Chapter Text
The day before the beginning of the Time War.
Romana stood in her white robes, her blonde hair falling down to her shoulders. Her cuboid control room, with stone walls and pale-blue roundels with a hexagonal pale-gold console was rich with a stale tension uneasily awaiting news from the battlefront. A brown-haired woman in what seemed to be leather ran into the room, panting.
“My lady president.” She panted.
“Please, Leela. Call me Romana.” Romana assured.
“Very well Romana. Come along K-9!” Leela yelled. A small, grey robot dog trundled into the room with a whir.
“Coming mistress!” A high-pitched voice came from outside. K-9 -a small, grey robot dog- trundled into the room with a whir.
“Greetings other mistress.” K-9 greeted Romana.
“Hello K-9. What news do you have?”
“The Daleks are amassing forces. They’ve made alliances with other species to help defeat our forces.” Leela answered.
“Other species? Allying with the Daleks? That will end well.” Romana muttered.
“Mistresses?” K-9 asked.
“Yes?” Romana and Leela answered.
“I am intercepting a transmission. It is as follows.” K-9 spoke, before a mechanical voice boomed from his voice box.
“Time Lords of Gallifrey! This is the Daleks! If you surrender yourselves to us, then we will not exterminate your peoples! Cease Transmission” Before it fuzzed out.
“End of transmission, Mistresses.” K-9 said, his voice back to normal. Shortly after, one of the roundels on Romana’s control room turned into a screen, a Dalek on it. It played the exact same thing K-9 had said.
“Attention Mistresses. I am receiving several transmissions coming into this room.” K-9 informed.
“You told K-9 to intercept transmissions coming into Gallifrey control?” Romana asked, stunned.
“I did not.” Leela defended herself.
“The Mistress is correct. She only told me to intercept all transmissions.” K-9 confirmed.
“K-9? What line did that transmission go on?” Romana asked, as the roundels on the walls flickered, turning into round screens.
“Scans indicate it was transmitted along Gallifrey emergency frequency, Mistress.” K-9 answered.
Twenty minutes later, Romana sat in her pale-gold throne, a roundel being used as a camera. Across Gallifrey, all devices were showing the same feed and playing the same noise.
“Residents of Gallifrey. This is your Lady President speaking to you. Earlier, the emergency line was hijacked by an unknown force. I urge you all to remain calm. The transmission sent to your devices earlier was likely a hoax. The Time Lords shall live long and prosperous lives.” Out of sight, Leela stood at the console, ensuring the feed worked well.
“Once again, I urge you all to remain calm. You will all live happy lives. Until we can ascertain the true nature of this broadcast, I advise all to stay in your homes and remain calm. I will inform you of information as it arrives, I assure you. May Rassilon be with you.” Romana said, ceasing the transmission.
“Mistress. I am intercepting several transmissions.” K-9 informed Romana.
“That would be the public trying to contact me. Postpone them all, Leela.” Romana commanded. K-9 spoke up with news.
“Mistress?” K-9 spoke.
“Yes?” Romana and Leela spoke.
“I have managed to reverse the signal’s path and locate the source.” K-9 answered.
“Good boy, K-9. Where is it?” Romana complimented, before adding a question.
“It is in galactic quadrant 4-omega-9.” K-9 answered.
“I shall send a reconnaissance scout to look there.” Leela said, turning to leave.
“Wait!” Romana yelled. Leela turned back around.
“My apologies. Romana, may I-” Leela began.
“Not yet. I wish to appoint you war commander. You have treated me well, and you have a nose for battle. However, such a thing cannot be done except in the presence of the High Council.” Romana cut in.
A short while later, Romana stood on the proscenium, looking out at the sea of Time Lord dignitaries. Some voices cut through the rabble.
“What do you mean, unknown? They identified themselves!”
“We have yet to confirm their identity. We have tracked their location, and we are working to ascertain their true species. Now for what I called this session for. I propose Leela be placed as War Leader. She has served us well and has a nose for battle. All those who stand against my judgement, raise your hand.” Romana spoke. No-one raised their hand. But one voice cut through the silence.
“I propose we retrieve Rassilon’s body and resurrect him.” This naturally caused uproar, before a vote was counted. Enough said yes to warrant an expedition.
“I believe you may have forgotten that his body lay in the Death Zone.” Romana rebutted. She hadn’t been there, but when she was being dragged in, she got caught in a Time Eddy. It was a headache to say the least.
“Then we shall go there!” The voice came again, causing enough uproar that it could be heard throughout the building. The decision had been made by the High Council.
“They say they are intelligent, yet they think like a man with no brain!” Leela scoffed.
“What is the Death Zone?” Leela asked. She didn’t know it.
“I would also like to add it to my data banks, Mistress Romana.” K-9 added.
“Oh, very well. Long ago, in the time of Rassilon, my predecessor many times over, decided that it would be worth their time to create a zone in time where they would deposit members of a species, and they would fight to the death. The Tower of Rassilon is located there, behind several tests. If you pass the tests, then you would find Rassilon and his ring of immortality. That’s assuming you survive the monsters. It was shut down when the time of Rassilon came to an end.” Romana answered.
“What sort of tests?” Leela asked. Romana was silent.
“Insufficient data, Mistress Leela.” K-9 answered at the same time.
“Then it appears I shall have to go myself to find out.” Leela said, getting up.
“You can’t go!” Romana gasped.
“This Rassilon sounds cruel. If I allow his body to be resurrected, then that cruelty will begin again.” Leela rebutted.
“Oh, very well. But try to make it look like you’re not there to ensure they fail.” Romana submitted.
“Come along, K-9.” Leela said, turning to the door.
“Coming, Mistress Leela.” K-9 answered, trundling alongside Leela.
“Leela!” Romana yelled, causing Leela to turn around.
“Stay safe.”
“I shall, my Lady President.” Leela answered, a grin on her face.
“And you understand that this will be your only way out?” A Time Lord asked, holding up a reflective copper ring. A squadron of five time Lords and Leela nodded.
“Affirmative.” K-9 answered.
“Very well, then.” The Time Lord answered, handing them each a ring. A panel in the steel wall opened, causing a stream of blinding white light to break into the room. Leela led the way through, followed by K-9 and the five other Time Lords.
When Leela left the shimmering kaleidoscope of the Time Vortex, she was in a misty, emerald-green forest. If it wasn’t in a place called ‘the Death Zone’, it would’ve been awe-inspiring. K-9 and the other Time Lords came out soon after.
“Welcome to the Death Zone.” Leela muttered under her breath.