DOCTOR WHO

Part 1: The Light of Lethe

Amy sat up holding her head in a fruitless attempt to keep it from throbbing. She blinked and brought her surroundings into focus. She was lying in a simple cage no more than 15 feet wide on either side and 15 feet in height. The walls to her left and right were solid but bars made up the walls front and back. Her head was still fuzzy from whatever had knocked her out. There wasn't much light. Amy was thankful because the smallest amounts of light hurt her eyes. After another minute Amy finally took in her present situation and began to panic. The last thing she remembered was standing with the Doctor and now she woke up inside some cage like an animal.

Beyond the bars Amy could see rows of other cages but they were dark and if anything resided in them the inhabitants were still. The only bit of light came from a sparse number of hanging lamps and beneath one of the lamps was a single long metal table, rusted around the edges. She could only imagine what that was for. Everything was metal but there were so many individual cages Amy couldn't tell what the room actually looked like. Nor could she find a visible exit. Everything was silent. She stretched her neck to try and look into the neighboring cages.

"Hello? Anybody out there?" She called. Amy reached up to grab the bars but an instant shock of electricity surged through her body. Shrieking she jumped back cradling her injured hand. It tingled and Amy knew it would take a bit for full feeling to come back to her hand. Thank God she hadn't wrapped both hands around the bars otherwise she'd probably be dead, or at least knocked out again.

"Don't touch the bars." A voice drifted into her prison.

"Oh gee you think?" She replied shaking her hand. Amy stepped as close to the bars as she could and tried to find where the voice was coming from. "Where are you?"

"I'm next to you on the right." The voice was male.

Amy leaned forward curious to who this mysterious male was. She almost lost her balance and hit the bars. Backing away she moved to the corner. She touched her finger carefully to the solid wall checking for possible electrocution. Nothing. It was just the bars. Amy leaned against the solid wall and took a deep breath.

"Where are we?"

"Storage." The male replied "Until we are needed, or desired."

Amy's brow furrowed as she tried to remember what may have caused her to end up here. The last memory in her head was talking with the Doctor inside the TARDIS. It didn't make sense, something had to be missing. There were holes in her memory.

"Needed by who?"

There was no reply at first and Amy almost went to ask again but the voice spoke up seeded with terror.

"The Druines."

Amy had never heard of them but she was sure the Doctor would know them. She shrugged her shoulders. "Why would we be needed?"

"Where are you from?" He asked.

"Earth." Amy was positive that she wasn't on Earth.

"Never heard of it. My name is Kal, I'm from Rivenia." Kal explained. Amy felt sorry for not knowing what Kal was talking about.

"Oh like Kal-el, Superman and all that?" Amy was joking of course, it was one way to get her mind off the fact that she was trapped in an electrified cage on some Alien planet or ship.

"Who?"

"Right, never mind. I'm Amy." She replied. "You didn't answer my question, why are we here? Why would these Druines need us? Do they eat us?"

"No, they wouldn't be so kind." Kal said with anger in his voice.

If being eaten was kind, Amy didn't want to know what fate really awaited them.

"They are scavengers and search the stars for new life forms to take and experiment on. I've watched so many come and go here. From my understanding, I cannot distinguish their language, but I think they are searching for something in the bodies."

Amy felt her heart skip a beat.

"What are they searching for?"

"I'm not sure." Kal said sadly.

"How long have you been in here and are there others?"

"I've been in here for about two months. I don't know how many others, but you're the first one to talk to me that I can understand." Kal sounded relieved and so was Amy. She was comforted that she had at least someone to speak with.

"Don't worry Kal. I have a friend who will get us out of here. He's probably looking for me right now." Amy did her best to sound optimistic. The Doctor had to be aware that she was gone by now and would most certainly be searching for her. He'd probably arrive in his little blue box, that was much bigger on the inside, any second now.

The Doctor stirred from his slumber as his feet slipped from the railings in the TARDIS. He sat straight up and looked around alert. "Hello?" He was alone in the TARDIS. That was unusual. He stood up not having remembered falling asleep in the first place. The TARDIS controls still lit up and made sounds as it traveled through space, pretty much on autopilot. How long he had been asleep for the Doctor had no way of knowing. Once the grogginess had gone the Doctor had a sense of panic that caused his two hearts to pick up speed. The TARDIS was different. The interior wasn't the same from last her remembered it which couldn't have been that long ago. The metal grate floors were clear glass and it appeared bigger than before, which was weird.

"What?" He hurried around to the other side of the controls hesitant to push or pull anything at first. He pulled the screen toward him and hit a few buttons trying to get some information. "What happened to you?"

