You Reap What You Sow (24&25 of 45)
Jul. 1st, 2008 09:40 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
amberfocus
Banner by bmshipper_arts
Chapter Twenty-four: Like A Lamb
The morning had been pretty ordinary. Donna, Rose and the Doctor had all eaten breakfast, and the Doctor had gone out for a bit to get something from the TARDIS. He’d left the sonic screwdriver behind for Donna and asked her to use it to tighten up Dare’s crib. She’d done that task and had spent the rest of the morning making sure of Rose’s comfort and reading a book to her. When the Doctor returned he sent her off to see what she could discover.
Donna was beginning to think coming to the communal lodge without the Doctor had been a mistake. She’d been able to sort out easily enough the women who were the village gossips, that sort was never difficult to find. But strangely enough they were silent in regards to her, until she was across the room chatting with some of the younger women. Then it felt like they were chatting about her behind their hands.
She was beginning to hate this place with a passion. The sooner Rose was well enough to move and they could get out of here, the better. She did find one woman willing to talk. Her son Saul had been buried the previous day. “Walk with me,” the woman had said.
And so it was that Donna found herself trudging through the snow on the outskirts of the village. “My name is Loral. I am sure you are curious as to what is going on in this village,” the woman began. “Outsiders are always curious, especially if they arrive during a hunt.”
“Well, I suppose I am,” said Donna. “The secrecy surrounding your ways is making it very hard not to think bad things about your culture. Especially when my friend was shot.”
“What do you think you know?” the woman asked her.
“Well, this hunt you have, it’s not about a beast at all, is it?”
“It makes it easier for the hunters to call them beasts, but no, they are not. The hunted are people,” Loral admitted. “And my son was the last beast they slaughtered.”
“I’m sorry," Donna said sympathetically. "Why do they do this?”
“It is how it has always been.”
“Haven’t the villagers tried to change things, tried to rise up and stop the leaders from allowing these hunts? There are plenty of young people here that could fight,” Donna said.
“It was tried once in my girlhood. They executed the family members of everyone involved in the uprising in front of their eyes and then they were forced to live knowing that they caused the deaths of their loved ones. After two years, they were forced back into the black coats and could be randomly chosen for the hunt,” Loral explained.
“So that’s why the Doctor was shot at? Because he was in a black parka?”
“Yes. Your friend Rose just got in the way. They thought the Doctor was Saul. No one else should have been in those woods. They’re the hunting grounds.”
“That’s horrible.”
“That is life here.”
“But not everyone is chosen? I mean how do people grow up to an age to be married if everyone can be hunted?” Donna asked.
“Well, there are two ways. If you survive without being randomly selected for ten years, then a man is allowed to take his first wife from the black coat girls. The same is true for a woman. She is allowed to take a husband from the black coat men. The second way to take a wife or be granted a husband is to survive the hunt,” Loral told her.
“How does one do that?”
“It isn’t easy. The hunt lasts up to seven days. The marked man or woman is given no food or water. The only thing they have to protect themselves with is a small dagger and of course proper clothing for the elements. They are given one hour’s head start to hide in the woods. Of course, with snow ever present, tracking them is easy. The few times someone has survived a hunt it is because of freshly fallen snow hiding their tracks.”
She sighed. “If a man or woman survives the full seven days without being caught they can come back to the village and take their place among those who can no longer be hunted.”
“I don’t understand why they do this. There has to be a better reason than this is how it’s always been done. That’s no reason to carry on with a savage and archaic and evil custom such as this,” Donna protested.
“I can’t tell you the reason, Donna. I’m sorry.”
“You can’t? Or you won’t?” Donna asked.
“It’s much the same thing. Here we are,” Loral said.
“Here we are?” repeated Donna looking about her in confusion. “Where?”
"I'm so sorry."
She felt a presence behind her too late to turn around. She opened her mouth to scream when a hand clamped firmly over her mouth. In irritation she bit down hard on the fingers and heard a curse. “Get her,” demanded a masculine voice as Donna took off running.
