seren_ccd | By Invitation Only

By Invitation Only - Chapter 4

Rose practically fell into her sleeping bag that night. A day full of trudging through a swamp, then flying over it, drained her more than she was expecting. But, they did it. Gotten through. Not that she really doubted they would. She lay there watching as, once again, the Doctor and Jack argue over who was lighting the fire and smiled.

"Is this going to be a regular thing?" she asked them. " 'Cause if it is, just wake me when it's lit and dinner's ready."

Rose closed her eyes and listened as they lit the fire and clanked the kettle around. Then a cool hand shook her shoulder gently.

"Before you even say it," the Doctor said. "It's not Rickey."

Rose snorted and sat up, taking the mug of broth from his hand.

"Can't believe that bothered you so much," she said before sipping. The Doctor just glared a bit and then went over to his own sleeping bag and mug.

Jack chuckled at the two of them.

"You two are just the cutest thing," he said.

Rose blushed and the Doctor pulled out the map.

"What do we get to do tomorrow?" she asked yawning.

"Looks like we are getting closer to a temple that will have the first clue we need to use to get the ring," he said.

"What do you mean?" Jack asked. "Have you figured out how we get the ring?"

"Well," the Doctor said putting down the map and taking a sip from his mug. "According to the map, we will come across three different clues, or possibly instruments, along our path. These things should help us at the very end when we must go through a trial of some sort in order to obtain the ring."

"How do you know that there's a trial?" Jack asked.

"Because, there's always a trial. In order to obtain what you want the most, you have to pass a test of some kind," the Doctor replied. A small smile appeared on his face. "In my experience, the universe does not like to give everyone everything they want without a little challenge first. We all must prove ourselves worthy before getting what we desire."

Jack watched as the Doctor's eyes involuntarily moved over to Rose. She was curled up in her sleeping bag, breathing steadily, one hand resting under her head, the other stretched out in the direction of the Doctor. He just watched her, even as Jack said a quiet good-night and went to bed himself. The Doctor remained awake, keeping watch over her.

***

Morning came way too soon for Rose. She grumbled as Jack tickled her nose with her own hair.

"Come on, Sleeping Beauty," he said. "Let's see what trouble we can stir up today."

Rose batted his hand away and sat up. She looked around for the Doctor, but he wasn't there. His backpack was gone too. Startled, she looked over at Jack.

"Don't worry," Jack reassured her. "He just left a couple of minutes ago. Just to scout things out."

Rose stood up and began to roll up her sleeping bag. As she was stuffing it into her backpack she started to get an uneasy feeling. The little hairs on the back of her neck were standing on end. Like, something was watching her. She looked over at Jack, but he was busy checking his hair in what looked like her compact. Shaking her head, she looked around.

Nothing. Just the sounds of the trees swaying slightly in a light breeze and the occasional call of a bird.

A granola bar fell at her feet.

"Ready?" Jack asked with a grin.

Rose grabbed her breakfast and pulled her pack on. "Yep. Let's go."

Jack took the lead and Rose followed him through the thick, green underbrush, still damp with morning dew.

***

They caught up with the Doctor after about half an hour. He was busy examining the leaves on a tree and didn't acknowledge their hellos. Rose and Jack looked at each other.

"Doctor?" Rose said quietly. "Is, umm, something wrong?"

The Doctor looked up from the leaf with a confused expression.

"These shouldn't grow like this," he said. He turned back to the plant.

"What do you mean?" Jack asked.

"I mean, that they are growing too fast and then dying. almost as we stand here," he explained. "See, look."

Rose and Jack crowded around the Doctor and watched the leaf. And waited. And waited.

"I don't see.." Rose started.

"Shh!" the Doctor said. "Just watch. Ignore the rest of the world and just watch the leaf."

They looked.

"Whoa," Jack said. "That shouldn't happen."

"What?" Rose asked anxiously. "What do you two see? I don't understand."

"Watch the edges of the leaf," the Doctor said in a low voice into her ear, causing Rose to shiver slightly. "Watch. They are changing color. It's very slow, but it's happening. The leaf is dying right in front of us."

Rose focused on the leaf. Then looked again. She gave a little gasp. The edges of the large green leaf were slowly turning brown. The vein running through the leaf were hardening, just ever so slightly. On the branch, tiny pinpricks of green were appearing. But, it was so minimal, if you weren't looking for it, you would miss it completely. The Doctor was right. This was wrong.

"Why is it doing this?" Jack asked looking up at the Doctor.

The Doctor let go of the leaf and stood back looking up at the tree.

"I'm not sure," he said. "There is something here. On this planet. Speeding things up. But, it's such a minute slowing, I didn't really notice at first. Just felt a sensation that somehow, time was wrong. Off."

He looked at the leaf that Rose now held in her hand, she looked up at him with wide eyes. The Doctor grinned.

"A mystery!" he said. "I'm excited. How 'bout you?"

***

They continued down the path. So lost in their own thoughts, they almost fell into the lagoon blocking their way to the temple. Surprised, they stared at the sight in front of them.

"Well," Jack said. "That came out of nowhere."

A large, crystal blue lagoon curved around a pyramid-like stone structure. The temple had to be about three-stories high with a pattern of interlocking circles of all sizes engraved into it. A large door faced them with no handle or hinges. And no way to get over the lagoon.

"So," Rose said. "How do we get in there?"

"Huh," the Doctor replied. He tilted his head left and then right. "I have no idea. Jack?"

"Got me Doc," Jack answered. "Does the map say anything?"

"All it shows is that there should be a way to trigger a bridge to come across. My guess, is that that door thing there is a drawbridge. We just need to find the triggering mechanism."

