Pirates roam the waters surrounding the islands of the Kasterborous Constellation, but not all of them are what they seem. When Lady Rose Tyler rejoins her parents in the Gallifreyan colony, she meets two men: James McCrimmon, the first nobleman who doesn’t bore her to tears, and the Doctor, a pirate who promises to keep her safe… from the pirates. What is going on in the Constellation, and how is it connected to the nefarious doings of the Master?
(This chapter not on ff.net yet--hopefully this afternoon.)
The Tardis glided through the waters of the Constellation, with the sun on her deck and the wind at her back. Jack stood on the quarterdeck with his hand on the wheel and squinted through a mild headache.
The crew had spent the night unloading their loot on Powell Isle, Mickey’s home and one of the poorer islands in the region. And when they were done, they’d all enjoyed several glasses of excellent rum at the tavern where Lady Tyler and Lady Rose had been working when Lord Tyler found them again.
The results of the night were threefold: he was feeling a little worse for the wear today, the unburdened Tardis was flying over the water, and he had a greater understanding and respect for the woman James had chosen to marry.
“Captain!”
Jack’s head swung up so he could see the lookout. “Tell me you’ve got good news for me, Nancy!” he called back to the young woman in the crow’s nest.
Even with the distance in between them, he could tell she was shaking her head—her dark braid swung heavily from side to side before dropping over her right shoulder. “I just spotted the Master, sir.” Jack swore, but she shook her head again. “He’s not changing course to intercept. He’s going north by northwest.”
Jack quickly visualised a map of the Constellation, and he swore again. “He’s going to Arcadia.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Keep an eye out,” Jack ordered. “Let me know if you spot him again.”
He turned the wheel, pointing the ship towards Arcadia. He could think of only one reason the Master would be sailing for the Governor’s island. He just hoped they could get there in time to save Rose.
oOoOo
Rose hummed a soft tune as she walked home from the Wolf and the Storm. Her afternoon with Wilf and Dona had been merrier than usual, as they celebrated the first real victory over the Daleks in years. The fact that it had been won by pirates, not the Navy, didn’t make it any less important in the ongoing war.
Rose’s secret hopes had already turned to thoughts of James coming home with a letter of marque and a wedding with her dashing pirate captain. After a six-month separation, she had no desire to put the ceremony off any longer than they had to.
As she walked past an alley, a hand shot out and grabbed her. Another hand clamped down over her mouth, stifling her scream. Her attacker wrapped an arm around her torso, pinning her arms to her sides and forcing her to stand uncomfortably close to him.
“Shhh, let me explain,” he whispered in her ear when she struggled and kicked at him, trying to get free.
Rose twisted her neck so she could look at him, letting him see exactly what she thought of his orders. To her annoyance, the man whistled, then a slow smile spread across his face.
“I can see why the Doc fell in love with you,” he murmured. “Definitely nothing like the other ladies he’s met.”
Rose’s struggles slowed as the man’s words sank in. She could only think of two pirates who might know she was courting the Doctor, and this man didn’t seem to possess the cruelty that characterised the Master. She raised her eyebrows at him, hoping it would convey her question.
The man frowned, but only for a second. “Oh! I’m Captain Jack Harkness. Jamie told you about me, remember? The one he wasn’t sure he wanted to introduce you to?”
Relief swept over Rose, and she nodded furiously. Jack grinned at her, and in his smile, she could see what James meant about the other man being a flirt. She rolled her eyes at him, and he released her with a chuckle.
“Don’t worry, Lady Rose. I have no designs on my best friend’s love.”
“Good,” Rose retorted, though not without a smile. “Now, where exactly is James? What kind of plan did you come up with? And why are you here?”
Jack reached for her hand and pulled her through the alleyway. “The plan has been shot to hell,” he said bluntly. “And we need to get away from Arcadia before it’s too late.”
For the first time, Rose spotted the lines around his mouth and realised how low he was keeping his voice. This part of Arcadia was not unfriendly to pirates, so why was he being so secretive?
Jack stopped at the other end of the alley and looked around the corner, his gaze sweeping in both directions before he quickly pulled Rose across the street.
“What exactly is going on, Jack?” Rose demanded when they reached the other side.
