ARCADIA

Chapter Eleven

When they reached the main cavern, Pagos surprised everyone by telling Tek to go home and tell his mother that he would be accompanying them.

"If you don't mind, Kel'shek, I have dreamed of fighting alongside you since I was a small boy. Please let me come with you. I can fight and help protect you."

"Kel'shek says yes," Rose said.

Pagos gave her a dubious look and Rose sighed mentally, hating the distrust this Anthrosis had for women. But Pagos said nothing and Rose figured he accepted what she said. The elders came up to them and Vak came forward. Pagos informed them what was going on and Vak nodded when he finished.

"You may go but beware, the surface is inhospitable now," Vak said. "I hope, Kel'shek, that you find this woman you're searching for and she's safe."

"He says he hopes the same and so do I," Rose said.

Pagos hugged his son and told him he would return soon. Tek wished them luck and he stepped back with the elders. They left them behind and Pagos led them up to the surface. Whent they got there, they looked around but the only thing they saw was the dead bird in the distance. They kept their eyes open while they headed towards the TARDIS but nothing happened and the Doctor wondered if this was just another wide goose chase for Rose's mother. He was happy that they had some more allies though. At least Callisto hadn't turned the Anthrosis against him.

Once they were inside the TARDIS, the Doctor became the dominant personality again and DoctorRose piloted the TARDIS back to the military compound. When they stepped outside, they saw Jackie standing by the busted front doors. The DoctorRose looked around but she was by herself.

"He's not here if that's what you're wondering," Jackie said. "He left me here, flew off in his little spaceship."

"No, it can't be that easy," Jack said. "Something's up."

"Just stay back," the DoctorRose said, holding up a hand. "I'll handle this."

He slowly walked towards Jackie, still expecting an ambush of some kind. Jackie was leaning up against the wall, her arms folded while she waited for them to approach.

Should I speak to her or do you want to, he thought to Rose.

I want to, Rose thought.

He switched with her so Rose finished walking the rest of the way towards her mother.

"Mum, it's me, the Doctor let me speak to you," Rose said when she stopped a few feet away from her mother. "Are you okay?"

"At the moment I am," Jackie said.

"Is he torturing you?" Rose asked.

"Not now," Jackie said. "He was controlling me with some device he put on my leg but he turned it off so I'm free of his control for the moment."

She pointed to the slim device underneath the bodysuit.

"Tried getting this thing off to take it off but it's like this thing is welded to my skin," Jackie said, tugging a bit on the bodysuit.

It might be, the Doctor thought to Rose. There is an adhesive that sticks to the skin and it takes a special liquid to take it off again.

Rose told that to Jackie and she shrugged.

"Shortly after you left, he gassed me and when I came to, this thing was on me along with the doodah around my leg," Jackie said. "Whenever he turned it on, I felt powerless and I had to obey him. I wanted to tell you I loved you the last time I saw you but I couldn't because my body resisted when I tried to make it do what I wanted."

"So why is he doing this now?" Rose said.

"Dunno. He never tells me anything unless it's a command. I do know he's not here though. He teleported back up to his spaceship after he told me to stay here."

Unless he came back down again and Jackie doesn't realize that, the Doctor thought to Rose.

"So what happens now?" Ianto said as he stood beside Jack and the others.

"Doctor, what do we do? Do we take her with us?" Rose said.

She paused for a moment and listened. Jackie noticed her daughter's eyes widening.

"What is it?" she said to Rose.

"Mum, he wants to go inside you," Rose said.

"What?" Jackie said. "You mean have his mind in here?"

"It's more than his mind, it's his soul," Rose said. "But he says he might be able to set up mental blocks that would protect your mind from being controlled, even if Callisto turned on that device. He says he's not gonna look at your memories or do weird things. He's doing this to protect you."

"So what does he have to do then?" Jackie said warily.

"I put my fingers on the side of your head and he goes through that into you," Rose said. "It's painless, Mum. You just have this…feeling of something going into your mind but it's not painful in any way and he could communicate with you by telepathy and you could do the same with him."

"And take me over?" Jackie said. "He was possessing you, I saw it."

"Yes but unlike Callisto, he asks first," Rose said. "I had to let him do it when they were talking to the Anthrosis earlier."

"Who?"

Rose pointed back to Pagos and Tiana.

"They're Anthrosis, that's Pagos and that's Tiana. They live underground," Rose said. "The Doctor knew about them and worked with them before so when it came time to talk to them, I let him take over so he could speak to them and I didn't have to translate everything. It was easier for us to do that but he doesn't make me do anything I don't want to do. I'm just an observer really when he does that."

"Sorta like I was when I was being controlled," Jackie said.

Rose nodded. Jackie through it over for a moment before nodding.

"Alright, I'll let him do it since he's willing to block that bastard's mind control. But he better not peek at my memories and thoughts while he's roaming around in there.

Believe me, Jackie, there's nothing in there that I want to see, the Doctor thought.

Rose stifled a laugh at that and asked her mother if she was ready to receive him. Jackie nodded and Rose put her fingertips against her mother's temples. Jackie frowned when she felt the Doctor's consciousness entering her mind. When Rose felt him leave completely, she took her hands away.

"See, he's inside you now," Rose said.

Jackie nodded.

"Yeah, I can sense him, it's odd," Jackie said. "And he could do this with anyone?"

"Probably," Rose said with a shrug. "He's been inside me, the owner of the slave auction and an android and now you."

Jackie was impressed by that. She could sense the Doctor doing something in her mind. She had flashes of memory but she could hear the Doctor explaining to her that he was checking where he could set up mental blocks so she let it slide. She realized she actually felt safer with the Doctor inside her mind as if he had the power to keep her from harm. She hoped that was the case but for the moment she had to trust him. She was thankful that she had her daughter back and she followed her as she walked back to the others and introduced herself to Pagos and Tiana.

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