss Smith, my grandson.”

“Oh, Brigadier...” Sarah’s heart sank. “What is it they want?”
“Just to talk, so they say.” He paused, a woman’s voice inaudible behind him. “Here at the home, neutral ground, as it were. Tomorrow morning.”
“Alright, as long as you’re present too.”
“As If they are going to be able to keep me away.” He chuckled at her. Sarah sucked her lip, thinking back.
“I don’t know, Sir Alistair, I suspect they would certainly try. Until tomorrow then”
“Thank you, Sarah Jane.” His relief was evident, but she still allowed herself to cry when she hung up the phone.

“Oh. My. God.” Rani stared at the screen in front her.
Clyde reappeared on his cam, toothpaste abandoned on his chin, his concern for Rani outweighing that for his appearance.
“What?”
“Do you remember the Dauntless disaster?”
“Was Leonardo in that one too?” he joked until Rani scowled at him.

“I don’t, Rani” Luke chipped in.
“it was 2003 or 4 I think, before you were born mate.” Clyde told him.
“It was a private space shuttle, something went wrong and they lost contact. Then it just turned up again but everyone on board was dead.”
“Yeah, some millionaire’s kid, there was something about a global conspiracy and bio weapons. It was big news for twenty minutes then Baghdad fell and the news moved on.”

“Not everyone was dead though... ” Rani pasted the image of the launch she had found into the conversation. It showed three space suited figures, two thick set men, one with a military hair cut, the other ponytailed.
Both held the diminutive form of the third between them.

“Mum?” Luke breathed.
“Guy’s, that’s cool and everything but we knew Sarah Jane went to space.” Clyde pointed out
“With the Doctor” Rani interrupted.
“What I mean is, what’s this got to do with the envelope?”

“That Global Conspiracy you remembered? It’s mentioned in the article here. The millionaire’s kid, Joshua Townsend and Sarah Jane hadn’t been seen in public since they were involved in the attempt by a group of bioterrorists to release the Marburg virus.”
“What’s that? Sounds like something you’d get down the ‘Chickie-U-Like’ ”Clyde laughed.
“It’s not something to joke about, Clyde” Rani snapped.

“The Marburg virus is a Risk Group 4 Pathogen that causes viral hemorrhagic fever.” K9 clarified for them.
Clyde’s face fell.
“Oh... What was Sarah Jane doing with that?”
“That’s the weird part, like I said, this article mentions a conspiracy, we both remember one but there’s nothing else. Absolutely nothing at all on the internet, what are the chances of that?” The three friends looked at each other. Behind Luke, K9 lowered his head.

“Mr Smith” they all said together. K9’s head raised and he trundled from view.
“We can’t talk to her about it until after school tomorrow.” Rani pondered aloud.
“What about picking up Sky?”
“Yeah, like that’ll work. Thanks for breakfast Sarah Jane, why didn’t you tell us about global conspiracies?” Rani scoffed.
“I could call her after 10, early lectures and Professor Richards can be a bit funny.” Luke tried helpfully.
“It’s already after 10...”
“In the morning, Clyde” Luke sighed.
“Let’s sleep on it then guys” Rani decided. Clyde looked ready to argue but backed down without a fight.
“See ya, Clani” Luke waved cheekily.
“Go to bed already.” Clyde fumed

Sarah Jane Smith searched the box she had dug out of the deepest recesses of the attic.
It was full of fairly random looking junk, bits of K9 that she hadn’t been able to fix before the Deffry Vale incident.
Tattered remnants of notes and newspapers and more mobile phones than was ever really necessary.
It was one of these she hunted out and dug through a tangle of cables until she threw them all back in the box in her frustration.

“Stupid things, how can they ALL need different charging plugs.” She placed the hand with the phone in to her head, disturbing the bob of her fringe. In that instant her eyes widened and she muttered to herself about getting old.
She fished out her sonic lipstick twisted the barrel just so and aimed it at the phone.
A good few seconds of buzzing later the phone sprang to life, its black and beige screen looking antique only 6 years after it was purchased. She skimmed through the phonebook, finding it surprisingly sparse.
A testament to how things were in those fragile years when the entire world seemed to be against her.

Her next destination was the messages folder.
She was surprised to find it intact, dormant details of a normal life from long ago drifting back from the past, bereft of context and yet somehow full of meaning; joking texts demanding haircuts, pleas for contact, and requests for more peppermint tea.
And then there were the others; the repeated apology, the demands for information.
Names and places that had become unreachable in the modern world, even for Mr Smith.

Sarah Jane lifted her head to the wall where he sat, dormant, and wondered just what he could tell her about the situation.
But she knew the Orphans of the Future from old.
If they didn’t want to be found there would be no trace of them.
In all probability even the name Julia May was a false one. What was it about her life that seemed to insist on cycles? Just as Luke leaves, along comes Sky. And now... now this threat from her past rears its ugly head and this time casts a shadow to upset not only her family but her oldest friends as well.
She’d already lost so many people that she had cared for the first time around.

Her face slipped from sorrow to joy to fear and finally settled on something that she rarely let anyone see, regret.
“What am I doing? This isn’t about you, or me. This is about the Brig now. I’m doing this for him. After all he’s done for me. ” She turned the phone off and stood in the light that edged around her telescope. “And Gordon, how old must he be now, 20? 21? What does he have to do with all this? Does Kate even know? If they knew where I lived, why go to all that trouble?”

She looked up at the night sky outside and sighed.
No Velvet, wool or pinstripes to answer her questions now.
Just her and her nose for trouble.

She returned the box to its hiding place, keeping the phone on her desk.
She tided the scratched Polaroid back onto its place on the beam and turned out the lights.
Determined to get some sleep, Sarah Jane Smith crept down to her room and smiled at Sky’s door, her mind already racing through how to approach the morning.
She sorted the next day’s clothes carefully before changing into her pyjamas and laying down.
Within four minutes she had got up, collected her sonic lipstick from her waistcoat pocket and settled back down with it clutched firmly into her fist.

Sky Smith awoke to the sound of activity in the kitchen.
She examined her clock and frowned at how early it was.
Far from the break in she was expecting, she found Sarah Jane finishing making lunches for the pair of them, breakfast all ready on the kitchen table.

“Good morning, do you have a story to investigate?” Sky asked brightly as she sat.
Sarah Jane turned to her with a curious expression.
“That’s very astute of you, how did you know?”
“Because you’re ready to go out before Clyde is here.” She nodded to herself and spooned cereal into her mouth.
“You’re certainly learning, Sky” Sarah Jane grinned.

“Morning!” Clyde called on his way into the room.
“Hi Clyde.” Sky grinned bashfully at him and he waved happily back. He reached for a folded sheet of paper in his back pocket but Sarah Jane interrupted him.
“Hey, I’ve got a story to get to, would you be a dear and look after Sky on the way to school?”
“Uh, course, hey I...” He stopped suddenly as Sarah Jane hugged him, grabbed her lunch box and ran for the front door, breathlessly excusing herself from colliding with Rani.
“Morning Sarah Ja... “ was all Rani could get out before she was cut off with a smart ‘Sorry, got to go’ and the sound of the car starting up.
Clyde joined Rani in the driveway, watching the little green car thunder away.

“Think she knows what we found out?” he asked.
“Nah, I think she’s genuinely got somewhere to be. I don’t like it when she goes off like that.” He expression finished the sentence for her, Clyde knew precisely how she felt and could hear the words ‘in case she doesn’t come back’ without any need for them being spoken.

