(a/n: Hey folks! I'm back! sorry for the long wait, i went on a hiatus for the last two years. A lot has happened in terms of Doctor who which gave me some ideas on how to continue. Anyway, sorry for the long wait and hopefully i have improved. Please enjoy and review!)

Ch.8: Task 4 – Dream a Little Dream of Me (Part 1: The Beast at Our Door)

The group was exhausted.

After hours of marching and resting and marching some more, The Doctor and the Team were ready to collapse.

It had been what seemed like an eternity since the group escaped the misty graveyard filled with Weeping Angels.

The vast open field stretched on forever. No matter how far they walked, it seemed like they weren't going anywhere. There wasn't anything as they traveled on. No discernable landmark, no sign or clue to their next task, nothing, nothing but endless fields of green grass and cloudless blue skies above.

Boredom began to set in and Wally alleviated it by making small talk. Several of the group joined in as they discussed various things such as video games, sports, and various experiences. They tried getting the older man in brown to join but he remained silent.

Artemis murmured to Martha who trudged behind her "Life of the party this one".

Just as their legs grew tired and their feet sore, the Doctor ordered the group to take a ten minute break. They all collapsed to the soft green ground and groaned at their aching feet.

The group sat together in a huddle and relaxed a little. Martha wiped some sweat off of her forehead and she glanced over to Jack "This is odd"

"What is?" asked Jack who laid flat on his back on the grass taking deep breaths

"That we're out here in the middle of nowhere and we haven't ran into that Locutus bloke"

"I was thinking the same thing" piped up Miss Martian "I mean, he usually pops up and says congratulations and gives us a new task. But so far we haven't seen anybody".

Wally smiled "Maybe this is the trial. Trying not to die of boredom".

Superboy looked to the Doctor and asked "What do you think Doctor?" the time lord sat there with his legs crossed with a pensive look on his face. Superboy spoke again "Doctor?"

the Doctor blinked and looked at the kryptonian "Hmm?"

Connor repeated himself and the Doctor thought for a moment then shrugged saying, "I don't know. Locutus mentioned that we cheated and I would guess that our host is very displeased with the results of the last task"

"Quite the contrary" said a familiar voice.

The Doctor spun around and saw Locutus standing there behind him. The silver haired man was still dressed in his suit but they noticed he looked a little tired. His hair was still slicked back and his suit still looked clean and proper. But Martha noticed that his eyes looked tired and about ready to drift off to sleep.

The spokesman had a small smile on his face "He was a little upset but what happened in the graveyard has given my master something to ponder, a little puzzle so to speak".

Everyone in the group gave Locutus a questioning look.

He clasped his hands together and continued "My master has decided to make things more interesting." He let out a high-pitched whistle that pierced everyone's eardrums In a burst of blue light a giant plastic orb appeared beside Locutus. Inside the orb were hundreds, if not thousands of tiny orange plastic balls with names painted on them in various languages. The orb sat on a stand and it towered over everyone. It was large enough to hold at least a dozen people with some room left over.

Everyone stared up at the large orb in confusion as to what it was for, and then Artemis figured it out "A lottery?"

"Indeed" said Locutus beaming with pride "At this part of the games we will have a little change in team rosters".

Everyone froze. Change in team rosters? Does that mean that the team would be divided and scattered? The team was nervous. Who would they have to say goodbye to? Where would they end up if they do split? Silence fell on the group and after a moment of dread and anxiety Robin spoke "You mean we're going to be split up?"

"Maybe" said Locutus with a knowing tone and a smile, he gestured to the orb and explained, "Here we have the names of every contestant here in the games. Among them are your names" he turned and began to pace back and forth in front of the orb of names.

He continued, "In this lottery, your names will be shuffled and randomized. The names that are drawn will be the ones that will be taken from the team and moved onto another team. Then we will draw the names of your new team mates".

Everyone stood there absorbing what they were told. They would lose members of their groups and be spirited away to who knows where. Some of the group tried to come up with a way to escape it or cheat the lottery. But if a being as powerful as Locutus's master can create worlds and command the deadliest creatures ever to inhabit the cosmos, their plans would be crushed in the blink of an eye.

Miss Martian whispered to the Doctor telepathically, "Doctor, what do we do? We can't go through with this. It's got to be a scheme to divide and destroy us"

"It is scheme" admitted the Doctor "But there's nothing we can do. We have to play the game or suffer a fate worse than death" he glanced at her and gave her an assuring look "Don't worry. Do as I say and you will make it through this, I promise".

