Lady Justice: A Time Lady Reborn

"I'm on it." Alanah began punching the controls haphazardly. It was nice having a computer that knew how to do all the work for you, but it was human nature to want to fiddle with buttons to make it go. Daniel smiled at her, and let Alanah do her thing.

A parade of crew made their way to the control room, led by Groon and several of his former-mercenary friends. They were under strict orders not to cause any violence or destruction unless they had no choice. They were lacking in weapons. The people of the colonies had brought along primitive weapons from their homes: axes, knives, clubs, and even a few firearms. Daniel hoped that it wouldn't come to violence. He had plans to use his powers on the Tarot when they boarded. He wasn't sure it would make a difference, with their natural psychic abilities. However, once panic and fear took hold of them, he assumed his powers might find their way into the Tarot's minds, regardless.

Daniel waited for acknowledgement from Alanah before proceeding. She watched the TARDIS monitor display a layout of the Tarot ship. Suddenly, the screen flashed red. She hoped that was a good sign. The engines whirled, until the anxious crew heard a soft thump. It was time.

***

Aryess paced nervously around the laboratory. It had been several hours since they had brought the Time Lady out of her cell. She had ordered her captain to drop their cloaking shields, and continue a slow orbit around a red planet in the home system of Earth. The bait was in place; the trap ready to spring. All they needed was a rat.

Justice sat silent, privately begging and praying that her friends would not risk an attempt to save her. She had sacrificed herself to save Alanah and the TARDIS. She was prepared to die to keep them safe. She watched Aryess move through the lab. Her old friend was past the point of negotiation. Suddenly, the Tarot's mistress stopped, and answered telepathic call. Justice watched as Aryess closed her eyes to listen, and Justice's heart broke as Aryess turned to her with a wicked smile of satisfaction.

"Oh dear, Arbiter. Your friends are as simple as you were. Any moment now, and your ship will be ours. After that... I suppose this is farewell, Lady Arbiter." Aryess planted a kiss on Justice's lips, and turned quickly to leave. Several guards remained in the lab, along with a half dozen scientists.

Justice hung her head solemnly, and wept. She was thankful for Alanah's love and loyalty, proud of her ambition and courage, but mournful of the foolish way she was about to die.

***

The first dispatch of Tarot guards had been prepared for the arrival of the ship, but were immediately overwhelmed by the size, and ferocity of its crew. Daniel had leapt out in front of his army of pirates, sending a telepathic suggestion to the waiting Tarot guards. They threw their weapons down in terror with the thought of a well-armed, and murderous group of hostile raiders implanted in their psyche. In truth, Daniel's crew was more terrified, and wholly underwhelming, but the psychic projection worked. They stormed the halls of the ship, taking whole groups of Tarot prisoner as they marched on. Alanah had been by his side, but he had moved her to the center of the pack after seeing how ready the first group of guards had been. She had been on board this ship the last time, and had been studying the layout on the TARDIS. She needed to focus on navigating the small army through the halls of the massive ship.

One group of guards finally took them by surprise. As soon as Daniel's militia turned a corner, Tarot guards opened fire on the invaders. Groon had been following Daniel close, and threw him out of the way. Groon led a charge against the guards, losing a handful of his own men in the process. From his position on the ground, Daniel reached out to the Tarot's minds. The alien women succumbed to the delusion that their weapons were misfiring long enough for Groon's men to subdue them. Several Tarot guards did not survive the attack. Daniel eventually called off the assault before any other lives were lost.

After disarming four groups of guards, Daniel's soldiers now had enough alien weaponry for things to get ugly. He moved to the front of the pack and stopped the march. Daniel pushed his thoughts into their minds. They had lost friends, and many were afraid of losing their own lives. The group had begun to lose focus. Soon, there would be no stopping them from taking out the Tarot indiscriminately. Daniel used his powers to relax them, and focus their minds. They were on a rescue mission, not a rampage.

Daniel's group had dwindled as well. Each time they subdued a group of guards, Daniel left ten men behind to keep them captive. They had lost six during the surprise attack, and had left two behind to stay with the bodies. They had covered a lot of ground so far, but were no closer to finding Justice, or Madame Aryess. Despite their already diminished size, Daniel decided they needed to split up. He sent Groon with a large squadron down a series of side-corridors, he instructed a small platoon back to the TARDIS to watch over things there, and led a third group with Alanah onward.

