THE SONG OF THE OPERA GHOST
Chapter Eighteen The Doctor could barely contain his anger, as he pushed Erik through the streets of Paris towards the TARDIS. He hated this man with a passion, and he wanted nothing more than to rip his heart from his body. Deep inside, his rage burned like a slow fire, but outwardly, he kept his face impassive. Rose was beside him and the last thing he wanted was to upset her. Not after everything they had been through tonight. It amazed him that one man could cause them so much trouble. He wasn’t particularly strong, or smart, in fact, he would be completely normal if it wasn’t for that damn voice of his. The Doctor longed to rip his voice box out of his mouth. At least then, he could be sure that he wouldn’t be able to use his voice to escape and make his life hell all over again. However, in the end, Volag Nok was just as good as killing him. The planet was eternally cold, snowy, and icy. And, unlike Tetrazarlion, it was run by androids who didn’t require sleep, food or other amenities. Even better they wouldn’t fall prey to his voice, should he try to use it on them. The Doctor kicked himself. If he had only taken Erik there in the first place, none of this would have happened. Still, Tetrazarlion had been closer than Volag Nok, and he had decided to go to it in case Erik got any ideas about doing something to him, or his companions, or the TARDIS. Still, it was a moot point now. It had happened, both he and Rose had come through it okay, and Erik finally was going to go where he belonged. At last, they came out of an alley and saw the TARDIS sitting across the street. The Doctor breathed a sigh of relief. He was anxious to get Rose inside, get dressed, and get Erik locked up. He decided that he would let Rose sleep while he went to talk to the managers. It had been a stressful night for her and even though she had been knocked out, she still needed a few more hours of peaceful sleep. He figured she would never tell him that, but he could sense her tiredness just the same. He glanced over and saw how happy she was at seeing the ship again and he thanked any deities who might be listening that she had managed to live long enough to see it again. He gave her shoulder a squeeze, and she smiled at him. “I want you to get out of those clothes and sleep, Rose,” he said, gently, “I’ll take care of everything and then we’ll be on our way.” To his great delight, Rose nodded without hesitation, confirming his suspicions about her level of fatigue. He suspected she probably was just glad to be home and not anxious to go back to the Opera House any time soon and after all that had transpired tonight; it would be awhile before he also was ready to see another opera. They stopped at the door, and the Doctor grabbed Erik’s shoulder while he unlocked it. He opened the door, shoved Erik through, and quickly led him back to the holding cells while Rose closed the door and headed to her room. The Doctor walked down the corridor toward Rose’s room. He had gotten Erik in one of the Plexiglas cells and once he was inside, he activated the sleeping gas, so he would behave. He left him restrained, so he wouldn’t be able to take the gag off and then commanded the TARDIS to seal the room, leaving him alone in the dark. He stopped by Rose’s room, looked at the crack under the door, and noticed the light was off. Slowly, he opened it and peered inside. Rose was fast asleep. She stared at her for a moment listening to her soft, steady breathing. Then, he slowly came inside the room and walked over to her bed. He stared down at her angelic face, watching as her eyes moved under her closed lids. A soft smile formed on his face, and he wondered if she was dreaming about him. At least, for the moment, she wasn’t having any nightmares about what had happened and that brought him some comfort. Since she had come on board, he couldn’t count the number of times she had woke up screaming, and he had to run to comfort her and let her know he was there. He usually ended up sleeping near her until she was able to relax enough to fall back to sleep. Inadvertently, those hours of lying by her side, giving her comfort, helped bring them closer together, and slowly over time, he had found himself being more open and receptive to her until he finally had to admit to himself that he was hopelessly in love. It had been a risky move opening his hearts to her, and the fact that Erik had been able to use that against him was proof of that, but once he had known the joy of being in love with someone who gave him love in return, he knew that he couldn’t go back to the way he was before. All those years of depriving himself of love because of his fear of letting others get too close to him was a foolish mistake. He knew there had been other companions who had fallen in love with him just as Rose had. How much fuller would his life had been if he had just returned the love