After a few silent worrisome moments, the Doctor turned to Locutus and said cheerfully "Lets give it a go then".

Locutus snapped his fingers. The orb whirred then the plastic balls in the orb began to bounce and wiz around wildly. The group stood there frozen, watching the names being shuffled around and randomized. Time seemed to have slowed down and suddenly a single plastic ball emerged from the slot at the bottom of the stand. Locutus plucked it out of the slot and everyone took a deep breath.

The spokesman read the name aloud "Cavander Thrax of Lorg". Everyone blinked twice and there was a sigh that came from amongst them.

All eyes shifted and saw that it was the man in brown. The man grumbled something under his breath and shuffled up to Locutus. Locutus offered his hand to the man but the man just stared at him. The spokesman simply patted him on the shoulder than in a flash of white light the man in brown vanished.

Wally murmured "Didn't really know him but best of luck to him".

Locutus started the machine up again and another plastic ball appeared in the slot. He withdrew it and read aloud "Jack Harkness of the Boeshane Peninsula".

Jack sighed in frustration. He looked to each of the group and put on a broad grin, "Well folks, this is it" He gave a goodbye hug to each of the men and a goodbye kiss to each of the ladies in the group. When he came to the Doctor, Jack straightened up and saluted his old friend.

The Doctor returned the salute and he patted Jack on the shoulder "Good luck"

"Thanks" said Jack. He turned and strolled up to Locutus.

The silver haired man asked "Ready?" "I was born ready" said Jack with a smile.

In a flash of light, Jack vanished like Cavander. Locutus turned to the group and announced "Two more" The group started to grow more anxious, anticipation rising in each of them.

Another plastic ball dropped in the slot and Locutus drew it then read aloud "Martha Jones of Earth"

Martha's shoulders slumped and her face had a look of sadness. She said her goodbyes to everyone and her eyes watered as she gave the Doctor a goodbye hug. The time lord whispered something in her ear and looked her in the eye one last time saying "I promise. Remember that, I swear it".

She nodded and wiped away a tear then stepped up towards Locutus like a condemned prisoner. She vanished like the previous three. Miss Martian saw that the Doctor wanted to do something but he just looked as helpless as the rest.

"Last one" announced Locutus. The last ball was drawn out of the slot and everyone held his or her breath.

Locutus read aloud "Kaldur'ahm of Atlantis".

Everyone turned to Aqualad. He sighed deeply and he looked to Robin saying "Take care of the team"

Robin nodded gravely. Superboy patted the Atlantian on the back "You take care of yourself" "Yeah" said Artemis "After we find whoever is in charge and kick his butt, we'll all get out of here together".

Aqualad nodded and he trudged towards Locutus. The Doctor stepped in his way and he gave the young Atlantian a hug. He sighed, "Until we meet again".

The time lord's voice dropped to a soft whisper "Be careful. These games will get tougher and more unpredictable as they progress. The only way to win is to follow along and be prepared to improvise".

The Doctor released Aqualad from his embrace and he patted him on the shoulder saying "Good luck".

The Atlantian nodded "Thank you Doctor". He marched up to Locutus and the silver haired man snapped his fingers and Aqualad's vision was filled with brilliant white light.

When the light faded, he found himself standing on the shore of a beautiful tropical beach.

Gorgeous blue seawater washed up on the soft white sand and receded. A warm sun shone brightly overhead. Aqualad heard a voice "Glad to see that I'm not alone"

He turned and saw Jack Harkness standing next to him. The Atlantian felt some comfort and relief that he wasn't totally alone and that he was with a friendly face.

The two heard Locutus speak, his voice originating from an unknown source "Thank you for your cooperation in the selection process! All those who have been chosen and moved good luck and happy gaming! To those who remained, please make your new teammates feel welcomed. Good luck!".

The two stood there silently and heard nothing except the ocean waves breaking. Jack frowned and said looking around the empty beach "So…where's our team"

The Atlantian and the captain were greeted by a gruff voice "So, these are our new additions?" the two turned and they froze.

Jack sighed and muttered under his breath "This just keeps getting better and better".

Standing there in the shade of a towering palm tree was a group of short, burly aliens in blue battle armor. They numbered about five in all and all of them resembled each other.

The lead one glared at the two new comers and grumbled "Humans eh? Weaklings!" his cohorts nodded and murmured in agreement. "At least they'll fight when needed" piped up one the group.

They all nodded again and murmured. Aqualad could only stare at the group of aliens in amazement. He didn't know who they were or what species they were but they were absolutely fascinating.

