CHRYSALIS

THE DOCTOR DANCES

The gas-mask people are surrounding us.

Then the Doctor stares sternly around at them, "Go to your room."

The people hesitate, so he shouts, "Go to your room!"

The people cock their heads to one side. Jack, Rose, and I look at each other.

"I mean it! I am very, very angry with you. I am very, very cross! Go... to... your... ROOM!" He points violently in no particular direction and all the gas-mask people turn away. They all climb back onto their beds.

The Doctor sighs in relief, "I'm really glad that worked. Those would have been terrible last words."

"Why are they all wearing gas masks?" I ask, looking at the people.

"They're not. Those masks are flesh and bone." Jack answers.

"How was your con supposed to work?" The Doctor asks.

"Simple enough. Find some harmless piece of space junk... let the nearest Time Agent track it back to Earth. Convince him it's valuable, name a price. When he's put 50% upfront, oops! A German bomb falls on it, destroying it forever. He never gets to see what he's paid for. Never knows he's been had. I buy him a drink with his own money, and we discuss dumb luck. The perfect self-cleaning con." Jack explains.

"Yeah. Perfect." I scoff.

"The London Blitz is great for self-cleaners, Pompeii's nice if you want to make a vacation of it though, but you've got to set your alarm for volcano day." He laughs at his joke.

The Doctor merely looks at him.

Jack's laughter dies away, "Getting a hint of disapproval."

"Take a look around the room. This is what your 'harmless piece of space junk' did."

"It was a burnt-out medical transporter, it was empty." He denies.

I look up at the mention of the word 'medical'. Some things click into place in my head but there's still something missing from the whole picture.

"Abby, Rose."

I look at the Doctor, "We gonna investigate the child now?"

He nods so I follow him.

I hear Jack call after us, "I even programmed the flight computer so it wouldn't land on anything living, I harmed no one! I don't know what's happening here, but believe me, I had nothing to do with it."

"I'll tell you what's happening. You forgot to set your alarm clock. It's volcano day."

A siren goes off in the distance.

"What's that?" Rose asks.

"The all-clear." Jack answers.

"I wish." The Doctor leaves the ward, the rest of us following after him.

We run down a corridor, looking for the Doctor. Jack and Rose dash past a flight of stairs, I stop by them.

The Doctor pops his head around the banister, "Have you got a blaster?"

I hear them skid to a halt and come back my way.

We run up the stairs and end up standing outside a door.

"The night your space junk landed, someone was hurt. This was where they were taken." The Doctor tells us.
"What happened?" I ask.

"Let's find out." He looks at Jack, "Get it open."

Jack grins and points a blaster at the door. The Doctor, Rose, and I stand back.

"What's wrong with your sonic screwdriver?" I ask quietly.
"Nothing." He grins.