Gallifrey: the planet of the Time Lords, which had once stood proud amidst the universe. The people who lived there were a noble race who had established themselves as the guardians of time, the pillars of the universe. They were revered throughout the universe and their home planet became known for its beauty and tranquillity. But that was before the war. The War changed everything…
SKY TRENCHES
From the small round window of a claustrophobic orbital deployment pod a young woman looked out over the planet she once called home. The realisation that she had probably walked on its ground for the last time sent butterflies dancing in her stomach. Just below her, she could barely make out the town in which she had grown up. The largest of the square buildings was her school, she smiled as she remembered some of her fonder moments there:
*****
“The Daleks are a race determined to conquer the universe.” The teacher droned on. “They believe themselves to be superior to others and will exterminate anything they see as lesser, which is everything.”
She wasn’t listening to what the teacher was saying, the beauty of the Mountains of Tranquillity visible through the large window that run along the class room was far more worthy of her attention.
“Are you even listening to me?” Her teacher had noticed her daydreaming. “This is a very serious matter young lady. Your parents and the parents of each of your classmates are fighting the Daleks for us. You can at least have the decency to listen.”
“What,” she retorted. “Like you have the decency to look after us.” A gasp went round the room.
The teacher moved to the edge of her desk and towered over her, arms folded. “Choose your next words very carefully.”
Thrusting her chair back she stood level with her teacher. “This school promised that it would care for us so our parents could fight. But you don’t care…” she swallowed. “You keep us alive, barely. The living quarters are almost uninhabitable, the food inedible and the workload is crippling.” She allowed her anger to take over. “This isn’t a school, it’s a factory. Boys will be soldiers and girls will be workers. All to fulfil the Citadel’s quota. I’m right aren’t I?”
There was a stunned silence as no-one quite knew what to say next. Eventually one kid at the back of the room started to clap, gradually the rest of the class joined in. With a look of thunder on her face the teacher screamed, “One month of detention.”
“So worth it.” She grinned smugly.
*****
The last week had been a whirlwind, she felt as if she barely had time to breath. In the course of seven days she had been through a range of emotions. The disappointment of being told she would not be allowed to enlist in the Gallifrey army because “she wasn’t a Time Lord, she wasn’t even a man”. The anger had led her to go home and cut off her beautiful blonde locks of hair, shave her head and adopt a new persona. The satisfaction of convincing them that she was a man and the elation of being offered a place in the army. Now sitting in the drop pod, it was the first time she had an opportunity to think, free of the hustle-bustle of daily life for the first time. Now was the first time fear had gripped her, fear of the future, fear of the known. As a young girl she had always wanted to see the planet from orbit having heard stories from those lucky enough to have experienced it. Now the view was no more than a pleasant way to pass the time.
She decided to make the most of the opportunity, craning her neck to get a better look out of the small window of the pod. There it was, standing out on the horizon like nothing she had ever seen before, the Citadel of the Time Lords, the capital city of Gallifrey. Defences had been erected around its perimeter, designed to keep the Lord President safe at all costs. But that was not the only change the war had led to; the other was far more tragic. People had flocked to the capital in the hope of finding safety there, it only took a matter of days for it to become overpopulated leaving thousand in poverty with nowhere to stay. They could have gone home, but decided that the safety offered by proximity to the capital was worth the sacrifice. So they camped in their thousands around the perimeter spanning a field of black tents right to the mountains themselves. She was overwhelmed with a sense of pity, forgetting her fear for a moment.
After a glance upwards at the iron ceiling which surrounded the planet brought the fear back, this time accompanied with nausea. “Don’t be sick, don’t be sick.” She said to herself, well aware that she would cover herself in vomit. The iron ceiling was the underside of the Sky Trench programme, the brainchild of the General: A Time Lord in charge of Gallifrey’s Second City, Arcadia. His preposition involved merging Sky Trenches (normally used to protect the cities) to form an impenetrable layer around the entirety of Gallifrey. No one has ever made it through a Sky Trench. So if anyone wanted to take Gallifrey they would have to accomplish that impossible task. That reassurance now offered her little comfort. If the Sky Trenches were a protective bubble, hers was about to burst.
