Ace sat with her back against one of the stone monoliths and watched the two Time Lords bicker. This had been going on for nearly ten minutes now, ever since the Professor had disappeared and then reappeared along with an exact duplicate. That in itself was well spooky, thought Ace, but then the Doctor (Doctors?) had revealed that one of the two was actually something called Zalaxal, whoever or whatever that was, and that it had duplicated the Doctor exactly, even his mind. Eventually, Zalaxal would slowly manifest, but until then it was just like having two of the same person on your team.
At first, she believed that having two Doctors would be doubly good. If one Doctor could take on Daleks and Cybermen and send them packing, then surely two Doctors could take care of a simple ghost.
That's when the arguing began.
The Doctor was normally a quick and decisive man when it came to taking action. But each Time Lord had his own plan for getting rid of Zalaxal, and the Doctor, being stubborn, would hardly listen to the other's ideas. Ace had been watching each of them very carefully, waiting for a false mannerism or phrase that might give her a clue as to the identity of the false Professor.
"Listen," said the Doctor on Ace's left, "the TARDIS's telepathic circuits will be able to tell any difference between us, no matter how small. Some kernel of Zalaxal's existence must reside inside of us. We must return to the TARDIS."
"And after that?" the other replied, his hands clinched tightly around the fabric of his brolly. "What are we going to do with him? His cage is broken and we have to fix it." He waved vaguely towards the blackened crystal atop the wooden staff. "If that crystal isn't Zalaxal's prison, then it must be the doorway. In either case, that crystal is the key!" Doctor number two locked steely grey eyes with his counterpart, trying to convince him through sheer force of will.
"Stalemate, Professor," muttered Ace, thinking of the chess board in Lady Peinforte's study.
"What?" both Doctors said in unison as their heads snapped to look at her.
Ace leapt to her feet. "You heard me, Professor, stalemate." she said as she stomped over to them, her Doc Marten's stirring up clouds of sand and dust. "You've been here for ten minutes and what have you accomplished? Nothing. Nothing at all. Normally you know exactly what to do."
"I do!" said both Doctors in unison again but Ace continued on.
"While you have been chatting with yourself, this Zalaxal thing is getting stronger inside one of you and we have to stop it from getting out. Gordon Bennett, this is worse than listening to my mum argue. Does this happen every single time you meet yourself?"
The Doctors' faces softened and warm smiles appeared. "No, actually we are being quite civil comparatively," said Doctor number one as Doctor number two winked at Ace.
Ace grinned back. "That's my Professor! So what do we do?"
The Doctors looked at one another and then to Ace. "Oh no, not this time," said Doctor number two. "You can break the stalemate, Ace."
Doctor number one touched his nose. "Yes, quite. Tell us what to do, Ace."
The dune behind the temple had been blown into a drift that reached the roof of the stone structure. There were several points of entry there that she could use to access the temple. She had walked every meter of those sacred halls and knew them by heart. She closed her eyes, vividly picturing the short corridor she would be taking in order to surprise the intruders.
Granted, these were not the kind of intruders Tizanna had pictured as being the Servants of Ultimate Evil. In her training with the Imprexa, she had been prepared to deal with any number of situations, from an entire strike force to a lone infiltrator with skills that matched her own. But these two strangers, a young girl not even half as old as Tizanna's daughter and a unassuming man well past his physical prime, were acting as if they were out on a leisurely stroll. The high priestess began to wonder if perhaps the couple had landed here by mistake.
But, they had defiled the temple that served as the prisonhouse to the evil spirit. By Imprexa decree, their lives were forfeit. But if they had allowed the evil to escape, then the intruders would pay with their souls.
"We?" Doctor number two asked.
"The TARDIS and I," replied Ace. "You *are* always calling the TARDIS a 'she', right?"
Doctor number one flashed a mischievous smile. "Yes, I do. And *she* doesn't exactly fly either."
"I know, Professor," Ace rolled her eyes.
"And stop calling me that!" both Doctors said in unison.
Ace smiled and grabbed the hand of Doctor number two and dragged him to the doorway. "All right," she said with a sigh. "We'll be back in a jiff," she yelled back to the other Time Lord.
Doctor number one doffed his hat and turned to examine the staff that held the burnt-out crystal.
Slowly, Tizanna stripped off the brown sand-covered robes that protected her from the deadly winds of the desert and let them drop to the floor of the secret passage. Underneath, the thin tall woman was wearing a dusty colored bodysuit that exactly matched the color of her sandy skin. She carefully removed the goggles and breathing apparatus from her face, revealing severe angled features and cold dark eyes.
