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


Chapter 6: The Boiling Point


Gaia, 1215 C.E.

Derpy turned to look as the Prince slowly awoke from his period of unconsciousness. His face looked groggy and he made it obvious through a series of groans and yawns that he wasn't really comfortable in his current position. "Shut up, you," ordered Avarus with a bored tone. Derpy could tell that the traitor was anxiously counting down the minutes to the moment where he'd be allowed to bring that knife down on her and the Prince. The Prince tried to summon some magic with his horn but the strange device strapped around his horn prevented him from doing so.
"An anti-magic lock. Of course," said the Prince in a surprisingly unimpressed tone.
"You don't seem that surprised about it," said Derpy awkwardly.
"Of course not. The best thing to use against magically skilled unicorns is an anti-magic lock. These guys are afraid that I'll hurt them even more if my magic were free."
"Being afraid has nothing to do with it," Avarus replied with a grin. "We just don't want you two messing up our plans."
"Let me guess, you're holding us hostage so King Lycus will give the control of Atlantis over to you guys."
"How did you know that?!" Derpy asked. "You were unconscious!"
"I'm a Prince. I was taught all of the possible motivations for holding one hostage as well as the processes to go about obtaining a hostage. Shining Armor I made sure to add this to royal education following the changeling deception of 1002."
"I bore of this," stated Avarus as he stood up and looked at the clock. Derpy and the Prince only had twenty-five minutes left. "Might as well go and get a quick bite to eat." Derpy watched as Avarus trudged off into the darkness.
"Isn't that the same soldier that attacked you earlier?" the Prince asked as he turned to Derpy.
"Yeah...uh...you seem very calm about this," Derpy replied.
"The Doctor's here, right? There's no need to worry."
"So you have faith in him like me?"
"Anypony with common sense should either have faith in or fear the Doctor. Trust me, I've learned enough about the Doctor to know that he always comes through in the end."
"You wanted to talk to him earlier about something. Do you mind me asking what it was?"
"What? Oh! I remember! Yeah. I just really wanted to talk to him. It's not everyday that you get to meet somepony that you read about in history books." The Prince suddenly eyed Derpy a bit more closely. "You're...Derpy Hooves, right?"
"Yeah! Have you read about me too?"
"Of course I have! I know about everypony who's traveled with the Doctor! You. Carrot Top. Twi...oh...I guess that hasn't happened yet if you're still traveling with him."
"What does that mean?"
"Uh...nothing." Derpy proceeded to glare at the Prince. "I can't tell you anything about your future. In the words of somepony whose name I shall not mention, spoilers!"
"Do you happen to know anything about that strained glass picture down in the glass room?"
"What picture?"
"I saw you eyeing it while the Doctor and I were looking at it. You know, the one with me and the Doctor and that green monster coming out of a mirror."
The Prince's eyes grew wide before he slouched over a bit. "I...maybe...no."
"You know something, don't you?"
"Of course I know something! From your perspective, I'm from the future! I've read some of the greatest works detailing the appearances and adventures of the Doctor and his companions! I...I can't tell you about any of them!"
"Why not?!"
"Because I don't want to take the risk of damaging time. Look, I won't say much, but I once read a journal left over by my ancestor Princess Cadance. In it, she wrote about a particular event involving the Doctor, her, Shining Armor I, and a collection of the Doctor's greatest allies and enemies. This event...showed just how fragile the fabric of time and space is. I'm guessing that this event has yet to happen to you and the Doctor yet. Trust me, I would tell you about what's to come in your future...but I think it's best for time to just play itself out."
Derpy was silent for a moment as she put everything together. "All right, I understand." The Prince began biting his lip and his face contorted into an awkward expression. "You alright?"
"I can't tell you much...but I guess I can give you a word of advice about the event that you saw in that stained glass picture." The Prince locked eyes with Derpy. "You've already met the Jabberwocky, right?"
"Yeah."
"And you know that you're going to run into him again, right?"
"Yeah, thanks to some wibbly wobbly timey wimey stuffs."