Jack on the other hand knew who they were. They were proud soldiers of the Sontaran Empire. The captain had a feeling that they were in for quite the experience.

After Aqualad had vanished, Locutus snapped his fingers and the plastic balls in the sorting machine changed from orange to blue.

He smiled and announced "And now for your new teammate". The machine whirred and sorted the names for a few long minutes. Finally, a single blue ball dropped into the slot.

Locutus drew it and he read aloud "Judith Vandart of Traxel Seven" he chucked the ball aside and it shattered once it touched on the ground. From the shattered fragments came a burst of blue light and a torrent of smoke. Once the light died and the smoke cleared, they saw a hooded figure wearing a cloak that was made of a material that shimmered in the light of the sun.

The person threw back the hood and everyone saw that it was a woman with short, blue spiky hair. She was pale as cream, had golden eyes and rather plain features. She shot a look at the Team and the Doctor, which seemed to Artemis like the woman was analyzing them and trying to discern weak spots.

The Doctor walked right up to her and offered a hand "Hello there, it is good to meet you. I'm the Doctor" the woman stood there and stared at his hand for a moment as if it was a foreign object.

After a moment of awkward staring, she took his hand and shook it, saying curtly "I'm Mirage"

"Mirage?" said the Doctor in astonishment. He took a step back and he looked her up and down in disbelief, then said "So your Mirage? You're a little shorter than I thought. But-"

Locutus coughed "May we proceed?" "Yes, yes" said the Doctor. He and the woman calling herself Mirage joined the group a few feet away from Locutus.

The spokesman smiled "Thank you for your cooperation" Artemis rolled her eyes and Superboy glared at the grey haired man but the Locutus continued regardless "Now, on with the next trial". He lifted his hand to the sky and everything changed.

The grassy field dissolved and the sky quickly became cloudy, a rocky ground and small patches of green soon replaced the lush green field in which they stood.

In the distance they saw mountains pop up in the blink of an eye. Around them buildings began to rise from the ground. In a matter of seconds, the group found themselves standing in what looked like the marketplace of an old European city. The buildings were made of wood and stone, some with thatched roofs others with shingled. There were cobblestone roads that snaked through the village between the buildings that all connected to the heart of the city.

Miss Martian saw towering trees off to the distance that looked like towers from that distance.

Wally inspected their new surroundings and nodded in appreciation "Ok I got to admit, that was pretty cool."

All was still around them. The air was calm, peaceful and devoid of sound. Superboy's eyes scanned the surrounding buildings with his X-ray vision and saw nothing that seemed threatening.

Robin looked at Locutus "Ok, so a quiet little town…now what?"

"Your challenge is simple" said Locutus, he held up a hand and gestured around the silent buildings around them "Survive until dawn"

"What else?" asked Superboy, glaring at the silver haired man "There always a little something that you tend to forget, something that always comes as a surprise to us".

Locutus chuckled and tapped his nose "Smart lad". His voice lowered to almost a whisper "I'll give you a little hint and this is a very important one". Everyone leaned in closer to hear the man and he whispered, "Remember this: nothing is as it seems. Trust nothing and question everything. In this challenge, your muscles and physical prowess will not save you, you will need to rely on your wits".

Every member of the group pondered the man's odd words but something about them cause an eerie chill to befall them.

Locutus raised his voice "Right! Now, I must leave you. Good luck and have fun!" he vanished in a puff of grey smoke.

Once the smoke was gone, silence took his place. A cool wind blew through the silent, empty square causing Artemis to shiver.

After a moment of creepy silence, the Doctor clapped his hands together and grinned, "An exciting new adventure begins! Lets explore shall we?"

The group of contestants made their way down a narrow lane between a long row of small homes and tall stone buildings. Everyone kept a sharp eye out on their surroundings in case of an ambush.

So far, nothing out of the ordinary. They continued to travel down the empty silent roads. A loud abrupt sound made Wally jump.

He spun around and spied an old window shutter swinging lazily on its hinge and banging against the wall of the house.

Superboy used his super hearing and his sight to seek out any signs of life, friendly or hostile but he saw and heard nothing but the wind and empty houses. The Doctor pulled out his sonic screwdriver and began scanning the path ahead and the buildings around them.

After a few moments the time lord paused in front of a two-story home that had its front door knocked off the hinges. Sitting slumped in the doorway was a skeleton. He knelt down at the skeleton's side and studied it carefully.

"From the uniform and the tags, this guy was in the army" observed Wally.