He sighed and ran his free hand through his hair. “All right, taking your questions one at a time,” he said as they strode through the abandoned alley. “The Doctor is on Cadon, but I think you knew that already. As to our plan and why all the secrecy… The Master threatened you a few months ago. Well, the Doc has never been willing to take him down, but a threat to your life was enough to push him over the edge.”
Jack looked up at her, and the serious expression in his blue eyes hit Rose hard. “The Doctor loves you, Lady Rose. He would do anything to keep you safe.”
Rose swallowed back the sudden lump in her throat. “And I love him. So you can imagine how it felt when I thought he might have been taken by the Daleks. Even though I realised almost immediately that it was some sort of ruse… that first hour hurt. And not knowing where he is or what he’s doing still hurts.”
She looked away from him to regain control of her emotions, and as she did, she took in her surroundings. Jack was slowly leading her towards the abandoned harbour on the opposite end of town from the newer port.
When she looked at Jack again, his blue eyes were soft with sympathy. “I’m sorry for that, especially since the plan was my idea. But if it works, you’ll have him back permanently. The end goal is to capture the Master and turn him in in exchange for a letter of marque. That’s why he liberated Cadon first—to lure the Master over the blockade and into a trap.”
“Yes, I’d worked out most of that. And I think my father is ready to give him that letter, even just with the liberation of Cadon. Capturing the Master will be the icing on the cake.”
They stopped on the edge of the road that ran along the old harbour, and Jack shook his head. “No, capturing the Master is the most important part,” he countered. He scanned their surroundings before looking back at her. “Because it’s the only way to keep you safe.”
Rose tilted her head and thought for a second, then sucked in a breath. “The Master was on his way to Arcadia to abduct me, wasn’t he?” she whispered.
Jack nodded once, then jerked his head toward the pier where Rose could see a small dinghy waiting. They ran across the street and down the aged dock, then jumped into the boat.
Rose got another surprise when she saw the sailor with his hand on the rudder. “Mickey!”
Her childhood friend grinned and waved at her. “Fancy meeting you here,” he quipped.
“You two know each other?” Jack asked, then answered his own question. “Right, you’re both from Powell Isle.”
He pointed at Mickey. “Get us moving.We need to get back to the Tardis now.”
Mickey unfurled the sail and Jack looked back at Rose. “Jamie said you were clever, but I didn’t expect you to figure it all out on your own,” he told her, finally answering her earlier question. “Yes, the watch spotted the Master heading this way about three hours ago. Once I realised his heading, I knew there was only one reason he would sail for Arcadia, and we took a shortcut to get here first.”
Rose moved automatically to help Mickey get the boat moving. She was a lady now, but she’d been an island girl for most of her life, and she knew her way around the water.
“You took a shortcut?” she asked Jack.
Jack nodded. “We went through the Curse of Pythia. The Master is insane, but he’s also big on self-preservation, so I knew he’d go around.”
Rose’s eyes widened. The narrow strait between Raxacoricofallapatorius and Clom was definitely the fastest way to get from the Outer Constellation into the main island group, but it was notoriously dangerous.
“That was brave.” Knowing they’d put themselves at so much risk for her sake settled uncomfortably in his stomach.
The sail caught the wind and moved them away from the dock, and Mickey snorted as he moved back to the rudder. “Took less courage to brave the Curse than it would to tell the Doctor we’d let the Master capture you,” he said bluntly.
Rose’s eyes narrowed, and Jack could easily follow her train of thought. “What Mickey means,” he said hurriedly, “is that the Tardis is loyal to her captain, and when we realised how much you meant to him, that loyalty was passed on to you.”
She raised her eyebrows and looked back and forth between Jack and Mickey, and Jack chafed under the inconvenience of being in the presence of someone so clever.
Thankfully, an excellent distraction presented itself just in time. The dinghy rounded a curve in the coastline and came in sight of the Tardis.
“Ten more minutes and we’ll be safely on the Tardis,” he told Rose. She nodded absently, then shuffled to the bow of the small boat so she could watch their progress.
oOoOo
Rose worked hard to stay out of the way while Mickey and Jack brought the dinghy up to the sleek pirate ship and had them hauled aboard. As soon as Jack’s feet touched the deck, he shouted the order to weigh anchor and get the ship underway.
Then he led her to the captain’s cabin on the quarterdeck. “I’ll come talk to you and give you a tour of the ship as soon as we’re underway,” he promised before backing out of the cabin and closing the door behind him.