"Right. Here's a few words of advice: don't expect to run into the Jabberwocky just one more time, Derpy Hooves. The two of you are connected in more ways that you realize."
Derpy gulped as the Prince fell silent. "Thanks for the advice...though I'm not sure if that makes me feel any better."

The Doctor worked the controls of the TARDIS carefully as he transported the blue box deep into the bowels of Lea's army's stronghold. The Doctor had to admit to himself that he had never seen the interior of the TARDIS this crowded before. Many courageous Atlantean soldiers along with Dolarez and King Lycus had crowded themselves into the TARDIS with weapons at the ready. The Doctor would have preferred a stealthier rescue of Derpy and the Prince followed by an even more stealthy takedown of Lea and his followers but the situation provided no options for this so a battle was pretty much inevitable.
"And...here we go!" said the Doctor as he flawlessly parked the TARDIS about three floors beneath the Hotel of the East. Just to be safe, the Doctor took a quick look outside via the console monitors. He was relieved to see that the TARDIS had arrived in a segment of Lea's underground stronghold that appeared to be mostly vacant: a large room filled with mostly old crates and junk. "It's safe to proceed, your majesty."
"Thank you, Doctor," Lycus replied. "Men! Carefully make your way outside! Be prepared for any traps, ambushes, or anything else Lea's men have set up!" The men grunted in reply as they made their way through the TARDIS doors.
The Doctor, Dolarez, and King Lycus were the first to exit the blue box. The Doctor quickly locked the TARDIS doors before turning his attention forward. "Will we be launching a head-on attack, your majesty?" Dolarez asked Lycus.
"Normally, I would do so; but we are not just dealing with an army. We are dealing with a hostage situation, soldier," Lycus replied.
"Might I suggest that a small team head in first to rescue the hostages before the battle commences?" the Doctor suggested.
"Yes, Doctor, that would be a wise approach."
"I volunteer myself and Dolarez to take care of this task." The Doctor turned towards the Atlantean soldier and Dolarez gave a nod and bow of agreement.
"Excellent," said Lycus. Lycus handed the Doctor a small communication device that could easily be attached to the ear. "Take this and call us when the hostages are safe. I will send my men in afterwards to deal with Lea and his followers."
"Sounds like a plan!" the Doctor replied with a smile as he attached the communication device to his ear. "Come on, Dolarez."
"Right!" said Dolarez. The Doctor and Dolarez ran as fast as they could towards the pair of doors before them. 
Hang on Derpy, thought the Doctor. I'm coming.
An ordinary hallway with metallic walls and white lights was situated on the other side of the doors. The Doctor and Dolarez quickly made their way down the hallway. The Doctor looked at a nearby clock. Twenty minutes were left. He had twenty minutes to find Derpy and Shining Armor VI before they were executed. "Right...no pressure," the Doctor said under his breath. Everything was quiet but this only made the Doctor more nervous. It was safe to assume that Lea had a moderately large number of followers. So where were they?
"Any ideas of where to start looking, Doctor?" asked Dolarez as he kept his spear at the ready.
"We don't have enough time to scope out this entire place from top to bottom. A surveillance room or map would be useful." They passed through another pair of doors and entered a massive room full of rows of beds, tables, and other pieces of furniture. "I believe we're in the sleeping quarters." Suddenly, the sound of talking emanated from a little ways away. The Doctor and Dolarez quickly ducked behind a stack of foot locker boxes.
"So, is it true? Are we finally going to win this?" asked a male voice.
"I think so. We have the Prince and a warrior of the blue box held captive. Unless Lycus wants them to be cut up, he'll hand Atlantis over to us within the next five minutes," replied a second male voice.
"Just in case Lycus doesn't call in, I want to see the show. Where are they being held again?"
"Avarus is keeping a watch on them two floors down in the holding room."
The Doctor and Dolarez watched as the two other Atlanteans disappeared through the door. "Thank you, Lady Luck," the Doctor said under his voice as he and Dolarez stood up. They quietly returned to the hallway and began searching for a way down. "We best look for a stairwell. Don't want to risk drawing attention with an elevator."
