From: eah4@po.CWRU.Edu (Elizabeth A. Hlabse) Newsgroups: alt.ql.creative Subject: The Three Doctors, Part 8 Date: 18 Jan 1993 15:12:28 GMT Organization: Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH (USA) Lines: 193 Message-ID: <1jehcsINNi32@usenet.INS.CWRU.Edu> Reply-To: eah4@po.CWRU.Edu (Elizabeth A. Hlabse) NNTP-Posting-Host: slc5.ins.cwru.edu Sam stopped his wheelchair just outside teh doors to the reception room. Derek had allowed him the use of the motorized one with his promise to keep the speed below Mach 3. Sam had readily agreed, not wanting the committee and the other VIP's to see him pushing himself about. But now, he was having second thoughts about the whole thing. He really wanted Al to be at his side for this and had started to think up numerous painful ways of getting back at the Admiral for running to Vegas for the weekend with Peri. He took a deep breath and headed through the doors, which obediently slid aside as he approached. The sight that greated him was unexpected. When the doors closed behind him, everyone in the room got to their feet and began applauding. Sam blushed to the roots of his auburn hair, smiled, and glanced down into his lap. He hated this kind of hting but he knew he had to put up with it. 'Well if I survived receiving the Nobel, I can certainly survive this,' he thought as he worked his way forward, nodding to people he recognized. Verbena gave him an encouraging grin as he passed by and just the knowledge that his co-workers were here to support him helped. He had tried to talk the Doctor into attending, but he had declined quite firmly, stating that this evening was for Sam Beckett and not him. It was then that Sam noticed a woman coming forward to greet him. He did a double take as he recognized her from the committee meetings he had attended before he Leaped, and that had seemed rather fuzzy until now, and from the time he had been with her, helping her to study for the bar. Senator Diane McBride held out her hand to him. "Hello again, Dr. Beckett," she said, her voice sounding pleasant and friendly. "It's good to see you back with us again. I hope that you physical condition is temporary." "Yes, it is, Senator," Sam answered as he shook her hand. "I want to personally thank you for your support of the Project. It couldn't have happened without you." "It was a pleasure, Dr. Beckett," she answered. Her face grew pensive for a moment. "You know, it is strange, but I seem to have the name 'Samuel Beckett' showing up in my life quite a bit." She smiled at what had to be a fond memory. Sam blanched. He had a good guess as to what was running through her mind and he briefly wondered how much her husband remembered of the time, but could think of no way to ask that wouldn't arouse her suspicions. The Senator picked up two glasses of wine from a passing waiter and handed one to Sam. "To time travel, Dr. Beckett, and dreams fulfilled. They clinked glasses and took a sip. Someone across the room was beckoning to the Senator and she waved teh person over to join them. "I hope you don't mind, Doctor, but I asked a member of the international press to accompany me on this trip. She's quite a fan of yours and is doing a series of human interest articles for the 'London Times.'" A woman with dark hair that was just touched with grey came up along side th senator and smiled at Sam, holding out her hand. "Hello, Dr. Beckett, my name is Sarah Jane Smith. I've read your theory on time travel and I find it extrememly interesting." "If you'll both excuse me," broke in Senator McBride, "I should mingle with the rest of the guests." She headed across the room, leaving the scientist on his own. "Do you really believe that time travel is possible, Doctor?" the reporter asked Sam, sitting herself down on a chair next to him. Sam was relieved to see that she didn't pull out a pad to take notes or turn on a recorder. "No notes on the interview?" he asked her. "No notes. This is purely to satisfy my own curiosity," she answered with a ready smile. "Unless, of course, you want me to report on this?" "No," Sam answered almost before she got the words out of her mouth. His quick responce caused Sarah to smile. "Well, then, where to begin? You do know about my string theory, I assume?" "Yes, and your idea that a person can only travel within their own lifetime." Sarah looked thoughtful, eyes focused on a faraway memory. "But what if someone could travel outside their own time? Do you think that would work? Or that it's even possible?" "Theoretically, it could be possible," Sam answered her slowly, thoinking of the Doctor and his TARDIS. "However, we don't have the technology to make it a reality." "And if the technology were available?" she prompted him. "I'd be going on the next trip through time," he answered her. In fact, he had been thinking of asking the Doctor to take him on a small trip back in time. He very much wanted to meet Einstein and ask him a few questions. "So would I, Dr. Becket, so would I," she said, her voice almost sounding whistful. She looked across the room and noticed that Senator McBride was beckoning to her. "Dr. Beckett, I would like to talk to you more on this later, if it wouldn't be an inconvenience." "No inconvenience at all, Ms. Smith. In fact, would you like to spend a few days here at the Project? I could show you around and explain what I'm trying to accomplish." Sam had decided that he really liked this reporter. She wasn't at all like some he had encountered, or been. "I enjoy talking to somone who actually has thought about what I"m doing." Sarah nodded and smiled. "Good. I'll arrange for you to have guest quarters here. Until later?" They shook hands and he watched her walk across the room to join the Senator and other dignitaries. 