There was an uncomfortable jolt as the pod connected with the Sky Trenches. The docking procedure was now initiated, “No turning back now.” She surprised herself at how confident she sounded, but she knew in her heart that she wasn’t. An automated voice informed her that he had reached her destination and wished her luck. She laughed. She’d need it…
She was greeted by a tall man with dark black hair, military styled, attractive. His face was welcoming and inviting of trust. His voice too was authoritative, full of confidence and power. He wore the armour of a Chancellery Guard, bearing the rank of a general along with his name emblazoned on his dog tags: The Evangelist. Still slightly disoriented from her journey, the young woman was only able to pick up parts of what the Evangelist was saying; something along the lines of asking what she had done to deserve being here. As if noticing that his words where falling on deaf ears the Evangelist stopped talking for a minute allowing her an opportunity to adjust to the altered environment. After leaving what he deemed enough time he began again. “Forgive my rudeness; I forgot how difficult it is to make the initial adjustment. We’re right on the boundaries of Gallifrey’s atmosphere so things are a little different.” He smiled a genuine smile, “I’m the Evangelist, and I’m in charge here. I believe you’ve been assigned to my team.” He checked something on the pod in which the young man, when he returned he was laughing. “Yeah, everything checks out. Welcome to the team. Now, tell me what you have done to deserve a sentence in hell?”
The young woman was a little taken aback, how could he possibly know that she had lied to get herself here? The Sky Trenches was what she had been assigned; there was nothing more to it, she hadn’t asked why. “How do you mean, what have I done?”
The Evangelist laughed again, “It’s nothing, don’t worry about it. I was merely commenting on how this is the worst place you could have been assigned. Too far from the battles to make a difference, yet too far from home to live a normal life. Sometimes I wonder what we did to deserve being abandoned here. But we make do. We can just be thankful that the Daleks haven’t reached us yet. I reckon it’s only a matter of time though, so the more good men we have up here the better.”
“Blimey you like to talk” the young woman laughed nervously. “If we are not fighting, what exactly are we meant to do?” She paused and watched his face to see if she was going too far. “I signed up to fight Daleks”
The Evangelist put his hand on her shoulder, “For now, not a lot. Basically we are the final line of defence. The Sky Trenches are fairly empty at the moment but when the Daleks push our armies back, and it is when, make no mistakes. So when that happens it’s our job to make sure the Daleks don’t get through to the planet below.”
“Then we kill them?” the young woman asked. He nodded but did not reply. She could feel a cold sweat forming on her brow, the silence was freaking her out. “You know, I’ve never seen a Dalek before.”
The Evangelist shook his head, “Long may that continue.” He checked his watch before continuing, “Now what say you I introduce you to the rest of the team?” Producing a set of empty dog tags he asked, “Apologies, I forgot to ask. Your name please Time Lord?” After a while without reply his face reddened, so he asked again, this time more forcefully. “What’s your name son?”
The young woman’s heart skipped a beat, she had been so caught up in her deception that she forgot to pick a man. Now her mouth was dry and she could tell that the soldier in front of her knew something was amiss. Hedging her bets she decided to tell half the story: “Thing is, I’m not Time Lord”
The Evangelist shook his head and sighed. “You should have said sooner.” When he spoke again, his tone was much softer and sympathetic, “It doesn’t matter. Here on the Sky Trenches we have one rule. Who you were on Gallifrey stays on Gallifrey. Up here we can’t let our past hold us back. We need to be clear and objective, both in mind and heart.” He smiled reassuringly at the young woman, “Let me tell you a secret, you and me we are the same. I’m a general; I haven’t let it hold me back so I think you’ll do just fine.”
The young woman breathed a sigh of relief when she thought the Evangelist wasn’t looking. She seriously doubted that this man was like her. But he was in charge, and he seemed to like her, perhaps this place was not going to be as bad as he initially feared. She couldn’t help but wonder how he had managed to command respect from Time Lords, despite not being one himself. She would find out soon enough, of that she was certain. For now he was just happy to receive a good welcome. “Thank you sir”
“One last thing, we’re going to need something to call to call you. Pick a name, make it sound Time Lord. We are all equals here” The young woman was stumped by the abruptness of the question and was unable to give an answer. It’s not a question that one is normally faced with, choosing a name. In the absence of a reply the Evangelist offered a suggestion, “Well you are a young man, how about: The Kid?”
The young woman smiled, happy that her secret was still safe. “Sounds good to me”
“Perfect. Well that’s that settled then.” He gestured toward the central building, “Come and I’ll introduce you to the rest of the team”
The Kid moved to follow the Evangelist. She soon realised something was wrong however. It was the first she had tried to move since exiting the drop pod. She noticed as soon as he did that she began to feel light headed, with her heart pounding in her chest and sweat forming on her brow. She only managed three steps before she fell and everything blacked out
***
She had no recollection of anything which happened between the collapse and waking up in a bed. Attempting to scratch the uncontrollable itch on her arm told her she had a medical drip inserted. Fear overcome her as if someone had shrouded her with a damp blanket. She was unsure of where she was with a multitude of tubes going into her, if she moved she would pull them out, and they just might be keeping her alive.
