(Long, Spoilers) The Final Chapter, Lance Fiction
L J Parkin
THE DYING DAYS - THE FINAL CHAPTER
by Lance Parkin
This, naturally, contains spoilers for 'The Dying Days', also
'Lungbarrow', 'War of the Daleks' (mild, nothing we've
not known for a year!) and 'Pulp Fiction'. It's 3000 words
long and fictional. Sorry, blame an AOL newsgroup reader
that doesn't seem convinced that alt.creative exists. Or
blame me. I've done it once, I won't do it again. Sorry.
As promised, here is a bit cut from TDD, posted here one
time only to mark the passing of Virgin's licence. I'm only
going to post this once, so download it, print it or whatever
if you want to keep it. I won't post it again. Clear on that?
Consider this 'sharefic' - if you want to reprint this in a fanzine, then
feel free to do so, providing that you 1) send a contributor's copy to
me via Virgin, 2) Don't add or cut out anything, 3) Credit me. This
fiction remains my copyright, Iffy was created by Mark Clapham,
the Ian Richardson Doctor was co-created by myself and Mark
Clapham.
There were four versions of 'the final chapter', and in true 'Nth Doctor'
style, I've made up titles for them that weren't used at the time.
This is the first, 'Valeyard of the Daleks'. It didn't reach the 'sending
it to Rebecca stage' because everyone that read it hated it, with varying
degrees of passion from 'violent rage' to 'psychotic anger'.
The second 'Eulogy of the Daleks' is actually quite good, I think. It's
reprinted in Matrix 54 (out this week - 2.50 Sterling plus 2.50 foreign
postage to Seventh Door Fanzines, c/o Jeremy Daw, 103 Canning Road,
Southport, PR9 7SW). For the full story, you'll have to shell out grozits,
I'm afraid.
The third 'Basically Eulogy of the Daleks' is the same as that, but with
a very old, unmarried McGann.
The fourth, 'Timewyrm: Apocripha' (sic), was completely 1) different
and 2) awful, and featured Cwej, the Timewyrm and Iranda from
'Beyond the Sun'.
So, here we are, the end of the line ...
DOCTOR WHO AND THE VALEYARD OF THE DALEKS
Saturday, 6 December 2003
One of Grotecca's men pricked him with the portable DNA scanner,
the other searched him, finding and removing his pistol.
'He's who he says he is, boss.'
'I never doubted it.' The Italian arms dealer was small and sweaty.
'Good evening, Mr Jason Kane. Show me the colour of your money.'
Jason indicated the battered S-reg Mondeo. 'The colour of my
money is gold and it's in the boot of my car. It's booby-trapped, so I
advise you to keep away. I want to see the goods first.'
One of the goons was holding a leather briefcase. He laid it down
on the boot of their Mercedes. Grotecca handed Jason the swipe key.
Kane bent over the case, unlocking and opening it up. A warm
glow lit his face, and he stood there for a couple of seconds, transfixed.
'You happy?'
He didn't respond.
'Kane!' Grotecca repeated. 'You happy?'
Jason shook his head, closing the case. 'I'm happy.' He reached
into his jacket. Before the action had been completed, Grotecca had
drawn his gun and was pointing it at him.
'My car keys,' Jason assured him, holding up the remote control.
I'm going to unlock the boot for you, OK?'
Grotecca relaxed a little. 'OK.'
Jason smiled and squeezed the remote control.
The Mondeo exploded. It was an old petrol model, so Grotecca
and his goons were bowled over by the blast.
By the time Italo Grotecca had got to his feet, Jason Kane and
the briefcase were long gone.
Fifteen minutes later, Jason Kane was in the Internationale casino,
looking for a game he could join. There were a dozen tables, and
choosing between them was going to be very difficult. Then he
saw the girl, and she made the decision for him.
No older than eighteen, she was large, but her evening dress
had been wisely chosen, playing to her advantages. It had been
tailor-made for her, and showed just the right amount of milky-white
skin to make her appear womanly rather than overweight. She
looked good and she knew it, which made her all the more attractive.
