Brian dashed to the little stone building and grabbed the handle of the wooden door.
"Grace!" he hissed, as he first yanked futily at the handle, then realized a moment later 
that it opened inwards and pushed.
   It wasn't locked. It was heavy, though, and it took a few moments to push it all the 
way open.  He peeked cautiously within.  "Grace, are you in there?"
   He blinked.  Nothing.  It was empty.  Just a small room, a window in the far wall, 
and some bucket lying on its side up against the wall under the window.
   With a curse, he whirled.  They'd picked the wrong building.  Or else Grace and 
this Master guy weren't even here--
   He stepped back outside and into the street, and froze, staring in shock at the 
frenzied scene before him.  The street was swarming with Isconians, who were 
emerging from their homes, efficiently forming into orderly parties, and hurrying 
off into the maze of town streets around them.  There was no sign of the Doctor.
   Brian stared.  "Causing a distraction," he murmured faintly, as dozens of heads 
turned his way.  He stood, astonished, as a small crowd of blue humanoids eagerly 
approached him.
   He then stepped quickly back, horrified.  Oh God oh God -- it was all going unreal 
again.  This couldn't really be happening, could it?  He turned quickly, wondering if 
he should run, but found himself already surrounded.
   "Greetings!" one of the beings exclaimed.  "Are you the Offering known as 'Doctor'?
   Brian whirled, pale, and gaped at the speaker for a few moments.  "I...  No, I'm..."  
Then he shook his head and swallowed hard.  "Yes, I'm the Doctor.  Yes, absolutely," 
he continued, nodding vigorously.  Perhaps they'd call off the search now and give the 
Doctor the chance to find Grace, because it sure didn't look like he was going
 anywhere.  He glanced around uneasily as the blue natives stared at him with interest.
   "You honor us with your presence, Offering," one native told him, in a melodically 
fluting voice.
   "I...I do?"  Brian glanced quickly around.  Why, they seemed pleased to see him...
   Wait a minute-
   "'Offering'?  What do you mean by 'offering'?" he asked suspiciously.
   "You are here because it is your time to be Rejoined to Shamileth, Offering," the 
native explained cheerfully.
   "Rejoined?  What do you mean, 'rejoined'?!"
   "Come," the native said, smiling, as two more natives stepped forward and took hold 
of a gaping Brian's arms.  "I am Fironec, and I will be honored to show you to the place 
of Waiting."
   Brian's face crumpled in distress.  He was surrounded by these things, and they 
were touching him-
   It was a nightmare - it had to be.  Grace wasn't here, and the Doctor was gone, and 
now the creatures had got him-
   He balked.  "Let go of me," he growled.  "Let go of me, you-you things!"
   Fironec peered at Brian.  "I don't understand," the native said curiously.
   Brian glared at him.  "Let me go.  You can't do this!!"
   Fironec's head tilted.  "Ah - you Test us, of course.  As Baranac told us."
   And with they pulled him, heedless of his protests, back to the small stone building.
   Fironec stopped suddenly at the sight of the ajar door.  A quick inspection revealed 
that the 'she' was gone.  The Isconian bowed his head momentarily.
   "The 'she' has left the Place of Waiting.  I will inform Baranac what has happened 
here."
   They shut Brian inside, and Fironec hurried off.


The 'she' in question peered out from where she was crouched warily in a dark 
alley-way.  Hearing the outcry in the main street, she had been unable to resist the 
temptation to creep out to see what was happening.
   Not daring to venture too close, she hadn't been able to see very clearly, but it 
was obvious that the natives had caught somebody, and had just shut them in the 
very building she'd* been put in earlier.
   Her shoulders slumped.  She was too late - it could only be the Doctor.  As the 
Master had predicted, he'd come here, following them, and now he'd been caught.