The Doctor stopped short. His voice sounded different and the way he moved felt different. Quickly the Doctor examined his hands, clothing, it all had changed. "No no no no no!" He proclaimed rushing to find a bit of mirror to check out his full reflection. "I've regenerated. But when? How?" His hair was longer than before but what bothered him the most was that he was wearing a bowtie and suspenders. The Doctor pulled the suspenders and let them go. They hit his chest with a snap. "Ow!" He was awake all right. His usual trainers and suit were gone. A bit of green glinted in the reflection. The Doctor squinted and looked down in his pocket and pulled out the sonic screwdriver.

"What?" He questioned turning the unfamiliar design over in his hands. "I liked the blue." He pouted for a moment.

There wasn't time to dwell on the little things such as the model of his sonic. The most important detail was that he had somehow regenerated and the inside of his TARDIS had changed. The last thing he remembered was leaving Rose standing on Bad Wolf Bay. A rush of emotions flooded back to him but he fought those down. "Something's not right. I've regenerated but I couldn't have. I don't remember—" His eyes grew wide and he smacked his forehead. "Remember. Memories! There has to be something affecting my memory, but what?"

He went back to the consul and looked at the screen once more. The image of an alien ship circled around on the screen, it was long and pointed and in a weird way resembled a giant Earth jet. The words beside it revealed the name and who was in charge of the beauty. Pollux 184. Druine Battle Ship. The Doctor bounded over to the door of the TARDIS and peered outside. He was flying up beside the enormous ship. The Doctor had no idea what Druine's had to do with what was happening to him but it seemed like a good place to start.

Amy sat with her back against the wall of her prison. She picked at the already chipping polish on her nails. An hour or so had passed and nothing happened, the Doctor was nowhere to be found. Kal and Amy talked scarcely after their introductions. He inquired about Earth and Amy gave the super abridged version and explained—the best to her ability—about the Doctor. Kal seemed very interested in the Doctor and what a Time Lord was. Amy was curious herself, he never did tell her the truth about everything. The last fifteen minutes was filled with silence.

"You think, once your friend comes, I'll be able to visit Earth?" Kal asked.

"Don't you want to go back to your home planet, what was it called River something?"

"Rivenia." He corrected with a slight offensive tone. "And I do want to, but I'm afraid it would be impossible."

Amy shifted and turned her head toward Kal's direction. She wished she could reach through the bars to see him. "How come?" Amy was afraid that she already knew the answer. The most popular response for this scenario was that the planet in question had been destroyed.

"I've been exiled from my planet. That's how the Druines found me. I was traveling through space searching for a new home, and they took me destroying my ship."

Amy tucked a piece of her ginger hair behind her ear. "Do you mind if I ask why you were exiled?"

She heard Kal take in a deep breath. "Treason, against the Queen of my planet. I spoke against the way she ruled and some of her politics. Instead of having me killed she thought a better punishment would be to send me away from Rivenia forever. She knew how much I loved my planet." The sorrow and regret in Kal's voice struck Amy. Now more than ever she wanted to reach through the bars and take Kal's hand, tentacle, or whatever he had. Amy had no idea what Kal looked like. In her mind she pictured him as several different kinds of beings. The first was human, than a reptile humanoid, then a fish humanoid and from there the creatures of her imagination became more absurd.

"I'm sure the Doctor wouldn't mind taking you to see Earth. Don't be too disappointed when it doesn't live up to your expectations though."

"You sound so bitter about it. You make it seem like Earth is a bad place." Kal snorted.

"It's not a bad place, it's just full of a lot of bad people." Amy said resting her head back. "They can't all be bad. You're not." Amy could hear the smile in his voice. She flushed a little and grinned.

Somewhere a metal door clanged open and the bars to Amy's cage rose. Heavy footsteps echoed in the room, she would have made a run for it but there was a huge chance that she would run headlong into the Druines. Then again, it could be the Doctor coming to save her. Wishful thinking. Noises from the neighboring cages suddenly filled the room. They all cried out in fear and protest. With help from the TARDIS Amy was able to understand all alien languages. So to her it was like a mixture of variant dialects of English. It made her wonder if Kal really spoke English or not.

"Oh no." Kal said his voice quivered. "Amy they're coming."

"I kind of figured that one out thanks."

"I wish I could help you." He really did sound like he regretted not being able to assist her.

Amy got to her feet and stood as tall a she could in an attempt to look as intimidating for the thin and small human that she was. A great burgundy hooded figure appeared from around the corner followed by three other black hooded beings but they each carried an odd crossbow like gun. The shortest of the Black Druines also pushed a cart full of advanced looking technology and test tubes. Amy swallowed. She couldn't see their faces under the hoods and it made them all the more terrifying. They stopped only feet from her prison. The taller burgundy one moved into the cage, his movements were silent. The heavy footfalls must have belonged to the Black Druines. Amy recoiled as the Burgundy Druine came for her she had forgotten about the electrically charged bars behind her. Her fingertips hardly grazed them but it was enough to send a quick jolt through her body. She jumped forward rubbing her fingers together.

