Doctor Who: ALBION - Countdown

Chapter 22 - Overdue

Disclaimer - I don't own nothing or nobody you know/recognize. Doctor Who is intellectual property of the BBC, afaik.

Characters: Gleeson!Doctor, Markham, River, Jack, OCs


"I'm sorry, sir, there's nothing more that we can do," the doctor informed him.

"She's too young," he countered. "She's my baby girl, there must be something? Money is no object!" he begged.

The doctor gave him a sad look. He knew any parent would say the same, and this man was one of the few who could actually back up that claim. "I'm sorry. It's only a matter of time. I would suggest you spend it with her, make her comfortable."

"Please! You have to do something!"

"I've done all I can," he said and turned to leave.

The man turned back to the observation window and stared at his sleeping daughter. A nurse quietly arranged the stacks of books she loved to read and he read to her when she was awake. Times that grew fewer and farther between as she grew sicker. He barely noticed she had exited the room until she spoke.

"Oh! Excuse me, sir, but visiting hours are almost over."

He slowly turned to her in quiet anger. "Do you know who I am?" Then he saw she was looking past him.

"Felman Lux?"

The voice had came from behind him. He turned to see two men standing there. A tall, burly ginger in a brown suit and overcoat and his associate, standing slightly behind appeared to be slightly smaller, with dark, close cropped hair and beard. His suit was all black.

"You are Felman Lux, are you not?" he repeated.

"Who are you?"

The ginger man smiled. "I'm the Doctor, and I believe we can help each other."

"Another doctor," he snarled. "Unless you have some miracle cure that will save my daughter, I don't want to hear it."

"Yes and no, Mr. Lux." He held out a PAD screen.

Lux hesitantly took it and began scrolling through plans for a building. A very large building. "What is this?"

"How would you like your daughter to be remembered for generations to come?"

Lux kept scrolling through the plans. This building was larger than he realized. He began to understand. "I don't know what you're trying to sell me, but now is not the time," he warned.

"I'm not trying to sell you anything, Mr. Lux," he said. "These are plans for a memorial library for your daughter. All I ask is that you make it the largest repository of knowledge ever created. Donations from hundred of worlds, none will be refused."

Lux laughed at him. "That would be an insane undertaking. Why, the costs alone-"

"Your name and your daughter would be remembered for centuries to come. What better legacy for a girl who only lived a few short years?" he gruffly suggested.

The Doctor's associate swatted him on the arm. "What my friend is trying to say is, the technology exists to let her mind live on as a caretaker of sorts, in the library."

Lux kept scrolling. Their idea had merit, he hated to admit, but there was one question he had to know. "What's in it for you?"

"Your daughter isn't the only one whose life can be saved by this," he insisted. "We only ask that we be allowed to design one small part of the security features. An emergency protocol, if you will."

Felman Lux eyed him suspiciously. "I'm listening."


"Are you sure this is wise?" Jack inquired, zipping up the white hazard suit uniform.

"Right now, you're the only one who has a chance of surviving an encounter with them," the Doctor assured his immortal friend.

"Yeah. That's reassuring," he snarked as the Doctor fastened the helmet on.

He soniced the suit's pressurization to 800%. "There, that should do it," he said and turned to Markham. "You have it?"

Will held up the portable hard drive and handed it to his current lover. "Be careful."

Jack winked and smiled. "Aren't I always?" He received two frowns in return. "Yeah, thanks for the support."

"One last touch," the Doctor said and waved his Sonic across the visor. It went pitch black.

"Hey, who turned out the lights?" he asked, caught off guard.

"You're not funny," the Time Lord chided him. "Now go stand by the door."

Jack did as he was told as the Doctor made an adjustment from the control panel. "Is it safe?"

"Internal force field is up. Be careful out there, Jack," he advised.

Jack nodded and stepped out of the TARDIS into the Library. His HUD sensors indicated movement 100 yards away. He quietly moved closer to find a pair in matching white suits moving toward the lift. From behind, he almost mistook the man for Will until he turned around.

The woman was unmistakable. "I'm going back to check on the Doctor," she told him. "You get ready for our signal."

