I'm Your Daughter
Chapter 1:
Jenny honestly hadn't meant to stumble across a TARDIS, only for it to be taken by a Weeping Angel. Some could argue it really wasn't her fault at all. The Doctor and Rose still had a hard time believing her story, which went something like this:
Jenny had been flying the rocket she'd stolen when she got a distress signal, coming from a…void… but it was time lords, she could sense it. There was nobody on the planet, if it even was a planet. The whole thing seemed… dead… the only thing that Jenny had found was two bodies – two mangled bodies. Though the sight of the woman with a man's arm and the man with the leg of a woman sickened her, she managed to push herself forward. There were voices, screaming out for help, and for the first time in a long time Jenny was scared.
Her father had told her about the time lords briefly, and he'd said that there was no way she would ever be a proper time lord. Or whatever they called a female time lord, her father had never told Donna because he thought of her as an echo and nothing else. Jenny just referred to herself as a time lord, hoping she didn't sound completely stupid saying that. What if these other time lords thought the same thing as her father had? Would they accept her as the Doctor eventually had, or would they cast her aside?
She was shaking by the time she reached a closet door… the time lords couldn't fit themselves into a box, could they? She didn't think that her father knew how to shrink, and Jenny definitely didn't know how to. That meant only one thing, but she had to be sure…
…it opened, and Jenny was greeted with the sight of bright boxes. The same box that had appeared to her before, the distress signal. These were time lords lost in the Time War, all calling out for help. Jenny closed her eyes and a single tear leaked out. It was terrible, listening to their screams and cries, pleads, and even the ones trying to stay calm. All calling out for help. Locked forever in a Time War.
She took a deep breath and wiped the tear away, trying to keep herself calm. There was a terrible sadness in her, like the loss of a friend, like having her father taken away from her all over again… she wondered if he were even alive, which was a horrible thought, but a thought all the same. Had he ever gone back to her home planet to visit her grave? If so, did they tell him what had happened? Was it possible he was looking for her right now?
Somehow, the answer in her heavy heart said everything. He wasn't coming to find her.
She took another deep breath and shut the door, trying to block out the cries from inside. Each step away from the boxes felt like agony to her; she wished she could help them, she truly did, but there was nothing she could do, and that more than anything made her feel like the worst time lord in the world. If she even was a time lord, she could just be an echo.
She felt before the saw the many TARDIS's, now in their graves, alone and abandoned on the planet (if it was a planet). She gasped at the sight, the horror rising in her again, at the thought of something so pure ruined. She'd never been inside a TARDIS before, but she'd heard about them in her travels, and she knew that if she'd been able to travel with the Doctor, it would have been in a TARDIS.
"Oh dad," she whispered, "I hope your TARDIS isn't among these."
She slowly walked forward, a tingling that lifted her neck hair on end up alerted her that it wasn't only TARDIS's in this… graveyard. Her hearts started beating rapidly at the thought of something living among these TARDIS's, scavenging their remains. What could it be?
She continued forward, trying to keep silent, but too curious to run all the same. She loved the running, but sometimes it got a bit dull. She wondered, not for the first time, how her dad and Donna did it.
Her gaze was attracted to an enclosed one, large enough to swallow half of the planet if it wasn't dead. She stared at it in shock, how huge it was compared to the rest… but why? It seemed like all of the TARDIS's were around the same size… so why was this one so much bigger? It was the shape of an oval, and if it hadn't been so rusty, she could tell it would have been bright silver. It was beautiful…
She walked towards the intriguing TARDIS, knowing that if she had the choice, she would pick this one in a heartbeat. She hesitated when she reached an opening, which had most likely been doors, of the TARDIS. It was now or never….
She took a deep sigh and stepped into the huge TARDIS. It was dark inside, so dark she had trouble seeing in front of her. She walked forward slightly, feeling along the smooth walls of the TARDIS, wondering where its control center may have been. She could feel something behind her, the same feeling she'd had before, like there was something that shouldn't be there. She shivered, it was getting closer. She turned around, trying to see through the darkness where the entrance was, but she'd ventured too deep. She tried feeling along, and promptly bumped into something hard. Like a statue.
"Ouch! What was –"
She felt a stone-hard hand grasp her shoulder painfully, and then she was gone.
But where was she? Jenny was asking herself the same question as she looked around in awe. It was hot wherever she was.
She had to have been in some kind of… space station. There was a large window, with a breathtaking sight. Below her was a planet, a planet like she'd never seen before. It was blue and green with what looked like white storm clouds covering some parts of it. She assumed the green was land and the blue was water… although she'd been to a few planets where the colors were the exact opposite. Note to self: Never swim in green water. It's disgusting.
Suddenly, what Jenny recognized as the sun, flared bright red. She had to close her eyes against the brightness, but she could still see the red through her eyelids. Realizing that she was crouching down on the ground, she quickly straightened up and brushed off her pants. She was reluctant to leave the sight, the beautiful sight, but she knew that there were more pressing matters, such as where she was and why she was hovering above a planet that was probably about to roast.