"Right!" replied Dolarez. The Doctor could feel his hearts racing as he and Dolarez scoped out the hallway. The seconds were passing by much quicker than how the Doctor would have preferred. The Doctor checked another clock as he and Dolarez passed by a laundry room. Fifteen minutes left. They turned around another corner and the Doctor was ecstatic when he read the word on a nearby door: Stairwell. "There we are!"
"Thank God. Now let's get downstairs quickly!" The Doctor and Dolarez nearly flew through the door and down the two flights of stairs. The Doctor was still a bit unnerved by the lack of inhabitants. Where was everybody? The Doctor and Dolarez hastily made their way through the door that opened to the floor they wanted. The hallways of this floor were a bit different from those of the floor they had previously been on. The hallways here were dark green and illuminated with dim, white lights. "Strange choice of decorations."
"I don't really like it here," said Dolarez.
"Me neither so let's find Derpy and the Prince and finish this already!" the Doctor replied. Once again, the Doctor and Dolarez continued the process of scoping out the hallway for the door they wanted. If it were even possible, this floor was even quieter than the floor above it. The Doctor didn't know whether to feel happy about this or slightly concerned. They turned around another corner but quickly jumped back as they saw the two Atlanteans from earlier walking in their direction.
"Here it is," said the first Atlantean as he opened one of the hallway's sliding doors. The two Atlanteans passed through the threshold and the Doctor and Dolarez didn't waste any time in following them.
The hallway beyond the door was much smaller than the previous one. It had gray walls and smelled of rust and stone. The Doctor almost felt like he had been thrown back to a dungeon in the dark ages. Dim lights hung from the ceiling and a collection of pictures hung from the walls. Upon further inspection, the Doctor and Dolarez realized that the pictures were those of previous prisoners (all of which were expired by this point). The two intruders remained quiet as they followed the two oblivious Atlanteans down the hallway. Eventually, the hallway opened up into a large, dark room with hardly any light in it. The Doctor and Dolarez stayed back to inspect the scene. A blue Atlantean dressed in a soldier's uniform was sitting in a chair and was watching two figures in the dark. Through the darkness, the Doctor managed to make out a pair of inverted, yellow eyes. "Derpy!" the Doctor said under his breath.
Dolarez, meanwhile, was scowling at the Atlantean in the chair. "Avarus," he hissed as he shook his head with disappointment.
The Doctor's eyes drifted over to a nearby clock. "Come on. We only have ten minutes left." Dolarez nodded. The Doctor and his companion carefully made their way into the room. The two Atlanteans they had been following were still oblivious to their presence and were basically just watching and waiting to see if Lea was going to send in the order to have Derpy and the Prince killed. Avarus also had his back to them and was busy just spinning a knife around in one of his webbed hands. The Doctor turned to Dolarez and hissed, "NOW!"
Dolarez lunged forward and knocked the two Atlanteans over the head with his spear. They both groaned and slumped over onto the floor. However, this quickly gained Avarus's attention. "What the...DOLAREZ?!" snapped the guard as he lunged forward with his knife. As Dolarez and Avarus struggled, the Doctor snuck by and untied the ropes binding Derpy's legs.
"Doctor!" exclaimed Derpy.
"Did you miss me?" the Doctor asked with a smile as he moved over to free the Prince.
"She and I never doubted you," said the Prince as he stood up.
"Oh no you don't!" snapped Avarus as he kicked Dolarez in the gut and lunged for the Doctor. The Doctor, acting upon instinct, turned around and kicked the oncoming Avarus with his hind legs. Avarus stumbled around a bit as he tried to get a hold of himself. Dolarez lunged forward to knock Avarus out but the blue Atlantean was quick to react. He grabbed Dolarez's spear and tried to rip it from his arms. "You idiot! You're a disgrace to Atlantis!" Dolarez didn't reply for he simply continued to fight against his ex-comrade.