Brian Dempster paced the floor of his cell, his fists clenching and unclenching.  If 
this were a nightmare, how much longer would it go on before it ended?  Why 
couldn't he wake up?!
   He paused momentarily, struck by a sudden thought.  Maybe when you were in 
the middle of dreams, they felt just like real life, and then it was only when you 
woke up that you forgot them, and they became unreal...
   Well, if that were so, then all he had to do was to hang on until he woke up.  He 
went over to a wall and slumped down to sit, rubbing at his eyes tiredly.  God, 
parts of it felt real.  The dark blue-green leaves, the hazy yellow sky, the acrid 
smells drifting through the air, the clink of stones hitting the wall against which 
he was sitting...
   He opened his eyes.  Stones, hitting a wall?  He listened.
   Plink.
   Plink.
   Plink.
   He blinked.  That was too regular.  Someone nearby was deliberately making 
a noise.  He got to his feet and stared at the window several meters above his head.
   A pebble abruptly sailed through the window and rebounded off his head.
   "Hey!" he yelped, rubbing at the sore spot.
   Another stone flew through, and he jumped out of the way.
   Was it his jailors, having some fun at his expense?
   "Doctor?" a woman's voice whispered hoarsely, outside the window.  "Doctor, 
are you in there?"
   Yet another stone flew through.
   Brian ducked.  "Hey!" he hissed back.  "Stop with the stones already!"
   There was a brief silence.  Then:
   "Who's in there?!"
   "Who are you?" he demanded in return.
   He thought he heard muffled muttering.  He caught the last few words:  "...must 
be losing it..."  Then:  
   "Look, I saw them put you in there!  I'm going help you get out!"
   "Fine with me!" Brian hissed back, bemused.  Getting rescued by a mysterious 
woman?  Perhaps this dream was finally taking a turn for the better.  God, it sounded 
like Grace.  Well, that would fit in with the rest of the dream...
   "I'll be back in a few minutes!" the voice hissed.
   Brian slumped a little.  Great.  The way things were going, he was about to get 
stood up - now it was happening even in his dreams.
   He sat down again.  It was with surprise a few minutes later that he realized that 
true to her word, his mysterious would-be rescuer had returned.  Something hit 
the edge of the window with a thsssp and slithered down inside.
   It was a blue green creeper, several inches thick.  Brian looked at it, feeling a 
surge of hope.  Even if this were just a dream, he didn't feel like just waiting 
around for it to end.  He found himself smiling.  What the heck; why not just go 
with the flow?.  It was definitely time to do something...
   He took hold of the vine.  It was surprisingly pliable, though not so much as 
a rope.  Still, it would do...  He pulled cautiously at it, and it held.
   "Have you tied it to something?" he called softly.
   "Yes.  Now shuush!  And climb!"
   Brian blinked.  That definitely sounded like Grace...
   Grabbing the vine, he tested the tension, then looked at the task ahead of him.  
Really, just a few meters to go to get to the window.  Grasping the vine, he hauled 
himself up.  A few overhand pulls later, and he had reached the window's edge 
and hooked his right foot on the edge of the sill.  Using that for leverage, he drew 
up his other leg, and found himself perched precariously in the opening.
   Below, Grace stared up, gaping.  Hard to see as it was in the relative darkness, 
there could be no doubt.  It wasn't the Doctor she'd just rescued, but-
   "Brian!"  What the hell are you doing here?"
   He stared down at her.  "Um...I've come to rescue you...  Well, me and this 
guy who calls himself the 'Doctor'.  Hope you don't mind."  He wriggled around, 
took hold of the window ledge, then lowered himself down.  He landed with an 
oomph, losing his balance and landing on his behind.
   When he looked up, Grace was standing over him, looking perturbed.  "Mind?"  
Mind?!  You idiot-"  She quickly knealt down next to him and gave him a 
sudden, fierce hug.  "My God, the last time I saw you, you were d-"
   "Was the other day, at the restaurant..."
   She shook her head.  "Never mind."
   "This crazy alien Doctor guy kidnapped me and told me this other alien guy was 
out to get you," he said as he scrambled to his feet.  "I'm still not quite sure what's 
going on, but-"
   Grace laughed a little shakily.  "Yeah, sounds like you came here with the Doctor, 
all right.  Where is he?"
   Brian got to his feet.  "Off causing a distraction-"
   They both froze.  Several hairless heads were peeking curiously around the edge 
of the prison building in front of them.
   "Oh, no," Brian groaned.
   He gamely let himself be pulled along by Grace as she beat a hasty adrenaline-fueled retreat.





To be continued...








Part 11 || FanFic Home