"Will you be locking up again tonight, my Lord?"

Konran didn't reply immediately. He was deep in thought with his terminal.

Savil watched him, worried that Konran might wait so long he would forget to answer. The old man was in his seventh incarnation, after all, and he appeared to be getting on in years, with his slightly heavy jowls and graying hair. He would no doubt be regenerating again soon, Savil thought.

Savil himself had undergone his first regeneration only recently. He now had the features of a young man, thin, with dark hair, and an expression that never smiled.

As Konran's assistant, it was his duty to neaten the office, initiate the automated evening work schedule and lock the doors before retiring to his home. But for the last few nights his superior had stayed late. This, combined with his almost complete isolation recently, told Savil that some important trial was in the works. Something big. But what it was, he did not know.

Taking Konran's silence for an assent, Savil bowed once and turned to go.

"Impossible."

Savil turned back at the one word uttered by Konran. The office was empty save for themselves. "My Lord?"

"Absolutely...impossible." Konran was murmuring to himself more than to Savil. His voice sounded almost awestruck.

"Did you wish me to stay, then?" asked Savil, who was thinking that surely a "Yes" or a "No" answer would have sufficed.

"Tell me," Konran said without looking up, "what do you know about the Doctor?"

Savil shrugged. "Out of the 16 famous trials we studied at the Academy, he was involved in two of them. Both times he was tried for his life, and both times he was acquitted. The arguments and controversy surrounding each of those trials persist to this day."

"Which is why you studied them in school, no doubt," Konran said tonelessly.

"Well...I suppose so, my Lord."

Konran looked up at him for the first time. Something in his gaze made Savil's hearts beat a little faster. Something unusual was definitely going on.

He wondered if he would be allowed to go home now.

"Your education is only that which was required for a standard law certificate, is that so?" Konran asked.

"Yes, my Lord."

"So you've never actually had occasion to study the Doctor, outside of his antics in a courtroom? Never seen or heard of the life he's led?"

"No, my Lord. I've never thought it to really matter."

Konran smiled faintly – a kind, tolerant smile. Suddenly, Savil could see the weight of all his years.

Konran held the office of Castellan Associate. He could easily have been named Castellan himself, but strangely, had turned down the post. Some people speculated that Konran didn't want a seat on the High Council, which was an honor (and a curse) that came with the position. Whatever Konran's reasons were, he had never told anyone. As he looked at Savil now, though, Savil could almost see what those reasons were. He felt as if he could see all the wisdom, all the weariness...and perhaps something else besides. Something he couldn't quite define.

"Come dine with me," Konran said suddenly. He deactivated the telepathic computer, activated the security systems around his desk, and strode for the door.

"My Lord?" Savil asked, astonished.

"I would enjoy the pleasure of your company over a drink or two. Perhaps three or four."

"My Lord – is there anything the matter?"

"Yes," Konran said, and his eyes were full of sadness and thunder. "There is."

 

Konran led him away from the capital, away from the citadel, away from what many people considered to be the heart of Gallifrey – perhaps even the heart of the universe. Savil had no idea where they were going.

As they walked, Konran talked freely – more freely than Savil had ever heard him speak. The elder Time Lord gestured at the buildings around them, lecturing in vivid color and astonishing detail, giving Savil all manner of history and science lessons, and some surprisingly ribald stories. Each structure, each street corner seemed to remind him of another anecdote. Many centuries of memories were spilling out of him this night. Savil began to revise his earlier opinion that Konran was overdue for a regeneration. He seemed as sharp as ever.

They ended up in what Savil could only have called a "bar," on the (as far as he was concerned) seedier side of town. Most of the occupants were Shobogans – Gallifreyans who chose to live as primitives in the desert wasteland outside the walled citadel, although he could never fathom why. Shobogans wandered inside the wall on a nightly basis, but always on the outskirts, never far from the freedom of the outside world. Several of them looked up as the two Time Lords walked to a table and sat down.

He wondered how Konran had known of the place.

