//------------------------------//
// Atlantis 
// Story: The Doctor Whooves Chronicles Episode 4: Under the Sea 
// by Doctor Perseus 
//------------------------------//


Chapter 1: Atlantis


Time Vortex

The Doctor leaned back against the edge of the console as he set the TARDIS to float silently and calmly within the walls of the Time Vortex. "So, is that everything?" Derpy asked as she approached him.
"Yes, I believe so," the Doctor replied. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a notepad. "Let's see. Have Isaac Longhair give your past self the warning and paint the picture."
"Check!"
"Leave the history book and note in Carrot Top's house."
"Check!"
"Meet Carrot Top and take her for a quick trip in the TARDIS."
"Check!"
"By George, I think we're done!"
Derpy clapped her hooves and skipped happily around the TARDIS. "So where should we go for our first intentional trip, Doctor?" she asked as she stopped skipping and stared straight into the Doctor's eyes.
"Wherever you like, Ms. Hooves," the Doctor replied as he stepped away from the console.
A look of awe and wonder appeared on Derpy's face and she began skipping around the console again. The Doctor took amusement at the pegasus's excitement. Then, suddenly, she came to a stop. "I...I don't know where to go."
"Come on. There must be some place where you'd like to go."
"There's lots of places I want to go, Doctor. I just can't think of any of them."
The Doctor sighed deeply before smiling at the pegasus. "Well, why don't we just take a shot in the dark and see where the TARDIS takes us?"
"Ooh! Sounds exciting! Let's do that!"
"Allons-y!" The Doctor ran over to the console, pressed a series of buttons, and pulled down two levers. He and Derpy held on as the TARDIS proceeded to take them to their mystery destination.

Gaia, 1215 C.E.

Derpy could feel her heart racing as the TARDIS soon came to a stop. "So where are we?" she asked with an excited tone.
"Let's see," said the Doctor as he looked at one of the screens in the main console. "We're still on your planet. The year is 1215 C.E. And...it appears that we're underwater."
"Underwater? Are we at the bottom of the ocean?"
"Yes. I believe we are." Derpy gasped. "Oh! Don't worry! We're not sitting out on the ocean floor or anything like that. We're in an underwater structure of sorts."
Derpy gave a sigh of relief. "Thank Celestia. I was worried for a moment there, Doctor."
"Well, are you ready to start exploring?" The Doctor extended one of his forelegs and Derpy happily took it. They walked towards the TARDIS doors, the Doctor opened them, and they proceeded to step through.
Outside the TARDIS was a lounging area. Green sofas and chairs were scattered throughout the room. The walls, floor, and ceiling of the room were bright blue in color and one of the walls was constructed from thick, transparent glass. Derpy stared in awe as the vast expansion of the ocean seemed to expand out before her.
"It's like being on the Moon...except underwater," Derpy exclaimed with glee. "So Equestria's going to have an underwater base in 1215?"
The Doctor looked around the room and shook his head. "I'm not so sure of that, Derpy," he stated.
"Why is that?"
"Something about this room, something about this entire place we're in, tells me that ponies didn't build this." The Doctor grabbed one of the pillows on the sofa, smelled it, gave it a quick lick, and tossed it on the floor. He then took in a few breaths and shook a bit. "No. I don't believe your kind built this place, Derpy."
"Well, if ponies didn't build this place, then what did?"
Suddenly, a nearby door opened. Derpy and the Doctor looked to see a tall, slender, fishlike, serpentine creature with green, scaly skin and blue eyes enter. He was dressed in pieces of green and blue armor and a long, blue loincloth hung from his waste. He looked at the Derpy and the Doctor with a tilted head. "I thought the Equestrians weren't supposed to arrive for another hour," said the creature. Before the two ponies could say anything, the creature's attention was drawn towards the TARDIS. His eyes widened in disbelief and his jaw dropped like a brick. "I can't believe it. It's here. It heard me."
Derpy and the Doctor exchanged confused expressions as the creature fell to his knees. "Is something the matter?" the Doctor asked.
"No. Everything is great! The blue box has come!"
"Are you talking about the TARDIS?" Derpy asked suddenly.
"The what?" asked the creature.
"The TARDIS." Derpy pointed back at the TARDIS. The creature now appeared to be just as confused as Derpy and the Doctor. The Doctor cleared his throat and approached the creature.
"Well, I'm the Doctor, that's Derpy, and that's my TARDIS," he said.
"Are you saying that the blue box belongs to you?!" the creature asked.
"Yes. The blue box belongs to me. My companion and I used it to come here."
The creature slowly stood up and examined the Doctor. "So...you must be the healer. The one who resides within the box. The one who has seen the birth of time and the death of it."
"I don't really consider myself a healer. I'm just the Doctor."
"Is it true that the inside goes on for eternity?"
The Doctor raised an eyebrow and took a step towards the creature. "How do you know about my TARDIS?"
"The blue box? It's an ancient legend of our civilization that's been passed down for generations."
"And what civilization is this?"
"Atlantis."
A huge grin appeared on the Doctor's face just before he gave out a long, hearty laugh. "By the stars of Kasterborous! There's an Atlantis in this universe too? This world just keeps on surprising me," the Doctor exclaimed.
"That's an odd name. Atlantis," said Derpy.
"It's brilliant!"
"I don't really see how-"
"I'd be very interested in seeing the rest of this place," the Doctor said to the Atlantean.
"Of course!" the Atlantean stated as he gave a quick bow to the Doctor. "Any warrior of the blue box is welcome in Atlantis. But you must first come and speak with the King."
"The King? Why?" Derpy asked.
"It's about the reason why I called you here."
"I don't think you called us here. We just sort of ended up here at random."
The Doctor patted Derpy on the shoulder and gave her a sympathetic smile. "Come on, Ms. Hooves. Don't ruin the Atlantean's spirit," he said. "So, tell us, what's the reason you have for calling upon the blue box?"
"Atlantis is in trouble, sir," replied the Atlantean.
"You don't have to call me sir. The Doctor will do just fine."
"Okay...Doctor."
"So what kind of trouble is Atlantis in?"
"The King will be able to fill you in on all of the details."
"Then take us to him."
"Yes sir...er...Doctor!"
"Before we continue, I don't believe you told us your name."
"Dolarez."
"Well, it's a pleasure to meet you, Dolarez." The Atlantean seemed to shiver with excitement as he turned around to lead Derpy and the Doctor out of the room.
"So what's so important about Atlantis?" Derpy whispered to the Doctor as they exited the room.
"Back in my reality, it was an advanced civilization that met with a terrible fate," the Doctor whispered back. "I'm pleased to see that this one is better off than the one back in my reality."
"From the sound of things, it has a few problems of its own."
"Yes. Let's try our best to solve these problems. There are at least three versions of Atlantis back in my universe and all of them met horrible fates. I'd like to see at least one version of Atlantis have a happy ending."