//------------------------------//
// Time Charger Triumphant? 
// Story: A Storm of Chaos: A Doctor Whooves Adventure 
// by Shotoman 
//------------------------------//


Part 14

Time Charger Triumphant?


The blue door burst open as the Doctor stormed towards the TARDIS control console. "All right! We have our destination! Let's go and..." His eyes widened as the TARDIS sent a very emphatic psychic message his way. "What d'you mean 'no?' You're just as angry as I... Wait, what? I'm scaring..." His eyes widened as he spun to see his companion in the doorway, a definite note of concern in her eyes. The Doctor sighed and laughed humorlessly. "Yes, we do like Derpy, don't we?"

"What was that?" Derpy asked.

"Er, well, I..."

"What was that?" she repeated. "You just dove right into that pony's head without his permission. What was that?"

"Now, Derpy, all I did was look." By Rastallion, that sounded lame even to him, and the look on Derpy's face showed she thought the same. "Now look here, you. I don't know if you've noticed but we're actually on a bit of a timetable here. I haven't forgotten the original mission, have you?" Derpy continued glaring at him. "Well, what do you want from me? What do either of you want from me, eh? Okay, I admit it. This being the Master automatically makes things personal, and he's been pushing buttons to make it even moreso, and I'm angry and frustrated, and maybe, just maybe I'm letting slip the real me that I don't wish for any of my companions to see, alright?"

Derpy's expression turned shrewd. "The real you?"

"Yes, the real me. What you see is what you got. Fire, rage, and destruction, that's me. You don't get a title like the Oncoming Storm by being a nice guy. Haven't you noticed the trail of destruction that seems to follow me everywhere I go? I mean, you're not blind."

To the Doctor's surprise, Derpy just laughed. "Oh, now you're being stupid."

And now the Doctor was struggling to keep up with the sudden change in track. "Stupid? Me? How?"

"Well, you think anger and frustration and, and, darkness is the real you? Dumbest thing I've ever heard, and you can say some kinda dumb things. The real you is, well, weird. But it's the good kind of weird. The kind of weird that will take a dippy little pegasus mailpony who can barely even fly straight, who can't control weather to save her life, and who's always been looked at kind of funny, and you take her and show her all sorts of neat new things. Some scary things, too, but you're the kind of weird that knows how to get out of scary things and make them cool in the end. You're weird, and you're my best friend, and that's the real you."

The Doctor was struck well and truly speechless, a rarity in his long life.

Derpy, however, seemed to be on a roll. "So you got a little angry, got a little scary, and maybe messed up a little. You know what you do when you mess up? You shake the soot out of your coat, straighten your mane the best you can, and keep on chuggin'. Trust me on this, Doctor. If there's one thing I'm an expert at, it's messing up."

A small smile tugged at the corners of the Doctor's mouth. "And so much more," he half whispered.

"You say something, Doctor?" 

"Nothing. Nothing at all."

Derpy smiled that little I-know-you-better-than-that smile that she likely didn't even know she had. "So," she asked. "Are you done being all angry and stupid? Because, really, the act's getting old."

The Doctor chuckled softy "I can make no promises other than that I will try."

Derpy's smile became that wide, toothy, childlike smile that, if the Doctor was honest with himself, was what drew him to her back in the day. "Good enough."

The Doctor cast a playful glare at the crystal spire set in the center of the TARDIS console. "And you? Is it good enough for you?" His lips twitched slightly at the sense of smugness sent his way. "I swear, the old girl was much more cooperative before she started talking to you," he groused, but not without a humorous undertone. "Yes, I know you're still in the room. You are the room. Can't really avoid that, can we?"

"So did you at least get a location out from that pegaus?" Derpy asked.

"Oh yes. Fast Track was only a mid-level flunky at best, which is probably why the Master felt he could send him on that attack, but he was still high enough on the totem pole to be in on a few of the Master's plans. He's hiding out in an obscure--by Canterlot standards--place on the edge of town."

"So that's where we're going?"

"Not quite yet. I'm sure the Master himself is there, probably waiting for us, but there's no way he'd leave something as important as his hypnotic transceiver device where his flunkies can find it. We need to fly out somewhere there's fewer ponies, less interference, and see if the old girl can pick up on her sister better from there."

"Got any places in mind?"

The Doctor got that look in his eye. That look-and-be-amazed-at-my-brilliance look. "I'm thinking the future site of Ponyville."


~DrW~


Derpy cast a critical eye over the empty field they had landed in. "This is gonna be Ponyville?" she asked.

"Indeed it is," the Doctor responded with a smile. "In fact, we're just a couple of meters away from the very epicenter. About where the display case of my clock shop is, actually."

"So what are we doing here exactly?"

The Doctor cast a glance back at the blue barn behind them. "Well, I've found that certain historically important sites retain a distinct connection to the Time Vortex pretty well indefinitely, both forwards and backwards in time. Such connections allow time displaced beings like myself and the old girl to expand our abilities somewhat. I'm hoping the extra push will let her find what we're looking for."

Derpy continued to take in the sight, somewhat unnerved at how alien it seemed without any of the usual landmarks. There was a tree off in the distance that she recognized as the library. It was in the right spot and had the right shape, but without the welcoming windows and door it looked almost... spooky. "Is Ponyville really that important, Doctor?" she asked.

The Doctor laughed. "What are you talking about? Of course it is. It's home to the Bearers of the Elements of Harmony, who've already saved the world twice now, and that's before we even get into the Crystal Empire."

"The Crystal what now?"

The Doctor gave his companion a smug wink. "You'll see. I'd hate to spoil the surprise."

"I hate it when you do that," Derpy groused.

"Anyway," the Doctor continued, getting back to business. "Yes, Ponyville is a most central part of history. In fact, it's a bit of a rarity in the entire universe. It's the site of two fixed points in time, both of which occurred within a year of each other. That almost never happens. Honestly, it's one of the things that drew me there in the first place." Before he could continue that line of conversation, the Doctor paused and put a hoof to his ear. "What was that? The Badlands? Hmm, no that makes perfect sense. Come along, Derpy. We've got work to do."


~DrW~


The Master looked out over Canterlot from his office. Oh, it was hardly a million bits view by any means, but it was sill sufficient to appreciate what these primitive little ponies were capable of. He could almost, almost see what his old friend and enemy saw in this place. Not that it mattered much. It'd all be gone soon enough.

He smiled when he caught the sudden flash of blue out the corner of his eye. Sure enough, across the street was that ridiculous blue barn. He wasn't even trying to hide it this time, was he? The doors swung inward, and out stepped the Doctor, looking ever so important with his trench coat flapping dramatically in the wind. Personally, the Master missed the old hat and scarf ensemble, though he chalked that one up to nostalgia. The Master himself was responsible for the death and regeneration of that one, so he always felt a certain connection to it.

The Doctor stopped and looked up at the building before him, his eyes zeroing in on the very window the Master was standing at. For just the briefest of moments, it was as if the two had locked eyes, centuries of history passing between the two otherworldly earth ponies.

Then the moment passed, and the Doctor strode purposefully toward the building.

"Dawn," the Master called.

The pale blue unicorn was instantly at his side. "Sir."

"Be a dear and escort our guest to the conference room. It's been far too long since the two of us have met face to face."

Dawn Riser bowed her head before vanishing with a pop.

The Master took a moment to make sure he looked perfect. His black suit was free of wrinkles, and was fit to ensure his cutie mark--a fully repaired fob watch--was visible. Not a single strand of his blond hair was out of place. Frankly, he looked good. After all, the Doctor deserved nothing but the very best.