The time lord nodded a little and he rose to his feet saying "Judging from the dust and the state of decay, he's been dead for a long, long time". He stepped inside the house. Miss Martian and Wally followed, while Mirage, Superboy and Artemis stayed outside to keep watch.

Artemis stooped down and pulled the dog tags off of the skeleton. The archer read the name and rank "Private Jacob Lee" she glanced at the skeleton sympathetically "Poor guy"

Mirage grunted "Save your pity". The archer and the half kryptonian looked at the blue haired woman "Why?" asked Artemis.

Mirage looked at Artemis grimly, "The only ones who need pity is us. This soldier was actually one of the lucky ones".

Miss Martian watched as the Doctor circle around the main room. The room was well furnished with some chairs, a long dining table made of a fine dark wood, and a hearth with an old black cooking pot hanging over the ancient remains of a cooking fire.

The Doctor sniffed the air a little and he leveled his screwdriver and scanned around the house. Studying the scans, the time lord frowned a little and murmured something under his breath.

Wally sneezed and he sniffled "Doctor, what are we doing here?"

"Searching"

"For what?" asked Miss Martian.

The Time Lord didn't answer. He left the main room and he found a set of stairs leading up. The Doctor climbed the stairs with Wally and Miss Martian following after him.

The two heroes found the Doctor standing at the foot of an ancient old bed that was blanketed by a thick layer of dust and cobwebs. Lying in bed were two skeletons. Webs veiled the skeletal faces and their flesh had long since rotted away and now there was barely a thin, papery skin that covered patches of their bones.

The Doctor approached the skeletons and inspected them closely. Wally frowned "Great, more dead people…"

the Doctor sniffed the dusty old clothes that clung to the bones, causing Miss Martian and Wally to give him an odd look.

The time lord muttered something and he stepped away from the bodies saying, "Well…they're dead" "What gave you that idea" murmured Wally. Miss Martian elbowed the speedster in the rib lightly but the Doctor didn't seem to hear or care.

He looked to his two companions "These aren't props, like the rest of this village. They're the actual remains of actual people and that's not the oddest thing"

"Ok, so what is the oddest thing?" asked Miss Martian.

The Doctor answered, "They died in their sleep" The two heroes looked at the Doctor questioningly and the time lord continued "They didn't get rip to pieces, stabbed, shredded, bitten or anything of the sorts. It looks as if these two, and the soldier outside, had just fallen asleep and…never woke up".

The two stared at him in shock. Wally gulped and he looked at the skeletons. Normally a nice peaceful death didn't sound so bad, but looking at the skeletons and just the mood of the whole city unsettled the speedster. Miss Martian quietly scanned the area around them, searching out any signs of sentient life but felt nothing, just silence and emptiness.

The Martian shivered "There's nothing out there…nothing…" "I wouldn't say that" said the Doctor, softly. He strolled over to the window.

Gazing out at the buildings around them that sprawled out for miles, he shook his head "There's something out there…something rather sinister".

The eerie silence of the city was shattered by a high-pitched shriek of terror that echoed from all around them. The Doctor rushed down the stairs with Wally and Miss Martian.

Outside, Mirage, Superboy, Artemis and Robin tensed up and took up defensive stances, expecting an attack.

Nothing happened. There was another scream, then another, and another. Soon all around them there were screams of men, women and young children. There were even some cries from infants. Heads wiped about trying to locate the sources of the screams but saw nothing but empty streets and houses stretching on as for almost a few miles until they reached high, tan bricked walls that ringed around the entire village.

The screams got louder and louder, closer and closer when suddenly everything went silent. The silence that followed was deafening.

They heard nothing except for the soft whistle of wind drifting through the barren streets.

Artemis shivered "Well…that wasn't creepy".

The Doctor reached into his jacket and withdrew his sonic screwdriver. He scanned the path ahead and the silent buildings that stood around them.

The time lord studied the scans for a moment and murmured "Interesting…" "Interesting?" asked Robin.

He glanced at the boy wonder "If I'm reading this correctly, and I most surely am, the scans say that there's nothing out there. Well…nothing living". A palpable chill fell on the group.

The blue haired woman withdrew a knife that had a long, curved blade and gripped it tightly "What are we looking at here? Androids? Dolls? Conscripts?"

The Doctor shrugged "I'm not sure…it could be anything. I have a small list of things that don't show up on a life-signs scan, but still…" he scowled "I really don't like not knowing".

Suddenly the wind began to pick up and the temperature dropped by a few degrees. It swept through the barren streets, sending dead leaves tumbling past them.