He ordered himself a light meal, but Konran simply ordered a single drink, something called a "Solar Flare" from the Helion II system, and proceeded to stare into it for some time. Savil finished his meal in silence.

Only after Savil's plate was whisked back into the wall slot did Konran begin to talk again. He seemed to be addressing his drink, although Savil knew the words were for him. "How long since you earned your law certificate?"

Konran knew the answer quite well, but Savil told him anyway. "Only half a season, my Lord."

"We're on our own, Savil. Stop calling me 'Lord.'"

"Yes...my Lord."

"Let me tell you a little secret, Savil." Konran leaned a little closer. "You know all those lessons they taught you at the Academy?"

"Yes?"

"Forget them. Forget them now. Drop them like bags of putrefying trash and never look back. If you're not prepared to do that, I'll accept your resignation in the morning."

It took Savil a few moments to comprehend what he'd just heard. When he did, he misunderstood it. "My Lord! If- if I have displeased you in some way, or failed in one of my duties-"

Konran rapped the table once with his knuckles. Hard. "Listen! You are excellent at what you do. You are quite skilled at your duties. But skill alone will not help you through the centuries ahead." He took a sip of his drink.

"What are you saying, my Lord?" Savil asked. His face was white.

"I'm saying that just because you've been taught how to swim doesn't mean you can swim with the sharks."

Savil thought about this for a while. He decided he needed a drink of his own, and ordered a Solar Flare for himself.

Konran asked, "Did any of your Academy professors ever try teaching you about moral dilemmas?"

"Quite often, my Lord."

"And what did they say?"

"That I should avoid them wherever possible."

Konran actually smiled at that. "I'm going to tell you a few things tonight, Savil," he continued. "I'm going to let you in on a few secrets. I'm going to give you a bit of our history. And, most importantly, I'm going to give you a lesson on the Doctor, which you have so keenly neglected to give to yourself. There are certain things, as a future Castellan Associate, which you need to know. So I need you to listen carefully to everything I'm about to say. It's not exactly complicated, but the Doctor has lived for a very long time." He paused for a moment, then said quietly, "And so have we."

Savil nodded and took a sip of his own drink. He immediately spit it out and lurched forward, his eyes bulging and his cheeks turning colors. After a moment he started slamming his hand on the table and twisting his head around, trying to free himself of the fire which had suddenly taken his throat hostage. "Water!" he finally managed to squeak.

"First Solar Flare, eh?" Konran said, and downed his in one gulp. He ordered another and told the dispenser to keep them coming at regular intervals. "You'll get used to them. The first one's always the worst."

"Yes, my Lord," came the polite squeak from the other side of the table.

"Tell me, Savil, have you ever traveled away from Gallifrey?" Konran asked.

"No, my Lord." Savil's eyes were watering, but he was beginning to stop shaking.

"Ever had any desire to?"

"No, my Lord."

"Stop saying 'my Lord.'"

"Yes, my Lord." Savil's breathing had finally come under control. He was feeling very light-headed. He made an effort to shake it off. "I've never wanted to go anywhere else, my Lord. I am content to stay here and pursue my vocation. It's not just a duty, you know. I truly love the law, and all that it represents."

"Well, not everyone feels the way you do. The Doctor, for instance, simply cannot stay put in one time or place. He's always on the move."

"Why? Is he often on the run from someone?"

Konran chuckled. "Actually, he is, but I think he prefers it that way."

Savil took another (careful) sip of his drink. "To be honest, my Lord, I'm not sure why you speak so reverently about one of Gallifrey's renegade scoundrels."

"Scoundrel?" Konran asked sharply. "Is that what they're calling the Doctor at the Academy these days? Rubbish! I tell you, Savil," and Konran leaned forward, "that the Doctor is the greatest hero the Time Lords have ever had, save Rassilon himself."

Savil was half-shocked, half-amused. "Surely you jest, my Lord."

Konran shook his head grimly, staring back at his own drink. "As I said, forget what the Academy has drilled into your skull. Forget it now. It won't do you any good. Listen now as I tell you what you really need to know."

