Disclaimer: Anything recognizable is property of the BBC. I don�t own Doctor Who and I don�t make a cent off of this.
The Curse of Immortality
By: NightCat
Chapter 2
�Just as how I left it,� the Doctor muttered to himself as he stepped out of the TARDIS. Indeed, Karn had changed very little since his last visit. Same grey skies, same rocky, barren terrain, even the same dusty smell.
The Doctor sighed. He remembered how it used to be. In the mountains was a large and prosperous mining colony, he recalled visiting it a couple times while he was still in his first body. Now all that was left of the colony was the occasional deserted and dilapidated building, abandoned mining shafts, and their greatest discovery, the Elixir of Life.
Of course, they didn�t know what it was when they first stumbled upon the mysterious liquid. By pure chance they discovered that, when drunk, it healed all wounds and diseases in a person. After that breakthrough was made they turned samples of the liquid over to the local healer. This healer happened to be Maren, the former high priestess of the Sisterhood. She, along with a few choice students of hers, investigated this liquid and eventually found its source, the Sacred Flame. They also discovered its potential use as the key to immortality. Maren, knowing of the risks if the Elixir ended up falling in the wrong hands, formed the Sisterhood of Karn to protect the Elixir and the Sacred Flame.
The Time Lords were quick to find out about the Sisterhood and the treasure they had sworn to protect. The Time Lords offered the Sisters a bargain: they would help the Sisters develop their psychic and telepathic abilities to help them defend the Elixir and the flame, practically making the Sisterhood their equals. In return, the Sisterhood would give them a limited supply of Elixir for their own use, not to mention an alliance with one of the most powerful races in the universe. The Sisters were wary of the offer, but accepted in the end. However, they always remained cautious of the Time Lords. Of course, a certain criminal Time Lord by the name of Morbius didn�t help matters much. By the time the Doctor had met them, they had lost trust in his race.
The Doctor shook his head of these thoughts, though silently congratulated himself on remembering his Gallifreyan history teacher�s lecture about Karn almost word for word.
The Doctor started to carefully make his way down the mountainside. He had been careful to land near enough to the temple that he could find it easily, but far away a sufficient amount that the TARDIS wouldn�t be found very easily by anybody other than himself. Ohica�s message had put him on his guard.
A few stumbles down the rock face later the Doctor found the main trail leading to the temple. The last time he had walked this path it was almost not even there. So few people ever visited the Sisterhood and the Sisters have little to no reason to leave the temple. Today the path was worn and beaten with fresh footprints. Obviously not footprints of the Sisters, they were far too large to belong to a woman.
�Looks like they had some visitors,� the Doctor muttered to himself. His curiosity piped up a few more notches, he continued on the path.
As he walked he also noticed that there were no signs of any footprints of a woman. From this the Doctor assessed that either the Sisterhood were still in the temple, or they escaped through another way. The temple itself was made from the old mineshafts and caves, making the place practically a maze. Only the Sisters knew every single exit from it, and the only visible one to outsiders was the main one, the one which the Doctor was approaching.
It was nothing grand, just a door in the rock. If one took a casual glace over the rock face, the viewer would probably pass right over it since the color of the door matched the rocks surrounding it. The Doctor knew of one more entrance near the back, which he and Sarah had used as an escape route on his last trip here. However, he had decided that it would have been rude to sneak in after being invited. Besides, the main entrance might have heralded more clues to the present situation. In this, the Doctor was not disappointed.
�Hm, no welcome party,� the Doctor observed. This entrance usually had at least two guards standing watch. He also noticed, to his dismay, that the thick wooden door showed signs of forced entry.
�Never a good sign,� he said to himself. Looking around inside to find no one there, he let himself inside.
The tunnel stayed level for a few meters before starting to slope downward. On the walls were torches, though a few seemed to have gone out, resulting in limited lighting. Here and there dark openings in the walls lead into other tunnels of the temple. As he followed the main tunnel downward, he kept his eyes and ears open for any signs of life. So far it looked like the place had been totally deserted.
The Doctor came across another door, or what was left of one. Looking at the remains, he noticed that this door was a little thicker and stronger than the last.
A last attempt at defence? He wondered. Sure enough, as he walked on, he encountered yet another broken down door, thicker than the last.
Possibly to slow down the intruders as they made their escape, he summarized, walking on towards the main chamber.
He didn�t get very far when he finally heard some sign of life.
�Who�s there?� a male voice yelled. The Doctor turned to see a uniformed man walk out of one of the adjoining tunnels, his rifle raised toward the Doctor. The uniform was fairly simple, navy blue with a silver insignia woven on the sleeve. To his dismay, the lighting was too dim for the Doctor to make out what, exactly, the insignia was. He thought he saw a shape of an animal, possibly a dog, but he couldn�t be certain.
�I�m the Doctor,� he responded calmly. �And you are?�
�Hands up!� the man ordered.
�Rather interesting name,� the Doctor said, keeping his hands down. �I never met anyone called that before. Military name?�
�Shut up!� the man shouted as he came closer, pointing the rifle at the Doctor�s face. �Hands up now or --�
He didn�t get to finish his sentence as he collapsed. Behind him a Sister was pointing her ring at him. The Doctor recognized the ring as the same kind used by Maren when she blinded Sarah on his last visit.
�Nice trick,� he remarked as the Sister lowered her ring. �Now, care to explain what is going on here?�
�We can�t here,� the Sister said. �There are more like him here, and we will be found out if we stay.�
�Fair enough,� the Doctor said as he followed the Sister down a dark side tunnel. �Can I at least get a name? The last fellow didn�t even give me that courtesy, unless Hands Up really was his name.�
�I�m called Shula,� the Sister responded. �I was sent by the High One to lead you to our hiding place. Everything will be explained to you there. For now, we must keep quiet. We�ve already gained too much attention.�
�Good point,� the Doctor said as continued their journey through the tunnels in silence.
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