SLAVE OF THE GOA'ULD
Chapter Nine The Doctor peeked into the embalming room and led Rose inside. "Doctor, I have to tell you something," Rose said as they headed for the secret door. "Jenny and me, we found the door, but it was locked. Did you do that so we couldn't follow you?" "No, I never locked it, it's wood, the screwdriver wouldn't affect it anyway," the Doctor said. He reached down through the sand and easily lifted the door. Rose shook her head. "It was stuck or locked, something's wrong, Doctor," Rose said. "It's alright, whatever's down here, we can handle it together," the Doctor said, holding out his hand. Rose took his hand and they walked down the steps together. Rose was about to tell the Doctor to close the door back but he led her away from it and she decided that perhaps he was leaving it open after hearing that it locked behind him. She coughed from the dust in the air as they walked down the narrow corridor. Even though she wasn't claustrophobic, the walls were very narrow and she began to feel like they were closing in on her the farther away they got from the entrance. She followed him until she saw the torchlight shimmering on the metal surface of the room up ahead. The room was dark which made her red flag rise even higher in her mind and she stopped. The Doctor stopped and gave her a puzzled look. "Something's not right, Doctor," she said, trying to step back away from him. "It's alright, trust me," the Doctor said, following her. "There's no one in there, it's just an empty room." "How do you know? They might have come back while you were gone." "Because I can sense them and they're not there, Rose, just trust me." Rose gazed into his eyes and saw the familiar warmth and tenderness there and she instantly felt at ease. She nodded and let the Doctor lead her towards the room. Again, she had the uneasy feeling right at the entrance but the Doctor pulled her inside. The moment she put both feet on the metal floor, the Doctor let go, the lights switched on and she panicked when she couldn't move her body from her neck on down. "Doctor, I'm caught in something," Rose said. "I know, my dear." Rose froze when she heard the Doctor's voice. It had deepened with a slight feminine tinge to it. She looked on in horror when the Doctor turned and she saw the white glow of his eyes. She tried to break free of her force field prison but she couldn't move even a single muscle below her neck. "Who are you?" she said to the Doctor, figuring something along the lines of Cassandra was possessing him now. "What are you?" "I am Sekhmet, the goddess of war," the Doctor said, coming close to her. "And you, my naïve human, are my prisoner." "I figured something was wrong," Rose said bitterly. The Doctor chuckled. "And yet, you discounted your instincts because you trust this Time Lord with all of your being," she said mockingly. "Foolish girl, you should never ignore your gut instincts. On the other hand, it was a good thing you did since that saved me a whole lot of running and dragging you back here." "What do you want with us?" "You mean, yourself and my host? Your precious Doctor is my home now. I inhabit his mind and control him utterly. I needed a new body and now I have the most powerful one in the universe. A man who is much like me, capable of helping and destroying others. My brother gods chose him for me. Now…as for you…" Rose flinched when the Doctor put his finger on her cheek. "You, shall become the host for my sister and lover, Bast. She also needs a body." "You must think I'm barmy if I'm gonna let something take me over," Rose said. "Such courage. I admire that. But as you can see, you have very little choice in the matter. You are trapped, my human, and you will stay my prisoner until implantation." "Don't count on it," Rose said, trying to move her face away from the Doctor's finger. "What's wrong, Rose? Don't you love the Doctor?" "Yes, but you're not the Doctor, you're…that thing inside him and I don't love you," Rose said, jerking her head back when the Doctor tried to put his hand against her cheek. "Rose, don't resist and I'll allow the Doctor to observe." "How'd ya mean?" "I can loosen my hold enough that the Doctor will awaken, just enough to see what's going on but not enough to regain control." "No, don't torture him like that," Rose said. "If his mind is asleep, let him stay asleep." But the Doctor closed his eyes for a moment despite Rose's pleas for Sekhmet to leave him alone. She opened them again but Rose could see no change. There was no familiar warmth to the Doctor's eyes so Sekhmet was still in control but it frightened her to think that somewhere inside his body, the Doctor was helplessly observing what was going on and was powerless to stop it. She tried to move her head again, but the Doctor cupped her face with his hands and gazed at her for a moment in silence. Then he leaned in and Rose felt his lips on hers. She tried to jerk her head back, knowing how much pain it must be causing the Doctor to watch all this, but Sekhmet had an iron grip on her face and she couldn't move. Then the Doctor leaned back up and Rose begged Sekhmet once more to let him go back to sleep. "Shhh, my child, he's not in any torment," the Doctor said softly, moving closer to her. "He loves you, do you know that? You are his beloved Rose and when I put my lips on yours, he felt it." A tear rolled down Rose's cheek and the Doctor brushed it away. "He's never been open with you, which is a shame because you are his hearts' desire. He cares for you above all others which is why you would be a perfect consort for me. Imagine, Rose, living beyond your life span at my side, together