Trying to stay calm, Jenny wandered out into the hallway, bumping straight into a tall man in a leather jacket, who had been talking to a blonde-haired girl.
"Oh, I'm sorry!" she apologized, "I wasn't looking where I was going."
"It's alright love, come to see the end of Earth as well?"
"Um…" Jenny blinked, was that where she was? An observation deck? "Yeah, yeah sure. I mean yes I am."
The man rose an eyebrow but chose not to comment, "well you're welcome to join us. Is that alright Rose?" the blonde girl next to him nodded, "that's fine with me."
Rose gave Jenny a friendly smile that Jenny returned. Jenny looked around as a voice spoke, echoing through the halls, a computer most likely judging by the monotonous tone. "Shuttles five and six now docking. Guests are reminded that Platform One forbids the use of weapons, teleportation and religion. Earth Death is scheduled for fifteen thirty nine, followed by drinks in the Manchester suite."
Jenny tagged along with the man and Rose, keeping close but not wanting to seem needy or clingy. If there was anything she hated, it was someone clinging to her side like a puppy dog. She didn't want to be the puppy dog.
"So, when it says guests, does that mean people?"
Jenny listened carefully to his answer. There was one way of learning something: quiet mouth but loud ears.
"Depends on what you mean by people."
"I mean people. What do you mean?"
"Aliens," said the man, as though this were nothing. Which to Jenny, it really wasn't. Rose, it seemed, was new to this.
"What are they doing on board this spaceship? What's it all for?"
"It's not really a spaceship," Jenny couldn't help cutting in, "it's more of an observation deck."
The man nodded, looking both pleased and a little surprised, "Exactly. The great and the good are gathering to watch the planet burn." As they approached a wall, the man pulled out… no, it couldn't be… it had to have been a different one. She didn't really know anything about time lords – the Doctor could have always picked up a sonic screwdriver from another species. Still, it was unsettling.
"What for?" asked Rose curiously.
"Fun," said the man, shrugging.
Now Jenny knew why the man had been pointing his sonic screwdriver at the wall. A large door, the same color as the wall, had opened to reveal an even larger room inside. There were a few display cases inside of it, and another large window that showed the view of space from the front to above.
"Mind you, when I said the great and the good," the man started, "what I meant is, the rich."
Jenny looked around in admiration, trying to keep track of the conversation while also trying to take in her surroundings at the same time.
"But, hold on," Rose was saying, "they did this once on Newsround Extra. The sun expanding, that takes hundreds of years."
"Millions, but the planet is now property of the National Trust. They've been keeping it preserved. See down there? Gravity satellites holding back the sun."
"The planet looks the same as ever," argued Rose. Jenny kept silent, knowing nothing about the planet Earth. "I thought the continents shifted and things."
"They did," replied the man, "and the Trust shifted them back. That's a classic Earth. But now the money's run out, nature takes over."
"How long does it have?" Jenny asked, unaware that Rose had been about to ask the same question.
"About a half an hour, then the planet gets roasted," the man replied.
"Is that why we're here? I mean, is this what you do? Jump in at the last minute and save the Earth?"
Both Jenny and Rose waited for the man's answer.
"I'm not saving it," he said, and Jenny could just detect a hint of regret. "Time's up."
"What about the people?" Rose sounded shocked.
"It's empty. They've all gone. No one left."
"Just me, then," said Rose quietly, but Jenny picked up on it.
"You came from Earth?"
"Yeah," said Rose, "years and years ago," she gave a sort of laugh, "I don't even know when. Feels like minutes."
Jenny nodded slowly, wondering if her day could get any weirder. Her head snapped around as a blue-skinned humanoid walked up to them, its eyes golden slits.
"Who the hell are you?" it snarled, and Jenny assumed it was the steward. The man next to her frowned. "Oh, that's nice, thanks."
"But how did you get in?" the steward glared, "this is a maximum hospitality zone. The guests have disembarked. They're on their way any second now."
"That's me," said the man brightly, "I'm a guest. Look, I've got an invitation. Look," he waved a piece of paper in front of the steward's eyes. "There, you see? It's fine, you see? The Doctor plus two," Jenny wasn't sure if the Doctor heard her gasp or not. If he did, he ignored it. "I'm the Doctor, this is Rose Tyler, and this is –" the Doctor glanced at her, and she cleared her throat, "Jenny Smith."
"Jenny Smith," repeated the Doctor with a smile, "they're my plus two. Is that alright?"
The Doctor put away the piece of paper he had in his pocket, and Jenny was surprised that the steward seemed to fall for it. What had he seen on that blank piece of paper? "Well, obviously," the steward apologized, though he still sounded slightly grumpy. "Apologies, et cetera. If you're on board, we'd better start. Enjoy."
The steward turned and left them in favor of walking towards a lecturn.
"What was on that paper?" Jenny asked the Doctor curiously, "Why did he think you were invited?"
