Storm: Time Jump

Empty Child

He nodded sternly, pretending as though he saw it as an unfortunate consequence and making Rose and Teresa bite back smiles. Jack didn't seem to notice as he added cheerfully to the Doctor: "And it's a real pleasure to meet you, Mr. Spock."

He patted the Doctor's shoulder and strode off towards the ward the Doctor had just come out from, missing the Doctor's expression. Teresa suppressed a laugh as the Doctor asked Rose incredulously: "Mr. Spock?"

Rose retorted pointedly: "What was I supposed to say? You don't have a name. Don't you ever get tired of 'Doctor? Doctor who?'?"

Teresa snorted, and the Doctor frowned at her, before he answered Rose: "Nine centuries in, I'm coping."

Teresa let slip a laugh at that, making Rose grin at her and the Doctor frown even more.

"Sorry." Teresa muttered, though she grinned back at Rose, and he rolled his eyes.

He added to Rose: "Where've you been? We're in the middle of a London Blitz. It's not a good time for a stroll."

"Good thing she didn't stroll then." Teresa commented.

Rose laughed, and linking arms with the other blonde, she walked off after Jack, saying lightly to the Doctor: "I went by barrage balloon. Only way to see an air raid."

"What?" The Doctor asked in disbelief as he followed the girls, and Teresa added: "Mm, and while wearing the Union Flag on your chest."

Rose grinned, but then it dropped as she remembered something.

"Listen, what's a Chula warship?" She asked Teresa and the Doctor.

Teresa's grin also dropped and she sighed. Rose glanced at her, but the girls carried on walking as the Doctor stopped in his tracks. Rose didn't notice, walking on, while Teresa glanced back as the Doctor repeated with a frown: "Chula?"

They walked into the ward to see Jack scanning the patients, all lying with the gas masks literally glued to their faces. Well, somewhat literally. Teresa acknowledged to herself. Technically, the masks are the faces now.

The trio stood, Rose and the Doctor folding their arms while Teresa played with her hands anxiously.

"This just isn't possible." Jack muttered as he stood up after checking the readings on his scan. He began pacing around, asking skeptically: "How did this happen?"

"What kind of Chula ship landed here?" The Doctor interrupted, and Jack turned back to him, asking: "What?"

Rose interjected: "He said it was a warship. He stole it, parked it somewhere out there, somewhere a bomb's going to fall on it unless we make him an offer."

She gestured at their group, and Teresa noticed Jack's nervousness as he returned to pacing the ward. The Doctor unfolded his arms and demanded: "What kind of warship?"

"Does it matter?" Jack demanded, turning back to the other man. "It's got nothing to do with this."

He gestured at the patients, and the Doctor snapped as he also pointed at the patients: "This started at the bomb site. It's got everything to do with it."

He began to step up to Jack, his eyes narrowed as he repeated his question angrily: "What kind of warship?"

"An ambulance." Jack shouted finally in exasperation, at the same time Teresa said the same thing in a much quieter tone.

Jack glanced at her in surprise as the Doctor sent the briefest look at her over his shoulder. Teresa tensed, but she was surprised to see that the Doctor was looking more questioning, as he tended to be in his later regenerations, rather than the angry man she'd met. The Doctor turned back expectantly to Jack, who sighed.