Normally Rose would hate being hidden away like a helpless lady, but she didn’t mind being left alone in James’ personal space. She studied the room, taking in the books on the shelves, the heavy desk bolted to the deck, and the slight disorganisation that belied the apparent neatness.
She ran her fingers along the wall, feeling the texture of the wood and letting her imagination wander. The room felt so much like James; it was easy to picture him sitting at the desk or scanning the books on the shelves until he found the right one.
A shout caught her attention, and Rose cocked her head, straining to hear the words that accompanied the sudden buzz of activity on the other side of the door.
“The Master…”
“Keep us out of range!”
Rose sat down heavily on the end of James’ narrow bed. Jack had just barely managed to save her from being taken by the Master. Her stomach clenched in knots at the thought, and her hands twisted together.
“Bring us around…”
She braced herself from a sharp turn and managed to stay upright. However, a wooden box slid off the desk as the ship tilted into the curve, and the lid popped off, scattering its contents over the floor.
As soon as they were going straight again, Rose stooped down to pick up the papers that were strewn all over the floor. She stopped when she recognised her own writing.
My letters.
The paper in her hand shook as all the emotions of the last few months caught up with Rose at once. Seeing the letters she’d written to him, knowing he’d been the last one to hold them… Her loneliness and fear and desperate desire to be with James again swept over her. She sank down onto the floor and gathered all the letters to her.
That was how Jack found her twenty minutes later, huddled on the floor of James’ cabin, clutching the letters she’d written him to her chest. “Oh, Rosie,” he whispered, his heart aching as he took in the situation and understood what must have happened. “Come on, let’s get up off that hard floor.” He pulled Rose to her feet, then led her to the window seat at the back of the room, where warm sunlight streamed in through the large window.
“Am I ever going to see him again, Jack?” she whispered.
Jack wrapped an arm around her shoulders, feeling a surge of brotherly protection towards this woman even though they’d just met. James was his brother, though, and Rose was the woman he loved.
“Well, as it happens,” he said, his voice cheerful, “we’re on our way to meet him right now.”
Rose’s head swung around, and her brown eyes were open wide. “We’re going through the blockade?” A moment later, she shook her head. “Of course. That was the plan the whole time, wasn’t it? That’s why he liberated Cadon first—so the Master would be curious enough about what was happening that he would go into Dalek territory. And you were meant to follow him, trapping him between James’ ship and the Tardis.”
Jack nodded. “We’ve reversed order a bit,” he admitted. “The Master is chasing us instead of the other way around. But between the fact that we have you on board, and his preexisting interest in James, I’m confident he’ll follow us through the blockade.”
oOoOo
James smiled and waved at another refugee as he walked through Cadon’s port. The first refugees had arrived within twenty-four hours of their victory, Sarah Jane’s communication network spreading the word quickly.
The cry of seagulls caught his ear, and his gaze drifted out to sea. It was a clear day with a straight wind—the perfect day to be on the water.
He sighed and raked his hand through his hair. But I am stuck here until Jack sends word that they are on their way.
That was perhaps his second least favourite part of Jack’s plan. (The first, of course, being letting Rose think he was captured and cutting off all contact with her.) He had been stuck on land before, but on Arcadia he had the life of Lord McCrimmon to keep him busy.
And lately, I’ve been with Rose.
“I’m surprised you’re still here.”
James glanced over at Jake, who had come alongside him without him realising. “That was the plan,” he reminded him. “I have to be here when Jack sends word, or we might miss our chance to trap the Master.”
“Yeah, I know what the plan is,” Jake said, his island accent thick with exasperation. “But there’s no reason you can’t patrol the area around Cadon until Jack signals.”
“You’ve been on patrol in the White Point Star,” James protested.
“And now you’ll be on patrol in the Arkytior.”
James opened his mouth, then blinked in surprise when Jake slapped his hand over it.
“Not to mention you’re a bloody nightmare, staring out at the ocean like a bleedin’ sorrowful lover,” he added.
He pulled his hand away and rocked back on his heels, a cheeky grin on his face. “Your crew have been getting the Arkytior ready for the last two days. She’ll be ready to sail in the morning.”
James narrowed his eyes and considered the surreptitious smiles he’d seen on his crew’s faces over the last few days. He’d assumed they were planning for their new lives, post-war, but it seemed their plans were much more of a more imminent nature.