"Because it said so on the paper," the Doctor replied.
"It's blank," said Jenny, frowning.
"The paper's slightly psychic," the Doctor explained. "It shows them whatever I want them to see. Saves a lot of time. Rose, are you paying attention?"
"He's blue," said Rose, still looking after the steward.
"Yeah."
"Okay."
They all turned to the steward as he called out. "We have in attendance the Doctor, Rose Tyler and Jenny Smith. Thank you. All staff to their positions."
A lot of small people suddenly appeared, causing Jenny to backtrack. She hadn't seen them before.
"Hurry now," the steward said, "thank you. Quick as we can. Come along, come along. And now, might I introduce our next honored guest? Representing the Forest of Cheam, we have trees," Jenny and Rose exchanged a quick glance, "namely, Jabe, Lute and Coffa."
A bark-skinned woman entered the room with two larger male escorts.
The steward continued, "there will be an exchange of gifts representing peace. If you could keep the room circulating, thank you. Next, from the solicitors Jolco and Jolco, we have Moxx of Balhoon." Moxx was yet another blue alien, from what Jenny could see only a head and upper body, sitting on a transport pod.
"And next, from Financial Family Seven, we have the Adherents of the Repeated Meme."
There was a black-robed bipeds at this.
As they went past, the steward continued, "the inventors of the Hypo-slip Travel Systems, the brothers Hop Pyleen. Thank you."
Jenny spotted fur-clad reptilians, who she assumed to be the inventors of the Hypo-slip. "Cal Spark Club," the steward continued again, "Mister and Mrs Pakoo. The Ambassadors from the City State of Binding Light."
The tree-people approached the Doctor. Jabe was the first to speak. "The Gift of Peace. I bring you a cutting of my grandfather," she gave the Doctor a rooted twig in a small pot.
"Thank you," said the Doctor, and Jenny could tell he was doing some quick thinking. "Yes, gifts. Er, I give you in return air from my lungs."
He breathed gently on Jabe, and Jenny was surprised when she subconsciously leaned in closer. "How intimate," she said, causing both Jenny and Rose to frown.
"There's more where that came from," said the Doctor with a grin, and Jenny had to suppress a groan. If this was her father (but how could he be?) then he was hitting on someone in front of her.
"I bet there is," replied Jabe with the same smile.
The steward spoke over them, "From the Silver Devastation, the sponsor of the main event, everyone please welcome the Face of Boe!"
A large, glass case barely made it through the doorway. It contained a giant, flesh-colored humanoid head with tentacle-like hair and squinting eyes.
The Doctor was again approached, this time by Moxx. "The Moxx of Balhoon," the Doctor said in greeting.
"My felicitations on this historical happenstance. I give you the gift of bodily salivas."
Moxx spat and hit Rose in the face. Jenny winced in sympathy, but the Doctor didn't seem put out or offended in any way. "Thank you!" he said brightly, and Moxx walked away.
The next to approach them was the black robed group, who glided up to them smoothly.
"Ah! The Adherents of the Repeated Meme!" the Doctor exclaimed, "I give you air from my lungs." He breathed on them heavily as he said this.
The adherent held out a large, metal hand and handed the Doctor a ball. "A gift of peace in all good faith."
"And last but not least," the steward called out, "our very special guest! Ladies and gentlemen, and trees and multiforms, consider the Earth below. In memory of this dying world, we call forth the last Human. The Lady Cassandra O'Brien Dot Delta Seventeen."
A face in a piece of thin skin stretched in a rectangular frame was wheeled in by two men hidden in top-to-toe hospital whites.
"Oh now, don't stare," Cassandra said in a husky voice that plainly said she wanted them to stare, "I know, I know it's shocking, isn't it? I've had my chin completely taken away and look at the difference! Look how thin I am," Jenny almost snorted. Thin was an understatement. "Thin and dainty. I don't look a day over two thousand. Moisturize me, moisturize me," she added, and one of the men grabbed a pump spray and sprayed what was possibly water on her skin. Or moisturizer. Jenny wasn't really good with that kind of stuff. Rose was looking sickened.
"Truly, I am the Last Human. My father was a Texan, my mother was from the Arctic Desert. They were born on the Earth and were the last to be buried in its soil. I have come to honor them and say goodbye. Oh no tears, no tears," she said quickly, even though nobody was crying, "I'm sorry. But behold, I bring gifts. From Earth itself, the last remaining ostrich egg. Legend says it had a wingspan of fifty feet and blew fire from its nostrils." Now Rose looked close to laughing, and she started walking to the back of Cassandra, Jenny following after, trying to see exactly how thin she was. "Or was that my late husband? Oh, no. Oh don't laugh," Jenny was surprised that there were actually a few chuckles at that. "I'll get laughter lines! And here, another rarity."
A box was rolled in the room, "according to archives, this was called an iPod. It stores classical music from humanity's greatest composers. Play on!"
