The Wizard's Guide to Timelords and Other Demons Book 1: The Forgotten War

Rifts That Divide Us

Captain Jack returned to the exact location atop the remains of the Pierhead building from where he had left a few hours ago. The storm was stronger now and the rising water was much closer to the level where he stood than before. The constant thrumming of earth tremors was also more intense, and he noticed that the fallen clock tower was not all the way on its side, though it still provided adequate shelter from the bulk of the tempestuous winds.

Jack was delighted to see that the portable manipulator in the briefcase below him was undamaged, as attested to by the fact that the subspace signal it had faithfully continued to emit had brought him safely back.

"I hope you're ready to go to work now, my friend" Jack said to the briefcase as he lifted the lid. He removed from his coat pocket the key he had taken from the rift manipulator in the other universe and placed it into its slot in the briefcase, turning it slightly until it clicked in place.

"Here goes nothing!"

Jack flipped the switch to activate the device and waited. After a few seconds, the contents of the briefcase started to whir and click. Jack jumped back as an intense beam of yellow light shot up out of the briefcase and into the night sky. He watched as the beam passed directly through the center of the hazy glow that outlined the rift's opening. He waited for about a minute, but nothing happened. The great maw of the rift above him remained just as large and imposing as it had been since he first saw it. The portable rift manipulator was not working.

"No!", he shouted as he kicked gently at the briefcase, "Why aren't you doing anything?"

Jack knew that, on occasion, the Doctor's plans did not always work like they were supposed to. However, he refused to accept that this was one of those times. He could only assume that Toshiko had not yet been able to activate the manipulator on her side.

Unfortunately, with the rift currently at full strength, Jack would be unable to penetrate its interference and return to Hogwarts using his vortex manipulator. He hunkered down for what he hoped would be a short wait. It had to be.

Jack estimated that he had no more than a few minutes before the rising storm surge reached his level and drowned the only hope he had of stopping the calamity that would soon tear his home world apart.

"Tosh!" screamed Rose as she got up to help her friend who now lay on the floor in a growing pool of blood.

"Stay where you are!" the soldier commanded as he shifted the aim of his rifle to target Rose. One of the other soldiers did the same. Rose stopped immediately, stifling a bout of profanity that was about to pour out of her mouth. Her toxic glare at the soldier who had pulled the trigger on Toshiko served as fair warning that his fate was now sealed.

There were three soldiers in the room with them, with one of them covering Alex who held his hands in the air. Rose seethed with anger. If they had not been distracted by the jubilation of Toshiko's success, she and Alex could have easily taken out these three grunts, and Tosh would not be dying on the floor.

Rose glanced down at the injured form of her friend, who had dropped right next to the chair where she had been working on her computer moments ago. The bullet had penetrated through the back of her left shoulder and had exited without hitting any major organs. To her great relief she could tell that Tosh was still breathing, though unconscious.

A fourth soldier—an officer—entered the room from behind the other three and took a position standing amid them. Rose recognized his uniform and rank insignia. It was a captain in the UNIT special forces.

"Everyone stay where you are and get down on the floor," the captain ordered, "there is no need for further bloodshed."

Rose's angry glare of death now shifted focus to the young officer. She lowered herself to the ground and sat cross-legged on the cold floor. Alex did the same.