Superboy looked towards where the wind was blowing from and his enhanced vision saw a formless shape round a corner and began to tumble towards them. He squinted and he immediately saw that it was a wall of thick, grey fog that rushed down the adjacent street towards them like a river. Even though it looked like fog, the half kryptonian remembered Locutus' warning "Nothing is what it seems".

"Doctor" said Superboy, sounding a little unsure of the mist.

The time lord looked at him and the half kryptonian pointed towards the oncoming fog. The Doctor looked at the swirling dark grey wall that drew closer and closer. The time lord sniffed the air then stuck his tongue out for a moment then frowned a little.

His thoughts raced through his head then suddenly his eyes widened "No…" he looked to his companions barked "Run!" he turned and took off running and everyone sprinted after him.

The Doctor and friends ducked into a side alley hurried to the end and rounded a corner. The group zigzagged through the abandoned town, ducking in and out of side streets, alleys and darting through the front of a house and out the back door. All around them, the thick swirling grey, twisted and spread through the streets.

The Doctor tried to lead them down a narrow street but skidded to a stop. The street ahead of them began to fill up with grey fog. The fog turned and tumbled towards them. Quickly, Wally zipped back down the way they came and saw that the mist was closing in on them.

The speedster zipped back to the group "Its everywhere!"

"In here!" called Superboy. He pushed in the door of a nearby, two-story house.

The group rushed inside the house with the Doctor being the last. Robin and Wally slammed the door shut, plunging them into darkness.

A small white light flickered on. Miss Martian saw Robin holding a small flashlight as Wally and Superboy barricaded the door with an old wooden table and some of the chairs. The Doctor helped them shore up the barricade with whatever is lying around. Mirage, Artemis and Miss Martian watched their teammates frantically shore up their defenses.

The Doctor finished placing a tiny nightstand against the boards on the window and he turned to the others, who stood there watching. He looked at them in disbelief "What are you doing? A little help here!" the four stood there, a little dazed but they jumped into action.

Artemis scrambled around the sparsely furnished room to help her friends. The archer and Mirage went upstairs and brought down the bedframe and propped it up against the back door.

As they added onto the defenses Miss Martian asked nervously "What are we doing? Why are we hiding from mist?"

"That isn't mist" said the Doctor "Its merely the opening act of something horrible" he went to the boarded up window and put his ear up against it. There was nothing but the howling of wind and the creaking of the boarded up windows.

The Doctor looked back at his companions "I don't want to panic anybody, but I'm afraid that we're stuck here for the moment".

Superboy clenched his fist. The half kyrptonian hated being cornered like a rat. He wanted to go out there and pummel whatever it is that's out there. But, the Doctor was in charge and he was probably the only chance that he and the rest of the team are ever getting home.

Superboy asked, "What's out there Doctor? And what's with all the mist?"

"Lurking out there are creatures from the darkest reaches of the universe" said the Doctor ominously "Out there is a Psiren"

"A Siren?" said Artemis slowly "Like a mermaid that lures sailors to their deaths?"

"No, well…sort of" said the Doctor "They're a race of powerful psychics. They lurk in the shadows of the universe and they mostly keep to themselves. Occasionally they prey on a merchant vessel here and there but they aren't overly hostile"

"Not overly hostile is good" said Wally hopefully.

The Doctor held up a hand "However, if one does cross a Psiren it is the very last thing one can do before suffering a horrible death"

"Oh" said Wally, shoulders slumping a little.

Mirage scowled "Great, just what we need Psirens" "You've encountered them?" siad the Doctor, sounding a little impressed.

Mirage nodded "On my travels. I saw a pack of them bring down a cruiser on the edge Dolthorian space. They did a number on that ship and her crew". She shuddered and muttered something under her breath.

Robin shivered as well then he turned to the Doctor "Ok, we know what it is now. We can effectively prepare a defense strategy against it. We can probably hold it off until this trial is over"

"Yeah, only until dawn" grumbled Superboy. The Doctor looked at the clone "Why so glum? Cheer up! There are worse things, trust me"

"Really?" said Superboy, unconvinced. The time lord nodded, his expression was solemn "Trust me, there are worse things than this".

The Doctor's expression brightened "Right, now then" he left the main room and entered the tiny kitchen area. He returned with some rickety old chairs and a lantern. He set them out and sat down on one of them saying cheerfully "We got nowhere else to go, we might as well wait until this whole thing blows over".

Artemis sat in the chair. Wally, Superboy, Robin and Miss Martian sat on the cool stone tiled floor, each keeping a wary eye on the door.