One of the men touched a small button on it, and the sound of singing rose from the box. Despite herself, Jenny was curious.
"Refreshments will now be served," the steward called out over the music, "Earth death in thirty minutes."
Jenny felt something brush past her, and she turned to see Rose running out of the room. Confused and baffled, Jenny ran out after her. From the corner of her eye she saw the Doctor attempt to do the same, but he was intercepted by more aliens.
Jenny was panting by the time she reached Rose, who had slowed down, looking lost. Jenny fell in step next to her, unsure if she should say anything. Rose turned around suddenly, but was looking past Jenny, up at the glowing sun. Jenny stood beside her in respectful silence, when someone appeared around the corner, causing them both to jump.
"Sorry, are we allowed to be in here?" Rose asked the blue-skinned alien, who was wearing overalls and a cap.
"You have to give us permission to talk," said the young woman, who was the same species as the steward.
Rose and Jenny exchanged a glance. "Er, you have permission to talk," said Jenny.
"Thank you. And no, you are not in the way. Guests are allowed anywhere."
"Okay," said Rose, looking relieved. The alien walked to the wall panel and opened it.
"What's your name?" Jenny asked the alien, who was quiet before speaking. "Raffalo."
"Raffalo?" Rose repeated.
"Yes, miss. I won't be long, I've just got to carry out some maintenance. There's a tiny little glitch in the Face of Boe's suite. There must be something blocking the system. He's not getting any hot water."
"So, you're a plumber?" Rose asked.
"That's right, miss," said Raffalo.
"They still have plumbers?" Rose questioned, sounding a little overwhelmed.
"I hope so, else I'm out of a job," Raffalo sighed.
"Where are you from?" asked Jenny.
"Crespallion," Raffalo answered, and Rose frowned. "That's a planet, is it?"
"No," Jenny answered before Raffalo could, "Crespallion's part of the Jaggit Brocade, affiliated to the Scarlet Junction, Convex fifty six."
Raffalo nodded, looking at her with wide eyes. "Yes, miss. And where are you both from? If you don't mind me asking," she added quickly.
"No, not at all. Er, I don't know, a long way away. I just sort of hitched a lift with this man…I didn't even think about it," Rose was starting to sound both confused and a little shocked at her choice. "I don't even know who he is. He's a complete stranger…."
Jenny took this time to cut in. "I'm from the planet Messaline. Far off from this planet. It's really a pile of rubbish, though I bet it looks better than it did now that I'm off of it. I don't think I'd ever want to go back though," she added as an afterthought. "Anyway, I won't keep you waiting. Good luck with it."
"Thank you miss. And, er," she looked slightly embarrassed, "thank you for the permission, both of you. Most people are not that considerate."
"Okay. See you later," said Rose in a friendly voice, though Jenny could tell her mind was still on something else. Jenny started to guide her out of the room and back into the corridor, still not sure what to say now that they were alone together again.
…
Jenny was pacing around, lost in thought, as Rose played with the ball that the adherents had given them.
"Earth death in twenty five minutes," called out the computer. Rose huffed, "Oh, thanks."
She put the ball back down and picked up the flower pot. "Hello, my name's Rose. That's a sort of plant. We might be related," she stopped, blinking. "I'm talking to a twig."
Jenny laughed, "I've seen worse."
Neither of them saw the ball hatch.
"Rose? Jenny? Are you in there?" the two girls turned at the sound of the Doctor's voice. "Aye, aye," he said when he spotted the two. "What do you think, then?"
"Great," Rose said, a little too quickly. "Yeah, fine. Once you get past the psychic paper. They're just… so alien," Rose exclaimed, and Jenny stared at her. "The aliens are so alien. You look at 'em, and they're alien! 'Cept for Jenny."
Jenny chose not to comment on this.
"Good thing I didn't take you to the Deep South," said the Doctor, his tone a lot calmer then hers was.
"Where are you from?" Rose asked him, and Jenny turned away, looking up at the sun.
"All over the place," said the Doctor evasively.
"They all speak English," breathed Rose. Jenny frowned – there were a lot of times where she stumbled across aliens who didn't speak English. She had to learn their languages, which was easier because of the military training. It helped her pick up on things.
"No," the Doctor disagreed, and Jenny turned back around to look at the two of them. "You just hear English. It's the gift of the TARDIS. The telepathic field, gets inside your brain and translates," he said this as though it were the most obvious thing in the world.
"It's inside my brain?" Rose deadpanned, and Jenny hid a grin.
"Well, in a good way," said the Doctor quickly.
"Your machine gets inside my head," said Rose, in the same voice. "It gets inside and it changes my mind, and you didn't even ask?"
"I didn't think about it like that," said the Doctor defensively.
"No," said Rose, and Jenny could detect an argument… or at least a one-sided argument… about to go down. "You were too busy thinking up cheap shots about the Deep South. Who are you then, Doctor? What are you called? What sort of alien are you?"
"I'm just the Doctor."
