DOCTOR WHOOVES: SEASON 1

"If the doors of perception were cleansed, everything

would appear to man as it truly is: infinite."

-William Blake-

Friends are like stars. Even when you can't see them, they are always there.

-Confucius-

PROLOGUE

GALLOPFREY, HOME PLANET OF THE TIME PONIES, A LONG TIME AGO...

  “Come on hooves, don’t fail me now!"

  Two ponies rushed through the winding corridors of Gallopfrey’s capital city like Death was chasing them. From a certain point of view, that was exactly the case. Against the wishes of their feuding Houses, the young stallion and mare refused to end their relationship, and were now paying the price for defiance. Going against the will of one’s Kithriarch (the title given to the head of one of the Great Houses) was considered just as damning as treason.

   “Why does love have to be so bloody difficult?,” the stallion grumbled bitterly, “well whatever the case may be, I am going to marry the love of my life, and our esteemed leaders can take their hate and shove it somewhere deep and dark!”

  Charging down the hall after their quarry were two squads of Chancellery Guards. The two-dozen red-and-white armored ponies answered to the Castellan, and were infamous for their brutality when it came to dishing out swift justice. To add to the dire threat, all wielded staser pistols, rifles, and pikes.

  An acronym, S.T.A.S.E.R. stood for Space Time Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation. The compressed time energy was useless against non-organic matter, but caused massive tissue damage to the living, making them a surefire way to stop a Time Pony’s regeneration, which was permanent death.

  Skidding to a stop just in time to avoid a collision with a shell-shocked Pegasi mare, Sydney Whooves and Derpy Do rounded the corner and continued their flight from the guards, ignoring the burning sensation in their chests as strained lungs protested such mistreatment. Reaching an enclosed glass skywalk, the duo dodged around numerous pedestrians, shouting back profuse apologies to any who were bumped.

  “Sydney, are we almost there?” Derpy asked breathlessly, trying her best to keep up with her far more athletic special somepony, “I don’t know how much longer I can keep running!” Sweat beaded her forehead and ran down her sapphire blue coat.

  Where in the void did Sydney get all that energy? She made a mental note to try and cut down on how many muffins she ate for breakfast: six instead of the usual baker’s dozen. Maybe that would help her keep up easier? She had noticed that she was getting a little bit round about the middle lately. Good thing the TARDIS had a gym!

  Derpy immediately skidded to a stop as a dark-coated rump filled her vision. She barely avoided getting a faceful of (admittedly nice) plot. Sydney stood in place, still as a Weeping Pegasi in a crowded room. His blue eyes were locked on a point near the other end of the skywalk.

  Following his gaze, Derpy caught sight of the horde of Chancellery Guards blockading the exit. The jerks were keeping she and Sydney from safety and freedom, from spending the rest of their lives together in marital bliss, all over a stupid ancient feud!

  Feeling something in her mind snap from all the frustration and anger she kept locked away inside, Derpy’s pupils shrunk to pinpoints, her lips curled back in fury. A rather unnerving tic developed under one cornflower blue eye, and her expression shifted to blind rage.

  Turning to look at his beloved, Sydney realized that perhaps he should get the void out of her way. Derpy was the sweetest soul when happy, but in rare instances where her ire was peaked, anypony in her targeting reticule was in for the beating of thirteen lifetimes.

  “Hop on and hang on tight!” Derpy commanded in a tone that brooked no argument, “we’re getting off this stinkin’ planet one way or another!” She took the stance of an angry bull, snorting like one too. Scraping a hoof on the smooth floor tiles, she flared out her wings and grinned like a maniac at the guards. A few took nervous steps back, not used to seeing somepony bold enough to stand up to them.

  A small crowd of Gallopfreyans gathered nearby to watch the spectacle. Rarely did something so exciting as a showdown happen on their world, let alone in the capital. Bets were placed and mazumas changed hooves.

  “Derpy, w-while I admire your bravery in the f-face of danger” Sydney stammered, fearing for her well-being as any good fianceé would, “charging at a horde of armed guards is suicide!” Not even he could avoid a barrage of staser fire.

  Slowly turning her head back to glare at him, Derpy growled, “get.on.my.back.NOW!” Afraid of the consequences of not listening to his angry love, Sydney immediately straddled her back, wrapping his forelegs tight around her neck. Hovering into the air, Derpy rocketed forward towards the barricades, belting out a fearsome war cry. Some of the guards chose to scatter, while a number stood their ground and fired their stasers...