instead of pushing them away with the pretense that he was only interested in a platonic relationship? In the end, Erik using Rose against him had been no different from any other villain using a companion to obtain his cooperation. He cared for his companions and would have done anything to ensure their safety. Having a platonic relationship with Rose wouldn’t have made any difference. He still would have worried about her and felt anguish each time she was captured or hurt. So, in the end, he decided to take the plunge and make a commitment to her. As he watched her sleeping peacefully, he was glad that he did. Loving her filled a centuries old emptiness in his hearts and gave him a reason to look forward to each new day. Knowing she was alive, safe, and sleeping soundly made every second of torment he had suffered worth it. Smiling, he leaned over and gave her a butterfly kiss on her temple. He lingered a moment over her face, listening while she sighed contentedly in her sleep and shifted her body slightly under the covers. Then, satisfied that she would be all right for the moment, he rose, walked to the door, and closed it back, as he went to get ready to go back to the Opera House. Andre and Firmin didn’t know what to say. What the Doctor was telling them boggled their minds. The Ghost was defeated. And, he had been the one to do it? They looked him up and down. This scrawny, pale man had beaten the terror that had plagued them for months. It was unbelievable. “Monsieur,” Andre said, “you must be joking.” “I assure you, gentlemen, I am not,” the Doctor replied, “Rose and I found his lair and put a stop to him once and for all. He will no longer trouble you or anyone else in the Opera House.” He smiled. “And if you follow me, I will show you one of the secret passages down to his domicile.” The managers looked around Erik’s lair hardly daring to believe their eyes. They couldn’t believe they were standing in the house the Ghost had lived in. The Doctor walked over to the organ bench, grabbed the mask, and brought it to them. “There you go, gentlemen, proof that the Ghost is defeated. He wore this mask over his disfigured face and I took it from him when he was captured.” Andre took it from him, and he and Firmin examined it. “Monsieur, how did you do this? We must know,” Firmin said. “Well, I really don’t want to toot my own horn. I’d rather just be on my way and let this whole affair fade into history.” “No, Monsieur. Please, tell us,” Andre said. “don’t be so modest. You have done the Opera House a great service and we wish to hear of your heroic deeds.” “Besides, if we know what you did, we can tell others and let them know that the Ghost will no longer plague them,” Firmin added. The Doctor considered that. Finally, he nodded. “Alright, I’ll tell you while we walk up to the surface and go back to your office,” he said. Rose sat on the captain’s chair reading a book. She woke about an hour ago and came out to the console room looking for the Doctor. She didn’t find him, but she figured he had gone back to the Opera House, so she settled down onto the chair to wait for him. She looked up when the door opened, and the Doctor entered. He smiled at her. “Molto bene,” he said, striding over to her, “I believe our next stop is Volag Nok.” “So, you got everything sorted out?” “Yup, in addition to telling the managers everything that happened to us. They wouldn’t let me go until I did. I hope I put their fears to rest. They need to know that Erik will no longer be a threat, so everyone can get on with their lives and work in peace.” He finished setting the coordinates and settled down in the chair beside her. He propped his feet up on the rim and put his hands behind his head while Rose scooted closer and leaned against him. He put one arm around her shoulder and gave it a squeeze while Rose read her book. The Doctor and Rose stood just inside the opened door of the TARDIS while it rested on the surface of Volag Nok. They had taken the blindfold off and had untied his legs, but they left his hands tied behind his back and his gag in place. “Well, here you are, Ackerbie, your new digs,” the Doctor said, “hope you get settled in all right. I’m sure the androids will make you feel right at home. Now, let’s get going.” He walked him out the door while Rose stood and watched. They walked for a few feet and then suddenly the Doctor turned and sprinted back inside the door. Erik turned to follow him. Suddenly, thin blue bars shot up from the snow-covered ground and surrounded him. Erik had time to give the Doctor a shocked look before he was pulled down through the snow, vanishing from sight. Rose was taken aback. “What happened?” she asked the Doctor. “He was taken beneath the planet’s surface. That’s where the prison is at. Down below, android sentinels will scan his mind for evidence of wrongdoing and compile a list of charges and then he’ll be sent away