SPOILERS!
This story contains mild spoilers for Season 6 Episode 1 of Doctor Who.
We sat on a blanket, enjoying the picnic and joking around. I looked between the three of them with what I suppose was a sorrowful smile. River caught my eye and her smile faltered for a moment. She was perceptive and I'd known that she'd figure out that there was something wrong. As she resumed smiling and looked away, I thanked my lucky... oh, never mind. Stars aren't lucky. Either way, I was glad that River hadn't asked me about it. She might be willing to let it go at 'nothing,' after all she knew me well enough to know that I'd never tell her. The Ponds, however, definitely wouldn't. Let it go, I mean. They wouldn't let it go. Because no matter how many times I told Amy that I was always alright, she never believed me and what she doesn't believe, Rory doesn't believe.
Speaking of Amy and Rory, they were quite honestly the last people that I wanted to see. To them, I had only been away a few months. What they didn't know was that I had already watched them grow old. I had been at Rory's funeral and comforted a sobbing Amy. I'd been at Amy's funeral and cried alone. For over a hundred years I had visited their graves annually. When I realized what I had to do, I knew that they needed to be part of it. That didn't change the fact that it meant going back and seeing my long-dead friends and companions oblivious to their futures. Oblivious to... no, that's getting ahead of myself. Or behind myself. Depends on how you look at it, really.
Finally I saw a truck arrive and pull to a stop. As an old man stepped out, I raise my hand in greeting. He raised his back and I heard someone say something behind me. Even knowing that it was time, I didn't want to go. I could only hope that they would all be alright. Everything started to happen at once. Canton grabbed the gasoline out of his truck. The astronaut walked out of the water. I ordered River and the Ponds not to interfere and walked to the astronaut. It was all just so fast, so terribly fast and so painfully slow all at the same time.
At first, I just felt as if I'd been pushed back. It wasn't pleasant, but it didn't hurt. The pain came quickly, followed by a second shot. I stumbled back and felt the regeneration start. A quick glance at my friends revealed that Amy was panicking, but River and Rory were managing to hold her back. She would only have to wait while I regenerated, then I'd be back. Different, but back. Or not. The sharp pain in my chest told me that something was seriously wrong. As I collapsed on the ground, I heard muffled shouts. Just as I heard the footsteps in the sand next to my head, the blackness swallowed me. It was a darkness unlike any I had experienced before. I couldn't see, couldn't move, and couldn't feel. Instantly, I knew that I hadn't completed the regeneration. I was dead.