The Closing of Doors

Part One

The door swooshed shut behind them. The room, as though recognizing its old master's presence, came to life; the lights blinked on as the computer whirred with sudden power. It was a hexagonal room of metal, and it was seated in the center of the massive flagship, aptly referred to as the Centre-- it was the mothership of Brigade 116. The ship had a English name because it was typically involved in the destruction of humans; the engineers behind it decided that an understandable name would give the humans something to quake about at night. But the room at its center didn't have a name, it had a designation: the stratagem quarters. Having belonged to Cai when he served the role as the ruthless Strategist Dalek, the battle computers built into the walls were primed to serve him. Now, however, the space was being occupied by something else. A glowing blue eyestalk, having lit up the shadows when Cai had first entered, now had a source in the lights. A figure with an outline matching his own but with armor as dark as the shadows from whence it emerged looked back at him with bright blue.

Cai had the black-cased Dalek cornered.

"What are we doing in here?" the young human woman called Camille asked, her voice both genuinely curious and a bit concerned.

"That is my old Stratagem Computer," Cai answered, his electronic Dalek voice hushed and uncharacteristically humanized, as though each of his words were carefully considered, "And someone," he put accusing emphasis on that word as though to be ironic, "is trying to access my old files in a feeble attempt to defeat us." He turned to the other Dalek. Their new capture was staring at them like a rabid dog, its eyestalk quivering with fear and rage. Cai was the first to raise his voice and speak. "We meet again, Commander."

"I am trapped! Assist! Assist!" the prisoner shrieked in a high-pitched squawk, calling for help from outside, and then noticing a nanosecond too late that the signal he should have been receiving from his soldiers was nothing but static.

"You will receive no assistance," Cai clarified in reference to the fact that his internal computers were subliminally jamming all signals leaving or entering the room.

The black Dalek fell silent, its glowing eyestalk staring at its capturer.

"Cai?" Camille entered the small stratagem quarters and approached her tense partner, "When they find us, I think they're gonna try to cut down the door."

"I thought of that," Cai told her, his tone low and heavy, "Stay behind me. Any who enter will be exterminated."

The subtle telepathic connection between Camille and Cai, stabilized constantly by some obscure region of the Dalek's incredible mind, was small and limited. However, it was powerful enough that Camille could feel Cai's surge of emotions; his mind was buzzing with anger, anxiety, stress, and triumph. So much so, in fact, that the Dalek had to actively prevent his life-support systems from applying weak sedatives to calm his little palpitating heart buried deep within the pale flesh inside the armor. For this reason, Camille decided not to say anything about Cai's use of the word "exterminate," which bothered her immensely—usually, Cai despised the word for the negative connotation he associated with it, inspired by his years of living it first-hand; why had he chosen now to pick it back up? Stepping swiftly to his right side, she primed her weapon and prepared to protect herself. She knew she shouldn't be afraid of the single Dalek they were facing; she guessed that Cai had probably already disabled all of the subject's weapons the same way he was blocking signals, which meant that it was powerless.