Alanah joined Daniel in the front of the march. Despite Daniel's disapproval, Alanah was not about to take a back seat to a rescue mission that she had planned. She bravely strode through the corridors of the ship, causing the rest of the group to have to keep up their pace. Suddenly, she stopped, and put her hand against a thick metal door.

"It's cold. These must be the freezers. The lab is just ahead. We should check it out."

"Wouldn't they have her in a jail or something?" Daniel asked.

"Maybe, but if this is a trap, then Aryess remembers that we've been there before," Alanah surmised.

"So we're saying 'yes' to the trap? We want the trap?"

"If it gets us to Justice," Alanah answered.

They continued their storm towards the lab. A large contingent of guards were waiting outside. Daniel had a new idea. He made the guards picture his raiders as a large group of Tarot approaching the lab. He reached into their minds to communicate, just as he imagined the Tarot would.

Is the prisoner still inside? Daniel focused on the guard at the front.

Yes. What are you all doing here? The guard looked at the large group skeptically. We were told not to-.

Before she could finish, Daniel's raiders seized the group with pounding fists and clubs. The rear flank held their blasters ready in case the Tarot opened fire. Apparently, the suggestion worked too well. Most of the Tarot did not try and resist. They sat confused as a large mass of their supposed sisters beat them relentlessly.

A small group of guards exploded from the lab, drawn by the sounds of the skirmish. Daniel had not been ready. He grabbed Alanah and ducked. The firefight was brief. The guards were taken down easily by his force, with only minor injuries to two of his own fighters. When the gunfire ceased, he grabbed Alanah and ran into the lab. His men led the captive Tarot in behind them, and held positions outside the entrance.

Within the lab, Daniel and Alanah were greeted by several terrified scientists. They directed them to the soldiers in the hall for surrender. In the center of the room, they saw the tear-streaked face of their long, lost friend. She was stripped nude, and restrained to a long, metal table.

"Justice!" Alanah cried, as she ran fearlessly to the Time Lady.

"Oh Alanah! Why would you come here? How could you be so foolish?" Justice pleaded as the girl unfastened her restraints.

"Come on, Justice. I have you to thank for all my foolishness. You taught me too well."

Justice dropped limply from the table, into Alanah's arms. The two girls embraced tightly as they each wept.

Daniel watched their tearful reunion, but scanned the lab with a sick sense of nostalgia. He remembered the room, but only in flashes. He saw the large device that had held him during his incarceration. It had been partially dismantled, but still held the same foreboding danger he had felt that first moment he had stumbled into this room. All around the outside of the lab were doorways to other halls of the ship. He expected an ambush at any moment. He pulled several guards into the room to surround the two reuniting friends.

"Let's hurry up, girls. We gotta go," Daniel ordered.

"Oh! Look at who decided to show up once things got macho!" Justice teased. She limped over to Daniel, and embraced him warmly. "I've missed you, dear. I had thought we'd lost you again." She held his face softly, and gave him a gentle kiss on the lips.

"I missed you, too, Justice. Do you think you can make it? We've got to move quickly."

Alanah removed her cloak, and threw it gently around Justice's naked shoulders. Justice looked at her hungrily and smiled. "My god. You look marvelous, dear!"

"Thanks!" Alanah responded. "I'm starting to figure out why you dress this way."

"It does offer a bit of flare, doesn't it?" Justice smiled. "Why can't one have some fun while billions of lives are at stake?"

"Billions?" Daniel asked.

"Earth, dear. We need to find Aryess immediately, but first we need to secure the TARDIS. Everything depends on keeping that ship out of her hands," Justice stated.

"Don't worry," Daniel explained. "The TARDIS has enacted a failsafe. Only a Time Lord could open the doors. This was a one-way trip if we couldn't get you back."

"As touching as that is, I'm afraid there's bad news. Aryess may have a failsafe of her own. It's a bit of a stretch, but she's managed to encode my DNA into some of her clones," Justice explained.

"Fuck me!" Alanah exclaimed.

"Yeah, didn't see that coming. New plan, then. Run!" Daniel ordered.

The three companions sprinted through the halls of the ship toward the TARDIS followed by a small group of their militia. As they ran, Daniel barked orders to the remaining men on board. Take the ship at all costs. Spare as many Tarot as possible, but do not let the ship leave the system. Daniel tried to reach out to Mavis on board the TARDIS, but he struggled to reach him past the ship's natural defenses.