With long slender arms, she picked up the savage looking barbed spear and advanced toward the door. Her breathing was very shallow and quiet, and the soft soles of her boots made little to no noise on the fine sand that covered the stones beneath her feet. With a slight push, the secret stone door slid easily and silently to the side, revealing the temple's grand hall.
Earlier, the High Priestess had heard the voices of the two intruders but could not understand them. Now, she could hear only the fierce winds outside and the soft mutterings of a man's strangely accented voice. Stealthily she stepped into the shadows of the pillars and monoliths, making her way to the center of the chamber.
There, at the very heart of the temple, kneeling at the base of the staff that held the sacred Tre'prxl, was the small, unassuming man. The other, the female, was nowhere to be found. The High Priestess could hear him talking softly to himself. She kept to the man's back, approaching slowly, step by step, her eyes only on her prey. As she came closer, Tizanna could understand a few of the strange man's words. Her eyes widened as she heard him blurt out the name of the Great Evil. How could he have known its name? Her eyes glanced up at the Tre'prxl. Her eyebrows furrowed as she saw the blackened and cracked crystal and all thoughts of leniency vanished from her mind. Tizanna could feel burning anger welling up inside her chest at these strangers. Gripping her spear, she pressed a hidden stud and the barbed blade began to vibrate, producing a soft humming noise.
The man suddenly stood up and turned to face her. "Oh, hello, I didn't realize that anyone still lived here. Perhaps you can help me." He raised his hat in greeting. "I'm the Doctor, or at least one of them. And you are?"
"Your executioner..." Tizanna said with intensity, her voice dark and furious. The High Priestess leapt forward, and drove the spear with deadly force into the man's abdomen. The Doctor crumpled, his hat flying from his hands. Tizanna felt the barbs on her spear catch as she ripped the weapon free. He fell to the ground, not long for this world or any other, as his life's blood soaked into the sand around him.
Tizanna jumped back and assumed a battle-ready position, looking around for the girl in black. From just outside the entryway, a trumpeting, grinding noise soared over the sound of the wind as the stranger's unusual craft faded into view. Tizanna stepped back into the shadows and disappeared. The girl would be no match for her....
"Professor, no!" she cried, falling on her knees.
"Ace, stop!" Doctor number two roared as he carefully lowered his end of the box to the ground. "Whatever did that to me may still be here!"
The ashen-faced Doctor number one looked up at Ace, who was trying to stop the flow of blood from the savage wound in his stomach. "Ace," he said, voice trembling, "it is too late...." The Doctor's lips were tinged with blood. "You must stop Zal...." The Time Lord coughed, then lay still.
"Doctor..." Ace whispered, then looked up at Doctor number two. A figure was creeping up behind him. "Professor! Behind you!" she yelled, jumping to her feet and on the run again.
Doctor number two spun around, and dodged to the side as the tall woman lunged out with her bloody spear, missing him cleanly. Ace pulled her can of Nitro 9 from her jacket but the woman was too close to the Doctor. She bided her time and waited for her chance. Maybe she could make a distraction....
"Infidels!" she shouted. "You have released the Great Evil! Countless worlds will die now because of your actions. I know not what trickery is this, but I will kill you again and again if I have to!" Holding his hat on his head, the Doctor scrambled behind a pillar, narrowly missing another of the woman's deadly strikes.
"You can help me imprison Zalaxal again," shouted the Doctor, running backwards. "Tell me about the crystal....tell me everything about this Great Evil!" The Doctor tripped over short stone block and fell onto his back, his arms outstretched to block the woman's attacks.
She approached the Doctor, spear raised, her duty intent upon her face. "No, the law is clear. Your life is forfeit, by order of the Imprexa."
"Professor!" Ace yelled, pointing at the Doctor number one's body. Both the woman and Doctor number two both turned to look.
A soft white light was emanating from the body, and a thick gooey mesh of threads began to spread over its skin as the glow grew stronger and more intense. The woman turned to the glowing body, and readied her spear.
"And so it begins..." she whispered, walking towards the white glow.
"Professor?" Ace asked, running up to the Doctor on the stone block and placing herself between him and the madwoman.
The Doctor was quiet for a moment, watching inquisitively. "Ace," he breathed quietly. "He's... I'm... regenerating...."
To be continued