"From what planet?" Rose demanded, and the Doctor frowned. "Well, it's not as if you'll know where it is!"
"Where are you from?" apparently, Rose was very stubborn.
"What does it matter?" the Doctor sounded slightly panicked now, and a tad angry.
"Tell me who you are!" Rose yelled.
"This is who I am," the Doctor exclaimed, "Right here, right now, alright? All that counts is here and now, and this is me."
Jenny mentally sighed… no, this man wasn't her dad… this wasn't him… which it wasn't! How could her dad change his face? It was a bit odd that there was another person called the Doctor who traveled through space and time though…
"Yeah, and I'm here too because you brought me here. So just tell me."
The computer cut through what would have been the Doctor's reply. "Earth Death in twenty minutes. Earth death in twenty minutes."
"All right," said Rose, obviously trying to calm herself down. "As my mate Shareen says, don't argue with the designated driver." Rose took out something from her pocket, which Jenny had no idea what it was. It looked like some sort of communication device.
"Can't exactly call for a taxi," Rose sighed, staring at the communication device forlornly. "There's no signal, we're out of range. Just a bit."
"Tell you what," said the Doctor, and he grabbed the device, and started to take it apart. "With a little bit of jiggery pokery."
"Is that a technical term," asked Jenny, speaking for the first time in a while. "Jiggery pokery?"
"Yeah, I came first in jiggery pokery. What about you?"
"No, I failed hullabaloo."
"Oh! There you go," said the Doctor suddenly, handing the device back to Rose. Looking suspicious, she started pressing a few buttons on it and held it to her ear.
"Mum?"
Jenny watched in fascination as Rose had a conversation with her mom over that… device.
"What is it?" Jenny asked the Doctor finally, who tilted his head slightly. "It's called a phone. A cell phone. You have to pay for it though… usually." He winked at Jenny before turning back to Rose, who'd ended the call. She looked a lot better.
"Think that was amazing, you want to see the bill."
Rose looked at him in astonishment, "That was five billion years ago. So, she's dead now. Five billion years later, my mum's dead."
"Bundle of laughs, you are," said the Doctor with a frown. Rose may have replied… if the space station hadn't started shaking wildly at that precise moment.
"Somehow, I don't think that was supposed to happen," Jenny said, wide-eyed.
"I think it's time to head back," the Doctor agreed. "Come on, let's go."
…
They walked in on the middle of a conversation. "—Bad Wolf scenario. I find the inherit laxity of the on-going multiverse."
"That wasn't a gravity pocket," the Doctor said to Rose and Jenny. "I know gravity pockets and they don't feel like that. What do you think, Jabe?" he asked the tree-person, who was standing close. "Listen to the engines, they've pitched up about 30 Hertz. That dodgy or what?"
"It's the sound of metal," Jabe said in confusion, "it doesn't make sense to me."
"Where's the engine room?" the Doctor tried again.
"I don't know, but the maintenance duct is just beyond out guest suite, I could show you and your wives."
Jenny tried not to show her revulsion at the idea.
"No, they aren't my wives," said the Doctor, looking suspiciously close to laughter.
"Partners?"
"No."
"Concubines?"
"Nope."
"Prostitutes?"
The Doctor opened his mouth, a grin on his face, but Rose cut in. "Whatever we are, it must be invisible. Do you mind? Tell you what, you two go and pollinate. We –" she pointed to Jenny and then herself, "are going to catch up… with family. Quick word with Michael Jackson!"
Before Jenny could ask who Michael Jackson was, Rose had grabbed her by the arm (rather hard) and pulled her over to Cassandra.
"Don't start a fight!" the Doctor called after them, but they ignored him.
He offered Jabe his arm, who linked hers in his. "I'm all yours," the Doctor said to Jabe, causing Jenny to roll her eyes.
"And I want you home by midnight!" Rose called after them in a teasing tone. She quickly sobered at the computer voice. "Earth Death in fifteen minutes. Earth Death in fifteen minutes."
"What do you mean that you want him home by midnight? And who's Michael Jackson?" Jenny whispered to Rose, who blinked.
"Blimey I keep forgettin' you're not from Earth. There's this thing on Earth, it's called a curfew, parents usually give it to their kids, 'specially when they go out on dates and stuff. Michael Jackson is a famous singer back on Earth in my time… so, on Messaline, is it all humans? You are human, right?"
"Half of the population is human, and the other half are the Hath. They're sort of like fish I guess, but they're as big as humans and walk on two legs and have two arms. We used to be at war with them, but the day I left the war was over."Jenny didn't say she was a time lord.
They approached Cassandra, the "Last Human".
"Soon, the sun will blossom into a red giant," she was saying, "and my home will die. That's where I used to live, when I was a little boy, down there. Mummy and daddy had a little house built into the side of Los Angeles Crevice. I'd have such fun."
"What happened to everyone else?" Rose asked, "the human race, where did it go?"
"They say mankind has touched every star in the sky," Cassandra answered her.
