**POV - ■■■■■■**
**LOCATION - ACADEMY**
It's been 40 years since I arrived at the Academy. I spent my days busy studying or walking around with Graiger. When we completed 20 years at the Academy, we were called the "Execution Geniuses Duo." 'Terrible name; I don't know who came up with it, but that person has a horrible sense of naming.'
The name came about because of our grades in class. The professor would assign activities, and it seemed like we executed them with mastery.
'Like mixing two species in botany or rebuilding a vehicle in a week in the vehicle engineering branch... It was interesting; it felt like we were competing to see who was better since there was no one else in the class capable of breaking our records.'
We have 5 years left before advancing to the next level since these 45 years are considered the primary school of the Time Lords.
Today, we will go to the TARDIS bay to see the interior and the heart of a TARDIS as part of the Stellar Engineering branch. In the future, we will study how a TARDIS is born since they are essentially a living organism that is born, grows, and develops. Rassilon found a way to give life to the machine.
"So, ■■■■■■, what do you think the heart of a real TARDIS is like? The professor showed images when we did that activity of controlling a small artificial star. It must be enormous, like the two stars of Gallifrey."
Graiger was by my side. Over these 40 years, we became great friends. On the days I went home, Gilia would take me to Heartshaven to "play" with Graiger. His father allowed us to use the various ships he had there, as they weren't very dangerous.
We were very adventurous. Once, we ventured into the Southern Forest and were almost eaten by Vortisaurs. His parents and Gilia separated us for about two months for reflection.
'Okay, Graiger and I almost destroyed two ships if it weren't for the Temporal Lock that freezes time before the accident. This happened because we were racing and ended up near a cliff. The ship's flight controls locked due to engine overload, and we almost crashed at over 350 km/h.'
"■■■■■■?"
Graiger spoke again. "Ah, sorry, lost in thought again. Yes, I think the heart of the TARDIS will be a very interesting place to see the art of our people."
As I said that, we arrived at the classroom with Professor Ryle, who was gathering everyone for the excursion to the TARDIS bay.
"Well, since everyone's here, let's go. And be warned: don't touch anything in the TARDIS, as these are test and study TARDISes, since they are old."
As he said that, we started walking toward a walkway connected to the bay.
"Graiger, what about your father's TARDIS? What's it like? He never let me get close; he said that only in school and after the Proficiency exams would I be able to look inside the TARDIS."
Graiger made an annoyed face at hearing that. "He never let me get close either. I don't know why he's so protective of his TARDIS, especially since Uncle Rosger lets us into his."
"Maybe it's because he has some attachment to it, or he thinks we're too dangerous to enter a functional TARDIS."
Graiger smiled at that. "Yes, maybe you're right, haha."
**------------SCENE BREAK------------**
**POV - NARRATOR**
The professor and the class arrived at the TARDIS bay.
When they arrived, an engineer was there, waiting in a TARDIS that looked old. It was probably a Type 39 TARDIS, a generation behind the Doctor's.
As they approached the TARDIS, the professor turned to the class and said, "Well, meet one of the engineers involved in developing new TARDIS models, Troi. He will tell us about the inside of a TARDIS: its Heart, Power Source, and Auto-Repair."
As he said that, Troi began to speak, "Well, kids, let's head inside."
The TARDIS door opened, and we could see the wonders of the Time Lords' art.
When all the students entered, Troi walked past the console and headed towards a corridor, starting to speak: "Well, first, we will see the repair tree of a TARDIS; let's go."
After a minute of walking, they arrived at a compartment containing a large tree that seemed to have several fruits on it. "Well, as you can see, these 'fruits' are organic metal or living metal, the same material the TARDIS is made of. This room is called the Auto-Repair Room or Architectural Reconfiguration System. It rebuilds particles as needed, which is how it creates new rooms or repairs damage."
"You have 15 minutes to observe, but a very important warning: never, under any circumstances, remove one of these fruits. It is extremely dangerous when a TARDIS is angry, as they are living organisms."
As he said that, Troi looked at two students, Graiger and ■■■■■■. He seemed intrigued by them because the two were observing with admiration and noting down every detail. He was tasked with keeping an eye on them because he was informed that they were dangerous near a machine like the TARDIS.
After 15 minutes, Troi called the class's attention: "Well, now let's go to the power source. But to get there, we'll need these suits." As he said that, two other Time Lords brought several extremely resistant suits, made to withstand the heat of a star.
All 25 students going to the Power Source suited up and began walking towards a door with a small, glowing window.
As they approached, Troi opened the door, and we could see something like a miniature sun. He began his explanation: "Well, as you can see, this is the Eye of Harmony, the way Lord Rassilon found to provide infinite energy to a TARDIS. These are stars on the verge of collapsing into black holes, removed from their orbits and placed in perpetual decay, generating infinite amounts of energy."
A student raised their hand. "Yes, Rass?"
"Sir, why are the suits necessary?"
Troi answered as if it were obvious: "To protect us from the heat that a star releases, capable of liquefying our cells."
Upon hearing that, several students became frightened. It was then that Troi noticed that the two prodigies, instead of being scared, were excited, and he began to understand why they were so dangerous at this age to control a TARDIS.
"Well, as with the other room, you have 15 minutes to analyze and observe so that we can go to the TARDIS Core."
After 15 minutes, Troi called everyone back to the control room, where they removed their suits. "Well, now we're going to the final place: the Core."
As he led the way, they came to a door leading to a completely white room where, in the middle, there was an extremely large machine, pulsating like a heart.
"Well, this is the Core, or heart, of a TARDIS. As you can see, it pulses like a normal heart but looks cybernetic because, as you will learn in the future, TARDISes are living organisms."