A/N: Oh all right here's the next chapter! :P But only if you promise to review! :P Please? I would really like to know your thoughts, especially about For as a character :) But after this I really cannot upload for awhile, so please enjoy and please review :D
The Endless War
Chapter Two: Y.A.N.A. All Over Again
Doctor does he mean the Darlek Skaro?
Yes he does. A Darlek Skaro, outside of the Time-Lock, although For wasn't to know that of course. But it did involve me having a private talk with the Ponds while he aquainted himself with my newer TARDIS.
"But what is going on?" Amy asked as The Doctor hurried her and Rory into their bedroom, and they parked themselves on the edge of their double bed. "You told me you were the last of your kind!"
"I am!" The Doctor replied, pacing up and down infront of them.
"Well who's that out there then? For the Fantastic Time Lord Impersonator?" The Doctor cracked the slightest of smiles, looking around at the bedroom, seeing the numerous pictures of the couple in hundreds of different landscapes.
"I've told you before of the Time-War, and how it was locked away from the rest of time." They both nodded, awaiting the rest of the tale. "I also told you that both sides lost, that I was the only survivor... Well, me and them." The Doctor receeded into his ancient memory, his face falling into a blank mask. Rory took the opportunity to ask a question.
"But if you're the only survivor then," he looked back out of the door, at the other man with two hearts that was inspecting and exploring the TARDIS, "what does he mean then?"
The Doctor was dragged back to the present, away from the day he lost everything, and the year he gained nothing. "He means that there is something wrong with the lock that is keeping that war from the rest of the Universe and that means," The Doctor turned to them, "that we might all be in big trouble."
Amy seemed to awkwardly fidget on the edge of the bed. "But," she began, before falling silent and atarting again. "But you told me about Skaro. You said that it was a dead planet, that it had broken apart because of the Darleks, that it had once been their home-world. But if it is back... does that mean they are too?"
"I guess we need to find that out Amelia Pond," The Doctor said, clapping his hands together, turning towards the door and flinging it open. "Maybe it will hold clues to what has happened to the Time-Lock?" He stepped back outside and strode down to the control room, thinking that maybe it would also hold clues to what the Epthatyle had meant by "over the horizons of the Universe," seeing as that was completely ridiculous and utterly impossible.
When they reached the main control room, having walked the entire way in complete silence, they found For lying in The Doctor's cloth chair that hung below the console, admiring The Doctor's handy-work. One leg was on the chair with him while the other hung off, and one of his hands lay on his chest, the other buried in the masses of wires above him. "You know... normally I would have something to say about all this, but for once I can't find anything. I'm impressed."
The Doctor laughed as he decended the stairs, Amy and Rory causously following behind. "That's a first, you always were the first to pick apart my beloved tinkerings." He sounded a little smug. Amy and Rory smiled.
"Oh no... wait. Yep the Frictal valve should be connected to the Dican buffer not the Dican matrix." The Doctor rolled his eyes, attending to the TARDIS' console, flicking numerous buttons and levers until they heard a loud clunk from outside. "Doctor!" The For cried as he bolted up the stairs and started flicking switches himself, "Why are we leaving my TARDIS behind?"
"Don't!" The Doctor warned, and For immediately stopped. "Look." He activated the scanner and watched the three of them gathering around quickly.
On the scanner they could see four Darleks, four old Darleks. They were the smaller, gold and brownish versions, nothing like what The Doctor had seen them 'evolve' into the last time they'd met at the height of World War Two. It was both a relief and a worry, at least they weren't as powerful as their newer counterparts, but it also reinforced just how weak the Time-Lock seemed to have become. The everlasting Lock. Why was it that 'everlasting' never seemed to be as... well, ever-lasting as it suggested?
"What are they!" Rory asked, as he saw them swarming around what seemed like a small space station. "And what is that?"
The For smiled, and The Doctor internally praised the fact that at least For liked humans. "They are the Darleks and that is my TARDIS. Type 44 if you don't mind." The Doctor grimaced.
"You could never help showing off could you? And what is so wrong with my TARDIS? She's brilliant if you ask me." He ducked under Rory's arm and continued to attend to the console. For looked at The Doctor and began to work on the opposite side of the console to him.
"Need a hand?" The Doctor grinned at him and went faster, as though racing his friend to the finish line. They flipped buttons and pressed everything within reach, and at one point For was holding down two buttons already and was having to use his foot to flip the final one.
Eventually The Doctor cried, "A-nd done!"
"Done!" For replied. Amy looked from one Time-Lord to the other, both of whom were breathing heavily, smiling at each other across the console.
"Done what?" The Doctor answered first.
"Well you see Pond what I've just done is inverted the Lupetron matrix, fired the Dican buffer and then done some incredibly complicated and frankly brilliant temporal work so that For here, is now over there," he said, jerking his thumb in the general direction of For's TARDIS. Looking around Amy realized he was right, For wasn't there anymore. "And he, well take a look." Amy looked back at the scanner and saw that it was completely empty. There was nothing, except distant stars and space dust.
"Um, what did he do then?" Rory asked, as he'd seen something happen but he still couldn't quite figure out what that was.