Hours seemed to crawl by at a snails pace.

Miss Martian searched the house for anything they could use as a source of light. Luckily, they found a few more oil lanterns that were still filled with oil.

Robin had a box of matches in his belt and he ignited the old, rusty lanterns. The dark house was soon illuminated with warm orange light that casted long shadows on the walls.

Outside, a furious wind howled and beat upon the house, as if an enraged beast was trying to break their barricade to get to them but the barricade and the walls of the house held firm. The Doctor had found a bag of candy he held forgot about in his coat pocket. He divided it up with his companions and everyone got a fair share.

As they ate their candy by lantern light, Miss Martian remembered something. She spoke up "Doctor?"

"Hmm?" he looked at her.

She frowned "You said that this mist isn't a mist" "Yes, I did say that" said the Doctor thoughtfully

"If it isn't mist, than what is it?" asked Superboy, finishing her thought.

"Anesthetic" answered the Doctor, popping another jelly baby into his mouth. The young heroes looked at him in shock "What?" said Robin

"Anesthetic" repeated the Doctor as he chewed on his candy "Knock out gas. It's meant to incapacitate us so that the Psiren can do its awful work". He swallowed and continued "When a Psiren hunts, it knocks out its prey and feeds off of the psychic energy generated by the sad being then after they had their fill, they would then either feast off the corpse or dispose of it and move on"

"Psychic energy?" said Wally slowly "You mean…they feed off of our thoughts?"

The Doctor nodded "Thoughts, dreams, fears, loves, anything they can get their claws on, every scrap of energy until there's nothing left, kind of like drinking out of a juice box".

Everyone looked horrified. Artemis pushed aside her share of candy, not feeling hungry anymore.

The Doctor nodded to Miss Martian "Luckily, we have a very powerful telepath with us. As long as we prepare ourselves accordingly, we'll be able to outlast the Psirens until dawn arises".

The young Martian nodded slowly "Ok, what do I need to do?"

The Doctor then instructed her on throwing up a psychic barrier around the house. As long as she held up the barrier, the Psiren's will incapable of penetrating their thoughts. Miss Martian did as the Doctor instructed and she felt a little more comfortable, now that there was a measure of protection between the team and the Psiren's lurking outside. The Doctor awarded her with a friendly pat on the shoulder.

Artemis yawned "We better get some sleep, we're going to need it" everybody agreed.

Superboy volunteered to stand guard and Robin volunteered for the next shift. Everyone tried to get comfortable on the hard floor. Upstairs, the Doctor found some woolly blankets and some dusty old pillows filled with straw, which helped but not by much. After distributing some of the items he found, the Doctor went off to explore the house a little longer to see if what else he can find.

The Doctor stepped over Wally and ascended up the stairs with a lantern in hand.

Once the time lord was gone, Artemis propped her self up on her elbows and hissed "M'gann"

"Hmm?" said Miss Martian, sitting up. The archer asked, "Don't you think that the Doc is a little…strange"

Miss Martian smiled a little "Glad that I'm not the only one" "No kidding" injected Wally.

Artemis frowned "Its not just the way he acts, its just…he knows things. He seems to know a lot about what's going on" "Well yeah, he's Gallifreyan" said Miss Martian "They know like everything"

"Gallifreyan, you mean he's an alien?" said Wally in surprise. Miss Martian frowned "You didn't know?" she looked around at her teammates. They all looked equally surprised "I thought it was obvious"

"That explains the weird heartbeat" murmured Superboy.

"Well, now that you mention it yeah" admitted Wally "But I though he was just some weird guy who knew a lot about aliens". "He is an odd fellow, even for a Gallifreyan" said a voice.

Miss Martian turned her head a little and noticed Mirage sitting in the corner of the room on a small wooden stool. From the flickering light of the single lantern that stayed lit, Mirage looked exhausted but she remained vigilant with her hand gripped on her knife as it lay across her lap. The blue haired woman murmured, "Compared to the rest of his kind, he's quite a character"

"You've met them?" asked Miss Martian in surprise.

Mirage snorted "Of course not. Hardly anybody has met a Gallifreyan"

"Why?" asked Artemis.

The blue haired woman explained in a tone as if she were speaking to toddlers "On account of two things: the first, Gallifreyans were like gods. They kept watch over the whole of the universe. Cold and distant, never interfering was the typical trait of a Time Lord. As the legends state, they see all of us as nothing more than small footnotes in a history book. Boring, uninteresting and hardly worth interacting with"

"Harsh" mumbled Wally.

