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Chapter Nine
Do You Rendezvous?

I’m dead.

I must be dead.

Didn’t they say everything went black when you were dead?

These were the first semi-coherent thoughts to pass through Eroica’s mind when he regained his senses. He felt like he was floating, too, which only seemed to confirm his suspicions.

“Dorian, you okay?”

Eroica started at the sudden inquiry. Then he recognized the concerned voice. “Jason…?”

“Yes. Are you okay?”

“I think…” Shaking his head to clear it, the thief looked around himself, struggling to focus his thoughts. He suddenly realized there was something wrapped around his body and he assumed that he and Jason had been captured. He must’ve been knocked unconscious and was tied to something. He reached down, discovering the object around his waist wasn’t rope, as he thought. In fact, it wasn’t anything he recognized. It was thick, soft and fleshy. “What the hell happened?” he asked dazedly.

“Ah.”

The Alterran had been wondering how he was going to explain this. Before their pursuers were upon them, he had returned to his true form, which had at one time been described as looking like a cross between a jellyfish and a nest of snakes. His main body was large and bulbous with sapphire blue crystals evenly spaced around the circumference. Below this were dozens of tendrils, which did not support his weight. Instead, he hovered in the air, his tendrils scarcely brushing the ground.

While the thief was looking back, Jason had entwined him in his tendrils and pulled him over the edge of the cliff. For all his show of frailty, Eroica was a well build man and it took the Alterran a few heart-stopping seconds to compensate for the additional weight. He made straight for the ocean, bypassing the rocks and hitting water with some considerable force, stunning his passenger at the same time.

“Dorian, I think you should prepare yourself for a shock,” he said finally.

“We’re dead, aren’t we?”

Jason actually laughed, his sensor eyes twinkling like stars. “No. I pulled you over the cliff. You were knocked out when we hit the water. We’re somewhere in the ocean.”

“What?” Eroica’s mind finally came into focus and he turned in the direction of the voice. All he could see in the enveloping blackness was the glow of blue…crystals? They were close. Very, very close and he reached out a hand, making contact with more soft…flesh? Not human, but... “Bloody hell!”

Jason felt the thief’s body go rigid in his grasp before he started to struggle. This was not going to be a fun explanation if he went into hysterics. “Dorian, calm down, it’s just me. Jason. I had to change form when I pulled you over the cliff, that’s all. You’re perfectly safe.” He started to move through the water, heading more or less in the direction of the rendezvous point.

“Change form…” Eroica repeated dully and stopped struggling. He had been told the Alterran could change his appearance, but had assumed it meant his clothes, not this complete metamorphosis. This was all getting to be too much. Then again, weren’t aliens supposed to look…well, alien? And his extraordinary companion certainly was that by the feel of him.

“Yes. You’ll come to no harm as long as you—” Jason broke off as he felt the thief’s long fingers gently sliding up and down one of his tendrils. “What are you doing? Stop that.”

“You really are an alien, aren’t you?” Eroica cooed as he continued to caress the tendrils that held him.

“Dammit, Dorian, not now!” the Alterran snapped. “Klaus was right, you are a pervert.”

It was either that or panic, and Eroica had already panicked and was not inclined to do so a second time. “Are these tentacles?” he asked sweetly.

Jason gave a low growl. “They’re called tendrils. And I’d appreciate it if you’d stop molesting them.”

“Oh, you darling boy,” Eroica cooed on. “What else can you turn in to?”

“Will you stop that!” Jason pulled the thief’s hands away. “I’d threaten to hurt you, but I’m afraid you’d only enjoy it.”

“Promises, promises.”

There was a second annoyed growl in response to this. “Would you drop the act and concentrate, please,” Jason said forcefully.

Eroica gave him a surprised look. “What act?” he asked suspiciously.

“Don’t give me that innocent routine. I’ve just scared the hell out of you, giving you one of two options; panic or put on your Lord Gloria, pervert extraordinaire disguise so I don’t know what you’re really thinking.”

Eroica gave an alarmed squeak at this revelation but was prevented from commenting as Jason went on to say, “I’m sure it’s great fun to flirt and generally annoy people, but right now, if you don’t mind, I need you to be serious for at least five minutes.”

“Only if you promise not to scold me anymore, you darling alien, you,” Eroica replied, fluttering his eyelashes.

Jason silently counted to ten and found himself wishing he did not have an aversion to violence. He also wondered if it might not have been better if Dorian had gone into hysterics after all. “How did you know the panel was booby trapped?”

Eroica pushed his long blond curls away from his face, realizing at the same time that they were completely dry. He gave the Alterran a surprised look but did not comment on this and actually made an attempt to be serious. “I’ve seen something like it before. I am a professional, you know.” This last remark was stated in a slightly indignant tone.

“I’m pleased to hear it,” Jason replied coolly. “Now if you would just act like one I’d be even more pleased.”

“Where would the fun be in that?”

Jason chose not to respond, especially since he happened to agree with him. Not that he was going to admit to it. Things were already out of hand as it was. There was no telling how this bizarre human would react once he heard that. He was startled out of these thoughts when he was suddenly asked, “Now what do we do?”