The Burgandy Druine kept his arms crossed for a moment and even though she couldn't see his eyes Amy knew they were scanning her over. "What? See something you like do you?" She asked taunting the Druine which probably wasn't her best idea. Amy still held the belief that the Doctor would get to her before anything bad happened. He always did.

"Amy don't." Kal warned.

"Go a head, rip me open and prod and poke me." She said making a jabbing motion. "Whatever you do to me just know that you'll have the Doctor to deal with in the end."

The Burgandy Druine lifted its head a little. Amy caught the soldier Druines shift slightly.

"Did you say the Doctor?" The Burgundy Druines voice was low and milky smooth. Amy felt herself drifting as he spoke. "You think the Doctor will be able to help you? I think you are mistaken Ms. Pond, the Doctor doesn't even know who you are."

For the first time Amy was legitimately scared. Before she was nervous but comforted by the knowledge the Doctor would fly in and rescue her like usual. She regained her composure,. "You're lying."

"No. I'm really not." The Druine reached out for Amy but she swatted his hand away.

"Don't touch me." She growled.

"I knew a human would be the best source. I think the Emperor will be glad to know we've located one at last." The Burgundy Druine turned and glided away out of the cage. For a second Amy hoped that the bars would slam down and she would be locked inside again. Instead, two of the Black Druines came forward with their guns and seized Amy. She put up a fight the whole way, the heels of boots skidding on the metal floor of the cage.

"Get off me! Doctor!" Amy shouted as if he could hear her.

"Amy! I'm here." Kal shouted in reply. He knew she wasn't calling for him but he would be there with her until the end which was likely to be in the next ten minutes.

The Druines were strong and had a tight grip on her arms. They practically slammed her onto the cold metal table. She winced in pain. The two soldiers held her arms but it didn't stop Amy from thrashing her legs about. "Doctor!" she screamed at the top of her lungs. Her voice echoed through the room. The Black Druine who had pushed the cart in walked over to her with a syringe full of thick lime green serum. Upon seeing the needle Amy's heart rate picked up faster. She continued to cry out for help but the needle was jabbed into her flesh just above her collarbone. The affects of serum were almost instantaneous. Amy felt her limbs grow heavier with each passing second. Her wild kicks died down and even her lips failed to move. After a minute the Black Druines released their grasp. There was no need to hold Amy down any longer, she was paralyzed unable to move any muscle in her body. The only thing she could move was her eyelids. And as she blinked a tear rolled down her cheek.

"We can't have you flailing about as we begin the procedure. It would ruin everything." The Burgundy Druine hovered over her reaching into his robe and producing a long curved blade with weird alien symbols etched into it. Amy wanted to cry out but she couldn't no matter how hard she tried.

"I told you already Ms. Pond." How they knew her name Amy had no idea but it just added to the pile of scary thoughts and things about this situation. Of course nothing topped the Burgundy Druine leaning over her with a 12 inch long blade. He pressed the flat of the blade to her cheek. The metal wasn't cold it was hot and it burned. "The Doctor doesn't know who you are. He's not coming for you." The blade left the side of Amy's face. No doubt there was a red mark in the shape of the long knife. Amy screamed in her head tears of pain dripping from her eyes.

A loud crash echoed in the room of cages and all heads turned. Amy could only see what was in her peripheral but she knew who had caused the crash and if she were capable of smiling she would have.

"You should really get that door fixed, the sonic had a heck of a time trying to get through the security system. Then again new sonic, trying to work out the kinks." The Doctor said brushing himself off. He looked around and saw a girl with red hair lying on what appeared to be a surgical table. It was a good thing he entered when he did. "Oh, did I interrupt something?"

"How?" The Burgundy Druine stuttered at a loss for words. Amy couldn't have been happier to see the Doctor.

"How? You're going to have to be more specific. How am I so devilishly good looking? How far east can you go before you're heading west? How fast do hotcakes sell? Or better yet, how is it you don't know who I am? All very good questions mind you. And the answers to them are as follows; I'm just lucky, never long as you are heading east you can be geographically west but you'll still be heading east, I never did figure that one out but I assume pretty fast and oh yes, you must be thick because I'm the Doctor."

"We know who you are Doctor, but how is it you came for your companion?" The two Druine soldiers were closing in on the Doctor now. He furrowed his brow and examined the girl on the table. He had no memory of this girl but it didn't mean he was going to leave her lying under the knife.

"Because I'm not the kind of person who stands by and let's a bunch of Druines cut into a girl's chest. What are you doing this for anyway? You're peaceful, on a good day. Didn't catch your name, here I am introducing myself and yammering on and I don't know who you are."

The Burgundy Druine stiffened a little, the knife still tight in his grasp. "Rinor."

