The True Lords of Time

The Last Great Time War enters a new phase as a terrifying new weapon is created. Written as a demonstration of the Searing Daleks in action.

Story
The Prisoner was shoved forwards into a dim room, as large and poorly decorated as most Dalek chambers. Having regenerated twice today, he was feeling a bit too tired to pay proper attention to his surroundings, but he tried his best anyway. That's what soldiers were supposed to do, right? Situational awareness and all that?

There were at least a dozen Daleks in the room, lined up in a row with their eyestalks pointing blankly into space. The Prisoner counted thirteen of them in the line, with a couple of Daleks he assumed were technicians fiddling with controls on an enormous dome-like machine.

The Dalek begind him shoved him with its appendage, knocking him to his knees.

"YOU WILL NOT STAND," it grated in its loud, electronic voice.

"Thanks," the Prisoner replied gratefully. "I'm awfully tired. You know I was a woman earlier? Just for an hour. Friendly fire from some panicking Gelth..."

"THE DETAILS OF YOUR REGENERATIONS ARE KNOWN."

"Really? Then I won't bore you with details. Though I will ask, why the front row seat? I did destroy an awful lot of Degradations up there, and any Daleks that got in my way. Doesn't that sort of thing mean death in your book?"

"YOU HAVE BEEN A THORN IN THE SIDE OF THE DALEK EMPIRE."

"Thanks." The Prisoner managed a grin

"YOUR ACTIONS WILL BE EXPUNGED."

His smile faded. "What?"

A black-cased Supreme Dalek glided into the chamber. "REPORT STATUS OF TEMPORAL LINK!" It boomed.

A technician swiveled its eyestalk to face its commander. "GELTH CITY HAS BEEN SUCCESSFULLY LINKED TO TEMPIRAL PROGENITOR. THIRTEEN DALEK UNITS HAVE BEEN ASSEMBLED. I AM AWAITING ORDERS."

"INITIATE CROSS-THREADING OF THE TIMELINE!" Boomed the Supreme. "THE EXPUNGEMENT UNIT MUST BE COMPLETED."

The Prisoner cleared his new throat and spoke. "Um, terribly sorry to interrupt, but when you say 'expungement unit', you don't mean the Searing..."

"THE PRISONER WILL CEASE VOCALIZATIONS."

"Yes sir."

The Supreme slowly crossed the room, facing the Daleks in the line. "YOU WILL ENTER THE PROGENITOR. YOUR SACRIFICES WILL SWELL THE RANKS OF OUR ARMY, AND BRING THE DALEKS TO VICTORY."

"I OBEY," came thirteen voices. The Daleks turned, and one by one disappeared into the Progenitor.

"OPEN VISUAL CHANNEL," the Supreme ordered. A holographic image appeared on a wall.

"OBSERVE, TIME LORD, THE END OF ALACHORE."

The Gelth city of Alachore had probably seen better days. Cities were aflame, and the streets were overflowing with the piled corpses of those who hadn't signed up for the Vaporization Process quickly enough. An enormous statue lay as rubble on the streets, a few massive claw marks just visible on the remnants. The Prisoner shuddered to think of the Degradation big enough to do that.

Just as the Prisoner began to wonder what the Supreme was trying to show him, the dome-like Progenitor began to exude a blinding blue light. The light radiated from the room, washing through solid objects as if they weren't there. The visual channel showed this light radiating through the entire city.

From inside the Progenitor, the mechanical screams of tortured Daleks began to issue. The screams grew louder and louder, and the light grew brighter and brighter. The Prisoner shut his eyes, fearing he'd grow blind.

When his eyes opened again, the room was dark again and the screams were silent. The visual channel showed no city--only forests and streams, exactly what the area would look like if the Gelth had never settled there. The city of Alachore hadn't been destroyed... it had never been built.

A door on the Progenitor opened, and a transparent shape glided across the floor towards the Supreme. The shape was that of a Dalek.

The Supreme seemed pleased, or at least as pleased as a Dalek ever was. "YOU WILL SERVE THE DALEKS!"

The Searing Dalek's quiet yet electronic voice sliced through the air, giving a report on future events. "CEASE YOUR ATTEMPT AT ESCAPE."

The Prisoner scrambled to his feet, hearts pounding. He'd last seen the Searing Daleks at the Cruciform, when half of his friends had ceased to exist. This was one of the great horrors of the War before him now.

He started to run towards the nearest exit, hoping to pass the walls before a fate worse than death befell him. The Searing Dalek's lights lit up with the words it had spoken a few seconds before, but the Prisoner had no intention of ceasing his escape attempt.

He heard the cry of "EXTERMINATE" only a second before a beam of white fear shot from the Dalek, enveloping him in blinding, searing light. He screamed, and never was.

Orbiting the Gelth homeworld was a fleet. The fleet was shaded like glass, and their voices spoke through time. They were the lords of time, and they joyously welcomed their newest member to their ranks. Around them, the squamous forms of Skaro Degradations sprang into existence, born again after being killed by the Prisoner that never was.

A new chapter in the Last Great Time War had begun. The War was about to become Hell.ilo