Donna dared a glance over her shoulder and saw that she was being pursued by three men. She dug down deep, looking for that bit of her that had been infected with the mind-over-matter enzyme two years ago on Deneb 8. She had just started the flow that would trigger extra strength and stamina when she was brought down by the fastest of her pursuers.
It took all three of them to hold her down as she fought against them. Thirty seconds more and they’d never have caught her at all. She cried out as her arms were wrenched painfully behind her and tied tightly. They trussed her feet similarly and the biggest man threw her over his shoulder.
As they went past Loral, Donna hissed, “You set me up, you stupid, selfish cow.”
“I’m sorry,” Loral said, “But they promised immunity for the rest of my children if I led you away from the village and the medic’s house.”
“And what’s to become of me?” Donna asked.
Loral didn’t answer, but the man carrying her did. “You are a beast now. You will be hunted.”
“But I’m married! You can’t do this!”
“We can do what we want. And a marriage that has produced no children in one year is not considered valid. That female is returned to the ranks of the unwed.”
“I’m not a member of this village!”
“You are compatible. You have been chosen. You will be hunted.”
“The Doctor will kill you for this,” Donna protested.
“I very much doubt it. He has his first wife still, his beloved Rose. He has his child and another on the way. He has no need of you,” the man told her.
“Yes, he does have need of me. I’m important to him!” Donna hollered.
“I very much doubt he will cause an incident. It will be enough that we will quietly let him leave with the rest of his family.”
“Oh, do you really think that? Then you’re naïve. He will wipe your village off the face of the planet,” Donna swore.
“Your threats are empty. He is a man of logic and reason,” the man told her.
“He is the Oncoming Storm, the Destroyer of Worlds, the Bringer of Darkness. He can bring your village to its knees!” Donna spat.
“What? One man?” The big man’s tone was scoffing.
“If it's the right man. I’ve seen what he can do. You would do well to fear him!”
“Shut it, woman or I’ll gag your mouth.” To Donna’s satisfaction she could hear that a bit of a tremble had come into the man’s voice as he doubted what he was doing. Donna drew in breath to scream.
As if he’d been aware of what she was going to do, the man pulled her off his shoulders and dropped her onto the ground, knocking the wind out of her. She’d heard a crack and thought that she might quite possibly have broken a bone in her arm when she’d landed on them. She took note of what hurt and what didn’t. She didn’t seem to have any broken ribs, but she would definitely be bruised tomorrow.
“No screaming!” the man said and pulled a gag from his pocket and tied it around her mouth before she could get her breath back. Then he picked her up and tossed her back over his shoulder.
The next time he put her down it was on a dank cot in a windowless room. He untied her after making sure her unbroken arm was chained to the wall above the cot. “Someone will be in with food and water. The chain will reach to the toilet. The hunt begins in the morning at dawn. If you avoid the hunters for seven days you will regain your freedom. If not, you will be contributing to the longevity of this village. You should be honored to do so.”
He removed the gag and she spat on him. He wiped it away and smiled at her before viciously backhanding her face. “I hope it is my arrow that pierces your heart.”
He left the room, slamming the door shut. She could hear the metal moving as the door was locked. She removed the pillow case from the pillow and used her teeth to tear it so she could fashion a sling for her throbbing arm. Tying the knot just about made her pass out from the pain, but she soon had it in place and the elevation did help to lessen the throbbing.
“So, I’m separated from the Doctor and Rose, alien boy has no idea where I am, the villagers want to hunt me tomorrow and I’ve got seven days to either outrun or outsmart them.” She pursed her mouth, twisting her lips as she thought. “And I’m in a dungeon with no way out but that door with its big heavy lock.” She lay down on the bed and stared up at the ceiling. “Doctor, you are so going to owe me after this one.”
Chapter Twenty-five: Erinnah's Choice
“Hasn’t Donna been gone for an awfully long time?” asked Rose who was sitting up in bed for the first time since she had been shot.
“Oh, it’s only been a couple of hours. I shouldn’t worry too much. You know how she gets when she starts talking,” the Doctor said.
“A bit like a certain Time Lord I know.”
“Are you saying I talk a lot?” the Doctor asked.