'Jason Kane,' he informed her, smiling.
'Iphegenia.'
'That's an unusual name,' he observed, trying to open up the
conversation. The woman - Iphegenia - could see through what he
was doing but played along.
'My parents gave all their kids names beginning with an "I". I
was the seventh, and they'd run out by then. My younger brother's
called Ipswich.'
There were chuckles from around the table, which disconcerted
her a little, she hadn't meant it to be a joke. Her voice was still
young, a little adenoidal. As she spoke, she shifted slightly,
exposing a voluptuous expanse of leg. Realising that he was
staring, Jason glanced back up at her face, and saw her smiling
back at him knowingly. She had warm brown eyes. They held
each other's gaze for a second.
He held out his hand. 'Jason. Jason Kane. And you are
Iphegenia ... who?'
'Quite,' she answered casually, glancing across the table. Jason
noticed her companion for the first time, and was unsure what to
make of the man. Two thousand years ago, he could have been
a Roman Senator, with just the right profile and bearing. He was in
his sixties, with thinning white hair and odd pale eyes. He was
clearly the most intelligent man around the table - around any table
- his posture and expression radiated an effortless genius. He had
kept himself lean, and moved with the unselfconscious ease of a
man two or three decades younger.
'You're married, Jason Kane,' the old man said sardonically. 'And
so is she.'
'Do I know you?' Jason asked, more than a little annoyed. The
old man was wearing a dark-blue suit and a pressed silk shirt that
looked expensive, but weren't exactly the height of fashion.
The older man smiled.
Jason attempted to keep his expression neutral. Glancing around
the table, he could see that the couple fascinated the other players.
He could tell that they had quietly been speculating about the couple's
relationship all evening, but no-one had the nerve to ask them. Were
they husband and wife?
Play began, and Jason, a seasoned gambler, recognised the
familiar patterns of such games: the well-meaning amateurs, the
tourists, the rich who had joined the game simply to be seen losing
a fortune. The odd couple were harder to place in such a hierarchy.
Outwardly the man was calm, but you could almost hear his mind
work as he calculated odds and rehearsed his options. Finally, though,
he snorted, and dropped his cards to the table. A couple of the other
players, with substantially inferior hands, immediately did the same.
Jason placed his cards more carefully, face up. A full house. He kept
his expression neutral, but looked at Iphegenia expectantly. She
kept her cards level for a moment.
'Are you going to show us your cards, Iphegenia?' the old man
asked curtly. He wasn't someone who liked to lose.
Jason leapt to her defence. 'It isn't sporting to rush a lady,
Mister.'
'Doctor,' the old man corrected him gently, 'and if I know my wife
at all, she has a winning hand and she knows it. She also knows
that it's her last hand of the evening, and she's taking great pleasure
in spinning out the tension.'
Jason raised an eyebrow. 'Is that true?'
Iphegenia giggled and slapped her cards down. The dealer began
to push over her winnings. The other players were beginning to drift
away, hoping they still had enough money to pay their bar bills.
Jason smiled, then looked up at the old man. 'Wait a minute,
did you say "Doctor"?'
The Doctor held out his hand. 'Hello Jason, it's been a very
long time.'
'Yeah. Longer for you than me, by the look of it. Since we last met,
you've ... ' he searched for the word, 'regenerated? And got married,'
he added, almost as an afterthought.
'Many times. And just the once.'
'He's not the man I married,' Iphegenia giggled.
'My forty-first incarnation was a great deal more impulsive than
myself.' He looked across the table at his wife, a very contented smile
on his face. 'Thankfully.'
Jason had a number of questions to ask the pair of them. Only one
was important.
'How is my wife?'
'Supreme Commander Bernice Surprise Summerfield, Lord of the
Inner and Outer Worlds, High Admiral of the Galactic Fleets, Lord
General of the Six Armies and Defender of the Earth? I've not seen her
since her inauguration as God Empress of All Human Space.'