Their reverie was broken but the thunk of the front door and Sky’s breezy hello to Rani.
“Looks like it’s just the three Amigos today then, Sparky” Clyde grinned at her.
Sky nodded quietly and glanced down the road to the hulking black van.
Rani noticed the look and turned to follow it.

“Something wrong?”
“It’s probably nothing. But last night I could sense this surge of power out here in the street. The only thing I don’t recognise is that transporter over there.”
“The black van?” Clyde asked “They get everywhere round here.”
“There was a big White Car too, but that’s gone now.”
“And the feeling?” Rani wondered. “Has that gone too?” Sky shook her head, blonde curls dancing around her shoulders. “Maybe we should ask Mr Smith?”

“It’s probably nothing, you said so yourself.” Clyde replied, already dancing backward across the road in the Direction of the van.
“Hey!” Rani moaned “What do you think you’re doing?”
“It’s just a van, probably some dodgy DJ stuff.” He grinned at peered in through the front window.
No clues there, not so much as yesterday’s newspaper. There was a faint smell though, like the dust on the back of his Nan’s TV when he was a kid.
Rani and Sky joined him as he reached the back doors of the vehicle.

“See, nothing at all to worry about.” He nodded confidently.
The back of the van slammed open the instant that he spoke and a screeching metal noise tore through the air.
Spindly limbs flailed around the door frame, clicking at the plastic lining.
The metal limbs were part of some form of combat jacket, 5 either side of a heavy looking back pack.
They hauled out a mostly humanoid frame, bulky in the torso with narrow hips. Snarling, furry, feral faces snapped atop the thick neck.

Clyde took a step back, pushing the girls behind him by instinct. Rani fought the movement until she put her arms protectively around Sky.
“Oh man, Jackal headed storm troopers!” Clyde managed.
The three creatures stood upright now they were out of their van, towering slightly above it, almost as if their snarling heads were mounted hat like above an average human.
Hands reached for them, razor sharp claws extending with the motion.

Sky, opened her mouth and screamed.

The storm trooper’s writhed as the mechanical tentacles on their backs flailed and collided with each other.
The clawed talons caught the knot of Clyde’s tie, shredding it instantly.
Rani took full advantage of the confusion, yelling for her friends to ‘Run for it!’ as she physically dragged them away.
Clyde kept glancing back protectively but stopped at Sarah Jane’s drive.

“What are you stopping for?”
“We should ask Mr Smith...”
“No, they were already watching the house; we should go to school and call Sarah Jane.” Rani retorted. Sky had decided the matter for them, already haring down the road. Rani pointed to her, glanced back as the thumping against the van doors came to an end and ran for it.
Clyde waited long enough to stick the remains of his tie in his pocket before giving chase with a resigned sigh

The rest home was large, pleasantly secluded and at one point in the mid 1970s had been used as a temporary UNIT headquarters.
Sarah Jane’s little green Nissan looked perfectly at home in its grounds, a fact that she found just a touch unnerving.
The morning was crisp, a sheen of dew across the fallen leaves on the otherwise immaculate lawn.

Sarah Jane treble checked the location of her sonic lipstick and strode to the main building with a confidence she didn’t feel.
Nurses and even a few of the residents welcomed her. She wondered if some of them knew her from her last visit to Sir Alistair or if they thought they recognised her from somewhere.
Either way she eyed them all warily behind the mask of her polite smile.

“Hello Miss Smith, Sir Alistair is expecting you. We’ve put you in the rear dining room as before.” The helpful Nurse in reception informed her.
“Thank you, I can find my own way there then.” She was glad of that; it meant she would have an opportunity to scan the place as she moved through.
She flipped up the panel on her wristwatch and watched the readouts as it flickered.

There were several small traces concentrated in a room to the far left of the dining room she was headed towards.
In that room there was only one distinct signature. But after The Brigadier’s extraordinary life that was only to be expected.
She stopped at the doorway and took a deep breath, striding in towards the patio doors at the head of the table where Sir Alistair stood patiently.
She ignored the rest of the room to fold him into her arms. “Brigadier.” She grinned innocently at him, just as she had when they had first met.

“Sarah Jane Smith” he patted her back, holding onto her a little longer than she expected.
He looked a lot paler then she remembered and leaned harder on his cane.
“You’ve lost weight.”
“Cabbage soup rations, matron’s orders. Thought about getting the M.O to put in a word but...” he tailed off sadly.
Sarah Jane nodded, sharing the same sadness.

“What’s all this about then? It makes a change for you to call me.” She replied with a false breeziness.
The Brigadier turned his attention to the dining table where two figures had sat patiently through the pleasantries.
Sarah Jane frowned at the lad.

She hadn’t seen Gordon in nearly twenty years but this boy was so clearly related to Sir Alistair. He stood slowly and extended a polite arm across the table. Sarah Jane looked at it with disdain, realising too late just what Sir Alistair had meant by the Orphans having Gordon.
“Miss Smith, Mum and Granddad speak highly of you.” He smirked.

“Gordon. I’m sorry you’ve found yourself caught up in all this.” Sarah Jane told him, placing her hands behind her back until he lowered his arm.
“The White Chapter needed its keeper, Miss Smith.” The blonde woman spoke up.
Sarah Jane closed her eyes for an instant, the full realisation of how deeply involved Gordon Lethbridge Stewart had become, knotting her stomach. Her face became grave as she turned to the Crimson Keeper.

“Don’t think you’re fooling anyone Miss May, was it?”
“My intention in no way involves deceit...” she started, spreading her arms.
She looked in her mid to late thirties, a distinguished nose and a thin lipped mouth which had seen plenty of practice at smiling.
Her most vivid feature where her eyes. Shadowed in their sockets they were a vibrant blue, unusual in so pale a hair colour.
So much so that Sarah Jane suspected that hair dye was a staple feature of the woman’s life.

“I don’t know who you are but the Orphans of the Future were a bunch of misguided terrorists taking their cue from an ancient, mistranslated notebook to hound me and my friends near to death! I helped to defeat them that time and if you think you can just step in and take on the mantle of their supposed teachings you should know that I’m going to stop you, related to Sir Alistair or not!”
“Actually, they were hoping for help.” The Brigadier rumbled. “I think you should sit down.”

“Get down!” Sky called, dragging Clyde through the school gate.
He slid around and peered back through the fence at the street.
There was no sign of the jackal headed storm troopers, not that he really expected there to be.
Rani slumped down next to him and gasped for breath.
“Anything?” She asked.

“Not even a shadow.” Clyde replied. Sky looked up fearfully as a shadow fell across the three of them.
“If I had known you were going to put so much effort into getting to school early I would have given you a lift.” Haresh Chandra, forbidding in his slate grey suit and slicked back hair, like some soap opera villain, smiled down at his daughter.
“Yeah, well it’s just um...” Rani smiled back uncertainly.

“We’re still trying to make a good impression on Sparky... er Sky. Sir” Clyde added hastily and put his arms around his friends.
“Langer, if you wish to make a good impression I would suggest remembering to wear your tie, there is a reason its called uniform, you know.”
“Huh? Oh... yeah. Sorry. Must have dropped it in the rush to reach this fine centre of learning Mr Chandra.” He grinned in what he prayed was a winning way. Haresh raised a long suffering eyebrow and tilted his head at the main doors.
“Move along then.” He suggested.