As they neared their docking point, the trio ran into Groon. He was calmly leading an array of Tarot prisoners.

"Groon!" Daniel yelled. "I need you to take your men to-."

"The Bridge, yeah, yeah. Where do you think we picked up these prisoners? This ain't my first time storming a ship, worm... excuse me, Captain."

"You're the Captain now, Groon. Find these Tarot a cozy place to stay, and start clearing the ship," Daniel ordered.

The giant man smiled, and took to his new promotion readily. Groon ordered the former Captain and her crew to be held in the brig. He sent out two smaller platoons to begin rounding up the remaining captives. He snatched a beige sash from the breast of the Tarot Captain which displayed her numerous achievements and identified her rank. He took the small piece of material and tried to squeeze it over his massive shoulders and chest. The sight of his struggle caused a few of his men to snicker and smirk. Rather than suffer further humiliation, Groon took the sash and spat on it, before tossing it aside. The smiling men quickly turned face-front, and continued their march, hoping not to draw further ire from their new Captain.

Daniel led his team to the TARDIS, but quickly retreated when he withheld the gruesome sight that lay beneath its ancient doors. Piles of bodies lay strewn and bleeding. Some men and women still fought for breath, as they choked and spat. There was no sign of their aggressors. Daniel attempted to warn Alanah before she rounded the corner, but her screams were evidence of his failure.

Justice walked defiantly towards the TARDIS door. Stepping over bodies, and reaching for the handle. She knew what lay beyond, and would see to it alone. She quickly opened the door and squeezed inside, shutting the door forcefully in Daniel and Alanah's faces. Alanah had leapt after her, but was a moment too late. She pulled and struggled with the handle to no avail. She began pounding and screaming at Justice. Daniel pulled Alanah away, and out into the hall. She fell into his arms despondent. All of it was for nothing. The Time Lady was lost to them once again. Possibly, for the last time.

***

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Chapter Twenty-Five

***

Justice entered the control room to the TARDIS solemnly. Surrounding the center console, busy at work on its controls, were the six Time Lady hybrids from Aryess's twisted genetic experiments. They eyed her curiously, as she strode toward their leader. Aryess sat casually in the Captain's chair of the ship; her long, white legs crossed at the knees. On the floor beneath the Tarot mistress, Mavis writhed in agony as Aryess tore apart his mind with her telepathic manipulations. Melissa Trapp laid dead beside him. Aryess acknowledged the Time Lady with a thin smile as she gently fondled a glass jar in her lap.

"Welcome, Arbiter. I appreciate your human servants bringing back my specimens. When their world is reborn, at least some of its new inhabitants will share common genes with its previous population." Aryess threw the jar at Justice's feet, which shattered the glass and spread the mess before her. "We will take this ship to the dawn of human civilization, and stomp them out before they ever spread their diseased society. The Planet Earth will be fresh and unspoiled. Human beings will have never existed."

Justice stepped through the broken glass and spilled semen on the TARDIS's floor, leaving a trail of blood and cum in her footsteps. She approached Aryess coldly, burning through her with her gaze. The Tarot-Time Lady mutations stepped in between them.

"This is your last opportunity to leave this ship alive, Aryess. There is no one here to restrain me this time. You will leave peacefully, and submit to the force that has taken your ship," Justice warned.

"Force? That band of wretched slaves? Do you really think they could have taken my ship so easily? You are hopeless, Arbiter. I don't know why I bother toying with you," Aryess answered. "No, my love. We shall not surrender. My ship is programmed to self-destruct. We shall remain safe inside your TARDIS while your friends burn."

Justice bolted at Aryess in a raging fury. The Time Lady hybrids subdued her with unorthodox strength and will. Justice fought and clawed at the voluptuous white creatures as they attempted to restrain her.

"You fucking bitch!" Justice exploded.

"Oh Arbiter. Will you give it up? I am not a monster. I will offer you a choice. You will help my mutations pilot this ship, or your friends will die. I can stop the self-destruct, but only if you will help me."

Justice laughed maniacally. "Help you? Are you serious?"

"My new Tarot were able to bypass this ship's defenses, but thus far have been unable to pilot the machine. You will take me to where I want to go, or the Tarot ship will explode; killing every one inside. Fly this ship! Now!"