The three of them began to search the area for anything that looked like it could trigger a centuries old drawbridge into lowering itself. Then Jack cried out.

"Hey!" he yelled pointing to something in the water several yards out. "What do you want to bet that's it?"

Rose snorted as she walked over to look at what he was pointing at. "I learned my lesson the last time. No way am I ever betting with you again."

Jack grinned. "Aww. But you looked so cute with the bunny ears."

The Doctor ignored the two of them and peered at the stone structure in the middle of the lagoon. Just the tip of it was visible as the water washed over it.

"I think you might be right," he said. "Now, we just need to figure out a way of getting out there. I imagine it's just a lever of some sort. Press it down and the bridge should drop."

He squinted at it. "What do you think, Captain? Attach something to throw out there?"

"Yeah," Jack said. "We could shoot something out there. The blaster maybe?"

"Umm, guys," Rose said.

"No," the Doctor continued. "The blaster could overshoot it. We don't want to miss."

"You know we could just..." Rose tried to say.

"Are you saying there's something wrong with my aim?" Jack said facing the Doctor.

"But..." Rose tried again.

"No! Just that this is a very delicate mark and I don't think a blaster is the way to go," the Doctor said facing the Time Agent.

"Fine," Rose said under her breath as she turned away from the men.

"I think I can make it," Jack said confidently. The Doctor rolled his eyes.

"I bet you can. The question is will there be anything left when you're done blasting it to bits!" the Doctor retorted.

"Hey!" Rose yelled.

The Doctor and Jack turned to look at Rose. Jack received a pair of trousers in the face and the Doctor received Rose's shirt. They looked at the girl before them, clad only in her pink bra and knickers, hands on her hips and a grin on her face.

"You know," she said, sauntering towards them. "We could always just swim for it."

With that she brushed past the slack-jawed men and dove into the water.

Jack was the first to come to his senses and chuckle.

"Well," he said glancing at the Doctor. "The view alone beats a blaster any day,"

The Doctor swallowed hard.

***

Rose kept her strokes strong and even. The water was cool and refreshing and she could feel the sweat and grime wash away as she neared the stone. She grasped the top of what she could tell was just a smaller version of the temple. Rose pulled herself up and studied the structure.

"I think I found it," she yelled back to the men standing anxiously on the shore. "It's a button on the top here. I'm just gonna press it down. Get ready."

Rose pressed the top of the pyramid with all her strength. Just as she began to fear she wasn't strong enough, it gave up resisting and with a crunching sound the top of the pyramid disappeared under the water. Rose lost her grip and sank down as the water swirled around her. She thought she heard a shout from the shore as she went under.

***

The drawbridge creaked and screeched as it lowered onto the shore. The Doctor and Jack raced onto it towards where they saw Rose last. Stopping in the middle, they looked into the water.

Not happening, not happening, thought the Doctor. She's fine, she's fine.

"Come on, come on, " the Doctor said out loud. "Where are you? Where is she?!"

Jack shook his head. The two men scanned the water.

"Hell with it," the Doctor growled.

With one quick motion, he ripped off his jacket and moved to leap into the water.

"Hey!" came a familiar voice.

The Doctor and Jack turned as Rose pulled herself out of the water onto the bridge a few feet away. She smiled at them.

"Didn't think it would pull me under like that," she said breathlessly.

The Doctor sighed in relief that quickly evaporated. He frowned as she approached them.

"Seems like you didn't think at all," he told her.

The smile faded from Rose's face.

"What?" she said.

"Did it even occur to you that it was dangerous to just jump in there like that?" the Doctor yelled at her. "You could have been attacked by something. Hell, you could have drowned! You almost did drown. Just what were you trying to prove?"

Rose seethed.

"I wasn't trying to prove anything you prat!" she yelled back. "If I had left it to the two of you, we'd still be on that shore! I got the bridge down, didn't I? You know I think I'm due a little credit, just a little, mind you. Wouldn't want you to sprain anything. Not everyday the little ape gets something right. "

The Doctor stood there watching as Rose began to shiver from the water and barely contained frustration. Frustration at himself reared up in his mind. Didn't she know? That if something had happened to her? Didn't she realize...

He threw his jacket over to her. She caught it with stiff cold fingers.

"Dry off," he said softly. "Don't want you to catch cold."

The Doctor turned around and headed into the temple.

Rose put his jacket on and hugged herself, letting his scent wash over her. She looked up at Jack helplessly. He shrugged.

"We were worried," he said. "People say things they don't mean when they're worried."

"Yeah," Rose said softly. hugging herself even tighter in the smooth, warm leather.

"Get dressed, angel," Jack said. "I'll make sure he doesn't wander off."

***

Rose walked over to her backpack and clothes still on the shore, unaware of the pair of eyes watching her from a distance.

Roland Callahan lowered his high-powered binoculars and stood deep in thought. He was jarred into the present by the voice of his companion.

"Why have we gone so far off course Callahan?" Dr. Smith asked rudely.

"We have gone off course to observe," Callahan replied. "To observe our competition. One can only best someone when they learn all there is to know about them."

He lifted his binoculars to his face once again.

"I intend to command this Doctor, my dear Professor Smith," he continued. "In order to do this I must understand him."

"And do you?" Smith asked. "Understand him?"

Callahan chuckled.

"It is impossible to fully understand a Time Lord," he relied. "But, by observing him, I can hope to know his strengths. He is patient, he watches, he is aware of his surroundings and a million other attributes that have been spoken of throughout time and space. But, now..."

Callahan watched as Rose slowly slipped the leather jacket off her shoulders and pulled on her trousers and blouse.

"Now," Callahan said lowering the binoculars. "Now I know his weakness."