"Let's pile on him!" Derpy said suddenly as she levitated herself a bit into the air with her wings before flying at Avarus. The Prince followed suit by charging forward with his horn aimed at Avarus's back. Avarus tried to react but had no time to move has he was simultaneously smashed on the head with four pegasus hooves, stabbed in the back with a unicorn horn, and jabbed in the front with the handle of a spear. The Prince backed away with a few bits of Avarus's blood dripping from his horn. The Doctor noticed that the metal contraption that had been attached to the Prince's horn was now broken and had fallen to the floor. Avarus stumbled around a bit longer before Dolarez brought the head of his spear down one last time, which resulted in Avarus finally blacking out.
"You picked the wrong side, Avarus," Dolarez sighed. The Doctor lowered his head but then yelped as Derpy lunged forward and gripped him in a big hug.
"I knew you'd come, Doctor! I just knew you would!" Derpy cheered. She then stepped back and looked sadly at the Doctor. "I...I'm sorry for getting captured. I should have been more careful." The Doctor smiled before stepping towards Derpy and patting her shoulder.
"Don't feel bad. Everyone, everything, and everypony that's traveled with me has been captured at least once. You've seen the TARDIS get captured and, hell, even I've been captured. That sort of thing happens when you travel around through all of time and space," the Doctor replied. Derpy gave the Doctor a small smile.
"Doctor, we need to alert the King," Dolarez said suddenly.
"Oh yes! Thank you, Dolarez!" The Doctor tapped the communication device on his ear. "King Lycus?"
"Doctor! Have you rescued the Prince and your companion?" asked the voice of King Lycus.
"Yes. They are safe. You and your soldiers are free to continue."
"Thank you, Doctor. Men! Move out!"
The Doctor ended the connection and turned towards Derpy, the Prince, and Dolarez. "We best get back to the TARDIS. This is about to get ugly."

Everything was silent until Derpy, the Doctor, the Prince, and Dolarez entered the stairwell. Battle cries and surprised screams echoed from upstairs. "I guess that's where everybody was," said Dolarez.
"It makes sense," the Doctor stated. "They were waiting upstairs to prepare to march their way towards the castle and take the throne. Lea and his men, of course, never expected us to attack them from below."
"Let's hurry and get back to the TARDIS! It sounds like the battle's getting closer!"
"Right!"
"But, what about the King and his soldiers?" Derpy asked. An explosion of fire erupted above them and Derpy watched as several burning followers of Lea fell between the flights of stairs and down towards the bottom far below.
"I think they've got things handled from here," said the Prince.
"Right. Upstairs, now!" the Doctor ordered. Derpy flapped her wings and flew upwards. She reached the designated door a few seconds before the Doctor, the Prince, and Dolarez did. The group passed through the door to find themselves in a hallway full of fighting soldiers.
"DUCK!" cried Dolarez as he pulled Derpy down towards the ground. A blast from an Atlantean gun flew over Derpy's head and smashed into the wall. The attacking Atlantean aimed the gun at Dolarez. The Doctor pulled out his sonic screwdriver and pointed it at the gun, which exploded in a cloud of sparks and smoke a second later. Dolarez rushed towards the dazed attacker and knocked him out with his spear.
Derpy's heart was pounding as she looked around at the surrounding battle. "Which way?" she asked. A few more of Lea's followers teleported into the hallway thanks to some teleportation devices on their wrists.
"This way!" replied the Doctor as he grabbed Derpy's hoof and pulled her down the hallway.
It certainly wasn't easy navigating through the fighting soldiers. Spears, gun blasts, knives, swords, and other various weapons collided with each other and flew through the air around Derpy and her group. Despite the dangerous odds, Derpy and her group were able to fend for themselves quite nicely. An oncoming attacker was either met with a smack from Dolarez's spear, a weapon malfunction caused by the Doctor's sonic screwdriver, a blast of magic from the Prince, or a punch in the gut from Derpy's hind legs.