Savil nodded, amused and confused, as Konran began.

"The Doctor left Gallifrey many centuries ago of his own accord, with his granddaughter. He stole a TARDIS that was in the dock for repairs, and he's been on the move ever since. And there were some bad feelings over that, let me tell you. But the Doctor is a wanderer, a free spirit, and cannot be held easily, for he possesses one of the sharpest and clearest minds this dark, grimy cosmos of ours has ever been graced with." Konran stared sadly into his drink, then whispered almost to himself, "And one of the wisest souls." He downed his drink and reached for another.

"You regard him as a good friend," Savil said. It was obvious, even to him.

"Indeed I do," Konran said, and sighed.

"Has some misfortune befallen him, then?"

"Not yet." Konran waited a few more minutes, then continued. "The Doctor cares. I mean, he really, really cares. Whenever he encounters injustice or barbarity, he's right in the thick of it, doing something about it, while politicians make useless speeches and the rest of us just turn away."

Savil spoke up. "But to get involved in the affairs of the universe to such an extent would violate the First Law of Time."

"Indeed it does. But the First Law has since been amended to allow special cases of interference, by High Council decree. And do you know why that amendment was passed?"

"Because of the Doctor's first trial," Savil said simply. He knew that much, at least.

Konran nodded and continued. "He traveled for many years. His granddaughter eventually left him. She married a human, of all things, and settled down on Earth to raise a family. In the 22nd century, I believe it was. Other companions have always joined him in his travels, sharing his adventures. They all eventually move on after a while, but he has rarely been without someone at his side. Oddly, most of his companions have been humans from the planet Earth. It seems that Earth is his favorite planet. Can't see why, myself."

Savil shrugged. Earth was just a name to him.

"But the problem is, the Doctor seems attracted to trouble. At least, he keeps landing in it. And I tell you, Savil, that the Doctor has had more adventures, has had more encounters with evil, and has fought off more alien invasions, than you and I could ever conceive of."

Savil gulped. He took another pull on his drink. (He was getting the hang of it, now.) "And has the Doctor always been successful, my Lord?"

"Always, but sometimes at great cost. There was one event in particular, while the Doctor was still on the run from us, when he stumbled across a renegade Time Lord who was using technology stolen from Gallifrey in an attempt to take over the galaxy."

"The whole galaxy?" Savil asked.

"The whole galaxy," Konran nodded. "The Doctor put a stop to his schemes, but after it was all over, the resulting mess was too big for him to handle alone. So he had no choice but to call upon the Time Lords for help – even though he knew it would mean giving up his own location to us, as well.

"So we stepped in. We cleaned up the mess – and it was huge, believe me. We also brought the Doctor back to Gallifrey."

"So the Doctor..." Savil began, then his face cleared as he realized where Konran was going with this. "The Doctor was also caught, and that's when his first trial took place!"

"Yes. The trial itself is moderately famous, but the High Council decided to withhold the events which led up to it from the public for security reasons."

"But the Doctor was punished anyway, despite what he did?" Savil asked.

Konran nodded. "The Doctor freed thousands of people from enslavement and saved the galaxy from a long and bloody war which would have claimed the lives of millions more. But what did he get in return? We admonished him. We also put him on trial – for 'interfering in the affairs of the universe.'"

Konran shook his head. "We were pathetic. We should have handed the Doctor a medal. We should have handed him the Sash of Rassilon right there and then. Instead, we had him pleading for his life in a courtroom as if he was a criminal. We forced him to use up one of his regenerations against his will – killing one-twelfth of him – and then we exiled him to Earth, refusing him the ability to travel any more."

Now that the law was once again the subject of the conversation, Savil spoke with a little more confidence. "With all due respect, Konran, the First Law of Time exists for a reason. We are Time Lords – we have nearly absolute power over existence. The temptation to use our powers to meddle is too great for some, as Borusa himself has proven. The First Law exists as a means to check that power, to keep us from harming other races, whether accidentally or purposefully. Do you not think that even the Doctor himself should abide by that rule?"