Strackman Lux gave her a hesitant nod and stepped onto the platform in the column of light. He rose up out of sight as she turned back the way they had come. She caught Jack off guard when she pulled out her own Sonic and pointed it at him.

"What do you think you're doing?" she asked.

He held up his free hand and offered her the case with the other. "He's going to put up a fight. Be gentle."

"You didn't answer my question." Her other hand came up holding a gun. Jack recognized it immediately.

"Hey, that doesn't belong to you," he protested.

"You're on the wrong end of it to argue," she warned. "Who are you?"

"A friend. I have something you're going to need to pull this off."

"Why should I believe you?"

"Time is running out and you're going to need my help, since he'll fight you."

"How do you know?" she demanded.

He sighed and set the case down, then reached into a pocket. "You're probably going to need these for him. From my personal collection, I might add."

She smiled and holstered her gun. "He sent you, didn't he?"

She couldn't see his smile behind the blackened visor, but she could hear it in his voice. "Spoilers."

"Right, follow me."

A minute later, the Doctor was unconscious and Jack cuffed him to a piece of equipment. The pair worked quickly to finish reassembling the hardware for her sacrifice.

"You know, if this works-" he began.

"I know the costs. Hand me that spanner."

"Why does it have to be you?"

She stopped and looked at him. "You obviously know who I am and why I'm doing this. You won't let me look at your face. Why is that?"

"Spoilers."

She rolled her eyes. "Typical you, always having to do things your way, even when you know you're wrong."

She turned back to her work, then heard a soft chuckle muffled by the visor. "So it's not you, crossing over your own time stream? Where is he then?"

"Nearby."

"So, what? He's sent you to take my place?"

"I would if I could, but he won't let me. This equipment is already calibrated for you."

She stopped again and looked at him. "Last ditch effort to save me, is that it?"

"He'll argue with you about-"

"Time can be rewritten, I know," she smirked. Her voice dropped. "Not this time, though."

"He still believes we can."

"And what's your part in all this, hmm?"

"That's what I'm here to change." He seemed to look around, but the visor made it hard. He held up a scanner to a port, checking the process one last time.

"It's you, isn't it?"

He ignored her. "It's already set. The power charge will-" He couldn't finish the thought.

She placed her hand on his. "Thank you."

A slight moan came from behind them. They both turned to see the younger Doctor beginning to stir.

"You'd better go."

"Good luck," he said and turned away as she turned back to her work. She laid her Sonic next to his on top of her diary, just out of his reach, then took her seat and began assembling the last connections.

From around the corner, Jack heard his friend wake up as the computer marked two minutes. "ohh. Oh, no, no, no! That's my job!"

He kept his silence as he listened in. He began to understand their relationship more. The sacrifice she was making for him, for the universe? No wonder he was so anxious to rescue her.

A blinding light filled the area as the countdown finished. When it ended, he could hear a faint sobbing. He debated going over to free his friend, but he knew the Doctor could sense who he really was, even hidden inside the suit. Someone touched him on the shoulder, and he turned to see a young woman with dark hair, in a dark pantsuit standing there.

"Go," she nodded. "I'll take care of him." when he hesitated, she urged, "He'll know you're here, Jack. Hurry."

He didn't know who she was (but she reminded him of Tosh a little bit) or how she knew him, but he knew it was the right thing to do. He returned to the TARDIS.

He was barely inside before the Doctor growled, "What took you so long?"

"Sorry, lost track of time, then I had to hide from you."

The Time Lord's expression made it obvious he didn't believe his friend. "You made sure neither of us saw you?"

"Wouldn't you remember that?"

"I was unconscious, Jack," he reminded the Time Agent.

"Well, there's your answer then," he said.

The Time Lord eyed him suspiciously. "You didn't see anyone else down there, did you?"

Jack shrugged. "Just Lux, but he never saw me."

The Doctor stayed silent. He didn't remember seeing Jack that day, but in the shock of losing River, he couldn't remember who freed him, either.

"All you alright?" the woman asked the Doctor.

He looked around to see where the voice had come from. A young woman with faintly Asian features was looking around from behind some equipment. "No, not really."

"Do you need some help?"

"I-yes, I've been handcuffed to this equipment," he told her, then pointed with his free hand. If you could hand me that device, I can free myself."

