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Far away from the citadel, and under the cover of night, sat a small barn. Nobody had lived there, not for a very long time. Then, the door slid open. In walked two figures, steeped in shadows. One of them had spiky hair; he been there a long time ago, and would return there in his future. The other had long hair, and couldn’t see a thing. The first figure walked to the middle of the barn, stacked up a few logs of Gallifreyan Kephalu, and ignited them, throwing amber light around the room itself. Revealed in the flames was his weary face and silvery-hair. It was the Warrior. And he was on the run once again. His friend, named Ashleighagus, wore robes that appeared blue-green in the firelight.
“And you’re sure they won’t come out here?” She questioned.
“Quite sure.” The Warrior agreed, sitting down on a stray log of wood. “I don’t think any of them know it’s even here.” He admitted.
“And how do you know this?” Ashleighagus asked. “That it’s here.”
“I used to come out here. Back before the war. I think my bed used to be up there.” The Warrior explained. “Go to sleep.” He ordered, nodding towards a landing with a straw bed on it. “You’ve been through a lot.” He reminded, looking into the flames. Ashleighagus accepted, and climbed into the lumpy bed. She faced away from the fire that warmed the Warrior’s face and brown leather jacket. The flames flickered with the burning might and power of a wild force, now tamed for usage.
A similar flame lit a section of the walls that rimmed the citadel. Mia stood at one of these lanterns, looking out at the sparse outlands that made up the majority of Gallifrey. Leela had been returned to the War Council. Or the High Council. Or whatever it had was called. Mia didn’t care what it was called. Only that they were a pain in her ass. She suspected that they had positioned her here to keep her quiet about what the Warrior had told her. Now, night had fallen over Gallifrey, and the sunsrise wasn’t for a good few hours. So, she leaned back on her wall, and decided to wait. Then, an agent of the CIA walked up to her. She wore a black, skin-tight bodysuit with dark-red lining. It had been tailored to her, admittedly shorter and pudgier, body, which showed the CIA at least cared about its operatives.
“I take it you’re my company?” Mia questioned. The Agent nodded.
“Rollo sent me.” The agent nodded. Rollo was a Time Lord who, millennia ago, had created the Celestial Intervention Agency (Also known as the CIA) to protest the non-intervention policy. When the Time War had broken out, he had been recalled to Gallifrey; his companions sent home. While he was no longer a member of the CIA, due to seeing what they had become, his opinion was still valued by Ollistra, who was the Cardinal of the CIA. Interestingly, there were no records of what that was. “My name is Abyenarunel. I’m not here to make conversation.” The agent stated, only giving her name as a matter of protocol.
“Well, it gets really boring after an hour.” Mia admitted. There were a few seconds of silence before Mia began to make conversation. “I’m Miaselen.”
“Charmed.” Abyenus added dryly.
“What chapter were you brought up in?” Mia questioned. Abyenus sighed in annoyance.
Ashleighagus awoke to see the Warrior roasting a small brick over the fire.
“What’s that?” She asked, blonde hair sticking up.
“A ration pack.” The Warrior answered. Looking over, he couldn’t tell if Ashleighagus had a headache or was confused. “You don’t think I keep nothing in this bandolier, do you?” He asked, giving the energy of a jolly old man, despite the dark nature of the dark-brown bandolier slung over his left shoulder. His Sonic Screwdriver glinted in the top pocket. “Here, I’ve cooked you one.” He added, tossing one up to the bed. Ashleighagus fumbled, before catching it. She bit into it and pulled a face. It was sour and bitter. “I know.” He chuckled. “It needs a little flavour injected into it.” He smiled, changing his face from an old, angry man, to an old grandpa who would sit you down by a fireplace and tell you stories. “But food is food.” He nodded.
“If you can class this as food.” Ashleighagus insulted the inanimate brick.
“I might stay out here.” The Warrior smiled. “It’s nice and peaceful.”
“How can you be so calm?” Ashleighagus asked.
“Well, they won’t dare try to find me out here.” The Warrior answered. “There’s too much space out here, and quite frankly, I don’t think they’re compassionate enough to remember this place.”