A man was sitting at the desk across the room with his back facing toward the Kid. She decided she had two options, try to escape without alerting this unknown man, or call out to him for help. The pain on each breath told her it wasn’t really a choice. She had to stay put and hope for the best. Her stomach rumbled, perfect timing.
The man turned towards the noise just as she slammed her eyes shut, “Oh good, you’re awake.” Dammit she thought, he’d seen her. With no point it pretending to be asleep she opened her eyes to see her captor. He was a kind faced man with blonde curly hair and pair of round glasses. He too wore the armour of a Chancellery Guard, except his bore a white cross (the universal symbol for medicine). He was slightly too far away for the Kid to read his dog tags. That mystery was short lived as his first action was to introduce himself. “I’m Doc, I was asked to look after you. This is our medical wing. It’s not the greatest but hopefully you won’t be spending too much time here.”
Like the Evangelist, this man had warmth about him that made the Kid instantly sure she could trust him. His smile was reassuring too, she felt safer than she ever had on Gallifrey. She sat up, careful not to remove any of the medical tubing “How long was I out for?” she laughed to herself. “Usually when I ask that it is alcohol induced.”
“Oh to be young.” Doc laughed, he couldn’t have been that old himself, at least he didn’t look it. “Don’t worry about those, precautionary measure.” He began to remove the wires which had been plaguing her. “ Didn’t want to lose you before you’d even seen a battle did we?” Another of his warm smiles had her at complete ease “As for how long you’ve been out, I’m sorry to tell you that it’s been a few days. You had quite the bad case, but you’re sorted now.”
“What happened? How did I…” she was lost for words.
“Don’t worry about it, there’s nothing wrong with you.” Doc laughed, “It happens to the best of us. You see the air up here is a lot thinner. It can mess with your blood gases a bit. Doesn’t really take effect until you walk for the first time, then you collapse and can be out for anything between a few hours and a week. It’s no big deal. You should have seen what happened with the evangelist.” He bit down on tongue. “I shouldn’t have said that.” He stopped for moment consulting a chart at the bottom of the bed. “I could have sworn the Evangelist said we had a young lad.”
The Kid tensed as she lay in the bed, several thoughts raced through her head. Had she been discovered? “Yeah he did, what off it.”
“I see,” he marked the chart and gave her another smile. “It must be a clerical error, I’m sure there’s nothing sinister behind it. I’ll make sure nothing comes of it.”
She tried to hide her sigh of relief. This man was a medic, surely he could tell the difference between a boy and a girl. For whatever reason he had chosen to keep her secret safe, so she had no option but to trust him and hope she had made an ally. Her train of thought was interrupted when another man entered the room. He was short with slicked back black greasy hair and he wore glasses which were a little too big for his head. He was the first person the Kid had seen so far not be wearing battle armour, instead he was wearing a white lab coat.
“This is Einstein,” Doc introduced the new arrival. “Einstein, this is the Kid.”
“The Evangelist asked to see him one he had woken up.” Einstein spoke directly to Doc, ignoring the Kid. “I’ve been asked to take him to the boss for a briefing. Is he ready to go” No sooner had Doc nodded, and Einstein turned to the Kid acknowledging her for the first time. “Follow me. Hurry, I need to get back to the lab.”
As the Kid walked over to the door, Doc pulled her back and whispered, “Don’t worry if he doesn’t talk much, he’s a little strange. He’ll open up more once you get to know him.” He placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “I’m sure I’ll see you again later. Good luck. Your secret is safe with me”
Their journey took them though a town which appeared to have been assembled from scrap and pop rivets. It appeared random, but the Sky Trenches had been shaped this very specific way to allow for small buildings with maximum protection. Einstein had not uttered one word since they had left the infirmary, the Kid was beginning to feel awkward. “Einstein…” he didn’t even flinch “Sounds familiar but I can’t place it.”
“He was an Earth scientist, they called him the father of physics.” The monotonous reply was swift. “I’m a scientist, so it seemed like a good name to take.” Finally a sliver of emotion, albeit very superficial.
The Kid noticed that there were a lot more people about than there had been when she first arrived. She’d only been out a few days, something wasn’t right. “Where did everyone come from?”