“Does the phrase I’m talking and I can’t shut up mean anything to you?” Rose teased.
“Rose Tyler, I--.” The door to their suite was flung open. Erinnah stood there panting; her face red and looking scared.
“Erinnah? What’s wrong?” the Doctor asked her.
“They’ve taken Donna!” she panted out between gasps. It was obvious she’d run from a long way away.
“Who’s taken Donna?” Rose asked sharply.
“The hunters. They’ve taken Donna for the next hunt. I overheard my parents talking. They traded her for immunity for me,” Erinnah told him fearfully. "And they used Loral to bait the trap so her children would have immunity, too.
“What? Why? How?” the Doctor demanded.
“She’s genetically compatible, her genome resembles mine closely. All of the blood work matches up,” Erinnah said miserably.
“Blood work? How did they get Donna’s blood?” Rose asked.
“The cup she cut her hand on!” exclaimed the Doctor.
“They did it on purpose, gave her a broken cup so they could get a blood sample. And when they found out she was as good a match as me, they offered the Chieftain Donna in trade.”
“In trade for what?”
“For the hunt. To be hunted!” Erinnah was frustrated. “Don’t you understand?”
“Explain it to me,” the Doctor said, his voice deadly calm.
“They take those of us who are young, of age, and unwed and we are put into a pool. A name is drawn randomly, at least it’s supposed to be randomly but I don’t think it really is, I've felt targeted for a long time and so did my friend Saul who was killed in the last hunt. When you’re name comes up you become the next beast for hunting,” Erinnah said.
The Doctor’s eyes closed. Even though he had figured out part of this on his own, the confirmation made him sick to his stomach. He opened his eyes and fixed his gaze on the girl. “Why? Why does your village have such a sick and twisted custom?”
“It keeps the old ones alive longer,” she said, nervously glancing over her shoulder. The Chieftain and his family and his council. Knowledge and longevity are revered amongst my people,” Erinnah said.
“How do they live longer by murdering their young?”
“That isn’t what the hunt is about. The hunt allows the victim to have a fighting chance. But the deck is stacked heavily against him or her. They must survive in the hunting grounds for seven days and nights with no food or water to be granted immunity. Otherwise, they are shot and taken…”
“Taken? Taken for what?” Erinnah looked down, refusing to meet his eyes. “How can they take Donna? She’s wed.”
“My father overheard us talking. When he found out that Donna had not produced any children and had been your wife for over a year, well, in our culture that nulls a marriage and puts the woman back in the pool of the unwed.”
“But we aren’t part of your village or part of your culture,” said Rose. “We don’t abide by your customs. They cannot be forced on us.”
“They’ve done it before, with other strangers if they’ve served the need.”
“The need for what?” She did not answer. “The need for what? Answer me, Erinnah!” the Doctor roared.
“I can’t! Don’t you understand? I can’t! They’ll kill me if I tell their secrets. It’s law,” Erinnah wailed.
“I promise you, Erinnah, that I will protect you. I will take you out of here, out of this place to somewhere safe, where you will never have to fear for your life again. But I can only do that if you tell me the truth,” he told her.
But Erinnah was too terrified, the keeping of custom so ingrained in her mind, the punishment of death too frightening for her to spill the last secret. “I can’t,” she said brokenly.
“Can you at least tell me where they’re keeping Donna?” he asked.
“In the prison. It’s at the north end of the village just before the woods, the hunting grounds. It’s the stone building. The only one in the village,” she said wringing her hands and looking down. “I’m sorry,” she said. “If I had known what my parents were planning I would have tried to stop it. This should not happen to outsiders. It should only happen to us.”
“It shouldn’t happen to anyone,” the Doctor told her. “Erinnah, I need you to do something.”
“If I can,” she said.
“I want you to stay here with Rose and the baby and keep the door locked. I’m going to go and move the TARDIS here. I’ll deadlock seal the doors,” he said reaching into his inside pocket. His hand came out empty. Quickly he searched through his remaining pockets.
“Rose, have you seen my sonic screwdriver?” he asked with a worried frown.
“You leant it to Donna to fix the crib this morning,” Rose said.