“If Rassilon’s silenced me, then he must be silencing the others,” Ashleighagus explained. “We need to get back into the Citadel, and make his silencing public.”
“Once we go back there, you’re getting shot.” The Warrior calmly reminded. He himself didn’t know why he was so calm. Perhaps it was the memories of this barn that had soothed his angry soul.
“We have to make sure he can’t use his position to oppress others!” Ashleighagus shouted. It was almost as if the anger had moved from one to the other. “He’s dragged my name through the mud, and I need to get it back.”
“Is this presidential run worth your life?” The Warrior questioned.
“If Rassilon isn’t removed, the war will continue. I need to stop this.” Ashleighagus reminded. The Warrior had to commend her for her dedication. Then, a strange noise came from outside. It was as if somebody was running their hand over the door. “I thought you said they wouldn’t find us.”
“They won’t.” The Warrior reminded, walking over to the door. He slid it open, and stuck his head outside. There was nobody there. Nor was there anything outside. “Is somebody there?” He called. There was nothing but the stretches of dirt. The nearest OutCity was several Earth Kilometres away. “There’s nobody there.”
“Well, I heard something!” Ashleighagus shouted.
Back in the Citadel, the Visionary sat at the end of the table opposite Rassilon. The rest of the War Council sat around the table.
“Where is the Doctor?” Rassilon questioned.
“I do not know” The Visionary grunted, trying to break free from her ropes.
“The Doctor is dead. On Karn.” A voice played on a spherical robot behind her. Her face dropped in horror. Attached to her head was a black helmet, wires running to the spherical robot.
“Do not be clever with me.” Rassilon ordered. “Where is Ashleighagus?” He questioned. Logic indicated that the Doctor (who was now known as the Warrior) would be with her.
“I do not know!” The kidnapped woman shouted. The mind probe began to speak as Leela stepped into the room and recoiled in horror when the Mind Probe responded.
“She is in the outlands.”
“What on Earth are you doing?” Leela shouted. “The usage of the mind probe was outlawed under,”
“War Protocols, Leela.” Rassilon smirked. “The War protocols permit it.” Then, his eyes widened, and he doubled over, groaning. It was a well-known fact that the Daleks would frequently attack his time stream. Ollistra’s agents were attempting to find the Dalek and had been unsuccessful. “She knows where he is.” He panted. “And she will tell us. Whether she wants to or not.” He took a few deep breaths, before sitting back down. “Where is the Chancellor? Surely he could force the information.” Rassilon questioned. The High Chancellor, whose name was Volusem, wore white robes, and oversaw Gallifrey’s laws and negotiations. He was very easy-going, and annoyed Rassilon. To date, he still hadn’t found any level of dirt on him. Regardless, the role of Chancellor meant that he was frequently away from Gallifrey.
“Still off-world.” Kanteer reminded.
“Of course he is.” Rassilon muttered. “Well, we need that information from her head.”
In the outlands, the Warrior planned the night’s trek back to the Capitol, and their political protest as the scorching suns shone down, their beams cutting through the thatched roof.
“And we need to go at night?” Ashleighagus questioned.
“You need to.” The Warrior explained. “I’m not going back there.” He added.
“What about Mia?” Ashleighagus questioned. “She’s your friend. Don’t you want to help her?”
“She can take care of herself.”
“And what about me?” Ashleighagus asked. “I can’t take care of myself in there. They’ll shoot me. And what about your TARDIS?”
“Oh, very well.” The Warrior sighed. “Tonight, we’ll move.” He began to explain the plan, and how they would be able to get back into the Citadel. And as the day swept on, the war operation continued to wage across the cosmos, with the High Council sitting up in their tower, planning and coordinating. The Visionary was giving them nearly nothing. As the suns slowly set, darkness began to envelop the Outlands. Under the cover of darkness, the Warrior opened the door, and stepped out, his shoes scrunching the sand. As the pair trekked to the Citadel door, they heard a snapping noise from behind them. The pair whirled around. The only noise was the gushing of wind.
“Was that you?” Ashleighagus questioned.