“Yeah, sure... Come on guys.” Clyde bounced, walking backward to keep his eyes on the headmaster.
Haresh in turn, let his steely gaze trace the three children into the building.
Consequently he totally failed to notice the shimmering distortion of the air that passed around him.
If K9 or even Luke had been present, they would have been able to identify the personal cloaking device hiding the tentacled jackal storm trooper from view.
It was a solitary scout, sent by its fellows to discover what the children had done.
As it was the creature stalked the playground unchallenged.
Even when it accidentally collided with a dust bin the upset was put down to a poorly aimed football, Haresh yelling at an otherwise innocent group of students.

The bell rang and the students and teachers filed indoors leaving the storm trooper alone.
The cloak flickered as the creature activated its communications array.
Satisfied after an exchange of clicks and growls the trooper began the long walk back to the dark van on Bannerman road.

In her seat inside the schoolroom Sky Smith scratched at her wrists.
She could feel the alien power source nearby, even if it was getting steadily fainter.

In her own class Rani was fuming at her father. Thanks to his intervention she hadn’t been able to call Sarah Jane and warn her about the house being staked out by aliens.
She took the risk of sneakily sending her a brief text.

“What good will that do?” Clyde whispered.
“It’s a warning ok, she deserves to know that her house is being staked out by a bunch of angry looking dog things.”
“It’s not as though they’ve done anything. Not really.”
“Clyde, they chased us all the way here!”
“So? We were poking around their van. They’ve every right to get mad.”
“What?”
“Until we went over there they’d been sat there happily all night doing nothing.” He pointed out reasonably.
“Yeah, but maybe they were waiting for the day time... or for it to get hotter.”
“You’re thinking of lizard men.”
“So jackal men are different? Clyde, we don’t even know what to call them.”

“Canisaurians” Julia May stated as a matter of fact.
Sarah Jane looked to Sir Alistair with a shrug.
He returned the look of bemusement but let her lead the questions.
“I’ve never heard of them. What have they got to do with ancient Italian prophecy?”

“Nothing really.” Gordon admitted. “The Orphans of the Future aren’t the monsters you think we are. We’re a group of like minded intellectuals who can see that there is more to the universe. We’re scientists, innovators,journalists and doctors, many of us are working at the cutting edge of modern thinking.”
“And one of you has cut something they shouldn’t?” the Brigadier snapped. “When are you going to realise that there are reasons for due processes and...” he calmed as Sarah Jane laid her hand on his.

“Why not go straight to UNIT if you’ve managed to get your selves involved with aliens. It's not like you couldn't just pick up the phone?” Sarah Jane asked on his behalf. “Why go through all this subterfuge to get to me?”
“Because it’s you that they want.” Julia shrugged “and the last thing we need is to have them following us to get to you.”

“Now hold on a minute, are you telling us that these Canisaurians already have a force at work on Earth? Do you have any idea where they might be?”
“Yes they have and no we don’t. Once they discovered what planet we were talking to them from they sent a scouting party, we had no idea they had any reason to visit other than first contact.” Julia admitted, toying with the bee shaped necklace that dangled around her neck.

“Blasted scientists, never consider strategy.” Sir Alistair thumped the table as he struggled to stand.
“Don’t fly off the handle, granddad.” Gordon started to stand.
Sir Alistair was already reaching for the phone.
The patio doors at the end of the room exploded inward, two snarling Canisaurian troopers came stomping through the shattered glass, claws outstretched and sparks flying from the tips of their mechanical tentacles.

Chapter Text

The patio doors at the end of the room exploded inward and two snarling Canisaurian troopers came stomping through the shattered glass, claws outstretched and sparks flying from the tips of their mechanical tentacles.
Sarah Jane Smith was on her feet, sonic in hand like a talisman to ward them off but the creatures paid it no attention at all.
Julia and Gordon stumbled from their seats and made for the far end of the table.

Sir Alistair trapped between the creatures and the rest of the room rose shakily from his chair.
“Watch out, Brigadier!” Sarah Jane implored him.
He rose to his full height, just a touch shorter than the slavering jackal jaws of the Canisaurian.
His back straightened and he bellowed.

“What in blazes do you two think you are doing! Stand Down at once!”
The troopers stopped their advance at glanced at one another. “I said stand down!” the old soldier roared at them. “Are you questioning the orders of a superior officer?”

The Troopers were almost shaking as they lowered their heads and stepped back to the ruined doors.
Even the previously menacing tentacles seemed to droop at the commanding presence.

“Do you two have any idea who I am? I am General Sir Alistair Lethbridge Stewart and you two are in very serious trouble. I want to speak to your commanding officer, immediately!” he ordered.
The hand he placed behind his back urged the others to leave.
Sarah Jane nodded in understanding and backed away, reaching her free hand out towards Gordon but was surprised to find it taken by Julia instead.

Gordon had taken a firm hold on the back of his chair but otherwise hadn’t moved.
“Come on!” Sarah Jane hissed at him.
“I’m staying with Granddad, get out of here, it’s you they’re after Miss Smith.”

Sarah Jane expected Sir Alistair to object but his attention was fully occupied in berating the troopers for their intrusion.
She felt Julia pull at her hand and reluctantly allowed her to drag them back out into the corridor.
“We have to lure them away, before they hurt someone” Julia insisted, her sensible shoes moving noiselessly on the carpet.
Sarah, at least, had the grace to warn the nurses that they couldn’t use the dining room until Sir Alistair said it was ok.

The same friendly nurse who had welcomed began demanding an explanation when the door to the dining room exploded inward and the first of the Canisaurians began to follow Sarah Jane.
“Brigadier!” she yelled, watching the sparks leap between the tips of the metal tentacles she set her face with determined anger and aimed the sonic lipstick at the roof.
Despite the protestations of the nurse the whine of the pocket sized device was a prelude to the sprinkler system bursting into life.
Sarah Jane winced with guilt as the Canisaurian yowled in pain but ran for her car all the same

Sky picked nervously at her lunchbox.
Sarah Jane still hadn’t answered any of her texts and there was only so much comfort to be had from the knowledge that Rani and Clyde were equally ignored.
She felt the tingle of incoming signal and scrabbled for her phone.

“Mum?” Clyde and Rani leant forward expectantly, only to settle back when Sky’s face fell. “Oh, hello Luke.”
She waited as he spoke. “No, we’re ok. I think it gave up when we got to school. But I haven’t heard from Mum, I’m really worried.”
“we aren’t, are we?” Clyde tried to be reassuring but Rani shushed him.

“Ok, just be careful.” Sky put the phone down and Rani nodded at her.
“He’s coming down, isn’t he?”
“Yes. And he says he’s bringing K9.”
“Oh great, Alien dogfight.” Clyde joked. For once, sky failed to see the funny side. “listen, we’re all going back together, they aren’t going to do much in broad daylight, even if they have cloaking devices.”
“Yeah, safety in numbers, Sky. Even if one of them IS Clyde” she rolled her eyes and Sky finally smiled.

Sarah Jane’s little green car roared out of the long drive way and spun neatly onto the main road where upon it slowed to a slightly more respectable, and for that matter more legal, 30 miles per hour.
Its driver would normally have continued in her full pelt course (as Mr Smith would happily be able to attest given the number of alterations he’d had to make to speed camera footage over the years) but this time she was left with little choice as she had pulled out into traffic behind a bus.