"So, you're not the last human," Jenny confirmed, and Rose frowned.
"I am the last pure human. The others mingled. Oh, and they called themselves New Humans and Proto-humans and Digi-humans and even 'Humanish'. But you know what I call them? Mongrels."
"Right. And you stayed behind?" asked Jenny.
"I kept myself pure," said Cassandra in a snotty voice.
"How many operations have you had?" Rose asked curiously, eyeing her skin.
"Seven hundred and eight," said Cassandra proudly. "Next week, it's seven hundred and nine. I'm having my blood bleached. Is that why you wanted a word? You could be a flatter, Rose and Jenny. You have a little bit of chin pointing out," she added in a disgusted tone.
"I'd rather die," said Rose heatedly, and Jenny nodded her approval.
"Honestly, it doesn't hurt."
"No, I mean it. I would rather die. It's better to die than live like you, a bitchy trampoline."
Jenny at least knew what a trampoline was – they had some on Messaline. She snorted audibly.
Cassandra glared at the two of them. "Oh well, what do you know."
"I was born on that planet," said Rose, glaring right back at Cassandra. Jenny had to admire her courage. "So was my mum, and so was my dad, and that makes me officially the last human in this room, 'cos you're not a human, you've had it all nipped and tucked and flattened till there's nothing left. Anything human got chucked in the bin. You're just skin, Cassandra. Lipstick and skin. Nice talking."
Rose whipped around and Jenny followed after, a grin on her face, as the adherents watched them leave. "Nice," Jenny complimented her, and Rose giggled. "Well it's true!"
…
Jenny sensed it before she saw it. "Rose watch out –" Rose whipped around, and her eyes widened. "Jenny, behind you!"
Rose was knocked out as the adherent that had appeared behind her pistol whipped a weapon around her head. "NO –" Jenny yelled, but was cut off by a sharp pain in the back of her head. As she faded to unconsciousness, Jenny was horribly reminded of when the bullet had pierced her left heart.
…
Jenny woke up groggily, her mind working slowly as she lifted herself off of the floor. She blinked to get the fuzziness away, and her eyes widened. The first thing she saw was the sun, the second thing she saw was Rose lying next to her, also unconscious.
"Rose, ROSE –"
Rose whipped upright as the computer voice flooded the room. "Sun filter descending. Sun filter descending."
They both covered their eyes against the deadly glare, and stumbled towards the general direction of the door. "NO!"
"Let us out!"
"LET US OUT!"
"HELP!"
"Sun filter descending."
"No, no, no, no this can't be happening," Jenny was shaking, "I can't believe it!"
There was a sudden, very welcomed noise from the door – the sonic screwdriver. "Anyone in there?"
"Let us out!" Rose and Jenny yelled at the same time.
"Oh well, it would be you two," came the Doctor's sarcastic voice.
"Open the door!" Rose growled.
"Hold on. Give us two ticks."
"Sun filter descending. Sun filter descending."
Jenny grabbed onto Rose's arm to keep her calm, "it's okay, the Doctor's here," she whispered to her, blinking harshly against the light. Rose didn't say anything, just turned back to the door.
"The computer's getting clever!" shouted the Doctor. Jenny snapped; she was tired and very, very, very hot. "Stop mucking about!"
"I'm not mucking about," said the Doctor, sounding slightly offended. "It's fighting back."
"Open the door!" Rose shouted. Jenny glanced over at her; there was sweat glistening all over her body, and Jenny was sure that she was plastered in just as much sweat.
"I know!" the Doctor yelled back.
"The lock's melted!" exclaimed Rose, and Jenny started to shake again. She did not come all this way just to be killed by a sun.
"Sun filter descending, sun filter descending."
"The whole thing's jammed!" Jenny heard the Doctor yell. "I can't open the doors. Stay there! Don't move!"
"Where are we going to go, Ipswich?" Rose yelled sarcastically.
"Earth Death in five minutes. Earth Death in five minutes."
Jenny fell back against the door, trying to fight off tears. Rose knelt down beside her, "Hey it's okay… like you said, the Doctor's here," she murmured to her. Jenny shook her head. "Where?"
"He'll come back," Rose said firmly, though Jenny could tell that Rose was unsure himself. "He always comes back."
They both cringed at the sound of the computer's voice. "Heat Rising. Earth Death in two minutes. Earth Death in two minutes."
Jenny groaned and Rose put a comforting hand on her shoulder.
"Heat levels critical."
"So far, everything we've heard since the Doctor left, is basically telling us our doom."
"Don't think like that, the Doctor is comin', just wait."
"Heat levels rising, heat levels rising." Rose sat down next to Jenny, sighing. "I think you're right," she said eventually. "Maybe this time, the Doctor isn't comin'."
"External temperature five thousand degrees. Heat levels hazardous."
Jenny looked up as the window began to crack, and she felt Rose lean in close to her. "Oh god…" Rose whispered, sounding close to tears.
"Shields malfunction. Shields malfunction."