The Doctor hardly glanced at the other Druines in black. Amy couldn't see the Doctor properly but she could tell there was something different about him. He was acting differently than normal. That is, normal for the Doctor.

"Ah, nice to meet you Rinor. Now why don't we put our weapons away and talk like civilized beings? Don't worry, I'm not armed."

"Your presence here changes nothing Doctor. We need a soul, and we finally found a human one."

"A soul? What would you need a soul for?" The Doctor exclaimed. He took a few steps closer but the Druines aimed their crossbow-like guns at him. He raised his hands into the air in surrender. The once light expression turned deadly seriously.

"It is of no concern to you Doctor." Rinor replied turned back ready to drag the blade down Amy's chest and slice her open.

"But you see Rinor, it is my concern because it is as you said that girl is my companion. And I came for her. Not to mention if you have been cutting people and creature up searching for a 'soul' then it very much is my problem. It ends here and with me."

Rinor's shoulders bounced up and down as he chuckled.

"I don't think so Doctor. Kill him." Rinor ordered.

"Whoa! Now hold one a minute, I'm trying to be nice and polite and you want to shoot me!"

Rinor paid no attention. The soldier Druines readied their guns but the Doctor spoke above them in a last attempt. "It won't work you know."

Rinor stopped and tilted his head in the Doctor's direction. The Doctor spoke with reason but there was a warning in his eyes. "You can't carve into a person and expect to pull out a soul. It doesn't work that way."

The Druine soldiers glanced at one another slowly lowering their weapons. "I have changed my mind." Rinor said at length. "I want the Doctor alive, I want him to see me rip the soul from Ms. Pond's body."

This did not please the Doctor in the slightest. His eyes narrowed. When the Doctor didn't protest Amy thought he might stand by and actually do nothing.

"Right then." said the Doctor whipping out his sonic screwdriver. He still preferred his old blue one; this one felt foreign and was considerably heavier. The familiar sound of the sonic in action was music to Amy's ears. The Druines dropped their guns that now lay useless. The soldiers took a step back cautious of the Doctor and his weapon.

Rinor's grip on the blade tightened he was now determined to extract Amy's soul from her body. He raised the blade and meant to bring it down. The Doctor aimed his screwdriver at the cart one of the Druines had wheeled in. Sparks flew from the cart as the mechanics exploded followed by the shattering of the test tubes. It wasn't a lot but it was enough to cause a distraction. Taking Rinor by surprise he looked up, the tip of the blade inches from Amy's chest. She felt her finger's twitch, whatever they had injected her with was wearing off. She thanked God that it was a temporary paralysis. For a moment she thought she would be stuck this way permanently.

"Doctor!" Kal shouted as the Time Lord hurried forward to pick up Amy. "Doctor, please I can help. Let me help Amy!"

The Doctor looked to the neighboring cage and supposing that this must have been another one of his companions that he had forgotten, he used his sonic and the bars opened his prison.

Kal stepped forward from the shadows his shoulder pushed back and his chest out. He nodded to the Doctor and lifted Amy over his shoulder. As he hovered over her Amy saw that Kal was very much human, at least in appearance. He was handsome and Amy severely hoped she wasn't caught blushing. "I'm going to get you out of here." He promised. Amy tried to respond but she could only squeak. It was better than nothing though. Kal grinned and lift her onto his shoulder. Amy would have protested but she couldn't walk.

Rinor growled and swung the blade at Kal but he was too fast even with the extra weight of Amy. While the Druine staggered from the failed attack Kal landed a punch to Rinor in the gut causing him to double over dropping the knife.

"Come on you two, time to go!" The Doctor said racing for the exit. Quickly the Doctor soniced the door hoping to buy them a little time before they got back to the TARDIS.

They ran out into a long seemingly endless corridor. Amy bounced uncomfortably on Kal's shoulder. She was able to move her head and her arms, but she had no control over her feet. She tested her mouth and tongue. Speech was back online.

"Well I can't remember the last time I had this much fun." She said grabbing onto the back of Kal's shirt. He chuckled and held her tighter. Amy didn't mind.

Sprinting down the corridor it didn't take long for sirens to go off. It meant that the trio should expect some unwelcome company soon.

"Come on we're almost there." said the Doctor, but Kal couldn't see an end to the corridor.

And before Kal could say anything the Doctor took a sharp right. Kal skidded to a halt and turned down another corridor that almost blended together with the first one. Amy kicked and tapped Kal on the back. The ride on Kal's shoulder was much appreciated but her stomach was starting to churn and she was pretty sure she had control over her legs.

"Oi! Everything's working perfectly back here. You can set me down anytime now." She said. Kal glanced over his shoulder and the distraction almost caused him to crash into the Doctor. They had reached the end of the corridor and were standing in front of a larger rusted steel door. Kal set Amy down carefully.