On the plus side it let both Julia May and herself gather their wits and calm their breathing.
“You knew about these creatures before, how did you manage to contact them?” Sarah Jane demanded.

“It was a project at Cambridge, we were trying to find a way to decode the galvanic waveform of planetary motion so that it became an audible phenomenon.”
“Creating the music of planets? That doesn’t sound like the Orbis Postremo I remember.”
“We told you, we aren’t the same organisation my Mother and her rival fought over, we’re here to expand humanities horizons.”

“Never mind the sales pitch, what do you know about the Canisaurians?”
“Not as much as I’d like. Our equipment picked up signals between a scout craft and somewhere else. They talked to us, learned who and where we are. They said would come to help.”
“And how did you find out about me?”
“They said they had come from the future, had heard of the Orphans and were determined to help. Only when they arrived did we find they were soldiers and they had really come looking for Sarah Jane Smith.”

“And you didn’t think to alert the authorities or try to contact me sooner?”
“Of course we did! There was no reply from your home on Monday.”
“Monday! They’ve been here all week?” Sarah ignored the rest of the woman’s protestations and scrabbled in her bag for her phone to warn Sky and the kids.
Her heart sank when she saw the note on the screen: nine missed calls, six new messages, four new answer phone messages.
She ignored them and speed dialled Sky.

Despite all the calls Sky wasn’t expecting the phone to ring and almost dropped it in her hurry to raise it to her ear. “Mum! There are big dog aliens watching the house...”
“Canisaurians, I know.” Sarah Jane had resolved to stay calm but was kicking herself for not staying at home until the kids had safely headed to school.
That she would have had no way of knowing about the aliens at that point didn’t matter. “Are you safe? And what about Clyde and Rani?”
“We’re ok Sarah Jane. They made themselves invisible but they didn’t seem to want to come into the school.”
In the crawl of traffic Sarah Jane smiled to herself at Sky’s voice.
She never expected to be called mum and knew that she wasn’t used to it just yet. The news gave her cause for hope.

“That’s good, it sounds like they don’t want to make themselves known yet. Wait for me at the school, tell Rani and Clyde to wait with you.”
“Ok.” She would have said more but Sarah Jane’s phone cut out.

“Well?” Clyde asked.
“She’s going to pick us up. She said the aliens are Canisaurians.”
“Pick us up, but how do we know it’s safe?” Rani frowned.
“And what about Luke? Nah, I’m going to go straight back and make sure he’s ok.”
“You can’t, Clyde...” Rani started.
“Hey, this is Clyde Langer you’re talking to; I can take care of myself. I’ve got a plan” he winked.

“It’s not 'go back through the park so you can see if the vans still there from down the road' is it?” Rani asked.
Clyde’s face fell.
“What if it is? that sounds like a good plan.”
“Sky says they can make themselves invisible. What makes you think being able to see the van will make any difference?”

“It’s a start alright! Then I can call you and let you know if it’s safe to come back.”
“Oh that’s just great that is. What about, if I come with you and...”
“No, someone needs to stay with Sky”
“I’ll come with you; Maybe I’ll be able to distract them again, like this morning.” Sky said hopefully.

“Nah, you’re ok Sparky. Sarah Jane said to wait here.”
“So why aren’t you?” Rani snapped. There was concern in her eyes, almost hidden by her scowl.
Clyde could tell and it made him happy to think of.
“It won’t take long; I promise I’ll be careful.” He stood and grabbed his things together. “Anyway it might look suspicious if no one turns up, yeah?”
“Not really.” Rani stood and poked him firmly in the chest. “You better be careful Clyde. Because if anything goes wrong it’ll be your fault.”
“Of course. But what could possibly go wrong?”

Bannerman Road was peacefully idyllic in the autumn light.
Leaves blustered their way down the curbs and pooled around the gutters and wheels of the few parked cars.
The black van was still parked on the corner, as silent as it had been since the morning.
After nearly two hours in traffic Sarah Jane pulled up at the far end of the road and sat, flicking up her watch to scan the area.
The van was an instant hit on the results.

“They are still here?” Julia asked, still nervously fiddling with her bee pendant.
“They are. I have to collect my daughter.”
“You would put your daughter in danger?” the woman seemed confused and Sarah Jane wondered just how much about her she knew.
“Now, I intend to take her out of danger. The Canisaurians have already shown they are perfectly happy to attack the nursing home just because I was there. I’d rather they didn’t assault the school for hostages.”
“I see your point. I should go.” She reached for her seatbelt But Sarah Jane’s hand caught her wrist.
“Oh no you don’t. You got us all into this; you’re going to see it through. And then you and I are going to have a little chat about precisely what it is you and your organisation thought you were doing. ”

Sarah Jane started the car and reversed back to the corner heading toward the school before Julia could complain.
Just as they pulled out of sight Clyde Langer, hood of his top pulled up and hands plunged deep into his pockets, slunk into view at the other end of the road.
He successfully battled to keep his eyes off the van and wandered up to the door of number 13 as if he were delivering a paper or something. He took a quick scan around him, fully aware that alien tech could probably see through the cover of the hedge between himself and the van. Swiping the spare key from its hiding place he hurriedly let himself in and locked the door behind him. He made straight for the attic and burst inside calling for Mr Smith.

The supercomputer trumpeted its arrival with its regular burst of steam as it revealed itself.
“Hello Clyde, how may I be of service?”
“You what? I thought you were supposed to monitor the area for Alien tech and stuff?”
“That is indeed one of the many subroutines amongst the requirements of my daily programming.”
“Then how come you haven’t spotted a van full of Jackal monsters parked outside!”
“The Canisaurians are not using alien technology.”
“So?”
“All of their equipment is of human manufacture.”

“But from the future right? They can turn themselves invisible. I think” Clyde’s face fell again as his doubts encroached on him.
“That is correct; their suits can exert an energy field that reflects all known light sources. But the technology they are utilising was developed in Canada three years ago. I have been unable to uncover a source of manufacture but it remains terrestrial.”
“What about those tentacles on their backs?” Clyde blinked in astonishment at what he was being told.

“The Octonatic was developed by a Danish scientific research group with the hope of utilising it in NASA extra vehicular activities but so far the only interest in the technology has come from trials on a submersible version for use in repairs to ocean liners. It has yet to pass a successful trail that has been noted on any of the sources I have been able to locate.”
“Wait.” Clyde sat on the steps and stared at the images appearing on Mr Smith’s screen. Prototypes of the very technology he’d seen at work this morning. “You’re saying they are from Earth?” Clyde let this settle in, reaching for his phone.

“Negative, the Canisaurians are from a star system within Ursus Major. Despite their appearance they have often been misattributed with a warlike nature. Generally they are scavengers and mercenaries, offering their services to the organisation most likely to feed them. They have been affiliated with the Pantheon of Discord but due to the time distorting nature of such a relationship it is hard to be certain of the precise details of their arrangement. Legend has it they are one of the few races to have survived the time of the Osirans and therefore a member of their race may have some influence on the Ancient Egyptian figure of Anubis, a god of the dead.”
“This does not sound good.” Clyde admitted and called Rani

“Honestly mum, I’m not avoiding dad at all” Rani sighed. “Sarah Jane’s on her way to pick up Sky and I said I’d look after her until she got here. You know, new girl, big city and all that.”
“Oh you are thoughtful aren’t you my darling.” Gita Chandra gushed over the phone. “I suppose that means I won’t be cooking for Clyde, It’s my special cabbage and mince quiche tonight.” Her sing song tone was meant to make the meal sound even more appealing than she no doubt already thought it was.
Gita wasn’t to know that the quiche, with its garish Orange cheese topping, reminded Rani of the worst parts of a Blathereen.
Especially the smell.