"Sticking one's nose into another person's business is one thing," Konran said. "But it's a little different when entire civilizations are run over by conquerors who are so ruthless and evil that they make your blood boil. Sometimes, Savil – just sometimes – the universe really is very, very simple. Even we Time Lords saw this, which was why the First Law was amended after the Doctor's trial."

Savil shrugged and said, "The matter is academic anyway. The Doctor was eventually forgiven, and his exile was rescinded."

"Only after he saved us all from Omega," Konran interjected. "It wasn't because of any sudden good will from the High Council, let me assure you."

Savil shuddered at the mention of Omega. Everyone knew his name. Omega was one of the most powerful Time Lords who had ever lived. Thought to be long dead, he had somehow found a way to live on in the universe of anti-matter. Embittered over being abandoned there, he had wanted to take his revenge on the Time Lords by destroying the entire universe.

The entire universe.

"Wait a moment," Savil said in amazement. "The Doctor is the one who saved us from Omega?"

"Yes," Konran nodded. "The Doctor is the one who defeated Omega, while the Time Lords here on Gallifrey were powerless to do anything. That fact isn't very well known either, is it?"

Savil's mind whirled. Just how many more revelations was he going to hear tonight?

"It was also the Doctor who saved Gallifrey when the Master assassinated President Crinathia and tried to take control of the Eye of Harmony."

Savil drained the rest of his Solar Flare, and this time it didn't even cause him to flinch, such was his shock at this news. "Is every major event in our history nothing more than a cover-up?" he asked.

"No, but many more than you think."

"And who is the Master?" Savil had to blink a couple of times to bring Konran into focus, and he ordered another Solar Flare.

"No one you need worry about. Just hope you never meet him."

Savil nodded. He was beginning to see two Konrans, and he wondered why that should be.

"Anyway," Konran continued, "after the Doctor saved us all from Omega, even the High Council couldn't bring themselves to keep him captive any longer. They lifted his exile, and returned his freedom to roam all of time and space, which he did for many more years." Konran held his drink in front of him, admiring the light glinting off the fiery red liquid in its crystal glass. "Until he once again landed on the wrong planet at the wrong time."

"Ah, yes, now this I know about," Savil said. "There was no way the High Council could cover that up. The High Council was corrupt, and they'd done something really nasty, and the Doctor discovered it. So they put him on trial again, only the trial was rigged to make sure he was convicted and sentenced to death to get him out of the way. But the Doctor exposed their deceit, and the High Council was deposed."

"And again, the Doctor walked away from his trial, free to wander," Konran said meaningfully. "But there was never any resolution to the charges brought against him."

Savil thought about all this. He felt the Solar Flares burning their way into his mind. He decided he quite liked it. A thought went slip-sliding around his brain. There was something he'd wanted to ask Konran, something really important. What was it? Oh, yes. He asked it quickly before he forgot it again. "Why are you telling me all this?" He took another long pull on his drink.

"Because you'll be attending the Doctor's third trial with me the day after tomorrow."

Savil had just enough presence of mind to turn his head while spitting out his drink. Konran merely raised his eyebrows and took a sip of his own, reflecting that he had never seen Savil act so un-Time-Lordish.

Savil tried to wipe his mouth clean, but missed. He got it the second time, and asked Konran to repeat what he'd said. When he did, he just sat in shock for a few moments, trying to figure out which question he wanted to ask first. He decided to pick one at random. "Why?" That was a short question, he decided. It didn't take much effort.

"Officially, because he broke Section B of the First Law of Time," Konran reported sadly.

"Oh, dear," Savil said.

"Unofficially – I have no idea. But you can be rest assured that this is the result of politics, not criminal investigation." Konran's eyes met those of his assistant. He wanted there to be no mistake. "There's something more going on here than meets the eye, and I don't like it. Someone, somewhere, is putting a good and decent man on the chopping block to further his own political ambition, in some strange plot which I cannot yet see. And because of my personal feelings towards the Doctor, the Castellan has chosen not to include me in the proceedings. Which is as it should be."