She tossed her fiery hair back over her shoulder and tugged on the hem of her denim skirt. Her eyes surveyed Kal suspiciously. "You weren't getting a free show were you?" she asked. Kal's ears turned red and he was at a loss for words. He stammered a few nonsensical sounds but the Doctor silenced them.

"Well glad to see you up and walking. Must have been a temporary paralysis serum. Nothing to worry about." He said aiming his screwdriver at the lock on the door. Amy rolled her eyes and shook out her hands; they still felt a little tight.

"Who are you?"

"I'm the Doctor."

"No, you look like the Doctor but you're definitely not him."

"Amy, it was Amy right? I'm having a bit of a bad day I wake up and I'm all...different. Something isn't right a piece of my memory is all—"

"Doctor they're coming!" Kal shouted looking over his shoulder. The sounds of marching footsteps echoed down the corridor.

"Gone. Right, introductions later once we get out of here alive."

The Doctor had lost his memory? Amy's brow furrowed, there were holes in her memory as well. It was starting to make some sense but it didn't mean she liked it. In fact the idea of the Doctor missing a chunk of his memory was terrifying especially since he had no idea who she was.

Amy pushed a strand of hair out of her face and eyed Kal thoroughly for the first time. Her head tilted to the side and her brow lifted in pleasant surprise. He was incredibly handsome and he didn't look alien at all. Kal shifted his weight self-consciously.

"What?"

"Nothing. Nothing at all." Amy smiled slyly.

The sounds of the Druines were getting closer. Amy glanced back and saw them turning down the corridor. "Anytime now Doctor!"

The lock on the door sparked and fell apart. The Doctor gave a quick triumphant laugh amongst the sirens. "Fantastic, I'm beginning to like you very much." He kissed the sonic and kicked the door open. Once they cleared the door the Doctor locked it again.

"Do you know where we're going?" Kal asked.

"Haven't got the slightest clue." The Doctor replied almost with glee in his voice. "This all looks much different than the way I got in. Oh this way!"

"Does he do this often?"

Amy smirked and shrugged her shoulders, "You get used to it. Good to know he hasn't changed that much."

The two of them shared a laugh. Turning the corner Amy and Kal both collided with Doctor who had stopped in his tracks. Before them stood at least a dozen of Druine solders, hooded in black cloaks with the same guns as before. Turning around and going back would have been an option if it hadn't been for the other half a dozen who waited on the other side of the door they had just come through.

"Doctor what do we do?" Amy asked in a low whisper.

"Uh yes, working on that. Sorry, I'm usually good at making things up along the way. Kind of rusty it would seem."

One of the Druines stepped forward, "You will come with us to the throne room. The Emperor would like to speak with the Doctor. The others are to be destroyed."

"No." The Doctor said in protest. He was stern, "They go with me or you destroy me as well. Besides, you see this girl? I hear you want her soul. Also I bet this guy has a very good soul for the harvesting. Rather good looking. I have on good authority that good looking people have top notch souls."

Amy glared at the Doctor and hit him lightly on the arm. "What are you doing?"

The Druine was silent for a moment before nodding. "Very well, all three of you will see the Emperor."

The Doctor inclined his head to Amy and gave her a demanding keep-quiet kind of glance. Amy didn't say another word.

The ship was huge but it seemed very deserted. It wasn't until they neared the throne room that Amy caught a glimpse of what look like a Druine child. They had a similar hooded cloak covering their face. At first Amy thought they were on a war ship but seeing a child on board she wasn't so sure.

They were shoved through a set of large steel doors. Even though they were made of steel they seemed very ancient. On the other side was a long empty room with copper pillars leading a path to a large brass and steel chair on the opposite end. Behind the chair was a window the width of the room. A control panel with all types of buttons and knobs were occupied by seven Druines in silver cloaks. The throne swiveled around revealing what must have been the Emperor Druine. His cloak, however, was more detailed and vibrant than the others. It was a brilliant shade of purple with gold trimmings and a pointed gold crown on top of the cloaked head. Did these people ever lower their hoods? Amy wondered. How bad could it possibly be under there? Having been with the Doctor for some time now, Amy knew that she didn't really want to know the answer to her question because no matter what things were always worse than they seemed.

"Come forward." The Emperor Druine spoke with a deep voice that startled Amy. "I hear you are the Doctor."

The Doctor shoved his hands into his pockets and blew through his lips, "Well I don't like to brag but—wait a moment yes I do. Yes, I am the Doctor."

Amy took this time to study the Doctor. She wanted the old Doctor back this one made Amy feel uncomfortable mostly because she had all of these memories of her journeys with the Doctor. With his strange case of apparently selective amnesia all of Amy's memories were just stories or tall tales in her head. He didn't have any emotional connection with her any longer. It was disturbing.