Mirage continued, "Second, the more recent legends say that Gallifrey is no longer around. All the Time Lords are dead"

Miss Martian's eyes widened in shock "What? How?" "A time war" answered Mirage grimly.

Wally frowned "a what war?"

"Time war" said Mirage "Its like a normal war, only infinitely worse. It was so bad that it nearly tore all of time and space apart. To put it simply, it was a war between gods and monsters"

"What happened?" asked Artemis.

Mirage shrugged "Dunno. The details are rather vague but if I remember correctly, the Doctor participated in it" "The Doctor?" said Superboy, arching an eyebrow.

The blue haired woman nodded slowly, her eyes lowered to the flickering flame in the lantern "He fought in the war. Whatever happened…it didn't end well" she looked up at the heroes "There are many stories about that man and from what I've seen and heard about him recently…the war changed him". Silence fell on the group and the conversation ended there.

Miss Martian felt a twinge of sadness and sympathy for the Doctor. He lost everything and he's now alone. It must be awful to suffer something like that and lose your entire race.

The silence was suddenly broken by a loud thud that came from upstairs. Everybody jumped. Mirage jumped to her feet with her knife at the ready.

"Sorry! Sorry! That was me!" came the muffled voice of the Doctor from upstairs "Just trying to move a bit of furniture to get a better look at something".

Relief washed over them and everyone relaxed a little.

Superboy looked at Mirage and noted that a utility belt hung to her narrow waist. Hooked on the belt was an empty holster. He also noted that she wore a dark grey uniform type armor that had a type of symbol that gleamed briefly in the lantern light. The half kryptonian's eyes narrowed a little in suspicion. Something about this woman didn't sit right with him.

Once everyone had settled down and relaxed, Superboy asked "So…what about you? What's your story? How did you get roped into this trials thing?"

The blue haired woman fixed him a blank look; her golden eyes shimmered in the lantern light. The corners of her mouth spread into a small smile "I was out doing my job, just like any other day then suddenly I found an odd doll. Then I ended up in a dining room with a group of total strangers. Happy?"

Superboy scowled at her. It was not exactly the answer he was looking for. It was obvious that she was holding back but he didn't want to push to hard. Superboy merely nodded slowly.

The wind outside howled like ravenous wolves and the shadows danced in the flickering light. The half kryptonian shivered.

This is going to be a long night.

Superboy's watch seemed to last forever. The seconds turned into minutes and minutes had turned into hours. He sat cross-legged on the stony floor, his senses at full focus in case of any nasty surprises. The half kryptonian could hear the Doctor shuffling around upstairs. He frowned and wondered what he was doing up there.

Superboy didn't know but there was something about the man he felt that he could trust, at least trust him more than the woman called Mirage. His eyes drifted to the blue haired woman.

She was still awake but her eyes seemed glazed over as if she were in deep thought.

Superboy's gaze drifted to the barricaded door. With his vision and hearing, there was nothing out there but wind and mist. Yet, he still couldn't shake this feeling that something is horribly wrong. There was a dark creeping feeling that was crawling up from the pit of his stomach. Something just didn't sit well with him but he couldn't place it.

Superboy's eyelids suddenly grew heavy. His eyelids fluttered for a moment. The half kryptonian rubbed his eyes in an effort to stay awake. It worked only momentarily.

His eye continued to grow heavy. He had to stay awake, he had to keep watch or else something terrible might happen. But he felt absolutely drained for some reason.

Only a few moments earlier he felt as awake and alert as he normally would be if he had a good night's rest.

Superboy couldn't keep his eyes open any longer. Maybe just a quick nap would work. The half kryptonian's eyes closed for just a moment.

That moment was all that was needed.

Suddenly a scream echoed through the whole house. Superboy bolted upright. He looked around franticly. That scream sounded like M'gann.

The half kryptonian got to his feet and shook off sleep then took in what was happening. The wind had died and everything was quiet. The lantern had gone out and the room was pitch dark but thankfully, he his sight was better than most. Superboy could make out the heat signatures of everyone in the room.

There was some thumping and he saw the Doctor rushing down the stairs with his lantern. He looked around the room "What happened? I heard a scream?"

"It sounded like M'gann" said Superboy.

Artemis rubbed her eyes and said drowsily "It's probably nothing, I mean…" she trailed off. She looked beside her where Miss Martian was lying. Miss Martian was gone.

All that remained was the pillow and the wool blanket that she was using.

