The Swords of Kali (comic story)

 was the second story of the Doctor Who: The Twelfth Doctor comic story series published in 2014-2015.

Publisher's summary
In the distant past, the land that would be India played host to a war between ancient aliens, whose cross-temporal battles contributed to the country's rich myths and legends. Kali, oldest and deadliest of these creatures, was thought defeated long, long ago; her body scattered throughout time to prevent her return. But her psychic essence could not be killed... nor her millennia-long quest for vengeance.

Now, in the 23rd Century, she is on the brink of resurrection. And with India at the forefront of human spaceflight, it's not only Earth that falls to her predations if she succeeds – but the whole cosmos!

In a race against time, and across it, the Doctor and Clara must gather secrets, intelligence and allies from across India's past, present and future — if they are to survive... THE SWORDS OF KALI!

Madhya Province, India. 1825
Late evening in the jungle, two young Indians, a husband and wife, share the warmth of their campfire and a modest meal with other fellow travelers, a middle-aged man and a bent female completely wrapped in a red cape. The couple are traveling to Madhya, where the husband will work for the British Sahib. The man pokes fun at the cloaked figure thinking she might be old enough to remember the time before the British became their rulers.

The man's two accomplices, acolytes of Thuggee like him, suddenly attack the couple from behind and start strangling them. Two bullets find the two attackers as the bent woman, who turns out to be quite young, throws down the cape and unloads her two guns. The remaining Thuggee recognises her as Rani Jhulka, who hunts and kills robbers and murderers like him. He draws his blade intending to devote her death to Kali, but Rani's blade finds him first. She advises the young couple not to continue on their journey as that way leads to death. She, however, plans to go exactly that way.

Fortress Scindia, Madhya Province
A formidable Fortress Scindia is lit by the fool moon. Unnoticed by the guards, Rani jumps from a nearby tall tree to the wall, stealthily makes her way along it, and climbs into a window. Once inside, she continues her trek, until she hears a roar from behind a closed door and a strange voice replying some nonsense about teeth and grandmas. Rani unholsters her guns and kicks open the door... to see the Twelfth Doctor held by a huge hideous monster with sharp teeth and claws. Seeing her confusion, the Doctor offers that the choice whom to shoot shouldn't be that hard in this particular case.

Florence, Italy. 1505
Leonardo da Vinci is painting Mona Lisa using Clara Oswald as a model and asks the Doctor for his critical opinion, when the TARDIS telephone rings. The call is from Tiger Maratha.

Mumbai, India. 2314
to be added

Fortress Scindia, 2314
to be added

Part two
to be added

Part three
to be added

Characters

 * Twelfth Doctor
 * Clara Oswald
 * Kali
 * Rani Jhulka
 * Tiger Maratha
 * Priyanka Maratha
 * Sonam Scindia
 * Chandra Scindia
 * Aamir Scindia
 * Vikas Scindia
 * Karisma Scindia
 * Fourth Doctor
 * Leonardo da Vinci
 * Husband
 * Wife
 * Acolytes of Thuggee

Original print details
to be added

Continuity

 * The Twelfth Doctor calls himself "more Scottish" than his previous incarnations. (TV: Deep Breath)
 * Clara Oswald references multi-tasking her life, while thinking of Danny Pink. (TV: The Caretaker)
 * The Doctor offers Priyanka Maratha jelly babies from his cigarette case. (TV: Mummy on the Orient Express)
 * It is revealed that Clara was the model for the Mona Lisa. The Fourth Doctor was involved in an affair revolving around the painting (TV: City of Death) and an alien presence at one point took over the painting and caused havoc for Sarah Jane Smith. (TV: Mona Lisa's Revenge)
 * The Doctor says he taught Harry Houdini everything he knows. On other occasions, he gave credit to Houdini for his escapology know-hows. (PROSE: The Sorcerer's Apprentice et al.)
 * The Doctor mentions the Jagaroth. (TV: City of Death)
 * Clara tells Priyanka to tell the TARDIS where to fly (TV: Hide) and she subsequently is granted access to the TARDIS' telepathic circuits. (TV: Listen)
 * Clara, who as Kali grows to gigantic proportions, remarks that she enjoyed being taller without having to wear huge heels. (TV: Time Heist)
 * In 1825, a Thuggee suggests an elderly woman might remember the time before the British took control, which happened 69 years earlier, in 1756. Since then, India has been run by the British East India Company on behalf of the British government. (PROSE: All-Consuming Fire)
 * Leonardo da Vinci compares the Doctor's opinions with the eruption of Vesuvius. The Tenth Doctor was partially responsible for the eruption of Vesuvius that destroyed Pompeii and managed to save only one family, that of Lobus Caecilius. (TV: The Fires of Pompeii) Later the Twelfth Doctor will remember that he took Caecilius' face during his last regeneration (TV: The Time of the Doctor) to remind himself to always save people. (TV: The Girl Who Died)
 * Leonardo refers to the TARDIS telephone ringing as bells tolling. A monk in Cumbria in 1207 had a similar reaction and called it "the bells of Saint John" because of the sign on the side of the TARDIS. (TV: The Bells of Saint John)
 * The Eleventh Doctor interacted with the Indian Space Agency in the 24th century to save Earth from the Silurian Ark. (TV: Dinosaurs on a Spaceship)