...to no effect. The bolts of deadly energy struck some kind of shield around Derpy.  Sydney racked his memory and finally remembered that he had given her a pair of personal shield horseshoes, way back when they were still in the dating stage of their relationship.  He could have sworn she lost them in the swamps of Kelpie IV.

  “Brilliant thinking Derpy!” Despite all the whispers and rumors that the mare was dumber than a bag of hammers, Sydney never once believed it. Her natural Time Pony smarts did exist, tending to surface when she was sufficiently motivated.

  The Chancellery Guards that chose not to dive out of the way, let out Wilhelm Screams as they were smashed aside like so many bowling pins.

  “Oops. My baaad!” Derpy sarcastically called back over her shoulder, dodging several guards who tried to grab her legs. She kicked one in the snout and another in the eye. Finally out of reach, she kept going and flew up and out into the airspace over the capital.

  Arching overhead was an all-encompassing glass dome that protected the city from external threats. Beyond could be seen an orange sky, darkening to red as late evening shrouded the western hemisphere of Gallopfrey. The Mountains of Solace and Solitude surrounded the grand capital on three sides, making for quite the breathtaking view. It was no wonder that the Founders chose this spot.

  Derpy did not stop to admire the scenery however. She made an immelman turn, passing over the skywalk as she made a beeline for a massive tower rising high above the city blocks. The tower was one of four TARDIS hangars, where Time Ponies stored and worked on their time machines.

  With the bloop of sirens and a flash of red and blue, the Citadel Sky Patrol arrived on the scene, likely called in by one of the still conscious guards. Sitting astride polished hoverbikes, the four helmet-clad ponies surrounded Derpy above, below, and to either side, trapping she and Sydney between them.

  “Surrender now, citizens!” one of the riders warned, “you’ve got nowhere to go. Orders are to bring the both of you in alive to stand trial. My boys and I will be promoted for sure if we haul your sorry plots in!” He revved his engine, eager to end this chase and celebrate the victory over a round of ice-cold jinnera.

  Sydney’s expression quickly shifted to a maniac grin as he fished something out of his blue business-suit. Pulling his nose out of his pocket, he had a silver pen-like device clamped in his teeth. He immediately had four stun pistols aimed at him.

  “Shorry boysh, buh ahm afrahd ah can’t let you shoot us!” Sydney replied as best he could around a mouthful of sonic screwdriver. He used his tongue to press a button, causing the device to emit a high-pitched whirring noise.

  The Sky Patrol heard a similar sound coming from their hoverbikes, which quickly lowered in pitch until the familiar engine thrum ceased completely. The Sky Patrol officers looked at each other for a moment before letting out a simultaneous “OH SHIT!” as the stalled vehicles plummeted out of the air like stone birds.

  “I’m sorry!” Sydney called down to the Sky Patrol, who were now sprawled on the rooftop, “I’m so, so sorry.” He knew that the officers would recover. Time Ponies were capable of surviving long falls

that would kill most other species.

  Flying onward to TARDIS Tower 3, Derpy made a somewhat graceful landing at the entrance. Kneeling, she allowed Sydney to climb down off her back before running through a broad arched doorway at the other end of the hangar.

  Sydney followed close behind, keeping his senses alert for any ambush patrols that might have been set up. The Chancellery Guard might have been brutes, but they were far from stupid. Most of them were anyway.

  The TARDIS storage bay was composed largely of impervium, a practically indestructible metal similar in appearance to stainless steel. Every gleaming surface was devoid of tools or other equipment, which was generally owned by the various licensed Time Ponies, and thus kept stored in their respective machines.

  Stored in rows of recessed berths stretching as far as the eye could see, were thousands upon thousands of TARDISes kept in their stock form of a simple black cylinder with a door on one side. A wide base kept them upright and also served as a step. Stamped along the front of the base in white block letters was the model number. Many TARDISes present were of the newer Type 98. Most Time Ponies did not become strongly attached to their machines, quickly swapping them for a new model when available.

  Despite the fact that they all looked the same, Sydney knew exactly where to go. He led Derpy over to one of the berths six rows to the right and down another three. Fishing a keychain from around his neck, he unlocked his TARDIS (a Type 40 Mk. III) that he had been refurbishing in his spare time.