Jake winked, then spun on his heel and swaggered down the street like a proper pirate.
The seagulls cried again, and this time excitement pulsed through James’ veins as followed their call. Tomorrow he would be back at sea.
oOoOo
The sky was still faintly tinted pink when James placed his hands on the Arkytior’s wheel the next morning. He could hear the sound of the mainsail unfurling above him, and he could feel the rhythm of the waves below him.
They were almost to the edge of the harbour when he heard a cry from the watch. “A pigeon! There’s a pigeon coming our way.”
James’ heart was in his throat as he waited for the watch to swing down from the crow’s nest with the message in hand. “For you, Captain,” the young man said, handing over the wooden canister.
James opened it and pulled out the tightly rolled up piece of paper. A grin crept over his face when he recognised the handwriting.
Ready whenever you are, Doc.
-Jack
James tucked the note in his pocket, then raised a shout to his crew. “We make for the blockade! Open all the sails and let her fly.”
Anticipation thrummed through James as he took the wheel again, this time with a course in mind. It was finally time to meet the Master and earn his future with Rose.
Hi! I’m looking for a ten/rose fic I originally found on allegoricalrose’s rec list where Ten and Rose have to paint each other with specific symbols for some kind of planet’s ritual and there is lots of sexual tension, leading to sexytimes. Thank you guys so much!
The Swing of Things by @rudennotgingr (Ten x Rose, mature)
I wasn't around for the Tumblr madness when AKA Jessica Jones came out, but of course I have since watched it. So...Kilgrave. Talk to me about him and his sexiness and evilness. Gimme your opinion.
OMG where do I even begin...
Of course Kilgrave is a despicable piece of human garbage, he’s an abusive arsehole and just THE WORST™. As a character, I really, REALLY hated him - which speaks to DT’s talent as an actor.
Buuuuut, then it IS David, so despite being so horrible, he’s also unfortunately hot. The suits they put him in just made that a hundred times worse (you know me, waistcoat kink etc)
Ahem, yes, where was I? Oh right. At times, I almost felt sorry for him, too (which then made me feel horrible about myself...damn you DT!).
In conclusion, Kilgrave is an ovaries confuser, much like Brendan Block was...or maybe I’m just a disturbed person who likes to watch DT play unadulterated bastards ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Does anyone know the movie Clue? Because @rudennotgingr brought it up and now I want to write Ten and Rose into the story.
They're driving through upstate New York wjen their rental car breaks down. (Cue a comment from the Doctor about how they should've just taken the TARDIS etc.) And they walk to the closest house, hoping to call for help.
And they ring the doorknob, and Wadsworth is Confused.
And they stay, because there's not a lot of choice. And the Doctor recognises the dinner, and comments on it.
And then people start dying.
And the Doctor and Rose almost get killed because they get in the way of the murderers. But they piece it all together before the last few deaths...
And after turning them all over to the FBI, the Doctor grabs Rose's hand...
Pirates roam the waters surrounding the islands of the Kasterborous Constellation, but not all of them are what they seem. When Lady Rose Tyler rejoins her parents in the Gallifreyan colony, she meets two men: James McCrimmon, the first nobleman who doesn’t bore her to tears, and the Doctor, a pirate who promises to keep her safe… from the pirates. What is going on in the Constellation, and how is it connected to the nefarious doings of the Master?
*cough* So. It’s been... a while. Like, closer to 2 years than I care to admit. But I’m finally back, with firm plans to finish this up by October 9!
This chapter was betaed by @lastbluetardis. It fills the pirate AU prompt from @doctorroseprompts
Rose’s legs felt like lead as she walked back to her room after learning James had been taken. Taken! By the Daleks!
She heard the soft whisper of servants’ voices around the corner and hid her shaking hands in the folds of her skirt. Even now, she was aware that she could not appear to be affected by the capture of the Doctor without giving away James’ secret identity. She managed a faint smile as she passed the maids, then she was thankfully to the sanctuary of her own room.
Rose closed the door carefully, then leaned against it and covered her face with her hands as the first tears slipped down her cheeks. James might still be alive, but if he was with the Daleks… She shuddered. Everyone knew it was better to be killed by the Daleks than taken as their prisoner.