forever." "But it wouldn't be me and it's not him, you're controlling him and something would be controlling me so I wouldn't get to enjoy it." The Doctor stepped away and thought for a moment while Rose watched from her prison. "Do you love him?" he said, turning back around. "Doctor, I love you," Rose said, in case the Doctor was observing her. "I love you with all of my heart. Whatever happens to us, I'll never stop loving you." "Hmm, I would say that was a big yes," the Doctor said. "A moment then, I need to have a talk with my host." Rose watched while the Doctor closed his eyes and Sekhmet allowed him even more freedom. When the Doctor opened his eyes, Rose's hearts leapt when she saw the familiar loving look on the Doctor's face and she knew he'd been given control back of his body. "Doctor, it's you," Rose said. "Yes, it's me but I still can't move my body. My uninvited guest has given me a bit more control because I think she wants me to do the old split personality bit. Isn't that right, Sekhmet?" The Doctor's eyes glowed. "I have a proposal for you and her," Sekhmet said. The glow faded away. "And that proposal would be?" the Doctor said in his normal voice. The glow came back. "I will allow you some measure of freedom as will my sister, Bast, for Rose and the four of us can exist together in a symbiotic partnership." The glow faded. "Isn't that a bit dodgy for you, giving me that much control?" the Doctor said in his normal voice. The glow returned. "No, I am being generous. I see into your thoughts and memories, Doctor. I know how deeply you love this human, more than you care to admit to her." "If you know that, then you know I'd rather die than see her carrying a Goa'uld around for the rest of eternity," the Doctor said. "But she is my prisoner, there is no escape for this child, wouldn't you rather have her at your side as your consort?" "Not if it means she lives as a slave." His hand rose to Rose's face and this time she didn't resist when it stroked her cheek. She gazed into the Doctor's eyes and saw love and tenderness and tears came to her eyes. Rose froze when the eyes glowed again. "You want her more than anything. You tell me that you'd rather see her die but your hearts and mind betray you," Sekhmet said mockingly. "It would destroy you to see her die." "It would destroy me even more to see her live as a Goa'uld slave," the Doctor said when the glow faded. "Even if it were a symbiotic relationship, I doubt your "sister" would let her have free will. She would still be under the Goa'uld's control. She might be able to talk and interact with me and she would have some measure of freedom but only just. You want her because she absorbed the heart of the TARDIS and lived and I'm the last surviving Time Lord, we're both too valuable to be given free reign and having said that, I stick to my previous statement about seeing her die before I see her a slave." "You have no choice, Doctor; she will become Bast's host so I will give you another offer. I will retreat and give you total control over your body and allow you to take charge of her captivity so she isn't harmed or mistreated. However, I will be observing everything you do and the moment you show resistance I will reassert myself and take control. Of course, she will also be fitted with a special restraint collar around her neck and I will keep the remote control to it on your person and I will use that remote control if she tries to resist her captivity. I will also stop you from throwing away the remote control or taking off her collar. Other than that, you both will be free." "What about Tut and Ankhsenamen? Suppose Rose or I try to warn them, or Jenny or Meren?" the Doctor said. "Oh, you won't get to do that. You're not going back to the palace. You're coming onto the Goa'uld mother ship. That's where my sister is at and she needs to see Rose before she decides if she wants her as a host. So you see, there will be no one you can go to for help and nowhere to run since the mothership is in deep space. All you'll have is your beloved Rose to watch over and protect. So I suggest you take this offer, unless of course, you want me to be in total control." The Doctor sighed angrily. Rose watched him quietly with total trust and he stroked her cheek. Despite his bravado, he knew that if Rose were put to death, he would never recover from it. He decided that perhaps Sekhmet's offer might give him time to figure out a way to escape. "Yes, I accept your offer," the Doctor said. "Then she is yours to look after," Sekhmet said. "You have free use of your body…for the time being." Suddenly, Rose felt the constricting force field vanish and she stumbled a bit as her body tried to adjust. The Doctor came to her and embraced her, holding her protectively. Rose heard a swishing sound and looked around. All the doors had disappeared, absorbed into the walls, leaving them both trapped in the metal room. "Forgive me, Rose, I had no choice," the Doctor said. Rose looked back at him and her heart ached when he saw the sadness and guilty look on his face. She put her arms around him and the Doctor kissed the top of her head. "There's no reason to ask for forgiveness," Rose said softly while she held him. "It was either this or death and I'm not ready to die yet." The Doctor nodded and lowered his head to hers. Rose closed her eyes, feeling peace suddenly wash over her. No matter what happened, she felt confident that they would be able to escape now and she pushed her worries aside for the moment and just let herself become lost in the moment while the Doctor held her close to his body.
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