SLAVES OF THE SISTERHOOD

Chapter Twenty Six

"Great, as if there isn't enough to deal with at the moment," Twelve said as he, Ten and Eleven knelt down.

"Rose? Are you alright? What's wrong?" Ten said, grabbing her hand and holding it while Rose grimaced and writhed in pain.

Ten winced when she squeezed his hand so hard he thought his bones would break but he kept holding on and he and Eleven and Twelve picked her up and hurried back to the Med Bay while the others followed. Rose writhed in their arms as the glow intensified.

"Damn it, I should have known that entity wasn't benign," Twelve growled as they hurried into the Med Bay.

They lay Rose gently on the bed and as the others came into the room, Eleven grabbed the scanner, turned it on and Ten and Twelve positioned Rose as best they could while he put the scanner over the glowing portion of her abdomen.

"Come on, work faster!" Eleven muttered as SCAN IN PROGRESS flashed on the monitor.

"Oh God, it hurts!" Rose moaned, trying to keep still for the scan but having a hard time. Xapta, Clara and the War Doctor walked up to her and Clara knelt down, grabbing her right hand and trying to give her support.

"What?"

Clara looked up when she heard Eleven and noticed the three Doctors were staring at the monitor in disbelief.

"That's impossible, it was just a cluster of cells thirty minutes ago," Ten said.

"What's wrong?" Clara said as the War Doctor walked over to take a look at the monitor.

"It's growing, Clara. The child is growing…rapidly," Twelve said. "It was a cluster of cells like he said and now it's probably about a month old at least."

"In thirty minutes?" Xapta said.

"That glow, I think it's making the child grow inside her," Eleven said, looking at Rose's abdomen. "Speeding up the process."

"So she could have the child today?" Xapta said.

"If it grows this much in a half hour, I'm guessing an hour or two before it's full grown," Ten said. "Maybe even less than that?"

"It hurts!" Rose said.

"Can she handle it?" Clara said, fearfully. "The rapid growth won't kill her, will it?"

"I don't know, Clara," Twelve said, running to the counter. "I don't know what this Bad Wolf will do. But it seems to want the child to come sooner rather than later!"

"It's growing even while we're watching it," the War Doctor said, shaking his head.

Twelve readied a sedative and hurried back to Rose's side. Clara moved and watched as the Doctor inserted the needle into Rose's arm and put the sedative into her body. Within a few minutes, Rose stopping writhing and relaxed, her face went slack and her breathing became steady and normal as she entered a drugged state. Clara and Xapta stayed by her side while the Doctors hurried back and forth inside the room, gathering supplies and monitoring the progress of the fetus.

"You lot carry on," Twelve said to them. "I'm going to check and see what the nutters are doing and I'll be back. TARDIS, signal me if something major happens," he said to the ceiling as he ran out.

Eleven knelt down beside Rose with a small tray filled with things for a blood draw. Clara noticed that his face was extremely pale and his hands were trembling slightly. She looked up at Ten. He was staring at the monitor with a calm demeanor but she could see he was also pale and looked stricken as he and the War Doctor monitored the progress of the child. By now, the glow had dimmed down but it was still there as a soft golden aura. Rose turned her head slowly and watched Eleven with glazed eyes as he searched for a suitable vein in her arm.

"Will I die?" she asked him with a slurred voice.

"No," Eleven said firmly. "You're not going to die, Rose. There are a roomful of people who won't let that happen. I'm just taking a blood sample so we can better understand what's going on. Just relax."

"You drugged me; I can't do anything else but relax."

Eleven chuckled at that which made Clara smile. He continued with his work, drawing Rose's blood while Ten ran another scan to determine the size and age of the fetus.

"Says it's nearly two months old now," Ten said to everyone. "I'm sure in ten minutes it'll be bigger than that."

"So she can have the baby in about an hour or so?" Xapta said.

"Better ready supplies in case that happens," the War Doctor said.

Ten nodded. He flitted back and forth, helping the War Doctor while also checking the monitor. By now the glow was nearly gone but it was still there as a soft haze. Eleven finished the blood draw and took the vials over to the counter with the rest of the supplies while Clara shifted her body so she could sit by her friend.

"Are you in pain?" Clara asked her.

"Not now," Rose slurred out. "Thank God for drugs."

Clara chuckled as Xapta knelt down beside her. Rose gazed at Clara for a moment.

"If I die, take care of the Doctor for me," she said softly to Clara.

"You're not gonna die, Rose, you're gonna be fine and so is the child," Clara said firmly. "Just believe in that. The Doctor's a miracle worker, you know."

"Tell me about it," Rose slurred.

She fell silent while Clara rubbed her shoulder and Xapta held her hand.

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