“No.” The Warrior stated. There had been stories of Time Lords who had left the Citadel, never to return. The Warrior recalled reading a book in his academy days with Koschei and Ushas. But they knew that those Time Lords simply left for the quieter OutCities or life with the Shobogans outside the bustling Citadel. But for some reason, Ushas had always been interested in the idea that there was some kind of predator out there, just beyond the glass sphere. Back then, Theta Sigma hadn’t given it a second thought. The Warrior was now giving it several thoughts.
“There’s nothing out here, is there?” Ashleighagus asked.
“I don’t know.” The Warrior admitted. Then, a small gush of wind seemed to push past him. He clicked a switch on his Sonic Screwdriver, and the bulb at the top flicked into a red glow. There was nothing there. “Just a bit of wind.” The Warrior dismissed. “Come on, let’s keep moving.” And so, they did. They continued trudging through the outlands, sand shifting by the wind. As Ashleighagus followed the Warrior’s footsteps exactly, she felt something grip around her ankle.
“Something’s got me.” She whispered shakily. The Warrior whirled around, shining his Sonic Screwdriver. The red glow barely lit up her azure robes. “It’s around my ankle.” The Warrior slowly tilted his Sonic Screwdriver down, lighting up her ankle. There, clasped around her ankle, crinkling her baggy, even for plus size, azure robes, was a branch.
“It’s a branch?” The Warrior questioned. He had walked in those exact spots mere moments ago, and there hadn’t been a branch. He squatted on his haunches and snapped the front of the branch. Somehow, her foot had been perfectly surrounded by the branch. Just then, a loud screeching noise came from the horizon. His head snapped to the left, while Ashleighagus raised her head. Looking up, the Warrior could see an expression of fear on her face. It had been a while since he had seen such an expression on the face of a companion. “It’s just a flock of birds.” He reassured, before remembering why he didn’t take on companions anymore. He got up, and nodded, before turning around. “We have to get back to the Citadel before sunsrise.” He reminded, continuing his trudging. In the darkness, Ashleighagus could’ve sworn she saw a bracelet peek its scratched and cracked beads from underneath the left sleeve of his battered leather jacket. Regardless, the pair continued their trek.
Elsewhere, the Outlands teemed with life, animals roamed. A small, cow-like creature with collar-like horns circling around their neck roamed, eating the last piece of red grass for a large gap. One of their small children followed, eating alongside their mother. Then, as the pair lowered their heads and ate, a noise came along, and began to terrorise the pair. The mother let out a screech of fear, and ran away. The child, still young, didn’t have as much knowledge. So the young child didn’t move. The noise grew louder and louder, before it was screeching in the poor child’s ear.
As the Warrior and Ashleighagus continued, the amber lights of the citadel began to spread. The Warrior flicked the switch on his Sonic Screwdriver, and the bulb turned off. The Warrior quickly slipped it back into the top pocket of his bandolier, and began to lower himself. He had learnt from past experience that lowering yourself made it harder to spot you. Ashleighagus did the same. The glass bulb of the Citadel loomed over them, and the pair whirled around, having heard a noise from behind them. A sense of fear instilled itself within both Ashleighagus and the Warrior.
“Open the door.” Ashleighagus quickly ordered.
“On it.” The Warrior confirmed, pulling his Sonic Screwdriver. It buzzed at the circular handle, with it not moving. “It’s been deadlocked!” He exclaimed. Ashleighagus grabbed the hand and began to heave. The Warrior did the same, the handle squeaking as it slowly turned open. As the sense of fear grew stronger, the door gave way, and the pair of them fell inwards. The Warrior kicked the door closed, before a camera, nestled in the corner of the room, flicked into life. The pair of them looked at the camera, then at each other.
“Be quiet, and I’ll let you in.” Mia whispered. The pair nodded, and the inner door was unsealed. The door opened, and the pair stepped out. From above, Abyenus drew a silver pistol, and aimed at Ashleighagus. Mia quickly grabbed the pistol’s tip. “I’ve had new orders from Leela.” Mia explained. “We’re to take them around the citadel as quietly as possible.” She added. Abyenus looked at Mia suspiciously, and considered asking Ollistra what Mia’s new orders were, but the High Council were asleep. Ollistra didn’t enjoy being woken up. So, for the sake of a happy Ollistra, Abyenus accepted, and the four set off to go to the High Council Building.