Light, bright enough to give them both deadly burns, danced through the openings in the cracks. "NO!" Rose screamed, and Jenny turned her head away.
There was a loud noise, and Jenny peaked up just in time to see the Earth explode, before it all headed for them. She dipped her head again and waited for the blast that would turn her and Rose to crisps.
It didn't come.
She looked up in confusion, and heard Rose gasp. The cracks in the window had started to repair themselves… but there was no more Earth, only rocks remained of the beautiful planet.
"Exoglass repair," said the computer's monotonous voice.
…
By the time Jenny and Rose walked into the observation deck, they were greeted with the sight of Moxx of Bahloon's dead body, fried to a crisp. Jenny and Rose watched as the Doctor raced over to the other two trees, and from the looks on their faces, it was bad news.
He slowly made his way over to Rose and Jenny. "I'm sorry," he said.
"You alright?" asked Rose, her concern for the Doctor more pressing then any quarrel she might have had with him.
"Yeah I'm fine," said the Doctor, but the sad look on his face disagreed with his words. "I'm full of ideas. I'm bristling with them. Idea number one, teleportation through five thousand degrees needs some kind of feed. Idea number two, this feed must be hidden nearby."
He grabbed the ostrich egg that Cassandra had so generously brought, and smashed it to pieces. Inside of it was a small device.
"Idea number three, if you're as clever as me –" okay, that sounded like her father. Were all men with the name 'Doctor' stuck up about how clever they were? "then a teleportation feed can be reversed."
He pressed a button on the feed, and Cassandra appeared back in. She had appeared to be in the middle of talking, but the words seemed to be stuck in her throat as she stared around at them all.
"Oh."
"The last human," the Doctor's voice wasn't friendly.
"So, you passed my little test," said Cassandra flippantly. "Bravo. That makes you eligible to join, er, the Human club."
"People have died Cassandra," the Doctor said in a low voice that somehow seemed threatening. "You murdered them."
"It depends on your definition of people, and that's enough of a technicality to keep your lawyers dizzy for centuries. Take me to court, then, Doctor, and watch me smile and cry and flutter -"
"And creak?" Jenny piped up.
Cassandra cut herself off. "And what?"
"Creak. You're creaking," Jenny pointed out, and sure enough, she was.
"What? Ah! I'm drying out! Oh sweet heavens, moisturize me! Moisturize me! Where are my surgeons? My lovely boys? It's too hot!"
"You raised the temperature," said the Doctor.
"Have pity! Moisturize me! Oh, oh Doctor. I'm sorry. I'll do anything."
"Help her," said Rose suddenly. She looked sick.
"Everything has its time and everything dies," replied the Doctor without pity.
"I'm too young!" Cassandra screamed, before the skin melted away, leaving nothing but the metal bars that had held her skin stretched out.
…
The Doctor, Rose and Jenny were the only ones who hadn't left. They were staring out at the asteroids that used to be Earth.
"Was it a very beautiful planet?" Jenny asked suddenly.
"Extremely," replied Rose sadly. "The grass, the water, the beaches, the skies…" she shook her head. "And it's all gone."
"No, it isn't," the Doctor assured her. "When you go back home, the Earth will be the same as ever."
Rose didn't say anything, and the Doctor turned to look at Jenny.
"Do you like traveling Jenny?"
Jenny blinked at the unexpected question. "Yeah, I suppose I do… why?"
The Doctor glanced over at Rose, before looking back at Jenny. "Do you want to see the Earth?"
Jenny saw Rose look sharply at the two of them.
"But… it's gone," she said in confusion, glancing out at the asteroids – what was left of Earth.
"Not five thousand years ago it's not."
Rose stood up and went to stand next to the Doctor. Jenny looked between the two of them.
"Why are you looking at me like that?"
"Rose, would you mind if Jenny hitched a ride to Earth with us?"
"I don't have a problem with it."
Jenny's eyes widened, "You mean… come with you!?"
Rose grinned, "Why not? I'll show you around Earth, yeah?"
"Yeah, I'd like that," Jenny laughed, "I'd like that a lot."
…
"You think it'll last forever," said the Doctor to Rose and Jenny. They were watching the people of Earth wander the streets. Jenny didn't think she'd ever seen a planet so beautiful… and so loud! "People and cars and concrete… but it won't. One day it's all gone. Even the sky. My planet's gone –" Jenny looked at him sharply. "- it's dead. It burned like the Earth. It's just rocks and dust before its time."
"What happened?" asked Rose, and Jenny clenched her hands as he answered. "There was a war and we lost."
"A war with who? What about your people?" Rose asked in concern.
"I'm a time lord," Jenny felt her gut clench. "the last of the time lords. They're all gone, I'm the only survivor. I'm left traveling on my own 'cos there's no one else."
"There's us," said Rose quickly, putting a hand on Jenny's arm.
"You've seen how dangerous it is. Do you want to go home? And Jenny, I can bring you back to where you were before if you don't have your transportation."