'A very interesting woman,' he thought. 'I wonder if she'd like to meet the Doctor?' It was then that he noticed that Derek had come up behind him. "What is it, Derek?" "The Docotr asked me to find you, Sam," the young doctor said, his voice pitched to reach Sam's ears alone. "He wondered if you would like to escape from all this?" "Problems with the TARDIS?" Sam asked in the same tone that Derek was using. Derek nodded. "Make some sort of excuse for me, Derek, and if someone _really_ needs me, you'll know where I am, but please, only for a real emergency." Sam started to wheel his way towards the doors when he remembered something. "Derek, could you get in contact with Security and let them know that Ms. Sarah Jane Smith will be staying here a few days. Have them get her a security pass as well as quarters here at the Project." Derek nodded and left with Sam, turning in the opposite direction as teh doors closed behind them. Without one look back at the party, Sam headed towards the Control Room and something that he knew was a lot more interesting and important than impressing a bunch of politicians. ********* "Sam, could you try the time mechanism, please," the Doctor's voice came from underneath the counsel. He and Sam had been working non-stop on the TARDIS since Sam had arrived in Control the night before and they were getting more than a little frustrated. The Doctor had been working 24 hours straight and Sam just a little shorter time. His escape from the reception had gone unnoticed by everyone and he had joined the Doctor in his repair work. Unfotrunately, they were down to the last vacuum tube and it didn't look like this one was going to work any better than any of the others had. "It's starting now, Doctor." Sam pressed the sequence that the Doctor had shown him. "How's that?" "So far so....damn." The Doctor sounded frustrated. "This one just cracked. I'm afraid there's nothing on Earth that's going to work, Sam. I'm going to have to put in a temporary replacement and then go off Earth for the correct mcomponent." The Doctor threw the latest broken tube into the wast receptacle and brushed himself off. "I have some specialized equipment in the Accelerator Chamber that may do for a stop gap, Doctor," Sam told him, wheeling towards the door. Derek had arrived sometime during the night and replaced the motorized chair with the manual one without a single protest from Sam, who actually preferred it now that he had gotten used to it. "I saw the Admiral putting a lock on the doors to the Chamber, Sam, and he said something about it being a lock that only he knew the codes to." The Doctor looked thoughtful for a moment. "Although, I could probably break the code given enough time." "Not necessary, Doctor," Sam answered, a smug expression on his face. "I probably know Al better than he knows himself and there hasn't been a computer lock developed that I can't break." Sam wheeled out of the TARDIS, the Doctor at his side. The Accelerator Chamber was just down the hall and it took them no time to reach it. Sam pushed himself up from the chair and balanced himself against the wall, looking at the lock that Al had installed and grinned. "Child's play, Doctor," he said, and immediatly began punching in codes. For each code he got correct, another popped up, but they were all quickly passed and the doors wooshed open. "This way," Sam said as he settled back into the chair and wheeled himself over to the far side of the room. "Inside this panel may be something you can use." The Doctor tried to open the panel but found that it was stuck. "I left the tools in the TARDIS, Sam. Do you think you could get them, while I see if I can get this off?" "No problem, Doctor. I'll be back in a few minutes." Sam left the room and headed down the hall to the TARDIS as teh Doctor turned back to the panel in front of him. Within minutes he had it open and was checking out the different components to see if any of them could be used as a temporary replacement for the vacuum tube that had been destroyed. to be continued..... -- Beth Hlabse eah4@po.CWRU.Edu Assistant Sysop The Science Fiction and Fantasy Sig (GO SCIFI) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- If all the beasts were gone man would die from a great lonliness of the spirit.