She wiped her eyes and took a few short breaths. Then she pulled out the writing desk where she kept James’ letters. Reading his words always made her feel like he was right beside her, whispering all those romantic thoughts in her ear. Today, more than ever, she needed to feel him close.
His very first letter made her throat close up. James was in the Constellation still, but if he was in a Dalek prison camp, could he even see the stars? She swallowed hard and kept reading.
The banter she imagined taking place between James and the mischievous Jack brought the first smile to her face. She was glad he had such a good friend. She bit her lip as she folded that letter back up.
Is there a way to get in touch with Jack and the Tardis? she wondered. Maybe they know something about what happened to James…
James’ final letter was in her hands, and she tapped it against her fingers, considering if she really wanted to read it. The melancholy tone might be too much to stand, now that she knew she would likely never see him again. But in the end, it was still a piece of James, and she couldn’t deny herself any connection with him.
The light-hearted opening took her by surprise, but then she remembered that it was only the last page or so of the letter that had seemed to echo with a different kind of desperation. A suspicion grew in the back of Rose’s mind, and she sped up, skimming the later until she was on the last page.
The paper shook in her fingers when she saw the cramped writing and how he’d turned the page to get as many words on it as possible. She read his words slowly, looking for any hint that she was right.
The tone was completely different from the first two pages. In place of his typical breeziness and playful flirtation, he was serious, brooding, and worried. His determination to make sure she knew he loved her jumped off the page at her, and when he begged her to promise that she would be safe, her heart rate sped up.
Something had happened in the middle of this letter, something that had left him heavy burdened with worry and loneliness. The way he talked about missing her… It was almost as if he knew it would be a very long time before he saw her again, if ever.
It could have been a coincidence, she knew. It could have been a premonition, even. But she couldn’t shake the idea that he had known something would happen. And if he had known, then maybe his current fate was not bad luck, but part of a plan. And if that was true…
Rose took a shaky breath. If that was true, maybe he hadn’t been captured after all.
oOoOoOoOo
Deep in Dalek territory, the Doctor shook his head once again at the lunacy of Jack’s plan. The fact that it seemed to be working didn’t make it any less ridiculous.
It had never occurred to the Doctor, but in his years of running the blockade, he had developed a network of loyal friends who needed only a skilled leader to become a powerful resistance against the Daleks. He had spent the last two weeks going from island to island visiting as many of them as possible, and they were all eager to do something more proactive against the occupying force.
He guided his small dinghy carefully through a narrow channel. The temporary base Harriet Jones had found for them was in a hidden lagoon at the heart of Flydale North. “I’ve lived here my whole life and I have never once seen a Dalek outside of the main port,” she’d told him when he asked about safety.
And when he’d explored the cove, he’d understood why. The channel from the sea was so narrow and rocky, only the most skilled sailor could navigate it. The Daleks had likely dismissed the lagoon as an enclosed lake.
Tonight, two dozen old friends were waiting for him at the base—Martha, Amy, Rory, Ace… and of course, Harriet, as well as many others.
And beyond that, Jake had taken Zach, Danny, and Jefferson to the Dalek repair yard to steal a ship. If they were successful, the Doctor and his new crew would meet them on the leeward side of the island before they all sailed for a different, larger hidden cove. Steering a full-sized warship through this channel would be impossible.
The channel suddenly opened, pushing the dinghy into the lagoon. Stars were reflected in the clear water, and James was unable to resist tipping his head back to stare at the sky.
God, he missed Rose. He missed the way she’d felt in his arms as they danced beneath these stars at the Chesterton’s party. He missed her teasing smile and the way her eyes sparked at him when she teased him.
He just… missed her. He missed how he didn’t feel lonely when he was with her, how she made him want a normal life when he’d been resigned to the course he’d set in a life of piracy. Rose made everything better, and it hurt to think that he might not see her again for months.
James clamped down on his thoughts before the mocking if ever could take root. He would see Rose again. Jack’s plan would work.
He sighed; surely by now she’d heard about his capture. His heart ached at the pain he’d caused her, but it was his best chance of keeping her safe. Koschei was clever enough—suspicious enough—to suspect his rumoured capture was a ruse. He would be watching the reactions of those who knew him best, studying their displays of grief for any hint of falseness. Rose needed to believe he would never come home, for her own safety.