“Why should you want to cook for him?” Rani frowned. At the other end her mother giggled girlishly and Rani dropped her head into her palm. “He’s just a friend, mum.”
Sky kicked her feet, bored of waiting in the reception and itching to get back to the action.
In truth she was worried for Clyde and Sarah Jane.
They knew nothing about these creatures, least of all where they might be, or why they were watching the house.
She was surprised to hear her phone ringing and fished it from her pocket, excited to see Clyde’s name.

“Clyde! You’re ok!”
“I could say the same bout you Sparky, what’s up with Rani’s phone?”
“She’s speaking to her mother.” Sky explained in a whisper.
“Oh” he replied in a tone that said he perfectly understood and shouldn’t have worried, in fact felt a bit of a prat now.

“Listen, I don’t know what’s going down but Mr Smith’s got some news...” Sky wasn’t really listening, a familiar green shape was visible in through the doors ahead of them and Rani had rung off from her call on seeing the small figure racing towards them.
“Hold on Clyde, Sarah Jane’s just arrived. I’ll pull the speaker on and you can tell her too.” Sky leapt up and threw her arms around Sarah Jane as she entered.

“Has there been any sign of them?”
“Not yet, Clyde went to see if they were still at the house but...” Rani started.
“He’s on the phone; he’s got something to tell us!” Sky pressed at her hands free function and Sarah Jane scowled at the phone.
“Clyde, what are you doing? These creatures could be incredibly dangerous.”
“I know, listen. Mr Smith says that their kit isn’t alien; it’s made by us, humans. These guys are just hired muscle.”

“They...” Sarah Jane’s eyes widened and she turned, instinctively back to the doorway.
Julia May stood, toying with her necklace, flanked by two Canisaurian warriors.

“How very astute, Your Mr Smith seems incredibly well informed.”
“Clyde!” Rani yelled, intending to warn him.
One of the troopers lashed out and swiped Sky’s phone to the ground.

“Hey! I’ve only just replaced that.” Sarah Jane complained.
To Sky that sounded like she was making light of a deadly situation. “You didn’t have to go and wreck my daughter’s phone, you could have just asked nicely.” Julia nodded at her and the storm trooper marched over, one electrically charged tentacle flashing out to sever the pocket of her waistcoat and drop the sonic lipstick into its furry palm.
Then it took Rani’s phone from her palm.

The Canisaurian growled at her and she wrinkled her nose at the stench of its breath. “Bring them.” Julia May ordered and turned on her heel. The trooper at her side keened at her and she waved a hand dismissively. “The boy is of no consequence, we have what we came for.”
Sarah Jane nodded to the girls “We go along for now”
“I don’t get what this is all about.” Rani admitted.
“It’s about me, about something that happened a long time ago. Something that’s come back to haunt me.”

“The Dauntless?” Rani guessed “I found a report online...” She fell quiet as the colour drained from Sarah Jane’s face at the very mention of the name.
“No, not the Dauntless, earlier than that.” She broke off as the Canisaurian pushed her outside to where the black van awaited them.
The back of the van was filthy and smelt just as bad to match the dust.
Sarah Jane witnessed the sonic lipstick tossed back and forth between the troopers before Julia snapped her fingers and it was deposited neatly into her palm.

Clyde was frantic.
When the phone had cut out he’d ran down the three flights of stairs to the front door before realising that he needed something substantial to take on one of the storm troopers.
The stand by the door had an umbrella, a bent golf club and a bunch of plastic daffodils with a UNIT ‘caution’ label attached.
He ran for the kitchen and grabbed the stoutest frying pan he could see started for the drive again.

At full pelt he nearly collided with Haresh Chandra as he stepped from his car.
The two looked at each other for a moment before Haresh’s eyes travelled up Clyde’s arms to the frying pan.
“I suppose you a perfectly reasonable explanation for this, Langer?”

“Course I do” Clyde nodded. It took a second look by Haresh for him to put the pan behind his back and smile confidently. “It’s like this...”
“It’s Friday, I have more than enough to look forward too over the next two days. Just try not to get anyone hurt. Yourself included.”

Clyde nodded sympathetically. “Mrs Chandra cooking tonight, sir?” Haresh just shuddered and closed the car door in reply.

Once he had headed down the path to the door of number 12, Clyde turned to check on the black van, only to find it had been replaced with Gita’s ‘Bloomin Lovely’ transporter van.

“Well that’s just great, how am I supposed to find them now?” He reasoned that if they had been at the school when they were attacked then it would make sense to try there.
But the time it would take to get back they could half way to Wimbledon or a dozen other places.
The clatter of an engine broke through his thoughts and reminded him to get out of the street.
He turned to see the battered yellow nose of a yellow Volkswagen and the serious face of Luke Smith behind the wheel.

“K9!” Clyde yelled and ran to climb in the passenger seat.
“Good to see you too Clyde.” Luke frowned.
“They’ve got the others, and I have no idea of knowing where they’re taking them.”
“K9, can you find mum?”
“Affirmative, the psycho spore of the mistress is on file. Calculating route.”

“Sounds like my mum’s sat nav.” Clyde laughed to hide his fear.
“What are you doing with a frying pan?”
“Best I could find in a hurry.” Clyde shrugged.
“Mum won’t approve. You know how she feels about violence.” Luke reminded him.
“I wasn’t going to hit anyone with it!” Clyde retorted, blushing at being found out. “It was y’know, defence.”
They sat in silence for a couple of seconds until K9 spoke up, making Clyde jump. “At the end of the road, turn left.” Luke put his foot down.

Rani lent across the back of the van, eyes on the passenger seat where Julia sat.
The gang had caught each other up on the events so far today and now Rani was already plotting what to do with their pooled knowledge.
“So this Keeper woman had it in for you and now so does her daughter? Where does Sir Alistair’s grandson fit in?”

“I hope for his sake that he’s been duped. He seemed genuinely concerned about the Brig.” Sarah sighed and looked between their captors. “I wouldn’t be at all surprised to find that she’s working to her own agenda, even I fell for it. She can be very convincing.”
“Would need to be to get these lumps working for her.” The trooper nearest Rani scratched at its behind and grunted.
Rani wrinkled her nose in disgust.

Sky was drawing in the dust on the floor of the van with her fingers. “I think there’s something more.”
“What sort of something Sky?” Sarah Jane asked earnestly. They knew that she was sensitive to electrical impulses but this close to the storm troopers back packs that made anything Sky felt unreliable at best.

“I don’t know for sure. It’s like a telephone signal, but that doesn’t make any sense.”
“The Bee.” Sarah Jane deduced. “She’s been playing with it all day. Maybe it’s some sort of control device for these poor things.”
“Poor things! They’ve dragged us off to who knows where...”
“But they are just as much slaves as the Scullions were.” Sky pointed out.
It was obvious that she now felt as much sympathy for the Canisaurians as she had to the cyclopean light sculptors who had been enslaved by the Serf Corporation. The same itchy trooper yawned at them, a dollop of drool splashing down over Rani’s boot.
“This is all theory, we need to get that bee to be certain.”
“And how do you plan to do that?” Sarah Jane asked pragmatically.
“We’ll think of something.” Rani smiled “we always do.”