Justice continued to laugh. Tears streamed from her eyes, and she fought with a tight knot in her stomach. The other Time Ladies stared at her curiously, and found themselves unable to help but let a smile escape as she laughed.

"You have made a critical mistake, Aryess. I can't help you," Justice explained.

"You will help me, Time Bitch! This is your ship. Take the helm, or your loved ones will be incinerated."

"Love, I don't know how to fly this fucking ship!" Justice explained, and continued her hysterics.

The Tarot mistress rose slowly from her seat. Her new creations let Justice fall to the floor. Justice continued to laugh at Aryess's expense, until the Tarot queen grabbed her forcefully by her red locks, and picked her up off the floor. She stared deep into Justice's emerald eyes. Aryess snarled, as she pushed her thoughts into the Time Lady's consciousness.

Justice ceased her laughter and found her mind beginning to crush in on itself. Aryess was relentless. Justice could feel her body go limp, as her mind began to boil. At last, with concerted effort, Justice managed to speak.

"I... told you. I told... you. Look... deeper. Take what you need, but... you will fail..., my love." Justice let out a final gasp, as Aryess dropped her limp body to the floor.

"No!" Aryess screamed. "No! Damn you, Arbiter!" She paced furiously around the broken body of the Time Lady. Aryess knelt over Justice and began beating her dead body in admission of defeat. "How could you do this to me? How could you leave me like this? I hate you, Arbiter! I fucking h-!" The body of Aryess dropped stone dead to the floor. A gaping hole in her forehead sizzled with the heat of blaster fire.

The Tarot-Time Lady hybrids stared curiously at the body of their dead mistress. Three of them looked up to see that the doors of the ancient starship had parted, allowing for Alanah to fire a clean bolt through the forehead of their creator. The other three had looked behind, and noted the shattered body of their human captor, Mavis, lying sprawled over the center console. When their mistress had turned her psychic assault onto Lady Justice, it had allowed the nearly broken man to disarm the failsafe.

A storm of soldiers and slaves opened fire through the door of the ship as they boarded Justice's time machine. All the fire was concentrated on the six mesmerized Time Lady clones. Round after round of blaster bolts targeting their heads were deflected against an invisible barrier. The hybrids stood watching as the pirates unleashed their fury, but soon dropped their weapons in startled defeat.

Daniel held Alanah back during the assault. She had dove at Justice once the Tarot leader was exterminated, but Daniel had thrown himself on top of her once the firing began. Now that the shooting had ceased, the two humans raised their heads anticipating victory; only to find all six Tarot-Time Ladies still standing defiantly around the console of the ship.

Suddenly, the room began to shake. The control panel of the TARDIS glowed with white-hot light. The witnesses sheltered their eyes; all except for Daniel and Alanah. They stared waiting; watching. With an explosion, Justice rose up to her feet. Her body glowed with the same white heat of the TARDIS. Her eyes blazed white, as she turned them to her friends.

"Hear me, humans!" Justice bellowed, in a strange, alien voice. "These six Tarot all the final remains of the Time Lord race! They will not be harmed!"

"Justice!" Alanah cried.

"No, my child. The Time Lady is dead. Aryess has taken the last of her regeneration energy, and implanted it into these creations."

"What are you, then?" Daniel asked, unsure he wanted the answer.

"I am the TARDIS. I will not allow you to kill the last of the Time Lords, even if they reside in the twisted bodies of their greatest enemies," the ship boomed. The body it spoke through dangled broken and limp in the air. Justice swirled with white light, but it was plain to see the beautiful goddess had become nothing but a puppet for the omnipotent ship.

"Please! There has to be something you can do! Bring her back!" Alanah screamed as streams of tears glided down her face.

One of the Tarot mutations stepped forward calmly. She kept her eyes fixed on Alanah with a curious sadness. Alanah stared back, seeing the glow of wisdom and patience exuding from the last of the Time Lord race. She moved close to Alanah and placed a white hand against her swollen, red face. "I know you, child. I have seen your face."

Alanah crumbled in the presence of the woman. She had the same body and face of her friend, lover, and leader, but there was a deep sorrow in her eyes. Alanah threw her arms around the startled Tarot, and exploded in tears. "You have to help us. Justice would do whatever she had to. If she is a part of you, then you have no choice but to help. Save her! Do something!"