Ravens (comic story)

Summary
In Feudal Japan: A ronin samurai trudges through ice and snow towards his destination, planning on committing sepuku, ritual suicide. Kneeling under a tree, he is approached by the Doctor. He explains that although he has lost his wife and daughter, another man in another time is about to go through the same thing. The ronin has a chance to prevent his suffering from being repeated, if he goes with the Doctor.

In a near future Britain: A gang has taken a mother and her daughter hostage, along with a number of people in a petrol station. The leader of the gang has a plan to summon a daemon from the past, and has already demonstrated a willingness to sacrifice everyone around him to achieve that. In the middle of his ritual, the TARDIS materialises and the ronin leaps out in a whirlwind of flashing blades and death. He leaves one survivor, the female gang member, who although scarred, lived to tell the tale to the next generation of gang members.

Characters

 * Seventh Doctor

Timeline

 * This story takes place after NA: Cat's Cradle: Warhead
 * This story takes place before NA: Cat's Cradle: Witch Mark