She surveyed the area, seemingly surprised at what she found. "Was there someone else down here with you?" she inquired.

He looked to the seat River had been in moments before. It was now empty. "No. No, not anymore," he said forlornly.

She handed him his Sonic. "I'm sorry."

"Wait. Where did you come from?" he asked as he released himself. He slipped the cuffs into his jacket pocket.

"I'm not sure?" she replied. "One minute, I'm studying in the Library, the next...it was like I fell asleep, but then I woke up down here?" She looked around, seemingly studying the set-up River had made. "It feels like I've been asleep for weeks?"

He collected River's diary and Sonic then turned to her. "What did you say your name was?"

"Oh, I just, uh, I forget?" she stammered nervously. "I'm not even sure where I am?"

He shook his coat over his shoulders. "You're still in the Library, just down in the heart of it."

She didn't seem surprised by this. "Oh, if you say so? How do we get back?"

He held out his arm and smiled. "Allow me," he said as she took it. He paused a moment to look back at the seat again before escorting her topside. Once there, he lost her in the swarm of people that now occupied the Library as he looked for Donna Noble.

The woman slipped away from him and headed off to a well lit walkway. She seemed to pause for a moment beside a door and, had anyone been watching her, she seemingly vanished right next to it.

"Took you long enough," the burly, bearded ginger at the control station chided her.

"Jack's here," she informed him.

"Yeah, so I remember being told," he replied. "Did he see you?"

"I had no choice. I told him to get away before the Doctor knew he was there," she told him. "Luckily, he didn't argue."

"Did he accomplish his part of the mission, Su?"

She nodded. "As far as I could tell."

He examined a monitor. "We only have a few hours before he realizes what's really going on, then we can proceed."

"What are you going to do, Abe?" she inquired.

He turned and smiled at her. "What I've always done. What I have to."

Inside the TARDIS, Jack inquired, "So what do we do until you and Donna leave?"

The Doctor continued to watch his younger self on the monitor. "Just sit tight and be ready to move at a moment's notice," he replied.

Jack and Will looked at each other and shrugged. "Got a deck of cards?" Will asked.

"In my room," he replied, a smile breaking on his face.

"Race ya," Will chuckled.

"No more strip poker!" the Doctor yelled after them. He could hear laughter follow the pair down the hallway.

He was tempted to jump ahead a few hours, but there was always the chance someone else would stumble onto their mission. That was a chance he couldn't take.

Unseen to each other, both men kept close watch on the younger Doctor, silently cheering him on as he realized what his future self had done (would do?) in order to save River's life.

Both laughed as he smugly walked up to the node with Charlotte Lux's face. "Be sure and take good care of her, will you?"

Charlotte smiled. "River Song has been saved."

"There's a good girl," he smiled grimly and strode back to his TARDIS where Donna waited.

The elder Doctor smiled to himself as he watched his younger incarnation snap his fingers to open the TARDIS for the first time. He remembered thinking it wouldn't work, and when it did, just how much this River would come to mean to him.

It was a question for another day, he knew, but only now realized it was technically the same day. As he watched the other TARDIS fade away, he hit the commlink. "Jack, Will, get dressed and get up here!" They showed up almost immediately. He didn't ask why they were arguing who owed what to who. Luckily, it was money.

"Both of you shut up and pay attention! This is where it gets tricky," he ordered them and began to go over the plan again. Satisfied they knew what to do, he strode to the door and opened it, only to run into an invisible wall.

"You turned off the force field, right?" Will asked as Jack checked his nose to see if it was broken or not.

"Of course I did!" he shot back. "There's something else parked in front of the door! We just can't see it!"

Will went to the door and began feeling out a structure beyond the doorway. "There's only a small gap here, maybe a few inches wide," he told them. "Nothing any of us could squeeze out of."

"So what do we do?" Jack asked. "Dematerialize and turn the TARDIS to a different side or move it?"

The Doctor stumbled back to the control console, still rubbing his nose. "Who else is here?" he demanded. "Someone is out there, preventing us from saving her!" He started throwing switches. "Will! Close the door!"

Will stood there, looking at nothing. "Will!" Jack shouted, grabbing his friend by the shoulder and dragging him back.

"We can't go out there," he said.