“Haven’t you heard?” Einstein stopped and made eye contact with her for the first time. She could see from his eyes that he was terrified. “The Daleks are winning! Three ships worth of soldiers have already been pushed back to the Sky Trenches. Who knows how many more will follow. All that matters for now is that we keep the Daleks away.” He sounded convincing, but that wasn’t it, she had figured him out. Yeah the Daleks scared him, they’d scare anyone, but it was social interaction which formed the bigger beast for this man. She felt sorry for him. “I have a few inventions to that end that’s what I’m good for. I’m working on some anti-Dalek weapons that utilise the disporadic energy from the dalekanium converter within the Dalek mandible. If I can isolate the oscilant frequency of resonant communication, I can nullify the Dalek’s external shielding.”
She had no idea what to say, having not understood a word. But she couldn’t bring herself to tell him, he seemed happy to finally be able to talk about it with someone “It sounds interesting. I’m sure that would be very useful.” She reckoned that he’d been bullied in his youth and that is why is he was so uncomfortable around people, he was scared they were going to hurt him. She was good at reading people and she was well accustomed to this sort of behaviour, she’d done it many times before.
He continued talking using words she had never heard of until they reached a large building in the middle of a complex of smaller ones “This is the main barracks, it might as well be our home. Training and team meetings will occur here. The Evangelist is waiting inside for you. I’m off to my lab which is next door.”
The Kid entered the main barracks into a room containing a large table. The Evangelist was sat at the head of the table. There was a man beside him with ginger hair; his face had a natural squint. Like the majority of the team, he also wore a suit of red armour. Upon seeing the Kid enter the room, the Evangelist gestured for him to join them at the table. Once he was seated, he introduced him to the ginger man. “This is Sureshot, he is known for his accuracy with a range of weapons. He will be in charge of your training.”
There was a beep from the computer at the back of the room, the Evangelist rushed to his feet to attend to it. When he returned he excused himself. “Apologies, I have cut your welcome short.” He seemed sincere. “Message from Arcadia, the General is looking a status update about the ships that have joined our ranks. Apparently Rassilon is growing restless in the capital. I will leave you in Sureshot’s more than capable hands.”
As soon as the Evangelist had left Sureshot had got straight down to business. “Right then, we are going to need to get you kitted out with a suit of armour and a weapon of your choice.” Getting a blank look in response he added “Have you got much fighting experience?”
“I know how to use a weapon, that’s about it”. Technically it wasn’t a lie; she used to hunt with her father when she was younger. That was before his father had succumbed to Chen-7 whilst on a trading trip. It was a nasty disease affecting only individuals with two hearts killing them within the space of a day. She remembered crying for days after it had happened. Now when she thought of her father she felt nothing, just an empty gap in her life.
“Blimely they’ve thrown you in at the deep end.” Sureshot bemoaned his luck, “But we can work with that.”It seemed that a reassuring smile was a prerequisite for a position on this team. “Come with me to the armoury and we can get you a weapon which feels comfortable for you.” He lead the way into one of the side rooms, it contain racks upon racks of all sorts of weapons. The room whilst narrow at the entrance opened into a large combat area with everything that would be required to train with any of the weapons on display. There were two more men in the room, both wearing Chancellery Guard uniforms too. One of them was a large stocky man, he was dark skinned and had a shaved head, his suit was specially styled so as it had a large cylinder which sat upon his shoulders like a rucksack, this was attached to his weapon which was currently held in the weapon pouch on the belt of his suit. The other wore a helmet hiding his facial features. His armour had two crossed swords on his back. The two men were having an argument and were oblivious to the new arrivals. Sureshot held a hand in front of the Kid to stop her. “This should be fun.” He grinned like a kid coming down to his present on Christmas Day.
“There’s only one way to beat a Dalek and that’s with a sword, if you weren’t so tubby perhaps you could try it.” The one with the swords was taunting the other.
“Are you calling me fat?” Veins were beginning to bulge in the black man’s forehead. “I’ll have you know this is pure muscle.” He threw the helmet he was working with to the floor, its visor smashed. “One more fat joke and I’ll come over there and rip your little helmeted head off your weak little body.”
“You’d have to catch me first” He paused for effect before adding, “Let’s face it, that’s never going to happen.”
“That’s it” The black man had his hand on his weapon now, “You’re a dead man”
Sureshot decided now would be the best time to intervene before anyone got hurt. “Gentlemen, please stop fighting. This is hardly the best way of introduction to our new recruit.” He gestured to the larger man. “This is Trader. He’s extremely strong and good with a weapon.” Now referencing the other man he continued, “And this is Ninja, a master swordsman. He uses special swords designed by Einstein capable of cutting through the armour of a Dalek.”