"What?" Savil asked. "The Castellan himself is presiding over the prosecution? Isn't that unusual?"

"Highly," Konran agreed. "But in cases of the utmost importance or prestige, the Castellan will take it upon himself to prosecute, rather than pass it off to an associate."

"But the Castellan also has personal feelings towards the Doctor, does he not?"

"That's different," Konran explained patiently. "He's the Castellan."

There was silence between them for a moment. Finally, Savil said, "I can see what you mean by 'swimming with the sharks.' What do you want me to do?"

"I'm assigning you as scribe in these proceedings. A clerical job which is so mundane, Castellan Andred will ignore you completely. You'll be beneath his notice. I want you to keep your eyes and ears open and report back to me anything you hear of interest."

Savil thought about this, then said slowly, "You want me to spy in Castellan Andred's office..."

"Yes."

"...risking my job..."

"Yes."

"...which will be very dangerous..."

"Yes."

"...and probably illegal..."

"Yes."

"...and ruin my career if I'm caught..."

"Or make it. Remember, your career rests in my hands, Savil." Konran's eyes were suddenly very hard.

"And I will be spying on the man who holds yours," Savil countered. He had sobered up quickly.

"Sometimes, that's how it works. You would do well to remember that if you want to make Castellan Associate someday."

Savil shook his head sadly, wondering what he'd done to deserve being placed in this predicament. "A few moments ago, you said the universe was sometimes very, very simple."

"And sometimes, it's not. Cheer up, Savil. I'm not asking you to do anything difficult. I just want to know what's going on, and I suspect a plot of some kind. It really is for a good cause."

Savil sighed heavily. "Very well, Konran. I shall do as you ask."

"Good job, my boy," Konran said. "You'll go far."

"Perhaps. Who shall be defending the Doctor?"

"Parillon."

"Parillon? That's odd."

"Yes, it is," Konran agreed. "The Castellan brings charges against the Doctor, then assigns the very best solicitor on his staff to defend him. It's very strange."

"And what are the circumstances of the case?"

"Well, the charge is valid, but the act itself was so ludicrous, so trivial as to be laughable. It didn't even happen on the material plane."

"Then where did it happen?"

Konran sighed. "The Doctor has befriended a group of humans on a 22nd-century colony world, called G889. The event happened there."

"And how did we find out about it?"

"I don't know. The Castellan is keeping that information a secret."

"He is? Isn't that illegal?"

"No. It's unethical and strange, but not illegal. He's within his rights to do that. That's one of the things I want you to keep your ears open about. All I know is that it has something to do with these humans."

"The colonists?"

"Yes, the colonists."

"What of them?"

Konran noticed Savil had finally stopped calling him 'my Lord,' probably because his respect for the older man had been shattered. He had a few things to learn, that boy. Aloud, he said, "The planet Earth wasn't a very pretty place to live in the late 22nd century. It had been utterly ruined by wars, radiation and horrific neglect. Any human with money or influence escaped the planet to live in orbiting space stations. Anyone who went to the space stations without money or influence was indebted for life, and so were their children."

Savil shrugged. "In a grade 4B civilization, that's the typical reaction to environmental breakdown."

"Yes, quite. But the space stations had a danger all their own. It seems that about one out of every thousand children was afflicted with a strange disease they called 'the Syndrome.'"

"Hmph," Savil said. "Not a very original name for a new disease, is it?"

Konran ignored him. "Their scientists didn't know how to fight the Syndrome, but they theorized that it was due to a lack of nature."

Savil scowled. "Is such a thing possible?"

"It's much more likely than you think, especially in such a weak and underdeveloped species as humans. But the mother of one of the sick children, a woman named Devon Adair, had the money and resources to form an expedition to colonize another world, and they did so. Which is why they're on G889.

"Now, the stations back on Earth are ruled by an organization called 'the Council.'"