"What? Why not?" Jack asked.

"The shadows are moving," he said and looked over to the Doctor.

"What? No! We had a full day to evacuate!" He grabbed the phone handle and punched in a code. Will and Jack covered their ears from the feedback coming off the PA to the outside. "Whoever you are, you will not keep me from my mission! Do you hear me? I am the Doctor! I am here on a rescue mission! Whoever you think you are, the Vashta Nerada are on the prowl and have broken my agreement with them! We were supposed to have one day to evacuate and they have begun hunting their prey early!"

They waited a minute. Will watched the shadows near them shifting slightly. "I think they're getting closer?"

The Doctor turned the PA back on. "I repeat, this is the Doctor! You gave me a full day to evacuate everyone off this facility, but you have broken that agreement! There are still a handful to be evacuated! Withdraw, NOW."

Will turned to Jack. "Go get suited up again, quick!"

The Doctor nodded his agreement. "You can use your vortex manipulator to do this!"

Jack stopped in his tracks. "Uh, about that? I can't."

The Doctor stared at him in disbelief. "What?"

He glanced to Will before answering but the Doctor realized what had happened immediately and ran down to Will at the entrance. He grabbed the front of his suit and shoved him back against the invisible wall. "What did you do!?" he fumed. "If you cost me her life-"

"Stop," he said, not trying to fight the man off. "We programmed it in as a failsafe, just in case. Didn't you wonder why her body disappeared?"

"So help me, Markham, I will throw you to the Vashta Nerada myself!"

Jack had run down and tried to pull the Doctor back. "Let him go! I was the one who programmed it! Get mad at me!"

The Doctor turned and glared at Jack. He had never seen the man rage like this, not when he was fighting the Daleks, Davros, or even the Master.

"Get out of my sight, the both of you," he finally said, releasing Will and stalking past Jack to the control console.

"Doctor, we can explain-," Jack began, but the Doctor cut him short.

"Get away from me."

Jack didn't press his luck. He turned back to Will, to call him away, but he saw he had turned back to watch outside. "Will? What's going on?"

"They're getting closer!" he said, then shouted louder. "The shadows are getting closer!"

The Doctor yelled at him. "Shut the door!"

"Can't you maneuver the TARDIS somewhere closer?" Jack asked him. "We can still try and save her!"

"The upload control room's too small or I would have done that before," he informed the immortal. He slammed his hand down on the console. "Will! Shut the door!" he yelled again.

Red lights and klaxons went off outside the TARDIS.

"What's going on, now?" Jack asked.

"Security breach," the Doctor told him. "Whoever's blocking us has just accessed the primary computer core of the planet."

"RUN!" Will yelled out the door. "The shadows are coming!"

"Will you shut the damn door?!" the Doctor shouted again.

Jack ran down to pull Will back and shut the doors, but as he did, he noticed a pair of space-suited figures run past the crack between the TARDIS and whatever was in front of them, then disappear. They carried a large hard drive between them. "What the-?!"

He was suddenly pulled back by Will, who now slammed the doors. He leaned back against them to keep them closed and shouted to the Doctor, "Get us out of here!"

The Doctor dematerialized the craft, then strode down to confront the man from a parallel Earth. "What is going on, Markham?" he demanded.

"I'm not really sure?" he stammered. Neither man believed him.

The Doctor pointed back at the door. "Who was that out there? What were they doing? What aren't you telling me?" He grew louder with each accusation.

Jack came up behind him and put his hand on the Time Lord's shoulder. "Doc, come on, we don't know what's going on here."

The Doctor shrugged Jack's hand off and came nose to nose with the empath. "I think Mr. Markham knows a lot more than he's letting on, don't you, Will?"

"Promise you won't get mad?"

"We're well past mad!" he shouted. "Who were those people and why have they taken River Song?"

Jack tried to pull him back again. "We don't know they took her."

"Then why were they here, Jack?" he asked, still looking Will square in the eye. "Why else would they risk their own lives for hers? Who was it? The Silence? Kovarian? Someone else?"

"Yes."

"Yes, what?"

"Yes, it was someone else," he admitted. "I don't know the full story, yet, but they needed her as much you do."

"Who was it Markham? Who stole my wife?"