Jason's mouth was wide open. 'You're joking?'
'Yes, of course I'm joking,' the Doctor chuckled.
'You should see your face,' Iphegenia snorted.
'Well, how is she?'
'I've not seen her for a very long time, I've had, oh, a thousand
new adventures since then. I was in my eighth incarnation, so that
would be ... ' he worked it out in his head. 'Over two thousand two
hundred years ago.'
Iphegenia kissed her husband on the cheek. 'You'd think the
age difference would be a problem, wouldn't you?'
'Where is she?' Jason asked. 'Is she still on Dellah in 2593?'
'How did you know that?' the Doctor asked.
'I found a letter at Allen Road. I was there last week. I thought
she might be.'
Iphegenia was watching him. 'You miss her, don't you?'
'I do. I've remained faithful to her, you know that? All this time.'
The Doctor glanced at his wristwatch. 'Subjectively speaking,
you did only split up a fortnight ago.'
Jason shrugged. 'I realised I missed her. I'm trying to build a
time tunnel.'
The Doctor raised an eyebrow. 'Are you indeed?'
'Just for a one-way trip. I've still got my time ring, so most of
the work was done for me. Check the briefcase.'
Iphegenia opened the case, the light from it radiating over
her face. She smiled a cherubic smile.
'Is that what I think it is?'
Jason nodded.
'It's beautiful.'
'It's an emm of taranium.'
The Doctor's mouth was open. 'You managed to acquire a useful
quantity of taranium in less than two weeks? It's one of the rarest
substances in the universe.'
'Yeah. I know that, you know that, but to the twenty-first century
it's just some glowing rock. So, now I've got all the bits will you
help me build my time machine?'
The Doctor shook his head.
Iphegenia was aghast. 'Doctor?'
The Doctor formed a thin smile. 'Why bother when I can just take
you to Dellah in the TARDIS? After we've finished our drinks, of course.'
The police box stood just outside the amusement VRcade.
'You never got the cloaking device fixed then?' Jason asked.
'It was never really broken,' the Doctor answered.
Iphegenia unlocked the door and slipped inside.
The Doctor paused on the threshold, and stared at Jason, a look
that bore right through him. 'Are you sure?'
'I'm sure. I know we'll get back together. At the wedding we were
told our fortune. And later we met our son, Keith.'
'Oh, that's no guarantee,' the Doctor said dismissively. 'Temporal
paradoxes and alternative timelines are ten a penny. You can't rely
on tawdry plot devices.'
'But I love Benny,' Jason objected. 'And she loves me.'
'If you are sure of that, then that is your guarantee.'
The Doctor ushered him inside.
The control room was a dazzling airy space, with walls carved
from crystal. Iphegenia was by the octagonal console, which sparkled
like a crystal chandelier. Somehow she had found time to change into
a flowing white robe.
'I've set the co-ordinates,' she told them. The Doctor stepped over
to check the instruments. 'I do know how to,' she added.
'Of course you do, my dear.' The Doctor said, patting her
affectionately. He reached across and pulled a couple of levers. The
liquid in the central column began pumping up and down with a regular
rhythm. The Doctor stared into it, a bittersweet look on his face.
Jason and Iphegenia smiled at each other. 'The Doctor always hoped
you and Benny would get back together,' she whispered. 'Between you
and me, I think he's always had a soft spot for your wife.'
'That's OK,' Jason said cockily. 'Between you and me, I fancy his
wife.'
She stifled a giggle.
The Doctor was rubbing the back of his neck.
'What's the matter?' Iphegenia asked, clearly concerned.
The Doctor winced. 'The hairs on the back of my neck are prickling.
Back in the old days that always used to mean - ' He stood, staring
ahead at something over Jason's shoulder.
The TARDIS rocked, as if something had just hit it.
'Doctor, what's happening?' Iphegenia called.
The scanner twinkled on.
There was a machine, a robot of some kind framed on the screen,
a dome mounted on a stubby, conical base. At the top of the dome there
was a single camera lens, which was twitching.