"I am Emperor Arzur. You, Doctor, have caused a lot of trouble on my ship."

The Doctor kept his gaze on Arzur. "Side effect of being the Doctor I'm afraid, trouble seems to follow."

"You took two of my specimens." He pointed a gloved hand at Amy. "The girl and the Rivenian." He glanced to Kal who protectively stood in front of Amy.

"Yes, about them. I've come in contact with a few of your people centuries ago and you were always so peaceful. What happened?"

The Emperor clutched his hand together to make a fist. Amy could tell the Doctor was touching on a sensitive subject. "Two hundred years ago Doctor, civil war threatened to destroy our world. I watched my people kill each other unable to stop what turned into a rebellion. And then they came and took advantage of the situation. They exterminated our planet."

The phrase Arzur used sent a slight chill down the Doctor's spine. He tensed and his eyes widened in growing worry.

"What did you say? Who are 'they'?"

Arzur chuckled like a mad man, "They came in the night and killed my wife and children. I managed to escape and so did three hundred of my kind. But space was cruel to us and within a month two hundred died of despair and illness. And more die everyday."

The Doctor's face twitched a little and Amy could see the empathy in his eyes. He always had a soft spot for those who like him, practically alone and without a home. Arzur paused only for a second.

"We cannot live up here Doctor. We needed a planet. Our legends dictate that every planet has a core, a soul that keeps it moving. We believed if we could gather a proper pure soul we would be able to start a new planet."

"And you haven't found a soul yet have you? That's why you have those alien races locked up down there. You can't find one." He said with a harsh undertone of disgust.

Arzur nodded, "We have tried many races but no results. But with a human soul, her soul we will have our planet again."

"I won't let you near her." The Doctor said. It was more of a threat than a matter of fact statement. "Why use the soul of another race why not use—"

"There are so few of us left Doctor, so few!"

"So you'd rather kill countless others! That doesn't make you any better than the ones who destroyed your planet. Who destroyed your planet Arzur, what came in the night?"

"The Daleks!" Arzur bellowed and Amy swore she saw two gold lights ignite where the Druines eyes would have been. It startled her and recoiled a little glancing uneasily to the Doctor and Kal.

The Doctor felt the hairs on his body stand on end. He stood in shocked disbelief for a moment before shaking his head a little. "That's impossible."

"I assure you it isn't Doctor. They came like parasites and invaded our world destroying everything and everyone. I watched my family die at the hands of the Daleks! Those blue and red beasts have haunted my nightmares since."

"What? Blue and what?"

Amy took the opportunity and stepped forward. "Not that it's exactly important at this very moment Doctor but they're back. A new race of Daleks. Something that clearly got wipped from your head."

The Doctor searched Amy for any traces of a lie but he only saw truth and it scared him. He would have liked to know more about the Daleks but Amy was right, the situation at hand was a little more pressing.

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." He said with empathy to the Druine Emperor. "It won't work though. You can't possess a person's soul but tearing into their chest. It doesn't work like that Arzur. Besides, a soul will not create a planet lost."

"We are the last of our kind. We have to try." Arzur said. The Doctor lifted his head and Amy had never seen him so stern or solemn before.

"I share your loss but it doesn't give you the right to kill others, even if you had good intentions." He replied.

Rinor rushed into the throne room at that exact moment. He hurried toward the throne the knife in his hand once again.

"My lord, please forgive me."

Arzur held up a hand to silence him. "I will deal with you later Rinor."

"Let me take her soul now. I am sure she has a pure one."

"No one is taking anyones soul you hear me?" The Doctor shouted. "Arzur I can help you find a planet to rebuild your race. One that has been abandoned by its inhabitance but perfect for you and the Druines I promise I can help you. But you have to release all of those you have imprisoned and return them to their home worlds."

Arzur was silent for a long moment. Rinor shifted by the clenched fists Amy could tell that he was not so happy with this proposal.

"We can have our planet back sire, not some left over one!"

"I can promise it will be exactly what you need."

"Why should we listen to him? The killer of his own race. He has killed more than we have. Oh yes Doctor, I know about what you did during the Last Great Time War. I know the legends and the tales. What makes you better than us?"

The Doctor's eyes narrowed on Rinor. He was silent for a long while contemplating his answer. "Just because you have killed fewer it doesn't make you a saint Rinor."

"Your pious act doesn't make you one either, Doctor." The Druine shot back. Amy wanted to have a go at Rinor. She was ready to kick his hooded butt back to the destroyed planet where he came from.

"That is enough! Both of you." Arzur raised his voice. He stood up from his throne and proceeded forwarded until he stood between the Doctor and Rinor. "Doctor, I need to do what is best for my people. Can you promise me a planet?"

"Arzur, I will do whatever I can to help you, so long as you release those in the cages."