The van rattled to a stop and the doors flew open, troopers forcing the girls from the rear doors in a cloud of protest.
They had come to rest in a deserted car park overlooked by a boarded up shop front.
Sarah Jane took a sharp look around her but failed to recognise the place at first.
So much of London was being boarded up and abandoned these days. Shops in particular seemed to be vanishing at a rate of knots.
This place seemed fairly new. The graffiti was everywhere some of it seemed to be in place before the boards were put up.

They watched Julia step from the front of the van and stride purposely toward the building, waving the troopers after her.
As they drew closer to the ruined edifice something leapt to Sarah Jane’s mind. “Pegrum Electricals, I was here three... no four years ago, tracking a meteorite.”
“Something alien?” Sky asked.
“I never found out. Someone beat me too it.” It was obvious now that that someone was likely to be The Keeper.

The inside of the store had been left in something of a hurry. Occasional boxes were still on the shelves, most emptied of contents.
From the looks of the signage it had been an electrical store. Televisions, vacuum cleaners, computer parts and a smiling cartoon table lamp were predominantly displayed on the walls.
That made sense to Rani.
If the woman was an electronics genius, why not make your home in a ruined electrical shop.

“Is it just me or is this all a bit too Batman?” she asked with a sigh.
Sarah Jane grinned at her, understanding the reference perfectly.
“What’s a Batman?” Sky asked innocently.
“In this context? You’d be better off asking Clyde.” Sarah Jane smiled. “But you may be in for the full 3 hour history lesson when you do.”
Sky smiled at the implied safety of being able to chat for so long about something apparently inconsequential.

One of the troopers blundered into a section of shelving and snarled at it, bringing the tentacles to bear and shredding the box section into tiny chunks.
Sky yelped as one flying piece of shrapnel tore through her coat. Sarah Jane yelled “Hey! Watch what you’re doing you big oaf!”
The Canisaurian merely barked and pushed them ahead of it.

“Pay attention that man!” bellowed a voice around the room. The trooper stood straighter and herded the girls towards the voice.
Sir Alistair and Gordon Lethbridge Stewart were tied, back to back on a pair of swivel chairs that had been behind the tills in their former life.
It appeared that the troopers had lost interest in them now that their task was completed.
Sarah Jane allowed herself a hug of her friend while Rani set about their rather crude bonds.

“Sky, this is Sir Alistair Lethbridge Stewart, one of my oldest friends.”
“Less of the old, Miss Smith” he smiled. Sky wondered why he was concerned; he was obviously of great age as far as she could see.

“What happened?” Sarah Jane asked, cutting to the point as the ropes reached the floor.
“As soon as you left the creatures gave up menacing us and just carried us out instead.” Gordon muttered bitterly. “Are you controlling them or what?”
“Actually ‘my King’, that would be me.” Sneered Julia contemptuously. “There was a reason the Crimson chapter called their leader The Keeper.”

“We were trying to better mankind! What have you done, Julia, what have you done?” He called after her as she turned on her heel.
“Steady on Gordy, we’ll get to the bottom of this don’t you worry.” Sir Alistair promised as he tried to stand.
The effort was too much for him and he slumped back into the chair, the cane falling from his numb grip.
Gordon placed a supporting arm around his grad dad’s shoulder and Sky placed a consoling hand on the old man’s.
It was a shock for them all, to see him so weak.

Sarah Jane’s face grew dark, her lips a thin hard line.
“I’ve just about had enough of this.” She vowed and turned towards Julia.
The Keeper had let herself into a room at the back labelled ‘3D Experience Suite’.
The power was still on in there as a pale light and a gentle thrum of speakers invaded their senses.
The Canisaurians shuffled on the spot.
Rani nudged Sarah Jane.

“Something’s got them rattled. First that one attacks the furniture and now this. It looks like the year nine disco over there.” Sarah Jane nodded her agreement and pointed at the floor, urging the others to stay where they were.
She tiptoed her way over to the door of the 3d Suite and listened intently at whatever may be occurring inside.

Outside the Shop, Luke’s yellow beetle pulled up alongside the van.
While Luke helped K9 out of the little car Clyde made sure that van was empty.
As an added precaution he also searched the cab for keys but drew a blank. He hefted the frying pan in his hands and turned towards the abandoned shop.

“Why don’t you leave that in the car?” Luke suggested
“It’s comforting, ok?” Clyde defended
“Just be careful. Last thing we need is you braining mum” he groaned and knelt to confer with his robot companion. “What’s in there K9?”
“Sensors confirm the presence of the mistress, mistress Rani and mistress Sky, Sir Alistair Lethbridge Stewart, two unknown humans and multiple Canisaurian life signs.”

“Ok, so we rush in an...” Clyde started.
“...get ourselves blown up” Luke interrupted pragmatically. “We’re supposed to be the cavalry Clyde, we’re here to help, not get ourselves caught. We have to try and give Mum an advantage.”
“Alright, yeah. We’ve got to shift the balance of power.” Clyde nodded to himself without any idea how he might actually accomplish such a thing.
“Of course! We can cut off the power to the building!” Luke grinned.
“Just what I was thinking, your skills are growing, my young padawan.” Clyde clapped his friend on the shoulder in the hope of hiding the truth.

“K9, can you find the junction box for the building?”
“Affirmative, I am already scanning now master Luke” the dog admitted, his ears swivelling around on his head.
“Wait, won’t they have their own power source?” Clyde thought aloud.
“Even if they do, cutting the power should set off an alarm somewhere.” Luke reasoned. “Just enough to cause a distraction so you can go in with your secret weapon.” He grinned and nodded at the frying pan.
K9 set off without warning and the two lads followed after him, keeping their eyes open around them.

Sarah Jane watched the largest of the troopers stare at her.
She took another step towards the doorway and noted something close to alarm cross the creatures muzzle.
Clearly they had standing orders not to disturb the keeper and they were not about to disobey just to make sure that she wouldn’t get too close.
Rani was suddenly at her side, having come to the same conclusion.

“I thought I told to you to stay put”.
“You pointed at the floor, that’s not the same thing.” Rani grinned cheekily.
“Then stay quiet.”Sarah Jane ordered, leaning towards the door.

Julia’s voice was quiet but clear, she was reciting a series of numbers.
It reminded Rani of watching Clyde doing his math’s homework.
The 3D suite consisted of a metal bar where a sofa sized seat had once stood and a large screen on one wall.
Julia was knelt with her elbows on the bar, staring at the screen.

Sarah lent sideways, trying to get a view of the screen.
It had to be on; there was a pall of light washing over Julia. With a nod to Rani to keep watch Sarah Jane slipped inside the room.

Sky handed Sir Alistair his cane, feeling sorry for the elderly gentleman. “Will you be alright?” she asked earnestly.
Gordon snorted, lifting his head to watch the storm troopers.
Sir Alistair beamed at her and winked, leaning to whisper “Always let the other fellow underestimate you.”
Sky tried to hide her smile, feeling suddenly at ease with Sarah Jane’s old friend.
Then one of the troopers whined and she was brought rudely back to the situation at hand.

