It felt as though something had muffled part of Lucas's brain, forcing him to drown out his stress whether he like it or not. He wasn't sure how he felt about it, and half wanted to try and fight it, but it just felt… good. The worry that had tormented him every waking moment was dulled, and although it seemed strange, he sort of liked it, in a way.
Several targets stood in a field before them. An announcer proclaimed, "After ten rounds, the battle is betwixt our Lord Sheriff of Nottingham, the stranger known as the Sir Doctor, and the foreigner known as Tom the Tinker." he said, as the crowd cheered on the three men, one dark haired with a long beard, the other two strangely familiar. It was the Doctor and a disguised Robin Hood. Susan groaned, this wasn't going to end well.
"What… what is he doing? Does he even know how to use a bow and arrow?" Lucas asked, confused as he watched the two familiar figures step up to their targets and draw their bowstrings.
"He's 906 years old, he's bound to have learned how at some point." Susan told him, watching the contestants aim at their targets.
"Huh…" Lucas said, looking curiously at the Doctor. "He's aged quite well for 906." "Is he a god? An angel perhaps?" Pit asked, also examining the Doctor. "Those are the only beings I currently know of that age that slowly."
"Time Lord. They have this little trick where if and when they die, they can regenerate and gain a new face. The Doctor's on his tenth face already. Well, I mean, they age slowly either way, but still." Susan told them as she watched the three men shoot. The Doctor managed to split the other two men's arrows, along with splitting all of the ones he shot into two. The crowd was in awe, and the Doctor gave a small bow, enjoying being cheered on.
"So human arrows stick in one another? How strange!" Pit commented, fidgeting with his bow. "My arrows are made of solid light, of course. They don't need to stick in the victim." "How does he do that?" Lucas watched in awe, having never really seen bows used before.
"Yes, it's quite gruesome, really." Susan said, watching the crowd. She was feeling that queasy feeling one feels when they feel the foreboding feeling that something bad is about to happen. What? It happens!
"What happens now? I have a bad feeling about this…" Lucas whispered to Susan in the near silence that followed the cheers of the crowd.
"The Sir Doctor may now come up to claim his reward!" the announcer said. The Doctor walked up and took the golden arrow, then threw it aside. "I want something else." he said to the Sheriff. "Name it." the dark haired man replied. "Enlightenment." the Doctor told him, looking over to Susan, Lucas, and Pit and giving them a look that said 'Stay where you are'.
"Enlightenment? What's he going on about?" Lucas cocked his head slightly to the side, confused. "Why doesn't he want the arrow? I mean, it's made of gold! Surely it's worth something?"
"He doesn't want the arrow, he wants to know what's going on. There's something wrong, he and I can both feel it." Susan whispered.
"What do you mean? It's just some archery contest, isn't it?" Lucas still seemed clueless, but Pit was silently staring at the Doctor. He knew something was amiss.
"Then enlightenment you shall have, Doctor." the Sheriff said. "Kill them all!" he shouted to his knights. Their helmets opened up, revealing robotic faces. The robots shot beams of light out of their palms at members of the crowd, which disintegrated whomever they hit. Suddenly, the crowd screamed, as everyone tried to run away from the robotic knights.
Pit immediately broke away from Susan and Lucas, drawing his bow and releasing several light arrows into the swarm. A few of the robots fell to the ground.
Another robot shot Pit in the side. Susan rushed up to him, her face contracted with horror. "Stop this, stop it now!" the Doctor shouted.
Pit hissed with pain, but started pulling back the string of his bow again, a bright arrow forming on it. Lucas clung to Susan's arm, terrified. Pit didn't release the arrow as he was following the instructions of the Doctor. If nothing else, Pit was very good at following directions.
"Listen, stop your robots. Why are you even doing this? It doesn't benefit you!" the Doctor shouted. The Sheriff laughed. "Take the Doctor and his friends to the dungeons, and 'Tom', or should I say Robin Hood, Earl of Loxley with them?" the Sheriff said, grinning maliciously.
"You can't take us!" Pit released the arrow, which burst just above the Sheriff's head. Lucas cowered behind Susan.
A robot came up behind Pit and shot a tranquilizer into his shoulder. Susan raised her hands in surrender. "Stop! Don't hurt them, just take us!" the Doctor pleaded.
Pit swayed on his feet for a moment before collapsing. Lucas cried out in fear as another robot approached him and clung tightly to Susan's arm, his heart feeling as though it would beat out of his chest.
The robots grabbed all of them roughly by the shoulders and forced them upright. They were carted off to the dungeons, where they were then disarmed and chained by the wrists and ankles and thrown into a dark cell.
Lucas struggled against the chains, starting to panic. His breathing sped up and tears stung his eyes. Pit hung loosely from his chains, still unconscious and bleeding badly from the place he had been shot.
"Alright, everyone calm down. I know this looks bad, but-" Susan was cut off by Robin Hood. "How could you tell us to be calm when we're trussed up like turkey-cocks, thanks to your friend here." he told Susan. "Oi, shut it hoodie, we'd be dead right now if I hadn't intervened in the contest. Besides, long haired ninny against robot killer knights? I know where I'd put my money." the Doctor said. "Will the pair of you be quiet! We need to get out of here. Do either of you have a plan?" Susan asked. "Of course I have a plan," the Doctor said. "I too have a plan." Robin Hood added.
Lucas was getting a bit lightheaded from his quick breathing, and tears rolled down his cheeks. He kept tugging and tugging at the chains to no avail. Pit stirred slightly, groaning as he did so. Blood had soaked through his tunic by this point.
"Okay, Robin, you first. Lucas, calm down, we're going to get out of here." Susan said. "Why does he get to go first?" the Doctor asked. "Doctor, shut up, Robin, your plan." Susan snapped. "I am biding my time." Robin Hood said. "Thank you, Prince of Thieves, Last of the Time Lords?" Susan looked at the Doctor. "Well, I-" but was cut off. "Doctor, can you explain your plan without saying the words 'Sonic Screwdriver', because you might have forgotten that the Sheriff has taken your screwdriver, just saying." she said, adding underneath her breath "It's always the screwdriver." the Doctor stuttered and said, "Okay, let's here Robin's plan first." and looked to Robin Hood. "Oh for God's sake." Susan groaned.
"What's going on…?" Pit muttered, his words a bit slurred. As soon as he realized he was chained to the wall he attempted to break the chains, but soon gave up when he came to the conclusion that it was pointless. Lucas held his breath in an attempt to calm down before trying out some breathing exercise he had learned. He felt… tingly, almost. Like electricity was coursing through him.
"Astrosteel!" Susan shouted. "Astrosteel! God, I'm thick sometimes!"
"What's Astrosteel?" Pit asked as Lucas's shackles started to spark and glow.
"I can cut off the chains, they didn't take my dagger! I forgot I had it until now!" she grinned.