Will was silent for a long moment, obviously debating what to tell him.

"Spoilers."

The Doctor opened his mouth to yell at Markham again, but then realized he hadn't spoke and neither had Jack. All three turned to face the control console. River Song stood there in her white belted jacket and dark pants.

"Hello, Sweetie," she grinned. "Miss me?"

The Doctor took a cautious step forward. "River?"

"Who else?"

He shoved Jack aside and ran to her, catching her in a bear hug. His grin faded as he looked at her up close. She was younger than he remembered. "Tell me. Convince me."

She glanced over him to the other two, making sure they were out of earshot, then whispered something. "Are we good?"

"Yes," he said and kissed her hard. They hugged each other for a long minute before he finally released her. "How did you-? Where did you-? Are you even supposed to be here, yet?"

"What, at the Library?" she asked. "Sweetie, that's in my past as well as yours."

"How? How did you escape?" he asked, almost begging. "You were trapped in the computer, we came to rescue you, but-"

"Someone else got to me first?" she finished.

His face grew dark. "Who was it? Who thought they had a better right to save you than I did?"

She hesitated at his anger. "You'll meet them, soon enough," she finally decided.

"Give me a name, River."

"Why? Are you going to congratulate them on helping me or beat them up like a schoolyard bully because you didn't get to?"

"River, please," he begged.

"I think Mr. Markham would question your motives, as well," she countered, glancing toward him. "Am I right, Will?"

Will leaned against the step railing. "Seems to me, someone needs an anger management class."

"Will," Jack warned.

"No, Jack, the Doctor's been riding my ass the last few days," he said, glaring at the Time Lord. "I understand you were upset about Sarah Jane's passing, but to threaten me because someone else was faster than you in saving your girlfriend?"

"She's my wife," he corrected.

"Am I?" Her tone suggested this was news to her.

The Doctor spun and looked at her again. "You said the Library was in your past, and we married before you went there, before you earned your professorate," he said. "No more games, River. When are you from?"

She smiled. "Barcelona."

"What?" he stammered. "But that was before our-wait, what?" He noticed Will also did a double-take at this reveal.

"You know what this control room needs? Someplace to sit down."

He pointed to the divan. "Don't avoid the question, River."

"Fine, but you're going to want to sit down for this," she said and headed toward the kitchen.

"River! Come back here!" he shouted, giving chase. The other two shrugged and followed.

They entered the kitchen to find the table set with four cups and two pots. "Coffee? Tea?" she grinned and pushed the Doctor into his seat with one finger and whispered "or me?"

He was not amused. "I want answers."

Her glib attitude faded. She sat across from him. "I can't give you the answers you seek. Not now."

"Why not?"

She considered her answer a moment. "Think of our relationship. I knew things that you couldn't know until you lived them," she explained. "The same rule applies here. The people who saved me? They are part of the future of everyone in this room."

"You're lying."

"Would that I was, my love," she replied. "The four of us-"

"You and I? Yes," he acknowledged. "Jack and I? I could believe," he said, a bit disgruntled. He leaned across the table. "Will? What's he got to offer?"

"Oi! I'm sitting right here," he reminded the Time Lord.

She smiled at the Doctor. "His role is actually more important than you or he realize."

"The four of us are lost in time," Will realized.

"What are you saying?" Jack asked.

"Think about it," Will told him. "The Last of the Time Lords. The woman created to be his ultimate counterpart, child of the Girl Who Waited and the Lone Centurion, sired in the heart of the TARDIS. Now reborn from a computer program created from memories."

"Dear me, I do believe I'm blushing," she teased.

Will ignored her and continued. "Jack, lost in time, yet a living fixed point in time. You don't even know what you'll become. Even your true self, known to but a few-"

"And yourself?" the Doctor cut him off before he revealed the secret known to the select few about the immortal.

"I'm a man from a world that should never have existed, and may not ever have, traveling with the lot of you? I'm just as much an anomaly as you lot. More, even."

"And this explains, what, exactly?" the Doctor inquired.

"Nothing," River replied.

"And everything," Will finished.

The Doctor slapped the table and stood up. "Enough games!" He eyed the two suspiciously. "I want to know who those people were and I want to know now!"