for a long, long time. Especially since he’s murdered a number of people. I’m pretty sure he’ll never get out.” He slapped his hands together. “Well, now we’ve taken care of that, let’s go find somewhere else to go, eh?” he said, “and this time, Rose, it’s your turn to pick since I ended up putting you through hell with my attempt to broaden your horizons and bring a little culture into your life.” (Two weeks later…) The Doctor sipped a cup of tea while he rested in Jackie’s living room. He and Rose had just come back from seeing the aurora borealis on N’tak Sypiconis. Rose had been enchanted, and the Doctor was pleased with himself knowing that he had shown her yet another wonder of the universe. He was watching a chat show on TV, listening as Jackie prepared roast and potatoes for supper when Rose burst through the door, laughing. Both he and Jackie gave her an amused look. “What is it, honey?” Jackie asked. Rose looked at her. “Um…well, mum, I don’t think you’re gonna understand this. It’s really more for the Doctor’s benefit.” She walked over to him and giggled, as she dropped a book in his lap. The Doctor stared at her for a second before he picked it up and read the title. THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA BY GASTON LEROUX For a moment, he couldn’t figure out what was so funny about the book. He reread the title, and it slowly dawned on him. He looked up at Rose. “No, it can’t be.” “Yup, I was passing by a bookshop, and they had it on display in their front window. I saw it and was gonna just pass by the shop, but something told me to go inside and check it out. I asked the bookseller about it, and he found it online and showed me a summary. After I read the summary, I just had to buy the book. Here, check this out. He handed him a piece of paper. The Doctor took it, and his eyes nearly popped out of his head. His mouth dropped open when he read, “The Phantom of the Opera" is a hideously deformed musical genius who hides in shadow, living beneath the Paris Opera house. Forced to live this way due to the fact that he has become a killer, his motives in life are changed when he falls in love with a young prima donna named Christine, a girl he has secretly been giving singing lessons to. However, when a young man named Raoul De Chagny vies for the love of Christine, a deadly rivalry ensues, which will determine the fate of not only Christine, but of the entire Paris Opera House. “No,” the Doctor said, softly. He looked up at Rose. “Someone must have heard the managers talking about ya and thought our story would make a good book,” she said, “the guy that wrote it is Gaston Leroux, so it’s not the managers.” “I’m betting it was someone in the cast, or crew, or someone who heard it from one of them,” the Doctor said, “you know you humans can’t keep your mouth shut about anything.” By this time, Jackie had come up behind the Doctor and was listening quietly, wondering what was going on. The Doctor said nothing more to either of them. He opened up the book and began to read it. Jackie looked at Rose. “What’s this all about?” she asked her. “Come on, mum, I’ll have a cup of tea with ya and explain what happened,” she said. Rose lay in her bed on the TARDIS watching her little TV. Suddenly, the door opened, and the Doctor walked in. “Interesting little book,” he said, laying it on her chest, “it’s pretty exciting. Unfortunately, our names were altered along with the story, so we can’t go find Gaston Leroux and demand a royalty check for inspiring it. I found out some facts about him online. Seems he heard tales of the Opera Ghost, researched it, and used our night of terror as the basis for his story. Someone must have told him about us, and he took that information and wrote this novel. Actually, it’s an interesting spin on our adventures. I’m done with it now, if you want to read it. Nice to know that our time with mister creepy has been written down and circulated to the masses. Actually, I’m glad we were left out of it. I really would like to forget what happened that night, and I’m sure you do too.” “I do, but I also want to read this and see what the guy said.” “It’s good, Rose, don’t get me wrong. It’s a well written novel. Very suspenseful. It’s a good example of how a story can be distorted and changed by someone else, much like the myths and legends of your early history. No one that reads it will ever know the real story. Only we know what really went on that night. That’s what makes it so amusing. Comparing what happened to us with what this Leroux chap wrote makes it worthwhile. Anyway, enjoy the book.” He gave her a kiss on the cheek and walked back out the door. Rose tried to watch her TV, but curiosity about the novel got the better of her. Turning it off, she picked up the novel, opened it, and smiled to herself as she lost herself completely in the story. THE END.
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