The Doctor went over by the crib and looked around it and inside it for the screwdriver. “She must still have it on her. Without it I can’t seal the doors.” He blew out a deep breath. “All right, when I leave I want you to barricade the door with some of the furniture. I don’t want anyone getting in to hurt you. Don’t open the door for anyone.” He leaned down and kissed Rose and Dare. “I’ll be back as quick as I can.” The Doctor left and Erinnah set about blocking the door.
The Doctor sprinted the 3 klicks to the TARDIS in record time. Thank goodness for his superior Time Lord physiology. He didn’t take time to catch his breath, instead quickly entering in the calculations to move the TARDIS to the inside of his suite at Torshawn’s house.
Erinnah stared at the blue box that had materialized in front of her in shock. When the Doctor came out of it, scooped up Dare and handed him to Rose and got behind Rose’s cot and pushed it towards the ship, Erinnah asked him what he was doing.
“Getting my family to safety,” he said.
“But that bed won’t fit in there. There’s not enough room,” she protested.
“You’d be surprised at what can fit in there,” the Doctor said. She watched in awe as he pushed the bed into the box, expecting to hear it clunk against the back when it was halfway in. When it didn’t she followed the Doctor inside. Her eyes were enormous.
To her credit she did not comment that it was bigger on the inside. She simply said, “How does this work, then?”
The Doctor did not have time for a big explanation. “It’s just a question of having the right math.” She nodded as if she understood. She followed behind him as he pushed Rose into the infirmary and put her under a monitoring device. Quickly he drew a blood sample and set it in the centrifuge to spin.
After a few minutes he was able to test the blood. “Rose, I’m going to have to give you an anti-toxin.”
“What?” she asked startled. “What for?”
“It's what I suspected. You’ve been poisoned,” he said.
“What?!” she shrieked. “What about Cassi? Is the baby okay?” Her free hand rested on her stomach.
“I don’t know.” He reached for her hand and inserted a needle, setting up an IV line and injecting the anti-toxin into it. Then he found the holographic imager and scanned Rose’s belly with it. He was reassured by the image of the little baby girl, the heart thumping rapidly away.
“Well, her heart rate is good, but the only way to know for sure is to do a test of the amniotic fluid. And I’m not going to lie to you, Rose, that’s always risky. There’s a chance it can cause a miscarriage,” the Doctor explained.
“If she’s poisoned and we find out, can we treat her?” Rose asked.
“Yes. I can inject an anti-toxin into the umbilical cord.”
“Then do it,” Rose said.
It was a long process but finally the Doctor had finished it. He tested the fluid and with relief he turned to Rose. “Cassi’s fine. She’s fine, Rose.” And he knelt beside his wife, embracing her as best he could without aggravating the injury.
“I’ve got to go and take care of things, Rose,” he said, when he pulled away from his wife.
“I know,” she whispered. “Be careful.” He nodded at her. Then he took Erinnah by the arm and pulled her out into the console room.
“You need to make a choice, Erinnah and you need to make it right now. Whatever is going on in this village, whatever has gone so wrong, I can stop it. I can put an end to it here and now. But I can’t do it without all the information. And you are the only person who can give me that information.” His voice was angry and his eyes showed his fury.
“You can choose to join me and make a stand or you can go back to the misery that is your life of fear. I will do everything in my power to protect you, but you have to be willing to fight for it. What’s it going to be?” the Doctor asked.
Erinnah stared into his eyes and decided that she could trust this man with her life, that perhaps she could trust this man with all the lives of the unwed. She made her decision, straightened her back and lifted her chin. She met his gaze firmly with her own. Decision made, she opened her mouth. “I’ll tell you what you need to know.”
Ch. 26&27: http://amberfocus.livejournal.com/92956.html
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2008-07-02 05:22 am (UTC)I wanted to know what's done to help the elders live longer, but now I don't. I think it's going to be something really really sick.
poor Donna being all tied up. Immunity for ones children for possibly taking the life of another...such savages.
no subject
Date: 2008-07-03 04:09 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-07-05 12:15 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-07-13 03:52 am (UTC)