Will nodded to her. "You know them better."

"You'd think? Jack, Will, please leave us a moment," she asked. "This may take a while."

Will rose and motioned Jack to follow.

The Doctor watched River as she rose, crossed over to him, and pulled him to his feet. "Who were they, River? Who was that young woman we met on Barcelona?"

She kissed him.

He wasn't deterred. "No more games."

She smiled and pulled herself into him, his arms wrapped around her belly.

"Tell me."

She turned her head to look into his eyes. "Remember Demons Run?"

"What?"

"I am telling you."

He realized his hands were being held. His eyes went wide. "But we-? Not since you-? When are you-?"

"Just be quiet and enjoy the moment, my love."

Jack and Will stared at each other from across the control console. "So, what is she telling him in there?"

Will gave him a knowing smirk. "Something he hasn't been told in a very long time, I imagine."

"How do you know all this, anyway?" Jack pressed. "What makes you so special?"

Will tapped the side of his head. "I am Mentor Chiron," he replied. He knew the real truth lay in the jumbled memories an ancient being shared with him not that long ago.

Jack gave him a funny look. "What's that supposed to mean?" He thought about it a minute. "Wait, isn't that what you called yourself at the coronation?"

Will smiled. "Yes."

"So that means?"

"Yes."

"No, that's not what I was asking-?"

"Yes."

"You know what? Sometimes, you can be a real-"

"Yes!" he laughed.

Jack shook his head and leaned forward to kiss him. Will suddenly turned away. "What's wrong now?"

"What I know? What I've been told is happening?" he offered. He found himself unable to meet his lover's gaze. "I'm sorry, Jack. It's time to move on."


A few minutes earlier

"Are you ready?" Su asked, tinting her visor.

Her companion nodded and reached for his side of the hard drive. The pair carried it to the same station the younger Doctor had just left.

Taking the lead probe, he stuck it in the same port the Doctor had inserted River's Sonic. He nodded to Su, who flipped a switch.

"It's searching," she reported. After a long minute, she informed her associate, "It's locked on to her, but there's something not quite right?"

The man reached down and slammed his fist on the "recall" button. "We'll have to take the risk."

"We've only got one shot at this!" she protested.

Had their visors been clear, he would have looked her in the eye. "I know."

From somewhere nearby, they heard a familiar voice. "RUN! They're coming!"

"Double-check we have her!" the man ordered.

Su looked at the readouts. "We have someone. We won't know until-"

He started pulling the probe out.

"If you're wrong and we don't have her?" she asked.

"I know the risks!" he shouted and grabbed his side of the hard drive. "Now move!"

The pair ran for their craft, parked invisibly in front of the also invisible TARDIS. He spied a familiar face peeking between the two vehicles as he entered, fighting the temptation to say something. No sooner had they closed their door than Su took off her helmet and gave a concerned glance in the direction the sound had come from.

"Damn him, anyway," Abraxas growled as he removed his helmet. He switched on the external monitor and watched as Markham pulled Jack away and closed the blue doors.

Abraxas smiled and flipped his dematerialization circuit. He glanced to Su. "Now comes the hard part."

River Song had gotten used to her new life. Her friends knew it was as fake as she did, but made the most of it. For them, months had passed and bonds had grown between the quintet. She hadn't asked before, but soon found out that the two Daves also shared the same last name of Smith. She made a private joke out of it, promising to tell them when she was ready.

They also learned that Miss Evangelista was now as smart as the rest of the crew. She didn't care, as she was glad her face was no longer distorted, but there was a slight period of adjustment for her increased understanding after her brief period of genius intellect.

River had also taken on a maternal role over their protector, CAL, whom she insisted on calling Charlotte, and had even been given two more children for CAL to play with as siblings. It was exhausting, but she was growing used to it.

In her interactions with her adult companions, however, things were slightly awkward, as "Other Dave" and Anita continued their flirtation, while she still teased "Proper Dave" on occasion, allowing him to also flirt with Evangelista. For his part, the latter Dave was free to associate with anyone he chose and was finding himself drawn to River more and more over the other two ladies.