He took a shuddering breath as he directed his boat towards the shore lights. This plan hurt right now, but if it worked, he could hand the Gallifreyan Navy a major victory over both the Daleks and the Master in one day. And if he could do that, he was almost guaranteed a letter of marque. Then he would be free to have the life he dreamed of—a life with Rose.
oOoOoOoOo
On Monday morning, Rose tucked the later she’d been writing to James into her reticule and walked he now-familiar path to the Wolf and the Storm. Miss Evangelista, the afternoon server, waved at her as she walked into the tavern, and Rose made sure to smile in return, just like always.
Her smile disappeared once she was in the staircase that led to Donna and Wilf’s private residence. Safe from the scrutiny of others, Rose picked up her skirts and ran up the stairs.
The door swung open as soon as she pounded on it, and she knew her friends had been waiting for her. “Tell me it isn’t true,” she begged as Donna closed the for behind her.
Wilf sighed and waved her over to the settee. “Sit down first, darling. Donna, pour some tea for Rose, won’t you? There, that’ll make you feel better,” he said as she sat down by the fire.
Rose accepted the cup from Donna and took a sip before setting it down and clasping her hands in her lap. “Please,” she said, her voice low and hoarse from emotion. “I have suspicions, but nothing to base them on but my instinct. If you know anything…”
Donna and Wilf exchanged a long glance, then Donna sat on the settee with her. “We think he’s all right.”
Rose sagged back against the furniture, but Wilf waved his hands. “We don’t have any guarantees, though,” he warned her. “But there’s a letter James always said he would have Jack bring to me if he was killed or captured, so I would know not to expect him back.”
“And it hasn’t come?” Rose asked.
Wilf shook his head. “So that made us doubt. Plus, the last time he was here, he seemed…” He hesitated, then shrugged and said, “He seemed like he had a plan—a terribly dangerous one, but a plan nonetheless.”
Rose fidgeted. It seemed like Wilf and Donna had come to the same conclusion she had, but she needed them to say it. “So you think…”
“We think,” Donna said, “that he’s come up with a stupidly dangerous plan to do major damage to the Daleks. My guess is that he’s doing something behind enemy lines, working to build a resistance of some kind.”
“But why let me think he was captured?” Rose asked, voicing her one quibble. “He could carry his plan out without that…”
“Maybe he was counting on us to remember about the letter,” Wilf offered. “It doesn’t make sense otherwise. I mean… there’s no need for you to appear broken hearted over the Doctor’s loss. You can’t, actually, given that the whole island knows James is courting you.”
Rose pursed her lips. She had a feeling they were missing something, but she couldn’t pin down what it was.
Eventually, she shrugged and got to her feet. “I should go home. I just wanted to bring this by, though, in case…” She pulled the letter out.
Wilf shook his head and pushed it back to her. “You hold onto it, darling. He’ll come for you first, when he comes back, so you keep it and give it to him yourself.”
He didn’t say, “If he comes back,” but the words lingered in the air anyway.
oOoOoOoOo
The Doctor stood at the wheel of the Dalek ship as it cut through the water. He carefully guided the vessel into a small natural harbour just out of sight of the armoury they were raiding tonight.
It had taken two weeks for his new crew to gather, but when Jake had arrived this evening with the ship, they were ready. Instead of hiding away, the unanimous decision had been to jump into the raid they had spent the last week planning.
Attacking an armoury was the logical choice. It would do serious damage to the Dalek war effort, while also giving the Doctor and his crew supplies they desperately needed.
Two hours later, the Doctor marvelled at the logistics skills his small group of friends possessed. During the years of occupation, Sarah Jane Smith had built up an underground communications network to keep everyone in the Occupied Territory informed about the Daleks’ movements. Tonight, she’d used that network to arrange for mule carts carts to be waiting for them when they reached shore.
Once they had used tranquilliser darts to knock out the small guard detail watching over the armoury, it had been a simple matter to load as much of the store into the carts as possible. As soon as a cart was loaded, it went back down the trail to the ship, where it would be unloaded by the sailors waiting on the other end. One by one, his crew had ridden back to the ship in the carts, until only he and Martha Jones remained with the last, half-full cart, driven by young Tim Latimer.
“Doctor!” Martha hissed. “We need to go—the sedative I dosed the darts with will only last for maybe another ten minutes, and we have got to be gone by then!”