“What’s the play Grand dad?” Gordon whispered.
“Not my move, Gordy. This one’s down to Miss Smith.” Sky could tell he was concerned but tried not to let that show. “I hope I can count on you.”
“Sure Grand dad”
“Are you there?” Julia asked the screen. “I have brought her, as you asked. You were correct in your theorem that the presence of my chapter would lead to miscalculations on her part. However there have been... complications.”

Sarah Jane stepped further into the room to see precisely whom the keeper was talking to.
She had a fairly good idea who she would see on the screen and was thus rather miffed to find only static.
“No” Julia implored the static. “The white chapter did not take well to being deceived. The puppets you sent me are proving unreliable... no my lord it is not an excuse!” Julia raised her hands to the static before bowing her head.

“You can’t simply be mad; the Canisaurians had to come from somewhere.” Sarah Jane reasoned to herself aloud.
Julia scrabbled to her feet. “Of course, my sponsor has been of great aid in the advancement of human knowledge. And he has asked for so little in return.” She smiled, her eyes captivating but not entirely focussed.
“And what he asked for was me. Threatened, confused and dragged out into the middle of nowhere by your hired thugs?” Sarah snapped.

“She called them puppets.” Rani frowned at her from the doorway. “The way she snaps her fingers...”
“You’re using some form of mind control, that’s abhorrent, and just like him.” Sarah Jane’s lips were thin, as angry as she was indignant.
“Like who?” Rani wondered.

“Oh think about it Rani; A mysterious threat from someone out of my past, enslavement of a lesser species, using my friends as part of a trap. You can’t tell me that doesn’t remind you of something. What did you have to do? What could you possibly trade with it? Was your life really worth more than any others?”

The sparkle of the static on the screen coalesced, the black dots reforming into a solid shadow leaving a blank white sheet of light behind it. The Shadow spread its cloaked arms, lifted its hooded head to reveal the sunken withered features of the creature Sarah Jane been expecting. “Well, well. Sarah Jane Smith, what a pleasant surprise.” It hissed at her.
“The Trickster!” Rani managed to gasp. “What’s he doing here?”
“He’s causing trouble as usual. What I want to know is why?” Sarah Jane set her hands on her hips and stared defiantly at her nemesis.
Despite her posture there was something that hinted she was equally terrified.
“For once, Sarah Jane Smith, this is nothing to do with you.” It turned away from her dismissively, reaching its taloned glove toward Julia.

“This is not the point in which the future changes. That is long past, Julia died during her mother’s experiments with bio weapons. I thought she deserved more, to fulfil her destiny in expanding the horizons of humanities ingenuity.”
“Since when have you been a benefactor of Earth?” Rani scoffed.
“And you didn’t think it at all possible that she might use this advanced knowledge to get revenge on me for her mother’s death?” Sarah Jane narrowed her eyes at the creature.

“I have not once mentioned your name in her presence.” It smiled that sharpened toothed smile.
“That doesn’t answer the question.” Rani pointed out.
“I have done everything she has asked of me. When her human cohorts would not test the equipment she had developed I loaned her my Canisaurian platoon. When the power source of those delightful prosthesis they are wearing failed to be adequate I led her to the meteor under this very room and the powerful energies contained within. What she does with them... is entirely a matter for her.”

“She can still renounce you, still give up your lies of a perfect future and set humanity on the right path.” Rani yelled at the creature
“The right path?” The Trickster spread its arms in joy. “Be my guest, convince her that she should never have taken my offer of salvation.”
“We can’t do that, Rani. We can’t.” Sarah interrupted
“What, why not?” the girl asked in confusion.

“Because of when her timeline changed.” Sarah realised. “Shortly after I met Julia’s mother I took part in that commercial space shuttle flight.”
“The Dauntless, yeah I found that out.” Sarah Jane spared her a furious glance; evidently she had been trying not to use the name.
“It was a disaster; the last orders of the previous Keeper, Julia’s mother saw a gunfight break out on board. The ship was out of control... I remember something coming towards me and” she paused, the distress of recalling the events evident on her face.
With a shuddering breath and a nod she finished her tale. “I don’t remember getting back to Earth but I was the only survivor.”
“Oh, and If Julia dies you think that perhaps you wouldn’t have survived the disaster?”

The Trickster laughed, confirming the concept as effortlessly as it could.
“Three times you have turned my playthings against me, forced them to undo all my good work. But now, Sarah Jane Smith...” he left the sentence hanging and waved his hand towards Julia.

Around the back of the building Clyde had found a ragged hole half way up the wall, covered with a tarpaulin.
If he had known about the meteorite he would have recognised this as its entry point to the building.
He hadn’t been the first person to find the entry way judging by the remains of a fire inside.
Luke clambered in after him.

“I’m not going to get K9 up here.” Luke admitted “I’m going to signal him when we know it’s safe to disable the power” he pulled the dog whistle from around his neck and nodded towards the door that led deeper into the building.

From their vantage point they had no difficulty in spotting the Canisaurians, towering over the wrecked skeletons of the shop fittings.
Clyde looked between his frying pan and the slavering monsters patrolling the room and shrugged.
“I don’t see mum!” Luke pointed out.
“Or Rani.” Clyde admitted, his tone causing Luke to break a cheeky smile. “Look!” he hissed and pointed to the desk where Sky was talking earnestly with Sir Alistair and a younger man.
“Then they’ve got to be here somewhere.” Clyde reasoned, holding Luke back from running to his sister. “Can we do anything without knowing what’s going on.”
“We can rescue Sky and Sir Alistair.” Luke pointed out. “Then we can work on a new plan?”
“I hope you don’t make things up as you go along at Oxford.” Clyde muttered.
“All the time” Luke grinned “It shows initiative.” He lifted the dog whistle. “Ready?”
Clyde nodded and lifted his frying pan like a baseball bat. “Let’s do it.”

“So what now, drag us out here to kill me, or hand me over to him?” Sarah Jane snapped at The Keeper.
“I haven’t decided. Once you are out of the game I will be free to expand humanities horizons. I suppose I could just eliminate you and your meddlesome children but the authorities might pay attention to that. My Lord here has prepared this room to transport my Canisaurians to and from their home. I could just lock you all in and see how well you fair on their planet. Or perhaps I will rob you of your will and use you all as my personal slaves.” She glanced from her necklace to the Trickster for approval.

“I’m not the only one ready to stop you, you know!” Sarah Jane retorted.
“Why yes, there’s always UNIT...” Julia smiled thinly and toyed with the bee, striding to the door of the suite.
The nearest Canisaurian roared and turned its sparking tentacles towards Sir Alistair, Sky and Gordon.
Sarah Jane glared at the Trickster.
It stood, feigning disinterest as it gloated at her helplessness.

Then everything seemed to happen at once.

Rani shoulder charged Julia sending the pair of them crashing to the ground.
The Canisaurians all swung towards them.
Luke blew his dog whistle to signal K9.

The Canisaurians roared and turned as one to face the doorway from which Clyde was charging.
The lights went out as K9 did as he was instructed, fusing the junction box outside.
Gordon and Clyde collided with the nearest troopers creating yowls of pain.

The room became lit by the thrashing tentacles of the troopers.
Rani grabbed the bee, lifting it up and causing the Canisaurians attention to return to her.
Luke, while still running to release his sister, blew his dog whistle again, distracting the creatures further.
The creature Gordon was struggling with let him go as the whistle came closer, crashing to its knees.
Sky grabbed at her phone as the Canisaurian dropped it, scooping up the sonic lipstick in the process.

