She opened her eyes.
The blinding light made her squeeze them shut again.
Her heart immediately started racing. Where am I? River Song, thought.
The last thing she remembered before this was saying goodnight to the Doctor. They'd had a splendid night out seeing the Earth being formed and walking with Dinosaurs. He'd brought her back to her cell at the Stormcage Prison. She'd slipped him a quick kiss and let herself back into her cell. She'd heard the familiar vworp vworp vworp of the TARDIS engines – truth be told, the engines weren't supposed the make that wheezing, grating sound. Cheeky man that he was, the Doctor left the brakes on because he thought the sound was 'cool.'
"I see you're awake, Miss Song," a male voice said.
His voice was rich and deep, the accent British.
"Who are you?" River asked, peering through the light.
She tried to raise her hand, but found that both arms were tightly secured behind her.
"That doesn't matter," the man replied.
"You know, you could at least buy me dinner first before you tie me up and start the fun."
River was being flirty. She did it well. Flirty was better than panicked.
"Quite a mouth you've got on you. I can see why he likes you."
"He?"
The question didn't really need answering.
There was only one he that could be the subject of discussion.
The Doctor.
Her Doctor.
That mad, brilliant, remarkable man.
"Why, the Doctor, of course."
The man stepped out from behind the light and River couldn't help as a gasp escaped her lips. His entire face was a charred, burnt mess. His eyes, once a beautiful sky blue, were now red and blistered. His nose was completely gone; a gaping hole was all that remained where it should have been. His lips were twisted back in a permanent scowl.
"Yes, I know my appearance is rather….disarming," the man said, eying her surreptitiously.
"How…?"
"Let's just say your 'friend' the Doctor was too busy gallivanting about waving that green thing around to rescue me."
"From what?"
"The Dalek fleet attacked my home world. The Doctor showed up and instead of helping us, he let them destroy us. My wife and children died in the final attack."
River wasn't sure, but she could have sworn in that instant that tears tried to form in his eyes. The water amidst the red sores was barely detectable.
"He couldn't save them," she muttered.
"Not couldn't. Wouldn't," the man replied, his voice hard, bitter. "He said it was a 'fixed point in time.'"
"If the Doctor said that it was, then it was. He doesn't lie. He's the greatest man I know. "
"Not for much longer."
"What are you going to do to him!?" she demanded, yanking at her restraints.
"Glad you asked. I know how much you mean to him. The Doctor and his girlfriend."
"I'm so much more than that."
Behind her back, River worked a pin out of the sleeve of her jacket. Slowly, she began to work at her restraints.
"If you wish. Anyway, I brought you here cos I figured that was the only way to get his attention. He'll come for you, and when he does, I'll kill him."
"You won't touch him!" River cried, her eyes blazing with passion and anger.
She'd gotten that from her mother; a feisty Scottish woman by the name of Amelia Pond.
"We'll see about that. I'll kill you first, don't worry. I have no quarrel with you. Under different circumstances we might have been friends, but I will have my revenge."
"You can't blame the Doctor for doing what's right. I'm sorry, I really am. I know it's hard, but believe me, if there had been a way to save your wife and children, the Doctor would've done it. "
"Oh, okay then. If you say so. You know what? You're right, this is silly. I'll let you go."
He barked with dead laughter.
"It's not that easy. Everything I ever loved, anything that ever mattered to me is gone because of him!"
"If he'd have saved them, he would have created a time paradox! All of time would have been rewritten, and the results would have been catastrophic!"
"Save it. I have no wish to hear you defend him. Though, your loyalty is admirable, Professor."
"You'll be sorry."
Suddenly, the room was filled with the groaning of the TARDIS engines.
He was here.
"Oh, right on schedule!" the man beamed, checking a pretend watch.
And I thought I was a psychopath, River thought.
Slowly, the TARDIS materialized a few feet away. River couldn't help but feel comforted by it s blue shell.
The TARDIS door was yanked open and the Doctor stumbled out. "River!" the Doctor shouted, his eyes wide in panic.
"Hello, sweetie," River cooed, her voice like oil on water.
"River. Are you okay?"
"I am now."
A mischievous smile tugged at the corners of her lips despite the current danger.
"Why are you doing this?" the Doctor demanded, whirling to face the mysterious burnt man.
"Revenge!" the man cried, his face – rather what little remained of his face – twisting up into a mask of pure hatred. "You wouldn't save them!"
The man sank to his knees, his voice choked with emotion. "They were all that mattered to me, and you let them be taken from me."
"Let whom get taken by whom?" the Doctor asked, knitting his brows.
"Why wife and daughters! Don't you remember, Doctor? My name is Mytagh from the planet Scoros."
"But Scoros was destroyed by the Daleks. Mass genocide…." The Doctor argued.
He'd been there, and barely made it out alive.
"Yes, it was destroyed, because you wouldn't help!"
"It was a fixed point in time! I wanted to do something, really, I did, but without the Time Lords to repair paradoxes…."
"Because of your nonsense, my family was taken from me! My planet burned for days!"
"How did you survive?"
"Pure hatred for you and the Daleks kept me alive. And it will until I get vengeance!"
Without warning, the man lunged at the Doctor, a blade in his hand. The Doctor saw it too late and tried unsuccessfully to jump out the way.
Suddenly, the man was knocked to the ground by a well-timed punch from River.
"River, how'd you get untied?" the Doctor asked.
"I have many skills," River replied, smiling suggestively.
"I've noticed."
The Doctor broke into a grin. "Thanks for the rescue."
"Any time."
She placed a hand on his chest and felt the twin heart beats from the Doctor's chest. "What will we do with him, then?"
The Doctor glanced down at the unconscious man lying at his feet.
"I'll drop him off with the local authorities. He wants justice, they'll make sure justice is doled out properly ."
They went into the TARDIS and a few seconds later, the room was empty.
The TARDIS rematerialized right outside River's cell.
"Here we are again," River said, entering her cell.
"I just left you half an hour ago. You're always getting up to trouble," the Doctor teased.
"Always." River's eyes sparkled.
"I should get him taken care of…."
"So, go."
The Doctor stayed standing in the threshold to the cell. He didn't want to go. He liked these midnight adventures with River.
"Go do your duty. I'll see you soon," River said, smiling warmly.
"Are we still on for our date next week?" the Doctor asked, blushing.
"Of course."
River leaned in and pressed her lips against the Doctor's. For a moment, she forgot where she was, that in a minute the Doctor would be gone and she'd be back in a cell. "Goodbye, sweetie," she whispered.
"Goodbye, River." The Doctor turned and stepped into his TARDIS.
Within moments, he was gone. River sighed and sat down on her cot. It had been a long day. She was looking forward to getting some rest. The guard walked through and paused at her cell.
"And where were you?" he demanded.
A mischievous smile lit up River Song's face.
"Spoilers."