  Discovering the battered old TARDIS in the graveyard where all old models were callously discarded, he had quickly found himself in love, in the way one feels after purchasing a classic car and realizing that you have something special, something that was one-hundred percent yours. Ushering Derpy through the door, Sydney gave one last furtive glance around the garage.

  He immediately caught sight of a pony leaning against the wall by one of the berths - looking right at him. Cast largely into shadow by a series of burned-out lights that were overdue for replacement, he could not identify the gender, though by the smaller frame he assumed mare. Nonetheless, he prepared to bolt back into the TARDIS and deadlock the door if necessary.

  “Don’t worry Dr. Whooves” said the mysterious observer quickly, speaking in a feminine tone that confirmed her gender, “I would never turn you in. I just want you to deliver a message to a group of mares on the planet Equus. The seal is heavily enchanted, and will only open at the right point in time, only in the presence of those meant to read the contents.”

  Sydney noted that the observer’s voice held the roughness that came with advanced age, and a heavy sort of weariness that made even one as young as he feel old and tired. A horn lit up with a white light, which also surrounded an envelope in the energy field. Only a bit of the caster's face was visible in the faint glow, revealing a greying black mane and a bluish coat. Sydney caught the envelope carefully in his teeth, tucking it into the pocket of his suit. Wondering what sort of Time Pony had a horn, he gave the mare a kind smile.

  “I will deliver your message as soon as possible, ma’am” he replied, “would love to stay longer and chat, really would, but I got to go before the Chancellery Guard catch up and pound all the regenerations out of me. They are quite hacked off at my fianceé and I. Don’t fancy the punishment awaiting us after our ‘trial.’”

  The observer slowly nodded in understanding. Breaking into a racking coughing fit, she managed to flash a bright smile that was just visible in the darkness.

  “I’ll distract the guards while you make your escape" she told Sydney, "Harmony bless you and your fianceé.” She vanished in a flash of bright light, apparently teleporting away. Grateful for the help, Sydney waved and ducked back into the TARDIS, closing and locking the door behind him.

  The interior of the console room was currently in the stock theme, with white roundels framed by silver and not much else of note. Once he figured out how to get the desktop system working though, he would definitely change the theme to something more welcoming. Either steampunk or coral sounded rather interesting.

  Hurrying over to the hexagonal center console, he quickly began entering commands on the flight system panel. He was immediately joined by Derpy, who helped speed up the process by working the power system controls. She looked up from the graph bars on the screen representing power, which indicated nearly optimal levels.

  “Who were you talking to out there?” Derpy innocently asked after a moment, looking back down at her side of the console. Most Time Ponies were jerks, but a rare few (like she and Sydney) were friendly. Some were even heroic, like the swashbuckling Corsair.

  She wondered where he was now, and if they would run into him (or possibly her if he had regenerated). She personally hoped to keep her gender the same throughout all of her incarnations. Becoming a stallion would make things a little awkward.

  Sydney smiled and replied, “just somepony who wanted me to deliver her letter to a planet called Equus. She looked to be getting on in years and had this really nasty cough, so I guess she didn’t have the strength to make the delivery personally. Once we’ve gone to a few places to throw off any pursuers, we’ll go to Equus.”

  “Sounds like you’ve got a plan” Derpy replied, giving a warm smile that could almost thaw even the Lord President’s hearts. Almost. “Let’s get out there and see what trouble we can get into. Anywhere is fine, as long as it’s far from Gallopfrey!”

  Sydney looked through the database for potential worlds to visit. He spotted one called Earth and selected it as the TARDIS destination. He had not been there yet, and it had an interesting name. Very little was known about it, save for the fact that it had a wide variety of biomes, was covered mostly in oceans, and the dominant species were primitive apes. Sounded like an interesting place.

  Flipping one final switch to distribute the built-up power from the core, Derpy placed her hooves on the dematerialisation lever, which would send the TARDIS into the time vortex. Sydney placed his own hooves over hers, giving his special somepony an affectionate nuzzle.

  As one, the newly-minted renegade Time Ponies pushed the lever up. With a thump and a pleasant hum, the time rotor in the center of the console whirred to life.

  Next stop: Earth!