Robin exclaimed, "Miss Martian's gone!" "Don't worry" said Wally "Maybe she's using the ladies room"

"There isn't any" said the Doctor grimly "This house predates in-door plumbing".

Superboy did a quick scan of the house with his X-ray vision but saw that there was no one else in the house, only dust and darkness. Superboy's blood ran cold.

M'gann was missing, but where? How? Suddenly there was a high pitch shriek that sounded feral and animalistic that came from outside. Everyone turned their attention to the door. Artemis, Wally and Robin scrambled to their feet and scrambled for weapons.

Mirage whipped out a second knife and took on a fighting stance. At the door there was a loud hiss and there was a scraping sound. It was quiet at first, then it grew louder and more furious. Then it stopped.

As quick as it has stopped, a loud bang sounded which shook the door and the crude barricade that the team had erected. The team quickly went to the door and held the barricade in place with their weight. The barricade shook as another bang sounded. Superboy heard a loud, furious shriek that made him cover his ears in pain. The others did the same.

The Doctor's eyes were wide "It's the Psirens! Whatever you do, don't let them get through that door!" as soon as he finished saying that, the shrieking stopped.

There was a few long seconds of silence. During that silent few seconds, Superboy thought that they had given up and gone away but that was just a hopeless dream that he didn't put much stock in.

A loud bang from above them broke the silence.

Robin frowned "They're on the roof!" suddenly there were some howling coming from the rear of the house "And at the back" noted Mirage.

The blue haired woman looked to the Doctor "It would appear that we're surrounded".

Superboy muttered a curse and thought to himself, what a dream come true.

The Doctor returned from upstairs with a bundle of blankets he found. He set his lantern down on the floor and looked around the room.

The other lantern's flame had withered down to a small feeble light that gave a dim light for him to see. He could see that everyone was fast asleep, including Superboy and Mirage who were suppose to stand guard. The time lord couldn't blame them. It's been a long journey so far and the worst is yet to come.

He sighed deeply and he went to Mirage's side and draped one of the blankets over her lithe frame then he did the same for Superboy. The last blanket went to Robin and Kid Flash who slept on the cold floor with nothing but the costume's on their backs.

After he draped the last blanket on the two heroes, the Doctor sat down on his rickety old chair. He leaned back and smiled faintly to himself.

Take away the anesthetic fog, the rundown old village and the murderous Psirens, the Doctor found himself thinking of the old days. Way back then, when all things were bright and beautiful.

A cold aching feeling pierced his hearts. He longed for those days again. To sit beneath that sky again with all of them once more.

The ragged time lord sighed deeply. It was only a sad dream that he clung on to for reasons he never really could figure out.

Suddenly he heard some shuffling. The Doctor sat up right and scanned the darkness. In the faint light and the dancing shadows, he couldn't see clearly what's moving. At first he thought it was one of his companions shifting around in their sleep but he immediately dismissed it. The sounds were more akin to footsteps, small ones at that.

The Doctor frowned. It couldn't be the Psiren's. The barricade was still up and there hadn't been any sign of their arrival. There was another set of footsteps that accompanied the first.

The Doctor rose and he picked up the lantern on the floor and he slowly turned the knob up, adding more oil to the flame. The lantern grew a little brighter and at the edge of the circle of sleeping forms, he saw two shapes approaching from the dark. The Doctor squinted and raised the lantern a little more.

The first shape stepped into the light. The Doctor's eyes widened and his hearts stopped briefly. A cold chill ran right through his entire body from head to toe.

Standing there was a small dark haired girl. Her face was pale and she had wide brown eyes. She wore overalls and a white shirt underneath. Judging by her looks, she looked to be around five or six years old.

The Doctor shook his head slowly "No…no, y-you can't be here….you can't…no"

The girl's head tilted a little bit and she asked the same cute little voice that haunted the Doctor's memories "What's wrong grandfather?"

"No, no, no!" said the Doctor, his voice breaking a little "You can't be here Susan! You can't!"

"Oh I'm afraid that she is here, Doctor" said a smooth, familiar voice.

The Doctor looked up and saw the one person he had absolutely no desire to see ever again. He stood there behind little Susan, dressed in a dark tweed suit and a blue bowtie.

"Now, Doctor we need you to remain calm" soothed the Dream Lord.

End of Chapter

(a/n: Sooo, what do you think? I know, i suck leaving off with a cliff hanger but don't worry, i'll return. I hope this was better than the last chapter and i do apologize for the agonizingly long wait. I hoped you enjoyed it, see you around for part 2. Please review!)