“We’ll have to get to the rendezvous point. But I’d rather not do that in the dark. I’m not familiar with the area and may overshoot where to leave the water.”

Eroica suddenly realized something that had not occurred to him before. “You and the Doctor planned it this way, didn’t you?”

“What?”

“Now who’s doing the innocent routine?”

“Touché.” Again Jason’s sensors twinkled like stars. “Yes, that was the backup plan. I didn’t want to tell you because I was hoping not to have to use it.”

“Because I might panic? Well, actually, I did panic, but that’s beside the point.”

The Alterran was silent a moment. “No. It’s because…” He paused. “I’m not really comfortable in my true form with an outsider. Someone who isn’t Alterran. I’ve only just gotten used to the Doctor seeing me this way, and that’s taken years to accomplish.”

Eroica was taken aback by this admission. “I suppose I should be honored,” he remarked. “But to be honest, I can’t see a thing.”

“You will come morning, so just be warned.”

“Why don’t I like the sound of that?”

Jason gave a chuckle in response. “Why don’t you get some sleep? We won’t be able to leave the water until its light, and I’m sure the Doctor’s tracking my genetic signature in the TARDIS, so he’ll know we got away.”

“You two’ve thought of everything, haven’t you?”

Jason gave a small grunt. “If we had, you and I would be on dry land right now.”

* * *

“They’ve stopped moving,” the Doctor announced, his eye glued to the scanner. Once it was apparent that his companion had successfully evaded capture, he moved the TARDIS to an area near the specified rendezvous point.

The Major was beside him and frowned. “Why would he stop? The rendezvous point is only a few kilometres away.”

“But Jason doesn’t know that. He’ll wait until it’s light, so we have a few hours wait.” The Doctor gave the Major a steady look. “I’d suggest you get some sleep, but I’ve a feeling you’ll refuse.” He did not wait for a reply and headed for the inner door, calling over his shoulder, “K-9, come get me the moment Jason starts moving again.”

* * *

Eroica and Jason slogged their way out of the ocean several miles from where they had entered it. Dawn was breaking and the thief was inwardly glad to finally be able to see more than the Alterran’s glowing sensors. Now that he could finally see the Alterran’s true appearance clearly, he was surprised that he wasn’t shocked by it. He had been steeling himself for this inevitability, and was determined not to react in a negative manner no matter what. Not now that he knew what a sacrifice revealing his true self had been to Jason, especially since he had done it to save his life.

“How far is the rendezvous point from here?” Eroica asked finally.

“I thought it was somewhere around here.” Jason stopped, scanning the shoreline for any of the landmarks he had seen on the map. Nothing. Dammit, I must’ve overshot the area. He returned to his human form and looked over at his companion, relief washing over him when he saw he was still calm and relaxed. He was also looking at him in away he knew meant he was fascinated by the transmutation he had just witnessed. “Dorian…?”

“Yes…?” came the cautious reply.

“You have seaweed in your hair.”

Eroica reached up, pulling a large stringy gob of green from his wet hair. “Haven’t you ever heard of accessorizing?” he joked, tossing the offending mass back into the water.

Jason grinned and turned back to look onshore, adjusted his eyes for distance. Maybe there was something further inland. As indeed there was, but it was not what he expected. His eyes grew wide when he saw several men with rifles heading in their direction. Then he saw one man taking aim at Eroica.

Eroica was also searching for landmarks, but his eyesight was not nearly as good as the Alterran’s. He heard Jason catch his breath and turned to look at him. Before he could say a word, Jason was yelling at him. “Dorian, get down!” The Alterran spun around, sweeping his arm across the thief’s chest, forcefully knocking him backwards.

Eroica didn’t have to obey. He lost his footing in the soft sand and fell back into the water. The same instant a shot rang out and he watched in horror as Jason’s back arched from the impact of a bullet. A shocked look came to his face before he landed face down in the surf. “Jason!”

The thief threw a terrified look in the direction of the shot, seeing several men heading straight for them. He turned back, pulling Jason’s limp form out of the water before he drowned. It looked like blood was everywhere and he realized it was the water turning red around the Jason’s body. Blood was pouring from the wound in his back. He put his fingers to his neck, but did not have to search for a pulse as the Alterran took a gulp of air. Thank goodness, he was alive. At least for now.

The satchel containing the component bobbed on the surface of the next wave, and Eroica grabbed it with one hand, holding the unconscious Jason with the other. The men were still some distance away, but he could see they were in the same uniforms as the ones who had chased them from the building. Bloody hell, straight back to the KGB. He did not move. After all, they had rifles and he was unarmed, not that that would have mattered. He doubted he would have been able to hit them even if he were armed with a rocket launcher.

To Eroica’s added horror, he saw one of the men taking aim at him and he closed his eyes, tightening his grip on Jason at the same time. He jumped at the sound of a shot and was amazed when he realized he hadn’t been hit. He opened his eyes to see the man holding his arm, the rifle on the ground.

A laser bolt suddenly fired, striking the next man to raise his weapon, dropping him like a stone to the ground.

Suddenly a voice was screaming at the top of his lungs—in German! Eroica looked up to see the Major, gun in hand, storming in his direction with K-9 at his side. I don’t believe it. Iron Klaus to the rescue!

* * *

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