"He distracted the Darleks and took them with him in the Time Vortex. He'll send up a message when he's ready for us to follow. I also attached a permanent lock on his TARDIS' signature, so we can follow no matter where or when he goes within this Universe. Aren't I brilliant?"
"Oh yeah Doctor. Although For seems to give you a run for your money." Amy said, smiling at him. The Doctor laughed.
"Oh For was definitely the better a school but who wants to be good at school? That's SO boring!" Amy and Rory exchanged a furtive look, smiling descreetly. "Oh don't be like that Amelia Pond, I saw your school records." The Doctor said dismissively, "I didn't know that they gave lessons in the headmasters office... or atleast they didn't when I last taught..." The Doctor trailed off remembering thoughts of another life. Rory was surprised.
"You taught? In a school?" The Doctor grinned.
"Yes of course I did! Although there were some bat-like people, Krillitanes... and the Skasis Paradigm... nearly... but still I could have swore I taught in a classroom." Amy grimaced at him.
"Shut-up you," she said pointing threateningly at him, but smiling at the same time. "I'm getting a sense of jealousy here, aren't you Rory?" He went to say that he didn't really think so but there was a ping from the scanner, and The Doctor dragged it around to look at it.
"Okay, lesson over Ponds! We're on our way!" The Doctor dramatically pushed the lever forwards and the TARDIS soared into life, shaking and rocking as always.
"Where are we going!" Amy shouted, calling over the noise and The Doctor's enthused control of the TARDIS.
"We're heading to meet For again! For some reason he's in the year 5.5/Apple/26, the year the Earth died! I'll take a guess at what he did to the Darleks!"
"But that's barbaric!" Amy cried, gripping onto the console to stare at The Doctor. He seemed to not want to answer, but then he eventually looked up to answer although unable to look her in the eye.
"That's war. You do what you can to survive." The next moment the TARDIS came to a sudden halt and the scanner crackled into life.
"Doctor!" a voice whispered urgently, the picture unable to focus. "Doctor I've got to come back aboard! I've disposed of three of their little scout party, but we need to follow the fourth and they already know about my TARDIS. Your's isn't so well known."
"Not yet anyway," the Doctor muttered.
"What was that Doctor? We haven't got much time!" The Doctor grinned and flipped four switches, twisted the vortex manipulator and pressed a finger to his lips as For reappeared on the TARDIS. "Come on Doctor, we have to follow it!" he whispered franticly, bent over an invisible communicator. The Doctor cleared his throat and For turned around embaressed. "Oh very funny Doctor! you've been waiting to do that for centuries haven't you?"
"Possibly," The Doctor admitted, grinning as he sent the TARDIS into the Time-Vortex again, following the only remaining Darlek as it phased away. "Right, cloaking the TARDIS," he said as he moved around the console again, murmering to For as he passed, "something they removed from the 44 if I remember?"
"Yeah!" For cried, staring incrdulously at The Doctor as he continued working away, "because the moment you touched it it would shimmer and then there was the fact that you could never find the thing! Seriously, the chameleon curcuit is good enough if you would just fix the thing-"
"Boys!" Amy cried, just as The Doctor was about to respond and both of them stood in complete silence, looking at Amy with open mouths. "Thank you!" The Doctor took a moment to enjoy For's apparently unusual silence and then tried again.
"I'm guessing you made it look like you perished as well as the Darleks?" For nodded.
"I hid her in the final seconds before the sun expanded, literally. Repit Loop, a new addition for my model I think you'll find." Amy threw him a dangerous look and he nodded slightly and fell silent again. Just then the TARDIS stopped, without the squeeling and whining as The Doctor had at least decided to use the handbrake this time.
Why they put a handbrake on her I do not know! Type 40's were explorational and they made them safe? When have you ever heard of a safe and fun exploration? Safe is really really dull.
I'll keep that in mind. Which rule would that be then?
Oh rule two easily.
Anyway, The Doctor looked at For smiling. He rose an eyebrow. "Now wait, I was there for your driving test. Are you sure we've landed safely for a change?"
"Yes of course we have!" The Doctor said, seemingly offended he would even have to ask. He began to stride towards the front doors, while Amy and Rory leaned closer to The For, Rory asking the obvious question.
"He took a driving test?" For's grin grew, as he whispered back.
"I know, you wouldn't think it would you? I remember that he kept his examiner waiting four years, only to materialize in the middle of his son's wedding! Yeah, you might say he failed that one."
"Oi" The Doctor called, his hand grasping the door handle. "That's enough about my driving skills. I'll have you know that I passed with flying colours the second time around and I can assure you that we are absolutely, one hundred percent, safe!" He opened the door, to the sounds of Darlek energy weapons and innumerous cries of "Exterminate!" He quickly shut the door, the sounds immediately cutting off.
Slowly he turned around to the others and smilied weakly. "Ah. Okay. We may have a problem."
A/N: So what did you think? Please review :D And again if you haven't please read Chime in the Night as it is the precursor to this one, which I also hope you'll like :D Thanks for reading :)