The three women would laugh about this over lunches and shopping trips in their imagined community, while the guys would also discuss it while hanging out at the pub watching the latest game. They found the Library also had an extensive catalog of various sporting matches from various worlds and would often bet against each other on games they barely understood for laughs. River placed her own bets when she found this out and would win more often than not. She claimed it was because she had heard of several games they hadn't and understood the basic rules and had nothing to do with her previous travels with the Doctor.

It was after another busy day of shopping and an evening at the pub that everything changed. River read a bedtime story to Charlotte and her "siblings" out of her diary, then headed to bed where (Proper) Dave awaited her. As they were dozing off, the house began to shake and CAL began screaming.

"They're coming!" Charlotte cried. "They're coming to take you all away!"

River and Dave looked at each other in confusion before she understood. "He's come back for me!"

Dave was flabbergasted. "What? Who?"

"The Doctor!" she screamed as the house began to fall away from them.

Dave hugged River close. "What about the rest of us?"

A look of shock and fear spread across her face. "I-I don't know!" she screamed as they were torn apart.

Everything went white.

The next thing she knew, River was in a hospital bed, monitors beeping. She sat up and looked around, but there was nothing to see apart from the monitors. There wasn't even a window. She fumbled for the call button. "Hello? Is there anyone there? Doctor?"

She was too lethargic to do much else but wait. She had no idea how long she had been there or where she was, actually.

After a few minutes, a young woman entered the room, wearing a dark pantsuit under a white lab coat. She looked faintly Asian. "How are you feeling?" she inquired.

"Like I've been through hell and back," River replied. "Where am I?"

The woman checked the monitors before answering. "Safe. I'll let the others know you're awake."

"The Doctor?" she inquired. "Where is he?"

Su smiled to herself. "Patience. We'll get you sorted right away."

She turned to leave, but stopped just outside the door and seemed to be whispering to someone. River could barely see his profile, but his shape was unmistakable.

"Doctor? Is it really you?" she called to him.

The familiar face that entered the room was slightly grim.

"Hello, sweetie," she smiled.

"I'm not the Doctor," he informed her. "There's also been another complication."

River's face froze. "What?"

He held up his hand. "I know who I look like, and there's a valid reason, but I can't tell you that now," he informed her. "I need to know who else you brought along with you?"

A confused expression crossed her face. "I'm sorry?"

"You brought someone back with you, but there's been a problem in the transference."

River's head swam as she tried to remember what had happened. "I was-I was reading to the children, then went to bed with-with Dave?" She subconsciously pressed the tip of her finger against her nose, implying his pug nose. "Then things get fuzzy? I remember the house shaking, a bright light-?"

"Dave?" he asked. "Who's Dave?"

"Which Dave, don't you mean?" she countered, the memories still returning. "There were two Dave's in there with us. I think I was with 'Proper Dave'? He's Caucasian, a bit on the heavy side?" she offered.

He nodded and laid a hand on hers. "Was he holding on to you when we grabbed you? When we pulled you out?"

"I-I don't understand?"

He reached over to the monitor and grabbed a mirror that lay on top of it. "There was a slight miscalculation in the transference process," he repeated and handed the mirror to her.

River looked at her face in amazement. "I'm... younger?"

He nodded. "Your age seems to have stabilized for now," he agreed. "Your friend's-?"

"What happened?"

"He's having problems keeping to one age," he finally admitted. "We're trying to stabilize him, now."

"Doctor-"

He cut her off. "I'm not him. I'll never be him."

She took a good look at him, studying his face. "No, you aren't but- Do I know you?" She reached out to touch his cheek. She could see a variety of emotions play across his face.

He turned away to leave the room, but paused at the door. "Not yet," he told her before leaving.

"Excuse me?"

"What did you tell him after the Crash of the Byzantium?" he asked. She shook her head in confusion, the memories were still hazy. "It can't be told, it has to be lived," he reminded her before leaving the room.

She stared after him in wonder. He looked so much like the burly ginger Doctor that had taken her to Darillium, but he wasn't. The demeanor, the man's presence was different. He obviously knew her, but she had no clue who he really was.

Whoever he was, she could only trust him to help her friend Dave. Had he been the only other one to be freed from the Library's computer core? Why not the others?

And most importantly, where was the Doctor?


TO BE CONTINUED...