Fic: UNIT Strange Weapons

[thisbluespirit]

Title: UNIT: Strange Weapons
Author: lost_spook
Rating: All Ages / Teen
Characters: Colonel Crichton, Bambera, Sarah Jane Smith, K9

Summary: UNIT 1985: Good scientific advisors are hard to find. Dr Webber discovers why when he’s expected to deal with zombies, aliens and Torchwood on his second day and his only help is a tin dog and a ghost. Colonel Crichton and Sarah Jane are planning an exit strategy of sorts and Bambera is trying to keep her men from joining the opposing forces. They'll all be lucky to survive.

***

I said one of the reasons I wrote UNIT: Transition was that it gave me the key to the Bambera 'zombie' story I'd started and lo, and behold, it worked. There's been some swappage between the two, including Transition getting the traitor and motivation that was originally planned for here and this story getting the character who got rapidly replaced by Miss Andrews. With this and the first one I might never write, they roughly form a trilogy. (Well, if you can call something this loosely connected without the first story in existence a trilogy). It was difficult to do without ending up with a lot of original characters, but you will find Bambera, Colonel Crichton, Sarah Jane and K9 all having significant roles - no cameos here. And Torchwood being their usual charming selves.

Although, as someone who knows very little about soldiers and science and who couldn't see the attraction in Doctorless UNIT stories (unless they involved the Brigadier), it's a bit of a nerve, really, but great fun. Especially making up previous scientific advisors and their respective fates..

As of this evening, still awaiting approval on Teaspoon.

Comments

[jjpor.livejournal.com]

I'm looking forward to reading this; I've been hankering after more Crichton fic ever since that one, and Sarah Jane, Bambera et al sound great. I haven't gotten around to reading the Colby/Leela stuff you posted the other day, but it's on my to-catch-up-with list.

[thisbluespirit]

Thanks. Writing it longhand kept me happy amid the chaos and otherwise ficlessness of last week.

The Colby/Leela stuff is mostly scenes and it's all my fault for sending them to Africa. Next time I entertain myself with throwaway pieces I must remember not to include other characters and murders. I must also remind myself that AUs are bad for me, as I tend not to let go of things easily!

[jjpor.livejournal.com]

I sympathise completely; I speak as someone who is currently writing Torchwood fic centred around a couple of very minor supporting characters who a) nobody else remembers and b) couldn't care less about if they do. I don't know, the Colbys and Crichtons (and indeed Geralds and Harriets) often interest me more than some of the spotlight characters.

Still, some people seem to dig the oldy-timy stiff-upper-lipped alien fighter stuff; makes me wonder if original fic along similar lines might be a worthwhile project, but I can't really afford that sort of proliferation when I'm just trying to get some stuff done.

[thisbluespirit]

Obviously, the five-minute cameos are one thing (that's the Crichtons and the Geralds and Harriets) but DW has all these film-length stories featuring characters who often get a lot of screen time (like Colby, Poul, Litefoot & Jagop and so on) - I only wonder that more people don't end up writing fic about them. :-D The cameos are, of course, even more fun. Heh.

I'm glad that you're writing something original and, yes, note that for Future Reference and progress with the current one - probably a sound plan. (Oldy-timy - is that the technical term for it?)

[persiflage-1.livejournal.com]

We luffs teh Brig! :D

Beta-ish comments:

The funding’s nearly come to an end on that search post of yours

Shouldn't that be 'research post'?

He knelt down and packed up the machine.

"picked"

[thisbluespirit]

1. Oh, yes,, it was.

2. No, he packed up the machine! He didn't pick it up till later. I'll have to make myself clearer, still, but I meant what I typed for a wonder. :-D

Thanks! Always much appreciated.

[persiflage-1.livejournal.com]

No worries. I can't turn off beta-mode in my brain, alas!

[belantana.livejournal.com]

YAY spiky orange aliens, mind-controlled zombies and hapless scientific advisors! I also quite like Bambera. :)

[thisbluespirit]

Thanks! :-) Bambera is, of course, a Real DW Character (unlike far too many of the others in this). (See the 7th Doctor story Battlefield in which she's the new Brigadier and gets an admirer -an AU Arthurian knight called Ancelyn. Bambera/Ancelyn is great fun. It's very odd to write Bambera and have no Ancelyn in this.)

Crichton is too, but he was only onscreen for 5 minutes. Heh.