'Doc-tor! We have fi-nal-ly lo-cate-d you!' it barked in harsh,
grating syllables. Lights on the side of its head flared, almost in time
with its speech. 'You have es-caped Dal-ek jus-tice for too long.
Pre-pare for ex-ter-min-a-tion.'
'And good evening to you, too,' the Doctor said. 'Talk about blasts
from the past.' He was flicking switches and twisting dials, a little
frantically.
'That is a Dalek?' Iphegenia asked.
'Correct. Their WAR-DIS was in a temporal orbit, waiting to
ambush us.'
'Are they all that colour?' Jason asked. They were royal blue,
with chrome trimmings.
The Doctor looked up, clearly seeing the question as trivial.
'These days, yes,' he snapped. Then he looked up at the screen
again. 'Their technology clearly hasn't moved on since the last time
I met them, on Falkus. Do you remember that?' he shouted up at
the Dalek.
'All def-eats are cat-a-log-ed in the Dal-ek dat-a-banks. Your
crimes ag-ainst the Dal-eks are with-out num-ber, Doc-tor. Your
ex-ec-u-tion is long o-ver-due.'
The Doctor chuckled. 'The poor dears have been annoyed with
me since my seventh incarnation used the Hand of Omega to blow
up Skaro in 4663. Some of the hardliners on the Supreme Council
still deny it ever happened.'
'Sur-ren-der,' the Dalek screeched. 'You will be ex-ter-min-a-ted.
Sur-ren-der.'
The TARDIS reverberated as another Dalek energy bolt slammed
home.
As the Doctor moved around the console, activating as many
defence systems as he could find, he reeled off a brief history of the
Daleks: the fifth execution of Davros on Calliopticon, the rise of the new
regime and the Daleks' victories against the Movellans, the Galactic
Federation and the People. He explained that the new Emperor had
eventually united the fragmented Dalek principalities into the Dalek
Nation, the largest, most powerful empire in the universe, which
stretched across vast areas of space and time.
'What about humanity?' Iphegenia asked. She was checking an
instrument on the console that resembled a radar screen.
'The Daleks lost their war with Earth's galaxy, thanks to President
Blake and his friends. Nowadays the Dalek Nation is consolidating
its gains elsewhere in the universe. It will be many millennia before
they will be in a position to expand towards Earth again. Their efforts
are concentrated towards shoring up the front with the old Empires
at the Universal Core.' The Doctor looked up at her, a morose
expression on his face. 'The Children of Kasterborous are giving
them particular trouble.'
Jason looked at the radar. 'The Dalek warship is gaining on
us.' He checked the instruments again. 'We're still heading to
Dellah.'
The Doctor glanced at the control. 'Yes,' he said. 'We'll be
dropping you off.' He flicked a few more switches.
The TARDIS pitched over again.
Jason grabbed onto the console to keep himself upright. 'But
you'll lead the Daleks straight to Benny.'
The Doctor shook his head. 'They won't have time to lock on
before we dematerialise.'
The Dalek on the scanner was getting more agitated. 'Our
Em-pe-ror has sent-enced you to death for crimes ag-ainst the Dal-eks.'
'It's not the first time he's tried to prosecute me,' the Doctor
shouted back. 'He was a lousy lawyer then, and he's a lousy lawyer
now.'
The Dalek drifted forward, filling even more of the screen. 'This to
be your fi-nal des-tin-y, Doc-tor. Ex-ter-min-a-tion! To-tal
an-ni-hil-ation!'
The TARDIS rocked again. This time instruments on the console
began to spark and burst.
The Doctor looked over at Iphegenia. 'If only they knew who their
Emperor really was,' he chuckled.
'Talk about your final destiny,' she replied, beaming over at
Jason. He smiled wanly, pretending he knew what they were talking
about.
The Doctor was deep in concentration. 'We've almost reached Dellah.