The Doctor spotted a figure running towards them, and he grinned. “Trust me, Martha, they’re going to far too busy to bother chasing after us.” He hopped up into the cart beside her.
Ace reached them before Martha could ask what he meant by that. “Go!” she ordered as she leapt into the cart, and Tim nudged the mule into a fast trot.
As they rolled away, the ground beneath them rumbled, and then the entire armoury exploded. Martha’s jaw dropped, and she looked from the Doctor to Ace and back again.
“Well, that’s one way to keep the Daleks busy,” she muttered. “What did you use to start the explosion?”
“Nitro-9,” Ace declared proudly as she brushed the dirt off her hands. “It’s the most effective explosive out there. I should know. I made it myself.”
The Doctor patted her on the shoulder, then looked at Martha as the beach came into view. “A clean getaway!”
Martha laughed. “This is absolutely bonkers,” she said. “But I love it!”
oOoOoOoOo
When Rose heard about the successful raid on the Dalek armoury, she knew it had to be James. Her father urged her not to get her hopes up, but it was simply too convenient. There had been no Gallifreyan military victories on the Dalek side of the blockade in years. Then suddenly, James was in enemy territory and they suffered a huge blow within a month? No, it had to be him.
That afternoon she watched a storm come in as she sat at her desk and wrote to him. The clouds were building on her left while the sun still shone on her right, and the way the light diffused through the clouds and waves finally provided the inspiration she’d been looking for.
For the next three months, every second she wasn’t pouring over military bulletins in her father’s office, she was working on her painting. She spent a week doing nothing but a series of sketches, remembering what the sea had looked like as the light shone through it, and the way the shadows had danced over the waves.
And then she’d started painting, spending so much time bent over the easel that her back protested. She started bottom right corner, where everything was still light and the water was the same pretty turquoise it was on any summer afternoon. As she moved slowly across the canvas, the water turned grey and choppy, matching the skies above.
As she painted, she thought about the victories James and his new crew achieved. Just like the storm in her painting was ready to cleanse the stale, muggy air, the Doctor and his crew were clearing the islands of the Daleks.
The Oncoming Storm, she thought as she added dappled light to the right side of the painting.
She dropped her brush in the water and stepped back to study the effect of the newest layer of colour. Before she could make up her mind, a knock on the door interrupted her.
She sighed and wiped her hands on her protective frock. “Come in.”
A maid pushed the door open and curtsied. “Beg your pardon, miss, but the Governor would like a word. As soon as possible, he said.”
Rose pursed her lips, then nodded quickly. “Thank you.” The maid curtsied again, then backed out of the room.
Rose’s fingers shook as she untied her paint frock. He must have heard something more about James, but she couldn’t tell if it was bad news or good.
Five minutes later, she pushed open the door to his study. “I am answering your summons, Papa,” she said cheekily as she closed the door behind her.
He was standing by the map, and when Rose joined him, she sucked in a breath. The island of Cadon—one of the first lost to the Daleks—now had a Gallifreyan flag pinned to it.
“Papa?” she whispered.
He spun around and grabbed her by the elbows. “Your James has accomplished in three months what the Gallifreyan Navy has not managed to do in ten years.” His blue eyes glowed. “He has finally wrenched an island back from Skaro.”
Rose tipped her head back and laughed—she was too happy to just smile. “So you finally believe it’s James?” she teased.
Pete grinned. “I think the fact that he liberated Cadon first would be enough to eliminate doubt in anyone’s mind.”
oOoOoOoOo
The Master tapped the intelligence report he’d just received against his table, a smile spreading across his face. So you’ve gone home, James. You always were a sentimental fool.
He’d been following the activities of the newest pirate in the Constellation for months, trying to guess his identity. Oh, he’d had his suspicions from the start—James’ capture immediately after their last encounter had been very conveniently timed.
But this confirmed it. Militarily speaking, Cadon was worthless. It was deep in Occupied Territory, which meant the Gallifreyan Navy would find it difficult to use it as a base for further operations. No, sentimental attachment was the only reason to liberate Cadon, and he and James were all that remained of the island’s original population.
And so… The Master tapped his fingers against his jaw before standing up and striding out of his cabin. The crew all jumped when they heard the sound of his door banging open, and he let a small smile tease the corners of his mouth.
“Set course for Arcadia,” he ordered the helmsman. “I think it’s time I paid a visit to Lady Rose Tyler.”