After several minutes of fighting, dodging, and, of course, running, they finally managed to reach the door that led into the room the TARDIS was in. Upon entering the room, they were surprised to find that nobody was inside. "Quickly! You two, inside!" the Doctor ordered as he pointed at Derpy and the Prince.
"What about you two?" Derpy asked.
"We've got to help the King to the best of our abilities," Dolarez replied.
"Why do you have to? You said that Lycus and his men have this under control," said the Prince.
"Yes, why?" asked a deep voice from within the room. Derpy's heart jumped as she heard the voice. She knew this voice. She had heard it not too long ago. Derpy turned around to see a green Atlantean in gold and silver armor standing next to the TARDIS.
"Lea!" gasped Derpy and the Prince. Lea gave a dark grin as he took a few steps towards them. The Doctor stepped forward. Derpy could see his grip on his sonic screwdriver tighten.
"So you're Lea," said the Doctor.
"Correct. I'm guessing that you're the Doctor," Lea replied.
"That is correct."
Lea chuckled as he stretched his arms and let out a bored yawn. "I guess I'll admit it: you surprised me, Doctor. Never did I imagine that someone would be able to deduce where my hideout was and be able to get in unseen."
"This is why you should never underestimate your enemies."
"Yes. I suppose I did. Lycus and his men are proving to be much more...difficult to deal with than I had originally expected. I do not doubt that my army will be defeated within the next hour or so."
Derpy knew that she should feel happy. The Doctor had managed to defeat Lea and trap him in a corner. So why was it that she felt uneasy? "You seem to be fine with that," Derpy stated suddenly.
"Oh, don't let my appearance fool you. I am very sad that my army has lost...but I can still save Atlantis." Lea reached into one of his pockets and pulled out a thin, cylindrical device with a red button at the top. As Lea raised his hand with the device up a bit, Derpy took a closer look at it as well as quickly noticed the teleportation device on his other wrist.
"Is that what I think it is?" Dolarez asked with a gulp. Lea smiled darkly as he wrapped his hand around the device.
"Tell me, Doctor. Do you know why I chose the Hotel of the East as my headquarters?"
"Because nobody would think of looking here," the Doctor said but Derpy could tell that he knew more.
"You're half right. You see, Atlantis has a very interesting and unique structure system. The city stands securely on the ocean floor thanks to thousands upon thousands of metallic poles and beams. I can honestly say that it took many years of hard work to remove the beams underneath the Hotel of the East and build my headquarters in its place. The Hotel of the East is also located in the oldest part of Atlantis. So, let's say, if enough beams went out here then a domino effect would take place and the rest of Atlantis would go out as well."
"But it would be impossible to knock out the beams!" Dolarez explained. "Even with an explosion!" Derpy's heart skipped a beat upon hearing the word explosion.
"Yes, soldier, that is true. However, that only applies aboveground. An explosion underground, on the other hand, would be enough to start the chain of events."
"And let me guess, you laced this place with explosives when you first built it," the Doctor guessed.
Lea smiled as he clutched the trigger in his hand tightly. "Yes," he replied.
"You're insane!" snapped the Prince. "You'd kill yourself?! You'd kill your followers?! You'd kill every member of your species?!"
"If it means saving Atlantis from you putrid overworlders, then I will do what must be done!" The Doctor quickly aimed his sonic screwdriver at the trigger but nothing happened. Lea's smile grew wider. "Sorry, Doctor. It's sonic-proof." Derpy's heart jumped several times as Lea brought his thumb closer to the button.
"NO!" cried Dolarez. The Atlantean soldier rushed forward with his spear at the ready. Lea just stood there and smiled with a mixture of sadism and depression. The Doctor kept his sonic screwdriver pointed at Lea. Derpy didn't know if he was thinking of a plan or frozen in dumbfounded shock. A spark appeared in the Doctor's eyes as he hastily pointed the screwdriver at another part of Lea's body. Derpy was confused by the Doctor's movement but was mostly terrified by the explosion that was only a second away.
"FOR ATLANTIS!" cried Lea as he brought his thumb down on the trigger button.