"If Rose goes with you I'll go, if not…" she trailed off. Rose was looking between the two of them. "I don't know. I want. Oh, can you smell chips?" she said suddenly.
"Yeah. Yeah," said the Doctor, nodding.
"I want chips," she said.
"Me too," the Doctor agreed.
"Me three," said Jenny, hoping she wasn't intruding on a private moment. Rose gave her a grin, so Jenny knew it was okay.
"Right then, before you get us back in that box, chips it is, and you can pay."
"No money."
"What sort of date are you?" Rose winked at Jenny before turning back to the Doctor to continue her sentence. "Come on then, tightwad, chips are on me. We've only got five billion years till the shops close!"
Jenny laughed, but the Doctor hung back and grabbed her arm.
"Who are you Jenny Smith?"
Jenny stared at him, "I don't understand."
"You're right, better question: what are you?"
She paused, not exactly sure how to answer that. She decided to break it to him… if he even was her father. "You know, you remind me of my dad," she said conversationally. This seemed to throw him off. "Your dad? How do I remind you of your dad?"
"Well first off, you're both named the Doctor," she said meaningfully, not waiting to see if he had anything to say about that. "You're both mad geniuses, and you both see planets and travel in time. You're a bit older-looking though," she commented. The Doctor had been staring at her with wide eyes, but at her last sentence, he managed to give a mock offended fake and scoff. "Right, how old is your dad?"
"I have no idea, only met him the once… but he was about 30ish maybe. Lots of brown hair. Thin, really thin…" she glanced up at him. "But that couldn't have been you… right? You'd have to be a completely different person… right?" she said slowly. He didn't answer her straight away. "I've never been to the planet Messaline," the Doctor said, as though this were an answer. "How old is your dad? He can't really be 30ish, I mean, you look like you're in your twenties maybe."
"I'm going to be four… I think," she added, trying to rack her brains. "I kind of lost track of time."
"…okay, tell me something, was your dad a human?"
"'Course not," she said, "He was a time lord… called the Doctor."
The Doctor stared at her. "Could always be a time lord pretending to be me… how do you even know he was a time lord?" he demanded.
"My planet was at war, I had just been made, so I was still cooking –"
"Just been made?" the Doctor cut her off. Jenny nodded. "I'm a generated anomaly. A tissue sample was taken from my father's skin, forcefully if the soldiers shoving his hand in the machine was anything to go by. I was force grown as an adult with military training burned inside my head," she pointed at her head as she said this. "Long story short we were thrown in a jail cell together because he was trying to stop the war with the Hath, while the humans just wanted to win it. They didn't think I could be trusted since I was his…daughter…so they stuck me with him too, and his companion. He had two, but the one girl, Martha, had been kidnapped by the Hath. So it was me, my father and Donna. Donna found my two heart beats, because my father didn't want me tagging along with him… thought… well it doesn't matter what he thought, he ended up changing his mind. But then I got him to talk about the war that the time lords were in… and his face… something in his face made me believe it. It was a tragic, I'll never forget the look on his face. The thing that struck me the most though, was the guilt, the shared pain. That's the look of a soldier who'd forgotten himself," she said, so low that the Doctor had to strain to hear her. He was listening to her every word. "I got us out of the cell…er… doesn't matter how. But we escaped, and I had the chance to kill someone, but I didn't, because he told me I had a choice. He said that killing infects people, so I went against every instinct I had to stop myself from killing someone. I needed him to realize that I was more than just a soldier," she said firmly, taking a deep breath. "He knew, when I told him what had happened… we stopped the fight from happening together after we found Martha. Dad did most of the work though, he was good with words… he had everyone put down their guns. Except for one person. I stepped in front of a bullet for him, and it shot me in one of my hearts. I - I remember…" somehow, the memory of her father cradling her seemed to personal, so instead she said: "I was dead, and then I woke up."
The Doctor paused.
"…Did you… look any different? Like maybe a new person?"
Jenny looked at him in confusion, "No, no I didn't look different. He left though."
"He left you there?" Rose spoke up, and the two of them jumped. Apparently she'd been standing there the whole time, her eyes were huge.
"In all fairness he thought I was dead," Jenny said, still startled by the appearance of Rose.
The Doctor turned to Rose, "how much of that did you hear?"
"Enough to know that you left your daughter without even attending her funeral."
"How do you come to the conclusion that she's my daughter? Could be some other person who goes by the name of the Doctor."
"Who's a time lord?" Rose retaliated. "and you asked her if she looked different, or was different or whatever. So tell me Doctor, why would you ask Jenny somethin' like that?"
The Doctor stared between the two of them, before sighing. "Since we're all sharing and caring, I guess I have to tell you a little cheat the time lords use…"
Alright, hopefully you enjoyed this. Actually, I really hope you did, and if you did please review or at least favorite or follow it. I need to know that my work is being enjoyed, because if not… I might as well not even bother writing it anymore.
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