The ark moved slowly closer toward the earth, sending the alarms to a fever pitch. Without anything stopping it, it would plow right into their atmosphere, wreaking havoc to systems everywhere.
"Target locked," a tall man wearing thick glasses said from behind a huge layout. The woman in charge held up a hand; wait for her signal. As the ark reached the critical zone, she dropped her hand. The order was given. Though it pained her to see this needless distraction of life, even reptilian life, her first priority was the safety of the earth.
As soon as she lowered her hand, the doors at the back of the room burst open with enough force to slam them against the walls. The man in glasses jumped as a man in a disheveled tweed jacket and crooked bowtie charged into the room.
"Don't you dare blow up that ark!" he cried, deftly moving through the room to the layout and started unlocking the targeted missile.
"Doctor, we have to," the woman replied, motioning to the security guards in the corner. They moved forward and each grabbed one of his arms, pulling him away from the screen. He fought hard against them, straining against them and kicking at them.
"No! No you can't! There has to be another way! I have worked too hard and sacrificed too much for these creatures! Please!" He suddenly broke down in tears and went limp in the guard's arms. "Please…" The people in the room all stared at each other for a moment before the woman snapped at them to get back to work. The man with the glasses reset the missile and launched it.
Everyone watched as the missile shot through the atmosphere and slammed into the ark, snuffing out the last hope of ever preserving the many species on board.
"I'm sorry, Adric…" the Doctor whispered as the debris started dispersing. "I'm so, so sorry…" He tried to picture the boy in his mind with all this youth and boundless energy, but it was fuzzy. Brown hair; piercing eyes; the Elite badge he was so proud of, now shattered in pieces in a closet long lost; his brother's belt that he refused to be parted from. The Doctor had failed him then, and he had failed him now.
