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Chapter Two
Sidetracked by UNIT

The TARDIS materialized with its usual cacophony of wheezes and groans, a final thump indicating its arrival into the realm of real time. It had been some time since the time machine, perpetually disguised as a Police Box, had stood in its usual corner of what was once the Doctor’s lab in UNIT HQ, London. The shelves and instruments in the room were covered with a thick layer of dust.

The Doctor popped his head out the door, the delighted smile on his face fading when he saw the state of his lab.

“Well, are we going out or aren’t we?” an impatient voice asked from behind him.

The Doctor stepped away from the door, allowing his companion to exit. Jason looked around the room and scowled, his expression mirroring the Time Lord’s. “You’re sure this is the right place, Doctor?” he asked suspiciously.

The Doctor threw him an annoyed look. “Yes, I’m sure.”

The Doctor’s dog shaped mobile robot, appropriately named K-9, came to the door at that moment. “No, you stay in the TARDIS, K-9.”

“Negative, Master. It is not safe for you to go out on your own,” K-9 replied.

The Doctor frowned. That last remark did not sound like K-9 in the least. It sounded like… “Says who?” he asked.

“The Young Master, Master.”

Jason blushed when the Doctor turned another annoyed scowl in his direction. “Oh, he does, does he?”

“Affirmative.”

“Well, never mind what the Young Master says, K-9. I’m going to see if anyone’s about. You get those batteries charged up.”

“Master.” K-9 backed away from the door and returned to the console room.

Jason gave an embarrassed half-smile when the Doctor turned back to him. “It is true, y’know,” he said mildly.

The Doctor snorted. “You wait here. I’m going to see who’s about.”

“If anyone’s about, you mean,” the young man replied, taking in his surroundings. “If this room’s any indication, we’ve materialized in an abandoned building.”

“Only one way to find out,” the Doctor replied, pushing open the double doors and striding into the hallway, the long scarf he had wound around his neck just barely missing being caught in the doors as they closed behind him.

Jason sighed heavily and briefly considered following him. No. It was better to let the Doctor storm off on his own when he was like this. He turned back to the dust covered workbench and gave a wry smile. Oh, goody. Toys.

* * *

The Doctor was surprised that he as able to cover the distance to the Brigadier’s office without encountering anyone. Even the outer office was empty. He glanced at the clock, wondering if it were too early or too late for his friend to be about. The door to the Brigadier’s office was slightly ajar and the Time Lord peeked in, a smile spreading across his face when he saw his old friend at his desk. He gave a discreet tap on the door before pushing it open. “Still hard at it, Alistair?”

The Brigadier looked up, the look of surprise on his face changing to one of delight. “Doctor!” he cried. “I didn’t expect you so soon.”

The Doctor gave him a bewildered look. “So soon?”

“Yes. I’ve only just sent Corporal Bell to transmit the message to you.”

The Doctor was completely baffled. “Message? What message?”

Now it was the Brigadier’s turn to be confused. “The one I sent using that time-space telegraph thing you left behind.”

“Ah. I never got it,” the Doctor said happily and broke into a broad smile. “Perhaps you might enlighten me.”

* * *

Jason found the abandoned lab fascinating and was in the process of dusting off and examining all the equipment. According to the Doctor, they had landed on Earth near the end of the Twentieth century, although the Time Lord could not be more specific than that. He had guessed it to be the late 1970s or early 1980s, not that Jason really cared one way or another.

He had been traveling with the Doctor for some time now, and had grown weary of hearing about the virtues of Earth and its various notable inhabitants, both past and present. He had also given up hope of every seeing the planet first hand. The Doctor had made dozens of attempts over the ensuing years to take Jason to his favorite planet, but each time the journey was postponed for one reason or another.

Even now, Jason was dubious of the fact that they were indeed on Earth. He was certain the Doctor had got it wrong again and simply did not want to admit it.

As Jason continued to potter around in the lab, a sentry came to the door and looked through the window of what was supposed to be an abandoned laboratory. He frowned when he saw what looked like a teenage boy scrambling up onto a workbench. What the hell? How did he get in there? Don’t panic. Private Mitchell was little more than a boy himself and he felt his heart jump when he realized he had discovered an honest to goodness intruder. He wiped the palms of his hands, which had suddenly started to sweat, on his uniform. The last thing he needed was to drop his weapon. At the same time, he tried to remember his training. Get a description. Yes, a description. Male, approximately nineteen. Average height, medium build. Black curly hair. What else? Clothes! Blue short sleeved shirt, blue jeans, two-tone sneakers, expensive by the look of them. No distinguishing marks or scars, not that he could tell as the boy’s back was presently to him. What he also could not tell was that the object of his observations was an Alterran, who possessed the ability to change his form at will.

As Mitchell was making his list of identifiers, Jason was struggling to reach a box on a shelf. Why do they have to make these things so high? he wondered. What he did next stunned the watching private. He reached up toward the box, his arm shimmering as he did so. His arm then lengthened to accommodate the distance, and he clasped the box, a satisfied smile coming to his face.

Private Mitchell suddenly burst in the door, rifle in hand. “Freeze!” he ordered, wishing he didn’t sound so afraid.