Arzur nodded. "Then we have an agreement."

"No!" Rinor lunged for the Emperor.

"Doctor!" Amy shouted.

But the Druine soldiers were fast and their weapons fired before he could reach Arzur. Rinor fell to the floor. His hood slipped and revealed a humanoid head completely bald but with black tattoos in curved lines all over his face with pointed ears. He looked human except those few odd features. The Doctor looked upon Rinor's body with regret.

"Long live the Dru—" Rinor muttered with his final breath. Slowly the markings covered every bare piece of skin on his face and body withered and decayed right before Amy's eyes. She was strangely saddened by his death. Sure she had been ready to fight him on her own for what he said to the Doctor, but with there being so few of the Druines left it was sad to see any of them die.

"Clean up this mess." Arzur said with audible sorrow to his tone. The loss of another one of his kind apparently hit him hard, even if Rinor had attempted to kill him.

The Doctor waited a moment before moving onto another topic, "Before I help though Arzur, tell me what did you do to my memory?"

Arzur's shoulders lifted as he drew in a depe breath and slowly sunk. "We erased them." Arzur said at a length. "We knew who the traveled with and we knew your righteous anger and therefore your memories of her had to be cleansed. The last thing we wanted was for the Doctor to become our enemy."

"You are still dancing a fine line there Arzur, keep going. How could you possibly have erased them?"

Arzur looked like he might argue but he just nodded, "Our people used to possess one of the Artifacts that were created when time began. I'm sure you have heard of the legends Doctor. The Light of Lethe, capable of erasing memories and thoughts. It was used as a weapon in the early years of my world until only a fraction of the light remained. I'm afraid we used the last on you Doctor. When we got around to cleansing the mind of your companion, we only had a little left and could only wash away hours from her mind. Please forgive our desperation."

The Doctor's mouth hung open slightly. He didn't respond at first. His mind raced and whizzed about grasping everything Arzur was saying to him. The Doctor had heard about the Artifacts of the universe but had never seen one before. He believed them to be completely myth. He clicked his tongue and a slight smirk stretched his lips. "So you managed to erase my memories all the way back to before this regeneration. Blimly how long has that been?" He turned to Amy, "What year is it?"

Amy blinked caught off guard by being welcomed to join the conversation. She looked to Kal for some reason, "Oh um, 2011."

"2011?" exclaimed the Doctor. "Really? Wow I'm missing a couple years of memories. I'm impressed! Let's see the last thing I remember is well—" The happiness and childlike joy in his tone vanished and with it the smile. The last thing the Doctor could remember was leaving Rose in the parallel world. He couldn't help but wonder what happened in the years to follow. The most troubling thing was that he had been living for a few years without Rose.

"Doctor?" Amy touched his arm and he reacted turning his head to her. After a moment of seeing the concern in this girl's face the Doctor grinned and went right back to being his enthusiastic yet severe self.

"Right well things will be forgiven if you would just kindly return them to me."

"I'm afraid I can't do that Doctor. The Light of Lethe does not work that way. Once the memories are gone they cannot be brought back, unless one were to locate the Waters of Mnemosyne; the second Artifact of the Time."

There was a long pause. The Doctor slid his hands into his pockets observing Amy from the corner of his eye. "If you can tell me where to find the Waters of Mnemosyne then we can start searching for that planet Emperor."

The Doctor and Arzur went to work looking for a new planet. By a stroke of luck the Doctor seemed to recall one in the not too far Apixie System that had become uninhabitable for the locals but would suit the Druines wonderfully. Amy didn't hover over the Doctor's shoulder for once and allowed the two to work everything out. She walked over to the windows and stared out at the galaxies and stars that were so close Amy could practically touch them.

"Are you okay Amy?" Kal asked walking up beside her.

Amy jumped a little at his presence but gave a shrug, "Never better."

"I don't even know you that well and I can tell that is a lie." He leaned forward on the metal railing and watched the colors of the universe float about. "How can you understand the Druines?"

"The TARDIS translates languages. Probably the reason I can understand you." She explained half-heartily.

It was a little off putting that Kal wasn't human when he seemed so...human. He looked like a human being from every aspect, well every aspect that was visible to Amy. She assumed that the other hidden bits were very human too. Blushing slightly from the thought Amy cleared her throat and tucked her hair behind her ear.

"You're not exactly how I pictured you. I figured you'd have four arms or tentacles or something." She confessed.

Kal chuckled still staring out the window. "Well I do have a tail and about seven more eyes but I'm hiding them from you right now."

Amy raised her brow, "Are you serious?"

Kal couldn't keep a straight face he burst out laughing at the expression on Amy's face.

"I'm just messing with you. We're from Earth originally. Landed on Rivenia in the year 4057. It's a part of the Andromeda Galaxy. Set up a colony, evolved through science. And we're not only technologically advanced but psychically as well. Not that I have mind powers, its well...it's a little complicated but I'm sure your Doctor could explain it."