"Another original name," Savil interrupted.

"As original as 'High Council?'" Konran asked softly.

Savil shrugged and looked into his drink. He didn't have an answer for that. So Konran continued.

"The Council is completely totalitarian, masquerading as a democracy. They tried to stand in the way of Ms. Adair's expedition, and in the end they decided to get lethal. Ms. Adair, her afflicted son, and a select few others were scheduled to land first, with the other colonists following two years later. But the Council sabotaged their advance ship, and forced them to crash thousands of miles from their destination.

"They were a motley crew, from what I understand. Some of them were merely hired hands for the journey, who resented being stranded on an alien planet. Some of them died. Based on their backgrounds and physical limitations, the chances were high that they would not successfully adapt to their environment in time, fail to band together, and perish.

"But they succeeded. They managed to overcome their differences, and they not only survived, but they salvaged what supplies they could and headed cross-country, over an 18-month period, to set up their colony on time and meet the others, learning what they could about the planet as they went along."

"Hmph," Savil said, showing a grudging respect for the humans who had accomplished such a thing. He wouldn't have thought the species capable. But then, if the Doctor liked them so much...

"But the Council was there on G889 to meet them," Konran said. "A Council operative named Reilly, who lives in an orbiting space station, keeps tabs on the planet. The Council wants to control the planet, as neatly and effectively as they control the stations back on Earth. But they can't."

"Why not?"

"Two reasons. First, they're not smart enough. And second, the planet is alive."

"You mean, like a Gaia effect?" Savil asked.

"That's it. The main indigenous life form is a race of bipeds called 'Terrians.' They have a special connection to their planet, and they can travel through the ground as easily as birds fly through air and fish swim through water. Soon after Ms. Adair's expedition landed, her son was taken by the Terrians and healed of the Syndrome by being included into the planet's life force."

"Impressive!" Savil said, and meant it. "No wonder the Earth Council wants the planet so much. That would be power indeed."

"So it would, but the irony is, it's an intelligent power. It can protect itself, and it only gives of itself to whomever it chooses."

"So," Savil reasoned, "Reilly's first item on the agenda would be to find a way to the boy, and use the boy to find a way to control the planet." He said it as if it was the most logical thing in the world.

"Indeed, and Reilly has tried twice to capture him. Of course, the boy's mother had a few things to say about that, as did all of the humans – and the Doctor, as well. He aided them during their second altercation with Reilly.

"Reilly's first attempt to learn about the planet was through a spy he had placed into their group. Their physician, Julia Heller, was a Council operative. She secretly injected the boy's altered DNA into her own body in an attempt to communicate with the planet. But prolonged exposure to her new friends caused her to switch sides, and she eventually gave up her Council contact."

"Despicable," Savil said. "By abandoning the Council, she became a traitor to her cause, and to her sworn allegiance. Do these humans have no concept of loyalty?"

Konran shrugged. "It's all a matter of perspective. When the humans found out she was a spy, were they not betrayed in their turn? Besides, sometimes things change, and sometimes we learn that the ones we swore loyalty to never actually deserved it in the first place. So don't be so quick to judge."

There was an awkward silence between them for a moment. Then Konran continued.

"The second time, Reilly tried a more direct approach. He sent a ZED – a cybernetically enhanced killer – to kidnap the boy. But the Doctor, in his eighth incarnation, befriended the humans around this time and he helped them to defeat it.

"This group – they call themselves 'Eden Advance,' by the way – eventually made it to their destination, New Pacifica. Their colony ship arrived, but it had also been sabotaged by the Council. Again, the Doctor arrived and aided them. But this time, it was the Doctor's fourth incarnation."

"His fourth?" Savil was shocked. "The humans met the Doctor twice, but in reverse order to his own time line?"

"Don't be so amazed, Savil. That happens sometimes if you time travel a lot, and there's no law against it, so long as you behave yourself, which the Doctor did. In fact, the fourth Doctor never even knew about his future self's earlier visit. His companion at the time was Lady Romana, and she handled everything with true professionalism."