Jason spun around, dropping the box in his hand. It hit the workbench, bounced and then smashed to the floor. He looked down at it and then back up at the young man who was pointing a gun at him. He slowly raised his hands. “I’m unarmed,” he said quietly. He shot a quick glance over at the TARDIS and wondered if he could signal K-9 for help. Then he realized he didn’t have the dog whistle, the Doctor did.

“Don’t move, you!” the Private ordered.

I wouldn’t dream of it, Jason thought, not taking his eyes from the rifle, which appeared to be shaking. The soldier pointing it at him seemed just as terrified as he was, if not more so. Great. A panicky human with a gun. I’m going get shot and I haven’t even been on this wrenched planet fifteen minutes!

Fortunately for Jason, the sound from the box smashing on the floor attracted the attention of others. Another soldier appeared behind the first. He took in the scene in some surprise, finally asking the Private what was happening.

“I’ve caught an intruder, Mr. Benton,” Mitchell replied proudly.

Benton looked the unlikely intruder up and down. “Alright, you. Get down from there,” he ordered, motioning to Jason with his hand. It was obvious he was not in the least put off by the young man’s presence. In fact, he was wondering if the boy were a relative of one of the man and had sneaked into the building simply as a prank. It wouldn’t be the first time.
 
Jason looked pointedly at the nervous Mitchell. “He’s not going to shoot me if I do, is he?”

Benton reached over, raising the barrel of the rifle with one hand. “No. But I will if you don’t.”

Humans! Jason slowly got down from the workbench, keeping a sharp eye on the soldiers as he did so.

“How did you get in here?” Benton asked finally.

Jason looked over at the TARDIS again and wondered if he should tell the truth or not. “I’m not sure you’ll believe me,” he said at last.

“Try me.”

“I came in that.” Jason nodded in the direction of the TARDIS.

Benton followed his gaze, seeing the TARDIS for the first time. His eyes grew wide and his mouth dropped open. “You came with the Doctor?” he asked, surprising the young man.

“Yes.”

“Where is he, then?”

Jason sighed heavily. “I have no idea. He went to see if anyone was here. The place looked deserted when we arrived.”

Benton was about to tell Mitchell to stand down when the Private blurted out, “He’s not human, sir! I saw him…change.”

Benton frowned. He did not like the sound of this at all. “Change? How?”

Mitchell recounted what he had witnessed.

Jason, in the meantime, closed his eyes and groaned inwardly. Great. Now he is going to shoot me. Seeing the frown on the face of the big man at the door deepen, he asked, “Now what?”

“You wait here,” Benton replied. Then to the Private, he said, “Keep an eye on him, Mitchell. I’m going to call the Brig and see if the Doctor’s with him.”

* * *

As soon as Benton’s call came through, the Doctor was out the door and heading back to his lab before the Brigadier hung up the phone. He pushed open the doors to find Jason perched on a stool, a soldier several feet away holding a gun on him.

“I am really enjoying this trip so far, Doctor,” Jason said the moment the Time Lord entered, his voice dripping with sarcasm. “So far I’ve had the life nearly frightened out of me, been threatened with a firearm, accused of being a spy, an alien invader, arrested and then held at gunpoint.” He looked at his watch, adding, “All in less than fifteen minutes. That has to be a record of some sort.”

“You haven’t been accused of murder yet, have you?” the Time Lord replied aridly.

“Give ‘em time. The day’s still young.”

“I take it this young man is your companion, Doctor?” the Brigadier observed dryly as he come up behind the Time Lord.

“Indeed.” The Doctor turned to the soldier with the gun. “Do you think it would be too much trouble for you to put that away? You might hurt someone.”

Jason hopped off the stool. “He’d be even more likely to hurt someone if he took the safety off.”

The Brigadier turned sharply to the unfortunate Private and looked at the weapon, discovering Jason was quite right. He sighed heavily before dismissing the mortified Mitchell.

The Doctor introduced his companion to the Brigadier, who led the way back to his office. “Awfully sorry about that,” he said apologetically. “The men have been a bit jumpy of late.”

“Oh swell,” the Alterran moaned. “I just love dealing with nervous humans carrying live weapons.”

The Brigadier threw a puzzled look in the Doctor’s direction before saying, “You’ve never been to Earth before, I take it?”

Jason closed his eyes and started counting off all the other places he could have gone to and was wishing he had.

“No,” the Doctor replied for him. “Jason is from the Alterran Empire.”

“I see.”

“Why do you find that so strange?” Jason wanted to know.

The officer cleared his throat. “It’s just that. Well, you sound like an American.”

The Alterran blinked and looked over at the Doctor. “Do I?”

A broad smile spread across the Doctor’s face. “You know, you’re quite right, Alistair. I never realized it before.” He looked over at his perplexed companion. “I supposed you would sound that way to the people in this time period.”

“Great.” Jason was thinking this was just one more thing to add to the list of things that had gone wrong in his first hour on Earth. “Is that a good or bad thing?”

“I suppose it depends on whether or not you’re an American,” the Doctor replied unhelpfully. “They call them Yanks in this country, by the way. Although the term isn’t always affectionate.”

The Brigadier’s mustache twitched and he gave the Doctor a dark look. The Time Lord responded with another broad smile, commenting, “He does have a North Eastern twang, though, doesn’t he?”

Jason had heard quite enough of this and waved a hand in the air. “Look, forget the accent the TARDIS, in her eccentricity, has decided to give me. What’s so important that we have to put off my sightseeing tour?”

* * *

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