Julia snatched at Rani’s hand causing half the platoon to turn toward her while the other half focussed on Luke at the rapidly advancing Clyde. However Rani was the strongest of the pair, pulling back, away from Julia’s grasp caused the chain to break and the bee to fly into the air.
Sarah Jane leapt for it, hands outstretched only for her leather jacket to be caught by the Trickster’s talon.
Her fingers smashed against the bee, diverting it across the room to where Clyde swatted it with his frying pan.

The bee crashed to the ground in front of Sir Alistair.
Sky was the first to pick it up, trembling in terror at the sensations running through her.
A hand closed over hers and she looked up with a glimmer of fear.

Sarah Jane Smith sensed rather heard the fear in The Trickster’s hissed ‘No!’ she had turned to confront it when a voice rang out in the hollow hall.
“Stop this at once!” General Sir Alistair Gordon Lethbridge Stewart stood proudly, the battered Bee necklace hanging from his raised hand. “I’ve just about had enough.”
“Brigadier!” Sarah Jane grinned.
Gordon, Luke and Clyde stepped away from their opponents as the Canisaurians hurried to obey the old soldier.
Sir Alistair made his way carefully over to Sarah Jane’s side, ignoring the keeper as she struggled up from the floor.
He stood squarely in front of the Trickster where he watched from the door of the 3D suite and eyed him with disdain.

“I take it this is our opponent?” he glowered.
“Sir Alistair, meet the Trickster.” Sarah Jane sighed.
“Ah, yes. The Doctor warned me about your lot.” He raised the Bee. “I take it this is one of your trinkets?”
Sarah Jane felt the rush of air and nudged Sir Alistair’s arm just in time to stop Julia from grabbing the bee back; she sailed past with a scream of rage, straight into the dark folds of the Trickster’s cloak.

Sir Alistair stepped back as he watched the woman pass straight through the creature before him and sprawl on the floor of the room beyond.
“Insubstantial as well as irritating, how do we get rid of him Miss Smith?”
“I honestly don’t know this time.” She admitted.
“There is nothing you can do that will not increase my power, Sarah Jane Smith” Gloated the Trickster. “Whatever move you make only glorious chaos will ensue.”

“Well, one thing at a time, eh?” Sir Alistair decided. “You there, Langer wasn’t it?”
Clyde stepped forward “Its Clyde, yes sir.”
“Bring that pan over here.” He ordered, dropping the bee to the floor and placing his foot on the chain.
Clyde grinned, raised the pan and slammed it down hard over the little golden insect.

The Canisaurians who had been standing awaiting orders started to howl, clawing wildly at their backs desperate to remove the back packs. The equipment began flailing around them, shredding the remaining shelves.
The Trickster threw back its head as if breathing deeply, its awful laugh echoing around the empty room.
In the distraction Sky ran to Sarah Jane, placing the sonic lipstick in her palm.
Sarah Jane smiled gratefully at her daughter and called for everyone to stand back.

After taking careful aim at the remnants of the bee the tip of the lipstick glowed crimson and its tiny whirr built to a crescendo.
The Canisaurians turned as one and marched towards the Trickster and the 3D suite.
The creature’s laughter faltered at the sight but it was too slow to move out of the platoon’s way.
One by one the creatures strode through the Trickster, each passing body making the eternal weaker as if they were taking something with them.

Luke ran to join Sky in hugging Sarah Jane.
Rani found herself embracing Clyde as much in fear as delight.
Gordon stood alongside his grandfather, a deep bruise blooming along his cheekbone.
When the last Canisaurian had entered the tiny room the Trickster slowly stood up until it was straight.
One taloned hand reached out almost pleadingly towards them.

Somewhere in the room behind it Julia May started screaming.
Sarah Jane stepped forward anxiously but the scream stopped suddenly.
A brief pin sharp silence filled the air until the Trickster broke it upon a howl of rage and faded from view like a morning mist.
Sarah Jane continued on into the 3D suite, despite the protestations of the others.
The world held its breath until she called from inside.

“Someone call an ambulance!”

The ghostly car park had become a hive of industry in the course of the last hour; Police cars, two ambulances, the owner of the store, a representative of the security firm (a rather brusque Welshman in thick rimmed glasses that made him look unfortunately like Ronnie Barker), a repair truck that had come to see about the damage K9 had caused to the junction box and a pair of passersby who were just wandering about aimlessly in the hopes that the local news would be interested in their grainy mobile phone footage.

The sun was barely visible over the tree line and the first few sparks of the evenings fireworks were breaking in the distance.
Sky Smith sat in the front of her brother’s battered yellow Beetle and watched the pattern of the blue lights and sparkling fireworks play across the roof.
Somewhere outside, Julia May was being treated in the back of an ambulance, Clyde and Rani were getting their story straight with the police and Sarah Jane Smith was diplomatically attempting to keep them all out of trouble.
She had organised Luke to take Sky home while the rest of them would go back to the school in Gordon’s van to collect her car.
She promised pizza for everyone but Sir Alistair politely declined.

K9 was sat in the back seat quietly. Unlike Mr Smith he had no problem talking to Sky but had fallen silent when she asked him too.
There was a knock on the window and Sky smiled up at Luke.
“Hang in there, Sky I think it’s almost sorted.” He grinned.
“Why is Sarah Jane in trouble? She saved everyone!” Sky frowned.

“The police aren’t likely to believe the bits about the invisible jackal men, so she’s doing what she’s good at, She’s telling them the story they need to hear.”
“Is that what being a journalist is about?” She asked brightly. Luke looked uncertain and leaned closer.
“I shouldn’t ask mum that, just in case” he winked.

“Hey gang, family meeting?” Clyde beamed, dropping a friendly arm over Luke’s shoulder.
“Just making sure Sky’s ok.” Luke explained.
“You really got the hang of this big brother thing.” Rani approved.
“Not that Sparky needs looking after.” Clyde nodded at her with a twinkle in his eye.

Sky smiled back at him, just a little flushed. A cough behind them caught their attention.
Sir Alistair was frowning at them and a trickle of fear washed across the four children.

“You do realise just how dangerous you’re actions today were Mr Langer?” he growled.
“It wasn’t just Clyde Sir...” Luke started to defend his friend.
“No, it was the bally lot of you!” Lethbridge Stewart barked. “You wouldn’t last a moment under my command.” His face slowly lightened with the chuckle he was no longer able to conceal. “Undoubtedly that suits Miss Smith down to the ground.”

Sky knelt up on the passenger seat and tilted her head at him. “Does that mean you’re not angry grand dad?”
Her innocent question caused everyone to turn her.
She cowered back into the car “What did I say? Gordon calls you grand dad.”
“Well, that’s because he’s my grandson.” Sir Alistair tried to explain.
Sky clearly didn’t understand. “My daughter’s son?” he prompted.

“Oh.” Sky said quietly, the single syllable drawing upon her every feeling of isolation on this alien world.
“You are kind of our grand dad though.” Luke interrupted “neither of us really has one.”
“Sounds like you’ve been adopted Sir Alistair.” Sarah Jane patted his back as she arrived, dazzling him with an affectionate grin. “I, for one wouldn’t object.”
“Alright, but I must say discovering three grandchildren in one day is very probably the most extraordinary moment of my life.”
“You aint seen nothing yet.” Clyde promised, only half joking.
He still got the laugh he was looking for.