Savil sputtered. "Romana? The Lady Romana once traveled with the Doctor?"

Konran allowed himself a tiny smile. "That's right. Before you had ever heard her name, she was out there in the cosmos by his side, dodging ray guns and bombs and saving people's lives."

"Incredible," breathed Savil. "But where was the crime in all this?"

"I haven't the faintest idea," Konran replied. "And neither does the Doctor."

"Oh," Savil said, looking thoroughly confused. "This case sounds stranger by the minute."

"My sentiments precisely."

"I take it the Doctor's already in custody?"

"He's in one of the holding cells even now. I've heard his story, which is how I know all that I do about Eden Advance. It's all quite remarkable."

"Which incarnation do we hold?"

"His eighth self. From the Doctor's point of view, he has just said good-bye to Eden Advance only a few hours ago, after dealing with the ZED."

Savil shook his head. "Now you know why I never travel off-planet. Time travel gets too confusing." He took a pull of another Solar Flare. "So the Doctor's been to G889 twice. Likes the planet, does he?"

"Could be. His TARDIS certainly seems to. The Doctor just lets his TARDIS choose destinations at random. There's a funny thing about his TARDIS, by the way. You'll see it in the holding cell tomorrow, and you'll wonder what it is if I don't tell you. Its chameleon circuit is stuck."

Savil blinked at him over his glass. "Its what is stuck?"

"Its – here, do you not know anything about TARDISes?" Konran asked.

Savil shrugged lamely. "As I said, I never travel off-planet."

Konran sighed and explained patiently. "The vessel a Time Lord uses to travel the cosmos is known as a 'TARDIS' – 'Time And Relative Dimensions In Space.' The outside of a TARDIS is a plasma shell which automatically changes shape to blend in with its surroundings. You see, we don't like to call attention to ourselves when we go anywhere. It can camouflage itself to look like anything as small as a table to as large as a building.

"Inside every TARDIS, however, is a pocket universe – a whole world the size of a huge space station, or more. The structure of this inner world is internally projected, and can shift around at the owner's whim – rooms appearing and disappearing, corridors getting longer, that sort of thing. It can even shift around its interior due to the owner's subconscious mood, for TARDISes are telepathic.

"In fact, because TARDISes are telepathic – some would say that they are even alive – a Time Lord can form a bond, a special friendship, with his vessel after a long period of time. And if the Doctor hasn't formed a special bond with his own TARDIS by now, I'm very much mistaken."

"So what's wrong with the Doctor's chameleon circuit?" Savil asked.

"It doesn't work, and the Doctor has never bothered to repair it. His TARDIS is frozen into the shape of an object from 20th-century Earth. A phone booth of some kind, for summoning the local police. A 'police box,' I believe he calls it."

"But that's absurd!" Savil said. "No matter where or when in the entire universe the Doctor goes, he steps in and out of a police box?"

"And has done so for the past one thousand years, at least. He doesn't seem to mind it."

Savil shook his head. "Odd fellow."

"And glad I am of it," Konran agreed.

"Konran," Savil said slowly, "What if...what if the Doctor is found guilty?"

"We are sworn to uphold Gallifreyan law," Konran replied. "If the Doctor is found guilty, then that is the decision by which we must abide. Forever."

"I understand. Forgive me for asking, but...what are your own plans?"

"For now, I'm going to get drunk. I suggest you do the same."

Konran stared deep into his drink yet again, dreading his next explanation, but knowing he had to go forward with it. Savil had to know.

"I need to tell you something else, Savil," he said. "And I need you to understand just how serious what I'm about to tell you is."

Savil nodded and leaned closer.

"Have you ever heard of the CIA?"

Savil shook his head.

"No, I thought not." Konran took a long, long pull from his Solar Flare, then proceeded to tell Savil about the CIA. Savil's face turned white as a sheet and he started to tremble.

Then he followed Konran's advice and got as drunk as he could.