Prepare for emergency rematerialisation.' He turned to Jason. 'This is
where we must say goodbye. Give my regards to Benny. And don't
disappoint me, Jason Kane.'
Jason shook his hand. 'I won't. Look, are you going to be OK? If you
need my help ... '
The Doctor smiled. 'Against those things? Nonsense.'
Iphegenia leant over and kissed Jason on the cheek. 'You look
after yourself.'
The Doctor's hand was hovering over the console. At a precisely
judged moment, he stabbed at a control and the TARDIS lurched to a halt.
Jason was already standing by the door as it began to slide open.
The ship had landed on concrete, it was raining out there,
but he could hear young people laughing. He picked up his briefcase.
Before he left, he turned to the Doctor. 'Thanks for giving me
second chance. Goodbye.'
'Goodbye,' the Doctor said.
Jason stepped out of the TARDIS and the doors closed behind
him. The familiar wheezing, groaning sound started up, and the police
box faded away.
Jason grinned.
November 23 1997.
It was a beautiful morning ...
Lance
Nick Caldwell
On 8 May 1997 08:12:37 GMT, ljpa...@aol.com (L J Parkin) wrote:
>THE DYING DAYS - THE FINAL CHAPTER
>by Lance Parkin
>
(snip)
That was quite the silliest thing I've ever read. Wonderful!
--
s32...@student.uq.edu.au|http://student.uq.edu.au/~s326954
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Timothy Ferguson
> >by Lance Parkin
> >
>
>
> That was quite the silliest thing I've ever read. Wonderful!
Damn! I thought I was the only one working on an Ian Richardson
Doctor...
Jestingone
I enjoyed this! I dunno why people you showed it to despised it so
much... granted, I think the book as published ended right where it should
have; this is silly fanwank, but as fanwank goes, it's great stuff! :)
One thing, though...
(MINOR SPOILER for those who didn't see the first message in this
thread... go to DejaNews and look it up if your server didn't get it...)
Your reference to the "41st incarnation" of the Doctor got me thinking on
an odd tangent:
Given that time and space are finite (per Einstein and Hawking, insofar as
I can understand them), and the Doctor's life is infinite, shouldn't the
Doctor eventually exist simultaneously at every point in time and space?
L J Parkin
Corey wrote
Thanks for the nice words.
>Given that time and space are finite (per Einstein and Hawking, insofar
as
>I can understand them), and the Doctor's life is infinite, shouldn't the
>Doctor eventually exist simultaneously at every point in time and space?
Well ... the Doctor Who book idea I'm working on now currently has the
working title 'The Infinity Doctors' ...
Lance
Jestingone
Lance Parkin wrote:
>Thanks for the nice words.
Oh, sure. I've got a few more lying about, if you want 'em. Uh... here.
"Loveliness." "Sunshine." "Coruscating." (I've got a whole bunch of
those lying about... there seems to be a surfeit of 'em; coulda sworn Dave
Stone used 'em all, but I guess not.)
:>Given that time and space are finite (per Einstein and Hawking, insofar
:>as I can understand them), and the Doctor's life is infinite, shouldn't
the
:>Doctor eventually exist simultaneously at every point in time and space?
:
:Well ... the Doctor Who book idea I'm working on now currently has the
:working title 'The Infinity Doctors' ...
Ha! Is this the one with Patience in it? Or should I just have patience
and wait and find out?
rej...@essex.ac.uk
In article <19970511062...@ladder01.news.aol.com>,
ljpa...@aol.com (L J Parkin) wrote:
> Well ... the Doctor Who book idea I'm working on now currently has the
> working title 'The Infinity Doctors' ...
After the ammount of things that were in Cold Fusion that we all thought
you were joking about (I belived you on most things except June
Whitfield) then we now have no choice but to belive everything you say.
I liked the alternative ending by the way, although wouldn't it have meant
Ian Richardson was playing two roles ?
Perhaps Kate could post somewhere the Wolsey dream sequence that's
mentioned in this month's DWM, I'd love to see that.
-------------
Richard Jones
-------------
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