"He's not my Doctor." She said bitterly. Amy missed her Doctor, the goofy one with the bow tie. This one looked the same but he walked, and talked very differently. It was very disheartening and she sincerely hoped they would be able to find the Waters of whatever to cure him. She took a deep breath and looked to Kal who nudged her a little. He grinned sadly.

"He's still the Doctor. You'll get him back, and I'll be there to help."

"Don't you want to go home?"

Kal tensed, "Banished remember?"

Amy turned red from embarrassment she did recall the conversation the two of them had in the cages. "Right. Sorry. Wait, you said you never heard of Earth before?"

"True, I did say that. I might have been lying. I've heard of it but I don't know much about it. Hearing it from you was nice."

Amy pursed her lips and decided not to be mad at Kal for lying to her. "So I suppose you're speaking English then?"

Kal gave a crooked smirk and nodded, "Yeah but you'd be able to understand me no matter what."

"Brilliant! There we Juniper 9 of the Apixie System. Located fourth from the star Cryan ten hour days and an oxygen enriched atmosphere with a blossoming new life forms and well, midsummer I believe." The Doctor grinned at his work and the image of a moss green planet on the computer screen.

Arzur bowed to the Doctor and by the stunned reactions of the other Druines this kind of action didn't happen often. Amy turned and walked over sharing a smirk with Kal. It had to be a real honor to be bowed to but Amy knew it wasn't for her or Kal it was directed at the Doctor. "Thank you so much. You are saving an entire race."

"It's nothing." The Doctor replied. "But, we had an agreement. Where are the Waters of Mnemosyne?"

The emperor stood up and nodded to one of the Druines at the computer system. A planet that was familiar to Amy popped up on screen. She squinted her eyes to make sure she was seeing things correctly. "Is that Neptune?" Amy had done a report on the Solar System in school and her favorite planet happened to be Neptune. She always thought it was the most beautiful of all the planets in their system.

Arzur looked over his shoulder at her and nodded.

"The water's of Mnemosyne are on Neptune? Nothing can live on Neptune."

The Doctor turned to Amy and lifted his left brow. "You've traveled through time and space seen countless races and life on Neptune is out of your comprehension?"

Amy looked taken aback by the Doctor's bluntness. She shrugged and folded her arms across her chest. Unable to form a proper response in time she stayed silent and stood by Kal while the Doctor and Arzur spoke.

"I'm sorry for everything Doctor."

"Its alright Arzur. You're people have a chance to thrive again. Not many get that opportunity, take advantage of it."

"Alright? I was almost sliced open like a lab rat." Amy objected. The Doctor's look silenced her.

"Safe journey."

The three of them stood inside the TARDIS the Doctor moving about as if nothing was wrong. Kal was busy trying to comprehend the sheer idea that it was bigger on the inside.

"This is fantastic." Kal exclaimed running up to the consul. The Doctor smiled at him from around the central part of the TARDIS. Amy leaned on the railings observing the two of them.

"So, Kal and Amy are we ready to go to Neptune?"

"You mean I can come with you?" Kal asked.

The Doctor nodded, "Yeah of course. Unless you have someplace else to be?"

Kal scoffed and shook his head, "I've been banished from my planet. I've got no where else to go."

"Then you'll fit right in."

Rolling her eyes Amy bounced over to stand beside Kal. She nudged him a little and smiled. He returned it.

"Will the Druines really be alright on that planet?" Amy asked unable to keep to her thoughts. She may have resented that this wasn't her Doctor but her curiousity kept her from staying silent.

"Oh I think so. Very similar atmosphere they are quite lucky. Though the way their planet was destroyed..." He trailed off his eyes staring into the distance. Amy waved a hand in front of his face.

"Sorry. Apparently a lot has happened in the memories I forgot. I think it's about time we get them back. Amy, would you like to do the honors?" He gestured to a lever.

Amy stood on the spot for a few moments, she wasn't sure how to respond to the request. There wasn't a time before when she was asked to help fly the TARDIS or do the honors of anything. Amy straightened her back not takings her eyes from the Doctor. She was searching for any signs of a practical joke. A small smile pulled at the corner of her mouth. She pulled the lever and the TARDIS gave a lurch and the familiar and somehow soothing sounds that signaled the TARDIS in flight pounded her eardrums.

They all stumbled and gripped onto anything near them to hold their balance. The Doctor gave a goofy grin and chuckled. "Allons-y!"

Kal let out a whooping yell and Amy couldn't help but laugh along with the two. After all, they were heading to get the old (actually in every sense of the term new, but in Amy's perspective) Doctor back. Not to mention they were traveling to Neptune and somehow that was more exciting than any other planet or location in time she had visited.