Convergence on Lawndale - Part 5

 

The Doctor and Quinn were halfway back to the Morgendorffers’ house, when they heard a strange noise. “What was that?” Quinn asked.

 

“No idea,” the Doctor answered. He took out the sonic and ran a scan. “Inconclusive! What do you mean ‘inconclusive?”

 

“What’s inconclusive?” Quinn asked.

 

“It’s unsure if the person was human or not.”

 

“You mean they’re a hybrid?” Quinn asked.

 

“Yes, of a sort.”

 

“Of a sort?”

 

“Mostly human, with some genetic engineering,” the Doctor clarified.

 

Quinn nodded in understanding. “Are they getting closer?” she asked.

 

“No, they’re keeping their distance. But I think they’ve been following us the past few blocks.”

 

“But not from the portal?”

 

“No,” the Doctor answered. “Whoever they are, they’re certainly from this side.”

 

“So, we keep going?”

 

“Yes.”

 

 

Kim, Ron and Rufus arrived back at the portal. “Lawndale. It’s a town in northern Maryland, close to the border with Pennsylvania,” Wade said after Kim had reported her findings on the Middleton side of the portal.

 

“Right,” Kim said. “But are there any records of a portal in the town?”

 

“I’ll see what I can dig up,” Wade responded. “But we are dealing with time travel here.”

 

“Of course,” Kim said. “That would be too easy.”

 

 

“There aren’t any records of a portal.”

 

“But?” Kim prompted.

 

“There are references to ‘strange events’ occurring in early-to-mid May of 1999, so something is definitely going down.”

 

“Thanks Wade.”

 

“So, we’re going to get involved?” Ron asked.

 

Kim gave him a look.

 

“Of course, we are.”

 

“Whatever happened in Lawndale is almost certainly going to spill over to Middleton.”

 

“So, what now?” Ron asked.

 

“We’ll wait, and come back here tonight. It will be daytime in Lawndale.”

 

“Sure.”

 

 

Daria saw Quinn and the Doctor as she turned a corner. ‘There they are!’ She jogged up to them.

 

They quickly caught up.

 

“Let’s recap,” Daria said. “We have confirmed that the portal connects Lawndale to Middleton in a few years in the future.”

 

Quinn nodded.

 

“Yes,” the Doctor said. “But we don’t know who is responsible for the portal, nor what’s going on in Middleton.”

 

“And why Lawndale and Middleton?” Quinn asked with a giggle.  “There is nothing remarkable about either of them.”

 

“Spoilers,” the Doctor commented.

 

‘For Lawndale or Middleton?’ Daria wondered. ‘Probably the latter.’

 

It seemed Quinn had similar thoughts. “Nothing remarkable about them now,” she clarified.

 

“We shall return to the TARDIS first,” the Doctor decided.

 

“What will that prove?” Daria asked.

 

“Probably not much, but I do need to scan the portal from there. I didn’t get much data on it from the sonic,” the Doctor explained. He flipped said device in his hands.

 

‘Right,’ Daria thought.

 

“Let’s go then,” Quinn said.

 

“But what about that mysterious genetically engineered person?”” Daria asked.

 

“Probably not a good idea for them to follow us home,” Quinn added.

 

“I’ll come up with a plan,” the Doctor said.

 

“That doesn’t inspire me with confidence,” Daria said.

 

“It will be a good plan.”

 

 

They were silent as they approached the Morgendorffers’ place along the back lane. They paused just short of the place. “You can come out now,” the Doctor said.

 

A sound as of a whip was heard and a figure swung down from a tree in front of them. “Hello,” the young man said. He took out a card. “Peter Parker. Agent of UNIT.”

 

Daria looked at the card. “You seem to be a little young to be an agent of the United Nations Intelligence Taskforce.”

 

Peter shrugged his shoulders. “Well, I’m still in College. I only work for UNIT part time.”

 

“What does UNIT know about what’s happening in Lawndale?” the Doctor asked.

 

“Not much, Doctor,” Peter answered. “They sent me to assist after the satellites picked up the TARDIS and shortly afterwards, that portal.”

 

“You said, not much,” Quinn said as Daria opened the rear gate.

 

“That’s it, that there’s a portal. I know that the Morgendorffer teens are also involved, but not who is who.”

 

“I’m Quinn.”

 

“Daria,” she said as she followed the Doctor to the TARDIS.

 

 

Peter followed Quinn into the TARDIS. The descriptions didn’t do the interior justice. “Wow it is bigger on the inside!”

 

“That’s hardly original,” the Doctor said from where he was looking at the console. Both Daria and Quinn were looking also.

 

Peter closed the door behind him and approached the console.  “Although I was expecting it to be more, white.”

 

The Doctor scoffed. “It hasn’t been like that for quite a while.” He turned back to the console. “I was right. It is that device in that building generating the portal.”

 

Pictures of the device came up on the screen, answering Peter’s unvoiced question.

 

“There is also the question of what is powering it. I have no idea of what it is.”

 

The screen changed again, focusing on the mysterious power device.

 

 

“I haven’t a clue,” Peter said.

 

“There isn’t much data here,” the Doctor said. “He turned to Peter. What do you know about Middleton, Colorado? That’s where it leads, a few years in the future.”