Disclaimer: Obviously, I don't own anything related to Doctor Who. Damn it.

Okay. I'd like to start by asking that anyone who comments on this not point out the fact that it's impossible. I came up with this idea before "The Day of the Doctor" aired, and I'm a rather lazy person, so getting around to actually writing it was something different altogether. It totally flies in the face of continuity, but I hope to make up for that by being entertaining.

On that note, a little background. This would take place immediately after "The Name of the Doctor". As far as plot summary…you know what? Read it and find out.

Spoiler alert: In future chapters, there will be crossovers. Oh yes, there will be crossovers.

Lock and Key

By Scott Jewett

Prologue

Daleks always survive, somehow.

It was the one thing that the current commander of the Dalek Empire could cling to. After all, every single one of their grand plans for universal domination and destruction had failed, for one reason or another. Their species had been on the brink of extinction countless times, but they had always survived to rise again.

Unbeknownst to other species, Daleks do indulge themselves in emotion from time to time; privately, of course. The commander was clinging to the small shred of pride he felt in their survival (pushing down the warring emotions of his former race, trying desperately to reassert itself against the overwhelming hatred implanted in him during Dalek conversion) when the command platform of his time ship lit up with activity. His crew became as excited as Daleks could, rotating their upper sections in both directions, lights flashing.

"Neural signal detected! Slight Dalek compatibility! Boosting!"

"Source is…human! But with minimal Dalek neural overlay!"

"Explain." The commander rolled toward his science officer.

"Human female, young, shows signs in neural pathways of Dalek programming. Identifying…Oswin Oswald."

"Impossible" the commander snapped. "Dalek Oswin confirmed dead in destruction of prison planet."

"Identity confirmed as Oswin Oswald, commander" was the reply. "Genetic scans are identical."

"EXPLAIN. EXPLAIN" the commander said, becoming as agitated as a Dalek could under such circumstances.

"Unknown variables. Attempting to scan neural net" the officer replied.

Meanwhile, aboard the TARDIS…

Clara awoke with a start in the TARDIS infirmary. She looked around, finding herself on a floating table. Holographic screens over her were monitoring her vital signs. A smile came to her face as she saw the sleeping occupant of the chair next to her.

"Doctor?"

The Doctor snapped awake. "Clara! Oh, my Clara" he said, leaping to his feet, sonic screwdriver in hand. He scanned her as she smiled.

"Do you really have to scan me if the TARDIS is monitoring me?"

"No," he replied, "but it looks cool and makes me feel better. Now," he said, settling into a more businesslike manner, "how do you feel? What do you remember?"

Clara frowned in concentration. "I feel fine, thank you…as for what I remember…" She trailed off, trying to recall what had happened when she'd jumped into the Doctor's timeline. "Not very much, I'm afraid. I recall being there the day you stole the TARDIS…can't believe you wanted to control your navigation, by the way…I remember being in Victorian London, climbing a staircase into the clouds…" She swallowed hard before continuing. "And I remember being Oswin." Clara shuddered, recalling with unfortunate clarity every single detail of "her" conversion into a Dalek.

The Doctor nodded. "I suppose that makes sense…those were the points where you affected my life most directly, after all. If I had to guess, I'd say the rest of those memories are buried deep in your subconscious. But," he added, glancing at his screwdriver's readout, "they don't seem to be affecting you harmfully, so I think they can all stay there."

Aboard the Dalek ship…

"Neural net accessed" the science officer said. "Unusual temporal activity. Scanning subconscious of Dalek Oswin." A holographic projection popped up in front of the Dalek commander. Every officer on the command platform turned to view it.

As Clara's subconscious memories of her most recent adventure were recalled, the Dalek commander's eyestalk widened in surprise. Clara's trip through the Doctor's timeline, through all of his travels and adventures, succeeded in restoring the Doctor in the Dalek memory banks. The commander watched and watched, cross-referencing each adventure with the history he'd had integrated into his neural net, becoming more and more shocked as each failure the Daleks had attributed to various other factors was replaced with the truth:

"It was the Doctor" he said.

"It was always the Doctor" the science officer spoke up. "He has defeated us time and again, throughout history, and we did not remember."

"EXPLAIN" the commander said, the upper section of his battle armor rotating back and forth in fury. The science officer called up the memory of Oswin removing all memories of the Doctor from the Dalek neural net. There was silence for a few moments, as all the Daleks processed this new information.

"The Doctor must be exterminated. Strategize" the commander finally ordered.

"Suggestion, Commander" the science officer said. Clara's memory of the end of the Last Great Time War was recalled. The Daleks watched as the War Doctor removed something from the Black Archive on Gallifrey. He assembled a small flat disk, roughly the size of a human dinner plate. There was a keyhole in the middle. The Doctor ran for his TARDIS, which he immediately flew into an adjoining galaxy. He then connected the disk to the TARDIS. A tear formed in the corner of his eye as he took the TARDIS key from around his neck, fitting it into the keyhole. He looked up at the viewscreen at Gallifrey, his homeworld, locked in its deadly battle with the Dalek Empire.

"Four point two seven billion" he whispered as he turned the key. Gallifrey and the Daleks vanished. The Dalek commander watching rolled back a foot or two.

"What happened? Explain. Explain!"

"Unknown, Commander" the science officer said. "The Doctor was alone and did not explain his actions. Dalek Oswin was only observing."

"Now, what to do…" remarked the voice that made the Dalek commander roll forward again.

"I don't want it…too much temptation. I don't need it here as a reminder. I'll have to hide it somewhere…aha!" The Doctor moved around the circular console of the TARDIS, punching buttons, flipping switches, and entering a series of coordinates the Daleks immediately made note of.

"This is going to be tricky…" the Doctor muttered as he jettisoned unnecessary parts of the TARDIS to conserve power. "It's going to be much harder to jump dimensions without the Time Lords…" He yanked on a lever…and the TARDIS vanished. The screen went dark.

"EXPLAIN" the commander said, sounding somehow even more angry than usual.

"Unknown. We cannot follow the Doctor across the multiverse."

The Dalek commander acted immediately. "Track down the TARDIS."

A/N: And there's the prologue. Read and review!