Author's Note: Hey everyone! Welcome to my new story!

Just a little warning, for all you fans of the series out there. Very shortly, I'll be taking "Bringer of Death" down, permanently. Sorry, but the more I think about it, the more I know it's the right thing to do. It's a depressing and deeply disturbing story, and I'd rather not have it up, anymore.

The summary at the beginning of "Happy Endings" will have to do for everyone wanting continuity.

So if you want to read it one last time, do so now. I'll be taking it down very shortly.

Anyways!

Enjoy this story.

Dalalia raced as fast as she could, her feet slamming against the stone floor, her breath burning in her throat. Tears began to blossom in her eyes, as she frantically tried to escape.

But knew it would be futile.

She spun around the corner, burst through a set of doors, then… stumbled to a halt. As she realized the corridor she'd been expecting had somehow turned into a dead-end.

Dalalia turned.

Backing away, tears streaming down her face.

"No," she gasped. "Please! Just let me live!"

No response.

Just Dalalia's blood-curdling screams, echoing through the palace.

Jack squinted into the distance, as he stepped out of the ship.

Then a large grin appeared on his face.

"Well, it's not Luna Night Club, in 2626!" Jack said, tucking his thumbs under his suspenders. "But it sure looks interesting!"

Seo stepped out. Shielding her eyes from the blazing sun, as she examined their surroundings.

Made out the sand, the high, blue pinprick sun blazing overhead, the market stalls in the distance, and the distinctive Arabian-ish style clothing.

And beamed.

"It looks brilliant! Much more brilliant than a boring old night club." Seo spun back to her ship, patting his side, lovingly. "Good Oliver! If I find monsters and world-ending catastrophes to stop, here, I'll take you to a chocolate factory as a reward."

Oliver hummed beneath her hand.

Jack chuckled.

Ten minutes later, they were both decked out head-to-toe in Arbianish clothing, themselves — Jack with a vest that showed most of his chest, and ballooning pants. Seo in a diaphanous costume sporting a midriff and billowing bits of fabric.

"Yep, the planet Hamazol," Jack explained, as they walked through the market stalls. "About a hundred thousand years after we intended to land. An Arabian Nights Fantasy planet, custom-terraformed for some guy with too much money and no care about historical accuracy." He waved over in the distance. "Last time I was here was just after it opened. I'd hitched a lift with this gorgeous Lowinx, and wound up chased by the ex-husband while wearing only—"

"You mean there are other fantasy planets?" Seo cut in, nibbling on a fruit she'd never seen before, and didn't know the name of. "Doing bad re-enactments of other historical periods?"

"Not so many history ones," Jack said. He shrugged. "One I went to, back with the Doctor and Rose, was modeled after a musical. Filled to the brim with singing and dancing animals. True story!" He paused. "Drove the Doctor crazy, after a while, though."

Seo snickered.

Mental image of a massively-annoyed Ninth Doctor surrounded by singing animals flashing through her head.

"But Rose loved it," Jack continued, "so the Doctor stuck it out to the end. Brave man."

Seo wrinkled her nose, as she noticed a number of men and women rushing by who were clothed in European Medieval clothing. Some in Victorian. And some in 22nd century cazartas.

"I'm starting to think we should have just gone back to real Arabian times," Seo said. She took another nibble at her fruit, as she passed a panda in a turban, being escorted through the streets. "This place is getting sillier and sillier by the second."

"Bet the nightclubs are better here," Jack replied, with a wink.

Seo gave a soft sigh that was half-way to a laugh, and handed Jack back the fruit. Then raced forwards, to explore.

Sure enough… no one seemed to understand what time period they were actually in.

Seo found herself stopping by — what looked like — a medieval-style Town Crier, ringing a bell and shouting, "Hear ye! Hear ye!" every minute or so. Before explaining the news from, "the Daily Wikipedia."

"Daily Wikipedia? That doesn't even make sense," Seo muttered, as she listened to the Town Crier drone on about some news story involving the Face of Boe's retirement chalet. "These people need a time machine!"

"This far in the future?" Jack replied. "They might already have one." He gave a thumbs up and a wink to a green-skinned woman, checking out his abs nearby. "Not sure anyone here cares enough to actually go back and check."

The Town Crier rang his bell, again.

"Hear ye, hear ye!" he announced, touching two fingers to something metal in the side of his neck, his face momentarily looking like he was processing information. Then he smiled, and continued, "In local news, Sultan Carvao Bacarl declines to comment on last night's murder of his latest lover."

Seo and Jack stopped talking.

Turned back to the Town Crier.

"But it has begun to grab the attention of the galaxy," the Town Crier continued. "Pop Sensation and ex-Hamazol resident AcariaX7/12 donated four million credits to Hamazol Police forces, and has begun lobbying Earth for intervention."

Seo grabbed Jack by the arm and yanked him to the side of the town square, towards a data-port sticking up out of the sand. She slammed his hand down, to activate it, then thanked him and let him go, as she began punching and poking at it.

Pulling up the story.

"The latest in a long series of murders, looks like," Seo muttered, her eyes skimming across the holo-projection. "Sultan takes a lover, marries her, and one week later… she's dead. No investigation or explanation for the death."

Jack nodded, slowly. "Well… it is an Arabian Nights world, and given how Arabian Nights started…"

Seo spun back to face him. Hands on her hips. "And just because that's the premise of Scheherezade, that makes it all right to murder innocent people?" She shook her head, eyes flicking back to the holo-projection. "No. If the Sultan's killing his wives, I think it's time I stopped him."

She spun around, to head off towards the palace looming in the distance.

It took Jack a second to realize what Seo wanted to do. "You're gonna offer yourself as his next…?!" He sprinted after her, grabbing her up by the arm and holding her back. "Whoa, whoa! Let's not get hasty here, kiddo."

Seo simply raised an eyebrow at him.

And yanked back her arm.

"You think I can't outsmart one little Sultan?" Seo asked.

"Hey, there's a difference between outsmarting a guy," said Jack, "and sleeping with a homicidal maniac who kills pretty young women."

Seo gave a long, weary sigh.

Pulled her arm away from him. "I wasn't planning to sleep with him. I just wanted a distraction so I could get inside the palace and have a chat."

Oh.

Yeah.

Jack should have thought of that.

"Distraction I can do," Jack assured her. Then, with a step forward, and in a slightly softer voice, "But if you need me… just let me know. Got it? Don't want you in over your head, here."

Seo sighed. Then turned around, a little annoyed. "I'll be fine, Jack!" She marched off towards the palace. "I mean, I know I'm young. But I'm not incompetent."

Jack figured that was about as much as he'd be able to do for her.

Following her towards the palace.

"Just remember," he told her.