“Not only that; these swords are able to deflect a Daleks fire. Can your precious weapons and strength do that Trader?” Ninja was persistent and obviously knew which buttons which most effective to press on his colleague’s short temper.
“I said that’s enough” Sureshot interjected. “These two have a love hate relationship, they are constantly at each other’s throats which is not good for team morale.” Winking at the Kid he continued “They love each other really though and have each other’s backs.”
“Who could love a man like him?” Trader smirked
“Shall we get the women in the pub to settle this one.” Ninja was quick in reply. “It’ll only be the hundredth time you’ve been proved wrong.”
“That is quite enough. Kid, pick a weapon and let’s get you to your suit.” Sureshot gestured to the weapons rack indicating that the Kid had a free choice. Instinctively he picked out two of the weapons whose weight felt right in his hand. “Most people don’t pick their weapons that fast; it seems your gut instincts tend to be the one you rely upon. That could be a useful trait. Now let’s get you your armour”
They left the room and crossed the main hall into another side room at the opposite side. This one was filled with suits of armour of differing sizes. “Are they all the same? I noticed Trader has a few modifications to his suit?”
“Yes they are all the same, based on the armour of a Chancellery Guard but lighter and more mobile. They contain a battery pack which acts a life support until Doc can get to you and heal you.” Sureshot removed a suit that was the appropriate size for the Kid and handed it to him. “If you want any modifications go and see Einstein and he should be able to do anything you want.”
They returned to the main hall of the barracks and took a seat at the table. “Right I think we’ve got the basics sorted.” Sureshot went through a mental checklist. “Oh yes, your room is down the hallway to the left, third door on the right.” Satisfied he had covered everything he asked, “Are there any other questions I can help you with? Don’t hesitate to ask. “
The Kid looked around the room and spotted a locked door opposite the corridor leading to the living quarters. “What’s in that room there?”
“Good question. I’ve never been inside” He avoided looking directly at the doorway. When the Kid did, she felt a tightness develop in her stomach which eased as soon as she looked away. Odd. “It’s the Prophet’s room. He’s part of our team but with a slightly different job. In this war Time itself is a weapon. We need someone who can chart how it changes, someone who can see all of time.”
The Kid’s next question was drowned out by the ringing of a loud bell which knelled three times. Within minutes the entire team had assembled within the main hall which they were now calling the War Room. The Evangelist headed the table as he was the commanding officer. He asked for quiet to allow Einstein a chance to report to the group.
“About five minutes ago my scanners picked up a solitary Dalek ship within range of the Sky Trenches and heading this way. It will be here in no more than ten minutes.” Einstein’s hand shook making it difficult for him to read from the papers he held.
“It’s no worry” Trader thumped his fist against the table, “We have the weaponry to blast them to hell before they get within attacking distance of the Sky Trenches.”
“Yes” A rare moment of agreement between Ninja and Trader, “Neutralise the situation before it become more serious, easily the best strategy.”
“No!” The Evangelist stood at the top of the table, “This is one Dalek ship, and this is the best chance we have. Next time they could come in fleets.” A silence befell the table as everyone anticipated his plan “I’ve been speaking to Einstein about a plan. But we need to capture that ship in one piece for it to work”
“Non-damaged preferably,” Einstein revelled in being the centre of attention. “If I can access the computers on their ship I may be able to use the system to hack in and track the rest of the Dalek Armada. That could be enough to give us the upper hand and win this war.”
“Forgive my ignorance, but how to you plan on us boarding a Dalek ship, remaining undetected and killing everything on it, and then being able to pilot it here.” Doc was sceptical of the enormity of the task. “It’s not just stupid, it’s suicide.”
“Well I can teleport you onto it, give you the element of surprise.” Einstein had pre-empted the question. “When you take the ship insert the drive I have given to the Evangelist, that should auto pilot the ship here.”
“So it’s settled then! We take the ship.” The Evangelist spoke with authority. “Quick, everyone get to the laboratory so we can teleport up before they get too close.” This time addressing the Kid directly he added. “Are you ready to meet your first Dalek, Kid? Good luck, you’ll need it.”
TO BE CONTINUED
NEXT TIME - THE STUFF OF NIGHTMARES (2/2) The team board a Dalek ship with the intention of taking it and using it to aid their efforts against the Daleks. Their excursion ends in disaster as they face a bigger threat in the form of their own. In an aborted timeline the Time Lords are aware of their defeat and act to change things. Sending back a weapon which changes the course of the war has huge impacts on everyone.