Reign of the World

Chapter 19

It seemed as though no one knew what to do, now standing outside the cockpit.  If there was a Dalek in there, everyone knew the plan was fried.  But, the Doctor, being the Doctor, for once, had a plan.  He beckoned them to stand next to the door, where they would definitely be hit with it upon its opening.

He held the sonic screwdriver away from himself and it let out a shrill sound that made the rest of them cover their ears.  Rose had heard this sound before, and the Doctor described it as 'a dog whistle that makes every species react differently'.  Conveniently, it didn't seem to affect Time Lords very much.

There was a loud screech of a Dalek heard from within, and the door was thrown open, the knob hitting Rose squarely in the stomach.  The Doctor pulled her back towards him and gave her a sheepish and apologetic look for miscalculating where she should stand.  She put a hand on her stomach and shrugged in return.  She'd been through worse.

The Dalek stormed out of the room-as much as a Dalek can storm- and the four behind the door shrank back as it looked around.

"Who dares to make such a horrible sound??" It shrieked, obviously looking for a fellow comrade.  It moved down the hallway, leaving those who were hiding alone in the hallway.

The Doctor brushed past Rose and slipped around the door first, peering into the cockpit.  On some level, he felt a lot of confusion for there not being more than one Dalek in there, but this was for sure not the time to be looking a gift horse in the mouth.  He beckoned behind him and couldn't help but smile when he felt her hand slip into his. 

She stood next to him and they shared a look before they went further into the cockpit.  The Doctor had seen one before, it was very standard: cupboards on the sides to store God-knew-what, a control panel in the center and windows showing their current location.  Even though they'd not taken off, the Doctor had had a feeling that there would be more than one Dalek in the room, but he shrugged that thought off easily.

Mr. Kelly silently shut the door behind him and the Doctor locked it with the sonic.  There would be no getting back in for the Dalek who had left.  The Doctor began puttering at the controls as Rose, Tiffany, and Mr. Kelly looked around the rest of the cockpit.

"It's odd, innit?" Rose asked, "To have somebody in the cockpit when you're not flying anywhere?"

"It's been common for Daleks since the Time War started," the Doctor replied, "In case they needed to take off at a moment's notice, if someone else was right behind them.  Always ready to strike, that's the Daleks."

Rose nodded.  It made sense, on the whole, but she wished the Doctor would hurry up and start the plan.  "So, what, we're gonna knock out these windows and jump into the ocean?"

"And swim back to shore," the Doctor finished.

"What if one of us drowns?"  Tiffany whined.

The Doctor only lifted his eyes from the panel.  "Then one of us drowns knowing it's very likely we've saved this world and worlds around it.  Got it?"

Surprisingly, Tiffany had nothing to say to that.

Mr. Kelly had been quiet, and so Rose approached him where he was standing, inspecting some gadgets on the wall.

"Are you alright?" Rose asked quietly.

Mr. Kelly turned  his head, his eyes betraying the fear that he felt.  "Miss Tyler, I'm afraid that I'm terrified out of my wits." 

Rose turned to watch the Doctor work and Tiffany sulk for a moment, than back to Mr. Kelly.  "You know what?  Me too."

"But you've done all this before," Mr. Kelly protested, "You've performed genocide on the Daleks, they hate you, and the Doctor.  What's all that about?  How can you be afraid?"

"I've seen a lot of things," Rose admitted.  "Been possessed, all that nonsense.  But I'm scared to die.  I'm scared that one day I won't be fast enough to get away from the monsters.  And that's okay, because it's fear that keeps you alive.  If you're not afraid, you're ready to die.  And I don't think I'm ready just yet."

Mr. Kelly considered this, and then a smile crept across his face.  "You know, Miss Tyler, I do believe that you're right.  I'm not ready to die either."

"Good," Rose returned his grin, "Then we'll all not-die together."

"Ah!" The Doctor shouted, "We're ready for lift off.  Rose, grab that Fans Tribulator."

"The what?"

"That thing that looks like an axe, I'll need you to bust the windows with it once we get over the ocean."

Rose grabbed what she was told to and stood by the window, waiting. 

The Doctor piloted the Dalek ship as he did the TARDIS, flipping levers wildly, slamming buttons, and dancing around the side to press a button he couldn't reach.  Within a matter of seconds they were up in the air. 

Rose steeled herself for the jarring around that was certain to come, and come it did.  She was thrown into the window and she heard the Doctor shout out a 'sorry!' while he was stabilizing the ship. 

Tiffany grabbed hold of something to the side fot he window, effectively keeping herself from crashing into several glass objects, and Mr. Kelly simply fell to the side. 

The Doctor somehow managed to stay planted where he was supposed to, steering smoothly and getting them up over the treeline.  That was when the banging on the door started. 

Rose looked up.  "Now!?" She shouted urgently.

"No, not yet, we're not over the ocean!" The Doctor yelled back.

"Let us in!  Let us in!" A Dalek screamed outside the door.

"They're gonna get in!" Tiffany wailed. 

The Doctor slammed his foot on a third button, with hands occupying two others.  They sped up and Rose struggled to maintain her position.

"Now?" She asked frantically.

The Doctor waited one, two, three seconds and then nodded violently.  "Now!" He shouted to her.

Rose swung the axe and cracked the window.  A second swing along with the speed of the ship caused the whole thing to shatter, the glass showering on her.  She cried out as a piece cut her arm, and the Doctor's gaze shot up to her.  A worried look passed over his face but there really wasn't time for him to check on her.

The Daleks had busted down the door.